Mercurial > moonlitnights
comparison old/stories/free.txt @ 2:fc00894c1d4a moonlitnights
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author | rlm |
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date | Fri, 19 Feb 2010 20:53:12 -0500 |
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1 Hello! ^-^ This story stars ChibiUsa & Hotaru and is set in an | |
2 alternate reality. I’ve been wanting to write something about this | |
3 theme of a slave and her owner falling in love for quite a while now. | |
4 I’d like to thank Boco the Chokobo for all of the wonderful ideas | |
5 that went into making this fanfic. ^-^ This story deals with some | |
6 adult issues, so please read responsibly. The characters belong to | |
7 Naoko Takeuchi and I’m merely borrowing my favorite couple, though | |
8 I’m sure they wish I wasn’t with all the stuff I put them through. ^- | |
9 ^;; All of the situations and this alternate reality are my own, so | |
10 please don’t take them without permission. I borrowed many other | |
11 characters for cameos, so if you can spot them all, drop me an e- | |
12 mail. ^-^ Or if you just like the story or have any comments about | |
13 it, I would love to hear them. ^-^ | |
14 | |
15 | |
16 Finally Free | |
17 by Amazoness Duo | |
18 amazonessduo@hotmail.com | |
19 | |
20 | |
21 The large stone building was crowded with people. Bodies crammed | |
22 next to bodies as everyone struggled to get past, trying to peer into | |
23 the brightly lit cages at those trapped within. The smell of people | |
24 permeated the air, the sound of voices droning out other voices until | |
25 it became a nearly deafening roar. The new shipment had come in and | |
26 was on display for all to see. Girls and boys in cages all throughout | |
27 the building were being poked and prodded by the vast throng of | |
28 customers. All searching for something in particular. | |
29 It was organized chaos at its finest. Like some amalgamation of a | |
30 carnival freak show and a slave auction, people came and went in | |
31 densely packed lines, going from cage to cage. They would inspect the | |
32 creature before them for a bit, studying them for more than a few | |
33 seconds if they were interested. Then they would move on or get the | |
34 attention of one of the well dressed employees about buying one of | |
35 the half naked ‘animals’ in the cages. People came and went, cages | |
36 opening and closing as the employees went from one perspective | |
37 customer to another. | |
38 There was a wave of fear for all of those in the cages. Most were | |
39 frightened out of their minds, hundreds of people looking them over | |
40 like furniture. Curiosity gnawed at each of them as their fates | |
41 seemed to hang in the balance. And there was nothing they could do | |
42 but wait. The small, steel cages were much too tiny to move freely, | |
43 much less turn around in their confines. And so they could do nothing | |
44 but watch and pray to whomever may be listening that things would | |
45 work out. That this nightmare would soon end. | |
46 In contrast to the frightened thoughts of those in the tiny cages, | |
47 those outside had a general sense of excitement. A certain electric | |
48 thrill ran through the air as they continued their inspection. This | |
49 was an altogether amazing event for most, the sheer amount of choices | |
50 mind boggling. Children giggled playfully as they stared into the | |
51 cages, poking in with stubby fingers and whatever else they may have | |
52 with them while absentminded adults paid little to no attention, too | |
53 busy with their own gawking at the prisoners. | |
54 It was in this jumble of anarchy and confusion that a pink haired | |
55 girl made her way along the rows upon rows of cages. Rather petite of | |
56 stature, she didn’t stand out much in the crowd. Her long pink hair | |
57 was done up in two cones, the rest falling to either side and | |
58 reaching just above her shoulders. Her red party dress with gold trim | |
59 felt a little out of place next to the hardly clothed people in the | |
60 cages, but she didn’t seem to notice. She was just as ecstatic as any | |
61 of the others there, if not more so. Oh, how she had longed for this | |
62 for so long now. Having just turned sixteen, she was now given the | |
63 chance to pick out her birthday present. But what to pick? They all | |
64 looked so cute! It was difficult to decide what she wanted. | |
65 Peering into a cage, the pink haired girl’s crimson eyes followed | |
66 the movements of a small dark haired girl. Smiling sweetly, she moved | |
67 closer, trying to get a better look. Long, dark wings unfurled from | |
68 the dark haired girl’s back as she came closer. Her long, dark hair | |
69 fluttered behind her as her aquamarine eyes peered out fearfully. The | |
70 wings began beating faster as she tried to escape the small cage, but | |
71 she again failed. With each failure came the sickening revelation | |
72 that she would never be free again. ChibiUsa noted with some dismay | |
73 that her wings had been clipped. Even if she was free, she wouldn’t | |
74 be able to fly. | |
75 “Poor girl,” ChibiUsa whispered, holding onto one of the cold steel | |
76 bars. The girl inside continued to flutter her wings in agitation, | |
77 but their beating slowly began to diminish. Drawing her knees up to | |
78 her chest, she seemed to be giving in to the futility of it all. | |
79 It took ChibiUsa a moment to realize that someone was yelling at | |
80 her to get back. Glancing around, it took her a moment to spot the | |
81 man. He was behind the cage and pulling it back out of the way. | |
82 Watching it curiously, she spotted a slightly younger blue haired | |
83 girl, her long pigtails trailing behind her as she smiled into the | |
84 cage. | |
85 “Oh, she’s so cute! I’m going to name her Misao. You’re coming home | |
86 with me, aren’t you, Misao?” the blue haired girl asked happily. Of | |
87 course, asking the pet was pointless. It wasn’t up to her at all. But | |
88 the girl was obviously pleased with the bird girl that she had picked | |
89 out. | |
90 ChibiUsa smiled and continued on, glancing in cages as she did so. | |
91 She was glad that the bird girl had gotten an owner. But that still | |
92 didn’t help her decide who she should get for a pet. Her father was | |
93 somewhere around here, but she had lost him a while ago. It hadn’t | |
94 been hard, moving through the vast sea of people. She just wanted | |
95 some time to pick out a pet for herself without someone looking over | |
96 her shoulder. She wanted this pet to be all her own. | |
97 Brushing back pink bangs, the teenager walked alone through the | |
98 crowd, looking in cage after cage of pets for sale. She saw another | |
99 bird girl, with tan skin and coppery hair, long dark wings fluttering | |
100 uselessly. Next to her was an ice blue haired girl, but she couldn’t | |
101 quite figure out what type of animal she was supposed to be. It took | |
102 her a moment to realize that she was in a tank rather than a cage, | |
103 water surrounding her as she tried to swim in the enclosure. The | |
104 scales on her tail were all beautifully iridescent, reflecting the | |
105 bright lights of the building in rainbow colors. In the next two | |
106 cages were a leather clad cat and a white haired mouse, respectively. | |
107 The mouse was cowering in a corner of her cage as the cat hissed | |
108 loudly at her, raking long finger nail-like claws against the bars. | |
109 Next to the mouse in yet another cage was a green haired frog girl | |
110 who was dozing peacefully. And even further on was a simply gorgeous | |
111 woman with beautiful rainbow colored butterfly wings. She seemed to | |
112 be a little older than a good deal of the pets there. | |
113 Many had caught her interest, but none had really been the one that | |
114 ChibiUsa wanted. She wasn’t quite sure what she was looking for | |
115 herself, but she knew that she would find it if she only kept looking. | |
116 Passing by a butterfly boy and a pony boy, ChibiUsa paused for only | |
117 a moment before moving on. Someone already seemed interested in them, | |
118 a boy a little older than her, and she was looking for something else | |
119 anyway. She just couldn’t tell what exactly. | |
120 Fingers rolling along the edge of a cage, the crimson eyed girl | |
121 relished the cold feeling beneath her fingers. The room was almost | |
122 unbearably hot, the air humid. She could hear the loud sounds of the | |
123 air conditioning in the background, but it just didn’t work with all | |
124 of these bodies back so closely together. Deciding to ignore it, her | |
125 other hand wiped across her sweat drenched brow. | |
126 A low growl startled her out of her thoughts, drawing the young | |
127 consumer’s attention to the cage near her. With a quick motion, the | |
128 tiger that was in there lunged towards her fingers. Shock pumped | |
129 through her small body as her hand jerked back reflexively. A scaly | |
130 fish boy began laughing at her as she passed him and another hawk | |
131 boy. She resolved to be more careful, holding the hand that had been | |
132 lunged at protectively. | |
133 Just what was she looking for? What type of pet did she want? She | |
134 couldn’t tell. A smile graced soft lips as she walked past what | |
135 looked to be a family of cats. The parents looked to be a slender | |
136 female cat with long dark hair and a male cat with only slightly | |
137 shorter white hair. The kitten was adorable, with short, dark violet | |
138 hair done up in odangos near her ears. This one seemed a lot tamer | |
139 than the tiger. Large curious eyes looked up at her, as if they were | |
140 studying ChibiUsa in the same way she was being studied herself. | |
141 ChibiUsa giggled softly and scratched behind the kitten’s ear, | |
142 hearing a distinct purr in reply. “You’re just a sweetie, aren’t you? | |
143 I’m sure someone’s gonna get you soon.” She giggled again as the purr | |
144 grew louder. Slowly pulling her hand away, she took another step | |
145 forward, glancing back at the cage and smiling for a moment before | |
146 heading forward. | |
147 And suddenly, she spotted something moving near the back of what | |
148 she had thought was an empty cage. Taking a few steps closer, she | |
149 hunched over to try and get a better look inside the cage. In the | |
150 back, there was a scared looking girl, her skin as pale as a sheet of | |
151 paper. Her long black tail moved slowly, her knees drawn up to her | |
152 chest. The dark ears that jutted out of her raven hair twitched | |
153 occasionally. Large, violet eyes watched ChibiUsa cautiously. It | |
154 looked like she was trying to fade away into the shadows at the back | |
155 of the cage, the poor kitten looking helpless in the tiny steal cage. | |
156 Crimson eyes brightened as the newly christened sixteen year old girl | |
157 leaned forward to get a better look. The kitten didn’t make a sound, | |
158 only the movement of the dark tail and violet eyes showing that she | |
159 was awake. She looked so shy, holding herself like that. So lonely. | |
160 So cute. | |
161 ChibiUsa smiled happily as an employee came by to see if she needed | |
162 help. “I want this one!!” | |
163 | |
164 “So what are you going to name her?” ChibiUsa’s father asked | |
165 curiously as they drove home a short time later. His pink haired | |
166 daughter sat in back with her new pet, still holding the catgirl’s | |
167 leash. The catgirl really didn’t seem to be doing much, just watching | |
168 the events from her large, scared violet eyes. | |
169 ChibiUsa tilted her head to the side thoughtfully, watching her | |
170 feline companion closely. She was still so excited to finally have | |
171 her birthday present. And what a birthday present at that! Her very | |
172 own catgirl... And such a cute one, too. It was a thrilling | |
173 experience. | |
174 Pink hair flew around ChibiUsa’s head as she shook it, trying to | |
175 clear her thoughts. She couldn’t just let the catgirl run around | |
176 nameless. But she didn’t want to name her just anything. Those sad, | |
177 violet eyes and her beautiful ivory skin made her gorgeous to look | |
178 at. She needed a lovely name to go with it. But what would fit this | |
179 skittish kitten? And with such a lonely, haunting feel about her, it | |
180 was hard to find something suiting. “I think I’m going to name her | |
181 Hotaru,” she said at last. | |
182 Her father raised an eyebrow, looking back at his daughter through | |
183 the rearview mirror. “You’re going to name your pet cat ‘firefly’?” | |
184 ChibiUsa pouted, scooting closer to the catgirl. Hotaru tried to | |
185 scoot away, but just managed to wedge herself against the door. | |
186 “Yeah, because I think it fits her perfectly. She has a real gothic | |
187 beauty to her. And she looks so sad. So I like the name.” She smiled | |
188 sweetly at the catgirl, who looked down quickly. | |
189 Laughing, her father turned a corner. “That’ll change once you get | |
190 her home and well fed. Then she’ll be a much happier cat. She looks | |
191 pretty skinny, so that’s most likely the problem.” | |
192 Nodding thoughtfully, ChibiUsa reached forward, smiling gently at | |
193 Hotaru. “It’s okay. I won’t hurt you. I’m taking you home. You’ll be | |
194 happy there.” Her fingers brushed through the catgirl’s soft hair. | |
195 Hotaru closed her eyes and tried to pull further away, but there was | |
196 nowhere to go. Her pointed cat ears twitched slightly. Seeing the | |
197 catgirl like this was a little disturbing. She had seen how happy | |
198 pets usually looked with their owners, but this catgirl looked | |
199 entirely withdrawn, afraid of the situation. It did make sense that | |
200 she would be scared. She was still young and probably hadn’t been | |
201 anywhere else before. But that just strengthened ChibiUsa’s resolve | |
202 to get closer to her new pet, to make it feel comfortable at home. | |
203 She was her kitten now, so she'd make sure she was happier. | |
204 Exuberance filled the genki pink haired girl as she watched her | |
205 pet. Finally having one, she was extremely pleased with her choice in | |
206 a birthday present. She was just so cute. And all hers. She had | |
207 promised to take good care of her before her parents would let her | |
208 have one. She was the perfect birthday present, a real live catgirl. | |
209 And to think that she hadn’t had any idea of what to ask for for her | |
210 birthday until a few weeks ago. | |
211 | |
212 Sitting in the park weeks earlier, ChibiUsa had been pondering the | |
213 same question over and over for the past few days. Her sixteenth | |
214 birthday was nearly upon her and she still didn’t know what she | |
215 wanted. It was a big stepping stone and her parents seemed pretty | |
216 thrilled. A big party was planned with all of her friends and family. | |
217 But she couldn’t think of a thing that she wanted. Little things that | |
218 didn’t matter, but nothing that seemed to fit the occasion. So she | |
219 had gone shopping with Ruruna and Naruru to clear her mind and wound | |
220 up broke. Again. They had gone on to another antique shop, but she | |
221 just wanted to rest her aching legs. They’d been shopping since they | |
222 had met up hours earlier. So she took her break to set her mind back | |
223 on the question at hand. | |
224 An elegant looking girl around ChibiUsa’s age with milky white skin | |
225 and long dark gray hair drew her attention. Not because of her | |
226 astonishing beauty, which was certainly evident in the midday light, | |
227 but because of what she was holding. A long, pink leash that was | |
228 linked to the collar around another girl’s neck. The other girl had | |
229 short brunette hair and was walking on all fours across the grass. | |
230 The pale girl seemed to be enjoying herself immensely, following | |
231 after the girl on the leash with a camcorder in her other hand. It | |
232 was a very peculiar sight to behold. | |
233 “Good girl, Sakura-chan! You’re such a sweet puppy. You just work | |
234 all of that energy out, darling. My cute, genki Sakura-chan can’t be | |
235 kept in a house all day,” the mistress said in a soft, melodious | |
236 voice. It wasn’t until then that ChibiUsa noticed the large, floppy | |
237 ears on the brunette’s head or the short furry tail just above her | |
238 tail bone. So that was a pet! She watched in astonishment as the | |
239 puppygirl continued to run around on the grass, the dark haired | |
240 heiress holding onto the leash and following the puppy’s motions with | |
241 her camcorder. “Fetch, Sakura-chan!” Pulling a small pink stick out | |
242 of her purse, the woman tossed it in front of her pet. Sakura hurried | |
243 to get it, biting down on it and bringing it back to her mistress. | |
244 The dark haired girl knelt down, scratching behind the puppy’s ears | |
245 and smiling delightedly. “Oh, you’re such a good girl.” | |
246 The brunette’s eyes closed, her tail wagging happily. | |
247 “Wow!” Getting to her still sore feet quickly, ChibiUsa approached | |
248 the two girls. “That’s amazing! Is she your pet? She’s so cute!” | |
249 Seeing the puppygirl up close, ChibiUsa marveled at the site. A mix | |
250 between a normal girl and a puppy, she made an adorable pet. | |
251 Stormy blue eyes shimmered as the woman nodded. A bright smile | |
252 crossed her face as she continued petting Sakura. “Hai, she is. Her | |
253 name is Sakura-chan. I’ve had her for years now. Her mother was a | |
254 show winner. Isn’t she sweet? She’s the sweetest puppy imaginable.” | |
255 Sakura was starting to blush from the praise, but her tail still | |
256 wagged happily as her mistress’s fingers continued playing through | |
257 her hair. “Hi,” She said, a little shyly. | |
258 ChibiUsa blinked in surprise, nearly falling back in the grass. | |
259 “She can talk, too? She must be really talented.” | |
260 “Oh, she can talk really well. And about the cutest things. And | |
261 yes, she’s very talented. I have tapes and tapes full of all the cute | |
262 things Sakura-chan can do,” the woman said, still smiling her | |
263 trademark smile. | |
264 The puppy girl was leaning against her by now and still blushing a | |
265 deep red. “Tomoyo-sama...” She looked like this happened often, but | |
266 that she still hadn’t really gotten used to it. Sighing, she started | |
267 licking at Tomoyo’s palm while her mistress continued talking with | |
268 the girl that looked like a bunny. She’d chase her, but Tomoyo | |
269 probably wouldn’t want her to. And besides, she really didn’t feel up | |
270 for a chase right now. | |
271 “She’s so kawaii!! I bet she makes a terrific pet,” ChibiUsa said, | |
272 still amazed by the girl on the leash. What a wonderful idea. She had | |
273 no idea pets were so exciting. Her shoulders slumped slightly as a | |
274 sudden realization hit her. The pale girl did look remarkably | |
275 wealthy. “She probably cost a fortune, though.” There went that idea. | |
276 She’d have to find something else to get for her birthday. And it | |
277 seemed like such a good idea, too! | |
278 Tomoyo shook her head, giggling softly at the ticklish feeling of | |
279 Sakura’s tongue. “No, not really. Sakura-chan was a gift from my | |
280 mother a few years ago, but I don’t believe they’re really that | |
281 expensive. It might take a while to save up, but with all of the | |
282 things you bought,” she motioned towards ChibiUsa’s bags back on the | |
283 bench, “you should be able to afford it after a while. I honestly | |
284 think you should. I’m so lucky to have my cute Sakura-chan.” Another | |
285 bright smile lit her face as she looked down at the puppy girl. | |
286 Sakura perked up, as if waiting for something, sniffing. A horn | |
287 honked in the distance, catching all of their attention. Tomoyo | |
288 looked back towards a waiting limousine. “Oh, I must be going. I hope | |
289 you can get a pet. They really are wonderful. I don’t know where I’d | |
290 be without Sakura-chan.” Standing up elegantly, she brushed down her | |
291 long skirt. “Come one, Sakura-chan. Let’s go home. I’ll give you a | |
292 nice bath.” | |
293 Sakura waved and followed her mistress, standing up on two feet | |
294 this time, pulling alongside of her. Both girls disappeared into the | |
295 limousine. | |
296 Watching them drive off, ChibiUsa’s hair was tossed around by the | |
297 wind. She barely seemed to notice, too deep in thought to care. That | |
298 was what she wanted. A pet. A pet all of her own. Running back to the | |
299 bench, she grabbed her things and headed home. That’s what she would | |
300 ask for. Oh, it was perfect! | |
301 | |
302 ChibiUsa brushed back some pink hair from her eyes, squinting in | |
303 the afternoon sun, her reverie fading. Her brand new pet was still | |
304 sitting sulkily in the car, dark eyes glistening in the shadows. | |
305 “C’mon, Hotaru-chan. We’re home now.” She smiled sweetly at the | |
306 catgirl, motioning for her to follow. The catgirl looked at her for a | |
307 second, but dropped her gaze just as quickly. ChibiUsa’s father | |
308 yelled for her to come in, grabbing her attention away from the shy | |
309 new pet. “Just a minute, papa!” Her crimson eyes returned to the | |
310 catgirl. Kneeling next to the open door, she reached in slowly. “It’s | |
311 okay, kitty. We’re home now. Home. I’m going to take good care of | |
312 you. I promise. There’s nothing to be scared of.” Her hand gently | |
313 stroked the catgirl’s side. Her pale skin was exquisitely soft to the | |
314 touch. ChibiUsa’s fingers continued to trail up and down as she | |
315 smiled. “Please?” Another request from her father to head in caught | |
316 her ears, Hotaru’s ears perking up at the same time. She sighed and | |
317 got back to her feet, smoothing down her skirt. “Well, we better get | |
318 going, Hotaru-chan. Come on.” She whistled, but the only reaction she | |
319 got from the catgirl were her ears perking up again. The pink haired | |
320 owner tugged lightly on the leash. This finally seemed to get the | |
321 catgirl’s attention. Pulling lightly, the pink haired girl led her | |
322 birthday present inside. | |
323 Hotaru followed behind her owner slowly, taking no notice of her | |
324 surroundings. What was the difference between here and the pet shop? | |
325 At least she wasn’t in a cramped cage anymore. But now she was all | |
326 alone. Most of the others would have been thrilled to have been | |
327 bought like this. But being in this strange new place by herself was | |
328 scary. She should be grateful to have her own mistress now, but it | |
329 was all too new, too frightening. Everything was happening too fast. | |
330 At least her mistress was pretty. And she seemed nice. But who knew | |
331 what would happen? Not that it mattered. She was only a pet. Her life | |
332 was at the sole discretion of her mistress. It was why she lived. | |
333 Pushing the door to her room open, the proud new owner could hardly | |
334 hide her excitement. This had to be her best birthday ever. Her | |
335 lovely pet was just perfect. Better than she could have dreamed. | |
336 “Well, here it is. This is my room.” She gestured broadly with her | |
337 free hand to their surroundings. The bed was along one wall, red and | |
338 white bedsheets topped with neatly placed bunny dolls. The room was a | |
339 little cluttered with little possessions here and there, but it | |
340 didn’t look messy. Long, frilly white curtains hung over the bedroom | |
341 window that overlooked the backyard. Some clothes from this morning | |
342 lay discarded in a corner. Several letters were arranged neatly on | |
343 her bedside, all sporting ‘Happy Birthday’ somewhere on them. Next to | |
344 the bed lay a large maroon fuzzy basket with some small cat toys in | |
345 it. Next to it were a food and water dish. | |
346 Grinning in excitement, ChibiUsa walked towards the bed. Resistance | |
347 tugged at the hand holding the leash. Turning back, she saw the | |
348 catgirl frozen in the doorway. “It’s okay. This is your room now, | |
349 too, Hotaru-chan. See? This bed is for you. And the toys and | |
350 everything. Isn’t it cute? We went and picked it out this morning. | |
351 It’s all for you.” She tugged lightly at the leash, pulling Hotaru | |
352 out of her stupor. The shy girl looked down, but slowly walked up | |
353 behind her owner. | |
354 Hotaru’s catlike eyes took in the little things on the floor, even | |
355 in the dim light. It was all for her? She’d never had anything | |
356 before. Just another kitten at the pet store, she was lost in the | |
357 crowd. Usually afraid or lonely even amongst all the others. She was | |
358 a little overwhelmed to be given anything at all. Especially when she | |
359 herself was a birthday present. The thought seemed ludicrous. Like it | |
360 didn’t quite fit. She was a pet. Pets didn’t have anything. No, it | |
361 must have just been phrased wrong. That had to be it. Her eyes shut | |
362 quickly when ChibiUsa finally got to the light switch. | |
363 “Well, here it is. I hope you like it,” ChibiUsa said with a smile, | |
364 twirling around on one foot to gesture to the room a last time before | |
365 plopping down on her bed. Her crimson eyes stayed on the catgirl with | |
366 a childlike enthusiasm. It was almost surreal to see one up close. | |
367 Her very own at that. And she was so pretty, too! Just wait until | |
368 Ruruna and Naruru found out. They would be so surprised. Hotaru | |
369 averted her gaze, shifting around uncomfortably, her tail swishing | |
370 slowly from side to side. “You’re soooo cute.” A giggle escaped the | |
371 pink haired girl as she pulled on the leash playfully. “You can come | |
372 closer. It’s okay. I won’t hurt you.” | |
373 Taking an awkward barefoot step forward, Hotaru inched closer to | |
374 her mistress. That warm smile managed to draw the dark haired catgirl | |
375 ever nearer. Feeling another gentle tug on the leash, she kneeled | |
376 down in front of her having nowhere else to go. Her hands and knees | |
377 on the floor, her tail continued moving nervously behind her as big | |
378 violet eyes looked up at her owner. The smile was still on that face | |
379 framed by pink, her hand moving down slowly. Hotaru flinched a bit | |
380 when ChibiUsa’s fingers touched the side of her face, trailing | |
381 upwards into her raven hair. What did she want? Not that it mattered. | |
382 She was her pet. Her mistress could do whatever she wanted with her. | |
383 Hotaru’s curiosity continued to grow as the fingers ran through her | |
384 hair. But suddenly it didn’t matter. Her eyes closed and she began to | |
385 purr. Quietly at first, but it began to grow louder. ChibiUsa’s | |
386 fingers were scratching right behind her ear. It felt very nice with | |
387 those gentle fingers in her hair. Her tail began to move more | |
388 happily, as if completely unaware of the previous nervousness of the | |
389 girl it was attached to. | |
390 A musical giggle escaped ChibiUsa lips as she watched her new pet. | |
391 “I’m really glad I picked you, Hotaru-chan.” She continued to pet the | |
392 kitten for a few more minutes, enjoying the soft purring sound the | |
393 catgirl made. | |
394 “ChibiUsa-chan, dinner!” | |
395 “Coming!” Sighing, the pink haired girl petted the girl one last | |
396 time before standing up. The purring slowly came to a stop. Big, | |
397 violet eyes looked up at her in confusion. She smiled down | |
398 apologetically. “I have to go get dinner. You should probably eat, | |
399 too. I’ll be back in just a bit.” Scratching behind Hotaru’s ear | |
400 again, she quickly made her way to the door, glancing back in at the | |
401 solemn looking catgirl. ‘She looks so serious all the time,’ ChibiUsa | |
402 thought to herself. “Bye, kitty!” | |
403 Hotaru watched as her mistress left the room, nervousness gnawing | |
404 at her again. It hadn’t been too bad when she had been there with | |
405 her, but now she was alone in this scary place. And she didn’t know | |
406 what to do. This was all new to her. This was home from now on. | |
407 Curling up into a ball, she began to cry. | |
408 | |
409 Later that night, the catgirl was balled up in her basket, wide | |
410 awake. She couldn’t get to sleep in her strange new surroundings. | |
411 Every small sound startled her right when she started to fade away to | |
412 the land of dreams. She had finally given up trying to sleep a short | |
413 time ago. Lying there, staring at the wall, she contemplated her | |
414 existence. Sold like the animal she was, she was now property of her | |
415 mistress, the girl in the bed behind her. It was a dream for many to | |
416 get sold at the auctions. To have their own master or mistress. To | |
417 have a home. But she was still so afraid. No one had taught her what | |
418 to do once she was bought. Part of her had thought that she never | |
419 would be. Who wanted a lonely looking cat, anyway? Apparently, this | |
420 pink haired girl. She sat up slowly, her head peaking up across the | |
421 bed. She could see ChibiUsa’s feet sticking out from under her | |
422 blankets, the warm cloth tangled around the pink haired girl oddly. | |
423 In the darkness, her catlike eyes could still make out the nightgown | |
424 she was wearing, though the color looked faded. Her pink hair was let | |
425 down out of the odangos she had seen it in earlier. She really was | |
426 very pretty. And she was looking at her. Hotaru’s eyes widened in | |
427 surprise and she quickly ducked back down, pulling her knees to her | |
428 chest as she tried to pretend she was asleep. | |
429 “Can’t sleep?” the sweet voice of her owner whispered. Hotaru | |
430 froze, unsure of how to respond. Creaking sounds came her way as | |
431 ChibiUsa crawled across the bed. The sound finally stopped and she | |
432 relaxed slightly. A hand brushing through her hair nearly made her | |
433 jump in shock. Turning around, she spotted her mistress’s head over | |
434 the edge of the bed, watching her with that warm smile again. “It’s | |
435 okay if you can’t sleep. I always have trouble in a new place, too. | |
436 You wanna sleep on the bed?” | |
437 Hotaru nodded slowly, shyly. ChibiUsa smiled again and sat up, | |
438 gesturing for the catgirl to follow. Standing up, the dark haired pet | |
439 hesitantly crawled onto the edge of the bed, curling into a ball | |
440 there. She felt ChibiUsa’s feet brush against her side as her | |
441 mistress pulled the blankets around herself. Hotaru was a little | |
442 surprised. Wasn’t she supposed to be in her basket? Well, this was | |
443 nicer. It felt soft and the blankets underneath her were warm. And it | |
444 did feel more comfortable to be closer to her owner. She was very | |
445 sweet and managed to make this whole thing much easier for Hotaru to | |
446 handle. Lying there in silence, she tried not to move much lest she | |
447 disturb the pink haired girl. But it was still cold in the room | |
448 despite being on top of the blankets and she couldn’t help shivering | |
449 slightly. She was only lightly clothed. | |
450 Giggling softly, ChibiUsa sat up again. “Still cold, huh? Here, get | |
451 in the blankets. It’s warmer.” She watched the quiet catgirl for a | |
452 long moment, holding up the blanket invitingly. “Come on. It’s okay.” | |
453 Smiling reassuringly, she scooted over and patted the bed next to | |
454 her. “Come here.” The violet eyed pet looked back at her hesitantly, | |
455 still sitting with her legs tucked under her at the foot of the bed. | |
456 She sure was a reluctant pet. She didn’t seem very open around | |
457 people. But she was ChibiUsa’s now so it didn’t matter. The pink | |
458 haired owner was just glad to have her. Sighing, she took her pet’s | |
459 arm. The pale skin was very soft and cold. “Oh, you poor thing. You | |
460 must be freezing. C’mere, Hotaru-chan.” Pulling lightly, the catgirl | |
461 slowly crawled up beside her. ChibiUsa smiled again and pulled the | |
462 blankets up. “Here you go.” Hotaru sat there, staring at her. The | |
463 young owner sweatdropped. Taking Hotaru’s arm again, she pulled her | |
464 closer and toward the head of the bed. “Okay, now lie down.” The | |
465 catgirl lay her body down on ChibiUsa’s pillow, her head to the side. | |
466 “No, not like that.” | |
467 Hotaru winced, closing her eyes. She didn’t know what she was doing | |
468 at all. Humans had never been around her very much so she just didn’t | |
469 understand what she was supposed to do to please her mistress. Now | |
470 she’d probably hate her for being disobedient. And she didn’t want | |
471 that at all. Her mistress seemed so nice. What was she to do now? | |
472 The fear etched on Hotaru’s face sent a chill through ChibiUsa. Her | |
473 catgirl looked so sad. She shook her head quickly. “No, I didn’t mean | |
474 it like that. It’s all right. Don’t be sad.” Another smile crossed | |
475 her face as she tried to reassure her new pet. This was getting to be | |
476 a lot of work. But still... She liked it. It was nice having her | |
477 here. Her cute catgirl. It was nice to have the responsibility of | |
478 her. To take care of her new pet. Placing her hands on Hotaru’s | |
479 shoulders, she positioned her on her back, pushing down until her | |
480 head was finally on the pillow. Dark hair formed a halo around the | |
481 catgirl’s head on the pillow, her kitten ears barely jutting out of | |
482 the hair. Hotaru looked at her in confusion but followed her | |
483 directions. Satisfied with her work, ChibiUsa pulled the blanket up | |
484 around the both of them. “There. See? Much warmer, Hotaru-chan.” She | |
485 smiled brightly as she hugged herself under the blanket, trying to | |
486 get warm again. | |
487 Shyly, Hotaru smiled back. “Thank you,” her soft voice whispered. | |
488 Giggling, ChibiUsa propped herself up on an elbow. “So you can | |
489 talk. I was wondering when you were gonna say something.” It had | |
490 almost been a surprise to hear Hotaru speak. She had started to think | |
491 that she wouldn’t. Hotaru’s voice was very soft, but lovely. It fit | |
492 the shy catgirl perfectly. “You have a very pretty voice, Hotaru-chan.” | |
493 The dark haired pet blushed a cherry red, shifting slightly under | |
494 the blankets. It was already strange to be sleeping this way, like a | |
495 human girl, but now she was embarrassed as well. She hadn’t known | |
496 what to say earlier. And her owner’s comments were flattering. This | |
497 whole day had taken quite a toll on her. It just seemed to be one | |
498 surprise after another. “A.. arigato...” she whispered, quieter this | |
499 time. | |
500 Petting her catgirl gently, ChibiUsa smiled again. “Sleep well, | |
501 Hotaru-chan. I’ll see you in the morning.” Something brushing against | |
502 her side caught ChibiUsa's attention. It was warm and furry, moving | |
503 in quick motions. Reaching down, she grabbed a hold of the furry | |
504 intruder. Hotaru’s eyes went wide as ChibiUsa gripped it. “Oh... | |
505 Sorry.” She sweatdropped as she let go of Hotaru’s tail. Yawning, she | |
506 let her crimson eyes fall shut. “Sweet dreams, kitty.” | |
507 Hotaru watched closely as ChibiUsa’s breathing steadied and she | |
508 drifted off to sleep. Her mistress looked so calm and peaceful. So | |
509 cute. She noticed that the pink haired girl was holding onto a white | |
510 stuffed bunny with a big red bow. Purring softly, she snuggled next | |
511 to her owner, yawning tiredly and showing her sharp teeth in the dim | |
512 light. It had been an exhausting day. Before long, she was passed out | |
513 beside her pink haired owner. | |
514 | |
515 J-pop meandered through ChibiUsa’s room as morning light filtered | |
516 through her window. Something about ‘my darling and my dentures’ | |
517 played on the radio. ChibiUsa was still too tired to care. The pink | |
518 haired girl rolled over in bed, moaning about the unjustness of it | |
519 all. School was always such a tiresome thing. Sure, she got to see a | |
520 few friends, but was it really worth all of that pain of stuffy | |
521 teachers trying to force things upon you? Especially when she had her | |
522 own pet now. That’s right! ChibiUsa sat up in bed, suddenly awake. | |
523 Blinking the sleep from her eyes, she scoured the room for any trace | |
524 of her catgirl. But where was she? It couldn’t have been a dream, | |
525 could it? Her heart started to slow back down to it’s usual beat when | |
526 she saw Hotaru heading back into her room from the doorway on all | |
527 floors. ChibiUsa’s slippers were in her mouth. “Awww... How sweet of | |
528 you, Hotaru-chan. You’re such a good kitty.” Grinning happily, | |
529 ChibiUsa slipped out of bed, kneeling next to the catgirl and petting | |
530 her warmly. “My good little girl. Yes, you are.” Taking the slippers | |
531 from Hotaru’s mouth, she quickly slipped them on. “I wanna stay home | |
532 and play with you, Hotaru-chan. School doesn’t sound like any fun.” | |
533 Pouting sadly, she just watched her new pet for several moments. | |
534 Finally reaching forward, Hotaru tensed up under ChibiUsa’s warm hug. | |
535 “I’ll see you soon, Hotaru-chan. We can play when I get home.” | |
536 Hotaru watched her mistress with inquisitive violet eyes as | |
537 ChibiUsa walked all over the room sticking things in her bookbag. | |
538 “Where are you going?” she asked curiously, trying to keep the | |
539 nervousness out of her voice. She didn’t want to be left alone again. | |
540 And why couldn’t she come with? She’d be good. She was well behaved. | |
541 Not like some of the pets she could remember back at the pet store. | |
542 “Skool?” | |
543 Nodding quickly, ChibiUsa began getting dressed, tossing the | |
544 nightgown to the floor as she dug through her closet for her school | |
545 uniform. She stood in front of the closet clad in nothing but her | |
546 slippers and her white cotton panties, but didn’t seem to notice as | |
547 if she were alone. It was just her pet, after all. She nodded | |
548 absentmindedly as she pulled her blouse over her head, then paused | |
549 and pulled it off, looking for a bra. “Yeah, school. It’s this real | |
550 boring place where they try to force us to learn things.” She stopped | |
551 again, turning an anklet over in her fingers thoughtfully before | |
552 discarding it. “I’m doing pretty well this semester, though, so I | |
553 can’t blow it off and stay home with you. Even if I really want to. | |
554 If I do well enough, I’m thinking of going into government.” She took | |
555 out a black lavender ribbon and tied it in her hair on one of her | |
556 odangos after fixing it to her usual hair style. “Then when I get | |
557 older I could get a nice big house for us and you could have gourmet | |
558 cat food and all sorts of good stuff.” Checking the mirror, she | |
559 smiled and went back to the closet. | |
560 Violet eyes followed her mistress back and forth across the room as | |
561 Hotaru sat on the floor. Her owner really was very pretty. She had | |
562 beautiful curves that fit her small frame wonderfully. A small sigh | |
563 escaped Hotaru’s soft lips. Too bad she wasn’t a catgirl. But she did | |
564 make a nice mistress nonetheless. “Will you be back soon?” Hotaru | |
565 asked hopefully. | |
566 “You’re so sweet, Hotaru-chan,” ChibiUsa commented as she pulled | |
567 her skirt on. “Hai. Well, kinda. Sometimes it seems like a long time. | |
568 But I’ll be back this afternoon. I promise.” She smiled as she bent | |
569 down and scratched behind Hotaru’s left ear. A giddy feeling went | |
570 through her as she watched the dark haired pet’s eyes close and heard | |
571 her purring again. This whole pet thing was turning out to be great. | |
572 Hotaru really did seem like the perfect choice. It was even better | |
573 than what she’d thought when she’d met that rich girl and her puppy. | |
574 Hotaru didn’t answer, just tilting her head to the side, her tail | |
575 moving back and forth as she watched her pink haired owner head for | |
576 the door. “Goodbye, mistress,” she said at last. | |
577 Pausing for a moment, ChibiUsa stood in the doorway, fumbling with | |
578 her bow. That had sounded awkward. But thinking it over, it did make | |
579 sense. Hotaru was her pet at any rate. Smiling over her shoulder, she | |
580 waved cheerfully. “Bye, Hotaru-chan! See you this afternoon! I bet | |
581 you’ll have more fun than me.” And with that, she disappeared off to | |
582 the mysterious ‘skool’. | |
583 Sighing, Hotaru clasped her hands in front of her and watched the | |
584 empty doorway where her mistress had just been. “I doubt it, mistress.” | |
585 | |
586 Many hours later, an exhausted student made her way home, | |
587 shouldering her bunny shaped bookbag on a weary shoulder. Opening the | |
588 door with the key she kept with her, ChibiUsa pushed the door open | |
589 with a sigh of relief. It was good to be back home again. A smile | |
590 crossed her lips as she remembered the catgirl waiting for her. She | |
591 had found it difficult to concentrate at school all day with the | |
592 knowledge that Hotaru was at home. School just seemed extraordinarily | |
593 mundane compared to her brand new pet. “Hotaru-chan?” she said as she | |
594 took off her shoes near the door. There was no answer. But then, she | |
595 was a quiet catgirl, so that shouldn’t be too strange. Pulling her | |
596 slippers back on, ChibiUsa walked back towards her room. The door was | |
597 still wide open as she’d left it. And there was Hotaru lying on the | |
598 floor. Reading a book. “Hotaru-chan?” ChibiUsa asked incredulously. | |
599 She knew that the catgirl was obviously smart. But that she could read? | |
600 The book dropped from Hotaru’s hands as she scrambled to a sitting | |
601 position. Her violet eyes were wide with fear as she looked towards | |
602 her owner. ‘She saw me? She’s not supposed to know that. It’s my | |
603 little secret.’ She didn’t know what to say. Or what would happen to | |
604 her. Maybe she’d give her away. Hotaru knew that pets usually didn’t | |
605 read. Why would they need to? Tears began to well up in her eyes. It | |
606 was just the day after she’d been bought and already she had ruined | |
607 everything. She was really beginning to like her mistress, too. She | |
608 wanted to explain, to try to fix things, but nothing would come out | |
609 of her mouth. She felt helpless, trapped. She wanted to run away. | |
610 “I... Hotaru-chan..” ChibiUsa shook her head and knelt next to her | |
611 kitten. She picked up the book that had dropped to the floor. It was | |
612 one that she had gotten for her birthday. A hand reached out and | |
613 gently stroked Hotaru’s shoulder. “It’s okay, Hotaru-chan. I’m just | |
614 surprised. You can read? I didn’t think pets could read.” She smiled | |
615 sweetly to show that she wasn’t angry, managing to calm the catgirl | |
616 slightly. | |
617 Hotaru nodded weakly, sniffling. “Hai...” She wasn’t angry at her? | |
618 Why not? Not that it wasn’t a good thing. But she had always been | |
619 afraid about someone finding that out. “My mother taught me... before | |
620 she died..” Hotaru said sadly. Reading always reminded her of her | |
621 mother, bringing back bittersweet memories of the kind woman and her | |
622 death that had left Hotaru all alone. So she liked to read when she | |
623 had the chance. It always felt like her mother was watching. | |
624 “Oh...” ChibiUsa looked down at the book for a long moment. So that | |
625 was how. It hadn’t occurred to her that anything might have happened | |
626 to Hotaru’s family. She hadn’t thought about that sort of thing when | |
627 it came to pets. No wonder the poor catgirl looked so lonely. “I’m | |
628 really sorry, Hotaru-chan.” She smiled softly, handing the book back | |
629 to her pet. It took Hotaru a minute to slowly reach out and take it | |
630 cautiously. “If you really like to, you can go ahead and read any of | |
631 my books. I don’t read them all that much anyway with all I need to | |
632 read for school. And I’m more of a manga girl myself.” | |
633 Holding the book against her chest, Hotaru kept her eyes on her | |
634 slightly shorter owner. “Really...? You’d let me?” she asked | |
635 curiously. All of this time she had been afraid of getting in | |
636 trouble. She was so surprised that ChibiUsa would allow her to. Her | |
637 mother had told her never to let a human see her read. Her owner | |
638 really was so kind. “Thank you, ChibiUsa-sama..” Smiling meekly, she | |
639 hugged the book tighter, still looking into the pink haired girl’s | |
640 pretty crimson eyes. She was so lucky to have a mistress like her. | |
641 ChibiUsa watched the eager look in Hotaru’s eyes as she held the | |
642 book. The catgirl was so cute. The pink haired girl was really | |
643 beginning to enjoy learning all of these new things about her pet. | |
644 She really did have a lot of personality. Hotaru was becoming more | |
645 and more captivating. And she was all hers, which made the whole | |
646 thing even better. She didn’t have to share Hotaru with anyone. She | |
647 was like her very own personal friend. Gazing back into those violet | |
648 eyes, she began scratching absentmindedly behind Hotaru’s left ear | |
649 again, eliciting a soft purr from the catgirl. “You can read all you | |
650 want, Hotaru-chan. I want you to be happy here.” | |
651 Hotaru blushed softly and nodded. “I am happy here with you, | |
652 ChibiUsa-sama.” She had been so lonely for so long. She was an | |
653 outcast back at the pet shop. And ever since she had lost her mother, | |
654 she had no one else to turn to. But this lovely girl had taken her in | |
655 and was being so sweet to her even though she was just a pet. It was | |
656 almost too good to be true. Her mother must have helped her get this | |
657 mistress. | |
658 Giving Hotaru a hug that the catgirl slowly relaxed into, her tail | |
659 still moving behind her, ChibiUsa blushed a bit herself. Hotaru was | |
660 already figuring very prominently in her mind. The catgirl was just | |
661 so much more fun and fascinating that her friends at school who were | |
662 much more concerned with boys and certain fads. She couldn’t wait for | |
663 the times when she could be with her kitten. Everything else just | |
664 seemed to take a backseat to that in her mind. Smiling, she kept | |
665 petting Hotaru as she held onto her, enjoying the soft purr in her | |
666 ears. It was so much fun to be with her. And it felt very nice to | |
667 hold her. Actually, she could feel the barely clothed girl trough the | |
668 thin cloth as she held onto her, now that she thought about it. “I’m | |
669 gonna need to get you some clothes soon, Hotaru-chan,” she mentioned | |
670 thoughtfully, still holding her. | |
671 Hotaru blinked, her face inches from ChibiUsa as she watched her. | |
672 “Why?” | |
673 A giggle escaped ChibiUsa’s lips and she shook her head. | |
674 “Nevermind, Hotaru-chan. You just read your books and I’ll bother | |
675 with the rest. I have to take care of my pet, don’t I?” | |
676 Still watching, Hotaru finally nodded when ChibiUsa seemed to be | |
677 waiting for her. “I.. uhh.. Yes, mistress.” It seemed to be the right | |
678 answer so she relaxed, looking into those beautiful scarlet pools | |
679 again. ChibiUsa smelled very nice. Just like her slippers had | |
680 earlier. And the bed. Yes, she was beginning to like that smell very | |
681 much. It was soothing and made her feel warm and safe inside. | |
682 ChibiUsa sweatdropped a little at the close proximity, but aside | |
683 from it seeming a little odd, it really didn’t bother her. In fact, | |
684 she was enjoying the chance to be so close to her pet, especially | |
685 with how shy the catgirl was. Reaching down, she stroked Hotaru’s | |
686 tails, playing with the swiftly moving pendulum. “Of course. My cute | |
687 little pet, Hotaru-chan.” She should start her homework. She should | |
688 feed the catgirl. But she just wanted to sit there. | |
689 | |
690 “ChibiUsa-chan, I love you,” the white haired boy whispered softly | |
691 as his fingers trailed through her cotton candy pink hair. A crimson | |
692 blush, the same color as her eyes, made it’s way across her cheeks. | |
693 She had thought he’d never say that. Her crush on him had gone | |
694 unreturned for so long. As he leaned forward, she realized with | |
695 sudden shock ‘He’s going to kiss me...’ Closing her eyes, she waited | |
696 anxiously for the magical moment. “Elios...” She pursed her lips as | |
697 she waited, her heart pounding in her chest like a freight train. | |
698 Would he? She could feel warm breath against her lips, sending an | |
699 electric spark throughout her body. Frantic thoughts hurried through | |
700 her mind as seconds stretched out into infinity. Her body tensed as | |
701 she waited for the kiss that would seal her fate. Warmth washed over | |
702 her cheek, slightly wet and a little scratchy against her soft skin. | |
703 Confusion quickly shook her anxiety away. What was he doing? Kissing | |
704 her cheek? It sure didn’t feel like a kiss. Well, not quite. Shifting | |
705 a bit to the side, she felt the warm feeling continue on her left | |
706 cheek, moving up and closer to her lips. An unexpected giggle escaped | |
707 her as the unidentifiable feeling continued its journey forward, | |
708 tickling her cheek. Just what did he want? Wasn’t he going to kiss | |
709 her? “Elios?” | |
710 Scarlet eyes fluttered open in curiosity, searching for the object | |
711 of her full attention. “Elios?” she asked again. Blinking in the | |
712 darkness, she tried to find the white haired boy. The warm feeling on | |
713 her cheek continued, closing ever closer to her lips. Her blush | |
714 deepened as she sleepily tried to spot her crush. Her eyes finally | |
715 found an ethereal figure leaning over her, a pale figure in the dim | |
716 moonlight offset by jet black hair that fell around the pale face | |
717 like a veil. Like some unearthly angel, the creature sat over her, | |
718 continuing the sweet caress of ChibiUsa’s cheek as if nothing had | |
719 changed. The pink haired girl shifted in bed, now utterly confused. | |
720 Where had Elios gone? What was happening? And what was that feeling? | |
721 It slowly dawned upon her that the warm feeling was her cheek being | |
722 licked. But why would Elios be licking her cheek? Her still sleep | |
723 addled mind clicked and whirred as it slowly put everything together. | |
724 Violet eyes sparkled in the dim light above her, watching her with | |
725 catlike intensity. “Hotaru-chan?” the young owner asked suddenly, | |
726 sitting up. | |
727 The catgirl moved quickly and with agile grace disappeared into the | |
728 darkness. Straining to see the catgirl in the darkness, ChibiUsa’s | |
729 fingers reached up to her cheek. The soft flesh still had some saliva | |
730 on it from where Hotaru’s somewhat scratchy tongue had passed over | |
731 it. So it had all just been a dream? Well, the part about her crush | |
732 at the least. But if that was the case, then why was her heart still | |
733 beating so quickly? Her fingers traveled from her cheek over to her | |
734 lips, lingering there for a second. The warmth that had spread | |
735 through her cheek now felt like it was melting through her body, | |
736 coating every inch of her. She didn’t know quite how to explain it. | |
737 The excitement from the dream dared not dissipate into the night air | |
738 just yet. It held onto her, as if the dream wasn’t ready to depart. | |
739 Her mind drifted back to her pet’s insistent licking and the | |
740 beautiful silhouette that her eyes had awakened to above her. A | |
741 cherry red blush colored her cheeks as she sat on her bed, still | |
742 drenched in sweat from yet another of many absorbing dreams. The pink | |
743 haired girl had never kissed anyone yet, which made it very difficult | |
744 to listen to Ruruna and Naruru’s constant boasts. Her dreams often | |
745 led her up to what she had built up into her mind to be the | |
746 penultimate romantic moment, but had never crossed the threshold, | |
747 always leaving her curious as to what would have happened had she | |
748 been asleep only a brief moment longer. | |
749 ChibiUsa finally caught sight of her pet in the darkness. Violet | |
750 eyes glinted in the shadows near the foot of her bed. As if she were | |
751 being drawn to those distant stars, the young owner began crawling | |
752 across the bed to the still mostly hidden catgirl. “Hotaru-chan? | |
753 Hotaru-chan, you don’t need to hide, kitty.” A soft giggle filled the | |
754 silent room. “You’re so shy. Come here.” Sitting in front of the | |
755 catgirl on the middle of the bed, ChibiUsa motioned for her to come | |
756 forward. “It’s okay. Come here, kitty.” Hotaru slowly complied, | |
757 crawling towards her pink haired owner. Her pale figure slowly came | |
758 into view, her tail moving slowly in the moonlight. ChibiUsa could | |
759 still feel her heart pounding in her chest, her mind furiously trying | |
760 to go in every direction at once. She remembered Hotaru’s tongue | |
761 along her cheek, so close to her own lips. The feeling was baffling. | |
762 It left her wondering about what would have happened had she waited. | |
763 She had to remind herself that Hotaru was a catgirl and that it was | |
764 probably just her licking her owner as she remembered the puppygirl | |
765 had done with the rich girl. But still she couldn’t banish the | |
766 thoughts from her mind. Hotaru moved a little closer at her | |
767 insistence, her hand still motioning her forward. | |
768 Hotaru complied with her mistress, moving ever closer on all fours. | |
769 Her eyes burned with catlike curiosity as she watched the pink haired | |
770 woman before her, her hands stopping right before ChibiUsa’s knees. | |
771 She hadn’t slept, preferring instead to keep a silent vigil over her | |
772 beautiful owner. She had merely been cleaning ChibiUsa’s cheek when | |
773 the human girl had woken up, but her sudden movements had frightened | |
774 the skittish kitten. Her owner looked cute when she was asleep. Her | |
775 pink hair had framed her cute face beautifully in the dark room, her | |
776 hands resting on her pillow, her lips forming a sweet pout. She was | |
777 surprised to see her awaken so suddenly when it was her experience | |
778 that the pink haired girl slept all night long. She had been here for | |
779 weeks now and that pattern hadn’t changed in the least. Well, with | |
780 the exception of when ChibiUsa wound up staying up with her, but once | |
781 the crimson eyed owner was asleep, she generally stayed that way. | |
782 Hotaru moved closer still, smelling intently as she moved closer, | |
783 enjoying the comforting scent of her mistress. | |
784 Blushing, ChibiUsa watched as Hotaru’s angelic face came nearer, her | |
785 small nose twitching ever so slightly as she did. Violet eyes peaked | |
786 out from behind their shadowy veil at her. That face that had held an | |
787 almost constant fear or pain to it now held a gentle contentment. | |
788 Sometimes the fear and the pain returned, but ChibiUsa had been happy | |
789 to see it slowly ebb, the catgirl’s smile coming more easily as time | |
790 went by. The pink haired girl found herself spending more and more of | |
791 her time with her precious pet than with her best friends. They were | |
792 nice and all, but they didn’t captivate her the same way her gorgeous | |
793 kitten did. There was something about the girl’s shy nature and her | |
794 total devotion that had quickly snagged ChibiUsa’s attention. She had | |
795 even blown off Ruruna and Naruru when they were going to the movies | |
796 because of the jealous look she had seen in the catgirl’s deep pools | |
797 of violet. Part of that scared her, that she would rather stay home | |
798 with her pet than go hang out with her friends. But she had found it | |
799 much more enjoyable than gawking at passing boys and staring at | |
800 outfits that she could never hope to afford. They had passed the | |
801 night pleasantly, playing cards of all things. ChibiUsa had won every | |
802 game. She had begun to suspect afterwards that Hotaru had let her | |
803 win, but she had such an enjoyable time spending the night sitting on | |
804 her bed and playing the games that it hardly seemed to matter. | |
805 It was really a curious situation she found herself in. She knew | |
806 that pets were really amazing to have simply from all of the stories | |
807 she had heard, but this was much more than she had expected. Unlike | |
808 the rest of her friends, ChibiUsa felt that she could really tell | |
809 Hotaru things, that she could talk to her about anything. The dark | |
810 haired catgirl didn’t judge her. She listened to whatever her | |
811 mistress had to say, her cute little cat ears moving along with the | |
812 words. She didn’t have to pretend around Hotaru. And that made her | |
813 feel so spectacularly free inside. It felt like the shackles that | |
814 held down her heart were suddenly released when they were all alone. | |
815 Hotaru had asked her why she pretended so much in front of people, | |
816 why she hid her feelings behind a veil of happiness and genki energy. | |
817 ChibiUsa had tried to explain, but none of her explanations sounded | |
818 good enough, even to herself. “Because I want people to see the | |
819 happy, smiling me. I want that to be who they remember. I don’t want | |
820 to burden others with my problems. I want them to like the genki me | |
821 that they see,” she had finally settled on. | |
822 “I like you,” Hotaru had said simply. “I don’t think you should have | |
823 to pretend for everyone else, ChibiUsa-sama. Even when you’re sad, I | |
824 like you. Especially when you’re sad. Because then I can really see | |
825 all of you. I know I can’t help much, but just being next to you, | |
826 seeing your sad eyes, it makes me wish that I could be with you | |
827 always.” Her quiet voice had spoken earnestly from her heart. It had | |
828 shaken the young owner. She had grown up hiding her pain and troubles | |
829 from others, always being the perky and bubbly girl she had thought | |
830 they wanted her to be, but the catgirl was content with who she was | |
831 even when that façade was nowhere in sight. | |
832 And now ChibiUsa found herself staring deeply into Hotaru’s endless | |
833 violet orbs, breathing quickly as they sat in the darkness on her | |
834 ruffled sheets. The catgirl waited with endless patience, looking | |
835 back at her curiously as ChibiUsa’s mind wandered from memory to | |
836 memory. Laughing in embarrassment, ChibiUsa placed a hand behind her | |
837 head. “Goment nasai... I guess I’m still sleepy after all.” | |
838 Hotaru nodded slowly, still watching her mistress. A small smile | |
839 crossed her lips. She liked watching the pink bunny-looking girl | |
840 sleep. “I hope you sleep well, ChibiUsa-sama,” her soft voice prayed. | |
841 Shaking her head quickly, ChibiUsa tried to collect her thoughts. | |
842 Not thoughts exactly, because she couldn’t quite understand them all. | |
843 It was mostly a jumble of feelings, scattered throughout her heart | |
844 like flotsam. She collected them up, trying to make sense of them. | |
845 The burning sensation from earlier had only managed to grow more | |
846 intense as she watched the beautiful catgirl’s ivory skin nearly | |
847 sparkle in the moonlight. “No, that’s not what I meant. I don’t feel | |
848 like sleeping right now. Hotaru-chan, I...” She shook her head. Why | |
849 was this so difficult? What did she want to say? Whatever it was, it | |
850 certainly shouldn’t be this difficult. Hotaru was her pet. She had | |
851 gone out and picked her out. Hotaru was hers. So why was she having | |
852 such a hard time forcing out whatever it was that clung to her? A | |
853 frustrated sigh escaped her lips, causing Hotaru’s ears to twitch | |
854 noticeably. “Hotaru-chan, I want to kiss you,” she got out in a rough | |
855 whisper, her cheeks burning up. Was that it? Was that what she had | |
856 wanted to say? Well, not quite, but it was close enough. | |
857 The catgirl sat in silence for a long moment, her dark eyes | |
858 concentrating fully on her mistress. Her own pale cheeks had flushed | |
859 a deep red themselves, though it was hardly evident in the dim light. | |
860 She nodded slowly, her black hair fluttering a bit as she did so. Of | |
861 course, ChibiUsa was her owner. She had to do whatever was asked of | |
862 her, whatever her owner expected of her. But this was so much more | |
863 than normal obedience. This was something that she knew she wanted | |
864 herself. That she had wanted for some time now. That her mistress | |
865 would ask that of her... Her heart swooned at the thought. Her | |
866 mistress was such a kind and loving person, the first person who had | |
867 ever really cared about her. She treated her more like a friend than | |
868 an animal. She was so cute and funny to watch. Hotaru was completely | |
869 enamored with her sweet owner. The thought of being with her in such | |
870 a way was absolutely delicious. So as her pet, she must comply. But | |
871 all of Hotaru’s soul was fully behind the action. | |
872 Leaning forward a little awkwardly, ChibiUsa placed her hands on | |
873 Hotaru’s bare shoulders. Her heart felt like it was pounding between | |
874 her ears by now. The fact that she had never kissed anyone before | |
875 made itself painfully well known in her mind. But she did know that | |
876 she wanted this to be her first kiss. Licking her dry lips, ChibiUsa | |
877 moved forward slightly before pausing again. Moving her head to the | |
878 side, she tried to position herself better. The fact that Hotaru was | |
879 a girl hardly mattered in her mind and it probably hadn’t even | |
880 occurred to Hotaru with the blissful look on the angelic girl’s pale | |
881 face. Hotaru was also her pet, so such trivial things as what gender | |
882 she was hardly mattered at the moment. Moving forward once more, | |
883 ChibiUsa felt her lips press inexpertly against those of her devoted | |
884 catgirl. The soft petals of Hotaru’s lips parted briefly and she once | |
885 again felt that soft yet scratchy tongue press against her skin, but | |
886 this time it was on her own lips. The sensation was sweetly | |
887 overwhelming. ChibiUsa closed her eyes and kissed the dark haired | |
888 girl again, this time letting her own mouth part when the dark haired | |
889 girl’s tongue came out. Her lips moved around it, starting Hotaru at | |
890 first before her own tongue brushed against the scratchy one entering | |
891 her mouth. | |
892 ‘She’s your pet. You shouldn’t be doing this,’ ChibiUsa’s mind cried | |
893 out. ‘She’s your pet so of course you can do this,’ it retaliated. | |
894 ‘Damn it, she’s Hotaru-chan and I want to do this,’ she concluded at | |
895 last. Her hand slowly moved up over Hotaru’s bare stomach, caressing | |
896 the satin soft skin as she made her way upwards. Her heartbeat | |
897 continued it’s maddening tempo as she continued higher. She was happy | |
898 to find that Hotaru’s heart was beating just as rapidly, thumping | |
899 rapidly in the raven haired catgirl’s chest. After what felt like an | |
900 endless pause as she worked up her determination, ChibiUsa’s hand | |
901 moved to the right under Hotaru’s simple nightshirt, cupping the | |
902 delicate skin of one of her small breasts. The catgirl let out a | |
903 startled cross between a purr and a moan as ChibiUsa’s hand caressed | |
904 the small mound. Hotaru’s arms wrapped around her mistress, pulling | |
905 her closer as they continued to kiss. By now, whatever arguments | |
906 ChibiUsa’s rational mind had tried were completely forgotten, lost in | |
907 the swirling storm that had overtaken whatever conscious thought was | |
908 left in her. There were wonderfully soft lips and piercing violet | |
909 eyes and warm skin that she could feel through the thin fabric of her | |
910 pajamas. And there was a joyous sense of relief, as if she had | |
911 finally found what she had spent an eternity searching the world over | |
912 for. “Hotaru-chan...” she whispered, her voice sounding different | |
913 than she had last remembered. It was her voice, but it wasn’t at all | |
914 controlled. It was only now that she had completely let go that she | |
915 could see. | |
916 Hotaru wasn’t completely aware of what was going on. Her mind had | |
917 become clouded over as the kiss had overtaken her. She was vaguely | |
918 aware of ChibiUsa’s hand in her blouse, of her fingers against her | |
919 skin. That sent a blush all the way down to her shoulders. The | |
920 thought that she was completely at her mistress’s mercy sent a shiver | |
921 through her ivory body. She didn’t know if she had quite expected | |
922 this or not. She knew that she belonged to the pink haired girl, but | |
923 this hadn’t really crossed her mind. She would do anything for her, | |
924 and she was only all too willing to follow along with her mistress’s | |
925 wishes. | |
926 Slowly pulling away, ChibiUsa tried desperately to catch her breath. | |
927 She felt dizzy, her mind swirling in ecstasy as she sat back. Her pet | |
928 slowly opened her eyes, watching her closely. Swallowing, ChibiUsa’s | |
929 tongue moved around in her mouth, still used to the other’s presence | |
930 from moments before. This certainly hadn’t been one of the reasons | |
931 she had wanted a pet in the first place, but it was certainly a | |
932 wonderful surprise at the moment. The teenage girl was extremely | |
933 happy to have the closeness that her pet was all too willing to | |
934 provide her with. But just as she was an inexperienced kisser, so too | |
935 was she lost in exactly how to go about initiating anything sexual | |
936 between the two of them. The catgirl sat still, completely docile. | |
937 ChibiUsa sighed, her mind racing. Her mind finally settled on the | |
938 kiss. “Hotaru-chan, I want you to take off your clothes,” she said | |
939 quickly, trying to keep herself from blushing a deeper shade of | |
940 crimson than she already was. The dark haired catgirl complied shyly, | |
941 looking away from her mistress as she pulled the simple nightshirt | |
942 off, sliding off the plain white panties a moment later. The pink | |
943 haired owner watched all of this intently, taking in all of her | |
944 feline companion in the dim moonlight that sparkled over her body. | |
945 Reaching forward, ChibiUsa pulled the panties off of Hotaru’s foot, | |
946 pulling at them slightly as she held them up. They had an | |
947 intoxicating smell, and the knowledge of where they had just been | |
948 only served to entice her even more. | |
949 Hotaru sat on her knees in front of her mistress, watching shyly as | |
950 she waited for whatever was to come next. This had certainly come as | |
951 a surprise to her, but not as much as it could have been. She had | |
952 known from the start that her mistress was completely in charge in | |
953 whatever she decided to do. Hotaru was only her pet. She was to go | |
954 along with whatever she wished. So she waited, nude in front of her | |
955 mistress, her body barred for her. Her tail moved quickly, betraying | |
956 the excitement that was building within her. Her animal instincts | |
957 wanted to come into play and they were very difficult to suppress at | |
958 the moment. She had the sudden urge to pounce the pink haired girl, | |
959 but through force of will she managed to push the thought deep down. | |
960 If this had all been a dream, ChibiUsa would not have been at all | |
961 surprised. What did come as a surprise was the fact that she wasn’t | |
962 waking up from all of this. Part of her was expecting it all to come | |
963 to a close at any second. It had already gone much further than any | |
964 of her other dreams had dared. She had finally received that | |
965 intoxicating first kiss. Yet it was moving far beyond a simple kiss. | |
966 Hotaru was simply stunning in the moonlight, her gorgeous body on | |
967 display for ChibiUsa alone. Her fingers reached out slowly, brushing | |
968 some of the catgirl’s dark hair away from her violet eyes. “Hotaru- | |
969 chan... You’re so beautiful. Every inch of you,” she stated as her | |
970 fingers trailed down Hotaru’s bare shoulder. The catgirl shivered at | |
971 her touch, causing ChibiUsa to pull her hand away. Hotaru looked up | |
972 suddenly, disappointment evident in her eyes. | |
973 ChibiUsa held her hands in her lap, blushing deeper than she was | |
974 sure she ever had before. Her pink hair hung past her shoulders, | |
975 still messy from hours of sleep. The burning inside of her was now | |
976 almost unbearable. She swallowed nervously as she tried to think. Her | |
977 mind kept going to vivid images. Again, the feeling of Hotaru’s skin | |
978 against her, the feel of her warm and slightly scratchy tongue | |
979 entered her mind. “Hotaru-chan, I want you to... Umm…” Not being a | |
980 particularly vulgar girl or even an overly sexual one, ChibiUsa was | |
981 having a very difficult time describing what she meant to the catgirl | |
982 in front of her. “I want you to lick me again...” she finished at | |
983 last. She was about certain that she would pass out from blood loss | |
984 around then. If her mother ever heard her say anything like that... | |
985 She shook her head quickly, banishing the thought of her parents | |
986 having any idea of what she was currently engaged in. The catgirl | |
987 moved forward, her tongue brushing ChibiUsa’s cheek once more. The | |
988 pink hair giggled a bit at that, but the giggle was shortlived as | |
989 another blush overtook her. “No, I meant I want you to lick me | |
990 somewhere else, Hotaru-chan,” she said softly. | |
991 Seeing the curious look that the catgirl gave her, ChibiUsa reached | |
992 down and pulled her pajama bottoms off. The cool air hit her bare | |
993 skin instantly, but it did little to quell the firey sensation within | |
994 her. Despite having watched Hotaru undress mere moments earlier, | |
995 ChibiUsa was still embarrassed about being seen in only her pajama | |
996 top and panties, even if she had undressed in front of her pet | |
997 countless times. It took her a moment before she could work up the | |
998 courage to pull her bunny stylized panties down her legs, leaving her | |
999 bare skin to the scrutiny of the dark haired catgirl. She sat there | |
1000 for a long moment, her bare skin against the ruffled sheets that she | |
1001 had been sitting on. Her legs parted slowly, her eyes never leaving | |
1002 the catgirl sitting quietly in front of her. She swallowed nervously, | |
1003 part of her wondering just what the hell she was doing. Disregarding | |
1004 whatever part of her was protesting, ChibiUsa reached down past the | |
1005 soft pink hair that marked only a small patch of the bare skin from | |
1006 her waist down. Her crimson eyes remained on Hotaru as her fingers | |
1007 held herself open, her blush intensifying as she saw Hotaru’s violet | |
1008 eyes looking between her legs. Her first instinct was to close her | |
1009 legs tightly, to grab for the pajama bottoms that she knew were | |
1010 hopelessly out of her grasp. But she saw the Hotaru now understood | |
1011 what she meant. The nude catgirl moved forward on all fours, quickly | |
1012 moving between ChibiUsa’s spread legs. The pink haired girl’s heart | |
1013 crashed thunderously in her chest as she waited. She could see | |
1014 Hotaru’s midnight black hair and her equally dark ears followed by | |
1015 her beautiful ivory back that led all the way down to her dark tail | |
1016 that swished rapidly back and forth over Hotaru’s flank. That was the | |
1017 last thing she saw before she felt Hotaru’s hot breath on her, the | |
1018 catgirl having finally reached her destination. The pink haired girl | |
1019 rested her head back on her pillow, staring up at the roof as she | |
1020 felt Hotaru’s nose brush past her small patch of pink hair. | |
1021 Hotaru was now running mostly on instinct, glad to let her animal | |
1022 side take charge of herself for the time being. Her nose pushed into | |
1023 her mistress’s soft pink hair, brushing the soft skin underneath. Her | |
1024 ears perked up at the soft moan that elicited from her owner. Her | |
1025 tail continued to dart back and forth as she leaned forward again, | |
1026 her nose trailing downward across the hot skin. She was entirely | |
1027 focussed on ChibiUsa, entranced by the situation she found herself | |
1028 in. Her rough tongue began to trail along ChibiUsa’s soft petals the | |
1029 same way she had trailed along her cheek not too long ago. She slowly | |
1030 began to lick at the sweet skin, garnering more moans and movement | |
1031 from the pink haired girl. She was so happy to be able to cause such | |
1032 sounds from her mistress. She continued licking, her tongue moving | |
1033 over ChibiUsa’s fingers as well as what lay between them. She | |
1034 wrinkled her nose at the strange taste that replaced the salty taste | |
1035 of ChibiUsa’s skin further up. After a moment, she began licking | |
1036 further between her mistress’s fingers, enjoying the interesting new | |
1037 taste. Her ears followed every moan, every sound that came from the | |
1038 pink haired girl. ChibiUsa continued to shift along the bed, | |
1039 squirming as Hotaru’s tongue continued along its path. Hotaru’s hands | |
1040 rested on ChibiUsa’s warm thighs so she wouldn’t have to move around | |
1041 as much to compensate for ChibiUsa’s movements. | |
1042 Breathing heavily, ChibiUsa’s fingers of her free hand buried into | |
1043 Hotaru’s soft dark hair, narrowly missing one of her ears. “Hotaru- | |
1044 chan!” she whimpered, her scarlet eyes closing tightly as she felt | |
1045 Hotaru’s warm tongue against her most sacred of treasures. Hotaru’s | |
1046 tongue continued to caress her, the catgirl eagerly sending the pink | |
1047 haired girl into the heights of some distant heaven. “Hotaru-chan...” | |
1048 Her toes curled up in the sheets underneath her, her bare skin still | |
1049 meeting Hotaru’s warm tongue. ChibiUsa moaned louder as the catgirl | |
1050 found her pearl, her tongue sending sparks through her entire body. | |
1051 Hotaru licked at it more intently at the sound of her moans, barring | |
1052 her sharp teeth against it. ChibiUsa’s hands gripped onto the sheets | |
1053 as she moaned one last time, her muscles tensing up as her whole body | |
1054 felt like it was on fire. She collapsed to the sheets a short time | |
1055 later, breathing heavily and even more disheveled than when she had | |
1056 first awakened. Hotaru crawled up next to her, still naked, and | |
1057 curled against her side. ChibiUsa smiled softly as she wrapped her | |
1058 arms around the catgirl. “Hotaru-chan...” she whispered softly, | |
1059 kissing her pet with what little strength she still had. Hotaru | |
1060 smiled back, watching her intently. ChibiUsa fell asleep to those | |
1061 endless violet eyes and Hotaru’s warm purr. | |
1062 | |
1063 ChibiUsa felt herself unable to concentrate at all during class | |
1064 several days later. Her head lay against her cold desk as she school | |
1065 day continued to drag on like molasses pouring slowly from a jar. Her | |
1066 mind was a jumble of thoughts, all struggling for dominance in her | |
1067 confused mind. The flurry of conflicting information was too much for | |
1068 her, but she didn’t no how to deal with it all. She had lost interest | |
1069 in Elios a short time ago, her crush disappearing as quickly as it | |
1070 had appeared. She blamed it at first on the fickleness of such | |
1071 things, but that didn’t exactly fit. Crushes had come and gone | |
1072 before, but usually not with such sudden surety. Maybe she was just | |
1073 becoming more mature, realizing when her feelings were merely the | |
1074 product of an overactive teenage mind. Which was true in some way, | |
1075 she now saw. Elios had been a nice guy and all, but not someone that | |
1076 she could spend an eternity with. | |
1077 Which brought her to her next group of thoughts. Who did she want to | |
1078 spend eternity with? That question produced a rather clear image, but | |
1079 she quickly dismissed it, trying to keep her fear from overcoming her | |
1080 panicked heart. ChibiUsa hadn’t ever had any interest in girls in the | |
1081 first place, and this was infinitely more confusing than finding out | |
1082 she was in love with one of the female members of the species. They | |
1083 weren’t even of the same species. ‘How do you fall in love with your | |
1084 pet cat?’ her mind asked for what had to be the thousandth time. And | |
1085 once again she came up blank. | |
1086 Her mind had been consumed with thoughts of the pale catgirl as of | |
1087 late, drowning her in their intensity. She had tried to quell the | |
1088 rising feelings at first, but they quickly became too much for her to | |
1089 hold back. They bubbled up around the barriers she had set in place, | |
1090 knocking them down as if they had never been there at all. The | |
1091 growing warmth in her heart showed through in everything she did, | |
1092 pouring forth whenever she was with her pet. What had at first | |
1093 frightened her now merely confused her. She was trying to understand | |
1094 just what had happened, where the distinction had been made. When had | |
1095 friendship, the relationship between the pet and her mistress, turned | |
1096 to love? And what did she say to Hotaru about it? This would have | |
1097 been easier if she was younger. In her childlike innocence, she had | |
1098 quickly come to decisions regarding matters of the heart, moving on a | |
1099 pure and simple instinct that had always served her well. That same | |
1100 instinct that bothered her whenever Hotaru would call her mistress. | |
1101 She wasn’t just a pet. That’s what this all boiled down to. Hotaru | |
1102 was far more than some simple object of amusement. She was ChibiUsa’s | |
1103 best friend, something that she would have to be careful not to | |
1104 mention around the possessive Ruruna and Naruru. And it wasn’t the | |
1105 same as with Momoko. They could talk and she liked spending time with | |
1106 the peach girl, but it was nowhere near as captivating as the | |
1107 catgirl’s presence. | |
1108 ChibiUsa tried to cloak her true feelings behind a happy façade | |
1109 that dazzled most people. Hiding her feelings had always been second | |
1110 nature. Her father was an important politician. She couldn’t be going | |
1111 around like an open book. But often her heart would push off the | |
1112 boundaries and restrictions she laid on it, pulling her in all sorts | |
1113 of different directions. This had always been frustrating for her, | |
1114 this contradictory force pulling her in two directions at once. It | |
1115 sometimes left her feeling empty inside, struggling with the feelings | |
1116 in her heart and the painting she tried to portray to the world. Did | |
1117 any of her friends really know her at all? Hotaru did. Those sad eyes | |
1118 saw deep inside of her, as if she could see directly into ChibiUsa’s | |
1119 soul. The pink haired girl shuddered at the thought, remembering the | |
1120 feeling of those endless violet orbs on her, asking why she lied so | |
1121 much about how she felt. | |
1122 It was with this dual nature that ChibiUsa found herself struggling | |
1123 once again. The fact that Hotaru was her pet was becoming less and | |
1124 less important. It seemed silly to use that as an excuse. That she | |
1125 meant so much to her immediately nullified the little problem of | |
1126 Hotaru being a catgirl. Her heart was beginning to shred through the | |
1127 curtains that had hidden it, and it was difficult for her to maintain | |
1128 any semblance of a mask in Hotaru’s presence. Instinct and rational | |
1129 thought grappled in the recesses of her mind, struggling between | |
1130 suppressing her feelings and following her heart. As was so often the | |
1131 case, ChibiUsa’s instincts eventually came out on top. | |
1132 Pink hair bobbed as ChibiUsa heard the bell ring. Finally! Grabbing | |
1133 her bunny bookbag, she hurried out of class. She had things she | |
1134 needed to do. She left her confusion at her desk, determined to see | |
1135 where the path in her heart led. | |
1136 | |
1137 Papers surrounded Hotaru’s barely clad form as she sat on the floor | |
1138 in ChibiUsa’s father’s room. She wasn’t supposed to be in there, but | |
1139 she had grown curious. And, as the saying goes, curiosity killed the | |
1140 cat. Hotaru had finally found it almost impossible to ignore the | |
1141 dark, almost imposing room that she had normally avoided. She had to | |
1142 find the answers. And there they were, in black and white in front of | |
1143 her. | |
1144 It had started simply enough. That pleasant scent that signified | |
1145 her mistress always had a strong affect on her. All of her senses | |
1146 would come alert when it reached her nose, catlike instinct going | |
1147 crazy. It worked well with the rest of the pink haired girl’s | |
1148 presence to drive her completely crazy. It was something she enjoyed, | |
1149 but a small thought had begun to nag at the back of her mind. She | |
1150 knew that smell and that reaction from somewhere else. Well, not that | |
1151 exact smell and not that exact reaction. There was something in | |
1152 specific about ChibiUsa that got her heart pounding. But that tensing | |
1153 of her muscles and that almost maddening thought to pounce on the | |
1154 pink haired girl seemed familiar. She had finally come searching for | |
1155 answers. | |
1156 The strange feelings weren’t the only reason she had gone looking | |
1157 for proof to her suspicions. She had to ashamedly admit that she had | |
1158 a more selfish reason. She was in love with her mistress. She knew | |
1159 that now. Denial had set in stubbornly at first. Hotaru’s broken | |
1160 heart had not wanted to allow herself to get hurt again after all of | |
1161 the pain her life had afforded her. It had tried to escape that by | |
1162 denying the feelings in her heart. ChibiUsa was her mistress, so of | |
1163 course she was the most important thing to her. She was supposed to | |
1164 feel strongly about her mistress. But that wasn’t the full truth. | |
1165 Watching the pink haired girl while she slept, waiting anxiously | |
1166 everyday for her to return home, wanting nothing more than to be with | |
1167 her constantly, it all burned too brightly in her heart. Nothing she | |
1168 had read could have prepared her for the tumultuous feelings that | |
1169 sent her heart reeling. It wasn’t a happy realization by any means. | |
1170 When she had discovered that she was in love with her mistress, she | |
1171 had cried for many hours until her tears had finally given up on her | |
1172 completely. Pain had wracked her lonely heart because she knew she | |
1173 could never be with her mistress. They could never be together. She | |
1174 would always be alone, watching her mistress from afar. She was only | |
1175 her pet, after all. She was nothing more than her plaything. This was | |
1176 her last hope, that perhaps she could prove that they could be | |
1177 together, that she could be with her mistress always. Of course, she | |
1178 wouldn’t be her mistress anymore if she was right, would she? | |
1179 The answer she had been searching for lay written on the paper in | |
1180 front of her, painfully obvious yet carefully hidden. ChibiUsa was | |
1181 not the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Tsukino. She was, in fact, not human | |
1182 at all. She was a pet as well. Or at least, she had been. The | |
1183 Tsukino’s had been devastated when their first daughter had died | |
1184 during childbirth. Mrs. Tsukino couldn’t have any other children. The | |
1185 couple so wanted a child, but they couldn’t have one of their own. So | |
1186 they had purchased a very young pet, a pink haired bunnygirl. They | |
1187 had her tail and ears surgically removed while she was still a baby | |
1188 and had raised her as their own child. | |
1189 The truth hadn’t been entirely surprising to Hotaru, though she had | |
1190 wondered if she was hoping for the impossible. If ChibiUsa was a | |
1191 bunnygirl, then it meant that they could be together. It meant that | |
1192 if ChibiUsa did return her feelings as she suspected, it would be all | |
1193 right for them to be in love. There wouldn’t be any social stigmas to | |
1194 worry about if two pets were in love. She wasn’t just in love with | |
1195 ChibiUsa because she was her mistress. Their love wasn’t forbidden. | |
1196 This filled Hotaru with a profound sense of relief. The familiar | |
1197 feeling finally had a memory attached to it. She had first seen a | |
1198 bunnygirl back in a petshop. She had hissed at the girl and tried to | |
1199 pounce on her, but she hadn’t been able to get out of her cage. So | |
1200 part of ChibiUsa’s scent had alerted that catlike part of her mind to | |
1201 the bunny aspect of her mistress. Her bare toes curled happily in the | |
1202 carpet as she purred. Yes, she couldn’t wait to see ChibiUsa. She | |
1203 would tell her everything and they would be together forever. She | |
1204 hoped. Part of her was worried about the pink haired girl’s reaction | |
1205 to it. What would she think? Would her heritage frighten her? | |
1206 The front door opened, alerting Hotaru to the return of her | |
1207 mistress. Her heart pounded deafeningly in her chest as she held the | |
1208 paper to her chest. She still wasn’t sure what to do. But she knew | |
1209 she wanted to be with her mistress above all else. A strange scent | |
1210 startled her out of her thoughts as the steps grew closer. That | |
1211 didn’t smell like ChibiUsa. Her violet eyes shot towards the door as | |
1212 ChibiUsa’s father entered the room. Her heart practically stopped. | |
1213 “What the hell are you doing?” he asked in shock as he surveyed the | |
1214 room. His daughter’s pet catgirl was sitting in the middle of some of | |
1215 his most important papers, holding one tightly to a chest. Noticing | |
1216 ChibiUsa’s fake birth certificate lying next to her bare leg, he felt | |
1217 panic easing it’s way out from his stomach. He had gotten home early | |
1218 and had decided to hurry home and get some rest after the recent late | |
1219 nights he had been pulling. But he certainly hadn’t expected to see | |
1220 this. ‘Calm down,’ he commanded himself. ‘Be rational. She’s only a | |
1221 catgirl. She can’t read. She doesn’t know what any of it is. Just | |
1222 scold her and hide those papers somewhere else.’ | |
1223 Hotaru stared up at the graying politician with concern in her | |
1224 violet eyes. She held the paper even tighter as he came forward. | |
1225 Steeling her courage, the shy catgirl met his eyes. “She’s a | |
1226 bunnygirl, isn’t she?” her soft voice whispered. His forward advance | |
1227 stopped immediately. “She was a pet, wasn’t she?” | |
1228 “Oh my God...” Panic began to pump quicker through his body as he | |
1229 stared at the catgirl, her deep violet eyes meeting his in curiosity. | |
1230 He idly wondered if he was about to have a heart attack as his heart | |
1231 beat furiously in his chest. “You can read..” This couldn’t happen. | |
1232 Some damned catgirl couldn’t have found out his daughter’s dark, | |
1233 dirty little secret. He would not let his entire career, his entire | |
1234 reputation, his happy family get torn apart by some loathsome animal. | |
1235 He could lose everything if this got out. His career would be hurt | |
1236 beyond repair if it got out that his daughter was a bunnygirl. | |
1237 Nodding slowly, Hotaru looked down at the paper in her arms. “You | |
1238 never told her. You hid it from her so she wouldn’t know. And you let | |
1239 her get a pet of her own. It’s almost ironic. A pet owning a pet.” | |
1240 She smiled weakly, showing her fangs. To ChibiUsa’s father, she | |
1241 looked like some hellish demon. “I understand. You just wanted to | |
1242 protect her. But I have to tell her. She has to know who she is.” | |
1243 “Who.. Who the fuck are you to decide something like that..? You’re | |
1244 just some damned pet... I’m her fucking father.. You have no right | |
1245 telling her that.” His hands were shaking now, an irrational rage | |
1246 building inside. How dare this cat come in and try to ruin his life? | |
1247 How dare she exert power over him? She was only a pet. | |
1248 Hotaru shook her head quickly, dark hair flying just above her bare | |
1249 shoulders. “No, you don’t understand...” her quiet voice was barely | |
1250 above a whisper. “I... I have to tell her.. She needs to know... | |
1251 Because.. Because I love her. So she has to know that she’s a pet, | |
1252 too..” Her violet eyes grew more focused as she stood up. She felt a | |
1253 cold determination growing within her. She would be with the one she | |
1254 loved. She would give her whole heart to ChibiUsa. But the only way | |
1255 they could be together was if she told her who she really was. It was | |
1256 the only way that her mistress could love her back, if she knew that | |
1257 she was a pet. | |
1258 Blinding pain erupted through Hotaru as an insanely loud noise | |
1259 filled her ears. An acrid smell filled her nostrils as she fell | |
1260 backwards. Her eyes barely caught a glimpse of the gleaming metal | |
1261 object in the man’s hands as she collapsed like a rag doll to the | |
1262 floor. She felt as if the air had all been forced out of her in a | |
1263 split second. No matter how hard she tried, she couldn’t catch her | |
1264 breath as she lay panting on the floor, gasping fruitlessly. A | |
1265 coppery taste invaded her mind as she began to cough uncontrollably. | |
1266 Tears spilt down her cheeks as she kept trying to catch her breath. | |
1267 What was happening? Why did her lungs burn so badly? She could dimly | |
1268 hear him over her, angry words laced with venom assaulting her as she | |
1269 lay helplessly on the floor. Her hand weakly grabbed at her chest | |
1270 only to find her simple blouse soaked with blood. It continued to | |
1271 poor out onto her shaking hand as her heart pumped desperately. He | |
1272 had shot her through the lung and she was rapidly bleeding to death. | |
1273 “ChibiUsa-sama...” her voice got out before breaking. Fire burnt | |
1274 through her side as she felt his foot kick her in the ribs. | |
1275 “You fucking bitch!! Do you think she’s going to save you? Do you | |
1276 think that I’d let you ruin my life?! My career?! That I’d let you | |
1277 come in and take my baby girl away from me?!” He ran a hand through | |
1278 his graying hair as he tried to catch his breath. She couldn’t hurt | |
1279 him anymore. The vicious demon lay dying on his bedroom floor. All he | |
1280 would have to do now would be to get rid of her and this whole | |
1281 painful episode would be over with. If ChibiUsa missed her pet cat, | |
1282 he would just go buy her a new one. Preferably a deaf and mute one | |
1283 this time. He heard the catgirl whimper his daughter’s name again on | |
1284 the floor and drove his foot into her stomach, shutting her up. | |
1285 Hotaru couldn’t see anymore, her vision finally fading out as she | |
1286 lay on the floor. Her body still ached horribly, but it was becoming | |
1287 distant, as if it were someone else’s pain. The room was gone, left | |
1288 far behind. Her body was slowly starting to slip away as she came to | |
1289 the dim realization that she was dying. Her heart cried out in | |
1290 anguish as she found that ChibiUsa could not come to her rescue. No! | |
1291 She didn’t want to die yet. She had wanted to die many other times in | |
1292 her life, praying to be with her mother again, but she had a reason | |
1293 to live this time. In her mind’s eye, she saw the pink haired girl, | |
1294 smiling serenely, her arms behind her back. She had to live. She had | |
1295 to see ChibiUsa again. Struggling to her knees, she coughed up more | |
1296 blood onto the already soiled carpet. Yes, she would be with her | |
1297 mistress. Forever. Despite the pain, she thought she might be able to | |
1298 make it to her feet after all. This man would not stand in the way of | |
1299 her heart. “Chi...” she got out weakly before another gunshot rang | |
1300 out. Hotaru’s lifeless body fell in a heap on the floor. | |
1301 “Oh God!! Please no...” The politician turned at the sound of his | |
1302 daughter’s voice. The gun fell from cold fingers, clattering to the | |
1303 floor near the catgirl’s dead body. He reached out slowly, shaking | |
1304 his head. He realized dimly that his fingers were shaking. “ChibiUsa- | |
1305 chan, I... I had to... She was... She was going to destroy you, my | |
1306 little girl...” his words came out shakily as he watched his daughter | |
1307 hurry to Hotaru’s side. | |
1308 “Hotaru-chan!!! Hotaru-chan!!” ChibiUsa cried out helplessly. She | |
1309 clutched onto the catgirl’s still warm body, holding it tightly | |
1310 against herself, praying that she would move in her grasp. “Please... | |
1311 Please say something.. Please do something... Anything!! Hotaru- | |
1312 chan!!! No!! Don’t leave me like this!!! Say something!!!” she | |
1313 demanded, shaking the girl in her arms. Hotaru lay limply against | |
1314 her, unmoving. ChibiUsa burst out into fresh tears, sobbing | |
1315 uncontrollably. “You can’t leave me... I.. I love you... I love you, | |
1316 Hotaru-chan.. I said it.. You mean everything to me... So open your | |
1317 eyes.. Oh please, just open your eyes.. I mean it.. I mean it with | |
1318 all my heart.. I love you...” Her fingers clutched desperately onto | |
1319 the pale girl’s skin as her body shook with each breath the pink | |
1320 haired girl managed between sobs. Her skirt and blouse were now | |
1321 soaked with blood, a stark contrast with how neat and clean they were | |
1322 mere moments before. The flowers she had bought Hotaru lay near the | |
1323 doorway, forgotten instantly as she had seen her fallen love. What | |
1324 had happened? What had gone so horrendously wrong? She had finally | |
1325 given in to the inevitable pull of her heart only to find the girl | |
1326 that lay at the center of her heart dead in her father’s bedroom. Why | |
1327 was this world so cruel? Why would it take such a gentle, shy spirit | |
1328 away? | |
1329 Bitter tears fell down ChibiUsa’s cheeks, dripping onto Hotaru’s | |
1330 pale cheeks as ChibiUsa cupped her chin, looking into her lifeless | |
1331 violet eyes. “Hotaru-chan..” Her father was mumbling something, but | |
1332 she couldn’t hear him. Her thoughts were too dashed to concentrate on | |
1333 anything but the broken girl in front of her. “Hotaru-chan..?” she | |
1334 asked again, her pink lashes throwing tears as she blinked them | |
1335 furiously in an attempt to see through the burning veil they formed. | |
1336 Her lover looked back at her blankly, vacantly. She wasn’t there | |
1337 anymore. The spark inside of her that had been ChibiUsa’s pet catgirl | |
1338 was gone, already having fled to somewhere far away. “I love you..” | |
1339 ChibiUsa whispered as she began to cry hopelessly, hugging Hotaru | |
1340 with all of her strength. | |
1341 “She was going to take you away from me, ChibiUsa-chan.. I had no | |
1342 choice. I couldn’t let her take you away.. I couldn’t let her ruin | |
1343 everything for us.. I’ll buy you a new catgirl.. I’ll let you get any | |
1344 pet that you want.. All right, honey? You can get whatever you want.. | |
1345 She was just a pet anyway.. No big loss..” He turned to his daughter, | |
1346 trying to concentrate. He hadn’t expected her to get home. He was | |
1347 just going to tell her that Hotaru had run away, that she had simply | |
1348 left when he had accidentally left the door open. But this made | |
1349 things infinitely more complicated. His eyes caught on something | |
1350 shiny as ChibiUsa reached out and wrapped her fingers around it. It | |
1351 took a moment for it to click in his mind, the gun clicking back at | |
1352 the same moment. “No..” he whispered breathlessly. | |
1353 The cold metal of the barrel pushed painfully past cotton candy pink | |
1354 hair as ChibiUsa felt it bite into her skin. Her tears still fell | |
1355 silently down her cheeks, but she wasn’t shaking anymore. She shifted | |
1356 her other arm, holding Hotaru warmly against her. This was it. It was | |
1357 over. She couldn’t live without Hotaru. That was part of what had | |
1358 made her realize that she loved the catgirl. Her life was incomplete | |
1359 without her. So she wouldn’t continue down life’s path alone. She | |
1360 couldn’t. Even if her body lived, she was already dead. This life was | |
1361 over. She felt the trigger tense under her finger as she pulled it. | |
1362 It kicked in her hand and fell to the floor as she slumped against | |
1363 Hotaru. She actually thought she heard the gunshot, but that couldn’t | |
1364 possibly be true. She died the second she pulled the trigger. | |
1365 Everything faded to black as she saw the roses lying discarded by the | |
1366 door, her lifeless body leaning against Hotaru’s. | |
1367 Hotaru’s smiling face and vibrant violet eyes greeted ChibiUsa as | |
1368 gun smoke filled the air and two girls lay dead and entangled | |
1369 together in a lover’s embrace back in a room far away. | |
1370 | |
1371 |