Years ago:
Outside Xavier’s school:
Kitty Pryde and Peter Rasputin are sitting on a bluff, overseeing Breakstone Lake. Peter breaks the unpleasant news directly by informing Kitty that he fell in love with someone else. Anyone she knows? she asks hesitantly. She was a native of the planet the Beyonder created, he continues. She saved his life. Kitty doesn’t say that so did she. Was she pretty? she asks. As beautiful as the dawn, as gentle as the spring rain, he replies. Poetry, Kitty thinks, from a man who said he never had the words to express what was in his heart and soul.
He continues how she gave her life for his. She meant as much to him as Kitty once did. He apologizes for his changed feelings. She points out he doesn’t call her Katya anymore. Has she changed? He has, he replies. He cared for her deeply. But the love, the commitment is no longer there.
Present:
Outside the former home of Xavier’s today, near Salem Center where the wedding is to take place:
Kitty asks Peter what he is thinking about. Dreams, he replies. He is a simple farm boy. He would never have dared to dream about any of what’s happened to him. Going to space, other times and dimensions… Meeting gods, fighting gods. All of it far beyond his power to imagine… All dwarfed by the miracle of meeting her.
Poetry, she thinks. From a man who said he never had the words to express what was in his heart and soul… Kitty drags him onward, reminding him they are going to be late for their rehearsal dinner at Harry’s Hideaway.
Lots of X-Men present and past are already mingling and celebrating. In a rather absurd situation, present Jean Grey chides her younger teenage self she is too young to drink alcohol. Young Jean suggests that, if she is going to mom anyone, shouldn’t she be “momming” her time-displaced daughter Rachel, who wishes she were somewhere else.
Jubilee and Nightcrawler are discussing her new situation as a former vampire and Peter shows Storm the picture of a painting of him and Kitty he made on his cell phone.
Gambit, as usual, flirts with Rogue, suggesting this wedding excitement has him thinking romantic thoughts. Unimpressed, she reminds him she was in his head. Honeymoons are all he is thinking about.
Kitty is happy to see Lockheed the dragon made it and he brought his partner and their family.
The two Beasts and Icemen wonder if they should go out heroing together as the Fantastic Four, as the name hasn’t been used lately.
Illyana Rasputin suggest Kitty needs a drink and kidnaps her to the roof where they share a bottle of champagne. Kitty calls her a bad influence. She is getting her drunk and is making her neglect her guests. She notes that Illyana doesn’t seem really happy for her and Peter. Illyana denies it, after which Kitty calls her a bad actor. She threatens to bring up one of the tree telepaths downstairs or is she going to tell her what’s going on? Illyana looks away. It’s not her place…
Kitty reminds her she is her best friend, so it is. Illyana admits she wants this to be right for Kitty and her brother. And she doesn’t think it is? Kitty presses. Illyana begs her not to make her say it. She thinks it’s been years off and on between the two of them. Kitty wryly points out for some of those years he was dead and she was trapped in a bullet. Illyana looks down and continues that she just thinks, if they were meant to be together, it would have happened by now. She apologizes. She is a terrible friend and a worse person. And she’s had too much to drink, clearly. Can they just pretend this conversation never happened? Kitty agrees. They hug. Illyana tells her she loves her and is sorry. Kitty assures her it’s totally okay but looks aside worried.
The big day:
Inside a room in the Clarebyrne hotel Nightcrawler helps Colossus with his bow tie. Kurt remarks that, with luck one day, Peter will do the same for him. Peter wasn’t aware things between Kurt and Rachel had progressed so far. Kurt reveals he loves her and, once they are finished with this wedding, he is going to propose to her.
In another room, Stevie Hunter is doing Kitty’s make-up, watched by Kitty’s mother Theresa and Storm. Kitty jokes, having a United States Congresswoman do her make-up feels like overkill. Theresa swears she and her father just brought her home from hospital yesterday. She was thinking the same about asking her for ice cream, Ororo remarks. She was just a child. Kitty tells them to cut it out. They’re gonna make her cry and ruin Stevie’s hard work!
She states it just dawned on her she is here with the tree women who raised her. Three strong wonderful women. They hug as Ororo assures her they couldn’t be more proud of the strong wonderful woman she has become. Kitty sniffs and asks Stevie to get the mascara back out.
Outside the hotel, Iceman tells Colossus his chariot awaits and jokes this is his last chance to make a run for it. Not a chance, he is told. Dead man walking! Bobby shouts.
From a rooftop, Wolverine watches the car leaving and silently wishes Kitty and Peter Godspeed, hoping they’ll be good to each other.
In Westchester, Storm makes sure the weather is beautiful for the occasion.
Rogue notices Illyana is pensive and asks her about it. Illyana admits she said something to Kitty last night she shouldn’t have said and now feels terrible. Rogue can’t believe whatever she said was so terrible She trusts Illyana and her friendship with Kitty. She believes it’s already water under the bridge. Unconvinced, Illyana hopes so.
The timed-displaced teenage Cyclops and Marvel Girl muse that apparently their adult selves got married right here. This will never stop being weird, they admit.
Gambit tells Rogue she looks breathtaking. She accuses him of being a silver-tongued devil. He admits it. Doesn’t make what he said wrong, though.
Colossus introduces Rabbi Yarkin to best man Nightcrawler and maid of honor Illyana. The rabbi ask if Kurt has the rings. She always asks because one time she had to marry a couple with cocktail napkins around their fingers. Kurt teleports away and returns with the rings.
The wedding starts.
Kitty is led to the altar by her mother and Peter is speechless by her beauty. They look at each other as the rabbi begins her sermon, reminding everybody how their love has sustained them and returned them to each other’s arms, even when parted by circumstance (as when Kitty was stuck in the Bullet) or other people (when Peter fell for the alien healer Zsaji who sacrificed herself for him) or even death itself (When Peter injected himself with the cure to the Legacy virus that killed him). They are all humbled by such love.
The Rabbi asks Kitty to put the ring on Peter’s finger and say her vow, which she does. Peter is then supposed to do the same but, when he tries to place the ring on Kitty’s finger, she phases as a reflex. They all look shocked, including Kitty. She babbles an apology but she doesn’t think she can do this. Then she phases into the ground.
Peter picks up the bridal veil she left behind. He asks Kurt if he could not be here, please. Kurt teleports him away.
Did what he think happened just happen? a disturbed Gambit asks Rogue.
Later, the others are at the would-be reception. The cake remains uncut. Ink admits to Jubilee he feels a little bad eating the food and drinking the booze under these circumstances. Better than it go to waste Jubilee points out The two Jeans and Rachel sense the pain Kitty and Peter are in and wonder why they are doing this to each other. Rogue asks Illyana how she is holding up. Illyana darkly admits that this is her fault.
Later, Peter finds Kitty sitting on a bluff overlooking Breakstone Lake. She asks how he knew where she would be. He knows her, he replies simply. She apologizes. She couldn’t control her phasing. He understands. But, after that she said she couldn’t marry him. She knows, Kitty replies. He asks if she knows why. That’s what she’s been trying to figure out. She asked him to marry her. She wanted him to marry her. She wanted to marry him. But listening to Rabbi Yarkin, listening to all the things they’ve faced, everything that’s happened… Marriage is hard. Hard enough without all this… stuff. It’s just much history! A lot of it good, yeah. But some of it bad. And all of it messy. Not the foundation to build a marriage on.
Love is that foundation, he replies. Does she not love him? With all her soul, Kitty replies. Peter doesn’t understand. Neither does she. All she knows at the moment is she can’t do this. Not now. Maybe not ever. So where does that leave them? he asks.
Back at the reception, Remy is still flabbergasted. Kurt agrees it’s heartbreaking, but Ororo surprisingly points out it may be fortunate. She explains if things aren’t meant to work out between Kitty and Peter, better they realize it tonight than years from now. Marriage is hard. It requires more than love. It requires a need… a hunger. A feeling you’d not go on living than spend another day apart.
Her words make Remy think and he finds himself agreeing. He’d rather not go on living than spend another day apart. He gets up and walks toward Rogue, who is standing at the bar with Illyana. Is he okay? Rogue asks. That all depends, he replies and gets down on his knees in front of her. This is crazy! she stammers. Has she met him? he smirks. But what’s not crazy is they got all of their friends here, someone to marry them and a wedding canopy right outside.
Kitty and Peter join them and agree. They shouldn’t let this evening go to waste. Rogue smiles. She can’t believe he is doing this, but she couldn’t be happier for it. She says ‘yes’!
And so a little later, they stand in front of the rabbi who admits this is one of the more unconventional weddings she’s participated in. They said they’ve got vows they’d like to exchange. For him not so much a vow, Remy replies, his promises have never been worth much – as an affirmation. He tells Rogue he loves her with every piece of himself. He hasn’t always been a good man, but they’ve been through hell and it’s changed him. She’s changed him. She sees in him the man he hopes to be and that’s his vow to her: to always be worthy of that love and respect.
She replies they’ve been through so much. They’ve faced challenges a lot of other couples don’t have to face. But they always keep finding ways back to each other, so that’s what she promises to him. That she’ll always find her way back to him.
At these words, Kitty and Peter carefully look at each other.
With that, the rabbi marries Gambit and Rogue and the two kiss.
