Chapter 161 - Life Among the Tanti part 7

Finally, the day of the wedding came, and the entire village, it seemed, turned out for the ceremony. The rite took place at the edge of the lake where meadow gave way to a swath of powder soft sand. The warm weather had lingered, though the sky was sodden and gray with clouds, rain's moist promise, and the wind came whipping in from the choppy surface of the lake, wet and chill. But at least the sun was occluded, and my cheeks were clear of the tarry black tears that vampires weep in bright sunshine.

Valas had tutored me in the procedures of the Tanti nuptial ceremony for the past several days, and I stood with him behind the village shaman, who would perform the bulk of the ritual to bind our two children in matrimony.

The rites would be somewhat altered for this unusual wedding, as the gods of the Tanti were invoked in the ceremony, and there were many who believed that I was the physical incarnation of one of those deities, but it did not seem as though it would be a problem with the majority of the Tanti people. They had an abundance of deities, and they were not overly concerned with those they had not dedicated themselves to.

The shaman, a leathery old thing name Padtuk, invoked the gods of the Tanti, calling out the name of each one in the order of their rank in Tanti culture. The villagers, who sat in a broad semi-circle before us, echoed back the name of each deity he entreated.

"…And we call upon the god of the hearth, Moab, the goddess of the threshold, Anavetrazeesi, the god of tools, Heb, and the goddess Yenaulba, who sanctifies the food that we put into our bodies," the old man droned.

"Moab… Anavetrazeesi… Heb… Yenaulba…" the crowd reverberated gravely.

So many mortals—I could feel them staring at me with avid curiosity! I searched the crowd with my gaze, taking pleasure in picking out the ones who bore the features of their ancient ancestors. There was the one who looked like my Eyya. She was sitting beside Paba, fussing with his clothing. There was a young man who favored Nyala, my second wife, and another fine fellow who had Brulde's somber eyes. I spied yet another, a lanky woman, who had my auburn hair and long, narrow face. How many generations separated the two of us, I wondered, this long lost granddaughter? And what a miracle I had found her across such vast gulfs of time!

Babies cried and children ran freely through the congregation, some of them playing in the sand, as Padtuk continued to call out to their deities. Finally, he finished. Either he'd run out of breath or run out of gods. When his voice fell away, Ilio approached from the village, decked out in his finest attire. He grinned at me as he passed through the assembly, then lowered himself to his knees in front of the shaman.

"Valas, father of Priss, this man Ilio petitions you for the hand of your daughter in marriage. Do you approve of this union?" Padtuk asked.

"I do," Valas bellowed, speaking loud so that everyone could hear him.

"The father of Priss approves of this man!" Padtuk cried. "Summon the woman this man would take for his bride!"

Priss appeared shortly after, escorted by her eldest brother. She was decked in a long braided dress, her features obscured by an ornate tasseled veil. At the sight of her, Valas's wife and daughters began to weep inconsolably.

Ilio turned to watch his betrothed approach, his eyes shining worshipfully as she descended to the beach. Despite the flowing garments, her pregnancy was quite evident. I had not glimpsed her since shortly after our arrival, and I was shocked how big she had gotten with child. She looked like she might burst at the slightest misstep.

She made her way gingerly across the sand, Gibbus holding onto her elbow to steady her. The wind coming off the lake made her garments flutter. She pushed the tassels of her veil from her eyes so she could better make her way through the crowd, and I was struck by her prettiness. She was lovely like her sister, but her features were more delicate, gentler. Light complected skin, freckled cheeks with long honey-gold eyelashes perched upon them. Her hair had grown out since she escaped from slavery, and it curled at her cheeks and around her lithesome neck. Some of the villagers who had come to honor the ceremony reached up to touch her hand or stroke her swollen belly as she passed, and she smiled down at them.

Ilio stared at her fixedly as she crossed the beach to him, his eyes wide, almost frightened-looking. I knew that look: disbelief that such a woman might want him, and fear that she might snatch back her affection at the slightest provocation. 

She took his proffered hand, lowered herself to her knees, her movements ponderous. I narrowed my eyes. She was so big! Too big to be carrying just one baby. I lowered my mental barriers and probed her body with my enhanced vampire senses, trying to ignore the scents of all the mortals gathered around me, the delicious odor of their bodies. Sights, sounds and smells assaulted my consciousness, but I narrowed my focus, concentrating solely on the bride.

There!

I heard the steady, somewhat anxious thud-tump of her heart, but below that, softer and more rapidly paced, two additional hearts, beating almost in tandem: tud-tud-tud-tud!

Twins! I realized, the wonder of it flashing in my eyes. Ilio's betrothed was pregnant with twins!

I was so distracted I almost forgot my part in the ritual.

"Thest, father of Ilio, this woman Priss petitions you for your son's hand in marriage," Padtuk said. "Do you approve of this union?"

Valas nudged me when I did not immediately reply, and I stammered, "Y-yes…I mean, I do!"

"The father of Ilio approves of this woman!" Padtuk cried out.

The shaman called on the Tessares to bless their union, turning to the four corners of the heavens as he invoked their names: Great Father Sky, Tul, to ensure they coupled frequently and with equal pleasure, Great Mother Earth, Namames, to ensure that they had many strong babies, the goddess of the waters, Vera, to ensure they lived without strife, and finally the god of the winds, Thest, to deliver their prayers to the heavens.

All eyes turned to me as the shaman called out the name I shared with their deity, and as we had prearranged, I bowed as if to accept the shaman's entreaty.

"Rise before your fathers, Ilio and Priss. You are bound now, one to the other, in the eyes of the people, and in the eyes of the gods." And then to the villagers who'd come to witness the ceremony: "Let us celebrate this blessed union together!"

Twins! I thought with delight as Ilio helped his protuberant new wife to her feet.