Disclaimer: I don't own Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles or its characters. I only own my OCs.
A/N: Hi, guys! Here we are at chapter 9! Thanks so much for all the reading, reviewing, following and favouriting so far, it really does mean a lot to me. So, there may just be a drawn portrait of Raphael and Amelia on Deviantart... If you go to my DA profile which is the same username as my FF pen name, you will find it, and even though it's only an initial drawing, I'm quite pleased with how it turned out :D Also, for whatever reason, I can't read my reviews from chapter 8, so if anyone has reviewed and I haven't received an email for it, you may not be included in the review reply section, and for that I'm sorry. But I can't see any reviews apart from those that came to my email.
rinpup14: Aww thanks! I'm so glad you're loving it! I hope it only gets better for you!
Stephanie Phelps: Thanks so much for the review! I hope you enjoy this chapter as well!
The Silvernote: Thanks, hun! I have a sneaky suspicion that you'll enjoy this chapter too!
Happy reading!
~ Changes ~
{ Chapter Nine: Wedding Bells }
"Just one more, Amelia..."
Amelia took a deep breath as she looked at her reflection in the bedroom mirror. April was just putting the last pin in her hair, while Michelangelo was tying up two bouquets of flowers as he sat on Amelia and Raphael's bed. The day of the wedding had come so quickly. Donatello, Michelangelo and April had helped to decorate the dojo the previous night, Splinter had been up most of the night making sure he was prepared to make the ceremony as special as Raphael and Amelia wanted it to be, Leonardo had been working on the finishing touches to the turtles' outfits, and April had spent a lot of the previous night on the phone to Vern as well, making sure that he was going to be there on time.
Raphael had spent the night at April's place in the spare bed, and she'd tried to get him into a good mood for the wedding the next day, rather than him being a bumbling wreck. At the moment, Amelia was the one who was experiencing the pre-wedding jitters. April could see it in the mirror that she was petrified, and worrying over every little thing.
"This dress isn't right..." Amelia breathed, shaking her head lightly, "I shouldn't have chosen red... He's going to think I'm being patronising..."
"Amelia, stop it. He isn't going to think that." April said gently, "You look absolutely beautiful, and he is going to love this dress. It's perfect. You are perfect. I know you're getting nervous, but it's completely normal. Just think about it... You're marrying the love of your life today. How wonderful is that?"
"It's wonderful, April, but it's scary as hell." Amelia said quietly, turning to face the reporter as she removed the bridal headband from its box.
It was a silver band with diamanté flowers and pearls intertwined across it, and as April carefully placed it upon her head, it seemed to bring out the colour in her honey-blonde hair. Michelangelo, who looked gorgeous in his armour and bow-tie, gazed up at Amelia in awe as he handed her the bouquet of roses and lilies that he'd put together. April then started working on the finishing touches to Amelia's make-up, just by making sure her eyeliner and mascara were even, and then by applying a gentle layer of a neutral lipstick. She turned Amelia towards the mirror, only to find the young woman looking stunned at her own reflection.
"See." April whispered to her, reaching around to place a hand over hers, "He loves you, whether you look like this, or whether you look like hell in your oldest pyjamas with greasy hair and unshaven legs after you've spent several hours crying through When Harry Met Sally, and Forrest Gump."
Amelia took in a deep breath and nodded, trying to keep her emotions in check.
"He loves you, for you. And I can tell you for certain, that Raphael will be in awe of how beautiful you look right now." April said sweetly, reaching behind with her spare hand for Michelangelo to hand her the pack of tissues that was sitting on the bed, "It's going to be an emotional day today, so I think you'll need these."
April then took a few out of the packet, and folded them neatly before slipping them under the strap of the leather band that Amelia was wearing underneath her sleeve. It was her grandfather's band, and Amelia had paid to have one made that was very similar, which Raphael's wedding ring had been fastened onto. Around her neck sat one of her grandmother's favourite necklaces, which was silver and had a ruby, tear-shaped pendant in the middle. One of her favourite pictures of her grandparents had been framed and put into the dojo, so that Amelia could have them with her on her wedding day.
"Thanks for everything... Both of you." Amelia whispered, giving April a warm hug before moving over to Michelangelo, "I love you guys."
"We love you too, baby-doll." Michelangelo said quietly, being careful not to mess up her outfit as he embraced her, "I'll go and make sure that Raph isn't out there before you go downstairs."
"Thanks, Mikey." Amelia replied, watching him steadily walk out of the room before letting out a shaky breath, "You look lovely, April."
April looked down at the pastel yellow dress and then smoothed it out, before brushing a loose strand of her own pinned up hair behind her ear. She smiled warmly at Amelia for a brief moment as she tried to hold it together, before the two of them almost slammed into each other and shared another emotional hug. It was a really big day, particularly for Raphael, who probably never felt he had a chance of so much as getting a girlfriend, never mind getting married. Amelia never really thought she could ever love someone as much as she loved Raphael, and she was taking a big step as well, by committing to him in this way.
As they parted from their hug, they were met with the sound of Michelangelo's voice as the door to the bedroom slowly opened to reveal the flustered looking maid of honour.
"Okay, girls..." Michelangelo was panting as he came back into the room, "Raph just needs a few more minutes."
April looked at Michelangelo worriedly, but he offered a dazzling smile instead, which seemed to calm the bridesmaid's nerves. She only hoped that Raphael wasn't getting cold feet and backing out of the wedding, because Amelia would be devastated.
"Leo, would you knock it off?" Raphael growled as Leonardo once again tried to adjust his armour, "I'm sweating now... I'm actually fucking sweating! Maybe this isn't such a good idea... I don't think I can do this. It's too much."
"Raph, just take a breath. We're doing things one step at a time." Donatello said calmly, cleaning his glasses carefully, "The only thing you're doing right now is putting on your gear. Focus on that."
"Just my gear... Okay..." Raphael seemed to relax a little at this, "I got this."
"Yeah." Donatello smiled warmly at him, "You've got this."
Donatello had been religiously watching the sitcom Friends for a long time, and after seeing how the characters dealt with pre-wedding jitters, he found this particular technique was very helpful for Raphael, who was stressing out like nobody's business. Of course, the main event of the day was something that no-one had expected to ever happen. Their brother was taking an enormous step, so Leonardo and Donatello were doing their best to keep him calm and collected.
"Okay... You're looking good, Raph." Leonardo said encouragingly as he finished adjusting the armour, "Do you want me to tell Sensei that you're ready?"
Raphael's eyes widened again but Donatello was right by his side, his glasses back on his face, with a hand on his big brother's shoulder. If anyone could keep Raphael calm in that moment, it was Donatello, and the purple-clad turtle was doing very well to keep Raphael from freaking out. He'd already thrown up twice that morning because of his nerves.
"We're just going into the dojo. That's all." Donatello reassured him, patting his arm.
"O-Okay..." Raphael breathed out, "Fine... Yeah... Okay, I can do that..."
"Of course you can." Donatello said again with a smile, "You're just going into the dojo. There's nothing difficult about going to the dojo, is there?"
"No." Raphael replied, shaking his head, "There isn't."
"Okay. Let's go." Leonardo smiled, nodding towards the door.
Raphael took a deep breath and started to follow his brothers out of the lab, where they'd been for the past couple of hours, and they made their way towards the dojo. Once inside the room, Raphael looked at the handmade arch that Splinter was currently sitting under, that had been beautifully decorated with flowers and then two pieces of white material that were wrapped around the supports of the arch. April had designed it herself, and while it wasn't to Raphael's taste, he knew Amelia would love it, so he'd be happy to get married under it.
"Ah, my sons..." Splinter got to his feet steadily, his voice snapping Raphael out of his thoughts, "Is everyone here?"
"Vern's running a tad late." Donatello said quietly, "But he'll be here soon, I'm sure."
"See, this is why I didn't want him involved!" Raphael growled, the stress very evident on his face, "He's too damn unreliable, not to mention the fact that he's a complete..."
"Raphael, calm down." Splinter said quietly, "Come with me, my son... Donatello could you please find out where Vern is? Leonardo, you probably ought to go and get Amelia."
As Donatello and Leonardo both headed back out of the dojo, Splinter looked up at his second eldest son, placing a hand on his shell in a tender fashion. He could practically feel the stress and anxiety rolling off of Raphael in waves, and the rat knew he needed to try and keep him as calm as possible.
"Raphael, you know that Amelia loves you. I know how much you love her. The anxiety that you're experiencing is completely natural, and it shows how much you care about today." He said gently, "I know that this is important to you Raphael, but you have nothing to fear. You're about to take a wonderful step in your relationship. This is a very exciting day."
"I know, Dad... I know." Raphael replied with a sigh, "I just don't want to mess up today. I know how much effort and time she put into this wedding, and I don't wanna spoil it for her. I always screw up, Dad... You know I do."
"That's not true, and you know it." Splinter said, opening his arms to embrace the turtle, who leaned down to hug his father in return, "You'll be fine. You only have to repeat what I say. Amelia's the one who has to walk into this room, with everyone's eyes on her, including yours."
"You're right." Raphael murmured, looking up as Donatello re-entered the room, a warm smile plastered on his face.
"Vern's here." He said, pushing his glasses back up to his eyes as they slipped down a little, "Mikey's just gone to get April and Amelia. You ready, Raph?"
Raphael nodded, swallowing thickly as he looked back to his father, fear present in his intense green eyes. Splinter gave him a wink of encouragement before taking his place under the archway, and Donatello stood to Raphael's right, both of them facing forward.
Outside the room, Leonardo and Vern stood waiting at the bottom of the stairs as April emerged from Amelia and Raphael's room first, of course earning compliments from both Vern and Leonardo as she reached the bottom of the stairs. Then, Michelangelo came out of the bedroom, holding hands with Amelia, whose appearance caused the two men at the bottom of the stairs to gaze at her in awe.
She looked absolutely stunning. The fact that she'd chosen to wear Raphael's colours was beyond amazing, and Leonardo knew how touched he'd be when he saw her. He was fairly certain that this would be an incredibly emotional day for his younger brother, not to mention the rest of their unusual family unit. Stunning wasn't even the right word for how Amelia looked in her wedding gown. Angelic was probably a better term.
"Looking good, Amelia." Vern said quietly, a sincere smile spreading onto his face for a change, "You ready?"
"Almost..." Amelia said, letting out a long, nervous breath, "I'd like a moment with Leo, alone, if that's okay..."
"Sure." April said sweetly as she threaded her arm through Vern's, her bouquet held in one hand, "We'll wait by the door."
Michelangelo stopped to give Amelia a kiss on the temple, before he followed April and Vern, the wedding rings held in front of him carefully on the lovely, dark red pillow that Amelia had picked out a couple of weeks before. Leonardo turned to Amelia and let out a sigh of his own, reaching up to gently touch her face with the backs of his fingers.
"You look beautiful." He said softly, brushing his index finger across her cheek before moving to take her hand in his own.
"Thank you." Amelia replied, squeezing his large hand tightly, "This is huge... I'm so scared, but I'm really excited at the same time."
"You know, we're so lucky to have you." Leonardo said, feeling his throat tighten as the young woman moved closer to embrace him, "I know you're scared. Raph's just as scared as you, but if anyone's meant to do this, it's you guys... You're meant for each other."
Amelia nodded against him as the two shared a long hug, his hand resting against her back gently before he tenderly kissed her temple. The two looked at each other and Amelia could see the turtle trying his best to hold back tears. It really was going to be an emotional day. She mouthed out the words, 'Thank you' to him as she carefully pressed her fingers against her eyes to try and catch any potential tears to stop them from falling and ruining her make-up that April had done so beautifully for her.
"I love you, Leo." She said softly.
"I love you, too, little sis." He replied with a warm smile, "You ready?"
Amelia gave him a nod and a very excited, but anxious smile, and she then threaded her arm through his with her bouquet held in her hands. April and Vern then opened the doors to the dojo and walked along the red carpet that Donatello had laid out the previous night, towards the wedding arch. They both gave Raphael reassuring smiles, but the large turtle looked incredibly pale. He watched Michelangelo then follow after with the ring cushion in his hands, and there was nothing else that Raphael felt he could do but look towards the back wall of the dojo. He felt like he was about to lose his stomach, but when Donatello patted his arm and Raphael saw the stunned look on his brother's face, he couldn't help but turn around to see what he was gawking at.
There she was, dressed in the most gorgeous gown he'd ever seen, and it was in red. She wanted to get married to him in his colour... His throat tightened and his eyes burned with emotion as he gazed at his gorgeous fiancée, who had never looked as beautiful as she did just then, on the arm of his brother who looked prouder than Raphael had ever seen him.
She smiled at him and Raphael felt his legs turn to jelly. This was so scary, and so exciting all at once. It made him feel giddy, but sick at the same time. When they were finally side by side, Michelangelo took the bouquet from Amelia's hands and handed Donatello the pillow with the rings on top, before he stepped back to stand with April and Vern. Leonardo kissed Amelia's hand before he went to stand by his youngest brother, and Amelia reached out with her right hand to take Raphael's left, squeezing it tightly.
Donatello placed a comforting hand on Raphael's shoulder when he realised that the older turtle was desperately trying to keep it together, and Splinter could see the emotion on his face, so the ageing rat gave him a chance to just get things under control again before he began the ceremony.
As always, Splinter was very eloquent as he spoke, and he used some of the most loving words to describe the relationship that Raphael and Amelia shared, that it made both of them tear up. The vows were simple, predetermined ones, because the couple had made a promise to each other that they'd share their true vows on their wedding night when they were alone together, since Raphael had struggled in vain to write his own vows. As they exchanged rings, it was very emotional for everyone. Donatello was caught wiping his eyes behind his glasses a few times. Leonardo cleared his throat and turned away to wipe his eyes at one point as Raphael was saying his vows. April had been in tears pretty much since Amelia walked into the room on Leonardo's arm, and Vern had been smiling rather fondly at the couple as they exchanged the rings. Then, Michelangelo started to cry next to April, sniffling softly as the young reporter went to get him a tissue from the band around her wrist. Vern rolled his eyes, but April harshly backhanded his arm, before leaning into Michelangelo's side as he put an arm around her so they could rejoice together.
It was even more emotional when Amelia reached up, her eyes full of tears, and brushed a falling tear away from Raphael's cheek as she said her vows and fastened the leather band around his wrist. His wedding ring sat on top so that he could see it whenever he wanted to, and the band was a comfortable fit. Amelia's wedding ring sat on her ring finger, and it really was a perfect fit. Her grandparents would've been so proud. The fact that there was a photograph of them in the dojo meant the world to her, like her new family had tried to include them in the ceremony, in some way.
"I now pronounce you husband and wife." Splinter said softly, giving his son an incredibly proud smile, "You may now kiss the bride."
Raphael leaned down and pressed his lips to Amelia's, who held onto his face gently with her manicured hands, moving her lips with his. The room erupted into cheers as they broke apart, and Amelia finally shed a few tears which she quickly wiped away with her dainty fingers. Splinter moved to embrace them both individually, and then the couple moved to their family and friends, sharing warm hugs and words of congratulations. Raphael even gave Vern a one-armed hug, because he was too damn happy to be remotely angry at the guy today.
As the family went back to the living area, Michelangelo and Donatello hurried to get the food for the wedding meal out of the refrigerator, which was a selection of party food. Michelangelo had offered to prepare a proper wedding dinner, but all Amelia and Raphael wanted to do was drink and party. So, party food seemed to be the best option. Vern and April had kindly bestowed the couple with a huge selection of alcohol as their wedding gift, so the family were determined to have a great time.
As soon as the food was unwrapped, Vern started handing out the alcohol, while Michelangelo made a start on the disco. Within a couple of hours, Amelia was convinced that Raphael had taken in enough alcohol to get up and have their first dance. She knew she'd have to make him drink first, but now, she was confident that she'd get a dance out of him. Michelangelo chose just the right time to start playing All of Me by John Legend.
Raphael reluctantly agreed to go to and dance with Amelia, but as he took her into his arms and held one of her hands close to his chest as she rested her head on his shoulder, the turtle relaxed and just went with the flow. No-one was going to poke fun at him today, or make any kind of comment that could embarrass him about the fact that he was dancing with his new wife like that. They were just going to let the couple enjoy their moment together, but when Raphael was getting self conscious, mostly because of a rather drunk Michelangelo's terrible singing, April got up and pulled the youngest turtle to join the married couple for a dance. Unfortunately for April, she had to spend most of the time sliding Michelangelo's hands upward to the small of her back, as he continually tried to fondle her backside.
Amelia got a dance with each of her brothers, as did April, and she even danced with Vern and taught him a few new moves, which was nice. But then, she noticed the open door to the dojo, and as she steadily slipped away from the incredibly merry turtles, their rather sober father, and her two human friends, she retrieved a tealight candle from one of the kitchen cupboards, grabbed some matches and stealthily stepped into the dojo.
She approached the picture of her grandparents and knelt down before it, gently stroking the glass of the frame before she placed the tealight on the floor, shuffled back a little so as not to ignite her gown, and then retrieved a match from the box in her right hand. She lit the candle and then sat quietly for a moment, just looking at the lovely image of her grandparents.
"I wish you could've been here today." She whispered, feeling her throat tighten with emotion, "I love you both so much, and I really miss you. I know you would've loved my husband. He takes such good care of me, and he protects me, and he loves me... I love him so much, and I try to take care of him too, even if he doesn't always let me. Just like you, Grandpa Bobby-George. You never let Grandma Daisy take care of you, either."
Amelia saw a tissue being held out to her, and steadily, her new husband lowered himself to sit down beside her as she took the tissue from him, dabbing her eyes gently with a smile of thanks. She hadn't even noticed she was crying. Raphael, even though he was slightly intoxicated, tenderly wrapped an arm around her and pulled her into his side, letting her rest her head on his shoulder.
"You okay, beautiful?" He asked her, turning his head so that he could press his lips to his wife's forehead, "I wondered where you'd disappeared to."
"I just wanted to be with them for a while." Amelia sighed, dabbing her eyes again, "I miss them so much, Raph."
"They'd be so damn proud of you." Raphael whispered, kissing her forehead again, "You're a credit to them."
Amelia closed her eyes and leaned into him, wrapping her arms around him tightly. Raphael felt her let out a heaving sigh, almost as though a huge weight had been lifted from her shoulders, and he kissed her temple this time, tenderly rubbing her back. He'd seen her eye the photo as they left the dojo following the ceremony, and he noticed how her grip on him had tightened, almost as though she was trying to keep herself calm. Her grandparents had obviously meant more to her than he could ever understand.
"I love you, Raphael." She whispered, moving back to look at him.
"I love you too, Amelia." He said quietly, gently brushing a tear from her cheek as she had for him at the ceremony, "Why don't we clear out our guests and head up to bed? We do have a marriage to consummate, after all."
"And of course, that's a very important part of any wedding day." Amelia laughed sweetly, offering him a bright, if tearful smile, "We have to exchange our vows."
"Yeah, we do." Raphael smirked at her, "Come on. I think Mikey's had too much to drink. He keeps dancing with April and grabbing her ass."
"Poor April." Amelia said with a giggle, allowing Raphael to help her to her feet, "We'd better rescue her then."
Hand in hand, the newly married couple headed out of the dojo and back to the party, both of them feeling excited for not only going to bed together for the first time as husband and wife, but also for what wonderful opportunities the future could bring for them.
~ To Be Continued ~
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