Serena Zeakkur

I had been riding in this infernal carriage for at least a day now. The roads between territories weren't paved and bumps in the road were an often encounter. "How long until we reach Augustus county?," I asked with obvious impatience. I knew that I was to be married off to the Augustus family and despite that fact I didn't really know how to feel. Part of me knew that it was my duty to get married for the sake of my family, and the other part of me thought that as an heir I should have the luxury of choosing my own partner. Of course one of the reasons that I agreed to at least meet with the heir of Augustus, Dante Augustus, was because our families were already close. My father, the sly bastard, didn't inform me until I was already on my way that the marriage itself was already planned to take place a mere few days after I arrived. When my handmaiden Vanessa informed me of this it had already been too late! That particular handmaid was sitting across from me, and acted as though she was unaffected by my glare. She responded to my earlier comment by saying coolly, "We are almost there my lady."

All that I could respond to her with was a "Humph," as we approached the large gates of the estate. I was surprised by the number of trees that grew inside the estate itself, but then I remembered that the Augustus family primarily relied upon the lumber industry. They made use of their small territory by placing orchards on their property. It really was quite a beautiful sight with the trees covered in snow and ice. Sure all of the empire's northern territories were covered in snow similar to the Zaekkur territory. However the groves of trees made the view seem less monotonous.

Eventually our carriage made its way to the main part of the estate which housed a grand gothic style manor. The manor itself seemed to consist of two wings both to the east and the west. When we approached it was through the front courtyard where it seemed as though a group of individuals had come to greet us. The carriage soon came to a stop and my handmaiden alighted from the carriage and as I moved out a footman was already there to help us descend. When I saw the man who would be my husband, at least in my mind, he was perfect. Everything from his black hair and amber eyes. To his impressive physique and confident posture. All of it was perfect to my taste and when I heard his voice it was as though I knew that I wanted to marry the man.

"Lady Zaekkur welcome to our home," his voice came out sweet like honey.

I could tell that he was still apprehensive of me with the slight crinkle in his brow, however I knew that eventually I HAD to win him over. Maybe my feelings were progressing too quickly, but I knew that my family had already made an engagement. This simple fact made it so that simple interest in a man over his looks alone was, something more.

"The pleasure is mine, Lord Dante. Also please call me Serena. We are to be married soon after all.," was the only reply that I could give. I wanted him to be closer to me than a man simply being kind with his words. I wanted us to have a deep relationship, and if we were to be married anyway I hoped that it would be loving. Even if we were not the ones who planned it. Suddenly the boy who seemed to be a miniature version of the man except for the eyes which were gray was before me.

"Sister?," he asked almost as if it were a question and a statement. I glanced over to the man that would be my husband and noticed a wry smile on his face. I decided that I would play along with the boy.

"Ara, and who is this handsome young man?," I asked with faux curiosity. I knew who the boy was as I had at least learned of the family when my engagement was announced. Cecil Augustus was the youngest member of the Augustus house and was very much protected by the family. I could see why as the boy was cute and lively. Who wouldn't want to protect something so precious?

"I'm Dante's brother Cecil! Are you going to be my new sister?," the boy asked, and I couldn't help but melt a little inside.

"Well I suppose I am.," I said with conviction. Even if my marriage didn't go over well with his brother Dante; I would at least be sure that it didn't have an adverse affect on this precious treasure. I could also see that the crease in Dante's brow lessened with this interaction.

I was glad to see this difference and couldn't help but stare at Dante's stupidly perfect face before he said, "My Lady…," there was a pause as though he was considering something and then continued, "Serena, I would like to invite you to dinner. Would you be willing to join us this evening?"

I felt warm inside when I realized that he had taken my words to heart and responded, "I would like that Dante."

Upon entering the manor I was impressed by the grand entryway. The entire building was constructed from the best lumber that the territory had to offer. The banisters, walls, and even the archways, were intricately carved. Some of the carvings depicted myths, legends, animals, and probably some of them held only meaning to the family itself. While the servants went about the business of getting settled. Dante and his brother led me into the east wing of the manor. It seemed to be close to the manor's kitchens which used a huge stove connecting to pipes extending throughout the manor to keep it warm in the winter months. If I hadn't lived in a similar home I wouldn't have even noticed them as whoever designed the place built it with these pipes in mind. By the time that we had sat down for dinner I noticed that the sun had begun to dip down past the horizon and Dante seemed a little less on edge. Several servants prepared our seating arrangements on the long table with Dante sitting at the head. I sat on his right as his fiance across from his brother Cecil. I smiled at the boy as he was still obviously excited to be sitting down with his new 'sister'.

As the food was being placed out I spoke up, "I noticed that the Augustus territory was very different from Zaekkur when I arrived."

"Oh how so?," Dante asked with obvious curiosity.

In my interactions with the man, however limited, I could tell that he was genuine which was a quality that I admired and liked. His mood and sometimes his thoughts could be seen with his expressions. Most nobles no matter the age would keep things close to the vest even if they were related, or married. I didn't know if this authenticity was presented to me because of the engagement or if this is because of who he was.

I knew that posing a comparison between our territories would get Dante's attention. Most noble scions never left the territory until they reached the age of twenty to be educated in the Asheal Empire's capital.

In reply to his question I said, "Zeakkur mainly supplies stone and we have extensive quarries throughout the territory. Of course with our families so close we supply each other with our resources. However the manor that you have here is replaced by a castle of stone due to the abundance of stone resources." That being said, it wasn't strange for territories to design themselves in different ways. The Augustus estate still had large walls surrounding the estate to repel invaders, but Zeakkur still had the advantage in defense due to this difference.

I could see the gears turning in Dante's head and after a moment he asked, "Does your territory also have limestone deposits?"

"We do, though we use them like any other material. It makes for great bricks and is pretty durable.," I answered and pondered what he could be thinking of using limestone for.

"I would like to build some roads between our territories. We can use the limestone to make quicklime, which can then be made into slaked lime, and a material known as tephra to make the cement. If you are interested my court magister can inform you of the details. He specializes in Alchemy and researches most materials even if they have a mundane use.," Dante offered.

"I would like to speak with him more so that I could send your proposal to my father.," I said with clear interest.

With the food now displayed by the servants to the brothers and I we began to eat. Cecil seemed to be enjoying the meal but I noticed that Dante barely touched his food. At first I thought that it must've been because he was lost in thought. I had been observing him the most because I wanted to get a sense of him before the marriage. It was because of this observation I noticed that when he did eat he had a slight almost imperceptible distaste for the food. This was the first time that he had tried to hide something since I arrived and so I decided to question him on it.

"Is the food not to your liking?," I asked.

The servants seemed to freeze for a moment. Though this was likely due to not being able to serve their lord well enough than through fear of Dante. I could tell by the way the servants acted in the estate that the Augustus family was loved in their rule.

"No it's not that.," the servants visibly relaxed at Dante's statement, "I had an 'accident' before you arrived and it seems that my palette has changed."

I decided not to press the issue of the accident he was referring to. I didn't know what kind of accident could change someone's taste, but I knew that this was something he was a little uncomfortable discussing. So I decided to change the topic.

"So Cecil, what do you like to do for fun? Wouldn't you want to play with your big sister later?," I questioned the younger brother.

Cecil visibly brightened and said, "Yeah! I want to build a snowman with big sis!"

I had never heard of a 'snow man' and looked to Dante in askance.

"Cecil has some creative ways to play in the snow. He builds balls of snow of varying sizes and then stacks them to make it look like a person.," Dante said and smiled with a bit of mirth.

That smile of his would probably get me into a lot of trouble later and I thought, 'Damn he's gorgeous!'

"Okay Cecil you and big sis will be building snowmen tomorrow!," I declared as though we were going to build an army of snow to take over the world.

Cecil was visibly excited by this prospect and we both returned to eating our food.

It wasn't long after that an older servant approached Dante and said, "My lord, something in the cellar requires your attention."

It was only at this moment that I realized that no wine had been provided with the meal. I assumed that this was because Cecil wasn't at the age to be drinking yet, but it seemed that I was mistaken.

Dante himself seemed visibly confused, but quickly stood up from his seat and said, "If you will excuse me Serena, it seems that I am needed at the moment. Would you care to continue our discussions tomorrow?"

It was most irregular for a host to leave their guest on the first day they arrived and in some noble houses could be considered an insult. Though I could see that it must be important and I knew that I would hold him to the promise he offered me.

"I would like that very much, Dante. I will hold you to that promise, tomorrow then.," I replied.

Dante left the room followed by the older servant. Cecil and I discussed his plans for tomorrow. After Dante left the meal finished rather quickly and I was escorted to my chambers. I found my handmaiden Vanessa waiting for my arrival. She helped me change into my sleep wear. I sat at the vanity while Vanessa brushed my hair and we discussed the day's events.

"So what did you think of him my Lady," Vanessa asked in that cool tone of hers.

I couldn't help but blush a little and answer, "He is handsome. More importantly he seems to value his family, servants and territory, and in turn is loved by them. Even tonight I noticed that if there was an issue he would immediately go solve it instead of letting it get out of hand. In a way he is a little too perfect which has me a bit wary, but all in all I'm no longer opposed to this marriage."

I was honest with my closest confidant.

"That is good to hear my lady, because there was no getting out of this marriage anyway.," Vanessa's remark sparked a little irritation from me, but I knew that she wouldn't react to it.

"Sigh, I would like you to prepare a letter to my father. Dante has an idea for how to fix those infernal roads that we took to get here…Aah!," I paused for a moment as Vanessa was being a little harsh with the brush and shot her another look of irritation, "I will be discussing the 'cement' that Dante spoke of with his court magister tomorrow so mention that in the letter as well."

"Yes my lady.," Vanessa replied and then blew out the candles.

After reaching the bed I slowly started to drift to sleep anticipating the events of tomorrow.