Mated by Twilight (True Match)

Chapter 45

Tillos

Their mate was astounding.

He’d heard her sing plenty of times before. She sang to them in the privacy of their room all the time. If he and Sollit left and came back to find her cleaning – which was the only time she ever got to clean their room – she was usually humming. They’d heard her singing during rehearsals, even the full ones on stage in costume.

But this was the first time she’d thrown herself into it completely.

It felt like a muffler had been taken off and she was belting out her true voice, unencumbered and unrestrained, for the first time.

The tiny princes – of a tiny mythical human species called fairies – that came upon the singing Thumbelina were enchanted by her song and her beauty, and Tillos felt he didn’t even really have to act it out. He and Sollit both approached their mate with that exact feeling. The wings on their back were holo props, light projections that followed them, fluttering like real wings while they were just utilizing the anti-grav to make it seem like they were flying. Insects drawn into her light.

Their role in the play was minimal. They mostly spent it chasing after their mate, trying to catch her after she’d been abducted and always being just a step behind before they found themselves trapped by winter’s freeze.

But the opening, wherein they courted their mate, sang and danced alongside her, really felt like it was a genuine moment.

And that was only because of Leah. There was a sparkle in her eyes he’d never seen before. Her smile wasn’t tarnished by a past that she carried with her. She sang like she loved it. She danced like the music had control of her. It was a wonder to see.

He and Sollit were meant to be ‘flying’ her around as her character had no wings, but it honestly felt like she was still somehow leading them. She had them so completely enthralled they would have gone anywhere to see that smile again.

So, when she was abducted by Skara, the desperation to chase after her, to see that smile and bask in that joy again, was real.

When they finally caught up to her, right when she was at her lowest point, rediscovering her voice for the first time since winter began, it felt a little too true to life. Tillos and Sollit weren’t even really acting when they captured her again, claiming her as spring came back to life, called by her beautiful song.

Because they were capturing her. For the first time. This was who Leah had been before something so precious and integral to her person had been stolen from her. She was rediscovering it for herself, while he and Sollit were seeing it for the first time.

And it was glorious. Kissing her, securing their mate bond in the way he assumed fairies must do, allowed Leah to grow her own wings. She was no longer the strange little creature no bigger than a thumb grown in a flower. She was a princess of fairies, escorted by two princes that were absolutely enraptured by her.

The quick change into her final gown, where she was going through a very formal bonding ceremony with them, revealed a creature of such unrivaled beauty, it stole his breath. And yes, he’d seen her in that dress before.

But it was different.

She was different.

And he was so unbelievably proud of her.

The audience loved her too. They roared in approval when the play finished, and the cast all lined up for the final bow. Leah bowed to them, and he thought that must be a human thing, because it wasn’t something they had done before.

However, Tillos and Sollit did the same, bowing at the waist on her sides, following her lead. The three of them came up again and her face was so bright. Her eyes glowed. She was so beautiful, they couldn’t turn away. They chased her down to the stage exit. She came rushing out, back into gravity’s embrace, then immediately turned.

Tillos caught her first, lifting and spinning her as she let out a wild peal of laughter. She squeezed him tight. When he put her down, she turned and did the same to Sollit. When she was on her feet again, they both embraced her from either side. She beamed, looking between them.

“You did so well, aevea ,” Sollit praised.

“Your voice was beautiful!” Tillos agreed, kissing the side of her head.

He was overjoyed. Not because of the success of her first leading show – though, of course, he was quite proud of her for that. He was just so happy because she had found her voice again, and it was wonderful to finally see his mate at her peak.

“That was so much fun!” She declared as they swept her up, walking her back towards the dressing room so they could get ready for the post-show presentation. All her previous nerves that nearly kept her from going on were totally evaporated. She chattered excitedly about every second as they passed the others.

Tillos and Sollit shared an indulgent smile over her head as they walked.

It felt like they had finally achieved their first real milestone as her mates.

In mating a female, getting her to the peak of her dreams and aspirations was one of their goals. A female was always happier and fulfilled when she had accomplishments. Their own mother had her own career. Even if she no longer worked in it, so long as she had, their fathers had supported her rise and goals until she felt satisfied enough to retire.

And now, they were doing the same with Leah.

She certainly wouldn’t want to retire now, of course. This was just the start of her journey. But when she did eventually feel like slowing down and enjoying the peace of their years without work or stress of whatever, it would be that much sweeter for her knowing she’d accomplished everything she wanted to do first.

And that started by winning her voice back.