4

Tine continued to watch from the shadows. It wasn't time for he and his mate to meet. He had disappeared from sight during the chaos that had occurred with Lord Anton and his son, Ashton. if would seem that their society had become somewhat matriarchal. He  had not realized that the women ran the households and the town. But looking around, he began to notice that the men deferred to the women and that the older the woman, the more deference was paid to her.

This was very different in the way he was raised. The clutch was very male-oriented and very much male ran. Women are the ones who paid deference to men in his society. Not the other way around. It would take some adjusting, but he and his mate would rule together and teach the villagers to as well. It had been that way with his mother and father. They had ruled well together. His memories of them was few, but when he did think about them, he felt their love surround him. Even now, 700 years later, the remembrance of their love warmed his heart and he could only hope that he and his mate would share something similar.

While he was not over taken with sentiment, he did love his parents and he wanted that strong of a bond with his mate. Every male in the clutch did. When his kind mated, it was for life. There was no others. The bond would not allow it.

Tine was jarred back to reality by Ashton's sister speaking to him. "There you are, Lord Tine. I have been looking for you all night. I thought perhaps you might like.....some companionship." She said in a simpering voice as she shamelessly rubbed herself against him. While she thought she was being inviting, Tine felt nothing but disgust. She was not his mate and his beast wanted to tear her apart for choosing to approach him in this manner. He chose that moment to look down at her and let his disgust show clearly on his face.

"You are no better than the whores in the street. You offer freely to me what should belong to your husband on your wedding night. Tell me, little slut, what it is that you hope to accomplish. Because if it to win my favor with your body, I should tell you that your body, face or mannerism do nothing for me but raise my ire and the level of disgust and pity that I have for you. Now, leave, you trollop, before I let your mother in on  your rather disgusting behavior." The last two sentences were said while his beast growled, alerting her like his eyes had alerted her father earlier tonight, that he wasn't quite human.

Mira watched Ashton's sister scuttle from the shadows by the large open windows with a look that was equal parts terror and embarrassment. She wondered what was so interesting about the shadows that she almost went to investigate. But she was stopped by the lead village elder, Marta. 

"Come child. Let us talk about the choosing tomorrow. I must prepare you for what is to come. Do you understand?" Marta gave a shrewd look over to the shadows where Tine was standing and gave a sharp nod.

"Yes Marta. Momma has already told me that I will be blindfolded and stood in a room full of men from the surrounding area that are eligible for marriage. She stated that I would know which one was my future husband when I smell him. When I told her that was silly, she merely smiled and said that I would understand." Mira said with a slight frown.

Walking beside her, Marta nodded her head sagely. "Truly, it is not something that can be explained. Only experienced."

Tine stood there in the shadows, listening. As he listened, his chest swelled with pride. They had kept the teaching of the clutch. This was the only way that a female had power, was in picking her mate. 

Picking a mate was left up to the sense of smell. Even humans, given enough time, could be trained to use the sense of smell. It had been bred into them for 700 years. And evidently, it worked well. Young women of age usually chose well and it was rare that the marriage failed.

Tine was proud of his heritage, realizing that his parents had a hand in this. He watched his mate and realized that they were the next generation to take that step. When he revealed who and what he was tomorrow, many of the villagers would be frightened. However, the villager elders knew who and what he was. Even the Lore keepers knew. But yet, it would not be revealed until tomorrow after Mira chose him as her husband. 

He knew she would chose him because of her reaction to his scent earlier in the forest. When he had followed her to the ruins, he had hoped that she would be his. His beast had risen up and released his unique scent and it had done what he hoped. It had called to her. Her beauty was not like the others. There was something other worldly about her.

Her face was almost triangular in shape with prominent and high cheek bones. Her nose while straight and pert was not hooked or humped in the middle. It was narrow and flared at her nostrils. He mouth, well her mouth was stuff a young boys dreams were made of. Her bottom lip was full and generous, the top was not quite as full. But full enough for him to want to take it between his and suck on it. The rest of her body was hidden from view. Her dress was draped around her to suggest more than reveal and it was driving Tine insane. Her skin seemed to glow from within and possess an almost pearlescent look. It would be soft, of that fact, he was very sure. She was a lady and did not work in the fields or hawk wares in the market every day in the sun, where her skin would age and begin to get a leathery look as she grew older.

Tine looked from Mira to Lady Amethyst and could not help but realize how like her mother she really looked. The other worldly look was definitely inherited. He would bet that the mother had Clutch heritage. The grace that both women had in their bearing was undeniable. Not only that, their beauty out shone all others around them. 

Tine watched as his mate danced with his hostess's youngest son. With his sensitive hearing, he could easily hear their conversation.

"Whaa-a-at's the matttter, MIra?" John asked. He might stutter, but the man was a flawless dancer. His every move complimented his partner and made her look even more graceful.

Mira frowned as John twirled them around the room, she could have sworn she caught a whiff of the smell from the forest earlier. "It's nothing John. I was just looking forward to meeting the visitor to our village. After all, we don't get many new people here, unless they are new traders and merchants coming to trade with us. I did get a glimpse of a man with great height and size. He appeared to have hair that looks like it was pure polished bronze. I couldn't see anything else. The crowd had been too great and I am too short to have seen much else."