Veje feels much better, and together with Sienté he goes to see Verago. He has something important to discuss, but not just with him…
Though his right side still hurts and feeling tired even after a good night's sleep, Veje's flying around the Palace perimeter. He's in search of something. He lets his eyes look around. He focuses on what is below him, paying close attention to the ground like a bird of prey in search of a next meal. As he looks around he finds the Palace in front of him. He flies towards it. While closing in on it his eyes suddenly fixate on something. *Ah, there you are! I was looking for you.* Veje thinks excited and starts circling as he descends towards the ground.
He finds a female Jaquin in front of the Palace, on a flat rock near its entrance, lying on her back. As he keeps descending Veje gets a better picture of her, which brings him to a thought: *She is laying herself out. She just likes to sunbathe so much! I, too, should do this sometime today. It is such fine weather!*
Jaquins are known to adore sunny days. They love relaxing and sunbathing in the early morning and early evening when the sun is not shining down onto them forcefully. Especially mornings present a moment for sunbathing activity. At this time of day, the flat rocks found in the open without protection from the sun's rays have become comfortably warm by then, making for a cozy place to lie on that Jaquins love during sunbathing. On the contrary, that same flat rock also serves another, entirely different, purpose in the afternoon when becoming too hot to lie on. They effectively become stoves for baking ingredients on, enabling Jaquins to actually do some cooking and prepare hot meals!
By now, Veje has closed in on the Jaquin and decides to land near her. "Sienté…" he starts off but is unable to say what he'd intended.
"Hi, Veje! I see you are flying again, and you fly without difficulty. Wow, that is good!" Sienté says gladly in seeing him act as if uninjured.
"Yes! I am glad, too. I feel good like I am reborn.' Veje says euphorically with his wings spread wide and starts smiling from cheek to cheek, 'You helped me outstandingly yesterday. I came here to express my sincere thanks for that!"
"You are more than welcome!' Sienté replies warmly while smiling back at him and continues at a serious tone of voice, 'To be honest, you left me no choice. I had no idea what to expect when Migs came and took me to you. I was truly shaken with the condition you were in when I arrived. I had never seen a Jaquin in such bad shape before, really… Speaking of which. What happened to you? What – were you doing?"
Veje looks at her. He notices from her choice of words that she truly was worried about him. *Perhaps she is still.* he thinks in secret hoping there's more to it.
"Did Migs not tell you?" Veje asks surprisedly.
"No.' Sienté replies brief and looks away for a second before continuing, 'We all know he can overreact at times when unknown situations occur… and when they appear dire. Yet I noticed he looked really worried so I knew something had happened, but I could not predict it would be that bad."
"Well, I got hit… Well, bash is more like it. We were hunting a Veloz Ciervos with Migs leading the hunt. At some point, I decided to fly in front of it." Veje says.
"In… front of it? Really? It is dangerous to fly in its path!' Sienté almost cries out and frowns hearing him say this but then reminds herself of something, 'Veje, I know you. You love to dawdle around, not speeding as Skylar does. Everyone knows Veloz Ciervos are the fastest of all species…"
"I know, I know… It – is in my nature to do things easy…' Veje says hastily while looking uncomfortably but continues at a more eased tone, 'But I can sprint. I mean, I am not really slower than anyone else, I just decide to do so whenever I please."
"Haha, so you do. More often than not I must add.' Sienté says jokingly and winks at him, 'So, tell me. Why did you fly in front of a Veloz Ciervos in the first place? What were you thinking… if at all? Did Migs perhaps instruct you to do so?"
"No, I decided this myself. To be honest with you, I wanted to impress the others in the hunting party. By flying in front of it I wanted to slow it down and distract it. That way Migs could grab it and make the hunt a success… and – it worked!" Veje says happily yet reticently.
"You should go and see king Verago.' Sienté adds calmly and rubs a paw over Veje's troubled looking face, 'He wants to know how you are doing, and probably discuss a thing or two."
Veje agrees and together head over to the Palace. Upon their arrival they see Verago enter the Palace in a hurry, followed suite by Skylar, Nico, Luna, and Migs. Veje and Sienté look at one another being clueless and enter the Palace as well.
Inside the Palace, Veje notices it's crowded. Many Jaquins have amassed and moved into the throne room. They heard of the trial taking place and wish to know what Verago will decide on for future hunts, after the accident involving Veje. Tudor and Shaniqua are in the grand hallway still, though Shaniqua seems to be spurring Tudor in going into the throne room as well. Veje looks at the many Jaquins in front of him as he and Sienté enter the throne room. *It is truly crowded this time of day! It seems something attracts them to this place, yet what is everyone waiting for? Is king Verago having an audience?… Or does he wish to speak with me in front of everyone? Ugh… I truly hope for the first…* he thinks hesitantly while experiencing a mildly agonising nervosity.
Waiting beside him, Sienté seems equally shaken, gazing around also as if lost in the abundance of all these vivid souls. However, this intense moment doesn't last long for her as she notices something waiving at her. Fixating on it she discovers it's a wing, one belonging to Dulce who's looking her way and seemingly in a happy mood. Sienté returns the same gesture accompanied by a genuine smile, and before walking over to Dulce she says to Veje: "See you in a minute."
Veje doesn't notice he's spoken to. There's much activity unfolding around him. He tries to make something out of this crazy situation, if he wants to find out what's happening and, more importantly, why he's here in the first place. Amidst all this chaos, he does recognise something orderly, something he's all too familiar with: the King's Guards firmly stand at attention, side by side in two lines facing each other, with their wings neatly folded alongside their body. It's the display they're most famous for. By the look of them, bluntly staring forward, Veje can tell they're awaiting Verago's next command. Behind both lines, other Jaquins have clumped together in two disorganised flocks, one of which Sienté has just become part of. *I cannot wait to join the guards again, standing there with my fellow brothers!* he tells himself gleefully in sheer confidence.
At that point, Tudor and Shaniqua enter the throne room. He and Sienté notice Kamil immediately landing upon entering behind them. He turns around and yells at Tudor: "Quickly now, big brother!"
Tudor resists entry. He's struggling to get loose from Shaniqua's strong grasp, which seems a fight to no avail. He knows the king is waiting in the throne room that fuels his struggle. He just came to the realisation this may have something to do with the hunting party he was part of, which obviously had been involved in an accident. Usually, this means Verago isn't pleased and wants to know every practical detail of that situation. By now, he feels Shaniqua is trying her hardest to get him to go into the throne room. Getting tired struggling, he sees no other way than giving up the fight and starts acting as dead weight instead. He doesn't want to, which he voices agitatedly: "Come on! Do I really have to? This is rubbish!"
Tudor's effort, however, is futile. He cannot prevent being dragged into the throne room by Shaniqua slowly, who grunts with each pull while holding him by the wings. "Yes! You were… involved in the… hunt yesterday.' Shaniqua snarls at him and points at the throne room using a wing, 'The – others are here… already."
"Argh! I just want to have a look inside the storage rooms to look at all the food we gathered for tomor…"
"No more – excuses!"
Dióntan sees the scene of Tudor being dragged into the throne room unfold in front of him. He quickly prods both Nico and Avira, of who he stands in between, winks at Avira and says: "Well, well. Look what the cat dragged in."
All three start laughing. "Hehe.' Tudor snickers joining the laughter around him until he realises it's about him and starts muttering highly displeased, 'Oh… Not cool."
In a reaction to Dióntan's joke followed by Tudor's remark, Shaniqua cackles briefly. "Worth it!" she exclaims joyously.
In between the double ranks and in front of Verago, sit Skylar and Migs. Skylar seems calm and focuses on his father predominantly. Migs, on the other hand, seems nervous. Acting skittishly, he quickly gazes around him a number of times, apparently awaiting someone. His eyes grow larger when noticing Veje, seemingly surprised at having found him. He immediately beckons Veje to move closer through a rapid motion made with his head. Veje adheres to this yet casually approaches Migs. He sits down next to Skylar, who gives him an amiable smile. Veje looks at his king, mumbling inaudibly: "I hope you are not highly critical of me about yesterday…"
Three out of four Jaquins that formed the hunting party yesterday now sit in front of their king. Verago, sitting on his throne gracefully, lets his eyes go past them all, his face showing indignancy. Given ample time, neither Skylar, Migs, or Veje seem able to read their king. Verago then gives a slight yet noticeable nod shortly after. Not to them, but to someone behind them. Before any of them can respond to this, two loud thumping sounds of paws tapping the floor loudly are heard. As a result, the mumbling inside the throne room dies down to the point that all Jaquins have fallen silent.
Again, he looks at all three Jaquins in front of him. Veje is the last he looks at, on whom he starts fixating and makes for an austere impression. Veje is not alerted by this. Verago does often so. It doesn't usually mean much up to the use of words that clarify his intentions. Yet, Verago remains quiet to overthink the situation: *I have never lost a Jaquin under my rule. Though some of my predecessors have, I want to be that king who is remembered for having kept all clan members safe. I take every single one of them under my wings. What Veje did was dangerous to himself and others. Yet, it has passed. I cannot change it, only prevent it from happening again.* Veje immediately, and nearly automated being a King's Guard, follows this tapping in quick succession, feeling a sensation of pride coursing through him in a mere second or two. He also can't help but notice Luna mimicking the King's Guards in silence, softly pressing her right paw to the ground twice. This makes him wonder: *She never ceases to be inspired by us guards. I admire her resili…*
However, he's interrupted in his thinking as a loud and happy voice starts filling the throne room. "Everyone! You are here because I have two announcements to make. From today and onward, I am happy to say that Skylar has successfully completed his training in Avalor. He now has become a Guardian of Avalor.' Verago says solemnly followed by cheers from all over the throne room and continues after they've died down, 'Because of this, and since he is the crown prince, he also becomes the personal Guardian to Elena of Avalor… I cannot express more gratitude towards you over aiding the royal family of Avalor, close allies of us. You brought our families together, during which you became a Guardian of Avalor. Skylar, I have respect for your actions of late."
A smile appears on Skylar's face that grows wider with every encouraging word that is directed at him. His tail starts wagging of sheer happiness. Verago notices and raises his head in a graceful manner and smiles heartily at his son. After a nod to his son, he changes to a serious tone of voice: "Speaking of actions… The second announcement I will make today concerns the hunts. It must not have escaped your attention that a precious member of the clan was injured during the hunt yesterday. The situation turned dire. Yet, the swift actions and good care by Migs and Sienté prevented this from escalating. For this, I am thankful to both."
Verago looks at Migs and nods amiably, doing the same with Sienté. He turns his gaze at the third member in front of him. "Veje… I see you are without visible injuries. I am glad you feel much better now. Your recovery went well. 'he says heartily yet continues frustratingly, 'However, I cannot ignore that this is the result of reckless behaviour. I deplore that you got yourself caught in that situation, one which certainly could have been prevented. Ah, but do not get me wrong here. I am fond of your proactive attitude, for it shows the kind of behaviour I expect from my guards. Yet, I also condone it. Not only did you put yourself at risk, but also jeopardised the lives of others involved in that hunt. Tell me, what were you thinking of performing a stunt like that?"
Veje opens his mouth to say something but seems to think about what to say. Tudor, who made his way up to them and now sits behind Skylar, makes use of this window of opportunity. "He was not thinking, hehe." he quickly replies and in turn gets his shoulder prodded by Migs to remain silent.
To the surprise of many Migs nods agreeing slightly at Tudor's remark. It's something Migs usually doesn't do since he and Tudor share discordances about matters like these. To him, Tudor is reckless in speech, saying whatever comes to mind without taking into consideration any consequences. *Migs! You agree with me? This is off the charts! You are always so stiff and politically correct, never truly speaking your mind.* Tudor thinks euphorically and winks at him.
He's shaken little when hearing Verago's loud voice once more. "Any single one of you is precious to me. Therefore, I will be more strict on who will join a hunt from this day forth. Well, now that this has cleared the air… Let me be honest with you, Veje. We all were frightened what would happen to you when you performed that trick,' Verago says but remembers a detail told by Skylar when eyeing his son, 'or – feint from what I understood it was. Well, whatever it may have been, this stunt of yours was too close a call. I will not allow anyone in the clan to get severely hurt or worse. Veje, you are not to participate in future hunts until I decide otherwise."
Veje doesn't notice his brother goes to sit next to him. Dióntan pads him on the shoulder and puts a wing around his shoulders. It provides Veje with a comfortable warmth that makes him feel sheltered. "Now, that was… embarrassing – for a royal guard." Veje mumbles.
"I know. King Verago can be harsh. But he is always just. It is his way of dealing with this behaviour of Veje. Still, many of us think you performed well. The hunt was a success after all, and you definitely had your take in it. Tell you what. I know exactly what you need right now…"