Held By the Wings of an Angel
The Cherry Project-Part Four
By Bonnie-Chan
Email: hunniebunny@aol.com
Web page: http://www.geocities.com/sailor_moon_rose/
Today is February 13, 2002
Welcome back! Here's part six...the exhibition is here!
Welcome to Day Six of the 2002 Winter Olympics! I've always loved the Olympics, haven't you? Anyways, to memorialize this historic event, I am releasing a chapter of this story every single day for the next 11 days. By the Closing Ceremonies on February 24th, this story will be ending as well.
I truly hope that the discrepancy over whether or not the pairs program was rigged doesn't taint future Olympics. MSNBC said that there's a chance that this will pull figure skating from future Olympic events…I would hate that, wouldn't you?
Watch the Olympics…you never know when the tides will turn and what you thought would happen can change in the blink of an eye!
Sailor Eeyore-you're a wonderful beta reader, thanks so much!! ^_^
Well, on with the story!
_____________________________
Held By the Wings of an Angel
The Cherry Project: Part Four
By Bonnie-Chan
_____________________________
Tsuzuki finished nailing the flimsy sign into place and stood up, admiring his work. He walked over to where he had set his duffle bag by a nearby tree and put away his hammer, stopping as he heard a girl exclaim, "There's a rink behind the school!?"
He turned around and grinned, showing off his pearly teeth. "The construction workers finished building the rink in the middle of the night. It's a bit small, but we'll make the best of it."
Chieri turned around and gaped at the boy with white-blond hair standing behind her. "Tsuzuki! You made a rink!? How? Wait, that sign the other day, it said Tsuzuki Construction…your folks have a construction company!?"
"Sort of…" He cocked his head and grinned down at her. "You want to try it out? The rink that was built for the class president?"
"For me!?"
"That's right. Come on, let me show you the rink." He led her behind the school to the small ice skating arena and ushered her inside. He watched as she slipped on her skates and stepped onto the ice, beginning her program. He started in alarm as she swerved and grasped onto the railing at the edge of the rink for support.
"Cherry! Are you alright? Didn't you sleep last night?"
"Of course I did!"
"I see. Well…don't overwork yourself, you can do this! I've seen you do it. Have faith in yourself!"
"Faith…all I need is faith."
"That's right. Now try it again. I know you'll nail your program this time!"
***********************
"Hey, Cherry, you dressed yet?"
"Get out of here, I'm changing!"
Usagi looked up in exasperation, pausing in her administrations to Chieri's hair. "Guys, go wait by the rink, okay? You shouldn't just walk into the locker room like that!"
"Okay, okay, we're going…"
Hiroshi grinned and turned his back, slinging his arm around Tsuzuki. "Isn't she pretty?"
"Yeah." He glanced at his watch. "Oh, the exhibition is about to start. I'm going to head out onto the rink."
Chieri stared after him, her mouth agape, and Usagi patted her head reassuring as she tucked the last flower into her friend's hair.
"'Yeah'? That's all? He could have said a little more than that…"
Yuni laughed as she straightened Chieri's dress. "He's just shy, Chieri."
Kouichi smiled at her warmly. "What the media says is true. Tsuzuki really does have a poker face."
Usagi nodded in agreement. "I've told him that plenty of times before, it's true."
Hiroshi bowed regally, causing Chieri's frown to disappear as she burst into laughter. "Well, Princess, shall we follow our dashing prince's example and depart for the rink as well?"
"Of course, my knight." She giggled again, and the five friends left the room, each sporting a jacket that read The Cherry Project.
"You don't have to hold my arm, I can make it myself."
Kouichi shook his head indignantly. "No way! If we knights can't guide our princess safely, Captain Tsuzuki will be furious and behead us!"
"Of course."
They stepped over to the rink and Chieri breathed deeply, taking out a felt tip pin and coloring her hand."
"Er…Chieri? What are you doing?"
"This is a charm I learned to stay calm. All you have to do is write the kanji for 'person' on your hand three times while you swallow."
"I've never heard of that charm before. In fact, I'll tell you the charm I do hear. All you have to do is chant 'Kouichi-kun is really handsome' three times."
"Oh, I'm so sure."
Tsuzuki tapped Chieri on the shoulder, turning her around to face him. "Just do what you always do, okay?"
"Do what I always do…." She gulped in air as the announcer called her name over the loudspeaker, signaling her to the ice.
She skated to the middle of the rink and struck a pose, waiting for the music Hiroshi composed for her to start.
She began her program like she had practiced, skating gracefully around the rink before noticing the Princess in the crowd and jumping up into a triple.
"Cherry! What are you doing!?" Tsuzuki skated out onto the rink and grabbed her hand as she fell towards the ice, holding her up.
The crowd began murmuring to each other and rested on the edge of their seats, cheering as the pair jumped into the air.
"The music's beginning again, Tsuzuki!"
Tsuzuki grimaced and muttered, "Hiroshi…!" He smiled thinly as he felt Chieri's eyes on him and murmured, "Just follow me, okay? Don't cry out if I touch you. Just skate the program the way I taught you to, okay? Are you ready?"
"I guess so…"
"Then let's go!" He began circling the rink, motioning for Chieri to follow him, and they began flawlessly performing her routine. "When the music swells, lift up your body. Hold tight to my shoulder and take a spiral posture above, okay?"
"What!?"
He ignored her moment of indecisiveness and raised her into the air. "Okay, Chieri, here comes the finale…do a throw jump and spin as fast as you can, okay?"
"What?"
"Spin!" He released her and she spun through the air. Oh, no, she's going to crash… He hurried over to her and caught her in his arms, causing them both to fall to the ground. "You spun too much!"
"Sorry…"
He helped her to her feet and they faced the applauding crowd, waving to their friends in the stands.
Chieri grinned as she bent down to pick up bouquets of flowers that were thrown to the ice. "Oh, chocolate bananas!"
"You know, Chieri, you're pretty heavy…maybe you should stop eating those things?"
"I am not! You're just a big bully!"
The friendly banter continued as they skated off the ice, meeting Yuni and Ms. Haruna at the railing.
Yuni grinned enthusiastically. "That was amazing, you guys! You were great together!"
Tsuzuki pulled a flower from one of the bouquets and handed it to Chieri, smiling happily. "It's been a long time since I've gotten applause, since I've had this feeling…thank you."
She looked into his eyes and smiled, entranced. "Tsuzuki…?"
"Yes?"
"I want to skate."
"What?"
"Skating today…I feel like I can do anything!"
"Do the second session the way I told you to, okay? You don't need that extra jump."
"I will, promise."
"Nothing more than what's necessary, got it?"
"Got it!"
"Now go take a break, you deserve it!"
***********************
Tsuzuki nodded his head as Chieri landed her final jump, ending her performance elegantly the way he had told her to. He turned around and a figure by the locker room caught his eye, bringing him over to investigate.
"I thought I saw you talking to Kouichi. You decided to show up after all."
"It's as though I was drawn here."
"Maybe you were."
"Tsuzuki-san! Figure skating's Junior Champion! Thanks for helping Chieri out, showing her how fun skating can be."
Tsuzuki turned to face a tall, balding man with wire glasses. "Asuka-san! It's nice to meet you. I'm not champion anymore, though. It's a pleasure to finally meet Chieri's father. I saw you on video a few years ago, when you performed in the Olympics…you were amazing!"
"You must have had many videos made of you as well."
"A few. No home videos, my father doesn't like skating…"
"Cherry, that was amazing! You did so well!"
"Thanks, Kouichi!" She grinned at him, before training her eyes on the girl with short blond hair standing beside Tsuzuki. "Princess…"
The girl looked at her briefly before turning back to Tsuzuki as though she didn't exist.
"Guess what, Dad, Tsuzuki? I've decided that I want to join a skating club and learn how to skate for real!"
"You do! That's excellent! Like father, like daughter! The closest one is the Takanawa Wing Skate Club!"
"What!? That's the club where the Princess skates!"
The blond girl shrugged her shoulders indifferently. "Don't let my involvement with the club stop you from entering. There aren't any openings at the rink or for coaches right now what with so little time before the championships…You won't be able to practice as a beginner, but if you don't mind that, then please, feel free to enter."
"What championship?"
Tsuzuki smiled over at her. "The block class championship is soon…it's a big thing."
"Well then, I'll enter the championship too!"
"You can't."
Chieri looked at her rival suspiciously. "Why not!?
"Because you're not good enough."
***********************
The end…until tomorrow, that is! The seventh part of this epic tale sets up the rest of the story-don't miss it! I know, I know, there wasn't all that much emphasis on Usagi, but there will be a lot more in the future, promise! She plays a big part in this story, her parts just don't come till later!
Don't forget to watch the Olympics on NBC! Every day that you see events taking place, there's going to be a new chapter of this story! We've only just begun, there are still 11 Chapters to go! Usagi and Tsuzuki's stories are far from over!
Give me the next 11 days to tell you the rest of their story…I promise it'll be worth the ride! ^_^
~Bonnie-Chan~
February 13, 2002
Day 6 of the 2002 Salt Lake City Winter Olympics
DISCLAIMER: Both Sailor Moon AND The Cherry Project belong to Naoko Takeuchi…man, she's one lucky lady! What I wouldn't give to own the rights to two of my favorite manga! In case you were wondering, TCP was Naoko's first epic story ^_^ ….wait until you see what character shows up in part three-one that is in the original manga for TCP, and a character you know quite well from SM, as well!
Translations for The Cherry Project came from Alex Glover's wonderful webpage. If you want to read TCP-or any other manga by Naoko-hime, it's the place to go! The web address is:
http://www.nwlink.com/~kurozuki/manga.htm
A few lines were taken directly from the translated text by Alex Glover, but for the most part they remain uniquely my own! Please don't copy anything without emailing me first and asking!
Questions, comments? Email me here: hunniebunny@aol.com…and whether you liked it or hated it, could you pretty please send me feedback? I'm majoring in writing, and any type of feedback helps! Constructive criticism, a note telling me it was good, or even bad…whatever! I'd really appreciate it!
Oh, and if you want to get this story-and others-delivered to your mailbox, just go to
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Sailor_Moon_Rose
You won't have to worry about when the next update is to see what happens next!
( Y )
( , ,*)
(")(¨`v´¨)(")
`·.·´
LoveAlways,
*Bonnie-Chan*
The Cherry Project-Part Four
By Bonnie-Chan
Email: hunniebunny@aol.com
Web page: http://www.geocities.com/sailor_moon_rose/
Today is February 13, 2002
Welcome back! Here's part six...the exhibition is here!
Welcome to Day Six of the 2002 Winter Olympics! I've always loved the Olympics, haven't you? Anyways, to memorialize this historic event, I am releasing a chapter of this story every single day for the next 11 days. By the Closing Ceremonies on February 24th, this story will be ending as well.
I truly hope that the discrepancy over whether or not the pairs program was rigged doesn't taint future Olympics. MSNBC said that there's a chance that this will pull figure skating from future Olympic events…I would hate that, wouldn't you?
Watch the Olympics…you never know when the tides will turn and what you thought would happen can change in the blink of an eye!
Sailor Eeyore-you're a wonderful beta reader, thanks so much!! ^_^
Well, on with the story!
_____________________________
Held By the Wings of an Angel
The Cherry Project: Part Four
By Bonnie-Chan
_____________________________
Tsuzuki finished nailing the flimsy sign into place and stood up, admiring his work. He walked over to where he had set his duffle bag by a nearby tree and put away his hammer, stopping as he heard a girl exclaim, "There's a rink behind the school!?"
He turned around and grinned, showing off his pearly teeth. "The construction workers finished building the rink in the middle of the night. It's a bit small, but we'll make the best of it."
Chieri turned around and gaped at the boy with white-blond hair standing behind her. "Tsuzuki! You made a rink!? How? Wait, that sign the other day, it said Tsuzuki Construction…your folks have a construction company!?"
"Sort of…" He cocked his head and grinned down at her. "You want to try it out? The rink that was built for the class president?"
"For me!?"
"That's right. Come on, let me show you the rink." He led her behind the school to the small ice skating arena and ushered her inside. He watched as she slipped on her skates and stepped onto the ice, beginning her program. He started in alarm as she swerved and grasped onto the railing at the edge of the rink for support.
"Cherry! Are you alright? Didn't you sleep last night?"
"Of course I did!"
"I see. Well…don't overwork yourself, you can do this! I've seen you do it. Have faith in yourself!"
"Faith…all I need is faith."
"That's right. Now try it again. I know you'll nail your program this time!"
***********************
"Hey, Cherry, you dressed yet?"
"Get out of here, I'm changing!"
Usagi looked up in exasperation, pausing in her administrations to Chieri's hair. "Guys, go wait by the rink, okay? You shouldn't just walk into the locker room like that!"
"Okay, okay, we're going…"
Hiroshi grinned and turned his back, slinging his arm around Tsuzuki. "Isn't she pretty?"
"Yeah." He glanced at his watch. "Oh, the exhibition is about to start. I'm going to head out onto the rink."
Chieri stared after him, her mouth agape, and Usagi patted her head reassuring as she tucked the last flower into her friend's hair.
"'Yeah'? That's all? He could have said a little more than that…"
Yuni laughed as she straightened Chieri's dress. "He's just shy, Chieri."
Kouichi smiled at her warmly. "What the media says is true. Tsuzuki really does have a poker face."
Usagi nodded in agreement. "I've told him that plenty of times before, it's true."
Hiroshi bowed regally, causing Chieri's frown to disappear as she burst into laughter. "Well, Princess, shall we follow our dashing prince's example and depart for the rink as well?"
"Of course, my knight." She giggled again, and the five friends left the room, each sporting a jacket that read The Cherry Project.
"You don't have to hold my arm, I can make it myself."
Kouichi shook his head indignantly. "No way! If we knights can't guide our princess safely, Captain Tsuzuki will be furious and behead us!"
"Of course."
They stepped over to the rink and Chieri breathed deeply, taking out a felt tip pin and coloring her hand."
"Er…Chieri? What are you doing?"
"This is a charm I learned to stay calm. All you have to do is write the kanji for 'person' on your hand three times while you swallow."
"I've never heard of that charm before. In fact, I'll tell you the charm I do hear. All you have to do is chant 'Kouichi-kun is really handsome' three times."
"Oh, I'm so sure."
Tsuzuki tapped Chieri on the shoulder, turning her around to face him. "Just do what you always do, okay?"
"Do what I always do…." She gulped in air as the announcer called her name over the loudspeaker, signaling her to the ice.
She skated to the middle of the rink and struck a pose, waiting for the music Hiroshi composed for her to start.
She began her program like she had practiced, skating gracefully around the rink before noticing the Princess in the crowd and jumping up into a triple.
"Cherry! What are you doing!?" Tsuzuki skated out onto the rink and grabbed her hand as she fell towards the ice, holding her up.
The crowd began murmuring to each other and rested on the edge of their seats, cheering as the pair jumped into the air.
"The music's beginning again, Tsuzuki!"
Tsuzuki grimaced and muttered, "Hiroshi…!" He smiled thinly as he felt Chieri's eyes on him and murmured, "Just follow me, okay? Don't cry out if I touch you. Just skate the program the way I taught you to, okay? Are you ready?"
"I guess so…"
"Then let's go!" He began circling the rink, motioning for Chieri to follow him, and they began flawlessly performing her routine. "When the music swells, lift up your body. Hold tight to my shoulder and take a spiral posture above, okay?"
"What!?"
He ignored her moment of indecisiveness and raised her into the air. "Okay, Chieri, here comes the finale…do a throw jump and spin as fast as you can, okay?"
"What?"
"Spin!" He released her and she spun through the air. Oh, no, she's going to crash… He hurried over to her and caught her in his arms, causing them both to fall to the ground. "You spun too much!"
"Sorry…"
He helped her to her feet and they faced the applauding crowd, waving to their friends in the stands.
Chieri grinned as she bent down to pick up bouquets of flowers that were thrown to the ice. "Oh, chocolate bananas!"
"You know, Chieri, you're pretty heavy…maybe you should stop eating those things?"
"I am not! You're just a big bully!"
The friendly banter continued as they skated off the ice, meeting Yuni and Ms. Haruna at the railing.
Yuni grinned enthusiastically. "That was amazing, you guys! You were great together!"
Tsuzuki pulled a flower from one of the bouquets and handed it to Chieri, smiling happily. "It's been a long time since I've gotten applause, since I've had this feeling…thank you."
She looked into his eyes and smiled, entranced. "Tsuzuki…?"
"Yes?"
"I want to skate."
"What?"
"Skating today…I feel like I can do anything!"
"Do the second session the way I told you to, okay? You don't need that extra jump."
"I will, promise."
"Nothing more than what's necessary, got it?"
"Got it!"
"Now go take a break, you deserve it!"
***********************
Tsuzuki nodded his head as Chieri landed her final jump, ending her performance elegantly the way he had told her to. He turned around and a figure by the locker room caught his eye, bringing him over to investigate.
"I thought I saw you talking to Kouichi. You decided to show up after all."
"It's as though I was drawn here."
"Maybe you were."
"Tsuzuki-san! Figure skating's Junior Champion! Thanks for helping Chieri out, showing her how fun skating can be."
Tsuzuki turned to face a tall, balding man with wire glasses. "Asuka-san! It's nice to meet you. I'm not champion anymore, though. It's a pleasure to finally meet Chieri's father. I saw you on video a few years ago, when you performed in the Olympics…you were amazing!"
"You must have had many videos made of you as well."
"A few. No home videos, my father doesn't like skating…"
"Cherry, that was amazing! You did so well!"
"Thanks, Kouichi!" She grinned at him, before training her eyes on the girl with short blond hair standing beside Tsuzuki. "Princess…"
The girl looked at her briefly before turning back to Tsuzuki as though she didn't exist.
"Guess what, Dad, Tsuzuki? I've decided that I want to join a skating club and learn how to skate for real!"
"You do! That's excellent! Like father, like daughter! The closest one is the Takanawa Wing Skate Club!"
"What!? That's the club where the Princess skates!"
The blond girl shrugged her shoulders indifferently. "Don't let my involvement with the club stop you from entering. There aren't any openings at the rink or for coaches right now what with so little time before the championships…You won't be able to practice as a beginner, but if you don't mind that, then please, feel free to enter."
"What championship?"
Tsuzuki smiled over at her. "The block class championship is soon…it's a big thing."
"Well then, I'll enter the championship too!"
"You can't."
Chieri looked at her rival suspiciously. "Why not!?
"Because you're not good enough."
***********************
The end…until tomorrow, that is! The seventh part of this epic tale sets up the rest of the story-don't miss it! I know, I know, there wasn't all that much emphasis on Usagi, but there will be a lot more in the future, promise! She plays a big part in this story, her parts just don't come till later!
Don't forget to watch the Olympics on NBC! Every day that you see events taking place, there's going to be a new chapter of this story! We've only just begun, there are still 11 Chapters to go! Usagi and Tsuzuki's stories are far from over!
Give me the next 11 days to tell you the rest of their story…I promise it'll be worth the ride! ^_^
~Bonnie-Chan~
February 13, 2002
Day 6 of the 2002 Salt Lake City Winter Olympics
DISCLAIMER: Both Sailor Moon AND The Cherry Project belong to Naoko Takeuchi…man, she's one lucky lady! What I wouldn't give to own the rights to two of my favorite manga! In case you were wondering, TCP was Naoko's first epic story ^_^ ….wait until you see what character shows up in part three-one that is in the original manga for TCP, and a character you know quite well from SM, as well!
Translations for The Cherry Project came from Alex Glover's wonderful webpage. If you want to read TCP-or any other manga by Naoko-hime, it's the place to go! The web address is:
http://www.nwlink.com/~kurozuki/manga.htm
A few lines were taken directly from the translated text by Alex Glover, but for the most part they remain uniquely my own! Please don't copy anything without emailing me first and asking!
Questions, comments? Email me here: hunniebunny@aol.com…and whether you liked it or hated it, could you pretty please send me feedback? I'm majoring in writing, and any type of feedback helps! Constructive criticism, a note telling me it was good, or even bad…whatever! I'd really appreciate it!
Oh, and if you want to get this story-and others-delivered to your mailbox, just go to
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Sailor_Moon_Rose
You won't have to worry about when the next update is to see what happens next!
( Y )
( , ,*)
(")(¨`v´¨)(")
`·.·´
LoveAlways,
*Bonnie-Chan*