Vision Of Escaflowne Fan Fiction ❯ A Life I Deserve ❯ The Wedding ( Chapter 9 )

Sorry for the long time in between updates! I have been so busy with school and two jobs that I haven't had time to even glance at this website! Thank you for continuing to review, and I want you to know it means a lot to me! HUGS AND KISSES!

The Wedding

At dawn everyone in the castle was woken from his or her slumber by the sound of trumpeting. Today was an important day, and everyone had a job to finish. The servants were bustling around in the hallways with clothes and decorations. The cooks were hard at work making the banquet food for after the ceremony and the advisors had been awake all night preparing speeches and getting everything ready to welcome a new queen to Fanelia.

Van hardly slept at all and watched as the sun rose and fell in through his curtains. This was the most important day of his life. To him, this even surpassed the day he became king. It FAR surpassed it. His royal attire for the wedding was set out already and his robes were hanging on a near wall. It would take a while to get ready with all of the stuff he had to put on. He needed to get started; the ceremony would begin when the sun was half raised. At noon, they would be announced as man and wife. The tradition made it so that half the day you were individuals and then after the sun was overhead, you would begin your life as a couple. Tradition. He only abided by it for his people. If it were up to him, Hitomi would be his wife already and would have woken up this morning in his arms.

He was shaken from his thoughts as a knock came from the door.

"Excuse me your highness," a young male servant said politely and with his head bowed, "I have come to help you dress for the ceremony."

Van rolled his eyes but smiled when the servant raised his head.

`I hate people dressing me…'

Hitomi finally fell asleep about an hour before dawn. She had spent the night going over what things to say at the ceremony. To tell the truth, the butterflies in her stomach wouldn't allow her to sleep anyway. When the trumpets sounded, she sat straight up and then fell back down.

`I didn't sleep well at all. I am going to look horrible…'

She put her feet on the cold wooden floor, and walked over to the washbasin. After about ten minutes of bathing herself off, a knock came from her door.

`It begins,' she sighed.

Opening the door, she found Merle and Millerna already dressed and looking radiant. Merle had a beautiful tan ball gown on and her hair was back in a bun. Millerna was wearing a pink dress with a gorgeous diamond necklace. Both women looked at her with smiles.

" Hitomi, it's time to get ready! Get a move on! Get into the bath and we'll get your dress out of the closet. We'll help pick out your jewelry and quiz you as we go! Hurry, you don't want to keep Van waiting do you?"

Hitomi smiled at the mention of his name.

`Today I will become his wife. I am kind of nervous but I want to see him so much. I need him. I love him.'

The bride and groom were ready in the opposite hallways to the dining hall. The tradition called for them to meet in the middle of the dining hall and walk out together onto the castle's front balcony. Flowers were everywhere. White, pink, yellow, and red roses lined the front door and the ring around where the wedding would be. The priest stood ready and the trumpets were sounded once again. The people of Fanelia were aloud to watch from the bottom of the stairs, in the courtyard. They quieted at the sound.

Both doors opened and Hitomi and Van saw each other after the longest week of their lives. Hitomi's face was covered with a lace veil, ( a tradition from her world), but she could him and almost cried right there. His face lit up as well, as they walked slowly forward and linked arms. After a moment of silence, they turned and began to walk to the front doors.

Light poured in as the doors opened, and the crowd went wild at seeing their king and future queen. Merle and Millerna took their places next to Hitomi, and the ceremony began.

Both of them kneeled before the priest and then stood again. The advisors even came up and told of how their kingdom had been rebuilt and how King Van had given them back their lives. After what seemed like forever, the two began their vows. The couple turned toward each other and held hands.

"Van, You have saved my life in many ways. Always fighting enemies to keep me safe, and even though it hurts me when you get hurt, it makes me realize how much you care about me. I love you so much, and I will take care of you now, the way you have taken care of me. I want to be with you forever, in sickness and in health, until death takes me."

After her vow is said, she takes a band of silver and looks at Van as she slides it on his finger. Tears are threatening to fall as she looks up at him.

"Hitomi. I know that your being here with me is fate. We have fought so hard and been through so much pain, and now we can finally be happy. I loved you from the moment I saw you. That dragon, the Zybach empire, not even a different world could keep me away from you. You have given me a reason to live, and pulled me through all of the hardships I have faced. You say that I saved your life, but you really saved mine. I'll love you forever, in sickness and in health, and I won't allow death to take me unless you are safe."

He slides the ring onto her finger, and then they clasp hands once again. The priest says a poem in a different tongue and then wraps a red sash around their hands. Van looks at Hitomi, from the long white dress that trails behind her, up to her shoulders that are uncovered by the dress, to her grandmother's pendant, and then to her eyes. When the priest nods the couple then turns toward the crowd.

They part as the oldest advisor brings out a delicate silver crown on a satin pillow. Hitomi bows as her veil and tiara are replaced by a royal crown. She rises up and looks at Van once again.

"May I introduce the King and Queen of Fanelia! You may now kiss you bride."

Van wipes the tears from her eyes and touches her lips softly. She smiles and closes her eyes. At that moment there is no sound and all she feels is Van's lips and arms. After a moment though, the sensation is gone and her eyes reopen. It is time for the feast.