Snow's White | ✓

31. Black Wedding

Keir lay in bed, alone and regretful, swishing the sleeping elixir in his hands. He laughed dryly as he remembered Lucas's distraught look as he stood outside Keir's room, the two princes having so much to say, but not being able to deny the reality that faced them now. Neither of them could deny that the safest option was to let each other go, no matter how much it wounded them both. Keir hoped that with Lucas wed and him returning back to his own kingdom, the witch's wrath will be appeased, giving him enough time to figure out how to destroy her. 

And if he did? Keir could only laugh bitterly. Even if he could somehow defeat her, Lucas could never be his. Everything was against them, and yet the two still struggled defiantly to stay together. The tether that bound them was wearing thin, and they both knew that it would snap tomorrow. Unable to bear seeing Lucas's distraught face, he had closed the door quickly, leaning his head against the dark wood as he wept silently. He did not know that Lucas did the same as he lingered in front of the door, wishing that they could be two different people in a different world, a world that pushed them together instead of pulling them apart. 

Popping open the glass bottle with his teeth, spitting the cork onto the ground, Keir drained its bitter contents in one gulp. The liquid coated his mouth as it trickled down his throat, warming his body from the inside out. As soon as he swallowed the liquid, he felt his mind calm and the tightness in his chest leave him. Surprised at the quick calmative effects, Keir settled himself underneath the blankets, letting the potion flow through his veins and unknot his tensed muscles. He felt calm, calmer than he has ever felt before, and his lightness let him slip into an effortless slumber soon after, the shadows claiming him. 

~~~

Lucas stood at the altar, crisp black suit hugging his muscular form as the smell of white flowers filled the room. Large white stone walls spiralled up into the air of the grand building, stained glass windows casting pastel shapes on the sparkling marble floors. The large hall was full to the brim, nobles dressed in their finest attire crammed into the seats on either side of the aisle, even more standing high up in the raised wings overlooking the room. The royal wedding hall had been sectioned off by palace guards, temporary fencing being set up to push back the throngs of commoners that hoped for a glance of the new royal couple. The organ behind them pounded out music, the warm tune only sounding harsh in Lucas's ear. 

Lucas stared at Keir, who stood to his side alongside a row of seven dwarves, who were all dressed in different colours, a most curious sight to the many guests that cast them curious glances, giggling as each of the dwarves almost bounced up and down on their tiny heels in excitement. Some of the young ladies in the front row blushed as they cast flirtatious glances at Keir, who did not notice their stares, his eyes calmly staring at the tops of his polished shoes as he only actively tried to ignore one pair of heated eyes. 

Lucas was surprised to see Keir's skin glowing and refreshed, none of the darkness under his eyes from the past night evident at all, as if he was completely at peace with what was happening. Keir's bright face was a blow to the chest, Lucas wishing that his body would betray something of the inner turmoil that he himself was experiencing, the man instead looking calmer than ever. Lucas, on the other hand, was barely holding it together. His eyes were bloodshot, dark circles covered with thick layers of cosmetics the maids had carefully slathered on this morning when he waltzed into the dressing room a complete mess, much to everyone's shock. 

"Look at me," Lucas pleaded silently, begging Keir to spare him a glance. "Don't ignore me. Look at me." Keir did not move, not even when the large doors of the hall opened, everyone gasping as Rose stepped inside, arm linked with her father's. Lucas tore his eyes from Keir as the wedding march began, Lucas's eyes growing sad as the sense of impending doom inside him flourished with every step she took.