FF Keeper of the stars (4/5)

["Christeen Demons" <Shyfox30@xxxxxxxxxxx>]

Disclaimer: Characters belong to Joss, the mighty, I just borrowed them for 
my own pleasure.:-)

Much thanks goes out to Kirayoshi for betaing this thing for me.:-) It was a 
chore, I know.:-)

Music in tonight's episode include songs from Shania Twain and Reba 
McEntire.:-)


chapter four: From this moment On

(I do swear that I?ll always be there.
I?d give everything and anything, and I will always care.
Through weakness and strength, happiness and sorrow,
for better, for worse, I will love you with every beat of my heart.)

> From this moment life has begun.
> From this moment you are the one.
Right beside you is where I belong.
> From this moment on.

> From this moment I have been blessed.
I live only for your happiness.
And for your love I?d give my last breath.
> From this moment on.

I give my hand to you with all my heart.
I can?t wait to live my life with you.
I can?t wait to start.
You and I will never be apart.
My dreams came true because of you.

> From this moment as long as I live.
I will love you, I promise you this.
There is nothing I wouldn?t give.
> From this moment on.

You?re the reason I believe in love.
And you?re the answer to my prayers from up above.
All we need is just the two of us.
My dreams came true because of you.

> From this moment as long as I live.
I will love you, I promise you this.
There is nothing I wouldn?t give.
> From this moment on.

Shania Twain. From this moment On

After having received baleful glares for her rude awakening, at which she 
hadn?t been able to help giggling, the joy she was feeling allowed no 
dampeners on her spirit, she tried to get them to help her pick up the room 
before Giles could come down and see it.

They did a minor amount of complaining, considering they were all hung over, 
but they got the room cleaned before Giles came downstairs, which is really 
all she cared about.

If Giles was at all surprised at the number of people that were taking up 
his living room, he didn?t let it show, and Buffy figured either he knew 
about what went on down here last night, or he was too much of an Englishmen 
to ask about it.

After eating a quick breakfast, due mostly to Giles insistence that she not 
get married on an empty stomach, although if Buffy had it her way she would 
have foregone the food torture, considering the butterflies in her stomach 
were still having fun with whatever was left from last nights pizza fest, 
the guys went out to the van to get changed into their tuxes, while Giles 
dressed in his room, and Buffy opted for the bathroom, the only place left 
in which to change.

Buffy felt decidedly different this morning as she buttoned up the white 
shirt of her tux, while looking at her appearance in Giles? bathroom mirror. 
In the rental shop as she had put on the tux, she had felt out of place, 
like an overdressed waiter in a McDonalds restaurant, but today as she put 
it on, it only cemented her connection and commitment to Willow, the person 
she had loved secretly for so long, the one person she couldn?t live her 
life without, and with every piece of the suit that she put on, the more 
right it felt, until finally she stood, fully dressed from the black bow tie 
to the shiny black shoes, and she could hardly recognize the lonely girl she 
used to be with the confident, competent and loved woman that she had 
become.

Checking her appearance over one final time, Buffy grinned at the stranger 
in the mirror and exited the bathroom, finding Giles waiting for her in the 
hall.

"Well...how do I look?" Buffy asked, nervously, rocking on her heels as he 
looked her over.

There was so much he wanted to say to her. He wanted to tell her how proud 
he was of her, and how much she had changed and grown. But there was little 
time for that, they were due for the wedding soon, so he supposed it would 
have to wait for later. The watcher cleared his throat as he appraised her, 
a warm glint filling his eyes with pride as he did so. "Splendid." He 
answered, finally, a smile lighting the Englishman?s face. "Except...for one 
thing."

Buffy looked at him in question, and he held up a single pink Carnation, 
which he then pinned to her lapel, matching the one he proudly wore on his. 
"There. Now you are ready to get married."

Buffy grinned from ear to ear at those words, feeling genuinely ready to 
take on the whole world, and Willow Rosenberg.

Xander popped his head in at that moment, looking rather dapper in his tux, 
and looked around for the Watcher and Slayer. "Hey." He directed toward them 
when he spotted them. "Come on, Buff. You don?t want to be late for your own 
wedding."

*****

"You look so beautiful." Joyce murmured, as she walked into Buffy and 
Willow?s room, catching Willow?s appearance in the bedroom mirror, covered 
from head to toe in white satin.

Willow smiled back at Joyce?s reflection in the mirror. "Thank you, Joyce. 
For everything." She said, turning around to face her soon to be 
Mother-in-law. "You?ve been so good to me from the beginning, when my own 
parents turned their backs on me, and I could never thank you enough for 
that."

Joyce looked at Willow, an expression of sympathy mixed with warm regard on 
her face. "You don?t need to thank me for that, Willow. You love my daughter 
so much, and that?s thanks enough for me." She said, sincerely, hugging 
Willow gently, not wanting to wrinkle her gown. "I love you like a daughter, 
and I thank whatever divining force that brought you into our lives."

Willow felt happy tears slipping down her cheeks and rubbed them away with a 
trembling finger. "I?m sorry, that?s just about the sweetest thing anyone?s 
ever said to me."

Joyce smiled at her in understanding. "Don?t worry, I?m sure both of you 
will be crying alot of happy tears today. It?s perfectly natural, that?s why 
I brought you this." She passed Willow an embroidered blue cloth, 
handkerchief to wipe her tears away, both the ones she was crying now, and 
the ones she would cry later.

"That takes care of borrowed and blue...your dress is new..." Joyce said 
with a smile, evoking the old tradition of Something old, something new, 
something borrowed and something blue. "And this...is very old." Joyce said, 
pinning a sparkling butterfly broach onto Willow?s dress. "It was my Great, 
Great-grandmothers. My mother pinned it on me when I married Buffy?s father, 
telling me it symbolized the wings that we would be spreading to fly away 
together in our newly married life. It?s been passed down in this way for 
many generations. I always thought that I?d be pinning it on Buffy some day, 
but I think that it was really meant for you."

Willow fingered the broach, then looked up at Joyce, fresh tears filling her 
eyes, too choked up to speak. A gentle smile worked it?s way onto Joyce?s 
face at the sight. "Oh honey, I know you and Buffy are going to have very 
happy lives together." She hugged the red head once more, then pulled away 
to look at her. "Now, what do you say we get this show on the road. If I 
know Buffy, she?s probably pacing in front of the alter, chewing her nails, 
wondering if you?re ever going to show up."

*****

The attack of butterflies Buffy had felt over breakfast was nothing next to 
the ones she felt swimming in there now as she stood in front of the alter, 
surrounded by a bunch of people she wasn?t sure she recognized, almost 
totally convinced she was going to pass out at any second.

Xander, her best man, stood next to her whispering reassuring things at her, 
like "Breathe.", "Relax." and "It will all be over soon.".

She felt sweat breaking out on her forehead, and she was sure the minister 
was giving her strange looks, though that could just be her delirium, she 
reflected silently, wondering when the heck Willow was going to arrive. 
Wouldn?t it just beat all if she was left standing at the alter in front of 
all of these people just like in that movie "Runaway Bride"?

It was with a great sense of relief then when she saw her mom, dressed in a 
lovely light blue dress, walking over to the band, who had set up, in an 
impromptu kind of way, on a rocky ledge not far from the canopy. If Joyce 
was here, that meant Willow was here too, and the wedding was about to 
start. Thank God.

Joyce spoke into a microphone that was powered by a small generator. "I am 
greatly honored to be able to sing at my daughter?s wedding. Although I must 
warn her, I haven?t done this in a long time and I may be a little rusty." 
Buffy grinned nervously at her mother, hoping her nervousness didn?t show 
too badly on her face.

"This song reminds me of a mother?s love for her child, the love that I feel 
for you. But I also think it best describes the love that I see between you 
and Willow. I hope you like it." As soon as Joyce finished speaking the 
Dingoes started playing a slow tune, while Cordelia and Anya started moving 
up the aisle between the two rows of people.

Willow followed behind them at a more sedate pace, and Buffy felt the breath 
leave her lungs as she caught sight of her bride, Willow?s beauty 
captivating her like nothing else ever had. Willow?s arm was curled 
comfortable and somewhat protected by Giles? arm.

Buffy could see the pride that beamed on the face of her Watcher in the 
split second of attention that she gave him, before she stared completely 
entranced, as her gorgeous bride made her way steadily to her.
As Joyce started to sing, images of their relationship with each other 
danced in their heads.

"When Darkness falls upon your heart and soul.
I?ll be the light that shines for you."

Willow had always been Buffy?s light in the darkness, the one anchor in her 
chaotic life that kept her grounded and feeling safe. Without her, Buffy 
doubted there would be any light in her life.

"When you forget how beautiful you are.
I?ll be there to remind you."

As Willow walked up the aisle, hearing Joyce?s voice echoing over the beach, 
it touched a place in her heart, a place that belonged to the Slayer, who 
was standing, waiting patiently for her to reach her side.
Buffy, the one who had stood up for the class geek from the first day they 
had met. The one that showed her each and every day just how beautiful she 
thought the red head was.

"When you can?t find your way,
I?ll find my way to you.
When trouble comes around, I will come to you."

Willow reached Buffy?s side, staring deeply into the Slayer?s eyes, as Giles 
relinquished his hold and gave her a kiss on the cheek, then stepped aside 
as Buffy stepped forward to meet her, clasping her hands in her own as they 
listened to the words, getting lost in each other?s eyes.

There had been times when they had each been lost both mentally (when Angel 
and Oz had left them) and quite literally. They had made it through the lost 
times with the love and support of the other, and they knew they never would 
have made it if the other hadn?t been there.

"I?ll be your shoulder
When you need someone to lean on.
Be your shelter
When you need someone to see you through.
I?ll be there to carry you.
I?ll be there."

Willow had lost count of the number of times Buffy had cried on her 
shoulder, or lying face down in her lap, not that she had ever started 
counting. She had been there for Buffy during the darkest moments of the 
Slayer?s life, and had been honored to stand by her side when everything 
else in her dark life was going wrong. It was an act of love, even before 
they had become lovers. Even the mighty slayer needed someone to turn to in 
times of trouble, someone to lean on, and she had accepted the 
responsibility as a treasured gift, reserved only for her.

"I?ll be the rock that will be strong for you.
The one that will hold on to you.
When you feel the rain falling down.
When there?s nobody else around.
I?ll be."

As Willow was Buffy?s support, the same held true the other way around. When 
Oz had left, leaving her shattered and broken, it had been Buffy that had 
held her, and comforted her as Willow?s tears had slipped down her fair 
cheeks, breaking Buffy?s heart in the process. The unrequited love she had 
felt, or so she had thought then, threatening to burst from the restraints 
she had placed upon it.

"And when you?re there with no one to hold.
I?ll be the arms that reach for you."

Buffy and Willow smiled at each other, seeing remembrances of the times they 
had held each other, whether happy or sad, mirrored in each others eyes.

"And when you feel your faith is running low.
I?ll be there to believe in you."

Without the red head?s faith in her, Buffy would have given up the fight 
against the powers of darkness a long time ago, and without Buffy?s faith in 
Willow, the wiccan never would have grown out of her shy, meek shell and 
grown into the beautifully confident woman that she loved with all her 
heart.

"When all you find are lies,
I?ll be the truth you need.
When you need someone to run to.
You can run to me."

> From the first, when Willow had found out she was the Slayer, Willow had 
been her confidant, the one she trusted to keep her secrets, the one she 
could tell all of her troubles to. She had told more to her red headed 
friend than she had to anybody else, including her Watcher. The wiccan was 
the first person she ran to when she was in trouble, and they had made a 
pact a long time ago to never keep anything from each other.

"I?ll be your shoulder
When you need someone to lean on.
Be your shelter
When you need someone to see you through.
I?ll be there to carry you.
I?ll be there.
I?ll be the rock that will be strong for you.
The one that will hold on to you.
When you feel the rain falling down.
When there?s nobody else around.
I?ll be."

As Joyce sang the chorus a second time, the couple reflected that they were 
each of these to each other...they were the shoulder that they cried on, the 
shelter from the storm, the rock that secured each other, and so much more.

"I?ll be the sun.
When your heart?s filled with rain.
I?ll be the one to chase the rain away."

They had seen each other through so many troubled times and had managed to 
lighten each others spirit when they had needed it most. Willow was one of 
the few people that could get her to smile when she was feeling her darkest. 
With her endearing grin, and her comedic way of stating the worst in a 
babbling kind of way, Willow usually had a way of seeing through the 
darkness to that one ray of light, causing it to grow until it?s brightness 
drowned out the shadows in the Slayer?s soul.

"I?ll be your shoulder
When you need someone to lean on.
Be your shelter
When you need someone to see you through.
I?ll be there to carry you.
I?ll be there.
I?ll be the rock that will be strong for you.
The one that will hold on to you.
When you feel the rain falling down.
When there?s nobody else around.
I?ll be."

?I?ll be.? They both vowed to each other silently, seeing the promise 
reflecting in each others eyes. ?I?ll be all those things and more.? They 
seemed to say, feeling the silent vow to the depths of their souls, bringing 
tears to their eyes as the last strains of the song wound down and the sound 
of the distant ocean roared into the quiet until the guests started 
applauding their appreciation for Joyce?s singing.

*****

After the applause calmed down, the minister moved to stand in front of 
Buffy and Willow and addressed the guests gathered there. "Friends and 
family, we are joined here today to join these two souls in joyous 
matrimony. If there is anyone here that can say why these two souls must not 
be joined, let that person speak now or forever hold their peace." Willow 
sent a worried look behind her, while the blue eyes of the Slayer peirced 
the gathered crowd. If anybody dared to interrupt their wedding, 
she?d...well she wasn?t quite sure what she would do, but she wouldn?t hold 
herself accountable for her actions.

Nobody spoke in the reigning silence, although one person in the crowd 
desperately wanted to. The unspoken voice wanted to shout above the crowd 
that Willow didn?t belong with Buffy, that Buffy couldn?t possibly love 
Willow the way this silent soul did. But the courage to speak eluded the 
lovesick soul, and the moment slipped past before the person could speak.

The minister turned back to the task at hand, that of marrying the couple in 
front of him. "Buffy and Willow have come here together today, not only to 
declare their undying and everlasting love to each other, but to declare it 
in full view of their friends and family, making a lasting pact to love each 
other not only in the good times, but also through the bad times to come. It 
is your job as witnesses to this love, to help them support each other, to 
remind them of the vows they will speak here today, and to help them to 
remain on that path they have started on today."

The minister smiled down on the couple in front of him. "As you have come 
here today to declare your love to the world, so you must as well declare 
your intentions to each other. Buffy and Willow have requested to use their 
own vows, which they have written and wish to present them to you now. 
Buffy..."

Buffy swallowed hard, hoping she wouldn?t choke as her nerves played havoc 
with her once more. She turned to face Willow, and felt a steadying calm 
washing over her, just by looking at the sun beaming on Willow?s sweet face. 
"For the longest time...I was alone. I had friends, if you could call them 
that, but they always seemed more interested in what I could give them than 
in any feelings I might have. It wasn?t until I met you, that I learned what 
being a true friend was all about. You taught me how to love, and then you 
gave me the greatest gift ever. You gave me your unconditional love. And 
now, as I stand here on this beach, among all of our friends and loved ones, 
I want to give you the same gift you gave me so long ago."

Buffy looked down at her black shoes, then back up into Willow?s beautiful 
green eyes, where she found the image of her own soul. Taking a deep calming 
breath, she continued. "Willow, I vow to love you unconditionally. I vow to 
support you in all of your dreams and wishes, and I vow to help you see 
those dreams come true. I will protect you with every fiber of my being, and 
I will lay down my life before I will let anything happen to you. I love you 
Willow Rosenberg, and I will love you all the days of our lives." Buffy 
could see the tears welling up in her love?s eyes, and she felt them 
brimming in her own. She never knew she?d cry so much on her wedding day, 
she thought to herself ruefully, and slipped one more vow in, just to 
lighten the atmosphere. "And I vow to keep the cap on the toothpaste to keep 
it from getting all crusty."

Willow laughed through her tears, trust Buffy to make a joke at a time like 
this. She swallowed the tears out of her throat, then took a long cleansing 
breath. "Buffy, before you came I was locked inside of a shell so thick even 
I couldn?t break it. My best friends were Xander and my Algebra book, and I 
was afraid of everything...including frogs. Then you came and pulled me out 
of my shell, almost effortlessly, or so it seemed to me, almost like magic. 
I never could figure out why you wanted to be my friend, I was just happy 
that you did. And before I knew it, I was becoming this completely different 
person. My shyness disappeared, I wasn?t afraid to get jiggy with it at ?the 
Bronze?, as long as you were there too, and I was standing up to people I?d 
never had the courage to before. You?re my Knight in shining armor, and I 
love you."

Buffy grinned from ear to ear as she listened to the words, laughing with 
Willow at the image of her getting jiggy with it, and nearly choking on the 
knight in shining armor bit. But Willow wasn?t finished, not by a long shot.

"So, now I vow to you Buffy to be your best friend, your lover, your wife, 
and your confidant. I vow to save you from the shell you disappear into at 
times to protect yourself from the greater hurts. I vow to fill your life 
with love and laughter, and protect you from the darkness that surrounds 
you. I will protect your heart and value it above all others. I love you 
Buffy Summers and I will love you for eternity." Tears slipped down the 
Slayer?s cheeks at those words, and she wiped them away self-consciously, 
feeling the eyes upon her. Willow smiled at her uncomfortable lover, and 
wishing to lighten the mood slipped in a joke of her own. "Even if you do 
forget to put the cap on the toothpaste."
They grinned at each other then, chuckling as warm rushes of love filled 
them, as they wiped away their tears.

The minister took over for them then, giving them a few moments to compose 
themselves. "As Buffy and Willow have exchanged their vows of love, they 
must now seal that vow with a ring of pledge that will be a token of their 
love for all the world to see."

Buffy took her cue from the minister, then turned to Xander, elbowing him in 
the gut as he was staring off into space. He grinned at her in apology, then 
handed over the sparkling golden ring, managing not to drop it in the 
process. Buffy glared at him, scoldingly, then turned back to her bride, the 
gold ring in her hand. She took Willow?s left hand in hers, and trying not 
to tremble as she did so, slipped the ring onto her ring finger while 
reciting these words. "This ring I give to you, is token and pledge of my 
constant faith and devotion." She watched as it sparkled beside the shining 
diamond engagement ring, and felt an unaccountable joy rising inside of her.

Willow couldn?t stop smiling as she turned and took Buffy?s ring from 
Cordelia, who passed it to her with a grin. Taking Buffy?s left hand in 
hers, she placed the ring on her finger and repeated the words Buffy had 
spoken seconds before. "This ring I give to you, is token and pledge of my 
constant faith and devotion."

It felt so right to have the ring on her finger, and Buffy looked down at it 
in awe, before she returned her gaze to her love?s face, unable to wipe the 
joyous smile off of her face.

"In Jewish tradition, the marrying couple greets their new life together by 
drinking from the same glass. Buffy and Willow have requested this symbol as 
a part of their ceremony and I am only too proud to help them fulfill this 
wish." Picking up a wine glass, that contained purple grape juice, he held 
the glass out to Willow with a ceremonial napkin, who took the glass and 
drank half of it?s contents before she passed it on to Buffy. Buffy took the 
glass, drank the rest of it?s contents, then placing it on the mat, she 
crushed the glass underfoot, symbolizing the breaking away of their old 
lives and the start of their new one, amidst cries of ?Mozel Tov?.

Xander surreptitiously moved the broken glass out of their way, as the happy 
couple clasped hands together, turning to face the gathered guests. "Friends 
and Family, I am pleased to present to you Buffy and Willow 
Rosenberg-Summers. You may kiss the bride."

That was the part Buffy had been looking forward to all through the 
ceremony, and as her heart filled with a mixture of love, pride and 
belonging, Buffy kissed her wife gently but thoroughly on the mouth, hearing 
the loud cheers and wolf calls coming from their guests. Willow grasped 
Buffy?s hand with her own, unconsciously using her left hand, as she met her 
wife?s lips enthusiastically.

Not wanting to turn it into a free for all on the beach, Buffy broke away 
shortly after, turning to look at the guests, her hand still clasped in 
Willow?s. Knowing they were about to be pelted with something, they made a 
break for it, running down the aisle as a flurry of bread crumbs swam 
through the air. Buffy managed to avoid getting hit from most of it, 
protecting Willow with one hand as they ran. She heard Willow laughing 
beside her, and started laughing herself, unable to keep the outstanding 
amount of joy from exploding out of her as Buffy and Willow 
Rosenberg-Summers ran for the safety of her mother?s car.


...to be continued.:-)
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