Auden never would have guessed that Sebastian and Grelle had so many friends. From the moment she and Ronald had walked into the hotel, she'd been meeting them. Sascha and Ludger, two Shinigami all the way from Germany, had been checking in when they'd come through the front door. Othello was headed out of his room next to Auden's when she'd received her room key and gone up. More Shinigami in the lobby and the atrium, sitting at the bar and still arriving, even a couple of demons who kept to themselves, eyeing the other guests in amusement, all of them shaking hands with Auden as she was introduced by Grelle or Sebastian, just one person after another until her head was spinning at trying to keep them all straight. There was just one individual who stood out from the group: an older woman with shining grey hair who was distinct in being the only human.

"I've been around the block a few times, darling," she'd said and laughed when Auden had spluttered out a question about how she: one, knew about Shinigami and demons, and two, felt safe in such a gathering of them.

Her name was Madge and she was also the party planner.

Dinner was scheduled in the Grand's Empress Suite that night and Auden was relieved to get away from the social atmosphere for a moment to change. Her room was quiet, the window that faced the sea open to let in the breeze, the sound of the waves mostly washing over the slight traffic on the street. Everything felt so soft—pastels and whites, cushions and clear glass table tops. She sat in a velvet armchair and just watched the water for a few minutes even though she should have been getting ready.

When she did finally go into the bathroom to fix her hair, the black fluffy dress she and Grelle had picked out weeks ago snug on her shoulders, a small leather box was waiting for her on the counter. She'd been trying to remember what Grelle had called the fabric her dress was made out of—organza something—when she saw it. There was a little notecard set on top that said, "Forgive me for my impatience. These are for you," in Sebastian's elegant script. Inside the box was a pair of diamond earrings. Auden swallowed, certain they were real.

She put them on and brushed her hair, trying hard not to fall too much in love with the way the bathroom lights made the diamonds sparkle when she moved her head, finally gathering all the strands of her hair up into a slick bun. She stood and looked at her reflection for a moment. Who was this person looking back at her in the expensive dress with the sleek black hair, glowing green eyes, and diamond earrings? It was not her, not who she was, but maybe who she was meant to be.

Excited now, she slipped on her heels and left her room, traveling quickly down the carpeted halls to the stairs that went to the lobby. A glance at a grandfather clock on one of the landings told her she was cutting it close, and everyone else must have been in the suite already. Sebastian, however, was standing in the lobby at the bottom of the staircase when she got there.

He smiled up at her and she smiled back, feeling a little like a princess in a film as she stepped carefully down to meet him, sliding her hand down the polished wood banister.

"You look lovely," he said, looking lovely himself in a tailored suit and tails that seemed to fit him better than anything Auden had ever seen him wear before.

"Thank you," she said, making the slightest motion at her ears.

"I'm glad you decided to wear them," he replied. "They are to your liking?"

It seemed to Auden that a pair of diamond earrings were to everyone's liking, but she just smiled again and nodded, not sure how to express what it felt like to be cared about enough to be given a gift like that.

"Why are you out here?" she asked.

"Grelle is still getting ready," he replied. "We are supposed to enter together."

"Ah." She nodded. Grelle did like to take her time getting ready.

"You are welcome to wait with me," Sebastian continued. "If you'd like."

Auden nodded. Grelle had kept her dress a secret, only winking at Auden when they'd gone shopping for hers and she had asked what Grelle was wearing. They didn't have long to wait, however, as Grelle appeared at the top of the stairs just a few moments later.

Her hair looked somehow redder than before, a bright and luminous shade that shined in the waves that fell gathered over her right shoulder. The dress was blue, a color that could only be described as electric. Long sleeves and a deep V that ended just below her sternum, a cutout across her shoulders and down to the end of her spine in the back. The fabric hugged close to her until it reached the middle of her thigh where it fell cascading into a full skirt and train. She walked so gracefully it almost looked like water.

Auden glanced at Sebastian and he was staring at Grelle, leaned toward her slightly, the hint of an astonished smile on his mouth, eyes sparkling. For some reason, it suddenly made Auden want to cry, but not sad tears. Happy ones. The kind people cry at weddings or when babies are born. The way he looked at her… Auden had never seen anyone look at another person like that in all her life.

"Hello," Grelle said through a smile, coming to a stop on the stair just before the bottom.

Sebastian took her hand and lifted it to his lips to give her knuckles a fervent kiss. He looked up at her then and they looked at each other, smiling and smiling, but the smiles were small and were more of a feeling in the air, and Auden smiled at them, at the way they seemed only to see each other.

"You are radiant," Sebastian said.

"Thank you," Grelle replied. "You look very handsome yourself."

He kissed her hand again and she laughed, smiling at him before turning that smile on Auden. Reaching out, Grelle took hold of her hand and squeezed it.

"Shall we?" she said.

Author's Note: More to come, more to come! I'm sorry this is short, but I wanted to get an update out for you guys, and since the other story is very Grelle-less at the moment, I opted for Brighton to keep our spirits up. Don't worry, I haven't abandoned Wholly Given Over, I just thought we all could do with a refreshing change of pace.