-"Alison, calm down." Sarah said, holding a flower bouquet in her hands, shifting from one leg to the other impatiently, looking at her clone who was pacing nervously around the sunlit room, her hand on her forehead, obviously flustered.
-"I can't calm down Sarah, why does she always have to be so late? Even on this day? Lord, why? Why did I take her for a ring bearer, hm? And if she doesn't show up I-"
-"Hey." Sarah interrupted her, sighing impatiently at the soccer mum. "She'll be here. You know Cosima. Yeah? She's always so bloody late. It would be a miracle if she showed up on time. But she'll be here before the ceremony. Otherwise she knows I'd kick her arse." Seeing Alison giving her a small smile, Sarah smirked herself. "Just breathe, okay? You're going to screw up your make-up and Katja will kick the living shite out of us both."
Alison Hendrix nodded and went to the mirror in the corner of the room, her hands soothing the smooth fabric of her wedding dress. The sight calmed her a little and she actually smiled. It was her wedding day after all, and soon she would be married to the love of her life. The rings didn't matter, even though they were a very relevant part of the ceremony. Within half an hour, she would be walking down the aisle, and nothing else would bother her anymore.
-"You look beautiful, Alison." Sarah commented from behind her back, slouched down in an armchair and smiling up at her clone. She remembered how excited Alison Hendrix was when she ran to her and showed her the engagement ring. She was even more surprised when the soccer mum announced that she wanted Sarah to be her maid of honor. Sarah had never been at a wedding before, and wearing dresses was absolutely not her thing, but she made an exception and put the ruby knee-length dress just for the special day. She wished Kira and Felix were there to see it, but this was the clone club event only. Katja even brought three of the Europeans that very morning.
The sound of door busting open had them both jump up a little and look up.
-"Shit guys I'm sorry I'm late. I was just… held back, you know." Breathless Cosima Niehaus was standing at the door, with her head ducked a little and her hand on the doorknob. "Wow, dude. You look amazing. Did I miss anything?" Cosima's eyes widened a little at the sight of Alison standing there in the long dress, her veil thrown back and her dark hair falling down her shoulder. "You're totally the best-looking bride I've ever seen."
-"Alison went mental when she thought you'd be a no-show. Other than that, not much. Others are in the backyard already, waiting for her." Sarah chuckled, standing up to give a hug and Alison's bouquet to Cosima, patting her on the back before glancing at the bride once more. "I'm going to be downstairs, yeah? Hopefully Helena didn't eat the bloody cake while no one was looking." Smirking at Alison's terrified face, she closed the door behind her.
—
The cherry trees in the enormous backyard were heavily covered in beautiful white flowers of an early spring. The day was sunny and warm, and she wished that they had done this more privately, even though there were only ten of them. Every single face was the same, and yet it was not. They were all smiling happily up at her, and she turned a little bit to the blonde one standing under the large arc, a book in her hands.
-"A little nervous, Elizabeth darling? I certainly hope you are not getting cold feet. I will send Helena after you if you start running." Rachel Duncan glanced up from the minister's book and smiled at the ex-detective who was swaying a little bit to the side, her lips pursed in a thin line. "We are all family here, no need to feel uncomfortable. We all love you both very much."
Beth closed her eyes for a moment to relax, enjoying the almost silent lively tune that was coming from the speakers, feeling the breeze on her bare shoulders. Alison was going to come down looking absolutely gorgeous, way better than Beth herself, and she would have eyes for nobody but for her love. The haze of the late afternoon caused everything to possess unreal, ethereal beauty, and for a moment Beth didn't know if this was only because she was feeling happier than she ever did before. Alison was going to come down looking absolutely gorgeous and they were going to get married. She would finally be hers. Inhaling deeply, finally mustering up a bit of a nervous smile, Beth reopened her eyes and watched Sarah and Katja accompany Helena to one of the white chairs so she could sit between Janika and Aryanna.
Sarah smirked at Beth nervous face and cocked her chin up a little bit. "You alright there, cop?"
Beth did not respond with anything but a little sigh and an impatient look towards the glass door where Cosima and Alison were about to come out of. What was taking them so long? She could feel friendly jolts in her stomach, and the cop froze a little bit when she heard gasps from the other clones as Alison appeared in the door frame.
Beth could feel her knees almost giving out on her. All of the anxiety and nervousness had absolutely disappeared when she saw that beautiful face, hair and person who was looking directly at her, and no one else. At that very moment, neither of them had eyes for anyone else but each other. She could hear Danielle's sniffles and she could notice Cosima's dreads bouncing after her as she walked beside Alison who held her under the arm. "Jesus, woman." Beth breathed as Alison walked up to the small altar. "You look stunning."
She could see Alison's cheeks giving out a slight flush as they took each other's hands. It took all of her force just not to lean forward and kiss her right there and then, but it could wait. She promised a proper ceremony to Ali, and the proper ceremony she would get.
-"So do you."
Their fingers intertwined and they looked at each other, smiling.
-"We have gathered here today to join these two in holy matrimony…" Rachel started after clearing her throat, her eyes concentrated on the book but the smile apparent on her face.
In the first row, Helena looked at the brides and then remembered something. "They have cake, yes?" she asked leaning over to Janika, ignoring Danielle who was bawling in her handkerchief, and she looked sheepishly down when the Austrian looked at her with a stern look. "Shh. Cake after the ceremony, ja?"
Aryanna looked at both of them with a frown on her face. "State zitte! Danielle, per favore." She looked over at the third clone, trying to calm her down a little by taking her hand before looking at the two brides to be as Rachel continued to read from the book.
But Danielle was not the only one who was crying her eyes out.
Cosima tried really hard to blink the tears away, and she sniffled several times, her mouth spread in a wide, happy smile, wishing Delphine was there to see it all, to stand by her side and hold her hand. The scientist was always over-emotional on the weddings, and it was one of those rare things that made her cry with happiness. The love people shared on days like these just made her a big ball of mess.
-"Cos, I'm going to send you to sit down if you start crying, I swear to god." Sarah barked at her in a low voice, mostly because she felt a lump in her throat too. If someone had told her that she was going to witness a wedding of two of her clones just couple of years previously, she would have sent them to a mental hospital. And there she was now, taking the ring that Cos gave her and Katja, and handing it to Alison as the time for the vows came.
-"Now that the vows had been said and the rings exchanged I can proudly say that I pronounce you married." Rachel's voice was drowned in loud clapping, cheers and a whistle that came from Janika.
-"I love you." Beth mouthed to Alison whose face was now glistening with tears even though she was smiling and looking around at all of the clones before meeting her gaze with her one and only, the one who saved her when she needed it the most, the one who protected her when no one else could, the one who taught her how to love and care for someone so deeply that her body physically ached in their absence.
-"I love you too, Beth." She squeaked, her voice hitched in a little sob as she wrapped her arms around her neck as Rachel announced that they could kiss each other. "I can't be happier than I already am." Her eyes fell on Beth's lips as she bit her own slightly before they met halfway into a gentle kiss. Alison was giggling when Beth kissed her several times playfully and lifted her off the ground. The sound of everyone's cheers and Sarah's teasing 'get a room, won't you' was a music to her ears.
After what seemed like a century in Beth's arms, Alison pulled away and felt Sarah's and Cosima's arms falling around her torso, pulling her into a tight hug. She laughed, breathless as she embraced them back and finally pulled away to wipe the tears off her face and look around at all the smiling faces who were approaching to congratulate her.
Meanwhile, Beth's cheeks were hurting from all the smiling, and she squeezed Katja's hand after everyone else left to give love to Alison like they gave her a moment before. "Thank you Katja. I know it was ages ago, but it's because of you that I met Alison. That I fell in love. That I'm so happy." As Katja nodded at her and gave her an honest smile, Beth turned to look at the sky.
The afternoon's haze became more apparent now as the sunset was approaching and the end of the day. She was going to be happy for eternity now. Not even the red sky, which reminded her of all of their blood and pain from what seemed another lifetime ago, couldn't remove the surge of bliss within her chest. They were all finally happy. They were all finally free.
—-
Elsewhere, the sun had already set, and the beautiful dusk was hovering over the city of Toronto, the shadows looking almost eerie, if they had not been breathtaking as they stretched out among the tombstones. The graveyard was almost deserted, and the only two people there were an 11-year-old girl with blonde curly hair holding her uncle's hand and putting flowers on one of the graves. The tombstone read:
Sarah Manning
1984 – 2016
Beloved mother, daughter and sister
"Uncle Felix?" The girl asked, her intelligent eyes looked up at the lean man who was glancing somewhere in the distance. A smile appeared on his face as his niece called him and he looked down.
-"Yes, Kira?"
-"Do you think that mummy is happy in heaven?"
Felix let out a small sigh, but the smile remained on his face as he ruffled her hair.
-"Of course she is, monkey. She's with all of your aunts up there. I'm sure she's very happy and that she misses us."
The answer seemed good enough for the little girl, so she nodded, looking down at her mother's name. Even though has been missing her very much from the moment she left them, being the last one of her sisters to die from the mysterious disease not even her auntie Cosima could figure out, Kira knew that every one of her aunts would take a good care of her mum, wherever they were.
The silence that fell between them was broken with her uncle Felix finally speaking again.
"We can come back tomorrow again, okay? Let's go. Mrs. S. is making pancakes for dinner."