It was disappointing at first, but Rorie had quickly realized that Renny was right—he didn’t want to have any of the experience ruined by getting sneak peeks. With his v’airsell nioll busy, Rorie had thrown himself into assisting Killian, Dravyn, and Drekkoril in building a memorial in their beautiful gardens to honor the Fae. The Noble Protector had wished for something simple, but Killian had insisted that it fit the destruction of two races.
With a man as powerful as the leader of the druids championing the cause of something grand, Rorie decided it was okay to agree with him instead of Drekkoril. His bemollo had eventually given in gracefully, and the result was remarkable. Dravyn had cleared an area beyond the gazebo named for Dra’Kaedan, and along the walkway were globes of light that hovered above the ground.
The talented gardeners had produced what they called Faeflowers, which had gossamer petals in a variety of colors. They formed a dense ring around the new courtyard and mimicked the bright houses once found in Sindrell. In front of them were benches of stone that had reliefs of everyday life on Rorie’s former realm, but his favorite part was in the very center. Using magic, he and Drekkoril had formed a clear globe that had a replica of both the Fae and Dark Fae land inside. Above it was an enormous metal Faedrekan that Madeline had crafted, and it hovered protectively, thanks to clever sorcery.
It was a place Rorie liked to venture out to each day, and he mused that by being able to visit his homeland in the D’Vaire backyard, he might never need a dream escape to his past again, but it was too soon to make such a promise. His wounds were no longer raw, but his soul ached from the fall of a civilization that had spanned tens of thousands of years. It was in his best interests to forgive those that had played a hand in angering Bétea, who he assumed had grown angry at their refusal to follow her rules, but he was also confused as to why she would create them and lead them down such a twisted path.
Rorie decided the only thing he could do was accept that his duty was to focus on the future and not on what he was unable to change. Having a man he loved helped, and he asked often for Bétea and Fate to bring the same for Drekkoril. Tracing the petals of a navy flower, Rorie stood and grinned when he discovered Renny sprinting toward him.
“Hello, Ren,” he called out.
“Hey, you,” Renny responded, then pulled him into his arms for a deep kiss. “I wondered where you’d run off to. Everyone’s getting food and settling on their blankets to watch the movies.”
“Has Dra’Kaedan eaten it all yet?”
Renny chuckled, leading Rorie away from the quiet of the courtyard which Drekkoril had protected from sound and into the mayhem of a large family excited about being together. “Come on, you get to eat your fruit and veggies on sticks tonight.”
“What is the point of that?”
After handing a plate to Rorie, Renny grabbed one for himself. “They’re called kebobs. You want one with meat?”
“I have no wish to eat a dragon, so, no.”
“How many times do I have to tell you, we don’t eat dragons? They don’t exist except for shifters who turn into men or women at death.”
“What is that?” Rorie asked, pointing to a table where Dra’Kaedan was being cursed at for dumping heaps of chocolate on his dish.
“It’s a dessert bar with s’mores, Rice Krispies treats, popcorn, and trail mix,” Renny responded.
Once Renny had added sausages wrapped in bacon, kebobs with some kind of meat Rorie refused to believe didn’t include dragon, and potato chips to his plate, they headed out farther into the open expanse of the D’Vaire backyard where Dra’Kaedan had put giant magical screens. With a wave of his hand, Renny laid out a navy blanket, and it wasn’t any surprise when two Faedrekan loped to them to take up more than half of it.
“I love you guys, but you really are pests,” Renny said, balancing his dinner on his lap.
“Ladies and gentlemen, could I have your attention?” Rafe shouted.
To Rorie’s surprise, his words shut the D’Vaires up.
“I’ve been told that the stuff the Coven of Warlocks have put together for tonight is lengthy, so we’re going to get started. If you want to talk, I’m going to ask that you head into the house to prevent you from disturbing those seated around you,” Rafe remarked.
There was a round of applause, making Rafe scowl as he stalked to the blanket he was sharing with Aleksander and two wolves who were being fed straight from the High King’s plate. Seconds later, the screens lit up, and Rorie’s brows drew together as he viewed a man standing on the doorstep to their mansion with wavy red hair. Although he had a remarkable resemblance to Dra’Kaedan, he called himself Ayden as he introduced himself to the D’Vaires.
It changed into a scene of them traveling to the Council, and he learned that it was the D’Vaires’ first trip to Las Vegas. As they were leaving, Ayden tripped over a woman he was excited to learn was Blodwen. From the accompanying soundtrack which included the thoughts of the short guy, Rorie soon learned he truly was Dra’Kaedan and not Ayden. Rorie grinned at the excitement in his voice as he first joined his life with Brogan, then prepared to summon his familiar.
Renny appeared and threw himself on the ground, which made Rorie poke his v’airsell nioll in the side. “Such a tantrum.”
Renny laughed. Pulling Rorie in front of him, he rested his chin on his shoulder. “Hush.”
The memories shifted to Gavrael, who’d arrived at D’Vaire when Blodwen had bravely summoned him. It was lovely to watch him with Gedeon, and Rorie was glad they’d only briefly shown the circumstances of Renny’s kidnapping. If he had to watch too much of it, he might grow angry enough to do something rash that would help no one. While he wasn’t sure what, it couldn’t possibly be good.
Idris and Delaney appeared as teenagers with two little dragons whose inner monologues mostly including things like “nomnomnomnom” and their excitement about mealtimes, which had everyone laughing. Talfryn was the first elf in the family and was soon tiptoeing outside to sneak into his mate, Lorcan’s, room. The footage turned to a castle, and there were sighs as Drystan and Conley’s previous lives filled the screen. They had centuries together before being cruelly cut down, and it was delightful to see Killian and Chander—complete with frizzy hair and glasses—steal their bodies to create the Order of the Fallen Knights.
Rorie watched sentinels in dancing lessons and the Darays at a mini-golf course, the vast life Saura and T’Eirick had once shared, and the wizards in the family accepting their colors. Laughing along with Renny as Worth was hit by Lex’s car, he clapped at baby Pyxlevir being brought home to Kalthekor for the first time. There were more mating ceremonies than he could count, holidays, and milestones like PhDs and titles being given. Dra’Kaedan cursed at everyone who chuckled at Elf puking on him, and his heart broke at the snatches of Rafe’s journey.
It ended with him at his ceremony, standing in the backyard, vowing to love Renny for eternity, so he supposed he could be forgiven for finding it an emotional experience. “I love you so dearly, Ren.”
“I love you too.”
∞∞∞
