---

"Birds all sing, as if they knew…"

"Chapel of Love" - Bette Midler

I closed that one last step of distance between us, and then she was in my arms, pulling my head down until our mouths met in a delicious, lingering kiss. I almost didn't hear the shuffling of many feet behind us, but the cheers and applause were harder to ignore.

All the patrons of the bar seemed to be there in the hallway, having followed right behind us when we'd walked out of the room. Grace was at the front of the crowd, one hand raised in a vee for victory sign.

"I'm glad you're taking him back," he said, leering at Gaelen over my shoulder, "he was about to wear me out." Gaelen's eyebrows drew into a frown, and then she looked from Grace to me and started to laugh. Grace joined in, and I couldn't help myself; laughter just bubbled up inside me. It was so good to be with her again.

I hope everyone understood when I shoved Grace out of his own office and shut the door in their faces.

* * *

Needless to say, we had lots of help planning the wedding. Star promised to bring the entire family, including Dex, Zee, and CD. Dex and Zee had called to give their congratulations in person, but I hadn't heard from CD yet. He and I had become pretty close friends as well as lovers, and I imagined he was thinking that was going to end. Well, I'd just have to introduce him to Gaelen and see how things went.

Where to have the wedding was a major topic of conversation. Now that Gaelen had agreed to marry me, I didn't care about where, and was content to leave those and any other details to her. I was surprised when she told me she had arranged exclusive use of the Central Park Carousel for a couple of hours. Carousels were one of my favorite things, and she and I had spent many a happy afternoon there. It was a popular spot, and ours would be only the latest of many weddings the carousel had witnessed.

There was a little-used banquet room in back at Grace's Camelot bar, and he had people in there cleaning and decorating for the reception. Gaelen refused Grace's suggestion of buying her a white wedding gown with one rude hand gesture. She said she already had the perfect dress and that I should just wear a suit, no tux necessary. "It's not like I haven't done this before," she said.

Well, I certainly hadn't been married before, but we could have had the ceremony on the beach wearing swim suits and it would have been fine with me; all I wanted was to be with Gaelen.

Neither of us cared to give the local medical clinic samples of our unusual blood to examine for the pre-wedding tests, so, with a little distraction and sleight of hand, I left them with two very normal samples instead, courtesy of Grace and Ben.

The wedding was set for Sunday afternoon when the bar was usually at its quietest. Everything else seemed ready, and I'd been sitting at a table in back, relaxing and wondering who would perform the ceremony, when Gaelen called me up to the bar. "Evan," she said, "I think you know the judge?"

Of course I'd met the older man with the graying mustache and broad shoulders, but he stuck out his hand to me and I shook it. "Nelson Hardesty," he said, "but everyone just calls me 'judge.' Been on the bench for twenty years now, and I'd be most pleased to marry you and Gaelen." He smiled and looked her way. "'Bout time someone swept this beautiful lady off her feet. I've been watching her turn men down for years."

Gaelen blushed and looked away.

"I hope you know how lucky you are, young man."

I nodded, my eyes irresistibly drawn to my wife-to-be. "Oh, yes, I do indeed, sir."

* * *

It was Friday night; Gaelen and I were relaxing in her big bed. I really didn't want to rock the boat, but I thought it was about time I shared a couple more of my secrets. "There's something we should talk about," I said.

Gaelen opened one eye and turned her head to look up at me. "What?"

"Um… I think there are a couple things I should tell you before we get married."

She yawned and rolled onto her back. "God, now what?"

"Well, you remember that I told you I used to be strictly gay?"

She nodded, and I launched into the whole story about my infatuation with Star and his suggestion of my change into Eve, then his finally changing me back. Gaelen's eyes stayed riveted on my face for the entire time. When I was finally quiet, she said: "Do you mean that you were actually a woman?"

"Uh huh, for several months."

She propped up on one elbow and looked down at me. "That is just weird," she said. "I wouldn't even believe it if I hadn't seen the things you can do."

I shrugged.

"Did you like being a woman?"

I smiled. "It was nice not to have people stare when I walked into a place with a man on my arm. Yeah, I kind of liked it."

I could see that there were other things she wanted to ask. Maybe she couldn't quite figure out how. "Do you ever miss it?" she said.

"Well…." I swallowed, thinking "here we go," and I told her about Muir.

"Three sexes!" her eyes were saucers.

I nodded.

"Okay, that's a great bedtime story and certainly nothing like anything I've ever run into in my travels, but why tell me now? What does it have to do with you?"

I took a deep breath. "Lecurela thought there was something wrong with me when I didn't want to have sex with my female playmate. But Star thought to check my DNA, and it turns out I'm not really male after all… I'm median."

I braced myself, I'm not sure for what, but she only stared into my eyes. Her gaze fell to my groin, and her face took on an expression somewhere between disbelief and laughter and she said: "You could have fooled me."

I blushed; I could feel my face heat up. "Gaelen," I said, my voice low, "my body has been male from the first moment I saw you, but usually it's like a median."

Her eyes narrowed. "Tell me again how that's different from male."

"Um… well, a median has a penis, but they also have a vagina."

I could see a row of questions marching up behind her eyes, and I flinched. Before she could ask the first one, I held up a hand. "Sweetheart, it's not important right now. I promise I'll show you some time." The idea of changing and displaying myself for such an inspection, even with Gaelen, made me feel very vulnerable. I thought she might insist, but she just nodded and snuggled back into my shoulder.

"Yeah," she said quietly, "we gotta save some surprises for after the wedding."

I let out the breath I'd been holding. One of my biggest fears was that some other strangeness would come along and delay or prevent the ceremony. Once we were safely bonded, I could relax and share everything with her.

I could see where finding out your husband was something other than male might be kind of a shock. At least she wouldn't be able to claim that I hadn't mentioned it.

* * *

The wedding was absolutely beautiful. The carousel building was a riot of lights, music, and color. Our guests stood or sat here and there on or around the quadruple circle of horses, Roca making a big deal out of selecting the biggest, blackest one he could find and hanging on tight as though it might buck him off. Star gave him a stern look, but I just smiled.

The judge, wearing his official black robes, presided inside one of the chariots, and I stood just behind it, while Gaelen, wearing a long white high-collared dress with swirls of every color in the rainbow, their shades echoed in her bouquet, walked through the gated entrance and down the little aisle to climb onto the platform and stand beside me.

Grace had offered to "give the bride away," but hastily retracted it when he saw the look on Gaelen's face. So instead, he wore white pants and a pale pink shirt, held a small bouquet of his own, and paced in front of her as maid of honor, while Star stood next to me, ready to hand me Gaelen's ring at the proper moment, or perhaps catch me if I fainted.

Our vows left out "keep thee only unto," and "obey," but kept "till death do us part." I remember what was said and done, but I saw all of it through a rosy haze of sheer joy. When we had finally placed rings on each other's fingers and the judge intoned, "I now pronounce you husband and wife" and, "you may now kiss each other," I had to blink back tears.

We were married! Even with Gaelen's hand in mine, I couldn't believe it.

The Carousel music made a perfect recessional. Outside, everyone was handed a little basket of flower petals. As Gaelen and I stepped out into the sunny afternoon, her arm safely tucked in mine, Grace counted three, and everyone tossed up fragrant, bright handfuls which rained down on us, soon to be swept away by a playful breeze. My heart was so much lighter than that colorful cloud.

I don't remember everything about the reception. I know that there were far more people there than we had invited, but there was plenty of food, and it didn't seem to matter if I knew the person who was congratulating me. I do remember CD giving me a very formal hug and then just standing there in his dark suit, straight and tall, his deep green eyes solemn. The smile that quirked one side of his mouth was almost sad.

"I am glad for you, Evan," he said, and began to turn away.

I reached out and grabbed his arm. "Hey, just because I'm married doesn't mean I'll forget my friends." Very deliberately, I looked around for Gaelen. When I'd caught her eye, I gave CD a nice, warm kiss. His eyes widened, and he looked her way, but she only smiled at us and mouthed, "another one?" I nodded, and she shook her head and went back to discussing babies with Vai and Zee.

"See?" I said. "Gaelen likes you."

He tried a small smile. "She does not know me yet." Then someone popped another champagne cork, and in the round of toasts we were parted and swept away into the general festivities.

Grace tried to look fierce, but I knew he was happy for both of us. Even when he toasted us, saying, "Here's to Gaelen, and to Evan too, even if he did marry my best bartender," he was smiling.

Star beamed at me, and the kids, even the boys, though I doubt they would have admitted it, were excited to be at their first wedding.

When they announced the first dance, the band played the Fascination Waltz. Guiding Gaelen out onto the floor, I was the happiest man in the universe.