Well, here's the final chapter. I hope you enjoyed reading this story.

Chapter Eight- Reconciliation

Zane stared at the spot where he had seen the tail appear. It was hard to believe. His friend, his love, was a merman. He had left because Blair had kissed him. Blair! She set him up! She knew Jaden loved him and schemed to get rid of him.

"Zane," Blair called as she came running up to him. "did you say you love Jaden?"

"I did."

"You can't love him. Do you know what he is?" Her tone indicated to Zane that Blair already knew Jaden's true nature.

So Zane had no trouble saying, "Yes. A merman."

"See? You can't love a merman. You should marry a pretty princess. Like me." She struck a model's pose with a hand behind her head.

"Blair. I told you. There is no wedding. You're going home."

"Oh," Blair huffed before storming back to the palace. Zane, meanwhile, gathered up Jaden's clothes, held them close to his broken heart, and stared at the ocean.

'Jaden, please come back.'

It was déjà vu for Syrus. Once again, Jaden laid on his stomach on a flat rock. However, his expression was one of heartbreak and his tail was completely still. Not even the fins were moving.

Jaden had come back last night, looking forlorn. He didn't speak or do much of anything. He didn't even rise to a barb Chazz threw at him. A barb that even Syrus could have had a comeback for. Something was definitely wrong.

Swimming up to Jaden, Syrus said, "Ja, do you want to talk about it?"

Jaden finally broke down and cried. "Oh, Sy," he sobbed as he sat up. "I thought he loved me, but it was a lie. He loved that princess, Blair. I made such a fool of myself."

"But, all the signs and hints you told me."

"It was a sham."

Syrus frowned. Something didn't sound right. Two days ago, Jaden had said Zane was crazy about him. Now it sounded like the human was cold and heartless. 'I need to get to the bottom of this. I'll talk to Zane and get the real story.'

Syrus surfaced around mid-day, a set of clothes from a sunken ship in hand. He saw a human sitting on the shore. His head was bowed, his knees drawn up to his chest, and a second set of clothes draped across his knees. Syrus's mouth dropped.

'If that's Zane, it's no wonder Jaden fell for him!'

Pulling himself onto the land, he waved a hand and his yellow tail became a pair of legs. Putting on the clothes, Syrus used his hands to get himself to stand up. His legs wobbled and he stumbled about like a newborn colt. They eventually stabilized and Syrus was able to approach the older man.

"Are you Prince Zane?" he asked, even though he knew he was. He was just as Jaden described.

Zane looked up at the voice and saw a short boy with light sky blue hair. His silver eyes were wide and innocent. He blinked for a moment before saying, "Yes, I am. Who are you?"

"I'm Syrus. I'm Jaden's best friend."

The reaction to Syrus's introduction was immediate. Zane leaped to his feet, the clothes fluttering to the ground. Grabbing Syrus's shoulders, he said in a desperate voice, "It was a setup! Blair set it up to make it look like I love her. But, I don't. Jaden's the one I love. Could you tell him that?"

Wincing slightly from Zane's grip, Syrus answered, "Of course I will. I hate seeing Ja so sad."

Realizing his tight grip, Zane released and smiled gratefully. "Thank you. I didn't realize how much I loved him until I saw him leave."

"You saw! You know!"

"Yes. That's why I asked you to tell him and besides he won't listen to me."

"He'll listen to me. Be here at dawn tomorrow and he'll come back." Throwing off his clothes, Syrus dived into the water, regained his tail, and headed to where he last saw Jaden, noticing that Zane had reassumed his heartbroken pose.

The boy was still on his rock, still looking dejected. Syrus swam up happily. "Ja! I've got great news!"

"Yeah?" Jaden's tone sounded bored. What news could Syrus have compared to Zane?

"Zane does love you!"

The news failed to perk him up. "No, he doesn't."

"He does. Blair set you both up to make it seem like he loved her. Zane told me so."

"He's lying to you, Sy."

Syrus huffed. "He's still sitting on the beach waiting for you and I'll prove it." Grabbing Jaden's hand, he swam to the surface with his friend in tow. Zane was still there, just as Syrus said. "See, Ja? He's just as sad as you are. That's because he loves you."

Jaden stared at his prince. He did indeed look unhappy. Jaden's own heartbroken expression was reflected in Zane's. "Oh, Sy. You're right. I'm going back to him right now."

"You can't. I told him you'd come back at dawn. It'll be more romantic that way."

"Yeah. Romantic. Okay, I'll wait for dawn."

Zane slipped out the palace doors a few minutes before dawn. He told his father last night that he had sent Blair home and disliked the notion of an arranged marriage. Zane went on to say that he had already found someone, that it was male, and he was waiting for him to return. Shepherd was shocked that his son was gay, but he was a kind, understanding ruler and accepted Zane's decision.

Zane watched as the sky began to change colors. Indigo black turned into bands of pink, orange, yellow, and finally sky blue. Just as the sun's first rays peeked over the horizon, Zane heard a splash.

Tearing his eyes from the sky, he looked at the sea and saw someone slowly walking up out of the water. Brown hair peeked out from under the waves followed by warm brown eyes. A lean, well-toned body appeared accompanied by long, graceful limbs.

"Jaden!" Zane ran toward the boy and embraced him fiercely. Jaden hugged him back just as hard.

"Syrus told me what Blair did.'

"I sent her home yesterday morning. I also told my father that I love you and he accepted that I intend to marry you."

"Great! By the way, I'm sorry I snapped at you before."

"Apology accepted." Zane handed Jaden's clothes to him. Once he was dressed, the engaged couple went inside to plan the wedding. It didn't take them long to decided to hold it on the beach. At the spot where Zane had first found his soul mate.

The wedding was a beautiful blend of land and sea. While Shepherd performed the ceremony, Alexis and Atticus were nearby watching the couple just as Syrus was.

"I now pronounce these men married," Shepherd declared. Alexis and Atticus applauded as Zane and Jaden sealed their vows with their first tender kiss.

The End

As I promised, I've decided my next story. This one is for Wolf's Rain fans. I didn't particularly like the last four episodes of the series, though I did understand why it ended the way it did. So, I did a rewrite of those four eps. If you like Wolf's Rain, please look for my story, Of Wolves and Flowers.