Song Of Hope: Okay, this is the sequel, so it's its own separate story. R&R
Yumemi was in front of the pool with Lady Ryuley. Toche stood next to her. She wore a dress similar to the one she had worn when she had first been at that pool, but it was down to her knees this time.
"In order to be married to Munto, you must not only know all the customs of the Bonding Ceremony, or, as you Lower Beings call it, the wedding, but you must also understand how the Magical Kingdom works. Toche," she turned to the young boy, "could you please go? These are things for a lady. It is considered a taboo for a male to learn about the preparations a woman must take for the Bonding Ceremony." He nodded.
"Yes Lady Ryuley." He departed. Lady Ryuley turned back to Yumemi.
"It would be much faster to use Akuto knowledge transfer to teach you all of the customs, but, being a Lower Being, I cannot do that. Instead, I'll use the closest thing I can to doing that." She raised her hand, and a large circle of water came up from the pool. Yumemi cringed slightly. "Do not worry. This will not show you any visions of horror, merely the steps you must take in order to be able to perform your part of the Bonding Ceremony, and your duties as Future Queen of the Magical Kingdom. But, instead of merely showing you in the water, you must touch it, and it will transfer the knowledge to you once the images start showing up. The water will serve as a medium between you and me, which will eliminate direct Akuto interaction, and will therefore bring no harm to you." She projected images onto the water circle. "Touch the water." Yumemi was hesitant, but she touched it cautiously. Her eyes filled with the flashing images that were on the water's surface. Once the images were gone, the water fell back into the pool.
"I have to do all that?" Lady Ryuley smiled at her and nodded.
"Yes."
"And, I don't wear white for my wedding dress?" She shook her head.
"White is the color of returning to the Akuto. If you want to be Bonded to Munto, then you must follow all of the Bonding Ceremony customs." Yumemi nodded.
"But, in what I saw, a Heavenly Being must marry only other Heavenly Beings. Is that true?" Lady Ryuley nodded.
"Yes, it is forbidden for any Heavenly Being to marry a Lower Being. It is considered a taboo. Any marriage between a Heavenly Being and a Lower Being has always ended in tragedy, not long after that marriage."
"Then how is it that Munto can marry me?" Lady Ryuley smiled.
"There is much that Akuto can do. There is very little that Akuto cannot do. Akuto was used, before the worlds were cut off from each other, to turn Lower Beings into Heavenly Beings in order to let a Heavenly Being marry a Lower Being." Yumemi's eyes widened.
"So, I can become a Heavenly Being?" Lady Ryuley nodded.
"It would be the same as how we Heavenly Beings came to be made of Akuto. I must warn you though, Yumemi, that most Lower Beings do not survive this process. It would be a very large risk to you, because you'd be turning what you create into what you are. Are you willing to go through this process?" She nodded.
"I, I love Munto, and I'd do anything for him, even if it meant my dying. And, I know, deep in my heart that if Munto didn't believe me strong enough to become a Heavenly Being, then he wouldn't have asked me to marry him. I trust Munto, and if he trusts me, then I will go through this process." Lady Ryuley nodded.
"Alright then." She constructed a glowing ball of energy. She put it and her hand over Yumemi. The glowing ball consumed Yumemi and turned into a glowing light that encased her, keeping her actual self out of everyone's sight and lifting her up off the ground. In the pain of the process, she screamed out.
Munto, talking with Rui, heard a scream. Rui looked pretty confused.
"What was that?" Munto felt his heart twist.
"Yumemi!" He immediately ran out to go and find her. He ran out into the courtyard, by the pool, and saw Yumemi screaming, engulfed in a golden light. "YUMEMI!" He ran towards her, but Lady Ryuley put her hand on his shoulder and stopped him. He turned to her. "What are you doing?! You dare stop your king?!"
"Munto, you know the law. You cannot bond with a Lower Being. You may only be bonded with a Heavenly Being, so you know what she must do in order to be able to be bonded to you. She must ascend to the ranks of a Heavenly Being. You knew that the moment you ask her to be your wife, and the instant you asked her to be bonded with you." He cursed himself, looking at Yumemi, fist clenched.
"I was hoping to avoid this."
"Yumemi-san will survive. The stronger the Akuto that they give off, then the more likely that they will survive. Yumemi-san gives off more Akuto than any other Lower Being in all the history of the Heavens. People who have less Akuto than her have survived this process, such as the third queen of the Magical Kingdom." Just as Lady Ryuley finished, Yumemi stopped glowing and fell down.
"Yumemi!" Munto instantly went and caught her as she fell. "Yumemi, are you alright?" She opened her eyes and looked at her fiancé.
"Did it work?" He tucked her hair behind her ear, which was now rather large and pointed, and was the only thing that made one able to tell the difference between a Heavenly Being and a Lower Being at a glance. He smiled.
"Yes, it did. It worked perfectly. You're now a Heavenly Being." She smiled.
"Now, we can truly be together." They were about to kiss, but Lady Ryuley made a graceful little noise to get their attention.
"Perhaps you might remember that a male learning the preparations a female must take to prepare for the Bonding Ceremony is considered a taboo? And might you consider putting Yumemi-san down?" They both blushed as Munto put her down.
"I will see you again soon my love." He walked away.
"Yumemi-san, we must get back to preparing you for the Bonding Ceremony." Yumemi absently nodded, wondering how she got such a wonderful man to be her love.
Song Of Hope: There will be another story, but right now, it's just a series of One-Shots. R&R