Time 16

"I want simple" Rachel reiterated for the third time to her future mother-in-law and her best friend Her Grace Duchess Santana, wife of Jesse Duke of Cleveland "really simple"

"But..."

"No seriously simple white lines with gold brocade detailing on the bodice, wide necked and no hoop" Rachel repeated herself again "my dressmaker knows what I want and is already working on it"

"Darling..." Eva started gently, Santana sitting prudently silent.

"Please stop" Rachel begged "you have already nixed my location, my flowers and my vows, leave my dress alone" she begged close to tears as Eva and Santana sat down and planned her wedding for her.

"Ok darling it sounds like a lovely dress" Eva conceded before turning to her gardener to talk about the flower arrangements not seeing Rachel get to her feet and quickly leave the room, she was in Noah's house in Chelsea but she just needed to escape to anywhere but where they were.

"Rachel?" Puck asked worriedly, getting to his feet as his fiancée rushed into his study and turned and locked the door behind her

"I had to escape" Rachel said before bursting into tears and collapsing onto Puck who held her close soothing her as best he could before sweeping her up into his arms and sitting down on the couch with her across his lap.

"But why?" he asked her finally, angry that the wedding planning was getting to her so much pain and that his mother, and he knew it was his mother, was causing her to run away crying.

"I'm not allowed my flowers..., or my location in North Wales and we aren't allowed to write our own vows and...And...and then she tried to change my dress to some overblown monstrosity" she sobbed into his shoulder "and when I try to argue she says that because I didn't have a mother she is only saying what Shelby would have said"

"I will talk to her" Puck promised her as she continued to cry on him, one at his mother's actions but also at her own mother not being her for her on the most important day of her life.

"I'm so...sorry" Rachel continued to sob "but this is all so much...and it's not turning out the way I want"

"Do not be sorry Darling" he insisted feeling her wince at the term of endearment "sweetheart" he tried again "you have nothing to be sorry about, she is the one pushing and pushing and pushing and I for one am not going to let her take over our wedding"

"I'm not being silly?" Rachel asked desperately, wiping at her face to clear the tears that had streamed down it.

"No sweetheart" Puck assured her pressing a kiss to her head and rubbing at her back again "this is OUR wedding; you are in no way being silly I promise" pressing another kiss to her head he ducked his head to find her lips, hoping that he could kiss her problems away rather than talk about them. He hated talking about problems if he could just physically make her forget it was a lot better.

Catching her lips finally he pulled her as close as he could in their clothed state allowed and proceeded to make her forget everything but her own name as he kissed her senseless, only for the two of them to spring apart as intense banging hammered on the door.

"Noah have you seen Rachel?" Eva's voice came through the door after she tried the doorknob and found it locked.

"Go away" Puck replied harshly to her as Rachel flinched at buried her head into his neck "mother go away" he ordered again as she banged on the door in indignation "we will talk later, I am going to take Rachel home and then I shall deal with you"

Hearing her huff on the other side of the door and her stomp away Puck brought his lips back to Rachel's and cleared her mind or all thought again before he escorted her and Santana into town on the latter's insistent.

"I shall see you later" Puck promised Rachel pressing a kiss to lips before Santana whisked her away, gossiping about her new in-laws and their reaction to her.

"So they are just sitting there and Jesse is holding my hand and they are literally gaping, their mouths keep opening and closing and Jesse just laughs and informs them that they can stay up at the castle until he returns at the end of the season and then they can move to the lodge"

"I bet that went down well" Rachel laughed following her friend as she led Rachel down the high street to a particular shop.

"Oh yes they loved it!" Santana laughed easing Rachel into a shop she usually would have avoided "now we are here to buy something very important"

"What?" Rachel asked looking around the dress shop and blushing as she realised that it wasn't the type of dress you wore outside your bedroom "Santana!" she squealed grabbing her friends hand and trying to pull her out of the shop.

"No Rachel, this is important for your wedding night" Santana insisted using the same hold to pull Rachel further into the shop helping her to eventually pick out a delicate knee length white lacy edged night gown with thin straps.

"I'm still not sure about this" Rachel hesitated as her purchase was wrapped and placed in a package for her to carry home.

"I promise it is important, just as your wedding night should be"

"Really?" Rachel whispered as they left the shop, their arms linked walking close "it is important I know, but I must confess to having a slight anxiety about it"

"Darling why?" Santana asked in surprise not used to Rachel being worried about anything "you have nothing to fear"

"But you have heard the rumours, and I know a lot of them to be true Noah is so much more experienced then me and I hadn't kissed anyone until he kissed me and what if I am bad at it?" she asked the last bit in a very quiet tone.

"Not possibly" Santana assured her pulling her best friend close "plus you have me to give you advice, I have only gone through this recently"

"I am sure you were not scared though" Rachel protested "you have always been so comfortable in who you are"

"As you are" Santana argued pulling his friend to a stop and stepping in front of her "it is easier for me to be who I am because I don't have people constantly disapproving of me"

"Now you do" Rachel reminded her friend

"But I didn't for my whole life, you have and even though you are incredibly independent even you have been in indoctrinated in some ways. But you are so comfortable in who you are, never think differently"

"Will that help?" Rachel asked meekly

"Darling you shouldn't be so worried" Santana assured her friend again "I know this wedding stuff has been driving you crazy but I don't want you to make it worse for yourself by over thinking this as well"

"This wedding is driving me mad" Rachel admitted slumping onto a bench "Eva is just trying to take the place of my own mother I know but she is over ruling everything I want and it hurts more than it should I know"

"You are within your right to be annoyed by it" Santana reassured her friend who looked so guilty for not appreciating the help that Eva was giving her "if she is overstepping the mark you need to tell her"

"She is Noah's mother" Rachel said helplessly "and while I do not hate her, by no means do I! I feel I cannot alienate her by asking her to stop trying to help me"

"You ran away crying today to His Grace, who I am sure is more than a little angry that you did"

"He said he would talk to her" Rachel admitted "I'm just worried about everything, especially THAT night"

"I promise you don't have to be" Santana reiterated "half of it will be instinct and the other half will be how in love you are with Noah at work"

"I'm glad I have you" Rachel said hugging her friend around the shoulders a little happier now.

"Well why wouldn't you be? I am fantastic"