Disclaimer: I do not own the characters from Dr. Quinn Medicine Woman. The rights to those characters and to the show belong to the creators of the show, to CBS, The Sullivan Company and to A&E.

A Sense of Belonging

Chapter Sixteen

Sully left Michaela's mother and sisters shortly after three. Michaela was working until seven and so they'd set the time to meet with Pastor Johnson for eight. That meant Sully had just enough time to drive out to Sunrise Ranch where Cloud Dancing and Snowbird had taken up residence in the late nineties. The ranch was in essence a continuation of the spirit of Drop City. It was nestled in the foothills of the Rocky Mountains, about an hour and a half outside of Colorado Springs. The place was now a retreat and conference center, offering spiritual attunement sessions as well as a get away from the busyness of the world. All the food was grown right on the land, organically – the way nature intended. For Sully, going to Sunrise was stepping back into the other life he'd known.

He couldn't help but smile at the entrance sign, the words underneath the name read "The fulfillment of divine character calls for the revelation of the finest qualities of spiritual perception, honesty, courage, discipline, flexibility and love." To him it sounded as if the words came right from Cloud Dancing's mouth, though he knew it was simply the motto of the whole community. Sully loved it at the Ranch, even spending close to six months holed up here after Abigail and Hannah died. Upon his arrival, it didn't take him long to find Snowbird who greeted him with open arms.

"You look so happy," she said patting one of his cheeks.

"I am. I have something to tell you… you and Cloud Dancing. Where is he?" Sully looked around as if his brother might appear at any moment.

"Out in the orchard but he should be in soon." She smiled at him mysteriously as she spoke as if she already knew his secret. "Come and we will wait for him in the serenity garden." Sully nodded and followed, glad for the chance to be outside in the natural beauty of this place.

They settled on a bench on the east side of the garden so that Sully had the best view of the mountains. "How is Michaela?" Snowbird asked as they sat down.

"She's good," he replied itching to tell her more. "She's why I'm here actually."

A wide grin spread across Snowbird's face. "You will be a father again."

Sully started to point out that they weren't married yet but than quickly remembered who he was speaking to. Cloud Dancing and Snowbird weren't legally married either, just as his parents weren't. The speech he gave to Elizabeth about not needing a piece of paper to prove his commitment was second nature to him. He had heard it and lived it all his life. Each of the two couples considered themselves married but their anti-establishment outlook on life resented a government who governed marriage like they did everything else. "No," Sully simply relied with a shake of his head. "Not yet anyway."

"Then you will be married?"

"Why do I even bother coming out here?" Sully teased. "Cloud Dancing sees everything before I can tell him."

"So my vision was correct," a soft voice from behind them spoke. Sully smiled and stood, nodding his head. "It is good to see you my brother."

"And you," Sully said as they embraced.

"It will be soon?" His question was direct and he looked as though he already knew the answer.

"This Saturday. I came to invite you. I don't want to get married again without your presence." They hadn't been there for the wedding to Abigail, partially because they were upset at the choices he was making – taking a job in a store that exploited labor as they saw it.

Snowbird spoke up. "Of course we will be there."

"Thank you," Sully said wrapping an arm around her shoulder and then looking back at Cloud Dancing. "We're meeting with the pastor tonight but I'd like for you to have a part in the ceremony. If you would?"

Cloud Dancing smiled. "I will if you would like though I see your commitment in your eyes. My words will not make her heart yours anymore than it already is."

Snowbird gravitated towards her husband, wrapping one arm around his waist and looking up at him knowingly. "You will tell him?"

Sully looked from one to the other, wondering what they were talking about as both of their faces took on a more serious expression. Cloud Dancing turned to face Sully. "In my vision, I saw great happiness that is why I guessed that Michaela and you would be celebrating soon but that wasn't all I saw." Sully raised his eyes and moved his hand impatiently to indicate Cloud Dancing should continue. "Something still stands between you and I fear it will cause problems."

For a moment Sully tensed knowing how accurate Cloud Dancing's visions usually were. His mind searched for the thing that still stood between them but he could not think of anything. With a furrowed brow, he turned in the opposite direction and strolled a short distance away. Snowbird started to go after him but Cloud Dancing stopped her. "Let him be for a moment," he whispered.

Yet at that instant Sully turned around, a grin on his face. "It was her mother. You saw her mother in your dream. She was upset about.. well about everything really but we've come to an understanding now."

With that everyone's tension dissolved. The vision was figured out and the matter put out of each of their minds as Sully enjoyed the remaining time with his family before he would head back to Colorado Springs. Only later that night, would Sully discover that he'd been wrong.

When Michaela pulled up outside of the church, Sully was waiting in his truck. Rushing to her car door, he opened it before she could and immediately pulled her into his embrace. "How was your afternoon?" he whispered, closing the car door with his foot and pushing her back against it.

"Long, I'm afraid." She yawned as she spoke, her head lilting to the left slightly. "But I'm glad to be here now." Sully kissed her softly, his tongue teasing her lips to open. Michaela giggled into his open mouth and moved back. "Sully," she chastised, feeling that this was slightly inappropriate behavior in the shadow of the church steeple. "The pastor is waiting."

"Do we have to do this now?" he asked, his hands massaging her back.

"Yes." She leaned in to kiss him again, her eyes shining with love. "Ready?"

Sully rolled his eyes slightly but then grinned. "Sure," he replied dropping his arms from around her and reaching for her hand.

"What did you do this afternoon?" Michaela asked as they made their way into the building and back to the pastor's study.

"Rode out to see Cloud Dancing and Snowbird." He gave her hand a light squeeze as he spoke, receiving a bright smile in return.

"Can they come on Saturday?" Michaela looked at him expectantly as she asked, knowing how important it was to him that they be there.

"They can and I'd like to ask Pastor Johnson if Cloud Dancing could offer a blessing for us during the ceremony."

Michaela's face fell a little imagining her mother's comment on such a thing but she quickly recovered. "That would be nice," she replied as she gave a light tap to the door now before them.

Pastor Johnson opened the heavy wooden door with a warm expression on his face. "Michaela and Sully," he greeted them. "I must say it was a nice surprise when Michaela called me this morning." He stepped back to let them in. "Here sit, sit." He pointed them toward the couch while he took a seat just opposite of them in a chair. "I'm glad you could both make it this evening. I like to meet with my couples before their big day just to talk about marriage and expectations or problems that might occur."

"Problems? We don't anticipate any problems," Michaela quickly answered giving a little shake of her head.

"No one ever does. But still. Marriage is a big adjustment. In many ways, the first year is the hardest." Sully and Michaela shared another look, each wondering what they were in store for. Pastor Johnson reached over to his desk and picked up his notepad. "I like to start by having the couple tell me what they admire in each other. What brought you two together?" He looked between the two of them, his eyes finally settling on Sully. "Why don't you go first Sully? What made you first fall in love with Michaela?"

Michaela could feel Sully fidgeting and though the question was innocent enough, he hesitated. Growing a little nervous, she reached over and took his hand in hers intertwining their fingers. Sully was looking at the floor, his mind trying to decide whether to be truthful or not. He wasn't uncomfortable answering the question, only in admitting when he first realized that he loved her. As he spoke, his voice was quiet. "At my daughter's funeral. There were a handful of people standing in the rain, around her tiny casket and I looked up to see Michaela standing there, tears running down her cheeks. All I could think about was wiping her tears away…well and the day that she hugged me in the hospital after Hannah had died. It was like I knew we could comfort each other in a way no one else could."

Softly stroking the back of his hand, Michaela felt her cheeks warm. "You never told me that before," she whispered turning her head to the side so she could see him better.

Sully shrugged. "I felt guilty for even thinking about ya like that. Abigail had only died two weeks before." He softly chuckled. "Course then ya fell in the mud."

The color on Michaela's cheeks only deepened. "Sully took me back to his house to get cleaned up because it was so close. We'd spent every day together since Hannah was born and I felt so comfortable with him. Sitting on his couch in an old pair of his sweatpants and an oversized tee shirt while he insisted on washing my dress, I remember thinking that I shouldn't be there but I couldn't seem to make myself go."

"So you've been seeing each other for quite a while then?"

"No," Michaela answered as Sully spoke up at the same time. "Yes." They both laughed as Michaela began to clarify. "Well I think we each knew that we liked the other but we hadn't spoken about it."

Sully nodded in agreement. "We were just sort of always together, pretending like we weren't a couple."

Pastor Johnson smiled and nodded. "So when did it become clear that you were a couple?"

"It was my birthday," Michaela said shyly. "Sully kissed me."

Tune in for part 2 of this conversation tomorrow (or possibly later tonight)