A/N: Well, here we are at the end of the road for this particular story. Its been an uphill struggle at times, as crossovers often are, but I'm proud of myself for making it to the end. Major thanx to those that have stuck with me throughout and kept on reviewing too - you all rock! :-)
(For disclaimer, etc. - see chapter 1)
Chapter 19
"Please repeat after me" said the priest looking to the beautiful bride stood before him, "I, Brittany Kennington, take thee, John Jefferson to be my lawful wedded husband"
Brittany opened her mouth to speak only to close it a second later, panicking her groom more than a little. Her eyes flitted from him to row upon row of guests sat out here in their secluded corner of the beach, before finally settling on the two most important people right there in front - her Mom and Dad.
"Britt?" said John, putting a hand to her arm, unsure when she smiled whether it was a good thing or not, truth be told.
"It's okay" she assured him a moment later, before clearing her throat and speaking clearly for all to hear, "I, Brittany Burkhart-Hyde..." she said proudly, sparing a wink for her folks before her eyes returned to meet her fiancé's own and she completed her vows.
"Oh, that was so sweet!" Kitty Forman squealed from the front row in that way that only she could, at least until her husband shushed her.
"Oh my God" said Jackie softly, tears filling her eyes that she had under control until that moment Brittany spoke the name she would rather use on her special day.
"Breathe, Jacks" Hyde urged her in a whisper, his arm around her shoulders hugging her close, "That's a pretty cool kid we got there" he smiled, feeling strangely emotional himself.
Not that it ought to be strange that a father was feeling this way at his daughters wedding, but Hyde wasn't really one for showing what he felt as a general rule. Besides, he and Britt had only met a couple of months ago. Over the past few weeks they'd spent a lot of time together, getting to know each other. They had quite a bit in common, music mostly but that was cool. Hyde had met John and liked him almost immediately, in spite of the fact he was a lawyer and therefore closer to the Man than he was really comfortable with. He made Brittany happy though, that was the main thing.
Hyde himself found he was so much happier in Neptune than anywhere else. After a few days he'd headed back to LA for various reasons ranging from needing clothes to wear and having business to deal with. His apartment was too quiet and empty and he'd not only missed his daughter but Jackie too. They'd talked a lot since the reunion, agreed that leaping into bed together that first night had been kind of stupid, and buried the hatchet when it came to their past in Wisconsin. They needed to start over, talk things through, get to know each other all over again as the people they had now become. What kind of relationship was going to come out of it hadn't been clear in the beginning, but now, almost two months later, they were probably as much in love all over again as the happy couple getting married today.
Jackie missed her Steven so much whenever he went away from Neptune and back to LA for business or to collect more belongings. He missed her just as much, as well as Brittany, and it hadn't taken long for them to realise that being apart again just couldn't work. They wanted to be together, and they'd learnt the hard way that avoidance tactics and hiding from their feelings only led to heartache. This time they were honest, jumped in with both feet but also with their eyes wide open. So far, so good, it seemed, and no-one was more thrilled about that than Brittany.
"I now pronounce you husband and wife" said the priest at last, "You may kiss the bride" he added, and John wasted no time in doing just that.
The large audience of guests applauded, whooped, and cheered at the kiss that went on and on. There was one or two cheers of 'get a room', but they were soon hushed up, mostly by embarrassed wives and girlfriends. It was a perfect moment on a perfect day... almost.
"Man, I love weddings" said Michael Kelso from his place next to Veronica and Logan, "And I sure know about them. I've had like three" he explained, and the little blonde and her boyfriend weren't really sure why they were supposed to be impressed by that.
"You can ignore him" advised Donna from her seat behind them, alongside Eric, PJ, Luke, and Jaime, "He was dropped on his head as a baby" she whispered, though Kelso still heard and did not seem amused.
"Hey, just because it's true doesn't mean you have to tell everybody, Donna!" he said crossly, "God!" he exclaimed as he pushed through the sea of people that were all on the move now the bride and groom were wed.
Veronica wasn't sure what she was supposed to say as she looked between the retreating form of the strange man and her boyfriend sat beside her still. This had to be the strangest wedding she had ever been to in her life and yet she wouldn't have missed it for the world.
"What are you thinking about?" asked Logan, as he caught her eyes straying through the crowd, a wide smile at her lips.
"How happy everybody is here" she explained, pointing towards the pair that had to be the happiest couple on the entire beach, "I know it should be their daughter and her husband getting all the attention but those two just seem so right together"
He followed Veronica's finger to Jackie and Hyde, gazing at each other with such adoration and leaning in closer to share a kiss. Usually older people making out was just gross to any teenager, but Logan had to admit he could see where his girlfriend was coming from. It was weird to think that Jackie and Hyde were teenagers once too, and that from that age right up to now they hadn't seen each other. Still, just a soon as they were reunited, the spark of whatever had been between them so many years ago came back and lit a flame that burned bright as ever.
"That's quite the epic love story those two have" said Keith as he observed the same couple the younger pair had been staring at, "It's nice to think things can work out for them after so long" he said with a smile that was tinged with sadness.
Veronica knew why of course, her heart breaking just a little for her Dad's sake. He didn't have anybody in his life, not romantically. Sure, there had been Alicia for a while, but it just hadn't worked out, and no other woman seemed to catch his eye at all. Veronica knew her mother was never coming back to stay, she had given up on that dream a long time ago, and as much as it hurt for herself, she felt pain for her Dad too. Though she was determined he would never be left entirely alone because she would always be there for him no matter what, it might've been nice if he had a partner to spend the rest of his life with.
"Keith!" called Lynn as she headed back towards them rather more quickly than she'd wandered off just moments before in search of drinks, "Thank God I found you" she sighed, "I really need you to dance with me" she said, apparently somewhat desperate for him to agree, gesturing towards the space where the band had set up and begun playing already.
"Are you okay, Mom?" Logan checked, looking around to see what might have his mother so worried.
"I'm fine, sweetheart" she promised him, "I just need Keith to play a little role for me" she explained, eyes shifting from her son to her friend, "That guy over there seems to have developed an attraction to me and I could use a stand-in boyfriend until he finds new prey" she said, pointing over her shoulder at one Michael Kelso.
"You should really help her out, Dad" Veronica laughed lightly, as she spotted Kelso holding up a glass in a toast to Lynn's beauty or similar she assumed, "I think he's out to make her wife number four" she said with a look.
"Say no more" said Keith, going into over-the-top chivalrous mode, as he faked a bow and took a hold of Ms Lester's hand to lead her out onto the dance floor.
"It's so great to see her laugh like that" said Logan as he watched his Mom chuckle at being spun around the floor by Veronica's father.
"It really is" the blonde agreed, noticing her own Dad's smile appeared wide and genuine as ever it had.
It was an odd thought for the young couple that their parents might perhaps like each other in any way other than as friends, and yet not so very awful they realised. It could only result in them all being closer, and besides it would mean that neither had to worry about moving out one day, if his Mom and her Dad had each other to keep them company.
Couples moved from their seats and filled the dancefloor, some Veronica and Logan recognised and some they didn't. The bride and groom were in the centre of everything, surrounded by her parents and a whole rake of friends and family. It suddenly occurred to the young couple they were being left out of the fun, though they had not a second to suggest dancing to each other before they were forcibly dragged from their seats by a woman they had been introduced to by Hyde as 'Mrs F' just an hour before.
"Oh, c'mon you two!" she told them, pulling them from their seats, "Everybody should be dancing!" she enthused, strutting moves that Veronica was sure were old enough to be in a museum.
"Kitty, for God sakes!" her husband complained, pulling her away, "You're gonna break a hip!" he told her, much to Logan and Veronica's amusement.
"Wow, I hope I'm so energetic at her age" the blonde chuckled a moment before she suddenly found herself spun into her boyfriends arms.
"So long as you're still with me, I'll be happy" he told her, perhaps the corniest line ever but right now it didn't matter.
"Well, I certainly don't intend on going anywhere any time soon" she assured him with a smile that he leaned down to kiss her.
"Oh, you two are so cute!" said Brittany, practically clapping her hands with childish joy at the sight of two of her special guests in a clinch.
"Britt, take a breath, babe" her new husband urged her with a smile and an arm around her shoulders.
"Congratulations, you two" said Veronica with a grin of her own that could not be pushed away even if she wanted to, which she didn't at all, "Neptune certainly has its dramas but I'm really glad today went off without a hitch... or rather, with a hitch" she corrected when she realised what she'd actually said.
"Thanks to you, Veronica, it's been the perfect day" the bride told her emotionally, reaching to pull her into a tight hug, "You don't know what all this means to me"
"Trust me, Brittany" the younger blonde told her, hugging her back just as tight, "I really do"
As the happy couple were soon whisked away by other family and friends who wanted to wish them well, Veronica found herself stood staring after them with tears in her eyes that she was barely aware of until Logan pointed them out.
"Tears, Miss Mars?" he gently teased her, wiping one stray droplet from her cheek with his thumb, "Who woulda thought?"
"Yeah, well" she sighed, gazing up at him as his arms went around her waist, "People do say I'm just a marshmallow on the inside" she smiled as they resumed their dancing.
Veronica was sure she'd be happy enough to stay like this forever. It wasn't often that everything worked out for the best in Neptune and most especially in her life. Right now, things weren't perfect and she doubted they ever would be, but they were good. She had her Dad and Logan to be there for her no matter what, her boyfriend had his Mom back after too long apart, and they had successfully reunited a couple that had split twenty five years ago as well as bringing a father to the daughter he never knew existed. Life was pretty good from where Veronica Mars was standing, though unfortunetely her happiness lasted only a few moments.
"Ladies!" said the bride, her voice loud enough to break the mood as the band stopped playing abruptly, "It's time to toss the bouquet" Brittany declared and Veronica looked positively horrified as Logan moved away to leave her amongst many an old maid determined to be the one to catch the flowers in this crazy tradition.
"Go get 'em, Bobcat" he whispered in her ear, slapping her on the behind as he walked away with a wink.
Veronica shot him a look that meant he was going to die bloody when she got a hold of him. Nevertheless, she forced a smile as she took her place amongst the ladies all vying for the bouquet. The countdown was done, the flowers came flying... straight over the heads of every woman gathered there and into the arms of a startled man at the buffet table.
Laughter rang out long and loud from almost every person there, but none so much as Veronica as her Dad turned to face her with shock in his eyes and crab dip on his chin. As realisation dawned, a smile came to his lips and he turned to his daughter, arms held wide.
"Who's your Daddy?" he teased her as he so often had before, causing her to roll her eyes as she gave in and hugged him.
The End