There were five of them. All of them naked and so thin and pale that you could actually see through them. When they went outside, nobody would like to come across them. Nobody liked them at all. So, they always sticked together with themselves.
As a result, these children always seemed to have more hunger of love than of food. Their mothers were always sleeping and their father— this they knew that they all had the same father named Aghostino— didnt even recognise them. When they ran after him to his house, he would simply slam the door like he never saw them.
Lucy, the eldest of them, did not like the old man. This was because of a distressing incident that took place many years ago, when she too used to run after her father. It so happened that one night, she crept into her father's bedroom through an open window. He was half asleep in his bed; between snoring and and keeping the bottle of rum in his hand from spilling. Lucy couldnt wait any longer and shook him up. "Papa, come play with me!" She kept repeating. The old man took time to realize and when he did so, he froze for a second and started screaming swears and prayers. He turned violent and drove her out of the same window. Lucy never understood why. The next day she saw her father bringing in an old man wearing a funny white dress with beads and heavy books in his hands. Whatever they did inside, Lucy just sensed that she should never go back to that house again. Ever.
During those days she had no siblings. And as she couldnt play with other children, she had to be content just by 'watching' them play. She loved their dresses and she loved their shoes. She always admired their beautiful feet.
Years passed by in solitude and then one day she got a new brother— and the rest followed.
The way how people avoided these children seemed rather amusing to them at first. It was fun to see them make all sorts of faces and frenzy whenever they saw them and slowly they understood that those people were afraid of them. Soon, this little 'fun encounters' became a habit until one day, people got angry and made them sick. They put the children in pain. Lucy saw the same old man in white dress whom she had seen at her father's house last time. He was speaking to her very harshly—"Dont trouble us! You, along with your minions full of lies, transgression and seduction, give us way! You monsters! You abominable creatures! Give way..."— and that was the end of their favourite game.
So they went back to sticking together with themselves. They roamed about anywhere in the most silent manner and watched their ill wishers from distance during daytime and slept with their mothers during nighttime; occasionally at their father's porch. Except for Lucy.
One morning, Simon—the youngest one— shook her up from her sleep. When she opened her eyes he was sobbing and saying something.
"Papa...is going somewhere.." he said in the most choking voice.
When Lucy arrived at her father's house, it was crowded. Some men were dragging him and his hands were tied with iron. He was struggling to free himself as they beat him up everywhere with long sticks. Obnoxious screams of pain and anger came out of his mouth until the last word echoed in the air as he was pushed inside a wailing car. Lucy watched everything. The screams ceased when they took away her father and all that remained behind was the pitiful sobs of her little brothers and sisters, and a fading crowd of people muttering— " Serves him right! That vulgar man! How many innocent women will he assault and kill! Serves him right, serves him right!"—And then silence engulfed.
Somewhere, near her mother's bed, she smelt of flowers. It came from a newly laid bed of mud and it instantly filled her with a strange thrill. It meant a new family. Now all she had to do was to wait for the little one to be born and pray like always— "Please come with beautiful feet.."— and she looked down at her own feetless legs.
