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Alexandria and I knelt down.
Father Eòin said a very long prayer above us, then finally, when my knees were aching, asked us tae stand and face each other tae make our vows.
My foot had gone tae sleep, when we stood I had tae stomp it a few times tae concentrate. Then I said, “Alexandria, I promised ye that if our spirits aligned and the world approved, I would marry ye, and the world did approve and our spirits aligned and so we did and I hope ye see that I mean what I say, I love ye. Ye daena need tae doubt my word, tis my oath tae ye. Ye are m’wife, Alexandria, from this year, one thousand three hundred and eight, this hour until my last breath. I will guard ye, keep ye, greatly vex ye but try not tae, and I will always love ye. By this binding, I pledge my troth tae ye.”
I held her hand gently and slid the ring on her finger. She nodded, lookin’ down on it.
“I will get ye one with a larger stone later.”
“No, this is exactly what I wanted.” A tear rolled down her cheek.
I said, “Ye are tremblin’.”
“This is very important, Torin. I wish my parents were here to see it.”
“Aye, I wish I could make it happen for ye, but daena be afraid, mo leannan, ye canna fear it, our family will be safe and prosperous, I promise ye.”
She looked up in my eyes. “I know it, Torin, you will do everything in your power. Is it my turn to make the oath?”
I nodded.
She said, “You promised not to greatly vex me, and I promise to not be so vexed and I will not doubt you again, m’lord, I love you and trust you, and though I may argue sometimes, I will always be yours…” There was a small hitch of a sob in her throat. She had my ring in her palm, and with her eyes cast down, slid it on my finger, very softly, her voice full of emotion, she said, “With this ring, I promise my troth to you, Torin, I love you.”
Father Eòin gestured for us tae kneel once more, but as we did, Dude caught a bug under his paw and began growling at it.
The priest chuckled. “Yer lion is bravely protecting the kirk!”
Dude pulled his paw up and let the pest get away, then pounced on it, strewin’ straw around.
Alexandria said, with a laugh, “Dude, you’re interrupting!”
Dude batted the beetle, placed his paw upon it, growled, then looked under his paw and let it go skittering away, chasing it across the floor tae pounce again. This time he went verra high, showin’ off.
Now we were all laughing.
I said, “Dude, tis a solemn occasion!”
He did it a third time, skittering and chasing and pouncing, making an uproar, then the beetle must hae died because Dude batted it but it dinna move, so the cat lost interest, walking down the nave with his tail flicking. He jumped back up tae his perch in the alcove on the wall.
Father Eòin said, “Och, he is a marvelous beast.”
We stopped laughin’ and returned tae the solemnity of the occasion. Alexandria and I were kneeling and he placed a hand on each of our bowed heads. “I declare that ye are husband and wife before God.” And then he began tae pray.
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ALEXANDRIA
1308 - A SAFE PLACE FOR THE HEART OF THE WOLF KING
After Father Eòin had blessed us, Torin was told to kiss the bride and it was a wonderful sweet kiss, mixed with damp tears from the overwhelming emotion of the ceremony and that kind of church laughter that had interrupted the solemn moments in the middle of it.
The kiss was perfect. And then there was a quick press of his cheek against mine, a whispered, always, and then we stood.
Father Eòin smiled at us fondly. “Tis not usual that vows are interrupted by the play of cats, but I did enjoy the laugh of it. I will be telling this story for many long years — the day that Laird Torin and Lady Alexandria were married and twas witnessed by their loyal cat.”
Torin and the priest shook hands and I nodded respectfully and Torin returned to the aisle to pick up our bags. Then he paused, half in the motion of lifting it. “Father, ye said ye hae a sacristy, tis safe?”
“Aye, tis verra safe.” Dude had jumped down from his alcove, sensing that we were leaving, and was winding himself around the hem of the priest’s robes.
