Chapter 15
“So, did you have to do this?” Yvette asked Ariel, as they stood in the antechamber of the large church. She knew that the one in her hometown was not that impressive. But the church on Umora was like nothing she had ever seen before. She was surprised that they had a church at all really. Of course, they worshipped different gods. The dragon gods all had wings and were majestic and grand. It made sense to her, of course. They weren't that different when she thought about it. Two societies who did the best they can, and had faith in a higher power.
She was nervous about the coronation, if she was honest with herself, because she hadn't put as much focus into it as she had put into her wedding. Peter had given her the script, and they had walked through it once before they left. But she didn't have to say as much, although more focus would be on her. He promised that he would be there to guide her and protect her, and she knew that he would. But she still felt very unprepared as she stood in the antechamber, waiting.
“No,” Ariel said. “Because I am not an anointed queen. When you marry a king or in this kingdom, when you are the highest-ranking female, you become a queen by default. But when you are an anointed queen that means you are blessed by the gods and therefore chosen to rule. So, in the speech, they will refer to you as a queen, but it's almost like using the same word for different things.”
“But you had power.”
“I did,” Ariel said. “By default, because there was no one else. But now there is.”
“And are you sure you don't mind?”
She smiled at her sister in law.
“I never wanted to be queen to begin with. Yes, I liked the privileges and the power, but Alexander didn't even tell me I was queen for so many years, it doesn't matter. Besides, I wouldn't have wanted to go through all this hoopla.”
Yvette smiled. When she first met Ariel, she found her abrasive and harsh. But now, she knew it was just her way, and she appreciated her strength. “Shall we?”
“Sounds like everyone is out there,” Ariel cocked an ear. “You look good.”
Yvette blushed and followed her sister-in-law to the grand doors. It was so much like yesterday. Yesterday, she married Peter. Today, she was marrying his world.
“I'll see you in there, then,” Ariel said, with a grin. She slipped inside to take her place at the front.
Yvette heard the music start and looked around the empty hallway. This was it. She was alone, and she was about to be crowned.
The big doors opened, and everyone rose, just the same as at her wedding. She gulped and kept her focus on Peter. As with their wedding, he was at the front of the aisle. But this time, he was sitting on the throne, grand and majestic. The one beside him was meant for her.
Yvette approached slowly, trying to keep her hands from trembling. She moved slowly in time with the music until she reached the front. There, the bishop of the church was waiting for her. On either side, the princes and princesses and nobles of the world were there, currently uncrowned. It was a new rule, and they would put on their royal regalia at the appropriate time in the ceremony.
Peter had warned her that he couldn't speak to her during the ceremony until the appointed time. She had to be presented to the people as the queen first.
Yvette reached the front and turned around to face the people. The bishop cleared his throat, looking out at the crowd.
“I here present unto you: Queen Yvette, your undoubted queen. Wherefore all you who are come this day to do your homage and service, are you willing to do the same?”
“God save Queen Yvette!” came the cry back. She tried not to jump as they spoke in unison. Their voices echoed off the grand church walls, the marble pillars doing nothing to stop it. The ceiling seemed impossibly high and the church very large. She felt chilly, and tried not to shiver.
“Madam, is your Majesty willing to take the Oath?”
Yvette cleared her throat. “I am willing.”
The bishop turned to her, his voice solemn.
“Will you solemnly promise and swear to govern the peoples of Umora, their subservient shifters, and of your possessions and other territories to any of them belonging or pertaining, according to their respective laws and customs?”
Yvette swallowed deeply. “I solemnly promise to do so.”
“Will you to your power cause law and justice, in mercy, to be executed in all your judgments?”
“I will,” she heard a little tremble in her voice, and she was glad the line was only two words. She glanced at Alexander out of the corner of her eye, and he smiled, giving her courage. They were her brothers now, and they would support her.
Peter took her hand, and they rose. Everyone began to clap and cheer, calling out one last time.
“So, my dear,” he said, as he took in the clapping and cheering. “You are the anointed queen. What do you think?”
“Haven't really had much time to think,” she teased him. They had to wait, officially, until the crowd quieted down for them to get off the platform and descend back through the church. After this was when they were finally going to take a honeymoon. It wasn't going to be long, for they had a country to rule. But Yvette was still trying to wrap her head around the fact that she had the rest of her life with Peter. She didn't have to leave; she didn't have to go back; she never had to be without his smile or his touch.
Finally, the crowd quieted down, and the new king and queen descended the platform. His arm was straight out in front of him, and hers was on top of his. They walked slowly, and everyone bowed or curtsied as they went by. Some reached out gently to touch her, their eyes shining.
“But so far?” Peter asked.
“It's not the life I expected,” she admitted. “But it is where I belong.”
She smiled at her as they exited the church. He wasn't sure how to navigate this world, even when he’d lived the first time. But with her as his queen and his wife, he was confident he would be just fine.
***THE END***