Arthur and Tess returned to the reception after meeting with Gideon, and soon ran into Virion, discreetly informing of when the artifacts would all be completed, and of the extension to their honeymoon.

Back inside it was a near constant procession of people of all three races as they continued to greet and offer congratulations to the newly wed couple. Most of the people were nobles that Arthur, and some that not even Tess had ever met before. Seeing as this was a royal wedding nobles from all three kingdoms were in attendance, with primarily only the highest ranked nobles coming from Sapin, and nearly every noble family from Elenoir. Despite the fact that the royal families didn't really hold a great deal of power anymore, due to the formation of the council, they did still hold a great deal of influence, an influence that everyone wanted on their side.

However, from Sapin, Arthur chose not to invite multiple noble families. These families were the ones that sided with Alacrya when Xyrus fell. House Wykes in particular had the greatest military might in the city, and combined with only the city guards, they could have held the city, at least until a retainer or scythe got involved. Instead they took control of the city guards, and made the Alacryan take over effortless. Going as far as helping them suppress any resistance, killing hundreds of their own people, including the Helestias when it was discovered they were helping people escape the city.

Only Sapin experienced this level of traitors. Yes many nobles from Elenoir fled to save themselves and their families, but they still refused to help Alacrya. Arthur could never truly hold a grudge against those running to save themselves and their families. Those in Sapin however, he wished he could string every last one of those family heads up publicly, and strip their families of their titles. Unfortunately since now those families haven't done anything wrong in this timeline, his hands were tied.

As for Darv, the only nobles that were invited were ones vetted by both Buhnd and Mica, as with the civil war happening a lot of loyalties were in question. In the beginning of the civil war in Darv, it mostly consisted of commoners and a few low ranked noble families. However after Buhnd appeared as Darvs representative on the council, essentially their leader, many of the higher ranked nobles threw their support behind the pro Alacrya forces. Reason being, Buhnd was actually a mid ranked noble, but with a great deal of influence. If not for the support of the Earthborns, the single most influential house in Darv, Buhnd may not have been able to keep the support of the majority of the commoners, and lower ranked nobles.

"Prince Arthur, Princess Tessia," a tall elf with long blonde hair held back in a ponytail greeted with a bow, beside him stood none other than Feyrith bowing as well. "On behalf of house Ivsaar, I offer our congratulations, and wish you many years of happiness."

"Thank you Lord Ivsaar," Tess replied with a slight bow.

"Lord Ivsaar," Arthur bowed slightly as well, then gave a mischievous grin. "Lord Feyfey."

Lord Ivsaar and Tess stifled a laugh, as Feyrith blushed with embarrassment.

"Thank you for well wishes," Arthur said while containing his amusement, then looked around. "Last I checked you had another son, is he not here?"

Lord Ivsaar stood proudly as he puffed his chest out in pride. "He is, but it seems a young maiden has caught his attention. Ivsaar men always do have a tendency to attract beautiful women, and it seems Tellynnan has the gift as well."

Feyrith's face turned grim. There was only one girl he had ever heard his brother talk about, and flirting with her was no less dangerous than flirting with death.

"A-Actually father," Feyrith stuttered out. "I believe I saw him and some of his friends trying to steal wine from one of the servers."

"Really? I could have sworn I saw him leading the girl to the dance floor. Human, grayish brown hair, sky blue dress, I'm confident that was him with her," Lord Ivsaar said, effectively digging his sons grave a little more. "Ah, there they are," he said, pointing them out.

There on the dance floor was Ellie and Tellynnan dancing together. Thankfully the song was upbeat, if it had been a slow, romantic song, Arthur may have killed him on the spot out of instinct.

"Arthur, please stay calm," Feyrith pleaded in fear. "Father, that girl is Arthur's sister, whom he is extremely protective of."

Lord Ivsaar's face turned grim as he realized the severity of what was transpiring. "Please your majesty, he's just a child."

Arthur took a deep breath and smiled. "It's ok. I told her she can have some fun without me getting involved." The music stopped. "Besides, it's just a dance. It's not like I'm catching them making..." Arthur froze as he saw Tellynnan planting a kiss on Ellie's cheek.

"Art remember, you said you weren't going to interfere today, and it was only a kiss," Tess reminded him as she hugged his arm. "If you remember, our first kiss was a bit more than just a kiss on the cheek."

Arthur took a shaky breath. "You're right." Arthur started looking around. "Besides, I've never promised that Boo wouldn't..." he then saw Boo sitting at his own table with several platters of meat, this a few teen boys, who no doubt provided the meat, watching him.

"Regis where are you?"

"Sorry whipped boy, I'm stuck in the sanctuary. No terrorizing little boys away from your sister for me."

"Why are you there?"

"We almost had a return of the emo, so princess gecko suppressed him again. Then four eyes wanted to just go home, and once here," his tone turned angry. "that little newt knocked four eyes out, sent me flying and disappeared!"

"I regret nothing," Sylvie chimed in.

"We'll talk about all this later," Arthur said, ending the talk. "Like I said, I guess I'll be leaving my sister alone today, whether I like it or not," he said through gritted teeth.

There were plenty more greetings with nobles and other guests. The only meetings Arthur even enjoyed were the ones with his friends, although some of them included their families as well. They only had a moment to talk, but in some cases a lot could be said, as in the case of Lunaris and Kathyln.

"Congratulations," Kathyln and Lunaris said as they greeted them. They both bowed slightly, then Kathyln gave Tess a hug, and Lunaris shook Arthur's hand.

"Thank you," Arthur replied

"So when will you two being tying the knot?" Tess asked.

All eyes went straight for Lunaris. This was of course Kathyln's plan. She had asked Tess to help her and bring this up, as she was trying to patiently wait for him to ask.

"Well we better get going, I don't want to hold up the line," Lunaris said urgently, as he moved Kathyln along. As he did that he tapped Arthur's arm and mouthed one word, "soon".

Buhnd eventually came up to offer his congratulations, acting more like a good friend than a noble. This of course was perfectly fine for Arthur and Tess, as this coming from him was much more comfortable. They were actually a little surprised that he was even able to make it, with trying to end a civil war and all. This was of course only possible after his loyal forces discovered an Alacryan battalion hidden in one of the border cities, along with a large cash of weapons. Mica lead two battalions herself and wiped out the Alacryan's and took the weapons. This victory dealt a serious blow to the, now considered rebels, leading them to losing over half their territory in only a matter of days.

Before leaving the happy newlyweds, the old divorced Dwarf gave some marriage advice, more so what not to do, and whispered to Arthur a tip he could use in the bedroom. It was of course something he already knew, but that didn't make him feel any less embarrassed.

The party proceeded and the meal was soon served, giving Arthur and Tess a well needed break. There were many tables, but Arthur and Tess sat at their own smaller table, somewhat at the head of all the other tables. Arthur was eating the juiciest most tender steak he had ever had in two lives, as Tess ate golden salmon that glistened like gold itself thanks to the honey glaze. As they ate they talked a little between bites, but mostly focused on eating since they still had a long night ahead of them. As they did this Tess also looked out at the guests, enjoying the normal sight around them, a stark contrast from the war that was being waged throughout the continent. While scanning the room she noticed one sorrowful face in the crowd.

"She looks so sad," Tess commented abruptly.

"What? Who?" Arthur asked in confusion.

"Mica. Just look at her, she's depressed," Tess stated sadly.

"She looks fine to me," Arthur replied. Mica was sitting quietly eating her steak as conversations whirled around her, then downing a whole glass of red wine, before refilling her own glass from a bottle she requested from a server. "If anything it looks like she might have a drinking problem."

"Why am I even discussing this with you," Tess said as she shook her head. "You didn't even realize I fell for you until I took the first step and kissed you at school."

"In my defense, we had just seen each other for the first time in three years. I was still learning what the new normal for your behavior."

"Right," Tess said with a deadpan look. "And if I left it up to you we probably would have only just now started dating. Anyway, back to Mica. You know what's wrong right?"

"It's not my fault Bairon is on security duty. Mica needed to be here to essentially show Darvs support, and Gramps said Aya needed to be here as well, hell Aya had actually tried volunteering for security duty. This left us with only three lances above us, which is the bare minimum we can spare."

Tess looked up at him with puppy dog eyes, causing Arthur to chuckle.

"You're extra cute when you do that. I don't have a problem with Bairon being down here, but we need someone else up there to relieve him."

Tess leaned in and kissed him. "Thank you." She then waved down a server. "Please tell Lance Aya to come see me after she's done eating."

"Yes your majesty," the server replied with a bow.

"Claire's shipping nature is really rubbing off on you," Arthur commented with a chuckle as he cut into his steak.

Tess just smiled and shrugged her elbows nonchalantly.

—————————————————————-

After the meal Arthur and Tess took back to the dance floor, a temporary delay of having to meet with more nobles so that they could enjoy time together, and no one would question. At the bar Mica sat, having moved on from wine to stronger drinks. It wasn't easy for white core mages to get drunk, their bodies burned through alcohol rather quickly, but it also wasn't too difficult either. By this point the dwarf Lance had a very good buzz going, but still not enough to make her feel any better.

Mica poured herself another shot of a clear liquor, but before she could grab it a large hand snatched it away. She spun around angrily, ready to knock whoever it was across the room, but froze as she saw Bairon in his white Lance uniform taking the shot, then slamming the glass on the table.

"I hope you don't mind. After being on guard duty for the last few hours I needed that," Bairon stated while looking her in the eyes with a smug half smirk.

"What is Bairon doing here? You're supposed to be on guard duty still, you'll get in trouble for being here with Mica," Mica stated as she began to panic.

"Don't worry, Aya came up to relieve me."

"She did? Why?"

"Apparently someone requested her to do it," he replied as he turned and looked at Arthur and Tess dancing.

"I guess Mica owes them now," she grumbled.

"Would you rather I resumed my duties?" He teased.

"No it's fine," she said dismissively, then looked up at him lovingly. "You're worth it."

Bairon smiled as he stood up, and held his hand out to her. "Would you care to dance?"

She beamed as she took his hand. "Just to warn you, Mica is pretty drunk, I'll probably step on your feet a few times."

"Well it's a good thing you're so small then," he teased, earning her stomping down on his foot hard with her heel. He winced, then smiled. "You'll have to step harder than that to deter me."

—————————————————————-

"Attention everyone," Sylvie announced excitedly. "The happy couple is about to cut the cake."

The guests gathered as the cake was carfully rolled out by the servants. The cake was chocolate with a berry jelly filling, and was covered in white icing with red icing roses and with green detailing looking like stems. Standing at ten tiers the cake was massive by anyone's standards.

"So, we're supposed to save the top tier right?" Tess asked as her mouth watered for desert.

"That's my understanding," Arthur replied, then took a sip of champagne. "We're then supposed to thaw it and eat it on our first wedding anniversary. It's supposed to bring good luck or something. I'm pretty sure I can freeze it perfectly with my ice magic, and if I do it right it should taste just as good as it will today," Arthur replied.

"Do you think it'll still be good?"

"No clue." The cake arrived, and they both handed their champagne glasses to a servant. "But if all we have is one bite I think tradition can be satisfied."

A servant then handed Arthur the cake knife, and together he and Tess cut out the first slice and placed it on a plate.

"Smash it in her face," someone called out.

Everyone looked around for the source, many looking as if they were ready to kill the source. They weren't positive the culprit was found, but Claire was seen punching Jerry in the back of his head, sending him to the ground.

"Don't worry, I'm not stupid enough to do that. I have no doubt Elder Virion or Aya would kill me and I enjoy living too much," Arthur reassured everyone, earning a little laughter.

Getting a bite on a fork that had a rose, he fed his wife her first bite, only getting a little icing on her lips. Tess then took the plate, looked at it, then back up at her husband with a sly smile.

"Tess?"

"Teehee," she giggled. "Don't worry, this cake is too good to waste like that."

She then fed him a bite, also getting a little icing on his lips. However before he could lick it off she leaned in and kissed him, getting the icing off for herself.

—————————————————————-

The sun has set, and most of the guests have left, only those who had to return to the sanctuary remained. Even Arthur and Tess had left a while ago, a servant guiding them to their room for the next ten days.

"So," Bairon said as he finished his ale. "Your room or mine?"

"Funny that Bairon think he'll be sleeping with Mica tonight," Mica replied with a smug grin as she also finished her ale.

"My mistake for misinterpreting," Bairon said with his hands raised. "I thought us sleeping together every night in the sanctuary and you saying you wanted me forever meant something." Bairon smiled arrogantly as he stood up. "I'm going to get some rest, I'll see you in the morning then."

He then turned and started to walk away.

"Ugh," Mica groaned after he was only three steps away. "Fine, Mica's room."

"You know, despite being older, you really do act like a child," Bairon teased.

"Watch it, or Mica will crush your pelvis tonight."

Bairon immediately became serious. "Shall we go then?" He said holding out his arm.

"Hmm, I think we should at least have a drink with the others first," she said pointing to the bar.

Barion turned around and saw Aya, Pasta, and Varay sitting. Aya and Pasta seemed to be laughing while drinking, as Varay was eating a slice of wedding cake.

"Uneventful up there?" Bairon asked as he and Mica approached. They were not holding hand or even touching each other, in an effort to keep their relationship hidden from their fellow Lances.

"Of course," Pasta commented as he took a sip of a dark liquor.

"No one in their right mind would dare make a move here with all of the lances present," Aya added.

"So what were you laughing about?" Mica asked.

"Please don't," Varay groaned.

"No, please do. This is hilarious," Pasta drunkenly laughed.

Aya took a sip of a white wine then cleared her throat.

"Over the past two months I took it upon myself to ensure Princess Tessia's purity before her wedding."

"You're kidding right?" Bairon asked in disbelief. "You're quite possibly the least pure elf I've ever seen, why would you care about that?"

Aya's expression turned serious. "How I feel about how people view me and how I feel about how they view the royal family are different. Despite how elegant and noble my princess is, she is still a teenager, getting married to a teenager. They were being allowed to sleep in the same bed. Someone needed to make sure her image wasn't tarnished."

"What did you do?" Mica asked with a childlike excitement.

Aya smirked proudly. "At first it was simply watching, and letting my presence be felt if they ever got too close. Whether it be causing a noise to distract and interrupt them, let a little pressure loose from my core so they knew I was spying on them, or just literally showing up with some made up issue for one of them."

"Lame," Mica said, getting bored.

"Oh, it gets better," Pasta said, then reached over the bar for another bottle.

Aya grabbed the bottle of wine without looking and topped off her glass.

"I drugged all of the food in their quarters. Many times Tessia fell asleep shortly after dinner with Arthur." She took a sip of her wine as Bairon and Mica looked nervous. "At first it looked like Arthur believed she was just exhausted from her training, but he and his bond suddenly replaced everything. I don't know how," she took another sip of wine. "But for some reason, neither him nor his bond were ever affected." She took another, larger sip as she now looked frustrated. "I started being more meticulous and only drugged some of the food, but they still found and got rid of it." She downed her wine. "I went as far as shooting her with a sleep dart. Thankfully that worked."

"Well atleast its over now. You can finally relax," Bairon said as she filled her glass again.

Aya was about to pick up her glass, but her head stated bobbing. "That's what you think," she said, shaking her head, then slapped her cheeks, looking like she was about to fall asleep. "I drugged half the food and the wine in their room. I can't...let him have one over," Aya yawned. "on me."

"Oh," Sylvie said from behind the bar, purple wisps dissipating around her. "Do you mean this food?" She asked as she held up a large bowl of fruits and deserts. "And that wine?" She pointed to the bottle Aya was pouring from.

"Damn dra...," Aya stumbled from her chair, only to be caught by Pasta as she passed out.

"Nobody," Sylvie said threateningly as she looked at the remaining four lances. "And I mean nobody, is screwing with my chances of becoming a big sister."