89 - Family Crest (3.5k words)

YaYa's POV

I sent a familiar inside Bart to assist him with accepting and sharing the new spousal imprint with me, which would be too complex for him to handle on his own.

It required an understanding of the body on an atomic level, so the familiar would act as a second brain and help him figure out the correct sequence of steps to achieve what I needed.

Romeo had experience with this, thanks to father's familiar and the dragon. The moment he located me ─ a wall ─ a stronger entity he couldn't turn into a vampire ─ he circulated his energy inside Bart and began the spousal imprint ritual.

My familiar did most of the work, becoming a channel that connected Romeo with Bart and then with me.

My senses heightened as I felt Romeo's essence seep into Bart's bones and muscles. I sent a part of his imprint toward Bart's right iliac region and another toward my left.

The familiar left Bart's body and returned to me, bringing back a memory of Bart's first experience of receiving the imprint, his thoughts and feelings, and how Romeo's energy felt to him.

Bart hugged me tightly, his face buried in my shoulder. He didn't know what was happening to him, but the moment he understood, tears started streaming down his cheeks.

"You must have been a good boy," I said, patting his butt, "You even earned yourself a husband see?"

I glanced at Romeo, who wiped his chin with his thumb, his tongue darting out to lick the blood from the tip. "Not just any husband," he whispered, leaning over and pressing his lips to Bart's cheek, "But one who will love and cherish you forever."

The concept of a male being attracted to another male was foreign to the boys. Romeo's show of affection and gentleness toward them was taken as a way to gain their favor, not something sexual. And Bart seemed to be no different since his reaction to Romeo's words could only be described as whatever.

"How far do you plan to take your experiments on me?" Bart asked me, beginning to see my pervy hands and touches as something normal. He reacted, yes, but he didn't overreact as in the beginning, "First, you turn me into a rootless, and now you make another male imprint me. What else do you want to do to me?"

"Many more things," I smiled, my hands cupping his butt cheeks and squeezing, "Don't worry. I will take responsibility."

"I don't care anymore," Bart melted into a puddle on top of me, his burning cheek resting on my bare shoulder, "Do whatever you want," he mumbled.

"I will," I promised while flicking Romeo away. He flew to the end of the couch, crashing onto Curtis, his eyes widening in disbelief.

Vick took the opportunity to pull Bart away from me, seating him beside me then pulled up my tank top.

The boys took it as a sign to surround me.

They stared.

They gawked.

They gasped.

They sighed.

"They are matching," Mitchell mumbled as Vick positioned Bart next to me.

The two halves of red hearts above our hips aligned to create a full heart.

"Does it mean Bart will be able to activate Zeus' powers through his spousal imprint?" Skaris asked, his tail swishing against my palm back and forth, urging me to stroke it, "I'm so jealous right now. Bart is so lucky."

"You think?" Bart raised his head, eyes staring at the imprint on our bodies, "We have a matching imprint..." he muttered as if it was hard to believe.

I seated Skaris on my lap, stroking his tail while glancing at Romeo, "You don't get to play innocent after this. They should know about your true intentions with them."

The look of betrayal in Romeo's eyes made me smirk when the boys surrounded him, pouring down their questions, demands, and accusations on him.

"What?!" Mitchell exclaimed, stretching his pants to look inside, "What's so hot about male's genitals? I know females chose us based on their looks and size, but I still don't get it."

Romeo tugged at his tie, loosening it and opening the first few buttons of his shirt to cool down, "Well, it's not something you need to get."

Just when they thought Romeo was the most normal of all, he came out with a shocking confession of being attracted to males the same way he was to females.

Vick acted cluelessly with everyone despite catching on to the situation way earlier. The boys should know that Romeo's touches and kisses had ulterior motives, and whether they wanted to indulge him or not was on them.

"How can a relationship between two males work?" Muir asked, his brows knitted in confusion.

"Would you still love Princess if she became a male?" Romeo asked.

"I would love her either way. It would not make a difference to me," Muir responded without much thoughts, "I wouldn't have fallen in love if she was a male initially. Now, it didn't matter, I already did."

"How I look at people is the same as how you decide on your future mate. Would I fall for them if they looked like this or acted like that? The answer is usually no, but there are exceptions," Romeo answered, his hand brushing against Bart's cheek, "Sometimes you get attracted to the strangest things. What you found beautiful before becomes ugly, and what you didn't care for becomes beautiful. But if it feels right, why fight it?"

"I was never in love with more than one person, but if Princess is open to sharing, then I will try too," Romeo smiled at them, and they all created some distance, their expressions saying: This dude is a freak.

Bart straddled Romeo's lap, looking at him seriously. "No matter what you feel toward other males and females, you should only express your loyalty toward Yaya before others. I don't want outsiders talking bad about you," he muttered, "Thank you for sharing your spousal imprint with me. I will do my best to return the favor."

Romeo's eyes widened in surprise, and then he smiled, pulling the little people-pleaser into his embrace. "No. I'm the one who is lucky to have you." His gaze landed on me, mouthing, "Thank you."

· · ─────── · ⊱❈⊰· ─────── · ·

The boys concluded that having Romeo like other males, was actually quite beneficial for them. They could just throw Bart at him and keep me for themselves, killing two birds with one stone.

"Zeus just said he would love Bart, no? Then let him," Mitchell said, "Sharing one female is too much already, but sharing one of you with him sounds like a great idea."

The boys bobbed their heads, nodding and agreeing.

Curtis flicked Mitchell toward Romeo, "Keep him. He is yours now."

Mithell spun and landed back on his feet before the new couple. "Hey, can't you see they are having their moment?" He returned to Curtis and gave him a 'how could you do this to me' look. "Have some consideration, will you?"

Curtis's face went blank as he flicked Mitchell at Romeo like a hot potato again. He had no clue why he was called inconsiderate when all he was doing was helping Romeo have additional husbands. He flicked Skaris away from top of my lap toward Romeo next, "Keep this one too," he said and took Skaris's place.

"I'm not yours, Curtis. You don't get to give me away." Skaris clutched onto Curtis with his arms and legs like a baby koala, and no matter how much Curtis tried to shake him off, the pup just wouldn't let go, "But, if you really want to, you can try to win my affections," he added, "I won't make it easy, though."

"..." Picking a fight with Skaris right now would be like giving space on my lap to someone else, so Curtis ignored the pocket furnace glued to his back, snuggling against me instead, "Did you grow taller again, Sweetheart? I feel like you did," he said, trying to measure me with his palm.

His observations weren't off the mark. My height had increased by around 6 cm, reaching around 1,82 m (6'0). The suppressed energy has been recovering and was now beginning to spread throughout my body, strengthening it together with the one I obtained from father.

The four stripped boys were around 1,85-2,0 m (6'1-6'5) tall, Bart being the shortest at 1,85 m; Mitchell was around 1,90 m (6'2); Skaris was around 1,95 m (6'4) while Gold was around 2,0 m. Vick was the tallest at 2,2 m (7'2), followed by Romeo, Muir and Curtis, who grew taller and bigger after becoming pentas, all standing at around 2,1 m (6'9).

"The old fossil was around 1,92 m, so I don't think I'm going to grow much taller than him," I said, causing Skaris and Bart to howl in excitement.

"Tall as your old fossil?!" Skaris bounced Curtis from left to right, his tail swinging wildly behind him, "That's awesome. I love it when you grow bigger, Dear. It makes me feel so small and protected, especially when I'm under you. Mmmh, so good. So, so, good."

"If you poke me with that thing again, I will kick you away," Curtis hissed, glaring at the horny pup, "Keep your excitement in your pants."

"If you ask nicely, I will consider it," Skaris said in provocation as if laughing death in the face, "I always do, don't I? But, you gotta ask for it, respectfully, politely and sincerely."

Curtis clicked his tongue, "You've been with her long enough. It's my turn."

Curtis's jealousy got the better of him when he pushed Skaris away, disrespecting him unintentionally. Skaris didn't take it lightly and kept reminding him that he would have granted his wish if he had just asked nicely.

Curtis used to monopolize me whenever he was present, and the boys let him do it without a fuss, which he never realized until now. He probably didn't want to end up like Mitchell because he got off my lap and sat on the opposite couch as if saying: I'm sorry, I was wrong.

Skaris also got off his back in a way that said: As long as you understand, we're good.

Muir and Gold flanked my sides, our eyes occasionally landing on Romeo, leaving chaste kisses on Bart's lips, cheeks, and nose.

Bart soaked up the attention and affection, his tail wagging with contentment. He rubbed himself on Romeo, and the latter looked like he just entered heaven.

I sighed, feeling myself reacting, a tingling sensation building in the pit of my stomach, spreading lower to the apex of my thighs. The rest didn't seem any better, their bodies growing rigid, and their eyes darkening.

They just couldn't help it. The testosterone inside them reacted to the slightest stimuli, activating their sexual drive and turning them into horny little animals.

It didn't matter whether they were in heat or not. Their libido was always at its highest, and their desire for physical intimacy was always present, their erections never flagging.

Yet, they still wanted to hold back because of one person.

Vick sat on the floor close to me, leaning against the couch, his hand holding a glass of wine, his eyes glued to me. I wanted him inside of me so bad, and the look he gave me told me he felt the same. It was a stare filled with longing, desperation, and need.

His fingers brushed against my calf as I lifted my leg and rested it on his shoulder. He pressed his nose against the side of my knee as he continued to drink in silence.

Skaris sniffed around, his gaze landing on the corner of the room. "Papa Mitche, you said you only like those who like you back, so shouldn't you stay with Romeo, who likes you the most right now?" he asked.

"..." Mitchell knew his words would come biting him back in the ass continuously without a break, so he was ready to take it like a champ. "I hate you all so much!" he said and continued to sulk in the corner, drawing circles on the ground after being teased and thrown around like a hot potato.

"Mitchell," Romeo called out for him, but Mitchell put up a deaf ear to him, turning his back and pretending to ignore everyone, "Don't be mad, come here."

"I'm not going anywhere," Mitchell declared, his nails drawing a loud screeching sound on the floor. He loved the attention and having others sucking up to him, so having Romeo coaxing him must have made him very happy.

Romeo sighed and seated Bart on the couch, approaching Mitchell, "You don't have to go, I will come to you," he said, and the next moment he was standing next to the sulking Mitchell, pulling him up and into his arms.

"Just wait until I become a penta!" Mitchell vowed, struggling in Romeo's arms. "You won't even know what hit you!"

"I look forward to it," Romeo chuckled and seated Mitchell beside Bart.

The latter indulged Mitchell's spoiled act like a mother hen by smacking the back of his head, "Why are you always making such a fuss? If you just behaved, no one would bully you. Just sit here and stop acting like a cub."

Mitchell wrapped his arm around Bart's neck, pulling him toward his stomach and fisting the top of his head, "Shut up, you have no right to talk, Mr. Crycub," he grumbled.

Bart and Mitchell behaved their whole lives, trying to please their fathers, put up a face for the public, and never acted out of line, not even once. But when they found a safe space where they could let loose, they were worse than a pack of wild monkeys.

Romeo sat between them and covered both their mouths with his hands, or else it would escalate into trash-talking their whole lineages.

· · ─────── · ⊱❈⊰· ─────── · ·

Papa Mitche's tantrums were good mood killers, and they helped us to calm down a little.

The grudge between Curtis and Skaris was also resolved, the spot on my lap remaining open.

I started a topic regarding my stalker, who became the focus of everyone's attention, their minds distracted from their horniness.

"I think he is the one, who sent me into this world," I said, glancing at the window, "The car drove on its own after I knocked out the driver and another car suddenly crashed into ours, then a pair of hands forced me to jump into the ocean. The most suspicious part was meeting Curtis right after that, and then Muir. Everything was too convenient to be a coincidence. Did you two notice something suspicious or anything unusual happening around you before meeting me?"

Muir and Curtis exchanged a look.

"I often go to the sea to swim," said Curtis, "What was unusual was to see two females there. One, whose face was marred and covered with bruises, and the other, pristinely beautiful. It was as if I was tested and pushed to pick the more beautiful of the two."

Muir nodded, "I noticed that news spread faster than usual. Usually, the reports would come one by one, and I would have the time to investigate myself before passing a verdict, but this time, they came faster, and I became suspicious that the eagles didn't even check the place or the evidence before reporting it. I had to go personally to confirm the details. Then everything turned back to normal after I met you. It's such a subtle change that I didn't notice it until now."

I threw the crumbled piece of paper at Vick, "It was attached to Karak's gift to Romeo. Ever received something similar?"

Vick caught the ball of paper and unwrapped it. "YOU DON'T DESERVE HER. TRY HARDER," he read, "If having birds take a shit right above my head counts as receiving something similar, then yes," he crumbled up the paper, "This Karak seems to be able to control both machines and animals."

"There it comes again," Mitchell said, making a dramatic gesture with his hands as if he had not joined us a day ago. "Another powerful weirdo. Just great. How are we supposed to protect our female from these freaks? There's no end to them. Just when you think the list is complete, another pops up."

"I'll join Gold for the trip to the ocean," I said, getting off the couch, "That pimp couldn't possibly have eyes and ears inside the depths of the ocean, could he? If he wants to play hide and seek, then we will play," I summoned my machetes from the table and twirled them around. They were infused with my familiar and were starving for some blood, "Muir, can you manage the situation here while we are away?"

"Yes, leave it to me," Muir said, the others nodding half heatedly. They were not happy that I was leaving them again, but there wasn't much they could do to stop me. It was also too dangerous for Gold to travel the ocean alone. There was also the matter regarding his inbred origins, which couldn't be fixed in a natural way.

· · ─────── · ⊱❈⊰· ─────── · ·

"Contact me through Skaris or message me through your spousal imprints if needed. Don't just summon me," I opened my backpack and pulled out a box, handing each of them a stud earring. "If you happen to be at your ends and don't know what to do, crush it. My familiar will enter through your wound and find a way to save you," I explained, attaching one to the outer shell of my left ear. "You can decorate them as you want."

They didn't know how to put it on, so I pierced their ears for them, and they all scattered toward the mirror to admire their new accessory.

"It's like a spousal imprint," Curtis turned his head. He looked extremely happy to have a piece of me with him.

"Mm, we look like we are bonded to the same female," Muir added, the corners of his mouth stretching, "We should attach a charm or something that represents our female, so it's easily recognizable."

"A veil?" Mitchell pondered, "A slingshot?"

Vick rubbed his chin, "How about a family crest? A symbol that represents us all?"

Everyone got excited. Romeo handed Vick a tablet to sketch his idea. They added their input, and two hours later, Vick showed us the final design.

It was an outline of a beast's face with its eyes closed and its bottom face covered by a red scarf. The beast represented the boys, its covered bottom face represented me, and the red scarf was a red string of fate connecting us all. There were many other ornate designs, but they had no meaning, just aesthetics.

Romeo used a laser machine to engrave the crest on compact mirrors with wooden backs and dust pouches. The design of the crest ended up too complicated, but the boys still wanted to keep it on their bodies. A pocket mirror to look at their new earrings seemed like the best option.

The living room soon became a DIY craft workshop. The boys had a good sense of fashion and began incorporating the materials they produced into wearables. Apparently, these would be enough to give other beastmen a hint about their roots.

I joined their fun and cut a few thin strips of Curtis's snake skin. Then, I put Gold's pearls through a string and knotted them together to create a dangling charm for my belt. The quilt of Muir's large feathers was wrapped with a ribbon. Skaris' and Bart's wolf claws were held up by Mitchell's exoskeleton. Vick's ink and Romeo's blood were kept inside little raisin balls tied and suspended on the strings at a different height.

Hearing knocks from the window, we turned around to see a vulture pecking at the glass with its sharp beak. It was holding a large feather with its talons, which certainly didn't belong to it due to its size.

"The altitude of this ship is higher than the highest peak, and the air density is also thinner, so no bird should be able to fly all the way here...except for certain vultures," Romeo pointed out, looking at the bird with a deep frown.

"Karak would like to send his greetings," the tablet's speakers announced out of nowhere, "He says: I have no intentions of harming you, so please reconsider your attempt to lure me out of hiding. I can't bear to have you hate me. You may think of me as your guardian angel─"

I broke the tablet in half when it refused to switch off normally, causing it to finally cease functioning. These types of creeps were one of the many reasons why I didn't carry any phones around.

╔═══ Author's note ════╗

Is Romeo official now, I wonder? 😵‍💫

Karak was behind YY's appearance in the beast world this whole time? 🫨

I wonder how tall he is? 🫣

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