Unknown Royalty, Leeann29 [thriller novels to read .txt] 📗

She ran through the woods. He was chasing her but it was only a game. She got back to the tree house before him. She stopped at the bottom to wait for him. It was almost routine for them. They would get up with the sunrise and eat. The day was spent checking trap lines and snares. Then it was down to the creek for a quick wash-up. It always dissolved into a soaking match then a game of tag.
This time however the game didn’t end the way it normally did. This time it ended in the children being dragged back to society by their parents. He finally got to the house in the trees. She stood at the foot of the tree. He hugged her then gave her a quick kiss on her cheek. They climbed the ladder to a surprise.
Sitting in the chairs on the porch are the girl’s parents. They turn to watch the children climb onto the porch. The girl hugs her parents and says” I thought we still had two months left.” Her mother said” you do, sweetheart but something came up. You have to come back now. The kingdom needs its princess. “
Her father said” pack your bags. It’s time to go. We need to get a move on if we are to make it back before dark.” The children enter the house and pack. Both are sullen and upset at being dragged back to court. Their parents knew they hated court life which is why they were allowed to live in the forest for so many months out of the year.
It began with a game. This game changed the life of the court as it was known. The game was meant to target the two quietest kids in the court. Everyone knew them and few hated them. The few that did, devised this game to hurt them. The beginning of the game was harmless enough. As it progressed they were the only two left.
The challenge was to climb the oak that stood outside the school building. She took to the challenge easily enough because she had climbed the tree before. He hadn’t however. It ended with him breaking his arm and her begging her parents to let them out of court. They agreed on the terms that they came back for so many months a year.
Many at court knew of the decision but not the reason for why. Many did not get why the princess and the alpha heir were allowed to live in the forest like rouges. They despised the royal family for allowing the decision to be passed. They believed that the time spent in the forest was only corrupting the royal children. They did not know what went on in the forest as the children grew.
They had been together since before they were born. Their parents were like family to each other. So it was no surprise that the queen and her lady wound up pregnant at the same time. When the royal doctor examined them, he was surprised to find that the queen was carrying a girl and her lady a boy. They were born minutes apart. The girl was born first but it wasn’t till his first cry was heard that she cried.
They shared everything. They had no secrets from each other. They did keep secrets from the court though. They were always seen together. They never spoke unless it was to each other and even then that wasn’t very often. Their first words were the others name.
The reason for their part time exile was partially due to the tree incident but it was also due to another incident that was never spoken of. This incident was the awakening of a power that had slumbered through generations. It ended in the almost killing of the offenders that caused the boy to break his arm. She begged her parents to let them live in the forest in a clearing of their choosing. There she would master not just her power but the art that made her family famous throughout the realms.
Such was her power that she created a set of daggers for her and the boy. She also had a pet albino black leopard. Its name was pale cloud. Her and the boy practiced everyday for two hours on all forms of combat. She also practiced with her power. She became so skilled that she could access knowledge long forgotten and was more powerful than any master.
After packing, the children went outside. The girl whistled and her leopard leapt from the tree to her right. It landed next to her. She rubbed its head and said” we’re ready now. Let’s get this over with.” The children jumped off the porch as if it were nothing. When everyone was on the ground, the girl cast a cloaking spell on the house.
“Wait. I forgot my bow.” The boy said.” Well I reminded you to grab it before we left.” The girl said. Then she muttered something. She handed the boy his bow and his quiver. He slung it over his shoulder. “I still can’t get used to that.” Then they walked in silence behind the girl’s parents.
Pale cloud was following them. He growled then charged the children. They fell to the ground as a wolf was knocked out of the air by the force of the impact with the leopard. The wolf growled and so did pale cloud. The girl’s parents turned around when they heard the wolf growl. They saw the children watching as if this was an everyday occurrence.
The girl’s father went to yell when she laid a hand on his arm. “Watch dad. The wolf won’t hurt him. They do this every day.” She said. After a small battle, the wolf shifted.
The girl rummaged through her pack and handed the shifter a shirt and some jerky. She said” next time wait till my parents aren’t around to charge pale cloud. I know you were itching for the fight because you wanted food but you forgot who my parents are.”
He shifted back. She put the jerky wrapped in the shirt in the wolf’s mouth and sent him on his way. “He’s rouge?” her father asked. The child’s reply was “no he’s a misguided wolf who has been kind enough to teach us in exchange for food and the occasional shirt.” “hmm.” was all her father said.
They rejoined the child’s mother. They walked in silence back to the palace. When they got to the gate the children stood there for a minute. They turned around and stared at the forest for a while then they entered the gate. Court was noisy compared to the silence of the forest. Word spread like wildfire in the summer of who was back in court.
The boy’s parents met them at the gate. He hugged them both. They led the children to the bathhouse which had been emptied for their arrival. The children went their separate ways and bathed. When they finished they met in her father’s study. What came next tore their family apart.
The children assembled before the massive expanse of oak called a desk. It was the girl’s fathers. The boy’s parents stood by the door. Behind the desk were the girl’s parents. The children glanced at each other then laced their fingers together. Their parents saw it but never understood.
The girl’s father said “we have two options. Neither of them is very pretty and they both end with the two of you having to separate and leave each other. I know you don’t want to do that but it has to happen.” “Dad, what’s going on?” “The vampires gave us an ultimatum. Either we give you to them or they slaughter everyone. This is why we are sending you to live with the humans.”
“No. we can fight them. We can send an envoy and compromise. We have to do something. Anything but that. Please we have to try. There has to be another way. Why? Why do I have to go? Why me?” she turned and cried into the boy’s shoulder. He wrapped an arm around her shaking shoulders. He looked up at her parents. He could tell that it hurt them to make that decision.
Little did they know it killed him to hear the news. The girl’s parents didn’t know that they were mates. He asked them if they could have a few days before they sent her away. They agreed. He led the girl out of the room. When they got to their bedroom she lifted her head. “Are you going to tell them?” she asked.
He shook his head no and her face fell. He grabbed her chin with his hand and said” Hey now. Don’t go getting all sad on me now. If you want we can go show up the court kids, which should put a smile back on your face.”
They grabbed their bows and their daggers. They went down to the training arena. There were kids everywhere. Some were practicing on their bow work. Others still were engaged in hand to hand, some were armed others weren’t. All were under watchful eyes of the training teachers who walked around.
They started with their bows as a warm up. He knew shooting would put her in a calmer frame of mind. They were shooting when someone recognized them and called to them. The two kids ignored the caller and continued to shoot. When they emptied their quivers, they switched to daggers. When they had thrown their last dagger they went to collect their arrows and their daggers.
With the last arrow back in their quivers and the last dagger in hand, they unstrung their bows and laid them next to a combat circle. Pale cloud sat next to their gear and watched as the girl raised a circle. With the circle raised, they took a dagger and holding it out into the circle they walked clockwise then counter clockwise around the barrier. When they finished, they took their stances.
With that the fight began. They fought till she had pinned the boy to the ground and it dissolved into a tickling match. When they both were out of breath and begging the other to stop they quit. They picked up their forgotten daggers and she lowered the circle. They stepped out only to be mobbed. They picked up their stuff and restrung their bows.
Bows restrung they settled their stuff and left trying to get away from the mob. The girl cast a cloaking spell on them. When they disappeared they went to their favorite hangout. She removed the spell. The boy sneezed. She laughed.
With the mood lighten, the boy asked “will you wait for me even though they may erase your memory and suppress your power? Will you still love me?” “Forever and always. No spell can erase my love for you. I loved you before I knew what love was. Shouldn’t we tell them what we are? Maybe they won’t separate us if they know.”
“Their minds are made up. There is no changing them. They will separate us anyways. I wish you didn’t have to leave. I’ll be left at court alone with no one to talk to. We’ve been together since before we were born. Maybe we do need to separate for a little while. While you are gone I will love