“Nana, it’s going to be alright,” Cessilia chuckled. “Plus, Neridie loves it when we read to her. I’m sure everything will be alright.”

“...As long as you don’t overdo it,” muttered Tessandra. “Talking about stunning people, Nana, how is it going between you and Darsan? He’s proposed for the... what, eighth time already? I’m impressed, he won’t give up.”

“I just don’t want to have a fiancé yet!” Nana protested. “This is my first relationship, I’m trying to take it slow... Plus, I’m not really sure Prince Darsan realizes what he’s asking, you know. It’s probably not much for him...”

Tessandra and Cessilia exchanged a surprised look.

“Nana... I think you underestimate my brother’s feelings,” gently said Cessilia. “He’s never been with a girl either. In fact, he’s never shown interest in anyone romantically before. He’s really in love with you, but he might be a bit too... bold with his attempts to demonstrate his feelings.”

“Brazen should be his second name,” scoffed Tessandra.

“I-I understand... but I’m happy to simply date for now,” Nana nodded. “We have a very good relationship, but I feel that... marriage might be a bit too much for me right now. I want to stay a Royal Counselor, and we’re still preparing the public library too, and then there’s the building of the new city taking a lot of my time!”

Tessandra laughed.

“For once, I might feel sorry for Darsan! Nana, I’m pretty sure none of that will have to change even if you get engaged or married to Darsan! He’s not asking for a stay-at-home wifey! It’s Darsan! He’s a caveman, he could feed himself with raw meat every day and be completely fine too! He probably just wants to be able to call you his fiancée or his wife, and boast about it, but I bet he’ll be absolutely fine even if you have him do all the house chores! You already have him wrapped around your little finger. Trust me, the only risk you’re taking is to be called every time he breaks something. But then again, that’s already pretty much the case...”

Naptunie lowered her head, visibly thinking. Cessilia smiled while stroking her daughter’s head. Once again, Nana was overthinking things. She would always be the one to put her responsibilities first, but to Cessilia’s knowledge, her older brother would never have an issue with that...

Cessilia’s eyes shifted to Tessandra with a little smile. Her cousin blushed.

“What’s that look?”

“It’s cute, you’re the one giving relationship advice now...”

“I’m at least more experienced than Nana,” she protested in a whisper, “and I know Darsan too. Things are a bit more complicated with Sabael...”

“You make them complicated.”

“Stop teasing me!”

Cessilia chuckled and turned back to Nana, who seemed a lot more serene. She took a deep breath, followed it with a little nod, and then turned to Cessilia.

“Thank you, I feel a bit better now.”

“You’re welcome. I didn’t do much...”

“Speaking of your man, do you know where they all are?” Tessandra frowned. “Sabael disappeared right after his shift this afternoon, and this is the first time I’ve seen His Majesty not come to check on his daughter for longer than three hours... and since nothing has collapsed yet today, I suppose Darsan’s busy with something too?”

Cessilia shrugged. She had no idea. Her fiancé had indeed disappeared in the middle of the afternoon as well. She hadn’t seen him in a while, not even over dinner, which she, Tessandra, and Nana had eaten downtown while touring around the marketplace. She turned to Naptunie, and to her surprise, the youngest of them suddenly seemed shy, blushing and her eyes going to the window.

“I-I’m not sure,” Nana muttered, lying poorly.

“Nana?” Tessandra insisted, frowning. “...What do you know that you won’t tell us?”

“I don’t know anything!” she protested. “I-I just followed you here to look at the herbs, remember?”

“You’ve been stuck to us all afternoon despite always being so busy; that’s quite suspicious already, but now you’re definitely hiding something, aren’t you? What’s going on?”

Nana slowly retreated, but Tessandra was not the type to back down for so little. She kept walking up to Nana, her arms crossed, pressuring her for an answer.

“Th-the beach!” Nana suddenly exclaimed. “Th-they had something to do on the beach, they asked me not to tell you...”

The two cousins exchanged a glance. What were their men doing on the beach, when it was almost sunset? They were even more curious now. Like one, Tessandra and Cessilia turned around, leaving the greenhouse without looking back. Behind them, Nana sighed, and glanced at the window again. It was almost time anyway... they were probably ready down there!

Cessilia, still carrying her daughter, walked to the beach with a few questions in mind. She had noticed Ashen acting a bit differently these days, but she couldn’t put a finger on why. He was a bit busier without her knowing how it came about, and at times, he had seemed to try and hide something from her. She hadn’t really paid attention until today. After their swim that afternoon, he had gifted her this beautiful, blue-green dress that had obviously been made just for her, with thousands of little nacre beads she loved so much, which matched her hand chain. It wasn’t the first time he gave her a gift, but he had seemed very excited about this one... The dress was incredibly pretty and looked very fitting on her body, with an off-the-shoulder top but long and large sleeves, and a mermaid-like skirt that opened like a flower in bloom at the end. It wasn’t a very practical outfit, but it was so pretty, she felt beautiful in it. Tessandra followed her all the way to the stairs that led to the beach, one of the few beaches that the citizens could access when the sea level was low, like the secret cave.

To her surprise, the sun was setting behind the horizon, but aside from the orange, pink, and purple stripes in the sky, there were hundreds of little lights coming from the beach. Cessilia slowed down, feeling her heart flutter. What was going on there? There was a little crowd on the beach, standing still and... seemingly waiting for her. A nervous chuckle escaped her lips as her feet touched the sand. To her surprise, there was Sabael, Darsan, and behind them, more of her family. All six of her other siblings were there, including Kassian holding their younger sister’s hand, and behind them... her parents. Cessilia lost her breath, feeling the tears come to her eyes. In fact, she was already holding back a cry. Everyone was smiling at her, visibly amused by her shocked expression, and holding little candles. She smiled at her siblings, but inevitably looked beyond the crowd. There was a beautiful arch of driftwood, vine, blown glass, and flowers standing just before the sea. Underneath it was the gorgeous sunset and Ashen. Already trembling, Cessilia slowly walked up to them, at a loss for words. She vaguely saw Sabael grabbing Tessandra’s hand to pull her to the side with them, but Cessilia walked up to her parents first. Cassandra opened her arms, welcoming her daughter.

“Hello, my princess,” she chuckled against her ear.

That’s when Cessilia finally couldn’t hold it anymore, and let out a faint cry. She felt her dad’s big hand gently caressing her head, and she moved to his arms next, feeling him hold her. He kissed her forehead without a word, a faint smile on his lips. Kairen gently took Neridie from her arms, the baby girl immediately smiling happily at her grandparents. Her baby seemed incredibly small and cute in the War God’s arms...

Then, Cessilia turned to Ashen, shyly walking up to him. She had just noticed the little lines of seashells guiding her to him, and she found the whole setting even more perfect.

“What is all this?” she asked with a tearful smile.

“Nothing but what my beautiful fiancé deserves,” he smiled. “...I wanted this ceremony to be exactly how you wanted it, and... to be honest, I don’t think I can go a single day more without calling you my wife. So I asked for a bit of help from your brother and Sabael, and we managed to fly your whole family over here, just as you wanted.”

Cessilia was speechless. This was going far beyond what she wanted, what she had imagined. She heard little growls, and all of her siblings’ dragons appeared too, jumping on the beach to play. They probably didn’t care much about the ceremony, but the sight of half a dozen dragons playing on the sand made her chuckle, freeing her from her nervousness.

“...It’s perfect,” she cried.

“You’re due another ceremony at home anyway,” Kassian whispered from the side.

She heard Cassandra chuckle. Indeed, the Empress wouldn’t let her first niece’s wedding go so easily... but this was the best ceremony she could want. To her surprise, her other aunt, Phemera, suddenly stepped out, placing a gorgeous veil on Cessilia’s head that matched her dress. Then, her youngest brother, Sepheus, who was just seven years old, ran to her, giving her a bouquet of flowers, before running back to hold Darsan’s hand. On the other side was Nana, her chubby cheeks already drenched with tears.

“...I am only a priestess,” said Phemera, “but I will happily officiate this wedding for my dear niece, if you’ll allow.”

Cessilia happily nodded. Her aunt returned her smile, and took a deep breath.

“At the request of His Highness King Ashen the White, we are here to unite these two beautiful young people by the sacred bond of marriage. Across the lands and the sea, nothing is more beautiful than two hearts that came together despite all the odds, to unite as one. Our brave Princess deserves nothing less than a young King full of bravery as well, and she found him, not once, but twice. You are already blessed with a beautiful child, and I am sure you will find prosperity, with both the moon and the sun as your witnesses.”

Cessilia glanced up. Indeed, the moon was already visible in the sky, while the sun hadn’t completely set yet... however, she felt like her aunt was referencing her parents as well, as another couple that had come together despite being from two different worlds. Ashen gently took her hands, and they smiled at each other. She hadn’t felt her heart beat so fast in such a long time...

“Now, as your mother’s tradition will have it, let us begin the ceremony... The Sea Ceremony.”

Cessilia glanced back at her mom, exchanging a smile with her. She was bringing her mother’s tradition, but to fit Ashen’s world... She loved it. Her aunt began reciting, and she looked back at Ashen, their hands a bit tighter on each other’s.

“O God of Water, our ancestors taught us love. Help us teach our children too. We’ll share that love to all of your children, from all rivers they come, from all seas they come. Let us speak of love, and let our hearts beat together. Let your love flow in our veins and words, for you showed us how to love with your tide. Gather your children together before the sea, gather us, and remind us how to love if we forget. Teach us to be patient, kind, sincere, and truthful. Teach us love, teach us how to cry and pray. Fill our lives with love, water, and grace. O God of Water, your children are thankful today, as with love you teach us the way again. O God of Water, your children will remember your love is patient, kind, sincere, and truthful. We shall not give in to anger, and we shall not give in to evil. We shall not lie, and we shall not betray. Your children promise to remember, each day the sea rises, how love is patient, kind, sincere, and truthful. O God of Water, your love has no beginning and no end. Your love is blind and deaf. Your love is infinite. O God of Water, your children of the rain shall not lie, and they shall not hurt. I will be blind and deaf if I can’t see or hear love. O God of Water, your children gather today, in harmony, to love again. O God of Water, hear our prayer. Your children will give up their wealth, their bodies, and their minds for love.”

Cessilia exchanged a glance with Ashen, and to her surprise, he began reciting at the same time as her.

“The Sea comes to us blind and deaf. The Sea will witness our love today. I give my wealth, my body, and my mind for this love of mine.”

They exchanged a faint chuckle before resuming.

“I will love eternally, in the eyes of my beloved, and in the eyes of the Water God. I swear to keep my love patient, kind, sincere, and truthful until I die. I swear to honor the Water God in every way until I return into his arms, side by side with my beloved.”