Vanessa opened her eyes slowly. She smiled as she saw the sun shining through the little window over the bed. It came in all kinds of colours, given that it was painted glass.

She didn't really know what the story painted on that window was telling. The pictures didn't came with some text. All she could tell was that it looked like a sweet little love story.

Pretty fitting, actually.

The other window in front of the canopy bed was bigger and the story painted on that glass looked more like a big epic tale. She saw knights , mystical creatures, castles, ships and magic forests on it. It was somehow also a love story, but Vanessa couldn't tell if it had a happy end or a sad end. Whoever painted this window seems to have let it free for interpretation.

Vanessa sat and stretched herself in a happy sigh. She only learned about this place since yesterday but she loved it already. With those rather dark stony walls, it reminded her of the Black Bulls hideout. Okay, it was less dusty and way more cleaned, it didn't change structure, there weren't any objects lying around, the windows were painted instead of being smoky and it was so much more silent.

But it also felt like a home. Another home. Not the way the Black Bulls were, maybe more like a sanctuary. Vanessa couldn't really describe it. This place just like another kind of home and she was feeling good here.

Although, maybe it felt like home for her because of the handsome man lying next to her…

Vanessa looked down at Nozel, who was still sleeping. Lying on his back, his silver hair undone, he looked so peacefully and content. As if everything in his life was okay in this very moment.

It wasn't, not everything was okay. But right now, Vanessa knew that he was happy. She was happy as well.

Yesterday had been wonderful and their night magical. Despite all the secrecy. But somehow, it had made everything really exciting.

He was beautiful. Outside and inside. Oh, he was broken, his past, the guilt of his mistakes were on him like a second skin. Nozel was complex and imperfect. But all of this was part of him. It was what made Nozel well… Nozel.

The man Vanessa surprisingly fell in love with. And her husband since yesterday…

Vanessa caressed the silver wedding band on her finger. It wasn't a precious ring, nothing that would fit royalty, the silver was old and dull, it wasn't shiny at all… but for her, that wedding band was more precious than anything.

She leaned down and brushed his lips with hers.

Nozel woke up from the touch and immediately gave her a real kiss. It was soft and slow at first, before getting slowly more heated. Nothing compared to the kisses they shared last night, but burning with the same fire.

"I could get used to this," he whispered as they parted, pulling her to him.

"What do you mean, handsome husband of mine?" Vanessa asked in a giggle, cuddling him and resting on his chest. Nozel wasn't buff, but there was a sexy, muscular body under those layers of clothing. Vanessa appreciated every part of it and last night even more than usually.

"Waking up with a kiss…"

"If you do the same to me in case you wake up first, I would gladly start this new tradition."

"As you wish, lady Silva."

Lady Silva… If anybody but Nozel would have called her that way, Vanessa probably won't have noticed that she was meant right away.

But she was lady Silva since yesterday. A title she would need to get used to. Even more that for now, only a handful of people knew of that new title of hers. That she was now a royal, married to a Head of House none the less.

It was official, but unknown to most of the Clover Kingdom. Unknown even to most of her squadmates.

Their current happiness had some sad undertone. Not everyone would understand, at least yet. A lot of nobles and royals would never accept that a prince, even a Head of House, would choose a witch as his wife. And Vanessa knew that not everyone in her squad liked Nozel. Some Black Bulls wouldn't understand immediately why she'd date, even more marry him.

Given Noelle's past, it was understandable. But Vanessa came to know Nozel over time. She discovered who he really was behind that cold mask of his, how broken he was… as much as her, in a way. She saw how behind all this cold, he just wanted to protect all of his siblings, to keep safe what his beloved mother left behind. Nozel sacrificed himself a long time ago for all that, putting himself in a cage of rules, pressure, mistakes and expectations. Vanessa couldn't help but feel for him. Kinship that became love later…

She came to care for him, to reach out for him and in the end, to love him. To love him so much that she wanted a life with him, to grow old with him.

That love became so strong, her old crush on Yami was nothing compared to it. Vanessa never would have thought that something like that would happen to her. Heck, how long had she been certain that love wasn't for her? And even better, it wasn't one-sided!

But of course, there was a catch. Vanessa might have find the love of her life… but their classes, their circles, their statuses were too much apart. In their society, a prince should never marry a witch. Not to mention that marrying out of love was never considered an option for nobles and even more for royals.

All those rules and laws of royalty, the gossip and rumours that could hurt more than they should, it had frightened Vanessa at first. Because it was somehow like another cage. But despite that fear, she refused to give up on Nozel. He was himself in a cage, another cage than her own and she wanted to get him out of there.

And Nozel wanted this as well. He finally started living for himself, ready to battle for her, for them. When she jumped, he jumped.

Vanessa went for his lips again, putting all the passion she felt in it. Nozel just hummed against her lips, before turning both of them, so that she was now under him.

"My, honey… do you already want to celebrate again? We just woke up," Vanessa smirked, starting to comb his hair with her fingers. It was so soft despite being unkempt.

"If you want… But not immediately. I'd rather admire my beloved wife first."

Vanessa smiled happily while blushing. Nozel didn't flirt often, he had been too flustered to do it himself at the beginning of their relationship. Even today, he still blushed when he said something flirty. But Vanessa loved it nonetheless. Whenever Nozel flirted with her, it made her feel special.

Nozel softly caressed her cheek, a rare happy smile on his face. Vanessa loved those smiles. They made Nozel even more beautiful than he already was.

"How did you find that place? I didn't know that there was some kind of a secret castle in your palace," Vanessa said after another kiss, looking over their chamber.

Honestly, she wasn't really shocked that at least one of the three royal palaces had secret rooms. There were always secret paths and chambers and whatever in a palace, especially in old ones. Well, maybe not kinda always, but it seemed pretty normal for Vanessa.

No, the real shock was more how cosy and comfy those rooms were, despite the dark stone walls and the windows of painted glass that seemed more appropriate in a cathedral.

"My mother brought me here, once."

"Your mother knew?"

"Yes. But I have no idea how she found it in the first place. And last time, I was just a child. I was three or four years old back then, so my memories are blurry."

"You still find it again."

"One of the secret doors that leads to this place is in the Heads office. It explains why I only discovered it again recently, given that… I was never in there over the years."

His voice had a nostalgic, maybe sad undertone. Vanessa took Nozels hand.

The Heads office within the Silva palace was almost like haunted by memories of Acier Silva and Nozel considered himself unworthy to sit in there for a long time. Even today, despite coming slowly to terms with his trauma and way too long grief. But at least, he began work more in that office lately.

"Vanessa, are really alright with… this arrangement?" Nozel asked.

Vanessa sighed, but still she smiled. They had this conversation a few times and his concern was so adorable.

"My dear handsome husband of mine, I don't know how many times I already told you this, but yes, I am. Otherwise, I wouldn't have suggested it in the first place. This is not a cage, more like a sanctuary. And it's not like we'll stay here forever."

"I hope so… It is quite the decision we made."

"A vague and elegant way to put it, honey," Vanessa smiled before softly kissing his lips again.

They did organized all of this very carefully. It was kinda an act of rebellion, especially for Nozel. Rebellion against the marital expectations within nobility and royalty. The way they planned all of this, it was more a silent rebellion. Patience was needed until they could came out in the open as husband and wife.

Vanessa sighed as she nuzzled Nozels neck. She learned a few things since the captain of the Silver Eagles became such an important part of her life. About nobles and even royals who eloped, about secret weddings, about the tragic ends of those stories. How those weddings weren't considered legal for the sole reason that they were secret.

Both Nozel and her took their precautions with their own secret wedding. Her now husband found out about a new technique of some kind of mana seal, which they used on their own marriage contract. In case of any worst-case scenario, that seal prevented from anyone to break their union. Only Nozel and Vanessa would be able to do it… but this would never be their intention.

"I'm rather curious about this place, honestly," Vanessa said as she looked around their new chamber again. "It's so… mysterious in a way. Like there's something in the air, a secret or anything that keeps in the dark. But at the same time, it's so comfy, it has a home feeling no one would expect from dark stone walls and windows painted glass."

"I remember that I had a strange feeling when my mother brought me here. I was too little to understand of course, but it was… I don't know, scary but reassuring at the same time. But I'm not certain. I was four back then, so of course such a place might have frightened me. And maybe I felt safe because mother was with me."

"Well, now that we're going to stay here for a while, we have some time to explore, honey," Vanessa replied. And yelped as her husband pulled her suddenly and tightly against him.

"We just get married… don't you think we have other things to do first?"

"My, honey, I love when you're show that rare naughty side of yours."

"What? Um, I'm not-"

Vanessa didn't let him finish, as she crashed her lips right on his. Nozel gave in quickly and pulled her more tightly towards him. She couldn't help but smile against his lips, enjoying his presence, his arms around her. Her husband was right, after all. They just got married and she was definitely more eager to do other things. This mysterious place and it's secrets could wait.