For disclaimer and general summary, please see chapter 1.

A/N: This chapter is the wedding! Hopefully none of you have been waiting too long for this and I hope it'll be worth it :)

Chapter 21

Spike made his way downstairs wearing only his jeans, shirt in hand. The women in the living room all took a moment to appreciate the toned torso of the vampire before Dawn blushed and went back to what she was doing. Buffy cleared her throat and raised her eyebrow at Willow and Tara.

"We're gay, not blind" Willow stated and everyone laughed. Spike grinned and pulled his shirt on.

"You do have a very attractive physique, Spike. Did you ever think about modelling, or perhaps exotic dancing?" Anya asked. Spike's mouth dropped open and closed a few times without a sound. The other women were stunned for a second before they burst out into a second round of laughter.

Buffy wiped a tear from her eye and went to Spike, hugging and kissing him. "Morning, honey"

He smiled at her and pushed her hair back from her face. "Morning, kitten" Buffy grinned.

"I like that"

"What? Kitten?" Buffy nodded and he smiled.

"Shouldn't you be at Xander's getting ready, Spike?" Dawn asked from her position on the sofa where she was going through Buffy's boxes of jewellery as well as her own.

Spike nodded to her in response to her question but shrugged. "'S not like it takes me as long as you birds to get ready, is it?" he asked. He put his hands up in surrender at the five glares he got. "What you doin' over there, Nibblet?"

"Anya has her something new and something blue but doesn't have old or borrowed, so I'm seeing if I can find anything of mine or Buffy's" she answered.

Spike looked conflicted before he got an idea. Then he realised something.

"Where the bloody hell is my duster?" he asked at the top of his voice and turning around as if he'd see it hanging up next to Buffy jacket.

Buffy paled slightly. "You mean, you don't know?" she questioned tentatively. She knew how much the leather coat meant to him and she had a feeling that she knew where it was.

"I was wearin' it when those buggers hit me with that taser" he said.

Buffy sighed, her suspicions confirmed. "Spike, when we found you, you weren't wearing it"

"Did you find it?" he asked, not hoping that it was possible needing an answer.

Buffy shook her head sadly. He sat down on the sofa dejectedly. "It's at the Initiative, isn't it?" his voice was lifeless as he asked her about his beloved duster.

"I can go check your crypt, it might be there" she said, sitting next to him and wrapping her arms around him before standing again and grabbing her coat.

"I'll be right back" she left the others to help Anya in her search for her missing items and helping her to get ready.

Anya had showered and was having her hair put in curlers by Tara and Willow when they heard Buffy return.

Buffy looked at Spike's hopeful face and was so happy that she'd managed to find it. It had been a slim to none chance that Spike's coat had been left in the crypt that night almost a week ago and she hadn't noticed it before, but she had been worried about him.

It turned out that when Clem had gone there he had seen the blood and found the jacket and thinking the worst he had been to see Willy. Willy had told him that he had been captured but the Slayer was going after him. He had then moved into the crypt to keep it safe until Spike came back and placed his coat carefully over the back of the armchair, awaiting its current owner's return.

Buffy shook out the leather and presented Spike with his duster. He jumped up with a huge grin and pulled her to him in a hard kiss. He parted from her just as quickly and put his coat on. He put his hands in the pockets and found his lighter and smokes just as he left them. Once Buffy had explained the story, Spike smiled. Good ol' Clem he thought and wondered if he was invited to the wedding. He asked Buffy and she nodded. Xander had asked him when he had seen him at Buffy's party and that he was taking Sophie as his date.

Then Spike remembered why he'd wanted his jacket in the first place and put his hand into an inside pocket that Buffy had never noticed before. Carefully, he pulled out a delicate necklace. It was a small diamond on a silver chain and, although it was obviously old, it was stunning in its simplicity.

"It's beautiful" Buffy exhaled. She was stunned by the quality of the jewellery.

"It was my mother's" he said quietly, not meeting Buffy's eyes and not explaining further. He looked up when he had composed himself and continued. "Thought it might work for Anya's somethin' old 'n' borrowed, cos it's older 'an me 'n' I wan' it back" he grinned at Buffy and gently handed her the piece. Buffy smiled back and took it from him, treating it with care.

"Right, 'm off to Harris'" he said and took Buffy's hand, placing a kiss on the back of it with a small bow. "Milady"

"Kind sir" she replied, grinning at him and using the accent she had mysteriously gained the Halloween that they had been turned into their costumes. Spike remembered and grinned as well.

"See you later, kitten" Buffy nodded and Spike turned to the door, pulling his worn jacket over his head and dashing to the nearest sewer entrance. Buffy shook her head, laughing softly at the antics of her vampire and shut the door, wondering why he hadn't just called Xander and asked him to pick him up.

Spike arrived at Xander's apartment only smouldering a little. He knocked on the door and waited for Xander to answer.

Xander heard the door and opened it. When he saw it was Spike he opened the door further and walked away.

"Hey, Spike. Glad you could make it, cos I gotta say, I was beginning to wonder if you'd show. You're almost twenty minutes late and..." he paused when he realised Spike hadn't followed him. He turned to see him standing outside still. "What're you doing?" he asked.

Spike placed a hand on the invisible barrier preventing him from entering. "Invite? Don' worry, I won' kill you in your sleep 'n' you can cast a soddin' disinvite spell – "

"Come in, Spike" Xander rolled his eyes. "Do you have to be drama queen?"

Spike walked in and scowled at the young man. He punched him on the shoulder without using his super strength and was rewarded with Xander complaining of a dead arm and only a small zap from the chip. Grinning, Spike asked "Who's the drama queen now?"

"Real mature" Xander said, rubbing his arm. "Just go and shower. Jeez, did you come through the sewers?"

"Well, yeah. How else was I gonna bloody get 'ere?"

"Erm, lemme think, uh, my car?" he said like it should have been obvious.

"You'da given me a lift?" he asked disbelievingly.

Xander rolled his eyes. "Spike, you were the one who asked if we were friends. I said yes. We talked about donating blood for crying out loud. If you need help, gimme a ring and I'll see what I can do" Xander shrugged, trying to make it seem less important than it was.

"Thanks, mate" Spike replied quietly.

"Exactly, mate" Xander said, trying to mimic Spike's pronunciation of 'mate', which made Spike chuckle.

"Now, shower. Eau de Sewer is just not workin' for ya" Xander told him.

"Alrigh', 'm goin'" Spike turned in the direction Xander pointed.

"Suit's in the bathroom, come out when you're done. I can help you with the tie again if you want"

Spike nodded and shut the door. Xander sighed. He was starting to get nervous now. The banter with Spike had been normal, relaxing, but now he was tense again. He shook himself and went into the bedroom to change into his suit.

Half an hour later and the two men were stood in the living room. Xander was helping Spike with his tie and Spike was trying to sort Xander's bow tie.

"I can' do this" Spike said, giving up on the tie. "Maybe Red can do it when you see her" Xander nodded. He knew the girls were getting ready at the venue and there was a place for the groom to change as well if they wanted to so he could get her to tie it there.

"There you go" he said, releasing Spike's tie. Spike pulled on the suit jacket that matched the trousers and did it up. He ran a hand through his hair and growled.

"Knew I shoulda bought my gel" he grumbled. He hated his hair being curly.

"I thought it looked pretty good actually. More normal guy and less badass vampire"

"Hey! I'm still a badass vampire"

"Sure. Now c'mon Evil Dead, it's time to get going"

"Let's go get you married, Whelp"

Willow, Tara, Dawn and Buffy had gotten dressed before helping Anya. Once they had all done their hair and makeup they had gone to their tasks. Dawn was greeting the guests and making sure all the presents were put in the right place and Buffy was to help keep the crowds under control. Willow and Tara were helping Anya. They had painted her nails and given her a facial then they got her into her dress and buttoned it up. She turned round and asked for their opinion.

"You look beautiful, sweetie" Tara told her.

"You really do Anya. Meagan did an amazing job on the dress" Willow agreed.

"She did, didn't she?" Anya said rather than asked. "Okay, I need to work on my vows"

"Tara will listen, won't you, baby? I need to go and see if the guys are here yet" Tara nodded and turned to Anya as she began reciting her vows and Willow left the room.

The banter between the two men continued all the way to the venue. When they entered Xander was testing Spike on the rules he had given him and Buffy for the ceremony.

"Rule one?"

"Don' let your dad near the bar"

"Two?"

"Don' let your mum near the bar"

"Three?"

"Don't let... wait, there's Red. Go ask her to sort your bloody bow tie"

"You're just jealous cos you couldn't do it"

"I haven't had to tie one in over 100 years"

"Yeah, whatever. Just go find Buffy, she's chief bridesmaid"

"Wha' about Willow?"

"She was gonna be my best man type person, but I wanted to ask you. So she's whatever you call a bridesmaid on the groom's side... a groomsmaid?" Xander frowned before shrugging with a grin.

Spike grinned back and slapped him on the back. "I'll see you later then, mate"

Xander nodded and watched as Spike wondered off to find Buffy. He definitely wasn't the type of guy Xander would have picked for his best friend, but even he could see how good they were together and how deeply they clearly cared about each other.

Xander sighed and went after Willow. When she saw him, a smile lit up her face and she came rushing over. He grinned sheepishly and indicated his bow tie. Willow gave him a look before beckoning him to the dressing room. Willow tied his bow tie for him and smoothed out the lapels of his suit jacket.

"Well, I'll say this for the Y chromosome, it looks good in a tux" Willow said, tears building in her eyes but she blinked them back. She could cry later, but now she had to hold it together.

"Your double Xs don't look too bad either" he joked in reply.

"I gotta say, it's a good thing I've got Tara, cos you, me and formal wear? Phew!" she waved a hand in front of to cause a cool breeze against her face. She grinned and he returned it.

"So, are you ready to get married?" Willow asked him excitedly. He nodded and they made their way back out into the crowds. Willow soon disappeared again to go and help Anya finish getting ready.

When Willow returned, she and Tara took the curlers out of Anya's hair and fixed her veil. They did the final touches to Anya's makeup. She was ready to get married. Willow and Tara smiled at Anya. She really did look beautiful.

"You're ready" Willow said. Anya beamed and pulled the veil over her head so it fell in front of her face.

"No, not quite" came a voice from the door. They turned to see Buffy there. She walked up to Anya and showed her the necklace Spike had given her. Anya gasped.

"Oh my God, Buffy, it's gorgeous"

"Spike said he wanted you to wear it, you know, for your something old and borrowed. He said: 'It's older than me, and I want it back'" she quoted with a grin. The other three women grinned as well and Anya turned so Buffy could put the necklace on her.

Anya faced the mirror and examined her reflection. She grinned and gently touched the pendant of the necklace. "It's perfect" she smiled happily and turned to the other three. "Thank you so much" she choked slightly, trying to hold back tears.

"Oh, don't start or we'll all fall apart" Buffy quipped and hugged Anya before stepping back so Willow and Tara could do the same.

"I'll go and make sure everyone's in position and I'll come get you when we're ready for you" Buffy said and Anya nodded. Buffy left the room and went to find Spike. She really wanted to see what he looked like.

Spike caught sight of Buffy from across the room and he was frozen in place. Her golden hair hung in waves that reached just past her shoulders and she had a small silver headband, decorated with small crystal flowers and held most of her hair back slightly except for a few tendrils that framed her face. She wore minimal makeup that accentuated her natural beauty. The blue dress she was wearing complemented her figure and showed just enough tanned skin to tempt any onlookers. Her look was completed by a pair of strappy silver high heels and a delicate silver bracelet. She truly was a vision.

When she saw him, her face lit up with a bright smile. He didn't think he'd ever seen her more beautiful. She hurried towards him and stopped directly in front of him. Her eyes scanned him up and down and he raised an eyebrow when she met his eyes again. She grinned at him and leant up to give him a quick kiss.

"You look great" she told him.

He frowned. "Great? Not handsome, hot, sexy?"

She smoothed out his tie and looked him in the eyes. "You look all of those things plus any other synonyms that I don't know" They grinned at each other.

"You look absolutely stunnin', kitten" he paused and leant back to appraise her look. He looked up again and Buffy could see the desire smouldering in his blue eyes. "'N' any other synonyms there are for it" She smiled at him and took his hand. They began walking around the crowd, keeping everyone in order and preventing fights from breaking out.

After a short while Spike bent down a little so he could speak into Buffy's ear. "I haven't seen Harris for a bit. 'M gonna go look for 'im" he said.

Buffy nodded and released his hand. She made her way to the bride's dressing room. She opened the door and was met by an anxious Anya.

"What's wrong? Something's wrong, isn't there?" she asked.

Buffy shook her head. "No, nothing's wrong" she soothed the irate bride. "Everything's fine, there's just a few things to work out. Why don't you go through your vows again?" she suggested.

Anya smiled and began to recite her vows once more. At Tara and Willow's questioning glances Buffy simply shrugged almost imperceptibly. There wasn't anything to worry about. Yet.

Spike wandered in the direction of what he figured must be the groom's dressing room. He knocked and opened the door a fraction. "You in 'ere, Harris?" he asked.

He was surprised when the door was suddenly yanked open from the other side and Xander came barrelling out, followed by an old man. Spike frowned and pursued the pair.

Xander made for the front door and the old man walked off to the side. Spike watched the other man for a moment before chasing Xander. He managed to grab the groom as he was about to step into the rain.

"Where you goin', Harris?" Spike asked, confused.

"I have to go. I just... I have to" he tried to pull away from Spike but the vampire tightened his grip.

"Why? This morning you were 'appy, what 'appened?"

"I was just thinking... what if we have kids, and they're half demon? What if I hurt her? What if this is the worst decision of her life? I can't do that to her"

Spike thought back to what he'd just seen. He realised that it must have something to do with the strange old man he'd seen. "What did that ol' git say to you?" he asked.

"He showed me my future. And it was horrible. Anya... she was... and we were... it was bad, really bad" he said brokenly.

"So what? You're runnin' away? That's not the Xander Harris I know" Xander was shocked and looked up, catching the vampire's eyes. "You say he showed you your future, right?" Xander nodded and Spike continued. "That means you can change it"

Xander shook his head and looked inside where he could see his parents arguing. "What if I turn into my father? I can't do that to Anya. I won't" he turned and once more tried to break Spike's grip but failed. Spike winced as the chip punished him for twisting Xander arm slightly.

"Bollocks. You're bloody annoying as 'ell and sometimes I downright can' stand you" he said, grinning to take any sting out of his words. "But you're a good guy. Anya's an amazin' woman, 'n' you got all your friends. Hell, you need a soddin' ear to chew on 'n' you even got me"

Spike could see that Xander was still uncertain. He loosened his grip on Xander's arm. "You're not your father, but if you wanna go now 'n' break 'er heart, I won' stop you" he released Xander's arm completely and stepped back, crossing his arms across his chest.

"But answer this: do you love her? If you do... then walkin' away?" Spike shook his head and kept his gaze steadily on Xander's. "It'll be the biggest mistake you'll ever make"

"Of course I love her! That's not even a question" he sighed. "But what if it comes true?"

"Sounds like a lot o' 'what if's if you ask me. One thing I've learned over my time is that nothin's written in stone. You don' like what you saw, change it. Make your own future"

Xander broke eye contact and frowned. Then he smiled and shook his head with a chuckle. "I never thought I say this, but Spike? You're right"

"'M right a lot o' the time, I'll 'ave you know" They grinned and Spike indicated the front door with a tilt of his head and a questioning look. Xander nodded and smiled, and as one they turned to the door and re-entered the venue when Alexander Harris would marry Anya Jenkins.

As they walked in the doors, the old man Spike had seen with Xander before approached and scowled at them.

"What are you still doing here? If you go through with this you will wreck both your lives" he spoke to Xander, unmindful of the vampire next to him. The one that had just noticed what was off about him. His scent wasn't human and he stank of magic.

"Why don' we take this somewhere private eh, chaps?" Spike asked, pushing Xander and the mysterious man back outside where there would be less witnesses to whatever was about to happen.

When they got outside, Spike spun the man around and pinned him against the wall. He snarled in his face and let his eyes flash amber for a second.

The old man chuckled. "So, the mighty Anyanka has taken to associating with beings as low as vampires?" he laughed. "That's worse than humans"

Spike shook him and tightened his grips around his throat. "Who might you be then, mate?"

Xander shook himself, shaking away the shock of what had just occurred. "Spike, what are you doing? He's human! He's me!"

Spike's head whipped round to blink at Xander disbelievingly. Then realisation dawned and he turned back to the old man. "I get it, you pretend to be him from the future, a few hocus pocus visions and scare him off with his worst fears, ain't that right?"

"It didn't take much though, did it?"

"Yeah, but you didn't count on something"

"And what's that, vampire?"

"His friends" Spike said simply before breaking the guy's neck with one swift movement.

"What did you do?" Xander asked. His face contorted in rage and he punched Spike in the jaw, catching him off balance and unprepared, knocking him to the floor. "What did you do?" he yelled.

Xander advanced on the blonde, when out of the corner of his eye he noticed the body of the man started to shimmer and change. It became the shape of a demon that Xander had never seen before.

"What?" he asked, turning to Spike.

"I could smell he wasn' human. Dunno what 'e was, but 'e wasn' you"

Xander shook his head before reaching out a hand. Spike took it and stood. "Sorry, man, I just thought – "

"I know wha' it looked like, no need to apologise. By the way, nice righ' hook. Might 'ave to get you into trainin'" he said as he rubbed his jaw where Xander had hit him.

Xander grinned at him but then looked down at the body of the demon. "But, what was he then?"

I'll 'ave to get rid of that later Spike thought as he answered Xander. "My guess? Someone Anya pissed off durin' her demon days"

"How'd you know?"

"He called her Anyanka"

"Oh"

They fell silent for a moment then Spike turned to him once more.

"So, third time lucky, right?" he grinned and they turned back once more.

Spike got Xander into position and he and Dawn got everyone to sit. Dawn stood on the opposite side to Xander and awaited the others. Spike made his way to the dressing rooms and opened the door after knocking.

"Sorry 'bout that, we just had a lil' demon trouble" he told them.

"Sorted?" Buffy asked worriedly. She didn't want anything messing this day up for her friends, but was reassured when Spike smiled and nodded.

"Jus' came to tell you tha' we're ready when you are"

The three remaining bridesmaids nodded and smiled at Anya before following him and taking their places. Willow stood next to Spike, and faced Tara, Spike was facing Buffy. Dawn was next to Tara and Xander was stood to Spike's left and a little forward.

The music started up and Anya appeared, her arm linked with D'Hoffryn's and a big smile on her face. She made her way up the aisle, all eyes focused on her.

Murmurs spread through the crowd, commenting on her dress and how stunning she looked. Xander couldn't take his eyes off her. How did I almost give her up? He thought with a quick glance in Spike's direction and smiled in thanks, receiving a small nod.

The ceremony was beautiful, and as Xander and Anya recited their vows Buffy and Spike and Willow and Tara held each other's eyes, the two couples hearing their friends pledge their love and thinking about how lucky they were.

Spike passed Xander the rings and he and Anya recited after the minister. They were named Mr and Mrs Harris and he lifted her veil and kissed her as the crowd cheered. The girls were all wiping away tears as they parted and made their way down the aisle, followed by the bridesmaid, groomsmaid and best man with people throwing confetti over them. The chairs were moved whilst everyone in the wedding party posed for pictures. Then all the women moved to one side of the room in a tight group as Anya stood some distance away.

"Ready, girls?" she asked with a big grin. At their excited nods she spun around and threw her bouquet backwards. After a bit of a scuffle, the winner emerged clutching the flowers. Meagan grinned a little self depreciatingly, blushing slightly and bringing the flowers to her nose. Everyone cheered and began to leave to make their way to the reception.

Xander and Anya shared their first dance, which was a romantic number by Anya's favourite singer. Spike soon stood and offered his hand to Buffy. She looked up, a little surprised but smiled widely and took it so he could pull her to her feet. He spun her under his arm and walked her out onto the dance floor where they began to sway to the music. Tara shocked a few people by standing and asking Willow to dance as well, and the couple made their way onto the dance floor too. After a few minutes the floor was full of dancing couples, including Clem and Sophie.

Dawn watched as Buffy leaned up and whispered something in Spike's ear and his lips curved slowly into a happy grin. He pulled back and stared at her before spinning her into a showy dip making Buffy laugh. Dawn felt a little lonely, but saw how loving the three couples that were her family were.

They had all been through some really tough times, but maybe this was a sign. A sign that things were getting better and that, even amongst the demons and apocalypses, love and happiness could be found on the Hellmouth.

Once everyone had started to leave, Spike had walked Buffy, Dawn, Willow and Tara back to Revello. Buffy and Spike walked behind the others, walking hand-in-hand as had become custom over the past week or so.

When they reached the front door of 1630, Buffy hung back. Dawn stopped and gave her sister a questioning glance but Buffy smiled and nodded for her to go ahead. As soon as the door closed behind the other three, Buffy turned to Spike and spoke.

Inside, Willow and Tara headed straight upstairs to their room, but Dawn stayed in the hallway. She peered out of the window that was in the door and saw Buffy talking to Spike. She watched as Buffy said something to him, causing him to pull back from her in shock before he grinned and kissed her.

They parted and Dawn saw him smile then touch Buffy's cheek gently. He tilted his head to indicate something behind him and slowly began to walk away. Buffy turned to the house and Buffy saw a huge smile on her face. Her sister started walking back to the house, so Dawn ran upstairs as softly as she could and ran into her room.

She really wanted to talk to Buffy and ask about what had been said, but it could wait until morning. She could ask Buffy and if she didn't want to tell her, she could ask Spike. Either way, she'd find out eventually. Little sisters had their ways.

A/N: So I hope you all liked it :) Thanks again for reading.

I'm sorry if the wedding seemed a little rushed but I figured that the fact it actually happened was more important that the specific details, I just couldn't let Xander leave Anya at the altar :D

Insert usual pleads for reviews :) let me know what you think