It wasn't every day that you'd get to be alone and you were starting to feel a little too overwhelmed. Tomorrow was the engagement ceremony and you'd had to ask Thor to help you be alone. He'd arranged for a palace garden to be emptied out entirely for an evening. You sat down at a bench as you looked up at the sky where the clouds were shadowing the setting sun. It was fairly windy and even though it was a bit chilly, you didn't really mind it.
Thor had told you a little about the engagement ceremony and how much it mattered on Asgard. In your case, it was even more important than the actual wedding. The rings were apparently being forged under the astrologers' watchful eye and the stones and metals that were to be used would forever bind your souls to each other. To say it was scary would've been an understatement and your anxiety had been worsening as the days passed. Once Thor put that ring on your finger, you'd be called Y/N, Prince of Asgard, helpmate of Thor. Thor had told you that it was a punishable sin on Asgard for a person in a wedlock to even remove the symbol of their matrimony.
You could see the dynamics of the castle change as well. You were starting to get a hang of the royal politics and how the council fashioned their work. Though Asardians thought themselves to be higher beings and whatnot, they weren't too far apart from humans. If you wanted to be listened to here or be respected, you had to have power and your little demonstration on the Trial Grounds had allowed you just that. The council not only respected you, they actively sought the best of people to help you hone your knowledge of Asgard and the operation of the kingdom.
The people of the kingdom were completely smytten by you. A few servants had even told you of the songs they sung about your trial in pubs and pleasure gardens. They were already calling you names like "Shadow Howler" from the sound of thunder-bearing swords as they had cut through the air with darkened skies as the backdrop. "Hellbreaker" for the sheer havoc you had set loose. "Bone heart" for the courage you displayed throughout the trial. "Death whisperer" for the rumours of you raising the bodies of the dead soldiers had gotten out even though Odin had tried to clear out the audience by then. And "Tempest" for the storm you had called out and commanded. It had painted you as Thor's true lover, his soulmate.
You took a deep breath and closed your eyes, letting the winds brush against your face as the light fragrances from the flower garden tickled your olfactory. You felt stupid to even think about the city you'd once lived in. It was a hellhole and you couldn't even dream to get a quiet and serene timeout like this there. Yet your heart yearned for the swearing pedestrians, loud car horns, and the salivating aroma from a streetfood vendor. Your chest ached to even think about the place you had let go, you had been made to let go. You missed not having an identity and being a nobody. You didn't have titles or names or songs about you. You were just Y/N that people barely cared about except the couple of headlines your powers had made. Even then, you were an anonymous miscreant at most. Never a hero.
"Prince," You opened your eyes at the voice and looked at a servant who had walked towards the bench you were sitting on. You frowned, having thought your 'alone time' would at least be longer than this. "Your majesty has requested for your presence in his chambers."
You raised a brow at that. You hadn't been to Odin's section of the castle's residential quarter, let alone his personal chambers. You nodded and followed the servant as they led you through gates and hallways. When you entered the room, you saw that Thor was sitting in a chair while two people in red robes were seeing his hand carefully.
"Y/N," Odin said as he greeted you and guided you to a chair next to Thor. "They're Asgard's most skillful astrologers. They're just going to see that the rings fit and they're suiting you well." He said.
"The effect of the stones can be..." The man in the red robe spoke as he held the ring next to Thor's fingers and seemed to make alterations on the metal with his bare touch. "Overwhelming." He completed as he looked at you with a smile. "It's to make sure that you get used to it and it doesn't interfere with the ceremony tomorrow." He said.
"As long as I don't die," You said as you placed your chin on your hand, looking at them as they worked.
The man chuckled a little, "Oh no, nothing dangerous." He said. After a couple of minutes, they moved over to your hand and examined your ring finger, putting the ring next to your finger as they mended the metal.
"Ah," The woman in the red robe, who had accompanied the man, said with a glint in her eyes as she carefully touched the stone to your skin and it gave a slight glow. "The princes have already consummated." She said, looking at Odin with a bright smile.
"The fuck?" You said but no one paid attention as Odin and the astrolgers congratulated both of you. You just rolled your eyes while Thor thanked them with an evident blush on his face. Odin clapped lightly on your shoulder.
"Now," The astrologer said as they put the rings together on a tray and placed them between you and Thor. The astrologers looked out of the window at the skies and looked at each other. "It's time." They said and turned to you. "Try them."
You took a ring and was about to put it on when Thor stopped you. He took the ringer from you and held your hand, sliding the ring onto your finger. "It's beautiful," He whispered though you were sure the others could hear it just as much. "Just like you."
You took the other ring and put it on Thor's finger, "It's thick," You said with a grin. "Just like you," You said with a wink and Odin cleared his throat while the astrolgers chuckled. Thor blushed and smiled, shaking his head but just as you slid the ringer into place and it settled, you felt nauseuos.
The rings reflected different colors as yours settled on a gradient of red and purple with hints of dark green. The astrologer examined it closely and smiled, "Feisty." He said and turned to Odin. "He'll command fear and bring ruination to his enemies." He said turned to Thor. It was glowing blue and orange with a white straight line crossing over the stone as if to cut the gradient in two halves. The astrologer looked at it much longer before turning to you. He looked at you for a brief second with a grave look on his face, his eyes shifting to your ring and back into your eyes. You looked away from his stare and he turned to Odin with a bright smile. "Bound to brilliance. He'll rule with a mind of steel and a heart of gold." he said and Odin nodded as he returned the astrologer's smile.
"Do not remove it," The astrologer said. "They're the emblems of your love and this kingdom's prosperity." He said, looking at you before turning to Thor again. "We'll take it off for you to put it back in front of everyone at the ceremony. But wear it through the night. If you feel disturbed or unwell, call for us at once." He said. The rest of the conversation was the astrologers talking about how the ceremony was planned and what all you and Thor needed to do. Once it was over, everyone stood up to go for dinner but the astrologers turned to you. "Sir, a word?"
Thor looked at you but didn't say much when the astrologer said it was only a talk to calm your nerves. He left with Odin and you were left alone with the astrologers.
"Thor loves you dearly," he said and looked at you intently as if to note your reaction. "You're not surprised." He said and took a deep breath.
"I am," you replied. You stood up and walked over to the window, looking out at the grounds that stretched for grounds. "I had a feeling he was... well, whatever it was, I didn't think it was anything serious."
"The colors of the stone on his emblem... his ring," the woman said. "They stand for love and abnegation."
"It's very rare," The man said as he came to stand next to you, looking at you and then out of the window as if to trace your line of sight. "I figure the prince isn't fully aware of it himself either for now. It means he will die for you without question." He took your hand and looked at your ring again. "He's yours, prince."
"Why are you telling me this?" You said and withdrew your hand. The astrologer sighed and looked at his companion.
She replied,"He loves you fiercely. One of the strongest bonds we've seen in years." She said. "But it's also unrequited. You don't love him." They waited for you to respond but you didn't what to say. You still didn't know why they were telling you this. Were they trapping you with guilt deliberately? Was this some sort of-
"This isn't a conspiracy, prince," The astrologer said and his eyes lowered when you looked at him with wide eyes. "Apologies," He said. "I didn't mean to." Thor had mentioned that the astrologers could read mind on occasion but they chose not to and relied on the art of divinity and the study of stars instead. He had also warned not to think loud in their presence and you figured that's where they'd caught you.
"We're worried," The woman walked towards you. "Unrequited love and too of this callibre with so much at stake... It can be quite dangerous. If the bond is threatened under any circumstance, it can rip apart universes. Shred your soul to pieces. It-"
"Come," The other astrologer guided the woman away from you. "I'm afraid the prince has some deliberation to take care of and he doesn't appreciate our presence." He said with an apologetic smile at you. "Be careful, prince. Try to let your guards down a little, it'll go a long way."