HP: Embrace the Darkness

The wedding is getting closer as the two of them prepare.

The closer we get to Ases, the more nervous we become, and the longer we'll be gone.

Although there was no smell of alcohol on him when he came back, Snape could see that he was drunken.

Snape asked, but this time Athis refused to say anything, so Snape stopped asking.

He will know it sooner or later anyway, and he has his own things to do.

Later, the two of them started competing with each other in leaving early and returning late, and neither of them kept it a secret from the other what they were busy with.

There was a rumor in Cavendish Manor that the two had quarreled, but the rumor was not put to rest until Susanna, who was eating melon seeds and playing with crickets behind Asseth's back, was caught by Asseth and forced to work overtime.

-

Countdown to the wedding: three days

Athis left before dawn, and Snape, who was sleeping next to him, didn't even wake up.

Downing Street, London.

It was too early and there was no one on the street. Only the street lights were still on, illuminating the road under our feet.

Ases was wearing a black windbreaker and a dark scarf around his neck, covering half of his face. He walked with his head down in the dim alley. He didn't walk fast and walked leisurely until he turned in front of a large iron gate.

The iron gate didn't open, so he just waited there.

About ten minutes later, the door inside the iron gate opened, and Gorte came out with sleepy eyes, without even changing out of his pajamas. He looked up and saw Ases standing outside the iron gate. Without bothering to scold him, he opened the door and pulled the man in.

"You came but didn't make a sound? The doorbell isn't just for decoration. Is it so difficult for you, a young master, to raise your hand?"

Gorter was very resentful because he had to work overtime and not get enough sleep and was forced to get up early. However, considering that Ases was about to get married, he could continue to scold him.

Ases was in a good mood lately and didn't bother with him.

"Where's what I want?"

Golter rolled his eyes: "You didn't let me attend the wedding, and pushed all the troubles to me. I'm really unlucky to know you. If it weren't for... Never mind, the things are upstairs, wait, I'll get them for you."

Gorter turned and went upstairs. Not long after, he came back with an envelope and a paper bag, and handed them to Ases respectively. "The envelope contains what you want, and the paper bag contains my wedding gift for you. It's not expensive, so go and claim it when you have time. By the way, the marriage is over, and the wedding will be held soon. Bring you out to meet them someday. They've been curious about who captured you."

Ases took the envelope first, but put it directly into the pocket of his windbreaker without opening it. He held the paper bag in one hand and glanced at Gorter through his scarf. "Are they curious or are you curious?"

Golter snorted, sat down on the sofa, and said unhappily, "Who wouldn't be curious? You hid him so well that we didn't know anything except his gender. You didn't even invite us to the wedding. What's the matter? Is he porcelain from the East? He'll break at the first sight."

"That's not the case." Ases got what he wanted and didn't care about Gorter's sarcasm. "I had no choice but not to invite you to the wedding. I've been very active recently and they've been keeping a close eye on me. If I invite you, there's no guarantee they won't get involved. For the sake of my once-in-a-lifetime wedding, please bear with me. I'll invite you to a party later."

"Remember what you said." Gorter patted his pajamas, stood up and waved to Ases, "Okay, you go, I haven't slept enough, I'll go back and catch up on some sleep."

As he stepped onto the stairs, he suddenly turned around, looked down at Athis, and smiled for the first time today. "I almost forgot to say, happy wedding, Athis."

"Thank you for your blessing." Ases remembered something and smiled, his voice filled with sincere gratitude, "Thank you for helping me share the firepower during this period of time."

"It's no big deal. It's my bad luck to meet a troublesome friend like you." Gorter shrugged and went upstairs.

Ases touched the envelope in his arms and left with satisfaction.

On the second floor, a female voice sounded in the dark corridor: "Is he gone?"

"Yeah, let's go." Gorter stopped laughing. "After getting what he wanted, he naturally went back to share his joy with his partner. Why would he stay with us?"

"That's right." The owner of the female voice seemed to have just woken up, and she sounded a little faint in the darkness. "That's good too."

"Go back to sleep. I have something to do tomorrow and won't be back for dinner." Gorter took his clothes and walked towards the study.

The owner of the female voice was not surprised. She went back to her room and started to catch up on her sleep as soon as she closed the door.

Countdown to the wedding ceremony: two days

The custom-made dress was delivered to the manor.

Anna took Susanna to study the matching of accessories, and then sent the matched dresses to Prince Manor, and each of them took one to try on the clothes.

After trying three or four times, Ases had gone from being full of anticipation at the beginning to being numb as he put on and undressed.

During the break, he saw Snape sitting on the sofa and drinking tea leisurely. His expression broke for a moment, "Sev, aren't you going to try on the dress?"

Snape slowly raised his chin.

Susanna came out wearing a dress, only her face looked like Snape's.

"Cousin?" Ases was incredulous.

"it's me!"

Susannah spun around quite merrily.

But she forgot that she was still leaning against Snape's face, and this turn looked very disjointed.

Ases couldn't bear to watch and called for a stop.

His expression revealed a numbness of seeing through life and death because of repeatedly trying on clothes. Susanna realized something belatedly and explained while waving her hands: "The dress I'm wearing is a dress that has been copied and transformed by magic. Severus's dress is still hanging inside. Don't worry, I won't let Severus wear second-hand clothes."

Snape handed Athis a cup of tea at the right time and pulled him to sit down. "If you are tired, take a rest first. We still have time. Don't rush."

Anna appeared out of nowhere, her eyes sharp and fierce: "Rest? How can I rest? I have a wedding tomorrow, I can't rest! Son, come quickly, I have put on another outfit, come and try it on and see how it goes?"

Anna was even more anxious than Asseth during this period. According to William, Anna was not that nervous when they had their wedding. She kept talking about it eight hundred times a day, fearing that something unexpected would happen when the time came. She wanted to look at every detail with a magnifying glass.

Ases and William tried to comfort her, but both failed. The two could only accept orders, one watching the scene all day long, and the other cooperating unconditionally.

Seeing that the person who was speaking was Anna, Snape silently withdrew his hand that was handing him the tea, sat down and discussed with Susanna which dress was better.

To the left of Arcis was Anna, who was holding up the dress with a fierce look in her eyes, and to the right was Snape, whose whole body was covered with "None of My Business". He looked around, stood up resignedly, and said, "I'll go try it on. Mother, please sit and wait for me for a while."

After saying that, he took the dress from Anna's hand.

Anna subconsciously wanted to follow, but Susanna pulled her back and said jokingly, "Sis, Ases is already a grown-up, and he won't get lost if he changes his clothes. Just sit down and take a rest. People who don't know would think you are so anxious about marrying off your daughter."

She didn't dare say the latter sentence loudly, and lowered her voice so low that only Snape, who was watching closely, heard it.

Snape coughed behind his hand.

Susanna was completely unaware and was still chattering to Anna until her saliva was dry.

The sound of footsteps came from far to near.

The three of them looked up at the same time, their eyes brightening.

Asseth's dressing style usually follows Anna's taste and preferences, mostly dark colors, rarely white. Now, he suddenly puts on a white tuxedo, which gives him an indescribable elegance and freshness.

"This set is good." Anna was finally satisfied.

Susanna looked at Ases and hesitated: "Sister, if I remember correctly, there is another dress of the same style, but with a different pattern."

"You're not mistaken." Anna remembered the dresses she had made herself very clearly, "There are two sets, specially designed by Liz, one-of-a-kind."

"Severus, why don't I give it a try and you can see if you like it. If you like it, then we can decide on it." Susanna looked at Snape and asked what he thought.

Snape was still staring at Aces. Hearing this, he nodded, "Okay."

Susannah went to change her clothes.

She changed clothes faster than Ases, and came out in a pure white dress in about thirty seconds.

Both suits were tuxedos, peaked lapels, double-breasted, and linen-lined, but with different patterns, one with a vest and the other with a cummerbund.

The one Susannah is wearing comes with a waist belt.

She walked to Aces and asked Anna and Snape, "What do you think?"

Anna's eyes lit up: "Beautiful!"

Snape hesitated.

He wore less light-colored clothing than Arces, let alone a white dress.

Ases saw his hesitation and motioned for Susanna to change her clothes first.

Susannah obeyed.

Anna also noticed that Snape didn't seem to like it very much, so she rummaged through a pile of copied dresses and found a black dress with a somewhat similar style.

"How about this one?"

Susanna heard the voice and stuck her head out, "Sister, give it to me so I can try it."

Anna nodded and walked over with the clothes.

While they were not paying attention to him, Arcis sat down and leaned lazily on Snape's shoulder. "No wonder my father refused to come when it came to trying on dresses. This is too tiring."

Snape tilted his shoulder to let Aces lean more comfortably, "If you are tired, we can continue tonight."

"No need. Let mother rest for an afternoon. She will become more anxious. It's better to trouble me than to trouble herself. Everything will be fine after tomorrow." Ases smiled helplessly and talked about another matter. "Sif, don't you like that white dress?"

"Not really." Snape thought of Athis's white dress, and his expression became more hesitant. "I'm not used to wearing white. You look good in it."

"Okay, we'll be one black and one white." Ases felt a little regretful but didn't show it. He heard the sound getting closer and closer, and slowly sat up straight.

Anna and Susanna both have good taste, and none of the dresses they choose are ugly, including the black dress Susanna is wearing now.

Snape compared the style of the white dress he just wore and decided on this one immediately.

"That's it."

Susanna nodded. "I think it's good too, sister. We have good taste."

Anna groaned in silence, she still felt that the previous set was more suitable and better looking, but this was not her wedding, Snape was not Athis, even if she felt regretful, she couldn't say anything.

"Okay, then this one." Anna went to choose the next dress promptly.

"Would you like to choose a morning suit?"

"No, these are enough. We are not holding this in an ancient castle, so there is no need to be too solemn. It will be counterproductive."

The two voices faded away.

Aces and Snape looked at each other and resigned themselves to following their footsteps.