Change Birds

Chapter 11

I flapped my wings madly as I cascaded towards the castle, knowing that if I tried to save them by myself it'd be for nothing. The king would imprison me as well, or worse. The least I could do was was warn father before they got him. As I flew over the walls and glanced down at the inner grounds, I saw that it was too late for that wish.

Shrike was being bound and gagged right below me by a crowd of soldiers. I expected him to fight them off and protect himself like he always said he would, but one soldier bashed him in the back of the head with the blunt end of his spear. Shrike fell limp to the cobblestones, hauled up by a couple soldiers who drug him unceremoniously into the castle.

Even as I felt the bolt of fear go down my chest, a satisfactory feeling went with it at the knowledge that my father wasn't that much better than me after all. My bird form gave a low chirp and I ducked into the shadows along the roof, hopping over to a window that was cracked open to allow a breeze inside. I slipped in, losing a tail feather in the woodwork in the process, but gaining entrance and flying upwards into the rafters without being seen.

I stared down at the floor where the soldier dumped my father in front of the king on the marble floor. The pompous bastard himself sat in a throne made from pure gold, with a young woman with long flowing brunette hair beside him. She wore a very brief skirt and a very tight blouse with a low neckline which exposed more than it concealed. Her neck and wrists were adorned in rings of gold and rubies while her ankles above her bare feet were encircled with strings and beads. I knew immediately that this was the queen, the woman that the king almost never brought out to be seen by the world. Despite the happy smile she portrayed, she had a devious and rather shifty gaze in those blue eyes.

I stood perfectly still while the soldiers dumped water on my father, rousing him into wakefulness. He came awake and sputtered as water trickled down his face and into his nose. He glared at the king as he yanked against his bonds in a similar fashion to how I'd done only earlier that day. "What's this about? I haven't done anything wrong."

The king chuckled and I shivered as it felt like oil slipping down my neck. Apparently my movement drew the queens gaze, but as her eyes met mine, she turned away and kept silent. "I'm simply making sure you got the news early. I think it would be more beneficial for me if you and your family lived here instead. No need to go home and pack, I've already done that for you."

He snapped his fingers and a couple soldiers shoved my mother and baby siblings into the open. My mother gasped and covered them as best she could, but they were too big to be hidden by her small stature. My father gasped and shook his head. "Don't hurt them! They haven't done anything wrong."

He king laughed and gestured to one of the soldier who grabbed up Cardinal and handed her to him. She squealed and thrashed her limbs, but to no avail. Th king had her by her shirt and he wasn't about to let go. "Admit it to me. You've been conspiring with the king of Scottlind. Planning a rebellion against me? You and your boy both went the other day. You never do that. Why would you suddenly do it now?"

Shrike grunted and fought at his restraints. "No. I haven't had any business whatsoever with the king of Scottlind. Magpie merely wanted to go is all. We never get to spend time with one another."

The king leaned forward and threw him an angry glare. "And where is the weakling werebird anyway? Off at home trying to find out where momma and the little ones went? Then staying at home waiting for them to get back from a picnic? Face it Shrike. That boy will never amount to anything. He's worthless and a complete embarrassment. Don't you think so?"

I expected a rousing disagreement from my father. I expected him to stick up for me and start yelling at the king that he was wrong, but much to my disappointment, that wasn't what happened.

He dropped his head and sighed, nodding slowly.