Author's note: I do not own Trinity Blood or its characters. This is set about a year and a half after the wedding.
In Which There Is an Elopement
Esther let out a sigh as she settled into her chair. Being pregnant was a pain. If she wasn't having morning sickness, then her feet were swollen and her back hurt. She couldn't wait for this baby to be born. She had two more months left, but then it would all be over with, and she would have a daughter or a son. She and Ion had decided to wait to find out which. Thankfully, she was done with all of her public duties for the day. All that was left for the young queen to do was go through her mail and other various pieces of paperwork.
Her private desk had a very comfortable chair though, and the tasks were really no hardship. Esther started with the paperwork, and she was hardly halfway through it when her husband entered their suite. Ion leaned across the desk to give her a warm kiss.
"Long day, love?"
Esther nodded. "You're son keeps kicking me in the bladder."
"Our daughter is just naturally active. She takes after her mother." Ion replied with a teasing smile. "Would you like a backrub?"
"That sounds lovely."
Ion moved around behind her chair and set to work on the knots in her back. Esther let out a little sigh as the pain began to ease and began to open her mail. Most of it was routine things, but a small envelope at the bottom of the pile caught her eye. Esther carefully opened it, finding a note card inside with a beautiful lakefront villa on the cover. She flipped open the card only to have a photograph fall out. Ion reached around her to pick it up.
"What on earth?"
Esther heard him ask before she started reading the note. The delicate script inside was vaguely familiar. It read:
Dear Friends,
I know this may come as a surprise to some of you, and we truly do not mean to offend in our actions. However, neither Abel nor I felt willing to wait any longer than necessary, and a formal event didn't appeal to us. As of the first of May, Abel and I are married. We are currently honeymooning in the Lake District in Italy, and we will be in Rome the first of June to start celebrating with our friends and family.
With much love,
Caterina Sforza Nightroad
"They got married."
Ion peered over her shoulder to read the note. "It would explain the picture. I hadn't realized they were that close."
He handed her the photo graphic. Lady Caterina stood on the steps of a beautiful villa dressed in a simple cream colored gown. Abel stood behind her, his arms wrapped around her waist and his chin resting on her shoulder. They both looked incredibly happy. Esther smiled. She had some suspicions about those two since the wedding preparations, and this had simply confirmed them. Of course, she had also had the benefit of seeing those two interact together. She wasn't sure that Ion had ever gotten that opportunity. When he had met with Lady Caterina, things had been rather dire, and Abel had not been present.
"They were slated to be the next ones married, remember? After all, they caught the bouquet and the garter at our wedding."
Ion smiled at mention of that event and moved so he could kiss her again. Esther kissed him back quite happily. They were happy together, and if Caterina and Abel felt the same about each other, then their marriage was the way things should be. After all, stories ended with happily ever after.