Mated by Twilight (True Match)

Chapter 21

Sollit

“I will not let you!” Sollit roared, grabbing his belly, covering the wound that was slowly but surely draining his life. He stood, shaking, in front of the queen’s door. She slept within her opulent chamber, helpless and dependent upon him, the one who betrayed her the most now protecting her from all encroachers and traitors. If she died, his base of power would go with her.

Tillos, holding a poisoned dagger, ready to cut the queen, glared at him silently. It wouldn’t take much. And that was the point. The poison on the blade was so strong, just the barest scratch would kill her. She would appear to die in her cursed sleep, and Tillos’ power would be assured.

“This must be done!” He declared, eyes flashing. “You are blinded by power!”

“And you are blinded by greed!”

“Move! Or you will die with her!”

Sollit threw out his hands. Face set with determination. He couldn’t let that happen. No matter what, he would protect his-

“Leah, stop peaking!”

Corvidair’s shout broke the tension of rehearsal like a hammer smashing through glass. A tiny squeak from behind him came even as Sollit turned to check on his mate. She was floating there, the ‘bed’ she would eventually be on not yet ready for the performance. So, she was just hovering in the air, enjoying the zero-g as the others moved around her.

She was getting back in position, but not before he caught her peeping. It wasn’t the first time she’d been caught staring at him or Tillos or both since they started rehearsal. It was a good thing her first performance was such a simple one, because her stage experience was lacking. But she didn’t need much to just lay there.

Except she couldn’t seem to stop watching them. Which Sollit found so adorable, he didn’t care how many times they had to rerun scenes that had her in focus – which was most of them. The fact that she couldn’t look away from them made him rather proud. A sentiment he knew his brother shared, even as Corvidair was telling her she needed to stop moving.

Skara, who was happy to not have to lay there like a lump – her words – for the entire show, had been recast as a loyalist who would oppose Tillos in the second half, after Sollit was dead. Her end was suitably tragic too. No one made it through this play alive. Corvidair had a deep love for plays that ended miserably. Personally, Sollit didn’t see the appeal, but then he felt any story that didn’t end happily for practically everyone involved was just a downer.

After chastising Leah, they reset the scene and started from the top. This time, his curious, happy mate managed to play suitably deceased through the rest of rehearsal. They finished out with her singular movement throughout the play – the dramatic arm drop of death.

Tillos stood over her, dagger aimed at her heart. Sollit – a ghost now, which would be obvious in a wardrobe change in the actual play – stood on the other side of her. Menacingly. He pretty much just glowered at him across the bed, daring him to commit the atrocious act.

Tillos, hands shaking, imaginary bleeding from wounds from the battle that brought him here, glared hatefully down at the sleeping queen.

“You die tonight. And we are all free of your tyranny!”

With a mighty roar, he threw himself forward. The dagger – just a prop – harmlessly collapsed in on itself as it ‘stabbed’ her. The force of Tillos throwing himself on her caused her to move, and her arm dropped – dramatically – over the side as the light on Sollit dimmed, his ghost fading as Tillos committed his final act of greed.

All that was left was for Tillos to leave the room, announce the queen’s death, and expect his adulation, only to be shocked when he was, instead, betrayed by his co-conspirators. Skara was already dead, having been slain by him on the way here so he wouldn’t have to share power. And the play ended with everyone important gone, the side characters left to pick up the mess, and a dead queen who had done nothing but sleep and cause chaos with her very presence. There was something in there about a lesson in greed and lust for power, but all Sollit knew was he left the show bummed out.

But that was okay, because lying on Leah’s lap in their bed after rehearsal turned out to be an excellent cure for all that ailed him and he couldn’t wait for the next treatment.

He would have to though, because when Corvidair called out that they were done, and before they could escape, Shorvi commed to let them know Leah’s costume was ready. He knew by the face his female made that she was not looking forward to that at all.

“It will be quick,” Tillos promised her, pulling her down. She had not yet gotten used to how to move in the low gravity of the stage.

They moved around with the help of propulsion boots and gloves, usually carefully hidden in their costumes. It was actually the same technology used on the trikball fields, but on a smaller scale to allow for finer, slower movement. But Leah kept finding herself spinning in circles, trapped in the air, unable to break her way out of it.

She’d need to get better at that if she wanted to do anything more complex than lying in bed, but for now, it was rather cute to see her face scrunched up in concentration as she struggled to work the unfamiliar technology.

Tillos pulled her out, Sollit right behind them. They had both agreed that they wouldn’t leave her alone with Shorvi. The little male was incomparably good at his job – but unfortunately, he was also an incomparable ass. He didn’t know how to talk to people without pissing them off, said whatever came into his mind, no matter how cruel, and he absolutely refused to change. Every time someone tried to talk to him about it, he got worse. It was best to just leave him be since he wasn’t going anywhere anytime soon.

The problem was, he was so good at his job. He had won awards in art fashion, fashion, and costuming for his skills. As far as Corvidair was concerned, talent like that couldn’t be created, it could only be harvested, and he was willing to tolerate a lot for the best.

Which was why he had been so determined to get Leah on stage. Though there wasn’t anything to sing in her current role, if he got her used to being up there, he could leverage that into her becoming a star later. He was good at manipulating people like that.

That same way of thinking meant that Shorvi was allowed to be rude to everyone, so long as his performance continued to be the best. But that didn’t mean Tillos and Sollit couldn’t stand between her and him.

Their task was to keep her relaxed and happy, and Shorvi disrupted that mission. Therefore, they walked into the costume room together, determined and protective. Sollit had his arm around her waist, Tillos had his around her shoulders. They both gave the short domini male a hard look when they walked in.

He was completely unimpressed as he immediately shoved something into Leah’s arms.

“Change,” he barked, waving her towards the changing rooms. She went without argument as Tillos frowned at him.

“Do you have to be like that?”

Shorvi leveled a dull glare at him. “She’s your mate, not mine. I don’t particularly care about her feelings.”

“Do you care about anyone’s feelings?” Sollit chuckled.

“We’re getting off topic,” Shorvi put his nose in the air. “Go try on your ghost costume. I’m making some changes, and I need to make sure they fit right.”

Sollit gave Tillos a look. His brother nodded. Sollit was leaving Leah in his care alone, and he agreed to take her. It was a silent communication that they’d already mastered, despite not knowing her for very long. The more time passed, the better they would get at handling their mate. Their fathers didn’t even have to look at each other, they just knew .

The ghost costume for his character was nearly identical to his living costume. Except the colors were changed to be all purple shades. That was a choice made to go with his scale color. The fabric had also been changed to be wispier and more tattered, while his hair was left to flow free. It was obviously the same character, same military uniform, but more ethereal and unreal.

He emerged from his dressing room, fully expecting Leah to already be out, but the door to her room was still shut and the look Tillos gave him said that she hadn’t come out yet.

“Leah?” He called to her as Shorvi immediately began moving around him – fixing and adjusting the costume. “Are you okay in there? You need help?”

“Erm… I’m okay…”

Immediately, he looked at Tillos. They’d both noticed it. The wavering of her voice. The uncertainty in her tone.

“Leah?” Tillos approached the door cautiously, like she was a scared animal hiding. “Is there something wrong?”

“No,” came the squeaky reply.

“Ugh,” Shorvi groaned. “Just come out. I don’t care how ugly you feel.”

“Shorvi!” Sollit snapped as Tillos glared.

Leah remained silent and unmoved for a long moment more before the door finally spread. Sollit tensed, ready for something bad. Maybe she’d hurt herself somehow changing, or fell while trying to pull it on. Or maybe she was just embarrassed because she couldn’t figure out how to put the clothing on – the seals that were used throughout the Coalition weren’t available on Earth. Her clothing fastenings were very simple by comparison, and though they had bought her plenty of clothing, she was only wearing them sparingly as she got comfortable with them.

But no. She was wearing her costume correctly.

Very correctly.

The queen was a role that did almost nothing throughout the play. However, she was there for the entire thing. Always floating in the background, or above the actors. A constant reminder of what was at stake and what the fight was over. As such, her role was only visual. So, she had to look good. Besides, she was a queen, she must look the part.

Queenly looked fantastic on Leah. The dress was icy blue, flowing over and molding to her torso without a single line or crease until it billowed out into a long gown. It sparkled, shining without obvious glitter or stones, making her appear crystalline and ethereal – otherworldly, like his ghost costume but better. Her shoulders and collarbones were bare thanks to the sparkly, lacy, off shoulder straps that created a single band of color across her bust. The soft skin of her breasts was straining at the top, nearly overflowing the hem. The sight of which made his mouth water with the urge to lap at that soft skin.

It wasn’t until she crossed her arms, covering her breasts, that he realized the very thing he was drooling over was the problem.

Nothing she owned – that she brought with her anyway – was that low cut or tight. It was the most revealing thing she’d worn in front of them, and she was clearly uncomfortable in it. Sollit couldn’t bring his achingly hard cock back under control, but he could force his eyes up and back onto her brightly blushing face.

“Ugh,” Shorvi made a face, approaching her. He grabbed her by the wrists and yanked-

-only to have his own wrists grabbed and jerked back. Sollit and Tillos – both holding onto an arm each – snarled at him for daring to touch her. For daring to expose her when it was already obvious she was not okay in what she was wearing.

Shorvi wasn’t impressed by their protective display, giving them both an annoyed look.

“I can’t fix it if I can’t see it,” he told them dull and uninterested. “It’s not my fault your mate is so ridiculously proportioned. Biggest tits I’ve ever seen.”

Leah squeaked. Sollit and Tillos pushed Shorvi back further, angered by his assessment.

“You don’t look at our mate,” Sollit snapped.

“You don’t touch our mate,” Tillos snarled.

“Guys!” Leah reached out for both of them, putting hands on their backs. “It’s okay. I’m okay, really. He… He’s not wrong.”

“Doesn’t make him right,” Tillos countered, still not letting him go.

“Do you want me to fix the bust or not?” Shorvi returned, still not intimidated. His arrogance really made him think he was untouchable, and it was infuriating.

Neither Sollit nor Tillos moved. Their grip tightened. The fierce protectiveness over this female that would be their mate burning hot in their chests. She was gorgeous, even if the bust was too tight, but if she didn’t want Shorvi touching her, he would not be allowed to.

“Guys, it’s fine,” she assured them again. “H-He can fix it. I want him to.”

They both glared at him. Silently warning the little male about upsetting her further. Or touching her any more than necessary.

At the same time, they released him and stepped back. Not far. They remained right beside Leah, watching him carefully as he approached.

Which he did without a single care for them. He grabbed and pulled at shoulders, then had her turn so he could release the seal. Which made her squeak as she quickly grabbed for it before the dress could fall off her.

Sollit and Tillos made their displeasure known, creating a low, sonorous growl deep in their chests, but they didn’t try to stop him as his combot made some notes and he fixed some other, minor spots in how the dress was lying on her.

“There. It’s fine. Take it off,” he ordered, stepping away.

Leah didn’t move. It was like she was frozen in place, her body kind of slumping forward.

It wasn’t until Tillos stopped his purr that Sollit realized what they were doing. He stopped as well, and Leah started in surprise before looking around. She blinked then walked forward, still holding the loose dress to her chest, back into the dressing room.

As the door shut behind her, Tillos looked at him. “It’s effecting her already.”

Sollit grinned. “I thought we had to be mated first.”

“I think it’s proof that Leah has already bonded to us. Humans bond by sight, after all.”

Sollit smirked, satisfaction rushing through him, looking at the door she’d disappeared behind.