How Long It's Been Chapter 11: We're Going to the Chapel and We're Gonn, a homestuck fanfic

A/N: Okay sorry for all the Supernatural/Doctor Who/Sherlock references but 1) blame my sister and 2) I AM SO EXCITED FOR THE FIFTIETH IT'S NOT EVEN FUNNY and 3) I watch episodes of one of those shows while writing.

Please someone prompt me! I know I've got this and my other fic but I really like drabbles and I really need a prompt for one. (If someone has a Johnkat one I will love you because I promised my moirail I would write him a Johnkat.)

Chapter 11: We're Going to the Chapel and We're Gonna Get Married

She woke up in a cold sweat, breathing hard and terrified of something, though she couldn't even remember what now that she was awake. She looked to her left, expecting to see Karkat there for her to wake and talk to and snuggle against until she fell asleep. But he was gone.

I don't need him, she thought. I don't.

Nightmares had never been a problem for her, but they attacked her more and more every night she slept alone. And every time she woke up, she looked for Karkat, and every time, she was alone.

Work seemed like drudgery, and so did everything else. She was filling out forms for going back to school (to get a degree in veterinary medicine) and that wasn't helping. What was wrong with her? Wasn't she supposed to be strong and self-sufficient and…okay, who the fuck cared. Who cared if she cried over a bad breakup? What did it matter if she was upset over this?

And she was upset. Nightmares disrupted her already unusual sleep cycle and left her with dark circles around her eyes. Without someone around to remind her, she stopped remembering dumb little things, like brushing her teeth and running errands. It wasn't helping that Equius was out of town visiting his brother in Texas or somewhere. Her friends were great, but there was only so much they could do to help her.

She didn't want to bite the bullet and call him, but love was starting to overwhelm pride, and it had only been seven days. (Eight nights.) It was then that she picked up the phone, took a deep breath, and called him.

The phone rang. And rang. And rang. "The customer you are trying to reach is currently unavailable."

"Dammit!' she shouted, throwing her phone at the wall.

She had her worst nightmare yet that night. She was sitting alone in a desert, but it was freezing cold. For whatever reason, she couldn't stand up, couldn't even move. Everyone she loved was slowly walking closer, surrounding her in an ever-tightening circle. But every time she tried to reach for one of them to help her up, they collapsed, dead, and another cut sliced through her gut. The last one was Karkat, right behind her. He was laughing at her, taunting her. She screamed and scrambled backwards, but he kept getting closer, and she knew that touching him would deal both of them their deathblow. But she couldn't help it when he reached out to touch her and she threw up one arm to defend herself and oh gog she was going to die—

She woke up again with a start. She reached for him, her fingers probing the cold space, and he still wasn't there. No one was there to hold her close and whisper comforting words until she could sleep again.

I need him.

She was worried about him, too. Because about once every week or two, he woke her up with a nightmare of some sort. And she'd face him and stroke his hair and tell him that she loved him and that he was safe and she was there for him until a small smile showed on his face and they both fell asleep.

If he didn't pick up, she'd leave a message. She needed him, and he needed her. She loved him.

Ring. Ring. Ring. "The customer you are trying to reach…"

"Karkat. Uh…it's me. Nepeta. I…" Don't cry, don't cry, don't cry. "Can we talk? Meet me at the café on Fifth and Seventh tomorrow at six. Please come." She hit the "end call" button and crossed her fingers. He'd come, right?

After work, she drove to the café, sat at one of the outside tables, and ordered a cup of tea. The tea came before Karkat did and she spent fifteen minutes clutching the cup of hot tea, not daring to take a sip and not able to let go.

At six o'clock precisely, he sat down across from her with a cup of cold coffee. "Uh…hi," he stammered.

"Hi," she half-whispered shyly. No words for a long time. She avoided eye contact, looking everywhere but him. She hadn't even thought of what she'd say if he showed up.

"I'm sorry," he blurted. "I'm really sorry. I don't know what got into me…I mean, I was way out of line. I mean, of course it was a cat named Riley and I know you'd never cheat. I'm just…so sorry…" He pressed his lips together and squinted his eyes shut, holding back tears.

"Me too," she said. "With calling you worthless and everything…you're not. You're not worthless and that was a horrible thing to say and if I could go back and live that day again I wouldn't say it. I take back all of it…please forgive me?"

A tear rolled down his face and he rubbed it off impatiently, but his hand was shaking visibly. "Of course," he said. "Of course. But…can you forgive me? I said some pretty horrible things, too."

"I love you," she said. "I'll always forgive you."

"I love you too." He paused. "Can I come back?" he asked, almost begging. "I mean…I love you and I can't sleep anymore and I just…I need you and I'm worried about you and I love you."

"Yes, of course," she answered tenderly. "Where…where have you been living?"

"Uh…my dad's," he confessed. "He wasn't happy with me, because he's all about not living together until marriage, but he's my dad."

"Well, we're getting married in a few months—wait—is that still happening? I mean, we haven't called it off or anything?"

"If you want it to."

"I do. Do you?"

"I do."

"So…uh…I'll help you move back in tonight, if you like."

"Yeah, I'd like that," he smiled. He caught her left hand, which was resting on the table, and kissed it with a goofy look on his face.

"At your service, Miss—" He cut himself off. "Is this your engagement ring?"

"I never took it off," she answered, half embarrassed. "I guess I never really thought we'd be apart for good."

He leaned over the table and kissed her lips that time.

"I'm coming home," he joked.

Me too, she thought. If home is where the heart is, my home is with you.

It was just a week or so that they were apart, but it felt like a year when they went to bed and it wasn't cold anymore.

And when a nightmare came, and she reached out to touch his arm, he was right there to take her in his arms and kiss her lips and soothe her pounding heart and fearful mind. When she woke up in the morning, he was there, saying, "Come on, dear, you'll be late." And when she came home, he had already cooked and set out a dinner far too nice for a random Thursday.

"I thought I'd make dinner," he said shyly. "Because of…"

She smiled. "Thanks. But really, don't worry about it. I just want to make up."

"I thought that's what we did," he said, confused. "I just still feel sorta bad about it."

"Don't," she said. "You're forgiven. I swear."

"And you are too. But that doesn't mean I can't be nice to my beautiful fiancée."

She giggled as he spun her around and as she spun back on her own, kissing him once, lightly. "Then let's eat."

Karkat always did more of the cooking, because he didn't set the food on fire and explode the Pyrex dish (that was just twice). But she did the general cleaning and (of course) took care of whatever animals she was fostering at the time. Usually cats, but she got a ferret once.

"Who the hell just has a pet ferret?" Karkat asked, staring at the cage she'd brought home.

"Beats me, but no one would take it. So I've got Fenny the ferret for the next three months."

He did not respond. "Uh…how do you take care of it?"

"Don't worry, I know what I'm doing."

"As long as you don't have to cook for it."

"Heeey," she protested jokingly, swatting at his arm. "I'll set everything up. You don't have to worry about a thing."

"Except the usual."

Eventually Fenny the ferret left and she was not assigned another animal. Considering the amount of time she was spending trying to find online classes to get a free degree, that was probably for the better.

Choosing a theme for the wedding was not hard. Two people who loved romcoms and cried at movies; what other theme was there besides romantic? Pinks and purple and fairy lights and flowers and fancy script on save-the-date notes sent now (six months in advance) and elaborate centerpieces would make for a gorgeous wedding and a gorgeous reception, she was certain. It was far too exciting to be healthy.

One day, after comparing the prices charged by seven different catering places, they collapsed on the couch and Karkat asked a strange question.

"You know, I never actually asked. What does your mom do for a living?"

"She writes and edits history books."

"Wow."

"It is so boring, I don't know how she does it."

"I'm actually kind of impressed."

"Why? She just…does her job. We never even used her books."

"History's cool, though."

"Eh. What about your dad? He's a public speaker guy, right?"

"Well, to make money, he wrote a fucking book. But he's sort of a lobbyist only less annoying, really. He was always downtown and shit, you know, public-figure type dude."

"That's really cool!"

"Eh."

"It's funny, isn't it? It's cool unless it's your parent's job."

"Basically. Except that my dad's job was actually kind of freaky because you know how sometimes people get really violent? He ended up in the hospital once or twice."

"Jeez, that must've been freaky!"

"Eh."

She almost laughed. "Eh?"

"Eh. I got used to it. I mean...between him and Kankri, I'm used to it. The number of hospital calls I've gotten between the two of them…"

"What about your mom? I know she died when you were little, but...do you remember her? Or...you know."

"Not really. I was four, so I guess I sorta remember her. She was...tall. Like, way taller than my dad. I don't know why Kankri and I both got the short end of the genetics. I dunno...I mean, I was a kid. I don't even remember grade school all that great, not to mention what happened when I was four."

"What about pictures?"

"We've got one hell of a lot of those. I don't know if my dad just hated throwing stuff out or some shit, cuz the amount of random crap in our house was just through the damn roof. And a lot of it was photos. I mean, seriously, he had a closet in the basement full of old pictures. 'Cept it was buried in the piles of sociology books, so I had to wade through all those to find anything. Well, there were the romcoms, but my dad hid those better than just about anything else, including chocolate right before Easter. Took me years to find them…"

"You read your dad's romcoms?"

He laughed awkwardly. "Guess it runs in the family."

She laughed properly, smiling at him affectionately. "You're the most adorable person I've ever met."

"Gee, thanks," he said half-sarcastically.

"What?"

"I'm adorable. Great."

"Would you rather be the big, strong, manly hero of one of those romcoms people don't appreciate?"

"Maybe."

"What does that make me?"

"The ridiculously attractive heroine who finds love with the hero in the end after they both fight long and hard to reach their goal of true love."

"You said that with a completely straight face; I'm impressed."

"You like those movies too."

"Well…" she said, shrugging like, "you got me there". "They are excellent pieces of filmwork. Anyways, we all know you're a sucker for Taylor Swift."

He blushed carmine and retaliated, "That was in middle school."

"Right."

"Okay, so maybe I kind of like some of her songs…"

"And?"

"Like you don't!"

"Well, I'm partial to other artists, but…"

"It's a love story, baby just say yes," he half-sung. Then he coughed and pressed his lips together against the rising blush. "Sorry...haven't sung much in a while."

"Hey, me neither. We were both young when I first saw you…"

"I close my eyes and the flashback starts, I'm standing there," he sang.

"On a balcony is summer air, ah, ah," she joined, spinning around as if in formalwear. Her romance wasn't a fairy tale, but it was plenty good enough for her. Their voices blended the way the music teacher from high school always told them voices should when singing together.

It wasn't a long song, and it was over too quickly. By the end of the song, they were right next to each other, her head on his shoulder and his his breath warm on her skin.

"It's a love story, baby just say yes."

"Yes," she whispered in his ear. "Of course."

It took a lot of careful planning and a good deal of forethought, but eventually they set a date for the wedding. I'm getting married, she remembered every five minutes. I'm getting married in six months.

Planning was chaos. Partly because they were on a tight budget (because she was determined that they'd pay for this on their own) and partly because planning a wedding could quickly dissolve into chaos. Luckily enough, Aradia and Feferi and Kanaya and Rose had all agreed to help out. (Karkat had told her that he wasn't about to ask a guy who barely left the computer and a drug addict to help him plan a wedding.) It was amazing how kind they were, especially Aradia. Sollux's business was struggling badly and Aradia was working two jobs to pay for her classes to get a job at the university, and she still found time to help Nepeta choose colors and gossip over cheap meals. Kanaya even offered to do alterations on whatever dress Nepeta chose; Nepeta wasn't about to let the already busy woman make her a dress. Kanaya was still trying to start a clothing line, but since no one would take her up on it she's opened her own store, sewing every piece herself. Rose was clever and helpful and Feferi was bubbly and everything a friend ought to be.

Meulin would've been a lot more helpful if she wasn't in California. But as it was, Nepeta's sister made a few trips back to Chicago in the six months of hectic planning for the wedding.

It became an almost mystical day. The wedding. Her wedding. Their wedding. Time became scarce as work and planning and the need for sleep occupied most of her hours.

But it wasn't all stressful outlining and trying workdays. In fact, there were plenty of casual weekend days and lazy early mornings that did not change one iota.

Including her habit of borrowing his sweatshirts.

"That's my sweatshirt."

"Yes."

"You're wearing my sweatshirt."

"It's comfier!"

"But now what sweatshirt am I gonna wear?"

"You could always wear mine."

"What's the point of that?"

"I'm not giving back yours, so you might not have much a choice."

"Thanks a ton."

"Your sweatshirt is better than mine! Mine's all scratchy."

"So why do I get the shitty sweatshirt?"

"Because mine's more comfortable and you love me."

"Bleeehhhh," he protested halfheartedly. "Come on, give it here."

"You'll have to take me with it."

"Fine." He scooped her up, sweatshirt and all, and carried her to the couch. "Do I get it back now?"

"Nope."

"Fine, take my sweatshirt. Let people at work question you."

"I've got so many they won't notice."

"They'll interrogate me."

"You can handle it. You're my big, strong man."

"Sexist stereotypes!"

"Do I look serious?"

"Fine…take the sweatshirt."

"I'll be wearing it to class tonight."

"It's January! What happened to, oh, I don't know, a fucking winter coat?"

"Oh, come on," she complained jokingly, wrapping her arms around his neck and planting a sweet kiss on his neck. "I'll put on my winter coat before I go off to work. What about you?"

"I wasn't gonna wear mine."

"And whyever not?"

"Uh...I guess I sorta forgot I had one."

"You remember everything, but you forget things like wearing a coat and eating lunch!"

He shrugged. "You don't even remember the name of your shelter sometimes."

"Fair point." She pecked him on the cheek and swung her legs around off the couch to go to work. "But I do have to go to work now, darling."

"Fine, keep the sweatshirt. See you after work."

"See you, love."

She was incredibly grateful for the warmth of the sweatshirt at the shelter because someone had screwed with the heating and now it was perpetually ten degrees too cold. And on the el, which did not have wonderful central heating. Her hands were frozen almost to ice and next to impossible to control from her day in the freezing cold when Aradia called.

Fumbling with her phone, Nepeta extracted the device from her pocket and hit the "take call" button. "Hey, Aradia! What's up?"

"Oh, nothing much. Just saw the new episode of Doctor Who and it is great! Oh, have you heard of that new one, Falling Stars?"

"Yeah—"

"Oh my gog, it is the best! The characters are so well written and I love the plot of season three, I mean it's amazing! The actor who plays Diane is really good, too. And Carl is so hot! Oh, and there's this great theme about equality and I love it! I wonder who the writer is? Hold on, I'm gonna look it up so you can check it hold."

"Aradia. Don't bother looking up the writer."

"Why not?" She sounded a little hurt.

"First off, I watch it already. Second, that's one of the shows Karkat writes for."

"Wait, really!?"

"Yeah! I told you about it back when we first realized everyone's in Chicagoland, remember?"

"Oh yeah, I remember that now! That is so cool!"

"Thanks," Nepeta laughed. "So…I was wondering…"

"Is this about your wedding?" Aradia teased. "Cuz you know, Sollux and I are getting married, too."

"Oh, I'm sorry," Nepeta responded genuinely. "I'm just so excited!"

"It's fine, it's fine. I'm just teasing. Okay, so?"

"I'm going dress shopping in two weeks, Saturday, around ten AM. Could you come with?"

"Of course! That sounds great!"

"Thanks, Aradia."

"Can I invite Feferi?"

"Sure, what the hell."

"This is gonna be so much fun! I can't wait!"

"I know, right? See you then!"

"See you!"

Besides the fact that she never really saw herself as pretty, she didn't think it would be so damn hard to find a dress. Her dimensions, first of all, were irregular; she was short, skinny, and not terribly busty. Her hips were much wider than her shoulders, more so than most girls, and her wrists and hands were disproportionately long and narrow. Not to mention her unusual coloring. Her olive-green eyes weren't common to begin with, and her chestnut-colored hair was an unusual shade. Her skin was tan from years of outside work and her face was oddly shaped: round, large eyes and full lips, tiny nose and ears, flattened sort of chin.

"What about this one?" Aradia asked, gesturing to a silky mermaid dress with a ruffled bottom and one strap diagonally across the collarbone and back.

"Sure, I'll try it."

"This is, like, the ninth."

"Well, I'm sure I'll try this one or…hey! What about this one?" She pulled a strapless dress with a sweetheart neckline and a floor-length skirt and layers, lots and lots of layers that made the skirt flare out like a princess dress. The base looked like it was coated in white rose petals, with more scattered up the tulle outermost layer of the skirt. The satiny upper part looked crossed over itself and a thin, white ribbon marked the waist.

"That one would look great!"

"Better go try it on, then," Nepeta quipped. "I hope it fits!"

"Well, Kanaya could do some alterations," Feferi pointed out.

"Yeah, but it's gotta fit in the first place decently," Aradia pointed out.

"Look, I'll try it on, and if it fits well enough, I'll get it and pay Kanaya to do some alterations."

"Come on then!" Feferi practically dragged Nepeta to the changing rooms, where her mother was waiting. (Because her mother's knees had been giving her a good deal of trouble recently and she was only aloud to take a certain number of steps a day.)

She pulled the dress on, careful of the hundreds of layers, and managed to get the dress on properly. She spun to face the mirror and—this was definitely the best dress for her. She almost turned to ask Karkat what he thought, but then she remembered that they'd both agreed that they were taking no chances with superstitions and the whole thing about not seeing the bride in her dress before the wedding. She almost regretted it.

"Nepeta, let us see!"

"Darling, do you need any help?"

"Coming, jeez." She opened the door and stepped out. "What d'you think?"

"That's the best one yet!" Aradia exclaimed. "Are you gonna pick it?"

"Well, what d'you guys think?"

"It's lovely, dear."

"You look great," Feferi grinned.

"I think I'll take it," Nepeta smiled. She spun once, her hands on her hips. She couldn't wait.

At work, it seemed that they had once again run out of space, because she came to work to a stern-looking boss and two empty cat cages.

"Holly and Oreo. Brother and sister."

"Right."

"Take them home today, keep them for six months."

"Could I leave them with a sitter?"

"Why?"

"I'm getting married in three months."

"Yes, you can."

"Thanks."

She took the cats home on the el that day with Equius, who was incredibly excited about something that she later discerned to be the final testing of the sixth draft of his robot companion he'd been working on since the end of college. It was rare to see Equius so excited over anything and it was infection. She'd forgotten that Equius had the best laugh of anyone she'd ever met. Well, except Karkat.

She dumped the cages in the closet and let the cats down, taking them to the cat bed and setting out the food and water at opposite ends of the kitchen, a trick so they'd drink their water. Something about animals considering food their prey and not drinking water from a source that could be contaminated by the prey.

Then she forgot to tell Karkat.

"Nepeta."

"Yes?"

"There is a fucking cat on my laptop bag."

"Her name is Holly. The other one is Oreo."

"Two fucking cats."

"Part of the job."

"Nepeta, you cannot keep bringing cats into the apartment and expect me to be okay with it!"

She bit her lip to keep from screaming and said, "Excuse me, it it my job. Do I complain about you being up at all hours to work with the people on the British show? I didn't think so!"

"Can you just get the cat off my laptop bag so I can get to work?"

"Fiiine." She lifted Holly easily and moved the cat to the other room. Once the cat had been safely deposited in the other room, he kissed her goodbye and left. His work hours always got weird in the weeks right before they officially cut the episode or movie together. "I'm sorry about these crazy hours, love. It'll settle down in a week or so."

"I know, dear. Don't worry about it."

"You sure? I've just been getting all snappish and…you know."

"I do know. Just go, finish everything up, and I'll be here if you need me."

"Thank you so much."

"You're welcome so much. It's happened before and it'll happen again, just don't go and get so stressed like you do. I'll leave chamomile tea on the table if I go to bed, okay?"

"You are the best."

She grinned. "You are, too." She kissed him and waved. He must be exhausted.

It was two weeks before the wedding and stress was piling up when suddenly, PMS kicked in. If she was right, she wouldn't be on her period during the wedding, but it fucking sucked. Sore back, nausea, headache, sore boobs, every single thing she hated.

No one was home, right? So she chose several plastic Tupperware containers and threw them at the wall. "FUCK PERIODS AND FUCK HAVING BOOBS AND FUCK BEING FEMALE!" she shouted, throwing one item with each word. "WHAT THE FUCK IS THE FUCKING POINT?"

There was a thump and she turned. Karkat's papers were scattered on the floor and his hands were held up in surrender. "Uh…sorry?"

"Oh my—," she said, holding her hands up to her mouth. "I'm sorry. I didn't there was anyone home."

"No, no, s'alright. I just…wasn't really expecting that."

"It's fine. Like I said, I'm just a little freaked."

She scratched the back of her neck and blushed. "Do we have Advil?"

"Yeah."

"I'm gonna go take some of that…"

"Okay. I'll make tea."

"Love you."

"Love you too."

Maybe the stress was getting to him, too. A week later, she came home and stared. "What're you doing?" He was sitting in front of his laptop, a mug of coffee in his hand and a script on the table, laughing manically.

"Okay, so you know how I find headcanons on Tumblr and sometimes confirm or deny them on the show?"

"Yeah…"

"Well, I put in the one where people thought Harvey and Carl must be siblings, because they are, so Diane goes, 'What are you two, brothers?' Because they're arguing, see. And Harvey says, 'We're a binary system, unfortunately.' And someone figured it out! They said, 'Hey, guys, remember that thing about them being siblings? It was on the show! You know what that means? The writer is on Tumblr' and then…" He laughed again and she felt his forehead.

"You don't have a fever."

"Of course I don't! But I haven't slept in four days, so…"

"Oh my gog, go to sleep! You'll make yourself really sick, Karkitty. Wait—what did you do?"

"I reblogged it and added a bit where I said I'd help search."

"You're so…" She laughed. "Come on, sleep. You need it."

Her wedding day started with a very annoyed screech. "Nepeta, are you going to let us in or not?"

"Coming, Terezi, gog," she said. It was, what, nine AM? Nine AM was an hour no reasonable human should be up at. She almost rolled over to wake up Karkat before she remembered that he was at his dad's for the night. She opened the door and grinned at Terezi and Aradia, who looked almost terrifyingly excited. "You two are here earlier than my mom!"

"What're friends for?" Aradia teased. "Come on, we've gotta get you ready! It's a big day!"

"As if I need reminding?" Nepeta laughed. "Come on, I'll get you guys some cereal."

"Nuh-uh," Terezi said. "I called your mom and she's bringing over some real food in a bit."

"How do you do all this?" Nepeta asked, amazed.

"It's your day; we're going to make it the best it can be!" Aradia grinned. Nepeta threw her arms around her friends and smiled like a drunk.

"You guys are the absolute best."

"Thanks," Terezi said, tossing her red hair over one shoulder as if she could see.

"Okay, so we've gotta be at the church by three."

"Unless you've pulled a huge switcheroo on me, I think the whole thing starts at five," Terezi pointed out.

"Well, yeah, but we've gotta be there early. I do, anyways."

The doorbell rang. "I'll get it," Nepeta said, breaking away from her friends and jogging to the door to open it. "Hi Mom!"

"Hello, darling. Have you tried cooking anything yet?"

"Mom!"

"I'm teasing, little love. I brought something for you and your friends to eat."

"Thanks, Mom."

"Any time, love. Now come on, let's eat something and get you ready."

After a brief breakfast, she was ready to get dressed. What an operation. Because she had to get on a bra that was more a piece of architecture than anything else before she could actually get the dress on. She pulled the dress over her head and pulled up the top before stepping into the kitten-heel shoes that were silver and shiny.

"Sit," Aradia ordered. Nepeta sat on a chair and sighed and Aradia brushed her conditioned hair and pulled it into an elaborate style decorated with shiny specks and glitter. Her cinnamon-colored hair was weaved and curled into a lovely half-ben sort of style that gleamed in the light. Her mother fussed over everything while Feferi did her makeup—purple eye shadow (for dramatic effect), brown-black eyeliner, red lipstick, pink blush. Her mother fitted the veil over her hair and said, "Come on, love. Let's go."

Her mother drove them to a small, white chapel used only for weddings and helped her out of the car. Karkat must've been inside already. Her friends definitely were; Meulin in a pale rose dress with a low back, Terezi in a shade of coral only she could pull off with a crazy updo and a broad smile, Vriska in hot pink and a sassy smile, even Jade in a coral gown that fell to her knees. She'd told her friends who were bridesmaids to just wear a dress that suited them and was pink. She didn't have time to search out a design that fitted everyone.

It was about an hour later that the music started playing, but it felt like much shorter. Organ music, of course. She felt a brief pang of sadness that her father wouldn't be there to walk her down the aisle. But her elderly grandfather was, and that was just as good. She waved to Karkat, who grinned nervously and clenched one hand. She wrapped her fingers tighter around the bouquet of flowers and almost laughed aloud.

She nearly collapsed walked down the aisle. She pressed one finger on her engagement ring and squeezed her toes around the penny in her shoe (for luck). Once she was standing across from Karkat, shaking like a leaf, the priest or minister or officiator or someone began speaking.

"We are here not to witness what will be, but rather what already it! We do not create this marriage, because we cannot. We can and do, however, celebrate with Nepeta Leijon and Karkat Vantas the amazing and joyful event that occurs and the commitment they make today.

"True marriage is more than joining the bonds of marriage of two persons; it is the union of tow hearts. It lives on the love you give each other and never grows old, but thrives on the joy of each new today together. Marriage is love. May you always be able to talk things over, to confide in each other, to laugh with each other, to enjoy life together, and to share moments of quiet and peace together when the day is done. May you be blessed with a lifetime of happiness and a home of warmth and understanding.

"May you always need one anther, not to feel an emptiness, but to help each other know your fullness. May you want one another, but not out of lack. May you embrace each other, but not encircle one another. May you succeed in all important ways with each other, and not fail in the little graces. May you have happiness, and may you find it in making one another happy. May you have love, and may you find it in loving one another.

"No other human ties are more tender and no other vows more important than those you are about to take. Both of you come to this day with the deep realization that the contract of marriage is sacred and loving as are all of its obligations and responsibilities."

"Please repeat after me. I, Karkat Vantas, take you, Nepeta Leijon."

"I, Karkat Vantas, take you, Nepeta Leijon."

"To be my wife, my partner in life and my one true love."

"I will cherish our union and love you more each day than I did the day before."

"I will trust and respect you, laugh with you and cry with you, loving you faithfully through good times and bad, regardless of the obstacles we may face together."

"I give you my hand, my heart, and my love, from this day forward for as long as we both shall live."

The officiator turned to her and she took a deep breath. Her mouth felt dry as cotton and her tongue felt stiff as her hairsprayed hair. "I, Nepeta Leijon, take you, Karkat Vantas."

"I, Nepeta Leijon, take you, Karkat Vantas."

"To be my husband, my partner in life and my one true love."

"To be my husband, my partner in life and my one true love." He was looking her right in the eyes with those gray eyes that were so gorgeous.

"I will cherish our union and love you more each day than I did the day before."

"I will trust and respect you, laugh with you and cry with you, loving you faithfully through good times and bad, regardless of the obstacles we may face together."

"I will trust and respect you, laugh with you and cry with you, loving you faithfully through good times and bad, regardless of the obstacles we may face together." Her hands were sweaty and cold and shaky.

"I give you my hand, my heart, and my love, from this day forward for as long as we both shall live."

"I give you my hand, my heart, and my love, from this day forward for as long as we both shall live." She sighed, still shaking like a leaf. Wait. Rings. Right.

Two golden, glimmering rings sat right near them. One was just her size. She picked one up, as she knew she was supposed to, and slipped it onto the third finger of his outstretched left hand. "This ring is a token of my love. I marry you with this ring, with all that I have and all that I am."

"I will forever wear this ring as a sign of my commitment and the desire of my heart," he answered. He smiled nervously and picked up her ring. She held up her trembling left hand and he slid the ring on, saying, "This ring is a token of my love. I marry you with this ring, with all that I have and all that I am."

"I will forever wear this ring as a sign of my commitment and the desire of my heart," she barely whispered.

"And now, by the power vested me by the State of Illinois, I hereby pronounce you husband and wife. You may now kiss." She was crying by now, joyful tears soaking her cheeks, and when she kissed him, he tasted like salt, too. "Family and friends, I present to you Karkat Vantas and Nepeta Vantas-Leijon."

He took her hand, by now completely unstable, and she felt the strength in his grip. She was probably holding his hand too tightly to be comfortable, but she needed something to hold on to.

Dinner was at hotel downtown. They'd been able to afford a limo to take them and their friends downtown and they sat right next to each other, her hand still gripping his tightly. He kissed the tip of her nose, as to not ruin her makeup more than he already had, and whispered, "You look beautiful."

"You too. I love you."

"I love you too."

The decorations were beautiful. Bouquets of roses in pink and purple and white decorated the center of every table and strings of fairytale lights glowed in the darkening room. Electric candles lit up the flowers from within the water-filled vases and more candles and flowers adorned the rest of the room. She sat at the place she'd chosen with her mother and her sister and—oh gog—her husband. Her husband. She was married.

Dinner was served at around six-thirty. Bruschetta and some sort of mini flatbread with onion and cheese constituted the appetizer. For the entrée, there was a choice of salmon with garlic and butter or steak with a spiced marinade with vegetables (her mother's idea), potatoes, either mashed or prepared some fancy way she didn't understand (Feferi's idea), and Yorkshire pudding (a family tradition on Karkat's side that apparently his great-grandmother started). And of course cake for dessert.

It was four-tiered, simple looking, with a diagonal spray of pink and purple lilies with golden centers. A bundle of more flowers decorated the top of the cake, and thin pink ribbons divided the layers. She held his hand as they cut the cake and laughed as he smeared a little on her face.

Someone (probably her wonderful mother) packed the top tier into a box to eat a year later, another weird old tradition.

They were going to make speeches. Right. People were going to talk about marriage. Their marriage.

Her mother stood up first. "Nepeta, dear, I remember the first day you came home from first grade and asked if your friend Karkitty could come over on Saturday." Why did she have to bring that up? "And I also remember when you came home from college and told me there was someone you wanted me to meet. Who was it but your old friend Karkat? Here's to the beautiful bride and groom—may they share many days of happiness, may they love each other for all the days of their lives and beyond, and may this marriage last forever. And may my daughter learn to cook without setting things on fire!" And that time, she laughed at the gentle prod at her cooking skills.

She felt the tender pressure leave her hand and saw Karkat making his way over to his dad and brother. He said something in an undertone, to which his brother nodded and rolled his eyes and his father snorted into his drink, trying not to laugh.

"I had to tell them not to go on forever or make crazy speeches," he told her. "Believe it or not, I'm not the one in the family who makes the longest speeches."

She giggled and watched his father take center stage. "Shakespeare said, 'May a flock of blessings light upon thy back.' There's not much I can say that will make this any more memorable or much more important for you, but I want you both to know that I hope you both have a long and beautiful marriage with joy, faithfulness, and love. I wish you health and happiness and be blessed with everything you wish for. I hope you fall in love every day and I hope you continue to share your love forever." He smiled and Nepeta noticed laugh lines, similar to her mother's, carved on his face.

Kankri's toast actually wasn't too long. But it was her sister's that Nepeta remembered.

"There is one thing I have to say, little sister: I told you so. I told you so, back all those years ago. And here you are, getting married! I know you're excited and I bet you know exactly what I'm not saying right now and I hope you know that I wish you the best marriage in the history of marriages!"

That covered just about every single of our inside jokes, she thought, smiling. She loved her sister.

Their friends made toasts, some joking and some serious, and then Karkat stood.

"Here's to my beautiful bride," he said. "Who put up with my bad days, my weird work hours, my coffee-driven late nights, my irritation with the cats, and every single weird thing I can't believe she manages to tolerate. I fall in love with her more every day. Here's to my beautiful, amazing, clever, sweet, caring bride, who I will never stop loving."

Blushing furiously, she grinned at him and jumped to her feet. "And here's to my perfect husband! Who also puts up with me, with the cats and my lack of cooking skills and my boring job and my bad days, too! He is the best, most gorgeous, kindest, most amazing man I have ever met or ever will meet! I love him I know we'll be in love till the end of time."

He squeezed her hand once and she sat back down. "We've got the first dance, love," he whispered. He took her other hand and pulled her out onto the dance floor. "Come on!" She laughed aloud as he spun her around, as he had so many times before, and hardly stopped laughing for the rest of the night, till it was two AM and the party was over.

And that night, as they were lying in bed together, she whispered to him, "I'll never forget this."

"Me either."

"I love you."

"I love you too."

A/N: I might end this here, what do you guys think? I've got the epilogue all written, but I also have a couple ideas for the next chapter. (Including Rose and Kanaya getting married because gay marriage is legal in Illinois now. Woohoo!)

Title based on a song I sang in choir one that I hated with a passion. Wedding readings from this site: . . I did my research.