AN: Sorry for the long wait, as many of you know that my stories are all being updated very slowly. If there are stories that you love and want updated, all I can ask of you is to wait patiently. I have not given up and discontinued my stories, I am just trying to write them in the very little spare time that I have so it might take me a while.
Sorry again!
Recap
Chibi-Usa grabbed onto Endymion's arm and pulled him towards Usagi. The two of them reenacted what the previous eight senshi had done where their starseeds had emerged and also merged their memories within the Ginzuishou. Memories of the past Silver Millenium and the love Serenity and Endymion had for each other and memories of the future that would never come with Crystal Tokyo and Chibi-Usa traveling back in time to escape the Dark Moon and meeting up with her parents' past selves. When they had finished, the father and daughter stepped back and watched as the pained expression of Usagi's face lessened and became more peaceful.
Ch27
Everybody in the room could feel the heavy weight being lifted off their shoulders as Usagi became more relaxed. Her skin retained its usual glow. Her breathing became more relaxed compared to the intense heavy gasps of air from before. The now pure white angelic wings vanished back into her body, as if giving everyone a signal that all is well with Usagi now.
Setsuna watched over Usagi with a caring look in her eyes. "Everything's been reversed, but when she'll wake up is entirely up to her," she said.
Momiji grabbed onto the sleeve of Hatori's lab coat. "Ha'ri, can I stay in this room with Tenshi?" he asked.
Following his example, Kisa looked up at Tohru. Her light brown eyes blinking as she asked, "Nee-chan, can we?"
Tohru looked back and forth at Kisa and then at Akito, torn between wanting to stay with Usagi as well and leaving Akito and Usagi to rest in peace. "Well…" she began hesitantly.
"Hatori, have guest rooms ready for everyone," Akito announced to everyone's surprise. "It's best to have everyone close by in case she wakes up soon." His tired black eyes watched Usagi as he ignored Shigue and Hatori ushering everybody out of the room and into the guest accommodations.
As he sat there, watching Usagi, Akito forgot about the spirits that were still residing in the room. When he felt a cold hand touch his shoulder, Akito jumped and quickly turned around to see Pluto standing behind him with understanding red eyes.
"I am NOT leaving her side," Akito spat out before quickly.
"We're not asking you to," Pluto said, "But you do need to rest as well."
Akito felt the weight of a blanket and turned his head around to see Neptune draping a blanket to protect him from the cool night breezes but thin for the warm weather they've been having. "It would make Usagi-chan very upset to see you get sick because you've been watching over her," she said.
A sad desperate look appeared on Akito's face as he whispered softly, "After all that I had done to her and her precious zodiac, she'll be relieved that something bad happened to me." His black eyes gazed at Usagi's face as he muttered, "She hates me."
"If there's one thing that Usagi-chan cannot do, it's hate somebody. Strongly dislike, yes, but hate is impossible," Venus explained.
"And it sure didn't sound like she hated you when she told us about her family," Mars said, "It sounded like she was more terrified of your temper than filled with hatred."
"You do know that she does care for you," Endymion announced to Akito's surprise. The prince of ancient earth smiled softly with no hint of arrogance or envy at him. "Usako would often tell me about the relationship between you two and how you always thought of her happiness and well being. She really adored you as a child, but at the same time she was scared of you."
"When she wakes up, send her back to Shigure's," Neptune suggested, "Give her time to recover. Have her come to you when she is ready."
"But will she come back?" Akito asked.
Everybody smiled and, before they left, said in unison, "Without a doubt."
Akito folded his hands and laid his head down on top of them. He could feel his eyes slowly losing the strength to remain open. With one last deep sigh and grasping one of Usagi's hands into his, he fell asleep, hoping and praying that even after everything, his beloved angel would forgive him and remain with him.
/-/
After what felt a long time, Usagi's eyes slowly began to flutter open as the sun's rays came and hit her face. Because she had been asleep for a long while, her vision was a bit blurry. As she blinked her eyes slowly a few times to get her vision cleared, Usagi began to ponder everything that had occurred.
She remembered everything from Akito having her move back into the main house to erasing her memories, which caused her to fall ill. And despite being unconscious, she could feel the presence of her friends helping to repair the damages that have been done by restoring those that was taken away. And even though eventually they had to leave again, she could still feel their presences, unlike before when her memories were wiped out.
Usagi turned her head to the side and wasn't surprised to see Akito asleep beside her. It was strange that despite all these things Akito had done, she doesn't feel repulsed at the idea of him being so close to her or the need to quickly get away. Slowly, she lifted herself to sit up and used the hand that was not in a tight grasp and ran it through Akito's black hair gently. Even after all these years, he still held a special place in her heart that resided next to her beloved Endymion in the past and Mamoru in the present. At first, she believed that it was the curse's bond, but she remembered that the bonds do not force the members of the zodiac to feel a certain way with God, as with the relationship between Yuki and Akito.
Thinking back, she remembered the first time she had ever saw Akito and was introduced as God's angel to him. She was very young but she remembered the feeling of being in awe when she was told about the curse by her mother, whose own father was the rat in the zodiac. Remembering how the God was revered in the Sohma family, but also at the same time feared by the members of the zodiac, Usagi couldn't help but imagine the sad loneliness the head of the family must feel to be surrounded yet isolated by everyone else.
When she first laid eyes on Akito, even despite being very young, Usagi was able to see the distant and lonely aura the young boy had surrounding him. That loneliness was what drawn her to him, she wanted to help ease the pain he had hidden deep in his heart. At first, she called him 'onii-chama', but he established a distance between them when he ordered her to call him but his name with an honorific.
But as time went on, the distance began to close up, until that fateful day when a rift grew in their relationship. That was when a fear began to grow in her; if he was able to act cruel to the others, how long will it be until he directs the cruelty to her. Silently, she began to wonder if their relationship could ever go back to the days when he smiled gently at her and the fear is all gone.
He felt a soft hand run themselves in his hair, brushing the strands away from his face. Akito's eyes tightened closed before he slowly opened them. Without moving his head, he looked to see who was touching him, and saw Usagi sitting in the bedding with her eyes in a faraway trance. His eyes widened as he quickly sat up. "Usagi!" he cried out softly. He threw his arms around her and began whispering in her ears, "Gomen," over and over again.
Usagi didn't move as she felt the arms around her tighten. "Akito-san…" she whispered. Tears began to enter her eyes as she thought back to the time of her first injury Akito had unintentionally done. The look of regret in his eyes when he saw the blood running down her hands and when she avoided his hug haunted her. She was about to raise her arms up and return the hug when the doors opened.
"Onee-chan!" Shingo shouted as he ran into the room.
Akito released Usagi and retreated to the side as the crowd entered the room and began to surround the bedridden girl. He watched as the smile he hasn't seen since her memory was erased brightened up the room. His fingers curled to meet the palm of his hands and form two fists. He bit his lips as he remembered what those spirits had told him. He closed his eyes so he wouldn't see the reunion as he contemplated on what to do. Taking a deep breath, Akito decided to do something right.
He cleared his throat loudly so everyone could hear him. Akito opened his eyes and with a blank look on his face, he said, "Hatori, pack Usagi's things and send them back to Shigure." He turned around so he wouldn't be able to see Usagi's face and he could continue his commands, "You are free to go, Usagi. Leave." With that, he quickly left the room so nobody could see the tears that began to fall down.
As she ignored the excited chatter around her, Usagi couldn't help but feel her heart was slowly being crushed again, it was the same shattering feeling she had felt when her memories were wiped clean. She continued to stare at the open doorway where Akito had left from. She could feel the hugs and pats on the back as the younger members of the zodiac congratulated her from her newfound freedom from Akito, but she couldn't hear anything.
Ayame, Shigure, and Hatori's eyes locked into each other as if talking silently. They weren't as blind as the younger generation to not notice the heartbroken look in Usagi's eyes. They knew that despite the fear she had of Akito recently, Usagi was very close to the head of the family. Just like the rest of them, she felt both sides of wanting to be close and wanting to be as far away as possible. They also knew that it must've taken a lot of strength for Akito to have Usagi leave with only her own free will to return.
/-/
Usagi stared out into the yard from the sliding doors separating the dining area from the outside. They had just moved all the belongings back into Shigure's house and Hatori wanted her to stay at home more day before she heads off to school.
After everything was put back in order, Seiya, Taiki, and Yaten had left to go back home with ChibiChibi being sent back to Galaxia. Shigure was holed up in his office with his editor standing over him with a metal bat in hand, watching him like a hawk to finish his work. Shingo and the rest of the teenagers had went to school, leaving Usagi alone with Luna and Artemis, back in their cat forms.
The front door opened up, signaling to her that her cousins had returned home.
"I'm telling you Hatori must've been behind this!" Kyo shouted at the top of his lungs.
"And I'm telling you that it's impossible," Yuki's calm voice argued back.
Tohru poked her head into the dining room and smiled at Usagi. "Tadaima," she said cheerfully.
A soft smile appeared on her face. "Okaeri," Usagi replied. She watched as Yuki and Kyo entered the room. She tilted her head and asked, "Where's Shingo?'
"Shingo-kun said that he has soccer practice so he'll be home late," Yuki replied, sitting down beside Usagi, accepting a cup of tea from her.
Kyo sat down across from the rat and the angel and glared at Yuki. "Then how else can you explain this?" he said angrily, banging his fist on the table.
Usagi looked at her two cousins and asked cautiously, "Did something happen?"
When Kyo turned to Usagi, his red eyes softened a bit. "Yeah, the minute we entered the school, everybody kept asking us if you were okay and nobody had any recollection of the Three Lights ever entering our school. It was like Hatori had their memories were wiped clean," he explained.
Yuki sighed in annoyance as he muttered, "And I kept telling this baka neko that that would be impossible."
Usagi tilted her head to the side as she thought about the possibilities. She agreed with Yuki that it would be impossible for Hatori to get to everybody in the school and simply erase their memories and yet she also agreed with Kyo that Hatori does have the power to erase memories. As the rat and the cat began to have their arguments yet again and Tohru had entered the kitchen to begin the dinner's preparations, Usagi began to wonder what could have…
Usagi's body immediately shot up and she sat straight, causing the arguing teens to stop and stare at her. Not realizing their stares, Usagi thought of something that Pluto had told her as she recovered in her sleep. The last simple gift they could present to her was all what the guardian of time told her before vanishing. While she was grateful that they replaced several information in the student body with information stating that she had gotten very ill which was why she haven't been coming to school during her stay at the Sohma main house, Usagi couldn't help but wonder if they were allowed to do that.