The morning sun rose over the Suiseiryu Shrine not with a gentle glow, but with the
roar of a hundred ceremonial conch shells. The Sapphire Coast's nobility had arrivedin full force, and the "noise" was oficially loud enough to make Jee-shahn's left eye
twitch in his sleep.
Inside the guest suite, the atmosphere was one of pure, unadulterated chaos. Jasmine
was a blur of pink pigtails and indigo silk, her face pale as she tried to wrestle a very
limp, very heavy Jee-shahn into his wedding attire. The Ceremonial Blue robes were
laid out on the bed—stunning, sea-silk garments that shimmered with the light of
crushed pearls—but they were currently being used by Jee-shahn as an extra-soft
pillow.
"Get. Up!" Jasmine hissed, pulling on Jee-shahn's leg with enough force to drag a
small boat. "The Lords of the Trench are already in the Great Hall! They've heard that
I'm marrying a 'child traveler,' and they've brought their heaviest spears just to
'congratulate' you!"
Jee-shahn didn't even open his eyes. He remained perfectly limp, his silver hair
fanned out across the blue silk. "Tell them I'm busy," he mumbled, his voice thick with
the comfort of a man who had no intention of moving for at least three days. "Tell
them the groom has come down with a very serious case of 'I don't care.' It's highly
contagious."
"Jee-shahn, I am serious!" Jasmine cried, her azure-crystal staff sparking with
nervous energy. "If you don't show up, my father will think I made you up, and the
Duke of the Sapphire Coast will claim my hand by force! Do you want to be
responsible for me being miserable for the rest of my long, long life?"
Jee-shahn finally cracked one eye open. He looked at Jasmine, then at the heavy,
ornate robes that looked like they weighed more than he did. "Responsibility is a very
loud word, running lady. It interferes with the silence of my morning."
He sat up slowly, the fur collar of his travel robes messy and rufled. With a heavy,
dramatic sigh that suggested he was being sent to a labor camp rather than a royal
wedding, he stood up.
"Fine," Jee-shahn drawled, his bare feet touching the cool stone floor. "I'll wear your
blue curtains. I'll meet your fish-lords. But if the ceremony takes longer than fifteen
minutes, I'm going to start 'cleaning' the room. And by cleaning, I mean removing the
floor from under everyone's feet."
Jasmine didn't even argue; she just started shoving his arms into the silk sleeves.
Outside the door, the three brothers were already waiting, their armored arms crossed
as they tapped their boots impatiently. The "Groom" was finally going to meet the
Empire, and the Empire had no idea that its foundations were about to be stepped on
by a kid who just wanted a nap.