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Literature Text
*Beyond the Stars* Part 2
It was in the second week of May when Raven had her bridesmaids at the tower for another one of their meetings. They had taken care of business earlier that morning and had currently been lounging around in Raven’s bedroom. Kole was on about her new experience of laser tag with Mas, Menos, and Pantha the day before. And Melvin had been sour the whole day with Beast boy taking her brothers to the indoor water park.
Starfire brought an orange slice to her lips and changed the subject. “Have you already completed the packing?”
“For your honeymoon?” Jinx added while she was spread out on the floor beside Kole.
Raven shrugged her shoulders. “I still have a week left to do it.”
Melvin’s eyebrows pulled together in confusion. “What’s a honeymoon?”
“Um, it’s a vacation for couples.” Argent was quick to answer the child.
Bumblebee seemed to be stressing just as much as Raven had been throughout the whole planning process. “Seriously, Raven? You haven’t packed yet?”
Starfire’s eyes darted between the two women, “You have never done the procrastinating as I recall.”
Raven stared up at the ceiling from on her bed and pulled her quilt to rest under her chin. “I might’ve lost track of time, so what?”
Argent sighed at her friend’s response. “I’ll print you off a check list. You better pack by tonight.”
Raven nodded in agreement before she was lost in Jinx’s story about her horrid bad luck experience. The subjects continued to rotate until they had finally caught up with each other’s lives. It had been only the next day when Raven was hounded about her packing again. Starfire didn’t buy her answer that it had been completed. Therefore, Starfire insisted in revising the check off list to double check. They were back in her dark room which was odd as she even let the women enter.
But then again when Beast boy and Raven would return from their honeymoon, her room would no longer be the same. Supposedly, the wall would be torn down to join the two rooms together. And Cyborg and Robin already had new renovation plans that extended to the rest of the tower. It would be the last week of it being just her room but she didn’t mind in the least.
“Tooth brush?” Kole sat on the floor, her back against the bed and held up the printed list. Melvin was stretched out on the end of the bed and peeked over Kole’s shoulder.
“Packed.” Raven said.
Starfire sat on the black swivel chair from Robin’s room. “Swimsuit?”
“Packed.” Raven groaned. She had only been enduring seven minutes of it so far. “Do we honestly have to this?”
“Better to be prepared.” Bumblebee rested her hand on small pregnant stomach. “That and I wanna know if you really did pack like you said you were.”
Bumblebee was roughly twelve weeks pregnant and Starfire was nearly fourteen weeks along. Raven thought back to when both pregnancies had been announced in the months of January and February. And she wasn’t the only one who had been surprised about her teammates’ discoveries. Robin and Cyborg had both been quite flustered and made quite a laughable scene as both women had decided to announce their pregnancies the same night.
Raven groaned, “My luggage is right there.” She gestured towards the far wall in room. Sure enough a large lavender suitcase and a small carry-on bag occupied the space. “Shouldn’t that be enough proof?”
Melvin stopped Bumblebee from answering, “What about your pajamas?”
“Packed.”
Bumblebee snorted, “Not like you’ll need ‘em anyway.” Raven shot a glare her way at the crass joke.
“What about contraception? Please tell you me you have that.” Jinx sat up from on the floor to get a good look at the empath.
“Um.” Raven began, not sure on how to word it. She moved to sit on the edge of her own bed.
Melvin intervened with her own curiosity, “What’s that?”
Argent’s eyes widened as the size of saucers, “Why don’t you go ask Robin if we’re going out for a feed?”
The child hesitated as she studied the New Zealander and her suggestion. “Um, Okay.”
Melvin hopped up from the bed all the while wrinkling the comforter. She skipped over Jinx’s legs and slid open the steel door. All the while her forehead was wrinkled in confusion from Argent’s foreign slang vocabulary. Melvin’s high pitched voice called out for Robin while she slammed the door with a resonating sound.
Bumblebee looked frustrated, “Honestly Raven, you didn’t even think of packing that?”
She could feel her pale cheeks grow hot, “It…didn’t cross my mind.”
Kole burst into a giggling fit which triggered Starfire to laugh. Embarrassed, Raven snatched the quit near her head and covered her face with it. She rolled over on her bed in hopes to drown out the sounds. But it only resulted in both women to laugh even harder at their friend.
“We’re just tryin’ to prevent you from any accidental future responsibilities.” Bumblebee explained and then reached for her green water bottle. “Until you’re both ready that is.”
Raven’s response came out muffled, “Excuse me? Look at you both.”
Bumblebee patted her stomach while Kole and Starfire worked to stop their laughing. “He was planned. Same goes for Starfire.”
“Uh huh. You say that now.” Raven addressed the two pregnant women that occupied her room.
“In the meantime.” Jinx moved around the room to find her boots and purse. “I’m going to the store to get your contraception.”
Raven felt her face heat up once more and was thankful for the concealment of the quilt. Bumblebee had decided to save her lecture for when Jinx did return. All the while Raven didn’t move an inch from her position; stomach down and hands holding the quilt down over her head. All she could do was hope that the incident wouldn’t reach the ears of the male titans; much less Beast boy. Jinx returned within thirty minutes and the women took on the task of explaining it to Raven.
“Are you even listening to a word I’ve been sayin’?”
Raven nodded her head although she had been hiding her face with a blanket throughout the whole conversation. She didn’t care how close she and her friends were, it was still an embarrassing subject.
“Do we have to talk about this?” Raven’s monotone voice was quiet but in reality Timid was frantic.
And no matter how close she really was with each of her friends, this talk would never be okay. For one, she would never live it down, especially since she was the one that knew about all sorts of things. Kole burst into peals of laughter at seeing her friend in distress. And again it triggered Starfire to laugh which made Raven even more self-conscious.
“Oh shut up.” Raven snapped, “It’s not even funny.”
Argent gently patted her ankle, “That’s because you’re on the receivin’ end.”
“You better be listening to this too, Kole.” Bumblebee interjected, she didn’t seem to think the topic was hilarious. “You and Jericho are getting’ serious. And I don’t wanna repeat myself.”
“Anyways, you were saying?” Argent gestured toward the woman to let her continue.
Bumblebee gave her a small word of thanks, “This is very important, Raven.”
“I never said that it wasn’t”
“Good.” Bumblebee said, “As I was saying it should work after a week you start your cycle. But you shouldn’t fully trust it until after a month of use.”
If she really wanted to, she could have teleported her way out of the room. The only thing that held her back was the fact that Bumblebee would have this conversation with her. In the time being, Raven would have to suffer through the humiliation that was playing out before her.
And Kole’s laughter became too much; Raven snatched a pillow off her bed and pelted her in the face with it. Unfortunately, it only encouraged the pink haired woman to laugh even harder until she was almost silent and to sputter incoherent sentences. Kole rolled over onto her side, her face flushed and tried to stifle her giggling.
“So the side effects.” Bumblebee shot a glare at Kole, “You might feel a bit nauseous when you first take it. More specifically you might have a severe headache or gain weight.” She continued to list off the possible side effects to the particular pill.
A series of knocks at the door cut her off, “Can I come in now? Robin said we can have lunch whenever you’re ready.”
“Yes, please come in.” Starfire called back through the door.
Raven kept her face swaddled in her blanket, “Can you run it by me one more time?”
Starfire, Bumblebee, and Jinx all heaved sighs. “Honestly Raven, how do you not know this already?” Jinx scolded.
“I’d expect Beast boy or Speedy to not pay attention.” Bumblebee took hold of her water bottle again and headed towards the door where Melvin stood. “Are you feeling alright, girl?”
Raven uncovered her face which was no longer flushed, “I will be.”
“Right. We’ll continue this after lunch.” Jinx stated in a serious tone, “Without Kole and Starfire.”
The two women wore matching smiles on their faces due to their names being mentioned. Raven walked in the direction of the bathroom, “Oh joy.”
It was after lunch when Raven had finished earlier than Bumblebee and excused herself. She wandered the twists and bends throughout the tower, anything to prolong the conversation with her friends. The hallways were quiet and her feet carried her down a familiar passage until she was standing just outside the steel door to the evidence room. Raven had planned to ask this of him in a couple of months but sooner would be better than later.
The door was partially opened and she could see Robin hunched over a small stack of paper work. Small whispers reached her ears as he talked to himself in a low voice. The sight of him busy almost made her turn around to wander elsewhere and leave him undisturbed. But then again, when wasn’t Robin constantly caught up in his superhero work?
Raven rapped on the door twice with her knuckles, “May I come in?”
“Uh, yeah.” Robin sat the black pen on the desk in front of him and turned towards her.
Raven walked in and stood a few feet from his side, “I wanted to ask you something.”
“Fire away. What is it?”
She hesitated before asking an entirely different question, “We were thinking about a movie night and I was sent to know what movie you had in mind.”
Robin stopped completely and eyed the empath, “That not what you wanted to ask.” Before she could respond he explained how he knew, “You stand too still when you’re lying.”
“Right. What I meant was would you be willing to—and you don’t have to—walk me down the aisle? It…would mean a lot to me.”
Robin’s expression was hidden by his mask but then he broke out into a smile. “Raven, I’d be honored to.”
“Thank you.”
Then she did a rare thing that had only happened a handful of times. She wrapped her arms around him to express her gratitude and had even let some emotion seep through those two words. Robin hugged her back but she pulled away all too quickly and she let him return to his work. Back out in the hallway she could hear Teether looking for her and Jinx shouting at her to get back to her room.
Raven stood behind Melvin and Timmy as they went over the wedding march for the third time that night. Robin stood beside her and she weakly held onto his elbow. It was their second and last day of their rehearsal as they went over where everyone was supposed to stand and supposedly sit. Rehearsal had taken place in the temple Azarath as the women would be staying the night. They had only been practicing for nearly an hour and afterwards they would all go out for dinner.
“We’re up, Raven.” Robin gestured as the flower girl and ring bearer walked through the doors.
Raven closed her eyes tightly and fought to regain her vision and balance. “Just a moment.”
She let her arm slip away from his and turned to wobble back up the grand staircase. Her hand was tightly clamped over her mouth as her cheeks swelled up like a hamster’s. She opened the nearest door that happened to be bathroom stalls. Thankfully, she was the only one using it at the moment. Her knees hit the white marble floor and both hands clutch the sides of the white toilet bowl. She knew that the pill would make her feel nauseous but she didn’t think she would actually get sick. It had been occurring the for the past few days without a sign of it stopping.
Over her dry heaving, she could hear the door open and the few footsteps that echoed. “Raven, sweetheart, are you going to be alright?” Arella’s voice was full of concern for her daughter.
She was breathing heavily now, “Yeah. Just an unsettled stomach.”
“What if you get sick like this during the real ceremony?” Jinx expressed her concern which really wasn’t helping. The wedding would take place in two days but she’d have enough time to recover by then.
Raven cringed and reached for the silver handle to flush the toilet. Though she still didn’t make any moves to get off the cold floor. “I’ll live.”
“We could use a white bucket and hide it under a pew.” Argent suggested.
Rita agreed, “We might have to do that. Do you need any help?”
Raven shook her head and forgot that they couldn’t see her. “No, I don’t need help.” She dry heaved into the toilet and the women took that as a cue to leave.
Once Raven’s stomach settled enough for her to get off the floor, she had to lean heavily against the counter top to wash her hands. A large mirror hung behind the counter and spanned out to all eight sinks. She looked just as pale with her gray skin but her lavender eyes looked tired; her hair had been messily thrown up in a ponytail to keep it out of her face.
She took her time to walk down the stairs and used the banister to keep her balance. Once at the bottom Bumblebee was there to mother her as well as Rita and Arella. A pair of hands clamped over her forehead and someone’s cheek brushed up against hers. And another pair of delicate hands assisted her in standing.
“You’re not runnin’ a fever.” Bumblebee announced.
Rita stood in front of them after she had announced to everyone that they were taking a break. Timmy, Teether, Melvin and Sin had taken it as their cue to goof off and play freeze tag with Kole and Jericho in the foyer. And Raven was taken to sit on one of the couches that sat in the foyer and the questions soon began.
Rita sat to her right; her body turned towards Raven, “Have you been eating before you take the medicine?”
She shook her head, “No.”
“Make a cup of tea and a small snack before taking it.” Arella said.
Raven sighed. She ate like a bird and her mother knew as such. But it wasn’t her fault that it didn’t take much to fill her up. “Right. I will”
“It just means that you’re still adjusting to it.” Rita said, “It’s the change in hormones.”
Rita rested her hand on Raven’s back while Bumblebee took a seat on the large couch, “Taking it at night may help with the nausea.”
She clenched her teeth as another wave of said nausea rocked through her. She hunched over and covered her face in her hands and rested her head on her knees. Arella rested a hand on her back before leaving to get Raven a glass of water. And Rita tried to help by fanning Raven with her own hands. She didn’t risk speaking to tell Rita that she was already cold but appreciated the effort. After a good half hour Raven was well enough to finish their rehearsal and later attended the rehearsal dinner in Jump City.
After dinner Beast boy and Raven had been separated as it was tradition for the bride and groom to spend it away from each other. The items that she had needed for tomorrow had been placed in Azarath before they had begun their last rehearsal. The guys would have the tower while the women would stay the night in Azarath with Raven’s mother. Rita and Mento had even opted for staying in one of the titan’s many guest rooms. The only person absent from her bridal party was Sin as she had opted to go home with her parents on more than one occasion.
“Are you nervous?” Starfire asked while Jinx changed her into her pajamas.
Raven sighed, “How can you tell?” The sarcasm in her voice was light but she could blame that on the nerves.
She had been asked multiple times if she was nervous or had cold feet when the date drew closer. Even Arella was worried and asked her just as much, but it was to be expected. It took special effort to calm her emotions. Unfortunately, the room she currently occupied had suffered minor damages. It was quickly fixed with her magic and some heavy concentration. May eighteenth was only a short few hours away and she was reacting worse as she couldn’t fathom the amounts of attention that would be on her soon.
Nearly two hundred Azarathians would be watching her at the ceremony and not to forget the Titans, the Doom Patrol, and some of the big shot heroes from the League. It didn’t exclude to just Azarath either, the press and paparazzi would be all over them when they would leave to the reception. Raven internally cringed at how many cameras would be flashing and the millions of questions asked per minute.
Kole watched as Raven paced the room, “Uh, lucky guess?”
Bumblebee sat on the center if the bed, “I brought my laptop. How about we watch a movie to calm you down? I can project it onto the wall.”
“Oh oh, let’s watch the ‘Corpse Bride!’” Melvin cheered and twirled in a circle, it was the latest she had been up past her bedtime. “Too bad Sin had to go home.”
Raven frowned at the suggestion, Argent combed a hand through her short hair. “I don’t think that’s a great choice, mate.”
Starfire tied her purple robe closed, “Perhaps you would be open to the ‘Princess Diaries?’”
“That actually sounds…nice.” Raven had paused her pacing. “I’ll be back; I need to use the restroom.” It wasn’t a movie she would particularly watch for any occasion but she could make an exception.
“I have even brought the sweet snacks from home.” Starfire held up a tote bag that was filled to the brim.
Bumblebee smiled, “Easy on the junk food.”
“Mrs. Soon to be Logan still needs to fit in her wedding dress.” Jinx laughed.
“And what’s that supposed to mean?” Raven stared at the pale woman.
Her smile grew even wider, “Exactly what its ‘spose to mean.”
Argent shook her head, “She’s not a hungus.”
Jinx cocked an eyebrow, even she wasn’t entirely sure of Argent’s slag. “Uh, right.”
Bumblebee took a moment to set up her projector and the movie that she had downloaded on her laptop. Raven was on the edge of her large bed while the others crowded and snuggled close to one another. Throughout the movie her thoughts drifted in and out to the day the lied ahead of her. It was a new experience to feel so jittery while all she wanted was to fall asleep after the movie had ended an hour earlier. Her thoughts always led to new ones with different questions and worries. And the pattering of heavy rain outside didn’t help her but seemed to encourage her restlessness.
“And you wouldn’t let me sleep in why?” Raven rubbed her eyes and searched in her closet for something to wear.
Bumblebee had ripped the covers off of Raven’s body; exposing her to the chilly room. “It’s the big day.”
“You’re usually the first up.” Jinx countered, “But seriously, we’re on a tight schedule all day. It’s nearly 9:00am.”
“Wash up so we can eat and begin the day.”
What she really wanted to do was to moan and hide from the light underneath her covers. Honestly, she didn’t want to go out in the bad weather Azarath was currently having but she knew that she would regret being behind schedule. The women had returned to the booked venue in Jump City to look over and finalize the decorations. Raven had been quieter than usual throughout the rest of the morning until she fully woke up.
Bumblebee had a disapproving look on her face, “Raven you can’t wear leggings under your wedding dress.”
Raven raised an eyebrow, “And why not? No one will know.”
Jinx smoothed out her indigo bridesmaid dress. “We will know.”
“No one else would know.”
Her hair had already been pinned up and curled as well as her other bridesmaids. It had been decided months ago that they would all go to a salon in Jump City for their hair. And a professional make-up artist had been hired to work on all of them excluding Melvin and Sin. All of her bridesmaids wore floor length dresses. They were all sleeveless except for Melvin’s which happened to be spaghetti strapped. The top portion of the dresses were speckled with white sequins and from the middle of the torso down and the light blue dress fell with ripples to their toes.
Kole sat on the edge of the couch in the bridal room, “There is specific wedding underwear that we bought.”
Raven stared at the African woman, “Do you have to give me that look?”
Argent was the one that answered instead of Bumblebee. “Yes.”
“Take them off Raven.” Bumblebee’s voice was stern as she took on the role of a mother hen. “No one wears leggings under a wedding dress.”
Kole and Melvin swung their feet to and fro. “Especially how hot it is tonight…we’ll in Jump City.”
“I fear that you may suffer from the heat stroke if you do not.” Starfire said.
It was true the weather in Azarath and Jump City were completely opposite in rotation. Tonight in particular would be a drastic weather change from freezing to the warm almost summer temperatures. It was the reason why she had bought a little over a hundred umbrellas and quite a few umbrella holders. The rain was already coming down in buckets though the wind would unfortunately pick up later in the day.
Raven crossed her arms over her body, her wedding dress was still in its protective bag. “So?”
Bumblebee waddled to take a seat on the chair, “Just take ‘em off and dress in this.” She tossed the white underwear at Raven and shooed her back into the bathroom. “We only have twenty minutes before the photoshoot.”
It was three minutes later when Raven returned. She kept her arms crossed over her body to preserve some of her dignity and modesty. “Happy now?”
Argent nodded at her friend. “Considerably.”
“And do you have all of your somethings?” Jinx asked in a serious tone.
Raven nodded her head. She had thought the tradition was ridiculous but amusing all the same. Her something new was the thin diamond bracelet from Arella, the gift she had been instructed not to open until the week of her wedding. It was simple—the way she liked it—with three rows of squared diamonds. The something used were the wedding glasses used for toasting from Rita and Steve’s wedding. The something blue was her white handkerchief embroidered with a blue message and held the wedding date. Lastly, something borrowed were the diamond studs that Jinx had been too willing to lend. Raven had to laugh at the memory when Jinx had offered.
Beast boy and Raven had visited Midway city but more specifically Jinx and Kid Flash’s two story apartment. Beast boy was caught up in Kid Flash’s story about some villain before it quickly rotated to sports and catching up with each other’s lives. Raven had been perched at the end of Jinx’s bed while the pink haired woman searched through her jewelry box.
“It sounds stupid.” Raven said after Jinx had explained that the ‘somethings’ were used for good luck in marriage. “And superstitious.”
Jinx shrugged her shoulders, “What’s wrong with superstitions?”
“The fact that they aren’t real.”
“Here you can use these for something borrowed.” Jinx proudly held the large square diamond studs in her palm. “They’re my pride and joy. I want them back.”
Raven raised an eyebrow and kept her hands in her lap, “Where exactly did you get them?”
“It was a gift actually from—Hey!” Jinx cut off her own sentence, “You think I stole it?” Her voice went up an octave and she faced her realization.
Raven held her hands up in defense, “I never used the term stole.”
“Well I didn’t.” Jinx pouted, “You know I’ve changed since then. That was five years ago Raven.”
The empath had tried to get a word in but Jinx wouldn’t let up with her rambling and continued to scold Raven from judging her. She sighed and fell back on the soft comforter as the sorceress went on. It was amazing that she even did stop long enough to remember that she had been baking fudge brownies.
Raven and Beast boy had gone for the first look before their wedding ceremony. He was dressed in black suit and tie with a blue boutonniere pinned on the flap above his pocket with a white handkerchief peeking out. He had had is back to her as he stood in the hallway and Raven quietly approached him; her small and cold hand slipped into his.
Beast boy hesitantly turned around and held both of her hands in his as he took in the sight of his beautiful bride. For such a short moment, they were almost alone except for the photographer. Beast boy’s head rested his head against hers and Raven stretched on her toes to kiss him. It had only lasted for several seconds and they both embraced each other in a hug. And Raven couldn’t help it but smile and she had even teared up.
“Oh my gosh, Raven.”
“Do I…look okay?”
Beast boy released her from the embrace and took hold of both her hands once again. He chuckled but his voice was filled with emotion as he found himself tearing up. “You look so good. Unbelievable.”
He took his hand and spun her around all the while Raven kept her smile. “You think so?”
“I know so.” Beast boy smiled and kissed her again, “You’re gorgeous.”
Their reunion lasted no more than fifteen minutes until they were called away to have their photoshoot. Beast boy and Raven had taken what seemed like fifty pictures before the groom and groomsmen took several photos. Then Melvin, Timmy, Teether and Bobby had taken one all to themselves. The bridal party and both of their parents spent two hours with the photoshoot back in Jump City which was difficult as the younger titans grew restless and uncooperative.
“My feet hurt.” Timmy complained for the umpteenth time that day. “I don’t want to wear them anymore.”
Hotspot shrugged his shoulders, “Didn’t find out his shoes were too small until today.”
“You only have to wear ‘em for a little longer.” Cyborg announced which didn’t please the boy.
This time it was different from rehearsal. It was really happening and it was going to be permanent. Raven anxiously held onto Robin’s elbow at the top of the grand staircase behind Starfire. In front of Starfire was Timmy and Melvin. Melvin kept pushing Timmy away from her, not thrilled that her own brother had to escort her.
Teether had been paired up with Sin who was the flower girl and stood in front of the two teammates giggling and poking each other. He had been given a small pillow for decoy rings while Cyborg had the real deal sealed safely in a compartment in his arm.
Raven hadn’t even considered a flower girl until the end of March. Bumblebee had suggested Green Arrow’s and Black Canary’s daughter and the couple was more than happy to let Sin be a part of the wedding. Sin’s pitch black hair had been tied in a tight bun, a silver crown was nestled in her hair and her bangs covered her forehead. Her dress was white and from her waist down it poofed out and she wore a white corsage that had been slid up all the way to her elbow.
“Robin, I don’t about this.” Raven admitted.
He turned to her; concern coloring his voice. “You’re just now having doubts?”
She shook her head, “I mean I don’t know if I can handle all those people.”
Her own nervous jibes were too much for her to handle but having to enter a room that held two hundred people seemed nearly impossible. If she wasn’t sick before, then she definitely felt sick now and her stomach twisted to prove it. A shudder racked through her body at the anticipation when Starfire was already halfway down the stair case. The music from below floated to her ears which turned her into a nervous wreck. Her calm demeanor was almost shattered.
“You’re not walking it alone, Raven.” Robin reminded to help ease her fears, “You fight villains every day and you’ve saved the world but you can’t walk 100 feet down an aisle?”
Raven cracked a nervous smile, “I guess it’s pointless to worry.”
“Good, because we’re up.” Robin said and they both made their way down the stairs.
The heavy oak doors were propped open and Raven could see the back of the pews and white aisle runner. She held onto his arm tighter than necessary but she was more thank thankful for his support. The temple Azarath was large in stature with vaulted ceilings and large opaque windows that filtered in light. As Raven and Robin drew nearer the guests stood up from the pews and turned towards her. The benches, pillars, and walls were all white in color save for the gold boarders that enhanced the appearance and the carpets were a light shade of tan.
And up above to their right and left were balcony pews that stretched from the front of the room to the end. Every seat was filled with Azarathians dressed in various shades of color excluding black and white except for the officiant. And amongst the citizens of Azarath Raven spotted her teammates and other superheroes smiling at her. She couldn’t contain the slam of emotions that hit her once she entered the room and found herself smiling just as widely.
“Please be seated.” Tolrin said as the processional music ended and Raven had reached the end of the aisle.
“Friends and citizens of Azarath, we have joined here today to share with Raven Roth and Garfield Logan an important moment in their lives.” The officiant, Tolrin said. “Their time together, they have seen their love and understanding of each other grow and blossom and now they have decided to live out the rest of their lives as one.”
Raven nervously stood beside Beast boy; facing the officiant and their backs to the guests.
The middle aged man continued with the ceremony and Raven intently listened to his words. She hoped to remember most if not all of it while Beast boy fidgeted beside her from standing still for too long. Eventually, it came to the part that she would cherish the most.
“Raven, please hand your bouquet to Starfire.” Tolrin said, “Garfield and Raven, having heard that it is your intention to be married to each other, I now ask you to declare your marriage vows. Please face each other and hold hands.”
“Garfield if you would repeat after me.” Tolrin said. Another man dressed in a similar fashion repeated the first man in the Azarathian tongue for the citizens.
Beast boy nodded and smiled “I, Garfield Logan, do take you Raven Roth to be my wedded wife.”
Beast boy gently squeezed her hands, “I promise to encourage your compassion, because that is what makes you unique and wonderful. I promise to nurture your dreams because through them your soul shines.”
There was a moments pause due to him choking up. Raven stared in his green eyes which shined with unshed tears. And his smile was of one she had never seen before; pure happiness. It took another moment for him to compose himself and continue.
“I promise to help shoulder our challenges for there is nothing we cannot do if we stand together. I promise to be your partner in all things. Not possessing you, but working with you as a part of the whole.”
Raven intently listened to his words, hanging on to each and every one. For it was the very first time she heard of his promises to her.
Beast boy’s expression was one of love, “Lastly, I promise to you love and trust. For one lifetime with you could never be enough. This is my sacred vow to you, my equal in all things. Forever and always.”
Tolrin held the book firmly in his hands and turned towards her. The paper of Raven’s written vows tucked inside for him to read out loud.
Tolrin then addressed the bride. “Raven please repeat after me.”
“I, Raven Roth, do take you Garfield Logan to be my wedded husband. I believe in you, the person you will grow to be and the couple we will be together.” She stared into his green eyes and found that she couldn’t stop smiling even if she tried.
“With my whole heart I take you, as my husband, accepting and acknowledging your strengths as you do mine.” The nerves that had been with her before seemed to have vanished. “I promise to be faithful and supportive and to always make our family’s love and happiness my priority.”
“I will be yours in plenty and in want, in sickness and in health, in failure and in triumph. I will dream with you, celebrate with you, and walk beside you through whatever our lives may bring.” She squeezed his hands just as he had done with her.
“You are my person—my love and my life. Forever and Always.”
“Raven and Beast boy, you have heard the words about: love and marriage, have exchanged your vows and made your promises, and celebrated your union with the giving and receiving of rings.” Tolrin said, “It is at this time that I know pronounce you as husband and wife. You may kiss the bride.”
Beast boy let go of her hands and instead put them around her waist and leaned down once more. Soft lips delicately brushed against soft lips. Raven had wrapped her hands around his shoulders and he held her cheek as he kissed her. Jitters seem to explode in her stomach and her breath caught in her throat. All too soon and modestly so, Beast boy broke the kiss.
“I present to you Mr. and Mrs. Garfield Logan.” Tolrin said. An outbreak of cheering and applauding filled the temple of Azarath.
Raven had her hand intertwined with Beast boy’s and he leaned down so his lips were beside her ear, “I love you so much, Raven.”
She let out a laugh, “I love you too.”
