Lions and Lambs

Chapter 4

Sabine

The only evidence of Sabine's late night escapade was a missing chunk of bread and fatigue that plagued her throughout the day. Only her father remembered her birthday, and all he gave her was an awkward pat on the back and something about her becoming a woman before she and her sisters were sent off to school with the rest of the children.

She sat through a sorry excuse of a class for three hours, all the while her eyes locked on the window as her imagination twisted last night into an epic adventure, one that sent butterflies racing through her stomach and a blush staining her cheeks. She half expected the prisoner to drift from every shadow she passed, a golden grin pasted to his mouth as he held out a slender hand and whisked her away.

The events changed in her mind until she felt her heart would explode from the excitement of waiting so long to see him again. Perhaps he was a prince, one that came from another world where magic was as common as air, and he would take her away to his palace where she would learn to touch the sky and the stars.

"Sabine," A harsh old voice snapped inches from her face. Her head jerked up to meet sunken eyes and the sneering face of her teacher. "Quit daydreaming or I will send you outside." The old man gave her a look of distaste that told her his opinion on females in the classroom then returned to his seat. Lucky for him, in another two years she would end her schooling and continue searching for a husband. Sabine's mouth soured at the thought of who she would probably be forced to marry; no doubt some boring fisherman's son who would be as hideous as the sea creatures he caught.

"Sorry sir," she muttered, hate flaring in her belly as she watched him hobble around the tiny room. Sabine wiped away the sweat beading on her brow and sank lower in her chair in an effort to block out the snickers from the other children.

Someday they would choke on their laughter. When they saw her stroll down the street surrounded by soldiers and dressed in the finest clothes, they would piss their thrice damned pants and call for the gods' mercy.

Until then, Sabine shut her mouth and did as she was told.

#

That evening Sabine could barely contain her excitement all throughout dinner. She was so distracted, she didn't even bother snapping at her sister when she took the last piece of bread. What would her step-mother say if she saw the prisoner? Would she be terrified of his shifting features, or would she scold him for having a dirty face?

Sabine looked up at the woman who always had the expression of having just eaten something sour. Her daughters had inherited those pursed lips, along with long brown hair that Sabine personally thought looked like dirt. It never shone with plum and gold undertones as hers did, something she had made quite sure of on numerous occasions. Of course, whenever she tried to point this out to her sisters, they slapped her and told their mother.

Silly girls, she thought to herself. Their lives would be cursed to forever remain bland and monotonous while she had met a real monster, one with magic and everything.

"What are you smiling so smugly about?" her step-mother snapped.

Sabine bit her lip. "Nothing," she said, shoveling another bite of rice into her mouth. "It's my birthday."

Her step-mother raised a pair of furry eyebrows. "Well, isn't that wonderful for you." She turned to her husband. "Twelve years ago today your whore brought another useless creature into the world. Something to celebrate I would imagine."