Felion: The Eve of Freedom (Chapter Two)

CHAPTER TWO

~Ingrid~
The next thing I remembered after the knights left was my mother yanking me by the scruff of my neck to the corner of her den. She soon released me, but that was only the beginning of her wrath. Suddenly I felt her sharpened claws tearing away at my fur, grunting as she attempted to straighten all the knots.
"Go... ow... away! Stop it!" I shrieked, frantically pawing her away. But my mother was relentless. "Do hold still!" she cried fumingly, stopping at nothing to diminish all tangles. "You look like a homeless mutt!"
I had never known my mother- the queen of ladylike -to curse before. This manner startled me, and I panicked.
"No, you're the mutt! Let me be a knight!" I wailed, clawing at her face and springing back. My mother drew back in horror and snarled at me, covering the bloody scratch with her paw. Her twisted expression caused me to recoil. Fear was etched on my face, and I had never been so afraid in my life.
I saw. The wild look in her eye. She was going to kill me- or worse -she was going to not kill me. I was afraid. So, so afraid. I was a fool. I knew I wasn't meant to be a knight... I'm sorry, mother, I'm sorry!
As she towered over me like a grizzly bear, fangs aglow in the sun rays which pierced the dim cave light, I yelled, "Mutt!"
Mother backed down, flattened her tufted ears against her head and hissed. "What is the matter with you Ingrid! You are a lady! Ladies don't fight; you will die!"
"I won't!" I cried out, as if to the heavens. "I won't!"
Then I heard weeping and looked down. "Mother?"
Yes, indeed, my mother was bawling. I sighed, ears and tail drooping. "Another death in the family, I presume?"
"My only brother," sobbed the calico. "He perished last night..."
"Same way as father?" I asked forlornly, tenderly stroking my mother's ears with a sheathed paw. "By the fang?"
She nodded in a shiver, mumbling weakly.
Here is a tidbit from my mother; she is a basket case. Whenever someone in the royal lineage dies, she becomes stressed, depressed, and downright sensitive. Which is normal behavior, mind you...

~Kara~
I entered the den to find Mum crying and my older sister, Ingrid, comforting her. This was peculiar. "Mummy?"
Mum whirled around and wiped away some tears. She straightened herself. "Hello dear," she greeted as clearly as she could, though I still noticed traces of shaking in her voice.
"Mummy... are you alright?"
Mum nodded. She whispered something to Ingrid, who rolled her eyes and padded out of the cave. My turquoise eyes followed Ingrid out until Mum spoke. Then I focused only on her.
"Kara, did you sweep the parlor?"
"Yes, Mummy," I answered meekly.
"The court?"
"Yes, Mummy."
"Your room?"
I stiffened. "No, Mummy!" I cried, quickly bolting away.
"Good girl!" Mum cheered after me.

~Storm~
The coast was clear for now. The chasers from the crowd at the tournament were either worn out or thrown off the trail.
I was safe.
I heard a familiar voice down below from my spot in the tree. "Storm? Storm, it's me!"
"Up here, Princess!"
Ingrid looked up and scowled. "Don't call me Princess!"
Laughing, I began backing down the tree. I felt around for a supporting branch with one hind leg and stepped down. I continued to do this until I could fall the last few feet. I landed clumsily in a raspberry thicket.
"Mmm, raspberries. My favorite."
"Get out of there!" laughed Ingrid.
I wriggled out of the shrub and shook a few leaves and thorns from my scraggly silver coat. "Shhh, Princess," I warned. "The crowd is still searching for me."
Ingrid lowered her voice to a whisper. "We have to get out of here. I hate this place."
"Well, I don't!" I argued. "Ingrid... are you saying you want to run away??"
Silence.

Then, Ingrid spoke. "I think I do," she squeaked.
I was confused. "Do you know you do?" I inquired.
Silence.

~Ingrid~
My tail twitched in the dewey grass. I sat still, unmoving. Then I thought of my mother. "No," I finally answered Storm. "No, I don't know."
Storm mumbled to himself in thought. Finally he rose, stretched his hind legs, and began padding away.
"Storm?"
He looked back at me. "Yes, Princess?"
"Do you know?"
Storm shook his head quickly. "No. I want you to stay."