“Thank you for trusting me, Aneko. I will never tell anyone, I promise,” Jelena swore, grasping the other woman’s hands and squeezing.
Aneko’s strong hands, callused from years of weapons handling, squeezed back. “I trust you completely, Jelena, but don’t fret. I’m not ashamed of my blood, any more than you should be. By the way, Gendan told me what he said to you. He’s a good man, our captain. You can count on him, Jelena. He’ll be a true friend to you.”
“No, no, no, you stubborn girl! I’ll not hear any more of this foolishness!”
Both women looked up in surprise as Gendan swept through the common room door, cradling Kami in his arms. He paused to look beseechingly at Aneko, then at Jelena. “Will you please tell this pig-headed girl that she’s in no condition to go back to work tomorrow?” he cried in exasperation. Jelena leaped up and ran over to embrace Kami as Gendan gently set her on her feet.
“Thank you, Jelena,” Kami murmured, her voice still weak from illness. “Gendan said you stayed with me the whole time. You must be exhausted.”
“I am much better now,” Jelena replied, wiping away tears of relief and happiness with the back of her hand.
“Gendan won’t let me go back to work tomorrow,” Kami complained, her pale lips in a pout, but Jelena clearly saw the spark of resurgent mischief in her friend’s eyes. Jelena laughed and hugged the other girl again, and her heart swelled so full of joy, she marveled that it did not burst.
“Maybe he’ll let you go back the day after tomorrow,” Aneko said.
“P’raps,” Gendan replied, smiling.
Chapter 33
A True Family, A True Name
It has begun.
Tell me what happened.
The girl came to me last evening. She had a strange dream, a nightmare, really. Some…thing stalked her, something she couldn’t name but knew was evil. She is afraid it wanted what she harbors, but, of course, she doesn’t understand why.
Nor can she, not yet. What did you tell her?
I explained it away, attributing it to unspoken fears about her Talent. I’m certain that she didn’t fully accept it, but she chose not to press me. She is a highly intelligent girl. It will become more difficult to conceal the truth from her as time passes and she grows stronger and more confident.
Did you scan her?
Yes, and I found the energy residue of a magical attack.
Then there can no longer be any doubt. The Nameless One is awake, and he has located the Key. How much time we have before he is strong enough to come after it is anyone’s guess, but we must assume that it will be sooner rather than later.
I think it’s time for a council. We can no longer sit on our hands, hoping and praying that this will go away.
I agree. You will accompany your husband to Sendai, then?
Yes. Ordinarily, he would expect me to stay behind to run things in his absence, so I must come up with a good excuse; also, there are my three youngest children to consider. It’s a very long journey.
The girl needs protection as well, protection only you can provide.
My son would disagree, I think! He and the girl are to be married before we leave.
I still think that’s a mistake, especially if we are to use him in the Working.
My son will do what’s necessary.
You should tell him the truth now.
No. When we are all gathered in Sendai, I’ll tell him. I’ll not take away his happiness any sooner than I need to.
There is still the question of the girl’s paternity. Has your husband decided what he is going to do?
He is torn. We all know what a scandal this will cause, but my husband won’t lie to his oldest friend. Also, he swore to help the girl find her kin, and he won’t go back on his promise.
Try to get him to reconsider. This could complicate matters immensely.
He won’t.
Then I suppose we’ll just have to find a way to deal with the consequences.
Ai, Goddess! How did we let this happen? Why were we not more vigilant? We knew that the Key was due to reappear during our tenure! Why did we not search for it so that it could be secured? And why…why did we allow the wards to fall into disrepair?
We’ve been shamefully complacent. I’ll be the first to admit that, and as head of the Society, I must take responsibility. But now is not the time to indulge in guilt. Protect the Key, continue training the girl, and we’ll all meet in Sendai.
Until then.
~~~
Jelena and Ashinji were joined in a small ceremony held in the family chapel, attended by the Sakehera clan and a select few among Jelena’s friends on the staff. The simple nuptials stood in sharp contrast to the lavish affair that had been held for Sadaiyo and Misune, but this was perfectly proper. Ashinji was, after all, the second born child, and Jelena had no family at all. Still, the simplicity of the proceedings suited Jelena just fine. She needed no spectacle to confirm her love for Ashinji.
That morning, Jelena rose early to prepare herself to become Ashinji’s wife. She began with a leisurely soak in the staff bath house, followed by a light breakfast in the barracks common room, surrounded by the people who had come to mean so much to her since her arrival at Kerala.
When the time came for her to dress, Aneko assisted her with a little help from Kami, who, though recovering rapidly from her illness, still tired easily. The wedding robes Lady Amara had provided were not nearly as sumptuous as the many-layered extravaganza an elven lady of high station would wear, but Jelena thought them beautiful just the same. A sheer undertunic of fine white cotton rested against her skin. Over that went a robe of lightweight, cream-colored silk, embroidered with a simple design of flowering vines along the borders. The main garment—a robe constructed of heavy silk and dyed a glorious yellow—cinched at her waist with a green sash. The image of a crane—symbol of good luck—embellished the back from nape to hem. The sleeves, with their long tippets, were slashed to reveal the delicate pattern decorating the robe beneath. To finish, yellow silk slippers graced her feet.
Jelena declined the headdress of gilt-silver made to look like a cluster of flowering vines, choosing instead to secure her mane with her birth mother’s ivory combs. About her neck, she hung the string of blue Kara glass beads—her dearest bequest from her heartmother, Claudia. Beneath the layers of rustling silk—resting against her heart and secure on its silver chain—hung the ring of her unknown sire. It seemed right that this small thing that had once belonged to the man who had helped create her should accompany her on this, the most important day of her life.
After the last tie had been secured and all the layers arranged to perfection, Aneko applied a rose-colored stain to Jelena’s lips and a light dusting of powdered eggshell to her face. Jelena refused to allow anything more elaborate in the way of makeup, believing she would only look foolish if done up in formal style. She wanted to stand at Ashinji’s side as herself, not some poor imitation of a high-born elven lady.
After one final check of herself in a mirror borrowed from Aneko, she emerged from the barracks to applause and exclamations of admiration.
“Jelena, I would be honored if you’d allow me to escort you to your wedding.” Jelena, fighting back the tears that threatened to spoil her simple makeup, nodded in assent as she linked her arm with Gendan’s. The gruff Captain of the Kerala Guard stood as living proof that an essentially good heart could be liberated from seemingly insurmountable walls of bigotry, even if those walls had existed since childhood.
With Aneko and Kami trailing behind, Gendan walked with Jelena from the barracks to the castle proper. It was midway through the month of Nobe by the elven calendar, Actea by Soldaran reckoning. Though fall approached, the days remained hot and would be so for many weeks yet. By the time the wedding procession reached the chapel doorway, Jelena felt miserably and thoroughly wilted.
Aneko must have seen her distress. “You look beautiful!” she whispered, and Kami nodded in agreement.
Jelena flashed a nervous smile and gripped Gendan’s arm more tightly.
“Are you ready to become our Lord Ashinji’s wife?” Gendan asked.
“I’ve been ready since the day I came here,” Jelena answered aloud, but a tiny, nagging worm of doubt plagued her.
I’m sure Ashi loves me and gods know I love him, but is this the right thing to do? Can I, a mere hikui with no name of my own, ever really be worthy of a man like him?
Gendan raised his hand and pounded on the polished wooden chapel door three times, then pushed it open and escorted Jelena out of the sun into the cooler, incense infused interior.
As soon as she stepped across the threshold, she felt the unmistakable pull of Ashinji’s presence and her gaze immediately alighted on his face. His luminous eyes—so full of joy and passion—ignited her body and soul in response.
He held out his hand, and she heard his voice in her mind, clear as a solstice bell on midwinter’s eve.
Come to me, my love.
All doubts and fears were swept away.
~~~
The ceremony proved to be an exercise in endurance for Jelena, despite its supposed simplicity. After well over an hour of kneeling, her muscles began to ache so much she feared she would be unable to move once released from the posture of supplication before the altar of the Goddess.
The priestess, an elderly woman dressed entirely in white, intoned the prayers in a throaty, singsong contralto. A bluish-gray cloud of incense hovered overhead, and the pungent aroma in the close room, combined with the discomfort of her body, made Jelena light-headed. She could feel herself swaying on her knees and prayed that she would not topple over.
She knew she was supposed to keep her eyes down during this part of the ceremony, but she couldn’t resist a quick glance at Ashinji. Dressed in emerald green and gold—his favored colors for formal attire—he appeared perfectly composed, eyes cast reverently downwards, hands folded in his lap. A detailed representation of a willow tree adorned the back of his robe. The same emerald-studded clip Jelena had first seen him wear on the day of Misune’s arrival at Kerala bound his hair. The only other jewelry he wore were the gold military service rings in his left ear.
Jelena looked down at her own hands clasped demurely before her and tried to concentrate on the deeper meaning of the prayers, but she found it difficult to understand the words—intoned in classical High Siri-dar—of a language no longer spoken in everyday conversation.
It’ll be over soon, my love.
Jelena inhaled sharply. Ashi, can you hear me?
Yes, and quite clearly!
The priestess came forward, a small gold vial in her hand. She raised the vial and decanted three drops of oil onto her index finger and traced a sigil on Ashinji’s brow. She then repeated the same upon Jelena’s forehead. Next, she went back to the altar and returned with twin bracelets of twisted gold, one in each hand. She touched each bracelet to her lips, then indicated that the bride and groom should hold out their right wrists. She slipped a bracelet first on Jelena, then Ashinji.
This is the last bit, love.
The priestess laid her hands on the tops of their heads and intoned the final prayers. She then stepped back and smiled, gesturing for the two of them to stand.
Ashinji rose first and bent to assist Jelena, who had to stifle a groan as her abused muscles protested. Stiffly, she turned with Ashinji to face her new family.
Lord and Lady Sakehera stepped forward to embrace her. “You are our daughter now,” Sen murmured as he kissed her cheek. Next came Lani, cool and beautiful in blue, the twins flanking her. Lani embraced her and whispered, “Welcome Sister,” and the twins shyly presented her with a bunch of yellow irises.
Is this really happening?Jelena thought.
A strange sensation of unreality gripped her, as if everything that had just come to pass had happened to another girl whom she now watched from the windows of her eyes. Only when Sadaiyo and Misune came forward did she finally come back into herself.
“Welcome to the family… Sister,” Sadaiyo said. He leaned forward as if to kiss her on the lips and instinctively, Jelena recoiled. At the same time, Ashinji stepped between her and his brother. Sadaiyo simply shrugged and offered an insolent bow instead.
“Well, I don’t know about everyone else, but I’m starving. Let’s go eat,” Lord Sen directed, and if he noticed the tense moment between his two sons, he pretended not to. He took the arm of his wife, and led the way back to the family’s living quarters.
The family, along with the priestess who had performed the ceremony, celebrated the marriage quietly in the large sitting room where they always gathered for communal meals. Jelena had been obliged to thank and bid farewell to Gendan, Kami, and Aneko at the chapel door. Before she had departed, Kami had whispered a quick invitation to Jelena and Ashinji for her own nuptials to Gendan, to be held a week hence. Jelena had joyfully accepted.
Jelena and Ashinji ate their first meal as husband and wife from the same plate, symbolizing the new unity of their lives. Jelena drank freely of the sweet, light wine decanted especially for the occasion, but left the strong, dark beer strictly to Ashinji and his father and brother. The only other time she could remember being so happy was on the morning she had awakened in Ashinji’s bed for the first time. Not even Sadaiyo’s subtly mocking presence could spoil her mood. She was beyond his reach now, and forever.
When, at last, the meal ended and Lord and Lady Sakehera gave them their final blessing, it seemed as if their feet couldn’t move fast enough. They had been apart for almost two weeks, and their need for each other had become nearly unbearable.
With much giggling and unsteadiness—they were both a little tipsy from too much drink—the newlyweds made their way back to what would now be their shared private quarters. As soon as Ashinji shut and barred the door behind them, Jelena began pulling at the laces of her wedding robes, desperate to be free of the confining garments.
“No, wait,” Ashinji whispered. Gently, he caught up her hands in his and pressed them to her sides. “I wish to be the one to unwrap my bride…slowly,” he bent to kiss her neck, “…one layer at a time.” Jelena shivered at the soft touch of his lips on the delicate skin of her throat. She sighed and let her head fall back, her entire body swaying now to the slow beat of rising passion.
Ashinji first removed the ivory combs from her hair, laying them down on the room’s only table, mindful even now of how precious they were to his new wife. The blue Kara necklace followed, along with the griffin signet ring. Next, he unwound the sash from around her waist and tossed it aside. Both outer robes then slipped to the floor, leaving Jelena clad only in her sheer undertunic. Here Ashinji paused to remove his own wedding robes. As they slid off his shoulders to the floor, he shoved them back with his foot and stepped forward to enfold Jelena in his arms.
They stood thus for several heartbeats, each drinking in the other’s unique scent, reveling in the sensation of a shared embrace. Then Ashinji swept Jelena up and carried her across the room to the bed.
The sun had not yet set, so the windows had been shuttered and the room lit with the soft yellow glow of brass lanterns. Ashinji sat Jelena down on the edge of the bed and knelt before her.
“I know you’ve never allowed yourself to believe that this day would ever come, but see…” he covered her hands with his, “Here it is. You are my wife, I am your husband…and nothing can ever change that. I will love you forever.” He touched a finger tip first to the bracelet on her wrist, then to the one on his, the symbols of their union.
Jelena nodded mutely, too overcome to speak. A single tear spilled over the rim of her lashes, quivered there but an instant, then fell to splash the back of Ashinji’s sun-browned hand.
“You think you’re not worthy of me, but it is I who am the unworthy one. Every day I give thanks to the One for granting me the gift of your love…Every day, Jelena!” Tenderly, he removed her slippers, bent his head to kiss the top of each foot in tur
n, then stood and removed the last of his clothing.
Jelena inhaled sharply at the sight of Ashinji’s naked body. Though she had seen him in arousal before, now her eyes took him in with a newer, deeper perspective. Her own sacred center answered the call of his desire with a rush of fire through her loins. Eagerly, she wriggled free of her undertunic, and with a sigh, she lay back onto the bed—soft as a cloud—and welcomed her husband into her embrace.
Their lovemaking was fierce, joyous, tender, magical. At the moment of climax, something happened, something near mystical in intensity; later on, when Jelena tried to put it into words, she could find none that were adequate. It felt as if her consciousness and Ashinji’s had merged, and for a time, they shared a co-mingled essence, each aware of the other’s deepest emotions. There were no words, only feelings, illuminated by the brilliant blue fire that burned at the core of Jelena’s being.
When at last the roaring flames of their passion had burned down to warmly glowing embers, they clung to each other, their faces wet with tears and sweat. They didn’t speak—they had no need for words. Their minds were now joined as securely as their bodies had been.
Eventually, they slept.
~~~
Kami and Gendan were married a week later in a solemn ceremony attended by most of the Kerala guard and quite a few of the castle’s general staff. Jelena and Ashinji held pride of place as the guests of honor, and even Lord and Lady Sakehera stopped by during the raucous celebration that followed to offer their congratulations.
Kami, who had nearly regained all of her strength, glowed with happiness. The normally gruff, taciturn Gendan brimmed with good humor, offering one toast after another to his new bride, to his comrades and friends, and to the Sakehera family.
Though outwardly all seemed joyful and festive, Jelena couldn’t help but sense the anxiety that ran beneath the surface of the celebration like a hidden current in the ocean’s depths. Five days hence, Lord Sen and most of the castle guard would leave Kerala to journey to the capital so that the King’s Council could convene. All present knew what would be discussed behind the closed doors of the council chamber.
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