Ordained

Chapter One Hundred and Six

Emmeline felt thoroughly bothered by the time they had made their way into the grand hall. It was vast and she patted Cassius' arm excitedly as they entered. "Like it?" He chuckled. Emmeline nodded enthusiastically. Slowly she realised how much she enjoyed admiring architecture, perhaps she should order some books on it when they returned to the manor. The domed ceiling of the grand hall was covered in painted masterpieces, huge chandeliers filling the space with light. It was far more brightly lit than Emily's ballroom had been but there were plenty of other places to go and cause trouble in a place as large as the palace, she supposed. She thought of the trouble she and Cassius had gotten into in the gardens just earlier that day, her cheek flaring pink.

"Dance with me?" He asked, hopefully.

Emmeline nodded. "If you think you can keep up." She teased, grinning at him.

Cassius's eyes shone brightly. "Oh I think we can give these people a good show. What do you think?"

She mirrored his devilishly excitement. The idea of showing off, just for a moment, was appealing to her vanity. The last ball they had attended had been overshadowed by the instruction not to draw attention to themselves. Cassius asking her to deliberately draw attention to themselves made her inside feel warm.

There was a tittering of applause as they took to the floor. Cassius held her hand high as they moved into position, he twirled her just once before the music even started and there was a small swell of approved sounds. Cassius laughed, his face so carefree.

"Let's do this Marcellus." She gave him a coy smile and he nodded.

The musicians flipped their page and the waltz began. Emmeline was grateful it was an upbeat number, giving them the opportunity to move across the floor at a pace. She let Cassius led them, trusting him completely as he spun, dipped, lifted, and twirled her. After a couple minutes she let out a peal of laughter, truly enjoying herself.

"Am I keeping up?" He asked her, pulling her close for a brief second before changing their direction.

Pure unadulterated joy filled her up. From the tips of her toes to the very ends of her fingers she felt alive. This was what the pairing had promised her, a life of happiness. Looking at the gorgeous man holding her couldn't imagine such a blessed life with anyone else. "I love you." She replied.

Cassius faltered, his face changing as he studied her. The intensity of his expression eliciting that hungry sensation deep inside her once again. "I love you." He said with so much feeling that she couldn't help but believe him.

She tapped his calf with the side of her foot, reminding him to keep up and he laughed. He laughed hard as they span across the floor. "Yes mistress." He answered her wordless command to keep dancing.

For two songs they thoroughly showed off on the huge dance floor. Other couple got out of their way as Cassius made a point to dominate every square foot of the floor. Emmeline had spent as much time as she had on the floor, the Duke seeming to thoroughly enjoy lifting her every few steps. A small girlish part of her squealed when he lifted her like she didn't weigh anything. Every. Single. Time.

When the two songs came to a close, the musicians taking their few seconds to pause and allow the dancer to leave or join the floor, there was a huge applause. Emmeline chuckled as Cassius bowed low to her, kissing her hand. THis was something else he had taken to doing often. Kissing, or any form of affection was discouraged when in public, this gesture one of the few ways people could physically show their love within polite society. His lips lingered on her skin for a few seconds too long and there was a whistling sound from somewhere in the crowd.

"Thank you for the dance, your grace." She replied, showing off her manners. Cassius returned her smile but quickly stood up, looking over her shoulder. "Uncle." He greeted and Emmeline spun around just in time for Virgil to pull her into an embrace.

"My favourite niece and nephew." He boomed, releasing Emmeline and capturing Cassius in his grasp. It made her smile seeing Cassius being bodily pulled into a hug. He always looked so physically imposing, that seeing him being overpowered even if only for a second, was novel.

Emmeline lowered herself into a curtsey. "Your majesty." She greeted, her head bowed. Virgil lifted her up. "No precious girl. We don't do that with our family."

There were many, many people watching them. The court had thoroughly filled the grand hall, and she knew that Virgil was just as aware of their audience as she was.

"Emmeline, I had no idea you were such an accomplished dancer. It would honour me if you would join me on the floor for a turn."

Looking up into the paternal gaze of the king she nodded. "The honour would be all mine Uncle."

Virgil's answering smile was blinding. He was like a less serious version of Victor, more imposing, obviously more powerful, but more fun as well somehow. She understood why the king was so beloved, and why Cassius always seemed more relaxed around his uncle.

Emmeline was acutely conscious of dancing with the king. It was an honour many would never experience and it was also something watched keenly by many. She had Cassius had shown off, but this was on another level. "Your mag- uncle." She corrected herself when he lifted an eyebrow. "Thank you." She said, meaning it.

Virgil gave her a curious smile. "For what my dear?"

She smiled, narrowing her eyes a little. "You know. Welcoming me into your family. Supporting Cassius and I so publicly. It means a great deal to us both." Virgil made a sound of sympathy. The music had a small flourish and the king lifted her up, his wide hands on her hips. Unlike when Cassius had held her there, however, it felt more like the touch of a father than anything more. For a fleeting second she wished she had been able to dance with her father. Would he be proud to dance with her now she was to be a duchess? A voice in the back of her mind told her that she could be the queen and her father still wouldn't be interested in her.

"Dear one, I heard about the business with Claude's oldest girl. I wrote strongly to my brother about it. It is our family's duty to protect and respect the pairing. If we do not, then the rest of the country will not either." He explained. "If the pairing has deemed you worthy of my nephew, then you are worthy of him. I will not allow anyone to say otherwise. That includes Carmen." He added, seeing the doubt on her features.

"What if Cassius hadn't liked me?" She asked, feeling infinitely better than she had in weeks. Knowing she had someone in her corner, backing her, was a wonderful thing.

Virgil laughed.Many of the faces they passed looked curiously at her. What had she said to make the king laugh so? "Cassius would've learned to love you. However, from what I have seen so far, he has learned to do that already."

Emmeline blushed. Seized by a sudden stab of bravery she confessed. "I love him very much. He's a wonderful man." Virgil gave her an approving look.

"Good. I trust you'll look after my favourite nephew. He is young to take on so much responsibility."

She nodded, her brows pinched a little. "It was crushing him at first. We allocated a large portion of the work onto the stewards. They ran things whilst he and his father were away so they are continuing to do so until we return and Cassius has -" She was lifted off the ground "Had time to settle into things."

"Spoken like a true Duchess. It was smart of him to lean on his advisors. A wise man listens to others."

Emmeline grinned. "Good that he listened to me then."

Virgil laughed. The king had a way of throwing his head slightly back when he laughed, it was infectious, finding herself joining in. Her light tinkling laugh chiming with his booming one.

"Emmeline. It was a pleasure." He announced when their song ended, kissing her hand briefly. She returned the King's compliment, smiling when he pulled her into his embrace. King Virgil was obviously a big hugger. 

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Author's Note:

As you can probably tell... I love writing a ball scene haha.

S x