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“We really do. You don’t have to do much, just stand there and look magnificent. Someone will hand you your flame, and then we combine it into one.”
Katie moved her hand from his head, and he slumped over, missing her touch already. She giggled as she returned both hands to his skull, massaging it as his eyes fluttered closed.
“Then what’s after that?” she murmured.
“Hmm, not much. Then we are mated. You are mine, and I am yours.”
“Does Ayla have any part in it?”
Axur started to fade away, the rush of having brought Katie to orgasm multiple times in a row draining him. The ceremony had been only a few days away at the time, and there wasn’t a sliver of concern that tensed his marble-like frame.
“Hmm? Well, she could have a flame. The Elders suggested it.”
Katie went to her knees on the couch, the blanket that was pressed to her bosom falling away. She didn’t adjust it, though. She merely continued kneading his head as his body flooded with a warm glow.
“Your touch is like magic,” he whispered.
“I know,” she whispered back. “I’m casting a spell on you.”
Axur’s hands raised to her breasts, where her sweet pink nubs had hardened again, initiating another lovemaking session that was soft and fervid.
A few days later, the day of the ceremony had arrived. Katie stood in the dissipating incandescence, her face and chest flushed like a blossoming rose, her blonde hair a shimmer of illuminated bewitchment. The dress she adorned was a robust, bold crimson shade. It ran down her shapely form, taut at the bodice, gemstones flickering in lace gliding up her torso that held up her bosom like delicate but powerful treasures. Her eyes were two brilliant jewels, an evergreen serenity that stood with poise and transfixed his very soul.
A rush of wind brushed over her, sweeping up the cape of the dress into a cinematic swirl. All of the guests watched, as entranced as Axur was, gasping as she trailed along the roadway of light, a ghostly pink shadow that led straight to the former general’s arms.
She smiled ear to ear, not a single ounce of fear expressed in her amused chuckle. She was giddy, holding the flickering candle in her hand, standing before him while the dim sunlight formed a halo around her head.
“Am I doing this right?” Katie whispered, slipping her tongue out between her teeth.
Axur was over the moon. A part of him felt guilty for not embracing her sooner. Her existence in his life was nothing short of a gift. He didn’t consider himself a very sentimental man, really, until he met the human hired to take care of his niece. It was like his vision had been blurred and black and white his entire life, then Katie had arrived, and he saw everything in fresh, vibrant shades.
How could he ever repay her for everything she had done for him? For her patience? For her vehement honesty? For teaching him that the truth of emotions was to feel them rather than banish them into the pits of numbness? He had a few ideas and was willing to reach for them for the rest of his life.
Axur took her hand in his, his own flame dancing while the shadows behind them stretched. His cheeks ached from smiling. He wasn’t entirely sure the bones on his face were used to such constant expression.
“You are perfect, Katie,” he said softly in the fading, gleaming light. “Never doubt that for a second.”
Somehow, like the flames that would soon fuse as one roaring, glorious fire, she brightened. He never wanted to see the agony he had temporarily caused crossing her fetching face again.
“Oh, you,” she muttered.
An Elder came before them while a large black cauldron was revealed, having been concealed behind a royal purple-colored curtain. Guests remained seated and watched with intrigue as the Elder ordered the two to kneel before him.
Axur instructed her on what was expected a few days before, so Katie was ready when he guided her down to her knees. Small cushions were laid under them by the mating ceremony planners, cardinal red and swathed in silver threading.
They held hands as the Elder came to them, placing one hand on each of their heads as they bowed. Axur noticed that Katie wasn’t wearing any shoes. It was another custom on his planet that he told her she could forgo if she wanted. The air was crisp from the sudden freeze a few weeks before, the morning dewy like transparent crystals.
He gave her a crooked smile as their eyes fixed on one another. There was no way she could be any more beautiful.
“Gentlemen, gentle ladies, and accompaniment,” the Elder began, “we are gathered as one supportive unit in honor of Axur and Katie. Let us grant them goodwill in their voyage.”
The audience was a smaller, more intimate group of coworkers and supporters who wanted nothing to do with the frowned upon mantra of military yore. Katie didn’t want her family there. In fact, she didn’t need them, and her wishes were respected.
As far as Axur was concerned, the convergence was perfect. All those he would ever need were present under the same sky.
Axur and Katie rose, still holding hands as well as their fluttering flames. The Luxenian wilderness was nearly completely cloaked in darkness with merely a wink of light that kissed the horizon when the Elder took a step back toward the cauldron.
He held an open hand to it, then proceeded to bow his head.
