ACT ZERO ONE | Unnatural Phenomena! Usa-chan Disappears!
Notes/Warnings: Alternate Universe

***

I'll admit, as a child I was a stubborn brat. There were many things I didn't understand, though, in my young mind, I thought I knew it all. Mother and I disagreed on almost everything. Those disagreements would result in many of my adolescent temper tantrums.

In those moments of prepubescent angst, I was always ill-tempered and frustrated. I never wanted any company, not that it mattered to my guard detail. On my mother's orders, at least one of my guardians was always supposed to be watching over me at any given time.

In one particularly childish fit, I stormed out of the palace racing as fast as I could go past the gardens. I hunkered down on the first oversized rock I could find in an indignant huff. It didn't help matters that I knew I was being followed.

"Jun, you can come out now. I know you're there." I called out in displeasure.

JunJun, emerged from the shadows of some brush looking chagrined. "How'd you know it was me?"

I shook my head before informing her, "PallaPalla is too noisy for stealth. CereCere is busy with Minako, and I heard VesVes is sick with the flu."

"Sorry, Usa" she repented.

I sighed, accepting the apology. I couldn't be angry with her. Jun is the only one aside from my mother that uses my given name. It's not 'Small Lady', 'Princess', or the customary 'Your Highness' with her. To Jun, I'm not the princess. I am her friend.

"How many times Jun? How many times do I have to tell her that I don't need a babysitter?" I shouted, surging up from my rock again in a fit of anger and startling a couple of birds in the process.

"I'm sure your Mama only wants what's best for you," she said with an air of caution in her voice.

I glared at her.

"Just sayin'." JunJun defended, raising her hands up in mock surrender.

"Sometimes I wish I was back in the twentieth century. Mom was a lot more fun back then."

"Your Mama is still plenty cool. The difference is that back in the twentieth century she was your friend and now she's your mother."

"Ugh! I don't need a lecture from you too!" I snapped in frustration.

"After everything, I've done and been through, why am I still treated like a child?"

"You're only what, seven? Eight?" she asked me in that patronizing tone that grates on my nerves.

I glared at her again, "Don't patronize me! Everyone seems to want to remind me that I'm only seven! I'm not some naïve little girl anymore."

A smirk tugged at the corner of her lips and she shrugged her shoulders at me as she sat down at the foot of my rock. All pretenses aside, Jun is the only one to tell it like it is. She is as blunt as they come and she spared me no sympathy.

"Fact of the matter is, brat, you are a little girl no matter which way you put it."

"I want to go back!" I ranted, cutting her off. "I'm tired of sitting here doing a whole lot of nothing. I hate home studies and being stuck here all the time followed around by a guard detail. In the twentieth century, I had friends! I was useful as a Sailor Scout. Why won't she let me go and continue my training?"

"The Queen has her reasons, I'm sure. These temper tantrums aren't going to do you any favors. Relax and enjoy being a kid."

I let out a frustrated growl, "I can't enjoy being a kid if I'm confined here to the palace. If she'd allow me to go to a real school and make friends my own age things would be different."

"You know...some kids would kill to be in your shoes. They wouldn't be sitting here bellyaching."

"I would trade places in a heartbeat..." I muttered.

JunJun chuckled and stretched out on the lush grass. She tucked one arm tucked behind her head, and the other shielded her eyes from the hot sun. "Hasn't anyone ever told you to be careful what you wish for?"

I snorted, "Yeah, I'm sure I must have heard that somewhere."

"Aw, come on," she cajoled. "Stop pouting. Why don't we go out somewhere?"

"Out?" I asked, eyeing her dubiously. Jun has a very interesting sense of humor and I had no idea what to expect, "out where?"

She propped herself up on her elbows and grinned up at me. "I don't know. Out. Anywhere is fine. I can understand being a little claustrophobic around here. So, why don't we go for a ride on my bike and see if we can find something to do for the day?"

"Really? You mean it?" I asked thrilled at the chance to get out of the palace.

"Yeah. Get a move on before I change my mind, Kid."

"Yes!" I exclaimed with a squeal of delight.

I was already up and running back to the palace as Jun chuckled at my excitement. I flew across the lawn feeling giddy. An outing was exactly what I needed. Permission to venture out of the palace was an uncommon thing for me. My moments away from home have not been normal. You see, I have the ability to travel through time with the help of a special key. Few can say that they were able to travel back in time and meet their own parents in their teenage years. It was a weird experience, but I enjoyed my time in the past. I wasn't bound by the same rules as I am here.

I was still running full tilt as I came into the palace entrance bowling over Ceres in the process. We collided and fell back on our respective bottoms with papers fluttering everywhere.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry!" I said immediately.

She caught her breath and blinked in disbelief.

"This is not very ladylike behavior," Ceres scolded, shaking her head at me. "You shouldn't be running around indoors, young lady. Oh, just look at this mess..."

Ceres stood, taking a moment to brush herself off before offering her hand to help me. I bit my lip, looking completely embarrassed as I accepted her help. She hauled me back on my feet and fixed me with a disapproving frown.

I continued to look contrite as we bent to the task of gathering up all the scattered documents. I hastened to gather up as many as I could and handed them back to her.

"I'm really, really, sorry about this CereCere. I have to go." I said before she could start lecturing me about my manners.

I turned and started sprinting for the spiral staircase with Ceres calling after me. "Wait! Where are you going?"

Not missing a step, I turned and waved, "Jun and I are going for a ride on her motorbike!" I shouted back.

"Usa!"

"Sorry, Ceres! Gotta go!"

I continued up the stairs leaving a bewildered Ceres behind. I had to hurry. If my mother found out what Jun and I were up to, we'd never get off the palace grounds! My room was not far from the landing at the top of the stairs. I took a left and burst through the third door down the hall startling my cat, Diana, who was napping in my bed. She yelped, only narrowly avoiding falling off.

"Hey! What is going on?" Diana exclaimed as I started to change clothes.

"We are going out!" I replied while reaching into the closet again, this time for my backpack and jacket.

"Out? Do your parents know about this, Usa?"

I rolled my eyes at the feline, "Why do they have to know? It's not like I'm going out by myself. You'll be with me and so will JunJun. All we're doing is going out for a drive on her bike."

I picked out a practical outfit; a quarter-sleeve pullover and jeans. The clothing choice would be comfortable and help keep me warm if it got windy on the motorcycle. While it was not the proper kind of attire for a princess, but appropriate for the situation. Don't get me wrong, I like the organza, the lace, and the occasional frou-frou dress, but sometimes simple is nice too.

Within the last year or so, I experienced a bit of a growth spurt. I shed some of the excess baby fat for a more defined and slender frame. My hair is one of my more striking features given its cotton-candy shade. It took on a life of its own with more volume than I could tame.

These subtle changes created by the ticking clock combined with my rare crimson eyes reveal an image that is not soon forgotten... an image of pink and red, a color combination that, fortunately, seems to work for me.

"Is that even safe?" Diana asked skeptically.

I moved toward my dresser, and from her perch among my pillows, her gaze followed me across the room.

"You're beginning to sound like Luna." I quipped with a smirk on my face as I picked up my hairbrush, "Don't you want to come with us?"

Diana looked at me aghast. "I do not sound like my Mum! And of course, I'm going. I have to keep you out of trouble."

"I think I can keep myself out of trouble on a simple day trip, Diana. Besides, Jun will be there." I replied, sounding put out.

"Trouble is your middle name, Usa. It follows you." Diana intoned as though she'd been waiting for ages to deliver that line.

I rolled my eyes at the absurdity and finished brushing my hair. With the job done I stored the brush into the front pocket of my backpack.

"It's a good thing I have you then isn't it?" I admitted while scooping her right off the bed. I unceremoniously dropped her into her usual unzipped pocket of my bag. From there she was able to poke her head and front paws out from the opening.

"You okay in there?"I asked while shrugging on the backpack.

"You bet!" Diana responded.

Feeling lighthearted for the first time in weeks, I got ready to leave. My hand was already on the door jamb when a dark shadow cast over the bedroom.

"What's going on out there?" I murmured, walking back over to the window where the curtains were still open.

It had been sunny outside moments before. The light from the window had brightened the whole room. Diana peered over my shoulder, half climbing out of the bag, and scoped at the scene for herself.

"Looks like a storm is rolling in. This trip may not be such a good idea right now," she ascertained.

"There weren't any storm clouds out there before." I protested as we saw lightning flash in the distance.

I yelped and shied away from the window. Thunder and lightning always scare me. The ominous clouds seemed to be everywhere. They crept across the sky like a gray sea, roiling in lighting. I watched as people down below sought shelter from the coming storm and sighed.

"I hate the rain. Somebody up there, somewhere, must really hate me." I grumbled. "This can't be normal."

Diana climbed the rest of the way onto my shoulder and licked my cheek, "That's not true. We'll have to stay indoors today and reschedule with JunJun some other time."

Through the disappointment, I could still see that Diana was right. There would be other days. We left the room with the intention of finding my friend. I spotted the green-haired woman on her way up the stairs as we stepped into the hallway.

"Hey!" she called. "Looks like we'll have to take a rain check on that bike ride."

"Yeah," I agreed, leaning over the banister to reply, "Maybe, tom..."

A loud crash of thunder shook the castle with the force of an earthquake cutting me off. I heard JunJun's warning shout the moment the floor beneath me began to crack. The banister buckled under our weight and pitched Diana and me into open air shrieking in horror. We were falling and there was nothing I could do to stop it. There was nothing to grab onto.

Another terrifying crash of thunder shook the castle, muting my screams. I braced myself for the worst, but before we could hit the ground a flash of bright, blinding light engulfed us both.

À suivre...