�Yes, we are,� Tenshi agreed. �Now let�s you and me get into more comfortable clothes for the reception.�
�Oh, but I was enjoying the sight of you in this dress,� Neko objected lightly. �But I suppose your kimono will look just as nice.�
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Jasper stood at the entrance to the condemned mansion where Team Eclipse had lived. When they abandoned it upon defeat at the hands of the Mizuno and Tenoh families, it had gone to waste and fallen into a state of disrepair. The garden was overgrown with weeds and vines, and the building was already falling apart, even though it had only been a couple years since they had left. With a shiver, Jasper wondered if the negative energy of the Eclipse family might have something to do with the accelerated decay of the oversized house.
This was where he had picked up Amber�s necklace after she had died. But he never should have done so, for Amber had haunted him ever since. She had done so a little before, but only because he didn�t know whether she was dead or alive. Once he had picked up the necklace from here, she had haunted his dreams and his confidence. She was his first failure. He had saved her from a doomed world only to meet her end on this blessed one. All Jasper�s promises to keep her safe had proven empty, just as they had with Amethyst. Even with Neko, he couldn�t quite manage to save her. That job had fallen to Tenshi, Mi-chan, and Neko herself.
Jasper took a deep breath. It was time to let go. He purposefully walked through the yard towards the greenhouse. Even before he reached it, he found what he was looking for. Outside the greenhouse was a patch of red flowers that didn�t exist anywhere else on this planet. They had spread from within the greenhouse where he was raising them, and he wondered if they would become a part of Earth�s flora someday. A little piece of Chalcedony on Earth; it made him smile.
Amber had been enthralled with these flowers when he had shown them to her. She had no personal souvenirs from Chalcedony, so when he gave her the first of these flowers he had cultivated, she had adopted it as a symbol for home. He thought it was only fitting that he should lay her to rest here.
Jasper knelt before the flowers and dug a small hole at their base to bury the necklace there. He covered it up, saying a Chalcedonian prayer for her. �Rest in peace, sis,� he whispered, allowing himself to finally weep for her, if only for a second.
With a bit of the weight off his shoulders, he stood up and headed back the way he had come.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Mi-chan sat with Jian-wa at the head table, the first couple to arrive at the reception hall. This room was similar to the ceremony hall, with crystalline walls that allowed the sunlight through with a slight rainbow tint. Tables filled the room, and the two on each side of the room held a grand selection of drinks, ranging from soda to punch to champagne and wine.
People continued trickling in, but Mi-chan was keeping an eye out for Neko and Tenshi. She had failed miserably at keeping this wedding picture perfect, but at the very least she could make sure the reception went off without a hitch. Their absence was making her nervous, though. How could she make sure everything was perfect when she wasn�t with them?
�Relax,� Jian-wa told her, giving her arm a squeeze. �Neko-chan and Tenshi-kun are fine. They�ve gotten this far, I don�t think they�ll have any more problems.�
�Don�t say that!� Mi-chan punched him in the shoulder with a groan. �You just guaranteed that something�s going to go wrong!� Her punch had very little force behind it, but still Jian-wa rubbed his shoulder, grumbling.
The next moment Haruka came in with Michiru on her arm, and Mi-chan noticed that she was again wearing a tux. Neko�s tux, to be specific. Mi-chan couldn�t help but give her a grin. Haruka just hadn�t been able to stand being in a dress any longer.
Shortly after, Neko and Tenshi arrived. Neko had fixed her hair, and now wore a bright red uchikake. White cranes flew across the embroidered fabric, and were surrounded with a rainbow of spring and autumn flowers. Tenshi in contrast wore a more formal black tomesode. A wave of blue, purple, pink and white melted into each other and flowed down the left bottom and back of the tomesode, adorned with a few pink flowers in intricate detail. The elegant kimono was nothing less than what Mi-chan expected from the older girl.
Now, Mi-chan realized, both Neko and Tenshi looked the part of the bride, but she knew that that was Neko�s plan. She had never much accepted the necessity of a male/female pair, and even though she had chosen a girl who often looked the part of a beautiful boy, Neko still wanted Tenshi to be comfortable as a woman as well.
�See, I told you,� Jian-wa bragged playfully, as Neko and Tenshi walked from table to table, lighting a candle at each one, in traditional Japanese wedding fashion.
�Shut up and kiss me,� she shot back at him, finally able to relax now that she had Neko in her sights again.
From there on out, things seemed to go without a hitch. Jian-wa gave a humorous, but nice toast, even stringing some jokes about the events of the day into it. They were served by the palace�s staff, and Mi-chan had to admit that each of the eight courses was perfect. Then, after everyone had eaten for a while, Kimahou (the honorary DJ for the event) started up the music.
�Will the bride and groom come and take their places on the dance floor?� Kimahou announced to the room.
Neko and Tenshi obliged, taking the floor and instantly beginning to dance as Kimahou played their song, �Lost Paradise.� Mi-chan could imagine an internal conversation consisting of lots of �aishiteru�s, and she was glad that they could keep such gushy romance to themselves.
When the song was over, Kimahou invited other �lovebirds� to the floor, an invitation Jian-wa volunteered the two of them to accept, taking Mi-chan�s hand and leading her onto the floor. They danced one dance and then switched with Neko and Tenshi, so that she was dancing with Tenshi and Neko with Jian-wa. After that dance, Mi-chan took a break and went to get a drink at the refreshment table, thirsty after all this dancing.
�Ne, sis. You didn�t think you could let us in on the secret?� Chibi asked, sneaking up behind her.
She turned and looked at him, taking in the hurt look on his face. Instantly, she felt bad for leaving him out of the loop, but it had never even occurred to her to get help from her younger siblings. �Gomen, Chibi. I couldn�t let you and Ki-chan notify Tenshiko or someone that Neko was missing and that the wedding should be stopped."
�You could have told us not to tell,� Chibi groused.
