Marriage

Trouble is copyrighted to Sallie Drazzi

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I couldn’t believe this was happening. I had Trouble, my little lover, the love of my life, sitting there in front of me, and I was taking him into Koorime. Not just for a flight to see the floating island that used to be my home, but actually into the heart of the city.

And I was going to marry him.

I wrapped my arms tighter around Trouble, easing his fears slightly about the flight. I think perhaps he sighed as he pressed back against me, but it was hard to tell over the rush of the wind.

The telltale sparkle ahead made my throat tighten. I still had such mixed emotions about Koorime, even though I had sworn it was nothing but painful memories. There had been good memories as well, they were just overshadowed too often by the bad. Well, this was one good memory we were making either way.

The city was sparkling like it always did, nestled beside those beautiful mountains of ice, surrounded by fields of snow. Whatever good or bad that had happened here, this was undeniably where I’d come from. A part of me had always known that.

I urged the aisailtarn a little faster, having been told to be at the temple at a very precise time or the priestess wasn’t going to do this for me. No way I was going to mess this up.

Trouble’s little body tensed, his fingers digging into my arm slightly. I was probably going more than too fast for his liking, but he didn’t protest out loud.

I slowed down just a little as we approached the city, giving the guards on the wall time to regard me and deem me as safe for entry. I noted the signal from the nearest guard and sailed over the wall, knowing my way easily. I settled the riding bird down into the pen near the Jun House among several other riding birds, noticing Lane waiting there, perched on the pen fence.

“We hit a bit of a snag,” Lane called, swinging his legs a little.

“Don’t tell me snags,” I snapped, anxiety rising.

“Settle, it’s nothing major, just a little delay. Rituals at the temple are running late so she won’t be available until after sunset. She’ll still do it, it’s just going to be later tonight is all.”

I hopped down from the riding bird and reached up to help Trouble down. So long as it would still happen, an hour or so delay really wasn’t anything to worry about.

“Give me your things,” Lane hopped down from the wall and took our bag, handing me a strip of cloth, “I’ll go take them to the temple so they’ll be there and ready. You’ve got permission to be in the city, can do what you want. It’ll be after sunset for sure, so I’ll come looking for you in say… oh my bedroom when the priestess is ready,” he winked and scampered off.

I shook my head, unable to stop myself from smirking, leading Trouble out of the aisailtarn pen before the birds scared him too badly. He blinked at me as I stretched out the cloth Lane had given me, winding it around my wrist.

“Afraid… to lose… me?” he asked softly as I wound the other end around his wrist.

I smiled, kissing his forehead, “This tells everyone you have permission to be in the city so nobody will harass us. Come on, show you around a little bit.”

I laced my fingers with his and tugged him out onto the street, turning him southward and pointing, “All those people, that’s the market. It gets less busy about this time, but still too many people… and too many memories.”

Trouble nuzzled into my shoulder, holding close to my side as if to tell me that certainly wasn’t the direction he wanted to go.

I turned us northward instead, walking him past the Jun House and the other Council Houses and the temples and government buildings that lined these streets. This was the most beautiful part of the city, I thought he deserved to see it, see where I had spent the better part of my life.

But I also had a purpose in mind, something I had to do.

The buildings grew older, the stone only slightly less clean. Almost the entire city was made of white marble and stone, but none quite so pristine as the area of the Council Houses and government buildings, so the contrast was made noticeable when you left that area.

I led him slowly, letting Trouble marvel at the architecture, the art carved into the marble and stone. This older district had more intricate designs, a slightly different style. Personally I had always liked this region more, wanted to live in this slightly lower class. The houses were smaller, but had that charm and elegance that very old things get.

I passed by streets that had occupants, keeping us to those that were empty. Our wrists were bound, but a part of me still feared issues arising from having an outsider in the city.

I think he might have known was I was doing, but stayed quiet. I led my lover to the northeastern ruins, the intricate stone of the street giving way to broken ground. Lane had gathered us here before we attempted to retake our city from the Shadow not long past, and yet that wasn’t the memory I was recalling. No, mine was much older.

Lane and Kai had loved to come here when we’d been younger, but anytime either of them had suggested it I’d refused. My entire life I had avoided this place except that one moment before the battle to win our home back.

I knelt, Trouble settling down beside me and cuddling against my side. My hand dusted lightly over the ground in front of me.

“It… was an… accident,” Trouble whispered, his bound hand squeezing mine. “You’re… a good person.”

“I paid for these crimes.”

“You… did… just a memory now.”

I looked over my shoulder to the west, pulling Trouble close against me. “Sunset… we’d better get back to the Jun House so Lane can find us.”

Trouble nuzzled my shoulder before standing and tugging me up with him. “That’s… a nice sunset, mountains… to the right… and the city line… to the left.”

“Sunrises are better, over the ice fields past the city,” I led him back down along the streets, moving a little faster now, getting more and more nervous as we approached the Jun House.

My eyes scanned the area around the temple before striding into the house, letting Trouble have a look around as I searched for any sign that Lane might already be looking for us. Then, for reasons I couldn’t figure out, I led Trouble down into the shey quarters.

I briefly showed my lover the rooms that used to belong to Kai and myself, still kept as we’d left them even if we had no intention of returning. I showed him the main bathing room and then one of the corridors we used to move up into the house without being seen, coming up into the kitchen. I gave him a quick tour of that level before scampering up the stairs to the bedrooms.

I unbound our wrists, having forgotten entirely up until this point. My mind was just whirling with so many different things and my heart was constantly going way too fast, and honestly I was surprised I hadn’t fainted yet.

Trouble wrapped his arms around me and pressed tight to my body when I discarded the binding cloth. I hugged him securely, nuzzling into his hair and taking a deep breath of his scent.

We stood there for a long while, content to just hold one another. Then a fragment of an idea struck me, as they were apt to do in this frazzled state. I took Trouble’s hand and led him across the room, beyond the curtains and onto the balcony. Darkness had almost completely overtaken the city, but there was still just enough light in the garden below.

Trouble peered over the edge of the balcony, squeaking softly at a tendril of the guardian plant snaking toward him. I tapped the stone near the plant and it settled down. My lover eyed the entire garden wall, lined as it was with flowering vines.

“Is that… all… one of… your plants?”

I beamed, “There’s two big ones back here, another in the front of the house. The little ones we keep back here until they’re strong enough to be moved, put them in rooms, or use them for other things.”

“Still… big plant,” Trouble gave a breathy little giggle, a sound I absolutely adored.

I caressed his face, tilting his jaw up so I could look him in the eyes. Such big, beautiful sapphire eyes. I adored those too. In fact I couldn’t think of a single thing about Trouble that I didn’t absolutely love and adore.

“Din?” Lane’s voice from inside the room.

“Out here,” I called back, drawing back the curtain, heart suddenly fluttering again.

“Time to get to the temple,” he smiled, eyes sparkling, finding the discarded binding cloth and tying our wrists together for us.

Trouble looked just about as nervous as I felt, chasing after Lane back outside and up the street. He turned to us just outside the temple, nodding to me. I sighed and offered him our bound wrists, smiling at Trouble as Lane unwound the cloth and handed it to me.

“I have to blindfold you, aitelrai… outsiders aren’t allowed to see the main sanctuary of the temple. Stupid rules,” I placed the cloth gently over his eyes. “Can take it off as soon as we’re in the lower chambers.”

He cuddled into my side, shaking a little, obviously slightly upset about the blindfold. I really wished he could have seen the main hall of the temple, it was one of the most gorgeous sights to be seen in Koorime. But it wasn’t allowed, and we had to jump through their hoops to get what we wanted. It was worth it, following their rules for this.

Finally we reached the stairs to the lower chambers and I could remove the cloth, stroking back his hair and caressing his face. He smiled a brave little smile and took my hand, following me down to the next hall of the temple.

Lane opened the door to a cleansing room, our things laid out neatly near the sunken pool in the floor. Trouble tensed visibly. I smiled at Lane as he closed the door behind us, leaving us alone to prepare.

“Here’s where things might start seeming weird,” I exhaled, caressing Trouble everywhere to get him to settle down a little bit. “This is a ritual cleansing… so we both start off on this being pure.”

Trouble nodded a little, big blue eyes gazing at me, his little body trembling less now.

“I promised I’d skirt the bath, just wash using the fount. We do everything for each other… I’m not supposed to touch me and you can’t touch you, just mirror what I do.”

I ran my hands down his sides, gripping the bottom of his shirt and pulling it gently over his head, folding it nicely and setting it down on the floor beside our things. He laid his hands at my waist, hesitating, blinking up at me and waiting for my encouraging nod to repeat the motion with my shirt.

“No jewelry, it’s a rule,” I whispered reverently, fingers deftly taking his ear and nipple ring.

His little hands reached and took the silver studs from my ears, making me shiver. I fought that wave of pleasure down, this was a ritual, a reverent beginning to our ceremony, save the raw sexual pleasure for the honeymoon. I so very wanted to just pull him close and feel his body against mine, but forced that to the back of my mind long enough to get us out of the rest of our clothes.

I led him over to the fount, an ornate structure about head level in the wall that released water into the bathing pool. Normally we would have used the pool, but with Trouble’s fear of baths this would work fine. It was the being clean, purified by the mountain water, that mattered, not how it was accomplished.

I’d already washed my hair before we’d left home, and Trouble had braided it, so I kept it out of the water. I took Trouble’s face in both hands and tipped it back, watching the red of his hair darken from the water. I very lovingly washed his hair, taking my time before moving on to the rest of his body.

It took a great deal of willpower to just wash him and not caress and enjoy the feel of his skin. I had no doubt he had the same difficulties in washing me, his cheeks flushed a lovely shade of red, nearly matching his hair, hands shaky. I closed my eyes and enjoyed the attention for a moment, running the rest of the steps through my mind to keep calm and focused on the ritual.

He stood before me when he was done and I shut off the water from the fount, reaching for a slender vial Lane had left beside the pool. I showed it to Trouble, tipping it upside-down on my finger.

“This is purified extract from the guardian flower… we believe this purifies the path that words take from the heart to be heard beyond us so they are true and honest and not distorted.”

I kissed him, taking my time, letting my tongue explore his mouth, my lips caressing his. He moaned very quietly into the kiss, almost silent, and then a small whimper when I pulled away.

“Last kiss before we’re married,” I smiled tenderly, “Open your mouth.”

He obeyed and I placed a drop of the flower extract onto his tongue, taking his hand and placing the vial against his palm. Trouble nodded to the unspoken command and tipped some liquid onto his finger, placing it on my tongue when I opened my mouth.

I took the vial and set it aside, taking up a large towel of Koorime silk and wrapping it around my little lover. I dried him off lovingly, of course not minding the chill that came with moisture drying off my skin. He caught up a stray part of the long towel and started drying me off as well. The reverence of the motions managed to settle at least some of my nerves.

Once we were both completely dry I reached for his clothes and dressed him, admiring how nice he looked when I’d finished. He blinked at me for a split second afterwards, then bit his lip and bent down to retrieve my clothes, doing as I’d instructed and mirroring my actions to dress me.

He sighed, almost in relief as he laid my coat on my shoulders, smoothing it down to lay properly over my chest. I smiled and ran the back of my hand over his cheek, then motioned him toward his hair supplies and knelt to pack away our clothes into the bag while he fixed up his hair the way he always had it.

I experienced a mild panic before remembering the rings I’d bought were in my jeans. Too many times had the little things attempted to get away from me. I pocketed the little box safely in my coat, packing away Trouble’s supplies as he finished with them.

With everything packed away I stood up, smiling at my lover. His hair was arranged half over his face like always, but I could still see those big blue eyes of his. I took his hand and squeezed it, leading him toward the door and back out into the hallway.

Lane and Kai were standing just outside, both smiling, Kai looking a little teary-eyed. Each of them laid their hand over mine and Trouble’s, then watched as I led my love along the hall toward the place of ceremonies.

This elegant hall was, I thought, no less beautiful than the main upper hall used for religious rites. I walked Trouble across the huge room, my hands enfolding his, up to where Lane’s mother stood. She was our witness, a sponsor of sorts, as well as serving as Trouble’s interpreter since the priestess only spoke Koorime. I still couldn’t believe that she’d agreed to this.

AralainShai was dressed elegantly as always, and she smiled approvingly at Trouble, attempting to be comforting to the nervous little immortal. She didn’t own me anymore, she’d agreed totally to letting me go free, but her approval really meant something to me, I couldn’t figure it out.

The priestess entered the room, her head held high, robes flowing out behind and around her as she stepped up onto the raised platform in front of us. She waved her hand, palm up, towards me.

“DinTejin,” if she was expecting a house name, she wasn’t going to get one, poor her.

She waved her hand towards Trouble, and it took him a moment to find his breath.

“Trouble… son of Ti’lan.”

I squeezed his hand approvingly, my eyes intent upon the priestess. She spoke Koorime, AralainShai whispering the translation for my lover.

“The two of you come before me, representative of the Teshnei, so that your lives may be entwined and bound to one another. DinTejin, you have cast off your shey robes and left our world. Your previous Teshin, however, has supported you in your decision and now supports you in this one as well.”

A little relief ran through me, the beginning of all that had scared me somewhat, even if she had agreed to marry us.

“You have bathed in the pure waters of our protector mountains and now stand upon the edge of this new time in your lives. As if out from darkness the two of you emerge and have found one another and will no longer walk in that darkness alone.”

I felt my throat tighten. She had no idea how right she was.

The priestess turned and spoke to Trouble, Lady Jun continuing to whisper the translation.

“May the gods of your world smile upon and bless this union you are entering upon. May this bridging of existences bring nothing but peace and comfort to your soul, knowing that even though your partner came not from your world, that your love for one another pays no heed to such small barriers.”

She turned to face me, and I didn’t look down as her eyes met mine, “May the Teshnei honor this choice you have made. May the presence of this soul beside you be as calming and nurturing to you as the water of your birthplace, and your love as pure. Even as you leave us to embark upon this new life, wherever you may go, may the best things of Koorime go with you.”

“Kneel,” AralainShai relayed the command after a long pause.

Trouble and I sank to our knees. I could see him glance toward me, bowing his head as he saw me do. The priestess laid her hands upon our heads.

“DinTejin, I give to you for your acceptance this soul who kneels beside you now. Does your soul accept this offering of his, and will you forever be devoted to loving and cherishing him with all your being?”

I closed my eyes, “Yes, with all my being.”

“Trouble, son of Ti’lan, I give to you for your acceptance this soul who kneels beside you now. Does your soul accept this offering of his, and will you forever be devoted to loving and cherishing him with all your being?”

Trouble took a deep breath, “Yes, with… all my being.”

The sound of a dagger being removed from a sheath filled the large chamber. I felt a gentle tug at my hair, the end of the braid being cut. The priestess took the cut braid and turned, placing it upon a lighted censer a shey brought from the side of the room. I watched it burn. True I had cut my hair once and discarded the braid when Lane had freed me, but this gave me another thrill.

“To signify that this soul, once a slave in our world, is now free from us entirely, cleansed and prepared to be given and bound to another.”

I removed my hand from atop Trouble’s and took the little box discretely from my pocket, the priestess taking it and holding it before us. I took one silver band and slid it onto Trouble’s finger, laying my hand atop his again and watching as he repeated the motion with the other ring.

“These rings stand as a token to signify the unity of these two souls before me, knelt here in reverence, being given to one another freely and so bound to each other. And a kiss, to symbolize that this binding is made with love.”

We turned to one another, tears threatening in my eyes when I saw Trouble’s cheeks were glistening with their own tears. I canted my head and pressed my lips tenderly against his, letting it linger for as long as I dared. A blush had slipped beneath the tears when I pulled back, smiling lovingly.

“Stand now, for the first time as two souls joined together, Din and Trouble Tejin.”

We stood, me bowing my head to the priestess respectfully, Trouble doing the same when she smiled at him. Then she turned and left the chamber. AralainShai came from the side and stood in front of me, her hands upon my shoulders, her face absolutely shining with a smile.

“Oh Din, I am so proud of you. You have grown so much from that shey so long ago. And such a lovely husband you have now.”

“I’m honored you approve, and I really appreciate all that you’ve done,” I was watching Trouble, as if I couldn’t let my eyes leave him.

“It’s well past midnight you two. Lane said you can both stay in his room for a bit since you wanted to stay until sunrise, he and Kai have already taken your things there.”

Lady Jun stepped around us and I turned, wrapping my arm around Trouble as I followed her. I had intended to ask her if I could use my old shey room for those few hours before sunrise, but if Lane had offered I wasn’t going to argue.

Trouble and I left the temple, no longer separate, but married. The feelings rushing through me were different from the ones beforehand, but no less dizzying. The quiet of the dark, empty street and the chill in the air helped somewhat.

We followed Lady Jun back to the house, completely silent the whole way, unwilling to let each other go. She turned to us at her bedroom door and I paused there, sensing she was trying to say something.

“I know you don’t feel comfortable coming back here, Din, perhaps I should come to Ningenkai more often,” she smiled. “Either way, you two have a good morning and a safe trip back home.”

“Thank you my Lady,” I bowed my head respectfully, waiting until she’d closed the door behind her to move on to Lane’s room.

I wasn’t sure which one of us moved first, but as soon as that bedroom door was shut and we had only each other, Trouble and I were hugging each other tightly and dusting little kisses all over one another. I laughed and picked him up off his feet, spinning him around a little and crashing down onto the bed. He giggled breathlessly, tears in his eyes again, burrowing against my neck and trembling.

“Gods I love you,” I nuzzled against his ear, hugging him so tight I was afraid I might break him.

“Love… you, Din,” he choked, blinking tears from his eyes.

I kissed the tears that fell, pressing my cheek to his. “Those better be happy tears.”

“Yes… happy… so very happy,” he cried, clinging to me.

I held him for a long while and let him cry, not minding them too much if they were happy tears. I wanted to do so many things, kiss him, caress him everywhere, just lay there and gaze at his body in that pale light, but holding him won out and I was content to do just that

His tears eventually subsided, giving way to a very content silence, just listening to one another’s heartbeats and breathing. Then I rolled us over, settling atop him, kissing at that perfect little mouth.

“My husband,” I whispered against his lips.

Trouble shivered beneath me, uttering a quiet little moan. I kissed him lovingly before setting about the task of slowly undressing him, worshipping every new bit of skin I exposed, nuzzling and kissing and breathing upon his soft flesh.

My little immortal blushed and whimpered, moving a little to assist me, hands lazily attempting at my own clothes until we both laid against one another in perfect nakedness. All of the excitement I’d repressed during the reverence of our ceremony came rushing back at me.

I kissed him passionately, burying my hands in his hair, loving the feel of it, curling my tongue around his and thrilling at the taste of his mouth. At that moment I doubted I could ever get enough of him.

Trouble wrapped his arms around my shoulders and eagerly returned the kiss, his body moving back against mine. He was so warm there beneath me, cheeks so very flushed, eyes shining with excitement. So very beautiful.

I let my hands wander all over his little form, loving every part of it, caressing everywhere, inciting pleasure from sensitive nerves and working my fingers into his muscles to relax them. He closed his eyes and turned his head, nuzzling against his own shoulder, excited and flushed badly. His little hands were massaging at my shoulders, pulling me back down against him.

I obeyed and settled atop him, grasping his hip and teasing the head of my sex against him He moaned and arched up. His begging was always like a command to me.

With a gentle push I was inside him, gliding easily, the moisture of my excitement easing the entry so wonderfully. Still I drew back and eased in again, making sure the passage was accepting of the invasion.

I wrapped my arms around him and cuddled him against me, thrusting very slowly, taking my time with every motion. Our breathing paced with one another, our hearts beating together.

It was beyond perfect.

Even in taking our time, laying there so close to still and just enjoying the feel of one another, orgasm rushed upon us far too quickly. I held off my own climax for as long as I could stand, employing every calming technique I’d been trained to hold out and last for my lover.

Breathless and shivering, I brushed my lips against his as I had before, “My husband.”

Trouble arched up hard in orgasm, gripping at my shoulders and gasping, barely forcing out a reply, “Yours.”

I kissed him as the waves of pleasure coursed over me, hips jerking once more as I spilt my seed deep within his heat. Then I burrowed my face against his neck and just held him, staying within him for as long as I could, listening to him coming down from the bliss, shivering at the little touches he grazed over my flesh.

“So… sweet,” Trouble whispered against my skin, hands playing in strands of hair that had fallen from my braids.

“Mmmm, love you,” I murmured, squeezing him just a little tighter.

We laid there for a little while longer, but I was keenly aware it was approaching dawn, and I’d made a promise. Trouble whimpered softly as I pulled away from him and sat up, following me and cuddling into my side.

I smiled and played at his hair, toeing the bag that sat nearby and dragging it over, finding the clothes we’d worn before the ceremony. “Gotta get going aitelrai, dawn only happens once… and I’m not sure I’ll ever be able to get you back into Koorime.”

He sighed, but not entirely displeased. This was a strange place, and I was sure he wanted to go back to the safety of known territory. We moved lethargically into our clothes, packing away the nice ones. I left out my coat, offering it to Trouble since I knew how cold Koorime mornings were to off-worlders.

I made the bed up neatly even though I knew the shey of the house would be up shortly to do all that. It was just a habit. Then I stood and slung the bag over my shoulder, taking Trouble’s hand.

The house was so perfectly quiet and dark. I felt a little bad sneaking off so quickly, but this wasn’t my home, and the Council had only allowed me to have Trouble here one night.

The street was equally dark and quiet, even moreso than when we’d gone inside. That time just before dawn, it was always so perfectly quiet. There were a few very dim lights evenly spaced along the main streets, but they went out several hours before dawn, so at the moment there was nothing.

My eyes didn’t mind that too much, and I knew the way so very well. I knew precisely which buildings we were passing I’d spent so much time here. Trouble clung tightly to my hand, but there was no way I was going to let him go, not now or ever. The broken ground of the ruins tripped me up slightly, but once onto the mountain path I had no problems whatsoever.

Once up there, beyond the city and the walls and the buildings, the stars provided so much light. They were so clear and bright, you swore they were close enough to reach out and touch. That was one thing about the Koorime nights, how closed the heavens looked.

Patches of snow glistened under that meager light, making our path seem almost ethereal. I settled us down on a nice ledge, not too high up, but with an excellent view of the ice fields to the east. How many times I’d sat on this very spot I couldn’t begin to say.

Trouble cuddled against me, warm enough in my coat, but not seeking warmth. I held him tight and watched the sky, watched as the stars faded one by one in the lightening sky.

And then it happened. That moment when brightness just flooded across the ice field in a race of shimmers and sparkles. Trouble gasped, sitting up a little straighter and staring. I squeezed his hand. The ice fields didn’t glisten quite like that at any other time of the day, the angle or something just wasn’t right. Within a few minutes it had faded and the last of the stars winked out.

I kissed the top of Trouble’s head, breathing in his scent. He turned and gazed at me, tears in his eyes.

“Good first dawn of our married life?” I asked gently.

“It… oh Din,” he couldn’t complete his sentence, throwing his arms around me and trembling against me, tears flowing freely down his cheeks.

I kissed away all the tears again, holding him tight, whispering, “Ila aitelrai – my treasure.”

“I… love you,” he nuzzled against my neck, “my… saviour.”

I stood up, gently bringing him to his feet with me, taking his hand and kissing him lovingly, “My husband… let’s go home.”



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Index