Epiloge: The Wedding

Epilogue: The Wedding

            “Oh, Anni…there’s nothing for it,” Erica mumbled looking up at me with pins hanging out of her mouth.  This was the second time the dress had to be altered.  “We’ll have to take some of the binding out and add on extra material.”  I started to sniffle as Erica and Ice looked over the dress like surgeons.  
            “And we’ll have to do it quickly, we have about an hour,” Ence said turning toward me.   “Anni, don’t start crying, you’ll smear your make up.  No tearing up until the actual ceremony.  If you cry now it will look like you’re scared,” Ence said, as forcefully as a father.   I could hear the material tearing.  He handed me a tissue.
            “There, there girl, it’s all for a good cause,” Mashti said patting my stomach, which seemed to grow larger each passing minute, as she walked out of the yurt heading towards her son, the Ashkhan.
            “But your dress…” I wanted to cry…This wedding had become such a fiasco.  I was six  months along and had seemed to balloon overnight.  So much had happened in the months past.  Julan had finally grown into the role of Ashkhan.  Sinnammu had quietly stepped down as Wise Woman after Julan and I had come back in triumph over Dagoth Ur.  Mashti, who had proven herself as an expert healer in our absence was elected the new Wise Woman, much to Julan’s surprise and ire—she would always be handing out unwanted advice now.  
            For the first three months Julan and I set about making a blueprint for Ahemussa to once again become a viable tribe, fiercely competing with the Zainab for business.  I’m not ashamed to admit I used my new found fame and contacts to this end.  Kaushad made this task much easier by doing me the great favor of dying over a tall glass of Mazte--what can I say; some men just can’t hold their bitter root.  After Kaushad’s untimely death we had no more incursions from the Zainab and really nothing to fear if they had tried.  All of my retainers, except for Huleeya, decided to stay with the Ahemussa, at least for a time.  Huleeya was promoted to my chief advisor, who would handle a majority of my business with the Empire and the other Great Houses; no other king had a counselor so great.  His elevated status was a beacon of hope to all the other slave races in Vvardenfell, it was also a thumb in the eye of those holding them.  “You set the example,” I had once said to Sinnammu.  I would live up to those words.  They were words of life and death.

"Anni there's nothing for it."

            Julan had been right; after becoming the Nerevarine, everyone wanted a piece of me.  Couriers raced back and forth from Vivec to the Ahemussa camp.  Letters of congratulations and favors poured in, but there was one note, just one that caught my attention.  It simply said, Remember your promise, Annika. –C. My promise to Cosades and to that of my mother.  I knew I would make it back to the mainland, to Cyrodill and my family.  Oddly I had still received no summons from the Emperor, though King Helseth has demanded my presence.  “We’ll make that trip a part of our honeymoon,” jested Julan after reading the summons.  “I can’t think of anything more pleasant than spending an afternoon with the Wolf Queen and her whelp.”
            “Then perhaps we'll head to Cyrodill and I’ll take you on a tour of the Imperial Dungeons.  You can see where I spent majority of my time in the big city.”
            “Sounds like a treat…But, seriously, Anne,” he said gently, “we’ll go and find her.  Don’t worry.”  I wished she could have been here today.  All the people I loved were here.  Erica and Red were my bridesmaids, along with Vicky and Ice.  I was glad to see Vicky and Ice as I knew they were hesitant about leaving Dagon Fel, where they lived a life of self-imposed exile.  Ence was of course there to walk me down the aisle.  Mashti, Hassour and his son Hannat had come to stand beside Julan, along with Shani, whose life had taken a dramatic turn.  After her experience at Dren’s plantation, she had become a fervid abolitionist.  She traveled from camp to camp preaching the evils of slavery; her passion and fire had finally had an outlet.
            Over the last several days many of the people we had encountered on our journey had descended upon the Ahemussa camp.  Some came with an agenda like Crassius; I knew he wanted me to join House Hlaalu. Others like Archmagister Aryon had just come for the show.  Representatives from every Ashlander tribe had come; Huleeya would keep a close eye on the Zainab.  There was one notable exception to the long list.  I had sent couriers to Falura inviting her to the wedding.  Alarmingly, I was given word that she was no longer living in the manor she had purchased in Mournhold.  Perhaps she didn’t want to be found and frankly I would be lying if I didn’t say that a part of me that was relieved she wouldn’t be there.
            Never before ceremony like this in tribal history.  Very few Ashlanders married outside of the tribe. Occasionally an Ashkhan would take a slave bride of another race for his wife, but that was a rare occurrence and there was no happy celebration for the girl.  This was all new.  Julan said for his part he would just stand before the tribe and just tell them we were married.
            “That sounds rather dry,” I said glaring across our table at the Vos Trade House.  Everyone had joined up the night before the wedding for a rehearsal of sorts.  
            “Well, there’s really nothing to it,” Julan said carelessly. My glare had turned into a scowl.  Julan cleared his throat nervously and said, “Well by tribal laws, we’re already married.  I told you that, right?” He gulped, I glared.  Red started laughing.  She was already drunk and had been flirting all night with Julan’s childhood friend, Hannat.
            “Oh Julan, gods and I thought I was dense.  That’s not what you say to your bride to be!  You can’t just walk out in front of everyone and say, ‘we’re married, so be it’….. No, that will never do.”
            “Well of course I was going to say something more than that.”  The whole table turned around and looked at him.  “Really, I was.”
            “Julan, you must think of something nice to say,” Hassour said, setting down his drink.  “You’re setting a precedent, to all Ashlanders.  Come, we have a whole night to think on this.” Hassour rose from the table with his son Hannat and a still clueless Julan.
            “I’ll see you tomorrow, love,” he rose from the table and kissed me softly.
            “I’ll be the one wearing your mother’s dress,” I smiled.
            He began to walk away, then turned. “You’ll think of something too, Anni, won’t you?” He said softly, his eyes quietly asking.  He then cleared his throat and went on, “ I don’t want that Imperial going on and on.” I knew he wasn’t happy about Crassius being there.  And I would do my best to keep his flowery speeches at a minimum.
            “He’s  just there to sign the papers. I’ll think of something, don’t worry.” I didn’t have to think; I knew how I felt. “I love you, Julan Kaushibael.”
            “I know,” he smiled warmly then disappeared in the crowd with his friends.
            “Well, I don’t love those damned dresses you’re making us wear,” Erica pissed.
            “What the hell are you talking about?” shouted Red.  “They’re pink; they’re beautiful and they match Anni’s dress…sorta.”
            “Her dress is leather, Red.” Vicky said coldly.
            “It has pink beads on it!” Red shouted.
            “Still wretched,” Erica grimaced.
            “I don’t know,” I said trying to stop a brawl, “Erica, I think they’ll bring out your…eye.”
            “Gee, thanks Anni.”
            “I’ll make you a matching eye patch tonight, love,” cooed Ence, placing his arm around Erica.  “You’ll be beautiful, trust me.  You all will.”   
            I closed my eyes, then a sudden, sharp pain.  “Ouch!”  I was back in the tent, back to here and now. I think they were sewing me into the dress; it had come to that.
            “Anni stand still!  We’re almost done!”
            “Gods, people are gathering,” Vicky said turning back towards me.  “We have to hurry.”
            “Where the hell is Red!” Erica shouted. “I sent her out for water over an hour ago!” I peeked out the door and saw that Julan was there nervously looking around for Hannat.  I saw Hassour shrugging his shoulders.  After a few more uncomfortable moments, coming out of the city of guest yurts was a disheveled Red and grinning Hannat.  
            “I can’t believe this.  I can’t believe her!” I screeched.  A several people turned and couple of younger boys cheered.   Red just ambled towards us grinning ridiculously. I looked back at my friends shaking my head,  “Oh gods, what are the odds?”
            “One in ten, Anni,” Ice said smiling.  “One in ten.”

The End