Who: Grayson Wilkes and Ophelia Llewellyn
What: Surprise engagement ring!
When: December 22, 1977
Where: Caitlin and Ioan's wedding

Grayson didn't necessarily dislike dress robes, but they were not the most comfortable things in the world. Not that he was worried about this at the moment - no, he was quite more occupied with watching the way that Ophelia stood, frowning.

Goodness, one might think she was actually displeased with their arrangement. He subtly tucked on his engagement ring from the pocket where it had been sitting in his robes and then straightened himself, although he replaced his gloves shortly after. At least he was wearing in theory, even if the gloves made it a bit harder to notice. He'd hate to take away the focus from the Bride and Groom, after all.

Or that's what he would be telling anyone who asked why they hadn't heard about the engagement today.

Ophelia was so nervous, it wasn't even funny. Truth be told, she didn't know if she'd ever been so nervous in her whole life, and the cause of her being nervous didn't even make sense. She was actually feeling self-conscious, like she cared what this man thought, wherever he was (because she knew he was watching, he had to be). Merlin, they were supposed to meet here, he knew she didn't know who he was, so the only explantion for him not finding her yet was that he was trying to play games with her.

He must be a cocky bastard, just like she'd thought. A cocky, horrible bastard, that's what she was doomed to marry. He was probably one of those ones she heard about that was horrible to their wives and beat them and all that and this was too much, fuck, she couldn't take it!

Her hand was shaking as it tried to keep grip on the glass of champagne she was holding and she immediately set it down on the table. If he was watching, she didn't want him to see what a complete wreck she was at the moment. Merlin, what she wouldn't have done for Smeth to be there right now...

Now now, cocky bastard wasn't necessarily a completely correct view of Grayson. He took a sip of his own champagne and arched his brow to himself when he caught sight of Ophelia setting her drink down. The girl did look a bit ... twitchy.

Perhaps now wasn't the best time to go over and see her? After all, he did want to make a tolerable first impression since he assumed they would be spending some amount of time together. He pursed his lips - it wasn't that he was hesitating, he told himself, it was that he was waiting for the exact perfect moment.

He found himself suddenly irritated and resolved to walk over with his best attempt at a charming smile. It was surprisingly ... not all that bad.

"Are you quite all right?"

Ohhhh man, she was jumpy and it showed when she started at Grayson's voice. Thankfully, she was able to keep the high-pitched squeak out of her voice--that would have been mortifying. "I--I'm--" She turned slightly to see who was addressing her and found a rather handsome man--okay, so he was really handsome, but she wasn't allowed to think that about men anymore, was she?--with a rather charming smile on his face. She took a deep breath. "Thank you, I'm fine."

Ophelia smiled at him, not completely assuringly, and turned back around to take her drink again. She downed the rest of the glass in one take before putting the empty flute back down, feeling she deserved at least that much tonight. Even out in public.

He couldn't help but shake his head at the woman - goodness, she was drinking that entire glass in one gulp ... but then again, he had seen his darling sister do the same. Perhaps it wasn't good to judge on just that one thing.

But how to put this delicately. Ophelia seemed to be ignoring him already, which was both mildly irritating and vaguely reassuring. He nearly reached to rest a hand on her arm and then thought better of it.

"I would assume you enjoyed the service?"

Oi, why was this guy still talking to her? Didn't he know she was engaged like every other bloody person at this whole stupid wedding? Didn't he understand a thing about why she couldn't talk to guys--or at the least see that she didn't want to talk to anyone tonight? Of course she wasn't fine, so if a girl looked un-fine and said she was, then you should just leave her alone! Auuuugh.

"Yes, the service was lovely," Ophelia answered him, giving him a tight-lipped smile. "Caitlin looked beautiful, Ioan looked handsome, and the whole atmosphere was beautiful." She didn't mention that she had hated the whole thing because she knew her fiancée was somewhere in the audience watching. This man need not know that.

This was his main problem with women other than his sister and ... apparently Fiona. They always seemed so perpetually irritated. And yes, he did in fact know that she was engaged.

"And yet you seem rather ... unhappy. Worried about something, perhaps?" He glanced at her again - she was tolerably attractive, he'd decided. She would look much better with blonde hair, but she wasn't completely tragic.

Ophelia mentally rolled her eyes and turned around completely to face the man. Fine, he wanted to talk, she'd talk. Whatever, she supposed that any time she wasn't talking to her fiancée was time well spent.

"Yes, I'm worried and unhappy," she finally conceded. "I'm engaged to a man I've never met and who I'm supposed to meet here tonight, and I'm certain he's somewhere watching me in the intestest of playing games with my mind and I'm completely and utterly a wreck about the whole thing. There. You've got it out of me."

He almost laughed. Almost. But Grayson had more control in his pinky finger than most people had in their entire body.

He simply arched a brow and gave a mild sigh as he drew a box out of his pocket.

"Then this, I think, would not be a terribly good way to cheer your spirits?" Grayson offered her the box ... admirably without any sort of smirk.

Ophelia's breath caught in her throat in a very bad way, in a bad way that meant it was impossible to breathe, that it was like she was choking on all her words and she couldn't even function right now oh my God, what the fuck was this and--

Brandy eyes were wide as she stared at the ring box and her legs were literally shaking underneath her. Oh fuck, no way, this was the guy and she had just ranted about him to him and he was showing her a ring and she didn't know what to think or what to do oh no where was Junjie, she needed him now.

Her hand went out for the edge of the table to brace herself and she looked between him and the box. "You're...you--"

He hadn't expected her to take things that badly. Honestly, he'd been hoping that at least her parents would have shown her a bloody picture...but of course there was no such luck for him.

Now this was going to be terribly awkward. When Grayson found himself in these sort of situations ... he fell back on his manners. He gave a polite half-bow and then forced a smile.

Just a little one, of course. "Grayson Wilkes."

Guh, that sealed the deal, this was the one, this was the guy. And what was she going to do? She couldn't just leave the situation and she couldn't make a big scene, her parents had made bloody sure of that. So what in the--oh, she wanted to cry, this was the worst night of her life. He really must have been a cocky bastard after all, tp spring it on her like this. He had caught her totally unaware and he knew it and he must have been laughing at her in his mind, the arse, and MERLIN--

"O--Ophelia... Llewellyn," she choked out. Sweet Circe, there was nothing else she could do but get over it and be civil. This was terrible, had to be the single most terrible thing that could happen to a girl.

Grayson was just awful at this 'socializing' thing with anyone but his siblings. He had a habit of springing things on people. After a moment of consideration, he offered her his arm. Merlin, she looked like she was about to burst from ... something that he could only assume was not happiness.

"You look, Miss Llewellyn, as if you might need some ... air." It was a subtle offering for him to take her outside - at least they would be away from the party and she could be a little less ... controlled if she so desired.

Surprisingly, Ophelia was not offended or annoyed by his offer, like she imagined she should have been. It was a good idea, after all.. and it showed that he was not completely devoid of compassion. She still thought he was a cocky bastard... but at least he was a cocky bastard with a little bit of a heart.

"Yes, yes... that sounds agreeable, thank you," she nodded, and took his arm in what could only be described at nervous uncertainty. As they walked out to one of the balconies, Ophelia attempted with all her might to avoid looking at him; not for embarrassment, but for a continuing lack of knowing what was expected of her in this situation.

Not that Grayson was any more certain about things. Once they were out on the balcony, he released her arm and glanced back towards the party. At least the drapes were drawn closed, so they were the only two out for the moment.

She probably didn't want to look at him, anyway. His face always gave off a sort of stoicism that caused all sorts of problems with ... appearing concerned. "Do ... take as long as you need."

It was a good thing for the warming charms out there, or it would have been positively freezing. Ophelia stepped over to the edge and leaned against it, watching the snow fall softly onto the ground several stories below. For a brief moment she wondered what it would be like if she just jumped... She had to admit it sounded pretty good at the moment. But no, curse it that she knew she wouldn't. She was too cowardly to do something like that, to kill herself over this.

A very lenghty moment of silence reigned between the two before she finally spoke to him. "Can I see the ring... Mister Wilkes?" she asked, still staring out into the white abyss.

"Well, it is yours..." He handed her the small box again with a nod, rather relieved that she had broken the silence with something civil rather than something not.

Because certainly it wasn't Grayson's job to break the silence between them since she'd been the one to start it in the first place with her little pseudo-episode inside the manor. He ran a hand through his hair and took to watching the snow as well. It wasn't all that bad...

Lia reached out and took the ring box from his hand, opening it with a bit of apprehension. The piece of jewelry inside could be described as nothing short of gorgeous, and despite herself, she found herself getting a little lost in the sparkling diamond in the center.

Oh man, that was--Ophelia shook her head a bit to pull herself out of it and removed the ring from the box. She slipped it slowly on her left ring finger, (somewhat begrudgingly) admiring it as she did. Well, if nothing else could be said for him, he did know how to pick out jewelry. Pulling her eyes away from her finger, she looked up at him for the first time. "It's really beautiful," she admitted quietly.

He was always pleased to see that someone recognized his taste.

"Well," oh, it was time for him to be smooth, "I'd picked it after considering your picture, of course." So it had helped - which wasn't entirely a lie. He'd picked the ring after thinking about what Ophelia might like based on what she'd been wearing.

Yes, it was systematic.

Ophelia wasn't sure whether that should creep her out or make her happy, that he had actually put some consideration into it... As long as she had to make the best of this situation, she was certain that the second option would be much more pleasing to accept. "That's very interesting," she commented. "You must have a very good eye for detail, then."

"I've had a lot of practice," He admits with a bit of a smile. Just a little bit, because the main reason he's practiced at picking out jewelery is because he buys it for his darling sister often enough.

And Bella, too. "Several sisters, after all."

"Ah," she accepted that with a nod, and looked back out onto the snow-covered grounds of the castle. Ophelia didn't know how she was going to hide the ring--certain people would notice if she didn't wear it--or how she was going to be able to play it off as nothing. It did look very serious, not like a random piece she would have picked up in Hogsmeade. She really didn't want to think of that now; after all, she still had to figure out how to tell Smeth about... this.

The thought of her boyfriend brought back a wave of depression and she sighed, trying to keep it from showing as much as she could. "I suppose that would give you a lot of practice, although my brother has three sisters and he's absolutely dismal at picking out good jewelry."

"Well, some siblings don't pay attention." He was of the opinion that he paid attention because he cared about his siblings - Daniella especially.

Nevermind that it paid for him to listen to everyone else. He glanced over his shoulder toward the party again - Merlin, this was awkward. "It might be best to return to the party ... if you're feeling a little better."

Ophelia opened her mouth to say something about how Ioan did pay attention, he was her favorite sibling no matter how his choices in fashion differed from hers.. but stopped herself immediately. It was unnecessary to argue with him, and would only worsen the situation.

"Yes, I suppose we should," she said with a nod, turning away from the balcony and taking his arm again--this time, without him having to offer it. Anything to make things better, she told herself, anything to make things better. "Thank you for allowing me to come out here. I did need a moment."

Believe it or not, Grayson did try to be polite to her. She was going to be his wife, after all. And he'd always hated husbands like Sebastian who didn't respect their wives, even if they were less-than perfect. After all, she did play Quidditch.

But she'd been at least mostly proper for the majority of their introduction. He nodded, opening the door of the balcony for her so that she might head back inside to the party.

Ophelia stepped inside and was immediately taken in once more with the hustle and bustle of the ballroom. From the other side, she noticed immediately her mother and father's eyes on her and suddenly felt sickened. She did her best to avert her attention from both of them and drew Grayson in the least forceful way possible away from their line of sight.

"So.. my mother tells me that you're to be staying with us," she said. Lia picked up another flute of champagne off of a passing waiter's tray, but this one she sipped at slowly.

It was easy enough to see why Ophelia was directing him, and he supposed it made sense to want to get out of their line of vision. He subtly shifted so that Ophelia's back was facing them - Grayson's face rarely betrayed the topic of conversation, so she was mostly safe.

"That's what I've been told. I assume it's some effort to acquaint us better." He glanced absently up, looking for any sign of .. the other Death Eaters involved in their little holiday plan in the most casual manner possible.

Lia noticed his attention stray for a moment but again, decided to say nothing of it. "I suppose it's a good idea," she said. Ophelia did not personally think it was a good idea, in fact, but from a totally unbiased point of view... yes, it was a good idea. "I've already become engaged to you without knowing a thing about you; it would be unfortunate to go to my wedding not knowing a thing about my husband."

Her wedding, she still couldn't believe that was true. It wasn't even the good type of disbelief that she had always imagined she would feel when she thought of her wedding. This wedding was not going to be like a childhood dream's wedding. It was going to be loveless, absolutely--

She didn't sound thrilled about it, but he supposed that it was hard for someone her age to adjust to being engaged. Not that it was any less strange for Grayson, especially considering his rather confusing feelings for Fiona.

And his sister, but those always came before anything else...so he didn't consider them much of a problem. "It may be, but I imagine it will serve to make things a bit more awkward than necessary." It was almost disagreeing with her parents, but he'd never say such a thing outright.

Ophelia actually smiled at that--just a little, just enough to make it known that she had actually smiled. Guh, why did this Grayson Wilkes have to be a... not bad guy? She wasn't resigning her belief that he wasn't a bastard quite yet, because this him acting like a good guy was probably just another trick. Ugh, he was so confusing already and she'd hardly met him.

"I think that you're probably right," she agreed, crossing her arms and leaning against the wall. She lifted the glass to her lips thoughtfully. "But the awkwardness has to be gotten over at some point."

"Well," he paused, thinking about that, "Ideally, yes."

He wanted to smirk, but thought it might be a bit strange. "That doesn't mean that it should be forced off, though. I rather think that would result in unpleasant things." Grayson Wilkes would always be a confusing man.

"Although," he'd been thinking about this for some time, now, "I think that it might do for you to meet at least one of my sisters." Preferably not Daniella, since he could think only of awkward ends to that sort of meeting ... and not Louisa since he wasn't quite fond of her ... so that left Juliana.

Ophelia hadn't known that Grayson even had sisters--yes, that's how little she knew about him--but she figured it would probably be easier if she went on about it as if she had known. "I would like very much" --which meant not really at all-- "to meet one of your sisters. I'm sure I'll have met all of them at some point, of course, but... to spend some time with at least one for now sounds.. profitable."

"I know for a fact that Juliana is the closest to your age, and she's ... quite the social butterfly...despite the fact that she lives in that awful muggle flat." His nose wrinkled. She still had a house-elf at her disposal upon his insistence, of course. But it was still a muggle house.

The distaste showed in his voice. Then again, he'd always liked Juliana better than Louisa - too much free-will and rubbish in that one's head.

"Alright, I'll meet Juliana, then," she agreed. She didn't really care that the girl lived in a Muggle flat, with the way she had been brought up to act indifferently (unless circumstance called otherwise) towards Muggles. She was however, a bit surprised that a sister of Grayson's would be living in a Muggle neighborhood... that was very interesting, very interesting indeed. "What's she like? And how old, I mean--I... I don't even know how old you are," she admitted with a bit of a blush.

2006-12-22 20:28 (link) Delete
Grayson did think it was a bit absurd. He assumed she was seventeen because he'd been told she was in her last year of Hogwarts, but that was just an assumption.

"Juliana is twenty-one. And I'm but a year younger than her." It just sounded better than saying he was twenty - he'd always felt a little older than he was.

Ah, okay so... well, the age difference wasn't as big as she had originally imagined. He certainly did both act and look older than his years; Ophelia had thought he was at least in his mid-twenties.

This she did allow herself to say. "You act much older than you are. You had me fooled," she told him.

That made him grin just a little bit.

"I've been told that before, yes. I've spent the most time with my darling eldest sister over the years, and I wonder if that might be part of it."

It was obvious from the way that he spoke about Daniella that he was very, very fond of her.

"Yes, I imagine that might have something to do with it." Although she had spent nearly all her childhood with just Ioan and she didn't exactly think she acted any older than she was. Maybe his sister was just more mature than Ioan.

Not really that surprising, Ioan was a guy.

Just then a distinctly familiar feeling crawled up the girl's back and she turned around to see her mother coming up on them. Oh bloody--of all the things... She had a gigantic smile on her face and embraced her daughter as if they had never argued, as if she had not signed her life away. Stupid bi--

"Oh darling, I see you've met Grayson!"

He couldn't say that he liked her mother very much, but as she was going to be his mother-in-law, he supposed that he should at least make an attempt to fake it.

"Of course, Madame Llewellyn." He flashed her a plastic-looking grin and then shook his head. "But you know, I think we might speak better in a less ... intimidatingly lovely atmosphere?" He nodded to her mother.

"Yes, well, you might be right." Carmela smiled adoringly at Grayson, putting her hands on her daughter's shoulders and looking completely pleased with this situation. "You'll have more time to speak in the next week, of course--I was just coming to get Ophelia. You must have really hit it off to have kept her away so long, her family is complaining that they haven't seen her at all."

Ophelia about gagged. Merlin, her mother was so disgustingly sweet sometimes... it was all such a lie, the woman had no heart and she knew it. "Well, Mister Wilkes, I suppose that means that our fun is over," Lia said, imitating her mother's sugary voice.

At least Ophelia could imitate her mother's soulless voice. He ran his hand through his hair and then nodded to Ophelia, giving her a moderately earnest smile.

"I would hate to keep your dear daughter from her family, especially on such an occassion. I will see you both again soon, I'm certain."