Chapter 10:

Garrus

She took her medication- which she was an hour late taking- and we left the building. She wanted to show me around the outside, now, since neither of us were hungry enough for lunch yet. We were talking quietly, her pointing out various things, when she suddenly stiffened.

A quick glance showed a man approaching us, his eyes fixed on her.

Warily, she turned to face him. "What do you want?"

"Mate."

She barked out a laugh. "In case you haven't heard, I have a mate already."

His gaze flicked to me, narrowing in a glare, before settling back on her. "He's an alien."

"And he's a better man than you'll ever be." She asserted, stepping toward him.

An invisible... power is the only way I could describe it... radiated from her. Those around us bared their necks, but the man stood tall. Defiant.

"I challenge you for the right to be your mate." He declared.

Gasps filled the air around us.

She bared her teeth in a vicious smile. "I accept."

I didn't like the sound of this.

Meda-

I know what I'm doing. She assured me. I won't have anyone thinking they can take your place.

A hand settled on my shoulder, and I glanced over to see Darius. He shook his head.

"Give them space." He said, eyes never leaving his sister.

I followed him back, stopping near a middle-aged couple, Isadore, and Juno.

Returning my attention back to her, I watched as the crowd formed around them in a half-moon shape- leaving the space in front of us free and clear.

The older man with us cleared his throat, and all eyes turned to him. Spirits, I was standing with the king and queen, and I hadn't realized it.

"The challenge has been issued and accepted." He declared.

There was a long pause, where everyone waited with bated breath.

"Fight!"

They both shifted into wolves, his far larger than hers. He ran at her, teeth closing around her right hind leg, and there was a sickening crunch. A loud whimper left her, and he moved aside as she swiped at him. She tucked her leg up against her body, and it was obvious it was broken.

"She'll be alright." Juno assured me, watching them. "Everything she does in a fight has a purpose."

I couldn't see what purpose it was to have a handicap like that, but I took a deep breath and forced myself to stay in place.

He ran at her again and again. She dodged every advance. He bit at her, she went for the opening and swiped him good. Before long, she'd drawn a lot of blood, and there was not a scratch on her. It was clear he was growing angrier as the fight went on- he was getting sloppier in his attacks.

Finally, he leaped across the space toward her, and she darted under him. He was midair and couldn't correct his trajectory- and her jaws clamped down on the underside of his throat.

He fell hard on his side, whining and struggling to move. She put a paw on his shoulder and clearly squeezed her hold on his throat. He stilled, his body going limp in submission.

She let out a growl, anger sparking. Her fur seemed to ruffle, though there was no breeze, and she shook her head to and fro. Before I could process what was happening, she wrenched herself away from him, a chunk of flesh in her mouth.

Everyone watched as the male wolf bled out on the ground. When it was clear he was gone, she spat the piece of him out of her mouth and threw her head back. Howling her victory. Those gathered around did the same, though they stayed in human form. Even the four with me.

"Andromeda is the victor." The king affirmed.

A handful of people rushed up, removing the body, and she walked around the corner, out of sight. A few moments later, she reappeared, though she looked wary. I thought she'd be happy she won, but she approached slowly, looking as if she were afraid of something. Would her parents be angry, maybe?

Garrus... Her tone was soft, hesitant.

She was afraid that I was afraid of her. I crossed the distance between us, pulling her into my arms, and pressed my mouth against hers.

Honestly... I quietly chuckled, shaking my head. I'm honestly... I don't know... turned on by that. It's probably strange to say, but-

It's not, really. Not for us, anyway. She reached up and stroked my mandible, making my eyes close. I'm glad you enjoyed yourself. I know I did.

We both laughed at that.

You certainly looked as if you were. I paused, realization hitting me. Pulling her back, I looked her over. He broke your leg.

She waved it off, rolling her eyes. I let him think he did.

But that sound...

I'm okay. She reassured me, smiling. He fractured my shin bone, but wolves heal quick. And we, the royals, heal quicker. I'll just need take it easy the rest of the day, that's all.

That's why you're walking so slow. I wanted to hit myself for not realizing that.

Genesis

"Secrets don't make friends." Isadore's voice drew us from our little universe, and we looked to see her pouting.

"I'm sorry, Isa." I held out a hand, grinning. "Did you see that, though?"

Darius walked up next, ruffling my hair. "You did good."

I preened. "Thank you."

"You didn't have to give yourself a handicap, though." He admonished.

Sheepish, I shrugged. "I thought it would put us on even footing, but I was still better than him by far."

"I'll inform his family." My mother sighed, shaking her head. Though she had a smile on her face.

"Thanks, mom. I love you."

Her smile grew. "You better. The things I do for you."

I glanced at dad, who was looking at Garrus.

"Mom, dad, this is Garrus. My mate." I reached out, holding his hand and squeezed. "Garrus, these are Cyrus and Rani, my father and mother. The king and queen."

The two men shook hands, and Garrus bowed his head to my mom. They regarded him quietly for several minutes, no doubt silently communicating with each other. Finally, my dad cracked a smile, and my mom chuckled.

"I like him." She said. A glowing recommendation.

"He's not bad." My father agreed.

I squeezed my mate's hand, happiness overflowing. "Thank you."

"I suppose we'll see if aliens can breed with wolves." She mused.

I choked. "Mom!"

"I want grandbabies." She glared at me. "Darius and Juno are taking their time. Isadore isn't mated. You're the only one I can count on right now."

I opened my mouth but was cut off.

"You have no idea how much I would like to see a child between us." Garrus murmured, looking down at me with a deep love in his gaze.

I melted at his words, whispering. "I feel the same."

"I win!" She clapped her hands, excited.

"Moooom!" I groaned. "Way to ruin a moment."

...

"I refuse to have guards posted outside my apartment!" I shouted, slamming my fist down on the table. "This is why I didn't want you guys to know! C-Sec is perfectly capable of handling it."

"Like how they handled you receiving drugged pizza?" Darius scowled.

I narrowed my eyes. "I picked up the scent of the wolfsbane. They wouldn't have been able to prevent that."

"That time. And if you'd had wolves guarding you, that wouldn't have even reached you!"

We were both shouting now, on our feet, glaring at each other from either side of the table. Neither of us was going to back down on this.

"Dammit, will you just listen to me?" I demanded, my eyes filling with tears. "I don't want this! I don't want people standing outside my door. I don't want people checking all my delivery foods. I don't want people checking all my packages. I don't want it!" By the end, I was full-on crying, unable to stop the tears as they fell.

Silence settled over the room, while I stood there, beginning to hyperventilate. Isadore got up, coming closer, but I felt more familiar, more welcome, hands pull me against a hard body. I buried my face in his shoulder and cried.

It was painfully clear that I hadn't fully processed all of this- everything since it had started. Talking to people about it only did so much. I hadn't sat with it, because I was almost always busy doing something, and I hadn't let myself wallow when I did have the time.

"Sweetheart, I think seeing the pack psychiatrist might help." Mom offered hesitantly.

I sniffled, opening my mouth, but I was cut off.

"She has a therapist on the Citadel." He told her quietly. "They discuss all of it. I'm not sure if another professional would help, honestly."

More silence.

Slowly, after a while, I stopped gasping for air and the tears stopped. Raising my head from his shoulder, I looked over at the others. They were watching with concerned expressions.

"Look." I tried again, my voice shaking. "I just want as little interference as possible. I understand your concerns- I really do. But I have a life to live. I have school, and my duties as a singer. Plus all the things I do for Bailey on the side." That earned a look from the turian. I hadn't told him yet. I'll explain that later. I assured him. "If you can find a way to integrate people into my life without drawing attention to them, then by all means, go ahead. But don't disrupt what I have." I bit my lip, lowering my head in submission, a soft whimper leaving me. "I'm begging you."

I was playing dirty, but I didn't care. I wasn't backing down on this.

"We will discuss it with our Betas." Dad relented. "We will see what we can do."

I'd won this round.

"Thank you." I added another whimper for good measure.

With the meeting over, I asked Garrus what he wanted to do- continue our tour, eat, or return to our room. He asked if we could eat in the room, and I readily agreed.

I lounged on the lover's seat in the living room, Garrus sitting on the chair nearest me, looking through paperwork on his datapad. A knock on the door came, and I jumped up, letting the woman in. She wheeled in a trolley with various covered plates, several types of drinks, and utensils for both of us.

"Thank you so much." I smiled at her.

She left with a small bow, a smile of her own on her face.

"I have a question..." He was hesitant.

I wheeled the food closer to our seats, raising an eyebrow. "Shoot."

"From what I've read..." Oh, this was going to be good. "Werewolves use slave labor?"

I cackled, doubling over and clutching my stomach. It took a while for me to calm down.

"No!" I shook my head, wiping a tear from my eye. "No, no. We don't keep slaves." A roll of my eyes. "I bet you found some of those trashy werewolf novels written by humans." The guilty expression on his face confirmed it. "We have a rotation of staff that work six hours a day, and they make salary. So, if they miss a day here or there, they aren't docked. Though, if they work more than their hours, they do get time and a half. That's calculated by how much their salary is and divided by three hundred sixty-five, so we can figure out how much they'd make in a day. Then, that number gets multiplied by time and a half."

He looked embarrassed, now. "I'm sorry, I-"

I waved it away. "It's okay. Prejudices and misinformation gets the better of a lot of people. Especially when you can't ask someone about it."

He nodded slowly. "Right."

"It happens with any race." I stepped up to him, dropping a kiss against his forehead. "You just have to ask questions. And here, in our pack, no one would be offended by any of those types of questions. In case you want to ask, but don't want to ask me."

His arms snaked around my waist, holding me in place. "I'll keep that in mind."

"We should eat before it gets cold." I murmured, brushing my fingertips along his mandibles.

A regretful sigh left him, and he released me.

"Don't worry." I winked. "There's always later."

We divided up our food- his on one end, mine on the other- and began eating. It was heavenly. I'd honestly forgotten how amazing the chefs were here. Breakfast this morning had flown under my radar in the wake of last night, but I was fully able to appreciate the food this time around.

A stabbing pain shot through my stomach a few minutes later, when I was midbite in a chicken tender. I sucked in a sharp breath, managing to not choke somehow. Setting the plate down, I rubbed my belly, the pain radiating throughout my body in a heated throbbing.

The staff woman who had come before arrived to check on us, make sure we were liking our food. Her eyes landed on me after Garrus opened the door for her, and she rushed in. Fussing about me.

"She's going into heat." I heard her say distantly.

This is heat? I was miserable! How could sex make this better?

I was picked up, carried into our bedroom and laid on the bed. I curled up around myself, whimpering.

"The princess will be here shortly to talk." She sounded far away. "In the meantime, the unmated males have been told to leave the packhouse for the time being."

"Alright." The most delicious voice I've ever heard reached my ears. "Thank you."

I opened my eyes, seeing her with my mate, and let out a growl. She gave me a kind smile as she backed away. "Your sister will be here soon, miss."

Another warning growl slipped from my mouth, and she bowed her head before leaving.

"Andromeda." Chiding.

"Mate." I sulked, before reaching out a hand. "Mate."

Garrus

I blinked. It really was a drastic change- she'd been fine a few minutes ago. And now, here she was, threatening a woman for being in the same room as me. Giving me a look that sent heat to my stomach.

She crawled across the bed toward where I stood, purring softly. When she reached me, she started pulling at my pants. I firmly grasped her wrists, preventing her from continuing.

"Your sister is going to be here any minute." I reminded her.

"I don't care." She pouted. "I need you."

"Meda..." I closed my eyes briefly, wondering how I could get her to listen to reason.

The door opened, and Juno walked in. Not the sister I'd expected, but if she could help, then by all means.

"I've been through heat before." She said after bowing her head to me in greeting. "It can last up to two weeks. And she will want you from the time she wakes up until the time she falls asleep. Don't be surprised if she sleeps a lot."

"Her medications..." I was worried.

"I doubt she will be in any frame of mind to take them." She mused. "But if you can use it as leverage... Say... if she takes them, you'll give her what she wants."

I nodded. I could do that. "Thank you."

"Of course." She gave a small smile. "The more you deny her, though, the more persistent she will become. Keep that in mind."

With that, she left us.

I returned my attention to Andromeda just as she pulled away from me. Peeling off her shirt, slipping out of her pants. A shudder ran through me, and I stepped closer to the bed.