439 Growl

Your going to tire out before we get to the castle." Kyera pointed out, but Clovis grinned at her.

"Do you think I came unprepared?" He asked motioning to a horse pulling a small carriage. It was open topped, so Kyera wouldn't feel so trapped. "The woods could be a touch unsafe at night, so I wanted to make sure we would be safe." He explained, now glad he had. The last thing he wanted was his wife defending them with a passenger on board. Then again, he remembered when they met and realized if anyone could do it, it would be Kyera.

"Thank you. I hate to say it, but I'm still sleepy." Kyera admitted, blushing softly. He chuckled setting her down inside the carriage. He climbed up onto the seat next to her and smiled softly. "Let's go boy." He urged the horse picking up the reins. The horse didn't need any guiding. It was nearly food time and he knew which way was bone. Kyera relaxed on the bench cushion.

Though this was a open carriage, no expense had been saved in its building. The cushions were plump and comfortable. The wood was sanded smooth and carved with elegant forests that matched the theme of the Royal Family. Overall it was comfortable and small enough to be pulled by one beast, whether it be a horse, ox, or bear.

Clovis smiled at her, clicking his tongue and guiding them all the way home.

***************************

At the gates to the castle, a group of rather concerned shifters sat playing what appeared to be some sort of dice game. Two of wich were guards who served under Lazren, the other three were Lazren, Talis, and Cora who all seemed rather intent as they stared at the couple.

The two guards took the horse's reins while Cora and Talis went to help the lady down. However, before they could touch her, Clovis reached up, putting his hands on either side of her waist and lifted her down. The three exchanged smiles realizing all was well.

Kyera smiled at her three friends, each one seemed to be trying to conceal their concern. Talis offered her a wide smile. She raised an eyebrow and he rested a hand on his stomach then looked at her meaningfully. She blushed instantly realizing he already knew, kyera couldn't help but shoot a glance at Cora. She must have told the others.

"Welcome back, we wanted to make sure you both got back safely before taking our leave, and Cora had something to give you both so she tagged along." Lazren explained, taking the lead in the conversation. As if on queen, Cora offered them a pair of clay pots, both nicely designed and glazed to be shiny.

"Thank you for your concern, and generous gift. Talis, Lazren we need to arrange a second guard for Kyera. Trustworthy and quick to act. A couple women as well. We can't rely on Kyera to protect herself when alone anymore." Clovis started making arrangements with the two men.

"Yea, I think I have a few people in mind." Lazren offered almost instantly and Talis nodded in agreement.

"I can follow her in tiger form, your people accept having familiars so I'll play the part." Verone offered and Cora nodded.

"Me as well. Though I cant fight, I am versed in Midwife medicine. Carrying a snake around is concealable and I don't have to worry about beating." Cora offered and the men nodded in agreement as she got pulled into the conversation.  

"As far as a female guard we have four that I think are trained well enough to watch Kyera. The others are good but…" Lazren continued to muse as the three talked.

"No, only two of the girls in our clan come even close to Kyera's mastery. We may want to pull from the bear or fox clans. It would hurt to get a rabbit in on this as well. If something goes wrong a rabbit is quick enough to go for help." Talis added his two cents with a bit of zeal. It was obvious they were all taking this seriously. Kyera wanted to speak up, but had a feeling her voice would get lost in the crowd.

Besides, it made her feel warm and fuzzy. Her family may not be able to be there for her, but she had her Forest Family, and she had Clovis. Now they had two children, perfect little Raina and the baby yet to be born. As the conversation continued, Kyera tried to wait patiently, but someone else wasn't having it.