Anthony took her by the hand and realized that she was fragile. He hated his father-in-law. Why was he so happy? Was it because he had passed on his burden to him? Was he moved by relief?
He stood up slowly, the veil all carved with tiny pink flowers, to take the oath, looking into her eyes, as his father-in-law explained to him about their tradition. And as soon as he threw back the scented veil, he was met with large, green eyes, staring at him anxiously.
He stared at her thin lips and the freckles on her face. She was stunning. Breathtakingly beautiful.
Anthony regretted at that moment that he hadn't made a point of seeing her again. Perhaps he had fallen in love with her? But perhaps it was a good idea not to get attached to someone whose days were numbered.
"Kellen, I promise that I will honor you all the days of my life. I promise that I will do everything in my power to make them filled with joy and comfort. I promise that I will protect your life, with my own life if necessary." Anthony said, staring into her unblinking eyes, and she cracked a smile. And he realized that her smile was beautiful, making her the most perfect woman he had ever seen.
"Anthony, I know that we will be happy together for as long as our marriage lasts. I promise that I will love and care for our daughter until I run out of strength."
Anthony stared at her in amazement. Those were not vows, but a prediction. He was sorry for her, because he didn't love her, and he wouldn't have a child with her. He wouldn't leave a child orphaned in the world. His first heir would have to come from someone he loved very much.
After the swearing-in, the bride's parents and his parents came to the front and gave a speech about the responsibility of starting a family and having children so that the community would grow constantly.
Anthony wasn't interested in the speech, and perhaps that's why he didn't listen when they said that the lineage of the Mists would be born again through the union between him and Kellen.
After the speech, the bride and groom, hands intertwined, went to the main table, and the guests followed them. There were two large tables and plenty of food. The bride and groom, along with their families, sat at one of the tables, and the guests, who were friends, sat at the other.
Anthony never looked at his wife again, but concentrated the whole time on making sure all his friends could see how well he was doing in life.
After a few hours of music and merriment, the guests began to leave, one by one, until only Anthony, his wife and his in-laws were left. He didn't know what to do next, so he just sat there. He was sure that he would now be living in his in-laws' castle, but that wasn't the case.
Kellen's father called him and took him to a small house behind the castle. The house was beautiful, but Anthony didn't want to live there. He wanted the luxury of the castle. How could he invite his friends to visit him in a small house behind the castle? His friends would laugh at him. Even more so after he had told them about his marriage. But he kept his anger to himself and went into the house, where he was left alone with his wife.
"Anthony..."
"Don't say anything, woman. Go to your room and have a good night." He said, interrupting her and going into the kitchen to look for a drink. He found a bottle of cider and, after opening it, drank from the neck. When he lowered his head, he realized that Kellen was standing in front of him.
"Don't you want to see what our room looks like?" She asked, then blushed.
Anthony glared at her angrily.
"No. Don't you know how to obey an order? Go to bed!"
"It's our first night. I don't want to be alone."
"Kellen, I don't know you and I have no reason to treat you badly. But you know I'm a bought fiancé, right? I'm not going to lie with you. Your father didn't tell me I had to live in this house. I thought I'd live in the castle. He deceived me, and that takes away my responsibility to fulfill everything I promised... No one even told me I had to lie with you."
"But we'll go to the castle tomorrow. This house is only used for Dad's meetings with his elder friends from the Order of Merlin. This is their headquarters. He just wanted us to have total privacy tonight, after all, it's the first night."
Anthony stared at her, his blue eyes bright with interest and relief. That piece of information changed everything.
"Do you... Do you want that? To lie down with a man you've never seen before?"
"But I've seen you several times, in my dreams."
"That's very romantic, young man, but I'm not one of your wizard friends. I don't believe in such nonsense. And I don't love you. I married you only for your dowry." Anthony said, knowing he was being cruel, but he had to be, so that she wouldn't get her hopes up about them.
"You'll love me very much, Anthony. More than you love yourself." She said with tear-filled eyes.
Anthony rolled his eyes. It felt like he'd been talking to a wall. He drank again from the bottle and then stared at her resolutely.
"Where's the bedroom?"
Kellen smiled and led the way, and Anthony followed. She entered the room, and Anthony smiled when he saw that there was no ceiling, but a kind of glass that allowed him to see the blue moon and the starry sky.
He moved forward and lay down on the bed, noticing that the jars containing the elements that had been placed during the ceremony were there too, scattered around the bed, and smiled wryly. Then he turned to Kellen, who stood watching him lie down.
"Aren't you going to join me?"