Lovers and Dreamers

 By the Amazoness Quartet

 

 The song in the story is ChibiUsa’s Stars singles song, ‘BaiBaitte Itta’. 

 The translation for

 the song was done by William Braell and a friend found it at

 http://sailormusic.tripod.com/lyrics/BaiBaitte_Itta.html

 

 This story takes place right after ‘Family Ties.’ We hope you all enjoy it. 

 ^-^ Please e-

 mail us at amazonessduo@hotmail.com and tell us what you think. ^-^

 

 

 	"C’mon, Taru," ChibiUsa said, waving to her from the curb. She wore a

 mischievous grin that fit her older appearance well. It made her look a bit 

 like her evil

 self, Black Lady.

 Hotaru sighed and followed her lover towards the karaoke bar. She still 

 wasn’t

 sure this was a good idea. ChibiUsa had borrowed the Luna Pen from Usagi to 

 make

 them look older. Hotaru watched as ChibiUsa’s now much longer hair swayed 

 back and

 forth as she walked, brushing up against the back of the short dark crimson 

 dress the pink

 haired girl was wearing. Hotaru felt herself smiling as ChibiUsa walked 

 along. The pink

 haired girl always managed to affect her deeply, whether or not she was 

 pretending to be

 older. Hotaru found herself wondering which way she liked ChibiUsa’s hair 

 better. It was

 pretty when it was long, like her mother’s. But it was cute when it was 

 shorter and

 fluffier like ChibiUsa normally had it.

 	"Taru?" ChibiUsa asked quizzically.

 Hotaru blushed. She must have been lost in thought. ChibiUsa took her hand 

 and

 brought her closer.  Hotaru felt ChibiUsa’s warm breath against her cheek. 

 "Usa," Hotaru

 said softly as she looked into the other girl’s crimson eyes. Her heart beat 

 faster, almost

 stopping when ChibiUsa’s long fingers stroked her warm cheek.

 "You ready?" ChibiUsa asked, motioning behind her. "You seemed to be out of

 it for a second."

 	"I get like that when I think about you," Hotaru whispered to the pink 

 haired

 girl. "You make it hard for me to think about anything else." She smiled, 

 fingers

 intwining in one of ChibiUsa’s long pink pigtails.

 	"Taru..." ChibiUsa’s soft red lips inched anxiously closer to Hotaru’s. 

 Hearing a

 car screech by, she shook herself out of it. Her long hair flew about, some 

 hitting into

 Hotaru’s head. "Gomen," ChibiUsa said, embarrassed.

 	Hotaru couldn’t help but laugh. "I think I like your shorter hair better."

 	Running her hands through her hair to straighten it out, ChibiUsa turned 

 back to

 Hotaru. "How’s that?"

 	Hotaru paused for a moment to take in the pink haired angel before her. She 

 was

 absolutely stunning. She was the most beautiful thing Hotaru had ever seen. 

 She heard

 ChibiUsa call her name again, but she just smiled. "Gorgeous," Hotaru said 

 breathlessly.

 The faint blush and the pleased look on ChibiUsa’s face told Hotaru she’d 

 said the right

 thing. Taking ChibiUsa’s arm, she headed inside.

 	"I meant my hair," ChibiUsa finally got out, still smiling.

 	Hotaru glanced at her and smiled back. "I know. But I meant what I said."

 	Taking a table near the front, Hotaru and ChibiUsa took their seats. Hotaru

 helped ChibiUsa get her long hair out of the way while she sat. "I don’t 

 think I’ll ever

 know how mom does it," ChibiUsa sighed.

 	"I bet it’s probably with practice. When I was younger, I really wanted to 

 play

 the violin like Michiru-mama, but I was horrible at it whenever I played. 

 But she taught

 me how. It took a long time, but I really wanted to learn."

 	"And you play beautifully," ChibiUsa complimented. Hotaru had played

 specifically for her on several occasions.

 	Hotaru smiled. "Thank you. Haruka-papa offered to teach me how to drive, 

 but

 if its anything like learning how to play the violin, I’m not sure I want to 

 go through that

 again," Hotaru joked. "I’m sure if you keep it long enough, you’ll do just 

 fine with long

 hair. In the meantime, though, I like it short. It’s..."

 	"Cute," ChibiUsa finished for her, grinning. Despite her dream she’d 

 harbored

 when she was younger about being ladylike, Hotaru was quite intent on making 

 sure she

 knew the raven haired girl liked her the way she was.

 	"Well it is. And I like it." Glancing over at the pink haired girl, Hotaru 

 looked at

 her curiously. "Why did you borrow the Luna Pen?"

 	ChibiUsa thought for a moment. "I thought it would be fun to go out a 

 little

 differently tonight. I heard about this place from Mamo-chan. He and his 

 friends come

 here every once in a while, so I thought we might want to look a little 

 older if we came so

 everyone didn’t just think we were kids."

 	"That’s what you wanted it for? Then why are we here?" Hotaru asked, 

 raising

 an eyebrow.

 	Smiling, ChibiUsa responded, "I just wanted to sing."

 	"Sing?" Hotaru raised an eyebrow. She did love ChibiUsa’s sweet, lilting 

 voice.

 The pink haired girl did sing quietly from time to time, but Hotaru loved 

 hearing her sing

 when they were together in the shower or when it was only the two of them at 

 one of

 their homes. A smile formed across her lips. It would be nice to hear 

 ChibiUsa sing here.

 	Looking up to confirm that the stage had finally been vacated, ChibiUsa 

 quickly

 stood up and took Hotaru’s hand. "Let’s go, Taru."

 	Hotaru glanced up at the stage. "I’m not sure, Usa. Not in front of 

 everybody."

 	"But you’ve been playing your violin in front of people for a while now,"

 ChibiUsa argued.

 	"That’s different."

 	ChibiUsa tugged at Hotaru’s hand again, trying to bring the dark haired 

 girl with

 her. "How’s that?"

 	"Because I don’t have to sing when I’m playing the violin. Usa-chan, if you

 want to sing together, can’t we do that at my house? We can wait until 

 everybody else is

 gone, like when Haruka-papa and Michiru-mama, and Sestuna-mama and Seiya go 

 out.

 We’d have the whole house to ourselves, so we could sing a duet, or I could 

 accompany

 you on the violin. Whatever you want. I just don’t want to sing in front of 

 all these

 people." Hotaru looked nervously up at ChibiUsa. She never did feel 

 comfortable with

 large groups of people. It just reinforced how shy she already was.

 	The pink haired girl finally gave a defeated sigh. "Alright." Winking to 

 Hotaru,

 ChibiUsa continued up to the stage.

 	Hotaru stared on as ChibiUsa took the microphone. ‘What’s she doing?’ 

 Hotaru

 asked herself. She admitted to herself that ChibiUsa had been acting a bit 

 strange tonight.

 And she didn’t think the other girl was telling the whole truth about why 

 she wanted them

 to look different. Maybe so no one would wind up recognizing them. But why?

 ChibiUsa’s voice over the speakers shook Hotaru from her thoughts. She kept 

 her eyes on

 the pink haired girl, wondering what she was thinking.

 	"Hello, everyone. Before I start, I’d like to dedicate this song to the 

 beautiful

 girl up front." Smiling mischievously, ChibiUsa pointed to where Hotaru was 

 sitting.

 "Taru, you make everyday a dream. A dream that I never want to end. I love 

 you, Taru-

 chan."

 	Hotaru sat in stunned silence, her normally pale cheeks blushed a deep red.

 What had gotten into ChibiUsa? The other girl was usually rather shy and 

 reserved about

 their relationship in public. After Hotaru’s harsh life the first time 

 around on earth and

 her more loving second time growing up, she tried not to care what other 

 people thought

 about the two of them being in love. With how ChibiUsa had been acting 

 lately, maybe

 she was coming to understand how Hotaru felt about their relationship. That 

 there wasn’t

 a need to hide it.

 	ChibiUsa continued to sing, directing it to Hotaru. Hotaru received some 

 odd

 stares, but she didn’t notice. She was to intent on the future princess on 

 the stage. She

 may not have been the best singer, but that hardly mattered to Hotaru. She 

 felt like

 everything the pink haired girl sang was directly to her.

 	The pink haired girl’s eyes met Hotaru’s, her sweet voice ringing forth.

 

         "No good! No good! No good"  you said,

                                    When your spirits were low, but

                                    I am now at your side, so

                                    It's surely, surely, positively all 

 right!

 

                                    Even if we're nothing but failures,

                                    We won't just be downhearted NO! NO!

                                    We just lost by a little bit...

                                    Forget all about those meanies!

                                    If we believe in pleasant things, then

                                    Even if night comes, we won't be afraid 

 of it;

                                    We know morning, morning, is getting 

 near, and so

                                    It's not at all a big deal, right?

 

                                    Now, even if we're a pair of fraidycats,

                                    Don't be worried at all, NO! NO!

                                    I'm giving a kiss to those eyelids

                                    Brimming with tears (smack!)

                                    Tomorrow, our wishes certainly will come 

 true!

                                    The things we'd like so much will happen,

                                    We'll say BYE-BYE to failures like these.

                                    I've said it! I've said it!  It'll 

 absolutely be all right!

 

                                    As for being down-hearted and moping,

                                    Giving in to these feelings too easily

                                    Is obviously a big mistake;

                                    Don't give up on our important dreams!

                                    If we believe in cheerful things,

                                    Even if it gets cold, it will not be 

 painful;

                                    We know spring, spring, is getting near, 

 and so

                                    It's not at all a big deal, right?

 

                                    Now, even if we're a pair of crybabies,

                                    Don't be worried at all, NO! NO!

                                    I'm giving a kiss to those cheeks

                                    Dripping with tears (smack!)

                                    Tomorrow will be much more wonderful!

                                    The wishes we most desire will be 

 granted,

                                    We'll say BYE-BYE to anxieties like 

 these.

                                    I've said it! I've said it! It'll 

 absolutely be all right!

 

 Finally, the music ended and ChibiUsa made her way off the stage. Hotaru

 threw her arms around the other girl as soon as she was down. "Odango-chan, 

 I love you,

 too." They nearly stumbled, but ChibiUsa managed to lean against a table for 

 support.

 She smiled and returned the embrace. "But why did..." Hotaru’s question lay 

 unfinished

 as ChibiUsa’s soft lips delved upon Hotaru’s. "Let’s go, Usa," Hotaru said 

 after they

 broke the kiss. She noticed some of the attention they were getting and 

 didn’t want to

 stick around for too much longer.

 	"Hai," ChibiUsa agreed. The two quickly headed around the side and to the

 entrance, careful not to attract any more attention. Finally exiting the 

 building, ChibiUsa

 released a deep breath. "Next time we’ll just sing at your place."

 	Hotaru smiled warmly at her lover. "Good idea." Her arm went around

 ChibiUsa’s waist as they began to walk along.

 

 	While strolling slowly through the park, the two women held each other

 lovingly. Neither seemed to notice the cold night air or the dark clouds 

 forming overhead.

 They looked at each other, the silence around them only broken by the sound 

 of

 breathing. ChibiUsa’s arms went to Hotaru’s sides, drawing her close, 

 exactly where

 ChibiUsa wanted her. Hotaru gave an ‘oh’ of surprise before putting her own 

 hands on

 ChibiUsa’s shoulders.

 	"Are you mad?" ChibiUsa asked concernedly.

 	"Why would I be?" Hotaru blinked in confusion.

 	"Well, what I did back there. I shouldn’t have embarrassed you in front of

 everybody. I just wasn’t thinking," ChibiUsa said apologetically.

 	Hotaru brought her hand up to ChibiUsa’s warm cheek. "Odango-chan, don’t

 worry about that. I was... shocked, but I was happy. I never thought you 

 would do

 something like that in front of anyone."

 	ChibiUsa could see Hotaru smile in the dim light. "They didn’t know us

 anyway. Why worry what they think, right?" she asked a little awkwardly as 

 if still a bit

 unsure herself.

 	Hotaru shook her head. "No reason to worry about them. I love you and you

 love me. That’s all that matters."

 	ChibiUsa nodded. "Hai. I think I learned something tonight, too."

 	Hotaru’s heart rose. Maybe ChibiUsa finally had learned that it was okay 

 for

 them to be in love, that she didn’t need to hide it from everyone. "What’s 

 that?"

 	"I learned that its alright to embarrass you in public as long as we kiss

 afterwards," ChibiUsa gave the dark haired girl a wink.

 	"Odango-chan..." Hotaru stared at the pink haired girl, a sweatdrop 

 forming.

 "That’s not what I wanted you to learn."

 	ChibiUsa giggled. "Oh well. At least I’m prepared for next time."

 	"If.." Hotaru began.

 	"When.." ChibiUsa interrupted.

 	"there’s a next time," they finished.

 	Hotaru sighed and brushed some of ChibiUsa’s long pink hair back. "What did

 you and your mom talk about after Rei and I left?"

 	"Oh, this and that. I’m feeling a lot better now that she knows. I may not 

 say it

 often, but I really can see that she’s my mother. I kind of miss not having 

 been able to see

 her in so long, so I’ve been thinking of Usagi as her more and more, even 

 though she

 hasn’t had me yet." ChibiUsa looked thoughtful. "I really think my mom knew 

 I’d fall in

 love with you when she sent me back to train as Sailorchibimoon."

 	"Maybe that’s why she sent you to train in the past in the first place," 

 Hotaru

 said, smiling.

 	"I’m not sure. But I do think she already knew." ChibiUsa’s eyes widened as 

 she

 remembered something suddenly. "Oh yeah! Usagi said she was pregnant."

 	Hotaru looked at the pink haired girl in shock. "She’s pregnant?" ChibiUsa

 nodded. "Its you," Hotaru said joyously. "She’s pregnant with you, isn’t 

 she?"

 	ChibiUsa shifted uncomfortably. "Yeah. Its strange. My mom’s pregnant with

 me and I’m around to see it. It all happened so fast. I’d almost forgotten 

 about going back

 to the future, but its almost time for me too."

 	Hotaru shook her head emphatically. "No, we can’t leave until after you’re 

 born.

 I want to see you as a baby.  I want to be here when your born."

 	ChibiUsa laughed nervously. "Hotaru-chan, I can show you pictures of me as 

 a

 baby when we get to the future."

 	"That’s not the same thing. And its only fair. You got to see me as a baby 

 when

 I was reborn. I want to be here to see you. I’m sure Usagi would be a lot 

 happier if you

 were here while she was pregnant," Hotaru argued.

 	ChibiUsa was uneasy about the thought of staying around while her mother 

 was

 pregnant with her, but Hotaru did have a point. Usagi had a lot going on 

 right now and it

 might be easier for her if she stayed. Usagi was pregnant with her, having 

 trouble with

 Mamoru, and in the midst of falling in love with Rei. With Kousagi back in 

 the past,

 there were added problems. "Well, alright. Unless Puu says we need to go 

 back. Or

 my mom sends for me. Or.."

 	Hotaru cut ChibiUsa off with a quick kiss. The small piece of heaven shared

 between the two of them pushed back the other thoughts. "Thanks, ChibiUsa,"

 Hotaru said quietly. The two girls ever so slowly started leaning towards 

 each other.

 Hotaru couldn’t think of anything other than the other girl’s soft, red 

 lips. Barely inches

 away from each other, a voice broke through the cloudy haze they were both 

 in.

 	"SO that’s what you two were up to." PallaPalla stood a few feet away, 

 staring

 at the two girls. She wrinkled her brow as she got a closer look of the two 

 of them "Why

 are you two dressed like that? It makes you look too old."

 	ChibiUsa sighed. "You think anything over fifteen is too old, PallaPalla."

 	PallaPalla just smiled. "Yep. That’s why PallaPalla’s here. PallaPalla 

 wanted to

 help both of you."

 	Hotaru tilted her head to the side slightly. "You do? How’s that?"

 	"Of course PallaPalla does. ChibiUsa is our princess. You’re starting to 

 get older

 than us, ChibiUsa-chan. We thought you’d want to be young forever like us," 

 PallaPalla

 explained.

 	"’We’?" ChibiUsa asked. "The rest of the Quartet are in on this?"

 	"Well, we all talked about you getting too old, but PallaPalla’s the only 

 one

 doing anything about it." The blue haired amazoness smiled proudly.

 	"PallaPalla, we’re going to stop aging around twenty two already. That’s 

 what

 age my mom and all the other senshi stopped aging at," ChibiUsa said.

 	PallaPalla shook her head in disgust. "Too old." She stuck both arms out in 

 front

 of her and a billiard ball formed between her hands. Energy swirled around 

 it as she

 started concentrating.

 	"PallaPalla?" ChibiUsa said, pulling away from Hotaru and starting to walk

 towards the amazoness.

 	Too late. The ball shot out, whipping through the air. ChibiUsa gasped as 

 she

 saw it heading her way. She closed her eyes and held up her arms. She felt 

 the wind as it

 flew right past. Behind her there was a large flash of light before all was 

 silent. ‘It

 missed?’ ChibiUsa thought to herself. She wasn’t quite sure of what it would 

 have done,

 but she was glad she hadn’t had to find out. "PallaPalla, I don’t want you 

 to stop our

 aging. I’m fine with how things are going. Right, Hotaru?" ChibiUsa asked, 

 turning back

 towards the raven haired girl. She nearly lost her balance. Where Hotaru had 

 been

 moments before, stood a child roughly the same age as their twin daughters. 

 Hotaru’s

 dark purple long sleeved dress was draped around her. The little girl’s eyes 

 were shut

 tightly. "Hotaru?" ChibiUsa whispered breathlessly.

 	Hotaru slowly opened her eyes. What happened? She felt a little strange. 

 She

 was dizzy from the energy ball hitting its target. Her dress felt way too 

 big for her now,

 though she remembered thinking it was a size too small when she and ChibiUsa 

 had gone

 shopping the week before. She could feel the cold grass under her bare feet, 

 having

 stumbled out of her shoes. She blinked several times, trying to clear her 

 blurred vision.

 ChibiUsa was staring at her wide eyed and PallaPalla was waving her arms 

 frantically,

 trying to apologize. Apologize for what? "ChibiUsa-chan?" Hotaru gasped as 

 she heard

 her own voice. Now that she thought about it, ChibiUsa and PallaPalla looked 

 bigger,

 too. What was going on?

 	"Oh, Hotaru-chan.." ChibiUsa said disparately. She quickly turned back to

 PallaPalla. "What happened?" she demanded.

 	"PallaPalla doesn’t know!" PallaPalla said apologetically. "PallaPalla was 

 trying

 to stop her from aging so you two could stay this age. PallaPalla didn’t 

 mean for that to

 happen. PallaPalla’s so sorry, Small Lady."

 	ChibiUsa took several deep breaths before saying anything. "Change her 

 back."

 	PallaPalla held her arms out helplessly. "PallaPalla can’t," she said 

 quietly.

 	"You can’t," ChibiUsa repeated. "You can’t?" she said again, the reality of 

 the

 situation dawning on her. "Why not?"

 	"PallaPalla just can’t. It was supposed to stop all outside forces from 

 aging you.

 So PallaPalla can’t do anything to fix it," PallaPalla explained hesitantly.

 	ChibIUsa turned back to Hotaru hopelessly. "Hotaru-chan," she said softly.

 	"What’s going on?" Hotaru asked, getting angry that neither was telling 

 her.

 	"There is something PallaPalla can do," PallaPalla began.

 	"What?" ChibiUsa asked eagerly. "What can you do? Anything."

 	"I could complete the spell so she’s a baby."

 	ChibiUsa stared at the blue haired girl. "What good would that do?"

 	"Since Usagi’s pregnant with you, you’ll be born about nine months from 

 now.

 If Hotaru’s a baby starting now, she’ll only be about a year older than you. 

 So when you

 go back to the future, she’ll be just a little older than you." PallaPalla 

 smiled, glad that

 she’d come up with a solution. She’d been jumping along through the trees to 

 meet up

 with them, so she’d heard ChibiUsa talking about Usagi’s pregnancy.

 	Hotaru trudged along towards ChibiUsa, the dress flailing around her. 

 ChibiUsa

 was starting to seem a whole lot taller than her. Bending down, ChibiUsa 

 lifted her up in

 her arms. Hotaru gasped as she felt the pink haired girl pick her up.

 	"No! You can’t do that. We’ve got to find a way to make Hota-chan her 

 normal

 age again," ChibiUsa said worriedly.

 	‘Normal age? Is that it? Oh no.. Am I a kid again?’ Hotaru asked herself. A

 wave of sadness passed through her at the thought of having to grow up yet 

 again.

 "ChibiUsa-chan, how old am I?" Hotaru asked, looking directly at the pink 

 haired girl.

 	ChibiUsa looked back at her sadly. "I’m so sorry, Taru. I’d guess five or 

 six."

 	"Well, PallaPalla thought it was a good idea," PallaPalla said to no one in

 particular.

 	"I’m not going to let you make her a baby," ChibiUsa said angrily. "It was 

 bad

 enough she was taken from me the last time that happened. I’m not gonna let 

 it happen

 again."

 	PallaPalla stared at the ground. "PallaPalla’s sorry Hotaru-chan, 

 ChibiUsa-chan.

 There’s nothing PallaPalla can do about it now."

 	ChibiUsa felt her temper flaring. A mixture of anger, sadness, and 

 hopelessness

 coursed through her veins. "No, you have to do something," she continued 

 desperately.

 	Hotaru shook her head sadly. "No, ChibiUsa-chan. There’s nothing she can 

 do."

 	The blue haired amazoness paused for a brief moment before starting to walk

 away. She felt bad about her mistake, but what could she do? She just hoped 

 the other

 three amazoness wouldn’t be mad at her. She’d already disappointed her 

 princess and

 Hotaru. She didn’t want everyone mad at her.

 	"What do we do now?" ChibiUsa asked, her voice low.

 	"Go home," Hotaru suggested. "We’d have to go eventually and we might as

 well get it out of the way now."

 	ChibiUsa nodded. "I’m so sorry, Hotaru-chan."

 	Hotaru swallowed a lump forming in her throat. "Don’t be, ChibiUsa-chan. 

 Its

 not your fault."

 	"Thanks, Taru." Setting Hotaru down, ChibiUsa pulled out the Luna Pen. 

 Using

 the pen she changed Hotaru’s dress into a much smaller dress for the now 

 younger girl.

 Picking her back up, ChibiUsa took off for the mansion where Hotaru lived.

 	"Umm.. ChibiUsa, I can walk," Hotaru said after a minute.

 	"Oh yeah." ChibiUsa blushed in embarrassment and set the younger girl down.

 	Hotaru sighed as she had to reach up to hold the other girl’s hand. 

 Something

 she did so often was now so totally different. The two walked on in silence 

 for a while,

 both tormented by their own thoughts as they made their way to Hotaru’s 

 house.

 

 	Hotaru shivered as the cold when began to blow across her exposed skin. 

 Tiny

 goosebumps formed from the chill. Tiny droplets of water had begun to fall 

 from the dark

 clouds overhead. Hotaru was cold, wet, and miserable. A dark pit sunk in her 

 stomach

 when she looked up at ChibiUsa. She had almost managed to forget how old she 

 was

 while they had been walking along. The realization that she could be stuck 

 as a child

 frightened her. Her small hand clutched ChibiUsa’s soft hand tightly, her 

 fingers

 trembling lightly. She knew she shouldn’t be scared. ChibiUsa would be there 

 for her,

 and Setsuna could probably find someway to fix things. But she couldn’t help 

 it. She was

 afraid. What would happen now? Would she have to grow up again, wait those 

 long years

 over again? The thought that frightened her the most was from what she’d 

 heard

 PallaPalla say. Would she have to wait and grow up all over  until she could 

 see ChibiUsa

 again? If she was stuck as a child, would ChibiUsa have to go to the future 

 without her?

 She would have to wait years to be together with ChibiUsa again if that 

 happened.

 	"Oh, Hota-chan," ChibiUsa said quietly, shaking the dark haired girl from 

 her

 thoughts. ChibiUsa was kneeling in front of her, rain droplets dripping 

 across her

 beautiful features, dripping off her chin. "It’s okay, Hota-chan. Please 

 don’t cry." The

 pink haired girl’s fingertips brushed away sad tears that had begun falling 

 from Hotaru’s

 large violet eyes. Hotaru hadn’t even realized they were there before that 

 moment.

 ChibiUsa’s soft touch sent a spark of warmth through the younger girl’s cold 

 body. "I

 promise it will be alright. Even if I have to go make PallaPalla do the same 

 thing to me,

 just so we can stay together, that’s what we’ll do." The pink haired 

 princess smiled

 lopsidedly. "We can go back to the future as little girls and grow up 

 together." She

 brushed some damp hair away from Hotaru’s eyes and kissed her forehead 

 gingerly.

 	"ChibiUsa-chan.." Hotaru said, her voice choked off by the emotions she 

 felt.

 She threw her small arms around the now taller girl’s waist, her head 

 resting against the

 other girl. Sobs wracked her small form as ChibiUsa held her close. The fear 

 and sadness

 she had felt were replaced by the warm feeling of love she had for her pink 

 haired

 princess. She was still saddened by the whole ordeal, but she knew that 

 she’d be okay in

 the solace of ChibiUsa’s arms.

 	"I’d never leave you, Hotaru-chan. Even if it was to wait for you to grow 

 up. If

 it came down to it, I’d rather grow up with you." ChibiUsa sighed in relief 

 as she finally

 managed to coax a smile from the younger girl. "I love you, you know."

 Hotaru nodded, the wind ruffling her dark hair. "I know. I love you, too."

 "There’s nothing for you to worry about, Hotaru-chan. We’ll find some way to

 fix this," ChibiUsa said, locking her crimson eyes with Hotaru’s violet 

 ones. She took a

 deep breath before continuing. "And if we can’t, don’t let it get to you. 

 I’ll always love

 you. We’ll always be together. Remember that."

 Hotaru nodded again. "Hai, I will." She buried her face in the soft material 

 of

 ChibiUsa’s dress, the soft feel of the pink haired girl’s skin underneath. 

 Warm tears

 mixed with the cold rain on the dress, but the tears slowly trickled to a 

 stop. Taking a step

 back, Hotaru mustered a weak smile. "Thank you, Odango-chan."

 	ChibiUsa returned the smile. "Anytime, Taru. Now let’s get you home. Its

 freezing out here."

 

 	Unbeknownst to the two girls, two shadowed figures had been watching from a

 distance. The two mysterious figures held each other tightly in the rain. 

 Both appeared to

 be around sixteen years old.

 	"That was surprising," one of them said, her dark hair done up in odangos

 getting rather soaked in the rain. She turned to her companion.

 	"I had know idea that was going to happen. They had mentioned it before, 

 but I

 didn’t know it would happen while we were back here. Maybe we should have 

 spent

 more time researching everything," the other said. She pulled off her 

 glasses with a free

 hand, the raindrops blurring her vision.

 	"We might be able to use it to our advantage," the odangoed one suggested.

 	The other girl ran a hand through her own damp, shorter hair. She thought 

 for a

 moment. "Yeah, maybe we can. For now we’ll just have to watch. We’ll have to 

 wait for

 the right time before we begin."

 	The girl with the odangos nodded. "Right. I can wait. I’m in no hurry as it 

 is."

 	Smiling, her shorter haired companion leaned closer, her lips almost 

 touching

 the other girl’s. "Neither am I, if it means waiting with you."

 	The two girls continued to hold each other in the shadows as the rain 

 poured

 around them.

 

 	As a flash of lightening illuminated the area around them, Hotaru was sure 

 she

 saw two figures looking over at them. Before she could say anything, a loud 

 thunder clap

 hit, the sound ringing in her ears. Suddenly, she felt ChibiUsa’s arms 

 encircle her,

 drawing her near. Hotaru struggled to catch her breath as the older girl’s 

 arms squeezed

 her. She could feel the pink haired girl’s rapid heartbeat against her. 

 Looking up, she saw

 that ChibiUsa’s eyes were clenched closed. ChibiUsa’s normal warm complexion 

 was

 now pale. She knew ChibiUsa had a fear of thunder, but she’d forgotten all 

 about it for

 the moment. Hotaru felt awkward as she now tried to comfort the older girl. 

 "Its okay,

 ChibiUsa-chan. It’s only a noise."

 	ChibiUsa took a shuddering breath, slowly opening her eyes. "I know.. Let’s

 just hurry back to your place, alright?"

 	"Sure. We’re almost there, ChibiUsa-chan," Hotaru said soothingly.

 	ChibiUsa giggled nervously. "It’s really no big deal. It’s silly to be 

 afraid of

 that." Another clap of thunder had her dragging Hotaru close in a tight 

 embrace again.

 The pink haired girl shut her eyes as she waited for it to pass.

 

 	Over in the shadows, the girl with odangos shook her head. "Too bad she 

 never

 gets over her fear of thunder."

 	The other girl laughed softly and put her glasses back on. "By then it’s 

 just an

 excuse to clutch onto Hotaru."

 	"When you think about it that way.." the dark haired girl with odangos said

 thoughtfully. Both girls stepped further back into the shadows as they 

 followed Hotaru

 and ChibiUsa.

 

 

 	ChibiUsa and Hotaru sat on the bed in an uneasy silence. ChibiUsa wanted

 desperately to comfort the now younger dark haired girl, but she didn’t know 

 what she

 could say or do to help.

 	Hotaru looked helplessly down past her small feet to the floor. Everything 

 was

 so much bigger now. Glancing sidelong at her girlfriend, she felt a stab of 

 pain in her

 heart. The pink haired girl was so much older than her now. She was only a 

 child.

 "Odango-chan?" Hotaru’s small voice piped up.

 	Turning at the sound, ChibiUsa’s arm went around the smaller girl, pulling 

 her

 closer. "Yes, Hotaru-chan?" She could see the hopeless look in Hotaru’s 

 eyes, the

 defeated slump of her shoulders. It crushed ChibiUsa to see the dark haired 

 girl like that.

 She took Hotaru’s small hand in her own, trying to comfort her.

 	"Would you really have PallaPalla do the same thing to you if we couldn’t 

 find a

 way to fix this?" Hotaru looked up at the pink haired girl worriedly.

 	ChibiUsa smiled and squeezed Hotaru’s hand gently. "Of course, Taru. You

 shouldn’t have to go through this by yourself. And I wouldn’t mind the 

 chance to grow

 up with you. Besides, maybe it’ll help me be more ladylike when I get older 

 if I have to

 go through being a kid again." She giggled softly.

 	"But isn’t it better this way? If I’m changed back into a baby, then I can 

 grow

 up. When Usagi has you, I’ll only be a year older than you." Hotaru tried to 

 smile, but it

 failed to reach her eyes.

 	ChibiUsa shook her head firmly. "No. Either you get to come back with me to

 the future or I’m staying here with you."

 	"But you’re the princess of Crystal Tokyo," Hotaru argued.

 	ChibiUsa smiled. Leaning forward, she softly kissed Hotaru’s cheek. "That

 doesn’t matter. I love you. I want to be with you. No matter where it is. 

 And if that means

 as five year olds growing up again, then that’s fine."

 	"Oh, ChibiUsa-chan!" Hotaru stood up shakily on the bed, hugging the pink

 haired girl as tightly as she could. ChibiUsa’s arms wrapped around the 

 smaller girl,

 drawing her close. They stayed that way for a long time.

 	ChibiUsa finally spoke up, breaking the silence that had once again 

 enveloped

 the room. "It doesn’t matter to me what age you are, Taru-chan. It hasn’t 

 changed the fact

 that I still love you. With all my heart." She added with a slight smile, 

 "It was strange

 enough to find out I was in love with my best friend, let alone a girl at 

 that. Do you think

 this would change things?"

 	Hotaru’s head rested against ChibiUsa’s shoulder. She shook her head 

 slowly. "I

 was just scared. My body’s so different now. I’m a little girl. I’ll have to 

 wait to grow up

 all over again. I didn’t know what would happen with us. I know you’d still 

 love me, but

 I didn’t know if you’d leave for the future, when I’ll be older. Its got to 

 be hard having a

 girlfriend that’s ten years younger than you."

 	ChibiUsa winked at the dark haired girl. "I’ll manage. I’m not the one who 

 has

 to grow up again. Yet, at least. Think about it this way, though. You’ll be 

 able to

 understand the twins better."

 	Hotaru giggled softly. She sighed as she looked into ChibiUsa’s warm 

 crimson

 eyes. A small hand rested on ChibiUsa’s cheek. "Thank you, Odango-chan."

 	"I want you to be happy, my Firefly. I’ll help you through this. I 

 promise."

 ChibiUsa brushed her hand through Hotaru’s dark, raven hair. She hesitated 

 for just a

 second before kissing Hotaru.

 	Hotaru closed her eyes, pretending everything was back to normal, that

 everything was right with the world. Her heart sang out as she kissed the 

 pink haired girl

 back. "I love you," she said quietly as she rested her head on ChibiUsa’s 

 shoulder again.

 Shortly afterward, Hotaru fell asleep in the pink haired girl’s arms.

 

 

 	"I want to dream nice dreams..."

 	Beautiful eyelids fluttered open, casting butterfly shadows across pale 

 skin.  The

 figure seemed

 to clutch around her, praying for something to come into contact with those 

 long fingers.

 She

 sat upright, fabric spilling away from her frame like silk, coming to rest 

 near her waist.

 Nightclothes clung to her, and she reached one hand to peel them away.  The 

 other

 reached up to

 brush a wispy strand of green and brown hair from her face.

 	"I want to dream nice dreams..."

 She opened her eyes wider, as if astounded at the quiet whispering.  Green 

 eyes

 went wide, then

 narrowed, as if suspicious of where the voice had originated from.  Small 

 rosebud lips

 parted,

 then quietly said, "What?"

 	"I want to dream nice dreams..."

 	The whispering had become almost a pleading, and this small figure seemed 

 to almost

 jump from

 her bed.  She searched with trained eyes over her surroundings, padding 

 across the floor

 with

 bare feet almost noiselessly.  She turned at a small sobbing sound, long 

 braids with

 woven hair

 swinging, almost deadly.  When she saw the almost pathetic figure swinging 

 on a lone

 circus swing,

 her heart just about melted.

 	"I want to dream nice dreams..."

 	With barely an effort, the lean arms hoisted the figure up on the ladder.  

 With a

 cat-like grace

 she climbed up to meet this sobbing figure that had caused her to rouse from 

 a tormented

 sleep.

 She reached her, easing her out of the swing and onto the platform.  The 

 girl before her

 was

 clutching her knees, rocking back and forth, eyes glazed over and unseeing.  

 Her mouth

 was

 quivering, and so were the pale limbs of the body it was joined to.  

 Suddenly, her head

 shot

 upward, turning toward this tall figure who had taken her from her 

 sanctuary.  Blue eyes

 were

 questioning, quivering...but all she could utter from that perfect mouth 

 was...

 	"I want to dream nice dreams..." and she wrapped her arms around this 

 figure

 standing by her

 side, pulling her down.  "Oh, JunJun, I want to dream nice dreams..."

 	"I know," the savior said, wrapping thin arms around this petite 

 blue-haired

 child.  "I know,

 PallaPalla."  The embrace tightened.  "I do too.  We all do."

 	"Help me dream nice dreams, JunJun."  Oh, how those peircing blue eyes 

 could

 envelop all who

 stared them.  "Please..."

 	Baffled, she stared into the depths of blue, knowing she was trapped.  

 "I...I don't

 know how..."

 	"I know I could dreams nice dreams, JunJun..." she continued on, as if she 

 hadn't

 heard a word

 the other woman had said.  "If I had only one thing..."

 	"What's that?"  The words themselves seemed heavy...

 	"If I could just..." an embarrassed giggle.  "Have you."

 A long moment of silence followed.  The words seemed to hang in the air, 

 cling

 to every shred of

 dignity both girls possessed.  And the next noise was only a slight brushing 

 of lips upon

 lips,

 and the next a breathless gasp.

 	*Oh, if only we could dream nice dreams...*

 The joy of sweet kisses, one following the other - so precisely placed on 

 tender lips, as if

 purely made for mounting pleasure upon pleasure.

 

 	It was still dark when ChibiUsa woke up the next morning. But that wasn’t

 really a surprise. Even with all the lamps, Hotaru’s room seemed perpetually 

 dark. The

 pink haired girl didn’t mind. She found the room romantic. A long yawn 

 escaped her lips

 as she tried to sit up, but something seemed to be stopping her. She moved a 

 little at first,

 testing. Her arm brushed what felt like a leg, and someone was holding on to 

 her other

 arm. Looking down, she saw three young girls in the bed with her. For a 

 moment her

 mind froze, wondering what could be going on. Panic started to edge in on 

 her sleep

 blurred mind, but things slowly started coming back to her. These were her 

 daughters, her

 and Hotaru’s. They had come back from the future to spend some time with 

 them. They

 must have snuck into bed after she fell asleep.  But one of them was Hotaru. 

 That

 depressing thought woke her up fully. It took her a moment in the dim light 

 to pick out

 which was Hotaru, the dark haired girl holding tightly onto her arm. She 

 smiled softly,

 brushing back the girl’s raven hair before kissing her forehead.

 	After a long moment, ChibiUsa noticed her vision still wasn’t back to 

 normal,

 even for the dim room. Reaching up, she giggled a little when she pulled 

 away a note

 from her own forehead. In it, Setsuna told her she knew all about what 

 happened to

 Hotaru and that she had explained it to Haruka and Michiru. The Senshi of 

 Time told her

 not to worry, that she should have faith that it would work out. It also 

 mentioned that

 Haruka and Michiru had left for the day and that she was going to have 

 breakfast at

 Seiya’s, so ChibiUsa should have fun watching the kids. For some reason, 

 ChibiUsa was

 sure the older Senshi had been laughing when she’d written that part.

 	Realizing just how hungry she was, ChibiUsa took great difficulty in 

 extricating

 herself from the bed. Finally free from the tangle of bodies, she looked 

 back at the bed,

 trying to make sure that no one woke up. She sighed contentedly as she 

 looked at what

 would one day be her family. Even the fact that Hotaru was a little girl 

 didn’t seem so

 bad after a good night sleep. And she did make a cute little girl.

 	The future princess yawned as she walked downstairs, padding along barefoot

 across the carpeted floor. She was wearing one of Hotaru’s nightgowns, she 

 noticed. Her

 mind raced with the possibilities of what may lay in the refrigerator, what 

 delicious

 breakfast could be in store for her. She smiled to herself, deciding to make 

 something for

 the twins and Hotaru while she was up. She paused at the foot of the stairs 

 when she

 heard the doorbell ring. The sudden noise in the still, quiet morning 

 shocked her. She

 stood still for a moment, waiting. Glad that it must have been nothing, she 

 turned to head

 to the kitchen just as it rang again. She sighed, but headed for the door. 

 So much for

 breakfast.

 	She stood in front of the door for a long moment, time seeming to freeze in

 place. A pit formed in her stomach, as if opening that door might change 

 everything.

 ‘That’s silly,’ she chided herself. Her hand nervously reached out for the 

 door knob,

 stopping at the cold metal. She swallowed nervously. Why was this getting to 

 her? It was

 probably just Setsuna or one of the others. The pink haired girl tried to 

 get a grip on the

 door knob, but her sweaty palm made it hard to turn it. Glancing back 

 towards the stairs,

 she wished Hotaru to be there with her for some reason. Well, other than the 

 fact that she

 -always- wanted Hotaru with her. She could hear the drizzling rain starting 

 to pick up as

 the knocking increased.

 	Steeling herself for whatever lay beyond the door, hoping her nervousness 

 was

 unfounded, ChibiUsa finally opened the door.

 

 

 To be continued in the next story. Ja! ^-^