She was radiant and staggeringly modern. If he hadn't known it was her, hadn't helped her into the saddle himself, he might have mistaken her for someone else. Her gaze found him as she rode past, her teasing mouth forming the most genuine of smiles. Rhaegar smiled back, delighted beyond words to see her so happy, so completely in her element. All eyes were on her, and she thrived on it. She would have been wasted, living and dying in a thatched farmhouse on the edge of nowhere. She was fierce, charismatic, provocative, intelligent, and his.

"You've kept her hidden away too long, Lord," the man beside him said in modern Norwegian. It took his ears a moment to adjust. He smiled, inclining his head and acknowledging the reprimand.

"Some things are not meant to be buried," Rhaegar agreed as she circled past them again. He had never seen her in trousers before she started riding, even the thought of it had seemed strange to him, but they suited her. The fitted jacket hugged her waist, and his eyes lingered on the pale skin of her neck, exposed for once and not hidden beneath a cascade of red waves. He ached desperately to kiss her there. Anywhere. "And she least of all."

"You must let me take her shopping, Lord," the man's wife said warmly, "she'll look ravishing in everything."

He pitied the shop assistants, more than anything else. Rhaegar nodded only, his concentration too fixed on Thyri as she neared the end of the round. He excused himself and cut a path through the crowd to the gate. He was just in time to join in with the applause and was still clapping when she rode out onto the open grass.

"What did you think?" she asked him, grinning as a girl hurried forwards to take Gyllir's head. Rhaegar held her eye, the corner of his mouth flexing upwards.

"Knowing you," he told her, his voice low in his throat, "you know exactly what I was thinking."

Her replying smile told him everything. He approached her as she swung herself from the saddle, and he closed his hands around the narrowness of her waist, guiding her to the ground.

"You're a wonder," he lean down to whisper to her. She strained up to him on tiptoes, giggling at the feel of his breath on her cheek.

She stepped away too soon, her long fingers fiddling with the strap at her chin. It clicked open, and she pulled the helmet from her head, handing it off to one of the stable boys. The long neck he'd so admired vanished again behind a curtain of rich red hair as she removed her bun and pocketed the grips which had held it smooth.

"What?" she asked him, raising an eyebrow, "what's that look for?"

He smiled wolfishly. "Just promise me you'll put it up again later."

Thyri glowed. She closed the gap between them again and reached up, wrapping her arms around his neck. He lowered his head to meet her, and their lips met, the hunger undiminished by either time nor familiarity.

Another boy appeared as they drew apart, carrying a tray with two flutes of champagne. Rhaegar relieved him of both and handed one to Thyri. Their fingers touched.

"Come on," he told her, taking her hand, "there's a whole circle of people clamouring to speak with you, and I think I hate every single one of them."

She giggled, it was music to him.

"You can go back to the horses if you like," Thyri teased, "I know you prefer their company."

"To anyone's in the world but yours."

---

Rhaegar waited at the bottom of the stairs in the hotel lobby, car keys looped around his fingers. The conversations around him hushed, heads turned towards the staircase behind him. That probably meant...yes. He turned slowly, his eyes drifting up towards her. She'd remembered his request. Her hair was up, her long neck exposed, adorned with the necklace he bought for her. He'd left the box on her pillow, ready for her to find.

Her dress was the colour of a summer sea, hugging her frame and terminating at the knee. She was a little unsteady on her feet as she made her way towards him, and her fingers curled around the banister rail. He'd never seen her in heels before. Her legs looked like they went on forever. It took every ounce of self-control to keep the stupid grin off his face.

When she was close enough he offered her his hand. Thyri took it, looking up at him with shining green eyes.

"Well, look at you," she purred, looking him up and down. Reaching out, she tugged at the fabric of his jacket with a smirk. "All this modern tailoring really works for you."

"Everything works for you," he replied, leading her across the entrance hall. Let them look at her, every single one of them, let them look and know they could never have her. He was hers and she was his.

The air beyond the doors was chill. Thyri drew closer to him, wrapping her hands around his arm. He smiled, removed his jacket and draped it around her shoulders. He reached down as he did so and set a gentle kiss against the back of her neck.

"Cheat," she laughed, batting at his chest with her hand, "not yet."

Rhaegar grinned as the valet pulled up with the car. It was brand new, he'd had it less than a week. He'd bought it on the advice of others, knowing far more about what made a good horse or hunting dog than made a good car. A sports car, they'd told him, you'll want a sports car. And when he'd seen it, he'd known they'd been right. He'd chosen a dark metallic green, accented with black. The green had reminded him of her eyes. Rhaegar held the door for her as she slipped inside, and then circled around the back to the other side. Climbing inside he grinned at her, put it into gear, and pulled away from the curb, out into the city traffic.

---

Her cheek was warm against his chest. He ran his fingers through her hair, revelling in the scent of her, the feel. Outside the window the city hummed. He missed the silence of the countryside, missed true darkness and the morning sounds of birds. Thyri slept on, her chest rising and falling beneath the tangled sheets. One of her legs was wrapped around his, the other protruded from under the covers, pale and porcelain-like in the morning sunlight. He traced the curves of it with his eyes, holding the rest of him still, content to let her sleep. Waiting for her to wake, he summoned stars to dance along the ceiling above them, remembering the early days, when he'd only just found her. They'd taken cloaks and wandered down to the coast. Side by side, they lain on the beach and he'd taught her their names, shown her the shapes. It had been the first night she'd let him have her, and he'd felt like the luckiest being alive. He'd laughed at the stars the next night, and the next; cursed to watch but never touch.

Thyri shifted in his arms, and opened one bleary eye.

"Morning," she purred, screwing both eyes tightly shut. She shimmed down a little, pulling the covers up and under her chin.

"Morning, hjarta kærr," he replied. He held her a while as the stars faded.

"I know we had a late night," he apologised eventually, "but I have something to show you. We'll need to be leaving soon."

Thyri smiled. "You said that yesterday," she told him, "and the morning before. Do I need to remind you that on both occasions you were the one who wouldn't let me out of bed."

He felt his lip curl.

"On my best behaviour," he swore, holding up his hands. She turned, pushing herself up against his chest and looked up into his eyes.

"Mmhmm," she said doubtfully, "I'll believe it when I see it."

---

The car roared its way up the bank, Gar caught a glimpse of it through the trees and pulled over to the side of the road.

"You're going to need to close your eyes," he told her, "and keep them closed until I say otherwise."

Her mouth formed a sideways smile, and her eyebrow arched provocatively.

"Not the first time I've heard that from a man," she teased, biting her lip. "But because it's you..." she closed her eyes and leaned back in her seat, "I'll play."

Rhaegar slipped the car back into gear and continued on to the top of the bank. He turned off onto a private drive and they struck more uneven ground. The stables passed them on their right hand side, the garages and a cluster of other outbuildings, each surrounded by swarms of workers adding finishing touches wherever they were needed. He pulled into the driveway, applied the break and opened the door. Hurrying around to Thyri's door he opened it for her, and gently guided her out, putting his hand over the top of her head so she didn't knock it against the frame. He took both her hands and walked backwards around the corner, drawing her after him, until they were in the centre of the walkway over what had once been a moat.

"Alright," he told her, "you can open them now."
Her shoulders rose and fell in a steadying breath, and then her eyes flickered open. They darted upwards towards the summit of the tower, her grin growing slowly.

"It's for you," he told her, snatching up her hands anew. "For us, for Jorg and Elina. I thought it was about time we had a home again, a real one." Gar squeezed her fingers. "I told you once, I'd treat you like a queen, well..." he grinned down at her, "a queen needs a castle."

She was laughing and crying, kept covering her mouth with her fingers. He'd known she'd love it. She'd always wanted something more, something that was hers, something extraordinary. She'd never wanted to be plain, always wanted to stand out from the crowd, but, he knew too, like him, she'd always wanted to be loved completely, absolutely, without compromise. She wanted the world and someone to give it to her. He couldn't imagine anything that would have made him happier than doing just that.

"She needs something else too," he explained. He reached for his hip, to the place where his sword usually hung, impractical in his modern attire. He drew it instead from thin air and set it across his palms. Taking a deep breath he dropped to one knee and held the sword up to her.

"I've wanted to do this from the moment I met you," Rhaegar told her, watching closely as her eyes widened, "and so many times over the years, but something always got in the way." He shook his head, "no more delays, no more excuses. Thyri..." He broke off, stifling a laugh, "now, I know how you feel about respectable women but, do you think it's about time you and I think about settling down properly?"

She giggled, setting shaking fingers to her lips again. "I think we're probably both old enough, don't you?"

He grinned, nodding, nodding longer than was necessary, battling with relief and excitement and joy.

"Will you marry me?"

Thyri knelt down opposite him, and set her hand to the smooth of his blade. She leaned forwards, kissed him, her breathing shaky.

"Yes," she whispered, "and a million times, yes."