Once Eleanor had returned with their clothes, Zane and Kyra both disappeared into side rooms to dress. Zane was naturally the first one done, so he returned to the sitting room first. Danica blinked in surprise at the sight that was the cobra. An earthy brown shirt made of cotton and a pair of sandy-colored, calfskin pants did wonders to make him blend into Avian society. His pale skin looked warmer and those ruby eyes seemed almost brown if she didn't focus on them for too long.
"Impressive," the hawk stated with a little nod.
"Thank you, milady," he said politely.
"No need to be quite so formal in private, Zane," Kyra chided as she entered the room. "She is part of your family, after all."
Zane stared in awe at the sight of Kyra in the Serpiente-style clothes. If he didn't know any better, he would think that she was born a member of the Cobriana line instead of becoming part of it recently. Eleanor had truly outdone herself with this outfit. The eagle was dressed in a pair of the black leather pants that were so common among his people, a simple black tank-top, and a button-down shirt left completely open that was so vibrantly red that it matched her eyes. A black leather and silver belt held a sword at her side while a choker with a blood red ruby rested around her neck.
"You look . . ." He couldn't finish the sentence because he simply couldn't find a word to describe how beautiful she was.
"Thanks," Kyra said softly, unused to such praise. "You're not so bad yourself. Is this presentable, Danica?"
Dani nodded. Her own attire for the affair consisted of a golden satin tunic-style dress that looked similar to the one Kyra had worn for the Serpiente ceremony. As a small symbol of her bond with her sister she wore a matching ruby choker around her own neck. "Absolutely. I couldn't ask for a better way to show that our people are now united. Let's get this moving, then. We've kept them waiting long enough."
The next several minutes rivaled the ceremony at the Palace for the most stressful of Kyra's life.
As the trio descended the stairs with Rei following close behind, Kyra clutched Zane's bicep a bit harder than she would care to admit from stress alone. He'd offered his arm in support upon leaving the room. Of course, she'd automatically accepted the gesture, partially because her vision was once again obstructed by a circlet—this one silver to match her outfit. Danica led the way onto the small stage that'd been built for these ceremonies.
The crowd seemed to grow restless at Zane's presence. Kyra could hear people shifting nervously as if in slight fear of an enemy they couldn't see. Murmurs drifted up to them, all wondering who the man was that'd agreed to wed the damaged princess.
Zane caught sight of Nacola's glaring face towards the back of the audience and returned the favor with the arch of one of his elegant, black eyebrows before returning his dangerous gaze to Danica.
In the hawk's mind, she was worried about what was going through her mother's head since Danica had yet to choose an Alistair even though she was being crowned. Ignoring that, she turned to face Rei for the start of the whole ordeal.
"Milady Danica, you have chosen to put off choosing an Alistair until you find a man suitable, correct?" he questioned formally.
"That is correct."
"Then do you swear to devote every ounce of your being to protect your people and this newfound peace?"
Whispers rose from the audience questioning what peace he spoke of.
"I swear."
"Then it is my honor to crown you Tuuli Thea of the Avian Court, replacing your mother Nacola. Serve us well."
"So I shall." Danica turned to face her people. "As your leader, I am the one to inform you of the most momentous occurrence to happen to our people in hundreds of years. We are no longer at war with the Serpiente." She held a hand to call for silence at the verging-on-emotional uproar that followed that announcement. "You might have heard whispers of a meeting we held in the Mistari lands with the Serpiente people; these whispers were true. Their suggestion of creating peace between us was to blend the royal lines for if we cannot coexist, how could we expect you? My mother . . . graciously accepted the offer, and offered my sister Kyra's hand to bring about this peace.
"In appearance, this was a wise move to be made for the good of our people. In reality, this was simply a chance to free herself of the woman she considers to be a stain on the Shardae name. Not only am I here today to announce our new peace, but I'm also here to correct a great wrong that has been committed against the rightful heir to this throne for as long as she has been alive. My sister is a miracle that we have believed to be a myth for as long as Avians have existed. She was born different than the rest of the Shardae, with a recessive trait we thought had been bred into nonexistence hundreds of years ago. She is an eagle, not a hawk, and she is not blind."
At that, Kyra reached up to remove the circlet and throw it behind her so that it embedded itself into the wall. The crowd gasped at the sight of the ruby eyes that stared back at them.
"There has been a ban on her life forbidding her to see when out of her rooms and forbidding her to shift," Danica continued smoothly. "It is no longer in place. I will not allow my sister to suffer as she has suffered anymore. Imagine if someone told one of you that you could never again take to the skies because your second form was abnormal. We should have been celebrating the return of such a rare trait this whole time instead of condemning it because she is like them. In reality, she is not the damaged princess you all shunned; she is stronger than even I in flight, combat, and will.
"This, in addition to the peace with the Serpiente will remain in place despite your complaints that are no-doubt boiling to the surface as I speak, so you might as well get used to it. The happiest I have ever seen my sister was the night she returned from the Serpiente Palace, and that was because she was away from all of the judgement. Her Alistair accepts, maybe even loves, her for what she truly is. If that doesn't say something about our culture, I don't know what does. That a man she'd never known until quite recently understands her better than her own family is absolutely shameful of us. For his understanding, I can think of no better Alistair for my sister than Zane Cobriana, who stands before you today. Thank you, and I look forward to working with you towards peace in the future."
The crowd was in absolute uproar as the cobra raised his head at last to reveal his own scarlet eyes. He'd been careful to only look at the floor until that point to avoid being recognized until the time was right. The sudden loud noise startled him enough that his pupils slipped into slits, earning his arm a squeeze of support from Kyra.
"Thank you, milady Danica, for being so understanding on the need for peace. I could imagine no better example for your, and mine for that matter, people to follow," he replied earnestly.
"Grand speeches aside," Rei spoke up, "are the two of you ready to be bound?"
Nods from both parties once again silenced the crowd. The court was curious as to how the snake would fare during the oaths when it was hardly a secret as to how obnoxiously open with their emotions the Serpiente were.
Rei faced Zane alone. "Are you willing to swear upon your own spirit and the sky above that you will protect Kyra Shardae from all harm?"
"Upon my own spirit, I will so swear."
"And do you swear that you will never raise voice or hand against her?" There was a challenge in Rei's eyes as he said that. The guard was quite protective of Kyra, so he dared the cobra to break this oath with his glare.
Without hesitation, Zane's garnet eyes met Rei's with no hypnotizing effect in place. "I swear. Never would I willingly harm the woman I love. Never would I harm Kyra Shardae."
That got an infinitesimal look of surprise from him before Rei continued. "Her sister, Danica Shardae, is Tuuli Thea, and so when you swear to a member of her family, you swear to all her people. Will you protect the Tuuli Thea's people as you would your own family, and risk all that is necessary to defend them?"
"I swear upon the tears of the goddess Anhamirak, I will do everything within my power to stop the bloodshed among the Tuuli Thea's people." The sincerity of those words in particular rang loudly in Danica's ears. She didn't doubt anything else he said, but those above all let her know that Zane would never allow their people to return to war. Even if the cost were his own life.
Frantic whispers resumed briefly among the scholars at the reference. Even Nacola's face paled further.
Rei didn't try to hide the small smile at being able to look Kyra in the eye in public for once. "Kyra Shardae, second in line to the throne of Tuuli Thea, you have chosen this man as your alistair. Zane Cobriana, you have sworn to defend Kyra Shardae, your mate, and Danica Shardae, your Tuuli Thea. Upon the words you have spoken, you are bound for life."
Kyra once again squeezed Zane's arm, this time at the fateful ending for life. There would be no turning back now.
All three rulers turned to watch Nacola's reaction to everything that'd just happened. What they saw was her turning to leave the room. Gerard tried to stop her, causing her to go rigid. "The Tuuli Thea has made her choice. My words are meaningless here," she said loudly before leaving quickly.
Kyra had to resist the urge to touch her sister in a show of support since they were in public, and she was already pushing the limit by holding Zane's arm. That kind of cutting remark from their mother would not skate by Danica without causing some kind of emotional damage. Kyra, on the other hand, had grown used to such things long ago.
Once again, Danica spoke. "Yes, it is Zane Cobriana that has just sworn loyalty to myself, my sister, and to you. We have spoken—my sister and I—in depth about wanting an opportunity like this, and from the brief time I have known Zane I know he feels the same. We three believe this is the best way to achieve that peace, and our jobs are to protect you and the Serpiente people." Her posture moved to a more militaristic parade-rest Kyra had no doubt that she had learned from Rei and Vasili.
"I've seen countless people die on the battlefield. People on both sides. You know I have never backed down from going out onto the battlefield to help the wounded. You know I don't flinch from bodies that are brought home. What you don't know is that my sister was always right there beside me. She snuck out of her rooms to help me when the punishment was always more severe than she deserved. To this day, one of the most heartbreaking stories either of us knows was the day our brother Xavier died. After he was gone, I found Gregory Cobriana dying not far away, alone and afraid. Kyra and I stayed with him until he passed away so he wouldn't have to suffer alone. She remained with him to protect his body from harm long enough to see his elder brother, Zane, find him and cry out in anguish.
"They are not what we have been led to believe. They feel everything more deeply than we can even comprehend. My sister is not much different. We will not be the lofty rulers that are blind to the suffering of our people. As of this moment, the war is over. The Serpiente and Avian people are no longer separate. We are one. We can learn things from one another. I am not naïve enough to think it will be that simple, but I ask you to try to understand one another. I know it will not be easy to learn to trust them, but it is all I ask."
Author's note: I actually updated rather quickly guys! Okay, a good portion of this is either exactly from the book or really freaking close, because what was originally there was so well done. Obviously parts have been twisted to fit this story, but I think it works. Let me know what you think and I hope you enjoyed!