The Veil of Darkness
Chapter 186: The Holder of the Reins of Marriage

"A surprise?" Annalise asked as she allowed Pristine to direct her toward the dressing table. She wasn’t really sure about what the woman was planning to do but nothing prepared her for what she saw next.

Pristine started conjuring dress after dress from thin air and once she didn’t like the dress, she kept throwing them on the bed which was already a mess of blankets and pillows.

"Yes, my dear, a surprise that I have spent a lot of time, energy, and power on it. I’m seriously hoping that you will like it after seeing it."

Her words did nothing but only made Annalise more curious about the surprise that the fairy was talking about. She wanted to ask her more about that surprise but didn’t get the chance as Pristine suddenly beamed with happiness and shook a huge lavender-colored dress in front of her.

"What?" Annalise asked while looking at the fairy in confusion. She even had to arch her body to the side in order to look at the woman from behind the huge dress.

"Look at this dress and tell me how is it?" Pristine told her as she once again shook the dress in front of Annalise.

Having no other choice, Annalise decided to do as she was told before continuing with her questioning. She turned her full attention to the dress and let her eyes asses it from top to bottom. The dress was made of pure silk. It had two barely visible straps keeping the dress intact over the shoulders with a shoulder cover that kept the dress modest even though it actually left the entire shoulders and arms bare. The neckline was V-shaped but it didn’t reveal much like the ’non-existent’ sleeves. There were a bunch of very fine plates on the left of the dress near the waistline before the dress was left loose down below in a huge skirt. Though the dress was devoid of any embroidery or external design other than the plates, it still looked nothing less than a beauty that would easily make the noble young ladies of the capital spend gold just to wear it once.

"It’s so beautiful, Pristine." Annalise finally spoke and her words were nothing but the sheer truth that the fairy seemed to have already guessed from her expressions.

"Perfect." Pristine beamed with happiness before she moved forward with the dress in her hand and suddenly dropped it on Annalise, shocking the latter because of her sudden and unexpected action.

"What are you doing?" Annalise shouted in alarm as she hurriedly stood up only to find that she was completely alright and the fairy was still beaming with happiness and it seemed like her smile had only stretched further as she stared at Annalise.

Annalise followed Pristine’s line of sight and finally realized what was actually going on. She was no longer in her night robe but instead wearing the silk dress that Pristine just dumped on her just a couple of seconds ago. It seemed like tge fairy actually used a spell to change her clothes from the night robe to the beautiful dress.

"What are you actually doing, Pristine?" Annalise asked once again but this time in a softer tone as she was no longer surprised or shocked.

Pristine pulled her to settle down on the chair in front of the dressing table once again before she moved to stand right behind her while looking right into her eyes through the mirror as she answered, "I’m helping you to tease your husbands a little bit. Let me tell you a secret, My Lady. If you want to keep the excitement and passion flowing in your relationship for as long as possible, then you will have to work a little bit harder for it. Make sure to tease, twist, and lure your husbands every once in a while, keep them on the tips of their toes and make them yearn for more every time they think they already have gotten everything. Once you will learn to do all these perfectly, you will become the one holding the true reins of your marriage."

Annalise felt the tips of her ears turning bright pink as she realized exactly what the fairy was trying to teach her and what really surprised her was just how much her teaching differed from the one that the Old Madam Jaslien from Minister Harris’ manor used to give her granddaughter, Annalise, and tge other young ladies of their friend circle.

The latter always used to tell them that they were supposed to stay silent in their husbands’ homes and listen to their husbands and their family all the time. They should never go against their husbands’ wishes and let them do whatever they wanted. They were supposed to please their husbands in bed and should never devoid them of their rights. They were not the ones leading the reins inside tge bedroom let alone the entire marriage or the house, it was always their husbands.

However, what Pristine was saying was totally different. She was the only one who talked about a wife leading the activities inside the bedroom and even holding the reins of her marriage even though she got not only one but three powerful and strong husbands who seemed to stand above all in the entire Seelie Empire because of the mysteries surrounding them.

"Do you think this will work?" She asked the fairy while watching the latter’s fingers running down her bare shoulders as tge woman cast another spell that left her entire body feeling refreshed.

A smile bloomed on Pristine’s lips as she bent slightly to put her mouth next to Annalise’s ear and whispered, "Trust me, it’s going to do wonders. Just remember to thank me later."