Aftermath - Segment one

It had been quite the memorable service, and by the time the reception was well under way, even more guests had managed to arrive. It had been planned that only close friends and family fly to England where the wedding was being held in a gorgeous hotel in the Cotswolds. Stepping away from the bar, glass of sparkling water in her hand, Madeline turned and allowed her gaze to wash over the many people who had now shown up for the after party. Passing over the crowds, gaze dropped lower than the average height, soon spotting a young boy, only nine or so wandering, or more like leading in his case, a little girl in one of the prettiest bridesmaid dresses ever conceived. The sight of the pair brought a smile to her lips.

"You had better watch out for that," warned a friendly voice from behind her, a brunet male making his way to stand at Madeline's side. "He'll hit his 'girls are icky and have cooties' stage soon."

She gave a soft chuckle, sipping her water while watching her little girl happily follow around the older boy. "It's like the reverse of her father, going for an older man."

"Like her mother then," Al replied, brown eyes looking to her. "Although, I have to admit, older men are just that little bit better."

"Have you ever thought of remarrying?" she asked him, looking away from her daughter and Alastar's son to focus on the man instead. "You and David make such a wonderful couple."

At this, the male shook his head. "As much as I love him, I don't want to tarnish what we have by such a thing. I was married once, to someone I thought I'd spend the rest of my life with, and look where I ended up. But, I have to admit, had it not happened, I doubt anything would have come between David and I. Perhaps the want for him would have been there, but being married to Harmony would have kept me from doing what I wanted," he explained. "No, what we have now is much better than any marriage I could ever imagine. Speaking of marriage, where is your other half?"

Madeline smiled, motioning over the crowd to where Jonathan was; the man chatting away with the newly married couple. "It is quite the turnout for a 'small' wedding. I'm amazed that half the school didn't show."

"Well, so many bonds have been created through Constance, Madeline. Evander was best man for Tetsu, meaning that he brought along Nathanael. Now, while not part of the wedding, the boy's twin and younger sister have come. With Joseph, he brought Aubrey. I'm here for Morgan, and Bailee is here with Jenny, who's here for Tetsu. David is probably the only photographer allowed into the wedding."

With the fame that Tetsu had lived with his entire life, it was odd now finding herself thrown into a limelight since the person her children's father had chosen to be with was quite the famous fashion designer. "I still can't believe how I found out," she told Alastar, looking up at him once more, soft smile on her face. "But I have to admit, I always thought it would be Morgan to propose."

Al chuckled lightly, watching as his son made a beeline for him, closely followed by the little bridesmaid. Reuben dived behind his legs, arms clinging to his father's waist, peering out at the little girl. "Ben...?"

"Izzy wants to dance!" the boy replied, hiding away. "I don't dance."

Madeline found herself laughing, leaning down to lift the four year old up, resting her delicately on her hip. "Where's Christian?"

"Auntie Phee said she was kidnapping him for a dance," she giggled in reply. "I want to dance with RooRoo!"

"How about dancing with a real man?" came a voice from behind the small group. Looking behind her at the blue eyed man, camera in one hand and the other held out in a very gentlemanly way towards her daughter.

Isobel only pouted, shook her head and nuzzled her face into the crook of her mother's neck, throwing her arms around her. "Want RooRoo!" she called out.

"Shot down by a four year old, David," Madeline chuckled, bouncing the girl up and down lightly. "Tarnished ego?"

The older man merely laughed, shaking his head. "No, because I know who will dance with me."

"If you say me, I'll bite your finger," retorted Reuben from his spot by his father. "You stand on my feet."

Alastar couldn't help but laugh, the soft sound almost like music in a way. Patting the nine year old on the head, he slipped away and took hold of the hand that had been offered to the girl. "Come on you, I'll show you how to dance without stepping on people's feet."

"I can dance though. He stamps on mine," David replied, but willingly allowed his partner to lead him to the dance floor where several other couples had gathered, leaving Madeline with the two children.

Clear blue eyes looked up at the adult, Roo's little fingers curling around the fabric of her skirt and giving it a light tug to signify that he desired attention from the woman. "Maddie?"

"Hnnmm...?"

"I want juice, please."

Another soft chuckle, and lowering her daughter (who was reluctant to let go) to the floor, she placed gave her glass to Isobel to hold, then took both their hands, leading them away to find Reuben something to drink. "Why don't you want to dance with Izzy?" she asked him.

"Because," he replied simply.

"That's not an answer."

"Because he thinks I can't dance," Isobel added firmly. "Well I can. I'm very good."

Reuben mumbled something, but Madeline couldn't decipher it. Looking down to him, he took a deep breath, pausing his steps. "I don't like dancing," he admitted sheepishly, looking down at his shoes. That morning they had been polished, but now had been scuffed up by the strange ability little boys had at making anything dirty, even if they were in a clean room. Her own son had managed to go through two shirts today, although the fact he kept throwing off his jacket may have added to the fact that he managed to stain the white material.

Carefully crouching down to his level, soft smile on her lips, she reached over, smoothing out his messy hair. "Isobel can teach you," looking to the little girl, the blue eyes girl grinned and nodded, agreeing. "See, Izzy will show you, and she's not very heavy, so it won't hurt if she stands on your toes."

"Which I won't" came the sassy reply.

"See. Now, why don't you two go and dance, and I'll go and get you some juice?" Madeline suggested.

Reuben thought about this for a while, but finally agreed with the nod of the head. Isobel handed back the glass to her mother, grabbed his hand then dragged him away, leaving Madeline to try and stand up. Just as she went to push herself up, a hand came into her view, a golden band around his ring finger. Reaching out with her own hand, fingers curled around her own, and she was pulled to her feet and instantly into an embrace. She didn't need to see his face to know who it was that was holding her, and now gently swaying them both from side to side.

"I was thinking that tomorrow, we head up to Glasgow and maybe visit my mother," came the Scottish accent of the man holding her. "It'll be like an extended holiday for the twins, and we can tell my mother in person about the baby."

Sighing softly, Madeline moved to rest her cheek on the taller man's shoulder, eyes looking to his face. A gentle smile formed on her lips, and she gave a nod in agreement. "This reminds me of our wedding."

"You're still as beautiful now as you were back then," he told her tenderly. "Oh, and with this pregnancy, I know to buy extra socks."