Previous chapters can be found at the Sailor Moon Romance archive, or
you can e-mail me privately for them. (See bottom for my e-mail.)


Ajax presents:

After School
Part 2: The Silver Kimono Wedding

16th September, 1996

	"KYAAAAAAAA!!!!" 

	"Usagi!" Ikuko rushed up the stairs, afraid of what would have caused
her daughter to scream so. "Usagi! Are you all ri-Kids!! What do you
think you're doing?" Usagi, appearing somewhat soaked, was chasing
Shingo around 
the room, who was shaking a tell-tale bottle of water taken from the
fridge.
	
	"Shingo! I only asked you to wake up your sister!"

	"Just come here, you brat! That water was freezing cold! Mom, help me 
catch him!"

	"WILL YOU TWO STOP!!" At the sight of Mother's Wrath on Ikuko's face,
both calmed down. Shingo, looking at his watch, exclaimed that he was
late 
and rushed out, grinning behind his shoulder at his sister to
infuriate her.
Usagi was practically fuming.

	"Oh that brat! Will he ever grow up?"

	"This coming from someone who nearly overslept the day before her
wedding?"

	"Mom! I'm not in school anymore, remember? I can sleep as long as I 
want. I'm making up for all those years I had to get up at 7:30."

	"Fine, fine. Why don't you dress and come to the kitchen? Your 
breakfast is ready." 

	Usagi smiled sadly, and when she spoke her voice was quiet. "It's the 
last morning you'll prepare breakfast for me..."

	"Oh Usagi..." The two women hugged, then Ikuko noticed that Usagi was 
crying. "Hey, come on... we have already had our talks and cried our
tears,
no? Hurry downstairs, there are some pancakes waiting for you."

	"Pancakes. Yummy." Usagi tried to sound enthusiastic, even though she 
was still sniffing. "Be down in a sec."

	Later, Ikuko watched as Usagi contentedly ate her pancakes, though
she wasn't eating as many as she would have in earlier years.
"Usagi-chan..."

	"Nani?"

	"I'm glad we got to spend this month with each other."

	Flashbacks show Usagi and Ikuko cooking, shopping, sitting at a cafe 
and chatting happily in the kitchen while they're waiting for a cake
to bake.
"Mom...." Usagi tearfully got up and walked around the table to hug her 
mother, a mimicry of their situation earlier. Just then, the telephone
rang 
and Usagi, letting go of her mom, ran to answer it. 

	"Ayako, hi!...Eh. Sure... Okay, I'll meet you there then. Bye! Mom, 
it was Ayako. She, Naru-chan and some other friends want to meet me at
the
mall."

	"Okay honey, but don't forget, be back before 3 o'clock. We have to
go see Rei at the temple. And remember, it's your last unmarried day,
so have
fun!"

	"Will do. Bye Mom!" She walked out the door, and before leaving the
garden took a long look at the house. It was an old house, the paint
chipped
and cracked in a few places and the name-plate on the door crooked. Her 
parents had been living there before she was born. Looking around the
garden,
she thought she could see the ghost images from her memories, her
father 
carefully watching her making her first steps, her mom leading a
crying Usagi 
in a uniform for her first day in school by the hand, playing with
Shingo on 
a toy truck... Turning towards the gate, she saw herself again,
weaving her 
daily pattern between home, school and arcade, getting older as the
years 
went past, tugging Mamoru, scared expression on his face for his first 
meeting with her parents, and finally, her oldest memory of all: a
four-year 
Usagi waiting at the gate at dusk for her father returning from work,
her 
first sight of a sunset and her dad sweeping her up in his arms while
he 
laughed.

	Walking out of the garden, Usagi kept looking around intently, at the
places and the people. Many of them she knew, neighbors, friends. "I
won't be
walking this road often anymore," she thought, "Mamo-chan says I can't
go the
same way from his house to town."

	Finally, she arrived at the mall. As soon as they saw each other, the
friends began chatting excitedly like the schoolgirls they no longer
were.
When they passed a hairdresser's, the subject turned to haircuts. 

	"Hey Usagi, why don't you change your hairstyle? It's been the same
for such a long time! Don't you ever get bored of it? I bet if you
left it
loose, it would just shape itself into those buns again!"

	"Yeah come on, Usagi-chan! Get a haircut!" The last was said by Naru, 
who was walking arm-in-arm with Usagi. Her own hair was much the same
even 
though she had abandoned the ribbon.	

	"A haircut? But..." 

	"You don't have to cut it too short. With your hair, you could cut
it up to your waist and it would be short for you, but it wouldn't
make a 
difference. What do you say?"

	"Well...." Before she could say anything more, the friends dragged 
her into a hairdresser's. When they came out an hour later, the girls
all had
bored looks on their faces while Usagi was enthusiastically moving her
head 
to get a feel of her new hairstyle and reaching up to finger the ends.
While
it was still the same style her ponytails were now cut to just above
her 
waist.

	"Wow, you guys were right. My head feels so much lighter now, and
it'll be easier to wash it. Why haven't I done this before?"

	"Well, if you ever do it again, I'm not coming with you," slurred
Naru. (Flashback shows Naru&friends getting sweatdrops and
subsequently bored
expressions as Usagi and the hairdresser have a long debate on exactly
what
length her hair should be.)

	The friends spent a few more hours at the mall, during which Usagi's
face got sadder and sadder. When it was time to leave, they all stood
a bit
awkwardly outside the mall, each wondering what to say. It was finally
Usagi
who broke the silence, initiating a group hug with a sob. 

	"Usagi, I'm so sorry I can't come to your wedding tomorrow but I 
promise I'll call you afterwards...."
	"No, you better wait the next day because afterwards she's going to
be busy with her 'Mamo-chan'..."
	"Oh you're wicked!"
	"You guys, you have to promise you will come see me..."
	"Of course, Usagi!" 
	"Sure we will!" 

	Usagi was finally able to get herself together and leave, walking 
fast to avoid being late. "I sure am crying a lot today, she thought,
"I 
never thought getting married would make me feel so sad." 

			*	*	*	*	
  
	"How does" puff puff "Rei's grandfather" puff puff "do this?" Ikuko
gasped out, climbing the staircase to the Shinto shrine. 

	"He doesn't leave the temple that often," Usagi replied, "I'm glad he
agreed to hold our wedding here though." At the top of the stairs,
they saw 
Chad sweeping leaves. His hair, though still long, was no longer as
messy as 
it had been. He had been dedicating himself more and more to the
religion. 
They bowed to him, and he grinned in greeting. The two women walked on
to 
find Rei in her temple robes, sitting under a tree occupied with making 
charms.

	"Your hair!" Usagi and Rei screeched at the same time, for Rei's hair
was now cut to just below her jawline, the ends curved inwards.	"Rei,
when 
did you cut it? It looks so nice!" 

	"I got the haircut two days ago. But yours, it's so short!"

	"Your hair looks very nice, Rei." Ikuko said.

	 "Tsukino-san," Rei replied respectfully. Her face took a more 
serious expression and she asked them to follow her. She led them into
the 
shrine, which had been changed a bit to accommodate the wedding
ceremony.

	"So. I guess you already know how the Shinto-style ceremony goes. 
Basically, the guests take their place, then the bride and groom kneel
in
front of the priest, recieve blessings, drink a little sake, and
that's it.
By the way, you have to bring your wedding papers because grandpa has
to sign
those. The ceremony is nowhere as fancy as those western ones everyone
seems 
so keen on. Didn't you want one of those, Usagi? I thought you were
dying to 
have a white dress."

	"Well, I did, but Mamo-chan wanted a simple wedding, even though he
would have gone along with what I wanted. We haven't invited a lot of
people.
I thought I should respect his wishes, because he has always done what
I 
wanted. Besides," Usagi continued cheerfully, "I have a really pretty
wedding
kimono! It's lovely."

	"It has been in the family for four generations now," Ikuko added, 
"my grandmother wore it when she got married."

	Excitedly, Rei asked, "What's it like? Tell me."

	"Uh-uh. Secret."

	"Ditz. Oh well, I'll see it tomorrow. Bye, Usagi. Bye, Tsukino-san."

			*	*	*	*

	"Usagi, where is Mamoru-kun? He hasn't come by or phoned today," said
Ikuko, looking inquisitively at her daughter. 

	"He said he didn't want to see me for a few days, since I'm always at
his house arranging furniture and stuff he said my being there everyday 
unmarried and my being there married wasn't going to make much
difference. In
other words, he's getting re-used to his bachelor life so that he'll
be able
to understand the difference marriage is going to make. 

	I think he's just nervous though. Did Dad get nervous at your wedding
Mom?" 

	The question prompted Ikuko to chuckle. "He tripped over his own feet 
and landed face-down in front of the priest!"

	"Are you serious? Poor Dad! Oh, but what if the same thing happens to
Mamoru? Or even worse, me?!"

	"Relax, dear. All will be fine. I'm sure you'll have a beautiful 
wedding. Look, it's late already, why don't you have an early night so
that
you'll be fresh tomorrow morning, instead of having to race to your
wedding?"
		
			*	*	*	*	

17th September, 1996

	The pinkish light of the rising sun illuminated the face of the girl 
who stood by her window, hands flat against the pane of glass as she
watched
the arrival of the new day, a painful expression on her face. "Itee!"
Usagi
thought, "this feels worse than it does on the first day of school!"
Flopping
down on her bed, she reached over to the box of cookies on her
nighttable,
but stopped when her stomach told her in no uncertain terms that that
wasn't
a good idea. Seeing as it was still 6 o'clock, Usagi decided to try to
sleep
some more.

Half an hour later...

	Usagi moaned in her sleep and turned over, the painful expression 
still on her face. The sun, now fully up, painted stripes of shadow
and light
on the floor.

Half an hour later...

	Usagi reached out to the doorknob of her parent's room, but stopped
when she glanced at the clock on the wall. She returned to her room
and took
out a hanger from cupboard, taking off the kimono wrapped around it and 
laying it on her bed. The kimono was a bright, cheerful red, with
little 
white flower designs on it. Usagi touched the fancy silk material,
soft and 
flowing beneath her fingers. She sat staring at it for sometime, and
that was 
how her mother found her.

			*	*	*	*

	The three girls worked noisily, laughing and yelling at each other as
they worked on arranging a huge number of bouquets around the small
room at 
the shrine. The flowers and the colorful kimonos they wore gave the
room a 
festive atmosphere. In another chamber of the shrine, Usagi's mom
helped her
put on her red kimono while her father walked desolately outside,
sniffing
and blowing his nose. Somewhere else Mamoru, looking nervous, was
talking to 
a young man who was fiddling with a camera.

	A little while later Ikuko appeared, dressed in a formal kimono, and
told Rei's grandfather that the bride was ready. Somewhere outside,
Chad 
struck the gong, the loud sound resounding throughout the shrine,
signalling
the beginning of the ceremony. Entering the small room, Ikuko and
Shingo 
passed Makoto, Minako, Naru and the young man who had all sat at the
back of
the room, and kneeled down a few meters away from Rei's grandfather.
Rei 
herself stood behind him in her temple robes with a bottle of sake by
her 
feet. 

	Mamoru entered, dressed in clothes similar to Chad's in black and 
white. He stopped and bowed before Rei's grandfather, who placed a
sake bowl 
in front of him.

	About a minute later, Usagi entered with her father, who led her,
crying all the way, to Mamoru, and then knelt beside his wife who
rolled her
eyes at him in exasperation. Mamoru's heart did a flip-flop. Usagi
looked
beautiful in that kimono, he thought. Smiling at each other and
holding hands,
the two knelt in front of the priest. 

	Rei's grandfather started the purification. His chanting had a strong,
happy tone to it, and his voice rose in volume until he came to the
end. Then
Mamoru and Usagi swore to stay faithful all their lives, and he
blessed them.
Rei poured a bit of sake into the cups, which was blessed as well, and
they
drank, Usagi blinking at the strange taste.

	As soon as Usagi and Mamoru put the cups down, everybody in the room
started cheering and clapping, Minako and Makoto scooping up flowers
and 
tossing them into the air so that they showered, colored rain upon the 
newlyweds. Rei passed them two charms on which was inscribed a single
word: 
happiness. Usagi and Mamoru rose and exited the room followed by the
others.

	There was no kiss, not a word exchanged between the two lovers, only
Usagi's smile and the peaceful, happy gaze of the husband as he put
his arm 
around his wife. They advanced towards the ancient tree and tied their
charms 
on its branches. 

			*	*	*	*

An hour later...

	Mamoru and Usagi, now dressed in normal clothes, ran out of the car
and into the apartment, followed by cries of "Don't get too loud
now!". Once
inside, they stared at each other for a second before breaking into a
grin 
and rushing up the stairs, giggling as they tripped in their hurry.
Mamoru's
hands shook as he tried to get the key into the lock. Still laughing,
they
entered his (now their) house and ran into the bedroom, falling onto
the bed
and kissing passionately, moans and laughs through the kisses. Mamoru
started
undressing her, his fingers pulling on the buttons. It was then that the
doorbell rang. Mamoru looked up for a second, decided to ignore it and
turned
his attention back to Usagi, but it rang again. He rolled off her,
groaning
angrily. Usagi giggled as she heard him cuss. Straightening her
clothes, she
walked towards the door, Mamoru following and doing his best
impression of
Demon From Hell (copyright Tendo Soun), muttering dark comments under
his
breath. Usagi tried to keep a straight face as she opened the door. 

	The postman was tired. It was five o'clock in the afternoon and he
had been going from door to door the whole day delivering people's
letters
and packages. His feet ached and his shoulders hurt. His asthma was
bothering
him again. That girl in the next building was still asking him if he
had a 
letter from her lover in Indonesia. He handed the packet to the girl
who had
opened him the door without even looking at her, which was good,
otherwise he
would have been scared by the threatening expression on the face of
the man
behind her. Said man sweatdropped when he realised his Threatening
Face (tm)
No. 53 Reserved for Postmen hadn't even been noticed.

	Usagi closed the door and turned the package in her hands looking for 
the address. "It's from Ami-chan!" she exclaimed happily, "That's so
nice of
her!"

	"Leave the package, Usako," Mamoru growled menacingly, pulling her in 
for a passionate kiss.

	Then Usagi's stomach growled. Very audibly.

	Mamoru pulled back with an expression of disbelief and groaned, half 
in frustration and half amusement, as his wife sheepishly put her
hands on 
her stomach and made an apologetic face.

	"Oh, bother!" he said, and laughing, scooped her up into his arms and
carried her into the kitchen.
			
			*	*	*	*		

Author's notes:

I'm really sorry for the delay! I hope you like this story and please
don't 
hesitate in sending me all your comments. My e-mail address is
breaker@technologist.com  You can also post them to the FFML.

Thanks go first and foremost to a person on the FFML (I'm afraid I
forgot to
note down the e-mail and name) who sent me a huge file on Japanese
weddings
when I posted a request for help on the subject. Even though a history
of
Japanese weddings and the list of all possible gifts to be exchanged
(!) was 
not really needed the document came in extremely useful and was
interesting 
to read. So whoever you are, thanks a lot!

Second, thanks also to everybody who has e-mailed me about previous
stories.
You are a constant source of encouragement and support. Keep it coming!

And last, to Shunsuke who reviews stories for the FFML, I'm NOT a guy!
(And
I do format my story.)

Love to all,
Ajax
12.11.98




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