BEN 10 DOES NOT BELONG TO ME. JUSTICE LEAGUE UNLIMITED DOES NOT BELONG TO ME. I'LL JUST HAVE TO SETTLE FOR MY ARMY OF EVIL, WHICH IS SUCH A BAD CONSOLATION PRIZE.

Happy New Year everyone! As a present to you all, I give you the moment you've been waiting for since… forever, I guess. The marriage. *Takes deep breath* Okay, I just want to thank everyone who's stood by this story up until now, and I really appreciate everything you've said, both compliment and criticism, and I hope to share much more with you in the coming year!

Ben 10: Unlimited

Chapter 28

Wedding Bells

San Francisco

When Ben Tennyson woke up, he had a mild panic-attack when he didn't feel Kara next to him. Of course, then he remembered that the night before, she'd gone out with a few of her fellow female Leaguers for a bachelorette party, and would be staying over at Barbara's until the wedding…

Which was today.

Ben glanced at his clock, then jumped out of bed; he was running late! He quickly showered and ate breakfast, then cleaned himself up. After a moment of hesitation, he shaved his beard and moustache, too; it wasn't very long, but Kara had been adamant about him being clean-shaven for their wedding.

"You can grow it back afterwards," she had said, "but our wedding videos will not show me getting married to a lumberjack."

It wasn't that bad, Ben had thought afterwards.

Once he was presentable and dressed in his tuxedo, he contacted the Watchtower.

"Mister Terrific, I'm ready to go."

"Understood, Ben," the new League coordinator replied, "teleporting you in."

As Ben felt his molecules being moved around, he sang under his breath, "Here comes the groom…"

…

Smallville

"You were almost late," Bruce Wayne remarked, as Ben appeared in the back room of the church.

"Had trouble sleeping," Ben admitted, "and when I did finally get to sleep, I couldn't wake up."

"I had the same problem right before my wedding," Oliver Queen said, "and I don't blame you; how're you feeling?"

"Ask me again when I'm on the altar," Ben replied, "because, right now, I'm only a little nervous."

"That's great," Ollie said, "That means that you won't be a nervous wreck until we actually start."

"Don't tease him, Ollie," Clark said as he entered the room, "his nerves are bad enough as it is."

"How would you know?" Ollie challenged playfully, "You haven't been married before; speaking of, when are you going to propose to Lois?" He whispered to Ben, "Dinah told me that Diana and Lois have been hinting, so Supes and Bats may seek revenge later."

"I'll stay on my toes," Ben promised, though a wide grin remained on his face.

"By the way," Clark said to Ben, after shooting Ollie a glare, "everyone is here, from both this universe and your own."

Ben quickly poked his head out of the room; the inside of the church was packed, filled with every Leaguer, as well as Verdona, the Plumbers, the Ultimen, Alfred, Eunice and Azmuth. There were a few other heroes that had affiliation with the League, but weren't actually members; Tim Drake, Robin, as well as Speedy, Roy Harper and Green Arrow's ex-sidekick. Helena Bertinelli, AKA Huntress, was also there, sitting next to Question, who had outright refused to change out of his normal outfit, so he still looked like he didn't have a face.

Though he had no way to give him an invitation, Ben knew that Professor Paradox would show, and he found the time-walker sitting next to Azmuth, who himself was sitting on Eunice's shoulders so that he could see.

"Full house," Ben remarked as nonchalantly as he could, "I hope the Father McCormick is okay with aliens and metahumans."

Ben already knew the answer, of course; Father McCormick, the priest presiding over the wedding, was one of a handful of people in Smallville who knew that Clark was Superman, and was deemed trustworthy enough to know the identities of the League, for the purpose of events like this one. He had presided over Ollie and Dinah's wedding, making this his second superhero wedding. He'd offered to have his memory of their identities erased by J'onn afterwards, if it made them feel better; Bruce Wayne was the only one to take him up on that offer, though he also spoke for Barbara, Dick, Tim and Alfred.

"Hey guys," Dinah said as she came into the room, before giving Ben a quick hug, "Congratulations, Ben; anyway, Kara is almost ready, and we're going to need this room soon. Get out there!"

"Right, got it," Ben said, though as he, his Best Man and groomsmen began to walk out the door, he asked himself quietly, "I wonder if Kara is as nervous as I'm getting?"

…

"I can't do this!" Kara said as she paced her dressing room, while Barbara and Diana watched, both amused and frustrated. Kara had been freaking out for the last twenty minutes, and it didn't look like she was going to stop anytime soon.

"Kara!" Barbara snapped, finally fed up, "Stop and look at us!"

Kara jumped, then turned to look at the Maid of Honor.

"You can do this," Barbara said calmly, yet forcefully, "and you will do this; you have been ready for this for a long time, so pull yourself together!"

Kara took a deep, shuddering breath, then did it again. "Okay, I'm calm."

"No, you're not," Diana said, "you're still shaking."

Kara looked down at her hands, which were indeed shaking; through sheer force of will, she stopped the trembling, then gave an unconvincing smile.

"See? Now I'm calm." Then Dinah came in, and Kara jumped ten feet into the air and stayed there.

"Geez, she's wound up as tightly as Question," Dinah remarked, "What's the problem?"

"Pre-wedding jitters," Barbara explained, "Care to give some advice, seeing as how you're the only one here who's been married?"

"Sure," Dinah said, "but Kara needs to come down, first."

Kara lowered herself back down to the ground, then nervously straightened out her wedding dress.

"Okay, listen to me, Kara," Dinah said, placing her hands on the younger woman's shoulders and looking her in the eye, "I know exactly what's running through your mind; you're asking yourself if this is the right choice for you, or if Ben is willing to go through with this. Let me tell you now: Ben has the same worries going through his head, too… and that is completely normal."

"Is that supposed to be helping?" Barbara whispered to Diana.

"Well, it's not making me feel any better," Diana whispered back, "and I'm not even getting married today!"

"Kara, it's natural for couples to feel doubts about marriage," Dinah continued, "I felt the same thing when I married Ollie."

"Really?" Kara asked.

"Yes; I was worried that we were moving too fast, that we were making a fling into something more. I felt that way all the way until Ollie slid this ring onto my finger." Dinah held up her diamond ring for emphasis. "And you know what? I haven't had those doubts since, because my heart tells me every day that I made the right choice; what does your heart tell you, behind the fear?"

Kara took another deep breath, then closed her eyes; she placed her hand over her necklace and bowed her head. After a moment, she straightened up and looked Dinah in the eyes, her own now filled with resolve.

"I want this; I've never been more sure of anything in my life."

"All right then," Barbara said, happy that her friend wasn't freaking out anymore, "Let's get ready; it's almost time!"

Then Kara began to panic again. "Oh my god, oh my god, I can't do this…"

Barbara pinched the bridge of her nose, as Dinah and Diana pushed the Kryptonian bride-to-be out of the room.

Okay, maybe she isn't done freaking out.

…

"Hey, Ollie?" Ben whispered as he, Clark, Bruce and Ollie took their positions on the altar, "Remember when I said I'd get back to you on the nerves thing when I got here?"

"Yeah?" Ollie asked.

"Well, now I feel like I'd rather fight Brainiac and Vilgax together."

"Totally normal," Ollie assured him, "so don't worry; you'll be fine."

Ben nodded, though the other three men noticed he was starting to shake; Clark put a hand on his shoulder.

"Ben, relax; this is a good day for you, remember? You can do this."

Clark and Ollie gave Bruce a pointed look that demanded that he say something supportive; Bruce sighed, then leaned over to Ben.

"Ben, you've fought psychopathic criminals, supervillains, giant monsters and alien invaders; you can handle getting married."

For most, that comment would mean next to nothing; from Bruce Wayne, saying that someone could do something was like him saying that he trusted someone, and that was something that rarely occurred. Ben found himself calming down.

"Thanks, Bruce."

The billionaire only nodded and returned to his original position.

Feeling more certain of himself, Ben scanned the audience inside the church, most of whom were chatting amongst themselves; some of them felt his eyes on them and waved, but the biggest reaction came from Verdona, who was sitting next to J'onn in her Anodite form. When she made eye contact with him, she smiled, then gently nudged J'onn and whispered something to him. Then Ben felt J'onn's mind brushing up against his.

Ben, I'm going to link your mind to your grandmother's, J'onn thought, She wanted to say something.

Hello, Ben! Verdona's voice said loudly into Ben's head, I am so happy for you! Oh, if Max could see this, he'd be so proud, too!

Thanks, Grandma, Ben thought back, that means a lot.

Before they could continue their thought-conversation, the music began to play, and the background noise died down. First, the Maid of Honor and bridesmaids came down the aisle, placing themselves across from their male counterparts; they wore sleeveless, light-blue dresses that were neither too simple nor too elegant.

Several people had to hold back laughter as the ring-bearer made his way towards the others; Ship didn't look very happy with a pillow with two rings on his back and a bow tie around his neck. In the little alien's mind, the only thing that made this bearable was that Kara had told him that he looked adorable. Still, he gave Ben, who was struggling not to laugh, a dirty look as he crawled next to Clark.

Then came Kara.

No one could deny that Kara was beautiful but, at that moment, as she was led down the aisle by Jonathan Kent, she looked positively angelic; her wedding dress was amazing, pure white with a pattern woven onto the chest that was a flowing version of the crest of the House of El, yet it blended seamlessly with the entire dress. When she saw Ben, her eyes lit up in a way that Ben had never seen before. The only sign of her previous nervousness was the way she gripped the bouquet of roses in her hands, the stems of which were a hair away from getting pulped.

Ben, you might want to close your jaw, Verdona thought, her mind still linked to her grandson's.

Ben quickly shut his mouth; now, it was Ship's turn to try and hold in laughter. After he brought his adopted daughter to the altar, Jonathan stepped back to sit with his wife, who handed him a tissue for his watering eyes.

As Kara stood across from Ben, they looked into each other's eyes; in them, they saw how much the other loved them. Though they didn't need the reassurance, it was still enough to calm their nerves.

As the two had been staring at each other, they failed to notice that Father McCormick had been conducting the ceremony, until he had reached the most memorable part of any wedding.

"Do you, Kara Zor-El Kent, take this man to be your lawfully wedded husband, in sickness and in health, for richer or poorer, as long as you both shall live?"

Kara didn't break eye-contact with Ben. "I do."

"And do you, Benjamin Kirby Tennyson, take this woman to be your lawfully wedded wife, in sickness and in health, for richer or poorer, as long as you both shall live?"

Ben smiled at Kara. "I do."

Ship moved forward and jumped, hanging in the air long enough for Ben to snatch the rings off of the pillow, which were then exchanged.

"Then, by the power vested in me by the State of Kansas and by God, I now pronounce you man and wife! You may kiss the bride!"

The newlyweds didn't need any more prompting, and were soon engaged in a deep kiss, as the guests stood up to cheer. Barbara was practically bouncing up and down in happiness, while Verdona had violet streams of Mana pouring down her face, gratefully accepting a handkerchief produced by J'onn. Clark had moved to stand by Lois, who put an arm through his and smiled up at him. Bruce allowed himself a genuine smile as he stood by Diana, who gently placed her hands in his. Ollie felt a slight pressure on his shoulder and found Dinah leaning her head there; he put an arm around her and held her close.

Once Ben and Kara broke off the kiss, they turned to the still-cheering crowd; Ben waved one arm theatrically, while his other remained around his wife's shoulders.

"And now, on to the party!"

Recognizing her cue, Verdona snapped her fingers, and everyone inside the church vanished in a flash of violet light.

…

Wayne Manor

In order to allow the wedding guests a place to have the reception without worrying about someone outside their respective groups seeing them, Bruce Wayne had graciously offered his mansion as a location, and Doctor Fate had enchanted the building to look like nothing was going on, from the outside, at least.

As everyone began to get settled in the ballroom, either starting to eat the food, or just talking, only a few people noticed that the man and woman of the hour were missing.

"Do you think they started the honeymoon early?" Wally offered, only to earn a smack upside the head by Beatriz, and a glare from everyone who heard him.

"Ladies and gentlemen," Alfred's voice came out of the loudspeakers placed around the room, "It is my great honor and privilege to introduce, for the first time anywhere, Ben and Kara Tennyson! Would the newlyweds come on out?"

Everyone cheered again, as Ben and Kara came out of a hallway, waving at their friends and family. Alfred spoke again over the loudspeakers.

"Before the bride and groom have their first dance, I believe that there is one other wedding tradition to uphold; would the bouquet and garter be readied, please?"

All of the unmarried women there rushed forward, ready to catch the bouquet being readied by Kara.

"Okay, ladies, some ground rules first," she called out, "No shoving, kicking, or anything like that; second, no powers. I don't want to see someone cheat by flying up and catching this thing midair."

The women nodded, then readied themselves; Kara turned around, then threw the bouquet over and behind her. The flowers sailed up, and dozens of hands reached out to catch it; there was a brief cry of dismay from most, but another of triumph from one.

"I got it!" Shifter yelled out, dancing in place and holding the flowers close.

As the women moved back, several of whom were grumbling under their breath, the men moved forward to catch the garter. Kara lifted her dress, allowing Ben to reach up and remove the garment from her leg; this would normally be cause for wolf-whistles from the men in most weddings, but most were too afraid of what Kara might do to them if they did. So instead, they settled for smiling knowingly.

Ben held the garter in his hand, then threw it like a Frisbee, sailing over most, until it landed in the hands of one young man in the back of the crowd. Cooper looked at the garter in his hands, then at Shifter, who was blushing.

"Very well, then," Alfred announced; he had remained where he was, deciding he was too old to be catching garters, "Would the bride and groom come onto the dance floor?"

Cheers erupted once more, as Ben took Kara's hand in his and led her out as the music began to play. Ben had only danced at two weddings before; once when he was ten, and then at Ollie and Dinah's wedding, and neither time had he been very good. However, ever since he'd proposed, he had been practicing, determined not to screw up, for Kara's sake; today, all of his practice paid off.

The first dance was slow, allowing the two to get a measure of the other; soon, they were gliding across the dance floor, moving as if they'd been dancing together all their lives. Had anyone else been dancing, they would have felt immense jealousy; as it was, it suddenly made everyone else nervous to start.

Once the first dance was over, everyone who had a dance partner was out with them; Clark was with Lois, Bruce with Diana, Ollie with Dinah, Wally with Beatriz, Barbara with Dick, Cooper with Shifter, J'onn with Verdona and so many more.

After the second dance, Ben let Jonathan dance with his adopted daughter for the third, while he sat down next to his grandmother.

"So," Verdona said, "how does it feel, being a married man?"

Ben leaned back in his chair and took a breath before answering. "It feels right; like this is where I was supposed to be."

It was at that moment that Jonathan and Kara moved past them while dancing; Ben got a good look at his wife as she mouthed the words "I feel the same way", then moved away. Verdona gave Ben a look.

"Sometimes I forget that she has super-hearing," she commented.

"Try not to do that," Ben warned, "you might ruin a surprise for her or something."

Verdona laughed, but then her face grew more serious. "What happens now, Ben?"

"What do you mean?"

"Well, you've got a home, a career and now, you're married to the woman you love; any other life plans floating around in that head of yours?"

Ben tapped his chin in thought. "Nope, nothing going on in my head right now."

Verdona struggled not to laugh, as Ben realized what he'd just said.

"You know what I mean," Ben said in mock-irritation, in too good a mood to let his own blunder truly annoy him.

"I do," Verdona said, still amused, "but before Kara really does knock your head empty, you should probably get back out there."

Ben got up, just now realizing that the music was winding down for the next song; he made it to Kara only seconds before the next dance began.

"You ready to go again?" Ben asked, "We can always take a break, if you want."

"Ben, please," Kara told her husband, "I'm Kryptonian; it'll take a lot more than a dance to tire me out."

The music began again, another slow song that allowed most of the dancers to catch their breath. As they moved, Kara leaned her head on Ben's shoulder.

"So you're not worried about the future?"

"Hm?" Ben looked at Kara, who had her eyes closed.

"I heard what you said to your grandmother; you don't have any plans or worries?"

Ben kissed her on the cheek. "Right now, Kara, I'm just happy to be here with you; the future doesn't worry me right now. What about you, are you worried?"

Kara opened her eyes and looked like she was thinking about it. "Nah, we're superheroes; what's the worst that could happen, a supervillain attacks us?"

"Good point," Ben said, "that kind of thing would probably happen even if we weren't married."

"Right," Kara agreed, "that's already par for the course."

"Now then," Ben wrapped his arms around Kara's waist, "no more talk about the future; today, let's just enjoy the moment, okay?"

Kara smiled and kissed him, the two of them continuing to dance. "Okay."

…

Washington DC

General Eiling, formerly the head of the military division of Project Cadmus, chewed on a pencil as he glared at the report that was laid on his desk. The report in question was from an agent that had observed a wedding between two of the most powerful beings on the planet.

Supergirl and that shapeshifter from another universe.

The report actually said their real names, but Eiling, like so many others in Cadmus, had gone through extensive mental conditioning that prevented them from remembering certain facts about the Justice League, to prevent sensitive material from falling into the wrong hands, at least until they received a code word from either the head of Cadmus or from the President.

However, with Amanda Waller now doing who-knows-what, and the President in firm support of the League, Eiling was unlikely to receive said code word.

But it wasn't just his musings on Cadmus that infuriated him; he kept reading the report over and over again, and each time made it worse. He had seen the power possessed by the Kryptonians, and the shapeshifter was potentially even more dangerous, since it was unlikely that anyone had seen all of his transformations yet. But there was still a bigger threat.

If the two were powerful apart, what would happen if they ever had a child, or more than one? Eiling had run some numbers past some former Cadmus scientists, and they theorized that if the DNA of the shapeshifter's aliens successfully merged with that of a Kryptonian, the offspring had the potential to be more powerful than both parents.

Eiling found that unacceptable; he already hated the fact that the Justice League was easily powerful enough to take down America if they wanted. If someone with even more power came along…

He stood up and slammed his fist against his desk; he would never allow such a threat to emerge. He resolved that he would try one more time to get support from others, but if that failed…

General Eiling would stop the threat himself.

I'll be honest with you, I haven't gone to that many weddings in the past, so I can only hope that I did this justice (no pun intended). Still, Ben and Kara are married and happy, things are looking up, right?

WRONG!

Eiling is back, he's scared, and he kind of has a right to be; I mean, if someone as powerful as Supergirl had a child with someone with as much variety as Ben, who knows what could come about? Well, I do, but that's only because I'm the author.

Now, I'm going to be taking a bit of a break from this story, because I need to give "Ultimate Fairy" a bit more attention, but I'll try to get back on this in a few weeks, and then I'll begin work on the sequel.

I've had a great year as a writer on this site, and I hope to continue doing so for a good long while more; Happy New Year, and here's my first muffin quote of 2014!

Say what again, I dare you; I double-dare you, mother muffin!