White light swallowed the chamber.
Not warm, not pure.
It was the kind of brightness that burned—
the kind that erased shadows only to reveal something far worse.
Inara felt her body lift from the ground,
like invisible hands pulling her upward by the chest.
Her lungs locked. Her fingers curled involuntarily.
Her veil floated above her head—
straight up, as if gravity had reversed only for her.
The brides' eyes glowed pale blue.
The altar hummed.
And Irvine—
Irvine was on his knees,
hands clamped over his ears,
head bowed as if the light itself was drilling into his skull.
"I—Inara—"
His voice cracked into something inhuman.
Inara reached a trembling hand toward him.
"Irvine—help—"
He lifted his head.
His eyes were dilated so wide they looked black.
Light reflected off them like a mirror,
as if he wasn't seeing her…
…but what The Groom saw.
"Inara… the altar is taking you," he gasped.
"He wants the union now. He wants the vow—"
Her throat constricted violently.
She couldn't speak.
She could only look at him,
begging.
His breathing quickened.
"Inara… listen… you need to stay awake. If you faint, he'll finish the binding."
White light poured into her eyes,
into her mouth,
down her throat—
as if the ceremony was trying to fill her from the inside.
Her fingers curled tighter.
"I-Irvine—please—"
"I'm here," he rasped.
But he didn't move.
Not toward her.
Not toward the altar.
Because his legs weren't obeying him.
The Groom's shadow was wrapped around his ankles—
a long black ribbon of smoke and lace,
binding him to the ground.
Inara's veil brushed the ceiling now,
stretching like a banner.
Her body lifted higher.
She whimpered.
"Irvine—don't—let—me—go—"
His entire body strained against the shadow holding him.
Veins carved his neck.
Sweat slicked his jaw.
His teeth gritted so hard she could hear them crack.
But the Groom held him too tightly.
The brides turned their heads toward Inara—
their movements smooth,
unnatural,
marionette-like.
Their mouths parted in unison.
"Chosen."
The lullaby returned.
This time it was sung in words she understood.
*"Do not fear the veil,
the veil is peace.
Do not fear the groom,
the groom is promise."*
Inara clawed at the air.
"No—no—NO—"
She wasn't begging the brides.
She was begging the force pulling her toward the altar,
toward the dagger,
toward the ring,
toward the union that wasn't hers.
She was begging not to lose the man below her,
kneeling helplessly,
fingers digging into stone.
Irvine's voice tore through the chamber—
"INARA!"
He lurched upward,
one knee rising,
shadow burning at his ankle.
The Groom hissed.
The brides' faces twisted.
The altar cracked.
But Irvine didn't stop.
He forced himself upright—
not by strength,
not by will,
but by something far deeper:
pure devotion.
Inara felt her heart jolt in her chest.
He reached up with both arms,
fighting the light that tried to blind him,
hands shaking violently.
"Inara…"
His voice dropped to a whisper,
broken but resolute.
"Look at me."
She did.
Even as the altar dragged her higher,
even as her limbs went numb,
even as the lullaby smothered her mind—
She looked at him.
And for a second,
everything else went silent.
The blue flames.
The brides.
The Groom's shadow.
The light swallowing her whole.
Only Irvine's voice remained.
"Do you remember the first time I asked you to marry me?"
Her chest constricted—
but this time from emotion, not force.
He smiled weakly.
Like he was dying.
"You said no."
Her throat tightened.
"Y-you… asked in a grocery store aisle…"
"And you threw a bag of rice at me. Because you didn't believe I was serious."
Another step.
Another crack in the shadow holding him.
He kept going.
"Then I asked you again on the roof that night—
when the city lights flickered—
and you cried because you thought you were dreaming."
She could barely breathe.
His voice softened, trembling.
"And every day since then, I've woken up wanting the same thing."
The Groom's pressure intensified.
The brides whispered:
"*Promise.*
*Promise.*
*Promise.*"
The altar forced her head back,
forcing her throat open for the vow.
But Irvine kept talking—
pouring words into her like lifelines.
"Inara, listen to me."
He reached upward,
shadow burning off his wrist—
"I will marry you."
The Groom recoiled slightly.
"I will marry you in the world of the living."
The altar cracked again.
"I will marry you with witnesses we choose—
not these things."
The brides hissed.
"I will marry you in sunlight—
not under someone else's shadow."
The chamber shook violently.
Inara's eyes filled with tears that evaporated in the light.
"And if death wants to take you," he whispered,
"then it has to go through me first."
Her heartbeat pounded against the force pulling her skyward.
"Inara…"
His voice broke entirely.
"…don't choose him."
She strained against the force—
her fingers trembling,
reaching,
reaching—
He extended his hand.
For the first time,
the light flickered.
Because she chose him back.
Her fingers brushed his palm.
The Groom screamed.
The brides shrieked, veils whipping wildly.
The altar split entirely,
a lightning crack running straight through the center.
Irvine roared with everything in him—
"INARA! COME BACK TO ME!"
The light burst—
And she fell.
Straight into his arms.
Her body slammed against his chest.
He dropped to his knees with her,
holding her so tightly their ribs pressed together.
He buried his face into her shoulder,
breathing her name over and over—
"Inara… Inara… I've got you… I've got you…"
She clutched the back of his shirt,
shaking uncontrollably.
For a moment,
they were just two people in the dark,
fighting to remember how to breathe.
Then—
The chamber went silent.
All brides turned their heads toward the altar doorway.
The Groom's shadow stretched across the floor,
longer,
darker,
hungrier.
The lullaby whispered again.
This time from directly behind them.
"*He will not take her from me.*"
Irvine lifted his head.
His blood ran cold.
Inara buried herself against him,
fingers trembling in his.
"Irvine… he's coming."
He pulled her close,
jaw clenched,
eyes locked on the moving shadow.
"I know."
He pressed a kiss to her forehead,
voice low and feral—
"And he'll have to kill me before he touches you."
The Groom stepped into the chamber.
The torches died.
Darkness swallowed everything.