Mathieu (White Flame Trilogy) - By Paula Flumerfelt Page 0,166

heard, as soon as the palace servants had come running into the streets, yelling about how the king was dead, fighting had all but ceased. And according to Darcia, who had seen it first hand, once the fight was over, Elric turned to Avanon, scooped her up and kissed her. Then he said something along the lines of: 'I thought I was the only one who felt something between us. I guess you won't be upset if I ask you to marry me, then?' Mathieu had genuinely laughed at that.

As Narrie orchestrated the clean up and reassembly of Ateri, Avanon had been a bundle of energy, bouncing around behind her. Mostly, Avanon was underfoot, but Narrie didn't seem to have the heart to tell her that. The two had done most of the clean up in one day; the explosion that had gone off were Anastasie's design and meant mostly for show, so only a few buildings had suffered some surface scratches.

The next morning Narrie had then reported that the wedding would be that evening. Everyone had scoffed, but in a matter of hours, the square of District 1 had been decorated and was now almost set to go. The ground was scattered with daisy petals of all the colors, and the altar had been carved out of some rare light pink wood. It was covered with beautiful lilies from Avian's garden, with Mathieu's permission of course. The aisle was also made of petals, however they were deep red rose petals instead of daisies, and the seating was being put in place. Mathieu was helping with the heavy lifting, moving wrought iron benches from the storage in the castle to the square.

Mathieu hadn't seen Solomon in two days, but that didn't surprise him. He was sure the blond man was busy helping, too, but Mathieu still missed him. After they moved all of the benches to Narrie's satisfaction, they started to hang the finishing touches on the square. Overhead, a myriad of fabrics were tossed and knotted from balconies and trees to make something of a fabric lattice overhead. The sky peeked through in some areas, the blue a stark contrast to the pinks, purples, reds, and golds of the fabric.

The suns were hanging low in the sky and Narrie sent the general populous off to get themselves ready. There was to be a feast for all of the citizens after the ceremony, so everyone wanted to get a little dressed up. Mathieu found himself being ushered up the stairs inside the castle to Avian's old room. A familiar red and black suit from so long ago was laid out for him, now altered to his new measurements. His hair, which he had begun to keep just past his jaw was pinned back and he found his way into the suit much easier this time around. His three Shadowriders sat on the bed, watching him.

Sighing, he looked at himself in the mirror. This was as good as it was going to get, so he smoothed his hands down his suit and headed out. Niveus followed behind him, her feet silently padding against the stone. They emerged from the castle, following the newly erected signs to the seating area.

Entering the square, Mathieu looked around. The suns were touching the horizon, but not quite setting yet, and the whole area was lit perfectly. Smiling in general at the happy occassion, he spotted Elise and Mina. Weaving between the guests and politely nodding to those who acknowledged him, he made his way to the women. Sitting next to them in the front row, Niveus hopped into his lap, purring.

"This is such a wonderful thing." Elise said with a smile, looking serene.

"I'm surprised you came." Mathieu admitted. "I didn't know if you would feel safe leaving your manor."

She patted his thigh. "I wouldn't miss the wedding of a friend for the world. I've been waiting for them to get together for a very long time; almost as long as I waited for you and Solomon.” That comment made Mina grumble under her breath.

Smiling, Mathieu pet Niveus’s head. “I’m glad Elric finally got it. It took him a while. Avanon’s looked so happy when I’ve seen her, though.”

Narrie bustled through the crowd, parting it with the loud grace she had never lost. “We’re ready to start!” She said excitedly. Turning to the group at large, she whistled shrilly. “Everyone, the Darc-Vaine wedding is ready to begin. Please take your seats.” Dressed in a dark blue