A/N: And so it all comes to an end. This is officially this fic's last chapter. Unofficially, I might do an epilogue if I get the proper inspiration, but for now this fic has reached its final destination. I know it's a bit shorter than usual, and for that I hope you be a bit indulging. I am so thankful for all the reviews you guys have been leaving me. You are all gold to me. Enjoy.

Disclaimer:I, the author of this story, do not own any of the characthers associated with Gilmore Girls. That honor belongs to the wonderful Amy Sherman-Palladino. I have no intention of making any money on this (in fact, I wouldn't be surprised if I'm losing money over it…).

29. Raise Your Glass

There finally was a wedding, one which only had small traces of Emily Gilmore stamped on it. It turned out to be an event that exceeded both Rory's and Jess' expectations. They had been forced to scrap the idea of a small non-town shindig once they realized they couldn't agree on who to invite and who not to invite. Of course, every single person attended, but so far, everyone had been nice about it. Taylor had even managed to look highly convincing when he wished the happy couple good luck.

During the planning stage, Luke had voiced his concern about Lorelai being pregnant, but she had completely ignored him, and patted her by now large stomach, telling little It (who turned out to be a baby boy two months after the wedding) not to arrive early just because there would be cake. Cammie, who was Rory's bridesmaid along with Lane, had dyed her hair honey blonde for the occastion. It was a genuine Cammie-gesture, equivalent to any other person not wearing white on somebody else's wedding. Stars Hollow had taken quite well to Cammie, and although Jess was not happy to admit it, Cammie was the reason their little venture, dubbed Collectables (Matt and Chris had very much approved), attracted customers.

Jess and Rory married under the tree where Jess had proposed. The bridge had been an option until logistics made it impossible to arrange. The reception was held at the Crap Shack, where the tent from Rory's going away party had once again been pitched. Smaller tables had been arranged around the high table, which was placed next to a small stage. Sookie had hounded the staff at The Dragonfly, and everyone swore she had outdone herself yet again with the wedding feast.

The guests were still eating cake when Lorelai rose and stepped up on the stage and took the microphone placed on one of the speaker units.

"Rory and Jess... Show of hands, who never thought this constellation would make it this far?" she asked bluntly. A fair few raised their hands, and people gave hearty laughs as both Rory and Jess smirked and each raised a hand. Lorelai chuckled too, and continued. "We've all been proved wrong. The sulky hoodlym who had me fear for my daughter's safety has turned out to be the best thing to cross Rory's path. It's a meeting of minds, a kind of love that is part geeky, part... more. It's more than any of us could ever understand."

She paused to look with watery eyes at the newlyweds: Rory, clad in a kneelong, strapless wedding gown, and Jess, very casual in slacks, a white buttondown shirt and a matching waistcoat. He had first refused to wear a jacket, but Rory had talked him into it and promised he could skipt the tie and hang the jacket on his chair during the reception. Emily had not approved, but kept her comments to herself for Rory's sake.

"We all know of Rory's fondness for lists, but this might be the only occasion for which she has never made a list. Well, unless we count a very embarrassing one from 1998, featuring Zach Hanson, because then we have exactly one list. Maybe the lack of lists has something to do with me, because let's face it, so far I've mostly played the whole 'getting married'-idea by hear. Then again, maybe it's something else. Maybe love and marriage and happiness can't be planned and neatly put down in a few succinct items on a list to check off? And after all, we are in Stars Hollow. It isn't a plan here until it's been changed."

The guests laughed again, some nodded knowingly, and Bootsy even called out "Hear hear!". Rory smiled at her mother, tears beginning to trickle down her cheek.

"You have all been an important part of my daughter's life, in both of their lives, although I suspect the groom might protest. You have all played parts in the column Rory writes. Someone might say she's presented us as nutty eccentrics, but that has never been her intention. She has wanted to show the genuine people who were there for her and Jess in all ways possible. You have all heard of and read that first column, but I think we can all hear it one more time, and really see how much we have mean to Rory and my... son-in-law. I think it's only fitting that the writer herself reads it, don't you think?"

Lorelai shot Rory a smile and pulled out a jagged newspaper clipping. Rory instantly recognized it as the Metro-page where her first column was printed. She rolled her eyes and walked up to her mother to the sound of applause and cheers, taking the clipping an looking out at the guests. She had this one, her first-ever column nearly memorized in her head. She took a deep breath.

"Somewhere, in the continental US, there is a little town," she began. "It is a town in some aspects much like any other smalltown in America, but it differs from all those others in ways I am about to share with you. It is a place easy to miss when driving by, but difficult to forget once you find it. My hometown. It may not offer many memorable sights, no important battle was fought here, though we did have a bunch of guys standing outside one winter night, waiting for a fight that never came. What we have is people; memorable, crazy, wonderful people. My mother, the coffee addict, for example." Rory paused and looked over at Lorelai and Luke. "Don't stop her in the morning unless it is to give her a cup of coffee from the diner. My mother's husband-to-be owns the aforementioned diner. After more than 20 years of knowing her, he is still trying convince my mother, and me, that lettuce essence absorbed by our burgers isn't the same as eating actual lettuce."

She saw Luke give Lorelai an 'I told you so'-look. Rory smiled and turned to Lane, who with Zach sat at a table in front of her.

"My best friend and fellow music lover has floorboards of music that could rival the most well-stocked music store. Seriously. She even has William Shatner in there." Lane nodded appreciatively, and Rory continued down to Babbette and Morey. "My neighbors are a quirky pair. A tall jazzpianist and a barely out of her hippie-years cat lover are the sweetest and most interesting neighbors a girl could have. Not to mention the cute Catwoman has onions that will make color sprout out of your yin yang, whatever that means..."

"They do, doll!" Babbette interjected, giving her a wink.

"If you're hungry, stop by the nearby inn. The chef there is a kitchen goddess." At the table closest to Lorelai and Luke, Sookie patted her cheeks with a handkerchief, while Jackson looked stern, as if trying not to cry this time. "Tell her you want the risotto, it's magical. Should I ever meet any one of you, and find out you've visited my town... You'd better tell me you've eaten the risotto, or lie about having eaten the risotto. The chef's husband is into experimental cultivation. No, not drugs, just unconventional breedings. Rasquat, anyone?"

Here, everyone laughed, because incidentally, the wedding cake had been filled with rasquat compote and topped with chocolate-dipped rasquats.

"Not far away are my grandparents, kind and loving, but with the slightly less charming quirk of never being able to keep a maid for more than a week."

Emily looked slightly embarrassed, while Richard just chuckled heartily, and raised his glass in a touché-sort of move.

"I could go on forever, but some of the town characters require more space than I can offer at present," Rory carried on. "There is always something going on in my town, and to an outside, it's not always easy to unbderstand, so let me give you the basics. The weekly poll for whether me or my mother will first hit a sugar hig on our movie nights runs from Monday to Thursday. My mother is usually a safe bet, unless she's throwing the competition. A faulty Tootsie Rolls/Milk Duds-ratio cause me to puke my guts out, and my mother graciously lost for a month..." She took a moment to look at Luke, then added: "Sorry about that, Luke."

Luke mumbled something that sounded like "I knew it", but Lorelai quickly appeased him with a kiss.

"Town meetings are twice a month, and worth a visit. Beware of flying fries and strange topics. For a display of total lunacy, drop by the dance marathon, and watch as we all turn a little more insane by the hour. Someone once called my hometown a medical experiment the government had forgot about." She gave Jess a pointed look, which he only shrugged his shoulders at. "The jury is still out on that, but what I do know is, that this town has provided me with more wisdom, laughter and love than any of the other cities I've visited. In what other town does a grown man lock himself into a box and has said box suspended over the street? Until next time, try to find me."

Rory's boss had predicted that people would begin writing to the paper, guessing what town Rory wrote about. He'd been right. Already after the first column had run, Metro received ten letters from people who thought they knew for sure where the mysterious column-writer was from. Rory had made it a hobby to address the guesses in short post scriptums after the column, never fully denying or confirming the guesses. Some had been close, as in the right state, but never closer.

Rory folded the clipping as the guests applauded, some with thears in their eyes. When she sat down again next to Jess, he leaned in and whispered: "I still think this is a medical experiment, but..." He glanced over at Lorelai and Luke, his mother and TJ and Cammie, and then added: "But it might be an experiment I'll come to enjoy."

"That's all I ask," Rory whispered back.

And to the beckoning sound of spoons clinking against glasses, they kissed each other, knowing that their long journey back to each other had finally ended, at home.

A/N: One last time: leave some review-love.