I was finally going to have a real wedding. And by that, I meant one in the waking world, with my parents in attendance, before my people and without the haze of dreams to fog my memories. I was slowly remembering all of my experiences from my twenty years of dreams, but they were like echoes in a vast cave: mere ghosts of what they once were, fading into a true death. Even my dream wedding was being lost to the echoes. Today, however, would be unforgettable.

My parents had rejoiced in the opportunity to redo my wedding in the proper manner. Royals from neighboring kingdoms and all of the people within our kingdom were invited. A special invitation was sent out to the princess who had slain Meara.

The ceremony would be held in our chapel and the reception in the great hall, with an expected overflow into the courtyard and gardens. I had helped to design my wedding gown, and my mother had chosen the flowers. As a finishing touch, my father brought me the crown I wore on special occasions. It was encrusted with diamonds and…

“What’s that?” I peered more closely at the crown my father was holding.

“I had some special additions made.” My father beamed. “Do you like it?”

Wrapped around the crown was a diamond dragon, which still managed to look as if it was formed from clouds. His head reared up at the front-center, and his tail peaked just below it, held tight in one claw.

“Puff,” I whispered as I stroked the diamond head. “He’s beautiful, Father.”

“I thought it would be fitting for you to wear a symbol of your magic.” He placed the crown gently over my veil.

“My magic.” I blinked at my reflection.

I was still getting used to the idea that I had power. The little spark Rune had suspected I might have absorbed from the enchantment had blossomed into a major ability with my need to protect him and my kingdom. I had thought it would dissipate afterward, but it had only grown stronger. Rune had begun teaching me how to wield it with even more accuracy. Our little adventures in the sky were only one of many perks my magic produced.

Magic, the cat, actually listened to me now; it was a damn miracle.

The cat was getting big, about a foot long, and was currently wrapped around my left foot, beneath my skirts. I wasn’t worried about him causing mischief. He was well-behaved, owed likely to our ability to communicate with each other, and he hadn’t chewed on any of Rune’s belts in ages. Though he did have a habit of bringing me rat carcasses. Whenever I tried to express my distaste for the gifts, he insisted that I needed to learn how to hunt. Oh well. I may have been able to communicate with him, but it didn’t change the fact that he was a cat.

“I’m so proud of you,” my father said.

“We both are,” my mother added.

“Thank you.” I stood, mentally sending Magic a message to move or risk being stepped on. “I love you both so much.”

Magic slunk out and went to lounge on the bed.

“We love you too, darling,” my mother said.

“Shall we see you married properly at last?” My father held his arm out to me.

“I would like nothing better.” I took the offered arm, and the three of us strode out into the hallway, then down the main stairs.

A great number of people were already gathered in the entry hall, waiting for us to pass by on our way to the chapel. Rune would already be waiting inside the chapel with our priest. The crowd parted for us, and the main doors were opened to the blast of trumpets. My father escorted me and my mother, one of us on each arm, down a red carpet which led to the chapel. Excited voices called out blessings as we passed, and we nodded to our people in gratitude. Finally, we stepped into the church.

The castle’s chapel wasn’t a huge building, but it was large enough for us. There were stained-glass windows set high in the soaring wall at the end of the main room. Sunlight shone through them, patterning the dais where the priest and Rune stood. Rows of pews were set to either side before this dais, and they were filled with people waiting to see me married. These people stood when another burst of trumpets announced our entrance. Then the musicians, set in the gallery above, started to play a slow melody.

My parents continued down the aisle with me, but my mother veered off just as we reached the dais. She took her seat in the front row, next to the visiting royals and Rune’s mother, as my father and I continued up the dais steps. Then my father ceremoniously gave my hand to Rune before he stepped down to join my mother.

“Hello, angel,” Rune whispered.

“Hello, witch,” I whispered back.

The ceremony went as those things usually go. Vows were exchanged, along with rings (our old wedding bands were used), and the priest declared us man and wife.

That’s where the normalcy ended. I didn’t know why I’d expected my wedding day to pass without surprises. My entire relationship with Rune had been a surprise; why should our wedding have been any different? But what happened was so shocking even Rune, my steady husband, blinked as his jaw dropped.

Just after the priest declared we were married… again, Rune’s mother stood and approached us. The cheering died down as she set herself right before us on the bottom step of the dais.

“Mother?” Rune frowned.

“I must make a confession”—Lady Bromley wrung her hands—“and an apology.”

“Lady Bromley?” My father stood and hurried over to us.

“Please, Your Majesty”—she held out a hand to him—“allow me a moment.”

My father was incapable of being discourteous. He nodded but remained standing nearby. Polite was one thing, being stupid was another entirely.

“Twenty years ago, my husband was abducted,” Lady Bromley declared.

“Father was abducted?” Rune shook his head. “I don’t recall.”

“You were only a year old, Rune,” Lady Bromley said. “Two days after he disappeared, Queen Meara knocked on my door.”

The entire room gasped.

“Mother?” Rune’s hand tightened on mine.

“She told me she had my husband.” Lady Bromley’s voice rose so that the entire chapel could hear her. “She said that if I wanted him to come home, I would have to cast an enchantment for her.”

“No,” I whispered.

A hazy memory was surfacing in my mind, one even foggier than my dream recollections. My night-shrouded chamber, a shadowy form approaching my bed, words whispered in the dark.

“I had no choice.” Lady Bromley swallowed hard. “It was either I betray my kingdom or my husband… and I had never made vows to my kingdom.”

“What are you saying?” My father’s voice thundered through the chapel.

“I was the witch who enchanted you, Seraphine,” Lady Bromley confessed. “I did it to save my husband, to bring Rune’s father home. I’m deeply sorry.”

“You do this now, Mother?” Rune was horrified. “At our wedding?”

“Yes.” Lady Bromley nodded. “Because this is not only an apology, this is a gift. I need to make amends.”

“I forgive you,” I let my voice ring out clear and strong. “I do not require you to make amends.”

Rune’s hand twitched in mine, and he turned to me with teary eyes. “Seraphine,” he whispered gently.

Lady Bromley hung her head and wept.

“No,” my father declared. “This is not for you to forgive, Daughter. You were not the only one affected by her spell.”

“I am the only one who can forgive this,” I said simply. “It was my body that was enchanted and my life she froze in slumber. You had to wait, yes, but you also were able to live. No, this is my pain, and I will be the one to decide to let it go.”

My father sighed and nodded. “So be it.” Then he turned to Lady Bromley. “You are blessed by my daughter’s kindness, Lady. If it were left to me, I would have you executed.”

“I understand,” Lady Bromley said serenely as she lifted her eyes to mine. “And your kindness only makes me more certain that I have chosen correctly.”

“Mother?” Rune started forward, but Lady Bromley lifted a restraining hand.

“Please, just let me finish,” Lady Bromley begged. “Princess Seraphine, I thank you for your forgiveness; I don’t deserve it. As you have discovered, my magic left a mark upon you, and it has grown stronger instead of fading. This is by design… my design.”

“What?” I frowned in confusion.

“I have been feeding you my power through the connection I formed with you that first night,” Lady Bromley said. “Today, we will finish the process.”

“Mother, no!” Rune cried.

“It is already begun, my son.” She smiled sweetly at Rune. “Don’t mourn me; I will be with your father at last. I’m truly looking forward to finding peace.”

“You’re all the family I have.” A tear slipped down Rune’s cheek.

“That’s not true.” Lady Bromley waved a hand to me. “You have a new family now, and I intend to see that your love lasts forever.”

“What do you mean?” I asked.

“For my wedding gift, I give you, Princess Seraphine, my magic, and I give you both my life. In exchange for the years I stole, I offer you and my son immortality. Your magic worked with his because it was my magic. Now, it shall bind you together in love and longevity. My present to you, Prince and Princess of Hannaleigh, is love everlasting.”

With her last word, a blinding flash exploded from her body, bathing me and Rune in its light. A tingling warmth spread over me and then seeped into my skin. My body came alive with sensation, power zipping through it and electrifying it down to blood and bone. I gasped through the influx of energy, my hand clenching Rune’s as we rode the waves of magic together. When I was able to see again, Lady Bromley was gone.

“Mother!” Rune rushed forward to the empty space she’d been standing in.

All that remained was a single white petal from the rose she’d worn in her hair. Rune bent over it and wept. I hurried to him, holding my husband as he mourned his mother. The gathering watched on in humbled silence until Rune wiped his eyes and looked up at me.

“She gave us eternity,” he whispered.

“What does that mean?”

“It means that we have a very long time to love each other.” Rune pulled me into a hug. “I vow that I shall do so with every ounce of my being. I love you, Seraphine.”

“I love you too.”

“Let’s not sully her sacrifice with sadness.” Rune stood and helped me up. “This is our wedding day. Mother would have wanted us to rejoice.”

“Well said, Son.” My father nodded. “I’m sorry for your loss, but she was right; you do have a new family now.”

“Thank you.”

“My new son, Prince Rune!” my father declared. “And his wife, my daughter and your princess, Seraphine!”

The entire chapel erupted into applause.