NOVPUBAs he pulled Elora to the middle of the hall and used his power to force people away, he glanced back at the reactions of his other wives. Emma, Emily, and Astrid were all cheering for him and Elora with varying levels of enthusiasm, but Naeku was pouting a little.
The expression on her werepanther face was sometimes hard to read, but Erik had some experience already. She was expectedly jealous.
"Aw, look at the poor girl," Elora whispered mischievously as she fell into his arms. "Should you maybe take her first? Since it's her wedding?"
Her words were considerate, but Erik knew her better than that. He chuckled and shook his head. "Of course not. No matter what, the first wife always takes priority. It's something she'll have to get used to."
Slowly, they started dancing. It was not a dance anyone recognised, as it was one Elora had learned in her youth and later taught Erik, but the beauty and elegance with which they glided over the floor was breathtaking. Their skill allowed their height difference to be barely noticeable.
"Good boy," Elora giggled softly. "Teach her well, alright?" she continued with a hint of cruelty. "She's family now, but that doesn't give her the right to break with hierarchy."
Erik smiled slightly. He'd already laid the groundwork and fully believed himself capable of bringing Naeku in line with the mindset of his other wives. Additionally, finally marking her and establishing a bond will help immensely. Allowing them to feel each other's emotions is a powerful barrier against jealousy.
The attitude Elora had taught him to take to women he supposedly loved would seem manipulative and cruel to others, but in their mind, it was the only way to keep a harem healthy.
Even if Naeku believed herself to be okay with it now, it might not last. Jealousy fostered resentment, which fostered hate. Erik wouldn't accept that, and he'd make sure Naeku saw the light…
For the next fifteen minutes, they didn't speak another word. Rather, they enjoyed each other's presence as the surroundings slowly fell away and only their dance remained.
Yet, even that came to an end. After they separated, Erik took Naeku by the hand next. He didn't actually want to ruin her wedding by making her wait any longer, after all. In fact, his main strategy for getting Naeku to be more accepting of hierarchy was through joy and pleasure…
"Are you enjoying yourself?" Erik asked his newest wife, smiling as they danced together. Elora had taught the same dance to her sister-wives during the planning, so Naeku knew it as well. Although she wasn't as good as Elora, her superior physical form and talent still allowed her to learn it quickly.
The werepanther clung close to him, a shy smile on her lips, and a joyful blush beneath the fur on her cheeks. "Yeah…" she whispered softly, having completely forgotten her earlier jealousy. "It's not even close to what I'd expected my wedding to be like in the past, but… this was good."
Erik nodded, genuinely glad to hear that.
"You know, that reminds me, and I never asked," he then continued as he shifted his arms and guided Naeku across the dance floor. "How did you see your own romantic future in the past? I know you never had any suitors that interested you, but what relationship did you think you'd have when you did find someone?"
Naeku chuckled, happily following his lead. "You're asking if I thought I'd have a harem, or be a part of one?"
"Basically," Erik smirked. "What did you imagine your wedding would be like?"
Smiling, Naeku shrugged. "Honestly, there were times when I'd be particularly annoyed by some suitor and consider never marrying at all. That said, when I did think about it, I'd imagine just marrying a single person. The idea of multiple lovers never appealed to me."
Then she smirked. "Although I'd certainly never imagined joining a harem. Previously, being my father's heir basically meant I could only marry down, after all."
Her comment made Erik frown. "I hope you're not implying I married down with you and your new sisters? You should know that I value you higher than that."
"Sorry," she smiled shyly, happy he felt that way. "I didn't mean it like that exactly." Still gracefully following his steps, she looked up at him. "But you can't deny a harem member is in a weaker position than the wife to a monogamous husband."
After his frown faded, Erik smirked. "I'm actually convinced that still depends on the couple. There's been plenty of marriages where one party, usually the husband, makes sure their partner has much less power than you all have—both in your daily lives, and over me."
Naeku's expression became complicated. "I…" she muttered, but then fell into thought for a moment. They continued dancing in silence. Finally, she spoke up again with a wry sigh. "You're probably right…" She looked up at him with a wide smile. "And I don't want you to think I'm not happy! Just that I never expected this…"
"Hehe, I know," Erik chuckled as their dance slowly came to an end. "But you still feel jealous, right?"
A blush spread on her cheeks, and she looked down with some frustration. "I'll get over it…"
Leaning in, Erik grabbed her chin and whispered in her panther-like ears, "Don't worry… I'll help you." A smug grin played on his lips as he teasingly gave her ear a lick. He did enjoy toying with his women a little.
A shiver went down Naeku's spine. It was a shiver of pleasure and expectation. She had no idea what he meant by that, but it felt like something she wanted to discover.
Their dance came to an end, but Erik suddenly thought back to what Ankhur had told him just before the marriage began. Supposedly, there was some kind of desire Naeku was suppressing because she didn't believe he was capable of helping her with it.
Naturally, that ate away at him a little.
Although he may not yet believe himself to be some god capable of performing any miracle, he certainly believed he could provide Naeku whatever she wanted. 'Except bringing her dead mother back to live, I guess,' he muttered to himself. 'But surely that's not it?'
He shook his head and discarded these thoughts. 'Whatever, I'll find out later.'
For now, he focused on his next dance by taking Emma's hand, then Emily's, and finally Astrid's.
For the most part, they either stayed silent during the dancing or talked about how they liked the wedding. Astrid, however, brought up something else.
She raised an eyebrow and looked at him as they glided across the floor. "You know I don't mind going last because that's the order we decided on for the wedding, but don't forget it's only for today."
It seemed that, despite her usually laid-back attitude, Astrid was still getting a little fed up.
"I know," Erik smiled gently. "If we follow the usual ordering, that means you'll be second to last, and Naeku last in any future situation."
Astrid narrowed her eyes. Her dominant half didn't much like that idea, either. "Perhaps it's time for another harem council gathering to discuss this…" she muttered absentmindedly to herself.
Erik, wisely, decided not to get involved in that.
After the dances were all done, the end of the evening was approaching… and so was Naeku's wedding night.
