Summoner 16, page 29
Erin bumped her shoulder against mine sympathetically, but she didn’t need to say anything. Layla cast worried glances my way when she thought I wasn’t looking, but when I caught her eye, she merely grinned.
Nia was also missing, which added to my disappointment. It had been a pleasant surprise to see her in the medical ward, but I supposed the ashen-haired mage had gotten busy with something.
My guy friends were all nursing obvious hangovers, but Gawain seemed to have fared the worst of it. His face resembled Freya’s when she was straddling the bucket, and he sipped a cup of coffee gingerly, but where the fire mage had acquired the caffeinated beverage in the middle of the day was beyond me.
Suddenly, the Headmaster strode up to the podium situated in front of the faculty table, and he tapped a spoon against a cup to make a bell-like sound.
Silence fell as all eyes turned to the front of the dining hall.
It was a little unusual for Sleet to be present at lunch, and to make an announcement in the middle of the day was even more odd.
“Good afternoon, students and faculty,” the Headmaster began. “As some of you may already know, two of our students have decided to formalize their relationship with marriage. Gryff of Njordenfalls and Nia Kenefick, please stand up.”
I stood on nervous legs, and I raked a hand through my hair self-consciously as I looked around at the crowded dining hall. As I scanned the room full of attentive eyes, I noticed Nia standing near the entrance. Her face was crimson, and I could tell she hadn’t expected to walk in to hear her name being called out.
“Congratulations to the happy couple,” Sleet declared in a joyful voice, and he clapped his hands, which started a round of applause and congratulatory whoops across the room.
I smiled and nodded politely as I waited for the cheers to stop, and when silence fell again, Sleet motioned for me to sit back down.
“Now, with the wedding date swiftly approaching, I have had little time to prepare a gift,” the Headmaster continued. “So, I took some time to think about what two young students in love would want from their Headmaster. Obviously, they don’t want to be bothered with school while they are preparing for their wedding. However, it wouldn’t be fair to only give the bride and groom the day off, so I have decided to declare a brief school holiday in celebration of their nuptials. No more classes until Monday.”
Another round of cheers erupted through the room, but this time they were explosive and overjoyed.
My friends all clapped me on the back, and jostled me with wide grins on their faces. I blushed as I endured the attention, but my eyes scanned the dining hall in search of the ashen-haired beauty at the same time. When Nia finally approached the table with a food laden tray, I scooted over to make space for her beside me.
“That was quite the announcement,” she noted, and her neck still showed residual signs of her embarrassment. “At least we won’t have school for the next few days.”
“Only two more days until the wedding!” Layla screeched as she bounced up and down in her seat. Then she gasped, and her hazel eyes went wide. “And a school break! This wedding is the best thing to happen since Gryff came back from the dead!”
“Did he have to announce it so loudly, though?” Varleth asked in a dry voice, and he glowered up at the Headmaster as he pressed a hand against his temple.
“Cheer up, buttercup,” Layla chirped. “Now, you can get drunk again.”
“I’m never drinking again,” Varleth countered with a groan, and the surly gypsy buried his face in his arms.
I chuckled to myself as I took in my friends’ reactions and fully processed the Headmaster’s words.
Two days off school, my wedding quickly approaching, and a baby on the way. My life was amazing, and the only thing missing in that moment was my beautiful shapeshifting wife.
“It’s going to be the event of the year,” Erin observed in an excited tone. “Everyone is going to want to be there.”
“There should be some limitations on the guest list,” Gawain suggested. “You don’t want all the riff raff Varle can offer crashing the party.”
“Riff raff like you?” Layla taunted.
“I was thinking more like you, Bethel,” he retorted.
The petite summoner stuck out her tongue but didn’t say anything else.
“If we don’t have class,” Braden interjected, “then I’m going back to bed. Wake me up before the wedding.”
“I am so down for that,” Mati chirped, and she rubbed the ox-like summoner’s back affectionately. “Poor Braden. You probably shouldn’t drink so much next time.”
“Yeah, yeah,” my roommate grumbled, but he gave his girlfriend an adoring smile. “Come on, let’s go take a nap.”
“You don’t have to tell me twice!” the dark-haired banisher exclaimed as she rose from her seat.
The couple waved goodbye, deposited their trays on the dirty dish rack, and then headed out of the dining hall.
“What about you, Gryff?” Layla asked as she gnawed on a turkey leg. “What are you going to do with your time off?”
“A nap does sound nice,” I allowed with a wry smile. “Plus, I want to go check on Freya.”
“Scared she had the baby already?” the petite summoner teased.
“No,” I laughed. “I just don’t like the idea of being away from her right after finding out we’re having a baby together. It feels like we should be cuddling, or picking out cribs, or something…”
“Then let’s go.” Layla swallowed a large bite and tossed the remnants of the leg back on her plate. “Whatcha waiting for?”
“Can I come?” Erin asked with hopeful eyes.
“Sure.” I grinned. “The more the merrier.”
“Don’t forget to cleanse yourself,” Nia instructed in a clipped voice.
I could tell from her tone she was feeling stressed, but I had no idea what she was talking about. I sniffed my pits experimentally, and they smelled fine to me, so I gave my fiancée a puzzled look.
“Cleanse myself?”
“Yes.” She rolled her eyes and looked at me like I should know this already. “Tradition dictates that the day before the wedding the bride and groom thoroughly cleanse themselves to purify them before the ceremony. It’s a way of washing away any bad luck or something.”
“Nothing wrong with being clean.” I smirked. “I can handle that.”
“Thanks, Gryff.” Nia smiled. “I know I can get a little bossy sometimes, but you’re always so patient and loving with my… requests.”
“Boss away, darling.” I grinned. “You know I would do anything to make you happy, right?”
“Yes.” She blushed and looked down, but the smile on her face was plain to see.
“I love you, Nia Kenefick,” I declared, and I leaned over to kiss her forehead. “I’m so ready for you to be my wife.”
“I love you, too,” Nia replied in a soft voice, and her brilliant blue eyes glittered with emotion as she gazed into mine.
“Aww,” Erin breathed as she gave us an adoring look. “You guys are so cute!”
“Thanks,” I chuckled. “So, who’s all going back to the Retching Goblin with me?”
“Me!” Layla chimed as she raised her hand.
“And me,” Erin added with a smile.
“I can’t,” Nia sighed reluctantly. “I have my final dress fitting this afternoon.”
“Oh, do you want me to go with you?” Erin offered.
“It’s okay,” the ashen-haired beauty replied. “Arwyn said she would go with me, and I haven’t gotten a lot of time with her lately, so I was looking forward to it being just us.”
“I understand.” The orange-haired pilot masked her disappointment well, but I made a mental note to bring the smile back to her face before the end of the day.
I blew my fiancée a final farewell kiss, and then I accompanied the two young women back to the Retching Goblin to see my wife.
Cyra and Freya were curled up on the bare mattress of my bed, and I realized I’d left all my bedding back in the medical ward earlier that morning. The two women seemed comfortable enough, though, since they were sleeping peacefully, but I didn’t want to disturb their slumber, so I backed out of the room slowly and gestured for the two girls to be quiet.
After I explained the situation, Layla’s hazel eyes lit up with mischief, and she practically dragged me downstairs to the bar to shove a mug of ale into my hand. Erin followed eagerly, and a short while later the three of us sat around the fireplace laughing and drinking the rest of the day away.
At the end of the night, Layla tried to lure me back to the girls’ dorms with them, but I insisted on staying in the tavern with Freya since she was likely to feel sick again in the morning.
Erin immediately saw reason, but the petite summoner needed a little convincing, and then they left with minimal pouting as I waved them off. I requested more bedding from the tavern keeper before I headed back up to my room, but when I lit a candle to peer at the bed, I found the two sleeping women stretched out in such a way that left no extra room for another body.
I sighed. I could squeeze myself in, but with Freya’s morning sickness waging war on her insides, she needed good rest, so I decided to make a pallet on the floor. I didn’t sleep well, though, and I tossed and turned throughout the night. I was staring blankly up at the ceiling by the time the sun rose and spread the first few rays of light into the room, and I cast a longing look at the bed.
Suddenly, Freya groaned and leapt from the mattress in a flurry of motion. I was on my feet in an instant, and as she lunged for her bucket, I swept her wild blonde waves away from her face and gathered the tendrils into my fist. I held her hair back with a loose grip so as not to pull on her scalp, and I rubbed her back softly as she hurled liquid into the container.
My stomach reeled from the sound, and the smell didn’t help, either, but I ignored my own discomfort as I tried to soothe my wife. I couldn’t imagine what it felt like to go through this, and it would last for weeks.
I shook my head in bewilderment at my current situation. My wife kneeled on the floor with her arms hugging the bucket to her chest, and she cast me a pitiful look when the retching ceased for a brief moment.
A few moments later, Freya sighed and leaned back.
“That sounded painful.” Cyra had woken up by this point, and the dark-skinned summoner laid on her stomach with her feet twitching in the air behind her smooth, bare ass.
My eyes wandered over her delicious body appreciatively, and then I remembered my wife, so I turned my attention back to her and helped the shapeshifter to her feet.
“It was.” Freya gave the summoner a wry grin. “I feel dirty.”
“Dirty girl,” Cyra teased with a twinkle in her chocolate colored eyes.
“Just you wait,” Freya chuckled, and some of the tension eased from her shoulders. “You will soon understand.”
“Which is why I want to do anything I can to make you comfortable,” the dark-skinned beauty replied with a wink. “I’ll need all the love and compassion I can get when it’s my time.”
“You know I’ll be there for you when the time comes,” I told Cyra with a loving smile. “Although, I love watching all of you girls get closer to Freya and take care of each other.”
“Us dirty girls have to stick together, right?” Cyra countered. “While I might not smell like vomit, I can be pretty dirty sometimes.”
“You’re definitely my dirty girl,” I said as my grinned widened.
“I would like to see you dirty,” Freya teased the summoner, and then her nose wrinkled. “I do not like this smell on my face, though.”
“You can take a shower, Freya” I suggested. “I’ll help you.”
“I can shower on my own.” My wife cast me an amused glance.
“Isn’t he cute, Freya?” Cyra laughed. “He’s so doting and nurturing. Who knew?”
“I knew.” The warrior princess had a proud look in her gold-flecked eyes, and some of the color had returned to her face. “I could tell from the way he makes love.”
“You’re right,” Cyra exclaimed, and her face lit up like she’d just had an epiphany. “I guess I just never realized how much love and tenderness he expresses in everything he does. Watching him take care of you makes it so obvious, it’s impossible to ignore.”
“Hello, I’m right here.” I waved my hand in the air as I gave my women a helpless look.
“We know,” Cyra laughed again, and then she rolled over to wiggle off the bed. “It’s just more fun to talk about you. You make a cute offended face.”
“The insolence!” I let out a mock gasp and feigned a hurt look.
Freya rolled her eyes, but the stoic line of her lips slipped into an amused smile for a moment.
“I’m so excited about you and Freya having a baby,” Cyra said, completely unaffected by my clever theatrics. “It makes me want to get pregnant even more.”
“That’s hot.” I grinned.
“Gryff needs many children,” Freya declared once again. “You need more sister-wives, though, so you can still empty your seed and relieve your desires while me and the others are heavy with child.”
“Give it some time,” I said in a reassuring tone, then a thought struck me, and my heart rate increased. “Nia will be my wife tomorrow.”
“Oh, Maker, I know!” Cyra squealed. “It’s going to be awesome. Nia’s dress is beautiful, Gryff, I can’t wait for you to see her in it. It’s perfect for her.”
“Nothing else would do.” I nodded. “I can’t believe it’s almost here. I feel like I’ve been waiting to marry her for an eternity, but now there is only one day between now and then.”
“Aren’t you supposed to do something today?” Cyra asked as she shrugged on her clothes. “I remember Nia describing the timeline of events, but I was pretty distracted by the dress, so I can’t remember.”
“Cleanse myself.” I smirked. “So, I guess that means I need to take a bath.”
“Cleanse means purify,” Freya informed me. “You must be clean of body, mind, and soul before you join with Nia.”
“Sounds like what she said.” I frowned. “How do I do that, other than just taking a really long bath?”
“Bath is part of it.” Freya gnawed on her bottom lip with a thoughtful expression, and when she spoke again she’d slipped back into her native tongue. “I think if I were a shaman performing a wedding ritual like Nia has described, then to purify yourself would mean you look inside and face any doubt in your heart.”
“I get it,” I said as I nodded. “I need to take some time to really think about what I’m going to do, let go of any hesitation I have, and show up at the wedding completely ready to say my vows.”
“It is so weird to hear you guys go in and out of Mistral like that,” Cyra noted with a slightly confused expression. “It’s hard to follow sometimes.”
“Sorry.” I gave the dark-skinned summoner a sheepish grin. “At least she’s learning Mistral really fast. She still has trouble explaining more complicated things, though, so I’m glad we can fall back on the clan language to clarify anything.”
“Plus, the two of you can share secrets,” she pointed out with a teasing smile. “Although, I can understand a few words.”
“I could see our whole group speaking in a combination of the languages of the Southern continent and Mistral eventually,” I commented.
“What language will you teach the babies when they learn to talk?” the summoner asked as her gaze flicked between me and my wife.
“Clan,” Freya declared.
“Mistral,” I said at the exact same time.
My wife and I exchanged a brief glance, but then Cyra burst out laughing, and I couldn’t help but join in. Our first marital disagreement. At last.
“This is going to be fun,” my dark-skinned lover announced in a decisive tone once she’d regained her composure.
I had to admit she was right. The endless possibilities stretched out before me, and my mind reeled with imagery of my future family.
A short while later, I was alone in the baths.
I scoured my entire body from head to toe with furious motions until I felt like year’s worth of dead skin had been removed. I groomed my goatee, trimmed my hair, and spent some time digging the dirt and muck out from under the edges of my nails. Once I was cleaner than I’d ever been in my life, I dipped into the hot soaking pool with an appreciative sigh.
Fortunately, the baths were practically deserted, although I’d run into a few students on my way to the showers, and I suspected they were still there just out of sight. I didn’t care either way, since I was lost in my own thoughts, and I floated on my back in the pool while I stared up at the vaulted ceiling.
Tomorrow, I would stand before the entire magical community and proclaim my love for the most amazing woman I’d ever known.
It felt like a dream sometimes, until someone brought up a detail, or asked me a question about the plans. It would sound odd to say out loud, but I was grateful for all the time-consuming pieces and decisions that went into the wedding planning process, since it granted me many opportunities to remember it was really happening.
Nia Kenefick would be my wife. Soon, she would bear my children, and work as a team with me and the other women to raise them. Freya’s pregnancy really began our family, but I had a feeling my first child wouldn’t be my last.
Once I found a suitable home for all my women, I could focus more on filling every willing woman with pints of my seed, and the thought made my blood begin to warm.
I practically floated down the street back to my tavern room, and blissful images of Nia holding a silver haired infant and Freya toting a wild-eyed youngling on her hip filled my mind’s eye. I barely even registered the empty status of my room, but I did notice the bed had been neatly remade with the fresh bedding. My eyes had already started to close before my head even hit the pillow, and my dreams were full of extravagant lace dresses and intoxicating perfumes.
My eyes opened wide the instant the sunrays lit the interior of the room, and the first thought in my mind was the wedding. Excitement pumped through my bloodstream, and I hopped out of bed with an energetic bound.
