He woke with a start, awake before anyone else in the house. His siblings were still asleep in the bed opposite to him. After getting dressed, he practically danced down the stairs and out the door. The morning was an array of golds and deep blues. After months in snow, green grass and small wild flowers started poking through the earth. The dawn was still cold, the remains of the storms prior. He buckled his favorite cloak, draping it over his shoulders and grabbed his basket which was heavy with packages. 

“I can finish deliveries before anyone wakes.” He said, determined. He usually did this. Wake before the sun and deliver his father's medicines to the village on the other side of the river. It was easiest this way. No one would be awake at this time to pester him. The village would be quiet and his siblings wouldn't have to save him. So, he made his way through the forest, now thick with starts of foliage, and came to the stone bridge. It was old and slippery from the mixture of melted snow and young moss, creating smile that seeped into the cracks of the rock. He crossed it, careful not to step on any of it. The river was quiet, slowly eroding away the last of the ice and slush that covered it. 

The village was just as he had hoped, silent with its cold breeze making way for warm ones. He smiled and got to work. It didn't take long for him to get the packages to the right houses. It was very straightforward and he knew everyone who lived here. Though they didn't really like him… He shook his head. Why would he think of all that on the first day of spring? He turns eleven today after all. It called for celebration, even if the rest of the village didn't join in. 

As he placed the second to last package on its door step, he noticed he hadn't been paying attention to the sun. It was well over the horizon, the sky turning a bright blue as light summoned the villagers. Everyone thundered into the streets at once, not wasting any time. Very few paid him any mind, the rare couple giving him a scowl or a snear. He didn't care. He had one last package and then he would be done