The Xiaolin Monks sat silently in their classroom eagerly waiting for Master Fung to finish grading their World History reports. Saving the world was a full time job, but being a good student was also important in their lives. Having a well-rounded education would help them one day when they decided to leave the Temple.
"I'm most anxious to learn the results of my report. I hope that Master Fung was pleased by how much time and research I put into my paper on the Korean War," Omi whispered.
"Well my paper was on India declaring its independence from Great Britain. Believe me looking up information on my hero Gandhi was well worth a few sleepless nights," Stacey wittily retorted. Inside she was a nervous wreck. School had always been hard for her back in Mumbai, but here she had an opportunity to truly excel.
"Ahem I've finished your reports on the events that most changed the world in the last century. I must say I'm very pleased by the amount of time and research that went into these papers. It truly shows how much you care. As I return your papers I will also be handing out progress reports. After you've them you may have an hour of free time," Master Fung told them. He got up from behind his desk and started passing out the papers.
"Omi, you need to work on strengthening your paper. I didn't feel that you adequately explained why the Korean War occurred or why some of the other countries got involved. Still your progress report is excellent," Master Fung told the little monk who frowned at his B-, but cheered up when he saw his straight A's.
"Yes! I'm truly the best student in the class!" Omi exclaimed happily. He jumped out of his seat and tore out of the classroom. The rest of the class shook their heads knowing they hear more about his good grades later.
"Kimiko, good paper on Japan's technological revolution and good grades. However you could do a little improvement in Science."
"Thanks Master Fung. I'll bring it up I promise."
The others were all like that. Good papers that only need a few improvements. The others were pleased with their A or B grades. Stacey was the last one to receive her paper. She smiled at the A+ on top and was astonished that she had received straight A+'s on her progress report. "Master Fung there must be some mistake. I've never gotten grades this good before, not even at my old school back home."
"Stacey there is no mistake. You've been working extremely hard at school steadily improving. I realize that your old school didn't provide you with the same opportunities as here, but I want you to succeed not only in your training, but with a proper education you can achieve any goal you dream of," Master Fung told her gently. He smiled as she left the classroom sensing a big change was about to occur to his student.
A little while later Jermaine was helping Stacey prepare her food offerings for her alter. Ever since the two of them had started dating he had gotten more into religion. "So what did Master Fung have to say about your grades?"
"He was just telling me that I'm exceeding my own expectations. He thinks I really have a chance at achieving my dreams. I really hope that's true because more then anything I want to be an artist. Put the fruits over there okay? Really back home I would never get this kind of opportunity," Stacey said lighting the candles and kneeling in front of her alter. She began to chant praising Shiva, Vista, and Brahma. She also prayed that the Festival of Lights celebration would come soon and nothing would interrupt this festive occasion.
"So why wouldn't you be able to become an artist back home? I mean I thought your schools focused on the arts as one of its primary courses for living. Is it because you're a girl?" Jermaine asked as they headed to the project room. Stacey was doing water colored portrait of him and he was eager to see the final result.
"Sort of, while the caste system has disappeared and women have a lot more options males still dominate the country. My folks are a little more modern so they did feed me and treated me equally to my brothers, but it's still hard to find a good job for a female artist. Now hold still and tilt your head back. This is going to take awhile so get comfortable," Stacey instructed dipping her brush into the water and mixing her light brown with her dark brown. Taking a deep breath she gently stroked the brush across the canvas. Slowly she added the final details to Jermaine's head making it perfect. Smooth even brush strokes brought the colors to life. By the end of the hour Stacey was covered in paint, but the painting was done. "Well what do you think?"
"I like it, it really does look like me. I think I'll mail it to my mom. She's been asking for picture of me, I'm sure she'll enjoy this piece of art better then any photo of me don't you think so?" Jermaine voiced. It was truly a masterpiece. The painting dictated Jermaine holding a basketball under one arm while looking up at the heavens.
"I prefer the real thing to a painting any day," Stacey said kissing him lightly on the cheek. Before the two of them could get into a lip lock session when Dojo slithered into the room. "Dojo! What do you want?"
"Sorry to interrupt your make out session kiddies, but I've got a long distant phone call from Mumbai, India from one Anil Hindi. I can't understand a word he's saying, but it must be important," Dojo said handing her the phone.
"Hello? Father it's nice to hear from you. Yes I'm doing fine in fact I just got my progress report and I got straight A's! Yeah it's amazing isn't it? So why are you calling? What Father I." Stacy at this point started speaking her native Hindi language. Her facial expressions changed from one of happiness to shock and surprise. Soon she was arguing heatedly with her father clearly agitated by something. Finally she resigned her bickering and said good-bye. She handed the phone back to Dojo and hurried to find Master Fung. There was a serious matter, which needed to be discussed.
An hour later the rest of the monks found Stacey packing up her belongings in her trunk. "Uh Stacey what are you doing?" Callie asked watching the girl fold her sari's up.
"I'm packing up my things to take home with me to Mumbai. My parents want me home right away. Something urgent has come up."
"There hasn't been a death in your family as well has there?" Crystal asked concerned. She was still dealing with her own unresolved issues about her grandfather's passing.
"No nothing like that. It's actually a joyous occasion. There's going to be a wedding in my family in the next few days. Your all invited to come of course. It would mean the world to me if you did."
"But I thought your brothers were already married with families of their own," Raimundo commented.
"Yeah and none of your nieces or nephews are old enough to be wed so who's tying the knot in your family?" Lu questioned suspiciously.
Stacey stopped packing and turned to look at them. She was shaking all over nervous by what she was going to say. "I am. I'm going to be wed by the end of the week and I don't know if I'll be coming back."
The news hit the other monks like a ton of bricks. One of them was actually going to married at their age? The news hit one of them harder then the rest. Jermaine clenched his fists and stormed off. "Jermaine, Jermaine please wait!" Stacey called running after him.
Jermaine stormed into the project room and began trashing the place. He toppled the worktables, smashed a couple of Jackbots that were lying about, and tore several sketches in half. How? How could this be happening? He was swearing under his breath when Stacey walked in. "How can you be marrying someone? Your only seventeen years old! If this is an arraigned marriage then I say f."
"It's not an arraigned marriage and I'm old enough to be considered an adult in my country. Jermaine please don't be angry with me. I never met to hurt you."
"Hurt me? You did more than that sister. I thought you cared about me and I find out all of a sudden you've been stringing me along. When were you going to tell me you were engaged to become some man's property?!"
"It isn't like that at all! In my religion as well as culture the bride and groom agree upon marriages. Atul and I knew each other growing up. His parents work at the Bombay Stock Exchange as brokers. We fell in love and since he's a few years older then me we decided to wait until I was old enough before wedding. We had only agreed upon it a few days before you guys found me. In my wildest dreams I never meant to flirt with you let alone develop feelings for you. When I met you everything about you was different. You were from my mom's hometown of NYC and you were the most exciting person I had ever met."
"So you're saying everything we've experienced has been a lie? That I meant nothing to you at all?"
"Jermaine I do care about you an awful lot. If I could I would change the circumstances so we'd be together, but I can't. Atul and I will be wed at the end of the week and that's all there is to it. I'm sorry."
"Yeah, well so am I. I hope you and Atul have a wonderful life together because I don't think we have much of chance!" Jermaine said before storming off leaving Stacey alone with her thoughts.
Half an hour later they had all boarded Dojo and were heading for Mumbai. Dojo was carrying Stacey's luggage in his claws. To pass the time on the trip Stacey told them more about her home as well as her country. "India is the second largest populated country and our government is a Federal Republic. Our President is A.P.J. Abdul Kalam and our Prime Minster is Manmohan Singh. Some of our nation's symbols include the Indian Peacock, the Bengal Tiger, and the lotus flower. We have an army, navy, and air force and we have good relationship with countries such as the US and China. We have control over our nuclear program, which is an example of natural occurring flare. Our economy is mostly made up foreign trade and investments."
"Tell us more about Mumbai, I thought it was known as Bombay," Jack said.
"The English name for my home is Bombay and many people still call it that. It's actually the biggest metropolitan city in the entire country with about thirteen million people living there. The city itself is mostly at sea level so we receive quite a lot of water. Mumbai is considered the commercial and entertainment capital of India. We use a lot of public transportation such as buses and railroads to get to place to place. My home also contains the busiest of all airports in India. When I lived there I attend a private school because the public schools are lacking in several areas. I had just completed my regular schooling and was about to enroll in the SNDT's Women's University to study art full time when you guys picked me up. I'm glad for the extra schooling. I can't wait to show you all the interesting things to do and many important aspects of my culture when we arrive," Stacey explained getting excited by the minute.
"Well I for one can't wait to check out all the shopping ventures when we get there. Last time we where there we didn't really get a chance to explore the city," Kimiko remarked.
"Yeah we were to busy trying to prevent Chase from turning Stacey evil. Let's hope nobody remembers us damaging those holy temples while we were there," Clay said.
"Oh look my friends we have arrived! I've never seen such a hustle and bustle going on before. How will we ever find your parent's in all this mess?" Omi asked.
"My parents, brothers, and their families live in an apartment complex near the western edge of the city. They take the train to the restaurant everyday. My dad runs the place while my mom comes up with new interior designs for it as well as other business. There it is! Land on the roof Dojo!" Stacey instructed as they circled a few times before landing on the roof. After helping Stacey with her stuff they entered the apartment building and walked through the halls till they came to the door to her apartment. Drawing up her courage she knocked on the door.
The door open and standing in the entryway was an average height female with brown hair and eyes wearing a pink and blue sari. Standing next to her was a tall gentleman with black hair and brown eyes wearing a suit. "Mother! Father! It's so good to see you," Stacey exclaimed hugging her parents tightly.
"It's good to see you to Anastasia. We didn't expect to see you quite so soon. Welcome home my dear," her mother said kissing on the forehead.
"Mother I told you to call me Stacey. Come on in guys so I can give you a proper introduction," Stacey said as everyone entered the apartment. It looked exactly the same since Jermaine's last visit. Sitting down on a couch reading a book or watching TV were two older gentlemen who greatly resembled Stacey's father.
"Well if it isn't our baby sister returning home from monk school. Come here you little artist," the older of the two gentlemen and wearing a blue shirt and white pants said wrapping her up in a bear hug.
"Did you learn anything of great importance while you were gone or did you just sit around painting all day?" the other man who was wearing a red shirt and blue jeans asked.
"Ha, Ha very funny. You know perfectly well why I went away. Everyone I would like you to meet my brothers Rajah (red) and Jahil (blue)
They work at the family restaurant as managers. These are my parents Chandra and Anil. So where are Neelia and Vista?"
"Taking care of the kids at home, but they'll stop by later. It's just so good to see you. So you going to introduce us to your friends?" Rajah asked.
"Yes I will I was just getting to that. Don't be in such a rush. Mother, Father, I would like you to meet my Dragon Master, Master Fung and the Temple Guardian Dojo. Not to mention these kids who are my best friends in the entire world. Omi, Kimiko, Clay, Raimundo, Jack, Jermaine, Lu, Crystal, Auara, and Callie," she said pointing to each in turn.
"It is an honor to welcome the man who has been teaching our daughter so much into our home. Please everyone sit down and I will fetch us some drinks," Chandra said hurrying to the kitchen.
"The pleasure is all mine. Your daughter is an excellent student, not to mention she's made great progress as the Dragon of Flare reaching Wudai level. I have every confidence that she will someday rise to the rank of Grandmaster," Master Fung accepting a cup of coffee while the rest of the group received a tasty drink known as Lassi, a cool curl drink.
"We always knew Anastasia was gifted, but to find out she had special powers was a bit of surprise. I hope that Atul appreciates what a gifted wife he's about to have," Anil said.
"When do we get to meet Atul and his family? Do we have to wait for the wedding?" Jermaine inquired bitterly.
"Atul and his parents will be coming to dinner tonight so we can discuss the last minute details for the wedding. Until then we would all be interested in hearing about Anastasia's adventures with your group," Chandra said.
Later that night the group was helping set up dinner which was going to be Bombay Duck, which was actually fish with a lot of different appetizers and deserts when the doorbell rang. Rajah opened the door "Well if it isn't the man of the hour. Hello Atul, Mrs. and Mr. Sheath welcome to our humble home. Please come inside there's a lot of people eager to meet you."
"It's nice to see you again Rajah," Mrs. Sheath said. Both her and her husband were dressed in traditional clothes and both were fairly tall with brown eyes and black hair. There son, Atul looked exactly like them both and he was wearing a white shirt and blue jeans. He smiled when he spotted Stacey.
"Anastasia it's good to see you again," he said giving her a hug. "I was beginning to wonder if you converted from Hindisusim to some other religion while you were away at monk school. It is good that you decide to come home. I was beginning to think you forgotten about our agreement," Atul said quite seriously.
"Well I wasn't at the Xiaolin Temple learning new religion Atul. I went to study martial arts and harness my elemental powers over Flare. How could you think I would forget our wedding agreement? Come join my family and friends at the dinner table. My mom made her famous Bombay Duck. You can tell me all about what's happen to you this past year and half," Stacey told him cordially directing him to the table.
Throughout dinner there was a lot of talk about Stacey's childhood and there was a lot of talk about the upcoming wedding. Jermaine was curious about Atul so he decide to ask some questions. "So Atul, what is it exactly that you do? I mean what do you like to do and do you have any hobbies?"
"I'm a stockbroker like my parents. I live in my own apartment about three blocks away. I enjoy listening to folk music, reading books, and involving myself in local politics. I believe that our government could certainly use stronger leadership. My hobbies include cricket, researching our history, and of course studying the various martial arts that our country is famous for," Atul explained calmly eating some fish.
"Cricket and folk music? Well I'm a basketball and rap music man myself. Still it should be interesting to see what your apartment will look like once Stacey is done redecorating it with her paintings. I'm sure that they'll keep you company while she's completing her training at the temple," Jermaine responded casually before being kicked under the table by Stacey who glared at him furiously.
"Why would she be returning to the Temple? Anastasia's place is at our home caring for it and preparing for our family. As for her art I guess she'll have to find time to do it in between preparing offerings for the Temple. I'm sure that whatever education she's received while she was with you was adequate," Atul replied unaware that Jermaine was looking at him angrily. The rest of the night passed without incident and Atul and his family left for home promising to put the finishing touches on the wedding the day after tomorrow.
Stacey was in her bedroom preparing to go to sleep when Jermaine came barging inside. "I can see why you like him so much. He's just the kind of man I would want to marry. Someone who's so traditional that he's already treating you like a piece of property."
"Would you calm down already? Atul isn't that bad really! I know him and he doesn't mean everything he said. I'm sure that I'll have a happy relationship with him."
"Wake up and smell the lotus Stacey! He's changed from the man you once knew. He's so serious, focused, and determined. You have nothing in common and he wants you to give up being the person you are. What about your dreams and desires? Does your own happiness matter at all?" Jermaine demanded.
"Enough! Jermaine I knew jealousy was your character flaw, but your taking this to an extreme! I'm getting married in two days and there's nothing you can do to stop it! If you ever cared about me you will leave me alone!" Stacey shouted throwing him out of her bedroom and throwing herself on the bed crying.
"You know he's right about one thing. You really don't want to marry Atul," a voice said. Stacey turned around quickly and saw her Heylin half casually standing by the door.
"What are you doing here? If you're here to take me back to the Nilyeh City I'll put up a fight!"
"Relax will you I'm here on personal business not Heylin business. When Wuya and Meribor predicted the next Shen Gong Wu, the Bands of Shiva, would be activating here in two days I volunteered to scope the city out and try to find it. I needed an excuse to see you. I knew from our mental bond that Father had called us home to make the biggest mistake in our life."
"Not you too. Doesn't tradition and honor mean anything to you? I made a marriage agreement with Atul and I intend to honor it."
"Even if it was a hasty childish decision and your going to be unhappy for the rest of your life? I don't get you Miss Insightful can't realize what a great life she has right now? Think about you get to see the world, learn the ancient secrets, not to mention you have a real guy who cares about what you want and loves you for you waiting for you to come to your senses? Do you really think I want to be married to Atul when we merge back together? No I don't. I'm beginning to wonder what happen to your selfishness when we split. I'll be back on the wedding day to search for the Bands. Trust me if you believe in our country's motto 'Truth is Triumph' then you'll make the right choice. See you later," Heylin Stacey said disappearing into the shadows.
Two days passed quickly and the day for the Vivah Sanskars had arrived. The monks were chatting with the friends and family who had arrived. They were keeping a close eye out the Bands of Shiva, which gave the wearer extra arms, while they waited for her husband to be to arrive. Already Stacey was wearing the traditional gold and red sari and was eagerly waiting for the first ritual to begin.
"Stacey told me that these Vivah Sanskars or weddings can last for hours and are very ritualistic. I wish there was a part where I could protest this entire event," Jermaine muttered angrily under his breath to the group.
"Young Dragon you must rein in your emotions. Remember the universe will unfold, as it should. Stacey will do what is right when the time comes," Master Fung told him patiently.
The doorbell rang and Atul's family entered the house. This was the first ritual called Jayamaala when the two families welcomed each other into their homes. Atul was wearing a traditional white suit and was greeting Stacey with a garland necklace. Stacey smiled and both of them allowed the red Kuma Kuma mark to be applied to their foreheads. Both of them declared "Let all learned persons present here, we are accepting each other willing, voluntarily, and pleasantly. Our hearts are concordant and united like waters." However it seemed like Stacey didn't really mean it.
The next few rituals were simple yet pleasant to watch. There was the Mudha-Parka were the bride and groom went to a special alter and after exchanging gifts between the family it was time for them to listen to the Purihot recite the sacred vows in Sanskrit while the sacred fire burned during the Vivaha-homa part of the wedding. Throughout the entire process Stacey looked extremely uncomfortable.
At last they had reached the Pannigrahan or wedding vows part of the ceremony. Atul turned to face Stacey with a big grin on his face. He smiled, took Stacey's hand and opened his mouth to speak the traditional vows when there was a loud crash was heard and the far wall exploded. Everyone screamed and when the dust cleared there was Hannibal Bean in his body armor with Ying Ying on his shoulder. "Sorry to crash your nuptials, but I didn't receive an invite to this momentous occasion."
"Hannibal Bean! What are you doing here?" Raimundo demanded. Out of the corner of his eye he could see Dojo having a fit meaning the Bands of Shiva had just gone active. The little dragon was pointing in the direction of the Shiva idle, which had on its arms a pair of gold bands with jewels encrusted on it as well as Hindi writing. "He's after the Bands!"
"Very astute young Dragon. Now if you don't mind I'll help myself to the Shen Gong Wu. Ying Ying attack!" Hannibal ordered. The bird flew through the air using its magical abilities to attack the wedding guests. Everyone ran and screamed for their lives as the apartment came tumbling down.
"We've got to protect the guests and save the Wu! Boys save the guests, girls save the Wu! Golden Finger!" Jermaine ordered freezing the ceiling tiles in midair.
"Good move Jermaine! Ruby of Ramses!" Dagwood shouted using the magical ruby to move the guest out the way as the tiling fell to the ground. He smiled and started directing the guest to safety along with Jack and Clay who where protecting the guest with their favorite Wu. Meanwhile Omi, Raimundo, and Master Fung attacked Ying Ying.
The girls pulled out their weapons and the Elemental Guards and went after Hannibal. Lu and Kimiko attacker first with a combo attack, but were thrown out the hole. Callie and Auara tried to grab the Bands first, but Hannibal punched them in the back causing them to fall to the ground. Crystal tried to send Hannibal out the hole, but her attack backfired sending her flying into the kitchen.
"Pitiful really. I would have expected more out of the mighty Xiaolin Warriors. Oh well I guess the Bands are mine," Hannibal cackled strolling over to the idol. He reached out to grab them when a powerful sonic screech forced him back. "What in the name of the Ancients?"
"If you think I'm letting you get your roots on this Shen Gong Wu your dead wrong. Nobody, but my Empress deserves these priceless treasures," Heylin Stacey snarled shocking everyone there.
"So Valonia sent you to crash your goody two shoes wedding. Very well I get to kill two birds with one stone," Hannibal said attacking her. He withdrew the Shard of Lightning and used its powers to do a number on her.
Atul and Stacey were trapped by the alter watching helplessly as the battle around them progressed. Stacey knew she had to do something to help, but she couldn't leave Atul. "Atul we have to do something! You know martial arts, you have to help me get those bands before Hannibal does."
"No way you can't do anything to help them. Even I wouldn't be able to make a difference. All we can do is pray for salvation."
"You pray and I'm getting off my butt and owning up to my responsibility. First I need to be able to move," she told him ripping her sari in half. Fishing out the Kazoo Atom she raced over towards the Bands using her Shen Gong Wu to clear a path. She had just touched the Bands when they glowed. She looked up and saw Hannibal touching them to. "Hannibal I challenge you to a Xiaolin Showdown!"
"Very well how can I refuse a challenge from such a lovely lady? My Shard of Lighting vs. your Kazoo Atom. Since you're the bride why don't you choose the game?"
"The name of the game is Moksha. We go through the cycle of rebirth while dodging the wraith of the Gods. First person to reach the end of the cycle wins. Let's go Xiaolin Showdown!" Stacey cried in unison.
The apartment complex rose into the air and twisted inside out until it was a large tower. Giant idols protected the edges. The guests and other dragons were on a separate platform watching as Stacey's battle armor magically appeared on her. With a determined look on her face she cried "Gong Ye Tempi!" With that said she took off like a shot racing towards the top all while aging.
"Pathetic. I'll reach the top before you do and do it while avoiding losing my good looks. Shard of Lighting!" Hannibal shouted activating the Wu's power. In a blink of the eye he was three floors above Stacey gloating. "See if you can't catch up!"
"Grr. You maybe have the Shard, but in the Moksha life cycle you have to live thousands of lives before your released! Even with the Shards power you won't reach the top first! Kazoo Atom Flare!" Stacey cried the small Wu activating. A tightly focused beam of destruction narrowly missed Hannibal's head. Instead it caused one of the idols to collapse on top of him. "Yes! What the ah!" she screamed rolling out of the way as one of the idols tried to smite her.
"Come on Stacey you can do it!" Kimiko shouted
"Show that overgrown vegetable who's the boss!" Jack added.
"Don't think of the horrible consequences if you fail!" Omi voiced helpfully before being smacked on the head by Lu. "What? I was only trying to be helpful."
"The round one is right. Clearly this Hannibal Bean outmatches Anastasias. Even with her fantastic powers how is she suppose to complete a cycle that takes centuries do without dying?" Atul asked.
"Listen here I've had just about enough of you dissing Stacey! She's a wonderful creative person with great insight and always has a witty phrase. Her faith in her religion is so strong that there's nothing she can't accomplish. I'll be a monkey's uncle before I quit believing in her! Come on Stacey use your element!" Jermaine cheered enthusiastically.
"Jermaine is right. Only when Stacey has given up on her faith has she truly been defeated. With all of us putting our own faith in her even her Gods will have trouble ignoring her prayers," Master Fung said simply watching his student use the Kazoo Atom to incarnate an idol that blocked her path.
"Face it girl you will never be able to beat me! I'm only three short cycles away from winning this game and you're still less then halfway through! I can't wait to use those Bands against you!"
"Keep on dreaming Hannibal, because that's one fantasy that's never going to happen. I pray to the Shiva, God of Destruction and Rebirth. Here my plea and assist you're representive of your element of Flare!" Stacey prayed out loud.
Suddenly all the Shiva idols stopped trying to attack Stacey and turned their attentions towards the arrogant Hannibal. Before he could protest they unleashed their full power on him obliterating his armor and crushing him. The Shard was knocked out of his hands and landed in Stacey's. With a grin on her face she activated the Wu and reached the top first ending the Showdown.
Her friends raced over to congratulate her, but Hannibal used the Moby Morpher to super size himself. With a twist of his roots he tripped them up and sent them crashing to the floor. "I won't accepted this! Those bands belong to me!"
"You want the Bands? Well I'll give you them! Bands of Shiva!" she cried slipping on the golden bands and clicking them together. They glowed brightly and two sets of arms popped out of chest ripping more holes in her sari. "This is so cool!"
"See how cool it is when I rip you to shreds!" Hannibal screeched jumping at her while Ying Ying dive-bombed her. Stacey didn't bat an eyelash. With her first set of arms she grabbed both of them by the neck or roots. With the second set she slipped the Bomber Plate on her left while drawing the Mei Xing knife in the right. For her last set she set up a Wudai Supernova Flare attack. Focusing all her power she unleashed a combined attack that sent the two wedding crashers all the way into the Indian Ocean.
"That will teach them a lesson about crashing my wedding," Stacey said removing the bands and returning to normal. "However the damage is done. Even Mother can't redesign this mess."
"Well I do feel bad for crashing our wedding so I'll think I'll give you my gift. Reo Reverso!" Heylin Stacey said using the tricky little Wu to repair all the damage. With a flick of the wrist she tossed the Wu into Jermaine's hands. "Well my job here is done. I'll just tell Valonia that I couldn't get the Wu. I'll be seeing you and remember what I said," she said disappearing into the shadow.
"Well now that you've had your last fling as a Xiaolin Monk shall we continue with the wedding?" Atul asked dusting himself off.
Stacey looked at him and her family. She knew what they wanted, but it wasn't what she wanted. Slowly she rubbed off the Kuma Kuma mark and looked at Atul and family sadly. "I'm sorry Atul, but I can't go through with this. I lied earlier in the ceremony when I said I was willingly accepting you. You and I were once in love, but time has changed us both. I don't want to spend the rest of my life in a relationship were I can't be who I am. I know you may not understand this right now, but I'm calling the wedding off. Excuse me," she said heading to her room with her family and Jermaine trailing after her.
"She can't do that! We had an agreement!" Atul shouted. That's when his father placed a hand on his shoulder and whispered something in his ear. Whatever it was it must have been important because he nodded and left the apartment with his folks. Before leaving he asked the monks to tell Anastasia's family that he was sorry the marriage didn't work, but they were still friends.
In her bedroom Stacey was removing the garland from around her neck crying softly. Her parents and brothers entered her room looking at her concerned. "Mother, Father I'm so sorry about ruining today, but I can't do this. I don't want to be in a relationship without love. I especially don't want to give up on my dreams and responsibilities as a Xiaolin Dragon of Flare. Please don't be mad at me."
"Oh Stacey we could never be mad at you. We should have listened to you earlier when you tried to tell us something was wrong. I understand what it means to be in a loving relationship and a false one," Anil told his daughter comforting her.
"Your dreams are important to us. We are so proud of what you've accomplished at the Xiaolin Temple. From the way you conducted yourself in the Showdown it proves how good you are. But with your Heylin half still at large it means you have a lot more to accomplish still," Chandra said.
"Yeah and if anyone can save the world from ten thousand years of darkness its my baby sister," Rajah expressed.
"Not to mention marrying Atul would have messed up your chances to be with the one that truly makes you happy," Jahil said indicating Jermaine who had just entered the room.
"Oh Jermaine can you ever forgive me for what I almost did?"
"Of course I can Stacey. I love you for who you are and nothing else matters. So when you're really ready to get married I'll be here with you," Jermaine said giving her hug.
After a lot more hugging and crying Stacey said her goodbyes with to her family and they hopped on Dojo. They flew back home to the Temple knowing that they had all learned a valuable lesson here today. Tradition is nice, but don't try to fool your heart.