The first day of Bloomhallow arrived with a sky so blue it felt painted. Not a single cloud passed overhead. Not even the light kind that likes to linger near the horizon at dawn. Just blue and sun and warmth—a gift from the season, and perhaps, from something more.
The Imperial family did not hold any public appearances that day. No parades. No blessings. No announcements in the Plaza. Because today wasn't for the people. It was for us. For the family. For the ones behind the crown and beneath the bloodline—those ancient, immortal, and loyal.
Today was the Bonding Ritual. The ritual was private. I knew it would be, even before Caelum explained it to me. Familiars weren't known to the public. The bond between mage and spirit was too sacred, too strange for those outside the bloodline to understand.
Only a few nobles across history had ever seen the ritual performed—those who married into the family or held rare spiritual blood of their own. Even so, I was allowed to attend. Not because I had a familiar. Not because I was old enough. But because I was family.
I didn't wear anything flashy. Just a soft ivory tunic with a golden thread woven through the cuffs. My hair was left loose, brushed and combed until it glowed in the sunlight. I kept the pressed flower Serenya had saved from the Festival tucked into the ribbon around my wrist.
Caelum met me at the hallway near the sun-dialed corridor, dressed in light ceremonial attire—white and gold with touches of blue. On his neck, the familiar Sigilmark glowed faintly white. "You ready, cub?" he asked.
I nodded. He didn't lead me to the throne room. Not to the garden. Not to the ballroom. We went deeper. To a place beneath the Sun Palace, hidden by tall doors and woven in silence. The moment we stepped inside, the world hushed. Even the wind. Even the birds.
Inside was filled with smooth white stones, pale trees, soft moss beds and small pools of still water reflecting the sky. In the center was a large circle carved into the stone—an ancient pattern etched into the earth like veins beneath skin.
Inside the circle was a fountain with nine carved animals around it—each representing a known familiar type: wolf, fox, dragon, serpent, deer, falcon, cat, bear, and lion. Each one glowing faintly with ancient blessings.
It smelled like warmth. Like stories that didn't need to be spoken.
The others were already there. Lloyd was the first one I saw. He stood near a flowering pear tree, dressed in a robe of soft grey and silver. His silver hair was swept neatly over one ear, and his amethyst eyes turned to meet mine the moment we entered.
He bowed slightly when I looked at him. I had never seen him in his wolf form. And even though I had wanted to ask—many times—I never did. It didn't feel right. It felt like asking someone what they looked like in their dreams. So I just bowed back. And that was enough.
Serenya sat near the back, on a cushioned bench with Lisa lying in her panther form at her feet. The way the panther blinked slowly when I entered felt like greeting. I nodded quietly, stepping closer. In Serenya's arms sat something small. A cat. Crimson red fur, the color of autumn fire. Eyes bright and sharp—lime-green, almost glowing in the dim chamber light. Her name was Ruby.
She was new. "Born from a wish," Serenya told me as she gently petted Ruby's head. "A wish for joy. For a child's laughter. She became whole during Starhallow."
Ruby, in her cat form, was curled like a flame. But as she stretched and jumped from Serenya's lap, she shimmered once—just once—and changed. Not dramatically. No lights or smoke. Just a quiet fold of energy, and then standing before us was a girl of around ten or eleven. She wore a bright, cherry-red dress with ribbons at the sleeves, curls bouncing around her round face. Her eyes, still lime-bright, blinked up at me as she gave a little curtsey.
"Hi!" she said with a voice like a bell. "I'm Ruby!"
I blinked. "Hello."
She tilted her head. "You're Caelum's cub."
My face flushed slightly.
"Don't tease," Serenya said with a smile. "He's our little star, too."
Ruby giggled and skipped back toward her Empress.
Jason arrived last. He didn't walk. He ran. A blur of red-furred wolf came bounding into the circle from the east gate, his paws leaving no prints on the soft moss, his tongue out, his eyes bright with golden joy.
He leapt, spun, landed near the center stone, then rolled once like a cub who forgot his size.
"Jason," Caelum muttered, half-laughing. "Still the same."
The wolf stood up with a snort, shook out his fur, and looked toward Alric—who entered calmly behind him, dressed in imperial white and gold. Jason stepped forward, brushing his side against Alric's leg, tail flicking once like a greeting.
Then he shifted. And where the wolf had stood… A man now smiled. Tall. Red-haired. Freckled. Wearing a black sleeveless vest, dark trousers, and a pendant shaped like a flame around his neck. He looked… nothing like Lloyd. But his eyes—They were the same. Not in color, but in depth. In soul.
Jason spotted Lloyd and grinned wide. "Brother," he said warmly.
"Brother," Lloyd echoed, with a bow.
They embraced. Not stiffly. Not formally. But with the weight of years behind it. Soulmates. I didn't know how a spirit could be split into two. How one ancient soul could choose two bonds, take on two forms, walk two lives.
But looking at them—At how they touched each other's hands, how they leaned into each other's presence, how Jason rested his forehead briefly against Lloyd's—I stopped wondering. Some things weren't meant to be explained. Only witnessed.
The ceremony began soon after. Alric stepped into the center first, laying a hand over the wolf statue and whispering his vows. Jason knelt beside him, bowing his head to the stone, reciting his bond in return.
Then Serenya, her voice like water over glass, offered hers to Lisa and Ruby. Lisa simply blinked, but Ruby threw her arms around Serenya's waist like a child clinging to a mother. Then it was Caelum's turn. He turned to Lloyd.
The space between them already glowed faintly with magic I couldn't see but could almost feel. It tugged at something behind my ribs. Something old. They didn't speak aloud. Not at first. Their bond was already old. Already sealed. But they still bowed to one another. Still touched the stone. Still honored what it meant.
After the vows, the family gathered around the fountain. No feast. No trumpets. Just quiet. Reflection. The familiars began to speak amongst themselves—Ruby chattering with Jason, Lisa offering a long glance toward the forest edge, Lloyd standing quietly by my side like he was always meant to be there.
And I—I just stood still. Watching. Feeling. Wondering what my first familiar would be like. Would they be quiet, like Lloyd? Or fierce, like Jason? Would they have fur? Or wings? Would they speak? Or only watch? Would they be old? Young? Would they find me… Before I was ready? Or because I was?