Nixiesocean: To all my faithful readers, I give you the last chapter in the Lady-in-Shining-Armor story. I will add an epilogue. Have fun!
Responses:
Scoutcraft Piratess: Aww, you wanted me to kill off my heroine? I'm hurt! I like Katharine far too much to kill her off, Lance… meh. Maybe, he's just the prince-in-distress, anyways. Oh, and the baby, I added a little funny scene there. It may be a little inaccurate, but hey it's a fairy tale!
Rush of Waves: Aren't I so mean not to tell you about that little bit at the end? Ah, well, have fun reading this chappie. Maybe Jacob thinks you're on drugs or something, but I don't. P.S. Read Isle of the Amazons. Surprise!
Have fun reading, my little reviewers!
Oh, and I was kinda disappointed to only get 2 reviews. It made me sad. Anyways, I want at least five reviews before I start on the epilogue.
Toodles!
Chapter 20: Another Wedding
I struggled, yes, with everyday activities. But, I was always, slowly and steadily, gaining back my lost strength. There was one loss I felt acutely, the loss of Goldflame. She had been like a mother, and I needed one badly. Lance's mother was nice enough, but even a queen couldn't replace my friendship with Goldflame. I needed one like her.
Her corpse, you could call it, was put into Furde's Hall of Relics. I visited the sword everyday, no matter what the courtiers said, they didn't know her. She was a beautiful sword, yes, and was admired by weapon smiths all across Furde, but it was I that looked at her to remember her. How she had been there, slowly receeding my anger, helping fend off bandits in order to save Lance's butt (the second time), her loyalty to me that had been her undoing. She had given up her life for me, and oh, how I cursed Perhin for it.
Lance comforted me. I tried to reconcile her death for my life, but I found it impossible. She had died to give me life, and I couldn't repay that debt. Cyrun tried to cheer me up one day.
"Katharine, I know you're very depressed and all, but I was wondering, um," Cyrun never stuttered. "Would it be too much to ask if, um," Twice? This must be a record. "We were finished with Asnarinith and all."
I nodded. I had forgotten. How could I battle a dragon without my sword? I couldn't, and that was plain and simple. I was just another knight without Goldflame; she had made me great. "I don't know, Cyrun. I can't do it. I know that. Asnarinith expects me." I mumbled.
"Would he expect Bamien and I, you think?" She asked precariously.
"I'm not sure, Cyrun, I'm not a dragon. Ask your daughter." I didn't even realize what I had said until Cyrun responded.
"Call on… oh, Goddess." She remembered. "I can't call on her, please, don't make me. Who would respond to my plea? I'm a terrible mother, she knows it, I know it and you know it."
"You'd be wonderful mother, Cyrun, why say such a thing?" I asked, coming a bit out of my silly grief.
"I don't know." She replied. Her eyes lit up. "Bamien and I searched Asnarinith's cavern a while ago, while you were recovering."
"And?" I asked. "Why get yourself killed over it?"
"He wasn't there, Katharine. He was cleared out, plain gone." She replied.
"Then your coming to me wasn't about that, what is it about?" I asked.
"Um, well, Bamien and I, were, um, wondering if-" I stopped her with a hand.
"You two could get married?" She nodded. "It's a very human thing to do you know, stay with one mate. You sure you want to?"
"Yes, we've talked it over." She said emphatically.
"Okay, well, you'll have to wait a week or so, Cyrun, the palace is getting ready for my sister's wedding." I smiled.
"Oh? To whom?" She smiled also, realizing who was the bridegroom.
"Only the prince of Auszin and Guen." I grinned plainly.
"Love at first sight, I'm guessing." The dragon said dryly.
"Only the best for fairy tales, I'm told." I replied. "Isn't it ironic?"
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Cyrun was radiant. All the men of the room were envious of me, save the newly wedded Prince Lance and Prince Brennin, who had wives of their own. I beamed, not ashamed of anything. She and I are perfect matches. It, of course, was better that we were at least partially Draconic again. Asnarinith had made all this possible, in his own, evil sort of way.
Now, it didn't matter I was a millennium ahead of my time, that I had once been the most commanding creature of the face of the earth, all that mattered was the beautiful woman approaching the altar of the Goddess. She wore a silvery material, more metallic than white. Her hair shone like the purest silver of the entire world. It was in a double-dome style, approved by the one Princess Katharine, with tiny drops of emerald. She beamed brightly, lighting the room with her mere presence.
I reached out to grasp her hand. She took it and took the steps with amazing grace. "Are you, Bamien, ready to take Cyrun as your wedded wife?" The priestess asked with a smile.
"I am," I said quietly.
When Cyrun responded equally, the whole procession swirled past my sharp mind and into oblivion. I remember swirls of color and men congratulating. I remember blank faces of women hugging Cyrun and telling her to have many children. One small boy, of three or four, came up to Cyrun. He smiled.
She leaned down to catch what he said. He touched her knee and politely kissed her cheek. Then, the small boy of three of four whispered something that made Cyrun blush madly. His mother, not hearing what the boy had said, hurried the boy away.
"What did the boy say?" I asked in Draconic.
She, I couldn't tell via link or otherwise, was either flustered or happy, but she hung onto my arm. "I'll tell you later, sweet." She said. Another noble-born woman had come up to her.
Lance took me aside once during the festivities. "I know this probably isn't the best time, but are you sure we're safe with Asnarinith gone?"
"I am, and so is Cyrun." I replied assuredly.
"You know that once you have a child, she'll be unable to leave it to pursue Asnarinith?"
"We don't plan on-" I started.
"You don't plan children, Bamien, they happen." He patted my back. "Good luck with your wife, Goddess knows mine is hard enough." He smiled and left, quickly returning to his wife's side. I reached out my mind to catch Cyrun's. It was blocked.
She had never blocked me before.
- Nine Months-
Slightly less than nine months later, I figured out Lance's cryptic message. Cyrun bore me a beautiful, if not small, baby girl. She resembled her mother greatly, more so than she resembled me. My little baby girl, Ceara. Suddenly, Cyrun and I were thrown into the world of parenting. We needed jobs; since living off the royal treasury wasn't something we were liable to do as adults. Lance gave us the answer to our problem shortly after Katharine, through lots of pain, bore twin boys. They had to give a stimulant to keep the new mother awake. She, unfortunately, was still weak. However, Katharine was well pleased with her new boys. Neither, however, was named after tools. Ade, the elder of the two, was more demanding. Aram, the younger, was near silent. The new parents feared for the child's ability to talk, but it the fears were proven wrong after Aram grew hungry.
In any case, I was given a job by Lance, Chief Advisor of the Prince, or, in short, the prince's friend. Ironically, it was a well-paying job, to be a friend. I could provide for my child and wife easily, without being a burden to the royal family, who had two newlyweds and two newborns.
The long and the short of it was, I had a job, Cyrun had a child, Katharine had two boys and Lance was Crown Prince.