A Melodramatic and Cliché Ridden AU
Written for the Amusement of Senad
Lord Simon Banks, Warlord and conqueror of over a hundred worlds had come to Cascade to personally accept the surrender of the planet. He had taken possession of a castle in the northern territories. Tribute from the former rulers of the planet came to the castle every day. The tribute included everything from foodstuffs to slaves.
Lord Simon found the practice of slavery intolerable. His servants and soldiers were freemen. They received proper wages and housing. They were free to leave his service at any time. The Cascade slaves would be freed and offered employment. One, however, was a special case and would be handled differently.
The tall, dark skinned warlord casually inspected his latest "acquisition". He was proud to see that the younger man retained his royal bearing even though he was now no more than property enslaved to a foreign conqueror. Standing, stripped to the waist, in chains and guarded by four centurions, the captive held his head high and refused to drop his eyes.
The younger man was from a northern province. His family had given him to the warlord as tribute to keep their hold on their lands. He stood only a couple of centimeters shorter than the fearsome warlord. His hair was cut short and no effort had been made to hide its thinning. His eyes were a startling shade of blue that gave him a steely gaze. He had the body of a warrior and was not the pampered royal princeling the warlord had been expecting. This man was nothing like the weakling who had negotiated terms for Cascade.
"What is your name?" the warlord asked.
"James Ellison, of the border watchmen." James' voice was strong with no hint of fear. The warlord found that he admired this man and had no desire to break his spirit
"Summon Prince Blair," Simon directed a guard who hastily left the chamber. Simon removed James' chains under the watchful eyes of the remaining guards. The younger man rubbed his wrists to ease the chafed skin.
"Who is Prince Blair?" James dared ask.
The warlord merely smiled.
"Prince Blair was taken in a raid on Rainier. He was too valuable to simply enslave."
"I hope you still value me, my lord."
James turned to look at the new arrival and almost forgot to breathe. The young man could only be described as beautiful. James had seen paintings of angels with similar features. His dark hair fell in curls to the middle of his back. He was considerably shorter than the warlord, but James sensed power in the compact, wiry body dressed in royal blue silks. Despite the beauty and the hair James knew that the prince was no effeminate sex toy.
"Prince Blair, this is James Ellison. James, this is my son. Blair, do you think James would suit you?"
The prince looked into James' eyes. James felt as if the younger man were examining his very soul. He felt his enhanced senses returning to his control.
"He is quite beautiful, my lord. I sense intelligence in him. But I doubt that a warrior of Cascade would willingly come to the bed of another man"
James paled for the first time since he'd been told that he was to be given to the warlord. Becoming a slave had not frightened him. Even death at the warlord's hands didn't. The idea of becoming the prince's pet did. His enhanced senses began to spike. His vision began to gray.
"James? Come back to me," the young prince's voice and the gentle touch of his hand on James' arm brought James back from the edge of a blackout. A heady scent he had never hoped to experience enveloped him. His entire body seemed energized.
James swallowed his fear. His father had wanted James out of his house when the gene for enhanced senses had manifested. Lord William Ellison had James sent to the watchmen as soon as he was old enough to be trained to use his senses. However, the watchmen had not found him a partner, a guide to help him control his senses and avoid sensory spikes and zone-outs. This young prince had stopped a spike with a kind word and a gentle touch.
"I have no experience in such things, I am unbonded," James confessed.
It was Blair’s turn to pale.
"I can not take this man as a consort! He is a Sentinel. He needs a Guide, Simon. A mate."
"Consort?" James caught his breath. "I am not to be a slave?"
"I do not keep slaves, James, " Simon assured him.
"Are you an empath, Prince Blair?"
"Yes, why?"
"Since you came into the chamber, you've stopped a stress induced sensory spike and a near zone-out. You may be a more suitable guide ... for me," the last was barely a whisper.
"Would you prefer a male guide?" Simon became very gentle with James.
"Same gender pairs are rare on Cascade. Homosexuality is discouraged by law. I had resigned myself to someday losing myself in a zone-out because I had no guide."
Simon gestured to a servant and whispered a command. The servant hurried away.
"The suite of rooms next to my son’s are being prepared for you."
"I don’t understand," James was confused.
"The laws forbidding same sex bondings are no longer valid. All civil rights laws of my Confederation are immediately bestowed on occupied worlds. If you wish to have a male guide, it is your right. Take as much time as you need to get to know my son. If you want to bond with him, you have my blessing. I was ready to let Blair make you his Consort. Should I be any less ready for him to be your Guide?" Where was the conquering warlord? This man was more of a father than Lord William Ellison ever had been.
Blair laid a hand on James' arm.
"Let me take you to your rooms. I'm sure that the trip couldn't have been very comfortable for a sentinel."
The prince led James into a well-appointed suite of rooms. Servants were already busy removing items that would cause a sentinel distress. Things that would just collect dust. Scented items. Garishly colored artwork was replaced with more soothing paintings or tapestries. Sheets were being replaced.
"The warlord said you were too valuable to be a slave, but neither of you said why."
"I was nothing more than a very young university student conscripted into the army when his armies’ siege on Rainier continued to the point that children were fighting the war that our parents wouldn’t concede. I have many degrees in what most people would consider useless subjects. I was captured by a general who thought that Lord Simon could be bribed with a bit of young flesh. I was only fifteen years old at the time. Simon was horrified at the very notion of a child as a pleasure slave. He adopted me and eventually made me his heir. My university training turned out to be very useful in ending the conflict on Rainier. I've been with him for nearly ten years. I love with him very much. For such a large and powerful man, he is very gentle."
"Why are you willing to mate with me?"
"You need me and I feel a bond between us already. But beyond that is the simple fact that I find you very attractive. Have you never looked in a mirror, James? You are beautiful. But the bond you need to survive is stronger if it includes more than a guide. The strongest sentinels on Home World were often members of extended family units. Those without guides went insane or committed suicide."
"Those sentinels were deeply loved by their mates." James remembered the tales of Home World's great Sentinels. One of them had been his ancestor.
"And you will be loved by Lord Simon and me."
"How can you be so sure of that?"
"Because he asked if you wanted me as your guide. He has given us the choice. He didn't have to do that. He could have simply given you to me. I don't have to marry you to take you to bed. He had the servants in here before we could get here to make this suite comfortable for you. "
"You know, don't you?"
"That you have never been with anyone -- male or female? I knew when you said you were unbonded. Cascade's watchmen are trained from the moment the gene for enhanced senses manifests. Guides are carefully chosen for them by older watchmen. Sexual experimentation is impossible for a watchman as it opens the empathic bonds between the participants. Bonds are usually forged during the teenaged years. It's easier on the watchman if the bond is formed as early as possible. On some worlds, sentinels are bonded as young as twelve."
James blushed.
A servant came forward.
"Yes, Cassandra?"
"Are the rooms satisfactory? We removed or changed everything as the master ordered."
"Thank you, Cassandra. Tomorrow, there will be new procedures for cleaning and stocking the royal suites. And for washing clothes. You all may go now."
The servants left the two alone. James was suddenly nervous. Blair smiled.
"Nothing is going to happen tonight James. You are tired and still reeling from all this. You and I need to learn about one another first. Sex can wait for a while." Blair leaned forward and gently touched James' cheek. James gasped at the sudden pleasure he felt at so light a caress. Blair's eyes widened.
"My touch brings you pleasure?" Blair was delighted
"I never wanted anyone else to touch me."
"But you like my touch?"
James nodded and turned his lips into the palm that still caressed his face. Blair smiled.
"Well, my love, I want you to shower and get some sleep. There will be new clothing for you in the morning. I will make sure that it has been washed properly so that your skin isn't irritated. I will see you then."
"Goodnight, Prince Blair."
James took a long, hot shower and lay down to sleep. The big bed with its sinfully soft sheets was the most comfortable James had ever slept in. He cast about his new home with his hearing and located the heartbeat of his new Guide. James let the rhythmic sound lull him into peaceful dreams.
******
In his room, Blair accessed Cascade's data web for information about his new sentinel. What he read brought tears to his eyes. James had been given to the Watchmen when he was barely six years old to begin training after the birth of William Ellison's second son, Stephen. Stephen had been completely free of the Sentinel gene and was deemed by his father to be the better choice as the next ruler of Cascade. Blair remembered Stephen from the negotiations for Cascade's surrender. Blair had shared Simon's disgust for the man.
The Watchmen kept records on their members. Blair accessed these using codes surrendered by Stephen Ellison. James' scores on sense acuity tests were phenomenal even for a Sentinel. Blair was puzzled by the lack of effort to find James a Guide. The Watchmen had not even introduced him to potential mates.
Blair began to understand. James had never been intended to survive. It was a testament to the man's strength that he had. The Watchmen trained him to use his senses, but had been accessories to Lord Ellison’s plans to murder his own son.
******
James awoke the next morning to a light knock on his bedroom door. Two servants answered his call and came in with a tray and a basket of clothing. The clothes were hung into his closet or placed in the ornate bureau. The tray was placed on the bedside table. The two young women left hastily. Prince Blair passed them in the doorway.
"I swear, Prince Blair, I didn't scare them away," James answered the younger man's unspoken question.
"Let's drop the Prince bit, James. I'm just Blair."
"Would you call me Jim?"
Blair smiled and Jim felt himself responding. Jim had never felt like this. None of the watchmen who had trained him had ever made him this comfortable. No one made him yearn for their slightest touch.
"Jim. I like it. It suits you. James seems too formal for us. It is a name for formal robes, not breakfast in bed. Now have your breakfast. Everything is fresh. I've told the staff never to bring you processed food. I'm not sure how your senses would react to some of the nutritional supplements." Blair sat down on the edge of Jim's bed.
"You are taking being my Guide seriously, aren't you?" Jim asked after taking a sip of fresh squeezed juice and a bite of egg. The food was very good. He tucked hungrily into the rest. Blair found more anger that Jim seemed so unused to the smallest luxuries.
"I always take my duties seriously, but you are no mere duty. I checked into your history last night. I wanted to learn as much about you as I could. I found something disturbing. I don't think the Watchmen intended for you to find a guide."
"My own kind wanted me dead?"
"They did nothing to stop it."
"What do you intend to do?"
"Remove the leadership of the Council of the Watchmen."
"Do you think that’s wise?"
"It’s preferable to what Simon would want to do."
Jim frowned at the fierce expression on Blair’s face.
"Just what have you told Simon?"
"I gave him a full report of your records with the Watchmen. The Academy is lucky it still stands this morning. You received sub-standard training for a full Sentinel of your strength. You were given missions that no Sentinel without a Guide should ever attempt. I suspect that the fellowship of your age mates in training may have been your salvation. Your teachers noted that you were always close to those you rode beside."
"I would listen to their heartbeats."
"That’s instinctive behavior for a Sentinel. I willing to bet you slept to the sound of my heart last night."
Jim blushed.
"Is it too soon to know that I want you?" He asked.
Blair smiled at his shy Sentinel.
"I want you, too. I already consider you my husband. The connection between us has been growing steadily stronger since I touched you in the audience chamber."
First putting the breakfast tray out of the way, Jim reached out and took Blair's hand.
"I feel it as well. The hunger to mate is growing. I was told this would happen when I met my guide."
"Are you ready to claim me as your guide? I've read that the need for the guide becomes all consuming in the initial stages. The longer it is delayed, the less control a watchman has during the process."
"I've always feared that I would harm a guide having not found one early in life."
"Perhaps this is where having a male guide will be better for you. You would be less likely to hurt me."
"I don't have any idea how to claim a male guide," Jim admitted shyly.
Blair smiled.
"Perhaps I could teach you." Blair leaned forward and brushed his lips against Jim's. Neither of them was prepared for their reaction to the contact. Jim's senses reeled and he took charge of the kiss. Blair was enfolded in strong arms and pulled down onto the comfortable bed.
The taste of another mouth was new to Jim. Underneath the lingering taste of tooth cleanser was the warm honey of Blair himself. Jim searched for more of the intoxicating flavor. Blair responded to Jim's hunger with his own.
Blood pounded in Jim’s ears as Blair touched him. He was inflamed!
"Easy, Jim," Blair soothed. "Relax." Blair pulled back only a fraction to look into Jim’s glazed eyes. The Sentinel was overwhelmed from just their first kiss. He stroked Jim’s cheek and coaxed him onto his back. Then Blair pulled back to remove his clothing.
Jim was fascinated by the differences in their bodies. While his own chest was nearly hairless, Blair’s was covered in a soft sprinkles of dark curls that only increased his masculine appeal. Jim was sculpted by years of rigorous training. Blair was slender, but with a compact, wiry strength. The difference in their heights was in their legs. Blair had a runner’s legs while Jim’s were more muscular.
Jim blushed when he allowed himself to focus on Blair’s erection. Something indefinable unfurled within Jim at the sight of that length and thickness. It wasn’t that Blair was more endowed than himself. They were pretty evenly matched in that department. Jim swallowed and reached out hesitantly to touch.
"Do you like what you see?" Blair was both teasing and infinitely gentle.
Jim nodded.
Blair lowered himself so that they were touching skin to skin from groin to shoulder. Jim's eyes closed in sheer pleasure. His cock pressed upward into Blair's. The friction was maddeningly wonderful, but he wanted something else. He parted his legs, offering Blair something that he didn't truly understand, but knew was right.
"I don't know what to do," he moaned. Blair raised his head from nibbling at Jim's ears and neck.
"Jim?" Blair was sensing Jim's emotional state and what he felt almost worried him. There was too much submission in Jim's attitude. "Are you alright?"
"I'm wonderful. I want you, Blair. I want you to be a part of me."
"But I thought...Oh, my."
"Please, Blair?"
"You've never done this." It wasn't a question.
"I know what I need."
"Jim, you need to be prepared for this. We don't even have lubricant. I wasn't ready for this."
"But you will make love to me that way?"
"Oh, yes. And I will teach you to make love to me as well. But right now, let me pleasure you." Blair moved down the magnificent body to Jim's hard cock. He took the shaft gently in one hand and lowered his head, his curls falling in a curtain on Jim's legs.
Jim watched, enraptured, as Blair's tongue snaked out to gather the beads of clear fluid that had gathered on the plum colored head of the cock. Jim nearly came from that first touch. Then Blair's moist mouth engulfed him and time ceased to exist.
There was only the sensation of Blair's mouth stroking slowly up and down as the fingers of his hand caressed the shaft and Jim's balls. Blair's tongue swirled around him. It didn't take long for Jim to feel his body tighten and the fire of his ejaculation rushing forward. He tried to whimper a warning. Blair didn't stop sucking him. Not one drop of Jim's fluids were lost.
Blair sat back and contemplated the unconscious Sentinel.
"Next time, I'll be prepared."
*****
The Lady Megan Banks arrived on Cascade by shuttle in time for Simon's morning council meeting to end. Simon greeted his wife with a warm embrace and a kiss. The young woman was descended from First World Colonists. As with Blair, her slender beauty was deceptive. Lady Megan was a deadly fighter. Rather than a modern energy weapon, she carried a sword concealed about her person at all times. When they had first met, Simon had witnessed Megan's skill with the weapon as she dispatched an unwelcome "suitor."
"I'm glad you are here. I need your help with a situation."
"I thought the surrender of Cascade went smoothly?" Megan was puzzled. There were no battles being fought on the planet. The new governors were in place. All of the data codes had been changed. Repairs were underway. Prisoners were being returned.
"You got my message about James Ellison?"
"Lord Ellison's son? The Sentinel that you were given in tribute? Your last message said that he and Blair were to be bonded."
"Blair discovered that Lord Ellison gave James to the Watchmen with the clear intention of letting him die."
"He tried to have his own son killed?"
"He didn't even have the mercy to do it cleanly. He denied James a Guide for over twenty five years. To make it worse, James needs a male guide. Cascade forbids same sex bondings. While same sex bondings have been discouraged due to the low population of the planet and the need for Sentinels and Guides to reproduce, I have since learned that the actual laws forbidding the bondings were established in James' lifetime. They were enacted by Lord Ellison's decree. Lord Ellison learned from someone at the Watchman Academy that James was a homosexual."
"How could they have known?"
"Sentinels are thoroughly tested when they arrive at the Academy. The Watchmen would have noted the genetic predisposition as easily as they noted his visual acuity."
"How did James survive?"
"The fact that he was homosexual saved him. He lived among men. No sex, but he had the heartbeats of his age mates and their pheromones to inhale. He had their voices. He had friends to touch."
"And now he has Blair."
"And he has you and me."
"You have something planned." Megan saw some devious plan in her husband's eyes.
"How would you like to plan the wedding of the century?"
"Oh?"
"And an investiture. James is going to be crowned Prince of Cascade."
"This is good."
"Lord Ellison and his son Stephen are to be stripped of their lands and exiled from Cascade."
"Don't you want to draw and quarter them?" Megan asked dryly.
"Blair made me promise not to kill them. He just wants them publicly humiliated."
"I didn't make any promises."
"Megan!"
"When do I get to meet my new son-in-law?"
"Blair was visiting him in his quarters this morning. I heard from the servants that Jim was in bed naked when Blair got there." Simon smiled.
"Shall we wait until after lunch and try to visit?" Megan laughed.
"What, you don't want to try to embarrass the boys?"
*****
Jim awoke the next time feeling different -- as if he could feel a whisper of Blair’s emotions. Joy followed the realization that the bond was strengthening.
"Back among the living?" A voice teased.
Jim turned towards his desk where he found Blair sitting naked at the communications console.
"Working?"
"Making some arrangements. Checking in with Simon."
"Arrangements?"
"Just a few necessary supplies for our suites," Blair leered as he crawled back into Jim’s bed. Jim blushed furiously. Blair kissed him. "Now what do you say to a nice shower and we get out for a while?"
"Sounds good."
Blair watched appreciatively as Jim got out of bed and headed into the bathroom. The man moved with the grace of the great cats of old Earth. Cascade had its own large feline predators. Blair wondered if Jim had a spirit animal and if was one of those cats.
"Are you coming?" Jim called from the bathroom.
Blair smirked.
"I'm sure that can be arranged." He bounded off the bed and into the bathroom.
"I've always loved this place. You couldn't have chosen a better place for an occupation headquarters." Jim had stepped into the immense shower with it's locally quarried stone tiles that rivaled the finest Roman marbles of old Earth. Blair watched the water sluice over the magnificent body. His hands itched to follow the rivulets. What the hell was he waiting for? He joined Jim under the water. He reached for the soap and began lathering those magnificent shoulders.
Jim whimpered and turned to encircle Blair in his arms. He bent to kiss him hungrily.
"Touch me, Jim, " Blair coaxed, guiding Jim's hand to his penis.
Jim eagerly complied, stroking his Guide's hard shaft with increasingly sure caresses as he felt Blair's responses.
Blair's own hands were busy spreading lather over Jim's torso. He teased Jim's pinkish brown nipples to hard nubs. The two of them backed against a wall to keep from falling as their excitement grew. Blair leaned into Jim for support as he felt himself nearing completion. Jim, carried along by Blair's orgasm and the stimulation of Blair's bathing him, came as well.
They rested against the shower wall for a few moments before cleaning each other seriously. They got out and toweled each other with thick, soft bathing sheets. Finally they put on bathrobes that were finer than anything Jim had ever remembered wearing.
"So, what do you have planned for the rest of the day," Jim asked as they left the bathroom.
"I thought you might want to tell your Mom about the new man in your life, Blair," Lady Megan said. She was waiting at Jim's desk which had a full view into the bathroom.
"Lady Megan Banks may I present Sentinel James Ellison, my fiancé and bondmate. James, this is Simon's lovely wife, Lady Megan, my adoptive mother."
Lady Megan actually resembled Blair in that they both had lovely long curls and fine, fair features. Megan's eyes were even the same shade of blue. Jim was enchanted. He knelt at the Lady's feet and took her hand. He placed a kiss on the back of it.
"Milady, my honor is yours to command."
"Oh, Blair, where do they keep the men like this on this planet?"
"As far as I've seen, he's the only one of his kind."
"Then we will have to take very special care of him."
Jim blushed. He was going to have to get that habit under control.
"You two need to get dressed. Simon and I want to speak to you about your wedding and James' investiture."
"My what?" Jim asked as he rose from the floor with the feline grace Blair had noted earlier.
Blair smiled. It seemed that Simon had taken his suggestion.
"As Blair's consort you will have titles and estates. There is a formal ceremony to bestow those on you," Megan casually waved off the subject. She was good at distracting people. She didn't want James dwelling on the investiture. He didn't need to know how much power he was going to wield just yet. "But the wedding is another thing all together. We're inviting all the nobles in the sector. Blair is heir to, what is it now, son?"
"Well, Mom, with Cascade, I think it's 104 worlds."
"104?" Jim nearly choked.
"Don't worry, Jim. I'm just the heir and Simon's advisor. Simon has to run them and lead the armies."
"So, we have to plan a very big wedding."
"Mom, can't we do something simple and just broadcast it?" Blair was beginning to worry about Jim.
"Actually, your father and I have some plans for "entertainment" at the wedding."
Understanding dawned. The Ellisons.
"I guess we'll have to put up with the circus then. Jim do you think you can survive a gigantic wedding?"
"As long as at the end of it you and I belong to each other forever, I can survive any kind of wedding."
Megan was beginning to love this Sentinel as much as her adopted son. She knew that Simon already felt that way about the man. What was it about James Ellison that brought out such nurturing in strangers, but had led his own kin to plot murder by neglect?
"So, get dressed and come to our suite for lunch." Jim helped her to her feet and walked her out of his suite. "And no dallying," she admonished over her shoulder when Blair slipped his arms about Jim's waist at the door.
*****
Lunch was actually served in a small dining hall. Simon had invited three minor barons who had supported his takeover of Cascade. He had met privately with them before lunch to get their impressions of Lord Ellison and his son, Stephen. He had also asked each of them to serve as members of his cabinet on Cascade. When he turned the planet over to James, he wanted his son-in-law to have advisors he could depend on.
Joel Taggart's family dealt in explosives and weaponry. During the conflict, the Taggarts refusal to arm Cascade forces had led to sieges on their lands. Simon had compensated him.
Brian Rafe and Henri Brown were members of very old Cascade families who had built their fortunes in timber, mining and agriculture. Both young men had been dissatisfied with their families complacency with the status quo. While neither man was a Sentinel or a Guide, they rode with Border Watchmen to guard their lands. During the conflict, they had setup refugee camps rather than fight against Simon.
Rafe and Brown had ridden with Jim. Either man would gladly do so again. They trusted him implicitly. That was something they couldn't say about many of the Watchmen.
Of Lord Ellison, none of the three had anything kind to say of the ex-ruling warlord of Cascade. William Ellison had no wife. He had taken a young woman of breeding age to provide him with an heir. When Jim was born, he had sent the girl back to her parents with payment for her time. Unfortunately Ellison hadn't researched the girl's genetics as carefully as he had her family's social standing and wealth. Grace Hepplewhite was descended from exceptionally strong Sentinel stock. The traits had skipped her. Ellison had been more careful choosing a mother for Stephen Ellison. If he had only been so careful rearing the boy.
Stephen Ellison was spoiled and willful. While his body was pleasing, his personality left much to be desired. He was cruel and spiteful. He had taken a wife. The woman had taken her own life to rid her self of him. Stephen had no heir. He was sterile. A fact he desperately hid from his father, but that Taggart had learned from the woman Stephen had married and driven to suicide. The woman had been Taggart's niece, Deanna.
Taggart, Rafe and Brown would be valuable allies.
*****
"I really hate living in the country, father. Did we really have to give up the castle and the city?" Stephen Ellison was bored living in the north. The estate was quite comfortable but it wasn’t what he was used to. He lounged in his father’s study with a drink.
"Stop whining about the castle. These are very rich properties. We have a chance to rebuild our forces from here," William Ellison was studying the financial ledgers of the estate and his other resources. He was planning how to retake Cascade from Lord Banks.
"Who are you going to get to support you against the Confederation? Banks has the resources of over a hundred worlds. We couldn’t even depend on the support of this one, " Stephen argued.
"Banks isn’t the only power in this sector! He has enemies. I’m sure that some of them might be willing to form an Alliance."
"Who would be crazy enough to go against Banks?"
"That’s none of your concern."
"You aren’t crazy enough to contact Kincaid, are you? If you pursue this, we could lose everything. Banks at least let us keep our lives and the northern properties when we surrendered. Wringing that concession out of him at the negotiations was very difficult. It took all of my skills."
"You don’t sound so much like a bored dilettante, now, my boy," the elder Ellison noted shrewdly.
"Playing the spoiled rich boy, even in your presence, is necessary."
"So that no one takes you seriously?"
"Seriously enough to do business. But not enough to think that I’m going behind their backs. Raising an army is not the way to fight Banks. You have to weaken him from within."
"And what would you suggest?"
"Perhaps through a family alliance? Doesn’t Banks have a son he might want to marry off?"
"I don’t have a daughter."
"Banks isn’t adverse to same-sex unions the way you are."
"What about heirs?" William was shocked at the idea.
"Banks son is adopted. He isn’t as consumed with genetics as you are."
"And how would such an alliance help?"
"The prince will one day inherit over a hundred worlds, Father. If we don’t adopt, I’ll be his heir," pointed out. "The prince could always have an accident."
"Interesting idea. How do you propose to propose this alliance."
"Didn’t you get some sort of invitation to a celebration of some sort in a couple of weeks?"
"Yes."
"Perfect opportunity to get to know the prince."
"Then we will go to the bloody celebration."
*****
"Lady Megan is something else. She has this celebration under complete control. The whole thing is being planned without us having to lift a finger." Jim was in awe of his new mother-in-law.
"That gives us time to be together. After the wedding, you and I will have to take a more active role in planetary matters. We should enjoy the this time." Blair followed Jim into his suite.
Jim was feeling almost playful this evening, Blair noted as he watched Jim. Having the Rafe and Brown at the castle gave Jim a sense that there was something good in his past. The three of them continued Jim’s rigorous physical training. Joel Taggart was an avuncular influence that Blair enjoyed as well.
"I'm sure we could come up with ways to enjoy the rest of this evening. " Jim stretched out on his bed like a cat. Blair could almost hear him purr.
"Oh?" Blair approached the bed.
"Perhaps we could play chess?" Jim suggested as Blair knelt at the edge of the bed.
"You don't have a chess set."
"I'll have to ask Cassie about that," Jim pouted. "How about we watch a hoverball match?" Blair was working on the fastenings of Jim's clothing.
"Hoverball season's over. The Jags won the championship."
"How did I miss that?"
"There was a war going on, I think." Blair exposed Jim's chest to his gaze and lowered his head to suckle on a dusky nipple.
"That would explain it," Jim choked.
"I suggest we just amuse ourselves with what's at hand," Blair's hand had moved to Jim's hardening crotch.
"An excellent idea," Jim abandoned the playful banter and reached up to cradle Blair's head between his hands. He captured his Guide's mouth and explored it thoroughly.
Blair silently applauded this show of aggression in his Sentinel. Pulling back, he drew Jim to his knees and they undressed each other.
"What do you want, Jim?"
"I want you to make love to me, Blair. I want you to be a part of me. I want you inside."
Their loveplay had not included penetration yet. Blair was still teaching Jim the secrets of their bodies, showing Jim his own power over Blair. Blair was very secure in his own sexual identity. He enjoyed both roles with no strong preference to either. Blair wanted to be sure that the Sentinel was voicing his true needs and not submitting to what he thought his Guide wanted.
Jim still wanted him to take him.
Blair reached into the nightstand for the lubricant and placed it on the bed within easy reach. Jim pulled them down into a spooning position. He would have preferred to have been able to have done this facing Blair, but knew that it would be easier this way. The feel of Blair wrapped around him was comforting as well as arousing. He pulled his top leg forward to give Blair access.
Blair was hard against him, but he wasn't making any sudden moves towards possessing Jim. Blair pressed soft kisses along Jim's shoulder blades. His hands traced the outlines of Jim's torso from armpit to the small of Jim's back in feather light strokes, then moved forward to graze sensitive nipples and downward to rippled abs.
"Please, Blair, don't tease me!" Jim begged.
"We don't have to hurry, love," Blair soothed as he reached for the lube.
"Please," Jim whimpered.
"Relax, Jim, no more teasing." Jim felt the cool lubricant on Blair's fingers as he touched him intimately, gently seeking entrance. This much they had done before. Jim shifted, pushing back onto Blair's hand.
"Harder, Blair. Stretch me. I need you tonight."
Blair smiled into Jim's shoulder. His Sentinel was a pushy bottom. His reservations evaporated. He added more lube and began to stretch Jim in earnest. He very deliberately frustrated Jim's efforts to have Blair stimulate his prostate enough to make him come.
"Now, Blair!" Jim soon demanded. Blair removed his fingers and moved to claim a searing kiss from Jim before slicking his cock. He pressed forward into Jim's tight sheath.
Jim accepted the fullness, eagerly meeting each thrust. This was what he'd longed for. Blair was claiming him at last. Jim belonged to his Guide. His Guide belonged to him.
When Blair's hand reached around to close around his shaft and stroke him in time with the brilliant flashes of pleasure that seared his mind each time his prostate was nudged, Jim was lost. Blair's own orgasm followed as Jim spilled his seed over Blair's hand. They were one.
Blair didn't want to move. He wanted to stay joined to his Sentinel forever.
"You will always be a part of me," Jim whispered.
"You can hear my thoughts?"
"Not exactly, but your feelings are very clear to me, now. The bond is set."
*****
"I feel like I've stepped into a bad gay remake of Cinderella," Jim protested as Megan had him model his clothing for the Grand Ball that was the cover for his wedding to Blair. He did have to admit that the formal wear did look very good. Blair would be proud of him.
"I guess that makes me your "fairy god-mother-in-law?'" Megan asked with a completely straight face.
They both laughed.
"At least you don't have to worry about all of your finery disappearing at midnight."
"And the Prince isn't going to have to hunt for me across the land."
"Just through half the Castle," Blair noted from the doorway of chamber off the Grand Ballroom where Megan had hidden Jim.
"You aren't supposed to be here!" Megan fussed. "You should be mingling with the nobles, discussing politics, furthering Simon's political agenda."
"I intend to escort Jim into the Grand Ballroom." Blair risked Megan's wrath by slipping his arms around Jim for a hug that threatened to wrinkle his fine clothes.
"You don't think that he should make an entrance?" Megan asked.
"As much fun as it would be to see him descend the Grand Staircase and come to me, I'd rather have him announced with me on his arm."
"Do you have to talk about me as if I weren't here?" Jim griped.
"Sorry, Jim. Which would you prefer?"
"My father and brother are in that room. According to Rafe, Stephen has been making inquiries about Blair. I want to stake my claim from the moment I walk in the room." Rafe had been keeping Jim informed until it was time for him to make his appearance.
"Don't worry, love. When we are announced, no one is going to have any doubts as to your claims," Blair's statement held more meaning Jim knew. But what? It wasn't something he could tell through the bond.
"I must take my place with your father, Blair. It is almost time. Now stop mussing Jim." Megan gave them both a kiss on the cheek before sweeping out of the room on a cloud of silk and very subtle perfume.
The two of the them stood there in stunned silence for a moment. Then Jim looked sideways at his beautiful mate.
"So, I guess we don't have time for a quickie?"
*****
Simon and Megan took their places on the dais. Simon had protested the throne-like arrangement, but Megan had insisted that it was necessary. Simon was a Warlord, the sovereign lord of the nobles gathered here. While he did not claim the title of Emperor, that was what he was. The Archbishop and the Elder from Simon's home world's Sentinel Academy stood at their side. A herald took his place at the foot of the Grand staircase.
Simon had watched the Ellisons carefully this evening. William was carefully testing the waters to judge his acceptance among the nobles of Simon's court and his chances of rising above his defeat. Stephen was trying to arrange an alliance with Simon through Blair. Simon was amused. These two had played directly into his hands.
Simon made sure that William and Stephen were near the dais, but not too close, when he signaled the herald to announce his sons.
"My lords and ladies, The Grand Prince Blair Jacob Sandburg-Banks, heir to the Confederation presents his bonded mate, Sentinel James Joseph Ellison, Prince of Cascade."
To Jim's credit, he didn't trip when the last title was announced. He merely took Blair's offered hand and walked down the stairs with his head held high. He puffed a bit more when he heard the complimentary comments being whispered about him. He chuckled and smiled beautifully for Blair as they approached Simon and Megan.
William Ellison gasped at the announcement. James, bonded to Banks' son? Stephen was incensed. This ruined their plans. He turned to his father and was suddenly afraid at what he saw in his father's eyes. This was more than anger at losing the war.
William surged forward, unmindful of the armed guard that suddenly surrounded him or the angry angel that stood between him and genetic freak that dared claim the Ellison name.
"Why are you still alive? I made sure that the Watchmen couldn't bond you to anyone. I made you a slave. Now you dare claim to be a prince?" William pushed Blair aside and moved toward Jim.
Simon bolted up from the dais and grabbed Ellison by the throat, lifting him easily from the floor.
"You will not touch my son or his Sentinel." Simon tossed William to a guard. "Hold him and his son." The guards had seized Stephen when William had pushed Blair. "You are to be stripped of all remaining titles and lands. You are to be banished to the penal colony of Oz. Should you ever return to Cascade, you lives are forfeit. Hold them quietly until the ceremony is over and then take them away." The guard silenced any protest the Ellisons might have made as they were forcibly moved to the back of the ballroom.
Megan descended the dais and enfolded the trembling Sentinel in her arms. They hadn't expected such hatred from William.
"Oh, my baby boy. He'll never hurt you again," she whispered in his ear. "Now, we have to get your bonding blessed, okay?" He looked down into her eyes and nodded. He straightened and let Megan give his hand to Blair. With the physical contact, Blair's unconditional love for Jim was magnified by Simon and Megan's tender regard. Indeed there seemed to even be a surge of affection from others in the ballroom. The wounds in his heart began to mend.
Jim followed Simon and Megan to the dais to meet the Arch Bishop and the Elder for the blessings of the Faith and the acknowledgment of the Sentinels on his bond with Blair. The ceremony was simple and moving. After the exchange of traditional wedding vows, the Elder produced a set of gold bands for them to wear on their left hands.
"Since ancient times rings have been symbols of a bond. The Sentinels have maintained this tradition as a symbol of the bond between Sentinel and Guide." Blair and Jim placed one on each other's hand.
Simon spoke to the assembled nobles.
"Prince Blair is my chosen heir to the confederation. On this day, I have named his mate, James Ellison, the Prince of Cascade and its territorial governor. All lands and titles formerly held by William Ellison are forfeit to James. All debts owed to William Ellison or his son Stephen are forgiven."
There was a round of cheers from the crowd, especially those who owed the Ellisons money.
At the back of the ballroom Stephen and William Ellison's last hopes died as they were drug away.
*****
Jim flexed his sore feet. He had danced for hours. Mostly with Blair, but he had to dance with members of court as he was introduced to various nobles. He had been glad when the party was over and they could retire. He had wanted a hot shower and bed.
"I'm glad we get to skip the glass slipper nonsense. And don't start with the references to fur versus glass slippers in the original Cinderella tale, " Jim forestalled Blair's lecture with a kiss. Sometimes Blair's intelligence and memory for obscure facts could be downright frightening. They were cuddled together in the middle of their bed. Jim held Blair between his legs as he sat against the mound of pillows against the headboard. They had decided to keep Jim's suite as their own. Cassie had moved Blair's things into the suite earlier.
"Are you going to be okay with everything? That scene with your father was painful for you. I could feel it."
"It was a shock to see him and know that he hated me so much after all these years. Not for anything I ever did, but because I existed and wasn't the genetic ideal he sought."
"Do you have any clue why he hates Sentinels?"
"I don't know that it was Sentinels so much as it was the genetic anomaly that my senses and my sexual orientation represented. He wanted something ideal. Stephen seemed to fit his mold."
"Too bad good genes can't guarantee a good man. What I've learned about Stephen would interest law enforcement officials in several localities. The information may help solve certain cold cases."
"I don't think I want to know the details."
"We'll let Simon handle them."
"Simon and Megan took care of me tonight," Jim's voice was almost childlike.
"That's our Mom and Dad."
"Could I call them that?"
Blair looked up into Jim's eyes and saw the need he could feel along the bond.
"I think if you call Simon, Dad, you might be able to get the keys to that cool new shuttle for our honeymoon trip."
Jim smiled.
"You think?"
"And if you call Megan, Mom, expect waterworks. She adores you, love. I half expected her to pull that antique sword of hers at the ball."
"Simon wouldn't let her carry it tonight."
"She doesn't go anywhere unarmed."
"I never said she was unarmed."
"Oh."
"Say, this is our wedding night."
"I was beginning to think you had forgotten."
"I would never forget a thing like that. I was just a bit distracted."
"So, what do you have planned?"
"Well, it seems to me that we have some lessons to complete."
Jim pushed Blair onto his back urging his legs apart. Jim knelt between them and reached for the lube he'd stashed under the pillows earlier.
"Oh?" Blair's eyes were bright. His sentinel had a new light in his eyes.
"I want to see how much I've learned from my teacher."
"Class is in session."
And they lived happily ever after.
July 31, 2001
