Page 31

Titan

With a heavy, uncomfortable feeling in the pit of his stomach, Titan dressed and left the safety of Ezra’s unconsciousness quarters in pursuit of his brother.

It did not take long to find him. The offspring spoke at loud volumes, and their high-pitched voices and bubbly laughter rang through the halls, showing Titan the way.

As he walked, following their cries of delight, Titan came to realize that he had never given much thought to offspring—his brother’s, or otherwise.

It had never been important. There were government tasks to be handled, professional hierarchies to be climbed, and matters of great importance to be tended to.

Offspring had never been of any concern.

But such was not the case anymore.

In three short months, Ezra would produce a clutch, and three months after that, the eggs would hatch, and their progeny would emerge into the world.

He would be a father.

The thought made the uncomfortable feeling in his stomach worsen, but at the same time, it caused his heart to flutter.

The shrill little voices, the cries of joy, the laughter…

soon, they would fill his own government-sanctioned dwelling with their beautiful chaos.

Raising Darvrokian young had never seemed of much importance before, but faced with this reality, it struck him to be of vital importance now.

How many offspring would there be?

Titan mused on this as the sound of his brother’s offspring grew louder and louder. Fertilization had not occurred all that long ago, meaning it was far too early to detect how many small lives had taken root in Ezra’s impossible womb, but perhaps, if he was?—

“Offspring, behave, ” Al’s voice boomed, pulling Titan from his thoughts. He spoke sharply and impatiently, which was not his typical nature, and the feeling deep in Titan’s stomach worsened yet again.

Was this guilt?

If so, guilt was terrible.

No wonder Ezra had been so distressed when hiding their relationship from his friends.

Al’s voice guided Titan the rest of the way down the hall and to the kitchen. He knew he would not be welcomed in it, but he could not let it stop him—not for Ezra’s sake, and not for his own.

He entered anyway.

At first, he went unnoticed. The utter mayhem that was feeding seven young Darvrokians prevented Al and Human Jude from acknowledging his presence.

He cleared his throat once, but they did not seem to hear him over the chatter.

Louder, he said, “Ξ.A.kr’ξ??’p!” and all at once, everyone in the room turned to look at him.

Al’s human form went white, and Human Jude eyed his True Mate warily.

“I wish to speak with you, Ξ.A.kr’ξ??’p,” Titan said once he had their attention.

Avoiding eye contact, Al turn ed back to dishing out disks of sweet bread to the offspring. “I do not wish to speak with you,” he said in response.

“Al,” Human Jude murmured, gently putting a hand on his mate’s elbow.

Al shot him a look that made Human Jude sigh.

“We are busy feeding the offspring,” Al said as an excuse.

“I can handle it,” Human Jude assured him. Almost too quietly for Titan to hear, he added, “Go see what he has to say. Maybe he’ll surprise you.”

Al did not appear to believe this would be the case. Harrumphing, he turned to his offspring. “Behave for your father and consume your sustenance in a timely and efficient manner. I am going to speak with Uncle Titan. I will return soon. Very soon,” he added, shooting a glare Titan’s way.

“Are you upset ’cause Uncle Titan and Uncle Ezra had a sleepover?” Eleanor asked. Jude snickered, but stopped quickly when Al turned his glare on him instead.

“Behave, offspring,” Al said again, abandoning the kitchen and gesturing for Titan to follow.

The two of them walked silently into the formal dining room next door. Titan took a seat at the large mahogany table, and Al pointedly sat several spaces away from him. They did not speak for nearly a minute.

“If you want to say something, ?.Λ.yz’Ο,” Al said in Darvrokian, “say it quickly.”

“We need to talk about a couple things,” Titan replied in their native tongue.

“Oh, let me guess.” Al rolled his eyes. “I shouldn’t be upset that you and Ezra hooked up, since you’re so great and should be able to have anything you want, and anyone who disagrees is just getting in your way. Am I close?”

“No,” Titan said quietly. Pensively. He spent an increment considering his next words, then amended, “Perhaps I would have believed that to be true as recently as an Earth week ago, but… not an ymore. Now, what I want to say, more than anything else, is that I’m sorry.”

“You’re—what?” Al faltered.

“I’m sorry,” Titan repeated. “Not just for hooking up with Ezra, but for… all of it.”

“All of it?” Al frowned at him. “All of what?”

Titan got up out of his chair and went over to take a seat closer to Al. Al watched him warily as he approached and leaned away from him as he sat down. When Titan angled himself so that he was facing him, Al scooted his chair back. Titan sighed.

“I haven’t been a good brother to you, Ξ.A.kr’ξ??’p… no, not Ξ.A.kr’ξ??’p. AA.??’p’Zx. That’s your name now. I’m sorry for that, too. For not acknowledging the being you’ve become this past Earth year.”

Al looked stricken and speechless, so Titan barreled on.

“I’m still learning what all these new feelings I’ve been having mean.

My whole life, I’ve been told that I’m destined for great things, and because of that, I’ve been arrogant.

Cruel. I’ve been cruel. But you must understand, AA.

??’p’Zx, this cruelty… I think, maybe, it has come from a place of jealousy. ”

“Jealousy?” Al asked, squeaking out a disbelieving laugh. “You’ve spent your whole life making it perfectly clear that there’s nothing about me that’s worth envying.”

“But there is,” Titan said, impassioned.

“I was born with the burden of expectation. Father has always put pressure on me to be the perfect offspring, to follow in his footsteps, but you? You’ve had freedom.

You’ve had the freedom to be whomever you wanted to be.

I think it’s possible that I was cruel to you because part of me wanted what you had.

And then you found your True Mate, and…” He blew out a breath.

“Brother, there are many, many things about you that are enviable. You are a remarkable being, and always have been, and I apologize for not telling you sooner.”

Al said nothing, continuing to stare in shock, so Tit an rambled on.

“I realize none of this is an excuse,” he said. “And you have every reason to detest me. I won’t hold it against you if you can’t forgive me, but I needed you to know the truth.”

“Why?” Al asked finally, voice tiny.

Titan cocked his head. “What do you mean?”

“I mean, why now? What changed?”

Titan smiled, somewhat wistful.

“Ambassador Ezra,” he said, heart leaping at the mere thought of him. “He is not simply a conquest, AA.??’p’Zx. I love him.”

“You love him?”

“Yes, I’m sure of it.” Despite the unpleasant feeling inside of him, Titan’s smile grew. “And he is with egg.”

“What?” Al gaped at him. “But you’re not… you’re not bonded. How is that possible?”

Titan shrugged. “I don’t know. The only thing I can think is that he must be my True Mate, just the same as Human Jude is yours.”

“Brother, I truly don’t mean to offend you, but the odds of that being the case are… I mean, for us both to have found our True Mates not only on the same planet, but at the same location on that planet? It’s nearly impossible.”

“I know that,” Titan said, a little defensive. “But nearly impossible still means possible, right?”

“I… I guess. What did you feel the first time the two of you touched?”

Titan’s smile dissolved. “That’s where things get complicated.

The first time we touched, I felt his baseline emotions the same way I would with anybody.

I didn’t try to read him in depth—that would have been a violation of privacy—but I knew that he felt desire for me. That he wanted to be my mate.”

Al’s face screwed up in thought. He tapped his finger on the table, then shook his head.

“That’s not what I felt with Jude at all,” he said, and Titan’s heart sank.

“I knew from the second that I touched him that there was somethi ng different about my connection with him. If you were genuinely True Mates, there wouldn’t be any doubt.

And you’d have a link, weaker than a bond, but still present. Do you feel that with him?”

Titan desperately wanted to say yes, but that would have been a lie.

“No,” he said quietly. “I don’t.”

Al twisted his mouth, sitting back in his chair and surveying his brother for a long increment.

Finally, he said, “Thank you. For what you said, I mean. About being sorry for how you treated me. We’re not…

I can’t forgive you that easily. I need time.

But maybe, if you’re serious about being a better being…

maybe I can forgive you sooner rather than later. ”

Despite his conflicted thoughts about Ezra and himself, Titan smiled. Al, although tentative, smiled back.

“I don’t know how I feel about you and Ezra,” he went on to say, “but I do know what it’s like to be in love.

If you’re telling the truth, and you really do love him—and especially if you’re going to be parents—well, I won’t stand in your way.

Just forgive me if I need some time on that front, too. ”

“I understand. Take all the time you need.” He clicked his tongue a couple times before adding, “Can you help me out, though?”

“With what?”

“Understanding what my relationship with him means. It doesn’t make sense.

I spoke to Kr’??’txx to see if he had any ideas about why my experience with Ezra isn’t typical of True Mates, but he didn’t have any answers.

If we’re not True Mates, then what could this be?

How else could he be carrying my clutch? ”

Al pondered it.

“I don’t know,” he said after a while. “But yes, I will help you.”

He lifted his hand, hesitated, then placed it on top of Titan’s, which was resting on the table. Through the touch, Titan felt his brother’s apprehension as well as his sincere gratitude, which made it all the more rewarding when Al concluded, “You are my brother, after all.”