Winged: A Novella (Of Two Girls) Read Online Free PDF

explained to a curious Katherine once. Braille
is designed for the blind as a kind of tactile alphabet. We can
feel our letters.
     
     
     
     
    Then, Examinations descended upon them like
a sudden rush of wings. Cook commented how mouse-quiet everyone was
at mealtimes and how her soups were ignored by tired and pallid
students. “They will lap it up like eager puppies once Examinations
are over!” She declared to Captain Sagan after a desultory turnout
during Tea.
     
    For Katherine, the Examinations did not faze
her. They felt like extended homework, timed by harsh taskmasters.
During this period, her dreams involved flying quill-pens and
overflowing inkpots. To her relief, Miss Sharpton did not make an
appearance and she slept relatively undisturbed.
     
    ~*~
     
    “Do you plan to go back to Dorset?” Alethia
said, soon after their last Examination subject. “Are you
celebrating Yule?”
     
    Katherine was in high spirits after this
paper. The questions were easier than she’d thought. However,
Alethia’s question shocked her. She had not planned to go back to
Dorset. She did not have the courage to face her parents.
     
    “I am going to stay here during the Yule
holidays,” she said quietly.
     
    Alethia tilted her head to one side like a
bird. After an uncomfortable silence, she smiled and said, “You are
going to spend Yule with me. You are going to visit London.”
     
    “No… I …” Katherine shook her head,
overwhelmed by Alethia’s generous offer.
     
     
     
    “The Great Manor is going to be exceedingly
boring,” the girl continued and placed her hand gently on
Katherine’s arm. “You are going to taste the best baked turkey in
the world.” In the cold chill of a winter’s afternoon, Katherine’s
heart was warmed by a simple offer of hospitality.
     
     
    ~*~
     
    The Examinations results were released,
pasted on large wooden boards outside the Administravia. Students
thronged before the boards, searching for their names. Someone had
clearly and painstakingly arranged and written down all names in
alphabetical order and with the attached grades. After a fair bit
of good-natured jostling and pushing, Katherine edged her way to
the board under the letter ‘R’. She scanned the board intently.
     
    Found her name: RILEY, KATHERINE. Written in
quaint and neat black ink.
     
    With trembling finger, she traced her name
and the grades. Athletics – Alpha. Basics of Flight – Beta.
Humanities – Beta. Engineering – Alpha. Languages – Beta,
Mathematics – Alpha . Her heart dipped. Science –
Delta .
     
    But she passed and she was thankful. That
would mean another year at the academy and a chance for her to fly.
Deep inside, she felt guilty that her parents were paying straight
from their pockets.
     
    She pushed herself away from the board and
headed for the courtyard where Alethia and Thomas waited.
     
    “How did you fare?” Thomas grinned when she
approached. He had passed most of his subjects with good grades and
he loved comparing his performance with Katherine.
     
    “I passed,” Katherine said simply and
shrugged. Alethia laughed at her friend’s sardonic tone. The
fair-haired girl had excellent grades but she did not like to
compete with others and therefore had remained silent.
     
    “Aw,” Thomas pouted like a little boy.
Katherine made a face and they both laughed. It was the End of Term
and the beginning of the Yule holidays.
     
    ~*~
     
    London was definitely different from
Dorset.
     
    As the horse-drawn carriage made its way
through the busy London streets, Katherine stared at the bustling
crowds of people and the number of carriages and vehicles. Steam
rose from various vents, swirling together with the light fog and
parting as carriages ferried their passengers around. She could see
people standing around lit fires, taking in the much-needed heat.
Chestnut-sellers were doing brisk business; Katherine’s mouth
watered. She loved roasted chestnuts, oh deliciously hot