Drostan had begun wedding preparations the very next morning, following the Cu-sidhe revelation. He was eager to see us joined. There was wedding attire to be made, a feast to be planned, and a castle to adorn. The entire Kingdom would be coming to the castle to see their king wed, and the castle would have to provide for the people. Drostan controlled every aspect of the wedding; from the ceremony down to my underwear. I didn't have a single decision to make, though I did have some responsibilities. Our wedding officiant would be Drostan's highest ranking noble; a male sidhe who was also a Duke of Unseelie. He was Drostan's cousin; Percival. I'm not kidding; that was his name.
Before the ceremony, Percival wanted to prepare me for my role in the ritual. He met with me the day before to go over the procedure and answer any questions that I might have. We were in Drostan's library with him; Drostan didn't leave me alone with any man. Percival had got to the part of the ritual where Drostan and I would be cutting our palms and mingling our blood, and I had paled.
“It's the strongest magic we know,” Drostan said gently. “Blood magic. It will bind us together forever.”
I swallowed past the lump in my throat. “Oh.”
“We should remove the previous binding now, Your Majesty,” Percival suggested.
I blinked in surprise. “What?”
“You cannot be bound in blood with an Understanding such as the one between you and my king already holding you,” Percival explained. “A blood bond must be entered willingly.”
“Oh,” I whispered again.
“It will be all right,” Drostan assured me; as if I were worried about our Understanding being broken.
The opposite was true; I was internally rejoicing. At the same time, an even greater magic loomed on the horizon. But for one day, I would be free; and a day could bring a lot of changes. Wait; what was I thinking? Would I really risk all I'd accomplished with Drostan on an escape? If he caught me, I'd go right back to being a slave. Even worse, I expect. Drostan couldn't let that kind of humiliation stand. He'd probably kill me.
No; I couldn't risk it. I'd have to enjoy my day of freedom and then bind myself to Drostan forever.
“Riley, are you ready?” Drostan asked gently.
“I think so,” I whispered. “Do I need to do anything?”
“Take my hand.” Drostan held his hand out to me, and I took it. “Now, I'm going to say the necessary words to release my end of the Understanding, and you will repeat them to finish the break. Okay?”
“Okay.”
“This Understanding is concluded,” Drostan said. “All ties are broken.”
He nodded to me.
I repeated his words, and a rush of energy went sizzling through me. I gasped and stared at Drostan in shock.
“That was it?” I asked.
“That was it,” he confirmed. Drostan turned to Percival. “Thank you, Duke Percival, I think Riley is prepared for tomorrow.”
“You're welcome, Your Majesty,” Percival said as he stood. “And may your wedding be a day to remember.”
“I'm sure it shall,” Drostan said smugly. He turned back to me as Percival left the room. “Are you all right, sweetheart?”
“Yes; I'm fine,” I said with more strength than I'd felt in awhile.
I had no idea that our Understanding had weakened me so much; both mentally and physically. I felt as if I'd had the best night's sleep of my life. I was ready to conquer the world... and marry a fairy king.
“Do you still love me?” Drostan asked teasingly, but I saw the glimmer of concern in his eyes.
“Of course I do,” I whispered sincerely as I stood. I slipped onto his lap and wrapped my arms around his neck. “I love you even more now. I feel invigorated.”
“The Understanding had an oppressive component,” he murmured. “I'm sorry for that.”
“It doesn't matter anymore,” I said brightly. “Tomorrow we'll belong to each other forever, and the past will fade away.”
“Tomorrow is too far away,” Drostan said with deep intensity. “I need you now. I need you to prove to me that you're still mine.”
“Whatever you want, Drostan,” I said sweetly.
