Chapter 10- A Wedding and a Homecoming

A/N: I am really really sorry that I have not updated this story in so long. I realized about a week ago that today is six months since my last update, so I had to finish this tonight. It's a bit shorter than some previous chapters, but I fit all the content in it that it needed. Hope you enjoy, and I hope to finally get back to writing more!

"Barney, we need to go," Robin announces.

"Come on, five more minutes," he whines, still holding McKenna on a recliner in the corner of the NICU. Life had gone somewhat back to normal in the past two months. Barney slowly recovered, although he still had a way to go to be completely back to normal and the gang started to hang out like normal again, with the addition of Stella.

"I don't want to leave her either, but if we don't go, we are going to be late," Robin reminds him again.

"Why do you want to go to this thing anyway?" he asks.

"It's not just a thing, it's Ted's wedding."

"Exactly," he stresses. Even though he is Ted's friend, and he thinks he should be there, he thinks it's weird for Robin to be there. "It's your ex-husband's wedding. Do you really think it's a good idea to go?"

"Barney, we promised him that we were going to stay friends," she explains. "Friends go to each other's weddings, no matter what they think of the bride or the groom or any former relationships. Besides, he made me promise last night that we are going to come."

"I still don't think it's a good idea. I mean, I'm barely walking. That's so not awesome."

"Fine," she sighs. "Let's look at it this way. We can finally celebrate your return to mobility. You, me, and a resort all weekend," she winks seductively. "We can finally have some scotch and have a little bit of fun for old time's sake, before we have to bring her home."

"Well, when you put it that way..." he says suggestively. He grabs her arms and pulls her down for a kiss. They break away, and he glances down at the baby. "You're sure she's going to be fine?" he questions, holding her out for Robin to take.

"Yes," she answers confidently, cradling the baby and walking her the short distance to her crib. "She wouldn't have made it this far if she isn't. Let's go enjoy ourselves."

"Robin! Barney!" Lily shouts as she spots them across the tropical themed lobby. She jumps up from her spot at one of the lobby tables, and rushes over to greet them. Marshall is not far behind her. "Look at you walking!"

"Yes, Lily, I'm almost back to my awesome self," Barney brags, with a hint of self-consciousness in his voice. Of all of his months of therapy and recovery, he never did the hard stuff in front of his friends. He didn't want anyone, including Robin, to see him vulnerable. He conceded with Robin, after a lot of convincing, and he's glad he did. He wouldn't even be walking right now if it wasn't for her help and encouragement.

"Ted's going to be really glad you guys made it," Marshall adds.

"I'm sure," Robin answers. "Where is he?"

"He had to go back to the city to convince Tony to let Lucy come to the wedding. Stella was freaking out because she wasn't going to be here," Lily explains.

"Ahhhh," Robin mumbles, and Barney looks at her quizzically. Her tone seems almost sarcastic, leading him to question again, whether this really was a good idea.

"I still can't believe that Ted wants to slip into someone else's life like this," Lily begins to ramble, not even seeing the looks on her friends' faces. "I mean, I always saw him as a father, but still. It won't be his kid. And he's rushing it too. He's been divorced from you for how long? It's not even a year."

"Yeah," Robin mumbles in agreement as Barney watches her intently.

"Sorry," Lily apologizes. "I shouldn't be talking about this. We'll let you guys get settled in, see you later?"

"Yep," Barney agrees quickly, wanting to get Robin out of the situation as quickly as possible. He can sense that she is upset, and he wants to do everything in his power to stop it. He places his hand on the small of her back, and gently pushes her in the direction of the check in desk.

He shares their reservation information with the girl behind the counter, as Robin stares off into space.

"You seem quiet?" he asks, as the girl briefly walks away to retrieve their keys.

"Yeah. Just thinking," she brushes off.

"We can turn around and go home you know. If you are uncomfortable that is."

"No," she insists. "I'm just thinking about what Lily said."

"It's Ted's decision to make."

"I know. I just feel weird about it."

"Me too."

"You are all checked in," the girl says as she reappears behind the desk, "Welcome to The Namaste Yoga and Meditation Collective. All the meals are included, and we have a wonderful onsite spa. Can I interest either you in a massage?"

"No, thanks," Barney replies. "Just point us in the direction of the bar."

"There is no bar, we are an alcohol free, vegan relaxation resort."

They both gasp in horror. They agreed on the ride out that scotch was going to be the only thing to get them through this weekend, and now, well, it could change their entire plan.

They retreat quickly to their room, with Robin throwing their bags on the floor as Barney flops down on the bed.

"Well, this weekend just got a lot more dull," she groans, lying down next to him on the bed.

"At least we can have sex," Barney jokes, wiggling his eyebrows.

"Yeah," she says with a giggle, before turning more somber. "I guess you have that."

"What?"

"I don't know," she starts. "We get enough time alone. I'd rather be at the hospital with McKenna. Or spending time getting the apartment ready to bring her home."

"We've talked about this. You want to go home?" Barney asks again. He almost wishes they could just leave, but he knows how stubborn Robin is. If she wants to stay, they will be staying for sure.

"No," she answers, shaking her head. "Maybe just sneak in some alcohol from somewhere?" He suddenly gets a bright smile over her face, and pushes himself up off the bed, towards their bags.

"Guess it's a good thing I snuck in a bottle of scotch then," he says, as he pulls out a large bottle of scotch.

"Oooo. Let the fun begin!"

Ted breathes a sigh of relief as he parks the car. It's finally his wedding day. Again. He never thought that he would be getting married a second time, but he feels lucky somehow. He's getting the family he's always wanted, even if it includes having Tony in his life. He can make it work, and he should. It's really what's best for the young girl that will officially be his step-daughter in a few hours.

They climb out of the car, Lucy jumping around excitedly, as she waits for the men behind her. They finally give her permission to run ahead, and she spots Stella.

"Mommy! Mommy! Ted invited daddy!"

"Hi, sweetie. I missed you," she says, pulling her daughter into a hug and seeing the men fully enter the lobby. "Give me just a sec, okay?"

"Hey," Tony says, stepping out from behind Ted.

"Hey, Tony," she replies curtly. "Can you watch Lucy for a minute?"

"Sure."

"Ted, can I talk to you for a minute?" she demands, looking at him angrily. "In our room?"

"Yeah." He senses right away that he is in trouble.

"You invited Tony? To our wedding?!" she screams as soon as the door is shut. "He's my ex! Why would you do this?"

"I figured it was fine," he says with a shrug. "It's not like Robin isn't here."

"Wait-" she snaps, staring daggers. "You invited Robin?"

"Yeah, of course," he answers calmly, trying to show her that this isn't a big deal.

"You never told me that. I'm not sure how I feel about that," she pauses, but starts to speak before Ted has the chance to open his mouth. "No. I know how I feel about that. It's weird."

"It's not weird," he tries to argue.

"It's weird. You don't get what it's like for a bride to see her groom's ex at their wedding. Having exes around," she pauses, trying to collect her thoughts. "I don't know, it brings up unresolved things, especially this one," she emphasizes. "How do you know that spark won't come back with your ex sitting out there?"

"Come on, we're just friends," he whines.

"It's like things are not finished between you two," she accuses. "And Tony," she sighs, "I can't deal with Tony right now. Can you please go out there and tell him to leave? You can make me the bad guy. I'll go talk to Robin, so she knows it's nothing personal."

"Okay," he agrees, and turns to walk towards the door of the room, but he stops himself and turns to face her. "No. I should go talk to Robin. She's my friend, and she left the baby to come here. You go talk to Tony."

"Okay," she agrees, and he walks out the door.

"Hey, Robin?" He calls, happening to find her at the front desk asking for some glasses for their room.

"Yeah?" she turns around at his voice, happy to finally see him today, hoping that maybe he will calm her nerves that coming here was in fact the right decision.

"You can't come to the wedding," he blurts out. He didn't mean for it to happen that fast, but it did.

"Oh, thank God!" she sighs, a smile forming across her face. She didn't realize how much she didn't want to be here, until now.

"What?" he questions, confused.

"Ted, it's weird."

"It's not weird."

"It's weird. Do you know how it feels to be somebody's ex at their wedding?" she asks as she drags him into a more secluded corner.

"We broke up a year ago," he counters.

"Ted, it's not even a year, and especially considering what's happened since, that's not that long ago at all. Watching you marry another woman isn't exactly something I was looking forward to."

"And why is this bothering you? There's nothing between us anymore," he counters.

"Of course there is. That kind of stuff doesn't just disappear without a trace. There is always going to be a part of me that loves you. Look, I'm not just another guest here, Ted."

"Right. We were married, but we both moved on."

"No, we haven't," she says, before adding, "well, you haven't." She pauses to gather her thoughts. "Look, Ted, I think you should go back to your real life."

"What's that supposed to mean?" he asks, almost offended by the insinuation.

"Don't get married," she answers. "Look, you're rushing into this. It's like you're trying to skip ahead to the end of the book, just because things failed with us." She sighs, collecting her strength to say the rest of what is on her mind. "Ted, you're the most romantic guy I know. You stole a blue French horn for me. You tried to make it rain."

"I did make it rain."

"It was a coincidence. But after all that, this is how your great romantic quest comes to an end? You're just disappearing into someone else's wedding, someone else's house, someone else's life without a second thought. That's not the amazing ending that you deserve. That's not Ted Mosby."

"I love Stella," he answers coldly. "She's the one. If you really feel that way, I guess it's a good thing you're not coming to the wedding after all." He turns and storms off, letting her standing alone.

It's a damn good thing Barney brought that scotch. Once she gets a hold of it, he's going to have no idea what hit him.

"Hey," a shirtless and out of breath Barney says while opening the door.

"Hi. You have a minute?" Lily asks, before taking stock of the situation, first peering over an almost naked and very obviously aroused Barney, then noticing a very naked Robin tied to the bed. "Oh," she mutters. "Oh my god... Um... Yeah... Okay... I uh... I'm sorry I interrupted but… uh… we really need you."

"Uh sure? Why?" he asks, noticing something is wrong by Lily's body language.

"Stella's gone," she whispers.

"Gone?" he clarifies, closing the door slightly to hide Robin.

"Gone. As in she left. We need to go to Ted."

"Of course Lil. We'll be right there."

He lets the door fall shut, and rushes as best he can back over to the bed, immediately beginning to work on untying knots.

"Did she say Stella's-"

"Yeah."

"Crap," she mutters, bringing her recently freed hand up to her face to massage her temples. "I did this didn't I?"

"No, you didn't. Don't jump to that conclusion," he reassures her as he unties the last hold.

"No. I showed up," she disputes, while propelling herself up and quickly dragging on her underwear. "She didn't want me here. They fought. She left. Ted is never going to forgive me."

"Robin. I think if he can forgive you for this," he says motioning between them as best he can while pulling on his pants, "he can forgive you for anything."

"I don't know," she sighs, throwing the green dress over her head. "I wouldn't be for sure. What if this is the last straw, and we lose everyone?"

"We aren't going to lose everyone."

"But it could happen. It could."

"Robin, stop," Barney demands. She's panicking, and he hates when she panics. "We haven't lost them yet, and what we've done is much worse. Somehow, against all better judgment, they are all still our friends. They aren't going to leave us alone just because we showed up to a wedding we were invited to. Trust me. It will be fine. Besides, weren't you the one that just talked to him and told him not to do this?"

"Yeah," she mutters as she slips on her shoes and grabs the key. He finishes tying his tie, and pulls her into a hug.

"It will be just fine," he whispers into her ear, before guiding her out the door.

"Hi," she mumbles as she sits next to a very sullen looking Ted on the bed. "I'm really sorry, Ted."

"Me too," Barney agrees.

"Thanks," he mutters. "Thanks."

"What happened?" Barney asks.

The card is shoved in Robin's hands, and they both read it, Barney looking over her shoulder. She feels guilty almost breathing a sigh of relief, but she does. It's not her fault. It's not her fault at all. She was right. But it's not the time for 'I told you so's.' She has to make sure Ted is okay.

Two days later

"That was from Lily. Apparently Ted is still taking this really well," Robin shares, shutting off her phone and putting it in the empty car seat next to her on the back seat of the cab.

"I don't buy that," Barney scoffs.

"Apparently he said something about being glad that we were all there to get him through it, and she had to remind him that it had only been 24 hours."

"That means one of two things," he announces as he counts with his fingers. "He either dodged a bullet,"

"Likely," she agrees.

"Or Lily is lying and he's going to snap."

"He could just be happy," she says.

"Yes," he says as he points to her, "but the thing you haven't realized, Scherbatsky, is that he's been here before. Just this past fall to be exact. Ted Mosby is not the kind of man to let a woman go."

"You do have a point there," she agrees. She may not have witnessed it first hand, but she's heard the stories. "I do hope it's the first one, though."

"I agree. It would make life much easier on all of us. Especially since in one hour, our days at the bar will be numbered."

"Yeah," she mutters as the cab pulls up to the front of the hospital.

"You ready?" he asks.

"Yeah," she replies sweetly. "Let's go bring her home."

"Alright mom and dad, paperwork is done, and you are checked out. She's officially yours," the nurse says, handing McKenna to Robin.

"I didn't think this day would really come," Barney says happily, as he watches Robin put the baby in the car seat.

"Cherish it," the nurse tells them. "We'll miss you around here."

"Same," Robin agrees, smiling.

"And keep in touch. We want to know how she's doing."

"Absolutely."

"Bye, McKenna." A chorus of nurses and doctors coo as they walk out of the door of the NICU for the last time.

It takes him three tries to slide the key in the lock. This is it. From now on, their lives really change. Hopefully for the better. He finally gets it, opens the door, and lets Robin in first.

"Welcome home, McKenna," he says.

He closes the door behind him, and Robin puts the car seat down.

"Hey Barney?" Robin asks.

"Yeah?"

"What do we do now?"