Set after Winter, about five years later.

That was it. There was no going back, not that she was intending on giving up now. It was most definitely just the stress taking over her mind, she knew she was ready. She'd known she was ready ever since Kai made her believe he would propose to her five years ago but ended up giving her her old foot back. The deception she felt back then proved she wanted a future with him no matter how hard she tried to dismiss the possibility.

Cinder glanced up at herself one last time in the full-length mirror, wondering for the hundredth time if she didn't look too ridiculous in the white gown. Iko kept repeating she was absolutely beautiful and that she would easily take away the Emperor's breath.

The problem wasn't Kai, though. What made her so anxious were the millions of people that would witness their union. It was stupid, but she was somehow seeking for their approval. Kai cared a lot about what the citizens of the Commonwealth thought and he might not have the heart to tell her, but she knew they were not all so fond of the woman he chose to marry. She understood them in some ways; she did kidnap him during her revolution and she did kill Luna's ruler, probably the most threatening person to have walked Earth during the third era. Who knew what else she could do?

A soft knock on the door of her room indicated the arrival of her bridesmaids, quickly followed by the appearance of Scarlet's head in the doorway. ''Can we come in?''

Cinder nodded, pushing every negative thought to the back of her mind. This was her wedding day after all, and she shouldn't have to care about what others would think of it. She loved Kai with her whole heart, and she knew he did, too, and that was all that mattered.

''So,'' Iko started, clearly excited to be attending a royal wedding ''I went to see Emperor Kai and Wolfe, and everything seems great from there. Kai is a nervous wreck, but what's new there? Oh! I saw Thorne in the hallway, and he said he'd be here soon to escort you to the ceremony. Now, you'll excuse me but I have to go back to the ballroom and make sure everything is perfectly set up. See you out there!'' The android stormed out of the room before the bride had the chance to open her mouth.

''I'll never get used to all the energy she has'' admitted Winter, mindlessly tugging at the hem of the top of her dress. The three girls stood before Cinder in a navy blue dress with a sleeveless white lace top. Cinder couldn't help but be in awe before her friends as she remembered how difficult it had been to find a dress that would please the four of her bridesmaids; Cress and Scarlet both wanted it to be blue (the latter explaining that it was one of the only colours that would not look ridiculous with her hair), Winter wanted something that would not make her feel caged in any way and Iko had said that whatever they wore had to follow the etiquette rules attached to a royal wedding, which meant that the dress had to be long and elegant. The day they had spent shopping for the perfect outfit had been exhausting and Cinder was no where ready to repeat the experience in the near future.

''You are the most beautiful bride I have seen in my life,'' exhaled Cress dreamily. ''No offense, Scarlet! It's really not what I meant, you were gorgeous too!'' A blush quickly made its way up the blonde's neck as she realized how dumb she must have sound at that moment.

''None taken, don't worry,'' laughed the other girl. ''Actually, I think I have to agree with you. This dress fits you perfectly, Cinder.''

The Lunar smiled kindly, examining herself in the mirror once again. Kai's designer had created her a dress she couldn't have imagined in her dream. It had long sleeves made of lace and flowed freely from her waist to the floor. A jewelry-embroidered belt had been added to the final product to make the dress and the girl wearing it shine. Finally, Cinder's hair had been put in a sophisticated low bun she wouldn't have been able to make by herself. She had to admit that the castle's staff had done an amazing job on her, and she was pretty excited to see the Emperor's reaction.

A maid knocked softly on the door, warning them that the ceremony would start at any moment. Cress, Scarlet and Winter hugged Cinder before they exited the room to go take their seats in the ballroom just as Thorne made his entrance.

''Ready to go, Your soon-to-be Imperial Majesty?'' A smirk was dancing on her best friend's face and it took every bit of self-control she had in herself to not hit him with her cyborg hand.

''Call me that one more time and I'll send you back to that cell you loved so much. And I'll make sure to add more surveillance so you won't be able to escape this time.'' She didn't like the title, but who said she wouldn't like the power it gave her over her friends? She wouldn't turn out to be like Levana, she'd make sure of that, but it wouldn't be awful to wipe that mischievous grin off Thorne's face with a few harmless threats.

''Now now, we both know you would be the one coming to my rescue - again. You love me too much. You wouldn't be able to let me perish there, would you?'' He puffed his chest with confidence while she rolled her eyes, clearly not impressed with all that nonsense.

The duo had arrived to the ballroom, where all the guests were already turned towards the door, eager to see the bride. Although she could feel all of their gazes on her, the only person Cinder could notice in the room was Kai. He was wearing a black tuxedo with a white shirt underneath along with his crown. It had been a few months since they last saw each other, and Cinder couldn't help but think that he had gotten even more handsome, if that was possible.

With a few more strides, she finally reached her fiancé, who was looking at her with a look of pure love in his eyes. He made her feel as though she were the only woman he could see, as he had done so many times before, and she couldn't help but think that she was the luckiest person in the universe to be able to spend the rest of her life with him.

The ceremony started and went on without any problems, which made Cinder exhale a breath of relief. Thorin conducted the marriage with all the seriousness he could conquer. Through all his speeches about love and complicity, Cinder was able to see his love for Kai, whom he considered as his son after all these years of advising him. A few words were shared about the groom's parents and the joy they would have felt to see him marry a lady as lovely and fierce as Cinder that he loved so dearly.

A few hours had gone by, and the guests had all left, except for Cinder and Kai's closest friends. The little group had decided to go back to the Rampion, in which Thorne and Cress flew to the castle, in remembrance of old times. Cinder had made a point of getting changed before reuniting with her friends, claiming that she clearly wasn't the type of girls wearing a dress every single day.

''Ah, there's my wife,'' exclaimed Kai as the cyborg made her entrance in the tiny room. She grinned bashfully, quickly walking over to him and sitting on his lap as there were no other seats available.

''Do we really have to witness that? Do we really have to look at you two snuggling each other? It's bad enough we had to be a part of a wedding between an uncle and his niece...'' Thorne teased them for probably the millionth time that night.

''Will he ever stop bringing that up?'' asked Kai to no one in particular. ''I don't know how many times I will have to repeat it, Thorne, but we all moved on from that awful memory a long time ago. That marriage only last twenty minutes, the worst ones of my life if I say so myself, no need to make it worse by saying that stuff.'' Although he feigned annoyance, the Emperor couldn't stop the smile that was creeping up on his face. He was so incredibly happy to have all of his friends with him on this magical day, and to be starting a new life with the woman who stole his heart so many years ago.

If he had known that his life would make a whole turn on itself that day he went to the market to get Nansi fixed, he wouldn't have believed it. The friendships he was able to build from there, the love he had found and all the adventures that had become his most cherished memories were all he needed to live a happy life, and he had many, many years to live it to the fullest.