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Hope flickered in Kyllen’s golden eyes. “Amira?” My name fluttered from his lips like a dragonfly, subtle and fragile.
Slowly, I lifted my hands to his.
I could move.
I was staring straight into his eyes, but I did not turn to stone.
“How?”
He exhaled sharply. “You’re alive.” Moving his hands down my body, he squeezed my shoulders, my arms, my sides. “You’re alive,” he kept saying, as if needing to hear the confirmation again and again.
“But how?” I repeated, shaking my head.
“I don’t care.” His chest rose and fell with shallow, ragged breaths. His eyes glistened with unshed tears. “I don’t fucking care how. Just please, please stay alive.”
He crushed me to him. I hugged him back tight, so tight that if I turned to stone now, he’d be trapped.
Still, I remained flesh and bone. Feeling, breathing.
Living.
“I love you,” Kyllen groaned, kissing me.
The breeze moved the veil against our faces. Kyllen grabbed the useless piece of fabric and ripped it off, tossing it aside.
He leaned back. “You’re glowing.”
“What?”
“When I touch you, your skin glows.”
I lifted my hand to stroke his face. When my fingers connected with his skin, a golden glow shimmered up my hand. I thought I’d seen this before, the night he had climbed through my window. Only it had been so subtle then, I hadn't paid much attention to it, overwhelmed by his miraculous return.
The glow was beautiful. And it felt…right, making me light at heart.
“What does it mean?” I smiled.
A sound of someone clearing their throat came from the side. Only now did I remember about Councilor Delahon still standing next to us on the dock.
The world came back, rushing in. The river. The tournament attendants around us. The rows upon rows of benches full of spectators. They all were watching us.
The councilor cleared his throat again, inching a bit closer. “There are some myths… Stories about human love that’s capable of transcending magic.”
“Humans have magic?” Kyllen didn’t sound very surprised or concerned. He just sounded happy, staring at me as if I were better than any magic in the world to him. And maybe I was?
The councilor rubbed his chin in thought. “Do you feel any different, Your Majesty?”
I felt love. But it wasn’t anything new. I’d loved Kyllen for some time now.
“I feel her,” Kyllen replied for me. “I know when she is sad, worried, concerned…happy. I felt her alive. Here.” He pressed his hand to his chest. “Even as I knew in my mind that without the veil, she should’ve been dead.”
I knew instantly what he was talking about. I’d carried his presence in my heart for months, and it’d been growing. In the days since his return, I sensed his hopes, his love, and his confidence. They gave me strength.
I placed my hand over my heart. “You’ve always been here, Kyllen.”
“Interesting,” the councilor muttered under his breath. He then spoke loud enough for the people around us to hear, “The legend says human love—if it’s strong enough—can link with fae magic to create a bond, a mating bond. As bonded mates, things that can’t harm Lord Kyllen won’t harm the queen, either. She will share his longer lifespan, too. The queen will live as long as her mate.”
I no longer needed the veil.
“How did no one say anything about that before?” Kyllen groaned.
The councilor shrugged.
“It’s an obscure, ancient legend. I thought it was just an old story when I read it long ago to pass the time. Honestly, I never thought there might be any truth to it as it contains a lot of obvious lies. It says, for example, that humans trade in pieces of cut-up paper with numbers printed on them. Surely, no one is that stupid to trade their goods or services for a stack of papers. Or that they can fly above the clouds with no magic whatsoever.” He scoffed, shaking his head. “I thought the entire story was just hearsay.”
Kyllen laughed, placing a quick kiss on my lips. “I really need to read more.”
I gave him an apologetic smile, too. “I’ve read so much since I came to Ufaris, but I still haven’t made it to the myth section of the Archives. I’ve been mostly catching up on Lorsan’s history, which is quite long, as you know.”
He stroked my hair, gazing at me in wonder. “A mating bond. The one thing I doubted would ever happen to me.”
“And with a human…” the councilor echoed.
“My very own human.” Kyllen leaned his forehead to mine. “I’m going to marry you, my little sweet pea.”
“You’d better.” I couldn’t stop smiling.
Councilor Delahon perked up. “Oh! That needs to be announced.” He hurried back to one of the voice-amplifying devices.
“People of Lorsan!” His voice boomed over the crowd, undoubtedly reaching the opposite bank of the river. “Queen Amira is announcing her impending marriage to Lord Kyllen, the High Lord of Ellohi and the winner of today’s tournament! Lorsan will have a king again. The King Consort.”
The crowd cheered. They had gotten to know Kyllen a little during the tournament, and they seemed to like him. They also must cherish the fact that their fate was no longer just in the hands of a lone human woman. They surely were looking forward to the royal wedding celebration with lots of parties to come, too.
“Who knew the day would come when you’d make me a king?” Kyllen laughed, the merry, carefree sound I loved so much. Grabbing me, he spun me around, sending my skirts in a twirl around us.
I wrapped my arms around his neck. Happiness floated inside me, comforting and invigorating at once.
“I love you, my very own king.”
