Chapter Three: Realizations

Michiru sat blinking at the now vacant seat next to her. What had just happened? Taking a look around the table, no one seemed to be paying any attention to where the troubled girl had run off to. Instead, they were all watching Rei with sad eyes, except Haruka. The sandy haired girl seemed to have a stern look on her face. It took Michiru a few seconds to realize that she wasn't even looking at Rei; she was looking past her to where Minako had fled.

'She looks almost… angry,' thought Michiru.

The sound of Haruka's chair being pushed back broke the deafening silence. "Breakfast was great, but there're things I need to do."

"Haruka?" The older girl's seriousness worried Usagi.

"Don't worry muffin head." Haruka walked away in the opposite direction Minako had without a backward glance.

"I think I'd better go too." Rei quietly added, stood and left, undoubtedly to find the blonde princess. Usagi looked at the remaining girls, not quite sure what to do.

"Would anyone like to go for a walk through the garden?" asked Makoto, trying to ease the awkward tension.

Ami, Hotaru, and Mitsu all agreed it was a lovely morning for a walk and though Usagi agreed, she excused herself for a prior engagement.

"What about you, Michiru? Any prior engagements?" asked the tall brunette.

Michiru laughed softly. "I'm afraid so, but thank you for the offer." Smiling, the aqua haired girl said her good-bye's then left to search for a certain tall, sandy haired princess.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Haruka's movements were swift and fluid. A droplet of sweat made its decent down the girl's face as her punches and kicks cut through the air. Her lungs burned, but it was nothing compared to the fire in her teal eyes. The way Minako had left Rei alone and confused hit a tender spot in the tall fighter. She knew why the Princess of Venus would do such a thing, but it didn't justify the girl's actions, not in Haruka's mind.

'If she even thinks about coming to me after-' a faint cough shattered the girl's thought.

Even with her back to the doorway, Haruka had an idea of who it was. "Look Minako, you need to grow up. You didn't really think that after you two got together that everything would be 'happily ever after' did you?"

Michiru's mouth hung open, about to say something, but she seemed to be at a loss of words. What was she suppose to think? Haruka knew Rei and Minako were together, which when she thought about it, was quite obvious, but the way she said it made her sound so cold. But then again, nothing's ever easy, especially love.

"Haruka?"

'That's not Minako's voice.' Turning around, Haruka found a somewhat edgy Michiru.

"Oh." The word seemed inevitable and, at that moment, the only thing left in the taller girl's vocabulary.

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to bother you, but you seemed a little upset."

Shrugging off the concern, Haruka grabbed a towel and wiped the sweat from her forehead. She wasn't in the best mood and something about Michiru being there made her want to use the wall as a sparring partner.

"Are you ok?"

"I'm fine."

"Are you sure? You don't seem-"

"I'm fine." Every word the other girl said struck something in the tall fighter, something that was very close to breaking.

'She's acting like a child,' thought the Neptunian Princess. "I'm certain they'll figure things out."

Haruka didn't bother with a reply and instead let out a short, sarcastic laugh.

'What's her problem? She's acting like Minako had a choice!'

"It's not like they have a future together."

The words were a slap to Haruka's face. Spinning around, teal eyes bore into blue. "We make our own future."

"We may think we do, but we don't. They're princesses. They have to marry, bare children and rule their kingdoms." The smaller girl tried to keep her composure, but with each passing second, it was slowly slipping away.

"Everything's a choice: to marry, to have children, everything."

"Are you that selfish in your wanting?"

"Love and want are two very different things," hissed the taller girl through clenched teeth.

"Does it matter? We have to protect our planets, our kingdoms and most importantly the Silver Millennium!"

"And how will love stop us from going about that task!"

"If someone threatened to kill me would you stop them, even if it meant betraying your Kingdom!"

"Yes!"

Michiru hadn't thought about the question, but the answer shook her core. When did they start talking about themselves? Had it always been about them? Was that why Haruka was so upset? The aqua haired girl's head spun and suddenly everything became bright before it quickly turned black.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Michiru?" Haruka looked at the said girl curiously. She hadn't meant to answer the question, but it all happened so fast. "Michiru!"

The smaller girl's body swayed then felt the full force of gravity pull it to the ground. Luckily with all the yelling, Haruka had ended up right in front of Michiru and was able to catch her before the floor did. Without a second thought, Haruka gently picked up the unconscious girl and went to get help.

"Setsuna!" The Keeper of Time stood leaning against a rail not too far away.

"Haruka? What happened? Is she alright?"

"I… I'm not sure."

"Here, follow me."

The two soon arrived at the sick room where a healer had already been called and was waiting. When Haruka laid Michiru on the bed as indicated, she noticed a gold chain around the smaller girl's neck. Pulling her arms out from under the girl's comatose body, a gold locket attached to the chain appeared from the front of Michiru's dress. Though the locket was made up of Uranus's colors, both Neptune's and Uranus's symbols were engraved on the front and below, the word forever was roughly carved too.

"Princess?"

Mumbling a 'sorry', Haruka tore her eyes away from the necklace and let the healer see to the Neptunian Princess. Waiting for the healer to say what had happened, the teal eyed girl looked down at her left palm where a small scar stared back. The beginning of a smile could be seen on the tall Uranian's lips as she thought of what caused the injury.

Flashback

A little girl sat in her room anxiously with a gold locket in her hands. She was able to buy the locket with her own money and then have her father engrave the two symbols on the front, but something was missing. She wanted something to show how she felt. An idea quickly popped into the tomboy's head. Taking a knife, she began carving in a word she thought would show the extent of her affection. The little girl was almost finished, but on the last letter the knife slipped and since she had to push down quite hard to write the word, she wasn't able to stop the blade from cutting her own skin. With a yelp, the little girl ran to her bathroom and hurriedly wrapped the new injury. The wrapping had soaked up the blood, but after giving the locket to a small aqua haired girl, it was at its limit and red liquid began dripping from the little girl's hand. Noticing the injury, the aqua haired girl washed the wound then tightly wrapped a blue cloth around the injury with enough strength to stop the bleeding.

End Flashback

"It's nothing serious. Princess Michiru seems to have gone into shock."

"What?" Haruka looked at the healer oddly.

"I'm sure you've gone into physical shock before?"

The sandy haired girl nodded.

"Well, as where physical shock comes from a sudden sharp pain, emotional shock comes from sudden emotional stress or a sudden release of built up emotions all at once. Like physical shock, the person becomes light headed and then passes out. It's nothing serious and I'm sure she'll wake up in a few minutes." Smiling at the two women, the healer took his leave to allow for some privacy.

The older woman turned to Haruka who was once again looking at her scar. "Do you mind waiting for her to wake up? Queen Serenity is holding a meeting I must attend."

Nodding, the young princess thanked Setsuna for the help and took a seat next to the bed where Michiru lay oblivious to her surroundings and Haruka's gaze.

'I can't believe she kept it.' The taller girl sat looking at the locket while subconsciously rubbing the scar with her right thumb. So many things were running through her mind. Did Michiru feel she didn't have a choice? That she couldn't decide her own future? 'Maybe she's right. Maybe we just think we have a choice.'

A soft groan stole Haruka's attention. "What happened?"

"Emotional shock."

"What?" The barely conscious girl sat up and suddenly found her head very light.

"Take it easy, you just passed out."

Moaning, the aqua haired girl fell back against the bed causing the locket to fall off her chest.

"What's in there?" asked Haruka.

"Does it matter?" Michiru quickly tucked the locket back under the front of her dress.

Before the taller girl could answer, Ami, Makoto, Mitsu and Hotaru walked into the room.

"Are you feeling ok?" The girl's purple eyes were wide with concern.

Michiru smiled. "I'm fine. Oh, did I miss our lesson?"

"No, it's only eleven, but I think that can wait until tomorrow."

The other princesses started walking towards the girl's bed asking if she was alright and what had happened. Figuring they should talk about it later in a more private place, Haruka made her way out of the room unnoticed. Sometimes it felt like love and destiny had two different paths for them that would never cross, but from time to time run parallel; so close they almost touched.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Michiru tried her best to smile and answer all the questions being asked, but she couldn't stop her eyes from wandering towards the door where the taller girl had slipped out. The missing presence of the other girl made her heart ache, even if she wouldn't admit it. Right then all she needed was to be alone. Too many things were coming up from the past, things she thought she'd never have to deal with again. She had figured when the Queen called Haruka and herself to train, she would've been married and not have to deal with any of these budding feelings. Unfortunately, she never found any of the suitors her mother introduced her to interesting. Not one. To her relief, Ami suggested she rest and took the offered help to her bedroom graciously in fear of becoming light headed again.

Sighing, Michiru sat on the large bed and closed her eyes, her hand pressing against the locket hidden by her dress. Slowly pulling the gift from its hidden spot, she caressed the carved word.

'She can be so careless sometimes. She's lucky she didn't need stitches.' The memory of a very young Haruka clumsily handing the golden locket to her, almost made her want to cry.

It was obvious Haruka still harbored the same feelings she did all those years ago and it was painfully evident that she too still had feelings. Unfortunately, time doesn't heal every wound. No matter which way Michiru looked at it, all the things her mother said made sense. She had sacrificed her own happiness in order to have Michiru and to protect Neptune. Somewhere deep down, Michiru knew it; she could see it in her mother's eyes every time she looked at her husband. It was a mix between regret, guilt, loyalty and love. Not a passionate love, but one of caring and friendship. A love you might share with a close friend or a sibling, not a lover. So that left only one question for the young princess. Is it worth it? Is giving up your happiness so others may live in theirs, worth it? She felt it should be, but something pulled at her heart…

A light knock made Michiru jump. She tried to push the question from her mind, but it seemed to hover around her, unwilling to disappear, like fog in the morning until the sun shines through…

When she opened the door she was greeted with two teal eyes that pierced through her heart and soul. Whatever composure she was able to muster was lost. Her body started to shake and no matter how hard she tried, the tears fell anyway, but she didn't have to worry about her legs giving way because two strong arms held her tightly to the other girl's chest.