5/19/01
"On Equal Grounds"
HYD/SM Crossover
Authors: Lelu (leluh40@yahoo.com) and Mizu
(mizu@wishing-blue.net)
PG
[Insert Standard Disclaimers]
***
Chapter One
She lifted the designer sunglasses off her face,
pushing them back to rest on her golden hair.
Tsukino Usagi, daughter of Tsukino Kenji, President
of Tsuki Co. which was known throughout the world
for its priceless pearls, smiled gently. 'So,' she
thought, blue eyes dancing with excitement, 'this is
Eitoku High School.' She clasped her hands together,
the peals from her bracelet catching the light from the
sun. 'This ought to be interesting.'
"Usagi!" A voice called her name and she turned
around, taking a step back, finding herself looking
straight into the eyes of Nishikado Sojiro.
"Hai, Sojiro-kun?"
He tugged playfully at one of her pigtails, winking at
the same time. "Your hairstyle is so odd, Usagi."
She glared. "Shut up, Sojiro."
Sojiro laughed and stuck his tongue out at her. "I'm
only kidding … But why were you just standing
outside of the school?" He motioned towards the
large building. "It's the first day of school, you might
get lost if you don't go find your classrooms now."
"I would ask you to show me around, but since
Tsukasa tells me that you're never in class, I think
that you'd be just as lost as I might be."
"He's one to talk," Sojiro replied haughtily, rolling
his eyes. "He's never in class, either!"
"Sojiro! Usagi!" The two turned in unison to watch
as Domyoji Tsukasa casually strolled down the path,
stopping to stand next to them, Mimasaka Akira by
his side. "Ah," Tsukasa said, bopping Usagi's head
lightly, "the latest member of the F4 arrives!"
"Ne, Tsukasa," Akira said, throwing him a look,
"wouldn't we be the F5 now?"
Tsukasa's brown eyes narrowed and suddenly, Akira
found himself on the ground, Tsukasa towering over
him. "That's what I meant! Don't correct me! You're
not smart enough to do it! Or rich enough!"
Usagi and Sojiro blanched. Akira levered himself off
of the ground and brushed off his shirt.
"Just because you happen to have the most money
out of all of us, Tsukasa, it doesn't give you the right
to do that," said Hanazawa Rui said in his soft voice,
walking up to the group. "Your parents may own a
lot of corporations and such, but we don't fall too far
behind you."
"Rui!" Usagi ran over to him, forgetting that she was
in a miniskirt, and hugged him. "You're late!"
Laughing softly, she asked, "Did you forget to set up
your alarm clock again?"
He looked down at her. "Why aren't you in the
Eitoku girl's uniform?"
"My family donated a ward, baka. I don't have to be,
and besides, I'm the 5th member of the F5!" Usagi
detached herself from him, looking proud. "Demo …
I'm still kind of worried, guys," she added, biting her
bottom lip.
"Why?" asked Sojiro.
"Because…" she looked down at her hands, wringing
them together. "You guys know that I've been friends
with you since we were young children; after all, I
was brought up in the same types of family as you,
and I'm just a year younger than Tsukasa, 2 years
after you three. And I know that you know that we're
friends, but I've just been attending private schools
for girls since I was young, so no one else will know
why I'm hanging out with you… or why, for that
matter, I've suddenly been accepted into your little
group." She sighed, looking up at the blue sky. "I'm
just worried for my reputation and everything."
Tsukasa clenched his fists. "Don't worry, Usagi. We
won't let anyone talk about you like…that. And if
they do, all we do in return is red card them. That is
their punishment."
Usagi sighed, large blue eyes downcast. "But I don't
want them to get in trouble, Tsukasa, just because
they don't know about me."
"But then," Rui broke in, running fingers through his
light brown hair, "why should they say anything
damaging about you if they don't know you in the
first place? And who you really are?"
Akira and Sojiro both nodded. "Tsukasa and Rui are
right, Usagi-chan," Akira said, grabbing Usagi's
hand, a show of affection shining through. "The other
students have no right to say anything. When they
learn that you are a part of us, of our lives, they'll
know not to mess with you."
A bird cheeped overhead.
"Un!" Usagi smiled beautifully, squeezing Akira's
hand before letting it go. "You're right!" She looked
up at the building, noticing the time. "If we don't go
in soon, we'll be late!" She blinked in surprise as all
the boys began to laugh. "Nani?"
"Usagi-chan … we don't go to class, remember?"
Blond hairs stuck up on all ends. "Not even on the
first day of school?"
Sojiro kept laughing through his answer. "Not even
then."
~
Whispers of, "Who is she?" and "Why is she such a
good friend of our F4?" continued to circulate around
the building, until Makino Tsukushi felt like
screaming out loud.
"What's wrong, Tsukushi-chan?"
Tsukushi looked up into the dark blue eyes of her
best friend, Chiba Mamoru. Dark black hair fell into
his eyes, and she sighed as she reached up and
brushed away his bangs, still slightly annoyed. "You
need to get those trimmed, Mamoru."
He sighed. "You've been telling me that ever since
the first day we met, Tsukushi…"
Tsukushi stuck out her tongue, slapping him on the
head very roughly.
"And you've been doing that since the very first day
we met, too!" He winced slightly. "Except it was a
textbook that hit me in the head!"
A fiery blush covered Tsukushi's face. "I swear,
Mamoru, that it was an accident! It was icy, and I
slipped, and the book flew out of my hands! And
besides! That was over two years ago, and I don't see
why you should bring up the past!"
"And I still swear that you were upset by the low
grade you received in that subject, so you, without
thinking, just threw the book over your head!" He
glared back, just as ferociously as Tsukushi was
glaring at him. Suddenly, the look slid off of his face,
and a boyish grin replaced it. Hugging Tsukushi, he
said in a voice that was sincere, "I'm so glad that you
made it into Eitoku! My first and second years here
were so lonely without having any friends." He
pulled back and grinned at her again, making her
sweatdrop. "You'll have fun here, I promise!"
Tsukushi looked around. "Mamoru, let go of me!
People are starting to look and wonder!"
He took a few steps back, allowing Tsukushi some
space. "If the other students are saying anything, it's
probably because of the newest addition to the F4."
Puzzlement filled Tsukushi's brown eyes. "'F4'?
Who are they? And yes, that's the reason as to why I
was so annoyed before. All I've been hearing so far
today is this talk about a certain girl who's joined this
school… What's her name…?" She stared off into
space. "Kino…Minako…Tsukino!" She clapped her
hands together. "That's it! 'Tsukino' something."
"'Usagi,'" Mamoru supplied helpfully. "Tsukino
Usagi. And I can't believe that I never told you who
the F4… F5 are," he said, correcting himself.
Mumbling, he said, "It's going to be hard of getting
used to the concept of having a girl in the F5… and
the new name, too." He shrugged.
Tsukushi hit him to get his attention. "Tell me about
them, Mamoru! Who are they?"
He rolled his eyes, threading his fingers through his
hair, causing girls to swoon around him. "Why are
you always beating me up?"
"Why are you always attracting girls? No answer,
right? It's just one of those things that just happen,"
she shot back while straightening her yellow blazer.
"Yellow isn't your color, you know," he said
sarcastically.
"Well it isn't yours, either! Now tell me about the
F5!"
The bell rang, indicating that break was over. Slowly,
the crowds of students began to dissipate, and
Mamoru turned, saying over his shoulder, "Ja,
Tsukushi! If I don't go now, I'll be late- I'll tell you
about them later!" He walked away, whistling
cheerily, yellow blazer hooked on his index finger.
She glared daggers at his retreating back. 'He always
does this to me,' she thought angrily. 'Leaving me on
a cliffhanger when I really want to know something!'
She headed towards the stars, scowling at the
ground… and then she bumped into somebody. "Oh,
gomen!" she cried out, watching in horror as the
figure rolled down… and down… and down…
"…the stairs!" Tsukushi rushed down the steps, to the
figure. "Gomen nasai! Gomen nasai!" She reached
out for the figure's hand, ready to help the
person…but dropped the hand just as quickly to
scratch her head.
"Why aren't you wearing Eitoku's uniform?" she
asked, confused.
The figure began to stir, brown eyes popping open,
glaring. Slowly he stood up, and Tsukushi took a few
steps back, intimidated by his height and by his eyes.
Curly brown hair fell over brown eyes that were
sparking dangerously. "Don't you know who I am?"
Tsukushi tilted her head. "Should I know?"
That question seemed to incense his anger. "You dare
to speak to me like that?"
"Ne!" Tsukushi clenched her fists. "What the hell is
your problem? I already apologized for running into
you. You don't have to be so uptight!"
Suddenly, 3 more boys appeared by his side, none of
them wearing the school uniforms. 'Nani?' she
thought. 'What is going on?' Her eyes widened.
'Could this possibly be…'
The boy with the curly hair laughed loudly, mocking
her. "Rui, Sojiro, Akira… this girl doesn't know who
I am! I'll bet that she doesn't know who you are,
either." When Tsukushi's face remained blank, he
laughed again. "You see?"
"Who the hell are you?" she snapped at him.
"Tsukushi-chan!"
She spun around, watching as Mamoru rushed down
the stairs towards her, a worried look on his face.
When he reached her side, he whispered to her,
"What are you doing?"
Tsukushi raised her voice when she responded,
purposely allowing the other boys to listen in. "I have
no clue! I accidentally ran into this idiot over here,
and he fell down the stairs. I apologized, but he's
being stupid!"
Mamoru's jaw dropped, but he quickly shut it.
"Tsukushi…remember when I was talking about the
F5?"
She nodded.
"That's them, minus the girl!"
"So?"
Tsukasa stepped forward. "'So?'" he jeered. "That's
all you have to say? To us?" He took another step
towards her, the tick in his head jerking violently.
Mamoru stepped in front of Tsukushi, face to face
with Domyoji. "I apologize on her behalf, Domyoji.
She's new here, and she doesn't know any better."
Domyoji shoved Mamoru aside roughly. "Get out of
my way," he said, voice low and dangerous.
"You have no right to talk to him like that!" Tsukushi
yelled at him, unaware of the growing crowd who
had come to watch.
"Oh yeah?" Domyoji turned around to face Mamoru
again and raised his fist. "Watch this." He let his fist
fly… and was surprised when Mamoru ducked the
punch and threw back a hit of his own, punching him
squarely in the stomach.
"Matte."
All heads turned towards the soft but strong voice.
A girl began to walk down the steps, Mamoru's eyes
widened. 'Could it be…?'
Blond hair tied up in two strange-looking hairdo, soft
blue miniskirt, white-button-down collared shirt. She
was not in a uniform…
Usagi reached the bottom of the steps and walked to
the side where the other members of the F5, except
Domyoji, were standing. "Allow me to introduce
myself," she said, blue eyes dancing with mischief.
"My name is Tsukino Usagi, and I suppose that the
rest of you also know me as the fifth member of the
F5." She began to twirl a strand of hair as she paced
back and forth. "Like the rest of the F5 members, I
am entitled to certain privileges, because I am like
them in almost every way… except a few," she
added, suppressing a grin, "which is why the rest of
you see me differently. However, one way in which I
am most unlike them is because I don't like
violence." Usagi walked over to the fallen Tsukasa,
offering him her hand which he took, helping him
stand up.
"Domyoji." The demand in her voice made his head
snap to look away from Tsukushi and at her. "You
will apologize at once to these two people."
The whole crowd gasped. It was impossible; this
mere slip of a girl commanding the head of previous
F4 around?
"Usagi …" Tsukasa's voice carried a hint of steel
underneath.
"Tsukasa, I won't let you bully them around for
something that wasn't their fault." She crossed her
arms over her chest, trying to look like the
disapproving mother and was succeeding very well at
it.
"No."
Her answer came quickly. "I'll tell Tsubaki."
Tsukasa's dark eyebrows raised until it hit his
hairline, his body beginning to shake. Grabbing
Usagi's arm and pulling her away he whispered,
"You aren't serious, are you?"
"Go ahead and try me, Tsukasa." The challenge was
unyielding and the tick in his forehead was growing
larger.
"I refuse, Usagi, to be bossed around by you, no
matter what you threaten," he spat furiously. "And I
refuse to apologize to these bombi people!" He
turned around and stormed away, but not without
issuing a threat over his shoulder. "I'll get you guys
later, you better watch out. No one hits Domyoji
Tsukasa and gets away with it."
And with that final threat, he disappeared from sight,
the other male members of the F5 walking away with
him, leaving Usagi alone. Her eyes rested on the
crowd of students who had been watching the whole
scene.
"Why are you watching? This is none of your
business. Go away, now!" she commanded in a tone
that sounded very regal. When no one moved, blue
eyes narrowed dangerously. "Don't make me call
them back."
And suddenly, everyone was gone, save Tsukushi,
Mamoru, and Usagi.
Usagi flipped one long pigtail over her shoulder,
walked by Mamoru, and paused. "I'm so sorry about
this," she said cheerily, not sounding a bit sorry at all.
Grinning a little, she continued. "But I'm glad you hit
him when you did. He needs to be taught a little
about self-control sometimes." Placing her hand on
his shoulder, she smiled gently at him. "And that was
a nice punch, too …" she trailed off, not knowing his
name.
"Chiba Mamoru," he said, blushing a little at the
beautiful girl.
"Nice to meet you then, Mamoru." Usagi threw a
quick look at Tsukushi. "And you are?"
"Makino Tsukushi."
Usagi nodded. "I'm sorry for the trouble he caused
for you, too. If he does anything, be sure to let me
know?"
It was an order and a request. Tsukushi could do
nothing but stare dumbly at the kind girl who was a
part of the elite F5.
"Then I'll see you around. Ja matta ne!" She winked
quickly at Mamoru and walked away.
Mamoru stared at her retreating form, an odd light
look in his normally dark blue eyes.
Tsukushi watched him, arms crossed, brown eyes
narrowed with interest. 'Well now, Mamoru…
What's going on here?'
He blinked, shaking himself free of his strange
dream-like reverie. His lips quirked up in a wry grin,
as he swiveled and tugged Tsukushi toward the
stairwells. "Nothing," he remarked quietly, as he
quickly changed the topic to something more suitable
to their situation.
"Nothing?" Tsukushi raised her eyebrows
questioningly, trying to prompt the desired response
to quell her suspicions. "At all?" She drawled,
following his lead. Class was about to start, as most
students went to their appointed classes dutifully in a
flurry of cream yellow blazers.
Mamoru grinned in response. "Nope."
~
The generic after-school afternoon settled upon
Eitoku, the warm sunshine bathing the departing
students amidst the bright chirping of spring orioles
overhead. The beginning of the school year was
looking bright indeed.
Mamoru found himself bogged down with the pile of
textbooks in his black shoulder bag. Since he, unlike
the others, could not afford to buy expensive
textbooks to throw away at whim during the end of
the school term, he borrowed them exclusively from
the library. Tsukushi followed his example as well.
The only drawback to this was that he needed to
carry his books upon his arrival and departure of
Eitoku. The burden was well worth it, instead of
paying extraordinary amounts for textbooks with
bright photos and little content.
His eyes followed the flock of expensive cars parked
out on the street, waiting to pick up their precious
cargo. He walked passed all of them, brushing past
the occasional haughty student who claimed the
sidewalk to be of their property.
Something very shiny and very gold caught his eye.
It lie on the ground like a useless piece of crumpled
chocolate foil. Gingerly, he bent down, careful not to
scrape his knee on the rough sidewalk. His fingers
caught hold of a simple gold chain, in which there
were engravings inside a metal plate. Further
examination on his behalf showed that the careful
Japanese scripting read, "Usagi." A pearl was
embedded in the tiny clasp of the chain, giving it an
elegant effect.
Mamoru's head shot among the roving student
bodies, trying to catch sight of the bracelet's owner.
"There." He whispered, taking a purpose-filled
stance toward the blond stepping into sleek black
limousine. He darted forward, almost immediately,
crying for the uniformed chauffeur to halt. His hails
were dismissed however, and were left to drown
amongst other voices.
He stared down at his hand, the bracelet gracefully
sprawled across his cupped palm. It gleamed prettily
in the sunlight, before he shoved it into his blazer
pocket.
~
He strolled home, unsure of what to make of the lost
bracelet. Of course, he'd return it to its proper
owner, but would he be accused of some sort of
atrocious crime? The bracelet seemed important, or a
trinket that Usagi would cherish. Would she accuse
him of stealing it?
He debated with himself on the walk to the café.
Tsukushi said that she'd meet him at the café as soon
as she finished her shift. He still had some time to
mull over the events that had just occurred and the
events that *may* occur in the not to distant future.
Suddenly stopping dead in his tracks, he turned to the
giant fortress of a house to his left, adorned in pale,
burned bricks and clear shutter windows. Mamoru
squinted at the vehicles parked in the large semi
circle that served as a temporary parking space.
"Lo and behold," he murmured. "Milady's chariot."
His hand instantly thrust into his pockets, finding the
thin gold chain mold to his wiggling fingers.
He slipped through the open gates, fingering the
black-tinted bars carefully as if they were fragile.
Taking one cautious step in front of the other, he
finally made his way across the cobble-stoned path to
the massive house. He climbed the white stairs
almost daintily to avoid making heavy black spots
with his shoes on the surfaces.
He inhaled and exhaled sharply, fingering the
bracelet for luck. He rang the doorbell.
A set of chimes echoed pleasantly through the
mansion, muffled by the grand hard wood door and
insulation. Seconds later, the door was open a crack,
and the downy-hair of an elderly butler poked his
head through the opening.
"May I help you sir?" He asked cordially, voice
thickly accented.
'He must be a foreigner,' Mamoru pondered idly,
presenting himself with a professional smile. "Hello,
I'm Chiba Mamoru, a classmate of Usagi's at Eitoku.
I have something that belongs to her. If you'd allow
me to, could I come in? I need to speak with her as
well."
The elderly butler eyed him warily, one busy
eyebrow twitching upwards in response.
Hesitatingly, he shut the door to undo the brass chain
lock, and allowed Mamoru admission to the stately
house.
Mamoru swiveled around in awe, while absently
wiping his feet on the doormat. The house was huge!
Much larger than the exterior permitted the regular
pedestrian to think it was. A grand, spiraling
stairway stood in the middle of the view, about his
apartment's width away from him. Shafts of light
filtered in from the skylights above, casting their
natural rays upon the hardwood floor like spotlights
onstage. Beyond the lines of columns and flower
arrangements in the hallways was the distinct
twinkling of what only could be a crystal chandelier.
The butler cleared his throat in a mechanical fashion,
as if he had decades of practice of grasping other
people's attention. "If you will sir, this way." He
began to lead Mamoru over the spotless floors. The
floorboards didn't even creak under his feet.
Mamoru followed the butler obediently, drinking in
the lovely architecture and tasteful designs on odd bit
of furniture strewn here and there to fill the space.
They finally stopped on the seventh door from the
drawing room, within the right hallway. The butler
cleared his voice again and knocked perfunctorily on
the door.
"A Chiba Mamoru here to see you, miss," he
announced in a regal voice, acting like the perfect
herald. Mamoru could almost feel the hesitation
from within the room, until finally, a perplexed voice
answered the butler's hail.
"Bring him in, Will," A soft voice replied, slightly
subdued by the closed doors. Butler Will allowed
him to enter in, quietly closing the French doors
behind him.
Usagi was seated in an armchair, a blanket upon her
knees. She rose to greet Mamoru, smoothing out the
wrinkles from her dress as she did so. She must have
changed from the outfit she was wearing at school
this afternoon. She gave him a pleasant smile,
nothing more than a simple act called for by the
procedures of etiquette.
"You wanted to talk to me, Chiba-san?" She lapsed
into a more formal address. She stared quizzically at
Mamoru, expecting him to answer her question
without restraints.
Despite the fact that the smile was no more than a
diplomatic protocol, he found that he had lost the
initial speech that he had prepared upon the entrance
of the Tsukino estates. Either way, he found himself
pausing awkwardly, prolonging the silence.
"Mamoru?" Usagi inquired questioningly. "Is there
something wrong?" General concern appeared on her
lovely face.
Mamoru, on the other hand, snapped out of his
daydream abruptly. "Iie, nothing." He slipped a
hand into his coat pocket, feeling the bracelet slip
through his fingers as he remembered why he came
to the Tsukino residences in the first place.
"You dropped something this afternoon," he
remarked almost casually, fishing in his pocket for
the bauble. Her quizzical expression deepened
slightly, but softened as he drew the bracelet from its
hiding place in his uniform pocket.
"Your bracelet," he prompted, handing the simple
jewelry to her. "I found it after school, but couldn't
catch up with you before you drove off in your limo,"
he commented sheepishly. He grinned boyishly,
suddenly bashful, "It had your name engraved on it
and it seemed something that was important to you."
To his surprise, she began to chuckle. Her voice was
like the clear chortling of a brook, seeming as natural
as any creation of Mother Nature could be.
"Is there…something wrong?" Mamoru's brow drew
together in question at her odd behavior. The
bracelet threatened to slip between his grasp, as fickle
as quicksilver.
She smiled pleasantly again, this time, a touch of
genuine laughter within her eyes. "No, I'm all right.
Really," she gestured to the bracelet. "It was sweet
of you to bring that to me." She paused, sitting down
on the armchair. "I can always replace it," she
smiled. "Tell you what, since you found it, you can
keep it," she stated with a tone of finality, leaving no
room for question. "Finders, keepers, Mamoru," she
murmured softly, pulling the blanket that was
previously draped over the armrest to cover her legs.
Mamoru's invitation had just expired.
Stiffly, he murmured a quiet 'Sayonara', and opened
the door to find the butler standing serenely in front
of him, as if he were waiting for Mamoru all this
time. He was led to the exit as quickly as he was led
within.
Exiting the estates, Mamoru muttered quietly under
his breath. She was like the rest of them, a person
with no respect for resources. Everything seemed so
material to her! Despite the fact that his internal
dilemma was based solely on Usagi rejecting his
help, he couldn't help but to categorize her into the
social bracket which the rest of the F4, and
eventually the students of Eitoku themselves, were
placed within. These people had no respect for the
hard work that goes into little things that they took
for granted. It figures why she was included in the
F4 to begin with.
He paused, realizing that the bracelet was still within
his grasp. He stared at it for a few moments before
promptly thrusting it back into the hidden depths of
his pocket. Step after irritated step, he released his
peeves and anger and returned home to his tattered,
borrowed books and cramped desk.
~
"So, where'd you go yesterday after school?"
Tsukushi chirped. "You were supposed to meet me
after my shift to help me with the homework."
When Tsukushi received no response, she threw a
crumpled piece of scrap paper at him. It hit him
squarely on the top of his head before bouncing off
his nose and descend to the floor. He scowled at her.
"Tsukushi!" He rubbed his nose automatically to
check for possible injuries along the lines of paper
cuts.
"Hai?" She answered sweetly, tapping the eraser end
of her pencil on the desk rapidly, just to agitate
Mamoru.
'Serves him right for ditching me,' she thought
inwardly, presenting Mamoru with a sweet, sweet
smile. Tsukushi's charm held no effect on Mamoru,
except to annoy him further, which was exactly the
response that she sought.
"You know, you _were_ supposed to meet me, and I
_was_ waiting for you," she answered warmly. 'Pour
on the guilt,' she cackled to herself.
A faint, red discoloration appeared on Mamoru's
cheeks. It was as much of a blush as she was going
to get from him this morning.
"Gomen ne," he answered, looking down. He
refused to meet her eyes. "I-I went home."
"You went home?" Tsukushi repeated mechanically.
Surely, there was more to his absence than _that._
She gave him a penetrating stare.
"All right!" He said, intimidated—not that he would
admit that Tsukushi sometimes intimidated him. "I
went to…" His voice trailed into an incoherent
mumble.
"Where?" She prompted automatically.
"To visit someone," he replied slowly.
"Who?" She raised an eyebrow at him, intrigued.
"A friend," he winced.
"Why?" Her voice increased in volume.
"To return something." He began mumbling again.
"Return what?" She eyed him narrowly, giving him
another one of her penetrating stares. 'Hopefully,
it'll tip his glass and make it spill.'
"Quit it Tsukushi!"
'Oops. Wrong glass.'
"Okay, okay," Tsukushi raised her hands in mock
surrender in front of him. "You win the battle…"
She gathered her books with one arm, and her book
bag with the other, swinging it effectively on her
shoulder. Before she left to turn around the corridor,
she eyed him mischievously, a wicked grin upon her
lips. "But not the war." With that, she winked
cheerfully, leaving Mamoru to mull over her
interrogative questions.
Perhaps he should have told Tsukushi, but it was a
minor detail, really. He shouldn't have even been
concerned about these particular issues. However, it
was something that seemed so angelic, so ethereal, so
kind about Usagi that left no room for flaws within
his mind, even if they were minor ones. But then
again, who was he to judge others? Perhaps he was
just being silly and biased by pointing fingers at
unsuspecting fools, thus, degrading himself to their
level of morality. Perhaps.
***
_Extremely_ long AN's:
Lelu- Hi there! Mizu and I have joined forces and
brought this lovely piece of fanfiction to your
inboxes. We've been working hard on it, and through
the tangled mess that we like to call a "plot", we have
come up with a story that will, we hope, knock your
socks off. Just hang on for the ride… :)
Mizu- Hello minna-san! And how are you this
lovely spring day? Anyway, this is my first bit of
fiction with Lelu. Just to clear up some confusion,
the significance of Usagi refusing her lost bracelet
was simple. It bothered Mamoru because it seemed
like she was patronizing him indirectly. It also
bothered him that she didn't accept his help in the
return of the bracelet, thus upsetting him. Oh, and
one more thing, the HYD cast plays an equally large
part in this as the SM casting characters do. I had to
start somewhere. ;-)
E-mail! E-mail! :)
leluh40@yahoo.com
mizu@wishing-blue.net
(Oh, and those of you on the HYDML who are wondering:
Koirui and Koi were myself and Mizu in hiding. ^_~ )
"On Equal Grounds"
HYD/SM Crossover
Authors: Lelu (leluh40@yahoo.com) and Mizu
(mizu@wishing-blue.net)
PG
[Insert Standard Disclaimers]
***
Chapter One
She lifted the designer sunglasses off her face,
pushing them back to rest on her golden hair.
Tsukino Usagi, daughter of Tsukino Kenji, President
of Tsuki Co. which was known throughout the world
for its priceless pearls, smiled gently. 'So,' she
thought, blue eyes dancing with excitement, 'this is
Eitoku High School.' She clasped her hands together,
the peals from her bracelet catching the light from the
sun. 'This ought to be interesting.'
"Usagi!" A voice called her name and she turned
around, taking a step back, finding herself looking
straight into the eyes of Nishikado Sojiro.
"Hai, Sojiro-kun?"
He tugged playfully at one of her pigtails, winking at
the same time. "Your hairstyle is so odd, Usagi."
She glared. "Shut up, Sojiro."
Sojiro laughed and stuck his tongue out at her. "I'm
only kidding … But why were you just standing
outside of the school?" He motioned towards the
large building. "It's the first day of school, you might
get lost if you don't go find your classrooms now."
"I would ask you to show me around, but since
Tsukasa tells me that you're never in class, I think
that you'd be just as lost as I might be."
"He's one to talk," Sojiro replied haughtily, rolling
his eyes. "He's never in class, either!"
"Sojiro! Usagi!" The two turned in unison to watch
as Domyoji Tsukasa casually strolled down the path,
stopping to stand next to them, Mimasaka Akira by
his side. "Ah," Tsukasa said, bopping Usagi's head
lightly, "the latest member of the F4 arrives!"
"Ne, Tsukasa," Akira said, throwing him a look,
"wouldn't we be the F5 now?"
Tsukasa's brown eyes narrowed and suddenly, Akira
found himself on the ground, Tsukasa towering over
him. "That's what I meant! Don't correct me! You're
not smart enough to do it! Or rich enough!"
Usagi and Sojiro blanched. Akira levered himself off
of the ground and brushed off his shirt.
"Just because you happen to have the most money
out of all of us, Tsukasa, it doesn't give you the right
to do that," said Hanazawa Rui said in his soft voice,
walking up to the group. "Your parents may own a
lot of corporations and such, but we don't fall too far
behind you."
"Rui!" Usagi ran over to him, forgetting that she was
in a miniskirt, and hugged him. "You're late!"
Laughing softly, she asked, "Did you forget to set up
your alarm clock again?"
He looked down at her. "Why aren't you in the
Eitoku girl's uniform?"
"My family donated a ward, baka. I don't have to be,
and besides, I'm the 5th member of the F5!" Usagi
detached herself from him, looking proud. "Demo …
I'm still kind of worried, guys," she added, biting her
bottom lip.
"Why?" asked Sojiro.
"Because…" she looked down at her hands, wringing
them together. "You guys know that I've been friends
with you since we were young children; after all, I
was brought up in the same types of family as you,
and I'm just a year younger than Tsukasa, 2 years
after you three. And I know that you know that we're
friends, but I've just been attending private schools
for girls since I was young, so no one else will know
why I'm hanging out with you… or why, for that
matter, I've suddenly been accepted into your little
group." She sighed, looking up at the blue sky. "I'm
just worried for my reputation and everything."
Tsukasa clenched his fists. "Don't worry, Usagi. We
won't let anyone talk about you like…that. And if
they do, all we do in return is red card them. That is
their punishment."
Usagi sighed, large blue eyes downcast. "But I don't
want them to get in trouble, Tsukasa, just because
they don't know about me."
"But then," Rui broke in, running fingers through his
light brown hair, "why should they say anything
damaging about you if they don't know you in the
first place? And who you really are?"
Akira and Sojiro both nodded. "Tsukasa and Rui are
right, Usagi-chan," Akira said, grabbing Usagi's
hand, a show of affection shining through. "The other
students have no right to say anything. When they
learn that you are a part of us, of our lives, they'll
know not to mess with you."
A bird cheeped overhead.
"Un!" Usagi smiled beautifully, squeezing Akira's
hand before letting it go. "You're right!" She looked
up at the building, noticing the time. "If we don't go
in soon, we'll be late!" She blinked in surprise as all
the boys began to laugh. "Nani?"
"Usagi-chan … we don't go to class, remember?"
Blond hairs stuck up on all ends. "Not even on the
first day of school?"
Sojiro kept laughing through his answer. "Not even
then."
~
Whispers of, "Who is she?" and "Why is she such a
good friend of our F4?" continued to circulate around
the building, until Makino Tsukushi felt like
screaming out loud.
"What's wrong, Tsukushi-chan?"
Tsukushi looked up into the dark blue eyes of her
best friend, Chiba Mamoru. Dark black hair fell into
his eyes, and she sighed as she reached up and
brushed away his bangs, still slightly annoyed. "You
need to get those trimmed, Mamoru."
He sighed. "You've been telling me that ever since
the first day we met, Tsukushi…"
Tsukushi stuck out her tongue, slapping him on the
head very roughly.
"And you've been doing that since the very first day
we met, too!" He winced slightly. "Except it was a
textbook that hit me in the head!"
A fiery blush covered Tsukushi's face. "I swear,
Mamoru, that it was an accident! It was icy, and I
slipped, and the book flew out of my hands! And
besides! That was over two years ago, and I don't see
why you should bring up the past!"
"And I still swear that you were upset by the low
grade you received in that subject, so you, without
thinking, just threw the book over your head!" He
glared back, just as ferociously as Tsukushi was
glaring at him. Suddenly, the look slid off of his face,
and a boyish grin replaced it. Hugging Tsukushi, he
said in a voice that was sincere, "I'm so glad that you
made it into Eitoku! My first and second years here
were so lonely without having any friends." He
pulled back and grinned at her again, making her
sweatdrop. "You'll have fun here, I promise!"
Tsukushi looked around. "Mamoru, let go of me!
People are starting to look and wonder!"
He took a few steps back, allowing Tsukushi some
space. "If the other students are saying anything, it's
probably because of the newest addition to the F4."
Puzzlement filled Tsukushi's brown eyes. "'F4'?
Who are they? And yes, that's the reason as to why I
was so annoyed before. All I've been hearing so far
today is this talk about a certain girl who's joined this
school… What's her name…?" She stared off into
space. "Kino…Minako…Tsukino!" She clapped her
hands together. "That's it! 'Tsukino' something."
"'Usagi,'" Mamoru supplied helpfully. "Tsukino
Usagi. And I can't believe that I never told you who
the F4… F5 are," he said, correcting himself.
Mumbling, he said, "It's going to be hard of getting
used to the concept of having a girl in the F5… and
the new name, too." He shrugged.
Tsukushi hit him to get his attention. "Tell me about
them, Mamoru! Who are they?"
He rolled his eyes, threading his fingers through his
hair, causing girls to swoon around him. "Why are
you always beating me up?"
"Why are you always attracting girls? No answer,
right? It's just one of those things that just happen,"
she shot back while straightening her yellow blazer.
"Yellow isn't your color, you know," he said
sarcastically.
"Well it isn't yours, either! Now tell me about the
F5!"
The bell rang, indicating that break was over. Slowly,
the crowds of students began to dissipate, and
Mamoru turned, saying over his shoulder, "Ja,
Tsukushi! If I don't go now, I'll be late- I'll tell you
about them later!" He walked away, whistling
cheerily, yellow blazer hooked on his index finger.
She glared daggers at his retreating back. 'He always
does this to me,' she thought angrily. 'Leaving me on
a cliffhanger when I really want to know something!'
She headed towards the stars, scowling at the
ground… and then she bumped into somebody. "Oh,
gomen!" she cried out, watching in horror as the
figure rolled down… and down… and down…
"…the stairs!" Tsukushi rushed down the steps, to the
figure. "Gomen nasai! Gomen nasai!" She reached
out for the figure's hand, ready to help the
person…but dropped the hand just as quickly to
scratch her head.
"Why aren't you wearing Eitoku's uniform?" she
asked, confused.
The figure began to stir, brown eyes popping open,
glaring. Slowly he stood up, and Tsukushi took a few
steps back, intimidated by his height and by his eyes.
Curly brown hair fell over brown eyes that were
sparking dangerously. "Don't you know who I am?"
Tsukushi tilted her head. "Should I know?"
That question seemed to incense his anger. "You dare
to speak to me like that?"
"Ne!" Tsukushi clenched her fists. "What the hell is
your problem? I already apologized for running into
you. You don't have to be so uptight!"
Suddenly, 3 more boys appeared by his side, none of
them wearing the school uniforms. 'Nani?' she
thought. 'What is going on?' Her eyes widened.
'Could this possibly be…'
The boy with the curly hair laughed loudly, mocking
her. "Rui, Sojiro, Akira… this girl doesn't know who
I am! I'll bet that she doesn't know who you are,
either." When Tsukushi's face remained blank, he
laughed again. "You see?"
"Who the hell are you?" she snapped at him.
"Tsukushi-chan!"
She spun around, watching as Mamoru rushed down
the stairs towards her, a worried look on his face.
When he reached her side, he whispered to her,
"What are you doing?"
Tsukushi raised her voice when she responded,
purposely allowing the other boys to listen in. "I have
no clue! I accidentally ran into this idiot over here,
and he fell down the stairs. I apologized, but he's
being stupid!"
Mamoru's jaw dropped, but he quickly shut it.
"Tsukushi…remember when I was talking about the
F5?"
She nodded.
"That's them, minus the girl!"
"So?"
Tsukasa stepped forward. "'So?'" he jeered. "That's
all you have to say? To us?" He took another step
towards her, the tick in his head jerking violently.
Mamoru stepped in front of Tsukushi, face to face
with Domyoji. "I apologize on her behalf, Domyoji.
She's new here, and she doesn't know any better."
Domyoji shoved Mamoru aside roughly. "Get out of
my way," he said, voice low and dangerous.
"You have no right to talk to him like that!" Tsukushi
yelled at him, unaware of the growing crowd who
had come to watch.
"Oh yeah?" Domyoji turned around to face Mamoru
again and raised his fist. "Watch this." He let his fist
fly… and was surprised when Mamoru ducked the
punch and threw back a hit of his own, punching him
squarely in the stomach.
"Matte."
All heads turned towards the soft but strong voice.
A girl began to walk down the steps, Mamoru's eyes
widened. 'Could it be…?'
Blond hair tied up in two strange-looking hairdo, soft
blue miniskirt, white-button-down collared shirt. She
was not in a uniform…
Usagi reached the bottom of the steps and walked to
the side where the other members of the F5, except
Domyoji, were standing. "Allow me to introduce
myself," she said, blue eyes dancing with mischief.
"My name is Tsukino Usagi, and I suppose that the
rest of you also know me as the fifth member of the
F5." She began to twirl a strand of hair as she paced
back and forth. "Like the rest of the F5 members, I
am entitled to certain privileges, because I am like
them in almost every way… except a few," she
added, suppressing a grin, "which is why the rest of
you see me differently. However, one way in which I
am most unlike them is because I don't like
violence." Usagi walked over to the fallen Tsukasa,
offering him her hand which he took, helping him
stand up.
"Domyoji." The demand in her voice made his head
snap to look away from Tsukushi and at her. "You
will apologize at once to these two people."
The whole crowd gasped. It was impossible; this
mere slip of a girl commanding the head of previous
F4 around?
"Usagi …" Tsukasa's voice carried a hint of steel
underneath.
"Tsukasa, I won't let you bully them around for
something that wasn't their fault." She crossed her
arms over her chest, trying to look like the
disapproving mother and was succeeding very well at
it.
"No."
Her answer came quickly. "I'll tell Tsubaki."
Tsukasa's dark eyebrows raised until it hit his
hairline, his body beginning to shake. Grabbing
Usagi's arm and pulling her away he whispered,
"You aren't serious, are you?"
"Go ahead and try me, Tsukasa." The challenge was
unyielding and the tick in his forehead was growing
larger.
"I refuse, Usagi, to be bossed around by you, no
matter what you threaten," he spat furiously. "And I
refuse to apologize to these bombi people!" He
turned around and stormed away, but not without
issuing a threat over his shoulder. "I'll get you guys
later, you better watch out. No one hits Domyoji
Tsukasa and gets away with it."
And with that final threat, he disappeared from sight,
the other male members of the F5 walking away with
him, leaving Usagi alone. Her eyes rested on the
crowd of students who had been watching the whole
scene.
"Why are you watching? This is none of your
business. Go away, now!" she commanded in a tone
that sounded very regal. When no one moved, blue
eyes narrowed dangerously. "Don't make me call
them back."
And suddenly, everyone was gone, save Tsukushi,
Mamoru, and Usagi.
Usagi flipped one long pigtail over her shoulder,
walked by Mamoru, and paused. "I'm so sorry about
this," she said cheerily, not sounding a bit sorry at all.
Grinning a little, she continued. "But I'm glad you hit
him when you did. He needs to be taught a little
about self-control sometimes." Placing her hand on
his shoulder, she smiled gently at him. "And that was
a nice punch, too …" she trailed off, not knowing his
name.
"Chiba Mamoru," he said, blushing a little at the
beautiful girl.
"Nice to meet you then, Mamoru." Usagi threw a
quick look at Tsukushi. "And you are?"
"Makino Tsukushi."
Usagi nodded. "I'm sorry for the trouble he caused
for you, too. If he does anything, be sure to let me
know?"
It was an order and a request. Tsukushi could do
nothing but stare dumbly at the kind girl who was a
part of the elite F5.
"Then I'll see you around. Ja matta ne!" She winked
quickly at Mamoru and walked away.
Mamoru stared at her retreating form, an odd light
look in his normally dark blue eyes.
Tsukushi watched him, arms crossed, brown eyes
narrowed with interest. 'Well now, Mamoru…
What's going on here?'
He blinked, shaking himself free of his strange
dream-like reverie. His lips quirked up in a wry grin,
as he swiveled and tugged Tsukushi toward the
stairwells. "Nothing," he remarked quietly, as he
quickly changed the topic to something more suitable
to their situation.
"Nothing?" Tsukushi raised her eyebrows
questioningly, trying to prompt the desired response
to quell her suspicions. "At all?" She drawled,
following his lead. Class was about to start, as most
students went to their appointed classes dutifully in a
flurry of cream yellow blazers.
Mamoru grinned in response. "Nope."
~
The generic after-school afternoon settled upon
Eitoku, the warm sunshine bathing the departing
students amidst the bright chirping of spring orioles
overhead. The beginning of the school year was
looking bright indeed.
Mamoru found himself bogged down with the pile of
textbooks in his black shoulder bag. Since he, unlike
the others, could not afford to buy expensive
textbooks to throw away at whim during the end of
the school term, he borrowed them exclusively from
the library. Tsukushi followed his example as well.
The only drawback to this was that he needed to
carry his books upon his arrival and departure of
Eitoku. The burden was well worth it, instead of
paying extraordinary amounts for textbooks with
bright photos and little content.
His eyes followed the flock of expensive cars parked
out on the street, waiting to pick up their precious
cargo. He walked passed all of them, brushing past
the occasional haughty student who claimed the
sidewalk to be of their property.
Something very shiny and very gold caught his eye.
It lie on the ground like a useless piece of crumpled
chocolate foil. Gingerly, he bent down, careful not to
scrape his knee on the rough sidewalk. His fingers
caught hold of a simple gold chain, in which there
were engravings inside a metal plate. Further
examination on his behalf showed that the careful
Japanese scripting read, "Usagi." A pearl was
embedded in the tiny clasp of the chain, giving it an
elegant effect.
Mamoru's head shot among the roving student
bodies, trying to catch sight of the bracelet's owner.
"There." He whispered, taking a purpose-filled
stance toward the blond stepping into sleek black
limousine. He darted forward, almost immediately,
crying for the uniformed chauffeur to halt. His hails
were dismissed however, and were left to drown
amongst other voices.
He stared down at his hand, the bracelet gracefully
sprawled across his cupped palm. It gleamed prettily
in the sunlight, before he shoved it into his blazer
pocket.
~
He strolled home, unsure of what to make of the lost
bracelet. Of course, he'd return it to its proper
owner, but would he be accused of some sort of
atrocious crime? The bracelet seemed important, or a
trinket that Usagi would cherish. Would she accuse
him of stealing it?
He debated with himself on the walk to the café.
Tsukushi said that she'd meet him at the café as soon
as she finished her shift. He still had some time to
mull over the events that had just occurred and the
events that *may* occur in the not to distant future.
Suddenly stopping dead in his tracks, he turned to the
giant fortress of a house to his left, adorned in pale,
burned bricks and clear shutter windows. Mamoru
squinted at the vehicles parked in the large semi
circle that served as a temporary parking space.
"Lo and behold," he murmured. "Milady's chariot."
His hand instantly thrust into his pockets, finding the
thin gold chain mold to his wiggling fingers.
He slipped through the open gates, fingering the
black-tinted bars carefully as if they were fragile.
Taking one cautious step in front of the other, he
finally made his way across the cobble-stoned path to
the massive house. He climbed the white stairs
almost daintily to avoid making heavy black spots
with his shoes on the surfaces.
He inhaled and exhaled sharply, fingering the
bracelet for luck. He rang the doorbell.
A set of chimes echoed pleasantly through the
mansion, muffled by the grand hard wood door and
insulation. Seconds later, the door was open a crack,
and the downy-hair of an elderly butler poked his
head through the opening.
"May I help you sir?" He asked cordially, voice
thickly accented.
'He must be a foreigner,' Mamoru pondered idly,
presenting himself with a professional smile. "Hello,
I'm Chiba Mamoru, a classmate of Usagi's at Eitoku.
I have something that belongs to her. If you'd allow
me to, could I come in? I need to speak with her as
well."
The elderly butler eyed him warily, one busy
eyebrow twitching upwards in response.
Hesitatingly, he shut the door to undo the brass chain
lock, and allowed Mamoru admission to the stately
house.
Mamoru swiveled around in awe, while absently
wiping his feet on the doormat. The house was huge!
Much larger than the exterior permitted the regular
pedestrian to think it was. A grand, spiraling
stairway stood in the middle of the view, about his
apartment's width away from him. Shafts of light
filtered in from the skylights above, casting their
natural rays upon the hardwood floor like spotlights
onstage. Beyond the lines of columns and flower
arrangements in the hallways was the distinct
twinkling of what only could be a crystal chandelier.
The butler cleared his throat in a mechanical fashion,
as if he had decades of practice of grasping other
people's attention. "If you will sir, this way." He
began to lead Mamoru over the spotless floors. The
floorboards didn't even creak under his feet.
Mamoru followed the butler obediently, drinking in
the lovely architecture and tasteful designs on odd bit
of furniture strewn here and there to fill the space.
They finally stopped on the seventh door from the
drawing room, within the right hallway. The butler
cleared his voice again and knocked perfunctorily on
the door.
"A Chiba Mamoru here to see you, miss," he
announced in a regal voice, acting like the perfect
herald. Mamoru could almost feel the hesitation
from within the room, until finally, a perplexed voice
answered the butler's hail.
"Bring him in, Will," A soft voice replied, slightly
subdued by the closed doors. Butler Will allowed
him to enter in, quietly closing the French doors
behind him.
Usagi was seated in an armchair, a blanket upon her
knees. She rose to greet Mamoru, smoothing out the
wrinkles from her dress as she did so. She must have
changed from the outfit she was wearing at school
this afternoon. She gave him a pleasant smile,
nothing more than a simple act called for by the
procedures of etiquette.
"You wanted to talk to me, Chiba-san?" She lapsed
into a more formal address. She stared quizzically at
Mamoru, expecting him to answer her question
without restraints.
Despite the fact that the smile was no more than a
diplomatic protocol, he found that he had lost the
initial speech that he had prepared upon the entrance
of the Tsukino estates. Either way, he found himself
pausing awkwardly, prolonging the silence.
"Mamoru?" Usagi inquired questioningly. "Is there
something wrong?" General concern appeared on her
lovely face.
Mamoru, on the other hand, snapped out of his
daydream abruptly. "Iie, nothing." He slipped a
hand into his coat pocket, feeling the bracelet slip
through his fingers as he remembered why he came
to the Tsukino residences in the first place.
"You dropped something this afternoon," he
remarked almost casually, fishing in his pocket for
the bauble. Her quizzical expression deepened
slightly, but softened as he drew the bracelet from its
hiding place in his uniform pocket.
"Your bracelet," he prompted, handing the simple
jewelry to her. "I found it after school, but couldn't
catch up with you before you drove off in your limo,"
he commented sheepishly. He grinned boyishly,
suddenly bashful, "It had your name engraved on it
and it seemed something that was important to you."
To his surprise, she began to chuckle. Her voice was
like the clear chortling of a brook, seeming as natural
as any creation of Mother Nature could be.
"Is there…something wrong?" Mamoru's brow drew
together in question at her odd behavior. The
bracelet threatened to slip between his grasp, as fickle
as quicksilver.
She smiled pleasantly again, this time, a touch of
genuine laughter within her eyes. "No, I'm all right.
Really," she gestured to the bracelet. "It was sweet
of you to bring that to me." She paused, sitting down
on the armchair. "I can always replace it," she
smiled. "Tell you what, since you found it, you can
keep it," she stated with a tone of finality, leaving no
room for question. "Finders, keepers, Mamoru," she
murmured softly, pulling the blanket that was
previously draped over the armrest to cover her legs.
Mamoru's invitation had just expired.
Stiffly, he murmured a quiet 'Sayonara', and opened
the door to find the butler standing serenely in front
of him, as if he were waiting for Mamoru all this
time. He was led to the exit as quickly as he was led
within.
Exiting the estates, Mamoru muttered quietly under
his breath. She was like the rest of them, a person
with no respect for resources. Everything seemed so
material to her! Despite the fact that his internal
dilemma was based solely on Usagi rejecting his
help, he couldn't help but to categorize her into the
social bracket which the rest of the F4, and
eventually the students of Eitoku themselves, were
placed within. These people had no respect for the
hard work that goes into little things that they took
for granted. It figures why she was included in the
F4 to begin with.
He paused, realizing that the bracelet was still within
his grasp. He stared at it for a few moments before
promptly thrusting it back into the hidden depths of
his pocket. Step after irritated step, he released his
peeves and anger and returned home to his tattered,
borrowed books and cramped desk.
~
"So, where'd you go yesterday after school?"
Tsukushi chirped. "You were supposed to meet me
after my shift to help me with the homework."
When Tsukushi received no response, she threw a
crumpled piece of scrap paper at him. It hit him
squarely on the top of his head before bouncing off
his nose and descend to the floor. He scowled at her.
"Tsukushi!" He rubbed his nose automatically to
check for possible injuries along the lines of paper
cuts.
"Hai?" She answered sweetly, tapping the eraser end
of her pencil on the desk rapidly, just to agitate
Mamoru.
'Serves him right for ditching me,' she thought
inwardly, presenting Mamoru with a sweet, sweet
smile. Tsukushi's charm held no effect on Mamoru,
except to annoy him further, which was exactly the
response that she sought.
"You know, you _were_ supposed to meet me, and I
_was_ waiting for you," she answered warmly. 'Pour
on the guilt,' she cackled to herself.
A faint, red discoloration appeared on Mamoru's
cheeks. It was as much of a blush as she was going
to get from him this morning.
"Gomen ne," he answered, looking down. He
refused to meet her eyes. "I-I went home."
"You went home?" Tsukushi repeated mechanically.
Surely, there was more to his absence than _that._
She gave him a penetrating stare.
"All right!" He said, intimidated—not that he would
admit that Tsukushi sometimes intimidated him. "I
went to…" His voice trailed into an incoherent
mumble.
"Where?" She prompted automatically.
"To visit someone," he replied slowly.
"Who?" She raised an eyebrow at him, intrigued.
"A friend," he winced.
"Why?" Her voice increased in volume.
"To return something." He began mumbling again.
"Return what?" She eyed him narrowly, giving him
another one of her penetrating stares. 'Hopefully,
it'll tip his glass and make it spill.'
"Quit it Tsukushi!"
'Oops. Wrong glass.'
"Okay, okay," Tsukushi raised her hands in mock
surrender in front of him. "You win the battle…"
She gathered her books with one arm, and her book
bag with the other, swinging it effectively on her
shoulder. Before she left to turn around the corridor,
she eyed him mischievously, a wicked grin upon her
lips. "But not the war." With that, she winked
cheerfully, leaving Mamoru to mull over her
interrogative questions.
Perhaps he should have told Tsukushi, but it was a
minor detail, really. He shouldn't have even been
concerned about these particular issues. However, it
was something that seemed so angelic, so ethereal, so
kind about Usagi that left no room for flaws within
his mind, even if they were minor ones. But then
again, who was he to judge others? Perhaps he was
just being silly and biased by pointing fingers at
unsuspecting fools, thus, degrading himself to their
level of morality. Perhaps.
***
_Extremely_ long AN's:
Lelu- Hi there! Mizu and I have joined forces and
brought this lovely piece of fanfiction to your
inboxes. We've been working hard on it, and through
the tangled mess that we like to call a "plot", we have
come up with a story that will, we hope, knock your
socks off. Just hang on for the ride… :)
Mizu- Hello minna-san! And how are you this
lovely spring day? Anyway, this is my first bit of
fiction with Lelu. Just to clear up some confusion,
the significance of Usagi refusing her lost bracelet
was simple. It bothered Mamoru because it seemed
like she was patronizing him indirectly. It also
bothered him that she didn't accept his help in the
return of the bracelet, thus upsetting him. Oh, and
one more thing, the HYD cast plays an equally large
part in this as the SM casting characters do. I had to
start somewhere. ;-)
E-mail! E-mail! :)
leluh40@yahoo.com
mizu@wishing-blue.net
(Oh, and those of you on the HYDML who are wondering:
Koirui and Koi were myself and Mizu in hiding. ^_~ )