*Saoirse*
I sat in front of my vanity, touching up my makeup for what felt like the millionth ti.
I took a deep breath in and let a deep breath out.
It was my wedding day. I shouldn’t have been worried about my fiancé’s whereabouts. I should have only been concerned about how I looked and if I was on ti. I decided that was what I was going to do.
The minutes ticked by. They felt like hours. This was what it would be like to be queen. I would have to constantly put my life on pause for any ergency that popped up. In fact, it made feel better realizing that this would be the norm. It wasn’t personal.
I wouldn’t let myself think about Alexa.
The attendants walked in, double-checking all their work and fixing the elaborate braids so they crowned my copper hair artfully. They fixed all the areas of makeup that I had tried to fix myself. Makeup had never been my strong suit. I should have just waited for them to get back anyway.
Then my dress ca out. I felt my excitent return as the jaw-dropping lace gown dropped over my head. My fingers delicately brushed the beading that the queen had added, which complinted the lace pattern perfectly.
They buttoned up as I admired myself in the mirror.
That woman’s comnts the night before had been vile, but I had to admit they weren’t things I hadn’t already thought about myself. I was just a girl from the country with absolutely no experience with royalty or court life. I had lived a simple life and had none of the luxuries now presented at my feet. I didn’t know how to be politically correct or which fork to use with dinner.
However, looking at myself in my dress, that all seed to fade away. I looked the part of royalty, and I also looked like . I suddenly felt confident in my ability to handle this life I had agreed to. Before, I had settled for the title to be with Rhys, but now I was embracing it.
I would make a great queen, and I would have Rhys.
My heart started to beat harder, the excitent taking hold. For the first ti since receiving Rhys’ note, my face broke out into a smile. The smile was the perfect addition to my reflection, and I seed to glow with inner radiance from inside the mirror.
“It’s ti to go,” my mother said softly, walking up to stand next to .
“I’m ready,” I said, and I ant it.
My mother and I walked down the stairs and out of the palace, all while being cloaked and covered by the attendants. They wanted to make sure that nobody saw on accident. Plus, they didn’t want anyone following since the ceremony was to take place in a private location with just a few of us.
When we reached the location, the attendants headed off to their spots. I turned and looked toward the large tree in the distance. The sight of it excited again. I grabbed my mother’s hand for stability as the two of us made our way toward it.
As we got closer, the scene appeared in front of us. Just like it had the day before, I felt the view take my breath away. Everything was officially ready now and more stunning than ever. It was even better than what I could have imagined for our special day.
My nerves gave way to joyful anticipation as I walked off to the side where they had set up a small tent for . I pictured walking down the aisle to my beloved prince as he stood under the large, beautiful flowering trees.
It wouldn’t be long now.
As before, when I had been waiting in my room, the minutes seed to drag by, feeling like hours. The sun began to set further, and I started to worry. Where was he? He was supposed to be here by now. The ceremony was supposed to take place at dusk.
“Don’t worry, he’ll be here,” my mother comforted as I peeked out of the tent again.
The humiliation grew more as dusk passed and faded to night, but I still stood there, clinging to the fragile hope that he would still co and wouldn’t abandon . The queen ca to my tent, but I was too embarrassed to speak to her. My mother talked to her. I heard sothing about her not understanding what was going on, and then she was gone. She and the king were headed back up to the castle.
I wasn’t sure if they were going to try and find Rhys for or if they had given up on him too. With every minute that ticked by, knots ford in my heart. I began to pace back and forth. The tent felt like it was closing in on , yet there was still no Rhys.
Needing so fresh air, I burst through the flap and out into the trees. It was now completely dark outside. The moon rising full overhead stared at mockingly, reminding that my groom was not where he was supposed to be.
It had been hours since dusk, yet he still wasn’t there.
The attendants murmured around , trying to be quiet enough that I didn’t hear. At long last, I heard the unthinkable.
“He’s in Alexa’s room.”
My heart all but stopped. Rhys had stood up to be with Alexa.
Devastation finally crashed down upon . The ticks in my heart ford one large fissure that I knew would never close. The emotion was so strong that it knocked the air from my lungs. I fell forward, bracing my hands on one of the trees in front of . I barely managed to stay on my feet.
I don’t know how long I was standing out there before my mother found , but it couldn’t have been very long. The moon still hung in the sa teasing spot.
Numb, I allowed her and the attendants to guide back inside the eerily empty palace. Previously, the ti had seed to drag by before, but now I had no sense of it. The walk to my room could have taken minutes or seconds, and I would be none the wiser.
I didn’t know what I was going to do now.
“You can go now,” my mother said in a dismissive tone to the rest of the attendants.
It was her Luna voice. She was taking charge. I focused long enough to look at her and see the fury blazing in her eyes. The calm she had carried all day was gone now.
If only I could bring myself to care.
“Saoirse–”
Before she could say anything else, my chamber doors burst open. My eyes barely had ti to register the windblown Axureon and Saphira before I found myself engulfed in the ancient dragon’s powerful embrace.
Sothing about his tight hold slowly brought out of my trance.
“Ax-Axureon?” I mumbled against him in confusion.
“What are you doing here?” I heard my mother ask.
“I felt Saoirse’s distress and rushed here imdiately,” Axureon answered. He pulled back and looked down at . “What do you need from ?”
Relief pulsed through my pain at the fact that he didn’t ask how I was doing, just what he could do for . Now that I was out of my trance, I could feel the pain that threatened to engulf . Axureon frowned as if he could feel it as well.
The humiliation and pain of rejection were too much for to bear, especially while standing in a room provided to by him. I couldn’t bear to think of his na. If I couldn’t even think of him, I wondered what I would do when I saw him.
“Saoirse,” Axureon said again, “just tell what you need, and it shall be done.”
“Take ho,” I answered automatically, my voice betraying the breaking that was happening inside of .
I hadn’t thought of it, but once I said it, I knew it was the right thing to do. I couldn’t stay in this place or be around... him.
Axureon didn’t hesitate either. “Done.”
I stepped out of his arms and walked over to my bed, grabbing the staff out from underneath it. I then made my way back to him.
“Lady Nora, I am assuming you will be joining us as well?” Axureon asked as he draped an arm protectively over .
I felt guilty. I had assud she would co with and hadn’t asked myself, but my mind was busy trying to stay blank.
“If you are able, I would appreciate that,” my mother said with a small bow.
“Of course,” Axureon said. “Saphira, is that agreeable to you?”
“Yes, sir,” she said with a nod.
“Thank you,” I said, hoping they all knew I ant to thank them all. I was too scared to use more words.
Axureon tucked under his arm, closer to him, and we headed out of my room and to the castle grounds for easier takeoff. I kept my face buried in his chest, too afraid of running into soone or seeing the gossip happening around . It had been hours since the reception was supposed to begin. By now, everyone in the capital would know what happened.
I fought back the emotions that threatened to surge forward again. I had to stay stronger for just a bit longer. I could break down when I was alone.
When we got to the grounds, Axureon and Saphira shifted in front of us. Despite my months of experience with them, I was still always stunned to see them in their impressive dragon forms. Now wasn’t the ti to inspect them.
As I walked toward Axureon, I felt a chill from the night air. I looked down and realized that I was still wearing my wedding dress. A pang shot through my heart, and I thought about changing. There was no way I was ever setting foot inside that palace ever again, so I gritted my teeth and continued toward him.
I ended up having to hitch my dress up around my hips to mount myself on Axureon’s back. I leaned forward and wrapped my arms around his neck, letting the warmth of him seep into . Since my powers had awakened, I had never been uncomfortably cold, but the cold still bothered .
Once my mother was situated with Saphira, Axureon spread his large wings and took off into the sky. I closed my eyes against the rush of wind and squeezed him tighter in an embrace of my own. For once, I was grateful for the weird connection I had with the ancient dragon because it had helped that night.
I listened to the flapping of the wings, timing them as we flew, allowing myself to think of nothing else. Up... Down... Up... Down... Glide...
I could feel Axureon turn his head back from ti to ti to check on , but I never answered his gaze. It was all I could do to keep my mind blank. He seed to pick up the pace but not too fast because I could still hear Saphira’s flaps just behind us.
I was counting the wing flaps, so I was imdiately aware when the wings quit, and we ca to a stop. I sat up and stared around us, inspecting the new dragon sanctuary.
I could tell that we were still high up because the air seed thinner. Instead of an open valley, I saw multiple cliff dwellings filled with light in the dark sky. It was obvious that it was still a work in progress. I couldn’t see many buildings and dragons curled up and sleeping on the stone floors. Dragons were flying above us, keeping watching over the cliff face.
A falling sensation suddenly overtook as the dragon underneath disappeared. Before I could hit the ground, Axureon’s human arms caught with ease. I hadn’t even flinched.
“It’s not much,” Axureon said in a low voice, “but it’s ho.”
I looked around at his words and nodded. I moved to get down, and the man set gently on my feet. He left his arms extended as if worried that I might fall or was about to break.
Maybe he really could feel everything I was feeling.
I stepped forward and raised the staff above my head. I closed my eyes and focused, exerting all of my energy. A protective cloak descended over the sanctuary, perfectly covering the entire place with a magic blanket.
“There,” I whispered. “Now it’s ho.”
It was sowhere I could feel safe.
I stumbled forward, ignorant of anyone and anything around . Axureon seed to have dropped us in a cliff dwelling ant to be a single-family living area. It was not spacious enough for anything else. When I saw his chest in the corner, I knew it must be where he was staying, but I still didn’t care.
My feet led to a corner of the room. I lay down on the cold, hard ground, curling up as the tears started to fall.
And that’s where I lay for the rest of my wedding night, sobbing into my arms until sleep finally took .
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