Morons and Monarchs

Chapter 13: Viviendel🐾

A hooded queen, and a sunburned guard.

One hound was red, only the tips of their snout a greenish color as they sniff the ground. The Faerie Hound was the size of a house. The queen who sat atop it looked like a speck of dust in comparison. The hound's snout reached the ground without him even needing to bend his neck, his fangs ending in dangerous points. Sharp points that could cut through bone and sinew without any hesitation, points that could rip out a person's heart without even trying. Fangs that were bones themselves, yet stronger.

The other hound was as tall as the last, but it's golden coat shone like the sun. Made to deceive, but in all reality, it was as dangerous if not more than the other. A pretty package with a terrifying interior. Its teeth were hidden, but I knew that the horns atop its head sank into its flesh and turned into fangs as well. Its paws were the size of a brute guard, and they pawed at the ground as it sniffed the grass that probably still held our scent.

The sunburned guard stopped his hound and motioned for the Queen to do the same. She obliges. The golden hound lifted his head up in our direction, but Anul quickly lept in front of me in order to drag me away. We ran, as fast as we could, to the everlasting blooms. Laying down carefully in the buds of the flowers. Cautious not to accidentally harm any of them.

The hounds move closer to us, following our scent, lingering on the ground. "Can't we just ride past?" Eirene asks her guard. "I just need to warn my people about those Encantados's coming today." She nods to herself, as if deep in thought. "And to not harm the half."

"Unless you want somebody to just come out and shoot you in the back because they don't like you as Queen," The guard replies solemnly.

I stiffen as if we are going to harm the Queen. It does not matter if we are innocent, whatever the Queen thinks we are doing, she will give us a sentence accordingly. Not to mention treason.

Which includes a hefty fine, a short amount in the dungeons, and immediate death. I shiver. The hounds grow closer to the blooms, but the Queen shrieks. "No!"

The guard stops his own hound from coming any closer; the Queen does not want any of her subjects to be deemed unworthy to rejoin her clan. And her hound's fangs would gladly ravage the whole field just to find us. "Let's go." She orders and the sunburned guard follows her as she leaves. His eyes follow every leaf that moves with the breeze and every bloom that hides us from sight.

After they are gone, I let out a bitter laugh. Anul copying the sentiment. "We.. could have been... charged with... treason," I say in between giggles. I don't know why I am laughing. But I want to laugh and cry and sit down and pillage this field and burn these blooms and-

"Okay," Anul says, laughing as well. "Let's get started with the Language of the Fan."

-*-

𝕺𝖓𝖑𝖞 𝖆𝖓 𝖍𝖔𝖚𝖗 𝖑𝖆𝖙𝖊𝖗 𝖆𝖓𝖉 𝖒𝖞 𝖆𝖗𝖒 𝖎𝖘 𝖘𝖔𝖗𝖊.

I keep the purple velvet fan in my right hand, which is raised in front of my face.

"Good," Anul circles me. "And what does this position mean?" She asks. I just want to rest my arms, but right now we are just summarizing what I learned, and then we will be done.

"Follow me," I answer.

"Correct." I do the next position, the fan now in my left hand, folded at my side.

"Okay, and what does this one mean?" She asks me again.

My arm burns! "Good to make your acquaintance,"

"Great job." I drag the fan across my forehead.

"I wish to get rid of you," I answer before she has time to ask. She nods encouragingly.