Chapter One: Meeting Again For The First Time
"Whoa," said a youth dressed in the dark gray boys' uniform of Juuban High. "What a babe!"
"No kidding," his friend said, letting out a low wolf whistle. Now, that's my kind of girl!"
"Girl?" the first boy said. "That, my friend, ain't no girl but a fine specimen of a woman. Man, what I wouldn't give to have her star in my dreams!"
The woman in question walked by, oblivious to the stir she was causing among the male population as she passed them. She was very petite, no taller then 5'2", with a slender and curvaceous form that was shown off to its best advantage by the white shorts and red tank top that she was wore. Her hair was the color of gold and was done up in a rather unusual style, two buns at each side of her head with hair flowing down each bun like a waterfall of sunlight. She had a faint tan, an indication that she had been spending her time outside enjoying the warm and sunny weather, that they had been experiencing recently. Her lips were the kind that seemed to be stuck in the perpetual pout that drove men wild. Her eyes were the color of the waters surrounding one of the islands in the tropics. Eyes that could never quite conceal the calm wisdom in their gaze, that made most people uneasy since young people usually didn't attain that look until much later in life.
But at the moment those cerulean blue eyes contained more annoyance then wisdom as the woman glared at a pink slip of paper in her hand.
"That bastard," she fumed aloud. "Damn perverted geezer! Firing me just because I wouldn't let him grope my ass!"
She crumpled the paper in her hand with vehemence.
"Like I actually believe this crap about me being lazy and not working," she cried. "I may be a lot of things, but Tsukino Usagi is no slacker, you fat, balding, old ecchi!"
Usagi plopped down on the empty bench near the bus stop. She sighed and bounced the crumpled paper ball on the palm of her hand, still raging inside over the injustice she had suffered that day. A few minutes later she looked up to see the bus approaching from down the street. Letting out another sigh, she tossed the paper ball over her shoulder where she knew a trash can stood a few feet away.
"Ow, that hurt! You meatball head," a male voice said from behind her.
Blue fire burned in her eyes, as she stood up and slowly turned around to face the person who had insulted her. She knew she was at fault for hitting the guy, although it was an accident, but he didn't have to be rude and make fun of her hairstyle! Besides she was already in a bad mood and was itching for a fight.
But as soon as she saw her adversary, some of the fire in her left. Or to be more accurate, the fire of anger was replaced by another fire, the fire of pure and unadulterated lust because she was staring at a 6'0" muscled Greek sex god. The white button up shirt he wore, couldn't hide his muscled abs which Usagi was almost 100 certain was an 8-pack, and it was a physical effort to resist the urge to press her hands against his chest and feel for herself if she was right. Her gaze wandered up and she noted that his hair was jet black, the black of a night sky you saw whenever you were out in the country away from all the city lights and the moon and stars were hidden from sight. His face was sculpted with sharp angles that gave him a rugged masculinity that she had always found attractive in a man. And his eyes were a dark blue, the type of eyes a woman would willing let herself drown in.
If the possessor of those eyes weren't staring at her with an amused and knowing expression. Usagi's cheeks flushed red with embarrassment as she realized that he knew she had been openly checking him out. She broke eye contact and glanced to see where the bus was at.
"Fired eh," she heard the man say, causing her to look back at him. Her eyes widened in horror, as she saw him staring down at the now uncrumpled paper.
"How rude," Usagi cried, snatching the paper back. "How dare you read that? It's none of your business!"
"It became my business when you threw at me," he retorted.
"I was throwing it into the trash can, not at you, baka," she cried.
"Pretty sure of your aim, eh, Meatball Head," he asked, arching an eyebrow.
"They're buns, not meatballs," she retorted, the steam practically rising from her ears. The guy may have been gorgeous and the cause of her heart going pitter patter, but that didn't mean she was going to put up with his insults!
"Buns eh?" he said. "Then I guess I'll call you Odango Atama from now on."
"Who says I'll ever run into you again," she countered. And then although it was quite childish on her part, she stuck her tongue at him and got on the bus as soon as it pulled up and opened its' doors.
After paying the toll, she took a seat at the back and stared at the window as the bus pulled out back into traffic and passed the handsome stranger, who was watching the bus go with an amused expression, although she noted that there was something else in his expression that she couldn't quite put her finger on.
Stretching her legs out in front of her, Usagi firmly placed the man out of her mind and focused on her current situation. She thought about going to visit her mother to discuss what had happened, but dismissed the idea when she remembered her father would be home. She loved him, but they had stopped seeing eye to eye since the moment she hit puberty. At first it had been little things, but as she grew older, the battles between father and daughter became explosive.
The last time she had willingly spoken to her father was four years ago when she was seventeen. Since the beginning of high school, she had been a part of the manga drawing club and had quickly gained recognition after winning a few contests. Considering her talent and her love for manga, Usagi had decided that she wouldn't go to college and instead become a manga-ka. Boy had her father been pissed off when she had told him that.
Tsukino Kenji had raged at his daughter, demanding that she forget her foolish nonsense and grow up. She would end up in the gutter if she followed those silly dreams, he had told her. But Usagi has stuck to her guns. She was going to become a manga-ka and that was that. So her father, despite her mother's pleading, had kicked her out of the house, saying that she would only allowed to come back when she had finally came to her senses. He had figured that it would only take a few days before she bowed to his wishes and came running home since Usagi had very few friends, which was due to the fact that most of her classmates were a bit frightened of her because of her strange worldly eyes.
But Kenji had forgotten how stubborn Usagi could be. Without protest, she had gone upstairs to her room and packed her things into a duffle bag and without a second glance at her father, walked out the door. She had gone straight to the Crown Game Center to collect her thoughts and come up with a plan of action. It was there that Usagi's luck started to change for the better.
Furuhata Motoki was the son of the owner of the arcade (he was now the owner, now that his father had retired) and one of the few people that hadn't been scared off by Usagi's eyes, which was why they had been able to develop such a close friendship. Motoki being a sensitive and kind man had noticed as soon as Usagi had walked in that something was wrong (of course, the huge duffle bag that she had lugged in with her could have been a clue). After a few minutes of probing and bribing her with a chocolate milkshake, he had gotten the whole story out of her.
Motoki had then turned into her knight in shining armor when he offered her a part-time job at the arcade which she accepted with great enthusiasm. And as if things couldn't get any better, Osaka Naru, who was a classmate from school became her fairy godmother. Naru who had been hanging out at the arcade with her boyfriend, Gurio Umino, had overhead Usagi and Motoki talking and told Usagi that she knew of an apartment that the landlady would let her rent cheaply.
It turned out the landlady was Naru's mother, Osaka Mayumi. Osaka-san was a jewelry designer who owned a store called Osa-P. Above the store, were two apartments, one which she shared with Naru and the other which she rented out to teens like Usagi who got kicked out of their homes for wanting to follow their dreams. Usagi found out later from Naru, that Osaka-san had had the same problem with her own parents (her dream was to marry Naru's father who had been a poor guy on the wrong side of the tracks), which was why she was quite sensitive to the plight of others.
Even though she had a cheap place to live and her part-time job at the arcade, it was still hard for Usagi to make ends meet, especially since she had to pay her school fees herself. Which was why she had taken a job of waking up at ungodly hours to deliver the morning paper. The only plus that the job had had besides the much needed cash was that she never arrived to school late again, which nearly gave Haruna-sensai a heart attack the first time it happened.
Those first few years on her own hadn't been easy ones, but she had survived. And in the process she had not only developed close friendships with Naru and her mother, but she had fulfilled her dream. Not that her father knew that since none of her manga had been published under her own name. Usagi had always been a person who valued her privacy and she knew that once she obtained her dream, she would lose a huge chunk of her privacy due to fame. Sure she wasn't a movie star, but even manga-ka were harassed by their fanbase at times, especially a young woman like herself who was reasonably attractive. Knowing this, she had gotten Umino to be her go between her and her publisher and had gone by the name, Mitsuki, which she found fitting since it meant 'full moon' and her surname meant 'moon.' Her first manga had been published when she was nineteen and had been a great success that had helped to ensure her place in the industry.
The job she had been fired from today was the position of assistant editor at Cutey Comics. She had only taken the job so she could understand the inner workings of a manga publishing company so she could one day start her own. But she would have never applied for the job if she had known what a lech her ex-boss was!
Looking up, she noticed that the bus was approaching Juubangai, which was her stop. Usagi pushed the thoughts of past out of her mind as she got off the bus and walked towards the towering glass and concrete apartment building where she lived.
The sliding doors parted, and Usagi entered her apartment building, nodding a greeting to Tanaka-san, the kindly old daytime security guard for the building. She stopped by the rows of mailboxes and pulled her keys out of pocket. Selecting the smallest key she inserted it into the box labeled #777 and unlocked it. Inside was a folded piece of paper with a red butterfly sticker sealing it shut.
Usagi smiled as she opened the paper. She knew only one person who used red butterfly buttons in her personal letters and notes and that was Furuhata Reika. The note said:
Usagi-chan,
I know it's last minute, but please pick up Akira from his school and watch him. I'm soooo sorry to have to drop this on you, but Takahashi-san has called a faculty meeting this afternoon. I swear that man thinks that none of us have lives outside of work. Anyways, Motoki will pick up Akira around seven.
Reika
P.S. Akira's has started to refuse to eat his veggies lately. Could you please try to convince him to eat some tonight?
Usagi shook her head in amusement as she locked her mailbox and put her keys and note in her pocket. Glancing at the slender silver watch on her left wrist, she saw that she had little over then half an hour before Akira got out of school. Enough time for her to go upstairs and take care of few things before picking him up. She headed towards the elevator and hit the up button.
After a few minutes a ding sound filled the air as the elevator doors opened. She stepped in and pressed the button for the seventh floor. With a sigh, she leaned against the elevator walls and closed her eyes. Her eyes opened again as the elevator dinged again and the doors slid open. Usagi walked down the hall to her apartment, pulling out her keys again. She opened the door to her home and stepped inside, closing the door behind.
"Meow?"
Usagi turned around and smiled down at her cat, Luna. Bending down, she scratched behind the cat's ears and giggled as Luna purred in delight.
"Hey Luna," Usagi said, straightening up and locking the front door. "I'll get your lunch in a sec."
Slipping off her shoes, she walked down the hallway and into her kitchen/dining room. The floors of the room were covered with pale blue and white tiles that were placed in a checker board fashion. The walls were painted eggshell white and had several anime wall scrolls strategically placed in the room to be pleasing to the eyes and add color to the room. In one side of the room stood a mahogany breakfast table and two matching chairs that had white seat cushions placed on them. The kitchen cabinets were made out of mahogany and standing on a corner counter was one of her most precious possessions, the cappuccino machine. During the years that she had been delivering morning papers, Usagi had developed a liking to coffee since it helped to wake up her sleep-fogged mind and it really didn't taste that bad as long as she put in enough sugar and milk.
Usagi opened one of the cabinets and pulled out a can of Fancy Feast tuna, Luna's favorite flavor. She had adopted Luna, shortly after getting kicked out the house, although it hadn't been an intentional choice to do so.
One day while going to school, she had caught some kids picking on Luna and had chased off the little miserable brats who had not only picked on poor defenseless creatures, but had the nerve to call her an old hag. Luna had had a Sailor V band-aid plastered on to her forehead, which the cat had gone crazy trying to remove it herself. Usagi assisted the cat in the removing of the band-aid and found out that this wasn't your average every day black cat. Under the band-aid, she had discovered that Luna had a golden crescent moon on her forehead. For a second after removing the band-aid, the crescent moon had seemed to glow and she had gotten the distinct feeling that she wasn't remembering something... something important that she needed to remember.
But the feeling had faded so Usagi had scratched Luna's ears and gone to school. When she had gotten out of school for the day, she had headed over to work at the arcade and was surprised to find Luna following her. The look in Luna's ruby red eyes had been Usagi's undoing. Even though she really didn't have the money to spare to spend on a pet, she had adopted Luna anyway. And despite her friends' assumptions that she had named Luna because of the crescent moon on her forehead, that wasn't why she had named the cat that, even though it was appropriate. Some inner voice inside of her had told her to name the cat Luna, that is was the right name.
Usagi pulled out the can opener from cooking utensils drawer and opened the cat food can. Using the spoon, she dished out the contents into a clean cat food bowl and placed the food on the floor, next to Luna's water bowl. Luna rubbed against her legs and purred her thanks.
"You're welcome," Usagi said, smiling. She exited the kitchen and entered the living room and sat down on the dark blue love seat. She looked beside her at the lamp table beside her and smiled as she looked at the picture that was sitting in a gold frame. The picture showed her and little Akira riding the chuu-chuu train at Dream Land.
Furuhata Akira was an adorable and sweet-tempered four year old boy that looked like a miniature version of his father. Since being a manga-ka allowed her to work at home, Usagi often found herself baby-sitting him, not that she minded. She loved Akira to death and she owed Motoki and Reika so much for being there for her over the years. Besides, it was neither Motoki nor Reika's fault that they had such hectic schedules.
Motoki had achieved his dream of being a doctor, a pediatrician to be exact. He hadn't planned on going into pediatrics, but all the years of working in arcade had instilled him a love for children, which shined through with the care he took with his young patients and the love he showed his own son. When he wasn't working at the hospital, Motoki often put in some time at supervising his employees at the arcade. Their family restaurant, the Crown Fruit Parlor had been passed on to Motoki's younger sister, Unazuki.
As for Reika, she had a doctorate in entomology and was teaching at K.O. University. Before Akira's birth, Reika would often lead 3-week student digs in some obscure part of the world, but she no longer did that since her son was her number one priority in her life besides her husband.
"Meow?"
Usagi looked down beside her see Luna, looking up at her expectantly.
"Finished already," she asked. "In that case, I'll go get my stuff and we'll pick up Akira-chan together."
Usagi stood up and went into her bedroom. The walls of the room were painted a pale pink and the floor was covered with white carpeting, something she would never have gotten if she had still been stuck in her klutz phase. In one corner of the room, was her queen-sized canopy bed that she loved so much. Not only did love the fact that she have all that sleeping space, she also liked the fact that the sheer white curtains gave her the illusion of privacy from the world. The comforter was white and covered with gold crescent moons, a silent reminder of the one she used to have as a little girl.
A smirk appeared on her face as she thought of what was under the comforter. Cerulean blue silk sheets. She had always loved silk sheets and had always considered the ownership of them to be a secret and naughty thrill. Of course, that was really silly of her since silk sheets couldn't be counted naughty if all you did on them was sleep on them.
Usagi frowned as she headed over to her desk. It was kind of depressing to be a twenty-one year old virgin, especially a twenty-one year old virgin who hadn't even gotten to first base, let alone had a boyfriend. It wasn't like she hadn't gone on dates before. But none of the guys she had ever gone out with had ever made a move on her. Ever. It was like she had some invisible mark on her that only guys could see that said she was not to be touched.
She let out a loud sigh as she grabbed her shoulder bag and opened it. Then she opened her drawer and grabbed her sketchbook, pencils, and reliable old eraser and put them in the bag along with her keys and wallet.
"Well that's it," she said. She exited the room, stopping in the hallway to pick up Luna and place her in the bag. "Time to go and pick up Akira-chan."
Usagi sat on a bench in park, watching Akira play with some school friends in the playground a few feet away. She then pulled out her sketchbook and pencil, opening the sketchbook to a blank page.
"Keep an eye on Akira for me while I draw, okay Luna," Usagi said, knowing that she didn't have to ask the cat. The cat loved Akira as much as her mistress did. Whenever Usagi had baby-sat for Akira in the past, the cat would watch him too and if the little boy was in danger of being hurt when Usagi's attention was distracted, the cat would get the girl's attention so Usagi could save the day.
Opening up to a blank page, Usagi began to sketch. The first picture she drew was of little Gurio Keiko, the daughter of Naru and Umino. Keiko was now eighteen months old and a total sweetheart. She had taken after Naru in everything except eye color. Instead of having the forest green eyes of her mother, Keiko had inherited sky blue eyes from, of all people, her father.
Usagi remembered how surprised she had been when she had found out that Keiko had gotten her blue eyes from Umino. She had insisted that Umino take of those god-awful glasses and was stunned to see that not only was it the truth, that Umino was absolutely gorgeous without his glasses. She now understood why Naru had never insisted that Umino get contacts. If other women had seen what she had seen, Naru would have to carry a baseball bat to beat the women back.
What woman wouldn't want an attractive and brilliant man? And Umino was brilliant. He currently worked at Mikage Industries, which was known worldwide for setting the standard in the computer industry. And, of course, Umino hadn't done too bad with catching Naru's heart. Naru had joined her mother in the family business, however the redhead was more then a jewelry store owner; she was also a talented jewelry designer and the customers at Osa-P loved to coo over her jewelery as well as cute little Keiko.
Usagi blinked and stared down at the sketchpad. While she had been immersed in her thoughts, she had finished drawing Keiko and had begun a new sketch without realizing it. Her eyes widened in horror as she realized who she had drawn.
"Why," she wailed, as she glared at the drawing. Smirking up at her was the guy who had the nerve to call her Odango Atama. His hair was tousled as if he had just awoken from sleep, and which was confirmed by the half-lidded eyes that looked up at her and sent a shiver of anticipation down her spine by that promising look in them. She had drawn him shirtless, and she practically devoured the sight of his broad shoulders and that muscular chest that had her fingers itching to run her hands over it again. Her eyes roamed down her chest and then she gasped.
She hadn't been just been drawing the guy shirtless, she had been about to draw him naked! Because she had been too busy staring at his face and ogling his chest, she hadn't noticed that in the background she had drawn little lines and curves to indicate that he was lying on sheets. The only thing that had stopped her from drawing EVERYTHING was the fact that this was one of her smaller sketchbooks, and there just hadn't been room to draw the whole picture on the page.
"But how could I have been able to draw this after one encounter," she whispered, eyes slowly moving down the page and resting on the bottom of the page where she had drawn as what Reika and Naru had laughingly phrased it the "Sexy V" that was shaped by a man's hips tapering off onto forbidden and uncharted regions. Her face flushed bright red as her mind took a nosedive into the deep end.
"Argh," she moaned, burying her face into her hands. "This is not happening!"
Deep in the shadows of the dark and cavernous room, sat a woman on a throne of black onyx. She stared pensively into a large and dark crystal ball that floated before her. Long wavy hair, the blood red of dark rubies, spilled to the floor, accented by the strapless black gown that clung to her voluptuous body. Her skin was unnaturally pale, as though she hadn't seen the light of the sun for centuries, and her eyes were a glowing red.
Hers was a beauty that was hard to forget, but it had taken her centuries for her regain it after she had lost it because of the wretched Moon Princess. Beryl's hands clenched into tight fists as the memory of her rival filled her mind.
"Serenity, that bitch," she hissed, her long red nails piercing her the palms of her skin and drawing blood.
Serenity had been the cause of her downfall. Her, her bitch of a mother, and her ever-faithful Senshi. They had destroyed her hopes... her dreams... Worse, Serenity had stolen the heart of the man Beryl had loved, and still loved, Prince Endymion of Earth.
But then Metallia had come. Metallia, her savoir. She had been the only one to believe in Beryl when everyone else had been against her. It was Metallia who had given Beryl the power to get revenge against the hateful Moon Kingdom and all those who allied with them.
Beryl let out a girlish giggle, relishing in the memory of pain and horror in Queen Serenity's eyes as she watched her daughter commit suicide before her very eyes. It was a cherished memory, the only remedy to ease the pain in her heart at Endymion's own death. He had died protecting Serenity, taking the fatal blow meant for the little bitch. It had been just as satisfying to see the Sailor Senshi die at the hands of the men they loved who had betrayed them to serve her.
Of course, it hadn't been a voluntary action on their part. It had been quite a formidable task to brainwash them, even with the colossal power that Metallia had granted her. It had taken great amounts of energy and time to rid them of their loyalty to Endymion and love for their princesses. In the end, she had had not choice but to lock away nearly two thirds of their memories. But they had been the best damn investment she had ever made, the key to the downfall of Princess Serenity and the Silver Millennium. So it would be an understatement to say she had been pissed when they had been slain by the Moon Generals.
Beryl snarled, her face contorted in rage for a moment before calming down. There was no need for her to be angry since she now had her prized warriors back. All four generals had been reincarnated in present-day Earth and it taken little effort on her part to find them since their auras were so much more brilliant then those of ordinary humans. With a little brainwashing, she had brought them back to her side and had found that they were now more useful to her.
"Jadeite! Nephrite! Zoicite! Kunzite!" she called.
The four men shimmered before her, dressed in their somber gray uniforms.
"Hai, Beryl-sama," they said in unison, kneeling before her.
"How is our progress in infiltrating the Earth," Beryl inquired.
"As of right now, everything is going exactly as you planned," Jadeite replied. "The humans suspect nothing. Taking their energy for Metallia-sama will be an easy task."
"And what of the Time Gate," she asked.
"The mission to take over the Time Gate is not going as smoothly as we hoped, Beryl-sama," Nephrite answered.
"Why is that," Beryl demanded, her eyes flashing.
"Sailor Pluto," said Kunzite, meeting her eyes, a hint of defiance in his eyes.
"How could she be the cause of this delay," cried Beryl, her aura flaring around her. "She died over a thousand years ago!"
"Queen Serenity and the other queens cast a spell to ensure the reincarnation of Princess Serenity and her court," Zoicite answered. "Although from Sailor Pluto's actions, I believe that she isn't fully awakened."
"What do you mean fully awakened," Beryl asked.
"The Senshi powers of the princesses are dormant inside them because they live in a time of peace, or so they think," Zoicite explained. "Which is why we haven't sensed their presence. But when we began our campaign on the Time Gate, it triggered the beginning of Sailor Pluto's awakening. If I'm correct, right now Pluto is experiencing a minor case of split personality. When her unconscious is in control or when she senses that the Time Gate is being attacked, the part of her that is a Senshi is in control. At all other times, her civilian identity is in control and has no clue as to her identity."
"Interesting," Beryl murmured. "So what do you plan to fix this setback?"
"If it was possible to find her in civilian form and kill her, we would do it," said Nephrite. "But the same power that hides us from her, also hides her from us. And there is no telling what would happen if we did find her civilian form and tried to kill her. The worst case scenario is that she would awaken fully and that might trigger the awakening of the other Senshi."
"So the only possible course of action for us to do is to gather energy," Jadeite added. "With enough energy, we will be able to awaken Metallia-sama and with her power we will be able to capture the Time Gate."
"A wise plan," Beryl said slowly. "But are you telling me that you four can't take on one lone Senshi on your own? Are you that weak?"
"It is not that we are weak," Kunzite snapped, his eyes flashing.
Beryl choose not to reprimand him even though he was being quiet insolent. Out of the four generals, he was the one who worried her the most, because he was the most powerful and back in the Silver Millennium had been the one who had taken the most energy to convert to her side because his love for the Venusian Princess had been that omnipotent. Even now, she was never quite sure if he was truly on her side.
"Someone is helping Pluto keep us at bay," Jadeite said. "We can't say who it is because they're so elusive, but we can verify that whoever it is incredibly powerful."
"And let's not forget that that power is being wielded unconsciously," Nephrite added darkly. "It's almost like we're a fly that's being swatted away."
'Serenity,' hissed Beryl's mind. 'It has to be her.'
"Fine," she said aloud. "Do whatever needs to be done, just as long as you get the Time Gate. I won't forgive any failures!"
'I won't let you win Serenity! This time Endymion will be mine and mine alone!'
Ding! Dong!
"Yeah, Daddy's here," cried Akira, jumping up from the floor and running towards the front door.
"Furuhata Akira, you better not open that door without me," Usagi ordered, chasing after the four-year old whirlwind. She reached the front door and grinned when she saw Akira waiting there patiently for her, an angelic smile upon his face.
"Little monster," she teased, ruffling his hair which caused him to giggle in delight.
Still grinning, Usagi turned the lock and opened the door and let out a gasp as the man standing in the dark hallway stepped into the light.
"You," she cried.
"And you said I wouldn't run into you again, Odango Atama," the man teased, a smirk on his face. "Although I didn't expect to run into you this soon."
"Uncle Mamoru," cried Akira, throwing himself at the man's legs.
"Hey squirt," said Mamoru, picking Akira up and throwing him up in the air and catching him. "Your father had to take care of something at the arcade so he sent me. How's my favorite little man?"
"I'm not little anymore," Akira squawked indignantly. "I'm four now!"
"My apologies," said Mamoru, looking serious and solemn. "I should have known better."
Usagi felt herself melting into a little puddle. The guy may have been a jerk towards her, but he was obviously good with kids. What woman could not help liking a sexy guy who was good with kids? It was obvious that Akira adored Mamoru. She frowned as she tried to think of why the name seemed so familiar.
"Chiba Mamoru," she said, as it hit her who this man was.
Chiba Mamoru was Motoki's best friend since childhood. They had completed pre-med together, but then Mamoru had left for America to go to med school and do his internship. Although he was only twenty-five, Motoki had bragged that Mamoru was one of the best cardiologists in the world. If she remembered correctly, the last time she had eaten dinner with the Furuhatas, Motoki had mentioned that Mamoru was returning to Japan to take a position as the head of cardiology at Tokyo Hospital.
"I suppose Motoki's been talking about me," said Mamoru, a sheepish grin on his face, that Usagi found endearing. "He has a habit of putting me on a pedestal."
"He only states what's true," Usagi replied, and then added when he gave her a questioning look. "I've read some articles on cardiology and your name was mentioned quite a few times."
"That was when you were doing research for 'Love Doctor', right," he asked.
Usagi stared at him in surprise. 'Love Doctor' had been a short series she had done a few years ago that had been a big hit. In fact, it was still popular and she was in the process of negotiating a deal with TOEI to turn into an anime.
"How," she questioned, too shocked to say anymore then that.
"Motoki likes to sing your praises as well," Mamoru explained. "So does Reika, for that matter. But don't worry. I can keep secret." He grin turned impish as he added, "I won't let the world know that the great Mitsuki is really an Odango Atama like you."
"Why you," growled Usagi, as she clenched her hands into fists in attempt to refrain from throttling the man. She had been talking to the men for no less then ten minutes and he was already getting to her.
"Usagi-chan, don't you like Uncle Mamoru," Akira asked, staring at his favorite baby-sitter with tears glistening in his eyes. He didn't like his two favorite people in the world, after his parents, of course, to dislike each other. He wanted them to like each other because he had heard his parents say (when they thought he was sleeping) that they would make a good couple and that maybe they would get married and have a little girl that he could marry. Akira didn't want to marry any girls, because all girls had cooties, except his mommy and Usagi-chan. But he did want Usagi-chan and Uncle Mamoru to have a little boy so he could play with him.
"Oh Akira-chan," she said, giving him a little smile as she forced her hands to unclench. "I don't know Chiba-sensei well enough to say whether I like him or not."
"Then you have to get to know each other so you can like him," Akira replied, a stubborn look on his face. "I want you to like each other. Promise me that you'll spend time together."
"Yeah Usagi-chan, promise," said Mamoru teasingly.
"We don't know each other well enough for you to call me that Chiba-sensei," she retorted. "But since Akira-chan wants us try to become friends, perhaps you'll gain the privilege too. Until that time, I'd appreciate if you just called me Usagi."
"Sure thing, Odango Atama," Mamoru replied, setting Akira down on the ground. Akira picked up his book bag that was sitting next to the door and put it on.
"Hey Akira, guess what," Mamoru asked, ignoring the fuming blonde.
"What," the little boy asked excitedly, bouncing from one foot to another.
"Tonight there will be a lunar eclipse later tonight," said Mamoru, taking hold of Akira's little hand in his large one. "If you're a good boy, maybe your mother will let you stay up and see it. See ya, Odango Atama!"
"Bye Usagi-chan," the little boy piped, as they left. "What's a lunar eclipse Mamoru-jisan? How often do they happen? Will I get to see Princess Kaguya? Is there really a bunny on the moon?"
A reluctant smile escaped Usagi as she waved good-bye and then closed the door. Mamoru was going to have his hands full on the ride to the Furuhatas, now that Akira was in his 1000-questions mode.
"A lunar eclipse, eh," she said thoughtfully. "Maybe I'll stay up to sketch it."
Final Thought From Usagi:
Lunar eclipse?
Disclaimer: I do not claim any rights to Sailor Moon or the characters associated with the anime/manga. Those rights belong to Takeuchi Naoko and anyone else she says has rights to it.