Chapter 15
When Enya pictured her wedding, she had never pictured something so grandiose. She had wanted a ceremony on Earth–a traditional wedding ceremony. The fact that she had been away from her parents and family for so long had been wiped away with Cole's magic. But she didn't want to continue lying and wiping their minds forever. She wanted them to know that she was safe, happy, and married. She had concocted some story about Cole living in Australia and being a pilot, so she didn't have to be in the same place whenever they wanted to visit. It was the closest to his accent and the closest to his true status that she could get without completely lying.
Her parents and her friends were nothing but happy for her. Enya was thriving–rosy-cheeked and happy–and there was no one who thought this wasn't the best thing for her. She was clearly in love, and her wedding in the local church was a dream come true.
“Thank you for helping me,” Enya glanced to Ariel as she did up the buttons on the back of her dress. “You're so kind.”
“If we're going to be living in the same place,” Ariel replied. “We might as well get to know each other. Besides, I like weddings.”
“You do?” Enya said.
“Sure. It's just like a show, isn't it?”
Enya laughed. “You're such a romantic.”
“I try,” Ariel said. “There, all done.”
“Oh my.” Looking in the mirror, Enya gasped. She felt like a princess in antique lace, with lace sleeves, and a tiara woven into her hair.
She had to look twice to remind herself that she was, in fact, a princess. Marrying Cole meant that she would be a Dragon Princess, and she would have a life that she thought was only possible in fairy tales.
“Are you ready?” her father asked, sticking his head into her bridal room. “I think everyone's here. I must have fallen out of step with your friends, because there are a lot of people here I don't recognize.”
“Oh,” she said. “Probably Cole's friends.”
“Right,” he held out his arm. “They all look alike, have you noticed? All tall with pale eyes. Does he belong to a cult?”
“Dad!” she said, rolling her eyes. “Come on.”
“Just kidding,” he said. “But it is time to go. Everyone is here.”
“Right,” Enya said, and took his arm.
Everything about the wedding looked normal. It was just her best kept secret that her future husband was not human.
Cole was waiting at the end of the aisle, and Enya's eyes focused on him right away. He looked so handsome and so well put together. Alexander and Nicholas stood behind him in nearly identical suits. Perhaps it was because she was looking for it, but she could see the flash of yellow eyes from her dragon lover.
She blushed as they walked down the aisle.
If someone had told her a year ago that this would be her life, she would have laughed. She was supposed to be dead, not happy and married. Dragons had changed her entire life.
When they reached the end of the aisle, her father placed her hands in his. He lifted her veil, kissed her on the head, and then stepped aside.
Cole smiled at her, squeezing her hands.
“Hi,” he said. Enya blushed.
“Hi,” she replied. “How are you?”
“Oh, you know, I have this thing today,” he said with a smirk. When they returned, they would have a proper dragon wedding, and she was sure that it would be glorious and beautiful. But this, here and now, was the type of wedding she had always dreamed of.
The priest cleared his throat, and they both turned to him. In yesterday’s rehearsal, the words hadn't felt real. But now, as he spoke, Enya felt them hit her right in the heart. This wasn't just rehearsal. This was real.
Enya felt her heart rate rise, and she squeezed Cole's hand for support. He sent a tiny bit of magic, almost as a question, but she just smiled, and shook her head. She wasn't ill. She was happier than she had ever been.
No one said a word. Everyone in the congregation could see that they were clearly in love. The way he looked at her, the way she turned to him. She felt so in love and connected. Enya had always felt unsure, alone, and out of step. But it had turned out that was because her soul mate just wasn't on Earth. She had been looking in all the wrong places.
“Enya,” the priest turned to her, solemnly. Enya trembled, raising her chin. “Will you have this man to be your husband, to live together with him in the covenant of marriage? Will you love him, comfort him, honor, and keep him, in sickness and in health, and, forsaking all others, be faithful unto him as long as you both shall live?”
“I do,” she said, looking into his yellow eyes that she had come to love so much. He was the most handsome man that she had ever met.
“Cole,” said the priest, turning his gaze upon the dragon prince. “Will you have this woman to be your wife, to live together with her in the covenant of marriage? Will you love her, comfort her, honor, and keep her, in sickness and in health, and, forsaking all others, be faithful unto her as long as you both shall live?”
“I will,” he said. They had already been through so much, and in a lot of ways, had already honored those vows.
“Will all of you witnessing these promises do all in your power to uphold these two persons in their marriage?” The priest turned to the congregation.
“We do,” they chanted.
The rings were the bit of dragon lore that Cole had worked into their Earth wedding. Alexander passed over two intricately carved golden and platinum rings that were stronger than any metal found on Earth. They were made for their hands and their hands alone.
“I give you this ring as a symbol of my love, and with all that I am, and all that I have, I honor you, in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit,” Cole whispered, as he slipped the ring over her finger. He had never been timid or afraid, but in this moment, he was overcome with emotion.
“I give you this ring as a symbol of my love, and with all that I am, and all that I have, I honor you, in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit,” Enya said, putting the ring on his strong hand.
“Enya and Cole, having witnessed your vows of love to one another, it is my joy to present you to all gathered here as husband and wife. Cole, you may kiss the bride.”
Cole swept her down and kissed her, and Enya felt her heart race.
Happily-ever afters did exist, and she finally had hers.