Four hours later, his jet was setting down at the small airport in the Kingdom of Asszeria. Tanlir yawned and deplaned. His guards handed him off to the freshly arrived ones aboard the waiting limosine.
He climbed aboard and was immediately set upon by his two youngest brothers.
"Hi Lir, how was the trip?" Shane asked excitedly.
"Yeah, tell us about Megakat City? Is it as weird as the stories we hear about it?" Genrey asked just as eagerly.
Tanlir smiled indulgently. He spent the trip to the palace answering his brothers myriad of questions. They didn't care about the proposal only the excitement of hearing about another country.
All of them were kept on a tight leash and weren't allowed to travel too far from their country. This trip had been a first for one of them and the others would be hounding him for all the details.
Their father had planned for his sons to take charge of a handful of embassies he planned to install in various major cities around the world. This was to give his sons experience in handling the affairs of their Kingdom while conducting business in another country. He was attempting to move his rather insular country into the bigger world community. This would be the first step.
It was late in the day and he was in time for dinner but not a formal briefing. He would have to make an appointment with his father's Seneschal for the next day. He was pummeled and harassed good naturedly by his other brothers as he walked to the dining room.
They quickly ceased once they walked into the dining room, becoming the proper princes they were, moving with grace and elegant manners to their seats. They stood by their chairs and awaited their father and mother's arrival. Moments later, the King and Queen stepped into the room. The King escorted his mate to her seat, a servant pulling her chair out so that she might sit and doing the same for the King.
Once the royal pair was seated, the rest of the household took theirs. The huge dining room table was surrounded by all the relations that lived in the castle. The princes sat three to each side of their parents then various grandparents, aunts, uncles, and cousins finished out the grouping.
Noise was sedate as was proper in a royal household. Polite conversation murmured providing a low hum to the air as the meal progressed. When desert was served, the King called to Tanlir.
"My son, welcome home. I trust your trip was an interesting one?" He asked warmly.
"Oh yes, father. Though there wasn't much time to see the city properly, what I did get to see was amazing." Tanlir reported dutifully.
"Tell us a little about this grand city, son," His mother asked with a bright smile.
Tanlir related all that he'd seen of Megakat City and answered all their questions as best he could. Everyone was stunned to learn that some of the stories they had heard were true after all. Conversation was very animated as everyone discussed their favorite story with the added information Tanlir had brought them.
Dinner ended on that interesting note. After his parents departure, Tanlir quickly escaped before his relatives could snag him and raced for his quarters. Thankfully, ones quarters were inviolate. No one was allowed to enter without permission and this was strictly adhered to.
In a place where one's every move was watched by security for their safety and by the curious public, there was a great need for privacy. So it made sense that the right to it was guarded jealously.
Tanlir sighed in relief when he made it to his sanctuary. His luggage was already unpacked and put away except for the trinkets he'd collected which were now on his desk in his study. His briefcase was there as well. Each brother had large quarters that included, a bedroom with sitting area and large bathroom, dressing room, living/entertaining space, and office.
It was nice to be home but his heart now ached for his new mate. Suddenly feeling depressed, he went to the large bay window of his study.
His large wood desk was in a corner away from the window but facing it. Many built-in bookcases lined the walls and an elegant cabinet with many beautiful and fanciful treasures displayed within was on the other side of the window. The huge window boasted a padded seat where he could sprawl and read when the mood struck him. He was an amateur artist and would spend his odd free moments drawing with the sun providing his only light as he sketched.
He sat down, crossed his arm over his chest and leaned against the window as he looked out into the gathering darkness. In the light of day, his home was a beauty to behold. The castle was the centerpiece, more than two centuries old, it stood at the base of a huge mountain that was part of a ring of mountains that protected the kingdom. It's walls and many ramparts were a sandstone color and tended to glitter in the sun. The kingdom itself was hidden by a huge forest canopy except for the many miles of fields at one end for agriculture and the airport.
Even though the community was nearly as modern as Megakat City, it had been kept pristine. Unlike the big city he'd visited with it's skyscrapers, highways, noisy city traffic, large population, factories, etc., his home still used horses with only a small legion of energy efficient vehicles that were used for moving supplies and other heavy things. It's pace was quieter, more sedate. They lived within the forest not outside it and they wouldn't dream of cutting it down. It was part of their defense as well as for its serenity. The most glaring bit of modernization was the airport but that was all. The power needed to run the city was produced by a huge waterfall at the far end of the valley with the power plant hidden in the mountain itself.
Tanlir wished his mate could see this. He knew it would soothe his mate's stress from the hectic life he lived in such a busy and dangerous city. Thinking of Ulysses made the pain in his heart worse. He hadn't realized just how much he would miss him and it had only been hours. What would days, weeks, even months, feel like? He shuddered at the thought of it. Shaking himself, he pulled away from the window and went to his desk to make a call. His father's seneschal told him that the council would be meeting at ten the next morning to discuss the proposal he had brought back. He thanked the Kat and hung up.
Yawning, he headed for his bathroom. A hot shower would be good right now and hopefully he would be able to sleep. He needed to be fresh for the meeting in the morning.
In a noisy city miles away...
Feral sighed tirededly as he prepared a simple meal for himself in his apartment. Night was falling as he ate it watching a little TV. He tidied up his living space, did the dishes and tossed a batch of laundry in the washer that he'd put in the dryer in the morning, then made his way to bed.
Instead of falling right to sleep, he tossed and turned restlessly. Angry at himself, he climbed back out and walked through his darkened apartment to the balcony door in his living room.
Standing just inside the open door, he inhaled the cool night air and stared with hooded eyes over the brightly lit city scape. He'd be surprised if he'd known Tanlir was doing the same in his far away kingdom. They stared at the same rising moon and wished for each others company.
Feral couldn't believe he was feeling so bereft. Tanlir hadn't been gone that long but it still felt like much longer. He shifted restlessly. Tanlir could be gone months before he was allowed back here, he couldn't moon about it all that time. He had too much on his plate to be feeling miserable. He had to put this new feeling aside or it would distract him at a dangerous moment.
Well that was fine and dandy when he was at work but what about now when everything was quiet and he was supposed to be getting sleep? He snorted at himself but couldn't shake the very real desire to be embraced by those warm arms and feel his caresses. He'd been alone for soo long and now he wasn't, in his heart and mind anyway, his body was another matter. It begged for its mate.
'Well you aren't going to get it,' He admonished himself, firmly, closing the balcony door and going back to bed.
Unfortunately, even though he might order himself to put this problem aside, his sleeping mind had other ideas as it reached for its mate and made love in the world of his dreams.