The Raven Kingdom was not one that was known for its warmth, or its sun for that matter. Situated in a more northern part of the continent the blistering winds of the three mountains had a bite to it. The sky while lit with clouds earlier, was now beginning to dull – more than its usual level of dullness anyway. This was how, most, of the Royal guest from the other Clan's perceived it anyway. They all felt it was still quite early. Too early for the light to already be fading from the sky, and fading so fast too.
While the various guests had left the late lunches by now: Some now asleep, passed out or garnering beauty sleep. Others exploring the castle or, such as Lord Easton – drafting letters to his mate. The Eurasian Queen.
Sephora remained, still, in the Noble District.
Having now, since, listened to the youngest princesses plan to sneak a, bona fide, legitimate werewolf – confirmed by himself, Doctor Ingram Flitting. A Raven Harpy medical professional – into the heart of the castle and down into the old dungeon cells below in the rock, Ingram was now extremely concerned.
She would need to wait here anyway, until Maven left work at the castle to go over the plan with her, and that was assuming Maven would truly listen to this and actually go along with these, frankly childish notions. Thought Ingram.
He had poured several cups of coffee while listening to Sephora's plan and while still not convinced had decided to offer her to stay for dinner.
Sephora readily accepted as she eyed the still unmoving body of a broad chested human man, now a confirmed NOT dead werewolf and thus not human. In her mind she had to admit, with his attractively dark hair and unusually dark skin like nothing she had ever seen before, with an olive tone to it, she found herself somewhat attracted to the males body. However, it was merely attraction and she did not dwell on it.
Either way, she was not leaving this confirmed, legitimate, werewolf right in front of her. Not after all of the stories she and her sister, Seraphina, had been told as children by their nanny's and nurses and all the other house staff who had spared time for them. The stories of ancient times, of creatures so evil that it made even the Raven Queen shiver when the twins had mentioned the stories to her. While in those stories, werewolves were never the evil creatures. They were always suggesting that werewolves had a lack of control when they shifted into their wolf form and for that very reason they were extremely dangerous. Having seen the destruction of the ancient forest with her own eyes, and now knowing this man was a werewolf… like, a real, actual, legitimate, werewolf?! There was no chance that Sephora was letting him out of her sight. At least, not until she knew he was secured and wouldn't be able to go anywhere.
There were so many things that Sephora wanted to ask this werewolf. Starting from the basics. As all she had to go on were the old ravens' tails that all young hatchlings' in the Kingdom got told while very young and growing up. It had always seemed like a hint of magic and adults had all reassured them that werewolves no longer roamed these parts and that the dark one's had been vanquished permanently long ago – reassurances for children that there was nothing to fear and that they could go outside to play.
Most keenly, Sephora wanted the details of exactly what had happened to such a large strip of the ancient forest. Why had it been destroyed? Was it on purpose? Was it some kind of strategic beginning? Would werewolves be attacking her kingdom? All of these questions and more were the utmost pressing issues. Especially the latter. While her older sister Seraphina may be the one in line for the crown, what happened to the Raven kingdom still concerned her and always would. Just like what happens to the Kingdom always concerns the twins Aunt Pandora and Aunt Aurora, their father's sisters who married into other clans and left to live elsewhere.
Before going up to the kitchen to begin cooking, the Doctor went over to the male body. Pulling up straps from underneath the steel table and pulling them tight, from his eyes Seraphina knew the worry: Would leather straps even hinder a werewolf?
"There is just so much we don't know." Seraphina uttered her thoughts aloud in response to the mutual concern in both of their eyes.
The Doctor nodded, and muttered something inaudible but still appeared to be in agreeance.
It was just after she had spoken the sentence that something else sprung to mind, "Doctor… in all of the stories that we were told as children. It was said that werewolves no longer roamed these parts and hadn't for a long time. If that is true, how did you know that they're a werewolf? There so much unknown so how did you know medically?"
At this curiosity of the Princess, Ingram smiled softly at her, "You're right, there's much we don't know for sure. However, like us they are shifters and also like us they have no shifters mark on them – or so even we like to believe."
"What do you mean by, 'so… we like to believe' Doctor?" This seemed to confuse Sephora even more, as a little crease of bewilderment formed between her brows.
The Doctor chuckled lightly before answering, "Your nails-"
"What about them?" The youngest twin princess snapped. Always the twin to be quick to shoot and rarely thing beforehand. At the mention of them, she began to cradle one of her hands in the other close to her chest. How did her nails relate to shifters marks?
Ingram shrugged off her tone, "They themselves are a shifters mark as we can never get rid of, or change the colour of our nails, right? The same way we cannot get rid of our wings."
"Oh." She said in a far smaller tone.
Ingram seemed to engage in "Doctor" mode and began to explain in more detail about shifters marks in general for harpy – before explaining that the shifters mark for werewolves was their canine teeth. Werewolves would always have a larger set of lower and upper incisors. He also explained that this had not been something he purposely had checked but had been noticed when taking the temperature of… what he thought at the time was a dead body.
For several more minutes he gave, what could be considered, a mini lecture to Sephora on this.
She by no means was bored or disinterested. Instead she was closer to a child in a sweet shop, as she had a real life werewolf that she had found in the Ancient Forest. What's more, it was one that she thought was dead and it turned out that it wasn't.
It WAS severely injured. With almost all of the male's ribs being broken, a punctured lung – this, the Doctor explained, may be have been a result of her picking him up and flying with him. Resulting in one of the broken ribs dislodging and piercing - and this was along with a rap sheet containing several other nasty breaks and internal injuries.
"Sephora, my mate will be home shortly. I will need to go tend to making the dinner. If you do not mind I will head up stairs to get the food cooked and on. We aren't as fortunate as yourself to have someone cook for us." Ingram bowed and backed away, headed towards the stairs to go up to the living quarters.
"No, no. Of course! I'll stay down here and make sure he doesn't wake up." Really, she meant this as a joke but Ingram's eyes widened as she said it.
He pointed towards a drawer by her side as he grabbed the base of the wooden banister, "There's sedative in that drawer. If he so much as twitches, I want you to promise me you'll give him one?"
Sephora gave her word and with that the Doctor took his leave to go make a meal for 3 that evening.