Title: Cranky child
Author: Ree
Theme: Minor Characters (unhealthy)
Genre: General
Version: Manga
Rating: G

All characters from Sailor Moon belong to Takeuchi Naoko, I'm just borrowing them for awhile.

She stopped at the front door. Ikuko knew she couldn't run out on Kenji. He had just got home, and was tired from work. Besides, Usagi was having nothing to do with him. All Usagi wanted was "Mama". She closed her hand around the door knob. She needed just a few minutes. Just a few minutes to regain the sanity that she had lost over the last two days. Usagi was clinging more than normal. The two year old wanted to be constantly held, or cuddled.

Quietly muttering to herself, she tried to talk herself into staying. "I can't go now. Kenji would be pulling his hair out. He doesn't deserve that after working so hard." Letting go of the doorknob, she turned towards the kitchen. "Besides, I need to finish making supper. He's not going to be able to get her to eat a thing when she is in one of her moods. And that's all she has been in today."

Taking a settling breath, she walked to the kitchen before her resolve wore off. 'I hope she takes her whole nap. It was a fight even to get her to sleep.'

Thirty minutes later, Ikuko felt calmer. Supper was finishing, and she and Kenji were able to have an adult conversation. 'I never realized how much I miss talking like an adult, and not like a two year old.' Setting the table, she glanced at the clock. Usagi should have been screaming the house down by now. Taking the few extra minutes granted to her, she finished the table, and brought the food out. Knowing that she couldn't put it off any longer, she went to wake Usagi.

Looking down on her daughter sleeping so peacefully, Ikuko felt the joy of being a mom rush through her. 'I really love this little one. Even when she is being such a problem. Guess it's time to hear the fussing.' Reaching out, she shook Usagi gentle to wake her up.

"Usagi. Usagi. It's time to wake up. I know you didn't get your normal length of time, but supper is ready." She smiled down into the bleary eyes that were peering back at her.

"No. Don' wan' na ge' up." Usagi turned back over and pulled her cover back on.

Ikuko removed the cover again, and the gently scoped the sleepy child out of the bed. Tickling Usagi's sides gently as she walked out of the room, she smiled at her. "It's time to get up. If you sleep any longer, you won't sleep tonight. Wake up."

The child squirmed and started thrashing around. When that didn't stop her Mom, she started wailing."I wana s'eep! S'eep! No wakey!" Ikuko deposited her into her chair at the table, and moved her plate closer to her. Usagi shoved it across the table. "Not hungey!"

Sighing Ikuko moved it back. 'Please, don't let it be a repeat of lunch.' Lunch turned into a battle. Ikuko lost. Usagi had barely touched her breakfast that morning as well.

Usagi, with a mighty shove, launched the plate onto the floor, and promptly started crying at the top of her lungs. Ikuko looked at Kenji. She was worried what he was thinking. 'What if I let her win? What will he think? Will he think I'm too soft with her?'

Kenji smiled, and his concern for her came out in his voice. "I'll clean up the mess. Why don't you take her to the living room and try to calm her down?"

Feeling relieved that Kenji didn't doubt her ability with Usagi, Ikuko pulled the screaming child out of her seat, and went to the living room. For the next half hour she worked at calming Usagi down. Finally the tears and crying stopped. The child clung to her mother as tight as she could. Ikuko looked up when Kenji slid into the room. With hand gestures, he offered to take the little one. Ikuko tried to move her, but Usagi held on tighter and squelched her face up preparing to cry again. Ikuko stopped.

Giving her a reassuring smile, Kenji brought Ikuko her dinner from the dinning room. Ikuko ate clumsily around the child that refused to let go. Every once in awhile she offered some to Usagi. All the cranky child did was turn her face into Mom's chest. By the time Ikuko had finished, Usagi had fallen back to sleep. Running her hand up the little one's back, Ikuko considered waking her again. Suddenly she stopped. Laying her hand in flat against Usagi's upper back, Ikuko felt her temperature. She slid her hand to the front of Usagi's chest, and felt again. Finally, she laid her forehead against the protesting child who didn't want to be moved. 'She has a fever. I wonder how long she has had one. Couldn't be too long. I would have noticed when I was putting her down for her nap.'

Looking around the living room she noticed that Kenji wasn't in his chair were she had last seen him. Just as she started wondering how she was going to call him without waking Usagi, he walked in with a bottle of medicine and a blanket.

"Do you think she needs medicine?"He asked while he tucked the blanket over both of them. Ikuko nodded yes. "Then let me hold her while you give it to her. Then we'll put her to bed. I'll move the rocking chair back in there for you." Holding out his hands, he asked "Ready?"

Ikuko gentle pulled Usagi's hands down from her shoulders. "Yes." Kenji gentle took the little bundle, and Ikuko convinced her to wake up just enough to take her medicine. Cuddling his daughter into his chest, Kenji carried her upstairs, and settled her down into her room. Kissing her gently on her forehead he whispered. "Don't keep your Mama up all night, she needs her sleep, too." He went to move the rocking chair.