Vengeance of the Sleepwalkers

It had been a rough century. We fought a revolution and created a government. Nothing
was as difficult as this. It was the year 1807. I married my husband, Thomas, three years ago,
and I havent seen my father since then until now. I grabbed the glimmering samurai sword off
the mantle and ran to Elizabeths room down the creaky hallway. I picked the trembling four
year old up in one arm while holding the sword in the other. I was dashing out of the house. My
pastel pink dress kept falling down beneath my feet. I swore I heard heavy footsteps behind me. I
went over to the wagon to hitch it up. In the moment, I realized I did not know how to hitch it up.
I climbed directly onto the horse. I slung my sword into the saddle, so I could hold onto the
reigns. Elizabeths violet dress was getting wrinkled as we rode. The horse was led along the
grassy green rolling hills only by the clouded moonlight.
We made it to Philadelphia by sunrise. Elizabeths curly red hair was frizzy and all over
the place, and I assumed mine was too. I set Lizzy down as I muttered, There you go. Lizzy
responded by giving me a bug-eyed stare with ocean blue eyes like her fathers.
I pulled out the samurai as I rejoiced, Come on.
Lizzy stuttered, Okay.
We headed off to the towns doctor, Dr. Charles. When he walked in, his face dropped.
He moaned, Caroline, they didnt remain dead. They came back, but they were different. They
were and were not them at the sametime.
I tilted my head and tried to respond. The words wouldnt come out. They couldnt. I mumbled,
What? How? Why! What!
Cases of this have been popping up all over town. They get smallpox and die like normal.
They come back though. It has only been occurring in men. When the living dead bites a woman,
the woman will also turn into a... fake living. We believe there is a parasite in the virus. The
parasite can keep the human body going. It is activated by something way beyond our
imagination! The possibilities are endless!
I looked at him with shock. How could he be so excited? I asked him, Are there known
cases anywhere else?
No, however, it will most likely spread.

I started feeling disdain for Dr. Charles, so I could not stand to be there any longer. I
grabbed Lizzys hand and whispered, Lets go. I walked to the horse to set my sword down in
the saddle. I then ran to the closest store. It hit me that I didnt have money. Thomas was
supposed to harvest our crops yesterday, so we could sell them. I had Lizzy wait outside while I
went around the store finding everything I needed. I grabbed as much as I needed and lifted my
dress as if I was flaunting the top of my pale shin. The store had an ample amount of groceries,
so they can spare a few. Shoving the groceries in my dirt covered boot, I watched over my
shoulder to insure no one was watching. My plan went awry because I was walking out of the
store when the manager started chasing after me. I kicked him in the gut and ran. A few groceries
fell out. He was shocked and stood there for a minute.
He chased me out of the store and yelled, Hey! Come back! I knew he probably did
not make much money; however, it is my child. I would spare one million people to provide for
Elizabeth.
I swirled my daughter up into the air and plopped her on my hip. It was not very
comfortable, but I knew it was the easiest way to hold onto her. I ran to my horse as fast as I
could with a four year old on my hip. I rested her down on the front of the saddle, and I quickly
hopped onto the back. I grabbed the reins with the same hand I had around Elizabeth to insure
she did not fall. I grabbed my sword as the store manager came out. I held it out as a warning to
him. As soon as I knew he could not catch up I flung the sword back into the saddle. I wrapped
my other arm around the most precious jewel in the world to me. Besides the manager seeing my
face, I think I got away with it pretty well. On our way home Elizabeth asked, What did the
doctor mean? I panicked. I mean how do you tell a four year old their father and grandfather are
dead, and are being possessed by something we cant even see.
I explained, It is like people were going to sleep forever and they started sleepwalking. Even
though it is them, they do not have control over their actions.
They are just sleepwalkers?
Yes! They are just sleepwalkers except they turn bad. Stay away from them okay.
We arrived home at noon. I led the horse to her stall in the stable. I grabbed Elizabeth,
threw her in the air, caught her, and set her down. Elizabeth gave me her fullest smile and
giggled. Her laugh always made me smile when I was down. I grabbed her hand and the sword.
My smile fell as I realized Father as well as Thomas were in there as sleepwalkers. While I did
not want Lizzy to see her father and grandfather die again, I did not want her to be alone. If a
sleepwalker wandered out of town, Elizabeth would be defenseless, and I couldnt stand to lose

her. My heart seemed to accelerate more and more as we moved closer to the sky blue door. My
stomach dropped as I reached for the golden doorknob. I raised my sword expecting them to be
waiting for me as I opened the door. I looked inside of the house to see nothing unusual. My
beige colored living room was just as I left it. It was more unnerving not knowing where they
were. I shoved Lizzy behind.
She wailed, Whaaa!
I snapped, Shh!
I knew I would have the upper hand if we were the ones that found them. Each step I
took, I set my foot down as carefully as I could. I took my time to reach the kitchen. I gazed in
the kitchen. Neither one of them was in there. I sighed, Dang it.
I walked at a crawl to go to the downstair bedroom. The door was cracked, so I
stammered, Stay back.
She whined, Okay, but why?
I hissed, Because I said so!
So! The British said to pay taxes without representation b-but we didnt listen!
Just go sweetie, okay? We can talk about why you should do what your mother tells you! Also,
it is very disrespectful to compare your mother to the British government!
She unwillingly left. I grabbed the doorknob and swung the door open. As I expected
they were both in there, but what surprised me was they were doing nothing until they saw me.
Once they realized I was in the door frame they started walking towards me. I raised my sword
and swung it like a baseball bat. It sliced my father in half at the waist. I stepped back to do the
same thing to Thomas when I saw Father wasnt dead. He was still crawling towards me! I
decapitated him right before he reached me. I hopped backwards to give room between Thomas
and me. I caught a glimpse of his blue eyes, so I clutched my eyes shut. I flung my sword
starting at one side of his neck and came out the other. I ran away from the downstairs bedroom
to see my daughter in the living room. She looked up at me horrified. I trembled, Remember
when I told you about the sleepwalkers?
Lizzy replied, Yes.

They were sleepwalkers. Remember how I said they turned bad.

Yes
That is what happened.
Elizabeth looked worried. I told her that I would change my dress then we can play piano.
Elizabeths face lit up. I gave her a little nod and hurried up the stairs to my room. I curled up
into a ball as I started sobbing. I knew it really was not them, but still! A seventeen year old
should not have to kill her father and husband! Really no one should have to. I stayed on my bed
for no longer than a minute because Lizzy was waiting for me. I wiped away my tears and threw
on my sky blue nightgown with lace for sleeves that went to my wrist.
I taught Lizzy to play Yankee Doodle and The Willow Tree on the piano. I got up
and rejoiced, Come on it has been a long day. It is time for bed.
She groaned, Fine
Come on Ill tuck you in, I said as I swooped her up in my arms to carry her to her
room. As I tucked her in I sang, lie there, lie there, you false young man, lie there, lie there,
cried she, six little maidens you've drowned here, now keep them company! Lizzy said that was
her favorite verse from The Willow Tree.
She beamed, Goodnight!
I went to my mahogany wood desk to write letters to my sisters to fill them in on the
tragedy that is Philidelphia. I knew I was never going to send the letters to them because I did not
want to go into the sleepwalkers pit. I wrote them since writing always calmed me down, and I
really needed my sisters. They were always there when I needed them. I woke up to the warm,
bright sun beaming on my face. Wandering around the room, I found myself looking out the
window at all of the crops that needed to be harvested. I knew it was the only way to get food,
but the problem is that Thomas always did it. He would have me help him once in awhile to do
things that I did not bother to pay attention to.
I scavenged the kitchen for something I could make with the little food we had. I ended
up doing soup except we did not have noodles, so it was just chicken in boiling water. When
breakfast was done, I hurried up the stairs to the closet. I was debating which dress I wanted to
ruin until it hit me that I could wear Thomass clothes. They were too large for my petite frame.
Determined to make it work, I rolled up my sleeves and pants as much as I could.

I opened the doors to the gardening shed to receive a lot of confusion. I barely knew what
any of the tools were used for! I slammed the doors and decided on harvesting the crops I knew
how to. I grabbed a basket and headed for the apple trees. Knowing I could not carry a ladder far,
I attempted to climb the tree. I grabbed the first branch with both of my hands and walked up the
side of the tree; however, the branch snapped and I was thrusted onto the long grass. I layed there
for awhile to catch my breath. My back was sore, and my hands were blistering. I really did not
feel like doing it again. I knew we couldnt have soup forever, so I pushed myself up. I found the
thickest branch I could reach without jumping. I threw my basket on the edge and wrapped my
hands around the branch so tight my hands were turning red. I prayed that this one was more
durable than the last. Carefully pulling myself up, I eventually reached branch I was gripping. I
grabbed my basket and scanned the tree for the ripest apples.
For dinner we just ate apples because I was excited that I got us food. Elizabeth looked at
me like I was the child. She murmured, Apples? Shouldnt we make something a little more
dinnier? We dont even have meat?
I explained, I do not want to go back to town. Who knows how quickly the sleepwalkers spread
the disease. We have very little meat for the winter, so we must ration it out. Now, unless you
want to go out there and kill a pig or cow I suggest you stop complaining.
She looked down as she whispered, Fine.
Fine you want to kill an animal, or fine you will stop complaining?
The second one.
Feeling bad, I told myself Elizabeth needed to learn a lesson. Things are not going to be
as comfortable as they usually are. I tossed an apple to her, and grabbed one for me. We sat there
in silence with only the crunch of the apple to fill the air with sound. I had a long day today.
Knowing that tomorrow was going to be as hard, I kissed Elizabeth on her forehead. I rejoiced,
Goodnight, sweetie.
She responded, Goodnight.
Do you want me to tuck you in tonight?
I am good. Thank you though!

Picking apples was hard work. I did not even change out of my baggy clothes before I
went to sleep. As I plopped on my bed, I realized that I just got it covered in dirt, grass, and
leaves. I would normally have cared, but right now I did not.
I woke up at dawn which really annoyed me. I just wanted more sleep. I hurried down the
stairs as fast as I could without tripping over my pants. I decided I should an apple pie for
breakfast before I went out. I told myself that it was for Elizabeth when I really knew I was just
stalling. I loved the satisfaction of actually harvesting the food. I did not love the effort you had
to put in to get it. Patience was not my strong suit, so I played my piano while I waited. The
aroma of apple pie filled the air. I leaped from the piano to the kitchen to get the pie out of the
oven. I knew there were not anymore excuses, so I headed out with a basket under my arm and
dread in my heart. I picked about thirty-six carrots, fifty-nine radishes, and thirty-two heads of
cabbage.
I continued like this throughout the fall. Everyday I would go outside to pick a little ebit
more everyday. The winter was not much better. We kept getting snowed in. I know that it did
not matter if we got snowed in or not because we are not planning on going anywhere in the
winter, but the feeling of being trapped is horrible. You cant leave for any reason.
I made sure to ration the food through the winter. We only ate two meals a day which
was really just vegetables. Once a week we would have bread or meat with our dinner. When all
of the snow melted I ran outside. In addition, whenever we had any leftover bread from the night
before we would eat it.
I hollered, Elizabeth come out!
Elizabeths faced dropped as she screamed, No!
What!
I like the snow.
But we can leave now!
But snow!
But freedom.
But fun.

To show me giving up, I threw my hands up into the mild spring air. I always forget that
children like snow, but we get to leave now. I made my way up the stairs to pack my things. I am
exhausted which would normally bother me, but I am too excited to be annoyed. As I packed my
things I sang to myself and twirled around my small room. I delicately placed all of my clothes
in the bag. I went downstairs to do the same to her belongings. She sat grumpily on the bed the
whole time.
I lifted her off the bed with one hand and the bag with the other. I reached for the sword
and hesitated. I decided I wouldnt bring it because it no longer gave me the false feeling of
security. We hopped onto the horse and headed to my mothers house in New Hampshire. I
wanted to go sooner, but I kept nullifying the trip because of the cold. I stayed there for a little
over two months that is when I moved in with my new husband, James Jackson. He is an
attorney, so he doesnt bring in much, but we are used to that. Things started to seem almost
normal again.