Chapter 20

The Mating Ceremony was a success just like the Naming Ceremony. The King was visibly proud of himself for throwing two great parties in one night. Dozens of men and women young and old came to either find their mates or pledge themselves to Queen Artemis and the White Wolf Kingdom. The new couples bowed to the Queen and King and once they marked each other as mates they would gain a stripe, their hair changed colors so that they sported white hair as the Queen does. Anybody else who weren't a couple simply wanted to work for Artemis and she still accepted them. After the majority of the Wolf Beastman had shown up to claim a mate and pledge their loyalty to the White Wolf Kingdom, the Ape, Bear and Lion Kingdoms finally arrived. It was a shock to everyone that these three kingdoms actually left their territories to come help fight. "Wolf King. You have out done yourself with your celebrations today brother!" The Bear King said coming into the ceremony. "My dear friend's! Welcome to my Kingdom!" The Wolf King said, opening his arms to his new guests as more and more people filled the hall. "My friends! First let me introduce you to my Granddaughter Artemis, Queen of the White Wolf Kingdom and Princess Of the Black Wolf Kingdom" King Maximus said, gesturing towards her. "This is her King Daniel and her King Consort Bowen." He continued. The newcomer's all bowed to them saying hello. "I hope you don't mind. I heard you were having a mating ceremony so I brought some of my men and some of the females in my Kingdom." The Bear King said. "That is great. Come inside and get comfortable!" Wolf King Maximus said. "Lion King, my brother. I'm happy you could come!" King Maximus said, nodding his head and smiling. "You're lucky we had the same mother, little Brother and I came to meet my niece" the Lion King said. Artemis was stunned. She has more family. Not just her brother, uncle and grandfather. She has a great uncle. "Uncle?" Artemis said innocent and childlike. "Yes, little one. I'm your first Lion uncle Leo. You are a beautiful Queen. I have brought men and women from my Lion Kingdom to join your kingdom" the Lion King said to Artemis. "Thank you Uncle. I'm happy to meet you!" Artemis said, fighting the urge to cry.

"My King. I have brought men and women as well!" The Ape King stepped forward and said. "I hope we all can join hands and create more peace and harmony," he added. "We shall indeed!" The Wolf King said. One of the Ape nannies stepped forward in front of Jenny and Apollo. "My Prince. My Princess. I would like to be your mate!" The Ape Beastman said. "Oh my!" Jenny said, putting her hand on her heart. Jenny began to tremble all over and Apollo held onto her to support her. "Can you fight, hunt and cook Ape Beastman?" Apollo demanded. "I can do all of that as well as take care of the little ones!" The Ape Beastman said, beating his chest confidently. Another Ape beastman from the crowd stepped forward. "I wish to challenge you to be her mate!" He said to the first Ape Beastman. "Challenge accepted" the first Beastman said before shapeshifting into a huge Silverback Gorilla. Everyone gasped and formed a circle around the two Ape's as they began to tussle. People were cheering and throwing their fists in the air. "This is kind of entertaining!" Artemis said to Kasper who nodded and smiled. The tussle between the two Ape's ended not too long after it had started. The first Ape who was one of the nannies had won and now he needed to be accepted by Jenny. The Ape Beastman got back down on his knees and waited for a reply. Jenny sat there with a look of contemplation. "Having another mate will be good for our cubs!" Jenny said, nodding her head. Apollo shrugged his shoulders casually, not impressed with the Ape already. "What is your name, Ape Beastman?" Jenny asked. "Drako." he replied. "Drako. Drako, I want you to be my mate!" Jenny announced excitedly. "Drako accepts with honor my Princess!" Drako said standing up. Jenny stood up and walked over to Drako and both of them had eyes completely covered with a gray cloud like color. Apollo stood back and let Jenny and Drako mark each other then he watched as they started to leave the ceremony. "It'll be over as soon as it starts. You should go prepare a bath." The Wolf King gently told Apollo. Apollo nodded and then left through a different exit to avoid Jenny and their new mate.

"I am going to let Princess Little Wen accept another mate. I worry about her when she is home alone and I am away" Kasper told everyone at their table. "Are you okay with that?" Yozar asked Little Wen. Little Wen nodded and smiled. "We talked about it earlier. Although I do go over to see Princess Jenny and Queen Artemis, sometimes I may have to sleep alone and walk across the road alone. I wouldn't want My Prince to worry about me and be distracted" Little Wen said innocently. "You are wise and thoughtful Princess Little Wen!" The Wolf King said to her. The King stood up and looked out at everyone in the dining hall. "Attention everyone. My son, Third Prince Kasper and his mate are willing to accept another mate into their household within the White Wolf Kingdom!" The King announced outloud. Dozens of Beastmen responded begging to get a chance, they swore they'd cook, clean and give her gold. Little Wen wasn't impressed at all. She really was only attracted to her mate Prince Kasper. He cooked and cleaned and gave her gold as well. "I'll protect you Princess!" a particular voice said standing out. Little Wen's ears twitched and perked up. A small reaction like that was missed by everyone but Kasper. "Protection is what she needs, brother!" Kasper responded to the person who said they'd protect Little Wen. "I'll lay down my life for you!" The Beastman said, moving through the crowd. A tall husky man with short brown hair finally approached the table. This man had bear ears on top of his head indicating that he was a Bear Beastman. "My name is Theo. I will be your second mate and I will protect you, Princess." Theo said with a serious tone. "I accept," Little Wen said firmly. And just like that their mating process had begun. Kasper did like Apollo did and left the hall to go prepare food and a bath for Little Wen. "Well this is moving along quite well!" The Wolf King sat back in his seat and sighed happily.

"My King. I'd like to propose my son to The Queen of the White Wolf Kingdom!" The Ape King said to the Wolf King, catching everyone's attention. "Your son?" The Wolf King asked. "Yes. My youngest son. The Seventh Prince. Prince Thomas!" The Ape King said. Prince Thomas did not present himself right away. People were whispering and wondering where he was. "Where is your Prince?" The Wolf King asked. "I'm not sure if he thinks this is a joke. I sent him weeks ago to escort our men here and I was told he would be present today!" The Ape King said. "What?" The Wolf King asked. "We had an incident a few weeks ago when the Tiger Queen almost ordered her army to attack Queen Artemis but an Ape Beastman jumped in and saved her. Could that have been your Prince? We have not seen him since." Yozar asked to the Ape King. "Thomas. Reveal yourself at once. No more games!" The Ape King roared. A few seconds after the Ape King called out for him one of the Ape nannies stepped forward. "Hiding amongst the nannies taking care of cubs. That is not befitting for a Prince and I do not treat my royal guests that way!" The Wolf King said, shaking his head at the Ape Prince. Prince Thomas was a muscular young man with the demeanor of a hard worker. He was wearing a black fur around his waist and black sandals on his feet. Prince Thomas went and stood next to his father the Ape King and shook his head off letting his Ape ears loose. "I'm sorry father and Wolf King. I didn't mean to confuse anyone or play games. I just wanted to help and not be a messenger" Prince Thomas said. "That's understandable my young Prince. Were you the Ape Beastman who jumped in and stopped the Tiger Queen from attacking Queen Artemis?" Yozar asked him. "I am. We had just entered the Kingdom to investigate her activities and communicate with the Wolf Kingdom. My instincts got the best of me and made me interfere. Afterwards I dared not show my face as the Seventh Prince of the Ape Kingdom so I blended in with the help and found something helpful to do." Said Prince Thomas. "You prevented another tragedy from befalling the Wolf Kingdom. I can't tell you how grateful I am to you for protecting my granddaughter" the Wolf King said to Prince Thomas.

"My son. I was just telling the King that I believe you would be a good match for Queen Artemis." The Ape King said. "I feel that I should explain my reasons for interfering with my Queen affairs. I took one look at you as you were standing up to another opponent. You were frail and looked sick and despite that you stood firm. Someone like that deserves protection so I had to jump in" said Prince Thomas. "Are you interested in becoming the Second King Consort?" Danny asked Prince Thomas. "I want to challenge Prince Thomas!" an Ape Beastman yelled jumping forward. "Who dares to challenge an Ape Kingdom's Prince!" The Ape King roared. Another Ape Beastman jumped forward challenging the Prince. "This is interesting!" Danny said, looking over at Bowen. "Yeah. Nobody ever challenges a Prince!" Bowen replied. "Oh really?" Artemis asked them intrigued. "Yes, my Queen. It is unheard of. Something must be amiss within the Ape Kingdom. The King must need to make this alliance to strengthen his power over his people" Yozar whispered to Artemis. "Well then he better win his challenges. He's lucky he doesn't have to go up against my brother or uncle!" Artemis replied smiling. "Behave my Queen. He could be a great addition to your family or else the King wouldn't risk offering him over." Yozar said to her. Prince Thomas was used to being picked on but not in front of his father and definitely other Kingdoms. This was the last straw, he would show them today who the Seventh Ape Prince is. "I accept all challenges!" Prince Thomas said out loud cracking his knuckles. Prince Thomas moved into the center and waited for his opponents to move in. "This is treason and embarrassing!" The Ape King roared, stomping his foot. The Ape King's threat of treason was ignored and three Ape Beastmen lounged out at the Prince but missed as he dodged to the other side. The Prince wasted no more time and shapeshifted into a black Ape and roared at the three Beastman who shapeshifted after him. Surprisingly Prince Thomas was much bigger than his three opponents. His Ape muscles were noticeably bigger and unlike the other three he had a tint of grayish fur blended in with black fur all over. "Do you see that my King?" Yozar asked the Wolf King. "I do!" He nodded. Prince Thomas pounced on two Ape beastmen with both of his fists and with one of his feet he kicked the third Beastman in his chest. Prince Thomas fighting skills in beast form were impressive for him to be fighting three Ape's by himself, this impressed even Artemis. Prince Thomas took down one Ape while the other two were on his back. In the next second he turned and grabbed one of the other apes and he seemed to have grown a size bigger. People all around him gasped and backed away to give him more space. "The Ape Prince does the same thing you do. He grows as he gets more angry" Danny said to Artemis.

The challenge was starting to get bloody and more violent but Prince Thomas was still winning one against three. "You see my Queen. The Ape King was right to suggest his son as your King Consort he can surely fight!" The Wolf King bragged. "Then I accept him as my King Consort." Artemis said, confident. "Good. I'm happy to hear that!" The Wolf King said happily. Finally the challenge was over as everyone started to cheer for Prince Thomas. He had defeated his three challengers leaving them unconscious on the ground. Prince Thomas shapeshifted back into a human and quickly put a fur on handed to him by his father the Ape King. Prince Thomas stepped over them and made his way to the table where the Royal Family was sitting. "My Queen. Although I've embarrassed myself again in front of you. I, Thomas. The Seventh Prince of the Ape Kingdom wishes to be your mate!" Thomas said to Queen Artemis. "I accept!" she nodded. As Artemis stood up to mark him Thomas began to groan and double over. He was already gaining a stripe and his fur and hair was changing color from black to white. When the change was done Prince Thomas finally stood back up and Artemis was there with gray eyes to mark him. The crowd cheered and clapped at the union. "Two powerful people coming together bringing two powerful Kingdoms together" Yozar said smiling. After Thomas and Artemis marked each other Danny and Bowen were there to escort her to their chambers. "Come." Bowen told Thomas, dragging him along.

Outside of the huge dining hall Artemis gathered with her mates and continued to make their way to her chambers. "What are your intentions with my wife?" Danny demanded of Prince Thomas "I have no ill intentions if that is what you are referring to. Us Ape Beastman are generally quiet and respectful. We learn and teach. Craft and build. Grow and learn some more. I will not be a problem." Prince Thomas said confidently. "So we have a builder and doctor, a cook and crafter, and now a teacher and crafter!" Artemis said jokingly. "We have to make this family work somehow. We have little ones depending on us" Artemis said firmly. All of the men nodded firmly. "Do you want more cubs?" Bowen asked her boldly. Artemis stopped walking in her tracks. "Listen." Artemis said firmly. "Whatever happens, we will always be able to raise our children. But for right now we have the Tiger Queen advancing on our tails and I know I don't want her anywhere near the children that we do have. Once today is over we jump right back into defense mode and get ready tomorrow!" Artemis told them. "Of course. I hope you're ready, King Consort. My Queen is no ordinary female!" Danny said to Thomas as they came up to their chambers. "And be gentle even if she says not to!" Bowen demanded.