by Eric Vall
I smirked at my lover’s face, and then I slipped two fingers inside of her at once.
Laika gasped again, but it came out more as a strangled cough, and she slapped her hand over her mouth as more moans threatened to spill out.
My cock was throbbing in my pants, but I ignored it as my eyes devoured the sight of the stoic warrior falling apart on my fingers. I alternated between fast and slow rhythms, but I kept my thumb glued firmly to her clit as I kissed and bit at her neck.
Laika’s ears spasmed on her head as her whole body twitched at my touch, and she was growing wetter and wetter by the second.
Then my draconic hearing picked up the distant mutter of voices, and I realized my lover had been right about people arriving soon. A part of me didn’t care if the whole of Hatra saw me fucking my beautiful wolf, but I knew the professional and dutiful Laika would probably be mortified.
So, I sped up my fingers again, and then I began rubbing her clit with one of my fingers while I plunged the other two into her.
Desperate whines vibrated at the back of Laika’s throat, and I felt her claws dig into the meat of my shoulders as her pussy clamped down on me, and a gush of warmth spilled over my fingers.
I ghosted my thumb over her clit one last time, and then I pulled my hand from between her thighs but still kept her pinned against the wall.
“Like I said,” I growled as I met Laika’s heavy-lidded eyes and licked her juices from my fingers, “more delicious than breakfast.”
“Do I get something, too?” Laika grinned and trailed her hand down to palm my rock hard erection.
“As much as I would like that,” I chuckled as I pulled up her pants and set the wolf on her feet again, “the first arrivals for the meeting will be here in … one minute? Give or take.”
Laika blinked, and then I watched her ears swivel on her head. A moment later, her eyes went wide, and her cheeks flushed a bright pink.
“You’re right,” she muttered as she patted down her hair and shifted her pants around. “I will have to repay you later.”
“If you want, maybe we can run and get an actual breakfast before the meeting starts,” I suggested. “You are delicious, but I could go for some toast.”
“Actually,” Laika sighed, “I wanted to ask you something over breakfast, but since the meeting will start soon, so I will ask you now.”
“Shoot.” I leaned against the wall and nodded at her.
“I wanted to request leave from the meeting,” she replied.
“You don’t want to be there?” I asked with a frown.
She shook her head. “It is not that I do not want to attend. It’s just … I’ve been thinking of the orichalcum mine all night. I know we spoke about guarding it, but I would rather see to it sooner rather than later.”
“Alright,” I nodded, “that will definitely be a load off my mind, too. Do I need to join you to unseal the mine?”
“No,” the wolf replied with a smile, “I believe Daya gave us an enchantment we could use for that purpose. I’ll organize a retinue of the warriors to go with me, but I wanted to make sure it was okay with you first.”
“You have my permission, but be safe,” I cautioned as I bent to press a kiss to her forehead.
“I am always safe,” Laika responded as she adjusted the strap of her bracer, “in fact, you’re the reckless one.”
I grinned at her cheekiness, but before I could respond, I realized the voices I heard earlier were distinctly louder.
Laika glanced over her shoulder, and her cheeks flushed red again.
“I-I must go now,” she muttered as she started to climb the stairs once more.
My eyes trailed after her and the way her hips swung with each step she took.
“You might want to take a quick shower first,” I called out to her when she reached the top of the stairs.
Laika glanced back at me with a confused frown, but I just smirked and tapped my nose. The wolf somehow blushed an even deeper red before she sprinted out the door.
I chuckled to myself as I climbed back down the staircase that smelled very clearly of sex, and then I headed to the atrium of the underground library.
Within fifteen minutes, the hall was just beginning to fill up with my people. A table and chairs had been set up toward one side of the hall, and the members of the council sat there. My parents and Moskal sat to one side of the table, and on the other half were the three advisors from the Blue Tree Guild.
Pyotr, Laika’s grandfather and the former leader of the guild, had a curious gleam in his dark gray eyes. He was a wolf Demi-Human, just like his granddaughter. Next to him was another advisor, Daya. She was a fox Demi-Human and the Mistress of War for the Blue Tree Guild. The faint scent of blood lurked around her as her crimson eyes scanned the crowd, and she toyed with the end of her long, purple braid. The last advisor from the guild was Tion, a crow Demi-Human and the guild’s Master of Commerce. His eyes were a rich blue, and his hair was such a dark blue that it was almost black.
“We are ready whenever you are,” Julia murmured from behind her fan.
I nodded and turned around to face the large crowd. There were easily over a thousand people in the hall, and yet there was still room for even more.
“Hello everyone, this is something new we’re going to be trying,” I announced loudly, and my voice echoed throughout the chamber. “We’re aiming to have one of these town hall meetings at least once a month. You’re going to be able to talk with us and let us know about any concerns you have about anything, and we’ll answer your questions.”
There was a moment of silence before everyone suddenly spoke all at once.
“The kitchens--” began a man before he was cut off by someone else.
“We still have to lug water to the farms--” echoed throughout the hall as it was repeated by several people.
“What are we going to do about food--” a nervous voice chirped up and attempted to be heard over the chaos.
“Whoa!” I raised my voice over the chaos and let a crack of thunder echo in the room. “Hold on! One person needs to speak at a time, otherwise I won’t be able to understand anyone. How about one person from each family or group comes up as a representative to speak with us.”
The crowd quieted down quickly at my words, and they began to murmur amongst themselves.
“Well done on controlling the crowd,” Julia said as she tapped her fan against her palm with a small smile. “They listened to you immediately.”
“In hindsight, I probably should have said that first,” I chuckled as I rubbed the back of my neck, and I absently noticed my hair had gotten longer than I usually kept it.
“It doesn’t matter,” Pyotr said as he crossed his arms over his chest. “An issue came up, and you took care of it succinctly. Now, we wait for them to organize themselves.”
“We will not have to wait long,” Moskal murmured as he tilted his head to the side. “They have already divided themselves up into groups, according to where they live and what they do, I think.”
“Heh, just as expected from my son.” Ruslan smirked as he leaned forward on the table.
“You didn’t raise him,” Julia murmured as she snapped her fan open. “His good qualities don’t come from you.”
“Can’t you let me gloat?” Ruslan grumbled as he slumped in his chair.
“Calm down, Pops,” I laughed as I glanced at the pouting fox. “You can gloat later, when the meeting is finished and all the work is done.”
There was little time for anything else to be said since three people stepped forward from the crowd. Of the three people who stood in front of us, I already knew two of them. Afra, the fox Demi-Human who I’d seen working in the farms before, was one of the three to step forward. On the top of her head were dark blue fox ears, and a long braid of the same color blue trailed over her shoulder. She seemed to be a bit nervous and kept ducking her head down.
Next to Afra was a golden haired teenager I knew to be Leon.
He was someone I’d seen running around a lot, doing a lot of the small errands commanded by the three Elders and myself.
Then there was another fox Demi-Human in the group. I vaguely remembered him as being one of the victims of the attack from the Corrupted Corpses and miasma. His eyes were bright like emeralds, and he had crimson hair tied up in a high ponytail between his fox ears.
“Introduce yourselves first in case I don’t know you.” I smiled reassuringly at the three people in front of me. “And then tell me what your concern is. Simple, yeah?”
“I am Afra, my lord,” the female fox said as she stepped forward, dipped into a curtsey, and nervously tugged at her braided hair. “I work at the farms.”
“I know, I’ve seen you there.” I couldn’t help my smile, the young fox was so clearly nervous but trying her best. “What’s happening at the farms that we need to know about?”
“Well, your Lordship fixed the aqueducts, so water now flows through most of the fountains in the city.” Afra drew in a deep breath before she continued. “Even so, we still have to draw buckets of water for the larger fields in the farms. Is there something that can be done to help us?”
“Are there any fountains near the farms?” I asked, and my brows furrowed as I remembered the way the area had been set up.
“There are,” Afra replied before her face fell, “but there is no water flow. We still have to bring bucket by bucket back to the water storage, or wait for the rain to fill it back up.”
“There’s a basic irrigation system in place though, right?” I tapped my fingers against my mouth as ideas floated around in my head.
“Yes, we have mini canals made out of clay that attach to the bases of the smaller garden beds for the things like tomatoes and herbs.” Afra’s head bobbed up and down as her smile grew for a moment. “For the larger fields, though, we use our magic to lift the water above them and sprinkle them like rain.”
“I see, ” I mused. Okay, so we had something in place that could work in the short term. “Depending on the other concerns brought up today, that may take priority. Thank you, Afra.”
“Ah, um, I still have another concern.” Afra twiddled her thumbs for a moment before she looked up at me. “If it’s okay for me to say another thing?”
“It’s okay, you can tell me.” I took a step closer and placed a reassuring hand on her shoulder.
“Um, what are we going to do about food?” Afra inquired as she nervously met my gaze. “The farms are enough for right now, but we’re going to have to expand in the future. And, since we aren’t under attack anymore by the miasma, maybe we can do more with the farms and what we’ve been growing. Especially if more people come to Hatra.”
“You’ve put a lot of thought into this,” I said with a smile. I was impressed by Afra’s concern and the way she pushed through even though she was so clearly nervous.
“I’m sorry if I was too bold in bringing it up!” Afra ducked her head down, and her ears fell flat against her head. “I just, I really care about the farms, and they’ve been destroyed by the miasma before. I’m excited we don’t have to worry about that anymore.”
“No, it’s a good thing you told me,” I said as I placed a finger under Afra’s small chin and gently nudged her so she looked up at me. “I want to know what’s happening in my city and what’s going on with my people, especially if there’s something I can do to make everyone’s lives easier. As for the farms, there are plans on extending them. In fact, architects are going to arrive within the week to help us do just that.”
“Architects, my lord?” Afra tilted her head to the side as her brow furrowed. “People are going to come and help Hatra now?”
“Yes, Hatra won’t be ignored anymore.” I removed my hand from her chin and ruffled the hair on the top of her head. “The king has arranged for a caravan of workers and architects to arrive within a week. They’ll be bringing all sorts of materials, from food to furniture, all for the purpose of rebuilding Hatra. This includes architects who have knowledge when it comes to agriculture. We can’t just throw down seeds anywhere, after all.”
“Thank you, my lord!” Afra’s eyes glittered with happiness, and she stepped back into line.
“Who’s next?” I asked as I looked between the two remaining representatives.
“Leon, my lord.” Golden haired Leon stepped forward and dipped into a quick bow. “I do many of the odds and ends for your lord father and lady mother.”
“They make you run around a lot, don’t they?” I chuckled as I clapped a hand on Leon’s shoulder. “I think I’ve seen you almost everywhere around the city, most of the time carrying papers and charcoal pencils. You’ve done a great job in examining the structural work of the Lunar Palace, by the way.”
“It’s an honor to be a part of the rebuilding process.” Leon nodded as he clasped his arms behind his back.
“So, tell me,” I began, and I had the feeling Leon was going to cover quite a lot of concerns,“what do I need to know?”
“A variety of things, but I’ll start with the kitchens.” Leon took in a breath before he continued with his explanation. “With Hatra’s population growth, the kitchen isn’t as functional as it was before. Right now, the people of Hatra and the members of the Blue Tree Guild have their meals separately. There really isn’t space for them in the communal eating area nor is there enough space to even cook for them. We have the manpower necessary for it, but we don’t have enough space.”
“I’ve seen the structural plans you’ve drawn,” I replied as I looked over the large crowd and knew that feeding over a thousand people a day couldn’t be an easy task. “Can you draw up how the communal cooking and eating area is right now, so I can take a look and have a better understanding of where everything is?”
“Of course!” Leon grinned, and there was more than a bit of youthful enthusiasm in his smile. “I can have that ready for you by the end of the day.”
“So, what’s next?” I asked. “You said you had a variety of things to bring up.”
“Well, it’s all along the same lines of the communal kitchen.” Leon frowned for a moment before he shook his head. “You’ve restored a lot of the buildings after the battle, but can we have larger areas for our work? The potters and weavers have been working with what we’ve been able to scavenge and rebuild with our own hands and knowledge. But since we’re going to be a proper city now, we need more kilns and workspaces.”
This would take a bit more brainstorming in order to figure out. Getting Natalya and Ruslan’s opinion on this would be a good idea since the smithy was in the area that needed to be worked on.
“Draw up the plans for the area where the craftsmen are,” I instructed as I tilted my head. “I think I have an idea for how to expand, but I want to see the plans first before we start digging anything up and tearing down walls.”
“Of course.” Leon nodded and took a step back until he was in line with Afra.
The two exchanged soft smiles, and I wondered if there was a young romance budding in front of me. Maybe I could nudge it in the right direction when I had the time.
Then the remaining representative stepped forward, a young fox Demi-Human with red hair in a high ponytail.
“And you are?” I asked. Looking at him, I remembered I’d seen this boy help teach Ilya during one of the training sessions.
“My name is Dagen, my lord,” the young fox answered as he glanced up at me, and his emerald eyes glittered with awe.
“Dagen,” I repeated and tilted my head to the side as I studied him. “You’re one of the former bandits, how’s everyone been settling in?”
“Just fine, sir.” Dagen raised his hand in salute and grinned at me. “We’ve always been on Hatra’s side. So, it’s not that much of a change for us, except we have a solid roof over our heads and lots of good food! And the miasma isn’t here anymore. Things are easier for all of us now.”
“That’s good to hear.” I nodded, relieved to know they ha
d settled in nicely. “Then, what should I know?”
“Well, we kinda wanted to know if some of us could leave for a few days?” Dagen’s ears fell flat on his head as he looked at me through the bangs of his hair.
“You want to leave Hatra?” I frowned at those words, but if anyone truly wanted to leave, I wouldn’t stop them.
“Not permanently!” Dagen’s ears shot straight up, and the fur on his tail bristled nervously. “Just to go and get our things from the old hideouts. We want to give everything we can. We don’t know if anything survived when the miasma took us, but it’s worth a try. At least, that’s what we think.”
“What do you have in the hideouts?” I questioned. I hadn’t considered the possibility of the bandits having anything usable, but I was wrong.
“Well, there’s food and our things,” Dagen said as he began to list items on his fingers. “We have some treasures, too. Stuff like furniture and jewels, and there’s some fancy silks that we got off some merchants. I thought, well, maybe Lady Julia and the princess could have the silks and pretty things.”
“Daya, can you spare a group to go with them?” I asked and looked over my shoulder at the fox advisor. “Preferably with someone who has access to spatial magic so we don’t have to worry about transporting anything.”
“Of course.” Daya nodded at me before she glanced over at the young boy. “Come and see me afterwards, we’ll arrange a trip to your hideouts using one of our smaller airships after we’ve located them on the map. We don’t want to risk anyone being attacked.”
“Thank you sir, ma’am!” Dagen bounced on his heels for a moment before his ears flopped backwards. “There’s also one other thing.”
“What is it?” I raised an eyebrow.
“Well, I’d like to volunteer,” Dagen stumbled over his words for a moment before he rushed everything out, “for, um, anything you’d need done. I can run messages or gather papers for you, or whatever sir.”
“Like a page?” Julia interjected as she fanned herself. “That is what you mean, is it not?”
“Yes, ma’am!” Dagen glanced between Julia and myself. “Er, your ladyship?”
