The Goddess Gives Her Blessing

He gets mad at me all the time, my feathered fiend, because I won't let him ‘thin the herd' when some idiotic bint gets saucy with one of us.

Why won't I let him?This. is why.Talk about a powder keg ready to blow our eyebrows off.

I have a mate in a furious fist and fang with—I'm not sure what Deli is, but not-quite-human seems to be an understatement. Taurus told me about her dilemma when they started chatting. ‘Slight mutation' does not do it justice. No wonder he's been itching to run with her. She's almost as much a predator as he is.

After years of the Resistance evading Company security—which I am completely amazed Damien penetrated—she's amassed a full-blown army in her massive compound. She could start her own private security company with the number of droids and clones that live with her. I tuck that info away for further pondering.

If she has ten people at her place, I cannot imagine how many more are out there.

Not only that, but every one of them seems ready to jump in kamikaze-style to defend her honor. Is that the case with the rest of the unknown masses that live here? I hate to admit it, but Queen Kitty and I might have more in common than meets the eye. She doesn't need their help, and they know it. Despite their natural instincts, her housemates stay a respectful distance behind the long-haired one. Except for Victor, who, historically, is the exception to the smart choices rule. Just look up his bullshit antics from the Conflict.

My attention focuses on the army briefly, but I catch the swing kick Taurus aims at her head from the corner of my eye. She's fast—unnaturally fast—and I should know. She ducks under his leg and slashes at him with her… claws?

Jesus. They're not pulling any punches.

Again, I cannot stress enough that this is why I made the rule about fighting people in the community. No one really wants a repeat of the Conflict, and if they don't get over this shit, that's exactly what will happen. Only this time, we had zero allies around to fight off the Resistance. All the Cabal members slunk back to Earth when the droid people disappeared. The Quarter is a ghost town and though the four people from my house are mighty; we aren't an army.

He needs to sort this shit out before it escalates.

The fabric of his shirt rips and a bellow echoes in the night; she got skin on that one. Pity she forgot to protect her blind side, though, as she gets a resounding smack to the side of her head because of her lack of focus. It staggers her for at least a moment, but her bell's not rung yet. They appear evenly matched, but Deli seems to fight strictly off instinct and rage. Taurus is a trained fighter and an experienced killer.

Why the hell isn't he…?

Ouch.

He catches her with a quick jab, dancing around her to buy some time. She screams at him—some disparaging comment about his manhood—then leaps. They go down in a tangle of limbs and snarls. I frown in confusion at the crunching, snarling pile. He should have dropped and used her momentum to throw her. I mean, he's used that trick on me a million times when we spar. What's he playing at?

I watch her family from across the yard, still mulling Taurus' moves in this fight. Something is off—he's only toying with her. Conversely, the cat's not pulling punches, but she's not going for a kill. The tension between the gathered armies makes me wonder what price we'll pay for the game they're playing.

Damien and Theodora spread out behind me as soon as we materialized in the yard. Neither one will attack without either provocation or a signal from me. Right now, they're simply making sure the other group doesn't get antsy and go after Taurus on their own. If they do, all hell will break loose.

My family is technically outnumbered, but I know what Damien, Theodora, and I can do. Most people have no clue about our skill sets, particularly Damien. Honestly, the issue isn't numbers. The issue is that her family seems to be fueled by her rage. Is she that connected—even with the droids—that the laid-back Lothario on the porch can't control them? If so, how? This whole situation is an enigma filled with questions I can't answer.

I study the long hair while he's not paying attention. He keeps looking up at a large bay window on the second floor and then at the front door, as if expecting something. The clone looks more worried about that possibility than the fight or the itchy battalion behind him. There's a problem here besides the war on the lawn distracting him.

What in hell's name could be up there that trumps this mess?

A snippet of the fight catches my eye. I turn my head to watch my mate and scarlet haired hellcat again as they roll to their feet again to spar.

"Now, now, puss," he taunts as he wipes at a trickle of blood on his cheek. "I thought you said something about teaching me a lesson? So far, all I've learned is not to waste my buggering time on neuroticnits with attitude problems."

Great, keep goading her, Taurus.

Rolling my eyes at him, knowing he's going to draw this out as long as possible. I get distracted when the long hair pushes off the post he's been leaning on since I threw the first blade. I stung his pride with that move, but I knew his connection with Deli was the strongest. He's definitely her primary mate. The extent of her pack and his ease with them is interesting. My hands are full dealing with the bird brain out there, much less than as many clones and droids as I see here. It must be because outside of the boozy, Glock toting chick on the porch, he's also the calmest temper in the bunch.

They definitely have some kick ass weaponry in this joint.

That's why I had to give the long hair a heads up about what we wouldn't stand for. If he can't control the lot of them, we'll have a war on our hands. I'm banking that he can, but if it takes a blade embedded in a pricklier position, so be it. I ready a tosser when his mate snarls loud enough to split my eardrums.

"I knew it." She attacks again—a fast punch with one hand and a swipe with her claws with the other. The punch misses its mark, but she slices open Taurus' arm with the talons. That's not only going to leave a mark, but seriously piss him off. "That's all I am to you. You are a self-absorbed, egotistical ass!"

I turn to focus solely on the two fighters for the first time since I arrived. Damien seems to sense that I'm not watching our six. He grunts and flexes his considerable bulk to draw the attention of her family to keep them from noticing that now would be a good time to attack.

The scent of blood is heavy in the air. Both of the warriors look beaten, bloody, tired, and angry. Yet something about the emotion I can sense behind her words makes me hold my breath.

This is the moment that it's all going to change; I can feel it.

"I may be an ass, you flighty fucking feline, but at least I know what I want. Had I known what a raging bitch you are, I might not have taken you up on your offer for a night out in the first sodding place."

That's ridiculous. Taurus likes when tough women give him shit, not the other way around. What the hell is he talking about?

The night breeze shifts and I catch a scent previously hidden under the smell of blood and adrenaline—arousal. Holy fucking shit, they're turning each other on. That explains everything, including why he's been pulling his punches during the fight. Before I can fully process that info, the cat goes eerily still.

Breathing hard and bleeding from just about everywhere, Deli lets her arms slowly drop to her sides. After a long pause, she raises her eyes to look at him. "What? What did you say?"

It's the first time since we arrived that her voice isn't roughly akin to a wailing banshee, and I hold my breath. On the periphery, I notice her family has dropped back a step. They must have caught the scent I picked up on, because several of them return to the porch with smirks.

Taurus looks momentarily confused by the ceasefire. "I said, had I known what a raging bitch you are, I might not have come out with you tonight."

Deli shakes her head and growls low in her throat. "No, you big prima donna, before that. You said something about knowing what you want. What did you mean?"

Snarling, Taurus advances and I can feel the frustration radiating off him in waves—so much so it shakes me. All I can think is ‘please don't fuck this up'. I know what he's feeling; I know what he meant. He has to tell her or we'll be back to square one.

"I meant I bloody well wanted to spend time with you. I wanted to be with you, you witless ninny. I thought you knew that."

She snorts and takes a step towards him as Theodora and Damien return to my side. "How the fuck was I supposed to know that? You spent most of the night treating me like a trial you had to endure. When you weren't doing that, you treated me like a toy you got to play with for a while."

Running a bloodstained hand through his hair, Taurus shakes his head in frustration. He stalks closer, standing toe-to-toe with her as he smirks wickedly. "I figured you would have sussed out that I don't spend time with anyone I'm not right fond of, Sandwich. And I'm absolutely bloody fond of you."

Surprisingly, that seems to irritate her because she puffs up and blows up again–though not as bad as before. "Oh, great. Now you tell me. Damn it, Taurus, I am so pissed off because I thought you didn't give a damn and now you tell me?—"

He grabs her upper arms and yanks her against his chest, slamming his mouth down on hers before she can finish the sentence. She doesn't seem to mind, though, as her arms wrap around his neck and her fingers tangle in his hair. When he pulls back for air, she tugs him back to her mouth immediately, grinding against him with as much enthusiasm as she'd had fighting him.

I shoot a look at Damien and Theodora. They're both watching me curiously to see what I'll say to this new development. "Well," I drawl, checking her family to make sure the war is over, "that was anticlimactic."

Taurus finally lifts his head from the insistent Deli and meets my eyes. I nod at him, sending him a wave of emotion through our link. His grin is boyish, and he disappears from the yard, taking Deli with him.

"For some of us, anyway," I finish softly, smiling a little.

Looking across the yard, I catch the long hair's gaze. His expression is placid, but I bet that's the norm for him. Bowing slightly, I arch an eyebrow. The corner of his mouth twitches and he bobs his head. I'll wait to ask for my blade back some other time. If our mates are going to be getting personal, I figure I'll see him again. "Come on, guys. Let's go home."

Damien drops the monster guise and grins, wrapping an arm around Theodora's waist and grabbing my hand. He opens his portal and we step through. I wonder as we reappear in our home what changes are coming for our previously nuclear family.

For changes, I can tell, are on the way.