Page 43 of Where the Shadows Land (Garden of Hope #1)

MAIRUK

M airuk left Astoria with Bastian and Rowan in their cottage so that the other human could grant her insight from that side of the bond.

They took the remainder of the evening to prepare for the ritual and all that it would entail.

In the remnants of the sacred grove, they worked their magic.

Idelic, Leri, and Cardilan carved sigils into the surrounding dirt, marking the anchor points for the power that would rise while they bonded to their human.

Mairuk carefully considered each element that they placed on the altar in the center of the ritual circle.

Every item represented an element of the ritual, as well as their intentions.

A green crystal for the Spirit of Mieotsy and vines wrapped in an infinity shape for the Goddess Ayloo took the place of divine representation.

A small wooden carving of a fox marked Astoria’s place in the ritual, and Mairuk marked their own by placing one of their growths beside it.

Shells from the shoreline of the bay, two dozen pink carnations, and countless candles finished the altar .

The focal point of the ritual was the pile of plush blankets that laid out in front of the altar.

Mairuk would claim Astoria as theirs there, while their companions witnessed and verified their joining.

Their gills ruffled as they imagined it, but a heaviness sank into their limbs.

By all the laws of the land and magic that ran through their veins, Astoria would be theirs.

The bond of a loktossi was the only bond stronger than a blood oath.

Even the marriage bond bent to the strength of it.

In a few short hours, Mairuk would claim Astoria as their loktossi, as a companion. A partner.

‘It is an honor to have such a lovely creature under our protection,’ Fourth said.

‘The greatest,’ Third agreed. ‘She is beautiful, kind, and sweet. We could not be more lucky.’

‘She will squeeze and shatter around us when we claim her. There will never be a sweeter sound than the sound of bliss she will make as she becomes ours.’ Seventh sent a wave of deep desire through the system, their olctae twitching with the promise of her soft body on theirs.

‘She is not ready,’ First said. ‘ We must not lose sight of that. Her comfort comes before our desires. We will do what we must to satisfy the laws to protect her and keep her with us. We must come up with our terms.’

The Twelve who Made Mairuk all hummed in agreement.

They thought of what terms they would offer Astoria since Leri learned of her existence.

The traditional terms required total obedience, complete submission, and limiting the will of the human to what their Ardelok desired.

Those terms were sour on Mairuk’s tongue and sent an unpleasant shudder through their system.

All Mairuk desired was Astoria’s happiness and companionship.

Her submission and her pleasure were sacred gifts they would not include in their terms.

The First of Mairuk swirled several ideas in slow circles, but they did not know if such a thing was possible.

They cursed themselves for never paying attention to the loktossi ritual and never studying the limitations of such a bind ing.

They never planned on having a human, but she was the greatest gift Fate ever bestowed upon them.

“The preparations of the space are complete,” Leri said. “All that is left is for you to prepare your human.”

“We will be ready before the moon reaches its zenith.” Mairuk said.

Leri tilted their cap back toward the cluster of houses. “Have you discussed your terms with her?”

“No.” Mairuk’s shoulders slumped. “We thought we had more time.”

“Time is always in a short supply when you need it.”

“What were your terms with your loktossi ?”

Leri stilled and their shoulders tensed. “You do not want to use our terms as an example. What you have with your human is very different from what we have with Rowan. You are too gentle.”

Mairuk was gentle in comparison to their three companions who blew into their garden only when the winds carried them into Bostrai.

Leri’s suggested punishments when Astoria shot them were all far more extreme than Mairuk was comfortable with.

They wondered if Leri’s terms with Rowan were equally extreme, or if male humans simply needed more aggressive punishments.

Astoria found Mairuk when they were both broken and suffering.

Their beginning was rocky, but in the months they spent together, something bright and warm grew between them.

She healed the lonely ache in their chest and they brought the light back into her eyes.

Whatever bonds they forged with her, they wanted their terms to reflect and honor the hope they found in each other.

~

Mairuk poured a whole vial of blessed oils into the steaming bath water for Astoria.

As with what became their nightly ritual, she passed them the clothes she wore that day, and Mairuk folded them into a neat pile before they kneeled beside the tub.

Their chest squeezed as her eyes fluttered closed and she laid back and offered them her arm.

It hit Mairuk not for the first time how much trust she already put in them.

Her submission to them was a gift, and her acceptance of their touch and influence was a high honor.

She allowed them to take care of her, and she took care of them in turn.

They took her soft, small hand in theirs and kissed her knuckles.

At some point over the last few months, Mairuk’s feelings toward their human became something much deeper than simple affection.

Astoria melted under their touch, stoking their possessiveness.

Every part of them roared to claim her, mark her, and bind her so that no other got to witness the way her eyes fluttered closed.

No one else would ever hear the soft moans that left her lips when she relaxed.

Every muscle in her body eased under their hands, and they wouldn’t share that with anyone.

One of their terms, the only one they would never budge on, was that once Astoria was bound to them, neither of them would take other lovers.

‘Imagine reclaiming her after another has made her shatter? She’d be so wet and pliable,’ Seventh said.

‘No,’ the rest snarled in unison.

‘None of you are any fun.’ Seventh settled back into silence, letting the twisted thoughts fall away.

Astoria’s deep exhale brought their attention back to her face. She had not moved, but her lips flattened into a tight line and her brows drew together. Mairuk rubbed a finger over her wrist in deep, soothing strokes until her expression relaxed.

“We regret the necessity to rush our bonding,” Mairuk said. “You deserve more time. If we could, we would give you a lifetime.”

Astoria’s eyes opened, and she squeezed Mairuk’s fingers in her small palm. “I know.”

“Is it us you are afraid of?” Mairuk asked, their voice soft.

Astoria found them beautiful, she said as much often.

Yet, they were far larger than she was. Stronger.

Faster. Humans, as a whole, were delicate creatures.

The pair built trust between them, but it was not enough given Asto ria’s reaction to the news of their rushed bonding.

In her eyes, they were the nightmare. They were the monster she was raised to fear.

She had reason to fear Mairuk. They had no reason to fear a single human.

Their chest squeezed, and for the first time in their life, they wanted to be something else.

Something Astoria had no reason to fear.

“I’m not afraid of you, Mairuk.” Astoria sat up and sighed. “Perhaps I am a little. I trust you not to hurt me. I trust you to take care of me, and I trust you to keep your word. Despite that, I can’t shake the fear.”

“Tell us about it. Describe it for us.” Mairuk gathered the soap in the palms and began washing her, taking their time.

“I don’t want to upset you.”

“If we are upset, we will talk about it. Stifling emotions only builds resentment, and we do not want that between us. We can handle your storms, trust us to handle your fire, too. You will not burn us.”

Astoria was silent for several long moments.

Mairuk gave her the time to find her words and washed down her arms, then shoulders.

Each touch eased some of the tension building in her muscles, but it was quickly replaced by whatever thoughts ran through her mind.

When she finally spoke, her words were barely above a whisper.

“I’m afraid you will get tired of me. We’ve only been like this for a short time.

Of course you want me right now. But what if you lose your patience with my moods?

What if I annoy you with my outbursts? What if I stay broken and never heal in the way I’m supposed to?

What if you decide that I’m more trouble than I’m worth?

I’m a disaster. I don’t want to deal with myself. ”

Tears fell down Astoria’s face, and she screwed her eyes shut. “I don’t want to deal with myself and I can’t imagine why you would. Once you have the power to take my will, why wouldn’t you? I’d be so much easier to deal with if I wasn’t me . ”

“We never have asked for easy. All we have wanted from you is your companionship, exactly as you have given it. Give us your anger, give us your joy, and give us your bliss. We will take it all and leave you with your will because you are precious to us, Astoria. In your darkness and your light, we choose you no matter where the shadows land.”

“Mairuk.” Astoria cupped their pointed jaw in her small, soft hand.

“If we were given the time, we would have chosen to bond with you in the autumn. When the leaves match your hair and the only green we could see would be in your eyes. We would give you our full oath each night for a month before we bonded to ensure you knew the terms so well you could recite them in your sleep. If we had the time, we would have taught you the meaning of each sigil and helped you create your own.” Mairuk washed down her chest and sighed.

“We wish we had the time to prove ourselves to you.”

“You have.”

“Not yet, but we will,” Mairuk said. “Do you want to tell us your terms for our bond, or should we tell you ours first?”

“Yours first, please.”

“The law requires that your will be bound to ours to prevent you from harming any Ardelok. With that in mind, our first proposed term is that you are our responsibility and under our protection. Any who harms you in any way you define must face us. Second, you are free to go anywhere you desire as long as you return to us once a season. Third, you will take no other lovers, and neither will we. Our final oath to you is that we will never deny you the ability to choose for yourself. Your will is bound to ours, yes, but we will never deny you access to yours. Is there anything you want us to add or change?”

“I want a promise that you won’t abandon me. I also want a term about continuing to use pregnancy prevention methods until we both decide we want children,” Astoria said .

“It will be done. Is there anything else?” Mairuk asked as they continued to wash her.

“Not that I can think of right now.” Astoria tilted her head. “I am curious why we need to have witnesses. Your friends are going to what, sit there and watch?”

“Essentially, yes. The more complicated answer is that they verify we met the requirements of the law and will help tether the magic,” Mairuk explained.

“Many believe the more witnesses, the better. It is customary to hold the ritual in the garden’s center of power and invite all adults within to witness.

In some larger gardens, there are hundreds of onlookers.

If you are uncomfortable with them watching, we can ask our companions to turn around. ”

A loud, snorting laugh left Astoria’s lips and her head fell back against the tub. “Gods, somehow that makes it more awkward. It’s okay, they can watch. I’ll probably be too deep under your influence to notice them.”

Mairuk hummed. The image of Astoria’s dazed, pleasure filled expression looking up at them while they bound themselves to her in front of others filled their mind and sent a pulse through their olctae.

~

Countless candles adorned the ritual space, joining the pale light of the mostly full moon that spilled across the clearing.

Mairuk approached the ritual circle dressed in opalescent gossamer robes and nothing else.

The fabric was thin enough it allowed every one of the Twelve access to the gentle, cool evening breeze.

The ring at the base of their neck glowed bright with the magic in the air.

Magic brushed against every inch of Mairuk’s exposed flesh.

“Leri insists you are not using the traditional oaths,” Idelic said, their voice deep and sharp.

“They are correct. We have created our own to make Astoria more comfortable. She requested two from us!” Mairuk beamed .

Idelic grunted their displeasure and crossed their arms over their chest. “We do not understand why you have so much care for a human of all things, but you are lucky to have found such a lovely one.”

“Ours is lovely, too,” Leri said.

“If you like aggravating, loud, mouthy males, perhaps. He is almost as insufferable as you are.” Idelic shook their cap. “We do not know how we will survive three more days in your combined company.”

“What high praise,” Cardilan chuckled. Turning their attention to Mairuk, they clapped a golden hand onto Mairuk’s shoulder. “We are happy for you. There are fewer ghosts in the garden with her presence.”

“Astoria is a light, and we are grateful for her companionship,” Mairuk said.

“Speaking of companionship,” Leri said with a smile. “We spoke with the others and we each have agreed to spend a season in your garden with you and your human, if you will have us.”

“All of you are welcome in Bostrai at any time. There is more than enough room. The soil is in deep need of magic, and we are in need of your presences. There is always a place for each of you here.” Mairuk smiled at their friends.

While they were alone for many years, the three Rholctai before them did what they could to support Mairuk.

Their friends were here now, willing to visit and perhaps one day stay. It was progress, and that was enough.

The sound of human footsteps rustled behind them. Mairuk turned to face their loktossi , their future, and their light.