23. Johree
JOHREE
The High Priestess was someone I’d seen several times as a kit and later as an adult.
She presided over every bonding ceremony, every blessing of a new royal kit, and offered words of wisdom at the start of every high festival.
She gave me a knowing smile before turning that gaze to Jesse.
Then, looking beyond us, over our joined hands, she began to speak.
“Before the eyes of the Dragonii, before the ancestors who came before us, and before the stars that witness all bonds, we stand together to recognize what has already been chosen. The bond between these two was not created by crown, council, or ceremony. And though it was found due to treaty, it was forged solely by the ancient laws of nature as gifted to us by the Cosmos itself and sealed by the will of the two who stand before us.”
She paused for dramatic effect. “And yet while a bond may be given by fate, a marriage is chosen, and today, Prince Johree of the House of Oravelle and Jesse Wilson choose one another freely, not as prince and subject, not as Dragonii and human, but as two souls who have found their home in each other.” She reached out, placing each of her hands on top of our clasped ones.
“May their bond be strong enough to withstand every storm.” She released us and lifted them towards the heavens, her gaze following.
“May their home be filled with laughter. May their table never lack for food, their hearts never lack for courage, and their bed never lack for warmth.” She dropped them by her sides and looked at the audience once more.
“May they stand together in times of peace and in times of trouble and remember that love is not the absence of difficulty, but the promise that no difficulty must ever be faced alone.”
Another pause as she turned her head a tiny fraction to look at me directly.
“Before us stands a prince.” Another breath of time as she did the same with Jesse.
“And also before us stands the man he has chosen and who has chosen him in turn.” Her gaze dropped to our joined hands.
“Together, they stand as one family, one household, and one bond. Let them now give one another the symbols of their promise.”
Fethri stepped forward, unclipping the ring box from Buster, slipping him a treat as he did so. Then he straightened, as the priestess said, “Prince Johree, take the ring you have chosen for your mate.”
I accepted it from Fethri, holding it up for all to see as he stepped back to the side.
“Look upon the one who will wear it, and speak the promise you give freely.”
My hearts stuttered as I did so, seeing the pure look of adoration this often stubborn male had for me. A stubbornness that had challenged the validity of our mating, but now which he used to forge a path by my side.
“Jesse Wilson, before my family, my people, and the stars above us, I choose you. I choose you not because you are human, and not because I am Dragonii, but because you are Jesse and I see you. You are the male who sees me beyond my titles. You are the one who challenges me when I need challenging, stands beside me sharing your strength as I share mine with you, and who has shown your love to me in all the ways I am learning a bond mate can love.”
Jesse’s eyes began to glisten. I continued, feeling the hot prickle of emotion threatening to leak from my own, even as my vision changed, the world around me becoming even more vivid with Jesse as its focus.
“I promise that you will never have to wonder where you stand with me. I promise to always stand beside you, not above you. I vow to listen to your counsel, to respect your choices, and to remember that my crown does not make my heart more important than yours.” I lifted our joined hands, releasing his.
He held it steady, though as I slid the dark band onto his finger, I felt a tremor that betrayed how deeply this very moment affected him.
“I give you this ring as a token of my oath that wherever life takes us, you will never face it alone. My hearts are yours. My future is yours. My home is wherever you are, and so wherever you go, Jesse, I will go with you.”
A tear slipped down his face, tracking its way slowly down one cheek.
I could hear more sniffles from the audience, including one behind me, no doubt from Pata.
Jesse ignored it, letting it fall where it would, and mentally, I vowed to myself to ensure that he would only ever cry tears of joy such as this.
The priestess turned her attention to him now, and as she spoke, Fethri stepped forward once more, this time to hand him the ring for me before stepping back.
“Jesse Wilson, take the ring you have chosen for your mate. Look upon the one who will wear it, and speak the promise you give freely.”
Jesse swallowed, glancing down with shaking fingers at the hand I held out to him.
He clasped it in his other hand, pausing as he got himself under control, then with the hand holding the ring, slid it upon my finger.
In a steady voice, he said, “Johree, I didn't come here looking for a prince. In fact, I wasn't looking for a crown, a palace, or a place in history. I thought I was looking for a place to start a ranch, but really, I discovered that while I’d found that, what I’d been looking for my whole life was you, and I just didn't know it until I found you and let go of all the anger and hurt I’d kept so deep inside me to let me see you.”
He cupped my cheek. “You were born to rule an entire people. I know there will be days when the weight of that responsibility feels too heavy. On those days, I promise to remind you that you don't have to be a prince with me. You can simply be Johree.”
Pata was now openly sobbing, and I knew without turning to look that father would be comforting him.
Louder sniffles and awws sounded from the guests, and Jesse paused to let them all settle down a bit before continuing.
“I promise to stand beside you when the path is easy and when it isn't. I promise to tell you the truth, even when you don't want to hear it. I promise to love the man beneath the crown just as fiercely as I love the prince who wears it. I give you this ring as a promise that you are my family now. My home is your home, for that home is you. My heart is yours, and whatever comes next, we will always face it together. I choose you, Johree. Today. Tomorrow. And every day that follows, even once we are both stardust once more.”
I lifted my hands to cup his jaw, leaning in, not caring about protocol or waiting for the words from the High Priestess.
“You may seal your marriage,” she said, dry amusement lacing her tone as she watched us kiss.
“The promises have been spoken. The rings have been exchanged. The mate bond has been recognized. By the authority granted to me by the ancient laws of the Dragonii, and before those gathered here to bear witness, I declare Prince Johree and Jesse Wilson joined in marriage, and blessed by the Universe itself.”
Pata’s soft sobs turned to giggles as Jesse and I continued to kiss. Father cleared his throat, and we reluctantly broke apart, turning together, hand in hand, to face him.
He held aloft the cushion with the facsimile of the crown they’d had made for Jesse in honor of his being the first non-Dragonii in the royal line.
“This crown was forged for the one who would stand beside my son. Not beneath him. Not behind him. Beside him. It is not a crown of inheritance. It is not a crown of command. It is a crown of belonging. It represents the place you have already earned in the hearts of my son, in the heart of our family, and now within the Royal House of Oravelle of the Dragonii Empire.”
Father paused, looking directly at my love.
“Jesse Wilson, you came to us as a stranger. You stand before us now as family. I present you this crown, not only as the king, but as the male who is privileged to be the father of the prince you have chosen. May you wear it with courage. May you wear it with wisdom.”
He passed it as if handing it to the priestess, who surreptitiously produced an identical cushion with the real crown upon it from within her voluminous robes.
“And may you always remember that no crown placed upon your head can ever be more important than the love that brought you here.”
She held it up to me, and I let go of Jesse’s hand to take the silver and obsidian circlet wrought with running horses, sheaves of wheat, and a dog that looks like Buster. Jesse went down on one knee to receive it.
Holding it over his head, I said, “You see me, and somehow, you love me anyway.
And so today, having already claimed you as my mate and my husband, today, I give you no title you did not already earn.
I give you no place you did not already claim in my hearts.
This crown does not make you my equal, for you were my equal from the moment you stood before and then beside me.
It simply tells the rest of the world what I have known from the beginning.
You are my mate. You are my family. You are my breath.
And wherever I wear my crown, performing my duties of office, you will stand beside me wearing yours.
Not only because you are a prince's mate, but because you are my Jesse and not only the one the stars themselves decree who should govern by my side, but my forever.”
I placed it upon his head, and offered him my hand to help him rise.
The High Priestess raised her hands towards the heavens once more. “Behold the Prince and his mate! Behold the joining of two souls! Behold the joining of two worlds! May the bond endure!”
The guests stood up as one. “May the bond endure!” they cheered.
Buster looked askance at them, jumping up to look about to see if they posed a threat. I slipped him a treat from my pocket, having prepared in case of such an event, since I had planned Buster’s appearance with Kiprr from the very start.
Kiprr held his hand out to Jesse for the leash, and he gave it to him, just as I slipped off my cape.
I stepped forward, tugging Jesse along before scooping him up in my arms as he laughed.
The laughter cut off as I freed my wings and he stared at them in awe as they began to beat.
I launched us into the sky, his arms clasped tightly around my neck.
I circled above the town, letting out a primal bellow to announce that I had found my mate and been accepted.