Special thanks to tch-brat on tumblr for making the wonderful cover art!
Word Count: 4,440
This was it. Her big day. Mikasa took a deep breath and looked in the mirror as her best female friend Sasha wove orchids into her updo. She hummed softly as she worked.
"You ready for this, girl?" Sasha absently asked her. Truth be told, swarms of butterflies were trapped in her stomach, but Mikasa serenely smiled, nodding. Sasha then gave the chair she was sitting in a good twirl, nearly sending her skirt flying.
Mikasa let out a small "eep!" as she rolled across the dressing room floor. Her bridesmaids all looked up, then laughed, with the exception of Annie, who caught the backing of the chair as it slid by her. Mikasa, however, flew right off and tumbled to the ground.
"Everything okay in there, ladies?" Hange's muffled voice called through the door.
"Yeeess," they chimed in unison as Mikasa groaned.
"Ceremony starts in fifteen minutes, and Lillian's coming in there; Levi and Petra want good seats, but she can't be with them," Hange continued as the doorknob clicked open and a small girl with black hair laced into a fishtail braid and crowned with lilacs was pushed inside.
Mikasa straightened herself out, then checked her reflection to see if her makeup smeared. She then breathed a sigh of relief when everything, by some miracle, seemed untouched, even the flowers.
Her friend Historia twirled a makeup brush casually before putting it back into its case, snapping it shut. "Told you it wouldn't get ruined," she grinned.
"Har, har, har. Why aren't you with Ymir?" Annie drawled, and Historia pointed at Mikasa.
"She didn't want her as a bridesmaid."
"Hey! It's not my fault Eren only wanted three groomsmen. Besides, she has Reiner and Bertholt to keep her company during the ceremony."
"Why did he even choose Jean as a groomsman? Weren't they super-duper competitive back when we were in college?" Sasha wondered aloud.
"Oh, please, Potato Girl, it was him or that useless piece of muscle Reiner. Besides, you're just glad he chose Connie as best man because you have a crush on him, and the only reason Connie's best man and not Armin is because Armin's officiating the ceremony," Annie shot back, rolling her eyes as she absentmindedly shuffled the flowers in her bouquet around.
Sasha's cheeks turned pink. "Fight me," she said in a low voice, and Annie dryly laughed.
"Armin's practically best man anyway. Connie's basically just a glorified groomsman, so ha," she replied.
Mikasa suddenly felt someone tug at the hem of her dress, and she looked down at Lillian's innocent face, grinning gapetoothed up at her.
"Auntie Mika, do you like goats?" she asked in a sweet voice.
"Oh shit. We're such a terrible influence," Annie said in a low voice. Sasha covered Annie's mouth the instant she finished.
"You fucking cussed in front of a five-year-old," she hissed, then clamped her own mouth shut with her free hand, eyes widening.
"I don't give a flying fuck if you cuss in front of me. Daddy doesn't give a shit anyways, so why should you?" Lillian told them in a matter-of-fact tone.
The girls all exchanged bewildered looks as the doorknob rattled again and Hange popped her head in.
"Wedding's on in ten, girls! Take your places, and uh, I have a few more things for you before you enter the chapel," she said.
A light giggle escaped Mikasa as she glanced at the mirror one last time before leaving the room with three of her best friends in the world.
The groomsmen were milling around in the foyer, surrounded by buckets of flowers and stacks and stacks of flower crowns. Mikasa felt her eyes go wide with amazement as she took everything in. "Hange, what is the meaning of all this?" she asked.
Sasha let out a low whistle. "It's astounding that all the florists are even alive after all that," she agreed.
"Don't question it," Marco called, daisies woven through his hair and tucked into his breast pocket.
Hange hurriedly put a crown of ivy and myrtle on Mikasa's head, ignoring him. "I know you already have flowers in your hair, but I accidentally ordered a little too much, so I turned them into crowns and gave them out to the guests." She then paused, then pulled out a thin, white, veil and pinned it to the base of her updo. "You forgot the veil," she whispered, and Mikasa unconsciously felt her hand touch the back of her head, where she felt the thin piece of cloth hanging down.
Hange's fingers then expertly wove peonies into Historia's braid as she continued. "Only problem now is we've run out of guests and we still have too many flowers." She picked up a few sprigs of rue and added them to the fringe of Annie's bun. Annie gently touched them, then adjusted her grip on her bouquet.
"Don't even ask where they all came from," Hange lamented as she delicately laced Sasha's ponytail with gardenias.
Jean leaned against the wall, daffodils falling out of his close-cropped hair. He sighed. "Hange, did you notice that Eric has gone missing?"
She looked up and around, mouth forming an O shape when she realized he was correct. "Eric!" she called. "Eric, where are you?"
A small, dark-haired boy with blue-green eyes ran into the foyer, lilacs entwined in his messy hair and pinned to his formalwear. He grinned up at the adults. "Here~" he sang, but Hange was having none of it. She pulled him forward by the forearm and knelt down so that they were eye level.
"I fucking swear, if you run off like that again, I will skin you alive and serve your testicles to your father," she said dangerously, not even a spark of mirth visible in her eyes to ease his fear.
Mikasa glared at Hange from above for terrifying her young ring bearer. Hange smiled sweetly, then led Eric and Lillian to the chapel entrance and handed them their props: a basket of flowers for Eric, and a pillow with rings on it to Lillian.
"Uh, Hange, shouldn't it be the other way around?" Connie asked, and Hange looked at her handiwork.
"Whoops!" she said, then looked down at the children. "Does it matter to you?" she inquired.
Eric made a face. "Roses are red, violets are blue. Flowers are for girls, so therefore fuck you," he seemed to recite as Lillian silently nodded her head at her aunt.
Hange sighed and switched their props around. "Don't let your mother catch you swearing like that," she warned, but no one seemed to care. She checked her watch. "Seven minutes to go, guys. Historia, Marco, you next."
The tiny girl looked up at her freckled counterpart. "Um, how are we going to link arms…?" she softly asked, and Marco looked slightly flustered as he offered her the crook of his arm. Hange didn't seem to notice, so Historia gently clasped his arm and together they stood behind the fidgeting children.
Annie and Jean came next. The shorter girl glared balefully up at her partner before begrudgingly taking his arm.
"I have a boyfriend, so don't get any ideas," she hissed at him, and he flinched. Though she was small, he knew from experience that she was an amazing fighter.
"Hangeee, can I tra-" he began, but he was harshly shushed. He felt a strong tug at his ear as he was dragged down slightly, and he felt Hange's breath tickling the inside of his ear; it was gross.
"Jean, as gay as you are for Marco, you just can't go off and switch like that. We vaguely rehearsed it this way, and this is how it is in the programs, do not be selfish," she chided quietly. The taller boy flinched again, but did not fuss. He valued his testicles and did not wish for Hange to threaten to cut them off.
Sasha and Connie needed no prompting. They instantly linked arms and pretended to frolic through a meadow before settling in line behind everyone else. Sasha's heart was giddy with excitement, and it showed. A shower of petals from an older rose fell to the floor as she bounced her corsage in her hands, and an ill-placed gardenia fell from its place. Connie discreetly slapped her arm, and she instantly calmed down.
Hange checked her watch one last time, and Mikasa wished she had a nice one to be wearing right now. She nervously fiddled with her flower arrangement, a mix of phlox, primroses, and viscaria, with sprigs of forget-me-nots and baby's breath sprinkled throughout.
"It's going to start, guys," Hange whispered, and slipped through the doors, ready to open them when the ceremony were to truly start.
It seemed as though no time passed at all when the classical prelude faded away and was replaced by the opening chords to a cover of Can't Help Falling in Love. Mikasa felt her heart rate speed up as the doors opened, and Eric and Lillian stepped out onto the aisle together.
They had enough sense to walk gracefully, though Lillian was generously showering petals everywhere, and Eric appeared to be trying to outwalk her. Mirth bubbled up inside as she watched them, and she decided those kids would make a cute couple someday.
"Wise men say, 'only fools rush in,' " the lyrics began, and Historia stepped out with Marco, following the beat much better than Lillian and Eric had been.
Historia scanned the crowd for her girlfriend Ymir, and smiled more naturally when she spotted her sitting with their friends Reiner and Bertholt. Marco trained his eyes to the end of the carpet, his hands becoming clammy as he was very aware of all the eyes on him and the significance of the event he was participating in. The pressure not to mess up was heavy on him, and he felt a rush of relief when the next cue came on, and the guests stopped staring at him and Historia.
"But I can't help falling in love with you.
"Oh, shall I stay?" the song continued, and Annie walked out with Jean, her sullen gaze boring into everyone, sending chills down their spines.
Her slight smile only made her seem more frightening, and everyone on her side of the chapel flinched away. However, the ice in her gaze melted away when she caught the eye of her boyfriend, Armin, up front with a pile of flowers tangled in his hair and ready to lead the ceremony. Jean, on the other hand (no pun intended), radiated pride and warmth right from the start, his bright and charming smile causing a few of the single ladies to swoon when he looked in their direction. They didn't know he was gay and european.
"Would it be a sin
"If I can't help falling in love with you."
Sasha and Connie stepped onto the scene as the children parted ways at the end of the aisle and stood very still on the stage. Surprisingly, Lillian hadn't run out of petals after the first three seconds of being a flower girl, though they became far scarcer towards the end. Sasha flashed a fake smile at everyone, her heart beating so fast in her chest that she was sure it was just a buzz at this point. Her nerves were on edge, and she could hardly focus on the event around her. It was by sheer willpower alone that her hands weren't jittering all the flowers into nothing and her legs weren't giving out beneath her. There were a thousand ways this could all go wrong, and they all simultaneously ran through her head as she walked down that aisle. Briefly, she wondered if someday she'd walk through this chapel in a white gown instead of a peach one.
Connie could sense the fright in his best friend and partner-in-crime as they walked down together. While his smile was more genuine, he couldn't help but sympathize with her. He was naturally bold and brave, and being the center of attention pleased him, so he couldn't relate to her anxiety. He was tempted to yank her in this direction, just to make her a little less stiff, but he feared she'd keel over from shock if he did that, so he settled for a gentle nudge to the side. Sasha almost lost her composure right then and there, but after she settled down, Connie could tell she was far calmer than before.
The two made their way to the stage, parting in front of the altar. The final verse began, and Mikasa adjusted her grip on her bouquet. She looked down at the end of the aisle, where Eren waited for her.
She vaguely heard the bleat of a goat as she took a step forward.
"Like a river flows, surely to the sea,
"Darling so it goes; some things are meant to be."
Mikasa felt her heart pounding; everyone was staring at her. Many of them smiled at her, with the exception of her cousin Levi, who sat poker-faced next to his wife, Petra, who smiled brightly at her. The smiles eased her slightly, but her heart leapt when she heard the cry of a goat again, more insistent this time. The crowd, especially the children, began murmuring among themselves, but they were quickly shushed by others.
"Take my hand. Take my whole life too.
"For I can't help falling in love with you."
Now more than three-quarters down, Mikasa could see her fiancé fidgeting more clearly. She almost laughed out loud; it made her so relieved that he felt almost as nervous as she did. She hardly even noticed the crowns of flowers on everyone's head but his.
"For I can't help falling in love with you."
The final chords melted away, and Mikasa stood next to Eren in front of their lawyer friend Armin, who was officiating the ceremony. Neither one of them was particularly religious, so having a priest do it felt odd, so they'd asked Armin to marry them, since he was by far the most qualified.
Mikasa smiled at Eren as they faced each other and held hands as Armin held his law textbook open to a random page (to look official) and recited his opening lines.
"Friends, Romans, and countrymen: lend me your beers!" he joked, and a few adults chuckled.
Those participating in the ceremony had heard the terrible line many times during rehearsal, and it had lost most of its charm when they heard it, but Sasha smiled a little wider and rolled her eyes anyway as she leaned against the wall. She rather loved the relaxed atmosphere of this wedding. Many of the weddings she'd attended as a child required her to sit stock still in the pews, or stand up straight for an hour and a half of stuffy readings in an itchy dress, but this one was more up her alley. Armin joked constantly throughout his speech, the bridesmaids quietly made bets on who would get married next, sneezes were blessed and forgiven mid-sentence before being ignored, and children were allowed to walk about in the back as long as they were quiet.
"Seriously though, guys. Today's the day that these two idiots, Eren Jaeger and Mikasa Ackerman, are finally getting hitched, and that's really worth celebrating," Armin continued.
There was a sharp knock at the closed doors, and a muffled "baa." Mikasa seriously hoped she was just imagining things, because they hadn't drilled for "random goat arrival" during rehearsals, and she didn't want to deal with something they weren't prepared for.
"Now today isn't about some ancient rhyme of the married, recited in a dead language. Being serious, ish, it's about love. As I'm sure you can tell by their ogling, they've got the romantic love down, and they're being total saps about it by getting married."
Eren knew his best friend was making this speech up on the spot, save that first line, and he was damn good at it too. He'd never taken his friend as the joking type, but he was having a hard time biting back laughter as Armin's simple speech continued.
"Getting married's really weird if you think about it. I mean, you stand up here in front of a bunch of people, looking fancy and holding flowers, and being stared at. Anyone could mess up at any moment, and wow, that'd be a story to tell your kids. Like, 'yeah, when I married your mom, she fell down before missing her cue, and ended up with a black eye as we spoke our vows.' "
Historia twitched slightly at Armin's mention of messing up. It was kind of crazy how close he was to unwittingly telling everyone about how Sasha almost gave Mikasa terrible rug burn before getting married. She faintly shook her head, and crossed one leg over the other as she leaned against Annie, bouquet held at an angle. The cold blonde sidestepped her, and Historia nearly fell down and made a fool of herself in front of everyone.
"Anyway, it's because it's not the mistakes that matter to them. What one doesn't have, the other provides. I never understood the concept of 'couples making one another complete,' and even now, I don't understand. They don't complete each other, as though that's all there is to it; they bring out the best in each other, lifting the other to heights they couldn't reach alone."
Jean squirmed as he stood. Armin was taking a hell of a long time, and he hoped he was getting to the end of his ramble. He felt a soft tap on his shoulder, and turned to see a freckled boy with daisies in his hair making weird faces at him. Jean snorted, then relaxed.
"Today, we're here to witness the joining of the lives of Eren Jaeger and Mikasa Ackerman. Out of the regular, everyday routine, the extraordinary happened, to say the least. They met each other, fell in love, and are finalizing it with their wedding day," Armin finished, his face and voice transitioning into serious mode. "The bride and groom have written their own vows, and will now recite them."
Mikasa looked at the other end of the aisle, and she noticed the double doors were slightly ajar. Suspicious, she eyed the side aisles, where she spotted a shaggy white goat sitting contentedly on the floor, chewing on flowers as a small child ruffled its fur. Mikasa took a deep breath, and called on the words she'd written a long time ago.
"The first time I saw you, I knew it was true; that I'd love you forever, and that's what I'll do. All that truly remains to tell, is that without you, I fell. I fell forever, cries for help ignored, and deep within me, my love for you poured," she recited, her voice quivering with nerves.
The goat let out a loud "baa," and stood up. The child that had been practically lying on it slid off and began whining as the goat began ambling around in the chapel.
Mikasa was very tempted to go out and kill that goat right then and there, but she'd agreed with Eren that no matter what happened as they got married, they'd just roll with it.
"Then out of the darkness, a hand reached out. It pulled me away, to a much better place." Her voice cracked with emotion as she continued. "That place is with you, with no other doubt. You are my world, can never be replaced. I love you." Mikasa whispered those last three words, then her voice grew stronger. "I love you from now 'till forever. I am yours to have and to hold, to laugh with and grieve with, in sickness and in health, and to enjoy life's simplest pleasures with, for as long as we both shall live."
A wave of "awwww"s rippled through the crowd, and even the goat bleated loudly when she finished. Mikasa was beginning to become seriously annoyed with it, but it wasn't doing any harm, so she had no reason to abuse it later.
Eren laughed nervously, and ran his hand through his hair. "I don't have any poetry written out," he admitted, then reached into his blazer pocket and began pulling out a worn red scarf and held it out in front of him. He saw Mikasa's eyes widen as she recognized it as her trademark scarf, which she'd misplaced yesterday and couldn't wear to the ceremony today.
"A long time ago, we were staring death in the face. Neither one of us thought we'd get out alive, and of all the things you could have done, you turned to me and thanked me, for all the things I've done for you. For wrapping this scarf around you the day we met."
Mikasa began to cry and her makeup ran down with her tears, but no one cared.
Eren draped the scarf over her shoulders as he continued. "Now we stand here today, getting married. I promised you then that I'd always be there to wrap this scarf around you, a thousand times if I had to." He snorted slightly, giving Mikasa a crooked smile before starting to laugh harder. "I love you, too," he said as he tied the scarf neatly around her neck.
"Oi, Eric, we need the rings," Armin called, and the child jerked awake. He had a very short attention span and had dozed off into a daydream the moment Armin started talking. Be it luck or a miracle, he'd held the pillow on which the rings sat on straight enough so that they didn't fall off, and he waddled over to the blond man and presented him with the rings. The instant they were taken from him, he wandered away.
Armin sighed. They'd told Eric several times that the rings were to be given directly to the couple, but some things just can't get hammered into the heads of children no matter how hard anyone tried. He scooped up the rings and tossed the pillow behind the altar, shifting his textbook in his arms as he did so so that nothing important would fall. He began talking as the goat sauntered to the front and began to eat the flower arrangements that decorated the base of the stage.
"Rings are a sign of infinity and beyond~ All the way to space: the final frontier. They represent your spouse's love and fidelity from now until forever. Remember that marriage is a two-way street when you look at these rings," Armin said, and dropped the rings into the hands of the couple. He made a "go on," gesture with his face, and Eren awkwardly cleared his throat.
"Erm…" he eloquently began, then took Mikasa's left hand. "Take this ring as a sign of my love and fidelity, and with this ring, to thee I wed." Having attended several weddings in his life, he called upon those sleepy memories as he was put on the spot as he slid the ring onto her finger.
Mikasa returned the gesture, repeating his lines back to him, word for word.
Armin grinned. "With the power vested in me by Isayama himself, ("not really, though," he loudly whispered into the mic.) I declare this ship canon. You may kiss the… ohhh-kay I guess you're already kissing."
He was right. Almost as soon as Armin began speaking, Mikasa leaned forward and kissed her now-husband. The guests stood up and began cheering loudly, and even the goat looked up and bleated loudly above the cheers.
Eren felt the pressure of Mikasa's lips on his, and he grinned inside and began reciprocating it. It was a simple, closed-mouth kiss that hardly lasted longer than a few seconds, but he loved it. His heart beat wildly, and he was filled with a giddy elation that was reminiscent of the first time they'd kissed. If he'd ever imagined he could fly, it would be at that moment when it was most likely.
Finally, they parted, their faces flushed, and smiles left on them that rivalled that of the Cheshire Cat. The newlyweds faced their audience, fingers laced together, and they took their first step down in sync. As they did so, Lillian rushed forward with her basket, and threw a fistful of leftover rose petals over the duo. Mikasa looked back in surprise, and upon seeing her cousin's daughter, laughed aloud. Now ecstatic, she picked up the hem of her dress with her bouquet hand and began running towards the back with Eren in tow.
How she ran in her high heels was a mystery no one was ever able to fully explain forever afterwards, but Sasha tossed her corsage out into the crowd and began excitedly running after her best friend as Historia skipped over to Ymir, tackling her in a hug and crushing her flowers between them. Connie sprinted after Sasha, laughing aloud as Jean pulled the few remaining daffodils out of his hair with the help of Marco. Annie simply buried her nose in her arrangement and wandered over to Armin.
She leaned against his shoulder silently as they watched the wedding procession go wild with happiness and cheer. She lightly fingered an old ring she always wore, and smiled ever so slightly.
"They look really happy," she commented.
Armin shifted his gaze down to his own girlfriend, and smiled fondly. "That'll be us someday," he promised, then slipped his arm into hers and began leading her down the aisle.
Slightly surprised, Annie let her flowers slip from her grasp and onto the floor. "Did you just…?" she murmured in a bewildered tone, releasing her arm from Armin's and facing him. They stared at each other for a few moments.
Armin's eyes sparkled with a strange air of mischief. He slipped his left hand into his coat pocket and took Annie's with his right. He opened her hand, and entwined his fingers with hers, holding it up so that they could both look at it without staring down too much. "I'll leave that for you to decide," he said, releasing her hand.
Annie's hand instinctively turned into a fist at her side, and she was shocked to feel something small and suspiciously ring-like at the center when she did so. She opened her fist back up, and a silver ring with a glittering diamond chip winked back up at her, leaving her at a loss for words.
"Let's get to the reception," her now-fiancé said, leading her once more down the deserted aisle.
Author's Note i. Okay, so this actually started out as a prompt from my friend, who wanted a story where a wedding was crashed by a goat. In hindsight, the goat didn't really crash the wedding, but eh. Eremika is my otp, so you'll have to fight me on this. There will be a part two, and an epilogue. Or maybe it'll become a series, who knows.
Also I wrote the poem Mikasa recited myself, save the first line or two (The first time I saw you/I knew it was true). That I got off the internet at some point. I'm pretty flippin' proud of that poem too, right now. Heck yeah.
Y'all might also be wondering why the hell I was so specific with all the flowers. Flower language, my darlings, flower language. Look 'em up on wikipedia.
Well, if you liked it, be sure to follow/favorite, and leave your thoughts in the reviewsss~ Aaaand have a great day~~~