I awoke to Father growling at something in the corner. He was on the floor and he looked very firces in his new form. I looked out my window to see stars in the sky and not one hint of sunlight or dawn.
"What is it Father?" I asked looking at the veil of black in that one conor. I saw what looked like a man with a black cloak on. He did not move towards me, but his stare was at my beast. He held up his hand and Father winced back as if something had hit him. I light a candle and held it up to bring light into the room. The man walked into the light and I gasped. It was Agus, and he was walking towards me. A smile came on his face and Father did not stop growling at him.
"You are a lucky man, Luke," Agus told the tiger. "I ordered you to be killed, and instead you get turned into a tiger. A lucky man indeed. As for you," he said turning to face me, "you may not be so lucky."
"Why is that?" I asked. I was defenceless. My sword and weapons were on the other side of the room. The ones I had would not protect me from his attacks. All I had was a small danger and a tiger for a father. Not much good would come from that.
"For, my lovely Lacondra, you are only a half queen. You half queens are so picky and hard to get, even if light is out of the way."
"You half queens? You make it sound has if there is more. I am the only queen to have to dark and light mark upon my skin. No one else, and I am too a full dark queen!"
"My dear child you are not the only one. Hasn't anyone told you where you got your name from?"
"My name? My name comes from nothing. It was a name Mother and Father chose at random and liked it. Isn't that right?" I asked looking at the once man. He did not look at me, and I knew that what I was told was a lie. "What? You lied to me?"
"Lacondra- that is a beautiful name- maybe this will help," he told me placing a piece of paper on the table. I started to reach for it, but his large hands grabbed my arm and he lifted me out of bed. I was facing him and he pulled me closer and whispered, "I will have you one day. Not now, but you will became perfect. And if I cannot have you, than no one will!" He pushed me into the wall and I cried out in pain and fear. I figured he was going to harm me even more, but he disappeared like he had in Lady Taylor's room.
I tried to get up, but the pain in my back held me down. Father ran over and stood before me. The door opened and Ty walked in. He looked at Father and I and then came over to help me. I winced in pain from my back, and Ty called Tam into the room. She looked before my injured back and said it would be fine in the morning; it was only sore. She did not ask questions of how I had done this or what happened, and I was glad. Ty on the other did not do me that short of favor.
"What happened my queen?" he asked once Tam was gone. He was standing before me in my bed, and Father was laying beside me. His head was on my hip and he was staring at the spot Agus had been a few minutes.
"It was Agus," I told him. "He came to give me something."
"Give you what? Where is it?"
"He never gave it to me. I made him angry and he just left. He gave me nothing."
I know it was a lie, but I wanted to see just what Agus wanted me to see. I'll give it to Ty in the morning after I read it. Seeing I was safe, Ty left my room, and I took the note in hand. Father tried to snatch it out of my hand, but I was much faster than him. I read the note and was shocked. I looked at Father and I was mad at him and Mother.
"How could you?" I asked him. "You lied to me about my name and her!"
He growled lightly and looked almost has upset has I felt. I yanked the covers around me and drafted back to sleep. All thoughts of taking the note to Ty was gone now. I was going start to the Council and my mother right away. I was not going to let the truth leave my grasp once again.
I stormed into the Council hall the next day. I was in a simple green dress and I was truly angry with my mother and father. I had locked him in my room and told Tam to not let him out and only Kelly and Ky could see him. I told her to throw meat in every so often and stormed away. Once again the servant did not ask questions and did as she was told.
All eyes looked at me as I angrily stormed to my mother. She looked up with tears in her eyes and I saw that Father's new form still upset her. I did not care. I had been lied to my whole life about one person and myself. Why should I be the only one upset?
"What is this?" I cried.
"What is what my dear," her horse voice came out. The other members looked in shock had I thrust the paper in her face.
"This paper given to me by Agus! Is it true? If so, than why did you all lie to me about her?"
"Lacondra, I-"
"Is it true?"
"Please dear try to understand that Luke and I wanted you to not know. It would only bring you down and hurt you."
"So it is true? You lied to me and kept me from knowing! How could you? Did they know about it?" I yelled pointing at the Council.
"Yes, they did."
"Know what?" Sean asked standing. He walked over to my mother and place a hand on her shoulder. "And you should be assumed. Your father is a tiger and the queen is very upset about it."
"You all knew that the first queen had both marks on her. You knew what she looked like and that she did something very disgraceful to us. She was the mother of Agus and that is why he loves us dearly, the dark queens. That queen breathed live into his dying body and he almost killed David. It's bad enough I look like her, but the fact her name is Lacondra is a cruel joke to me!"
The Council said nothing. They looked at me with pity and did nothing else. I was a joke. Lacondra was a name that had a meaning. The meaning was cold and pathetic. David had made that name to mean fool. It was a fool who had too much power and should be watched at. No wonder they no longer told that name to the people. It was my name and it meant I was a fool with power!
"Lacondra-" Delen tried but I would not hear what they said.
"You named me after a fool! That is what my name means! Did you think me a fool who would have power that was too great? Did you think that I would bring the fall of light? Why? Why did you name me that?"
"I named you that for a reason!" Mother told me, the anger raising in her own voice. "I did not take you for a fool. We thought that it fit you well. Most of these things on the paper is true, but one thing is not. Lacondra does not mean fool with power."
"Than what does it mean?"
"It means hope. Lacondra did breath life into Agus when he was dying, and by than David was dying. Agus went to him and almost killed him. Agus told him that his wife sent him there. The people had lost hope and thought that their freedom and king would be killed. Before Agus killed the king, Lacondra stopped him. She sent him away and told him that she would not be fooled into his kindness again and light would live. David saw his wife was true and told her that her name meant something. The people's hope was back and so was his. Lacondra means hope and those who have that name would bring nothing but that. I thought it suit you well. I see now that Agus is trying to get you against me. The stakes are raising, my dear. Now that is out of the way, why was this meeting called? I would like to go see Luke soon."
"That is the reason, my queen," Sean said. "I do not think a tiger should be in the palace." The man had taken his seat by than. I was on my throne next to Mother, and I was brought back from my thoughts by that statement.
"What?" Mother asked sharply. "You want the Great Knight gone? I will not allow it!"
"But my queen, he is no longer a knight. What good would a tiger do us?"
"I will not sit here and let my husband be band from my castle when their is something I can do."
"I will not let Father be band either," I put in.
"I must say," Delen's tone was flat has she spoke, "I agree with Sean. Luke is scaring all the maids and, in fact, is scaring me."
"A castle is no place for a tiger to be," Sir Simon told Mother and I.
"Luke will not be put out on the streets!" Mother cried. "He will be kept in this castle one way or another!"
"Than a vote," Sean said. "All those who want the tiger to at least be locked into a cage say aye."
Many ayes were hears from Miss Randa, May, Delen, Sean, Knox, Sir Simon, Jonah, Duke Ryan, Count Brooks, and Lady Taylor. Only Mother, Iver, and I did not want Father caged like the beast he now was. Sean smiled at me, and it took all my will and Mother's hand on mine to not slice him right there.
"I'm sorry my queens," said Sean, not sounding sorry at all, "but the 'Great Knight' will have to be caged. Ty! Tason! Get in here!"
The two knights came in and looked at us. They did not looked thrilled when told they had to take the man who trained them to the dungeon and lock in up in a cell. I went with them and unlocked my door. Chains were wrapped on Father's neck and the once great and proud man was dragged into the dungeon. Tason locked the door and sighed. They left and I was alone with my caged Father. Mother came down with me and we both explained why he was there. It was painful, but somehow we did it. She held me in a hug has we left Father chained to the floor and a sad look on his face.
We went into her room and she sat on a chair and sighed. One of her ladies gave her a warm and wet cloth for her eyes. She lend back and placed the cloth over her eyes, and I still stood there by her side. I knew that she needed family more than ever, and I was sorry about the way I had acted to her before.
"Mother," I told her, sifting my weight from foot to foot, "I am sorry."
"About what my dear?" she asked not looking at me.
"About everything. About the way I acted. I shouldn't have yelled at you until I learned the whole truth. I'm sorry I could not stop Anna from turning Father into a tiger. I just can't help but let bad things happen to those I love, and I know they are the ones you love too."
"Lacondra, none of those things are your fault. If it was not for you, Luke would be dead instead of alive in a different form. If not for you, Gween would be training Maya to be the dark queen. As for this morning, well you were upset about it, and let angry cloud your mind. It is alright my dear."
"What did you mean that the stakes are rising?"
"Agus is getting ready to face us. He has taken out the Great Knight, and I fear that he will go after anyone else that will not leave my side when Maya is taken away. He is a cold man and won't stop to get what he wants, and that is you and all light to be gone. I fear that is plan is already in motion and there is nothing we can do till we learn more."
"But Mother-"
"Lacondra, I wish to go to take a nap and calm my head. I have much to do, as do you. Now, run along. I will see you at supper, and see to it that Ky and Kelly are working on the curse please."
"Yes Mother," I said, leaving her alone in her room. I knew that Agus was going to try and kill my family. I walked to my own room and sat down in front of the map of my home. Part of it was shaded, but that is because Era is in half light and in half dark. On the shadow side, there is no light allowed, or at least very little. Even in day the sun does not come up all that often. The people there are wonderful and I enjoy my visit to the towns. The sad thing is, is that Agus usually lives in this part of my home. That is where most of the beast live and dwell, and the people learn how to fight many. Most of the beings born from darkness are great fighters and warriors, even the creatures.
I heard a bark and looked up to see a dog walking towards me. It was wearing a dark red cape with the dark mark to show others that it was a dog of the royal army and was from the dark side of our home. The collar had also had the dark mark, but also my name. The fur was black just like a light less night. The eyes were a jewel green and twinkled with a light from inside. I knew this dog that was now on my bed and I scratched behind the ears. A smile was on her face, and I said hello to SH.
SH was my dog. The story behind her is amazing. Long ago a sorcerer named Cougar had a wife. She demanded many things from him and never said one nice thing to the poor man. To show his love to her, he made a gem that would become like her. It became dark and twisted and was full of greed. In turn his wife wanted more power and asked to be a beast. Granting her wish, he saw the problem with the gem, and had to stop her. He made many beings and, after much fighting, stooped the new beast. Cougar was dying, but made one last creature with the spirit of what he once loved out of the shadows of all those who had died. He named the creature, which was a dog, Shadow Hound. She meant the dark queen Mary and ever since as been working for the dark queen. SH was short for Shadow Hound, but all know her real name.
I sat talking to SH, well I did all the talking. Knowing her, I could somewhat figure out what she was trying to say and knew how she felt. I spent the day chatting and trying to figure out where Agus was. I planed war zones and what would be a good place to set up any camp. I was learning Era like the back of my hand. It became much great to me for my whole live and many years to came. It would also save lives and my own. I feel asleep reading the book about monsters and the Death Witch, trying to figure out how to save Father with SH by my side.
Kelly to the side.