The Tower: Happily Ever After

Bonding

On the morning of the bonding, we all went to help Billy get ready after the Henhalda was completed. He looked beautiful in a tunic that looked like it was woven from the stars themselves. He wore a red cloak over the top of it and a white and gold kippah as a way of honoring his Jewish roots. Piper was with us, while Flynn was with Teddy and his family. Piper wore a simple white gown tied with gold rope and a gold circlet on her head with a red gemstone in the middle.

When they were ready we went into the throne room. It was open to Asgard again, and a large crowd had gathered. Large gold chairs had been set out beside the throne for us to sit in while the children and close friends of the family stood in a row on either side of the steps. The babies who were now almost one were being held by Loki and Fandral who stood together at the top of the stairs. A cheer broke out and the band started playing a processional as Billy and Teddy entered from opposite sides of the room. Billy held Piper's hand as he walked toward Teddy who was holding a very shy-looking Flynn on his hip. Teddy wore a black tunic and pants with large diagonal purple bands down them and a purple cloak. On his head was a gold circlet that wrapped around the back of his head and sat on his ears. His blond hair tumbled in curls over the top of it. Flynn was in the same white and gold as his sister.

When they met in the middle, the two men linked hands and approached the throne where we were all standing. The smiles and looks of love on their faces were so pure and genuine it made my heart ache.

They climbed the stairs together and when they reached the top, Thor came forward and kissed each of them on the forehead before taking the children over to the throne with him.

The elder priest stepped forward and stood between the two young men. "Friends, loved ones, people of Asgard!" the priest shouted, his voice amplified through the space. "We gather here today in the house of our King and under the eyes of the gods to bear witness to the joining of these people. These two men, who despite the odds in the grand universe, have found each other, and whose souls are destined to be linked. We are but small creatures in the vast universe, but to travel through it with such love is a blessing."

The words were so familiar and it made my heart feel full watching my son bond with the man he loved in the same place as I had bonded with the people who I loved all those years ago.

"Our lovers stand here, humbled before us, and ask that the universe recognize their joint destiny and bind them together to it, but first they must make vows with an open heart and a clear mind. These vows are unbreakable and must not be made lightly," the priest continued.

Teddy and Billy beamed at each other, and it was clear there was no going back for them. This was it. They'd found their person.

"Do you stand before me, the gods, and the people of Asgard and commit to a life shared together? Do you promise to protect, love, and cherish each other, each day, through the course of your lives? To share in each other's burdens and help bring down the barriers you put up at the low times? To be open and honest with each other? To care for each other and allow yourselves to be cared for? To accept, love, and nurture any children born of your union, regardless of biological connection within or outside your union? To show patience with each other and your children. To support each other and most of all to love each other through every challenge you face? Do you vow it?"

Neither man hesitated at all and they spoke in perfect union. "I do."

An attendant approached them holding a long thick gold cord, and a spool of silver thread. They guided Billy and Teddy to stand closer to each other and placed Teddy's right and on top of Billy's. The priest began to wind and crisscross the rope around their hands and as he did a crackle of electricity passed through it and a purple mist began to swirl around them. The attendant moved around them, binding their bodies to each other with the silver thread.