We laid in the depths of the grass, stalking the giant as it prowled the fields on its one leg and cleaver in one hand. It used its weapon as a cane, the lambs that followed beside it had red stings lightly tied around their necks.

 

Like all the other guardians, it wore a mask as it is our villages' way. The mask made it look happy, a face of joy, black paint lining the mouth, nose and eyes.

 

My brother and I crawled in the tall grasses, ducking down as we got closer to the giant. "You really think that cleaver removes faces?" I whispered to my brother. "That's just a legend, it really doesn't take your face off" he said. "It probably kills the lamb it receives"

 

The giant gave a low growl that made my stomach rumble as it was pressed into the dirt. The lambs beside it stopped to graze and hop around the giant playfully. It would pick up one, sticking it's cleaver into the ground and petting the small animal.

 

I took the red band from my wrist and tied my wild hair into a pony tail and my brother did the same. We leaped from the grasses and dashed our way across the fields. The lambs began to scattered and bleating. The giant put the lamb down, it grabbed it's cleave by the rusty handle and started to pull. It tugged and tugged at the weapon in the ground, it roared as it couldn't pull the clever out as always.

 

It was not the giant that were interested in. It was the lamb that we wanted. My brother being agile as he was swept the giant off its foot kicking it from underneath, it fell slowly to the ground shaking the earth. The birds in the willow trees took flight from the startling shock.

 

It was my turn now, the lambs stayed in groups and ran as fast as they could but I was a bit faster. With no shoes on my feet, I kicked up dirt behind me.

 

When one lamb went astray from its herd, I ran beside it to keep it away from the group. When I was close enough, I would grab the legs of the lamb until it would stumble and fall over.

 

I held it by the foot as it bleated in distress. I gently petted the lamb, smoothing it to a calm state. Once it quieted down, I placed it on its back. I place my index finger and middle finger at its chest, my sharp nails pierced the small animal in the heart with a quick thrust to the torso.

 

And that's how we catch a meal for the day.

 

I picked up the dead animal and kissed its head, I remember the first time I had done it I was six years old and my father told me too. The animal was limp in my arms and I carried my kill back to the house.

 

My brother comes up from behind me, placing his hand on my shoulder. He rubs the lambs head and looks at me through the eyes on his mask. "Does it still hurt?" He asked me. I told him, yes, it did hurt still. Stealing the lamb and then killing it just so we could eat and feed the people didn't make me feel content through all these years.

 

Every afternoon, we come out here to fields and watch the guardian migrate with its herd of sheep and lamb. I never understood why the giant never changed routes, it always cuts through the fields.

 

I asked my mother why it crosses our little village, she said to me because there is food for the sheep, it was a rest stop and it couldn't change routes because we had the supply.

 

My brother and I walked back to the village, holding our kills from today. I held the lamb in my arms and my brother, Toma, dragged the four lambs he caught by a rope. I never told him, but I hated that he dragged dinner on the dirt ground and father never apprehended him for it.

 

The houses are built from stone and brick, some still live in old huts with straw roofs. When you walk into my home, you see masked faces, it is our way. The mask is usually different compared to others, some are colorful, shaped differently, and some have expressions on them. The babies have their faces wrapped in cloth, showing only the nose.

 

You truly can't tell if it looks like its mother or father, only the parent's know that.

 

I'm the only one who knows my father's face, my mother's, and brother's, even if we do look alike... we don't have the same mask on. I wear the panther on my face with its fangs protruding from its mouth, the fangs are painted in gold and the lip red. My brother has a bull's mask, its horns forming a crescent above his head, a ring hanging from his nose. Both our masks our black with no peculiar design.

 

We arrived home and delivered our kills to Dahlia, the village cook. She doesn't wear a mask, because she's blind and cannot see, she is blind because of a punishment given by my father.

 

"Dahli" My brother swung his rope of lamb on the counter in front of her. She heard the thud the lambs made as they hit the surface of the table. "Food"

 

"I can tell by the smell, its fowl" she smirked. She sat in a chair in front of the counter, her legs crossed and keeping a straight forward look. She reached her hand out and felt the wool from the lamb. "Ripe..." she said. "Is your sister Tika with you?"

 

"I'm right here" I laid my lamb in front of her gently and she felt its wool and rubbed the head. "Your brother's lamb feel of fear and blood, he killed them viciously. Unlike this one, Tika, you cared for it. The kill was quick, straight through the heart, No?"

 

"Yes" I responded. "This little one was scared..." I said.

 

"As they always are, but he will not be put to waste. The meat will feed the bellies of this village"

 

"Then why do I feel so bad?" I said with my head down.

 

"Because you care too much, worry too much, grieve too much. All those emotions, makes your heart heavy" Dahlia told me. "It's hard not to care, I know, but sometimes you must throw your feelings aside, put your heart last and mind first. Remember that, love"

 

"Yes, ma'am"

 

•••

 

Toma and I returned home, around the setting of the sun, dinner was ready. The meat of lamb, potatoes from the gardens and bread that had been soaked in honey. When the village eats, we all sit together like a family in a large circle. My father, mother, my brother and I sit in the middle.

 

My father rules this village. We sat at tables that were low so we sat on the ground with red sheets laid out under us. My mother and father tapped their wooden cups together, enjoy the occasion. Toma, being a spoiled prince, stuffed his mouth of lamb and bread, his cheeks poked out stuffed with meat. He could barely hold it all in. Besides my family, there is another village connect to ours. There is an alliance between the two parties, their customs are just like ours and they too have masked faces. The ruler and his wife are here tonight with their one son who wears the mask of a demon. The mask had tusk, dark black eyes with a red and yellow tint. Horns sprouted from the head of the mask, painted with red tips, the whole mask was red with green lining from the corner of the eyes to the corners of the mouth.

 

I thought the mask was cute. He's name is...

 

"Tika, are we daydreaming again?" My father chuckled. I hadn't noticed it myself that i was staring at the prince, I must have looked awkward. "Hahaha!" My father slapped me on the back, laughing away possibly drunk. "Beloved don't tease the girl" said my mother. "I don't blame her for staring, i started at you when were married off"

 

My mother wrapped around my father's arm, "Remember, we would sneak off to the temple and you keep me up there until the sun would set"

 

My brother and I turned our heads slowly at each other, frowning harder than ever at the unnecessary comment, our minds were ruined by a sinful image of our parents. "How old were you?" I asked my mother, shaking off the negative feeling from what she said before.

 

"I went through eight different suitors and i was older than you, i was 16 when i finally found the one that was suited for me" she said with glee. She clicked her tongue and continued, "When I picked your father, your grandfather was none too happy with me" she said.

 

My father began to laugh "I use to sneak into the estate and pluck the eggs from the chickens nest" my father said.

 

I only grinned behind my covered face and shook my head, they kept their marriage well together. I hoped that i would be able to keep up with my mother. I've seen her face, naked in the light inside our home, completely mask-less. And i think to myself i hope to be as beautiful as she is.

 

I glanced at the prince again, he tilted his head to the side as he looked at me. His mask grinned at me, it smiled at me, stretching ear to ear. It made me blush and gripped my mask in embarrassment, i peaked through my fingers and he chuckled at me.

 

Toma poked my side, distracting me from the prince. "Let's go play the drums with Baina, she's over there dancing by herself" Baina stood away from the group with a few others around playing on the drums. "You go, I'll stay here"

 

He scoffed at me, rolling his eyes in dissatisfaction. "Ugh, fine Tika, stay. Stare are your prince charming until dawn" he got up from the table, biting into bread and walked away to join Baina. I sighed deeply as i watched my brother dance with the dark skinned girl and white mask, he took her by the hand and twirled her around, swaying his hips with hers. It was almost disgusting to watch.

 

•••

 

When the night was over, i stayed up late with father and we watched the one of the five guardians came from out the sea from hills outside the village. It's body was bulking and shaped like a crab. It's masked face was placed in the middle, large claws, and six thin legs. It was a creepy thing, aside from it's crawls it had human arms as well hanging down from the bottom of the mask. It would occasionally dig into the ground and fed on the beetles buried underneath

 

"Ugly, isn't it" my father said.

 

"Scary" I giggled. "Remember when i was eight and Toma and I would go and hop on the it's back"

 

"It dragged the both of you into the waters, your mother panic thinking it had drowned you. We were lucky that out of the five, it was friendly"

 

"How come we only we three of them?" I asked. There's 'One-Leg' that travels across the fields, 'The Crab' and 'Six-Arms'

 

My father began to explain to me, the five guardians are related. Four brothers and one sister. One, never comes out, and it is the oldest brother. It hides deep in the mountains behind the village where none can get to it. It is said to resemble a half man and half horse. Out of all the times my father told the stories I liked the sister the most. Because, the tale goes, they're all dead and if it wasn't for the sister they wouldn't be walking around like they have been. She has six long arms like a spider, and a very lovely mask. It's said she takes the mask of the dead and place them on a tree as a memorial, she keeps them looking neat and clean in respect to the dead.

 

"Why are the guardians here?" I asked my father. I never brought it up before, I would just accept that they lived here with us.

 

"To protect something dear to them" he said. "If they were to lose this, this village would be no more. Enough of that however, you should be in bed"

 

"It's not even that late" I whined.

 

"You may be a princess, but your beauty sleep is important. Wouldn't want your future husband to have an ugly wife" he joked.