Chapter 15 Glade #2
He scratched his head, lost in thought. “But Father searched every corner of the universe, and he found her. After decades of scouring every star system, every galaxy, they finally found her. Part of me was thrilled… We have a shot!” he exclaimed, forcing a smile that didn’t quite reach his eyes.
“But the other part of me was filled with dread. This is it. I must be with someone I don’t know or love.
I’m not na?ve; even if I hadn’t been promised to her, Father would have arranged a marriage for me with some nearby princess, just like how he and Mother were wed.
But part of me hoped they’d never find her so I could keep living my life as I have for the past thirty-three years.
I know the thought is selfish, and that’s exactly why I’m trying to do the right thing, for us and for the universe. ”
It all made perfect sense, but it broke my heart, nonetheless.
All I wanted was for my brother to live peacefully and find love if he wished.
I had never really considered who I might marry; I always assumed my father wouldn’t care enough to arrange a marriage for me for the sake of an alliance and that I would someday choose a wife for myself.
But what must it be like to know that you could never truly fall in love, even if that was what your heart desired?
“And what do you think of Jane?” I asked earnestly. From what I had gathered, she was a bad-tempered, na?ve, and whiny little twit. I could only hope she would be enough to make my brother happy for the rest of his life, though I pitied him for having to deal with the prospect of her tantrums.
“Jane? She is incredibly beautiful, is she not?” Jion mused.
I felt my mouth part awkwardly as I tried to find a way to answer that question respectfully.
Of course, she was beautiful. I had spent nearly every waking moment trying to forget those magnificent hazel eyes filled with tears as they pleaded with me or the way her full, pouty lips tightened into a hard line when she spoke.
I couldn’t shake the image of her luscious caramel brown locks cascading over her shoulders and brushing against her back.
When she turned away, I caught myself inhaling deeply, intoxicated by the scent of her, enough to make me forget myself completely.
Before I could stutter a response, Jion continued, “She’ll make beautiful babies for me. That won’t be the hard part.”
He chuckled, but the humour in his voice only fuelled a fire of rage within me. I couldn’t stand the way he spoke about her, reducing her to nothing more than a vessel for his lineage.
“But what about her temper?” I pressed, my heart racing. Why had I brought up Jane’s flaws? What was I trying to convince Jion of? “She’s incredibly outspoken. Can you really handle that for the rest of your life?”
Jion tilted his head. “Her verbal altercation with Father the other night was brutal and disrespectful. That cannot happen again,” he replied, his voice firm.
“Jane needs to understand her place within our family and our culture. Things are much different here on Ornath than they are on Earth. Women from her home are given more…” He hesitated, searching for the right words.
“Liberties with their expression and emotions. That cannot be allowed here. She will need to learn how to be wise and hold her tongue in the presence of authority. You and I have been taught how to behave in this society since we were children. Jane has just arrived here from a vastly different world. In time, I believe she can adjust and become a more docile lady.”
The thought of a docile Jane filled me with a profound sadness. What a tragedy it would be for such a brilliant flame to be smothered into nothingness. She had dared to stand up to my father, something no woman had ever done before.
And I loved every minute of it.
I pushed the thought aside as I feigned concern. “And what if you cannot? What if Jane refuses to change? Jion, I don’t think you realize just how stubborn and ill-tempered she is. I have a hard time believing she’ll ever become the woman you expect her to be.”
Jion’s grin faded as he regarded me with a skeptical gaze.
“You’ve seen a different side of Jane than I have.
With the training Father has put you through, I assume you’ve seen a rather…
aggressive side to her. But from what I’ve observed, she’s lovely and views our world with such wonder.
It was rather adorable to see her interact with my horse, actually.
I think she may be more delicate than you realize. ”
The memory of Jane’s eyes lighting up as she petted Mir surged back to me, and despite my resolve, my heart warmed just a little.
“I’m optimistic that she’ll be a caring and gentle mother. That’s all I can really hope for. Hope is all I have, Glade.” Jion’s voice dropped. “Hope that this prophecy will work. Hope that my wife will be content. Hope that our father will be proud.”
The weight of his last confession darkened his eyes as a hint of sadness fluttered across his face.
“Anyway, maybe I should spend more time with my betrothed. I should see every side of her that I can. I had a lovely time with her at the library the other day. We could do something like that again. I could try to get to know her better. Shame on me.”
He scoffed, a familiar self-critique slipping in.
“Yeah.” I nodded reassuringly, forcing the words through a tight throat.
“You should take her on some dates or something. There could be something real there. That would be the best of both worlds, wouldn’t it?
Saving the universe and falling in love?
Best-case scenario.” I gritted my teeth, my forced smile barely masking the turmoil wrenching my insides.
“Yeah,” Jion echoed, his optimism infectious as he clapped a hand on my shoulder. “You’re right. I’ll take her out tonight. Thanks, little brother.”
As he left, a familiar bitterness churned in the depths of my soul, urging me to confront feelings I desperately wanted to ignore. I shut my eyes tightly, flexing my fingers and taking deep breaths to block out those intrusive thoughts.
But even in the darkness of my blindness, I couldn’t escape the vision of those glorious hazel eyes staring back at me.