Chapter 3
The next day was another tutoring session for Kai and Usagi. When it was time for Kai to go home, Shingo conveniently showed up.
"Usagi, if you want to get ready for that stupid ole slumber party thing tonight, I could take her home," said Shingo.
"Thanks Shingo, but that's ok," said Usagi. "The slumber party isn't for another few hours. I have plenty of time."
"Oh. Well, that's ok, I have plans tonight any way. I just thought I'd offer because your driving is terrible and I don't like to see you put someone in danger by driving them all the way across town," he said.
"Your driving's worse!" exclaimed Usagi. "You had to take the test twice!"
"You had to take it three times!"
"That's a lie!"
"Is not!"
"Is too!"
"Is not!"
"Is too!"
Kaiki just laughed softly, wishing she had a brother or sister to fight with. She was all alone...and always had been, for as far back as she could remember.
~~~~~~~~~~
That night all the Senshi that had so far arrived gathered at Usagi's house for laughing, popcorn, and movies. Halfway through the first movie, that no one was really paying attention to anyhow, Minako rushed in. She looked much different than she had the last time all of them were together. She was thinner and her hair wasn't as long as it had been. It only fell about mid back and it had a slight wave to it...a perm? "Hello, hello, hello!" she said, striking a pose in the doorway. "Did ya miss me?"
"Of course not!" said Usagi with a grin, and she ran to hug her old friend. The others soon followed her example.
"So what's going on exactly? What's so important that you had to drag me from the runways of Paris?" she said with a grin and a laugh. After hearing the story, she turned grave. "A new Senshi? Remember what happened last time when new Senshi started showing up?"
"I remember, all right," said Usagi softly. "Chaos."
"Is it Chaos again?" asked Minako. She was no longer Aino Minako, star of the fashion runways all over the world. She was once more Sailor Venus, leader of the inner Senshi.
"It didn't feel like Chaos," said Usagi. "It felt - it felt - it just felt like another Senshi, and I didn't see any bracelets." Minako nodded.
"Maybe she's just lost, or scared. At any rate, there's nothing we can do tonight, so lets party!" she said. She looked around at the faces of her friends. "Where're Ami and Haruka?" she asked. When she said the name Haruka, Michiru's eyes turned dark for a moment, just a moment, so swift that no one could be sure whether or not it happened.
"Haruka had a big race, and Ami will be here this weekend, she couldn't get away from school on such short notice," said Usagi.
"Ami, Ami, Ami," said Minako with a smile. "Oh well, Ami would have been asleep by ten any way!" she laughed good-naturedly.
~~~~~~~~~~
The next day Usagi missed class, because she and the others had stayed up until past six, and they slept till past three. Kaiki came over to be tutored, but she was met with a bunch of sleeping girls. Besides them, the house seemed empty. She was at the door, ready to go, when it opened and in walked Shingo.
"Hello," she said softly.
"Hey," he said. "What happened to tutoring?"
"She's asleep," she said with a small, soft laugh.
"Oh yeah, she had that slumber party last night. Don't you think she's a little old for that?" he asked with a grin. Kaiki laughed.
"You're never to old to have fun with people you love," she said. Shingo smiled.
"I guess you're right," said he. "Do you need a ride home?"
"I can walk, its ok, really," said Kai.
"Kai, I insist. It's a long walk back to your house, and it'll be dark. I don't like to think about the type of people who'd be on the street at night," said Shingo. He smiled. "Come on, what have you got to loose?"
"Ok," she said softly with a smile. They got into Shingo's car. Neither spoke for a minute.
"Where do you go to school?" asked Shingo. She named her school. "Hey, cool, that's where I used to go. What grade are you in?"
"10th," she said. "Sophomore."
"I remember having a lot of bad teachers that year," said Shingo. Kaiki laughed. "What's so funny?"
"I have a lot of bad teachers too. Imawa-sensei, he teaches math - "
"I remember him! He looked like a hawk! That nose! Ug! He failed me three quarters in a row, in the last quarter I managed to get a B and get something like a D for the year! Ug!"
"Heh, he's failing me too, that's why I have to get tutored," said Kai.
"He's failing you? You were practically TEACHING Usagi that stuff!"
"I don't do the problems the way he does, or I don't show work, or my ones look like sevens...he always finds some way to take points off."
"He's a terrible teacher. Its people like him who make kids hate all teachers. Wait till you get to college, though, the people there are all so SMART. It's mad cool. My last girlfriend, Tomoe Hotaru, was like a genius. She wasn't much fun though, she never liked to go out for dinner or go to movies or stuff. She always wanted to stay home and study. But man, was she pretty. She's more than just smart and pretty, though. She loved to have these long conversations with me, when I was feeling serious, that was, and, man, that girl was DEEP. You get a lot more people like that in college than you do in high school, which is really cool. Me and Hotaru finally broke up because she told me I was to immature and then I told her dating her was like dating my grandmother and we got into a huge fight." He grinned. "She threw one of my mom's vases at me. I moved in time and it smashed against the wall, rather than my head." Kaiki laughed and so did Shingo. "We're still best friends, so its all cool." There was a pause. "You got a boy friend?" She shook her head.
"I don't know too many people at school," she said.
"That's gotta be rough, being the new kid, huh? Especially someone as quiet as you," said Shingo. Kai smiled, a sad sort of smile, grateful for Shingo's understanding.
"You have no idea."
~~~~~~~~~~~~
Haruka sat slumped on the couch of her posh house in Belgium, near one of her favorite racetracks. There was no race that day, she just didn't want to go see the others. She couldn't face Michi again...not after that day...that huge fight over a tiny mistake that was blown so far out of proportion...
**flashback**
"Haruka! You promised we'd go to the symphony tonight!" Michiru had been on the couch in the living room, all dressed up, gorgeous in her finery, but tears stained her pretty face. Haruka had walked in, dirty from racetracks where she and a few friends had been fooling around.
"Michi - I'm so sorry - "
"Haruka, this is the third time you've skipped going out with me to go racing with your stupid boyfriends! I can't stand it!"
"I just get so excited when I race...I forget...you've been late to races of mine because of your violin stuff before - "
"You forgot me? Haruka, a relationship involves two people! Not me waiting at home for hours on end waiting for you to get back from your stupid races!"
"My races are stupid, eh?" said Haruka. "Well, maybe I don't want to go to the stupid symphony and fall asleep by eight every Saturday night. Maybe that's why I go racing!"
"I cannot believe you just said that, Tenoh Haruka!" Haruka was about to apologize, but was interrupted by Michi. "I go to every one of those stupid races with you! Every one! You don't think I'm bored to tears?"
"Why didn't you just say something?"
"Because I love you, Haruka! That's what love is about!"
"But I love you too - "
"If you loved me you wouldn't forget about me every Saturday night!" Michiru ran into her room and slammed the door. Haruka spent the night out on the couch. The next day, Michiru was no where to be found, and neither was Haruka...
...It was such a small thing, thought Haruka, I could have fixed it. I could have apologized rather than keep the fight going...it was all my fault...I didn't meant any of it...I loved her and her music...
Haruka sighed and shook her head sadly, popping another potato chip in her mouth. She grabbed the framed picture of Michiru that she always kept on her coffee table, among some others (Usagi, Ami, Makoto, Minako, Hotaru, Chibiusa, Setsuna), and stared at it for a long time. She shook her head. "Its too late, Haruka, you lost her forever," she muttered. "You lost her forever and its all your fault."
The phone rang.
"Oh, hi, Usagi. What? Oh no, I really can't make it. I won that race I told you about, and now I have to go onto semi finals and then there's finals...I wont be able to get into Tokyo for a while. Tell every one I said 'Hi'." Click. Haruka hung up.
~~~~~~~~~~
"Brian, I'm sorry, but I really have to go," said Ami, packing her bags. Her boyfriend stood beside her.
"When will you be back? After vacation?"
Ami sighed. "I wish I knew, Bri. I really wish I did." She looked at her boyfriend, who she loved more than she ever though she could love any one. He was really tall, much, much taller than her. He had dark blackish hair that glinted blue in the light. He had dark eyes, with glasses partially hiding them, but he was far from nerdy looking.
He studied his girlfriend. She wore her glasses now. Her hair, which had grown since they first met, was up in a ponytail high on her head. Her large blue eyes stared at him, pleading for him to understand. He picked up a shirt she had forgotten to put in the suitcase and neatly placed it on top of the already packed clothes. "You'll call every day?" Ami smiled and hugged her boyfriend tightly, surprising him.
"Thanks for understanding, thank you so much."
The next day was another tutoring session for Kai and Usagi. When it was time for Kai to go home, Shingo conveniently showed up.
"Usagi, if you want to get ready for that stupid ole slumber party thing tonight, I could take her home," said Shingo.
"Thanks Shingo, but that's ok," said Usagi. "The slumber party isn't for another few hours. I have plenty of time."
"Oh. Well, that's ok, I have plans tonight any way. I just thought I'd offer because your driving is terrible and I don't like to see you put someone in danger by driving them all the way across town," he said.
"Your driving's worse!" exclaimed Usagi. "You had to take the test twice!"
"You had to take it three times!"
"That's a lie!"
"Is not!"
"Is too!"
"Is not!"
"Is too!"
Kaiki just laughed softly, wishing she had a brother or sister to fight with. She was all alone...and always had been, for as far back as she could remember.
~~~~~~~~~~
That night all the Senshi that had so far arrived gathered at Usagi's house for laughing, popcorn, and movies. Halfway through the first movie, that no one was really paying attention to anyhow, Minako rushed in. She looked much different than she had the last time all of them were together. She was thinner and her hair wasn't as long as it had been. It only fell about mid back and it had a slight wave to it...a perm? "Hello, hello, hello!" she said, striking a pose in the doorway. "Did ya miss me?"
"Of course not!" said Usagi with a grin, and she ran to hug her old friend. The others soon followed her example.
"So what's going on exactly? What's so important that you had to drag me from the runways of Paris?" she said with a grin and a laugh. After hearing the story, she turned grave. "A new Senshi? Remember what happened last time when new Senshi started showing up?"
"I remember, all right," said Usagi softly. "Chaos."
"Is it Chaos again?" asked Minako. She was no longer Aino Minako, star of the fashion runways all over the world. She was once more Sailor Venus, leader of the inner Senshi.
"It didn't feel like Chaos," said Usagi. "It felt - it felt - it just felt like another Senshi, and I didn't see any bracelets." Minako nodded.
"Maybe she's just lost, or scared. At any rate, there's nothing we can do tonight, so lets party!" she said. She looked around at the faces of her friends. "Where're Ami and Haruka?" she asked. When she said the name Haruka, Michiru's eyes turned dark for a moment, just a moment, so swift that no one could be sure whether or not it happened.
"Haruka had a big race, and Ami will be here this weekend, she couldn't get away from school on such short notice," said Usagi.
"Ami, Ami, Ami," said Minako with a smile. "Oh well, Ami would have been asleep by ten any way!" she laughed good-naturedly.
~~~~~~~~~~
The next day Usagi missed class, because she and the others had stayed up until past six, and they slept till past three. Kaiki came over to be tutored, but she was met with a bunch of sleeping girls. Besides them, the house seemed empty. She was at the door, ready to go, when it opened and in walked Shingo.
"Hello," she said softly.
"Hey," he said. "What happened to tutoring?"
"She's asleep," she said with a small, soft laugh.
"Oh yeah, she had that slumber party last night. Don't you think she's a little old for that?" he asked with a grin. Kaiki laughed.
"You're never to old to have fun with people you love," she said. Shingo smiled.
"I guess you're right," said he. "Do you need a ride home?"
"I can walk, its ok, really," said Kai.
"Kai, I insist. It's a long walk back to your house, and it'll be dark. I don't like to think about the type of people who'd be on the street at night," said Shingo. He smiled. "Come on, what have you got to loose?"
"Ok," she said softly with a smile. They got into Shingo's car. Neither spoke for a minute.
"Where do you go to school?" asked Shingo. She named her school. "Hey, cool, that's where I used to go. What grade are you in?"
"10th," she said. "Sophomore."
"I remember having a lot of bad teachers that year," said Shingo. Kaiki laughed. "What's so funny?"
"I have a lot of bad teachers too. Imawa-sensei, he teaches math - "
"I remember him! He looked like a hawk! That nose! Ug! He failed me three quarters in a row, in the last quarter I managed to get a B and get something like a D for the year! Ug!"
"Heh, he's failing me too, that's why I have to get tutored," said Kai.
"He's failing you? You were practically TEACHING Usagi that stuff!"
"I don't do the problems the way he does, or I don't show work, or my ones look like sevens...he always finds some way to take points off."
"He's a terrible teacher. Its people like him who make kids hate all teachers. Wait till you get to college, though, the people there are all so SMART. It's mad cool. My last girlfriend, Tomoe Hotaru, was like a genius. She wasn't much fun though, she never liked to go out for dinner or go to movies or stuff. She always wanted to stay home and study. But man, was she pretty. She's more than just smart and pretty, though. She loved to have these long conversations with me, when I was feeling serious, that was, and, man, that girl was DEEP. You get a lot more people like that in college than you do in high school, which is really cool. Me and Hotaru finally broke up because she told me I was to immature and then I told her dating her was like dating my grandmother and we got into a huge fight." He grinned. "She threw one of my mom's vases at me. I moved in time and it smashed against the wall, rather than my head." Kaiki laughed and so did Shingo. "We're still best friends, so its all cool." There was a pause. "You got a boy friend?" She shook her head.
"I don't know too many people at school," she said.
"That's gotta be rough, being the new kid, huh? Especially someone as quiet as you," said Shingo. Kai smiled, a sad sort of smile, grateful for Shingo's understanding.
"You have no idea."
~~~~~~~~~~~~
Haruka sat slumped on the couch of her posh house in Belgium, near one of her favorite racetracks. There was no race that day, she just didn't want to go see the others. She couldn't face Michi again...not after that day...that huge fight over a tiny mistake that was blown so far out of proportion...
**flashback**
"Haruka! You promised we'd go to the symphony tonight!" Michiru had been on the couch in the living room, all dressed up, gorgeous in her finery, but tears stained her pretty face. Haruka had walked in, dirty from racetracks where she and a few friends had been fooling around.
"Michi - I'm so sorry - "
"Haruka, this is the third time you've skipped going out with me to go racing with your stupid boyfriends! I can't stand it!"
"I just get so excited when I race...I forget...you've been late to races of mine because of your violin stuff before - "
"You forgot me? Haruka, a relationship involves two people! Not me waiting at home for hours on end waiting for you to get back from your stupid races!"
"My races are stupid, eh?" said Haruka. "Well, maybe I don't want to go to the stupid symphony and fall asleep by eight every Saturday night. Maybe that's why I go racing!"
"I cannot believe you just said that, Tenoh Haruka!" Haruka was about to apologize, but was interrupted by Michi. "I go to every one of those stupid races with you! Every one! You don't think I'm bored to tears?"
"Why didn't you just say something?"
"Because I love you, Haruka! That's what love is about!"
"But I love you too - "
"If you loved me you wouldn't forget about me every Saturday night!" Michiru ran into her room and slammed the door. Haruka spent the night out on the couch. The next day, Michiru was no where to be found, and neither was Haruka...
...It was such a small thing, thought Haruka, I could have fixed it. I could have apologized rather than keep the fight going...it was all my fault...I didn't meant any of it...I loved her and her music...
Haruka sighed and shook her head sadly, popping another potato chip in her mouth. She grabbed the framed picture of Michiru that she always kept on her coffee table, among some others (Usagi, Ami, Makoto, Minako, Hotaru, Chibiusa, Setsuna), and stared at it for a long time. She shook her head. "Its too late, Haruka, you lost her forever," she muttered. "You lost her forever and its all your fault."
The phone rang.
"Oh, hi, Usagi. What? Oh no, I really can't make it. I won that race I told you about, and now I have to go onto semi finals and then there's finals...I wont be able to get into Tokyo for a while. Tell every one I said 'Hi'." Click. Haruka hung up.
~~~~~~~~~~
"Brian, I'm sorry, but I really have to go," said Ami, packing her bags. Her boyfriend stood beside her.
"When will you be back? After vacation?"
Ami sighed. "I wish I knew, Bri. I really wish I did." She looked at her boyfriend, who she loved more than she ever though she could love any one. He was really tall, much, much taller than her. He had dark blackish hair that glinted blue in the light. He had dark eyes, with glasses partially hiding them, but he was far from nerdy looking.
He studied his girlfriend. She wore her glasses now. Her hair, which had grown since they first met, was up in a ponytail high on her head. Her large blue eyes stared at him, pleading for him to understand. He picked up a shirt she had forgotten to put in the suitcase and neatly placed it on top of the already packed clothes. "You'll call every day?" Ami smiled and hugged her boyfriend tightly, surprising him.
"Thanks for understanding, thank you so much."