Horsemen

Famine - Chapter 1

Hello there everyone and welcome to the first chapter of "Horsemen"! This story will be split into five parts, starting with the four main characters, then a final part devoted to all of them. This is chapter one of the first main character, Cassius. He is a trans boy trying to find his identity despite having a non-supportive and verbally abusive father. If you are a transphobe, fuck off, I don't want you here and no one needs your negativity. TRIGGER WARNING: this chapter contains depictions of depression, verbal abuse, eating disorders, and trans discrimination. 

"Cassius, your father will be home soon. Have you finished your homework?"

"Yeah, Mom," Cassius called, shutting his notebook and returning it to the shelf. He ran his fingers along the spines of his textbooks and binders, making sure each one was in its proper place before moving to the kitchen to aid his mother with dinner. The two of them prepared the food, just as they did every day.

Cassius tended to the brussels sprouts while his mother started the rice and chicken. Even the simplest meals were cooked with love and delicacy from Martha. She took such care with every step, no matter how important. She wouldn't hear of using a brussels sprout that wasn't cut precisely down the middle, or serving rice that was slightly mushy. There was one night that she told Cassius of how she had wanted to be a chef when she was younger and how it had been her dream since she was five years old.

"I almost went to college for it, too," Martha had said with a soft smile.

"Why didn't you?" he asked.

"Well I met your father and decided that following my heart in that direction was more worthwhile than following it in the other direction." She chuckled a bit, but there was a deep regret behind her eyes that Cassius was painfully aware of. You'll notice quite often that this regret is there; lingering as if it were a tiger in the brush or a demon in the shadows.

Cassius' father, Richard, wasn't one for overly fancy dishes, as he often pointed out whenever Martha tried to be imaginative and experiment with flavors or presentation. She was held back, that much was clear, but she still made the simple dishes with a clean polishing finish.

Just as the plates of food were being set down on the dining table, Richard returned home from work. Not that it would be apparent to Cassius and Martha at first, but he had had a terrible day. More so than usual.

"Hello, Richard," Martha piped up, beaming.

"Hello, Father," Cassius echoed.

Richard grumbled a "hello Martha" and sat down with a huff at the table.

Cassius and his mother waited until he had started eating for a minute or two before doing so themselves, but as Cassius raised his fork to his lips, his father cleared his throat.

A quick side note here. I must reiterate that no, you cannot kill fictional characters on your own. Whether they die or not is up to me, and that will remain a mystery until it happens.

"Are you sure you need to eat that tonight, Cassandra? I swear to god you must have put on three pounds just since I left this morning. It's disgusting." He gestured to the plate of food in front of Cassius and gave him the look that Cassius had gotten to know all too well, and that you will too.

He put his fork down and nodded lightly."I guess I don't. I had a lot for lunch today."

"You're damn right you don't," he grunted.

Cassius asked to be excused, despite anticipating a hard "no" from his father. To his surprise, however, he was allowed to leave the table. Martha had given her husband a pleading look that he caved to all too easily.