Hekate’s Bride

I know I’ve been pretty vague about the wedding, and the ball. I just didn’t want to think about it all by talking about it.

But since it’s here, I might as well fill you in.

Royal weddings are usually an extravagant affair. I’ve never been to one, seeing as Rune and I are the only royal heirs in my generation, but I have heard of them and trust me, it’s a total shut down. The crowd, the ceremonies, the balls that go on until the entire audience is drunk and passed out, the festival of fertility that follows after that’s just a decent name for an orgy party–I could keep going, but you’ll find out soon.

Today is The Wedding, and somehow, because Rune’s father moved up th date, it is clashing with the mid session ball. Good for me since I’m probably the only one who doesn’t wish to attend.

But it’s basically out of the norm and breaking tradition because, usually, all denizens must be in attendance of the wedding. It is why more convenient dates are usually chosen for unions like this one, but King Fenrir seems to be in a rush. Or perhaps, it is Rune who’s in a rush. Who cares? Not me.

They have worked around the time. The ball holds at dusk, and the wedding at noon. There will be smart screens up in every hallway, shoving live feeds from the event for those who are interested in watching–which is probably the whole school–and once the wedding is completed, the ball kicks off.

The whole school is in a frenzy this morning. Including me.

While last night might have been a major disaster that I have no interest in revisiting, it reinforced my decision to forget about Rune. Move on with my life. I am not his whore, and his apology means nothing to me if he’s going to take another woman to the Goddess, wed and bed her, uncaring of the pain it will cause Sloan.

I will get by. I won’t curl up in the corner and cry for a man whose sane moments only comprises of rejections.

“And done!” Darcy says and I rush over to where she stands, holding my dress. “This might be my best work yet,” she murmurs, admiring it.

I swallow, staring at it. I let my intrusive thoughts win and I chose black for the ball. I couldn’t find anything else that appealed to me.

It looks regal, stunning and I grin as I take it from her. “This came out better than I expected. Thank you.”

Darcy smiles, handing me a bag for th dress. “Sure. You could come around, help me out with drafting out designs. That mind of yours is gold.”

I nod and start to speak but bells begin to ring from every direction, earning a wince from me at the annoying sound. The speakers whine and Vespers voice fills the air. “Attention students. You must all assemble in the Lycan King’s Hall in five minutes. This is not a request but a directive. Failure to comply will result in disciplinary action. Move quickly and orderly. That will the all.”

Five minutes? My gaze drifts to the digital clock hanging off the wall. I’ll be at the hall in six if I run. Damn.

“Ah… gotta go. Bye Darcy! I will come by later!” I yell as I rush out the door, pulling up the zipper of the dress bag.Content (C) Nôv/elDra/ma.Org.

The hallway is packed with students rushing to the hall, jostling and elbowing their way through. I growl at a few who bump into me. I wonder what’s so important that has Vesper summoning us with such short notice.

Just as I reach the door, a warm arm snakes around my waist. “Hey, princess,” Darian whispers.

Heat creeps up my cheeks when the students around me glance in our direction. Males and females alike. The envy in their gazes is quite confusing, because not long ago, the entire school was hating on me, but recently, since my body’s been changing, they’ve begun to hit on me.

In the past week, I’ve received notes and flowers in my locker, hoot calls in the cafeteria, snide comments and obscene remarks from the men I share classes with. It would be uncomfortable but I’ve been used to attention all my life.

So I give them a smile that’s all sharp canines and dark eyes. They look away abruptly and Darian chuckles, leaning in to murmur against my temple,”Ready for today?”

My stomach knots up, and I jerk away slightly, feeling the nerves intensify. “Yeah,” I reply with a nervous laugh, holding up my dress bag. “I just got the dress. Now I need to do something with my hair.”

Darian frowns, his hand moving to cup my cheek and I fight the urge to swat his fingers away. “Are you alright?” he asks.

I force a wide smile and nod. “Yeah, why wouldn’t I be?”

“You’re… shaking.”

I blink, quickly hiding my trembling hand with the dress bag. “No, I’m not. I’m just a little… exhausted-and hungry.”

Darian tilts his head, his golden eyes narrowing as he notices the band-aid on my neck. “What happened to your neck?”

“It’s just a rash, nothing serious,” I reply, turning away and concealing the rest of my neck from him.

“Have you seen the nurse about it?”

I bite my cheek and shake my head. I hate lying to him, but there are some things better left unsaid. “It’s nothing to worry about, Dar.”

He seems to sense the lie, his nostrils flaring slightly, but surrounded by different scents and considering how much perfume the perfume I’ve drenched myself in to mask Rune’s scent, it should be hard for him to detect.

That he’s marked me. Again.

And for the same damn reason, the punctures on my neck won’t heal completely. They have formed scars that are aggravating to look at because they are rather pretty…. and permanent.

While I know I can’t hide them forever, I’m hoping they’ll heal or fade after Rune’s marriage and official mating ceremony. Hopefully, Darian won’t notice.

Well, if the scars won’t go away, maybe I’ll get a tattoo to cover them.

Before Darian can say anything more, the line moves, and I pull him into the hall. It’s already crowded, with students and sentinels organizing us into lines based on our years.

Even Boris and the rest of my retinue is helping out. Well, I did technically tell him to get the fuck out of my room when he appeared an hour later with a dumbass apology for why they weren’t there when I needed them.

I fired them, and since he’s stuck in this realm for now, he might as well join them. I don’t care.

Darian asks if he’ll pick me up later, and I nod, squeezing his hand before making my way to the back of the line. I rub the band-aid on my neck with my thumb, listening to the excited and nervous chatter about the wedding, the ball, and plans for the break.

Darian and I have a few. Dinner dates, skinny dipping in his oversized bathtub, movies on his tab, snuggling closer and possibly having sex all day long–if we get around to it.

I should be excited. I act like I am when we talk about it, but I’m not. All I feel is anxiety and fear. What if I ruin things with Darian again? What if I panic when he touches me again and throw him into a wall? What if I hurt him?

“Hey.”

I turn at the familiar voice behind me and I come face to face with Maya. “Hi,” I start, noting the warmth in her brown eyes today for a change. Her straight hair is in gorgeous curls and she has faux lashes on. There’s a new piercing on her nose and… she looks great.

“How…” Her voice shakes and she releases a sharp breath, running fingers through her hair. I note the red paint on her fingers as well as a variety of rings. “How are you?”

“Good,” I say, leaning back on my heel. “You look great.”

She gives me a small smile, looking down at her short dress that’s showing enough legs to make the males around us stare. “Yeah… I… got a date and I thought I’d look pretty today.”

“You always look pretty, Maya,” I blurt and she looks up, holding my gaze. She swallows and I can see the hurt in her eyes.

“I’m sorry. I really didn’t know.”

She waves it off and folds her arms. “I know. It just hurt and–” She sighs and sucks in her lip. “It was silly of me to put that on you. But I am so over it now and… I really missed you, Astrid.”

My heart swells, and tears well up in my eyes as warmth spreads through me. “I missed you too,” I say, smiling.

She laughs, about to speak, when the sound of a microphone being turned on fills the air. A hush falls over the teeming crowd and we turn as one to the podium as Vesper takes the stage in his impeccable white suit.

“Attention students,” he begins, and I mutter under my breath, “Goddess, I hate it when he does that.” Maya chuckles softly behind me.

“As you all know, the mid session ball was to commence after the Royal Wedding is concluded,” he says, eyes darting over the crowd with that stern expression that I can bet he does keep when he’s in the nurse’s room at night. “However, there has been a change in plans. The mid session ball has been cancelled.”

Noise swells in the hall as people begin to voice out their disagreement and frustration. I stay quiet, biting my bottom lip. I feel uneasy and weird inside.

As I listen, a part of me secretly hopes that the wedding will be canceled too. But I have no such luck.

“His Majesty, King Fenrir, has taken into consideration the pleas of the students and it has been decided that all must be in attendance.”

Hoots, whistles and screams fills the air, as well as a round of applause.

My heart sinks down a whirlwind of emotions. *Must be in attendance*?

“This is great!” A guy yells in front of me.

I can’t breathe. I try to get air into my lungs but all I can see is Gin walking down the Goddess’s isle, in a beautiful dress and a tiara. And then I see Rune waiting for her by the Priestess’ side in formal attire and his crown sitting askew on his head.

I’ve always thought he looked better with it askew.

Then I see them kissing and Rune biting her.

What follows is images of what their mating ceremony together might be.

My knees buckle as pain sears through my chest and the mark on my neck starts to tingle.

*No*, I think. I’ll get through this. I’ll talk to Vesper. I am not a lycan. The rules can’t apply to me.

But Vesper says, “The mid session ball and the wedding reception will be merged, and open to all denizens for attendance–”

More excited whistles and screams fill the air, covering a part of what Vesper is saying but I am able to gleam the rest of his address. “The Portal will be opened in half an hour. In a descending order of your classes, you will go through the portal as a group. The star students leave first, and the first years last. Take what you must with you for the break, because the school will be shut down after the last set leaves and will be reopened only after the week is over.

“Accomodation will be provided for the reception and festival, after which you will head to your respective homes to spend the rest of the holiday. The other half of the session will commence in a week’s time.

“Do note that every student *must* be in attendance. As one, Lycan School will pay homage to the Royal family and show our gratitude for their graciousness thus far. No one will be excused. Failure to attend will result in an indefinite suspension.”

Fuck. I’m attending my mate’s wedding.