OMWF: Lunar Findings Chapter 7: Wings of Hope, a final fantasy ix fanfic

… So, I noticed, ff dot net seems to like to re-name my chapters XD so chapter 6 becomes chapter 7 when they send out the emails. I hope this isn't confusing anyone! We have a prologue, and ff is counting it as chapter 1.

This is:

Chapter 7: Wings of Hope.

Drake was tired, having been awake all night, and the gentle sway of the boat was too much for him. Not half an hour after they had departed he retreated into the cabin and slept the rest of the trip.
Drake didn't wake up, not once, until the ship was safely harbored.
The sound of movement and shouts woke him up.

Chaucer swiftly returned to his duties and Drake collected his new treasures. The scales, the feathers, and the teeth. Happily, he walked back to the tower.

Ellipsis had followed after Drake. This was not the part he had been looking forward to. Eclipse would not be happy that he had failed to fool the boy. Once he could no longer put it off, he knocked, and went into Eclipse's rooms...

About twenty minutes later, Eclipse, the real Eclipse, left his room and went up to Drake's rooms. He knocked on the door, and waited for an answer.

Drake lay on his bed toying with one of the feathers. "You may enter!" He called, rather than getting up

Eclipse walked in, closing the door carefully behind him as he entered. "Drake," he said simply as he proceeded into the bedroom. It was obvious he expected his attention, but his face held no obvious emotion.

Drake glanced at him over the feather he still held for a second, before placing the feather back in the bag with the rest of them. "Yes?"

"Ellipsis tells me that you discovered him on the little trip," Eclipse said. "That's a pretty impressive observation," he added the small compliment. Perhaps how aware Drake was concerned him a little bit, but he didn't show it if it did.

Drake smiled at the complement. "Yes, but it took a while."

Eclipse nodded slightly. "And then after you found out it was him, you would not follow his instructions?" He asked, though it was really a question he already knew the answer to. He just wanted the boy to admit it.

Drake's smile faded. "Well... he didn't tell me to do much..."

"That's not the point. I expect you to behave yourself even when I'm not around." Eclipse started, "So that I don't have to watch you every minute of every day." His tone showed perhaps the smallest hint of anger. A very bad sign...

"I... you don't need to... I didn't. Nothing bad happened." Drake reasoned, nervously.

"This time," Eclipse said shortly and turned away for a moment. There was a pause before he turned back and spoke again. "Obviously I have been too lenient with you," he said. "I will have to be stricter if you are going to learn to obey the rules."

He reached a hand inside the bag on the bed and pulled out one of the glowing feathers. He twirled it in his fingers for a moment, and then ran his thumb along it. The feather in his hand darkened, and shriveled slightly, like a dead leaf. All the energy and magic from it, gone.
The ones inside the bag would do the same. Drake would never be able to complain that Eclipse had done it. It was unlikely the King or Queen knew that shouldn't happen naturally. And if they did, they would probably assume it was the heat.

"There will be no rewards for breaking the rules." The pale man warned; his tone deep, "And you will be grounded for the next three days." He said, and started to walk out.

"............ WHAT!?" Drake roared. "I didn't do anything wrong! You were the one who decided not to come! I didn't even tell my father that he'd been lied to, I didn't let my fires get out of hand, and I even checked with Ellipsis before starting a few!"

Eclipse stopped, but didn't turn around. "That's why it's not a week," he said and then continued walking to the door.

Drake growled a deep, animal sound. His eyes darkened much like the feather had, and his teeth grew to fangs.
The primal fire within him burned dangerously close to the breaking point and he wanted to lash out.
Drake stopped himself from the attack. The effort it took surprised and even worried him a bit.
The simple shock was probably the only thing that kept him from doing anything.

Eclipse wasn't being fair, he had ruined the glow of the Feather Circle's feathers, but... he was still Drake's advisor, and a sentient being rather than a mindless beast.
Drake couldn't attack another person...
So he stayed there, laying on his bed, and accepted his fate.

For three days...

Eclipse spent the three days assessing and repairing the damage done by the trip. He reprimanded Ellipsis for failing to go undetected, and letting the secret out. He made sure the king thought that he had been there the whole time. In the spare time, made sure Drake didn't try to get out.

Midnight on the third night, Drake was on his way to the main castle. It had been three miserable days without him hardly being able to go out on his balcony without being ordered back inside! But now three days had, technically, passed and Drake was eager to get outside.
He was much more careful, this time. Over the years, he'd learned stealth, but he still wasn't perfect at it. He could get past the guards successfully over half the time.
He just had to make it down the hall…

Eclipse was waiting for him, he knew the boy too well after all the years. In fact, you could set a clock by his attempts to get out. He was there, waiting, right behind a door...

Drake was happy when he made it to the end of the archway. He had only to open the door to be in the main palace, and from there he could go anywhere he wished. He wasn't thinking about anything else when he kicked open the door with all his might.

With near impossible, for a human, speed. Eclipse's hand shot up to catch the door as it flung open. Drake would not have been able to see it, just that the door seemed to stop after flying open fast after only half a foot. Then it started to open again, but painfully slowly this time...

Drake had learned a lot. One of those things was that speed was great but distraction was wonderful.

In the pitch darkness, right after he'd kicked the door open, he'd pounced through it without a sound before it had been caught. Only then did he turn back.
He thought he saw someone...

Ah... Ellipsis has decided to take guard of this door?

Drake held up one hand and lit a small, illuminating fire.

He smirked a mocking, victorious, 'haha, I made it past you' grin for about half a second... and then he realized his mistake.

Nope... that's Eclipse...

"Good morning, Drake." Eclipse said in a voice that was anything except civil.

Drake's smirk was gone completely, he closed his hand, stopping the fire and throwing the world back into darkness as if he could black out the situation and hope it had never happened.

You cannot see me, thus I am not here... I hope…

"Another three days." Eclipse said, and pointed back down the hall toward Drake's rooms. "And don't kick doors," he added.

There was no sign that he was angry; but he was not pleased, and that was perhaps just as bad.

"But it's been three days! I waited three days! I want to go outside!" Drake grumbled.

"Not until you learn to ask before leaving." Eclipse informed, his tone making it clear he was not open to argument, even if Drake seemed to want to give it.

"Fine. May I go outside?" Drake glared.

"If you had asked before you tried to go, then I might have said yes. But now... ask me again in three days." Eclipse said, and narrowed his eyes slightly, almost daring Drake to argue more.

Drake was not happy about that... but resigned. He didn't want to make it six days, so he reluctantly walked back to his room.

3 Days Later

Drake ran to Eclipse's room. He'd seen a bird outside... an odd one, and wanted to go outside to see what it was and what it was doing.
"Eclipse!" He shouted urgently, but happily as he knocked on the door.

In no hurry whatsoever, Eclipse walked to the door and opened it. "Yes?" He asked, seeing Drake there, but not seeming concerned in the slightest.

"It's been three days. May I go outside now?" Drake asked with a smile, remembering he'd been told to ask.

Eclipse looked to the clock on the shelf not far from the door. It was twenty to twelve.

"No," he answered simply after looking back to the Prince.

Drake's smile held, half way, but was no longer a happy expression. "... Why not?"

Eclipse stared at him for a moment, with an 'I need to give you a reason?' sort of look. Obviously, Drake's lack of blind obedience was disappointing to Eclipse. But in the end, he decided to give him a reason.

"It's too late," he said. "You should be in bed."

Drake was mad about that, but he took his anger and buried it in a look of disappointment.
He stood in silence for a moment, looking at the floor.
"...Alright. I guess you're right... Tomorrow, then?"

"Perhaps." Eclipse said in a bored tone, already starting to close the door on Drake.

Drake sighed and headed to his room. He grumbled as he dropped down onto his bed and shut his eyes.

Forty minutes past Midnight

He won't let me leave… Drake told himself, silently.
He found reason to have his thoughts guarded. He wasn't sure how or why, but he'd become used to the idea that his very thoughts might have an audience, so he did his best to block his mind.

It is, technically, tomorrow. And if I ask, he'll say no. But that bird is still there and I want to see it. He was thinking about this as he stood on his balcony, rope in hand.
This is the only way
The idea of jumping off his balcony didn't thrill him... but the hallway would be guarded...
So he leaned forward and hoped the rope would hold.

Eclipse was sitting...listening. If he knew Drake at all, he knew he would not follow instructions, and try to get out anyway. Nevertheless, for a boy as talented as Drake, there was more than one way out of the tower, and Eclipse was not fond of patrolling the corridors anyway.

That's when he heard it. A faint slap, as if something had hit stone. It might have been a footstep, but it had come from outside... and that's what concerned Eclipse. So he headed out on the balcony...

He looked around, and found there was a long length of rope down the wall to the left of his balcony. Looking up, he saw that it had been tied to Drake's balcony. Looking down, he saw something on the end of the rope, quite far down.

Eclipse reached over and took a hold of the rope, then he pulled it up quickly. It was much too light to be Drake, but he was curious, so he pulled it all the way up. In the end, he pulled the thing at the end of the rope onto his balcony. It was Drake's cloak, attached to a large green stuffed dragon toy.

"What the...?" Eclipse muttered to himself as it all began to sink in.

Drake ran down the hall faster than ever.
He slid through the double door and bolted through the castle, to the public library... and out the front door.

"Yes!" He cheered victoriously.

Drake calmly walked out into the open field. Ah! Freedom did feel good!
He spotted the bird and found... it was much smaller than he'd thought.
It was brown, white, and black, and had horn like ears and big, giant eyes. It also didn't seem to be able to fly. It would hop and let out a sharp cry, then flap one wing.
Drake walked over and picked it up, carefully. Its left wing had some of the feathers scorched off of it, probably why it wasn't able to fly.

"Hm..." Looking the bird over, Drake remembered having seen a picture of one in a book. "A Bengal Eagle Owl. All the way out here?"
It wouldn't survive long, not with all the monsters out here... unless... he kept it.

Eclipse knew that Drake had already got out. The boy was more resourceful than he gave him credit for, and it was a mistake he did not intend to repeat. He was not going to go out running after the little brat, but he would be punished for this. In the mean time, he just remained in his room. The boy had to come back eventually, after all.

Drake returned later that day, with the owl. He stopped in the public library and snatched up as many books on owls as he could find and then retreated to a room adjoined to his own.
The playroom now held his weapons as well as many of his toys, but it also had a cabinet with a wicker door that was empty except for a few spare toys.
Drake emptied out the toys and shoved in a long wooden pole. It took a lot of pushing, but the pole eventually fit horizontally. It would be the owl's perch. A makeshift birdcage.
Once he knew the owl was safe, Drake returned to his bedroom and started reading.

Eclipse came in a few minutes later, without knocking. He nonchalantly surveyed the injured owl in the wicker-door cabinet, before heading into the bedroom without saying a word.

Drake didn't even look up, he just kept reading. He had noticed Eclipse had come through the playroom doors rather than through the hall door... so he'd have seen the owl... but Drake wasn't too worried about that.
He'd always wanted a pet.

"Where did that bird come from?" Eclipse asked; his tone was flat, and unfeeling. Even more so than usual.

"Outside." Drake replied, his voice mimicking Eclipse's calm drone of a tone. "Though, they're normally found on the forgotten continent..."
Then Drake looked up at his advisor. "And it's a Bengal Eagle Owl, not a 'bird'."

If it was anyone other than Eclipse, they would have showed their anger, but instead, he didn't seem to react at all. From appearance, you wouldn't know he had heard Drake's words, but when he spoke, it was obvious he had.

"I'm sure it will be a lot more injured if you speak back to me again," Eclipse said, his voice quiet, and then once he was finished, he went silent again. Letting his words sink in.

In eight years, Drake had learned a lot. Mostly that Eclipse never joked, not about anything. When he said something like that, it wasn't to be taken half-heartedly. It was serious.
Drake realized he was in trouble, and would've preferred to keep the owl out of the mess. Therefore, he instead silently put the book down, showing Eclipse that he now had Drake's full attention.

"You deliberately disobeyed me." Eclipse said, once the book had been put down. He turned to face Drake again. His eyes even colder than normal, if that was possible, "Right after I told you not to go."

Well... Drake thought to himself. Not right after... I waited sixty minutes.

"... Yes..." Drake replied, quietly admitting it.

Eclipse decided to try a different approach. "Do you want to keep that...owl?" He asked. He nearly said bird again, but decided against it. The emphasis he put on the word 'owl' was with more emotion than was commonly heard in Eclipse's words. It was coated in warning, and unspoken threats.

Drake was cautious on how to answer that. "Yes, I do..." he replied softly.

The owl was hurt, small, young and Drake felt a connection with it— something he couldn't describe.

"I will let you keep it, then. Until next time you decide to disobey me." Eclipse warned; he would let the boy have this distraction. It might help keep him out of his hair, a bit, and give him more leverage over the boy's obedience.

... That was a much better turn out than Drake expected. "... Alright." He replied, simply.

"It will give you something to do for the next three months." Eclipse said, staring at Drake in the eye. "Because for the next three months, you will not leave this tower. I assure you."

He had decided it was time to use another way of stopping him from leaving.

Drake's jaw about hit the floor on that one.
Three... three months!? He could hardly stand six days, how would he handle three months?
His mind raced to a thousand different things. He could sneak out? But he kept being caught and then Eclipse might kill the owl. He could argue... but that never worked. Maybe if he behaved for a few days... maybe even a full week, maybe Eclipse wouldn't be as watchful.

It took Drake a long, long while, but he finally replied. "... Alright..."

He did, however, plan to argue about this later— when the owl was better.

"Good." Eclipse said simply, and then closed his eyes for a minute, setting up his new punishment in the boy's mind. Now, if Drake tried to leave the tower, he would get a headache. A headache, which would get worse with each step he took.

When he was done, he opened his eyes. The boy should have felt nothing, but a little dizziness was possible.

Drake felt nothing— at least nothing he noticed. He wondered why Eclipse closed his eyes… but after Eclipse left, Drake forgot about it and went back to reading.

Over the few next weeks, Drake behaved himself. He spent much of the time either practicing his magick with Eclipse, or reading about and taking care of the owl. Its feathers were already growing back, and it could glide a short distance.

Drake ran out of owl books, then out of any bird of prey, or raptor, specific books. Thus, he found a new category; something called Falconry.
His selection on the subject was limited, though... he had enough to get interested, begin training, but nothing else.
Therefore, he decided to get some new material.

Midnight.

It always had been midnight; it would always be midnight. Hardly one month had passed, so there was no way possible that he could justify this, even to himself, but he wanted the books.
Drake walked silently down the towers steps and to the bridged archway. The moment he stepped onto it he felt... dizzy. His head felt numb, but he figured it was just nerves— him being anxious about breaking the rules.
As he took another step, the pain increased a bit, but he ignored it, put it off as anxiety.

He hurried down the hall but had to stop halfway. His head was killing him. What was going on? He moved forward, the pain grew more intense, but when he accidentally stumbled back a step... the pain decreased.
One step forward forced him to take five or six back. Then he just backed up until he was back in the tower.
Where the pain stopped.

Alright... that was an odd event... Drake thought, but then rushed forward again.

And was, again, forced to return.
He was about to try for a third attempt, when he figured out what was going on.

Eclipse was powerful. That fact was not hidden from him— especially not in his practices. Eclipse hadn't told Drake not to try to get out, he had said he would not get out.

These headaches were assurances.
So now he stood there... looking down the hall.
In theory, if he were fast enough, he could run, grab a book, and return... but by the same theory his head might explode in the process... the pain wasn't that bad... but it was bad enough that he wasn't going to try.

Drake snarled at the hall as the full understanding reached him.

Eclipse watched from the shadows in a window above as the whole scene took place. After the embarrassment of being fooled, seeing the boy confused and in pain as he tried to escape was a pleasant sight. 'That will teach you.' He thought to himself with a small smile.

Drake suddenly turned and stomped away. He wasn't interested in just giving up, he was very interested in finding out what was going on. Instantly, the idea of finding Eclipse took over all other though and he marching over to his advisor, his eyes demanding an explanation.

"You tried to get out again." Eclipse said, with the faintest of smiles.

Drake stared at Eclipse angrily. "... I wanted a book."

"You could have, of course, asked for me to get it for you, or for me to escort you to the library." Eclipse answered back, the smile still there.

This was all too fun. Turning around the boy's accusations, perhaps he would even lash out? It was so amusing, after having to put up with the boy defying him for so long.

For a few moments, Drake wanted a fight… but what chances did he have? Sure, in practice his power had proven itself strong, but... Eclipse was more aware of the situation. Eclipse had powers that had been practiced for eons.
Drake's powers... they were a mystery.
If he actually did manage to hurt Eclipse... then who would he have?

Drake gave up any argument he had. "... I just wanted a book." He repeated, "I thought you'd be asleep by now."

Eclipse's smile slowly dissolved. "So, would you like to go to the library now?" He asked. It was impossible to tell if he was trying to tease the boy, or if he was serious.

Drake looked back at Eclipse a moment, unsure on if this was a trick question. Slowly, he nodded.

Eclipse was feeling a little generous, so he said, "Alright," and started to walk down the hallway. Besides, this was also a perfect opportunity for Drake to see how easily he could put the barrier up, or down.

Once they reached the bridged archway, Eclipse closed his eyes for a minute, and deactivated the barrier spell. The barrier was actually two spells that worked together. A spell that would give the boy a headache, and a spell that worked as a perimeter. As long as the prince stayed inside the set area, he would be fine, but once he passed the barrier, the headache spell would start to work, and would get worse the further from the barrier it was taken.
The advantage of this being, it couldn't be seen, but worked just as well as a steel chain. It left no physical injuries, and the King and Queen could never prove it was Eclipse's doing.

Drake stopped just outside of the archway. He had stopped being trusting when he was five years old, this was no different. He had angered Eclipse, how could he be sure this wasn't a trick to cause him pain?

"It's okay." Eclipse promised as he passed the archway and after a moment, he stopped, turned around, and added, "Have I ever lied to you?"

Drake thought about that a moment... he couldn't remember a time when Eclipse had lied, but strange, almost frightening images flashed through his mind. They were forgotten as fast as they had appeared…

Drake hesitantly stepped forward and followed Eclipse to the library.

"See? I told you." Eclipse said as they passed through the doors to the library. Luckily, the lights were always kept burning. It was still rather dark, however. So Eclipse lit a hand held lantern that was on a hook next to the door.

Drake nodded once and took off into the library, already knowing what section he needed to go to. His eyes glowed in the darkness as he scanned the bookshelves.
He found the falconry books and selected the best few— the ones that would help him the most.

Eclipse came to find him a few minutes later. He had a couple of books under his arm, but the titles were not visible. The pale man stared at Drake for a moment. "Get what you need?" He asked, starting to eye the books on falconry.

Drake checked over the book once more, and then nodded. "Yes, I do."

Eclipse had not anticipated that Drake would develop an interest in birds and falconry just from keeping that one owl. But he supposed it was a fairly harmless hobby, as far as his little ideas went.

"I didn't know you had an interest in falconry," Eclipse observed as he started to lead the way out.

"Newly acquired… It's interesting. Training raptors to respond to commands." Drake said, "It's almost like giving yourself wings."

"I suppose so," Eclipse replied.

He found Drake's wish for wings rather interesting, and wondered if it was a symptom of the change. The part of him that was now dragon, wanting its wings back...

Drake nodded and flipped though the books again, making sure they were what he wanted and then he looked back at Eclipse. "Thank you, for letting me come here."

"You're welcome," he told the boy. "See? I'm not so unreasonable." He added as an afterthought, and started towards the door, extinguishing the lantern on the way.

Drake followed Eclipse back to the tower.

As the three months passed, Drake learned to behave better. He was also too busy with the owl to complain. He had named her Vanda, meaning The Wanderer. Because that's what she had done to end up so far from home, and what he had been doing when he found her.
However, when asked he just said he liked the name.

Once allowed out of the tower, Drake took Vanda with him to the public library.
She willingly let him take her wherever he wished, since he was the one who fed her.
Vanda had a fancy ankle collar and a creance line that went from her collar to Drake's hand, keeping her from flying off should she ever feel the need.
Drake often would take her outside and use a leash and a lure to try and get her to fly. She was beginning to do quite well, but always came back to him.

One day, Drake overheard a conversation between two men who had noticed his practices with the owl on their way inside the library.
They were falconers, and impressed at how well he was doing without training.
Drake bargained for their help. He would allow them into one of the castles libraries that were normally not for the public, if they would train him on how to train raptors.

It took about a year before he had it perfected, and the falconers had only stayed for a month, teaching him everything he needed to know and leaving the practice up to him. It had taken a year, but he was able to have Vanda catch her own food and still return to him, or catch something small like a baby Mu, and return the body to him. A short time for most, but he spent his every free moment with it, so to him it seemed to take forever.

His playroom had morphed into a hunter's storage room. His bows, whips, shields, gauntlets, all rested in there. He also had a very nice keep for the birds built after he caught Luna, a peregrine falcon who had tried to fly at night and escape Vanda.

Yet another year passed and Drake had gotten much better at sneaking off. When he was punished, he'd still try and leave at midnight, but mostly he'd just pick a day, pick a bird, and… wander off.

On occasion, his father would ask him where he was going, but Drake knew Chaucer only half listened to the answers.
It was slightly surprising, but Chaucer didn't like Drake leaving Daguerreo, nor did Marina.
Drake found that ironic.
They ignored him unless there was a social gathering where his presence was needed, if someone asked about him, if it was one of the rare occasions where they wanted him to have supper with them, or if he went hunting outside of Daguerreo.

It was annoying, but it didn't stop him from leaving.
He was ten years old, independent, and he had a talent for hunting. Nothing in the world was going to keep him from it.

Eclipse had been against Drake's hunting for a long while. Eventually, after he had seen Drake disobey the rules to get what he wanted with the falconers, he knew the boy was getting smarter, starting to work behind the royals backs. He knew that he couldn't expect him to obey without some kind of distraction. Some kind of leverage.

Besides, Drake's powers needed practice. There was only so much he could teach him in the palace. Drake needed to learn to use his powers in new situations, hone them, and learn to use them to kill.
Drake's powers would be useless to Eclipse if he wasn't able to kill. He was still young, but the change had not toughened him as much as Eclipse had hoped. He was still too kind hearted. Still too... human.

Each day that he hunted, and Eclipse 'allowed' him to think he had escaped undetected, Drake's skill increased, and he became more distanced from the King and Queen.

The drawback to all of this was that he was still far away. Out of his control. Eclipse didn't like that. He also didn't like that all of Drake's birds pecked and snapped at him whenever he was near them…

The answer was obvious. A bird that would follow Eclipse's and Drake's commands. One that was spelled, so that Eclipse would always know where it, and Drake, were. One that was trained to perfection, and be able to report back to Eclipse if something happened. The perfect spy, the perfect security measure. on top of that, no more robes with holes pecked in them!

So, Eclipse had started work to find that bird.

Drake walked inside from a busy day at hunting. He had taken Luna, but she was hardly his first choice. Luna's speed was useful, but her small size made it hard for her to catch anything other than baby pythons and doves. Vanda was good for the slightly bigger things, being an owl, but she wasn't perfect at it yet... He had looked into trying for a hawk, but he preferred the falcons, over all.

At the opposite set of palace gates, Eclipse was meeting with a traveler. A kind of delivery man for the people he had been doing business with for the past several months. Now he had a cylindrical container in his right hand. It was covered with a black cloth, but it was in the shape of a birdcage.

The contents of the container remained a mystery to any guards that might have wondered, as he carried it to his room. He had toyed with the thought of taking it straight to Drake, but he really wanted to 'test' it first.

He placed it on a table in his room, and he locked the door, in case Ellipsis decided to burst in as he sometimes did. Only then did he uncover it.

Inside, the bird blinked slightly at the light, and turned its head, looking around. It didn't make a sound, but did flutter its wings as if it was anxious to fly. A single white feather with a few black spots on it floated to the bottom of the cage.

The bird was a Gyrfalcon, it was white, almost silver in color, mostly, the tips of its wings were black, with thin lines of white, almost like a seashell, and the rest was white, but with little black spots. The pattern was even, and not random. It covered the whole wingspan, across its back, and down the back of its neck. The spots tapered out, so that the top of the head was the same pure white-silver as its underside, and tail feathers.

It did not react to him the same way Drake's birds did, and as he opened the cage, it obediently hopped onto his forearm. The talons were harsher on the material than he would like, but it couldn't be helped. He was just grateful it wasn't trying to peck his face off.

Eclipse spent a few minutes testing some commands on the bird, and was pleased to see it followed them all well. He also found that the spell that allowed him to know where the bird was, worked well too. When he was close enough, he could even close his eyes, and despite seeing nothing at all, he was able to see the bird's silver outline. It looked like a ghost flying around in pitch darkness, and he could even see it from behind walls this way.

Drake would never know that, though.

Eclipse put the bird back in the cage, covered it again, and unlocked the door…

Drake was headed down the hall, trying to ignore his father who was trying to follow him, opening the door to the tower.
Chaucer was lecturing him about something... oh yeah; he'd 'neglected' to show up for supper again…
"I ate while I was out." He told his father, still walking.

"That wasn't the point, Dracula Dragomir!"

Oh, he is mad indeed. First and last name. Drake rolled his eyes. "And what is the point?"

"You were supposed to dine with your mother and I; we had agreed on this already!" Chaucer said.

"Yes, that. I meant what's the point in that." Drake pet Vanda's head, the poor owl didn't like the loud man following them.

"What do you mean 'what's the point'? Your mother and I want to see you—."

"Occasionally," Drake finished.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Chaucer followed him still, but his guards stayed back a long ways, not wanting to interfere and not liking going into that tower.

"It means what it means." Drake explained as he made his way up the stairs quickly, "You only want to see me when it's convenient for you."

"I'm a very busy man—!"

"Exactly, so you'll be able to find something else to do rather than bother me." Drake stated, as he stepped into his 'playroom' and slammed the door.

Chaucer glared at the door, but... What could he do? If he angered Drake, things blew up; people might get hurt, eventually... but mostly, any punishment Chaucer gave, Drake ignored— went to Eclipse and told him about it and was pardoned for the event.

It was getting more and more apparent... Chaucer could see his son, but he was losing him... and by now, he had no idea how to fix the situation.

Drake loved falconry... Chaucer thought about maybe buying him a hawk... that might work… it would at least be a start.

Eclipse had heard the argument as it passed his door. He also had the advantage of being able to read the king's thoughts once he'd had the door shut in his face. He was thinking of getting Drake a new birdy, and Eclipse had beaten him to it. Completely by coincidence too! How perfect! The poor fellow had no chance, and he was beginning to realize it. It was safe now to let the king know the truth— the truth that he did not have a son. Eclipse did. Prince Drake was Eclipse's property and that was that, Chaucer could understand that now that Drake was defiant enough to ignore the man.

Good. Eclipse thought, and was in a genuine good mood as he waited for the King to head back down the tower.

Chaucer stared at the door for a while longer, as if hoping it would open.
His father would have pounded till the door broke down... but his father wouldn't have lost control so easily.
Chaucer sighed. The problem wasn't Drake— that was obvious... maybe the problem was himself? Maybe Chaucer was an awful father and that's what had gone wrong, because Drake had been so energetic, so eager to please, so... normal. He'd had a good start with awful parents and didn't stand a chance...

Chaucer retreated to the main palace, out of the unwelcome territory.

Eclipse smiled, he hadn't even had to give the king any thoughts. He had gone and given it up, all by himself. The pale figure was pleased with himself, and he hadn't even scored the points with Drake for being a 'Better than my Dad' figure, yet.

Speaking, or rather thinking of which, he opened the door, carried the cage up to Drake's room and knocked.

Drake took a moment to be sure it was Eclipse before he called, "Enter!" and put Vanda back into her section of the keep.

Eclipse opened the door with his free hand, and came in. The Gyrfalcon inside was silent again, so Eclipse thought it best to say something.

"I got you a surprise," he said. It was a foreign term to his mouth, but it was a tried and true one, so he was happy with it. There was even a hint of emotion in his voice. He was pleased, after all.

Drake turned and looked at Eclipse, then his eyes went straight for the black cloth covering the cage and a grin came to his face. "Oh?" He asked excitedly.

"Here," Eclipse said and offered out the cage and the large handle at the top to Drake. He still had the small smile.

Drake took the handle and set the cage on a small end table. He pulled off the black cloth to reveal the magnificent falcon.
"A Gyr!" He exclaimed, happily. "It's beautiful!"

"I'm glad that you like it," Eclipse said, for a lack of anything better to say. "It's also been very well trained," he assured the boy.

Drake knelt down by the cage, looking in at the magnificent falcon.

"Hello... Celestina."

"Picked a name already?" Eclipse asked, perhaps a little surprised.

He hadn't considered asking the trainers if the bird had a name. He hadn't even been sure the bird was female. He made a mental note to read up on the subject. He didn't like to be caught not knowing something.

Drake pried the cage open and the falcon hopped onto his gauntlet. Drake didn't need to speak out loud to the birds anymore, it was more of a mutual understanding. He held a connection with the raptors that was unmatched by even the best animal communicators.
He didn't name her, the name simply came to him when he looked at her. Her black eyes reflected his red ones... and a name whispered into his mind.
She wasn't full grown, that's what he first noticed. He also noticed that the spots on her wings looked like gray moons.
"How did you get her?" Drake asked, figuring Eclipse's question was answered already.

"Just from some old friends that are trainers," Eclipse said dismissively. He didn't really want to answer too many questions about them. Answers would lead to more questions, and he didn't want that.

"I didn't know you knew falconers." Drake said, simply.
He was going to ask more, but just the excitement of having the Gyr kept him quit, focusing simply on the raptor.
"Thank you!"

"You're welcome, my prince." Eclipse said, the emphasis on the last two words was barely noticeable, and if anyone did notice, they would just assume it was Eclipse's happiness over Drake liking the present. Rather than the underlying meaning that only Eclipse knew.

The present delivered, he turned to leave. The other birds seemed to be eyeing him up, as if planning some sort of attack.

Finally Drake has his birdies! I know they're just a side note in OMWF, but in TRLF his pets play a much larger role. Vanda is his favorite, of course.

Why the pets? Symbolism. Every freiking thing in this story is symbolism!

In many cultures, animals are worshiped as Gods, in others they are the reincarnation of people. In most, animals have an "Other Sight". They are able to see things in both the living and dead world— able to see ghosts and demons. They say wounded animals and/or animals that are lost will come to those who share that connection.

The birds also L-O-A-T-H Eclipse. ;) What's that say about him?