The Dark Bride

Chapter Seven

Nefarious

~~

I waited in the lobby as the princes from the Kingdoms of Water and Wind both arrived. Neither one of their brides had made it yet, so only the bride and Earth and mine were currently present. The Head Priest and Head Mage finally showed up a few minutes after my arrival and bowed to me once they got close enough. “Your report?”

“We performed the ceremony and the results were the same. The child from the Kingdom of Light is your bride.” I let out a low growl, uncertain of how things would go from here on out. “There is one more thing that we feel like we need to report,” the priest insisted and I ordered him to continue.

“After being told what we would be doing, the young lady pleaded that she not be returned home if shown she wasn’t your bride. She appeared more terrified of the notion of going home than going to the Kingdom of Darkness.” That was a new one. Usually, people would beg to go home if told that they would be going to the Kingdom of Darkness. Beg for death even. What was so bad about the Kingdom of Light that she wouldn’t want to go back?

“Dig up what you can about her home life and family. I want a detailed report as soon as possible.” The two bowed to me again before leaving and an elf servant came up to me to show me to the room I would be sharing with my bride. We came up to a door that looked rather familiar to me. It looked like the front doors of the castle back home only shrunk. I opened the door and found myself in a familiar setting with the dark decor. Dark dragons are usually nighttime creatures so anything too colorful or bright hurt our eyes.

The woman in question wasn’t in the living area so I went into the bedroom. I didn’t see her right away until I moved to turn around to call for a servant. That was when I saw a figure out on the balcony with their back to me. A woman with a slim figure and long hair wearing a pale-colored dress was watching the scenery outside. Clearing my throat, I made my presence known to her and she quickly spun around to look at me. She was startled at first, which I expected, yet she recovered herself quickly and calmed herself. Grabbing onto her dress, the woman gave the most flawless curtsy I had ever seen.

“My name is Lady Lucetta Valentinus, your grace. It is an honor to meet you.” As she stood back up I noticed that she had a perfect posture with a straight back, shoulders back, and hands folded gently in front of her. She was the picture of a perfect lady. As I looked her up and down, getting a better view of her, her eyes caught my attention. They were large and orange like the moon during the Autumn Solstice. Yet there was a dullness in her eyes like the spark of life within her was dimmed. Had she given up hope once she learned that I was the dragon she would marry?

Knowing I wouldn’t get my answers right away, I bowed to her to return the formal greeting she clearly practiced hard on. “Nefarious Nox Aeterna, the Dark Prince. I hope that your journey was a pleasant one.”

Lucetta didn’t answer me right away like she was mulling over in her mind how to answer my question. “It was interesting, to say the least. I had never been on a boat before yesterday.”

“And what of the room, is everything to your liking?”

“I haven’t had much of a chance to look around as the gardens caught my attention. Though I’m sure everything will be fine during our short stay here.”

My eyes narrowed and I walked up to her, taking long strides to shorten the distance between us. In my mind, I was going through every possible meaning she could have had behind those words. “And what do you mean by that?” Her body started to shake and her bottom lip quivered slightly, but the woman stood her ground.

“It's just that,” her voice cracked and she gulped, making clear efforts to calm herself before she continued. “It’s just that I think it’s a bit silly to make the servants work so hard to change up a room we won’t be staying in for that long. We’ll be here for what, a year at the most for the competition? After that, we would be moving our things once again. I’m sure we could handle staying in this room as it is during that time.”

What she said wasn't wrong, and I was certain that the elves wouldn't change the decor of the room anyway even if I were to ask. Though I thought I'd make the suggestion to be nice, but mostly to judge her character. As I looked her over once more, something caught my attention and I reached my hand out to her with the palm facing up. She looked at my hand and then back at me, puzzled by my gesture. I then requested her hand and she offered it to me gently. Looking at her hand and holding it, I swore she would break with the slightest of pressure. Then grabbing her wrist, I pulled my young bride in closer so that her body was pressed to mine as my other arm wrapped around the small of her back.

I released her wrist and took hold of her chin so that she could look up at me. Holding her in such a manner proved my suspension at once. Her frame was so small and it felt like there was no muscle to her. The layers of her dress hid this fact very well, but she felt far too slim. Like she has been lacking in nourishment for a long time. There were hardly any curves to her body, her skin didn't seem to be in the best condition, and her eyes were slightly sunken in. And the color of her skin seemed off from what I thought all citizens of the Kingdom of Light would look. Behind the growing blush on her cheeks, she looked rather pale. "I would have thought my sunny bride would sport more of a tan."

Lucetta's face soon went from flustered embarrassment to heartbreak as soon as I made my comment. Her eyes turned downward to look away, and I noticed a growing wetness like she was holding back tears. "I'm sorry to disappoint you, your grace. I'll do what I can to correct this error."

I arched my brow before I lifted her chin slightly so that she would look at me again. My intention was not to hurt her feelings. It was just an honest inquiry as to why my bride looked so ill if she was from a noble family. Before I could speak, however, there was a knock on the door. "We have brought your things, your Highnesses!" Releasing Lucetta, I told the elf to enter. Several servants, a few being ones that I brought from my home kingdom, entered carrying all of our belongings. They made quick work bringing in the trunks and putting away the contents within them. It wasn't hard to tell which trunks were mine and which were hers just by looking at them. However, I noticed that they finished a bit too quickly and that only one trunk that was brought in wasn't mine.

"Where are the rest of my bride's things," I inquired while stopping one elf servant. She looked at me puzzled before glancing at Lucetta behind me.

"I don't understand, that was all that her ladyship brought with her. Was there more to follow her that we didn't know about?"

"N-No," my bride squeaked as she stepped forward. "That was all I had. Thank you for all your hard work. You may leave us now." The servant nodded before heading out the door with the others. Turning to look at Lucetta, she flinched as soon as I caught her eye. "I don't… require much, your grace. I'm fine with what I have."