Original Stories Fan Fiction ❯ Shattered Illusions ❯ Radiant Dreams ( Chapter 53 )

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Shattered Illusions

Chapter 53: Radiant Dreams

By: Melissa Norvell

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Two weeks passed since the final battle with Hide and things were looking up for everyone. They all ended up making their way back to Ramada and took up residence in the castle. Yale's body was returned to it's grave and buried by the memorial. Copernicus and Tsubomi dressed in elaborate blue, white and gold suits as they kissed passionately in front of the castle alter where a large group of people celebrated, clapped and made noise.

"So beautiful," Millie smiled, adorned in an elaborate blue and white dress as tears streamed down her face. She was so happy to see her friends finally getting married. She had supported them for so long.

"Hey, so you really won't mind living in Ramada?" Zino turned to her.

"Not at all," Millie shook her head and wiped the tears from her face. "I'll get to stay in the castle with Tsubomi and Copernicus. You're going to stay with me," she put a hand on his and smiled a little more, "right?"

He blushed a little and smiled, "sure thing."

"Today is a day of change, that's for sure," Horatio glanced up at the brilliant blue skies, adorned with a few clouds. Never before have they seemed so happy. It was as if the higher powers above were shining down on their elaborate garden wedding.

"Sir Pendragon, you really look nice," Millie couldn't help but notice how handsome he looked. He wore the theme colors of the wedding, blue, black, white and gold. His jacket was lined in blue wave embroidery, frills poured from his sleeves and collar. Blue slacks were on his lower half and shoes shined to perfection. Around his waist were two belts, and holders for each sword. What a noble knight he was.

"Thank you, Millie," he beamed. "Are you happy that Yale was returned to his grave?"

A bitter sweet smile crossed her face. "He's resting now. He can finally be at peace. I buried him near the roses, so he can always see them. I know how much he loved them."

Just then, two shadows fell over the intricate patterns on her blue dress. She glanced up to see Tsubomi and Copernicus standing before her.

Sweating a little, she commented Tsubomi's choice of dress. "It's just like you not to wear a dress on your wedding day."

"Damned right," Tsubomi grinned. "I don't want all of those people seeing me like that."

"You're a queen now. That must be nice."

"I prefer to be called a king. After all, I never did fit the technical standard and just because Copernicus knows who I really am now, doesn't mean that's going to stop me." Sometimes, it was fine to keep some secrets from certain people.

"Of course," the vampire smiled," but sex is a different story. You're definitely a woman then."

"Oh, shut up," Tsubomi looked a little flustered and irritated as the skin on her cheeks reddened and her new husband laughed. "You're an embarrassing king."

"Well, I could talk about how often we have-"

He was cut off by a hand being placed over his mouth.

"Hush, you," Tsubomi sighed.

"Nonetheless, it's good to see that everything is peaceful again," Horatio wasn't used to such a happy moment, much less a relaxed one.

"We have a long way to go. This is just a first step," Tsubomi reminded him of the after math. They still had things to get over and personal feelings to rise above.

"Yes," Copernicus nodded. "I'll get back to ruling with my usual iron fist. I think I'm going to take a little different approach now that I'm my own man. Thank you all, for everything. I am eternally in your debt."

"Hey, think nothing of it. It's all I could do to show my appreciation of the crown," Zino didn't mind risking his life for this kind of outcome. It was nice to see all of his efforts pay off.

"That's what friends do," Millie couldn't agree more.

"Will you be going back to America now that everything is over, Millie?" Copernicus knew that the girl had that goal in mind when they first met, but he wasn't sure if she still wished to do so now that everything has changed.

"I'll go and see my parents but I'm going to come back to Ramada and stay with you and Tsubomi," the girl then turned to Zino, "I want you to come with me."

"What?" The dark-haired man was a little confused at her request.

"Please, come with me to America. I want you to see my parents."

Pausing, as if in thought, Zino stared at her for a moment before happiness bled over his expression. "I'd love to, Millie."

"I love you so much," the maroon-haired girl smiled.

"I love you, too," Zino smiled, "I just hope that your parents accept a nut job like me!"

"Of course they will," Millie didn't know why they wouldn't.

"I bet that you wish they could have met the prince, huh?" There were better people in this world besides someone like him. Zino knew how much she loved that guy.

"It's alright," closing her eyes, she smiled. "Prince Yale will always be with me and I hope he's smiling down on me." Things were different now. There was no use dwelling on the past.

"I'm sure he's glad that you're happy."

"Yeah," she couldn't agree more.

"It's a good thing that you went back to being king, your majesty," Horatio didn't know what all of Ramada would do without Copernicus' leadership.

"Yes, I'm happy to be back home and even happier that you all decided to come with me." It would have been lonely and cold without his comrades by his side. All of them had helped him so much, Copernicus didn't want to lose such great people.

"I'd never leave you," Tsubomi wouldn't dream of it.

"You look most regal, your majesty," Horatio complimented his dress.

"Too bad Teru didn't come here to see the wedding." It left Millie a little sad that they couldn't see the vibrant red head. It felt as if there was a void in their little group, like something was missing.

"He had important matters to attend to. He's only one kingdom away from Ramada and they are our allies. We'll be seeing him around," Copernicus hoped that he was doing well in his endeavors. He was sure that Teru would appear at some event in the future. After all, it wasn't the last they had seen of him.

"My lord, it feels so good to call you that," Tsubomi had missed it, actually.

"More like my love," Copernicus preferred she call him that instead.

"Yeah, through all of this, we're together." It was hard to believe that things were finally over. They could live their lives as a peaceful couple, ruling over the land together. It was a fairytale ending to a hellish collaboration of events.

"Yes, it's amazing. I didn't expect you to stay with me. I thought you might leave, just as Virgil did." The fact that she stayed with him all this time was amazing in itself.

"I told you I wouldn't and I mean what I say. We're together forever." Reaching out, she held his hand tightly. "Tsubomi Wittenburg...so hard to believe that's my name now."

It was like a dream come true.

"I like it," Copernicus smiled.

"I could get used to it, and I have all the time in the world to get used to it now."

"I think I'll like this new life," Horatio placed his hands behind his head and smiled as he inhaled the warm, gentle breeze, scented with roses from the garden.

"You will be my advisor and right hand knight," the king had one more job in store for him.

"My lord?" Horatio stared at him in disbelief. What did he do to deserve such a special title?

The vampire smiled at him. "You do more than deserve it for everything you've done for Prince Yale."

Above it all, Horatio protected his brother with his life, always by his side until his final hours. Someone with that type of bravery and loyalty deserved the best spot that he could possibly get. Not only that, Horatio fought valiantly beside of them on the field. He was more than worthy as a knight and a friend to take the position.

"When I think about it, you've really served him well. You might think that you failed him, but you did an excellent job at protecting him, and all of us," Tsubomi remembered all of the times that Horatio saved their lives. It was something she couldn't forget. He would make a great advisor, and considering he did such a good job for Prince Yale, he would do the same for them.

"That means a lot to me," the knight was truly flattered that they thought so highly of him. "I take great pride in my job. I owe the Wittenburgs a great deal."

"We owe you, now," Copernicus smiled at his new advisor.

"That's far too king of a compliment, my king," Horatio smiled as their small group walked over to several tables that had been set up for their guests to eat cake.

When they assembled at the tables, each of them went to cut the wedding cake and get a piece and Tsubomi went to fetch the royal family's finest tea set. When she came back, she had tea brewed for all of them. Each person poured their respective spot of tea and indulged in the fluffy texture of a white, pristine cake.

"You're faithful to tea, aren't you?" Tsubomi noticed that was pretty much the only thing that he drank besides blood and the occasional glass of wine.

"Yes, I love drinking tea." It was his favorite beverage.

"Even at our wedding, you drink it," the tomboy felt herself sweat a little. He couldn't even break his tea habit to have some of the good liquor that was provided at the wedding. Some things never change.

"I'll have champagne after we eat," Copernicus wasn't going to miss out on the bubbly treat. It was still early in the day. Tea will suffice for now.

"You're amusing, but that's why I love you," she couldn't live with him, and she couldn't live without him.

In front of the alter, Zino and Millie stood, facing each other as if they were getting married. They glanced all around them at the luxurious blue, white and gold decor with accents of black. The garden smelled wonderful and the sounds of the happy guests laughing and talking casually filled their ears.

"It almost seems too good to be true," to have a peaceful moment like this was unreal compared to what had happened in the past. It was a foreign feeling to Zino, something he never thought he would get.

It felt nice.

"It's surreal. I like it. It's been a long time since anything has been this peaceful," Millie had to admit that she felt the same way. It seemed like forever since she'd last felt such joy and ease. Usually, her life was filled with fear and paranoia. She was always on edge that she was going to be abducted or killed, but it all vanished in an instant when Hizaki was defeated.

"We can kick back and relax now. We're official knights to the royal court," Zino was happy with that outcome. He felt like he had a purpose far beyond that of what he was originally.

"I bet your family will be surprised when they hear the news." After all, to go from a traveler to a knight was impressive. Millie knew they'd think higher of him if nothing else.

"You'll have to meet then when we come back from America. They're a bunch of fun-loving people, so I'm sure they won't mind," Zino knew his parents would just love Millie. She'd fit right into his family with no problem.

"What about our social class difference?" I mean, you're high society and I'm- " She was cut off from all doubt.

"You're high-class now," Zino waved in dismissal. "Don't worry about it. Besides, if you marry into the family, then you're high class anyway."

Millie was phenomenal. She was a champion gun slinger, a great fighter, she was smart, fun-loving, had great fashion sense and much, much more. She was a beautiful girl as well and he was happy that she returned his feelings. Prince Yale had good taste in women, and while he was no prince, he hoped he could be the best lover she'd had. Millie accomplished so much, as a person, as a knight, and no matter how bad the situation was, she continued on with determination and vigor.

She never gave up.

A blush ran across her face as she looked a little bashful. "Marry?"

"Well," laughing a little, Zino placed a hand behind his head, "hopefully you're thinking about it."

"Not right now," she replied, "that's a little fast, don't you think?"

"Oh no! I don't mean right now!" Zino began to freak out. He really hoped that she didn't think he was trying to shove her into some awkward relationship. That wasn't his intention at all.

"Don't scare me like that!" Millie put a hand to her chest. She was fixing to feel forced into a relationship with him and she didn't want that at all.

"Way too fast," Zino agreed. That was awkward.

"Uh...yeah," Millie was quiet for a moment before glancing around, trying to find something that would change the subject. "Hey! Do you want to go and get some wedding cake?"

"Sure," Zino decided it would be best if they ran from this subject as quickly as they could. "I am kind of hungry, and I haven't had any yet. For some reason, I hadn't been hungry. I guess it's because I've been so busy I haven't had time to think about eating. Maybe later we can dance a little, huh?"

"I'd love to," the maroon-haired girl smiled.

Music began to fill the air as different couples stepped out onto the dance floor and began to dance around to the tune of the beautiful classical notes. They twirled and whirled around on the flat surface, laughing and smiling. Zino glanced at them for a while, then looked to Millie, holding a hand out to her as he asked if they could have that dance. They could always eat cake later.

Millie put her gloved hand in his and smiled. "Certainly, we'll need to eat something after we use up all of that energy."

They walked out onto the dance floor, holding hands and joined in when they saw an opening. The two joined the other couples as they whirled and twirled around on the floor. The two smiled, having fun as they lost track of the fact that they were at a wedding and became completely immersed in dance. Horatio looked at the lovely couples dancing together and smiled from the side lines. He was happy to see that Millie, as well as the other guests had smiles on their faces.

'Since your death, your majesty, this is the first peaceful ball I've been to. It is nice, in a way.' Horatio was happy to see all of his friends having a good time, even though he felt a sense of loneliness without Prince Yale around.

"Um...excuse me..." a small voice said from behind him, "would you like to dance? You look kind of lonely just standing on the sidelines like that."

Turning around, Horatio saw a tall woman with long, wavy, dark-purple hair. She smiled a little awkwardly at him and he could tell that she was kind of shy. He said 'of course' and held out his hand to her. She took his hand and he led her out onto the dance floor, joining in with the other couples as they spun around to the beautiful music. The girl that was with him smiled and looked as if she was having a great time.

From across the dance floor, Zino glanced at the knight, dancing around a few feet away from him and smiled a little. "Looks like he found himself a pretty girl to dance with."

"Aw, they're so cute!" Millie was beginning to ship the two of them together already. They did look nice aesthetically.

"Hey, look at the newlyweds over there." Jerking his head, Zino's eyes went to Copernicus and Tsubomi, who had joined in the festivities.

"Hm?" The girl looked over to see the two of them. Among all of the couples on the dance floor, they stuck out the most. "They look so regal and happy. Kind of like in a day dreams I used to have about them. They were always my favorite couple."

Millie couldn't help but sigh at the two of them. Even after all of this time, they continued to make her swoon.

"Your beauty never ceases to amaze me. After all of this time, I'm still attracted to you as much as I was the day we met at the strip club." It was like they had only met yesterday and Copernicus' memories of that day were crystal clear. The two of them had been through so much together, and now they were entering another step in their life by getting married to each other. It was a nice transition.

"You know, I think that I love you even more. I could dance with you like this forever." It felt so free, so peaceful, as if a huge weight was lifted from her shoulders and for once, she was at peace with herself. There was nothing to hide, no more masks to wear, and she realized that she didn't need any around him. She was free to be herself and he loved her for that.

"Then let's dance together, into a bright new figure filled with peace," Copernicus couldn't agree more.

Together the two of them would flourish.

END

Finished Typing: 10/11/14

Time: 2:34 p.m.