I've said this before, but if you have the time and notice any mistakes, typos etc., do feel free to let me know. I recently learned that I confused the spelling of 'compliment' and 'complement' quite frequently, or, as in the last chapter, failed to capitalise 'Meteor'. The latter isn't as bothersome, but I'd like to keep the quality of this story as good and as accurate as possible (and whether it's 'compliment' which was written 16 times or 'Master' which was written 129 times, I will correct them all). Thanks again to everyone already having pointed something out! Lemme know if you find any more ;)

Wendy Marvel, I'm so glad I made your morning - you made my day! Thank you so much for such an incredibly long review! Also glad to know your browser issue is better now. Thank you so so many mentions on how the characters were in character! That's such a big compliment (see what I did there; smug face)! About the prank, Jellal thinks Meredy only pretends to have planned everything already to tease him; that the wedding is not yet because of how impossibly quick she was. Oh, and thank you so much for your patience! I'm always grateful to know you're okay with me taking so much longer than I used to.

Mitzy123, thank you so much for your review! I'm so happy you liked the animal - Dragon Slayer comment; that was so spontaneous xD Again, Jellal assumes Meredy to be pranking him with the entire 'your wedding's in three days from now'.

Guest lured in by Mitzy-San, (love that name xD), thank you so much for taking the time to review! I really appreciate it! Also love how you immediately adapted the 'Author-San' that's been established xD 'love blasts out for display' still cracks me up xD I'm enjoying myself too much over here... :D thank you also for mentioning that you liked appearances of Crime Sorcière and Laxus! I'll be sure to give them more thought for future scenes - any particularly favourite member you got in mind?

Somnolent Sushi Roll, thank you so much for your review! Don't worry about missing chaps; they'll still be there ;) 'Le fangirl' xD your writing is always hilarious! Another one! 'Le Jerza baby' xD Just the fact that people refer to them as 'Jerza doing this and that' is great :D where he can't quite decipher the list - damn, you really don't miss the tiniest details! And that's a hilarious explanation, I had to snort xD but we'll get to the bottom of it sometime. Yeah, his Disney Princess streak shall continue. Being separated and being told to stay separated is an entirely different thing xD Sadly, the review ended abruptly again but I enjoyed every word of it until then!

foxydame, thank you so much for such a long review! I'm so happy you take so much time to write it! Everyone does it but I just had to grin again at the 'Jerza hating the fact' or 'Jerza getting so sweet' xD love that unity thing. You became so enthusiastic with the owner thing, I'm still laughing xD That's true - Jet was astounded by Jellal's Meteor; I saw that recently and noticed right away - you have such a keen eye! And the prank is Jellal's speculation of Meredy not actually having planned an entire wedding within roughly three days, thinking she's just causing the whole shebang as a charade to play a prank on him.

For maximum impact (and I hope that 'prank' is clear now), I advise to read the last paragraph of the previous chapter again before starting this one (tempted me to do a 'previously on...' :D).

"I can't believe you pulled that off." Jellal blankly stared down the aisle of a perfectly prepared Kardia Cathedral. With a huge grin she had been wearing since leaving the house, Meredy pulled him after her, past the rows of with flowers decorated benches and through a door to the side.

"Ta-dah!" Meredy spread her arms to show off what appeared to be a changing room. His wide eyes trailed from the bathroom door to the desk below the window and the newly added room divider where his neatly ironed suit hung from. "We overthrew the priest and redecorated!" Meredy laughed.

"You what?" Jellal's mind visibly had a hard time with keeping up, his frown intensifying while his eyes grew even further.

"Just kidding," Meredy dragged him out of the doorway, then thrust his suit at him. "He said we could use this for today," she shoved him behind the room divider where he stood for another few moments, completely gobsmacked.

"I…" his body swayed a little from the mental overload. Taking a step forward, he returned to her field of view, staring at her, the suit uselessly hanging from his arm. "I just can't believe you actually pulled this off. I literally cannot believe it," he muttered, somewhat more to himself.

"You said 'quick'," Meredy felt the urge to metaphorically brush off non-existent dust from her shoulder. She really had outdone herself and she was giddy with excitement about her achievement, as well as the actual event.

"I wasn't expecting three days!" Jellal exclaimed, still stiff with confusion. So she shoved him back behind the divider, hanging the suit where he could reach it, tugging on his coat for emphasis.

"I had help," she waved a hand dismissively. "I asked Bisca and Alzack for their wedding preparations list so I wouldn't forget anything. Since the holiday is over, it wasn't too hard to occupy the cathedral," she retold.

"Occupy?"

"Book, occupy… same thing basically," she started to unzip his coat when he remained frozen, tossing it over the backrest of a chair, his scarf following right after. "This is Fairy Tail, remember?" She smirked at his dubiously raised brow. "We're the ones that don't much differ between such similar words," she nodded matter-of-factly.

Then she towed him over to the desk and sat him down, deciding clothes to be the last step – by the time he realised her not to be joking, he would drench everything in nervous sweat.

"The biggest problem was the food," she went on while grabbing a comb, "the invitations and the dress – at least that last one was a problem until I found out Erza already had one," she said while repeatedly getting stuck in messy blue tresses. "It fit her perfectly so we only had some adjustments made, more lace added, yada yada, I can't give you any more spoilers,"

"She already had a wedding dress?" Jellal piped up where he endured her tearing, by far too overwhelmed to complain.

"Yup,"

"Why?"

"Don't ask me, she wouldn't tell," Meredy shrugged, but the crease of his brow did not go unnoticed. So she blabbed on, trying to take his mind off the approaching event for as long as she could. "Then, there was the issue with smuggling in alcohol free drinks – only those for Erza or the others would notice," she explained, gladly noting his eyes to lose their distance. "Mira's really onto you when it comes to that, so watch it at the party,"

"Party?" Jellal frowned up at her and she suppressed a hiss at how it ruined the previously sorted strands.

"Yes, after the ceremony, there will be a party with food and drinks and dancing – you can dance, right?"

"I guess so,"

"Perfect," she inwardly exhaled in relief. Well, there was one thing she had forgotten about, but the story of the Council's gala rushed back in, so she gave herself another mental pat on the shoulder. Of course, she had not forgotten; she had ticked it off as done.

Swiping out her lacrima, Meredy opened the picture she had taken at the barber. Not that it was hard to remember or do but she wanted to be sure not a hair would be out of place. Screwing open the styling gel, she scooped out a hearty portion, scaling it down by half before slapping the remains onto his head.

"Hey, Meredy?"

"Hm?" She stuck out her tongue, forehead wrinkled in concentration.

"Where's Erza?" His voice was quiet, fading into distance again so she stopped slicking back his hair, catching his eyes. They reminded her of that day at the guild where Erza had parked him like a puppy and his gaze would not rest until finding her to be returning.

"Getting ready," she informed, "she'll be here before you know it," she then added, seeing it to be taking a bit of wind out of the sails where his mind was reeling on stormy waves of fear. "Jellal," Meredy leaned down to block out anything but herself, "relax," her eyes softened. "This is your day and it'll be a great one," she offered a smile and it took a moment until he returned it, if weakly.

His chest expanded in a strong inhale but his back did not return to being hunched when he released a deep sigh.

"You're right," the smile reached his eyes as he returned her encouraging one, "this is fine,"

"It's great," she corrected and he muttered something unintelligible. "Great," Meredy repeated, tapping his nose, making him chuckle.

"Right," he glanced away but he kept on smiling.

"You're great," she stressed, "and Erza's great, everyone's great." She nodded, returning to her task of combing slightly sticky jelly through his hair.

"You should take up counselling; you have so many good arguments," he teased and she kicked his shin.

"Glad to see you're better," she snapped but the grin was audible in her tone.

"It's still a little… surreal," Jellal smiled to himself.

"Would you like another reminder?" She lunged her foot once more and he growled a threat she had to laugh at.

"I mean it, this is… really happening," he said, the hint of a quiver in his voice.

"Uhuh,"

"Did you and Ultear have any scenarios on this?"

"On you getting married?"

"I'd appreciate some guidance," his smile returned to uneasy no matter how much he tried to hide it. Meredy tilted her head in thought, steadily working the comb through his hair until there was hardly a trace of glistening substance visible, giving off the effect of naturally flattened hair all the way down the back of his head. He somewhat resembled a soldier, though a darn handsome one, she had to admit. She was glad to know how straightforward and candidly-obsessed Erza was – she would tell him for sure, boosting his seemingly porcelain-made confidence.

"To think I'd ever hear those words from you," she shook her head with a snort of laughter, "and to me of all people," she nudged him when seeing how he was about to defend himself. He knew he did not have to – this was their thing; teasing the other in a most shocking yet harmless way. It was a sign she knew to read by now; the fact that he was insecure about giving a sly comment possibly hurting her a warning signal about his mental state.

He had said quick, she reminded herself as not to feel guilty. And it had been nearly impossible to separate him from Erza for mental preparation. It was too late now anyway, so she decided not to dwell on her hasty yet admittedly flawless execution.

"Well, for a start, your dress was beautiful – a creme-white, a veil as long as-"

"Meredy," he pursed his lips and she bit her own as not to laugh. But his expression fell again, however not as far into the abyss as if had before. "Erza's going to wear a veil, too, right?" He asked a little stupidly. Stupidly in love, that was, his smile returning in a clandestinely shy, adorable way. Meredy's warm smile sharpened.

"'Too'?" She raised a brow and he grumbled incomprehensibly, a faint blush crowning his cheeks.

"Now you've gotten this image into my head!" He complained. "But I'm glad you've never told me this before – Erik would've had his fun with watching me walk down the aisle in a white dress," he rolled his eyes. "Is he really not coming?"

"Apparently not, no," Meredy shrugged, putting the comb aside. "How about I tell you about today instead?" She offered when his brow would not cease to furrow. She then took a picture of his hair before picking up the waist-high mirror from where it stood in the corner. "In about three quarters of an hour, you'll be dressed up and posh and ready to go," she said with such vigour, she saw him nod absently while regarding his reflection. So far, so good. If she kept this up, he might gather some courage to actually go through with it.

Not for the first time did Meredy wonder how Erza managed, understanding more and more what an adamant and devoted bond the two shared, tangled and tensed over the years but never tearing, never overstrained to an extend where she was not his light and he not her other half. It was what convinced Meredy that no matter how nervous he would get, he would see it through.

Craning his neck this way and that, Jellal watched himself with critical fascination, though undoubtedly impressed. She wanted to whoop out loud.

"The guests will have arrived by then but not before the next half an hour," she continued instead, making sure to include as many soothing details as she could. He was looking good – more than good – and he acknowledged it. They still had time when all there remained to do was for him to don his suit and her to brief him about the order of events.

"You didn't invite the Council, did you?"

"Of course not, you told me not to," Meredy assured while propping the mirror up where he could still catch glimpses of himself – keeping up that confidence. "They probably don't know at all; Jason said he'll respect your decision and not publish anything yet,"

"Yet?" Jellal frowned.

"Until the day comes where you'll agree; he just wants to keep a photo for exclusive publishing should you decide that you do allow him to put it in the Sorcerer Weekly,"

"He can wait a long time for that,"

"He'll have to live with it," Meredy grabbed a pair of mulberry courts she had yet to break in. Having found them had been too big a task already – who sold purple shoes, anyway? She was only glad that the other girls had had to buy their own clothes, everyone somehow having found a more or less plum-coloured outfit to match the theme Meredy was still rather proud of.

Starting to pace, she felt his puzzled gaze, hoping dearly not to be grating at his nerves.

"You also told me that you didn't want any vows so I struck that from the programme," she explained. "I'm wearing them in, don't look at me like that," she put a hand on her hip, noting with relief how his shoulders fell. He really was jumpy, the entire concept starting to sink in.

"Isn't that breaking tradition? Won't people start wondering…?" Jellal shrunk as his head lowered but she snapped her fingers to keep his back straight and his mind in the present.

"Hardly anyone who's coming has ever even been told of a wedding, let alone been to one – no one will notice," she promised with a smile, then resumed clacking her heels across the stone flooring. "And you're getting married in a cathedral without being religious so I thought we'd cleared that whole tradition thingy up already," she reminded and he grimaced to himself.

"Right," Jellal watched his hands clench and unclench instead of her treading. "'God' and I haven't exactly been on good terms… ever," he muttered and she knew he was referring to his possession by the 'Ghost of Zeref' or God, as Ultear had called it.

"Master will be waiting for you at the altar. He will hold the ceremony and pronounce you husband and wife once you've exchanged the rings," she went on as not to harp on about his miserable past. "There's nothing to worry about there – he will ask you to repeat something after him and say the famous 'I do' but he announces all of those things so you don't have to practise. It's always done like that," she added when he seemed a little embarrassed by the detailed guidance. "Master will also be the one to lead Erza down the aisle so patience is in order. Ought'a give you enough time to watch her in the dress," she winked and he glanced away to hide his blush, something she found as puzzling as it was cute.

But this was Jellal after al,l and once again, she admired Erza for her inexorability when her quite-soon-to-be husband was still shy about showing his affection not half an hour before the wedding.

"After the ceremony, there'll be a carriage waiting for you outside, where everything is currently gorgeously lit by the New Year's fairy lights," she smiled proudly at such a clever use of the circumstances, "and the driver – none other than yours truly," she put a hand to her chest with a smug smirk, "will bring you to the guild hall where we'll all propose a toast. I'll say something to embarrass you-"

"Hey!"

"And then the two of you will open the dance before everyone can join in," Meredy checked off the list that was burnt into her mind by now. "As maid of honour, I'll be dancing with the best man, which could prove complicated since Erza chose Natsu and Gray to be sharing the task," she put two fingers to her chin, momentarily forgetting about her shoes, standing still. "But anyway, the protocol ends there and you'll be free to do whatever you want," she grinned, folding her hands behind her back.

"Already?"

"Yup,"

"Huh…" Jellal blinked at his boots in thought. "So technically, we could leave?"

"Yes, Jellal, you could," Meredy raised her brows, her voice drawling to let him know just how unwanted that question was. "Though there is another tradition once you get home…" she let one brow sink and he leaned back in slight unease. "Better ask someone who's not me," she turned to proceed marching.

"Ah," he caught on, averting his gaze, not that she was meeting it. Then he stood, taking another deep inhale before stepping behind the room divider. Fabric rustled and Meredy smiled to herself. Accepting fate as usual. She knew he wanted this – only not exactly this way. But he was being brave, putting up with what dragged him so far out of his comfort zone. She could not wait to see him finally enjoying himself.

"Hey, Meredy," Jellal raised his voice as he stepped out in his jetblack suit and tie. Her smile widened, even more at his words. "Ultear would be very proud," he returned her smile softly. Before she knew it, he was right in front of her, a tight hug momentarily pressing the air out of her lungs. Leaning into it, her arms came up to hug him back in the least-clothes-crinkling manner she could. "Thank you, Meredy," he whispered, broadening her smile.

"What are friends for?" She said with a teasing spark, though her eyes were closed, savouring the calm before the storm. The payoff of her hard work – it had all been worth it. It warmed her to know it was reaching him, too.

"I'm… I'm getting married…" he breathed above her, a slight stutter chopping his sentence.

Opening her mouth to reply, Meredy was interrupted by the door opening. Noise reached them, a racket of voices and what sounded like flames, solid objects crashing.

"Something you'd like to tell me?" Laxus wrinkled his brow at their embrace, the closing door muffling the sounds that were suddenly very present to their ears. Letting go, Meredy exchanged a glance with Jellal before she went past Laxus, ignoring the comment.

She winced once she caught sight of the scene inside the cathedral's nave.

Most of the Fairy Tail Wizards who had arrived were standing by now, a cluster forming around the left front of the benches where the main brawl was taking place. Most prominently was the white dress of the bride, a slit torn from the thigh down, half of the skirt burnt off while partly still in flames.

With one hand, Erza had a tight grasp of Gray, his somewhat limp form being raked at by his hair. Juvia cried for her beloved, clinging to his leg, her wailing drowning in Titania's booming voice and overall chaos.

"You spit out that ring this instant!" Erza hollered at Natsu who already looked quite beat up by her other hand, more than ready to spill his guts.

Meredy winced again when Erza suddenly summoned a sword – not that it did not go splendidly with the dress – and her grimace worsened as she realised Jellal to be standing behind her.

"I'll put an end to this," Laxus growled as he strutted over to the altar. Balling his fist, he lunged his arm into the air. Freed jumped up from where he had been steering off the chaos, hectically holding up both hands.

"No, Laxus, there's-" Lightning struck, right down onto the Dragon Slayer, electrifying the air, making everyone freeze or at least look up, halting their actions. The girls shrieked shortly – all but Erza who furiously spun to throw daggers with her eyes at whomever dared interrupt her.

"Metal above…" Freed finished once silence returned. Not a second later, the enormous cathedral's bell crushed down onto the altar, right behind where Laxus stood. Even his eyes were wide with shock, all of Fairy Tail staring at the giant heap of metal and stone, now debris and a veil of dust that slowly settled.

Music started playing all of a sudden, fading out just as awkwardly when the musicians realised not to have been called upon at the noise which had awoken them.

Then silence engulfed them.

The shadow over her disappeared. Her heart lurched in sudden panic, but before Meredy had fully turned around, Jellal was gone from where he had watched, the bathroom door closing. The lock clicked. Cursing inwardly, her expression contorting in concern and pity, Meredy hurried to the door, finding it locked, just as she had assumed. With a shaking sigh, she put her forehead to it.

"Jellal," she tried, naturally not being met with a reply. So she stepped back, poking her head back out to catch a slightly sheepish, mostly defiant Lightning Dragon Slayer's gaze, urgently glancing from him to Erza.

Understanding – not least rolling his eyes – Laxus placed a hand on Erza's shoulder, bending down to whisper close to her. Her eyes widened, ears perking and her brow immediately furrowed in worry. With a last precise punch to Natsu's lower abdomen, the ring was sent flying out of his mouth where Happy caught it mid-air. But she was already on her way across carpet, flashing a glance at Meredy who returned it sadly, gulping when the Queen of the Fairies jerked at the handle that would not budge.

Her voice was soft, if not a little broken, a plea of sympathetic desperation.

"Jellal…"