A Royal Arrangement

Chapter 7

- Vesper's Pov -

While I was sitting at my dresser, brushing my hair, I heard a knock on my door. It was probably Tallulah as she had a habit of crawling into bed with me when she was scared. And since there was a storm tonight, I expected tonight to be no different. So naturally, I told the visitor that they could enter but it wasn't my sister. It was Lilith, shifting nervously at the entrance of my room.
"Come in, Mother," I did not want to call her mother but to her face, I will. I temporarily stopped combing my hair and looked at Lilith as she sat on my bed, scrunching her nose up at the bedding "What brings you to my room?"
"I always envisioned what your wedding day would be like when you were a child. I can't believe that day is come. And I will admit that it is bittersweet to see your daughter leaving the nest and trying to make one of her own," Lilith stated but I didn't reply just continued with what I was doing, and an awkward silence resumed. I do not get why she is being nice. For 300 years, she has done nothing but go on about how she cannot wait to get rid of me, "I know you're still cross with me. I want you to know that I am sorry for.. the way I approached the whole Dimitri situation," she nervously stated, and I stopped combing my hair suddenly and directed my attention at Lilith.
"Go on,"
"It wasn't your fault. He did a terrible thing to you. To all of us. He promised you he would marry you and instead, he left you... left all of us in the cold. He strung you along for years and then chose her instead. I want you to know that I will never speak to their family ever again and the same goes for your father and siblings. Killian wasn't too bothered about not speaking to Lori. We are so sorry... I am so sorry," Lilith started tearing up at the same moment. I knew she was lying. Dimitri's mother is her best friend.
"I understand, Mother, trust me I do. We were engaged for years so therefore other suitors, if there had been any in the first place, did not inquire after me." I highly doubt anyone wanted me "But I couldn't help but feel like I disappointed you all. When you blamed me for Dimitri leaving for Lori, You made me believe I had done something wrong. Look I understand Lori is prettier than me- ", I said shyly and looked down.
"Nonsense," Lilith had grabbed my hand and gently squeezed it. Why is she being so nice? "Nonsense," She had gotten up from my bed and gently touched my face and then gently raised my head with one finger "You are just as beautiful, if not more, my dearest Vesper. And thankfully things worked out for you. The Prince is a wonderful match; someone I would have never dreamed of. He is handsome, affluent, his family is lovely, and you get along great with his siblings,"
"But I don't love him, Mother," I pulled my head away, looking out the window as the rain rattled it.
"I know. But maybe you will in time," Lilith suggested softly but I shook my head.
"What if I can't? It's the same for him! you know that, right? He isn't in love with me either. I doubt he even wants me at all," I emphasized. No one does. Not Dimitri. Not Loki. My family. Not even the dust bunnies in the attic.
"Give it time, dearest. Who knows? maybe you and Loki will learn to love each other," Lilith faked a smile. Her real feelings were coming out.
"Yeah, sure. Time heals all wounds," I grumbled.
"My child, It is no use to speculate or overthink things now. You must give it time. I'll know you'll do your best," Lilith said and then she proceeded to embrace me for a while before she let go and stepped back "Now, I think it's best if both of us get some sleep. Big day ahead tomorrow after all," Lilith smiled. She cupped my chin roughly "Do not embarrass me tomorrow. You know what will happen," Lilith shoved my head away and left my room. I got up from my dresser and sat on the window sill. I then glanced at the white dress hanging on my wardrobe door.
"Big day ahead indeed," My wedding day. It all felt so incredibly strange, almost surreal. Tomorrow my name will be Vesper Odinson. I won't lie. It had a nice ring to it.

- Lady Hawthorn's Pov -

"Is Vesper still nervous about tomorrow?" The ignoramus that is my husband asked as I walked into our front room. I shrugged. I sat on the sofa and picked my book up.
"I couldn't care less what the child thinks. Sooner she is out of here, the better,"
"She is still your daughter. you could be nicer to her," My husband, licked his finger and flipped a page of his book.
"I tried being nice to her. Made my skin crawl. As of tomorrow, she will not be my daughter anymore. That child was a mistake. It is no wonder why Dimitri left her," I shivered. My husband sighed and looked up at me.
"I'm sure you tried to be nice," He did the air quote things.
"I was nice. Go and ask her. I don't see why I had to act like the caring mother that she so desperately needs. I feel so disgusting," I then looked at my husband "So, what do you want to turn her room into when she is gone? I'm thinking of a walk-in wardrobe,"
"You already have a room for that," The idiot mumbled.
"If you had your way, it would be a man cave," I huffed.
"And what is wrong with that? This is my house after all," The fool spoke.
"Paid with my money. May I remind you that you married into my family? You would had nothing if it wasn't for me," I gently closed my book.
"Your father paid to marry you and if I am telling the truth, I would be happier if I had nothing," My husband mumbled. I then stood up, clutching my book.
"I know you only stay for Kilian and Tallulah. You only have another 400 years until your youngest brat is of age and then you can leave. Or perhaps I will. I never wanted to move here. I will be going back to Aflhiem when I get the chance," I then turned on my heel and left the room.
"Don't let the door hit you on the way out!" My husband shouted. I gripped my book tight. I hate this family. I wish my father never sold me off.

- Thor's Pov -

Loki was looking at his likeness in the mirror. The seamstress had done a magnificent job with this suit. The finest of materials was used, the cut was pristine, and the suit fit amazingly well on his body. He was straightening his jacket and taking on different poses to see the suit from different sides, all in all, he looked like he was incredibly pleased.
"You did not put this much effort into my coronation," I threw an apple up and down.
"I did. Only that moment did not require a suit, only armour," Loki started combing his hair into a ponytail.
"I didn't see the point of wearing a suit for a day. I did not wear one at my wedding," I huffed.
"Oh, I know. Lady Celeste couldn't make one to fit around your abnormally large frame," Loki smiled at me.
"I am not large. Just well built, brother," I grinned as I munched on the apple.
"Do not make me regret asking you to be the best man today," Loki warned, pinching his nose "And did you make sure the other two took a bath for today?"
"I remember pushing them into some water," I looked at my nails.
"I'm going to push you into some water in a minute," Loki mumbled.
"You can try, beanpole. It would take several of your clones to push me one inch" I sighed. Loki went to speak but we soon heard a knocking on the door.
"Do you two have to argue? It is half 7 in the morning," Loki looked up and saw Mother standing by the door "At least wait until you have had breakfast,"
"Hello Mother," We both said. Mother smiled and walked into the room. Kissed both our cheeks.
"We've already had breakfast. For some reason, this one couldn't sleep and has been up since the crack of dawn," I pointed at Loki.
"And why are you up?" Mother tilted her head at me.
"Munnin crashed in my room. Honestly, that raven needs his head looking at," I rolled my eyes.
"I will inform your father. Or Huggin, whichever one I see first," Mother adjusted Loki's collar "You look dashingly handsome,"
"Thank you, Mother," he beamed. She then looked at Thor.
"At least you brushed your hair," She sighed. She then sniffed the air "And took a bath too,"
"I did. Not every day there's a wedding," I grinned.
"I feel sorry for Sif. Now, come on, you two... We don't want to be late," she warned him with a smile and soon the entire family headed to the church.

The priest was already there waiting for us but so far only the groom had arrived. As the minutes ticked by, the priest reminded Loki that he had to perform another ceremony soon and I knew that Loki was starting to panic when he started picking up his hand.
"She is going to show up, right?" Vali whispered in my ear as he kept looking at the door. I bit my lip.
"I don't know," I shook my head.
"What happens if Vesper decides not to go ahead with this?"
"Then we have to deal with a moody Loki," I looked at Loki, His distress was clear to be seen. I then stood up and put a hand on his shoulder "She'll be here, brother. Don't worry. She's just late" I said but even I started to doubt Vesper would show up.
"Exactly, you know what traffic is like?" Baldur argued, trying to put his oldest brother at ease.
"I wish I had sent over my carriage to pick them up early this morning. Why didn't I think of that?" Vidarr mentioned as if that would have changed things. Pompous idiot.
"Vids, shut up. If you had sent a carriage, the driver would have gotten lost and been even more late," Hela rolled her eyes. Loki wanted to say something but a second later the doors opened. Spinning around, I saw the Hawthorne family hurriedly walking in. Lord and Lady Hawthorne were the first to enter, followed by their daughter and also some faces I didn't recognize.
"Where's Killian?" Vidarr looked around the room. We all shrugged. I saw that Loki took a sigh of relief.

- Loki's Pov -

Lady Hawthrone rushed over to where I was stood. I know I wear dark colours but Lady Hawthorne is wearing black to a wedding.
"We're so sorry. It took ages to get here. Apparently, an accident had happened earlier, and the road was blocked for a long time," Lady Hawthorne apologised.
"Quite alright," I nodded. The only two people missing were Killian and Vesper, but I didn't have to wait long to see them. Killian walked in, he looked as if he was on the verge of tears, and Loki figured there had been an emotional moment between the two siblings. Upon Killian's entering, Lord Hawthorne had walked back to the entrance to meet his nervous daughter, entangled his arm with hers and then they slowly walked down the aisle "Oh my..." my mouth hung open. Vesper looked stunning. She wore a long satin dress with lace embellishments that seemed to be all over it. Her black hair was tied up and adorned at the back with an equally ornate veil. In her hands, she held a small bouquet of white roses and tulips, finished off with some green elements. She was wearing modest earrings, it seemed, but they stood out and sparkled in passing.
"Loki!" Baldur whispered, poking me on the cheek.
"What?" I asked him, slightly annoyed that my attention was drawn elsewhere.
"Close your mouth! You're drooling," Baldur warned, trying to keep himself from laughing out loud but ultimately, he failed.

It seemed to take ages but finally, The pair arrived at the end of the aisle and the priest stood in front of us.
"Who gives this woman away?" the priest asked.
"I am," said Lord Hawthorne and he kissed his daughter on the cheek, took her hand and put it in mine "Look after my baby girl,"
"I will," The choir began singing a short hymn and afterwards it was time for the actual ceremony to begin.
"Dearly Beloved, we are gathered here today in the presence of God and these witnesses, to join Loki Odinson and Vesper Hawthorne in holy matrimony," The priest cleared his throat before continuing "As we all know marriage is not to be entered into lightly but reverently, passionately, lovingly and solemnly. Into this - these two persons present now come to be joined, before God and before their families," The Priest did not want to waste much time because he was already running late so he quickly came to the core of the matter.
"Prince Loki Odinson, do you take the Duchess Vesper Hawthorne to be your lawful wedded wife? To this question, what say you?"
"I do," I answered. My heart beating faster than I had expected.
"Duchess Vesper Hawthorne... Do you take Prince Loki Odinson to be your lawful wedded husband? To this question, what say you?"
"I..." she began but the second word didn't want to leave her mouth, so it seemed.
"Oh no, she's hesitating and Loki is starting to panic again," I heard Vali whisper. I shot him a glare but Thor elbowed him. I will admit that I was sure Vesper would say no and run away any minute.
"I do", she replied, and the priest nodded in agreeance. I let out a steady breath and smiled at Vesper.
"You may exchange rings", he spoke, and at that moment Loki looked at Thor who got a little box from his pocket and gave it to me. I reached for Vesper's hand and noticed it was shaking. I briefly grazed over it with my thumb as if to convey everything was alright but that somehow made things worse. I gently put the ring on her finger and Vesper then nervously reached for my hand and quickly did the same "By the power invested in me by the Allfather, I now pronounce you husband and wife. You may kiss the bride," he smiled. I bet he was glad that his schedule wasn't going to run out. How on earth could I have forgotten that I was supposed to kiss her? I can't kiss her mouth. She might slap me.

- Vali's Pov -

It was an incredibly awkward moment for all to witness because Loki had just frozen, was just looking at her, then at his family, then at her again.
"Kiss her, fool," I whispered loudly. Eventually, common sense kicked in and Loki bent over to kiss her, not on the lips, but on the lower corner of her jaw, carefully avoiding her lips. Vesper then froze at impact for she had sensed his trepidation but then quickly withdrew her face. They just stood there a little, looking at each other like two lost puppies, only to be awakened from their daze by the organ playing. They slowly turned towards their guests and Loki once again reached out to Vesper with his hand, which Vesper nervously took. He noticed that by now she had started to shake even more. The bride and groom started to make their way through the corridor. Both sides of the pews looked relieved that things were over with and smiled happily at the couple.
"Well, that could have gone better," Hela bit on her fingernails.
"Yes, She could have slapped him," I sighed as I slapped my sister's hand away from her mouth "Come on, we better keep an eye on those two,"

- Loki's Pov -

After the ceremony, the wedding party retreated back to the Palace where a lavish breakfast was served which was extended to brunch. I noticed that Vesper relaxed considerably, since the hard part of the day was over and chatted with Hela and Sif. The other guests seemed to be enjoying themselves as well, Father was engrossed in conversation with Lord Hawthrone, who was sharing funny anecdotes of his military days.
"You should have seen the poor sod when he found out I was his superior! He was practically, well let's just see he needed to use the lavatory soon," Lord Hawthrone joked which made his wife briefly smack his arm, warning him that this type of talk might be inappropriate. Mother didn't care though as she found the story to be funny and she started laughing.

Near the end of the breakfast brunch, I saw the Vesper was still talking to Hela and Sif. She had started picking at the skin around her nails. I walked up to her and touched the base of her spine.
"Do you want to go soon?" I whispered in her ear. Vesper nodded. I then tapped my glass with my spoon, thanked everyone for coming and there were a few speeches. Lady Hawthorne started talking some horse shit about she was going to miss her daughter's company. Blah, blah, blah.
"To Loki and Vesper," Baldur said as he raised his glass and the rest followed quickly, wishing the new couple all the best.

- Vesper's Pov -

Everyone walked downstairs with Loki and me. I kissed Lilith goodbye. Lilith grabbed my wrists tightly, I winced as she dug her nails in.
"Do not fuck this up," Lilith warned in a hushed whisper that only I could hear "I do not want you back living under my roof again,"
"Yes, Mother,"
"Make him happy," Lilith let go of my wrists. Then it was my father's turn, and she could see that he was having a hard time as well.
"Well, baby girl. I going to miss having you around," Father hugged me tightly "Remember, you will always be welcomed back home as long as I live there,"
"Thank you, Father," I then turned to my siblings. Killian had started crying again, just like in the morning, but this time Tallulah followed suit. She threw her little body into my arms, sobbing, unwilling to let me go "Oh, stop being babies. It's not like I am moving to a different realm. I am only going to be a couple of streets away. You'll visit me, won't you?" Tallulah had let go and nodded, through her tears.
"Of course,"
"Anything to get away from Mother," Killian sniffed. I then pulled both of them in for another hug. I said goodbye to my aunt and uncle and their chaotic children and then said farewell to my brand-new in-laws, practically begging Sif, Frigga and Hela to drop by soon. Loki and I got in the carriage and as it started moving, I looked back and saw everyone waving at us. And then we were alone.