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Life has a way of moving really fast when it was least convenient for me. The next few days became a blur of awkwardness and frustration, trying to introduce Nara to various people around the camp, explaining the story and situation at least a dozen times, and trying to answer every little question she had about nomadic and tribal life. It seemed in trying to get her as adjusted to things as I could, I was the one least able to have time to adjust. By the end of day four, I was utterly exhausted.

Despite being told to treat her normally, almost nobody really did, everyone being on edge as soon as we came around. For some unknown reason, she wouldn't separate herself from me in the slightest either, so I was always on edge, and now reaching my snapping point. I gave a little shiver as I downed another vial of my own alchemical cocktail, a mix of hormone suppressants and mild tranquilizers to hopefully get_some_ sleep tonight. My little sister is just that. Little. I don't see her as a female... like that anyway... and she doesn't produce the scents of an adult female, that's for certain. How guys sleep in the same bed even with their mates and that scent is beyond me. I was hoping the hormone suppressants would help diminish that a bit.

Nara for her part seemed blissfully ignorant of her own effects on me, both for stress and otherwise, instead just absorbing as much information about life and the people here as she could. I mean, I don't blame her for that. I'd want to learn everything I could about a new place I was anticipating being in for a while too. I just wish she could do it without me. She has two scary guards already here, after all!

My paw shook as I stared down at the empty vial in it, my nervous ticks firing like crazy. I'd managed to slip away while our Priestess spoke to her about the meeting of religious needs and various activities in the tribe. Her mother only said she had to live with me, not be around me literally all day, every day! I couldn't keep this up! I debated mixing another up, then decided it was probably a bad idea. Exhaling, I tried to steady my paw as I washed the vial out and put it back in the alchemy kit I kept in my room. ...fuck.

The sounds of movement came from the main portion of the tent, and my ears snapped flat against my head. No, it didn't matter who was returning to the tent. I couldn't deal with it right now. Thankfully, the very nature of a tent made it so that the front door was actually just a formality. Flopping to the dirt, I hooked the edge of the tent and did a highly practiced roll underneath. I was standing again on the outside of the tent on the other side of the wall a moment later, in one fluid motion.

I scampered, momentarily dropping to all fours as I used my arms as forelegs to partly negate the downside of my limp. Shooting around the rocks near our tent, I made a beeline instead far to the west of camp, in the downstream pool allotted for male usage. There were only a few guards there now, and I exhaled at the relative lack of crowds as I flopped bonelessly onto a flatter rock near the water. Apart from the natural gap for the stream itself, a pile of logs separated this little pool from the larger one upstream where the females went to bathe. Normally it wasn't a strict issue for our tribe at least, as we usually kept things unisex, but the summer Estrus season was coming up and out of consideration for more strict hygiene needs, we males got dumped downstream to keep our distance.

That I was not looking forward to, and I wondered how I could get away with very tactfully requesting that one of us get moved to a different tent for the duration. Giving a groan, I slipped down off the rock and into the depression the pool was in. Sliding out of my tunic, I folded it neatly to the side of the rock and walked out into the water, quickly letting it shift above my waist, then up to my chest before I started floating. I'd always loved the water. It calmed and relaxed me, especially during hot weather when it was nice and cool on my fur and skin underneath. The sun beating down on me now was perfect weather for it, and I shivered before dipping down under the surface.

Drifting downwards, I just lay against the bottom of the pool for a moment, enjoying the coolness all around me. My eyes opened, catching the rays of light dancing through the water, and I caught myself momentarily wondering what my dad would think of all of this. Would he have any advice for me? I was... embarrassed to consider that I could barely remember what he sounded like now. My ears lowered, swishing slower than normal through the water, and I frowned before my supply of air started to dwindle.

I gave a little gasp as I surfaced again, flicking my head back so my hair sprayed water away from my face, then opened my eyes again. Consider me surprised when I saw Exir drifting towards me from the other side of the pool, bumping one of the floating soapsand trays along with him as he swam. Exir was my cousin, though the relation was a little murky and I never usually stopped to consider it very often. My dad apparently had several sisters, which really wasn't a surprise given the females outnumbered us by at least two to one. Unfortunately for me, out of the six or so males that were in my age group, myself included, five of them were cleared for guard training at a young age. That left me pretty much on my own and fairly excluded. Having a deformity, while not exactly uncommon, made me even more unpopular, and needless to say, female attention was even more rare, at least when they didn't want 'oral relief' like the males. It might have been novel the first dozen or so times, but being used as a sex toy grows old rather quickly. Maybe some males liked it but...

"Exes! I see you finally got rid of her Highness. Wow, you look like shit," Exir admitted, smirking as he drifted over. He was the closest I'd consider to a friend that I had, even if it was a little vitriolic sometimes. His slightly longer hair was an even darker brown than mine, almost to a black shade, and he looked me over with dark green eyes.

"Thanks. Just as much of an ass still, I see. Got promoted?" I asked, smirking back at him and earning a grin for the comment. Still, he bumped the tray the remainder of the distance, and I nodded thankfully before gathering a bit of the soapsand for my hair. I don't know what it was about grooming, but it always was so... relaxing.

"You didn't even need the clasp!" he chirped mirthfully. In truth, I'd guessed he had given how skilled he was at all things 'guard-y'. He nodded after and assured, "Yeah, I passed. A lot of work ahead now though. Sounds like for you too, though. Seriously, you don't look good..."

"Haven't slept much at all in three days," I admitted, giving a tired sigh as I scrubbed my hair and felt the suds start to lather up. He smirked, and I saw it coming a mile off. "No."

"You sure? That sounded a lot like you two are fucking like Jakatar's in heat," he chirped, causing me to roll my eyes.

Giving him a dry glare, I exhaled and shook my head. "The scents, though! It makes it seriously hard to even concentrate when inside the tent segment alone with her..." I muttered, shivering, then scowling to myself. When I looked up again, Exir was missing from my field of view. Huh? Oh...

I felt his paws first before glancing behind me and confirming as he started to scrub down my back and shoulders. "Yeah, I heard from some of the older males that females are uh, like that. Really drives you stir crazy, right?" he asked, sounding serious this time. Sighing, I relaxed into his pseudo-massage and grooming and nodded.

"Yeah. I've been... trying to take suppressants for it," I admitted a moment later, slowing my own hair scrubbing down as I winced and waited for the retort.

It didn't really come however. He just gave a little sigh, then warned, "Don't overdo it, Exes. You know what that can do to you if you do..." That somehow stung a bit more than if he'd just yelled at me for it, but I nodded, then took a deeper breath. Dipping my head down under the water, I quickly scrubbed out the soapy suds from my hair before resurfacing, careful not to spray Exir this time. For his part, he finished scrubbing down to just barely the top of my rear, then withdrew, politely shifting around to the front of me again. "Feeling a little better?" he asked, giving a more earnest smile, which I returned and nodded.

"Yeah, thanks Exir. And I am glad you passed. Sorry. This has just been stressful," I admitted, shaking my head slowly at the thoughts.

He gave his paw a dismissive wave, even as I drifted to the side and started scrubbing my own lower half and more intimate areas. "Nah, it's fine, Exes. And don't worry, soon you'll be back to your usual crafty self, and even better, you'll have clearance to actually _make_all those weapon designs you've modeled for me over the years! Don't think I'm not eager to try some of them!" he chirped, grinning again.

I almost, almost snorted in water while I was washing. Righting myself again, I chuckled and suggested, "Sure, but some of them are getting prototyped first. Especially the ones you requested with alchemic elemental reactions..." I definitely did not want to be like the girl that failed before me.

It was his turn to roll his eyes, then huff. "Yeah, yeah. I promise I won't set your tail on fire!" he assured. My displeasure came out in a higher pitched mixture between a hiss and a scream that I'm pretty sure is unique to our species, and he started laughing.

Given standard unwritten etiquette of group grooming, I slipped behind him afterwards and gathered a bit more of the sand, scrubbing it into his shoulders as he relaxed back against my paws. I had a one-up on him though, and smirked as blue light started to dance between my fingers, causing him to release a long groan as it soaked into his fur, skin, and then muscles.

"Mmm, why do I always forget you can do this? I swear, if half the girls knew..." Exir muttered, leaning back instinctively against my paws.

"Associating massage techniques with medical magic is apparently something they just don't do. Still, I doubt it would sway them much. Why be with a gimp scholar when you can be with a studly guard or powerful noble?" I reasoned, trying to keep it playful, but I think a bit of acid slipped into the comment.

He gave his own snort at that, then muttered, "Pfft, I've seen you naked, Exes. You're no slouch. Just give it time. Or give the slightest hint to Nara. Pretty sure she'd be all over you, especially in a couple weeks."

I groaned at that. "Not funny. I still don't know what I'm going to do when Estrus hits. Am I allowed to ask the Princess to leave?" I questioned, more rhetorically than anything.

He snickered and I immediately regretted asking of course. "We have herbs for that problem. Shove some in her mouth, hold her down, and show her what you can do with that magic of yours until she can't walk the next day. Then when she's begging for your kits and hauling you off to elevate you to a noble and her mate, remember me and write?" he suggested. It just got worse and worse, and I flailed by the time he was done and gave him a shove away from me, giving another screech.

He laughed again, spinning around again and grinning at me, for a moment anyway. He froze after, eyes widening as he looked past me. Shit... "Uh, anyway, it was nice catching up. Come hang out later, Exes!" he quickly assured, and I knew what was behind me before I even rotated around.

Of course, there she was. Nara was on the flat rock I had been before, all alone this time it seemed. She lay on her stomach, with her head propped up on her paws, possibly not coincidentally giving me an amazing view right down her tunic's front. The accompanying, absolutely mirthful grin didn't give me much hope anyway.

"U-Uh, hey Nara. Where's your guards...?" I asked, paddling just a little closer to her until my lower paws could touch sand at least. Her grin didn't diminish of course, and I suddenly realize my clothes were folded up next to her. Fuck.

"Told them to give us some privacy, don't worry," she chirped, eyes surprisingly tracing into the water, as if trying to look down my body as best she could. Thanks to the soap now drifting about, I at least had the cloud to cover me for a bit, even though I moved a paw down anyway to try to cover myself as best I could while still keeping balance. She continued however, with, "Interesting conversation I blundered into though, of course. Worried about Estrus coming up?" Her tone was a bit coy, but at least she brought her gaze back up to my face. She was definitely doing the typical female 'hunting' routine now, which caught me completely off guard, with zero experience before, unfortunately.

"Uh, a little. Exia is a little young to have concerns like that. It, uh..." I muttered, stammering now as my nervous tick returned, my left ear doing several sharp spasms in a row.

To my surprise, Nara actually relaxed a little, the grin softening to just a light smile instead. "Yeah, I know. Now that we have a moment to ourselves, I can kinda tell that you're not exactly looking so good," she noted, eyes catching the twitching for sure, I realized. My breath caught, and I suddenly panicked, wondering if she knew enough to catch the side effects of the suppressants.

Her eyes searched my own, both curiously and with a sudden, surprisingly serious focus. She paused for another long moment before asking, "Do I scare you? I figured everyone would have... trouble disregarding my title and station. Especially with the guards here. And especially you. You haven't been sleeping well, I know, and you're always guarded." My mind blanked. I didn't know how to answer that in a way that wouldn't get me exiled. Possibly my whole family exiled.

"I do scare you..." she finally spoke, causing another ear spasm on my part. I was completely frozen there as she sat up again, looking at me across the water as her paws settled into her lap. She wore a frown now, and I was struggling to find anything to say at all that could possibly pull the proverbial paw out of my own mouth. Nothing was immediately springing to mind, which didn't really surprise me. What did surprise me though was when she reached around behind herself with both paws. Uh...

It happened so quickly, and I was already in a full-on state of shock, that I managed to get more than a healthy eyeful of her rather perky, slim breasts, both topped with a bright pink nipple protruding through the fur. For that split second, all I could do was stare at her in shock as she smirked, letting her tunic fall town into a pool over her lap. I'd seen tons of females topless while they were nursing or with kit, but this struck me as completely and totally different somehow. My cheeks suddenly felt like they were on fire, and I quickly spun around in the water, giving an almost whimper as I dipped part of my muzzle beneath the cool surface. I never realized I could go from safely tucked into my sheath, to spearing fully out into the water quite that fast before!

I shook again at the sounds instead of sights this time, as I heard the tell-tale splash, then swishing of water. It both surprised me, and didn't at the same time when I felt much slimmer, very gentle paws touch down on my shoulders. I tensed up, but she stroked into them instead, gently running her fingers through my fur. She murmured, "I'm sorry. I don't want to scare you."

Not realizing I'd been holding my breath, I slowly let it out again when all she did was work her paws over my fur. This was as 'close' as we'd been the entire time she was here, even though she was staying in the same room as me. It hadn't taken any time at all to get a bigger hammock for her to sleep in, thankfully. The division in the pools gave us separate bath times too, thankfully, but this...

I didn't even know what I was thinking anymore, my thought processes jumbling up and becoming mush as she massaged down to my mid back. I felt her chin suddenly come to rest on my shoulder, cushiony softness resting against my upper back as she drifted against me. "I really don't want to be scary. I know it's... silly, but you're the only person here that I actually... know. You're doing me far more of a favor than you realize even, and you're suffering for it..." she murmured quietly. Her paws stopped shy of my rear, and she instead just slipped them forward and wrapped them around my stomach, giving a very passive hug to me from behind, and I swallowed, finally untensing the muscles under her fingers. It caused a chain reaction that uncoiled my entire body, and I finally just sagged a little and let her hug me.

"Favor...?" I finally managed to ask, frowning to myself as she just rested there against me, letting just my legs support both of us upright in the water. I could feel her breathing against my back, and her paws at my navel. Her chin touching my shoulder. Actually, just touching her made her feel suddenly... real to me. Maybe that was her goal all along.

"I know you're going to be teaching me. Even if I'm... a bit too old to start this complex of a career. That's part of the problem. I never, well, understood what I wanted to do with my life. I don't have the political obligations of my older sisters, so I've been left to my own devices for the most part," she explained quietly, barely a whisper really. A glance to my right showed her eyes downcast as she rested against my shoulder, and I frowned.

She continued before I could say anything though, surprising me with, "But you're also doing more than that. I'm not sure if you'd... understand as much, but being a Princess isn't exactly all chocolates and frilly dresses. Strict tutoring, plus the overwhelming amount of security... I've been in that cage my entire life. This trip was the first time my paws actually touched dirt, did you know? Real ground..."

Exhaling softly, I admitted, "That is a little sad. I'm not sure how much 'better' this life is, and I don't know what I have to do with it, but..."

Shifting suddenly, she partly slipped around to my front, stopping at my hips thankfully before her own hip collided with something we'd probably regret. At least she was spatially aware. "You have everything to do with it. I never would have had the opportunity for one, if you hadn't done so well and impressed Master Chronak. When my mother first told me about it, it was me who convinced her to consider it. I know he told you about the letter he sent a few weeks back, but he probably didn't tell you that he'd sent one almost a year ago as well, alerting her of your potential..." she revealed. He what?!

My eyes widened further at the idea of somebody alerting Queen Calien to me. Nara must have seen the look of growing horror and cooed softly, shifting my attention back to the present. "It was in a good way, Exes. My mother's not nearly as mean a person as some think she is. She has to be strict sometimes, but she also rules our entire species, so she doesn't have much of a choice. Gilded cage there too, I suppose," she tried to assure.

I sighed and shook my head to her, then admitted, "I know what it's like, Nara. Ever since my father died, it's been up to me to try to pick up the slack of our link to the tribe. My sister's still too young, and my mother does what she can, but if I don't succeed and become at least the tribe's alchemist and healer, then..." Her ears lowered. It wasn't often spoken about, but those who didn't provide a use to the tribe were told to leave after a certain age. If I could prove extra useful though, that 'protection' would extend to my family as well. They needed me to be strong. Well, more than anything, my sister needed me to be strong. My mother could protect just her, even if I failed and was exiled, but as soon as my sister grew old enough, she wouldn't have long at all to prove useful or she'd meet the same fate as me.

Nara undoubtedly at least knew of the highest rules of the tribes. She nodded to me regardless, then exhaled, looking down a little at the surface of the water. "Exes, I don't think we're so different after all. Both of us have duties that are expected of us that we don't have a choice in," she pointed out, looking back up into my eyes. For a moment I got lost in her amethyst ones, and she smiled again before leaning in and bumping her nose against my own all of a sudden. I flushed again, keenly aware that that was considered a mild display of affection between mates, which of course brought my attention back to the fact that there was a naked female swimming right up against my hip. Ugh.

This time I was at least a little unwound for it though, and managed to raise my eyebrow pointedly to her. "Is this also part of your 'get adjusted to males' training? Mutual grooming is said to help get accustomed, I'm told," I teased, snickering after as she giggled too.

"Perhaps. Though that's my mother's words she told me. Reading between the lines, it was her way of telling me that I'm way too stiff and prudish around males and that I need to find a mate," she teased back, causing me to freeze again, which earned another grin from her. There was a long moment before she leaned in close again, nose almost touching mine as her eyes lidded a little. That ache returned, both in my chest and other places as my cheeks started to heat up, and I almost leaned forward to meet her muzzle when...

"You're too easy," she chirped, winking to me suddenly. Her paws both flipped upwards at the same time, and I yelped as she sprayed water across my face, then danced away, back treading while laughing.

Spitting out water, I smirked at her and yelped, "You brat!"

Splashing back, she laughed more as she moved away from the first shot, then gave a high-pitched squeal of surprise as my second got her in the face, leading her right where I wanted her. I grinned, giving chase for a moment afterwards.

Then the water exploded in front of me, the shockwave launching me physically backwards and a good three meters through the water, just as a powerful looking arcane barrier smashed down in front of Nara, who yelped for real this time, looking startled. Dazed, I stumbled back up to my lower paws again, just in time for what felt like a solid mountain of metal and muscle to crash into my side, cracking my head off the chest plate. Then everything went black.

---

I'd always wanted to see the cool alchemical trains they had in Keldonia. Getting run over by one was probably far less pleasant, I noted. Giving a little groan as sparks of light came back to me, I was distinctly aware of the fact that it felt like I didn't dream at all. Which is probably the difference between falling asleep and being violently knocked unconscious.

"Shhh, don't move, Exes. The regeneration potion's still kicking in. And don't worry, you also have a pain suppressor injected now..." I heard softly. It was easy to pick out Elder Chronak's voice, and I exhaled, closing my eyes again. That brought to attention just how swelled up my right one felt, and that I couldn't feel the ear on that side. Ow.

"Nnng, glad for pain suppressors... Why'd the water explode?" I managed to groan out, that being honestly the last thing I remembered. This time I definitely didn't bring anything or have any residue on me that reacted with the soapsand!

There was a long, very annoyed sounding sigh after I asked. "That would be because of the thugs_left to guard Princess Nara. Apparently playing in the water is grounds for battery charges, and calls for immediate riot deployment. I believe the Princess, and perhaps worse, your mother, are having a _strict discussion with them at the moment," he replied. Oh. My mother angry was absolutely terrifying, and I was extra glad it wasn't at me at the moment.

Everything was hazy and dark though, and I gave a little murmur before asking, "Is it bad?" I'd gotten hit before, but never actually knocked out. It was hard to focus though, and everything felt heavy as I took a guess that the pain medicine was kicking in.

"Nothing the regenerative potion can't handle. You may get some light scarring over your right eyebrow..." he returned, clearly concentrating as I felt a dull tugging at the side of my head. He was obviously doing something, but I found myself not really caring at the moment. Everything honestly felt kinda good now, if not floaty and heavy. I idly wondered if this is what people taking Moondust felt like, or something similar. That was a really silly name, now that I thought about it. Heh, like dust ever got down this far from the moons. Wait, maybe it did? I should look into that.

"The fact that you're smiling now tells me the pain medicine is working. You should try to get some more sleep and let the regeneration potion do its job now. I've got you cleaned up and ready to heal. Once... get back, they'll... have a word with...." Things got more and more heavy the longer he spoke, and I found my thoughts drifting again. Dust from the moon, hmm?

I sat on the rock under me, snow gently falling through the sky, lightly powdering everything around. My seat jutted almost two meters out of the endless sea of snow and ice, the only feature as far as the horizon. It didn't bother me though, nor did the cold around me. I hardly felt it, not even shivering as I rested there, completely naked and relaxed on the rock, my arms behind me propping me upright. I looked upwards towards the sky, the only source of illumination in the pitch-black night.

There were no stars. There wasn't even the comforting three moons that I was used to seeing. Instead, there was only a single moon in the sky, so impossibly bright that it might as well have been the sun. It was supposed to be the 'suns mirror' after all, wasn't it? I smiled upwards, feeling incredibly serene and peaceful as I stared into its pale, notched surface. Moon dust.

The snow flicked around me in lazy spirals, and I giggled as some tickled my nose. Maybe snow was the dust of the moon? I couldn't remember ever seeing snow. Why did I know what it was like now? My eyes followed the dancing flakes around me, watching as a single tiny dot of cold, white powder landed on the tip of my nose. I almost went cross-eyed trying to look at it, it was so close. It sparkled almost blue in the light from the moon, and I grinned, looking it over. Blue.

My eyes widened as I realized the flake wasn't blue, but everything around me. Everything was saturated now in a shade of brilliant sapphire blue, which struck me as just like my own eyes. Looking upwards again, I gasped, staring in shock at what used to be the moon, no an absolutely massive ball of blue flames that took up almost the entire night sky. Slowly, it seemed to get larger and larger, as if it were falling out of the heavens and about to crash down upon where I rested.

Soon, the flames were horizon to horizon, replacing the sky completely. Everything just got colder and colder, until even I started to shiver as I couldn't do anything but look upwards into the brilliant light. Gasping, I almost fell off my rock as one of the flames extended down towards me like a long thread, rushing right at my face!

---

I woke up with a start, eyes snapping open in a bit of a haze. Thankfully I didn't feel any pain, though I noticed that my vision was a bit blurry. I tested closing one eye, then the other, before realizing it was only the right one that was slightly blurred. Great. Giving a little sigh, I frowned a moment later as I realized there was something heavy and warm resting against my chest, and it was breathing.

I froze for a long moment, both startled and fearing who exactly it could be, at least until I looked downwards. My eyes softened, and my entire body relaxed as I smiled, instead seeing the blissfully sleeping face of Exia snuggled against my chest. It had been a while since we shared a hammock, and my ears perked up for a long moment, listening.

There wasn't the sound of any rumbling or flashes of light however. Either the storm had passed and she passed out with it, or there was never a storm and she was just worried about me. My arms slipped up and gently wrapped around her torso, and she gave a quiet murmur in her sleep, instinctively seemingly burrowing even closer against my chest. I loved my mother, but I admitted that Exia was my reason for keeping struggling. Every success I had cemented more of a future here for her, too. I had to protect her, because I could in ways that my mother couldn't.

Alchemy and magic were both professions that were exceedingly difficult to learn and use. It was ironic really that us Inaga were so well known for our alchemy, yet so few of us actually practiced it. There was a plethora of us that had moderate skill in it, at least enough to mass produce already established formulas. A select few were considered mastery level, where they could write and create their own formulas. I was just borderline that, dabbling in my own creations now and soon to be pushed into what would be considered a 'grandmaster' level. One who not only could make the most advanced of formulas from scratch, but also managed other alchemists under them to mass produce things for both personal and governmental use. We only ever had one of those at any given time, with the prior one teaching a successor before retiring. Normally they stayed in the capital, but Elder Chronak had always... disliked nobility and royalty. He was a bit strange, I admitted.

My father had always spoke highly of both alchemy and magic, saying they were the basis of our civilization. His stories of the wonders he'd seen during border tours and ventures into other countries were my bedtime stories for the longest time. I knew he'd looked forward to retelling them all to Exia when she got old enough. I kept his wish alive though, and took over giving her the same bedtime stories instead. Sometimes tribe members would joke that I'm a bit like her father instead of her big brother, but I suppose I was a little bit, in a surrogate kind of way. I think mom was thankful I took over so well, and some days I catch her smiling at me as she watches me take care of Exia. Though I admit that I've always liked little kits.

That was one part of my prior job I hadn't resented. Closing my eyes, I remembered what life was like before I showed so much promise in alchemy and magic. A gimp, it was either exile or become a 'long-tongue', as they so crudely nickname. Tribe caretaker was the official title on the job description, and rather literal. While I couldn't do the heavy lifting of a lot of the other caretakers, I had plenty of other duties, such as organization, tallying supplies, taking care of the younger kits, taking care of the females heavy with kits not yet born, and taking care of the guards. Stress relief was the primary requirement of my job, done so in a wide variety of ways. We have laws against rape, assault, and harassment, but there were allowances in my job caste for requests. They could ask me to use my paws or mouth to relieve them. They were restricted to only primary genitals and I could refuse to do anything anal. I could refuse any request for anything other than my paws or mouth. Some caretakers didn't refuse anything. I suppose to some degree, it's the only attention some can get.

I'd only ever used my mouth and paws. My mistake was in experimenting with my medical magic to see if it would make my massages better. It did, and I got a lot more popular after. The guards really loved me, who frequently actually did have muscle issues for me to fix. I actually liked doing that part. Usually they wanted a special treat after of course. Male or female, it didn't really matter to me anymore. I became jaded with it rather fast. What I really loved was taking care of the young kits though. They seemed to really like me too, or maybe it was because they could tell I enjoyed my job and put more energy towards them? Either way, I was told I was good with them quite often.

My index finger traced ever so gently in Exia's fur. She smiled softly after a long moment, then murmured, "Mmm, big brother. I'm glad you're okay..."

That brought my smile back, and I gave her a gentle squeeze against my chest, causing her to nuzzle up against me again. "Sorry for worrying you. I certainly didn't mean to," I assured. She nodded gently, tickling me through my fur with her whiskers. Her ear tip brushed against my muzzle, and the little hairs on the end must have gotten tickled themselves, because her ear suddenly flicked rapidly, bapping me across the nose and making me snicker.

She finally looked up, smiling herself and giggled. "I know you didn't mean it. Mom and Nara were really, really mad at the guards. I could hear them yelling for almost an hour! They said something about a letter being sent out to the capital too, complaining..." she revealed, before giving a dangerously adorable yawn and resettling herself on my chest. I felt with my right paw for a moment, wondering if I was naked or not, but discovered I was in a pair of medical briefs instead. Whew.

"Well as long as the letter comes from Nara..." I muttered, doubting anyone else apart from the Elder would dare send the Queen a complaint about her elite guards.

Exia gave a little snicker at that, then suggested, "Nara was really worried and upset too. She likes you, big brother. She's probably gonna ask you to be her mate at this rate." I made a chittering noise, which earned more giggling from the young kit. Though perhaps it's my mistake to keep considering her a young, innocent kit it seems. She was ten now, and probably only a year shy of getting interested in males herself. Male and female Inaga had reasonably similar life cycles, but females developed ever so slightly faster, reaching sexual awakening at around eleven, where a male would take an additional year on average. Age of consent with guardian guidance was at thirteen. Physical maturity concluded at about age fifteen for both genders, which was our age of adulthood, then. I was probably about as large as I'd ever get now, I realized. Of course, mental maturity was all over the place. I swear I'd met adults twice my age that might as well have been wearing diapers. While others said I was immensely mature even as an eleven-year-old. Though maybe they were just trying to be nice. We were legally an adult at age fifteen regardless, though. Hence my being able to apply for advanced studies now.

"I'm a bit low in station for her to be actually, really interested, don't you think?" I teasingly pointed out, ruffling her brown pigtails a bit until she wiggled against me.

She grinned though, then pointed out, "Not if you become the grandmaster Alchemist, right?" Okay, that was a terrifying thought. And she definitely wasn't a little kid anymore. She officially lost that right in my mind, at least until the next time she wanted something and gave me the sad, big eyes. I was a realist! On that note however, that meant that Nara might legitimately, actually be interested in me if I was expected to achieve Grandmaster Alchemist. And legally she could elevate my position to a noble, which meant that mating with me would be... perfectly acceptable.

My thoughts were conflicted. On one paw, she was drop dead gorgeous and definitely sexy. On the other, her mother was terrifying and I still didn't fully trust her reasons for just dropping her daughter off here. Exia looked curiously up at me while I hesitated, then asked, "What would you tell her if she did?"

"I... don't know. It's a little, well, early to definitely figure my own feelings out. But I suppose that's what Trial Mating is about..." I admitted, lowering my ears a bit. She, and her mother, would undoubtedly insist on that. From everything I understood about the process, it was a three step, semi-formal 'practice' attempt at being mates. If I remembered right, the Vulkus were the first to use it, and it gained popularity after. Step one was just testing feelings and hanging out together. Get to know each other's families. See what your mate's daily life was like and test compatibilities. I guess we were sort of already doing that if I thought about it, albeit without the intention of actually being mates.

Phase two was cohabitation, which we were also already doing, and which was definitely nowhere near as easy as I thought it would be. Even considering the scents! Of course, phase two is also when you were supposed to start sexually exploring and testing compatibilities there, which we definitely were not doing, assuming she didn't molest me while I was unconscious anyway. That would hardly be informative to either of us though. Heh.

Phase three was the last stage and usually involved supervised support from the community and the 'loaning' of various children of slowly elevating age categories, with the intent that the couple practice raising children of their species too. That phase was more a formality and instructional I heard, with the assumption that it was almost a guarantee that the pack, pride, flock, whatever species varied name you used, was going to be a thing.

"You should say yes. Nara's nice! And I think she's really lonely," Exia suggested, snapping me out of my thoughts of what it would actually be like. Of course, Nara would be the alpha female by far. I'd be her First. The first mate she had. Sometimes there's only the First, but usually not. Definitely not for a royal like her. Though chances are I'd be the only male. Inaga males were kinda rare.

"I might. But again, I'm not sure. Things have been moving way too fast lately and I'm struggling to keep up it feels like," I admitted, hugging my little sister tighter and getting another nuzzle in return.

After a moment, she pointed out, "Things will probably slow down once you fall into your study routine again. When the Elder starts teaching you, and you start teaching Nara!" Heh, she was probably right there.

Sighing, I gave a nod and rested my head back against the hammock. The light chirping outside told me it was becoming morning, even without the need to see the sun. I'd been unconscious for at least half a day it seems.

"You're probably right. But I don't think we'll find out by lounging in bed, Sis." I gave her forehead a nudge, and she grinned at me and nodded, grudgingly sitting up on my lap and wobbling before hopping off the side of the hammock and to the floor. I waited for her to be clear before doing the same myself, stepping more gingerly down onto the ground and testing my balance. I was a little off to the right side as I thought given my eyesight, but stable.

"Breakfast time then!" Exia chirped, then rushed out through the partition before I had a chance to say anything anyway. Well if they didn't know we were awake before... Giving another sigh, I plodded along after her and into the main room.

---

Breakfast was a somber affair with just my sister and mother. After almost a week of Nara there it was strange suddenly for her to be absent. She was talking with the Elders, I quickly learned, to send a magical projection to the capital to speak to her mother directly. It seems she wanted a change of guard and was beyond displeased with the two elite honor guard she had right now. It would seem they might be a bit _too_elite. Or at least a little too zealous and insensitive.

"She really is upset over it. If she'd known you'd be awake for breakfast, she'd probably be here," my mother assured. I got the distinct impression that fawning over my unconscious form had been a bonding experience for my mom and Nara, as opinion of the Princess appeared to have shot significantly upwards.

Shaking my head and stirring the protein broth under my eggs and greens a bit, I sighed and assured, "It's fine. I mean, it's not like she was the one that injured me, and she was just as surprised as I was it sounds like. Lesson learned for everyone involved." This was apparently the wrong thing to say, as my mother frowned to it and stirred at her own bowl. I wasn't sure what was incorrect about the statement, so I just let her inform me if otherwise.

"Like I said, she's really upset over it. Clearly, she really values your opinion of herself, Exes. She'll probably attempt to make things up to you later," my mother elaborated. I took it as a warning instead and mentally prepared for any situations stemming from another session of copious teasing from the female. Hopefully it would fall short of being actually attacked this time, but I stopped myself there realizing I might indeed be a little irked over it.

My nose wiggled, and I tactfully corrected, "I'm not upset with Nara. And she doesn't really have anything to make up for. It was her guards that attacked me, not her. And I kind of doubt they're going to try to apologize or anything." Actually, I'd never even had them speak a single word to me the entire time they've been here, I realized. If I hadn't heard them speaking to her, I might have suspected they were actually very impressively constructed golems.

Mom sighed at that and I gave up. Exia just looked between us back and forth before snickering again and finishing her own breakfast off. Taking what she'd said as a warning, I realized ahead of time that this was probably going to be a long and awkward day, and finished my own breakfast to stockpile the energy I probably would need.

It was nice to pass several guards on the way to the medical tent without being propositioned for relief, I admit. I got more than a few glances at my tunic clasp followed by a scowl or huff, which I tried really hard not to snicker openly to. Unsurprisingly, Elder Chronak wasn't in the tent when I got there. If Nara was meeting with the Elder Council, he'd be there instead. I busied myself instead with the patients that were in the medical tent already, despite it literally being just after breakfast time. Guard training was as brutal as usual this time of year, it seemed.

Several treated sprained ankles and rib bruising later, I'd gotten into the swing of things again just in time to be startled when suddenly ambushed by the Elder and Nara. My arcane circle faltered, the tethers currently repairing a nasty bruise on the male guard snapping as Nara collided with my side out of nowhere and send us both stumbling.

The guard looked bewildered, probably similarly to myself before I caught myself and braced against the end of a different medical bed, Inaga female buried into my side. "I'm sorry, Exes! I didn't even think about how they'd see and hear that! That was stupid of me!" she quickly murmured, large eyes opening and looking up at me again afterwards, which seemed to always stun me for a moment as I got lost in them. Either that or I was dizzy still from her impact. I assumed Elder Chronak would have already checked me for a concussion...

"Nara, it's fine. You didn't intentionally do it so it's not your fault..." I assured, frowning a little, then freezing up again as she shifted from my side to front instead and buried her face in the front of my tunic. It reminded me a bit of Exia this morning, though with different results. This close, I could definitely smell her, and I realized that the Elder wouldn't have refreshed my hormone suppressant. Shit.

Shifting awkwardly, I coughed lightly, which caused her ears to perk up again and smack me in the side of the face of course. She looked up a moment later, eyebrow raised and seemingly nonplussed at her pressing right up against me, looking at me like she didn't know what the problem was. Of course, she found out a second later once the front of my belted lower tunic tented out against her.

It was the first time I'd seen her blush, eyes widening a little before she glanced ever so quickly down, then grinned, recovering rapidly. "Ah, happier to see me than I thought you would be," she admitted, giggling a little as I averted my eyes from her.

Elder Chronak smirked as he watched us, then deduced, "Probably because he didn't get a chance to reinforce the hormone suppressants while he was unconscious." AH! My eyes bugged out, and he barked out a laugh towards us, adding, "I know what ingredients you take from the storage you know. I'm capable of figuring out what you're making based on what you take." Right... Right.

"Wait, what?! Why were you taking-" Nara starts to ask, looking up at me again with a surprised expression before she seemed to answer her own question in her mind, shifting to a frown an instant later. "Because of me. Because of me hanging around you...? Exes, if it bothers you, I can give you space..." she muttered afterwards, expression softening as she looked away from me this time instead. Of course, she asks that while pressed right up against me.

I swallowed, suddenly uneasy. It was hard to think with her so close, or even examine my feelings towards, well, anything that's happened the last few days. "No it... I actually wasn't sleeping well. Um, the scents of a female, well... I'm not used to it and well, this," I pointed out, gesturing to her current closeness. Part of me was wondering if she was actually intentionally doing it at this point in order to befuddle me.

Her ears lowered, but instead of sad looking, a frown greeted me when I looked back to her. "That... no, that makes sense. And in a few weeks it'll be even worse. I admit, I don't actually know that much about relationships or mates. How do they even...?" she started to question, looking upwards to me as if expecting I'd have answers that I definitely didn't.

"I'm a runty gimp. Looking to me for experience outside of knowing how to use my paws and mouth to please someone is kind of pointless," I reminded her, causing her to scowl instead. It might have been a bit hostile sounding, but I was indeed starting to feel more than a little frustrated by her behavior. The conflicted messages my own body and brain were sending me didn't help matters either. I wished I could just pause time or something and have a good couple of days to think things over better, to be honest.

Elder Chronak spoke up again however, before she could say anything else. "Mates have a plethora of techniques available to either get around or work within the bounds of pheromones and instincts. Of course, not_being_ mates may have that prove problematic for you two. I'll include in my letter a suggestion for temporary relocation of Nara to a different area during Estrus however. That sounds far more prudent..." he suggested, surprisingly pointedly in mannerism I noticed. I looked at him in disbelief, not having heard him take his 'annoyed' tone with Nara before now. It made me wonder how the meeting went.

Nara herself looked startled for a moment as she glanced back at him, then momentarily angry herself, then slowly let it melt into a more neutral expression that I recognized almost immediately as similar to my own practiced 'golem' face. "Right... No that's probably a good idea. I didn't realize my smells were bothering Exes so much. Guess I need to wash more," she muttered, her right eye giving an ever so slight twitch as she said it.

My mind swam for a long moment as I realized she'd gone from apologetic to mad at me in a heartbeat, and I felt my teeth clench. Everything in my life had literally been turned upside-down with her arrival and now it felt like she was just yanking me around. She said we weren't so different, but I didn't think I'd been treating her like she'd been treating me. I realized a moment later that maybe it was her that wasn't so different from almost everyone else in the tribe. To most, I was the means to an end. A useful tool for various situations to be discarded afterwards. Just because I didn't know what 'use' she wanted to apply me to didn't mean she wasn't doing the same thing. Her mother conveniently and specifically putting me in charge of her without any explanation whatsoever, as well as her openly getting surprisingly close to me several times now suddenly just made me more suspicious than anything.

But there was nothing I could do. I didn't have a say in it or a choice in the matter. So the only response I could actually muster was my typical one now. Closing my eyes, I pulled that anger and frustration down again and buried it deep. Instead, I called forth the golem again. This was just another daily unpleasantness that it could guide me through without consideration, leaving me free in my own mind to think of anything I wanted. Maybe spending more time with Exia after this, or working on those weapon designs I promised Exir.

Opening my eyes again, I felt nothing but that cold, comfortable emptiness. It reminded me of snow for some reason, even though I'd never experienced it myself. "It doesn't matter," I interrupted, followed by, "Today's the day that we start training, isn't it, Master? We should work out a schedule for that, as we obviously can't both train at the same time." Pleasantly even, neutral, empty tone. Polite as I could manage of course while forcing my gaze to the Elder instead. Well, my Master now.

Nara gave another start, this time looking back up at me again, but I ignored her this time and simply gently moved her off me. This seemed to confuse her even more, her eyes widening a little as she tried to search my own, but I just blanked her out. I didn't need the confusion or frustration.

The corner of Master's muzzle twitched upwards into a slight smile before he nodded and turned back to the makeshift desk he had set up. "Your training can be in the mornings. I'll expect punctuality right after breakfast, especially now that you don't have to worry about inane bullshit like horny guards or a pregnant female's sore back. That will carry you through noontime, where you're free to do as you please. You can work training with Nara in at your own discretion of course. Understood?" he requested rather bluntly, but I actually kind of preferred that. It was refreshing after dealing with hormones and politics for the last four days. I gave a sharp nod.

"Of course, Master. Then I'll take over with Nara's basic training after lunch, unless she requests otherwise..." I returned, finally glancing back at the female. I noted the guard trainee I'd been treating the bruised rib on quietly shuffled out of the tent, having decided to apparently flee after the 'horny guard' comment. Wait, was that the same trainee as the other day? I couldn't really remember now as I didn't pay him much attention.

Nara looked for a moment like someone had stomped on her paw, her muzzle giving a sharp twitch before her expression blanked again and she looked away from me. "Sure, that's fine..." she muttered, and didn't bother waiting for a reply before simply turning around and walking back out of the tent. I raised an eyebrow as she went, but Master Chronak waved his paw dismissively, walking past me and towards the reagent cabinet on the other wall instead.

"Don't bother. She has her guards that can escort her anywhere she needs to go. Also, don't trust her. The more I watch her with you, the less I trust in the contrived coincidences she's given for being here, and that wasn't very much to begin with," he spoke rather sharply before rooting into the cabinet.

"Yes, Master," the golem replied, while I tried to sort out where everything had gotten so fucked up.