The Long Night

Sarah sat in her dark bedroom breathing as silently as she could, not wanting to alert the monk stationed outside her bedroom door to the fact that she wasn't yet asleep. She must have laid still for hours, her body aching slightly from her refusal to move but she was desperate to see the moon- something her father's priest admonished, insisting that one glance at the moon would bring out her demons no matter what stage of its cycle. After living with her affliction for years, though, she knew it wasn't so. The cursed woman held her breath as she slid ever so carefully off her bed, taking care to keep her eyes trained on her feet to ensure she didn't step on the loud board that would definitely alert the Holy guard that she was moving around. Slowly she stepped to tue window and ever so gently tapped the shudders to open them just a sliver to get a glimpse at the night sky, her breath coming out in a slow sigh. Waxing Gibous. Closing the window she crept back to bed and slid beneath the thin quilt. Just a couple more days before she would have to be shackled in the woods. Over the next two days Sarah made sure to sneak extra food, knowing she would likely go without for a few days until someone retrieved her the day after the moon was at its fullest. She didn't blame any of her family for not coming to her in the woods. During the next few days the quiet, mild mannered lady would turn vicious. Her skin would burn even in the dead of winter and her mouth would spit the most vile insults it could as the demon inside her fought for control. She would rip at her clothes in a desperate attempt for relief from the scorching heat that threatened to melt her from the inside out, a newer development since her monthly blood started a few years ago. Needless to say, it wasn't a pleasant experience and that was nothing compared to what would happen to her once the moon was at its highest. Try as she might to hide the coming of the demon, it always managed to lash out at those around her in warning of what was to come. now three days passed her last glimpse of the moon she was bringing in water from the well. Usually a task reserved for servants, it had been relegated to her along with various other exhausting chores. The priest felt if her body was exhausted it would weaken the demon. As she carried the heavy buckets her okder brother, Isaac, tripped her, causing the water to splash out of the buckets as she fell toward. Slowly she sat up, her lip bleeding since she'd bitten it when she hit the ground. "What is wrong with you?! These buckets are heavy, I'll have to go all the way to the well you stupid bastard," she snapped, freezing when she heard her mother's gasp behind her. s**t. "Pardon me, brother. I didn't mean--" "Pardon you? for allowing the demon to spill out of your mouth?" It was her father, Edward, that spoke up, his voice making her sit up straighter and raise quickly to her feet so she could turn and face him. She brushed the back of her hand across her face to get rid of the droplets of blood that started to form, but his eyes had already found the small wound on her lips. "Seems the demon is gaining more power by the moment for your teeth to pierce your lip that way. Anna," he paused and turned to glance back at his wife. "Find someone to clean this up and fetch clean water. Isaac, with me to take her out of the village to the wood," he instructed before turning back to eye his children. Sarah turned to run on instinct, the action happening faster than her logic could tell her it was a bad idea. Isaac managed to grab her arm and yank her back, wrapping his other arm around her head to pull her into a tighter hold. With his arm close to her face Sarah's instinct won out again as she tilted her head and sank her teeth into her brother's arm, not stopping until she had a mouthful off his blood and something hard hit the side od her face. She fell away from her brother and was panting as she lay sprawled out on the cobblestone courtyard. Her father reached forward and gripped her hair at the back of her neck to force her to her feet. She screamed from the pain and frustration and rage that built quickly within her before she spat the blood in her mouth at his face. Edward wiped the blood and spit from his face with the sleeve of his free hand befkre he gripped one arm and wrenched it behind her and up her spine, his other hand still holding the back of her head tight. "Isaac," he snapped at his son before he started to walk forward, picking up his pace when he heard his son follow quickly after him. They reached an area deep in the woods where a chain was wrapped around a strong, sturdy tree. One end of the chain had a shackle big enough to fit around Sarah's neck. Edward forced his daughter to her knees and waited until Isaac locked her in place before he let go and slapped her once more hard across the face. "If you insist on acting like the Devil's dog, we'll continue to chain you up as such. Turn to God and repent, Sarah. That is your only salvation," he spat before straightening out his clothes. He took Isaac by the arm and stepped back a few feet as Sarah jumped up and lunged towards them, stopping and falling backwards as she used up the small amount of lead from the chain. She coughed and choked as she tried to catch her breath and soothe her aching throat as her own father and brother left her there without another word.