Katia meandered back through her generously sized town. It wasn't small but half the population was spread out over hundreds of acres running large farms and ranches. Her family, for instance, lived just on the outskirts of town and by that it was really five subpars (about ten miles).
She had always imagined what life would be like outside of Kistoog, running off with a lover, hiding away on a hover ship, or even heading off to a university. Never actually believing she'd leave. In her realistic day dreams she saw herself marrying a rancher's son or even a middle aged shop owner.
Hiking up her mid length skirts she climbed over a high fence, built out of wide logs and thick cords of intertwined imitation medal. she didn't need to worry too much about knicking her leather leggings. Hoping down on the other side she cut across the massive field, the grazing lions were intermixed with a herd of angora goats. Dogs had died out a long time ago, then scientists had tampered with wild animals' genes to make them able to survive off grain. Most farmers now used large cats to guard their live stock, her own family had a half dozen pumas in their care.
The first sun in the sky was just setting when her home came into view. All her family's land was fenced in by hundred foot trees, shooting straight out of the ground all the branches stretched skyward. Thick vines were grown in between the spaces of the trees thus creating a natural barrier. The gates connecting the fields were fashioned out of vines and bamboo. Only the rich could afford metal these days, even that stuff was imitated.
Her feet slowed as she neared her house, the three story villa would've seemed out of place in the past now they were the standard building. All the windows downstairs and the windows in her sister's room were glowing bright blue from the natural light supplied by solar panels on the roof. Energy had to be self sustained, any luxury was hard to come by even for those who had thousands of credits to their name.
Stepping up just outside the front door Katia stood watching her family interact. Her father sat in a worn chair at the head of the table reading a flash board which was completely in cased by his massive hands. He had once been a book worm while at university, the whole family had pitched in so he could still read without having to spend hundreds of dollars per book. His glasses were perch on his large nose, almost tipping and falling off his face. His tanned skin contrasted with the light bouncing off it. Her mother's curvy body could be seen standing over their hot stone cooking slabs of meat and roasting chunks of vegetables. Her auburn hair was pulled back at the base of her neck, streaks of gray could be seen just at her temples flaring backwards like shining wings. Her younger brothers were crammed at one side of the long dining table each fiddling with a different machine, each hoping to get a scholarship into school.
At that thought a small smile crept onto her lips, they didn't have to worry about which one would get into school now. Her nerves were finally settling down. Grasping onto that thought she schooled her facial expressions and walked through the door she'd been walking through for the past twenty years.
"Oh good you're home!" Her mother had mastered the "eyes in the back of her head" she didn't needs to turn around to know who it was."Will you set the table? Then run upstairs and see if Izebeta is coming down to eat."
Long ago the family had learned that Ize could barely stomach food all the time. Her tiny body diminished everyday but no one knew why. "Is she sick again today?" Katia always worried about her baby sister.
"She won't tell me. You know she won't talk to anyone."
Hurrying to set the table Katia rushed up stairs, stopping outside of Izebeta's bedroom door she knocked softly.
"Come in." Ize's soft voice answered.
Once inside her sisters room she took the time to really look at her sister. Izebeta lay on her caved in stomach, likely giving herself bruises, watching a show on her flash board that was mounted to her wall. Dark brown hair was braided and flipped over one shoulder, bangs softly lay across her forehead accentuating the freckles that were sprinkled all over her thin face. Dark blue eyes with a ring of honey brown looked up at her. Then a small smile graced Ize's face, lifting her feeble right arm she patted the bed next to her.
Using her muscles to sit on the bed as softly as possible she stroked the end of her sister's braid.
"Ize?"
"Hmm?"
"Do you ever think about how different life would be if we were rich?"
Raising one eyebrow Ize looked at her older sister with an expression that spoke for itself,"Where are you going with this?"
"Just humor me for a second, okay?"
"Okay.... If we were rich Mom could see a proper doctor, Dad would have a real library full of old musty books, the boys would all go to school, and you would travel."
"What about you Ize? What would you do?"
Sheepishly Ize looked at her worn bed cover, the thick knit material was tearing in spots, she picked at a patch of fuzz. But her eyes flashed with an intense burning Katia recognized as passion.
In a reassuring tone Katia commented,"I bet anything you want to do would be amazing! Let's see... Do you want to be a model?"
Ize grimaced.
"No? Well you certainly have the body for it. Ummm... How about a scientist?"
Ize buried her face in the fuzzy spot she had just been picking at. "No!" She moaned out her answer.
Chuckling Katia spouted," Fisherman, painter, musician, oh I know!! A dominatrix!"
A full blown laugh escaped Ize,"Ugh! No!" Once their laughter died down Ize looked at her sister thoughtfully. "Do you really want to know?"
"Of course I do! Please tell me!"
Katia was now laying down next to her sister, a stranger would see no resemblance between the two females. One was short, curvy, her complexion was light, her face was soft, and her personality drew people in. The other was tall, sickly thin, her complexion was dark, her face was all sharp angles, her personality made her easy to look over. But in that brief moment their laughs and smiles were almost identical.
"I want to be an animal doctor."
"But those are everywhere."
"I want to be an exotic animal doctor."
"But the only exotic animals are on other planets, still being discovered." It took a moment, finally the light bulb clicked on. "Oh my gosh!" Katia squealed with excitement. "You'd see so many different places! And for someone to have a career they'd have to start young, learning through experience."
Ize rolled on to her back, following suit Katia noticed the map on her sisters ceiling. They all had one,"To instill a hunger for knowledge and the unknown." their mother had said. Only now her sister had written notes all over her ceiling marking different planets and scribbling out others all together. Slowly standing up Katia squinted at the scrawl in her sister's hand,"New species of fish, new species of amphibian, existing species of untamed lions and tigers, new species of bird," making her way around the room she stopped at a planet with a purple star next to it she had only noticed one other planet with a star. Pointing up Katia looked at her sister confused,"What about these ones?"
Refusing to answer Ize pushed herself off her bed."I think dinner is done."
"Ize?"
"If I ever get the chance to go, then I'll tell you."
The both made their way downstairs, sitting at their spots at the dining table they bowed their heads as their Father said a prayer to bless their food. Being to anxious Katia didn't dig in with the rest of her family once the prayer was finished. Instead she spent a few moments basking in her the routine moment of her family. Brothers bickering over who hard gotten a bigger piece of meat, her sister picking at the vegetables she could digest, and her parents holding hands under the lip of the table, and here she was about to drop a bomb shell on all of them.
Her Father was discussing an issue with the farm,"The water distributors aren't shutting down after the buds sprout. They still mist up until the envirobots start harvesting the crop. I guess I'll have to take the system apart, we'll lose at least three days of crop."
"What kind of payment decrease will that be Yulia?" Her mother didn't seem too concerned
"At least twenty thousand credits."
Her mother pursed her lips. "We'll just sell two or three envirobots. Then harvest the two lower fields by hand."
As Katia listened she knew she had made the right decision. Speaking up she tried to be as nonchalant as possible,"Oh I don't think it'll be that bad. In fact I'm calculating a high percentage increase of credits here within the week."
Silence fell throughout the table. Her father turned in his chair leveling her with his most stern look,"And why is that? What have you done?"
Katia gulped noisily,"I got a job."
"Oh? And they are going to pay you this week? In a large lump sum?"
"Yes."
"How big of a lump sum?"
Katia stared at the table,"Four hundred...."
"Well that's generous, it will help."
"......Thousand."
A glass shattered on the floor, two forks clattered on top of the serving platters, and her little sister choked on a mouth full of electrolyte fluid.
Her mother ignored the glass shards at her feet, her eyes started to mist over. Bottom lip quivering she touch her husband's arm trying to quiet the storm before it started.
Her sister was still coughing violently while staring at her with large eyes. Two brothers had stopped shoveling food into their mouths, although the baby of the family was still scarfing down food oblivious to those around him.
"WHAT HAVE YOU DONE?!!!" Her Father was glaring full force, he stood up towering over her.
Her youngest brother finally stopped eating looking up with doe eyes, his cheeks stuffed like a chipmunks. Had the moment been any less serious his face would've been comical.
"The traders caravan came through town today, I talked to a trader and I found out that his employer was going to be given a girl as a gift. She has red hair and is paying handsomely for someone to take her place. I figured I could use my "curse" to help us."
Her Father's face had turned a deep shade of red, his eyes bulging, and his breathing was labored. He scrunched his eyes closed then snapping them open marched to the door, grasping the hard plastic knob in his bear like paws.
