Mikoto and the Reaver Village (Amaranthine Saga #4) - Forthright . Page 0,123

sure he’d ever had more fun than keeping Dad posted with texted asides about Lilya’s impending betrothal. True, he loved the gossip. But some of the elation was knowing that Dad was safe enough to be snide.

Ribbons for days

Do not dismiss them lightly

He pioneered embroidered sigilcraft

Gonna start adding them to my work shirts?

So you had not noticed?

NOW who is amused?

“Apologies for denying you rest.” At four in the morning on Dichotomy Day, Glint greeted them at his back door in formal attire. Flapping a hand Yulin’s way, he explained, “Every minute of my day has been scheduled.”

“Thank you for making time,” said Lapis.

Lilya said, “More importantly, look who’s here!”

Our girl is putting Ever ahead of marriage

I see no issue with her priorities

Or have you forgotten that she is a child?

How can I forget?

Tenma languishes a *little* less over the age difference

It might be amusing to mention

the years between Tsumiko and me

Are you trying to encourage him?

Let us say that I am willing to indulge Lilya

Nice out

Have you progressed past sniffening?

Almost

Dogs

Ginkgo surveyed a receiving room that would probably see dozens of couples over the course of the summer. Banners emblazoned with the Starmark crest decorated the walls, and the drapings on the table also shimmered with copper.

The central table was a large square, with seats on either end for those scheduled to sign contracts. Glint presided between them, presumably to bear witness to the vows and to add his seal to the attendant paperwork.

Yulin and a small group of moths fluttered about narrow tables along the room’s edges, straightening already-tidy piles of paperwork.

On the groom’s side of the table, Tenma sat between Harmonious and Lapis.

“An honorary Starmark, you say?” asked Glint, peering at Tenma with new appreciation. “But Lord Mossberne, are you not Lilya’s go-between?”

Lapis tucked his arm through Tenma’s. “This boy is my apprentice. And Miss Lilya has enough support.”

On the opposite side of the table, Lilya hugged Kyrie and Ever to her sides.

Snapping a couple of pictures, Ginkgo sent them together.

There is a certain symmetry

Each with a dog and a dragon

I don’t dare point it out

But doesn’t it mean they’re kind of perfect for each other?

Show me Tenma

Again

Ginkgo zoomed in and snapped another picture. A good one, since it showed Isla hovering at his shoulder, talking his ear off. She’d arrived with Harmonious, and she was taking her duties seriously. Not as Tenma’s go-between this time, but representing her parents’ keen interest in these arrangements.

He blushes like a maiden

Is she his choice?

More like WE are

A practical alliance

For now, but probably not for always

Tenma reminds me a little of Mom

He wants a family, a home

He shall have them

At a wave of Glint’s hand, Scribe Dimityblest placed a handwritten contract before Tenma. Lilya’s offer for him, now in its third revision after Lapis and Isla had spent most of yesterday on the phone, quibbling over details.

Tenma’s only condition hadn’t changed—mutual exclusivity.

For the rest, he bowed to the wishes of Lilya and her family.

“Under normal circumstances, I would not have imagined, let alone arranged this union,” said Glint, who seemed oblivious to the intense looks he was receiving. “But the young lady is most insistent, and her parents are adamant in their support of their daughter’s right to choose her own happiness.”

“That would be you,” murmured Harmonious, his eyes shining with pride.

Glint went on. “Tenma Subaru, your existence is unique, and your future wife is counted among the stars. May your joy in one another create a new constellation on the horizon. Will you take a new name for the house you establish?”

Behind him, Isla gasped.

This was probably a huge honor.

“Do I have to declare that now?” asked Tenma.

“No.”

“Then I would prefer to wait. I’ll want L-lilya’s opinion on the matter.” He was such a schoolboy. Dropping the honorific didn’t have to be a big deal. The others probably didn’t even notice.

Ah, but there. Kyrie both noticed and knew. His small nod accepted the intimacy.

Lapis pressed a pen into his hand. Harmonious indicated the place for his signature.

With the faint scratch of a nib across parchment, Tenma chose his own happiness, sure that it would be shared. “Right,” he murmured to himself. “We’re set then.”

SIXTY

My Half

Timur dragged into Zisa’s cottage and stood mute in the hush, caressing Gregor’s silken curls. He was tired of smiling, tired of feasting. Worn out by toasts and dancing and laughter.

Everyone had presented themselves well.

Mikoto’s nobility throughout back-to-back ceremonies—induction and wedding.

Hisoka’s Dichotomy Day address, with Isla standing just behind, looking so sophisticated.

Harmonious Starmark’s booming re-announcement of the