Mid-June became very hectic when Blueberry and Meryl gave birth in Wisconsin, but it was a sort of hectic activity that was accepted by Nate Bowman and just about everyone associated with the Bowman family. For the birth of Myron and Calvin Bowman then created the window for Nate to have the wedding with Shuixing that he'd been looking forward to since converting to become a Domestic Water Buffalo bull Animalian for Shuixing. Prior to that point, Blueberry and Meryl's pregnancies were such that long range travel, like flying, was discouraged for health reasons and thus Nate couldn't have his whole family there for the wedding. For he loved Shuixing and her sisters were charming in their own ways, but he'd wanted both families to be able to be together for the wedding. This meant that they would have to wait until Blueberry and Meryl could travel.
Now that they had given birth, things were safe to move forward with the wedding plans and assuring that the whole family would be there for Nate and Shuixing, and this included some extended members of the family in Olly's sister Nellie and her bond-mate Reggie. They arrived in Wisconsin a day or two after Meryl and Blueberry were released with their respective offspring. There was a bit of a stare-down between Meryl and Nellie, with Nellie being the more muscular of the two female Mule Animalians, but one look to her from Reggie lead to a more friendly hug and Nellie practically fawning over Myron. That then led into the next set of preparations for the trip to Heiya Island for the wedding.
"So, there's going to be two ceremonies?" Nellie asked curiously, "the two of you couldn't just settle on one?"
"Well we could... but between my growing up in rather Christian traditions and Shuixing having traditions influenced more by Chinese culture and traditions, it would be hard to really intermix the two," Nate answered, "it's not that they're incapable of providing the same message, but the specifics in how each set operates is different enough that they can't be made into one ceremony. So, we agreed to work out two ceremonies. One with our family's minister, who has agreed to come along and provide the service and then one those that will be running the ceremony that follow's Shuixing's traditions. The exact order hasn't been set yet... but that can be done once we arrive at Heiya Island."
"And they're doing IAC events there?" Reggie asked.
"Many of the Martial Arts competitions there, yes," Nate nodded, "and you guys can see some of that while Shuixing and I then go over the last bits of paperwork... which from what Shuixing told me when I called to tell her about mom and Aunt Meryl giving birth was rather extensive on the Chinese side."
"And the departure time?" Nellie wondered.
"Early," Ulysses commented, "everyone is to rendezvous here tomorrow morning at eight AM, and then the drive to the airport in Madison, where the Animalia Air flight will then take off from. Given good traffic, we might even be a bit early for a ten thirty AM flight, but it would be better to be early than running late. Given the distance and time zones, we'd then land there around one thirty to two thirty PM at their local time... or eleven thirty PM to twelve thirty AM our time."
There were a few groans at the whole prospect of jet lag setting in. Though dealing with other issues soon set in as well.
"Particularly as we'll need to keep track of a fair number of things to make sure that Myron and Calvin aren't bothered by too much light or noise," Blueberry added, "and that everyone gets their fast acting Covid test, even if you've been vaccinated."
"Yeah... I've seen some stuff that they're having issues over the Olympics in Tokyo over Covid surging there too," Reggie commented, "I would have thought that Japan would have had things more... under control that what is being reported."
"Just goes to show how some problems seem to stick around," Ulysses commented, "but Heiya Island hasn't had many incidents and they've also stayed on top of things to keep it from spreading. So things are safe there."
Nate nodded and was relived at that.
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
The next morning was fast paced and hectic, as people and Animalians gathered at the Bowman farm to then head out on the road to the airport. One of the neighbors agreed to handle some of the day to day work on the farm until most of the party returned, which Ulysses thanked them for. Nate rode up front with his father while Blueberry was in the backseat of the cab with Calvin in a specialized baby carrier with the shade pulled over it. The rest of the herd divided themselves up with their own rides or vehicles, with Olly and Meryl driving Reggie and Nellie. It made for a pleasant ride that went like a sort of parade as they left the Bowman farm and headed out toward Madison, Wisconsin.
Everyone made it safely to the airport, and here the early departure ultimately made sense. For it took time to go through baggage checks, other safety checks, checking passports, and other related parts of international flights that that would take time. Then came the assorted Covid checks, and the tests still tickled, which led to a little bit of difficulty with Calvin and Myron, as the infants didn't want something shoved up their noses, but things were managed through with Blueberry and Meryl stroking the cheeks of their respective child and that kept them calm enough for the tests to be done, and thankfully everyone turned out negative. From there it was then a walk to the gate and waiting for their plane to board, and this was thankfully on time. Unsure of the exact time at Heiya Island, given all the time zones between Wisconsin and the island, Nate only sent a text to Shuixing with an update that everyone was on the move and the plane was on schedule.
From there, they waited until it was time to board the plane. There, Nate ended up in a seat next to his family's minister while on the other side of the aisle, Blueberry and Ulysses sat with Calvin's mobile cradle secured in the seat between them. Meryl and Nellie were a row forward with Myron while Reggie and Ollie were in front of Nate and the minister. The other members of the herd were grouped in other parts of the plane. Though as Nate glanced to the minister, he noted some looks of curiosity about the man.
"Trouble, Reverend?" Nate asked.
"No, Nate, no..." the minister answered, "It's just that I grew up the upper peninsula of Michigan, went to school in Wisconsin and settled down in the town near your father's farm when their minister died. Since then, the most I've done to leave... has been one or two vacations to go fishing on Lake Superior or Lake Michigan, depending on where my buddy wants to go. I've never been outside the US before."
"I'm sure you'll be fine," Nate answered, "the local time may seem different, as we're going west and so on. So there may be some jetlag when we get to Heiya Island, but things will be fine and we'll have a day or to get over that before the ceremonies. And the people there have been friendly... or at least they've been friendly to me. Right now there might be some diplomatic issues between China and Japan over some old coins... but that won't affect you and the ceremonies. At least I hope it doesn't."
Raising an eyebrow at the tone of voice Nate had at the end of the sentence the minister looked to him with some concern, "are you having doubts or second thoughts?"
"About marrying Shuixing?" Nate asked back, "no... She’s wonderful and her sisters have been accepting of me. How well they tolerate some of Meryl's stubbornness may be different... but I otherwise have no doubts about the marriage. I'm lucky to have met Shuixing and win her heart. The thing that will be the paperwork that comes with it. Shuixing has told me the papers the Chinese government had her fill out was frustrating beyond belief and I don't want to screw anything up that would cause an incident."
The minister gave a warm smile and then patted Nate's shoulder gently. Though, given the layers of muscle that he felt in doing so, the minister also figured that he probably could have hit Nate harder and the Water Buffalo Animalian wouldn't have truly felt it.
"The affairs of man and his political ambitions are always the same, regardless of the culture," the minister assured him, "but they ultimately have no true control over love. So... let them have their fun with papers, but they'll rot in time. Your love will last forever. Thus, give onto Caesar that which is Caesar's. Give onto Shuixing that which is Shuixing's."
Nate laughed a bit, "I don't believe that's how the quote goes THAT way... but thanks."
"Anytime," the minister smiled back.
There was a bit of a lurch as the plane pulled away from the gate and the minister looked about the cabin for a few moments.
"So how goes the preparations for the ceremony?" Nate asked, "Or is that a trade secret?"
"I can share a few things," the minister answered, "Given that most of those that will be there aren't Christian and have no access to the hymnals we would have at a wedding service... it will be a rather stripped down with no hymns. I have a recording of the traditional wedding march, but that would be about it. The rest of it would be some base messaging that would normally be part of the wedding ceremony."
Nate nodded as a lot of that made sense.
"The most amusing thing has been the communications with the Buddhist leaders on Heiya Island, and I must thank you and your fiancé for getting the email address for them," the minister then continued, "and while... I cannot change my faith, I must say that I am intrigued by the emails I've shared with them. In some ways, I'm looking forward to also learning some things from them in the course of the two ceremonies. It'd hopefully make for an interesting cultural exchange."
"That it would," Nate agreed.
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
The flight was ultimately a long one as the total distance was over 7,000 miles and that the plane had to make some stops along the way, mostly for fuel, which added to the time to fly. They thus went from Madison, Wisconsin to Honolulu, Hawaii before needing to land and refuel and with about the distance to Heiya, Island cut in half. This gave them some time to disembark in the airport for a little while as they waited for the plane to refuel, and gave the passengers the ability to stretch their legs and handle other business. Some of this activity went over the heads of Myron and Calvin, who largely slept most of the way. There were some points when they had woken up and called for food or a diaper change, the plane did have space for that and to a degree, it also drew more voices of "congratulations" to Meryl and Blueberry.
But it was still a long flight, and even with food and beverages served on the flight, by the time it touched down at Heiya Island, everyone was a bit tired. The one thing that made Nate smile as he came out of the arrival area and going through the second set of rapid Covid tests was the beautiful Water Buffalo Animalian he'd fallen in love with.
"You look tired," Shuixing stated rather calmly as they came together for a brief hug , noticing the fact that Nate was blinking a lot and trying to keep his eyes open.
"It was a long flight and a long day," Nate said back, "but worth it to see you... and to have my half of the wedding party here."
Shuixing nuzzled her muzzle to Nate's, "we'll worry about the wedding once everyone has adjusted a bit better to the changes in time zones. Tomorrow... I'll help you through all the paperwork you'll need to go through. Tuxing helped me with my half... and probably mostly by making sure I didn't smash the table in frustration."
Nate gave a small smile as Shuixing also turned to note Blueberry and Meryl coming with the specialized cradles for Calvin and Myron. The shades on them were drawn for the moment, which meant she could look in, though she could hear a few soft "coos" coming from within them, which brought a smile to Blueberry and Meryl that balanced out the fact that they looked tired to. Ulysses and Ollie followed along behind with the rest of the bags and other things that were needed. The minister also came along behind them rolling his suitcase along the floor of the terminal.
"You will have to forgive me... as while I would like to meet and talk with your monks... or priests to set the schedule for the ceremonies, I'm afraid that I am a bit tired right now after being in the air for more than fourteen hours... I might forget anything that might be said."
"I would imagine that everyone is tired," Shuixing answered, "let me escort you to the hotel. There are some other guests that are here in connection with the IAC, but they do have rooms."
"Thank you," Ulysses said to her.
Shuixing nodded and then added, "and congratulations to you two and to Ollie and Meryl. Hopefully the little ones made it through the flight alright?"
"They did... though we could use a babysitter for a little while," Blueberry added, "Calvin slept most of the way on the flight... and he shouldn't be hungry now. Though if he does... I did fill some bottles for him... they..."
"Are in the bag, dear," Ulysses shook one of the bags he was carrying with a yawn.
"And I can help..." Shuixing promised.
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
"What is this?" came Muxing's voice a few hours later as she slithered into the living room area of the joint home that had been built for the Five Elements on Heiya Island to find Shuixing sitting on the couch and rocking one baby carrier with one foot while cradling an infant Animalian that had no bovine features while holding a bottle for it to drink from.
"Easy," Shuixing said back, "Nate and his family arrived earlier this afternoon and were pretty much beat from a long flight. I helped them to the hotel and let them get checked in."
"And these are the Bowman family's newest arrivals?" Tuxing asked as she and the others came in and getting a better look at Myron, who paid no attention to those looking at him and focused on the bottle in front of him.
"Yes," Shuixing nodded, "in the carrier I'm rocking is Ulysses and Blueberry's son, Calvin, and this is Meryl and Ollie's son Myron."
"Myron?" Huoxing wondered as she tentatively ran a finger along Myron's ear.
"Nate said his aunt liked it from a book she'd been reading," Shuixing answered, "I'll only be looking after them for a little while. Nate will escort Blueberry and Meryl here around the time that we have dinner. Until then, it's best to watch and keep them comfortable."
"And you can get practice in for being a mom," Huoxing joked to Shuixing, "as surely you and Nate will be making us into Aunts as soon as you can."
"We hadn't discussed anything going that far," Shuixing whispered back as Myron finally finished his bottle. Shuixing saw to burping him and then laying him in his carrier beside Calvin's, "I'd prefer we wait a bit... let Nate get his cherry orchard going and seeing what other crops he'd want to grow on the land that you all helped me buy for Nate as a wedding present... get all that established and then go from there..."
"Hey, it's all good," Huoxing gave a smile, "if they're cherries that are used for cooking... they'll be sweet and good. We can all share, and I'm sure I could get help with picking them or even managing the bees for pollination."
The others nodded. Eventually Jinxing sat down on the other side of Shuixing, "so... the days are getting closer... are you ready?"
"Ready and happy," Shuixing smiled back, "I have you as family... Nate as my mate, and you all get along very well. I'm sure things will be fine. Though, just remember to be patient with regard to Meryl. She can hear well enough now that she's converted... but it's probable that other elements of her personality remain the same."
The others nodded, remembering what Shuixing had shared with them with regard to the other members of Nate's family as they began planning things out for the wedding on their end. The most important part was for Shuixing's happiness with Nate, but her sisters also knew that they and their friends on Heiya Island were only half of the full equation. Nate had other family that would want to be there for the wedding.
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Recovery from the long flight made for a more alert and comfortable and calm meeting between the Bowman family minister and the Buddhist leaders on Heiya Island. The minister had required some directions from the hotel's desk clerk, but he made it and was pleased to shake hands with people that would be conducting the other half of the ceremonies for Nate and Shuixing's wedding.
"I must say, that things look rather ornate around your monastery here," the minister said slowly, unsure if "monastery" was the right word to use, "and the flowers look quite nice."
"We do tend to the gardens," one of the Human monks said calmly while the other two were Animalians, "but a lot of this is also to provide for some showing of peace. Much of the rest was actually put together by the Japanese designers for many of the buildings here. It is nice, but with a slightly different style than what we are used to... and from your emails, likely very different from what you are used to."
The minister nodded, glad that men he was talking with were as well versed in English as they were, "my church isn't anywhere near as ornate as this... Though, most of the real ornate ones are all older and many of them were Catholic ones built in the Middle Ages to the Reformation period in Europe. So there are churches even in my own faith that are more ornate than my own. But... this is more a bit of a learning exercise for me and an opportunity to meet new people."
"Along with setting the schedule for the ceremonies," one of the Animalian monks spoke.
"Well... yes," the minister answered, "I'm sure by law... things would only need to be done once, but I'm not sure how the Christian traditions from Wisconsin would be able to combine with your traditions here without becoming bad for both. This way, we may both learn from each other."
"Of course," the Human monk replied.
They entered in the building, with the minister double checking his shoes to make sure he wasn't tracking any mud into the building. He noted the architecture and statues that were there, though he noted that there was no sign of any real electronics.
"You must forgive me... but given that much of our communications have been by email..." the minister wondered.
"We have a friend who runs a lot of the tourism for Heiya Island," the Human monk answered, "much of your questions go through her and we share them in person. And that office will actually carry out the ceremonies from "our" perspective."
"I see," the minister said slowly, "so... am I at the wrong place?"
"No, we can share what we agree with with regard to the scheduling," the Animalian monk assured the minister, "and otherwise engage in the exchange of ideas and philosophies. Letting us learn from each other."
"Okay..." the minister replied politely, as that was part of his own mission in learning more about the world and places he'd never been to before. "With the wedding the biggest thing would be the order of the ceremonies. I would think the best thing for me would be to ask what you would prefer. As I would only be a guest here. I wouldn't want to impose anything on you."
"That is quite generous," the other Animalian monk spoke, "though I must say that we have no set preference with regard to the order. If young Mr. Bowman is in love with Ms. Shuixing, that is the most important thing."
The minister nodded in full agreement on that. Wedding ceremonies made the union "official," but to him, love was what made them possible and made marriages last. Though he was disappointed in not getting a real answer on the order that they would have wanted for the ceremonies, and it made things sound like they were going in circles over some of these issues. He thought over it for a moment and then made an offer.
"Well, I could go first... give a brief ceremony and with a very brief explanation on how I would normally perform a marriage service," the minister said slowly, "and from there, the local ceremony can go on. A "save the best for last" sort of thing, and could let me see and learn on how you... or your local administrators would perform the wedding."
"That would be most acceptable," the Human monk nodded.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
While his minister was learning from the monks he'd been communicating with through email, Nate was seated at the main dining table in the Five Elements' home and going through the assorted forms that Shuixing had had to fill out earlier. To some extent, he could see where the frustration came from. Particularly with the forms the Chinese government provided and demanded that anyone fill out.
"Some things make sense," Nate said softly to Shuixing who was there to guide him through the forms, "but some do not. For didn't you say that you and your sisters were originally born in Taiwan?"
"Yes... but that didn't change that the cult that nabbed us managed to get us out to their home base," Shuixing answered, "when Ping was able to get the help of Interpol to catch that cult, the People's Republic claimed us as citizens and would not take anything else for a reason, largely citing that they claimed Taiwan as a "wayward province," and not as an independent government."
"Whole Cold War stuff," Nate sighed, "I can see why you wanted to drop kick the guys that created these forms."
Nate then went along with the paperwork and wrote as carefully as he could and filling things in as Shuixing explained and in a way had demonstrated with what she had already written in. As he went along he eventually paused and looked over to her.
"But regardless on the frustration... there is one thing that will make it worth it," Nate said to her.
"Oh?" Shuixing wondered.
"You," Nate answered, "You could have very easily shooed me away as some dorky kid that's liked martial arts movies. Being a friend and then teaching me some things... that's made me happy in so many ways, and I can only hope to prove myself worthy of being your husband and mate. And in some ways... I'd do anything just to see you smile."
Shuixing could only smile at that, knowing that things were moving along well toward their marriage, and family and family friends would all be there...