Rory wasn't entirely sure when the last wedding she'd been to was. Definitely over a year. Usually when she was attending a wedding, she knew at least one half of the couple, but this time she was a plus one and definitely ready to revel in that kind of anonymity ... even if she was sure she'd get introduced around by her fiancee. A destination wedding had sounded like a great idea to Rory at one time, before they had just made the logical decision to have a very small wedding with only the closest people in their lives. Rory always thought that the destination part of the wedding was in part to get rid of the people some felt obligated to invite, but didn't really want to. She kind of loved that she and Maris just decided to go with their gut.

It was exciting to be out, so much was changing in their lives and a little break from the move and the wedding if only to enjoy each others' company (and some good old fashioned judgement of other wedding choices) was exactly what she needed. Rory wore her hair down and went against the soft pink dress she'd considered before picking a blue one she hadn't worn in well over a year. Not new for her (it was a school gala she'd worn it to before), but it thrilled her that it was new to Maris.

"You're going to have to describe the people you know to me, cause I'm going to be shit with names." She murmured to Maris as they walked into the ceremony seating, her fingers laced through Maris' as she was handed a program. She thanked the usher, but turned to Maris and raised her eyebrows, holding the program up. "Programs." She bit back a giggle, but immediately started looking over it.

Maris wasn't sure she'd be much help in the name department either. The wedding was huge and filled with people she hadn't really talked to in years. She'd known the groom, Ben since childhood. The Jewish kids (in their admittedly predominately Jewish neighborhood) had sort of been constantly pushed together, either through community events or their parents' meddling. She'd been forced to go to Ben's birthday parties as a child. It sort of made sense that she'd be obligated to go to his wedding as an adult.

She knew nothing about the girl Ben was marrying, which she was almost grateful for. Because it meant she wouldn't feel bad snarking on her what already seemed to be terrible taste.

An outdoor wedding? At a castle? In July!? Okay, the weather in England was milder than any of them were used to in the middle of summer but it was humid, especially since the wedding was being held in the afternoon. Not to mention the fact that Maris constantly found herself dabbing at the corners of her eyes, her allergy medicine basically useless because she was sitting in the middle of a sea of trees spewing pollen.

It was exactly the sort of wedding they had taken care to avoid.

She took her seat, grateful they were set up in rows of two so they wouldn't have to sit next to anyone else, peering over Rory's shoulder to get a good look at the program. She wasn't that curious about what Ben and Beth (oh, how cute) had planned. She mostly wanted to see what they'd have to put on theirs. Her voice was soft as she idly read the details aloud.

"Ceremony preformed by Rabbi..." She came to a sudden stop, letting out an audible gasp.

"They hired rabbi Psychopath," she hissed. "The mean one! The mean one I told you about from Hebrew school!"

Immediately upon looking around the packed venue, Rory felt a big wave of relief flood her that she and Maris had opted out of a giant wedding. She couldn't imagine how overwhelming this many guests would be for a bride or groom, but had to wonder if they even could enjoy the wedding at all. But as grateful as she was for their far calmer wedding plans, she really did love the atmosphere of excitement that filled teh venue.

Even if a castle was a bit much.

"Babe is it too late to switch for a palace? I think we could really go with some Italian marble and high beams." She kept her tone quiet, just for Maris' ears lest someone catch on that they were going to be very judgey over this event.

Rory peered at the name of the Rabbi as soon as Maris stopped talking, her brows raised with the question. "Did they fly him all the way out here? That's ... commitment." She laughed softly, making a face as she thought about the stories Maris told her about.

"Oh, they're having a reading. How ... long is a ceremony supposed to be?" Rory sort of figured the bulk of a ceremony would be the actual wedding, the officiant doing much of the preamble, and then the couple exchanging their vows. She wasn't entirely sure how long she'd be able to stand it before she'd break down and want to steal a kiss from her to-be wife.

"Don't even joke," Maris said, the heat, crowd and constant barrage of pollen making her a bit snappy. As pretty as the wedding was (she had to admit Ben's chuppah was gorgeous, the sort she wanted with lush greenery and flowers braided through) it seemed to be her own personal version of hell.

Flying out your childhood rabbi (especially when no one in their Hebrew class seemed to like him) did seem a bit much, but it made a certain sort of sense. Maris knew that if she and Rory had opted for a Jewish ceremony, calling up rabbi Weiss was simply the thing to do, no matter her personal opinion of the man. It was sort of well, expected he would be there on the next step of her journey since he had guided her through the ceremony that ushered her into adulthood. With a kind, loving mentor, she could appreciate the sort of full circle aspect, but with him....

A plump woman in a floral dress interrupted her train of thought. "Maris!? Oh, that is you. I didn't recognize you without..."

Miss Ruth, an elderly friend of her grandfather's beamed at the two of them. "What happened to all your pretty hair!? You should have made it into a wig for me, I was always so jealous."

Even though Maris liked her hair now and thought the formerly waist length hair she'd kept for most of her childhood had been more trouble than it was worth, she couldn't help but smile. Ms. Ruth had always showered her with compliments, often gushing over how pretty she was. Her father and grandfather praised her smarts above all else. That was how she preferred it but...she would have been lying if she didn't like hearing how beautiful she was too. Those kind of compliments were just as important for a young girl to receive and Ruth always made sure Maris got them in spades.

"How's your father? Is he well?"

"He's fine," she assured her. "He just couldn't make the trip."

A bit more small talk was exchanged. Ruth's knee was bothering her, but she was hanging in there. Her sister had moved to Florida. Her grandson was going to Brown.

And Maris was getting married.

"Ruth, this is my fiancee, Rory."

Ruth gasped. "Oh, your aunt did say something! Hello, hello. I've known Maris a very long time. In fact, I remember when your parents brought you home screaming like a banshee! I was keeping Adam company on the porch and...." She gasped as someone else came into her line of vision. "Eli Rosenthal, you better say hello to me first! We're cousins, after all."

He came up beside Ruth, but it was clear that Rory and his best friend were really who he had been approaching.

"Hi, Ruth," he said, pulling her into a hug. "My mom's over by the program table if you want to chat."

"I'll talk to you two later," Ruth said. "Lovely to meet you, Rory."

Maris was about to thank Eli for saving her because as much as she liked Ruth, the older woman could definitely be a talker but he narrowed his eyes at her immediately.

"You need to talk to your friend," he snapped.

"Wow, hi. Hello, Eli, nice to see you. I'm fine, thanks."

"Hi, Rory, you look nice," he said, his smile and compliment genuine before turning his attention to Maris again. "You know what I'm talking about."

Maris groaned. "You two are blowing this way out of proportion."

"She signed me up for emails with David's Bridal!"

Maris laughed. "Oh my god, really." She bit back a laugh, shaking her head. "Honestly, that's....terrible."

"Tell Jenna to cut the shit, Mari!"

Eli's little outburst earned him a disapproving look from a passing sixty something and Maris'expression wasn't much softer.

"You talk to her! I'm not getting in the middle of this. Now come on. Just...calm and sit down in front of us. Go get your mom so I can introduce her to Rory."

Rory couldn't help but chuckle a little at Maris' immediate veto of her outlandish idea. "Alright, we'll stick with what we've got." She smirked, squeezing Maris' hand.

When their attention was immediately stolen by the older woman who seemed ready to launch into her entire stream of consciousness, Rory just stood there with an amused smile on her face, greeting her when she was introduced. Rory figured she would be doing a lot of this - standing by as Maris greeted old friends and acquaintances, but she also kind of loved it. For as warm and friendly as Rory usually was, it felt kind of nice to just stand with Maris as her fiancee, and watch how she interacted with people who had known her through all different times of her life.

But then there was Eli. Rory was immediately delighted to see their friend - well a friends he claimed as hers now, too, anyway. She grinned when he arrived, hugging him in the time it took for Ruth to head off.

And here it was. Rory snickered a little at Eli's distress, unable to help herself. "You know you can hit unsubscribe, right?" It was meant to be helpful but probably ... wasn't.

Rory wasn't going to say it, but part of her really did wonder if this was some antiquated version of pulling pigtails and stealing playground toys from each other.

"Sorry Eli, I cannot spare Maris for a single second. We are deep into wedding scouting." It was true enough, but also an attempt at a save for her fiancee.

Maris may have initially found Eli & Jenna fighting for her #1 friend position sort of endearing, but she'd long since reached her limit as far as their squabbles were concerned. In truth, they'd never really gotten along. They were too different. But they did share a certain sort of infuriating stubbornness that made their arguments that much worse.

"You don't want us sitting over here anyway," Eli said.

"What? Why not?" As annoyed as she was with her best friend, Maris was eager to see him and his mom. She always adored Miriam and it only seemed fitting to introduce her to Rory since she'd found herself mentioning her more than once lately.

"Ezra and Shosh came with us."

Maris' nose wrinkled immediately. "Ew, why!?"

"Ben's my cousin, remember?"

"You have too many cousins," she muttered under her breath, running a hand through her hair before speaking up again. "Fine, just...find us at the reception? And bring your mom!"

Eli gave Maris a quick hug before disappearing back into the crowd. Maris' eyes followed as he left, nodding toward the little group he'd joined before she launched into an exploitation.

"Remember I told you Eli's older brother was an asshole?"

Ezra was something of the golden child of the Rosenthal family, the tall, handsome jock that was almost always elevated to greatness by his family and peers. Ezra was a jerk who had always picked on Eli and said some truly disgusting things once he'd found out his brother was bi. Maris' best friend had never really liked when she tried to stand up for him, but she did her best anyway, eventually learning that Ezra was the sort of toxic person it was best to just...avoid if at all possible. Eli usually did the same, but he was family and situations like their current one were sometimes unavoidable.

Maris was pleased to see that Ezra's hairline was receding, further proof that he had really married above his station. His wife, Shoshanna was beautiful, her long brown hair falling in natural waves that had never seen a hint of frizz. She was sweet to boot and Maris had never quite understood why she had chosen a jerk like Ezra.

Ezra might have been an asshole, but he had gorgeous children and judging from the slight bump sticking out from under Shosh's maxi dress, another on the way. Eli's niece and nephew, Hannah and Tobias (Tobey for short) were barely out of the toddler stage and currently wiggling out of their seats. Chubby with big brown eyes and unruly curls, they were enough to melt anyone's heart. Even Maris' because she'd been a total sucker for Hannah from the moment Eli showed her a photograph about three months into the dark period and long before she'd caught her current strain of baby fever.

"God, they're like Duggars," she muttered under her breath, watching the Rosenthals like animals in a zoo. She was morbidly fascinated, but as Hannah, already tired rested her head in the crook of Shosh's neck and closed her eyes to take a quick nap there was a pang of... almost jealousy there too.

Maris shook her head as if to will it away, then gave Rory her full attention. "Still think just going down to city hall is a bad idea?" she said dryly, circling the conversation back around to just how annoyed the whole Eli and Jenna debacle made her.

If nothing else, Rory wouldn't have any of this bickering around their actual wedding. She and Maris had said time and again that all they wanted for their wedding was a lack of stress, an easy day filled with their most loved ones. If it looked like they were still carrying on closer to the date, it would be a moment where Rory might actually say something, even if they were Maris' friends first. It all came down to the way she felt protective over her fiancee.

Rory laughed as their encounter ended and Eli was gone in another moment. "Oh, yes I do remember that." Rory made a little face and glanced away as though she could actually pick this stranger out of a crowd of ... more strangers.

And because Maris loved Eli, Rory had grown to love and adore the man as well. She remembered the stories that Maris told her about Eli's older brother and to say that she was less than impressed would be an understatement. Rory realized that while she and her sister were very different and certainly had their disagreements, they got along really well.

Rory's gaze followed Maris' over to the kids fussing in their seats with whom she assumed were Ezra and his wife. "Should we give them a run for their money? Start with eight kids and see how many more we can fit in?" Rory asked with a cheeky grin, reaching over and taking Maris' hand. Her fingers easily thread through Maris', giving her a squeeze as she leaned over and pressed a quick kiss to her temple. "For the record I've never thought that was a bad idea." She said with a grin, reaching over and brushing her thumb over the soft smudge her kiss had left.

"Eli's brother isn't invited to our wedding." She murmured quietly, making a face as though that were actually an option.

Rory's offer was a dangerous one given Maris' state of mind lately. But she wasn't far gone enough to think they needed more than (sort of unofficially agreed upon) two kids when the time came.

Even if she'd sort of started hoping time would move quickly on that front and that she would go first. "Only if we can make sure they look like baby hobbits too," she joked, giving Rory's hand a little squeeze. "Oh, that's definitely a given. But his mom's cool. You'll see."

Eventually the ceremony started. Even though it was being held at a castle it seemed strangely rustic, with Ben and his groomsmen wearing tan vests and suspenders rather than tuxes. Flowers, mostly sunflowers and daisies spilled out onto every surface and were probably half the reason Maris was suffering from watery eyes and the faint twinge of a soon to be allergy induced migraine.

Beth's bridesmaids were all in yellow dresses. Maris didn't mind the shade. It was pastel, muted rather than obnoxiously bright but they had the sort of gathered, puffy sleeved milk maid tops that were trendy at the moment.

Which meant Ben and Beth's wedding photos would probably look dated in five years. Maris noticed, with a sort of smug satisfaction, that she came down the aisle to Pachelbel's Canon played on some far off stereo. She smirked, giving Rory a look, already sure that their grand entrance would be better.

And not just because they were getting a string quartet too.

Beth's dress was precisely the sort of fluffy nightmare Maris found herself scrolling right past. It was a vaguely yellowish shade of off white with long, Grace Kelly (or Kate Middleton, take your pick) like lace sleeves. It flared out into a massive poofy skirt, not only dripping in lace, but dotted with oversized pearls that bunched up the material in places. It was... a lot.

Whether it was nerves or her massive dress, Beth (and her parents, a Jewish tradition that Ben and his followed too) seemed to take a while to get down the aisle and Maris' stomach sank a bit when the rabbi started the ceremony.

Rabbi Weiss' gravelly voice had haunted her dreams well into adulthood.

He immediately launched into a grand speech about how Beth and Ben were standing under the chuppah and on the brink of a new life together and how fitting that was because it symbolized the home they would build.

It was a nice sentiment and why a chuppah was one of the few Jewish traditions Maris wanted to keep for their ceremony, but she couldn't help but groan.

"Oy vey," Maris muttered, a bit of Jewish sarcasm never seeming more appropriate as she Rory a look saying that this was bound to take a while.

Most Jewish ceremonies didn't have traditional (or at least very long) exchanges of vows. But they still ate up time in other ways and Maris' old teacher had never passed up an opportunity to hear himself talk.

Maris had always been something special to Rory, and that fact only grew the longer they were together - and now together again. The fact alone that they had come to a place where they could think about, and then dream about their future children delighted her to no end.

She was joking about the kids, but honestly sometimes she caught herself looking at a little child who ran by them in a park or like now, imagining what their little ones would look like, what their temperaments would be, how much of a crazy person she'd be for love of them. It was exciting, but they had some things to get to before then.

"Naturally. Curly mopheads or bust."

She liked the dressed-down formal that the event fashion boasted, and thought naturally back to which dress she was circling ... or maybe that other one. She pursed her lips together as she caught Maris' eye. Yes, their whole entrance would be stellar.

Rory paid full attention to the ceremony, fascinated by the parts that weren't in many weddings she'd been to, and maybe a little bored at some others. Her lips pressed into a tight smile in order to keep herself from laughing at Maris' muttering. Yeah, it would take quite some time, wouldn't it? Rory knew she'd never have the patience.

Despite feeling a bit ridiculous, Rory dabbed at the corner of her eyes with a tissue she'd pulled from her clutch, and felt even more silly because she wasn't even particularly moved by Ben and Beth - who were of course, lovely. No, as the ceremony went on, it simply got Rory thinking about their upcoming day and how it would feel to be up there with Maris.

She squeezed her Maris' tightly and leaned into her a bit more, not even caring that the ceremony was going long.

Beth & Ben's ceremony wasn't much different than any other Jewish one Maris had been to. They'd nixed some traditions she hated, but also seemingly forgot one she liked. She found herself hoping The Seven Blessings would make some sort appearance, if only in wedding toasts so Rory could hear them. And that everyone was using a shorter, more modern, English interpretation because she just didn't have it in her to wade through Hebrew and explain them to her fiancee. She even was even confident in her translating abilities with the rabbi around.

They were really more like guidelines anyway.

Luckily the vows were brief and even Maris wasn't immune to them.

"With this ring, you are made holy to me, for I love you as my soul. You are now my
husband."

"With this ring, you are made holy to me, for I love you as my soul. You are now my wife."

Maris throat tightened, Beth's vows obviously striking a chord the way Ben's hadn't, the word wife hanging in the air as she leaned over and pressed a soft kiss to Rory's temple, lacing their fingers more firmly together.

The glass was smashed and Maris echoed the chorus of mazel tovs, playfully bumping her forehead against Rory's with a soft grin to say they'd made it through.

Rory was never more glad to have a firm hold of Maris' hand throughout the ceremony, especially as she listened to their vows. She felt her breath hitch a little bit, completely involuntary. It made her feel a little bit ridiculous, but just the way it sounded really struck her.

When Beth repeated the words, Rory leaned over and rested her cheek against Maris' shoulder, reveling in the feel of her so close and the glowy mood it put her in. Rory was a sentimental sort, that much was true, but this felt different, richer, packed with the potential of what they had yet to come.

Her thumb brushed a soft pattern over Maris' as she joined in with the cheering with everyone else. But the moment just after felt like a moment entirely seized by the two of them. She grinned, her own eyes glassy with tears as she pressed a quick kiss to her fiancee's lips. "I loved those words they used." She said against Maris' ear as the noise grew around them. She wouldn't mind adding those to her own vows.

"I liked them too," she said softly, surprised that she did. There wasn't a traditional set of Jewish vows (well, apart from some wildly outdated sentiment about the laws of Israel that no one, not even stuffy rabbi Weiss) used, so she had heard plenty of couples put their own spin on them over the years.

She liked Ben & Beth's best.

The reception was only a few feet away. Food was now spread out on tables under huge canopies strung with strings of fairy lights that would only look better as the sun finally set and the night wore on. She laced her fingers with Rory's as they took the short walk into the party area, taking a minute to sign the little chalkboard Ben and Beth set out.

Maris smirked as she read the quote written in the middle of it. I have found the one my soul loves. It was from the Song of Solomon, the occasionally smutty poem she had read to Rory. It only proved her right, that it was practically a cliche when it came to Jewish weddings, but she liked it, especially the excerpt the couple choose, too. It echoed their vows nicely and it was a sentiment she could agree with as far as her own relationship was concerned.

Maris hadn't exactly kept in contact with Ben over the years. They were friends as kids, but no one ever really managed to penetrate the bubble Maris and Eli had built around themselves since childhood. There had been no need to widen their inner circle (even if Ben was, technically, Eli's cousin) when they had everything in each other. In truth, she didn't even know how Ben and his now wife had gotten together or even how long they had been, but she liked their taste.

Well, in words, anyway.

The wedding was a slice of rustic, pinterest hell (though the theme was more tastefully done than she'd ever seen it), the tables covered in burlap with beat up looking birdcages filled with flowers and glowing lights in the center.

"So, it's....a castle.....but a farm," Maris murmured in Rory's ear as they took their seat. The table arrangements were cozy. With only four chairs to a table, Maris was grateful when Eli swooped in, placing a beer down to claim the third at theirs. It meant they wouldn't have to deal with too many people they didn't like.

"Where did you get that?!"

"The bar's already open. Be right back, I wanna go say hey to Levi."

Maris shook her head, laughing as her friend disappeared again before giving her fiancee her full attention, softening a little as she realized just how choked up her fiancee had been because her make up had faded ever so slightly. "It was a nice ceremony," she admitted softly (and somewhat begrudgingly), pressing a kiss to Rory's forehead.

Rory had kind of figured that they'd end up collecting bits and pieces to go into their vows, be it from quotes they loved, people they admired, books that resonated with them. All to accompany what was just in her heart already. She'd remember these ones, most definitely.

The fairy lights might have been a bit cliche, but Rory had to admit that she really loved the look at the atmosphere they helped create. Holding fast to Maris' hand, she felt like she was taking in everything with a particular attention to detail. Hey they had to see what good ideas they could borrow, right?

While Rory wasn't entirely sure that even her soft heart she believed in something like soulmates, she knew beyond any doubt that Maris was her person. Whether or not they had been hand crafted for each other in some godly way or simply found each other through all the struggles and the trials that life put up for them to conquer. Rory knew that the sentiment in that poem was very much true for them, too. She loved Maris down to the depths of her soul, and that was never going to change. It never had.

"They should have stopped at the lights, to be honest." Rory said quietly, reaching out to pick up the table number that was printed on what looked like a shard of wood. They really had gone all out.

Rory just laughed as Eli came and went, shaking her head with Maris. "He's like a pingpong ball." But she was glad to have more of Maris to herself. "It really was." She agreed, brushing her fingers along Maris' forearm as she stayed in close. "Ours will be miles better though."

Even though Maris was clearly his favorite person, Eli had always been the more sociable of the two. Maris was happy to let her best friend go because this was the sort of event he actually liked and thrived at. She liked having Rory to herself for the moment. She also liked not having to address the wedding party drama she was sure would resurface again for the time being.

More people seemed to have caught on that the bar was open. With a small line forming and no real need for a bit of alcohol just yet, Maris decided to hold off

"A thousand times better," she said with a knowing nod, the fact that Beth & Ben entered the party to Uptown Funk only strengthening her hypothesis.

"Well, that's just horrifying," she murmured, sort of bracing herself for some sort of choreographed dance that (thankfully) never came. They shifted into their first dance instead, some sappy country number that helped the decor make a bit more sense.

"Oh, Ben must have found himself a country girl because this is...not the Eminem phase I remember."

But eventually the music got more recognizable and people reluctantly started to head out on the dance floor. Maris let out a bark of laughter as a different Bruno Mars song started playing and grabbed Rory's hand to pull her out on the floor. I Think I Wanna Marry You seemed pretty fitting. "Come on, we'll dance our way on over to the bar," she said giving her a little spin.

As much as Rory could really get into being social at an event, her friendliness and extroverted parts (which were never as strong as her introverted ones) only really came out when she was comfortable with the people there. She could rally and talk to just about anyone, but often found herself utterly exhausted after it. Her preference had always been to sit on the sidelines and observe before getting into good conversation with selected few. She didn't have to worry much about that anymore, not with Maris at her side and really the person she wanted to talk to most of all in any situation.

Rory kept a pleasant look on her face as the couple made their grand entrance, but she lost any sincerity behind it when she looked at Maris. A small giggle bubbled forth, as she buried her face in her fiancee's neck and shook her head. "We aren't going to do choreography, are we?" She said in mock horror.

Their dancing skills had never been a problem, so case closed there.

"Was the Eminem hand in hand with a Will Smith phase? I feel like Will was the gateway for many in our youth to Eminem." She wondered if they should make a list of artists their DJ absolutely should not play at their reception.

As she found herself pulled out to the dance floor, Rory didn't hesitate in the slightest. She laughed as she spun, her arm coming to wrap around Maris' waist as she moved to the music. "Oh this is pretty spot on." She laughed, stealing a quick kiss before taking her turn to spin Maris around.

Maris grinned into the kiss. She was too lost in the moment to realize what a big moment it was. Rory had been the only woman she'd ever really brought around her family. She was definitely the only woman she'd brought around her community.

They knew she was gay, of course. Maris was pretty sure she and Eli were the only queer people even in their younger, more liberal circle. She had come out first, her sexuality a bit of juicy gossip for at least a few years until she'd left for school. Eli wasn't even out to the community at large. His slight preference for women meaning he'd never really needed to be. He usually had a girl on his arm at events so people assumed that he was all he dated. Maris couldn't help but wonder how her best friend's love life was going these days. In truth, he was more family oriented than she'd ever been. The sort of person who wanted a partner, home and family. She wanted him happy, settled too.

As long as he didn't settle for less than he deserved.

But no one really raised an eyebrow as they kissed or even really noticed. Just like Maris didn't notice the little girl she'd bumped into.

"Oh, Hannah!" she blurted out, automatically putting a hand on the little girl's back to catch her.

"She's fine," Hannah's mom, Shoshanna said waving off Maris' concerns as she turned around to face them two Shirley temples from the bar in hand. "I was trying to get her back to the table with these but then she got caught up in the music."

Maris couldn't help but smirk as she realized her earlier observation was right. Eli's sister in law was pregnant again, but she was more focused on the child that was already in the picture.

Hannah was just as adorable as she remembered in a pale blue dress that would probably be wrecked by the end of the night.

"You like to dance, huh? Your uncle told me he takes you to your lessons sometimes."

Hannah scowled.

"Uncle Eli's a sore subject at the moment. I think she's grumpy he's sitting with you guys."

Maris grinned. "He's pretty cool, huh? You can come visit us at our table! We really won't mind."

Shosh's company was much more enjoyable than her husband's. She and Maris caught up a bit. She confirmed she was having "another one". Maris offered her congratulations. Maris introduced Rory, mentioned the wedding, and Shosh offered her the same.

"I like your dress," Hannah chimed in softly once Maris had introduced her fiancee, the little girl seeming to realize that it was okay to talk to Rory now that she wasn't technically a stranger anymore.

Maris grinned, loving Hannah even more than she had moments before. A kid who liked her best friend and her fiancee was more than okay in her book.

"It's pretty right?" But she was looking more at Rory when she said it.

There had been a time when Rory wouldn't have been so openly affectionate, hell even with Maris the first time they were together. Even amongst family - or maybe especially so, but Rory couldn't even try to contain the kind of giddy happiness that hung in the air around them today.

Rory often felt entirely unabashed in the way she was, if mainly because of how secure she was in herself, and now even more so with her relationship. Not to dredge up (not-so) old wounds, but she had never really been that way when she was with Jes. She had always felt somewhat aware of eyes-on them, of being seen as too affectionate, too full-on. Looking back now, Rory wondered if it was because she was afraid that people would be able to see that she was a fraud. She wasn't with who she should have been. She was just waiting for her love to return to her.

As they'd finally made their way to the bar, Rory was busy looking over the selection to notice Maris bumping into a small child. When she did look over, she felt a somewhat-familiar flutter in her chest whenever she saw her fiancee interact with small children. A rare occurrence, but perhaps that's what made her feel that way.

Rory was delighted to actually meet Shoshanna, who was just as delightful as Maris told her she would be. She'd be lying however, if she said her attention hadn't been stolen by the charming little girl in blue.

"Do you really?" While Rory exaggerated her response to Hannah's praise just a little, she never had it in her to talk to children in a pitched voice or anything resembling baby talk. Kids were smart, even if they were still learning the world. "I was just thinking how much I like your dress, actually. How'd you know blue is my favorite color?" She grinned as Hannah seemed to grow suddenly bashful at the compliment.

There had been a time that Rory had thought she might teach first or second grade, long before she'd decided that she was far better suited to teenagers who could (usually) carry on far more intellectually stimulating conversations. But god, being around Hannah even for a brief time made her miss being around her own family, and naturally made her think of the one she and Maris would start.

She caught Maris' eye, a private smile that was just theirs at her compliment, but her mind filled with so many other things, too. "What do you say, Hannah, will you come share some cake at our table, later?"

"Can I have cake now!?" Hannah eagerly asked her mother.

"Not yet, baby," Shosh said with a laugh before turning to Rory with a grateful smile. "Thank you, I'll send her over to you when it's time."

"Whose coming to see us?"

"Uncle Eli!" Hannah squealed, getting even louder once he scooped her up and flipped her upside down.

"I don't think I said you could sit with us, missy."

Maris couldn't help but smile. Her best friend was the sort of person who got along with everyone, but he was especially good with kids.

"You were outvoted," she said, taking her first sip of her old fashioned.

The trio and Shosh talked a bit more before Maris realized their food had been brought to the table. She'd ordered it beforehand off the menu Beth provided, the usual catered plate of mostly bland chicken, undercooked veggies and mostly cold mashed potatoes. It wasn't great, but Maris was hungry, so she dug in anyway, smirking at her friend as she speared a green bean.

"So, Shosh is having another one."

Eli groaned, sitting his bottle of Heineken back on the table. "They just can't help themselves."

Maris liked to tease Eli about his brother and Shosh because they had Hannah & Tobey in very quick succession. Eli, always grateful for an occasion to snark on his brother and used to humoring Maris, usually joined in but she knew he liked being an uncle. You would have thought he was having a daughter when Hannah was born. He doted on her now and would do the same for Tobey once he got a little bigger and easier to spoil but...

"You don't seem excited," she observed.

"We did just get out of a pandemic, Mari," he said dryly. "It's a little irresponsible, don't you think?"

Maris had said similar things. Rory had heard more than a few rants about just how selfish and stupid she thought people trying for babies in the midst of chaos were but she felt different when she heard Eli say the same.

Because she was sort of different now.

"Right," she said a little too quickly, shaking her head. "Totally irresponsible."

"Besides, they already have two. Three's kind of greedy. The world doesn't exactly need more babies."

Maris made a noise of agreement, feeling the urge to drink a little more of her cocktail.

"There's an overpopulation problem, hello."

Maris let out a laugh. "Now you just sound like Jenna." Her eyes widened as Eli opened his mouth to speak and she realized her mistake. "Don't start."

Ever Mr. Popular, Eli eventually got pulled away by an old soccer coach and Maris and Rory were on their own again.

"Well, the food was shit, so no competition there."

Rory loved watching the way that people interacted with the children in their lives. It made her wonder, especially recently, how their friends and family would be with their children. Eli would be an amazing pseudo-uncle to their kids, of that she had no doubt. It made Rory a little nostalgic for the future ... was that such a thing? Their children would have them through everything, but they would have an extended family to be proud of.

But weddings and moves were first, so Rory gladly ate the food that was placed at their table. One thing about having a smaller wedding, they could afford really good food. But this did well in a pinch. Not bad, if she were being generous.

Rory ate and drank from her mule while Maris and Eli talked. She scoffed a little laugh at the judgement over the next child into Eli's family, but her eyes darted to Maris' face. Her brows narrowed just a little bit, taking in the shift in her energy. They'd really reached a point in their relationship that it was hard to hide anything from one another.

"I was about to tell him about our plans for a whole soccer team." Rory said with a smile as she bumped her shoulder into Maris' while Eli skirted away. Having finished her meal, she leaned back in her chair with her drink in hand. "I saw the cake, too. Too much frosting. We're still having the most beautiful cake ever."

"The drinks are weak," Maris said, feeling the need to comment on them once she'd taken another sip of hers and found it a little light on the whiskey. "Nobody likes a cheap bartender."

With Eli gone and the party officially in full swing with a good number of people on the dancefloor, Maris slid closer to Rory, sliding her arm around her and pressing a kiss to her temple now that she was sure no one was a) watching and b) likely to approach.

Eli's negativity toward children, even if he wasn't saying anything she hadn't said or thought in the past or even recently in an attempt to talk herself out of it, stung a bit.

She needed Rory close.

She'd never admit it because that would mean someone had actually hurt her feelings (even if her friend had no way of knowing how she was feeling on the baby front because not even her fiancee did) but Maris suddenly needed to be soothed.

She nuzzled Rory's neck for a moment before nodding in the direction of a lanky, nervous looking gray haired man hovering near the corner of the dance floor with a glass of champagne in hand. "Ramona dated that guy," Maris said with a cheeky grin. "Stephen. It was apparently a big to do, my dad told me all about it. It was a long time ago, before she met my uncle. Everyone was sort of go for it, Ramona, he's a doctor and she was pretty proud of herself too, but apparently he was dull as dirt and she could only handle a dinner or two. Sort of wish she was here, they sort of run away from each other."

She rested her head on Rory's shoulder, absentmindedly playing with her fiancee's hair. "But she hates to fly so..."

"Very weak ... but I guess you don't want your guests to get absolutely sloshed before the toasts." Rory wrinkled her nose, figuring there had to be a nicer medium than this. "This is mostly ginger beer."

One of Rory's favorite things about, well, them, was how good it felt to be with her fiancee even in the middle of a crowd. Maris had this way of making her feel as though they were in a world entirely their own, even with a dancing wedding around them.

Her arm closest to Maris draped over her fiancee's lap, her shoulder leaning into her embrace. She felt Maris' need for her on a level she didn't need to have verbalized for her, but she never needed reasons behind how they felt for each other.

"Oh did she??" Rory perked up a little, her tone almost desperate for the gossip. She regarded the man as Maris spoke, her lower lip pouting a little bit at the story's conclusion. "I can kind of ...see that, the poor guy." She giggled and buried her face in Maris' neck, pressing a quick kiss there because she really couldn't help herself.

"Ah, it never would have worked, then." She rested her head against Maris', her eyes going over the crowd some. She remained quiet for a few more moments, her eyes closing for one moment to revel in Maris' fingers in her hair.

"Overall I have to say this is a lovely wedding ... but I really can't get over how much better ours is going to be."

"So much better," Maris said with a firm nod, gently smoothing Rory's hair back into place before she stopped playing with it.

Even though the music had gotten better as the night wore on and dancing was always a bit more fun when a ton of people were out on the dance floor, Maris decided to (at least temporarily) skip it when she felt the urge to get up and stretch her legs.

She ended up sort of giddily pulling her toward a wooden gazebo. It was a ways off from the actual party, though Beth had decorated it with the fairy lights and flowers she'd scattered everywhere else.

But with only faint string of lights around the top, little sanctuary was dark. Which was sort of why Maris sort of felt bold enough to steal a lingering kiss, her palm firmly on Rory's waist as she pulled her closer. The gazebo really was tiny, just big enough to take a few more steps in before they'd be forced out completely. It meant they sort of had to press together to stay inside, but Maris hardly minded, resting their foreheads together before giving Rory a playful headbutt as she came up for air.

"You really do look good," she murmured, letting their noses brush.

Not for the first time, or honestly even the fiftieth at this point, Rory found herself longing for their own wedding and impatient for it to be time already, dammit. Being here just made her feel it even stronger.

As the night wore on, Rory really did find herself wishing for a bit of alone time with Maris. It was a thought just brewing at the back of her mind, somewhere between being ready to go and wanting to stay for more of the party.

Lucky for Rory, she had a brilliant (and wildly romantic, even if she didn't like to say so) fiancee who pulled her away from the wedding. Rory was giggling as they stole away from the party, exploring in the relative darkness illuminated by the decor that just seemed so fitting.

"I hope it's not haunted up here." She found herself snickering as they came to the top, but she was awestruck by the utterly romantic scene in front of them. So much so, that she was momentarily surprised by Maris' kiss. But she didn't hesitate in the slightest. She slid her own arms around her fiancee, her thumb rubbing softly against her back as she kissed her deeply.

"You look amazing." She shot back the compliment, a little flushed color on her cheeks. "This has been a good day, I love meeting people who knew you before I did." She was gently stroking the short hair along the back of Maris' neck, her other arm keeping her held close.

Rory had only met about a handful of the people Maris wanted to introduce her to, but it hardly seemed to matter.

And not just because she was sort of reveling in finally having a bit of alone time with her.

Maris was hardly the sort of person who would let herself lose all sense of self and history just because someone else had come into her life. Her life had been rich and full before Rory entered it. It had been...worse once she left it again. Parts of that era were a little more tempting to forget but she sort of was.

It was harder to imagine how she'd ever gotten along without her, that there had been a time where she hadn't been there. Maris felt complete now, even if she'd never been the sort of person who thought another could be a missing piece before.

"I think I want a picture, actually."

The lighting was terrible, but she snapped one with her phone anyway, showing her fiancee once she was done.

Rory always looked great, but Maris really did think she looked especially pretty that night. She smiled as she put her phone away, a particularly sentimental thought hitting her as she did.

It was probably good that she'd taken it, not just because it was a memory of a good night. It was a record of one of their last few as an unmarried couple.