Warm day good for sleeping. We rather be dozing in sun--could be sleeping right now, like these humans hid behind fans or hands. How could we sleep when we could watch her work? No, not watch. She stand with stranger human, stand in front of king and prince. Prince not wear his hard shell now, but he still have his fang. He still predator that laughs: Killer-of-kin. We rather listen to her work.
We still bad at telling humans, but we can see their different tones in hide and clothes. We hear the rolling letters and harsh sounds and the clicks. She understands them all, even signs the humans make with clawless hands. She makes us all understand words heard in head without sound. They speak and she makes the king and court hear and this makes kingdom strong because. Because... people?
We still bad at telling humans, but we can see their different tones in hide and clothes. We hear the rolling letters and harsh sounds and the clicks. She understands them all, even signs the humans make with clawless hands. She makes us all understand words heard in head without sound. They speak and she makes the king and court hear and this makes kingdom strong because. Because... people?
She makes us understand, but hard to say. Not predator. Like kin, but only when gold is good. If not, then prey. We turn the gold Scent-of-kin gave us in our fingers. Some humans look when it catch the sunlight coming through pictured windows, but they stop when they see it Scent-of-kin's pet. We listen to Scent-of-kin and the stranger humans. We keep our eyes on gold.
If we look up, we see the heavy collar on Scent-of-kin's throat, and we don't want to see. The gold bigger than both our hands. Does not taste good, but Scent-of-kin say it gets things that do. We like the smaller golds. The silver ones like the eyes of Scent-of-kin.
If we look up, we see the heavy collar on Scent-of-kin's throat, and we don't want to see. The gold bigger than both our hands. Does not taste good, but Scent-of-kin say it gets things that do. We like the smaller golds. The silver ones like the eyes of Scent-of-kin.
Heavy court doors slam open. We drop the gold. No one look when it fall on floor; they watching humans in hard shells drag in human that stink of urine. Scent-of-kin stopped talking; we look at her. She and king and Killer-of-kin watching three new humans. She begin to move toward us. Killer-of-kin look at her.
"Rae," he say, and she stop. We can't read her human face, but her silver eyes go narrow and soft on the urine human when the hard shells bring him up to the biggest chairs. Killer-of-kin stand up, and we lower our head so we not show fang. He speak, loud, but we not understand. Then we feel Scent-of-kin in our head:
"--accused of crimes against Borgondy and her people," Killer-of-kin saying. "As crown prince, I sentence you to judgement. If you best the king's champion, then the gods have spoken in your defense." Killer-of-kin touch the long fang at his side; we cover our muzzle. "As crown prince," he say, "I stand as the king's champion." The hard shells shove Scent-of-urine forward. One of them give him a long fang. He turn to run; the hard shells too close behind him. He turn back as Killer-of-kin step forward.
Scent-of-urine lower his head and charge, like we would do in our den if Scent-of-kin had not told us mercy. Something run like that, it already think it dead. Killer-of-kin draw fang and slice in one. Scent-of-urine fall to knees. His fang drops to clatter on stained floor. Human blood red; we not know. Scent-of-urine fall forward to land wet in own blood.
We wait, but nobody move to eat of the corpse. How Scent-of-urine live on? We begin to climb out of too-big chair, but then Scent-of-kin there, holding us.
"No," she say. "No, I'm sorry. They wouldn't understand. They would kill you for it." She try to block our view, but we see Killer-of-kin clean his fang on dead human's rags. He stand up.
"Judgement," we understand him say, "Has been passed." He glance at king, and then at humans in seats. "You are all dismissed. Please, entertain yourselves as you wish, and partake of the plenty of Borgondy." Scent-of-kin moving before he done speaking; we both hear him say, "Rae," but she ignore it. We both pay for that later.
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