It was late when Mamoru woke.
He couldn't quite say what had woke him from his slumber, but as he blinked back into consciousness, he became aware his bed was a little less packed. Beside him, Chibiusa slept soundly, her pink locks spread out beneath her head like a crown. Propping himself up onto his elbow, he realized immediately that Usagi was gone from her place on Chibiusa's other side, though she'd been there only a few short hours ago.
Carefully untangling himself from the sheets, Mamoru pressed a light kiss to Chibiusa's temple before sliding from the bed. He tiptoed from the room and into the hall, pulling the bedroom door closed behind him, as not to disturb the sleeping child with whatever was to come from his leaving the room. It only took him a moment to find Usagi- she was sitting in the living room on his couch, her golden hair tumbling down around her shoulders, wearing nothing but the pajama top of his she'd gone to bed in. The television was playing a muted re-run of some American sitcom she and Chibiusa loved to watch, and he had to wonder if she even knew it was still on.
At the sound of his footsteps, she'd turned to look at him and at once he could see that she'd been crying. She turned away, furiously wiping her eyes with the back of her hand as she refocused her gaze on the muted television. "Usa..." He murmured, feeling his heart turnover at the sight of her there on his couch, crying silently to herself in the middle of the night. He crossed the room in a few strides, sinking down onto the couch beside her, folding her into his embrace. For a few minutes he let her cry, with her face buried into his chest, her shoulders quaking with the force of her sobs. But, finally she began to quiet down, her sobs fading into hiccups, and she lifted her tear-stained face to look him in the eyes. Mamoru reached out, swiping his thumb under her eyes, as if he meant to erase all remnants of her tears. "What is it, Usa?"
How could she even begin to explain to him the depth of her thoughts and her feelings? How could she put to words the darkness that threatened to take control over her heart? How could she tell him how badly she ached thinking of the Outers and their inability to see eye to eye? "Haruka... And Michiru... I just..." She trembled as she tried to find the words to say, to explain to him how deeply it hurt her knowing her senshi, her friends, were at odds with the Outers. That no one else could see that if only they'd talk things out, that if only they woluld listen to one another they might see that they could work things out together. "I just don't understand why we can't work together."
Mamoru hated seeing her like this. But worse of all, he hated that he couldn't be on the same side as her. "They don't want to work with us, Usako." He said softly, shaking his head, hoping she would see reason when it came to the Outer Senshi that had so suddenly appeared. "If they aren't with us, they're against us." He went on to say, watching as her face crumpled, and she drew away from him without a single word. "It's for your own good... We only want to protect you..."
"It's not about me!" Usagi exploded, her voice shrill and her eyes full of tears as she turned back to him. "It's about an innocent life!" Her eyes were narrowed and she scooted back, leaping to her feet and storming towards the door that led to his balcony. "Hotaru is innocent in all of this, even if she is Saturn." Her voice was softer now, dejected even as she stared out into the night. "I thought you of all people would understand, Mamo-chan..."
He rose to his feet, coming to stand behind her, slipping his arms around her from behind. "Don't make me out to be the bad guy, Usako," he whispered into the shell of her ear, feeling her body relax against his. "I'm always on your side." He heard her sniff and he held on tighter, wishing with all of his might that he could take her pain away. Drawing back, he turned her around to hold her at arms length, staring deep into her blue eyes for a long moment. "I'd never let them hurt someone innocent, especially when it's Hotaru. But I also have you and Chibiusa to think about, Usa." She gave a small, silent nod, the tears still fresh on her cheeks.
"I only want to work together... We're all senshi, so we should be able to understand one another." She murmured, looking away for only a moment. "If we joined forces, we could protect the world without hurting anyone at all." Mamoru loved her for her innocence, for her ability to see the good in anything at all, but he feared for her for those very same reasons. Her heartfelt need to protect the innocent was what was going to get her hurt. Her need to befriend the Outers was going to put her in the pathway of harm, and he simply couldn't allow that. But, at the same time, something told him he wouldn't be able to protect her from everything, and that thought frightened him.
But, at least for now he could.
"Let's go back to bed, Usa..." He coaxed softly, taking her by the hand and leading her back towards his bedroom. She came willingly, silent, but willing all the same. He opened the door and let her slip past, following after her and closing the door behind them. Chibiusa still slept on in his bed, rolled onto her side facing Usagi, who slipped into the bed beside her. Mamoru watched as his future wife, and Chibiusa's future mother, brushed a stray lock of hair from her face, a tender sort of smile falling into place on her lips. "This is what we must protect," he whispered as he climbed into bed on Chibiusa's other side. Usagi gave a single, silent nod, reaching out to take his hand over their daughter's head.
He was right, after all.