Well as my computer was working and the little Antonio in my head wouldn't shut up - you now have the next chapter. Probably won't write the next one til February, don't quote me on that though it'll be up earlier if I give up on my history work (like last night).
*snickers* I genuinely thought my fic had been assaulted when I saw the review count – not even a day and the new chapter already had reviews~
Thanks to everyone who's reviewing – it's good to know there are other, more sane people than my friends who enjoy my warped humour and strange pairings XD
Abel yawned as he slowly made his way into the church. It was too early – ungodly even.
"I get it's 'morning' Mass for a reason – but honestly, five A.M. is a time for sleeping not kneeling and praying!" he complained to Caterina, who was walking beside him.
"So sleep at the back, just put your head on the pew in front and look like you're praying," Caterina chuckled making sure no one heard her comment.
Just then someone barged past Abel, an incoherent ramble coming in answer to Abel's "Ouch, you could have said excuse me!"
Abel blinked, actually having been able to work out some of what the man had said, "'Heretic… Accursed blonde hippies… Dear Lord why me… Jump in a pit of vampires'… Clearly someone didn't get any sleep."
Caterina laughed, "Indeed – though you should have seen who it was."
"Hmm?" Abel raised an eyebrow before looking back and noting the man had been wearing cardinal vestments. "Wait. You're not saying-?"
Caterina nodded, "It was Francesco. I wonder if he's alright, his eye was twitching rather rapidly," she added with rare genuine concern for her elder brother.
"Apparently the poor soul was up all night cursing Heaven, Hell and anything in between – the rumour is it has to do with yourself and Cardinal Borgia, Your Eminence."
"Oh, Professor, I didn't realise you'd returned to Rome yet!" Abel greeted the Albion nobleman.
"I arrived shortly after you left – shame really I'd have liked to catch up with you."
"Professor, what is this rumour?" Caterina asked, cutting across Abel before he could reply.
"It's said that the young cardinal went to see your brother late last night, perhaps it scarred Cardinal Medici somewhat?" William Walter Wordsworth A.K.A 'Professor' answered with a shrug, "something about being Cardinal Borgia's Best Man I believe."
Abel paled, "Rather Cardinal Medici than me – actually, I'm rather surprised I haven't been properly roped into this yet, I'm technically a friend to both of you and I haven't been given so much as an invitation," the Crusnik added, a slight hint of indignation crawling into his voice toward the end.
"I wouldn't say that if I were you, Abel, you might jinx it," Caterina said with a sigh.
"You don't honestly believe that superstitious rubbish do you?" Abel asked.
"No, but talking as you are will no doubt get you 'roped into this'," Caterina said with a smile breaking away from her male companions and making her way to the front of the cathedral as was the custom.
~~~Hmm, the corner pannel does make this look rather sweet and canon-y. I wonder if the manga-ka ships AntonioxCaterina too? XD mangahere(dot)com/trinity_blood/v09/c035/31(dot)html ~~~
Antonio didn't take much of the service in that day, operating mechanically as he desperately ran everything over in his head, praying his efforts would end well.
He started when he realised people were filing out to leave. Moving quickly through the slight crowd, which was slow moving due to people kneeling and crossing themselves as they exited the pews, Antonio easily reached Caterina, lightly pulling on her arm to get her attention.
He got it too, as the woman whipped around, the scowl and harsh comment dying on her lips and turning confused as she studied Antonio.
"What is it, Cardinal Borgia?" she asked raising an eyebrow. Antonio didn't respond at first, gently leading the two of them to one side of the alter, though still within clear view. Antonio gulped as he felt eyes slowly turning onto him, watching with curious looks and heard the whispers of others pointing the two hand-holding cardinals out.
"…" Antonio felt his throat tighten, unable to speak (a rarity, but given the situation, who could blame him?). Gathering up his courage, Antonio steeled himself hoping that Caterina's answer would be heartfelt and true.
"Caterina… I know we are to wed soon, but… It doesn't feel right without doing this first," forcing his gaze upward to lock with Caterina's, Antonio felt his words die again. Nothing he'd thought of last night, or this morning for that matter, had felt right and the little that didn't sound too bad had already mostly been said, the rest forgotten as he looked into Caterina's eyes.
Perhaps it was a trick of the light or his imagination, but to Antonio, Caterina's eyes looked so unguarded it was almost as though he was looking at a small child who had been disappointed one too many times and really wasn't expecting much.
"Ha… Listen, I know you don't think much of me," Antonio whispered, his gaze falling to look at their entwined hands, "I know you probably think I'm a selfish jerk and you no doubt hate me. But…" Antonio tightened his grip slightly, and felt his voice grow stronger and more audible as he looked up again at Caterina's face.
"But I do love you. I'd always heard rumours that you were the most beautiful cardinal in all Rome and I honestly thought it was all hog-wash… But when we met that first time… I don't really know why, but I was even more determined to race up the ranks so I could be with you, spend time in your presence… I know now I must have seemed like a complete goof – not to mention a complete mentula," Caterina scoffed lightly, a smile tugging at her lips. Antonio had whispered the word so she didn't worry that it may have carried to the tens of people who were staring at them. In fact, she'd half-forgotten them, slightly transfixed by the determined look in Antonio's eyes.
"I don't need you to reciprocate my feelings, just know they are there and everything I do from now on will be so I can see you smiling as you are now. Your position makes you constrained, so I want you to accept me, and know that you can say whatever you want – yell, cry, scream at me if that's what you want. All I ask is that you smile truly for me," Antonio moved one of his hands up to cup Caterina's cheek, "even if you only did it once a year or even less then that, I know that once I see it… I'll remember standing here and knowing there's no woman on this planet I'd rather be with."
Falling back to tradition, Antonio took a small step backward, pulling a small black box from his vestments as he did. Gently, he dropped to one knee, his eyes never once leaving Caterina's. "So now I ask this of you, my Lady. Will you do me the honour of being my wife?" As he asked this, Antonio pulled the box open to reveal the jewel inside of it.
Caterina felt her eyes bulge upon seeing the ring, but she couldn't help it. She'd stood still as stone through Antonio's mini-speech, questioning all of it and yet knowing somehow, that the man was speaking from his heart, not lines someone had forced down his throat, nor the cheap words he usually spouted. She gazed at the ring, remembering Abel mentioning it was well worth the obscene price, at Caterina had to admit she agreed.
The ring itself was formed from white gold, softer to look at than platinum and purer than silver, the ring had a simple design, with the only decoration the way the ring had been moulded so the shimmering blue stone within sat in the shape of a tilde, reminding her of the sea in Summertime. The metal was fanned out at the ends into five smaller strands that wrapped around the stone's edge in a vine-like fashion. Truly stunning. Coming back to herself, Caterina realised she needed to answer.
Widening her smile, Caterina held out her hand and nodded, "I think I can manage to smile a little more than that."
Cheers broke out around the two as Antonio slipped the ring onto Caterina's finger, "Good," he mumbled to her, "because I think I'd be crushed if I had to wait years to see you looking happy."
"Don't worry," Caterina, making sure only Antonio could hear her over the cheers, "even if you are a mentula, I'm sure I can bring myself to enjoy your idiocy once in a while." As the realisation that she was picking on him dawned on Antonio, Caterina laughed lightly and placed a soft kiss on his cheek before carefully dismissing herself and leaving the Cathedral in search of her hopefully quiet office.
Oh jeez! I had no idea there was a site for Latin swears… If your curious – mentula is a prick/dickhead, add an 'e' and that's the female form.