For disclaimers see Chapter 1

Tara was right, she was barely starting to show at Anya and Xander's wedding. She and Willow put their dresses on along with Dawn and Buffy.

"Will can you zip me up?" she asked.

The redhead moved behind her girlfriend and gently zipped up the green dress.

"Oh whew, I was afraid I'd grow again and it wouldn't fit." Tara said in relief.

Willow looked at their reflection in the mirror and frowned. "I don't see how that would be a bad thing. Remind me again why I have to wear one of these? I'm supposed to be best man. Shouldn't I be all ... Marlene Dietrich-y in a dashing tuxedo number?"

Tara giggled.

"That would be totally unfair. We must share equally in the cosmic joke that is bridesmaids-dom." Buffy said from the other side of the room where she was helping Dawn zip up her dress.

"Okay, but you two don't have the awful sleeves!" Willow protested.

"Well, at least you look beautiful in green." Tara said, smiling at her girlfriend, who grinned back and resigned herself to her fate.

"I'll go see how Xander's doing and then come help you with Anya, okay?" Willow said.

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"The groom is dressed and ready to go!" Willow announced, walking into the room Anya was dressing in. "How's the bride doing?"

"Just getting into the dress..." Tara said.

"Want me to hold it shut for you?" Willow offered.

"Sure."

"Are you guys even listening?" Anya said in frustration. "I need feedback, people."
"Sorry. Please continue with the vows." Tara said, smiling at Willow.
Anya cleared her throat. "I, Anya, promise to ... love you, to cherish you...to honor you, uh, but not to obey you, of course, because that's anachronistic and misogynistic and who do you think you are, like a sea captain or something?"

Tara and Willow grinned and giggled a little.

"However, I do entrust you with..." Anya paused, hearing the girls giggling. "What? Is something funny?"
"No, n-nothing, sweetie, just, just keep still."
"Okay. Blah, blah, blah, misogynistic. Blah, blah, 'I do however entrust you ... um, with my heart. Take care of my heart, won't you please? Take care of it because, it's all that I have. And, if you let me, I'll take care of your heart too."

Willow and Tara stopped giggling, moved by the unexpected tenderness.

"I'll protect it and tend to it, like a little stray. Wait, no. 'Like a, a little mangy stray that needs a home. No, that's not it either." Tara bit her lip to keep from laughing again.
"Um... "Tara cleared her throat. "I think we're all set here. Let's ... take a look at you."

Anya turned around and Willow and Tara stepped back. They gazed at Anya with open mouths.

"Oh!" Tara exclaimed.

"Wow. You look lovely. Really... lovely." Willow agreed.

Anya smiled. "Thanks. It's probably the blush of imprudent spending. Do you think Xander will like it? Oh, I want to see Xander now!"
"You can't. It's bad luck for the groom to see the bride in her dress, remember?" Willow reminded her.
"Right. I can't keep all these ridiculous traditions straight. What if I'm not wearing my dress when I see him?"

Willow frowned at her disapprovingly.

"Okay, no sex. Cuddling?"

Willow and Tara giggled.

"Okay. It's just I'm so excited and I want to share it all with my best friend. I get to be with my best friend forever! Yay!" Anya squealed.

Tara looked at Willow and her eyes started watering. Willow looked concerned.

"Hey Anya we'll uh, be right back okay?" she stepped out the door, pulling Tara with her.

"What's wrong honey?" she said, wiping the tears from her girlfriend's eyes.

"Oh, nothing, it's just....I guess I'm jealous of Anya and Xander. I wish I could get married to my best friend too."

Willow felt her own eyes tear up. "Oh baby...you know if I could I'd marry you tomorrow." She kissed Tara. "But just because we can't...doesn't mean I don't plan on being with you forever." She kissed her again. As they pulled back Willow gently wiped the tears from Tara's eyes.

"I love you so much." She said quietly. Tara smiled.

"I love you too. Now, I should get back in there. You want to go see how Xander's doing?"

Willow wiped her own eyes and nodded. "I'll see you in a bit."

She walked around looking for Xander, finally finding him in the kitchen.

"I'll say this for the Y chromosome ... looks good in a tux." She teased her old friend.
"Well, your double X's don't look too bad there, either." Xander replied.
"You're getting married. My little Xander." Willow said, fiddling with his clothes.
"All growed up."

"It's a good thing I realized I was gay, otherwise, hey, you, me and formal wear... " she joked.

Xander smiled slightly and hugged her. Willow didn't see that his face looked anything but happy. How could he tell Willow what the old man had just shown him, that if he married Anya they would both end up miserable?

"Do you know how much I love you?" she said, still hugging him.
"Mmm ... 'bout half as much as I love you." He returned.

Willow smiled and pulled out of the hug.

"You ready for the long walk?"
"Um ... yeah, just give me a sec, I wanna work on my vows." He stalled.
"Take your time. It's not like we can start the wedding without you."

She smiled at him and left . Xander watched her go before dropping his brave smile.

Willow went out to the main room and peered in. Everyone looked ready to go. She decided to go back and get Xander moving. She walked back into the kitchen and stopped dead in her tracks. Her friend was nowhere to be found.

"Xander?" she called, looking around.

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Meanwhile, Tara sat listening to Anya rehearse her vows yet again.

"I, Anya, promise to cherish you... Ew, no, not cherish. Uh, I promise...to have sex with you whenever ... I want, and, uh... uh, pledge to be your friend, and your wife, and your confidant, and your sex poodle..."
"Uh, sex poodle?" Tara interrupted.
Yeah, why?"
"Um, I'm not sure you should say 'sex poodle' in your vows." Tara explained.
"Huh." Anya didn't look like she cared.

Suddenly they both heard music coming from the main room.

"Music. They're playing the music! This is it." She grinned.

The door opened and Buffy poked her head in.

"Are you ready to go?"

But before Anya could answer, Willow pulled Buffy back into the hall. Buffy pulled the door closed as she turned to look at her friend.

"He's gone. Xander disappeared!" Willow said in despair.

Buffy stares in dismay. "What? Xander's gone? Wha-what should we do?"
"I'm gonna go look for him ... I'm gonna find him. A-and you're going to stall." Willow said, rushing off.

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Willow ran in the rain, her dress getting soaked but she didn't care. She had to find Xander and figure out what was wrong. Finally she spotted him, wandering aimlessly along the street.

"Xander!" She raced after him, catching up in no time as he turned around.

"Will, I kinda need to be alone."

"No, what you need is to get your tuxedo-ed butt back there and marry Anya!" Willow said, out of breath.

Xander turned as if to walk away again. She grabbed his arm.

"Where are you going? I don't understand, what happened?" she demanded.

Xander sighed and explained what the old man had shown him. While he was explaining Willow took his hand and slowly led him back towards the wedding.

"So you see, I can't marry her. I'll just make her life miserable and mine too." He said sadly. Willow stopped walking and took both of his hands in hers.

"Listen to me, Alexander Harris. If you don't marry Anya you'll make both of your lives miserable anyway. Hey, at least this way you'll be prepared, we can change the future. But you and Anya belong together. I know that and you know that. You aren't your parents, Xand." She said, finishing softly.

He looked up into her eyes, startled.

"What, I've been your best friend your whole life, you think I don't know you're terrified of that? But you don't need to be. You aren't him. You never will be. You're a great man, Xander, and I know that you love Anya with all your heart. You love her like I love Tara. What would you tell me if I suddenly decided that I was leaving her?" she tried to reason with him.

Xander wiped at his eyes. "You wouldn't do that. You guys are even having a baby. You don't have any doubts." He sniffed.

"First of all, I might consider it if I thought it was really what was best for her." She said. "I do understand that part of your fears. Second of all, you don't think I have doubts? Am I ready to be a mother? Are you ready to be married? Are we all grown up, Xander? Yeah, it's scary. Sometimes I don't feel like I'm grown up at all. It'd be easier to stay a kid forever, but we can't. So if someone came to me and showed me a bad future for Tara and me, might I think about running away? Yes. But then you'd come to me and remind me that I couldn't do that to us, do that to her. Tara chooses to stay with me, through the good times and the bad, even though it makes her life harder most of the time. Anya wants to marry you because she loves you and wants to be with you for the rest of her life. She knows your flaws, she knows the dangers, and she wants to marry you anyway. You know in there she said she was so happy because she was going to get to be with her best friend forever? Now, I don't know what will happen in the future, but I know that you two are meant to be together in it."

Willow paused, trying to think of what else she could try, when suddenly she was enveloped in a bear hug.

"Oh Will, what would I do without you?" he asked. "You're right, as usual."

"I am? I mean, of course I am!" she grinned. "Okay then, let's go get you married!" she pulled on his hand and they ran inside, only to find a full-blown fight going on. They looked over and noticed a demon holding Anya with Buffy squaring off in front of them.

"Anya!" Xander cried out. This distracted the demon and Buffy took advantage of it to kick him in the leg and cause him to release Anya, who ran over to Xander.

"I'm so ... I'm so glad you're here. It was all lies, what he showed you ... it wasn't true, he just wanted to break us up." She cried.

"It doesn't matter now." Xander comforted her. "It didn't work, see? I came back. I just...needed to think." He hugged her and smiled at Willow over Anya's shoulder.
"So we'll be okay." She sniffed.

Buffy grabbed a veil off of the bison head on the wall and used it to strangle the demon. He sputtered for a minute but Xander grabbed a pedestal and smacked him in the head, knocking him down and unconscious. He slammed it down on his head again.

"It's dead." Xander announced.

"Yup." Buffy agreed.

Everyone in the room cheered.

Willow walked back over, holding Tara's hand. They looked down at the demon.

"Is anyone else waiting for it to go poof?" she asked expectantly. "Maybe we can cover it with flowers."

The guests began picking up chairs and setting them up again.

"Look at this damage. I'm not paying for this, you freaks!" Mr. Harris yelled.
"Stop calling us freaks!" Krelvin, one of Anya's demon friends, yelled. Krelvin went over to Mr. Harris and shoved him in the chest. They started fighting again.

"Oh no! No, not again! No!" Mrs. Harris cried. The fighting broke out all over the room between demons and humans.

"Stop it!" Anya screamed, loud enough to make everyone stop and stare at her. "Everyone sit down! This wedding will go on, so get back in your seats!"

Everyone hastened to do so.

Xander looked hesitantly at his parents, arguing even as they picked up chairs. Willow followed his line of sight and saw his fears being demonstrated. She moved into his line of vision and caught his eye.

"You aren't them." She reminded him softly. Xander looked over at Anya, trying in vain to make her dress look like she hadn't just been in a fight. She looked up at him with love in her eyes, and he relaxed.

"I'll be waiting for you up there." He said to his bride before taking his place by the altar.

The rest of the guests took their seats, and the wedding party gathered in the outer room.

The door burst open and a soaking wet Giles rushed in. "Did I miss everything?" he said, out of breath.

The whole group started laughing. "No Giles, long story, why don't you sneak in and get a seat okay?" Willow said with a smile.

"I didn't miss anything?" he said, confused. His flights had been disasters, and though he had hoped to make it in time for some of the reception, he had assumed the ceremony would have been long over.

"No, you didn't. It's about to start." Anya said in a clipped tone. Giles gave a releved sigh and snuck into the hall.

"You okay Anya?" Tara asked with concern.

"As long as he stays there this time I am." She said stubbornly.

The music began to play and the couples of bridesmaids and groomsmen went one by one slowly down the aisle. The last couple, Willow and Tara, linked arms and grinned at each other before processing down and joining the group. As they took their places the music changed to 'Here Comes the Bride' and everyone turned to see Anya appear in the doorway.

Anya smiled radiantly even though her dress was torn and slightly bloody on one side. She reached Xander, still dripping wet, and took his hand to walk up to the altar.

"We are gathered here to celebrate the union of this man and this woman in holy matrimony." The minister began. "Marriage is a covenant not to be entered into lightly. You are vowing to make your lives as one and forsake all others. It is a moment of supreme joy that we are blessed to witness."

The wedding proceeded on, and finally the vows were reached.

"Has the couple prepared vows?" the minister asked. Xander and Anya looked at each other wide-eyed. "I didn't...uh, finish mine..." Xander said softly.

"It's okay, I didn't get it right either. Let's just use the regular ones." She said, squeezing his hand. The minister watched the exchange and nodded. He began to state the traditional vows for the couple to repeat.

"I, Alexander Harris, take thee, Anya Jenkins, to be my wife, to have and to hold, in sickness and in health, for richer or for poorer. With this ring, I thee wed." Xander said slowly, placing the ring on Anya's hand.

"I, Anya Jenkins, take thee, Alexander Harris, to be my husband, to have and to hold, in sickness and in health, for richer or for poorer. With this ring, I thee wed." Anya repeated.

"I now pronounce you man and wife. You may kiss the bride." Xander grinned and leaned in to kiss Anya to the cheers of everyone in the room. They broke apart and turned to face the audience.

"It is my happy privilege to introduce to you for the first time, Mr. and Mrs. Alexander Harris." The minister finished.

Anya and Xander beamed at each other before starting their walk back down the aisle, followed by Willow and Tara and then the bridesmaids and groomsmen. They waited in the entryway to greet the guests before moving on to the reception hall.

The guests milled around while the wedding party attempted to take pictures in which it was not obvious that the bride's dress was torn and bloody, the groom and best (wo)man had been drenched, and one of the bridesmaids had a ripped dress and looked like she'd been in a fight. Finally that too was over and they were free to mingle for a bit before dinner and toasts began.

Buffy made a beeline for her old watcher and enveloped him in a big hug.

"Um...oxygen...ribs..." he sputtered, her slayer strength not always an asset.

"Oh, sorry Giles!"

Willow and Tara, holding hands, came up to join them. "Hi Giles!" Willow said enthusiastically. "Glad you made it!"

"I nearly didn't, I suppose I should be grateful for a demon attack. That is what happened, correct? I saw the body, and I doubt Buffy's dress is supposed to look like that." He joked.

"Yeah part of it. To make a long story short, some bitter guy Anya cursed a long time ago tried to freak Xander out and get him to call it off and ruin her life, luckily Wills here talked him out of it." Buffy explained briefly. "Only I still had to kill him." She added as an afterthought.

"Well, this is Sunnydale. Willow, how are you doing? I've barely spoken to you lately, how are the magic control studies going?" he turned to the redhead.

"Oh, she's doing great Mr. Giles. She only uses magic when she n-needs to now." Tara explained, squeezing her girlfriend's hand in support.

"Good. I'm glad to hear it."

"Oh my god you didn't tell him yet did you?" Buffy suddenly asked.

"Tell me what?"

"Um...no, we wanted to tell him in person, and since we knew he was coming for the wedding..." Willow trailed off.

"Tell me what?" Giles repeated.

Willow looked around before answering. "Well Tara's pregnant! She's having my baby. I mean, of course it's my baby, Tara wouldn't cheat on me, and definitely not with a boy! Ew! I mean, not that there's anything wrong with guys, they just aren't for us....anyway that's not the point....so I guess you're thinking hey but how can Willow get someone pregnant cause I shouldn't be able to, it was because I did this spell, I was a man for a day, and we well, you know how people get pregnant I'm sure you can figure it out, so yeah she's having my baby." Willow finished finally.

Giles continued staring at her, trying to process the massive amount of words that had just come streaming out of the witch's mouth. Tara just stood next to her girlfriend, trying her best not to laugh.

"Wow." He finally said. "Well congratulations, of course. How far along are you?" he asked Tara. He decided to completely ignore the details of how this occurred.

"Almost four months." She smiled.

"See! You can see it a little now!" Willow exclaimed and rubbed Tara's belly. "Just barely."

They were interrupted by the clanging of a knife on a glass. They looked around to see Anya trying to get everyone to sit down.

"I guess that's our cue." Willow said to Tara, and they moved to the front of the room.

Willow's 'best man' speech was typical Willow – slightly rambling at times but straight from the heart.

"Xander has been my best friend since before I could remember. We went all the way from pre-school to high school together, and I don't know how I would have survived without him. He was always there for me, even when I was the biggest nerd in school. We've been through more together than I could have imagined, and I'm sure we'll stay best friends all the way up to retirement home time. Well, best friends except for Anya and Tara of course, since they are in a special category. I had the biggest crush on him all through high school, and if you'd told me at the time that I'd be standing at his wedding to another woman completely happy for him, I probably would have laughed at you." Those in the audience who knew Willow well laughed slightly at that. "Well, times change, and here I am, his best man and so proud to be that. Anya and I have gone through some rough patches, I guess partly because nobody could ever be good enough for my Xander. But when it comes down to it, I know in my heart that she is. Xander, you picked a special one, there's no doubt about that. Anya and Xander are perfect for each other, and I'm so happy for them on this special day. So here's to Anya and Xander everyone, Mr. And Mrs. Alexander Harris!"

Tara had tried everything she could to get out of doing a speech at the wedding, but Anya wouldn't hear of it. So she had resigned herself to it and just decided to make it as short as she thought she could get away with.

"I h-haven't know Anya nearly as long as Willow has known Xander, only about t-two years now. B-but we bonded right from the start, because she was pretty new to their group of friends too. People don't always get Anya, but then people don't always get m-me either, so I understand. There's nothing hidden about Anya, you always know what she thinks about you. It can be annoying at times, but it's refreshing. An-anyway, I've watched Anya and Xander get closer and more serious, and we were all so happy for them when they announced their engagement. I agree with Willow, they are perfect together, and I wish them all the best today."

Tara sat down, amazed that she had gotten through all of that with very little stuttering.

The rest of the evening went by with surprisingly few catches. The demons and the Harris' simply kept their distance from one another and no fights broke out. Finally it was time to throw the bouquet and garter.

Anya was very excited about the bouquet throwing. She made sure all the women were in a clump before turning around and tossing it over her back. Tara, being the shy woman that she was, ended up in the back of the group, which was fine with her. But Anya threw the bouquet a little farther than she intended, and it almost sailed right over the group, until Tara reached up her hand without really thinking and caught it. Her face turned red when she realized what she had done.

"Um...oops, I don't think that was really for me...want to th-throw it again?" she asked hopefully.

Everyone laughed and insisted no.

Willow had not intended to take part in this particular ritual, insisting that it seemed a little silly for the best man to try and catch the bouquet, but when she saw Tara catch it she decided to join in. So when the men lined up to catch the garter, she went right along with them. She silenced the beginnings of protests with a glare.

"Hey, I am the best man, and that's my girlfriend with the bouquet. So no arguments, I get to try for this!"

Xander laughed at her and turned around to throw Anya's garter. He aimed it as best he could at Willow, and she did the rest by lunging in front of a man and snatching it up triumphantly.

Everyone who knew about her and Tara cheered, and the others clapped politely, not really sure they wanted to know.

Tara blushed as Willow put the garter on her leg before pulling her up and kissing her lightly but clearly with love.

"And that catch was all me, no magic involved." She whispered in the blonde's ear before letting her go.

More cheers made both women turn bright red and Willow giggled.

"Okay, okay, enough already. Are you ready to go?" she asked Anya and Xander. They had rented a limo to take them to a seaside hotel in the next town for their honeymoon. They hadn't had the money to go far, but Buffy had insisted that they get out of Sunnydale, just in case.