Alexander rose to his feet and went looking for his father after sitting alone on the pew for a good long while, feeling lost. Luka and Cielo had disappeared right after the cheering began, Prince Elio and his betrothed had immediately been pulled into a crowd of enthusiastic Vampires, leaving him all by himself.
They were good allies with Vallyn, but even then, being the only human in such a large crowd of Vampires was daunting. He couldn't imagine Silvan having to do this every day for the rest of his life.
It was bad enough when it was Silvan, his unflappable younger brother, so he couldn't at all fathom how fragile, sweet Eleanor would have lived here.
He found his father walking across the grand hall and swiftly went over to him. The familiar presence of his father reassured him.
"Did you go to find Silvan?" He asked, sticking close to his father.
Rolfe glanced at his son, his mood improving slightly at the concern in Alexander's face and tone. "I did, but he had already retired to his rooms."
Alexander relaxed, it had been a hard watch seeing his brother get bitten on stage in front of a crowd of cheering Vampires, regardless of his knowledge of Vampire customs.
A duo of Vampires approached them, they seemed to be a couple, their bearing noble. "May the alliance be prosperous." The lady said in a sonorous voice, distantly polite.
Diplomatic conversations were familiar grounds for Alexander, but he let his father carry the conversation, quietly sticking to his side in a manner completely unlike him.
-+-
Silvan wore black and gray, preferring cool, neutral colors. The bite wound on his neck had completely stopped bleeding, and all that was left behind were two reddish points on his neck.
He covered it up with his cravat, the slight pressure applied on the bite sent a strange sensation down his spine, making it hard to ignore it despite covering it up.
After dressing up, he walked to the door, wondering how long he would have to wait for Alessio to return.
He didn't have to wait at all, a polite knock ringing out before he could even get to the door. He opened the door to find Alessio on the other side, the Vampire Prince looked even more disheveled after changing clothes.
He wore a black dress shirt, with an embroidered red waistcoat over it. The black dress shirt had ruffled sleeves, and the waistcoat was cut low, it was reminiscent of a corset. His top buttons were undone as usual, more eyecatching now with how low his waistcoat was, and it didn't seem like he had bothered to run a comb through his unruly hair.
"We should make haste," Alessio simply said, starting down the hallway.
Silvan went after him, keeping up the pace. He was struck with a sudden urge to ask how vanishing worked for Vampires, but the strict conditions he had grown up in as a Priest made him hold back, walking in companionable silence.
They didn't bump into anyone on their way to the gardens, it was almost like that morning didn't happen, and it wasn't still their wedding day.
The gardens were endless, there were several sections, and a handful of mazes. Alessio looked completely at ease among the flowers, leading them through a complex maze to a hidden part of the gardens.
It was like stepping into the sunset, the flowers were in varying shades of yellows, oranges, and reds. It was like summer personalized, a sea of fire.
Alessio led them to a gazebo, which sat right in the middle of the fiery garden. Silvan had to slow down, he had questioned himself for merely inviting Alession to eat with him, but this sort of ambiguous setting… was it really necessary for a simple meal?
"Our meal has already been prepared," Alessio eagerly took a seat, a blissful smile on his face. The request to eat here seemed to have been more for himself than anyone else.
A faint smile graced Silvan's lips, only to fade away as he took his seat. There was a generous serving of food on the table, there seemed to be a bit of everything.
"The wine is nonalcoholic," Alessio pointed out to him with a hint of guilt in his tone, taking a sip out of a goblet with an expression of disappointment.
Silvan noticed this, "Yours as well?" He asked, unable to completely keep the amusement out of his voice.
"Mother banned me from drinking alcohol for a week," Alessio reported, wilting like a thirsty flower.
"How is she going to know?" Silvan blurted out before he could stop himself, freezing for a moment in a panic, only to remember that he didn't have to keep to any of Kalla's principles anymore, it reminded him of the achy pit in his chest.
Alessio sidled closer with mischief written all over his beautiful face, "She always does, I still don't know how. But how about, I tell her you invited me to drink?"
Silvan glanced at the Vampire looking up at him with hopeful eyes, "Maybe you do need the break from wine," He countered good-naturedly, getting started on his meal.
Alessio picked at the food on his plate, despondent. "But tonight is the afterparty, it would be no fun without drinking."
Prior to taking a proper drink of wine that morning, Silvan wouldn't have understood what Alessio meant, but now, he somewhat did.
Wine numbed him, it made him feel floaty and detached from the fact that the life he knew was completely gone. What better way to grieve what he used to have than a night of drinking?
"Maybe I could convince Queen Nadia to lift her ban for tonight," Silvan offered.
Alessio looked up at him like he was bathed in holy light. "You certainly can! She'll definitely listen to you." He said energetically, bright-eyed once again
"If she doesn't, then I could at least say I tried." He kept up the light-hearted conversation, eating the most he had ever since he heard the news of Eleanor's death.
"It would be a lot of fun to host a drinking party of sorts. Alexander is welcome to join as well, although I doubt there's anyone who could outdrink Luka…"