Full Figure by Laura Dymond

Full Figure by Laura Dymond

from from Snow White.

“Selene, you know the rules; you will address her as ma’am,” her father scolded from his spot at the kitchen table.

“Yes sir,” Selena answered, sighing under her breath.

“Now get started on dinner and try not to burn anything,” Kara ordered. Selene only nodded when her stepmother handed her a grocery bag. Inside there were some potatoes, along with meat and sour milk. No doubt it was what Selene had smelled earlier, but she said nothing as she got to work. As she was peeling the potatoes so she could mash them up, her father commented about her appearance.

“Your hair is too long. After dinner, I am going to cut it,” he said without a second thought.

“But Father, it’s not even past my shoulders,” she protested, but that only made her stepmother angry.

“Don’t talk back to your father now. Keep quiet!” Kara yelled. Selene remained silent after that, and about an hour later dinner was finally done. Alex came running down immediately when his mother called for him, and Selene scoffed when the woman happily picked him up.

“Mommy, I love you,” he said with a smile, and Kara kissed him on the head.

“Aww, baby, I love you as well,” she responded, and Selene hid her face. If that vile woman is capable of loving her son, why doesn’t she love me? the girl thought to herself. “Jack, is it okay if he sits with you?” Kara asked.

“Of course,” her husband responded, and Alex ran to his father. “Hey, buddy, how are you?” Selene tuned everyone out as her halfbrother talked about his day. She was only interested in eating and getting back upstairs, not the words of a six-year-old. The milk was sour, and the meat wasn’t perfect, but at least it wasn’t undercooked. Selene remained mostly silent while everyone else spoke, that is until her father spoke directly to her. “So how are your grades, Selene?” he asked, and she paled a bit. If her grades were not good, then her father would lock her inside her room.

“I have nothing below an A, Dad,” she responded, being honest. Despite everything she went through, Selene was incredibly bright and able to maintain straight A’s throughout her first year of middle school.

“Impressive,” Kara commented, “considering you hide in your room all the time.”

“I only go there to reflect on my day, ma’am,” Selene answered. The pre-teen didn’t feel like mentioning that’s where she cursed both of her guardians and thought about running away.

“Why not just tell us?” Jake asked, but Selene didn’t answer him. She pushed her empty plate away and lied about being tired. “Fine; do the dishes and wait for me in your room; then you go to bed,” her father responded. Selene did what she was told, and before she knew it, her father was standing in her bedroom with a pair of scissors.

“Why can’t you just let me grow it out a bit?” Selene asked, despite knowing that her father would berate her for questioning him.

“Selene, we have talked about this a hundred times. I can’t let anyone know you’re a girl,” he told her. “As the oldest, it is your responsibility to continue the family business,” he continued. Selene sighed as she knew what was coming. Her father was referring to the

tech company he owned. Since she was the firstborn, it was her job to run it after he retired or died.

“I know, and people won’t approve of it being run by a woman,” she answered before he could finish.

“Exactly; now hold still and don’t forget to finish your project tomorrow,” he responded as he began cutting her brown hair. It took only a few minutes before she looked like a boy with slightly long hair. “Excellent don’t you think, my boy?” he asked and she just nodded, because she hated that he did this to her, and how he tried to make her conceal who she was. “Now get some sleep. You have to wake up early too.”

“To make you and Kara breakfast, I know,” she responded and didn’t relax until he had left the room. It was then that she allowed herself to let tears fall, after these years of mistreatment. Her hope that one day things would improve had almost completely vanished. Her parents didn’t love her. So what was the point of waiting for someone else if she couldn’t be herself?

Miles away another girl was having similar feelings, though unlike Selene she lived with a very loving family. Diana was a shifter, meaning that she could transform from her animal form to a human form. Right now she was in her silvery wolf pup form, and she wasn’t allowed to change into human form. No one in her pack was since it was against the rules and would expose the secret of their kind and home. The Moonlight Meadows was home to all shifters ranging from small animals like a mouse to mythical creatures like a phoenix. Centuries ago they were at war with the humans. Now there were hardly any left, which is why Diane found herself guarding the hidden gate to it in the middle of the night.

“Why can’t I just be myself?” she asked.