Coming of Age [Sara Hawke]

[phdfan]

Prompt: Prized Possession
Player Character: Sara Hawke
Universe: Everything’s on fire
Characters: Sara Hawke, Leandra Hawke, Malcolm Hawke
Author's Note: Written in response to the ‘gift’ prompt in fan_flashworks, and the ‘prized possession’ prompt in playersofthedas.
Summary: Sara receives a Satinalia gift from her father.

“Any girl of mine needs to know how to defend herself.”

Sara looked down at the gift she had just unwrapped. A small dagger lay in a narrow, unadorned box.

“I’ll teach you how to use it,” her father continued. “And when you’re better than me, I have a friend who can teach you more.”

“Malcolm,” her mother said. Just her father’s name. But it was laden with past conversations.

Her small hand fit the hilt perfectly. The blade caught the light, bouncing it around the room.

“I still don’t think she’s old enough.”

“She’s not a mage.” As though that explained anything.

Her mother’s lips tightened, but she said nothing more. Her father turned back to her:

“So, what do you think?”

“It’s light,” she said, drawing patterns in the air with the blade.

“That means it’s balanced. The weight of the blade is countered by the pommel.”

“Am I going to learn how to stab people?”

Father glanced at her mother, who turned away. “Yes,” he said. “Although I hope you won’t have to.”

Sara smiled. “When do we start?”

Twenty years later, Sara closed the narrow box along with its memories and returned it to her trunk.