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The following morning, Gilgamesh was still furious.

That woman…! Why, why on earth had he ever thought that she would be a suitable choice?!

He knew that, after what they had decided, she was going to be more outspoken with him, but this was ridiculous.

He was actually glad that the former evening, right before leaving, she had not held his gaze long enough to have the time to observe his reaction – after speaking to him in such a contemptuous manner – because he knew that he would not have accepted it if she, of all people, saw how much her words had affected him.

She had not after all said anything that wasn't true or that he didn't know already: she had simply told him that he was a means to an end for her. That was what she was for him, too, and there was nothing particularly strange in that.

Then… why were those words regularly coming up in his thoughts…?

It was preposterously pathetic. Unnerved, he firmly shut them out of his brain.

That woman – or rather, Arturia, his fiancée – was going to have work only in the afternoon, therefore he would not see her until then. He had a mildly important meeting in the morning, and then he would have to prepare a carefully worded announcement for the press conference on his engagement. He was going to have to tell them the wedding date, and that was something else he needed to discuss with Arturia, since he did not know when exactly she was going to graduate.

"Gil~! Good morning!"

Not even bothering to turn around, Gilgamesh straightened in his seat a little and took a sip from his so far untouched coffee, glancing at the first page of the morning newspaper.

"Good morning, Enkidu," he replied, seraphic.

His best friend swung himself in the chair in front of his desk, his usual grin in place. Green hair flowing mesmerizingly behind him, he stared at Gilgamesh eagerly, yellow-grey eyes curious and ready.

When Gilgamesh did not say anything, Enkidu sighed impatiently.

"So, Gil, tell me. What did you and Ria have to talk about that took so much time yesterday? You didn't even contact me later! I could actually say that it was rather inconsiderate of you~"

Unfazed, Gilgamesh turned a page.

"I don't have the faintest idea of what you mean."

Enkidu frowned before rolling his eyes.

"Nice play there, Gil~. Of course you understand me. Remember Ria? Arturia Pendragon, early twenties, blonde hair, green eyes, fair complexion, majoring in economics and business, very dedicated to her family and the type who doesn't take arrogance from anyone – especially not from you." He leaned forward attempting – and managing – to poke Gilgamesh in the forehead. "Also, she's someone who has been around a lot recently~…"

The blond man smirked before casually closing the newspaper.

"Ah, yes, my lovely Arturia. I am getting married to her in less than three months."

Enkidu stared at him, for once mute and with a completely dumbfounded look in his eyes. Gilgamesh enjoyed it far more in the present occasion rather than two days before, when his best friend had been rendered silent after witnessing that very same woman slap him.

Finishing his coffee, the head of Uruk Enterprises stood up, putting the newspaper on the pile of already read ones and hanging his suit jacket up on a coat hook.

He went back to sit at his desk silently, flipping through the large pile of documents that awaited his inspection, before looking up at his friend.

"Enkidu, unless you intend to become a permanent addition to the décor of the room, I suggest you go take care of your own paperwork before the meeting."

Enkidu finally seemed to come out of his daze and narrowed his eyes, completely ignoring that last sentence. He knew that Gilgamesh would not lie to him, especially not about something like marriage, which had been quite the sensitive subject during the past half-a-year.

"Gil, something is slightly wrong here. I clearly remember Ria giving you a hard slap the day before yesterday, in public. What did you do to make her suddenly accept to become your wife? Did you pay her or something?"

Almost rolling his eyes, Gilgamesh simply nodded.

"More or less."

He then glanced at the clock before resuming flipping through the pages of the documents in front of him.

"I hope you have a fresh selection of suits ready for the wedding, Enkidu. I expect you to be my best man."

He then raised a hand to stop the flood of questions that was no doubt about to submerge him and indicated the door.

"Not now. We'll talk at dinner."

Enkidu was persistent though, and his eyes narrowed even more.

"Gil…"

But the blond man only smirked, for once having outsmarted his green-haired best friend.

*"*"*"*"*"*"*"*"*

As soon as work was over, Arturia intended to go ask at the reception desk where Gilgamesh's office was. She did not know its location because she had never been there before, but she knew that he usually worked much longer than his employees.

She discovered however that it was not necessary for her to worry about that at all, as she found him right outside her own office when her hours were finished. He gave her a nod and made a strange movement, as if intending to take her hand.

Instinctively, Arturia tried to move away from him, but he saw it and grasped her arm swiftly before she was able to complete the action.

Leaning down so that his lips were next to her ear, he murmured in a low voice, "There are still other people in the offices at this hour. You have to play your part, and unless you want to practice public kissing right now, I would recommend letting me take your hand."

Hitting herself mentally for her reaction, Arturia slipped her small hand into his larger one and followed his lead. She made a point to ignore the stares that increased in frequency as they strode through the corridors, instead concentrating on the unfamiliar route they were taking.

The exit was not in that direction, so where could they be headed…?

She had her answer when they found themselves in a very neat and classy room, from which Gilgamesh took his suit jacket. Eyes wide, she looked around in wonder, and he smirked briefly at her amazement.

"It was wise to bring you to my office before the engagement is actually announced. Such a raptured expression would hardly be appropriate in front of the cameras."

She threw him a dirty look. She most certainly was not 'raptured'; she was simply taken aback by the sheer elegance of the room. She was also quite surprised by the fact that it wasn't unnecessarily sumptuous or opulent; it was… of true good taste, which she wouldn't have expected from him.

Not that she would ever tell him that, of course.

Gilgamesh cleared his throat almost unnoticeably.

"We are going now, Arturia."

She glared at him, her expression unusually cold.

"I overlooked this yesterday, but I won't do the same today. I am not an object nor am I someone you can order around, Gilgamesh. And especially because we are going to get married, make the effort of recognizing that there are two people in a marriage, and therefore decisions have to be made together."

Their eyes clashed, firm green on unreadable crimson, until he heaved a small sigh.

"Fine. Then, Arturia, shall we go now?"

Her steady expression did not change as she walked past him.

"Was that so hard to say, Gilgamesh?"

It was his turn to glare as he followed her out of the building.

*"*"*"*"*"*"*"*"*

She had had the whole night to think things through, mainly about the contract, but about everything else as well.

After spending some time with Shirou until he peacefully fell asleep in her lap – and feeling guilty about not having been there with him during the day – Arturia had gone to speak with the head medic of the hospital. They had talked at length, and the doctor had made sure that the medicines and the equipment needed – which were very expensive because of the uncertainty of Iri's conditions and her pregnancy – would be provided as soon as possible, since it was now possible to pay for them.

Much relieved about the whole matter, Arturia had glanced at the clock and decided it was too late to head back to the apartment. She had therefore asked and received permission to spend the night at the hospital, waking Shirou up with the usual kiss to the forehead in the morning before leaving to finally have a shower, change her clothes and attend the extra lessons about the material of her thesis. The shock and fear for her sister had just calmed down; she consequently tried to go through her usual routine, albeit feeling a bit mechanical and numb.

It had been a useless effort though, because her head simply could not get into what was being explained. She kept thinking about her future duties, as it was beginning to dawn on her how much her life was going to change. Even there, at campus, things would no longer be the same once it was going to be revealed that she was engaged to one of the most influential people on the planet; not to mention, one who was also a campus trustee.

Those, however, were things she was prepared to deal with. All she had to do was complete a little more than two months there at the college, before finally graduating and–

–and getting married.

Right.

She had that thought on her mind even as she sat down in a very stylish but discreet café of Gilgamesh's choice, not too far from the offices. As irony warranted, the first subject he addressed was actually related to the thoughts swirling in her mind.

His smirk in place, he began, "Well, dear fiancée, what date would be appropriate for the wedding?"

As she only stared back at him blankly, he sighed and elaborated, "Tomorrow our engagement will be made known to the public. It's for the best if the wedding date is announced on the same occasion as well."

She remained lost in her thoughts for a while, her expression not betraying anything. Given the length of the silence, Gilgamesh wondered if she had actually comprehended what he had said, but she broke out of her trance before he could inquire about it.

"My graduation is in the first half of June, even though I still don't know the exact day. Therefore, I would suggest a date during the last week of the same month, so that by the beginning of July we can move to Japan. Is that acceptable?"

He nodded, and it was settled to hold the ceremony on the last Tuesday of June.

"Very well. Starting tomorrow, we will be officially engaged. That means that the press's attention will be all over this for the following weeks, and we have to make sure that we see each other as much as possible, to both keep up appearances and feed something to the media. That also means," and he reached into the pocket of his coat, "that you are expected to wear this."

He was holding up a small black box. Realizing what that meant, Arturia cursed inwardly, for it was yet another thing she had forgotten to consider. Resigned to her fate, she extended her hand to take the box… but he wouldn't let her.

Carefully, he opened it, allowing her to admire the splendid jewel inside it. It was a small, fancy golden ring with a large red ruby in the middle. It was certainly a beautiful piece of jewellery, but the only thing that Arturia cared about was that it wouldn't hinder her movements. And to her relief, while it was hardly discreet, it appeared to not be too showy to wear, because the stone was flat and would not be overly cumbersome on her finger.

Before she could decide on the best course of action, the ring was on his palm and he was looking her in the eye.

"Allow me."

Taking her left hand, he slid the golden band on her ring finger. It was a perfect fit and it did not seem to be a hindrance in any way.

For about a second, they both stared at it wordlessly. Then, as if nothing had happened, they resumed their conversation.

He reached into his pocket once more and took out a mobile phone.

"This is yours, too. There are already my personal number and my work number stored – although I prefer you use the personal one."

She took it with a nod of acceptance, yet with some hesitance nonetheless. She was no expert about technological devices, but even she was able to recognize that the item she was holding in her hand was extremely expensive.

A wave of guilt washed over her. She knew that he could definitely afford what he was spending, but she could not say she felt comfortable about the insane amount of money of his that was being used because of her.

His crimson eyes had not left her face for an instant, and it did not take him much imagination to guess her thoughts. He was deeply amused.

Leaning forward in his seat, he inclined his head to the side a little.

"You… are feeling guilty?"

She did not reply, even though an answer wasn't actually needed, as her face told him more than enough.

He chuckled. Marrying the woman in front of him might prove to be truly entertaining.

"All this discussion about the terms of the contract, knowing that it's nothing more than a slightly convoluted business arrangement, and you are having second thoughts?"

She glared at him, pressing her hands together in anger and accidentally brushing against her ring.

"That is not the case, Gilgamesh. I would do this all again if I had a choice."

He raised an eyebrow, and she prevented him from asking his obvious question by continuing, "The thing that is bothering me is that you expect me to be happy about all this."

He waited, knowing that there was more. Her sigh was almost imperceptible.

"This is not what a marriage should be. I am basically selling myself to have money, and you are using me as a trophy wife."

Seeing his almost offended expression, she very nearly rolled her eyes.

"I don't mean it in the sense that you are old and marrying someone much younger to prove your youth, Gilgamesh – that's not the case here. But you are certainly only marrying me to show off the fact that you have 'a stable private life'," she finished sarcastically. "This marriage is wrong… and yet, we both agreed to it."

He was harsh in his reply, for everything she had just stated was rather obvious, and the look in his eyes was frosty.

"If you can't deal with a life of deception, you shouldn't have come to ask me if my proposal was still standing, Arturia."

Feeling as if she had been chastised, she glared up at him, fiercely. Her tone was equally cold.

"I never said that I couldn't do that, Gilgamesh. I was perfectly aware of what I was agreeing to do when I decided to inquire about getting married."

There was a short pause. "The only thing that I'm saying is that you can't ask me to like what we agreed to do. The decision is made and I would make it again – but that doesn't mean that it's a pleasant one. Circumstances forced this situation to happen; it was not something in which we truly had a choice." Her eyes were sharp on him. "If it were for your own inclination, you would never have decided to get married in the first place, Gilgamesh, and you are perfectly aware of that."

Although her words enticed him, he was too used to keeping his emotions from showing on his face to be affected, at least outwardly.

"You can use all the pretty words you wish, Arturia, but it's quite pointless for you to feel guilty about spending my money. It's what we agreed on, after all."

He leaned back in the chair. "However, since you brought it up, as part of the arrangement, I will remind you that I have to be informed about what you did with the money I gave you yesterday."

She told him about the things she had settled with the head doctor of the hospital, and then continued, "Speaking of hospital matters, Gilgamesh, since you pointed out that we will have to see each other quite often, it's necessary that you come with me to visit my family sooner or later. You will have to be seen with me, after all, and I will spend quite some time at the hospital."

She had thought about the subject and, thinking she understood his raised eyebrow, she sighed and went on, "It's not mandatory for you to come inside the building with me, but on days in which we both have work, know that I will spend the rest of the time with my sister and my nephew. And if we have to see each other as well, it can only be if you accompany me there."

He did not seem thrilled at the prospect, but at least he didn't protest.

"I suppose it's unavoidable."

She sent another glare in his direction. He truly seemed to have a gift to make himself insufferable.

They were already on a subject she wanted to emphasize, therefore she pushed away her irritation and insisted, "Be reminded of this, Gilgamesh: I will be your wife for display but, as I asked yesterday – keep my family away from all this. You are one of the richest businessmen in the world, I know you have the means to do this. Keep them safe from the disarray the press can cause."

Her green eyes were filled with even more emotion than usual, and she held his gaze steadfastly. He only gave her a short, small nod, but she seemed to relax at that.

He smirked slightly as his eyes lingered on her.

"Your family will not be on display as you will be, Arturia, but know that you will be kept away from the most brutal onslaught of media attention as well. That being said, however, the best way to actually keep the press from becoming too invasive is feeding them some things – so participating in public events is a requirement. And as we decided yesterday, in public we will have to appear not only at least friendly with each other, but we will have to kiss as well."

Quite shamelessly, his eyes travelled over her features and stopped on her lips. His smirk widened. "How about a little practice to make it look more convincing?"

Ice dripped from her every word as she replied, "Let me remind you about what we agreed on yesterday – we said that kissing would only happen in public and when there is a valid reason for it. And do not," she all but snarled, "do not give me that nonsense of wanting to rehearse."

She was probably too amusing for her own good, Gilgamesh decided. She seemed to take everything he said as an excuse to become confrontational, something he had already pointed out the day before.

There was nothing wrong in insisting on it once again.

"Are you truly incapable of having a conversation without turning it into an onslaught of fire and flames, Arturia?"

But she was neither fazed nor intimidated, and only shot back, "Once you'll stop lighting the matches with every arrogant word that escapes your lips, I will consider it."

Quite strangely, he felt internally conflicted. One part of him was amused by her reply; another part was annoyed yet intrigued by how she did not seem to ever back down in front of him; and the last part… he couldn't exactly understand it. It certainly wasn't angry, nor was it entertained. It was feeling somewhat… injured.

How ridiculous. It was certainly nothing of the sort, and it was probably the long day that had made him think something as ludicrous as that.

He brought his attention back to the woman in front of him, his smirk in place once again. Surprising him, however, she was the one who went back to the previous matter of discussion.

"In any case, Gilgamesh, kissing in public should be limited."

She shook her head to stop his protests that were no doubt about to follow, and continued, "Our objective is to play the part of the happy couple convincingly, and in public, every action is likely to be monitored closely. Therefore, too much affection would appear fake, while too little, especially at the beginning, would be attributed to shyness in front of the press. Much more credible, wouldn't you agree?"

She directed quite a sassy smirk of her own at him, perfectly aware of the fact that she had made a good point.

He narrowed his eyes. She thought she had him, didn't she? Well, she thought wrong.

"Much more credible – at the beginning only, Arturia. Since the press is going to be around starting tomorrow and there are less than three months before the wedding, how long do you think it would take for you to get over your shyness?"

To his slight chagrin, she was only a little startled.

"It will have to be a gradual process, Gilgamesh. And you will have to be believable, by remaining next to me in public most of the time. I'm sure you were not looking forward to this, but it's all for the sake of credibility."

The expression she was sporting was such as to highly tempt him into glaring at her.

But before he could do that, she went on, "When we are in public together, it would be for the best if we speak to each other, and that means that we should always have something easy and safe we can talk about."

Gilgamesh only seemed amused again, and arched an eyebrow teasingly.

"Suggestions?"

She rolled her eyes, holding back an exasperated sigh.

"Seriously, do I have to ask about your favourite colour to keep the conversation going between us without a quarrel?"

His raised eyebrow went even higher.

"I very much doubt that would even make for a conversation. It's a simple question, which requires a simple answer – not enough for a decent dialogue."

She raised an eyebrow as well.

"Are you saying you would be unable to take a simple question and sew an elaborated reply on it that would in turn prompt me to find an equally particularised response, which would end up in a long and complex conversation?"

Gilgamesh seemed slightly taken aback, but he managed to maintain his signature smirk nonetheless.

"I don't believe you incapable of making the conversations interesting enough with a worthy premise, but without that, it would dull out immediately."

She narrowed her eyes.

"Don't you think you might be mistaken about that? Just to make an example, what about now? We are talking about finding something to talk about… and it's already becoming a conversation."

He only chuckled, amused in spite of himself.

"Very well. I believe we will be able to find subjects of conversation easily enough without needing to decide them."

No longer holding back her exasperated sigh, she then turned thoughtful.

"We would end up quarrelling if we don't plan at least a few conversations."

He did not look impressed.

"That is debatable, Arturia."

Her expression was both skeptical… and deadpan.

"I will maintain my opinion until we manage to prove the opposite."

His eyebrows rose again. It was getting ridiculous.

"So you are saying that we would be unable to hold a conversation in public without discussing?"

Her gaze was unflinching.

"Yes, I am." She immediately continued, "That is why I would like to add this to the contract – we will not discuss or make scenes in public. The one from the other day was more than enough."

Gilgamesh was silent for a few moments, seemingly weighing her words.

Then, slowly and with a new smirk creeping on his face, he said, "This request is reasonable and it will be written in the contract. And for conversations in public… they should not present an issue, since you are capable of holding one. About the subject of discussion, we both know that the most mundane ones can become interesting through the ability of the orator. You seem, sometimes at least, to be one such person. Therefore, commenting works of literature or something of the kind could be acceptable… assuming you have enough knowledge to do that."

Arturia glared at him. How he managed to say something seemed to be a compliment and then, immediately afterwards, turn it around to be an insult, was beyond her. And to top it off, he seemed to be completely unaware of the fact that he had been offensive, too.

He was not done speaking though. "To sum up what has been decided, sooner or later we will kiss in public but, as you insist on it, it will be a gradual process." He gave her a searching look. "Close body contact is the first step, and then probably the use of terms of endearment."

Her eyes looked like green ice cubes.

"Gilgamesh, I am not going beyond 'dear', and that will already sound fake."

He felt amused once again, and he briefly wondered about how many times he had felt amusement when in her presence. He dismissed the thought swiftly.

"I have not yet something specific in mind; each situation will ask for a different line of conduct, so I am sure we will simply have to adapt to it, Arturia."

He glanced at the clock. More time had passed than he had expected; if he wanted to make it to dinner with Enkidu, he had to leave. Besides, they had already talked about several matters on this day.

He stood up, paying the bill for their expenses at the café, and took his suit jacket once again.

"I will meet Enkidu for dinner in a brief while. I will inform him of our contractual agreement, and we will then make sure the public announcement is prepared for tomorrow. I highly recommend," and he gave her a pointed look, "to remain indoors and avoid being seen outside tomorrow. The press's reaction can be unpredictable."

Standing up as well, she nodded.

"That's perfectly reasonable."

She put on her coat, noticing how it was getting a little too warm outside for it. She was going to need a change of wardrobe sooner rather than later, but it was not the right time to think about that.

Looking outside and noticing with worry that it was already getting dark, she said, "I assume you will contact me through the new phone for the next meeting. I will go to the hospital now."

Gilgamesh stared at her in silence, suddenly feeling a completely unanticipated hesitation. There was no daylight anymore, and she – his supposed fiancée – was heading to the hospital on her own. Perhaps…

He cleared his throat a little.

"Arturia, I should probably accom–"

"No," she interjected, as if reading his mind. "Not this time. I have to talk to my nephew first, before he ever meets you. And you will be late for your dinner. Please give Enkidu my regards."

With a short nod in parting, she left the café.

Without any complications, she reached the hospital, finding out – to both her disappointment and relief – that Shirou had already fallen asleep. There was no change in her sister's conditions, but the doctors assured her that some of the medicines were already going to arrive on the following day.

It was once again too late to leave the hospital and go back to the apartment, so Arturia opted for spending the night on the uncomfortable chairs outside her sister's room. However, the nurses did not allow that; knowing that Irisviel would remain in that room for a while, they brought her a sofa that could be made into a bed, ensuring that Arturia could sleep close to her family. The blonde woman thanked them warmly for their kindness.

As soon as she lay down and closed her eyes, her thoughts went back to the events of the day, making her sigh inwardly.

The fact that she was about to get married hadn't fully sunk in yet. It was probably for the best, she mused; because of that, she had been – and would be – able to somewhat remain rational when dealing with her future husband.

If she looked at it all from an outsider's perspective, well, it could appear quite pitiful.

She had a beloved sister who was lying unconscious in a hospital bed, she was in her last year of college, and she was now engaged to an egotistical jerk.

Even if all the luck in the world turned against her, how much worse could her life actually become?

With that thought on her mind, Arturia strangely drifted off into the most peaceful sleep she had had ever since the day Gilgamesh Uruk had proposed to her.

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