“Twelve days,” Lauriana breathed, staring at him in shock.
“I hoped to return sooner, but Marissya has convinced me that Ellysetta needs time to prepare for her new life.” Rain chafed at the delay. He wanted Ellysetta safe in the Fading Lands, protected by the magical barrier of the Faering Mists that surrounded the Fey homeland. He could not court his truemate properly here in Celieria, where he must remain vigilant, always on the alert for an attack. Neither could he forget his obligations to the tairen. If the Eye had steered Rain true, Ellysetta was the key to saving the tairen and the Fey, and that meant he must bring her to the Fading Lands as soon as possible. “If you are amenable, we will draw up the Celierian marriage contract tonight and hold the ceremony in two or three days.”
“Two or three days?” Lauriana exclaimed. “Impossible!” She clasped her hands to her cheeks, horror etched on her face. “The Church alone requires seven weeks for devotions and the Bride’s Blessing. Not to mention all the other necessities. She needs a wedding dress, a trousseau. We must notify our friends and family. And then there are flowers, food, prenuptial dinners, receptions...” She shook her head. “No. I’ll need three months at least. Unless youwish to shame us and our daughter with some shoddy, rushed little affair?”
Rain’s spine stiffened. Shame his truemate? The insult was outrageous. “This I would never do.” His voice was cold and clipped. “I do not have three months to give you. In twelve days, I leave Celieria. Ellysetta will accompany me then.”
“It is very little time, I know,” Marissya broke in. Theshei’dalincast a warning glance at her king.«Their ways are not ours, Rain. You brought me here to negotiate. Allow me to do so.»Turning her attention to Lauriana, Marissya continued, “Your daughter’s wedding will be as grand as you desire and will bring your family honor, I assure you.”
The sudden clearing of Sol’s throat made everyone turn to look at him.
“The wedding will not take place until the blessings and ceremonies required by the Church are complete,” Sol stated in a mild but firm voice. “In that regard, my wife and I are in perfect agreement. Speak to the Archbishop, if you like—I know the Church will abbreviate their ceremonial timescales under special circumstances—but until the Bride’s Blessing is complete, there will be no wedding. And irrespective of the Archbishop’s decision, the wedding will not take place sooner than one month from tomorrow. That gives my wife at least some time to prepare, and gives our family and friends a bit of notice so they can have a chance to attend.”
“Two weeks,” Rain countered.
“Three,” Sol returned swiftly. “And that is the absolute minimum.”
Rain met his future bond-father’s eyes in a brief visual skirmish that ended when Ellysetta placed her hand on the arm of Rain’s chair and whispered, “Please.”
Though it chafed him to wait a moment more than necessary, Rain put aside his impatience. “Three weeks,” he agreed. “But at least three bells of every day will be set aside for our courtship.And the Fey will continue to guard her and your family as they do now. That is not negotiable.”
Sol considered the offer for a moment, then nodded.
Rain sat back. “Then we are agreed.” His hand covered Ellysetta’s, his fingers threading through her smaller ones. Pleasure filled him at the simple touch and made Ellysetta blush.
“This may actually work out better,” Marissya said. “Prince Dorian’s betrothal ceremony will be over by then, so the wedding won’t conflict with those celebrations. Which is good, as I know the king and queen will wish to attend.”
“The king and queen? Oh, my.” Lauriana sat back in her chair, fanning a hand before her face. “Three weeks to prepare a wedding the king and queen will attend...”
“It will be fine, Mama. Don’t worry.” Ellysetta gave her mother a reassuring smile. “No one will be expecting a huge celebration, and I would be happy with something simple. A priest, perhaps some flowers.” But her words only seemed to distress her mother more.
“Nei, shei’tani,” Rain interrupted. “Since there is to be a ceremony, it must be grand, else it would not bring honor to your family or the Fey.” The Celierians had always adored pomp and ceremony, and that had not changed in over a thousand years. Because Dorian and Annoura were planning to attend, the high-ranking Celierian nobles must also be invited, and Rain would not leave hisshei’tanivulnerable to their cruel, wagging tongues.
He looked at Lauriana and Sol. “Marissya is correct. I will assign a group of warriors to help you. Those talented in Earth can make what your Celierian merchants cannot provide on such short notice. You may also hire whatever Celierian help you require. Marissya will have Queen Annoura provide the names of tradesmen supplying services for the Prince’s ceremonies.” Annoura wouldn’t like it, of course, which almost made Rain smile. It would be a subtle punishment. Bel had told him of the way she’d dared to test Ellysetta’s mettle earlier in the day.
“We will discuss the marriage ceremony again, but for now, let us attend to the matter of the marriage contract.” Rain nodded at theshei’dalin. “Marissya is more familiar with your customs than I, and I have asked her to speak for me.”
Marissya leaned forward slightly. “With your permission, Master Baristani?” She waited for Sol to incline his head before proceeding. “I have taken the liberty of modifying a standard Celierian marriage contract.” She nodded at Dax, who produced two copies from thin air and handed them to his truemate. She passed one to Sol. “There is no need to settle a bride price. What Ellysetta brings to this union is beyond price. In that, Den Brodson was correct. The Fey would have paid twenty times, a thousand times, what we did to break her betrothal.
“We will speak to the Archbishop, and if he is amenable, the wedding will take place in three weeks, at which time Rainier will accept full responsibility for Ellysetta’s well-being, in accordance with your customs. Though theshei’tanitsabond will not be fulfilled by this ceremony, in the eyes of Celieria, Rain and Ellie will be man and wife. When the Fey depart Celieria, she will accompany us to her new home in the Fading Lands. Your family, Master Baristani, may travel with us to the Fading Lands and remain there until the Fey matebond ceremony is held. Or we can send escort for you when the time comes.”
Sol set his copy of the marriage contract on the small table beside him and pulled a pipe and tobacco pouch from his pocket. He hesitated and glanced at his Fey guests. “Do you mind?” When the Fey shook their heads, he filled the pipe’s bowl with dark, moist tobacco, tamped it down, then lit a match against the sole of his shoe and cupped the flame over the pipe bowl. The room was silent except for Sol’s quiet puffs as he lit the pipe. Fragrant smoke filled the air, a deep, rich aroma that smelled of flowers and spice. He puffed the pipe for a few moments more, then picked the contract back up. “Why would you not hold the Fey ceremony at the same time as the wedding?”
“Ellie must accept the bond before the ceremony can take place.”
“Didn’t she already do that this morning in Council?”
Marissya shook her head. “Ellysetta only recognized the bond today. She has not yet accepted it within herself.”
“I don’t understand.” He frowned.
“It is confusing, I know.” Theshei’dalinsmiled gently. “Acceptance of a truemate bond is not a conscious act. Ellysetta cannot just say ‘I accept’ and complete the bond. When she opens her soul to Rain and allows him in without reservation, when she willingly enters into his, then she will have accepted the bond. No one, not even she, can say when that moment will come. The path is different for every truemated couple, and it is never a simple one. Both Rain and Ellysetta will be tested, as will the strength of their bond, and they must prove their worthiness before the bond can be complete. She and Rain will know when it happens, and so will all the Fey. Until then, he must court her, as all Fey warriors court their mates.”
Marissya turned her head and captured both Rain and Ellie with her gaze. Theshei’dalin’svoice lowered and grew so gentle it was almost hypnotic. “He must prove himself strong enough to protect her, gentle enough to win her heart, and worthy of the great gift of her love and her unconditional trust. She must find the courage to embrace the darkest shadows of his soul, and the even greater courage to bare the shadows of her own soul to him. When all barriers are sundered, all secrets revealed and accepted, she can complete the bond; and they will no longer be two separate people, but rather one person, one soul, complete for eternity, stronger together than either could ever be apart.”
A fierce longing rose up in Rain, closing his throat and clasping a tight, aching fist around his heart. Ellysetta turned her head, and her eyes locked with his. Of its own volition, his hand reached out to touch her cheek, even as her hand reached out to touch his.
«Your soul calls out. Mine answers, beloved.»The sending wasa tender caress. Her lashes fluttered down, half veiling her eyes.«One day, Ellysetta, you will say those words, and this Fey will at last know joy.»
