Bird of a Nest - Chapter 54: Chapter 54

"Ang'as," Ryraso declared as he walked into Nel'os's study, ignoring one of the brats trying to stop him. The two men had been holed up in the small room all day, doing whatever Nel'os had to do when dealing with the court submissives. They were both lounging at the desk, the wood hidden under the layers and layers of parchment. "I need five minutes with my love, give us some time?"
"Of course," Ang'as nodded, gracefully getting to his feet. Nel'os looked considerably less comfortable as Ang'as moved away. Ryraso caught his hand as Ang'as walked passed him, squeezing it gently in thanks. The man smiled at him, but the tiredness in his eyes was clear to see. Ang'as patted his hand and continued to glide away.
The door clicked shut, and Nel'os and Ryraso were alone in the room. Nel'os not looking at Ryraso. For a moment either said anything, Ryraso waiting expectantly. He shook his head and walked over to where some drinks had been left out, calmly pouring himself a glass of wine. It was evening now. The remnants of Nel'os and Ang'as's dinner was to the side as well. Ryraso had dined with Tai'ray and Dyn'ad in the Great Hall, keeping up the image that Ryraso was being a good potential bonded.
Nel'os absence had been painfully obvious. Aw'endo was over the moon, however. His reunion with Cai'ress had gone well. Cai'ress had no hatred towards the boy. If anything the fact Aw'endo had been hurting himself had horrified Cai'ress. With most of the Royal circle happy, the court seemed content, but eyes kept looking over to the space where Nel'os usually sat.
"Are you hiding tonight?" Ryraso asked, keeping his voice calm as he moved back to where Nel'os sat, placing a glass on the table for him too, taking care to not put it on one of the documents. They couldn't be of too great importance, but one never knew.
"I don't hide," Nel'os muttered but accepted the glass. His wings were low, and nothing about his stance suggested he agreed with his words. His eyes were staying firmly away from Ryraso, and he shifted, so he wasn't facing Ryraso. It was almost jarring. Ryraso didn't expect this kind of behaviour from Nel'os.
"Then look at me and tell me where you are sleeping tonight," Ryraso challenged, sipping his wine and sitting head-on, looking at Nel'os with his best disapproving frown.
There was a violent flinch, and Nel'os turned entirely around, standing up and walking to the window. Ryraso gritted his teeth. He watched, half expecting Nel'os to jump out and fly away. Anger bubbled in Ryraso, and he slammed his glass down on the table a little harder than planned. A second flinch and Nel'os froze with his hand on the window ledge, wings fluttering nervously. Not quite stretching to fly but certainly moving.
"I think it would be better for me to sleep with Ang'as today," Nel'os did not look back, forcing RYraso to judge his emotions from the whisper in his mind and the rustling of his wings. Ryraso may have been back a month, but reading wings was not as natural as it had once been. The whispers made Nel'os feel apprehensive. Ryraso had no time for that.
"You're going to have to talk to him eventually" Ryraso ran his hand over some of the parchment and rolled up a couple that were only partly open. "You can't avoid Cai'ress. You were his lover."
"I'm fully aware," Nel'os said, his voice soft. He glanced over his wings at Ryraso, watching as Ryraso tidied up the desk. "I'm not hiding."
"You can't stay with Ang'as for the entire time Cai'ress is staying with me," Ryraso continued, ignoring the back Nel'os was looking at him. "It's going to be at least a month. I'm not letting him out of the Consort rooms until he can walk again. Pol'ar agrees. He's in too much danger otherwise, even with Par'nast kindly putting extra security on the concubine wing. You can't hide from us that entire time."
"I could, but I'm not hiding, Ryraso. I have reasons for staying with Ang'as for a few nights."
"Then I will sleep in the same bed as Cai'ress until you return," Ryraso declared, eyes looking over one letter in particular. It was from the front. Nel'os should move and stop him. He didn't, staying at the window and keeping distance between the two. Ryraso frown deepened. "Loror's coming?"
"In a few weeks. And why would that affect this, Ry? Do you think that giving an injured and vulnerable man company at night would make me jealous or concerned? Especially," Nel'os swallowed but finally turned to face Ryraso. "Especially Cai'ress? I know you won't do anything to hurt him further. He needs rest and comfort right now, and I am ill-equipped to give him that. You can do that as easily as breathing."
"It's a learned skill," Ryraso sniffed, continuing to read the letter. Loror was going to be bringing a few people with him; A couple of lieutenants, a couple of captured caw from the plains as a gift. Samki was asking Nel'os to ensure there was enough accommodation for them all during their stay. No mention of why Loror was coming but Ryraso supposed it didn't matter. Tai'ray was Dmar, and the k'nairi were Dmar supporters, Loror was entirely in his rights to visit a city in his borders.
"You're good at it. Cai'ress isn't going to hurt you. I can feel him," Nel'os admitted, looking back outside again. "He's fragile, and his hurt is bleeding out. I have a block on the link around him at the moment, to help keep him sane. He doesn't need to be hurting and feel how the link feels about him."
"So you acknowledge Cai'ress is not going to kill me."
"No, he's not going to kill you," Nel'os paused, his talons tapping on the wood. Ryraso finished reading and rolled up that scroll too, placing it to the side. "I'm not hiding from him, Ryraso. And I'm not staying with Ang'as for long, just long enough. Ang is upset. They all are at the moment. Kol'bur confronted Ang'as in the main hall about his relationship with Gar'kin and the other former concubines this morning. Things got messy."
"Ah," Ryraso nodded, thinking about the tired and defeated look in had just seen in Ang'as's eyes. The court must have loved that. Zaro's lack of drama had been a big disappointment but Ang'as and Garkin's nest? Many were desperate for that to come to blows. "How that go?"
"Not great. Gar'kin has promised not to spend time with the former concubines more than necessary now. He's chosen his mates over his former position."
"It's been fifty years. He's in his rights too. You have been very kind to keep the remaining formers as well as you do," Ryraso offered, standing up and moving over to the window where Nel'os was standing. He placed a hand on Nel'os's back. Ryraso suspected one of the reasons the Royals kept the formers close was because they were of similar ages. A little older, Gar'kin was closer to one hundred and ten, Ang'us was five years older than Nel'os, and the others were in between. When the Tai'ray came to power, it was probably a relief to have people he could talk to who were almost ten times older than him.
Nel'os didn't turn, but his wings encased Ryraso and held him close. Ryraso let his arms slip around the man's waist. Nel'os was hiding, he had a very good excuse for wanting to be with the formers right now, but it was hiding.
"Is it bad that I wanted Gar'kin to reject his mates? That I wanted him to fight for Ang'as?"
"A bit," Ryraso smiled ruefully. It was bad, but Ryraso could understand the appeal of such a thing. "I'll admit there is a touch of bittersweetness to the entire situation. First love conquering over time despite the odds." He kissed Nel'os's shoulder. "Gar'kin did the right thing. His bonded should always come first. He should have made a move long before Kol'bur and the others came into the picture."
"Everyone is upset and hurting, and Ang'as needs someone he can count on.  You can help Cai'ress. I can help Ang'as."
"Look at me," Ryraso ordered, his voice gentle, pulling away from Nel'os. Nel'os turned, eyes red and expression hurt. Ryraso kissed the man, cupping his face and pressing close. Nel'os kissed back, pressing into the hold and letting himself breathe in Ryraso's love like a starving man. Mentally their minds moved together as close as they could be without bonding. As they parted, Ryraso pressed a softer kiss to Nel'os and hugged him close, ignoring how tears were now flowing down Nel'os face.
Gar'kin had finally decided his path, or at least for now. As long as he lived in the castle, there was a chance this could happen again. Gar'kin had longed for Ang'as for far too long for it to be over with a simple confrontation. The scars it would leave in Ang'as's heart would be deep now. One more set to add to the layers of hurt. Ryraso wasn't sure why the man continued to stay despite the regular offers to send him away to where he could make a fresh start.
"You love Cai'ress and Ang'as dearly."
"I do," Nel'os nodded, pulling away and wiping his cheeks with the back of his hand. "Which is why I know you're best for Cai right now. Someone safe who has never hurt him or caused him to hurt."
"And you're best for Ang'as?" Ryraso checked. Nel'os shrugged, eyes looking away. Ryraso reached up and combed some of Nel'os hair back into place, most of it a mess from Nel'os pulling at it during the meeting with Ang'as. The bitter truth was Ang'as has Tai'hon and Mos'it, and also Zaro right now, to look after him through this. It was part of why the two had moved back to the rooms. "You need to do what is best for you bonded first."
"Cai'ress is not my bonded."
"Neither is Ang'as. Tai'ray and Dyn'ad are. They do not deserve this Nel'os. They don't deserve you running off every time something gets hard," Ryraso scolded. "We both know I'm not sleeping in the nest tonight with them. You should."
"So I should abandon Ang'as?" Nel'os demanded but didn't pull from how close he was to Ryraso. He tried to glare but the look Ryraso gave him made it wither before it could truly form.
"Did Ang'as ask you to stay with him or did you declare that on your own?"
"He doesn't need to ask me."
"Not your bonded, Nel."
"Dyn'ad and Tai'ray don't mind," Nel'os snorted, but mentally both Ryraso and Nel'os could feel their unease. They weren't fully aware of the conversation, but the idea Nel'os was not sleeping with them again that night was not a happy one. If anything Tai'ray felt tired by it. Dyn'ad was mentally preparing to do something. Just what wasn't clear but something. Nel'os faltered and looked down at his feet. "I already made the promise." His voice was quiet, and Ryraso almost rolled his eyes at it.
"Ang'as," Ryraso yelled loud enough that anyone near the door would be able to hear. After a few moments, the man appeared, looking vaguely surprised. Ryraso waved him closer, and the man came with a healthy dose of hesitation in his step. "Do you like Cai'ress?"
"He's a sweetheart. I get along with him well," Ang'as offered sounding confused.
"Would you consider him a friend?"
"Yes, not a close one but a friend."
"Right then. Nel'os needs to sleep with Dyn and Tai'ray tonight. I know he promised to sleep with you, so I propose either you can sleep with Tai'hon and Mos'it or you can join me with Cai'ress tonight," Ryraso said firmly, giving no room for either man to escape. He wasn't letting Nel'os get away with this. Ang'as was not friendless and while Nel'os was his closest friend, Nel'os needed to have his priorities straightened out. That being said, Ryraso refused to let Ang'as alone that evening after what had occurred.
Ang'as looked between the two men, one hand coming up to rub at his shoulder nervously. "I understand."
"Need an answer, please."
"Thank you for the offer, and maybe in a few days, I could join you and Cai'ress? But tonight I think Tai'hon and Mos'it would be hurt if I didn't sleep with them. Gar'kin has abandoned them too after all," Ang'as said softly.
Ryraso nodded, kissing Nel'os firmly on the lips before letting go and moving to peck Ang'as on the cheek. "You are welcome to," he promised, patting the man's shoulder. Ang'as looked about to collapse himself, and Ryraso could understand why Nel'os wanted to stay with him tonight. Sometimes hard decisions had to be made. "Time to move forward. All of us," he squeezed Ang'as's arm gently. Ang'as gave a shaky smile.
This was not going to be easy.