The music was incredibly loud. Setsuna made a face when the smoke welcomed her. She didn't like such concerts, she had never been to the disco. It was simply too loud for her, and when she looked around, she saw that she was indeed totally wrong at place. Still, she wore her costume: her short dark skirt and a white, long blouse. She didn't change after Haruka's social worker had left, but cared for her computer and drove to central Tokyo to search in every night club for Elza. Okay, the girl had wanted to come to one of those clubs together with her team, but Setsuna had a bad feeling. Elza had reacted so strange during the past week and normally she would never go to such a concert so shortly before her important competitions. Setsuna wanted to talk to her, and to take her home. Elza needed her sleep. "Hey, babe..."
"Oh, for heaven's sake!" Setsuna pushed the drunken guy aside and tried to make her way through he mass. It was now shortly before midnight and already the fifth night club she had visited - and the tenth guy who tried to hit on him. She had no time for them. And even if she would have had nothing else to do for the rest of the night, she would have preferred the conversation of a black computer screen instead of talking to one of those men.
The music became even louder and she groaned as her headache increased. Maybe the music was fine, but she preferred classical Japanese music. No matter how much Elza teased her around, she liked nice, silent music more than loud drums and screaming people, singing not about love, but about bad days. Setsuna liked soft male voices singing about the love of their lives simply more. She was a romantic person; she couldn't change that.
Shimatta! She's not here, either. Again the wrong club!
Setsuna cursed silently and wanted to turn around to leave this chaos as soon as possible when she saw the shadow of a girl. A girl with short, red hair. A girl who only wore a short, very short summer dress.
Is she crazy?
It's almost winter!
Well, it was very hot inside the club, but Elza would catch the cold of her life if she would walk outside like this. It took Setsuna three desperate attempts to get through to her over the last ten meters. Upon arriving, she grabbed Elza's arm determinedly. The girl, who jumped more or less to the rhythm of the music, winced wildly and jerked around.
"Shetshuna?"
Elza's question was enough to tell Setsuna that the smaller girl was dead drunk. She couldn't see her eyes in the shadows of the club, but she could see how much the red haired girl reeled as she tried to pull her towards the exit door.
"Are you nuts?" yelled Setsuna against the loud music and looked around for Elza's friends. However, there was no one Setsuna knew from the sport's team. Nor did she find any other belonging of her smaller friend. Elza didn't seem to have a jacket nor a handbag. Nothing at all.
"What the hell do you think you are doing?" The tall woman stripped her jacket and hang it around Elza's shoulders. The red haired girl wanted to protest, but she had no chance. The next moment they stood outside the club and Elza started terribly to tremble. Her dress was even shorter than Setsuna had thought in the dancing mass and it was wet. Elza's hair was sweaty, as well.
"You should know better than going to a concert. In the middle of the night! In such a dress!"
"Ishn't it shexy?" whispered Elza and stumbled. She would have fallen down if Setsuna hadn't held her back.
"It's unsuitable for winter." Setsuna looked directly into Elza's eyes. They were blurred and a strange grin appeared on her blushed face. "And it's surely unsuitable for you!" Setsuna didn't wait for Elza's reaction, instead, she pulled her with her towards her car. She simply pushed her on the front-passenger seat and cared for the seat belt.
"But the concert ishn't oo... oov... whatever."
"For you it's long over!" snapped Setsuna angrily and seated herself behind the steering wheel. She speeded up a little bit more quickly than normal and glanced a little bit more than normal over to Elza. The girl sat there and giggled without pause.
"How many drinks did you have?"
"Shixs or sheven or sho..." giggled Elza. The whole situation seemed to be unbelievingly funny for her. "Whyshkish."
"Whiskeys? Six or seven? Goodness!" Setsuna braked a little bit harder and Elza giggled even louder. The red sign of the traffic light seemed to be the funniest thing she'd ever seen in her life. "If you throw up in my car, you'll have to wash it tomorrow all afternoon when you come home from your training. If you'll survive your hangover. I hope I've made my point clear."
"Don't worry..." laughed Elza and shook her head, wet strands pasted to her forehead. "I won't ruin your car-baby."
"It's not my car-baby!"
"But you gave him a name."
"And?"
"You named your car Leonardo. Whahahahaha!!! Leonardo. That'sh shuch a shtupid name!"
"It isn't!"
"Hope you won't call your shildren not the shame. That would be a shame." Elza frowned, because same and shame sounded somehow the same and somehow strange, but then she thought again over the joke she'd just made and had to laugh even louder.
Setsuna braked again at a red traffic light and turned angrily towards Elza.
"Why the hell are you doing this? Why the hell do you have to go to a club like this in an outfit like this and drink like an alcoholic? And to insult me! Hai, my car's name is Leonardo. I simply like that name. And it's not a shame if my children will have such old European names one day, too. If I'll ever have children!" snapped Setsuna angrily, but all that greeted her back was even more maniac laugher.
"Leonardo... whahahahahaha!!!!"
Elza-chan, why did you do all this?
Why?
Your team wasn't around and I am sure that your team would never go to such a concert so shortly before the competition. What the hell did you do there?
However, Elza didn't look as if she would give her an answer. Not yet. And the way she looked maybe never. Maybe she wouldn't remember all this stuff tomorrow.
Setsuna made a depressed face as she speeded again when the traffic light turned to green. Elza sat right beside her and laughed about anything they saw on their way home.
Setsuna had never thought that a street light could ever be so funny. Just like the Tokyo Tower and a dog crossing the road. Elza laughed like a maniac while Setsuna got more and more angry.
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Elza's nursemaid was nowhere to be found, therefore, Setsuna decided to take care of Elza on her own. What meant to sustain the crazy giggle for the rest of the night. Setsuna's laptop computer was in the trunk of her car. She wouldn't leave Elza alone in her state. Not that she fell down in her drunkenness and hurt herself. No matter how angry Setsuna was, she was still concerned about her best friend. Since she could remember Elza had been around. She was her parent's best friend's daughter. An always laughing, always happy girl who had never mourned that she had no parents. The prouder she had been about her active grandparents. Most of the time she had spent at Setsuna's house anyway. However, she had never done something like this before. It was so unlike Elza. She didn't need alcohol to be crazy, to be funny, to be happy.
What has happened?
"I didn't tidy up..." slurred Elza and reeled. Setsuna grabbed her right arm and held her back from falling down on her school folders. Elza only reached for her teddy bear, showed it to her best friend, made a deep sound and started again to giggle.
"I am the big bad bear..." she laughed and sat down on the couch. Setsuna sighed deeply and glanced quickly at the short dress that was wet from Elza's sweat. The smaller girl trembled. Certainly, she froze like hell.
"Best you'll take a nice hot shower before you'll catch a could," she said, bowed and stripped Elza's shoes. Her feet were ice cold and Setsuna was sure that her body was as cold as her toes. "Is it so funny to get drunk and to freeze like this?"
Elza's only answer was another low growl and another crazy giggle.
"Looks like," sighed Setsuna and helped Elza out of her red dress to put it into the washing bag for Elza's nursemaid to clean it the other day.
"Fantashtic," laughed Elza and laid back on her bed. "I've never thought that you'd shtripp me one day," she held the teddy bear tighter before her chest and her grin seemed to go from one ear to the other
"Even drunken you're the same joker." Setsuna shook her head, then she searched in Elza's wardrobes for a long towel. A warm towel.
Without Mary she would choke in her own mess.
Setsuna shook her head and returned to the bed. Elza still played with her teddy bear and Setsuna blushed deeply as she saw how the plush animal hobbled over a slim belly and two breasts hidden behind a red bra that only consisted of two or three strings.
"Common, little one. Let's get you under the shower."
"Do you wanna join me?"
"Don't joke around, little one. You need to get warm again or you'll catch a cold as bad as the one Haruka had only a week ago."
"Hm... why don't you come here and keep me warm?" blinked Elza and put the teddy bear away.
She's drunken.
She doesn't know what she's doing.
Setsuna blushed even more and grabbed Elza's hand to pull her out of the bed and under a nice warm shower. Yet, instead of pulling Elza out, Setsuna was suddenly pulled in. The next moment she was on the bed. She tried to defend herself, but Elza didn't let her go. Suddenly, the smaller girl laid across her and held her hands tight.
Didn't know that she's so strong.
Setsuna gulped as she looked into sparkling eyes. They were a little bit blurred, but nevertheless shinning. The tall woman was the senshi of time. She was not powerless. Elza, on the other side, was the best in almost every kind of sport. Only Michiru could beat her in the swimming pool. She was very slim, but had a lot of muscles. You couldn't see them, but you could feel them if she wanted to achieve something.
"Stop joking or you'll get ill," tried Setsuna to convince her, but Elza only grinned. Her wet hair hang over her ears and suddenly she looked very wild.
"I am not joking, remember that," whispered Elza and held Setsuna's hands even tighter. As if she was afraid that the taller woman would stand up and simply walk away.
"Oh, you aren't joking? And what had been so funny all the time in the car? And now? Elza?" Setsuna gulped as Elza bowed down to her. She could smell the alcohol as their noses almost touched. "Elza, leave it. Let me go. Please, little one."
"What's up to you, Sissy? Are you scared?" grinned Elza and came even nearer. Setsuna tried to get away, but it was senseless.
"Elza, please! That's no fun any more!"
"It had never been fun, didn't you notice?"
Nani?
Setsuna's eyes grew wide as she felt soft lips on her own. At the first moment, she tasted the whiskey Elza seemed to have drowned in this evening. Yet, it seemed to have been less than she had claimed, because soon the bitter taste disappeared. Suddenly, Elza's lips tasted sweet.
What the hell...
Setsuna wanted to defend herself. She wanted to end this torture. This joke that wasn't one. Not for her. Maybe Elza was that drunk that to kiss her best friend seemed right now to be the best idea she had ever had. For Setsuna, however, it was only humiliating. It was like tasting a delicious cake she would never be able to eat.
Why...
The taller girl wanted to shout at her. To stop this crazy thing, but the next moments her warning thoughts disappeared. Helplessly, she opened her mouth as Elza's pressure increased. The girl's tongue tasted even sweeter than she had ever imagined. Setsuna gave up and returned the kiss hungrily. She didn't notice when Elza let go of her hands. When she stroked through her dark green hair and ruined her hairdo. All she noticed was the girl by her side. Her Elza. Whom she loved with all her heart. Ever since she could remember. Who only seemed to like boys. At least as her partner. Who liked it to tease her around every day.
But right now...
This isn't just teasing around, is she?
She means it, doesn't she?
But when did she chance her mind?
What about that guy she had last year?
Setsuna groaned slightly as she felt Elza opening her blouse and caressing her belly. Then, she opened her bra.
Moment! This is going too fast!
Setsuna gulped and broke the sweet kiss. Elza opened her eyes and looked questioningly down to her. Her eyes seemed to be even more blurred and her cheeks were redden. A dreamy smile laid on her face.
"Do you know what you are doing?" asked Setsuna and her voice was hoarse.
"I seduce you?" the smaller girl raised her eyebrows and wanted to kiss her again, but Setsuna held her back.
"Is that really what you want to do?"
For a moment Elza stared at Setsuna and the taller one held her breath. Then the best sportswomen of their school grinned widely.
"Of course. It sounds like fun, doesn't it?"
- It sounds like fun... -
Setsuna felt how something broke inside her. Deep inside her. She wasn't sure if she'd ever be able to repair it. Pain shot through her body and through her soul.
- It sounds like fun... -
"Fun?" she whispered and couldn't hold back the tears that formed in her eyes. "Fun?!" Her voice became louder and suddenly she was strong enough to push the smaller girl aside. "Right, all of your life is fun. You should go out and have s big party. In such a strange dress. You should go out and drink until you faint. Fine. Do so!" Now, Setsuna screamed. Elza stopped to giggle and looked slightly shocked. "Do whatever's so much fun for you. Make your silly jokes and laugh over them. Fine. That's super. But please..." Setsuna's hands trembled as she closed her bra and her blouse. She tried to correct her hairdo, in vain. Tears were welling in her eyes, but she didn't want to cry them. Not here. Not now.
"Please count me out! Just count me out, Elza, okay? Maybe it's the biggest joke for you, but not for me."
"Nani..." Elza frowned and reeled slightly as she tried to stand up.
"Your damn jokes are hurting me! Every time you make me hopes and then you destroy them just one moment later. That hurts, Elza! Stop it!"
"Nani..." Elza shook her head and was suddenly very pale. "What joke? What are you talking about?"
"What joke? Oh... just that you want to sleep in my bed at home, that you buy the sexiest underwear I know and then claim you only bought it for me. Hell, when you kiss me and tell me that it's just for fun! That's a damn joke, but somehow I am too stupid for it. 'Cause I can't laugh about it!" Now the tears were running down Setsuna's cheeks. She blushed deeply and was ashamed. She was twenty-two years old, she should have learned better to have her feelings under her control.
Elza blinked and gulped.
"But that's not a joke. Really. It's just my kind of humour. To tease you around. Love should be funny, right? You shouldn't cry because you love someone." Elza was suddenly sober as she saw the tears running down her best friend's cheeks. She couldn't remember ever having seen Setsuna cry. It was a big shock for her.
The taller girl only searched for a handkerchief and simply wiped the tears away with her hands as she found none.
"Funny, not ridiculous!" she sobbed and searched for her shoes.
"Hey, what's up?" now, Elza got angry. It took her all her courage to kiss her best friend. To show her her deepest feelings. To show her how much she really cared for her, even though Setsuna had never really believed her. She wanted to prove her that her feelings were true. She even drank some alcohol to have more courage to confessed her love to Setsuna. And now the taller woman was crying and screaming at her. Elza simply didn't understand what had happened. She hadn't done anything wrong, had she?
"Isn't a kiss obvious for you?"
"Right, a kiss! We all knew what you did with that guy. How was his name? Saijonji?"
Elza rolled her eyes.
"That had been a bet. I lost it so I had to kiss him. That's all. There had never been anything more. I didn't even like him."
"Great! That's why you were a couple for the following months."
"We weren't a couple! I've told you that! He was in my parallel class and the whole class went to cinema sometimes and because you've been at the university for ages, I went to the cinema, too! There had never been anything between us."
"You are a joker. Maybe it was simply a joke for you to kiss him?"
"Right, it was a joke. Better, it had been a bet. I kissed him because that had been the price I had to pay."
"Oh super! And what did you lose this time that you had to kiss me? Or did you even win a price, because you got near to the girl who didn't even have a partner at her last school dance?"
"I did it because I love you." Elza's shoulder hang and she screamed as someone slapped her into her face the next moment.
"That..." Tears were streaming over Setsuna's face. "That was the worst joke you've ever told me, Elza!" sobbed Setsuna, then she turned around and left the room as quickly as she could. Not caring that her shoes still laid next to Elza's bed. The door slammed behind her, then the engine screamed. After some moments there was silence and Elza knew that her best friend was gone.
Best friend?
Looks like she's not my best friend any longer...
Elza gulped and held her burning cheek, simply not understanding what had gone wrong. The girl stripped her wet underwear and crept under the bed's blanket. Yet, she froze like hell, and somehow not even the blanket could warm her. She had imagined to be embraced now by the woman she loved, by her Sissy-chan. Setsuna, however, didn't return her love. Instead, she had screamed at her and even slapped her.
What did I do wrong?
Elza rolled up to a ball and wondered if she'd ever be able to leave this bed, to face the cruel world outside again. To look into Setsuna's eyes again.
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Setsuna wanted to go to bed. To hide under her blanket and to drown in her self pity, but somehow she wanted to look after Hotaru. That's what she had done a lot during the past week when Haruka had been so ill. After they had to call the doctor during one night she often controlled mother and child with one look if everything was fine. This night Setsuna simply needed to see the cute, little child. She couldn't talk to her little sister. Not about this mess. Not before she couldn't think about it by herself. Still, she was feeling Elza's lips on her own and still, tears were burning in her eyes. She only wanted to take a look on Hotaru and stroke over her cheeks, to correct her blanket and to feel the little one's unconditional love.
Silently, she opened the door and sneaked into the room. Haruka was in her bed, rolled up to a ball, as always, holding her pillow in her arms. She slept deep and tight. Setsuna smiled and went on her knees next to the cradle. To watch her most favourite niece sleep. No matter if Haruka was her sibling or not. She had learned early in her life that blood didn't mean anything. Not blood, but feelings.
Nani?
Setsuna frowned and leaned a little bit closer to the baby.
Shimatta!
The next moment she switched on the light and sprinted over to the sleeping blonde.
"Haruka! Wake up!" she screamed and asked herself how this evening could get any worse. Setsuna shook Haruka so violently that the blonde almost fell out of the bed.
"What's up?" Haruka's head jerked up and one look into Setsuna's face told her everything. "Hime-chan?" The next moment she was by the cradle and took her daughter in her arms. The little girl was still breathing, but obviously she had big problems. The small face was almost blue.
Hime-chan...
Haruka felt panic growing inside her like fire rising on a pyre.
No. Please, don't leave me. I need you. I love you! Don't ya know?
Haruka swallowed and was thankful when Setsuna took her cell phone and called the ambulance. She wouldn't have been able to do that. She wouldn't have been able to say a clear sentence anymore.
Please, Hime-chan, be strong!
It had been now three weeks that they got the bad results.
Three weeks during which they had waited for a new heart. Knowing that every day that passed lowered Himme-chan's chances.
Three weeks she had hoped so much.
This can't be the end!
Haruka rocked her daughter, but the little girl didn't open her eyes. She only gasped for breath and looked like a puppet in her arms. Like a small, fragile puppet. Like a broken one...
Suddenly, action evolved around her. She didn't notice Michiru rushing into her room. How the young violinist she helped her in her shoes and hang a jacket around her shoulders. How Setsuna talked on the phone without pause. How Michiru tried to talk to her, as well, but didn't get an answer.
Haruka only looked at her daughter and wished that she'd be the ill one. Hotaru was too young to die. There was so much she could experience, so many mistakes she would never do, but her mother had done. The tall blonde only held her daughter tighter and rocked her.
Until the ambulance finally arrived.
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Thank goodness!
Haruka sat next to the baby's bed. It consisted only of glass and her Hime-chan laid inside. She was connected to an IV-drip and a special machine that helped her to breathe easier. Haruka didn't understand all the words the doctor had said nor did she have any idea of all those machines being around her daughter's bed, but she knew that everything was okay. The way it could be okay with her ill heart. Still, there was no heart they could give her, but the doctor had been very positive. He had told her that it would be better if Hotaru would always be connected to such a breathing machine during the night to prevent such another incident.
Don't worry, we'll help you. I won't let you down. I love you, my Hime-chan. You're the most important person in my life!
Haruka touched the glass with her hands and smiled a shaking smile at her sleeping daughter, full of love. Hotaru yawned in her dreams and her tiny fists beat weakly against the walls of her bed.
Everything will be fine, don't worry. I am here, Hime-chan. As long as I am here, nothing will ever happen to you. I'll always be there for you. Always...
"Why didn't you tell me that Hime-chan's that ill?" Setsuna closed the door behind her, because she felt that Haruka needed a little bit time of her own with her daughter.
"Are you able to give her a new heart? No. It's already enough that Ruka and I have to worry so much." Michiru sighed deeply and looked through the window over to Haruka who touched the glass as if she wanted to take her daughter in her arms.
"Hime-chan's already on the list. She'll get the first heart that fits for her."
Setsuna shook her head and walked up and down the corridor.
"Do you know how often I had been in the kitchen while Himme-chan was sleeping in the living room? Do you know what could have happened if I hadn't found her in time? I thought that she had some illness, but I didn't know that it was life-threatening!" Setsuna crossed her arms before her crumbled blouse.
Michiru only shook her head and strand of her sea green hair hang into her face. Suddenly, she looked very, very tired. Setsuna sighed and went over to her. Tenderly, she took her younger sister in her arms.
"Hey, I only want to help. You don't have to take all this responsibility alone. I am here, you know that. I'll always be here to support you. And I love Hime-chan, too. I'd do anything for her, too. Hey, she's my first niece, remember?"
Michiru only laughed a shaky laugh and crept deeper in the warm embrace.
Niece. Setsuna always called Hime-chan her first niece, because she sensed that Haruka wouldn't go again. No matter if she was that Sailor Uranus or not, she would stay. Together with her daughter. And therefore, Setsuna saw in her another little sister. After those eight weeks it was the way she felt for her: a little sister. A damn proud sister who never asked for help. Who had certainly experienced a lot of bad times in her life. Who was strong but nevertheless she wanted to protect. It was the same she feeling she had for Michiru. Yet, it was so extremely different from the feelings she had for Elza...
"Michi? Sissy?"
"Is that you, children?"
They both spun around as they heard the well known voices. Speechlessly, they stared at their parents. Aiko still wore her evening dress and it looked as if she just came from the stage. Her husband only smiled and took Michiru in her arms.
"How did you know..." stammered Setsuna and blushed as her mother corrected automatically her blouse. Aiko didn't ask much. Instead, she went over to the window and looked through it.
"Gendo-kun called us up." Aiko glanced through the window at the tall blonde only having eyes for her daughter, remembering the doctor's excited voice at the other end of the line. "He told us everything about our daughter's goddaughter."
"Well..."
"So you don't need the money for a new car." Aiko shook her head and watched her younger daughter blushing deeply. Setsuna's mouth dropped. "Gendo-kun told us that she has no insurance to pay the operation."
"Well..." Michiru shrugged helplessly her shoulder.
"You know her, mommy, she's always trying to solve every problem on her own. She didn't want to worry you." Now, Setsuna shrugged her shoulders, as well, and realized just now that she was barefoot.
It had really been a crazy evening!
"Hey, that's what a family is for, Michi. We're your parents. This isn't a small problem you can solve by yourself, this is a big one and we want to help you!" her father hugged her friendly.
Michiru only nodded.
Arigato, mommy.
Arigato, daddy.
Setsuna tried to correct her crumbled skirt and her hairdo looked messed. Michiru had to smile a little bit at her vain attempts.
Arigato, Sissy.
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Haruka didn't hear the door opening. She didn't see the shadow falling over her daughter's bed until she heard the soft voice next to her.
"So, that's the little Hotaru."
Haruka's head jerked up and she looked into the friendly smiling face of Meioh Aiko.
"Good evening, Meioh-san." Haruka frowned as the famous opera singer bowed over the glass to have a better look at the little girl sleeping inside of it. "I've talked to Gendo-kun, I mean, Dr. Sagura-san. He said that everything is fine. But he wants her to stay for the rest of the night." Aiko looked at her watch and then at Haruka's pale face. "Go home, Haruka. Michiru told me that you had the flu last week and you look very tired to me."
"No," the tall blonde shook her head. "I promised her not to go away."
"You aren't your daughter any help when you break down. Go home. I'll take care of her, okay? Hey, don't worry, I've raised two beautiful daughters, I know how to handle such a kawaii little girl." Aiko smiled and sat down next to Haruka. For a long time she looked through the glass at the little girl.
"She's a cute little girl, Haruka. How old is she?"
"She was born this May. On my eighteenth birthday."
"The best birthday present one can get, huh?"
Haruka blinked. There was no strange look that she was so young. No word about responsibility. About her being half a child herself. No questions about the father. Nothing. Only a feeling that she had felt for the last time when her parents had still been alive.
"Hai..."
Again, there was silence between them and suddenly Haruka felt soft hands stroking calmingly through her blond strands.
"Don't worry, Haruka. She's partly a Meioh now, because she's Michi's goddaughter. Meioh's are fighters and I feel that this little girl's the biggest fighter of us all," she smiled at Haruka and suddenly the tall blonde was reminded of her mother.
"But I have to warn you. Once she'll be recovered, she has to face me. I'll spoil her as much as only grannies can."
"I guess I can live with that," smiled Haruka tiredly, sensing that this was Aiko's way to welcome her into her family.
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For a long time Michiru stared at her cell phone. Then she threw it against the next wall. It crashed as it hit the ground. The sea green haired girl threw a pillow after it and sat down on her bed. Staring at the wall, not seeing the paintings there. Of the wide ocean, of a bird flying through the sky. All she could see was little Hotaru lying in the glass bed at hospital. All she remembered where the doctor's words as she talked to him in peace. Alone. Without her entire family being around.
I didn't know that it had been that serious.
Michiru could feel the tears welling up in her eyes.
I didn't know that it could be so hard. So difficult.
She brought her legs to her chest and wrapped her arms around her knees. Her hair covered her face as she lowered her head. Soon, the tears were wetting her cheeks and she had to sniffle.
She had been too naive. All the time. She had thought that all she had to do was to find Sailor Uranus. To find the talismans and then to live the way she gad lived before: as a good student of her school. She wanted to continue with her violin play and to become a great musician. Just the way Setsuna's parents were.
Be honest, you did not only want to lead a normal life again. You also hoped to find a partner in that other senshi, didn't you? Finally someone who'd love you the way you are and not laugh at you like Tamara always did. Like so many other people had done.
But that had been a brutal illusion. Haruka wasn't Sailor Uranus. Well, she had seen the sign on her forehead or at least believed to had seen the sign there that night, but the blonde could never transform. Still, it was a mystery to Michiru how she had defeated the last youma, but Haruka had her own kind of fighting technique. Certainly, she had defeated it with a broken milk bottle. Exactly the way she had once threatened Tamara.
Oh, it all had been a cruel illusion. Had she really thought that Haruka would love her? She had a daughter, surely she had had a boyfriend who simply refused to take responsibility when she got pregnant, and consequently ran away from the blonde.
Hime-chan...
Did I really think that it would be so easy to operate the small child?
Did I really think that I could solve any problems with money?
Michiru sobbed quietly, again and again hearing the doctor's words in her ears.
Hime-chan...
Yes, she had talked to the doctor. With a very serious looking Dr. Sugara-san. For a long time.
- It had been only a light attack. She'll need some extra air in the night, but for now she's fine. -
- For now, doctor? -
Again she heard his deep sigh, saw the pain in the older face.
- I guess it's better to tell you the truth, Michiru-chan. So that you will be prepared. -
- Prepared? -
Again, she felt the fear growing inside her heart. As she had felt it when she had been woken up by Setsuna in the middle of the night. When she had to see Haruka walking around in her pyjamas, holding an unconscious Hotaru in her arms.
- If we won't find a new heart within the next month, I fear that she won't survive. -
Michiru bit on her lower lip, but she couldn't stop her tears from falling. It was now in the middle of the night. Hotaru was still at hospital, together with Setsuna's parents. Aiko had convinced Haruka to go home and to sleep. She was now lying on her bed behind the next wall and Michiru didn't want to wake her up. She needed her sleep more than anyone else. She needed to keep her strength. For her daughter and for herself.
Only four weeks...
What if we won't find another heart? What if we have to give up? What if Hotaru dies?
Michiru gulped and pressed her knees tighter together.
Did I really think that it all would be so easy? Did I really think just because I have money, Hime-chan would recover quickly? Did I really think that I could see her growing up?
She couldn't tell Haruka. She couldn't even look into her eyes as Setsuna drove them home. Certainly, the young woman was now working on a silly programme or repairing a broken computer. That was what she was always doing in frustrating situations like this. The last year when their mother had been so ill, she had hardly slept over a week and then simply broke down.
That will be Haruka's end.
And mine...
Michiru sobbed and tried to wipe away her tears. New ones wetted her hands and for some moments she stared at them. Seeing how she had changed nappies with them. How she had fed a little girl and washed her in the big tube. How she had stroked little Hotaru and tickled her tenderly. Again, she heard Hime-chan's silent laughter, just like her whimpers.
I don't want to give up on this child! I love her! She belongs to me. Just like Setsuna and her parents. Just like Elza. Just like Ruka...
Michiru sobbed again and coughed quietly.
I can't stand it. I can't stand to sit here. To wait until it will happen. Four weeks are not enough time. We've already waited for three weeks. Hime-chan's simply too weak and I can't hold her back in this life.
I can't...
Again she saw Haruka's desperate face that evening when she got to know the bad results about Hotaru's heart test. How she had freaked out when she had thought that Michiru would take her daughter away from her. How she had ran away, in the cold rain and hadn't found her way home until Elza picked her up.
I can't tell Ruka the truth. It would kill her. But I can't live with all this on my own. I can't heal Hime-chan, but I can't watch her dying.
Four weeks. Fuck! They will be gone so quickly!
I am swimming in a shitload of money, but it won't help me. I can't stop time, I can't buy her a new heart. I can't give her a new life. All I can do is to sit and wait. And to watch helplessly.
I don't want to be helpless.
Never again!
Michiru raised her head and looked over to her opened bathroom door. She frowned and wiped away her tears. Her legs shivered and hardly supported her as she rose from the bed. Slowly, very slowly she went over to her bathroom and opened the cupboard behind the mirror.
I don't want to be helpless.
I don't want to think about all this shit any longer.
I don't want to be remember how helpless I am every waking second.
I don't want to know how stupid I am during the coming four weeks!
Michiru sobbed again and reached inside the cupboard. Soon, she felt the familiar white package in her hand and held it desperately tight. She had promised Haruka to take care of her daughter. No, she had blackmailed the tall blonde to heal her daughter if she'd come with her. If she'd fight with her as Sailor Uranus. Michiru had seen that Haruka didn't want to do this, but with her promise she had achieved what she wanted. With her damn money she had been able to force her to come with her, to live with her in this crazy household. She had even convinced her that it was better for her to go to school again. So many hours she had to spend in that bloody building, sitting next to her. Time she should have better spent with her daughter, instead. Haruka had so little time left with her Hime-chan, she should have used it differently.
I want to forget all this shit.
I want to feel free again.
I want to get rid of all those fears. Of all that pain. Of all my nightmares.
I want to be as strong and as independent as the wide ocean. Me, the child of the sea...
Michiru pulled the small package out and opened it. It was now three years that she had taken them for the last time. Setsuna would have been shocked had she knownn that she kept some.
I promised Sissy never to take them again.
Another promise I can't keep.
Michiru swallowed hard as she felt the little plastic pill on her palms. It rolled over her skin, because her hands trembled so much.
Only this night, alright? I just want to forget all this fucking shit for some moments. For a single night, I want to be happy again. As I want to sleep without all those nightmares again.
The sea green girl raised her head, but there was no one around. No one who would see her like this: defeated, weak, merely the small girl she had been when she crashed into Setsuna's parents and fainted.
I never became strong. Never. I am still weak. So damn weak. And I am still hurting everyone dear to me. Sissy, Hime-chan. Ruka...
With a quick motion she gulped the pills and threw the package on the ground. The world spun around her and consequently she closed her eyes. A wide smile appeared on her face as she opened them again. Every thought disappeared from her tortured mind and suddenly everything was extremely funny. She giggled and stripped her slippers. Rough wind played with her night dress as she entered the balcony. For some seconds she stood there and overlooked the near sea. The waves were crashing on the beach in the moon's soft light. Michiru giggled again and decided that this view wasn't good enough for her. She was the goddess of the sea, she wanted to rule over the water. Completely. That wasn't possible from this small balcony. She was a queen! Hell! Why didn't she have a golden throne, then?
Michiru giggled even louder as she stepped on the balustrade and started to climb towards the near roof. The cold stone made her body freeze, but she didn't notice the bitter cold. The rough wind seemed to be the whispering of thousands of loyal people of her sea kingdom. Thousands of friends she had never had in real life.
They love me!
Michiru grinned and finally reached the top of the roof. Here, the moon seemed to be even brighter, almost as bright as the sun. However, it was silver. Michiru preferred silver over gold. It fitted better to her sea green hair and to her mostly a little bit pale skin. Yes, she was a real queen. A real ruler.
The waves rushed around her and she felt free. Slightly, she spread her arms and balanced over the roof. Her feet could hardly find any hold, but she didn't mind. She felt happy, that was the most important thing in her life. She felt happy and loved. Here in her kingdom. She had been away for such a long time, but her people had forgiven her, now that she would never go again.
Michiru threw her head in her neck and laughed happily. The stars sparkled above her and she wondered if they all were diamonds. They would fit perfectly to her evening dress. To the long blue one. The narrow one. Certainly, her people would take those stars for her. Yes, only for her.
Her feet lost their hold and she made a clumsy gesture. She found her balance in the last moment and glared confused at the abyss before her. The roof ended here, but she didn't want it to end. She wanted to dance here for all times. Within her kingdom of water. She wanted to be free here. To be loved. To be mighty enough to do everything she wanted to do. To achieve every goal.
Here, she was powerful. Here, she was a mighty queen, not the weak girl anymore they forced her to be in the other world. The unreal, the hard one.
She giggled and grabbed for the blue slide that had held her hair in a plait und pulled it out of her wild strands. Curls danced around her cheeks. They looked like the waves of the sea. For some seconds she observed how the slide made it's way down to the ground. Cheerfully, she clapped in her hands as it hit terrace's cold tiles.
It flew!
Michiru grinned widely.
That's fantastic.
I want to fly, too. Right into the sea.
I want so badly...
However, before she could spread her wings and fly away, someone had grabbed her and pulled her back.
Nani?
She tried to defend herself, but the aggressor wouldn't let her go. No matter how hard she hit him, she couldn't get rid of him.
"Michiru?"
Still, she was defending herself, but slowly, very slowly the voice dropped through her lazy thoughts, through her panic.
"Michi?!? Are you alright? Talk to me! Michi! What's up?" There was concern in the low voice. No, someone who was against her monarchy and wanted to kill her wouldn't sound so concerned, would he? Michiru turned her head and stared at the shadow standing right beside her, holding her right arm tight.
"Michi? What's wrong with you? Why are you on the roof? Common, talk to me!"
Michiru needed some seconds to realize that there was a girl was standing beside her. Her blonde hair was messed and the blue pyjama crumbled. She was barefoot and froze obviously in the cold night's wind.
Nani?
Michiru blinked confused as her sea kingdom disappeared. Yet, she still had to giggle. Until tears were running down her cheeks again.
Haruka?
Then she opened her mouth and had to laugh. It sounded a little bit crazy and made not only her shiver. Haruka frowned, then she brought the smaller girl nearer to her.
"What are you doing on the roof? Is anything wrong?"
Michiru stared up in dark green eyes and laughed even louder.
Wrong?
What should be wrong?
That I am losing Hime-chan?
That I'll be losing you?
That I'll be alone again? The way I had been alone all my life?
More and more tears streamed over her cheeks, but still she couldn't stop to giggle. Her head ached and the rushing of the near sea seemed to increase.
It all was so funny. So damn funny that it made her cry...
"Michi?" Haruka gulped, then she grabbed Michiru a little bit harder and together they left the roof. It was not very easy to help a giggling and sobbing Michiru down again to her balcony, but somehow they managed the dangerous journey back.
Of course Haruka hadn't been able to sleep properly. More than once she had woken up from a horrible nightmare where the doctors couldn't help her daughter any more and as she woke up ten minutes ago, she had heard Michiru laughing. Wondering what was going on, she had gone over to her room, but Michiru hadn't been there. Instead, the door had stood open, yet the balcony had been empty. Haruka's heart had almost stopped to beat as she discovered the shadow dancing on the roof, near the edge, being in danger of falling down with each motion. Haruka had climbed on the roof as quickly as she could and had held Michiru back as she seemed to lost her balance completely.
"Michi..." Haruka helped the sea green girl to sit down on her bed and frowned. "What's up with you? Hey, tell me what's wrong. Michiru!" Haruka sighed and looked helplessly around as the smaller girl didn't react. Michiru kept sitting on her bed and giggled while tears were running down her cheeks. At that moment Haruka saw the small package lying on the ground.
No...
Haruka didn't have to read the Japanese signs on the package. She knew too well what the small pills contained. Suddenly, she knew too well why Michiru had danced on the roof. In the middle of the night. Only wearing her night dress. Laughing while she stared at the abyss.
Why...
Haruka went over to the bathroom and took the package. Determinedly, she opened the toilet's lit and threw one pill after the other into it. She tried to close the lit, but at that moment Michiru grabbed her hand and held it back. Her deep blue eyes were sparkling with panic.
"No! You aren't allowed to do that. Those are mine!" she giggled and coughed. "What the hell do you think you are doing? That's my property! You can't simply throw them away!"
Haruka blinked and finally freed herself and closed the lit. Her face was pale as she turned around to look directly into Michiru's blushed face.
"You don't know what you are talking about, Michiru," she held the now empty package right before Michiru's nose and crumbled it. "Where did you get them from? How often are you taking them? And why?" Haruka's voice was as cold as Michiru had never heard it before. Not once during the last eight weeks.
"I don't think that's any of your business, Haruka!" Michiru tried to reach for the package, but Haruka was quicker and it ended in the dustbin. That action made Michiru really angry. "Go to your room and stay there! You aren't here to talk to me as if I was a child."
"I know, I am not here to give any advice." Haruka's voice sounded like the barking of a dog in Michiru's ears and she stumbled some steps backwards. She had been so happy just some seconds ago, but now she was scared. The tears dried on her face and her eyes grew wide. Then, she clenched her fists. No, she wouldn't give up this time! She wasn't a weak girl! Haruka had no right to talk to her like that.
"Right! Then go to your room and leave me alone!"
"To let you ruin your life? Forget that, Michiru! You've saved Hime-chan's life, so I won't let you destroy yours!"
Hime-chan...
Michiru shook her head and crossed her arms before her chest.
I don't want to think about Hime-chan any more. I wanted to be happy. Just this one night. And now she simply comes here and has to remember me of all this bloody stuff! Who does she think she is by destroying my property?
"Those are just some pill! Don't exaggerate, Haruka! They are harmless!" snapped Michiru and wanted to turn around. To go to her bed and to show Haruka that she didn't want to discuss that topic with her any longer. "You have no idea what you are talking about! It's nothing special, just some pills to make me feel better!"
Michiru screamed as Haruka was suddenly by her side and held her by her hands. Violently, she forced her too look right into her face and for the first time during those eight weeks, Michiru could see real, unveiled, unguarded pain in the tall blonde's face.
"Harmless? Are you really so naive to think that they are harmless?"
"Haruka! Leave me in peace! That's none of your business!"
Michiru tried to escape, but it didn't look as if Haruka was listening to her stammered words any longer. Fire seemed to glow in her eyes and her look was hateful. Later on Michiru understood that she didn't hate her, but that she had hated herself right at that moment: for all the things she had done during the past two years. Things she couldn't change. She simply couldn't forget.
"You want this to feel a little bit happy? Do you really think that's the right way? First, there're those pills. Cute, little pills. They aren't even expensive. But one day they won't be enough for you. Then you'll need stronger things. Then you need more of them and more and more. Then it suddenly doesn't matter that you need sharp, painful needles to get enough of that stuff into your body that seemingly makes you so hilariously happy. Even if it's just for some moments. Even if you have to spend all day to get enough money. You go stealing, you sell your body, you rob poor old ladies, just to have enough money to get enough of this oh so great stuff. In the beginning, it all looks harmless, but in the end you're a wrack." Haruka took a long, shaky breath and finally let her go. "You're not one of us, Michi. You have parents who love you, you have a nice home. You don't need those pills."
Michiru fell backwards on the bed and stared at Haruka. Slowly, very slowly the words reached her mind and she understood them.
"Us?" was all she whispered.
You didn't know who she was when you met her on the dirty street. You didn't know what she had done before in her life when you tried to talk to her at the car repair shop.
"Hai, us." Haruka's face was hard and her eyes empty. "What do you think why Hime-chan has this illness? I was drug addicted when I got pregnant. Shit, I was a total junkie! I've lived on the street over a year and I almost died because I took too many drugs at once in my endless greed. I woke up in hospital later, because I had been lucky. I tried to get rid of that stuff, but it wasn't very easy, Michiru. Even after I got to know that I was pregnant. I still needed that damn stuff during the first months of my pregnancy. Guess during that time Hotaru's heart took some damage. It's all my fault that she's in that bad situation now." Haruka closed her eyes for some moments. Suddenly, with a jerky motion, she rolled up the sleeves of her pyjamas' top and Michiru could see all the old scars covering still thin arms, although Haruka had gained a little bit weight. "Do you really want to end the way I ended? Do you really want to destroy yourself and lose all pride and all hope?! Do you really want to throw your life away like rubbish?!"
Haruka's voice was very loud and Michiru turned her head away. Her lower lip shook and she gulped visibly. Once more, tears were sparkling in her deep blue eyes and Haruka sighed deeply. She covered her ugly skin again and bowed over to the smaller girl, putting her right hand carefully on her trembling shoulder. The touch was so different from the one Michiru had experienced only minutes before.
"I don't want you to do the same mistake I did. Hai, you are right, it is not my business and surely it's your own life, but I hurt my daughter and you'd surely hurt your sister and your parents. Hell, Michi, you don't need that stuff. Your parents love you and Sissy would do anything for you. Why did you take those pills? Why did you want to be happy tonight?" Haruka whispered and sat down next to her on the bed.
"You lived on the street?" asked Michiru after a long time they sat there in silence. She touched Haruka's right arm but didn't pull the cloth away to look again at the old scars. She had always thought that they were caused by the IV-drips Haruka had been connected to during Hotaru's hard birth. Now she knew better. "Why?" She didn't take many of those pills and together with the shock of Haruka's confession she didn't feel that crazy any longer. She didn't want to laugh any longer. All she wanted was to know more about the blonde who sat next to her on her bed. A girl she got to know almost one year ago. A girl she had lived with for over eight weeks now. A girl she wanted to be close to her for the rest of her life.
"Hai..." Haruka sighed deeply and lowered her head. For a long time she stared at Michiru's hand. She knew that she had to trust the smaller girl. This was what friendship was about, wasn't it? One friend had to trust the other. If she'd push Michiru away right now, she would never tell her why she'd taken those pills. If she wouldn't tell her all this ugly stuff right now, Michiru would turn away and Haruka couldn't help her with the problems she obviously had.
She took care of Hime-chan and me during the past weeks. She deserves to know the truth.
What if she'll hate you?
What if she'll throw you out?
What if...
Haruka quickly glanced up and looked into Michiru's tear wetted face. Hesitantly, she raised her free hand and wiped the rest of the tears away. Michiru didn't wince away. She only watched her. The tall blonde was reminded of how Michiru had cared for her when she had been ill. She was reminded of how Michiru had embraced her, even though she thought that she'd be infected with AIDS.
- It's okay. -
Again, she heard the soft voice in her head and knew that she could trust her. It would be the last time in her life that she'd ever trust anyone, but she would give it a try. This one last time.
She deserves the truth.
She's my best friend, isn't she?
She would never hate me, would she?
Haruka took a deep breath. Although she was still uncertain, she started to talk to Michiru in a very silent voice.
"I had a fantastic childhood, Michi. My parents were simply great. They weren't as rich as your parents and I didn't have such a great sister, but they did everything to make me happy. My daddy worked in a firm and my mommy was a teacher for small children. They were happy with each other and they loved me with all their hearts." Haruka shrugged her shoulders. "I was sixteen when this dreamed ended one night. They had a car accident. They died before the ambulance arrived. They left me behind and a mortgage on the small house we were living in. I couldn't pay it and because I had no other relatives, they put me into an orphanage. I had been too old to be adopted and although the people at the orphanage tried to be nice to me, I simply snapped. I didn't want to be there, so I ran away. I had no money, no home, not even any hope any longer. I was still mourning my parents' death and couldn't live with the pain in my heart any longer. So I took some pills. They weren't that expensive and in the beginning I could afford them with a little bit robbery. It's very easy to go into a mall to steal some small things. You only have to be smart and no one sees it. But after some time I needed more of this stuff and of course it was more expensive." Haruka didn't look up, but she felt how Michiru squeezed her arm softly. "It's incredible what you do when you need that money like hell. Once I attacked an old woman and broke her right arm just to get her handbag. And... I did some other things I am not very proud of." Haruka shrugged her shoulders, but Michiru knew what she meant. She gulped, yet didn't know what to say. How to comfort the blonde who looked suddenly so distant.
"One night I met Hikari. She's the friend who had AIDS. We lived on the street together for the coming months. I kept stealing money and she did what she did. We made a deal: she showed me how to survive on the streets and I protected her against rude guys who wanted to do things she didn't want to do. So we survived somehow the following months. Until summer last year. Hikari got very ill and I went too late to the hospital with her. She had pneumonia and died that very night. I was so frustrated that I took all drugs we had at once in the hope to die." Haruka heard how Michiru gasped for breath, but still she stared at the soft hand on her right arm. "I fainted and woke up in a hospital's bed. Someone seemed to have found me and called an ambulance. It's a real miracle that I survived. I swore myself to change my life. Especially after I found out that I was pregnant. I wanted to be there for the little life growing inside me. There was still someone who needed me. It was very hard, but I made a therapy and fought hard to keep Hime-chan after she was born. Mjyamoto-san was my biggest support. She helped me to get a flat and a job to be able to keep Hime-chan. Then, my little girl got so ill and some weeks later I met you again near the car repair shop."
Where I blackmailed her with the money.
Michiru swallowed. Suddenly, she knew why Haruka had had no other possibility than to take the money and to follow her.
She didn't believe in that senshi thing. Certainly, she still didn't believe in it. Nevertheless, she came with her. At that moment Michiru knew how desperate Haruka had been. She only wanted to save her small child. A little girl that was ill because of her mother.
Ruka would have done anything for her...
Michiru bit on her lower lip and some tears escaped her eyes.
And now I can't even rescue Hime-chan, because in only four weeks it'll be too late.
"Why didn't I meet you earlier? Why didn't I hold you back when you rescued me?" sobbed the smaller girl and clenched her fist around Haruka's arm. "We would have had so much more time to save Hime-chan. Why didn't I..."
Haruka turned her head in surprise and stared at Michiru's tears in disbelieve.
She cries because of me.
"Hey, Michi..." she whispered and noticed the smaller girl trembling.
"Why didn't I simply grab you and pull you with me in the taxi I had ordered? Why did I react so shocked when I saw that you were pregnant? Why didn't I..."
"Hush." Haruka hesitated for a second, then she took the sobbing girl in her arms and rocked her. "It's not your fault, Michi. Nothing's your fault," she whispered and felt Michiru grabbing her pyjamas' top and clinging tightly to it.
I didn't want to make her cry.
Hell, I want to see her laugh. I want to see her happy, not so desperate!
"You've been there for the past eight weeks. You gave Hime-chan a second chance. Just the way you gave me a home again." Haruka blushed deeply as she said those words, so true words, but Michiru's crying only increased. She tried to creep deeper into Haruka's embrace. Suddenly, Haruka understood.
"You've talked to the doctor today, haven't you?" she asked alarmed and felt how her heart beat increased. Michiru only nodded, not able to raise her head.
"That's why you've taken the pills to forget what he told you, haven't you?"
Again a nodding and a desperate sob. Haruka looked for some moments on the ceiling and tried to get her feelings under her control again. Of course she had known how dangerous her daughter's illness was, but nevertheless she couldn't give up hope. Michiru had always been so encouraging, just like Aiko's words only some hours ago. She had really almost believed that everything would be okay, as long as the operation would be paid.
"Is it that bad?"
"If we won't find... find a new heart... heart within the next four weeks..." Michiru sobbed desperately and Haruka brought her a little bit nearer to her body. Tenderly, she started to stroke through sea green curls. She didn't have to ask what would happen if they wouldn't find a heart within the next four weeks.
Michiru raised her head. Her deep blue eyes were covered with tears and she looked so desperate that it made Haruka's soul ache.
"I promised... I promised you to heal her..."
"Hush, Michi." Haruka wiped away those tears and smiled a shaky smile. "Four weeks are a long time. I am sure Dr. Sugara-san will find a new heart for her. He looked very positive today and your family will support us. I didn't have much luck the past two years, but since I met you my whole life has changed. For the first time I have somewhere where I belong to. And you gave Hime-chan a second change. I am pretty sure that everything will be alright. We just have to be a little bit patient, okay?" Haruka wasn't very convinced by her own words, but she didn't want to see Michiru so desperate any longer.
"But..."
"Hey, what's up with you? Where's the strong, determined Michi I got to know? You believed in me. That I can go to school again, that I won't rob you or do other crazy stuff. Then believe in Hime-chan, too. She's a little fighter. She won't give up that easily. Not with such a great godmother."
Please, believe in her. I can't do it. Not all alone, Michi...
"Guess you're right. It's just so hard. I thought it would be easier."
"Life is never easy, but it's worth to fight for," whispered Haruka, still caressing Michiru's cheeks although they were already dry. "You don't need such pills, Michi. Your family loves you."
So do I...
"And you'll never be alone. You don't have to take such stuff. You are strong enough to face life."
Michiru covered Haruka's hands with her own ones and smiled a shaky smile.
"You're right. I've been really stupid."
"Not stupid, but sad." Haruka enjoyed the gentle touch for a moment, then she rose from the bed. "But it's not a solution."
Michiru watched her longingly, then she lowered her head. Suddenly, she froze and her head ached even more. It was almost dawn, but she knew that she wouldn't go to school today. She'd call in sick later.
"Better we'll get some sleep, before we return to Hime-chan at noon. I don't want to scare your parents to death by my appearance," said Haruka and wondered when she'd taken over the part to be the reasonable one. Normally, she had a hot temper and wanted to run with her head right through the wall.
I've changed during the past year.
Haruka winced as Michiru's hand shot out and grabbed her left one. To hold it desperately tight.
I've changed because of my daughter.
The tall blonde didn't have to ask Michiru what she meant. It was obvious that the smaller girl didn't want to be alone for the rest of the night. Just the same Haruka didn't want to spend the next hours sitting on her bed and staring at the empty cradle, wondering what her daughter was doing right now in hospital. Wondering if the cradle would stay empty or if a little girl would run happily laughing through this house next summer.
Haruka sat down on the bed and took the smaller girl again into her arms. Carefully, she covered the both of them with a soft blanket and simply held Michiru tight.
I've changed because of her.
For the rest of the night they held each other tight in silence.
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Author's corner:
Thank you again for your amazing reviews. They always make my day. I hope this chapter wasn't too harsh and that it answered some more of your questions concerning Haruka's (and indirectly Michiru's) past.
The next update will be on Monday, 17th March 2008. Until then I'll be offline, because I'll be away on a well-deserved vacation to visit a good friend in California. I won't have time to check my emails (and therefore my comments) and won't be able to upload the next part any earlier. Due to my exams I had no vacation in AGES and I simply need it. I can't upload anything more in advance, because I still need to read over the rest of the story before posting the next parts on ffnet. Therefore, I hope you'll be patient and read the next last part of chapter 4 in March. Thank you very much for your understanding.
Next update:
The night of the school dance arrives, even though neither really wants to go. Setsuna's senshi powers go wild when a youma suddenly attacks and Elza touches the staff of time. Michiru convinces Haruka to dance with her – and gets closer to her. And a phone call destroys the romantic atmosphere.