Archive of Our Own ^beta

Loptyr had been slain. After years of war and terror in a world dominated by the scion of darkness, Judgral could finally start healing. Of course, there was still much to be done, with Agustria being in the midst of a civil war, or Verdane's people being terrorized by endless bandit raids. But those would be fights for another day. For now, they could just celebrate their victory, if only for a short while.

Belhalla's halls were buzzing with people running here and there, their arms full of plates, decorations, and so on. The festivities that were about to take place had been decided at the last minute, so everyone was in a rush to get everything ready in time. As Seliph walked through the hall, they felt a bit bad for already putting so many people to work when they should all be resting and healing from what they went through during the war. Still, knowing what event they were preparing for, their excitement had long taken over their guilt. And no one seemed to be bothered by the amount of work either.

After a bit of wandering, – they had yet to fully memorize the whole castle's layout – Seliph finally found the room they were looking for. They knocked, and entered after being invited to do so. Two men were present, one sitting on a chair and the other one inspecting his outfit.

“Ah, Seliph!” Diarmuid greeted them, busy making sure there was no fold left on the other one's attire. “Is it time yet?”

But Seliph did not answer immediately, too baffled by what they were seeing to focus on what their friend was saying. “Oifey... Oifey, you're beautiful!” they exclaimed, almost jumping out of excitement.

Oifey smiled fondly at Seliph, all dressed up in a black fancy suit and a long red cape falling from his shoulders. “Thank you, Liege Seliph. It's thanks to you that this day is finally becoming a reality.”
“Don't mention it Oifey. After everything you and Shannan have done for us, it's the least we can do to repay you.”

“Besides,” Diarmuid added, “It's about time you two finally got your big day! Organizing a whole wedding was impossible back in Isaach, so you had to wait for so long, we just had to make it real as soon as possible!”

Oifey agreed silently. He and Shannan had been together for more than ten years by now, but, being in hiding in Isaach, having even the smallest wedding was too much of a risk to take. Even now, since the ceremony had been decided at the last minute, only their closest allies during the war would be present.

“Alright, let's go,” Seliph took Oifey's hand and invited him to follow them. They could feel their adoptive father's hand shake a little, indicating his nervousness. Diarmuid seemed to notice it as well, and the two childhood friends exchange a knowing look. Even though Oifey had always told them they were his number one priority, they all knew that deep down, he had been dreaming of the day he and Shannan would finally get their wedding. Obviously, seeing this dream become reality had to bring its share of worries as much as excitement.

But there was nothing to fear. Seliph knew everything would go well, because after having suffered so much, their fathers deserved to get their happy day.

The ceremony was taking place outside, right next to Belhalla's majestic gardens. Seliph smiled as the spring sunlight warmed their face. They arrived to the right side of the altar, and, instantly, the guests quieted down. Normally, the tradition wanted the groom to wait on the altar and the bride to arrive from behind the guests. But Oifey and Shannan were both men, and so Seliph had decided to get rid of the old tradition for something more fitting.

Shannan arrived from the other side, accompanied by Larcei and Scáthach. He was dressed in a traditional white kimono from Isaach, and had tied some of his hair in a bun held by two silver pins. He was simply dashing, and Oifey seemed to think so as well as he stopped to look at the man in front of him, his eyes shining so bright they could rival the sun.

Seliph brought him back to reality by tugging gently on his sleeve, and both grooms finally got onto the altar. Diarmuid, Larcei and Scáthach went to sit in the front row, where Lana and Lester were waiting for them, but Seliph had to stay next to their parents, as tradition - one they had no reason to bypass - wanted the monarch to stand beside the betrothed lovers.

Julia was standing between Oifey and Shannan, a book in hand. In the absence of a priest, – Coirpre was too young, and Sleuf, an ally of Leif during the Thracian conflict, had already gone back to his homeland – she was assigned to officiate the wedding. She appeared to be calm and relaxed, but Seliph knew she was at least as nervous as the grooms.

She cleared her throat, and, once she had everyone's attention, she started, “Good morning to all of you. Today, we are gathered to celebrate the union of two soulmates who, despite the war, the pain and the loss, managed to find each other.” She closes her eyes for a second, and her expression darkens a bit. “Not too long ago, our world was still dominated by darkness. A darkness that took many lives, and scarred even more souls.”

Silence took over the audience, as they all had at least one person to mourn. Seliph thought of their parents, and, no doubt, Oifey was as well. Julia gave everyone the time to remember the cherished ones they had lost, and then continued in a more positive tone, “But, now that light has finally returned in Judgral, we must not give in to sadness and pain. We must heal, and create a better future for our beloved home.”

Julia looked at the two men in front of her, “And what better way is there for that than to celebrate the union of those who allowed the light to shine again? In a world of darkness, Lord Oifey and Prince Shannan raised together the scion of light, our new monarch, as well as their trusted friends.” Julia quickly turned her gaze toward Seliph, who blushed a little at the expression 'scion of light'. “Thanks to them, hope could be reborn, and with hope, Judgral was able to fight for its liberation. Today, we celebrate their love for each other, but also their love for the children they raised, because it's what liberated us from darkness.”

Seliph was positively surprised. They had never known Julia had such talent for speaking in public. Her words stirred them in a way they had never felt before, and, looking at the crowd, it seemed they were not the only one.

“Prince Shannan, Lord Oifey,’ she continued after a small pause, “you can now put the ring on your partner’s finger.”

The grooms smiled, as if they had been waiting forever for this moment - which, no doubt, was actually the case. Oifey took his ring out first, and put it on Shannan’s finger. “I’ll always be by your side, no matter what,” he said while doing so.

Shannan then did the same, all the while answering, “And I’ll always be there to protect you.”

“Very well,” Julia nodded, and turned toward Shannan first, “Shannan, prince of Isaach and descendant of the holy crusader Ód, do you take Oifey, lord of Chalphy and descendant of the holy crusader Baldr to be your wedded husband? Do you vow to honor and cherish him, no matter what hardships might come your way?”

Shannan looked at Oifey lovingly, “Yes. Yes, I do.”

Julia then turned toward Oifey, “Oifey, lord of Chalphy and descendant of the holy crusader Baldr, do you take Shannan, prince of Issach and descendant of the holy crusader Ód to be your wedded husband? Do you vow to honor and cherish him, no matter what hardships might come your way?”

“I do,” Oifey answered solemnly.

“Then may the light of Naga bless your union, as I now declare you bound by the bonds of marriage. You may now kiss.”

And kiss they did, as the whole crowd applauded them as much as Julia for her great performance. Seliph even caught a glimpse of Lester trying to prevent Lana from rushing to her girlfriend’s side. The couple held hands as they started walking down the altar and then forward. With the ceremony finished, the festivities could now begin.

Instead of a big fancy meal that would probably take forever and bore them all to death, it had been decided to organize a buffet, so everyone could take a bite whenever they felt like it. Meanwhile, Lene, Lara and Homer were in charge of musical entertainment, taking turns playing an instrument or singing so they could also enjoy the festivities a bit.

Oifey and Shannan danced for about an hour or so without a pause. Of course, it was together for the most part, but Oifey also offered a dance to Seliph, Lester and Lana, while Shannan had some fun with Larcei, Scáthach and Diarmuid. from afar, they looked like a real family - because, deep down, that was what they were. A family of lonely individuals who had found solace in each other in the midst of war and loss.

However, after some time, Oifey felt tired of dancing, and also tired of the crowd. He decided to take a break away from the party, under the shade of a small willow tree. It did not take long before someone else joined him.

“Already tired? You’re getting old, dear,” Shannan teased him.

Oifey chuckled without replying, only turning his gaze toward the crowd of dancing guests. He saw Seliph twirling with Larcei and Ares, Lana resting in the arms of Julia in a corner, Diarmuid and Lester sitting at a table with Nanna and Leif, and Scáthach leaning against the wall near where Lene was playing the lute, probably enjoying the music.

“They’ve grown up so much…” he finally muttered, a hint of nostalgia in his voice.

“You can say that again,” replied Shannan, knowing exactly who his husband was talking about. “They’ve fought in a war, explored the world, met new friends, found love… guess they’re not kids anymore, eh?”

“Maybe not,” admitted Oifey, “but they’ll always be our children.”

“Of course. Just because we’re settling down doesn’t mean we won’t pay them a visit from time to time. They better not think they can get rid of us that easily!” Shannan leaned on Oifey’s shoulder, and then said in a lower voice, “But, I’ll admit, I’ll miss seeing them every day.”

They both closed their eyes and stayed like this for a while, reminiscing about all that time spent in Tirnanog. They remembered thinking it was only temporary at first, until Edain had come to them with news of the battle of Belhalla and the death of most of their friends. They remembered trying to figure out how to take care of six little kids when they were still only teenagers themselves and Edain was so traumatized she could barely take care of herself. They remembered waking up every hour during the night, because one of the kids was hungry, or had had a nightmare, or had needed their diaper to be changed.

But, despite all of that, raising the children had mostly brought them happiness. They had taught them how to fight, they had gone on walks with them, they had cooked together, read books, played games… In their little hiding place, far away from the war and the pain, they had found a reason to continue fighting despite having already lost so much.

“Oifey? Shannan? Is everything alright?”

While they were resting, Seliph seemed to have noticed their absence. Oifey smiled and immediately reassured them, “Yes, no need to worry, Liege Seliph. We were simply taking a break.”

“Besides, we were just about to head back,” Shannan added while getting up. Oifey nodded in agreement, doing so as well. It was their wedding after all, they could not be away for too long.

“Oh, no, no need to rush!” Seliph assured them with nervous gestures. “I only wanted to check up on you, but if you need some time alone it's fine!”

Shannan placed an arm around Seliph's shoulders and replied, “Now, now kiddo, no more arguing! Let's get back to our guests, shall we?”

Oifey gave an disapproving look to his husband. Now that Seliph was officially Grannvale’s monarch, one could no longer talk to them so casually, even the man who had raised them. But Seliph did not mind, and simply followed Shannan. The children of Tirnanog - along with Julia - were all waiting for them, and, as soon as they got back, Larcei and Diarmuid dragged them along for another dance.

Oifey sighed, but joined in as well. In the end, Shannan was right. No matter the station any of them held now, they would always be a family.

A found family.