The Latuus birds singing, followed by loud crashing, makes me jump out of bed. My disorientation worsens when something strikes my face and knocks me to the carpet. I roll to my knees and the floor vibrates as if something heavy is bouncing on it. A swooshing noise passes my head. Lenox has his wings extended and is attempting to jump up and bite the painted birds on the ceiling. There's not enough room, so he's knocking over furniture and banging into things. I scramble to my feet just as Albína rushes into the room, screams, and runs out, slamming the door behind her.

"Vido cluana!" I yell, shocked that I remembered the code. The birds stop singing, but that doesn't stop Lenox from chasing them.

He rears up and snaps at the birds as they fly by, but the ceiling is too low for him to get proper balance so he crashes back down, making the floor bounce and rattling all the junk I have on every surface of my room. There's a loud clatter of breaking glass followed by the smell of a garden exploding as all of Freja's oils vibrate off the table and smash to the floor.

"You need to stop!" I shout but he's determined to get the birds. I'm not sure he can hear me over his own growling and the thundering of the floorboards under his feet. In an act of desperation, or maybe pure stupidity, I wrap my arms around his neck and go up with him when he rears again. This gets his attention and he settles.

"Put your wings down! You're in my bedroom and you're wrecking the place," I say to him, trying to sound calm, but my irritation and fear are hard to mask.

He does, but he's still watching the birds.

I unwrap myself from his neck and glare at him. "Look at me," I say with a force that surprises both of us.

He brings his head down. I make a mad face and put my hands on my hips. He lowers his nose to the ground.

"What do you think you're doing? Look at my room!" I say, stretching out my arms and turning in a circle while examining the damage. "This is no way to wake up. You need to learn some manners, young man, or you can't sleep here. Those birds aren't even real. And besides, you're not allowed to eat anything that lives in this castle, or they won't let you stay. And there will be nothing I can do about it."

He sighs and keeps his head low.

"You owe Albína an apology. She takes good care of me, and you know she's afraid of you."

My anger dissipates and my argument is losing steam. "Now, I'm getting dressed. If she ever comes back, you be on your best behavior, and if you do anything like that again you're back on the rooftop."

We both jump when the door flies open and four armored guards charge in with swords drawn. They stop abruptly when they see the calm scene amid the destroyed room. I put my hand on Lenox's neck and softly pet him to show the soldiers that he's a nice boy.

"Everything's fine," I say calmly.

The guards seem confused. Then I remember that they don't speak English.

"Albína, are you back there? Come here, please. I need you."

She pushes her way through the guards, looking embarrassed at what seems to be her overreaction.

"Will you please explain that he was only chasing the birds?" I'm using my most pleasant voice and smiling so hard my face hurts. "He hasn't adjusted to living indoors. We're fine. He won't do it again."

She isn't convinced, but she speaks to the guards anyway. The guards laugh, bow to me, then leave, chatting among themselves.

"I'm sorry he scared you," I say to her once the door is closed.

"It's alright, Miss. I was more scared for you."

"I know you find it hard to believe, but he'd never hurt me. I was only worried that he'd hurt himself and destroy my beautiful room. I know you don't trust him, but he won't hurt you, either. You shouldn't judge him by the way he looks. He's quite sweet."

"I'm sorry, Miss."

"You don't need to apologize." I'm shocked that she thinks she should. I tell Lenox to go to the rooftop to get his breakfast and close the door behind him. She relaxes as soon as he's gone. "Let's get this cleaned up." I drop to my knees and start carefully picking up the broken porcelain that used to be a teacup on my nightstand.

"No!" Albína shouts with a tug on my shoulder. "We need to hurry or you'll be late for your audience with the Queen."

"What? No one said anything about a meeting. What did I do wrong now? Is she mad?" I'm hyperventilating. I don't like royalty, and they don't seem to care much for me. I've messed up so much I don't know if she's mad about a particular thing or everything? Or maybe Jonah told her what I said.

"No, she can't be mad," she says from inside my closet. She comes out and throws an outfit on the bed. "Why would she be?"

I rip the nightgown over my head as a thousand things race through my mind. But I voice the ones I think are the truest. "I'm really bad at all the Knight stuff. The Orb doesn't work. I'm afraid of everything. And I've been too tired to study."

She waves a hand at me as she makes my bed. "Oh, don't be silly. She knew all of that before you got here."

That was meant to be reassuring but it's anything but. King Ohad must have informed the council that what was on its way to Cromsmead for training was anything but a Knight. I can't imagine what I look like to a faerie.

King Ohad's voice reverberates through my mind as I imagine the discussion. Well, she's short and scrawny. Doesn't talk much. She does alright in school but she's no brainiac. Actually, my mental abilities never came up. Ohad wouldn't even know what school was. It was one night. How could he have made any judgments about me?

That means it was Dathid who told her. I button my pants and grab for the shirt. No, not him; he hates the Queen and he didn't spend much time with us. He wouldn't have the information. So that leaves Jonah. I tuck my shirt in my waistband and bite my lip to keep my face from showing my betrayal. What did he say?

"Oh, it's not going to be as bad as all that," Albína says, misreading the source of my sadness.

I take a deep breath and get back to the topic at hand. "You know the Queen is going to yell at me again."

Her hands disappear as she tucks my sheets under the mattress. "She's not going to yell."

"No, but she'll look down her nose at me and use that mean tone of hers that lets me know she doesn't like how many times I've messed up," I say as we walk out the door. "Oh well, disappointing people is what I'm best at."

The Queen's throne room is as crowded as it was the day I arrived. Only this time I don't have Jonah running defense and Dathid taking the heat. I stand before her alone, rotating my feet and swaying back and forth as she takes a moment to glare at me before speaking.

"You're late." Ekecheiria's tone is harsher than usual.

I nod to my feet.

"You've allowed your pegasus to sleep in your room."

I nod again.

"That animal destroyed it."

I chew on my lips.

"You sleep outside on rooftops with beasts." She sounds more disgusted by that than angry. I don't know which she finds worse, the roof or the beast. "Agatha, do you know why you're here?"

"Um," I whisper. "Um...do you mean now? Or do you—"

"I mean today. And I mean in general. Do you understand? There has been some question as to your ability to comprehend the most basic of concepts. You have been moody, irritable, and undeniably whiny."

She stops talking and glares at me. I glance around at the many faces judging me. I force sounds from my throat. "I, umm." Then repeat them when no other words follow. "Umm, I..."

"Speak," Queen Ekecheiria demands.

"I, umm." An explanation might help. Or at least give me something to say. "I've umm, been tired."

"Tired!" she shouts. "Tired."

The crowd chuckles. Why is that funny?

She reminds me of some of my teachers in school, shaming me for sport. I used to believe that embarrassing me in front of my peers was for motivation. I pretended they had my best interests at heart, but they were just mean. Ekecheiria is humiliating me because she can.

"Clear the room!" Cypus Turehart announces. That elf is always by her side. And always in his shiny red boots that clash horribly with his teal pants and mustard jacket. The sash is new, though. Is that part of the outfit or was he promoted? It should have a title on it, like a beauty contestant: Mr. Butt-Kisser.

I wish I was included in the dismissal, especially when I'm brought a little chair. This is not a gesture of kindness. The chair is small and the Queen is perched atop a large throne on a high stage. My eyes are even with her ankles.

"Agatha, I realize you are human and you have limitations," she begins.

My anger starts to bubble. She has called me stupid twice, disgusting, moody and whiny. And somehow human is also an insult.

"I admit I've had a difficult time adjusting," I say with just a mildly quivering voice.

"Adjusting? A human, a faerie, and a Knight Crawler have corrupted my kingdom. You made a promise and you have not kept it. You have not read the Orb! You are not a Knight! You are a liar!"

Anger makes me rise to my feet. "I never said I was I Knight. I never said I could read that Orb. And I never lied!"

"Sit down," Ekecheiria hisses.

I sit and we both take a minute to compose ourselves.

"Where are your loyalties?" she asks calmly.

I slouch further in my seat. My anger made my fear dissipate for a second, but now I'm defeated. I just want to surrender and leave. "I don't understand?"

"That's what I thought," she says.

She nods to Mr. Turehart and he ushers me to the door without another word.