Pyzis took a deep breath as she walked into the lowest layer of the hanging gardens. Beautiful flowers in all shades bloomed year round from amongst hundreds of shades of green. The atmosphere couldn't be more romantic, the paper lanterns with lotus patterns sat waiting for guests to light them. Her pristine, white, babydoll, ballgown brushed the grass despite her heeled white shoes. Thyme had escorted her here and seeing him in his noble clothes was a sight to see. His handsome blonde hair fell about his face as he looked down into her yellow eyes. With a smile, she walked into the middle of the lanterns and picked up a purple one for the two of them to release together. 

"Should we release this in honor of Osiria? Or should we release two, one for her and one for our wedding?" she smiled at him. Pyzis placed a hand on her growing bump. It was now very obvious that she was with child, they had spent months now planning their wedding and now the day had arrived. Amongst all of the flowers, lanterns, and dancing people the two of them would finally be wed. It was something that Pyzis had never dreamed of achieving, but was happy it was taking place. She had always thought her life as a Phoenix would be a lonely one, filled with duty and responsibility. Thyme had changed all of that, he had set her free in more than one way. He had given her hope and a future. In just a few more months they would welcome their daughter Osiria into the world and raise her in Angela's court. All of it felt more like a fairy tale than real life to Pyzis, but she was so grateful it was real.

Pyzis leaned over the lantern and kissed Thyme, passion blazing in her eyes. If anything her pregnancy had made her more attracted to him. The romantic setting and the fact that she would have him forever only fueled the fire. She felt the baby move inside of her and a smile crept to her lips. Around her, more and more people began to gather around the lanterns. The floors above would be spectacular once they were all floating. She couldn't wait until the two of them could dance under the warm light of the lanterns. 

"Let's hurry, I want to get up to the top floor and watch the lanterns. Don't forget we are doing the lotus release, though. I know it's a silly tradition, but I don't want to miss out on anything. Especially since I won't be able to do outings like this for much longer." she mentioned as she looped her hand in Thyme's arm. It had been a mistake to wear heels, but once they got to the meadow she could take them off and dance barefoot. 

Thyme walked with Pyzis into the entrance of the Hanging Gardens. It wasn’t truly something else. His mother had talked him into quite the ensemble. A well crafted green shirt and dark pants. His blonde hair had been swept back and actually groomed for once. It had been annoying but his mother wanted him looking at least out of the woods… so she put it.

His green eyes snapped back to Pyzis and he let a smile come to his face as he put his hand over Osiria. “We can do two. One for our family and one for our love.” He gave a loving rub to her swelling belly and kissed her cheek before rubbing his nose against her cheek. 

He was pulled back into his thoughts before she could kiss him. He jumped a tad and laughed as he kissed her back. “You are more of a minx than a phoenix lately.” The half-elf teased his soon to be wife. He rubbed her swell more before he picked up the second lantern. “You shouldn’t bend over so much. I’m afraid you will burst.” He chuckled at Pyzis.

Thyme chuckled at her and shook his head. “Love, we have to light the lanterns first.” He found a piece of long thin wood nearby to light using a candle. He gently lit both of the lanterns and together Pyzis and himself let the lanterns go with everyone. “I’ll carry you around if I have to.” He gave a smile. “I won’t let you be trapped in your pregnancy. We can go where ever you like. If doing everything here at the ball is what you want… That’s what we’ll do Pyzis.” He leaned over and kissed her hair softly. He held her arm and looked down at her shoes gently chuckling. He had never seen her in heels before and luckily wouldn’t again.

“What is the first thing after that… that you wish to do?” He thought about the wording and nodded as he figured it out. He sighed gently and kissed the top of her head again. “Whatever you want to make you happy.”

Pyzis blushed, feeling a little frazzled, pregnancy brain was real. She knew that parties like this weren't what Thyme usually enjoyed. At least the golden masks they wore let them blend in a little. Since she had been to the temple Pyzis hadn't left at all. This was the first time that she had left and likely to be the last before Orsiria was born. Despite what Thyme said about carrying her around, she didn't feel comfortable with the idea. Her little girl was getting large enough now that she got winded going up stairs. 

"Sorry, my brain doesn't work as well as it should anymore," she responded as she watched their purple lantern float higher. She let him pick the second one in honor of their pending marriage. He grabbed a green one that matched his eyes, Pyzis watched as the gentle light played off of his golden hair. She put her delicate hand on his larger ones before releasing the second lantern in the air. Her eyes sparkled as they met Thymes and she smiled.

"After this, we can go up to the third level and release a lotus flower. It said on a notice that it would bring us closer together spiritually. I know that it seems silly, but I love you. You mean everything to me and anything, even something trivial like this would be worth it to be closer to you." Pyzis blushed. It seemed that with the forgetfulness came confessions also. It wasn't like her to ramble just anything out, but the romantic atmosphere was making her tongue loose. 

"Don't worry about me bending over, I think I can do it for a little longer. It's getting difficult if I'm being honest, my middle doesn't bend anymore." She said as she attempted to bend at the middle instead of bending at her hips. She didn't get very far and ended up using Thyme to keep from falling over. One thing hadn't changed, her coordination was still somewhat lacking. 

"If you pick me up I swear I will…." she paused trying to find a sufficient threat. "I will lick you!" Pyzis glared at him in all of her five foot two-inch wonder. The fire in her eyes didn't match the image of her in her white dress and golden mask. 

Thyme laughed a bit at his very, very demanding soon to be wife. She was adorable when she was in control. “If that is what my flower wants, that is what my flower gets.” He leaned in and kissed her cheek thoughtfully. “I love you as well. If you didn’t mean everything to me I wouldn’t have strived to make the world a safer place for both you and Orsiria.” He leaned down and kissed her softly. 

He gave her a thoughtful look and chuckled. “That is because Orsiria has a large and good home. She doesn’t want her mother bending over and doing all the work.” His hand went to her belly protectively as he thought about it. Thyme was quick to catch her as Pyzis tried to demonstrate. “Love, you are barely coordinated when you aren’t pregnant.” He laughed full heartedly at his love.

Tilting his head he waited to see what Pyzis would come up with. Those eyes could burn into someone, Thyme thought as he rolled a shrug up and quickly whipped her up in his strong arms. He held her bridal style and started to carry her up to where the flower release was. “No more stairs for you. I won’t get to dance with you if you are passed out at the dessert table.” He joked about her pregnancy habits. “You’ll be asleep taking our vows or worse.”

He prepared himself to be licked but never let his strong grip loosen. The last thing he needed was to drop his very pregnant wife to be. She would never forgive him. Once they were up at the top he gently set her down and gave her a blue lotus. It was a beautiful shade. “I like this one for you.” Blue looked gorgeous when held up to her eyes.

Pyzis felt her heart soar when she heard Thyme's laughter. When he was it in a setting like this it was a rare treat, but seeing as it was their wedding day she was grateful for the memory. 

"I hope you aren't saying that I'm the large and good home," she teased as he kissed her. Her belly looked like a planet to her, its orbit revolving around their tiny family. It had certainly gotten huge over the past few months, not to mention strangely lopsided at times. She knew Thyme wouldn't call her out on her large belly, seeing as that was the point, but it was fun to tease him about his comment anyway.

When he swept her up into his arms she let out a small yelp. He would definitely get a lick at some point today, but the element of surprise would be essential. It was slightly uncomfortable to be bent, but she was grateful to be off of her aching feet. There was a very real possibility of her getting married barefoot and pregnant. 

Thyme acted like her extra weight was nothing as he carried her gracefully up the stairs to the next level of the garden. Around them a lazy river stretched out in four different directions. A series of docks, bridges and platforms spanned the water and had piles of lotus flowers on them. When Thyme set her down he promptly bent down and picked up a gorgeous blue flower. She took it from his hand and looked at the pile for one for him.

"Could you pick up that white one?" she asked. Thyme picked up the white one and stood next to Pyzis on the platform. "On three? One, two, three." Together they gently tossed the blooms into the water. Pyzis linked her arm in Thyme's and watched as the two lotus flowers slowly drifted towards the edge of the circular garden. She nuzzled her cheek into his shoulder before kissing Thyme. One had to admit the atmosphere here was exceedingly romantic.

"There is only one thing left now, are you ready to be stuck with me for the rest of forever?" she smiled. This day was going quickly and she couldn't wait until he was officially hers. They didn't really need a wedding to cement their love for each other, but it seemed like the right thing to do. It had been Angela who had put the idea in their heads, but she was happy for it either way.