'Is that a beast? The queen wants me dead?'
I instinctively stay still behind the curtains and chanted,
'I'm a stone, I'm a stone, I'm a stone.'
"Where is the child?"
The voice of the man had cover the whole room with ice. He is two heads taller than the man cowering next to him. The beast's medium length wavy hair is as pitch black as the night and his pupils were red as blood.
'He looks like a panther.'
"I said, where is the child!!!"
His roar had made the cowering man next to him, fall on the ground.
"Yo-your highness, the ma-maid w-who just f-fed the p-prin-princess, said she--"
"Get out of sight!!! And look for her!!!"
"Y-yes yes your highness!"
The small cowering man stood up and hurriedly start running. The maids started scampering around and followed the scared Butler.
The beast finally took a step into the room and then stop.
' I think he felt my presence.'
I can hear my heart beat, though it was not a beat of fright but excitement.
'This man is?'
..................
Eight months after my expedition, Magdalene had stopped sending letters. It is a first, normally the woman will tirelessly send him letters once every week. Even if I tell her that letters might not reach his camp due to war, her letters never failed to reach her. Magdalene expertly trained a red eyed Raven to send the letters. The Raven is smart and have heightened smell abilities, to find him where ever parts of the continent.
"I want you to put this egg on your bossom until it hatch." He remember her saying, running to him excitedly after a good friend of his had given Magdalene a raven egg.
"My bossom?! You must be kiddin' me, what will my people say?!"
"Oh come on, Joe, your bossom is bigger than mine, you can hide it perfectly." She teasingly added.
I had tirelessly incubated the egg for good twenty-one days. My soldiers were giving me different looks from a crocheted covered egg necklace on my bossom. I thought it was a waste of effort and the egg will eventually die and I told her after the twenty first day, I am tossing it away. However, miraculously it hatched, and I had the little bird for another month on my bossom until it learns how to perch on my shoulder. The young raven took it's time until it decided to start flying and venture outside. The family's crest almost change to a raven after people giving me a new title, the Beast with a red eye raven on his shoulder. It sure is a mouthful one.
Ravens are usually not used to be Messengers, but Magdalene tirelessly trained the bird, and the reason she made sure the bird was raised by me is to make the bird remember my smell and have the great attachment. Everytime I goes to a expedition, she makes me promise to release the raven once a week, and just like that it comes back to me with a letter on it's leg.
I had released the raven, named Scarlet, per usual but it keeps coming back with no letter. The weeks become months, and I grew anxious. I am aware of the current atmosphere in the palace, the queen does not like my consort, even though Magdalene had been my wife even before I returned to Spade to claim the crown. I always blamed my older brother the former king for his unreasonable last will, to let Anne keep the title of the queen.
Even though, it is a war between the two women, I tried to intervene in many occasions, I know it will just make Anne's hatred grows further, but in my opinion, Anne should not care about my affairs.
It is dangerous, but I never fail to bring Magdalene with me on my expeditions, Lene is not weak and actually a seal bearer and known to be the 'God's most favorite daughter' and with unmistakably strong powerful luck. Whenever, Lene join me in my expeditions, any ambush from the enemies fails, and any plans we laid succeeds however this last expedition, Lene declined to join.
"Are you feeling alright? Are you ill? I will tell the royal Spadian knights that I will not join this time so that..."
"Shhss..." Magdalene stopped my concerned words with her dainty finger and then embraced me. "No, you should go, and then when you come back, I will have a reward for you."
Those were her last words to me before I left for the expedition.
.....
I step forward and kneel down to have a better look of the tiny creature hiding behind the curtains. I noticed the blankets scattered in the crib and on the floor, and the corner of the blankets have creases indicated it was tied. Were those blankets got untied when this little child climb down or did she untied it. Interesting.
'A reward, huh.'
The child was just staring at me with awe. Her curly pitch black hair are paired with vermillion colored eyes and it make it no doubt that she is a child conceived by Magdalene. As only him or the young Crown Prince can only have children with such features from the whole continent.
"My child."
The words unknowingly scaped my lips, and the child round eyes smiled with her lips, a smile that I only see on my precious person. My vision became blurry and my bottom fell on the floor, I covered my mouth with my hand to not let a sob escaped.
'Magdalene, Magdalene, oh my Magdalene.'
A sudden tiny warmth pat my cheeks, when I saw her tiny concerned face, all I see is my lost wife. I embrace the little creature. Should I curse this tiny life for stealing my wife's? Should I be grateful that she left me a piece of herself? My heart is in turmoil.
"Magdalene, this is not part of the plan... Why?"
I have a lots of questions building up, and I cannot stop the surging emotions from coming out. I could not stop the drops of water that rolled out of my eyes.