Midway pt.1 17
Where I'm from we have kings and queens. For a long time the monarchs were loved because it seemed that generation after generation they stayed good hearted. It wasn't until the death of King Herald that his son Perry became the new head of the land. King Perry was the first mad king , the first great evil . It seemed that he took nothing of his father's teachings when he took the crown. He soon became the first king to be overthrow, and then the cycle restarted. But the new monarchs wanted to make the people feel safe. The new monarchs wanted the people to know that there would never be another mad king. So they came up with an idea that to this day stands.
Whenever a king or queen had children they would adopt two new borns from the community on the same day as the birth of their own. They would never know which of the three children were their own so they could not favor one over the other. When the children grew up and their parents, the king and queen that raised them, finally passed it would become the people's decision which of the three would become the next ruler.
Of course it was a flawed system. As children grew up it would become easier to tell who was the actual spawn of the king and queen. By the time a king could know for sure which child was his own he likely had already grown to fond of all of them too much to abandon any. But this being the case meant that for generations when children were picked to become children of the monarchs they were selected by who appeared to be the most similar genetically. If the king and queen were lions the children they were given would be lions. Of course if they were given a monkey and a tiger they would know the only lion was there actual child.
And that brings the story to me. The king and Queen were lions, and when they had their baby and we're given two more from the public they were given me a monkey, and Louis who was a hyena. They knew right away who there baby was she was the only lion after all , and they named her Sky. For the first time in history the two adopted children to the royal family were a completely different race, but our parents were good people. The king himself, my father , knew that he wasn't related to the former king before him and I like to think that he loved me and my adopted siblings the way he did because he knew he wanted the same when he was growing up.
Me, Louis, Sky, my King father, and my Queen mother never had a problem loving one another as family, we were a family, but the public was another story. My mother and father were in perfect health so they weren't going anywhere anytime soon but the people just couldn't imagine seeing myself of Louis on the throne. Louis didn't want to be king and I was never to interested in it myself. But the people also had a problem with Sky being a woman despite her being perfect for the next crown. The kingdom of Fae had many queens in the past but they only came into power after the deaths of the kings they were married to. So in short the kingdom was ether unsure of who they wanted or didn't want any of the next potential line of monarchs to wear the crown.
It was my 17th birthday, it was also Louis and Sky's birthday as well. It marked the beginning of our last year living in the castle together. It was tradition for at the age of 18 the next in line for the throne would take on positions of power in the kingdom to better prepare them to rule. Taking on said position of power typically meant having to move out and live fare away from the castle. As different as me and my siblings were we were close. Where one of us lacked the others typically made up for greatly.
Sky was natural born leader, fearless, trustworthy and above all else accountable. But my sister lacked a softer side , she always meant well but had trouble being loose. She wasn't always the most fun at a party, but she was level headed in a crisis.
Louis was almost an exact opposite of Sky. Out of us three he was the most connected to the people. They may not have wanted him on the throne but they kept him in their parties. He was the heart of the castle, sure he could be an ass some times but he knew the people , he was of the people. He wasn't as accountable as Sky, or as book smart, or much of a leader but he was honest and had conviction in whatever he decided to do.
I guess my brother and sister were always the two extreme points on a spectrum and I was somewhere between them.
We all ready knew what jobs in the kingdom we would most likely take on when we turned 18. Sky was already ferocious in combat and she was a natural born leader so she knew she'd probably go into the military. Louis was a man of the people, he didn't like to rule , he preferred going with the flow of whatever everyone wanted, he was going to make a great speaker of the people. I didn't know what I was good at , I didn't know who I was or what role I could best fit. But it was our 17th birthday, we had a year before we'd have to leave home.
I remember the party we had that day. Mom and dad went all out , they were the king and queen after all so extravagant gestures and events were expected. They lit the entire castle with a new invention called light bulbs. They came in many vibrant colors and made candles seem almost barbaric. It's sad that Louis wasn't around to see them and Sky didn't seem phased by them at all . But the most amazing feat of wonder that happened that night were the fire works set off over the great lake that lived behind the mountain of the castle. They spelled out my name, Par, in the sky. I didn't know they could do that. We were outside on the balcony as the last flame left the sky I hopped Sky might have seen them before they faded. I found her talking to a castle guard.
Par- did you see
Sky- see what
Par- the fire works , my name in the sky
Sky- yes it was nice
Par- have you seen Louis around, he'll get how amazing it was
Sky- last I heard he was with his usual friends at "The Splint"
The splint was the closest bar to the castle that me and my siblings could go to outside of the castle without an escort. It was also a place to find cheap street walkers , cheap drink , or cheap drink to give to street walkers to make them cheaper. My brother started visiting The Splint more frequently around that time. We all knew he was entering manhood but he really let us know by the company he would bring home and we'd see leave the morning after. But I did say he was a man of the people.
Par- he's going to miss the cake
Sky- he misses the cake every year
Par- mom put a lot of work into this one
Of course my mother didn't bake the cake herself. She had the cooks bake nearly a hundred different recipes until they made one that she thought was the best.
Sky- I'm sure she'll understand
Par- maybe we should go get him
Sky - go get him? You mean go to The Splint
Par- it would mean a lot to mom if we all cut the cake this year
Sky- I'm not stepping a single paw into that filthy brothel
Par- you won't have to , I'll go in get Louis get out , I just need you to stand outside and make sure no one tries anything
I was a bit scared to leave the castle on my own. Me and my siblings were royals so there was always the threat of kidnappers. Sky and Louis left the castle on their own all the time, but Sky could handle a fight and people loved Louis so they'd never hurt him. Me on the other hand , I was the least favorite of us three and I couldn't fight. The bar was just outside the castle walls but I didn't want to go alone. Sky snickered and gave me a half grin at my fear.
Sky- alright, but you owe me one
Par- one what
Sky- I'll tell you when I think of it
We snuck away from the party as it was time to cut the cake. In a royal family everyone likes to give a speech about the person the party is for, there were a lot of people and 3 people to give speeches about so we had more than enough time to find Louis. It's true that I wanted us all home to cut the cake that mom worked on but in the back of my mind there was another reason I wanted to get Louis. I was entering man hood as well and I was curious what The Splint was like. I'd never been with a male or female, I wasn't sure which of the two I preferred or if I favored both like Louis did.