A/N: From the imagine your OTP prompt: Imagine Person A of your OTP having to marry someone else. Person B is distraught, but they then discover that Person A's new spouse is secretly seeing someone else and would be fine with A and B still being together.
Takes place during medieval times.
The wide skirts of the dress make Myka feel gangly and awkward. She's had enough practice walking in heels, thanks to her mother's unwanted lessons on the subject, so she might have actually been able to walk down the aisle without looking like an awkward teenager if not for the ridiculous dress and its long tail. She understands now why women don't half run down the aisle to kiss the person they're meant to spend the rest of their lives with; it's a trial to walk at all.
Not that she would be running anyway. She loves Pete, but she's never loved him like that. He's like a brother to her. The marriage is arranged by her mother, who, because of the belief she clings to that Myka will get married before she turns 30, has decided that Pete is perfect for her. While it's true that Pete has always been there for her and she can't imagine a life without him, such an engagement seems almost incestual in nature.
Then there's Helena. The beautiful servant has clawed her way into Myka's heart, and Myka can't possibly be rid of her. Perhaps if her parents redirected their attention from Tracy to Myka for even a single second, they might see that their daughter is unhappy with the arrangement, but as it is, the only talk of the wedding is the benefits for the family. "Two powerful families will be united," her mother would say. "People will no longer whisper that we've had an undesirable child because your suitors have run dry." Her father, as ever, looks right past her with cold eyes, saving his kind smiles for her sister.
"Call for Helena," Myka tells her mother as she gazes in. "I'll need help getting out of this." She's afraid to move; if she tears such an expensive dress, her parents will be very disappointed.
"Oh, Myka, you look beautiful." The tone of pride in her mother's voice isn't one that Myka gets directed at her often, but she still hasn't done what Myka asked, and Myka feels annoyed at her mother for all the listening she's failed to do recently.
"Could you give me something with which to tie up my hair?"
She hands her daughter a ribbon, and Myka uses it to fasten her curls in a messy knot at the back of her head. "You'll wear it down the day of, won't you?"
"Yes, Mother," Myka replies distractedly. "Can you please call Helena to help me get out of this thing?"
"Alright." She leaves to find the servant. Myka knows she won't be long; it's known across the castle that she favors Helena, so she never strays far.
Sure enough, Helena pads in softly only a few minutes later. "Ms. Bering? I heard you required my assistance." Her melodic accent brings to mind many less than innocent meetings of theirs, and the mere thought of them makes Myka's face feel warm. Helena's face falls for only a second when she sees Myka's dress; the woman is well-versed in sorrow and grief and able to hide what she's feeling well. "I think I see the problem. Do you require my assistance removing your clothing again, Ms. Bering?" she teases.
"Not so loud!" Myka squeaks. She can't even imagine how red her cheeks are at this point. "Your voice will carry."
Helena puts on a forced smile. "Darling, I do rather think - I mean, you're to get married tomorrow - don't you think it's a bit inappropriate doing this now?"
"You know I don't want to marry him," Myka says as Helena gracefully steps over the obnoxious tail of her dress and begins to undo the strings, her fingers faintly brushing against Myka's skin.
"But I also know you are," Helena replies evenly without interrupted her competent unweaving of the strings. "And such behavior as this is inappropriate."
"I'll talk to Pete later," Myka promises, wishing she could see Helena's reaction.
"You know you can't call off this wedding," Helena reminds her. "It means a great deal to both your families."
"I'll figure something out." The large impractical dress falls to the ground. She still wears undergarments that cover as much as Helena's everyday clothes, yet she feels strangely naked in front of the woman she loves.
"You'd best do that," Helena snaps and walks off without excusing herself. Myka knows the woman has lost much and is simply protecting herself from more pain, but she can't help but feel frustrated. In so little time, she's lost everything she cares about in favor of a life that would suit her sister much better.
She pulls on an unremarkable brown dress and comfortable boots and heads of to where she knows Pete will be practicing his strength. As she walks into the weight lifting room, she gets a number of strange looks from men unused to seeing women in here, but she pays them no attention. Pete looks unsurprised when she walks up to him with a determined look on her face. "We need to talk," she informs him. He only nods.
Fifteen minutes later, they sit on a bench in the castle garden with Pete smelling much fresher in a clean set of clothes and Myka having been given some time to collect her thoughts. "So," she begins, still uncertain of how to start this conversation.
"No, wait, Mykes, let me." He takes a deep breath. "Kind of not looking forward to this marriage thing, if you know what I mean." He hesitates for a moment before continuing. "There's someone else. Kelly. We've been together for a while. I don't really know what I want to do, but I want to stay with her, see what happens. Who knows, maybe she's the one for me."
Myka laughs loudly in a way that her mother would certainly consider to be unladylike. Pete looks startled. "Sorry, but I was about to tell you the same thing. I'm with Helena."
"Helena? Impressive." Myka's grin gets impossibly large, and she pulls Pete into a tight hug. "Guess I'll see you at the altar, then." He scrunches up his nose. She makes a face in return, and they both part ways feeling much better.
As Helena helps her tie the strings on the back of her dress, Myka begins a conversation with her. "I talked to Pete yesterday."
"Oh?" Helena's absent-minded one syllable response shows that she isn't listening very closely, but Myka knows that'll change once she hears something she likes.
"He's with Kelly."
Myka can tell that Helena just tuned into their conversation. "What do you mean?" she asks, clearly trying to hide her interest.
"He doesn't want this any more than I do. And he gives us his blessing."
Helena finishes fastening Myka's dress and comes around to face her. Myka can see the first genuine smile she's had in weeks spread all the way to her eyes. "In that case," she says, leaning in and kissing Myka, "I suppose you'll need more help removing your clothes tonight?"