Robin handed over a small box with a selection of powders. "Didn't know you were a chilli head," he remarked. "Different levels of heat."
"It's a wedding present to Waverly. How's the world beyond here?"
"Same," Jeremy replied. "Still haven't tracked down the mirror. The theatre is boarded up. We saw the last performance according to the notice on the door. I'm guessing without Waverly he no longer had a show."
"Who gave you the tickets?" Nicole asked, turning to Robin.
"Some guy outside the theatre. Said they were on sale, only three left."
Nicole shook her head. "Something doesn't add up."
Robin shrugged. "Beats me. But, here we are, you dressed like Xena warrior princess. Is this the look here?"
"I took an oath to protect the glades. This is the gear I have to wear. Got my own sword too." Nicole pulled it from the scabbard. "Her name is Durendal."
Robin snorted dandelion beer through his nose. "You named a sword. What are your boots called?"
"God, I've missed you," Nicole replied, laughing at Robin's quick wit. "And you, Jez. Waverly is so excited you're here for our union. I need to speak with my parents. Hope you two are okay riding on the back of our horses."
Nicole made her way over to her parents, hugging her mother again. "Grandmother is looking forward to seeing you."
"It's been a long time," her mother replied. "How is she?"
"She's well, keeps me in check. There are so many rules and customs and ways to remember. I get confused."
Her mother nodded. "I wanted to be free of them. To be myself. When I laid eyes on your father I knew my heart lay beyond the glades. I'm glad you've found yours here. She needs your help. I'm dying to meet Waverly."
Her father coughed, Nicole hugging him. "You're settled here then," he said, not one for many words.
"I am. It's kinda like New York."
Her father laughed. "What did your employers say?"
"They gave me a two year sabbatical. Said, I should go travel if that's what I needed to do."
"So, you'll return to our world?"
Nicole shook her head. "My place is here now, with grandmother. She needs me. And Waverly's wings are growing back."
Nicole's father looked at their mother for an explanation. "Her wings were removed by the wizard. I told you dear. Now she is with Nicole they can grow again and when fully formed she will be able to bear children."
"Right, right. Good news. Grandpa."
The party made their way outside, bags slung on the backs of those not carrying guests, Nicole's mother approaching Gosfar, resting her head on his, speaking in her native tongue. "I've missed you," she said, Nicole watching as her mother's bond with her horse reignited. "You will keep my child safe."
Gosfar nodded, puffing air through his nostrils, Nicole stroking his neck. "I didn't know he was your horse."
"We were inseparable," her mother replied. "We would go on wild adventures. I'm glad he is yours now. He says you ride like me."
"I'm still learning. And he is very forgiving. Why didn't you stay?"
Nicole's mother jumped onto the back of Gosfar as if she were a teenager impressing Nicole. "I found love. We go where our heart takes us. Yours is here. Mine is elsewhere."
Nicole took a few paces back, making a running leap onto Gosfar, letting her mother take his reins. "He's yours," Nicole said. "He'll not forgive me if I don't let you have control."
Kicking off they rode out of the village towards the glades, her mother's skill at riding far superior, Nicole holding onto her mother's waist as they sped through the countryside. Entering the narrow valley Xavier held up his hand, riding ahead to check there would not be another ambush, returning to say the route was safe. The light was beginning to fade as they entered the glade, the party making their way to the palace, Nicole's grandmother there to welcome them.
Tears flowed as mother and grandmother were reunited, Nicole too finding herself overcome by emotion. She would dearly love her mother to return, to take her place, give her time to be with Waverly, but she understood her mother's decision and her father's wariness at being immersed in a world not his own. Waverly was informed of their arrival, rushing to greet them, throwing her arms round Nicole's neck. "Mom, dad, this is Waverly. Your soon-to-be daughter-in-law."
Nicole's father held out his hand. "Glad to meet you."
Waverly took his hand, shaking it, pulling him into a hug. "I'm so glad to finally meet you. Nicole has told me so much."
Nicole's mother was waiting for a similar embrace, opening her arms, welcoming Waverly to her family. "You are exactly how I pictured you. How are you finding here?"
"Big," Waverly replied. "I get lost often. Nicole's arm is healed."
Robin and Jeremy were standing open-mouthed at the scale of the palace, along with everyone in attendance on their party. "This is seriously crazy," Robin announced. "If I'd known you were this rich, I'd have let you pay for more drinks."
"Spoken like a true friend," Nicole replied. "We have a banquet prepared for our union. No apple pie."
The guests departed to their rooms, Nicole and Waverly sneaking out on the back of Gosfar to their secret hideaway, away from prying eyes where they could talk in private. Nicole pulled out the blankets she had stored in a trunk, placing them on the ground, Waverly lifting her robe over her head, resting her naked body on Nicole's. "Are you happy my love?"
"With you," Nicole replied. "Forever. I just wish...I want our lives not to have the shadow of the wizard hanging over it."
"He is long gone."
"And yet your people continue to suffer. The goblins told us of rumours he has been seen. And his curse is still over the land."
"You cannot attack first," Waverly replied, sitting up, Nicole's eyes taking in her body. "It is forbidden. Only in defence."
Nicole's hands sought soft skin, listening how her fingers elicited a sigh from her lover. "I will never grow tired of you. How could I have been so lucky?"
"And I you," Waverly added. "Are you not uncomfortable in that armour of yours?"
Nicole shook her head. "Perfectly comfortable. You?"
Waverly giggled. "You are a tease. I shall find myself another elf to take care of my needs."
"Oh will you. I saw one look at you with love eyes."
"Really. Which one? I may need to seek out their acquaintance."
Nicole rolled them over, sitting up to remove the cumbersome gear she still had on, Waverly assisting. "My heart is yours. My body is yours. All I have is yours. Robin's brought lots of chilli powder with him."
The day of their union was a splendid affair, Nicole and Waverly in outfits befitting of their royal status, both wearing the crowns of their respective houses. They entered the great hall to a fanfare of herald trumpets, the hall packed with everyone who wished to see the happy couple wed. Except one. A hooded gentleman, who slipped in unobserved through the kitchens, the frenzy of activity allowing him to deposit his barrels of mead undetected, entering the hall just as rings were being exchanged.
He cursed under his breath at the sight before his eyes, watching as Nicole slipped the silver ring from Waverly's finger, replacing it with a gold band, declaring before those present her undying love for the one accepting the token. "Your house will crumble within a year," he muttered. "Your happiness will turn to tears. I shall possess what will be born and from your heart they will be torn."
Leaving the newlyweds to their festivities the wizard made his way outside, nodding at passing guests, no one the wiser as to his presence. His mead would be consumed along with all the other food presented to the wedding party. Nicole herself would drink two full glasses of the wizard's wine, little knowing in doing so she sealed the fate of her firstborn to that of a man who chose cruelty over kindness, who would seek to rip her family apart, who would stop at nothing to rid himself of elves who stood between him and his desire to rule over all the lands.
Lying in bed that night Nicole studied her finger now with a band of gold signifying their union. She had never been happier. All her life she had wanted what she had now, except she had had no idea what that was until it arrived one fateful evening in a theatre in a snowy New York.
Waverly slept peacefully by her side, her light snore the best sound she would ever hear, closing her eyes after a long day of celebration. It was his familiar voice that made her sit up, frantically scanning the room for his presence. All mirrors had been banned from the palace, for fear he might try to enter that way. Nicole's eyes searched for his presence, failing to spot the dish of water on the washstand.
"I'm waiting," the voice said. "I forgot how slow you are to comprehend."
Nicole leapt from the bed. "Where are you, you fucker?"
"Inside your mind and in your liver, I trust my presence makes you quiver. What a fool you are to think you've won. Your legacy will come undone."
Pulling Durendal from her scabbard she screamed. "I beat you twice. You do not get to destroy my family."
Waverly awoke at the commotion, panic in her eyes. "He's here. He's found us. We'll never be safe."
Nicole went to console her, a vice like grip on her stomach as she tried to reach out causing her to double over in agony, dropping Durendal, Waverly rushing to her side. "What's wrong my love?"
"His magic has entered the palace. Send for Xavier, he will know what to do."
Waverly fled to find their trusted protector, he returning to find Nicole dressing for battle. "He will be long gone," he said. "This is your wedding night. We will guard your room."
"Xavier, he was here," Nicole replied. "In this very room with us. He was in my head. He will not stop until he has destroyed her."
"It is you," Xavier replied. "You are what stands in his way."
"But...but, how?"
"The wizard knows you will succeed your grandmother. And, in time your heirs. Those who can see know Waverly's time approaches. With an heir these lands remain ours without a fight."
"Waverly's wings have yet to return," Nicole replied, her eyes going to her wife, seeing a new light. "What is this?"
"I've felt them for a few days," Waverly replied. "They are returning. We have a child too, waiting to be ours."
Nicole found the chair by the fire, shaking her head. "Are you sure?"
Waverly knelt by her legs. "It is time. I suspect your grandmother could see too. We are to have a girl. Once we name her she will be ours."
"But, how?"
"This world is different," Waverly explained. "And, our union is different. Children are born through love and this child will be loved more than any other."
Nicole felt the trickle of tears on her face. "I will not let anything happen to us, to the baby. I will tear his fucking heart out before he comes near either of you again."
Xavier excused himself, placing a guard on their door, the married couple holding each other tight as they started their life together, Nicole vowing to protect her family from the wizard. "I knew he would show up," she said. "My gut told me he would seek to destroy our happiness."
"We stand together," Waverly replied. "Us against him. He'll never win, we can't let him."
"I hope so," Nicole replied.