Her eyebrows crunched, “What does marriage mean to you?”
Joe blinked, a bit surprised, “Uh… coming together for life committing to one another, promising to be with one another so that we can raise children together if we wish? So that our children would have both mother and father?”
“Then why do you ask for… me… in such a way?” Kilniara rushed at the end.
“It is only right?”
“Why is it right? My agreement to marriage is agreeing to be… one… with you.”
“Yeah, but I don’t want…”
Kilniara interrupted him, “Should I ask you?”
Joe blinked, cocking his head to the side with some surprise, “It is considered polite.”
“So then I must ask you with other things?”
“Like what?”
“Should I ask you for money? Or food? Or other things of life to simply live?”
“It is definitely kind to ask so the one keeping track of everything can do so, but… no, it is not really necessary.”
“So I do not have to ask you for money?”
Joe shook his head, “No, although discussing a budget is very important before money decisions are made.”
“Budget… what is a bud… no, never mind! I do not have to ask for your money?”
“No, for the most part, no.”
“And your time?”
“No.”
“And your love?”
“No. I understand what you are saying, but it is very kind to do so.”
“Ah… that I can understand, but still… why must you ask me for se… intimacy, always?”
Joe blinked and then shrugged a bit.
“Even though marriage is … do your people explicitly understand that this is part of a marriage?”
“Yes?”
Kilniara sighed, “Your people seem… very strange. Why, if it is part of the agreement of marriage, must there be a separate request for it?”
Joe sighed deeply but nodded, “Because it is a very intimate thing. It is wise to be cautious of that which is very intimate. Like I said, the same is important for money and a few other things.”
She nodded, “But it is expected in marriage.”
Joe sat up, “Look. It is expected in marriage, but there are exceptions as well. For example, if money is tight at the time, we may have to say no to the use of money. The same is true for sex. If one of us is feeling tired or hurt, it is only polite to not do something that harms the other.”
“But money is an equal decision made by both.”
“Yes, if it is one agreed upon. Some couples have an agreement for certain funds that the other will take care of any decisions in such an area, like… one member may take care of any money issues for a specific area, like investing, or maybe savings… something like that.”
“But the decision is made by both unless one agrees to give the full decision to the other.”
Joe nodded, “That… yeah, that sounds about right.”
Kilniara tilted her head to the side, “But it appears that se… intimacy is not a decision the man has?”
Joe smiled softly at that, “Maybe, yes.”
“Is there any other decision in marriage that is not made together.”
That question gave Joe a shock, as his thoughts raced to find an answer. When he couldn’t find another example of it, his lips pursed, “I guess… no?”
Kilniara spoke softly and carefully, “Is that… appropriate for your people?”
“No… not really, no. My people argue for equality.”
“Then let us be equal. If we marry. If we truly do marry one another, then we can…” Kilniara trailed off, becoming quite embarrassed but pushing on through, “we will have each other as we both will and want.”
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Joe smiled at that, laughing softly, “That sounds… quite wonderful, but… if I may add an exception.”
Kilniara looked at him again, powering through her embarrassment even as her face reddened, “Yes?”
“Please speak up if we are hurting. Don’t force yourself if you are in pain.”
Her smile was beautiful, even still hindered slightly by her embarrassment and she nodded quickly, “That… thank you!”
Joe smiled, “I think that is what my people are trying to be wise with. I am … happy that you are wishing me to be comfortable with you and not so worried, but for me, honestly, it is simply a concern that you are safe, happy, and unhurt. For my people, that is, in a small way, part of a husband’s effort: to help their spouse be safe and happy while not causing them harm.”
Kilniara smiled at him, “That is… a beautiful dream.”
“A dream?”
Kilniara shrugged, “If you try, I am happy. But I know happiness is a dream. It always has been. Moments of happiness may exist, truly, as right now, but it is only a moment. There will always be moments where happiness is impossible. It is also only partially another’s responsibility. Your people seem strange if you think you can make another happy. Truly miserable people can never be made happy. Look at my brother,” she ended with a sigh and another shrug.
Joe nodded, “You are… very wise.”
“Not wise, I do not think. I’m too young. But hunger, pain, and loneliness teaches much.”
“Well, now I hope I can help with that some.”
Kilnaira smiled, “You already have, but I have my own journey I must complete.”
Joe sighed, feeling a relief for a tension he wasn’t sure that he even knew had been there, “That… makes me very happy.”
“Well,” Kilniara replied, brushing some feathery hair behind her head while looking away a bit embarrassed, “you… have been very stubborn. I’m not rejecting.”
Joe laughed at that, smiling brightly, “You also know my answer.”
Kilniara wilted, her embarrassment overwhelming her confidence and Joe wrapped an arm around her pulling her in tight, “I love you. I want you. You know that as well as I, but I … I’m not going to do anything until we’ve married.”
She stayed quiet but looked back at him after a bit, a small soft smile on her face, “I can tell.” She leaned forward and offered a soft kiss on his lips and Joe found himself flushing a bit red. The two held each other for a bit before Kilniara leaned back. Joe caught her face as she leaned back and he noticed her apprehension. I’m… did I not explain it well enough?
Joe began cautiously, “I don’t want you to feel … I’m not…”
He sighed and tried again, “Let me explain a bit, if I can. With my people, we are able to control the birth of children. I do not want to have you become pregnant. If you do, we will have a child we need to care for, and I have no way to do so. And if you do and we decide that we cannot be with one another… that we are not good with one another, then,” Joe interrupted his statement with sigh, “there is a child to be cared for and I’ll not have a child without a mother and father.”
Kilniara stared at him then smiled, relief and happiness in equal measure, “That makes a lot of sense. Thank you for explaining.”
Joe smiled, “I have every intention of making you mine.”
“And I you.”
Joe’s smile only grew, “Then we are in agreement. It is only time that is needed.”
Kilniara leaned in and the two began kissing once again, their conversation forgotten for a while. They lost themselves in their passion for a bit until Joe felt his control erode and he pulled away with a sigh.
“OK. Time to stop and practice.”
Kilniara sighed and pulled away while chuckling, “Well, I do not have to fear your lack of interest.”
Joe smiled, “No, you don’t.”
The two pecked, then dove into a kiss when Kilniara pressed in for a bit more before both pulled away and the two lay back down, cuddling with one another while beginning the mana exercises. The rest of the morning went this way until Joe noticed the rising sun and warned Kilniara. She noticed the morning light and panicked a bit, skittering out of the bed. She offered a quick peck before fleeing.
“Ooh… so late… you should have told me sooner! Now… gotta go. Bye!”
Joe kept his chuckle till she left the room, then released it while laying his head back down in the bed to continue his practice. He continued his practice until breakfast and got up just early enough to quickly dress and head out to the dining room. There, he found everyone already eating with even the Matriarch and Gwenvair joining them. Shoot… was I late?
“I’m so sorry. I did not know I was so late?”
Gwenvair laughed and shook her head, “You are not late. We are all actually a little early. We all went to bed early and ended up not being able to sleep in.”
“Huh. Didn’t think you guys would go to bed so early?”
Garnedell smiled, “I think we were just too excited from watching Joe kill a city killer! The Tide festival will be very… amazing this year.”
“Tide festival?”
“You think we would not have a festival after resisting a Monster Tide?” Gwenvair asked.
“Huh. I … well yeah, that would make sense. … a natural result of successfully defending a regular attack. Uh… are the monsters killed edible?”
“Many are. Many wild animals and beasts are caught up in the tide and are very delicious!” Zilnek exclaimed excitedly.
“Well that would do it. An excess of resources and food and a successful defense… yeah, that would probably become a very regular thing.”
Gwenvair’s mother said nothing, but nodded.
“So just excited? Is it almost done?”
Gwenvair’s mother shook her head, “No, not really. The monsters are still Guided by some master. We have not found or killed it yet.”
“Ooh. Ok. How long till the … leader monster shows up?”
“It depends on the basic aggression of the monster. Some attack quickly, some are much more cautious. This one is a bit cautious, and weak. It also appears to be rather sneaky and is… quite intelligent, which is worrisome, but at least it is cautious.”
“Caution is a good thing?”
“In a monster tide, yes. It will kill more of the monsters under its command, allowing us time to kill the vast amount of monsters slowly and safely.”
“Makes sense,” Joe added with a nod.
No one else really said anything so Joe dove into his meal, eating a wonderful breakfast. Silence fell at the table for a bit until Garnedell and Zilnek ended their meal and began chatting with one another. Kilniara ended shortly after and joined the conversation as well. Only Gwenvair and her mother took their time at their meal, eating with some sense of decorum that Joe wasn’t quite able to exactly figure out. His exhaustion in the evenings made studying their version of table manners difficult, and he only had one or two times in the morning to examine their table manners. Interesting though… don’t remember Gwenvair doing this when we ate out at the guild halls or inn? Is there a difference? Joe kept his silence, but took the time to watch them a bit with some interest. Finally, Gwenvair finished next, but waited politely while Joe and her mother finished their own meals. When it was done, Gwenvair bowed her head a bit.
“I… wish to speak with you of some… things.”