Christine sat on the edge of the porch with her back to one of the pillars which kept the roof overhang up. She sat with her knees practically to her chest, diligently focused on writing, with all of the flexibility and unconcerned focus of the very young engaged in a favored activity. The journal that she wrote in was a present from her mother, before the start of school. Mother explained that going to school was important, because it taught her lots of things. Mother included learning how to deal with people in this list of important lessons. Mother wanted Christine to know that this was important, but Christine still couldn't understand why her mother seemed so worried. Christine knew how to be polite. Mother gave the journal to Christine, and told her to write her thoughts, feelings, and memories into the book. Mother said that maybe one day it would help her understand her feelings and learn from mistakes. Since then Christine had been determined to keep a careful log of her life, if only to please her mother.<br/><br/>She glanced up as her Uncle Anton called to her and waved her over to him. Typically she would rush over to greet him, and the words ‘I have something for you’ were bound to get her attention, but she was in the middle of a sentence and loath to stop there. Her Uncle Anton was her favorite distant relative. He was just a little odd, compared to the other family members, but not in the same way as scary Great Uncle Philip. His visits were ones that Christine always enjoyed.<br/><br/>Just as she penned the last word, her Uncle called again and she shut the book, placing it on the edge of the porch, before hopping down from her seat and rushing over to him. She clasped her hands behind her back, rocked on her heels, and grinned up at him. “Hello, Uncle. Did you need something?” Christine couldn’t keep from looking at what her uncle was holding. It was oddly shaped and filled with a silver liquid, a shine that caught her attention. Even without the shine, the strange nature of the object and the activity that her uncle had involving it would have caught her curiosity.