Rose's Thorns

Chapter 12

"You ladies look ravishing." Prince Henry said with a tight smile. "We should get to the hall." Prince Wolfe walked on my left side while Lily clung to my right arm. She was fitted to a lavender purple dress with rose pink swirls dancing on the gown. The smell of pine and hay played at my nose, it would appear and I would be dying to smell it a little more before it vanished. All I wanted was to be in the safety of his embrace again. He was all I had left of safety, the rest had been ripped away from me. We reached the grand hall and walked through the thick pre-opened doors and took our places, Henry and Wolfe going to stand between Zuko and Queen Reymira. I noticed Aster and Petunia were now there, as they had not been earlier, and they were in new dresses, Aster in a pretty sunflower colored dress while Petunia's the same icy blue color as her eyes. 

"You all look stunning." Queen Reymira said before Tyson waved his hand to some men in the back of the room. 

"That you do." King Tyson said with a slight nod at us. "Before you depart we have some developments we need to discuss with you all." 

"Your grace?" Roeger asked hopefully. Tyson looked over at Wolfe who nodded at his father before grinning maliciously at the men. 

"Roeger, son of I don't gave a damn, Rayburn son of Roeger, and Sigmond, son of who cares, you are charged with Murder, thievery and the illegal trading of humans. How do you plead?" 

"What are you speaking of?" Roeger growled. "I aint never killed nobody, I don't steal nothing, I don't need to. And these women are sold not traded."

"I aint never murdered no one either." Rayburn squeaked quickly. 

"Whoever told you we was murders, and thieves was lying." Sigmond said defensively. 

"Is that so?" Wolfe sneered, Cedar's head came from behind him, poking around his left side, from there he walked over to me and sat between Roeger and I. "What if I told you I had proof of all of your crimes?"

"There aint no proof for something that aint never happened." Sigmond replied. 

"Have it your way." The queen said, Wolfe walked toward us all stopping a few feet away and holding his right hand toward me. I stepped forward, that one small act caused Roeger to lose his mind. 

"ROSE! You stupid little b***h! " I saw fury fill Wolfe's eye as Roeger undoubtedly reached for me, his hand never quite making it. A loud snarl and the wounded scream of a woman rung from behind me. There Cedar had gripped onto Roeger's arm was shaking his head causing blood to splatter and Roeger's arm to rip open. 

"My name is Rowan;" I said as Wolfe made a sharp whistling sound. Cedar let go of Roeger's now destroyed arm, Wolfe stood at my back, able to see over my head as he glared at the men. Sigmond and Rayburn were looking at us in horror. "And combined, all three of you are guilty of all three charges."

"What have you to say now?" Asked King Tyson.

"Ladies? Have you anything to add?" I looked at my sisters who were clutching one another, all but Petunia, who was watching us in awe. 

"They took me from an orphanage, I was playing in the trees when the thin man grabbed me from behind and dragged me to the cart where he told everyone he bought me." 

"What was your name before they took you?" I asked her. 

"Vienna." She replied, Cedar had padded his way to my side and leaned his head against my legs as I stroked him with my hand. I felt Wolfe's large, warm, hand touch mine as he stroked the head of his loyal canine. 

"Thank you for presenting us with the truth Vienna." Queen Reymira said, she turned to the accused. "You Sigmond are charged with murder and theft along with the illegal dealings of selling and or trading humans as livestock. Do you deny it?" 

"Aye, I aint never killed nobody." He snarled as soldiers restrained him. 

"Vaynir was somebody. He was one of the last survivors of our village and my little brother of nine years old. And you killed him. Now you will pay." I stubbornly wiped an angry tear that rolled from my left eye as I glared at Sigmond who looked upon me with rage. 

"What have you to say now?" Wolfe growled angrily, with him Cedar bared his teeth and snarled at Sigmond. I felt his right hand on my hip pulling my body flush against his protectively. Sigmond shrunk back as the waves of Wolfe's anger wash over him. "What did you have in mind for him Rowan?" Wolfe asked, I looked up at him, his eye catching mine. 

"I'm sure the witches down south could use him, if not as a slave, they could always use him as a sacrifice. Be it blood, bodily or life." I said repeating the words I had heard many years ago.

"So it shall be." Wolfe said, he looked back at Sigmond who was now wide eyed with fear at what would happen to him. 

"I thought the dealing of humans was illegal?" Roeger snapped. "Why then; should a prince be able to do it?" 

"I am not trading nor selling him. Therefore it is not illegal." Wolfe said neutrally before turning the soldier who had seized Sigmond. "Bind him and get him ready for transport south." 

"Aye my prince." They said in unison. 

"And what of the fat pig?" Zuko spat glaring at Roeger. I looked at my sisters, they were slowly coming to terms of reality, as they turned to face me. 

"Do you ladies have any ideas? It was you he had mistreated for so long." Queen Reymira asked, 

"Send him to the lions." Aster said, her brown eyes bright.

"The lions?" King Tyson asked. 

"The white lions, the ones that Vaynir created to guard his sister when he made this land." Aster said, causing me to smile. I looked at King Tyson who was listening with interest. 

"Please tell me more child." He said. 

"Rowan told me that a man destroyed the old world by killing many magical creatures, and the Goddess who created the dragons. Her brother Vaynir took her body and made this land for her to rest in peace. He created the white lions to protect her tomb, which is in the tallest mountain in the north. They guard the mountain which is why they attacked King Pivrock Hardin and his 50 men who went looking to kill the beasts who really rule the north." King Tyson seemed amused but bowed his head. 

"If that is what you think should be done with him then so be it." Queen Reymira said smiling at Aster. 

"Rowan?" Aster asked, to which I nodded at her. "Do you think the white lions are still alive?"

"Aye, A god created them to guard what remains of his sister, he would never let them go extinct." She seemed pleased as she walked over to me and took my left hand, interlocking our fingers. 

"And what of Rayburn?" Asked Prince Zuko. 

"He was never bad to us. Perhaps he should be thrown in a cell to contemplate what he wants to do with the rest of his free days." Daisy said shyly looking at me. 

"As you wish." Prince Zuko said without hesitation.  "Take them all away and separate them." The guards did as the prince demanded. I felt a coldness seep into my skin as Wolfe pulled away from me and went back to stand next to his mothers throne with a stoic facial expression. 

"What is it that you ladies want to do now that you are free?" Prince Henry asked. 

"I want to find my family." Violet responded softly. " I was playing outside of the orphanage while my mother was shopping when Roeger took me away.

"And where was that?" Queen Reymira asked. 

"A village called Menatyr in the Western kingdom." I informed her to which she nodded. 

"I want to go down south." Dahlia said. "I don't much like the cold." Her blue eyes focused on the queen as she smiled. 

"I would like to go to Azailia." Lily said looking at me, her eyes begging me to understand. I nodded and sent her a small smile knowing she wanted to find her soldier. 

"Vienna?" King Tyson asked. 

"I would like to go with Violet back to Menatyr." 

"Daisy?" Zuko asked. 

"I-I'm not sure what to do. I was raised by a cruel man, one worse to me than Roeger, I wish to not go back there." She said softly with a bowed head. "But I do like the north." She added. 

"I believe you should find a place to call home here then, perhaps one day you will be my wife." Zuko said, smirking at her. 

"Rowan?" Wolfe said looking at me, his one eye unreadable. 

"I have no home to go to. I have no mother, I am unaware if either my uncle or father survived Summerville in the last war. My sisters are all I have, but I won't stop them from finding their own happiness. I will likely stay in the north, with Aster and Daisy taking care of them until they can take care of themselves." I said neutrally, he just nodded slightly. 

"My son said that he would offer his hand to the one who aided Cedar last night at dinner." Queen Reymira said with a small mischievous grin. "Were he to offer his hand to you what would you say?" King Tyson looked at his wife in astonishment, as did her sons. 

"I would accept." I said calmly, my heart jumping up my throat as I spoke. "However, were we to take the thrones as king and queen I would like to see the whole north. I feel as a queen it would be my duty to know the land and people I would swear to protect." Queen Reymira seemed pleased by my response. My eyes found Wolfe, his eye showed relief at my answer while his lips twitched upward in a smirk. 

"As I have said before, you would make a great queen." Garrick said. I saw him in the back corner of the room, where I hadn't realized he was earlier. He walked past the royal family while he inspected me. "And you look even better than great in the royal colors." A real smile played on my lips for a second, happiness threatening to over take my body. 

"That she does." Queen Reymira said kindly with a small wink. "This morning has been very eventful, those of you who wish to leave will do so in the morning after a full night's rest. And please, choose a new name, of go by the name you were born with." 

"You can spend the rest of the day doing as you wish, just keep a guard with you." King Tyson said. 

"Rowan, can you take me to the garden?" Aster begged tugging on my hand gently. I nodded down at her and bowed at the royal family before leading her to the garden. There a frozen red rose laid on the ground in pink snow. We found a bench and wiped the dusting of snow away before sitting down and looking at the last of the roses. "What should my new name be?" She asked. 

"Well since you sing like a songbird, Robin or Canary or Wren or Sparrow...."

"I like Wren." She said, interrupting me. 

"Well then, it is a pleasure to meet you Wren." I said with a smile. 

"Pleasure is mine." She said standing with a little courtesy. "Will you really be queen one day?"

"I have the faintest idea little bird." I said taking her hands in mine. "That is up to Prince Wolfe, if he believes me to be a fit queen, then possibly."

"I think he likes you." She said in a gossip-like whisper. "He rarely took his eye off of you in the grand hall. Do you like him?"

"He makes me feel something I haven't felt in a really long time. It would be an honor to be his wife and bear his children, and to get to love him."

"What does he make you feel?" She asked sitting back down. 

"Prince Wolfe makes me feel safe, the last time I felt safe was the last morning I awoke to see my mother cooking breakfast for Vaynir and I. We were happy then." I smiled sadly, getting up and walking over to the rose frozen to the ground and plucked it from where it lay. "I would like to be happy again." 

"Would being the queen make you happy?"

"Nay, it would not be the title, the throne my ass polishes, nor the crown upon my head to make me happy. It would be the man whose side I would be sitting next to."

"That is good to hear." I turned in surprise to see Prince Henry and Carson walking toward Wren and I. 

"Your grace's." I said bowing my head to them, Wren coming to my side and doing the same. 

"We know our brother isn't the most sightly of men, but he deserves a good queen." Prince Carson said, earning a glare from Henry. 

"Your brother survived the last battle of the last war when he was but a boy. The scar he bears should not be seen as unsightly, but as a mark of victory." I said looking at the scarred palm of my hand from the many times I had strangled a rose and it's thorns. "Everyone has their own scars be visible or not, my only hope is that he accepts mine as I accept his."

"What happened to your hand?" Henry asked, looking at my palm which was still healing. I looked at my right hand where I held the bloody rose. 

"I see." Henry said.

"Why did you do that?" Wren asked, confused. 

"It is painful to my heart to speak of Vaynir, that pain is decreased if I'm hurt elsewhere." I said looking at the pink snow. 

"You should let Elder Garrick take a look at your hand." Henry said, looking at the red wounds. "Come with me, I'll take you to his study." 

"Thank you, your grace." I said following him, Wren staying behind with Prince Carson speaking of birds.