“BOY! go help your mother with the firewood for the stove!” A loud, gruff voice echoes through the open field. On the other side of the farm's ground, a small, thin and dirty boy turned around. Despite barely being a teenager, he still was small and frail like children half his age. He had busy shoveling the freshly threshed wheat grains from the floor into barrels. Pouring the last sieve of grain he had into the barrel, he wiped the sweat and dirt on his face as he looked in the direction of the large old man.
“Yes father!” he said with a shrill, both happy to stop gathering grains and to see his mother. Yet his smile stilled for a moment, knowing that there is going to be more work to be done, but he went anyway. The thought of helping his mother filled him with energy.
He ran, giving a wide berth to his father’s work. His face is still itching after being hit by a stray swing from his father's wooden flail, the red mark still burning on the left side of his head.
Opening the old wooden door that led inside their house’s kitchen and living room, his mother caught him in her arms, pulling him close.
“There you are my sweet Iulian. Silly child, why is your head red? Look at you all covered in chaff and dust.” She dusted him, examining his head, the painful welt made him wince and recoil as she touched it.
“It's nothing mother, I slipped on the grain and hit my face on the grain barrel." He tried to turn around, but his mother's grip didn't let him.
"Did you annoy your father again?" She asked, her tone sweet yet smothering, there was something in it he couldn't put his finger on it.
"No mother. I didn't pay attention when fetching his gourd." He looked down, ashamed and uncomfortable.
"You know you should be more careful. Your father loves you, you know? And I am sure he didn't intend to hurt you, but if you aren't careful yourself that won't happen." She rubs his head, the words rang false to his ears, yet the rest felt genuine. He didn't know what to believe anymore.
"Father told me you needed more firewood?” He squeezed himself out of her grasp, and asked.
“Yes my child, here. Go to the back and cut some log and make some kindling for me, would you? And if you can start the fire afterwards, I'll make sure to give you some more of last night's venison.” she said, cupping his cheeks with affection, before handing him a small hatchet that was near the stove.
Iulian smiled upon hearing his mother, a gentle and bright smile that made his mother chuckle.
“Really?! There’s some left?” He was so delighted, meat has always been rare, and venison even more so.
“Yes my sweet child, remember to thank freeman Artenie if you see him. Now go. The sooner you finish, the earlier we can eat.” she smiled at her boy's simple joy, she smiled as she shoo him out, before dusting herself.
Iulian went to the back, where his father's woodworking area was. The place was full of debris and wood dust, which was why his mother was glad he was old enough to do it in her stead. Approaching the large log used as a cutting block, he set his hatchet next to it, breathing in the crisp air of the harvest season. Leaves were starting to fall with the cold wind, yet the sun was pleasant and warm enough to bask despite the keen gales.
Fetching a small log from the drywood rack. He put it on the block, and started working.
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Back in the kitchen, the older man was sitting silently at the table. His boy had already made enough firewood to lit the stove, yet he told him to keep at it. To make kindling for the whole week.
“Petre, did you hear? The Artenie's boy came back.” His wife said, still hunched over the pot, stirring it.
“He did? Didn’t they say he was taken by the witches in the forest?”
“That they did, but that is not the important part.”
“Then what is it, woman? Get to the point.” His Loreta was always like this, always turning round and round the subject, and he is tired.
“Lords in heaven, the food is about to be ready so don’t snap at me like this!”
“...right… So?” This was also why he got married to her, he thought as his eyes went from his wife to the pot and back.
“... So the boy came back as a girl. Such a sad fate, to be cursed like this just before his wedding.”
“WHAT?! You make no sense Loreta. How could a man become a... it's indeed a grim twist of fate… these witches… I hope one day a servant of the lords will come to punish these sacrilegious and wicked hags.” His anger rises as he slams his closed fist on the table, while he knows that his wife liked talking, he knows she would never lie.
"What can we even do to help? We are his godparents, shouldn't we help or do something?" his voice was strained as he looked at her with despair and sadness, they had helped raise the boy since young, and this broke his heart.
Meanwhile, beside the open kitchen windows sat Iulian, confused as much as his father was angry and sad. Yet the more he heard, the more intrigued he became, and unlike his father, it was not disgust or anger that surfaced, but curiosity. Interest.
“I can’t help but imagine this happening to our own boy! What if the witches get to him as well? He already has more of me than you, perhaps-.”
“Perhaps nothing, woman. Our boy should know better than wander off into the witchwoods. And if he needs help to remember that we are serfs and not yeomen. Then I will make sure of it.” The voice of the old man was cold as he left the threat hanging in the air, his fist impacting the table again.
“... He is already so weak and small when compared to others his age… don’t make him lame as well.”
“I will do as I must.”
“And you must make sure your child, your own flesh and blood is alive and able to thrive. Keep in mind that he is the only one that we have despite still trying.”
“Right… I still can’t accept how weak he is, despite everything we put him through. Must be your part of the family…”
“Don’t start with my family!”
Iulian was frozen over. Both by the threat and what he learned about his childhood friend.
‘Marius… or maybe it is Maria now, I guess? I wonder how is h… she? How is she dealing with it.’
He didn’t know why. The idea of his older friend becoming a woman kept making noise in his mind, as if stuck in his brain. No matter how he turned the thought around and questioned it. It wouldn’t budge.
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In the later part of the afternoon, he made his way to the neighbor’s house. While they were free men, they didn’t discriminate against him and his family. Which he was glad to, despite his father's incessant reprimand to not bother them.
“Hello sir Artenie. I’ve heard from Mother and Father that your eldest came back. I was worried about them. Is it alright to ask if I can visit?” His voice was meek, the threat of his father’s beating still fresh in his mind.
“Hello Iulian, come in. And please, I’ve told you there’s no need to be so polite with us. Even if we are now free, it doesn’t take away the toil your father and I did when I was still a serf.. Go ahead, she is in her room.” The man was as tall as his father, and just as strong looking as well, yet he sported a finely trimmed beard unlike the rough fur his father called his beard.
He nodded, despite the kindness Velkan Artenie gave to his family and him over the years. His father’s warning to not anger them still took precedence in his mind, scaring him everytime he went over.
“Yes sir, my thanks.”
“Did something happen with that bear of a man pretending to be a civilized father? Aaaaah… No need to say anything. Run along, I am sure she will be happy to see you.” Clicking his tongue and sighing, Iulian was ushered in the house. He took off his boots and took the clean sandals reserved for guests.
‘I still can't understand why they go to such lengths. ’ He looks at the clean, indoor only shows his friend’s family used, clacking on the paved stone floor as he made his way in and up the wooden stairs.
knock knock
“Hey it’s me, heard you come back… Are you alright?”
Before he could finish he could hear footsteps rushing to the door.
Opening the door wide was a young woman,her face was all smiles as she took him in her arms.
“Hey little Iuli! I am so glad you could come see me! I missed you. Come on in, there’s some much I need to catch you up with!” She twirled with him in her arms, she was still as tall as before, and just as strong too he noticed, his feet still in the air.
He was then promptly dragged in by her, glad his friend appeared to be more joyful and dynamic than before.
Pulling the chair she had in her room for him, she sat on her bed and crossed her legs.
"You seem to be happy, do I call you Maria now?" Iulian asked, the brightness of his friend's smile was contagious as he too smiled at her.
"Like you can't believe Iuli! It's like a massive weight was lifted from my shoulders I didn't know I carried. And that mom and dad accept me like this is awesome!" she swayed from side to side, bouncing on her bed with joy.
He was glad for her, truly, yet he couldn't help but ask. "But what about your fiance? Is. Is Sophia aware, or accepting?" He felt bad right after saying it, yet the smug smile from Maria let him know that something was afoot.
"Believe me or not, she is fine with it! And, I got something from the witch to help too!" She leaned over her desk and took something from it before showing him.
"See this amulet? With this I can still have children with her, this was the main thing that kept the engagement safe, that was the main criteria her parent's had. Somehow the witch had a blessed accessory from the Church of fertility on hand, So when she asked if I needed it, I said yes." The smugness radiating off of her made Iulian laugh as well, this didn't make much sense to him, but as long as she was happy, he was as well.
"Just like that? They don't care about you not being a man anymore?" Going with the flow he asked, yet the smile on her face stilled for a second, before she leveled her eyes at him. Her eyes were serious as she looked at him, though there wasn't any anger or malice in her words and expression, he knew he asked something of a sore, painful subject.
"That's the thing Iulian, I never truly was a man. Not on the inside at least, that's something I learned from the witches. Tell me Iuli, what does it mean for you to be a man, or a woman for that matter?"
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After a few hours, he left, his head filled with more questions than answers. Yet what remained at the forefront of his mind is that he is happy for her, for Maria. The childhood friend he grew up with was at peace with herself, her engagement still strong, her future and happiness assured.
He started thinking about what she had said: 'What it means to be a man, to be a woman.' Walking down the dirt road back to his parents' home. The open fields of brown with the colorful forest in the background made him slow down, admiring the sight for the first time in a while as his mind went on.
“Where were you boy?” The tone was cold, uncaring and rough. This is a voice he could easily recognise, being that of his father: Petre.
“At the neighbor’s house, father. I heard that Marius… Maria returned. So I was worried and went to check on her. I asked Mother first if I was allowed to.” Iulian was scared, yet he knows his father can't say or do anything. He had gone to check on his friend, on his godparents’ eldest son at that.
“That you did… so, Maria?” His face as cold as stone, there wasn't any emotions or expression to be found that could help Iulian act.
Swallowing hard, he nodded. “Yes father, that’s what she wants to be called… with how her body changed, it makes sense i guess. There's no big difference between Marius and Maria as names go, too.”
“Perhaps it does… but Marius was to be wed next week. Did they tell you what they are going to do about it?”
“Erm… yes they did… said that her fiance and her family didn’t have a problem with it. And with a priest of Fertility, they could… have children anyway. I don’t think I get it. But that’s what she told me.” Iulian watched his words, trying to pre-empt things from escalating the way he knows his father's do.
“... ‘She’, ‘Her’... don’t you have a problem with your friend changing like this? I find it… unnatural… damn witches…”
“I… I don’t know… She seemed happy… more than before for sure.”
“Doesn’t matter if she is happier or not. These witches messed with he- his gods given body! And now they need a priest of fertility… to need to bother the divine and their servant for… arf!”
“But…”
“No but! You listen to me.”
“Father! Do you remember when you made me read the holy text to you after mother taught me letters. The part about the following of the Dancing joy? Don’t they say that everyone deserves to be happy? Or that part about the church of Lo-”
“ENOUGH! Don't cite the heavenly book to me, boy. You are too young and naive to compare it to the real world! Now come in, and be sure to stay well away from the forest. Or you will be in a world of hurt.” For the first time, Iulian looked at his father, not with fear, but with anger. Something had snapped in the small teen's mind.
"Go ahead then! Hit me. And then go explain to mother and my godparents that your only son is hurt and crippled because of you. You say I am too naive, but look at you! The Artenie are glad their DAUGHTER is happier than before! Even the Bourgmeister who engaged their daughter with Maria don't ca-." Iulian couldn't finish his sentence, his entire body flying to the side from his father's slap. Landing in the ditch between the road and the field, he looked up, his eyes blurring as something warm started seeping from his head.
Getting up, he wiped his eyes, and looked at his father with silent rage.
"Lower your eyes boy, I am still your father and it is my job to correct you when you fail. And you failed me a great many times now. Go home, and we will not speak of this, understood? You are banned from going to your godparents and their freak of a daughter." Despite the anger, there wasn't a hint of remorse to be found in him, ' like always'.
"Like we won't speak of why you drank our last coins? Or why did the Golea’s eldest daughter leave the house three months ago with a limp?"
"BE SILENT! You are a worthless brat who can’t work and can't even listen to your father. You should have been happy I only gave half the correction you deserved, but it seems I shouldn't have. Go home now, and have your mother tend to that wound, I will not let you shame our family more than you already do." Iulian bit down hard, swallowing his anger and disgust for the man and did as he was told.
Opening the door he saw his mother's face twist from annoyance to happiness to surprise. "What happened to you?!"
"You already know what happened." he sat at the table, not even looking at her.
"Did you do something to anger your father again?" she asks, grabbing the bucket of clean water they had in the kitchen with some clean rags she kept around. Yet Loreta saw that something was amiss, her son would usually be much happier to be with her, to let her tend to him, or at least not recoil from her touch.
"You know, It is hard for your father. Working alone in the fields, he was so happy this morning when you helped him. You try to make up with him, you just don't know how much he loves you, that's why he works so hard you know? He want to do like his friend Velkan and earn his freedom, and in turn ours freedom too." Her son kept still as she cleaned his wound, her previous feeling growing.
"You know I love you, my sweet Iuli. It hurts me seeing you like this, so please try to be more careful, I would do everything for you, so please stop being mean to your father when he tries his best to support us." She pulled him to her hard to kiss his head.
"Mother, you're hurting me!" He winces, the places his mother grabbed sore and bruised.
"Come now, I didn't hurt you. You are a big boy now, you can't complain when your weak old mother hugs you, you know?" Her hands were holding him down like a vice.
"Right. Can I go to bed now, mother?"
"Sure, It might be a bit early but go ahead. Good night my baby~"
Iulian left his seat at the table, his jaw clenched, his body sore and bruised. Yet his mind has never been clearer: he has to leave. And with the new moon being tonight, there is no better opportunity.