Legend

January turned out to be a dreary month, with dirty snow and slush and ice and low dark clouds that looked like they'd start spitting out snow at any moment and frequently did, but as we slogged through the month, we got an incredible amount of wedding planning done. I selected my bridesmaids (Aslyn as maid of honor, Barbara, Karen--Rill wasn't sure if she could get time off from work, that being a busy month for her company--Cara, Martha, and Bess) and chose dresses that everybody seemed to like (hopefully they weren't just being nice about it). I offered to buy the dresses since most of my bridesmaids were having to fly in and Aslyn and Karen would have expenses from Aslyn's wedding too. We'd selected scholarship funds at our alma maters, animal shelters, and soup kitchens in lieu of wedding presents, decided to have a candy table with little bags so people could take some home with them instead of some cheesy favor they'd just throw away, chosen our wedding invitations, and I'd found a pair of beautiful, comfortable shoes for the wedding. I also warned my groom that I had the jewelry I wanted to wear for the trip down the aisle, and the only ornament I required from him was a wedding band. He had a few ideas about the type of wedding ring he'd like, and I'd started researching. Toward the end of the month, we interviewed photographers, videographers, bands and also decided on a string quartet to provide music during the ceremony and dinner. We made our selections and got everybody booked. We left Aslyn in the dust, planning-wise, but she also didn't have the Great (Wedding) Dictator inquiring about our progress every. Single. Night. Our progress was really just sort of self-defense.

Nora went home after looking around at several campuses in the area, and I was sorry to see her go; she was bright and lively once she lost her reserve.

Damian brought Bruce home one night all battered and bloody; he'd gotten into a fight with Killer Croc and for the first time since I'd moved in, I stepped into my support role as Alfred's backup medic and patched him up. I started napping on the nights when Batman and Robin went out so that I could be alert when they came back and took over treating Damian's bumps and bruises myself. Alfred understood that it wasn't any kind of slight to himself and it worked out nicely that each of us tended to one crimefighter. I started making Damian do more stretching, and he admitted later that it helped.

Work was going well, and we'd isolated a promising candidate for the lab. The problem was that he wasn't graduating til May, so our plans had to be scaled back a bit. We also found an engineering grad who could begin messing around with novel designs to use the chemoluminescent bacteria to provide lighting fixtures, and a genetic engineer who was interested in making our algae glow so that we could increase the electron capture there too. It was an abrupt expansion of our plans, and kind of scary, but both Tony and Bruce began teaching me management skills.

We got the prenup signed just before Valentines Day. There wasn't much fuss; Damian's lawyers had done an excellent job and mine had been impressed with the generosity and terms. I didn't have many assets beyond the jewelry he'd given me and the retirement investments that I made through work, a small savings account, so my valuation was a lot easier to accomplish. I insisted on a clause that stated that if we did split up, the Wayne pearls would be returned to Damian and that the intent was that they would be passed down to our children, if we were fortunate enough to have any. We each put our copies in our safes and I relaxed, knowing that I'd helped to protect Damian in the event of a disaster.

For Valentines Day, we had dinner out, went to a musical, and finished celebrating at home. He sent me an extravagant bouquet at work that made Sigurd sneeze. His gift was quite restrained, for Damian, a simple diamond pendant that I could wear for every day. I wore it often, but I still preferred the Asgardian pendant I'd gotten for high school graduation. I'd had to have the clasp replaced a few times, and finally Emma made me a chain our of a special platinum alloy that was extremely strong. I got him a set of shirt studs that coordinated with the cuff links I'd bought him and a black kitten, which he promptly named Nicholas. Nicholas quickly developed the habit of riding around on his shoulder, and I hoped he wouldn't be a really big cat. Winston took the kitten under his wing, so to speak, but Grayson was jealous and frequently ignored the little cat. Hestia was just glad to add to the number of cats she could curl up with and nap.

By the end of February, Damian had lined up his groomsmen, four friends from college and grad school as well as my brother and Dick and decided (surprise!) on tuxedos with cummerbunds and bow ties to coordinate with the bridesmaids dresses. He himself, he informed me, would be wearing basic black and white. "Color coding," he told me, his eyes twinkling. "So you can tell who you're marrying if you get confused." Funny man.

In March, we met with the St Regis staff and decided on the menu and the elements that they would provide, such as the tablecloths and seating. The rooftop location was so beautiful that we decided against any other decorations aside from flowers. We also chose the baker (and that selection was especially fun and tasty)and after some deliberation, chose a variety of flavors. We were unsure about the exact count for the guest list yet, but it was going to be a big cake with several layers. One would be lemon thyme, others would be chocolate chip in a remarkable vanilla cake filled with chocolate mousse, devils food, and an almond cake filled with apricot preserves. Wanting everybody to have a treat, Damian's groom's cake was a delicious gluten and sugar-free cake, a red velvet creation with an ombre effect with each cake layer. Alfred had unearthed an antique silver Victorian cake stand, low to the table and capable of holding a vast amount of cake. The cake would be a mix of round and hexagonal shapes with pale sage green fondant, the base of each layer would be outlined in pretty sugar 'pearls' and decorated with white, red, and peach lotus blossoms (long life, honor, good luck, health), simple and hopefully elegant. We selected the florist, deciding on red, peach, and green along with plenty of white flowers for the tables, ceremony, and a few other places, and strictly white arrangements for the head table at the reception. I'd choose my bouquet later, when Damian wasn't around. We efficiently cleared up a number of smaller details as well, which kept Bruce happy. That month also began the construction of the water feature in the back garden as well as a stone barbeque area. The bulbs we'd planted in the fall came up and we liked it so much that we started talking about adding flower beds to the front of the house the next year. There was a gatehouse on the property that had been falling into neglect since it was rarely used, and Bruce decided to renovate it since, as he said, we were having a lot more company these days and it might be nice to have an overflow option just in case. He probably had another motive too, but he didn't say. I thought it might be nice for Nora to stay in if she went to school here, allow for independence, a rent-free situation, but still close to family.

By the end of April, all of our big things were nailed down and all we had left were small details, as well as counting RSVPs. This was good, since preparation for Aslyn's wedding was ramping up and the bridesmaids planned her wedding shower and bachelorette party. I sent their wedding gift and went in for the fitting for my dress. It was pretty and sleek, a cool blue. Like her dress, it was a lace mermaid style and had cap sleeves. Our bouquets would be blue and white.

In May, Aslyn was kind of melting down under the pressure, but then she didn't have Bruce directing her effort. Damian and I were pretty much stress-free at this point. My dress had come in and I went in for a fitting; there was a problem with the zipper over my butt, so that had to be redone, and the white power satin Merry Widow I'd gotten specially for this dress was ferocious and really pulled my waist in, so there were additional adjustments there. Otherwise, it was perfect. I couldn't wait to wear it. I thought that there was enough tulle in the ensemble, so I didn't go with a veil. I was going with a sleek and complicated knot at the back of my head for my hair style, and chose a pretty silver-toned comb with delicate silver flowers, pearls, and a couple of crystals for a bit of sparkle.

The last week of the month and the first of June were a whirlwind of activities, what with the shower, a sedate bachelorette party (we only went to one club; we had ribald cupcakes, but that was pretty much it), and finally it was Aslyn's day. We got done early; she was a gorgeous bride, tall and slender like her father; the rich ivory of her gown set off the creamy skin she'd inherited from him. We'd all gotten dressed, but we still had about forty-five minutes to kill, so we got a bottle of champagne and covered Aslyn with a sheet to prevent any accidents. It was an excellent way to pass the time. Finally, I double-checked the backs on the tanzanite earrings she'd given to the bridesmaids, and it was time. After the beautiful ceremony and the rest of the pictures, it was time for dinner, then cake and dancing. Aslyn throws an excellent party. "Just a couple more months, and it'll be our turn," Damian murmured as we swayed to a slow song.

"I can't wait," I sighed. "The cake is going to be outstanding." He laughed, but it was important; the one off note at Aslyn's wedding was that the cake, while beautifully decorated, was bland. "You know I love my desserts."

Our new employees started at the lab, and Tony had been right--it was a good time to bring people with new ideas in. We had a little lab graduation party for Madison. She took a week off and started full time; with the new personnel, she had more than enough to do. The careful vetting Tony had done (and I'd helped with) resulted in a group that collaborated well. I'd hoped for that, but you never really know until you start working together.

There were a few hiccups along the way; the band broke up in July and we couldn't find another to replace it, so, after a few deep breaths and calm thoughts, we booked a DJ who promised to be there unless he was having emergency surgery or died. I decided on the flowers for my bouquet (ferns-- magic, fascination, confidence and shelter, ivy--married love, fidelity, different types of light coral, red and white roses--desire, love, you're heavenly, and jasmine--sensuality) and ordered boutonnieres, bridesmaids bouquets which were similar to mine but smaller, and corsages for my mom, grandma, Emma and Selina. I polled my female friends who were coming and none of them was that enthusiastic about a bouquet toss, so I planned to give it to my mom and dad--their anniversary was coincidentally a few days before. Nora had been accepted at the International Culinary Center and moved over. The gate house wasn't close to being done--some structural issues had cropped up--but it wasn't like there wasn't plenty of room in the house. Alfred was thrilled.

Since I didn't need anything, we decided not to have a bridal shower, but my bridesmaids gave me a tea instead (with a coffee option) with all sorts of delicious scones and tea cakes and little sandwiches and fun games. My bachelorette party was as low-keyed as Aslyn's had been--we went out for a few drinks and had ice cream after. I worked out with the heavy bag extra during this time due to all the delicious food. Two days before the wedding, the baker called, frantic because the employee who had made the exquisite paste flowers that had sold us on the cake design had quit. I freaked out a little and was disappointed, but decided to just to substitute fresh flowers instead. My florist was happy to send over some of the food-safe kinds that were in my bouquet. Damian thought that would be a great substitute and took me for a couples massage. Despite all our planning and the few issues that had come up, there was still stress.

On the day of the wedding, we woke up leisurely and made love before I had to get up. I was meeting my half of the wedding party at the St Regis for brunch, then to a salon to get manicures and pedicures and to have our hair and makeup done. Alfred drove me, my mom, grandma, and Nora into the city; we'd put my bridesmaids who were coming in from out of town up at the hotel. Rill had been able to make it at the last minute; she came along too as did Selina and Emma. When we got back, Alfred had taken delivery of the flowers, and we started to get ready. I had old--the pearls, the new--the dress, shoes, lingerie... borrowed--an earring back from Bess, I'd lost one of mine somewhere, blue--my panties, and Grandma had given me a genuine sixpence for my shoe. The photographer caught some pictures of this and we went across the street to Central Park for pictures. When we went back to kill a little time (again with the Champagne), my groom and his men posed for photographs there too. Finally, it was time. My mom had gone ahead to scout things out and make sure all was well, so it was just me and my bridesmaids. Aslyn was lovely in her red dress, the other bridesmaids lovely in peach, Barbara especially. I smoothed the front of my dress unnecessarily,looked in the mirror to see the vision of a dress, the Wayne pearls--I double-checked the clasp--and my pearl and diamond spray earrings. I think the rest of me looked ok. I made sure that Aslyn had Damian's carved platinum band, and we were off. My dad met us and signaled to the officiant, Damian's Episcopalian priest. The quartet struck up the Lohingrin bridal chorus, and my bridesmaids started out. I began to regret having so many; I wanted to hustle up and get this done.

At last it was my turn, and Dad walked with me as we moved slowly up the aisle between our guests. I had no eyes for anything but my groom, handsome and elegant as always, waiting for me. His eyes widened as he saw me, his expression a humbling mixture of awe and love. Eventually we made it to him, my dad keeping my pace slow--too slow. I wanted to sprint on up there. My dad kissed my cheek before sitting with my family and Bruce and I handed off my bouquet to Aslyn before turning to Damian and beaming at him. He grinned back.

The ceremony was fairly brief. I'd thought that Damian would want to write our vows, but he didn't, a combination of love of the traditional service and also something unexpected. "What's between us is private, only for me and you. It's enough that people know we're in love, they don't need to know how deeply I treasure you, how much gratitude I feel that you chose me, the power and depth and breadth of my love. There's no point in oversharing." So, yeah. I had no problem with using the traditional ceremony after that. My eyes welled with tears of joy when I said 'I do,' and, ever the gentleman, Damian whipped out a handkerchief to delicately blot my eyes and avoid making a mess of my makeup. Then he sniffled a little and dabbed at his own. Then we were invited to kiss to seal the deal. Damian put his arms around me and lifted me off my feet in a spontaneous hug after, and our guests cheered and applauded.

I was so blitzed with happiness that I barely registered there was music playing and the bridesmaids and groomsmen began the recessional. Aslyn handed me my bouquet and took Dick's arm before Damian offered his to me and, beaming, we began the long walk up the aisle, our first as a married couple. Then it was back across the street for pictures with the whole wedding party, and back up to the rooftop for the reception. I shed the fluffy over skirt--Barbara ran it up to the suite for me--to Damian's surprise and delight, and we were presented to our guests, for the first time, as Damian and Alex Wayne. Dinner was served although I barely tasted it. We ate quickly and circulated among the tables to speak to our guests rather than making them go through a long reception line. Then it was back up to the head table for toasts, then over to where the magnificent cake stood. We cut into a random layer--yay, the almond layer--and carefully fed each other small bites. Then the first dance, a romantic waltz. Damian was a fantastic dancer as long as he had steps to follow. Then my dance with my dad, then one with Bruce. Damian danced with my mom and grandma. Then I presented my bouquet to my mom and dad, and mingled with our guests. There was no garter toss; Damian had flatly refused to go burrowing under my dress in public. "In front of our parents and grandma? And your uncle? Your boss? All the other people? I think not," he'd said, and I'd been glad to agree.

Finally, it was time to go, and the guests who were left--most of them, actually, it was a good party--threw confetti as we passed. We raced down the stairs and to the familiar territory of the suite we'd shared. It was like coming home. Damian opened the door, propped it open, and carried me over the threshold and into the parlor that had the bullseye windows, my second-favorite room. He had chilled cava waiting, and we sipped the wine as we talked about our wedding and relaxed a little. My legs and feet were sore after so much standing and running around. He put the overskirt back on because he liked the fluffiness and delicate embroidery and wanted to play with it a little, then took my foot to massage it.

"Mrs Wayne," he said with satisfaction after he finished the second foot. "I should say, Ms Barnes-Wayne," he corrected himself, and I smiled and kissed him.

"I answer to either," I said. He grinned.

"That is a splendid dress," he said, playing with the tulle. "You were truly a vision, ethereal and glorious. I couldn't believe how beautiful you made the dress." He touched the pearls. "I'm coming around to these. Dad was really pleased you wore them."

"I made sure that the dress would show them off," I said, snuggling against him. "I wanted to be sure I'd look good on your arm. You're always so splendid in evening dress."

"I feel rather plain in comparison," he said, and topped off our glasses while I snorted. Damian could never be plain. I finally remembered to look at my wedding band; I'd been so busy that I'd only glanced at it and noted the sparkle of diamonds. It was a slim band with both round and baguette diamonds, set in an irregular pattern. I frowned at it, and Damian burst into laughter. "It's Morse code," he said. "Round diamonds for dots, baguettes for dashes. It says 'I love you.'" I looked at it more closely. "I had to compromise, 'you' is just 'u'. There wasn't enough room on the ring for the whole sentiment." It was clever and romantic and thoughtful, so typically Damian. I felt his ring was dull and uninspired by comparison, with only the inscription of our initials and the date, but he loved it, not really being a diamond ring type of guy himself. We cuddled and chatted, coming down from the emotions of the day, resting a bit, but we were still energized. We moved to the bedroom after I stood and shed the overskirt. He was delighted to help me out of the gown, carefully putting it aside, grinning as he saw the lacy garter on my thigh, just for him. We celebrated our union well past midnight.

The great thing about having access to a private jet is that you don't have to leap out of bed to make your flight. We made love again, got our luggage and collected Grandma, who was flying back with us. Alfred had brought her in to town and would be taking my wedding dress and Damian's tuxedo back to the house. We stopped in Britain for a couple of days before going to Paris and catching our train. One of those days was a party that my mom's family who hadn't been able to come for the wedding threw for us, an unexpected pleasure.

The train was everything I dreamed it would be and more. Elegant and opulent, the passengers are expected to dress nicely, so there were no jeans or sweats on view and added to the ambiance. Our cabin suite was extraordinary, all beautifully polished wood and beautiful details. We were met by our steward at the train station and settled in with a welcome glass of Champagne, and we watched as Paris and the country side slid by. We dressed for dinner, an extravagant four course affair, and had a night cap in the bar car before retiring for the night. Unfortunately, all the bunks were singles, so after canoodling, one of us had to relocate. I was ok with the top bunk. The next morning, breakfast was served in our compartment and we watched the countryside and talked as we entered Hungary. Lunch was served in the luxurious dining cars, and we arrived in Budapest in the late afternoon. We transferred to the same hotel we'd stayed in before, and Damian had even reserved the same room. It was nice to share a bed again. We breakfasted at the hotel, then were given a private tour of the city, lunch at a restaurant that was new to us, and enjoyed a short cruise on the Danube. Then we were brought back to the train in time for a cocktail before dinner, and another night in our cabin. The people we were traveling with were generally very pleasant and interested in the places we'd be visiting. We formed a loose group with a couple from Edinburgh, and elderly couple from Stockholm, and a family of four from Melborne; the kids were in their late teens and it was fun to see their reactions to the places we went. Everybody shared tidbits from their guidebooks and we had a very good time.

The next morning, we had breakfast in our cabin, stopped at a pretty mountain town called Sinaia where we disembarked and toured the beautiful nearby Peles Castle. Then Bucharest was only a short distance away. We got a short tour of the city, then checked ourselves into the Epoque Hotel, a lovely and luxurious hotel. Damian had booked us for the spa's "Romeo and Juliet' couples treatment. We skipped out on the group dinner in favor of a romantic meal in our hotel followed by a little honeymoon time. We rejoined the train the next morning and we traveled into Bulgaria, stopping in Varna to enjoy the view of the Black Sea. Dinner was another delicious four course extravaganza, and we enjoyed our last night on board the train. The next morning we watched as the train passed through the beautiful Thracian Plains and had a special Turkish-inspired lunch. We pulled into Istanbul in the late afternoon and reluctantly said goodbye to our new friends. We went to W and checked into the spa studio suite, which featured a private garden for us to enjoy. I went to work out in their gym while Damian checked in and looked at emails, then we tried the Turkish bath before asking the concierge for recommendations for a restaurant. The next day, we explored some of the highlights of the city, including the Hagia Sophia, of course, but the political climate was rather uncertain and we left the day after that. Have I mentioned how nice it is to have access to a private jet? It's fantastic. It was good to be going home.