A Dove's Innocence

romanticized war & disguises of protection

The sight that greeted Milani's eyes upon opening the window caused her breathing to hitch, her heart pounding louder in her ears it almost felt as if the guards could hear it. A little black bird barely hanging on to the window's ledge with one claw, it's entire body all battered and bruised. She picked it up, the black bird returning her efforts by shrieking to which she pet its head and tried to shush it. Her voice hushed, tone soft to not draw attention from the guards that stood watch outside,

"Let me help you," she whispered as she walked to her bathroom. In her hold, the black bird froze, whether it was due to fear or submission she wasn't sure. Was there even a difference between the two? Upon meeting the raven's body, red immediately stained the water causing Milani to cringe at the sight and the raven to hiss. She figured the hostility coming from the bird was due to how it was a wild animal, unlike all the other birds kept as pets. It had been a while since she last saw a wild bird, this one immediately capturing her attention.

"What should I call you?" she wondered aloud to herself.

"Crow?" she asked which earned her a peck on her hand from the bird. She smiled, lightly petting its— Crow's head.

"I'll call you Crow from now on! You're in no condition to fly so you'll have to spend the night. You can sleep here," she said as she gently set the bird onto a cushion on one of her chairs.

"Did I really just talk to a bird as if it understood me?" Milani muttered to herself, slightly cringing inside. She decided to go to bed too, hoping to better care for the bird in the morning.

As Milani woke up and saw the bird still on the cushion, she couldn't help but smile. It felt nice to have something to wake up to. She got up, stroking the bird's feathers as she headed to her bathroom to get ready for the day. All of a sudden, a knock makes itself known to her ears,

"Come in," she called out to whoever it was. The door opened, Miss Rae coming in.

"Lani?" Miss Rae asked, looking at the princess whose eyes stayed fixated on the black bird with a gaze previously unknown. Milani cleared her throat, turning her attention towards Miss Rae.

"I'm just a little jealous of the bird is all. It gets to touch the sky in all the ways I wish that I could." Miss Rae nodded, knowing better to ask how or why a bird came in and instead,

"I'm assuming you'd prefer to eat breakfast in your room then?"

"Yes, please. If possible, bring something for Crow too."

"Crow?" Miss Rae questioned.

"It's what I named him! I think it's fitting, don't you?"

"Lani, that doesn't look like a crow to me."

"Things don't always look like the name they've been given."

"Very well, I'll be back soon." By the time Miss Rae returned with breakfast, Milani had been able to get through her morning routine and the bird had woken up with more energy than Milani expected. Milani ate breakfast on her bed, reading a book in the process while Crow was left pecking at his bowl of seeds. Suddenly, the doors to Milani's room opened, and in came,

"Olivia?" Milani looked up at her cousin, wondering why in the hell the older decided to just storm into her room without even knocking. Like a child, Olivia threw herself onto Milani's bed,

"Lani, guess what!" With a roll of her eyes and setting the bookmark in her book,

"What?"

"Dexter and I are engaged, and we—" Olivia's eyes drifted towards the black bird,

"What the hell is that?" Milani felt a sudden sense of protectiveness growing within her and placed her hand on top of Crow.

"I named him Crow." Olivia scoffed upon hearing Milani's words,

"Anyone with two eyes can tell that's clearly a raven."

"Your point?"

"You're taking care of a raven when our kingdom is at war with the Raven King? The Raven King is a monster!"

"This is a bird, not the Raven King."

"It shouldn't be here." And neither should you, Milani wanted to say.

"How is Dexter different from the Raven King?"

"Dexter's a hero!" A hero? Milani wanted to scoff at Olivia's words but held herself back.

"They're not any different."

"What the hell do you mean, 'They're not any different.' Dexter's a knight for our kingdom while the Raven King's just a power-hungry killer who's done nothing right ever since his family decided to take over the throne and kill the Morel's."

"Dexter's not a hero, Olivia, don't fool yourself. You want to call him a hero and fool yourself into thinking that marrying Dexter is better than getting into the arranged marriage your parents have already planned for you? Girls like you romanticize war, but your hero is someone else's murderer." For people like Olivia the Oblivious, Milani knew that they saw the war through different lenses. The knights were seen as good people, heroes who deserved a feast upon their return and awards for their efforts. But what did it matter?

"You can call Dexter a hero all you want but he's just one of thousands who uses a sword to kill under the disguise of protection." Olivia's eyes widened at Milani, whether it was due to shock or fear Milani couldn't tell.

"I'm leaving," Olivia muttered.

"I'm not stopping you if you are." At Olivia's presence now gone, Milani was left with the bird. She looked at him only to see him already looking at her. She got up with a sigh and opened the window. After all, it wouldn't be fair to keep a bird trapped like she was.

"I'm not kicking you out, Crow. But whenever you want to leave, you can." Milani didn't know what it was that she was expecting from Crow. He was a wild animal after all, and wild animals weren't meant to stay in one place for too long. Yet despite knowing this, there was a sinking feeling at the pit of her stomach and a longing that could be felt throughout all her body as she stood alone in her room.