**Chapter One: The Festival**

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The valley air was warm and comforting as the smells of spices and herbs floated through the air. Two younglings, a cat and a dog, scurried through the tall, dry grass, a basket of daisies in hand. “Do you think the Creature will like them, Justice?” The cat purred, excitement written in her young, innocent face. “Of course! Who does...

‘Do not dream my child…dreams are a luxury for our kind. We have spent all of our money, on gambling our lives with Lady Luck. We can’t afford to extend our debt…’

The young cub tiredly listened, as he gazed up at his father.

Nobody loves them. Nobody liked them. Nobody needed them. They were the vermin of society.

Simply because they had fur, instead of smooth skin, they were indiscriminately...

“This is my favorite spot.” Alec stood on his tiptoes and leaned out over the railing, letting the wind ruffle his fur. “You can see the whole world from here!”

“The whole kingdom, maybe.” His cousin Ariana crossed her arms on the wooden railing next to him. “There’s probably some territories out of sight. And then there’s the rest of the world, beyond what we can see.”

“The rest?” Alec trained ...