Epilogue - Bruno

There was some discussion about who would walk whom down the aisle, but in the end, Margo and Eva walked themselves, hand-in-hand.

Most of the guests were coworkers, from Harriet's bakery and from Wilson Kinetics, but a surprising contingent from Faery had also accepted invitations. There was no brides' side or groom's side, since Bruno had argued that would be an unfair advantage to the brides and that the apostrophes were too challenging for the signage.

So there were mechanics and janitors elbow-to-elbow with the Fae court. Burly blue-collared mechanics sat next to winged and antlered sprites, and Gary seemed quite taken with one of Harriet's tattooed bakers. They appeared to be comparing piercings. Bruno waited at the dais, Frank as his best man at his side. Anita was both bridesmaid and flower girl, and she told everyone that the flower petals were edible as she scattered them generously on the floor and audience. Tobias and Harriet came next, because Tobias had refused to let Harriet go down the aisle alone, even as the maid of honor .

Bruno was pretty sure that Tobias was whispering dirty suggestions to her as they walked, judging by Harriet's flush and Tobias's satisfied smirk.

Then came Eva and Margo, and Bruno could not even see anyone else for the glory of his mates.

Margo had protested wearing white. "I am a troll," she insisted. "You put me in a white suit and people will think I'm the marshmallow man from the Ghostbusters movie and the whole wedding will be screaming and fleeing. A cupcake dress would be even worse." So Eva made her a tailored feminine suit of moss green and teal blues, an earthy, watery kit with a pattern of silver leaves, dark lace, and subtle embroidery designs in the same shades of red and rust as Bruno's fitted suit.

Eva's dress was silver and gray, shot through with Margo's greens and teals and Bruno's russet hues. It had puffed sleeves and a frothy skirt, with rainbow crystals sewn into every seam. Bruno didn't realize that it left her back boldly bare until she turned a little climbing up onto the dais and he saw the flash of her raw scars.

She stood proudly before the officiant, a rather bemused-looking recruit from the civil clerk's desk and Margo faced Bruno from beside her.

The clerk cleared his throat and addressed the room.

"We are gathered here today in celebration of love and union between these three souls. Let us join them together in the presence of witnesses and wish them joy and happiness as they start a journey forward from this day as husband and wives. I understand that you have written your own vows?"

They had written their vows together, because Eva insisted that she didn't want to get up in front of everyone and say "Me, too," when she realized that everyone else had said what she was going to first .

"Bruno," Margo said first. "I fell headfirst into your life hiding from security guards and you kissed me instead of turning me in." There was a titter of amusement from the audience. "Eva, I have adored you since Harriet first introduced me to her assistant and never realized that you might look twice at me. The two of you together complete me, and I swear my heart and my soul to each of you forever."

Bruno cleared his throat and realized that he'd crushed his note cards in sweaty hands. "Eva, you came quietly into my life and stole my heart. Margo, you hit me over the head with a popcorn machine."

"My popcorn machine!" Frank whispered from behind him in outrage. "You said that was done by vandals!"

Bruno closed his eyes and dredged the rest up from memory because the ink on the index card was too smudged to read. "The two of you together complete me, and I swear my body and my being to each of you forever."

Eva was bouncing slightly in place, light as a dandelion fluff. "Margo, I will never forget how kind you were to me when I had nothing, and now you've given me everything. Bruno, I was afraid of so much when we met, and you made me feel brave again. The two of you together complete me, and I swear my love and life to each of you forever."

Eva kissed Margo, standing on tiptoe as Margo bent over, and it was a fluttery kiss full of promise, just like their very first one. Then Margo stood up and kissed Bruno, and it was a lingering kiss, pressed close together. While she caught her breath, Bruno turned to Eva and swept her into a third kiss that was barely civil, as the audience burst into applause .

The sweaty clerk shook all of their hands and looked happy to escape with a plate from the reception buffet.

There was a tower of gifts, ranging from very practical (a new stand mixer and a smoked sausage subscription) to very tongue in cheek (a boxed DVD set of Threes Company).

Bruno was alarmed to find a card from the Faery Queen (who went by Queen Katerina now) in with the gifts, but Eva opened it fearlessly.

This gift is not equal to the forgiveness you have granted me, but I hope it starts to heal the wounds that I caused.

Love forever,

Queen Katerina

The card had a triskelion on it that glowed in blue and then vanished as Eva gave a gasp of wonder. Bruno growled and spun, looking for some trick or trap, and found that wings had sprouted from her shoulders in glowing blue.

Margo brushed her hand through them suspiciously. They dragged like smoke along her fingers, then coalesced behind them.

"Do they hurt?" she asked.

Eva sighed in joy, turning her head to see them. "No, not at all. It's perfect."

"Well that certainly overshadows our gift," Frank said, not sounding that disappointed. He handed Eva an envelope as well. "Tobias and I, with Harriet and Anita, took care of the debt you had outstanding with Antonio."

Eva gave everyone hugs, and Bruno shook everyone's hands, and Margo even smiled.

Much later, Bruno soaked with Eva and Margo in the honeymoon suite of the fanciest hotel in the city, which was saying a lot. His huge copper tub was installed there, filled with steaming water and floating with flowers. The sale had secured his expenses for at least a year, and he had a mate and a wife on each side of him.

"You never did tell us what the Queen offered you to give up your challenge," Margo observed, dragging her fingers through the wet, curly hair on Bruno's chest.

Eva squirmed out of his embrace and sat up to stare down at him. "It made you blush ," she pointed out. "It must have been good."

Bruno groaned and tried to slip down deeper into the tub. Even now, his ears were heating.

"Tell us!" Margo commanded, splashing him.

"Tell us!" Eva echoed, tickling him.

Bruno chortled and caught Eva under one arm as he rolled away from Margo, who followed until they were all grappling in one confusion of waves and limbs. The mat beside the tub was already soaked.

"I give up!" he finally said. "Eva's elbows are too pointy." They settled back into comfortable shapes together, warm and floaty in the bubbles and rose petals.

"What did she offer you?" Eva asked. "Unlimited riches?"

"Fame as an artist equal to Frank's?" Margo guessed.

"A lifetime of Faery food?"

"A coffee cup that never goes cold?"

"A new hammer for your next bathtub?"

Bruno sighed. "It's…sort of a tool…"

"You're blushing again," Eva pointed out.

Bruno slid down and lowered his face into the water. "Oo ox," he said into it with bubbles.

"Blue socks?" Margo puzzled over the sounds that he'd made.

Eva fell backwards laughing. "Two cocks! Of course!! "

"She could do that?" Margo said in wonder. "Really? Why wouldn't you take that offer?"

Bruno's face emerged from the water. "What would be the point if I didn't have both of you to please?"

"Butt stuff?" Eva offered innocently.

"You did not just say that," Margo sighed. "You know how prudish Bruno is."

"Help!" Bruno wailed, laughing so hard he nearly drowned himself. "Someone save me!"

Eva tried to pull him up by the armpit, slipped, and splashed her head under the water. Margo pulled her up like a wet kitten, and got an arm under Bruno to heave him out of the water. "Saved," she said, planting a kiss on each of their cheeks.

"You saved me long before this," Eva said, turning to capture her lips.

"You both saved me," Bruno said, low and sure. Whatever life threw at the three of them, they would face it together, stronger and better than they could ever be apart.

Hugs , his bear said happily, and that, for once, was the perfect thing to do.