#KingsArm #Jupiterschildrenrule #Nataliafirst

Jody’s eyes opened quickly when she heard footsteps thumping beside her. Still laying down, she rolled her eyes around until she found the source of the sound, there, her younger sister was walking about-pacing actually a happy look on her white speckled blackface.

Jody groaned and rolled over as her sister whipped the curtains open, “Lilyyyyyyyy.” she whined as her sister whipped her blanket off of her.

“Jodyyyyy.” Lily mocked as Jody curled in a ball to keep in the warmth, she remembered what had happened earlier that night, sometime past midnight, she had run into Captain Helmer. It’s not like she hadn’t met him before, it was just that the stoic buck and she hadn’t really..spoken before. How embarrassing! Hannah had always taught her to be seen not heard, and she had been heard. Jody relented, and propped her head up with her hand and watched as her sister crossed over to the bed on the opposite side of the room, where another bundled up sister was trying to fight the morning.

Jody blinked her half-asleep eyes open and heaved her groggy self out of bed just as she heard a yelp from her other sister as Lily forcefully woke them up. Her other sister groped her hand around until she found the desk beside her, Jody’s stomach jolted as she almost knocked the glass vase of dried roses over. Her hand found a pair of horn-rimmed glasses and she stuffed them onto her reddish-brown face, she yawned and sat up, making eye-contact with her oldest sister across the room.

“Morning, Jodes.” her sister harrumphed, rubbing her eyes.

Jody stretched until she felt her feet and arms shake, then she got out of bed, “Morning, Noa.” she replied to the smaller doe. She then turned to Lily, though the doe was only a year younger, she always acted much more responsible than the rest of her siblings. “Lily, what in the Ember’s name is this about?” she asked.

Lily’s brown eyes twinkled, “Remember what day it is?” She countered, her voice persistent but merry.

Jody frowned at her sister in thought, what was today? “Uhhhh I don’t know what?” she grimaced, as the eldest daughter she was supposed to probably know these things, her handmaiden and nurse-Hannah- had scolded her time and time again for other things she had missed...

‘Now Johanna’ Hannah fretted as she wrapped the young doe in cloaks, the snow billowing outside the large window. The older doe swiped a loose piece of fuzz off of Jody’s shoulders, ‘What are the noble Lord’s names?’ she tested. ‘And where do they hail from?’

Young Jody squirmed from where she sat as her nursemaid walked off to grab a brush. ‘Uhmmmm’ she stalled, she squeezed her eyes shut and clenched the hard wooden chair’s sides, ‘Do I have to name ALL of them?’ she pouted.

Hanna returned with a brush, ‘No, now you have to name ALL of them, PLUS the King and his captains.’ she mocked. Returning to the young princess, she started to brush her long ears.

‘Oh.’ Jody said, ‘Well that’s easy! The King is my father-’

‘What is the king’s name?’

‘I know his name! So do you? Why should I-’

‘For the better of the kingdom, a princess should know all her subjects by name, or- at least the important one.’ the ancient doe sighed. ‘What. Is. The. King’s. Name.’ she asked slowly.

‘King Jupiter the Great.’ Jody said, ‘Captains are Harlan Seer, Perkin One-Eye…’ And it went on.

Jody shuddered thinking of the cold old doe.

“Jody.” Lily’s words jolted her into the present, Lily got close to her face. Today is father’s birthday.” she whispered loudly.

Noa gasped and quickly got up, “Oh yes! Of course! What are we going to do?”

Lily smiled at her sister, a mischievous spark in her eyes, “We are going to throw him a surprise party! He seemed to have expected no one to do so, and he’s always so busy...I think he needs time to rest!”

At this, Jody deflated a bit, “I don’t know Lily... as you said, Father is busy...and he has eyes everywhere...he’d know if we tried to surprise him…” she said.

Noa nodded in agreement and plopped back down onto her bed. “Unless...we distract him?” she said thoughtfully, her hand resting on her chin. “But how?”

Lily put her hands on her hips, her black and white ears twitching in thought. Jody looked down, “Aha!” Lily said, followed by Jody and Noa shushing her, “shshshsh right, sorry.” she apologized, “Which of our brothers can keep a secret? Maybe they can help?” she put out.

“Hmmm.” Jody thought. She thought over quickly, of all ten of her brothers... who was the one she trusted the most? It had to be her twin, Whitbe. She voiced who, and her sister nodded in agreement.

“What would he do though?” Noa asked.

“We’ll figure that out later Noa.” Lily said, “Come on! Let’s go find him!” She waved her sisters on.

Jody walked through the quiet halls of her home, she knew exactly where to find her quiet brother in this quiet haven, Am I saying quiet too much? She wondered. She took a left and stopped in front of some large doors, she grabbed the fine metal handle and pushed. This never gets old, she thought as she gaped at the vastness of the large room, shelves lined the walls, and crisscrossed across the room like a large maze. Books were packed into every nook and cranny, she walked down the bank of books, the largest said library in all of Natalia, she and her brother loved reading, and though they have lived in the palace their whole lives, they had barely made a dent in the library.

Like an endless sea, the books kept on going, she smiled at the wonderful smell of paper and molding covers. Yellowed pages met freshly-inked ones, Old stories whispered their past to young shiny new one. Past meets Present and Future.

She heard the flipping of pages and softly walked towards it, finding her way to the rapid reader.

And there she found it, her dear twin, her forever other half, her loyal partner in crime: Whitbe.

The young buck was sitting cross-legged on the ground, books towered around him, after a quick glance at some of the covers, she smiled.

“Reading about wars instead of fighting them I see.” She teased her brother.

Whitbe started slightly and looked up at his sister. He smiled and shrugged, “Well, what can I say? I’m a lover, not a fighter!” He retorted, his white fur speckled and splotched with black like their younger sister Lily, but unlike her brown eyes, his were bright green. Like the Green Ember itself. She wondered to herself.

She crossed over to him and sat herself down beside him, she grabbed a book off the shelf and flipped through it, she looked back at the cover, children’s poems. She read, she smiled at a snippet of one then turned to look at her brother, his eyebrows were furrowed in concentration. “Remember Nurse Hannah?” she asked softly, looking down at the chapter she was on.

Whitbe closed his eyes and chuckled softly, “Do I ever.” He leaned back and looked at her, “That old crone practically raised us,” he frowned slightly, “Didn’t she raise father too?” he asked.

Jody giggled, “Yea, as well as Uncle Bleston and Uncle Landon,” she thought of her father’s two brothers, Landon, who was the youngest, had died fighting beside his brother-the king- a few years ago. And Bleston...had betrayed his home and left forever. Never to be seen or heard of again. “Well, I found something that reminded me of her.”

“Oh?” Whitbe wondered, “Well then, read it!”

Jody cleared her throat, then read it:

‘“Who was it that stole the apple pie?’

‘’Twasn't I, Twasn’t I’

‘Who stole, then?’ rings her reply,

still I deny, still I deny.

Asked I am why should I lie,

‘I am innocent,’ I cry,

But inside I know who stole the pie,

For ‘twas I, ‘twas I,

‘Twas I who stole the apple pie

But shall deny it till I die.

Inside I know who stole the pie

For there it lies, in my insides.”

Whitbe smiled, “It’s sweet and funny, yet very deceitful.” he said, “just like that old dame.” he added mischievously, Jody gasped and slapped him, which only made him laugh more.

“Well then.” she said, shoving the book upon his already piled lap, “I guess I’ll leave you to drown in books while I and the girls plan father’s party.” She stood up, she had barely gone a full foot when her brother called her.

“Wh- wait! What party? Who else- what?” Whitbe stuttered and tried to stand up without scattering the precious books.

Jody turned around and helped her brother up. “Come on, and I’ll tell you.”

Wait...didn't I post a chapter? Like... not that long ago? Yes. Yes, I did.

Am I posting another one? Yes. Yes, I am.

I finished this one like- REALLY fast...and the next one should be up at the scheduled time! Oct. 30th!

Question: Do you recognize the poem?