Amber Waves - 13. Chapter 13

AMBER

The queen of Astara wrapped an arm around her son, holding him close as the council door closed behind them.
“You can’t win all of your fights,” she said gently.
“I know. I fucked up,” Aaron scowled.
“You did,” Amber agreed with a sigh. “The council didn’t know you were a werewolf. And they shouldn’t have been told. There are people on the council that will make your life miserable every time you try to pass a law now.”
“Like Dowager Finley.”
“Father isn’t on the council Aaron. But he does still have incredible pull with Lord Sarin and a few others. You just gave them power over you, and they’re not about to relinquish it lightly,” Amber explained.
“But we can fix this, right? I mean, you could remove the laws at any time,” Aaron frowned.
“I could. But what would it look like if the queen started disregarding her council? If I start passing laws with no consideration for the people under me, history would not remember me fondly. And yes, I know that these laws need to be removed. I will remove them if I have to. But I think this is good for you. You need to work on your statesmanship. The speech you gave was good. Really good. But you gave too much away, and it will make the next few years difficult for you.”
“The whole thing is a mess. Why did we have to give the dowager power to change that law? Why couldn’t we just do it ourselves? I mean, I understand it’s tradition, or whatever, but why?”
“Because at one point it helped the elves keep power over the nekos.”
Amber sighed quietly, gently guiding Aaron toward her office.
“Queen Erin was the first to adopt a neko son. She gave us the traditions we cling to today. Not all of them are bad. The royal rotation ensures that every race, and each gender, has a voice in the government. But she also made the law that a dowager could be consulted for laws they had made, and that altering those laws required allowing a living dowager to change the law themself. It was slipped into a myriad of other laws that were passed at the time, and Queen Erin used it to devastating effect, not permitting the prince to change a single law to the betterment of his own people. For the next century, she stood in the way of progress silently, while loudly proclaiming the virtues of a free and equal society of elves, humans, and nekos.”
Amber opened the door to her office, frowning at the tilted painting again. Sitting Aaron in a chair, the queen groaned quietly as she sat.
“It wasn’t until Queen Lynn, nearly one hundred years after the Neko Rebellion, that nekos finally gained a somewhat even foothold in society. And she was assassinated for it. Dowager Finley is the reason nekos have as many freedoms as they do today. And unfortunately, it’s because he focused on vilifying werewolves instead as he worked for his people.”
“He gave the council a trail to follow so he could get his own laws passed,” Aaron scowled.
“I gave them what they wanted. I agreed with their decisions so they would fall in line with my decisions.”
Amber startled at her father’s voice, as Finley stepped out from behind the painting. The neko grimaced as his head hit the bottom corner of the painting.
“Shit!” Aaron yelped, nearly falling out of his seat.
“I see you haven’t told him about the tunnels yet,” Finley scoffed. “I just delivered the good news to Captain Darren. He is on his way to Admin to look through their guards.”
“Great. Please return the painting to its proper position when you’re finished, Father. It gives me such a headache when it’s tilted like that,” Amber sighed
“Such a grouch. You should be happy, Amber. Your son utterly humiliated me in front of my lords,” the neko grunted, adjusting the painting.
“Someone had to,” the queen shrugged. “You’ve had your time in the spotlight. It’s time to let the younger generations work.”
“Work to destroy everything I created, you mean. Mark my words, they will demand more and more from you and Aaron. Oh, it will be small at first. Pushing for children to have curfews, for their safety of course. Maybe adding in a statute on how collecting rainwater is now illegal, after all, it’s dirty and unclean. And soon they’re sending nekos to camps in the mountains, or letting werewolves fuck anyone they want regardless of claims.”
“Don’t spout doomsday predictions to me,” Amber growled. “I’ve brought this kingdom back from where you took it. I saved your life, and I saved this kingdom from your shit. And I will not have some old guard fuck us over because he can’t let go of old prejudices.”
“I’m not going to let anyone push me around. I’m not afraid to take matters into my own hands,” Aaron added sharply.
Amber shook her head at her son.
“No Aaron. You will appreciate the wisdom your elders have. It’s about balance, not control. Stop. Listen to what they say. Keep your mind guarded enough to see through their shit, but let them teach you at the same time.”
The queen let out a groan, rubbing her head tiredly.
“I need to take a break,” she said quietly. “Aaron, if this is your crusade as prince, I want you to discuss every step you take with me. I will be impartial in any decisions and not allow any votes to sway me. If you want the werewolves free completely, then you will have to convince the council.”
“I thought it was over,” Aaron frowned.
“Not at all. The entirety of your vote was defeated. So you slip it into other votes, piecemeal,” Finley said. “Does the council need money for a project? Fine, they can have it, as long as they let werewolves lick themselves in public.”
“Father, enough. I don’t want to hear another word against werewolves. This whole law always struck me as wrong,” Amber scowled. “And now it will be rectified. But Aaron will work for it. He will learn how to be a politician.”

ITUMAK

Six werewolves stood in a line, hands clasped behind their back as the captain of the palace guard walked in front of them. Itumak’s head turned slightly, studying the older wolves who had been brought to the palace.
“Eyes forward Nareen!”
Captain Darren’s voice broke the chill morning air like a whip, and the neko quickly looked forward again, through the small cloud of steam that escaped his mouth at every breath. White ears flicked occasionally, trying to keep moving, keep himself warm. He’d had five minutes to dress that morning, and it meant he was standing bare chested outside next to a line of guards who had clearly been trained properly. He wished for that training himself, but Captain Darren had skipped it in favour of keeping Itumak closer to Aaron. Now he would have to catch up.
“Every one of you was chosen with specific traits in mind. None of you have mates, each of you has at least five years of experience in the City guard and two years in the Wolf Patrol. And every one of you is a werewolf, trained to control your bestial side perfectly. Here, there will be no hiding your disease. You are the Prince’s personal guard, called to protect him during the full moon,” Captain Darren announced. “You are the first wolf guards in three decades. You will not dishonour the privilege you have been given.”
Itumak fought back a yawn, bringing his arms in to wrap around his torso as a bitter wind threatened to freeze him where he stood.
“Nareen, stand at attention,” Captain Darren snapped.
Instantly the neko’s arms returned behind his back. Itumak rubbed his wrist, praying that it would keep him warm enough.
“This duty will be unusual. You are not here to be proper guards. You are here to be werewolves. You are here to patrol the Queenswood, warn off reporters, and sniff out any suspicious activity. You are an extension of the Palace Guard. And today, you will be repairing your new home. Guard Itumak has already started. I want the barracks cleaned by the end of the day. Dismissed.”
The line fell apart, werewolves rushing toward the barracks. Itumak hung back, looking toward the Captain’s apartment, where warm uniforms awaited.
“Guard Itumak, why are you not working on the barracks with your fellow guards?” Captain Darren demanded.
“I’m cold. I need to get my uniform on.”
“You had plenty of time to dress. Now you will go help fix the wolf barracks.”
Itumak shivered in a brisk breeze, goosebumps growing over his torso. He let out a quiet sigh and ran after the other werewolves.
“Guard Itumak.”
The neko froze outside the barracks door as an elf towering over him. His neck craned back, worried eyes scanning the other werewolf.
“First of all, don’t meet my eyes,” the elf sighed. “It’s disrespectful among wolves. Captain Darren said you started working on the barracks already. You should show us around.”
“Oh… right…”
“And relax. Racial bullshit has no place here. I hate cats, but I’m not about to let that distract me from my job,” the elf scoffed.
Itumak’s ears flicked back in annoyance, and he pushed past the elf, frowning at the sight of the werewolves all staring at him from just inside the barracks.
“Guard Itumak, we will follow your lead. You have been here longer than us,” a man said.
“Um… thanks? I think?”
The neko cleared his throat, crossing the room to open a window. Light spread through the room, and he turned back toward the gathered wolves.
“Okay… I’ve cleaned everything and moved fresh mattresses into the bedrooms. The building still needs running water, lights, air conditioning and heat. I think insulation might still be a problem too,” he said.
“I’ll check the insulation,” an elf said.
“I got lighting if Greggory can help,” another wolf added.
“I know a bit about plumbing,” the other elf shrugged.
Instantly the wolves scattered, moving through the building. Itumak let an uncertain smile play over his face as he watched them move. He hadn’t expected to be in charge of the other guards when they showed up, and it felt a little strange for them to look to him for instruction. It was a lot better than Itumak having to do everything himself though.
The sound of music thumped through the barracks, deep bass surrounded with cellos. Itumak’s head bobbed with the beat as he made his way over to the heater.
“Gods bless it Aime, shut that crap off!”
It shut off after a moment, and Itumak let out a bemused laugh, shaking his head. The neko pulled out his phone, a shiver passing through him as he stopped beside the heater. Surely there would be some kind of guide on repairing a heater. The internet had gotten him through installing a few windows, and he had no doubt it would work for appliances too, as long as he took his time looking through everything first.
Fuck, he was going to need a strong drink with Ren tonight. Or maybe a piece of tail. Maybe one of the new guards would play with him, but Itumak wasn’t going to hold out hope for that.
The neko set his phone down, hitting play on a video before trying to figure out exactly what kind of heater he was even trying to fix.
“Welcome everyone! I’m Jacob, here again with another video on household repairs…”

AARON

His cock was straining at his pants.
Aaron let out an exasperated growl, slapping his pen down on the desk in his room. He knew there was only a week left until the full moon, but this was ridiculous. The urge to mount something, to breed, was slowly creeping into him, and the werewolf was growing more and more frustrated.
He was an elf. He was in control of his own fucking body. And anyone who tried to take that control away from him would feel his wrath, even if that being happened to be inside him.
Standing up, the elf adjusted himself as best as he could, and walked toward the door. A guard jumped as he threw it open, the woman throwing a quick salute that Aaron returned with a groan.
“Captain Darren. Where is he?”
“In his apartment, your Highness. He’s off duty at the moment,” the woman said quickly.
“Thanks.”
Aaron sped through the palace, throwing on a pair of shoes at the exit. Hurrying outside, the elf made his way toward the Captain’s apartment, frowning at a scent beyond the apartment door. Mixed with the familiarity of Itumak and Darren, he could smell… Queen Amber?
The elf frowned, his hand an inch from the door. He had no idea why the queen would be dining with the captain of the guard. But there was the unmistakable scent of Mydaran food, potatoes and ham mixing mouthwateringly with peppers. The wolf’s stomach growled, his lust momentarily forgotten in the moment, and his hand raised again, ready to knock just to ask for a plate of whatever was cooking within.
But he paused. Amber was eating with the captain of the guards? It made no sense; she had told Aaron that Captain Darren would not be responsive to any advances. Aaron lowered his hand in confusion, and turned toward the wolf barracks.
The prince trudged out to the barracks, throwing open the door again.
“Prince Aaron!” an elf yelped, throwing a salute.
Aaron returned it with a frown, his eyes scanning what he could see of the building. It was spotless, a light bathing the entrance in a cheerful glow as heat washed through the building. And it was empty of a particular neko.
“Captain Darren is busy at the moment, and I need to go for a run,” the prince said quietly, looking at the elf.
“Oh. Well, Aime is on Prince Duty at the moment,” the elf said quickly. “I will fetch her for you.”
The guard vanished deeper into the barracks, and Aaron sighed quietly. He closed the door and basked in the warmth that enveloped him, all the while fighting the growing urges of his wolf. They were in the wrong spot; he should have gone to the regular barracks. These beings were already bred…
Aaron took a deep breath, trying to force the intrusive thoughts from his mind. A woman stepped into the room, saluting sharply, and the prince returned the salute with a quiet sigh.
“How may I be of service, your Highness?”
“I need to go for a run,” Aaron replied.
“Of course, your Highness. If you’ll follow me please.”
The woman turned away, moving confidently through the barracks. Aaron fought down the thought that she was running, that he needed to give chase. His footsteps were measured by necessity, the werewolf forcing himself to move slowly.
They entered a small room, and Aime closed the door, flicking on a light. She immediately began removing her clothes, and Aaron’s face burned.
“Please don’t be embarrassed, your Highness. We need to be naked before we can shift. I know you’re still new to being a werewolf, but this is normal,” Aime said, setting her shirt aside.
Long red hair brushed over her shoulders, small breasts drawing Aaron’s eyes like forbidden fruit. He took another deep breath, his loins stirring, and the guard let out a quiet chuckle.
“Your libido is going to be much higher early on,” she explained. “Captain Darren has already explained that you are new to this, but he’s also done his research. King Paelias often had a group of select guards who joined him and Prince Consort Quarian on runs early in his reign. Captain Darren assumes they provided other duties for the mates, given King Paelias’ promiscuity when he was first turned. Any of your guards here would be honoured to help you sate that thirst-”
“No!” Aaron gasped out, shaking his head violently. “No, I don’t need… that… I just… I just need to run…”
“As you wish, your Highness,” Aime bowed.
She let her pants fall, revealing the rest of her body. Picking up the last of her clothes, the woman turned away, folding the uniform into a small cubby.
“If you would prefer, I will face away while you undress and shift,” she offered.
“Please…” Aaron whispered weakly.
Still, he turned away himself, before finally lifting off his shirt.
Disrobing took a matter of seconds, the elf shifting quickly with the bone aching crunches that accompanied his blonde wolf. A brief struggle followed as the beast tried to move toward his guard, but Aaron fought him down. He was not having sex. He could control this wolf. He had to.
He pushed through the wolf door, hearing a quiet huff behind him that his wolf interpreted automatically. Waiting for the red wolf to step out of the building, the blonde wolf began trotting toward the woods, trying to ignore the fact that his dick was peeking out of a fluffy sheath.
It wasn’t that he wasn’t interested in the werewolf. No, Aaron thought she looked great. But his mother had sacrificed so much for the kingdom, and he felt the need to follow in her footsteps. He’d seen how Itumak ran around, fucking anyone who’d agree to it, and Aaron was determined not to behave like that. His wolf told him he was missing something, and as much as the wolf wanted to have sex, as much as Aaron wanted to experiment, the prince was not giving in to temptation.
He would take this lust. He would use it to temper himself, to build his resolve and his control.
Aaron Etaro was going to be the strongest werewolf king in history, and he was going to start today.