53: Wedding jitters

"Beautiful..." It was the first thing I heard the moment my eyes opened. The sight that greeted me was nothing if not breathtaking. I was dressed in a beautiful white wedding gown with a beautiful off-the-shoulder neckline. The bodice of the dress was tight but hugged me comfortably enough for me to breathe and then it frilled out in brilliant shimmering white layers.
I realised that standing next to me was an unfamiliar face. A young woman dressed beautifully in gold with beautiful golden hair and bright blue eyes. From what I could gather by her scent, she was a werewolf.
"You should be so excited! You're finally getting married to the Prince today!" She whispered out. And then it finally clicked. Today was Diana's wedding day. I had to say, she... or rather we, looked beautiful and even I couldn't deny the excitement at the idea of getting married to Sebastian.
"Meredith... I'm a little nervous, is that normal?" And as I said this, I began to notice how sweaty my palms were and how erratically my heart beat beneath my chest.
The woman I now assumed to be Meredith smiled and then nodded. "Of course. It's only natural for the bride to feel that way. Now, let's get you your veil and then get you to the entrance of the chapel. Your father hates it when you're late." She said.
I smiled internally. Both Sebastian and Diana's father hated tardiness. I wondered if they got along well.
Meredith disappeared for a moment before bringing me my veil which she adjusted properly on my head. "There... all done." I turned towards myself in the mirror again, and smiled the second I laid eyes on my reflection. I was a beautiful bride.
"It's time!" She said. The second she said this, I felt my palms shake and I clung to my dress tightly as she helped me up. I could feel Diana's anxiety as we exited the dressing room and headed towards the entrance of the chapel. Her anxiety only escalated at the sight of all the people who'd gathered. Even I was surprised. Werewolves and vampires from all walks of life were all here to witness Diana's marriage... our marriage. It was amazing what the union of a hybrid and a vampire prince could do.
It didn't take long before we arrived at the double wooden doors to the entrance of the chapel. There, I saw one of the most handsome vampires I'd ever seen before. He was tall and muscular with striking golden eyes like mine. His skin was pale white, and his face was framed by thick, beautiful locks of black hair. The aura he emitted was that of strength, dominance and authority and even I felt intimidated the moment I neared him. It was only when his eyes met mine and a beautiful smile appeared on his face that the tension within me vanished and I began to realise who he was.
"You look absolutely beautiful Diana. Your mother is going to be in tears the moment she sees you."
"Thank you, father... I do hope that my union with Sebastian is not something you are still weary of."
He chuckled and then held his forearm out for me to hang onto. "Of course not. I am happy. Your mother and I were selfish for not considering that you wanted to get married for love, like we did when we were younger. We had no right to interfere. As long as you are happy, we are happy. Now don't you dare cry up there, alright?" He teased.
I couldn't quite place the feeling I felt as Phoenix. Staring up at this man brought back this intense feeling of nostalgia, as though I could finally place at least one of these memories in my mind. A smiling face from a founder vampire with golden eyes like mine. Yes, it seemed about right.
It did not take long before we were joined by the bride's maids, my maid of honour- Meredith- the ring bearer and flower girl who carried with her a basket of rose petals, and then finally, my father and I slotted in at the back.
And then, my heart dropped the second the doors opened, and the music began to play.
"Relax my little dove. Just take a deep breath," Diana's father said reassuringly. I did as he said, taking in a deep breath and then exhaling as we waited our turn. And when it came, I finally felt a sense of ease as my father began walking me down the aisle. Through my veil I could see just how large the chapel was, and rightfully so. It seemed the entire vampire and werewolf population were here. We continued our slow steps rather faultlessly... until a strange, yet familiar scent began to prick at my nostrils. It was musky and spicy and eventually, I pinpointed it towards the front of the chapel. The moment my eyes met his blue ones, I was positively mortified. There stood Demetri, in the flesh, only he had longer blonde hair and was dressed much different than how he did in my current time. When I saw him, my breath hitched, and my throat began to dry. I honestly had no idea how Diana would respond to meeting her werewolf mate while walking down the aisle. But she surprised me by pushing through, barely acknowledging the fact that the man standing towards the front of the chapel had his blue eyes only on her and that the very fact that he was here, in this large chapel, had her stomach doing tumble turns and her skin ignited with sparks. It was then that I realised the difference between Diana and myself. Diana was more certain and headstrong in her actions, whereas I was still timid and childish. I wondered whether it had anything to do with our different upbringing.
By the time we'd gotten closer to the alter, I could finally catch a glimpse of Sebastian who smiled brightly at me, as though he were seeing me for the very first time. Admittedly he was very handsome in his grand apparel, and I found myself focusing solely on him to avoid the white elephant in the room.
When I reached the alter, and my father handed me to Sebastian, Sebastian gave a soft little chuckle and whispered softly, "You look beautiful, my beloved." Just these words alone had Diana certain that she'd made the right decision. But I wasn't so sure her decision to ignore her mate was the right decision, because as the officiant reached the section of the ceremony where he called for objections, Demetri was the first to object.
"I object! That woman is *my* mate. She should be marrying me!"
*Oh fuck... Diana was screwed- no, we were screwed*.
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Stay safe! Stay healthy! Sending my love!