Post by Duchessa on Jun 25, 2005 13:10:34 GMT -1
Ok, i am sooooooooooooooo sorry for the long wait, i have been super-mega-busy!!! However, here it is AT LAST!!! It may not be very good and written in a slightly dreamy style (that's intentional btw) but whatever, i think it's nice. Ready?
Arianna was startled when, as if from nowhere, Rodolfo suddenly appeared at her side, taking her arm. However, she simply smiled at him, smiled a smile of gratitude, happiness and sheer terror all rolled into one. Rodolfo said nothing as the two of them began to move slowly, down the aisle, he simply smiled at his daughter with a stunned sort of pride. From some corner of the Cathedral twisted a lone strand of dreamy harp music, heavy and sweet and yet oddly exciting. Somewhere, Arianna knew, Aurelio sat, his instincts telling him what mood to strike.
After her hyperactivity of the morning, Arianna was feeling strangely calm, despite her nerves. She was hardly aware of the hoards of richly dressed nobles who crowded around her in blurry pews, all clamouring for a better view of her, nor did she think about the thousands of normal Bellezzans who were packed outside the cathedral, waiting and watching. Everything she knew, at that moment, was simple. She looked pretty, her father was there to support her and Luciano was there…taking her hand…looking into her face.
She felt strange, separate, as if everyone else had simply vanished. She was dimly aware of her father releasing her hand, stepping away, before a tall, imposing clergyman had stepped forwards.
“Dearly Beloved-”
The service passed in a sort of dream, the congregation hardly seeming to breath or move throughout. Aurelio’s harp music weaved in and out of the service like honey, sweet and hard to latch onto. Arianna, who suddenly found herself unaccountably shaky, held tight to Luciano’s hand, never once letting it go. He stood close beside her, letting the priest’s words wash over him, watching her out of the corner of his eyes, positively dazzled by her. She was wearing the mask, the mask which had taken him days to track down and have remodelled, repaired, redone; just for today, just to see it taken off, thrown away. It glittered slightly in the silver-grey light of the Cathedral. Suddenly, her violet eyes flicked towards him, under the mask, locking into his, and she smiled a tiny smile. He returned it as a strand of hardly distinguishable harp music reached his ears. Today was the perfect day. That was all there was to it.
Then suddenly, startlingly suddenly, they were at the vows, past the vows, the priest was speaking out to the congregation…man and wife…oh my God…oh my goddess…
But before the end there was one last thing… The Bellezzan marriage service was generally the same to any normal one Luciano would have been used to, with one crucial difference. With ceremonial slowness and care, the priest and a train of Bellezzan clergyman came down to the couple, bowing to both before turning to the Duchessa. The priest reached towards her, she bent her head slightly, his fingers brushed the back of her head and the mask was off! The congregation burst into quite spontaneous applause as the mask was handed back to her, taking in their Duchessa’s complete, unmarred beauty, for the very first time. As for Arianna…liberation! No more masks! But that wasn’t the reason for the beaming smile on her face. Turning from the smiling priest, who had now stepped back, she faced the young man behind her, her husband. The word was too amazing even to try and understand. He was smiling down at her, laughing as the applause reigned on. And she threw her arms around him and kissed him, their surroundings bright silver and glorious, their emotions a thousand times more so.
Silvia found herself brushing away tears as she listened to the cheering nobles, watching to Duchessa and Duke in each other’s arms. Rodolfo, at her side, squeezed her hand, his eyes smiling into hers. Quite suddenly, there came a loud gulp from behind them and they turned to see Guiditta Miele, sculptor famous throughout Talia, sobbing into a gigantic handkerchief! Silvia raised an eyebrow but said nothing, it was a forgivable thing to do. Gaetano had sought out his wife through the thick crowd of nobles, who were now rising to their feet as the Duke and Duchessa began to lead out of the cathedral. He kissed her, happily, and Francesca smiled at him,
“Makes you want to sell up and move to Bellezza, doesn’t it?”
Aurelio had suddenly struck up a loud, jubilant tune as the Cathedral doors burst open and the congregation spilled out to the thundering cheers and applause of the crowds of Bellezzan citizens! Caught off guard, Arianna gasped and clutched Luciano’s arm, but he only laughed.
“I think they’re cheering you.”
“They’re cheering us, imbecile.”
She beaming at him, suddenly remembering. “My bouquet!”
She held it up and the Bellezzans cheered. However, just as she was about to throw it, she stopped.
“What?”
She said nothing, simply smiling at him as she swapped her flowers to her other hand. He saw, in an instant, what she was going to do and laughed delightedly as, with great solemnity, she hurled the glittering mask into the crowd. It sparkled and flashed as, for a moment, it fluttered in the bright, white sunlight, before disappearing into the jubilant crowd, impossible to tell who had caught it.
heehee, ya like? I reckon i'll do one more chap. and mayb an epilogue after that, whatdya reckon?
xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxox
p.s. ok i've done mine, tru, where's the next part of cesare's story??
Arianna was startled when, as if from nowhere, Rodolfo suddenly appeared at her side, taking her arm. However, she simply smiled at him, smiled a smile of gratitude, happiness and sheer terror all rolled into one. Rodolfo said nothing as the two of them began to move slowly, down the aisle, he simply smiled at his daughter with a stunned sort of pride. From some corner of the Cathedral twisted a lone strand of dreamy harp music, heavy and sweet and yet oddly exciting. Somewhere, Arianna knew, Aurelio sat, his instincts telling him what mood to strike.
After her hyperactivity of the morning, Arianna was feeling strangely calm, despite her nerves. She was hardly aware of the hoards of richly dressed nobles who crowded around her in blurry pews, all clamouring for a better view of her, nor did she think about the thousands of normal Bellezzans who were packed outside the cathedral, waiting and watching. Everything she knew, at that moment, was simple. She looked pretty, her father was there to support her and Luciano was there…taking her hand…looking into her face.
She felt strange, separate, as if everyone else had simply vanished. She was dimly aware of her father releasing her hand, stepping away, before a tall, imposing clergyman had stepped forwards.
“Dearly Beloved-”
The service passed in a sort of dream, the congregation hardly seeming to breath or move throughout. Aurelio’s harp music weaved in and out of the service like honey, sweet and hard to latch onto. Arianna, who suddenly found herself unaccountably shaky, held tight to Luciano’s hand, never once letting it go. He stood close beside her, letting the priest’s words wash over him, watching her out of the corner of his eyes, positively dazzled by her. She was wearing the mask, the mask which had taken him days to track down and have remodelled, repaired, redone; just for today, just to see it taken off, thrown away. It glittered slightly in the silver-grey light of the Cathedral. Suddenly, her violet eyes flicked towards him, under the mask, locking into his, and she smiled a tiny smile. He returned it as a strand of hardly distinguishable harp music reached his ears. Today was the perfect day. That was all there was to it.
Then suddenly, startlingly suddenly, they were at the vows, past the vows, the priest was speaking out to the congregation…man and wife…oh my God…oh my goddess…
But before the end there was one last thing… The Bellezzan marriage service was generally the same to any normal one Luciano would have been used to, with one crucial difference. With ceremonial slowness and care, the priest and a train of Bellezzan clergyman came down to the couple, bowing to both before turning to the Duchessa. The priest reached towards her, she bent her head slightly, his fingers brushed the back of her head and the mask was off! The congregation burst into quite spontaneous applause as the mask was handed back to her, taking in their Duchessa’s complete, unmarred beauty, for the very first time. As for Arianna…liberation! No more masks! But that wasn’t the reason for the beaming smile on her face. Turning from the smiling priest, who had now stepped back, she faced the young man behind her, her husband. The word was too amazing even to try and understand. He was smiling down at her, laughing as the applause reigned on. And she threw her arms around him and kissed him, their surroundings bright silver and glorious, their emotions a thousand times more so.
Silvia found herself brushing away tears as she listened to the cheering nobles, watching to Duchessa and Duke in each other’s arms. Rodolfo, at her side, squeezed her hand, his eyes smiling into hers. Quite suddenly, there came a loud gulp from behind them and they turned to see Guiditta Miele, sculptor famous throughout Talia, sobbing into a gigantic handkerchief! Silvia raised an eyebrow but said nothing, it was a forgivable thing to do. Gaetano had sought out his wife through the thick crowd of nobles, who were now rising to their feet as the Duke and Duchessa began to lead out of the cathedral. He kissed her, happily, and Francesca smiled at him,
“Makes you want to sell up and move to Bellezza, doesn’t it?”
Aurelio had suddenly struck up a loud, jubilant tune as the Cathedral doors burst open and the congregation spilled out to the thundering cheers and applause of the crowds of Bellezzan citizens! Caught off guard, Arianna gasped and clutched Luciano’s arm, but he only laughed.
“I think they’re cheering you.”
“They’re cheering us, imbecile.”
She beaming at him, suddenly remembering. “My bouquet!”
She held it up and the Bellezzans cheered. However, just as she was about to throw it, she stopped.
“What?”
She said nothing, simply smiling at him as she swapped her flowers to her other hand. He saw, in an instant, what she was going to do and laughed delightedly as, with great solemnity, she hurled the glittering mask into the crowd. It sparkled and flashed as, for a moment, it fluttered in the bright, white sunlight, before disappearing into the jubilant crowd, impossible to tell who had caught it.
heehee, ya like? I reckon i'll do one more chap. and mayb an epilogue after that, whatdya reckon?
xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxox
p.s. ok i've done mine, tru, where's the next part of cesare's story??