It was a smaller room than I had expected; the altar I stood on was only twenty feet wide and half as deep, with just enough room for a single table covered in various sacramental objects and a tight line of stools behind it for the band. Below the altar, a dozen short benches lined each side of a plush red carpet that ran all the way to a set of double doors at the far end of the room. The entire chapel was built from rough-hewn emberwood, decorated with simple, monochromatic tapestries along the side walls. Our sole source of light came from a ten-foot-wide stained glass window centered above the altar. It was a pattern I had encountered multiple times in my travels with Lia: a small white circle surrounded by a ring of seven equally sized panes of colored glass. The window blazed with life under the early afternoon sun, painting the otherwise dull room with dancing rainbow patterns.
My question about who would be in attendance was succinctly answered as I scanned the room and found every bench but one empty. Marten had found his place on the outside edge of the closest bench on my left. Hana sat beside him, wearing a dress of pale gold handspun cotton. Her black hair was pulled back in a tight braid in the same style as Lia’s, highlighting the rounded gray ears atop her head that twitched in anticipation. Marin sat in the center of the bench in a similarly handspun cotton dress, patterned with thick purple and gold stripes. Elise and Bella filled out the rest of the seat, each dressed in their usual attire; to my surprise, Elise’s fashionable blue overcoat showed no signs of the bloodstains it had borne a week prior. As I looked over their faces, I found each of them staring back at me with comforting smiles; even Marin met my eyes and gave me an encouraging nod.
The only other people in the room were the chapel attendants: two priestesses, one at each side door, and a tall, elderly gentleman standing in front of the altar. The wizened old man had translucently pale skin, a bald head, and bushy gray eyebrows that shadowed his pale, milky eyes. He wore a floor-length red robe beneath a threadbare, rainbow-colored vest and held a small leather-bound tome in one hand. When I appeared from the side chamber, he extended a wrinkled hand and beckoned me forward. I swallowed hard and obeyed, taking the short journey step by careful step. When I arrived at his side, he gave me a long look up and down, followed by a small nod of approval.
I heard a faint click from the opposite side of the altar, and my head snapped to attention to watch the priestess push open the chamber door. My eyes found Lia standing in the doorway, and the rest of the chapel blinked out of existence around me as I stared in awe at the most beautiful sight I had ever seen. She was dressed in an off-shoulder gown with a white satin bodice and a high neckline. At her waist, the dress shifted from pure white into a prismatic array of beautifully dyed fabric, which seemed to blend and dance beneath the light of the stained glass window. It swirled down to the floor and trailed a few feet behind her as she slowly began to walk forward. Her face was obscured by a veil, but her hair swung down behind her in a braid adorned with white flowers.
I spent an eternity within my mind staring at every inch of her, burning every microscopic detail into my memory until I remembered each turn of fabric better than my own face. Beautiful. Gorgeous. Perfect. A breeze blew across my face as I watched her climb the hill to my place under the shady tree.
“Wow,” Amaya breathed, “she’s absolutely stunning.” I remained transfixed on Lia as she took another step forward, and I caught a flash of
amber light as her eyes gleamed beneath the veil. “You’d better hold onto her, Elden. You’ll never find someone like her again.”
“I know,” I whispered, fighting back the tears of joy that threatened to blur my eyesight.
“Don’t forget the words,” she reminded me, tapping me lightly on the elbow.
“I won’t,” I answered.
Another eternity passed as Lia took another step. “Alright, Elden. It’s time to go.”
“No, not yet. I just want to look a little longer.”
“You have the rest of your life to look at her,” Amaya laughed. “As long as you treat her right, and keep her safe, and love her with everything you have.”
“Of course. Just like I loved you.” The tears rose again, this time bittersweet.
“And I you,” she replied. “Our time might be over, but your time with her is just beginning. I don’t want you to waste a single second of it thinking of me.”
I choked on a laugh. “Okay. I promise, I won’t.”
“Good.” I felt her lean in on my shoulder, and her voice lowered to a whisper directly against my ear. “Someday, when all your lives are done, you can come and find me. But not a second sooner.”
“I don’t know how long that will take.”
“I’ll wait,” she answered. “I’ll wait right here.”
I nodded. “Forever.”
Lia took her final step forward, and the chapel flickered back to life with perfect clarity. I reached out with shaking hands and raised the corners of her veil up over her head until I could see clearly into her eyes. “Hi,” I whispered sheepishly, my cheeks burning from the combination of my unceasing smile and the rush of hot blood.
“Hi,” she replied in turn with a blush that rivaled mine.
The priest cleared his throat softly, and we both turned toward
