Marianne sighs at the question and takes a bite of food to delay her response. Even after hearing the other female's bitter defense, she couldn't help but feel remorse for Yemma. She couldn't imagine the pain of losing the one you love, especially while pregnant and then giving birth on the anniversary of your love's death.
Sighing again at Bog's prodding, she reluctantly repeats the events to him. Including Lyla's hesitant mention that Yemma hasn't been taking care of the infant unless she's there, though she just thought Yemma was tired.
"What did your judgment counsel suggest for Yemma's punishment since she did show disrespect, not just once but twice?" Bog asks after a moment.
"I told them that I would talk to you before passing punishment because the disrespect was shown to you first," Marianne comments. "I don't think we should punish Yemma the normal way, though. She insists that she is fine but it's clear to those that really know her that she isn't. Junco even said that this sometimes happens after a female gives birth, whether there is a tragedy or not."
"Spoken like a just ruler," he praises, kissing her forehead. "Let's talk to Junco in the morning to see what she suggests to do."
"I had planned on talking to you after the purification baths but we haven't exactly had a moment to be able to talk about it," she mentions, grinning at his groan.
It has been one long day. First, she had to go to the Light Field long before sunrise to join all the females there in the traditional sunrise dance. Remus had joked that Marianne was getting two purification baths when she realized that the dance was to cover them with the morning dew. It didn't stop the female goblin from asking to participate when Marianne explained that the dance within the dew was for a blessing in an increase of sexual attractiveness, youthfulness, and to clear skin problems.
When she returned to the Dark Forest, she accompanied the females here to the Sacred Spring...after calming the worried Puck who was left in Bog's care both times. She had performed the blessing ritual without any trouble once everything was ready.
Then she helped with the preparations for the mating ceremony and the festival while the males were getting their own purification baths. They enjoyed a nice lunch with a reminiscing Griselda who revealed Bog's mishap twelve Beltanes ago when he accidentally caused several goblin pairs to have a failed mateship hunt when he overzealously attacked a hungry frog that wandered into the hunting glade. Bog had quickly dragged her away before any more anecdotes arose and a clingy Puck was firmly latched onto her tunic when they both took off to the Light Field to view the Spring Ball.
What was supposed to be just showing Bog the traditions of fairy courting turned into consoling her overwhelmed father when Dawn announced Sunny as her intended. Not that he had anything against it but he's still adjusting to one daughter being married.
"What are you laughing about?" Bog questions.
"My poor dad who's bemoaning losing his little girls," Marianne replies, taking a bite of her honey and blackberry jam cake.
"I still can't believe he didn't expect Dawn's announcement after that love potion fiasco," he laughs.
"You ever had one of those times when you wanted something so badly that you couldn't believe it when it finally happened? That's what happened to Dad," she comments. "He had stopped hoping for Dawn to realize that Sunny was in love with her and to choose him. I mean, after all, all her crushes were only male fairies."
"How did Dawn not know that Sunny loved her? I knew it after only a few times of meeting them together," Bog mutters.
"She has a gift of obliviousness. By the way, you didn't have to choose that one just because I made it," Marianne remarks, pointing to the boutonniere on his chest. "It's hideous and I know it. I've never been able to make a boutonniere as good as Dawn can."
"I don't care what a traditionally good boutonniere looks like. This is perfect, Marianne. The one Dawn made to substitute is...lovely," he gestures, grimacing at the memory of the bright boutonniere. "It didn't fit me, though. This one fits me, with its mottled leaves and twigs and dark color flower petals. It makes me think of the forest. Besides, do you really think those bight eyesores she gave Sunny would fit me?"
Even Puck cackles at that memory. The elf didn't get just a yellow boutonniere, as is customary for a female fairy's court, but Dawn also made him a yellow flower crown and a yellow flower necklace. No one could mistake that the younger fairy princess is serious about her best friend being her intended, though Dagda insisted they abide by the traditional period of courting for one season before the wedding. Dawn had no choice but to agree when Plum added her own insisting in the form of cursing their firstborn if the younger sister followed her elder sister's impetuousness.
Puck shakes his head at another offer of food before standing up and rubbing his face against Marianne's neck. She giggles at his show of affection and returns the gesture. She smiles fondly as Bog and Puck do the same thing before the little imp runs off to join the other children again.
The miniature horde's newest game of trying to get past Brutus and Gus to approach the two bonfires sends the ashed remains of the flower petals used in the mating ceremony into the air. Marianne sighs in contentment as she watches the ashes fly away and she curls up closer against Bog's side.
Her husband hadn't mentioned that he also wanted them to participate in the mating ceremony, so she was taken by surprise when Elder Jawal ushered them with the others as the sunset drew near. She almost swooned when Bog admitted why he had asked Elder Jawal to include them to re-say their acceptance vows. He explained that overhearing Alexander's cruel remarks was what first gave him the idea, as a way to show all the kingdoms, including their own, that it doesn't matter how their mateship started because they did want each other now. Then after their conversation yesterday, he thought that this would be a good way to show everyone that they had wanted this mateship from the beginning.
Funny how Plum being Plum had helped them overcome that one thing they hadn't fully talked about yet and revealed a truth that both of them had forgotten. They were both too willful to subject themselves to something they detested even for the good of the kingdom. Had either of them not wanted the other then they wouldn't have become mates, simple as that.
She knows for certain that had that been Roland who fostered himself, she would have screamed her head off before removing his head from his shoulders without any thought to the consequences. Bog admitted himself that had she been a different opponent, he's sure that he wouldn't have shown mercy when he gained the upper hand.
They did have a choice and they chose each other.
"What do you say about abandoning the festival?" Bog asks.
"I'd love to, Bog, you know that, but with Puck being so worried about us rejecting him, I don't think it'll be a good idea for us to have sex until he's more settled," she comments. "After all, he's likely to come search for us."
"Such naughty thoughts my queen has," he chuckles. "As lovely as that sounds, that wasn't what I had in mind."
"Really?" Marianne questions skeptically.
"Really. I was thinking that we test how well you spar with your new sword," Bog remarks, nodding to the weapon laying against his royal scepter. "After worrying the swordsmith into being afraid that she wouldn't be able to keep it a secret from you, you should at least do something with it instead of gazing at it."
Flicking his nose for his cheekiness, Marianne turns her attention to Bog's gift for her, far better than the boutonniere she gave him.
The polished blade is much like the one the swordsmith had done on her first sword with gold etched into the steel near the crossguard but the hilt is far different. The first difference is the gold-overlaying the decorative crossguard, not the bright gold of the Light Field but the same dull gold adorning her husband's own weapon. The pommel is also overlayed with dull gold as it spirals from the black grip to curve into a hollow orb encasing a large amber.
She hadn't thought anything strange about it when they stopped at the swordsmith's shop on their way home after the Spring Ball, figuring that Bog may have wanted to know when the swordsmith would be able to make her new sword. Marianne hadn't suspected anything even when the swordsmith announced that she had finished her earlier work and brought out the leather-wrapped weapon. But then the swordsmith handed the unwrapped sword to her before remarking that it's definitely a weapon fit for a ruler of the Dark Forest just as Bog commissioned. Puck had screeched his complaint as he got squeezed between them when Marianne threw herself against Bog, the sharp weapon flailing dangerously in the air.
"It is beautiful," Marianne murmurs.
"Not as beautiful as you," Bog comments before giving her a kiss. "Shall we dance, my queen?"
Tea Blend.