Mercurial > moonlitnights
comparison old/stories/chbmn-satpt3.txt @ 2:fc00894c1d4a moonlitnights
[svn r3] moved all the bad stuff to 'old'
| author | rlm |
|---|---|
| date | Fri, 19 Feb 2010 20:53:12 -0500 |
| parents | |
| children |
comparison
equal
deleted
inserted
replaced
| 1:dbe144217c71 | 2:fc00894c1d4a |
|---|---|
| 1 | |
| 2 All of our stories (including the Sakura & Tomoyo stories I’ve written) along | |
| 3 with all the other ChibiUsa & Hotaru/Sakura & Tomoyo stories I’ve managed to | |
| 4 find are up at http://fly.to/moonlit_nights as well as hopefully a few other things. | |
| 5 ^-^ It’s a fanfiction shrine to two of the most wonderful yuri couples. Please | |
| 6 check it out. ^-^ | |
| 7 | |
| 8 | |
| 9 Tears and Rain (I know it was gonna be Rainbow Connection, but I changed my | |
| 10 mind. ^-^;; You should know that I change my mind a lot by now. ^-^;; *l* The | |
| 11 old title just didn’t fit as well.) | |
| 12 By the Amazoness Quartet | |
| 13 amazonessduo@hotmail.com | |
| 14 | |
| 15 Watashi-tachi ni Naritakute: | |
| 16 | |
| 17 "Ever since I first met you | |
| 18 I've been shining in my heart | |
| 19 My love causes so much sorrow | |
| 20 I broke off my glance so quietly | |
| 21 | |
| 22 Your insignificant gestures | |
| 23 And your ordinary words | |
| 24 Every time | |
| 25 I think of them I feel like I'm going to cry | |
| 26 | |
| 27 Love brings a lonely lonely heart | |
| 28 I'm just all alone now | |
| 29 Lonely lonely heart | |
| 30 All the joy and pain I feel, I'm always | |
| 31 Dreaming it by myself | |
| 32 Love brings a lonely lonely heart | |
| 33 But I know that someday it will come | |
| 34 While I'm being held in your strong arms | |
| 35 Wanting to be together with you... | |
| 36 | |
| 37 Right at your side, I'm standing there | |
| 38 I'm always waiting for you | |
| 39 But you don't return my advances | |
| 40 I've been disappointed so many times | |
| 41 | |
| 42 When I fall in love with someone | |
| 43 Why does it cause me so much pain | |
| 44 All alone, by myself | |
| 45 It's like I've fallen sick | |
| 46 | |
| 47 And now it's baby baby love | |
| 48 Please, I beg of you | |
| 49 Baby baby love | |
| 50 When I feel I am going to lose to this loneliness | |
| 51 I have to look into my hand mirror | |
| 52 And now it's baby baby love | |
| 53 Seems like every day I'm crying through the night | |
| 54 I long for the past, smiling to myself | |
| 55 Wanting to be together with you... | |
| 56 | |
| 57 Nobody knows about these | |
| 58 Secret tears | |
| 59 The one to wipe them away is | |
| 60 Only | |
| 61 Not just myself | |
| 62 Wanting to be together with you... | |
| 63 | |
| 64 Love brings a lonely lonely heart | |
| 65 I'm just all alone now | |
| 66 Lonely lonely heart | |
| 67 All the joy and pain I feel, I'm always | |
| 68 Dreaming it by myself | |
| 69 Love brings a lonely lonely heart | |
| 70 But I know that someday it will come | |
| 71 While I'm being held in your strong arms | |
| 72 Wanting to be together with you..." | |
| 73 | |
| 74 A dark haired girl with odangos sighed miserably as she and her pink | |
| 75 haired companion stood outside the Outer Senshi’s mansion, waiting under a | |
| 76 tree as the storm continued. "Why are we even here? We could be at home right | |
| 77 now, warm and dry, in the Crystal Palace. We could just tell Hotaru-mama and | |
| 78 ChibiUsa-mama about us and not have to worry about all this." The storm had | |
| 79 shown signs of slowing for a moment, but only a moment. It was already | |
| 80 starting to pick up again, pelting the two girls with cold rain. They were about | |
| 81 the same age as ChibiUsa and Hotaru, coming from further in the future than | |
| 82 their younger selves. | |
| 83 Shisa shivered, Selene’s body leaning against her own the only warmth | |
| 84 she felt. "Because we need to make them understand, Selene. They have to know | |
| 85 we’re in love. We have to prove that to them, make them realize that that’s the | |
| 86 most important thing to us." | |
| 87 "And why can’t we do that in the warmth of our own home? Why did | |
| 88 we travel back in the past for all this?" Selene asked. She was already starting to | |
| 89 feel homesick. She missed the room they shared; waking up to breakfast with | |
| 90 their whole family; their parents gentle prodding when it came to their being | |
| 91 princesses. | |
| 92 Shisa looked down at the damp grass. "We’d already talked about all | |
| 93 that. They wouldn’t understand if we only told them. We have to prove it. We | |
| 94 have to test them, show just how important their love is, so they’ll know how | |
| 95 important ours is." | |
| 96 "Maybe they already know," Selene said hopefully. "Maybe they know | |
| 97 and they’re fine with it." | |
| 98 Shisa shook her head skeptically. "Remember a year ago? You were | |
| 99 wondering why I was acting so strange around you. You kept wanting to know | |
| 100 what was bothering me. You just wouldn’t leave me alone about it. And finally I | |
| 101 told you. I looked you in the eyes and told you I was in love with you. There | |
| 102 was no mistaking it. I think you know me better than I know myself sometimes. | |
| 103 You didn’t need to ask, or to pretend you didn’t understand. And do you | |
| 104 remember what happened?" | |
| 105 The rain kept pouring over the two girls as they pushed further against | |
| 106 the tree, trying to stay out of the soaking rain. Selene let out a deep sigh before | |
| 107 answering. She looked away from Shisa when she did, not being able to meet | |
| 108 the pink haired girl’s gaze. "I freaked out. I didn’t talk to you for a while. I | |
| 109 thought you were sick. I kept telling you to leave me alone when I’d say | |
| 110 anything at all.." the maroon haired girl trailed off. | |
| 111 Shisa nodded sadly, pushing back the depression that always tried to | |
| 112 overwhelm her at those memories. "It took a long time before I could even get | |
| 113 you to even look at me again. ChibiUsa-mama and Hotaru-mama would | |
| 114 probably react even worse." | |
| 115 Selene thought for a moment, holding onto the other girl for comfort. | |
| 116 "But I did eventually wind up falling in love with you. I got over how I | |
| 117 originally thought of it. Maybe our parents will grow to accept it, too." | |
| 118 The dark night, lit only by occasional bolts of lightning, left the two | |
| 119 princesses in shadows. Shisa pulled her glasses off, trying to wipe the water | |
| 120 from the rain off on her blouse. Turning to Selene, she shook her head somberly. | |
| 121 "It took you time, Selene. It took a lot of time to fix things. Before our parents | |
| 122 could take the time to realize that, they probably would try to pull us apart. | |
| 123 They’d forbid us being together. We might wind up not seeing each other if they | |
| 124 decide to put us in different places to keep us apart. Who knows what else | |
| 125 they’d do." Shisa closed her eyes, shivering again. This time it wasn’t | |
| 126 just from the wind and rain. | |
| 127 "Oh, Shisa.." Selene wrapped her arms tighter around her lover, kissing | |
| 128 her cold cheek. "I don’t ever want to lose you. You’re right. We can’t take any | |
| 129 chances. We’ll do whatever it takes." | |
| 130 "Whatever it takes," Shisa repeated, determination lighting up her pale | |
| 131 violet eyes. | |
| 132 | |
| 133 Biting cold and freezing droplets of ice water hit ChibiUsa as she | |
| 134 opened the door for whoever had been knocking. Her pink hair was thrown | |
| 135 around by the strong surging winds. She shivered as the cold wind got to her, | |
| 136 standing there only in Hotaru’s nightgown. “Hello?” She called out into the | |
| 137 storm. The harsh rain and wind nearly blinded her as she tried to make out the | |
| 138 figure in the doorway. Why couldn’t she be back in bed with Hotaru right now? | |
| 139 What had possessed her to come downstairs in the first place? “Hello?” she | |
| 140 called again, barely hearing herself as a thunderclap shook the house. She | |
| 141 shuddered at the sudden sound, hugging herself as she waited for it to pass. As | |
| 142 she slowly managed to open her eyes and peer out past the doorway, a figure | |
| 143 slowly took shape. “Oh!” gasped the princess as she took a step back. | |
| 144 The figure smiled slightly and bowed. “It’s a pleasure, Princess | |
| 145 Serenity. You look surprised. I hope I haven’t come at an inopportune time.” | |
| 146 The pink haired girl shook her head slowly, at a loss for words. “I… | |
| 147 No, its just that… Why are you here?” she finally blurted out in confusion. | |
| 148 Taking another step forward, the figure’s smile broadened. “There is | |
| 149 much I must tell you, Princess.” | |
| 150 | |
| 151 | |
| 152 Momoko cinched the towel around herself tighter and closed the door | |
| 153 behind her as she entered her room. No one was home, but force of habit made | |
| 154 her shut the door anyway. She had just taken a long relaxing shower after she | |
| 155 had finally gotten home from shopping with Ruruna and Naruru. Momoko rolled | |
| 156 her eyes. Those two were really hard to deal with. She could see why Hotaru | |
| 157 didn’t like them very much. They were good friends of ChibiUsa’s, though, so | |
| 158 she put up with them. The pink haired girl had been supposed to come along, but | |
| 159 she had called at the last moment saying she couldn’t make it. | |
| 160 Stretching luxuriously, the lavender haired girl reflected on the past few | |
| 161 days. She had learned from ChibiUsa and Diana that not only had ChibiUsa’s | |
| 162 younger sister shown up, but her future daughters as well. That news had been | |
| 163 rather shocking. She’d had no idea the two girls could have a child, let alone | |
| 164 twins. | |
| 165 A by now familiar scratching sound at her window grabbed Momoko’s | |
| 166 attention. She smiled broadly before turning to look, pushing her other thoughts | |
| 167 aside at the arrival of her lover. “Diana!” Momoko quickly ran over and opened | |
| 168 the window. A small grayish purple kitten hopped down into the room, landing | |
| 169 gently on the floor. | |
| 170 “Hi, Momo-chan!” Diana said happily. The kitten purred as Momoko | |
| 171 bent down to pet her. | |
| 172 “Where were you?” Momoko asked, scratching under the kittens chin. | |
| 173 “I missed you, Diana.” She pouted for a second before smiling again, picking | |
| 174 her up in her arms. | |
| 175 “I was being played with by Small Lady and Hotaru-chan’s kids,” | |
| 176 Diana replied, obviously frustrated. | |
| 177 Momoko couldn’t help but giggle. “Children love kittens, Diana. | |
| 178 Especially cute talking kittens like you.” | |
| 179 After a shimmer of light, Diana stood before Momoko in her human | |
| 180 form. The beautiful cat girl’s short dark hair was done up in four odangos. She | |
| 181 wore a lavender dress with matching stockings that reached her thighs. Her | |
| 182 catlike eyes gazed deeply into Momoko’s. She took a step forward, her arms | |
| 183 wrapping around Momoko’s waist as she hugged her tightly. “Thanks, Momo- | |
| 184 chan. You’re sweet.” Leaning forward, she gave the lavender haired girl a peck | |
| 185 on the lips. She sighed as she leaned against her lover’s soft body, the scent of | |
| 186 Momoko’s hair already starting to relax her. “Those kids are hard to keep up | |
| 187 with, even when they’re dragging you around. They have a bundle of energy.” | |
| 188 Momoko smiled, running a hand through Diana’s soft hair. “Sounds | |
| 189 like it. Maybe you should stay with me for a while. I mean, my mother knows | |
| 190 you stay around here a lot, as a kitten at least. And ChibiUsa doesn’t always | |
| 191 need you there. Like you said, the Quartet can watch over them.” Her voice had | |
| 192 a hopeful tone to it. | |
| 193 Diana squealed giddily and hugged the other girl again. “Really? | |
| 194 Thanks! No more little kids pulling my tail. And I’d get to stay with you. That | |
| 195 would be great, Momo-chan!” | |
| 196 “Yeah, I’d love if you could stay.” Momoko’s hands moved down | |
| 197 Diana’s back before arriving at her tail. “As for the not pulling your tail…” | |
| 198 Giving a playful tug on the other girls’ tail, Momoko laughed as Diana tensed up | |
| 199 in her arms. “At least you won’t have to pack anything,” she said thoughtfully | |
| 200 before sitting on the edge of her bed. | |
| 201 Diana sat down next to her, placing a hand on the lavender haired | |
| 202 girls’. “I’ve been thinking about you so much lately, Momo-chan. I love you,” | |
| 203 Diana said happily, her tail moving back and forth behind her. | |
| 204 “I love you, too,” Momoko smiled back. “My little kitten,” she added. | |
| 205 She slowly leaned forward, Diana turned to her, as if to speak. Momoko caught | |
| 206 Diana’s lips with her own, kissing her passionately. Diana was caught by | |
| 207 surprise. Her mouth fell open, Momoko’s tongue pushing inside. Diana quickly | |
| 208 regained herself, kissing the other girl back. | |
| 209 Momoko sat forward, lost in their kiss. She felt Diana’s tail wrap | |
| 210 around her hand, the soft fur against her skin. As their tongues danced, Momoko | |
| 211 felt a warm feeling pouring through her. Her eyes widened as she felt Diana’s | |
| 212 hand on her right breast. She moaned softly into Diana’s mouth. The lavender | |
| 213 haired girl was paralyzed. She didn’t know what to do, but Diana continued. | |
| 214 They had been dating for several months now, but they had only gone so far, not | |
| 215 actually having made love. Momoko’s worries were quickly drowned out by the | |
| 216 feelings flooding through her. She continued to kiss the other girl back, her | |
| 217 tongue brushing against the other girl’s. She moaned again when Diana lightly | |
| 218 squeezed her breast. She gasped, arching her back as Diana’s other hand went to | |
| 219 her left breast. Her now hard nipples pressed against Diana’s soft palms. | |
| 220 Both girls were breathing heavily when the kiss finally ended. “Diana- | |
| 221 chan,” Momoko whispered huskily. She pushed the cat girl backwards on the | |
| 222 bed, a quick yelp of surprise coming from Diana. Lying atop Diana, Momoko | |
| 223 kissed down her jawline to her neck. Diana shuddered deliciously underneath | |
| 224 her. Momoko started pulling the top of Diana’s dress down, baring her soft | |
| 225 breasts. The lavender haired girl kissed down her shoulder hungrily. Lightening | |
| 226 shot through Momoko’s body as Diana’s hands began to caress her own chest | |
| 227 again. | |
| 228 Almost as if coming out of a trance, Momoko could vaguely hear a | |
| 229 ringing sound. “Not now…” she muttered, finally recognizing the doorbell. She | |
| 230 tried desperately to ignore the now grating noise, reveling in the new | |
| 231 experiences playing out before her. Her mind focussed solely on Diana and the | |
| 232 sensations the cat girl was arousing within her. Sitting up, she ran a hand | |
| 233 through her sweat dampened lavender hair. “Diana,” she tried to say. She | |
| 234 shuddered lightly as Diana continued her ministrations. With great reluctance, | |
| 235 she finally disentangled herself from her lover. | |
| 236 Diana let out a small whimper as Momoko stood up. Her passion filled | |
| 237 eyes traveled up and down Momoko’s nude body. “Momo-chan, don’t go,” the | |
| 238 cat girl pleaded, reaching out for the lavender haired girl. | |
| 239 Taking Diana’s hand in her own, Momoko brought it to her flushed | |
| 240 cheek. “I’m sorry, Diana. I’ll be back in a minute. Wait right here,” she | |
| 241 commanded, ignoring the cat girl’s crawling towards her. Heading to the closet, | |
| 242 Momoko quickly pulled out a Chinese dress and pulled it on, eager to get rid of | |
| 243 the visitor. She wasn’t in the mood to deal lightly with whomever it was. A | |
| 244 glance back at her bed weakened her resolve to go check the door. The sight of | |
| 245 Diana sitting on her bed with the top of her dress down with a slightly | |
| 246 bewildered look in her eyes greeted Momoko. Blushing profusely, Momoko | |
| 247 averted her eyes and headed through her door. This was the first time she’d ever | |
| 248 done anything like this. It was an almost overwhelming sensation. She wanted to | |
| 249 get rid of the intruder as quickly as possible and get back to it. | |
| 250 The site that greeted her when she opened the door was a tired and | |
| 251 traumatized looking pink haired girl flanked by three younger girls. A worried | |
| 252 Hotaru was holding onto ChibiUsa’s hand, looking up with concern in her deep | |
| 253 violet eyes at her one true love. On the other side of the future princess were the | |
| 254 twins, Shisa and Selene. Shisa bowed first, her sister following suite seconds | |
| 255 later. “Ohayo, Momohara-san,” Shisa said politely. “Hi, Momoko-san,” Selene | |
| 256 said seconds afterward. She giggled and whispered something to her sister. | |
| 257 Apparently the other girl thought it was funny as well. | |
| 258 Momoko shook her head, looking back up at the miserable pink haired | |
| 259 girl. She knew that ChibiUsa must be taking that accident that changed Hotaru | |
| 260 into a child pretty badly, despite Diana having told her that she seemed to be | |
| 261 doing well. “ChibiUsa-chan, looks like you brought the entire family. Well, | |
| 262 except your little sister.” | |
| 263 “Aunt Kousagi is still back at grandma Usagi’s house. ChibiUsa-mama | |
| 264 spent the night with Hotaru-mama," Selene supplied helpfully. Shisa nodded a | |
| 265 little shyly from her place slightly behind ChibiUsa,. | |
| 266 A sigh escaped the future princesses lips before she looked up. She | |
| 267 gave Hotaru’s small hand a squeeze before plastering on the fake smile she’d | |
| 268 worn all the way there. It wasn’t enough to fool Hotaru, but she hadn’t known | |
| 269 what to ask her girlfriend. What could have happened that morning to upset her | |
| 270 so? “Momo-chan, I’m really, really sorry about this, but would you mind | |
| 271 watching the kids for a bit? There’s someone I need to talk to and its kinda | |
| 272 urgent. My mother sent her and there’s some things we need to talk about and | |
| 273 I’d feel bad just leaving Hota-chan, Shisa-chan, and Selene-chan all alone,” | |
| 274 ChibiUsa asked, a hint of desperation in her voice. | |
| 275 That much was true, Hotaru could tell, but what wasn’t she saying? | |
| 276 And why was she so afraid to ask? She knew that they could tell each other | |
| 277 anything, so all she had to do was ask the pink haired girl. But every time she | |
| 278 tried, the knots in her stomach would just get worse. ChibiUsa had seemed so | |
| 279 hopeful the night before and now… | |
| 280 Momoko looked back inside the house. Her parents were gone for the | |
| 281 day and she had Diana back waiting for her in her room for a day they could | |
| 282 spend in each other’s arms. They could pick up where they left off and see | |
| 283 where it went from there. With a sigh, she turned back to her friend. So much | |
| 284 for that idea. There was always some other time. Smiling a bit, she nodded. | |
| 285 “Sure thing, ChibiUsa-chan. I’d be glad to help.” | |
| 286 ChibiUsa let out her breath in relief. At least she wouldn’t have to | |
| 287 worry about the children while dealing with things. And it was probably better if | |
| 288 Hotaru stayed here for now. Maybe things wouldn’t have been so bad if Hotaru | |
| 289 didn’t already have so much to worry about. Hotaru’s enhanced aging had been | |
| 290 jump started, but it would still be a while before she was back to her normal self. | |
| 291 Whether that meant days or weeks, ChibiUsa had no idea. “Thanks, Momo- | |
| 292 chan. I owe you one.” She smiled a little weakly as she led the younger girls | |
| 293 towards the door. | |
| 294 Laughing, Momoko shook her head. “Don’t worry about it. You can | |
| 295 just babysit for me and Diana if we ever have a kid,” the lavender haired girl | |
| 296 joked. | |
| 297 “You mean Isis-chan?” Shisa asked curiously. | |
| 298 Momoko stared at the younger girl for a moment before she began to | |
| 299 sweatdrop. They did have a child? Before she could think about it anymore, | |
| 300 Selene slipped past her, dragging Shisa behind. | |
| 301 “Will you be okay, ChibiUsa-chan?” Hotaru asked softly, not managing | |
| 302 to hide the concern in her voice. | |
| 303 Smiling down at the dark haired girl, ChibiUsa nodded. “Hai, I’ll be | |
| 304 fine, Taru. You just try not to worry about things, okay? We’ll get it all worked | |
| 305 out soon enough.” ‘I hope,’ she added to herself. | |
| 306 Hotaru didn’t feel very reassured, but she slowly let go of ChibiUsa’s | |
| 307 hand and took a step towards Momoko. She didn’t want to leave the pink haired | |
| 308 girl, but she didn’t know what to say. Everything was so confusing. Looking up | |
| 309 at the pink haired girl, she tried desperately to say something, anything, but | |
| 310 nothing came to her. But she didn’t need words. ChibiUsa met her gaze with a | |
| 311 warm smile, comforting her a little. | |
| 312 “I’ll be back soon, Hota-chan,” ChibiUsa promised, kneeling down. | |
| 313 She gave Hotaru a hug, something she needed as much as the other girl to quell | |
| 314 the storm in her heart. | |
| 315 “I’ll be waiting for you,” Hotaru said softly before they parted. | |
| 316 Blinking back tears she didn’t know had been there, she watched as the pink | |
| 317 haired girl turned around and left. She knew that she’d be back, so why did it | |
| 318 feel like this would be the last time they’d see each other? | |
| 319 | |
| 320 | |
| 321 “It isn’t fair.” | |
| 322 Hotaru sat quietly on the couch, hugging her legs tightly to her chest. | |
| 323 The small, lonely girl was propped up on a cushion, her chin resting on her | |
| 324 knees. She shivered, her pale skin forming thousands of goose-bumps. It wasn't | |
| 325 the cold that bothered her so much. No, she was used to that. She had always | |
| 326 been cold. It didn’t matter how warm it was outside. Inside, she always felt cold. | |
| 327 Now was no different. The only warmth she’d felt in her cold body was when | |
| 328 she was being held in ChibiUsa’s arms, losing herself in the sensation. It was as | |
| 329 if she was somehow absorbing the heat from the pink haired girl’s body. But she | |
| 330 knew that just had to be her mind playing tricks on her. She was always cold | |
| 331 because she had always been a weak and sickly girl. Maybe it wasn’t as bad this | |
| 332 time around as it had when she had been growing up the first time, but she still | |
| 333 wasn’t as healthy as most of the other children. | |
| 334 Her dark violet eyes reflected the flickering flames from the fire | |
| 335 Haruka had started not that long ago. The large house she shared with her | |
| 336 surrogate parents was slowly warming up. She wanted to get off the couch and | |
| 337 sit right in front of the fire, but she stubbornly stayed where she was. She didn’t | |
| 338 feel like trying to warm herself. Hugging her legs tighter to herself, she blinked | |
| 339 stinging watery eyes as the bright flames finally won their staring match. | |
| 340 ChibiUsa had come upstairs that morning with a trinket from Crystal | |
| 341 Tokyo that had jumpstarted Hotaru’s advanced aging. She should be her normal | |
| 342 self within a few weeks. In the meantime, she was still stuck in the body of a | |
| 343 child and she would have to slowly re-age back to her normal self within the | |
| 344 course of the next few weeks. But rather than being overjoyed by the prospect, | |
| 345 ChibiUsa had been quiet and withdrawn, not at all the normally outgoing person | |
| 346 she usually was. The pink haired princess had been preoccupied by something, | |
| 347 but despite Hotaru’s concern, ChibiUsa had just tried to convince her that | |
| 348 nothing was wrong. And afterwards, ChibiUsa had taken Hotaru and their future | |
| 349 twin daughters to Momoko’s house so she and Diana could keep an eye on them | |
| 350 while ChibiUsa thought. ‘About what? What’s she keeping from me? We’re | |
| 351 supposed to tell each other everything. Why would she hide this from me? She’s | |
| 352 treating me like a child,’ she thought despairingly to herself. ‘Could it be that | |
| 353 just maybe you’ve been acting like one?’ a voice within herself countered. She | |
| 354 silenced it quickly, curling up tighter. ‘I’m not acting like a child. I’m not… My | |
| 355 body’s just younger, not my mind…’ she reassured herself. | |
| 356 “It isn’t fair.” | |
| 357 “What isn’t fair, Hime-chan?” Michiru asked gently, gracefully | |
| 358 entering the living room with a tea tray. She kneeled next to the table in front of | |
| 359 the couch Hotaru was on. | |
| 360 “Nothing…” Hotaru trailed off, looking down miserably. Strands of her | |
| 361 short, dark hair fell into her eyes. Even the momentary blindness made her feel | |
| 362 worse. She brushed the hair from her eyes with her small hand, looking up | |
| 363 slowly to see Michiru’s soothing smile. | |
| 364 “Would you like some tea, Hime-chan? You need something to warm | |
| 365 you up before you freeze.” Michiru began pouring the tea into several cups even | |
| 366 before the younger girl’s response. “Sitting there all stern and thoughtful. One | |
| 367 might think you’re a piece of gothic architecture. We have enough art around the | |
| 368 house. We need more lively little girls.” | |
| 369 Hotaru giggled softly, a small smile beginning to light up her young | |
| 370 features. “Hai, Michiru-mama. I’d like that.” She missed the note of childish | |
| 371 exuberance in her own voice as she slid off the couch and gratefully accepted | |
| 372 the offered cup of tea. “Arigato, Michiru-mama.” The first sip of the warm | |
| 373 liquid did make her feel a little better as it slowly warmed her inside. Michiru | |
| 374 had to warn her about drinking it too quickly, lest she burn her throat. She | |
| 375 sighed softly before taking another sip. If she asked, she knew ChibiUsa would | |
| 376 tell her. They could tell each other anything. But what scared her was when | |
| 377 ChibiUsa did tell her. If this was enough to affect the usually bright and | |
| 378 optimistic pink haired girl… | |
| 379 Sitting in front of the fire, the mug held in both hands, the young | |
| 380 Senshi of Death and Rebirth counted off all of her blessings despite the | |
| 381 condition she was in. And prayed that she wasn’t about to lose them all. | |
| 382 | |
| 383 | |
| 384 | |
| 385 ChibiUsa sighed miserably as she searched through the refrigerator for | |
| 386 something else to eat. She was feeling empty in more ways than one. She steered | |
| 387 clear of the carrots, scavenging for anything that looked edible cold. ‘There we | |
| 388 go,’ the pink haired princess thought to herself as she found some chocolate near | |
| 389 the back. Usually she would be a little more weary of who’s it was, but she | |
| 390 wasn’t in the mood to worry about that at the moment. Putting the chocolate bar | |
| 391 in her mouth to hold for a moment, she smoothed down her pajamas before | |
| 392 returning to her seat at the table, a space she hadn’t vacated for the past two | |
| 393 hours. Taking a bite of the chocolate, she winced. It was still hard. She set it | |
| 394 down to wait for it to thaw a bit before trying to polish it off. Looking into her | |
| 395 half empty glass of water, she gazed at the dim reflection she could make out | |
| 396 from the single light that was on in the room. Her normally vibrant crimson eyes | |
| 397 seemed faded, they’re usual sparkle missing. She ran a hand through her pink | |
| 398 hair, let down from her odango hair style. “Not quite the pristine princess I’m | |
| 399 supposed to be, right, mom?” she asked quietly into the empty room. She | |
| 400 laughed bitterly. “But then, why should you care? Just how much of a | |
| 401 disappointment am I to you?” | |
| 402 Picking up the candy bar, ChibiUsa took a bite out of the still hard | |
| 403 chocolate. It was supposed to be comfort food, but it didn’t feel very comforting. | |
| 404 So technically, she should stop. But who would care whether or not she did? | |
| 405 Hotaru. She wouldn’t mind if Hotaru was doing this, if the pale girl got a little | |
| 406 chubby. Then she wouldn’t have to worry so much about the poor girl never | |
| 407 eating. Besides, she’d look cute even then. | |
| 408 ChibiUsa shook her head as she realized her thoughts were wandering. | |
| 409 But was that a bad thing? At least it would get her mind off of things. She didn’t | |
| 410 want to have to think right now, to have to relive thoughts over and over. It only | |
| 411 made things worse, it seemed. Thoughts lived and died, other darker thoughts | |
| 412 rising from their ashes as the night pushed inexorably onward towards the | |
| 413 coming dawn. There was no silver lining for her to search for, no shelter in this | |
| 414 storm. Sleep escaped her as if it were running from her frenziedly. Biting her | |
| 415 lower lip, she wondered if she could ask Elios if there were something he could | |
| 416 do about that. He was the priest of Elysian, the land of dreams, after all. But then | |
| 417 she’d still probably have nightmares all night long. That wouldn’t be any better | |
| 418 than this waking nightmare. And talking to him would just remind her of her | |
| 419 mother’s plans. | |
| 420 ‘How could she do this to me?’ ChibiUsa thought to herself. ‘She made | |
| 421 it sound like she had faith in us. I always thought she was such a wonderful lady. | |
| 422 I wanted to be just like her. Now… I don’t know what to think. Why us? | |
| 423 Hotaru’s already had such a difficult life. Why can’t she have some happiness? I | |
| 424 love her. How can my mother dictate that? Is love so weak that she can decide | |
| 425 its fate? She thinks our love is nothing more than puppy love, that I was | |
| 426 experimenting back here and got with my best friend because of that. It took me | |
| 427 long enough to figure it out, but I do love Hotaru. I always knew it deep down. I | |
| 428 always worried about what the future would bring when I had to return, but I | |
| 429 knew things would work out. We’d think of something. Love would find a way. | |
| 430 But now I find out that my mother had it set from the beginning that this | |
| 431 couldn’t be. And what about the twins? Were they just told to say that Hotaru | |
| 432 and I were their parents so that we wouldn’t realize what was going to happen? | |
| 433 Are they Elios’ and my children?’ | |
| 434 The pink haired princess buried her face in her hands, tears running down | |
| 435 her cheeks when she thought she had none left. ‘I thought we’d be together | |
| 436 forever. My birthright destroyed everything. How can I face Hotaru with this? I | |
| 437 just wanted to make her happy, and now I can’t even do that. I hate you, mother. | |
| 438 I’ll never forgive you for this. I want to curl up and die. Maybe I should. Prove | |
| 439 to you that you can’t rule my life. That I won’t follow in your footsteps if it | |
| 440 means leaving behind the girl I love. If it means leaving behind the other half of | |
| 441 my soul, what type of life is that? Its not even life. And I won’t live it. I’d rather | |
| 442 die than be her puppet. Than ever hurt Hotaru. I’ll be with Hotaru again in the | |
| 443 afterlife. You’ll never keep us from each other. I’d move heaven and earth to be | |
| 444 with her.’ The princess stood up, pulling back the drawn curtains to look up into | |
| 445 the moonlit sky. A renewed determination burned in her eyes. ‘I won’t let you | |
| 446 keep us apart. I’ll fight to be with her, give up my birthright, even die. Whatever | |
| 447 it takes.’ She drew a tiny picture on the damp glass with her finger. ‘I love you | |
| 448 too much, Hotaru. I’ll never give up on you. I won’t let it end this way. I | |
| 449 promise.’ | |
| 450 | |
| 451 | |
| 452 | |
| 453 “Are you alright, Kyusuke-kun? You’ve been out of it all afternoon. | |
| 454 You’ll make me think I’m too boring for you,” Hikaru chided the green haired | |
| 455 boy. | |
| 456 “Huh? Oh.. Sorry, Hikaru-chan. I was just lost in thought. And boring | |
| 457 is definitely not a word I’d use to describe you. You may be a lot of things, but | |
| 458 boring’s not one of them,” Kyusuke replied. | |
| 459 Hikaru paused for a moment, considering whether or not to take that as | |
| 460 a compliment before smiling back at the boy. “Just try not to get lost again. I | |
| 461 might not be able to find you.” | |
| 462 “I’ll be careful,” Kyusuke promised. Glancing sidelong at his | |
| 463 companion, he smiled to himself. Her short auburn hair fell past beautiful brown | |
| 464 eyes almost to the point of obscuring her vision, but she never seemed to have a | |
| 465 problem knowing exactly where she was going. With everything. A large | |
| 466 oversized sweater and a pleated skirt adorned the girl that chilly evening, her | |
| 467 arms still clutching the stuffed bear he’d bought her just a short time beforehand. | |
| 468 Kyusuke had known Hikaru for years now and they’d always been good friends, | |
| 469 but it hadn’t been until a few months ago that they’d finally started dating. The | |
| 470 girl was a little odd, but he loved all those little things about her. | |
| 471 “You’re grinning like an idiot again. Wanna tell me what about?” | |
| 472 Hikaru asked with a wink, once again shaking Kyusuke from his thoughts. | |
| 473 “Nothing.. I’m just thinking about things,” the green haired boy said | |
| 474 lamely. He was about to try again before something caught his eye. Across the | |
| 475 street he could make out ChibiUsa along with three younger girls heading into a | |
| 476 store. “ChibiUsa-chan must be babysitting.” | |
| 477 Hikaru followed his gaze to the pink haired girl and nodded. “Looks | |
| 478 like it. That’s the girl who dates the gothic girl at your school, right?” | |
| 479 Sweatdropping profusely, the green haired boy nodded. “Yeah, but | |
| 480 Momoko said she’d beat the crap out of me if I told anyone. She only told me | |
| 481 because I was joking about it.” | |
| 482 “Looks like she’s gotta kill you then, because you told me.” Hikaru | |
| 483 grinned and stuck her tongue out at the boy. “You really are scared of that girl, | |
| 484 aren’t you?” | |
| 485 “Hey, as long as Momoko doesn’t find out, I don’t wind up very very | |
| 486 dead. And sense you go to a different school, I figure the rules don’t apply.” | |
| 487 Proud of his explanation, Kyusuke watched ChibiUsa and the girls disappear | |
| 488 into the building. Slowly, the pair begin walking again. | |
| 489 “You always run up to your friends to talk to them except when I’m | |
| 490 around.” Hikaru turned and pouted cutely at Kyusuke. “Why is that?” | |
| 491 Sighing and rolling his eyes, the green haired boy kept walking. “Come | |
| 492 on, Hikaru-chan. Don’t do that.” | |
| 493 “I only do it because it always works,” the auburn haired girl said with | |
| 494 a giggle. | |
| 495 “Well, it’s just that… They’re all… And when you think about it…. | |
| 496 You know…” | |
| 497 Hugging the stuffed bear against her chest, Hikaru turned to Kyusuke. | |
| 498 “But what’s the big deal? The pink girl and that other one are in a lesbian | |
| 499 relationship and your friend Momoko obviously seems fine with it. So there | |
| 500 shouldn’t be a problem if they met me. Its not like they’d find out.” | |
| 501 “I know, I know… It’s just…” Kyusuke began nervously. | |
| 502 “Now don’t start that. We both know why you don’t want me to meet | |
| 503 them. You don’t need to cover it up. Fine.” She shrugged, walking forward | |
| 504 again. Brushing some hair back, she placed a withering glance on the green | |
| 505 haired boy as he tried to keep up. “It doesn’t matter if you pretend I don’t exist.” | |
| 506 A sigh of defeat marked the end of Kyusuke’s resistance. Nodding, he | |
| 507 looked up at her. “Alright, you win. But don’t expect it to be a big thing. | |
| 508 They’re just my friends. Momoko’s kind of intimidating sometimes, but that’s | |
| 509 usually just to me. ChibiUsa’s sort of… perky. And Hotaru pretty much just | |
| 510 follows her around, not saying much.” | |
| 511 Hugging her boyfriend warmly, Hikaru smiled. “Thanks, Kyusuke-kun! | |
| 512 I knew you’d understand.” | |
| 513 Returning the hug, Kyusuke sweatdropped. He hoped he wasn’t making | |
| 514 a mistake. | |
| 515 | |
| 516 | |
| 517 | |
| 518 “What about this?” ChibiUsa asked as she lifted the small frilled dress | |
| 519 up for the younger girls to see. | |
| 520 “ChibiUsa-chan…” | |
| 521 “But it’s cute. You’d look adorable in it, Hota-chan,” the future | |
| 522 princess argued. Looking from the small dark haired girl to the dress and back, | |
| 523 she nodded, pleased. “Besides, Puu gave me some money and told me to buy | |
| 524 you some clothes. You do need some, Taru. The rest of your wardrobe’s still for | |
| 525 a sixteen year old girl.” | |
| 526 “I know, ChibiUsa-chan. But don’t you think it’s a little too...” Hotaru | |
| 527 trailed off as she stared skeptically at the dress. | |
| 528 “Cute?” Shisa supplied helpfully, startling the shy raven haired girl. | |
| 529 “Hai. Its more like something that you would wear, ChibiUsa-chan...” | |
| 530 Hotaru looked up at ChibiUsa with her dark violet eyes for a long moment. It | |
| 531 was strange, looking up at her like that. She remembered it the other way around | |
| 532 when they’d first met, when she had to look down to see the little pink haired | |
| 533 girl. The last time she herself had been this small and in a situation like this had | |
| 534 been several years ago shopping with her surrogate parents. Looking up at their | |
| 535 smiling faces, she’d been thrilled when they had let her pick out a particular | |
| 536 sundress she liked. Michiru had said it would only get dirty anyway but Haruka | |
| 537 had said that was the point. Now she was looking up at a different smiling face | |
| 538 with a different kind of love in those eyes than in those of her parents’. It left her | |
| 539 a little disoriented, the new mixing with the old, nostalgia mixing with anxiety, | |
| 540 all performing a jumbled orchestra in her heart. | |
| 541 Selene giggled and nodded. “I think you should get it, Hotaru-chan. It | |
| 542 would look nice.” Dark purple odango bobbed up and down as she nodded | |
| 543 enthusiastically. | |
| 544 ChibiUsa smiled at her future daughter’s attempt at helping. She had | |
| 545 noticed the twins had quickly dropped the use of ‘mama’ for Hotaru when | |
| 546 they’d found out she was their age. She hoped it was only because of their | |
| 547 similarity in age rather than Hotaru not really being their mother. If Elios really | |
| 548 was the father... Hotaru’s insistent tug on her hand brought her back to reality. | |
| 549 “I’ll get it if you want, ChibiUsa-chan,” Hotaru said with a shy smile. | |
| 550 ChibiUsa smiled down at her and shook her head, something catching | |
| 551 her eye. “No, you’re right, Taru. Its not exactly you. Besides, this is soooo much | |
| 552 cuter.” Pulling up a little yellow sundress to Hotaru, she grinned happily. The | |
| 553 younger girl looked simply adorable. “Now we just need to find you a good | |
| 554 wide-brimmed hat for that and it will be perfect.” Standing up and still holding | |
| 555 her girlfriend’s small hand, she looked around for the next object in her quest. | |
| 556 “ChibiUsa-mama? When we’re done getting Hotaru-chan clothes, I | |
| 557 want something to!” Selene stated so her future parent would be absolutely sure | |
| 558 not to leave her out of the day’s events. | |
| 559 “Me too!” Shisa added. “I’ll have the one you were gonna get for | |
| 560 Hotaru-chan if she doesn’t want it.” | |
| 561 Hotaru let her eyes wander as they walked through the enormous racks | |
| 562 of clothes. Everything was so huge now. She’d never been a tall girl, but the | |
| 563 sheer difference in size from a few days before and now was colossal. Brushing | |
| 564 back her dark hair, she couldn’t shake off the feeling that they were being | |
| 565 watched. But by who? She glanced around worriedly, unable to keep the | |
| 566 sensation from getting worse. To keep the disorientation welling up inside her | |
| 567 from becoming too much to bear, she squeezed ChibiUsa’s hand tightly. The | |
| 568 future princess squeezed back gently, reassuring Hotaru. A sigh escaped | |
| 569 Hotaru’s lips as she tried to convince herself that it was all in her mind. Smiling | |
| 570 to herself, she slipped away from ChibiUsa while the older girl was checking the | |
| 571 hats. | |
| 572 “This one looks really cute, but this one’s really good, too. Hmm... | |
| 573 What do you think, Hota-chan?” ChibiUsa looked up as she held the two hats | |
| 574 for the raven haired girl’s inspection, but Hotaru was nowhere to be seen. Right | |
| 575 as she began to fear the worst, a small voice piped up near her. | |
| 576 “What about this one, ChibiUsa-chan? I really like it!” Hotaru said | |
| 577 happily as she ran back up to the three other girls. She was clutching a beautiful | |
| 578 white wide-brimmed hat offset with a midnight black ribbon encircling it before | |
| 579 trailing off the back. Placing it on her head, the pale girl demonstrated for her | |
| 580 future princess. Her short dark hair fell out from underneath the hat, framing her | |
| 581 ivory skin. She giggled as she tilted her head to the side. | |
| 582 “Its really pretty, Hota-chan. I think you should get it.” ChibiUsa | |
| 583 smiled at her counterpart, her soulmate, inwardly breathing a sigh of relief that | |
| 584 nothing had happened. Before she could further comment, the two hats she had | |
| 585 been holding were snatched from her grasp. | |
| 586 “What about me? I look pretty, too, right?” Selene asked quickly, | |
| 587 wearing the hat that had been in ChibiUsa’s right hand. | |
| 588 “Can I get this one? Please?” Shisa asked, blinking huge puppy dog | |
| 589 eyes upwards at her currently overwhelmed future pink haired parent. | |
| 590 Hotaru watched as the other two girls fought over their mother’s | |
| 591 attention through blurry eyes. It had looked so perfect, sitting there all alone. | |
| 592 She wanted so much to show it to ChibiUsa, to see what she thought. All alone... | |
| 593 She’d known ChibiUsa would like it as much as she did, but now... A tear | |
| 594 dropped down to the cold floor, quickly joined by another. It wasn’t fair... | |
| 595 “Hotaru? Hotaru-chan, what’s wrong?” she heard pierce through the shroud of | |
| 596 sadness around her. A hand went to her shoulder as another brushed the hair | |
| 597 away from her eyes. Concerned crimson eyes met her own tearful violet ones. | |
| 598 She lunged forward with a choked sob and clasped onto ChibiUsa. Comforting | |
| 599 whispers brushed past her ears as the older girl held her tightly. She could see | |
| 600 the twins watching worriedly from behind ChibiUsa but her torn heart kept the | |
| 601 tears flowing. She buried her head against ChibiUsa’s shoulder, wanting | |
| 602 everything to go back to the way it had been. ‘Why am I doing this?’ she asked | |
| 603 herself. ‘It’s not a big deal. It’s alright. I know she loves me, so if she pays | |
| 604 attention to them, why does it hurt so much? Why am I so sad? I’m a big girl, I | |
| 605 shouldn’t be crying about this. This doesn’t matter. But.. I just wanted to show it | |
| 606 to her.. I wanted to ask her what she thought.. I wanted to be the only one...’ | |
| 607 “Shhh... It’s okay, Hota-chan. Cry all you want. It’s okay.” ChibiUsa | |
| 608 stroked Hotaru’s back as the other girl sobbed against her. What had happened? | |
| 609 She wanted to ask, to make sure that the dark haired girl was all right, but she | |
| 610 just needed comfort right now. There would always be later to worry about such | |
| 611 things. Hotaru had been trying so hard to pretend that she was fine, but this had | |
| 612 taken a rather heavy emotional toll on her. She was just a little girl now. | |
| 613 ChibiUsa had been so worried about what she’d heard from the future and what | |
| 614 would become of them that she hadn’t been worrying enough about what Hotaru | |
| 615 was going through now. Things would work out, they would find a way. But for | |
| 616 now, Hotaru needed her. She never should have left her side since this had | |
| 617 happened. Closing her eyes, she realized what a mistake she had made. She | |
| 618 could only hope that she could make it up to the pale girl in her arms. | |
| 619 | |
| 620 “Poor Hotaru-mama,” an older Selene said as she watched the scene | |
| 621 unfolding before her. Her long dark hair was swept back behind her as familiar | |
| 622 fingers brushed through it. She smiled as she turned her attention to the | |
| 623 spectacled girl next to her. “I was wondering where you’d disappeared off to.” | |
| 624 “Just making sure we had one of grandfather Tomoe’s Daimon Eggs | |
| 625 ready,” the teenage Shisa explained. She lifted up the small object in her hand | |
| 626 for the dark haired girl to see. | |
| 627 Selene frowned as she looked from it to the embracing forms of their | |
| 628 parents. “Are you sure about this? Aren’t they already in enough pain? | |
| 629 ChibiUsa-mama just heard that she’s marrying High Priest Elios and Hotaru- | |
| 630 mama’s no more than a child.” She shakes her head sadly. “But we have to. We | |
| 631 have to or they’ll never accept us. We must test them.” | |
| 632 Shisa nodded in agreement. “We must make them hurt. To try to tear | |
| 633 them from each other. To make them suffer. Only then will they understand...” | |
| 634 She clutched the Daimon Egg tightly as her mind started to shift back to painful | |
| 635 memories. | |
| 636 “Shisa, no, don’t think about it. We’re both here. I’m here with you. | |
| 637 Please don’t worry.” Selene placed her hand on the other girl’s cheek gingerly. | |
| 638 She offered a small smile. “You can’t just give up on me now. What would I do? | |
| 639 If we’re gonna pull this off, we need to be together on it. I need you.” | |
| 640 Placing her hand atop Selene’s, Shisa nodded, smiling herself. “Hai, | |
| 641 Selenity. Besides, it should be fun.” | |
| 642 Selene grinned. “Most definitely. We’ll see just how well our beloved | |
| 643 parents can handle what we throw at them.” | |
| 644 | |
| 645 “There you go,” ChibiUsa said softly as she wiped the last of Hotaru’s | |
| 646 tears away. She smiled as she looked into the raven haired girl’s deep violet | |
| 647 eyes. “Is that better?” She got a shy nod from Hotaru in return. Smiling a little | |
| 648 more as relief spread through her body, she placed the wide brimmed hat on | |
| 649 Hotaru. | |
| 650 The pale girl looked at ChibiUsa for a long moment before smiling a little | |
| 651 herself. She was being childish, she admonished herself. But she had to admit | |
| 652 deep down that it was worth it if it meant ChibiUsa was there to take care of her. | |
| 653 She gave the bigger girl a warm hug. “Thank you, ChibiUsa-chan.” After a | |
| 654 second’s pause, she added almost inaudibly, “I love you.” | |
| 655 Whether the older girl heard her or not would never be known, because at | |
| 656 that moment an arm whipped out and grabbed at Hotaru. A yelp escaped the | |
| 657 raven haired girl as she got pulled backwards suddenly, her hat falling to the | |
| 658 floor. As the terrified Senshi of Death and Rebirth turned around, she saw what | |
| 659 she had sworn was a mannequin just a few moments earlier with an evil grin on | |
| 660 its face. | |
| 661 “Hotaru-chan!” ChibiUsa yelled as she watched in confusion. A Daimon! | |
| 662 Just like the one they’d fought a few days ago when Hotaru had been tied up. So | |
| 663 it wasn’t an accident after all. Someone was after them. But why? There was no | |
| 664 time to waste on the answers but she’d see that they didn’t get away with | |
| 665 whatever it was. Lunging forward, she grabbed Hotaru’s forearm. | |
| 666 Unfortunately, the Daimon was much stronger than it had appeared and | |
| 667 ChibiUsa had never been very strong to begin with, so both the dark haired girl | |
| 668 and the future princess got dragged through a few racks of clothes. Trying to | |
| 669 catch her bearings, ChibiUsa noticed that the twins were left unprotected as they | |
| 670 watched the whole thing. She could only hope that this thing was only after her | |
| 671 and Hotaru. “Hotaru-chan, hang on!” she screamed as she felt her grip | |
| 672 loosening. The Daimon laughed maniacally and lashed the smaller girl in her | |
| 673 grasp. ChibiUsa lost her grip and lay sprawled against a cosmetics display. | |
| 674 Disoriented, frightened, and now very angry at seeing the girl she loved | |
| 675 being hurt like that, Hotaru struggled with the much stronger Daimon. | |
| 676 "ChibiUsa-chan!” The Saturn symbol flashed on her forehead as the Daimon | |
| 677 laughed evilly. An aura of light started glowing around the young girl, her short | |
| 678 hair whipping around as if she were in a storm. “Don’t hurt her!” Hotaru cried, | |
| 679 grabbing the Daimon’s attention. The energy around the girl grew in size and | |
| 680 strength within seconds, ripping through the Daimon’s hand that had been | |
| 681 holding onto her arm. Screaming in pain, the mannequin daimon stumbled | |
| 682 backwards. Swaying back and forth after the serge of energy had drained her, | |
| 683 Hotaru fell to her knees. She was quickly pulled back to her feet by two arms | |
| 684 around her. Looking around in fright, the dark haired girl’s frantically beating | |
| 685 heart started to slow when she looked up into crimson eyes framed by cotton | |
| 686 candy pink hair. “ChibiUsa-chan!” | |
| 687 ChibiUsa smiled reassuringly. “Hai, it’s me. I’m just fine. You did a great | |
| 688 job, Hota-chan, but I want you to get out of here with the twins. I’ll henshin and | |
| 689 deal with the Daimon while you three get out of here.” She grabbed her broach | |
| 690 absentmindedly as she watched the injured Daimon. | |
| 691 Hotaru shook her head adamantly, her violet eyes worried. “I don’t want to | |
| 692 leave you…” she said softly. She couldn’t leave ChibiUsa to face this thing | |
| 693 alone. “Wait for the Sailor Quartet at least,” she pleaded, holding tightly onto | |
| 694 ChibiUsa’s white skirt. | |
| 695 The pink haired girl bit her lower lip as she watched the Daimon start to | |
| 696 regroup. She really hadn’t fought on her own before. Besides, when Hotaru had | |
| 697 returned to her it was so they could fight together. But now, on her own… She | |
| 698 would have to fight anyway. She was a Sailor Senshi and she couldn’t stand by | |
| 699 and let this thing hurt anyone else, let alone Hotaru or her future daughters. | |
| 700 Clutching her broach, she took a step away from the worried dark haired girl. | |
| 701 “Gomen nasai, Taru-chan. I promise we’ll fight together again.” Another soft | |
| 702 smile went the younger girl’s way before being replaced with a more serious | |
| 703 look. Holding her broach in the air, feeling her own Pink Crystal inside of it, she | |
| 704 braced herself for what could be the toughest fight of her life. | |
| 705 But before she had the chance to utter another word, another voice rang out | |
| 706 into the pandemonium that had become the mall. “From a distant horizon, a new | |
| 707 day is dawning. I am the future. Bishoujo Senshi Sailormoon.” Landing | |
| 708 gracefully a few yards in front of the shocked would be Sailorchibimoon, | |
| 709 another Sailor Senshi stood, her long dark hair done up with four odango, the | |
| 710 thick pigtails draped across her back not quite reaching past her waist. She had a | |
| 711 light pink skirt with a purple bow on the front and back. Her long boots reached | |
| 712 just below the knee. Her broach, a highly decorated scarlet and pink heart, was | |
| 713 offset by a small gold half moon. Her shoulders were clad in a pink sphere, | |
| 714 similar to Eternal Sailormoon. Long gloves went past her elbows, an odd scepter | |
| 715 in her gloved hands. | |
| 716 Not knowing what was going on, but not wanting to keep the younger girls | |
| 717 in harms way any longer than necessary, ChibiUsa backed off from the new | |
| 718 senshi towards a clothes rack, hoping to find some sort of cover if anything | |
| 719 happened. It took her a moment to realize that she’d taken Hotaru’s hand in her | |
| 720 own in reflex. She looked curiously down at the other girl, but Hotaru’s simple | |
| 721 shrug was enough to see that the dark haired girl had no more of an idea than | |
| 722 she did about what was going on. She did know that the senshi sure looked | |
| 723 awfully familiar... | |
| 724 Hotaru squeezed ChibiUsa’s hand, looking for some reassurance in what | |
| 725 had quickly become a shopping trip from hell. She knew that the monster that | |
| 726 had attacked them was a Daimon, but she couldn’t figure out how or why it | |
| 727 would be here. Her father’s laboratory was gone, the Daimon Eggs wouldn’t be | |
| 728 easy to produce. But obviously someone had gotten a hold of them. And they | |
| 729 were sending them after her. She brought her other hand to ChibiUsa’s as well. | |
| 730 She’d never been this frightened before of an attack. But she had never been this | |
| 731 helpless before either. | |
| 732 Ribbons whipped out from the mannequin at the new Sailor Senshi, but | |
| 733 before they reached her, they hit right into a glowing barrier. Another Senshi | |
| 734 stood in front of the first, this one holding a very familiar looking weapon. The | |
| 735 Silence Glaive. Short, wavy pink hair graced her head along with a large pair of | |
| 736 glasses that accentuated the soft curves of her face. She had a dark purple skirt | |
| 737 and a light pink bow on the front and back. Her long laced up boots reached a | |
| 738 little lower than her counterpart’s. She had the sharp crystal shards that Saturn | |
| 739 had had on her original fuku for a broach, this time in a heart shape. Her | |
| 740 shoulders had the odd ripped look of Saturn's old costume as well. | |
| 741 “Sailorsaturn,” Hotaru gasped. Shaking her head, the raven haired girl watched | |
| 742 the two. But that couldn’t be right. She was Sailorsaturn. Or, Saturn resided | |
| 743 within her at least. This was all becoming more and more unnerving. | |
| 744 “Amazoness Jungle Arrow!!” With the Daimon distracted, the just arriving | |
| 745 Sailor Quartet wasted no time in attacking. Unable to dodge, it dissipated after | |
| 746 the combined blast of the four ripped through it. | |
| 747 “Well, that sure was easy. We’re getting good at this protecting the princess | |
| 748 thing,” JunJun said thoughtfully as she took a few steps towards who she | |
| 749 suspected were the Saturn and Chibimoon that they knew. Whirling around, the | |
| 750 short pink haired one stuck the Silence Glaive inches from the tanned member | |
| 751 of the Quartet’s face. Suddenly not feeling quite as friendly with the sharp object | |
| 752 pointed in her face, Sailorjuno backed off. | |
| 753 “What the hell?” VesVes asked as she watched the two new Sailor Senshi | |
| 754 suspiciously. “Hey, this is our job. Find yourself your own princess.” Out of the | |
| 755 corner of her eye, she could see Sailorceres and Pallas standing protectively near | |
| 756 ChibiUsa and Hotaru. She averted her eyes before she could alert the two | |
| 757 intruders. | |
| 758 The two girls laughed a little as they looked at each other. “Thanks, but no | |
| 759 thanks. We’ve got our own reasons for being here. We just decided that rather | |
| 760 than having them all get killed now, we’d let them know that we’re keeping an | |
| 761 eye on them,” the dark haired one answered, brushing her fingers through one of | |
| 762 her dark pigtails. | |
| 763 “Though they shouldn’t expect us to save them next time,” the shorter | |
| 764 haired one said, adjusting her glasses as she looked pointedly at the two girls in | |
| 765 question, ChibiUsa still clutching onto the younger Hotaru protectively. | |
| 766 “PallaPalla didn’t know there were anymore Sailor Senshi. Especially not | |
| 767 any that looked like Small Lady or Hotaru,” the blue haired Sailor Quartet | |
| 768 member whispered to CereCere. | |
| 769 “Neither did I. It’s starting to get difficult keeping track of everybody. Just | |
| 770 remember that nobody else matters besides the princess. It’s much easier to | |
| 771 remember that way,” CereCere explained, irritated at the newcomers | |
| 772 appearance. This would definitely mean more work for them. As if they didn’t | |
| 773 have enough as it was! ChibiUsa was pretty good at getting herself in trouble | |
| 774 with these sorts of things and they had to protect her as Hotaru had decided for | |
| 775 them when she’d awakened them as Sailor Senshi. Maybe if she wasn’t so | |
| 776 overprotective, they wouldn’t have to worry about this sort of thing. | |
| 777 “Who are you?” ChibiUsa asked as she stood up, looking over at the two. | |
| 778 “Why are you here?” She took a step forward toward the Sailor Senshi. “Are | |
| 779 you here to fight with us? Is there a new threat on the way?” Her innocent | |
| 780 questions were cut short as the Silence Glaive slashed through the bow on her | |
| 781 blouse. Startled, the pink haired girl stumbled backwards before falling. | |
| 782 “We’re here to test you,” the dark haired one answered with a sad smile. In | |
| 783 the background, a strange whistling music could be heard at that. | |
| 784 ChibiUsa swallowed nervously as the new Sailorsaturn looked down at her | |
| 785 with glassy, cold eyes, still holding the Silence Glaive ready. She remembered | |
| 786 not to let her fear show through as she shifted on the cold floor. “Test us? | |
| 787 How?” | |
| 788 “You’ll see,” the pink haired one said simply. With that, the two were off. | |
| 789 ChibiUsa wanted to follow, wanted to know what was going on here and | |
| 790 why they’d saved them, but Hotaru’s arms around her made her give up on the | |
| 791 idea instantly. Kneeling down next to her, she looked into those infinitely deep | |
| 792 violet eyes. “Are you okay, Hota-chan?” She hugged the younger girl to her, | |
| 793 glad the whole thing was over. | |
| 794 Hotaru knew that ChibiUsa was hiding how worried she was about all this | |
| 795 but she let it drop. ChibiUsa always tried to hide her feelings, pretending to be | |
| 796 happy when something was wrong so no one would worry about her. It wasn’t | |
| 797 very difficult for Hotaru to see through it, though. She wasn’t very good at | |
| 798 pretending to be happy herself, but she could still spot the differences in | |
| 799 ChibiUsa’s behavior when the pink haired girl tried it. “ChibiUsa-chan, I think I | |
| 800 know who they are,” Hotaru whispered to the older girl. | |
| 801 “What? Who?” ChibiUsa asked, startled. She hadn’t begun to think about | |
| 802 that yet, still confused by their very appearance to wonder who these mysterious | |
| 803 senshi could be. | |
| 804 Maybe she was wrong. How would she know? Maybe she was just looking | |
| 805 too hard. She shook her head. No, it made too much sense. Casting a sidelong | |
| 806 glance at the still worried twins, she quickly looked back at ChibiUsa. Leaning | |
| 807 closer, she whispered again. “ChibiUsa-chan, I think it’s the twins. I don’t know | |
| 808 how yet.” | |
| 809 ChibiUsa could barely restrain her surprise at that. She cautiously took a | |
| 810 look at the two younger girls, still embracing in fear as PallaPalla and CereCere | |
| 811 tried to calm them down. One with long dark pigtails, the other with slightly | |
| 812 shorter pink hair and glasses. Hotaru shook her head, silencing ChibiUsa’s | |
| 813 questions for the two girls before she could ask them. ChibiUsa just nodded, | |
| 814 biting her lower lip. This was most definitely getting bizarre. She wished for her | |
| 815 magical city of the future where things at least made sense. “Oh boy...” | |
| 816 | |
| 817 | |
| 818 ~Fin~ | |
| 819 | |
| 820 Next time on Quant… err… the ChibiUsa & Hotaru series of stories: I | |
| 821 really have no clue. ^-^ Maybe a few vague ones (which I’m currently keeping | |
| 822 tabs of in an outline for the next story) but otherwise I’m as clueless as you are. | |
| 823 ^-^;; Maybe if I didn’t keep switching from story to story (I’m working on nine | |
| 824 at last count) I’d have some idea of where I was going with all this. O_o I’m | |
| 825 really sorry I’m so slow, but when it rains it pours. ^-^;; Things have been really | |
| 826 messed up lately, as everyone who knows me has surely heard about. But as far | |
| 827 as everything goes, you never can have too much time traveling right? ^-^ Okay, | |
| 828 maybe. ^^;; I’ll try to lay off the time traveling next time so I don’t cramp the | |
| 829 story with so many characters. I should be concentrating on ChibiUsa & Hotaru | |
| 830 more as it is. ^-^;; Anyway, I’m ranting now, so please ignore me. If any of you | |
| 831 would like to contact me for any reason at all (liked the story, caught any in- | |
| 832 jokes, noticed I screwed up somewhere from my bad habit of only writing when | |
| 833 I should be asleep, have any ideas for the next story, etc.), my e-mail address is | |
| 834 amazonessduo@hotmail.com and my ICQ name is ChibiUsa Tomoe. I have | |
| 835 AIM, but I’m not on it half as much. ^^;; Anyway, thanks so much for reading. | |
| 836 ^-^ *hugs and kisses* | |
| 837 | |
| 838 | |
| 839 |