Vikings, Valentine had learned recently, were an especially picky and superstitious lot. If it had been up to him with this whole wedding thing, he'd have just smashed the newlyweds together and declared them married and the merger deal done, but nooo, heaven forbid it be that easy. Firstly, they had to get married on a specific day to get a specific goddess' blessing. Fine, easy enough, right? No, apparently not, because that was only one goddess of many and for a viking wedding to work you had to get the approval of a whole pantheon of deities and dead folks by fulfilling a ton of religious tradition. So, one goddess down, a bajillion more incorporeal beings to appease.

The setting of the wedding day had kicked off the process of readying both the intendeds and the event. Both brides and grooms had to have a weapon of some sort to present to each other. The reasoning, he'd learned, was that by exchanging weapons the intendeds (and their families) were declaring their commitment to protecting each other as though they were blood-kin. Then there were the 'legal' obligations to contend with; the dowries, the assessment of the intendeds ability to provide, and the agreement from a whole range of relatives to assist and and support the newly joined families. Then, because the women were from far away and some sort of ritualistic crown was important to the ceremony, runners had been dispatched to retrieve the sacred pieces.

Finally, almost two seasons later, the day had arrived. The bridal crowns, ancestral weapons and wedding armbands had been retrieved from the homelands, the intendeds had been ritualistically cleansed of their bachelor/bachelorette-hood, and enough food and drink had been gathered to drunken and fatten all of Boreas' inhabitants many times over. Invitations had been sent to all of the packs; the goal of the ceremony was to make it known far and wide that Fireside and Hjarrandi were merging. For that reason, there was more to the festivities than a wedding and feast. Events had been planned that would take up half a season or better.

As the elder of the grooms' family, Valentine had been wrangled into overseeing the event. Like everyone else involved, he too had been cleansed and groomed, and now sat under an arbor woven with some sort of special, symbolic vines. His job was to say all the magic marrying words, oversee the exchanging of gifts and payments between the merging families and kill the sacrificial animals. When that was done he would send the participants off to the feasting grounds and kick off the after party, so to speak.

At a signal from the other planners, Valentine threw back his head and howled to let the people know it was time to start. Those that were to be married today plus those of the family who would be giving gifts (Tyrian and Asvor) were to join him in the front. The rest were welcome to gather in a loose semi circle around them. The sacrificial animals had been subdued and were now laying bound on the ground behind Valentine. All in all, the stage was set and Valentine was ready to go. Bring on the marrying.

OOC: this event is open to the public and marks the beginning of Fireside's season of stuff and things! Included will be a feast and games, and will end in the Hjarrandi's signature market! There will be chances to enter your characters into events (like an items market, hunting and fighting challenges) and other things so if you have someone interested in skill threads, this thread is a good jumping off point for the other activities. It is NOT a good place for anyone who might be auctioned off during the market as Valkyrie wouldn't capture guests. First round ends October 10th!

Numbly Jupiter moved to stand before Valentine. He'd dotted every 'i' and crossed ever 't' in the many rituals leading up to the actual wedding ceremony. He'd robbed a grave for a weapon and been beaten with tree boughs in a sweat lodge. He'd also done a bit of wedding prep for himself in the form of a party that had left him with spotty memories and a headache for days. In other words he was as ready as he'd ever be. Having accepted his fate by now, Jupiter was just ready to get the ceremony over with. He was curious about the identity of his bride. Per tradition, he had yet to see her and with his acceptance of what was happening his curiosity had grown.

Unsure of what to do with himself, Jupiter sat down to the right of his grandfather. The knife he had been carrying was heavy so he stuck it point end into the ground at his paws before glancing to his left and right to see who all was gathering. So far he was first, which boded well for appearance sake but said nothing about his true feelings on the matter. He'd been in the area (of course) and no amount of delay would get him out of it at this point so why bother? At this event he was promised both booze and sex so it certainly could have been worse.

With no small amount of satisfaction Valkyrie stepped up to the Fireside elder. She seated herself to his left and much like Jupiter had, buried the point of her knife into the ground at her feet. Her plans were coming together nicely. She had no intention of retiring from her life as a raider, but it was time to settle (to an extent) and bring about the next generation of Finnvis. She would weave them into her life among the raiding and trading she fully intended to continue, and raise them as she had been raised. The Fireside wolves weren't exactly orthodox, but they were strong and to be allied to them in this way seemed beneficial to all involved.

She glanced over to Jupiter, the male she'd picked for her aunt. He'd been picked for several reasons. The first was his physical form; he was strong in ways that would hopefully cancel out her aunt's physical deficiencies and ensure that line produced strong children. The second was that, in observing him, Valkyrie hadn't found him to be particularly strong of mind. Alfrun was not physically strong so Valkyrie had been careful to select a mate for her that she was equal to - or stronger than - in other ways. With a little effort she was certain Alfrun could dominate their married life and get her way in all of the important matters. She had no doubt that Alfrun would hold sway when it came to rearing their children and that, in Valkyrie's opinion, was key if they were to make a viking stronghold here in Boreas.

Her dismissive gaze was snatched away from Jupiter as the wind ruffled the garland woven into her bridal crown. She fixed it with a paw and then turned her attention to Valentine to await the proceedings.

Pestilence had spent an awful lot of time considering whether or not she'd even be attending this ceremony, after all she'd hardly been in the pack a season and already she'd embarrassed herself with the intruder who'd crossed their border and then subsequently kicked her ass. She was still healing from the maim, Viper's slashes across her neck had reopened the damage caused by her sister Toxicity. Fuck, had it hurt. The least she could do now was show herself at the wedding and offer her services in the festival to come. Surely Tyrian and Valk would need some grunt work done, and Pesto intended to be the first and most enthusiastic offer of help. She'd ensured before arriving that she took ample pain medication to see the evening through and had further asked to accompany Alarr in case the injury flared back up. Not only was he her best friend but also a skilled healer, and one of the few wolves she'd trust with her life. They weren't late, thankfully. Pesto had not had formal introductions yet with all of Fireside's wolves, and she sure as hell didn't want to be the last one to show up and be unable to put names to the faces of the crowd. They were instructed to gather in a loose semi-circle so she obeyed, but couldn't help but watch the officiate rather than the betrothed. Was this Alarr's terrifying tractor father? Pesto shuddered, but sat quiet and waited for it to begin. "Speech" "Thinking" "You."

Chaos flipped the curved dagger up in the air, catching it's gold-chased bone handle in his jaws again casually as he strode through the sweet-smelling, bee-buzzing orchard. He'd been cleansed in all sorts of ways he had never thought possible to cleanse, done every silly thing that the vikings and Tyrian had asked with an amiable docility that might have been alarming to anyone who had known him in his crazy, crazy youth, and now with his bridal gift between his fangs he was on his way to his wedding. Crazy, huh? His mother would have laughed herself sick, he reflected with some amusement of his own. But she'd been loyal to his father in every way that counted without a ceremony to tie them together as anything more than friends - would she have married him, if he'd asked, if it was the only way to keep him? Maybe not. As an adult, he couldn't say if what his parents had was anything more than two friends who fucked and happened to raise children together, and Valentine had had Rhythm. He didn't know what made a relationship work, or how to be married. He didn't know if he was supposed to be with Valkyrie the way his father had been with Cascade, or if he was supposed to be with her like Valentine with Rhythm. He wished he could ask Rhys for advice, let her be his guiding star like when they were young. After all, she was a girl, she'd know. Hell, he was being so maidenly it was disgusting. Gird up his damn loins and go through with it, figure it out as he went.

Stepping up where he was supposed to, body relaxed as though none of these thoughts had been chewing at him all day, his eyes fastened to Valkyrie, darted a little nervously to his father, then fixed back on Valkyrie. He laid the knife in front of himself with a cocky flourish, then waited.

The diminutive Finnvi goði was perfectly composed, even distant, through the preparations for the double wedding that would bind her family to one that had kept its ascendance since before her mother had ruled here. Valkyrie negotiating the marriages was a little... irregular, but then the Finnvi women had always been stronger than most and the idea of a lesser family member negotiating for them was simply laughable. No, while it might have been improprietous for another viking family, she saw nothing wrong with Valkyrie's intimate involvement in the negotiation, and was pleased with what the young woman had squeezed from the illustrious Imperialis family. Thus far, everything had been in accordance with the Finnvi traditions, even to the bridal crown settled heavily upon hers and Valkyrie's brows, and Alfrun believed that Odin-who-fathered-her would have been pleased to see his daughter and granddaughter so married. They would bear a strong new generation to carry on their ways and the blood-alliance to a strong family like the Imperialis would stand them well for generations to come. It laid to rest fears that had risen in her since before her mother Katja's death years before.

Glancing over the wedding party assembled, her preoccupied gaze kindled with interest. She had been largely secluded the past few seasons that her brother's-daughter's band had been living here, so the faces of the wolves they were allying with were new to her. After all, there had been much to do for a priestess of her faith to prepare for such a momentous occasion and she'd had little time to mingle with the strangers - and that had nothing to do with the fact that she'd spent the greater part of her life either alone or with only sparse contact with others. She eyed the colors that swirled around the three very large males waiting with Valkyrie with fascination for the eddies and flows around them. The patriarch of course, and the long-fanged male with the odd sheen to his dark fur was undoubtedly the former alpha that Valkyrie had chosen as her husband, and that left the third male, the youngest, with the brilliant spirit-markings on his fur and the compellingly colored eyes. As she moved closer, she had to tilt her head further and further up to study them, until they loomed over her. Though her expression remained distant and cool, a sharp flutter of something like fear caught in her chest and was ruthlessly suppressed. The shiver that threatened was, too, prevented from acting upon her limbs. She was a child of Odin, and fear had no place for her - however imposing her soon to be husband might appear. She instead swept an inscrutable study over him, and moved to her appointed place to set at her paws the sharp-edged pale flint dagger that was to be her offering to her husband. All was in readiness.

Torrent wasn't entirely sure what to expect from a viking wedding - she had avoided Valdis and Asvor's wedding, but this was something of an affair of state and she likely needed to make an effort for Tyrian's sake. Besides, Chaos was her brother and Jupiter her nephew and it was only right for her to show her sympathies for their plight by attending. She seated herself silently, her head raised and ears flicked back as she looked over the two women who were involved. She recognized the one, the cat-clawed leader who'd scarred Chaos in the raid and blinked. It seemed like a strange choice to make in chaining yourself to someone you'd maimed in battle, but for all she knew it was completely ordinary and she was the odd one for not getting it. The woman marrying Jupiter was a tiny fragile thing with a cleft lip and Torrent nodded slowly. Ah, that she understood. Jupiter was clearly being punished for his silly flighty ways by being mated to such an odd looking little goblin of a woman. Good choice, Tyrian.

Ashmedai wasn't sure what to expect from this wedding nor was he all too sure he was comfortable with the idea of his family being tied up into this viking family. Still, it was a formal affair and Ash had even washed his shirt and sobered up for it. Despite all the shenanegans, it didn't worry Ash too much. He was happy to see everyone out and about despite the raging headache he had. It was good to see Valentine doing something grand too. Almost reminded him of old times- what could have been if Angelus or any of his siblings got married. That was a big if, though, since Ashmedai didn't see himself settling down and didn't expect his family to either. He was getting old, though, and the idea of someone to warm his den at night was tempting. He assumed Chaos at least thought the same way since he agreed to marry the crazy bear lady. If he made it a year without becoming a eunuch, Ash would be impressed. Jupiter, on the other hand, was still plenty young and Ash really didn't see the purpose of marrying him down. He half expected the man to bolt, but the wedding day arrived and here he was. Ashmedai came into the site, careful to avoid crazy bear lady- he was sure Tyrian wouldn't appreciate the drama- and settled himself somewhere. He didn't bring anything this time because it was probably viking taboo or something and he didn't want to chance it. It was best to stay out of the way until fun things happened.

This whole event had him in knots. In the beginning Tyrian had thought this would be a simply ceremony at the end of a simple set of preparations. He'd learned very quickly just how wrong he was when he'd suggested a wedding date that just so happened to be during the wrong phase of the moon. His suggestion had been shot down quickly and he'd been given a cold, abbreviated lesson about some goddess named Freya, Freida, Frodo or something like that and her special blessing days. At a certain point he'd realized that he just needed to stand back and let the vikings do the planning. The only time he intervened was when he disagreed with the proceedings. They didn't know it, but his brother and nephew were lucky he'd gone to bat for them on a couple of occasions.

Then, because one nitpicky wolf wasn't enough, he'd asked Valentine to officiate since he was the patriarch and he thought the vikings would appreciate it. That had been a laugh and a half. Tyrian had spent the better part of a day first convincing the old man to do it and then listening to him whinge about anything and everything he found worth critiquing. Which was literally everything. Finally Valentine had been wrangled into some semblance of a decent senior citizen.

Now, wedding day, everything was coming together.

When summoned he made his way to the front with all of the required artifacts and gifts.  He stood beside Jupiter so that the man was between him and the women. Once in place he set down the wedding arm bands he'd been carrying in his mouth and shrugged off the ornate bags that carried the "gifts" for the Finnvi family. It was only then that he stole a glance over at the other wedding party. Valkyrie, of course, he knew, but the small, mismatched woman at her side he did not. She was to be Jupiter's wife? Oh boy. He dared a glance at Jupiter to see if he'd noticed his bride-to-be yet. It wasn't that she was unattractive, just peculiar and small, and certainly at odds with the massive, brightly colored man who was to be her husband. Jupiter had been expecting a warrior; another mad bear woman to chase him around the knolls and fuck him into the ground. What he was getting appeared to be a toothy pixie. No. Oh, no. He remembered one of his first conversations with Valkyrie. Not a pixie. A witch.

It took everything he had not to worry his lip. He was counting on this deal to secure solid trade with the Hjarrandi and if Jupiter made a scene and offended them Tyrian had no doubt the band would walk. A rift could very well start a feud and while the pack had fended the band off once he'd gotten to know Valkyrie well enough to know she'd be a thorn in his side until she was satisfied wrongs had been righted and her family had been avenged. He fixed a muted, warning look on the side of Jupiter's head because he knew the moment the man noticed his bride, his eyes would snap to Tyrian.

Abby aproached the ceremony, drawn by the call and greeted with the sweet scent of fruit and flowers. She hadn't been to the orchard before, but the place was decidedly enjoyable as she made silent plans to return in the spring. She had heard talk about a diplomatic arrangement, but the event was still quite surprising. She'd only ever seen Jupiter once at Obsidian Beach, and he struck her as quite hard to tie down to say the least.

She recognised Tyrian among them of course, but him and Jup were the only wolves she recognised amongst the gathering of fierce looking warriors. Normally she would hide behind the most familiar wolf like a frightened pup, but the situation forced her out in the open as disturbing the king during what seemed to be an important event would probably be innaproppriate, as well as the fact that they'd only talked once. Yet again, the mottled girl had found herself in a celebration where she didn't know anyone.

She observed the participants, planning her next move. The betrothed were all quite curious pairs. It was like horses marrying goats, though the comparison would stay unspoken. Neither of the parties would probably like being compared to a goat. She recognised some similarities though, like how they'd gut her the same way if she screwed up somehow.

She'd remain quiet as to not disrespect the ceremony, and she moved to sit next to the black and white yearling [Pesto] who decidedly looked the least murderous (though this wasn't saying much), still keeping a respectful distance as to not accidentally provoke.

Valdís was experiencing the joys of motherhood… the joys of finally getting her child ready to go only for him to go find the nearest mud puddle and having to clean him up… again. She sighed heavily, squinting at Úlfr from the corner of her eye before finishing picking the last brambles out of her fur. There we go. She felt presentable. She offered a smile to Ásvor before herding their son toward the Orchard for the wedding. She was curious to see what a viking wedding was like. Granted she'd kept to herself. She hadn't spoken with any of the vikings so this was to be the first time she'd really interact with any of them. A good number of wolves were gathered as she arrived and she could see the couples gathered under the arbor. She took her seat and pulled Úlfr close to her to make sure he didn't go wandering off during the ceremony. "Talk" "You" Think

Úlfr was restless. He didn't want to settle down, he wanted to go hunting but they had to go to another wedding and he wasn't quite as excited about this one as he'd been about his moms getting married. However, Valdís had said it would be interesting and there would be a giant feast and he had to admit that he really liked food.

Once they were ready he followed Valdís to the ceremony. Ásvor was going to be participating so he supposed he could at least cheer her on. He settled down next to his mother to await the start of the ceremony.

Álarr had a busy morning. Not only did he need to prepare for the wedding but he also had his patients to tend to. Aerndis was still sick. She was weak and spent most of her time sleeping but she was still taking food and water so he hadn't given up hope yet of helping her through her illness. He wasn't sure how long the ceremony was going to be so he wanted to make sure she was comfortable and had everything she needed.

He also had to tend to Pesto. He made sure to pack some herbs for her pain and some to take care of inflammation or any bleeding in case his stitching came loose. Let's see… and some extra moss and bandages. Once he was packed he started heading to the wedding alongside Pesto. He sat down with her to await the start of the wedding and whispered. "If you need to leave at any time just let me know." He knew the vikings were big on decorum and rules but his duties as Fireside's Master Healer came first and foremost.

Éldi meticulously groomed himself to be as presentable as possible for the wedding. He had been surprised to learn that Valkyrie herself was going to get married and he was proud of the deal she had worked though he did wonder what it meant for the future of the band. He was used to wandering and traveling and it seemed now that their integration into Fireside would be a more permanent merger. Well, as long as she held influence within the pack he would remain.

Once he was ready he joined the crowd at the wedding, taking in the wolves there. He'd kept to himself since Hjarrandi had sheltered in Fireside territory. Partially, this was due to falling ill but he was well now.

"Говорить"

Darya was not happy. That would be evident to anyone who happened to look upon her. Not that anyone should, as the woman had once more returned to lurking at the edges of the gathering, all the slow methodical work that had been done to start coaxing her into public view undone by one simple arrangement. Maybe it was poor decorum but frankly, Darya had little energy to care about that, maybe for the first time in her life she was being selfish, but not in the good taking care of herself way. No in the pout and wallow and try not to cry about it way... and she usually failed that last step.

So it was she'd arrive at the gathering, hovering as far away from the group as she could, hiding behind a tree that would put her close enough to watch and be counted among the attendees but far enough away she didn't actually have to be involved if she didn't want, and she really didn't want. Her eyes were bloodshot, having failed to stop herself from breaking into sobs on the trip over, making her gaze even more red than usual and looking a little unkempt, she was taking even less care to remove hay from her fur and groom herself than usual, it was hard to find the motivation... It probably also didn't help that Jupiter's bachelor party had messed her up more than she already had been, she could barely remember what had happened after she'd started drinking but had woken up feeling... well... she was certain neither of her parents would be particularly proud of her.

But she was here... she knew she owed Jupiter that much, even if it made her want to curl up and die to watch him get married off. Instead, she'd settle onto her haunches, pushing herself against the tree and would miserably wait for the ceremony to start, and try, god try not to start crying again.

Art by Sgulert

Darya has a thick Russian accent, hover for clarification.

I just got back from moving, please help me catch up by dropping threads I owe here. <3

Sparrow was not sure about weddings at all and brought no expectations over from the previous wedding into this one. Somehow, she was still surprised. All the decorum felt so out of place in Fireside. She entered somewhat timidly as if the vikings might take some haughty offense at her misstep and then Tyr's carefully cultivated alliance would be shattered. The more she was here, the more she felt she couldn't relax. She shouldn't have come, but she was already here and she was SURE leaving would be a big no-no.

Sparrow decided, instead, to shuffle next to Alarr and his pretty friend Pestilence who was honestly so precious and needed protecting even if she could handle herself. She hoped Alarr knew how great she was. Sparrow had only hung out with her once and even still, she could tell Pestilence had great potential. As she came up, she heard the last of Alarr's words. She let out a soft laugh and aimed to bump Alarr on the shoulder, "Just say the word and we'll get her outta here, mmkay?" Sparrow knew Alarr could handle it on his own, but Sparrow needed a reason to settle by him and not leave his side because MAN this whole wedding was strange.

Although Asvor enjoyed the tradition of a wedding, at least as an opportunity to make a union official before the gods, personally she wasn't terribly fond of this whole arranged marriage ordeal. Not that she had any say in it - and generally she wasn't the type to stick her nose where it didn't belong, not out of politeness but simply because she didn't want others doing the same when it came to her affairs. In general, pack politics weren't her thing; she wasn't in a position of leadership for a reason and she wasn't about to pretend she had interest otherwise. So long as Fireside's plans did not directly interfere with or hinder her and her family's life, Asvor would be content.

She'd been picked for a more official role for the wedding, an honor she wouldn't deny. Gifts would be exchanged between families, as was tradition. Once she too had gathered the appropriate things to be exchanged, she made her way toward the front of the gathering. Though she was a bit behind, she'd blame it on the final touches for the gifts she'd gathered. Besides the artifacts she'd been instructed to gather, she'd added a few things of her own; an assortment of herbal mixes, some medicinal and others clearly recreational, bound together neatly. She'd have to go over their purposes with the bride and groom if they cared to know. Setting down the large bundle, she leaned back to her haunches and waited.

ooc: setting this before Aureus' kicks it because fuck I want him to be happy for a little bit longer.

Pyrrhic had come not because he was interested in the parties being married, but because this was the prelude to what was promised to be the kick off of the sort of festivities that had earned Hjarrandi notoriety. That, and if no one else from Aeris was present then someone would need to take back word of the band and pack merging for political reasons. That was an interesting turn of events, but as a former alpha he could appreciate the political move. Marriages between groups could provide the strength needed to elevate the merging groups above the rest. If it worked out Pyrrhic thought it might give Aeris a reason to be wary.

He'd brought with him those of his family who wished to attend the market. Dantalian bounced happily at his side as they walked. He'd dangled the promise of auctions and she, at least, had snapped up the chance. Maybe, he'd teased, they'd find a few good slaves to bring home.

The former Emperor took a seat off to the side and directed the rest of his party to do so as well. He watched those around them, trying to make sense of their relationships and to get a feel for the political atmosphere he'd walked in on.

With nothing better to do that day,  Fel had decided to accompany her brother to whatever festivities that Fireside had planned.  She knew that there would be a wedding which was fine and dandy, but she was here for other things. Both Fel and Pyrrhic would be representing Aerie with their presence. Despite the fact that her brother's probably thought she was a heathen,  the silver and obsidian woman was quite capable of controlling herself,  thank you very much.

With Danta frolicking beside the pair,  Fel found herself actually smiling more than once. Surprisingly,  she'd taken quite a shine to the child and wasn't even slightly annoyed that she'd chosen to accompany them. Hopefully they could find something interesting for her at the market. Maybe something to take back for Asmodeus too.

Blood moon eyes rested upon each face that they passed. It was interesting to see who chose to come to these social gatherings.  As Fel looked about,  her gaze settled upon the blue face of the "virgin" that she'd sullied at the party recently.  The woman pretended not to see him,  instead she smiled and leaned down to whisper in Danta's ear. "Make sure you stay close, and remember, we're representing Aerie." Fel gave the girl a wink,  then sat tall beside her brother,  fluffing her shining pelt ever so slightly. She didn't acknowledge him because she didn't want to make a big deal out of it, but she thought of him favorably. Perhaps they run into one another later if he chose to approach.