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6.

-HIM-

“What happened, my prince?” A very soothing and feminine voice pulled me out of my thoughts and reminded me of the number of people with whom I was sharing the room. I sighed and looked at the owner of the voice. It was Inanna, the pairer.

“Nothing,” I muttered under my breath before I drained the glass of nectar. All the while, I felt her eyes on me but I chose not to strike up a conversation with her. The place was crowded with gods and goddesses. It was one of Ezekiel’s, the lycan king, occasional parties. This particular one was for the celebration of their mating rituals.

“I know right!” I heard one of the goddesses shirk some distance away. I instantly knew it was Isis from her voice. She was talking to Artemis about her annoyance on the emperors of the Ptolemy empire. I noticed Inanna rolling her eyes at the goddess while one of the servers filled up my glass again.

“What’s the reason this time?” I considered this moment to tap into a conversation with Inanna because the silence was becoming all too overwhelming. The party was boring and I wanted to leave. The sole incentive of not giving Ezekiel a wrong impression by leaving so soon kept me stuck to this dry place.

“Ah, it’s the usual,” Inanna mused before she lifted her glass and drank a generous amount before continuing, “Cleopatra seems to be hellbent on snatching Isis’ position. She has been dressing and acting a lot like her lately.” She said dryly. To start with, the topic of the conversation wasn’t that interesting but I decided to keep it alive for the sake of it.

“I wouldn’t be a surprise if she was doing it better than Isis herself,” I commented and she chuckled. The rulers of the Ptolemy empire were known to do things like that but things went to the next level when Cleopatra took over the throne. She is known to be one of the most powerful queens after the queen of Wolves, Nefret, who happens to be my mother.

Though the Ptolemies are mortals, they hold a very close association to immortals and gods because of their power and the way they rule. They are our strong competitors but regardless of that, my mother holds very high respect for their queen and I don’t understand why.

“They are imbecile,” I chuckled before I drained my glass again. I lightly shook my head at the server who was about to refill my glass again. Surprisingly, Inanna didn’t laugh at my comment this time. She remained silent, listening to Isis vent to Artemis not far away.

“We can’t say,” Was all that rolled out of her mouth before silence stretched between us. The murmur of the deities in the room was accompanied by soft ballads composed by Apollo. It was another thing that was irking me but I contained myself from questioning Ezekiel ’s musical tastes and coming off as a rude guest.

“So, when are you going to do it for me?” I asked teasingly as I eyed a wolf couple from our empire dancing to the music. Inanna raised an eyebrow at me before the corner of her lips tipped up and her eyes lit up as if she had solved a confusing puzzle in a matter of seconds.

Her gaze drifted to Isis for once before she looked back at me and studied me for some moments before muttering under her breath, more to herself, “Perfect,”

“What?” I asked, looking at her in bewilderment. She smiled to herself before I saw her drain another glass of nectar. Then she spoke suggestively, “Whenever you are ready,”

It made me cock one of my eyebrows at her before I said, “I am ready,” She gave me a prolonged look, her eyes shining like two stars in a dark night before she smiled at me and said, “Not for her. Not yet,”

Her words pushed me further into perplexity. The smile on her face only widened when she saw the look on my face.

“What do you mean?” I asked impatiently. Suddenly, my wolf was active inside me. The talk must have had excited him. She gave me a teasing look before she said, “I meant what I said,”

“I still don’t understand you,” I shook my head at her. She simply threw her head back and laughed before she spoke, “My dear prince, why are you so impatient?”

“Because in a few years I’d be taking up the throne,” I said gravely for her to realize the gravity of the situation but the smirk on her face told me that she didn’t know how serious I was about the matter at the moment.

“I know that,” she nodded as she took another drink. I sat there, impatiently for her to continue talking but she seemed least interested to talk more about the topic.

“Inanna,” I said gravely. This made her head snap at me instantly before her eyes were on me, “yes,” she replied with the same tone I previously used on her.

“Can we have a more meaningful discussion on this matter?” I asked but she shook her head at me before she drained another glass, “No,” It was her simple answer. “In fact, we shouldn’t be having this discussion in the first place,”

“Why?” I asked, turning fully towards her. I and my wolf were both involved at this point. We wanted to know as much as we could possibly get out of her but I doubted that she would tell us anything.

“Because it’s supposed to be like this. I know what I am doing and I need not justify my actions to anyone. Also, a quick tip…” She trailed off before she rose from the seat beside me, “try to be a little more patient because you’d need it a lot, especially with her,” She winked at me before she walked away.

Meanwhile, I sat there, utterly confused, trying to collect my thoughts and find meaning out of it. It was the moment that made me realize that it was enough and I wanted to leave. I too got up shortly after, talked to Ezekiel and left.

‘Not for her. Not yet,’ Inanna’s words replayed in my head all the way back to Zaeris. What did she mean by I wasn’t ready? I was perfectly mature and well learned and trained. I assisted my father in the royal court and soon, I’d be taking over the throne.

What else does she want from me? I was about to become a king and needed a queen to rule by my side. All she had to do was pick out the most compatible she-wolf for me and that’d do. I don’t see anything as complicated as growing flowers in the desert in this.

“Look, who’s back!” Avyanna chirped. Her overly enthusiastic voice instantly irked me instantly.

“Not now, Anna,” I told her as I headed straight towards my wing. I wanted to be alone but the creator didn’t seem to be in the mood to grant my wishes soon.

“What!” I almost yelled at Augustus, who was my second in command. He was waiting outside my wing, most probably to discuss some important matters with me. He froze in his pace and his electric blue eyes studied me for a second before he frowned, “What’s with that nasty attitude?”

I sighed and rubbed my face before I asked what was the matter. “Next week we are going to have the Calantha Ceremony. Her Majesty wants you to participate in it as well,” I was stunned at his words. My mother couldn’t be serious about this.

“The whole point about participating in the ceremony is to be grateful to have a mate. I don’t have one in the first place!” I was amazed by the way I was being tormented on the subject of my mate this evening. Augustus just shrugged at me before he added, “Queen’s orders,”

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