Heya folk! Can't believe that people are still reading this! XD Anyway, here we go! Chapter 10!
Po was sitting between his mother and brother Skye. Silvern, the closest in age to Skye, was sitting two places away on the other side of his mother, his wife Lynette between them. Opposite Skye was his other daughter, Karla, and next to her was an empty place for Panther, then two more places for Robin and Key. King Ror himself sat at the head of the table next to Karla on one side and Skye on the other. On the ends of the table furthest away from Ror were two places opposite each other for Boar and Viper. There was a conspicuously larger number of guards on that side of the room.
The doors swept open and Viper entered, dressed smartly and flanked by two palace guards. The atmosphere in the room tangibly froze. He was followed by Robin, holding Key's hand. The little girl was dressed in a whisp of blue gossamer it seemed, and her little eyes, one pastel blue and one cloud white, swept the room nervously. Lynette visibly leaned towards the little girl, sympathy written all over her face clear as day. The trio took their seats, Key opposite Lynette, Robin next to her and opposite Silvern. Boar hurried in after them and sat down next to Robin.
Finally, and almost hesitantly, Panther entered. The shadows quivered and she stretched out her fingers to them, almost as if she couldn't help it. She was dressed in a delicate blue gown, which fell in ripples to her feet. It sparkled with some sort of black glitter, and her hair fell smooth and silky about her shoulders. She looked utterly beautiful.
Karla and Skye both started forward simultaneously, surprise and a faint hopefulness clear on their faces, then reason overruled hope and they sat back. Panther was left breathless by the likeness between father and daughter; she wondered if she had any of that look about her. Robin smiled at her and indicated the seat beside her, which Panther sank into gratefully.
There was an awkward moment in which everyone struggled to find something to say. Po broke the silence.
"Are your rooms adequate Lady?"
Panther nodded, glad to have something to say. "Very, thank you." She felt that she ought to add something to that, but she couldn't think of anything to say, so she just took a gulp of water from her glass.
Ror frowned at the use of the word 'Lady' in reference to Panther. Po noted the frown and braced himself.
"All right, what the blazes is going on?" demanded Ror. "Po, I need an explanation."
Po took a deep breath and began.
"Two nights ago, we returned from the hunt-"
"Yes, that was the last time we saw you" interrupted Ror.
"Yes, it was. I was followed up to my room that night..." Po threw a glance at Panther who blushed guiltily, but raised her chin defiantly.
"The lady who followed me called herself Panther. I invited her into my room as she appeared confused and lost, but as soon as I entered my room I was knocked unconscious by inhaling some concoction that had been infused into the air."
Now it was Robin's turn to blush, and she did so, further living up to her namesake.
"The next thing I remember is waking up in the hold of this man's ship" continued Po, gesturing at Viper. "I was not treated appallingly, but nor was it precisely royal standard accommodation. However, that is not the brunt of what I have to tell you. It appears" he said, taking a deep breath. "It appears that they have among their number one of our own. It appears that they have, and have always had, Princess Maylin."
Chaos erupted. Ror leapt to his feet; his immediate reaction said a lot about his presence of mind as he raised his hand, fingers spread, and the guards all surged forward to restrain Viper and the others. Only Panther and Key were left untouched. Even Robin had two men holding her back. The guards weren't taking any chances. Silvern also leapt to his feet, but his reaction was very different. His immediate reaction was to launch an attack on Viper, and only his wife Lynette holding him back stopped him killing Viper there and then.
Skye and Kayla however reacted almost identically; both thought only about Panther. Kayla, who had been sitting next to her, clasped both hands to her mouth, her eyes wide and alight with delight. Skye practically vaulted over the table in his rush to get to Panther. He almost crashed into her, and, restraining himself by an effort of sheer willpower, took her by the shoulders and looked into her eyes.
"My daughter?" he breathed softly. "My Maylin? Really?" His gaze flickered towards Po. "Brother? You're not joking?" Po shook his head silently. Skye's arms dropped limply to his side. He looked lost and hopeless, yet his entire frame shook with some barely suppresses emotion.
Kayla had sat down sharply in her chair, but now she stood up shakily.
"Maylin" she said, and her voice was surprisingly strong. "I'm your sister. My name is Kayla."
Maylin nodded, and said, hoping her voice didn't sound too wobbly "I know. Po told me."
Kayla nodded too. Both girls looked each other in the eyes for a long moment, then simultaneously fell into each other's arms. Kayla wrapped her arms around her little sister and held her like she'd wanted to all these years; as if she could protect her from the world forever and never let her go. After a long time Kayla said in a slightly muffled voice "you're taller than me now. You were always smaller than me."
She felt more than saw Maylin nod, and felt a little sob escape her, and the two sisters clung together like sailors on a drowning boat, while chaos ensued around them.
*Takes a deep breath* Phew, that was intense! Hope you enjoyed it! Tell me your thoughts! Star x