Compared to them blindly searching and hoping to come across wolfsbane in the forest, Sophie and Nicholas' movements were now more decisive when it came to searching for the plants.
"Hah, I'm really glad that I can rid myself of this curse once and for all," Nicholas said, although it seemed like something more to himself than Sophie.
It was one of those rare times that Sophie saw something darken that sunny disposition of Nicholas.
Sophie was actually about to ask Nicholas to perhaps transform into a wolf so maybe she could ride on his back and get there faster, but she understood that it was something that he did not want.
There were probably a lot of traumatic memories involved in becoming the very thing that you hated the most.
It was just a bit difficult for Sophie herself to fully consider. Maybe it was because of the wolf cub that her family took in when she was younger, it made her incredibly attached to it… but of course, wolves and werewolves were different.
When the two of them finally arrived and saw the beautiful collection of different flowers all growing together, Sophie couldn't help but be in awe. "Wow, it almost looks like there was someone gardening and raising them here."
"Perhaps there's some witch that raises them?" Nicholas chuckled.
"Very funny," Sophie rolled her eyes, but she noticed that Nicholas looked immensely serious.
Nicholas's gaze darted across them until he found the particular deep purple flower that appeared like bell-shaped blossoms.
The young man was prepared and had a bag from which he could carry them. Sophie herself had a trowel to use and carry some of the wolfsbane so she could grow them around her shack.
It meant that Nicholas didn't have to travel back and forth. Not to mention it was what the Village Elder also requested.
"Sophie, I brought a bag of holding here," Nicholas explained to Sophie. "It means that I can carry a lot of items in my bag that's bigger than what it actually can carry thanks to spells made on it."
Sophie's eyes widened. "What?" Magic was so rare in their kingdom that she didn't think that even a noble like Nicholas would have something so powerful and expensive with him.
Nicholas smiled sheepishly. "Yes, it'll help us carry a great number of plants. I need as much as we can get."
The two of them would carefully gather the wolfsbane and carry as much as they could and soon return to their home.
***
When Sophie and Nicholas returned back to her hut after getting the wolfsbane, the two of them carefully worked together to decorate their surroundings in order to have a small but beautiful ceremony place.
Even if it was just the two of them, Nicholas wanted Sophie to have a wedding day that would make her smile. He wanted to create a romantic atmosphere where the two of them could cherish it for years in the future.
"Are you sure that we should do the wedding first before you cure yourself, Nick?" Sophie worriedly asked him. She knew how much it meant to him to be cured from lycanthropy.
Nicholas nodded and took the moment to hold Sophie's hand. He gave the back of her hand a gentle kiss and looked into her eyes.
"I don't feel like the monster I used to be because of you. So, delaying it isn't that terrible. Instead, I cannot wait to get married to you now, Sophie. I'm excited about spending our lives together," Nicholas whispered.
Sophie's heart fluttered. She didn't think that Nicholas would ever make her feel this way at all and she smiled. "I can't wait for it as well."
Nicholas smiled brightly, "Then it's time for the two of us to call for the Village Elder to come here. Before that, how about we go for a dress shop here in Hauntingen to get you a dress to wear?"
Sophie raised a brow. "Is what I wear really that important?"
"Not really," Nicholas chuckled. "But I want you to enjoy your day, so if there's anything that catches your eyes in the shops in Hauntingen, be sure to buy it."
The two of them traveled together into the village and once they actually found a dress shop, Sophie and Nicholas both walked in together.
Nicholas took out a small purse and threw it at the counter. "Please give my bride the most loveliest of dresses for our wedding, okay? Some shoes and anything else that you can get for her."
"Wait, Nick?" Sophie's eyes widened but the dressmaker and her daughters were already approaching Sophie and asking her to try on their entire stock of gowns.
"I'll go visit the Village Elder!" Nicholas called out. "Please take your time, Sophie! I really mean it. An hour or two isn't bad either."
Before Sophie even knew it, the young man was already out of the door and left her to choose what she wanted to wear for the wedding. She wondered if it was because Nicholas came from a noble family that he still wanted Sophie to try and wear a gown.
She wouldn't have really minded just exchanging vows, but this was also an experience she didn't think she'd have. When Sophie glanced at the available dresses she could wear, she came to a decision.
"I'll wear something that he'll actually like," Sophie decided.
After everything that happened between them, Sophie also wanted to make Nicholas happy. She wanted him to come see her and cherish the memory of them getting married.
***
When Nicholas reached out of the dress shop, he talked to one of the individuals hanging outside and told them to stall and to keep Sophie in the shop for as long as possible. It was a necessary endeavor.
"I need to get this in order as fast as I can."
Nicholas immediately looked around for everything that might make their wedding even more festive. He knew that Sophie grew up for the most part lonely and even unaccepted by the people in her life.
He couldn't forget how the students in the dung academy ignored Sophie and her own relatives scorned her.
So Nicholas actually wanted Sophie to experience what it was like to be surrounded by a lot of people that celebrated their wedding.
It involved a lot of money, which Nicholas happened to have as he went about to several inns and taverns and asked them to bring delicious meals to the Blackwood Forest and fill the forest grounds with a banquet unlike any other.
He went to a flower shop and asked them to deliver a great amount and to decorate the place more and do it quickly. Once Nicholas arrived at the Village Elder, he told the old man to invite the entire village to head to the forest for the wedding.
"You want to invite the entire village of Hauntingen?!" the old man spluttered.
"Yes." Nicholas grinned. "I want to give Sophie a wedding unlike anything she imagined before. Please make it happen and get yourself to Blackwood, okay?"
It was a rush but somehow, Nicholas' charm and the way he addressed everyone managed to attract and gather a sizable crowd into the Blackwood Forest despite once fearing it for being haunted.
Perhaps it was a sign that Nicholas was actually fit to rule which was contrary to what his father always used to say, but he did everything with the intention of making Sophie smile.
Once Nicholas was done with everything, the young man managed to grab a suit in a tailor's shop and then headed for the dressmaker shop.
Sophie, who had been fitted through a couple of dresses, wore beautiful shoes and also found herself with jewellery, finally saw Nicholas arrive by the door with a bouquet of flowers in his hand.
She was surprised to see him all dressed up, but she was also the same.
"You look beautiful, Sophie." Nicholas said in awe as he offered her the flowers.
Sophie chuckled and accepted the bouquet. "Well, you did take a while for some reason. So it'd be a surprise if I wasn't actually looking beautiful."
The two of them shared a quick laugh together before the two of them stepped out of the dressmaker's shop. What waited for them outside was a carriage and two horses and a footman opened the door to let them in.
"Nick?" Sophie glanced at the carriage in surprise and then looked back at him. "What did you do?"
Nicholas sheepishly smiled. "Just a little something? Let's not be late for our wedding, okay? Everyone's waiting."
"What do you mean by everyone?"
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