Page 109 of Castor
I wouldn’t be surprised to find them in our luggage later.
My greedy dork.
Castor and I both took three sips each, followed by Alastair and Tatsuya doing the same. It represented sealing the bond between our two families. Usually, parents were the ones to participate in the ceremony, but our brothers stepped in to fill that role.
“Not fair,” Raiden whispered from the front row. “I want some sake.”
“Ssh,” Bellamy said to him.
Gray sat beside Simon, his brown eyes struggling to stay open.
The exchanging of rings followed thesan san kudo. The golden bands each had a small diamond embedded in the center. Simple yet elegant. Castor slid mine on my finger, and I did the same for him.
Normally, the ceremony would end shortly after the ring exchange, but ours was a unique situation. Castor had asked me to join life forces with him—to bind our souls together as one. Doing so meant that if one of us died, so would the other.
With war on the horizon, perhaps it was a foolish decision. However, if the conflict with Asadidtake Castor, by the gods, I wanted to go with him.
I couldn’t imagine living in a world where he didn’t exist.
Alastair stepped forward to perform the ritual. As part of it, Castor and I had to speak from the heart in front of witnesses, followed by drinking wine infused with ancient binding magic. I knew what to expect after attending the ritual held for Galen and Simon.
“Can I ask a favor before we start?” Castor cupped my cheek. “Will you transform? I want to see you. All of you.”
My heart jumped up into my throat. “I fucking love you.”
“I know.”
I glanced at Tatsuya, and he nodded for me to continue. Yuma sat to his right, and she smiled at me. Some of my nephews and nieces sat behind them, including Hijiri, who didn’t like me. I was surprised to see him bow his head to me as our eyes met. His new wife, a daughter of the earth clan, sat beside him.
With the support of my family, I felt lighter. More so than I expected. I returned my gaze to Castor and willed my body to change. Scales spread along my flesh, horns curved from my head, and the sword sheathed in my back awoke, becoming attuned to my surroundings.
“You’re so beautiful,” my soon-to-be husband said in awe. He stroked my cheek.
“Shall we begin?” Alastair asked.
“I vow to love you until the end of my days,” Castor said with a slight shake in his voice. “My heart and every inch of my body belongs to you. That includes my smart mouth too. Sorry.”
The guests laughed at that. So did I.
“And I vow to never stray,” I said. “I will love you long after my soul leaves this world. Everything I am is yours. Now and always.”
“Now and always,” he repeated. His green eyes sparkled like rare gems. He had spent his life chasing down all the riches in the world, never once seeing that he was the most precious thing of all.
Alastair poured wine into a goblet and spoke Ancient Greek. I hadn’t learned the language, but Castor smiled as he listened. It was his native tongue. The words were a spell of sorts that would bind us together. He murmured some of the translation under his breath. The binding would only work if the people involved loved each other deeply. The magic would knit together our life forces, our souls, and unite us in this life and allow us to follow each other into the next one.
Then, we drank from the goblet. The wine was sweet with bitter notes. Not as good as sake. I didn’t care about the taste though. What mattered was the rush of warmth I felt after drinking it. How connected I felt to Castor.
It was just as Ryoko had said. The red string attached to my heart had led me to him. And there wasn’t a force strong enough to ever sever it.
Chapter Twenty-One
Castor
The second half of the binding ritual—that required us to have sex—was postponed for the reception dinner. Hand in hand, we made our way to the palace where the ballroom had been transformed for the occasion.
Fancy tables had been placed throughout the room, with a longer one positioned higher than the rest. A small ensemble sat off to one side, adding a flourish of music as guests entered and took their seats.
An impressive display of food was the centerpiece of it all. Colorful sushi, prawns, sea bream fish, and red rice. The four-tiered wedding cake Raiden made stood in the center. He’d done an amazing job.
