Chapter 12
Rejected
"I-I can't. I can't marry you." Hearing her angelic voice say those words triggered an unknown emotion in Demando's heart, one that he seldom felt before. All his life, he had always gotten what he wanted, whether willingly or by force. Now he wanted her under those same circumstances. It made no difference if she refused him. She was his captive, his queen. His angel.
Slowly, Demando rose to his feet, still gripping Usagi's wrist. She was silent, waiting for his reaction. Now that she had repudiated his proposal, would he let her go? Set her free? Slim chance.
He suddenly snatched her other hand and grasped it tightly with the first. An agonizing scream ripped from her throat as he teleported back to her room, hastily pushing her onto the bed. It was all happening too fast for her eyes to see. She struggled to throw him off, but he held fast, straddling her waist. Producing thick white cords, he bound her wrists to the headboard, as well as her feet.
"Let me go! Onegai, don't do this!" she cried, straining against her constrictions, but only resulted in burning scrapes on her skin. He smiled maliciously, stroking her silken hair.
"Gomen, my sweet, but you have no choice but to be wed to me. As I stated before, I always get what I want. Always! I don't want your silly Crystal or your useless friends. Just you." Usagi glared at him with such hatred, it would have made anyone cringe. But not him. In fact, he found it quite amusing.
"Ah, yes. I knew you would save your eyes for me," he smirked, tilting her face up to his, " That piercing look, just like before."
"I will never be yours," she shouted contumaciously. But he only laughed at her defiance. She threw her head to the side, squeezing her eyes shut. He would not have her, nor any other part of her body, or her heart.
"Don't worry, Serenity. I'll make the ceremony short so we can get to...know each other." Her eyes snapped open and she gasped. Fire coursed through her veins and she dared to look at him again. This man was disgusting!
"I'm barely 15, baka hentai!" she spat angrily, "so keep your sick lecherous thoughts to yourself!" The White Prince chuckled amusedly at her outburst, leaning down closer to her until his eyes were centimeters away from hers. Usagi's protests died down immediately and her breath caught in her throat. Don't you dare move anymore, she told herself, don't do anything to provoke him further.
Seemingly enough, Demando was content with gazing into her eyes, and she sighed inwardly. But it wasn't that simple. A heated light was burning, blazing in his amethyst orbs. They were fiery with passion, an emotion that she had never seen. She wished that she hadn't seen it, for it was taking her over. She couldn't take it! No!
The tension between the two was so thick and stifling, that Usagi had to let her breath go. She felt her body shaking, scared to move an inch, yet wanting to be as far away from him as possible. But try as she might, she was trapped, still tied to the bed. This realization hit her like ice cold water.
"You can't do this to me! I don't love you! And I'll never love you!" The glow in his eyes brightened, but not in amusement. Anger was what she saw in his eyes and she knew that she had gone too far. He sat straight up and raised his hand to strike her. Usagi whimpered and snapped her eyes shut, tensing her muscles for the blow to come.
"No." He lowered his arm and shook his head, changing his mind. Usagi exhaled in relief and looked up at him. He was studying her again, thinking.
"No, there are better ways of punishing you, and punish you I shall!" Before she could hear his words properly, he captured her lips with his in a harshly administered kiss. Her eyes were wide with fear and she was forced to look straight into his flaming eyes. It scared her to death knowing that she was so weak as to let the enemy take complete control over her. He could take her now and she wouldn't be able to do anything to stop him. Yes, that was his idea of punishment, to take her permanently from her true love...
She thanked Selene when he finally left her, leaving her with bruised lips and flushed cheeks, but still unbroken. He had not taken her virginity. Yet. She had to get out of here! But Demando still had her Ginzuishou, and without it, she was helpless. How could she steal it from him? She couldn't contact her friends and she didn't know where Saffiru was. Trying to take it from Demando herself was certainly out of the question. Usagi tugged on the cords again, in a feeble attempt to free herself again.
"Damn it all to hell!" she cursed, clenching her teeth.
"Such language is not proper for a queen to speak, now is it?" Usagi's heart leapt up to her throat.
"Saffiru!" she cried, lifting her head from the pillow. He looked empathetically at her, then walked to the bed and started to untie the constricting binds from her hands and feet. When the last cord broke away, she sat up, brushing herself off.
"Demando thinks that he might have been a bit harsh with you," he said quietly.
"A bit?" she scoffed, rubbing at her wrists. He shifted uncomfortably.
"He also suggests that you prepare for the marriage ceremony. It is scheduled in one hour." Her eyes narrowed.
"And if I refuse?" she spat, crossing her arms.
"You won't refuse." Saffiru reached into his pocket, pulling out a small object.
"H-How did you-?"
"I took it from my brother. I don't think it's right for a woman to be completely defenseless." Usagi felt a smile of gratitude tugging at her lips, and she took the small Crystal from him.
"Arigatou, Saffiru."
"I know you don't love him. But he loves you, and once he sets his sight on something, he will stop at nothing to get it, no matter what the cost. Even-even if it means the death of five people."
"Five people? Who, Saffiru?"
"Your friends. They are also trapped here."
"What! Where are they? Tell me!"
"I cannot, it is for their safety, and yours." Usagi didn't answer. Surely, Demando didn't plan on...
"Who's the fifth?"
"What?"
"There are four senshi: Mercury, Mars, Jupiter, and Venus. Who is the last one?" Saffiru was shocked. He knew that she didn't know about King Endymion, but Mamoru too? Had Demando completely erased her memory of him, without her even knowing?
Flashback
"You look like someone I know, but I can't remember."
End
"Ano, maybe there were only four people," Saffiru replied, trying to cover for himself. Usagi studied his face, thinking over his words.
"No," she shook her head, "there is a fifth person. Me. You said yourself that he would go to any lengths to get what he wants."
"No! He would never hurt you. Never!" Saffiru sighed exasperatedly. Trying to explain everything to her was exhausting.
"I don't know what's going to happen. But either way, you're going to have to go through with this. Think of this as a way to save your friends. Now let's go. You need to get ready, we've wasted enough time already."
Saffiru lead her to the baths, showing her where the soaps and fragrances were, also leaving her a long white robe to wear when she was finished.
Usagi soaked in the steamy hot water, gently washing her alabaster skin. She wondered if she should just stay here forever and drown herself. Death would be better than marrying that arrogant bastard. But she had to save her friends!
She washed her hair, then stood up, wringing out the excess water. Using a white fluffy towel, she dried her body and wrapped herself in the bathrobe.
As she emerged from the bathroom, Saffiru had to practically hold his mouth shut. It took every bit of self-control for Saffiru not to have erotic fantasies about the beautiful goddess before him. She seemed to make the satin material cling to her body, outlining every luscious curve. Her wet hair gleamed and shimmered all around her, falling to the floor like silver rain. Usagi had no idea what effect she was having on him, yet she kept walking. So this is what Demando was talking about all this time. Such exquisite beauty.
Saffiru followed her dumbly back to her room, only to have the door slammed in his face. He turned a bright scarlet as he realized what he had almost did. Of course he couldn't just walk in after her! She would be changing into the dress that Demando had laid out for her. Saffiru hoped that, for his sake, that the dress would not be too, well, ostentatious.
When Usagi entered her room, she flung her hair over her shoulder, looking for something worthy of a wedding gown. She caught her reflection in the mirror and gasped outloud. Her body had changed! Sure, she looked the same, but there were differences that she couldn't help but notice. Her hair had turned silver and was at least a foot longer. Her height had been raised by a few inches and her...oh goodness...Usagi turned to the side, studying her reflection further. Well, there you have it. It was a slim chance that Demando would not notice her increased, uh, charms. It seemed that she now had the body of a twenty-two year old. Things couldn't get worse.
Usagi had spoken too soon when she saw the bed and what was lying on it. She scoffed as she picked up the most provocative wedding dress she had ever seen. Sure it was gorgeous, with tiny pearls sprinkling the bodice and silver swirls enthreaded throughout the skirt. But it was also strapless and it had two large slits on the skirt, where her slim legs would certainly show through when she walked.
She shrugged the bathrobe off and slipped the white dress on. Demando must have been planning this for a long time, since the gown fit perfectly. Tightly and snug, but perfect nevertheless. She tried desperately to tug it up towards her neck to cover her cleavage, but then the slits were pulled up too high, leaving little for the imagination. She bit her lip and groaned. It should be illegal to show so much skin.
To her relief, Demando had also given her a long jacket made of a shimmering, translucent material. The sleeves were long and wide, hemmed with a silver ribbon. She wrapped it tightly around her, wishing that it would cover her more thoroughly. But there was no chance of that. She sighed, not believing that she was actually going to do this.
After putting up her hair in her odangoes and slipping on the pair of white shoes by the bed, she opened the door. Saffiru could only stare. Great, now he was hitting on her.
"Are you going to take me, or do I have to get a bucket first?"
"Bucket?" he repeated slowly.
"For your drooling, of course," she replied. That snapped him to attention and he apologized, taking her arm to walk her to the main chamber. As they walked, she adjusted the small silver bracelet on her wrist, which had a tiny jewel hanging from it. She had shrunken the Ginzuishou so as not to be too conspicuous, no bigger than a dime. Before she knew it, they had reached the doors to the main hall.
Usagi suddenly felt faint, and her knees began to shake.
"I can't do this. Saffiru, onegai..." she whimpered, leaning on his arm for support.
"You'll be fine, Usagi. You can do it." He gripped her shoulders, looking into her eyes. She shook her head.
"No..." She buried her face in the crook of his arm, clutching him tightly, afraid that she would lose her balance. He gently pushed her back, holding her upper arms.
"Usagi, this is not time to be weak. You must save your friends. I know it's hard, but I believe in you. Just breathe. Everything will work out fine." She tried to take his arm again, but he shook his head.
"Gomen, Usagi, but I've got to go. Just walk down the aisle."
"Demo-" Saffiru disappeared, leaving her all alone. She bit her lip again, wringing her hands.
"Okay, you can do it Usagi," she told herself. Her hands started to shake as she started to push the doors open. She felt something stiff appear in her hand. Looking down, she saw a single white rose, sprinkled with dewdrops. Somehow, that simple flower gave her courage, and she looked back at the ebony doors that towered above her.
'Just walk through,' she thought. She willed her hand to lift up, and push open the door. To her surprised, her limbs obeyed and she walked through, making the biggest decision of her life.
Things that I absolutely hate with a burning passion about Sailor Moon Fanfiction
1. I hate it when people write a story and they use the American dub names, especially, shudder, Amara and Michelle, which are, if you did not know, Haruka and Michiru. Think about it, how in the world do you get Amara from Haruka? Their Japanese names just sound so much better. And when I say better, I mean they sound more natural. Maybe this is the effect of what the American series is doing to me, because I have seen all of the uncut episodes.
2. I hate it when people try to write a dramatic or serious story, but it moves waaaaay too fast. They scrunch it up into, like three chapters, and totally ruin a great story. I mean, if they have time to actually write a story and they have good ideas, then they can take out time to put in details. But that's just me. And I definitely know that I am not the world's best writer. I mean, look at how this story came out.
3. I hate it when people write a part in their story about Usagi, or the scouts, getting new powers and giving her a new outfit. Usually, they make her wear something slutty and/or black, which is way too OOC for her. She and the scouts, at least the inners, would never wear black or something scant, most of all Usagi. Her personality is too pure for that. Yes, I am aware of some fics out there of which have Usagi run away from the group or become more mature and understanding. But that is no reason to dress her up in slutty outfits. But I guess there are extremes for everything, ne?
4. I hate it when people bring in new senshi and try to make up weird personalities, names, and powers for them. Sometimes I wonder how twisted or high on crack you have to be to do that. I mean, there are hundreds of senshi in the real story, for crying outloud! How many more do you need? That goes the same for villains. It's okay to bring them back from the dead or something, or have them not really die at all, or something like that. But unless there is a truly original villain out there, your story might not get off to the best start, or end for that matter.
And there you have it. Four main reasons why I hate Sailor Moon Fanfiction. Now you might say that I'm being a hypocrite or something, because I am writing one of my own, but...well, this is my opinion. You can agree or not agree, I don't care. I just HAD to get that off my chest! Now I have, so I will let you go back to whatever you were doing...ja ne!
(sneaks off) Now if this doesn't bring in some reviews, nothing will!