I have been looking forward to writing this chapter for the longest time

Typical Disclaimers Apply

A/N: Hey everyone! I got a ton of great reviews asking me to post a chapter before I leave, so here it is. Everyone who reviewed totally rocks. Dumbledore's little speech is from DH, just so you know.

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"OH MERLIN! JUST PUT THE FIRE OUT WITH A SPELL!" The cries of anguish and fear immediately woke the sleeping bride and groom. As well as Remus, Tonks, Bill, and Charlie.

As it had turned out, many of the wedding guests, mainly Gryffindors, had arrived the night before the wedding, rather than the day of. Because of this, all of the adults had been kicked out of the dorm, and were forced to sleep in the common room. Snape was allowed to return to his own sleeping area.

"Nnnngh, it's too early for fires," Esme stretched and pulled a blanket over her head, causing Tonks, who had been lying on the couch above her, to roll over and land on Esme's legs. Esme pushed her off, making her head slam into Remus's bare chest.

"Um, does anyone want to deal with the flaming dormitories?" Charlie was used to waking up this early, and it seemed like he was the only one who cared for the students' well-being.

"NO!" Sirius hurled a pillow at Charlie's head. "What time is it, Esme dearest?"

"Nine-thirty," Esme said through a yawn. The room was still for a few minutes, until everyone bolted upright crying, "NINE-THIRTY?"

"We were supposed to be downstairs an hour ago!" Tonks cried.

"Oh Merlin," Esme gasped. "The guests are arriving in…ten minutes ago."

"Well gasping about it won't change anything." Sirius leapt up in a bizarre burst of proactivity. "Let's skedaddle!"

As everyone rushed out of the room, Charlie was the only one left behind saying, "But what about the students…?"

"We're here!" Esme cried flamboyantly, popping into the Great Hall. "Has anyone arrived yet?" McGonagall fixed her with a stern look, remnant from Esme's days in detention.

"Everyone's arrived!" she gasped, ushering the group into the hall. Snape, who had arrived on time, looked up from his pumpkin juice and smiled icily.

"Damn. How can they be so punctual?"

"They took a train. Now sit down and look pretty."

Esme grabbed her spot next to Snape and flashed him a perfect smile. In response, he quipped, "It amazes me how you can be late for your own wedding."

"It's not my wedding yet; I was just late to meet the guests. I barely know most of them," she said quickly, looking away.

"I'm surprised that the whole school came." As an afterthought, he added, "Are you honestly not nervous at all?"

"I'm more worried about my dad getting drunk at the reception." She eyed her father, who was talking loudly to a Muggle-born Ravenclaw girl, who looked as though she was searching for an exit strategy.

"I'm serious! You're about to say that you want to spend your entire life with someone. How can you not be nervous?"

"Sirius and I were made for each other."

"Sure you think that now, but…" He trailed off, looking at her pointedly.

"Look, Severus, I'm a big girl. I can take care of myself. I know that I'm ready to spend my life with Sirius. Deal with it."

"But, like, what if, when we get older, our personalities change and we're no longer compatible?" Esme gasped to Snape as she rushed to straighten out her dress. "And he's so much older than me, and Azkaban's taken so much out of him, what if he dies way earlier than me? How could I go on? What if we're barely compatible now and we're just dealing with each other until the wedding? Or what if one of us gets killed in the war? Why did we choose to get married in times of war? Why Severus, why?" Snape's jaw clenched.

"In all honesty, I don't care. I don't see why you couldn't have thought of all this ten months ago, when he proposed, or six hours ago at breakfast, or maybe, just maybe, ANY TIME OTHER THAN TEN MINUTES BEFORE YOU WALK DOWN THE AISLE!" Looking in Esme's scared eyes, Snape's expression softened. "Don't worry Esme, it's going to be all right. You and the Idiot have been practically married since the start of the school year."

"Yeah, I guess. Thanks Sev," she beamed at him.

"You're welcome." He studied Esme's face closely, then traced the spot where Lucius had cursed her nearly a year and a half ago, "What happened to your scar?"

"I covered it with this brand-new invention called make-up! It was just invented by the ancient Greeks."

"Don't get cheeky. Why don't you do that all the time?"
"I will not cover my battle scars until I have killed the man who gave them to

me," she said, her jaw set.

"Think happy thoughts, Esme. Happy thoughts." At that moment, Tonks poked her head into the room.

"You two have to get out here, NOW! It is really not classy to be late for one's own wedding!"

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Esme gasped as she and Snape took their first their first steps onto the plush gold carpet. As Flitwick began to play on his organ, they both took in their surroundings.

Delicate, snow-white chairs had been set up on the grounds, which had been charmed to stay pleasantly warm, but keep the snow from melting. Snowflakes swirled around the guests; when they fell they felt like soft tiny feathers. Soft white unicorns stood shyly around the edges of the chairs, whinnying gently every so often. White balloons and lace were scattered about. Dumbledore, adorned in robes of pure gold, smiled warmly, his blue eyes twinkling at Sirius, who had his long, black hair tied back with a white silk ribbon. He wore a tuxedo with a white rose pinned in the buttonhole.

Because Sirius' parents were no longer living and probably did not care whether or not he got married, Snape and Esme were the first two people the crowd saw. And they were quite a sight. Snape looked like he had actually bathed for once; his hair was soft and silky and trimmed neatly around his ears. He wore dress robes that made him look less emaciated than usual. Esme, however, was the one taking everyone's breath away.

Esme looked, to say the least, stunning. Her long black hair had been loosely plaited and lay, entwined with white roses, against her back. Any traces of scars and battles had been cleaned from her face, and what were left were two sparkling blue eyes framed with long, black eyelashes and a ruby-red smile. Her veil barely covered her face, but in the back, it went down to her waist. A small tiara held it in place at the top of her head. Her mother's necklace lay flat around her neck, the diamond heart barely touching the top of her gown.

Her gown was, of course, pure white. The strapless bodice had a line of white pearls around its top and its waist. The dress fell into a perfect A-line and trailed just a bit behind her. The moment Molly saw her she began sobbing into her handkerchief.

Esme and Snape were followed by the bridesmaids and groomsmen, with Tonks and Remus leading the way. The bridesmaids' dresses were a pink that was so soft it almost looked white. Tonks had set hers off with ribcage-length hot-pink hair.

When everyone arrived at the end of the carpet, Dumbledore began to speak. "Ladies and gentlemen, we are gathered her today to celebrate the union of two faithful souls. May their marriage be blessed and fruitful, and may Merlin watch over them for as long as they both shall live. May they be faithful and loving, honoring and trusting, and never parted until the day they die." He turned to Sirius, "Do you, Sirius Orion, take Esmeralda Genevieve, to be your wife in the eyes of Merlin and the Ministry?"

"I do," he said, smiling.

Dumbledore turned to Esme, "And do you, Esmeralda Genevieve, take Sirius Orion, to be your husband in the eyes of Merlin and the Ministry?"

"I do," she whispered.

By now, of course, almost the entire crowd was in tears. Tonks had tears glittering in her eyes, and Remus was biting down hard on his lip. Flitwick, who had stopped playing, was sobbing quietly into his hands. Hagrid wept quite loudly, and seemed to be scaring the unicorns. Even Snape looked like he was having a great difficulty containing himself. Almost every female student was crying into almost every male's shoulder. McGonagall was discreetly dabbing at her eyes. Even Mad-Eye was wiping away tears with the back of his hand.

"By the power given to me by the Order of Merlin, I declare you bonded for life."

And as they kissed, beautiful doves swirled around them and all of the white balloons popped with the sound of very loud bells.

The unicorns disappeared into the woods, never to be seen again.

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