The Hathway Kingdom. (Book 1)

Chapter Twenty-Four.

~Twenty-four. ~

Romulus and Lord Caelius Ohamura, whom he presumed to be the groom, stood at the chapel in the church, nervously on the Lord's part. He had been surprised when Larissa's Uncle had come up to him and requested that he stand in as the Lord's groomsman as King Julian was needed to walk the bride down the aisle. He was unaware that her grandfather was no longer with them, for if he were remembering his history correctly, if the father of the ruling King or Queen were still alive, they could retire from the Kingship. He knew that Larissa was her Aunt's maid of honour and he was anxious to see her in her dress properly.

The sound of the wedding march started to come from the church organ, and he looked towards the church doors as they opened. His breath caught in his throat and his eyes widened as he took in the sight before him.

If he had thought Larissa had been stunning at his birthday ball even whilst she was wounded, he had been sorely mistaken. Seeing her in her bridesmaid dress now made him rethink that decision very quickly and, though he had not seen the bride yet, in his eyes, she was by far the most beautiful woman he had ever met.

As she made her way down the aisle after the flower girl, Romulus found that he could not take his eyes off her. He watched her as she walked down the aisle, swallowing heavily when he found his mouth had gone rather dry. As she came to a stop at the end of the aisle, Larissa bowed to him and then to the priest before she walked over to her spot. Seeming to feel his eyes on her, Larissa looked up and over at him before she gave him a smile. She then turned her attention back to the church doors as the organ player changed its tune and her Aunt began to make her entrance.

Even as the bride made her entrance, Romulus kept his eyes on Larissa the entire time. Again, he swallowed heavily before he forced his eyes to look at the bride as she came closer. Once King Julian reached the groom with his sister, he handed her over to him before taking his seat. It was then, that the priest began to speak.

"Dearly beloved. We are gathered here today..."

* * *

Larissa beamed as she watched her Aunt and her now-Uncle dance their first dance together and she sipped her wine slowly. She was glad to see that her Aunt and Uncle were very much in love and it warmed her heart. She sighed before she clapped her hands along with the others before the Hathway Speaker cleared his throat and the room fell silent.

"Honoured guests! The bride and groom wish now for the bridal party and the groomsmen to join them on the dancefloor for their second dance," he called out and Larissa froze. She had to dance with Romulus now. She swallowed heavily before she glanced up as a hand was offered to her. She looked at it before she followed the arm up and saw Romulus standing beside her. She looked at him a moment before she reached up and accepted his hand.

He helped her up before he led her out onto the dancefloor. Larissa kept her eyes on him as he led her before she glanced over at her Aunt, who gave her a wink and an encouraging nod. She looked back at Romulus as he placed his left hand at her waist and took her hand in his right as gently as he could. She could tell that he was giving her a chance to say no, to tell him to let her go, but she squared her shoulders and placed her free hand on his shoulder and held onto it tightly. He gave her a curious look but before he could ask her if she was sure, the music started, and he began to lead her through the dance.

Romulus was surprised by just how graceful Larissa was whilst she danced, but he should have known better. Despite being an intense fighter, Larissa was still graceful on the battlefield. He continued to lead her through the dance and a smile crept onto his lips as they danced. When it finished, he twirled Larissa so that they could then bow to one another.

"I had no idea that you could dance so gracefully, Your Highness," Romulus said to her as he escorted her over to her seat. She chuckled as she turned to face him before she spoke up.

"You should have paid better attention during our fights, Your Imperial Majesty. You would have caught on quicker," she teased him before she glanced away from him briefly.

"Is that so, Your Highness? And what, pray tell, am I meant to be catching onto exactly?" he asked her as he clasped his hands behind his back and looked at her. He took note of the way that her eyes were twinkling with mischief as she looked back at him.

"We Hathway women are more than we appear to be," she said before she excused herself to go and walk over to where the restrooms were. He watched her walk away before he jumped as he felt a hand clap him on the shoulder. He gave a sigh in relief when he recognised who it was.

"Ah...Laios. What can I do for you?" he asked his close friend as he turned his attention back towards Larissa in time to see her disappear into the restrooms.

"That was some excellent dancing, my friend. Your partner was rather good as well. You both looked amazing together," Laios said as he began to lead Romulus over to the groom's side of the seating.

"Thank you..." Romulus said as he snagged a glass of water from a passing waiter and drained it as they both sat down. His eyes darted over to the restrooms as Larissa came back out.

"Do you think you could introduce me to your partner from before?" Laios asked and Romulus stiffened as he heard this before he relaxed as quickly as he could to not be noticed by his friend.

"Perhaps..." he said as he reached for his wine and had a sip of it.

"Why only perhaps? After seeing her dance with you, she is going to have a lot of dance requests, Romulus. I'd like to get a chance before her card becomes completely full," Laios said as his eyes darted over to Larissa as a small crowd began forming around her.

"Go over and introduce yourself on your own, Laios. You're a grown man, correct?" Romulus said to his friend as he fought the urge to go over and help her fight off the crowd.