Yuki and the Beast

Chapter 3: Yuki's Fate

Yuki's POV
I ran up to my Mother. Watching her lean over the sink, I could tell she had finished washing the dishes in the sink just then.

"Mama, mama!" I said as I tugged gently on her dress, which caught her attention and made her look down at me. A warm smile crossed onto her face once she saw me.

"What is it, Yuki?" She asked.

"Why is Daddy such a jerk?" I asked. My Mother chuckled and crouched down to my height so I was now looking down at her, a smile still on her face.

"He's just like that, honey." She said, her head shaking only slightly.

"But he acts like he hates me." I replied as I crossed m arms.

My Mother's expression hardened as she extended her hands to me and squeezed my shoulders.

"Look, Yuki. Your Father is just.....weird like that. But don't let it get to you. Just be you, okay?" She took her hands off my shoulders and stood back upright. She started to walk past me.

"Mama?" I asked, holding my hand out, taking hold of her dress again. I let go once she looked down at me.

"Yes?"

"Should I be more like you or Father?" I asked.

"Well....that's all up to you, honey, but I will tell you this." My Mother said as she bent down again, but this time she placed her hands on her knees and didn't crouch down like earlier.

"I'll leave this choice to you, but I want you to do what's right."

When my Mother stood back upright again, I hugged her, as I thought I understood what she meant.

"I get it, Mother! I always wanted to be like you anyway." I said. I let her go, and when I looked up at my Mother, her smile showed up again.

"That's a good choice, Yuki."

"But what if I turned out like Father?" I asked, watching my Mother's facial expression change from a smile into a frown.

"Well.....it really depends on how much you turn out like him, Yuki, but I'm sure I'd be disappointed." She replied, and with that said, she turned around and walked away.

I woke up from my dream. I noticed it was dark out, but maybe Father was asleep by now. I decided to get something to eat since I was hungry.

When I walked towards the refridgerator, I noticed a note pinned to it. I unpinned it and read it out loud.

"Yuki,

I've left the house for a while to find something for you. While I'm gone, stay put and DO NOT BUY ANY BOOKS.

I don't know when I'll be back, but I don't think I'll be gone for too long.

Saturo."

I crumpled up the note and threw it into the nearest trash can.

"Okay." I muttered, opening the fridge as I looked inside it for something to eat.

Just as I was about to grab something, I heard what sounded like neighing outside. Moving quickly, I closed the fridge door and ran outside, closing the front door behind me.

I noticed a horse in our front yard. It was our horse, but my Father wasn't on it.

The horse was frantically trampling across the ground, pacing back and forth, looking very scared about something as it left hoofprints in the dirt.

In an attempt to calm it down, I started to walk over to the horse while holding my hands out in front of me.

Once I got close enough, I gently stroked the horse's snout while holding my other hand under its chin. Our horse started to calm down, but looking into its eyes, I knew it was still at least a little bit frantic.