I was resting in bed with Luna lying next to me just staring at the ceiling while she slept. It was pretty early in the morning, last night was more subdued than the previous one so the two of us returned to our room early... and made out for a few hours. I blushed at the thought even as the pretty fox girl gently snored against my chest. We haven't gone any further than kissing and cuddling yet, and I got the impression that this was as far as things would go before we made things more official. The idea of marrying her still felt... intimidating, but I really was infatuated with her. I've had many crushes since high school but this was the first time I had ever been able to act on any of them. It felt so good for my feelings to be returned for once. I think this is more than just infatuation though... I really did think I was in love with her.

  There wasn't a reason to put off making our engagement official anymore. She had asked me not to hold back when I was ready and... I think I'm ready. I'm not ready for the marriage part yet, but I think I could handle getting engaged and promising ourselves to each other now. I knew I was jumping the gun a little by the standards of my home, but screw it, I was in love. If something happened I could still back out of the engagement. It wasn't binding until the marriage was official... right? Ugh, I better ask Luna about their customs. It was less romantic than going on one knee and proposing, but I don't know if that's even a thing here. The whole dominant and submissive conversation made it clear that we need to talk about this stuff. I couldn't just make assumptions. I can't tell where our cultures line up and where they don't yet.

  Were wedding and engagement rings a thing here? It might send some mixed messages after trading for everyone's rings if I tried to propose to her with one of them now. The jewelry we're getting is functional, it's not just a pretty thing to look at, the way rings are back home. Giving her a ring of water magic and saying it was an engagement ring doesn't feel right... especially after giving all of her friends rings and necklaces too...

  Luna began to stir in my arms and smiled the moment she looked up at me. She didn't say anything to me at first, she just rubbed her fluffy ear against me in a way that made me laugh. I pulled a lock of her blond hair out of her face and stared down into those pretty blue eyes I loved so much.

  "You keep rubbing up against me like that. It's cute," I whispered to her.

  ("I'm telling all the other boys and girls that you're mine,") she whispered back through the rings.

  I raised an eyebrow but I couldn't stop myself from showing her an amused smile. ("You're scent-marking me then?")

  Luna's face flushed a little bit but that didn't break her smile. ("You know what that is? I thought maybe you wouldn't since you were a human.")

  I nodded. ("It's a thing a lot of animals do so I've heard about it in school.")

  She giggled. ("It's funny that something that's just... normal to beastkin, is a curiosity among the humans from your world. There are theories that our domesticated pets started doing it to copy beastkin, seems that isn't the case.")

  My hand slid up her ears and I explored the skin and folds of her red and black foxy appendages. She rested her head against my chest and allowed me to poke and prod at them to my heart's content.

  ("Luna... I think I'm ready to call our engagement official. Why don't we talk about what that means to both of us so that we can lay out our expectations.")

  She sat up a little and looked into my eyes. ("Truly?")

  I smiled at her. ("I am. For me, this is a pretty big step. One that I'm taking a lot earlier than people where I come from usually do. That's why I want to know what exactly engagement and marriage mean here so that I can have the right expectations. As well as some of the... rituals for lack of a better word. Where I come from, one person 'officially' proposes to the other on one knee, presenting a ring, and often in a public space. It would be pretty silly if I assumed that would be the same here and that wasn't the case.")

  ("Oh... that would be pretty embarrassing to do in public like that. No, the uh, ritual I suppose you could say, usually involves trading a braided lock of each other's hair along with a small token. These could be rings but they don't have to be. Usually they're things like unenchanted necklaces or rings, a lucky coin, wood or stone carvings, beads, gems, paintings, or other things like that. Something usually small to remember each other by. Wealthier people tend to give things that are more like jewelry but I've known adventures that have given each other weapons. That sort of thing is rare though because people don't like to lose the tokens they've exchanged. Keeping the token isn't technically required but most people do,") Luna explained.

  ("I could give you one of the rings we were already planning to give you... but that feels a little odd considering I'm giving everyone something...")

  Luna giggled. ("Maybe. I wouldn't mind though. The token isn't important, the meaning behind it is.")

  I smiled and caressed her face. ("I suppose.")

  ("As for expectations...") she continued. ("It varies a little bit based on the different cultures, but for beastkin, it usually means that the person is your selected... breeding partner. That wouldn't necessarily be the case for us, since we're both women, but the expectation is that we would intend to raise children together eventually and... be intimate.")

  I nodded. ("That makes sense. That means that sex is usually reserved for those that are married then?")

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  Luna blushed bright red and broke eye contact. ("Yes. that's what it usually means for beastkin. Some races are more... lax, but most are supposed to wait till marriage. Brides sometimes are already... pregnant at their weddings, but it's uncommon. There are herbs that temporarily suppress fertility or virility so if the intent is just... that, then marriage doesn't need to happen. I wouldn't accept being intimate before marriage though.")

  ("That's okay,") I said to reassure her. Then frowned at the next question. ("How... binding is engagement and marriage supposed to be? And how long are we supposed to be engaged before marriage?")

  The question made Luna calm down a little now that we've moved on from topics that embarrass her. ("Engagement is considered a strong commitment. Some wealthy people are expected to give gifts to the bride's family sometimes and that stuff is usually kept if things are broken off. That wouldn't be the case for us, or most other travelers and hunters. Our life is more dangerous and unpredictable, so that sort of stuff doesn't happen unless the groom in question is already very wealthy or if the bride isn't a hunter themselves. For us, it would just be a promise that we intend to get married eventually. As for how long people usually stay engaged before marriage, it varies but a year is the usual length. Sometimes less and sometimes more, depending on the situation. Once both parties have committed to the marriage and the wedding ceremony has passed, the intention is for them to stay married for the rest of their lives, though divorce happens sometimes. It's considered dishonorable for both parties to divorce, both sides of the marriage would have failed to keep their partner happy. That doesn't stop it from happening and it doesn't stop them from being remarried though.")

  I nodded. ("Most of that is true of where I come from as well, though divorce is more common and accepted and dowries don't happen anymore, at least in the part of the world that I lived in.")

  ("Does your culture accept multiple wives?") Luna asked.

  I shook my head. ("No. That was illegal where I came from. Multiple marriages weren't recognized and the way things had gone culturally, if someone wanted multiple lovers they were more likely to not be married at all. Even outside of marriages, most people didn't like the idea of someone having multiple lovers. It wasn't the norm.")

  ("That's... a bit relieving, but I should probably tell you that multiple husbands or wives is the norm here. You wouldn't have to have multiple if you don't want to... and I think I would prefer things that way too, but you should know that it's accepted and normal here. Especially among beastkin and for pairs of women who marry, since marriage is usually intended to make breeding claims clear to others. Most assume a pair of women intend to share a husband or take a male as a submissive later.")

  I frowned. ("I don't want to share you with anyone else and I'm not interested in marrying a man to knock us up. I only like women, I don't even want to have sex with a man. I... would consider one of us having a donor father but that's as far as I think I'd be willing to go.")

  She blushed a little at the mention of donor father, the rings luckily did a good job of translating the euphemism based on her reaction, but her face relaxed once I finished. In the end she smiled before she continued. ("I'm glad... for both parts. I don't think I want to share you with anyone and I don't like men that way either so sharing a man is... unappealing to me. I'm not sure if I want to have children at all... but I would consider it when I'm older.")

  There was a lull in the conversation before I decided to ask something a little confusing to me. ("Luna, don't take this the wrong way, I'm not asking because I want to pressure you into something. But why do you want to save intimacy until after marriage, if the purpose of marriage mostly has to do with 'breeding claims' as you put it? We're both women, does marriage actually make much difference?")

  Luna frowned and sighed before looking away. ("It's... maybe it's a bit selfish, but I'm afraid that if I don't get married... I never will. I want to be with someone, to have that kind of commitment. Most people wouldn't look twice at me once they've learned I couldn't speak or they saw the scars across my throat. For most people I'm just... damaged. Not worth it. I promised myself that I wouldn't allow anyone to use me for that kind of thing, I need the commitment of marriage to have complete trust that you... or anyone, wouldn't just throw me away afterward. Not that I think you would, but... I just need it to feel safe. Some people only like girls if they're unspoiled by others so I want to save myself for whoever loves me enough to commit to it.")

  I rubbed her back. ("I don't think that's selfish. If that's what you need to feel comfortable and safe, then that's okay. It's hard for me to wrap my head around that because, where I come from, marriage almost didn't matter anymore. The only people who bother with it either stick it out or get divorced in two years. I already didn't have a girlfriend, I'm not going to shrivel up and die if you don't sleep with me for a year, or however long it takes for us to marry,") I joked.

  Luna hugged herself against me. ("Thanks for understanding... maybe it wouldn't make much difference, but it's what I want. So thank you for not pushing me to do anything I'm not comfortable with.")

  I kissed her on the top of her head. ("No problem. I wouldn't want to scare off such a beautiful lady. If seeing you in a white dress is what it's going to take to make you comfortable, I think I can wait.")

  ("White dress?") she asked curiously.

  I laughed. ("Where I come from, brides wear white on their wedding day. Looks like another thing our cultures don't have in common.")

  She giggled. ("Well, there's nothing to say that I couldn't wear a white dress if it made you happy for the ceremony. What about the groom?")

  ("A black suit for the groom. Things kind of go out the window when you're talking about lesbians though. I've seen videos where they both wear white, both where black, or neither of them wear traditional colors at all,") I answered.

  I was surprised how little I was intimidated by talking about this. I couldn't tell if I was in denial or acceptance but... I couldn't help but picture Luna in a pretty white wedding dress hanging off my arm and smiling. The details would have to be hammered out but... I think I am ready to commit to this.

  ("Luna...") I said. My mouth suddenly felt a bit dry. ("I don't have a token for you yet but... would you show me how to braid the lock of hair? I... I think I'm ready.")

  She sat up and looked into my eyes, her face was illuminated by their white glow. The smile on her face was radiant and she never looked more beautiful than in that moment. I couldn't help myself, I pulled her into another kiss.

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