Chapter Text
The 911 ring on Bruce's phone went off just after 8 am. It had been a rough night, and he'd only been asleep for about two hours, but with his training, he was awake instantly. He looked at the number.
"Harley, what's..."
"BRUCE! BRUCE! BRUCE! BRUUUUUUUUUUCE!!!!! I NEED YOUR YARD! TODAY!"
Sigh. "It's not for a body, is it?"
"IVY JUST...wait what?"
"What?"
"Whatever. Ok. So IVY JUST PROPOSED, AND I TOTALLY SAID YES!!"
Another sigh. Where to start. He was happy for them, but this was hardly an emergency, and he just wanted to sleep. "Congratulations to you both, Harley. I'm guessing you want the yard for the ceremony. Today though?"
"Yes! We don't want to wait another minute longer. And not only do you have the best yard in Jersey, but Ivy will make it even prettier. I know it's short notice, but PLEEEEEEEEEEEEASE!"
Bruce stifled a yawn. Last night's patrol was brutal. One of the inland gangs was making a play for control of the Gotham docks in an attempt to go international with their alien weapons trade, and things had gone bad quickly. Several civilians were killed, most of the gang escaped, and the family was a bit demoralized. Maybe a celebration would help.
"Well, Alfred did mention that the new groundskeeping company was not up to his standards, and Damian still thinks the topiary garden is his personal sword practicing area, so maybe we could use some assistance.” The idea was feeling better and better by the moment. “I'd be honored to host the wedding, Harley. You and Ivy just bring yourselves, and we'll take care of the rest. How does 6pm sound?"
"OH EM GEE!! YOU'RE THE BEST, BRUCIE!! I GOTTA GO TELL IVY!! THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU!!"
"You're very welcome, Harley." Now he just had to gather the family. He really hoped this would lighten the mood. He sent out a text and told everyone to meet in the kitchen in 10 minutes. Everyone seemed to perk up immediately at the idea of a celebration. An hour later, they had all cleaned up, had breakfast, and were working on their assigned tasks excitedly.
Dick called the local catering and rental companies. It wasn't a huge wedding compared to what the Manor had often hosted, and they did keep a few things there; but they still needed tables, chairs, tents for the reception, place settings, glassware, and such. And food. And a chuppah for the ceremony. Despite the short notice, he managed to secure all of the items they'd need. His natural charm and the Wayne name and money went far.
Stephanie took charge in assessing what they had at the Manor already, and then she enlisted Kate, Tim, and Cass in helping her get all of that ready. She coordinated with Dick and Alfred and was a huge part in keeping everything organized. Bruce mentally added “excellent organizational and administrative skills” to her list of abilities. He overheard Tim telling Cass at one point, “She’s really good at this. Just do what she says, or she will smack you with the clipboard. Not sure what it’s made of, but that thing hurts worse than getting punched by Superboy!”
Jason, Duke, and Damian assisted Alfred with the food. Jason and Duke worked on the main courses, while Alfred made the cake. He didn’t trust anyone else to even sift the flour. In the end, it was a gorgeous, gigantic, three-layer work of art. Damian, with his excellent knife skills and artistic eye, took care of the appetizers and charcuterie boards. He had just recently partnered with a local, vegan cheese maker who had been looking for capital to open a shop. Gotham Fromagerie had been born only a week ago, and they were already going to be put to the test. Damian called Logan, told him what was happening, and said, “just bring everything.”
Finding a rabbi who was available and willing to perform the service would be tricky, so Babs took that task. Information was her game, and she was a champion. Luckily, she found a rabbi who had just been arrested with a prostitute. He was a widower, there was nothing weird, no violence, and the woman was 28. Perfect. One call to her dad, and the charges against the rabbi were dropped in lieu of some “special community service” that he actually happily agreed to. (The woman agreed to help out at Dr. Thompkins’ clinic, and her charges were also dropped.) Harley and Ivy would get their semi-official Jewish wedding. Babs also called Dinah Lance, and they had a singer and band for the reception.
The brides got to the Manor around 2 and were immediately separated. Selina grabbed Ivy and whisked her off to help get her ready, while Barbara and Dinah took care of Harley. Selina had contacted a few local dress shops and found one that catered to Gotham’s elite, and who specialized in last-minute and non-traditional gowns. It wasn’t cheap to get them to come out, but Bruce had told her not to worry about the cost. Since Selina was quite familiar with the offerings at the upscale jewelers in Gotham, she knew exactly who to call to get the appropriate jewelry and accessories for her friends. The dressmaker even suggested a lingerie store, so Selina made the purchases from there her gifts to the two women.
The area around the Duck Pond where they held the service was quickly transformed. What would've taken a professional crew two days to set up, a few determined BatKids and their friends managed in a few hours. Having a few speedsters on the team certainly helped. It might not have been ready for a Gotham's Homes and Gardens spread, but it was quite beautiful. Harley cried when she saw it, and while she wouldn't admit it, Ivy did a little too.
As the guests began to arrive, Bruce realized it was probably the oddest mix the Manor had ever seen. A good portion of the Justice League was there, and Superman, Flash, and Green Arrow brought their families as well. Clark also brought Jimmy Olson along to be the official wedding photographer. His photos were so stunning, that he ended up with a 4-page spread in one of the biggest bridal magazines in the country. And then there were the Rogue’s Gallery attendees. Many of Batman’s older foes had reformed, like Harley and Ivy, and had become citizens just trying to live their lives. Riddler was running a new escape house and consulting with the GCPD, Clayface had started an after-school theater program for disadvantaged youths, Penguin had turned the Iceberg Lounge into a respectable and (mostly) legal establishment that employed several hundred people, and Condiment King had gotten married to a chef and opened a catering business. CK’s Catering had provided several ingredients for the appetizers, as well as much-needed glassware.
Many former and current Suicide Squad members were there including Rick Flag, Katana, Deadshot, Ratcatcher, and Bloodsport. Even Killer Croc and King Shark showed up, although they spent most of their time actually IN the Duck Pond arguing. Oddly enough, most of the “normal” people there were Ivy’s friends, though Bruce was unsure how she knew so many civilians. It ended up being just over 200 people in attendance. Impulse, Kid Flash, Red Arrow, both Superboys, and Lian Harper took care of ushering duties.
The wedding started with the Ketubah, or Marriage Contract, which needed to be signed by two Jewish witnesses. Harley freaked when Bruce suggested his cousin Kate and himself.
“WAIT, NO WAY! BA…BRUCE WAYNE IS JEWISH???”
“Well, I’m an Atheist, but the Kanes, my mother’s family, are Jewish. Even though she never practiced and married my Episcopalian father, that makes me, technically, Jewish.” The rabbi concurred.
After this, the groom would normally place the veil over the bride’s face, but since there was no groom, Harley turned to the rabbi.
“Rabbi Mannheim, is it ok if we veil each other since we ain’t got a groom? In fact, there’s several parts of the ceremony that we might need to…um…adapt. Is that ok?”
The rabbi smiled. “Of course, Miss Quinn. I’m of the Reformed tradition, so I’m fine with adapting for the times.” So the women veiled each other, while the rabbi explained to everyone the history behind the tradition. Then they got ready to move to the chuppah, the large, 4-sided canopy where the main parts of the ceremony would take place.
Titus and Haly were the Ring Barker and Flower Puppy. (Harley came up with those names.) Titus proudly walked down the aisle with the ring pillow on his back, while Haly carried a small basket of rose petals in her mouth. She only made it halfway down the aisle, before she decided to sit down, scratch behind her ears, and start eating the petals. A collective “Awwww!" came from the guests as they quickly snapped pics before Dick ran down and got her.
Since neither bride had parents there, Bruce and Selina escorted Ivy to the chuppah, while Ollie and Dinah escorted Harley. The four “parents” also stood with the brides. The rest of the ceremony was fairly standard for a Jewish wedding, even though it was somewhat modified as the veiling had been. At the end, both women smashed the glass, and everyone yelled “Mazel Tov!”
The newlyweds left the chuppah covering, but stayed at the pond for their private reflection, or Yichud, while everyone else moved up to the tented area for the reception.
“Ya know, Ivy, in olden times, the couple would actually consummate the wedding at this time.”
“Oh really?” Ivy asked with a smile.
An hour later, they joined their guests.
The reception area was right outside the house by Alfred’s gardens. The roses would normally be dormant at this time of year, but Ivy perked them up with a little coaxing. Alfred’s own variety, Pennyworth Blue, was made especially lovely and full.
Heaters were brought in, since January in Gotham is cold, but luckily it was a sunny day and a clear night. There had still been some snow on the grounds that morning, but Superman’s heat vision took care of that within a few minutes. Oswald Cobblepot had sent several servers from the Iceberg Lounge to assist with passing around the appetizers and serving the food. (He also sent enough prawns and caviar for a wedding triple the size.) Everyone complemented the food, many of them not even knowing that the BatKids had done most of it. Of course, Damian made sure to let everyone know about his contribution, and Gotham Fromagerie got several new clients.
Joker and Kiteman attempted to fly in on a tandem kite during the champagne toast to ruin things for their exes, but Jerry the Turkey and Alfred the Cat saved the day. To everyone’s amazement, including the Joker and Kiteman, the two animals jumped off the second-floor balcony onto Kiteman's back. While Jerry flapped his wings in the villains’ faces, Alfred the Cat chewed a few wires and took out the kite’s motor. The landing knocked out Kiteman without any real injuries, but the Joker got up quickly and started to pull out a weapon. Haly ran up and distracted him, while Jason swung a folding chair at his head from behind. As the Joker was lying half-conscious and whimpering on the ground, Jason leaned down and whispered, "Backhand, bitch." Commissioner Gordon and Renee Montoya took care of securing the two uninvited guests. Kiteman cried as they led him away, apologizing to Ivy and swearing major violence to Harley if she didn’t treat his girl right.
The rest of the night went smoothly, and everyone enjoyed themselves. Dinah’s band was amazing, and her incredibly beautiful singing brought everyone to tears more than once. A few others joined in so they could take a break with mixed, but enjoyable, results. Dick even picked up his guitar, and he and Selina convinced (threatened) Bruce to sing “I Can’t Help Falling in Love with You.” Pretty much everyone was stunned at his beautiful voice.
Around midnight, Alfred drove the newlyweds to one of the Wayne’s private jets at Gotham Airport. From there, the women were flown to the Four Seasons Resort in Maui, where they had the Honeymoon Suite for two weeks. Bruce had to pull several strings and give several promises, and a few threats, to get it at such a last minute, but it was worth it.
Bruce told Clark what had happened the previous night at the docks, and why he felt going all-out for something like this on such short notice was a good idea. Clark smiled at his friend. He knew Bruce felt a lot of pride that Harley and Ivy and so many of the former supervillains of Gotham were on the right path partly because of him. Very few people knew what a softie Bruce Wayne really was, and it was times like this that Clark was truly proud to call this man his best friend. Knowing he’d never ask, Clark offered to watch over Gotham for the night to give the Bats a needed break. Jon and Conner, who of course overheard this, came over and offered their services as well. Surprisingly, Bruce agreed.
After all the guests had left, the family and a few close friends gathered in the media room. They pushed the assorted couches together, and everyone piled on. Even Bruce and Selina joined them. There were movies playing, but those were mostly ignored. The family was more interested in discussing the events of the day and sharing pictures. Jason replayed several people’s videos of him going WWE on the Joker to the point where Cass finally took the remote from his hands.
While the previous night’s debacle wasn’t completely forgotten, Bruce could tell that it had definitely gotten pushed far to the back of everyone’s minds. His family was happy, he was happy, and his city was being cared for. He helped give two women not only a second chance at life, but at love. For Bruce Wayne, these were the moments that made it all worthwhile.