Lady Dhampir
Chapter 130

For once, the young Duchess was the one to take action, and though he was surprised, the Prince wasn't one to refuse such passion. He gently put a hand around his new wife's delicate waist and answered that kiss.

The ruckus of applause and cheers around them didn't matter much. Milena's heart was just filled with emotion, and she was feeling more confident than ever. It felt like months and months of preparation, hard work and tenacity, had all taken her to that moment. She just needed to put all that happiness into action, in a simple kiss. Rayan's lips, and the cheers around them, let her know this dream-like scene was real. She didn't care anymore about the jealousies, competitions, and schemes. This was her wedding, finally. Finally.

Despite a few surprised and outraged reactions, the young couple reminded themselves they needed to display some decency, and separated after a little while, both satisfied and just a little bit out of breath. Milena made sure to step back a little and gather herself, putting her feelings back in check. The Prince had that satisfied smile on, a smirk that wouldn't leave his red lips for a little while. Milena rolled her eyes and quickly erased all the shameful lipstick from his lips with her thumb. Her bold movement had a little more people whisper, but she couldn't care less about their gossiping. That man was her husband now, this wasn't anything indecent between a young couple.

"A-alright," said the King, a bit embarrassed. "I guess everyone here is a witness. Lady Milena De Crescent, shall we proceed to the next part of the Ceremony?"

Milena nodded, but just then Rayan stepped forward, putting a hand on his father's forearm.

"Allow me to do it in your stead, Father."

He didn't add anything else but, in the glance they exchanged, Milena could tell he was offering to perform the rest of the ceremony out of concern for the Monarch. The King was tired, and probably doing his best to hide it. It wouldn't have been possible for him to not officiate the wedding ceremony without too many people getting suspicious, but Rayan could take the rest of the ceremony over without raising too many suspicions. It would simply be taken as a greater gesture of love between the newlyweds. The King slowly nodded, with a faint smile.

"Of course son. Please do, I'll... sit on the side."

As he slowly walked back to the large seat that had been prepared for him, Milena worried that the King might stumble. His steps didn't seem stable for anyone on the first two ranks, but thankfully, it was only a couple of steps before he could sit down. The King took his seat, and Rayan quickly jumped to his place, catching the attention of everyone.

"Dear Friends and Family, Dear guests," he said in as loud of a voice as possible. "It will be my utmost pleasure to be the one to assign my new wife, Lady Milena, her legal title of Royal Princess, as well as her new attributions, possessions and of course, her crown." Prepared for the rest of the ceremony, Milena grabbed Rayan's hand and got down on her knees in front of him. Then, her husband gently took the little veil off her head. He hadn't even gotten a chance to lift it before she did... He handed it to Olivia, who then stepped back. On the side, two Royal servants stepped forward, carrying the large box that contained her crown. Her heart skipped a beat. Milena was both excited, and dying of curiosity. She had only tried a few rings so far, she had no idea what her crown was going to look like. It was a tradition in the Royal Family that no one was to see theirs before they were crowned.

Rayan exchanged a little smile with her, as Milena lowered her head, and cleared his throat.

"Lady Milena De Crescent, Daughter of the House De Crescent and now Spouse to the House De Solar, do you agree to take your legal title, responsibilities, and rights as a Princess to the Kingdom De Solaris?"

"I do, your Highness." "Alright, then..."

The Prince turned to open the little safe, and Milena glanced, immediately shocked.

The crown was absolutely gorgeous on its little velvet cushion. It was standing taller than Milena had imagined, with crisscrossing lines that allowed pear-shaped diamond stones and trilogies of brilliants. Several large rubies were resting at the heart of those lines and above the base, and at the main point of focus, a large amethyst was proudly enthroned on the tallest of the central lines. Its points turned upwards. It was a crown that was both majestic, and elegant. Moreover, it wasn't just made for her.

Milena had seen a crown very similar to that one before. In the books about Princess Silvra. It wasn't exactly the same, as the Princess at the time only had amethysts on hers, but it was a bit smaller and it had definitely inspired that one. Milena felt almost like crying, as she realized how much they had tried to please her with that crown. Her crown.

Rayan gently took it, and lifted it above Milena's head.

"As a member of the Royal Family, and with the King's approval, I solemnly declare Lady Milena De Crescent as an official Princess of the Royal Kingdom of Solaris."

As he put it on her head, Milena was suddenly struck with how heavy that crown was. The weight of all the gemstones could suddenly be felt on her neck, and she was a bit scared she'd have it fall over. However, it had been made for her. Not only the size was perfect, but as Rayan gently helped her stand up, the crown on her head absolutely didn't move.

Instead, Milena could stand proud and show her beautiful crown to the audience.

Everyone was to bow to the new Princess, and many of the men put a knee down. On the first rank, Ellias was the only one with no obligation to do so, but it would have been a sign of disrespect. Maybe that explained why he lowered his head, even if that could have been as brief as a simple nod.

Milena's eyes went to her family first. Her father was bowing to her, which felt a bit strange, but his closed fist on his heart also meant absolute allegiance to the new Princess. Her siblings were doing the same, and she could see a tear running down on Raphael's cheek. Her second brother had made it to her wedding. He was seated in a special chair, which kept him half-seated at all times, and had their family doctor right behind him. Yet, he had put on his best jacket, and he exchanged a glance with her as soon as he raised his head. Valentin and Lucian, too, were smiling proudly. Blanche had somehow gone to sit next to her older brother's feet, in her cat form, probably not caring much about all this ceremony...

"Congratulations, my dear wife," suddenly whispered a voice next to her.

Milena blushed a bit, letting her Prince wrap her arm around his. "Thanks, my dear husband," she replied.

For a little while, the two of them stood there, letting people cheer them. Milena was satisfied, completely satisfied, even if reality wasn't really hitting her yet. She was now a Princess, a real Princess. She retained her title as a Duchess, of course, but as Rayan had mentioned, there would be now a lot more than that coming onto her domain. She was even feeling a bit dizzy, as to everything she'd have to take care of from now on, but she took a deep breath, and reminded herself she was prepared. She had been preparing for months, so for now, it was alright if she enjoyed this just a little...

After a little while, they both bowed down to the King, who was genuinely happy for them. He even insisted on hugging Milena, and told her how beautiful she was. Hearing this from the old King almost made her want to cry again. She felt closer to that man than she had thought. Maybe because he knew her mother, or because he had fatherly feelings towards her, Milena felt his sincerity in that little embrace.

Finally, the ceremony was about to come to an end. First, all the Nobles and guests present either came to congratulate the young couple or left directly to the Ballroom where the party would start next. It was going to be a couple of hours before then. First, because it took a very, very long time for all of the guests to come and congratulate the new Prince and Princess. It wasn't a mere greeting; a lot of the nobles present insisted a lot on showing their support, hoping to get noticed, or acting as if they were more important. It was one of the parts Milena would have skipped if she could. She hated wasting her time with such socialites, but she was almost getting cramps from smiling so much and so often when she clearly wasn't used to it. Her husband was better at that exercise. His arm around her waist, he somehow greeted absolutely everyone with the same scary smile. Though some managed not to show it, Milena could tell a lot of people were scared of seeing the vampire prince and his scar from up close. He hadn't tried to hide it under a mask or make-up, unlike what most probably expected. Seeing the real thing was scary for those who had never experienced it before, but Milena estimated that saved them a few minutes.

Even so, it felt like a very, very long time before their families and close friends were able to congratulate them. The usual protocol had the end of the room come forward first, which meant they had to endure strangers greeting them for at least a couple of hours before their family was even in sight. It was meant for the members of the Royal Family to always consider even the smallest nobles, but at that very moment, Milena wanted to punch whoever idiot had come up with that idea. Her legs and feet were aching by the time she finally got to greet her family.

"Congratulations, little sister", said Valentin, hugging her gently.

Milena hadn't forgotten they hadn't been able to talk about Olivia, but, with everything going on these last few days, she had almost forgiven him already. She didn't want to doubt her older brother, either. She just wanted that matter to be solved and behind them soon. Raphael was the one who held her the longest, although it wasn't a firm hug due to his state. Lucian only had a few words, playing cheeky as usual, but he managed to bring a warm and genuine smile to her tired lips. To her surprise though, he stepped to the side to face Rayan and extended his hand.

"Your Highness, I hope we can keep happily collaborating in the future," he said, with an expression that didn't feel like Lucian at all.

"I'll look forward to..."

However, before he could finish his sentence, Lucian suddenly pulled the Prince closer by the hand he was holding, and Milena heard him whisper to Rayan's ear.

"...and remember, she's got three big brothers. Three."

Rayan looked completely taken by surprise, but Lucian quickly let go, his smile back on. To Milena's surprise, not only this looked totally planned, but behind him, both Valentin and Raphael were staring at her husband with insistence. She pinched her lips, trying not to laugh.

"I see..." muttered Rayan, looking at a loss for words.

Her brothers left, leaving a baffled Prince and Milena who could barely hold her laughter in. Her father was next, but they had exchanged enough words before the ceremony, and he wasn't one to be very talkative in public either. Hence, they hugged briefly and silently, and her father moved to her husband.

One again, there was that strange atmosphere between them. They silently shook hands, and that was it. Although, Milena did feel like her father's grip might have been a bit more oppressive than usual...

Next came the Royal Family. No member of the Church had attended, of course, but Milena was curious to see Philomenie and Ellias' reactions. She had made a point of not looking at them the whole ceremony and had barely glanced towards their side of the room. Yet, Philomenie stood forward with a little smile, wearing a pastel green dress and a lot of unnecessary white beads and ruffles. She looked like a giant dessert from one of those fancy pastry shops...

"Congratulations, Lady Milena. We will soon be sisters-in-law!" She exclaimed, smiling from ear to ear.

"Thank you, Lady De Winter."

Careful to not let her Prince wait, Philomenie quickly scooted over, and her smile melted like snow under the sun as she had to face Rayan. A bit awkward, she bowed very politely. "Congratulations, your Highness..." She muttered in a little voice.

"Thanks, Lady De Winter."

She then stood aside, hurrying to get out of the Prince's line of sight. Milena had mixed feelings towards Philomenie at that moment, but she appreciated that she had kept this short. Ellias stood in front of her, and she almost wanted to sigh.

"Congratulations, Lady Milena," he said with a strangely gentle smile. "I'm looking forward to our future as a family."

It irked Milena how he had said that. Since when had Ellias gotten so... creepy? She took a deep breath, and bowed a little.

"Thank you, Prince Ellias. I hope I will do great, as your sister-in-law."

Milena insisted on those last words, and Ellias' smile fell a bit. Next to her, Rayan chuckled.

"I guess my brother is looking forward to more family time, my dear wife. Next is your wedding, dear brother. We will both look forward to it."

That was all Rayan needed to add. The human Prince finished his greetings quickly, and took his fiancé with him and out of sight. Left alone with the King, the two newlyweds let out a long sigh of relief.

"I thought this would never end," muttered Milena, massaging her sore shoulders.

"Welcome to the happy daily duties of the Royal family," chuckled Rayan.

Behind them, King Silverius shook his head.

"It's alright, Milena, you won't have to do this everyday darling. You guys did great for today. Now, you have about half an hour before the official appearance to the public and the festivities. You can take a break." Whatever happened next was by no means a break.

Milena was kidnapped by the maids, and taken to a little salon to get her makeup and hairdo retouched, each stand of her hair put back in place, her lipstick re-applied, her nails checked. She even managed to eat and drink for the first time since her light breakfast earlier, which felt good as it was already somewhere in the middle of the afternoon. Even though she didn't get to sleep, sitting down for a little while, eating, and changing shoes was a huge relief. As she was rather tall already and wearing a long dress, she had convinced Yasina to already change into the pair of short heels she had made for her, so she'd at least be more comfortable while greeting the people and dancing.

Time flew until Milena had to go back again, and she was relieved to have gotten this little rest before the official greetings to the Kingdom.

Someone put a fur coat on her shoulders, wolf fur as it was the symbol of her family, and she was up and ready to go again. Rayan was ready faster than she was. Milena took a bit of relief in reuniting with her Prince again, and being able to lean on him for a little while.

"How are you?" He asked as they made their way to the Royal Balcony.

"I wouldn't get married every day," she sighed.

The Prince chuckled.

"Once will be enough, I promise. Plus, after this, you can take off the crown and change into your dancing dress."

Milena nodded.

Still, the hardest part was to come... They both stood together behind a large curtain, hearing one of the Royal Officials proclaim the news of their wedding, and Milena being crowned Princess. Her nervousness stroked again. How many people were waiting to see them behind that curtain? Milena knew she wasn't popular, and her Prince even less. What if the plaza was empty? All the pride in the world wouldn't be enough to face such a sight. She tried to take deep breaths, calming down. Whatever was waiting behind that curtain, she would be ready. She was a princess now, married to Rayan, and nothing could change those two facts anymore.

"...What is it?" Whispered her husband, witnessing her expression.

"Nothing, it's just... I'm a bit worried."

"Worried?"

"You know... Neither of us is really popular, and... if no one is waiting behind this curtain... what?"

Rayan's shocked expression scared her even more. He was looking at her with eyebrows raised, and, suddenly, sighed, shaking his head.

"What is it?" She asked.

"I think I may have made a mistake," he sighed.

"What? A mistake?"

"Yes. My wife's cuteness is going to be the end of me for sure. Milena, I don't think I can take more of that adorable cuteness of yours. Sometimes you're just too adorably innocent." "W-what... You're making fun of me!" She protested, blushing.

The Prince burst into laughter, and Milena slapped his shoulder, mad at him. He just kept laughing and shaking his head, but, absolutely not mad at her, he kissed her forehead. "Milena, you underestimate yourself, and our people."

"You're making no sense..." She muttered, embarrassed.

"Am I?"

With perfect timing, their names were announced just as she was still staring at him and slightly confused. Her Prince gave her a quick wink, and they stepped forward.