*reads over her reviews* O.O That's a crap load of reviews! Man, say you hate a fic and suddenly everyone and their uncle's writing something…oO;; Um, well, I was actually in a how do you put this… bad state of mind…but I feel better now. ^_^ Anyway…um, this chapter is…weird, but there's some stuff…and just wait for the next chapter and I'll answer all the questions and correct anyone's assumptions, because there's big fat old plot twist just around the bend! We're getting to the part I like! Um, I only don't like this fic because I'm lazy and would rather be writing my ubercool sequel…oh well.
And since I am no longer in angry/depressive mode, I feel like opening up a can of worms and saying to all the people out there that are still losing sleep over who's stronger than who, LOOK!! LOOK!!! ARE YOU READING THIS????!!!! DOES IT SAY ANYWHERE IN THIS ENTIRE GODDAM FIC WHO'S STRONGER THAN WHO???!!! DOES IT MATTER??!!
That's a big ol' no. Or in spanish, no. Or in French, non, pronounced, "no". Keep reading this fic, and I will guarantee you that it will never become an issue, and will have no effect on the plot whatsoever.
Amen.
THIS CHAPTER HAS BEEN FINISHED, SCROLL DOWN TO THE PART THAT'S ALL BOLD LIKE THIS, AN READ…BUHBYE NOW…
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Usagi stared silently out the window, her hands folded idly in her lap. She watched as the landscape changed and shifted as the car sped forward. As she did, she felt a tightness in chest slowly begin to grow with every passing mile. Gradually she began to notice it more and more, and focused on her breathing, hoping it would relieve some of the tension.
Trunks spoke suddenly, breaking the silence that had filled the car for over an hour. "How did you know Dr. Tomoe?"
Usagi jumped slightly, and was jarred from her unpleasant thoughts and shrinking chest cavity. "His daughter." She blinked, knowing that didn't sound right. "His daughter was a friend of mine…well, my cousin's really, but I knew her pretty well,"
"I didn't know he had a daughter." He voiced his thoughts.
"You knew Dr. Tomoe?" she asked, raising her eyebrows in surprise.
"Not exactly, my mother worked for him a while back," he replied.
Usagi noted that had something passed through his expression as he spoken. It had only been there for a fleeting moment, but it had been there. 'I wish I knew what was going on with this Tomoe and Capsule Corps. thing, it's killing me!'
The conversation died again, and Usagi went back to her panicking. She knew everyone would be there. Of course they would, it didn't matter that half of them were married and led busy, successful lives. They all loved Hotaru, and wanted to comfort her. That was what friends did. But Usagi dreaded seeing her friends again. She hadn't been in contact with any of them save for Minako for almost a year. They had all thought she was unstable, on the edge of doing something terrible. And then she had disappeared, left Tokyo without a trace, and moved in with Minako, nearly four hundred kilometers away. Usagi didn't know whether or not Minako had ever told anyone that she was with her.
'What am I supposed to say?!…Well, hi's always a good start…but then what?!'
She was just glad that she had been able to beg Trunks into taking her. The fact that she wasn't alone helped her tremendously. Although, him coming with her posed another problem, she highly doubted that they would be thrilled to see her show up at the funeral with some guy that none of them had ever heard of before. But it wasn't like they were anything but friends! Hell, she wasn't even sure if they were friends…but he had agreed to take her…God, now she had to worry about that too…
Her thoughts continued on in a similar loop as they approached Tokyo. They pulled into the church's parking lot, and mutely she got out of the car and headed towards the door with Trunks walking beside her.
The pressure on her chest was so much now that she felt as though there was a lead weight resting on top of it. She focused on her breathing once again, though her lungs seemed to have shrunken to the size of deflated water balloons.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The church was dimly lit, with only a few candles and the light coming in through the stained glass windows that was tinged with color and gave a surrealistic feel to the place.
Trunks hung back while Usagi walked hesitantly towards the casket that stood at the end of the walkway, in front of the altar.
Her steps faltered when the group that stood beside the casket halted their conversation, and turned to all stare at her. She knew every last person that stood there before her, and suddenly she feared them more than any enemy she had ever faced.
Minako wasn't with them.
Something made her continue walking, the muffled sound of her footsteps on the thin threadbare carpet the only sound that filled the high rafters.
They were all staring at her with those eyes of theirs, those suspicious, shocked eyes they had.
She reached the small group and halted, her hands clasped in front of her nervously. "Hi," she said softly, looking around at the familiar, yet alien faces.
There was a chorus of muddled, choppy greetings from all around, and then silence settled in once again.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Several minutes later, Usagi and Trunks exited the church. But instead of heading towards the car, Usagi halted and turned to Trunks, a strange look entering her eyes. "I have to do something before we leave," she said. "It won't take long,"
He nodded his consent, and Usagi turned, walking unsteadily towards the cemetery across the street from the church.
-------------------STARTING READING HERE FOR REST OF CHAPTER-------------
The gate squeaked slightly on its rusty hinges as she pushed it open and made her way down the narrow dirt path, passing by the numerous statues and headstones. The sun was beginning to set, staining the sky a deep blood red, and then fanning out into pinks, oranges and golds.
It would have been beautiful if she had noticed it.
She continued past most of the graves, heading towards the line of trees at the edge of the cemetery.
She halted in front of one modest marker, and fell to her knees.
'I'm so sorry, it should have been me.' Tears slid down her face, and she blindly reached out to finger the carved letters. She read them with her fingertips, tracing the sweeping script. A soft sob escaped her lips.
"It's not fair!" she sobbed, lifting her eyes upward. "It's not fair!" she kept repeating those words until they became only a weak whisper. "It's not fair…"
She furiously wiped the tears from her eyes to stare intensely at the gravestone once more. It was a handsome marker, small and discreet, yet made with excellent craftsmanship out of a rose-colored stone. The words read: Here lies Chibi-Usa Small Lady Tsukino, loving daughter, may the angels protect her.
"He took you from me," she said, feeling the tears rise up again. "He took you away before we even had a chance,"
It was almost dark when she finally stood and left the empty grave to sit in silence once more, and become forgotten.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Usagi got into the car and closed the door. He started the car and began to drive. The silence that hung in the air was no longer wrought with nervous tension, but now, it seemed to be one of almost despair. She no longer looked at the window, but instead wrung her hands in her lap, focusing on them and she tried to steady her breaths.
It seemed a lifetime had passed when she summoned the strength to speak. She lifted her head, and her eyes glanced about the car and the landscape surrounding them, anywhere but at him. They focused once more on her hands. "I-I need to say something," she said softly, suddenly locking her eyes on his.
He had glanced at her in surprise, his mouth parting slightly to pose a question, but she hurriedly cut him off.
"You don't have to say anything, or-or even listen, you can just pretend," she blurted out, her nerves catching up with her. "B-but I need to tell someone or else I'm going to go mad."
Once again he stared at her in confusion and shock, but was silent.
"I had a fiancé." She whispered after a long pause. An equally long one followed. "I was engaged to him since I was 16, five years last fall…my parents wouldn't let me marry him until I was twenty-one…we were so in love, I would have waited a lifetime," a mirthless smile touched her lips. "We went through so much to be together, we worked so hard to be in love…I guess-I guess I didn't do a good enough job, or he just…got tired of it." she wiped at her eyes again. "…He never told me anything was wrong, he just came home one night, and sat down in his chair in the living room. I said 'Okaeri nasai!'" she sobbed again. "I said that to him every time he came home, and he would kiss me on my cheek and greet me…he didn't that night.
"I loved him so much. I had loved him before I even knew I did. All of my friends wanted a boyfriend like him. They all wanted to be me…I never knew he had a gun." She stared at her hands, and then slowly looked up again at the darkening sky. "He shot himself in the temple, and died instantly."
The rest of the car ride was silent.
They pulled up to her house, and Usagi noted with disappointment that Minako's car was not there, and all of the lights were still off, indicating that she had not come home yet. 'Lonely house, empty and dark,'
Trunks let her out, and she turned to him, flushing slightly in spite of herself. "Thank you for driving me all that way," she said.
He shrugged. "I don't mind,"
She nodded slightly, feeling awkward and shy. "Um, good night then,"
She turned to walk away, but was halted by his hand reaching out and grasping her arm just above her elbow. She faced him again, her eyes widening and asking questions.
"What happened to you was awful." He said quietly, not releasing her. "You shouldn't blame yourself,"
Usagi felt her chest tighten painfully. "T-thank you…I just-it's just hard…sometimes, I feel like I just can't let go, and relax,"
It's odd how some things happen. Moments that you know you will never forget, yet don't fully understand how they came about. They just seem to occur, and you become caught up in them, not even bothering to contemplate just how you ended up in it. For the first time in what seemed like years, Usagi felt completely safe, as she found herself in the arms of a man she did not truly know, yet it was in this moment that she decided she could trust him with her life.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
She glanced down at the three bodies that lay in front of them in a crumpled heap. "This is pathetic," she said in a gruff, dissatisfied monotone. "None of the targets have put up a good fight yet,"
"They've all become weakened with age," the male replied, seeming to be equally bored. "But we only have one more, and it seems he's the only one who hasn't been affected physically,"
The woman snorted, playing with a lock of her short blonde hair. "His mind is gone, how powerful can a psycho be? He has no control,"
He only nodded in response. "Let's get out of here,"
"Sure," she stepped over the blonde-haired woman and bald man, carefully making sure not to step in the puddles of blood that stained the wooden floor of the small hut. "Huh, such weird people, a triclops, a mime and some woman that sneezes and her hair changes color…pity they're so weak."
"Let's go," the other said impatiently. "I want to get to the West Capitol by tomorrow morning to greet the final target."
She nodded, and an odd look crossed her normally blank expression. "Vejiita," she whispered.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
*dances* Well, this one goes out to the flamingo, because from the sounds of it, she needs some cheering up. If it makes you feel any better Flirtatious I had a bad day today too. I got to spend the day fixing crappy fences and helping my friend mow our field…and then I almost got killed by my stoopid horse, and then *another* stoopid horse tried to kill me later…although that's not as bad as broken bones…oh well, I know nobody cares…
Anyhoo, aren't things getting interesting and crap? Um, just a warning, I have to do a lot of backtracking and explaining because it wasn't until halfway through this thing I decided what I wanted to do with it, but I think it's all going to work out. And I promise everything will be explained and make sense in two chapters!! It might even be finished in three..oO That has to be a record for me…shortest long fic ever…wait…um, oh well, just to add to this, THIS ISN'T A FRIGGIN' BETRAYAL FIC. The senshi don't hate Usagi, sorry if it came off as if they were mean, but really, they don't hate her, they just aren't sure if she's sane or not. More on that fun relationship later, maybe next chapter. And I'm off to bed…