Posted by Fleet Captain Alexander Cochrane (Commanding Officer) in Deck 4 Garden- Wedding Bells

Posted by Lindsay B in Deck 4 Garden- Wedding Bells

(snip)

Joining in with everyone clapping, Walker couldn’t help but smile. After everything she had been through, he was happy that Faye had found someone that made her happy. But that didn’t mean she going to get off that easily. Grinning at hearing Shara, Walker let out his own loud whistle as the couple made their way to the table.

Darach

Revna clapped and cheered along with the rest. Faye looked radiant, and whatever private moment she and her Daggum had shared seemed to have created something precious between them. Revna smiled, remembering her own wedding. Well if you could call it a proper wedding, but it fit her and Mike. Just like this fit Faye and Daggum. Her own whistle joined the rest, and they all slowly faded away.

McKenzie

As the newly married couple came in to the applause and cheers of their friends, Daggum felt a small pang of… something. It wasn’t jealousy, but it was akin to it. Everyone here (almost) was here for Faye. And he was fine with that. She had earned every single soul here to celebrate her.

And then the (almost) laid a hand on Daggum’s shoulder.

“Looking pretty slick there, kid.” came a raspy voice laced with amusement. The speaker was an older human male. Long, gray hair fell to the man’s shoulders, and a matching beard that was meticulously maintained formed the foundation of a ruggedly handsome face with some of the brightest green eyes that side of the Orion themselves. The man looked at Faye and said “So I’m guessing from the dress you are the one I have to thank for getting this jerk to think about something outside of fleet logistics?” and he smiled and held out a hand to her. “Paul Shaughnessy. Your husband saved my life.”

Daggum

Beaming, Faye took his hand and more than just shaking it, she drew herself in to Paul, slipped her arms around him and gave him a hug. Call it an emotional moment, or maybe a deep knowing on her part, but Faye understood that everyone had their person. That person could change over your lifetime, but she knew without a doubt that Paul was Dag’s person and thus important to her as well. “I’m so glad you could make it and we could finally meet,” she said softly in his ear.

Pulling back, she shook her head, clearly overwhelmed but in the best possible way.

From her place, Nadine grinned, watching her newfound sister navigate this emotional day with a touch of awe. She waited till Faye and Daggum got some food and found their seats before she began. “Hello all, my name is Nadine Wells and for those of you who don’t know who I am, I am Faye’s half sister. Which is a very complicated story but not the most complicated one she could tell you,” she said, laughing lightly.

“I think can all agree that the ceremony was perfectly Faye and Daggum, and even if you only know one half of the couple you can plainly see how much they adore each other. And as someone who is new to the family and still getting to know everyone, I just wanted to say that this gathering is very special for so many reasons, but the biggest one is that both Faye and Daggum are their own family today and we area all chosen to be a part of it in our own way. And before I hand this over to someone else for a more official speech, I just wanted to thank my sister and new brother-in-law for welcoming us all in to this beautiful celebration.”

Faye knew she was going to be a teary mess, so was prepared with an actual linen handkerchief, and dabbed at her eyes. She pressed a hand to her heart and beamed at her sister.

Nadine returned the gesture and then turned to Cochrane. “And now I’m going to call on Captain Cochrane whom I suspect has plenty to say. And I hear he’s great at speeches,” she said with a wink.

~Faye et al

Alex stood and walked to the front, stopping next to Nadine just long enough to smile and say just loudly enough so everyone could hear “Fleet Captain. At least get your introduction right before you throw me under the bus like that.”, which elicited chuckles from around them.

Nadine gave the charismatic man a grin. “My sincerest apologies. Duly noted,” she said with a wink before stepping off to the side.

Standing at the fore with a glass of champagne in hand, Alex smiled at everyone and said “Ladies and gentlemen, a round of applause for the couple.” and there was a round of loud and raucous applause before everyone settled down. Alex smiled again.

“If someone had told me when I first arrived that the absolute cluster that was to be Faye’s department would lead us to not only this moment, but to me meeting my best friend, I would have laughed at them and then sent them for a psych eval.” Laughter rippled through the crowd as Cochrane continued. “And to say that the road to this moment has been difficult would be an understatement of truly biblical proportions. Subterfuge, lies, deciet, and covert machinations galore… and that was just her lab.” Another round of laughter, louder from some select members of the crew who knew exactly what he was talking about.

Faye laughed aloud and shook her head. An understatement, that. And a poignant one. She braced herself for whatever else he was going to say.

“And through it all, at the center of the maelstrom, was Faye. And I can say honestly… for as strong as she is and as smart as she is… there were moments I thought that she and everyone else were going to be swallowed whole. But we weren’t… and that is because of Faye. She shouldered a weight that would crush almost anyone… and she wouldn’t share the load.” and then he looked directly at Daggum.

“And then you came back to her. And while your shoulders are bigger than most, it was your heart that gave her the strength. I’ve watched you, Commander… and if there was anyone that could have supported Faye then, it was you. Oh, we tried. Hell, I even taught Faye to dance.” and people laughed again, “But until you and she reconnected, there was a gap. A key-hole. And you were the key… the key that unlocked the full magic that is Faye. And for that, my good sir, you have the unending gratitude of all of us who care for her.” Daggum cleared his throat softly and nodded at Cochrane, and the Fleet Captain smiled. “But also know that if you ever screw this up, we’re all coming to kick your ass.” and a riotous laughter erupted from the crowd… and Daggum.

Faye grinned at Daggum. They both knew her mother and step-father would be the first in line; a fact that just made her smile deeper. She mouthed ‘I love you’, to him.

Once everyone had quieted, Alex raised his glass. “So… a toast. To the Bride and Groom. May your years be long and filled with happiness, and may your lives bring you as treasured memories as your presence on this ship and in our lives have brought us. To Faye and Daggum. Congratulations!” and the crowd raised their glasses and cheered.

Cochrane, CO

As people sipped from their glasses, Nadine moved back and gave Alex a smirk and leaned in towards the handsome man. “So the rumours about your speech giving are true. Good to know.” She was having a great time and it was really nice to hear other people’s perspective about her sister and new brother-in-law. What people may not have realized was that Nadine was soaking every word and smile up as she sought to understand the essence of Faye Calloway better.

“And now I think we’ll hear from the Mother-of-the-Bride and Matron-of-Honour,” Nadine said, shooting Shara wicked look.

Shara just rose form the table with fluid grace and took the mic from her eldest daughter. “I don’t do speeches much,” she said as she began to move away from the podium. “I certainly don’t want to follow-up that one,” she said, jabbing a thumb in Cochrane’s direction, eliciting laughs.

Over to the left where the dance floor was rested the grand piano that had been moved in earlier a mic stand had been set up and for a moment Shara just took in everyone before sitting down n the piano bench, setting the mic in its holder and speaking again. “I’ve thought a lot about what I might say, but I had this moment where I realized just how much we missed- me and my girls. Each has their own history with me and together we are a family writing a new story. One of the greatest things that has been part of all our stories is love, in one form or another. I realized that the greatest thing I could do to celebrate Faye and Daggum’s journey forward together was to give Faye another piece of herself back to her. And by that I mean, that when my girls were babies I sang to them. Each their own song. But with Nadine it was harder for me. The song that I thought I’d always sing became too hard to sing after she was no longer in my life. So Faye got her own, even though I had always intended it to be the song I song to my children. And that’s okay. But I want you two to share it, as sisters, because it was always how it was meant to be.” In her mind this was as much a gift for Daggum as it was the girls’ because it meant he was getting a Faye who had something else special to hold on to and the more she had of that, the better life partner she would be to him. Or at least that was how her mind had worked it out. And thus Shara began to play the piano and sing.

Nadine moved over and grabbed a chair, setting it next to Faye and Daggum.

Goodnight my angel, time to close your eyes
And save these questions for another day
I think I know what you’ve been asking me
I think you know what I’ve been trying to say
I promised I would never leave you
Then you should always know
Wherever you may go, no matter where you are
I never will be far away

Goodnight my angel, now it’s time to dream
And dream how wonderful your life will be
Someday your child may cry, and if you sing this lullaby
Then in your heart there will always be a part of me
Someday we’ll all be gone
But lullabies go on and on
They never die
That’s how you and I will be

At some point Faye had taken Nadine’s hand and both were in tears. So was Shara, but Shara was so fixed on her song that the tears hadn’t fallen. But when she was done, she rose to find her daughters and others clapping fiercely. That broke her and she laughed even as she wiped away the tears. This was the start of new traditions, of new ways of being a family. As she moved towards the bride and groom, she realized how beautiful it all was.

Gazing at Daggum for a moment, Faye rose and gave her mom a tight embrace. Shara kissed her cheek and whispered something in Faye’s ear before turning to embrace Nadine. Then, it was a hand on Daggum’s shoulder and a knowing look. Sure, she could say more but she was certain they didn’t need to.

Nadine was still trying to gather herself so she just tapped Paul on the shoulder. “Your turn, Best Man.”

OOC: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gav66byYJMw

-Faye & Co.