Her Chamber

"AAAAHHHHH!!!"

Fang screamed at the top of his lungs but stopped when he was suddenly thrown out of the wall that abducted him. He landed on his sides on a carpet, causing his body to roll over like a rug being laid out.

"Ueeeeehhhhh..." He moaned.

Using his arms as support, Fang sat himself up and rubbed his eyes. He eventually opened them and found himself looking down at a magnificent room from behind a long balcony's mahogany railing.

It was even more spacious than the room he had been in previously. On the left side of the room was a large fireplace accompanied by two squashy chairs with a round table in the middle. Across from the balcony was an unnecessarily large circular window that took up the majority of the wall's space. It had an even greater view that looked over the entire Kratian Capital city—and of course, the city itself spanned over the horizon.

"Where did I find myself this time...?" Fang whispered to himself.

Hanging from the ceiling was a golden chandelier that gave the room an orange hue and cozy setting. To the right of the room were multiple tall bookshelves that acted almost like privacy barriers for what was in between them in the center. It was a singular bed that could fit two.

"KAW KAW!"

Fang lowered his head down slightly to where the sudden sound came from. It seemed to be coming from under the balcony.

A few seconds after the kawing, stomping sounds were made, causing the balcony to shake.

A round and enormous bird with a short beak and soft feathers purest of white emerged from under the balcony, reflecting the sunlight that came from the massive circular window. It looked behind itself with its orange eyes, glaring straight at Fang as it revealed more of its body.

The large white bird looked to be almost 5 times the size of Fang. It had wings with yellow ends tucked to its sides so they wouldn't take up a lot of room. On top of its head was a long, blue feather-like crest.

Fang's eyes widened, stunned at the bird. Someone was laying on the back of the massive bird, nearly camouflaging perfectly in its white feathers.

"Is that Salika...?" Fang said to himself, gulping.

She was wearing her typical white skirt and blouse. The appearance of Salika intimidated Fang more so than the large bird did.

Something was off though...

Fang grabbed the mahogany railing with both his hands and took a closer inspection. He tried focusing his eyes on her.

"Is she... Is she sleeping...?" Fang murmured.

"Have you come to bother the gracious princess?" A girl's child-like voice said.

Fang quickly looked away from Salika and switched his focus to the bird. He then looked around the rest of the room; the fireplace, the bookshelves, the sides of the balcony. Perhaps he thought the voice came elsewhere.

"There isn't another soul that resides in the princess's room other than I," the voice spoke again. "State who you are and how you managed to enter without permission."

Fang looked back at the large bird. He remained quiet, still thinking the voice came from somewhere else.

The large bird's beak opened. "Well?" It said in its childlike voice. "Begin talking."

Fang opened his mouth but nothing came out. Instead, he thought, "Is this bird talking? No, birds can't talk. I must be imagining things-"

"Patree...?" A tired voice said as they yawned.

Salika had woken up. She shook her head and rubbed her squinty purple eyes before looking up at what seemed to be an unclear image of Fang. She was awoken by her bird's voice.

"Shit! She woke up!" Fang thought to himself panicking. He felt the muscles in his legs tighten up.

"I apologize Salika but perhaps you know of this boy?" The large bird—now known to Fang as Patree said, looking down at Salika. "On the balcony, they were able to get past your magic barrier. That must mean you've acknowledged their authority, correct? If it helps, the boy was wearing black pajamas."

Salika blinked hard and tried looking up at the balcony again to see who she was talking about. She yawned again, "Nobody is there..."

Fang swiftly moved his body back from the railing. His back was against a wall—there was no door behind him. His heart was pounding.

When Salika had woken up just seconds ago, without realizing it, Fang's Cerulean instincts had kicked in, causing his body to naturally move on its own.

"I advise it be best that you head up the balcony stairs and check it for yourself," Patree said.

"You do it, I'm too tired from getting ready for the Elpis Parade..." Salika responded in her typical dull voice—this time a little raspy.

Patree rolled her eyes. "Fine then, you stay put and get ready for the festival. For real this time."

Salika gave her a thumbs-up before sliding off her back, landing on the ground.

Once Patree had Salika get off her back, she stuck out her wings. The yellow tips of her wings nearly touched both sides of the room's walls.

Blue and yellow threads of magic began surrounding Patree as she released them from her body, wrapping herself. She jumped into the air, and in an instant, the threads of magic reentered her body, causing her to shrink down to the size of a pigeon. Flapping her now miniature wings, she flew up to the balcony.

∗ ∗ ∗

"What am I doing?" Fang thought. His back was still against the wall but his beating chest was starting to subside. He looked at the ground thinking, "Salika's my master, so I shouldn't be afraid of anything, right? I'll go back and try to greet her properly. If I remember correctly mother told me how to do it-"

Suddenly, he heard the sound of wings flapping.

"Who might you be?" Patree asked, now flying in front of Fang's face. "An unfamiliar and most definitely unwanted guest. You look beyond miserable sitting like that."

Fang looked up at the tiny Patree, confused. He was probably thinking to himself something along the lines of "Wasn't that bird Patree massive not long ago?"

"Huh...?" Fang said. He thought he was imagining it—a bird talking to him.

"State your name, now!" Patree demanded. "What is your relationship with Salika that allowed you to enter the room so seamlessly-"

Fang, with his right hand, opened his palms. He grabbed the bird in the air in front of him and held it firmly by its neck.

"So, it was you," Fang said curiously, holding the bird close to his face. He looked at it intently. "You were the one talking to me."

Patree's orange eyes widened. "What in the world-"

"I thought birds didn't talk," Fang added. "You sound like a little girl though..."

Patree, flailing and flapping her wings in the air, struggled and cried, "How dare you put your filthy hands on me! Salika, help!"

Blue and yellow threads of magic came out of Patree's body again. In an instant, her body became larger again, forcing Fang to let go of her. She then flew away from Fang, flying above the railings before diving down at Salika who was still in the same place as she was before.

"Welcome back, Patree-"

"A madman I say!" Patree exclaimed, burrowing herself in Salika's white waist-length hair. "I must have been wrong about his authority! Expel him from your room this instant! He is a danger to the both of us!"

"Did they state their name?" Salika asked in her usual monotone voice, stretching her arms out in front of herself.

"Need I say more?! A madman! That enough should let you know what kind of situation we're in! Perhaps it's another one of your stalkers who infiltrated the castle-"

In the middle of her speech, Patree was suddenly interrupted. Above her and Salika was Fang.

"Uh, hello," Fang said. He was standing. His hands were on the railing as he looked down at Salika. Putting his right hand into a fist and covering his mouth, he cleared his throat and whispered to himself, "Remember what mother taught you!"

He was going to give the introduction of a lifetime.

"Good evening, or afternoon," Fang said, mustering up all of his courage. Anyone could tell from his voice that he was nervous. "My name is Fang-"

Salika's eyes widened and her mouth opened, gleaming with happiness. She stopped stretching. "Fang! You're awake!" She shouted excitedly.

Patree stuck her head out of Salika's hair and looked up at Salika's face. "What is this, I wonder? A shout in delight? I believe this is the first time I've ever seen this emotion out of you-"

Salika sprinted towards the right-side staircase leading to the balcony with all the speed her legs could muster. Patree, who was still in Salika's hair, held on to her dear life so as to not fall out.

Fang gulped as he watched Salika charge at him. "Oh no..."

"What is the matter with you Salika!" Patree shouted as she swayed back and forth in the air, holding onto Salika's hair.

"He's awake!" Salika shouted back as she made her way up the flight of stairs. "My servant—no, Fang! He's finally awake!"

The two were about to be finally reunited with one another after the events that occurred in the forest!

"Your servant you say?!" Patree yelled back "You never told me about a servant!"

Upon reaching the top of the balcony, Salika became exhausted from all the running, resulting in her breath becoming heavy and her knees almost falling to the ground. She put her left hand on the balcony railings followed by her right to hold herself up.

"Oh my... Just... Give me a second..."

Patree flew out of Salika's hair and hovered in front of her face. "Be careful, Salika! Any more excessive exertions on your already weak body could lead to consequences detrimental!"

Salika's breath was ragged as she spoke, "I'm fine... Trust me, Patree." She looked up at Fang and smirked. "It seems my magic is still in effect—your eyes aren't the sky-blue cerulean they once were."

Fang's eyes widened. He recalled looking out the window in his previous room to look at his eyes. "So I wasn't imaging things," he thought. "They really are brown..."

Patree gasped. "Cerulean?" She turned around from Salika and took a look at Fang before turning back again. "That boy comes from the Cerulean people?"

Salika made a tsk noise and turned away from Patree. She knew she made a mistake blurting out the last part of what she said. It was still a secret; her bringing in a boy to the castle, and a Cerulean at that. Only Porch knew, who thankfully disliked Salika enough to meddle in her business.

"It's none of your business—and for your own good, don't pry between me and my servant's business and relationship."

Fang began walking carefully toward Salika. He put his right hand out. "Do you uh, need any help standing up...?"

Patree turned to Fang, watching him as he got closer. Blue and yellow threads of magic leaked out of her body and wrapped around herself, causing her to enlarge in size once again.

Fang took a step back.

With her great white wings, Patree put them around Salika, guarding her like a hatchling.

Stories of the Cerulean people and their savage acts were one of, if not the most well-known things in the world. Anyone would react the way Patree did if a Cerulean intruded on their home.

Patree's orange eyes glared intimidatingly at Fang's. "Don't you dare come any closer."

Salika's condition was starting to worsen—she was starting to think that maybe sprinting up the stairs wasn't such a good idea. Blood spat out of her mouth as she coughed. "Knock it off... Patree. He's my servant. Believe me, he means no harm."

"You expect me to believe this Cerulean boy, out of the thousands still left alive, is the sole outlier when it comes to their animalistic and murderous way of thinking?!"

Salika coughed again before speaking, "You could say that."

"What was the thought process behind making a Cerulean your servant!? Your history with those animals is already painful enough to listen to! Hell, they were the exact reason your body is the way it is now-"

Salika's eyes widened. She interrupted Patree before she could reveal anything else. There was a burning fire in her eyes. "Didn't I just tell you not to pry, you idiot bird?"

Patree looked down at Salika. Immediately, what felt like tens of thousands of tones weighed down suddenly on her entire body. She was unable to say anything.

An immense pressure came from Salika's words—her purple eyes invoked an unrivaled authority—like a powerful queen.

"Get back under the balcony," Salika demanded.

Those words struck fear into Patree, and even Fang a bit. Patree used her magic threads and shrunk down to the size of a pigeon again, quickly flying back under the balcony.

Fang's eyes widened as well. "Salika has history with Ceruleans?" He thought. "No, perhaps I heard that bird Patree wrong... but if what she said is true..."

Fang looked down and shuck his head as if saying "no."

Once Patree was gone, Salika ended up falling to her knees, unable to keep herself up.

"Salika!" Fang shouted. He ran towards his master and helped her up.

"I'm glad to see you're doing well, Fang," Salika stated. "I didn't know when you would wake up. I was so busy preparing for the Elpis parade that I had one of my maids come in to clean your room in place of me. Were you able to meet her? She's a clumsy girl."

"I think you should save your voice..." Fang suggested. As much as he wanted to start asking questions, he knew it was best to hold off. He remembered Salika saying that there was a time and place for everything—and right now was now the right time.

"I'm not feeling too well right now... In the center of those tall bookshelves, you'll find my bed and a table with my medicine on it... Just a pinch of it in my mouth is enough."

Fang nodded obediently and carefully picked up Salika in his arms. He didn't think their reunion would end up with him having to take care of her so fast. But it was his job as her servant after all.

As Fang headed down the right-side stairs, he looked around the room, taking in even the smallest of details. Once he had finally made it down the stairs, he saw under the balcony a large circular hole with a curtain, resembling an owl's home.

"That must be where Patree sleeps," Fang thought.

Fang continued walking and finally made his way between the bookshelves to where Salika's bed was located. It had white sheets and a small pillow, as well as a large blanket.

He looked down at Salika, noticing that she was already asleep. From there, he placed her on her bed, letting her rest.