Finding a Prince

Chapter 14

A/N I haven't forgotten about this i promise. I will try to update every week from now, probably at the weekend. Thanks for staying with me tho :)

The cathedral in Solmorta was very different from any church Dan had seen in Serultria. It was much older and made entirely out of marble and other white stones like most of the houses. While in Serultria most churches apart from those owned by the royal family were basic and infrequently used this one was ornate crowded, albeit by the homeless of Pruniea rather than religious folk.

"Are you sure the priest will let us marry." Dan said quietly as they made their way through the large oak door at the front of the cathedral. There were about thirty beds laid out along the pews with a slightly bedraggled man or woman lying in each one. A few gave Phil a cheery wave from where they sat reading or talking to others, which Phil kindly returned.

"Don't worry Dan. I used to come here all the time when I was little to read in the library, I shouldn't have been allowed but Father Alister was really nice. I'm sure he'll do it for us, he's really nice." Phil said softly, gently stroking Dan's arm to calm him down.

"He may be nice but you know priests don't always like well . . . you know." Dan whispered, gesturing between himself and Phil, "What if he decides it's against Gods will or some bullshit."

Phil sighed.

"Dan, I know your worried but Alister has conducted more than a fair few same sex wedding services and been fine with it, I'm sure we won't be an exception. Besides I'm going to be king in a few months so he had to listen to me."

Dan shook his head and smiled at Phil's confidence but if he had been in the same position back in Serutria he probably wouldn't have hesitated to pull out the whole "I'm going to be king listen to me" card either. They slowly tiptoed around a group of people lying close the alter and headed towards a wooden door at the side of a rack of candles, gently flickering in the dull lighting.

The door clicked open and Dan gasped when he saw the library on the other side. The books weren't neatly arranged on ornate wooden shelves or piled on marble tables as the palace library had them but rather they were stacked in messy heaps on the floor marked with genre and authors. Some books were kept I glass cases that stretched on for as far as the eye could see, presumably the more precious novels. The floor sloped gently downwards and went on for as far as the eye could see, further on into the library the candles had either burnt out or hadn't been lit so it was difficult to see really how far it went on for. Phil had mentioned once that this was where all the important documents and records of Solmorta were kept so its catacombs probably spread out underneath the whole of Pruniae.

What caught Dan's eye the most however was a small fire by the door. The floor of the archives was cold stone and although the books were a welcome sight the decent into darkness was something that terrified Dan. There could be anything in the depths of this place. He shivered at the thought of some horrible monster crawling out of that shadows. The dark had always made him do that, imagine monsters and demons that terrified him oh so much. It was like the rational part of his brain gave up once the lights dimmed. He stepped closer to Phil, liking how warmth radiated from him. It was odd that someone who had the ability the conjure up ice could always feel so cosy.

Most of the light around them was created by this fire that flickered and dimmed occasionally. It was housed in a small fireplace set into the wall on the small area where the floor had not yet begun to slope downwards. There was a worn, red rug beside it and on top of that a battered old armchair. For such an eerie place, it looked quite comfortable. Phil stood on his tip toes scanning the rows of books for any sigh of the priest he was looking for.