(AN: Thanks so much to Shira for her help with this chapter! Also, in these song lyrics, it's the beginning of the song, and then the very end of the song. That space in between is signified by the ellipses. *blink* I just sounded smart. *blink* ~*~Tams~*~)

Royal Blunders

Chapter Six: A Kiss Can Do Strange Things To People

"It's all relative, how the picture can change


when the light is coming from the other side


It's not easy, your feet are grounded,


only until the earth below you moves.


It's all relative….

….To the one staying back, the other is leaving.


But to the one moving on, the other's not willing to follow."

~ It's All Relative, Sarah Baravetto



"You know what, Zelgadis-san?" Amelia asked as they were walking back to the palace. Zelgadis looked down at the princess, noticing that the rose blossom was still in her hair.

"What?"

"You haven't been keeping up your dark and mysterious self lately!" Amelia giggled into her palms as Zelgadis cast a half-grin.

"Really. I didn't expect you to notice something like that. Maybe all the fork-lifting and waltzing has taken all the 'creepy' out of me?" He laughed at himself, shaking his head, while Amelia looked at him open- mouthed.

"Zelgadis-san....." Zelgadis looked down at her.

"Yes?"

"You laughed...I mean, you really laughed! You've never really done that before!" Amelia stared at him incredulously as they walked. Zelgadis' cheeks turned pink.

"I guess not...is there something wrong with that?" He tried to make his face into a scowl, but found that it was somehow hard to do. Amelia shook her head.

"No, it's just...you're really changing, Zelgadis-san." She gave him a warm smile, causing him to keep walking and look forward, still pink from her remark. He wondered, did she mean a change for the better? If so...he glanced over at the happy princess, her fingers brushing the flower in her hair. If so, did she want him to change?

If she thought he was changing, he thought, perhaps that was good.

Before he knew it, they had reached the palace doors, which Amelia opened. As soon as they had taken a step into the room, Lina called, "Hey, where have you two been?"

Amelia stopped beside Zelgadis. Lina, in a simple evening dress, folded her arms and raised an eyebrow, grinning somewhat evilly. "Amelia, where'd you get the flower?"

Amelia blushed discretely and draped a strand of black hair partially over the rose. "The garden," she said softly, glancing at Zelgadis, who blushed as well.

Lina looked as though she was about to say something, but then a loud "Ahem!" made them all turn to the door, where Sir Recburg was standing ever- primly, followed by Lady Adara in her usual midnight dress.

"I assume you all have been diligent in your lessons?" asked Lady Adara, giving them all her warm, gentle smile. They all nodded, however, Sir Recburg's mustache twitched and he said in a loud voice, "They would have learned faster if they knew how to properly conduct their learnings with grace and poise, as I have tried to teach them."

He seemed to direct this more at Lina and Gourry than at Zelgadis, who had been obedient in a lenient way for the past two weeks. Lina let out a low growl, but Gourry placed a hand on her shoulder and gave her a warning look, ad she stopped. Zelgadis wondered, in surprise, why was she all of a sudden paying heed to Gourry?

Amelia was watching Sir Recburg in fear, still worried that they would be punished. If he were less prissy, she thought, he would be sticking out his tongue at Lina right now.

The thought made her giggle, but she managed to stop as Lady Adara tapped Sir Recburg's shoulder, saying, " I think they've done a splendid job, considering that they've learned it all in three mere weeks. Now, let me take care of this lesson."

Sir Recburg looked embarrassed, but he turned abruptly and walked out of the hall. "Yeah, go on, Gramps!" muttered Lina triumphantly. Lady Adara shook her head and walked towards them.

"I know you've all learned the dining etiquette already, am I correct?" When they all nodded, she continued. " Well, now you will learn the after dinner etiquette." She began walking back and forth in front of them, slowly.

"After dinner etiquette is for parties, of course, when there is a dessert banquet laid out, including dessert drinks. Because you already know table etiquette, you will only have to learn the tasting."

At this, both Lina's and Gourry's mouths began to water.

"Wine-tasting is more essential than dessert-tasting because it holds out longer than dessert-tasting. Basically, it's more fun." She chuckled at herself as she walked to a table. Now, you can all sit."

Zelgadis sat near the head of the table next to Amelia, and Lina and Gourry on the opposite side, and lady Adara stood by Amelia. "Princess, you don't mind helping with the lesson? You haven't tried wine-tasting before...."

Amelia, a bit annoyed with the fact that they thought she couldn't handle a little glass of wine, held herself up high and said, "Of course I am! I can do it, don't worry about me." She leaned forward eagerly as Lady Adara shrugged.

"Alright, if you're sure...Now!" She clapped her hands together and sat at the head of the table. "Let's start with the white wine..."

Fifteen minutes later....

"Hic! Yup, this is just swell, I thinks......ooh, looky, it's-hic!--blue!" Amelia began pulling on Zelgadis's hair. He winced as she did, but gently pulled her hands off and held them on the table.

"Wow, and it was just two drinks, too..." Lina couldn't help laughing at Amelia's disoriented state. Gourry was watching Amelia with fascination, and turned to Lina, scratching his head. "What's wrong with Amelia? She's acting....weird."

"She's drunk, you idiot!" said Lina, as Amelia began absentmindedly braiding the fringe of the tablecloth. Lady Adara looked confused.

"She's never acted like this.....then again, she's never had wine before." She watched, confused, as Amelia began swaying back and forth, chanting, "Fishy, fishy,--hic!-- fishy, fishy, fishy is my-hic!-- friend!"

Lady Adara sighed. "We can continue, but someone needs to take the Princess up to her room and let her rest......"

Unanimously, she, Lina, and Gourry all looked up at Zelgadis, whose hair was now being braided by the hiccuping Amelia. Zelgadis blushed and wrenched his head out of Amelia's grip. "Me?"

"Well, who else?" said Lina, smirking. "She's obviously the most attached to you right now."

Zelgadis glanced at Lady Adara, who couldn't help grinning widely. "She's right, you know. It won't take you that long, Sir Zelgadis." She nodded her head in understanding and Zelgadis sighed.

"Oh, fine...c'mon, Amelia." He helped Amelia stand to a somewhat upright position, draped her arm around his shoulder, and walked her out of the hall. "Shwell, shwell, yup, I'm-hic!-shwell...."

A few minutes later, Zelgadis, breathing heavily from the weight on his arm, had made it to the hallway where Amelia's room was. He staggered into her room, Amelia still talking. "I think-hic!-that the kitties should have gone to the fireman's home....don't you think? I think-hic!--….it's a good book, yup, it's a good book...."

Nodding as he listened to Amelia's mindless rants, Zelgadis stumbled over to the bed, gently letting her fall onto it. He sat on the far end of the bed, wiping his forehead. "Whew...."

Amelia laid there for a second, muttering random insanities to herself before sitting straight up and staring at Zelgadis. Zelgadis, after he finished taking a breath, looked over at her. "...What?"

Amelia grinned; it was a drunken, foolish grin, but she crawled over to Zelgadis and sat right next to him. Zelgadis blinked as she giggled.

"Hey, Zellygadis....hic! You got's perdy eyes, yup, ya-hic!-do...."

She brushed away a few of his bangs, looking at his eyes, and making him blush like crazy. "Amelia, you need to rest.....you're still disoriented."

She smiled her stupid smile again. "Oh, I gotta rest, yeah-hic!-gotta rest....thanks so much for carryin' me. Yer a nice guy, yup, ya are- hic!-and you're pretty darn cute too."

Zelgadis just looked at her, nonplused. He knew that because she was so drunk, she couldn't possibly control what she said, so he knew she had to be dilusional.

Before he could tell her she needed her rest again, she reached over, grabbed his shoulders and kissed him full on the mouth.

When Amelia let go, still wearing her drunken look, he sat there, as stiff as a stone. (No pun intended.) "Yup, yer a good-hic!-kisser, yeah, you are. Nighty-night." And with that, she fell over on her side and began snoring immediately.

"......." For almost five minutes, Zelgadis sat there, looking as if he had just been hit by a storm. When he came to, she shook his head and stared at the sleeping Amelia.

Unable to speak a word, he pulled the sheets over her shoulders, looking at the rose underneath a black strand of hair. He pulled it out silently and pressed it into her open hand. "....Good night, Amelia."

He walked over to the door, still looking stunned, and pulled the door shut.

Amelia's fingers subconsciously closed over the rosebud.

~*~(Tell me you all saw that coming. ^^)~*~

"Hey, the man of the hour! Where've you been for the past twenty-five minutes?"

Lina was wearing her usual smirk when Zelgadis had returned to the hall, forcing his stunned look into a nonchalant one. Gourry waved dumbly to Zelgadis, and Lady Adara greeted him with a confident smile.

"And the Princess is put to bed, I assume?" She lengthened her smile as Zelgadis sat down to his seat.

"...Uh huh."

"'Uh huh' Since when do you say 'uh huh'?" Lina stared at him suspiciously. Lady Adara shrugged for him and reached for a bottle.

" You know, she wasn't completely drunk.....whatever she said or did, it must have been done with a subconcious mind. So along some line, she could sense what she was doing."

"So she knew she was rambling on about nothing?" Lina poured herself another half glass. "Weirdo."

Zelgadis didn't pay attention to the rest of the conversation as he sat there. She was partially awake? That would mean....he turned as red as the crimson cloth of the table. So she might have known she was kissing him. Why would she want to kiss him?

He leaned back in his chair and grabbed his glass weakly. The day had been far too bizarre to try and figure anything out, so he would wait until the morning to ask her if she remembered wanting to kiss him.

He put the glass back on the table, feeling as though he was drained of all energy. He automatically rose from the table and headed to the stairway.

"Zel? Where are you going?" Lina called after him. He barely turned around to reply.

"I'm going to bed. I'm tired. Good night." With that, he turned and walked up the stairs, and for some reason, he felt triumphant. Maybe from the fact that he had succeeded in concealing his stunned self with a mask of mystery?

He chuckled to himself. He was getting more humorous by the day. Amelia was right, he was certainly starting to change.

For the better? He puzzled himself over that as he climbed the steps. If he was changing for the better, and Amelia was getting closer to him by each passing day….

He stopped for a minute. That would mean he was in love. Or something. He didn't know what that was like, so he shook his head, and the thought away, and opened the door to his room.

He collapsed onto the bed, welcoming the softness of the pillow and sheets with open arms. He was exhausted after the day's events, which, he thought, hadn't been that far off from completely bizarre.

He sighed and rolled over, forgetting about changing to pajamas. He wasn't sure about what to make of the night, but he wasn't going to trouble himself with it now. He blew out the nearby candle, and as the room settled into darkness, he thought to himself.

Amelia and I are changing a lot. For the better.

His eyes closed slowly, and he was soon settling into a deep sleep.

(No AN news here! ~*~Tams~*~)