The walk to the man...well I suppose he should be called a god...was one of the hardest I had ever undertaken.
Unlike with Catherine, I could feel an aura off of him, something so charged it made beads of sweat role down my neck.
Joshua adjusted his cuffs more times than he should, but all in all we were Sterlings, and we played the part of the distinguished gentlemen to the latter.
Catherine hurried along, not turning once to look at us. She had invited us here, I wondered what she had expected to happen.
We got to the man's... god's circle. Conversations died the moment we arrived and one by one the masked men stepped aside. Marticc's son stood at his side, his eyes bored, his posture even more bored. Next to him stood the lady of the evening.
Layla looked more stunning up close. Her dress was a classic ball gown, wide and circular with crimson streaks drawn around the frills. A red satin glove covered her hands up to the elbows. Her hair was pinned up in a bun with a golden pin to keep it in place.
We locked eyes for a moment. She recognised us through the masks. In as much as we tried our best to divert attention, we were still several inches taller than most.
The 'most' excluding her brother and father.
Sir Marticc Altican cleared his throat and turned to me, and then to Catherine.
"Goddaughter." He said.
"Godfather, these are..." Catherine gestured to me and Josh. "My business associates." She announced.
"Business associates ehh." The Man nodded politely at us. "I do not believe we have met before young men." He offered his hand for a handshake. Joshua and I looked at the hand for a moment of uncertainty. I for one did not fancy shaking this man.
Joshua took the initiative. "It is a honour to finally meet you." He shook the man's hand with his gloved own. Joshua withdrew his hand and turned to me. Another uncomfortable moment of uncertainty followed.
Go on brother, my brother whispered in my head. Fuck it. I reached out and shook him. The man's hands were gloved, but I could feel the heat. He held on to the shake for far longer than was necessary, his green eyes staring into mine.
After what felt like an eternity he finally let go.
"I honestly expected Catherine to come here with a celebrity or some sportsman. I must say I am pleasantly surprised."
Joshua chuckled lightly. Catherine breathed a very deep sigh of relief. I for one still felt the burn of the man's hand, I looked down to see my gloves dripping with sweat. I have not sweated in a hundred years.
"Well we wouldn't miss this auspicious occasion for anything." I replied politely. The man nodded.
"You both feel... familiar." Luis interrupted, finally standing up right. "Have we met before?"
"That would be very unlikely." Catherine jumped in. "They're not from around here."
"Where are they from then?" Luis pressed.
"Enough son." Marticc commanded softly, his eyes still on us. "This is your sister's night, and as tradition will have it, the mask protects these fine gentlemen's privacy and identity." He turned to his son. "You know this."
Luis nodded slowly,"forgive me father."
The piano came to a slow end at that moment and a wave of applause flowed with quite praise for the pianist.
Marticc turned to us. "The debut is beginning. I do hope to see you when this is all over." With that he bowed and turned to leave. Luis offered us one last dirty look before turning to follow his father. Layla didn't even offer a glance.
I wondered why that bothered me.
"I do hope to see you when this is all over." Joshua mimicked when we were finally alone with Catherine."I've got half the mind to get into the car and drive off this very instant."
"You got your voice back?" Catherine asked.
"What?"
"You got your voice back. You were awfully composed when godfather was here." She mocked.
Joshua laughed dryly. "Oh darling. No offence to Sir Marticc, but I spent my entire life with Mr Sterling. I wasn't going to laugh or joke around when things got serious."
"Mhmm." Was Catherine's dry reply. As much as I enjoyed the diversion of their banter,there were more pressing issues at hand.
Joshua. My brother's thoughts were a wreck. Questions and jokes flying and fighting for supremacy.
I know... your wondering if he knows.
He answered. I was glad we were on the same page. I looked down at my gloves, the sweat was gone but the sensation of his heat still lingered. It felt like sitting in the back of the Fenris with Layla all over again.
I do not doubt it now. I admitted, I knew this man was a god. There was no need worrying over a fact, but that left a heavy question unanswered.
What is the goal of this?
What? Joshua asked.
They are fire gods. We are frost gods, it makes no sense. Plus if the world...
I could not say it all, but if the world ended in sixteen days and i and Layla are instrumental to it, why were we being brought together? Askarion had relayed no news, but if everything was to end, was Destiny not supposed to be aware?
Those are details we leave for father. I believe we've done quite well today. We've found out...
...Things that father already knew. I interrupted.
"Uhm guys?"
We both turned at the same time to see Catherine staring at us uneasily. "You two okay?" The sounds of the gala returned carrying the heavy smell of perfume and cigerattes along with it.
"We're fine." I answered curtly.
She nodded, unconvinced but pushed no further. The pianist returned to his stool and a new piece rolled into the evening; William Byrd's The King's Hunt soon filled into the hall and everyone moved towards the center of the room.
"Well." Joshua said, "we could ruin Catherine's evening by going home, or..." He turned towards sir Marticc who was leading his daughter for the first dance. "We could stay and see this thing through."
Idiot brother with his logical takes I could not deny. I nodded. So much was going on that I could not explain. Plus the voice that had welcomed me into the castle...
... I was going to find it.