This is my first story for the Lunar Chronicles, so I hope you enjoy it!

...
You are cordially invited to the Royal Wedding
of Emperor Kaito and Linh Cinder of
the Eastern Commonwealth
Where: The Royal Palace Gardens, New Beijing, Eastern Commonwealth
When: 19 May 128 T.E
All are welcome!
...

She was worried.
No scratch that, she was panicking.
This was supposed to be the happiest day of her life but instead, it felt nearly as stressful as the day she faced Levana for the final time.
Ugh, Levana. The whole revolution had happened about a year and a half ago and Cinder was still shaken up about it. There were times when she had gotten terrible nightmares and had to comm Kai in the middle of the night (which wasn't even a problem thanks to Earthen time differences) just for a small piece of comfort. Then again, she and Kai used every little excuse to comm one another so often that his adviser, Konn Torin, had been asked on numerous occasions by the other Earthen leaders to take away his port screen. Iko of course, never minded though. In fact, she often urged Cinder to contact him or even offered to it herself, but that was simply because she still had a little crush on him. Normally, one should be upset that their best friend had a crush on their boyfriend, but Iko was Iko and it was just one of the many reasons Cinder loved her.
Iko squealed behind her. "Stars, you look amazing!"
Cinder gave a small laugh and rubbed her wrist, still used to the old action despite the fact that she no longer hid her cyborg parts with gloves.
HEART RATE INCREASING. WARNING. RECOMMENDED ACTION: SLOW BREATHING. 1...2...3...
She took deep breaths and pat her dress' skirt down. The dress itself was one of the fanciest things she had ever worn. The dress reached just above her toes and was covered in golden ornamental designs that had been embroidered wherever they could fit. The sleeves were wide and reached her elbows and she wore golden bracelets that decorated her fingers like spider webs and branches. Her whole dress was quite traditional and a rich red that she at first hadn't been sure she could pull off. On her head, she wore a thin golden crown decorated with golden flowers and leaves.
The feeling of the crown struck her mind, reminding her of the royal title she was going to have very shortly as the Empress.
"Do you think that I'll be able to do this?" Cinder asked worriedly.
"Of course! Marrying Kai is only one of the best and easiest things in the world!"
"No, I don't mean Kai. Do you think I'll be able to be...you know, Empress of the Eastern Commonwealth?"
Naturally, she had known she would become Empress as soon as she said yes to Kai's proposal. However, she still doubted her own ability to rule over an entire nation, despite being Luna's queen for more than a whole year before setting in a government with elected officials. She had never truly gotten used to the whole 'royal' thing, and if it wasn't for Iko or her communication with Kai or Winter and Jacin coming and going, she would've felt as completely isolated and alone as her time with Adri had been. So when she finally stepped down after the national elections, she felt strangely liberated. Iko had been sad to lose the royal seamstresses, but had soon realized that Cinder's engagement to Kai would allow for some more. Even though that had been nearly a month before he actually asked, Cinder had figured that eventually the question would come ever since he dropped the hint of it on the night of her coronation.
"I don't compute," Iko said, breaking Cinder out of her thoughts. "You were the queen of Luna for a whole year before this. Plus now, you'll have Kai in person. You'll do fine."
"You think?"
"I'm sure of it. Besides, you were already helping out Kai with those cyborg rights when there was a whole planet between you, so this shouldn't be very different."
She still hadn't believed that she and Kai had changed those age old laws. He had happily obliged when she presented the idea and they had since then improved the social lives of cyborgs in the way that Cinder only could have only dreamt of once.
"Thanks, Iko. Not just for that, but for everything. What would I do without you?"
"Um, probably walk down the aisle in oil stained cargo pants and a tank top. Not that Kai would mind, but we have an image to maintain."
Cinder laughed. This was why she had chosen Iko to be her maid of honour. Heck, she had practically planned the whole thing.
A knock came at the door and Iko all but threw Cinder behind the mirror to hide her dress.
The door opened and she was overjoyed when she saw who was there.
"Scarlet! Winter! Cress!" Iko shouted out.
"Hello," Winter said.
"You didn't really think that we'd miss the big day, did you?" Scarlet rose an eyebrow.
"Of course not," Cinder answered, coming out of her hiding place.
Cress gasped when she saw the dress. "Cinder...you look amazing!"
"The three of you all look amazing too," Cinder replied. And it was true. Scarlet wore an emerald green dress with sheer long sleeves that contrasted extremely well with her red hair. Cress wore a violet gown that made her seem an inch or two taller and her hair was already halfway down her back as opposed to it being up to her neck like it was a year and a half ago. Winter wore a light yellow dress that flowed just over her knees that shone beautifully against her dark skin.
Yet, three things were missing.
"Where are the guys?" she asked.
"They went to meet up with Kai," Scarlet replied with a slight eye roll. "Something about a quick bachelor party before the ceremony."
"But of course, there is no problem with them wanting some fun," Winter calmly added. "We shall meet up with them later."
"Did Kai choose a best man?" Iko questioned.
"He chose Thorne but of course, he left the speech until the last minute," Cress explained with a smile. "Typical. He wrote it on the way here aboard the Rampion."
Cinder scoffed. "Of course he did."
Winter giggled.
A sharp tap came at the door and Torin popped his head in. "I apologize for the intrusion, but it is time."
Cinder took one last deep breath before she nodded.
"Wait!" Iko yelled. "The veil!" She scrambled to the vanity and brought a sheer red veil with her, making sure to carefully set it on Cinder's head.
At first, Cinder had been a bit...against the idea of a veil. The ornamental red dress she wore already felt like much and a veil just brought back unpleasant memories. But with careful convincing from Iko, she had obliged.
The rest of the girls shuffled out of the room to meet up with their partners and Torin offered her his arm.
Mentally preparing herself, she took it and stepped out.

Kai had already gotten a heavy scolding from his stylist since he kept ruffling his hair, but he couldn't care less. It was a force of habit at this point; in the same way that Cinder still rubbed her wrist from time to time.
Cinder.
He smiled at the thought. He was getting married today, married to someone he truly cared about and didn't hate with every fibre of his being, but loved.
The ceremony was being held in the garden of the palace now that the cherry blossom trees were in full bloom and the flowers were as vibrant a colour as they could be. Everything had been meticulously planned to perfection thanks to, well, mostly Iko. He only wished that his parents could have been there...
The music began.
The crowd began to stir at the sound of the music, probably since its kind was practically unheard of. It was an old, once traditional, wedding march from the Second Era that Cress had found and sent over. Kai didn't even have to listen to the whole thing to know that he would use it. Luckily, Iko as well was immediately on board after the first few notes.
He was stirred out of his thoughts when he watched Scarlet and Wolf coming down the aisle arm in arm. At the end of the walk, she headed to his right and Wolf to his left. The process continued with Winter and Jacin, then Cress and Thorne and then finally, Iko happily tossing flowers out of a basket.
Kai straightened up and prepared to see his bride.

Cinder tried to calm down her nerves and prayed to all the stars that her cyborg foot wouldn't fail her now.
The music began to reach its climax as she stepped onto the satin carpet laid out especially for her and began walking down the aisle.
It was a bit nerve wracking, having hundreds of people stare at her. She spotted Adri and Pearl with matching scowls and crossed arms and Cinder felt an aura of superiority. Just two years ago, she had been under Adri's 'care' and felt as if no one would ever truly care about her, as if she was just a nobody that simply wasn't good enough for the world.
But here she was getting married to the emperor of the Eastern Commonwealth: the adored Emperor Kai.
It took all her inner strength to avoid flashing her former family a smug smile as if to say, 'Here I am now.'
After glancing at the other guests and government officials, she finally turned to him, the man she loved.
His hair was messy, not that she was surprised, and his hands were behind him, smiling more happily than she had ever seen him.
She gained a new spark of confidence and she let everyone else melt away around her, allowing her to focus solely on him.
She smiled in return.
It was the perfect scene right there: Kai waiting for her while being surrounded by all of their beloved friends from France to America to Luna. A French farmer girl, an American former thief, a mutated Lunar, an ex Lunar guard, an ex Lunar princess, a Lunar shell that could work wonders with a portscreen and an android that she could never live without. They were an eclectic group of people, but they were her family; a family that she would never ask to replace for the world. She only wished that Peony had been there too.
After what was probably the longest walk of her life, Torin handed her off to Kai, who took her cyborg hand and pressed a kiss to the shining metal.
It was times like this where she was glad that she couldn't blush.
She looked into those brown eyes of his before facing the minister.
The whole ceremony felt like a complete blur with the exception of Kai smiling at her every now and then. She hadn't actually started paying attention until the vows.
He turned towards her, taking her hands in his again. They had both decided to write their own vows, agreeing that this relationship they had was far stronger than what had been written centuries ago.
"Linh Cinder...I...where do I begin? When we met in that market, I certainly didn't even expect for you to be female in all honesty, let alone fall in love with you. Yet gradually, I did. I fell for you because you didn't see me as the prince or the Emperor, but as Kai. You never pretended around me. Stars, when we first met you were covered in grease stains."
"Not my proudest moment. Thanks for bringing that up," Cinder said.
Kai laughed. "I won't lie, when I found out that you had escaped from prison with Thorne, I was just a tad bit jealous."
"Because of my devilishly good looks and wicked charm?" Thorne interjected with a somewhat cocky grin.
Cress looked away shyly.
"Well, yes, actually. In a way. Cinder, when we finally reunited, I said some rude things, but you didn't take any of that. That so happens to be one of the reasons I love you. You don't just go with what people tell you: you keep your own ideas. I truly don't know what I would do without you in my life and quite frankly, I don't want to know either. If it weren't for you, I'd still be married to Levana."
"Actually, you'd probably be dead."
He smiled. "You're right, I would be. But I would go through all of it: the revolution, the takeover, Luna, all of it, if it meant having this moment with you."
If she could cry, she would have been tearing up right now.
She sucked in a breath and held his hands more tightly.
"Alright, that is a really tough act to follow. Thanks, Kai."
"My pleasure," he replied with a crooked grin.
Struggling to regain her composure, she went on. "In all seriousness though, thank you for everything. Thank you for caring about the cyborg mechanic that never really experienced much love in her entire life. Thank you for believing in me and putting your faith in me when I myself didn't have any. You know just as well as anyone that I had a tough upbringing. If it wasn't for Iko I...I don't know if I would have lasted to my sixteenth birthday, let alone long enough to kick Levana off of the throne. Thanks for your help in that too, by the way."
"It was an honour, Cinder."
Cinder looked at the ground before quickly looking at him again. "I guess my whole point is that I'm really happy that we met and got to know each other and...I love you, Kai."
The words felt strange on her lips when she was surrounded by so many people. According to her own brain, she'd only said it about three times, but never in front of another person, let alone a whole crowd.
She stopped caring and kissed him.
"Um, Cinder," Kai whispered against her lips. "I really don't mind this at all, but this part is supposed to come at the end."
She pulled away abruptly and put a hand over her face. "Right, sorry." She turned to the minister. "Proceed."
Thorne snickered behind Kai's shoulder and she shot him a glare.
Finally, when the rings were exchanged and the 'I do's were said, Kai pulled her into the kiss that sealed their promises.
When they parted, she felt as if she had the widest smile on her face as everyone clapped and cheered around them; even Wolf and Jacin had smiles on their faces.
Kai took her hand and led her down the aisle as cherry blossoms rained down and the crowd threw rice at them, which was a traditional way of wishing good luck on a married couple.
Married. The words rang true in her ears. She was married to Kai, the Emperor of the Eastern Commonwealth. In a few weeks, after their honeymoon, she would be the Empress alongside him.
Oh stars, the Empress? She had pushed the thought from earlier to the back of her mind, but it had begun resurfacing again.
"How am I going to do this?" she wondered aloud when all the noise was behind them.
"Hm? Do what?" Kai asked.
"Be the Empress! Sure, marrying you is the easy part-"
"Are you sure?" he teased.
She hid a smile. "Debatable."
He laughed under his breath and stopped to turn to her, taking her face into his hands. "I understand that you're worried, but your experience on Luna has at least prepared you a little bit. Sure, you didn't stay, but I'll be here for you in person this time and by your side, not just through the glow of a portscreen. We're doing this together and I think you will just fine."
She smiled up at him and put a hand over his, feeling more sure of herself than ever.

"So when do they serve the champagne?" Thorne asked only five minutes after taking his seat in the banquet hall.
"We just got here!" Cress exclaimed.
He simply shrugged. "That's no excuse."
"I must say, you haven't changed a bit since we last saw one another," Jacin said dryly.
Winter giggled next to him.
"Neither have you, Jacin. Neither have you," Thorne replied.
"So, who's next to tie the knot?" Iko asked excitedly, eager to change the subject.
Thorne froze next to Cress while she gaped her mouth open. Jacin widened his eyes while Winter just smiled so brightly that the flowers sitting on the table might had just fallen in love with her too. Wolf and Scarlet were the only ones to look away nervously, causing Iko to gasp in a way none of them thought androids could.
"Wolf, did you..." Iko began, trying not to laugh. "Did you propose to Scarlet?"
Wolf looked at his lap while Scarlet pressed her lips together.
"We were going to tell you all after the ceremony so we wouldn't steal attention away from Cinder and Kai," Scarlet explained. "It definitely isn't going to be as huge as all this," she gestured to the grand room, "but we want to do it soon in the Rieux Tavern where we first met."
Iko squealed in delight.
"It'll be small," Wolf continued. "But it'll hopefully be great enough for my Alpha." He set a hand over her shoulders.
"How wonderful!" went Winter.
"We of course want you all to be there," Scarlet said.
"Hey Wolf, I'm a shoe-in for Best Man, right?" Thorne asked.
Wolf raised an eyebrow in response.
"It's going involve another speech, Thorne," Cress responded.
Thorne simply smirked. "Present another one? Sure."
"It means writing another speech," Jacin added.
Thorne's smile fell a bit. "Never mind, Wolf. Maybe you can get Kai to do it, he's pretty good with the whole speech thing."
"What about Jacin?" Winter questioned.
He raised an eyebrow as Thorne scoffed in response.
"We'll see," Wolf answered.
"Ladies, gentlemen, and androids," someone yelled. The group turned to see Torin, the royal adviser, up on the stage at the head of the room. "May I present the newlyweds, Emperor Kaito and the future Empress Cinder."
"Hopefully this one works out since Luna didn't. I'm still waiting for my early retirement," Thorne said.
Cress lightly kicked him under the table.
He shot her a grin that made her heart flutter like when she had first met him.
"Aces, Thorne, how have I dealt with this for a year and a half?" she asked jokingly.
"Oh come on, Cress," he responded, kissing her temple. "You know you love it."
Jacin rolled his eyes.
"No need be negative," Winter lightly judged. "You can be as loveable as that too. You know, on a good day." She said the final part with a knowing smirk.
He laughed under his breath. "You're still the only one crazy enough to say that."
"I'll take that as a compliment."

Kai and Cinder made their way to their seats with the rest of their friends, who smiled at their arrival. They all shared stories of their lives from the past year and a half. Jacin and Winter were closer than ever before, and much to everyone's surprise, were expecting a baby for later that year.
"What?" Thorne had exclaimed in disbelief. "You're telling me that Jacin Clay charmed Winter enough that a baby came out of it? I'm impressed." He looked devilishly at Cress.
She raised an eyebrow. "Not so fast, Captain."
Everyone had begun laughing, including Thorne, who didn't even hesitate to laugh at himself.
After distributing the letumosis cures, he had shown Cress some of the wonders of the world. According to him, she had never been happier than when she saw a peacock for the first time and that she had stated that it was just as proud as Thorne.
Cinder and Kai were happy and not even the least bit surprised when Scarlet had told them of her engagement to Wolf, and the small battle for Best Man began again, eventually leading to Iko starting another battle for the Maid of Honour, forcing Kai to try and keep the peace until finally, it was time for the speeches.
"Our first speech comes from," Torin sighed, "Captain Carswell Thorne."
Thorne stood up and made his way to the stage. He shot out his prize winning smile when he reached the microphone.
"Ah, I knew I could get him to call me the Captain too," he began happily, earning a laugh from the audience.
"You're technically still a Cadet!" Kai responded.
"Aces, Kai, do you have to keep bringing that up? I'm nearly a Captain, thank you very much."
Cinder turned to Cress. "Are you sure he actually wrote a speech?"
Cress giggled and shrugged. "He wrote one on the way here. At least he said he did."
Kai ruffled a hand through his hair. "Oh boy. This is going to be good."
"Anyways," Thorne continued. "I am honestly surprised to be standing up here. When I first met Cinder, she came down from the ceiling of my prison cell while I was looking at...questionable things on a portscreen."
Cress raised an eyebrow.
"She was really happy to see me. She said, in these exact words, 'Oh, Captain! How could I have ever lived my life without knowing you?'"
"Thorne," Cinder said accusingly.
He laughed in response. "Okay fair enough, she never said that. She was actually pretty annoyed with me. Hell, if I didn't help her escape, she would have just left me there. Great gal you got there, Kai. And speaking of him, I first met him when Cinder kidnapped him. Good times. Honestly, when I first met the guy, I expected him to be a selfish, pretentious king with no regard for anyone past his own nose. Luckily, I was wrong. Turns out, he's a pretty good guy. He helped me begin to realize how I actually felt about Cress and that maybe, just maybe, I was close enough to deserve her."
Cress put a hand over her mouth in surprise before looking over at Kai.
"And Cinder...well, she brought together this amazing crew made up of humans, Lunars and an android that I can't see myself without now. All I can say is that I am grateful that you fell from my ceiling that day. If you hadn't, I wouldn't have a group of friends sitting at that table right over there in this grand palace, nor would I have my wonderful girlfriend either. Cheers to the newlyweds!"
Everyone raised their glasses in response as Thorne made his way back to the table with a grin on his face.
"So, how did I do?" he asked.
"Great," Jacin responded.
Thorne pretended to be shocked and rose his eyebrows. "Was that an actual sincere compliment from Jacin? Damn, Winter, you fixed him."
"I didn't do anything," Winter explained. "Jacin truly has a big heart."
Thorne scoffed.
"Thank you, Thorne," Cinder said. "Truly."
He winked at her.
"Ahem," an impatient Iko said on the stage. Cinder turned towards her best friend.
"Well, I have known Cinder for quite a while," Iko began, "and I always thought it was strange that she was the only teenage girl in all of New Beijing that was immune to Kai's amazingness. Heck, even Scarlet and Cress told me that they thought he was cute."
Thorne looked at Cress suspiciously.
"Which is why," Iko went on. "I was only a little surprised when she finally started feeling something. Cinder, you might be immune to letumosis, but no female is immune to Kai."
Cinder scoffed and tried to hide her smile.
"Is that true?" Kai asked her jokingly.
Cinder bit her her lip and smiled. "Maybe."
"And while I wouldn't have minded being with Kai myself," Iko explained. "I'm really happy for the two of you. You guys make a really cute couple and I am so proud to be a part of your lives. Love you guys!"
She returned to the table in glee and Cinder smiled when she sat down. She pulled away from Kai for a moment to hug her best friend.
"I love you too," Cinder said.
"Same here," Kai said, standing up out of his chair to give Iko a quick kiss on her cheek.
She gasped. "If I could blush, I would be blushing so much right now."
Kai laughed and Cinder looked at Iko again.
"Don't worry, he's all yours. Lucky," she said, answering Cinder's unspoken question.
Someone tapped on the microphone. Cinder turned to the stage and found Cress standing there, Thorne proudly next to her with a hand on her arm.
"Hi," Cress said a bit shyly. "I've never spoken in front of this many people before, so I apologize in advance if I faint and hit the stage."
"You won't faint and hit the stage," Thorne replied. "You might faint, but you'll land in my arms, not the stage."
Cress smiled worriedly. "Anyhow, I owe a lot to Kai and Cinder. I finally got away from that stupid satellite that I've been stuck in for years all thanks to Cinder-"
"And me," Thorne interjected.
"Yes, and Thorne. The two of you got me out of there and at last, I could put my hacking skills to some worthwhile use. And Kai...you practically saved me in the palace on Luna. I would've been caught and arrested and maybe even killed if you hadn't gotten me out of that dire situation and into that tech room. I owe the both of you my life. You're both so heroic and brave in a way I could only fantasize about being before, and I can't think of a better match."
Everyone applauded as Thorne put a hand on Cress' shoulder and they proceeded back to their seats.
The rest of the night was spent eating the huge multilayer cake and sipping on champagne until it was time for the dancing to begin.
"You two dance first," Scarlet told Cinder as the music began.
Cinder faced Scarlet alarmingly. "What?"
"It's true," Cress added. "It's tradition; especially for royal weddings."
"But I can't dance!"
"Sure you can!" Iko encouraged. "If that cyborg leg can survive near drowning during a revolution, it can dance."
"No, I mean I never learned how! Years under Adri's rule never taught me a thing about dancing and I was too busy on Luna to learn how."
"Do not worry Cinder-friend," Winter said. "I am sure you will do fine."
"Easy for you to say, you know how to dance."
Winter giggled. "Indeed. However, it is not too difficult. He will lead you and all you have to do is follow what he does. If he steps forward, you step backward."
"If he raises his arm to spin, you spin," Scarlet continued.
"If he does both at the same time, you do both at the same time," Cress offered.
"And if he dips you, you let your heart flutter!" Iko finished off.
Cinder took a deep breath. "I can do this."
"And besides, can't you just download the steps in your brain?" Cress asked curiously.
"I could, but then I'd just be reading them instead of focusing."
"Well, we wish you much luck," Winter said encouragingly.
"Don't step on his feet!" Scarlet cried out as Cinder made her way to Kai.

"May I have this dance, Linh Cinder?" Kai asked her, offering her his hand.
"About that. You never taught me how, remember?" she inquired.
"It isn't that difficult. Just follow my lead."
"Gee, you and Winter make it sound easy."
"Just trust me. Besides, after just a few spins, they'll bring everyone onto the dance floor and everyone will be too distracted to notice."
He led her out to the middle of the ballroom and immediately spun her when they reached the centre.
"You'll do fine," he whispered when they connected again. "I'll guide you along the way."
She remembered the girls' words from earlier and followed what he did. He spun her around and she took his lead, hoping that she wouldn't mess up in front of an entire group of people.
He shocked her out of her thoughts when he picked her up by the waist and pressed her against his chest, spinning in a circle. She gasped in surprise.
"A warning would help next time," Cinder stuttered out when he set her back down.
He grinned in a way that reminded her a bit too much of Thorne. "Well then, be prepared for what I'm about to do now. Make it look as elegant as possible."
"What?"
He spun her out and released one of her hands. She raised up her arm dramatically to make it look, as he said, as elegant as possible. She remembered the net dramas that Iko and Peony had always loved to watch and she tried to copy what the ladies there always did when they were dancing. Kai spun her back to him and quickly took her waist again, seating her on top of his thigh. She let her ankles wrap around his legs to avoid falling.
"What was that?" she asked in surprise.
"That is what they teach princes instead of basic cooking skills."
He rocked her back and forth before letting her go, forcing her to hop off of him. He led her into a small twirl before starting up with the same one step, two step dance from earlier, only adding more hop into his steps and therefore, her steps too.
He lifted her up again and whispered, "I'm going to spin you out again and let go. Come towards me and put your right arm around my neck."
She didn't try to hide her alarm. "Why?"
"Just believe me. I'll catch you and leave the rest to me."
"Okay," she responded shakily.
He set her down and twirled her out like he said he would and he let go of her hand. She faced him and against her own better judgement, went towards him and did as she was told, setting her right arm on his shoulder.
He rapidly grabbed her legs and held them tightly, spinning her around. She instinctively let her body curve as he spun her until finally, he set her down and dipped her in one final move. When she came up again, his smile reached his eyes in a way that she had only seen a handful of times before.
"See? You did fine."
She playfully shoved him away. "Shut up."
The crowd that she had nearly forgotten about cheered all around them. Looking at her friends, she saw all the girls joyfully clapping as Iko looked as if she was about to actually pass out from excitement if she were human. The guys were clapping as well and each of them had a look of amazement on their faces.
Cinder and Kai headed back to their friends.
"Not going to lie, I didn't know you had it in you," Jacin said when they arrived, sporting a rare smile on his face.
"Oh, Jacin! You had to have had some hope," Winter responded.
"But that was really good you two," Wolf added.
Scarlet faced him. "Are you going to do something like that at our wedding?" she asked.
Wolf hesitated. "I...Scarlet, you know that I..."
Thorne lightly slapped him on the back. "Good luck with that, buddy."
"Can you do better?" Cress fired back.
He shrugged. "I never said I could. I'm pretty sure that Kai over here is the best dancer out of all of us. You know, being royalty and all. Then again, I haven't seen Winter dance, so I could be mistaken."
"You shall see now!" Winter replied, taking Jacin by his arm. "It is time for all the guests to dance!"
"Winter, you know I love you but I-"
"Oh come on you silly goose. Let's go!"
Before he could protest, she was leading him out.
"Silly goose?" Thorne asked aloud when they were gone. "That's definitely a new one."
"I suppose that's our cue though. Wolf?" Scarlet held out her hand.
Much to Cinder's own shock, he readily agreed. Then again, she knew that if Scarlet asked him to do something, he would do it in a heartbeat.
"Well, I'm never one to turn down a good party. Shall we Cress?" Thorne offered her his arm.
"How could I say no?"
Soon enough, practically everyone was out on the dance floor; even Iko had dragged Kinney, an ex-guard from Luna, to dance with her.
"Have I mentioned how beautiful you look in that dress?" Kai complimented.
"Why thank you. I'm just amazed at how clean it still is. Practically every bit of clothing I own is still permanently grease stained."
"I won't fight you on that."
She scoffed. "You still shouldn't expect me wearing a dress as a daily thing. I still prefer my cargo pants and the only other time I will dress this fancy is for the coronation, got it?"
He only laughed. "You wouldn't be you if you did wear dresses on a daily basis. I trust that you'll still get some grease on your face from time time?"
"You know it."
"That's my cyborg mechanic turned cyborg Lunar princess turned future cyborg Empress."
"Wow, I have a lot of titles. Which one am I to you?"
"Me?" He pretended lost in mock thought for a while. "How about loving wife?" He pressed his forehead against hers.
She smiled. "Definitely."
Just two years ago, she was nothing more than a cyborg mechanic that Adri had only used a method to earn some cash to keep paying for her luxuries after Garan had passed away. She only had Iko and Peony; no one else showed to even care a little about her. She spent a lot of time alone with her thoughts, knowing that she wouldn't ever be good enough for her family or for anyone. She thought that no one would ever come to care for the little cyborg orphan.
Then the prince showed up at her market booth dressed in a hoodie despite the raging summer heat with a broken android that needed fixing.
That had been the start of it all. It had been because of Nainsi, then-Prince Kaito's android, that she had found out about Levana's plans and even met Cress Darnel. Cinder had gone to warn him and had been arrested for treason. It was during her attempted prison escape that she met Carswell Thorne, who used his infamous Rampion ship to help them avoid capture and give a temporary shell for Iko. The same ship had taken them to Rieux, France during the attacks, where they had made the acquaintance of Scarlet Benoit and Wolf Kesley. After contacting Cress again, Cinder had sent Thorne to try and retrieve her, only to have them crash land on Earth and have Scarlet be taken away. It was there that they had met Jacin Clay and through him, began to plan their revolution. After getting back Cress and Thorne, who had finally brought a real body for Iko, they had made their way to Luna to rescue Scarlet. There, they eventually reunited with her and Jacin, as well as finally meet princess Winter Hayle-Blackburn and finally overthrow Levana.
And to think, it had all started with one broken android.
Now here she was, doing what she never thought was possible for her. She was married to somebody who loved her and cared for her, even through all the chaos of her revolution. She had amazing friends that were all good and kind in their own ways and had found their own loves as well. She was no longer that broken and beaten cyborg that never thought she would amount to anything meaningful. She was no longer that orphaned girl who had barely known any kind of love throughout her entire life. She was no longer the mechanic yearning for a real family.
She was whole. She was the future Empress of the Eastern Commonwealth. She was still one of the best mechanics in all of New Beijing. She was, as Kai put it, a loving wife to the man she never wanted to part from again.
She was home.
At last, after years of waiting, Linh Cinder had finally found a place she could call home. Or rather, places. Whether it was in the Rampion with Cress and Thorne, the palace with Kai and Iko or even Luna with Jacin and Winter or Scarlet's farm with her and Wolf, Cinder had a place to call home.
She remembered a Second Era story that she had overheard Cress telling to Iko once. Cinder didn't get a chance to hear the whole story, but she had heard the final few words.
And they lived happily to the end of their days.
Cinder wasn't quite sure about the 'end of her days' part, but she certainly felt as if she had reached her very own happily ever after.

There you have it! If you want a better idea of how Kai and Cinder's dance looked like, you can check out the dance in 'One Step Closer' from the Little Mermaid on Broadway since I took a lot of inspiration from that.
Hope you enjoyed it!