ELRETH

Every step she took towards the tree homes was pressed harder into the dirt. She breathed through her teeth, hands clenched to fists and stalked across the meadow outside the cave.

She was going to kill Gar. She would actually murder him. And she would enjoy it. She was going to enter his home, open his throat, and paint the walls with his blood. And then she was going to tell every female who would listen about the day five years ago when she'd come home and discovered him experimenting with a star-fruit—

She was passing the walk between his tree and her parent's when she caught his scent—fresh, and leading right to her parent's door. She turned on her heel and stormed into her parent's tree instead, throwing the door open so hard it swung back and cracked against the wall, startling her mother—who whirled, immediately taking a sparring stance—and Gar, whose hands came up defensively.

"You!" she growled.

Gar's eyes widened—and twinkled.

It was a family rule that when siblings fought, they did so in human form since everyone was far less likely to lose an eye. Or a limb. But Elreth was so angry, she shuddered with the force of the urge to leap into her beast.

"Elreth!" her mother cried, obviously relieved. "Are you okay?! Gar said—"

"Do you have any idea what you just did you fucking asshole?" Elreth snarled, stalking across the room towards him.

"Now, now, Sis," Gar chuckled, backing up slowly… and grinning. "I was worried about you, running home like your tail was on fire—"

"I can't believe you would do that!"

"Call it brotherly concern—"

"I can't believe you would ruin this for me!" she shrieked and leaped on him.

"El!" her mother cried. But Elreth had already locked an arm around Gar's neck and had an ankle locked behind his, working to shift his balance and trip him backwards, while he struggled, using his bulk to lift her so she lost traction.

"Elreth! Gar, put her down!"

"You fucking asshole!" Elreth screamed. "Everything has to be about you, doesn't it? You can't just let anything go and… let me have a moment."

"Are you fucking kidding me?" he roared, struggling with her, trying to get her off, but Elreth was raging to the point of tears.

"Both of you, stop this!"

"You have no clue, no idea what you did—what you ruined. It's all just a joke to you!" Elreth seethed, twisting his hair because it always made his eyes water and he was never as effective when he couldn't see.

"Ow! Fuck! Elreth!" Gar spluttered, trying to pull her off without breaking her arm, but if she couldn't shift, she was sure as hell going to make sure he paid for this.

"The one part of this I was going to discover before you—you had to turn it into a joke!"

"Elreth, stop!"

She got a thumb in his throat and pressed until he gagged and was forced to flip her so he could breathe.

She hit the ground on her back with a thud and the air rushed out of her lungs. But she didn't even let herself think, just leaped to her feet.

"Are you fucking crazy, El?" Gar choked, spluttering. "You could have killed me!" He had his hands up ready to take her—much more seriously then he'd defended himself earlier.

"I want to kill you!" she screamed, her chest still heaving. "You stole this from me because you can't take anything seriously!"

"Stole what?!"

"My first mating! My first time with my mate! You stole it you motherfucker and I can't… I can't… How am I ever going to…" Elreth buried her face in her hands, frustrated and so angry.

"El?" her mother breathed. "What did you say? What…"

She heard her mother and brother both breathe deeply, taking in her scent. But all she could do was cover her face and fight off tears.

She was an adult.

She was Queen.

And she was so desperately embarrassed she wished the floor would open up and swallow her.

"El," her mother said, her voice too high. "El, the… your scent… you and Aaryn?"

"We bonded," she cried, turning on her mother, ignoring her brother's wide-eyed shock. "The mating bond snapped into place before we'd even… before we could…"

Her mother's face was wide with shock and joy. "Elreth… that's wonderful!"

"NO, IT'S NOT, BECAUSE DAD WALKED IN ON US."

There was a choking noise from behind her and Elreth whipped around to find Gar staring at her, one hand over his mouth—hiding a smile, no doubt. But he had one hand, palm up, towards her.

"You ruined it!" she shrieked, and hated herself for how out of control and stupid she sounded.

But Gar was fighting laughter, even as he made all the signals of submission. "I'm sorry," he gasped. "I'm sorry, El. I didn't think… I didn't expect you guys to actually be—"

"What did you think we were doing?! Why else would you send Dad in?"

"Well, I mean, I knew there'd be something. But… you go, Sis. You moved a lot faster than I expected—" he spluttered.

"Oh, Gar," their mother sighed.

With a hiss, Elreth leaped forward, shoving him back, and instead of fighting her this time, Gar put his hands up in surrender.

"I'm sorry, El, really—"

"No, you aren't! You're laughing!"

"Only because… I wish I'd seen Dad's face—" he spluttered.

"Gar!" their mother snapped, but Elreth was already flying at him, screaming.

"You ruined it! You stole this from me! You steal everything!" She shoved him so hard he stumbled back a step. "It's always about you and your issues and your fucking determination to ruin everything you don't care about." She shoved him again. "Why are you even here?! Why do you bother coming back? You're just going to leave again anyway, right?" She hit his chest again and he thumped up against the wall, his eyes fierce and narrowed, but he didn't fight her. "No responsibility for you. No purpose. Just get drunk and bang a few females, then sleep off the hangover—"

"El," their mother started, but Elreth was past thinking.

"That is not what I do," Gar snarled.

"BULLSHIT!"

"El," their mother snapped. "Stop. I know you're embarrassed, but you need to stop."

She whirled on her mother. "You're seriously going to take his side? Do you realize what he did?"

"It's not about sides, it's about—"

"No! I am so sick of him ruining everything!" She turned back on her brother. "Dad put up with your shit for years. But he doesn't get to make the decisions anymore, Gar, you know that, right?"

"El!"

Gar's face went hard. "Trust me, I'm aware."

"I'll give you fucking aware—you want to stay in the Tree City, Gar? You want to keep that tree? Then you ask me if you can, like a good little pussy."

"Elreth, stop!" her mother shouted. But Elreth faced her brother down who'd drawn himself up to his full height and was staring down at her, his upper lip peeling back from his teeth.

"Shut the fuck up, El, you don't know what you're talking about," Gar growled.

"Me?! I don't know what I'm talking about? You take a step off that fucking high horse of yours and you ask me if you can live off me. Because between us I'm the only one who knows anything about what it takes to keep your ass in food and clothing and whatever the hell else you decide to waste your life on."

"El," her mother snapped. "Stop!"

"No! I have never used my dominance against you, Gar. Ever! But I'm done. This was a step too far, so you can fucking humble yourself and ask me to support you. Because if you won't, unless you're going to actually contribute something to the Tribe, maybe you better run off to wherever—or whoever—you disappear to, and this time you don't come back!"