She takes the crown from me and places it on my head, securing it with ribbon and pins, then leaves me alone with my thoughts and my dragon.
I turn and look in the mirror. The mirror I fought to have in all the realms. Travel is now allowed. Mirrors are no longer banished.
My sparkling midnight hair is pulled into a myriad of braids and woven together with silver ribbon. My eyes are lined with dark kohl, making the green pop. My lips are stained dark berry. And my dress is beaded with rhinestones and pearls.
I look like a bride.
I look like a Queen.
The peace Kayla speaks of is still in its infant stage. There is still unrest in many parts of Inferna and Avakiri. There is still infighting, prejudice, hate. Lifetimes of segregation and war will not end in a year. Or even many years. But we've made a start. We've reshaped the government of Inferna. Made slavery illegal in all realms. Made non-consensual feeding illegal. Created a new commerce and labor structure to support fair compensation and at will employment. It required a lot of reading and studying and bringing non-technical ideas from my world to this one to see how we might do things differently. And it's still a work in progress. I'm new to this. So is Fen. But we have surrounded ourselves with wise counsel from both the vampire and Fae, and we work daily to make sure every voice is heard.
I turn when I hear the door open and throw myself into the arms of the two people standing there.
Es and Pete wear smiles as big as mine as we hug.
"Girl, you look ah-mazing!" Es says in her southern way.
Pete nods. "Never looked better, Princess. Or should I say Queen?"
"You can just say Ari." I hold each of their hands, afraid if I let go they'll disappear. "I'm so glad you could come. I've missed you both so much."
"We wouldn't miss this for anything," Es says. "Besides, Pete's been dying to see Varis again and pick his brain. That poor Fae is going to be begging us to go back to our own world by the time this celebration is over."
I laugh at that. "I'm sure Varis will be excited to have his most enthusiastic pupil back. Fen and I are so busy, he has to practically kidnap us to continue our training. And there always seems so much to learn, even after all this time."
Es looks around the room, then frowns. "Where is she? Where is my godchild?"
"Ah, your true motives have been revealed. You came for the baby above all. Confess."
"I came for all of you. But yes, that little one is high on my list."
As if on cue, the door opens again, and Es screeches.
"The little angel has arrived," I say, my heart growing bigger every time I lay eyes on my child. She's dressed in gold and silver, with a bow on her head. Her eyes are blue with green flecks, and she's the most amazing thing I've ever seen.
And seeing my mother holding her—that makes everything I've endured to get here worth it. My mother, who no longer limps, who no longer suffers any pain, who chose to stay on this world to be closer to us and help with her granddaughter… it's all too perfect. My heart can hardly hold the joy I feel right now.
I take the baby from her and Kayla tsks from behind everyone. "Careful she doesn't spit up and ruin your dress before the ceremony."
"Oh hush," I chide, as my mom slips a cloth over my shoulder. "Es, Pete, this is Princess Aya'zee, my daughter. Aya'zee, these are two of your godparents."
I hand the baby over to Es and she coos over the infant with big smiles. "What does her name mean?"
"It's a variation of the word peace in ancient Fae," Kayla says, answering for me.
There's a knock on the door and Asher pokes his head in. "It's time, my Queen."
"You look dashing as always," I tell the prince.
He preens and winks. "Of course I do. Would you expect anything less?"
I grin and kiss Aya'zee on the head. "Let's do this."
The throne room is packed with Fae and vampire nobility from Inferna and Avakiri. There was a lot of argument about whether to have the ceremony in High Castle or Avakiri, but the ruined palace of my Fae lineage is still under repair, so we scrapped both ideas and chose Stonehill. The room is lit by magic, with lights of gold and silver shooting over our heads like falling stars. It's standing room only as I walk to the door and wait.
I will not be walked down the aisle by my father, nor my mother. I will not be given away like a prize or possession.
Instead, Fen and I decided we'd walk the aisle together. As one.
And so he joins me, and his eyes light up when he sees me. A grin spreads over his face as he approaches. "My wife. My love. You look beautiful."
"Why thank you, my prince."
As we walk down the aisle, I take note of all the familiar faces here to support us. Kal'Hallen, Fen's Keeper. Baldar, the potion maker. Marco and Roco, who protected me when I first arrived at Stonehill and who now serve as part of my royal guard. Kara with her golden hair and Julian with her green eyes, the Fae girls who tended to my needs in Stonehill and later at Sky Castle, and who now own their own business. My mother, holding our baby. Seri, the healer. Es and Pete. Durk and Madrid. Kayla and Tavian. Asher and Varis. Zeb and Ace.
We reach the altar and face each other, holding hands.
Baron walks down next, carrying our rings on a pillow on his back, Yami and Riku sitting on his shoulders.
Dean officiates, dressed in official black robes. He threatened to come shirtless, but acquiesced when Fen threatened to punch him. Some things never change. He goes through all the necessary political mumbo-jumbo, and then gets personal, as we make our vows much like we did a year ago. There are cheers in the crowd. And tears.