A/N: Hello again everyone! I've kind of put my story The Heart of Crystal Tokyo on the backburner for right now; I've got a bit of writer's block. I could put out another short installment but I think it just wouldn't be going anywhere. If anyone has any ideas, please feel free to email me. I could use the help.
Also, here's a new story! I was brainstorming at work, and after reading Sword-chan's "Subject to Change" (which is excellent and you should go read it plugplugplug) I decided to write something with maybe a little bit of comedy. In any case, please review and let me know what you think. If everyone likes it, I'll write another part to the plane flight, and a chapter for each day on the trip. Thanks a lot everyone!
Disclaimer: If I owned Sailor Moon, I'd put it on the stock market at 2 cents a share so everyone could own a little piece of it.
Chapter 1: The Plane, part 1
Usagi stood in front of her mirror, carefully smoothing out the pleated skirt of her summer uniform. A smile drew itself tentatively across her face, which then promptly broke into a grin. No longer able to hold her composure, she twirled around, giggling as her skirt pooled out around her. Luna rolled her eyes from the comfort of Usagi's bed.
"You know, you really shouldn't go. What if youmas just swarm Tokyo and there's nobody here to save all the people?" Usagi turned around and stuck her tongue out at the cat. Luna promptly sighed and tried to look aggravated, which almost worked for her.
"Relax, Luna. There hasn't been any activity in weeks. Besides, there's police and stuff. And when am I ever going to get another opportunity like this? You're the one who's always saying I need to 'enrich myself'. Can't you be happy for me for once?" She grinned and twirled around again, admiring herself in the stand-up mirror, and Luna sighed again.
"I guess you might be right this time, Usagi-chan. I just wish that all of you weren't going. It's so…unnerving." Usagi smiled at her fondly.
"Don't worry too much. We'll all come back in one piece." She blinked. "Er, more like five pieces, I guess. It'd be pretty weird if we came back all smooshed together." Luna rolled her eyes again. She was getting too good at that. "Anyways, I'm just glad that everyone gets to come. This 'Taste of Culture' program is great." Luna shrugged.
"I guess it's good that they're trying to do things like this, and that they're including lots of schools." She paused for a moment, and then narrowed her eyes at Usagi. "Wait a minute, how on Earth did you manage to weasel your way into the program anyways? I thought it was for the academically and artistically gifted, neither of which you can claim."
"O ye of little faith, have ye not any hope for my abilities?" Her attempt at nobility was failing. Badly. Even Luna looked skeptical, which one would this would be difficult for a cat. "Ok fine, I just get to go because Mrs. Haruna is on the committee's board. I think I'm one of her favorite students!" She beamed.
"Or she's sick of seeing you in detention every day," Luna muttered.
"What was that?"
"Oh nothing."
Smiling up toward the moon, Usagi knew that even Luna couldn't get her down tonight, because tomorrow she'd be on a plane with her best friends, and headed toward a week-long trip in America.
The babble of the airport was a welcome sound to Usagi's ears. Her heart was pounding with anticipation. She had never left Japan before, and it was even with her best friends. She grinned and waved to Minako, who was standing with her classmates. She waved back, her enthusiasm evident as she managed to accidentally clobber one of her fellow classmates with a stray elbow. Usagi burst out laughing as her poor friend bowed and apologized to the unfortunate guy. Mina probably didn't even realize how gaga the guy was over her anyways.
A sudden tug on her sleeve brought her back to reality. Ami was urging her toward the plane entrance as the last few of their classmates disappeared for boarding. She shrieked , bolted towards the boarding counter, screeched to a halt, raced back towards a stunned Ami, picked up her bag, ran back toward the counter, somehow managed to throw the necessary documents to the lady at the counter and get them back, and raced into the boarding tunnel.
Ami just shook her head and walked toward the counter. It was amazing that girl hadn't gone out for the Olympics yet.
Usagi sat in her seat, huffing and puffing. Not only had she had to sit in the last row reserved for her class, but she'd had to fight to get her carry-on bag into the overhead compartment and dodge the bags that were already stuffed in there as they tried to split her open. Ami smiled at her as she scooted by and slid into the window seat.
"Thanks for taking the window seat Ami-chan. I would get so sick looking out that window. She puffed out her cheeks and crossed her eyes, and Ami laughed.
"Why didn't you just sit in the aisle seat?"
"Well, since this is the last row for out school, another school's seats apparently start with that one. At least, that's what the stewardess said when she kicked me out of that seat." Ami smiled, not bothering to correct her about the stewardess thing.
"Who knows, maybe Lita's or Mina's school will be sitting behind us and one of them will get to sit with us." Usagi grinned happily. Ami returned a wicked grin, which was rather unsettling coming from her. "Or maybe Rei will get to sit next to you, for the whole flight." Usagi's face paled, and Ami burst into giggles.
"That's not funny! A sixteen hour flight next to her would be torture. She's always so mean to me."
"I'm sorry Usagi-chan, but your face as priceless. You looked like a ghost!"
"It still wasn't funny!"
"I'm sorry, I just couldn't resist. This trip will be so great! Besides, it'll probably just be a stranger who sits there." Ami stopped, her mouth half-open. Usagi was about to ask what was wrong when she heard a man's voice come from behind her.
"Pardon me ladies, but is this seat…Odango?"
The world turned a foreboding shade of gray, and Usagi felt her heart fall into the deepest bowels of her stomach. All laughter and merriment faded, only to be replaced with cold dread. The very air seemed to still around her. Her heart stopped. Her eyes grew wide. Her lungs seized up. The seatbelt light came on.
(Insert melodramatic phrase here.)
"Why, I didn't know they let mental patients ride airplanes." With an audible groan, Usagi slowly turned her head, just in time to see a very attractive young man with raven hair taking the seat next to her. She squealed and leapt back as far as she could, squishing Ami against the wall.
"You can't sit there! That seat is reserved for someone!" Mamoru quirked an eyebrow at her.
"Oh? And who would that be, your trainer?" He grinned and Usagi's eyes flashed.
"You're the one to talk, monkey-brains!"
"Ooh, good one Odango. I almost got a chill from that one." Ami was making small noises of protest from underneath Usagi. Usagi raised her hand and opened her mouth to reply when a voice came over the intercom.
"Uhhhh…folks, this is uhhh….your captain speaking…we're about to take off….uhhh…please keep your seatbelts fastened…and uhhh….enjoy your flight." (A/N: Don't you hate it when pilots do that? It bugs the crap out of me.) As the flight attendants began the flight safety tango in the front and middle of the plane, another came up to where Usagi, Mamoru, and a bluer-than-usual Ami were.
"Excuse me miss," she said in that disgustingly polite and unflappable tone to Usagi, "please sit in your seat and buckle your seatbelt before we take off."
"Wait, you have to re-seat this guy!" As the attendant walked away, Usagi practically climbed over Mamoru to get to her. Ami, now that she could, breathed a sigh of relief. However Mamoru seemed quite dismayed at the blonde that was now more than half in his lap and pressing herself against him. The attendant turned briefly before walking to the back of the plane.
"Please have a seat miss, as we will be taking off shortly."
"Please! You don't understand! He…he's rabid!" But her cries fell on deaf ears. She had a sudden revelation which made her eyes grow wide and her heart leap up into her throat. She looked down into the deep blue eyes of the man beneath her. Her lip quivered, and for a moment the two of them looked almost like lovers about to share the most tender of kisses. Then an ear-shattering shriek echoed throughout the cabin, as did a resounding thump as she managed to jump from his lap to her seat without using her feet or her hands.
"Gee Odango, I didn't know you felt that way." Mamoru sounded a little shaken, but Usagi didn't really notice as she herself was a little busy shaking. She tried to breathe slowly, but her heart wouldn't calm down.
Had she really just been in his lap? She couldn't believe it. Though she had always felt some attraction to him, he'd always picked on her and been mean to her all the time. She never thought she'd end up…well, sitting on top of him. And those beautiful eyes had been filled with…something, as she looked down at him. Wait a minute, beautiful eyes? Where on Earth is this going? This guy is a total creep, I have to sit next to him for sixteen hours, and I'm already going stir-crazy. The close confinement is affecting my brain. If I don't get off this plane soon, I might have to commit murder. How long was that flight again?
