Fifty-Three
CHAPTER
The sun was setting, which meant we had spent the entire day trying to figure things out.
Who knew that making such simple decisions could be so incredibly hard.
I always thought myself to be a simple woman, but I was realizing how indecisive I truly was.
I wondered if I had always been that way.
No matter, I had more pressing things to do than ponder my indecisiveness. Like actually being decisive.
The dining table was covered in so many things, from fabric swatches to floor plans, the beginning preparations of the ceremony were in every single place I looked.
It was a bit overwhelming, but in a good way.
Daunting, even. It was exciting, knowing that in just a matter of months, Zathrian and I would officially accept the Mate Bond by partaking in the ceremony before those we loved the most.
I could see it now, the tears in our eyes and the happiness in our smiles.
I wanted nothing more to be his. I wanted him to be mine.
We were Mates. We knew that, and soon everyone else across the Realms would know it, too, if they didn’t already.
That didn’t change how anxious I felt about trying to make our day perfect in every single way.
Our ceremony would take place in the winter months, and while we had yet to pick a day, I was leaning toward potentially doing it the day I was reborn.
Exactly one year after everything had happened.
Perhaps.
It was still up in the air, as most other decisions regarding our day were.
I had yet to pick out what food I wanted at the after-celebration, let alone talk to a dress maker regarding my dress. And of course, be fitted for a crown of my own. But those were all things that I simply could not decide on as of yet.
In time, surely.
For now, however, I simply could not choose a color scheme to save my life. I looked between the options, unsure of which I liked the most. Navy and silver were ideal, given they were the Realm of Stars colors. The ones in which Zathrian and the rest of the Court wore, myself included.
I loved the colors, but I wanted our day to be just that; our day. It was our love that formed the Bond. Gods or not, I loved him more than anything.
Indecisive still, I pondered the other options, crinkling my nose. I loved the idea of dusty blue and sage green. Perhaps with a dash of silver, even. Black and silver was classy, too.
Decisions, decisions.
I tilted my head slightly, weighing my options. Half tempted to ask Zathrian’s opinion. I looked up to him to see that he was already looking at me. His arms were loosely crossed, half gesturing to the various options that were on the dining table before us.
It’s your choice, my love. Your happiness is my happiness. For all I care, we could wear our pajamas. Actually, now that I think of it, maybe we should just wear our pajamas, he said through the Bond.
We are not wearing pajamas for our Mate Ceremony. Besides, your pajamas consist of underwear. You really want all your Realm to see you practically naked? I raised a questioning brow.
Zathrian nearly choked. I laughed, covering my mouth with my hand. “Well, am I wrong?”
“My point still stands,” he muttered, armed crossed.
“Ha. Ha. Ha. Well, I know I want this sort of aesthetic. It’s the colors I am not entirely in love with…” I said with a sigh. One hand gestured toward the options, my other hand pushed through my curls.
This was far harder than I thought it would be.
The chair screeched as Zathrian pushed it back. He stood, making his way around the table and over to my side. If I could just pick out a color aesthetic, we would be one step closer to having the ceremony planned.
Zathrian knelt by my side. One of his hands slid to my own that were placed in my lap, the other grazed my cheek, turning my face to him.
His eyes were soft, and his words just barely above a whisper.
“I love you for you, Aerilyn. No matter what dress you wear, or what food we feast upon, that day is going to be the best day of my life because that day will be our day and no one can take that away. That day can’t ever be undone. ”
“I love you, too, I just want it to be perfect,” I replied.
“It is going to be perfect, no matter what. I will make certain of that. As long as you are happy, my love, I am happy, too.” Zathrian smiled.
Nodding at his words, I turned to the overabundance of things covering the dining table. I gave his hand a gentle yet reassuring squeeze. Zathrian leaned forward and wrapped his arms around my waist. His head rested against my chest, hugging me.
I stopped what I was doing to sink one of my hands loosely into his curls, the other rubbed his back. “Mmm, if you keep looking up at me like that, I might have to kiss you.”
“Maybe I want you to,” he replied.
I smiled, leaning forward just enough to kiss his forehead.
“I think I want to go with black and silver.” I finally decided.
Zathrian’s face lit up, making a big deal out of it for no reason besides trying to get a reaction out of me. “OH MY! BLACK AND SILVER, WOOHOO!” He abruptly stood up, taking me with him. Pressing my head against his chest, he spun me around. We both giggled, enjoying the moment.
“I always adored you in black…” he whispered against my ear.
“Mmm,” I hummed, knowing that he adored me in any color I wore, or even in nothing at all for that matter.
Zathrian placed me back down onto my own two feet, his arms carefully wrapped around me. I looked up at him with all the love in the world, swooning at the way he looked back at me.
He leaned down and planted a soft yet affectionate kiss against my lips. He swayed back and forth, dancing with me, humming a sweet song for us to dance to.
I giggled. “You’re such a goofball.” It felt like falling in love with him all over again.
“Nah, hopelessly in love with you, more like it.” He spun me around just to pull me back into his chest. My smile grew.
“Do you think we will dance like this a hundred years from now?” I asked.
“We will dance for all of eternity if you wish to.” He dipped me again. This time he held me there, one hand wrapped around my waist, the other sliding under my skirt and up my calf, all the way to my thigh, exposing my flesh beneath the layers of fabric.
Flushed in the face, I slid my hands up to his cheeks. I leaned in just enough to brush my nose against his.
“Mmm,” I hummed in a sing-song way. He carefully drew me back onto my own two feet, still hugging me. I turned around to face the dining table again and everything we had yet to do.
He rested his chin upon my shoulder, hugging me from behind.
“Black and silver…” I sat beside the small aesthetic board that consisted of those colored pieces that gave the look we, or more so, I decided to go with. It was just another thing to cross off the never-ending list of to-dos. “Hmmm…” I peered at the food options, having some idea of what I wanted.
“Shepherd’s pie?” Zathrian noticed the way I was eyeing the menu options.
“Is that really even a question?”
“No, not really. I think I would be concerned if we didn’t have Shepherd’s pie. It’s your favorite.” Zathrian nuzzled his face against my neck.
“It is, but you’re my favorite, too,” I replied, trying to be sweet, though he was far better at sentimental words than I had ever been.
Zathrian kissed my temple. I closed my eyes, basking in the moment. Truly feeling so happy and so at ease that it almost felt too good to be true.
THUNK. THUNK. THUNK.
Opening my eyes, I diverted them to the door and the distant sound of some sort of altercation.
Zathrian’s posture stiffened, and he used his arm to blindly push me behind him in a protective manner.
He said nothing, but by the way he clenched his jaw, I knew something had to be wrong. I didn’t dare move, nor make a sound.
THUNK. THUNK. THUNK.
The sounds came closer and closer until the door burst open. There Kyrell stood, a box in hand. Mateo attempted to prevent him from getting any closer.
“You stay away from her!” Mateo hissed. He was just about to use his Starfire manipulation when Kyrell managed to blindside him with his shadow manipulation.
Shadowy tendrils shoved Mateo aside, slamming him harshly into the nearby wall.
Kyrell placed the black, ruby-encrusted box onto our table full of ceremony plans.
Kyrell said absolutely nothing. Our eyes met in a way that made me feel uneasy. My heart raced as I watched him take a step back, still staring right at me with a smile on his face. He gestured to the box.
“What is that?” Zathrian questioned sternly.
Mateo seemed anxious, stumbling back onto his feet, rubbing his shoulder.
Kyrell gestured to the box again. “Open it.”
I hesitated, approaching the box until I stood at the edge of the dining table.
My hand reached out for the clasp. My fingers lingered in the air for a moment before pulling the latch upwards.
The room was silent. My eyes drifted to Zathrian and back to the box.
With another breath, I took both my hands and slowly opened it.
Inside was a rigid, black dragon’s egg, and a card written in black ink with a single word: Casimir.