If that were true, how beautiful it must be to exist there.
“Ellowyn,” a low voice rumbled my name, and I reluctantly pulled my gaze from the ceiling to settle on my future husband, Lord Alois d’Refan. He was dressed as always—black tunic and pants, the gold bars on his shoulders denoting his rank. A thin circlet of gold sat on his brow, glinting in the ethereal light andcontrasting against his pitch-black hair that was just starting to dust with silver.
I smiled slightly, a flat, emotionless thing, as I watched his unnerving, deep-brown eyes focus entirely on me. His gaze roamed from my feet that just poked from under the hem of my wedding dress, up my thighs, to my hips that were hugged by the silk. He paused at my belly, his eyes canting lower for a moment to the apex of my thighs, before continuing his sensual perusal. Alois halted again on my breasts that were peeking just above the neckline, my nipples hardening inadvertently under his stare. The tip of his tongue darted out to lick his lower lip before he finally—finally—drug his eyes to my own. In them, I saw pure lust and hunger coupled with something that looked like respect.
“Like what you see?” I snarked and was rewarded with a short bark of a laugh.
“Yes, wife. I like what I see. This is what you should have worn to your Awakening. Though, if you had, I would have had to gouge the eyes of every man present. Including my General.” I felt the tips of my ears grow warm at his words. “That dress would cause an acolyte to sin.”
Alois held his hand out to me, and I laughed lightly before clasping my cold palm in his warm one. His fingers were large and calloused, belaying the years of labor preceding his time as Lord of Vespera.
“You are decadent. And all mine,” he whispered in my ear, his breath fanning over my face and causing the hairs on the back of my neck to stand on end.
By any means necessary. Pip’s statement was now my mantra. My whole life was dictated by my mother and father, by dreams and visions, even by the man standing next to me. It was time for me to take the helm, for once.
Lord d’Refan pulled me to stand to his left, the two of us facing a Priest of Fate. Their headdress was unmistakable, the beads and charms woven within the near-transparent black silk tinkling with each movement.
“Do you come before Fate today of free will with the intention of tying your souls together for eternity or as long as you both walk this plane?” The voice of the Priest undulated between feminine and masculine, the inflection of their voice changing on almost every word.
Eternity?
“We do,” Alois answered for both of us. The Priest turned their head to me, and I felt the weight of their stare even through the face covering they wore.
“I do,” I said quietly.
“Very well. We call upon Fate and the ether to Bond these two people together.”
A tendril of magic swooped from the sky—its color indiscernible—before twining around Alois’ and my joined hands. It shimmered on our skin for a moment before sinking beneath. I gasped as the magic wove its way into my very being, a small thread connecting Alois and I.
“Fate has recognized this union,” the Priest spoke, and I thought I detected a note of surprise. “The health of your bond is dependent on your actions and words—choose both wisely and always look to Fate.”
The Priest finished with a slight bow before turning and floating from the room, a door on the back wall opening for their escape.
Alois and I stood like that for a moment longer, our hands clasped together, reveling in the feeling of each other. Soon, I began to fidget under the strength of his stare.
“Well, that was . . . something,” I hedged, and Alois chuckled lowly. “If only Mother could see me now,” I remarked ruefully, and I felt Alois tighten beneath my hands before pulling away.
“I apologize, Ellowyn, that neither your parents nor your brother were here to witness our union,” Alois said carefully, and I searched his face for the truth of his words. His eyes were still and serious, the ridges of his brow furrowed in a frown. I reached out hesitantly before gently stroking the lines in his forehead. His chest rumbled with pleasure, so I repeated the motion to the other side of his face.
“It’s alright, husband.” The word felt foreign on my tongue, but the spark in Alois’ eyes made me want to use it again. Maybe that was a way to manipulate him for my own purposes. “I understand why. It doesn’t mean I necessarily like it, but I do understand.”
At the core, my parents betrayed Lord d’Refan, Vespera, and the Northern Alliance—they let rebels into Katiska, unknowingly or not, which caused strife, panic, and death. They had to be punished; that portion I understood. The part of my heart that was still a girl longing for her family and the life before, however, took longer to adjust to the thought.
“I have this for you,” Alois said as I dropped my hand from his brow. The bangles on my arm rubbed against my skin, and I shuddered involuntarily. It felt wholly unnatural for these contraptions to be attached to my arms, to be sucking the magic from my skin as soon as I released it.
“As soon as you control it, I will remove them,” he intoned, his gaze fixed on where I was fiddling with the cuff. I stilled my motions before clasping my hands in front of me, trying to channel my mother’s teachings.
“And when will that be? When will I be afforded the opportunity to learn control?” I all but snapped. A Mage separated from their magic for elongated periods of timeexperienced effects that ranged from mood swings to depression and, in some rare cases, even death. I was already noticing the fluctuations in my emotions. “I apologize, husband. Being separated from my magic is a disconcerting feeling.”
He hummed softly as he pulled a black box from his pocket.
“You may enroll in the Academy soon,” he said as he popped the box open.
Soon, but no finite time.
I was noticing that my new husband spoke in half-truths as often as possible.
My thoughts were temporarily distracted by the gleaming gold band that Alois procured. It was simple, no jewels or gems adorned it, but it was ornately beautiful with a second band snaking along the first like a vine.
