Yay! Another chapter out! Enjoy you guys, don't forget to leave your comments, on how I can improve. By the way, one day I will come up with enough money to own Sailor Moon. I just don't have the cash right now. So I don't own Sailor Moon. Just three more chapters left until I move on to the next couple.
A noise permeated the fog that was her sleep. Groggily, Minako sat up in bed and blinked, taking in her surroundings. The room looked cleaner, emptier somehow. Hmm. Sword case is gone she noted sleepily. Oh yeah, she thought, the fight. Reaching for her cell phone, she turned the alarm off. She rolled over, sat up, set her feet on the carpet, and began to stagger towards the bathroom with alarming zombie-like mannerisms. Halfway there, she stepped on something. She paused. "Ow!! Owowowowow!", she howled, tearing up at the stabbing pain. She hissed through her teeth and hunched over, golden hair spilling over her shoulders. What in the world did she step on? The shock of pain took her breath away. Normally she would have taken it, but she was still waking up and she wasn't expecting the pain. It was one thing to expect pain when you had a youma bearing down on you full force, but it was quite another when you were still muzzy and half-asleep. She clutched at her foot and hopped to the bed.
Kunzite walked in, frowning mentally, as he drank his orange juice. He choked on his drink and began to cough violently. The sight of Minako hopping about clutching her foot would have made him laugh under any circumstance but there were large drops of bright, red blood on the white carpet. He drained the glass, to calm his wheezing, and set down it on the bureau. Glancing at the clock, he kneeled on the floor to see what the matter was. He at least had a couple of minutes before he had to leave for work. Hopefully, this could be dealt with by then.
"It's always something with you isn't it?"
"This isn't my fault!!"
"I know. Calm down. Let me take a look at it", he said soothingly. He sat her down and lifted her foot. Embedded in the sole of her foot was a jagged piece of glass.
"Hmm, interesting."
"What! What is it?!", said Minako as she watched rub his chin speculatively.
"Oh, nothing important." Briskly, he pulled it out.
"Ow!", she yelled struggling to get her foot out of his hands.
"It's out now. Stay here and I'll go get a bandage", he said walking into the bathroom.
"You ass! How is that not important!", she yelled at his retreating back.
Thirty seconds later.
"Ow! That stings! What are you doing?", she yelped.
"I'm pouring a bottle of antiseptic on your foot."
"What?!"
"I'm kidding. Calm down. There. Try not walk on it for the next several hours. Stay in bed. Study your script. And whatever you do, don't leave this apartment. Don't leave the door unlocked. If someone knocks, don't open it. I'm begging you. You don't exactly have your sweet, old grandmother out there waiting for you to let her in." Minako giggled.
"I know, I know."
"Good. I don't want to have to stage another clean up like the one last night. There's still some food in the fridge if you want something to eat. Kino-san made enough to feed an army."
"We were an army", she laughed, at her memory of last night.
"Yeah. An army of Merry Maids. Be careful okay? Amika can be vengeful; she used to make me suffer for weeks when I screwed up. So there's no telling what she'll do."
"I'll be fine, go to work", she said getting into bed and reaching for her script. He screwed the cap back on the bottle of peroxide and snorted slightly.
"I know you'll be okay I'm just worried about my apartment", he said smirking slightly as he walked to the living room.
"Yeah, yeah. I'll see you later", she said waving him towards the door. He silently shut it and Minako sighed longingly. He was wearing a crisp white shirt today for work. It was unbuttoned slightly when he had walked in and his strong neck was exposed. The man was delicious, she thought pouting. And when he leaned in to look at her foot…sigh. Her foot was still tingling from his warm, strong fingers caressing her heel. She'd bet her red hair bow that the man could give a foot massage. Hmm…maybe her foot was tingling from the antiseptic he liberally applied. Yeah. That was it.
Minako began revising her lines for the millionth time. Around one, she heard her communicator beep. She struggled out of the fluffy sheets and limped gingerly to her suitcase. She panicked slightly not wanting to miss the call and she began to toss her clothing out in a massive effort to reach the blasted thing.
"Hello?", she said breathlessly. They only used the communicator for emergencies, and there hadn't been any of those in a while, as it was, she had a hard time finding it in her luggage.
"Minako!", said Artemis angrily "You let me in this instant!"
"Oh Luna's done with you already? And you're still walking? I thought she would have at least broken a paw or two…"
"That's not funny! She almost did!"
"And?"
"I reminded her that our future daughter might not appreciate her father being crippled."
"Oh ho ho…So! We played that little card, huh? Does this mean that my widdle Arty is romancing Luna? Hmm?"
"Grr. No! Now will you open this door!"
Sigh. "Okay, okay. Keep your shoes on."
"It's pants, Minako."
"Whatever."
She cut the call grumbling, as she limped to the front door. She opened it, half-expecting him to be in his man form, as he usually did, when he was irate. He swore that when he was in cat form she tuned him out. She would never let on that fact. If she did, he'd always be nagging her in his man form. At least when he was a cat, she could shove him in the closet and be done with it. And when he was a cat, to punish him, she could do this:
"Arty! Baby! I was so worried for my precious!"
"Minako! Damn you! Let go! I will expire!"
"Widdle, widdle Arty!"
"Gah! Why Selene! Why me! Minako!"
"Naughty little Arty! You were drunk!"
"Minako! Please! My ribs!"
"And then you embarrassed me! And got caught!", she said hugging him harder.
"Ahh! Noo! Please! I'm so sorry! Never again!", he gasped, trying to use his forepaws to break her death hold.
"Never again! Oh Artemis!", she said gleefully.
"Yes! Yes!", he wheezed hoarsely. His vision was getting blurry.
Minako finally let go. Artemis collapsed on the floor gasping for breath.
"Oh Selene! Thank you! Thank you! My ribs! Damn…you…Minako", panted Artemis as he lay on his side.
She shut the front door with a resounding thud that shook the wall. Turning on one heel, she got down on her knees, and thrust her face alarmingly close to Artemis'.
"You should be grateful! I should have squeezed you harder!"
"Please! No!", he said feebly.
"He suspects you! He knows who you are! How he figured it out, I have no idea, but he knows!"
"Please! Mercy, Minako! Squeeze him instead! I beg you! No more! My kidneys!"
"What am I going to tell him when he comes home, and he finds you here after you've been missing? You're completely reckless! You left this in the closet!", she said snapping on his cat collar.
"Please…Minako…"
"You're supposed to be the responsible one! If I ever again catch you drunk around mixed company…let's just say that begging won't save you!", she said menacingly.
"Never again! Never!"
"Good. You obviously can't hold your liquor."
"Never, never again."
She picked him up and laid him on the couch to recover his wits. It was time to go back to reading the script again. She ate around three, scrounging the fridge for Makoto's leftovers. As she sat on the stool, she pondered the script. Maybe it would be best if she actually borrowed the manga from Rei to see what the character was like. She had to land this role, no matter what. It would be the big break that she was looking for; this role was made for her, she could feel it. Minako, sighed despondently as she ate the last of the food off her plate. Prior to popular belief, Minako wasn't lazy, in fact, one of the reasons why she hated acting wasn't because she hardly ever landed a role; it was because there were long waiting periods in between jobs. She was a woman of action; she had to be doing something; it didn't matter what, shopping, schoolwork, volleyball, training, or fighting youma. She lived to audition and to strive for her ultimate dream. At this rate though, she would die of bored. Staying in the apartment was starting to wear on her nerves. There were only so many times that one could go through a man's underwear drawer after all.
Being an actress was stressful, one had to have a superb memory, be marketable, and look for work in between jobs. Right now, blonds weren't very popular and there wasn't a lot of work out there for her. In fact, the woman in this script was described as being willowy with long dark hair and flashing eyes. Like Rei. Well, she had the long hair thing down. Maybe I should dye my hair black, she mused thoughtfully. She picked up a handful of her golden strands and critically eyed them as she chewed her food. Nah, she'd look weird with black hair. She'd just have to be herself and try her luck. If its one thing she could do, it was drama and there was lots of drama in this play. She would use that to her advantage.
As she was putting her plate in the sink, the house phone rang. Puzzled, she debated on whether or not she actually wanted to pick it up. It could be anyone, the crazy girlfriend, his job, his professor, or he could be calling her because he was in trouble. Hmm, he could need my help she thought worriedly.
"This is Shikoku Kunzite. I currently can't come to the phone. Please leave a message and your number and I will try to get back to you as soon as possible."
"Beep."
"Aino Minako! This is your mother! Young lady! I know you're there! You pick this phone up this instant! You are an absolute disgrace! I've searched high and low and I know the address to this man's place! He's an absolute stranger! Minako, how could you!" Minako froze. Her mother. Kami, why me?, she thought as she shot out of her seat to get to the phone.
"Hello?", she gasped desperately.
"I can't believe you! I've taught you better!"
"Mother I—"
"You owe me 200 dollars missy! I had to hire a private detective to track you down. I'm coming over this evening and when I leave you're coming with me. You will be going to jail like a respectable citizen of this country. I've had it with your shenanigans! I've already asked your uncles and aunts for bail money! I expect you to pay them back shortly!"
"Mama! No!!"
Click.
Dial tone.
Artemis walked into the living room and looked at her expectantly.
"Artemis! Kami! She hung up on me! Argh! I have to be adopted! There's no way that woman can be related to me! I swear! She hates me!"
He immediately assumed that she was talking about her mother. There was only one person, who could get her to use that tone of voice. The one of high pitched frustration.
"Only because you're pursuing your dream, while she ended up marrying a stuffy office worker."
How many times had he told her this?
"How is that my fault?"
"It's not, but she just likes to take it out on you because she thinks that you'll amount to nothing."
"I'll amount to nothing! I'll amount to—"
"Minako! Concentrate! Your mother is coming here to stir up trouble! We must diffuse her and warn Shikoku-san!"
"Kami! Shikoku-san! He's going to kill me! I have to find his number!", said Minako limping to her bedroom, once his bedroom.
XXXXXXXXXXXX
"Ring, Ring."
"Pick up! Please pick up!"
"You've reached the phone of Shikoku—"
"Argh!"
Click.
"Artemis! He didn't pick up! What should I do?"
"Prepare yourself Minako. What are you going to tell your mother?"
"That I'm madly in love with him!"
"That won't work. You suck at lying to your mother."
Sigh. "Yeah you're right. Then I'll tell her the truth about the audition!"
"That'll just set her off even more. You know she hates the fact that you're acting. As it is you'll be the laughingstock of your family Christmas gathering, again."
"I hate my family."
"No you don't."
"I'll just tell her that I'm twenty-three and I can do whatever I want because I'm an adult."
"The day you stand up to your mother like an adult, without screaming at her once, is the day those stack of traffic tickets lying under your bed disappear. I can't sneak into the police headquarters and erase your files every time you get into trouble. Seriously, Minako, you need to take care of those. The last time I went into that office, I was almost caught by the janitor."
"What would happen to the world if Sailor Venus was put in jail for refusing to pay her traffic tickets?"
"I swear you abuse your position."
"I love you Artemis."
"Yes, yes. Of course. Only when it's convenient to love the mangy cat."
"Oh Arty! That's not true!!!"
"Minako! Ribs!"
Laughter. "Sorry, love."
Kunzite stared at his phone, debating whether or not to pick it up. He would have to face her sooner or later. However, he was driving home from work and it wasn't safe to talk and drive at the same time right? Right. The phone rang insistently. Damn it. The one woman who made him weak in the knees and could reduce him into a puddle of mush with just one stern look. He sighed and picked it up.
"Hello, Mother."
"He's here!", said Minako wild-eyed, as she scanned the parking lot for his car and spotted it coming in. She was currently perched on the flimsy balcony railing; not a very smart thing to do actually, but Minako didn't have time to be smart. Artemis wasn't worried; she had done this type of thing plenty of times.
"Act completely normal Artemis!"
"Mrrow", he said sarcastically.
"Good", she said limping haphazardly towards the door.
"I have to get to him quickly! She could be here at any moment!", she said as she reached for the doorknob. Suddenly, the door was wildly flung open, stunning her as she flew backwards into the steps. In the doorway was a strange sight. It was Kunzite. He was panicked, sweating heavily, and breathing hard as if he had run from the parking lot to his apartment. Minako's heart stopped. Mother, she thought, he's had a run in with her. There's no other explanation. He roughly hauled her up and apologized hurriedly. Impatient to know what had happened and to inform him of the bad news she spoke at the same time he did.
"My mother's coming!"
"My mother's coming!"
Silence.
"Your mother's coming!"
"Your mother's coming!"
Silence.
"How—"
"When—"
Silence.
"Crap! We're doomed!", wailed Minako in his arms.
"Pull yourself together! We can do this!", he said vehemently.
Minako gasped. "I have an idea! I don't know why I didn't think of this earlier!"
"What is it!", he asked desperately as he shook her by the shoulders. With a grim face, she pulled out her cell phone and dialed. It rang twice before someone picked up.
"Rei! If you love me like I love you, you will do this for me! Pray Rei-chan! Pray that Shikoku-san's mother and my mother never make it to his apartment!"
"What! No! Give me that phone! Hino-san, yes this is the cat killer. It's nice to hear your voice too. Unlike Aino-san here I happen to be very fond of my mother, so please leave her out of your prayers. Thanks, bye", he said dryly as he hung up.
"Wait! That was the only idea I had! What did she say?"
"That she doesn't do those kinds of prayers."
"What! No! Rei-chan! Give me the phone!"
"Aino-san, rubbing your mother out through prayer won't work. Besides, it's bad karma if it does happen."
"You've never met my mother. I'd be doing the world a favor."
"I'm sure that isn't true."
Sigh. "So what do we do?"
Silence.
"How much do you know about traditional tea ceremonies?"
"Errr. Umm…"
"Kami…We're doomed."
"Hey! I'm a fast learner! And I've seen it on TV!"
Silence.
"I need a drink."
"No! Not yet! Later! Much later! After we've dealt with our mothers!"
"If we survive."
"Oh, we'll survive…now teach me."
Okay, he had to hand it to her. She was good. Very good. She performed the ceremony and muttered the appropriate phrases with grace and poise. Luckily, she was in the role of the guest; if she had to serve and make the tea, she would have been doomed. She muttered another phrase, her eyes downcast demurely. Excellent. Just like he taught her… all in the span of 10 minutes… while, she was going through her closet and choosing what to wear. And her outfit looked nice too. It was very conservative and for once, she matched, unlike their peers, who usually wore a hodge-podge of clothing and colors for popular wear.
There was a speculative glint in his mother's eye as she studied her from a serene mask. He knew what that look meant. Trouble. Sumi Shikoku, in a nutshell, did not play. She would accept nothing but the best from herself, the people around her, her sons, and her third husband. She was an instructor of tea ceremonies and one of the best in Japan. It was his mother that instilled a love of history and tradition in him. He was practically his mother's favorite. Mainly because he looked just like her. Same hair and facial structure, the only difference were his eyes. She was tougher on him because of their similar looks. In extension, she was even tougher on those around him. He had very few friends. Minako was good, but was she good enough?
"Tell me Aino-san", she began in a deceptively soft voice, "where did you learn the traditional tea ceremony so well?"
"Umm…"
Kunzite froze. Apparently not. Um was not an acceptable response. It wasn't proper or graceful. His mother was huge on gracefulness and propriety. You could tell just by looking at her. She was cool, calm, and collected. Not a strand of hair out of place, her kimono, impeccable. Minako was in trouble from the moment she opened her mouth. She had to say something quickly to recover herself.
"By watching TV", she said laughing nervously.
Well anything but that. Calm Kunzite, calm. Don't panic. You are the quiet stillness of a serene lake during fall. Reflect the colors of the leaves. Reflect.
"Oh indeed?"
Crap.
"Yup!", said Minako cheerfully.
Double Crap.
"You are a great beauty Aino-san. However did you manage to ensnare my son?"
He sucked in his breath. The magnitude of the insult was there. It was subtle though. Pure Sumi Shikoku. She was practically saying that Aino-san had no brains. At the same time she was insulting him by saying that he should know better than to be ensnared because Aino-san had no brains. He felt himself blush and his hard earned composure slip away. What was Hino-san's telephone number?
"Why Sumi-san! You do say the nicest things", cooed Aino-san. She boldly picked up the tea bowl, dipped her pinky finger in it, and sucked on it. Kunzite winced. This was not what he taught her.
"Hmm," she said speculatively, "It's far too bitter and sour. I think it needs more sugar. Don't you Sumi-san?" Minako's voice was sweet and innocent to the ear. But Kunzite wasn't fooled; he could almost taste the hard steel in her voice. The tense silence was becoming unbearable and he was sweating bullets. He could hear a soft, almost inaudible sniggering from underneath the couch. Out of the corner of his eye, a white tail lashed back and forth. Bastard cat. He hoped to high heaven that she didn't hear it. He'd have a tough time explaining to his mother his acquirement of a cat and why it was laughing.
Silence.
Aino-san's usage of his mother's first name was low. But then again so was calling Aino-san stupid. By insulting the tea, which was naturally bitter and sour, she was insulting his mother, who looked very, very bitter and sour. But it was wrong to call him stupid for "falling" to Aino-san's wiles. Even though he hadn't fallen to her wiles. At least not yet. Okay, Mother 2- Aino-san 2. They were deadlocked and the environment was becoming poisonous. He prayed for heaven to send a distraction. Anything would do. An angry knock came at the door, ending their eye-staring contest, and he relaxed as the tension dissipated. Suddenly, he remembered that the probability of the owner of the knock being Aino-san's mother was very high. Why? Why me? He thought as he slowly felt a headache begin to form. Kunzite was an observer by nature and as a political historian he could always see the where the threads of fate would become tangled and cause a conflagration of tensions. Adding Aino-san's mother to the mix was dangerous, very dangerous. There was no telling what would happen. If he came out of this alive, he would go to the nearest shrine and offer up his thanks.
"I'll get it", said Aino-san, her carefree demeanor changing grimly. She set down the bowl and limped to the door.
"What's wrong with her foot?"
"It's a long story."
"Oh. You know, I thought I heard someone laughing—"
"An extremely long and complicated story Mother."
"But Kunzite dear it was so strange and—"
"Leave it be, Mother."
"Hello mother", came Minako's soft voice.
"Aino Minako! Young Lady! I— Minako! Your cheek! You're limping! WHERE IS HE? WHERE IS THE DEAD MAN WHO TOUCHED MY LOVELY DAUGHTER'S FACE?"
Up the stairs came Aino-san's mother, her spitting image, only much older. And she was enraged.
"Mama please let me explain!"
"MY SON WOULD NEVER…"
"…YOU ABUSER!!!"
It was one of the scariest sights he had ever seen. His calm, graceful mother was yelling at the top of her lungs.
"YOUR RUDE DAUGHTER…"
"YOUR BOORISH SON…"
"NEVER IN ALL MY YEARS…"
"MY ONLY BABY! HE HIT HER!!"
"Mother! I can't breath! My ribs! Stop crying! It's not what you think!", pleaded Minako helplessly as her mother sobbed wildly into her hair.
"Mother, don't cry please", begged Kunzite as his mother in turn dissolved into tears.
"All I wanted was for you to be happy! She was such a nice girl! I spent so much time planning the wedding! It would have been graceful and beautiful and… Now look at you! You're hitting women! My own son!"
"I didn't hit her! Minako could you please?"
"Not now! I can't breath! Mother!"
A sniggering sound came from under the couch.
"See! There it is! That beastly demonic sound! Kunzite what was that?"
"I haven't the slightest idea mother. Just ignore it", he said soothingly.
It was seven by the time they left and Kunzite and Minako were exhausted. They had to explain everything. Who Amika was, why he left her, what happened to Minako's foot and cheek, why his apartment was emptier than before, where Sumi-san's priceless vase had gone…it was a nightmare. Not to mention that the whole time, his mother was insulting Aino-san and her mother left and right. He had to be the diplomatic one and smooth over tensions. As soon as he got back from walking his mother to his car, he collapsed on the couch, thoroughly disgusted with the world in general. He had a pounding headache. A knock came on the door. I really need to get her a key he thought tiredly. He groaned and sat up and walked to the door.
"We did it! Victory!", she said as she flashed him her famous "V" sign.
"You call that a victory?", he asked disbelievingly.
"Of course!", she responded flinging her arms about him, "We're alive aren't we?"
"I guess we are", he said instinctively wrapping his arms loosely around her.
"We should celebrate! Let's go! I know this great place!"
"Is it a temple?"
"Nope."
"After we take a nap, then, I'm completely drained", he said as he staggered towards the couch.
"Great idea! I'll get a blanket!"
Half listening, he sank onto the couch and closed his eyes. He'd slept in his suit before, he'd be alright. He registered footsteps and opened his eyes, shocked. She was smiling at him cheerfully, wrapped in a blanket.
"Scoot over, you're hogging the couch."
He hesitated, before making room for her. She wrapped the blanket around both of them. It was right around the time that she snuggled into his chest that his heart began to beat faster.
"Guess what?" she said near his ear.
"What?", he said rubbing her scalp. She sighed and rubbed her nose into his chest.
"We won't ever have to do that again!", she said laughing.
"Can you imagine having to deal with that during the holidays?", he said chuckling.
"No! I'd die! It'll never work out", she said smiling.
He stopped laughing and frowned, may be he was reading too much into it but…
"No, you're right. It would never work out."
He dipped his head and leaned slightly into her face. If she laughed it off or turned away, then she wasn't interested. If she kissed him…
She grabbed his tie, pressed her body against his, and kissed him. Her lips were soft and inviting and she deepened the kiss. His body heat rose just a notch and blood rushed to interesting places. He broke it off, before it went away further.
"We'll make it work somehow", he murmured into her hair.
Snigger.
"You need to get rid of that weird cat."
"Never", she muttered sleepily against his chest as he massaged her head.
Snigger.
"Stop it Artemis; we're trying to sleep. Behave and we'll bring you back some chicken and pocky."
Artemis began to purr as they gently slumbered.
XXXXXXXXXXXXX
It was eight thirty and he wanted food; time to wake up the happy couple. He had seen this done on television on those domesticated animal shows, where people sent in funny videos of their pets. Humans had an odd sense of humor. Even though it was beneath him he wanted to try this move because it looked like fun. He stalked them along the edge of the couch, taking his time. And then he pounced on Kunzite's head and scampered back on to the side of the couch. That was fun. Repeat, he thought, readying himself.
XXXXXXXXXXX
"Minako I think your cat is trying to tell me something."
"What?"
"I think it's either, 'I'm Hungry' or 'You're ugly'."
"What makes you think that?"
"He keeps pouncing on my face."
"He's probably hungry."
"I figured that. I needed to make sure though, so I added another option just in case."
"Wanna go eat?"
"Not particularly, but the likelihood of pouncing increases if we stay here."
"Mmm. Okay. Let's eat."
XXXXXXXXXXX
Minako laughed. "No, the best part was when she said, 'I am not overly shocked at the fact that your daughter is unemployed, she is very beautiful.' Your mother is hilarious."
"She's good at subtly insulting people. She once called my stepfather an idiot, and he didn't realize it until a week later."
"Oh could tell she was good. Remember what she said about me being beautiful at the very beginning of the conversation? She really insulted me three times."
"Three? You're kidding."
"1. She called me an idiot. 2. She called you an idiot. 3. And she was silently saying that Amika was smarter than I was without even saying her name."
"She's good."
"Oh, yeah but so am I. 1. I broke the tea ceremony rules. 2. I insulted her by called her by her first name. 3. I insulted the tea. 4. I insulted her by saying that she couldn't make good tea. 5. And finally, by saying the tea needed sugar; I was saying that her attitude needed to be nicer. I hope you don't mind what I did."
"I do in part because she's my mother, but I've seen her destroy so many people with that tongue of hers. She reminds a lot of Hino-san."
"You know when it comes to people like her and Rei-chan it's important to have a cheerful attitude because it annoys them. They tend to leave you alone. I've learned most of my skills from Rei-chan. I'd love to see them both go at it.
Snort. "There wouldn't be anything left."
Laughter.
They spent the rest of the night on that cozy, amusing topic. It was raining outside and they had a table near the window as they ate Thai. They skirted around the issue of their forming affection to each other and decided to discuss family history. He's a good guy, thought Minako, biting her lip. Almost all her relationships had gone kaput. It was slightly depressing actually. She owned a shirt that said, 'I haven't found Mr. Right. But I have found Mr. Rude, Mr. Cheap, and Mr. Married.' And this one here was practically married. She hated the 'other woman' feeling that she was getting, but she didn't want to push this just because of one impulsive kiss. A kiss was just a kiss right?
XXXXXXXXXXXXX
"I'm sorry is Minako awake?", said Ami blushing slightly, "She usually is. If she isn't I can leave."
"No, its fine; come on in. If you're here, maybe Artemis won't talk so much if he's drunk."
Ami's eyes widened. She had heard about Luna's apoplectic rage. And he's still drinking after that?, she thought swiftly entering the house. She took off her shoes as Kunzite closed the door.
"He's in the kitchen."
"Artemis?", Ami called mounting the steps and putting her brief case down near the entrance.
"Would you like some of his leftover Thai?"
"Sure. If its not too much trouble", said Ami sheepishly. Sandwiches were nice, but warm, free food was always welcome.
He got out a plate and poured them all some sake.
"I don't want to take all your food. Have you eaten?"
"Yes, I already had a bite."
Artemis briefly lifted his face from the plate to acknowledge her presence, before continuing to stuff himself on the spicy food.
"He's going to make himself sick", noted Ami.
"I tried telling him that but he wouldn't listen."
"Do you really think he knows how to talk? That's not a very healthy notion Shikoku-san", said Ami with an air of concern. She tried very hard to maintain her composure. She wasn't very good at lying…
Kunzite just smiled. Artemis switched from burying his face in the Thai to burying his face in the sake cup. Kunzite sipped on his cup, while watching Artemis daintily lap up the sake. Ami quietly ate her food, eyeing Artemis' alcohol intake.
"How's the food?", asked Kunzite politely.
"Oh it's very good. Where did you get it from?"
"This little restaurant on the corner of 15th and Sen", he said handing her the menu from the bag, "They do takeout too."
"Hmm", said Ami studying the menu intently.
"How's your food, Artemis?"
Artemis raised his head from the plate and looked directly at Kunzite.
"It's a little spicy."
"Artemis!", scolded Ami horrified.
Kunzite smiled secretly into his cup. "Just what a cat would say. I can't believe you're complaining over food that you didn't pay for you grateful creature."
"Shikoku-san—", said Ami, slightly panicked.
"Don't worry; I won't say anything as long as you don't. I think everyone has beaten on him enough. Think of this as my way of apologizing for slamming the door on your tail, cat." Artemis ignored him and kept eating.
"Shikoku-san, you're taking this so calmly."
"That's because I think I've met him before."
Silence.
Artemis was now paying full attention as he licked his chops. His ears flickered and his tail twitched, as he considered Kunzite-san's statement. He opened his mouth as if to speak, when Ami gave him a warning look. Nonchalantly, as if he had been planning it all along, he went back to eating.
"That's ridiculous Shikoku-san."
"I know. But so is the idea of a talking cat, so I'm willing not to ask any questions. I'll go along with the flow. For now." Ami raised an eyebrow at this last statement. What did he mean by "for now"? She quietly continued eating. Unlike the tension she was expecting she was oddly relaxed with him, as if with an older sibling. Her blue hair was reflected in the light and shimmered every time she bent her head to eat.
"You have blue hair."
Ami sighed. "Yes I do."
"I'm just remarking on it."
"I know, but I have a tendency of hearing that statement a lot. Even Alderton-san…", she trailed off turning slightly pink.
"You like him don't you?"
"What!"
"Just making an observation."
"To make an observation, one must have facts and not speculations or rumors. What you're doing is making an assumption", she said heatedly.
"I observe your actions towards him, which are facts, and draw conclusions from those actions."
"Your conclusions are incorrect. I suggest you reanalyze the situation."
Chuckle. "Very well. I will hold my peace and continue to observe for now. Would you like me to change the subject?"
Blush. "Yes, please."
He laughed and Artemis sniggered along with him, before continuing to eat.
"Hey guys, what's going on?", muttered Minako sleepily, as she walked into the kitchen. Kunzite picked up Artemis' empty sake cup and put it in the sink, before Minako noticed it.
"Gomen nasi. I know it's late, but I just got off my shift at the hospital, and I wanted to talk to you about something."
"Ooo. Ames and Goldilocks!"
"Goldilocks?"
"Alderton-san. You see, Ami likes him, and it's so obvious you know—"
"Mina-chan!", said Ami blushing hard.
Kunzite chuckled good-naturedly. "It seems that I was correct. Let's leave them alone for their private chat, Artemis." He scooped up the cat, the pocky, and the plate of food and headed to the bedroom.
"When you're done dispensing love advice, let me know and I'll move to the couch."
Minako waved him off and yawned sleepily.
"Okay let's make this quick. I'm still tired from my run in with his mother."
"His mother?!?"
"I never kiss and tell."
"You kissed his mother!"
"No!"
"Oh."
"Never mind, Ami-chan. How can the love goddess help you?"
They spent a couple of hours sorting out her feelings. What Ami really needed was someone to talk to and Minako obliged her. She learned that sometimes it was best to just keep quiet and listen. Besides, she was tired and it hurt to think. When she left, Minako didn't bother to wake him up and just crawled into bed with him, after she set her alarm.
Read and Review.
Art: I Knew It!! Squeezing ribs does run in the family. Your demon mother has passed on the trait to you!
Squeeze
Art: Gah! Please! No!
Mina: That's what you get for talking to Kunzi-kun!
Kunzite: I really hate that nickname. weeps