As daylight fades into evening shadow on Saturday, September 10th, 2011, the main gates of Maple Grove will be thrown open to receive anyone who wishes to come and celebrate the marriage of Oliver Hudson Granger the Third and Lady Piper Isabel Davidson.

Held in the lee of the old ruined house, surrounded on three sides by richly verdant gardens tended to give a cultivated look of the wild, the reception will be as informal an affair as the bride and groom can get away with. A draped marquee will take pride of place on the lawn before the romantic ruins, decorated simply with sweeping strips of purple and yellow organza, beneath which will be set round tables. At each place setting will be small paper-wrapped packages - the wedding favors that all guests may take away with them, containing a grow-your-own sunflower set.

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The food provided will be a last hurrah to the end of summer - finger foods such as samosas, sandwiches, vol-au-vonts, and rolls; barbequed meat and vegetables to tempt any appetite; a range of mouth-watering desserts gathered from various patisseries across the city.

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What is a Rhy'Din gathering without a vast and inexhaustible supply of alcohol? Spirits, wines, c*cktails, punches, soft drinks, hot drinks, and a range of seasonal fruit juices will all be available from the bar set up beneath the marquee - free of charge, of course - or by engaging the services of one of the waiters or waitresses who will be mingling with the guests.

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In pride of place, of course, will stand the wedding cake, as provided by the BonBon Boutique. Chocolate sponge with orange cream, each individual elegant cupcake decorated with ribbon and sugar roses, it'll save on the ceremony of actually having to wait for your slice. Or if cake is not something you fancy, there are cupcake cases of chocolate-drizzled strawberries instead. And with her usual display of bountiful generosity, Katt has provided punnets of summer fruits, sugared flowers, and a beautifully carved watermelon to complete the offerings for the wedding party.

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Music will, of course, be provided by DJ Zen (playlist to come), and guests are welcome to dance the night away beneath the stars in the company of the bride and groom and their families.

((Join us at 9 p.m. EST, Saturday 10th September, in the Southern Glen!

Feel free to post here if you want a character to be at the reception, but can't make it one way or another. Likewise, if your character has a gift they want to present to the couple, here's the place to post it. Whatever you choose, have fun with it!))

Who knows how or when Katt slipped in there but slip in there she did. Unseen! Set on the table before the cake (and cupcakes) would be a gift left for the bride and groom. A pair of elegant, identical heart-shaped goblets that fit together to form a standard bowl shape. Each decorated with embossed rose petals and leaves. Silver-plated finish with felt base finishes the simple gift.

Tucked beneath the joint base is a small note that reads:

May your hearts always be joined.

-K

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Helena's wedding gift to the couple was a little old-fashioned, and she thought, romantic. An antique metal disc music box bespelled to illuminate the animated ballroom scene when it was being played. The burled wood wore a high polish, and the brass fittings gleamed with age and care.

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It came with discs for both everyday use (classics, minuets and waltzes) and traditional Christmas carols.

The note that accompanied the gift read, I imagine the couple who first owned this were married for a hundred years and danced together in their sitting room often. Wishing you the same long and happy life together. With love, Lena.

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A quiet, unassuming package from one of the more quiet and unassuming Grangers.

"A pair of albums to keep your memories in. I know there will be many. - Gabrielle."

As a token of well-wishes, Eregor sent this:

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The shadowbox came with a card. May this gift become filled with happy memories of your life together, for time and all eternity.

A white box, tied with a transparent ribbon with a scroll tucked into the bow on top, , bearing the crest of the ConColor Pride an ember oval with a strip of emerald going top to bottom, was delivered to the reception. a scroll tucked into the bow on top, , bearing the crest of the ConColor Pride an ember oval with a strip of emerald going top to bottom, when opened read

A gift from the ConColor Pride on your wedding day

When the package was touched, by either Piper and Ollie, the wrapping shimmered like highly faceted diamonds lite from below the ribbon glowed with a miniature aura borealis

Once opened the contents where revealed, another scroll that explained that the bottle that was nested in black velvet was 100yr old light ember champagne, from the Royal ConColor Vineyards, to either side of the bottle sat a champagne glasses of highly faceted clear crystal the stems in contrast were smooth and clear as still water on the side of glass was a profile one of the bride and one of the groom done in crystals of life like colors, framed by 1/32 of an inch starburst crystals. When the glasses were held by the bride or groom the stems glowed soft by clear white the crystals around the profiles glowed bright as stars on a clear night. Around the Champaign and glasses were seven small crystal dragons, each a different color of the rainbow, in a position of flight. Under one was a small scroll that when opened read

Among the AmTamir pollinator dragons are release during the wedding ceremony as a sign of well-wishing and good fortune for the couple that are getting married, may these bring you both for years to come.

As a gift for Piper and Ollie, Eless and Luke had found a beautiful, antique tea set. The box was wrapped in sunny yellow silk with miniature irises instead of a bow.

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The delight on Nina's face was worth the agony of traipsing behind her through yet another store. If there was one thing that Nina adored more than shopping it was shopping with someone else's money. When he'd mentioned the need to get a gift for their cousin's wedding she'd reacted with the customary emotional response he'd learned to accept. She'd cried.

And right at the moment that he was castigating himself for being the most insensitive monster ever to walk the streets of RhyDin, she had turned those tear soaked eyes up at him and said, "Can I pick it out?"

At some point he'd been separated from her by a line of clerks and merchants who he imagined were like sharks circling the chum in the water. He could still hear her voice rising and falling in waves of glee and disdain based upon what she was currently observing.

Taking a moment to rest a hip against the showcase nearest, he juggled the bags and boxes he'd already been conned into buying and waited for the sounds that warned she was about to take off in another direction. He had no idea how she was able to keep going, her girlish-turned-womanly gait now made ungainly by the weight of the child she carried so prominently high before her.

The smooth and elegant lines caught his eye and he peered closer at the spyglass" He saw in the cabinet beside him. There was something magically enchanting about it.

"It is a Wedding Kaleidoscope." The helpful clerk explained and seeing the interested glint in his hunter green gaze she expertly slipped into a description, "held inside the ornately elven crafted shaft are gemstones that refract and reflect the light. As the bride and groom peer inside they will see what the other sees splintering and reforming in a thousand unique ways. The beauty of the sight becomes symbolic of their love and their ability to see things differently but still as one."

The slow smile smoldered to life and saleswoman caught her breath at the sight of it. The words "I'll take it," took a moment to register.



Hours later Alaric rubbed the ridge of his thumb along the slender lines of her foot, gently probing into tired and aching muscles. Nina lifted the second foot and settled it into his lap, one hand idly resting atop the mound of her pregnant belly while the other fiddled through the stack of tissue paper, "I'm thinking gold. Ollie is a Granger after all. And she's supposed to be some kind of nobility."

"Sure." Absentmindedly as he contemplated the components needed to finish his assignment for school tomorrow. Kneading fingers worked into her arch and elicited a purred moan of approval.

"What's this?" Nina's tone drew him from his contemplation and he studied the box she held up from her stack of goodies with a moment's confusion.

"Oh that. It's a Wedding Kaleidoscope."

"A what?" She arched a brow at him.

"You know, a wedding kaleidoscope," The skeptical look only encouraged his explanation, "the bride and the groom look into each end and they see the gemstones that show them how they view love."

The entire look became one of arched disbelief and her smirk grew, "You are such a pansy."

"No I'm not. Look, it's just that they look inside it and they see"light'reflected"it shows how they?" He couldn't remember the clerk's explanation and knew he wasn't making much sense, "They see things different but the same.."

"Uh huhh' like I see the gifts I bought being totally worth it and see the one you bought as—?

Feeling a little snookered, Alaric turned his massaging fingers into coiled weapons of ticklish deployment.

Nina's squealed laugh was made more amusing by her complete inability to escape his grip upon her ankle.



Later he swung by the reception and delivered the Nordstrom gift bags and cards that Nina had picked out. At the last minute he'd tucked the kaleidoscope inside one of the packages. Maybe if they thought it was corny they'd overlook it with the other presents...

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