The Forgotten Zodiac

Soren turned his gaze to Lucia, smiling a bit. "You're far more stunning than the stars," he murmured, shifting a bit closer to her. He sighed and looked around realizing that they were now alone outside. He smiled slightly and closed his eyes.

"Us and balconys, huh?" he remarked, leaning forward to rest his elbows on the balcony rail. "Strange how we always seem to end up alone..."

The mage was used to solitude by now, and he in fact preferred it in some cases - he found most close bonds dangerous due to his bloodline. And potential gain was far outweighed by the risk of his secret being revealed. There were a few exceptions to the rule, now. Lucia numbered among them. She knew about his bloodine, and, impossibly, did not resent him for it.

And he was grateful for the company. Possibly more so than she would ever understand.

"Listen," Soren said suddenly, breaking the silence once again. "Since we're out here, and I haven't done you the honor yet..." he straightened, glancing once towards the open doors of the balcony and listening to the music, getting the tempo in his head. "My I have your arm for this dance?"

He extended his hand to her with an uncharactaristic grin, tilting his head slightly as he awaited her reply.

"What?" Lucia had barely heard Soren's comment, but she was quickly distracted by his following question. The lateness of the night and volley of unexpected questions from Soren kept her off-balance enough that she didn't process and answer Soren's question until he finished all of them. From Soren, it was practically a volley. She caught up to herself and answered Soren's last question, skipping over the questions from him before that. "You may, Soren." She took his hand and stepped close to him as the music surged in the ballroom behind them. "You seem abnormally cheerful tonight, Soren. Did I miss something?"

Soren smiled up at her. "Nothing, yet," he murmured. He spent a while dancing with her until he sensed that the song was about to end. He took a deep breath and seemed to steel himself a bit, closing his eyes. He led her into a small spin, then slipped something round and metal in to her hand. He slowed his steps after that, waiting for her reaction.

Lucia frowned slightly and slipped her hand out of Soren's, closing her fingers over the object he'd placed in her hand. "Soren, what is this?" She gasped and lifted the item up to her face, holding it behind Soren's head so she could look at it. "S-Soren, this is a ring. Why would you give me a ring? You aren't-" She drifted off, with her expression somewhere between shocked, confused, and delighted. Mostly confused. She hadn't expected such an action from him, ever since the... Altercations there had been over her relationship with Kieran. As far as she'd known, even if he'd felt differently about her, he wouldn't have ever said anything. And yet, here the man was doing something that seemed very similar to a proposal. This flashed through her mind in a second, most of it showing on her face. She immediately started winding herself back in, telling herself that she was completely overreacting and that there was clearly another exlpanation. It was a gorgeous ring. Why could he not have simply been feeling generous? "What's this for, Soren?"

Soren seemed to hesitate a moment - it appeared that he had hoped she would guess his intentions, and wouldn't have to explain himself.

Of course, Lucia had a way of changing his plans.

"It's... er... I didn't go with a diamond, even though, traditionally, it's normal to propose with that stone, so to speak, but I thought the sapphire would suit you better and it's... what am I saying?" he shook his head to clear it, taking a couple deep breaths. He had planned this to go much smoother, but here he was, headed off on to some tangent when he should be saying...

He cleared his throat and took another deep breath, backing up a pace so that he could more easily meet Lucia's gaze. He could feel the way his cheeks were burning, and he was glad that the light was at his back, making it hard for her to see his face and the blush that he knew was there. He was not one to blush often, but when he did, it appeared redder than it did on a normal person - or maybe his skin was just lighter, and it therefore stood out more.

What am I thinking?

He took another deep, steadying breath and let it out, his crimson gaze meeting her deep blue one. "Lucia, I'm proposing," he said. The statement felt dull as it left his mouth, and he grit his teeth, knowing he could do better, but stopped himself, just in case... in case she wanted him to stop.

But no, he didn't think he could handle that. I've come this far already, and Goddess, I'm going to finish, even if both of our heads explode from embarassment!

"Lucia, I love you. I have for a long time, but I've... only just realized it recently. And, once I thought about it... at least, I'm hoping that... you have the same feelings for me?" He paused to catch his breath, but not long enough for her to reply, in case she... didn't.

"What I'm trying to say is... I feel like I've kept you waiting. And I'm sorry for that, because... I can never be sure how much time I'm going to have with everyone. With you. And I feel like my whole life up to this point has just been a terrible waste of time! If I could go back... I know, it doesn't do to dream about changing the past. All I can do is... Is keep working towards the future. And I don't... I don't think I want a future without you by my side. So..."

He took a deep breath.

"Lucia... will you do me the honor of becoming my wife?"

"Soren, I-I," Lucia broke off without replying either way, floored by Soren's question despite having expected it to be coming. "Soren, I-" She broke off again, kicking herself mentally. They stopped dancing now, which left her standing still with her hands wrapped around Soren's neck. Lucia was blushing heavily by now, and she was intensely grateful for the darkness which kept it from showing too clearly. The lady slid the ring onto her finger quickly and pressed her hand against Soren's face so he could feel the cool metal against his face. "Yes. Yes, I'll marry you." Her tone become more emphatic with every word, and she could feel how her heart fluttered with unrestrained excitement and joy. Her mind wandered, for a moment, back to the night of the Coronation Ball, and she was suddenly seized with the same impulse she'd felt on that night.
But now, with his ring on her finger, she was allowed to let her affection for him transform into action, without any regrets. So it was no accident when she leaned her head towards his and he rose to meet her, their lips pressing together for a long moment. When they pulled back, they were both breathless, but she was the first to recover enough to speak again. "Soren-"
Before Lucia could finish, they were interrupted by a noise from behind them, near the entrance to the balcony. Ike stood there, a plate of food from the reception in his hand. His face, illuminated by the lights in the ballroom, was scarlet. "I-I was just coming to see if either of you were hungry," he offered lamely. "Elincia said you hadn't eaten since lunch; and, I mean, I was starving." Without really waiting for an answer, he backed toward the exit to get himself back inside and away from this awkward situation.
Lucia stared into Soren's eyes from a second and leaned down to murmur in his ear: "Now you have to marry me." She immediately released him and turned to keep Ike from running off by himself. "Ike, wait! It's not like that; Soren just proposed; and, if you couldn't tell, I said yes. We're getting married."

Soren's face darkened a shade or two more before he composed himself enough to face Ike. When he did turn to his best friend, it was with a small smile. "She said yes," he repeated, half for his own benefit, and half to confirm it to Ike once again. He went over to join Ike and Lucia, his expression growing a bit more serious.

"It was not my intention to upstage Marche and Ritz's wedding so... if we could keep this quiet until we got back to Crimea," he said, looking at each of them in turn. He directed his gaze a bit more heavily on Ike as he continued speaking. "So... a secret until then," he finished.

Ike nodded immediately, looking serious and claiming understanding. "Secret engagement. Got it. My lips are sealed." He turned around then and headed immediately back into the room to rejoin his wife, trying his best not to look extremely uncomfortable.
Lucia watched Ike leave and then turned to Soren. "You do realize that, with him in charge of keeping it secret, everyone is going to know by the time we leave, right?" Despite the critical nature of the statement, she was smiling brightly. It didn't really bother her that it wouldn't remain secret; everyone would know in the end; and Ritz didn't seem the type to want anything kept from her, no matter the reason. She had no intention of subverting Soren's plan, of course; but she wasn't committed to its success. Especially considering how doubtful the chances of that happening were.

"I realize that," Soren said with a slight nod, rubbing his forehead slightly. "I suppose it'll be a miracle if the secret even lasts half a mark..."

Elincia waved Ike over, smiling at him warmly. "Ike, you're back! Did you find Soren and Lucia?" she asked, before noting his shift in demeanor. "Ike, is anything wrong?" she asked, her brow creasing slightly as he approached.

Ike jumped and shook his head. "No, nothing's wrong with Soren or Lucia. They're both fine." He smiled back at her, though it looked more like he was baring his teeth than actually smiling. The man proffered his plate of food toward her, using it to change the topic. "Have you eaten? The chicken is great." He held a drumstick out to her, taking a bite of a different piece to fill his mouth.
Ritz, who'd been standing in conversation with Elincia, lit up slightly when she realized Ike was keeping something from them. "Ike, I do believe you're <i>lying</i> about something!" She glanced onto the balcony, which was light enough for her to see that Soren and Lucia were alone, then went back to staring at Ike. "So who're you lying about? Is it Soren, or Lucia?"

Elincia tilted her head, frowning slightly as she took the drumstick. "It's good that everything's all right but..." she glanced over to the balcony, then back to her husband. "Are you keeping something from me?" she asked, straightening a bit in an attempt to catch his gaze. She watched as he shifted uneasily, then smiled.

"You're right, Ritz. He's keeping something from us, all right," she said. "So what is it, Ike?" she asked, brushing his arm slightly with her hand. "You shouldn't be lying to me, you know..."

Ike's eyes widened in panic, and he shook his head frantically. "I'm not lying!" He turned his blue eyes onto Elincia pleadingly, hoping she would stop asking before she made him tell her. Unfortunately, this meant that he was staring into <i>her</i> beautiful, golden eyes; and it was not the most productive thing to his willpower. "I'm not lying; they're both fine. In fact, they're great! Quite delighted, I'm sure." He cut himself off immediately, shoving more food into his mouth to keep them from getting anything out of him.
Ritz's eyes narrowed as she latched onto the small slip-ups he'd made in his speech. Rather than go directly on the attack, the woman tried getting information out of him another way. "I'm glad to hear that, I really am. You know," she stepped closer to both Ike and Elincia: Ike to make him more uncomfortable and Elincia to keep it perfectly appropriate. She would have stroked his arm as well; but, considering the marital statuses, it was not an option. "I really haven't been able to see them much this visit. I've just been so <i>busy</i>, what with the wedding and everything. Could you fill me in on how they've been, since I probably won't have much time to talk to them at all." She rolled her head dramatically and lowered her head, directing her most potent-adorable gaze at him. She wasn't positive it would work on Ike, but it had worked wonders on the men in her life before.

Elincia nearly laughed at Ritz's display, taking note of some of the girl's tactics - if they worked on Ike, she might just try them for herself later. She met Ike's gaze with her own, impressed that he was able to meet her gaze dispite the fact that she knew he wasn't telling the whole truth.

"Come on, dear, you can trust me with everything," she said, resting her hand on his bicep. "You know that, don't you? Now..." she paused, recapturing his gaze with her own and allowing her words to take effect. "Tell me what's going on or..." she stopped once again, a movement from the corner of her eye catching her attention. She smiled, seeing Soren and Lucia now approaching the group. "...or I'll just ask them myself," she finished, leaning back a bit and waving Lucia and er escort over. She knew her chances of getting a secret were much better if she asked Ike - he had a good resolve, to be sure, but she was much more persuasive concerning him than she was with her sister and Soren. She, in fact, wondered if there was any persuading the mage at all, but perhaps Ike was only blowing something out of proportion, and the other couple would give her the information she sought freely.

"Lucia, Soren!" she greeted as they came over. "How have you both been? Enjoying yourself?" she asked, stepping a bit closer to Ike and casting a knowing gaze up at him. She glanced over to Ritz, making a motion for the girl to set in to Lucia and Soren - she may have better luck.

Lucia, to both Ritz and Elincia's shock, blushed visibly at the question; her eyes flicking to Soren on impulse. "Oh, it was lovely. We danced some, admired the stars, talked about the fireworks. You really do have such a lovely view, Ritz. You're quite lucky to live here." While she'd expected Ike to give something as to what had happened, Lucia had no idea how determined Elincia and Ritz had both become to get the information out of someone. Her perfectly true and entirely uncomplete answer only increased the resolve of her interrogators.
Ritz, as Ike desperately tried to signal Soren for help without letting Elincia notice, smiled a perfect fake smile. "I'm so glad you like the view. Was anyone else out there with you? Ike went out to offer you two food; and, when he came in, he's just been very disgruntled." She frowned, putting on an excellent impression of someone who was actually concerned. "If there's someone out there being problematic, please don't feel the need to protect them. I can't have guests offending each other at my wedding." The Viera woman turned slightly, facing the balcony. By immediately leaping to a conclusion that she knew wasn't true, she put Soren and Lucia in the position of having to explain or leaving her to believe something wrong, which would play on their guilt and drive them to explain.
Ike, eyebrows up and looking amazingly like a scolded puppy, actually whimpered slightly as he kept trying to avoid Elincia's gaze. He hadn't promised Soren he wouldn't, and the word of Ike Crimea was not something to be taken lightly. When he'd made that promise, he hadn't expected the immediate grill-session; and the fact that it came from Elincia made it all the harder. "Of course, I do. If there was anything going on that was, you know, bad or dangerous or any of that, I would tell you. There's nothing at all. Really." It sounded weak and flat, he knew; but the excuses were the best he could come up with on the fly. Not that his planned avoidances would have been any better.

Soren saw Ike's motion for help, then sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. "By the Goddess, Ike, you used to keep secrets so much better," he muttered under his breath. The mage lifted his head and regarded each of the group in turn, before settling on Lucia.

"Would you like to say it, or should I?" he asked.

Elincia perked up, grinning away at Lucia and Soren as she realized that it wouldn't be too much longer before she and Ritz found out what they wanted to know. "What? Say what?" she encouraged, looking to her sister. "What's going on?"

"I'll say it. I suppose, since Ritz won't sleep without finding out, upstaging her wedding is no loner a concern." Lucia turned to face Elincia and Ritz, taking a deep breath to make her announcement. Considering the two people she was informing, it was likely she wouldn't be able to breath for an extended time period afterward; so her breath did serve a functional purpose. "Soren has asked me to," she swallowed and glanced over at the person in question, smiling suddenly. "He asked me to marry him, and I said yes."
Ritz's jaw dropped as she gasped, and her whole face registered shock at Lucia's announcement. She did not rush to hug Lucia, instead staying back to leave that duty for Elincia. Instead, she looked over at Ike who was looking considerably relieved now that the secret was out. "I'm sure you could have kept the secret better if it had been something Elincia didn't want to know. It was your noble and honorable side that just longed to make her happy. It was really very sweet." The new bride nodded at him approvingly, suitably assuaged now that she knew what he had been hiding. "Next time, you should just listen to your honorable side and give in. It would have saved you time, in the long run."

Elincia did rush forward, attempting to grab Lucia and Soren both in a hug at once. Soren made an attempt to dodge, but Elincia moved quicker than he had prepared for, and he ended up half-turned away with the young Queen's arm against his face, pulling him forcibly closer to Lucia and herself as she embraced them.

"This is so exciting! Oh, oh, I'm so happy for you two!" she practically squealed. Soren made a muffled sound of protest and managed, after a bit of struggling, to extirpate himself from Elincia's arms and wander over to Ike's side, embarassment causing his cheeks to darken.

"So much for not causing a scene," he muttered, glancing up to the King as the Queen continued to bounce around her sister ecstatically. The mage watched for another moment or so, then sighed.

"Looks like I couldn't get out of it now, even if I wanted to," he said, crossing his arms. He glanced up to Ike once again. "Well?"

Lucia, like Soren, had been expecting the hug. Unlike Soren, she knew how to take hugs from Elincia, relaxing her ribs, breathing in as much as she could, and hugging her sister back just as tightly as she was being hugged. If Elincia couldn't breath either, she was prone to letting go. "I know, I know!"
Ike looked up at Soren, feeling slightly embarrassed that his inability to act casual had forced Soren into the spotlight. He knew it would have happened eventually, but he still felt somewhat like he'd failed his friend. "I guess it's a good thing you don't." He let a moment more pass without saying anything, then offered up a reassurance of his good intent. "I wasn't going to tell them, Soren. I'm just not good at keeping secrets from Elincia, especially not about things that she'd be glad to know. If you'd just caught a spy or something, she wouldn't have picked up on it as fast." Soren knew him well enough to know this wasn't an excuse, merely an explanation. He was somewhat annoyed with himself and had honestly been quite flustered by the whole situation. However, the King really wouldn't have given away Soren's news. His promises meant more than that.
Soren didn't have to worry about a scene being had. It was quite late now, more toward the morning than toward the evening. The fireworks had taken longer than they seemed to, and Lucia and Soren had been on the balcony for a surprisingly long time. Nearly all of the guests, except those who stayed at the palace, which were few, or close family, like Doned or Shara had gone home. The only ones who were present for the 'scene' as he called it were those who would have found out near instantly anyway.
Lucia, after Elincia had decided the immediate squeezing was over with, took in Ritz's decorating again. Her eyes widen, and her shoulders drooped slightly. "Now, Soren, this is what we'll have to best. How do you feel about eloping?" The mage's betrothed was joking, mostly; but her point was valid. With every political wedding, the stakes went higher. It could take months to prepare for theirs; so, if he wanted it quickly, which she found she did, eloping was a decent suggestion.

Soren looked around the room and sighed a smile. "I'm perfectly fine with eloping, if you are," he answered.

"No, no no no, I'll have none of that!" Elincia said, her joyful expression turning, at least for a moment, to a scowl. "Ritz, Nephenee, and I will help you plan, Lucia! We'll make sure everything is just as wonderful as it was at our weddings! There will be fireworks, of course, if we can enlist Doned for help, and, oh, the decorations... they'll have to fit the season of course, but that shouldn't be too hard... oh! When is it?" she asked, suddenly remembering. "When's your wedding?" She turned first to Lucia, then to Soren, but with only his slightly stunned expression in response, the Queen turned back to her sister.

"Is it soon? Oh, I'm just so delighted for you two!" she gushed, giving Lucia another quick hug.

Soren shook his head and murmured something along the lines of "idiocy," but because he kept his voice low, no one could really make it out and take offense. He massaged his temple and said, a bit louder, "The idea of eloping sounds better and better, Lucia."

Lucia, looking somewhat overwhelmed, simply backed away from Elincia more toward Soren. "I have no idea. He just asked me, you know. Maybe a mark ago. I barely know we're getting married, much less when." Before Elincia could express exhasperation with the idea, Lucia directed the question to her husband-to-be. "How soon are we getting married? Perhaps we should elope, and then come back and participate in whatever they've decided. It's not like I'm that important to the planning process."
To prove Lucia's point, Ritz was already thinking her way through plans. "Doned will comply. If necessary, I'll get Shara to threaten him. He's scared of her." She turned to Elincia, envisioning the Crimean post-wedding decorations she recalled. "Will this be in Melior, or would you go somewhere else? Soren and Lucia both have homes, correct? Groom's is traditional, but tradition is easily ignored if it makes a wedding less beautiful."
Ike, getting more and more bored of the conversation, decided to take his leave of it. He hugged his wife and kissed her quickly before excusing himself. There was no necessary place for him in that conversation; and, as much as he cared for Soren, he was tired of wedding planning. Besides, there was food calling him. One could never ignore the call of a good chicken leg.