Here it was; August 15th, 2020. Joe and Von Kaiser were going to get married today.

Everyone was up bright and early to get ready. Amélie, Gabby Jay, and Chloé arrived at the house with breakfast bagels. "Ceci c'est vraiment se passe," said Amélie. "Mon bebe va être marié." (This is really happening. My baby's getting married.)

"Nous sommes tous excités," said Gabby Jay, easing his sister's nerves. (We're all excited.) He helped Joe into his tuxedo, while Amélie and Chloé prettied up Katrina.

"Oncle Gabriel, tous mes nerfs sont tendus," said Joe. "Ceci c'est un des jours les plus importants dans ma vie." (Uncle Gabriel, all my nerves are shot. This is one of the most important days of my life.)

"Ta mère était la même le jour de son mariage," said Gabby Jay. "Elle me dit qu'au moment où tu vois ton fiancé à l'autel, tes anxiétés ont disparu, et tu es blessé avec la meilleure joie au monde." (Your mother was the same on her wedding day. She told me that the moment you see your fiance at the altar, your anxieties melt away, and you're blessed with the greatest joy in the world.)

"Mais papa nous a abandonnés," said Joe. (But dad abandoned us.)

"C'est vrai," said Gabby Jay, "mais est Viktor comme ton père?" (That's true, but is Viktor like your father?)

Joe was quiet for a moment, but shook his head.

"Exactement," said Gabby Jay, who continued combing his nephew's hair.


In a little bungalow, Von Kaiser was prepping himself for the wedding with his brother Miles and niece Adalaide. "Es ist sehr nett von Ihnen, dass Sie uns in Ihr altes Zuhause einziehen lassen," said Miles. (It's very kind of you to let us move into your old home.)

"Nun ja, jemand musste es übernehmen, da ich bei Joseph und Katrina einziehe," said Von Kaiser. "Außerdem können wir so näher zusammenleben." (Well, someone had to take it, since I'm moving in with Joseph and Katrina. This way, we can live closer together.)

"Ich mag mein neues Kleid," said Adelaide. (I like my new dress.)

"Ja," said Miles. "Bist du bereit, deine Gedichte zu lesen?" (Are you ready to read your poems?)

Before Adalaide could answer, there was a knock at the door. She went and opened it. "Ah, Louise," said Von Kaiser. "Komm rein." (Come in.)

"Wer ist das?" Miles asked. (Who is this?)

"Katrinas Großmutter," said Von Kaiser. "Da Mum nicht hier ist, fungiert sie als meine Mutter des Bräutigams." (Katrina's grandmother. Since Mum isn't here, she's acting as my Mother of the Groom.)


At nine o'clock, everyone met at the flower garden's meeting hall to make sure everything was ready for the wedding to start at ten. "Viens, vous deux," said Gina, bringing Katrina and Annie over to give them their flower crowns. (Come on, you two.)

However, there was a slight problem; while Katrina had wavy hair that laid flat on her head, Annie had an afro, and the flower crown wouldn't fit around it. Gina tried to fit the crown around the afro, but it simply wouldn't budge.

"Let me help," said Marie, taking the crown from her stepmother. She picked the flowers out of the crown and arranged them into Annie's hair. "There. Perfect."

Connor then toddled over to them. Marie kneeled down to his level. "You know what your job is?"

"Pick up pedals off the gwass," said Connor.

"That's right," said Marie.


It was ten o'clock; time for the wedding to begin. Blaine and Bald Bull ushered everyone into their seats so the ceremony could start. First came Matron of Honour Pierce, walking officiant Hoy Quarlow to the altar so he could marry the loving couple. Next came Von Kaiser, with Louise by his side. He stood at the altar and waited for his husband-to-be.

Next came the groomsmen and groomsmaid; Bear Hugger walked with Miles, Mr. Sandman walked with Gina, and Soda Popinski walked with Piston Hondo. Katrina and Annie followed them, scattering rose and tulip petals. Connor tailed behind them, picking stray petals off the grass and putting them back on the path. Marie kept him on the path while walking Adalaide to her place.

Then came Flying Feather and her wife Lucy. They waved their twin rainbow flags in the air. "Here comes the groom!"

Sure enough, there came Joe with Amélie on his arm. He found that Gabby Jay was right; now that he could see Von Kaiser waiting for him at the altar, he wasn't scared anymore.

"Ladies and gentlemen," said Hoy Quarlow, "we are gathered here today to join these two men in holy matrimony."

Von Kaiser delivered his vows first. "Joseph, ich kann mir mein Leben ohne dich nicht vorstellen. Solange ich dich kenne, warst du nichts als nett zu mir. Ich gelobe, dich vor Schaden zu bewahren, an deiner Seite zu sein, wenn du krank bist, und dich in all unseren Kämpfen zu begleiten." (Joseph, I can't imagine my life without you. As long as I've known you, you've been nothing but kind to me. I vow to keep you safe from harm, to be by your side when you are ailing, and care for you through all our hardships.)

Joe wrung his hands as he delivered his vows. "Viktor, tu étais là depuis toute ma carrière. Tu tiens vraiment à ma fille et moi-même. Je promets d'être là quand tu me besoin, d'être ton épaule pour pleurer, et…" He hiccupped, his voice wavering a bit. "...de t'adore pour le reste de ma vie." (Viktor, you've been there for my whole career. You really care about my daughter and myself. I promise to be there when you need me, to be your shoulder to cry on, and to love you for the rest of my life.)

"Viktor," said Hoy, "do you take Joseph to be your lawfully wedded husband?"

"Ja," said Von Kaiser.

"And Joseph, do you take Viktor to be your lawfully wedded husband?"

"Oui," said Joseph, tears starting to flow down his face.

"Then with the power vested in me, I pronounce you husbands. You may kiss the groom."

Joe glomped onto Von Kaiser and the two passionately kissed. The entire party erupted into loud cheers.


After the chairs and altar had been put away and the flower petals picked up to go into the compost, the wedding party moved to the reception at a community hall. Everyone ate a nice lunch of hochzeitssuppe, filet mignon, and black forest wedding cake while listening to Adalaide recite some love poems.

"यह पहला गाना सुखी जोड़े को जाता है; जो और विक्टर!" (This first song goes to the happy couple; Joe and Viktor!) The lights dimmed to a deep purple, and Joe and Viktor stepped into the middle of the room for the first dance. They felt as if the whole world had disappeared around them. Just each other, and a gentle slow song.

However, as all songs do, it eventually came to an end, and Joe looked up at everyone in the room. Amélie, Louise, Gina, Blaine, and Miles sharing some banter about their children, Katrina and Annie taking selfies together, Connor, Adalaide, and Emma playing Pokémon Sun and Moon at the kids table, Lizzie and Marlowe holding a candle and softly talking to each other (he guessed a prayer to Heather), Mr. Carmichael, Mrs. Carmichael, and Mrs. Jennings goofing around stacking corn chips, Chloé and Natsumi laughing together while Don tried some of his pick-up lines on Natsumi, and the boxers and their spouses just enjoying the party and celebrating that their coworkers were getting married.

"चलो, अब सब नाचो!" (Come on, everyone dance now!) The other couples joined the two on the dance floor. Hey, if they were getting married, they might as well enjoy it!


The evening had come. The last few remaining guests were helping clean up.

"Before you go," said Hoy Quarlow to the Beaufort-Kaiser family, "you'll need to sign these." He presented them with a marriage license and a certificate officially making Von Kaiser Katrina's legal parent. They gleefully signed off all the papers, and with that, Joe and Von Kaiser left the hall to set off for their honeymoon, while Katrina left with Gina to spend that time with her family.