A few days later, the plan was in place to find Sakura's beast. Rowan, Aquila, Darryn and Jesika walked with Sakura into Daemarrel. Rowan was by Sakura's side, the rest lagging behind them.
Sakura grabbed his shoulder, pointing at one of the royal stables. "I've already looked in that one."
He nodded, shrugging her hand off his shoulder. "Got it. Which one are we trying first? With my alibi, we should be able to get into a few before making them suspicious."
She shrugged. "I guess the next nearest one."
He nodded. They approached a royal stable and Rowan and Sakura approached the guards at the door while the other three stayed back. Rowan flashed the guards his charming grin, ready to put on an act.
"What business do you two have with us?"
"I am a certified scholar on all things beasts. I was given a decree by the king to give a thorough examination of the beasts in the royal stables to make sure they are in top shape," Rowan said easily. The first part was true, he was a certified beast scholar.
The guard frowned. "Credentials?"
Rowan slipped his hand into his suit pockets, pulling his out. He showed them the medal and the two shared a look, then nodded, stepping out of the way. "Course, I will need to inspect ALL of the beasts in the stable," Rowan clarified as he walked by one of the guards.
The guard grunted, following them in. "The lever for the underground stables is in the pen with the wolf. Here's a tranquilizer so he doesn't tear you apart while you're getting in there."
The guard left, allowing the two of them to go straight to the wolf pen. They went inside and Rowan quickly put the tranquilizer in the wolf's neck. Sakura pushed down the lever and the floor opened up. They quickly descended the stairs. When they were met by more guards at the bottom, Rowan once again convinced them he was supposed to be there. To Sakura's dismay though, her bat wasn't there.
They tried several other royal stables throughout the day. On the third try, they found it.
Since the guards were still watching, Sakura forced herself to restrain her excitement as they neared the bat's cage. Rowan's eyes widened at the creature. It looked familiar, but not from personal experience. He knew they were very rare, but there was something else he was forgetting about this legendary creature. Something important. It was lost on him though as the bat perked up, fighting against the cage at the appearance of its owner. Rowan smiled. At least she hadn't lied about the beast being hers.
Rowan opened the gate and before the guards could react, they both quickly mounted it, taking off. The guards were right on their heels, shouting at them as they flew up through the narrow passageway. They reached the main floor and flew through the doors. Rowan watched in confusion though as instead of taking off into the sky, Sakura started to land outside the stable.
"Sakura, what are you doing?! We're going to get arrested!" He shouted as they reached the ground.
Jesika, Darryn and Aquila ran forward to meet them as guards came rushing over from the commotion. Rowan jumped off the beast with Sakura as she turned to face the guards coming out of the stables.
"Arrest them! They're thieves!" A guard yelled.
Sakura only laughed, turning and throwing the hood off of Jesika.
Jesika's eyes widened. "Sakura, what are you doing?" she whispered as the guards began closing in.
"Behold! I present to you, Queen Jesika of Querencia!" Sakura announced loudly.
Jesika's heart dropped instantly as the guards standing around them stilled at the new information.
One of the guards grinned widely. "You're not wrong. That is her, isn't she? Guards! Take extra care of the black-haired lady. She's a very special guest. Nice job, Sakura."
Sakura grinned at him as she mounted her bat and the guards came up from behind, grabbing the four. "You're welcome, Sir Ciaran. I'm a woman of my word."
Without another word, or another look, Sakura took off into the sky on her bat.
"Traitor!!" Jesika screamed out at Sakura's back as she wrestled against the constraints. They were quickly led through Grumor, towards the intimidating castle, ominously looming over them.
Author's Note
Sorry it's a shortie :( Only a few more chapters now!!!
This chapter is dedicated to Willvote4u.
He's been super supportive for a long time of this story. He's always left really interesting comments and I always look forward to his insight on the story. His story "Dating Father Time's Daughter", is a wonderful read that I highly recommend. I've really enjoyed his unique storytelling.
