1 Jeden

-Vreni-

People say to love themselves before loving another, but how can you love yourself when you don't know who you are?

I remember the day, it started off so normally. Breakfast, a bath, lessons from my Governess, Lunch, and that was when my day flipped on its head.

I remember seeing people flooding into the streets, wearing striped clothes that could've used a wash. I remember my thoughts being so scrambled that day.

Who were these people? Why were they all wearing the same? And why were they in my town?

My eyes locked on a pair down in the streets. A girl, about my age, she was thin. Her face looked washed out and exhausted, her skin was dull and pale. I remember my head tilting at confusion at her, she noticed me and her face fell into a large frown. My eyebrows furrowed, why was she sad? I left the window and stepped over to my mirror. I looked at myself for a moment, there was nothing on my face, my blonde ringlets were still intact, and there was nothing in my teeth.

I left the mirror and went back to the window, but I couldn't find the scowling girl down in the street.

I remember just watching the people below for a while, wondering what they were doing, but I was interrupted by Ida, my Governess, entering my room. "Miss Dietrich, you must pack your things. We are going to go and visit your grandfather, make sure to remember your mother's letters." I nodded at her before she scurried away. Taking one final look back down at the street, I pulled my trunk from my wardrobe and started packing what I needed, I would be coming back in a while anyway.

Remembering what Ida said, I opened my top drawer and gently pulled out my mother's letters. I smile at the picture of her on top. It has been a while since she sent me a letter, but I trust that one will come soon. Perhaps it will be delivered to Grandfather's? I lay the letters gently in the top of my trunk next to Anna, my stuffed bear.

"Make haste, Vreni. We have to get going!" I heard Ida call from downstairs. I put on my jacket and slipped on my boots, before doing the fiddly laces. Heaving my trunk in one hand, and my favourite book in the other, I carefully walked down the stairs, to see Ida already waiting by the front door. Manfred, the butler, was also there, he was probably travelling with us. I gave Ida a small smile, she seemed more sad than usual, she had smile lines from smiling so much, but today her face was low and her eyes didn't have their usual twinkle.

"Let's go child." Ida ushered me out of our house and towards our motor car. I spotted the same people from before, and when my eyes locked with theirs, they started yelling and cussing at me. My eyes glossed over from what they were saying about me.

Monster, enemy, murderer, half-breed, Nazi.

Ida hastily jostled me into the car, away from the angry people. She sat in the back with me while our driver and Manfred were in the front. The journey felt like it took forever, Grandfather did live in Austria I suppose, but I didn't know it would take us five hours to leave town and to get to Vienna. I kept thinking back to the people yelling at us when we left the house. I turned to Ida to ask her about it, but she was staring out of the window every time I looked.

I sighed and took out my book to read. I was five pages in when something outside broke my concentration. We were driving past a building; it was on fire and people were crowding outside it. They were wearing similar clothes to the people in the streets, only these people were cheering and were smiling wildly. We quickly drove past them and towards the green fields of Austria. My head began to lay to the side and my eyes drifted closed.

"What is your business here?" A loud voice boomed, making my eyes snap open from my slumber. I looked out of the window to see two men in military uniform. Though, it was different from the uniform my father wore, and different from the soldiers who used to come to my house and talk with my father about things that I was forbidden to know about.

Our driver rolled down his window and poked out his head. "Not...good English." The men squinted their eyes at him, "What are you doing entering Austria?" The man raised his voice above his usual boom, which was very impressive, considering how deafening his previous words were. "Come to see family" Our drivers voice was very stoic and his words seemed static and separate. Different to how his usual voice was.

The men sighed and gestured for us to continue in our journey, I waved at them as we became further and further away. Facing back to the front I went back to my book and continued reading. I think back to the last time I saw my grandfather. He must be very old now, he had white hair with a big bald patch in the middle, a hunched posture, sea blue eyes and always walked with a cane.

Father always told me that Grandfather was a great man, and that everybody should aspire to be him. Apparently, he fought valiantly against the enemy in the first war. Despite originally coming from Germany, he now lives in Austria as he wanted his life to calm down and have a nice big garden with lots of green.

Father would always take me to Grandfather's house when I was very young. It was a huge stone mansion in the middle of the Austrian Countryside outside Vienna. Grandfather has always had a lot of money, and bought his mansion just before Grandmother Helga died many years ago.

I recognised the gravel path leading up to Grandfather's house as we begin driving on it. We turn a corner and the mansion enters into my view. It's huge towers and grandeur makes me smile; lots of my favourite childhood memories were made in the grounds of this mansion.

I do wonder how long I'll be staying for?