Chapter 10: The Crowing
"did you ever really know
before my face shamed to break
did you ever really know
before my mind was scared to think
did you ever really know
before my name sung to these
did you come clean in the end from the start?
I will call you out from shelter
and burn your wings and you'll know no better."
Rei looked hard at the blender which held the fruit of her labor, in
picking all the ingredients carefully from her fridge, to actually looking
up it's nutritional value, but still she could not deny the fact that she had the use
of only one of her arms. Cursing her injury incoherently Rei contemplated
just using a fork and a cup and mashing the ingredients in there manually, but
that would take too much time to do and everything would come out chunky,
and not very edible-looking, as if blending all this crap could make it look more
attracting to the eye. To herself, Rei prayed that she would never have to drink
this mixture ever. Supressing a small smirk at the thought of Minako digesting this
drink she picked up the lid to the blender and tried to imagine to Minako gulping all
of this blend of vegetables, protein, and eggs all in one huge gulp. Just the thought
of it seemed to make Rei want to do a little jig in the small corner of the room to
herself.
Setting the lid slowly on the blender Rei grunted at this dilemma, if she didn't hurry
Minako would soon be up awake and around the house, and when she sees what
was actually in this drink she would never dare to drink it. Slowly setting her chin up
on the blender Rei stood on a tippy toe using her chin to hold the lid on the blender
down as her right hand punched the button and sure enough the miscellenous food
items started getting grainy and mushy. She felt like her chin was set on some jackhammer
as it vibrated and she lost her footing, and some of the juice from the blender splattered
onto the white fabric of her dogi.
"SHIT! YOU LITTLE-----" Rei paused in mid-curse as she heard the familiar nimble
footsteps approaching, judging by her footsteps Rei could tell that Minako was wearing socks.
Minako's sleepy head poked it's way from the doorway as she seemed to
protest the brushing of hair at 1:00 in the afternoon. Moving her disheveled head
from side to side she scanned the room curiously as she took in Rei's ruined Miko
outfit and the chunks of what looked like slop all over Rei's chin. Edging into the
room to get out of the sunlight filtering in through the windows Minako rubbed her
eyes and yawned out a "hello".
"Nice...I get to see a side of you that no one else can. You'll never hear the end of this
Minako," Rei jeered.
"Hmm...that's okay because I get to tell everybody that I saw Hino Rei eating generically
and sloppily with slop that doesn't even deserve to be called food," Minako murmured back
gently dragging her index finger slowly over Rei's chin taking the leftoever goop from it.
Sticking her index finger in her mouth Minako felt the slimy contents enter into her mouth,
and waited for the flavor to erupt, but it was tasteless, and blander than any oatmeal she
had ever eaten before. Retching a little at the mixture Minako coughed as her finger flew
quickly out of her mouth leaving a trail of spittle across her chin. Wiping her mouth on her
pajama sleeve Minako grimaced as she stared at how she was dressed at this time of the day,
with just her pajamas on, the ones with cherry's imprinted all over, the press would've
had a field day if these ever got out. Wiggling her eyebrows disapprovingly Minako
eyed Rei dangerously.
"We are not eating this for breakfast," Minako spoke softly but her tone held a lethal
edge to it. "I'd rather go for the chow mein I ate last month that gave me diarhea then
eat this crap."
"Hey watch your language and don't wish for things you don't really mean, and who
said we were gonna eat this? YOU are gonna eat this and I'm going to have my breakfast
er....lunch with porridge," Rei corrected Minako gleefully loving every moment as she saw
Minako's face switch from anticipation, to confusion, and then to one of horror.
Minako felt the heat rush back up to her face if only she had known what breaking
from her usual routine would be this hard....she wasn't going to back down, but if she
had been in the privacy of her own abode at the time with Rei's instructions on what she
was to eat, ringing through the telephone speakers she would've stomped her foot
uncharacteristically in annoyance. Biting her lip, Minako pleaded to Rei with her eyes,
but Rei just turned her head away and poured out the slop in a little sippy cup for Minako
to drink from.
They eyeballed each other for a long time before Minako walked over to the sippy cup
and gently sniffed the drink again...
"Tell me, what is this called? I thought when you said you were going to help me that I
was actually going to be able to eat real food again," Minako commented sarcastically.
"It's a protein shake, or at least that's what they say it is, it's supposed to be the quickest
way to get you your nutrients, and right now you need more meat on your bones, not get
fat," Rei replied equal sarcasm dripping from her voice.
Minako wrinkled her nose at that but she drank it nonetheless groaning as she felt the
slimy fluid go down her throat quickly. Eyes watering, Minako set the cup triumphantly down
as her tongue seemed to burn from the unnoticeable after taste of the protein shake, and
somehow in all of that Minako had tasted egg. Ew, was all that was repated in Minako's head
as she repeated to herself why she was doing this.
"Get changed we're going to go shopping," Rei grunted as she spooned out some leftoever
porridge instead and gruelingly drank it.
"Why?" Minako asked.
"We're going to buy the things you need to break the habit. Like it or not my shrine doesn't have
everything," Rei replied rolling her eyes.
"Don't do that, you know your eyes will get stuck like that if you keep on doing that," Minako
replied disgruntled.
"PSSH," Rei responded as she spooned the last of her porridge.
Minako in turn flipped her head away as she begrudgingly trudged to Rei's room to get her clothes,
and Artemis who was currently snoozing at the foot of Rei's bed, the same bed which had kept Minako
warm in the night. Searching for her comb Minako gently pushed the comb through her hair and smiled
secretively to herself, even if she did have to drink the ridiculous drinks that Rei made, it still felt good
being taken care of...
---------------
"I tell you Mamoru it's a good way to get us all together and repair some damage and
stitch together relationships, and plus we could get Ami and Makoto to make up," Usagi
pleaded over and over again as Mamoru walked ahead of her in the supermarket clearly
annoyed.
"Usagi not everyone wants to makeup and be friends after something terrible happens,
just leave them alone and things will work itself out on its own," Mamoru sighed as he
wheeled ChibiUsa gingerly through the sunday mill of people at the market with their
groceries.
At that, Usagi stomped her foot angrily as she ran to catch up to Mamoru.
"You! It's always "ignore and it'll go away" or "oh...just leave it alone it'll fix itself"...
sometimes things don't work like that Mamoru! Sometimes people need to be pushed
to act," Usagi mocked Mamoru's way of speaking and his nonchalance in dealing
with hardships.
"Hey, that's how I grew up and handled things," Mamoru protested picking up an
orange and squeezing it a little testing the firmness.
"Well, Mamoru thing's don't always work that way! If we don't get them together
they'll never talk to each other again, not because they hate each other, because
there will be an even bigger rift inbetween them made by time! I know this Mamoru
trust me," Usagi pleaded jumping up and down impatiently.
Mamoru never knew how or why he let himself be dragged into his wife's many
schemes, but he knew all of them never ended well.
"Fine...how do you know it'll work?" Mamoru relented tired of the constant bickering
he was getting for this.
"I know it'll work because I did the same thing to get you to propose to me," Usagi said
teasingly as she pecked Mamoru's cheek playfully and ran away down the aisle of vegetables.
"USAGI!" Mamoru exclaimed surprised and a little hurt that she would use that method against
him but he shook his head anyway and stared down at his daughter.
"Now, don't you take after your mother," Mamoru warned ChibiUsa playfully but with a hint
of seriousness in his voice.
ChibiUsa in turn just looked up at him innocently and gurgled happily.
--------------
Walking into the market for Minako was what walking into a butchershop was to a cow.
With her head lowered and a baseball cap over her head Minako chose the time to don on
her dark shades, as she walked with smooth ease through the crowd, carefully avoiding
not to meet the curious glances thrown at her. Rei felt embarassed somewhat to be standing
and walking next to this person who had to wear a cap and shades indoors for fear of
being seen.
"she can't help it Hino, curb your damn sarcasm....she's only doing this for you because
she knows you're injured and wouldn't like a commotion," Rei repeated to herself as she looked
at the cabbages, while Minako hung around her like a shadow, and the only thing that reminded
Rei that she was even there was the seperate small touches to her arm when Minako felt like
she was losing Rei in the crowd.
Still, the fact that she felt like she was talking to a ghost, all while wondering at which
kind of meat to pick, stoked her fire. Poking Minako in the ribs to get her attention Minako
looked up quizzically, or what Rei thought as Minako looking at her quizzically, because
of the sheer darkness of the shades she couldn't tell.
"You know I feel like I should've gone here alone, since this is being such a
bother to you," Rei professed trying hard not to sound angry or cranky even
though she was irked.
"You don't want me to come along with you is that it?" Minako asked, a touch
of disdain in her voice as she raised one elegant eyebrow.
"No...it's just I don't like to see you when you have to dress up like this just to
do something as simple as grocery shopping, what happens when you want to
have fun?" Rei retorted, crushing the small peas she had held in her hand out
of frustration.
Minako just shrugged it off, smiling lightly before she lowered the bill of her cap
when a group of teengars came by happily gossiping to each other. Rei heard the
hush of voices when they passed by Minako, and held her breath praying that they
wouldn't notice Minako's graceful features, and the way she held herself, she hoped
they wouldn't give Minako away.
Really, Rei liked it when she saw Minako doing normal average things, like just
ordering take-out or lounging around the house, or just getting out of bed at 1:00 pm in
the afternoon with bed hair. That's what Rei liked to see in Minako, but it wasn't like
she encouraged the laziness, but there was...just something so real and believable
about Minako and her tendency to mumble in her sleep, and her way of sleeping on
her front so that she was sprawled across the bed.
At the thought of Minako last night waking her up suddenly by just mumbling or
...actually shouting out that "I didn't step on the bannana" made Rei giggle and laugh.
Which brought another quizzical expression from Minako. Smirking Rei took Minako
by the hand and led her to the meat aisle all the while very aware of the press of flesh
against flesh. Minako's hand was warm and soft as Rei had imagined it...WAIT...Imagined?
When had she ever imagined what touching Minako would be like? When had she in the first
day of living with Minako and bickering about Minako, when had she ever tried to imagine the
feel of her skin? Rei shook her head at this. She was going crazy and it was all on account
to her apocalyptic dreams but she never had them last night...
Suddenly feeling a tug Rei turned around worried that someone had caught Minako, but
Minako was standing there smiling pleasantly.
"You know for an invalid you sure do walk fast," Minako murmured.
"Well for a world known superstar you sure are slow and out of shape," Rei shot back.
Minako smirked back at Rei for that comment and slipped her hand away from Rei's to
reach over and order a pig's rib for cutting. Rei rubbed her neck slowly, and sighed as
she caught up with Minako and watched how casual Minako seemed in a crowd of
people, as if fame hadn't changed her at all. Fame had changed her physical qualities
of course but it wasn't that she was the same, yet different at the same time. She walked
to politely, too cautiously as if one small mistep would make the ground fall beneath her feet,
the Minako from before had long sure strides, full of power and pride. It made Rei feel as if
she was living with a stranger for some reason instead of some long ago friend that she
had been reunited with.
They were no longer senshis, no more missions, no more yelling and competing
against each other out of spite for the other's beliefs about the past life and the
present life. Minako had accused her of not caring about the past and Rei had
accused her of not caring for the present which was the most important thing. In a
way they had paid all that they owed to each other already, Rei had gone on with
her senshi duty and Minako had lived life like it was her last...and in a way it was,
and now Rei was helping Minako break free of her habit and Minako had gave Rei
back her home...her shrine, but somehow that felt empty like a hollow victory, as if
something was still owed between them. Thinking about the past life, Rei wondered
that maybe they still owed each other really from the past life, and that's why their
paths had crossed yet again.
Fidgeting with her yellow yukata over her black t-shirt she waited patiently for the meat
to be prepared all the while fighting the urge to look at Minako. Before she even had time
to move though her back was met with a huge slap and the wind was definetely knocked
from her. Coughing slightly Rei whipped around and glared at Minako who seemed to have
an impish smile on her face.
"Cheer up you look like death warmed over even in that cute yukata," Minako teased
good naturedly.
Rei just jutted her bottom lip at Minako, and growled ferally as she grabbed the meat
that was being offered from over the counter, and stomped away not really angry but
just wanting it for the show. It didn't take long for her pace to slow down however and
she waited as Minako slowly walked over to her. Scoffing at Minako's slow cat-walk Rei
was prepared to say some snide remark at Minako but then a voice rang out in the dairy
aisle louder than a bullhorn.
"Oh my god! Minako! Rei! It's Usagi! I can't believe you're in a supermarket Minako what if
someone sees you!?"
Minako and Rei collectively groaned at the same time as the whole of the supermarket
went quiet and the first one out of the high school groupies screamed out "AINO MINAKO!"
"Shit..." Rei muttered to herself as a whole swarm of people started surrounding them.
This was the only time Rei had ever felt that her safety was at stake in a supermarket,
especially someone else's safety, as Rei grabbed Minako by the arm and started tugging her
across the aisle. Rei winced repeatedly as she had to elbow the masses away with her injured
arm in a sling. She didn't trust Minako to just follow her back one, could get lost in the crowd
like that, and she didn't want to think of what would happen if she lost Minako here in a crowd of
people screaming out her name. Rei tore through that crowd as fast as she could without injuring
anything else but at this rate she was tiring quickly.
Minako felt as if she was being ripped one way and another, as she tried hard to keep up with
Rei's pace keeping an eye on Rei's injured arm, as she seemed to be using it repeatedly as a
weapon. Somebody was tugging on the waist of her jeans, and her cap in the chaos had fallen
off her head and onto the dirty floor, Minako did not waste time in trying to pick it up. Minako felt
displeased and irritated as something hit her face...really warm flesh it seemed on the side of
her head, and that really irritating warm hand(or appendage) on her face swiped off quickly
taking Minako's shades permanently with it. Biting her lip from anger and more or less holding
in her curses and temper since she was in public she squeezed Rei's hand tighter as she was
led to the exit.
Rei cursed her injury, her meddlesome ways, and mostly she cursed herself for thinking that
it was okay to take Minako Aino world-renown singer to a Supermarket for goodness sakes. She
should've known, but she didn't, she was always aware that too much celebrity status could cause
a riot or worse a mob but she didn't know that she'd actually be in the middle of one. Rei blindly fought
for a way but stopped dead when she felt a hand clamp down on her shoulder and tug fiercely.
"HEY! What the hell do you think you're doing!" Rei snarled agressively as she felt Minako
being tugged along with her.
"No time to talk!" the figure who had been holding Rei said.
"Mamoru?" Rei said in disbelief.
Out of nowhere swam the face of Mamoru out of the crowd and he smiled but the smile disappeared
as someone's elbow seemed to hit him on the head and he dashed with Rei and Minako in tow.
"Wait where's Usagi?" Rei asked frantically as her feet carried her as far as they could away from
the fans.
"Outside in the car," Mamoru answered as they rushed out the shopping mall and into the red
minivan that Usagi was currenlty waving desperately in.
Rei threw herself into the back seat as Minako did the same equally breathless and weary.
Mamoru himself jumped in the passengerseat of the minivan and helped put the carseat buckle
around ChibiUsa. Usagi gunned on the accelerator and with a satisfying crunch of gravel they
were off.
Rei's fingers were clammy and shaking from her ordeal, as she knew that her lipstick had definetely
smeared, and that her clothes were all slightly askew. Running a hand through her hair she grunted
in pain as her left arm now felt like lead weights and the injury throbbed. Rei slowly squeezed the
protesting appendage and only managed to send little pinpricks of pain up and down her spine.
"Are you all right?" Minako asked as she had been quiet so far.
"Yeah...it's no biggie....what about you? You look worse than I do," Rei said trying her best to be
nonchalant as if her arm wasn't killing her.
It was really hard to smile and grimace at the same time, Rei learned. Minako did look worse for the wear,
as she had a bruise on the bottom of her cheek, and another bruise on her collarbone turning purple and
dark over the period of time it took to drive away, but despite that Minako looked as cool and collected as
she always did, never betraying the heightened anxiety she felt.
"It's nothing. I'm used to it after all," Minako answered shortly as she reached for Rei's injured arm.
Rei moved her arm away ferociously so that she could feel the tendon in her arm seem to snap
and break.
"Don't ever say that! You know you've never seen anything like that before, and you didn't have
any bodyguards this time either. All of your interviews you were always a far distance away from
the center of the crowd. I never should've asked for you to come," Rei snapped bitterly as she
grounded her feet against the carpetting of the minivan. "How can fame be so toxic?"
Minako just stared at her after Rei had felt that she literally poured out all her worry over.
Minako of course didn't even blink at that but grabbed Rei's arm forcefully looked it. Rei bit her
lip against the pain. Minako studied the arm carefully as she removed it from the sling nimbly but
gently pushing down on select spots, as she did that Rei just buried her head in her seat back and
dealt with the pain.
"It's swelling...you shouldn't have used this arm at all," Minako said after a moment's silence.
"Well I did it because there was no other way," Rei replied angrily, removing her face from the
seatback.
"You should've let go of me," Minako replied coldly.
"Nothing in the nine hell's would've made me let go of you, Minako. I'm not going to
just let go of you and watch as you're being fed to the piranhas," Rei retorted her
legendery temper taking a flare.
"You should have anyway, why didn't you? I could've caught up with you outside."
"Dammit...don't act like you were just going to walk out there unscathed! I care about
you too much to be that damn naive!" Rei exclaimed slamming her right fist into the window
of the minivan.
"Then don't care about me! Everything was going fine in my life until you started caring!"
"...ARGHHH..." Rei could've screamed at that one moment at the palpability of it all.
After all these years Minako still couldn't accept her help, and didn't want to because
Minako still saw herself somewhat of a leader to all of them, the one to give away everything
for everyone. Rei wanted to shake her and hug her at the same time...she wanted to choke
her and kiss her lively cheeks at the same damn time...Minako had this way of making her
feel two different emotions at once, which frustrated and pleased her at the same time.
"Will you guys stop bickering? You're going to upset ChibiUsa, argue when we get you
home and away from the crowd!" Mamoru stopped the quarrel before things got too heated
and they ended up bitting each other's heads off.
They both did quiet down as they both sidled into their respective seats and refused to
look at each other, and with the smoldering of their tempers came Usagi's nervousness,
and to lighten the mood Usagi tried telling them of her plan for a whole get together at some
mall to try to get Makoto and Ami to make-up, it seemed like her whole coordinated
scheme was falling on deaf ears as none refused to answer.
"WELL?" Usagi asked enunciating her word not giving up.
"We'll come..." Rei uttered finally as Minako chose this very time to close her eyes
and shut out all noise from the inside.
"Together?" Usagi asked nervously as she was skeptic in thinking that Rei and
Minako could work out their quarrels that easily.
"Yeah," Rei huffed making it a note in her mind to stop being angry the day before their get
together.
"We'll need to pick a secluded spot though Usagi...Minako," Mamoru didn't even bother to
finish his sentence but let it sink in.
"Oh..." Usagi's voice faltered at that the sound of her fail-proof scheme hitting a snag.
"I'll make reservations at a restaurant," Minako mumbled irately but she still was willing to do
whatever for Makoto to feel better. "There'll be extra security it'll be safe....but uncomfortable
at the least."
"That's all right, better safe than not," Mamoru replied as he eyed Minako in the rearview mirror.
Soon the minivan pulled over to the Hikawa Shrine and the two passengers stepped out weary
and exhausted, and tried beyond their last nerve. Mamoru watched as the two women trudged their
way up the steps, both seeming firm in their position to not talk to each other or even have contact
with each other, as they decided to walk up the steps seperate and alone without leaning on each
other for support, which would've made walking up the steps easier...and much more painless.
He watched all this with a critical eye disbelief showing in his features at how they could both be
so stubborn with each other and yet care enough to protect each other.
"They'll be okay," Usagi reassured Mamoru as she saw the look on his face.
Mamoru looked over at her and shrugged still skeptical but he accepted it as it was.
"Of course they will...it's Minako and Rei after all, Mamoru. No matter how harsh the words
they may throw at each other it doesn't disguise the fact that they care so much that they hurt
each other and their selves with the words they should be saying and the words that they
are saying."