The Lark Taps Twice

Chapter 31: It's Coronation Day!

Miriam peeked out a narrow gap in the heavy curtains surrounding the dais in the royal assembly hall of the Dyzian palace. Every seat held a person dressed in their finest garb, and the walls were lined with gentlemen who'd given up their seats to ladies as the enormous chamber filled past its capacity. The crowd reminded Miriam of her first semester at college, when so many of her classes were general education requirements, and on the first day, each classroom and auditorium was jam-packed with crashers–educational vultures awaiting the chance to seize a valid place on the class roster. The biggest difference between the two experiences was that everyone was here for the duration. After all, one did not give up one's opportunity to be a witness to history lightly.

More than a month had passed since Requiro had relinquished the Majesty to her and Jonatham, and the time flew by on lead wings, cycling between heady haste and dainty delays. For every detail that fell into place without effort, two more encountered brick walls and tar pits loaded with nails, and not always metaphorically.

The first meeting of the royal advisory committee should have warned Miriam of the frustration to come. Its eight members, one from each of the kingdom's districts, plus a couple of additional advisors to be the voice of the poor and those who worked directly with the royal family, began in ecstasy over the defeat of the wraiths, then swung to despair over the state of the prince's residential wing. Raptures of enthusiasm following the news that the prince had discovered his soul mate gave way to horror over her origins. A wave of plans for the tie ceremonies dispersed into angry shouts when they learned all the ties were already completed, two with no audience other than the couple themselves. The roller coaster of emotions in the room had twisted her stomach into knots, and more than once she'd stepped out of the council chambers to catch a free breath.

And that had been the next sign of trouble.

Something Jonatham had forgotten to mention about Dyzian royal matings was that the excessive strength of the bond produced some less than pleasant side effects along with its magical gifts. In their case, not only had she gotten pregnant from the frenzy (a completely acceptable result), but she was pregnant with twins (unusual, but still not too crazy) who were developing about a third faster than normal (extremely unusual, even among royal pairs).

Unfortunately for both she and Jon, the magic fueling the sped-up development did not mute the increased hormones, for either of them. Within a week of their frenzy night, they were both munching cautiously on saltines and sipping lemon lime soda imported from Earth. Fish of all kinds were banished from the royal menu overnight, and all important palace business was scheduled in the late morning to maximize the royal couple's time between morning sickness and their afternoon nap.

The preparation period hadn't been all bad. It allowed Miriam to get to know her new mate and his father much better, and the three of them often met for a game (or seven) of blackjack in the evening. Requiro had explained all of his reasons for retiring from ruling, and Miriam no longer wondered if the decision had been too hasty on his side.

While it had taken much longer than he'd hoped, Requiro had planned to pass the Majesty on to his son once the reversal spell had been successfully cast. Dyzian law was extremely protective of royals, and that protection extended to restricting how much involvement a ruling royal could have in investigating a crime. Requiro refused to sit by and let others track down the instigators of the spell that had unleashed the wraiths and their destruction on two worlds under his watch, so the transfer of power was necessary if he wanted to get his hands dirty.

And did he want to get his hands dirty.

Over the course of their many conversations, along with knowledge gleaned from the royal archives and various forthcoming staff members, Miriam now knew that Requiro was the second son, trained not to rule but to be the king's defender. When his older brother fell to an assassination attempt Requiro had been unable to prevent, he had accepted his new role as the heir with grace, but in his chest beat the heart of a trained warrior, one who had fought the battle of modernizing the kingdom's monarchy and now had a new target to pursue.

So today, Miriam and Jonatham would ceremonially take over leadership of the kingdom and publicly declare themselves soulmates, with an earthlike wedding ceremony, since the rites of binding mates had already been completed and were never to be repeated. Jonatham had argued against anything more than a simple declaration, but the council insisted that some sort of ceremony was needed to reassure the people that the power between them was truly shared equally. Miriam suggested an earth wedding, with nods to the soulmate ties. She knew from their bond that Jonatham had relented more for her sake than the council's; she had done a poor job of covering her longing for a real wedding from him.

Now at last the day had arrived. Tomorrow Requiro would depart for earth via the portal under the fortress, beginning his quest to find the treacherous weavers and bring them back to Dyza to face justice before all they had hurt. For now, he waited with Jonatham, sequestered away until the group of musicians on the balcony overhead began playing the Dyza regalia melody, which would prompt them to enter together at the rear of the long hall and process to meet her on the dais. The long curtain she currently peeked around would be retracted once they arrived at the bottom step, giving her the most dramatic reveal she could ask for.

She only wished her mother could be among the teeming throng of people. Her mother would be right at home charming everyone and endearing herself to them until they forgot she was not born into their midst. Unfortunately, both Requiro and Jonatham insisted that with the danger still lingering from the evil spellcasters, it would be best to keep her in the dark about the magical kingdom just on the other side of a portal and the fact that her daughter was now the ruling queen of said kingdom. She had been permitted to venture back to the edge of the portal to call and text her mother regularly, but it wasn't the same as seeing her in person.

I know this is not ideal, my love. I promise you will embrace your mother again, once it is safe, for you both, to do so.

She grinned at Jon's immediate assurance. Over the past weeks, the lines between her own mind and his had faded to the point where she could not find a firm boundary there anymore. It required no effort to slip into his senses and observe his surroundings, even as she knew it cost him nothing to gently shove her back.

Ah ah, Mir. If I could control myself and resist even the tiniest peek at your wedding attire, you can wait another few minutes to see mine. Not that there is a mirror in this room for me to see myself, as it so happens. The casualty of a royal Dyzian wedding tradition I was unaware of until today when my father escorted me to this room to help me prepare. Given that our ceremony is the first 'wedding' of its kind, I have a feeling he made this particular tradition up just for his own amusement. Speaking of my father, he says it's time for us to take our places, that his surprise is finally ready. See you in moments, my lady.

His excited anticipation lingered in her mind as she stepped back from the curtain, allowing it to fall closed and block out most of the light and noise from the crowded hall. When she turned to find her place on the dim platform, she noticed the priest and his two assistants had taken their positions behind the wide crystal podium. The clear stone emanated a pale green glow that illuminated the underside of the Book of Ways, the kingdom's official register of royal ceremonies. She knew the notes for today's event filled several new pages near the center of the tome, but neither she nor Jon would be permitted to see the contents until after their bonding month was complete, by order of the abdicating king.

And now a surprise from her new father-in-law. Her new life promised to be a daily adventure, at this rate.

Her feet reached her mark. Instantly the curtains hiding the dais from the audience began to retract, and the opening strains of the Regalia waltz tickled her ears. Before she could lock her gaze on the two men at the distant end of the hall, familiar screams swallowed the music. The beams of sunlight filling the vast space via unshaded windows dimmed, enormous black shadows blotting out the radiance. There was no mistaking those dark profiles.

Dragons!