Justice for the Forest-Beasts

Chapter Twenty-Seven - In Which an Aristocrat is Injured

The throne room's large door abruptly slammed open, banging against the stone wall. Aravis bolted into the room, before noticing the state Estelle and Rain were in. He immediately stopped, taking everything in. After a moment, Aravis hesitated to ask, "What happened? Is xe okay?"

"No," Estelle said, shaking her head. She didn't bother to hide her tears as she told him, "Xe's dead."

Aravis's expression turned into a mixture of confusion and concern, as his brows furrowed and his eyes were no longer wide. He said nothing as he hurried to Estelle and Rain, kneeling down beside xem. Aravis took the hand that Estelle wasn't holding, and put his index and middle fingers against xyr wrist. There was a short pause, before he gently let go of xyr wrist and said quietly, "May Drymusym bring xem peace. I am so sorry, Estelle."

"It's okay," Estelle said softly, her voice threatening to crack and tremble. She gently placed Rain's hands to be folded neatly in xyr lap. She then stood up. She wiped away the tears that had pooled up in the corners of her eyes and begun to run down her cheeks.

"Oh, yes, I have to tell you something," Aravis said, standing up as well, "Lucian was injured during the attack. He is alive, and he is not in critical condition, but he was badly burnt."

Estelle couldn't help but to immediately put the blame on herself. After all, she'd gone with Rain because she thought it'd be safer. But Rain was dead, and Lucian was injured.

"Take me to him, please," Estelle said.

"Uhm... are we going to do something about... about the corpse?" Aravis asked almost timidly, nodding his head towards Rain's limp body.

If one of the servants discovered Rain's body, Estelle was sure they'd just dispose of xem like a dead animal. Rain deserved more than that—xe deserved a proper burial, and xe deserved to be buried with xyr valuables.

"Help me untie xem and haul xem onto my back," Estelle said.

All of the ropes had been tied unnecessarily tight, and only Aravis was able to untie the knots. Rain was far lighter than Estelle or her brothers, but she still struggled to carry xem on her back. She followed behind Aravis as they left the castle, Rain's limbs hanging loose and heavy. It was extremely disturbing, knowing Estelle was carrying a dead body.

In the castle's bailey, the bulk of the mayhem had come to an end. The protestors were mostly gone, and the Royal Guards were nowhere to be seen. Aravis led Estelle outside the castle's enceinte, where most of the protestors had retreated to. Lucian was sitting on the street curb, beside the royal family's doctor, Odin Escoffier. Lucian was looking down at the street, playing with the tufts of grass that had managed to grow through the cobblestone and snow.

Estelle would've sat down beside Lucian, if it weren't for Rain's body on her back. Instead, she stood beside him and asked, "Are you okay? Aravis told me you were hurt."

Lucian looked up at Estelle, his eyes lighting up as soon as he saw her. Clean bandages had been wrapped around his forehead, covering his right eye and cheek as well. After a very short moment, Lucian's expression turned a bit confused, matching Dr. Escoffier's expression.

"Is Rain okay?" Lucian signed, seeing xem on Estelle's back.

Estelle shook her head, "Don't worry about Rain, xe's just unconscious. Are you okay?"

Lucian nodded and signed, "Yes. It hurts, but I am okay."

"I think they're only second-degree burns. I'm quite certain that it'll leave a permanent scar, but it definitely should not be lethal," Dr. Escoffier said, "Just make sure to keep it covered for now, so that it doesn't get infected. Infections can be highly dangerous—especially on wounds like that."

"Thank you for making sure he's okay," Estelle said to Dr. Escoffier.

"Of course. It's my job." The doctor stood up, "I'll let you all be. You know where to find me, if you need me." She walked off to assist some of the other protestors, her boots clacking against the street as she went.

Lucian stood up and signed, "Well?" still eyeing Rain.

"Xe's dead," Estelle said, somewhat quietly as she leaned in closer to Lucian. She didn't want anyone to overhear.

Lucian widened his eyes with horror, "Dead?"

Estelle nodded, "Can we talk about it where there's less people? I would like to explain what happened."

"Yes, yes," Lucian signed. He led Estelle and Aravis to the south side of the castle's bailey, which was far emptier than the north side. There were no people and no gardens, but instead the castle's well, washroom, and stables. After making sure there was no one around, Lucian signed again, "Well?"

Estelle began to tell Lucian and Aravis everything. She explained why she'd left Lucian instead of Rain, and how Halloran had made her kill xem. She explained why she shot Halloran, and why she was now carrying Rain's corpse on her back. It felt almost like she was reliving the experience, as she was telling her brothers about it. She felt herself tensing up again, and tears welled up in her throat.

"I am so sorry," Lucian signed to Estelle, furrowing his brows and trying his best to come off as sincere. Estelle knew he was only trying so hard because he was being sincere.

"It's okay. It's over now," Estelle said.

"So... what are we going to do with xem?" Lucian signed awkwardly.

Estelle hesitated. She had no idea, and she hadn't even properly thought about it.

"Let's hand xem off to one of the servants, and have the embalmer take care of xem," Aravis suggested.

"Aravis," Estelle said, "I killed xem. Don't you think the embalmer might—I don't know—have a few questions about the gunshot wound?"

"Not true. Estelle, you are the princess. Have the servant make sure the embalmer doesn't ask any questions or something, I don't know!" Aravis said, "I'd think you'd be able to do something like this without a problem, sire."

"Calm down, she's been through a lot," Lucian signed, looking frantically between Estelle and Aravis.

"Sorry, you're right," Aravis said.

"Don't worry about it," Estelle said, "Come on, let's find a servant. I don't trust any of the Royal Guards."