*Laz drags herself into room, half asleep* Is it over yet?

*Ely throttles Laz* What do you mean, is it done? I'm rather proud of that ending! *sniffs* and what do I get for it?

Laz: Time to work on your other stories?

Ely: ....

*Laz sighs and tosses story out to the hungry masses*

*Ely watches the crowd tear it apart* Gee, you'd think they'd been waiting for this or something...

*Laz shrugs* Maybe.... *snores*

Ely: oy.... well, we hope you enjoy the last chapter. It's up to use your imaginations!


The Longest 24 Hours 8/8
by Lazuli and Elysia
rated PG


Demando paced around the house in his wedding finery, furious that his bride was nowhere to be found--again. Gone. Hiding. She was somewhere near, he knew that much. Why was she avoiding him? He suddenly whirled on the small boy standing in the corner.

"Shingo... You know where your sister is, don't you? Why don't you tell me where she is? Don't you want her to marry me? I'll do so many wonderful things for her... take care of her, get her decent clothes." The last comment clearly showed his disgust for what she was wearing earlier.

Shingo looked him up and down scrupulously. "I don't mean to insult you, sir, but I don't think you're the right one for my sister. You don't love her."

Demando's eyes narrowed. "And how could you be the judge of that when you haven't seen her for the last 5 years?" When Shingo didn't reply, the older man bent over closer to the boy's level. "Listen to me you little brat," he said under his breath, "you'd better tell me where Usagi is or I'll see to it personally that neither you or your mother will be able to show your faces in this village again."

Shingo's eyes widened. It was one thing to receive threats, but NO ONE was allowed to threaten his mother. Now he was sure that Demando had other reasons for marrying Usagi, but love was certainly not one of them.

"I don't care if Usagi is never found, as long as she's not with you! I love my sister, and I don't have to listen to you threatening me." Shingo's words spoken, he kicked Demando hard in the shins before darting off into the woods.

******

Usagi leaned up against the wall of the hiding place, fighting back tears. To see Shingo see and trust her again, so much older... it was amazing. And now he was saving her from Demando. Perhaps being kidnapped all those years ago was a good thing. She didn't have to marry Demando and she got to meet her soulmate. Why they were going through all this hardship now she didn't know, but she should have expected it. The Council had held a rope around her neck for the last four hundred years. What made her think that they would loosen the choke hold now?

Glancing at the faint outline of the stars she could see from her hiding place, Usagi shivered. The twenty four hours should be up by now. She wondered what the final outcome would be and prayed silently that everything would be fine. That somehow, she could get back to Mamoru again.

Usagi felt faint as if she had been without oxygen. She wondered if she dared go out for some fresh air. She was about to get up and chance it when another wave of dizziness overcame her and she put out one hand to steady herself. She glanced down at her arm, surprised by the lightness of her body, almost as if she was floating. She hadn't felt this unused to her genie powers since she had first had them bestowed upon her.

Suddenly she gasped as she felt the blackness surround her, pulling her away from reality with nothing to support her as she fell.

******

Mamoru was miserable. There was no other way to describe the way he felt. In just one day he had been ripped away from his soulmate, failed to complete a relatively simple mission and now he was being forced to marry a girl he absolutely could not stand.

Misery was an understatement.

There came a knock on his chamber door. "The Council is expecting you within five minutes," a voice said. Mamoru sighed. In five minutes his entire life would change for good, which was something he was not looking forward to. He wouldn't have minded this situation one bit if Usagi was the one he was marrying, but it seemed as if he had lost her forever. Sometime after he had failed granting Rei's final wish, Mamoru realized he no longer held Usagi's powers. If they had been returned to her now, he hoped with all his heart that she would find her way home. Even if she came back someday, he would be bound to Lady and he had no power of his own to break that bond.

With a sigh, Mamoru opened the door and began the journey back to the Council room. Happiness was no longer an option. While his name would be contracted to Lady's, his heart would be bound to one person for eternity.

Every step he took led him closer to a destiny he wanted no part of. But he had no choice. Taking a deep sigh, Mamoru grasped the large handle and let himself into the Council room. Everyone stood at the front of the room, waiting for him.

There was no sign of Lady anywhere, and Mamoru heaved a sigh of relief. He didn't want to face her just yet. He turned to the Council members, who only stared back at him with emotionless expressions.

Suddenly the doors behind him opened with a flourish, and the Council members stood up all at once. Turning around slowly, Mamoru watched as a figure swathed in white approached the front of the room, four or five similarly dressed attendants following her.

With a deep breath, Mamoru turned to face Lady as she came to stand next to him. The material around her head was so thick that he could barely see through it. He was silently relieved he couldn't see Lady's face. Her smirk and gloating expression was too much for him at this point.

The highest Council member began the ceremony, speaking a few words in a different tongue. Then he switched languages so Mamoru could understand. Suddenly the Council leader looked directly at him. "In the custom of your mortal world, is there anything you would like to say before I complete the ceremony?"

'I want you to STOP this! I don't want to be married to her! I want Usako, she's the one I love!' Mamoru wanted to scream out, but he held it in painfully. He couldn't win here. Hopefully Usako would forgive him one day.

The Council leader stared at him again. "You pledge your life and loyalty to this woman for the remainder of your mortal life and beyond?" Mamoru gulped once, then nodded sadly, unable to look anyone in the room in the eye. Then the same words were repeated to Lady, who mutely nodded her agreement, thus sealing Mamoru's fate forever. He felt his heart breaking, each piece shattering audibly.

"We are fond of certain mortal customs regarding to marriage. Therefore, now that the ceremony is complete, you may kiss your new bride," one of the other Council members spoke. Mamoru paled suddenly. He had to kiss THAT? Not if his life depended on it!

Another deep breath, and he reached for the white material that covered Lady's head. Maybe if he pulled it back quickly and kept his eyes closed it wouldn't be as bad. He threw back the cloth, shut his eyes tightly, leaned in...

And she kissed him first.

Surprise, shock, and a slight amount of disgust ran through Mamoru's veins. Unfortunately he was enjoying the kiss at the same time. WHAT was wrong with him? This was Lady, that horrible child that pestered him to no end. Cracking an eye open, he took a peek at his new bride...and promptly fell on the floor.

"USAKO?!?"