Las Vegas: Big Al's Pawn Shop, Slots, and Notary Services, & Elsewhere, Friday

[firstofitskind]

Verity	Al had finished Liam's paperwork, including an American passport. What was more, he was happy to watch the mice, especially after what they had told him about the Golden Oasis. Verity started to wonder whether her estimate of a month before that clerk's life was conclusively ruined might not have been a little overly generous. The mice were thrilled to have the run of the pawn shop for the day. Verity ducked into the employee bathroom to change. Maybe she was eloping, and maybe she was never going to hear the end of it from her family when they found out, but by God, she wasn't going to get married in jeans. There was a knock on the door as she was trying to figure out what to do with her hair. "Who is it?" she called.
Uncle Al	"Al," came the response. "You decent?"
Verity	"I am," Verity said, turning away from the mirror. "I just didn't want Liam to see me in my wedding dress."
Uncle Al	Al opened the bathroom door and stopped, blinking. "I won't make any more jokes about you being a kid, Very," he said, in a strangled tone. "You're all grown up now."
Verity	"You like it?" Verity was wearing one of her competition gowns. This one had been designed for the Venetian waltz. It was all gauze and sequins and plunging neck and back, slit up to the hips to allow for ease of motion. She could have taken on an army in that dress, if there hadn't been any way for her to change her clothes first. It was also one of the most concealing things she owned. The life of a ballroom dancer was an often chilly one.
Uncle Al	"Your mama would be so proud," he said, stepping fully into the room. He had a trench coat draped over one arm, which he offered to Verity. "I figured you wouldn't want him to see you. As for the rest, you need a few things." "Like what?" "Like something borrowed, and something blue." He dipped a hand into his pocket, coming up with a necklace of diamonds and blue topaz. He held it out to her. "Put it on. You look amazing, but this is Vegas. A few sequins isn't going to cut it."
Verity	"Oh, Al, it's beautiful." Verity got the necklace fastened around her neck, checking its position in the mirror, before turning to beam at him. "Thank you so much." "That's not all." He handed Verity a small bag. She looked inside - and twenty-five thousand dollars looked back. "No." She closed the bag, shoving it at him. "I can't."
Uncle Al	"You can, and you will. That guy was bad news, Very, and you shut him down. So this is my wedding gift to you. Not a freebie, because I don't do freebies. But a suspiciously similar cash prize." Al smiled. "You're a beautiful bride, you did a good thing today, and now it's time for you to go show that fellow of yours what he got himself a new identity for. Go on. I'll watch the mice." "You're the best, Al." "Yeah, I am."
Verity	He stayed where he was, still smiling, as Verity kissed his cheek and ran out of the room, toward her waiting future. She was pretty sure her feet didn't touch the ground the entire way to the chapel.
Liam	Liam had, he felt, shown a remarkable amount of restraint in not pestering her to show him what she was wearing as they drove to the chapel. He was, however, exceedingly glad that Verity had thought to get Al to throw in the marriage license with the rest of his paperwork. A wait in line at the county clerk's office, even a five-minute one, would have been absolute torture. "You ready for this?" he asked as they stood in front of the doors, his hand reaching for hers.
Verity	It was a damn good dress. "Which part?" she asked, beaming up at him. "The part where we get married or the part where the officiant is a chupacabra dressed up like Elvis?"
Liam	"The part where Steve's probably going to bake us some sort of congratulations casserole when we get back home," Liam said, making a face.
Verity	Verity stopped. Stared at him in horror. "...You know, we haven't gone through with it yet." LIVING IN SIN WAS STILL AN OPTION!
Liam	"Maybe he just won't notice that we've swapped out the rings?" Liam said hopefully.
Verity	"Why would you bring this up literally on the steps of the chapel?" Verity groaned.
Liam	"One last test to see if you're ready to marry my dumb ass even though sometimes I say exactly the wrong thing?"
Verity	"Yeah, well now I'm debating it," Verity told him-- While heading into the chapel. Because yeah. They were gonna do this.
Liam	They must have arrived at pretty much the perfect time, because there was no lineup or anything, and they were able to be slotted in pretty much immediately. Verity had been shown to a dressing room so she could put any final touches on her makeup, as well as stash the coat she'd worn to cover up the dress on the way over. Which left Liam standing at the back of the chapel with their officiant (who was, as promised, dressed like Elvis) as he waited for her to make her entrance.
Verity	Verity stepped out, a vision in white, Al's gemstones sparkling around her throat. Her lips quirked as she saw their cryptid officiant, but her eyes barely slid over him, instead landing on Liam and staying there. For a plan made all of two days ago, she couldn't imagine anything more right. She walked forward, not to the wedding march but to Can't Help Falling In Love (a cover, oddly enough, but a beautiful one), her heart in her eyes. And her smile.
Liam	Now, Liam was of the opinion that Verity looked gorgeous no matter what she was wearing, whether it be sweats and a tank top or one of her tango costumes. But this? This was next level. "Oh my god," he mouthed.
Verity	Verity winked at him as she came up in front of the altar, reaching out for his hands. "You ready?" she mouthed back.
Liam	He nodded, suddenly at a loss for words. Which was hopefully temporary, considering they had vows to exchange and everything.
Verity	"Dearly beloved, we are a-gathered here today, uh-huh..." the officiant began in his best Elvis voice. Which, if someone was in the mood to be paying attention to these things, they would consider a very good one. Verity wasn't paying attention. She was staring into Liam's eyes, holding tightly to his hands. And when it was finally time for her vows, she found her nervousness had evaporated. "Whenever I pictured my wedding day, there's a whole bunch of things I didn't expect to happen. Like starting the day with thwarting a kidnapping or a chupacabra in more sequins than I am. But one thing that I always did imagine? Was marrying a man who loved me more than breathing. And I found that in you, Liam Kincaid. "You're more than my husband, you're my partner, my rock, my sanity-check, and my adventuring-through-Ikea buddy. You make me laugh, you make me smile, you make me yell -" There was a quick waggle of her eyebrows there, yes, "- and, sure, sometimes you even make me mad. But no matter what fresh hell is going on, I know deep down that we'll always be there for each other. You have my back and I have yours. "Liam, I promise to love, honor, and cherish." Yeah, no Healy-Price woman was ever going to put in 'obey.' It wasn't in their nature. "I promise to follow your lead and trust in your instincts. I promise to tell you when you're wrong and celebrate you when you're right. I promise to hold you when you cry and run you ragged when you're a little bit lost. I promise to spend each of my days trying to become the best me I can be, even as I help you become the best you that you can. I promise to leave weapons where you can trip over them, clothing scattered in your way, and occasionally break tables in the most epic ways possible." Ahem. "But through it all, I promise to love you more with every passing day. I promise to protect you and our family with every bit of cunning and skill I possess. And when the day comes when one of us has to leave this life, I promise that I will have loved you as fiercely and completely as I know how."
Liam	"I never thought I'd be here," Liam started. "And I don't mean Las Vegas, specifically. I mean, standing in front of someone who I love with all my heart, ready to declare to the world that I'm going to spend the rest of my life with her. Falling in love was a luxury other people had, one that I couldn't afford. But," he continued, smiling down at her. "You must have known something I didn't, because one of the very first things you said to me was that since I didn't have a family of my own, you were willing to share yours, and now here we are, making that offer legally binding. You are the strength I didn't know I needed, and the joy that I didn't know I lacked. "You're my partner, my backup, the person I trust beyond all others. It's because of that partnership, that trust, that I believe in us, in our power as a couple, in our future as a family. I believe in myself, that within myself I am capable of loving you the way you deserve. I believe that you and I should spend all our days together, me as your husband, you as my wife. "And to that end, I vow to refuse to let you turn Chinese leftovers into breakfast, to always be there when you need my help, and to talk to you when I'm struggling, hurt, or sad. I love you more than I ever thought I could love someone, but I know as time goes by, that love will only grow, and I look forward to facing every day with you by my side."
Verity	"Wow," their officiant said, forgetting to use the accent for a moment. "I mean, by the power vested in me, uh-huh, by the state of Nevada, I now pronounce you man and wife. You may ki--" Verity didn't wait for him to finish his sentence, flinging herself into Liam's arms.
Liam	And Liam was already dipping his head down to meet hers, kissing her long and hard and not pulling away until he absolutely had to. Stupid need to breathe.
Verity	"Hey, Mr. Kincaid-Price," Verity said, smiling up at him. "How does it feel to be married?"
Liam	Liam laughed, giddy and breathless. "Pretty fucking amazing, Mrs. Kincaid-Price," he replied.
Verity	"We'll get the bands later," Verity promised. "Chicago has a bunch of reputable jewelers we can visit." And be certain that the bands they bought hadn't been circling anyone else's fingers before a run of bad luck parted them.
Liam	"Sounds good to me," Liam said agreeably. Though honestly, Verity could've said their next stop was the moon and he would've agreed readily enough, he was in that kind of mood. "What are we gonna do with these?" he asked, holding up the hand that still sported the engagement ring she'd given him. In all their 'the plan is not to plan' semi-spontaneous decision-making, they hadn't actually discussed that part, and he found himself strangely reluctant to part entirely with the ring he'd been wearing for the past four months, even if he'd still be wearing a ring.
Verity	"If they don't fit with our wedding bands...necklaces?" Verity suggested, glancing at hers as well. "Wear 'em next to our hearts."
Liam	"I like that," Liam decided. "So. Chicago?"
Verity	"Chicago," Verity said, linking her arm through his as they turned to exit the chapel. "And our wedding night." Okay, tonight would probably actually be spent in a small roadside motel or just taking turns driving though the night, but whatever. Chicago would be when it counted.

[ooc: preplayed with the absolutely fabulous arboreal_priestess & part 2 of 2 adapted from Seanan McGuire's Waking Up In Vegas. NFB, NFI!]