When the Moon meets the Star by Princess Silverstar
Disclaimer: I DO NOT own Sailor Moon but Hikari and Sol-Apollos is mine!
Chapter 7: Suspicious Lovers
"I'm home…"
"Welcome home, dear." Ikuko greeted as she came out from the kitchen. "Why are you late- Oh…" Ikuko noticed another guy behind her daughter and giggled. "And who is this?"
She asked with a sly smile.
"Mama, this is Furuhata Motoki, this is my mother, Tsukino Ikuko." Hikari introduced.
"Nice to meet you, Tsukino-san" Motoki said with a bow.
"The pleasure's mine" Ikuko said with a giggle "Come on in, make yourself at home. Hikari, your sister just came home a while ago. Go call her down."
"Hai" she said to her mother. "Well, take a seat. We'll be down in a minute" she said to Motoki as she walked up the stairs.
As Motoki took a seat, someone came through the door.
"I'm home…" a boy voice called out.
"Welcome home, honey" Ikuko called out as she walked into the living room, carrying a tray.
"Do we have guest?" Shingo said as he walked into the living room.
"Yes, Hikari brought home a friend." Ikuko answered.
Shingo bowed when he saw Motoki who bowed back in return.
"I'm Tsukino Shingo. Nice to meet you" Shingo said.
"I'm Furuhata Motoki. Nice to meet you too" Motoki replied.
"Ah… so you're the Oniichan baka Usagi was blabbering about…?" Shingo said with a mischievous smile.
"Shingo" Ikuko said with a stern yet gentle voice.
Motoki couldn't help but laugh as he remembered the times Usagi complained about her brother.
"I'm sorry" he apologised when Ikuko and Shingo were looking at him with a puzzle expression. "It's just that Usagi had told many heart warming stories of her family…and I have the privilege to experience it today" he said with a wide smile.
"Oh, how sweet…" Ikuko said.
A thundering sound from the stair and a rush of wind, the familiar voice of Usagi called out "Toki-oniichan!"
"Oof!" Motoki was knock off his seat and landed on the floor with a ball of energy on him.
"Are you alright, Furuhata-san?" Ikuko gasped
Seeing his little sister's enthusiasm made him laugh, "I'm fine, thank you. I'm glad to see you too, Usagi-chan, but I should like to get up please" Motoki said with a chuckle.
"Sorry…" Usagi said sheepishly as she got up.
"Would you like to stay for dinner?" Ikuko offered.
"Um…"
"Please, please, please…" Usagi pleaded.
Hikari came down from the stairs and saw the scene that made her laugh. "You didn't do what I think you did, right?" she said to her sister. Just then she heard the gate, indicating her father's return.
"Get up before papa gets the wrong picture" she said nudging her head towards the door.
Usagi quickly got up and shuffled around with embarrassment. Ikuko shook her head at her daughter's enthusiasm.
"I'm home…ah, Hikari" Kenji said as he walked through the door.
Hikari had walked over to collect her father's briefcase and greeted with a bright smile, "Welcome home" She then placed her father's briefcase in his study room and rejoined the family.
"So, you're Furuhata Motoki my baby girl is talking about." She heard her father's conversation with Motoki as she exited the room.
"Yes, sir" Motoki said politely and flashed Hikari a smile when she comes in to the room.
"Well, I wasn't expecting a guest so forgive me for any inappropriate manners, Furuhata-san" Kenji said.
"No, sir, pardon me for visiting without notice. And do call me Motoki, sir"
"Very well" Kenji nodded with a smile and stole a glance at his daughters. "And if you don't mind, I'll excuse myself while I change into more comfortable clothing."
Kenji obviously approve of Motoki when he invited Motoki to stay for dinner. Motoki smiled politely as not to offend the host.
"I wouldn't want to be a bother…" he said.
"No, no, no bother at all…" Kenji insisted with a chuckle.
Usagi beamed with excitement while Hikari rolled her eyes and shook her head at her father's obvious display of liking to Motoki with a hidden chuckle. Not that she's revolted by the idea and guess where Usagi's enthusiasm comes from?
"I'll go and see if mama needs help" Hikari said as she got up from the sofa.
"Me too" Usagi said and hurried after her sister; she had wanted to asked her sister about the incident about the park. But her sister had always been sharp in her thoughts.
"How come Toki-niichan comes home with you?" She started innocently.
"What can we do to help, mama?" Hikari asked her mother as an excuse to contemplate what to answer her sister.
"Well, dinner's about ready. Why do you set the table for me?" Ikuko said.
'Sa-chan seems to suspect something. Should I tell her?' she thought as she opened the drawer where they keep the eating utensils. It almost surprised her to hear Motoki's voice in her head.
"Do me a favour, not now" he said "She's investigating"
Motoki now, being Sol Apollos, could tell that what Usagi was up to, but not wanting to reveal what even he himself is uncertain of, he sent her the message mentally.
Hikari secretly looked at her sister for a while before answering. "We met on my way home" Hikari repeated casually after him. She passed the utensils to Usagi while she proceeds to take the dishes and arrange them on the table.
"And why…would he be around here?" Usagi asked since she knew that Motoki does not live in this part of the town.
"He said he's visiting a friend after work since he was assigned an early shift today" Hikari said, making it up.
"Smooth one" Motoki reached out to her with a smile.
"I do not like this one bit!" she shot back with a little resentment of having to lie to her sister.
"My word, you mind-speak?!" Motoki asked surprised.
"What are you talking about?" Hikari said.
"Is everything alright?" the girls heard their father asked Motoki in the background. Usagi took a glance at them and came back with a shrug.
"I'm fine" Motoki said with a smile. Motoki's surprise was apparently obvious and was stunned.
After she set down to last dishes, she walked to the door that connects the dining room with the living room.
"Dinner's ready" she announced with a smile, further hiding her resentment from her father especially.
"Come" Kenji invited.
The dinner went on smoothly without any suspicion.
"The dinner is amazing, Tsukino-san" Motoki complimented Ikuko.
"Thank you, I hope that you liked it" Ikuko said.
"I do" He replied.
Motoki stayed for while after dessert before excusing himself to leave.
"Your parents are really nice" Motoki said to Hikari who walked him to the gate.
"If you don't think they are overly enthusiastic" She said with a small laugh.
"I see where yours and Usagi-chan's characters come from" He said, returning the laugh.
"Well, we'll see you tomorrow then" Hikari said chirpily.
"Hikari-chan" Motoki said with an apologetic look. "I'm sorry, I asked you to lie earlier"
Hikari look at him with surprise at first before recalling what he meant, her eyes softened and smiled at him.
"Well, most superheroes have a secret identity, don't they? If it weren't for you, I would've been dead. It so happens we're together when the youma attacked otherwise I wouldn't have known." She said with the smile. "Plus, I'm only angry at myself because I felt guilty to have to lie to Sa-chan. Sorry I took it out on you" She bit her lower lip.
"Nah, don't worry about it. I deserved it" He laughed it off. "Well, I'll see you tomorrow, princess" he said as he took one of her hands and place a kiss at the back of her hand.
Hikari blushed at that gesture. When he straightened he suddenly realised what he just did and felt slightly embarrassed. He laughed it off apologised.
"Sorry, don't know what's got into me…"
"Maybe that's Sol Apollos speaking" she said with a small laugh as she recovered.
"Maybe" he said as he let go of her hand and scratch his head. "Well, see you" he said and started down the road.
When he was a little away, Hikari turned to go back inside and gasped. Usagi had creped up behind her when Motoki left, determined to pry secrets from her sister.
"Usagi, what in the world are you doing behind me?!" Hikari recovered from the shock she gotten from her sister with a few deep breaths.
"So…what happened with the both of you…?" Usagi asked with a Cheshire cat smile.
"Not-hing" she said and walked past Usagi.
"Aww…come on…" Usagi whined. "We're sisters, aren't we? No secrets okay…"
"There's truly nothing between us, Sa-sa…" Hikari said seriously, but she couldn't help but laugh lightly at her sister, a smile which Usagi misunderstood.
"I so…don't believe that."
Well, I sidetrack a little for the finale for Chapter 6...I'll be working on Chapter 8...So stay tune...
Princess Silverstar