I fall limp beside Yuuri, sweaty and sated, a pulsating warmth spreading through my veins. He holds me close. I could feel the sweat on his skin, his chest rising and falling with heavy pants. Together, we catch our breaths.

He still lingers inside me, filling me, warming my insides.

"That felt amazing," I smile, running my fingers down his arm. I can hear his heart beat fast in my ear.

He hugs me tighter. "Yeah," he agrees, wholeheartedly. He strokes my face and I close my eyes, leaning into his touch. He laughs, happy. "I have to say, I love seeing this side of you."

"Is that so?" I grin at him, slyly.

"Yeah," he beams, bringing our lips together, initiating intimate contact. I moan into his mouth, feeling a sudden spike in my libido, and I can feel him against me, hard and hot. All the while, he combs his fingers through my hair and moves his hands over my head, shoulders, down my sides to my waist. He grounds against me, causing a gasp to escape my lips as a warm wave of pleasure comes over me. He rolls on top of me and pecks at my neck.

"It felt so good when you were inside of me," he whispers, sensationally.

I recall how it felt to be inside of him, how tight and hot it was – a moist cave – and that heightens my arousal. I feel myself flush further once he looks at me with a smoldering gaze.

"It felt strange at first, but you made sure that I was comfortable." He caresses my behind. "It felt so, so good to be inside of you, too. I don't think that I'll ever get enough of it. I just can't get enough of you."

"You're insatiable," I tease.

He grins. "You feel pretty insatiable yourself."

I tug him down for a hungry kiss. "It's all your fault," I accuse, playfully.

"Then I better take responsibility," he says, his voice deep and full of desire.

We proceed to make love again. We lose and find ourselves in the haze of passion. We bask in another round of afterglow, holding one another close as we doze off and fall asleep in each other's arms.


I wake up to feel a warm body next to mine. I nestle close, embracing Yuuri, who returns my embrace.

"Morning, gorgeous," he says, affectionately.

I press our smiles together. "Good morning, Your Majesty."

His smile grows in size and he looks at me with happiness gleaming in his eyes. "That's the first time you've ever called me that."

I blush, burying my face in his chest. "You deserve the title," I say. "You always have."

He kisses my forehead, his lips lingering for a little while. "It means so much to hear you say that."

I tilt my head up to look at him. His face is red. His eyes are shining like coal lit on fire. His lips are swollen. All because of me. "I wish that we could stay like this forever."

We hold each other, comfortable with one another, content with silence.

"I can't wait to marry you," he says.

My heart swells with such happiness and excitement. I roll on top of him and kiss him, exploring his mouth with my tongue. Our kiss ends, leaving us both breathless.

"I can't wait to marry you, too." I say, peppering kisses from his lips to his jaw to his neck. "You'll look so handsome, dressed in the finest black suit."

He leans up to kiss my cheek. "And what will you be wearing?" He wonders.

"A white suit."

He chuckles. "The finest, I'm sure."

"But of course."

He strokes my back. "What are weddings like here?"

I hum in thought, hugging him. "They could be held at a multiple of venues, depending on the couple's preference and social status. Because you're the king, our wedding will be held in the throne room. We'll have to appoint a person of authority to wed us, like a minister or a lord. We'll have to make a guest list and arrange a seating chart for the reception."

"That doesn't sound all that different from how weddings work back in my world," he says. "How will the ceremony go?"

"We are to walk down the aisle together. I will carry a bouquet of flowers of my choosing and present it to you at the altar as an offering of my love. When you accept it, we'll tie the red ribbon that's tied around the flowers to our left wrists, then say our vows. After that, we'll be wed."

"That's so romantic," he swoons. "Back in my world – in Japan – it's folklore that lovers are bound together by a red string. It's called the red string of fate. It's not tied around the lovers' left wrists though." He lifts my left hand and strokes my pinkie with his thumb and pointer finger. "It goes right here." He laughs with joy and puts his left pinkie next to mine. "I could actually see it, can't you?"

It's easy to picture a red string tied around our pinkies. "Yes, I can."

He gives me a slow, sweet kiss. I kiss him back, caressing his face.

We were meant to be together, and to be together like this with nothing between us makes me the happiest that I've ever been.

"I can't wait to kiss you like this in front of everybody," he says, softly, his smile widening. "In our finest suits, of course."

"Wh-what?" I ask, my face hot.

He blinks. "I mean, after the minister or lord or whoever weds us, he'll say 'you may kiss the groom', won't he?"

"Of course not." I say, obviously. "That's way too intimate of a display to do in front of people."

"Is it?" He asks. "I don't think so. It's pretty normal back in my world. People usually kiss at the end of a marriage ceremony." He looks up in thought. "It's a Western-style wedding that's really caught on in Japan although there are still people who have Shinto weddings." He might as well be talking to himself because I have no idea what he's talking about. "It's okay if you don't want to, but when I pictured our wedding, I pictured the both of us kissing in front of all of our friends and family. I mean, on some level, I get what you're saying. This world is a lot different than mine and I get that you have some old-fashioned customs…"

"Old-fashioned?" I echo, cutting him off. "What I'm saying isn't old-fashioned. It's a matter of common decency. To kiss in public is absolutely shameless."

"Ah, I see," he says, nervously. "PDA like that isn't all that encouraged in Japan, but that's different than a wedding ceremony."

He's very persistent about this. I can understand why. This is our wedding that we're talking about. It sounds like he's put some thought into this. I know how it feels to have an expectation of something, an image of what's to come. Yuuri is trying his best to understand my way of thinking. It's only fair that I do the same for him.

"I'll think about it," I say.

"R-really?" He asks, surprised.

I nod. "Really."

"Okay," he smiles.

The thought of kissing him in front of everyone makes me uncomfortable, but I'll consider it. Our wedding day is just that: ours. And it should be satisfying for the both of us.

No matter what, I know that Yuuri will have Conrart stand beside him as his best man. I took this 'best man' concept into consideration, thinking of Gwendal, who I still have to ask. Mother and Greta will be there. I'm definitely going to invite Arietta and Claretta. Yuuri is sure to invite his parents and his older brother. I tense up as another person comes to mind.

"What is it?" He asks.

In the bath last night, Yuuri was talking about how insecure he felt about himself in comparison to His Eminence. He said that His Eminence would be better for me, and that feeling was based on his guilt for hurting me in the past. After we made love, he can't feel that way anymore. Can he? That insecurity should've left his body along with the sweat, but I wasn't sure.

"Wolfram?" He prods.

"You don't…feel the same way you did last night, do you?" I ask.

"What?" He pulls back to give me an incredulous look. "How could you even ask that after what we did? Of course I still love you."

I sigh and roll my eyes. "That's not what I meant, Yuuri."

He cups my face. "You do know that though, right?" He asks, seriously. "That I love you?"

A pleasant shiver courses through me. "I know," I say. "I can feel your love, too."

"I'm glad," he exhales a smile. "Now, what were you saying?"

He's glowing and I don't want to dim that flow by bringing His Eminence up, but I have to. I've never treated him like a child before and I don't plan on doing so now.

"You still don't think that His Eminence deserves me more, do you?" I ask, feeling him stiffen. "Because that's insulting not only to you, but to me, too."

"I know that," he says, defensively. "That was just my guilt speaking." His frown deepens. "That duel with Murata reminded me of the duel that I had with Elizabeth." I open my mouth to say something, but he continues to talk. "I know that was years ago, but let me finish. Back then, I made so many mistakes and during that duel, I made one of the worst mistakes I have ever made. I tried to throw the duel without thinking about your feelings, and I still have no idea how you could have stayed by my side after that, but I thank you. You have been there for me through so much and I was thinking about that before I dueled him, then I fought him and I have never been more pissed off in my entire life. I could have killed him." He falls silent, his bangs covering his eyes as he tucks his chin inward.

"Is that why you've been avoiding him?" I ask, cradling his head.

He settles against my chest. "Yeah," he says. "At first, I just didn't want to see him. I was so disgusted with him. He shouldn't have confessed his feelings for you like that. It wasn't right. You aren't a prize to be won. He should've just pulled you aside if he wanted to get if off his chest so badly. He shouldn't have put your freedom at risk." He huffs, irate. "Then I remembered how furious I was. No doubt that Murata noticed. He must hate me now."

So that was why Yuuri has been avoiding His Eminence. It makes sense. Yuuri isn't the kind of person who could hold a grudge for too long.

"I don't think that he hates you," I say.

"You're just saying that," he murmurs.

"No, I'm not," I say. "He did say that he could've dueled you sooner."

"So, what?" He asks.

"So, my point is that he chose that particular time to duel you," I point out. "He could've dueled you sooner. He even said so himself. During the match, he got you all riled up on purpose. I don't think that he would do that so needlessly."

"Why do you think he dueled me then?" He asks, curious.

"It's difficult to say. His Eminence is hard to read. I think that you should go talk to him about it. That way, you could get some peace of mind."

"Yeah," he agrees. "I'll talk to him later." He smiles. "Thank you, Wolf. This has been bothering me for a while and I feel better now that I've talked about it."

"Good." I poke his nose, seeing his eyes go wide in surprise. "Next time something is on your mind, come talk to me about it. Don't keep it to yourself for so long, all right?"

"All right, all right." He laughs, pulling me close, peering at me with half-lidded eyes. "I'm so lucky to have such a beautiful, understanding…sexy fiancé." He moves to straddle my waist, and guides my hands above my head and squeezes my palms, lowering his mouth onto mine.

I close my eyes, reveling in his kiss, and his touch, and his body against mine.


Mother is ecstatic when Yuuri and I tell her the news. She agrees to plan our wedding while taking us into her arms, planting a kiss on both of our foreheads. I feel her lipstick smear on my skin and make a face, not like she notices. She's too wrapped up in her excitement, which attracts the attention of Conrart and Greta.

"Mother," Conrart smiles, amusing by her antics, bemused by the commotion that she's making. "What's going on?"

"Oh, Conrart!" She squeals, throwing herself at him. "His Majesty and Wolfie here are going to get married soon and I'm going to be the one planning their wedding!"

"That's great," Conrart smiles, big and bright.

Greta has the same smile and she runs over to hug Yuuri and I. "Yay!" She cheers. "I'm so happy!" We all partake in a group hug before Yuuri kneels down at her level. I pat her head, affectionately, overcome with emotion when I see that she has grown up to my chest.

"Greta, I need you to do something for me at the ceremony." Yuuri says, setting his hands on her shoulders.

"Okay," she nodded, determinedly.

"I need you – no, we need you to be our flower girl." Yuuri motions at me and back to him with his hands. At her look of confusion, he explains. "You'll wear a pretty dress and hold a basket of flower petals that you'll sprinkle down the aisle before we walk to the altar. Can you do that for us?"

She nods, enthusiastic. "Of course I can!"

Yuuri pulls her into a hug and I kiss the crown of her head. "You're the best, Greta!" His accolade causes her to laugh, happily.

Yuuri stands up and faces Conrart, who has an arm around Mother. "Conrad," he smiles up at him. "Would you do me the honor of being my best man?"

Conrart's smile widens. "Of course."

"Where's Gwendal?" I ask.

"I think that he's in his office," Conrart replies.

"Again?" Mother asks in great disbelief. She pulls away from Conrart and puts a hand to her face, slinging an arm about her waist. "Gwen needs to stop holing himself up in that office. It's no good for him. He needs to get out more and find himself a nice girl."

"He doesn't need to do that," Conrart comments.

"What do you mean by that?" Mother asks.

"You'll see soon enough." Conrart grins, knowingly. He obviously knows something that she doesn't.

"Won't you tell Mommy what you mean?" Mother asks, sweetly, holding onto his arm.

He shrugs with that knowing smirk on his face. "You'll have to wait and see, my dear Mother."

She tightens her hold on his arm and pouts up at him. "Aw, Conrart, you're no fun."

He chuckles.

I go with Yuuri and Greta to Gwendal's office. I knock on the door to receive no answer. Perhaps he's elsewhere? But I can't think of anywhere else that he could be.

"Come in!" Gwendal calls.

I open the door to see Gwendal sitting at his desk and Anissina standing beside him, both of them blushing.

"Hello, Your Majesty, Wolfram, Greta," Anissina greets with a nervous smile. "What brings you all here?"

I stare at them, putting two and two together.

"Are we…interrupting something?" Yuuri asks, awkwardly.

"Not at all!" Anissina denies. "Gwendal and I were just discussing the proper funeral arrangements for Lady Eileen."

I frown, feeling like I was just punched in the gut. That's right. I still have to bury Eileen's remains, or at least, the remnants of the last vessel that her soul resided in. I can't believe that I forgot about something so important. Between my recovery and returning to my post, I had forgotten about it, or maybe I just didn't want to remember because then I'd have to remember how she died, the black crystal, Father…I'm overwhelmed by grief and devastation.

I didn't just lose Eileen. I lost Father, too. I lost his respect. I also lost his love and compassion.

No, I refuse to let him get to me like this. In the end, he turned out to be a bigoted fool, and I'm not going to value the opinion of such a person.

"What do you plan on doing?" Yuuri wonders, holding my hand.

Anissina says that she and Gwendal could only plan so far as the funeral service and that she needs to know more information, like where she is to be buried. I tell her that she's to be buried beside her lover, Sir Zachary, in the von Karbelnikoff territory, telling her the exact location of his grave. As I speak, Gwendal jots down the whereabouts.

"All right," Gwendal puts the quill pen back in the ink bottle when he finishes writing, then threads his fingers together, giving me his full attention. "Now, what brings you here?"

I hesitate.

"Go on, Papa." Greta encourages. "Ask him."

Gwendal raises an eyebrow. Fears wells up inside me. I know what I came here to ask him and now I'm scared. The last time we were together was back in Caloria where we got into an argument about my involvement in the altercation between Small Cimaron and Caloria. He didn't think that I was pulling my weight and that Yozak was picking up the slack for me. Come to think of it, Eileen did the same. In his eyes, Gwendal didn't see me as a competent soldier, and I don't see myself that way either, not after all that has happened.

What right do I have to ask him to be my best man?

"What do you have to ask me?" Gwendal asks. I meet his gaze and see the answer to my question. He looks at me, seriously, like he'd do anything in his power to do what I ask of him.

I relax and scold myself. Don't equate Gwendal with that bastard.

"Will you be my best man?" I ask.

A big question mark appears on his face and Yuuri takes that as his cue to explain.

"Wolfram," he addresses me with a small smile. "I'm glad that you asked me. The answer is yes."

I smile, alleviated to be proven wrong. "Thank you."


Before I go on border patrol, Yuuri confides in me about approaching His Eminence, who has spent his days at The Temple of the Great One. I take his hands and tell him that he'll be fine, to just be himself and be honest with His Eminence. My pep talk does little to calm his nerves. I know that he won't stop fretting until he talks to His Eminence so I tell him to just talk to him already and that's the push that gets Yuuri going.

The patrol is uneventful and because of this, my mind wanders, returning back to Father. I squeeze the reins so tightly that my fists match Frida's fur. That bastard. Did he even know how much I loved him? Did he even know how much I looked up to him? Did he even care? I was so devastated after he died. I felt like someone carved a big hole into my heart and pulled it out of my chest. To have him write me off like that – it's like he took that piece and stomped all over it. I didn't pay that much mind to it before because I was so shocked. I was much too enraptured by Yuuri's sudden presence inside of the black crystal to respond to Father. Maybe, on a subconscious level, I didn't want to acknowledge the fact that Father had forsaken me.

Perhaps that wasn't really him speaking. Maybe Father was influenced by the black crystal, and that's why he said what he did. Could it? Not much is known about the black crystal and what it does, but I have seen it used by King Belar, who became stronger with its power. It didn't have the same effect on Father and me. The black crystal trapped Father in his last battle and when I went inside of the illusion, I thought that it was really happening. Father thought so, too. I don't know if it altered his personality somehow. I want to believe this badly. I can deny him all I want – damn him to hell and curse his name – but I can't deny the man that I knew him to be. The man that planted flowers with me, taught me how to paint, praised me and loved me. Was that man a lie?

No, that man wasn't a lie. Even when he spent time with me, he still had that prejudice against humans. He didn't hide it. He made it quite clear by speaking ill of them around me. Oftentimes, he'd regard Conrart with disdain, as if his mere existence was offensive to him. I was right to tell him that he planted his hatred for humans inside me.

Now that I have associated myself with humans, who were the target of his bigotry, he didn't want to have anything to do with me. When he found out that Yuuri was my fiancé, I might as well have been a human to him. In that moment, he decided that all of the memories that we made together meant nothing in comparison to his racism.

I have to accept that. I don't have a choice. What's done is done. Father's soul broke along with the black crystal and that was the consequence of his choice to merge with such a horrid thing.

It's scary to think that I could've ended up like him if it wasn't for Yuuri. Without him, I would've continued to live my life absorbed by my hatred of humans. My relationship with Conrart would still be abysmal. Aside from that, I would've have been able to make friends with Arietta and Claretta and I would've have felt the need to save Ingrid and Rilla from the Small Cimaron prison. He has changed me and my life in the best way possible and I'll forever be grateful to him for that.


I return to the castle to find out that Yuuri is still talking to His Eminence at The Temple of the Great One. I wonder how their discussion is going. I hope that it's in Yuuri's favor, knowing how much he values His Eminence as a friend.

"Hey there, Wolfram." I run into Arietta in the hallway. She's dressed in a maid uniform so she must be on duty. She greets me with a friendly smile.

"Hi, Arietta."

"I heard about your upcoming wedding." Her smile widens and she bounces on her heels with barely contained excitement. "Congratulations! I'm so happy for the both of you!"

My lips curl upwards. "Thank you." It doesn't surprise me that she's heard. I'm sure that Mother has gushed about this to anyone and everyone that will listen. "You and Claretta should expect a personal invitation soon."

She claps her hands in delight. "That's great to hear! We'll be sure to attend. Sounds like it'll be quite the party."

"Definitely," I agree.

"I'm on break right now," Arietta says. "I'm actually heading back to me and Clareta's chamber to go change. Is it all right if we have dinner with you? I want to hear more about the wedding from you."

"It's all right," I assure her. "I'll have the maids on duty make us all a meal."

"Sounds good," Arietta smiles. "We'll meet you in the dining room."

I make the necessary arrangements, telling the maids to make us a meal that we could all agree on. They eagerly do so and I wait for Arietta and Clareta in the dining room. Shortly after, they enter the room in the midst of an argument.

"…just do this!" Clareta exclaims, hesitantly following Arietta inside. "We have to remember our place. We're merely maids and as such, we should eat with the other maids and servants."

"Come on, Clare," Arietta urges, tugging at her arm. "Wolfram didn't have any objections to us eating with him. Besides, we're his friends so this shouldn't be a problem."

Clareta gives me an uncertain look. "Are you sure that this won't cause any trouble?" She asks. "I don't want to step on anyone's toes."

"It's not any trouble at all," I say.

"See?" Arietta's expression reads 'I told you so'.

"All right," Clareta says, exasperated. "As long as you're sure." She turns to me.

"I'm sure," I say.

With that, they sit down at the table. Arietta seems to be right at home while Clareta appears to be uncomfortable, smoothing her hands over her long skirt, as I to smooth out wrinkles. The maids come in to serve us our dinner and we begin to eat. We discuss the wedding then I think about the conversation that I had with Yuuri this morning. I feel my face heat up and duck my head, taking a sip from my drink.

"Oh, my gosh, Wolfram." Arietta says. "I can't believe that I didn't notice this before, but you are absolutely glowing today."

I blush at the implication. She must notice that because she laughs. Clareta examines my face, which is seconds away from burning off, then she chuckles.

"I take it that things with His Majesty are going well," she comments.

"You two are absolutely shameless," I accuse, taking another sip of my drink.

Their laughter rings out throughout the dining hall.

"There's no need to be so bashful about it," Arietta says. "You're among friends."

"Now, now," Clareta pats her arm. "You're embarrassing him, Ari. Let's continue talking about the wedding." She gently steers the conversation back on course. "We've never been to a royal wedding before. What will it be like?"

More or less, I give her the same explanation that I gave to Yuuri, then I tell them what he told me about the weddings in his world. When I tell them about the kiss, Clareta smiles and Arietta squeals with excitement.

"That's so romantic!" Arietta exclaims. "A display of love in front of the whole country. A marriage sealed with a kiss. It's bound to be a ceremony that everyone will remember!"

"I suppose," I say because she's right. It would be memorable, historic even, but to kiss Yuuri in front of all those people…I don't know if I could do that.

"Wolfram?" Clareta asks, softly. "What is it?"

"It's nothing," I say. "I was just thinking that Arietta is right. It would be memorable." That's what I wanted our wedding to be like ever since I first fell in love with him. I wanted our wedding to make a statement, to show how much we loved each other by making it a big and grand occasion. But now that I think about it, that'll be impossible to show. Aside from that, I don't care about what everyone thinks about the wedding. I just want it to be a special day for Yuuri and me.


Countless women surround the grave where the Embers of Eileen is buried. Anissina says a prayer as Eileen's sword is lowered into the ground, close to Sir Zachary's grave. Yuuri has an arm around my shoulder, as I say goodbye to her for the last time. I move forward with him by my side and take ahold of the shovel. He puts a hand on top of mine and together, we scoop up a pile of dirt and pour it into the open grave.


It's the moment. So much preparation has gone into this. So many invitations were sent out. So many people are out there waiting. Mother, Greta, Arietta, Clareta, Miko (or Jennifer as she insists on being called), Shoma, Shori, and Uncle Waltorana. His Eminence might be out there too, but I'm not sure if he'll show up, especially after what happened last year with the duel.

He and Yuuri had a long talk a while back. Yuuri told me that they settled matters between them, although His Eminence said that he might not be up to coming to our wedding. My frown deepens. It's been over a year already. He should be over me by now, shouldn't he? He better show up. Yuuri is his friend and this is his big day. If someone like Saralegui could make it, he should damn well be able to make it, too.

I pace the room, biting down hard on my thumb nail. It's so stupid. Why am I getting so damn jittery all of a sudden? I've been waiting for this day for years and it's finally here. I should be filled to the brim with happiness, but instead I'm beyond anxious.

What if Yuuri changes his mind? What if he just leaves me there at the altar? What if there's someone else that he has fallen for? What if he's only with me because he can't think of a nice way to let me down? I sit down, overwhelmed, my body quaking.

Gwendal enters the room, adorned in a nice, dark green suit. He approaches me and pulls up a chair beside me. "What's the matter?" He asks, worriedly. "You look unwell."

"I'm scared," I confess. "I can't stop shaking."

He puts a hand on my knee. "What are you so scared of?"

"I'm scared that he'll…" I trail off, tears overflowing. I cover my eyes and cries. "I'm scared that he'll leave me."

I'm frightened that one day, he'll see a part of me that he doesn't like and leave me.

"His Majesty isn't the kind of person that would give you this ring without a reason." He picks up my left hand and I look at the silver band.

Yuuri had given me this when we went back to his world to pay his family a visit. We told them about the wedding and we received their immediate blessing. That day, Jennifer had taken me out shopping and offered to pay for Yuuri's engagement ring as well as his wedding ring. I got him the best ring that I could find, which is now in Greta's care, an onyx gem in the center with a crystal-onyx pattern on each side of the gem. Yuuri loved it when I gave him the engagement ring later that day, kneeling before him in the living room in front of his family. I slipped the ring onto his finger and it matched the ne that he had given me right after, having gone out that day with Shoma.

"Conrart told me that this is serves as proof of your engagement. He also said that His Highness couldn't stop talking about marrying you and that he wanted this day to be perfect for the both of you. He loves you, Wolfram," he says this with the utmost affection. "I wouldn't let this wedding happen if he didn't."

Gwendal is right. I know that he's right. I trust his judgment. I trust Yuuri. I just don't trust myself to be good enough for him.

Gwendal stands up, laying a gentle hand on my shoulder. "You should have more confidence in yourself," he says. "I could think of no one more fit than you to be the king's consort." He leaves the room.

It won't be long before the ceremony begins. I sigh and take the bouquet of flowers that I picked for Yuuri out of its vase, and equal amount of Yuuri's Naivetés and Beautiful Wolframs. I reflect on Gwendal's words, finding comfort in them. He's right. I have to believe in my ability to make Yuuri happy. I am more than capable of ensuring his happiness. It was stupid of me to think that I wasn't enough for him because he has already decided that I'm more than enough for him.

Yuuri accepts and cherishes every part of me. He's not my father. When I leave the room, I have to keep reminding myself of that. I won't let him ruin my life beyond the grave.

The sight that I see stops me in my tracks. There Yuuri is, wearing the finest black suit, his hair brushed back, exposing his forehead. He's the quintessence of beauty and regality and just seeing him frees me from the fear and anxiety that suffocated me just moments ago. He gives me a big, open-mouthed smile, and I know that he's looking at me and only me. He holds out an arm to me and I take it, enchanted by the man that I see.

"You're the most beautiful person that I've ever seen," Yuuri says.

I beam up at him. "I could say the same about you."

His smile widens.

The piano begins to play, signaling the guards to open the big double doors for us. Arm-in-arm, we walk down the aisle that's sprinkled with flower petals. Two hordes of people surround us on either side. Among them, I see Arietta, Clareta, Mother, Jennifer, Shoma, Shori, and Uncle Waltorana. I tense up when I see him, reminded of Father, but then I relax upon seeing the smile on his face.

Yuuri tugs at my arm. "Are you all right?"

"Yes," I say, moving closer to him.

We approach the altar where Ulrike speaks, directing the ceremony, Conrart standing beside Yuuri, Gwendal and Greta standing beside me. I hold out the bouquet to Yuuri and he takes them, graciously. Ulrike ties the ribbon around our left wrists, symbolically typing our already intertwined destinies together. Greta presents us with the rings, implementing the way that weddings are conducted in Yuuri's world.

I take the ring that I picked out for Yuuri from the soft, elegant cushion that Greta holds out to me. "With this ring, I do thee wed." I say, slipping the ring on Yuuri's finger.

In turn, Yuuri picks up the other ring from Greta's possession. She moves off to the side afterwards. "With this ring, I do thee wed." Yuuri slides the ring onto my finger.

We say our vows, promising eternal love and care. Yuuri cries tears of happiness, causing me to cry too. The end of the ceremony draws closer and closer. My heart beats faster and faster as I think about what I could do to make Yuuri even happier.

As soon as Ulrike pronounces us married, I throw my arms around his neck, bringing our lips together in a hasty kiss. I hear gasps and my entire body flushes under the possible scrutiny, but that means nothing when Yuuri returns the kiss, pulling me close to him. Cheers and clapping break out throughout the throne room. When our kiss ends and I see the look on Yuuri's face, I know that I made the right choice.


I share a dance with Uncle Waltorana, nervous in doing so.

"What is it?" He asks.

I'm hesitant in telling him anything because I know how much he loved and respected Father.

"Tell me," he urges.

There's no escaping this. I tell him everything that I have been thinking as well as what had happened with Father back in Small Cimaron. Uncle Waltorana listens to me, his concern unwavering.

"That's unfortunate," Uncle Waltorana frowns. "But I suppose that he stopped maturing when he passed on. How utterly foolish." He embraces me and kisses the side of my head. "Don't pay mind to such a fool, Wolfram. This is shocking news, that's for certain, but we can't let him impede our progress in life. We have to learn how to accept this and move on and we'll do that together, all right?"

I nod. "All right." I feel like a weight has been lifted off my heart.


I open my eyes, warm and content. I nestle close to Yuuri, who wakes up shortly after, letting out a joyful hum, holding me closer.

A gold light spills into the room. I smile. The darkness that held me captive for so long was gone, completely vanquished by the brilliance of Yuuri's love. I know that shadows will keep on creeping into our lives, trying to pull us down, but as long as the sun keeps rising, we can and will overcome anything and everything that gets in our way.


A/N: Hey there, everyone! I'm FINALLY done with Reaching Daybreak. I'd like to thank you all for your comments and support of this story! Please let me know what you thought of the ending. Don't be afraid to be honest. Constructive criticism is very welcome! Thank you for reading! Please stay tuned for Fire and Ice!