The El Halcòn Wedding.
This is my May the 4th Be With You Challenge Fic. Prompt: “Since the first time I saw you, I have belonged to you completely.”
Christ the King Catholic Church
Alderaan, Wyoming
Poe Dameron looked at his reflection in the mirror, readjusting his bow tie for what felt like the fiftieth time. His hands were shaking.
“Damn it,” he muttered. He had shared dinner with powerful drug cartel leaders, been face to face with mass murderers, knew twenty-five ways to kill a man with his bare hands, and had on more than one occasion taken the life of another in self-defense, and he had never been this nervous.
Licking his dry lips, he reached into his front pocket and pulled out the chain necklace that was looped through a simple silver wedding band. He fondled the ring for a moment, then slipped the chain over his head. He used to wear it at all times, never taking it off, but for the last five months or so, since she had left Ajan Kloss on a military helicopter, it had been worn by Rey Skywalker.
Until last night.
Last night, at their combined bachelor and bachelorette party, Rey had given it back to him with the promise that he would wear it until the moment he took it off to put the ring on her finger. It was a rather unconventional way for the bride’s wedding ring to be carried up to the altar, but they had been an unconventional couple since day one, so why change things now? Just before midnight last night, Rey’s friends had hustled her away from the party, telling Poe it was bad luck for him to see the bride the day of the wedding until the actual ceremony. In respect to the Catholic faith they were marrying in, Rey and Poe had lived separately since Poe moved to Alderaan, with Poe keeping an apartment in town. Tonight, he would be moving into Rey’s house several miles out of town.
Poe huffed a soft laugh in memory of the party last night, which had been Rey’s idea, then took a deep breath and shook his hands in the air, trying to loosen up the muscles in his shoulders. He looked at himself critically in the mirror again. Fresh haircut, newly shaved, perfectly fitted tux… he was ready.
A quick knock on the office door made him jump, and he turned to see his friend and Best Man Temmin “Snap” Wexley look in. “Are you ready?”
He wasn’t ready. “Is it time?”
“Well, the priest is good to go, and so is the bride from what I’ve been told. So, yeah, it’s time.”
Poe just stared at him.
Snap tilted his head. “You okay?” he asked. “My car is close if you want to use it to escape.” His expression was serious.
Poe frowned. “But then I wouldn’t marry Rey.”
“Yeah,” Snap nodded.
“That’s not an option,” Poe continued. “I’m going through all this shit to marry Rey. Why else would I do it?”
“Okay, so you’re not having second thoughts?”
“Hell, no.”
“Then let’s go!”
******
His heart was still racing as he met the priest, Father Craig Burke, at the entrance to the sanctuary. He tried to focus his mind on what he needed to do; they had just rehearsed this yesterday morning. He saw movement around the corner of the hall where he knew the bride’s room was, but he intentionally did not look in that direction as the piano began to play. One of the altar servers walked in first carrying the thurible with incense, then another with the processional cross. Poe followed, with Father Craig right behind him, then Snap and Finn, his groomsmen, behind the priest.
While the church officiants made their way up the steps to the altar, Poe took a right at the foot of the stairs. Snap and Finn followed, then together they turned to face the aisle. Rey’s friend Kaydell appeared in the doorway, dressed in a pretty blue cocktail dress, her bare shoulders covered by a matching shawl. It was January in Wyoming, after all. The Matron of Honor, Rose, followed in the same style dress. As Kay reached the foot of the stairs, Finn met her, and the two turned to the altar, genuflected to the Tabernacle, then separated again to take up their positions on the stairs. Snap and Rose did the same thing.
The soft piano music seemed to swell, and Poe felt his whole body stiffen as he stared at the exit to the sanctuary. Then she was there.
His angel.
She was wearing a gorgeous off-white dress of silk and lace, with a form-fitting halter-style top and a full, flowing skirt with a chapel length train. She wore her dark hair up with a lovely mother-of-pearl floral hair vine holding a veil that swept gently over her head and face. It was so sheer that it didn’t hide her, and as he met her huge, luminous eyes with his own, every bit of tension in his body eased.
He stepped out to meet her, only then looking at the man who was escorting her down the aisle. Sheriff Han Solo, Rey’s uncle and Poe’s boss, was looking more than a little emotional as he stopped in front of Poe. He held out his hand and Poe shook it firmly. His look as he eyed Poe was a combination of warning and gratitude. Gratitude that Poe made Rey so happy, and a warning that he better continue to do so.
Rey let go of her uncle’s arm and held out her hand to Poe. Trying not to move too quickly, and therefore give away his excitement, Poe took it and tucked it under his own arm. As Han turned to sit next to his wife in the front left pew, Poe and Rey made their way up to the altar. They genuflected just before stepping up the stairs, then stopped before the kneelers that were placed before the altar.
Father Craig added incense to the thurible, then as male singers began chanting a blessing, he swung the incense as he walked around the altar. Once finished, he began the mass. After the opening prayer, the Kyrie, and the Gloria, Rey and Poe moved back down to the front of the pews, where two chairs awaited them. The readings were read, Father Craig recited the Gospel, then he settled into his homily. After more than four months of marriage prep with the priest, Poe had gotten to know the man fairly well, and he knew Father Craig was usually very good with his homilies for mass, keeping them short and interesting. But today Poe found he couldn’t concentrate on what the man was saying. He kept looking at Rey, staring at her beautiful profile for long moments, then he would try once more to pay attention to the Father.
Rey didn’t look like she was having any more success than he in focusing on the homily. Every time he looked at her, the corners of her mouth would quirk upward, but she refused to look back at him. Finally, God bless him, Father Craig finished.
They rose again and went up the stairs to stand in front of the priest. They gave their affirmations and consent, then Poe took her hand and they recited the vows that they had practiced with each other over and over again in the days leading up to this one.
It was time to exchange the rings. Rey grinned as Poe let go of her hand so he could slip the chain off over his head. He worked the clasp, thankfully not fumbling it, pulled the ring off, and then turned and handed the chain to Snap and the ring to the priest. Father Craig took the other ring from Rose, then set them on a cushion held by one of the altar servers. Using holy water, he blessed the rings. He gave Shara’s ring back to Poe. Feeling his nerves spike again, Poe took Rey’s left hand in his and recited, “I give you this ring to wear, as a symbol of my abiding love, my eternal faith, and my undying devotion. It is an outward reminder of our inner unity.” Carefully, he slid the ring onto her finger.
Rey bit her lower lip, and he wasn’t quite sure if she was trying not to cry or laugh… or both. Then she turned to Father Craig, who handed her the wedding band Poe had chosen, one that matched his mother’s. She took his hand. “I give you this ring to wear,” she said. “As a symbol of my abiding love, my eternal faith, and my undying devotion. It is an outward reminder of our inner unity.” She slid the ring onto his finger, then wrapped her own fingers around his whole hand, looking at him intensely. He could see the tears in her eyes, now.
The priest blessed them, then sent the others back to their seats as they kneeled in front of the altar and the Eucharist was prepared. Rey and Poe were the first to receive communion as they remained kneeling, Rey lifting her veil just enough to receive the body and the blood of Christ, then the priest moved behind them to give communion to the rest of the congregation.
After communion, Rey and Poe stood once more, Poe trying not to groan as his knees about gave way; they’d been kneeling for a long time. Rey squeezed his arm, and he could tell she was trying not to laugh. “Your time will come,” he muttered, and a soft giggle erupted. The priest gave the final prayer, then had the congregation stand as he gave them one last blessing.
Finally, “And I now present to you the new Mr. and Mrs. Poe Dameron.”
Rey turned toward him as Poe reached for the edges of her veil. As he lifted it up over her head, he realized the tears he had seen in her eyes earlier were now on her cheeks, but her thousand-watt smile told him they were not tears of sadness. He reached forward, cupping her face in his hands, and used his thumbs to wipe the moisture from her cheeks. Then he kissed her. It was an innocent kiss as far as kisses between them went, he thought. Though they had tried to behave since starting the marriage prep, they had slipped a few times. This last month, however, they had remained chaste. It had been a very long month. He couldn’t wait for tonight.
When he could finally make love to his wife.
******
The rest of the day was interminably long. First was the receiving line right after the wedding was over. Smiling, shaking hands, hugging… and half the people he didn’t really know. At least Alderaan was a small town, and as a sheriff’s deputy he was getting to know most of the people by sight, just not by name. Then there were the pictures, which fortunately didn’t take too long, as Rey knew exactly what she wanted and directed everyone accordingly, even the photographer. Finally, they made it to the VFW Hall, one of the largest indoor venues available in town, for the reception.
The meal was buffet-style, catered by Rey’s favorite restaurant, Hideaway Haven. Three super long tables lined the edge of the open space, with a fourth containing the buffet, and Rey and Poe of course got center seats at the center table. After the meal started winding down, Snap gave his Best Man speech, which made everyone either laugh or roll their eyes, but then he surprised most everyone by handing the microphone off to Rey.
With a shy look on her face, she pulled out a folded piece of paper from under her plate and stood. Knowing she wasn’t scared of public speaking, as she was a teacher, Poe couldn’t help but get a bit nervous seeing her so apprehensive. She smiled down at him.
“We aren’t allowed to make personal vows in a Catholic wedding mass,” she started, addressing the crowd. “But I ran across this poem and it called to me and I just had to share it here. I wasn’t looking for it,” she explained. “It just found me.” She looked at Poe again, a question in her eyes.
He nodded, curious as hell now.
She cleared her throat, then began to read from the paper.
“Now we will feel no rain, for each of us will be shelter to each other.
And now we will feel no cold, for each of us will be warmth to each other.
Now there is no loneliness.
We are two bodies, but there is one life before us, and one home.
When evening falls, I’ll look to you and there you’ll be,
And I’ll take your hand and you’ll take mine,
And we’ll turn together to look at the road we traveled to reach this – the hour of our happiness.
It stretches far behind us, and our future lies ahead.
A long and winding road, where every turning means discovery.
Old hopes, new laughter, shared tears.
The adventure has just begun.” **
The room was silent as she finished, with more than a few people wiping their eyes, and Rey looked at Poe with a soft smile. His throat was tight and his eyes were damp as he stood and leaned forward to kiss her on the forehead. He lingered for a moment, then he pulled away and she sat back down, looking at him with a slight smirk. Almost as if she was daring him to top her.
He took a deep breath and let it out, then took the microphone from her. “Well, I don’t know how I can follow that,” he said with a laugh. “I don’t have a poem, but I do have a memory. A memory of a day not so long ago. I was exhausted. Physically. Mentally. I didn’t know who I was anymore. Then I entered this little one-room schoolhouse full of children and nuns, and this woman was there. For a moment, when I saw her… everything went still. Everything that had been blurred in my psyche was suddenly clear. Perfectly and beautifully clear. I knew where I belonged.”
He focused on his wife, who was watching him with wide eyes.
“Rey, since the first time I saw you, I have belonged to you completely. Today just made it official.”
Rey bounced out of her seat, wrapping her arms around his shoulders and burying her face against his neck. He held her tight as the crowd around them applauded.
The party continued, with the traditional wedding reception necessities. Cutting the wedding cake. The first dance, which was to one of Rey’s favorite songs, I’ll Still Be Loving You. Rey’s dance with her uncle, and then with Poe’s father, Kes, while Poe danced with Rey’s aunt Leia. The throwing of both the bouquet (one of Leia’s friends, Amilyn Holdo caught it) and the garter, which Poe happily got to remove from Rey’s leg first (one of Rey’s fellow teachers, Beau, caught that). Eventually, while the dancing was going on around them, and Poe and Rey were just wrapped in each other swaying to the music, Poe posed a question.
“Wanna get out of here?”
Rey lifted her head from his shoulder. “Leave our reception early?”
“It’s our reception,” he said. “We can do what we want. They can keep partying as long as they want. I have much more intricate plans for the rest of the night.”
“How intricate?” Rey asked, her voice husky.
“Well, I thought I’d start out with my head between your thighs,” he started.
Rey looked over her shoulder, then back at him. “Shhhhhh…” she hushed.
“You don’t want me to detail what I plan to do to you, Mrs. Dameron?”
“Not here!” she gasped, but she was smiling now. “You have to stay focused long enough to help me out of this dress, Deputy.”
“We better leave now, then,” he told her, grinning. “Because I don’t want to still be struggling with it at midnight.”
Rey giggled. “It’s not that difficult!” She looked over her shoulder again. “But I agree, let’s leave now. Let’s sneak out. Not tell anybody.”
“People will think I kidnapped you,” he said, his voice low.
“Won’t be the first time,” Rey answered.
As subtly as possible, they wandered toward the entrance. Poe made sure he had the keys to his brand-new Silverado, but they didn’t worry about anything else left behind; it would find its way back to them eventually. As soon as they were clear, they made a run for Poe’s truck, Rey skipping over a small snowbank easily even in her full skirt and heels. He boosted her up into the passenger seat, then ran for the driver’s side as she pulled her skirt in after her. A few people appeared in the door, calling at them and laughing, but Poe just waved at them and started the truck. Rey blew them all a kiss as Poe drove off and headed for…
“Where to, wife?”
“Take me home, husband. Take me home.”
Let the adventure begin.
THE END
**”The Journey” by Maura Penders
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