The Tiger Within

"Is something wrong?" He asked and Kyera took a deep breath to steady herself . She offered him what she hoped was a rea.s.sured smile .

"No not at all . My mind just wandered a bit . " Kyera lied shamelessly . It would be difficult to explain a lady that doesn"t like carriages or small enclosed s.p.a.ces . In the forest they never considered carriage travel . Motion inside a box was a interesting concept but a very contained way of travel . If there was one thing the Shifter Kin wasn"t a huge fan of, it was being contained in small boxes, for obvious reasons .

Advertis.e.m.e.nt"Oh, I see . " He replied skeptically, his eyes having followed hers to see her looking at the carriage moments before . A thought crossed his mind and he looked at Raina who seemed to have just picked up that something was wrong .

"Are we going in the Carriage, Daddy?" Raina asked seeming a bit reluctant . He chuckled a bit and nodded .

"I planned on it, why?" He asked with a knowing grin . There was a teasing note to his voice that caused both daughter and companion to grin . Raina played along and put her little hands on her small waist and pretended to huff .

"You said you would teach me to ride . " Raina replied and Kyera looked at him . There was a tone to that look that shocked him . It was a look of blant shock and disapproval, she didn"t even try to hide the look wich made him slightly uncomfortable .

"You don"t know how to ride, Princess?" Kyera asked wondering how they expected the child to travel in the future . Those carriages were nice but often broke down, a while snapped or get attacked by bandits and you have to flee . Fleeing, which is often best carried out on a four legged beast .

"No, Daddy hasn"t had a chance to teach me . " Raina replied with a small pout . It wasn"t a true pout, the edges were curved up just a bit in amus.e.m.e.nt . Kyera however wasn"t smiling . She turned to Clovis confused .

"That"s an interesting choice, My Lord?" Kyera"s comment was obviously a question that she didn"t want to pose directly . He could understand that . Afterall, she wasn"t use to her t.i.tle having those kinds of benefits .

"She"s always been too small so I thought it was best to stick to carriages for the time being . Most the women at the palace don"t know how to ride . "He added as if that explained it and Kyera blinked slowly . She followed him to the carriage door which was opened by a footman . Clovis sat at one side, Kyera and Raina at the other . To the tiger"s relief there was a open window beside her so she could see out . She had to resist the urge to put her head out it as they started moving .

It was obvious she was thinking about something . The look on her face was lost in thought, but her teeth lightly bit her lower lip . It was as though those two pearly white teeth were holding back a slew of things she wasn"t supposed to say . At least, that is how it looked to Clovis, and in all honesty, he was right . "This girl is so amusing…" he thought before lightly clearing his throat .

"Why does it seem like you place a lot of importance of horseback riding?" He asked finally . Kyera looked up, meeting his eyes and gauging if he could handle the answer .

"In all honesty, Fourth Prince, I do . Horseback riding is a skill everyone should have in my opinion, even if they don"t own a horse . Princess Raina is a Seven year old Princess . She isn"t fast, she"s pet.i.te, and has no self defense skills . " Kyera pointed out, her eyes still casually flicking to the window beside her as if to remind her the sky was still there . "If she is in a carriage, traveling to the next country and it"s attacked by bandits, what is she to do? Fight? No she will be overpowered by the weakest of bandits . Run? Grown men or women can catch her with ease . Hide? She can try but let"s be honest, that has less than a ten percent chance of working . Her knights can defend her but if they get overwhelmed or distracted in battle, she"s a easy target . That or the Knight is focusing on keeping her safe and behind him and it results in him fighting distracted and a good man and her first line of defense getting killed . "