ria paced in the great hallway before the Chamber of Meeting. She feared for her dear friend, that the Council would be far too harsh on her for this breech of their hidden laws. Suddenly, a guard burst out of the Chamber and summoned Aria.
�You don�t understand what kind of torment you are creating for yourself, my child!� yelled Asyla, who was one of the older members of the council.
�No, Asyla,� Cygnet shot back, �you are the one that does not understand. This man�he is�different. I touched him�I felt the pain within his soul. It is very much like my own.�
�You have too much of your mother in you,� sighed Isla, Cygnet�s aunt. �Always so full of hope�and having those hopes dashed all of the time.�A murmur went up from the crowd of people in the chamber. It continued to grow until the head of the Council raised her hand for silence.
�You touched him?� asked Sai, a younger member of the council.
�I did,� Cygnet admitted.
�Was he afraid?� whispered Sylana.
�No,� replied Cygnet, as she looked into the older woman�s eyes, �he was not.�
�This�is impossible,� whispered Asyla to Isla. A murmur of voices rose to agree with her. The murmur grew louder and louder until the leader of the Council spoke.
�This was what was foretold by the ancients,� the familiar voice intoned solemnly. �That was the reason why the law was created in the first place�so that the violators would find the One who was meant to lose his human shape and become one of us. �He who has known pain greater than a thousand burning lashes,�� the leader intoned as she read from the sacred text. ��He who is not afraid of she who is different from any woman he has ever known. He who would sacrifice everything�to know the power and glory of love.� The one he chooses as a mate is the one who will become the head of the council after I have truly become no more.� With a wry grin, the woman then stepped into the light so that Cygnet could see her face.
�Mother�Iona?� Cygnet cried softly in shock. She recognized Iona, but Iona was no longer the wizened figure that raised her. Iona was still rather short, but her frame was lovely and rounded. Chestnut waves touched with golden highlights streamed down her back. Golden hazel-green eyes stared back at the girl whose looks were not far from her own. Iona�s full lips drew back into a gorgeous smile that seemed to make the sun shine more brightly than ever.
�Yes, child,� Iona replied, amused. �Did I not tell you that we would meet again?�
�Iona,� chided Isla, �you can be so mean sometimes! Did you never tell Cygnet the truth?�
�What truth?� asked Cygnet. �I�m not sure that I understand all of this.�
�Cygnet,� began Iona gently, �I am not your adoptive mother.�
�What?� whispered Cygnet, eyes wide with fear.
�I am your birth mother,� Iona smiled. �You were the product of an illicit union between myself and�your father.�
�Who is my father?� Cygnet asked.
�Ah!� laughed Iona. ��The inevitable question!�� All of the council members giggled and whispered to each other as Cygnet stared at her mother. Iona smiled serenely, then held up her hand for silence.
"Your father!" laughed Asyla. "Your father!" she shrieked with laughter. The muscles in Cygnet's jaw tightened as she fought the urge to snap the crone's skinny neck. The whispers and cackles started up again, crescendoing into both laughs of mirth and laughs of malice. At last, Iona could take no more.
"SILENCE!!!" bellowed Iona, her voice echoing through the Council hall. All of the whispers were hushed in an instant as Iona angrily eyed each member of the Council. �No more of these callous whispers. I have had enough of your malice towards the man I loved�the man who gave me my only child. My beloved Cygnet. The only thing I really have left of her father.� Suddenly, her voice became harsh again. �I will hear NO more desecration of my beloved in this Council again! Is this understood by all?� Iona gave everyone in the room a look that challenged them to defy her. Silence and stares were their only reply. �I though as much,� she muttered. �I take your silence as acquiescence to my wishes,� she continued in a commanding tone. And I thank you.�
�But who was my father?� Cygnet asked again.
�Even I am not sure who your father was...as a human,� Iona admitted, shaking her head. �He was here and gone so very quickly from my life.�
�Do you remember anything about him?� pressed Cygnet. �Anything at all?�
�Well�� smiled Iona, �there was something��
Cygnet stared in awe at the marble statue. It was nearly ten feet tall, and featured a tall man holding a swan. The man was a little bit over six feet, bare naked, and one could see the mischief in his gentle eyes, though there was no color anywhere on the statue. The waves of his hair nearly touched his broad shoulders, and above his head, he held his swan companion. Two human females lay at his feet, each clutching a naked leg. It was clear, however, that he preferred the company of the swan.
�What does this all mean?� Cygnet asked at long last. �Is this man my father? Who is he?�
�Read the inscription, my dear,� Iona softly smiled. Cygnet then bent near to the warm marble and read the words.
�Colinus Cygni�Rey de los Bromistas�Vorrei Liberarte Il Cuaore de Iona�Patri de Cygnet�Genesis�No Dormir Mas�Ven�Ven�Levantarse�.� whispered Cygnet, subconsciously grasping a marble foot. As Cygnet looked over the strange words again, she felt the statue�s foot getting warmer and warmer.
�Excuse me,� said a melodious, gentle male voice, �but you seem to be tearing the skin off of my foot.� Cygnet jumped back in horror and backed against the wall.
�Who are you?� Cygnet cried. �What are you?�
�I�m not really sure anymore,� the statue turned man answered. �First I was a man in love. Then I was a statue. Now I appear to be a man again.� The man softly sighed. �What are you?� he asked her in return.
�I am but a humble Cygnet. Nothing more, nothing less.� Cygnet looked into the mischievous eyes and asked: �Are you my father?�
�Hmmm�� said the man as he walked around and around her. Cygnet could feel his eyes searching her body and comparing it to Iona�s body. Iona, meanwhile, had calmly watched the whole transformation. Cygnet didn�t know what to think as she stared, first at him, and then at Iona.
�Well�?� Cygnet asked, unsure.
�Yes,� said the man, who proceeded to scale the wall.
�You�re my father,� she stated, confused.
�Yes. Didn�t I just say that?�
�A statue is my father.�
�No. I am your father. A petrification spell turned me into a statue. Iona�s mother, the former head of the council, was the one who cast it. She had to flee from the Council while she was still pregnant with you. I was very much a man when you were conceived,� the statue said with a mischievous grin. Cygnet's jaw dropped as she stared at the unpertrified man, who seemed to be rather insane. My father is a lunatic! she thought as she continued to stare in shock.
�Colin!� cried Iona, with a shocked expression on her face. Colin looked at her and laughed.
�Where did your sense of humor go, my sweet?� he asked her softly.
�It left with you,� replied Iona as tears slid down her cheeks. Colin took her gently in his arms and kissed away her tears. Cygnet watched the scene with a dull ache in her heart. Quietly, Cygnet slipped from the room, leaving the lovers alone together at last.
�3/4/99 Rebecca Lynn Oaks (all rights reserved)
Last Modified: 11/18/2000 by Rebecca L. Oaks
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