Raven

Chapter 16 - Alexander and Raven

*Alexander's POV*

It's almost the end of the fourth day of our search. My group has now reached the place in which Xavier's began to head downstream. I stop and wonder what to do next. Do we cross the river and search for her in the lands beyond the forest? We'd need Alethea's permission in order to do that. If someone leaves the forest without first telling her, she thinks they've been captured and has everyone searching for them. I do not wish to trouble my queen, she has enough to worry about without me and my entire group vanishing.

A pretty blue and white bird comes flying towards us and perches on my shoulder. Around its leg I see someone has tied a little scroll of paper. A messenger bird. My mind begins coming up with all the things that could possibly be written on this scrap of paper. Is it about Raven? Is she okay? Have they found her yet? The bird holds out its leg and waits as I bring a hand up to detach the paper. Slowly, I unroll it and read it in my head.

Alexander,

We know where Raven is. One of my people told wrote to us saying that she's in Zaraeli. Her father is dead and she's just been crowned their queen. I give you permission to send your group back and go immediately. I assume you've divided your group and so I have send Xavier a bird too. Go find her.

Queen Alethea

Raven is now Queen of Zaraeli. This change could either bring peace to all lands or destruction. She could choose to send her forces and those she collects along the way to defeat Queen Bronwen once and for all or she could leave everyone to perish, caring only for her own precious kingdom. The bird flies away and a hand is placed on my shoulder. I turn to see one of the elves form the little group I've been leading.

'Alexander? What is it?' The elf asks.

I turn back to face the rest of the group. 'Raven is in Zaraeli, now their queen. You are to return to our Queen in the tree palace,' I announce to them all.

'And what of you?' The same elf asks.

I turn to him. 'Me? I am going to Zaraeli.' With that I simply vanish. I cannot teleport into the forest but I can certainly teleport out of it. I materialise again in another location. The place I came to last time I was in Castle Zaraeli. Raven's room.

*Raven's POV*

It's been a few hours since I was crowned Queen. I trained for this all my life, through the teachings of many tutors but now that it's actually happening... I feel so unprepared, so vulnerable. The court can be deadly, they will whisper of me, judge me, challenge me and tell me I'm not ready. The truth is, I'm not ready to rule this kingdom, I don't even know how. Yes, those tutors old me how but I never actually took on any responsibilities, never got a taste of it. But the people expect me to rule, no matter what the court says. I owe this to my parents. If they were here they would tell me I can learn, that I can be strong and become a great queen. Tomorrow, when my duties begin, I will try my hardest but right now, I need to rest. This is my last night of freedom.

I step into my room, breathing out a sigh of relief. I've escaped the madness of the feast and the criticising eyes of my royal court. They frighten me, for they don't even try to hide how much they are judging. I even had several noblemen tell me to my face that I couldn't do this. A shadow moves in the corner of the dimly lit room and my eyes immediately flick to it. A man emerges from the darkness, his dark eyes watching me. 'Alexander,' I breathe.

'Why?' He asks. It's a simple question but has so many meanings. Out of all of them, I know what he means. I close my eyes and let out a sigh.

'I was a caged bird in that forest,' I tell him honestly.

'You're even more trapped here, behind these castle walls. Isn't a forest a better prison than a castle full of people who hate and judge you?'

He speaks the truth. This castle is the place I've been trying to escape from for years but now I've escaped back to here. 'My people need me,' I mutter, barely audible.

'My people need you too!' He snaps angrily. I fling my eyes open and look at him as his voice raises. 'We need you, Raven. So many people are relying on you to make the right choice and help us all!'

Anger rises up inside of me, boiling in my blood. I am a Queen now, I wouldn't tolerate anyone else talking to me like this, so why should I tolerate him when he behaves like this? I watch carefully as he takes a step towards me and suddenly freezes. I didn't quite intend to, but I'm using my magic on him, the magic that he always said I had. 'I am a queen now. I have my own responsibilities. Alethea can take care of her people and I will take care of mine,' I tell his frozen form which can only listen. With little more than a thought, he can move again.

'But...' He trails off, shoulders slumping in defeat. 'I will remain here, in this castle until you make the right decision, Your Majesty.' Alexander walks past me and exits the room. I sigh as Phillipa enters my line of vision. The sneaky old woman was here all along, watching our encounter play out.

'Raven? Who was that?' She asks curiously.

'His name is Alexander. Can you see to it that he gets a room? He'll be staying a while.' I see her nod and scurry out of the room. Alone, I lay down on the bed and close my eyes, wanting to enjoy the quiet while I still can. Tomorrow will be a big day, my first official day as Queen of Zaraeli and undoubtedly one of the busiest days of my life. It will be the day when all my training counts. I can only hope I will remember all my tutors ever taught me. If only my parents were here now to guide me.

Aaand we got both of their POV's!! This is a bit of a late update and I apologise for that. I'm. Just. So. Tired. I have horse riding camp from tomorrow (yes, my hobbies are reading, writing and riding) and I've been packing all evening. It's the holidays and I'm ready to go to bed. Vote and comment if you enjoyed :)