Of Kith and Kin: Chapter 9
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Hello people I'm BACK!! Didja miss me? Gosh, finals suck! But anyway, they are
over now, so I'm back with more. This is the last chapter of this story, except
for the epilogue. Anyway, I hope that you have liked this story, I had fun with
it. E-mail me with your comments (gee, I say this with everything I submit, but
I REALLY want to hear from you!) at smart_sweetlady@yahoo.com. Okay that will be
all. Happy reading!
-Thalia
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Ami sat nervously in front of the vanity. It was a bright, sunny spring
day, April the 10th, and there she was, in her wedding gown. Her reflection in
the mirror stared back at her with worried aqua eyes. She felt a gentle hand on
her back, and saw a smiling face framed with blonde hair next to hers.
"Nervous, my dear?" Mina asked gently. Ami nodded. "Do not worry, and be
happy! It is your wedding day!"
Ami nodded again. "How do you know that a man will love you forever?"
Rei joined Mina on Ami's other side. "You do not know, but if you love
him enough, and he loves you enough, both of you are willing to take the chance
for that."
"I cannot believe how nervous I am right now." Ami confessed, a bemused
expression on her face. "But, I do not think that I will ever regret marrying
Zoisite. I love him as I have never loved anyone else, as I have never thought
possible. When he is around, I feel like nothing in the world can harm me or
make me unhappy. I love how his eyes light up when he sees me, I love the way he
is so idealistic, yet so wise. I even love how his hair falls in his face! I
love him so much that my heart feels like it could burst. It's amazing, but when
I am with him, I feel so safe yet so vulnerable. I...." Ami broke off, then she
sighed, "I am nervous."
"Do not worry, we were all nervous when we married." Lita declared, and
tucked another wisp of silky blue hair in place on Ami's head. "You look lovely,
Ami."
The others nodded in agreement, and one by one, they came up to her, to
give her something...
"Something old." Rei said softly, taking from the jewelry box a pair of
glimmering diamond earrings. These opulent gems had been in the Greenleaf vault
which Sard Greenleaf had bequeathed to Ami in his will. They were century-old
heirlooms. Rei gently put them on Ami's ears, gave Ami a hug, and stepped out of
the way as Serena approached.
"Something new." Serena continued, picking up Ami's bouquet. Carefully,
she tucked, amongst the pristine white lilies and blossoms, a budding blood-red
rose, still gemmed with dew, which she had clipped from her garden just that
morning. She smiled with tears in her eyes, and gave her best friend a kiss on
the cheek. Mina stepped forward.
"Something borrowed." Mina added, her arms full of filmy, lacy white.
Gently, she draped her own wedding veil over Ami's blue head. Smiling sweetly,
Mina squeezed Ami's hand in comfort and looked at the younger woman through the
misty embroidered roses and cobwebby pattern of the delicate veil, "They say the
veil of a happy bride brings good luck, you know." Lita came up next.
"Something blue." Lita, like Rei, dug into the jewelry box, and took out
the old caduceus pin that Ami had bought so long ago. With gentle fingers, Lita
pinned the sapphire pin onto the bodice of Ami's wedding gown. Then, she patted
Ami's shoulder, and made way for Holly.
"And a lucky new sixpence in your shoe." Holly finished the old rhyme as
she dug into her purse, took out a newly minted coin, and put it into Ami's
white shoe. "Good luck." She whispered to Ami, her hand resting gently on Ami's
arm. Ami nodded, and smiled tremulously as she slowly stood up from her seat.
She certainly looked the role of the bashful bride. Her dress had been
tailored and designed by one of Mina's cronies, an enterprising young lady in
the fashion business by the name of Susan Meiou. It was satin, pure as driven
snows, with a sleek bodice and trimmed with frothy layers of soft organdie voile
at the bottom hem, like billowing waves. Minute silvery threads had been woven
into the fabric, making the dress shimmer slightly in the light. The dress was
off the shoulder, with silvery roses embroidered on the top. For the umpteenth
time that morning, Ami checked her reflection in the mirror with a critical eye.
She looked beautiful. Swallowing, she smiled at the others, and headed towards
the door.
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Zoisite stood nervously at the altar. He was immaculately groomed, but a
niggling little doubt in his head. He looked at Jadeite, Kunzite, Nephrite and
Brian, who were all there with him. Turning to Kunzite, he asked, "Kunzite, may
I ask you a question?"
"You just did." Kunzite quipped tonelessly.
Zoisite smirked. "All right, I will ask you another one. How do you know
that you and Mina were meant to be, how do you know that you two will love each
other forever?"
Kunzite was silent for a moment, then, in a serious voice, he answered,
"I do not know, but right now, I love her enough to want to take a gamble on it.
That is what happens each and every day. I wake up to know that I want to spend
that day with her. And I take it one day at a time. With each successive day, I
love her more. That is what happens." He halted, and shrugged. "It is a bit hard
to explain, you will just have to experience it for yourself."
Zoisite nodded. "I love Ami. I love how she makes me feel that no matter
how much the world is against me, I can still pull through. I love how, when she
smiles at me, I feel like everything is wonderful. I love how, when she talks to
me, she is completely honest, yet kind. I love the way she understands and takes
me as I am. I love how she can see past Zanth Winters the rock star, past Master
Zoisite the son of a millionaire, and just welcome me for me. I love the way her
hair smells like the ocean and lilies. I love her intelligence, her gentleness,
her determination to live her life on her own terms. I love the way she can feel
no qualms at putting boorish barbarians like Rubeus in their place, then turn
around and be tender and fragile as a rose. I love her so much it hurts."
The men looked at him and smiled. Jadeite remarked, "Zoi, if ever you do
not want to sing any more, you can make a fortune making Valentine's Day cards."
Zoisite chuckled. All the men came up to him, shook his hand, and said,
"Good luck to you." Then, the door opened and the wedding procession began.
First there was 6-year-old Rose, Darien's niece. Dark-haired, with wide
blue eyes and crimson cheeks, the little girl was dressed in a white dress and
wore flowers in her braided hair. She carried a basket of rose petals, which she
scattered across the aisle.
Then, there was Mina's son, the ring-bearer. The little boy, his silvery
blond hair shining on his head, gave a Mina-like kilowatt smile to everyone as
he strode down the aisle with the wedding rings on a cushion in his hand. He was
dressed in a miniature version of a tuxedo.
Following were Rei, Lita and Holly, the bridesmaids, all in white. Each
wore different jewels and carried different flowers. Rei wore rubies and carried
poppies. Lita wore emeralds and carried pinks. Holly wore amethysts and carried
irises.
Then, Mina and Serena, as the Matron and Maid of honor, respectively.
Both of them wore white, but each had a shoulder corsage of different flowers as
well as a sash of different color. Mina had yellow daffodils and honeysuckle on
her corsage, with a sash of gold. Serena had pure white baby's breath and red
tea roses on her corsage, with a sash of silver.
Last of all came Ami, the bride, on Darien's arm. Slowly, the procession
walked up the aisle to the altar.
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"Do you, Zoisite Greenleaf, take this woman as your lawfully wedded wife
to care for, cherish and love in good times and bad, in sickness and in health,
for better or for worse, for as long as you both shall live?"
"I do." Zoisite looked down at Ami's bowed head. Never had she seemed
more exquisite. He smiled.
"And do you, Ami Mizuno, take this man as your lawfully wedded husband,
to care for, comfort and love in good times and bad, in sickness and in health,
for better or for worse, for as long as you both shall live?"
"I do." Ami finally looked up, and saw Zoisite's eyes bright with love.
All her uncertainties, all her doubts vanished, and she returned his smile.
"Then, repeat after me." The minister said to Zoisite. "With this ring,
I take thee, Ami Mizuno, as my wife."
"With this ring, I take thee, Ami Mizuno, as my wife."
"And you, repeat after me." The minister said to Ami. "With this ring, I
thee wed, Zoisite Greenleaf, as my husband."
"With this ring, I thee wed, Zoisite Greenleaf, as my husband."
"In the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Ghost, I now pronounce
you man and wife. You may kiss the bride."
Gently, Zoisite lifted the veil off Ami's face and flung it back. Her
blue eyes sparkled at him, then her long lashes lowered and she closed her eyes.
Gently cupping her chin with his hands, he kissed her. Dimly, he felt her lean
into him and her hand caress the hair at the back of his neck.
Then, amid cheers and the throwing of rice, the jubilant pair marched
down the aisle as music struck up in the background. As they walked out of the
church, a ray of sunlight bathed over them, outlining them in gold. Both of them
looked up at the cloudless cerulean sky. Ami could have sworn that she heard
Sard Greenleaf's joyous laughter...or was it just the wind in the trees?
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There, it's done! That chapter was short, and not much happened, but hey
it's a conclusion what can you expect? Epilogue next week. Likely equally short
and equally non-action-plotwise. Anyhow, hope you enjoyed reading this work as
much as I have enjoyed writing it! Hope to hear from you! E-mail me with any
feedback at smart_sweetlady@yahoo.com. Blah blah blah. Have a great day!
-Thalia