Page 24 of The Holly King's Sacrifice

“And what does all this mean?” I ask when we pull away. “The bracelets, the washing, the trials…”

Ulfric sobers, his expression grave.

“We wish to make an alliance with your people,” he says. “And our union would be the first step toward taking your planet back from the Boreans that seek to destroy it. I offer myself to you, Aspen, if you’ll have me. Not only as an emissary of the Skoll, but as a steadfast companion.”

With his arms around me, I can’t see any other way forward. I’ve learned so much already, and the future is bright where it was always dark before.

So I gaze into his silver eyes and I give him my answer.

“Yes.”

Ulfric reaches for the last velvet pouch on the bed, the biggest of them all. He pulls a golden crown of branches from it, then places it on my head. I gaze up at him, never wanting to leave his side.

And I realize I don’t have to when he says, “Then tonight, I shall make you my Snow Queen.”

12

Aspen

Therearefewsimilaritiesbetween an Elixir Ceremony and a human wedding—especially when it falls on the darkest night of the year.

The sun sets, and the stars come out to shine down on the glittering snow. Ulfric takes my hand and brings me to the bonfire where we shared our first night together. I was terrified the first time I was here, but now, when I see ulfric in his bone mask, it sends a shiver of anticipation down my spine.

Because Ulfric isn’t just the Holly King.

He’s mine.

I wear a glittering golden robe as we make our way toward the bonfire, my body on full display for the rest of the Skoll war band. There’s no sense in feeling shame anymore, not when I’ve been through what I have. I’ve fought an alien beast and chosen to forge an alliance with the devil, and I’m never going back.

Ulfric takes my arm and we ascend the dais, his fur cloak trailing alongside my golden gown. We turn and face the war band, the Skoll going silent.

“The Snow Queen has accepted our alliance!”

The war band cheers, and my heart swells. Manistique seems so far away, even though it’s just on the other side of the dense, snow-covered forest.

“I caught her in the Hunt,” Ulfric continues. “We hunted the feast’s bounty. She brought me back to life. And now…she will be my wife.”

He looks toward me, and I can tell he’s smiling behind his bone mask as the feast begins.

Drums sound around the fire, and alien instruments start up a tune. The fire crackles merrily, and the scent of pine and woodsmoke and mulled wine envelops me. Ulfric sits in the throne upon the dais, removing his mask and setting it on a pedestal beside us, then he pats his lap.

“Come to me, fairest Aspen,” he murmurs. “Sit upon my knee, and be my wife.”

I fall into his lap, feeling his cock already firm beneath my thigh. He gazes at me with lust-glazed silver eyes, his tongue sliding along his lips. He’s walked me through this ceremony already, but I can feel the anticipation building in the pit of my stomach, the glimmer of need at the apex of my thighs. His hand strokes slow circles across my back, and I lean into the comfort of that touch.

“I’m nervous,” I murmur, looking him in the eye.

“There is no need to be,” he says. “Only pleasure awaits; we need not worry about anything past tonight, for the moment.”

Warlord Odran brings us the Elixir, silver fluid drifting like mercury in a stone chalice. Ulfric and I stand side by side, barely dressed, as the music and laughter and dancing around the bonfire goes quiet once again.

“Am I supposed to say something?” I whisper, glancing at Ulfric.

He smiles. “We do not say vows amongst the Skoll,” he says. “We swear our commitment through our actions, and through our fidelity to one another. Beyond that, we merely trust that our companion will always be with us amongst the stars.”

I nod, and I look up at Ulfric as he takes the chalice in his hands. He takes a modest drink of the draught, and his irises expand suddenly, his eyes flaring with light. The color seems suddenly like my own, throwing me.

Then he extends the chalice to me, and I go to take it from him—but he puts it to my lips instead.

---