Unexpected Love: Along the Journey
Written by J.C. Vascardi

-o-0-o-

Disclaimer: All characters and places featured in this story that relate to Harry Potter are the property of J.K. Rowling, various publishers, and Warner Brothers. I'm not profiting on this story and it is not my intent to infringe on anyone's copyright or trademark. The only things about this story that I own are the characters and storylines not featured in the books.

Summary: During the wedding reception for Edward and Ramesses, Harry and Evan (Cedric in disguise) chat with some of the younger noble set, while they watch the arrivals of the foreign royalty—and even get to chat with some of them.

Pairings: Harry Potter/Cedric Diggory; Charlie Weasley/ Noah Kirke (OMC); Asterion Black (OMC)/Abigail Cuffe (OFC); Regulus Black/Kolin Mikaels (OMC)

Warnings: Original Characters; Slash, Twincest, Incest

-o-0-o-

One-Shot #2

Arrivals

-o-0-o-

"Presenting The Duke of Granston, His Grace the Lord Harrison Potter, The Honorable Lord High Chancellor to the Court of Pendragon, accompanied by Mr. Evan Lockwood."

As Harry descended the steps near the entrance into Castle Camelot's Grand Ballroom, Harry could hear a few people whispering about Evan, wondering who exactly he was. Of course, he also heard a few people mention that they remembered him as being Cormac McLaggen's plus one at the wedding of Charlie and Noah Kirke, who he'd later pretty publicly dumped at the Founder's Ball. This led to some people speculating that Evan and Harry were now dating.

Unbeknownst to all except a select few, however, was the fact that Evan Lockwood was actually Cedric Diggory wearing Glamour Charms to change his appearance and allow him to spend time with Harry in public without his father knowing about it. This was made possible by the fact that Merlin and Arthur had examined the spell to create doubles and formulated an alternate version which would allow the real person and the double to exist in the same room and even see and talk to one another, without the double feeling the need to merge back into the real person. Thus as far as Amos and Amelia Diggory knew their son Cedric was with them, when in truth it was actually his double.

"Okay, can I just say that it feels strange to look across the room and see myself?" Evan whispered to Harry.

"Yes, I can imagine that would feel weird," Harry agreed. "Although, at least with the Evan persona we can be together in public without your father having a fit that you're going against his wishes that you stay away from me. You'll also be able to talk with Noah and Charlie, which is definitely something you couldn't do as the real you."

"True my dad would tan my hide if he caught me talking with Noah."

"Hey Evan," Noah said as he and Charlie walked up behind Evan. Harry had seen them coming, but Evan hadn't, since he had his back turned to them. Evan jumped slightly at the sound of his name, as Noah leaned over and whispered in his ear, "And you're right, Dad would tan your hide if he saw you talking to me."

"Noah, don't sneak up on me!" Evan chastised, as Noah just grinned. "I thought I'd seen you and Charlie at the wedding—although I have to ask—just how did you two score an invitation to the royal wedding and reception?"

It was Charlie who answered. "Noah's uncle invited us," obviously being careful to say 'Noah's uncle' rather than 'Your uncle' so that nobody who might overhear the conversation would put two and two together and realize who Evan was. "Even insisted that we enter with him and be presented with him, his wife, and son."

Harry grinned hugely, wishing that he'd been there to see it, as he said, "Oh I bet that has Amos fuming."

"And probably foaming at the mouth," Noah quipped, as Evan laughed, but nodded at the same time.

"Of course, several of my family members are here tonight," Charlie revealed. "As one of the King's former suitors, Bill is here. So are my parents, since my Dad's job at the Ministry qualified him to attend as a Ministry official. Percy's here too, although as Lord Crouch's assistant. The others aren't, however, so you don't have to worry about Fred and George spiking the punch or slipping Canary Creams onto the desert table. Of course, I don't think even they would be that stupid, as Mum would probably kill them—assuming that Dad didn't kill them first."

Harry nodded and inwardly cringed at the mere thought of one of the foreign royals eating a Canary Cream and getting turned into a giant canary. Yes, it was temporary, but if it happened it wouldn't really matter because the damage would already be done. Speaking up, Harry said, "Indeed and then Edward would likely find a way to resurrect them so that he could do it again—because I highly doubt he'd be amused by the international incident that would no doubt occur if any of the foreign royals got turned into canaries."

"So you're on a first name basis with the King, are you?" Noah asked.

"Well, I am his Lord Chancellor and we've gotten pretty close the last few weeks."

"Really?" Charlie asked, as he started grinning. "Does that mean we can expect an invitation soon to another wedding?"

Realizing what Charlie was suggesting, Harry shook his head and said, "If you mean an invitation to Edward's and my wedding then you'll be waiting a very long time because we're not getting married. I meant that we've become good friends, as in totally platonic."

Charlie was just about to say that he was only kidding, when a grinning Evan said, "Although Harry did confess to me that he wouldn't mind sleeping with him at least once." Harry's eyes widened at that and he was about to hit Evan in the arm for revealing it, when he said, "Of course, I wouldn't mind it either." Looking at Harry, who was soon blushing, Evan added, "Maybe we could make it a threesome."

Wanting to get back at Evan, Harry said, "Or maybe a foursome if we can get RJ to join in."

"RJ?" Noah asked uncertainly.

"Ramesses," Evan answered. "One of his nicknames to his family and friends. Also goes by Ram."

Shaking his head, Noah said, "Okay, can I just say that I'm very impressed that you're on a first name and nickname basis with the King and his new husband?"

"Yeah it is rather impressive, isn't it?" Evan asked, as Noah nodded, but any further comment was cut off as the court majordomo's staff hit the floor three times in preparation of announcing a new arrival.

"Presenting His Royal Highness Prince Vlad III Draculesti of Romania, the Voivode of Wallachia, and Her Royal Highness Princess Ilona Draculesti of Romania, the Princess-Consort of Wallachia. Accompanied by their son, His Royal Highness Prince Vladimir Draculesti of Romania, the Crown Prince of Wallachia, and their daughter, Her Royal Highness Princess Oksana Draculesti of Romania, the Princess Royal of Wallachia."

There were several soft gasps throughout the room at this announcement as people turned towards the entrance to see the four Wallachian royals standing there. They were all very well dressed and one might even say handsome and beautiful, if extremely pale due to the fact that all four of them were vampires and probably older than everyone else in the room by at least a century or two.

"Draculesti? I thought their name was Dracula?" Harry asked.

"They actually use both," Charlie said, who was more familiar with Wallachia's royals since it was one of the three principalities of Romania, where he used to live and work before transferring to the Coulderton Reserve. "I heard a rumor in Romania that they started using Draculesti more often since Bram Stoker published his novel, although I doubt there's much truth to it, considering that Prince Vlad visited the reserve once while I was still working there and I heard him refer to himself as Count Dracula. It seems they use Draculesti for more formal occasions, however, and then switch between Dracula and Dracul for the less formal events."

As the Wallachian royals moved down into the ballroom proper, the court majordomo struck his staff on the floor again, as he said, "Presenting His Royal Highness Prince Nikolai XVI Bathory of Romania, the Voivode of Transylvania, and Her Royal Highness Princess Elena Bathory of Romania, the Princess-Consort of Transylvania."

"They're not vampires, right?" Harry asked softly.

Evan shook his head, "No, they're not."

Noah nodded and said, "Indeed. Despite the stories that connect Transylvania to vampirism, including the so called Bran Castle, also sometimes called Castle Dracula, there's no connection there. The Bathorys own Bran Castle and use it as their summer home, I believe. They primarily live at Corvin Castle, also sometimes called Hunyadi Castle. The Wallachian royals meanwhile call Poenari Castle home. In the muggle world it's a falling down ruin, but in the magical world it's still standing in all its former glory, as Prince Vlad has kept it in pristine condition."

"Interesting," Harry said, as he watched Nikolai and Elena move down into the ballroom proper. They were an attractive couple, and despite the fact that Nikolai was probably in his early forties, Harry had to admit that he was definitely not hard on the eyes. Of course, neither were Vlad or his son in truth. They were quite pale in complexion, but that did nothing to change their good looks. Harry had to admit that he was a little surprised about that, as for some reason he'd expected the Wallachian royals to be scary looking when the truth was they were anything but.

The majordomo struck his staff on the floor again, as he said, "Presenting His Royal Majesty King Stefan XVII Bogdan of Romania, the King of Romania and Voivode of Moldavia, and Her Royal Majesty Queen Stefania Bogdan of Romania, the Queen of Romania and Princess-Consort of Moldavia. Accompanied by their son, His Royal Highness Prince Alexandru Bogdan of Romania, the Crown Prince of Moldavia, and their daughter-in-law, Her Royal Highness Princess Maria Bogdan of Romania, the Crown Princess of Moldavia."

"Prince Alexandru is quite hot, isn't he?" Evan commented with a grin.

Noah nodded. "Yes, he is, although honestly his father isn't so bad either."

"True, although he's a little too old for my tastes," Evan said, as Stefan and his family moved down into the ballroom proper. Prince Alexandru and his wife started chatting with Prince Vladimir and Princess Oksana, with Vladimir soon laughing at something that Alexandru said. Harry wasn't close enough to hear what exactly had been said, but he was close enough that he could see Vladimir's elongated canine teeth, proving that he was definitely a vampire.

Queen Stefania and Princesses Ilona and Elena soon headed over to the bar, chatting on their way, as King Stefan and Prince Nikolai began talking to each other. Vlad, meanwhile, looked around the room for a moment, clearly looking for someone interesting to talk to. After a moment, his eyes settled on Charlie and he began heading towards the group.

"Don't look now, but Prince Vlad is coming this way," Evan whispered to Harry, who nodded as he noticed the vampire approaching, although Harry also noticed that Evan and him didn't seem to be the ones he was interested in.

A few moments later, Vlad came to a stop and asked, "Excuse me, but aren't you Charlie Weasley and Noah Kirke from the Romanian dragon reserve?"

Charlie nodded. "Yes, Your Highness, although it's Charlie Kirke now, as Noah and I were married in late August."

"Oh, well, congratulations are in order then," Vlad said. "You make a very handsome couple." After a moment's pause he added, "I assume though that the wedding did not happen in Romania seeing as how such unions are currently illegal. Nikolai and I have tried to get Stefan to legalize them, but he always seems to find something else to concentrate on so that he can avoid the issue."

"Yes, Your Highness, it was here in Albion," Noah answered. "We're both from here originally and our families are here, so when Lord Ollivander legalized same-sex unions on his lands we decided that it was time to take the plunge."

"Well, I wish you both many long years of happiness," Vlad said with a smile, which prominently displayed his teeth. He and his son were apparently not shy about showing off the fact that they were vampires, as from what Harry had read, he knew that vampires could—if they chose to—retract their fangs in order to blend in more with regular people. Vlad and his son, however, obviously chose not to do that for whatever reason. "So, what brings you to the royal wedding?"

"Noah and I went to school with Lord Ollivander's grandson," Charlie revealed. "He was a few years ahead of us, but we were still friends." Looking at Noah for a moment, he then added, "And Noah's family is nobility."

"Really?" Vlad asked. "I'm not aware of any family named Kirke who hold noble titles in Albion or Iwernia, although I admit I'm not that well versed on your nobility."

"Well, you're right that there isn't a noble Kirke family," Noah said. "Kirke is the surname I chose to use after I was disowned as my family's heir apparent three years ago after introducing Charlie to my parents as my boyfriend. I'm sure he'd prefer I didn't refer to him as my father since my being married to a man is such a disappointment to him, but my father is Lord Diggory, the Marquis of Taleford and my mother is the sister of Lord McLaggen, the Marquis of Levenmore, who insisted we attend as his guests."

Vlad shook his head, a look of disgust on his face, as he said, "Disowning a child over something like that is an abomination. I've unfortunately had to bury enough of my own children in my life to know that they're a precious gift and should be loved unconditionally." After a moment, he asked, "So I take it then you were a courtesy Earl before you were disowned?"

Noah nodded. "Yes, Earl of Charwell. The title passed to my younger brother Cedric when my father disowned me."

Vlad nodded, but remained silent, as he noticed Evan and Harry standing nearby watching the conversation. Having noticed them talking to Noah and Charlie as he approached, he asked, "Who are your friends?"

Motioning towards Evan, Charlie said, "This is Evan Lockwood," and then with a grin as he motioned towards Harry, he said, "And His Grace the Duke of Granston, Lord High Chancellor to the Court of Pendragon, Harrison Potter."

Vlad looked momentarily abashed, before he said, "Oh, of course, I should have recognized you, Lord Potter. You gave away King Edward at the wedding didn't you?"

Harry nodded. "Yes, I did, Your Highness."

"Well, it's a pleasure to meet you," Vlad said as he shook hands with Harry. He wasn't sure why, but Harry had almost expected Vlad's hand to be ice cold, but it wasn't. Vlad must have seen something on his face, as he added, "Normal body temperature is the same for vampires as it is for humans. The pale skin throws people off, however, not to mention the fact that we're often referred to as the 'living dead' in most textbooks, even though we're not actually dead."

Noah nodded. "Yes, you would think that the existence of half-vampires like famed singer Lorcan d'Eath would tell people that vampires aren't dead, as that means Lorcan would have been born dead or half-dead at least. Anyone who's ever seen him live in concert, however, will tell you there's definitely nothing dead about him. Of course, I suppose his surname doesn't really help the cause."

"Indeed, I suppose it doesn't," Vlad agreed. "My son and daughter are full vampires, since both their mother and I are vampires and they were born as such."

"If you don't mind my asking, how old are they?" Evan asked.

"I don't mind," Vlad answered. "Vladimir is 530 and Oksana is 525." With a conspiratorial grin he added, "Although you didn't hear that from me as I'm sure Oksana would probably kill me if she knew I'd revealed her age."

As the court majordomo struck his staff on the floor again, Vlad said his goodbyes and moved further into the ballroom, as more royals were introduced. "Presenting His Royal Majesty King Markus XV Eriksson of Sweden, the High King of Sweden, and his brother His Royal Majesty King Mateus VII Eriksson of Sweden, the King of Sweden. Accompanied by their husbands, Their Royal Highnesses Prince Kristopher and Prince Kristian Eriksson of Sweden, the Princes-Consort of Sweden."

Evan's eyes widened slightly as he caught sight of the newest royals, as he'd never actually seen pictures of them or read anything about them. "Sweden has two Kings? And they're both gay?"

"Indeed they are," Asterion Black said with a grin, as he approached the group with his date, Abigail Cuffe. "In case you hadn't noticed, Markus and Mateus are conjoined."

"Yeah, Rion, that's rather hard to miss," Harry said, as he looked at the Swedish Kings and saw that they were joined side by side with only two arms and three legs between them. Tilting his head to one side as he looked at them, he asked, "Am I wrong or do they technically have two left feet?"

"You're not wrong," Asterion confirmed. "My father and I met them once during our travels, although their father was still on the throne then and they hadn't gotten married. They were technically dating Kristopher and Kristian, but at that time they weren't exclusive yet. And I can tell you that despite the usual connotation of two left feet equaling bad dancing skills, Markus and Mateus are not bad dancers. They're quite good in fact."

"And how do you know that?" Abigail asked.

Asterion blushed slightly, as he said, "Well, my father and I sort of danced with them at a ball once."

Harry grinned as he asked, "And that's cause for blushing because?"

"Are you really going to make me say it?" Asterion asked and Harry nodded, causing the youngest Black to groan, before he quietly erected a Silencing Charm around the group, as he didn't need anyone nearby overhearing this information. "Well, you know that I've experimented with men. Mateus was the one who actually took my virginity," his blush deepening, he added, "while Markus and my father were similarly engaged, although obviously I was the only virgin in the group."

"You lost your virginity to a man with a conjoined twin who was having sex with your father while you were losing it?" Charlie asked, which only made Asterion blush more as he nodded. "Man, you and your father are very close aren't you?"

"Closer than you could possibly imagine," Abigail said with a grin of her own, as Asterion's eyes widened and he said, "Abby, don't you dare. It's bad enough you told Luke, who then went ahead and told Jon."

"You know why I told Luke and why he told Jon," Abigail said. "I thought you understood."

"I know and I do understand," Asterion said. "That doesn't mean that I have to like the fact that they know or that I want you telling anyone else."

"Know what?" Evan asked.

"Yeah, come on," Harry said with a grin. "You can't pique our curiosity like that and then not say anything. Besides you put up a Silencing Charm."

"Yes she can," Asterion said as he turned pleading eyes to his girlfriend. "Abby, please don't."

"I'm sorry, Lord Potter, but my boyfriend apparently doesn't want that information getting out," Abigail said. "And I'd rather like to stay in his good graces."

Harry sighed. "Understandable." Turning to Asterion, he grinned and said, "But you know I'm going to find out eventually right? I'm the son of a Marauder after all, so I'll find a way."

Shaking his head, Asterion said, "And I'm a Marauder's nephew, so that doesn't really worry me, Harry." With a shake of his head, he said, "Anyway, allow me to introduce my girlfriend, Abigail Cuffe."

Taking her hand, Harry shook it gently and said, "It's a pleasure to meet you again, Abigail, under much better circumstances than the last time I saw you."

"Indeed, Lord Potter," Abigail said. "Although I do thank you for what you did, as does my entire family."

"You're welcome, although I don't need thanks," Harry said. "I'm just glad that I was able to help."

Anything further that might have been said was interrupted as the court majordomo struck his staff on the ground again, as two more groups of people were announced.

"Presenting His Royal Majesty King Henrik XVIII Haraldsson of Norway, the King of Norway, and his wife, Her Royal Majesty Queen Astrid Haraldsson of Norway, the Queen of Norway."

This was followed a few moments later by, "Presenting His Royal Majesty King Olaf XXV Magnusson if Finland, the King of Finland, and his wife, Her Royal Majesty Queen Kristina Magnusson of Finland, the Queen of Finland."

Looking over at the newest royals to enter the room, Harry cocked an eyebrow and asked, "Is Queen Kristina related to Kristopher and Kristian Eriksson?"

"Yes, she is," Kolin said, as he and Regulus joined the group. "Kristopher, Kristian, and Kristina are triplets, although obviously Kristina is sort of the odd one out since she's a girl and her brothers are identical twins."

Grinning at Kolin and his father, Asterion said, "Speaking of twins, I see you two decided to dress like twins tonight. Finally decided to give up the protesting and admit that you're a couple?"

"Yes, Rion," Regulus said as he playfully punched his son in the arm. "Although I'm clearly not the only one with a date this evening. Are you going to introduce me?"

"Dad, this is my girlfriend, Abigail Cuffe," Asterion said. "Abby, this is my father, Regulus Black, and his boyfriend, Kolin Mikaels."

"It's a pleasure to meet you, sir," Abigail said as she shook hands with Regulus, followed by Kolin.

"The pleasure is mine, Abigail, but please don't call me sir," Regulus said, as he cringed a bit. "It makes me feel old. As if the fact that my son is old enough to have a girlfriend didn't do that already."

"And definitely don't call me sir," Kolin added with a grin. "Because we're the same age, so that'd just be weird."

"Presenting His Imperial and Royal Majesty Philip XVII Habsburg of Spain, the King-Emperor of the Iberian Empire of Spain-Portugal, and his wife, Her Imperial and Royal Majesty Isabella Habsburg of Spain, the Queen-Empress of the Iberian Empire of Spain-Portugal. Accompanied by His Most Holy Majesty Charles XXXIV Habsburg of Austria, the Emperor of the Holy Roman Empire and King of the Romans, and his wife Her Imperial Majesty Victoria Habsburg of Austria, the Empress of the Holy Roman Empire and Queen of the Romans."

"I assume they're related?" Harry asked, since he noticed that they were all introduced as being Habsburgs.

Regulus nodded. "Yes, Emperor Charles is King Philip's uncle." As the Habsburg royals left the dais, Regulus saw the next group of foreign royals entering and said, "Oh I'm sure the next group isn't happy about Charles using the King of the Romans title."

Harry looked at the dais and saw two men and a woman standing there, although he honestly wasn't sure who they were. One of the men seemed to be having a whispered conversation with the court majordomo, who finally nodded and struck his staff against the floor.

"Presenting His Most Holy and Imperial Majesty Justinian XI Caesar of Byzantium, the Basileus of the Byzantine Empire, Pontifex Maximus of Rome, and Emperor of the Romans, accompanied by his wife, Her Imperial Majesty Theodora Caesar of Byzantium, the Basilissa of the Byzantine Empire and Empress of the Romans, and his husband, His Imperial Majesty Theron Caesar of Byzantium, the Kaisar of the Byzantine Empire, Exarchos of New Byzantium and the True King of the Romans."

"Charles certainly didn't look happy with that last part," Evan commented, as he caught sight of Emperor Charles who was currently scowling at the three people on the dais.

Asterion nodded. "Yes, I imagine he isn't, although there's not much he can do about it because the Byzantine Empire's claims on the Roman titles date back to the days of the Roman Empire, since Byzantium was also known as the Eastern Roman Empire, following the administrative split of the Roman Empire into the Western and Eastern Roman Empires."

"Byzantium has always been at odds with the Holy Roman Empire," Noah revealed. "As Byzantium feels that the HRE is usurping their rightful titles, while the HRE feels the same about Byzantium. I don't think it's a feud that will ever end honestly."

"Justinian is Ramesses's uncle, right?" Kolin asked.

"Yes, he is," Harry answered, as he cocked his head to the side and said, "This is the first time I've ever seen Justinian, but there is a resemblance between him and Ramesses, although I suppose that makes sense since Ramesses's mother is Justinian's twin sister."

Nothing else was said because at that moment, a voice said, "Regulus, Asterion, fancy meeting you here."

Asterion's skin flushed slightly red, as he turned around and said, "Your Majesties," to Markus and Mateus Eriksson.

Mateus laughed good-naturedly as he put his hand on Asterion's shoulder and said, "I know there's a Silencing Charm up, Rion, and we're lovers, even if it was only the one time, so no need to be so formal."

Markus grinned. "Yes, formality is only appropriate between people who haven't seen each other naked."

"Taking a bit of a risk there, aren't you?" Regulus asked. "You had no idea whether or not Asterion had actually told the rest of this group about our encounter with the two of you."

"Did you tell them, Rion?" Mateus asked.

"Yes," Asterion said with a blush. "That's the reason I put up the Silencing Charm in the first place."

"There, you see, Reg? No problem," Mateus said. "So, are you going to introduce us to your friends?"

After the introductions were made, Mateus frowned slightly and said, "While your girlfriend is very pretty, Rion, I've gotta say that I'm a little sad that you've gone to the dark side."

"Dark side?" Kolin asked.

Markus grinned as he reached up and hit himself on the head, greatly confusing several of the others. "Mateus thinks any man dating a woman means they've gone to the dark side, as he believes that men should only be with other men." There were several nods at this, before Markus added, "And as for hitting myself, Mat's and my nervous systems are so intertwined that we can feel everything that the other feels, so it's easier just to hit myself than it is to reach over and hit Mat, since he and I would both feel it no matter where the contact actually happened."

"Having only the one arm each would also make it awkward for us to hit each other," Mateus added, "as it would mean reaching across ourselves in order to reach the other. So we take the easy route."

"I imagine there's a lot of things that are awkward to do when you have only one arm," Harry said.

"Not as much as you might think, Lord Potter," Markus said. "Well, I suppose to a person who is used to having two arms and then loses one, everything would be awkward. Mateus and I don't have that problem, however, since we've never both had two arms. It does mean cooperating with each other way more than most brothers, but after thirty-two years together we're used to it."

"I've seen a few sets of conjoined twins before now," Charlie said, "but you two are definitely the most extreme case I've seen so far."

Mateus nodded. "Yes, having two torsos fused side by side does make us closer than most, although I wouldn't call Mark's and my connection extreme."

"Yes, if you want extreme, just wait until Pharaoh Seti and his family are announced," Markus said. "Some of his children are here and he's got a pair of twin sons who are joined in a much more extreme and awkward fashion than Mat and I are."

Mateus nodded and said, "Yes it can be argued that Princes Djedkare and Nerikare are definitely a lot closer than Mark and I. They're cute though and I know for a fact that they're gay, since we met them once on a state visit to Thebes before our father died." Mateus grinned broadly as he added, "And got as close to them as any of Pharaoh Seti's unmarried children can get to anyone."

"What do you mean?" Abigail asked.

It was Harry who answered. "Well, Abby, all of Seti's unmarried children, both male and female, are fitted with chastity belts when they're ten and they don't come off until they're married. Some of Seti's sons, regardless of their gender preference, have been known to provide favors of the oral variety to interested guests at the Imperial Palace, as it's the only form of sex that they can engage in since the belt doesn't cover their mouths."

Markus grinned and since there was a Silencing Charm up, he added, "Indeed and I can tell you from experience that Jedrik have very talented mouths."

"Jedrik?" Evan asked, clearly confused.

"Djedkare's and Nerikare's nickname," Mateus answered. "It started out as Jed and Rik, but after a while it got combined into a single name since they're always together anyway."

"Presenting His Imperial Highness Hiroshi X Yamata of Japan, the Emperor of Japan, and Her Imperial Highness Ayako Yamata of Japan, the Empress of Japan. Accompanied by their son, His Imperial Highness Toshiro Yamata of Japan, the Crown Prince of Japan, and their daughter-in-law, Her Imperial Highness Yoshiko Yamata of Japan, the Crown Princess of Japan."

Glancing over at the arriving royals, Noah said, "Well I think they may be the oldest royals we've seen so far."

"Very possibly," Markus said. "Of course Emperor Hiroshi is 80 and Prince Toshiro is 60."

"Well the oldest if you don't count Prince Vlad and his family," Charlie said. "Although they don't look old, so it's easier to overlook the fact that they're several centuries old."

Mateus nodded. "Indeed I still remember the first time I met Prince Vlad. I couldn't believe that he was 563 years old as he didn't then and doesn't now look anywhere near that age."

"Yes, but 563 is his current age," Markus clarified. "He was 554 when we met him for the first time. Still, he's clearly been around a while and even by magical standards that age can be a bit disturbing."

Regulus nodded. "Indeed, it's definitely disturbing, although Vlad's reputation could be argued to be even more disturbing."

"Reputation? Because he's a vampire?" Abigail asked.

"Well, there's that," Regulus answered. "And that probably doesn't help his reputation, but this is Prince Vlad III we're talking about." At Abigail's confused look, he added, "Have you ever heard the name Vlad the Impaler?"

Abigail nodded, before she asked, "Wait are you saying?"

"Yes, that's him," Regulus confirmed.

"Okay it sounds ominous," Kolin said, "but why is he called that?"

"Well, supposedly back in the 15th century, before becoming a vampire," Regulus explained, "he was known to prefer impalement as a means of execution. In other words placing a person on a sharpened shaft of wood, with the sharp end going into their anus. Gravity and the weight of their body would then pull them down the shaft, impaling them." Several people cringed at this description, as Regulus added, "There's even a story that says that Sultan Mehmed II had to return to Constantinople after he was sickened by the sight of 20,000 impaled corpses outside of Wallachia's capital of Târgoviște."

"Wait, Constantinople?" Harry asked. "Isn't that the capital of Byzantium?"

Asterion nodded. "Yes, it is, although the Ottoman Empire occupied it for about ten years starting in 1453 and Mehmed II even considered it to be the capital of his empire after it was taken. However, here in the magical world, Byzantium resurged much like a phoenix rising from the ashes and retook not only Constantinople but the entirety of the Ottoman Empire, totally destroying it by 1487, at which point Byzantium set about retaking much of the old Western Roman Empire as well, which is why Italy, Corsica, Sardinia, and Sicily are all under Byzantine rule now."

"Speaking of Byzantium," Mateus said, "that was quite the display earlier when they were introduced."

"Indeed, Emperor Charles didn't look happy," Harry agreed.

Markus nodded. "Well, I suppose I can't blame him as I wouldn't be happy either if someone implied that I didn't have any right to my title."

"Who implied that?" Evan asked, looking confused.

"Justinian when he told the majordomo to introduce him as Pontifex Maximus of Rome," Regulus said. There were a few confused looks at this, so he elaborated, "Pontifex Maximus is a title that was long associated with the Roman Emperors and was the title of the head of the church. In the muggle world, Pontifex Maximus is often used to refer to the Roman Catholic Pope and it was a Pope—Leo III to be precise—who actually created the first Holy Roman Emperor. By claiming the titles of Pontifex Maximus and Emperor of the Romans for himself, Justinian is implying that he doesn't even recognize the Holy Roman Empire as a legitimate government, which would then suggest that Charles has no right to his title."

"Presenting His Imperial Majesty Nicolas IX Romanov of Russia, the Tsar of Russia, and Her Imperial Majesty Catherine Romanov of Russia, the Tsarina of Russia."

"Well, it was good seeing you again Regulus, Asterion," Mateus said. "If you'd ever like a repeat performance let us know."

Both Asterion and Regulus blushed and were rendered speechless by that comment, causing Kolin to ask, "Aren't you two married now?"

Markus nodded. "Yes, we are, but when we got married, Kristopher and Kristian each wanted a list of people they could sleep with, with our permission and thus not be breaking their vows. We decided to let them have their lists and give them permission to sleep with any of the people on them, so long as Mateus and I got to watch, join in if we wished, and got our own lists, as well."

Mateus grinned and added, "Regulus and Asterion are on our lists, because we really enjoyed our time together."

"I'm going to go out on a limb here and say that Kolin and Abigail would not be in favor of that," Charlie said.

"Actually, I wouldn't mind," Abigail said. "Markus and Mateus are quite hot," the Swedish Kings beamed at her for that description, "so I wouldn't mind if Asterion wanted to be with them again, so long as I get to watch."

"Abby!" Asterion exclaimed, clearly surprised that his girlfriend just said that.

"Don't Abby me, Asterion Black," Abigail said as she wagged her finger at him. "You're hot and the idea of watching you in bed with just one other hot guy turns me on. So watching you in bed with two hot guys? And potentially three if your father joins in?"

Regulus blushed at that, as Kolin grinned and said, "I've gotta admit, it would be pretty hot to watch," which prompted Regulus to ask, "Et tu, Kolin?"

Mateus laughed as Markus grinned and said, "Well, we're game anytime you two are. Just send us an owl and we can set something up."

Mateus nodded. "Indeed." Turning to Abigail and Kolin, he added, "Assuming they actually have the guts to set it up, we'll do our absolute best to give you a spectacular show. And you don't even have to bring anything because we'll provide the popcorn and the drinks."

"Such generous hosts," Abigail said with a smile.

"We try to be," Markus agreed. "Anyway, we really should mingle and see what Kristopher and Kristian are up to. So, we'll see you all later, hopefully."

"Especially you two," Mateus said with a grin to Regulus and Asterion.

As Markus and Mateus waved and began to move away, Kolin asked, "Actually, can I have a word in private, Your Majesties?"

The Swedish Kings looked at each other for a moment, before Markus nodded and said, "Of course, Mr. Mikaels. You are one of our expatriate subjects and from a respected family, so if we can help you with something we'll certainly try."

"Thank you, Your Majesties," Kolin said, before he left the area protected by the Silencing Charm with the two Kings.

"I wonder what he's up to," Asterion said as he watched Kolin, Markus, and Mateus enter one of the alcoves along the edge of the ballroom.

Regulus sighed. "I have no idea and I'm not sure if that should scare me or not."

"Presenting His Majesty Willem-Reinier XI Van Oranje of the Netherlands, the King of the Netherlands, and Her Majesty Sophia Van Oranje of the Netherlands, the Queen of the Netherlands. Accompanied by their son, His Royal Highness Roderik Van Oranje of the Netherlands, the Prince of Oranje and Crown Prince of the Netherlands, and their daughter-in-law, Her Royal Highness Julianna Van Oranje of the Netherlands, the Crown Princess of the Netherlands."

"Well, I'm going to go get a drink and try to catch up with Kolin," Regulus said, as he nodded to the others, before heading towards the bar.

Spying Bill across the room, Charlie said, "I'm going to go say hello to my brother." Offering his arm to Noah, he was just about to ask him to accompany him, when the words died on his tongue as Amos Diggory approached, looking none too happy.

"You!" Amos said, as he glared at Noah. "As if it wasn't bad enough for you to befoul the World Cup with your presence, now you're attending the King's wedding and reception? And conversing with royalty on top of it? Just who do you think you are, boy?"

"He's your son!" a voice exclaimed that several people recognized, most especially Evan, considering that it was his voice, or rather his voice when we wasn't disguised as Evan.

Amos turned towards the voice and angrily said, "Don't call him that, Cedric."

"Why? It's true," Cedric said and Evan had to give his double credit, because he wasn't sure where he was getting the courage to stand up to his father in such a public forum. Yes, both men were now standing inside the protective bubble of Asterion's Silencing Charm, but it still took some major guts. "You can try and deny it all you want, Father, but it doesn't change the fact that Noah is still your son and my brother."

"He is not! He's a sick, disgusting, and perverted freak," Amos ground out angrily.

"One more word out of you, Lord Diggory and I will have you ejected," Harry said, as he stepped forward. "And before you say that I can't do that, I assure you that as Lord High Chancellor I can and I will if you don't stop attacking Noah, who hasn't done anything to deserve it."

"He married a man," Amos said. "That's sick and wrong. As is what they undoubtedly do together."

Noah raised an eyebrow at that and said, "I fail to see what my husband and I do in the privacy of our bedroom is of any concern of yours, Father. Furthermore, my marriage to Charlie is legal and I love him with every fiber of my being, so I refuse to believe that it's wrong. You of course can think whatever you want, but I really don't give a fuck."

Turning away from Amos, Noah laid a hand on Cedric's shoulder and said, "Thanks for defending me bro."

Before Cedric could say anything, Amos grabbed Noah's arm and wrenched it away from Cedric as he said, "Don't touch him you sick freak! I won't allow you to touch him!"

Despite the fact that they were behind a Silencing Charm and nobody outside of it could hear what was being said, that didn't prevent people from seeing the group and there were several people now staring at Amos and Noah. Spying two of the royal guards standing about thirty feet away, Harry leaned over and whispered in Evan's ear, who nodded as he walked over to them. Moments later, Evan returned with the guards in tow.

"You asked to see us, Lord Potter?" one of the guards asked.

"Yes," Harry said. "As Lord High Chancellor of the Realm I order you to remove Lord Diggory from the premises and see that he doesn't return. His wife and son may stay if they wish, but he has overstayed his welcome."

Turning furious eyes at Harry, Amos said, "You can't do that!"

"I assure you, he very much can," a male voice said, as Tristan Nott made his presence known. Harry and the others hadn't seen him and his husband approach, although everyone in their little group was focused on Amos and Noah. Turning to the guards, he added, "It's rather superfluous of me to say this, as the Lord Chancellor's order is sufficient, but I ask that you remove Lord Diggory immediately. And if he resists or he's caught trying to reenter the castle, then you have my permission as Royal Seneschal to detain him in the dungeon pending further word from His Majesty on the issue." Turning to Amos, he added, "And considering that it's his wedding night, I doubt he'll get around to dealing with you tonight."

The two guards nodded and moving so that they were standing on either side of Amos, they motioned with their heads towards the side entrance to the ballroom. Amos looked defiant for only a moment, before he sighed and went with the guards willingly, since he knew that the Royal Seneschal actually did possess the authority to order a Lord of the Thirteen detained as it was only other Lords of the Thirteen who couldn't lock up their fellow Lords. The King, and in his absence the Royal Seneschal, were not bound by that limitation and even though he'd be placed in the noble section of the dungeons, that was one part of Castle Camelot that Amos Diggory was not at all interested in seeing.

Seeing the crowd outside of the Silencing Charm beginning to mutter and whisper amongst themselves, Tristan sighed. "This is going to send the rumor mill into overdrive."

"Indeed it is," Harry said. Turning concerned eyes towards Cedric, even if it was only the double of the real one, he asked, "Are you going to be okay returning to your home this evening? Your father was clearly angry with you defending Noah and I'm sure getting ejected from the castle isn't going to help him cool down."

"You're probably right," Cedric said.

"I suggest you give him some time to cool off," Noah said. "Maybe find Uncle Bruce and Aunt Caroline and ask to stay with them for the night."

Before Cedric could say anything, Tristan said, "Or if you'd like, you can stay here tonight."

Cedric looked surprised, as he asked, "What?"

"After Tristan and I took our positions in the Royal Household, we moved into the castle," Thomas revealed, as he wrapped an arm around his husband. "We have a spare bedroom in our apartments and you're welcome to use it, if you like."

Tristan nodded and said, "I know that you and I aren't technically related, Cedric, but your Aunt Caroline is my sister and you were around enough as my nephew Cormac was growing up for me to think of you as an honorary nephew. So if you need a place to stay, either tonight, or anytime in the future, don't hesitate to ask."

"Thank you," Cedric said. "However, given the reason for my father's outrage this evening, I think it would be unwise for me to spend the night in the company of a same-sex couple. But I'll keep your offer in mind for the future."

"That's fine," Thomas said with a smile, as Tristan nodded. "May we at least walk you over to Bruce and Caroline to get things setup with them?"

"Yeah, that's fine," Cedric answered. After saying their goodbyes, Cedric, Tristan, and Thomas left the group to go find Cedric's aunt and uncle. Noah and Charlie left the group soon afterward, as they went to go talk to Bill.

This left only Harry, Evan, Abigail, and Asterion remaining in the group. "Well, this has certainly been an interesting evening," Abigail said. "This is the first royal function I've ever attending and I've got to say that I didn't expect this much drama."

"Yeah, neither did I to be honest," Harry said.

Evan grinned as he wrapped an arm around Harry's shoulder and said, "Thank you ever so much for inviting me, Harry. Despite the drama, I've gotta say this has been really fun."

"So are you two dating?" Abigail asked.

Harry was about to say no, since he and Evan hadn't discussed that when Evan smiled and said, "Yes, we are."

Harry's eyes widened. "You sure about that? It wasn't that long ago that you were terrified of coming out."

"Well, that's mostly because I don't want my father to know about it for obvious reasons," Evan said. "But as Evan, I don't have to worry about that."

Abigail looked truly confused as she said, "What? I'm afraid I don't follow."

"Oops," Evan said, as he looked at Harry and Asterion, who both knew who Evan really was.

"Perhaps we should take this someplace a bit more private," Asterion said, as Harry nodded and the group of four left the ballroom proper and headed over to one of the empty alcoves along the sides of the room.

Once Asterion and Harry had checked to insure that the alcove was empty except for the four of them, Asterion closed the curtains and summoned his staff, before casting the most powerful mage-level Secrecy Charms that he knew, which were highly likely to be well beyond the capabilities of most of the attendees to overcome quickly. He also set several Monitoring Charms which would tell him the moment anyone got near the closed curtains or tried to take down any of his charms. He didn't think anyone actually would since the alcoves were intended for privacy and closing the curtains only reinforced that, but he figured it was better to be safe than sorry.

Pulling out his wand, Evan cancelled the Glamour Charms, causing Evan Lockwood to melt away and be replaced by Cedric Diggory. Obviously Abigail was quite surprised at this revelation, as she asked, "Wait, you're Cedric?"

Cedric nodded. "Yes, Abigail, I am."

"Then who was the other Cedric?"

Thinking fast, Harry said, "The other Cedric you saw was obviously not Cedric, as this is the real one. The one you saw earlier was actually Roger Davies, my solicitor's son wearing Glamour Charms to look like Cedric."

Since Roger wasn't nobility he had not been invited to the wedding and thus Harry figured that it was a safe way to avoid getting into the existence of the Fidelius or the whole magically created double thing.

"Why?" Abigail asked.

"I'm gay, Abigail," Cedric said, having gotten better at saying it since the initial confrontation regarding his sexuality. "Harry is too and we've started dating. The relationship is very new, but it's something we'd both like to pursue. The problem is my father. I don't think I need to tell you that he despises gay people."

Abigail nodded. "Yes, I picked up on that. So, you adopted this Evan Lockwood persona in order to be able to go out in public with Harry without your father knowing about it?"

"Precisely," Cedric said. "I don't want to have to deal with my father, so Roger agreed to help Harry and I hide our relationship from him. Of course, with his father being Harry's solicitor, he's sworn an Oath of Loyalty to Harry, so he technically wouldn't have a choice if Harry decided to insist, but Roger agreed of his own free will."

"Okay, well I think it's brilliant personally," Abigail said. "And actually it's rather romantic in a Romeo and Juliet kind of way. Or I suppose in this case in a Romeo and Julian kind of way. The whole forbidden love thing, not the whole tragic ending bit."

"I wouldn't say that we're in love at this point," Harry said. "It's too early in the relationship for that I think." Cedric nodded in agreement, before Harry added, "At this point, we're just good friends. Albeit friends who enjoy kissing each other and going out to have some fun occasionally."

Although to be honest the times that they were allowed out to have some fun wasn't very often due to their training, but Abigail didn't need to know about that. Plus, only Minerva could tell her anyway due to the Fidelius, so there was no point in mentioning that.

"As well you should," Abigail said. She then looked thoughtful for a moment before she said, "Would you be opposed to two more people joining you on your outings?"

"What you mean like a double date?" Harry asked.

"Yes, exactly like a double date," Abigail answered. "Only with a couple who much like you and Cedric, can't go out in public without issues."

"Who exactly are we talking about here?" Cedric asked. "When you first said it I thought you were asking if Harry and I would be willing to go on a double date with you and Asterion. Which I think we'd be open to doing, but I can't think of any reason why you and Asterion can't go out in public together."

"She's not referring to us," Asterion confirmed. "She's referring to another couple who literally can't go out in public together because they'd get too many people staring at them and more than likely more than a few people who would condemn them for being together and not because they're gay."

Harry and Cedric both looked confused, so Abigail said, "Since you were both at the Tribunal, I know you're aware of my brothers, Jonas and Lukas." Harry and Cedric nodded. "Obviously they're identical twins, but they're also a couple."

"A couple?" Cedric asked. "You mean that they're dating each other?"

"Yes," Abigail answered. "That doesn't gross you out does it?"

Harry and Cedric were both quiet for a moment, before Harry responded, "I can't speak for Cedric, but no, I can't say that it grosses me out. I gotta admit that I do find it a little strange, because they're identical and dating each other would seem, on the surface to be, well narcissistic. Still, if they love each other in a romantic sense then I guess there's no reason they shouldn't be together that way."

"I can't imagine that Cedric has a problem with it," Asterion said with a grin before Cedric could say anything. "Not with the way he was hanging all over Cormac at Noah and Charlie's wedding and the Founder's Ball until Cormac dumped him. Or should I say Evan?"

Cedric blushed crimson and said, "I'd just like to point out that I have absolutely no interest in Cormac in a romantic or sexual sense. Even if I did, he's straight and wouldn't go for it. As for why I was hanging onto him, well, after years of suppressing my sexuality I guess I got a bit carried away with the freedom that a new name and face gave me."

"Understandable," Asterion said. Of course, he'd already known Cedric's reasons.

Shaking his head, Cedric said, "As for Jonas and Lukas, I guess there's really nothing wrong with them being together. I know lots of people would disagree with that, but they're both grown men, so what they do in private is nobody's business but theirs. And since they can't get each other pregnant, I don't see why they can't do whatever they want with each other. It's not like they're committing mass murder or something. Nobody is getting hurt, so I don't think anyone should really care."

Harry nodded. "Indeed. I think an argument could also be made that after what they've been through, they deserve every bit of happiness they can get, so if being together makes them happy, then I think they should totally be together." After a moment, he added, "And I wouldn't be opposed to going out on a date with them I guess. I assume you're thinking that Cedric, or rather Evan and I, would pose as their boyfriends on this date? Thus hiding the fact that they're a couple themselves?"

"I wasn't thinking that exactly," Abigail said. "I just thought it might be fun for them to go out with another couple, although now that you mention it, that wouldn't be the worst idea. If you're willing to do it, that is."

"I'd be open to it, I guess," Cedric said, as he thought back to the Tribunal. He tried to do that as little as possible, but it was the only time that he could remember meeting Jonas and Lukas. "They're certainly easy on the eyes."

"That's true," Harry agreed. "Of course, they are in their mid-twenties, so some people might think it's wrong for Cedric and me to be dating them, although there's no legal reason that we can't. Cedric is 17 now and thus legally an adult and I was declared a legal adult when I took my title."

"Well it's not like I'm asking you to have sex with them," Abigail said with a grin. "Just go out with them and have some fun. Honestly, despite the age difference, I think the four of you would get along rather well. At least, from what Asterion has told me about the two of you."

"I'd agree with that," Asterion said. "And Jon and Luke are really very nice guys and I guess I have to agree with you, Cedric, that they're attractive." Blushing, he added, "Especially without shirts on."

"You've seen them without their shirts on?" Harry asked. "How did that happen, Rion? And should Abigail be worried?"

"No! I'm borderline bisexual according to the Kinsey scale, so I can recognize attractive men when I see them, but that doesn't mean that I want to do anything with them. Regardless of what I may have done in the past with certain people. And as for how I saw them without their shirts on, we've worked out together a couple of times and they took their shirts off. All I can say is that they've definitely got nothing to be ashamed of."

Since Silencing Charms only worked one way, making it so that what was said inside of them wasn't heard by anyone outside of them, but didn't prevent the people inside the Charm from hearing what was going on outside of it, all of them heard the majordomo's staff hitting the floor, before he said, "Presenting His Imperial Majesty Huang-Ji XII Yuan of China, the Emperor of China, and Her Imperial Majesty Mei-Ling Yuan of China, the Empress of China. Accompanied by their son, His Imperial Highness Huang-Jian Yuan of China, the Crown Prince of China, and their daughter-in-law, Her Imperial Highness Xiu-Ting Yuan of China, the Crown Princess of China."

"I suppose we should be getting back out there," Harry said, as the others nodded.

"Yeah," Cedric said and then asked, "Um, Rion could you reapply my Glamours for me? I can take them off without a problem but applying them, well, I'm not so good at that."

In truth, due to his mage training, Cedric couldn't reapply them himself because he'd shorted out his wand trying to do that once already, forcing Nick to replace it. Taking them off was easier than applying them, however, and he knew he could do that much without a danger to his wand.

Asterion, who knew this, nodded and said, "No problem." Saying something under his breath, the gem on the top of Asterion's staff flashed before Cedric Diggory morphed back into Evan Lockwood, much faster than he had earlier in the night when the charms had originally been put on by Minerva.

"Wow, I don't think I've ever seen Glamours put on that fast," Harry said.

Asterion grinned and said, "Well, let's just say that there were times that my father and I were in places where there was a risk of us being recognized, so we got very good at applying Glamours and thus have way more practice in streamlining the application of them."

Harry and Evan nodded, and Abigail said, "I'll see if I can get Jon and Luke to send you guys an owl. In the meantime, let's get back out there."

Once he'd dropped all of the protective charms and banished his staff, Asterion opened the curtains and the four young people exited the alcove, before returning to roughly the same spot in the ballroom they'd been earlier, just as the majordomo prepared to announce another group of royals.

"Presenting His Majesty Francis VI Bourbon of France, the King of France and Navarra, and Her Majesty Angelique Bourbon of France, the Queen of France and Navarra. Accompanied by Her Majesty Nathalie Bourbon of France, the Queen-Mother of France and Navarra."

Asterion shook his head and said, "That's another announcement that's probably going to cause a bit of a stir because Navarra is part of the Iberian Empire since it's in Spain. Otherwise known as Pamplona. But, despite losing the land over a century ago, the French royals have thus far refused to drop the title."

Evan nodded. Having grown up as a noble heir, he was versed in some of the various court politics, although he was much more familiar with those of Albion, Iwernia and the rest of the empire. Still, France was relatively close to Albion and because of the disputes over French Camelot, the nobility in Albion tended to be more aware of the goings on in France then they were in some of the other kingdoms and empires. "Yes, I'm sure King-Emperor Philip would have some choice words for them, but I doubt he'll say anything here and risk angering Edward."

"Yes, one would hope," Harry said, as he looked at King Francis and was shocked by how young he and his wife were. "Wait, doesn't King Francis have ten children?"

"Yes, he does," Asterion answered.

"How?" Harry asked. "He looks so young. Nowhere near old enough to have ten children."

"Well, they're both only twenty years old," Asterion revealed. "However, they got married when they were both only thirteen, because Francis's father was dying and wanted his only son and heir to be married and give him a grandchild before he died. At the time the Bourbons had been aging and slowly dying off, so Francis and his wife employed the magical equivalent of fertility drugs and thus despite having ten children, Angelique has only been pregnant four times."

"Ten children in only four pregnancies?" Abigail asked.

"Indeed," Asterion said. "The first was a single birth while the second was triplets. The third was a set of twins and the fourth was a set of quadruplets. In all they have seven sons and three daughters who range in age from six to just over a year old as the quads were born in September of last year."

As the French royals moved down into the ballroom proper the doors opened again to admit a large group of people, some of whom Harry recognized from his trip to Egypt.

"Presenting His Most Divine Majesty Seti LVII Ptolemy of Egypt, the Pharaoh and Living God of Upper and Lower Egypt and Emperor of the Egyptian Empire and Her Imperial Majesty Meritites XVI Ptolemy, the Great Royal Wife and Empress of the Egyptian Empire."

The majordomo paused for a moment and Harry could clearly see him taking a deep breath, before he continued, "Accompanied by his junior wives, in order of their marriage, Her Imperial Highness Arsinoe Ptolemy of Egypt, Princess-Consort of the Egyptian Empire, Her Imperial Highness Hatshepsut Ptolemy of Egypt, Princess-Consort of the Egyptian Empire, Her Imperial Highness Nefertari Ptolemy of Egypt, Princess-Consort of the Egyptian Empire, Her Imperial Highness Cleopatra Ptolemy of Egypt, Princess-Consort of the Egyptian Empire, Her Imperial Highness Berenice Ptolemy of Egypt, Princess-Consort of the Egyptian Empire, and Her Imperial Highness Nefertiti Ptolemy of Egypt, Princess-Consort of the Egyptian Empire."

"That's a lot of wives for one man," Abigail commented.

"Agreed," Harry said with a nod of his head, as the majordomo began speaking again.

"Further accompanied by his sons His Imperial Highness Khufu Ptolemy of Egypt, the Crown Prince of the Egyptian Empire, and Their Imperial Highnesses Neferkamin Ptolemy of Egypt, Djoser Ptolemy of Egypt, Khaneferre Ptolemy of Egypt, Menkare Ptolemy of Egypt, Nikare Ptolemy of Egypt, Djedkare Ptolemy of Egypt, and Nerikare Ptolemy of Egypt, Princes of the Egyptian Empire. And finally his daughter-in-law Her Imperial Highness Nephthys Ptolemy of Egypt, Princess-Consort of the Egyptian Empire."

Harry's eyes widened as he looked upon Jedrik Ptolemy, as Markus Eriksson had called Djedkare and Nerikare, and he could instantly see why Markus and Mateus would believe that Jedrik's connection to one another was more extreme than their own. Prince Djedkare was leaning to the left while Prince Nerikare was leaning to the right, since their separate torsos conjoined at the waist and connected to a single pair of legs. They appeared to be in their mid-to-late thirties and from the resemblance to Neferkamin, Harry assumed that the three of them were full siblings.

"Wow, Markus and Mateus weren't lying when they said they were joined in a much more extreme fashion," Evan said.

"Indeed they weren't," Abigail agreed. "And those are some pretty elaborate tattoos that they've got."

Since Djedkare and Nerikare, like all the Egyptian royals, were dressed in traditional Ancient Egyptian attire which was similar to what Edward and Ramesses had worn during their wedding ceremony, the fact that Djedkare's and Nerikare's arms were tattooed was clearly visible. From what Harry could see it looked like they'd opted for matching tattoos as Djedkare had a red rose tattooed on his left arm and Nerikare had an identical, only reversed, tattoo on his right arm. It was Nerikare's left arm, however, which probably prompted Abigail's comment as it was almost completely covered in tattoos of more roses and what looked like a Chinese Fireball. Since Nerikare's left arm was currently in front of Djedkare's right arm the tattoos on it weren't fully visible, but from what Harry could see of them, they were clearly perfect mirror images of Nerikare's tattoos.

Once the Egyptian imperial family had moved off the dais, the doors were closed as a drumroll sounded throughout the ballroom, followed by the royal fanfare. When the doors reopened, Edward and Ramesses, entered the room. They had now changed out of the Ancient Egyptian clothes that they'd worn at the wedding with Edward wearing the traditional state outfit and Ramesses wearing a similar one, although slightly less elaborate than Edward's and without the sheath holding Excalibur.

"Presenting His Imperial and Royal Majesty Edward IX Pendragon, the King-Emperor of Albion and Iwernia and Emperor of the Empire of Camelot and His Imperial and Royal Majesty Ramesses I Pendragon, the King-Emperor-Consort of Albion and Iwernia and Emperor-Consort of the Empire of Camelot."

The doors remained open, however, as a golden easel floated into the room behind Edward and Ramesses, on which rested the portrait of Edward's parents, prompting the majordomo to add, "Accompanied by the portrait of His Imperial and Royal Highness Michael Pendragon, the late Crown Prince of Albion and Iwernia, the Empire of Camelot, and Duke of Penderleath, and Her Imperial and Royal Highness Margaret Pendragon, the late Crown Princess of Albion and Iwernia, the Empire of Camelot, and Duchess of Penderleath."

Pulling his wand out of a holster concealed in his right glove, Edward put it against his throat and then said, "I understand that it is perhaps a bit unusual for a portrait to be announced or to even attend a wedding reception, but my parents were quite insistent that they be allowed to attend this event, so I decided to allow it. I only wish they could be here this evening in person, instead of only as a portrait."

There were several nods from all over the room at this statement, before Edward said, "Ramesses and I would like to thank each and every one of you here this evening for attending both our wedding and this reception." Ramesses nodded, before Edward grinned, looking almost childlike as he said, "Now that everyone is here and announced… let's party!"

-o-0-o-

The End.

And there you have the second one-shot of 'Along the Journey'. I know this may have been a bit cumbersome at points due to all the foreign royals and their titles, but I do hope that it was at least moderately enjoyable. More one-shots, including a few more set during the reception in which you might hear from a few more of the foreign royals, will come in the future. But that's a stories for another day.

Questions? Comments? Suggestions? I love hearing from my readers, so feel free to contact me in a review, by email, my Yahoo group, or on Twitter JVascardi.