Nimue laughed and kissed Maric before allowing herself to be pulled along by the women. The Lady announced it was time for throwing the bouquet. Who ever caught the bundle of flowers that the bride had carried, would carry forth the tradition of marrying next.  All the the unmarried girls and some of the older women if truth be told, jostled for position in front. Amid the laughter, Nimue turned her back to the group and heaved the bouquet over her shoulder.<br/><br/>Talia and Samantha engaged in a tug of war and then a roll on the ground tussle for the priviledge of marrying next. The others were ringed around them, calling encouragement. Finally, Samantha held the bedraggled flowers aloft while the women, even Talia, cheered. Faren came over to untangle her and swooped her in his arms with a resounding kiss. The wedding party broke into applause.<br/><br/>Lady Vivianne and Lord Varatt stood under the wedding arch, her back to his front and his arm slung around her shoulders. He kissed her on the temple, resting his chin against her ear.<br/><br/>“They all look happy. We couldn’t have asked for a more perfect day.”<br/><br/>She murmured agreement and made no move to disentangle herself.<br/><br/>“You can stay at the Tor until Maric and Nimmie build a more permant house and there is no reason why you couldn’t reside here. With the improvements the children have made, you might become an innkeeper.”<br/><br/>He snorted a silent chuckle.<br/><br/>“Being close to you sounds good. The rest is negotiable. Did I ever tell you about the time that I negotiated the release of some of my knights from the Saracens?”<br/><br/>Vivianne turned in his arms and silenced him with a kiss<br/>.<br/>Nimue slipped away with Maric and he carried her over the threshold.<br/><br/>“You can do this again soon, when you build us a house.” She said from the shelter of his arms. He kissed her and kicked the door shut.<br/><br/>“Maric! We can’t just leave our guests like that.” She protested but his kisses were fiery enough to take her breath away. When she finally came up for air, she laughed. “Yes, we can leave our guests like that. We have twins to make.”<br/><br/>A roar and a collective gasp gave them pause. Nimue peered out the curtain to see that Layla had returned but that something odd was happening in the yard. The dragon had landed, stretched out her wings and Maric's Black had walked up the wings to stand on the broad golden back. In  just a few heartbeats, the two were airborned.<br/><br/><br/><br/><br/>THE END