Disclaimer: I own nothing from the TV show, Psych. Its characters belong to the cast and crew as does the producers of Fear Itself. Any copyright infringement is unintended and may be reported to me.

This fic is a crossover between Psych and Fear Itself: In Sickness and In Health. (The episode might be kooky, but the acting sends shivers up your spine.) Spoilers prevalent through both series.

1. Psyche

"Stop! Stop it!" Juliet shrieked. Shawn's arms were still around her. He had no intentions of letting go. She squirmed trying to wrestle free but he held fast.

"Awww, come on, Jules. Give in!"

She twisted herself from his grip, still laughing uncontrollably. His fingers continued to fly over her waist and torso, right over her tickle spots.

When Juliet O'Hara had taken her sabbatical to start the final preparations for her wedding, she hadn't included the time wasting her fiancé would eventually do.

Shawn Spencer was one ridiculous, juvenile delinquent in his thirties and Juliet was absolutely in love with him. She could tell that everyone had their doubts with Shawn and his commitment-phobia but Juliet had more faith and she was enthralled when she saw that glittering little diamond he had offered her.

The ring was currently encasing the fourth finger on her hand and she loved to rub her thumb against it every time she thought about her husband-to-be.

She was developing a callus on her thumb pad.

They were in the apartment and where supposed to be sorting out the guest seating arrangements for the ceremony when Shawn had decided that a tickle war was in order.

Mercifully, he stopped when he saw her pink, puffed up cheeks and heaving breaths.

"Inhale and exhale, honey. And then, round two."

"Oooh no." She pushed him away and stood up from the couch, forcing her face into a glare when she saw his cheeky grin. There was a love-hate relationship with that trademark smirk.

Shawn leaned forwards and clasped her hand. He kept his eyes trained on hers – a smouldering gaze – and kissed her knuckles.

Juliet melted on the inside. Was he trying to kill her?

"We have to finish this by today." She insisted, seating beside him. He held up his hands.

"Gotcha cop. Old people can sit by the speakers so they can hear the ceremony. Snotty kids can be put in a play pen near the flower stands. All middle aged bald guys can cosy up with the desperate housewives and the families can squeeze in somewhere in the chaos."

Juliet smacked his face lightly with a brochure. Shawn was being especially distracted today. She couldn't help but wonder if this was moving too fast for him.

"Shawn, I really want to organize this before the hectic atmosphere gets to us. The gifts have already started coming in and you promised to handle that tomorrow."

He gave a groan and slouched on the couch. "Man, I forgot about that. Anyhoo, shouldn't the bride be in charge of gifts?"

"The bride is too busy minding her groom. He seems to have forgotten the responsibility."

Shawn leaned in. Their noses touched and she went crossed eyed.

"The groom is busy thinking that the couple should have eloped."

Juliet sighed and moved away. She pushed aside the pamphlets and put up her legs on the tea table, resting her head back and closing her eyes. She felt the couch shift as he moved closer to her and she voiced her thoughts.

"That's the second time you've mentioned eloping. Do you really not want this wedding?"

He didn't say anything for a while. She opened her eyes and saw him pursuing his lips under contemplation.

"Are you seriously thinking about it?!" She yelled. "Shawn, you said you wanted to see me in white."

"I do! Jules, it's just that these past few weeks have been mind numbing. The cake tasting, dress shopping, table clothe, china, church booking, everything's been going in a rush. I can't keep up."

He looked at her beseechingly. "I can't handle this like you. Eloping sounds so much simpler but we're still getting married. We can wear the dress and tux, recite the vows and it'll be registered. Don't tell me you're not having a mid-life crisis just trying to organize the whole thing."

She sat there, watching him relax from the venting. His face had gone pink and his lips looked even pinker. Without preamble, she surged forwards, grabbed the collar of his biker's jacket (gosh, he looked so hot in it) and kissed him, long and hard.

A few papers were ruffled, the table was pushed away and a few hours later, they were looking up at the ceiling, panting.

"We've ...never done it on the couch, right?"

Juliet let out a heavy giggle. "I don't think so."

He turned in his spot, making sure not accidentally push her off. "I thought you'd make me sleep on the couch tonight for making the 'elope' comment. Didn't think you'd join me."

Juliet's smile wavered remembering that. "Is that what you want? To call off the wedding and drive to Las Vegas or something?"

Shawn propped up his elbow, putting his weight on it. He leaned towards her, pressing his lips to her shoulder. "I was actually thinking City Hall. But your idea sounds way better."

She placed her palm on his chest to nudge him away. The clothes were picked up and silently worn until the pair was only slightly dishevelled. She looked away from Shawn knowing that if she saw his lips or hair, she'd jump his bones again.

"I thought you'd been joking earlier. Why didn't you say something before we had sent out all the invites? My family is already on the way and all our friends... And the hotel rooms that we've booked? Not to mention the catering, the flower orders – "

"That's exactly why I didn't say it then." Shawn insisted. He looked serious and Juliet sat up straight. The cheery vibe was gone. With the sun setting, long shadows crept into the living room, half shrouding his face in darkness.

"I knew you'd have to stop and cancel everything and that would've been the worst thing possible at that point. Jules, listen to me."

He put his arms on her shoulders and she inhaled shakily when she felt his fingers brush lightly over the back of her neck. "I love you. Juliet, I've loved you ever since I had to wrestle that axe away from you and since you accepted my fake proposal, years ago. I don't care how we get married. This ceremony is for you. You said you wanted the cake, the church and your family all in one place to see you walk down that aisle and start up a new chapter with me. You said you wanted to keep your name and defeated my offer of a hyphenated title. That shows that you'll still be you though names don't really matter. And I know that you love me. You've loved me ever since I walked into that cafe and you mistook me for a model. You stole my seat so I had to talk to you and even though you were acting stalkery, you knew I was the one for you."

Juliet had to laugh at that. Shawn leaned in, his eyes sparkling. They kissed for a while – soft ones, peppered over both faces.

"You got me excited about the wedding. I want to swirl champagne in my glass and see the bubbles flutter around it. I want to see you take photos with everyone with that beautiful smile even though you're close to a dead faint. I want to see Gus and Lassi slow dance and who knows? There may be another wedding on the horizon."

Shawn gave her another cheeky smile. She slid her arms around his neck and placed her head on his shoulders. He pulled her tighter to him and they stayed like that for a while.

"That's the probably the most romantic thing you've ever said. But you got one thing wrong."

"Oh, and what's that?"

She pulled back to look at him clearly, a grin adorning her face. "I fell in love with you when I saw you in the football jersey. The case for Coach Winslow?"

"Sammy Winslow! Yeah, you told me I looked like your ruggedly sexy nephew."

Juliet laughed again. Before anything else was said, the phone rang. Shawn, petulant little character he was, hid his face in her stomach as she reached for the cordless.

"O'Hara and Spencer residence. Oh, hey Carlton. ... No, not much, we're still sorting out some stuff. ... What?!"

Shawn looked up at the outburst. Juliet's eyes were wide, staring at the wall behind him. He turned around for a quick gander before she resumed speaking, "Oh my god! Is he alright?"

"Who's hurt? Is it Gus?"

"... Alright. ... No, I think we can get someone, but we'll just look him up ... Ok, bye."

"What's wrong?" Shawn asked. Juliet put down the phone and turned towards him slowly, "The Father was in a hit and run case."

"Whose father?"

"Father Chris! He was supposed to preside over our ceremony, remember? Carlton just said that they found him on the road. A Prius had knocked him down a couple of hours back. There's no lead. He's in the hospital in surgery."

Shawn frowned, "We should have eloped."

She punched him in the shoulder. "Grab your jacket. We have to go."

"And do what? They won't let you in the ICU, Jules."

She huffed and got up, searching the table for her car keys. She pushed around the worn pamphlets and unopened letters. "Doesn't matter. We'll just check up on him. I hope he'll be on his feet for the wedding."

Shawn shot her a look. "The wedding's in three days. You know what? Let Marsha handle this, she's the Matron of Honor. Oooh oooh! Grab the letters; maybe they've finally replied my Roasted/Grilled Jerk Chicken Recipe Book publication!"

.

Juliet watched Shawn talk to Gus on the phone. He looked much more collected now than before. Amidst the doctors hurrying about and the nurses rushing for last minute supplies, Juliet caught one of them on a break to enquire about the Father.

One of his ribs had pierced his lung. He wouldn't be able to stand let alone conduct a wedding for the next few weeks.

She bit her lip, worrying it with her teeth. The red light above the doors of the operating theatre was still flashing and it was clear they'd have to get another priest for the ceremony.

Juliet flipped open her cell to dial up Marsha. Best to get it down sooner than later.

The dial tone went flat and she sighed, resigning to the waiting lounge at the other end of the corridor.

"Kimonos with fruit prints on them. Gus, there's no way I won't wear one. Can you imagine the cash rolling in with that? What about you?... Spoilsport! Man, it's drag! Oh wait, Jules' here. Gotta go, love you, banana bread!"

Juliet rolled her eyes. Shawn almost never made sense, but when he did, she discovered a new realm in the Spencer Universe. Nevertheless, she loved everything about him.

"What did the doctor say?" He asked, pocketing his cell. Juliet pulled him into the waiting area to sit down.

"That bad?"

"He's definitely out of commission. I'll Marsha to call in another priest. Shawn, does this feel like a bad omen?"

He gave her a flabbergasted look. "Jules, it was the one thing that we'd shared. Our non-belief in superstitions! Remember those memorable times when we debated with Gus and my dad on how crystals have nothing to do with luck?"

"That was last week."

"And the time when we had established that karma was nothing but our imagination?"

"You broke your dad's porch because of that crystallized pineapple."

"Point is..." Shawn emphasized. "We're realists. Father Chris' only fault was that he believed that idiots behind the wheel care about the pedestrians. It has nothing to do with us."

Juliet closed her eyes and nodded. He continued. "Promise me you won't stress out on this."

"I promise."

"Good. Now say that with a really sinister tone like you want to push me under a speeding bus."

"Shawn..."

"Seriously. I had a nightmare once where you were obsessed with me and married me just so you could add me to your collection of dismembered corpses in your apartment."

Juliet saw the other people in the waiting room turn around and stare at Shawn. They started to move away from him. She smacked his bicep.

.

The next day, Juliet had finished sorting through all the mail. There was no bonanza offer on Shawn's fool of a Jerk Chicken Recipe book, but she found an unmarked envelope with no stamp.

Did someone just put it in their mail box? There was nothing written on the cover. With a little trepidation, Juliet tore it open carefully and pulled out the stiff card, folded once.

Her eyes flew over the words once, twice and then again. She reread it a few times before her legs staggered backwards and she fell on the chair beside the computer table.

The person marrying you
is a serial killer.

Her mind was blank for the next furious moment before she crushed the envelope in her hand. Whoever thought playing a joke like this was funny, were about to be flamed if Juliet ever met them.

She threw the envelope into the overflowing dustbin and stared at the card in her hand. The worst eight words of her life flashed like burning pieces of coals. How could someone do such a miserable desperate act? Did they think that the wedding wouldn't go through with existence of the wretched note?

Juliet started to review possible culprits who had an agenda against Shawn and her. Anyone with a reason to hate the pair could have sent the note. Unfortunately, after nearly eight years of service with the SBPD and Shawn's consulting, the number of offenders grew alarmingly high. A good proportion of them would still be in prison. There had been some recent releases, though.

She wondered if anyone would object to her sneaking into the police station to look at new parolees.

"Oh my god, you've turned into Bridezilla."

Shawn's dry humor cut through her tense thoughts and she swivelled around, clasping the note behind her back. She should have thrown it away.

Her fiancé passed her a grin as he stared at the mess in the office room. While their house was not the most organized one, Juliet's study was usually in better conditions than the present. There were scattered papers of rejected forms mostly concerning the formalities for the church wedding. Marsha was supposed to help her throw them out, but she was late. And Juliet had been caught up with the threatening note to start on the clean up.

"Um, yeah the room... I was about to start picking it up." She winced at the weak attempt of pretence.

Shawn looked at her strangely. "What? You look worried. Jules, you're not stressing about Father Chris, are you? Do you want to see him?"

"No, that's okay. I have to... I mean, I remembered that I need to pick something up from the Chief."

"Is it about the hit and run case?"

"Huh?" Juliet wished she could get the worry out of her head. She was a trained detective but a brazen accusation of Shawn being a serial killer was messing with her. "No, it's something else. Not for a case. You know what?"

She gave him a smile, clenching her jaw subtly. "I'll see her right now. You have to go to Cho's place to check on the catering."

"Okay." Shawn said carefully, still watching her. Juliet slipped the note into the pocket of her jeans. Hopefully, the Chief was busy but maybe Dobson or McCarty could help her read through the reports. It had to be someone smart and sly enough to cause problems of this magnitude.

"Juliet, you look like a pineapple about to be sliced under the supervision of Chuck Norris's super duper vision. What's wrong?"

She scowled. Today was not her day.

"Jules...?"

"I'm sorry, it's just that... you were right. The wedding is stressful. I know there's so much to cover and over see and I can't wait for it to be over."

His eyes grew wide. She pocketed her phone, trying to avoid his face.

"Are... are you sure? You want to cancel –"

"No!" She looked at him full in the face. He seemed surprised. "No, we're going through with this. No matter what, we're getting married the proper, socially acceptable way. I don't care about all the bumps we hit, we can do this."

Shawn still looked slightly taken aback. She had probably been over zealous with her outburst, "Alright. Yeah, the socially acceptable way. I'll go to Cho's with Gus. Say hey to Woody for me. He thinks he's getting the bride and groom dolls from the wedding cake and I don't have the heart to tell him that I promised them to DJ Coldcuts."

Juliet forced on a smile. "Aren't you DJ Coldcuts?"

Shawn smiled, nodding slowly. For a second, Juliet thought he looked ominous. "Yeah, but he doesn't know that."

.