Because wielding a sword, no matter how skill full, did not make one a knight.
He also was nowhere near as noble as a knight. Ha had stained his paws with blood, and it had certainly not been in a rightful way. So no, he was not a knight.
Pantherlily was deep in thought because of this question. Situated in the back of the guild hall – as always – sipping his drink absent-mindedly. A brawl was going on, not far away from him.
Thus he did not hear the flutter of wings, or the soft patter of paws on the ground. While he just pointedly nipped at the brawl thinking, he did not notice how he was approached by a group of creatures.
Most of them were just a little bit taller than him, at least in his small form. But he was too distracted by his thoughts to notice. So it took his mind a certain amount of time to process how the noise slowly ceased.
It ended up being an odd feeling. This guild was boisterous on good days. The sudden silence caught his attention, and made one of his rounded ears twitch. He finally looked up. His mind was still in a daze, when he saw the group of – very familiar – Exceeds.
A sudden heavy feeling settled in his stomach and he started to feel uncomfortable.
He always did, since he had been banished.
They were his race, his people. But they also had been narrow minded and hateful, enough to excommunicate him, because he had saved a life. It sounded bitter in his mind, it probably was, too.
It was a difference, between forgiving and dealing good with the past. And he certainly did not deal with it in a good way. He knew, he should recondition all of this. All his unsorted feelings. The weird mix between love for his people, and hate because they had done what they did. He had avoided all of this for the longest time. And just that day, it seemed like the other Exceed had decided to force him to confront his feelings.
The black feline, felt too many eyes on him. It was like the whole guild was watching what happened. God-damn nosy people.
This situation was hard on him, even though they had not interacted yet. And he would have preferred to be ignored by most of his guild mates. But he was not. From the corner of his eye, he saw his partner, standing an the counter, a mug in his hand, sipping his drink, pointedly looking away from him, and a small glass of juice by his side. At least Gajeel understood.
PantherLily took a deep breath to settle himself, and finally turned around, to see who came for him. He was surprised, actually. He had thought, if they were to come for him, probably to confront him, it would be some of the guards, Nichiyas people probably, and Nady or someone else of power who was not the queen.
It was the queen. Shagotte stood in the centre of some Exceed he knew very well. He had never thought the Elders would come. Never. Because they had been enforcing the rules on the Exceed.
She was not all flowy dresses and dignity like he was used to. She looked modest. The rich dresses had vanished to make room for clothes that looked more basic. They reminded him a little of Charles. All that was left of the old queen were the sparkling diamonds, illuminating her face, lighting it up even more with the smile she wore.
“Lily.” her voice was soft, even in the sudden silence of the guild. Pantherlilys eyes widened and he slid down the table. He had figured it was rude to sit on a table, on a higher ground than she was right now. It was a matter of courtesy.
It also hid the black feline a little from they nosy eyes of his guild mates.
“Your highness.” he said, bowing his head. Before he was able to ask, what brought her here, she held up a paw to shush him, making him close his mouth immediately. She still had that kind of power over him. For some reason he could not help but think of her as his queen, as the person who protected and ruled his whole race.
“There is no need for this. I am a mere queen, Lily.” she said. But she would always been the kind hearted queen. The queen that teared up, when the elders banished him.
He knew. She thought of herself lowly, and more of a mother than a queen. She was probably right.
His lips widened in a small smile.
“Very well.” Pantherlily did not want to push this any further. Shagotte might be uncomfortable if he did. But he also wanted to voice his opinion, because she was a queen in his eyes. Nothing he would say out loud of course. It was against the rules, speaking bluntly like this. Not that he cared much about rules.
“What brings you here?” he asked, watching her reaction. Also he wanted to prevent his guild mates to disturb this moment.
His stomach was still heavy and his long tail twitched more than usual in distress. And it was like she knew. Who was he trying to fool, of course she knew. She was able to glimpse into the future.
Because she was the person who kept the Elders from closing in even more on Pantherlily.
“We're here, to officially lift your banishment.” Shagotte said. Her voice as graceful, as the one of a queen should be. It was not loud, and not too silent. And everyone in the Guild hall could hear it.
He just knew Gajeel was grinning, even though his partner did not make a sound. There had been a few gasps here and there. People who had not been as invested in the black Exceed, had not known much of his past, and he had not cared to tell them.
His own reaction was silent, but had a great impact. Pantherlilys tail stopped moving abruptly, freezing in the middle of a motion. His eyes widened and hew openly stared at the white feline in front of him.
They had talked about it, when he had caught her mid-air in Edolas. How he loved his country and was sick of lying. She had admitted, it had been a mistake to banish him. And ten, after being transported to Earthland, it had seemed, all of them had just forgotten about him.
It did seem, like she had still thought about it. He should have figured.
Shagotte smiled, her diamonds catching the light with every movement. The tip of her tail swayed before she stared to speak again.
“I know you found a new home here. A new family.” again, her words were loud enough for everyone in the still silent guild to hear. Loud and clear. Confirming what he already knew. He even saw her suggestively shrugging her shoulder in Gajeels general direction. “New friends. People who understand you better than any Exceed ever could.”
Those words sparked the feeling of sadness in his guts. It was sad, but true.
“You have achieved a wonderful life, even with the banishment sentence on you. I know you do not have a need to come back to us, and I understand you will never come back to us. But I officially lift the banishment off your shoulders.” The silence in the guild hall had become stunning. On the corner of his hearing, he heard Gajeel snort silently. As if his partner knew, Pantherlily would never leave him.
“You are one of our race, and you will always be.”
He had forgotten, actually, how good the queen was with words.
Since he was better with actions than with words – at least against her - , and enjoyed the small power play between them, it was his turn.
A smile widened his lips, making his whiskers twitch, when he sunk down on one knee. Just like had been supposed to in the past. He heard her inhale at his action, and knew he hit a nerve.
It had been a long time since he had paid her respect. One of his paws on the ground, one on his knee. Just like the scene back then, when he had been banished. His voice was way more silent than hers, because he feared his comrades could hear things he did not want to reveal.
“Even though, I won't come back to you. Even though I will stay with my new family, be aware, my loyalty lays with you.” he said. Kind of flowery phrases, but necessary. “My life is again at your mercy.”
And she understood what that meant.
She was not a Queen any more. He was not a Knight, and had never been. But it felt like it, in this very moment.
