Wedding the Vampire Prince pt.2

At the altar, three tall candles were lit, sending wisps of white smoke into the chapel air. Master Om, who led the ceremony, directed Misa and Prince Ran to hold both their arms forward toward the other and lie their right wrist face-up on one another's palms.

"Vow to your beloved a promise for your marriage, and seal it with a bite to the wrist. Then together, blow out the shortest candle."

Doing as she was told, Misa closed her eyes and thought of a promise she'd like to share with Prince Ran. She didn't know if it was 'too human' of her to think something so simple, but she went with: 'I promise to always consider your feelings, Ran, with hopes to see you smile.'

And she leaned forward to sink her teeth into the prince's skin. Seconds later, she felt him do the same. They both pulled back at the same time, a secret promise in their heads that made their eyes twinkle at one another.

"What was your promise?" Misa asked Prince Ran in her best teasing voice. It made her happy to see him roll his eyes.

"Not telling." He said simply, shaking his head as she giggled.

In unison, the pair turned toward the shortest of the three tall candles and blew it out as their dark blue, almost-black blood dripped onto the altar.

The crowd around them broke into raucous cheers, screaming congratulations at the prince and the new princess. Misa smiled at Prince Ran so widely, she knew that he could see every one of her hopefully teeth. He, unpracticed, smiled shyly and distracted himself by licking the blood off Misa's wrist, over which a heart-shaped emblem--which he shared now on his own wrist--had appeared.

Misa screeched to the amusement of those in the chapel, and Prince Ran grinned mischievously. Misa was convinced that this and the smirk were the only smiles he seemed to have mastered. 

The familiar sight of it made her laugh even as she felt the cold chill of silver eyes boring through her back. For once, she didn't shiver.

Misa made a point of not looking the Queen's way.

Two hours later, after changing into her second, lighter dress for the reception, Misa rattled along in the carriage down to the center of the kingdom's cities for the afternoon rites. She felt nervous.

"I can't believe this is really happening." She said to Ida who rode in the seat across from her.

Ida, seated next to the ever-silent Isel, smiled her eyes at Misa, but her stern lips remained straight. Misa could count the number of vampires who fully smiled with their teeth on one hand.

And he was dead.

"You should start believing it, Princess Misa."

"Ooooh!" Misa screeched, clasping her cheeks and animatedly twisting her body from side to side. "Too soon! Too soon!" She felt giddy, her face hurting from how consistently she'd been smiling over the last couple of hours.

Prince Ran, who had been sitting silently beside Misa and observing her like she was an animal behind a glass window, quirked an eyebrow, "I believe I have never seen you this happy. Even while reading that book you love. Does being Princess fill you with such joy?"

Misa angled her head downward, trying not to show Prince Ran her shy face. "No, dummy. It's not that."

"Oh?" She could hear the teasing in his voice. She felt his breath on her ear as he leaned in to whisper in it. "Then... is it being my wife?"

Misa shot her head upward, her face feeling flushed like crazy. "H-Hey! Enough of that! Fishing for compliments, how dare you. Have some shame! Come on, the carriage has arrived."

The carriage had indeed stopped in the square and Isel opened the door and hopped down from the carriage first while Prince Ran legitimately cracked up at Misa's reaction. And Misa couldn't even pretend to be mad at him for it like she wanted to.

The charming sound of his laughter even got the stern Ida to chuckle as she exited.

The afternoon rites were quick and entertaining. Above the large crowd of citizens who had gathered to see the newlywed couple, Prince Ran and Misa sat at an elevated, stretching table which also seated the King and Queen, Master Om, Ida, and Isel.

Their second task was to intertwine their arms and drink a goblet of human blood together. Essentially, they were to perform a love shot. 

It made Misa a bit queasy to think about, but she could no longer deny her cravings as a fully turned vampire. She wanted the blood even if she told her mind she didn't. Thus, she and Prince Ran drank together and slammed the goblets down on the table in an exaggerated show of completion.

Misa felt ridiculous and laughed heartily.

Then, they turned to the feast. The castle had provided scores of meats bloody enough to exist solely as blood on a plate, so that members of the kingdom, especially those who were beginning to starve and go mad from lack of human blood, could feast like royalty.

It was interesting to Misa to see such a divided kingdom gather together like this for the second time to celebrate her and Prince Ran's union. These vampires seemed merry, and little concerned about their issues of starvation.

They can put aside their hunger pangs and anger for moments of comradery. They're not all crazed and don't have to behave like the heathens and tyrants they're accused of being. They can coexist. She thought, filing that note away for a better time.

The candle on the table between her and Prince Ran claimed her attention as Master Om announced that they must now blow out the second-tallest candle. Misa grabbed Prince Ran's hand as they blew it out to the cheers of everyone enjoying themselves below.

Prince Ran snickered low in his throat. "You must really like me."

"Oh, shut it!" She cried, giggling.

Stringed music played and people sang to entertain the members of the royalty. Performances persisted until the sun began to give way to the moon.

As the sun set and the lamps along the streets were set alight, the final traditional marriage rite was introduced to Misa as "A Waltz Beneath the Moonlight."

At once, the energy changed and the citizens cleared the center of the square. They circled the outside, leaving a generous stage for the newlywed prince and princess. Prince Ran looked to Misa sitting at his right and offered his hand.

He said with a captivatingly deep voice, "May I have this dance?" Like a gorgeous piece of cinema, the rising moon set a shine to his yellow-green eyes and haunting waltz music began to play behind his voice and through the plaza.

Misa breathed this moment in, instantly drunk on the feeling. "Of course," she whispered, her voice failing her. She placed her hand in Prince Ran's who dragged her up at once. 

To the one-two-two-one-two-two beat of the music, they walked hand-in-hand to the center of the large circle left for them.

Then, Prince Ran pulled Misa to face him and waited for her to place her left hand on his shoulder while he held her right hand up with his left. When Misa finally did, while completely forgetting how to breathe, Prince Ran supported her upper back with his right hand and immediately stepped forward, forcing Misa to step back.

The one-two-two-one-two-two of the accordion piano and strings was hypnotic, and Misa found herself moving evenly to the beat, led by Prince Ran. They made their way around the square as the music seemed to crescendo.

When the loudest part of the waltz arrived, the quiet crowd sang along and joined in the dance themselves:

We view each other here

And rise

We send our voices through the da- ark night

So, let your soul find mine

And bind

We waltz together with the moo -oonlight

The moment was astounding. Vampires, dressed in elegance and dancing with a coordinated and unfiltered beauty, filled the circle and waltzed to the song with her and Prince Ran. Misa couldn't believe her eyes, was doubting her own ears, felt overwhelmed by her own feelings.

I love this! She cried in her mind, noticing that Prince Ran's eyes sparkled at her the moment she did so. He heard her. I love this so much, she said again, her eyes filling with tears.

He beamed at her and led her around the plaza one more time, his smile not fading even after the song faded.

Minutes later, the two were back at the elevated dinner table where they blew out the last of their wedding candles. The cheers were loud while Master Om announced, "Blessings be to the prince and princess of Yugure Kingdom!"

Over the cheers, Prince Ran looked at Misa. "Looks like you are officially my princess." He said.

Misa felt like she could faint. It was crazy that this was happening. "My prince." She whispered, trying it on her tongue, "My husband."

Unfortunately, the gaze they shared afterwards was short lived because both caught sight of Ryusei out of the corner of their eyes.

He leaned against a nearby wall, his arms crossed and a frown on his face. Misa felt Prince Ran tense, as did she. He wouldn't, would he? She asked herself as they continued watching the ex-prince apprehensively. Eventually, Ryusei raised his hand as if to wave.

But the motion was interrupted by the gruesome thunk of a body smashing onto the cobblestone from above.