Hi again.
Here's the next chapter. And, I think there will be another conversation between Usagi
and Irony...which ChibiUsa jumping in? Should be an interesting chapter. Thanks for
reading.
Chapter 7: Seeing Behind the Mask
Crystal Toyko
She was at it again. The young princess sighed. She still had no idea why her grandmother was
so into these historical tapes. 'I think she called them music videos. I don't understand the
attraction.' So she asked her soba about it.
The older woman laughed. "These were a part of my childhood...and young adulthood...and...
well, let's just say they used to be very pervasive." The woman turned back to the screen
again. "I've always been very attached to this one. It's not that Brandy was my favorite
singer, but I used to have an outfit like that."
The princess started at the black leather outfit. "You had a costume like that?"
The older woman laughed. "I was thinking of it more like a uniform, but costume is a good
way of thinking about it. I was playing a role, in a sense, when I wore it." The woman
smiled. "Some days I really miss that outfit."
****
The Present
Day 3 or Day 163? Time blended together for Irony. Of course, part of that may be that they hadn't
let her change clothes since she was arrested. Sure she was searched...and unarmed, but she was
still wearing the leather concoction she had begun to view as a uniform. They had wanted to take her
armband. They finally decided to let her keep it. 'Sending a message to others that they actually
had me and not someone else. Like this armband is some kind of validating proof.'
Irony sighed. After fighting with her friends she relented. She was going to meet this lawyer that
her friends were arranging for. She was more realistic than her friends; she was already convicted
as far as the system was concerned. The trial was only an international formality. Everyone has
to look fair for the UN. She hoped the lawyer they found was trash. She'd have fun ruining his
career. 'Hey, if you are going down, take someone with you.'
Irony turned to look down the hall as she heard the guard's footsteps. 'If they found a lawyer that
fast, I'll begin to wonder about that lawyer's motives,' thought Irony. And, as she expected to
see a lawyer with the guard, she was a little surprised when a young blonde and pink haired teen
rounded the corner with the guard.
"Tsukino-san?" Irony asked even before the guard got to her cell. "What- Why-?"
By then the blonde had reached Irony's cell with her friend. She pointed to Irony, "Tierrany-san."
But her friend appeared to be in shock. "Are you Alanis Tierrany?" the teenager finally asked.
"Yes, I am. You speak English?"
The teen nodded but was staring at Irony. The young lady looked hard at the prisoner, as if she
was trying to figure out who she was. To the teen's young eyes, the woman behind the bars wasn't
old, maybe somewhere in her 30s. She was wearing an intimidating leather outfit...that ChibiUsa
remembered seeing in one of those "music videos". The woman wore a green armband...and a nasty
bruise on the left side of her face. She also had a scar just below her shoulder and above her
armband. It was that scar and those eyes that hadn't changed over the years. Sure, she looked a
little scarier younger and decked out in leather, but the woman in the cell couldn't be anyone
else. 'That's her! That's my soba. It has to be!' "Obaa-san?" the teen asked quietly.
Irony blinked. "Um, my Japanese su- is really bad. What does 'obaa-san' mean? Do I remind you of
someone?" Irony was a little worried about the title given to her by the teen, especially since
Tsukino-san had paled slightly at it...and had slowly began mumbling in Japanese.
Irony turned to the younger visitor, "Is Tsukino-san okay? What is she saying? And who are you?"
The younger girl, now pretty sure of the identity of the woman behind the bars replied, "They call
me ChibiUsa. It is nice to meet you Ms. Tierreny. M- Usagi's okay...I think. She's mumbling,
'It makes sense. In a strange way it does make sense. The press conference - his past'-"
Irony seemed startled. "The press conference. She knows about the press conference?"
"Yes, we just saw it yesterday. They've re-aired it several times since it was given."
'Tsukino-san, I-...Damn, I wish Japanese was my second language. Can you translate for me, ChibiUsa?"
The teen nodded.
"Okay. Tsukino-san, listen to me. I know you are probably still in shock about everything, Dare -
I mean Mamoru-san said in that press conference. I promise that he was one of the good guys. I...
I pushed him out when stuff got too dangerous. He has decided he owes me and is trying to help...
not very well, but he's trying." Irony sighed, "You need to talk to him. I think he thinks you'll
leave him behind this."
After ChibiUsa had translated that to Usagi, the young woman raised the question, "But why didn't he
tell me?"
Irony laughed, "Knowing that boy, he probably thinks he is protecting you." Watching the young
woman's reaction to this (after translation), Irony added, "I take it he's done this before?"
The blonde nodded.
Irony sighed. "Well, you are just going to have to tell him off. Learn to be the bitch. He's
got to get it through his thick head that he has to share stuff with you and that you aren't
glass. Diamond, more like. You are a lot stronger than you look."
ChibiUsa had begun to translate, but she stopped suddenly. She turned to look at the older woman.
"Learn to be the bitch?"
Irony actually had the grace to blush. "It seems you can take the girl off the street, but you can't
take the street off the girl."
As ChibiUsa shook her head and tried to find a tamer way of translating Irony's speech, the prison
guard approached again, this time with a man. He looked to be in his early 30s. He was pretty
built for an Asian...and could rival Mamoru in the tall, dark and handsome department. In a suit
and looking very official, he approached the cell with a briefcase and a determined look. Besides
the fact that he was attractive, the man also caught her eye because the guard was treating him
with respect. She could count on one hand (and still have fingers left) the number of people who
had come to visit her to whom the guard was respectful. So, in typical Irony fashion, as the
adult male reached her cell, Irony crossed her arms and said, "Who are you?"
The male smiled pleasantly. "Ladies, Tierrany-san. My name is Tenchi Ikeda. I am your lawyer."
Irony looked at the clean cut man, both angry and dismayed. "Ah hell!"
- to be continued -
It's getting to be a little crowed in that jail. It's only been three days since she has been jailed
and Irony's had eight visitors. Somebody's popular.
The Brandy video that is made reference to in this chapter is her video for "What About Us?" I don't
own the song or the video. Also, for everyone who has been trying to picture the outfit that Irony
has been in for all of Irony and Daring and Not all Masks, think of the leather dress-like getup
that Brandy is wearing in the tunnel in "What About Us?" when she has the baseball bat.
And about Usagi's mumbling. Remember, she knows who ChibiUsa is and is to her. Hearing her future
daughter refer to Irony as "grandmother" had her thinking about relationship between Irony and
Mamoru. Now how she reacts when it hits her that Irony has to be alive in Crystal Tokyo for ChibiUsa
to know her is anyone's guess.
It will probably be awhile before the next chapter comes out. I hope that this chapter and the ones
to come are worth the wait. Thanks for reading.
~December
Here's the next chapter. And, I think there will be another conversation between Usagi
and Irony...which ChibiUsa jumping in? Should be an interesting chapter. Thanks for
reading.
Chapter 7: Seeing Behind the Mask
Crystal Toyko
She was at it again. The young princess sighed. She still had no idea why her grandmother was
so into these historical tapes. 'I think she called them music videos. I don't understand the
attraction.' So she asked her soba about it.
The older woman laughed. "These were a part of my childhood...and young adulthood...and...
well, let's just say they used to be very pervasive." The woman turned back to the screen
again. "I've always been very attached to this one. It's not that Brandy was my favorite
singer, but I used to have an outfit like that."
The princess started at the black leather outfit. "You had a costume like that?"
The older woman laughed. "I was thinking of it more like a uniform, but costume is a good
way of thinking about it. I was playing a role, in a sense, when I wore it." The woman
smiled. "Some days I really miss that outfit."
****
The Present
Day 3 or Day 163? Time blended together for Irony. Of course, part of that may be that they hadn't
let her change clothes since she was arrested. Sure she was searched...and unarmed, but she was
still wearing the leather concoction she had begun to view as a uniform. They had wanted to take her
armband. They finally decided to let her keep it. 'Sending a message to others that they actually
had me and not someone else. Like this armband is some kind of validating proof.'
Irony sighed. After fighting with her friends she relented. She was going to meet this lawyer that
her friends were arranging for. She was more realistic than her friends; she was already convicted
as far as the system was concerned. The trial was only an international formality. Everyone has
to look fair for the UN. She hoped the lawyer they found was trash. She'd have fun ruining his
career. 'Hey, if you are going down, take someone with you.'
Irony turned to look down the hall as she heard the guard's footsteps. 'If they found a lawyer that
fast, I'll begin to wonder about that lawyer's motives,' thought Irony. And, as she expected to
see a lawyer with the guard, she was a little surprised when a young blonde and pink haired teen
rounded the corner with the guard.
"Tsukino-san?" Irony asked even before the guard got to her cell. "What- Why-?"
By then the blonde had reached Irony's cell with her friend. She pointed to Irony, "Tierrany-san."
But her friend appeared to be in shock. "Are you Alanis Tierrany?" the teenager finally asked.
"Yes, I am. You speak English?"
The teen nodded but was staring at Irony. The young lady looked hard at the prisoner, as if she
was trying to figure out who she was. To the teen's young eyes, the woman behind the bars wasn't
old, maybe somewhere in her 30s. She was wearing an intimidating leather outfit...that ChibiUsa
remembered seeing in one of those "music videos". The woman wore a green armband...and a nasty
bruise on the left side of her face. She also had a scar just below her shoulder and above her
armband. It was that scar and those eyes that hadn't changed over the years. Sure, she looked a
little scarier younger and decked out in leather, but the woman in the cell couldn't be anyone
else. 'That's her! That's my soba. It has to be!' "Obaa-san?" the teen asked quietly.
Irony blinked. "Um, my Japanese su- is really bad. What does 'obaa-san' mean? Do I remind you of
someone?" Irony was a little worried about the title given to her by the teen, especially since
Tsukino-san had paled slightly at it...and had slowly began mumbling in Japanese.
Irony turned to the younger visitor, "Is Tsukino-san okay? What is she saying? And who are you?"
The younger girl, now pretty sure of the identity of the woman behind the bars replied, "They call
me ChibiUsa. It is nice to meet you Ms. Tierreny. M- Usagi's okay...I think. She's mumbling,
'It makes sense. In a strange way it does make sense. The press conference - his past'-"
Irony seemed startled. "The press conference. She knows about the press conference?"
"Yes, we just saw it yesterday. They've re-aired it several times since it was given."
'Tsukino-san, I-...Damn, I wish Japanese was my second language. Can you translate for me, ChibiUsa?"
The teen nodded.
"Okay. Tsukino-san, listen to me. I know you are probably still in shock about everything, Dare -
I mean Mamoru-san said in that press conference. I promise that he was one of the good guys. I...
I pushed him out when stuff got too dangerous. He has decided he owes me and is trying to help...
not very well, but he's trying." Irony sighed, "You need to talk to him. I think he thinks you'll
leave him behind this."
After ChibiUsa had translated that to Usagi, the young woman raised the question, "But why didn't he
tell me?"
Irony laughed, "Knowing that boy, he probably thinks he is protecting you." Watching the young
woman's reaction to this (after translation), Irony added, "I take it he's done this before?"
The blonde nodded.
Irony sighed. "Well, you are just going to have to tell him off. Learn to be the bitch. He's
got to get it through his thick head that he has to share stuff with you and that you aren't
glass. Diamond, more like. You are a lot stronger than you look."
ChibiUsa had begun to translate, but she stopped suddenly. She turned to look at the older woman.
"Learn to be the bitch?"
Irony actually had the grace to blush. "It seems you can take the girl off the street, but you can't
take the street off the girl."
As ChibiUsa shook her head and tried to find a tamer way of translating Irony's speech, the prison
guard approached again, this time with a man. He looked to be in his early 30s. He was pretty
built for an Asian...and could rival Mamoru in the tall, dark and handsome department. In a suit
and looking very official, he approached the cell with a briefcase and a determined look. Besides
the fact that he was attractive, the man also caught her eye because the guard was treating him
with respect. She could count on one hand (and still have fingers left) the number of people who
had come to visit her to whom the guard was respectful. So, in typical Irony fashion, as the
adult male reached her cell, Irony crossed her arms and said, "Who are you?"
The male smiled pleasantly. "Ladies, Tierrany-san. My name is Tenchi Ikeda. I am your lawyer."
Irony looked at the clean cut man, both angry and dismayed. "Ah hell!"
- to be continued -
It's getting to be a little crowed in that jail. It's only been three days since she has been jailed
and Irony's had eight visitors. Somebody's popular.
The Brandy video that is made reference to in this chapter is her video for "What About Us?" I don't
own the song or the video. Also, for everyone who has been trying to picture the outfit that Irony
has been in for all of Irony and Daring and Not all Masks, think of the leather dress-like getup
that Brandy is wearing in the tunnel in "What About Us?" when she has the baseball bat.
And about Usagi's mumbling. Remember, she knows who ChibiUsa is and is to her. Hearing her future
daughter refer to Irony as "grandmother" had her thinking about relationship between Irony and
Mamoru. Now how she reacts when it hits her that Irony has to be alive in Crystal Tokyo for ChibiUsa
to know her is anyone's guess.
It will probably be awhile before the next chapter comes out. I hope that this chapter and the ones
to come are worth the wait. Thanks for reading.
~December