15: Saga
1029 Words
It was obvious Aurelia was interested in my brother from the moment I saw them together, and I was glad that he hadn't rebuffed her.
He found it difficult to relax around other wolves, but he seemed to need a friend who understood him on more than a superficial level. We loved each other, but our insecurities and struggles had been so different despite being raised as siblings that I couldn't comprehend a lot of the things he was so clearly troubled by.
Her father probably wasn't going to be impressed that she was interested in a musclebound guy with tattoos, piercings, and precisely zero chance of becoming Alpha; Robin was not the kind of man he would want his daughter to screw around with.
"You know Caius is probably going to fight you over this, right?"
He sighed, and turned away from the kitchen counter to face me.
"I'm really not intimidated by a man who would be terrified of the microwave if he saw it, Saga."
I ignored his comment and glanced at his crotch.
"You should get that under control, Lothario. You look like you've got something shoved down there to impress someone."
"If anyone accuses me of that, they can suck it, f**k it, or shut the hell up," he snapped at me. I probably shouldn't have commented, but it was somehow less awkward than pretending I hadn't noticed.
"Alright - calm down, Casanova."
"Hilarious. What's next? Or are you done, Reject Real Doll?"
I shrugged, completely nonplussed by an insult I had heard a million times.
I kind of deserved it, for once.
"I'm only teasing you."
"You didn't need to clarify that. You're only ever teasing me."
I sighed, but he smiled briefly and I was happy that he seemed to have found a way to take his mind off the things that had been weighing on him - particularly when that meant it was significantly more likely he would want to stay at the Villa with me for a while.
"What is she like, anyway?" I asked, as I leaned against the kitchen table and looked him in the eyes. "As a person, I mean..."
"Are you really interested, or just looking for something to mock me over?"
I shrugged.
"I'm genuinely curious."
"What does it matter, Saga? Their issues have nothing to do with us... they have nothing to do with us, and I don't think we should stay here for too long. I guess that's what you are really interested in hearing from me - or did you want me to tell you she's the most interesting, engaging woman in the world so you can convince yourself that getting involved in their drama is the right thing to do?"
I looked away from him; I didn't want to argue with him, and we were on the verge of the conversation descending into a genuine fight.
"I guess you're right," I sighed.
"She's a good person, by the way. If you actually want my opinion about her, I think she's a good person."
His helpful comment was less than informative, but I smiled politely.
"It must be strange for her to have him back again after so long. I can't imagine what it must be like to think someone you love..."
The look Robin was giving me was enough to silence me - he had lost both of his parents, and I still had both of mine. I had the luxury of finding the people who raised me and loved me unconditionally frustrating at times - the fact my parents cared about me could feel stifling sometimes, but I could never tell him that.
"She hasn't really spoken much about this situation. I guess she wanted to take her mind off it or something."
"You don't think she's using you, do you?"
He laughed. Of course, she was using him - he didn't care about that.
"Are you scared that she's going to break my heart?"
"I'm more concerned that you will break hers. I could do without a two thousand-year-old she-wolf swearing a vendetta against us."
"And you don't think that sleeping with her mother's Mate might lead to that?"
I rolled my eyes, but he didn't back down.
"I highly doubt Caius had a monogamous relationship with Aurelia's mother."
Not that I had given it too much thought, and I knew Robin didn't care; he was just trying to antagonize me.
I noticed him glance back at the staircase, and I realized that he was eager to get back to the room - I turned my back on him to fix a glass of water, granting him a chance to slip away from me.
I wasn't really sure what to do with it, but I settled on taking it to Caius, and hoping he wasn't actually going to want to fight Robin.
It didn't feel right to leave him completely alone, anyway, and I was curious to see how he would respond to me after our encounter.
He looked smaller, somehow, when I took him the drink.
He was lying on the bed, staring at the ceiling, as if the rest of the world was filled with monsters.
"Emperor," I addressed him as I approached him with the drink.
He would probably find it amusing that I had called him that one day - when he knew more about me, he would understand that I did not feel at all obligated to address him as my superior.
He didn't respond, and for a moment I was concerned that I had used the wrong word, but he said that sighed deeply and ran his hands down his face before he sat up to take the glass.
"Saga..." he bit his lip. "That is your name, isn't it? Or have you been keeping that from me?"
"It's my name. It's..." I thought hard for a few moments to find the right words, "...it is an unusual name. I..."
He shook his head to silence me.
"You shouldn't address me as Emperor. I'm not your Emperor. In fact...I would like you to tell me how I should address you, in your language."
- Writer
