His laughter was like quicksilver through my thoughts, bright and shiny. Then he dropped his hand and bowed formally.
I watched him, struggling to contain my joy, struggling to reach the seriousness this ceremony required.
"Does my lover know what night this is?" I said softly.
His eyes shone like black jewels in the dusk, filled with such warmth and love that it threatened to steal my breath and words away.
"It is the night of the full moon," he returned solemnly. "The night of promises. "
I stepped forward, pressing my body against his. Feeling in the no-longer-slow beat of his heart an echo of my excitement. Feeling in the rigid heat of his erection the equal of my desire. "The night of destiny. "
The air stirred around us, running with slivers of energy that raised the hairs at the nape of my neck.
"You are my heart, my soul," he said, his arms going around my waist and holding me tightly.
"As you are mine," I repeated. The magic in the air got stronger, thrumming through the forest, matching the rhythm of our breathing, matching the beating of our hearts.
"Dance with me, this night and for the rest of our nights," he said. "For as long as the moon shines in the sky and for as long as we live underneath her. "
I shifted my stance slightly, readying myself for the more intimate requirements of the ceremony. "In her name, I offer you my body. "
Desire and something else - something more ethereal and powerful - swirled around us, warming my heart, tugging at my soul. The heat of him slid inside of me, so deeply that it felt like he was claiming every single inch of me. And lord, it felt good.
"In her power," he said, as he slowly began to rock inside of me, "I offer you my heart. "
The energy in the air was becoming fiercer, burning across my skin, making all the little hairs stand up on end.
"In her shadow, I offer you my soul. " My words were breathless, almost inaudible, lost to the pleasurable assault on my senses and the thrumming in the air. It didn't matter. The magic in the night heard and acknowledged it.
His hands slid down to my rear, gripping my butt fiercely, holding my body tightly against his as his movements became more urgent.
"Do you accept the gift of my seed?" he growled.
His thrusting was deep and hard and urgent, and the world was spinning, burning, with power, until it felt like there was no separation between any of us, that our flesh, the magic, the moon, and the night were all one being.
"Yes," I gasped. "Do you accept the binding of the moon and the promises we have made on the night?"
"Yes," he cried. "Yes!"
The words were barely said when he came, his body going rigid against mine, the force of his release tearing my name from his throat. Heat and power and magic exploded around us, through us, and my climax came in that moment, stealing all thought and plunging me into an abyss that was sheer and unadulterated bliss.
I rested my forehead against his, desperately trying to catch my breath, desperately trying to ignore the rising heat of the oncoming night. I would change soon, but there were still words to be said.
So I took a deep breath and raised my head, staring into the beautiful dark pools that were his eyes. "May the moon bless this union and grant us a long life together. "
He smiled and gently brushed the sweaty strands of hair away from my forehead. "And what the moon has bound, let no man or woman sunder. "
He leaned forward and kissed me. Gently, sweetly. Then he bent and gathered a small, silk-wrapped package by his feet. "And now, for the human part of the ceremony. " He opened the silk, revealing two identical, black onyx rings. He plucked the smaller of the two free and slid it onto my finger. "With this ring, I thee wed. "
I smiled and repeated the process. Then I flung myself into his arms and said, "You can't get away from me now, vampire. You're mine until eternity ends. "
"And a better place to live and die I couldn't think of. "
"Run with us tonight. "
"Oh, I intend to. No bride of mine is spending her wedding night with her brother and his lover. "
I laughed and kissed him, with all the fierce joy in my heart.