I tried to update a little quicker this time, though it was still as quick as I would have liked. This chapter is the first half of the wedding festivities/night, so don't worry the steamy stuff is yet to come. I hope you enjoy it!
Chapter Ten (Lothiriel)
"Easy, Loth, you do not want to be greensick on your wedding day," my brother Erchirion said to me as I set another empty wine glass upon the table. All of my brothers and Klymena and I were sitting around the table in the private rooms that had been given to Elphir and his small family.
I sighed. "How do you know?"
"Oh stop. It will not be so bad. You and the king seem to be on much better terms now," Klymena said, taking a sip from her own glass. She had recently stopped nursing Alphros and was allowing herself to drink again.
"A betrothed couple should not be on terms if they are to be married," I replied.
"Perhaps not a stable hand and a washer woman, but you and Eomer are figures of state," Elphir said, matter-of-factly. "Terms are always involved in such negotiations. You should be thankful yours are good."
"For now." I looked at him pointedly as I poured myself another glass. "It will help me sleep," I insisted.
"Your last night alone," Amrothos said a bit darkly.
That topic was left alone for the moment. I was sure that my brothers did not care to think too deeply about what would follow for their little sister the next night when all the celebrating was done. It was not a thought I necessarily wanted to linger on either. I had only recently had my first real kiss. It all seemed to be going a bit fast.
When we had all finished another glass of wine, we rose and bid each other goodnight. I noticed that each of my brothers held me for a little bit longer than necessary before retreating. I was left with Klymena.
"Would you sit and talk with me a little longer?" I asked.
"If you wish, though you do not want to look tired for your wedding." She gave a small smile.
"It is not until the late afternoon. I can sleep in if I like." I knew that was a false hope. I would not get much sleep that night.
"That is true. What would you wish to talk of?" Klymena asked me.
"Tomorrow night," I began hesitantly. "Klymena, I know nothing of what to do for him."
Klymena laughed lightly. "So you will learn, but not before tomorrow." She took my hand gently. "That is something that you must learn from one another. I do not think that there is one set way to please all men." She thought for a moment. "They all act differently and fight differently and love differently. You will learn from Eomer what he likes, much as he will learn from you what you like."
I sighed. "What I like," I repeated. "I would like for it to be quick and for it to leave with me child. A male child preferably."
Klymena laughed. "I am afraid if that is your attitude then you will have some long, joyless nights ahead of you."
I put my head in my hands.
"You must have an open mind, Lothiriel. It is scary the first time and probably even the second and third, but you will grow together if you allow yourself to join with him; allow him to give some pleasure to you."
She studied me for a moment. "All will be well." She stood. "On that note I think I shall go and join your brother."
I thought I might gag. "Lovely."
ooooOoooo
I felt like I had just fallen asleep when someone was shaking me gently awake.
"Did you sleep well?" Klymena asked.
"Not at all," I muttered, pulling the covers back over my head.
Adela was on the other side and she pulled them from my grasp. "Well there is no time now for sleep," she said brusquely. "It is time you got ready. The sun has long been up."
I sighed and cast the older woman a dirty look as I stood and she roughly pulled my nightgown over my head. She had never been one to mince words or take gentle care of me. Adela got to the point and performed her job well. I loved her for it all the more. A hot bath had been drawn and I was unceremoniously ushered into it and scrubbed with soap by the younger handmaids until I felt raw and looked pink as a piglet. My hair was washed and the tangles removed.
There were ladies fluttering about the room everywhere, preparing my gown, helping with my hair, and simple makeup, and bringing me a small tray of bread, cheese, and wine. I was too nervous to eat much of it, no matter how Klymena and Adela tried.
Once my hair had dried and it had been brushed until it shone, I was put into my wedding gown. It was the palest shade of blue I had ever seen, nearly white. I was glad for its color though, it reminded me of my home. I looked around for my slippers, but they were nowhere to be found.
"The couple does not wear shoes during a Rohirric wedding," a new voice had entered the melee.
I looked up to see the king's sister, Eowyn. Klymena and Adela stopped what they were doing and looked to me.
"I had not heard of that custom," I said politely. "Thank you for informing me."
"That is what I have been sent to do," she said curtly.
"Wonderful. What else should I be aware of?" I tried to keep up my politeness for Eomer's sake, though I could feel the frigid waves rolling off of Eowyn and I wanted nothing more than to match, or even surpass, her unfriendly tone with my own.
"The ceremony will be taking place outside of the city a ways. You will ride Roheryn to join Eomer and the other guests. The Rohirric believe that during a wedding it is important to be close to nature and so the royals have always been wed near where the forest and the river meet."
"That would explain the lack of shoes then," I said, trying to jest, though she just looked at me with her pale eyes.
"The rest are just small bits during the ceremony, such as the tying of the knot." Eowyn turned to leave.
"Thank you, Eowyn," I called, though I got no response.
"She is quite pleasant," Klymena said when my soon-to-be sister was gone.
I rolled my eyes at her.
"How are you supposed to ride a horse in your gown?" Adela asked, distraught. "You will absolutely ruin it."
"Horses should be more important to us now than gowns. We are nearly Rohirric, are we not?" I said, though that was something I did not wish to think about.
Adela sighed and began arranging my hair about my shoulders. I hardly ever wore it all the way down, but it was customary for a bride to wear it in such a way to demonstrate her purity.
There was a soft knock on my door. "Who now?" Adela wondered aloud as she went to get the door. Klymena and I giggled as she left. She had been entertaining us both in such a manner for a very long time.
"Oh Your Highness," I heard her say.
I turned to see my father dressed in deep blue that contrasted with his grey hair, waving away my lady's formalities. "Adela, I have known you since I married Adlanna and I have been asking you to call me Imrahil for just as long." He gave a good natured smile. "Is my daughter ready?"
"She is," Adela replied, not addressing him at all. She gestured to wear I stood.
"Lothiriel," he said softly. I was not sure, but I almost thought that there were tears pooled in his eyes. "You look just like your mother."
"Thank you, father." I tried not to cry myself. If I began then I was sure I would not be able to stop the rest of the day.
He dug around in his pocket for a moment before pulling out a chain with a beautiful diamond pendant hanging from it. "This was the gift I gave your mother on our own wedding day."
My throat became stuck together as I looked at it. I had never seen the gem before. I had much of my mother's jewelry that I wore daily, but that necklace was something entirely different.
"Hold your hair," he commanded.
"I cannot wear that," I said as he stepped behind me. "It is not customary to wear such exquisite jewels here. The Rohirric do not…"
"Damn the Rohirric," he whispered in my ear, so as not to be overheard by some of the Rohirric waiting women. He turned me around by my shoulders. "You are beautiful."
I hugged him tightly around his middle and rested my head on his chest. I could feel his chin on the top of my head and we stayed like that for a long moment. Finally he pulled away and looked down at me once more.
"I must go. The ceremony is to start soon." He kissed my forehead and gave my hand a squeeze. "I love you, Loth."
"I love you too, Father."
An hour later, after it had been relayed that all of the guests were present, I was riding Roheryn, barefoot and sidesaddle, to meet Eomer near the river. My heart was pounding in my ears and my hands were sweating on the reins I held.
Finally, the crowd came into view; our family, friends, and some of the people of Edoras. A young attendant of the horses came up and took Roheryn from me as I slid from the saddle, feeling the early spring grass beneath my feet. The guests were in a circle around where Eomer stood and they broke for me to step through them. All eyes were on me as I walked to my betrothed, praying that I would not step on something sharp and stumble.
I looked up at Eomer as I approached. He was handsome in his own rugged way in a deep red tunic and black breeches, his hair half pulled away from his kind face. When I saw his large bare feet I almost laughed out loud, but I refrained.
"I am glad you are amused, princess," he whispered with a smirk as I stepped up to him. His dark eyes were dancing in the sun. "You look absolutely lovely," he said, just before Hama began the ceremony.
I had learned very quickly that there was very little organized religion in Rohan. The Rohirric worshipped their horses and the soldiers who rode them. With that being the case there were only four people who could have officiated our wedding. The three Marshals of the Riddermark and the Captain of the King's guard, Hama. I was glad that it was a familiar face; I had grown fond of Eomer's older friend while I was in Edoras.
I listened along, occasionally glancing up at Eomer as the ceremony proceeded. It finally came time to say our vows to one another and we both repeated after Hama, Eomer going first:
"I pledge my love to you, and everything that I own.
I promise you the first bite of my meat and the first sip from by cup.
I pledge that your name will always be the name I cry aloud in the dead of night.
I promise to honor you above all others.
Our love is never-ending, and we will remain, forevermore, equals in our marriage.
This is my wedding vow to you."
I could feel my cheeks color when Eomer, in his deep voice, repeated smoothly the line about crying my name aloud. They were strange vows to me and crude, nothing like the ones that were repeated in Dol Amroth that revolved around the Valar. There was a simple sort of honor and loyalty in the Rohirric words.
I repeated the vows myself and then Hama drew out a long cloth, blue and green, to symbolize the merging of the plains of Rohan and the seas of my home. My father came and stood next to me while Eowyn joined her brother. They took the ends of the cloth and began tying a not around our clasped hands, looking as though they had practiced once or twice. They said together one final verse:
"Now you are bound one to the other
With a tie not easy to break.
Take the time of binding
Before the final kiss is given
To learn what you need to know -
To grow in wisdom and love.
That your marriage will be strong
That your love will last
In this life and beyond."
Eomer, knowing that that was the end of the ceremony, pulled me into him, and took my lips in his, our hands bound between us, with a fervor that would never have been appropriate on the sands of Dol Amroth or anywhere in Gondor. I felt myself coloring all over again and the heat became more intense as the Rohirrim began to cheer.
When Eomer finally let me go, I nearly stumbled backwards with the force of the kiss, but we were still attached at the hands. Hama gently undid our binding and the crowd moved back to Edoras, Eomer and I following behind on our mounts.
We were both quiet, not sure what to say. The ceremony had gone quickly and all of a sudden we were married, bound to one another for the rest of our lives. It had been something I had been dreading, but I did not feel sorry for myself in that moment. I was not overjoyed either, but not miserable.
"That was a very interesting ceremony," I finally said quietly as Edoras came back into view.
"It ties together all things important to the Rohirrim."
"I enjoyed it."
"The celebration should be even better," Eomer looked down at me with a grin. "Though prepare yourself. It will not be as refined as your Gondoran ones."
"I would not dare expect such a thing," I said with a light laugh.
A few moments later we entered the Great Hall. I had collided with the smell of the food in the corridor a long ways away, but when the doors were opened for us, I had never expected to see so much food.
"Eomer, is this a good idea?" I asked uncertainly. Rohan was not yet on its feast and I did not know how much we could spare.
"Of course it is. Nothing from the public store was touched and everyone in Edoras was invited to share in our luxury tonight." He wrapped an arm around my shoulder and kissed the side of my head. "No worrying tonight."
"More!" I heard someone yell.
"Kiss her like you mean it, Eomer-King!" Someone else yelled.
I only had a split second to think that some of our guests had probably already began working on the ale and wine before we had arrived before Eomer took me and dipped me close to the ground, pressing another passionate, sound kiss on my lips.
The hall burst into roars and applause of approval and Eomer waved as we went to sit at the high table.
We ate and drank, Eomer offering me his first bite of meat and sip of wine like the vows had said, and talked to everyone who came up wanting to speak with us. Music started up and dancing began. Eomer and I led the first dance, though he had to help me with the lively steps.
"Relax," he instructed as we hopped and spun around. "It is not so rigid as those dances in Gondor."
"You really must stop insulting my homeland," I jested. "Besides, I never thought to see a horse lord so graceful on his own two feet."
Eomer threw his head back and laughed. "I deserved that."
"I thought so."
When we were finally sitting, I pulled out the box that had been placed by my chair at the table by Dernhild before the feast had started. "I have something for you. A gift." I said as I held the box out.
"Lothiriel, you did not have to do this," he said, though he took the box anyway.
"Trust me I did very little."
He opened the box and pulled out the tapestry. When I had seen it for the first time, I had been stunned speechless. The colors in the weaving were so bright and lifelike and the tapestry itself was smooth as satin, with no bumps or mistakes to be seen. Though I had been nowhere the battle, I could imagine it perfectly, with Eomer sitting Firefoot at the top of the hill ready to lead his men.
"This is incredible," he breathed. He would not meet my gaze and I thought it might be because there were some very strong emotions playing just beneath his collected surface. "I could not imagine a better gift."
"It was all Dernhild's doing," I replied softly, laying my hand on his arm. He took it and kissed the palm and then my wrist. He finally looked up and raised a hand to where Dernhild was sitting. She bowed her head in recognition of his thanks.
"I do not think I can best that, but I shall try," he said. He pulled out a much smaller box from his pocket and opened the lid. Inside lay a ring with a gold band and rather large ruby. "It was my mother's."
It was truly a beautiful piece of jewelry. "It's gorgeous, Eomer." I ran my finger over the gem. "Should not Eowyn have this?"
"You object too much tonight, wife." He slipped it from its box and onto my third finger of my left hand. It fit perfectly. "My father bought it for my mother when he was young and in Gondor for the first and only time. He could not afford it by any means, but knew that he had to get it for her. He paid nearly everything he had for it." He met my eyes finally.
"While she was alive she wore it every day without fail. For some reason, Theoden chose to give it to me rather than Eowyn, though of course she has many of our mother's things. I was not sure why I would need the ring until this very moment."
For the first time that day I initiated a kiss. I placed a hand on his stubbly cheek and kissed him much more gently than he had kissed me.
"She would have loved you," he said when we pulled apart.
There you have it! I hope you liked it! Please, please, please let me know what you thought! I love hearing from my readers, especially when they have ideas of their own for my stories. Sometimes I need a muse! So you tell me what's next!
Happy reading,
Avonmora