Feathers of Bravery

Aihla

I understand that everyone has a job to do. Just because I am the youngest does not mean that my royal sign is any less than my brothers and sisters. I was raised with the same teachings as they were. It was drilled into me my duty and what I have to do to accomplish it. The same way it was drilled into Jess her duty. That being said, sometimes duty sucks rotten eggs!

I don't know what was discussed in the room between Jess and Meylo but I know that things aren't the same between the three of us now. You don't need magick to see or feel it. I know it's not just in my head.

Every time that I try to show something to him or even get close to him, I can see Jess move the slightest closer to me but also come between us. It was like she was trying to protect me from him. I wanted to pull her aside and perhaps scold her. This was Meylo she was pushing away. He had a reaction to seeing his father's statue. No one can blame him for that. Yes, I had to use a spell to ease him down but it's not like he actively sought me out to cause me any physical harm.

Even if I did pull her aside, what would I say to her? I know she's not doing this personally, she's simply taking on her duty and role designated to her. However seeing it and the look of hurt flashing in Meylo's eyes is making it hard for me to not approach her.

But we are about to learn more about this place, and its purpose and why they all don't seem to be surprised to see us here so maybe that can fly in the back for a while. At least until I can figure out exactly what to tell them two.

Once we've all eaten and thanked Chef for her delicious food, Gladier, my new friend's name, is going to lead us to the town's hall where they kept all their records. According to him, there's many personal talon written accounts by Meylo's father about the founding of this place and its purpose.

As we made our way to the hall there were two things that I noticed that were leaving me with an uncertain feeling.

The first was that with every step we took, all the birds we came across bowed their heads at Meylo. It was odd. I knew Meylo was of royal blood, I recognized his painting in the markets so I actually knew who he was that day before he even said his name. But now it's fully hitting me. My friend is the prince to my enemy kingdom. He'll soon be king when or if we ever get back home.

The second thing was the position that Gladier has taken. It's one thing to have my best friend as my letahr but it's another to have a stranger pledge themselves to me. He barely knows me and I him.

I don't even know how I am going to tell let alone explain to Jess about it.

Yet, something about the feeling of having him at my back gave me a sense of protection like that of my father's. I won't lie and say that his declaration didn't ruffle a couple of my feathers but that's what I love about magick. Not all spells are big and flashy. There are a handful that are subtle that you can repeatedly cast them on someone their entire life without ever notifying them.

During our chat, I may have spoken a truth spell. It wasn't a very big one, just a little alert system that would let me know when someone is telling me a lie.

I felt a little guilty but also extremely relieved when the came up silent. I just hope it still comes up silent whenever we ask our questions.

Reaching the town hall I noticed another peculiar thing about this place. Every building, even the dinning hall, has a number of birds placed as guards. Each building had three of them. The town hall was no different. I'm certainly going to ask about them when I get the chance.

Gladier gave a small nod to three that stood at the entrance and welcomed up inside.

"I'm sure our little hall is nothing compared to either of your two's kingdoms but it's the best we got. Everything we've accomplished and our tasks are written here." he motioned to the entire room.

Despite lacking royal and fancy accessories the room was beautifully organized. It was filled with rows and rows of sections of books. It could pass as a library.

"Prince, I think this section over here is something that you will want to read."

He brought Meylo to a single bookcase filled with matching black leather books. Each of them had a small red symbol on the spine. It was the insignia of Baldir. Those books must be from Meylo's father.

Every single feather in my body is dying to read them. Though I know better than to dare ask if I could take a look at them. I watch him as he goes to pick up the first one. He can barely hold up before dropping it on the table. Neither I, Jess or Gladier bother him as he opens it up to the first passage.

"Now, your royal highness, if you follow me. There's a section back here that I think you'll be very interested also. Maybe you can add more to your little charm there." he mused.

Taking one last look at Meylo, I head in the direction that Gladier was walking. Jess followed right behind me, her interests as piqued as mine by that last sentence. Most birds either don't believe in magick or don't know how it works. However Gladier, keeps surprising me. Seems there's a lot this vulture knows.

Hello my beloved readers, I'm back.

I promised that I will never leave a story unfinished and I intend to keep that promise. Sorry I've been gone from this one for so long. I was focused on another for a bit until I completed that one. Now this one will have my full attention.

Please excuse any misspellings and mistakes I've made. Trying to get back in this one's world and I need a little bit of time. Just like before, I have no official schedule for posting but updates will be as frequent as I can make them.