Gemini|| #Wattys2019

Chapter 2

At the sound of the rapping on my door, I quickly slip my feet into a pair of simple, matte black pumps.

I travel over to the door and, for a moment, I just stand there. I lift my nose up into the air and throw the doors open dramatically.

"That's quite the exit, your majesty." I'm greeted by the brawny, dark-skinned man whom I've know my whole life. My lead guard, General Franz Harlow, standing directly outside in the hall, with four other guards on his flanks whose names I can never remember.

"Just wait until we make our grand entrance." I wink over my shoulder at Sybil. "I'll see you down there." She flashes me a grin and wiggled her eyebrows as I struggle to keep from laughing.

Around the corner, my father appears. When he sees me, I can tell he's suppressing a smile. He's always worked hard to maintain a very military-esque, Aries facade. Though, he became the king of Gemini, he never forgot his old customs or roots. However, this also meant he rarely ever showed emotion.

"You look extraordinary, Aurelia." He states, bluntly. He and I get along better than he and my sister, but still, we've never been all that close.

"Thank you, father." He takes his position to my right as Franz occupies my left side and the four other guards file in behind me. We maintain the strict formation as we move through several hallways and down a flight of stairs. When we reach the closed doors of the ballroom, we stand patiently, waiting for our cue.

Through the doors I can hear the murmurs of all the people inside. Several representatives from each of the twelve different Zodiac Realms were invited to bear witness, the engagement of the future king and queen of Gemini. It's a political tradition.

Suddenly, the string quartet begins playing inside, signaling for us to enter. My father offers his elbow for me to link my arm with his. My royal guards straighten up. The doors begin opening from the inside, revealing the extravagant silver ballroom, the hundreds of colorful guests and a cleared pathway leading directly up to the platform at the head of the room. We begin taking rhythmic, synced steps through the vast space, moving slowly to give everyone the chance to gawk.

Without turning my head at all, I can already see the different cliques of people congregating in my peripheral view. No one dares stand too close to anyone they could potentially begin an argument with. Focusing back on our destination, I notice the entire Royal Family of Libra is waiting for us, along with my mother and a young woman with long scarlet hair whom I do not recognize. From what I know, their family consists only of Queen Ebony--originally from Sagittarius like Sybil--King Levi and their two sons: Killian and Castiel Deveaux. Both sons were born Libras, but instead of placing the younger brother, Prince Castiel in their own government, they decided it was only fair if both brothers were given the opportunity to rule separate realms. After all, they are all about balance and fairness. In order to do this they received permission from the Counsel of the Zodiac and my father himself.

I always thought his hair would be more of a golden blonde, however, his hair is so pale that it's almost white--the total opposite of his brother's black hair which is clearly from his mother's side of the family. What the two brother's do have in common is their eyes. Such a piercing crystal blue color that they send chills up and down my spine. As I stare, Castiel meets my gaze and the corners of his lips turn up into a soft and kind smile. Without realizing it, I too, begin to smile.

As the stage grows nearer, I straighten up to stand even taller. For some reason, being in the presence of the Royal Deveaux family makes me feel empowered.

At the base of the platform, my father and I finally unlink our elbows so he can take my hand and help me step up. In my other hand I gracefully pinch a bit of my dress to hold it up off the floor. Everything is going exactly as we've been rehearsing over the past few weeks. I step forward, directly in front of Castiel. He kneels down taking my left hand in one of his and brings it to his lips, leaving a faint kiss that sends lightening through my nerves. His father step forward with a small, black, velvet ring box which Castiel opens, revealing the ring--a band made of silver and gold wire that were twisted and fused together. He places the cool metal ring on my finger and rises to his feet. Every guest at the party applauds as the Prince and I link elbows and step back off the platform for the first dance.