58: That Feeling

The reception was just as small as the wedding and was held in a small hall in the resort. Artie had actually played in the room as a child, her and Vega engaging in a little "beat up" tag with just the two of them, so really just wrestling, and "sword fighting" with homemade wooden swords. They usually held children's parties in it, but here she was sitting with her new wife and having their wedding reception. Their wedding reception. She sat up a little taller, holding her chin a little higher.

Quinn was by her side, opting to stay in her wedding dress. They had taken dozens of pictures before the reception, the wedding photographer making sure they got their money's worth. Quinn insisted Artie take almost as many pictures with her sisters as she did with her bride. She knew Quinn was bowled over by the cuteness of Diana and Tia in tuxedos and Juno in her little dress.

There were to be speeches as soon as everyone filed in. Artie wasn't worried. Vega would stand up and do what she did, tell the truth. Hopefully, she wouldn't do it in the most embarrassing way possible. She wasn't sure who would speak after that. Maybe her grandparents, maybe one of the twins, maybe even her mother or Yvonne. She would be honored by anyone who would. She loved them all and they loved her back, loved her back enough to celebrate this amazing moment with her. This great day, rivaled only by the birth of her namesake.

"You're smiling," Quinn commented.

"Of course I am. I just got married," Artie remarked.

"What are you thinking about?"

"How this great day sits up there high with the greatest day of my life."

Quinn craned an eyebrow. "What day is that?"

"The birth of the Piglet."

"Tell me about it. As quickly as you can," Quinn requested, a soft look in her eyes.

"There was so much going on, but the short of it is that I was so worried about her. She was premature. She made it to thirty-five weeks, I believe. There was so much going on, but when I saw her… I don't know. The world stopped. Everything stopped and it was just me and her. The same thing just happened with you. When we stood up there in front of everyone, the world stopped again and it was incredible," Artie explained as best she could. It really was too much to discuss right now, but they had the rest of their lives to talk about it.

Quinn smiled. "I'll take it as the greatest compliment that this day is up there with the Piglet's birth."

For a moment, Artie's mind drifted back to the birth of Diana. Her mother's stupid boyfriend beating the snot out of her the day before possibly induced Diana's labor. Artie had fumed, vowed a slow and painful death for the man if her mother or her sister had any complications and there were some hiccups. Diana was upside down, her lungs underdeveloped, and her kidneys didn't work right away. Artie had been all fire and hatred, unable to think about anything beyond strangling that man with her bare hands, but the thoughts all faded when she saw Diana. The world faded and everything was calm. It wasn't something she'd been used to then. Something about that tiny body made everything all right, brought light to the world, and made everything shine. Diana brought a calmness to her that she wasn't used to. The more Diana grew, the stronger these powers became. Quinn now shared these same powers.

"Are you okay?" Quinn asked, taking Artie's hand.

Artie smiled. "Beyond okay. Why'd you ask?"

"Because you've been staring at the floor for a full minute. What's going through your mind now?"

"You, of course. You and your superpowers."

Eyes going wide, Quinn laughed. "I have superpowers now?"

"Yes, brilliant ones. You make the sunrise everyday in my world. You bring calm to the storm inside of me. You make light in the darkness. You're so full of superpowers," Artie explained as she leaned down to give Quinn a kiss.

"Hey, hey, hey, you'll get to that soon enough!" Vega called, grabbing a microphone. "First, I get to make my speech, you know?" She reached for a flute of champagne.

Artie laughed because she could only wonder what hard truth would come out of Vega's mouth. Most of the guests would just get it, but Quinn's grandparents and Morgan's family probably would think it was awful. Artie didn't care. She wanted to see her "brother" take it and run with it.

"Good afternoon, everyone. For those of you who don't know me, I am Vega Nasri and I'm Artie's brother. I've known her for almost all of our lives and she's always been special, in a good way usually. She selfless to an almost frightening degree and I've seen her teenage self do things most adults couldn't even dream of. I can't even begin to imagine what she as an adult will do, but I know it'll be amazing. She's already proven that today.

"She can carry the weight of the world on those broad shoulders and punch Atlas in the face for being a wuss while she does it. She does it for the people she loves. But, for all of that, I knew something was missing. Artie didn't believe in romantic love for a variety of reasons and didn't even know she had a void inside of her until Quinn dropped in on her life. Quinn was so sneaky with her invasion into Artie's heart, to the point Artie didn't even realize they were in a relationship until Quinn spelled it out for her. This was just what Artie needed, though. She needed something quiet, subtle, and warm. Something she wouldn't notice until it was too late because before Quinn, Artie would've dismissed these feelings and moved on to another conquest, if only to get the taste out of her mouth. Instead, by the time she realized what was happening, Quinn was already the oxygen she breathed and how does one live without oxygen?

"Quinn, you might not realize it because Artie's the one with the big muscles and always flexing, but you're just as strong as she is. She holds up the world, but she's standing on your shoulders now. You're lifting her up, showing her the heavens. There are endless possibilities between the two of you and that's truly amazing. I'm sure you'll make it a point to explore as many of those possibilities as you can together, holding each other up, protecting each other, and loving each other. I hope all of your journeys turn out as wonderful and as magical as your first one did, that path of love you forged together," Vega held up her glass.

Artie squeezed Quinn's hand as they took a sip from their champagne glasses. Tears were in Quinn's eyes again and she was obviously trying to keep them in, not wanting to ruin her makeup any more than she had already. Artie smiled because it seemed silly to her. Quinn was just as beautiful in ruined makeup as she always was.

Morgan stood up next and laughed. "How can I top that? I didn't know Miss Vega-no-smile actually had a way with words." This got laughs from the audience that knew Vega while Vega rolled her eyes. "Quinn might not tell you, but she's always wanted to get married. While she never had a straight up plan, it was always in the cards. I don't think she considered it would be right after college, but definitely after school and possibly after she got a good job. But, this was predictable and in this case predictable is good because Artie is good for Quinn. Even when they were 'just friends.'" Morgan made quote marks with her fingers. "Artie looked out for Quinn in every way possible and Quinn looked out for Artie in the same way. You could see there was something special and even if they didn't realize it, their hearts recognized it. What they did as 'friends' is more than most people do with spouses. So, again, this was predictable. This is where their hearts have led them. May their hearts remain as one." She raised the glass. Everyone drank to that.

Mahmoud stood next. "I just want to say that I wish this couple all of the happiness in this life and may they be blessed with all they deserve. May we all follow their example." He raised the glass and there were mumbles of agreements as everyone drank.

"Man of few words," Artie whispered to Quinn.

"Man of not-so-subtle hints," Quinn snickered, nodding toward Mahmoud as he patted Vega on the back.

"He wants her to have a family, more than what they have," Artie replied.

"You mean more than one kid?"

Artie nodded. "More than one kid and for that kid to have a mother."

"What happened to her mother? Why didn't he remarry?" Quinn asked curiously.

"She died, breast cancer at twenty-five. I never knew her. Hell, Vega never really knew her. Her mother died when she was one. I don't know why he never remarried, but I think it's just because he never loved someone the way he loved her. First love, first heartbreak."

Quinn inhaled sharply and held Artie's hand tightly. "Please…" she cut herself off, surely about to ask for the impossible.

Artie smiled and leaned down for another kiss. "I'll try not to."

Artie planned to live a long life with this woman by her side. The reception moved on after Anna actually stood up and simply wished them the best. She didn't need to say more, but the five simple words filled Artie with light and laughter. Quinn sniffled a little, still doing her best to hold in tears.

They had their first dance as a married couple and Artie was so nervous that she stepped on Quinn's feet twice. Quinn only laughed, even though Artie knew her feet had to be hurting in those lovely heels. She held Quinn close and breathed in her scent.

"Vega was right," Artie whispered.

"About?"

"You are oxygen, Princess. Just another one of your many superpowers."

Quinn laughed and rested her head against Artie's shoulder. Artie made sure not to step on her feet again. This was like being in a dream, floating on a cloud, and soaring at the same time. She kept moving when the music stopped and Quinn didn't say anything.

"Hey, are you going to throw the bouquet or what?" Venus called, knocking the couple back down to Earth.

Quinn laughed. "I guess I should get to it."

Artie nodded and grinned. They finally broke apart and Artie stepped away. Venus handed Quinn her flowers, white and light purple roses with some lilacs as an accent. A crowd of ladies gathered as Quinn turned her back to them. Artie looked through the crowd, seeing Venus there and Yvonne. She didn't know what to think when her grandmother practically pushed her mother into the fray.

Artie watched as Quinn took a deep breath before she tossed the flowers over her head. Vega came up next to her, her face tense. Artie shook her head.

"Relax. What are the odds of little old Tega catching the damn thing with Venus' long arms out there? Besides, it's not binding," Artie pointed out.

"You're only saying that because Venus is out there," Vega remarked.

Artie shrugged. "Well, if it was binding, I'd definitely snatch her ass off the floor. Not that I think she and Tracy would last longer than this reception."

Vega chuckled and nodded. "Yeah, I'm surprised she hasn't bench pressed him yet."

Artie scoffed. "Hell, I might do that. I'm happy he's a good kid, though. But, I don't care that Venus is out there. It's just a bit of fun, so calm down about it."

Vega shrugged as well, but Artie didn't miss the relieved sigh as the bouquet sailed over Yvonne's reaching hands. Vega's shoulders actually sagged with relief. Artie decided not to address that, not wanting to bum Vega out. Besides, she had other things on her mind. She had to go and throw the garter.

It seemed too intimate for an audience, especially one that had her sisters in it, but Artie still managed to take the garter off of Quinn. As tempting as it was to use her teeth, she managed to stay under control. There were grandparents there, after all! This was the most PG way she had ever removed anything from Quinn, but she had to caress the most gorgeous leg she had ever seen, earning giggles from Quinn.

Artie didn't really wait for a crowd to form like Quinn did. She turned around and flung the garter and died of laughter when she saw Vega caught it. Well, it more landed on her head, but that had to be a sign. Of course, Vega didn't appear amused.

"You did that on purpose," Vega hissed, glaring at Artie.

"I wasn't even looking!" Besides, how could she do something so hilarious and awesome on purpose? "It was God's will."

"You are so fucking lucky I can't kill you on your wedding day," Vega snarled.

Artie was sure that was the only thing saving her. Quinn came and took her head as they watched Vega put the garter on the woman who caught the bouquet. Quinn laughed.

"I have never seen someone quite so pissed to be putting a garter on someone," Quinn remarked.

"Vega's a sourpuss. Let's not let that spoil the day," Artie declared, but she did glance at Yvonne. She wanted to make sure her friend was all right. Yvonne appeared tense. "Let's go dance with Tega!"

Artie pulled Quinn off and grabbed up Yvonne. It was a celebration. They should all be happy, if only for the day.

-8-8-8-8-

Next time: the end, also known as the honeymoon.