The Sacrifice
A little snippet of the first chapter of 'Collector of Candy'
TW/CW: Animal Slaughter, Blood
Augustus stands with his father in a pen from their farm, before them, two oblivious pigs. They trot along at a sluggish pace and take time to sniff the ground and drink muddy water. They have no idea of what’s going to happen. Friedrich places a hand on his son’s shoulder.
“Zis Giving Ceremony is special.” He said. “Because you’re twelfe now and I’m going to teach you how to slaughter a pig. A Gloop tradition.” Augustus feels his palms become sweaty- he’s not sure if he wants to do this just yet. It doesn’t feel right, but he knows everyone else in his family has done this before him- it’s only fair he did too.
“Alright, Vater. Teach me.” He says, after taking a deep breath. Friedrich goes towards the bigger pig, slowly. Moving in a much quicker motion, he grabbed it from behind, and with a knife and slit the creature's throat, letting it bleed out before he grabbed it by the ankle and hung it up. It seemed like second nature to him. The other pig had squealed when it’d seen the massacre and started desperately scrambling around the pen.
The thought of the animal’s attempts at escape made Augustus feel guilt. He stood over it with power, because it couldn’t escape no matter how hard it tried. It felt wrong to him. Friedrich cleaned off the knife and passed it to Gus and he took it reluctantly. He stared down at the blade as it shone in the sunlight. Among the blood-stains he could see his own reflection. He wasn’t sure if he had the stomach to do this- He could eat these pigs, probably more than the average person.. But he couldn’t slaughter them.
Friedrich gave him a nod, as if to say ‘go on’. Augustus usually would have backed down, but he was too far in. He didn’t want to let his father down by telling him he was getting cold feet. He stood before the pig, dressed in his father’s butcher apron. His breaths are shaky, but he approaches the pig as it scurries against the fence, and grabs it by the neck.
The feeling of it squirming in his grip is skickening, but he can feel his father’s eyes on him, so he takes the knife and runs it across its neck. It’s movements slow, and Gus feels hot, crimson blood flooding onto his hands immediately. The pig’s squeals become more hoarse and the liquid continues to flow- to Gus it looks endless, and as the pig becomes more limp, all he can do is stare in horror.
His father takes the initiative to take the pig’s ankles and hang the animal up, then putting a hand on Gus’s shoulder. “You did it.” He said, but there was no reaction. He was completely still.
Once the shock of it weared away, the first thing Augustus did was wash his hands.
He scrubbed them until his hands were raw.
