A WEDDING A WEDDING WE'RE GOING TO HAVE A WEDDING

Of the many details argued over and discussed and sorted out, Vastra's dress was the easiest. They sent for George almost immediately. And almost immediately an argument happened. It was traditional for it to be white, Jenny said. Vastra argued that white and green never went well together. George agreed. It was George's agreement that silenced Jenny. Her mind went to the last time Vastra would've worn white. A grubby, stained white. She acquiesced to a lovely deep purple colour that would offset the scales of her beloved. The second argument came swift on the heels of the first. It was traditional to wear a veil. Jenny thought Vastra would not wish to wear a veil, and certainly did not want her to. Vastra was intrigued by the tradition and reconciled Jenny to the idea by reminding her that she would be removing the veil completely when she reached the altar. The discussion of what Jenny would wear was easy. George immediately started measuring her for a full-on wedding suit. And Jenny did not object, particularly when he gave her several drawings to muse on vis a vis colour.

She was lying in bed, flipping through them when Vastra snuggled up to her, half asleep.

"Awwh." She sighed, staring at a lovely cream suit. Even if she wasn't the bride she could still be in white. He'd incorporated her blue waistcoat too. To fit the old rhyme. She turned to show the picture to Vastra and found an affronted Silurian glowering at her.

"I thought you were going 'awwh' over me…"

"Awwh." Jenny tenderly skritched Vastra's headcrest. "You're adorable when you pout."

Vastra stared at her in disbelief. "I am a Silurian warrior…"

"Mmhmm." Jenny went back to perusing the picture, taking in all the details. "An adorable one. Don't you think I'd look good in this?"

Vastra was distracted from being put out by the image of Jenny dressed in the suit. George, she had to grant him, had an incredible talent.

George was also able to track down a ring maker. Jenny talked Vastra out of highly extravagant jewelled rings. She wanted to be able to wear hers daily. A simple gold band such as a maid might wear, to avoid arousing any suspicion. Vastra agreed immediately and ordered two.

"You can 'ave a fancy one if you want, love!" Jenny protested but Vastra insisted on matching ones and so their wedding bands were both plain.

Family was another issue. Neither Jenny nor Vastra had any that could attend. Jess had disappeared off again with Mrs Blackett and presumably Megan too, but without a word as to when she'd be back. Jenny brooded on this fact but there was nothing to be done. She wasn't about to set the Irregulars after them. The Irregulars was another. Could they be tidied up enough to attend a church? This swiftly led on to where the hell they were going to find a church that would marry them. True, they could lie, but Jenny wanted their marriage, more than anything in the world, to be purely truthful. Just them. As they were. With Vastra as a Silurian and both of them…how had Vastra put it to Strax? having an unconventional preference in companionship, it seemed but wishful thinking. No amount of pulling in favours was going to get around that.

Drawing up a guest list was equally difficult. But they left invitations in statistically likely places around London, to each of the Doctors, dating back to the earliest regeneration Vastra knew, and of course their companions.

They got a reply almost immediately, in the form of a visit from the Doctor and Martha. The Doctor berated them on time paradoxes caused by having so many doctors all in one place.

"Well unless we can find somewhere to marry and someone who'll marry us it don't matter anyway." Jenny scowled at him; her arms folded. It had become the major block to all their plans.

"Why don't you get married in the TARDIS? There's probably a church room or something in there." Martha smacked the Doctor on the arm as he started to protest. "Plus. The TARDIS is a time ship right? That makes him the captain. And a captain of a ship can marry people. There you go. Two problems solved in one."

"You can't have that many doctors in one TARDIS it'd…it'd…" words failed the Doctor on trying to explain what would happen.

"For one day though Doctor. For your best friends!" Martha threw an arm around Jenny's shoulders and hugged the other young woman to her side.

The Doctor stared at Martha's expectant expression and Jenny's suddenly hopeful one and then flicked his eyes and saw Vastra's. He folded like a deck chair. "Fine. Fine! But any tears in the fabric of reality are on you." He wagged a finger between the three of them.

Once the Doctor had left, after a cup of tea and a catch up with Martha, they returned once more to the gnarly problem of a guest list, agreeing that their guests could not consist of all the Doctors and their companions and the Irregulars. Jenny's lips twitched as she suggest that they invite anyone and everyone who was big in London and see who turned up. Thusly intricately decorated invitations were sent out to big name authors, actors, politicians. Jenny was all for sending one to the Queen, but Vastra reminded her that the Queen was not best pleased with the Doctor at the best of times. Seeing six or seven of them in one place might not amuse her at all.

"Be a nice big place for the reception though. Buckingham Palace." Jenny laughed. And then stopped. And then grinned. Vastra recognised that grin. She was used to being the one grinning it so she found it delicious to observe it on Jenny's lips.

"Well. You can ask. Does she not…owe us a favour? Or was that the Prime Minister. It's so hard to keep track when you keep on saving all these important people." Vastra tutted.

Jenny shrugged. And sent a letter anyway.

The Prime Minister declined. Oscar Wilde said he wouldn't miss it for the world. Sir Arthur Conan Doyle declined but sent them a hamper. And several others declined but sent small gifts, varying in their degrees of usefulness from a lovely set of doilies to something even Jenny couldn't decipher the use of. She gave it to Strax to convert into a weapon of some kind.

Strax, for a brief moment, became prime candidate for walking Vastra down the aisle, as they realised the Doctor couldn't do it if he were conducting the ceremony. However, the problem was solved swiftly when Jenny remembered there would hopefully be several regenerations there. It was decided they would call upon their first Doctor, with the big ears and leather jacket.

Jenny had originally put Strax in charge of organising the reception to make up for his loss of walking Vastra down the aisle, until Vastra reminded Jenny of just where they were having the reception. Strax was once again distraught, until Jenny promised him that he could still do fireworks. They decided to ask Donna's Doctor whether he would like to, he agreed seeing as it wouldn't require him to acutally be there.

The Queen wrote back very frostily agreeing to spare them a room and a small area of the grounds so long as they never called upon her for anything ever again and didn't venture into her private chambers. Seeing as it was still a huge room and a vast area of ground, Jenny agreed immediately.

"Won't she be slightly put out at all the Doctors invading?" Vastra frowned, reading the letter.

"Well she only knows the skinny git in the suit, don't she? All the rest we'll just…I dunno. Pretend are aliens?" Jenny shrugged.

"They are aliens. That's the problem." Vastra pointed out.

They agreed that possibly inviting the Parkers was not the wisest, much as they had come to love them all. It might, in the words of Boggin, give him a bad turn.

The Wedding Day

No amount of preparation could ever have made Jenny ready for the day. She'd woken up alone, Vastra having decided to not test the rule for not seeing the bride before the ceremony. She had a bath and dressed, trying to breath normally before she went downstairs to the carriage.

Strax had volunteered to drive it as well as be Usher. He'd been spending time with Young Parker, getting along famously with him and seemed to have a knack for it. He'd decked it out in ribbons and streamers, fairly artistically, for Strax. She got in, the first time she'd been in the carriage alone. It rattled far too noisily on its way to pick up George. She'd asked him to be her Best Man and he'd been delighted, having previously been put out that Vastra hadn't asked him to walk her down the aisle.

Vastra watched from an upstairs window. The tradition hadn't said anything about the bride seeing the groom before the wedding after all. It truly was an inspired look by George. And now it was time for her gown. She'd kept the final design a secret from Jenny, mostly because she wished to see the little ape's face when she drew back the veil. She'd agreed with George that it would be off the shoulder, with a large V, although the veil would be long enough to cover everything. She wished it would be the last time she would ever wear a veil. Perhaps, in future, she'd…merely wear a veil. No perception filter. Let people see whatever they wanted to see, without tricking them. She'd grown tired of it herself. She made sure the veil covered everything and then made her way downstairs to wait for the return of Strax.

The Doctor had parked the TARDIS as near to Buckingham Palace as he thought he could get away with, the Queen having announced she would be travelling to Edinburgh. Hopefully, the rest of the Doctors would park theirs further away and travel. Otherwise St James Park was going to get crowded. And Jenny didn't really want Torchwood gate-crashing the wedding. Even if Commander Wilton did seem a little more reasonable than Croup and Vandemar. She knocked on the door and was immediately dragged inside by Martha. The size of the console room still awed her and nearly made George collapse. But they were given little time for contemplation as Martha dragged Jenny down a side corridor.

"Wait until you see this!" Martha squealed excitedly.

And indeed, when Jenny saw a cathedral inside a room, her jaw dropped. It was…epic. That was the only word for it. Vast. The vaulted ceiling seemed as high as the sky, beautifully decorated with drawings of women. Women getting married she noted. Also a few kissing. She grinned. She liked these paintings much better than the usual cathedral rooves. Martha tugged at her sleeve, pulling her up the aisle, a blaze of colour. She wondered at the meaning of the rainbow motif. She glanced back to see how George was coping. He'd collapsed into the nearest pew and was lying back to see as much of the ceiling as he could.

She walked the rest of the way after Martha to where the Doctor was standing. He hadn't bothered getting dressed up but then she wasn't sure how comfortable she would've been with a traditional vicar. Everything else seemed perfect and set up for them. The hair gel, pin stripe suit and what she could only assume were some kind of plimsoll would suit better than a dog collar. She tried desperately to remember her vows. She'd spent ages trying to write them. How could you explain everything in one short speech? She gulped and stood, facing the altar. Martha had darted behind it and was putting a small silver disc in some kind of machine. The Doctor sonicked it quickly.

"Sound surround." He winked at her as Martha shot off again to help Strax be usher.

She nodded, baffled, and concentrated on keeping her cool as the rest of the church began to fill up. She spotted urchins, decked out in their best. Technically other people's best. George had provided. Apparently, there were lots of child acts in various circuses. She spotted a Doctor she didn't know but was clearly a Doctor by dress sense alone judging by the boater and question mark covered pullover. He was accompanied by a woman wearing the most amazing coat Jenny had ever seen. She had no idea what the symbols covering it meant, apart from the flush of cards on the sleeve. She saw Rose, staring around her quizzically. Clearly, she'd come with the Doctor with the leather jacket. The Doctor at the altar was looking at her strangely. Donna wandered in too, alone. But of course, it was bad enough with several different doctors let alone two of the same kind. She couldn't miss the excitable Doctor bouncing in with…yep there was River, Amy and Rory. She wondered whether this was before or after Demon's Run. Would they forget everything afterwards? She'd halted the Doctor when he'd tried to explain. There was Oscar Wilde, looking absolutely delighted as he stared around. Jenny could hardly believe he'd come. And Elizabeth Garrett Anderson looking faintly stunned. And there were a few more famous faces than she remembered inviting. She glanced at the Doctor who merely winked at her. She shook her head, wondering who the blonde woman in a long coat but short trousers was. She was accompanied by a young woman, a young man and an older gentleman. She didn't look very famous. She dressed like a Doctor. Jenny frowned and stare at the Doctor, raising her eyebrows. He shrugged and went back to spinning his sonic screwdriver in the air as Jack Harkness walked in followed by a craggy looking gentleman with a young black woman on his arm, both in very fine, very rich Victorian clothes. They both seemed to be sharing a private joke as they took their seats in a pew near the front. Strax and Martha came in after them so that was clearly the last of the guests. She turned and faced the front, wishing she'd worn a dress now, so she'd have something to wring in her hands. She settled for twirling her top hat until George snatched it out of her hands with a hissed "calm down!"

The traditional wedding march played as if from a magnificent organ, seemingly from every corner of the room, filling the space with it. She could feel herself shaking. The Doctor caught her eye and gestured for her to turn around. She spun on the spot, catching her balance but not her breath, which was stolen at the sight of Vastra. She'd forgotten about bouquets. Wondered who Vastra had got to make hers. Maybe the same one, she grinned wryly, who'd done the flower arrangement Vastra had given to her. The…other Doctor (that was going to get confusing before the day was through) waved at her, grinning and made a gesture at his chest. Breathing! Yes. Important that. Didn't want to faint. Vastra would never let her hear the end of it. She swallowed hard as Vastra stepped up beside her, reaching out with trembling hands to lift the veil up. She pulled it off entirely, never wanting to see a damn one again in her life. Because Vastra really was so beautiful. As beautiful as she'd seemed to a half dead brat of a street urchin the first time Jenny had ever seen her.

"Right! Sit down you lot!"

Jenny was vaguely aware, of movement, of some kind of speech. But she was too busy staring in Vastra's eyes. The Silurian was amused about something, reaching out and taking both her hands.

"My love?" she whispered.

"Yeah?"

"Your part." Vastra squeezed her hands gently. The Silurian was trying to ground her. It was her turn! She'd forgotten her speech. And everyone was watching her. She could suddenly feel their eyes.

"Hmm." Vastra hummed, twining their fingers together. "My first introduction to humanity was not the kindest one. Nor were the many, many years I spent alone on this earth. Thus, I was not kind back. Even with such a figure as the Doctor to inspire me. He kept me believing, however small that belief was, that there was good in humanity. At times I truly believed I would not live to see it. In that time, I met you. I have often pondered how you have managed to transform me, from a bitter lonely Silurian, lost and alone in this world, to the one standing here today. I have come to the conclusion, my dear, it was with kindness. You may not think it, but you showed me all the best traits of humanity. Wonder, in your eyes, when you looked at me, from the very first moment. Bravery, in the way you fought to free me. Loyalty, in the way you stayed with me. And Kindness, in the way you have cared for me. And now, I stand here, surrounded by…humans," she nodded her head. The Doctor coughed. "And timelords." Vastra glowered at him. "Many of whom are my friends, all of whom clearly share these traits. And in front of these people, I wish to open up a bond with you, to share for the rest of the time we exist, in whatever form we do. Unbreakable by even death. Do you wish this in return?"

Jenny wasn't sure she could speak after such a speech. She did the only thing she could think of. She stood on tiptoe and pressed her forehead against Vastra's, falling into the Silurian's arms at the wave of love that pulsed into her mind. Vastra merely hugged her tightly, as she managed to say, "I do."

Another cough from the Doctor reminded them that Jenny still had her vows to say. She wiped tears from her eyes, swallowed hard and tried to think of all the beautiful things she was going to say.

"When…" her voice was shaking. "When we first met, it was at the lowest point of my life. Humanity hadn't bein' exactly kind to me either. When we met the second, I hadn't expected it. When we met the third time, I thought, maybe there was a kind of fate. Like, we were meant to have met. And I'm glad we did. You saved me in a lot of ways. Gave me a home. Food." Jenny laughed at the recollection of all the pies. "You never made me stay, at first I wasn't even sure you really wanted me to. But I did. An' I'm glad I did. I dunno when I first realised that I loved you. Maybe when I realised you weren't just beautiful, but cute as well. When I first saw you smile, properly. When I made you that daft ol' hat and then you wore it every night since. I got so many memories. Good memories, fun memories. Some scary but they were good too. All our adventures. I want…I want to keep on havin' those memories. Sharin' 'em with you. Forever. Always." She felt calm now. So still. "Do you want to share forever with me? For always?"

Vastra's eyes looked like they were glowing, her smile was the best Jenny had ever seen. "I do."

The vaulted ceiling seemed to ring with cheers. Someone had bought some kind of horn from somewhere and was making a strange VUUUUU sound. The Doctor waited until the noise died down.

"Do you have the rings?"

Jenny was about to turn around to George, who was Best Man, was keeping hold of hers, when she caught the look of absolute horror on Vastra's face. She bit her lip and retrieved her ring from George who was holding it out to her ready. She noticed some brief elbowing going on between Rose and her Doctor in the front row. Something was slipped into Rose's hand and she gaily tripped up the steps to give Vastra the ring, with an apologetic grin.

Jenny held out her hand first, seeing as Vastra had said her vows first. She smiled at the way Vastra's hands were shaking almost as much as her own. But not as hugely as she smiled when she saw the gold band on her finger. With a deep breath she took Vastra's hand in her own, hoping that the measurements had been correct. It slid on with just enough ease. She gazed into Vastra's eyes as she brought Vastra's hands to her lips and kissed the spot where the ring now rested before stepping back.

"I now declare you…WIVES."

The cheering came back triple fold, as Vastra grabbed Jenny and dipped her to kiss her. When she was returned to verticality, Jenny grabbed Vastra's head in both hands and kissed her just as passionately back.

A third cough from the Doctor reminded them that they still had a ceremony to complete. Jenny held out her arm to Vastra, grinning so much it was almost hurting her cheeks. Vastra took it, head held high and they walked back down the aisle, accompanied by raucous celebration and the traditional music in an absolute blizzard of confetti.