Katie couldn't believe how far they'd come.

At first, when she met Travis, he was just a scrawny kid who liked to play mean jokes on her and her siblings. Then, when the Second Titan War came around, they fought side by side as allies, and that blossomed into a slow but deeply rooted friendship. And then, that friendship turned into even deeper love.

Now, seven years later, here she was, standing at the end of the aisle, waiting to take the last few steps toward him.

Travis stood at the altar, looking slightly anxious, but grinned as his brother Connor leaned in a whispered something in his ear.

Katie was entirely sure she didn't want to know what it was.

"Ready?" A voice asked, and Katie turned to see Demeter smiling at her.

"Mother," she bowed her head over her bouquet of wildflowers. "It's wonderful to have you here."

"I always make sure I attend my children's weddings. And this is a lovely one, Katherine. Persephone wishes you both well."

Katie smiled. "Thank you."

It was an outdoor wedding. Chiron had agreed to let them have the ceremony in the strawberry fields at Camp Half Blood. It was easier and safer for everyone, and it was great to have everyone there. An exception had been made for Katie's father, who was permitted to enter camp for the day to walk her down the aisle.

"I wanted to give you a gift," she took Katie's bouquet and lilies appeared inside the arrangement. "Lilies are given as gifts to signify fertility and union. A blessing from me."

Katie smiled and took her bouquet back. "Thank you, mother."

Demeter kissed her daughter on the forehead. "I wish you both the best, child. Although, why you chose a son of Hermes, I'll never know, but if he makes you happy, then… I approve."

Katie's face lit up. "Thank you, mother."

"At least he isn't a child of Hades," Demeter muttered.

The music began, and Katie's father walked up. "Ready to go, Katey-Kat? Oh." He stopped when he saw Demeter. "Hello, Demeter."

She smiled at him. "John. It's good to see you."

He smiled back. "Glad you could make it to Katie's wedding."

"As am I." she glanced down the aisle, at the fidgety Travis. "You'd best go. Your fiancé is getting restless."

Katie couldn't help the giggle that burst from her lips. "He can't keep still for longer than two minutes, not even when he's in the middle of a prank."

She took her father's arm, and they walked down the aisle as the music swelled.

It was perfect. There was not a cloud in the sky and the field was awash with the scent of the fresh strawberries. Everyone turned and watched Katie walk down the aisle, but she was only focused on the man waiting for her.

Travis was grinning so broadly she was afraid his face would split in two. Gone was the lanky, snickering kid: now he was tall and handsome, with bright blue eyes that still glinted mischievously and brown, unruly curls that twitched in the gentle meadow breeze.

Katie's father lifted her veil, kissed her forehead, and handed her off to Travis. His grip was warm and reassuring, and Katie had never felt safer than she did at that moment.

As the priest began the sermon, she couldn't help but ask the question that had been niggling at the back of her mind since before the ceremony began.

"What did Connor say to you?" she whispered.

"He bet me five drachmas I couldn't steal the priest's hat without him noticing." Travis whispered back.

Katie rolled her eyes. "There's no way you're getting to Elysium if you keep that up."

"I'm a son of Hermes. It's in my nature."

The priest cleared his throat, and continued after Katie and Travis fell silent.

When they got to the 'I do's', Katie felt they may as well have sworn them on the River Styx: they both felt the permanence and strength of the vows, and their "I do's" were filled with heartfelt conviction. There was no breaking these vows.

And when the priest pronounced them husband and wife, Travis dipped her into an extravagant kiss, while everyone cheered.

Everyone made their way to the big house for the reception, and to give the newlywed couple their congratulations.

Katie laughed and hugged every one of her guests, reveling in the joy of her friends: Percy and Annabeth, Grover and Juniper, Connor and his date, a pretty daughter of Dionysus (and he spent the rest of the meal avoiding Dionysus's evil glares), Jason and Piper, Frank and Hazel, Leo and the girl he had rescued, Calypso, and tons of other friends. Her siblings were excited, and whenever a child of Hermes offered the newlyweds a gift, they handled it gingerly and with care. With the Hermes kids, you could never be too careful, especially when the groom was a child of Hermes himself.

Together, everyone mourned their friends who had fallen during the Second Titan War and dedicated a portion of their sacrifice to them, letting them know that even if they weren't there physically, the were still there in spirit.

When it was time for the speeches, Katie stood and clinked her wine glass (Dionysus looked on jealously as he sipped his diet coke) and everyone fell silent.

"Thank you all for coming to our wedding. I thought I'd open the speeches, and get a chance to say something before Connor decided to give his Best Man speech and embarrass us both." She placed her hand on Travis's shoulder as everyone laughed. He covered her hand with his and squeezed it.

"On my father's side, I have Irish roots, and I'd like to say an Irish blessing to my husband." Katie smiled down at him. "Travis, may you never steal, lie, or cheat. But-" she continued, over the sound of Connor's raucous laugh, "if you must steal, then steal away my sorrows. And if you must lie, then lie with me all the nights of my life. And if you must cheat, then please cheat death, because I could never live a day without you. I love you, Travis, and I hope to never have to be apart from you. Cheers!"

Everyone clapped and awed as Travis stood and took Katie's face in his hands, pressing a kiss to her lips.

Travis took over the speeches. "Katie, I can't promise you about never stealing, lying, or cheating, but I can promise you I will do my best to steal your sorrows, lie with you every night, and cheat death for as long as I can. I'm a son of Hermes, and those are a given."

Everyone laughed.

"And I can only hope," he continued, "that you will do the same for me, because Katie, you've stolen my heart. Every night I've had you lie by my side has been more valuable than any treasure I could steal. And together, we've cheated death too many times to count. And I swear, I will see you before Elysium all three times and finally in the Isles of the Blest, because even death cannot separate my heart from yours. I will find you in all three lives, because I can't imagine any of them without you."

Katie wiped tears from her eyes as he drew her in for another kiss.

She knew he would steal, and lie, and cheat, but she also knew that he would not fail to steal her sorrows, lie with her every night, and do his best to cheat death, and she knew he would not fail to meet her in Elysium and the Isles of the Blest, where he would continue to steal, lie, and cheat for her as long as they were both together and in love.

Yeah, I just assigned Katie's dad a name, and John popped into my head. I heard this blessing in the movie Leap Year and it reminded me of something Katie would say to Travis. But, let's face it: he's a Stoll, and stealing, lying, and cheating are what Stolls do best!

Sorry if Demeter is a bit OOC, but it's midnight here and I'm writing without editing… In fact, sorry if this is a bit rough. Writing at midnight is conductive for inspiration, but not for good writing. I never edit. Bad habit, I know. I literally just write, spell check, and post!

And I ship Leo and Calypso so very hard. I love them to death!

Enjoy!