The Tiger Within

"Raina, you might have to explain your reasoning . " Kyera suggested, her eyes dancing with amus.e.m.e.nt as she looked at her befuddled Mother . Granted; the word was coming much easier to her than it had in years pa.s.sed, Kyera realized .

Raina nodded and offered a rea.s.suring smile to her grandmother . "You see, Kyera is a beautiful white tiger . Though beauty doesn"t make a Princess, I know her by how she moves . All shifters move differently . It also stands to reason if your Mommy"s Mother then you must be a shifter too . Grace is a white tiger, Mommy is a white tiger . Mommy and Grace don"t like each other and Mommy really doesn"t like her Mother . " Raina explained further surprising both of them with her young mind"s thought path . People who had studied the shifters never realized that they moved differently .

It was true, shifters knew they could pick each other out of a crowd by their walk . It was a skill most adults trained just in case they were ever in need of a.s.sistance surrounded by humans . Most children however never noticed…and then it hit Kyera .
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"Your lessons with Daxin have been most useful . I was curious as to what your training focus was . Apparently it"s more broad than I expected . " Kyera smiled in pride at her daughter who beamed back . Little Raina was a smart child and knew when to use the magic of her mind .

"You are letting Daxin teach her as he wishes? She"s human . " Akira reminded her daughter with a bit of a scoff . Kyera turned her attention back to her mother .

"The clan have accepted her more fully than if she truly was a shifter . She"s part of the family, Akira . Do you remember the sworn duty of the Forest Guard and its Knights?" Kyera asked raising an elegant eyebrow . This was a loaded question, considering Fantasy had written the Forest Guard guidelines when Akira was young .

"Yes . " Her answer was short but Kyera paid it no mind . It was understandable for her mother to be a little uneasy . The Forest Knights were once her brother hood, and now none of them would even acknowledge her if she attacked them . She was nothing to them, betrayal did that sort of thing . Once proven capable of such a heinous act, people believed you capable of things perhaps you didn"t even know you were able to do .

"Good, Raina trains among our children . She is an amazing learner and accepts us as we are . She is a bridge for our people and a leader in the darkness of hatred . You would do well to respect her intelligence, Mother . " Kyera warned her with a gentle smile . It was clear she had no intention of letting her mother underestimate Raina . Too many people in this palace did . It was their loss .

"I see . I knew you were bright, child but I didn"t realize how bright . " Akira tried to be genuinely kind though her heart was gnawed on by guilt . The brilliant light in those blue eyes had almost been ended by her own orders . She was careful to hide the emotion from her expression but it still burned her deep down .

"Thank you, Lady Akira . Mommy and I were going to get a bath . " Raina said simply, her patience was wearing thin . She wanted to talk to Mommy before she tried to get to know this lady more . Kyera nodded in agreement .

"That I did, Princess . Also, Mother, Kendrick gave up his birthright and came home to us . I suggest you go greet him . " Kyera told her, taking Raina"s hand again . Akira"s eyes widened in shock and she turned and ran toward the courtyard . Kyera sighed deeply and took her daughter away from the hustle and bustle . The baby in her womb was restless, having had so much excitement in a short time, she could only imagine how insecure the little one must be feeling . Her spare hand gently caressed the bulge, as tiny as it was in human form .

"Is little cub okay?" Raina asked in concern, seeing the look on Kyera"s face . Kyera smiled brightly .

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"Don"t worry, Raina . Mommy will protect little cub just as she does you . That is what I do best . " Kyera replied as they reached the bathhouse . Kyera sent the servants away as she and the child disrobed and slid into the bathing gowns provided for them . It was a far cry from bathing in the woodland streams, but it would have to do for now, Kyera thought .

The bathing house was more like a hot spring surrounded by thick bushes and, just behind those bushes covered in ivy to create a more natural feel, was a stone wall . It was the type of wall, built so long ago but so st.u.r.dy that no one would have dreamed a single block could be removed without disturbing the long standing ivy . The way the ivy draped made it hard to see out, for beyond the wall was the lush green forest like garden . However, seeing into the bathhouse was a much easier feat if you knew where to look . Two blue eyes could just barely be seen in the shadow of those vines, the owner of those two pools was lost in thought .