Barbaric

Chapter Twenty

Finding Emylle was really not that hard. After all, it seemed that woman had a bright, beaming beacon on her head telling everyone in the universe where she was at all times. Ok, maybe that was a bit dramatic, but seriously, I was able to find her in less than ten minutes and with how large Del's castle was...well, that was quite a feat catching sight of her so quickly.

She was in, what appeared to be, a small, oasis-type garden somewhere in the courtyard, her hair pulled over her dark shoulder as her gaze remained transfixed on the tiny pond. From where I was, she seemed to be deep in thought, probably mulling over the fact that Delkele would never love her romantically, or something like that. Who knows what women think about nowadays? I surely didn't, and I was rather...hesitant to approach her. I mean, she was so deep in thought, I didn't want to risk angering her and having her decline my idea. Gods know I didn't want that.

So, I approached slowly, making my way around her so that she would see me first, and when her sea green eyes finally found purchase on my form, her posture straightened, and a look of surprise crossed her dark features. "Jox? Hi, um, I'm sorry, am I stealing your place to think? I-I'll leave if-"

I held my hand up to silence her, giving her a small smile and a quick shake of my head before I sat down next to her, nibbling at my bottom lip, deciding not to beat around the bush, so to speak. "I love Delkele. And he loves me as well. However, I know that the two of you need to marry, or else your patera will reign hell over this beautiful place, and I don't want that." I took a breath and scratched the back of my neck, Emylle staring at me curiously. "So, I have a proposition. One that leaves everyone happy. You and Delkele go through with the marriage and make it official on paper, then, once your patera is satisfied and convinced the two of you are happily married, afterwards, Delkele has agreed to let you find your own happiness, with someone who will share their heart with you as Delkele and I do. I know it may make you hesitant and weary at first, but Emylle, your patera lives on an entirely different planet, and I highly doubt he will be taking time to visit and make sure the marriage is going smoothly. And if he does so happen to show up, as long as you and Delkele pretend that nothing is amiss, there's no reason why your patera would question anything."

I continued to nibble at my bottom lip as I glanced towards her, the woman's gaze now transfixed on the little pond in front of us, her attention following a fish-like creature that darted through the clear water. I then looked at my hands and continued, my heart racing in my chest. "Delkele means everything to me, Emylle...and I-I can never imagine living a future without him by my side. He's...he's the only one who I have ever felt so strongly about in a very long while."

I jolted when I felt a small, cool hand on my shoulder, my gaze peering back at Emylle as she stared back at me, a warm smile on her face as her eyes searched mine. "There's no need to try to convince me, Jox. I can see just how much the both of you care for one another, and I would hate to be in the way of your happiness together. I've seen the way Delkele looks at you. He loves you deeply, and I know that such a powerful love would never be directed to me, no matter what happened in the future. You are strong for approaching me like this, as most would be hesitant to bring such a serious hearsay to the princess of a powerful military-based planet. So, I commend you on that, Jox." She took a breath and took her hand back, placing it softly in her lap as her eyes remained on me. "I will do my best to convince my bambo that the marriage will remain intact, and I-I will...I will try to pursue my own interests so the both of you can be happy."

I could only stare at her, relieved that she was going to actually go through with my hastily thought of plan, and before I knew what I was actually doing, I leaned forward and pulled her into a hug, catching her off guard as I held her tightly against me, beyond relieved. "Thank you," I breathed, pouring all of my gratitude into my voice as my body shook with relief. "You don't understand how thankful I am that you agreed. I-I don't know what I would have done if you said no."

I relaxed when I felt her gently pat my back, a small chuckle emanating from her chest. "You're welcome, Jox. As I told you...I see the way Delkele looks at you and I can firmly say that, that man loves you deeply, and I wouldn't have been able to sleep at night if I forced the two of you to be apart. So, of course, you're welcome, and perhaps this could be a start to a new friendship between the two of us?"

I nodded my head, pulling back slightly to smile towards her. "I wouldn't object to a new friend."

Emylle smiled and patted my arm before she took a breath and pulled herself to her feet. "Well, I feel like this would be a good time to go into town to give you and Delkele some time to talk." She glanced down at me. "And if we're still going on with the marriage, you may want to tell Delkele that he needs to contact my bambo to begin planning the wedding. We'll talk later, yes? I am still very curious about Glacida and would love to get to know more about it."

I nodded and stood up, easily towering over the tiny woman. "Of course, and thank you again. This really means a lot to me that you're on terms with this whole thing."

"It's really no problem at all, Jox. And if you ever, you know, need anything, don't ever hesitate to ask me." Emylle gave me one last smile before she waved and sauntered off, allowing to release a breath I didn't even know I had been holding.

She agreed. She actually agreed, and now Delkele and I could have a life together. Well, if that was what he wanted...then again, what he told me this morning suggested that was exactly what he wanted, and who was I to deny him that?

I chuckled softly to myself and looked at my reflection in the water, taking note of the joy that was plastered onto my face. Gods, just wait till my patera and mitera heard about this. I bet they would be so happy for me. And all of my siblings too...I could already see Kara and Kavan teasing me about him. Alarah and Javian would be supportive as they always were. Though, they would probably be curious as to why Delkele was marrying someone else, since I had no doubt the wedding would be aired to every major planet in our galaxy. Maybe I should wait and tell them after everything cooled down a bit, then explain the whole situation in more detail.

Yeah, that seemed like the best plan for now. Even if I was incredibly excited to tell them. Ooh, I could tell Asurah. He would probably be upset at first with Delkele going through with the marriage, but after I explained it to him, he would probably cool down a bit and be happy for me. Hell, he's been trying to hook us up since I had told him I kissed Delkele, all that time ago at the previous Celebration. He would probably tell Joseph too, and once Joseph got out a few bad, and probably lewd jokes, he would congratulate us as well.

I nibbled at my bottom lip, my reflection doing the same before I tore my gaze away from the pond and looked around the mini garden, eyes falling across the small patches of jade colored grass, and across the vibrant and large flowers sprinkled here and there. We were so close. So damn close to finally be happy with one another. And who knows, maybe one day, when all of this blows over...we could have our own private ceremony, Delkele and I...and perhaps we could make our love official.

But not now. No, not yet. With Elphes watching over our shoulders, I didn't want to risk it.

Besides....Delkele was definitely worth the wait.