The Doll and the Prince | Tedros Pendragon

Chapter 6

The sounds of paper flipping every moment or so filled the silence within the library as a lock of Layna's hair grazed the book entitled "Understanding Animals: A Princess's Guide for Lasting Friendship" which she discovered within the rows of literature that revolved around Animal Communication. The girl decided that she needed additional reading, for the book she was given had only focused on the technicalities of the animal language, however, that alone would have been enough if it were not for Layna's craving for more knowledge.

After an in-depth reading and practice just before she slept (which had almost taken all night), Layna was able to grasp the basics of barking. She was thrilled to learn how the degree of loudness and softness, the level of pitch, as well as the duration of the bark, meant different things. Moreover, the girl was thankful that she had the room all to herself or her future roommates would have not been able to sleep. After all, to learn how to speak a new language, she must do so out loud.

However, she found that Animal Communication was not as easy as it seemed. After all, there were different kinds of animals! It would take her at least a few months, if not a year, to become somewhat fluent in the language of the Canidae, which involves different kinds of variations depending on the type of canine; wolves tend to have deeper, rougher, and stronger growls (and longer howls!), whereas foxes tend to have shorter, higher pitched loud barks (and cute squeaks!). Last night, it took her numerous attempts to growl properly -- the first attempt was measly since her voice was too soft for such a gravelly sound, but she managed to push through (somewhat barely, if she had to admit it).

However, at the moment, she was focused on something different.

She wanted to understand animals.

After all, understanding those whom one seeks to learn is just as important as knowing how to speak to them, which is what Layna is seeking to do at the moment.

And so she read for an hour more, devouring the knowledge written on the pages, until her attention was caught by a particular passage that was inconspicuous among the numerous paragraphs;

It must be noted that the sense of an animal is extremely well developed compared to the average human; whether it be the sense of sight, sound, taste, smell, or touch. However, they have an additional sense that they have of which humans do not; the sense of differentiating good from evil.

Layna's back subconsciously straightened.

Their sixth sense enables them to "see" the soul of an individual – the fundamental element of what makes a person good or evil. When a good soul is naturally pure, both parties (pertaining to the individual and the animal) can form a connection called a "bond," which is a type of special relationship that makes both parties mutually "understand" one another instantly. To form a bond, however, both parties must be willing to construct the connection to which permission is greatly emphasized – one cannot form a bond when the other party is unwilling to do so.

Her heart soared from the possibility of creating bonds with animals, but the next passage made her slump down her seat in disappointment.

However, a pure soul that is naturally good without the stirrings of evil is a rare occurrence. The few documented cases of bonding include Letitia of Foxwood from Little Snow White and Ella of Maidenvale from Cinderella. Thus, accurate information regarding bonding is hitherto unknown.

Layna could only release a deep sigh before she closed the book in dismay.

How unfortunate.

She developed a desire to speak with animals, and it strengthened when she met the young wolfhound. The idea of being able to understand them instantly felt like a dream come true since it meant that she did not need to learn numerous languages for many years to become fluent. Most of all, there would be a connection between them that would be unlike any other – she would have a companion, someone she could completely trust without reservation.