The Re-return - HIMYM fic - 5/5
Title: The Re-return
Author: modernxxmyth
Rating: PG-13 for now
Word Count: ~1900
Fandom: How I Met Your Mother
Pairing: Barney/Robin
Spoilers: None, but based on speculation for next season. No real spoilers, though, as long as you've seen the finale.
Summary: This time around, it's Robin's turn to win Barney over.
The Re-return
Epilogue
A little ways down the road…
"Best man?" Lily stepped out of the church for a moment. "You're being summoned."
"Geez, what now?" Ted muttered towards Marshall.
"Ted, seriously, relax," Marshall replied. "Everything's fine-"
The rain that suddenly began falling from the sky cut him off.
Marshall continued after a moment, "Okay, it's raining."
"Yeah," Ted replied in frustration, and the pair stood up. "You were saying?"
"You didn't happen to bring an umbrella did you?" Marshall asked.
"No," Ted replied. "I didn't bring an umbrella."
They headed inside.
Ted continued, "I just wish I knew where I left mine."
He headed down the hall and made his way to the room Barney was getting ready in.
"I heard the groom needed me?"
Barney came into view. "What do you think of this tie?"
"It's fine, man. You look great. Robin will love it."
Marshall stepped inside the room.
"She always has been a fan of my ties," said Barney.
"Do I even want to know?" Ted asked.
Barney grinned. "Probably not. Though I do have many stories I could tell you…"
"No!" Ted exclaimed. "No need. While I am incredibly happy for the both of you, I have heard enough through the thin walls of the apartment over the years. I don't need to hear any more about your sex life with my ex-girlfriend."
Barney frowned. "Your ex-girlfriend," he said ponderously. "Who I am marrying."
Marshall spoke up, "Uh oh."
"This is such a violation of the Bro Code," said Barney. "Should I be doing this? What am I doing?"
Panic seeped into his voice. "Oh my god, I've got to get out of here. This was an awful idea. What am I doing?"
He loosened his tie, which was feeling painfully tight all of a sudden.
Marshall walked up to him, narrowed his eyes, and slapped him across the face.
Barney fell to the ground.
Marshall barely held back a smile.
"That's five."
He paused, then continued.
"Barney, you love Robin."
The shocked groom slowly came to a stand, clutching his cheek, and nodded.
Ted followed up, "You guys have been together for a year and a half and in love for even longer. You want this. You're ready for this."
Marshall continued, "Can you really imagine not being with Robin after all this?"
Barney shook his head. "No, I can't. Of course I can't. It's Robin."
He said her name like it was the most important word in world.
He looked at Marshall, still clutching his cheek. "My face hurts."
"You're welcome," Marshall replied.
Barney tried to smile, but the fresh sting in his cheek prevented it. Instead, he grimaced.
Ted spoke, "You're going to be fine. In fact, you're going to be awesome."
Barney readjusted his tie. "Ted, my boy, you're right. It is going to be awesome. In fact, I would even say it is going to be legendary. Robin and I are going to revolutionize marriage!"
Marshall patted him on the back. Barney flinched.
"Sure you are, buddy," said Marshall.
Ted began, "I should go check on Robin. Being the best man to both of you isn't the easiest task, you know. It's twice the responsibility. So thanks for that."
Barney replied, "No problem, bro."
"Lily, what the hell am I doing getting married?"
Robin's freak out had officially begun.
"Here we go," the redhead muttered under her breath.
"I don't even believe in marriage! What am I doing? I don't want to settle down!"
"Sweetie, relax. It's going to be just fine. And it's Barney. Do you really think that if you get married you're going to be settling down?"
Robin took a deep breath and smoothed down the material of her dress with the palm of her hands. "No, I guess not."
"Exactly," Lily persisted. "A marriage is what you make of it. Just because you and Barney are getting married doesn't mean you guys are going to stop playing your sex games or whatever it is you do. Do you play sex games? If so, what kind of sex games do you play?"
Lily suddenly looked incredibly interested.
Robin pursed her lips. "Can we talk about my sexcapades later? You're supposed to be talking me down here, Lil."
"Right. You're going to be fine, Robin. You want to be with Barney, don't you?"
"Of course I do."
"Then that's all you need to know."
Robin nodded and breathed a sigh of relief.
Ted walked in. "What did I miss?"
Lily rolled her eyes. "Some best man you are. I was talking Robin down from her pre-wedding jitters."
"I was busy doing the same thing with Barney!" Ted exclaimed.
"Barney was panicking?" Robin asked quietly.
"Of course he was," Ted explained. "You two are practically the same person."
Robin tilted her head to the side. "Fair point. But…he's okay now, right?"
Ted smiled gently. "He's fine."
He saw the hesitation on Robin's face and continued, "He loves you. You don't have anything to worry about. He wants this just as much as I know you do."
Robin smiled.
Ted continued, "You look beautiful, by the way."
She pulled him into a quick hug. "Thanks, Ted."
"Now get out of here," Lily insisted. "We need to touch up Robin's make-up."
The ceremony itself was small and quaint. Robin was not the kind of person that dreamed of a huge wedding as a little girl. She had let Lily take the reins in terms of planning after giving her a few guidelines. Sam Gibbs, James' father, was marrying them, and all of their family was there, much to Robin's dismay. She had considered not inviting her father, but her mother had insisted. She was still surprised that after years of treating her like a boy, her father wanted to walk her down the aisle. He hadn't given her any words of encouragement, congratulated her, or gotten her a wedding gift (unless the cigar he silently handed her in greeting the night before counted), but at least he was there.
Robin's mother was making a fuss over every little thing, flouncing about and worrying over insignificant details. Robin tried her best to give her menial tasks throughout the day to help her feel productive and to get her out of Robin's hair.
As Robin walked down the aisle, she contemplated exactly how she had gotten there.
Barney's proposal had been simple.
They'd finally gotten their shit together a year before (and had dirty, hot sex in the alley behind MacLaren's in the process) and had been going strong ever since. They were in bed when it happened, naked and basking in the afterglow of some particularly good sex. Robin had her head propped up on the pillow that Barney had finally caved and bought her for his apartment when she had agreed to move in with him a couple months before. He was staring at her with a look in his eye that Robin had only glimpsed on a few occasions previously - in the hospital after his bus accident, in her bedroom when they decided to be a couple the first time around, and during the conversation they had at the bar about wanting 'something more'. He was giving her that looks again, and she flashed him a confused smile.
"What?" she asked.
"Marry me." The words seemed to spill out of his mouth.
"WHAT?" Robin shouted, sitting up. The sheet that was covering her naked chest fell, and Barney grinned as he took in the view.
"Marry me," Barney repeated evenly.
Robin snatched her tank top off the floor and pulled it over her head.
"That's crazy, Barney."
"Is it?" he questioned. "It doesn't seem crazy to me. I think it actually makes a lot of sense."
"Of course it's crazy," Robin countered. "We can't get married. I mean…we don't even believe in marriage."
"Yes, we do. We didn't before, sure, but you know it would be different with us. Nothing huge would change. We would stay our usual awesome selves. We would still go to the cigar bar and bang in inappropriate and often public places. We would just happen to be married when we did them. You don't even have to wear a ring if you don't want to. Just marry me, Scherbatsky."
Robin had simply smiled and whispered an "okay" in response before jumping his bones.
She later decided that she wouldn't mind so much wearing a ring, as long as he did too.
Images of Barney's proposal flashed through Robin's head as she walked down the aisle, eyeing her soon-to-be-husband with a fond smile. She could see the barely contained glee on Barney's face and any residual panic left her immediately.
Her father patted her awkwardly on the shoulder and let her go, but Robin paid him no mind. She arrived next to Barney and smoothed down her dress.
Barney whispered, "You look hot, Scherbatsky."
Robin rolled her eyes but couldn't quite keep the grin from forming on her face.
"You're an idiot," she whispered back.
He beamed and replied. "Love you, too."
"Is that a hand print on your face?"
"It's a long story."
Sam Gibbs started speaking, and Robin didn't really hear the words. The ceremony passed in a blur, and they exchanged traditional vows (because really, neither of them was that much with the words, and Robin didn't think, "We have awesome sex so let's be together forever" was going to please anyone in attendance).
Suddenly they were saying their "I do's" and Barney was being told to kiss the bride.
He leaned in and whispered in her ear, "This is going to be legendary," and captured her lips in a long kiss.
The reception was small, and Robin and Barney had sex in the bathroom twice.
Ted spent most of the time with Barney's half-sister Carly, who had apparently approached him because he bore a resemblance to an idiot economics professor she'd had for all of ten minutes once.
Barney had been a little disturbed to see them hitting it off so well, but Robin was just glad that Carly's familiar looking yellow umbrella had saved her from the rain after they left the church to go to the reception.
Ted spent most of the evening with Carly, and any moment away from her he spent chatting Robin's ear off about how perfect and wonderful she was, to which Robin could only roll her eyes.
Marshall and Lily spent most of their time saying "aww" at every little thing the newlyweds did, though Robin could not for the life of her figure out why. They were acting no different than usual, but according to Lily, everything was just so much cuter now that they were married.
They were announced for the first dance as husband and wife - terms Robin wasn't sure she'd ever quite get used to hearing - and headed to the dance floor. Mid-dance, Barney pulled her against him for a quick kiss. After they separated, Barney gazed at her with the same expression from the night he proposed. He whispered two words with a bright smile.
"Challenge completed."
The End.
-------------------
Thanks for sticking around, guys, and I sincerely hope you enjoyed it. I'd really appreciate if you let me know what you thought. Thanks for reading. :)
Author: modernxxmyth
Rating: PG-13 for now
Word Count: ~1900
Fandom: How I Met Your Mother
Pairing: Barney/Robin
Spoilers: None, but based on speculation for next season. No real spoilers, though, as long as you've seen the finale.
Summary: This time around, it's Robin's turn to win Barney over.
The Re-return
Epilogue
A little ways down the road…
"Best man?" Lily stepped out of the church for a moment. "You're being summoned."
"Geez, what now?" Ted muttered towards Marshall.
"Ted, seriously, relax," Marshall replied. "Everything's fine-"
The rain that suddenly began falling from the sky cut him off.
Marshall continued after a moment, "Okay, it's raining."
"Yeah," Ted replied in frustration, and the pair stood up. "You were saying?"
"You didn't happen to bring an umbrella did you?" Marshall asked.
"No," Ted replied. "I didn't bring an umbrella."
They headed inside.
Ted continued, "I just wish I knew where I left mine."
He headed down the hall and made his way to the room Barney was getting ready in.
"I heard the groom needed me?"
Barney came into view. "What do you think of this tie?"
"It's fine, man. You look great. Robin will love it."
Marshall stepped inside the room.
"She always has been a fan of my ties," said Barney.
"Do I even want to know?" Ted asked.
Barney grinned. "Probably not. Though I do have many stories I could tell you…"
"No!" Ted exclaimed. "No need. While I am incredibly happy for the both of you, I have heard enough through the thin walls of the apartment over the years. I don't need to hear any more about your sex life with my ex-girlfriend."
Barney frowned. "Your ex-girlfriend," he said ponderously. "Who I am marrying."
Marshall spoke up, "Uh oh."
"This is such a violation of the Bro Code," said Barney. "Should I be doing this? What am I doing?"
Panic seeped into his voice. "Oh my god, I've got to get out of here. This was an awful idea. What am I doing?"
He loosened his tie, which was feeling painfully tight all of a sudden.
Marshall walked up to him, narrowed his eyes, and slapped him across the face.
Barney fell to the ground.
Marshall barely held back a smile.
"That's five."
He paused, then continued.
"Barney, you love Robin."
The shocked groom slowly came to a stand, clutching his cheek, and nodded.
Ted followed up, "You guys have been together for a year and a half and in love for even longer. You want this. You're ready for this."
Marshall continued, "Can you really imagine not being with Robin after all this?"
Barney shook his head. "No, I can't. Of course I can't. It's Robin."
He said her name like it was the most important word in world.
He looked at Marshall, still clutching his cheek. "My face hurts."
"You're welcome," Marshall replied.
Barney tried to smile, but the fresh sting in his cheek prevented it. Instead, he grimaced.
Ted spoke, "You're going to be fine. In fact, you're going to be awesome."
Barney readjusted his tie. "Ted, my boy, you're right. It is going to be awesome. In fact, I would even say it is going to be legendary. Robin and I are going to revolutionize marriage!"
Marshall patted him on the back. Barney flinched.
"Sure you are, buddy," said Marshall.
Ted began, "I should go check on Robin. Being the best man to both of you isn't the easiest task, you know. It's twice the responsibility. So thanks for that."
Barney replied, "No problem, bro."
"Lily, what the hell am I doing getting married?"
Robin's freak out had officially begun.
"Here we go," the redhead muttered under her breath.
"I don't even believe in marriage! What am I doing? I don't want to settle down!"
"Sweetie, relax. It's going to be just fine. And it's Barney. Do you really think that if you get married you're going to be settling down?"
Robin took a deep breath and smoothed down the material of her dress with the palm of her hands. "No, I guess not."
"Exactly," Lily persisted. "A marriage is what you make of it. Just because you and Barney are getting married doesn't mean you guys are going to stop playing your sex games or whatever it is you do. Do you play sex games? If so, what kind of sex games do you play?"
Lily suddenly looked incredibly interested.
Robin pursed her lips. "Can we talk about my sexcapades later? You're supposed to be talking me down here, Lil."
"Right. You're going to be fine, Robin. You want to be with Barney, don't you?"
"Of course I do."
"Then that's all you need to know."
Robin nodded and breathed a sigh of relief.
Ted walked in. "What did I miss?"
Lily rolled her eyes. "Some best man you are. I was talking Robin down from her pre-wedding jitters."
"I was busy doing the same thing with Barney!" Ted exclaimed.
"Barney was panicking?" Robin asked quietly.
"Of course he was," Ted explained. "You two are practically the same person."
Robin tilted her head to the side. "Fair point. But…he's okay now, right?"
Ted smiled gently. "He's fine."
He saw the hesitation on Robin's face and continued, "He loves you. You don't have anything to worry about. He wants this just as much as I know you do."
Robin smiled.
Ted continued, "You look beautiful, by the way."
She pulled him into a quick hug. "Thanks, Ted."
"Now get out of here," Lily insisted. "We need to touch up Robin's make-up."
The ceremony itself was small and quaint. Robin was not the kind of person that dreamed of a huge wedding as a little girl. She had let Lily take the reins in terms of planning after giving her a few guidelines. Sam Gibbs, James' father, was marrying them, and all of their family was there, much to Robin's dismay. She had considered not inviting her father, but her mother had insisted. She was still surprised that after years of treating her like a boy, her father wanted to walk her down the aisle. He hadn't given her any words of encouragement, congratulated her, or gotten her a wedding gift (unless the cigar he silently handed her in greeting the night before counted), but at least he was there.
Robin's mother was making a fuss over every little thing, flouncing about and worrying over insignificant details. Robin tried her best to give her menial tasks throughout the day to help her feel productive and to get her out of Robin's hair.
As Robin walked down the aisle, she contemplated exactly how she had gotten there.
Barney's proposal had been simple.
They'd finally gotten their shit together a year before (and had dirty, hot sex in the alley behind MacLaren's in the process) and had been going strong ever since. They were in bed when it happened, naked and basking in the afterglow of some particularly good sex. Robin had her head propped up on the pillow that Barney had finally caved and bought her for his apartment when she had agreed to move in with him a couple months before. He was staring at her with a look in his eye that Robin had only glimpsed on a few occasions previously - in the hospital after his bus accident, in her bedroom when they decided to be a couple the first time around, and during the conversation they had at the bar about wanting 'something more'. He was giving her that looks again, and she flashed him a confused smile.
"What?" she asked.
"Marry me." The words seemed to spill out of his mouth.
"WHAT?" Robin shouted, sitting up. The sheet that was covering her naked chest fell, and Barney grinned as he took in the view.
"Marry me," Barney repeated evenly.
Robin snatched her tank top off the floor and pulled it over her head.
"That's crazy, Barney."
"Is it?" he questioned. "It doesn't seem crazy to me. I think it actually makes a lot of sense."
"Of course it's crazy," Robin countered. "We can't get married. I mean…we don't even believe in marriage."
"Yes, we do. We didn't before, sure, but you know it would be different with us. Nothing huge would change. We would stay our usual awesome selves. We would still go to the cigar bar and bang in inappropriate and often public places. We would just happen to be married when we did them. You don't even have to wear a ring if you don't want to. Just marry me, Scherbatsky."
Robin had simply smiled and whispered an "okay" in response before jumping his bones.
She later decided that she wouldn't mind so much wearing a ring, as long as he did too.
Images of Barney's proposal flashed through Robin's head as she walked down the aisle, eyeing her soon-to-be-husband with a fond smile. She could see the barely contained glee on Barney's face and any residual panic left her immediately.
Her father patted her awkwardly on the shoulder and let her go, but Robin paid him no mind. She arrived next to Barney and smoothed down her dress.
Barney whispered, "You look hot, Scherbatsky."
Robin rolled her eyes but couldn't quite keep the grin from forming on her face.
"You're an idiot," she whispered back.
He beamed and replied. "Love you, too."
"Is that a hand print on your face?"
"It's a long story."
Sam Gibbs started speaking, and Robin didn't really hear the words. The ceremony passed in a blur, and they exchanged traditional vows (because really, neither of them was that much with the words, and Robin didn't think, "We have awesome sex so let's be together forever" was going to please anyone in attendance).
Suddenly they were saying their "I do's" and Barney was being told to kiss the bride.
He leaned in and whispered in her ear, "This is going to be legendary," and captured her lips in a long kiss.
The reception was small, and Robin and Barney had sex in the bathroom twice.
Ted spent most of the time with Barney's half-sister Carly, who had apparently approached him because he bore a resemblance to an idiot economics professor she'd had for all of ten minutes once.
Barney had been a little disturbed to see them hitting it off so well, but Robin was just glad that Carly's familiar looking yellow umbrella had saved her from the rain after they left the church to go to the reception.
Ted spent most of the evening with Carly, and any moment away from her he spent chatting Robin's ear off about how perfect and wonderful she was, to which Robin could only roll her eyes.
Marshall and Lily spent most of their time saying "aww" at every little thing the newlyweds did, though Robin could not for the life of her figure out why. They were acting no different than usual, but according to Lily, everything was just so much cuter now that they were married.
They were announced for the first dance as husband and wife - terms Robin wasn't sure she'd ever quite get used to hearing - and headed to the dance floor. Mid-dance, Barney pulled her against him for a quick kiss. After they separated, Barney gazed at her with the same expression from the night he proposed. He whispered two words with a bright smile.
"Challenge completed."
The End.
-------------------
Thanks for sticking around, guys, and I sincerely hope you enjoyed it. I'd really appreciate if you let me know what you thought. Thanks for reading. :)