The Stars Above Us

Chapter 23

"So, I've been thinking," Bones said with a kiss on her neck.

"'Bout what?" Jim said, still half asleep.

"We should get married," he said.

"We're already getting married, Bones," she muttered against her pillow.

"I meant here. We should get married here. In the next few days," Bones said.

Her eyes shot open, "What?"

"We should get married here while we're on leave," he repeated.

"Why?"

"Why not? It's not like we need a lot of space. Besides, I've been thinking about this house a lot. It's full of memories, both good and bad, and I don't want that to stop. I want to keep having memories here. I want you to have memories here, even if it's just when we're planet-side," Bones paused. "We met in your home, out in the black and nothing's ever been the same. I want us to start the next chapter of our lives in my home."

"How are you planning to pull this off?" she smiled, ignoring the tears on her face.

"I'm not doing anything. All I gotta do is comm Pippa and she'll handle it. The only thing she needs to know is when," he told her, wiping off her face as he did. "Jim, will you marry me in the house my parents loved so much?"

"Of course I will. When are you thinking?" Jim smiled.

"Today."

"You do realize that if we get married today I will never be able to top it. You will forever have a birthiversary."

"Every day I get to spend with you is more than enough for me," he smiled. "So… today?"

"Since I can't actually deny you anything, and it's your birthday, today it is," she smiled.

"Go back to sleep. I'm gonna let Aunt Pip know that we're a go."

"You planned this," Jim chuckled and threw a pillow at him as he walked out the room.

"No idea what you're talking about, Misses McCoy," he chuckled.

Jim snuggled into the pillows again before she shot up, "I'm getting married today."

"Wow, you look like Winnie," her dad muttered from the door to Bones' old bedroom.

"Really?" Jim asked.

"Yea. I remember when I first met her. Your dad came running into the room. 'Chris, I'm gonna marry this girl, you gotta meet her.' She walked in and I knew she was the woman who was gonna love George for the rest of his life. She just has this look," he smiled. "It's the same look I see in your eyes right now."

"Dad," she whispered.

"I have something for you," her dad said. "When your parents asked me to be your godfather, I never, ever, thought that I would actually have to do anything. I promised to always teach you, protect you, love you. Today, I have to step back and let Leonard stand next to you. As much as I wish that your parents were here, I am grateful for every moment that I get to be your dad. I am so very proud of you. This is from George, being in Starfleet, we all knew that there was a risk of dying. He made me promise to give this to you on your twenty-first birthday or the day you got married, whichever came first. I'll be in hall when you're ready."

He pulled an actual piece of paper out of his pocket, handed it to her and pressed a kiss on her forehead before leaving the room. She looked at the neat military handwriting with a smile. The letter was simply addressed 'to my daughter.' Jim chuckled, knowing full well that her parents didn't decide her name until she was born.

Hey, baby girl 

The first thing I want to say is that I love you. I have loved you from the moment I found out that your mother was pregnant with you and I will always love you.

If you're reading this, a few things have happened. The first of which is that I'm not there. For that, I'm sorry. It's was never my intention to miss any part of your life and I just hope that you and I got to know each other. The second thing is that Chris keep his word just like I knew he would. It's my hope that if you can't have me on this day, that you have him.

It's crazy to think about you as an adult or your wedding when you're not even born yet but that's where my head went today and I decided that I have some advice to give to you.

So, first up, listen to your first thought. Not just today, but every day. I'm sure that if you haven't figured it out by now, you will. Don't ever second-guess yourself. When your heart is in the right place, that's all you need, always go with your first thought.

Work hard at things and follow your instincts. This one is a bit more of a family trait but it begged being written down somewhere. Chris says that I like to leap without looking but that's only half true. Sometimes, you won't come out alright, but if your gut is telling you to do it, especially to help someone else, go for it. If you're anything like Win, you'll be very perceptive about things, you'll know when to leap. All you got to do is trust yourself.

The fact that you're (probably) getting married today means I don't have to tell you to love. Whoever this person is, love him or her and let that person love you. Don't be afraid to give them your heart and to let them take care of yours. Tell your new spouse that I'm not above haunting someone if I have to.

The most important thing I can tell you is to keep the faith. The universe we live in a crazy place. Your will will be tested. You'll see things that no one should ever see. Just remember to keep going, no matter what.

I think your mother is waking up, you've been tap dancing on her bladder all day, so I'm going to wrap this up. I love you, child who has yet to be named. (I'm angling for Tabitha after my mother but your mom's not having it.) Go forth and do great things and know that I'm keeping an eye on you.

All my love, 

George

"I, Jamison, take you, Leonard, to be no one other than yourself. Loving what I know of you, trusting what I do not yet know, I will respect your integrity and have faith in your abiding love for me, through all our years, and in all that life may bring us. Bones, I take you as my husband, with your faults and your strengths, as I offer myself to you with my faults and my strengths. I will help you when you need help, and turn to you when I need help. I choose you as the person with whom I will spend my life." Jim smiled as she slid the simple silver band on his ring finger.

Chaplain Yardley looked at Bones, "Leonard, repeat after me…"

"I, Leonard, take you, Jamison, to be no one other than yourself. Loving what I know of you, trusting what I do not yet know, I will respect your integrity and have faith in your abiding love for me, through all our years, and in all that life may bring us. Jim, I take you as my wife, with your faults and your strengths, as I offer myself to you with my faults and my strengths. I will help you when you need help, and turn to you when I need help. I choose you as the person with whom I will spend my life." He placed the tiny silver band on her finger with her engagement ring a pressed a kiss against her knuckles.

"Now that you have given yourselves to each other with solemn vows, and the giving and receiving of rings, in front of all who are assembled here, it is with great joy that I pronounce you husband and wife," the chaplain told them. "You may now seal your vows with a kiss."

Bones was half a second ahead of her, pulling Jim across the small space between them and bringing their lips together just as the words left the chaplain's mouth.

"Get a room," Mitch called when Jim deepened the kiss.

"Room?" Bones chuckled when he pulled back and rested his forehead against hers. "You're in our house, Mitch. We could just kick you out." Everyone chuckled at the look of mock hurt on Gary's face.

Aside from Mitchell and her dad, their wedding consisted of Pippa, Gramps, Spock, Borrik, Jankowski, McGraw and Doctor Griffin. Jim, Bones and Chaplain Yardley brought the total to twelve. It was actually more people than Jim expected it to be. Borrik and Jankowski were skipping part of their leave to be here. McGraw has been off planet since he graduated from Ole Miss, something about an assignment in another quadrant. And Jim didn't know that Bones was still tight with Griffin, though she wasn't surprised. The one person she expected to see was her dad's 'girlfriend.' She'll have to ask her dad where Robbins was later.

Chaplain Yardley smiled, "Ladies and gentlemen, Jamison and Leonard."