Raven

[Spotify]

_{Ember cold laughter was sent through the bond, I'm in the air. So I'll think I'll stay here for awhile. she replied with wickedness. Instead, of stopping and landing, she just kicked up the speed. She was pissed. So much had happened in one day and it was too much for her to bear. The princess wove in out of the trees, her form carrying her fast. She headed straight for the main part of town, thinking it best to keep away from the ravenkind. (Eating again xD)}

[Cloudy]

_{Unole cut her off with ease, his powerful talons closing around Ember's form. He'd taken the form of a large eagle and he banked, heading for the earth. You will not disobey me. His cold anger and power washed through the bond and he bound Ember with his power, rendering her unable to fly. He placed her on the earth and shook out his feathers, shifting back as Jai arrived. "I may be your father," Unole said coldly, "but I am your king and you will obey me. Do I make myself clear?" His brown eyes flashed and he glared down at his heir. Jai panted lightly and crouched to the earth, ears pressed to his skull. He could tell Unole was angry, and a low whine left the wolf's throat. The Schimba King was scary when he was pissed.}

[Spotify]

_{Ember phased, she stood slowly, glaring at her father. She didn't reply for a long while,"Understood."she said, her voice were as cold as her eyes. Nothing was there, just blankness. He had finally broken her fiery spirit. She crossed her arms across her chest, but she didn't break her gaze away from her father's. The princess wasn't backing down not to anyone, not even the king of her kind. She had to prove her people came first and that she would stand up for them against anyone. Even though this wasn't for her people's gain it was practice for her when she would've to stand up in summit. "I'm sorry I'm not perfect like your precious son, Jai. You should've made him your heir not me."she replied, her voice still as cold as ice. Her eyes shone in the dark, staring up at the one who created her.}

[Cloudy]

<sub>Unole towered over his daughter. "If that is your wish I will renounce my decree and name Jai as my heir." His eyes were flat and cold, his normally kind, wrinkled face a mask of fury. Ember had finally pissed him off; he'd let her get away with too much, and now she'd disobeyed him. He was her father, yes; and he'd do anything for her. But he was still the King of the Schimba, and he needed to make decisions for his people. If Ember could not control her temper, then she would fail as Queen. It was that simple. Not once had he said that he was going to replace Ember; it was common practice to name a back-up heir if anything happened to the original, and Unole had done just that. But apparently Ember hated him for it.

The King peered down at his daughter, eyes narrowed.</sub>

[Spotify]

<sub>Ember stared up at her father, unblinking as she stoo her ground. She looked so much like her mother as her eyes pierced through the darkness to hold Unole's gaze and black spiral curls caught the moon's rays and shined. The princess was beautiful and just as deadly. Finally, her face softened and she took a step back,"If it is your wish."she murmured, her voice barely audible."I'm sorry for my outburst, my king." She murmured once more. She wouldn't call him her father not after everything. Her voice was still cold and her eyes even colder.

The princess glanced down at Jai, a look of utter defeat on her face. It vanished though as she rose her gaze back up to meet her kings.</sub>

[Cloudy]

Unole's anger finally broke. "Christ, Ember," he said shakily, rubbing at his face. "Not once did Jai or myself say we were replacing you. Where the hell did you get such an idea?" Unole never used such language; his desperation was clear if he was resorting to words like 'hell. "It's common to name a back-up successor. Would you rather I name Alec as your possible replacement? He'd just try to kill you. Jai, at least, won't try to harm you to get the throne. Damn it, Ember, I don't even think Jai wants the throne. Why do you have to jump to conclusions?" Soft, ancient hurt echoed in Unole's voice, and his soft brown eyes were tired and sad. He remembered something one of his kinsmen had said and, he thought bitterly, he agreed.

“Tell General Howard I know his heart. What he told me before, I have it in my heart. I am tired of fighting. Our chiefs are killed; Looking Glass is dead, Too-hul-hul-sote is dead. The old men are all dead. It is the young men who say yes or no. He who led on the young men is dead. It is cold, and we have no blankets; the little children are freezing to death. My people, some of them, have run away to the hills, and have no blankets, no food. No one knows where they are—perhaps freezing to death. I want to have time to look for my children, and see how many of them I can find. Maybe I shall find them among the dead. Hear me, my chiefs! I am tired; my heart is sick and sad. From where the sun now stands, I will fight no more forever.”

[/blockquote][/sub]

[Spotify]

_{Ember broke than, she glanced away, just as tears began to flow."Because you don't care. You haven't since mom..Since mom left. I know I hurt you by even being around because I remind you of her..."she turned and hugged herself."I was surprised to be named your heir, you know that? I was for sure you would name Jai. You favor him over any of your kids. Why do you think Alec was hurting so much after mom died? You closed us off, daddy. You gave him all your attention and than you slap me in the face when you assign your favorite child to be my guard. God, why do you think I drink every chance I get? I can handle losing one parent, but I can't handle losing two."she murmured as she explained not only her rebeling, but also her hatred for Jai. He stole her father away from her.}

[Cloudy]

<sub>Unole looked stunned. "What... what..." He didn't even know how to respond. Had he closed himself off? Had he favored Jai? He didn't think he had. But the... the pain of losing one's lifemate was constant and hard to deal with, and pain flared unbidden across Unole's expression when Ember mentioned her mother. He bit his bottom lip and took a deep breath. "I didn't think I had," he said, ever so softly, his heart sick and sad. "There's no excuses, but I don't think I could describe the pain of losing your mother if I tried. Did I... did I ever explain life-mates to you?" he asked, swallowing painfully. It was bound to be a painful discussion.

Jai shifted and looked at Ember with hurt eyes but he said nothing. There was no way that Unole had favored Jai. No, he'd favored Ember, though, Jai supposed, it would've seemed that he'd favored his adopted son with all the personal training that Unole did with Jai.</sub>

[Spotify]

_{Ember shook softly,"Mom explained some of it to me, but you never did."she murmured as she took a step back. She smiled halfheartedly as she recalled the memory of her mother rocking her as she told her daughter of love for her husband. The princess flinched as she heard her mother's voice. "You left me behind a longtime ago dad. There's nothing you can do to fix it and your right there is no excuse."she whispered, turning her back to both of the Schimba males. She couldn't take looking at either one of them any longer. If she did she would break down sobbing, she knew she would. A shaky breath escaped her,"That's why I hate you."she murmured to Jai as she glanced over her shoulder to look down at the wolf.}

[Cloudy]

<sub>"Bullshit." Jai's voice was soft with anger. "Your dad never left you behind. Sure, he holed himself up for a while, but I think you would too, if you lost the other half of your soul."

"Jai," Unole said with a sigh. Jai growled but fell silent. "Ember," he murmured. "Your life-mate is created by the Fates, by the Great Spirit, as the one person in this entire world who can complete you. They contain the other half of your soul, more or less; the other side of you. It is a love so unconditional that not even death can break the bond. I can... still feel your mother at times, though the Witch-King tells me she is happy." He looked away. "A life-mate is the one being in the entire universe who can make you purely happy. It is a bond so strong that you can... you can project the feeling of a loving touch onto your mate."</sub>