"That's alright," Zandra told her, "I understand. Rain does things."
Gwen nodded. Then she looked around. "The rain stopped."
"You should go. I will always be watching..." Zandra faded away with the baby, leaving Gwen on top of the mountain all by herself.
"Now that is something to put down in a book..."
~*~
"Uh, guys?" Bray asked, as Ellie and Lex continued their argument.
"WHAT?!"
"She's coming this way?"
Both Ellie and Lex had been poised to say something else, but stopped when they noticed Bray was right. Gwen had turned around, and was walking back in the direction of the mall. "She looks terrible!" Ellie gasped.
"Gee, El," Alice said, "I'm sure she loves you just as much."
"You know what I mean, Alice!"
"Gwen, what in the name of heaven were you doing up there?" Lex began to rant, steppnig in front of Gwen, blocking her path. "Not only is it dangerous when it isn't raining, it's at least twice as dangerous when it is!"
Gwen rolled her eyes. "I'm alive now, aren't I?" she asked of Lex, who ended up just opening and closing hsi mouth a few times before picking her up and throwing her over his shoulder. 'What do you think you'rte doing???"
"We're all going back to the mall, apparently," Alice replied, following the rest behind Lex and a struggling Gwen. "Lex, let her go, or she's gonig to put you in traction."
"She won't, she loves me," Lex said, smirking at the fact that Gwen stopped struggling when he said that. "That's right, we heard every word you said."
~*~
Bray watched as Trudy came forward, carrying Brady, an almost knowing smile on her face. She was so beautiful, he mused...
He repeated the vows Tai-San gave him, then Trudy did the same, and the rings were exchanged. He gently kissed her and led her to a seat, where he sat her down and kneeled in front of her and Brady with a guitar he pulled from under the seat...
"Bray, what---"
"Shhhh..." he told her, kissing her gloved hand gently.
Trudy smiled down at him, but looked nonpulssed nonetheless.
Lex rolled his eyes; Mr. Romantic, eh? At least Gwen didn't go for that sappy--- oh, lovely, she's all misty eyed... he thought...
"Tonight it's very clear, as we're both lyin' here. There's so many things I wanna say. I will always love you, I would never leave you alone. Sometimes I just forget, say things I might regret. It breaks my heart to see you cryin'. I don't wanna loose you, I could never make it alone."
Lex smiled at Gwen, and extended his hand.
"Dance?" he whispered.
Gwen smiled and took his hand, allowing him to sweep her onto the dance floor...
"I am the man who would fight for your honor. I'll be the hero you're dreamin' of. We'll live forever, knownin' together that we did it all for the glory of love."
Patsy looked at KC expectantly, and he rolled his eyes exaggeratedly and allowed her to half-drag him to the dance-floor.
Lex snickered, looking at the pair over Gwen's head...
"You keep me standin' tall, you keep me through it all. I'm always tall when you're beside me. I have always needed you. I could never make it alone."
Jack and Ellie began dancing at the same time as Ryan and Selene, and Trudy sat, balancing Brady upright in her lap...
"I am the man who will fight for your honor. I'll be the hero you're dreaming of. We'll live forever. Knowin' together that we did it all for the glory of love."
"Y'know... weddings are nice..." Lex mused.
"How many have you had?" Gwen asked.
"Two."
"TWO?!" she squeaked.
"Shhhhh..." he smirked at her. "It was to the same girl... see, Ebony wrecked the first one..."
"Aha..."
"Yeah, so... will ya?"
"Will I what?"
"Marry me?"
"Just like a knight in shining armor, from a long time ago. Just in time I'll save the day, take you to my castle far away."
Patsy heard and looked over at KC.
"Isn't that soooo romantic, KC?"
"Yeah, yeah, don't get any ideas?"
Patsy rolled her eyes at him.
Selene smiled up at Ryan.
"Ryan... I think I've decided..."
"What?"
"The baby... remember you said you liked the names Ruby and Pearl once?"
"Yeah..."
"I'm thinking if it's a girl, Ruby Pearl, and if it's a boy, Ryan Junior, and call him RJ..."
"I am the man who will fight for your honor. I'll be the hero that you're dreamin' of. We're gonna live forever. Knowin' together that we did it all for the glory of love. We'll live forever. We'll live forever. Knowin' together. Knowin' together. That we did it all for the glory of love. Ooooooh. We did it all for love. We did it all for love. We did it all for love. We did it all for love..."
Ellie and Jack watched Gwen pacing in the cafe that night. "So," Ellie asked, holding her notebook, "what are you gonig to tell him??"
"Yeah Gwen," Jack said, trying not to laugh, "or are you going to cause more by having us tell 'im in the Amulet?"
"This is not how things were supposed to be..."
"Face it, Gwen," Ellie told her sister, "Nothing is like it was supposed to be."
"We both like KC."
"Uh-huh..."
"And we both like fighting."
"And you both are absolutely nuts about each other."
"Your point, Holmes?"
"Elementary, my dear Gwendoyln." Ellie smiled. "You say yes."
"I thought you'd say as much." Gwen looked at them both. "I'm gonna go tell him now."
~*~
"So KC...."
"No, Patsy."
"Come on, why not?"
"Because we're thirteen?"
Patsy pouted, and KC couldn't help but sigh. "When we're older?"
"If there's no one else, sure."
~*~
The Smile looked at Lex pacing Gwen's room, formerly May's. "Relax Lex..." Lips told him.
"...Gwen will be back from talking with Ellie and Jack in a little while..."
"...and she's going to say yes."
"She i-" Lex turned towards the door, where the voice had come from. "You are?"
Gwen nodded. "Because of the way you make me want to run and hide..." She saw lex rolling his eyes, and grabbed his hand with both of hers. "...that's a good thing. I mean, you make me want to run and hide and go straight to you when I do. I want to see you there every day for the rest of my life."
"Aren't you the poet?"
"Shut up."
~*~
KC walked into Lex's room where he was just sitting, staring.
"You okay, Lex?" he asked tenatively.
"Yeah, sure, kid... you're getting a sister-in-law..."
"Yeah, I know... I'm glad. She makes you happy."
Lex smiled and ruffled his hair.
"Yeah, she does..."
"Lex... you know alot about women, right?"
"I like to think so..."
"Then, can you help me?"
"Patsy?" he smirked.
KC blushed.
"Awwww, come on... she's not so bad if you can get past the daily tantrums..."
"Funny, really."
"Okay, okay..." he laughed. "What d'ya wanna know?"
"Well... sometimes I don't know what to make of her?"
"Welcome to the world of women, kiddo." he smiled, tossing an arm around him.
KC sighed and looked up at Lex.
"How do you know?"
"Know what?"
"Well... if one is the right one?"
"Well... with Zan, there were others between times, but it was always her..."
"Like Bray and Trudy?"
"Yeah, I mean, I met Zan when I was 12, remember?"
KC nodded.
"You're just a little squirt yet; you don't gotta rush nothin'..."
"Well, yeah, but... I dunno..." he shrugged. "What if..."
"What if what?"
"What if she finds somebody better to hang around with?"
~*~
Bray massaged Trudy's shoulders gently.
"Feeling any better?" he asked, dropping a kiss on her neck.
"Slightly..."
"Anything I can get for you?"
"No... no... I'm fine... I just..."
"Just what?"
"I feel like I did when I realized that one was coming?" she smiled, dropping a gentle hand to Brady's cheek...
~*~
"Gwen. Stop pacing?" Alice smirked.
"He said... and I said..."
"Yes, we know, Gwen." Ellie laughed.
"Married."
"Yes, Gwen."
"I'm getting married!" she beamed, falling backwards onto her bed.
Ellie laughed.
"Ooooh, The Amulet is going to be interesting this week..."
~*~
Gwen looked around her room. There were a lot of things she got from the farm. Lex said he'd go with her, but she felt better taking Bray and Ryan. She had a chance to actually talk to them. She smiled at the picture on the little table by her bed. Her and Alice with Ellie as a baby.
"Great little family I've got," she said.
"Soon it's gonna be bigger," Lex's voice said from her doorway. "I said I'd go with you, you know."
"Yeah, but I'm not going to go away, Lex." She smiled. "I promise."
Lex put his arms around her, realizing for the first time she wasn't all that short. She was practically his height. He smiled.
"What?"
"Nothing, Gwen, absolutely nothing."
~*~
"Hey Ryan?"
"Yeah, Selene?"
"What if I have twins?"
"TWINS?!"
~*~
Bray looked over at Trudy. "Another one?" Bray asked, surprised but smiling. "A sister or brother for Brady?"
"No, a goat, Bray," Trudy said, "yes, a brother or sister for Brady." She smiled. "It had to of happened on the beach, since you're the only one since..."
"I know."
Trudy smiled. She finally had Bray, and he finally had her. It all seemed right. Even Lex was happy. "So, when do you think the wedding is?"
"I'm going to guess as soon as they can manage."
"So, tomorrow then?"
~*~
"Patsy?"
Patsy threw a pillow across the room at KC. "I was sleeping, KC..."
KC sat on the edge of Patsy's bed and handed her back her pillow. "Yeah, I know, but... I wanted to ask you something..."
"What?"
"Do you wanna?" KC handed her a little tiny plastic ring. "I mean, not right now, but keep this until they'll let us?"
Patsy smiled, nearly knocking KC over. "Of course!"
~*~
Lex waited for her at the end of the aisle, while Tai-San stood to do the vows for them.
Patsy sat next to KC, looking at the little plastic ring he gave her. It was what you would've called back in the before-time a "gumball-machine" ring, but it was beautiful to her. It had this thick, doubled over, golden band, and a little red heart nestled in the center--- not in those prongs like some rings.
She hid a smile as he slipped a hand into hers as they began repeating their vows.
Trudy lay her head on Bray's shoulder, watching, but her thoughts starting to wander.
"If this one's a boy, we'll call him Trey..." she mused.
Bray caught her eye and smiled, and she smiled back, her eyes starting to mist.
Everything was going so well... everything was so perfect... finally, it had all fallen into place...
Selene lay her head on Ryan's shoulder as well. She would tell everyone--- tomorrow. She didn't want to take away from Gwen's day. And, this was a beautiful day, that would be remembered always...
"I now pronounce you man and wife. Kiss your bride." Tai-San smiled.
Scary enough, Gwen was almost mirroring Trudy's thoughts as Lex bent her back and kissed her passionately. Everything was all right now--- no more Locos, no more Jackals, no more Chosen... no more fighting... They were saying everything was over. But, no, everything was just begining...
~*The End*~