All Epilogue 09 - Marriage

"Were you being serious?" Lucca asked, his murmered words breaking the contented silence that hung over the pair as they lay tangled together. He didn't bother finishing the question outloud, knowing that the other man would hear the rest of his thought anyway. When you said we should get married. Or were you kidding? The druid appeared to be mostly asleep; the only giveaway that he was not quite yet there were his fingers, toying idly with Osamu's tail.
"I was entirely serious." He brushed his fingers lightly over Lucca, tracing patterns along his shoulder, back and cheek. "Though please don't mistake it for a proposal. I would like to do that correctly, after I've given the exact means more thought."
He considered this for a few moments before asking simply, "Why?"
Osamu looked at him, a soft questioning expression on his face. "Because I love you." He leaned over and kissed him, "I love you, and want you with me forever." He thought for another moment, before adding, "...I also think, in terms of marriage specifically, it might be because I gave up hope of getting married a very long time ago. It was...something that I likely would have thought was sad, if I had allowed myself to think about it."
Rolling over to face him, Lucca smiled gently and kissed him once more, his thoughts returning the sentiment almost shyly. Out loud, he said, "I...honestly never imagined I would ever get married, myself. Which I guess is why I asked; it just seems so strange to me." He gave a crooked smile, "Good strange, mind you, very good...But still, it's something to wrap my head around."
"Well, I'll give you a little bit of time to adjust before I present the question to you formally." He smiled, taking Lucca's face in his hands, "Before you have to experience the full fury of how sentimental I can be."
"Is that supposed to be a threat?" The druid chuckled softly, "It kinda sounds like one."
"Heh. Less of a threat, and more of a warning, so you're aware of what's to come."
"I'll keep it in mind, then." Closing his eyes, he cuddled in closer to the other man and fell silent once more. Although by all appearances he had returned to relaxing, his thoughts told a different story; he was clearly considering something quite seriously.
When he finally spoke up again, there was a faint note of hesitation in his tone. "There is...something that I probably should tell you, I guess..." He pulled back slightly and paused, steeling his resolve, "There...wasnt really a reason to before, I don't think. But now...things are gonna be different, they already are, and I don't wanna have any more secrets. And this is the last one..." He took a deep breath."I-..." He faltered, the words seeming to stick in his throat. There was a long moment of silence as he struggled to force them, before saying quietly, "...I guess I'll show, rather than tell..." He sat up and moved away slightly, his movements displaying a level of self-conciousness and inhibition reminiscent of their first time together, months ago. Inhaling deeply once more, Lucca bit his lip slightly and dispelled his shift entirely. "...and there it is..." He said, his voice almost a whisper, fiddling anxiously with a lock of his long black hair.
Osamu regarded him softly for a moment, before sitting up himself. He drew his hand along Lucca's cheek, moving his hair aside. "...I suppose there are things I could say, questions I could ask, but they would seem disingenious. We know the answers, I'm sure." He leaned forwards, pressing his forehead against Lucca's. "Instead, I will just say that I am infinitely glad that we don't need to hide from one another." He ran his hand along his face again as he said, "I'm sure it's why I love you. At least in part."
Closing his eyes, Lucca smiled softly and leaned into his touch. "I feel the same..." he murmered softly. After a beat he moved to close the distance between them with a lingering kiss, the tension leaving his frame as he did. Osamu wrapped around him, holding him with his arms, wings and tail, and pulled him back down onto the bed.
----
"I've been giving it thought, but I don't see any way to have less than four seperate ceremonies," Osamu said matter-of-factly. He knelt at the sitting room table with a pile of papers and his tea.
"...What?" Lucca looked up at him over his book, wrinkling his nose incredulously,  "Four? Seriously? That's ridiculous...How do you even figure that? I'd say two, max. And even that's kinda crazy."
"If you want a ceremony in Tsimshian, and I want one in Yeto, both with very different customs...there's really no way to reconcile that. The druidic ceremony is separate again, because that's important to you, but we can't invite anyone to it. And we both know the Doamonyoya will want a ceremony, and that's completely irreconcilable to all preceeding three." He sipped his tea, "I'm willing to entertain your ideas, but I think you'll just have to suffer through."
With a pitiful groan, the druid flopped back on the floor, dropping his book over his face. He made to argue a few times, but each time gave up before he'd really gotten started, the unassailability of the other man's logic too clear to be effectively challenged. Eventually, he sighed sullenly, "I never agreed to four..."
"No," Osamu said. The book lifted up from Lucca's eyes, to reveal the other man kneeling over him. "You agreed to marry me. That's a far bigger ordeal than any number of weddings." He kissed him and replaced the book. "You won't have to worry about anything. I'm certain Granny and I can take care of all of the arrangements."
"I don't see how the heck you figure that to be an ordeal..." He muttered, propping himself up on his elbows to look at him. He gave a sigh, "And arrangements and shit have never worried me, and you know it. But if four is what you need, four it'll be." He cracked a cheeky grin, "And if I die of self-conciousness in the process, you'll get to feel bad about it."
Osamu returned to his original position and added with a smirk, "I assume the stage fright will render you catatonic in death. Then, since you'll already be dressed up nicely, I'll just prop you up and make a lovely statue out of you."
"Yeah yeah, screw you too, jerkwad," Lucca grinned and stuck his tongue out.
----
There was a knocking at the front door. "Lucca! Get it!" Junko's voice called from down the hall from her room.
With a sigh, the druid reluctantly put down his pruning shears and went to investigate. When he opened the door, there was a white grinning mask an inch from his face. With a yelp and a flail of his arms, he jumped back as the grin on Harlequin's mask deepened. "What the hell do you want?!" he growled.
With an exaggerated expression of hurt, he held out what appeared to be a day-to-day calender and, like a man flinging a folded deck of cards, he fired a barrage of paper: an amount of which Lucca assumed to equal the two-and-a-half years since he'd last seen him, before he had disappeared after the banishment of the All.
"Yeah, I'm well aware, asshole." He scowled, "It was nice of you to up and fuck off like that when you did."
He leaned on the door frame, making a wide gesture; his expression screamed 'What did you seriously expect?'. He held up a blank card and twirled it around; when it stopped it read, 'I'm a manifest of paranoia and fear.' He spun it once more, 'The nicest thing I could do was leave.'
"Whatever." He said, staring at him flatly. After a pause he sighed and asked more conversationally, "No, but actually, what's up? What do you want?"
Harlequin grinned again. He waved his hands again, and a poof of confetti popped up, along with the noise of a party blower. Moving his hands apart, a little banner appeared between them, reading 'Congratulations!' in colourful font. Looking up, Lucca noticed that somehow a party hat had appeared on his head. The druid rolled his eyes with a long-suffering sigh.
"Thanks, dude." He said with a wry smile, removing the hat and dusting the confetti from his hair.
With a smile of his own, he held out a folded pink card. Taking it warily, Lucca looked at it: the front read 'You're invited!' in colourful crayon, embellished with pictures of balloons and streamers, and the inside merely had two checkboxes, labelled, 'Yes' and 'No'. 
Lucca raised one eyebrow. "...To what, exactly?" he asked cautiously. Harlequin made a face as though Lucca was stupid, and the druid returned the gesture in kind. Harlequin made a conceding expression. Holding up two fingers, he then made two little images appear: one of little dolls of a chibi changeling Lucca in a wedding dress, smiling and holding hands with a besuited Osamu; the other was of many little people in houses, making cheering noises and saying things like 'I'm not dead!' in tiny voices. 
"What the hell is this nonsense?" Lucca gestured to the dress, continuing with a playful grin. "That's just silly, even if I were going to wear a dress, and I certainly don't plan to, I'd never go for one that ugly. Come oon." Harlequin returned the grin in turn. Lucca considered for a moment, then shrugged, "I...guess yes?" he guestured to the box on the card he was stll holding, lacking a writing implement. "I'm always down for a 'not dead' party, at the very least...I'll check with him.." He turned his thoughts toward Osamu, Hey, so I've got Harlequin standing here, and he's inviting us to...I guess a combination engagement slash 'saved the world, yay!' party? I think? Something along those lines... Are we game?
There was a brief pause before Osamu replied, ...Yes, we will attend. In terms of Materia, they were integral in saving it. To refuse to acknowledge the partnership we shared would be unseemly. In terms of our marriage, this is probably momentous; the Outer Planes have a notoriously poor reputation with Etherians. If they have decided to bless our union, this will have extremely important implications for our future relations with the fey. I would like to stay on good terms with them, if possible, so yes. Accept his invitation. And ask who else is coming.
...sounds cool! One sec.
Harlequin, meanwhile, held out a ridiculously large, fluffy feather pen towards Lucca. Taking the pen, he said as he checked the box, "Yeah, we're both totally game. Who else is gonna be there? And I don't suppose we get a when and where for this, eh?"
The masked fey made a shrugging 'whenever' motion.
"I figured." The druid said with a knowing smile.
He made a thoughtful face, then began counting up on his fingers. Every time he held up a digit, a puppet appeared there, being replaced when he got to the sixth and up: Virgil, Nuan, Xue, Mako, Junko, Caitlyn, Ryuji, Shintaro, Pierce, Mila, Cress, Cohen, Cheko, Carrot, Clover, Terragon, Nisa, Itzli and Bastion. When he finished, he held up a stack of blank invitations: he hadn't asked them yet. As an afterthought, he held up a card that had the words 'Blacklist' on it, with Xander and Aries' names underneath.
"Oh wow, you've seriously got everyone...sweet." Lucca said, then relayed the list to Osamu.
He held up a card: 'More or less'. He flipped it over, 'Basically, the people who contributed to the whole "continued survival" thing, and their friends/families.' He flipped it over once more, 'Feel free to invite more friends/families'. Another flip, 'More the merrier'. He handed Lucca a stack of blank invitations. 'Make sure they RSVP, or they can't come'.
"Oh...alright...cool..." He gave a slight, thoughtful frown as he accepted the stack of invitations. "Awesome, we'll see who we can come up with, then."
Harlequin pointed at the pile and gestured with his other hand, showing off the puppets of the Erzebet family once more, sans Lucca. With a slightly evil grin, he waved and walked off.
----
Lucca pushed open the door to his grandmother's cottage and walked in without announcement. It was warm and smelled of food, like always; the sounds of women chatting heralded the bridge club in attendance in the sitting room. A foreign sound caught Lucca's attention as he jammed a cookie in his mouth before Mako could arrive to eat them all (as he had an uncanny knack for doing): a man's voice. The club didn't usually have men. The part that really gave him pause was that the voice didn't sound that unfamiliar, like he knew its owner. Lucca walked through the kitchen to take a look in at them. Surely enough, there was Granny and her usual cadre of friends. However, seated among them, talking and playing like he was a usual fixture, was Dr. Cohen.
Lucca stared at him, throwing his hands up and looking almost indignant as he asked, "What the hell are you doing here?!"
"Lucca, language!" His grandmother chided, earning an apology with only the slightest of eyerolls.
"Sorry granny." He turned back to Cohen, "But no really, what gives?!"
Cohen looked back and forth with all seriousness, before offering, "Bridge? A game played with cards? I had heard this was a common pasttime around here."
"Oh don't even, knucklehead." The druid gave him a flat look, walking over to take a seat across from him, on the floor. "You didn't come all the way out here to play bridge with Granny and her crew, nice try. They're awesome but I doubt their rep extends that far." This earned chuckles from a few of the ladies seated around the table.
He made a conceding expression, "Yes, this would be quite a trip for a card game," he said. He reached into his coat pocket and pulled out a tasetfully ornate envelope. "However, I was informed there was a wedding? I honestly hope you know about it."
"Of course I know about it! Sheesh!" He said with a good natured scowl. Moving to pour himself some tea from the pot on the table, he went on, "And alright, fair enough. But that's not for another two and a half weeks. How do we go from that to you being here, now?"
"Most people do show up for weddings a bit early, particularly if it's a long trip," Cohen replied, shifting the cards around in his hand. "I'm reasonably certain Cafeyete counts as 'far'."
Lucca sighed, rolling his eyes. "You're a pain, you know that?" Changing tack, he turned to his grandmother asked, "Granny, how'd you end up with the doctor here tonight?"
Not looking up from her cards, she replied nonchalantly, "He came with Beatrice, dear."
This only served to confuse him further. Casting a look of bewilderment between Granny, the doctor, and Beatrice he asked, "...What even? How does that even work? Where the heck did you dredge him up from?"
Granny wore a small, bemused smile as she continued to study her cards, while Beatrice only answered with a hearty chuckle. Cohen looked at him with a smug sort of grin before gesturing to Beatrice, "You've met my lovely cousin?"
"Noooo. No way, she's not your cousin....she's Beatrice!" Lucca gaped, glancing between them a few times and earning delighted laughter from the surrounding women.
"I can be both, hun!" Beatrice asserted amidst peals of laughter, "Malcom most certainly is my cousin; it's amazing how small the world can be, isnt it?"
"Yeah really..." Lucca agreed, shaking his head incredulously, "...That's messed up..."
"I don't think it quite rates that. 'Messed up' would be learning I was actually your grandfather. This is just unlikely," Cohen said, still grinning. "I figured someone from my family would be coming, once I saw the address. Tsimshian isn't exactly huge. But I didn't know this is where you were from. That's actually closer to 'messed up', that that never came up."
"You didn't know?" Lucca stared at him in disbelief, "How!? How did you not catch onto that?"
Cohen put down his cards and took a drink of tea, all while maintaining pointed, unbroken eye contact. "Well," he said slowly, placing his cup down, "It's not very good form to make assumptions about where someone is from based on what they look like, or what habits they've picked up. It can be very misleading." He shrugged, his tone turning light again, "You wouldn't have guessed my mother was from here looking at me, but you wouldn't have guessed that my father was from Purcell seeing my sister. It's better not to guess."
"Mmmmh, true enough, I guess." He conceeded, sitting back slightly. "Still...it really never came up, eh? That's weird..."
"Well, it's not like we ever sat down and had conversations about our lives, that weren't facilitated by the tiny monster." 
"Also true, also true." He looked thoughtful for a few moments, then shook it off. "So! Who's winning? Granny kickin' your butt yet?"
"At the moment I am kicking no behinds, my dear. That distinction currently belongs to Cordelia." She flashed a mischievous smile across the table at the other woman, "But we shall see how long that lasts."
"I'm not doing too terribly, but bridge is certainly not my game. If you want to see a man lose at cards, wait until your fiancee shows up. That is a man who is terrible at cards." The tittering laughter and knowing nods exchanged between the ladies around the table hinted that they knew first hand what the doctor was talking about. Cohen grinned and looked up at him, "On that note, what side am I to be sitting on? Victor's, which I guess is smaller, or your's, because I'm family?"
"Oh, you think so, do you?" Lucca snorted, "Yeah right, dude. Nice try. And honestly? Heck if I know, I ain't the one planning this business. Though if I had to guess, you'd right where you belong: on his side with the rest of the geezer crew."
"Well, now, Beatrice considers you family," he said, turning to his cousin. "Isn't that right?"
"I most certainly do." She nodded, grinning.
"And if she's your family, and I'm her family...well, you can do the math on that." Lucca just sighed and rolled his eyes dramatically. Cohen turned back to Granny, "But I will defer to whatever seating arrangements you've made. Makes no difference to me; I'm mainly here for the dinner."
She chuckled, "Oh I do believe Lucca is right, I think we put you on Victor's side. It was looking a wee bit sparse, and it was figured that since you already knew a fair few of the others on that side you'd fit nicely."
"That works perfectly well for me. As long as I'm not near the Komatsus, everything should go swimmingly." He turned his attentions back to his cards before adding as an afterthought, "Oh, but that reminds me: I've been making some interesting headway with the little project you were invested in, if you were interested in looking at that later."
Lucca stopped mid-sip of his tea to eye the other man, slightly confused. It took a moment for him to catch on; when he did he gave a nod, "Oh, yeah, that. I for sure would." He grinned, "Right after you finish getting owned by a bunch of little old ladies."
He grinned, "If I don't come in last, I'll take it as a victory."
----
"Hmm..." Osamu put down the book he had been reading, a thoughtful look on his face. He turned to Lucca, "Are you taking the name Erzebet?"
"Huh?" The druid paused in the midst of taking a bite out of a sandwich, his expression changing to mirror Osamu's. "I dunno...hadn't thought about it, honestly." He considered as he chewed, eventually asking with a shrug, "Do you want me to?"
"I suppose that's really up to you. Whether you take the name of my disguise or not isn't really a concerning matter. Would it seem strange if you didn't?"
"Strange to who, exactly? Strange to me? Eh, maybe a little." He flashed a playful grin, adding, "Heh, not as strange as the sound of 'Lucca Erzebet' though. Or strange to other people? 'Cause in that case, yeah probably, but the fact that we're both dudes is definitely weirder. So it's kinda moot, really."
Osamu turned back to his book. "Precisely. It's really a matter of your preference; it's a short-term formality. The real question is," he glanced up to look at him, "whether you're going to take my actual name."
Lucca blinked at him and after a few moments asked once more, this time less flippantly, "What would you like?"
Osamu turned back to his book again and smiled. "Whatever makes you happiest."
Lucca regarded him silently, after a moment putting down his sandwich and sitting back as he thought. Eventually, with a small smile, he said, "I don't have the strongest feelings one way or another...but it only seems right that I do, don't you think?"
"It's never a matter of right or wrong. It's only ever a matter of what you want."
The druid rolled his eyes slightly, smiling. "Yeah yeah. Well I don't think it's right that I don't have your name if I have you. I want that too, then." He flashed an impish grin, pulling down the other man's book and leaning in. "If you're mine, your name damn well oughtta be too, I think. How's that for your answer?"
"Ooh, cheeky." He leaned forwards and kissed him. "Awfully strong language. But, I suppose for the moment, it's correct." He kissed him again, "You can take the Erzebet name: it's yours to have. But when we leave this world, you will be mine." He smiled, "And it will be only then, in my good graces, that you might be allowed my name. Besides," he sat back, "the Miro name isn't for mortals. Not anymore."
Lucca regarded him oddly for a moment, before smiling once more and saying quietly, "Well, I guess I'll have to be sure to work hard and earn it then, by the sounds of it, wont I?"
Osamu smiled, "You'd best," before grabbing him and pulling Lucca over on top of him.
----
Their first ceremony took place at sunset on the beach in Tsimshian, during the late spring salmon run. The attendance was relatively large, considering the number of close family friends Granny invited: neighbours and friends young and old came to watch Lucca be wed. A disgiused Pierce was 'Victor's' best man, while Mako masqueraded as his brother; Cress was, and remained, Lucca's best man. Nuan and Xue acted as the flower girls, while Virgil carried the rings: a matching pair of gold and silver inlaid bands, the two metals inverted between each ring. The Komatsus were all in attendance, as was Cheko; Cohen kept rather strictly away from those individuals, though since some of his extended family was in attendance, he was not in want for company. The ceremony itself was traditional to the Northland tribe, and the reception following was marked by an overabundance of good food, dancing, and lively conversation among the families who attended.
----
The ceremony held by the Doamanyoya was traditional for their people, and only the immediate family of the two grooms attended. A celebration not only for them, but for the three other couples who had decided to officially become partners this season, the wedding held a plethora of bright costumes and dances that made the summertime event a joyous one. Both men recieved a lip piercing as part of the ritual, though Osamu did not keep his on his true form. Nuan and Junko both found the boisterous communal affair, and lifestyle of the tribe overall, somewhat overwhelming, but Mako and Xue fit themselves into the group rather quickly. The party went on until well after sundown, and good times were had by all.
----
The third wedding took place in Yeto, on a cliff in Miyagi overlooking the ocean. The weather was cloudy and the air chill on the very late fall day on which it took place. It was a much smaller affair than the wedding before it, with only their immediate family and close friends present. Osamu was married in his Yetoman appearance, with his family wearing their old human guises. Mako was the best man in this ceremony, as was Cress: the rest of the attendance was filled by Pierce, Cohen, Cheko, Clover, Terragon and the three children. Ryuji officiated the ceremony, after much debate on his part. As Lucca already possessed a ring, Osamu presented him instead with a bracelet, which matched with the two rings he had already recieved. When the quiet, formal ritual was completed, the children were teleported to Granny's and the adults went to a bar for drinks and karaoke.
----
The fourth wedding was attended by only Osamu, Lucca, the current Archdruid, the druidic tattoo master, and Fern Druid. This ceremony, held deep in the forests of the Northlands, depended on astrological cycles, and so was held several years after the previous weddings when the astral bodies were aligned properly. Formal Druidic rites were conducted, marrying the two men; both recieved a tattoo as a mark of their committment, but as Osamu was not about to reveal his true nature, his was not permanent. Though it was not part of the ritual itself, Osamu gave Lucca a set of matching earrings to go with his collection, as 'a force of habit'.
----
The final 'wedding', if it could be called that, was a chaotic, spontaneous affair. Those who had accepted the feys' invitation years ago were teleported to Etheria without any warning. Osamu and Lucca were there with their family, as well as Ryuji; Pierce and his wife, along with his thrill-seeking daughter; Cress; Cohen; Nisa; and Itzli, along with his wife. Cailtlyn, Bastion and Cheko had all declined the offer. Fey of all shapes and sizes arrived, including Harlequin and Gemini, and the raccoon from so many years ago. It was a wild affair of colour and sensation: a celebration of life that involved lots of dancing, music the likes of which none of them had ever heard before, and many questionable substances that even Cohen had the sense not to try. A tongue-in-cheek ceremony was held, where Lucca was presented with a collar made of silk and silver plates. When everyone was returned, it appeared as though no time had passed, but the weariness, stiff muscles and hangovers suggested that it had been some party indeed. 
Category:Advent of the All