Alice was shivering when she woke.

Her body was no longer entirely numb, but everywhere felt painfully stiff and a little swollen, like when she was a child and went outside in the snow without proper clothing. It was like she could feel the blood returning to her extremities with every heartbeat, and it hurt. Her fingers and toes protested as she wiggled them, eyes still squeezed shut.

And, she noticed, her head was on someone's lap. Gentle hands ran through her hair, nearly soothing her back to sleep, but Alice wrenched her eyes open and forced herself to look up at the person above her.

She wasn't sure what room they were in. It looked something like a parlor, or perhaps a study. There were bookshelves built into the gray stone walls, and the room was large enough that even the roaring fire in the marble fireplace didn't do much to warm the space. She was lying on a plush sofa, looking up at a pair of ghostly pale eyes.

"Welcome back to the waking world, my treasure," Xavier murmured, still running his fingers through her hair. "You gave us a scare."

"W—why is it so cold?" she asked through chattering teeth. Though she tried to sit up properly, it felt like her body was slow to respond, and Xavier had to help support her.

"We're higher in the mountains than you were before, and a little farther north. We'll need to get you warmer clothes before we can proceed with the ceremony," he said, bringing her hand to his lips to kiss her knuckles. "Come. We'll get you warm."

"C—ceremony?" Alice managed, giving a slight squeak as Xavier picked her up in his arms. She wished there was a blanket close by, or an extra coat. Something, anything for a little insulation.

Xavier wasted no time marching her down the hall. She looked for any other castle inhabitants as they moved swiftly through the building, but there was no one. They seemed to be alone, despite the lit torches in the hallways and the few doors that appeared to be open.

"Where is everyone?"

"Gathering for the celebration, I imagine," Xavier explained, adjusting her weight in his arms. "We are to be married, and then we will join the rest of our court for a wedding feast."

"Now?!" Alice asked. "As in... now, now?"

"As soon as you acquire proper clothing, yes. Within the hour, surely." As he spoke, Xavier paused in front of an ornate wooden door. Instead of putting Alice down to open it or shifting her weight, though, he simply raised his leg and kicked it open. The door swung wildly on its hinges, revealing a plush, dimply lit bedroom.

Alice wasn't sure if the door was unlocked before, broken now, or why he'd chosen that manner of entrance, but watching him casually kick the door open lit some kind of fire inside her that she couldn't describe. If she'd felt cold before, she certainly didn't as Xavier sat her own on the plush bed that was the room's centerpiece.

Alice took in the room as her husband-to-be lit a fire, fanning the flames until she could feel a little of the warmth leeching into her bones. The furniture was entirely in dark wood and black fabric, the firelight glinting off it as the sun set outside the westward windows. Besides the bed, there were two large wardrobes, two nightstands, and a desk on which papers were stacked in front of a high-backed chair. On the wall to the right of the entrance, another door presumably led to some kind of bathroom.

"Here," Xavier said, handing Alice a pile of fabric. She assumed he'd found them in the wardrobe while she was busy looking around the room, and was a little surprised to find they were not human clothes.

The first item was a pair of leggings lined with soft fur, which Alice gratefully slipped on underneath her dress. They weren't quite like what humans of this century wore, but they weren't bad.

The stranger piece was the dress. Shirt. Shirt dress? Alice stared at it for a long moment before she had an idea of how it was supposed to work. It was a long-sleeved garment with a wide neckline, and at first glance the dress appeared to be floor length. However, long slits on either side went all the way up to Alice's waist, ending near the top of her leggings. She would be entirely covered, but it certainly felt a little strange. She slipped the dress over her head anyways, though, keeping her back turned towards Xavier as she did. Finally, Alice wrapped a braided belt around her waist, smoothing out the dress before she turned around.

"Fae clothes suit you," Xavier said approvingly. "You'll need shoes as well, of course, but your old ones will do for now."

It was at that moment that Alice realized— she did need fae style shoes, and he couldn't have prepared them in advance because he didn't know her shoe size. The clothing, however, fit perfectly. Perhaps it fit a little too perfectly.

How did he know her size?

How long had he been watching her?

Alice pushed away the cold dread tickling at the back of her mind. Xavier watched her because he loved her. He knew they were fated to be together, and he'd taken care of everything to make this transition easier for her.

"Now, let us begin the ceremony," Xavier said calmly. He walked to the writing desk and opened the drawer, pulling a silver dagger with a jeweled hilt from the desk. The blade was slightly curved and looked wickedly sharp, and it made the hair on the back of Alice's neck stand on end just looking at it.

"Don't we need— I don't know, maybe not a priest, but at least some witnesses?" she stuttered, eyes locked on the dagger, but Xavier seemed entirely nonplussed.

"No witnesses are necessary. It's a blood marriage ceremony," Xavier explained, drawing the blade across his palm. A thin line of blood welled up across his dark skin, and where the light from the window streaked across it, the blood glinted a deep blue. "We bind ourselves together in the old fae way, by sharing our blood three times. The first has already been taken care of."

"Wha—" Alice wanted to ask for clarification, wondering how she'd managed to share blood with him when they'd never met before, but Xavier drew her in close and kissed her, cutting her off before she had the chance.

"We will be bound together, my beautiful bride, in body and soul. One heartbeat. One will," he murmured, smiling gently down at her. "It won't take much blood, if that's what worries you. One drop would be enough, given willingly."

He pressed the handle of the knife into her hand, willing her to take it. Alice's fingers automatically closed around the wood of the guard, and she let him position the blade over the outer part of her arm. He rolled up the sleeve of her tunic, baring her skin for the cut.

"You must make the cut, but it will hurt less here," he said gently, taking his hands away.

She paused, the blade in her hand poised over her arm, and looked up at Xavier.

"Why me?" she asked, locking her gaze with his. "Out of everybody else in the world, why do ya want me?"

Xavier looked at her with his pale, piercing eyes, and smiled softly, reaching towards her with his free hand to stroke her cheek. However, what came out of his mouth was not what she expected.

"Have you ever wondered why your mother hated you?" he asked, still smiling softly.

Alice flinched. This didn't seem like the time for that question in any way. However, Xavier had answered her questions so far, and she decided to give him a chance to make his point. Alice was silent for a long moment, but she finally nodded.

"It is because you have all the power that she never inherited herself. You have the potential to be more than she could ever dream of becoming," he said, smiling down at her. "You, Alice, are the perfect magical balance to my power and might, and that is why I want you."

A tiny thrill shot through her chest at those words. No one, in all of her life, had ever called her powerful.

"But... but how do I...?" She trailed off, hands waving in the air a little helplessly. She could be as powerful as a landslide crashing down the mountain, but that was useless if she didn't know how to use that power. Alice had no idea how to access any of this supposed well of magic inside her.

"I will teach you, of course," he said, waving his hand as if it was nothing. "You are a queen. You will be treated as such. You will learn magic and court etiquette, and we will spend the rest of our days together in... bliss."

Something about that felt strange to her, though.

"But you... you don't love me," she said softly, hating the way her voice cracked.

"Alice, my treasure," Xavier sighed, taking her hands in his. "Loving you is an inevitability that I cannot avoid. As birds fly and fish swim, so it is in my nature to love you. We have been divinely matched by the universe itself."

Alice had never been entirely sure what it meant when a lady swooned in books, but just now she thought that she understood. Her cheeks burned as a dizzy rush came over her. Xavier gently trailed his fingers across her cheek, over her jaw, and down along her skin until he reached the pulse point at her neck. He smiled at her as he tracked the tempo of her pounding heart, leaning in to press a kiss against her forehead.

"Drink," he said, holding up his bleeding hand.

Alice blanched, staring at the shining trickle of wet blood running down his dark skin. She had not considered that literally ingesting blood would be on the wedding menu.

"Remember: just a drop will do," he said reassuringly. "It must be done to cement our bond."

"This is normal?" she asked hesitantly, trying to keep her expression neutral.

"Normal? Yes, it's been practiced for centuries."

"O—okay," she said, steeling herself.

Alice half expected the drop of blood that landed on her tongue from Xavier's palm to be cold, just as the rest of him was. It wasn't exactly warm, but it wasn't frigid, either. It didn't taste of iron like human blood did— instead, an almost cloying floral taste spread across her tongue. She couldn't identify any particular flower, but it was enough to make her sneeze from the strength of it. Xavier didn't seem to mind, though.

"My turn," he said softly.

Alice gritted her teeth, gripped the knife, and drew it across the back of her left arm. Blood welled almost instantly, though she hadn't truly cut deep enough for much to trickle out.

"Do you give this blood willingly?" Xavier asked, bending over her arm.

"I do," Alice breathed, nodding.

Xavier cleaned the trail of blood from her skin with one long, slow lick that sent a shudder down her spine. It didn't feel like something her body normally did. It felt like cold and lightning, like something alive crawling under her skin and settling there.

"What was that?" she gasped, eyes wide. Xavier just pulled her in close and held her against his chest, her ear pressed against his heartbeat.

"The bond is growing," he crooned. "That's our magic responding to the blood ceremony, twining together inside our bodies."

Something about that probably should have made her uncomfortable— something about it did make her uncomfortable, but it was vastly overshadowed by a feeling of being wanted. Being claimed. Xavier wanted her enough to merge their magic together, their very beings together.

She'd never felt something that visceral in her life, and it was intoxicating to think it was directed at her. Alice would do anything to keep it this way, to make sure he continued to want her like this. Now that she'd come across this feeling, she couldn't bear to let it go.

She wouldn't go the rest of her life feeling unwanted. Never, never again.

"Of course, we still haven't completed the ceremony," Xavier said softly, his breath tickling her ear. "The bond will be truly complete when we consummate it. That will be our third sharing of blood..."

His hands slipped down her back, fingertips tracing down her spine until he found the curve of her ass, lifting her up so she was flush against him, forced to wrap her arms around his neck and legs around his waist for balance.

"Just... here," he breathed, his teeth scraping along her neck. "Just one bite, taken while we are joined."

"T— thought you were a fae, not a vampire," Alice gasped, leaning into his touch on instinct. Xavier laughed softly, lips brushing her skin as he spoke.

"Oh, treasure, all creatures can bite."

Another shiver, followed by building heat, seared through her bones and blood. Alice wanted to touch, to reach out to him, but she wasn't... sure... how.

She knew how animals had babies, and she wasn't completely naïve to human sexuality. However, her mother kept a close eye on her the entire time she'd grown up, and there was never much of a chance to do anything at all. Even stolen kisses had felt like an impossible dream, much less anything more intimate.

Nervous flutters built in her stomach. Alice wanted to do this right. She wanted to do what she was supposed to do, to be a good wife and a good partner, to be...

She didn't even know how to articulate what to be.

"W—wait," Alice stuttered, cheeks flaming. "I dunno if I'm... um..."

"No matter. We can wait," he said with a shrug, stepping away. "We have all the time in the world, and we have a celebration to get to."

"Sorry," she muttered, looking down as she fisted her hands in the skirt of her dress.

"Follow me. We'll go downstairs," Xavier said, holding out his hand

He didn't seem angry, and that was the only small comfort that she had. As cool and calm as ever, Xavier betrayed no emotions. It was clear that he would be hard to read, but she hoped that one day she would be able to see even the smallest show of emotion.

Alice took his hand, her smaller palm practically engulfed by his, and let him lead her down the hallway. As they walked, she noticed that one of the hallway windows was open, perhaps from cleaning, and that a little bird was sitting on the sill.

Offering the little gray bird a smile, Alice waved her free hand to wave, and the creature tilted its head.

"Stay alert," the bird said, but before Alice could ask what it meant, it flew away into the orange-tinted sunset.

When they walked down the last flight of stairs to the main floor, Alice was overjoyed to see a little ball of gray fur running towards them. Without thinking, she dropped Xavier's hand and surged forward, dropping to her knees in the hallway.

"There you are!" Alice cried, holding her arms out. The possum jumped up towards her, happily settling itself around Alice's shoulders.

"That took long enough. I was worried," the possum said, nudging its furry head against Alice's cheek.

Xavier's nose wrinkled as he frowned, eyeing the creature warily.

"Must you bring that... beast... along?" he asked hesitantly.

"He's not a beast—" Alice said quickly, shaking her head.

"She," the possum corrected, nudging Alice with her nose.

"She's, um..." Alice paused, fumbling for a moment. "Missy. Her name's Missy."

"Missy?" Xavier's eyebrow quirked, but he didn't immediately dismiss it.

"She's a friend," she said with a firm nod. "She goes where I go."

"Oh, special adventures," Missy said, chittering happily.

"If she must," Xavier said, nodding. He was no longer frowning, but he still looked a little suspicious of Alice's animal friend.

"Never seen a possum before?"

"They are... interesting creatures, I must say," he said carefully, still looking warily at the possum.

"Not from your world, I guess," Alice said with a soft laugh.

"My... world?" Xavier frowned, his step hitching just slightly, but Alice attributed it to the rough stone floors they were walking on.

Others came from Other worlds. That much was common knowledge, though some of what Alice knew came directly from Kaz. When the Appearances began, when Others started to show up in the human world, it was because they'd somehow been stuck here, forced into physical forms on Earth. They didn't have a choice in the matter.

Alice assumed Xavier's world was quite different from hers, though he seemed confused by her commentary. She opened her mouth to ask about his home, but never had the chance to do so. Instead, her jaw dropped and stayed open as they approached a grand pair of doors.

The doors themselves seemed to be made of carved crystal, something like cloudy quartz. Lights danced on the other side, flickering and floating and refracting in the stone.

"Welcome to our wedding reception," Xavier said, the corner of his mouth quirking up in a small smile. Without further explanation, he pushed open the doors.

Alice didn't know what to expect from a fae ballroom, but she couldn't have imagined anything even close to reality.

Crystal pillars that matched the doors lined the large, rectangular hall. Inexplicably floating candles lit the room, their yellow flames contrasting with sparkling, floating white lights that looked like stars caught and brought to earth. Vines crawled up the wall, blooming with strange, white flowers like none that Alice had ever seen. A sweet fragrance filled the air, but it was unclear if the aroma came from the flowers or the incredible plethora of food on banquet tables placed around the large, white-tiled dance floor.

"You built all this since the Appearances?" Alice whispered.

"It took us time, of course, but yes," Xavier said, a hint of pride in his voice. "Fae are quite resourceful, if I may say."

If he said anything else, Alice couldn't hear it over a round of absolutely raucous applause. She wasn't sure how many fae had crowded into the room for the celebration, but she imagined it must be every member of the Shadow Court present on Earth. There were at least a hundred people in the ballroom— perhaps two hundred? She couldn't tell. The shifting shadows cast from the candlelight obscured their numbers well, and as Xavier guided her into the room with a hand at the small of her back, Alice found herself swept away by the atmosphere. She gave up entirely on trying to count the people present in favor of watching her step, letting her husband lead her up to a grand crystal dais upon which sat two silver thrones.

Husband.

Her husband.

A rush of giddy enthusiasm swept through her at the thought. She was married! She was married to a full-blooded Other, finally! This was what she'd wanted her whole life, what she'd been prepared for since before she could remember. Everything had finally fallen into place.

Though... Alice realized she did not have any idea what she wanted for herself now that this matter was settled.

Ah, well. She was a queen now. She didn't need to want anything.

Xavier guided her forward until they reached the crystal dais, but rather than letting her follow him up the steps, he picked Alice up by the waist and twirled her in front of the crowd, pulling her up to the raised silver thrones. The volume of applause only increased, and a few scattered whoops and whistles floated through the air as Xavier kissed her in front of the crowd, then sat her down on one of the two matched thrones.

Both thrones were delicate, built of unidentifiable silver metal twined into the shape of interlocking branches that formed the base and backs of the chairs. Sparkling green gems winked in the light near the top of the thrones, where the silver branches flared outwards slightly to create limbs and leaves.

Alice had no more than a few seconds to settle in place before Xavier walked towards her, placing a delicate silver crown on her head. It was inset with green gems that matched the thrones, and somehow he had seemingly pulled a matching one from thin air.

"A crown for a queen," he said, nodding approvingly.

Sure her cheeks were flushed red, Alice had to fight not to fidget as Xavier took a seat beside her, making a dismissive motion with one hand.

The rest of the room returned to their own individual celebrations. The festivities mostly seemed to include dancing, but there was also plenty of food on display, and there was a pile of wedding gifts near the back of the hall. Nothing seemed amiss, though Alice wasn't quite sure what to do. She was about to ask what their evening duties were when a short, blonde courtier approached the dais. Xavier signaled the man to come forward, and he stepped onto the crystal. He was dressed in the fae style, and his frame was lean and willowy, like many in the room.

"Congratulations, my queen," the short man said, giving a deep bow. "It is a blessing indeed to find one's mirror soul."

Her list of questions was only growing as the night went on.

"Mirror?" Alice's brow furrowed. "What's th—"

"Our new queen is a little stressed from her journey. I'm sure you understand." Xavier placed one large hand on Alice's shoulder as he spoke, drawing her closer to his side.

"O—of course," the courtier said, paling a little as he glanced at Xavier.

The king looked utterly unphased at first glance, but there was something in the set of his jaw that made Alice glad she was not on the receiving end of that look. The courtier's expression seemed strained as he bowed to them both once more.

"May the shadows shelter you, Your Majesties," he said quickly, taking a few steps back.

If Alice didn't know better, she'd say he fled into the crowd. However, with as happy and celebratory as the rest of the court seemed on the dance floor, she thought it must certainly be a trick of the light...

But what if it wasn't?

"What's that mean?" Alice whispered, learning over towards Xavier. "And why'd he bolt outta here like a cat on a hot tin roof?"

Xavier sighed, leaning in close to kiss her cheek. Even his breath on her skin felt cooler than it should. He pulled away slightly, taking her chin in one hand so she would look at him, her green eyes meeting his glassy, pale ones.

"While you are here, you will speak like a queen," he said so only they could hear. His tone was gentle, but firm.

"Is... the way I talk a problem?" Alice blinked, suddenly self-conscious.

"You need to gain the respect of your subjects. Manner of speech is an important part of presenting yourself as a queen," he said simply, and though he had a point...

Alice had heard plenty of ridicule about the way Southern folk spoke. The students in her biology classes at the Appalachian Teacher's College looked at her a little strangely when she spoke, too, as her accent was stronger than most of theirs, even if they grew up in the South.

It was a point of semi-spiteful pride to keep her accent, something that made her feel like she retained a part of herself, no matter what the world thought of her.

"I can't be a queen in my own voice?"

Rather than answering, Xavier did something that Alice realized he was very good at: he changed the subject. Again.

"Why don't you go take a look at the wedding gifts? I'm certain there have to be a few things over there you'd like for yourself, hmm?" He patted her shoulder gently, nodding towards a table laden with gifts on the far side of the hall.

The subject change disappointed her, but Alice told herself that she should be grateful for her new husband's generosity. She had never thought a life in the lap of luxury was within reach, but now it was a reality. She was a queen.

As Alice rose from her silver throne, she felt the crown on her head shift slightly. The wrong size, she thought. Perhaps it could be adjusted later.

"Come on, friend. Let's go look," she said to the possum on her shoulder. The creature sniffed, nodding as best she could.

The crowd of dancing courtiers parted for her as she swept through the room, letting her pass smoothly through the masses of fae to reach the back of the room. Alice tried to smile as she passed, tried to conduct herself with decorum and dignity, but she was too worried about tripping over her own long skirts to put on much of a performance. Thankfully, no one seemed to want to do anything to contradict Xavier, and that included questioning her place as queen.

Maybe, in the future, she would have a chance to cement her place in the role on her own. For now, she was glad for the shelter that Xavier's affection provided.

The gift tables at the back of the hall were even more imposing up close. What had seemed like a vague, shimmering mass from a distance was instead hundreds— possibly thousands— of objects piled high on tables, on the floor, on errant chairs that seemed to be placed there just to hold gifts. There were gems of all shapes, sizes, cuts, and colors. Silver and gold chalices, plates, and other dishware gleamed in the candlelight. Rolls of luxurious, iridescent fabric were piled higher than Alice was tall, waiting to be made into beautiful clothing.

There was not, she noticed, even a scrap of iron.

Fae were sensitive to iron. At least, some of them were. Some witches descended from fae were also sensitive to it, but that was less common the farther removed they were from fae ancestors. Alice could understand erring on the side of caution among a court full of fae with varying sensitivities to the metal, and assumed that's why she couldn't see any common iron nearby.

Except...

Alice squinted at the pile, moving forward hesitantly. Leaning closer, she examined what looked to be a pocket watch lying near the edge of the table. It was silver in color, studded with green gems like her crown, and she wondered how the inner workings of a watch might be made without any iron at all. Maybe the sensitivity was different if the iron didn't touch fae skin?

She reached out to examine the watch.

"Ah, ah, ah, I wouldn't touch that," a voice said.

"Wha—" Alice turned, pulling her hand away suddenly.

Alice thought she might be looking at the most beautiful woman in existence.

Her skin was the same dark shade as Xavier's, but dotted with stark white freckles that looked like stars against a dark background. Her eyes were bright green and vivid, like spring itself, and her long, curling hair matched her eyes. She sported the same crystal antlers as Xavier and a scant few others in the room, but instead of humanoid feet, her legs ended in matching crystalline hooves that peeked out below long, wispy skirts.

"It's a soul trap," the woman said. "Very convenient for the more ruthless bargainer, though I admit it's an unusual wedding gift. Dangerous, too."

Managing to tear her gaze from the deer woman, Alice glanced back to the table full of gifts.

"I thought it was a pocket watch," she breathed, eyes wide as she took a step back.

"Just don't open it with the face towards you, and you'll be fine," she said with a shrug. "Technically, you need to open it and recite someone's true name to trap them inside, but it's better to be safe than sorry."

"Yeah... yeah," Alice said slowly, taking another very purposeful step away from the table. If that watch was only one of the gifts, who knew what other dangerous items were sitting here within reach.

"So... I hear you're the seventh of a seventh. Impressive," Willow said, quickly changing the subject. Alice wasn't oblivious to the awkward transition, but she chose to let it be. It was better to not talk about objects that slowly destroyed souls, probably.

"Can't be that impressive if I ain't earned it," Alice grumbled, slipping back into her natural accent without thinking. She clapped a hand over her mouth, embarrassed that she'd slipped back into her normal voice without thinking.

The woman laughed, showing wickedly pointed incisors not unlike a vampire's fangs.

"Oh, I like you. We'll get along just fine," she said, nodding approvingly. "I'm Willow. I'm the king's cousin."

"What do you think of him?" Alice asked slowly, careful to enunciate her words.

"Don't worry about hiding your accent around me. I don't give a damn," Willow said with a snort. "It doesn't change who you are."

"Yeah, I know," Alice said bitterly. "Plenty'a people come through town just to call us dumb hillbillies and leave."

"That isn't what I meant." Willow placed her hand gently on Alice's shoulder. "But anyways, what do I think of the king?"

"Yeah. I mean, he's..." Alice trailed off.

She didn't know what he was. She didn't know him. She knew her heart beat faster around him, she knew that he wanted to keep her safe, and she knew that they were soul mates on a level that seemed almost impossible to comprehend.

However, she wasn't sure she knew Xavier as a person.

That was probably silly, though. They'd only known each other a day, and that wasn't enough time to brush him off entirely. Surely things would work out. They were soul mates, after all.

"He's okay, I guess," Willow said, nose scrunching as she shook her head. "Sorry, got a weird dizzy sensation there. I've known him since we were kids, but it's like my memories are all scrambled."

"Are you okay?"

"I'm fine," she said, waving Alice off. "My father says it's from the fall off the horse I took when we first got here, but that was so long ago that I think he's grasping at straws."

"I know more about animal biology than humans," Alice admitted. "Sorry."

"You like animals?"

"I'm an animal speaker," she said with a shy smile, reaching up to pet the possum still clinging to her. Her shoulder was getting a little sore from the weight, but she wasn't about to give up the company of a friend. The possum hissed in a way that sounded a little like a laugh.

"Really?!" The way that Willow's eyes lit up made Alice smile even brighter. "I've always wanted to be able to do that! It feels so silly being a half-shifter and not able to talk to animals like full shifters can in their nonhuman forms."

"Half-shifter?" Alice squinted, shaking her head. "I didn't know there were half-shifters."

"It's a colloquial term for anyone who can't quite shift to a full animal or full human form. I'm luckier than most, if I'm honest. I can make it to a centaur form," Willow said sheepishly. "I have a fox friend who keeps her ears, tail, and claws even in the most human form she can get to."

"That's..." Alice trailed off for a minute, mouth hanging open.

"I know, it's weird. It used to be rare, but with more humans marrying in, it's becoming more common."

"It's so amazing, though!" Alice practically squealed.

"It's... what?" Willow blinked owlishly, bright green eyes wide.

"Just think about how your bones an' muscles have to shift to make that happen!" she said excitedly, clasping her hands together. "Not to mention heightened animal senses, a whole new center of balance, extra limbs, and you just change back and forth like it's easy!"

"I've... never really thought of it that way, honestly," she said slowly, one hand coming up to gently touch her crystalline antlers. "Thanks."

"I'm just glad it didn't freak ya out," Alice muttered, wrapping her arms around her torso a little self-consciously.

Out of the corner of her eye, Alice caught a glimpse of Xavier standing from his throne. He was tall to begin with, but on top of the dais, he towered over everything and everyone in the room. She turned towards her new husband, flashing him a bright smile. He returned it with a small grin, a nod of the head, and a beckoning motion.

He wanted her to come to him. That was enough time apart for the evening, apparently.

"Looks like somebody's calling for you," Willow said, nodding towards the pair of thrones at the far end of the room. "And that's my cue to go. It was good to meet you."

"You, too," Alice said, flashing a tiny smile. Maybe there was a chance for her to find friends here, after all, if there were more people like Willow.