I've sort of started this story a little bit ago, I thought it would be nice to finally get some feed back.
I know there will be some typos, you can help me by pointing them out. I will also have to make things more clearer in some parts, you can also point these out to me.
Okay, here we go x3
I know there will be some typos, you can help me by pointing them out. I will also have to make things more clearer in some parts, you can also point these out to me.
Okay, here we go x3
The whole point of today is the thrill and to watch the fresh bloods get their companions. Everyone gets the day off of work and ventures to the castle grounds to spectate. But this year I am officially of age, along with my friend Ashely, we will be assigned our companions. They determine our future status and job.
The higher ups always go first, the prince is of age this year. The crowd sits on the edge of their seats as they watch him go into the middle of the ring of cages. The 19 year old flashes a toothy smile to everyone, I roll my eyes. He is so cocky and stuck up. Not to mention handsome. His foreign skin and accent, from Spanish origin like the Queen, and his stunning dark eyes. It could sweep almost any girl off their feet, any girl but me. Even Ashely sighs dreamily. I scoff and bump her shoulder, making a kissy face. She rolls her eyes but smiles slightly.
I think she hopes to win his heart at the ball tonight (like every other girl here) where we show off our companions, and they show us off in return. It's sorta a bragging convention, which is completely stupid to me but everyone is required to go, even the prince and his older brother.
The animals are released from the cages and we all watch in anticipation, well everyone but me. I could care less about what he gets. I have no idea why people treat him like he is a god. He is a mortal like me and you, royalty yes but mortal.
His older brother went 2 years ago, he was assigned a lion. Interesting story about those two, the younger will become king. The older dropped the title of the heir because he was exiled the same day he got his familiar. His familiar attacked another, killing it, and instead of letting the lion survive on his own he went with it. Out of the kingdom, no one has heard from him in the past 2 years. Or at least that's the rumor. I believe he has been there. Watching us. I believe that hooded figure, with the large cat hiding in the shadows next to him, I saw last week was him. I don't think he means any harm, his familiar was just provoked, I don't believe that he seeks revenge.
He just wants to be accepted. That's why I approached the figure. I am the daughter of an assassin. My mother died during childbirth and my father was left to raise me. He raised me in his profession. So I had nothing to fear, I could defend myself. Even now, at a event in the castle walls, I wear my blades, strapped into my inner thighs, hidden by my cloak I wear over my dark jean shorts, black shirt, leather combat boots. I believe in the first to have contact with the exiled prince in years, him and his lion.
I focus my attention back on the young prince. As expected a large tiger approaches him, she is the crown of the lot this time. A tiger with black fur and red stripes, like fire and ash. Along with the panther that had climbed on a rock to watch, the panther, he, is so dark that he looks almost purple, but it is a trick of light as in the dark he would be invisible. His eyes are a dark purple with specks of a blue, looking like water on a purple rose. On his hind left leg, which he showed so proudly to the audience and other companions, is a vine marking. It is a red and curls as if it is growing. The leaves look sharp but elegant. I would give anything to draw it. Overall the beautiful beast gave off a powerful, dangerous, but loyal aura. It is expected that the creature goes to the head assassin's, my dad's boss, son, Ferick.
Ferick loved bragging and didn't let any of his peer's forget it. He is supposed friends with the prince which certainly does go to his head. Classes with him were a pain, I hope he is bestowed with something that matches his attitude. Like maybe a house cat. I snicker to myself, to which Ashely sends me a sharp look as she watches the tiger and the prince get acquainted. They circle each other before the prince bows in front of the majesty of this new blood companion's group. The panther watches with intelligent eyes.
I would give anything to have him as my companion. A panther is the perfect assassin's companion as it itself is the assassin of the wild. But since I am a simple lower class assassin's only daughter and a motherless child I'll probably get chosen by a simple hawk. Not even the feathered beauty that sits with the others, probably just a plain brown one. Either way I'll be loyal to the creature. It chose me, and I will respect that honor. Some don't even get companions, and they have to return the next year to try again. Our cocky prince went through this as the age to get a companion is 18, and he is now 19. It caused quite the uproar last year when he didn't get a companion. So him gaining the tiger is perfect, she also is a returner but from many years ago.
The companions age normally as their species would until they are the age of their future chosen. Then they stop. Once they find their chosen they age as a normal human would so the companion doesn't die before the chosen.
The tiger was put on hold last year, giving her a break from the event, causing the prince to go companionless, but now they are united and from the look of it, they both approve the choice. The prince and the beast walk out of the rink and to the royal stage, where they stand proudly. I roll my eyes, like all he needed as an ego boost. Ashely sighs happily, I poke her with my elbow and wink, she smiles lightly and shakes her head.
"Up next will be the second ranking nobles!" This group includes Ferick. I watch carefully as the line diminishes until the last person standing is him.
A jaguar to one, a hawk to another, a falcon to the girl, all to the ground hog given to the boy in front of him. He steps up and takes a deep breath, then looks directly at the panther. The beast stares back but makes no effort to move. Ashely and I try hard to hold in our laughs as the beautiful hawk approaches him instead. He visibly sighs in defeat.
"Told you he would get something to match his personality," I whisper to Ash.
She nods, "The beast has been flaunting in front of its brothers and sisters the whole time."
Our cheeks become red as they both strut off, at least okay with the decision. Ferick looked like a chicken when he strutted.
"Rank 3 commoners now!" Ash stands up, she is the daughter of a well known merchant, but a merchant not known enough to be a rank 2 noble.
"You will do well," I whisper to Ash. She nods and fiddles with her hands as she walks to the line. Again others were chosen but this time two were not, one hugged her mom in tears, I swear the panther, that I was all too obsessed with, watched with pity and empathy. He had been here for many years, almost 10 and has been only taken off the tour once. Every year he went home with the group instead of a chosen. Every year he went back to the den alone.
He sits on his hind legs and sniffs the air as Ashely enters the ring. Everyone sat forward, watching curiously, even the royalty, even the king himself. The animals look at him expectantly, but the beast just shakes his larger head and lies back down, this time with head between paws instead of up and scanning the crowd, as if he is disappointed. The king lays back in his chair again.
A large Saint Bernard bounds up to Ash and sniffs her. He barks ecstatically and bounds around Ashely. She laughs happily, they walk out of the rink together. Ashely sits back next to me, the large dog sits in the seat next to her. Like every human that could be chosen, we saved seats next to us for our animals. Mine to my left and Ashely's to her right, as we wanted to sits next to each other like we had always done.
"Congratulations Ash!" I whisper happily. "And congratulations to you too sir!" I whisper to the dog.
He barks at me. Him and Ashely share a lot of features, their emerald green eyes, brown hair, soft aura. Except Ashely, you know, is a girl... One who has chocolate skin, curves, and D-Cups. I envied her sometimes. I'm slender and pale. My face has been decorated with silver colored eyes that always seem half closed, like I just woke up, and long black hair. I wear my hair down, as the pony tail interferes with my hood that I love to keep up. My long eyelashes get annoying as they tickle my cheeks in my sleep and wake me up sometimes. I am a soft sleeper after all, it's an assassin's trait. I have some curves, from what I know I got my mom's butt, which is one of my proudest features. But unlike my best friend, I got burdened with B's making me almost seem flat-chested. She jokes that our grades reflect our breasts, but we both know I make the worst grades between us. My father comforts me by saying that my body shows I am a born assassin. I just think he says that to show pity, which he knows I hate.
"What's his name?" I ask Ashely.
"Drew, he is a big ol' teddy bear too," Drew growls playfully. Every companion shares a telepathic link with their chosen when they first touch. This way they can talk and tell where each other are, and also if they need help are injured. They share their thoughts and feelings with each other, this bond is supposed to be the most powerful bond that any living creature can have. Everyone craves it.
I connect eyes with my dad who smiles at me, Mr. Pepper, his companion who is a falcon, seems to smile at me too.
"Rank 4 commoners! Please make your way to the cages!" A sigh escapes my mouth as I stand up. My eyes find the panther once more, I quickly divert my longing gaze somewhere else as the creature looks directly at me.
Ashley grabs my arm, "You will do fine, Ellie. Drew here says your companion made himself known to the others."
I furrow my eyebrows in confusion and nod then walk down to the growing line. As always I'm placed right in the back. My last name always places me at the end. Zephyr, it was my mother's maiden name. The west wind... or a way to describe wool or fabric, matters how you look at it. I took it in honor of her. She will not be forgotten, no matter how many people pity me for her. I don't want to be the reason they remember her, from what my father told me I know that my mother was in the arts, she painted, danced, sang, acted, the siren of the stage they called her. I want people to remember her for who she was not what happened to her, because of me. She was told that I may not survive the birth, or that there was a large chance I would have a defect if I did.
My mother and father had already had a miscarriage, losing the older brother that I could've had. The villagers tell a story of me, of her, that I was saved by the power of a violet witch, one that is known to be one of the more stronger witches. The little tale that has haunted me for my whole 18 years goes like this...
My mother was absolutely devastated that she could lose me too, or that I could be limited compared to the other children. So she and my father searched for an option to save me from that fate. They say my mother got in contact with the purple witch by a ritual. They say that my mom made a deal with the witch. She told the witch what was happening and how they had lost a child before. They then discussed ways to save me and prices. The witch first proposed to save me, but I would die at a young age, the price was my mother's right eye. My mother refused, she wanted me to live a full life. The witch then proposed that I would be saved, and I would be able to live normally, no defects or anything, but I would be cursed. It is said that the cursed would have caused me never to find love. The price was my mother's sanity. My mother again refused for she knew how important love is. She cried and begged the witch to help me, to help her. The witch, who was already saddened by the situation, offered her one last solution.
I would be born, healthy and beautiful. I would grow up to be strong and bring pride to my family. But among these blessings I would be cursed still, this time it was that I could only ever love one person, man or woman would matter on how I grew up, how I felt; it would be guaranteed that I would meet them. For a price, my mother and her companion's life would be taken, since when one died the other did too. She was given a day to think on the deal, as it was the best the witch could give her. My mother talked to her great grey owl, who was named Angelica. They decided that they would save me. So I was born and my mother and her owl died.
My father says that that story isn't true. But the natural purple streak I have in my hair makes me wonder. A large group gasp and the feeling of tension and wonderment pulls me out of my morbid thoughts. The line hadn't started moving yet but something had certainly happened. I look over at the king and the other royals who were on a platform directly behind me, they all stood watching intently. Even the prince looked in awe. I turn back forward and try to look around the group of squealing girls in front of me, and in front of them a group of rowdy boys. Everyone seems excited and I couldn't understand why.
This is why I had being short. I have always been short, being a minuscule 5 foot 3. My father is at least 6 foot, Ash is a 5"8, and the prince a 6 foot 2. Wait, why does the prince matter in this? I shake my head to clear the thought and try to jump and look over the crowd. I only catch a glimpse of the top of the rock that the mighty panther I lusted over was sitting. Was sitting... It hits me. The panther had jumped off the rock. I tap the girl in front of me's shoulder.
"Where is the panther?" My tone full of hope that he didn't choose anyone yet.
"He is standing below the rock!" She squeals back.
That means one of us could be chosen... My hope quickly grows before I realize what I am doing. Hope leads to heart break which leads to crying and pain which is a weakness. He probably doesn't want me. There are at least 50 kids in this line. 10 of which are my peers in training, he probably wants one of them. I was never the best at academics, I could only assassinate well. I killed first at the age of 15, it was my first job and somewhat sloppy but not as bad as they thought it would be. From then on out I had been sent on missions alone, with my father, or someone else, making my total kill count fifty-six.
The line began to move as people got chosen. It got to the squealing group of girls in front of me. One by one they were chosen by animals that were not he. My stomach filled with butterflies as I stepped towards the paddock. I take a deep breath and walk inside, my hood on, hiding my face from everyone.
'Take of the hood,' A velvety voice fills my head.
"Why?" I reply out loud, earning a few strange looks from the audience. This was taking awfully long compared to the others and that fact alone put the crowd on edge.
'I want to make sure you are the right one,' The voice replied.
"Shouldn't you know if you can talk to me?" I retort.
'Sometimes I can to people who aren't mine.'
Sighing, my hands find my hood, I pull it down.
My eyes glance over the audience then the animals around me.
"Better?"
'Much... Hello my chosen one.' The panther stands up from his sitting position, my eyes snap to his.
"Y-You?" I stutter, great first impression Ellie.
'No the turtle. Of course it's me!' He chuckles lightly.
He circles me. I brush a hand over his coat as he passes in front me.
'What is your name?'
"Essence but I go by Ellie... And yours?" I reply, still in awe that I got blessed with such a creature.
'Thorn, my name is Thorn,' He replies. I look out at the crowd who watches me with unbelievable looks on their face. I turn my head and twist my body, to look at the royals. They stare at me with respect and awe. Thorn brushes against my side as he faces them to look also. My gaze focuses on the prince who looks like he is in deep thought. The tiger next to him nods to Thorn who nods back. I rest my hand on Thorn before walking out of the paddock with my new companion next to me.
We take our seats next to Ash and Drew. Drew bumps in Ash who glares and bumps him back.
I roll my eyes and snap my finger in front of them. Ash looks at me and smiles sheepishly.
"Ashley, Drew. This is Thorn," I introduce him. He nods and gives a small toothy smile, or at least I think it is a smile.
'Me and Drew have met,' Thorn tells me.
"Well I didn't know that," I mutter, embarrassed.
He laughs again, 'You know I can hear your thoughts? You can talk to me in your head. No need to speak out loud.'
'Well I skipped that lesson in school so don't blame me,' I try his theory. He lets out a breathy cat laugh and shakes his head.
'I was never good at being taught either.'
'You guys have school?' My eyebrows furrow in confusion.
'Yeah, well sorta. It's more like mentors. It's a job given to owls and their chosen.'
Like my mom. I sigh and force a smile then turn my attention back to the crowds and paddock. I spot my dad and Mr. Pepper. He gives me a wide smile and mouths find me later. I nod and smile back, looping my arms around Thorn's neck. He growls lowly which I respond to with a growl of my own. That shut him up.
The higher ups always go first, the prince is of age this year. The crowd sits on the edge of their seats as they watch him go into the middle of the ring of cages. The 19 year old flashes a toothy smile to everyone, I roll my eyes. He is so cocky and stuck up. Not to mention handsome. His foreign skin and accent, from Spanish origin like the Queen, and his stunning dark eyes. It could sweep almost any girl off their feet, any girl but me. Even Ashely sighs dreamily. I scoff and bump her shoulder, making a kissy face. She rolls her eyes but smiles slightly.
I think she hopes to win his heart at the ball tonight (like every other girl here) where we show off our companions, and they show us off in return. It's sorta a bragging convention, which is completely stupid to me but everyone is required to go, even the prince and his older brother.
The animals are released from the cages and we all watch in anticipation, well everyone but me. I could care less about what he gets. I have no idea why people treat him like he is a god. He is a mortal like me and you, royalty yes but mortal.
His older brother went 2 years ago, he was assigned a lion. Interesting story about those two, the younger will become king. The older dropped the title of the heir because he was exiled the same day he got his familiar. His familiar attacked another, killing it, and instead of letting the lion survive on his own he went with it. Out of the kingdom, no one has heard from him in the past 2 years. Or at least that's the rumor. I believe he has been there. Watching us. I believe that hooded figure, with the large cat hiding in the shadows next to him, I saw last week was him. I don't think he means any harm, his familiar was just provoked, I don't believe that he seeks revenge.
He just wants to be accepted. That's why I approached the figure. I am the daughter of an assassin. My mother died during childbirth and my father was left to raise me. He raised me in his profession. So I had nothing to fear, I could defend myself. Even now, at a event in the castle walls, I wear my blades, strapped into my inner thighs, hidden by my cloak I wear over my dark jean shorts, black shirt, leather combat boots. I believe in the first to have contact with the exiled prince in years, him and his lion.
I focus my attention back on the young prince. As expected a large tiger approaches him, she is the crown of the lot this time. A tiger with black fur and red stripes, like fire and ash. Along with the panther that had climbed on a rock to watch, the panther, he, is so dark that he looks almost purple, but it is a trick of light as in the dark he would be invisible. His eyes are a dark purple with specks of a blue, looking like water on a purple rose. On his hind left leg, which he showed so proudly to the audience and other companions, is a vine marking. It is a red and curls as if it is growing. The leaves look sharp but elegant. I would give anything to draw it. Overall the beautiful beast gave off a powerful, dangerous, but loyal aura. It is expected that the creature goes to the head assassin's, my dad's boss, son, Ferick.
Ferick loved bragging and didn't let any of his peer's forget it. He is supposed friends with the prince which certainly does go to his head. Classes with him were a pain, I hope he is bestowed with something that matches his attitude. Like maybe a house cat. I snicker to myself, to which Ashely sends me a sharp look as she watches the tiger and the prince get acquainted. They circle each other before the prince bows in front of the majesty of this new blood companion's group. The panther watches with intelligent eyes.
I would give anything to have him as my companion. A panther is the perfect assassin's companion as it itself is the assassin of the wild. But since I am a simple lower class assassin's only daughter and a motherless child I'll probably get chosen by a simple hawk. Not even the feathered beauty that sits with the others, probably just a plain brown one. Either way I'll be loyal to the creature. It chose me, and I will respect that honor. Some don't even get companions, and they have to return the next year to try again. Our cocky prince went through this as the age to get a companion is 18, and he is now 19. It caused quite the uproar last year when he didn't get a companion. So him gaining the tiger is perfect, she also is a returner but from many years ago.
The companions age normally as their species would until they are the age of their future chosen. Then they stop. Once they find their chosen they age as a normal human would so the companion doesn't die before the chosen.
The tiger was put on hold last year, giving her a break from the event, causing the prince to go companionless, but now they are united and from the look of it, they both approve the choice. The prince and the beast walk out of the rink and to the royal stage, where they stand proudly. I roll my eyes, like all he needed as an ego boost. Ashely sighs happily, I poke her with my elbow and wink, she smiles lightly and shakes her head.
"Up next will be the second ranking nobles!" This group includes Ferick. I watch carefully as the line diminishes until the last person standing is him.
A jaguar to one, a hawk to another, a falcon to the girl, all to the ground hog given to the boy in front of him. He steps up and takes a deep breath, then looks directly at the panther. The beast stares back but makes no effort to move. Ashely and I try hard to hold in our laughs as the beautiful hawk approaches him instead. He visibly sighs in defeat.
"Told you he would get something to match his personality," I whisper to Ash.
She nods, "The beast has been flaunting in front of its brothers and sisters the whole time."
Our cheeks become red as they both strut off, at least okay with the decision. Ferick looked like a chicken when he strutted.
"Rank 3 commoners now!" Ash stands up, she is the daughter of a well known merchant, but a merchant not known enough to be a rank 2 noble.
"You will do well," I whisper to Ash. She nods and fiddles with her hands as she walks to the line. Again others were chosen but this time two were not, one hugged her mom in tears, I swear the panther, that I was all too obsessed with, watched with pity and empathy. He had been here for many years, almost 10 and has been only taken off the tour once. Every year he went home with the group instead of a chosen. Every year he went back to the den alone.
He sits on his hind legs and sniffs the air as Ashely enters the ring. Everyone sat forward, watching curiously, even the royalty, even the king himself. The animals look at him expectantly, but the beast just shakes his larger head and lies back down, this time with head between paws instead of up and scanning the crowd, as if he is disappointed. The king lays back in his chair again.
A large Saint Bernard bounds up to Ash and sniffs her. He barks ecstatically and bounds around Ashely. She laughs happily, they walk out of the rink together. Ashely sits back next to me, the large dog sits in the seat next to her. Like every human that could be chosen, we saved seats next to us for our animals. Mine to my left and Ashely's to her right, as we wanted to sits next to each other like we had always done.
"Congratulations Ash!" I whisper happily. "And congratulations to you too sir!" I whisper to the dog.
He barks at me. Him and Ashely share a lot of features, their emerald green eyes, brown hair, soft aura. Except Ashely, you know, is a girl... One who has chocolate skin, curves, and D-Cups. I envied her sometimes. I'm slender and pale. My face has been decorated with silver colored eyes that always seem half closed, like I just woke up, and long black hair. I wear my hair down, as the pony tail interferes with my hood that I love to keep up. My long eyelashes get annoying as they tickle my cheeks in my sleep and wake me up sometimes. I am a soft sleeper after all, it's an assassin's trait. I have some curves, from what I know I got my mom's butt, which is one of my proudest features. But unlike my best friend, I got burdened with B's making me almost seem flat-chested. She jokes that our grades reflect our breasts, but we both know I make the worst grades between us. My father comforts me by saying that my body shows I am a born assassin. I just think he says that to show pity, which he knows I hate.
"What's his name?" I ask Ashely.
"Drew, he is a big ol' teddy bear too," Drew growls playfully. Every companion shares a telepathic link with their chosen when they first touch. This way they can talk and tell where each other are, and also if they need help are injured. They share their thoughts and feelings with each other, this bond is supposed to be the most powerful bond that any living creature can have. Everyone craves it.
I connect eyes with my dad who smiles at me, Mr. Pepper, his companion who is a falcon, seems to smile at me too.
"Rank 4 commoners! Please make your way to the cages!" A sigh escapes my mouth as I stand up. My eyes find the panther once more, I quickly divert my longing gaze somewhere else as the creature looks directly at me.
Ashley grabs my arm, "You will do fine, Ellie. Drew here says your companion made himself known to the others."
I furrow my eyebrows in confusion and nod then walk down to the growing line. As always I'm placed right in the back. My last name always places me at the end. Zephyr, it was my mother's maiden name. The west wind... or a way to describe wool or fabric, matters how you look at it. I took it in honor of her. She will not be forgotten, no matter how many people pity me for her. I don't want to be the reason they remember her, from what my father told me I know that my mother was in the arts, she painted, danced, sang, acted, the siren of the stage they called her. I want people to remember her for who she was not what happened to her, because of me. She was told that I may not survive the birth, or that there was a large chance I would have a defect if I did.
My mother and father had already had a miscarriage, losing the older brother that I could've had. The villagers tell a story of me, of her, that I was saved by the power of a violet witch, one that is known to be one of the more stronger witches. The little tale that has haunted me for my whole 18 years goes like this...
My mother was absolutely devastated that she could lose me too, or that I could be limited compared to the other children. So she and my father searched for an option to save me from that fate. They say my mother got in contact with the purple witch by a ritual. They say that my mom made a deal with the witch. She told the witch what was happening and how they had lost a child before. They then discussed ways to save me and prices. The witch first proposed to save me, but I would die at a young age, the price was my mother's right eye. My mother refused, she wanted me to live a full life. The witch then proposed that I would be saved, and I would be able to live normally, no defects or anything, but I would be cursed. It is said that the cursed would have caused me never to find love. The price was my mother's sanity. My mother again refused for she knew how important love is. She cried and begged the witch to help me, to help her. The witch, who was already saddened by the situation, offered her one last solution.
I would be born, healthy and beautiful. I would grow up to be strong and bring pride to my family. But among these blessings I would be cursed still, this time it was that I could only ever love one person, man or woman would matter on how I grew up, how I felt; it would be guaranteed that I would meet them. For a price, my mother and her companion's life would be taken, since when one died the other did too. She was given a day to think on the deal, as it was the best the witch could give her. My mother talked to her great grey owl, who was named Angelica. They decided that they would save me. So I was born and my mother and her owl died.
My father says that that story isn't true. But the natural purple streak I have in my hair makes me wonder. A large group gasp and the feeling of tension and wonderment pulls me out of my morbid thoughts. The line hadn't started moving yet but something had certainly happened. I look over at the king and the other royals who were on a platform directly behind me, they all stood watching intently. Even the prince looked in awe. I turn back forward and try to look around the group of squealing girls in front of me, and in front of them a group of rowdy boys. Everyone seems excited and I couldn't understand why.
This is why I had being short. I have always been short, being a minuscule 5 foot 3. My father is at least 6 foot, Ash is a 5"8, and the prince a 6 foot 2. Wait, why does the prince matter in this? I shake my head to clear the thought and try to jump and look over the crowd. I only catch a glimpse of the top of the rock that the mighty panther I lusted over was sitting. Was sitting... It hits me. The panther had jumped off the rock. I tap the girl in front of me's shoulder.
"Where is the panther?" My tone full of hope that he didn't choose anyone yet.
"He is standing below the rock!" She squeals back.
That means one of us could be chosen... My hope quickly grows before I realize what I am doing. Hope leads to heart break which leads to crying and pain which is a weakness. He probably doesn't want me. There are at least 50 kids in this line. 10 of which are my peers in training, he probably wants one of them. I was never the best at academics, I could only assassinate well. I killed first at the age of 15, it was my first job and somewhat sloppy but not as bad as they thought it would be. From then on out I had been sent on missions alone, with my father, or someone else, making my total kill count fifty-six.
The line began to move as people got chosen. It got to the squealing group of girls in front of me. One by one they were chosen by animals that were not he. My stomach filled with butterflies as I stepped towards the paddock. I take a deep breath and walk inside, my hood on, hiding my face from everyone.
'Take of the hood,' A velvety voice fills my head.
"Why?" I reply out loud, earning a few strange looks from the audience. This was taking awfully long compared to the others and that fact alone put the crowd on edge.
'I want to make sure you are the right one,' The voice replied.
"Shouldn't you know if you can talk to me?" I retort.
'Sometimes I can to people who aren't mine.'
Sighing, my hands find my hood, I pull it down.
My eyes glance over the audience then the animals around me.
"Better?"
'Much... Hello my chosen one.' The panther stands up from his sitting position, my eyes snap to his.
"Y-You?" I stutter, great first impression Ellie.
'No the turtle. Of course it's me!' He chuckles lightly.
He circles me. I brush a hand over his coat as he passes in front me.
'What is your name?'
"Essence but I go by Ellie... And yours?" I reply, still in awe that I got blessed with such a creature.
'Thorn, my name is Thorn,' He replies. I look out at the crowd who watches me with unbelievable looks on their face. I turn my head and twist my body, to look at the royals. They stare at me with respect and awe. Thorn brushes against my side as he faces them to look also. My gaze focuses on the prince who looks like he is in deep thought. The tiger next to him nods to Thorn who nods back. I rest my hand on Thorn before walking out of the paddock with my new companion next to me.
We take our seats next to Ash and Drew. Drew bumps in Ash who glares and bumps him back.
I roll my eyes and snap my finger in front of them. Ash looks at me and smiles sheepishly.
"Ashley, Drew. This is Thorn," I introduce him. He nods and gives a small toothy smile, or at least I think it is a smile.
'Me and Drew have met,' Thorn tells me.
"Well I didn't know that," I mutter, embarrassed.
He laughs again, 'You know I can hear your thoughts? You can talk to me in your head. No need to speak out loud.'
'Well I skipped that lesson in school so don't blame me,' I try his theory. He lets out a breathy cat laugh and shakes his head.
'I was never good at being taught either.'
'You guys have school?' My eyebrows furrow in confusion.
'Yeah, well sorta. It's more like mentors. It's a job given to owls and their chosen.'
Like my mom. I sigh and force a smile then turn my attention back to the crowds and paddock. I spot my dad and Mr. Pepper. He gives me a wide smile and mouths find me later. I nod and smile back, looping my arms around Thorn's neck. He growls lowly which I respond to with a growl of my own. That shut him up.