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And so Earendil and Lin joined the others in congratulating Luk and Lily and wishing them happiness in their life together.

Eon let Ai pounce on him and squealed as if laughing before rolling himself out from under her. He nuzzled her and nibbled at her shoulder. It had been a while since he'd been let out to see her, and he was feeling very playful indeed.

"By the way," Luk grinned widely at everyone, "you are all invited to our newly finished home for a celebration."

Andarien was also looking forward to seeing Luk's house. He hadn't seen it since they had first arrived in the city, and he had been so busy with Corazin and his apprenticeship that he hadn't even realized that there had been a renovation going on at all. He could only imagine how the house would have changed - it had been but three small rooms before, and he knew that married people generally had bigger houses than that. But there was one thing he didn't understand.

"If we're going to celebrate at the house," he asked Luk curiously, "why did we come all the way out here for the wedding?"

Luk smiled. "My father was human. Mortal. He's dead, his soul has moved on, and he is gone forever. My mother, though, and my step-father, Arthael's father, were elves, and their souls are forever bound to this world. They might have been already reincarnated somewhere ... or their spirits may be here with us right now. We have no way of knowing. But I'd like to believe that they're here with us, taking part in our day."

Eon chirruped and flicked one ear. If he were capable of it, he would be grinning maniacally right about now. He braced himself, then took off after Ai, chasing after her towards the forest.

Andarien was so used to Eon tagging along beside him without being called that he didn't even notice that for the first time, he was not there. He was too busy listening to Luk and the others to be paying real attention to his Pokémon.

"I like that," he smiled widely. "So your nana and ada can always see you. Then you're never alone, even if there's no people around you."

Luk smiled. "That was my thought when I created this shrine. But come, let's head to the house for some refreshment. Back this way."

And, taking Lily's hand, he led the way back through the forest to their house just outside the city.

The house was now about four times the size Luk's original house had been, though it was situated in the same spot. It did mean that some of the trees around the house had been cut down to make room for it, but it was still a beautiful area. The marble brick walls were clear of ivy, but that didn't take away from the quaint look of the house. There were tents in the open area around it, where Arthael, Halmir and their family were staying, but even so there was still quite a bit of yard space left over.

The first room inside was an enormous sitting room. So far it was somewhat sparsely decorated, with only the barest of furniture and only one wall painting, but considering who Luk had married, that would likely change soon enough.

Against one wall, however, there was a long table that was covered with refreshments: a large bowl of punch, some bottles of wine, a pot of steaming herbal drink, and a pitcher of water were surrounded by several piles of small glasses for drinking from; and on the other side of the table was a large cake, sliced into pieces, as well as three different kinds of pie, peach cobbler, apple crisp, and a large platter of fresh fruit.

"Thank you," Luk beamed proudly. "We have been working on it for well over a month now. It's not quite finished, but it's finished enough that we can live here conveniently."

"And comfortably," Lily added. "Please, everyone, help yourself to whatever you would like."

Kaito was the first to make his way to the table of food, and he helped himself to a large slice of the cake.

Through the crowd, Aranxia and Aennan made their way over to Lin and Earendil. Despite the joyfulness of the day's celebrations, they both looked somewhat serious.

"Uncle Earendil, Aunt Lin," Aranxia said to get their attention, "could we talk to you for a moment?"

Aranxia chewed her lower lip thoughtfully for a brief moment before nodding her head. "Please," she said softly. "And ... if you don't mind, I'd like to get Uncle Daeron and Aunt Iorlas as well."

"I can get them," Aennan told her. "You go ahead, I'll be right behind you."

Aranxia nodded at him, and he headed back into the crowd. Then she turned back to Earendil and Lin. "Shall we?" she murmured. And without waiting for an answer, she slipped past them towards the door.

Earendil had no idea what was going on, and he cast a worried glance at Lin before following after their niece.

Once they were outside, Aranxia leaned against the wall and remained stoically silent until Aennan joined them, with Daeron and Iorlas close behind.

"What's up?" Daeron asked, surprised to see Lin and Earendil waiting with Aranxia. "Has something happened?"

Aennan moved to stand beside Aranxia and took her hand in both of his, and gave her hand a reassuring squeeze. She looked to him as if for strength, then looked up at her aunts and uncles.

"I wanted to ask the four of you something," she said quietly, "and before you give me any answers, I'd like you all to promise me that you'll at least consider it before giving a reply. Can you do that for me?"