Chapter 19:
No Means
After her truly disastrous date with Queen Oldeera, Cordelia had tried to ignore her inner tumult by focusing on work, the resilient girl unwilling to be a burden on her family just because she was nursing a broken heart.
Of course, Helen wouldn’t stop badgering her with questions, while Christine likewise interrogated her on what had gone down between her and the Hornet queen.
So as she had done several times throughout the day, she volunteered to go out and feed the ovens to escape her family’s scrutiny.
But sadly, even there she could find no peace.
“Brandon, enough! I told you ‘no’ already! We broke up ages ago, so move on already.”
She shrugged off his arm as she threw another piece of wood into the searing heat.
Brandon was frustrated, his luck with women had soured ever since Nameless got back to town, but he worked hard to keep the annoyance out of his voice.
“Baby, don’t be like that! We can still have fun together.”
His wheedling had already burned through Cordelia’s limited patience; after everything that happened recently she didn’t need more drama, so she was trying to be nice about it, to let him down… if not easily, than at least quickly.
But the obstinate young man wasn’t listening.
He had followed her behind the bakery when she had come outside. They were out of sight of pretty much everyone back there; more than once in the past she had let him drag her out of work for a quickie against the woodpiles.
So the selfish teen saw no reason why this time should be any different.
“Look Cordy, if this is about that Hornet bitc- that Hornet friend of yours, I already said I’m cool with it, let’s just fool around real quick. You can just use your hand if you’re not up for more than that.”
The mention of Oldeera stung as she remembered the hurt on the queen’s face.
Once again Brandon was running his hand down her arm as he sidled up to her, but his clumsy seduction attempts fell flat.
“Stop it, I said no and I meant it. You and I aren’t together, I don’t know if we ever really were.”
He couldn’t hide his irritation anymore and scowled at her.
“And what the fuck is that supposed to mean?! Never really together? You’re my girlfriend!”
Her limited patience was gone and she slammed the oven door closed with much more force than necessary.
The heat of the fire had been considerable and she wiped the back of her sturdy work glove across her brow.
“No, I am not your girlfriend.” She shook her head at him; “I don’t know how much clearer I can make that! I am not your girlfriend, and you are not my boyfriend. In fact, since you are being such a dick, I don’t mind telling you, that we aren’t even friends! Now I need to get back inside.”
But he didn’t let go of her arm when she tried to push past him.
“Let me go.”
She tried to pull away, but if anything, his grip only tightened as he dragged her back and glared at her.
“Cordelia, you are being a major cock-tease right now, and honestly it’s getting old. I already said you could just use your hand, so stop being a bitch.”
She felt the faintest twinge of fear at his dominating behaviour, but even with all of her hurt over Oldeera, the fiery young woman wasn’t about to just roll over.
“What, are you a fucking rapist now Brandon?!” She screamed loudly.
That made him release her.
“What?! No, I’m not!”
He hunched back and away from her, looking around in panic to see if anyone heard her. She took a step towards him.
“Really? Because you are sure acting like a fucking rapist!”
Louder this time.
Before she died Cordelia’s mother had made a point of teaching her and her sisters that the best weapon they had in situations like this was their voice, and this daughter of Emily Loskins had never been shy about using her voice.
Brandon’s eyes were still moving around nervously and his face was pale at the accusation.
“Fuck Cordelia, I’m not… that! Calm down already, please!”
“Oh good, then I can go back to work. Have a nice life, mister not-a-rapist.”
She pushed past him and rounded the side of the bakery.
But the sting of further humiliation quickly brought his anger to the forefront again, and it was his turn to yell as he chased after her, grabbed her by the shoulder and screamed in her face.
“It’s that Hornet slut isn’t it? Are you a fucking lezzo now?!”
A surprised Cordelia turned bright red at being called out so publicly. A few people were walking by and had stopped to witness the altercation and there was no way they had missed the accusation.
“Fuck you! That’s- that’s none of your business!”
“How is it not my business if my girlfriend cheats on me with some other slut?!”
Cordelia stomped her foot as angry tears sprang to her cheeks.
“I AM NOT YOUR FUCKING GIRLFRIEND!!”
Customers from the bakery were now coming outside to join the looky-loos and the crowd grew larger.
The young not-couple were very loud.
It wasn’t the first time in Kettering’s history that Brandon and Cordelia had a public meltdown, but this time seemed extra… melty.
“Yeah, cuz you’re into girls all of a sudden right?!”
“You’re an asshole!”
Her face was red, fist clenched at her side and her tears were flowing in earnest.
“And you’re a loose little slut! I should have-”
“You should have what?! Forced me to give you a handjob beside the woodpile?!”
A scandalized gasp went up from the onlookers, but Brandon was beyond caring about appearances.
“You slut! Who haven’t you given one to by now?!”
Their fight had moved way past the point of teen drama and small town amusement and the onlookers were more than a little uncomfortable, though they didn’t look away.
As the pair continued to scream accusations and curses at each other, the crowd parted as Nameless and Milly walked through it.
They had just finished selling her milk and placing an order for a new bed when they heard the commotion.
“What is going on?” The Minotaur asked.
“I guess Cordelia and Brandon are fighting?”
“What’s a ‘lezzo’?”
“No idea. But this is really getting out of hand. We should do something.” He observed with a frown.
She nodded.
“Yeah, I don’t like how he’s talking to her.”
Cordelia flinched back as Brandon once again said something incredibly horrific and hurtful but before she could respond in kind a familiar voice caught her attention.
“Hello Cordelia!” Milly chirped as she strode right up to them.
Being six foot six, the Minotaur was much taller than even Brandon, and having more strength than an Amazon, she had no problem lifting him off the ground by the scruff of his neck and the seat of his pants.
“Hey, wh-what the fuck do you think you’re doing?!”
But the cheerful monster girl ignored him and he quickly found himself hefted over her head like it was nothing.
“Bye Cordelia!” She said over her shoulder as she walked away, much to the amusement of the crowd.
He struggled and writhed, trying to strike at her with hands and feet but unable to land any sort of effective blow.
“Put me down you bitch!”
But Milly shook her head with him still flailing above her.
“Nope! And you shouldn’t call me that, the last guy I picked up like this got thrown off a bridge!”
It was an odd thing to be proud of.
The drama over, the gathered people went about their business with much laughing at Brandon’s expense.
Cordelia’s face was still red, and she ducked back behind the bakery as she wiped at her tears with the back of her hand.
“Are you alright?”
Nameless was holding out Milly’s big polka dot hanky for her.
She accepted it with a cough, and gave one last sob with her face buried in the cloth.
“Yeah, thanks.”
“No problem.”
The way he spoke to her, with his voice calm and level, it was like she’d come face to face with some kind of mythical being: a man unafraid of a woman’s emotions.
But then again he did live with five women, one of which was another near-mythical being, though she hadn’t seen the Valkyrie in a while.
“Do you want to talk about it?”
Cordelia hated it when people offered to listen when in truth they really didn’t want to. But the openness and warmth in his dull brown eyes convinced her of his sincerity and so she bit back her initial retort.
“I guess it was bound to happen. I don’t know, maybe I led him on.”
“If memory serves, you two broke up ages ago.” He disagreed gently.
She gave him a startled look and he smiled lightly.
“What? Parasites listen to gossip too.”
She flinched at the words as it was not that far from here that she had called him that.
“Sorry, that sounded funnier in my head.”
“It’s okay, I deserved it.”
Once again he surprised her by putting his finger under her chin and turning her face over to meet his warm gaze.
“I promise you that you didn’t deserve any of the crap that was just thrown at you. You’re a good person Cordelia. I mean that.”
He spoke with conviction and she realized that it was the second time he had called her that, though the first time was in the bathhouse as she was leaving and she maybe wasn’t supposed to hear it.
The compassion on his face caused her heart to flutter slightly, and she could understand the attraction all those monster girls felt for him.
“How can you be so nice to me after I was such a bitch to you?”
He frowned at her calling herself a bitch.
“You weren’t that bad, I mean, you brought me the bread back when your dad remembered.”
Cordelia squirmed slightly.
“He didn’t remember, I did. I hated the idea of… owing you anything.”
A look of puzzlement took his face.
“Why?”
She answered immediately.
“Because I was a bitch.”
“I don’t buy it.”
It took a long time for her to answer him properly.
“Around town, you were always the poor orphan with the crappy clothes that were too big. A charity case, I guess. But you worked hard, every time I saw you, you were working your ass off, and for next to nothing! And that pissed me off. So when my dad hired you, I guess I kind of had some misdirected feelings. I was annoyed that you could work like that, for little money and without complaint so I convinced myself that you were lazy, even when you weren’t.”
“Wow, you were a bitch!” He snorted.
She punched him in the arm.
“I still don’t know how you can be so nice to me, to everyone.”
He shrugged.
“I guess it’s just how I was raised.”
“Yeah, by Ophelia, the woman who is now bonded to you. How does that even happen?
He chuckled as she handed him back Milly’s hanky and they both leaned against the wall of the bakery.
“Not on purpose, actually she bonded to me when I was three.”
Cordelia drew in a sharp breath.
That was like, super illegal, wasn’t it?
He read her expression and explained.
“It was an accident, an innocent little mistake. She was showing me her heartstone and I reached out and grabbed it. She then spent the next seventeen years trying to pretend the bond never happened.”
“That sounds horrible.” She spoke with sympathy.
“It really was, and it nearly cost her everything.” He murmured.
She considered asking him why, but didn’t want to pry, especially after he had been so nice to her, so instead she changed direction.
“One of the reasons Brandon hates you so much is because of her you know?”
“So his dad told me, I can’t do anything about it though so… thbbbbtt.”
She giggled at the rude noise he made with his tongue.
“So she was your first bond-mate then?”
“Yeah, well, third that I knew about, but really she was the first.”
Cordelia screwed up her face in thought.
“So Milly, then Erica?”
He nodded.
“Okay, the whole town knows how you met Milly, but what about Erica?”
He grimaced slightly.
“I’m sorry, but that actually touches on what I said to you in the bathhouse.”
Her eyes widened and her tone was a bit hurt.
“Super secret Aegis business?”
“I know it may be a bitter thing to swallow, but you need to trust me when I tell you that it’s for the best.”
She huffed.
“Whatever, I’ve swallowed bitter things before!”
His expression turned wry and he raised an eyebrow while the full meaning of what she had said came back to hit her in the face.
With a deep blush she shook her head.
“Don’t try to change the subject!”
She didn’t quite know why, but this big mysterious secret that seemed to exist between him and all these monster girls really chafed at her.
Though, when she stopped to think about it, Oldeera’s involvement likely didn’t help.
She felt a stab of pain as her mind came back to the Hornet queen, but quashed it as he continued.
“Cordelia, people have died over this stuff. The truth could put you in danger.”
His expression was deadly serious.
“Like Kar?”
She regretted the question immediately at the stricken look on his face, but after several seconds he shook it off and nodded.
“Yes, like Kar, and more than a few others besides, including my parents.”
Now she was really regretting pushing the issue.
“I’m sorry, I am so sorry!”
“It’s fine, you didn’t know, and besides I was really young.”
After a few moments of awkward silence she spoke again.
“It’s just, really frustrating to be told you aren’t allowed to know something. First by you and Helena, then by-” She abruptly turned pink at the thought of the Hornet queen and everything that had happened between them.
“By Oldeera?”
“Er, yeah.”
“That doesn’t mean you can’t trust them. And I don’t mean to rub it in, but pretty much everyone in town knows that something is going on between you and her, and with Brandon’s little tantrum it’s only going to get worse.”
Her face was on fire as the truth sank in, but then she realized that if there was anyone she could ask for advice on this particular subject, it would be Nameless.
“How do you cope with it? How do you deal with the weird stuff?” Her breath caught for a moment and left unsaid was the strange shame she felt when she learned the other Hornet’s were watching her and Oldeera; “I mean, what’s it like to really be with a monster girl?”
He offered her a wry smile.
“You mean what’s it like to have someone completely and utterly devoted to you? Someone that you know will never betray you, never hurt you? And will happily shower you with affection every waking moment of every day for the rest of your life? Is that what you mean?”
“Smartass.”
She lightly punched his shoulder as he chuckled, but he got serious again as he held out the silver bracelet with Nina’s ruby red heartstone in it for her to see.
“Well, I don’t know what it is like to date a monster girl. But being bonded to one is a beautiful gift, a precious privilege, and a responsibility never to be taken lightly. And in perfect honesty, the thought that keeps me awake at night is that I’m not doing nearly enough to deserve it.”
“Really Master? I thought that what kept you up at night was me sucking on your big meaty di-”
“Hello Erica.” He interrupted the Katje loudly before she could finish, while Cordelia burst into laughter at his expense.
His bond-mate had snuck around the corner while they were talking, surprising them both with her stealth.
She leaned in and gave her master’s face and neck several affectionate licks with her rasping tongue.
Cordelia found it more than a little bizarre but he was completely unbothered by it, in fact he tilted his head to give her better access and seemed to enjoy the attention.
The Katje snuggled into his shoulder and turned her emerald eyes on the girl.
“I passed Milly earlier, she filled me in. You okay?”
Once again Cordelia found herself touched by the honest concern.
“I’m fine, was she still carrying Brandon?”
“Yup, probably for a long while yet. I don’t think she thought it through. Last I heard she was either going to chuck him off a bridge or give him to Helena. Not sure which one would be worse for him to be honest.”
“The bridge, right?”
“I think you underestimate the impact you had on Helena in the bathhouse.” Nameless interjected.
Erica’s ears swiveled in interest at his words.
“I missed that! What happened?”
Nameless grinned and spoke lightly.
“Helena gave her a massage and then Cordelia offered to wash her back!”
“Oooooh, that’s a big deal right?”
Cordelia was getting suspicious as the two gossiped mercilessly in a mock-serious tone.
“A very big deal.” Nameless confirmed; “Honestly I’m surprised there isn’t already a boar’s head on a spear in front of the bakery!”
“You two are screwing with me!”
“Helena certainly wants to!” Erica teased.
“Hey! She told me that she knew that I was clueless about Amazons mating rituals or whatever, so she and I are cool!”
“She also said you had soft skin and nice breasts.”
Her jaw dropped at his words.
“What? Room full of water, sound travels.” He shrugged.
She punched him in the arm again though she couldn’t hold back her smile.
“Hey, don’t damage my boy-toy!”
His bond-mate let go of his arm and was wandering over to where the wood was stacked.
“Boy-toy my ass, he’s-” but her voice cut off as the Katje slipped a trio of knives out of nowhere; “Um, Erica what the hell are you doing?”
The Katje responded by rapidly throwing them into the woodpile, the three blades striking home in a neat cluster with resounding thunks.
Once again Cordelia’s jaw dropped.
“Holy fuck!”
“I’m practicing. All this talk about sex is making me frisky, and since one or both of you probably wouldn’t be okay with me gobbling his knob right here-”
“Both.” Nameless and Cordelia said in unison.
“-then I need an outlet.” She finished as she once again threw her knives with deadly precision.
Thunk.
Thunk.
Thunk.
“You are really good at that!”
“Had a good teacher.” She mumbled and Nameless winced ever so slightly.
Cordelia picked up on the possible sensitivity of the subject and for once she had the tact not to ask any follow up questions.
“Well, I should really get back inside already. Thank you, for being here and listening and stuff. And thank Milly for me when she’s done hiding the body or whatever.”
He chuckled.
“No thanks needed, though we never really finished with your line of questioning earlier.”
“About monster girls?”
“Maybe I’m not the best to ask, since I seemed to have always skipped the dating phase and went straight to the bonding. But one thing a very smart woman once told me was to be honest, and to be direct. Very few of the monster breeds I’ve met are particularly shy about their emotions, or about sex for that matter.”
“Of course not, sex is neat! In fact, we’re totally gunna bone once you leave!” Erica said with another ‘thunk’ of a knife into wood for emphasis.
Nameless cleared his throat in an effort to stay on topic while Cordelia smirked.
“I’m not about to say you should rush into anything, especially after the nonsense that happened earlier, but you should probably have a talk with Oldeera. Life is too short, Cordelia.”
At his earnest words, the young brunette nodded while Erica once more pulled her knives from the woodpile.
“Yeah, I guess it is.”
Nameless followed her departure with his eyes until she rounded the corner to the front of the bakery. He then turned to see Erica bent over, her shirt pulled up with the hem held in her teeth and her panties around her ankles while she looked at him with those brilliant green eyes of hers.
“Did ouh fink I wash kidding?” She spoke around the fabric and wiggled her naked ass at him, her tail flicking back and forth in excitement.
Nameless took another quick peek around the corner to ensure they were alone, and then undid his pant as he walked towards Erica’s tanned tushy with a hungry smile on his lips.
__________
Rory hauled his son to his feet by the scruff of his neck, his burly arms more than up to the task.
“Get your ass out of the dirt boy. Because it is way past time you grew the hell up.”
Milly had carried him around for nearly an hour, trying to figure out what she was going to do with him, but then his father found her and at his request she left the teen to his tender mercies.
Brandon almost wished she had thrown him off a bridge.
He was dragged all the way back to the smithy and all but thrown against his father’s work table, tools rattling as the heavy wooden bench shifted slightly from the force of the impact.
“You just can’t help yourself can you boy? Fucking off when you could have been studying in school, chasing girls when you should have been working. How many fines have I had to pay for your screwing around?”
Brandon had been given many lectures in the past, but this time felt different, despite the frustration in the smith’s voice he just seemed kind of… tired.
The teen’s knuckles were white and he couldn’t meet his father’s glare for more than a few seconds at a time.
“And now you’re screaming at your ex-girlfriend in public, spouting all kinds of hateful garbage at her and humiliating her in front of the whole town. Not to mention exposing her relationship with that Hornet, which was nobody’s business but hers.”
“Dad, it wasn’t like that she-”
His father gripped him by the shirt and growled in his face.
“No more excuses! Cordelia’s father came and talked to me after you’d finished your little fit, says if he sees you near his daughter again he’s going to file a protection order against you with Magnus! Those stay on your permanent record you moron! And if you violate one that’s a mandatory six months in a dig-site. How well do you think your lazy ass will hold up in one of those?”
Cold fear washed over him at the thought.
“Sh-she wouldn’t let him do that.”
Rory cast him back against the bench in disgust.
“Why not? I would. If it were up to me you’d already be swinging a pick, it would teach you some work ethic. Something I’ve tried and failed to do for years.”
Brandon had angry tears streaming down his face at the words and he glared at his father.
“Of course you’d say that! You just want me gone! You’re such a shitty father that you don’t care what happens to your son as long as you have your little bottle and enough metal to bang away at like a big fucking ape!”
His father’s eyes narrowed, while Brandon was breathing heavily from the sudden outburst.
Rory took a long look at his son, picturing in his mind all the mistakes the kid had made, and all the effort he put in to try to set him straight. But the boy was stubborn and just kept screwing around.
Cold certainty settled in on him as he realized that something drastic did need to happen, that if he kept covering for his son, he would never amount to anything.
“You’re a big man now are you?” He grumbled.
Brandon recognized the trap but couldn’t keep himself from walking into it.
“Yeah! I am, I’m over fifteen, which makes me an adult!”
“So you can look after yourself then? Feed yourself? Keep a roof over your head?”
“O-of course I can!”
Rory gave him another long look.
“Well, alright then, big man. Pack your bags and get out of my house.”
The young man’s anger dissipated as shock and confusion took its place.
“Wh-what is that supposed to mean?”
Rory shrugged.
“It means just what you said. You’re old enough to look after yourself. It means I’m not paying any more fines to Magnus for you. It means that you, just like everyone else in this world, are on your own.”
Brandon opened his mouth to yell some more, but then he realized that his dad was giving him exactly what he wanted, a chance to go out and prove himself, a chance to be somebody.
So he went to his room, threw some clothes in a pack, along with a few other knick-knacks he thought he might need and the small pile of coins he had stashed away, then stormed out, making a point to slam every door on his way.
Rory sighed and took up the bottle from behind his workbench and considered it for a moment before setting it back down.
__________
Brandon was cursing out his father, Cordelia, Nameless and his Minotaur slut, and just about everybody else that lived in Kettering while he stomped through town. As he vented, a plan formed in his mind, and he changed direction.
Shortly after Brandon knocked, Dillon poked his head out his front door, and he looked ridiculous.
He was shirtless, with his short hair done up in multiple stubby pony tails, and he had brightly hued children’s paint all over his face and chest in colourful little swirls and handprints.
“What’s up Brandon?” He asked as if he didn’t look like a clown.
“Dude, what the hell?
Dillon looked confused for a moment, but then he grinned as he remembered his appearance.
“I’m looking after my baby cousin, she’s into her artistic phase, they grow up so fast, you know?”
“Right, well whatever. Look I’m taking off, Kettering is stale.”
“Taking off? You making a run to Wayfelt? Because I have some coins if you don’t mind grabbing me some stuff!”
“No, man, I’m leaving, leaving. Moving on. I’m here checking to see if you want to come with, like we always talked about.”
Brandon injected enthusiasm into his voice but he didn’t get nearly the reaction he was expecting.
Dillon let out a derisive snort at the proposal.
“Yeah, when we were kids! I’m working with my Aunt starting tomorrow, now that I’m done school she’s giving me a job in her boutique. I’ll get to play with women’s underwear all day and flirt with pretty girls all night! And if I save up, in a few years it’ll be my shop!”
He beamed, proud of his plan, but his smile faltered at the scowl on Brandon’s face.
“Dude, why would you want to stay in this dump and play with women’s clothing?”
“Uh, because I like women and getting close to their clothes naturally means getting close to what’s underneath them.” He stated like it was the most obvious fact in the world.
Brandon’s scowl deepened.
“What about our plan? Come on man, don’t leave me hanging!”
Dillon shifted his weight to his other foot.
“Look, I can’t leave even if I wanted to. Like I said I’m looking after my cousin for the next few hours.”
Even as he spoke there was a resounding crash and a toddler’s squealing giggle from inside.
“Oh shit, man I gotta go! I’ll see you when you get back!”
Abruptly he shut the door in Brandon’s face.