As far as could be determined, Abigail Brown was the first human to be converted into an Animalian. As such, she was also the first minor to be given a double-dose and the first to find her bond-mate. Since that day nearly 8 years ago, Abby and Samson have been in a strong, stable relationship. Considering that double-dosed Animalians are considered legal adults, they could have been married a long time ago. However, her parents were adamant that Abby finish college first before an official wedding.
Over the next 8 years, things changed a lot for Abby and her friends. One by one, they became Animalians as well. First Sarah when she bumped into her recently double-dosed former-pet husky Mary Alice. Then Jessica decided to become a rabbit, though chose to grow up the natural way. Sophie remained human for years until the Dinotopian strain was accidentally invented which allowed her to become a pterodactyl. Abby’s friends found their own bond-mates in Travis, Roger, and Roland. Even their former pets, Malice and JC (converted into a microraptor) found their own bond-mates in Simon and Pauline (also converted into a microraptor).
The six couples had been waiting patiently for years before they could finally get married. For JC and Pauline, it was a shorter wait as they were only uplifted and converted after Sophie and Roland. Though not all of them were college graduates by now. Sophie was planning on going to law school next year while Roland was still short a few credits. But under the circumstances, their parents decided to allow them to get married as well. And while the official anniversary of Animalia was mostly booked solid, the summer solstice was open enough for them to have one big mass wedding.
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Considering the original cast of Animalia Ambassadoria are most likely the most famous celebrities in Animalia, their mass wedding was a lot more involved. The wedding was at City Hall, which would have room for many guests. Pause for a Bite was doing the catering and providing the varied Animalian diets. There was a huge multitiered wedding cake, a dozen tiers with a figurine set of each couple on every second tier. JC and Pauline were on the lowest tier as they were the last to become a couple with the couples moving further back until Abby and Samson were on the top. Such a big cake was necessary considering how many guests were there.
This wedding may not quite be the ‘marriage of the millennium’, it’ll probably be the biggest one this year. In addition to the couples’ living family members, there were many, many friends who were invited. A lot of them were classmates from WSA, along with a few that they met in college. There were also some family friends that included the Greens and the Ramoses. There were also the Whites. Abby had offered Marcy the chance to be part of this wedding, but she and Chilly were content to wait for another day. Polly had certainly grown a lot since Abby had last seen her. Double-dosing had really brought out more potential than anyone expected her to have. There were also the horse herd that used to live on Brown Farm before they were uplifted and their mates. The Shikamatsus were there, mostly in connection with Codey and Michiko. Hunni Bunni, Shyra, Eliza, Beth, the current members of Animalia Ambassadoria, the Great Hall was probably close to maximum capacity. Fortunately, the reception would be at the much more open-spaced Brown Farm.
Eventually, everyone was able to get seated at the bridal march started. The brides being escorted up the aisle by their fathers made for some interesting sights. Abby and Martin were the most relatively normal, considering they were both horse Animalians. Thomas escorted both Sarah and Mary Alice. Malice would have preferred a more open wedding dress, especially in the heat, but the one she was wearing was sensible enough. Mr. Mariana stood out a lot from the other girls’ father by being human. At least Jessica wasn’t taller than him and could still fit into her mother’s wedding dress after it had been altered. Remington absolutely dwarfed his daughter since he was a Mamenchisaurus. He would have escorted Pauline as well, but she preferred to be escorted by the father of the family she originally belonged to. It was a little awkward for him, but he soon had Pauline at the altar with the others.
Mayor Clara, of course, was performing the ceremony. She looked at the assembled crowd and said, "Well, I'll be honest with all of you. I haven't had a lot of experience with group weddings of this size, but I'm sure I'll be getting plenty this summer." There was some shared laughter from the audience. "So I'll keep this brief and have you out of the heat before this drags too long," said Clara.
She cleared her throat and said, "Good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen. We are here to honor the love of Abby and Samson, Sarah and Travis, Mary Alice and Simon, Jessica and Roger, Sophie and Roland, and JC and Pauline. The twelve of them have been important building blocks in forming the foundation of Animalia. Some of them added to Animalia later than others, but that does not make them any less important here. They've demonstrated that friendship, cooperation, and love can be formed between humans and Animalians, regardless of which species they were first. They've been united in heart for years, but now they shall be united in legal matrimony. And I can see their future is still as bright as the one they've started making all those years ago."
The six couples held each other close, looking into each other's eyes. "Now does anyone challenge or question the right of these two to marry?" asked Mayor Clara, looking around. There wasn't any signs of objection. If anything, anyone would glare down whoever tried to make the small discourse. "Then Samson, Travis, Simon, Roger, Roland, and JC, do you take your brides as your wives, in legal matrimony, in any condition for the rest of your life?"
"I do," said the men.
"And Abigail, Sarah, Mary Alice, Jessica, Sophie, and Pauline, do you take your grooms as your husbands, in legal matrimony, in any condition for the rest of your life?" asked Mayor Clara.
"I do," said the women.
"Then, by the powers invested in my by the state of Nevada and the City of Animalia, I declare you to be legally joined in marriage," Mayor Clara spoke, "you may kiss your bride."
Most of the kissing was done as smoothly as possible with their snouts and muzzles. Sophie and Roland had the most trouble with their beaks, but it was close enough. The crowd applauded loudly for the couples.
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The reception at the Brown Farm had more elbow room, though there were a lot of fans that were rented for the occasion to keep the guests cool. There was plenty of time for the newlyweds to catch up with friends and family. For instance, Sophie and Roland were busy talking with the Greens and Whites.
Josephine went over to her daughter and said, "So, Abby, was your wedding everything you wanted?"
"It was different from what I imagined 8 years ago," said Abby, "There was a lot more."
"And yet not enough," said Josephine, putting her hand on her swollen belly.
"Don't worry, Mom," said Abby, "It's not like they would have remembered the wedding anyways. They probably would have made a fuss."
"Perhaps, I'm just so thrilled you're finally married..." Josephine found herself crying quite a bit.
"Are you really that happy or is it the pregnancy hormones?" asked Abby.
"Both, really," said Josephine, wiping her eyes, "You'll understand when it's your turn."
"We're going to take our time about it," said Samson, "After all, we need to give your foal some room to grow."
"Yes, you should take your time," said Josephine, "All these people are here to see you two. So don't think about sneaking off to go ride the stump."
Abby choked a bit on her drink before asking, "What? You know about that?"
"Oh please. Did you really think you can keep something like that from your own mother?" asked Josephine, "It's not that I disapprove as it's a secluded spot, but you're not going there until the reception's over."
"Yes, Mom," said Abby, a little embarrassed.
Then Josephine turned to Samson and said, "And you need to take good care of your wife, understand?"
"I've been taking care of her for almost 8 years," said Samson, "The only thing that's changed are these." He held up Abby's hand with his to show the rings they now wore, which were noticeably bigger than human rings.
"There's more to marriage than just wearing rings," said Josephine.
"Relax, Mom, we've been partners for a long time," said Abby, hugging her husband, "We can handle it."