Brothers - 37. Chapter 37

JASON

His dreams were filled with fire and guards. Throughout the night, Jason woke up in cold sweats, shivering at the false memories of being burned alive, suffocating from bleach, or being attacked by elven guards.

Even Devyn was helpless against his dreams. All the wolf could do was try to lay across his brother and hope the weight comforted the neko.

Finally, Jason decided he’d had enough. He wasn’t going to get any more sleep. The floor chilled his feet as he stood up, the neko shivering in the early autumn morning. Clothes draped over his body as Devyn looked on tiredly, and Jason gave his brother a gentle pet before heading downstairs to get some water.

Returning to the room, Jason was startled by a loud snort. Devyn was sprawled out over his bed, the wolf’s snores so loud the neko was surprised they weren’t shaking the room. Jason shook his head with a sigh, heading to his desk. He needed to start getting some work done. Starting with figuring out exactly what the king wanted him to write.

His screen was filled with little pop-ups, all those ads that seemed designed only to annoy him as he struggled to hit the tiny button that would close them. One of the pop-ups made him pause though. Most of these news blurbs were just clickbait, but this one…

Five minutes of searching on three different sites verified the article. King Finley was stepping down early, and the princess Amber would be sworn in as queen at noon. Nearly every news site was ranting about it, elven run sites despairing that the king was escaping justice, human sites offering hopes that the new queen would be able to start the healing process, as though one eighteen year old human could fix centuries of fighting.

Jason felt bad for the new queen. She had seemed stern, yet understanding when they met, and he didn’t want to think about what the strain of ruling Astara would do to her. It certainly hadn’t done King- now Dowager- Finley any favours by any accounts.

And at the bottom of it all sat Miranda. Pardoned by Finley, she would be free. Queen Amber wouldn’t be able to touch her, no matter what the elves demanded. Finley was throwing his daughter to the wolves, almost literally, and Jason’s heart sank for the human he had only met once. It seemed like a cowardly move, and the neko couldn’t help the tinge of hate that coursed through him.

A quick check of his emails found a message from Darius, the neko palace guard, instructing him to continue his work. The coronation would have no impact on his new job, aside from possibly being assigned to a new guard. A list of suggested reading materials came from Alisa, the palace librarian. She also included two historical stories from before the Neko Rebellion, all that the Royal Librarians had been able to preserve from the last millennia. The elves had done their work well during the war, and Jason found he was grateful the Silence was coming this week. Maybe it would help remind the world that they needed the nekos. Maybe it would only show the elves that the nekos could be cowed into silence. He didn’t know, but it would be nice to spend a day in solitude, away from the world.

Groaning at the complexities of life, Jason carried his laptop out of the room, a pen and notebook accompanying him down the treacherous staircase that seemed almost more malicious in the dim light of early morning. Arriving safely on the ground, the neko took a moment to unclench his body, before heading into the living room. A remote turned the news on quietly, and Jason watched a group of elves rail against the king for a moment, before trying to find a more neutral station.

The neko opened a document on his computer, the light of the TV just enough for his eyes to pick out the keys. He realized it had been a horrible idea when, fifteen minutes later, he was still staring at a blank screen. A sigh followed, and Jason closed the computer again. It felt almost wrong to go about his life when so much was happening around the city. But he had to start somewhere. He had only two months to get a story out for the royal family.

The pen clicked softly as a light turned on, and Jason began writing in his notebook. Random thoughts, ideas, one liners, anything and everything flowed from his pen as the neko struggled with his mind. He would take the morning to brainstorm, then throw together a few ideas and see how they worked. Once he found a decent story, he would get working on plotting everything out before fitting everything together like a puzzle. With luck, he would be writing within the next two days, and the story would be finished in two months. If not, then the neko was fucked.

He just hoped Queen Amber would be more forgiving than her father seemed to be.

The sun rose quickly, its early light nearly blinding through the front window, and Jason blinked blearily as his lack of sleep started to catch up to him. The sound of steps on the stairs startled the neko.

His head turned toward the entrance of the room as Margaret stepped into view.

“What are you doing up this early?” the woman grumbled.

Jason shrugged, motioning toward the tv. A neko was busy discussing the succession with a human.

“Oh dear gods… are they for real?” Margaret scowled, staring at the screen. “An elf sneezes around here and they throw up a new law to accommodate them…”

The neko wasn’t sure he got what the werewolf was saying, but he was not about to argue. Jason just wanted to stay under the radar until Richard returned. Four more days and Margaret would have to leave. Assuming Richard did what was right. If not… well, Jason was starting to make money. He could probably convince Devyn to live at the pack house. Granted, Jason had no intention of ever becoming a wolf, but he could certainly live with his brother.

Plans would be laid. He couldn’t openly go against Margaret, but there was no way Jason was living under her thumb, and if he could help Devyn escape, he was certainly going to try.

DEVYN

The wolf laid on the couch tiredly, listening to the sound of Jason typing furiously at his computer. They had been sitting in front of the tv for nearly five hours now, waiting for the new queen to appear on the balcony that was sitting at the bottom of the screen. In the meantime, the two were listening to the neko and human newscasters arguing about what a relatively violent succession meant for Astara. This was the second succession in a row that had been triggered by violence, and it spoke poorly for the state of the world as nekos and elves dealt with ancient hatreds.

The intricacies of their conversation flew over Devyn’s head, the momentous occasion spoiled by the long wait. Sure, he was living through history, but it was so boring. Even Margaret had wandered off, the sound of the laundry machine speaking of chores that needed to be done. Devyn had an excuse; he couldn’t exactly do chores in this form. But he was surprised Jason hadn’t been told off for working on his computer. Then again, they did need to do schoolwork. Hadn’t Erith set up that excuse the day before?

A sudden commotion on the screen startled the wolf. His ears pricked up as a human appeared on the screen.

Simplicity seemed the mark of the new queen. Her dress was a light blue gown, the only jewelry on her body the silver coronet all queens wore. She stepped onto the balcony to silence, the area around the palace cleared during the night by the newly appointed Queen’s Guard. Behind her, Dowager Finley stood with a stern frown on his face.

There was no live coronation. There was no need for such posturing, especially with people looking at the former king in disgust. It was too much risk. Instead, the coronation was private, the lords of Astara overseeing a simple ceremony before Queen Amber stepped outside for her first speech in her new role.

The young woman seemed to hesitate before a podium, staring down at the wooden stand. Devyn stared silently at the screen as Jason set his laptop aside, the two brothers waiting anxiously for the first words from the queen.

“Peace. Such a simple word, and yet it is an ideal that is hard to achieve. For the last two hundred years, humans, nekos, and elves have all lived together. As we approach the annual Silence, we are reminded that it has been far from peaceful.”

Queen Amber looked directly at a camera, her face staring into the home of nearly every person in Astara, and around the continent.

“I come to power in a time of racial turmoil. And it breaks my heart. I would wish my father to observe tradition, to be wiser, older, before I take the throne. But you, the people, have spoken. My father made mistakes. And you said no more. I am here to atone for his mistakes. For hundreds of years, humans have been seen as the balance between elf and neko. We are the voice of reason between warring peoples. And so I shall be for the people of Astara. I will listen. I will mediate. And with your help, I will reunite our people, for we are all Astaran; we all deserve peace and happiness. Not only the elves, but the nekos, the werewolves, the mages, and the humans. We can coexist in peace.”

The queen took a deep breath, glancing down at the stand in front of her. When she looked up again, a steely determination could be seen in her eyes.

“At this time, I would like to thank my father for his service to the people of Astara. It may not seem like it in the heat of the moment, but looking back, Dowager Finley led us well after his mother’s murder. He was thrust into a situation beyond his control, and yet we pulled through thanks to his leadership. And that is something to celebrate him for. So I ask, when you remember my father, remember him as the king who kept three peoples together through hardship. The king who lost his mate, yet kept going, continued to serve despite his heartbreak. We move in a different direction now, for nothing good comes from stagnating in old ways, but we could not stand where we are now without his hard work and dedication.”

Another breath, another firm look at the camera. Devyn met the gaze, recognizing the challenge in them. A challenge he couldn’t win, and the wolf looked away with a sudden whimper.

“We will move ahead. We will learn from the past, and we will have peace. I stand here, Queen Amber Etaro, ready to do my duty to my people. I will see order restored. I will see the senseless fighting of the past week put to rest for good. And I will see cooperation between all.”

She turned before the camera, walking back toward the double doors that led to the palace. Dowager Finley bowed before her, low, and Queen Amber bid him to rise, the two passing back into the palace together.

“All promises we’ve heard before,” Margaret grumbled.

Devyn flinched at his mother’s words. He hadn’t even heard her enter the room.

“I’m going shopping. Jason, I need you to take care of the laundry,” Margaret added, stepping out of the room.

The neko nodded silently, his eyes still on the screen. Devyn set his head in his brother’s lap, frowning as he tried to figure out exactly what all this meant. Was this new queen going to help? Or would she only reinforce her father’s decisions?

With a huff, Devyn decided it didn’t really matter. It wasn’t like he could change what was going to happen. The wolf would just deal with things as they happened. It had gotten him this far.

JASON

The door closed with a loud thump. Almost instantly, the mood in the house seemed to lift.

Jason stood up, motioning toward the stairs with his head. The laundry had just been started; he had plenty of time before he needed to switch loads. In the meantime, he needed to take a break. Notes on the Red Ghost littered his computer, the start of a story forming in his mind, but an entire morning of research left him feeling a little drained.

Devyn raced ahead of him as he slowly climbed the stairs. The neko could hear frantic thumping echoing from the bedrooms, and he chuckled silently even as he held the bannister in a death grip. Releasing a breath as he reached the top, Jason hurried to his room.

The wolf was sitting on his bed, a brush in his mouth and an antler by his foot. Jason blinked in surprise. He had no idea Devyn liked to be brushed. Petted, absolutely. But brushed?

Smiling as he plugged the laptop into a charger, the neko took his time straightening his desk, hearing the soft whimper of his brother waiting impatiently. Finally he turned to the wolf. The brush fell into his hand, and Jason crawled onto his bed, sitting against the head of the bed as he patted his knees.

Devyn crawled into his lap eagerly, and the neko began running the brush through his fur, collecting dead hairs while simultaneously scratching the wolf’s back. The wolf let out a quiet moan as he gnawed on his antler. Jason carefully adjusted his head, keeping Devyn away from his crotch. The last thing the neko wanted was for the wolf to miss his antler and take a bite out of Jason’s dick instead. He wasn’t into vore. Or pain.

Time fled from the room, peace reigning in the silence of the house. Jason fell into a trance as he brushed his brother. The rasp of the brush mixed with the gnawing of the wolf to slowly lull him into a stupor, until they were interrupted by a loud beeping.

Jason startled at the noise, the neko glancing around warily until he found his phone. Shutting off the alarm that was going off, the neko stood up with a sigh. Time to deal with the laundry. He set the brush aside, rubbing Devyn’s head one last time before heading back downstairs.

Minutes later, he was crawling back up the steps. The sound of licking came from the room, and Jason stopped warily. He wasn’t sure he dared to go into the room right now. Images of Devyn licking his own crotch rose unbidden to his mind, and Jason shook his head, trying to clear them.

Fuck it, if the wolf was doing what it sounded like in there, then he would just have to deal with it. Pushing ahead, the neko turned into his room.

A relieved breath escaped him at the sight of Devyn licking at his antler. The wolf’s nose flared and Jason flinched. Devyn had to know exactly what he was thinking; the smell was probably all over him. Even if it wasn’t, his own crotch was filling out slowly. Jason’s cheeks burned as he crossed the room.

Throwing himself into his bed, the neko pulled his laptop into his lap, covering his crotch quickly. He stared at the screen in horror.

Wolves in compromising positions filled his computer. Jason’s face burned even more at the sight of a wolf mounting an elf, and he heard a snort from Devyn.

Fuck… how had the wolf even gotten onto this site? He could have sworn Devyn didn’t know how to use the computer… and he was a wolf. Or… was he?

The neko stared at his brother incredulously, wondering. It was the new moon… could wolves shift during the new moon after all? It was the only explanation he could see. The moon wasn’t out, and that was what controlled the shifting, wasn’t it?

Devyn had turned human, found the site, and turned back… just to fuck with his brother? And how did Margaret not know about this? Jason was certain if the werewolf knew, Devyn would be stuck as a human during the new moon too.

He wasn’t about to give his brother up though. Jason stared at the screen, his entire body heating up as he saw a wolf’s knot disappear inside a woman. He glanced back at Devyn.

The wolf was watching him as he chewed on his antler. As Jason watched, Devyn’s tongue wrapped around the antler, washing up and down the length of the bumpy bone. A silent squeak escaped Jason, and he slapped the lid of his laptop down, shoving it aside.

Devyn huffed quietly, crawling over to rest his mouth over Jason’s crotch. The neko’s length rubbed through his pants. There was no hiding his arousal, not with Devyn doing everything he could to keep it up. Jason glanced almost fearfully at the window, wondering when Margaret would be home. They could not let her find out about this.

A wet tongue washed over his groin, hot wolf breath warming his crotch as his body arched involuntarily. The neko’s hands slipped into Devyn’s fur, torn between pulling him closer and pushing him away. Safety won out over lust, and Jason shoved his brother away, turning to grab his laptop. He had to get off that site, had to delete it. Who knew if Margaret was watching what he searched-

Something was poking around his tail. Jason yelped as a tongue ran over the seat of his pants, his tail tucking to protect his virtue. He lunged for his phone, backing away from the hungry werewolf.

“Not now. Margaret will know,” he typed quickly, trying to buy himself time.

Devyn huffed angrily, but dropped back down onto the bed, replacing his new toy with the antler. Jason let out a quiet sigh of relief. He had held the wolf off for now, but who knew how long it would last?