Royal Wedding in Afalia [IC Thread/Invites Only]

[Lyncanestria]

After it had been Amelia's turn to say "I do" and her cousin, Nicholas, had then officially given her to be wed to him, Revernd Goode turned back to him, asking him to repeat after him. And so he began, "I, Frédéric Charles Guillaume, take thee, Amelia Agatha Joy," said Goode, agter which Frédéric repeated exactly as the Reverend had spoken.

"--to be my wedded wife, to have and to hold, from this day forward,--" said Goode, and Frédéric said the same.

"--for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, for sickness and in health,--" again they turned, Goode speaking first and Frédéric speaking the latter time.

Then Reverend Goode continued, "--to love and to cherish, till death us do part, according to God's holy law,--" and Frédéric followed.

"--and thereto I give thee my troth." was the bishop's closing statement that Frédéric then repeated.

He looked strait at Amelia the entire time. Staring deep into her sparkling eyes, holding her hands tightly in his, smiling. He knew there would be no regrets of this decision throughout his life's entirety.

(OoC: If I'm not mistaken, this is when Frédéric places the wedding ring on Amelia's hand?)

[Afalia]

OOC: Almost.

Amelia was lost for a moment inside the eyes of Frédéric before the booming voice of the Bishop brought her back to life. The Bishop indicated and Frédéric loosened his hold on Amelia's right hand, whilst Amelia took his right hand.

'And now you Amelia, after me,' he said, 'I Amelia Agatha Jou, take thee, Frédéric Charles Guillaume,'

'To be my wedded husband,' Amelia continued, as soon as the Bishop had finished, 'To have and to hold from this day forward, for better or for worse, for richer, for poorer,' she and Goode went on, '...till death us do part...and thereto I give thee my troth.'

Throughout the speech Amelia maintained her near bewitched stare at Frédéric's face. The Bishop pushed their hands apart and from Prince Louis collected Amelia's wedding ring. Placing it between the pages of his book he blessed it with the sign of the cross, 'Bless, O Lord, this ring, and grant that he who gives it and she who shall wear it may remain faithful to each other, and abide in thy peace and favour, and live together in love until their lives' end. Through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.'

From the congregation a small murmured reply of amen came in return. Goode passed the ring to Frédéric for him to place on Amelia's hand. Her heart beat faster. This was the final step.

OOC: Here it is! The thing Frédéric has to repeat after the Bishop is, 'With this ring I thee wed; with my body I thee honour; and all my worldly goods with thee I share: in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost. Amen.'

[Lyncanestria]

"Amen," said Frédéric whispering in a breathlike manner after Goode had finished. Then, taking the ring from Goode's hands to place upon Amelia's, he repeated after the Bishop, "With this ring I thee wed," he paused. "--with my body I thee honour; and all my worldly goods with thee I share," there was a pause while he followed Goode's words. And then lastly, they finished, "--in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost. Amen."

He held the ring, gold and jeweled with diamond, the same which had belonged to his grandmother, given by his grandfather to her. Now, as his grandfather had placed that ring upon his grandmother's hand, he now gently put this ring into place upon Amelia's ring finger. Semiaudible whispers rose from the cathedral's congregation, with "Amen"s and "Aw"s being most prominent.

Then, after securing the ring in place, the focus was back in Goode's hand to continue.

[Afalia]

As Frédéric placed the magnificent, beautiful ring over Amelia's fourth finger she felt a shiver down her spine. A good shiver. She admired it as she held out her hand, a symbol that she and Frédéric now belonged to each other. The epitome of love, the greatest gesture. Whilst the quiet whispers died down the Bishop raised his hands in an angelic like celebratory stance, 'Let us pray,' he said.

Whilst the congregation across the cathedral remained standing Amelia and Frédéric kneeled on the cushions next to the altar and placed their hands together to pray. Goode cleared his throat and then gently placed his own hands together, locked his fingers, tilted his head and closed his eyes.

'Oh Eternal God, Creator and Preserve of all mankind, giver of all spiritual grace, the author of everlasting life,' Goode said, the gentle voice carrying curiously well across the cathedral, 'send thy blessing upon these thy servants, this man and this woman, whom we bless in thy name,' the reverend continued.

Amelia kept her eyes shut, but temptation lured her to open her eyes just once to look again at her new husband's face, that wonderful face.

'...Through Jesus Christ our Lord, Amen,' Goode finished.

Once more the congregation replied. The bishop lifted his head and at once took Amelia's hand and Frédéric's hand and placed them side by side. He turned to collect a piece of golden ribbon from a Verger and holding it gently by the ends, wrapped it around, 'Those whom God hath joined together, let no man put asunder.'

The ribbon remained in place for a moment longer before Goode unwrapped it and laid it on the altar. He lifted his head slowly, smiling at the newly-wed couple, 'Forasmuch as Frédéric and Amelia have consented together in holy wedlock, and have witnessed the same before God and this company, and thereto have given and pledged their troth either to other, and have declared the same by giving and receiving of a ring, and by joining of hands; I pronounce that they be man and wife together, in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost,' Goode said, presenting the sign of the cross upon them, 'Amen.'

Once more Goode blessed Amelia and Frédéric, slowly, gently and caring, 'God the Father, God the Son, God the Holy Spirit, bless, preserve, and keep you; the Lord mercifully with his favour look upon you; and so fill you with all spiritual benediction and grace, that ye may so live together in this life, that in the world to come ye may have life everlasting. Amen.'

'Amen,' Amelia said in reply.

And so it was done. Amelia and Frédéric were now Prince and Princess together, the future King and Queen and most importantly of all, husband and wife. In the background Amelia detected the quiet tears of her grandmother, who always cried at happy occasions. She stood up and caught the glimpse of her beaming mother, her grandfather and cousins, sister, friends and family. And she looked over to Frédéric's family who seemed to look at her tenderly, warmly and happily. Another hymn began as Frédéric escorted Amelia over to two chairs by the side. There they sat, for the first time together, as husband and wife as the reading, to be followed by the sermon, began.

The next two things are the reading and sermon, which as I'm not very skilled-I imagine, in writing sermons or selecting readings, we'll skip! After that we'll be some more blessings, some more hymns and the signing of the names in the cathedral's records. At the very end the national anthem, before the procession out of the cathedral. For the most part, unless you want to, we can skip or speed up the rest of it, as the main wedding ceremony is over. But it's up to you.

[Lyncanestria]

It felt to Frédéric as if his weight was on the verge of making his legs collapse underneath him. When Bishop Goode had declared them officially wed under the banner od Afalia, where his fealty will now lie. He took Amelia gently by the hand after Goode had finished his prayers and walked her over to a pair of elegantly ornated seats for them two. The newlyweds took their seats and joined in on the hymns that were to be sung prior to the ceremony's conclusion. Some hymns he would recognize from his own church's hymnals although some he was not familiar with. But no matter, it was only a small matter of time before the Cathedral's Choir would errupt into Händel's Zadok the Priest subsequently followed by both country's national anthem and the procession out of the church.

Although it was probably in his best interest to have focused on the sermon, which was more than likely to have been alluding to this wedding and marriage in general, he could not help bur drift off into his own world, thinking only of Amelia and one other thing: children. They were newlyweds and perhaps it was too early for Frédéric to be thinking of such things having been recently married. But he could not shake that idea from his head. He wa already 27 and now he could finally have posterity of his own, the possibility of forming a family!

Surely enough, after what seemed to be an eternity, the sermon was done. Not to appear rude or having done it intentionally, but it seemed as if Frédéric had given a big exhale similar to a sigh. He was desperate for alone time with his new wife but unfortunately protocol came first. He stood up and again stuck out his hand for Amelia, who took it as the procesion out of the Blackdonian Cathedral began.

[Afalia]

After the sermon was done there was a pause as the magnificent drums rolled before Zadok the Priest was played. The choir sang loudly, filling the cathedral with their heavenly voices. As she held Frédéric's hand it felt as if God himself had orchestrated this perfect moment. In quick succession the Royal began and the national anthems of both Afalia and Lyncanestria followed. Finally the music came to an end and the upbeat procession music began. Frédéric rose and offered his hand and Amelia accepted and smiled. The congregation rose as slowly Amelia and Frédéric walked hand in hand down the marble steps from the altar and onto the stone floor beneath them.

'Here we go,' Amelia whispered and did her usual deep breath in to prepare herself for big public shows.

The bridesmaids and pageboys shuffled up from their seats and stood behind the newlyweds at a happy distance. Behind them came the respective families-Amelia's grandfather in his role as host and King leading the way. The wedding ceremony was now over but there was more to come. The carriage procession back to the palace, the balcony appearance, the flypast, gun salute, ringing of the bells and the never ending party. Amelia had often wondered whether she would one day become sick of her eventual duties as Queen, but she had come to the conclusion that as long as she had Frédéric beside her, supporting her, loving her, then that day would never come. She wanted to kiss Frédéric right there and then but knew that one of the curses of Royalty was protocol and rules. She longed for the moments of privacy they would finally enjoy near the end of the evening.

The old doors of St. Nicholas' Cathedral were swung open by Royal guards revealing the cheering crowds across the street, waving their Afalian-Lyncanestrian double sided flags. It had brightened up significantly since the morning and so far there had been no rain. A perfect day. Amelia leant in to Frédéric and let herself be comforted by his warmth for a moment. Then quite suddenly she sprang back into her public life role and began waving to the crowds.

'Your Highnesses, my warmest congratulations on this special day,' a Royal guard said and saluted, 'The carriage is ready.'

Before them the glorious golden carriage, lined with the Royal orange and blue stood with the doors open and the fold down steps ready. A red carpet was laid out with guards on either side standing at arms. Once again the flags of both the nations stood flying in the light breeze, a gesture and symbol of co-operation which gave Amelia a little smile. Surrounding it stood rows and rows of soldiers, from all services, some standing, some on horseback, in full military dress. The pomp was on a scale not seen since King George's coronation.

'Are you OK?' she said, as Frédéric led her down the steps towards the carriage. Weddings were overwhelming in the best of circumstances, let alone on a Royal scale.

[Lyncanestria]

It is over, Frederic thought to himself. He had done it. The wedding ceremony had now been completed and he found himself marching down the cathedral aisle to a beautiful melodic procession alongside his wife, his beatiful wife with whom he would cherish the remainder of his lifetime. A grin much unlike any before came to his face and though it might be a proper time to smile, the enormity with which he did would have been cause for pondering: how is it possible for one to smile that big? But how could Frederic help it in such a moment?

As they exited the cathedral, his eyes flashed as the sun's light entered his eyes with force, his ears fuzzied at the sound of the crowd who cheered this magnificent event. He drew Amelia to the carriage assigned to them, a majestic trasport of white and gold. As an Afalian Royal Guard opened the carriage, Frederic gave a small nod and then helped Amelia up. As he did so, the agitation that the cheering and whistling and the shouting caused to Frederic probably got the better of him for a moment, as Amelia asked him, "Are you okay?"

Obviously the answer was yes, why, I don't think he remembers a time where he had felt better, but it was the attitude that he was radiating for those few second that prompted Amelia to ask such question. "Yeah--yes," he responded without hesitation, "I'm completely fine." He pondered for a moment as he made his was up into the carriage. "I guess it's just all this commotion got the better of me for a moment, sweetie. And you? How are you holding up?" He finished, as the Royal Guard closed the doors of the carriage.

[Afalia]

Amelia smiled and settled herself in her seat, opposite her wonderful new husband, 'Yes, never better,' she said and beamed. The door of the carriage shut quickly and Royal Guards mounted their horses. At the front the King's Calvary Regiment, led by a colonel in a magnificent bright tunic motioned to a private beside him who took a trumpet and sounded out a military bugle call. As Amelia and Frédéric held hands they watched as, in superb ceremonial procession, the Lyncanestrian Emperor's 1st Regiment of Imperial Guards and the Emperor's 3rd Life Guard of Horse regiment marched and rode respectively down the large road towards the already waiting Afalian procession.

The Afalian soldiers saluted their Lyncanestrian counterparts and the Lyncanestrians returned the salute. After a minute or so the Lyncanestrians took up their places alongside the Afalians and looked forward towards the Palace. The procession began quite suddenly as the horses pulling the carriage sprung into life and the crowds lined down the route erupted into applause and cheers once again. Inside the carriage Amelia wanted nothing more than to kiss Frédéric but duty called and the newlywed Princess leaned from her seat to look out the carriage windows and wave at her future subjects. She smiled and waved. She was truly overwhelmed by how happy the people around her seemed to be for her and Frédéric.

She turned around to Frédéric and said, 'I love you,' she paused before adding with a slight laugh, 'Husband of mine.'

Eventually the carriage procession entered through the large, grand gates of the Blackdonian Palace and stopped just outside the steps to the hallway. In close pursuit was the procession of the King, Queen consort, Duke and Duchess and Amelia's sister. Soon the whole world, foreign Royalty and all, would arrive in style at the Palace, but for now Amelia and Frédéric had a few minutes alone with each other.

Really sorry for the delay. College coursework and university application stuff got in the way!