Chapter 34 #3
“Flaws?” I ask as my heart cracks, opening to truly let him in. “What are you talking about? I’ve never met anyone more perfect. And I do trust you. Today, you really proved the worth of your word, and I won’t settle for anyone else.”
Tristan pulls out a thread of my shadow, and I shiver despite being ready. I was so stupid to go on this wild goose chase when my destiny was in front of me all along.
“May I?” Tristan asks, as he plucks a thread out of his own shadow as well, and I ache to sob again.
“Yes. I’m yours.”
And then it happens. He closes his palm with both our shadows, and when he opens it, it lies on his hand as a single thread.
I take a quick gulp of air, and I feel it again.
Feel him. It’s faint, not some intricate mind and emotion recognizing device, but I understood how much it means when I lost the connection.
By tethering me to him that first time, he actually made reality more bearable after what Gloombane had done to me, and all I did was berate him for it…
He grabs the rose he attached to the saddle and looks at me with so much warmth it could melt the snow around us. He squeezes the thorny stem, making me reach for his hand, because that must surely hurt.
“The shadow wielder makes their vows holding a midnight blue rose, protecting the future Dark Companion from the sting of thorns. From now on, I will have access to your shadow’s power, but I will always put myself between you and danger.
I will not abuse the privileges you grant me.
I vow to cherish and protect you. Provide for all you need. "
I bite my lip when I spot blood trickling from his fist, but if this is how he wants things done, I’ll just kiss it better later. His shadow is almost black when it rises behind him, then falls over us like a veil, and I gasp when my own stands to attention as well.
I can feel it swelling, and then a tickling sensation buzzes between my chest and feet.
“And because I also can’t wait to make you my husband,” he continues, “I vow to love you, to be there for you, to guide you through this Realm you don’t yet know, and to make Lady our ring bearer at the official ceremony.”
I love him.
I love him so much it hurts, and I want it to hurt even more, because it’s so good.
“And I promise to always love you. Support you, and never doubt you again, my knight,” I say, making Tristan chuckle as he gives me a brief kiss.
“Repeat after me,” he says. And I do.
“I am yours. Body, soul, and shadow.” And I mean it, with all my heart.
The surge within me is so much stronger than when Tristan tied our shadows.
It’s warmth, it’s excitement, it’s an energy I never experienced before, then I sense a tickling on my chest that moves up my neck.
This is… unsettling. Like a caterpillar crawling up my face.
I paw at my jaw, trying to grab whatever it is, but there’s nothing there.
“Calm down. It’s all right. That’s Gloombane’s eel. It’s moving again. But it’s yours, it won’t hurt you,” he says quickly, eyes wide.
“Please! Get it off!” I whine, but Tristan was already reaching for it.
I can finally see it, a dark, solid shadow as he pulls it off my face right in front of my eyes.
It slips out of his grasp and flops right into my shadow on the ground where it…
disappears. Darkness spills from where it fell in, spreading like a drop of ink, and coloring my faint shadow to its very edges.
I whimper, face partially hidden in Tristan’s chest as we both stare, because the shade I cast is now far darker than Tristan’s and compares to the depths of the ocean clashing into the rocks under the Nocturne Court.
“It changed… Is this good?”
Tristan’s frowning, which is making me nervous. He dips his fingers into my shadow, and when he pulls them out, it’s like they’re dripping with tar.
“This is good. Very good.”
“Is Gloombane’s soul now inside me or… something?”
Tristan’s eyes turn to me, sharp and attentive. “No, sweetheart. His power is your trophy, and it seems that becoming my Dark Companion has awakened it. No one will dare criticize your shadow ever again.”
My lips stretch into a smile, and I kiss his chest before hiding in it, because all I want is his approval, his love, and he wanted me even with a shadow pale as a bone.
“Is that better for you, my…” I stall, chuckling as a wave of incredulous shyness washes over me.
“Are you my husband now? Can I tell everyone?”
Tristan grins and kisses the side of my head. “While unexpected, yes, this is an amazing turn of events, and yes, I will proudly call you my husband and Dark Companion. Though if we want that lavish wedding, you might have to call me your fiancé for a while.”
I chew on my lip, then move my chin up his chest and look at his handsome face.
Unicorn? What unicorn? The most beautiful thing in my life has happened only now.
“I want everyone to know you’re mine.”
“I guess we’ll just throw a party then.” Tristan grins. “I love a party. Oh! And we need to have pizza. And beer pong!”
“And beer pong,” I agree with tears in my eyes.
I love him so much.
For him, I’d even get a tattoo of a solo cup.