Louise practically blacked out after leaving the bridal suite and being led through the church by her father to the sound of quiet hymns being played on an organ at the back of the church. She was brought back to reality as she felt her feet move and consciousness returned to her body.
She was a doll finally moving and pretending to be a person again.
It happened often. She would lose time after crying, as if she couldn't bear the sadness. However, the girl didn't find it alarming, rather, she found it to be a respite from emotions she didn't want to face because she was embarrassed to have them in the first place. She did not deserve to be sad over anything.
Louise felt relieved as she glanced up at her father, Count Sullivan, and saw an easygoing smile on his lips. Perhaps she had been impressive enough for him that day. It made the smile on her face widen.
Her worries were mostly gone since she had pleased her father, but when she looked straight forward and saw Duke Calvani wearing a concerned expression, the worries rushed back in.
She wanted to touch her face but managed to stay composed. Was there something wrong with her appearance yet again? She had been assured by Alice that everything was taken care of. Could he perhaps tell she had cried?
She thought she looked mature, but he seemed to think otherwise.
Count Sullivan bowed for the Duke while Louise gave her betrothed a curtsy of respect. She was acknowledging that she was climbing higher because of him, but was still below him if he chose to make her that way.
She had no real power, and she was accepting of this fact.
"May God bless your union," the Count said.
To Louise's surprise, her father clasped her hands in his. He gave her an expression more significant than the ones he usually wore when he was looking at her.
"You've done it," he whispered to her. "You're not mine anymore."
She didn't know if it was a compliment, but she grinned all the same, feeling it was the right thing to do at that moment.
The Duke stepped towards the girl and offered her his white gloved hand. She took it eagerly but he didn't walk to the altar quite yet.
"I apologize, my lady," he whispered. "You shouldn't have heard me say such things."
Her smile was dazzling, and it only served to worry the Duke even more.
"I am not in a position to refuse your apology, Your Grace," she responded, then she angled herself towards the front of the church, silently telling the man where she wanted to go.
The Duke was used to the battlefield, and unfamiliar with how to communicate with someone who was hiding everything about themselves. He wore his feelings for the world to see.
Regardless, he brought the girl to the altar for their union to be sealed and occasionally cast her worried glances. He had made a decision and was sticking to it. He was a man of his word and would make sure all parties benefited so that they could not act against the others.
It wasn't particularly romantic but his entire life thus far was based on duty.
Since the union had to first be approved by the King, he sent in an archmage to verify and seal the vows using his holy power. Most wouldn't admit that it was smoke and mirrors, a device to convince the people there was divine intervention and that their union was going to be solid and long-lasting. The Archmage would assure them the holy power that day was particularly bright and entertaining.
After that, the Archmage recited scripture about husbands and wives honoring God and each other. He made them swear a promise to be loyal to one another and respectful. They readily agreed to the words they were meant to repeat.
Soon after, Louise was given a white-and-yellow-gold ring. It was thin, but felt wide on her skinny finger. Encrusted in the center were five diamonds, shimmering with a brilliant luster. The bright gold they were set in was crafted into a sun pattern.
It felt heavy to Louise in both meaning and physical weight.
She wasn't told much about marriage, only that she was meant to listen to everything the Duke told her. All she could do was silently pray that the things he required of her weren't awful or painful. Despite what people seemed to be saying about her bruises, she didn't think she had a high pain tolerance, and she knew she bruised easily.
She watched patiently as the Duke was given a more simple ring. It was a thick gold band with a circular ruby inlaid into it.
"I now pronounce you husband and wife as well as Duke and Duchess Calvani of the Galindo Duchy," the Archmage announced. "Before God and the subjects of the Terravino Kingdom, you may now seal your union with a kiss."
Louise did nothing more than stand there, frozen, as she looked at the man who was just announced as her husband.
She found it hard to breathe in as he looked at her with confusion rather than the resolve she hoped someone who was about to kiss her would have. Alice's words from earlier that she was meant to let her husband do as he pleased were stuck in her head and she waited for her reward or punishment as the Duke stepped a bit closer and gently grasped her hand with his.
The newly appointed duchess's eyes fluttered closed as she anticipated what would happen next.
There was a feather-light kiss on her cheek and she opened her eyes in surprise. She had fully prepared herself to receive her first kiss that day, but it seemed the Duke had other ideas.
Despite how much she had been trained to accept a more powerful man's actions upon her, she felt strangely relieved that he didn't kiss her passionately in front of the church she had been attending every Sunday for as long as she could remember.
With that, they were ready to face the few in attendance. The people let out cheers of approval for their union and flower petals were tossed into the aisle as the couple walked down it hand in hand.
Duke Calvani managed to wipe his expression away and replace it with a small smile enough that the people would be satisfied that this union wasn't happening against his will. After all, his new wife's uncle, the King, had people watching at every turn.
Upon the Duke's request, there was no need for a large party since he had to make it to the other side of the kingdom where his duchy stood waiting for him to bring his new wife. They would begin traveling in the morning and it would take two entire days which was the furthest Louise had ever gone.
The girl's life was changing before her eyes.
Her father put her in front of other people as much as he possibly could. She was well-trained to be a source of entertainment for others—luckily the entertainment didn't often mean she had to talk but sit there and be stared at while people talked around her.
Would the Duke, who made no point in intermingling with noble society, have her attend parties on his behalf? Did he want her to?
They left the chapel and reached the hallway outside where the Duke was finally able to turn to his wife. He looked at her from head to toe.
"We must leave, I am afraid. I apologize for taking you from your family so abruptly," he said. "There is no other choice when a conflict has arisen out of our control. His Majesty has asked me to attend to it immediately."
She widened her eyes to appear more innocent, as if someone of her age needed it.
"I don't mind," she responded accompanied by a small smile.
He searched her face for something more. The anguished expression she wore earlier was long gone. It caused him to wonder if it was truly gone or if she was faking it.
"Then I will summon the carriage and we will head to my home at the heart of the capital for the night," he explained. "Please tell me if you require anything more."
"Nothing, Your Grace," she assured him.
She couldn't admit out loud that the thought of being pulled from her family so suddenly was terrifying. When the Duke was no longer scrutinizing her, she glanced over her shoulder at the door that had shut behind them.
Even after a few moments, not one person in her family came out to tell her goodbye. She felt abandoned, even though she was the one leaving.
It ate at her that she would never know if her father had approved of her performance that day. Did she act appropriately at the front of the chapel? Was she beautiful enough?
Oblivious to her feelings that she pretended not to have, the Duke grabbed her hand as the carriage arrived and helped her inside.
She wasn't entirely sure if any items of her own had been packed for the journey ahead. Although it should be fine, considering she was hardly more than a piece of furniture herself and no one told her of plans most of the time.
Even though furniture wasn't supposed to have feelings, she couldn't help being scared at the uncertainty ahead. She wanted to be alone, to curl into a ball, but it seemed the Duke would ride with her in the carriage.
Perhaps later she could schedule another cry into her busy day.