MINI STORY: The Fae Queen

Chapter 12

It was the day of their mating ceremony, an age old fae tradition. Lili and Onyx weren’t allowed to see each other for twenty-four hours before the ceremony as a way of building up the tension of the matebond and their reunion. It was driving both of them positively mad.

Onyx busied himself in the kitchen, it was the first time he had been back there since Lili’s birthday. He had hardly spoken to his father the entire month he was mated to Lili and the awkward silence continued today. Echo, Ford, Lennie, and the rest of the staff were tiptoeing around the kitchen, hoping to avoid setting off the bomb that was clearly counting down between the father and son.

“Is this cake okay for the ceremony?” Echo asked, opening the oven door and revealing a strawberry cake. She had the ingredients for homemade vanilla icing out on the counter.

“It looks perfect, Echo.” Onyx smiled.

“Her wolf marked you?” Robert said the very first words to his son.

“Yes.” Onyx looked startled.

“She’s really accepted you?”

“She has.” Onyx said,

Robert sighed and turned away from the stove, facing his son.

“I’m proud of you.” He confessed and Onyx resisted the urge to cheer. He knew he had to play it cool.

“Thanks, Dad.” He grinned.

Robert stuck out his hand and Onyx shook it, knowing that was about all he was going to get from his Dad.

“Will you be at the ceremony?” Onyx asked.

“I’m working.” Robert replied, turning back around towards the stove, “I’m making your favorite for the main course; chili.” He added and Onyx knew that was his father’s way of being there for him.

“Thanks, Dad.” He said again.

Lili, on the other hand, was busying herself with paperwork. She knew that she would soon have a partner in all of this and she wasn’t exactly sure how she was going to handle that. She was used to handling her duties on her own. Her uncle had promised to start handing over responsibilities to the newly crowned prince and the princess in order to begin preparing them for the throne.

There was a knock on the door and she nodded towards the guards to check on it. One of the guards opened the door and Viktor Judge strolled in. She was wound so tight from being away from Onyx that she didn’t even have the decency to cover up her sigh at his presence.

“What is it, Viktor?” She snapped and he had the good sense to look taken aback.

“I’m glad that I caught you alone, princess.” He said, looking at the empty chair where Onyx had once sat.

“I’m never alone.” She said, eyeing her guards behind him.

“Right,” He didn’t clarify what he meant but Lili knew, “It has been a month and I thought we would discuss the state of my village.”

“I know about the state of your village, Viktor. I was planning on making an official visit after the ceremony but it seems that you’re eagerness has saved me the trip. The advisors have been reporting back to me along with the spies I embedded within your village.” Lili’s words shocked Viktor.

“You did what?” Anger flashed in his eyes.

“I knew you would try to catfish the representatives I sent, so I had several members of the royal village move into your village undercover. I know that you have been threatening your people to rescind their complaints and share only good reports. I know you’ve been threatening the children to keep their parents in line around my advisors. It’s despicable, Viktor, and I’m ashamed by the actions of you and your father. The Judge family will be stripped of their title, their lands, their money, and their pedigree. A democratic vote will be held so that the people of the West village may elect their own leadership.” Lili announced powerfully, keeping her voice calm and her face expressionless.

Viktor was silent for a moment before he jumped out of his chair and started yelling in the princess’s face.

“How dare you? You have no right to remove us from power! We have been in power for centuries!” He cried out.

The guards stood on either side of him and yanked him backwards, away from Lili.

“I am the future Queen, I have every right!” Lili said back in a low but unquestionable tone.

“You are nothing but a b***h! You should have been silenced like your grandmother.” Viktor snarled.

Lili walked around her desk calmly, facing Viktor head on. The wind began to pick up and a storm was brewing inside her office. The papers on her desk fluttered upwards and scattered on the floor, the shutters around the windows banged loudly against the wall and the curtains reached out across the room like a creeping shadow.

Before she could deal out the consequences to Viktor’s words, the door to the office burst open and Onyx appeared at his mate’s side.

“What is going on?” He growled dangerously at the man being restrained before his mate.

“Viktor is simply earning himself a spot in our jailhouse so he can calm down a bit.” Lili replied carefully.

“Get him out of here.” Onyx ordered the guards who listened without hesitation.

Once Viktor and the guards were gone, two new guards in their place, Onyx turned Lili in his arms and studied her.

“Are you okay?” He asked, looking her over for injuries.

“I’m okay, Onyx. He can’t hurt me.” She said,

“No one will ever hurt you so long as I’m alive.” Onyx swore to Lili.

“You shouldn’t be here.” Lili smiled, lightening the mood as he touched Onyx’s face.

“I knew you weren’t safe.” He said, “I needed to be with you, to protect you. To hell with tradition.”

“My uncle and parents might not see things the same way.” She laughed, “Gertie and Neil definitely won’t.”

“It’ll be our little secret.” He winked, kissing her deeply.

“Secrets out.” Gertie announced from behind them and the couple froze, caught in the act.

Lili laughed as Onyx’s face contorted into an expression guilt.

“Sorry, Gertie.” He grumbled, ducking his head in shame as he sulked out of the office.

“It’s time to get you ready, princess.” Gertie said, shaking her head at Lili.

“Let’s go, then.”

******

Hours later, Lili was dressed in her mating ceremony gown. She opted for a dress this time, but still avoided the traditional frilly gown in the traditional golden shade. Instead, she wore a wine red dress that had a slit starting at her hip and a deep, plunging V neckline. She was wearing the royal gems which were large cut, deep colored amethysts. One hung heavily around her neck, two were set in gold dangling from her ears, and several small gems were wrapped around a gold bracelet.

Her heels were gold to match the jewelry and to appease the traditional color. Her hair was curled and wrapped in an intricate bun on the top of her head, leaving only a few curls framing her face.

She winked at Gertie who looked like she was going to pass out from shock at Lili’s attire. She said nothing, simply shaking her head and vanishing into thin air.

Once again, Lili’s mother had made the trip back to the realm to attend the ceremony. It was a much more public affair than the wolves were used to, so her father elected not to attend. He couldn’t get past the idea that the fae don’t publicly mate, they just mark each other. He was afraid he would see something he didn’t want to.

The wolves marked each other in private, just like how Storm wanted to claim Onyx in the throws of passion. The marking of a fae is very different. They use their gifts to mark their mates in public, in front of the people. For the village people, they conduct the ceremony in front of their village and their leaders. For the royals, it was a ceremony that the entire realm was invited to.

Marigold escorted Lili out to the front terrace of the palace. Unlike the ball, this ceremony would be conducted outside and within nature, where the fae feel the most at home. Onyx was dressed in a gold tuxedo and a red tie, his hair tidy and his face clean shaven. He took Lili’s hand and pulled her towards him, cradling her in his arms.

“The crown blesses this union between Lord Onyx Bell and Princess Lili Oxford.” King Bayu announced and an eerily silence fell over the crowd below.

“I love you, my sweet princess.” Onyx whispered for her ears only, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear and cupping her face.

“And I love you.” Lili replied softly.

Onyx leaned forward and kissed her gently before stepping backwards. They held hands between themselves and looked deeply in each other’s eyes. Onyx nodded and Lili took the lead.

She released one of her hands and held it up, opening her fist to reveal a small tornado. Her eyes flashed black, letting Onyx know that Storm was present as well. She slammed her hand against his neck, right below Storm’s mark, and the tornado sank into his skin. Onyx flinched and then shivered as the warmth overtook his body. A small, wispy looking mark appeared on his neck then, just underneath her bit mark which took the shape of a crescent moon.

Onyx smiled at her and then held up his own hand. A small rose petal moved through the sky, hovering just above the palm of his hand. Lili was taken back to the council dinner when a long stemmed rose had appeared on her dinner plate, the first time she had really noticed Onyx and his mischievous, yet kind eyes. She blushed thinking about it and then Onyx’s fingers were wrapped around the side of her neck.

She felt an overwhelming sensation take hold of her body and suddenly she was weightless. The rose petal was gone, it had become one with her cocoa colored skin. It melted against her neck and, in its place, was a small tattoo of a rose. Her skin began to warm and, slowly, feeling returned to her numb body. She smiled widely at Onyx and collapsed in his arms, crushing her lips to his.

“I present to you, Crown Prince Onyx and Crown Princess Lili!” King Bayu announced and the crowd exploded into cheers.