Divinity: The Fates and the Afterlife

Chapter five

A/N: I want to thank you for your reviews, they're the motif for me to continue carrying on with the story. I am really glad to know those who are reading this third part are enjoying what has been posted so far. This is where I ask of you to start to be patient as it appears to be the beginning of another long, long story. This is where you can choose to either continue reading or move along to something else. Of course, you are most welcome to stay and join me on this crazy project of mine.

I do not own Sailor Moon, just this plot and some of the characters.

Akira sat on a stool, in front of a lit up table with what appeared to be hundreds of samples taken from their excursion on the ruins underground. Her gloved hands touched every shape and texture with delicacy analyzing up until the last detail with great interest; Toshi's words have been engraved in her mind since the moment he mentioned mythology could be the main reason for the existence of such mystical place. Since their return, she asked for access to every book about mythology and occult science available at the museum and library to feed her curiosity and find an explanation of the symbols carved in almost every piece taken from the palace. With a sigh, she put her glasses down and rubbed the bridge of her nose, Mikael turned to look at her and smiled, "Tired already?"

"No," Akira shook her head and put her glasses on again, "It's just—I can't seem to find a link."

Mikael stood next to her and offered her his cup of coffee "Here," he sat on another stool next to her and looked at the samples carefully arranged in front them, "Maybe the link you are looking for is not in that particular area." the comment made Akira sighed heavily, "I know it's there." she looked at him, "I just know it—the symbols are just like Toshi said, they're from an astronomical perspective. There is a reason to all these signs and symbols."

"Akira, that doesn't say much—many cults or Royal Houses have used astronomical symbols in their ensigns, why is this different?" Akira turned and grabbed a crystal case and put it in front of Mikael. The blonde frowned "A pendant. That's the clue?"

Akira took the transparent lid off and grabbed the chain with pendant, a teardrop shaped golden stone, "This stone—Toshi and I studied it already, its components are not entirely mineral."

Mikael's frown deepened "It could be a composition of minerals and amber."

"One would think that right away because of its color but there aren't any of those things in it." Akira said while wrapping the long gold chain around her fingers and let the stone move from one side to the other like a pendulum, "Every time I do this, it reacts—like if it connects with some sort of energy around it, it's almost like if it's alive." she looked at the chain move around in her hand slowly and with a steady motion. "There is also little to no damage to the jewelry piece—if this necklace is as old as these ruins, it's unnatural for a piece of gold to be this well preserved and shiny, also, the stone would be cracked and dirty. It makes no sense to me, other than it's magical."

Mikael caught the moving stone and felt it was slightly warm and frowned with curiosity, "Where did you find this? I don't remember seeing it anywhere we were at."

"While you were gathering some pieces for examination I went further inside to take a look around—it was laying on what appeared to be one of the chambers of the palace." Akira bit her lower lip, "I also found several articles of personal use like a golden brush, a mirror... combs with stones on them, things like that." she went to look for a book and opened it where it was a small red mark and began reading, "Gods were believed to live as Royal Protectors of each Planet—" she looked at Mikael, "If we go all the way back to the origins of Earth, it is said that it was once created and protected by two Titans—being Gaia the one to take control as heavenly guardian."

"Akira—are you suggesting this pendant belonged to that Goddess?" Mikael chuckled, making the treasure hunter frown, "What is so funny?"

"It's too risky to say all these... there is no solid proof." Mikael stood up "I do agree with you that this is ancient and of royal descent but to jump to these conclusions and say it was a place where a goddess of Earth once lived—it's a little crazy."

"Mikael—a royal palace, a normal royal palace would have remained on the surface. Why is a palace with astronomical symbolism all over buried deep underground, surrounded by bio luminescent matter? Why is this pendant moving on its own? How come there are no natural minerals found on this stone?" she turned pointed at a symbol on a book "See this?"

Mikael sighed softly "Yes, it is the symbol of Gaia."

"Ok, now look at these items—" Akira put the sample of the brush in front of Mikael and put the pendant over one of the books Akira had been reading. The blonde man sighed, "So they worshiped this Goddess—what about it?" as soon as he said those words, the stone began gleaming a warm light as if it was reacting to the inscriptions on the old pages of the book where it was resting; Mikael widened his eyes and pointed the object, "Akira..." Akira turned and saw it move like a compass around the page of the book, "I-It's moving..." she turned and looked at the page of the book and widened her eyes with amazement, "It's reacting to this symbol..." she looked at Mikael "I've seen this symbol—" she turned and went to look for another sample crystal case with a piece of fabric she also found inside the chambers where the pendant was found and put it on the table. It was more of an elaborate cross with a sapphire looking stone in its center, resting on top of a circle that with four cardinal points, her finger tapped the photograph and then the image in the book where the pendant was resonating, "It's the same insignia—and it is said to be the one that identified the Protector of Earth."

Mikael looked at Akira "This is surreal..." he breathed in wonder. Akira nodded and smiled widely, "She exists, Mikael! The Goddess of Earth lives among us—somewhere, the Terran Protector is watching over us."

Usagi sat behind one of the three desks inside the large office in silence as she continued editing some of the pictures from the photo shoot they had last week with who appeared to be the actress of the moment. The same girl Minako was talking about last weekend. The blonde sighed softly as she moved her mouse across the screen to cut and paste some texts across of what looked like to be the cover for their next issue. She looked at her watch and sighed at the hour while she rubbed the bridge of her nose, her action caught the attention of one of the other girls working in the same department with her, "You alright?" she asked slightly worried. A red haired girl with deep green eyes stared at Usagi like if her job depended on what she was doing. Usagi turned to look at her and nodded, "Just a little tired, that's all."

"Good. I thought something happened to that cover." the redhead said with relief, "We cannot afford to be late to that presentation. I must present that to Maya in an hour."

"I know." Usagi said softly, "I'm almost done."

"Calm down Yuki-san, she always has everything on time, lighten up." Another woman with dark hair said to her coworker from her own desk across from Usagi.

"I always get really nervous when I have to explain Maya all the ideas we came up with for the next cover. You know how she is Mika-san, if she doesn't like it we will have to do it all over again." Yuki, the redhead said with a tone of annoyance and hurry.

"I am kind of tired to see this girl everywhere…" the dark haired girl joined the weak conversation Usagi and the redhead were having; as much as Usagi loved to make friends and being nice to everyone, sometimes it was hard to keep up with some of the people who worked at the magazine, Yuki was one of them. Not that she hated her job but sometimes she found it exhausting and sometimes, she had to admit she felt like she deserved a little more credit for her efforts, a thing something her boss took for granted most of the time.

"She's the girl of the moment." the redhead said and bit her 2B pencil on her well-manicured hand, "And Maya loves her."

"Hmm… she loves everything that's in trend." the dark haired girl said softly, "I bet she will be invited to the dinner Maya's throwing to celebrate the magazine's anniversary." Yuki nodded "She is at the top of her list."

Mika pursed her lips and rested her head on her hand, "That party is going to be out of this world. She has everyone from the PR Department working like crazy."

"I know!" Yuki said and grinned, "I already know what I am wearing… what about you?"

Mika shook her head "Not sure, I have two options… but I haven't decided yet." The dark haired girl turned to look in Usagi's direction and smiled, "Hey Usagi-san, have you decided what are you going to wear for the dinner party?"

Usagi turned to Mika and smiled, but before she could even answer Yuki interrupted their conversation "She's not on the guest list." Usagi widened her icy blue eyes and blinked in shock at Yuki's lack of touch. It wasn't the first time the redhead came up with a rash comment and she knew perfectly well how she could be sometimes and decided not to pay much attention to her usual imprudence.

It was obvious Usagi got along better with Mika; she was a lot more easygoing and friendly than Yuki ever was and she even warned her about the redhead's competitive personality one which only escalated to a larger scale when Maya, the editor in chief and founder of the magazine named her her assistant because in Mika's words:

-The Art Department assists Maya in anything she might need and since Yuki is the one with more time working in that department, it was only a matter of time that once she hired more staff, she would be the one in command; or so to speak.-

Usagi smiled softly and shrugged her shoulders, "Well, I guess I don't have to worry about finding the right outfit to wear then."

Yuki blinked and turned to Mika, who was shaking her head slowly disapproving Yuki's comment. She turned and then it came one of those moments that made Usagi reconsider and not to take her words too seriously. The editor's new assistant apologized without really apologizing, "I mean—you know how Maya is, you never know what's she going to do or say—one day she says one thing and the next she will say you imagined everything." She pressed her lips together, "I mean, Mika's going because she works more directly with the PR department and you know, she wants me to be with her all the time."

Usagi smiled and shook her head "It's okay Yuki, I get the point. Maya has her reasons and I'm basically new here so…"

"New? You've been here for almost a year!" Mika said.

"Well yes, that is true but my time and duties here can't be compared with yours and besides, I have tons of work to do so—yeah… I'm okay." Usagi smiled again and continued working in silence until she finished her urgent task, saved the designs on a USB drive and gave them to Yuki so she could go and do her job as assistant/ass kisser and be rewarded by it without giving any recognition to her for her effort. "Good luck," she muttered softly.

"Ugh, thanks-let's see how this goes," Yuki said and turned on her heel, both girls watching leave the office mumbling a chain of indistinctive chatter. Giggling, both stood up and prepared to go to lunch; finally, a moment Usagi was waiting for too long. As they walked to the elevator Usagi sighed in relief once the door closed and began to move down, making her feel butterflies on her stomach. "I'm starving." she said softly and closed her eyes for a moment, not realizing Mika was looking at her with an apologetic stare, "Usagi-san I'm so sorry…"

Usagi opened her eyes and turned to look at her coworker, "For what?"

"What Yuki said was out of place."

"Isn't everything she says out of place?" Usagi giggled, making the other girl laugh a little louder, "Well, you have a point there."

With a curious stare, she turned to the blonde as she opened the large glass door that led to the cafeteria "Hey, I didn't know you were that positive, I remember when you used to feel insulted by her comments all the time, what happened?" she grabbed a tray and passed it over to Usagi who smiled in return, "Well…" the blonde turned to the large salad bar and began her hunt for the perfect lunch, "I guess I listened to my friends and boyfriend."

Mika smiled at the mention of the word boyfriend and followed the blonde's steps and proceeded to serve some veggies on her plate "So… this boyfriend of yours, what does he say?"

Usagi blushed at the mention of her long time lover and smiled like a schoolgirl, she walked to the cashier and paid for her food, waited for her coworker and friend and went to look for a table. "About?" Usagi said as she ripped the paper wrap from her straw and dipped it into her ice cold lemonade. Mika took a sip of her diet coke and waved her hands, "Well, you finished your internship here and got the job, is he happy for you? I didn't even know you had a boyfriend until I saw you were wearing one of those in that finger, every day." Mika blinked, "Is that... for real?"

Usagi smiled and nodded "Yes,"

"Wow," Mika blinked with surprise "Can I…?" she asked with sincere amazement as she leaned to take a closer look of the piece of jewelry. Usagi giggled and nodded, "Sure." she extended her hand out to her while continued eating with her other hand. Mika whistled with astonishment "Wow… that is one gorgeous ring right there, congrats!" she let go of her hand and took a sip of her drink, "How long have you been engaged?"

'Since more than a millennia ago,' Usagi thought and smiled, "Um, a few years," she looked down at her hand and caressed her ring with her fingers, "He proposed to me right before going to his internship abroad and I was in my senior year in high school." with eyes full of tenderness she looked at the ring on her hand and paid close attention to every little detail on it for the hundredth time and smiled.

It had been eight years since she got the first version of the ring she was now wearing. Since Mamoru returned from America, he insisted on upgrading it or at least, give the ring some maintenance and make it look like new again, after many attempts she finally agreed. Usagi looked at the gleaming stone on her finger and thought how she would never have wanted a new one, she had worn it every time, from her happiest to her toughest times and it was because of that ring that she could keep her sanity despite the madness that was happening all around her during that time, when she felt everything was about to be lost.

Mika widened her eyes "Now that's what I call a promise."

Usagi blushed, "He hesitated and was against going away, but I knew it was a big dream of his to become a doctor."

"Oh? He's a doctor?" Mika widened her honey colored eyes, "Well that proves even more how much he loves you, he went very far away and came back just for you and with a good future to offer. Not everyone does that let me tell you."

Usagi frowned and tilted her head, "Why do you say that?"

"Well…" Mika sighed "I've had terrible break-ups in the past, all because they do not love me enough to come back for me."

Usagi widened her eyes and blinked, she felt horrible for talking marvelous things about her boyfriend without realizing this could be a soft spot for her friend across the small table, "Mika-san, I'm so, so sorry. I should have been..."

Mika smiled "You should have been what?"

Usagi pouted her lips "Well, less Yuki-like."

The small joke cracked Mika into a fit of laughter, she looked at the silver blonde with a wide smile on her face and shook her head, "Don't worry about that! That happened a long time ago, now I'm married to a very good man."

"Oh, really?" Usagi asked with shock, "I didn't know you were married!"

"Well, not exactly married but we live together. That should count as a marriage, right?"

"It sure does," Usagi giggled.

"I've done the ring thing before but it doesn't always work out the way you hope to. Like I said before, not everyone comes back for their beloved. In my case, he found another girl more interesting who luckily for him worked at the same company as I did and well, one day he left and never returned!" she raised her hands and laughed, "He didn't even come back for his belongings!"

Usagi widened her blue crystal eyes "That is just wrong, I am so sorry."

Mika waved her hand and shrugged her shoulders "He did me a favor, really. He was a terrible cook and he never took a shower on Sundays." she frowned with slight disgust, "It drove me insane." this time, both laughed at her confession. Usagi found a lot of resemblance between Mika and Minako, they both had that cheerful, positive attitude, both had an awesome style and a great sense a humor. But most importantly, both were truly honest with themselves and even when they had rough times in the past, they always looked the bright side of any situation. Both were believers in love.

The sound of sirens echoed in the walls as ambulances drove in and out of the hospital; nurses and doctors walked from one hallway to the other all immersed in their daily schedules and appointments with the many patients coming in and out. It was another busy day saving lives and Ami couldn't be happier as she walked down the long hallway. She finally reached for the nurse's station and gave one of the nurses several files from one of the doctors she just assisted at intensive care. Chiaki turned and smiled, Mizuno-san."

"Ohayo Chiaki-san, how's your morning going?"

"Oh it's doing just fine." she looked at the many folders Ami was giving to the younger nurse and pursed her lips, "More studies for that patient?"

Ami sighed sadly and nodded, "Yes, the boy might need surgery if things keep up like this."

Chiaki clicked her tongue in shame and took one of the folders to take a quick look, "He's been here since last week, Dr. Urikawa ordered to give the boy a transfusion."

"It really depresses me when children get involved in these situations, I've heard they are going to call many of the surgeons from this hospital to a meeting and evaluate what would be the best option for the boy." Ami said softly "If there is anything I can do, please let me know Chiaki-san, they will be needing more assistants on this case if things carry on like this."

Chiaki smiled and nodded "I will try to keep you posted and if one of the doctors asks me to call interns, you'll be the first to know." she put the file away and smiled proudly, "You don't see interns this passionate every day."

Ami smiled "I really love what I do." she sighed "Even if it takes all my social life away."

"All doctors go through the phase of not having a social life, once you get your residency you might breathe a little bit more, but in the meantime…"

"I have to work hard. I know," Ami smiled and took some other files to take to the archive, "Well, I better get started with my day." with a small wave she turned on her heel and waited for the elevator to take her to the first floor where she knew, some new and very unusual adventures were waiting for her. As soon as the elevators doors opened, she was again greeted by the fast pace of the department and quickly walked towards the nurse station at the center of the room "Ohayo," she said cheerfully.

"Ohayo Ami-san," Maki said and turned to look at the many binders and files over her desk "Ready for another day?"

"I'm ready!" Ami giggled, turning when she heard the sound of the elevator and saw Akashi walking out and towards the nurse's station making her heart flip a few times in her chest before regaining her composure. "Good morning Mizuno-san."

"Good morning, Akashi-san," Ami said softly.

"How was your weekend?" the young intern asked, one could tell the young man was maybe a year older than her and that he was closer on getting his residency than she was but she had to admit, she sure liked to have him around. More than a romantic interest, he turned out to be a good friend of hers in the hospital besides Motoki and Mamoru, who, most of the time were beyond busy.

"It was alright, just scratches and a few stitches." Ami said softly "Yours?"

"A few consultations with Dr. Osuna, nothing fancy." Akashi smiled, "I was waiting to catch at least one surgery but I wasn't called to assist one."

Ami smiled and nodded, "Oh I know the feeling," she turned to Maki and leaned on the desk carefully, "Excuse me Maki-san, do you know who I am going to be assisting today by any chance? Has it been decided?"

Maki looked through her computer's file and then printed another sheet, "Well, it seems you will be assisting Dr. Chiba today, it's been a while."

Ami smiled, knowing for a fact that if she got to assist Mamoru, then it would probably involve cases with a certain level of complexity, a challenge she always welcomed with open arms. "Oh, lucky you…" Akashi's dry tone distracted her from her exciting thoughts and turned to look at him, "What?"

"Nothing, it's been a while since you assisted him—last time you were supposed to assist him he was nowhere around."

Ami felt annoyed by his comment. Sometimes she felt like she was on the horns of a dilemma because of them; she really enjoyed to be around him, she really saw him as a friend rather than just a co worker but his usual comments implying that maybe there was something more between her friend and her was really starting to burst her bubble and if Akashi didn't think before talking next time, maybe she would reconsider their friendship and keep her distance towards him. Without saying a word to the brown haired man, she turned to Maki, "Do you know if he is already here?"

Maki turned to the computer where she was typing something, just when she was about to say something a warm voice interrupted her, "I'm here." Maki blushed slightly and nodded her head, "Ohayo Dr. Chiba."

Mamoru smiled at the young nurse and returned the gesture "Ohayo, Maki-san," then turned at Ami "Ami," he said lightly. Ami felt relieved to have him there, she didn't feel like talking to Akashi for the rest of her morning, "Ohayo, Chiba-san." she said in a friendly but playful tone. Mamoru smiled and took the file Maki already had there for him to read, "Let's see…" he mumbled as he looked through the pages, "A few appointments, a consultation…" Mamoru turned to Maki "I might need to see if there is another Dr. available to take this last case. I am going to be in a meeting all afternoon, could you check this for me Maki-san?"

Maki blinked and nodded, "Of course Dr. Chiba, I can ask Dr. Sukinawa or his assistant to take a look at it."

"That would be great, thank you." Mamoru turned and looked at Akashi, who was still waiting for his schedule and frown softly, recognizing the young man. "You are Dr. Osuna's intern, am I correct?"

Akashi turned to look at Mamoru and could not deny his surprise since he was sure expecting something else. The young man never actually met Chiba Mamoru in person, he never actually had the opportunity to even cross words with him in his short time at the hospital and what he imagined was a totally different image of what he was seeing now, starting by the strong presence he clearly had in the room. "Yes, Satomura Akashi."

"Dr. Furuhata mentioned you assisted him last week, Dr. Osuna is in a meeting as we speak so either you come with me or wait for another doctor to be available, I am going to give you the chance to choose."

Akashi widened his eyes in surprise; this was another thing he had thought differently about him. "N-No, I'll come with you, Chiba-san." he also took the offer as an opportunity to spend more time with Ami. "Alright." Mamoru gave Maki another file, "If Dr. Furuhata comes by, please tell him I am looking for him." Maki nodded and took the papers from the dark haired man, "Of course Dr. Chiba."

"Thank you Maki-san." With that he turned on his heel with the first case on his hand and walked towards one of the consultation offices with Ami and Akashi walking along; he turned to Ami and smiled, "Sorry I wasn't available last week Ami-chan, I got here very late—I had to take the night shift."

Ami smiled and waved her hand, "Oh it's okay, no worries… is everything okay? Anything I can do to help?"

Mamoru smiled at the kind gesture, and shook his head "I'm okay, there's a lot going on my mind right now. You know… there are still things to be done and we have so little time."

Ami giggled "I bet."

Akashi frowned and took notice of their conversation, too intimate for his taste when he heard him call her Ami-chan instead of a more respectful honorific, making him wonder if the two of them had something going on in secret since she got to assist him pretty often and the relationship they had seemed to be more close and friendly a doctor would have with an intern.

As the three walked down the hall, Mamoru opened the door to one room and walked inside and saw an older woman was sitting on a chair, next to her husband lying on the room's gurney. The man was holding his wife's hand and turned to look at the door once Mamoru entered. Immediately, Mamoru gave the couple a polite smile and introduced Ami and Akashi, "Furikawa-san, Ohayo I'm Dr. Chiba Mamoru, I've learned you have come here with severe pain in your abdomen, am I correct?" the man nodded, "Could you explain to me what happened?" he walked towards the bed and grabbed the binder at the man's feet and began reading the status of the patient, "Severe back and abdominal pain," he said softly, "When was the first time you started feeling these symptoms Furikawa-san?"

The pain was so intense the man's wife had to intervene and be the one to speak and give all the explanations. "He's been having pain for quite some time now but last night was the last straw—he couldn't move, he could barely speak because of the pain, I don't know what could be happening to him…" the woman said with deep concern.

Akashi looked at Mamoru and remembered Motoki's words, he was right in one thing, he was not treating patients like if they were inferior, he actually knew the patient's name way before he even entered the room; he greeted them, introduced himself and is actually having a conversation with the patient, instead of just giving a blunt explanation of the problem the patient might have, something that usually happened with Dr. Osuna.

"Anything you probably ate that could have been in bad state Furikawa-san?" Mamoru looked at the man on the bed, who in response just shook his head in denial allowing his wife to continue. "He hasn't eaten much, he can't stand the pain—I tried to give him many natural remedies but none of them seemed to work…"

"Has he had any vomiting?" Mamoru asked in a more serious tone to the man's wife and went to stand next to the man and put his stethoscope to check his vitals.

"Not that I can recall." the woman shook her head and looked at the young doctor check his abdomen as he softly tapped several points with his fingers. Mamoru stayed silent for a moment and took the man's wrist and stayed still for a minute and made an annotation on the binder and handed it to Ami, "Furikawa-san I am going to need to exam you, this is going to be quick, if you feel any pain or discomfort please give me a sign so I can know what might be happening to you. Alright?" he turned to Ami and Akashi "Please take note of his vitals, while I examine Furikawa-san." Mamoru put his hands over his stomach and pressed lightly on different areas, then moved in circular motions from his left side, to his right side "Do you feel any pain on this part of the abdomen?" at the negative signal the man was giving him, the dark-haired doctor continued until the patient flinched in pain and gritted his teeth, "Do you feel pain here?" he pressed again and the man nodded.

The young doctor stepped back and took a deep breath, "Furikawa-san, have you been experiencing some bleeding when you evacuate?"

The older man widened his eyes and turned to his wife then turned to look at Mamoru again and nodded.

Mamoru narrowed his blue eyes slightly, "Have you lost a considerable amount of weight in the past few weeks?" "Yes." the woman answered for her husband.

"Yes." the woman answered for her husband, with a more concerned tone.

Mamoru turned to the patient's wife, "Have you noticed extreme fatigue, nausea, migraines, or high fever over the last few days—anything besides the pain that he could have given you as a sign that something was not normal with him Furikawa-san?" the woman lowered her gaze in thought for a moment and then nodded "He has been more tired than usual and hasn't eaten too well in the last couple of weeks, yes, but I thought it was because he came tired from work, being that the reason for his headaches. He never really complained or mentioned any other discomfort or bleeding… until now."

"What do you do for a living, Furikawa-san?" Mamoru looked at the man, "Are you under constant stress?"

"He works for a construction company." the wife answered softly. Mamoru crossed his arms "So are you around chemical substances on a daily basis?"

The man closed his eyes and nodded. Mamoru nodded and turned to Ami and Akashi "I am going to need you to help me take some blood, feces and urine samples and take them to the laboratory, also I want to see how low are his rates in hemoglobin and a count for his red and white blood cells."

"I will take care of it, Chiba-san." Ami said while turning to ask one of the nurses to bring her the equipment she needs to take the samples. Akashi nodded and went to take the man's pressure. Before he could do anything else, Mamoru interrupted by asking while he continued to study the case on the binder "Is there something else you would like to know from Furikawa-san, Dr. Satomura?"

Akashi froze, then looked at the old man then back at Mamoru who was waiting for his reply. Mamoru raised his brow and turned to the old man, "Furikawa-san, something I should know about yourself? Do you suffer from high blood pressure, diabetes, glaucoma?" The old man shook his head no.

"Are you allergic to any medication in particular?"

"No Doctor," the woman answered softly.

"Have you had any surgeries in the past?"

"No,"

"Any family history of any sort of disease?"

The woman blinked and sighed heavily "Well, his father passed away from cancer a few years ago."

"What type of cancer?" Mamoru started writing on the binder, the woman bit her lower lip "Lung cancer,"

Mamoru continued writing, "Do you smoke Furikawa-san?"

"No, Dr. Chiba, he doesn't."

"Drink?"

"Occasionally."

"What type of diet does he consume?" Mamoru looked at the woman, who shook her head "Well, he does like to have heavy meals for dinner."

Mamoru turned to the man on the bed and arched his brow, "A carnivore Furikawa-san?"

The man widened his eyes and nodded; Akashi blinked with evident awe as he listened to Mamoru. He had to admit that he admired the sharpness with he was handling the consultation. Mamoru nodded and began writing again, "Do you take any medication, vitamins, supplements on a daily basis?"

"Calcium tablets and a multivitamin complex-but that would be all Dr."

"Have you experienced this type of pain before Furikawa-san?"

The man nodded, Mamoru narrowed his eyes again "For how long?"

The man raised two fingers, "Two times?" Mamoru asked, allowing the man to answer with his head. "Alright, thank you for letting me know." Mamoru turned to Akashi, "Proceed."

Akashi tried to stay cool at this point; in all his years at medical school, he always remembered to ask the basics for a consultation. He was known to be good at his job and Dr. Osuna often picked him because he could keep up with his rhythm but now that he had been working with other doctors he could understand what Motoki was talking about when he asked if he had worked for Mamoru before.

The man was sharp, very sharp and clearly knew how to approach the patients, realizing it was a very different one Osuna's has had in the past. He had to admit to himself that he admired how he could remain with a cool and tranquil expression under situations were obviously high stressed, like this one. Was he that good? Were the rumors of the young doctor true? Akashi began to wonder as he remembered he had heard some things about him when he joined the hospital team and worked as an intern and how quickly he escalated and gained his residency with honors but to be honest, he thought those were just plain rumors to add to his dashing persona and looks.

"Furikawa-san, I am going to prescribe you an antibiotic and a strong sedative to reduce the pain in your abdomen; I cannot let you go until I know for certain what is happening to you; Dr. Satomura will put you an IV with the medication, but also we need to run a series of more tests to determine the best cause of action—the pain you are suffering is caused by something else but we cannot be certain until we have all the results, Dr. Mizuno will take your samples to the laboratory with an urgent disclosure so we can treat the problem as soon as possible but aside of what we find in your results, we will need to schedule an endoscopy to see what is happening down there and scratch some theories off the list."

"But, is he going to be alright?" the woman asked with deep worry. Ami stepped in and stood next to Mamoru, "The antibiotic will help the area not to be as swollen as it is, after that it will give us a clear view of what might be the problem." Mamoru smiled at the man on the bed, "You are in good hands Furikawa-san, I will come and check on you every hour. If you need me, either Dr. Mizuno or Dr. Satomura will call for me, they will keep a close eye on you."

The woman stood up and sighed with slight relief, "Thank you so much, Dr. Chiba."

Mamoru turned to Ami and gave her a sign to follow him outside of the room, leaving Akashi taking the samples alone. Ami looked at him with a worried look and sighed softly, "Do you want me to stay and see how his state evolves with the medication? The dose you are prescribing is quite strong." she read his note with the prescription.

Mamoru looked at her "The pain he has is severe, there is considerable swelling in his abdomen, I don't want to jump into conclusions but it could be something else. Once I have those test results I will be able to have a clearer vision of what to do; I will need for you and Satomura-san to stay close and keep an eye on him, I have to be at a meeting in exactly one hour and it might take all day, so I am going to need your help more than anything today. I will come and check on him every hour but still, I need him under constant observation."

"Of course Mamoru-kun, whatever you need." Ami nodded.

"Ok, so… I need to make a few more consultations before the meeting starts, I don't know how much it's going to take me, depends on the case but I will be leaving the status of each patient at the nurse's station, if anything, anything happens—whatever it is, please call me on my cell phone; especially if you see any changes with this patient."

"Got it." Ami nodded. Mamoru patted the bluenette's shoulder in gratitude and smiled, "Thanks Ami-chan, I trust you if you need to take other samples for testing, but first let me know."

"I will Mamoru-kun,"

Mamoru turned on his heel, and stopped; then turned to look over his shoulder, "Oh and… Ami-chan?"

"Yes?"

"Stop making that poor man suffer,"

Ami widened her eyes and blushed, "What?"

Mamoru moved his head and motioned his head to the door leaving clear who he was talking about. Ami blushed crimson red and watched him leave with slight hurry to his next appointment. His words echoed in her mind, sure, she had a crush on Akashi but was the tension that obvious? Did he really have the same crush on her? Oh no… she thought "This is even worse than receiving love letters from secret admirers..."

At the end of the long hallway, Motoki spotted a glance of his dark haired friend and walked towards him. "Mamoru!" he called, making him stop and turn to look at him "Hey." Mamoru smiled and patted his friend's shoulder, a gesture Motoki imitated every morning "Maki told me you were looking for me, what's up?"

Mamoru sighed and gave Motoki the file with Furikawa's case, "I just saw this patient. I prescribed strong medication to diminish the pain and left Ami and Satomura-san in charge."

"Ok and?" Motoki walked with Mamoru as he made it to his next appointment, "He has a severe abdominal pain but I think there is something else."

Motoki frowned and opened the file and took a quick read, Mamoru continued, "My first thought was that maybe could be his gallbladder…"

"Yes?"

"Until he told me he bled every time he evacuated and has a family history of cancer..."

Both men stopped, Motoki arched his brow, "Cancer?"

Mamoru sighed softly, "I don't want to jump to conclusions here. They are taking several samples to take to the laboratory but… I might need your help if it is… I will schedule an endoscopy to see what's going on in there."

"Of course," Motoki nodded, "So where are you going now?"

"I have another consultation, then I have to go to a meeting… I don't know how long it's going to take." Mamoru continued walking as he checked his phone absently.

"Oh yeah, Urisawa-san asked me to be there too. It's about the kid, nobody is exactly sure of what to do next... they cannot seem to find a cause for his disease. I heard that the board does not want to get too much involved because they want to avoid any charges the family might press in case the results go wrong."

Mamoru pursed his lips, "Well, that doesn't sound too promising if they're already thinking things will go wrong and the family will press charges but if you want my opinion, some of the doctors involved seem like they have been experimenting on the child rather than finding a cure."

"Yes, I feel the same." Motoki frowned, "Why none of them have consulted the case with an internist, for example. That is why now they want more doctors to study the case and they are including you." Motoki sighed heavily, "I hope it doesn't take too long, Reika wants me to go with her to this party… you know that is not really my thing, I mean come on! It's Monday!"

"It's Reika we're talking about—why are you so surprised? She likes to go to cocktail parties all the time." Mamoru chuckled, "Also, why are you complaining about, I thought you liked the attention."

Motoki frowned "Well—I like it when I feel in the mood."

Mamoru chuckled, "I do feel you though, who throws a party on a Monday?"

"Exactly!" Motoki clicked his tongue "All I want to do it to get home, grab a beer and throw myself on the couch… but it's a museum thing and it's a big deal for her so—"

"Yes, you have to comply." Mamoru patted his friend's shoulder, "That's the way it goes. If it makes you feel better, that makes us two."

Motoki widened his green eyes, "What? You have a party to go too?"

"No, just dinner at my in law's." Mamoru looked down at his watch for a second, "But, it usually lasts until very late," he exhaled softly, Motoki whistled "How's the family treating you?"

Mamoru smiled softly, "Very good actually…"

"And the dad?"

Mamoru waved his hand and laughed, "Mmm… well, he's getting there; at least he doesn't think I'm a criminal anymore."

"You're stealing his precious daughter; he will always think you are a criminal." Motoki laughed, "Like me, I'm a delinquent too but don't worry, you're a good guy—he'll eventually see that."

"Gee, thanks." Mamoru chuckled, "One has to do anything to make them happy, right?"

Motoki nodded "Yeah, it happens a lot once you get married—get used to it." He patted his friend's shoulder and chuckled, "Who knew? You from the whole bunch… getting married, and with the girl, you annoyed the most."

Mamoru arched his brow "What?"

"I don't know," Motoki shrugged his shoulders, "It's weird to see you in this position, you were always doing your thing, never dated a girl for more than a couple of weeks and everything changed once you locked eyes with Usagi-chan."

Mamoru chuckled "What can I say? Usagi is not like everyone else."

"Man, she's not." Motoki chuckled, "And I'm glad you two found each other, she's amazing. You should be proud."

"I am." Mamoru smiled and took another binder from the nurse's station and stood in front of another consultation room, Motoki smiled "So are you ready for the big day? It's getting closer…"

Mamoru chuckled "I am, and I don't have a problem with going and have dinner with my in-laws…it's just…" Motoki nodded and patted his friend's shoulder, "I know, I know,"

"It's Monday!" both men sighed at the same time, both annoyed and resigned.