Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters or songs in this story. The characters all belong to Takeuchi Naoko, while the songs are traditional. - Raya

As I Lay Me Down to Sleep

For my beloved goddaughter aka Sailor Star. Happy Birthday!

ChibiUsa lay in her bed with her eyes closed and tried to seem relaxed. 'Happy birthday to me.' She sighed softly as the words rolled through her head. She tried not to cry as she realized that this was her first birthday away from home. 'It wasn't too bad,' she thought with a fleeting smile. The older girls had thrown her and Usagi a surprise party, and even though they were all older than her, it had been fun.

But now, in the dark of the night, it came again. She fought it half heartedly, but the homesickness settled down like a blanket. She cracked her eyes open, just a bit, and looked at the moonlight spilling across her floor. 'Maybe she won't come tonight...' she thought sadly.

She shifted, drew the light blanket up over herself, and shut her eyes firmly. But the worry would not go away. 'Will she come...?'

Usagi stared at the television, enraptured by the movie. It was her birthday, and she had been allowed to stay up late as a special treat. Her parents had told ChibiUsa she could stay up as well, as it was her birthday, too, and not a school night, but the little girl had given Usagi a strange look, and then politely declined. She had said that she was tired, but Usagi was sure that that was not the real reason. Sometimes, even the brat could be nice.

Usagi had begged her parents to watch Morning Star with her. It was a very popular romance movie, set in a fairy tale world. Her mother had agreed eagerly, since she wanted to watch it, too, but her father had taken some more convincing. He was a sucker for intelligent romances, though, and this was one of those as well. He had been drawn in by the end of the opening act.

Suddenly, Usagi started. Her eyes flew to the clock. She relaxed as she realized that it was only 11:45, and turned her attention back to the movie. She could not seem to focus on it again, though. She looked at the clock every few minutes, and began to get tense.

'It's not fair,' she thought to herself as she tried to concentrate on the movie once more. 'I want to watch the movie! It's my birthday, too!'

She could not sit still, however. As much as she wanted to watch the movie, she knew there was something else that she wanted to do even more. Slowly, she stood and stretched. "Thank you, Mama. Thank you, Papa," she said with a smile as she bent over and gave them each a hug. They looked up at her in surprise. "I'm so tired I can't concentrate on the movie, though. Guess I'll go to bed," she said with a yawn. "Good night!"

"Good night, honey," her mother answered.

"Are you sure, Usagi?" her father asked as he turned back to the television. "We're right in the middle of the best part! It won't be much longer."

Usagi grimaced, and then smiled again. "I know. But I really need to get to bed before I fall asleep on the couch. Shingo-kun and ChibiUsa-chan would play some kind of trick on me tomorrow morning if I did."

Her parents smiled, and then her father shrugged. "Okay, if you are sure. Sleep well, sweetheart."

Usagi smiled again, and then turned away to climb the stairs to her room. Her smile faded as she climbed. 'It would only be a few more minutes. What would a few minutes hurt?' she thought irritably.

She shook the thought off as she opened the door to her room. All she had to do was remember that one night. She had been late because of an attack, and the tear tracks she had seen on ChibiUsa's sleeping face still wrenched at her heart all these months later. She had washed them off gently, trying not to wake the little girl. But, she could never let them stay. They would cause too much pain.

Usagi quietly crossed the room and pulled the covers down on her bed. Luna, who had been curled up on the foot of the bed, lifted her head sleepily. "Usagi?" she yawned. "Is the movie over already?"

Usagi nodded and smiled as she reached out and rubbed her cat's head. "Yes, Luna. Go back to sleep." Luna blinked as Usagi climbed into bed, and then jumped and looked at the clock. 11:59. "Good night, Luna," Usagi said softly as she closed her eyes.

'Liar,' Luna thought with a smile. 'The movie goes until 12:30.' But all she said was "Good night, Usagi-chan," as she quickly settled back down.

"I was wondering how long she would last," Kenji said softly as he watched his daughter climb the stairs. "She hasn't missed a night in over a year."

"If only she were that good about other things, like getting to school on time," Ikuko said with a wry smile. They shared an amused glance, and then turned back to watch the end of the movie.

A soft silver glow surrounded Usagi as she lay in her bed, apparently asleep. On her forehead, her golden crescent moon began to appear. Slowly, her eyes opened, and she sat up. She looked around cautiously, and slowly got out of bed. Moving with more grace than usual, she walked across the floor and peeked out of her door. Seeing no one around, she left her room, and began to climb the stairs to ChibiUsa's room.

'She's not coming,' the little princess from the future sighed to herself. She relaxed and let a few of her tears trickle down her cheeks. A soft noise from the hallway made her stiffen, and then quickly wipe them away. She had just stopped moving and relaxed when her door creaked open.

Usagi walked softly over to ChibiUsa's bed, and stopped to stare down at her with sad, yet happy eyes. A soft smile grew on her face as she saw how messed up the little girl's sheets were. Gently, she leaned over and straightened them, tucking the princess in for the night.

Even more gently, she ran her finger's over the girl's forehead and ruffled her bangs. She sank onto the edge of the bed and watched ChibiUsa for a moment. "Soon..." she said very softly. "Soon, you won't need me to tuck you in anymore. You are growing up so fast, my Small Lady." Tears gathered in Usagi's blue eyes, but she smiled proudly. "You are growing up so fast. Soon, you will no longer be Small Lady, but Princess Lady. But you will always be Small Lady to me. My own sweet little princess, Small Lady."

Softly, she reached out and touched ChibiUsa's soft pink hair. As she stroked it, she began to sing very quietly, so as not to disturb the little girl. "Sakura... Sakura... No yama mo sato mo... Miwatasu kagiri... Kasumi ka kumo ka... asahi ni niou... Sakura... Sakura... Hanazakari..." As she finished that song, she softly began to hum a much older, Lunarian lullaby. With quiet contentment, she stroked her little girl's hair and hummed.

Finally, however, she reached the end of her song. With a soft sigh, she stood up. She bent over the little girl with a sad look, and kissed her forehead. "Sleep well, little princess. Sleep well, grow strong, and hurry home soon. Your Mama and your Papa miss you very much. Happy birthday, Small Lady! Good night!" Her sad look was replaced by a smile as she saw the happy smile on her daughter's face. "Happy Birthday..."

Quietly, she left the room and closed the door. As she heard the latch click, ChibiUsa whispered quietly into the night. "Thank you, Mama. I love you, too!" And then, content at last and safely tucked in for the night, she drifted off into sweet dreams.

Usagi came awake with a start, and frowned when she realized how cold her feet were. Sleepily, she shuffled them until they were pressed against Luna's warmth. The cat protested sleepily at being disturbed, but quickly settled back down.

'Next time, I'll have to remember to leave slippers out for her,' Usagi thought groggily. She frowned. 'Or would that give away that I know...' Still puzzling over how to let her future self keep her secret and yet still have warm feet, Usagi fell back to sleep.

A/N: Sakura Sakura

Sakura... Sakura...

On the mountains and in the village...

As far as you can see...

They look like fog or like clouds...

Fragrant in the morning sun...

Sakura... Sakura...

In full bloom.

Adaptation of translation by TabbyCat.