Seraphine now stood beside him at the altar. The Bishop delivered his sermon about love, marriage and hope. She stole a glance at Kain and found him staring straight ahead. His face bore no expression but she knew deep within his heart, they were saying: This marriage is only my duty, nothing more.
"Duty." She repeatedly told herself this. She stared at the image of a bride in the mirror. Her face beautifully made up in pale hues of peach and pink. A lace veil covered her copper brown hair fell delicately over her shoulders and created a graceful train on the floor.
As lovely as the image was, her emotions were a sea of turmoil. Her brown eyes were a sea of confusion, doubt and fear. Her father's words, her mother's words and even Kain's father's words, Lucas Miyagi, played over and over again in her mind. It shattered those innocent dreams and wishes of her childhood days.
"Seraphine," they told her,"Just marry him. You don't have to like him. You don't even have to talk to him. Just be his wife." Her gaze fell on her gloved hands and her lips trembled as she willed herself not to cry.
The Bishop finished his sermon and two young boys appeared. The vows were recited as practiced. Slowly, solemnly - Yet it was meaningless. Seraphine only felt cold dread as the words left her lips. They exchanged rings as the Bishop instructed. She raised her eyes to look at him, but he was looking down at her hand, which he still held in his. In his eyes, there was a faint glimmer of emotion. Of loss and despair.
Seraphine stepped out of her waiting room. To her surprise, a woman clad in a dark green dress was waiting for her. She was tall and exquisitely beautiful. She did not smile but stared at the bride. Before Seraphine could ask, she spoke: "You can still leave." The woman said with great effort to keep her voice calm. "Leave now and everything will be fine." The woman held on poorly as tears broke through her cold exterior. They poured from her eyes creating trails of dark mascara down her cheeks.
Torn between running away and following through, Seraphine whispered back, "I..I can't." It was her duty.
The woman looked at her coldly with eyes filled with tears and said,"You can never take him away from me." Seraphine didn't have time to think about what she meant. As soon as her father arrived to escort her to the Cathedral, the woman was nowhere to be seen.
The woman looked at her coldly with eyes filled with tears and said,"You can never take him away from me." Seraphine didn't have time to think about what she meant. As soon as her father arrived to escort her to the Cathedral, the woman was nowhere to be seen.
(End of Part 2)
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