Chapter 1982: Wedding Plans (Part Two)

"... I told your father that I was going back to Blackwell with him or without him!"

Everyone at the table fell into a round of giggles at Maela’s strident declaration, each of them imagining a forceful, younger version of Ashlynn’s mother standing on a small island pier with her bags packed and a helpless Rhys left to contemplate whether it was more shameful to return from their honeymoon early or to have his newly wed wife return without him.

Clearly, he’d made the right decision, but it must have been frightfully embarrassing for the future Count Blackwell to be pulled about like a fish on a line.

"No wonder he never told that story," Jocelynn said, setting aside her empty soup cup before she gave in to the temptation to lick up the last savory drops that clung to the sides and bottom of the cup. "Father must have been mortified."

"Thankfully, your daughter is an excellent cook," Nyrielle praised, wrapping an arm around Ashlynn’s shoulders and giving her an affectionate squeeze. "And I never have to worry about going hungry when she’s with me. I can’t think of a better meal than the ones she offers me," Nyrielle said, smiling broadly enough to reveal a hint of her fangs.

"Nyri," Ashlynn said, giving her lover a playful shove.

"I know," Nyrielle said, bestowing a quick kiss on Ashlynn’s cheek. "One day, I’ll learn to tend a hearth as well as you do, and I’ll cook up your favorite things without burning the bread. Until then, I’ll just beg for you to dote on me," she said, as if she hadn’t meant something else entirely when she mentioned the meals that Ashlynn offered her.

"Anyway," Ashlynn said in an attempt to pull the conversation back on track. "We talked about other dates for a wedding, but Midwinter really makes the most sense," Ashlynn said.

"We could have chosen the anniversary of the night we met," Ashlynn said, though her voice trailed off in a way that made it clear that she saw a number of problems with that date.

Jocey couldn’t blame her for having mixed feelings about it. She’d seen the painting in Nyrielle’s Gallery of Pain. She knew full well how much her sister had suffered on that night, and while the night ended with a magical moment beneath an Ancient Oak tree and the beginnings of her love with Nyrielle, it also contained so much pain that any future anniversary celebrations would be tainted.

"I refuse to share an anniversary with her marriage to Owain," Nyrielle said sharply, making it sound like it was her objection rather than a response to the trauma that her beloved was still recovering from. Some people at the table might understand the truth, but the last thing Nyrielle wanted was for any of the women at the table to think that Ashlynn was too weak to face her memories of the past.

Memories that painful would take years to confront, something that Nyrielle knew better than anyone here, and she intended to ensure that Ashlynn had all the time she needed to face them. There was no reason to rush to reclaim that date from the pain.

"We also considered the anniversary of our betrothal," Ashlynn added as she set one hand gently on top of Nyrielle’s. "But compared to Midwinter’s night, it wasn’t quite as good, and it would only have been a few weeks earlier."

"We’ve already said all the vows we need to say," Nyrielle added, holding Ashlynn’s hand and looking deeply into her lover’s eyes. "We’ve had all the ceremony we need to bind ourselves together for the rest of time. So in this, while I’m indulging in the long Midwinter’s Night, we’re also considering what this means for the Empire."

"A monarch’s anniversary will be celebrated by the entire realm for as long as you live," Micheline said, nodding in understanding. "And Midwinter’s Night is close to the founding date of your Empire, so it serves two purposes."

In a way, it would be a mirror of the Kingdom of Gaal. By longstanding tradition, when the Crown Prince of Gaal finally married, he would do so on an auspicious day close to Midsummer’s Day, either just before or just after the Holy Festival of Light, extending the week-long celebration to include a celebration of his wedding anniversary once he took the throne.

The Church would never sanction a wedding on the holy day itself, but placing a monarch’s wedding close to it allowed him to receive the Church’s blessing at a time when much of the realm was already primed to celebrate. The fact that it was easier for lords from across the realm to attend in the middle of summer was an added logistical bonus.

Ashlynn and Nyrielle’s wedding, however, would face the exact opposite circumstances. It wouldn’t be easy to attend the wedding or anniversary celebrations, but anyone who did would be recognized for the effort they made.

"There’s an unfortunate third element to this," Ashlynn added with a sigh. "I expect that some within the Church will seek to prevent or disrupt our union, even though we’re already bound to each other by a pact of blood," she said. "The symbol of preventing our wedding is too potent to resist."

"If we hold the wedding here, in the Vale, on Midwinter’s Night, the Church will have a very difficult time reaching us," Ashlynn said. "They’d have to bring an army all the way across the Verdant Hills in winter, and breach our defenses... Very few within the Church would be willing to attempt such a thing."

"Winter has long been a season of safety for the Vale," Nyrielle said. "While the human world sleeps and huddles by their fires for warmth, we will be free to celebrate all of the things that bring us joy along with the creation of an Empire mighty enough that we never again need to fear the Church and their Crusades..."

"I know Midwinter may seem unusual to you, Mother-in-law," Nyrielle concluded. "But I promise, it’s the best time for us to celebrate the life we’re building together in the place where our love began."

"When you put it like that," Maela said, smiling at the affectionate couple. "I suppose there’s nothing left for me to say. You’ll let me help, won’t you?" Maela asked. "It’s my daughter’s precious moment, and I have so much to make up for after the way the last one turned out..."

"Of course you can help," Ashlynn said as she stretched across the table to hold her mother’s hands. "I wouldn’t have it any other way..."