BLD19

(A/N: I am forcing myself to finish this. I need to get it done. This chapter then one more, I'm almost there. PLEASE ENCOURAGE ME I'M SO CLOSE BUT IT FEELS SO FAR! Finishing stories is hard…)

Ch.19: together

The dress fit beautifully. It was like wearing a cloud, but prettier. Soft lace, smooth ribbon, it captured Kalluto's beauty in a way he never thought it could. The artist of the original drawing had been invited, and she insisted it was more beautiful than she had even imagined it.

Marza was the maid of honor, with the other female spiders as bridesmaids. They wore black dresses with white sashes.

Alluka was nowhere to be found, but Leorio had called and told him they'd be on their way and they were simply getting the present ready.

And Kikyo had insisted that they keep tradition and separated the couple from right after breakfast, much to the clingy Feitan's dismay.

The boys were getting ready as well, everyone dressed up in their suits, Feitan looking especially nice. No one wanted to outdo him, lest they lose a few fingers. He had chosen Phinks as the best man, to no one's surprise.

The garden was all done up in black ribbons and white roses, paper lanterns and red satin curtains. It was small and elegant, but you could tell it was their wedding. There were skulls painted on the backs of the chairs.

Alluka was crying.

Don't worry, they were happy tears! The operation was a full success, and she was finally face to face with Nanika.

They looked so similar, save for the eyes. Nanika's resembled Illumi's, and were as beautiful as they were dark. And her hair was cut much shorter, only barely touching her shoulders. But other than that they were identical.

"It's you… it's really you!" she cried, taking her new sister in her arms, "this is amazing! I can't believe I'm actually hugging you!"

Tears welled up in Nanika's eyes as well, but she said nothing. She just held onto Alluka, nodding at everything she said.

Leorio and Dr. Connor were tearing up as well, though Leorio tried his best to hide it. He had a definite soft spot for the girls, as a father-figure for the kids in general. It was hard enough watching Killua and Gon grow up, now he had little girls to take care of and Kalluto's getting married! It made him feel extremely old.

"now, come on," he choked out, shuffling the girls to the door, "we've got four hours until the ceremony, and we've got a lot of things to do."

They went out shopping. Nanika had only a white nightgown to her name, and no style other than Alluka's to go off of. Luckily the mall nearest to the hospital had a huge variety of clothes to choose from.

They entered a clothing store filled with bright colors first. The lady behind the counter beamed.

"Dr. Connor, are these the girls you told me about?" she asked, "Oh they're precious! Here,"

The lady hands Nanika a card with money on it, well enough to get her a whole wardrobe. They head into the store, grabbing anything she might like. Eventually they decide on a few outfits, mostly a mix of pastels and black. She was a fan of large baggy sweaters and patterned leggings, a favorite pair being black with cross motifs.

They headed over to a makeup and jewelry shop next, and use the card again to purchase some basic cosmetics and get her ears pierced. She picked out a few headbands with bows, some necklaces and bracelets too. After that they got shoes fitted, and bought some basic pairs like cute pink sneakers, rain boots, and flats.

The final stop was to a hair salon. Nanika was intent on getting some sort of hair color and style. They decided on keeping one half black, but dyeing the other half a light blue color. That took up most of the morning, but they managed to finish in time.

The dresses provided for Alluka and Nanika were white and gray, with pretty bows. They had to smuggle the second one out of the dress shop without Kalluto noticing, which the Spiders helped with. They had no idea why, but they agreed anyway.

It felt really surreal, Nanika looking in a mirror and seeing someone who isn't Alluka. The baby blue hair, the deep, dark eyes, all of it was new and very her. Never before had her opinions actually counted towards anything. It was always "what do you want Alluka," "what's best for Alluka," never "what's best for me."

"I don't really know what to do with myself." She admitted, "Sure, I know how to use a body, but I was only borrowing Alluka's. I can use this for whatever I want. I could cut off all my hair, or color on my arms with pens. I could jump off a bridge or learn how to dance. Whatever I want!"

She smiled, the lips on the face in the mirror moving in turn.

"Now I just need to figure out what I want."

Kalluto stood at the doorway, breath catching in his throat and head spinning. All he really knew was that there was music, and Killua was holding his hand. Everything was black and white and kind of blurry. It was felt like slow-motion, but it happened all too fast.

But there, in the sunlit garden, was Feitan. The only clear bit in a blurry picture. In that suit from the auction, with a lopsided smile of his adorable face. Kalluto felt like he was going to either faint or scream, and he didn't know which seemed worse.

Killua gave his hand a final squeeze, and everything went quiet.

A man was talking, probably Kuroro but he honestly wasn't sure. All he could focus on was Feitan, there in front of him. When the man told him to say something, he responded. He saw Feitan's lips move afterwards, but his ears were ringing.

Somewhere in the haze, Kalluto felt something off. And he turned his head to look out at the crowd, and gasped, dropping his flowers.

Two little girls were standing at the back of the room, wearing matching dresses. One was Alluka, he noticed that right away. The other looked similar in her face, but her eyes were dark, and her hair was dyed. But something about her still felt familiar.

"Alluka, who's your friend?" Kalluto asks.

"You already know her Kalluto, this is Nanika! Surprise! She's the special thing we were getting ready all day!"

Everyone gasps, and tears well up in Killua's eyes. The two male siblings rush forward to hug their sisters, unable to find words to explain their emotions.

Feitan hung back, wanting to e in the moment, but not sure exactly what to do. Nanika locks eyes with him, and whispers in Killua's ear. The white-haired boy lets her go and she scampers over to her brother-in-law.

"New Aniki! I love new Aniki too!" she exclaims, wrapping her arms around his waist, "Our family is getting bigger and bigger all the time!"

Now it was Feitan's turn to tear up, wrapping the little girl in a gentle embrace. No one had ever called him family, not like this. He had never had siblings, no one ever called him "brother."

The ceremony continued then, with the two girls standing at the front of the isle near the couple. Nanika got to hold the bouget during the ring ceremony, and finally the climax arrived.

"Now, you may-"

"Hold it." A cold, angry, and scarily familiar voice calls from the back.

Illumi…

(A/N: Oh no, the happy moment is over. Well, it looks that way, no? But here is where all the little side plots come together into my BEAUTIFUL vision. JK, I actually just threw Nanika and the HisoIllu backstory in there because I felt like it, and last night I had a cool idea on how to connect them to each other. But hey, I've been winging it this whole time. Pretty good for no thought or planning, right?)