'If you didn't exist, I wouldn't exist. Everything I've done is because of you!'

-D.J. MacHale
***

Rayna beamed with satisfaction as she felt the soft silk of her wedding dress.

After waiting for this day for as long as she had, she had to ensure that everything was perfect.
She would be the most beautiful bride anyone had ever seen.

"Are you sure my hair looks alright?"

Rayna patted her braid softly, careful not to tamper with the intricate handiwork of her companion.

"Of course. You look perfect."

The cautiousness in Olga's answer, did not go unnoticed by her. But she would not let that cast a damper upon her happiness.

"Are you ready, Rayna?"

Her father's voice sounded from just outside her hut, causing her smile to widen further.
She bunched her skirts in her hands and stood up from her stool, just as Edgar entered.

"Beautiful!"

Her father's eyes brimmed with unshed tears as he came to stand in front of her.

"Just like your mother..."

Rayna placed a gentle hand against his chest, looking at him with compassionate eyes.

"I know you miss her, father. I do too... But she wouldn't want you to cry in front of your people."

She motioned towards a flustered Olga, before smiling gently.
Edgar let out a gruff laugh; flicking at his tears with a swift motion of his finger.

"You remind me so much of her, Rayna. She was exactly like you- headstrong, courageous, fearless- and stubborn as a mule. Once your mother set her heart at something, not even the greatest power in the world could have stopped her from attaining it. And I see that same fire in you, my daughter.
You have made me very proud, Rayna- by choosing Gillian for your husband. I would have expected nothing less from you."

Rayna's lips curled into an exultant smile.
She could never get tired of hearing her father say that he was proud of her.

In a world where a woman was not worth much, other than spawning her man's seed, she knew there was very little she could do to achieve her father's acclamation.
Even now, his pride in her, rested upon the fact that she had chosen the right man for herself.
She had chosen the man he would have preferred for a son. As vivacious as her mother had been, Rayna could understand why her father never remarried. Yet, that did not prevent him from yearning for a son. It was the sheer love he had for her mother, that had kept him from fulfilling that yearning.

That was what Rayna had vowed to be like- a woman who had the power of dominating a man's heart, even in mere memory...
______________________________________

"I join you, Gillian, son of Adam, and Rayna, daughter of the Eve, in an eternal bond. May the goddess of nature bless your union with fertility, prosperity and longevity."

Rayna's skin tinkled as her hand made contact with Gillian's.
She looked up to his vacant face with an eager smile, finding it hard to contain her joy.

She was his; as he was hers.

They were husband and wife now.

A cheer rose amongst the crowd surrounding them.
The soft beat of drums echoed in the air.

It was bliss.

Nonetheless, seeing Gillian's face, one could have very well presumed this to be a funeral, instead of his own wedding.

Rayna did not have much possibility of confronting him on his behaviour in front of all the people; hence, she sufficed with directing him with a tight-lipped smile.

The priest engulfed both their hands with his own, chanting up at the sky, before proclaiming the ceremony to be over.
______________________________________

"Why the morose face, dear husband? Had you been expecting someone else for a bride?"

She whispered as she leaned in towards Gillian, mindful of the people around them.

A brief flash of anger crossed his face, before it again turned impassive.

Rayna found her irritation rising at his silence. He hadn't spoken a word since the ceremony got over, except for the customary replies to the congratulatory wishes they had been getting ever since.

The most animated he had been, was when he acknowledged her father's blessing for their union, with a short smile.

Of course, she hadn't expected him to be joyous on the occasion. She knew it would take him some time to get used to the idea of being married to her.

But she had definitely expected a more passionate response from him- anger, annoyance, rage even...
Anything, but this muteness, which was quickly getting under her skin.

One thing that was going her way, was the absence of that Lynette girl from their wedding.

Rayna rejoiced in the fact that she had been able to uproot the preposterous idea of claiming Gillian, out of the girl's mind. She had only done her a favour, after all; she never would have been able to match his passion and fervour.

It was all good riddance.

"The untameable stallion, finally reined in by our chieftain's daughter, huh?"

Kane's playful voice, caused Rayna to push her thoughts away.

She should be enjoying her wedding feast, instead of dwelling upon the fate of some insignificant girl.

The warriors of their tribe, all men whom her husband commanded, surrounded their table.

"He looks to be too stunned to speak. Cannot believe your luck, can you? Though, we must admit, we had anticipated this match for quite some time."

Rayna realised she would have to intervene; fearing that Gillian's murderous look would raise the men's suspicions.

She squeezed his arm, shifting the attention of his glare to her instead.

"He just doesn't like the furore. Aren't I right, love?"

His jaw clenched at her words; his eyes throwing daggers at her.

"I think our commander is too impatient to have some time alone with his bride."

A boisterous guffaw arose amongst them at Kane's words, causing a deep flush to rise to her cheeks.

The memory of the fateful night, resurfaced in her mind.
She knew she would not be experiencing something similar tonight.

Yet, a part of her, couldn't help but speculate about what it would feel like, to have Gillian willingly take her as his woman...

Would it at least hurt less?

"Enough, everyone! The feast is over. Let the young couple retire for the night."

Chieftain Edgar's loud voice boomed over the ruckus, causing everyone's voices to lower to a quiet murmur.

Rayna cast a demure look at the man sitting beside her, with his gaze fixed at the untouched meat piled on his plate.

"Gillian, my son!"

Her father's words finally managed to catch his attention; causing his head to snap in his direction.

"Take your bride to her new home."

Gillian's reply came as a stiff nod of his head.

The others, including Edgar, were too drunk with merriment, to notice the loathing on his face, as she hooked her hand through his elbow.

She was baffled to see an entire sea of people, so colossally blind to the storm brewing between the very two people they were celebrating.

If only they knew...
______________________________________

Rayna's hand ached with the force of the jerk with which Gillian removed it from his arm, the second they entered the confines of his hut.

She rubbed the spot with an annoyed frown, keeping her eyes on his agitated figure.

His fine tunic did little to hide the muscles of his back, bunched with tension.
He hadn't said a word to her the entire day, opting to just present her with the meanest glare he could muster, each time their eyes met.

His antics were soon beginning to get upon her nerves.

Rayna crossed the length of the floor, moving to stand directly behind him. She saw the sudden straightening of his spine- almost like a beast reacting to a threat.

The knowledge the power her mere presence seemed to have on him, sent ripples of pleasure throughout her body. The fact that she affected him thus, was enough for her.
It was the very start she needed.

His body was aware of her; whether he wanted to or not, they had been joined in the most intimate of the nature's ways.

Neither he, nor that foolish girl, could snatch that memory away from her.

Rayna placed a soft hand against his back, causing his muscles to tighten even further.

"Remove your hand."

She wanted to laugh at the distaste in his words; instead, she did just as he said.

"For how long are you planning to stare at the wall? Won't you come to bed?"

Her words elicited a deep sigh from him.

She stood at her spot, as he turned to face her; running his eyes over her with disgust and loathing.

"My patience is hanging by a thread, Rayna. If you have any regard for your safety, you will not dare utter another word."

Rayna could not miss the strain in his cold tone.
She sauntered over to his bed, and sat herself at the edge.
Spreading her legs before her, she leaned back against the soft furs and looked at his disgruntled face with tantalising eyes. She then spoke in a beguiling voice,

"Come now, husband. What will you do? Kill me? The same wife, you'd vowed to protect with your life, in front of the God and our entire clan? Forget about everything that has happened... We are married now, Gillian. What good it would do to us, to hold onto old grudges?
Forget about that girl. She wasn't fit for you, anyway. Married as we are already, we might as well enjoy it."

She continued in a seductive tone,

"I reckon you don't remember much of when we were together the last time. The night is still young; what do you think about making some novel, passionate memories?"

The vein throbbing angrily against his temple, told Rayna much of what she needed to know.
It would be taking her a long time, to bring him to understand what was best for both of them.

"Do not mistake my silence for my weakness, Rayna. I told you this once before. Tonight, I am letting you enjoy the last taste of your false victory."

Gillian pranced to her with slow steps, before leaning down and fixing her with a glint in his feral eyes.

"All that you did; all the scheming, lying and treachery- it will all bite back at you. And when it does-"

His finger twirled a loose strand of her hair, before he continued in an eerily quiet voice,

"-you will have nothing and no one, to fall back upon. It won't be long before you, and this wretched ego of yours, would be brought to knees..."

Rayna smirked at the absurdity of his words.
She caught his trailing finger in hers, twisting it firmly.

"This is your helplessness speaking, Gillian. You cannot believe that you lost to a woman...can you?
But you don't need to feel bad about that. I am not any woman, after all.
I am your woman. A man can admit his defeat once in a while. A bed shared by two lovers, is no less than a battlefield. I defeated you in it once. This time, however, I will allow you to get even. I will let you defeat me."

Gillian's lips curled up in aversion, as he pulled his hand back from hers.

"I have no intention of sharing my bed with you ever again. Now, get up."

She raised a challenging brow, pushing further into the bed.

"And why in the nature's name, would I be doing that? I am your wife. I am supposed to share your bed."

Gillian loomed above her with his hands perched firmly at his hips.

"I warn you for the last time, Rayna. Leave the bed. You may sleep on the floor; have the sheets to your liking. But I won't be having you sleep beside me."

Rayna scoffed with indignation. She pushed herself to the middle of the bed.

"What are you going to do? Haul me from here? If yes, then go ahead.
Just be ready to answer to my father in the morrow, why you let his precious daughter, and your new bride, to sleep on the cold floor the entire night."

His tense silence caused her to continue,

"A man is supposed to look after his woman, Gillian. It is not very seemingly of a man of your calibre, making your wife face such hardships. If you are so averse to sleep with me, the floor awaits you."

She pointed to the cold, hard floor, keeping a firm expression on her face.

A storm of ire, brewed in Gillian's eyes, making them glow against the warm fire from the flames in the hearth.

Rayna knew he could not go out; there were too many guards stationed near the vicinity of his- their- hut tonight.
Moving out with that sour expression on his face, will send every tongue speculating the worst.

A quarrel on their first night?

And if the news reaches her father...

There was only one option left.
And that concluded in him spending his sweet night, in the lap of mother earth.

That, or he could very easily spend the night in her lap instead...
______________________________________

"How do you manage to live with yourself?"

Gillian's apathetically wondering whisper was the last thing she heard, before Rayna closed her eyes.

He was asleep on a jute rug, lying on the floor. The fire had almost died down, leaving only a dull glow from the dimming embers.

Despite the drowsiness that had engulfed her, she found herself smiling at his question.

"Much better than you would imagine..."
______________________________________

When she next opened her eyes, at the first break of the dawn, Rayna discovered that Gillian had already left the hut.

She wondered whether she should stay in bed a little longer...

How would it matter, anyway?

She had not much to look forward to that day.
She was supposed to be spending this morning in her husband's arms; yet, here she was- alone and at a loss.

Had he gone to see that girl?

Had they decided to meet somewhere in private, without her knowledge?

Rayna discovered, that she was simply incapable of dealing with these doubts. It would do her no good, to sit idle, and speculate about what might happen.

No. She will check.

She will check to see, whether Gillian was keeping the vows of their marriage, or not.

For, if he wasn't, she would have him known exactly what sort of woman he had married.
______________________________________

"Here comes your beautiful wife! Come, Rayna. We were just wondering why he decided to attend the practice this morning.
It's not like we couldn't have done one day without him..."

Rayna smiled graciously at the men, as she made her way inside the arena.

The warriors, young and old, all stopped their training to glance curiously at her.

She felt a small sense of relief at finding Gillian here.
It was her first instinct, to check the arena for his presence; and luckily for him, she had been right.

"How he manages the self-restraint of spending the morning after his wedding-night, away from his bride, is beyond me. On the morning after my wedding, I did not get up, till the sun was high up in the sky."

Kane's words, spoken in a panting voice, courtesy of his excursion with a wooden pole, were met with loud jeers and laughter.

Having grown up, surrounded by such men, Rayna was accustomed to their crude language.
It had little effect on her; and she even added a small smile of her own.

Her husband however, seemed unamused, as he wiped his sweaty arms with a dirty linen.

Rayna felt amused at his efforts to avoid her eyes.
So much so, that she found the temptation of teasing him, too hard to resist.

She moved closer to the sparring men, with a sly smirk fixed on her face.

"Oh no, Kane! Gillian is just tying to vent his frustration. I am sure that once he does this, he would be able to develop the stamina required to spend longer mornings at his home too..."

The implication behind her words, was too straightforward to be overlooked, causing the entire arena to break into a fit of uncontrollable laughter.
The men threw jibes of their commander's poor 'performance' at Gillian, leaving him gritting his teeth in vain.

His livid eyes, met Rayna's at the spot, each filled with the promise of challenge and unparalleled retribution.

Her own eyes, held her stark answer-

You tested me first, husband.
And if you want, test me again.

I will make sure to win.
______________________________________

Author's Note-

Hello to all my wonderful readers!

So, Rayna has finally managed to marry Gillian.

What do you think is going on in Gillian's mind?
How must Lynette be feeling?

As I've already said, Rayna is a pretty crazy character. She has a very skewed sense of right and wrong. For her, everything is literally fair in love and war!

As I've already told you, Rayna has been raised in a nomadic clan of about 4-5th century. The topic of sexuality was not such a taboo amongst them. So, kindly do not be scandalized by some of the things the characters may say...

What are your thoughts about Rayna as a character?
Love her? Or hate her?

Drama? --->

Till the next time 👋