-Author's note - It's been awhile. I should really be updating the other story, before I'm tarred and feathered. XD But I couldn't sleep, and this little whatever you want to call it was a by-product of that.
I don't own anything, except this cheeseburger, and you can't have that.
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"Can I get you anything dear?"
"Huh? Oh...no. No, I'm fine." Rei replied absently, her eyes flickering over the nurse for the briefest of moments. Blue scrubs. A beautiful bright blue. Funny how that particular shade caused such heart wrenching anguish.
A gentle sigh and soft rustle of fabric signaled the nurses' departure, and the raven haired woman found herself alone in the waiting room once more.
How long had she been here? Hours? Days? It really didn't matter anymore. Time always seemed to stop in this horrible washed out room, where there was no comfort to be found. She had almost grown accustomed to the sharp scent of disinfectants that hung in the air, and the quiet echoes of footsteps up and down the empty halls. A TV mounted on the wall in the far corner blathered on cheerfully, though it failed to capture her attention. This room never changed. She could swear that the magazines sprawled across the table nearby were the exact same ones that had been there over a month ago, when she had entered this room for the first time.
Had it really been over a month now? Could someone so full of energy and life sleep for that long? What would she look like now? Would her petite frame be even thinner? A living, breathing skeleton. Pale, grey. The same shade as these walls.
Rei shook her head violently. No. Best not let her mind take that route. Nothing at the end of that road but pain. She sagged down into the hard backed chair and tipped her head up, violet eyes scanning the blank tile ceiling overhead.
All of this felt so strange. Almost surreal. She felt old, older than she had in a long time. That was saying a lot, she mused. After all the near death experiences and flat out deaths, she had never felt this run down. It was like a sick joke. They could all come back from the dead, but they couldn't even come out of a coma?
God had a sick sense of humor.
'Minako. If only I had been a little faster.'
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"She's here every night?"
"Yeah. Poor thing. I think she's friends with the little blonde in 102. I never see her go in there though. She just sits in the waiting room, all night, every night. I've seen a large group of girls come in during the day shift almost every day, but this one comes alone."
"And she never says anything?"
"Nope."
"I wonder what happened. I know 102 is in the coma."
"They hauled the girl in here about a month ago, unconscious and bleeding real bad. She was hurt so bad, she had started to slip into cardiac arrest. The doctor put her into a 'controlled' coma to prevent further trauma, but the little thing has yet to come out of it."
"What would cause something like that?"
"No one is quite sure. They're thinking it has something to do with those random monster attacks you always see on TV."
"Huh. Where are those Sailor Soldiers when you need them?"
"Who knows? Well, come on. Time to do the rounds."
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"Do you ever sleep?" a gentle voice inquired, snapping the miko out of her dark musings.
Rei cracked a thin smile. "Bad joke."
"I'm sorry." Setsuna replied quietly, taking a seat beside her. "I didn't mean any harm."
"I know." the raven haired woman sighed tiredly, rubbing her eyes. "I'm starting to feel like I have sandpaper on the insides of my eyelids."
"I think that means you are in serious need of some rest." the time guardian pointed out, folding her hands in her lap.
"I think she's sleeping enough for all of us."
Setsuna smiled lightly. "So stubborn. They are very worried about you, you know."
"Are they? It was my fault."
Dark lips pursed together slightly. "Was it?"
Rei arched an eyebrow. "You're the all knowing, all seeing. You tell me."
"Hm."
The miko sighed out of frustration. "All knowing, all seeing, but never speaking."
Setsuna inclined her head slightly. "You should know the rules by now."
"All too well." Rei snapped.
The time guardian remained unfazed. "You've been through this enough times Rei. You know there are always risks."
"Of course there are risks. But they shouldn't be caused by teammates."
"Really?" Setsuna replied calmly. "I remember watching this little dark haired girl throw herself in front of everything the universe could hurl at her, all for the sake of one of her teammates."
"That's different. Protecting Usagi is my duty. Our duty."
"Is that the only reason you do it?" the older woman questioned.
"Of course not. We all care about Usagi. We all love her. It's just something I do, without thinking."
The time guardian nodded. "And how many times did Usagi blame herself every time something happened to one of us?"
Rei squeezed her eyes shut. She could see exactly where this was going. Wonderful.
"Was it ever her fault?" Setsuna asked.
"No. And I would never let her think that."
"Would Minako want you thinking all of this was your fault?"
Rei swallowed hard. "No."
Setsuna rose to her feet. "They say that even in the deepest of sleeps, loved ones can hear you."
The fire soldier crossed her arms. "They also say that time heals all wounds."
The older woman smiled. "I think I know a thing or two about time. Some wounds need more than that."
The raven haired girl sighed deeply. "Alright. Alright. I get it."
"You're here all the time anyway." Setsuna replied with a slight nod. "Might as well see her. I bet she misses you."
Rei stood up slowly, her knees popping in protest. 'Not as much as I miss her.'
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The first thing she noticed was the unmistakable smell of death that permeated the air. It was almost suffocating, and it took everything she had in her not to bolt from the door, from the room, from the grim reminder that not everything was as it should be.
Minako lay still on the bed before her, in the darkened room, the only light coming from the soft glow of the heart monitor beside her.
Rei choked back the hard knot that had formed in her throat, and willed away the unwanted tears that sprang to her eyes. She just couldn't cry anymore. It hurt. God, why did everything have to hurt ?
'This is love. Watching someone die.'
Those beautiful cerulean eyes that had stolen the fire soldier's heart from the very first day they had met remained closed, and the honey golden locks that Rei had always wanted to run her fingers through lay limp and lifeless across the pillow.
The tears came now, unbidden, and refused to be drawn back. So much time, lost. She had been so scared to admit her feelings to the blonde, and now she feared it would be too late. Memories sprang forward, looping over and over, sucking what felt like her very soul from her chest.
Why? They were all so young. Did it ever stop?
She knew the answer to that.
Minako was so pale and thin, just the way Rei had pictured. The beautiful lips she had imagined capturing with her own day after day were dry, and cracked. With shaky hands, the fire soldier picked up a glass of water off the bedside table, and soaked the small sponge that lay beside it. She leaned over the blonde, and gently dabbed the sponge over her lips.
"Better?" Rei asked in a raspy voice she barely recognized as her own.
She replaced the glass and sponge, and stood over Minako, unsure of just what to do. She was pretty sure that if she could just stop crying, it wouldn't be so hard to think.
"How are you feeling?"
She was answered by the quiet blip of the automatic blood pressure cuff as it cut through the heavy silence. Her head dropped, and she stared at the toes of her shoes through clouded eyes. What was the point? Nothing she could do could fix this, and nothing could change it. She was powerless here, and that scared her more than anything.
"Maybe Setsuna was wrong." Rei said quietly. "I don't know how to do this. I don't even know what to say."
Silence.
"Dummy." she choked out. "You're such a dummy. Why did you have to do that? That shot was meant for me. If you had just let me take it..."
'Then you would be watching me die. But that's love, right?'
Violet eyes widened. Wait. Wait. Is this what Setsuna had been trying to get at? Loving somebody meant taking risks, doing things without thinking, just as Minako had when she had shoved Rei out of the way and had taken that energy beam straight through her chest.
Pieces began to fit together. Fragments of memories flittered through her mind once more.
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"So, are you ever going to go out with Yuuichirou?" Minako asked with a grin, leaning back against the trunk of the tree she and Rei had taken cover under. The rain had sprung up on them quickly, and showed absolutely no signs of stopping.
"God no. He's obnoxious." Rei growled, running her fingers through her very damp hair.
"But he loves you." the blonde chirped playfully, batting her eyes.
"He'll just have to get over it." the raven haired girl muttered darkly.
Minako's eyes wandered out to the torrential downpour and her features slipped into a thoughtful gaze. "Unrequited love, huh?"
"What makes you such the expert?" Rei grumbled.
The blonde burst into a bright smile, and the miko felt her heart flip flop.
"Because Pyro. I am the Goddess of Love."
"Yeah. Right." Rei scoffed. "That's why you're still single."
Minako feigned a look of complete heartbreak, and shoved Rei out into the rain. "That ought to cool you off. So bitter!"
"I am not bitter."
"You are!"
"Why would I be?" the raven haired woman asked dejectedly. There was no point in even trying to take cover now. She was soaked head to toe, and it was cold.
"Because. You have an unrequited love too." the blonde announced cheerily from her spot under the tree. "The course of true love is littered with sharp, pointy rocks."
Rei grinned despite the chill running through her body. "I thought it was, the course of true love never runs smooth?"
"Same difference. But you didn't deny it."
"Oh whatever." Rei growled. "But I'm not suffering alone."
"Huh?"
The fire soldier marched over to where Minako had perched herself, and easily threw the blonde over her shoulder, despite her giggling protests. With the self proclaimed goddess in tow, she walked back out into the rain and set the girl down.
"That wasn't very nice." Minako sputtered, trying in vain to push soaked bangs out of her eyes.
"You started this."
"You really are bitter."
"Everyone has something they don't want anyone else to touch." Rei replied quietly. Minako had to strain her hearing to catch it over the din of the downpour. "Besides." she continued. "You sound like you speak from experience. So maybe I'm not the only one that's bitter."
"Maybe." the blonde replied thoughtfully. "But you are cold."
"Eh?"
"You're shivering." Minako said, wrapping her arms around the taller girl.
Rei felt a hot blush rise to her cheeks, and it took all her will power to stomp it down before the blonde noticed.
"Someday they'll notice. They have to." Minako said softly. "No one is that slow."
"Is that a fact?" Rei questioned sadly.
"Yeah." the blonde answered with a gentle smile, pushing herself up onto her toes slightly to kiss the raven haired girl's cheek. "I know it."
Before Rei could even process what had happened, Minako squirmed out of her arms and began to run back towards the direction of the shrine. "Come on Pyro! It's COLD!"
"...huh?" the fire soldier replied dumbly. Her face burned, and she could guarantee that all the blood in her body now resided in her cheeks.
Minako let out a frustrated sigh, and turned back, grabbing a hold of her hand and lacing their fingers together. "Come on dummy. You're going to get sick." she said with a light grin, tugging Rei's hand.
"As long as you promise not to help me when I do." Rei muttered darkly.
"HEY!!!"
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"Minako." Rei whispered into the still room. "I never noticed. God, I never noticed."
More deathly silence.
"I'm so sorry Minako. I'm sorry." she choked weakly, tears blinding her. "But I'm here now. And I'm not going to give up. You can't give up either. Please. Just open your eyes. "
Nothing.
"We'll go anywhere. Anywhere you want. We'll never come back here. Just..."
No comfort here.
She took the blonde's hand in her own, and squeezed it gently. Warmth. She wasn't dead. And Minako wasn't going to die while she was there, the miko decided. "I'll be strong, for both of us, until you're awake."
She swallowed thickly, and brushed her tears away with her free hand. "I'll tell you how I feel then."
The hand Rei was holding flexed slightly in her grasp, and squeezed back.
'Can hope be considered comfort?'
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Note - Well. That was uplifting.