by L. M. Brown
"I assume Halor has told you that, unless the parents choose to hide that they have a dual-gendered baby, pre is used in place of he or she?"
"Yes, for pre-determined, right? And it's per instead of him or her, and… er… pres instead of his or hers, yes?"
Halor nodded. "As you can see, Logan is being well educated on all things dual-gender related. The three of us plan to have more children, and chances are there will be some who are dual-gendered amongst them."
Logan frowned. "So what happens if a parent deliberately tries to hide they have a dual-gendered baby and use the wrong terms? Surely it'd be a little awkward if they spend years referring to him or her, only to find out the dominant gender is the opposite one."
Ty couldn't help but glance at his mother, who had done exactly that. "Then when the feline matures there are some rather awkward moments if the parents picked the wrong gender."
His mother gave a pointed cough. "Of course, there are those who believe that by choosing to refer to a dual-gendered baby by a particular gender it helps them to identify themselves as that gender, and thus when they mature, that is the gender to become dominant."
Ty rolled his eyes. "There are also plenty of studies to disprove that theory."
Logan appeared somewhat taken aback by their difference of opinion, but Halor just smiled. "As you can see, Logan, there's still a lot to learn about dual-gendered felines. We're all learning together, as more and more such felines are born."
"Still," Ty said with another sharp look at his mother, "there's a big difference between educating yourself and asking personal questions about another feline's young. Asking a stranger whether their young are dual-gendered is generally not done, as my mother is well aware."
Thankfully, neither Prince Halor nor Logan appeared to be insulted.
"I'll remember that in the future," Logan said. "But to answer the question anyway, both of the children are boys and not dual-gendered. Though, as the first human-feline hybrids they are probably even more noticeably different than those felines who are dual-gendered."
"I must admit, I'm curious to see them myself," Ty admitted. "I imagine if you brought them down here, they would be the centre of attention."
"Probably," Halor agreed. "You'll have to make sure to meet them before we go home."
"I will," Ty replied. Someone he thought he recognised as a rather annoying distant cousin was heading their way. Suspecting she wished to speak to his mother, rather than himself, Ty gestured towards the main doors leading back into the palace. "Would you like a tour of the palace?"
His mother interrupted before Halor or Logan could reply. "You shouldn't leave our guests, Ty."
Ty hid his disappointment behind a tight smile, one which brightened when he turned away from his mother and caught the loving glance being exchanged between Halor and Logan as they slipped out of the room, his invitation forgotten.
Ty wished he could escape so easily.
*****
Ty retired to his rooms after the opening ceremony, intending to take a short nap before the evening concert. When he found Cal waiting for him, he wondered whether a snack might be in order, too. He dismissed that thought when he saw Cal's expression.
"Is something wrong?" Ty asked. "You aren't being stretched too much with the additional duties for the festival, are you?"
Cal shook his head. "No, I'm hardly overworked. I wanted to talk to you about one of the felines who was presented to you, but I'm not sure whether I should."
Ty sat on one of the wing-backed chairs near the fireplace and gestured for Cal to take the other. "You can tell me anything you wish. I will keep any confidence you wish me to. I know you don't see us as anything other than master and servant, but I hope you know you can at least trust me."
Cal wouldn't meet his eyes. "I think one of the felines might be in trouble."
"What sort of trouble?"
"I'm not sure. Maybe I'm wrong, but my instincts are telling me I'm right."
"Felines should always trust their instincts," Ty said. "Who is it you're worried about?"
"The pure white with the blue eyes. Jax."
"Ah."
Cal shot him a quick glance from under his lashes. "You remember him then?"
"Yes, of course. He stood out from the rest of them like a beacon in the dark."
"He's not a virgin," Cal blurted.
Ty smiled. "So I noticed. I'm surprised no one else did, actually, but they probably weren't looking that closely."
"What do you mean?" Cal asked. "You only saw him when he was presented to you and I'm sure you weren't outside when I saw them together."
"You saw who together?"
"Jax and his lover. I think he called him Lyndon. They were having sex just outside the side door from the servants' quarters."
"I see." That Jax had a lover already meant Ty's plans would have to be reconsidered. He wondered how Orin had failed to notice his nephew was already spoken for. Surely if he was in an established relationship his lover would have claimed him at some point?
"How did you know he wasn't a virgin?" Cal asked.
"Hmm?" Ty dragged his attention back to the conversation. "Oh, when he was presenting himself for examination. He was far too stretched and tender to have been untouched. He'd been fucked hard and recently. Now I know where."
Cal shook his head. "I saw him in the gardens after he'd been presented to you."
Ty shrugged. "Well, I guess I'll have to see which of the others might be amenable to mating with me. I have no wish to poach Jax from his lover. I thank you for telling me of your concerns."
Cal leaned forward, his arms on his legs. "Don't discount Jax too quickly. Like I said, I think he's in some kind of trouble."
Ty recalled Cal had said that, but he had assumed he meant that Jax was playing with fire by claiming to be a virgin when he was clearly not. "What makes you think so?"
Cal lowered his voice to little more than a whisper. "They had sex and Jax seemed to be a willing participant, but when they were done and Lyndon was walking away, the look on Jax's face was not that of a feline looking at the man he loves. There was pure hatred in his eyes."
"Are you sure? I mean are you sure he was willing? He wasn't forced?"
Cal seemed to give the question serious thought. "No, he was enjoying himself and he wasn't fighting him off. He seemed more angry with what Lyndon had said to him."
"Which was?"
"Enough to make me offended on Jax's behalf," Cal muttered. "He didn't seem to care if he got Jax pregnant, he called him a slut, oh and he was pretty adamant that while Jax should put on a good show of trying to win your favour, he wasn't to do so good a job that you claim him."
Ty didn't like the idea of anyone manipulating him, and even though he had never met this Lyndon feline, he already hated him with a passion.
"Thank you for telling me this," Ty said. "But can I ask you a question before you go back to your duties?"
"Of course."
"If I were to choose Jax as a mate, would you care at all?"
The fleeting expressions of shock, hurt and resignation, told Ty far more than Cal's polite assurance that it was none of his business who Ty chose to mate with. Ty needed to continue his bloodline and therefore he had to choose from one of the candidates who had been presented to him today.
Ty decided to ignore the words and focus on the truth he saw in Cal's eyes instead.
"Cal, I promised to keep your confidence, can you give me that same promise now?"
Cal nodded though his expression was wary.
"Your word, spoken aloud, that what I'm about to reveal to you does not leave this room."
"I give you my word," Cal replied quietly.
Ty checked the doors were closed before he spoke again. "I don't need to mate with a dual-gendered feline to secure my bloodline. I am dual-gendered."
Cal's mouth dropped open and he stared at him for nearly a minute. "What?"
"I am capable of carr
ying my own litter and I fully intend to do so."
"But you can't be!" Cal argued. "High nobles are never dual-gendered."
"Until me," Ty replied. "Give me your hand."
Cal reached out without question, and Ty stood and drew him near. Without a word he brought Cal's hand under his kilt and guided his fingers to the damp heat between his legs.
"You really are dual-gendered," Cal whispered as his fingertips brushed intimately against Ty.
"Yes, I am."
"How is it no one knows this?" Cal asked. "Surely, your mother noticed when you were born?"
Ty laughed. "Of course my parents know, but you've met my mother. In her eyes it's perfectly acceptable for common felines to be dual-gendered, but not for her own son. As the only survivor of her first litter, it falls to me to live up to her unreasonable expectations. She would no doubt wish me to keep it secret my entire life, but it'll be rather hard to hide when I'm carrying."
"I'm sure you know she'll be furious," Cal pointed out.
"It doesn't matter. It's not like she'll be able to do anything about it."
"Are you sure about that?"
Ty chuckled. "What happens in my bedchamber is between me and the feline I'm with. My mother is not going to be standing over my shoulder directing the proceedings."
Cal drew in a deep breath and began to move his hand away. Ty stopped him with his firm grasp. "Don't pull back from me. Not again. I've just revealed to you my deepest secret, please tell me that I've made the right choice."
Cal sighed and shook his head. "You know your mother will never allow you to claim me as your mate."
"I don't care what my mother wants. Do you want me?" Ty held his breath as he waited for Cal to answer his question. "Or are you repulsed by what your fingers are touching?"
"Repulsed?" Cal slid a finger inside Ty and stroked him gently. Ty shivered and his knees felt shaky. "Never."
Ty nodded at the bed. "Will you join me?"
Cal answered by nudging him in the right direction and toppling him back onto the feather mattress.
Ty chuckled as he scrambled across the bed, pulling Cal with him. "Are you hungry?"
Cal flushed and lowered his eyes. "Maybe a little."
Ty tossed aside the flap of the kilt, revealing his hard cock rising from the black curls at his groin. "Feed from me."
This time Cal didn't argue, he dove onto Ty's cock like a starving feline, sucking long and hard. Ty moaned and tried to resist the urge to thrust into Cal's mouth. He bucked his hips when Cal slid two digits inside him and fingered him.
"Cal, don't stop," Ty encouraged. "Touch me there. Fuck, please, Cal."
Ty closed his eyes and concentrated on the dual sensations of Cal sucking his cock while at the same time fingering his vagina. He wondered whether Cal might be talented enough to play with his arse at the same time, but he was having trouble forming proper sentences. Maybe next time he could make the suggestion before they got started.
Assuming Cal wanted there to be a next time, of course.
Ty came with a strangled cry of pleasure, pouring everything he had into Cal's mouth. Cal drank down every drop, sucking and licking him clean.
Then Ty realised Cal hadn't finished. His fingers were still inside Ty, moving quickly and purposely. Ty clenched around them as he quivered and shook, his second orgasm taking him by surprise.
Cal collapsed beside him and Ty could feel the hard ridge of his erection against his leg. He took him in his hand and stroked him until he too fell over the brink.
"I won't give you up," Ty whispered. "You're mine forever."
Cal nodded. "I know."
"No more denying you're hungry when I can hear your stomach growling halfway across the room?"
"No."
"Good. No more calling me Master?"
Cal shook his head and rested his chin on Ty's chest.
Ty smiled down at him. "And no more looks of distaste when I have to feed from you, right?"
Cal frowned. "Did I really look like that?"
"Yes. Every time you pulled out your cock there was this look on your face as though you'd rather shove it into the blades of a sky-craft than into my mouth."
"I wasn't that bad!"
"Yes, you were. I tried my best to make my feeding pleasurable for you, yet I seemed to fail at it completely. Some days I even felt guilty for feeding, you seemed to dislike it so much."
"You always made it good for me. I enjoyed feeding you."
Ty gave a dubious snort.
"I did! I just didn't want to fall for you, only to lose you to another feline when it came time for you to choose a suitable mate. I never meant to make you feel guilty for feeding. I just wanted to maintain some distance, at least as much as I could while you had your mouth around my cock."
"Well, you certainly did a good job of that," Ty muttered.
"If I say I'm sorry, will you forgive me?"
Ty urged Cal up the bed and kissed him on the forehead. "There's nothing to forgive. I understand."
They kissed gently, planting soft kisses over each other's lips and cheeks as they lay together on the bed.
Only when the sun began to go down did the two of them finally move.
"Your presence will be required at the concert," Cal said. "If you don't put in an appearance your mother will come searching for you."
Ty stretched. "I know. Besides, I should speak to Jax and try to find out whether he is in trouble."
Cal wandered over to the closet and pulled out Ty's evening robes. "I'll see if I can find out more about Lyndon, too."
Ty shook his head. "No, I want you to stay close. I'm going to suggest taking Jax out in one of the row boats, with you as a chaperone."
Cal screwed up his nose. "Boats again?"
Ty chuckled and patted Cal's arse. "If Jax shares your dislike of the water, at least I know neither of you will be able to escape if the conversation gets tricky."
"Do you anticipate that it will?"
"Oh yes. Look at it this way, it's taken how long for us to have an honest conversation?"
"Um."
"Exactly. I just hope Jax isn't quite as stubborn as you."
Chapter Three
Jax took his seat for the concert and was surprised to find Ty on his left and his uncle on his right. A calico marked feline sat at Ty's feet, resting his head on Ty's leg.
"This is Cal," Ty said. "He's been my primary food source since I came of age."
Jax nodded a greeting at Cal, who smiled up at him. "It's nice to meet you, Cal."
"Do you have a source nearby?" Ty asked. "If not, I'm sure Cal won't mind helping if you get hungry later."
"Jax has his own food source," his uncle interrupted. "Lyndon should be around here somewhere."
"He went to fetch warmer robes from our rooms," Jax explained. "He thought it might be cooler by the time the concert finishes."
"Such a thoughtful feline," his uncle commented. "He's devoted to Jax. I've always said that whoever mates with Jax will also find himself blessed with an excellent servant in Lyndon."
Jax bit his tongue.
"Good servants are hard to find," Ty said. "Cal, however, is much more than a servant. He's my friend and lover, and any mate I take will need to accept Cal in their life too."
Jax observed Cal stiffen slightly before relaxing again at Ty's words. He hadn't taken much notice of Cal before, but now he found himself curious about the calico-marked feline. From the affectionate way Ty spoke of him, Jax could tell Cal was very special to Ty.
Lyndon's arrival interrupted Jax's contemplation of Ty and Cal's relationship.
"This is Lyndon," his uncle said. "Perhaps he and Cal would like to get to know each other, since they may be spending a lot of time together."
Jax breathed a sigh of relief that Lyndon could focus his attention on someone else for a while.
The concert started, and Jax let his mind wander as the music carried through the air. When the musicians took a br
eak, Jax shifted in his seat.
"Would you like to take a walk with me?" Ty asked. "We can stretch our legs a little down by the water."
Jax checked with his uncle, who nodded.
Standing, Jax took Ty's arm and they walked down to the waterside, Cal and Lyndon following a few steps behind.
"Perhaps Jax would like to go out in one of the boats?" Cal suggested. "The music sounds even better when listened to on the water."
"An excellent idea," Ty agreed. "Come, there are some row boats tied to the dock."
"They look a little small," Lyndon commented. "Barely enough room for three, and certainly not for four of us."
Ty climbed into the nearest boat and studied it for a moment. "You're right. Four of us would probably sink it. Perhaps you'd like to go back to Orin and wait for us there? Or Cal, can go back and you can row us?"
"I don't know how to row," Lyndon said. "I really shouldn't leave Jax alone, though."
Ty chuckled. "He won't be alone. He'll be with me and Cal, and we'll be right here on the lake. We won't be out of sight."
Lyndon didn't seem very pleased at the idea, but Ty's reasonable argument won him over.
Ty helped Jax into the boat, and once they were seated, Cal joined them and rowed them out to the middle of the lake.
"Privacy at last," Cal said as he pulled in the oars. "Though you could have picked somewhere away from the water."
Ty snorted. "And have Lyndon lingering around?"
"Perhaps not."
Jax frowned. "Are you saying you deliberately ditched Lyndon?"
"We are," Cal confirmed. "We wanted to talk to you privately."
"You did?"
"Yes," Ty said.
"What about? It's my uncle you'd need to speak to if you wanted to claim me as your mate."
Ty gave another snort, this one even louder than the first. "Don't you get a say in the matter?"
Jax trailed his fingers in the water. "Not really."
"Why not? It's your life?" Cal said.
Jax sighed, but didn't say anything. It hadn't been his life for a long time, but how could these two felines possibly understand that?
Ty took hold of Jax's hand and gave it a squeeze. "Jax, we know you're in some kind of trouble, but we can't help you if we don't know what the problem is?"
