Chapter 177
Loiza's POV
Well shit! I haven't seen Mero since The Run at Blood Moon! Damn! Last time Aryn played with Mero was over two years ago when we went on an all island run with Dyus (Ura), Cordelia (Tali) and Yoni (Nía). I COULD go for one of those to really de stress all of these stupid boring problems. I put out the thought in our filial Bond, and there was excitement at the thought. I hope that Amelia wants to go, having the power of being our Matriarch... Especially MINE, has really improved her mental state and confidence substantially! Shifting at this stage of her pregnancy helps stretch out your muscles and a family run will help sooth the pup and her mood. Usually an Alpha of a pack stays as Head of their house to keep power in the family... That's been established.
The fact that I let go and handed it to a Gamma and an Omega giving them in a small way some veto power over ME when it comes to our family, it puts my power even more in check and by doing so it elevates THEIR own because of the ability they have to overpower their Pack Alpha with a command with regards to family matters just like the Betas, but with less restrictions than them because they don't have to take into consideration me being a substantial harm to the pack. A Beta has limitations to what they can order me not to do. I can give all the opinions I want over anything regarding our family, but if either Maco or Amelia say no, I have to submit to their command and shut up!
We had decided to explain this better to our Bisabuelo and Tías and Tíos now they have been debating on who would bring better harmony for their family as well. So far they've mostly come to the conclusion that Guadalupe, Yaureibo's youngest daughter, and her mate Esteban, were the ones they thought were best suited.
Both Lupe and her mate are Alphas, despite that, Lupe and Esteban have VERY Zen personalities, also Esteban is the family accountant and Lupe is very devout and it's her daughter Gabriela and her who guard the Shrines for the hacienda right now. She was adamant about having a Priestess Guard them and Gabriela's daughter, Kalea right now is one of the three Concertators to go to Avalon to train to be Priestess. Gabriela and her mate Konane have been spending a small fortune for rituals for the Goddess's approval of little Kalea. She was VERY excited to meet me... She's so young and sweet, yet she's very fierce and too ADORABLE!
"Next time anyone else DARES to mess with us I will be able to fight by your side Alpha!" The little warrior harrumphed! She's barely 5 years old! I smiled at my little cousin and promised to pray for her to be picked, but I explained to her that I had no jurisdiction over Avalon. She very much wants to go... Her innocent mind not really knowing what it means or how much her life will change, how SHE will change... And I can't intervene for or against her going, my rule ends where Moira's begins. I can't even intervene for MY OWN daughter! Kayden wraps his arms around my waist and rest his chin on my shoulder studying the little girl giving her a bittersweet smile.
"If Lupita becomes head of our family I would be very restful at that choice! Goddess knows she can put even me in my place! I'm an old man and I just want to enjoy whatever time the Goddess has for me before taking me to her and to my sweet mates and concubines... Yes, even Bianca, she was a firecracker but she gave me many loving children and she was loving in her own way. Unfaithfulness is the bane of Chosen Mates, either way she was always smart enough to already be pregnant when she wanted her little escapades. Meh! I let it go and got myself my loving human Concubine Johanne, a beauty with dark caramel skin from Curaçao, she would have those difficult long human pregnancies, poor thing. Five dutiful and doting daughters that gentle and kind woman gave me... Human life is just to short! It did piss your Bisabuela to no end! Ha! She was truly something else! But seriously, she was lucky I didn't KILL her! True love can't be forced but it was as if we had reached an understanding... 'Go ahead and fuck whomever, as long as she was carrying MY pup, it was enough'... How much I miss my True Mate Analise, the Goddess took her too soon from me too, but I had accepted her yearning to be in the field, sigh... It's all in the records we'll hand over mija... It was near impossible to find her body in the Otoman Empire... By the Goddess!" He closes his eyes shaking his head. "It's not even called that anymore! You see mija? I definitely can't continue to be king here anymore, it's right to bring new blood and ideals. Lupita mija, so if Loiza gets a Priestess to Guard the Shrines you would lead us then?" Oh wow!
He IS very old he's just so strong and vigorous at that age! It gives me hope for a good long life for MY OWN children! I HAVE to hear more about Abuelo's Mom, UFF! I had already studied Anelise in training at OPIA. Her urge to hunt was very strong, Víctor liked studying her tactics. And this is not me being a gossip! If the person's DEAD it doesn't count! This is... History, yeah, HISTORY! Who am I kidding?! This is super JUICY family gossip! I look at Nina and she totally sneers at me knowing what my look means! Ha! If she wouldn't have Tony and had gotten herself a Chosen Mate I don't know how that relationship would have stayed stable. But I must admit, for THAT time period in Karaya it IS a miracle he didn't kill her! Unfaithfulness is pretty rare here, usually people don't do Chosen Mates like other packs. We tend to enjoy ourselves when we have no mate, but more often than not we wait for our True Mate. But back then if someone was caught cheating the control we work so hard for falters and was usually killed on the spot by his or her mate along with the lover.
The fact that he was willing to reach an agreement with her over something as SERIOUS as this says a lot about him, but he didn't want to seem to much of a pushover either so he had his little revenge with what is accepted here as a Formal Concubine, OUR generation doesn't practice it anymore but it's still alive and kicking among older generations. At this point it's not even frowned upon since the practice is simply dying out and It's always been accepted for both men and women... I came here ready to go to war with this man but I have found myself liking him very much! The eternal problem of jumping to conclusions... I'm old enough to know better.
He is a very fiercely devoted family man and he is a fervent believer in the will of the Goddess, I know that for a fact for when I WAS a Priestess! He would come TWICE a week with offerings of Good Fortune for his family and grandchildren about to be born, usually werewolves don't live as long as him and I do remember Dad saying that in the Great War, even though he was old, he STILL fought and lived! I guess you fight hard you love hard too!
Our Abuelo and Uncles were telling us how Maria is Bisabuelo's favorite and how it's her and her children his MAIN heirs, it's hysterical to see that silly animosity in these old geezers! But they don't seem to mind, they were joking saying that estrogen ruled Lobo Azul and that they acknowledge their lowly status in the family. It's not as weird to us because it kinda reminds us of how it works in the Spogel family who we are used to, going there for the big family events would be just as bombastic and over the top too because of their numbers. Sammy likes to stay in their small house in The Citadel or just sleep over at our place, so many people annoy her to shit.
Urayoán was curious about the two males that had more than one mate and how is it possible that they can't even have a little break for a family reunion even when their Cacique is here...They all started laughing hysterically!
"Son those are the most saddest shmucks here! Trust me, after growing up in a family structure like ours we accept what the Goddess commands us as Osupa that we are! But sometimes what she asks is a HEAVY BURDEN mijo. You are BLESSED indeed Urayoán! You and your mate are truly of the same mind and the Goddess herself is declaring her as your one and ONLY! It must be a great relief to know that you can be with your mate the second the other leaves to be with the Goddess... For Abuelo it was a very sad time when Anelise passed, they say that he mourned her for two DECADES before he was ready to take another woman, maybe holding it in all those years is what made sure Bianca was pregnant ALL the time! Old geezer will probably find himself another Formal Concubine now that he retires, he doesn't care for going to The District. He's old fashioned that way." Our Tío Obe tells us chuckling, shaking his head, he is one of Johanne's grandchildren.
Now that I myself am an Alpha I can understand, because of our physiology our bodies are constantly DEMANDING to reproduce! The lust becomes UNBEARABLE and sometimes PAINFUL if not satisfied, we aren't humans! Wolves, especially Alphas, can reproduce until we die of old age. A Formal Concubine is usually a human male or female whom you approach to negotiate relief of our lust and reproduction, they are recognized companions and live with the wolf or she-wolf. The human gets compensation and they don't have to ever leave the island if they father or birth a pup, but if they do choose to leave they can't take the pup and they must take Forgetting potion. It was very commonly practiced if you never find your True Mate. There's a specific contract for that, we try our best to keep genealogy properly organized... That's WHY WE are so PISSED!
"At least there doesn't seem to be any animosity between all of you guys, that's good!" Nina observed, and I have noticed that too.
"Nah... Bianca didn't really mind my Wela, she would mainly bitch at Abuelo and he would just ignore her nagging, until she just went about her life like she wanted anyway. But she was still VERY nice to ALL the kids and she didn't pick fights with Grandma and when Wela was old and gray Bianca did help care for her and I remember her being a little depressed after she passed, those two had come to their own understandings. Like everyone, your Abuela had her faults but she had MANY virtues, too! So please don't think badly about Bianca, she would have been very happy to meet you guys. She was really a nice lady and she had this knack for really good story telling and dancing, Abuelo understood the nature of Kappas and their need for freedom. He was really joking earlier about your similarities with Bianca, Nina, but don't take it the wrong way... Despite everything Abuelo DID trust her with VERY important things and even though she would have her little adventures, he trusted that she was pregnant already and no major consequence would derive from it. He made sure that the bones of ALL the women he loved are carefully arranged in the same chamber that wait for his own bones." Tío Obe explains. It's such a different family structure from our own yet it is comforting to see that they try to keep the peace in the family. These practices are still culturally accepted, and as Cacique, as long as the peace is kept and there's no signs of abuse, it's not my place to determine any citizen's private family structure... That's up to the family alone to decide.
Even Abuelo had Formal Concubines and has one NOW... Either way Isla said that she doesn't care, the woman has already given Abuelo two children, he was off island and her family was going to sell her off and Abuelo did desire the young woman, he asked her if she would rather go with him and that he would make sure she was protected, she took that deal and he compensated her family well so that they would appreciate her value, they wouldn't be seeing her again. When I met this fair pregnant woman with golden hair from Osetia, a region plagued by endless war she went to her knees and bowed her head to the floor! I was suddenly startled!
"Great Cacique, I carry your next uncle inside of me, please great Lady don't banish me from Karaya! My sons are powerful wolves who love and train to serve Karaya, Don Juan has already foreseen another Alpha warrior inside me. I know you know the ways of the human world... Out there I would have ended up in a pleasure house addicted to Goddess knows what and dead in a few years. Here I have my own villa in the hacienda with my boys, they grow stronger as they train and are well educated and are proud to be Osupa! Besides the blast of Mt. Cemí my sons have never known war or all the things I lived... Cacique I truly love Cobix, he's the love of my life, if the Luna is willing to share him I accept! But I have not only come to love Cobix and my sons, but the family has always treated me as family, not property or cared that I'm human and I have come to love this land! I'm your loyal subject Cacique!" I begged for her to get up and her oldest boy, must be around 13 and so much like pictures of Maco that age, helped.
"Anisa, I can't banish you even if I wanted! Remember that you're a Formal Concubine, that gives you citizenship and it would be illegal for me to infringe on your rights! This is a private matter between Abuelo, Mamá and you. Karaya is your home and you're mother to Osupa children, your place is here, ok? No more of this throwing yourself at my feet, you are my Abuelo's Formal Concubine, you said it yourself, you carry the Cacique's next Tío inside you." The woman had even converted to the ways of the Goddess and cast off her past religion and family name for Goddesses sake! Why would Selene mate Abuelo to Isla if he had a concubine?
Anisa, was very good natured and I definitely understand WHY she would chose this life... Ura and I HAVE been to Osetia and I have seen the pleasure houses with the war torn façade where they keep the women drugged until the next client took his turn. Here she was very well protected, her children were flourishing and my Abuelo and the family cherishes her. He may have enjoyed himself with women but he was a very lonely man, he had chosen Anisa and she had accepted his proposal before being sold by her family to those brothels. With Abuelo she says she feels comfortable she even bosses him around sometimes, she says it's the first time that she's actually felt that she truly has control over her life without fear.
"It took me living among 'fearsome' werewolves to actually feel at peace! How ironic is that? The real monsters are out there! Don Juan has even prepared everything for my boy's future and even where my bones will rest! I was born to war and my boys will be fierce Warriors, but the childhood they are enjoying is something surreal to me... Living here I sometimes forget the outside! Thank you Cacique, I'm human and I will die soon, it's going to be hard for both the Luna and myself but she's met the boys already and they have taking a liking to her. I am at peace knowing then that when I die Cobix won't be alone again and my boys will have the mother of the pack itself watching over them! It's an honor indeed!" She says chuckling finding a more comfortable position to sit, from the looks of it she's beginning her final trimester. Can't anything be SIMPLE?
No wonder Isla is going to swallow this pill! I even bet this is how she feels like she ATONES for what she did! I understand the situation, Abuelo didn't know that the Goddess had reconsidered a mate for him, but he already had a responsibility with this woman. Since it's something that my generation doesn't partake in, at least not that I know, everyone has their own life after all! However if you DO go into an agreement with a Formal Concubine it is highly taboo to break it unless you have found your true mate, Abuelo could break the contract right now and it wouldn't be a problem. Anisa's life wouldn't change at all except for the fact that he wouldn't have sex with her.
She's 38 in human years and is very much in love with him! He's only around 70 years old but doesn't look a day over 45! Only a little salt and pepper on the edges, she doesn't see him as an old man. I had asked Isla about it but she says she's really ok with it and is embroidering some nice sheets for the crib for the new baby, I think she has hope for a second chance for herself as well. Either way I haven't seen her this HAPPY in a while... The Bond is helping them both adapt. Abuelo wants to bring her tomorrow for Formal introductions to the rest of the family and Anisa. This is THEIR life and Abuelo is intoxicated with Isla and all his heart is hers period, but at the same time he doesn't want to fail this woman who has given him so much. Birthing a werewolf child for a human is a gruesome labor and she's doing it a third time. He will never be able to love her like Isla, but he will still love her, I'm not one to judge other people's relationships.
"Anisa, my Abuelo made a vow to you, it would be wrong for me to break your relationship, you are all consenting adults and you should know our laws by now, as Alpha I don't get involved when consenting adults agree on something this way." Since Abuelo and Mamá are True Mates she should be in PAIN if Abuelo betrayed her, but since he's not lying to her, not that he could, it was common knowledge on the island, but the fact that she's agreeing and giving her blessing there should be no pain because all parts have agreed. I'll talk to Moira and Bayoán to see what the law says regarding this. All of this is giving me a headache! I can't wait for all these practices to die out.
"Anisa if you wish I give my permission for your boys to be educated at The Fort, that way Abuelo can train them himself and take them off your hands for a bit so you can focus on the one on the way! They can ride horses here themselves and visit you everyday if they want. That way the boys don't have to miss either of you at anytime, it's completely up to you." She looks at Abuelo and he kisses her forehead.
"Whatever you want preciosa! I know how these little monsters can be!" He cups her cheeks and gives her a kiss. "What do you say princesa? I'll send Master Carmen over to give you those massages you like..." And he gently strokes her belly kissing her cheek softly. "... and I can come back and forth with the boys if you want and bring you anything you're craving that day directly from Domingo! You can take the jeep and drive to the beach like you like or swim in your pool and take the sun without the hassle of having to tell the boys to settle down or anything. Like a little vacation sweetheart! That way your body's more relaxed to avoid the C-section, remember what happened last time because you were too tense? Hmm? I'll stay some nights with you to keep making sure that the birth is natural, remember what Doula Fransheska and the midwife said about how stressed your body will be after a surgery like that sweetheart we don't want you to go through that, it scares me baby you know I don't like it when you're in pain." For fucks sake! No wonder he has them eating out of his hand! I look at Kayden and he chuckles, this is EXACTLY how HE IS with ME in my pregnancies! It makes me smile. He puts his lips to his Mark on me... I feel the heat of my skin rise. Damn! They even have a live in Doula?! This place IS ruled by women! They are getting PRIMO pregnancy care!
He coaxes her so gently and lovingly that her eyes glimmer and she can't control her smile or her blush! This is why I don't like hanging out with humans! I start gaining sympathy for them... We'll do everything we can so that she can live as long as she can, but in the end we're not the ones who choose when she dies... And human life is indeed short. She already has accepted that the man she loves will continue to be absolutely happy with another woman and more at peace when she's gone, but the other alternative she had in the outside world was completely unacceptable and she made a very bold choice, for a human to go into the wolf's den to try to make a BETTER life for herself, that in itself is commendable! Her attitude reminds me of my own human ancestors! It wasn't my grandfather who saved her, it was HER courage and HER determination to SURVIVE in spite of what life had served her, that will be HER OWN legacy in the Guerrero family and in the memory of her children, she gambled on the monsters and won...