The Truths of Love: Chapter eighteen

Disclaimer: I don't own Sailor Moon. Never have, never will, so please don't sue me.

A/N: Alright, so here's eighteen. I thought that this should just be a light, fun chapter after all the serious ones we've had recently. Ah, and by the way. Just to let you know now, I think I said this earlier, but oh well. I finally made the musical at school, (yay!) so there might not be an update for awhile. I'll do my best to get them out, because I know that you all want them so badly. I apologize, though, if there is a lack in them. Again, this is because of the musical, which will be over on the twentieth of November. And once again, I want to thank all of my lovely editors, and even more importantly, my lovely reviewers. You all mean so much to me. Keep the reviews going, I appreciate every last one of them! So, with all that said, here's chapter eighteen.

"Oh, Usagi," Minako sighed for what seemed like the tenth time in the past five minutes. "You're so lucky! Let me see the ring again, please? And tell us the story again!"

It had been four weeks since Mamoru had proposed to Usagi, and she'd finally had the time to get away from work and from Mamoru to just have a girl's day out.

Rei rolled her eyes, and Minako screeched and scooted aside as a shoe came flying at her head.

"Minako, we've heard the story ten times now, and all at your request. And you have that...memory...thing... where after hearing something just once you can know it backwards and forwards. You must know this story so well, you could repeat it in your sleep," Rei moaned.

Minako grumbled and gingerly touched her arm, where the shoe had landed.

"Geez, Rei. You didn't have to throw your shoe at me. You could have just said what was on your mind," she complained.

Makoto smirked and lightly thwacked Minako in the side of the head.

"She did tell you, Minako. The last nine times you asked for the story."

Minako grimaced and pulled her hand away, examining her arm closely.

"Yes, well, she should have said it louder. And Rei, you should really think about joining baseball or something. That was hard enough to kill!"

Rei smirked and blew her bangs out of her eyes.

"I've been practicing," she taunted.

Usagi sat back, watching her friends with a small smile on her face. Her mind, meanwhile, was elsewhere.

Ever since the day HE had been sentenced to death, she'd kept thinking about him. Yes, she knew he deserved it, but was she sinking to his level in allowing him to be killed?

She was snapped out of her reverie when she heard her name being called.

"Usagi? Usagi, are you in there?" Rei asked, snapping her fingers in front of Usagi's face.

Usagi grimaced and flinched back from the fingers.

"Yes, yes. What can I do for you, Ms. Rei?" She asked her friend, her tone teasing.

Rei's cheeks puffed out in indignation at the implied insult.

"Usagi Tsukino, are you making fun of me?" She demanded, standing above Usagi and towering over her, her hands on her hips.

Usagi just smirked up at the scowling figure.

"And if I am? What are you going to do about it?" She asked, sticking her tongue out at the outraged figure.

Rei glanced around, and her eyes lighted upon the nearest object, which happened to be a pillow. Grinning wickedly, she picked it up.

"Then I will have to beat you into submission until you apologize profusely for making fun of me, your best friend," she replied, and proceeded to smack the astonished Usagi across the face with the feather pillow.

Pretty soon, Usagi gathered her wits and grabbed a pillow soon, and an all out pillow fight broke out. In the end, feathers were flying everywhere, and all five of the girls were covered with them, laughing and hitting each other with pillows until they all collapsed onto the floor.

"So, Usagi?" Rei asked breathlessly. "Do you surrender? Or do I have to hit you again?"

"Me?" Usagi asked indignantly. "If I recall correctly, I do believe it is you who should be the one to surrender, as I am the one that knocked you down first."

Rei scowled and smacked Usagi once more across the face, just for good measure.

"Hey!" Usagi shrieked. "What was that for?!"

Rei smirked.

"Just because."

"Can't you two ever stop arguing?" Ami asked timidly from her spot on the floor.

"No," Makoto, Minako, Rei and Usagi answered in unison.

Rei and Usagi glanced at Makoto and Minako.

"Did she ask you two?" Rei asked

"Yeah, because I believe I heard 'you two.' And it looks to me like you two aren't arguing," Usagi added.

Minako raised an eyebrow in feigned amazement.

"Oh my. Did Rei and Usagi just agree on something? Ami, Makoto, quickly! Alert the headlines! This is a big day."

Rei rolled her eyes as Ami and Makoto giggled softly. Usagi stretched out and then sat up, looking around at the feathers strewn around the room.

"I don't pity the person who cleans this up," she said with a smirk. "So. That being said, I should get going."

Standing up, she headed to the door of the bedroom when a voice held her back.

"Oh no you don't, Usagi Tsukino. You were in on this, and you're going to help us clean it up," Rei commanded.

"But Rei," Usagi whined, "you started it!"

"Yes, and we all finished it," Rei said in a tone that brooked no arguments.

"She's right, Usagi," Ami piped up softly. "It's only fair that we all stay to help clean up."

Usagi groaned and stomped her feet.

"That's just like you, Ami, always being the self righteous one."

Ami's face turned an interesting shade of red at this, and she attempted to stutter something out in her own defense, but gave up with a sigh.

Minako and Makoto watched all of this with a slight grin.

Finally Minako sat up.

"Alright, guys. We do need to start cleaning up, and then we need to get to the real reason Usagi came over here."

"That's right!" Rei said, her eyes snapping with delight.

"Bridesmaid dresses!" The four girls, excluding Usagi, cried out in unison.

Usagi smiled lightly. That was indeed the real reason why she'd come over. However, one person was missing.

"I think we should wait for Naru to get here before we start, though. She already had to miss out on our pillow fight because of the work, and I don't want her to miss out having a choice in what she wears."

"Aw, concerned for me, Usa-chan?" A voice asked from behind her.

"Naru!" Usagi squealed, throwing her arms around the petite girl.

Naru looked around the feathery room, her eyes twinkling with laughter.

"What happened here?" she asked. "Looks like someone plucked a duck."

"Or a goose," Rei commented wryly. "Those are goose feathers. We had a major pillow fight, and the pillows kind of... broke."

Naru burst into laughter at the sight of the four girls on the floor, and Usagi standing up, each one of them covered in feathers.

Usagi got a wicked gleam in her eyes.

"Yeah, Naru. Actually, we were just about to clean up. You came just in time to help us. Aren't you the lucky one?"

Naru's eyes flew wide open and she began to back up and out of the doorway as the other four girls stood up and the five began to advance on her.

"Uh uh, no way are you getting me to help clean up this mess!" Naru shrieked. "I didn't have any part of it, and I won't be subject to helping you clean it!"

Five minutes later...

"I can't believe you got me to help you clean this up," Naru grumbled, holding out the dust pan and dumping another load of feathers into the black garbage bag Ami was holding.

Usagi smirked.

"I always was good at getting my way," she boasted.

Naru just rolled her eyes and threw a handful of feathers at her.

Usagi spluttered as feathers flew into her mouth and was just about to throw a handful back when a hand caught her arm.

"Hey. Act like the grown ups you are!" Makoto said. "I'm not about to start this clean up all over again because of a couple of children."

Usagi's eyes widened in mock outrage.

"Excuse me, Makoto, but who's the one getting married, and the one not?" She asked indignantly.

Makoto snorted indelicately.

"Then act the mature about-to-be-married woman," she said.

"Oh, I'll be your about-to-be-married woman alright," Usagi muttered as she threw a handful of feathers directly into Makoto's face.

Makoto's eyes widened and she grabbed a handful of feathers of her own.

"You did not just do that!" Makoto screeched as she threw her handful of feathers at Usagi.

"You guys!" Rei wailed as feathers began to fly once more. "We just started to--"

At that moment a handful of feathers hit her full in the face, and her protest was cut off.

"Alright, that does it," she muttered, and soon enough a full out feather war ensued.

After half an hour, the six girls lay laughing on the floor, the garbage bag forgotten and empty once more.

"Well, we got far," Ami commented wryly, picking up a feather and wrinkling her nose as she threw it, as forcefully as you can throw a feather, into the garbage bag.

Usagi smirked and sat up.

"Alright, let's clean up this time. We need to get to the dresses soon, because Mamoru and I are going out later tonight."

Naru sighed dreamily.

"You're so lucky, Usagi. Mamoru is so handsome, too."

Usagi grinned and wiggled her eyebrows.

"Yeah, and he's rich, too. You should see the apartment he lives in!"

Ami gasped slightly.

"Usagi!" She cried in despair. "Please don't tell me that that's the only reason you're marrying him!"

Usagi scoffed.

"Please, Ami. I'm offended. Although, it doesn't hurt that he is rich..."

She laughed as Ami elbowed her none too gently in the side.

"Relax, Ami, I'm only kidding. I love Mamoru." Her voice trailed off slightly, and her eyes became distant. "I really, really love him."

"Usagi... Usagi, snap out of it," Rei said.

"Oh, sorry," Usagi said, blinking her eyes a few times. "I guess my mind wandered for a bit."

"A bit?" Minako asked with a smirk. "It's been forty five minutes. We cleaned the feathers up without you, and you can thank Ami for that. She decided that we shouldn't wake you up."

Usagi shot Ami a grateful look. Ami smiled and nodded her head discreetly before going back to cleaning up a few excess feathers.

"Alright, you guys, I brought over some magazines filled with dresses to look at. And remember: you can choose one style of dress but a completely different color. It all works."

"And what about your wedding dress, Usagi?" Naru asked.

"Yeah. Have you even started looking for one?" Minako chimed in.

Usagi shook her head slightly.

"Not yet. The wedding isn't for another seven months. And I want to wait until the last minute before picking my dress. After all, you never know when a new style is coming out that you'll like better than the one you bought."

"Oh yes," Rei smirked. "And knowing you, you always want to keep your options open, right?"

"Well of course! I'm glad you know me so well, Rei." Usagi replied nonchalantly.

Minako rolled her eyes slightly.

"Alright, so can we look at these magazines already? Usagi, you should be happy to give them out if you have a date with Mamoru."

"Ah, that's right!" Usagi exclaimed and grabbed at the back pack she'd brought with her. Opening it up, she began rummaging around inside of it, frowning and biting her lower lip.

"I know I put them in here," she muttered to herself. "Ah! Found them!"

Pulling back, she held out a bunch of Bridal magazines, setting them on the floor.

"And if I have to go soon, I'll leave them here, and you guys can look at them until we meet next... probably tomorrow or the next day."

Naru, Makoto, Minako, Ami and Rei exchanged a look.

"Geez, Usagi, you actually thought about this, and planned it," Rei teased.

Usagi puffed up indignantly.

"And what is that supposed to mean? Are you trying to imply that I can't plan anything? For your information, Rei Hino, I am planning this entire wedding on my own! Mamoru wants nothing to do with it, and I don't have a mother who..." Her voice trailed off and her eyes welled up with tears.

Even after all of this time, it still hurt, and knowing that Matt had been the cause of her family's death was even worse.

"I don't have a mother to help me. Or a father to walk me down the aisle. Or a brother to watch me being married. I lost all of that," she continued softly, turning away and brushing away the tears that ran down her cheeks.

Rei's eyes flickered and she quickly got up, running to Usagi and wrapping her friend in a tight hug.

"I didn't mean it, Usa. I'm sorry." Rei said quietly.

Usagi just nodded and brushed the last few tears away, forced a bright smile, and turned around.

"Anyways, we're wasting time. Let's get moving on this," she declared.

The other four girls sat silently, watching Rei and Usagi for the moment, before noticing Usagi's odd stare.

"Well?" Usagi demanded. "Aren't we going to start? I don't have all day."

Immediately Ami, Makoto, Minako and Naru burst into action, each of them snatching at the closest Bridal magazine.

After a few minutes, things were settling down, and the girls were each absorbed in their own magazine.

"Oh, look at this one!" Minako exclaimed, thrusting out the magazine for the rest of the girls to look at.

The dress was a soft orange in color, and pretty plain in appearance. It hung to the floor, and the bodice was tight, before the rest of the gown sort of flowed out. The dress was sleeveless, and only small spaghetti straps held it up. On the chest, a few beads created a small flower decoration. There was no back of the dress to speak of.

Usagi wrinkled her nose and shook her head.

"It's too plain," she announced, and Rei, Ami, Makoto and Naru nodded their heads in agreement.

"Alright," Minako said huffily as she took the magazine back.

Again silence fell over the room as the six girls looked through magazines.

Suddenly Naru shrieked and pointed at one of the dresses.

"What about this one?" She asked excitedly.

This time, the dress was a golden yellow, and strapless. As with Minako's choice dress, it was cut to fit the upper body perfectly. The back had strings tying the dress together. Beadwork ran along the top inch of the dress, all the way to the back where it ended at the ties.

Again, Usagi shook her head slightly, and again, the other four girls nodded in agreement with Usagi.

"I'm sorry, Naru. It's just not the one I want," Usagi said.

Naru sighed regretfully, and once more the girls began to look through magazines, discarding ones they'd looked through for new ones.

"Oh, look at this one," Makoto said with a small smile.

The dress was a light, olive green in color. Small spaghetti straps held the dress up. At the waist, a small green flower held a bunch of fabric up, pulling the dress slightly up at the knee, giving it an elegant, yet casual look, more like what someone would wear to a prom.

Usagi wrinkled her nose slightly in distaste, and Makoto grinned.

"Well, that's what I'll have at my wedding, then, Usagi, and you can't argue with it." Makoto declared.

"Oh?" Usagi raised an eyebrow. "I didn't hear you were getting married. Who's the guy?"

Makoto blushed a deep shade of red. "There is no one yet. But when I do get married, that's what you're going to be wearing."

Usagi smirked.

"Right, Makoto, whatever you say. As soon as you meet the guy you'll be marrying, let me know, alright? I want to meet him."

Makoto rolled her eyes, and the girls dove back into the magazines.

After awhile, Rei gasped and pointed at one.

"This is it!" She announced. "Usagi, this is the one you'll be getting. I just know it."

"Oh yeah?" Usagi raised an eyebrow. "Let me see it."

As soon as Usagi saw it, her eyebrows shot up.

"This is it!" She breathed out quietly. "Rei, you were right!"

The dress was light lavender in color. Whereas Minako and Naru had pointed out dresses that only accentuated the upper body, this accentuated the upper body, and the waist before curving out slightly at the bottom. The fabric looked to be made of silk. Inch thick, beaded straps held the dress up. The back consisted of an 'x' of beaded material, and then a few buttons.

Minako, Ami, Naru, Usagi and Makoto were all nodding their heads, and Rei stood there, her arms crossed, smirking.

"I knew I'd find it," she boasted.

"Rei, don't start," Usagi warned, grabbing for a pillow. "Or there will be another pillow fight, and I'll be leaving before you pick it up."

Rei just rolled her eyes.

"So, we're in agreement then?" She asked.

Usagi nodded slightly.

"That's the one I want for my wedding," she agreed.

"Uh, Usagi?" Ami asked timidly.

Usagi turned to face the girl with a questioning look, and Ami turned a light shade of red.

"I was just wondering. I was thinking it might be neat if we all had different colors for the dresses, instead of the same color." Seeing the thoughtful look on Usagi's face, Ami quickly amended, "Unless, of course, you want us to all be wearing the same color. It is your wedding after all."

"No, no, Ami. That's a great idea. It'd be really cool," Usagi said after a moment. "Yeah, each of you can pick your own color. Of course, we'd have to see if they have the dress in that color, and even if they don't, we'll ask for it to be custom made."

Rei and Makoto were nodding, Naru looked thoughtful, and Minako was already jumping up and down.

"I call gold!" She cried out.

Usagi laughed and pulled out a pad of paper.

"Alright, tell me what colors you want and I'll talk to the person tonight."

Fifteen minutes later, Usagi put the pad of paper into her bag, along with all of the magazines.

"Alright, I should get going. And Naru, thanks for taking so long in deciding what color you wanted," she added with a light grin to take the sting out of the words. "I'll let you know what they say tomorrow, alright?"

The five girls nodded, and with a last farewell, Usagi turned and left the room.