Summary: With little time to lose, Eda and Luz race to the venue to stop the wedding in its tracks before it's too late but what if Raine refuses to listen?

Angst Warning: Angsty but happy ending

Mature/ Trigger Warning: Abusive relationships, stopping weddings, depressive thoughts, arguments, anger, controlling people, emotional abuse, cursing, battles, blood and gore

For ten minutes, Luz and I ran, before we stopped abruptly and turned to face each other; we had no idea where the wedding was.

"Um..." Luz frowns, thinking. "I could call Amity... they got invited to the wedding, well, her parents did, they somehow know Taylor's family... maybe she can find the address for us?"

"Okay," I nodded. "Just hurry! We don't have that much time..."

"I know," Luz whispered. "It's gonna work out, through. I promise," Luz left, carrying her phone as searched for Amity's number and called her. I waited, wringing my hands, nervous beyond belief. What if we were too late and Raine ends up in a relationship where they aren't happy? I shook my head. No, they have to be happy. They just have to. But that's why they wanted to remain friends, why they acted weird, why they gave me a goodbye kiss. They still loved me but they couldn't get out of the relationship with abusive Taylor. And she probably proposed to them and they freaked out and agreed. And now they were stuck marrying someone who would abuse them for the rest of their life. No, I wasn't letting that happen.

Luz finally came over and gave an address. She asked me if I knew it, she had never heard of it before, but luckily, I had. I knew exactly where it was. "Come on," I told her, grabbing her arm. "Let's go."

333 Devil's Crossing Street, which I found extremely ironic, was perhaps the best, and most well-known, wedding venue on the Boiling Isles. A huge castle-like mansion converted into a beautiful venue. It was like a hug, more fancy version of the Owl House, from its white exterior to its black roof to its stained glass windows. It costs a small fortune; only the wealthiest could really afford it, but they said it was worth it.  I wasn't so sure about that. All I knew was that this place was too fancy for Raine, they would be loads of people in there, and they must hate it. Stupid, fucking Taylor.

We made our way into the lobby, and I had to admit, it was breathtaking, even if you weren't into that kind of thing and I really wasn't. It was a tall room, with a real gold and diamond chandelier hanging above it. The walls were painted white and the ground was hardwood with one, beautiful carpet in the middle. All of the windows were stained glass, giving the whole lobby a magical feeling. There were two staircases that led to a second-floor platform. I walked straight between them where there was a row of doors. I peered through them. Bingo.

"Wait!" Luz cried when I went to open the doors. "You have to wait until the priest or whoever says that line. 'Speak now or forever hold your peace.'"

I stared at her, "Seriously, Luz? Do you have to be a goody-Luz-shoes? This is a matter of life and death!!"

"It's really... not," she told me then trailed off when I gave her a look. "I know you aren't one to... follow the rules, but if you want to get Raine back, you have to wait until those words. Okay?"

I didn't say anything but I didn't barge in either. I stood there, the door open just a crack. No one notice it opening but it was enough we could hear the priest clear enough to know what he was saying. Weddings were always boring and slow and long but when you were waiting to stop a wedding, it was even longer than it should be. But Luz was staring at me and I knew I had to wait for that stupid line. I didn't understand why I couldn't just barge in at that moment and stop the wedding but Luz didn't want me too so I didn't. I waited. And waited. And waited some more. And, then, finally-

"I object!"

Okay, no matter how many movies you watch where the main character realizes they are still in love with their ex and runs to stop the wedding, nothing prepares you for doing it in real life. This felt wrong; people turned to stare at me. I'm pretty sure people didn't actually stop weddings in real life unless you were a creep. My hands were shaking and I was getting horrified, disgusted looks from people. I swallowed hard, a silence now filling the air. Great, what next?!

The priest had defiantly never had someone actually speak now. He looked confused; as if he didn't know what to do. He cleared his throat a few times, "Um..." he managed to get out. "Er."

"What is she doing here?! She's gonna ruin my special day!" Taylor whispered, feigning sadness and concern, blinking innocently. Ugh, I hated this bitch. But I was pretty sure only Luz and I were the ones who saw through her BS. And maybe Raine. "What do you even want?" She wailed, taking her feigned emotions to a whole new level.

I took a step forwards, feeling all eyes on me. In all honesty, I wanted the floor to swallow me whole, just like that. But one glance at Raine, who was watching me with this look on their face; part confusion, part gratitude, and I pushed that feeling away. I couldn't leave; I had to save Raine from making this mistake. Even if they decided to not get back together with me, I just had to get them out of this relationship before the vows are said. I glanced over at Luz, she was watching and gave me a thumbs up. It was enough for me to force myself to talk, everyone still staring at me but now I only had eyes for Raine.

"Raine..." I whispered, taking another step forward. "You know I still love you. I never stopped loving you, which I know sounds corny and cliche, but it's true. Maybe I thought I stopped but there were times I wished we could see each other again. And when we did, see each other again, I mean, I looked at you for only a second and I knew. I still loved you just as much as when we broke up, maybe even more."

"Someone get her out!" Taylor stomped her foot, her poofy dress fluttered as she did. But no one moved, just watching. I couldn't tell if they wanted to listen or if they were just frozen with shock or maybe a little of both. Taylor growled and crossed her arms. I ignored her, taking another step forward.

"I know you probably don't want me back, Rainestorm. I know that I'm the reason we broke up, the real reason. I know that I wasn't the best lover, I made so many mistakes, I couldn't really deal with tough things, I pushed you away, I lied, I was just... well, me. And I'm sorry. I'm sorry I was like that, I'm sorry I hurt you, broke you. I'm sorry I made things harder on you, sorry for not being the person that you deserved, I'll never be the person you deserve. But neither will Taylor, so please, Raine, don't marry her. You'll regret it for the rest of your life. Not because you wished you married me but because you wished you never married. She's a bad person, Raine, I know that. I saw the videos. Don't marry her, she'll make your life a living hell."

"She's lying!" Taylor whimpered, still feigning innocence and sadness, but it wasn't as strong this time and there was uncertainty and fear in her voice. "I'm not a bad person, right Raine?!" She spun around to look at Raine. Raine looked down at the ground. There was muttering in the crowd. Taylor gave me the most horrible look she could manage and turned back to her guests. "You don't believe her? Do you?" she asked, her fakeness starting to crumble but still strong enough for someone to believe she was being sincere. "She's trying to ruin my special day!"

I frowned. "You keep saying your special day; it's Raine's special day too, you know."

"No, it's not!" Taylor stomped her foot like a child again, her fakeness dropping away for a few moments. "It's not their special day! I'm the bride, it's my special day and my special day alone! Not theirs, they're just the person I'm marrying!"

People whispered, staring at her in shock. She had seemed to forget, momentarily, where she was. Her eyes widened. "Oh, I!" she tried. "I didn't mean that, oh, Raine, can't you tell them that I would never ever hurt you?" She blinked her eyes at Raine. Raine stared at her for a moment, something flickering across their face and then they turned to me. "She's trying to ruin my wedding!" Taylor howled, her acting completely gone and only her true colors showing. "Drag her out of here! This bitch is gonna ruin everything!"

The whispers got louder; some people saw those videos online, Taylor had abused them first hand too, but they were too scared to say anything. Too scared that no one would believe them and too scared of Taylor. Taylor had them all wrapped around her finger. She had them all wrapped around her finger.

"Is this true, baby?" a woman who looked a lot like an older Taylor, must be her mother I thought, asked. Taylor shook her head.

"No... no! Of course not!" She laughed, but it was forced. More people frowned and whispered. She glared at Raine. "Say something darling!"

"They have stage fright, you should know that!" I snapped, now only seeing red. I was on my last nerve, ready to blow this bitch up.

"I do know that!" She snapped back, sounding like she really did. "And it's stupid! Titan, they get scared when they just have to speak to a shop owner. It's not that hard, really, It's an easy thing and they can't even do that right! They can't do anything right, that's why I punish them!"

Raine glared at the ground but they didn't say anything. I took another angry step towards Taylor. "You hit them!" I screamed. "That's not punishing. That's you being an abusive bitch."

That word lit a fire in Taylor. A wild, out-of-control fire. "How dare you! I wish you would just drop dead! No one would miss you, the world would be a much better place without you in it!"

Luz's eyes flashed dangerously. She took a few, angry steps forward, reaching in her bag to grab her glyphs. I grabbed her arm through. If she tried to attack Taylor, Taylor would hurt her and I refused to let her get hurt.

"Let me go!" Luz thrashed in my grasp. "I want to watch her go up in flames!"

"Luz!" I growled, dragging her back. "Burning Taylor isn't going to fix anything-"

"It's gonna make up for what she did and said to Raine and all those other people." She looked at me, a fire lit in them, but tears were also filling her eyes. "And what she said to you. I would miss you. The world would be a very dark place." I smiled and ruffled her hair.

"I know kiddo. And when the time is right, we can make her suffer, but not yet, okay?"

Luz opened her mouth to say something but Taylor cut her off. Taylor really did sound insane. "Oh, look at the infamous owl lady and her stupid "daughter". Oh, wait. Clawthrone would never be a good enough mother. Look at how she already ruined the poor girl!"

I froze. I hated to admit it, but she was right. I would never be a good mother. My grip on Luz loosened. Luz would be better off without me. Luz broke free from my grasp, her eyes flashing and looking ready to commit murder. But before she could run forward, Raine clear their throat and spoke up, "How dare you speak to her like... like that!" They managed to barely stammer but they were pale and shaking. "She's a wonderful mother; at the very least, a whole lot better at mothering than you would ever be! Her daughter obviously cares for her, why else would she look ready to murder you in cold blood?"

"Raine," Taylor warned, her voice colder than ice. "Shut it."

"No, I will not shut it!" Now Raine was angry. They were still pale and shaking but they were also shaking from anger, their voice strong. "You're always telling to shut it. And I'm honestly sick and tired of it. I'm not going to shut it and listen to you insult the two of them."

"Rain, I'm warning you!" Taylor snapped. "If you say one more thing, I will kill you!"

Raine ignored her, "I can take it when you insult and abuse me, I deserve it." No you don't, I thought but I let them speak. "But I will not stand by and watch you do the same to Eda and Luz! Eda was... is ... my best friend and I refuse to watch you mock her and her daughter. They're wonderful people, a lot better than you. Eda's right, about everything. I don't want to marry you, I'm only standing here today because you proposed and I choked up and said yes. And when I tried to break it off... you threatened to hurt Eda."

The room buzzed with shocked energy. People gasped, their mouths dropping open. I felt my own mouth drop. I was not expecting that last part. Taylor looked at her guests again, their glares hard enough to kill someone if looks could kill. Then she turned around and gave Raine an even deadlier look.

"That's why I pushed you away, Eda. I couldn't let you get hurt because of me," Raine had tears in their eyes. "I'm not worth that."

"Yes you are-" I began but before I could say anything else, Taylor launched herself at Raine, eyes flashing as she attacked them. I moved towards her, but Luz was faster, throwing a fire glyph at Taylor's feet. Taylor let out a horrified scream as her dress caught on fire, but she quickly put it out, turning towards Luz, her eyes wild. Taylor had gone fully insane.

I ran towards Raine, they were looking weak and beaten up, slumped against the alter. They looked up at me as I kneeled down next to them. But before I could assess the damage any further, I heard Luz let out a sudden, shrill scream of horror. I spun around, just in time, to see Taylor throw an ice spell at Luz. I was suddenly moving toward Luz, but I would get to her in time. She quickly tried to move out of the way but the ice grazed at her side and she let out a pained gasp. Her eyes filled with tears and pain as she clutched her side, trying to seem like she was fine but I knew she wasn't. I ran towards Taylor, grabbing one of Luz's stray glyphs and typing Taylor up in vines, pressing her against the wall. "Don't ever lie another finger on the child again. You don't mess with Luz, got it?!" I snarled in her face. She struggled, looking ready to murder me but also scared to death, "GOT IT?!" She nodded, eyes wide. "Good."

I would have kept yelling; I wanted to, really, make her tremble with fear but suddenly there was a quiet whimper from behind me. I could tell ther whimperer wanted to hide it but she made it loud enough for me to hear it. I spun around, a horrible feeling creeping up. Luz was pale, still clutching her side where Taylor got her. She looked weak, tired. I knew she would be fine, she barely got hit, but getting hit with the ice spell, even barely like Luz, hurt like there was no tomorrow.

Luz rested her head on my shoulder when I went over to check on her, shivering hard. The ice spell made your whole body ache, no matter where you got hit, and feel freezing cold. And tired. Really tired. Luz struggled to keep her eyes opened as she leaned against me, shivering even harder than before. "Hey..." I whispered as I wrapped my arms around her. "You doing okay?"

Luz nodded, pale, and I frowned. She was anything but okay but she was trying to hide it from me. I kept frowning as I gently titled her chin up so she could look at me. "Hey," I whispered again. "You don't have to hide anything from me."

"But-" she tried, then shivered even harder. "It hurts..." she managed to get out, her voice filled with pain. It must hurt if she was actually complaining about it. "And I'm... I'm so cold... Eda? Am I going to die...?" Her voice was small, scared. She looked up at me. I shook my head.

"N...no, you aren't... you aren't going to die," I promised. "You're going to be fine, just fine. I know you're hurting, I know it's cold. Here, look," I took off the cloack I have over top of my outfit and draped it over her shoulders. "Keep this on for now, okay? Let me go and get Raine, make sure they're okay, and then we can back home and everything will be okay."

Luz nodded, curling into a ball to make herself warmer. I sighed and stood up, walking over to where Raine was. They were able to push themselves up so now they were standing, but they still looked tired and weak. Not as bad as Luz, through, thankfully. They were bleeding from a few places and covered in a "good" amount of scars, but besides that, they seemed to be fine. I knew they weren't really, not mentally or emotionally and maybe not even that much phyiscally, but they were okay enough that I wasn't worrying my head off about them. "Hi," I muttered, suddenly shy.

"Is the girl okay?" Raine asked. "Your kid? She's okay, right?"

I smiled, nodding. Bless their heart, Raine was always worrying about other people, "Yeah, she's fine. Out of it, and I'll have to take her home but... she'll live. She's a tough cookie, that one."

"She learnt from the best," Raine smiled back at me. "Eda... look-"

Before they could finish what they wanted to say, there was a sound and we turned. Darn it. Taylor had somehow, who knows how, gotten free from her vine chains and we're heading towards Raine and me. I stood in front of Raine, refusing to let her hurt them again. Raine watched from behind me. "Be careful," they warned.

"You think you could come in here and ruin everything I worked for!" Taylor's eyes were wide and wild. I wanted to cower back from her; she seemed crazier than insane. "And you will pay for it!"

"Eda!" Raine cried. I could feel them place their hands on my back, to push me out of the harm's way, I assumed, but before they could, Taylor slapped me across the face. Hard. Darn that girl could hit. I felt tears spring to my eyes despite myself but I held my head high, my face stinging from the slap. Taylor looked shocked that I took the slap so well, which seemed to make her angrier. She moved, to slap me again or something else entirely, but then someone coughed from one of the pews and she froze, slowly turning to them and giving her stupid I'm-so-innocent gig again.

"They... they started it!" She wialed. "It wasn't my fault." Everyon just stared at her. No one believed her now. "Come on, guys! I'm not... I'm not evil!" A few people muttered that they thought the opposite. "Please! I'm the victim her! Please, someone! Girls?!" she turned to her bridesmaids, who all cowered from her. All but one.

"Oh shut up Taylor," she said. I frowned. That was the quiet one, the one I thought would be the only one defending Taylor. But I guess the quiet ones know more than anyone else. "No one is going to defend you. We've all been abused by you at least once and we were too scared to say anything. But this woman... the owl lady and her kid, they weren't scared. And I'm glad they stood up against you. No one likes you, Taylor. You're a bitch. There, I said it. We were all thinking that." Quiet bridesmaid turned to her fellow bridesmaids. "I always wanted to say that!"
Taylor looked around. People were giving her glares, nodding, chiming in with their own stories and taunts. Taylor frowned, glanced around one more time, then ran out of the church in tears. Served her right.

Some people clapped. Not everyone, like they show in movies and books, but a good amount. Some people were frozen with shock, not knowing how to react. Some people just smiled. But no one was upset it happened, well minus the fact so much money and time wasted on the wedding.

"Do you want to meet Luz?" I suddenly asked, smiling at them. They nodded, smiling back. smiling as I turned back to Raine. They smiled back at me.

"Of course I do. I want to meet the person who changed you so much." When they caught me staring, they laughed. "For the better, of course."

I laughed back, "I know. King, who's technically actually my son... he also changed me but yeah, Luz changed me the most." I gave a happy sigh. "You're going to love her, I just know it. She reminds me of you, a little. Always sees the good in people; kind of a goody-two-shoes; whip-smart, actually taking all the classes at Hexside; weird in her weird way." I glanced over at Raine. "Found her way into my heart." Raine went a bright shade of pink like Amity used to whenever she was around Luz. "Come on, follow me."

Once we got back to Luz, Luz had pushed herself into a sitting position, the cloak still wrapped around her as she hugged herself, trying to keep warm. She looked up at us when we got to her and a smile spread across her face. She stood up as fast as she could, which wasn't really that fast, and flung her arms around me.

"You're okay!" she laughed, her eyes sparkling as she clutched me, struggle to stand without my support. "Wait, you are okay, aren't you? You aren't hurt or anything, right? Taylor seemed to hurt you pretty badly and I hope you're okay because-"

"Yes," I smiled as I hugged Luz back, giving a small good-nature laugh. "I'm fine. Don't you worry your pretty little head about me."

"You know I will."

"I know," I smiled, ruffling her hair. "You sure you okay?"

Luz nods, then her smile grew even more. It looked as if her face would break in half. "I'm better than okay! I just stopped a wedding! Time to check that off the bucket list! Starting a prison riot... saving a loved one from being wrongly accused and is now on death row... and now stopping a wedding because someone is still in love with one who is getting married!" Luz and her misplaced happiness. Typical.

Raine frowned. "Um," they leaned over to me. "Is she... okay?"

"Oh yeah," I laughed. "This is just Luz. Oh, Luz, this is Raine. Raine, this is Luz."

"Hi!" Luz smiled, leaning against me as she held out her hand. Raine took it, looking nervous.

"H...Hi," they stammered out then turned to me. "Eda...?"

"Yes?" I asked as Luz closed her eyes, still leaning against me. I frowned, stroking her hair.

"Could I... you don't have to say yes but... could I come and live with you and Luz and... King? Not forever, of course, it's just... you know, I live with Taylor and that is going to be awkward and all... I'll need to go and get my things but we should go back to your house first so we can take Luz home and I'll know where the house is and-"

"Raine," I whispered. They stopped their rambling and stared at me, the question of what written on their face "Of course you can stay with us." I saw Luz give her 'shipping' smile. I sighed, rolling my eyes. Typical Luz. "As long as you don't mind a demonic house guardian who will bore you with stories of how many bugs he's eaten and will defiantly make you question everything you know."

Raine laughed, "Eda, I lived with bitchy bitch of bitchesvile. I'm pretty sure I'm okay with some house demon."

"Okay, fair point," I laughed, helping Luz to move forward. "But don't say I didn't warn ya."

Luz yawned, looking exhausted. We had to get her back home soon. Raine started to follow us, "Lead the way, Eda!"

I turned, giving them a Look, then just shook my head, looking at Luz "Homeward bound?"

She nodded, "Homeward bound."

And without another word, we left the church filled of people in pretty outfits who had no idea what to think.

And that, my friends, is how you stop a wedding.