title: Marriage, Sunnydale-Style
author: Heather (heather@hella-good.org)
rating: R
spoilers: none...completely an au/fantasy fic except for things borrowed from the Buffyverse (season 1-7) that are twisted to fit in this universe.
disclaimer: If I actually owned anything, I probably wouldn't be doing this :)
summary: After almost 10 years of dating, Buffy and Spike finally find themselves in the midst of planning a wedding and remembering the long journey that got them there.

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Chapter 15

"So a toast?" Cordelia asked. Buffy, Willow, Tara and Anya raised their glasses. "To me being single again. Here, here." The group of women looked at each other and back to Cordy, all surprised by this announcement. "Hello? Here, here and then clink, clink." They all did as was told and took a sip of their wine. Nobody said anything for a full minute.

"Was it the orgasms or lack thereof?" Anya asked first.

"Well, when he was around it was orgasms a plenty but...he's busy so much...," Cordy answered, trailing off. "Look, what's done is done, okay? I'd rather not spend yet another evening examining why Cordelia Chase can't keep a man."

"Is he still coming to the wedding?" Buffy asked, still digesting this new turn. "He was coming with you so..."

"I don't know. I should tell him he has to go so that way you'll get a present," Cordy said, smiling. "I'm really fine with it. In fact, I've kind of had my eye on someone else."

"I always say get right back on the old horse. I wouldn't have Rupert if I didn't," Anya offered.

"And it is an old horse at that," Cordelia muttered.

"Cordy, I thought you outgrew that marry someone old, inherit their money when they die scheme," Willow wondered.

"Not old as in decrepit old. I can't deal with grandpa breath."

Tara nodded her head, understanding instantly. "Someone old as in former."

"I hate how you do that," Cordy told her.

"Former...well, Wesley is attached at the hip to Faith at the present, unless you're planning on breaking them apart. And with your intense disliking of Faith, it would be like killing two birds with one stone," Willow guessed.

"You've never gone beyond the flirting stage with both Angel and Gunn...oh, god..." Buffy trailed off, her eyes wide.

Cordy smirked and nodded. "I know, I know. But we've both grown up in the last year ten years and we've changed-"

"You can not date Devon again, Cordy. He's still as flaky as ever," Buffy interrupted.

"It's not Devon!" Cordy said, laughing.

"The only one left is-"

"Xander," Anya finished, cutting Willow off.

Cordelia looked at her pointedly and said, "And you cannot tell me to stay away. You're married to Giles now. You let the Xander ship sail." Anya rolled her eyes in response and gulped her wine.

"How did this happen?" Tara asked. She hadn't been around when the two were together but she had always noticed the chemistry that they had.

"I don't know...he's my little chia pet. I can't help it."

"What about 'Xander Harris is scum. He will never know the touch of Cordy ever again' rant after you guys broke up?" Buffy asked.

"No one likes to be cheated on, Buffy. Especially when it's with trash like Faith."

"You may want to lay off the 'trash' comments, Cordy. She's trying really hard to pull herself back together. It takes a lot of guts to actively seek out forgiveness and to travel that road," Buffy told her. "Besides, you even said it was ten years ago. The past is the past. Everyone makes mistakes. It's not like you've been a saint your entire life."

"I've never hospitalized anyone or spent three years in jail for assault and battery," Cordy said, anger in her voice.

"Can't we do that thing where we abruptly change the uncomfortable topic of discussion?" Willow pleaded.

"Ladies!" They all turned, breathing a sigh of relief, to see the owner of the restaurant coming their way and they all smiled and waved.

"Andrew!"

Arriving at the table and resting one hand on the back of Buffy's chair and the other on the back of Willow's, he sighed and rolled his eyes. "I just love when you do that. I feel like Norm on Cheers."

"We know, Andrew," Buffy said, smiling.

"You have only told us that every Tuesday night for the last three years," Anya interjected.

Andrew shot her look and turned to Buffy. "The wedding is coming along fine? You still haven't ordered your cake or picked out the menu."

"You know too much about too much," Buffy answered. "We are actually going Friday night to talk to Jonathon about the cake and we're still debating over the menu."

"And Spike is well?" Andrew asked, wistfully.

Buffy bit back her laugh and said, "Yes, he's fine."

"Why are you talking like that?" Anya asked Andrew. "You sound like you're trying to sound posh and upper-crusty. Frankly, you don't pull it off."

"I don't know why I allow you to come in here," Andrew said, whining a bit. "If you can't understand that I am trying to bring class to the establishment than I don't think you appreciate what I'm doing."

"Andrew, the name of your restaurant is What's Its Name. I truly don't believe people are coming here for class," Anya continued.

"Just the delicious food," Tara threw in, giving Andrew a smile.

"Why, thank you, Tara." Turning back to Anya, he said, "I built this place from the ground up, demon woman. I slaved long and hard over it. I hand painted light fixtures, polished tables until they glowed, designed the menus myself. Blood, sweat and tears went into this place."

"Can I live in the land of denial with you?" Anya asked. "You took this place over and changed the name. You didn't do anything."

"I had to keep it going, though, didn't I? So there! I think I've proven my point."

"Den-i-al," Anya muttered under her breath and Cordy kicked her shin under the table.

"I should go back to the kitchen. The chef's dessert for tonight is kicking everyone's ass. Nice seeing you." Leaning down to Willow, he whispered, "Except for you know who." Willow suppressed her chuckle and looked at Anya who was shooting daggers at Andrew as he walked away.

"You could be a little nicer to him, Anya. He practically feeds us for free," Willow tried to reason.

"You're all nice enough to him so that I don't have to be."

"You really need to get over it," Cordy told her.

"Me? He's the one that was duplicitous. I was only trying to do something nice for Xander and Andrew lied to me," Anya explained.

"It was a long time ago, Anya. Maybe it is time to just let it go," Tara suggested.

"He was trying to steal my money! Limited edition Babylon 5 plates, my ass," Anya told them, angrily. "If he was trying to low-ball someone, he picked the wrong someone. You all continue to be nice and I will continue to be very active with not."

"Well, he did do a good job of forging them..." Willow put in.

"I don't know why we come here," Anya said. "Every week it's the same thing."

"You make it the same thing," Cordy pointed out. "I'm making another toast." Everyone held up their glasses. "To Anya, whose tactless ways make me look angelic. I, for one, am forever grateful."

"Here, here!" Everyone clinked their glasses together and laughed.

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"Are the men ever going in to be fitted for tuxes?" Anya asked. "I just love Rupie in a tux..."

"Actually, I've been giving the tux question the once over." There was an audible gasp from everyone at the table. "I know but I realized that it's not just all about me and Spike really doesn't want to wear the tux. I'm sure the rest of the guys will appreciate that."

"But you were all 'go, tux, go'," Willow said.

"Spike went on his own and bought what actually is a very nice black suit-"

"Spike in a black suit with a couple of buttons undone, hair all curly and crazy would be very nice to look at," Anya interrupted.

"Hey, wipe the drool. You don't hear me talking about Giles like that," Buffy said, trying to not shudder at the image.

"Well, he is very good looking, Buffy. It's not like women don't notice him because he belongs to you now."

"I know that, Anya, but you are my friend. I'm not exactly thrilled with my friend's thinking of an unbuttoned Spike."

"Have you told him no tux yet? He came into the gallery the other week to talk to Joyce about trying to convince you that there was no need for a tux," Tara informed her.

"That sneaky little bastard. I should make him wear it now," Buffy said, laughing. "As much as I wanted all the traditions, I realized that we're not the most traditional of couples. And I don't want one of the happiest days of our lives to be so by the book."

"So..." Willow stated, trying to get Buffy to let them in on whatever she was getting at.

"So, everything we've done...we're doing over," Buffy meekly told them.

"What was that?" Cordy asked, shocked.

"Are you serious?" Willow asked, bewildered by the turn of events.

"So how much more work does that entail for us?" Anya asked, a slight whine to her voice.

"I think it's great." Everyone whipped their heads to look at Tara. "Like Buffy said, it is a very important day for her and Spike. They should be celebrating it the way they want to. And if Buffy doesn't want to have the usual cookie-cutter kind of wedding, well, good for her." Buffy smiled in thanks, while the other three stared at her, open-mouthed. "You three take a breath before you pass out. As her bridesmaids, we are to do what ever she wants."

"Guys, look, it really isn't that big of a deal. Nothing was set in stone plans-wise anyway, so it shouldn't be too difficult to rearrange some things," Buffy told them.

"You're not changing the dresses, are you? I do not want everyone's image of me as a bridesmaid to be from Anya's wedding," Cordy said, a hint of panic in her voice.

"You all looked soooo great that day," Anya commented.

"Sure..." Cordy said, sarcastically, mentally giving thanks that Anya didn't pick up on it.

"All the dresses are staying the same. Mom and I bought ours last Saturday, did the fittings and the whole thing. We're still getting the food, cake and flowers from where we were getting them originally. The biggest thing is the invites, the guest list and the place."

"Oh, thank god," Cordy replied softly to herself.

"We were looking at that stupid book of invitations and Spike came up with a really great idea to make our own. So once my mind got on that track, I just slowly started thinking about every thing else. I'm not the big wedding kind of girl anymore. And we all know that Spike isn't a big wedding sort of guy. I'm slashing the guest list to no more than seventy-five. I'm hoping we can cut down to fifty, but I still need to talk to Spike about that. I don't want to invite people just to invite them. There's something so not right about that."

"You went from a list of two hundred to fifty?" Anya asked. "How does one do that?"

"I decided that it was silly to invite people that I knew once upon a time. Not every person I've said hello to over the course of my life had to be invited. I'll need to talk to Mom about the long list of people she wanted to invite. Honestly, all of you are our family. I know that's all he wants to be there and it may have taken a few months for me to realize, but it's all I want, too."

"So, you're going the extremely simple route to wedded bliss?" Cordy asked.

"Definitely. I'm thinking by keeping it simple, it might actually get me to the wedded bliss part," Buffy answered, smiling. "I plan on telling Spike tonight that the suit is a go, which means the guys will have to pick up their own suits. I'm hoping that Ted's Tuxes rents out suits so they all don't have to buy spanking new ones, but we'll see. I'm still debating on the tie issue. I don't want uptight but I am dead set against a beach bum wedding."

"Where are you going to have it?" Tara asked.

"That's the thing. There aren't many places in Sunnydale. We had already made the unspoken decision that it wouldn't be a church wedding. Cordy had suggested the mansion, which isn't so bad. It has that great over view of Sunnydale in the back but it's a bit too gothic for me."

"They can snazz it up a bit, you know," Cordy offered.

"Yeah, I know but I'm not feeling it. I'm sure Spike would love it but I'm bending enough with the tux issue."

"What about Wilkins Park?" Willow asked.

"Thought of that, too, but you and Tara were married there. It didn't seem right to have it there, either."

"We were married on the bridge. You can pick any place in the park. There's that gorgeous gazebo by the water on the other side," Tara offered.

"I would like an outside ceremony..."

"Did you pick a time yet?" Cordy asked.

"I know we want it in the afternoon. That way it won't be so hot and by the time the reception comes along, it'll be dusk and cooler."

"And if you can keep the list down, you could always have the reception at your Mom's. Great backyard, you have the porch, people can escape inside if they want," Cordy suggested.

"Plus, you can have like tikki lights when it gets dark," Willow said, excitedly. "Who doesn't love a tikki light, am I right?"

"And, of course, money. You can save all kinds of it," Anya chimed in.

"The money isn't the problem. We have it all budgeted out and with Mom's help, we were in the clear. If we have it at my Mom's, no dance floor."

"We are a group of dancing fools," Tara said, smiling.

"That we are," Buffy agreed, giggling. "I don't know...but I need to have the invites to you by Monday, right?"

"Yes, if you want the two months notice," Tara answered. "I'm intrigued by the designing your own concept. Anything I can help you with?"

"You are my favorite person right now!" Buffy gushed and heard a chorus of "Hey"s from the other three women at the table. Buffy rolled her eyes and amended, "I love you all equally."

"Just like what a parent says to appease the other children," Anya said.

"Ignoring Anya completely," Buffy started and turned her attention to Tara. "What we're thinking is a photo of us on the front and then the print on the inside? Could we add some stuff to the front so it's not completely boring?"

"Flowers?" Tara asked.

"No, well...probably not. He said I could have flowers but no pink, no butterflies and no rainbows."

"Colors?"

"The picture is black and white, so the grayish silver you showed me would still work but I'd like to throw in a little color."

"How about the color of our dresses?" Cordy asked.

"See, here we go. Now we're on a roll. What would I do without you guys?"

"Apparently still love Tara the most," Anya said snidely.

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Walking to their cars in the parking lot, Tara touched Buffy's arm and motioned for her to let the others to go ahead of them. When they were out of range, Tara looped her arm through Buffy's and started walking again. "Will tells me you saw Sean."

Buffy's step faltered for a moment but she quickly recovered. "Yeah...on the list of top ten not fun things to do, that'd be up there."

"Are you alright?"

"Sure, after the initial feeling of fear, I'm fine," Buffy said with a slight smile. "And you? Did Willow tell you she was going to tutor him?"

"Yes, she did. I can only keep telling myself that he is not Warren and I cannot treat him as if he is."

"Had to do that myself." Buffy took a breath and asked, "Do you talk about it? You and Willow...do you talk about what happened?"

"Some days...we never force the conversation but some days we both just need to. Why?" Tara asked, concern in her eyes.

"It's just...well, Spike wanted to talk about it after I told him about Sean and I pretty much flat out refused. Luckily, Dawnie had come over so I got a pass but...it's bound to come up again."

"All I can say, Buffy, is don't force it. Let it happen as naturally as possible. Believe me, I didn't want to talk about it for months and Will gave me that space."

"Will's great like that."

"And so is Spike," Tara added.

"I know. Is it weird to not want to discuss it? To not want to rehash it all? Then I feel silly because I don't want to talk about it and you do and you were the one who..."

"It's not silly. Everyone has different ways of dealing with things. It took me some time, yes, but I felt like a giant weight had been lifted when I talked to Willow about it. They are our loved one's for a reason." They reached Buffy's car and Tara looked around for Willow. She saw her at their car and raised her index finger and mouthed "one minute". Willow nodded and smiled, understanding that it was a one on one conversation.

Tara put her hand on Buffy's upper arm in comfort. "I'm sure Spike wants to be your sounding board for things like this. You only need to let him." Buffy looked at Tara, eyes wet. "He loves you, Buffy. There is nothing you can say about that day or any other that will make that change."

"I know you're right. I'm being completely irrational."

Tara's arms wrapped around Buffy, giving her a hug. "I love you, sweetie. Everything will be fine. You're getting yourself all worked up. Let it happen naturally, okay?"

Buffy hugged her back and said, "Thanks, Tara." They let go of each other and Tara gave her a wave goodbye. She put on a big smile and turned to see the others still standing near Willow's car. "Bye, girls! I'll see you soon. Thanks for tonight!" She got into her car, smile fading quickly.

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Buffy entered their apartment quietly. She couldn't believe it was only 9 o'clock. She felt like they had been at the restaurant for hours on end. She grabbed a bottle of water from the fridge and made her way to the bedroom, rubbing her eyes warily and yawning. The phone rang but she didn't quicken her pace to answer it. She heard the answering machine click on and smiled when she heard Dawn's voice.

"So Connor is weird. I think he has some major issues...but then like two seconds later he can be totally likeable and that irks me even more. It's like pick a mood and stick with it! Uh...erase this before Spike hears it. He doesn't need more fuel for the fire. Love you!"

She heard Spike laugh at Dawn's message and she walked into the room, gasping when she saw him. He turned quickly to look at her and smiled when he saw the look of shock mixed with a little lust on her face.

"You're home."

"And you're..."

"I do look mighty dapper, don't I?" She walked over to him and ran her hand over the material, making a soft moaning sound. "Like it, pet?"

"What was it you said the other night about my wedding dress? I couldn't wear anything that would be torture on your lower regions. Ditto for you."

"No worries, then. Not wearing the suit, remember? Talked to Xander tonight and we're going to round up the guys for the tuxes on Saturday since we didn't get around to it on Sunday."

"You're wearing the suit," Buffy blurted out. She had wanted to tease and taunt him about the tux for a bit first but upon seeing him, all cohesive thought left her brain. Damn Anya for being right once again.

"Come again?"

"Oh, I plan to," Buffy muttered. She coughed a bit to cover her slip and saw that he had his tongue between his teeth. Shit, he heard that. I'll be dealing with that for weeks to come. "You will be wearing that suit on our wedding day."

"That's just cruel, Buffy. Shouldn't get a bloke's hopes up like that."

"No cruelty here. You are wearing that. End of discussion, okay? So you'll have to take the guys to find suits." He put his hands on the sides of her face and gently pulled her forward for a crushing kiss that took her breath away. "So you like that idea, I take it?"

"Best bloody thing I've heard all day."

"I love you," Buffy said, emotion in her voice.

"Okay, that's the best thing I've heard all day." He looked at her, studying her face and saw something in her eyes that unsettled him. "What's wrong?"

"I talked to Tara tonight about Sean. Spike, we'll talk about it but I can't launch into a big discussion like that without some prepping first and-"

"Shh, Buffy," Spike said, trying to calm her. He began stroking her back and kissed her forehead. "If I seemed to have pushed, I didn't mean to. I get worried about you is all and then you don't say anything. You know that me and patience don't go hand in hand."

She smiled and nudged her face into the hand that was still cupping the side of her face. "I know and I realize I'm being a bit overly with the issue but I-"

"We'll talk about it when we talk about it. There's no pressure here, pet. You never have to talk about it if you don't want. I only wish you would."

"I will. I want to."

"Then when that time comes, I'll be at the ready." He let go of her and started to take off the suit jacket when Buffy's hands stopped him. "What?"

"Are you taking that off?"

"Well, yeah. Don't want to ruin it. Don't fancy spending another boatload of cash on a black suit."

"If you don't want to ruin it, you better let me help you with the undressing," she said, suggestively. He raised an eyebrow and smiled even more as he felt Buffy's hand slowly take off his jacket.

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to be continued