Danny sat as still as he could in the straight, wooden pews, half-wondering if Scott had saved this seat for him, just so he could watch Danny fidget and wish he had padded seats. It was hard to keep his focus glued to the front of the church. Scott had decided to hold his wedding with Jean at a fancy church. Ordinarily, Danny was unsure as to if Scott would have even bothered with a huge ceremony, but Jean had wanted one. Danny listened to them preform their vows, and reflected that Jean really looked quite nice in her wedding dress. He smiled as he remembered the moment when Scott and Jean had announced their engagement.

Jean and Scott were grinning like twin raccoons, flushed, and with a clear bounce in their steps. Danny was reading, tuning out the radio, which appeared to be on the loudest it could go. Why Tildie liked loud music, he'd never understand. He thought it might have something to do with her powers. Bobbie liked loud music too, but at least he had earbuds. Scott stopped at the center of the room, and Jean watched the chaos happening around her with an amused expression. Everyone was in the room. Danny set down his book when the radio turned off, and looked at the pair.

Jean was the one who spoke first, practically radiating joy, "Scott and I are engaged." A few seconds later, Logan responded, gruffly, "Glad t' see yah finally asked him."

Danny forced himself not to snicker, once he'd gotten over the surprise of the announcement. The older man was speaking the truth. Scott had been frozen for the past few weeks, getting a ring, and trying to find the courage to ask Jean if she wanted to get engaged. It was hilarious, seeing him start to drag her away to ask her, and losing the courage at the last moment. Jean must have had to ask him. She now had a glittering ring on her finger, and Scott had another, plainer ring. She hadn't had the money to get a really expensive ring, but Scott hadn't either. He'd just tried to find a pretty ring within his price range. Not to mention, diamond rings normally didn't go on males. Otherwise, Danny was fairly certain Jean would have tried for something more.

Danny got to watch the two of them kissing, way too often. He had wound up leaving a note on the door of Jean's bedroom.

Scott and Jean

Sitting in a tree,

K-I-S-S-I-N-G.

First comes love,

Then comes marriage,

Then comes baby

In a baby carriage.

The results had been worth it. Less than a week afterwards was when they got engaged. After that came the wedding. The one he was currently stuck in. His head was pounding, so he'd taken some ibuprofen to help. On the whole, the wedding would have been boring, if not for the flashes of color that kept bugging him. He would see them out of the corner of his eye, and try to look at them. Then, they usually vanished. This one was a brilliant shade of red, and he was trying not to look at it. Finally, he gave in to the urge. For an instant, he spotted an eye, made up of that color. Then it disappeared. He shuddered. Ororo gave him a curious look, which Danny dismissed with a rubbing-his-arms gesture. It made it look as if he were cold. That was his excuse.

The wedding finished with a kiss and the reception, which Danny found interesting. Why did the reception always come after the wedding? There was plenty of food, and both Jean and Scott were practically radiating happiness. He was sure that if they had been light-based mutants, the entire room they were in would have been filled with blinding light. He fought off a wave of depression as Scott and Jean drove off, half-wondering if, now that they were married, Scott would stop paying any attention to him. Of course, he'd been preoccupied with the Jean Dilemma for a while, and had stopped noticing almost everyone except Jean. Then the wedding had distracted him, because planning a wedding wasn't easy. He hadn't noticed that Danny came less often, and was looking thinner.

Danny remembered to congratulate the pair when they got back to the mansion, before leaving. He felt a little off, upset. He dismissed the feeling. He knew it was only because the wedding had drained him. Scott and Jean looked as if they were in a daze, still processing the fact that they were married, and they were also preparing to go on honeymoon. They'd decided to go to Genosha, because under the guidance of an elected set of older adults, new laws had been put into place, and the paradise had been rebuilt after all Magneto had put it through. Genosha had officially been acknowledged as its own nation, but it was also protected by several nations because it was so tiny it would probably never have a strong military. The United States had decided to protect the city, under conditions such as that all mutants who were judged to be major threats were kept there until they were viewed as safe. Jean and Scott were going to stay there for a month.

Danny wondered how everyone was going to act without them, and didn't really know if he would visit very often. After all, his first friend since...everything...was leaving for a long time, and Danny was considering not visiting at all while they were gone. The newly-weds went to the X-Jet, and were given many goodbyes.

When Danny got home, he was exhausted. He curled up on top of his bed, thankful for the job he'd gotten, one that provided enough money for an inexpensive apartment. His chest hurt, feeling tight. All he wanted to do was sleep, and his limbs were heavy. His body gave in to the need for sleep, his mind unwillingly consenting, as memories began the rising tide of nightmare, trapped inside his own brain.

I own nothing! Read and review! also, I am almost finished establishing the context for the story.

-Miaulin