Her laugh is a welcome addition to the noise, the echoes in this room, and his voice is breathless (both from the kiss and from relief) when he speaks.

"I am not much for ceremonies," he replies, reaching up to brush her hair back from her face again. "Though I will admit, the night that we laid together beneath the stars, on the beach...I felt as if something changed, then. With us, your hands in my wings...everything became sharper. More focused. It was if our souls..."

He intertwines their fingers, looking down at how her hand fits in his.

"Joined. I could hear, better. I did not mention it before, as I could not...explain. Still cannot explain it. But perhaps..."

Perhaps that was all the ceremony needed.