Wedding of the Dead

Chapter 11: Reconciliation

After leaving the town hall, Celeste had wandered the streets of the land of the dead - trying to find her way back to where Lucas' had originally brought her. Even though the small room with the coffin-shaped bed would've reminded her of the man who had fractured her heart - it would've made Celeste feel more safe than being out in the open.

With each turn from the main roads to the side streets that took her to another main road, Celeste became more and more convinced that she was lost. And the people of the land of the dead weren't too helpful either due to Lucas' grip on her when they had first passed through the makeshift city; several passing by or completely ignoring her when she approached for help.

With a heavy sigh, Celeste crumbled on the corner of a sidestreet, slightly hidden behind one of the tall buildings, as she wrapped her arms around her legs and pulled them to her chest. She pressed her forehead against her knees and began to cry softly. She was tired and upset - upset that Lucas lost his temper and hurt her, at Septimus for testing his patience, and at her sister for being blinded by obligations.

"Why so blue, darling?" a familiar voice pulled Celeste to look up as Flora appeared beside her with a basket in hand and a smile on her lips, "Not that you're there nearly yet, but I like you a bit more peachy similar to when we first met."

Celeste giggled, pushing the tears from her eyes, as the woman sat beside her, "Flora... I'm so sorry..."

"You have nothing to be sorry about, darling," Flora pulled a handkerchief out from the bust of her dress, shaking it slightly before offering it to the young woman beside her, "though you do look like you've seen better days. Where's your dog? Has he gone chasing his tail?"

"Dog?"

"Lucas," Flora clarified, "Typically he'd be following you around or have you practically tucked into his side that it makes me wonder how even a breather can stand it."

"I'm not sure where he is," Celeste admitted, "We got... into a fight. I think he may still be at the town hall with Elder Hilderich."

"Hmm... needed some space, though I don't blame you. When it comes to Lucas, I think he struggles knowing where boundaries need to be set - he's always been the one to follow his unbeating heart over his mind."

"You sound like you know him in depth," Celeste answered, turning her attention to the handkerchief in her hands, stroking the silk between her fingertips.

"He died before me, so I had heard of him when I was alive," Flora admitted, tilting her head away, "He was supposedly very much like his father - handsome and welcoming - though he kept to himself much of the time, making it damn near impossible for anyone to get remotely close to him. He courted a few women in his prime, but he would eventually disappear into the background as soon as another suitor appeared in the forefront. And when it was announced that he was taking a wife, everyone was incomplete shock - the ever elusive Lord of Sergius Manor taking a bride... It seemed absurd. After he died on his wedding night, different rumors spread like wildfire - some people claimed he had a heart attack, others claimed his newly wedded wife put cyanide in his glass, some believed he just ceased to exist because he became married."

"What did you believe?" Celeste was listening intently, eyes wide with surprise.

"Even though it was common conversation over tea," Flora began, "I wasn't interested in a dead lord - though I wonder if I should've paid more attention to it now. Anyway, when I arrived here, Belvedere was the first person I met and Lucas arrived shortly after. It sounded like Elder Hilderich was trying to help Lucas at the time by reuniting him with the woman who had married him - it would give him a reason to stay in the land of the dead versus bouncing back and forth between and waiting in the dirt on his family's burial grounds. Apparently, they thought I matched the description of his wife - but Lucas would have cared less."