The Clocks

Once everyone had arrived and been seated, with Jason and the twins not only being on opposite sides of the table but at opposite ends, there was general confusion. Apparently Mimi had simply indicated that it was important that they get together immediately. All the parents present were under the assumption that someone else had summoned them. As soon as it became clear that nobody had any idea what was going on, Robert stood and cleared his throat. "Does anyone know why we're here?"

Sara and Paolo stood as one. Paolo began, "I guess that means it's our turn. We found something today that we think might be useful." His enormous smile gave lie to his statement. Sara has a better speaking voice than I do. She's the best choice to read you the pertinent passages."

Sara began, "Paolo found this book in the library at the Little Cathedral today. The title is: 'Marriage Regulations Permissable Exceptions Allowed Under Church Law'."

From the instant she finished reading the title, there was no sound in the room, not even that of breathing.

Sara lifted the book. "I'll read the important part...."

When she finished nobody said a word. There really weren't any necessary. The silence was interrupted by the sound of Yoko's and Hibiki's chairs hitting the wall behind them, followed by the sound of their footsteps as they ran across the top of the table and leapt upon Jason. Were it not for both Mimi and Ailin standing behind him, he surely would have been knocked backwards onto the floor. As it was, the chair barely quivered as the girls began to cover his face with kisses.

For the next few minutes handkerchiefs were much in evidence. Even Mimi was seen to surreptitiously dab at the corners of her eyes.

That was when Akane took charge. "Miranda you've researched physicians. Choose which two you think will best suit, and I'll make sure that Jason is free to accompany the twins.

"Also, while it might not be necessary, from what I've seen, the Duchess doesn't like to be blindsided by anything. You're also the best one to inform her of what we'll be doing. I suspect that nobody's done anything like this in decades, if not longer.

"I'll deal with getting started with the archbishop. I suspect that Lucina Comfort would be our best choice. She's a twin and has two sets of twins herself. Archbishop Cumberland is a devout batchelor. He might not be able to understand the situation as clearly."

The twins had settled down by then, at least somewhat. Each was sitting on one of Jason's knees. Every so often one would lean forward and kiss him on the cheek, then lay her head back down on his shoulder. His expression was mixed embarrassment, relief, and wonder.

Akane wasn't quite finished, and she looked directly toward the trio. "Girls. Wake up! I need your attention, NOW."

Yoko and Hibiki slowly lifted their heads and turned them toward Akane. Reason returned to their eyes, and they nodded in unison.

"I'm very sorry, but we won't be able to throw you the kind of wedding you all deserve. You three are so close that I'd love to be able to show the world how wonderful you all are. However, as you are so young, and, as I said, nothing like this has happened for a very long time, any kind of public ceremony would degenerate into a circus, so a reception is out of the question.

"What we will need to do is keep your marriage secret for as long as possible, hopefully for at least six months, and preferably for a year. That way, when people do find out, we'll be able to prove that you are not only compatible but also responsible. The best way to show that will be for you to continue to do well in school and to not get pregnant. I trust you understand me?"

Both girls nodded very seriously. Jason likewise indicated that he understood the gravity of the situation by nodding along with them and not saying a single word.

"I expect that it will work best if you alternate having dinner at your parent's and in-law's homes. Let me assure you that I'll enjoy every minute of it. I don't get to see you nearly as much as I'd like. Hopefully Blair won't mind either."

Blair snorted, hiding her not so ladylike laugh.

"I didn't think so. Now for the part you might find most difficult. You'll still need to spend almost all of your nights in your separate homes."

Seeing their shocked looks, she hastened to continue, "I don't mean that you won't be able to have time alone together. That's why you need to get married in the first place. We'll make sure that you have as much private time as you need so you don't get sick again.

"I'm quite sure that you'll find it far superior to sneaking kisses while one of you watches for anyone who might come by."

She raised an eyebrow. "Surely you didn't really believe that neither Blair nor I noticed, did you?"

The girls blushed, then buried their faces in Jason's shoulders to hide their embarrassment.

"Manda, if you please, arrange for the physicians to believe that they're writing their letters for the school to convince the headmaster that they need to be near each other all day. If they approach things from that point of view, the wording will probably still work for the archbishop. If for some odd reason they check on it later, they'll find out that the seating arrangement is exactly what they expected, and that should satisfy their curiosity."

A mischievous sparkle appeared in her eyes. "We won't even have to lie to anyone that way. Sorry."

Miranda drawled, "I suppose that it doesn't hurt to tell the truth, at least some of the time."

For some reason, while everyone else giggled or snickered, Mimi, Ailin, and Sven laughed loud and long, after which they apologized profusely for disturbing the meeting.

Akane wrapped things up. "Things should be anything but onerous for you. You'll walk to school together as always, have lunch together, plus, instead of once or twice weekly, you'll have dinner together every day. In addition, you won't have to deal with stressing out when you're, ah, spending quality time together.

"Once Jason turns 16, you can decide which house you'll live in, just like any other newlyweds."

Everyone nodded. It sounded like a good plan.

Suddenly Blair exclaimed, "Oh my! That should work!"

Everyone's attention turned to her. "Indeed. I think it will. Let's do this. Once you start officially living together, we can have a wedding reception for you. We'll just tell everyone that you wanted the wedding itself to be completely private. Here in The City it's not all that uncommon. That way we can at least celebrate with you, even if it is a bit belated. What do you think?"

Miranda nodded.

Akane murmured, "A wonderful idea Blair."

The twins lifted their heads and smiled their thanks at their mother. They'd been more than willing to forgo the reception, and even an announcement of their marriage, but the thought that they could have a reception eventually made them feel better. It would be proof to the community as a whole that they and Jason belonged together.

At that point Sara raised her hand, just as if she were still in school. "Ah, excuse me Mrs. Fukui. I think that your plan needs a slight modification."

"Oh? And why is that?"

"Perhaps you don't know, but as Librarian In Charge of both cathedral's libraries and archives, I see Archbishop Comfort almost every day. I think it would be easier, and more natural, for me to speak to her."

Akane almost bonked her head with her hand, but at the last instant stopped herself. There were too many people here. "Yes my dear, you're absolutely correct. And speaking of telling people things, I think that we should absolutely not tell any of the younger children. We'll have to arrange for them to be away from home whenever the newlyweds need time alone together. Agreed?"

Nods all around at that.

"But we can't do that with all our staff. How can we be sure that nothing will leak there?"

Mimi spoke up, "Please do not concern yourselves with that Madame Fukui. Ailin and I will arrange that they will not speak of it, even accidentally."

Akane nodded. "My thanks Mimi."

Mimi sketched a bow in return.

Blair stood. "That just leaves letting Hiroshi and Sebastian know. Hiroshi will probably moan about "losing my little girls too," but I expect that knowing they'll still be living at home, at least for now, will soothe his feelings."

Akane added, "Indeed. Sebastian won't be nearly as vocal about it, but he'll probably be feeling some degree of parental separation anxiety as well, even if they choose to live with us when the time comes. Besides it's best if he becomes accustomed to it with Jason. When Kaho's turn to choose a partner arrives, things might not be so easy."

Miranda and Blair nodded. The others looked somewhat confused but forbore to ask any questions. They had enough to think about already.

The door to the kitchen opened, then Mimi and Ailin entered with two huge trays of tea and snacks. Those closest to Mimi heard her muttering to herself, "I must be getting old. I was sure that this was going to take at least an hour or two."

-----------------

Monday, June 12th in The Year 724 After the Founding

No one had expected smooth sailing, even though they knew that everything could be done completely legally and above board. Given that, they were astonished at how incredibly quickly everything was managed. It turned out that Hibiki's and Yoko's "Separation Sickness" problem was far from news to the physicians who evaluated them. They and their parents were shocked when they learned from the doctors that, rather than the "several hundred" that Jason had mentioned previously, there were almost 3,000 trios in The City. Of those, there were at least 400 who were just as restricted in their movements as they were. The doctors willingly wrote their letters certifying that there was a definite need for the three to be together as much of the day as possible or various unspecified, but awful, things would happen.

Then there was the archbishop. The problem of convincing her was solved easily, though in a totally unexpected manner. They'd managed to arrange for their appointment to take place only six days after the families had met. In itself that was nearly a miracle, given how busy an archbishop can be. Only Sara, the twins, and Jason were present, everyone having assumed that the evaluation would take at least two hours.

As their appointment had been scheduled for 4:30 in the afternoon, they'd planned to catch a late dinner at a nearby restaurant when it was over, but the reality was nothing at all like what they had imagined. The reason was made clear at 4:42 when their discussion was interrupted by a knock on the door followed by two sets of twins. Archbishop Comfort introduced them. The eldest, at 23 were her two boys. The girls were 19.

Once the introductions had been made Lucina said, "They're all yours," then sat back down in her chair and could be seen to be writing something while she waited for...whatever it was.

Her boys stood in the middle of the room, with their backs to Lucina. Then one girl stood to the side of each boy and motioned for Hibiki and Yoko to join them, with Jason standing in the middle so that they were all facing each other.

Then the eldest boy, Geori, said, "Hold hands," which they did, forming a loose oval.

All four of the elder twins closed their eyes, after which Hibiko, Yoko, and Jason felt a mild, tingling sting passing through their bodies.

Thirty seconds later the Archbishop's children dropped their hands, and three headed toward the door. Geori went to his mother, bent over and whispered in her ear, "I've never seen anything like it. It's a wonder that they can even walk when they're not near each other."

Then he exited and carefully closed the door behind him.

In the anticipatory silence Archbishop Comfort's chuckle seemed much louder than it was. "I guess I need to explain. My children haven't inherited my magical abilities, or, more correctly, each has only very minor strength in that area. However, when they are joined together, as you just saw, they can answer anything I've asked them about how someone else is feeling or their general physical condition.

"I'm sure you can see the utility. They can also tell if someone is lying or telling the truth. That alone is of immeasurable value to me. Now having heard their report, I know exactly what I need to do, which is to sign all of these."

Having so spoken, she signed, one after the other, four rather large documents.

"Sara has explained your plans to me. I was a bit concerned at first." She held up her hand in a reasurring gesture. "Not about your getting married, but about your plan for living arrangements. The law states that you must live in the home of your parents after you're married. You're planning on living separately for now, which didn't seem to be what was meant. However, the law does not explicitly say that you must live together. It only says that you cannot live alone without parental supervision. Since you have all lived with your parents your entire lives, and as your parents have proven to be more than adequate at raising you, I have chosen to not interpret the pertinent passages but rather to stick exactly to what they say. You will be living with your parents. That meets the requirements.

"Now, as for your marriage. Here." She held out a small document in each hand. Once the children had taken them she said, "Congratulations, almost. They're dated seven days from today, on the twins' birthday. As soon as you turn 15 you'll be married."

"...." They were all speechless.

Finally Sara managed, "But...doesn't the ceremony always require witnesses?"

Lucina lifted her head and smiled. "You saw me writing while my children were here, did you not? And did I not introduce them as being 23 years and 19 years of age? And does that not make them all adults? For that matter, you Sara are of legal age, and I certainly am.

"The law generally requires at least two witnesses for any marriage, though I think you may have missed some of the fine print in your little book. By the way, I'm having a full double-hand of copies made of it. I've also instructed Paolo to mount a search for the other three volumes."

She grinned widely. "I'm sure that with his voluminous free time he'll have no trouble fitting it into his schedule. That's hardly pertinent right now though. At any rate, for a wedding involving minors of your ages, four adult witnesses are required. We had six in the room, five besides myself, and I have so recorded it on each copy of your marriage certificate.

"To be more precise, the law says that the witnesses must be present at the creation of the documents, not that they must be present at any particular ceremony, probably because we deal with so many different kinds of ceremonies here, what with having people from all over the world getting married. Some of the ceremonies last for days. You'd hardly want to force witnesses to stand around that long, right?

"I wrote the marriage certificates while the witnesses were in the room, as specified in the law. In one week Paolo will have you get together and he will sign and date them. As I've already signed them, the stipulation that an archbishop must approve has already been met. After that you will keep one and Paolo will give the other to Sara to be filed.

"I trust that that will be satisfactory?"

The twins nodded, stunned and overwhelmed. They could hardly contain their excitement. Married, and in only seven days. It seemed like a dream. As for Jason, he stood still and beamed.

Sara walked over to the Archbishop, gestured at the large documents still on her desk, and asked, with an entirely straight face, "I presume that Your Grace wishes me to place these in her private files for the time being?"

"You presume correctly Mrs. Donetti. Please do so at your earliest convenience."

"It will be my pleasure Your Grace."

Sara bowed. The children bowed. Then Lucina blessed them and excused them from the room. One task was completed, a happy one for a change, but she still had work to do before she could go home and eat with her family. She'd best get to it.