A TALE OF BROTHERS

— by Jeff Karamales

Chapter 5
 

Elias found his way to the small dining area where Laird Aiden and his wife normally took breakfast, the Clan patriarch having had to go out of town for a few days on business. The fox had learned that the aged Scot was an extremely talented pilot due to his past in the Terran Navy, and the family had majority holdings in a large aerospace firm that produced navigational and life support equipment. As it was, Lady Evelyn was enjoying a cup of tea while basking in the sun that streamed through the bay window that overlooked the gardens.

  “Good morning, Elias,” the woman said cheerfully. “How did you sleep?”

  “Not to put too fine a point on it,” the fox grinned, “but like the dead.”

  “Well, you did have a busy night at the Faire, I hear,” she said with a knowing smile.

  Elias couldn’t keep his ears from folding back or lowering his head a little. “Ahhh…you might say that,” he answered quietly. “I’m really quite astounded by the amount of history here,” the fox said trying to tactfully change subjects.

  Evelyn laughed delicately. “Too much, sometimes! There are some that have nothing better to do than research the past. That’s one of the reasons I love my Aiden. While he appreciates his heritage, it doesn’t consume him. He’s firmly planted in the here-and-now but with an eye on the future. For some of the families and Clans what-has-been is all they talk about and family and Clan is all that matters.”

  “I can see that,” Elias agreed. “Like the history here, it’s a little intimidating. As far as I know I’m the last of my family. I suppose if something happens to me my family name will just disappear.” The fox had just started to get into the tale of losing both parents and being an only child when Alistair made his way down, yawning a little but looking as if he’d gotten more than just a few hours of sleep. “I guess I never really thought that something like that was, well, important, before.”

  Evelyn looked at her son’s best friend. “Don’t you want children of your own someday?”

  Alistair raised his eyebrows in interest as he poured a cup of coffee instead of tea, for once keeping his mouth shut and his comments to himself. Whether it was from a sense of tact or still being partially asleep was moot, Elias was simply glad of his friend’s silence.

  “I don’t know,” the fox finally answered with a slight shrug. “I mean, I’ll be on long tours with whatever ships they need me on. That sort of precludes me settling down. What kind of life would it be for a mate to always be alone, then maybe get a couple of days and nights of normalcy before I had to leave again? Never mind that any children would only have half a family most of the time. I don’t know if I could do that to those I’m supposed to love. It just doesn’t seem right. Well, unless I find a mate within the SPF. Then we could get joint posting, but that would mean no children for a while.”

  “At least it shows that you’re thinking of more than just yourself,” Evelyn answered sagely and with a no of approval. “That’s actually a very mature perspective.”

  Elias chuckled and helped himself to another cup of coffee and a pastry called a scone that was rather appealing in that it wasn’t overly sweet. “I don’t know about mature, but I don’t think I would feel right. Then I’d have to worry all the time about any possible infidelity. I wouldn’t really be able fault a potential mate for that, either. Everyone has needs for love and affection and if I’m not there to help with that, my partner would have to find it somewhere else, right?”

  Alistair shook his head and rubbed the bridge of his nose. “Don’ ye think yer a wee bit premature on talkin’ o’ marriage an’ such? There’s time Toddy-boy.”

  Elias smiled at is friend. “Young or not, it’s food for thought. You’re right, though. Let’s see how things go after our tour on the Vanguard, first.” 

*** 

  Alistair insisted on ensuring that Elias was far from bored, and engaged the fox in different activities during the day and then took his friend to different attractions and venues at night. Elias was still surprised that Scotland, while part of a much larger province, could be so modern and yet have so many reminders of its rich history. That was when he wasn’t so intoxicated from Alistair’s normal nocturnal haunts of different pubs or other relaxation establishments.

  When the third day since the Faire of Clans dawned, the human oddly had nothing planned, which was somewhat surprising until one of the house servants politely knocked on the door to the fox’s room to announce that Elias had a visitor. “I do?” he asked in confusion.

  “Aye, Sir. I’ve also taken the liberty of laying out proper attire for you,” the man said before departing.

  Scratching an ear in puzzlement, Elias headed downstairs to the entry foyer to find Annie waiting for him. The girl turned around as soon as she heard the fox treading down the stairway, looking up and smiling beatifically. Unlike the night of the Clan Faire, Annie had let her straight, auburn hair fall to her shoulders, her bangs hanging in a perfect line just above her brows with small gold colored clips to keep her silken tresses out of her face. She was dressed in a white shirt with a ruffled neck and tight, cropped jacket of dark green. Her breeches were tan and so tight and form fitting that they seemed to be painted on to the fox’s way of thinking, and her legs sported high, black boots. In her hands she had some sort of abbreviated hat and a single rose of deep red.

  “This is a surprise, Annie,” Elias said with a smile as he took the last step and stood at the bottom of the staircase, admiring the young woman.

  “It shouldnae be,” the girl replied with a smile and blush to her cheeks as she twirled the rose between a dainty thumb and forefinger. “If ye remember correctly, ye’re tae be havin’ an outin’ wi’ me today.”

  “I’m sorry,” the fox said, the servant’s comment about proper attire finally making sense. “You said something about showing me around the area, right?”

  “Somethin’ like that,” Annie answered. “Actually, seein’s how it’s such a fine day, I was thinkin’ about a nice long ride an’ picnic out by the loch.”

“Ride?” Elias inquired. “What kind of ride?”

  “Well, horseback, o’ course!” Her smile faltered and she touched the rose to her lips. “Och! I didnae e’en think to ask if’n ye could ride!” Annie exclaimed in chagrin. “I’m so very sorry, Elias!”

  The fox smiled warmly and touched the back of her hand. “To be honest the only horse I know was the one I went through the Academy with. I’ve never even seen a mundane one.” Elias tilted his head to the side. “I think I’d like it if you taught me, though.” The relief in the girl’s eyes at a possible solution brightened considerably. “Can you give me a few minutes to change? I think the butler knew what you had planned and put out something for me to wear.”

  “O’ course I’ll wait for ye!” Annie replied a little huskily, leaning forward a little. She watched as the white furred fox smiled and trotted back up the stairs while twirling the rose under her chin before sniffing at it. “Ye are definitely worth waiting for…” she whispered to herself, finally able to take a much needed breath. 

*** 

  Once ensuring the fox had the basics down, meaning that there was little chance that he’d fall from the saddle, the pair departed, Annie having selected one of the more tame quarter horse geldings that resided in the Gordon stable that went by the name of Bentley. Annie was more than happy to put the fox on one of the more docile mounts, meaning that she wouldn’t have to worry overly much and could concentrate on enjoying Elias’ company. At the moment, the fox was in front of her as she nominally observed to ensure that the fur was comfortable in the saddle, though most of her attention was riveted to the manner in which Elias filled out the modified riding breeches, his tail only serving to ensure the girl’s attention was drawn to that point.

  It was several moments before Annie realized that the fox was speaking to her and she jerked upright in her saddle, her own mare reacting to the sudden movement and whickering in admonishment. “I’m sorry, Elias,” the girl said with a blush coloring her pale cheeks. “I didnae quite catch that.”

  “I asked where we were going. The Maker knows where we’ll wind up with me leading,” the fox said as he turned around to look at his companion with a smile.

  “Oh. Right!” Annie brought her mind back from the rather interesting tangents it had been working on and nudged her mare up so that she was beside Elias. “There be several ridin’ trails, though this is th’ one we be wantin’. It meanders through th’ woods fer a bit before letting out on some fields near the loch. I thought tha’ would be a good place fer our picnic. It’s bein’ quite serene and appropriately private.”

  There had been an old riding helmet that one of the stable hands had quickly modified for the fox, cutting out large portions so that Elias’ ears could fit through it and adding extra padding. Annie thought that it made him look rather handsome, though a little like one of the cartoon characters she’d enjoyed as a little girl.

  “Private?” Elias asked with a hint of trepidation.

“Mm-hmm. Very private,” Annie said with a warm smile. The smile faded slightly after a minute and the girl looked at her horse’s ears for a bit before speaking again. “I wanted tae thank ye again for defending me at the party. An’ I wanted to apologize fer my cousin. He…he’s a brash brute, always fightin’ and carryin’ on like thug. I’m afraid ye were jus’ a target of opportunity fer him tae be lookin’ good in front o’ his friends.”

  Elias chuckled and graced the girl with a smile. “Don’t worry. It’s not often I get to play hero for a pretty lady.”

  “Ye…ye think I’m pretty?” Annie asked with pleasant surprise in her brown eyes.

  “It’s the truth.”

  “E’en though I…I’m not, well, a fox like you? I didnae think…”

  Elias let go of the reigns with one paw and touched the back of her hand. “I’ve been around other humans, Annie. And just because you have skin instead of fur doesn’t mean that I can’t recognize beauty when I see it.”

  The girl blushed and blinked when she realized that she’d taken the fox’s paw. “I…I heard that some o’ ye furs were like a lot o’ the humans I know. That they’re prejudiced against us humans the way some humans think that most of ye are just…well, animals.” She sighed heavily and frowned. “D’ye think there’ll e’er be a day when all o’ that is gone an’ we can all jus’ be folk?”

  “Someday,” Elias answered seriously. “In the meantime it’s going to be up to people like us to help others realize that we aren’t really different at all. I mean Alistair is my best friend, after all.”

  That soothed the young woman and her smile returned. “I think that I’m glad about tha’. If ye two were nae friends, ye an’ I woulda ne’er ha’ met.” 

*** 

  Elias had shucked his riding jacket and gone so far as to pull of the boots he’d been given. Fortunately the shirt was loose and comfortable, but the breeches pulled on his fur something terrible. The picnic had been quite enjoyable, and Annie’s selection of settings was remarkable, having chosen a place that was right on the edge of the loch but still within the woods so that both were saved from the heat of the sun overhead.

  Annie lay on her back, also having taken off her riding jacket and boots along with the stockings that she’d had on to let her feet dry from where she’d dipped her toes in the water, looking up at Elias. Even in the shade the fox’s fur seemed to glow, turning from snowy white to a silvery grey on his forearms and ears. “So, did I choose somthin’ ye found a bit o’ enjoyment from?” the girl asked solicitously.

  “You did,” Elias replied with a firm nod before turning to look at the human. He was brought up short at the intense gaze from Annie, and his sensitive nose was tickled by the same scent from her he’d picked up a few nights previously, causing him to swallow hard. It was all he could do not to jump up and flee when she rolled to her side, her head propped up on one hand while the other came to rest on his leg just above his knee.

  “Ye know, it’s only proper tha’ a lady reward the knight tha’ rescues her from the depredations o’ less than civilized men,” she told her companion archly. “At least tha’s what all th’ stories I e’er read say.”

  “You don’t have to,” Elias whispered as the girl rolled to a sitting position, her hand still on his leg, her eyes warm and sparkling.

  “I know I don’ have tae, Elias. But I want tae…”

— NEXT CHAPTER —

Unless otherwise noted, all material © Ted R. Blasingame. All rights reserved.