Author's note: I do not own Trinity Blood or its characters. This is set five years after the end of the anime.
In Which There Are Several Speeches, Dancing, Cake, and Embarrassment
Caterina's feet hurt, and she hoped that the speeches would take a while. The longer she was stuck at the head table, the longer she could leave her shoes off. The high heels Esther had picked to go with the dresses were very pretty, but after a half hour, they started to kill your feet. Thankfully, there would be a number of speeches, and that would hopefully give her feet time to recover before the dancing began. Still, she had survived the wedding ceremony, and that was the important thing. While Caterina wanted to dance some tonight, she doubted she would be in high demand as a dance partner.
She didn't really mind that. She had enough on her plate as it was. As maid of honor, she was responsible for making sure Esther got through the reception and had a chance to eat and rest. Caterina was also responsible for keeping track of the wedding presents and making sure they arrived at the couple's home. Of course, she had actually delegated that task to three of the bridesmaids. She couldn't be everywhere at once after all.
Listening to the speeches with only one ear, Caterina kept a careful eye on Esther. She wanted to make sure the bride was getting a chance to eat. The reception was probably going to go all night, and as the center of attention, Esther wouldn't always have a chance to take a break and eat when she needed to. Thankfully, she wasn't expected to do anything during the speeches, and Caterina had made sure the waiters knew to keep the both the bride and the groom's plates full. She had also made sure their glasses would be filled with water right now. There would be plenty of Champaign later, but they needed to be clear headed enough to get through the cutting of the cake and the bouquet and garter toss. Not to mention their first dance.
As the speeches wound to a close, the musicians began setting up, and Caterina rose from her seat to help Esther get ready for her first dance. Thankfully, the train on her dress was not overly long, and without the veil on, it was quite manageable. Ion escorted his wife out onto the dance floor, and the band stuck up a sweet, slow waltz for the two of them. They made a beautiful picture together, and Caterina hoped that the photographer was getting pictures of this. Once their dance had finished, the floor was opened up to whoever wanted to dance, and as one of the bridal party, Caterina was obligated to help get things started. She expected she'd probably end up dancing with the best man to start off with.
However, Abel claimed her hand before any one else could, and it wasn't long before Caterina found herself whirling around to a fast waltz. After dancing with Abel, Caterina then found herself taking a turn with all her male AX agents as well as many of the Vatican officials who were there, including both her brothers. When she finally can beg off dancing, Caterina helped herself to some punch and finger food to tide her over until the cake. Abel soon joined her at the table, and they watched the dancers together. A scene caught her eye, and Caterina tugged on Abel's sleeve to call it to his attention.
Francisco was dancing with Asthe, and they looked moments from either killing each other or making out with one another. Abel shared a look with her, and they both burst into laughter. Asthe would shake Francesco up, that was for sure. It would be good for him. Caterina enjoyed the lull in her duties, and Abel made for pleasant company. Before too long they were joined by a few other foot weary members of the bridal party. Conversation soon started, and the time passed quickly, and it was time for the cutting of the cake.
Caterina hovered nearby with a towel as Esther and Ion cut the first piece of cake together and feed it to one another. Once that was done the servers stepped forward to finish cutting and serving the cake while Caterina helped the newlyweds clean their faces off. Then it came time for the events Caterina was really dreading: the bouquet toss and the garter toss. Somehow, she got yanked into the group of single women amassing in front of the steps that led down into the hall that was hosting the reception. Esther stood at the top of the steps, her back turned to the gathered group, and hefted the bouquet over her shoulder.
It nearly hit Caterina in the face before tumbling into her hands. She stared at the roses and lilies in shock. This was not happening. Someone led her over to a chair to wait as Ion slipped Esther's garter off with a blush. Then it was his turn to throw the thing out into the crowd, this time one of single men. She couldn't watch. There were cheers and whoops as someone caught it. The next thing she knew, Abel was kneeling in front of her with a sheepish grin, holding out the garter. With a sigh and what she knew was a very strong blush, Caterina extended her leg for him to slip it up. There were whoops and catcalls as he did so, and she kept her eyes fixed on the top of his head.
Finally the ordeal was over, and Abel helped her out of her seat and led her onto the dance floor for the traditional dance afterwards. The song was something mellow and romantic. Caterina leaned into Abel and closed her eyes, making a mental note to destroy all the pictures of the past five minutes, including the negatives.