"Do you, Samuel Winchester, take this woman as your lawfully wedded wife," the preacher reads in front of the very minimal group in the back yard of the farm house at dusk. He looks down the foot and a half to the woman he's holding hands, eyes locked onto hers with total adoration and affection. "To have and to hold, to love and to cherish in sickness and in health, for richer or poorer, as long as you both shall live?"

With dimples deep and teeth all showing, he easily answers, "I do."

"And do you, Louise Noonan, take this man as your lawfully wedded husband," the preacher reads in front of the very small group of onlookers. "To have and to hold, to love and to cherish in sickness and in health, for richer or poorer, as long as you both shall live?"

Blue eyes locked onto hazel once more, Louise doesn't hesitate. "I'm mighty sure I do." Sam laughs nervously at her for the joke.

When Dean looks next to him at the woman he's linked arms with, sitting with not an ounce of space between them, he can see the watery glaze over them.

"Aw, ya ain't gonna cry, are ya?" Dean whispers his complaint to her.

"I just… I love 'em both so much," Ellie whispers back, her hushed voice choked.

"Ya sappy, Miss Ellie," Dean winks at her and pulls out his old red handkerchief, the one she eventually gave back to him, and he once more hands it over. She takes it and dabs at her eyes.

"….I pronounce you man and wife. You may kiss your bride, Mister Winchester."

Unable to contain her excitement, Louise reaches up for him and pulls him down to her level by the back of his head. She plants one on him so suddenly that it makes Sam's eyes near pop out of his head before he goes with it and kisses her right back, the group of close family and few friends cheering excitedly.

Ellie looks to the right at the other man in her life that means the world to her. "Thank ya, daddy."

Bernard just keeps a straight face. "You two girls of mine made a compelling argument for this union."

"An' she's happy," Ellie adds in.

Her father nods while observing Sam and Louise, hand in hand as everyone congratulates them once the ceremony ends. "And she hasn't ever been this happy before."

"Oh my, no!" Ellie laughs, remembering how serious Louise tended to be as a child and then now angry and rebellious she acted as a teen. Her little sister finally was growing up and dipping her toes into the simple yet really good life. And maturing at that. "But Sam… oh, daddy, he's a real good one. Sharp as a tack an' mighty sweet."

"You better watch after her, Bess," Bernard warns fairly. "She's still just a touch over grass. She's awful young for this and to be out of the house…."

"She's wit me," Ellie reminds. "Ya know I'll watch over her."

"That's my Bess," Bernard says with pride as he brings an arm around her shoulders. The Noonan family have been in Sioux Falls for a month now, preparing for Dean and Ellie's wedding and then staying an extra week to be there for Louise's quite shockingly fast union. They will be leaving soon but the time there did the father and eldest daughter well. They've mended their broken relationship and become the pair they should have always been and were when she was just little.

"Don't ya worry about Louise," Ellie promises and kisses her father's cheek as Dean walks off to give his brother a hug. "I know she's a wild one sometimes but I think marriage'll do her mighty well. An' Sam'll keep her in line for certain."

"Sam doesn't seem like he has a mean enough bone in his body to keep her in line," Bernard grumps. "He seems soft."

"He's not soft," Ellie reminds him for the millionth time. "Daddy, he's just… been hurt. His life has been hard an' I told ya all about it so ya should have some sympathies. Trust me, if'n he needs to put a foot down he will. An' he loves her, I know it. They're gonna be just fine."

Bernard sighs as he watches Louise practically bounce up and down with excitement while still holding Sam's hand, never having let go once. "I hope she doesn't start speaking in such a way… like you have." He peeks ta her out of the corner of his eyes.

"Whatcha mean, daddy?" she jokes, exaggerating her new accent. "I ain't talkin' no different 'an ever."

He bumps her shoulder with his own. "Don't get smart with me young woman."

"Yessum, daddy," she grins, kissing his cheek quickly. "I'mma say my congratulations."

"You do that," Bernard says and watches her run off for her very beloved sister and best friend. As much as he's very sad to lose both of his beautiful girls to the west he couldn't be happier to see them go together. They have always been so close that when Ellie left without Louise it felt very wrong. Everything feels much better now.

Ellie runs off to her sister, the shorter girl wearing a very sweet, light pink dress she had in her suitcase and some wild flowers in her hair. She and Sam didn't want the fanfare of Dean and Ellie's wedding, opting for quiet country and their new home over the church and drunken strangers. It was more personal and much more their style. Sam barely goes into town as it is as he's a total home body after losing Jessica. This was how they wanted it.

"Congratulations," Ellie says quietly as she brings her arms hard around Louise's neck.

"Thank you, Bess!" Louise answers back, hugging her as well with a cheek-breaking smile on his face. "I'm so happy that I'm staying here."

"Me too, dear," Ellie laughs, backing away and holding her sister's face. "So happy. Welcome to the family."

Louise laughs hard at that and Ellie kisses her cheek with excitement.

That night, after much food made by both Ellie and Catherine and much whiskey drank by all, the family retires to their respective place, Louise and Sam once more disappearing to the barn where Sam and Ellie had set up a nice little spot in the hay loft with blankets and candles. Ellie was impressed by Sam's thinking. The place where they first really talked and Louise fell head over heels for the tall, handsome granger was perfect for their first night together, hay and all.

"They should have taken our room for the night," Dean comments as he undresses at the end of the day, his feet failing him slightly with the amount he drank. He trips slightly and catches himself.

"No, no," Ellie says, sitting up in bed already down to her sleeping gown. "It's beautiful up there. The breeze comes through enough to keep it cool, they got candles all over, blankets to wrap up in… it's mighty romantic."

"Some hay over the horses? That's romantic?" Dean asks with disbelief.

"It's where they first spoke," she shrugs. "An' where… they first… got ta know each other."

The way she says it, emphasizing her words, makes Dean pause with his pants half-down. "What ya mean by that… got to know?"

Ellie just grins.

"Before they got hitched!?" Dean can't believe his ears. "They done… laid together!?"

"Shh," Ellie scolds, pressing her index finger to her mouth. "Don't ya go spillin' secrets! My family's still here."

"Well… I'll be damned," Dean awes. "Didn't know Sammy had it in him."

"He didn't," Ellie laughs as Dean walks to the bed and starts to get in. "He wanted ta wait."

Dean looks down at her with wide eyes.

"My sister ain't one to mess wit," she laughs.

"Guess she ain't," Dean says with impressed emphasis. "That Louise is some mountain lions, ain't she?"

"Somethin' like it maybe," Ellie laughs at her sister's expense.

Settling in on his back and looking up at Ellie sitting next to him he sighs. "An' ta think ya made me wait."

"It was worth it!" she rebuts, pressing a hand to his chest as she settles into his side, his arm around her shoulders.

"It was," Dean nods, picking up her hand and kissing the back of it. "I woulda waited my life for ya."

"Still makin' a mash on me," Ellie grins and kisses him. "But my sister is… a very forward thinker. An' she ain't never been afraid of the opposite gender. "

"I see," Dean nods, respecting that to a degree.

"An' I'm sorry I made ya wait. I know that was hard on ya."

"I forgive ya," Dean says, cupping her jaw and tipping her head up so that he can kiss her good. Every night for the week they've been married they've settled in, spoke briefly of the day, and then explored the new aspect of their relationship that is no longer taboo. "Ya don't make me wait no more so what's there ta complain 'bout?"

Ellie giggles with that and pulls him closer, a hand to the back of his head and into his hair. "Ya need ta visit the barber."

He looks at her with surprise. "Do I?"

"Ya gonna look like yer brother soon if'n ya don't," she informs him.

"Was thinkin' 'bout letting it go… like Sam," Dean comments as she combs through his lighter locks, blonde from the time in the sun. "Wouldn't have ta cut it so often."

"I like it shorter 'an his," Ellie admits. "It's more… you."

"I have a style?"

"Not much a' one," Ellie jokes and he grabs her side, making her giggle. "Don't do that!"

"Don't ya say I ain't got no style. I'mma man of style."

"Oh yessum… what was I thinkin'?" Ellie keeps joking.

Dean grins as he lets up on her and kisses her lips once more. "Ya want me ta cut it?"

"Up to you," she says simply. "It's yer hair."

"Well… don't ya look at it more 'an I do?"

"That's a good point."

"Then, what do ya like?"

She grins. "I like it shorter… like when I first met ya."

"Then I'll get to the barber next weekend," Dean answers. "Anythin' fer my Ellie."

Heart melting, Ellie leans into him and kisses him in thanks, letting her hands wander and start their night the right way.

The next morning Ellie woke early. She snuck out of bed and decided to finish cleaning up from the festivities the night before so that the place would be neat and tidy when everyone woke. Once her task was done and it was beginning to get light out, Ellie picks up the empty pail by the door and heads out towards the barn to fill it.

Halfway there she recognizes the tall man sitting outside the barn doors in the grass all alone. She smiles.

When she gets closer the smile fades. He doesn't look nearly as happy as she thinks he should after his first night with his new bride. His back against the closed barn door, shoulders slumped, elbows resting on bent up knees with his head hung, she's getting a sad feeling from him.

"Mornin', Samuel," she greets with a bright smile, trying to figure out where his head is.

Lifting his sights he sees Ellie standing there in the very first light of day before the sun even rises. She has a pail in her hand and he can see that she's starting her day. He forces a smile on his face that is barely convincing. "Mornin', Ellie… or should I say sister?"

Ellie grins wide with his attempts to cover up his misery. "I still like the sound a' that," she says lightly, walking right up in front of him and kneeling onto the ground, dropping her pail on the grass. Her dress billows out around her in the summer morning breeze and she keeps her hands in her lap. "Have a good night?"

Sam blushes a bit, smiling at his hands in front of him. "I did. Thank ya."

"Hopefully a better night than ya havin' mornin'," she comments, letting him know she sees it on him.

"Am I obvious?"

"As the cat who ate the canary, darlin'. What's wrong, Sam? Shouldn't ya be happy?"

When he looks up at her he looks a little surprised. "I am happy. Mighty happy."

"Except?" she pushes him, keeping a slight grin in place to keep her prodding safe and friendly.

Sam sighs heavily. "I feel… guilt." He looks down once more. "An I know it ain't like I should but… I feel it."

And Ellie understands it right away. She nods, knowing this pain very well. "On account a' Jessica."

His eyes widen and his sights snap up onto her.

"Be honesty, Sam."

His face softens in sheer relief that someone understands him. "I still miss her."

"I know ya do."

"An' I feel like I shouldn't now that I got Lou… but I still love Jessica. It's still in there."

"I know that too… an' ya ain't never gonna stop lovin' her neither."

Sam's eyes grow worried with such a comment.

"Sam… I know I married yer brother an' all, an' I love Dean more every single day… but that don't mean I don't still love my Jackson."

Depression settling in with the information, Sam sighs and blinks a few times, brow lowering.

"That ain't a bad thing," Ellie assures him.

"It is. The guilt… it's bad, Ellie. I feel it every time I'm wit Lou," Sam finally opens up to someone. "I mean, I love Lou like I ain't never thought I was gonna ever love a gal again but… dang. Every now an' then I look at yer sister I, I… I see Jessica. I still miss her an' I feel like that ain't right to do this to her memory. It ain't fair."

"It ain't about fair," Ellie promises, scooting closer to him and grabbing both of his hands, needing to reassure him on something she can more than understand. She knows his pain well and she remembers the guilt he speaks of. "Sam, Jessica isn't gone because a' you. She got sick. That happens."

"I know that…."

"An' Jackson ain't here because that river was running a little too fast to ford that day," Ellie keeps going. "There wasn't a dang thing I could do ta stop it from happenin'. It just happened. It hurt like nothin' else I been through an' it still hurts today… but it just happened."

Sam nods and looks down at the grass below him, commiserating.

"Took a long time ta see that."

"I still don't see it," Sam admits to her. "Still feel…."

"Like ya cursed?" Sam nods his head to answer her and she gets upset. "What is wit ya'll Winchester men and bein' stubborn!?"

"Our luck ain't good."

"Am I alive?" Ellie challenges to which Sam doesn't answer. "Did ya just marry a real good girl that pretty an' kind an' love ya and she's still breathin'?"

Taking a deep breath first, he answers, "I did."

"Then ya ain't cursed!" she drives the point home. "Ya just… having a hard time moving on."

"It ain't right ta move on," Sam sadly says his opinion.

"Yes it is. It is right ta move on 'cause they're the ones that died, not us." She sighs frustrated. "When I finally let myself see how I was fallin' fer Dean… I got so scared. I down right lost myself to sorrow fer a few days. An' then I got myself ta believe that I ain't feelin' nothin' fer Dean so that my guilt would stop. An' 'cause of that I almost went back East an' left the love a' my life behind me."

"What 'bout Jackson?" Sam questions, wondering how she could qualify Dean as the love of her life over Jackson.

"I still love him in my own way but every person's different," she explains how she sees things. "My life wit Jackson was very different from wit Dean. Jackson an' me, we were inexperienced an' hopeful. Wit Dean… I already been through a lot a' things in my life. I was older an' wiser. I been through a marriage an' a love before… an' even if I denied it I think I loved Dean very quickly after I arrived here. It was fast, faster than I was ready for or could handle, but I knew deep in me. He was meant fer me."

Sam nods as he listens.

"So ya need ta tell me… how ya feel when ya wit Louise, besides guilty?"

"Oh, I know I love yer sister, Ellie," Sam assures her, gripping her hands harder. "That ain't no question. Every time I look at her… when I don't see Jessica, that is… I just, I don't know. I feel real good in a way I can't say right. Louise is… she pushes me an' I don't hate it. An' I can be me 'round her. And I feel like I can live when I'm 'round her too. That's a real good feelin'."

Ellie smiles. If she doubted Sam's love for her sister before then she doesn't anymore. He clearly has it bad. "But ya feel guilt too?"

"Yeah. I don't wanna let Jessica… down, I guess."

"Ya think she'd want ya ta be alone fer yer whole life?"

"No. Oh, most certainly no…."

"Then I bet she wouldn't want ya ta be so guilty neither," Ellie says to him. "An' I remember a time when we done had this conversation 'cept it was you tellin' me to cut that guilt loose."

Sam smiles lightly, recalling that conversation after he found her crying in her room. "It's much harder ta follow that advice when it's me in the predicament."

"Sure is," Ellie laughs a little and pats Sam's face lightly twice before pressing her palm to his cheek. "You are a wonderful man, Samuel Winchester. Ya deserve a good life wit no guilt. My sister will give that to ya but ya gotta let her. Ya just keep Jessica in yer good memories an' it all will be alright. I promise. I been there."

Sam actually fully smiles. "Yer a good friend, Ellie."

"Only ta good people," she laughs a little and sits onto the grass next to him, her legs tucked under her as she looks to the east. "Sunrise. It's so pretty out here."

"It is," Sam agrees and silently they both sit and watch the colors paint the new sky, relaxed and enjoying the company of someone who knows their situation. It's comforting and wonderful to have that companionship when they need it the most. "Used ta watch sunrise out here wit Jessica when Bobby'd let her come stay fer a day or two."

"See now, that's a lovely memory," Ellie says, moving over to sit closer to Sam and lean her side into him. He pulls an arm around her shoulder. "An' nothin' can take that away. It's yers, always."

"Sure is," Sam says sadly, looking out at the colors changing constantly.

"An' you'll make new memories too, ones wit Louise, an' they'll be lovely too." They lock eyes. "Just let her go, Sam. Let Jessica go an' be happy. Never forget her… but let what happened go. God needed her. She's wit the angels now an' she's lookin' down on ya. She's happy fer ya."

Sam huffs a disbelieving laugh but despite not really having the faith she does he admits, "That's a nice thought."

Ellie just laughs at him for being so stubborn about his faith and instead leans her head onto Sam's shoulder. "Maybe ya should write a poem 'bout her… in that journal I gave ya."

"I tried. I ain't not good at it," Sam chuckles quietly.

"I'm sure ya are… and I would know that as true if ya handn't stolen that poem ya wrote me when I was 'bout to leave," she tells him and gives him an evil eye.

"It wasn't no good." His cheeks are nearly crimson.

"I bet that ain't true." She swats his knee.

"It's very true, Miss Ellie," he jokes a little, feeling better already. "If'n ya were stayin' here I couldn't stand ya havin' read it."

"Ya ain't never lettin' me read that, are ya?"

"I burnt it up," Sam admits.

"Ya muggings!" she calls him as she sits up tall and upset.

"I'll make ya a new one," Sam tries to placate her.

"Ya best be doin' that, no fibbin'!" Lizzy points at him accusingly.

"I'll do it. I vow it."

"Well, alright then," Lizzy tells him, settling back by his side just as the sun can be seen over the edge of the property. They sit silently in the quiet morning before the rest of their family wakes and the new day truly begins.