The ground was cold and hard beneath her bare feet. Every step she took forward was painful. The rough, jagged stones scraped against the soles of her feet. The skin felt raw...it was sure to leave blisters.
But no one seemed to care. If they did, they didn't dare to show it . And so Neveah kept walking.
The stripping was an important aspect of the ritual. The Alpha King's bride-to-be was to show her willingness to leave behind her own life and walk his path alone. To share weal and woe with him, by walking barefoot to the ritual hall before the eyes of many ranked spectators.
It was the most sacred of all bonding ceremonies, she'd been told. But it felt to her like a desecration.
Not far behind, over a dozen attendants trailed her in a neat line. They held colourful, festive garlands and other rare gifts and treasures Alessio had sent by an hourly interval since dawn, as was a part of the bonding ritual.
