Hmm... am I the only one who thinks these chapters are sorta short? *shrug* Maybe it's just me... But this whole ficcie thingy is short, so it would make sense that the chapters are short, right? Short ficcie, short chapters? *shrug* ANYWAYS! You feel kinda sorry for poor Zel, doncha? Poor Zelly!! But it's okay! Remember, if you know ANYTHING about me, my ficcies always end happily! That's the law! ^_^ So no worries!

I'm not even going to say that I won't say it!

Oh no! Amelia's Wedding Rhapsody!?

Gourry, Zelgadis, and Malachi waited outside a pair of double doors, waiting for Lina and Amelia to come out so the wedding could start. The three of them were all wearing suits. Gourry's and Zelgadis's were black, but Malachi's was spotless white. All three looked extremely dashing.

The door they were waiting at opened, and they all turned their attention to it. Lina stepped out first, wearing a long, tight, blue dress. The collar was very wide, but not very low, and the sleeves reached about elbow-length before they were cut away on one side, ending in a point at the back of her hand. She was blushing redder than her hair.

The three men stared at her, and she grinned. "Prepare yourselves," she said dramatically. "I seriously think I've outdone myself in getting Amelia ready."

The men didn't think, at the moment, that Lina could have done a better job on Amelia than she had done on herself. They changed their minds a moment later.

Amelia followed Lina, and paused in the doorway. Her wedding dress was completely sleeveless. The bodice was tight, revealing much of her figure, and then the skirt flared out at her waist. She wore elbow-length white gloves, and held a bouquet of pale pink roses. She had a crown of matching flowers on her head, and was blushing even brighter than Lina.

Zelgadis stared, transfixed. He had always thought Amelia was beautiful, but now... Now she was beauty beyond words.

Malachi's jaw dropped. "I wish I was marrying you for real!" he shouted.

"No!" Amelia shouted. "I already have to have a fake wedding... I don't want a real one yet..."

Gourry blinked a few times, then turned back to Lina. He held a finger up knowledgeably. "You know, Lina--" he started, but Lina pummeled him, thinking he was about to make another crack about her chest size. "I was just gonna say I think you look prettier," he said quietly.

Lina stared for a moment, and blinked in confusion before that remark registered in her head. Then her face turned beet-red, and she looked away in embarrassment.

A bell rang, signaling the beginning of the wedding. The others all ran off to their places, leaving Amelia all by herself for a moment. She felt awful. Even if it only was a fake wedding, Zelgadis still had to watch. She didn't like that. It might hurt him, watching her get married.

But there was no turning back now. Amelia straightened her back, and looked forward in determination. "For justice," she told herself sternly.

The doors in front of her opened, and she slowly walked forward. The carpet along the floor was white, as were the decorations on the walls, and the chairs. At the front of the chapel there was a podium with a priest standing behind it, and Malachi standing to one side.

Amelia determinedly walked down the carpet, taking care not to step on the hem of her dress. When she got close enough, she saw that her friends were sitting in the front row. She smiled at them, and resisted the urge to wave. Her smiled faded when she saw that Zelgadis's arms were crossed, and he was pointedly not looking at her.

She knew it. Marrying someone else was hurting Zelgadis. And it was her fault.

Before she realized it, she had reached the podium. She turned to face Malachi, who was grinning from ear to ear.

"We are gathered here today," the priest started. "To witness the joining of these two persons. Please repeat after me. I, Malachi, take thee, Amelia, to be my wife for the rest of my days. Through death I will love and be forever faithful."

After Malachi had repeated that, the priest turned to look at Amelia. He said, "Repeat after me. I, Amelia, will love and honor thee, Malachi, for all my days. And through death will I be forever faithful."

Amelia took a deep breath. Saying all that would be lying, but she had to do it. "I, Amelia," she said. Her heart started pounding, and she had to start over. She made herself do this. She squared her shoulders in determination, and said, "I, Amelia, will love and honor thee, Zelgadis-san, for--"

The audience broke into excited whispers and murmurs. Amelia blushed bright fuchsia. Zelgadis turned his head slowly and stared at her incredulously. A faint blush colored his face. Lina snickered behind her hand. Gourry just wondered what she said wrong.

"I-I mean... Umm... I, Amelia, will love and honor thee, Malachi-san, for all my days. And through death I will be forever faithful." She said this in a rush to get it over with.

Zelgadis still didn't believe what he had heard. She said his name. He heard it. She said, "I will love and honor thee, Zelgadis-san." Did that mean... Could that mean... Was it possible that...

The priest cleared his throat, and said, "If anyone present has just cause as to why these two should not wed, speak now or forever hold your peace."

For a moment, Zelgadis considered speaking up. But then that chance flew away when the priest said, "I now declare you husband and wife." Zelgadis's heart jumped to his throat when he heard the priest say, "You may kiss the bride."

He hadn't even kissed Amelia yet! Why should some stranger kiss her? That Malachi person had no feelings whatsoever towards Amelia in any way other than her looks. Zelgadis locked his jaw, and crossed his arms again.

In the front row, Lina muttered, "Twenty gold says she backs out."

"You're on," Gourry answered.

Amelia blushed. She had forgotten about the kissing part. She looked up at Malachi, pleading him with her eyes to not make her have to do that.

Malachi didn't catch the hint, however. He took a step closer to her, and said, "Just a little kiss. No big deal."

But it was a big deal to Amelia. She wanted her first kiss to be special and romantic with the person she truly loved! Not someone she was pretending to marry so he could keep his kingdom.

Zelgadis's hands clenched into fists, and he forced himself to look away. He had two reasons for doing so. The first was because he didn't trust himself not to run up there and punch Malachi. The second was because he truly didn't want to see Amelia kissing anyone else.

Amelia's heart pounded in her chest as Malachi leaned closer. She closed her eyes tightly, but didn't move from her spot. She would do this. She had to di this. It was for justice. If justice was to triumph in this situation, she'd need to be strong.

As soon as Malachi's lips brushed hers, she backed away. The audience cheered and clapped, and rice was thrown into the aisle. While Malachi escorted her back out of the chapel, she couldn't bring herself to look at Zelgadis.

Malachi led Amelia to her room, and then danced off to his own room, shouting about things he would do to make Rathen a better kingdom.

Amelia walked into her room in the palace, and closed the door tightly behind her. She threw her bouquet of flowers in a corner, which was quickly followed by her crown, shoes, gloves, and dress. She slipped into her loose traveling clothes, and started pacing around the room. She wiped her mouth with the back of her hand, but she was unable to get the feel of the kiss out of her mind.

"I can't believe I did that," she told herself. "In trying to stand for justice, I betrayed two of my other principles! Truth and love! I lied when I said I would love Malachi-san until the end of my days like the priest told me to say. And I hurt Zelgadis-san by making him watch me do all that.

"How could I kiss someone other than Zelgadis-san?" she asked herself. "My first kiss was supposed to be with him, and it was supposed to be long and romantic and... not like that. I can't believe I wasted my first kiss on someone that wasn't Zelgadis-san! I only have one first kiss, and now it's gone!"

She continued pacing around her room, talking to herself, telling herself how bad that was to do the wedding, and how hurt Zelgadis would be later.