"LET'S GET married in two weeks."
Sonata burst out laughing after Diether answered her question earlier. "You're really beyond my expectations, my lord," she said. "I thought you would at least give me a month to prepare for our wedding, but two weeks? Well, I guess the preparation would be easy since you have many people working for you."
Moreover, Diether was the king's beloved nephew.
No shop or company would deny their services to Diether even if they were hired for a difficult task on such short notice.
[And I'm sure the Hexfords would compensate them handsomely.]
"I'm sorry, but I'm in a hurry," Diether said. In fairness, he looked embarrassed. That meant he probably knew that a wedding in two weeks' time was ridiculous. "I'll be heading to the South for a subjugation mission next month. Hence, we need to get married in two weeks. I have something important to do as soon as I become the Grand Duke."
"Do you promise that you will still give me a wedding that wouldn't embarrass me?"
"I'm thinking of hiring the best wedding planner in the kingdom," he said hesitantly. "I heard it's popular among the brides these days to hire a professional to help them prepare for their wedding. If it's alright with you, shall we do the same?"
She nodded. "Hiring a professional to help us is a wise choice. I don't have time to plan my wedding on my own, since I'm pretty sure you won't be helping anyway."
He flinched, then he avoided her gaze as if he was guilty. "It's not that I don't want to help you, Lady Sonata. I just know I won't be a great help since I don't really know what I want. Hence, even if you ask me to help you pick between two different flowers for your bouquet, I wouldn't know what to choose."
"Well, at least you know that a bride carries a bouquet."
"I was married once, remember?"
"Ah, right," she said, smiling. "I heard it was a child marriage, but I don't really know much about it. Do child marriages also hold wedding ceremonies?"
She asked it as carefully as possible.
Fortunately, her fiancé didn't look offended that she brought up such a sensitive topic casually.
"I don't know about the others, but Celeste and I did have a wedding ceremony," Diether said, his face beaming. "She loves roses, so she chose pink and white roses for her bouquet. It looked lovely on her since she has pink hair."
Sonata couldn't help but smile while watching the happiness on Diether's face. She just loved it when people around her were happy. "I was worried because I thought you would hate talking about your first wife with a stranger like me. So, thank you for not getting mad at me when I asked about your previous marriage."
"You were careful and polite when you asked," Diether said, then he scratched his cheek as if he was embarrassed. "I'll be honest with you, Lady Sonata. I like talking about Celeste because it helps me relieve the precious memories I have of her. But I believe I owe you an apology. We're getting married soon, yet I'm still talking about my first wife. I will be careful from now on."
"No, it's alright," she said, smiling while shaking her head to let him know that she wasn't offended. "It's not like we have a romantic relationship. You can talk to me about her if you feel like it, and I'll gladly listen." She sipped her tea before she continued. "But I suppose we should be careful when we're in public. People would find it weird if they heard you talk about your first wife to your new wife."
Her fiancé fell silent while looking at her face as if he was analyzing her.
"What?" she asked, laughing softly. "I'm being sincere here."
"I can tell, and that's why I'm quite… perplexed."
"Why would you be?"
"Because I never thought I would want to be friends with the lady my father chose for me."
She burst out laughing again. "I can tell that you have a terrible relationship with your father, but please don't extend your hatred for the Grand Duke to me. Just so you know, I'm also not fond of my future father-in-law."
"Right? My father is an obnoxious man."
"I'm not saying I don't agree with you, but I can't say it directly because I don't want to be charged with treason. After all, the Grand Duke is still the king's precious baby brother."
For the first time since they met, Diether let out a soft laugh. "You're funny, Lady Sonata."
[Ah, he looks more handsome when he smiles.]
"I am," she agreed, smiling and nodding at him. "That's why you should stop getting hostile towards me for no reason. Let's co-exist in peace."
"I guess that's possible now."
"Right? It's thanks to my patience. You do know you have a bad personality, don't you?"
Once again, he chuckled. "And you do know you've been talking comfortably to me, don't you?"
She pouted and avoided his gaze guiltily. "We're the same age. So, what's wrong with speaking comfortably? We're comrades, too."
"How are we comrades?"
"We're both victims of your father's evil scheme," Sonata argued, finally finding the courage to face Diether again. "We should bond together… Lord Diether."
"Pfft."
Wow, this was the first time she heard someone stifle their laughter quite loudly.
"It's too late to return to speaking formally now, Sonata."
Oh?
[Did I hear it right?]
"Let's speak comfortably," Diether said, shrugging. "Is that alright with you, Sonata?"
Ah, she didn't mishear it.
[He really called me by my first name without using honorifics.]
"That's fine with me, Diether," Sonata said, smiling. "Comrades should be on a first-name basis, after all."
***
"ARE YOU sure about that, Lady Sonata?"
"Please address me comfortably, Your Grace," Sonata said, smiling at Grand Duchess Eleanor Hexford. "And yes, I'm sure about using a ready-made wedding gown."
And she wouldn't change her mind.
The other choice was to wear the wedding gown that the Grand Duchess used during her wedding more than twenty years ago.
[Don't get me wrong– the wedding dress is still beautiful and in exceptional condition.]
However…
"I know why you want me to wear the wedding dress that you wore during your wedding, Your Grace," Sonata said, smiling at her future mother-in-law. "This is Your Grace's way of telling me I'd suffer the same fate that you suffered from when you married the Grand Duke. Am I right, Mother?"