Weiss was far too nervous to pay attention to the ceremony, and it was a long one. The shoes she'd been given were borderline impossible to walk in, let alone stand due to their obscene height. But she did and she was. The man next to her had been the one who had asked her all the questions the previous night. She would have found it almost funny how she hadn't learned his name until she had walked up to him with her arm in her father's not two hours ago, if he wasn't going to be Ruby's opponent in a duel.
"And now you may recite your vows." The preacher said, followed by the loud voice of her supposed future husband as he spoke his part.
Weiss waited and spoke her vow only barely loud enough for the preacher to hear it. She didn't think it really mattered whether she did or not since she could only back out of the wedding if her father permitted it. He didn't. Proof enough were the vows that had been written for her and then promptly memorized, but she felt as if it was her betrayal not her father's. In a sense, she supposed it was even if she didn't want to believe it. As she looked at the middle aged man before her, she saw the security at the door listen into their ear buds and discreetly leave the room.
So it's starting…. Weiss thought as she started counting the seconds. She only made it to eight before the preacher continued into the line she was waiting for.
"If anyone can show just cause why this couple should not be lawfully wed, let them speak now or forever hold their peace." The church was silent for the barest of moments as Weiss kept counting up until twenty. A nervous sweat broke out on her neck as she noticed the preacher start to open his mouth to break the silence and continue.
The loudest crash Weiss had heard in quite a while made everyone sitting in the church recoil as a large metal canister embedded itself into the middle of the isle as it smoked slightly from it's impact. A few of the women had started screaming and a few men were swearing at the shock of the invasion. The thrusters on the locker's roof were making waves of heat roll into the already warm room. A second later the door swung open, and out stepped the one person Weiss had been longing to see since she yelled at her two days before. She regretted her actions but it had made the presence of her father much more… bearable… in the past day than she knew it would have been otherwise. It also made it seem unnecessary to set up preventative measures to ensure the wedding was a success. Something she was sure he'd done anyways.
Garbed in a long white dress, and shining like the angel Weiss knew she was watching, Ruby approached the altar with a smug grin on her face as she took Weiss's hand and gave it a small kiss. Weiss blushed at the public display and knew this was Ruby's way of assuring her that everything had been forgiven. She turned to the surprised preacher, her grin faded into a serious, if neutral, expression.
"I object." She turned back to Weiss and whispered under her breath. "Sorry I was running a bit late."
"Quite alright." Weiss hissed in response as she looked back up at the preacher. "You didn't miss anything noteworthy."
A smile tugged at Ruby's lips but she fought it for the couple of seconds it took for the preacher to snap out of his shock at the events now taking place.
"And what reason do you present that shows why these two should not be wed?" Weiss gave the man credit, her father had found someone who was actually concerned about his job. Either that, or he knew how he acted decided if he'd get paid or not.
"Weiss is a minor and this marriage is a result of a contract made by her father." Ruby stated loudly for the entire congregation to hear. "He didn't object when he knew she was gay, or dating me, or when he pushed this whole thing up a few years. So now I'm raising my objection that this wedding is a form of fraud in order to acquire business assets while bypassing laws and taxation, and a form of child neglect and possibly abuse depending on your definition of emotional, psychological, financial, and cultural abuse."
"These claims are unsubstantiated. Security, remove her now!" Weiss's father spoke loudly as if commenting on an expected plot twist in a movie.
"I wouldn't depend on those losers too much." Yang walked in through the large doors at the end of the isle, Blake slipping in just behind her and leaning against the wall with her faunus ears in full sight. "I've fought white fang who are tougher than those guys."
Weiss's father spun around at the interruption. He recognized the buxom woman standing in the isle of the church as one of his daughter's teammates. The connection identifying the quiet faunus standing just far enough behind her to be overlooked, yet close enough to be of use should communication break down. He took a deep breath to calm himself, drawing a surprised look from the corner of his daughter's eye.
"Regardless, Rose is a minor as well. She has no authority to object!" Mr. Schnee spoke quietly, yet the entire crowd around him seemed to shuffle backwards and away as his hate filled gaze remained fixed on Ruby.
"She's not, but I am." Yang replied. "And I second her objection."
"As do I." Taiyang spoke as he made his way in through the door behind Yang, followed by Ruby's uncle.
"Same here." Qrow looked at Weiss's father threateningly. "I dare you to try what you're thinking. And then we'll see who really should have won that match."
Mr. Schnee ignored Qrow's taunt and turned his focus back up to the preacher. "These accusations are unfounded! You will marry my daughter to Mr. Noar, or I promise you won't see a cent from our agreement."
The preacher seemed hesitant as he looked down at the two girls in front of him. He looked up at the groom who'd remained silent, his face the mask of a businessman given a bad deal. Ruby had positioned herself just in front of Weiss and the preacher sighed audibly.
"My hands in this case are tied. The laws of Mystral dictate that a duel will decide this matter unless the challenger steps down." He looked down at Ruby. "I must now ask who of you will be representing each party in battle?"
"I will represent myself." Bruce asserted calmly as if he was certain of his win.
"Very well, and the girl?" The preacher looked over at the three uninvited guests at the back of the room.
"She may represent herself if she wishes." Taiyang spoke loudly. "As guardian, I give my consent."
"As you wish…" The preacher looked down at the young girl in front of him. "Mr. Noar is a formidable boxer. I doubt you can best him. Are you sure-"
"Oh, yeah." Ruby smiled smugly once again as she pulled out her scroll and pressed a button. The large metal coffin she'd come in with hissed as a panel in the inside slid down to reveal her folded weapon. Ruby looked at the groom seriously as she took it from it's mount and twirled it onto her shoulder before giving him a nod. "Don't worry, I'll only hit you hard enough to win."
Bruce cracked his neck and then his knuckles as he pushed Ruby's taunt aside while looking pointedly at the preacher to get the show started. The preacher sighed as his mind's eye watched his paycheck vanish. "Then let us proceed outside. Blood shalt not be shed on holy ground."