The celebration went on into the morning; everyone finally started to leave about a couple of hours before the sun rose. I wondered the streets, trying to get a feel for the place. It felt safe, maybe a little comforting. I decided I better talk to Zane and Danica. They knew their people better than I did, I might just be seeing a façade that the villagers put on.
The court was separated in two, the serpents was more open, while the avian side was more closed. Though anyone could enter the avian side, I didn't see many serpents braving it. The cultures were still too different to be forced to live with each other. There was the palace built in the middle of the two.
"Come on." I mumbled to myself. I walked into the palace, looking around for either Zane or Danica. Maybe even Salem or Sive. There were quite a few avians and serpents but I couldn't spot any of them. I sat down in the corner, keeping an eye out for anyone who looked like royal blood, avian or serpent.
Jeweled and warm brown to gold colored eyes watched me as they passed, off on their business. I watched, the two people didn't exactly mingle but they didn't avoid each other really. I played with a strand of my short brown hair, fluffing it so it stood up how I liked in. Then I saw it, the red eyes that belonged to a Cobriana, Zane to be specific.
I stood up, and dusted myself off before chasing after him. I lost him a couple of times, but finally found him talking to Danica. Perfect, now there were both of them. I slowly walked up to them.
"Um…hello. Zane, Danica." I gave a small bow. "I am Arianna, and I wish to live here in Wyverns Court. But I'm not sure if your people would accept me."
"Ah, you are a wolf/falcon mix, are you not?" Zane asked, I nodded looking at the ground.
"I would hope our people would accept you." Danica said, and then added. "But they haven't fully accepted each other as well as Zane and I hoped. There is still not enough trust between the two. I am sad to say that you would not be trusted. You will most likely be treated by the avians as they treat the serpents. The only thing that will change that is time." She gave me a sorrowful look. "But I could be completely wrong."
"She is probably right." Zane said, sorrow in his voice. "But we always knew it wouldn't be a quick fix, we just hoped it would be." I nodded and said my thanks before turning and leaving. I would be an outcast here as well as the obsidian guild. I waited until I was on the edge of the court before shifting into my other form.
I ran, ran hoping to find someone like me. But knowing that I was the only mongrel like this, I have never heard word of anyone half wolf half falcon. It was just too rare; I flew to my cave and looked out onto the treetops. Guards from wyverns' court would sometimes come out here, patrolling, but not often.
I felt the familiar pull of Ecl; it was always calling to me. I was surprised when I first heard of the darkness of Ecl. My viper who adopted me used to tell me stories of the white city, Ahnmik. She didn't know much but the stories of where my mother came from always fascinated me more than the stories of the wolves. She always warned me about Ecl, always that worry in her eye, watching me to make sure I wasn't giving into the darkness.
I felt the darkness, on the very edge of taking over. I thought it might be better for me just to slip into Ecl's cold touch; I might belong better locked in the darkness. It was getting harder and harder for me to resist her pull; I had to do something to stop it.
My foster mother told me that the white city helps dull the call of Ecl in falcons. Maybe it would work for me. If not maybe they could do something else to help.
I stood up, finally deciding to go visit the white city, were my mother was from. The blood sang through my veins at my decision, the falcon in me wanted to go home.