Chapter 3

Allistor and Anne were married on May 18, 1538 in the Edinburgh Castle Chapel, the same time when a proxy wedding was being held at Notre Dame in Paris.

Anne, understandably, was nervous, and was only able to eat a small bowl of porridge. As Lyanna dressed her in her pale green kirtle and pale green cotehardie and Evangeline brushed her hair until it shone then fastened it up in the braided crown she had worn the day she met Allistor, Anne let her mind wander. A blue ribbon was wound in her hair and a sixpence piece was placed in her shoe. After that came the wedding itself.

Anne was lead down the aisle by a fellow countryman, a man by the name of Phillipe with kind blue eyes and blonde hair, and given to Allistor with an air of respect.

Allistor was waiting for her at the end, with the priest, Father Malcom. Anne couldn't help but think he looked handsome in his tartan, and a blush came to her cheeks when she met his eyes, though he probably couldn't tell he was looking at her due to the veil.

Father Malcom smiled at the two, a pair of happier lovers he had never seen, and began to speak. "My dear friends, you have come together in this church so that the Lord may seal and strengthen your love in the presence of the Church's minister and this community. Christ abundantly blesses this love. He has already consecrated you in baptism and now he enriches and strengthens you by a special sacrament so that you may assume the duties of marriage in mutual and lasting fidelity. And so, in the presence of the Church, I ask that you state your intentions. Allistor and Anne, have you come here freely and without reservation to give yourselves to each other in marriage? Will you love and honor each other for the rest of your lives? Will you accept children lovingly from God and bring them up according to the law of Christ and His Church?"

"I will." Anne said, glad her voice wasn't shaky.

"I will." Allistor's voice sounded almost soft and scared for a second. Was he as nervous as she was?

Father Malcom nodded. "Since it is your intention to enter into marriage, join your right hand, and declare your consent before God and His Church."

Allistor looked into Anne's eyes, as best he could see them with the veil over her face, and began his vows. "I, Allistor Kirkland, take you, Anne Catherine Bonnefoy, to be my wife. I promise to be true to you in good times and in bad, in sickness and in health. I will love and honor you all the days of my life."

Anne smiled and tears clouded her eyes as she blinked them away. She looked into Allistor's eyes, taken by the green of them, and said her own vows. "I, Anne Catherine Bonnefoy, take you, Allistor Kirkland, to be my husband. I promise to be true to you in good times and in bad, in sickness and in health. I will love and honor you all the days of my life."

Father Malcom smiled. Such a lovely pair these two were to him. "You have declared your consent before the church. May the Lord in his goodness strengthen your consents and fill you both with His blessings. What God has joined, men must not divide."

"Amen." The bride, groom, and congregation answered.

The rings were brought forward by Phillipe, and Anne smiled softly at their sizes as Father Malcom began to speak again. "May the Lord bless these rings which you have given each other as the sign of your love and fidelity."

"amen." Came the appropriate response.

Allistor took Anne's ring in his hand. Such a wee thing, he thought. But Anne's fingers were so tiny. "Anne, take this ring as a sign of my love and fidelity. In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit."

Anne took Allistor's ring in her hand, her voice slightly thick with tears. She loved him so much as she smiled at him. "Allistor, take this ring as a sign of my love and fidelity. In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit."

The tears, held back for the whole ceremony, fell freely as Allistor lifted the veil and placed a gentle chaste kiss on his new wife's lips. Anne, having never been kissed, was shocked and didn't know what to do. So, she thought back to the women of the French court, who threw their arms around the men they kissed, and did the same, carefully wrapping her arms around Allistor's shoulders.

The two were lead out of the chapel to the sound of pipes playing and then it was on to the wedding feast.

Spit-roasted meat, grilled beavers' tails, whole roasted swan, kidney pies, black pudding, boar's head, vegetables, marzipan, ale, wine, whiskey, mead, and lastly, the wedding cake. It was three tiers high, tasted of brandy, and was iced with sweet cream icing.

Although Anne had never much liked the taste of whiskey, brandy, or ale, the wine and honeyed mead were perfect for her, though she eventually stopped drinking so she could go to her marriage bed with something of a good head on her shoulders.

"Anne, love, these are me wee brothers, Dristan, Seamus, and Arthur." Allistor had succeeded in getting Anne's attention and directing it towards the three men who stood staring at her like she was some kind of creature.

The blonde one she recognized. "Arthur, delightful to see you again."

Arthur blinked and nodded, kissing her hand. "My lady."

Dristan, the one with dark hair, smiled sweetly at her and did the same. "Welcome to the family, Anne." Anne decided she liked him best already.

Seamus, the youngest of them all it seemed, smiled widely and swept her into a hug. "Welcome to the family!"

Anne danced with each of her new brothers before the end of the night, when it was time to put the newlyweds to bed.

Anne was dressed in her chambers, as she had since the day she first arrived. Her hair was unbraided, brushed until it shone, then braided again into one simple braid. She was dressed in a loose white nightgown, and then left to sit in bed until her husband joined her, which he did not too long after.

For a while, their friends and family made loud noises, encouragements, and bawdy noises, before the two were left one.

Anne's fingers twisted in the blanket, her teeth worrying the inside of her lip. What should she do? Her father had told her what it meant when she started bleeding every month, that if she let a man take his pleasure with her it could result in a child being born, and that such things were to be saved until she was married.

Well, here she was. She was married. What should she do now?

A/N: Thank you all so much for reading this story! I'm so glad people are actually taking the time to read my work!