"What's the verdict?" Luke asked, placing a kiss on top of Lorelai's head as she lay half-asleep in his arms.

"Good."

"Good how?" he joked. "That was not what I wanted to know. What's the verdict on the bed? Do we keep this one here, or do we move your old one back in?"

She sighed, sleep fighting for dominance. "This one - it's more comfortable, and it's your bed."

"It was my bed, now it's our bed."

"Good. I like the headboard. Strong. Solid."

"Did I tell you I made it? Didn't like any of the beds in the store, so I just made one."

"What did I tell you? It's your bed. That's why I like it." Lorelai's eyes barely opened this time.

Luke rubbed her shoulder affectionately and said, "Go to sleep."

He slid down to lie flat in the bed and put one arm behind his head. He was sleepy too. It had been both a long night and a short night. The short part was fun, even though there weren't really any glass slippers. The silvery heels made a nice substitute, though.

The long part was harder. Here, together again in this familiar place, the emotions of the last months came crashing down on them. Regrets and apologies were repeated, acknowledged, and accepted again. Tears flowed, new vows were made. Luke forgave Lorelai, and she forgave him. One of Lorelai's best traits was her ability to forgive and forget, really forget. Forgetting was harder for him, but his forgiveness was real too.

"Luke." Lorelai stirred again. "You need a workshop."

"I've got a workshop."

"No, you've got a tiny corner in an old garage and you borrow tools from other people. You need a space to work, with the proper tools, where you can leave your projects out until they're finished."

"OK." It was useless to disagree with Lorelai when she was sleepy. It wasn't much better when she was awake, so he saved his energy for the important issues.

"Good. That's first on the list for the expansion. After rooms for the kids, of course."

"You've thought this through already? When do you find the time?"

"Just the easy stuff. We'll make Rory's old room into a sewing room/office, and add three bedrooms and a bath in the extension for the kids. The rest we'll have to fight out with my mother."

"Three bedrooms?"

"Umm-hmm. By the time our kids get old enough to need their own rooms, Rory and April will be on their own, so we'll have the space."

"That's my little uberplanner. Go to sleep, you've got a long day tomorrow."

"When I'm awake, remind me to make the honeydo list."

"Honeydew? Like the melon?"

Lorelai chuckled softly. "No, silly, like 'Honey, do this' and 'Honey, do that.'"

"I already know what needs to be done around here."

"Furniture for the extension, like bookshelves, or a toy box, or a rocking horse, it's not just things that need to be fixed. We'll figure it out."

"I'm sure we will. Now I need to sleep, and so do you. There's time for lists and plans later."

"Now do you see why you need a workshop?" she said.

"I'm asleep. Don't bother me." Luke's voice was getting rough and grumpy.

"I'll come out in the evenings and watch you cut things and sandpaper things."

"Snoring, can't hear you."

"Maybe I'll wear my short shorts."

"Buzzsaw, snoring like a buzzsaw. And you're wearing protective clothing in the shop. Steel-toed shoes, protective glasses, long pants."

"Buzzsaw, first tool on the list."

"Sigh."

The next morning, Lorelai came downstairs, freshly showered, her hair in a towel. Luke was still emptying his boxes in the living room, having already finished the kitchen.

"Why do people keep so much useless stuff? Look at this worthless crap I've still got. I could have packed my clothes and three boxes and been completely fine. Could have put a match to the rest, and I never would have missed a thing," he said.

"Remind me to do the packing if we ever move," said Lorelai. She took the towel off and fluffed her hair so it could air dry.

"Lorelai, I think you'd be a lot happier if I cleaned out the garage and some of these closets," he said, "and you wouldn't even remember what I got rid of."

"Luke, I love you."

"Yeah, and I love you. That doesn't mean we don't have too much stuff," he said.

"It does mean that we can't get rid of anything unless we both agree it should go," she countered. "All I have to do to convince you is give you the right incentive, and I've got a whole drawer full of incentive upstairs, mister."

"You, however, get quite impatient under pressure, and I know just how to apply the right pressure," he said, as he took her in his arms and pressed up against her body.

She put her arms around his neck, kissed him, and whispered in his ear, "No one will ever win the battle of the sexes; there's too much fraternizing with the enemy."

"Let's start with that box of video tapes in the closet. We don't even have a VCR anymore. And I'm voting to not replace the TV, because we've got better things to do," he said suggestively. "Like breakfast. Coffee's ready, and Jess brought some food over from the diner."

"We need to be at Taylor's at 10 to get the license," said Luke, as they ate their breakfast, "don't forget the divorce papers. He'll be a pain if we don't have everything ready. Afterwards the Reverend and the Rabbi asked us to stop by to finalize details for the ceremony."

"Lorelai? Hey doll, are you there?" Babette called from outside the back door.

"Come on in, Babette! We're in the kitchen," Lorelai answered.

"You guys are decent, right? I'm comin' in!" Babette said as she entered. Hugs all around as Babette congratulated them. Luke got her a cup of tea and she joined them at the table.

"Lorelai, honey, was everything OK last night? I was up a couple of times and I saw a light on in Rory's room." Lorelai blushed a little.

"I kept going down to look at my wedding dress. First I thought it didn't fit right, so I tried it on. Later I couldn't remember what the back looked like so I had to put it on again."

"How many times did you put that dress on last night?" asked Luke. He stood up to refresh Lorelai's coffee.

"Four times," she said, slightly embarrassed.

"No wonder you didn't get much sleep," he said, smoothing his hand over her hair.

"Right, it was trying on her dress. That and all the loud sex going on upstairs in the bedroom," said Babette. "Way to go, Luke!" She nudged him as she stood up to leave. She gave Lorelai a kiss and left, saying, "Morey and I will see you all tonight. Morey, I'm comin' home!"

Luke flopped down in his chair. "How about if we put soundproofing the bedroom at the top of our remodeling list?"

Lorelai nodded.

"Welcome, welcome!" Taylor greeted the happy couple. "Luke and Lorelai, it's so nice that you are finally getting married. Merging two of the most respected families of Stars Hollow is a big big event, very important to all of us. Make sure you don't let us down, OK?"

"We aren't going to let you down, Taylor, because the town doesn't have any right to…" Luke was interrupted by Lorelai, who grasped his hand, practically squeezing the life out of it.

"What we're saying, Taylor, is we're very glad that you're taking the time to prepare our marriage license, and that you'll be there tonight, representing Stars Hollow. Having the Selectman there at our wedding is an honor," schmoozed Lorelai.

"How nice of you to say that, Lorelai. I will do my best. Now, let's get down to business. Do you have all the paperwork you need for the license? Photo ID, personal data, all looks very good. Now, Luke, do you have your divorce papers with you?" asked Taylor.

"Here you go, Taylor, the decree is right on top," said Luke.

"Good. That's all that I need, then. Give me just a few minutes and I'll have that all ready for you." He hands the papers off to his secretary. "There's another topic I'd like to discuss with you, Luke."

"Hey, wait a minute, Taylor, don't you need Lorelai's divorce papers?" asked Luke, as Lorelai nodded in agreement.

"Lorelai, you have divorce papers? Cute. Those bureaucrats are funny sometimes," said Taylor.

"Taylor, I don't understand. Can you please explain?" asked Lorelai. "I got married in France, and got divorced a few months ago. What's the problem? Will it stop us from getting a marriage license?"

"It's actually quite simple, Lorelai. It's not possible for two foreigners to get married in France as quickly as you did. First, you have to be made a resident of the place you want to get married in, then you have to post the banns, and all of that has to take at least 40 days. You were in France for a total of 8 days, and not a resident anywhere. Whatever ceremony you may have gone through in France, it wasn't a legal marriage ceremony."

Lorelai's jaw dropped. When she recovered, she said, "But, but then how could I have gotten a divorce? Why didn't someone tell me I wasn't legally married?"

Taylor explained further, pleased to play the expert. "Simple. Pretty much every divorce petition asks when and where you were married, but they don't ask for proof, nor do they check. Your fake marriage was completely irrelevant to the divorce proceeding. As a matter of fact, you didn't even need to get divorced, since you were never legally married."

Luke and Lorelai sat in stunned silence.

"Did you not know this?" asked Taylor. "I'm surprised, but the point remains, we don't need your divorce papers."

"Taylor, how about you do us a little favor and include them anyway, just in case some bureaucrat somewhere far away from here is wrong? I'd hate to go through a big bureaucratic mess with someone who doesn't have your knowledge." Luke stretched himself to make sure Taylor remained cooperative.

"Why Luke, that's actually a very good idea, although the inclusion of unnecessary papers is quite irregular. But I also need a favor, and I think you might be able to help, so maybe one hand can wash the other."

"What is it, Taylor?" asked Lorelai. "You know we'd help if we can, just for the good of Stars Hollow." The steam which had been building under Luke's collar dissipated. Having Lorelai Gilmore on your side was a pretty good thing sometimes. For Luke Danes, it seemed to be a good thing all the time.

"It's like this, Lorelai, we've lost a few of our retail shops recently, and curiously enough they were all ceramic unicorn shops. As a community we need a thriving retail base and I'm asking all local businesses to use their networks to entice new retail businesses here. And I'd like you two to lead the effort by finding the first business."

"Taylor, my friend, we have got a deal. I believe that I can get you at least one new retail business, maybe as soon as the end of the summer," said Luke, standing up with a big smile on his face. "Now how about you add Lorelai's papers to our application?"

"Consider it done Luke. Ah, here are the papers back. I will just add these details to the application here, and here, and then finally here. If you two will sign here, and then here, yes Lorelai, that's exactly right. OK, let me just review these documents one last time." Taylor took a long minute to check everything step by step.

Lorelai whispered to Luke under her breath, "What do you have in mind? You have something planned, and I want in on it!"

"Hush!" he said. "I've got a great idea. Be patient. Here's a teaser: we'll kill two birds with one stone."

"Oh! Lorelai, are you going to be changing your name? What will the new name be?" added Taylor.

"I've chosen to change my name to Lorelai Gilmore Danes," she replied with a smile. "Where does that go on the application?"

"Nowhere, I just wanted to know. Now here is your license. It needs to be signed by the officiant, I presume you're using the Reverend or the Rabbi, so they are very familiar with the process. You should have no problems whatsoever. I give you my heartiest congratulations for a long and happy marriage."

Once back on the street, marriage license in hand, Lorelai and Luke stared at each other, shell-shocked.

Lorelai started. "Did you notice that every simple thing we try to do for this wedding has turned out weird? Why didn't I know I was never legally married? How could I get a divorce from a marriage I wasn't in?"

Luke continued. "Did you hear him negotiate for us to bring in a new business? He attached strings to our marriage license! And the nerve of that guy asking about your married name, when it was none of his business! Geez!"

"Do you realize it's only 11 a.m.? Our wedding isn't until 7.30. There's a lot of time for more weirdness. I'm kinda curious to find out what happens next," said Lorelai.

They began walking in the direction of the church. As they walked, the Reverend and the Rabbi, who had been walking together, caught up to them. All four fell into step.

"Archie, David, nice to see you," Lorelai said as the four stopped in front of the church.

"Good to see the two of you together," said Archie.

"We're looking forward to the wedding this evening. Shall we keep walking rather than go into the church? Archie and I like our daily walks together," finished David.

"Sure, sounds great. Here's our license," said Luke. "You'll take care of the details?"

"Sure, Luke, we've got it handled. What's the plan, Lorelai? Does the chuppah mean you want to have a Jewish ceremony?" asked David, as they started walking again.

"No, guys, we're actually doing the straight version of Dragonfly Wedding Package Deluxe Number 4," said Lorelai. "Non-denominational ceremony, plain simple vows, nothing fancy. Which of you will officiate?"

"Got it, Lorelai, that's actually our favorite package. Much better than the package that includes the couple's pets. We haven't decided who will officiate yet," Archie said. "We're playing Old Testament trivia, first one to get 20 questions right wins."

"Luke," asked David, "Any chance of you starting a chuppah-making business? I know of a few people who would love to have one. Your work is just beautiful."

"David, what is a chuppah, anyway?" asked Lorelai. "Is it OK that we use it, when we're not Jewish?"

"Sure, no problem to use a chuppah, many people do. It symbolizes the married couple's home, although in earlier days, the actual marriage was accomplished by simply standing under the chuppah together," he said.

"Lorelai, do you remember that we stood under the chuppah together when I brought it over to your house?" Luke asked, feeling the weirdness coming again.

"That means we've been married since 2001. How strange is that?" she marveled, looking at her "chuppah-husband."

"Many scholars don't agree with that opinion. You two were not married in 2001 in any legal sense of the word just because you stood together under a chuppah," said David, "so you don't have anything to worry about."

"I'm not sure I want to know, but I have to ask. What about Gilbert?" Lorelai asked.

"Gilbert?" asked Archie.

"The goat. I put a goat on the chuppah," said Luke. "It was in the photo, so I carved a goat and put it on the chuppah. What does the goat mean, fertility? A curse? Human sacrifices?"

Archie replied, "A goat can mean all of those things, but there isn't any clear meaning for a goat on a chuppah, right David?"

David nodded.

"Thank God for that." Luke breathed a sigh of relief.

"Good idea, Luke," said David. "We'll see you tonight, then."

"Why don't you guys head over to the diner for lunch on me? Just tell Caesar I sent you, and get there before one, because he's closing early to prepare for the wedding," called Luke after them.

"Do you want to go to the diner, too, Lorelai?" he asked, putting his arm around her waist.

"No, we need to be getting to the Dragonfly. It's going to take all afternoon to get ready," she answered.

"For you, maybe. I've got to shower, dress and stand where I'm told to stand. Probably not going to take six hours." Nonetheless, they turned in the direction of the Crapshack.

"True, but it's a plot to keep the groom locked up so he can't get away. Can't take a chance that he'll bolt." She grinned at him.

"I do have options, though," replied Luke. "Since we know about our chuppah marriage, we don't really need the ceremony at all. We could go to a baseball game instead. Jess would like it."

"You're suggesting that a symbolic and fictional marriage is an appropriate substitute for the two of us standing in front of our loved ones, the whole town, exchanging vows for eternity?" asked Lorelai skeptically.

"Eternity was the time it took before we consummated our chuppah marriage. Four years, four long damn years." He pulled her to him as he started to think of what might have been.

Lorelai waved her hand in front of Luke's eyes.

"Fictional, Luke! Symbolic! At best it would have been a symbolic consummation! How would that have been?" Lorelai swatted him lightly on the chest.

"Symbolic? Hmm, probably not as good as a real consummation. Wonder if it would have been as good as phone sex," he pondered.

"Earth to Luke! This offer is good for today and today only: A beautiful dream wedding with yours truly, all real, all flesh and blood, followed by a non-symbolic consummation tonight. Or, you can go to a baseball game with your nephew and continue to ponder the benefits of phone sex and symbolic consummation. Make your decision now." Lorelai stepped back from him, crossed her arms, and stared at him defiantly.

"The game IS a double-header," he said, pretending to ponder.

"Who said the real consummation won't be?" she replied as she turned on her heel and walked off.