Disclaimer – I don't own them, wish I did at times but hey a girl can dream. Anything you recognize belongs to J.K. Rowlings anything you don't is mine. Also the wedding tradition Kalila mentions is from Diana Gabaldon's Outlander.
Author's note – Just as a reminder italics mean Cian is speaking, Bold means Isolda, Bold and Italic means Nadia and … before and after the typing with no quotation marks means a Phoenix. Forgive any unbelievable aspects of romance you see in the story, I have only what I have read to draw upon and that isn't always a good thing in my case. Questions, comments, confusion let me know in either a review or an email at web_chick_18@hotmail.com. If you email me I'll get back to you ASAP. I am just starting chapter 20 on paper now so I would like to know how much further you want his story to go, I have up to the wedding written but I want input on how much beyond that you would like to see. Thanks =)
Chapter 18The three weeks before Christmas break passed quickly for Kalila, in a busy blur. Between Ministry Officials, members of the Isles Council and students Kalila hadn't had much sleep or time to plan. But that was all about to change; she smiled gleefully as the majority of the student body left to spend the two-week holiday at home. Then remembering how much work she had to do in six days she sighed and went back to planning. Sighing again she was thankful that the majority of the large details had been taken care of such as: outfitting the 3 groomsmen, 3 bridesmaids and 2 flower girls, or rather flower pups. She had asked Isolda and Nadia to be part of the bridal party, but both had declined in order to help with the Ceremony. She was so absorbed in wedding plans that Kalila didn't hear Remus and didn't notice him until he began rubbing the tension out of her shoulders and neck.
"Hungry? You missed breakfast and lunch, do you want me to get you something to munch on as you work?"
Kalila was enjoying the massage too much to make more than a small noise of agreement; her stomach however voiced its agreement very loudly getting a chuckle from Remus.
"I thought so, I brought you lunch just in case. Are you ok with this Kalila or are you going to need more time?"
"sigh I'm ok, thankfully only the small details are left, like how to keep the snow while keeping it warm enough for the wedding to take place with no cases of frostbite."
"That's a small detail? I don't even have an idea how to manage a feat like that."
"Neither do I, but hopefully one of these books motions to the stack next to her will."
"Kalila how can you manage all this? I don't think I could and remain sane."
"Did anyone ever tell you how long my trail was? It went on for a week, so comparatively this is easier as I don't have objects trying to kill me. Besides this is easier in the fact that I know this will be the beginning of forever and happily ever after."
"One could think you're a romantic at heart Kalila."
"If you tell anyone not only will I deny it, I'll drop you someplace cold and very, very remote."
"I would never…"
"laughs Of course you wouldn't…"
"But I might."
"Then remember how cold Antarctica is."
"ears flatten Never mind then. Isolda sent me to remind you that getting married at night is avoiding an important tradition."
"I don't care. I am giving in on too many things to care what I am ignoring or avoiding anymore. This is MY wedding and yet I have almost no control over certain part! If I could I would throw all the books on wedding traditions and etiquette out the window, because the majority of "traditions" are ridicules!"
"Just because you don't like them, doesn't mean you can ignore them."
"Don't bet on it, if I don't want it, I'm not going to use it. This is my wedding and it is going to go the way I want, not the way a book tells me it should! If you don't like it tough! Like I said my wedding, my rules."
"sigh Kalila, be careful what you toss aside, it may come back to bite you in the butt. Traditions became traditions for a reason."
"Maybe and maybe not, they oft' came to be because people need something to believe in. I'm not going to unduly complicate my wedding with conflicting items just to make everyone happy. If anything comes back to bite me, it will have a nasty surprise, you forget who I am Cian and what I can do. The Powers That Be really don't like upsetting or threatening me, you remember why."
"Kalila that wasn't a good day. Nothing wanted to bother you; birds didn't sing, the wind didn't blow and everyone walked around on tiptoe so they didn't set you off again. Of course the Powers That Be aren't going to want to upset you. If I remember correctly you threatened them, the beings who created the Universe."
They may be created the Universe but they had very little to do with creating me. Something far older made me."
"What do you mean?"
"shrug The Powers That Be were out maneuvered by their creators with the creation of me. The Powers That Be like to play games, their creators don't. I was brought to be in order to protect humanity from the ills that are created by the existence of humanity. The Powers That Be know better than to threaten my existence for I can make theirs Hell."
"That wouldn't be wise, you have enough problems without them deliberately adding more."
"sigh Cian shut up. What will happen will happen and I'll deal with it when it does! Now both of you can make yourselves useful by helping me look through all these books."
"groan Not that! I can barely see straight from earlier."
"Too bad, start looking."
