What's This? (A Wedding)

She was dancing with Jamie - both of them exceptional dancers - when her head suddenly whipped around to stare at the two newcomers. Jamie had been her focus and had her full attention until they stopped walking and then it was as though some unseen force pulled her head around and caught her attention, even though her back was to both of the men who arrived.

She stopped moving, stopped dancing - and just walked away from the dance floor to approach both of them. To the older man, she walked forward, lifting the bottom of her wedding dress just a bit so that she could curtsy. It was a little hard to manage in such a long dress and she murmured an apology in Latin - "My sincere apologies, this dress is making the formal greeting difficult."

Then her attention turned to the younger man and she leaped into the air, wrapping her arms around his neck and hugging him close - pressing her lips to his in a chaste but nevertheless meaningful, kiss.

She nodded, speaking to the older gentleman only but in the Latin that he preferred.

"Yes," she told him - and almost absentmindedly batted at the younger man's hand that was playing with her hair. The man was like a buzzing gnat sometimes. She was so very, very pleased to see him - he was still annoying.

Whatever it was that the man was whispering to her had her blushing. She nodded and looked down at the ground as he spoke, never looking directly at the older man. She nodded her agreement yet again and spoke to him in soft Latin.

"Yes, of course. As you wish," she said softly.

Victor patted Audrina on the shoulder and smiled at her before going over to Orrie and quietly asking who the newcomers were.

Rachel froze the moment the appeared going to behind Griselda, not close enough to interfere but close enough if she was needed she'd be there. Her head was down low, looking at the ground, but she was very alert if one knew her well.

She stared at the older man, her facial expressions changing and her head tilting - as though in conversation but nothing was said aloud.

She turned to the younger man and the same thing happened - for several minutes.

Then she beamed a bright smile and kissed the younger man again, hugging him oh-so-tightly. All without saying a word.

A cloud of annoyance passed over Joseph's face as he watched the interaction between his daughter and the two men at the edge of the grove. He didn't say anything about it, he just looked slightly angry but made no move to interrupt.

Victor Steele wrote:

Victor patted Audrina on the shoulder and smiled at her before going over to Orrie and quietly asking who the newcomers were.

For the first time ever, Orie actually waved a hand in Victor's direction.

"Tch," she said, making an odd sound in her throat. "Not your business."

"That's helpful" he muttered before going off to look for wherever Miyu popped off too. She seemed to know who they were.

Miyu was just...gone. Nowhere to be seen.

Victor looked at his phone for a few moments and then put it away.

He smiled at Audrina again and went to join Joseph more out of a habit of wanting to be with somebody he knew and trusted. He paused to make sure they both had their drinks topped off, and then just stood around sipping champagne, and carefully avoiding much to do with the Tremere.

Matieu and Tisa were also gone, at least so it seemed.

Erik was attentive watching his bride, he too gravitated towards Joseph, and didn't interrupt no matter how much he wished too. He'd never seen Rachel that subservient before but so ready to protect Griselda either.

It wasn't until they were completely gone that she relaxed, leaning a bit against Rachel and taking a deep breath - blowing it out as though relieved. The spell that had the two men holding her attention for the entire time they were present was finally broken.

She ran a hand through her hair with a sigh when she blew out the deep breath and muttered softly so that only Rachel could hear - "Well, now I need a drink."

"That was stressful" he said quietly to himself while texting Miyu that the visitors had left.

He had no clue why it was that everyone seemed to be gravitating toward him. He had spent the entire time looking mildly annoyed, but his face cleared once the two men left - though he did pick up a glass of champagne once they were gone and sipped it - rather than guzzle it.

His brow rose at Victor. "Why? They did nothing untoward." Clearly, he hadn't been worried or afraid, just annoyed.

"Anything that makes Miyu do the disappearing act..." he said, although he didn't exactly understand why Miyu had left. He just knew she didn't like Tremere, and apparently big muckity muck Tremere might not like her.

"Plus the whole who he is thing. But mostly Miyu. Nearly all Miyu."

Joseph's brow furrowed.

"Not everything is about your woman, Victor."

"I reserve the right to be stressed to some degree when she considers it worthwhile to leave an area when certain people show up. That doesn't mean everything is about her, it means that when somebody I care about considers it prudent not to be seen by somebody like him, that I get to raise my eyebrow and wonder. The degree of stress is minor, but it exists."

He shook his head.

"'It's nearly all Miyu' - that's what you said." He shook his head again. "Can we forget for a moment about the fact that your woman decided to take herself out of company that she probably doesn't like and focus on the fact that my daughter was just basically making out with someone other than her husband on her goddamn wedding day? She's going to have to explain that, I am probably going to have to explain that and you're worried because your girl decided to leave for a while until they're gone. Bigger problems, my friend. Bigger. Problems."

Penny handed him a scotch quietly, taking the champagne, and going back to her seat.