by Sariah Skye
I reluctantly dared to look at Gabriel. He allowed Kiarra to shove her arm through his and he stroked the top of her hand absently. He was dressed simply in jeans and a pair of flip-flop sandals (probably all that could be found that fit him) and some long, black hooded robes. He had the hood over his head as he peered out before him; appearing stone-faced. He'd abandoned his black-rimmed glasses, of course, since he could see without them now, and had forgotten to shave; his ten-o-clock shadow now very prominent on his pale skin. He caught my eye and had appeared far away, but now, he offered me a smile of admiration. It couldn't be easy for him to watch this ceremony, but, he seemed to take it in stride. I looked to Daniel, who wore similar black robes and winked at me as he lowered the hood that had been resting upon his head. He shivered in the cold, late September air and promptly pulled the hood back over his head again and wrapped his arms around himself. I mouthed to the three of them “Where is Finnian?” And they simply shrugged.
My attention shifted as the queen motioned outwards at the candles, prompting Braeden to use his magic to light them. I held out my hand and nodded towards the ones nearest us. He got the idea and with a sweeping gesture, lit the ones furthest away from us.
I turned to the three behind me and, narrowing my eyes in concentration, pulled at the heat from deep inside and with a flick of my fingers, lit each of the three candles with little struggle. I heard a collective gasp as I turned back. My parents were clutching each other, my mother's eyes welling with tears; my father had an expression of pride. They'd never seen me use magic before.
Out of the corner of my eye I watched Gabriel sit a little taller in his spot, crossing his arms over his chest, appearing to gloat. Yeah, I had him to thank mostly for helping me embrace the magic I didn't know I had had. I gave him a small wink and he grinned.
The queen spoke then, clear yet calmly. “Dearest friends...Family. We are gathered here tonight under this waning moon to witness the Bonding of our beloved children: Maxxus and Leorah.”
My heart leaped once again at her words. I exchanged a nervous smile as he let out a nervous breath.
“Maxxus and Leorah, please join hands as I recite the declaration of promise and bless the rings you have selected to represent your joining,” she instructed in her lilting song of a voice.
“Rings?” I mouthed to Maxxus. He smirked, and reached out and took my hands in his. He nodded towards the pillar in front of the queen and I saw the small, golden, sparkling rings on either side of the chalice. They were perfectly round eternity bands, with pink and green stones alternating all the way around; the only difference is one was bigger. Clearly that was to be Maxxus' and the smaller one mine. The smaller one had a large pink stone set in the middle that sparkled and danced in the moonlight. No sapphire sparkled like that; it could only be a pink diamond which I knew was the rarest of all gemstones here in Anarach. I raised an eyebrow at him and he just shrugged.
The tradition of exchanging rings was relatively new in Anarach; probably borrowed from humans. I was surprised Maxxus not only chose to honor the tradition—that I found rather sweet and endearing—but that he found time to make them. Sneaky green dragon…
The queen held her hands over the two rings in unison, then held both of them over the chalice and then back over the rings again. She chanted an incantation in dragon which, loosely translated said:
With the power of the Monarchy, I, Queen Valessia, call upon the moon to strengthen the bond between these two; let these two rings be a symbol of their eternal bond as they fjord life's troubles together until their lives' end and continue on again when they meet once again at the Otherworld.
Bless this wine; may they each drink from it in a sign of solidarity, to stand behind one another in good times and in bad, in illness and wellness, in mutual respect and love again until this life expires...And carry them on peacefully onto the next.
The queen, with her water magic, splashed each ring with a douse of water, speaking about purifying the bond, the metal and warding off dark magic (a stanza which caused all of us dragons to look at each other in knowing; its truth ringing truer to us more than ever after dealing with the tribulations of the Shadows).
“Maxxus, take Leorah's ring and place it gently on her finger and repeat after me,” she instructed, as Maxxus reached for the ring nearest me, keeping my left hand in his.
His eyes shone as he looked up at me, slowly placing the ring on my left ring finger (one spot where dragons' and humans were the same). He blushed as he held my hand between his.
“I, Maxxus, give you this ring as a sign of my devotion, my everlasting affection and my respect...As long as you wear it, you will be mine and, I yours.”
Maxxus breathed out slowly and, repeated the words Valessia said, smiling nervously at me.
“Leorah, if you’ll do the same.”
He dropped my hands as I reached out for his ring. It was cold and solid in my palm as I held it. I heard a noise from the small audience, but I ignored it; I was already having a hard time remaining composed. My hands shook as I took Maxxus' left hand in mine and, slowly placed the ring over his finger and repeated the same stanza:
“I, Leorah, give you this ring as a sign of my devotion, my everlasting affection and my respect...As long as you wear it, you will be mine and, I yours.” At my words, a nervous shudder claimed my shoulders. Not bad nervous, but good nervous. Maxxus looked at me with concern, but I just smiled and squeezed his hands in reassurance.
We turned to the queen who, lifted the chalice of wine and instructed that Maxxus take it first and drink. Shakily, he handed it to me and I took a long sip (I didn't need to, but I hoped that the wine would help calm my over-charged nerves. It didn't.) before setting it down on the pillar. Tradition dictated that we bow slightly at the queen—or officiant, signifying that it was time for the cord binding. She took the green one and lifted it above her head, asking for the moon's blessing as she motioned for Maxxus' left hand. He obliged and she wrapped the silk cord once, then twice around his wrist and between his thumb and forefinger and let the ends dangle. She motioned for my hand and I gingerly held out my left hand, shakily. She did the same with the pink cord around my wrist, leaving the ends to dangle.
She motioned for us to join our corded left hands and, as if for dear life we clutched them together tightly. I stared nervously into his eyes; and he into mine as she wound the cords intricately around each other’s wrist, around the other cord and somehow fashioned it into a complicated Celtic knot that lay atop both our hands. Traditionally, Bonded dragons would take these cords and hang them somewhere in their bedchambers, usually over the bed. I had no idea where ours would go since we had no home, or bed-chamber yet.
“These cords bind together your commitment. They bind you to each other; may they strengthen your bond and offer stability in times of strife.”
My hand felt heavy, even though Maxxus was holding it up. My arm trembled and he used his other hand and placed it underneath both of ours steadily.
The queen spoke a few words about commitment and tradition, honoring each witness and acknowledging the moon's power behind her when, a large cracking sound broke the mood of seriousness around us.
I craned my head over the attendees, also turning around to see the noise from the opposite side of the courtyard. A familiar sight of shimmering and, Finnian emerged from a portal, appearing stone-faced and grim.
I looked back at the queen, who clearly was concerned rushed through her next words.
She held out her hands before her, looking at each of us in turn.
“Maxxus and Leorah, it is with great pleasure that I, the queen of Anarach announce that you are now bonded as husband and wife, green dragon and pink dragon, together forever in this life and possibly next, the Gods willing.” There was a smile in her voice as she turned to Maxxus and nodded. “You may kiss your bride.”
I raised a brow apprehensively as he looked down at me, his eyes slightly hooding as he placed his
hands under my chin pulled me to my tiptoes, offering my first kiss as husband and wife...It was deep and meaningful and made me forget where I was as my lower body nearly went limp. I started to open my mouth to deepen it when I suddenly heard a gasp, remembering where I was. Maxxus, who'd been caught up in the moment, pulled away, smiling sheepishly.
We looked out at our friends and family who clapped wildly for us, all but Finnian who stood there at the edge of the Courtyard, his arms crossed over his broad chest, causing the buttons of his black shirt to tense and nearly appear as they would split.
I motioned to him to join us. He appeared distant and I exchanged a look with Maxxus. I grabbed his hand and stalked through the courtyard, Gabriel and Daniel and Kiarra hot on our tail.
“Finnian!” I said, snapping my fingers in front of him. He appeared dazed, and pale-faced. Something clearly had happened. “You're late!”
He snapped himself out of his daze then. He didn't even smile, just looked grim as he caught my eye.
My spirits fell. I noticed his eyes were so gray they were almost white; indicating that he'd received a horrible shock. My breath weighed heavily in my chest, strangling me as it tried to escape. My first thought went to Kit.
“Oh no... Kit...Is she—” I began, but Finnian held up a hand, indicating silence. He was so dour and grim-faced I quieted without protest. He opened his mouth to speak, but no words came out. His breath escaped him, though, straggled and gasping as he fell to his knees.
“Finnian?” Kiarra was by his side in a nanosecond, helping hold him upright as a single tear rolled down his cheek.
He slowly looked up at her, and then at me solemnly.
I gasped. “Oh fuck...Kit…?” I felt my legs get weak, in anticipating of what he was about to tell me. Kit didn't make it. She suffered a setback and was now too far gone. Or she was dead.
Finnian stared at me with eyes of despair. They were glassy from crying; his cheeks completely devoid of color. “I... I don't know if she's okay.”
I blinked, confused. “What—what do you mean?”
Finnian let out a strangled noise, falling further to the ground in a heap of sadness. I reached out to him, feeling Maxxus' hands on my shoulders for strength.
Finnian struggled, but he reached out and clutched my hands. He struggled for breath for a few moments before inhaling deeply and spitting out quickly: “There are Shadows in Castle Danger.”
I let out a surprised cry. I crumpled further to the ground. “Oh my gods—is everyone?”
He shook his head. “You don't understand. They opened up a portal. Someone helped them open up a portal!” He cried frantically, his eyes rapidly changing colors, not able to focus on any one emotion. The tears fell openly from his eyes now and he sobbed openly into his hands.
Kiarra sympathetically, though stunned, grasped his shoulder in a sign of solidarity. “It's okay, Finn. We'll figure it out.”
His head whipped up as he reached out, grabbing her shoulders and shaking them almost violently. Daniel and Gabriel each leaned over and grabbed an arm, releasing his grasp from her. “There is nothing to figure out, Kiarra! You don't understand! They are everywhere! Like the palace, but—fairies and other humanoids are not as strong as dragons. It's not pretty!”
I swallowed a hard ball that had formed in my throat. “Kit? Sona! Is she—”
He looked up at me sadly. “I don’t know. I don't know anything. Those who didn't fall right away, scattered.”
I gasped, at the realization of what he was saying. I turned and exchanged a terrified look with my new husband, then with Gabriel and Daniel, who looked grim and with Kiarra who, was sobbing openly. We sat like that for a handful of moments, in frantic silence as we comprehended what this meant.
I inhaled deeply, feeling myself shuddering. Maxxus' expression was weighted, as he stood behind me, wrapping his arms around my upper body and allowed me to sink into him. I sniffled slightly, allowing my tears to fall openly down my cheeks. I patted his arm gently and pulled away, going to the distraught Loremaster that had crumbled in a saddened heap to the ground.
“Finn…” I spoke quietly to him. It felt strange standing above him. He was such a commanding presence. Even when pissed at him for the storm-business in Castle Danger to try to coax my magic out he was still a pillar of confidence. I reached out to touch his shoulder, willing the magic from inside to offer some comfort to him when he pushed my hand away fitfully.
I snapped it back, feeling my pride slightly wounded. “I’m sorry, Finn, I—”
“I know, Leorah. I know.” Finnian sighed, shaking his head. “I don’t want any comfort right now. Everything that happened… it was my fault.”
Kiarra hung back, but she cried out. “How is that possible? No one cares for Castle Danger like you, Finnian!”
I nodded fervently. “She’s right, Finn. There’s no way—”
“It’s true, Leorah. In trying to help you, I may have overlooked something dire.” Finnian sighed and turned around, his voice audibly shaken.
I looked between my husband—Maxxus and my friend, my brother in magic, Gabriel, helplessly. “What do we do?” It was disconcerting, seeing Finnian this shaken up. There was no way in Hell this could be his fault—not purposefully, anyway.
Maxxus wrapped his arm around my shoulders and pulled me tighter, nodding at Gabriel who grasped my hand tightly. He offered me a smile.
“What do we do? Well, whatever we do, we do it together,” he said, with a smile. “We’re a good team.”
Maxxus acknowledged his comment with a bob of his head. “Together. We can do anything.”
“Why do you say that?” I asked him.
“Because, Lady Leorah.” He bent slightly, placing a sweet kiss on my temple. “We have you.”
TO BE CONTINUED….
Thank you…
…to you, the reader. I appreciate you coming along with me on this journey. I appreciate all your kind words, your reviews and encouragement.
You’re the best! I love you all!!
About the Author:
Sariah Skye lives physically in southern Minnesota with her husband, two kids and dog but mentally her head is in the clouds dreaming of anything not requiring being an adult. When not writing she's probably watching another Star Trek marathon, playing World of Warcraft, reading more fantasy books or staying up way too late. For more information on book three of The Fated Saga or any other of her antics, you can find her at:
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