HSWW, Asst 12 | Gryffindor | Arts & Crafts, Task 1 | Write about a spark felt between strangers.
Camp Hogwarts | Royalty AU (think cinderella, a spark at a ball)
IPC #241 - [Dialogue] "I never said that." / "You didn't have to."
365 #191 - Longing
Summer Seasonal Prompts:
Days of the Year | National Kissing Day || Write about an important kiss in someone's life.
National Anti-Boredom Month | 5. Learn a language || Write about someone speaking a language other than their native tongue.
Unlucky Month for Weddings || 8. [object] champagne
National Ice Cream Month | 4. Cherry || Infatuation
Romance Awareness Month || MaryAntonin
National Indoor Plant Month | 19. ZZ Plant || Royalty!AU
Colours || 11. Chestnut
Flowers | 12. Stargazer Lily || [dialogue] "Make a wish."
Crystals & Gemstones | 10. Citrine || [theme] beginnings
Gryffindor OTPs | 13. Gen || MaryAntonin
Build-A-Fairytale | Stage 1: The Opening | 6. The heir is missing || Royalty!AU
WC: 2502
o . o . o
Into the Burning Heart (Render Up My Body)
Mary put on her favourite crimson gown, running her hands over the smooth satin skirt. Heavens how she loved this one. She felt positively radiant as Dorcas fixed the ruby tiara in her curls, and Mary smiled at her reflection in the mirror. She didn't love balls on the whole, but gowns and tiaras were ever so elegant.
"Are you ready, your highness?" Dorcas asked, carefully adjusting one final curl and looking at her handiwork.
"Please, call me Mary," she admonished again with a kind smile in the mirror. Dorcas had been her ladies' maid for nearly two months now, and the poor girl couldn't seem to relax around her at all. Quite a difference from Marlene, who had been almost too informal. "Yes, I believe I am. You've done beautifully Dorcas."
The petite little maid nodded and dashed a quick curtsy before scurrying from the room. Mary stood and walked through the corridors of the palace toward the Grand Ballroom, her heels quiet on the thick carpet. She arrived in the foyer at last, where her parents were waiting for her, both looking impressively regal. Her younger siblings were there as well, Thomas wearing a smart tuxedo and little Victoria in a tea-length emerald dress, smiling broadly. It was the first time she was allowed to join her siblings at the annual Yule Ball, and she was positively ecstatic - even if it was only for an hour.
Mary greeted them all with quick kisses on each cheek, smiling softly. The sound of fanfare could be heard from the other side of the gilded doors, and Mary quickly took her place in the procession, behind her parents and in front of Thomas. First out of her siblings, because her parents had changed the law before she was born so that the line of succession would be based on age alone, not sex. Mary was proud to lead a country that deemed women equally capable of being heads of state, though personally she didn't think she would have minded all that much if Thomas were to inherit the throne instead of her. Mary shook all thoughts of succession from her mind as the doors swung open, the fanfare immediately echoing thrice as loud.
Applause joined the sound of trumpets as the crowd of guests laid eyes on the monarch for the first time that night.
"Their Majesties King Peter and Queen Alice!" the herald announced as the royal family stepped through the doorway into the ballroom. "Their Royal Highnesses Princess Mary, Prince Thomas, and Princess Victoria!"
Mary held her head high as she entered the ballroom, looking around with a wide smile and resisting the urge to wave. As the fanfare stopped, her parents spun into the middle of the room, coming to a halt facing each other as they waited for the music to play. All at once, the chorus began, and a gentle, melodic waltz filled the air. The King and Queen circled in smooth steps, so in sync that it looked positively magical. Mary looked on in awe, completely oblivious to the young man watching her from across the room. When the song ended, the monarchs bowed to a rousing round of applause, smiling widely.
The Earl of Caithness winked at her, leaving his spot in the hall as the second song began and sidling over to where Mary stood.
"May I have this dance, Princess?" he asked, conducting a deep, sweeping bow.
"No need to be so formal, James," Mary answered, grinning. "I would love to."
"Of course formality is required," James said as he extended his hand to her. "We are in public, after all. Names are only for when we're in private."
"You mustn't say such things!" she giggled, amused by the scandalous nature of his words and the salacious tone in his voice.
"What, you don't want people to think that we're lovers?"
"James, I'd be shocked if the whole court doesn't know that you're completely gobsmacked by Lily," Mary stated, rolling her eyes at her friend slightly. "It's practically a known fact that you two will marry one day."
He swallowed uncomfortably at her words, glancing over at Lily where she stood, gossiping with Lady Kinloss. "I'm not sure… I don't know if she…"
"She does," Mary assured him, smiling kindly. "I promise."
"So, what do you think, any husbands for you here?" James asked teasingly, knowing full well that every ball was seen as an opportunity for Mary.
She looked around quickly, assessing the crowd of dancing or gossiping aristocrats.
"I doubt there's anyone here I haven't met before," Mary answered at last, with a soft sigh.
"Well there's always Sirius," James laughed. "His mother has been on his case about finding a suitable wife lately. You'd think we were 40 by the way she goes on, not twenty-three."
"I think the Duke of Fife is rather more interested in Viscount Downe than me," Mary observed pointedly.
"Perhaps, but his mother will never approve of that."
"Well I suppose he'll have to wait for her to die then."
"I doubt the old bat will ever die."
"Excuse me?"
Mary and James both turned to the newcomer, startled by the presence of another person when they had become so absorbed in their conversation. The man in front of her was a complete stranger, so Mary was fairly confident that he was not a courtier. Were there foreign aristocrats in attendance tonight? She hadn't thought so… Mary had to admit though, he was perhaps the most handsome stranger she had ever laid eyes on. With umber skin and chestnut eyes, the man was positively captivating.
"May I cut in for the next dance?" he inquired politely, his eyes sparkling with intensity.
James looked to Mary for guidance, not sure how to answer, but she nodded her assent. Bowing, James backed away, leaving Mary with the handsome stranger. There was a moment of awkwardness as they stood facing each other in the middle of swirling couples on the dance floor, unsure what to do next. And then he was holding his hand out to her, and Mary laid her hand in his palm.
The world seemed to change the moment her skin brushed against his - her breath left her in a soft gasp and electricity seemed to flicker across her nerves, leaving Mary feeling tingly and breathless. What was this feeling? What had this man done to her? How could he have flipped everything upside down so quickly?
He seemed to be similarly afflicted, his eyes wide and his mouth open just slightly, as if he had gotten stuck halfway to introducing himself. They seemed frozen like that, Mary's hand resting lightly on his palm with her fingers just curled around hers. And though time seemed to stretch endlessly, it could only have been a few seconds that they stood there in their own little world.
At last, they began to dance, Mary allowing her partner to lead even though his steps were clumsy and imperfect.
"I don't think we've met before," Mary said, angling for an introduction.
"Of course not, your grace," he replied immediately, inclining his head briefly in the closest thing to a bow he could manage while dancing. "Antonin Dolohov, at your service."
Mary decided not to correct his form of address, not willing to risk offending him. Not when she felt such a strong connection.
"How did you come to be invited to the ball, Mr. Dolohov?" she asked. "I've never seen anyone from outside of the aristocracy here before."
"Antonin, please, and I'm an officer with the Royal Navy," Antonin explained. "Your parents - the King and Queen, I mean - extended invitations to the officers to celebrate our victory at Beauxbatons."
"Of course," she nodded, "that makes perfect sense."
She noticed his dress uniform for the first time then and felt a bit stupid for not putting the information together sooner. There was something about a military uniform that made her feel weak in the knees, and an idea flashed in her mind of him protecting her, making her heart beat quickly. There was something so impossibly attractive about Antonin.
As the night went on, Mary danced with all of the eligible young men in attendance, some of them friends, most of them annoyances but the whole time she just couldn't seem to get Antonin out of her mind. Every time she looked up from her partner, she would find him in the crowd immediately. He seemed to feel her gaze each time - their eyes would lock and she would feel that prickle of electricity and heat all over again.
After a particularly frenzied dance with Sirius, during which Mary could hear James howling with laughter at the pair, she stepped away to find a glass of champagne in order to cool herself down slightly.
"Princess," she heard from behind her, and spun round to see Antonin standing at attention, his hands clasped behind his back.
"Antonin!" she exclaimed happily, more than a little pleased to see him again. "Do you always sneak up on people, or is it just me?"
"It's a special talent," he replied, smiling widely. "Would you perhaps like to take a walk in the gardens?"
"I would love to," Mary said, her heart racing at the thought of being alone with him.
He offered his arm in a gentleman-like manner and escorted her around the dance floor to the glass doors that opened onto the terrace. They stepped out into the cool night air, a soft breeze painting their cheeks with tints of pink.
"Do you have any other hidden talents?" Mary asked as Antonin guided her down the terrace steps to the garden.
"I am exceptionally skilled at picking out the finest bloom in a garden," he boasted teasingly, reaching out to pluck an iris in various hues of purple from its branch, handing it to her. "This one here, for example. The loveliest here, and yet it still pales in comparison to you, Princess."
"Please, call me Mary," she replied, blushing at his words.
"And do you have any special skills, Mary?" Antonin asked, raising a dark eyebrow at her.
"I'm quite good at languages, I suppose." She shrugged, not really sure what other skills she could mention.
"Ah, mais oui?" he replied, his accent flawless. "Je crois que tu parles francais?"
"Bien sur," Mary answered, smiling. "Et espagnol, russe, et allemand aussi."
"Ca c'est vraiment incroyable," Antonin praised, looking at Mary with an expression full of affection.
"It's not really much," she objected, shaking her head slightly. "Most nobles have to take extensive language lessons. But I'll admit, I think I'm better at it than most of the others."
They reached the fountain at the center of the garden and stood quietly for a moment, watching the water gently soar into the air before falling back down to the pool below with a soft splash. Taking a few coins from the depths of his pockets, Antonin handed one to Mary, fingering another himself.
"I've heard that this fountain is particularly lucky," he whispered conspiratorially, leaning close to Mary to be sure that she could hear him. "Make a wish."
Mary watched as Antonin closed his eyes, his lashes long and dark against his cheeks, and flicked his coin into the fountain with a serene smile dancing across his lips. She couldn't help but smile at the rush of affection she felt as she watched him and bizarre certainty in it gripped her. When he opened his eyes, Antonin looked expectantly at her, and Mary closed her eyes.
She had to think for a moment about what her wish should be, but when she had finally settled on her answer, she knew there was nothing else it could be. Mary longed to know what Antonin's lips would feel like against hers, to taste him and feel his strong arms wrap around her waist. In time, maybe she would wish for more with him, but in that moment, what she wanted most was to feel him, in every possible way that she could imagine. Mary flipped her coin into the fountain, not opening her eyes until she heard it splash in the water.
When she opened her eyes, Mary looked up at Antonin, realizing for the first time just how close they were. She could see the flecks of gold in his chestnut coloured eyes, and could have counted his lashes. From her vantage point, his lips looked impossibly soft, and she wanted all the more to know what it would feel like to kiss him. She felt breathless as she looked at him, his handsome face stealing the oxygen straight out of her very lungs.
"I know what you wished for," he whispered, turning until his whole body faced her and they were mere inches apart.
Mary could feel the warm puffs of his breath as he spoke, ghosting over her cheeks and rustling the fly-aways near her temples.
"You want me to kiss you," Antonin continued, shuffling ever so slightly closer to her, until Mary was sure that he could feel her heart pounding away in her chest.
"I never said that," she denied, although they both knew it was purely for the sake of propriety, because he had hit the nail on the head with his guess.
"You didn't have to," Antonin answered, his eyes flicking down to her cherry red lips as his expression became veiled with longing for a moment.
Summoning her courage, Mary laid her hands on his chest, running her fingers over the lapels and winding them up around his neck until the tips just brushed at the hair by his collar. The movement was all the encouragement Antonin needed to dip his head down, capturing Mary's lips in a kiss she would remember for all of her days.
It was like the entire world turned upside down at his touch, never to be the same again. She felt as though her body had finally come alive, as if a glow was building under her skin and sparks danced across it. Mary could feel heat and affection and a certain dizziness, and the whole combination made her quite certain that she never wanted to kiss another individual for the rest of her life. Surely nothing could live up to this.
When Antonin pulled away, he allowed his fingers to play with the curls that had fallen across her shoulder, enjoying the softness of it. She was so much more beautiful to him now, and he couldn't even be sure how it had happened. He hadn't thought it possible.
Smiling widely, the couple was more than happy to stand in each other's company for as long as possible, basking in the electricity that still buzzed around them and enjoying their moment of seclusion. Neither knew what might unfold next, but in that moment, it was enough to be together by the fountain, sharing wishes and sweet kisses in the night.