diff --git a/crates/interpreter/src/lib.rs b/crates/interpreter/src/lib.rs
index 5196f999..9676741e 100644
--- a/crates/interpreter/src/lib.rs
+++ b/crates/interpreter/src/lib.rs
@@ -157,3 +157,4 @@ pub use syntax::{
     FuncType, GlobalType, ImportDesc, Limits, Mut, RefType, ResultType, TableType, ValType,
 };
 pub use valid::prepare;
+pub use valid::merge;
diff --git a/crates/interpreter/src/side_table.rs b/crates/interpreter/src/side_table.rs
index 78fee146..217cab8a 100644
--- a/crates/interpreter/src/side_table.rs
+++ b/crates/interpreter/src/side_table.rs
@@ -15,44 +15,49 @@
 use alloc::vec::Vec;
 use core::ops::Range;
 
+use bytemuck::{Pod, Zeroable};
+
 use crate::error::*;
 use crate::module::Parser;
 
+#[derive(Default)]
+pub struct BranchTableView<'m> {
+    pub metadata: Metadata<'m>,
+    pub branch_idx: usize,
+}
+
+// TODO(dev/fast-interp): Change [u16] to [u8] to not rely on alignment.
 pub struct SideTableView<'m> {
     pub func_idx: usize,
     pub indices: &'m [u16], // including 0 and the length of metadata_array
     pub metadata: &'m [u16],
-    pub branch_table_view: Metadata<'m>,
+    pub branch_table_view: BranchTableView<'m>,
 }
 
 impl<'m> SideTableView<'m> {
-    pub fn new(parser: &mut crate::valid::Parser<'m>) -> Result<Self, Error> {
+    pub fn new(binary: &'m [u8]) -> Result<Self, Error> {
+        let num_funcs =
+            bytemuck::pod_read_unaligned::<u16>(bytemuck::cast_slice(&binary[0 .. 2])) as usize;
+        let indices_end = 2 + (num_funcs + 1) * 2;
         Ok(SideTableView {
             func_idx: 0,
-            indices: parse_side_table_field(parser)?,
-            metadata: parse_side_table_field(parser)?,
+            indices: bytemuck::cast_slice::<_, u16>(binary.get(2 .. indices_end).unwrap()),
+            metadata: bytemuck::cast_slice::<_, u16>(binary.get(indices_end ..).unwrap()),
             branch_table_view: Default::default(),
         })
     }
 
-    pub fn metadata(&self, func_idx: usize) -> Metadata<'m> {
+    pub fn branch_table_view(&mut self, func_idx: usize) -> BranchTableView<'m> {
+        BranchTableView { metadata: self.metadata(func_idx), ..Default::default() }
+    }
+
+    fn metadata(&self, func_idx: usize) -> Metadata<'m> {
         Metadata(
             &self.metadata[self.indices[func_idx] as usize .. self.indices[func_idx + 1] as usize],
         )
     }
 }
 
-fn parse_u16(data: &[u8]) -> u16 {
-    bytemuck::pod_read_unaligned::<u16>(bytemuck::cast_slice(&data[0 .. 2]))
-}
-
-fn parse_side_table_field<'m>(parser: &mut crate::valid::Parser<'m>) -> Result<&'m [u16], Error> {
-    let len = parse_u16(parser.save()) as usize;
-    let parser = parser.split_at(len)?;
-    let bytes = parser.save().get(0 .. len * 2).unwrap();
-    Ok(bytemuck::cast_slice::<_, u16>(bytes))
-}
-
 #[derive(Default, Copy, Clone)]
 pub struct Metadata<'m>(&'m [u16]);
 
@@ -86,10 +91,16 @@ pub struct MetadataEntry {
     pub branch_table: Vec<BranchTableEntry>,
 }
 
-#[derive(Copy, Clone, Debug, bytemuck::AnyBitPattern)]
+#[derive(Copy, Clone, Debug, Pod, Zeroable)]
 #[repr(transparent)]
 pub struct BranchTableEntry([u16; 3]);
 
+impl BranchTableEntry {
+    pub fn as_bytes(&self) -> &[u8; size_of::<Self>()] {
+        bytemuck::cast_ref(self)
+    }
+}
+
 pub struct BranchTableEntryView {
     /// The amount to adjust the instruction pointer by if the branch is taken.
     pub delta_ip: i32,
diff --git a/crates/interpreter/src/valid.rs b/crates/interpreter/src/valid.rs
index dab87ede..6d172d41 100644
--- a/crates/interpreter/src/valid.rs
+++ b/crates/interpreter/src/valid.rs
@@ -26,6 +26,23 @@ use crate::toctou::*;
 use crate::util::*;
 use crate::*;
 
+pub fn merge(binary: &[u8], side_table: Vec<MetadataEntry>) -> Result<Vec<u8>, Error> {
+    let mut wasm = vec![];
+    wasm.extend_from_slice(&binary[0 .. 8]);
+    wasm.push(0);
+    wasm.extend_from_slice(&side_table.len().to_le_bytes());
+    for entry in side_table {
+        wasm.extend_from_slice(&entry.type_idx.to_le_bytes());
+        wasm.extend_from_slice(&entry.parser_range.start.to_le_bytes());
+        wasm.extend_from_slice(&entry.parser_range.end.to_le_bytes());
+        for branch in entry.branch_table {
+            wasm.extend_from_slice(branch.as_bytes());
+        }
+    }
+    wasm.extend_from_slice(&binary[8 ..]);
+    Ok(wasm)
+}
+
 /// Checks whether a WASM module in binary format is valid, and returns the side table.
 pub fn prepare(binary: &[u8]) -> Result<Vec<MetadataEntry>, Error> {
     validate::<Prepare>(binary)
@@ -138,7 +155,7 @@ impl ValidMode for Verify {
     /// Contains at most one _target_ branch. Source branches are eagerly patched to
     /// their target branch using the branch table.
     type Branches<'m> = Option<SideTableBranch<'m>>;
-    type BranchTable<'m> = Metadata<'m>;
+    type BranchTable<'m> = BranchTableView<'m>;
     type SideTable<'m> = SideTableView<'m>;
     type Result = ();
 
@@ -146,16 +163,16 @@ impl ValidMode for Verify {
         check(parser.parse_section_id()? == SectionId::Custom)?;
         let mut section = parser.split_section()?;
         check(section.parse_name()? == "wasefire-sidetable")?;
-        SideTableView::new(parser)
+        SideTableView::new(parser.save())
     }
 
     fn next_branch_table<'a, 'm>(
         side_table: &'a mut Self::SideTable<'m>, type_idx: usize, parser_range: Range<usize>,
     ) -> Result<&'a mut Self::BranchTable<'m>, Error> {
-        side_table.branch_table_view = side_table.metadata(side_table.func_idx);
+        side_table.branch_table_view = side_table.branch_table_view(side_table.func_idx);
         side_table.func_idx += 1;
-        check(side_table.branch_table_view.type_idx() == type_idx)?;
-        check(side_table.branch_table_view.parser_range() == parser_range)?;
+        check(side_table.branch_table_view.metadata.type_idx() == type_idx)?;
+        check(side_table.branch_table_view.metadata.parser_range() == parser_range)?;
         Ok(&mut side_table.branch_table_view)
     }
 
@@ -170,7 +187,7 @@ impl<'m> BranchesApi<'m> for Option<SideTableBranch<'m>> {
     }
 }
 
-impl<'m> BranchTableApi<'m> for Metadata<'m> {
+impl<'m> BranchTableApi<'m> for BranchTableView<'m> {
     fn stitch_branch(
         &mut self, source: SideTableBranch<'m>, target: SideTableBranch<'m>,
     ) -> CheckResult {
@@ -178,7 +195,8 @@ impl<'m> BranchTableApi<'m> for Metadata<'m> {
     }
 
     fn patch_branch(&self, mut source: SideTableBranch<'m>) -> Result<SideTableBranch<'m>, Error> {
-        let entry = self.branch_table()[source.branch_table].view();
+        source.branch_table = self.branch_idx;
+        let entry = self.metadata.branch_table()[source.branch_table].view();
         offset_front(source.parser, entry.delta_ip as isize);
         source.branch_table += entry.delta_stp as usize;
         source.result = entry.val_cnt as usize;
@@ -186,10 +204,12 @@ impl<'m> BranchTableApi<'m> for Metadata<'m> {
         Ok(source)
     }
 
-    fn allocate_branch(&mut self) {}
+    fn allocate_branch(&mut self) {
+        self.branch_idx += 1;
+    }
 
     fn next_index(&self) -> usize {
-        0
+        self.branch_idx
     }
 }
 
diff --git a/crates/interpreter/tests/spec.rs b/crates/interpreter/tests/spec.rs
index de3b9bc2..b5ab57bc 100644
--- a/crates/interpreter/tests/spec.rs
+++ b/crates/interpreter/tests/spec.rs
@@ -164,6 +164,9 @@ impl<'m> Env<'m> {
     }
 
     fn maybe_instantiate(&mut self, name: &str, wasm: &[u8]) -> Result<InstId, Error> {
+        let side_table = prepare(wasm)?;
+        let merged = merge(wasm, side_table)?;
+        let wasm = merged.as_slice();
         let module = self.alloc(wasm.len());
         module.copy_from_slice(wasm);
         let module = Module::new(module)?;