Chapter 10

Throughout the short flight back home in my personal shuttle, a sense of thrill and anxiety warred within me. I couldn't wait to participate in the assembly for the first time with my mate. The vain side of me I never even knew existed also burned with impatience to show off my gorgeous wife and my beautifully adorned braid.

But this also meant likely facing my brother Demar and my father.

We hadn't spoken since I requested to sever the bond with Mother. I wasn't hiding from them. They'd simply been on a hunt from which they returned this morning. Of all the unpleasant things I could do without, the inevitable conversation I'd have with them ranked at the very top of that list.

After landing on our terrace, I called out Farah's name, overly disappointed not to find her home—not that it surprised me. I couldn't tell whether she had not yet returned from shopping with Belle, if they'd already gone down to the gathering hall, or if they'd gone upstairs to my cousin's dwelling. I suspected the latter.

I took the lift down to the main floor. To my dismay, I stepped out of the cabin to find my brother in an animated conversation with Kraslo right in front of the elevators. My stomach dropped as I made eye contact with Demar.

No words were needed. The single glance he cast towards our friend sufficed for Kraslo to get his meaning.

"I'll see you both in a bit at the assembly," Kraslo said in a friendly tone, although I didn't miss the glimmer of sympathy in his eyes.

With a final nod, he turned around and walked away. I braced, looking at my younger brother. He approached me with an unreadable expression.

"Walk with me, brother," Demar said.

"Now is not the time," I replied in a calm but firm tone. "My mate will be waiting for me at the assembly."

"She's not there yet," he countered dismissively. "She's with Belle in her dwelling. This won't be long."

I kicked myself for not following my gut and going to check Bayron's penthouse before coming down. Annoyed, I gave my brother a stiff nod and followed as he walked towards one of the courtyards surrounding our bloodline's fortress.

It was a nice open space with a simple garden, with lots of benches, a few picnic tables, and green areas for people to relax in. With everyone either already at the assembly or preparing for it, there was thankfully nobody present to witness the imminent unpleasantness.

"Okay," I said as we came to a stop under the shade of a large tree. "Give your speech and let us be done."

Demar snorted and gave me the strangest smile with a strong teasing edge. "There's no speech to be given. I merely wanted to say that I'm proud of you."

My brain froze, and my jaw dropped. I studied his features so similar to mine in search of any sign of mockery or sarcasm. When I failed to find any, I blinked, more baffled than ever.

He chuckled, his face softening into a sympathetic expression. "It was about time for you to finally stand up to Mother," Demar said in a factual manner.

I frowned, battling to reconcile his words with my expectations. "But you always agree with her stance on everything!" I argued.

He smiled and shook his head. "Although I can see why you would perceive it that way, you misunderstand me. I don't agree with her stance, especially where you are concerned. Mother and I just happened to share the same interests. I love hunting, competing, and the pursuit of fame and glory. I would kill to have your body and your skills. Can you imagine how famous I would be if I possessed all your attributes?"

I nodded, my innards twisting once again with that nauseous feeling that always washed over me whenever this topic came up. Everything about me had been built for battle. Had I been born with even a tenth of Demar's passion for hunting and combat, I would indeed be legendary. But my little brother possessed the standard height and body mass of a Zamorian male.

"Believe me, Brother, I've wished many times that you had inherited my body instead.

"Don't," he replied with a gentle smile. "I learned years ago to stop wishing for the impossible and accept my reality the way it is, with both its good and bad sides. Mother just keeps clinging to a dream that can never come true. You don't see me arguing with her because I want the same thing she wants for myself. But it's okay for you to want something else."

I felt faint as I stared at my brother as if I was seeing him for the first time. None of this made any sense.

His face took on a faraway expression as he seemed to search through his memories.

"You were always such a contradiction," he said pensively before refocusing on me. "Despite Mother's constant nagging and semi-veiled threats, you stood your ground in order to pursue your veterinarian studies. But otherwise, you put up with the borderline abusive way she tried to coerce you into submitting to her wishes."

"She's our mother," I said in a slightly defensive tone, as if that alone sufficed to explain my behavior.

"And you're her son," he countered forcefully. "She should nurture you, not herself or her own aspirations."

Completely befuddled, I ran a nervous hand over my braid, my mind still reeling from this most improbable conversation.

"So I don't disappoint you?" I asked, hating the hint of vulnerability audible in my voice.

"Not anymore," Demar said in an affectionate tone. He smiled in a reassuring fashion when I flinched at his words. "I was never disappointed in you for the male you are or for choosing a different path than what everyone else wanted to impose on you. I was disappointed in you for putting up with the abuse. It was high time you stood up for yourself and told everyone to either take you the way you are or to fuck off."

"Wow!" I breathed out. "I expected you to give me an earful about how I brought shame to our house yet again, what a huge let down I was, and how I had better get my shit together to do right by our parents."

He snorted and waved his hand. "How little you know me, big brother," Demar said mockingly. "That earful will come to you from Father. He's furious because Mother is upset. But just so you know, as much as he doesn't understand you, Father actually doesn't mind that you want to follow your own path. He just doesn't like when Mother is unhappy."

"Father will never forgive me," I said grimly.

Demar shrugged. "He will, once Mother gets over it."

I gave him a ‘Are you serious?' look. "She will never forgive me!"

He chuckled. "Oh yes, she will, once the two of you make up."

"Which is exactly why I say she never will. I'm not going to cave in to her demands. There will be no grummoll slaughter, and I will never change careers," I said in a stubborn fashion.

"I know," Demar said with an indulgent expression as if I was acting like a petulant child. "Mother will come around. For now, she's going through the various stages of grief. And your mate helped her right along."

"My mate?!" I exclaimed, my spine stiffening at the thought Mother had gotten to Farah.

Demar raised his palms in an appeasing fashion. "Relax, Brother. All is well. Your female gave Mother a stern talking to."

"What?!" I shouted, my head jerking towards the side entrance of the fortress as I readied to run back inside to go check on my mate.

"Calm, I said!" my brother reiterated. "Your mate is fine. She seriously impressed Mother."

He burst out laughing at my gaping expression. I didn't need a mirror to know how flabbergasted I looked.

"Mother spent the past hour complaining about how a little wisp of a human chastised her," Demar said in an amused tone. "She berated you for lying about your mate being fragile and broken."

I snorted. "Meaning she's mad she wasn't able to bully her!"

"Correct," Demar said laughing. "It appears Mom got spanked by your human."

I laughed. "Kromor's teeth! What I wouldn't have given to witness such a thing!"

"Me, too!" he replied, still laughing. "And I see your mate is doing right by you in more ways than one," he added, glancing with admiration at my braid.

My chest swelled with pride, and I ran a hand over my braid. "She most certainly is."

Demar smiled then his face took on a serious expression. "You know, for all her griping, Mother approves of your woman. She won't admit it, and it will be difficult for her to show it and to cast her pride aside. Mother loves you, and she wants you back. It will take time, but she now understands that she has to change. Promise you won't give up on her."

I blinked away the tears pricking my eyes and smiled at my brother. "I won't. However insufferable she may be, she is my mother, and I do love her."

"Good!"

"Thank you, Brother," I said, my throat constricting.

"No, Krogal. Thank you for finally breaking those chains and becoming the male I always knew you were inside."

"I'm supposed to be the big brother," I grumbled to hide my embarrassment.

"You have been. Even though you let her get away with a lot of shit over the years, you were never weak. You taught me to follow my dreams and stand my ground, despite peer pressure and naysayers."

I opened my mouth to respond, but words failed me. Instead, I pulled him into my embrace, which he returned. Khivolt smite me! For the first time in years, I felt like I got my baby brother back. From the moment I first expressed an interest in pursuing veterinary medicine instead of the warrior path our parents wanted for me, an increasingly great distance had settled between Demar and me. It shouldn't have taken me this long to understand it hadn't been disappointment in me that set us apart but merely diverging interests.

I intended to reclaim the lost years with my sibling.

"Come on, let's go back inside before my female sends a search party for me," I grumbled.

He smiled, his eyes sparkling with mischief. "I cannot wait to meet that little terror of yours."

I burst out laughing, my chest swelling with pride as we went back inside the fortress. We had just walked past the elevators and were about to step into the main hallway when the lift chime went off. I glanced over my shoulder to see my woman and Belle coming out.

"Wait!" I told my brother, pressing a hand to his shoulder as I turned on my heel to head back towards Farah. I beamed at her. "There you are! I hope you had a good time?"

She nodded with a big grin. "I had a blast. Belle is fantastic!"

"Of course, I am," Belle replied, flicking her hair over her shoulder like a diva, making us all chuckle.

I turned sideways and gestured at my brother who was standing a couple of steps back. "Farah, this is my younger brother, Demar. Demar, meet my mate, Farah."

"It's a pleasure to meet you," Farah said in a friendly tone laced with a sliver of shyness.

The moment Demar's face took on that familiar bratty expression, I gave him a warning glance that he completely ignored.

"Hello, Farah. So you are the little human who terrorized our mother..." he said in a speculative tone.

"What?! I… No! It's…" Farah said, with an air of total panic.

"Demar!" I scolded.

He burst out laughing while Belle snorted.

"Relax, Brother. You know I'm only teasing," he said mockingly before turning a much gentler gaze towards my mate. "Mother is a very hard female to impress. She has many faults but good hearts. I may not have witnessed your meeting with her, but it is clear that you stood up for my brother, for your mate, against someone as intimidating as our mother. For that, you have earned her respect and mine. Welcome to the family, little sister."

The powerful emotion that descended over my mate's beautiful face reflected the one swelling inside me. I prayed for a warm welcome for my woman from my family. I couldn't be more grateful for my brother's words right now.

"Thank you," Farah said with gratitude. "That means a lot to me. I didn't mean to upset or offend your mother."

Demar waved a dismissive hand. "Don't worry about it or about Mother. You may not realize it, but you are hers now. She may bark at you, but anyone else who dares mess with you will also have to deal with her. She will fight for you to the death if needed."

And she would.

My hearts filled with affection for that female, difficult to love and yet fiercely devoted to her family. The four of us headed into the Gathering Hall. The large doors stood wide open as people steadily trickled in. Most of those who planned on attending had already taken their seats on the tiered benches surrounding the central floor. Our numbers always varied between one and two-thirds of the residents of the fortress, with a vast majority being males. The middle of the floor had parted so that the brazier could extrude and act like the bonfire around which our ancestors used to gather for similar social meetings in days of old.

My mate immediately slipped her dainty hand into my much bigger one and stepped closer to me when every eye settled on us. As much as her seeking reassurance from me pleased me, that she felt intimidated whipped my protective instincts into a frenzy. I gave her hand a gentle squeeze and wrapped my secondary right arm around her waist. Farah instantly relaxed, although she moved even closer against my side.

Oblivious to it all, Belle made a beeline for her husband. After nearly seven years of marriage, my cousin no longer had any qualms drawing his woman into his embrace and publicly kissing her.

"Ah! Here is our new human clanmate!" Ugrul exclaimed with his booming voice.

I smiled at my uncle as we came to a stop in front of him. This event being informal, he was sitting on one of the side benches with the rest of our clanmates.

"Farah, this is our Clan Leader, Ugrul, Feidin's mate. Uncle, clanmates, meet my Farah," I said proudly.

She whispered a greeting and shyly waved at everyone.

"That is one impressive braid you're sporting, Cousin. Is now when all our single males start complaining about not being allowed to present for her?" Varkuth said.

Bayron's older brother—and Ugrul's heir—had quite a mischievous streak of his own. I made a show of caressing my adorned braid to further show it off, then playfully glared at Varkuth while our clanmates laughed. The approving glimmer in their eyes as they ogled my braid had me puffing out my chest even more.

"Seriously, it's rather unfair!" Kraslo said with false outrage. Considering he was already wooing a female of his own, this was merely him teasing me.

"With all due respect, after the display I witnessed in the Plaza yesterday, I'm happy to pass on anyone presenting for me," Farah said, scrunching her face. "Anyway, I'm already spoken for," she added, smiling at me.

"Bah, humans are no fun," Kraslo playfully mumbled.

"We're the coolest thing under the sun!" Belle countered, making a face at him.

"You are very pretty and delicate," Ugrul said kindly to my mate. "You have my protective instincts going into overdrive, and I can see the same feeling reflected in the eyes of my clanmates. When you bless my nephew with your first offspring, our people will fight like crazy over who gets to babysit them like with my Bayron's little ones. I suspect they'll do so even more with yours."

"Ugh!" Belle exclaimed, rolling her eyes, which had everyone laughing. "It's great having so many willing babysitters. But it's exhausting dealing with all the complaining about who gets to do it more often than others."

"That sounds like a good problem to have," Farah said teasingly.

"It is," Belle conceded begrudgingly as she settled in Bayron's lap.

I led my mate to an empty spot near my cousin.

"So, are you going to snuggle on your man, too, little Farah," Varkuth asked teasingly as I sat down on the bench.

"Where she sits is her business," I snarled at my cousin, who chuckled shamelessly.

I gestured at my mate to settle next to me. She stared at the spot, chewed on her bottom lip, and glanced hesitantly at me. My hearts leapt, and I held my breath upon realizing she was actually considering sitting on me. It took every bit of my willpower to force a neutral expression on my face, neither pleading nor foreboding.

After a split second of hesitation—that felt like an eternity and a day—Farah took on an air of determination and sat in my lap. The wave of happiness that swelled within nearly choked me. My mate glanced nervously at me over her shoulder. My silly grin wiped out any concern she may have had about how I felt. She relaxed, returned my smile, and comfortably leaned back against me.

I possessively wrapped my arms around my woman while the others playfully mumbled about it.

"You're just jealous," I said tauntingly, before giving Farah a gentle squeeze.

She snuggled a bit more deeply against me with a satisfied sigh that filled my hearts to bursting.

Everything was finally as it should be.