Rhydd and I aren’t supposed to do that, of course. So when we come to play, we need to sneak in. There’s a roofline hatch for air circulation, and somehow, there are always stray bales below it outside, which suggests the grooms don’t mind our antics. It’s been six months since we’ve snuck in, but the bales are still there. Alianor and I pile them to help us reach the roof hatch. Then I ask Malric and Jacko to stay below as Alianor and I climb our bale-ladder.
At the top, I peek through the propped-open hatch. The smell of gryphon almost makes me gag. It’s not a bad smell—their breath is honey-sweet, and otherwise, their musky scent is part-bird, part-beast. But with a monster of that size confined, even in a very large barn, the smell is overpowering.
The hatch opens into a shallow loft. I can hear the gryphon below, shifting and grunting softly. I’ve never heard the grunting. Shrieks, hisses, beak clicks, yes—but the grunts are new.
Alianor taps my foot. I heave myself through the hatch as silently as I can. Old chaff swirls around me, and I cover my mouth to stifle a sneeze. Alianor isn’t quick enough, but her sneeze is a kitten-like achoo that I barely hear.
I crawl and peer through a knothole in the floor. Below, the gryphon lies on its side, its flank heaving. All four legs are bound, and a huge leather band clamps its head to the floor. When Alianor squeaks behind me, I turn to see her staring through a hole of her own, her eyes round with outrage.
We never leave the gryphon bound like this. That would be cruel. It’s only tied down for medical procedures, and while we’d discussed doing it during labor, we’d decided it was better not to interfere with a natural process. Instead, the doctor—and Alianor—would be on-hand to assist, and a mild sedative would be administered instead of bindings.
Dr. Tyesha isn’t following the plan. That’s why she shooed Alianor away earlier, and probably why she claimed the gryphon wasn’t close to giving birth.
Someone had to have helped Dr. Tyesha sedate and bind the gryphon. We’ve been using a sedative dart design that Dain and Wilmot devised, but Dr. Tyesha couldn’t do it herself. Nor could she bind a partly sedated gryphon.
All I see, though, is Dr. Tyesha alone with the beast, touching its belly. Beneath her fingers, the bulge moves, and a thrill whips through me. A baby gryphon is about to be born, and I’m going to be here to witness it.
Alianor motions that she wants to confront Dr. Tyesha about the bindings. I shake my head. The gryphon is already in labor, and I don’t dare interfere.
Alianor crawls over and whispers, “This isn’t right.”
“I know. My mother will deal with it later. For now, I want to help, not argue.”
Alianor grumbles but agrees. We start toward the ladder. Whenever we pass a crack or knothole, I look down. The doctor is off to the side now, preparing another syringe. There’s no reason for a second dose. She must just be getting it ready in case of an emergency. The gryphon is already as sedated as you’d want it to be during birth.
Dr. Tyesha walks to the beast and puts the needle to the gryphon’s neck.
“No!” I shout.
I clatter down the wooden ladder. The doctor goes still, needle in hand.
“Princess?” she says.
Her gaze swivels above me, and her eyes narrow.
“I thought I told you to stay in your quarters, Alianor.”
“No, you told me there was no need to come because the gryphon wasn’t about to give birth. Since she is, then I should be here. I brought the princess to help.”
“I don’t require your assistance, Alianor. This is not a puppet-show performance for the entertainment of children.”
“We aren’t children,” I say as I stride over. “I am the royal monster hunter. Alianor is a healer in training. You were well aware of our reasons for attending the birth, along with the fact that my mother expected us to witness it.” I look at the gryphon. “You were also aware that we had decided against restraints and sedatives.”
“Unless necessary, your highness. That was my call to make. The beast was in distress, and I took the proper steps.”
I glance around. “Where are the guards who helped restrain her?”
“I sent them away. A birth is a very private matter, fit only for the eyes of women.”
I snort. “My father attended my birth.”
“As did mine,” Alianor says. “He passed out, apparently, but he attended.”
“In my village, childbirth is for women only,” Dr. Tyesha says.
“That wouldn’t exclude myself or Alianor,” I say. “Nor any of the castle’s female guards.”
I wave off her excuses as I approach the gryphon. I may no longer be in line for the throne, but I still remember how to act like a queen.
I ignore Dr. Tyesha’s protests as my gaze sweeps the beast. We’ve had it for a month, yet I can never repress this first moment of awe. It’s not simply the beast’s size. It is…majestic. There is no other word.
A gryphon looks like a cross between an eagle and a cat. It has a raptor’s head and forequarters, with its front legs ending in talons. Its back half is feline, with clawed hind legs and a tasseled tail. It also has an eagle’s wings and a cat’s ears. For a creature that nearly fills the barn, it is both beautiful and terrifying.
“You won’t need to administer that second sedative,” I say as I touch the gryphon’s chest, feeling her shallow breaths. “You’ve given her quite enough already.”
“Rowan…” Alianor says.
I lift a finger. I move to the beast’s head. Its huge amber eyes are closed now. They’d been open earlier, and I nudge her, frowning.
“Rowan…?” Alianor repeats.
I look over to see her pointing at the second syringe, still in the doctor’s hand. It’s empty.
I quickly touch the gryphon’s chest. When it moves, I exhale in relief. Then I realize that what I’m feeling is the baby moving. The gryphon’s actual breathing is very shallow, its lungs barely fluttering.
“You’ve given her too much sedative,” I say sharply. “She needs to be awake for this.”
Dr. Tyesha shakes her head. “That is what I was going to explain, your highness. The baby is in the wrong position. The gryphon is being sedated for surgery. I need to extract the baby, and that is not something you need to see. Either of you.”
“I’m a hunter,” I snap. “I’m hardly going to faint at the sight of blood.”
“As a healer, I’ve attended many births,” Alianor says. “I’ve also assisted in the surgical removal of two babies.”