Act 10 - Forbidden
When he woke up the next morning, Mamoru was surprised to find that Usagi was not laying beside him. He rubbed the sleep from his eyes and sat up, looking around the room. "Usako?" he called out.
A piece of pink stationary paper bordered with little white bunnies sat on Usagi's pillow, folded neatly in half. He grabbed the paper and read the short message inside: Mamo-chan, I went shopping with Ami-chan and Naru-chan. I'll be gone all day. See you later.
He glanced over at the alarm clock. It was just barely after eight o'clock in the morning. Did the stores even open this early on a Sunday? Mamoru shrugged his shoulders as he crumpled the paper and tossed it in the trash can sitting across the room, easily making a basket. Maybe there was some kind of early bird sale or something. After letting out a huge yawn, Mamoru dragged himself out of bed and headed to the kitchen to make some coffee.
At the back of his mind, Mamoru was secretly worried about Usagi, although he tried to push the thoughts aside. Even if there was a huge sale, he doubted his fiancée would give up her habitual Sunday sleep-ins just to go shopping. It wasn't like her at all. He shook his head and took a sip of the bitter coffee. He was probably worrying over nothing.
However, Usagi had been acting a little strangely last night after they left the fashion show. She wasn't her usual perky self. Instead, she actually seemed a little withdrawn, as if she had something serious on her mind. Sure, she still smiled and called him "Mamo-chan" as usual, but it didn't feel natural. It felt like she was putting on an act. Even when they came home and made love, Mamoru sensed she was just going through the motions. Was it possible she suspected something?
He pushed his mug of coffee aside and buried his head in his hands. A vision of his fiancée standing outside Setsuna's office flashed in front of his eyes. He remembered Usagi had jumped away when he came out, her blue eyes filled with shock and surprise. He wondered just how long she had been standing there, recalling that the door had been slightly ajar. It wouldn't have been too difficult to eavesdrop on his and Setsuna's conversation…
A gasp escaped from his lips, and Mamoru could literally feel the color draining from his face. Without a second thought, he jumped up and ran over to the phone, his hands shaking as he dialed a number. She knew.
Usagi knew everything!
Setsuna came downstairs, yawning as she took a seat at the kitchen table. She hadn't gotten much sleep last night. Michiru poured her a cup of coffee and sat the mug down in front of her. "Are you feeling alright, Setsuna?" she asked, worry in her ocean blue eyes. "Don't take this the wrong way, but you look terrible."
The time guardian simply groaned, rubbing her temples. If there was a mirror nearby, she would have noticed the dark circles under her eyes and the messy mass of tangled hair carelessly pulled into a low ponytail. Setsuna knew she looked horrible, but she was just too depressed to care.
The phone rang, and since she was the closest to the telephone, she reached over and grabbed the receiver. "Moshi moshi. This is Meioh Setsuna speaking."
"Setsuna-san, it's me. We need to talk."
He didn't have to give his name for her to know who was calling. She immediately recognized the sound of his voice. The three women at the table stared at her, curious as to the identity of the morning caller, but Setsuna ignored them. "Yes, we need to talk," she said softly, standing up. "Let me switch to another extension."
She set the phone on the table, telling Hotaru to hang the receiver back up when she told her to, and went to the music room for some privacy. The walls were soundproof, so nobody would be able to hear her conversation. Once she was sure that the other extension was dead, she started talking again.
"Mamoru-san, what's wrong?" she asked, sitting down on the bench of Haruka's baby grand piano. She twirled the phone cord around one of her fingers. "You sound upset. Is this about what hap-"
"I think Usako knows," he replied, cutting her off.
Setsuna felt her pulse quicken as the news sunk in. "Are you sure? But how? When? Why?"
She could hear the sound of a deep sigh on the other end as Mamoru collected his thoughts. There were a few more seconds of silence before he spoke again. "Remember yesterday when we were talking in your office? The door was open, and I think Usagi might have been listening to our conversation."
"But you don't know for sure that she was, do you? I mean, did she say anything about it?"
"Setsuna-san, Usako was acting strange last night after the fashion show. I don't know how to explain, but she definitely wasn't herself. I don't know what to do. The last thing I ever wanted to do was hurt her."
"Neither did I, but maybe you're just jumping to conclusions," she suggested hopefully. "Maybe she's stressed out from planning the wedding or something."
"Yeah, maybe." The tone in his voice wasn't very optimistic.
"It'll be okay, Mamoru-san. You have to believe that." There was a long silence on his end. "Mamoru-san, are you still there?" she asked.
"Yes, I'm still here," he answered. "I want to see you again, in person. Can you come over to my apartment in about an hour?"
"I'm not sure if that's such a great idea."
"Please, Setsuna-san…"
She could feel her resolve weaken. She wanted to see him again too, but she didn't know if she would be able to control her urges. "What about Usagi-chan? Is she there?"
"She went shopping with Ami-chan and Naru-chan. I don't think she'll be back until around lunch time at the earliest."
"Okay, I'll stop by your place at around eleven," she finally relented.
"Great. See you then."
They exchanged quick goodbyes, and Setsuna went back to the kitchen. Just as she expected, all eyes were on her as she sat back down at the table and took a sip of her now cold coffee. "Who was that on the phone, Setsuna?" Haruka asked.
"Oh, it was just some telemarketer. They always manage to call at the worst times, don't they?"
"You couldn't answer their questions in here?"
The time guardian shrugged her shoulders as she stood back up, grabbing a piece of toast. "It was nothing important," she insisted. "I think I'm going to take a bath and then maybe go for a nice walk in the park. See you guys later."
Before Michiru could convince Setsuna to stay and eat some more breakfast, the garnet-eyed woman exited the room. Haruka's worried eyes met her lover's, speaking volumes. Without a word, they both understood what the other was saying. Something strange was going on with Setsuna. As to what that was, that was anybody's guess.
Naru immediately sensed something was bothering her best friend when she picked Usagi up from Mamoru's apartment that morning. Usagi wasn't her usual happy-go-lucky self. Her eyes, always bright and cheerful, especially at the prospect of shopping, were instead dull and bloodshot, as if she didn't get enough sleep last night.
"Usagi-chan, is something bothering you?" Naru asked, pulling into the mall parking lot. The two girls got out of the car and began walking toward the department store.
The blonde shook her head, rubbing her watery eyes. "No, of course not, Naru-chan," she lied. "I'm on the top of the world. My allergies must be acting up, that's all."
"Do you want to take one of Gurio's pills? I have a couple in my purse if you want."
Usagi opened the door and let her friend enter the store. "No, thanks. I'll be okay once we're inside," she insisted, faking a large smile. She was going to have a good time even if it killed her. Shopping was just the thing she needed to get her mind off of her problems with Mamoru. "Let's go find Ami-chan."
She took the lead, walking straight to the escalators heading up to the second floor. If Usagi knew her friend as well as she thought, she knew exactly where the young doctor was waiting for them. Sure enough, the girls easily located the blue-haired woman in the baby department, looking at a beautiful baby crib dressed with lace and blue ribbon. Cradled in her arms was a matching blue teddy bear, which she rocked back and forth as if it were a baby.
Usagi sighed sadly at the sight. More than anything, Ami and Ryo wanted to have a baby. They had been trying for months to get her pregnant with no luck. Even though the couple lived in the lap of luxury due to their illustrious careers in the medical field, Usagi knew that Ami would give it all up in a second for a little baby of her own. It must be so frustrating to help bring hundreds of babies into the world but not being able to give birth to one of her own.
Usagi gently rested a hand on her friend's shoulder. "Ami-chan…"
"Oh, hi, Usagi-chan and Naru-chan!" she said brightly, welcoming them with a huge smile. Ami put the bear back in the crib and began lovingly rubbing her hand on the satin lining. "Isn't this the most beautiful crib you've ever seen in your entire life?"
Naru nodded her agreement, but with a look of sadness on her face. "Ami-chan, the crib is pretty, but do you think it's healthy to keep torturing yourself like this?"
"I'm not torturing myself. I'm shopping for my baby."
Usagi's and Naru's eyes widened. "Are you…?" Usagi asked.
"I'm late," she said, lowering her voice. "And this morning, I felt really queasy, so I went to the office before heading here and took a test. One of the nurses is going to call me in an hour with the official results, but I have a really good feeling this time."
"That's wonderful, Ami-chan!" Usagi exclaimed, giving her a huge hug. The joy of Ami's news temporarily caused her to forget her own troubles. "I'm so happy for you and Ryo-kun. You've both waited so long for this."
"Well, it's not official yet, Usagi-chan. I don't want to build my hopes up in case this turns out to be another false alarm. Let's just start shopping and take our minds off of it for now. I'm afraid if I don't stop thinking about it, I'm going to explode from happiness."
Taking Ami's advice, the girls entered one of their favorite stores, heading straight toward the new arrivals in the juniors department. Usagi aimlessly pawed her way through the rack of clothes, not really looking at any of them, while Ami and Naru were excitedly pointing out things they liked. The blonde couldn't help thinking that for someone who was trying to remain calm and sensible about her possible pregnancy, Ami sure seemed happy. She was grinning from ear to ear as she told Naru that she hoped that she would soon be too fat to fit into the cute blue skirt she was holding up against her body. Not that Usagi blamed her. Ami had wanted a child for so long. She only wished she could feel happier for her friend, but Setsuna's words kept ringing in her ears.
But you must remember that it is your destiny to marry Usagi-chan, no matter what. She cannot ever know about what happened that night. It could ruin everything.
Usagi didn't want to believe it. She didn't believe it. There was absolutely no way her fiancé, the man she loved more than anything in the world, would betray her with one of her closest and dearest friends. There had to be another explanation. But the more she thought about it, the more she doubted herself. If it were true, it would explain a lot of things, such as why Mamoru hadn't want to go to the fashion show and Setsuna's strange behavior whenever she was around. But it couldn't be true! It just couldn't be!
"Usagi-chan, are you crying?" Ami asked, coming over to comfort her friend. "Is something wrong?"
Usagi lifted her tear-stained face from the soft white cashmere sweater she held in her hands, surprised to find that it was slightly damp. She hadn't even realized she was crying. Ami and Naru were staring at her with concern in their eyes.
Naru gently took Usagi's arm. "Come on, let's go get some ice cream and you can tell us why your so upset."
She didn't argue as her friends led her toward the food court and ordered three chocolate sundaes. They sat down at a nearby table, Usagi sitting on one side and Naru and Ami on the other. While her friends didn't push her to talk, Usagi found herself telling them about her suspicions, although she didn't come right out and name Setsuna as Mamoru's mistress. She still didn't quite believe it herself, so why should she expect Ami and Naru to understand?
"Oh, Usagi-chan, I'm sure there has to be another explanation," Ami said, handing her a napkin to wipe away her tears. "Mamoru-san loves you so very much. He wouldn't do anything like that."
"That's what I thought, but now I'm not so sure. Mamo-chan has been acting very strange la…"
Ami's cell phone rang, cutting off Usagi's sentence. The doctor quickly began digging in her purse for the tiny phone, her hands shaking as she flipped it open. "I'm sorry, Usagi-chan, but this will only take a second," she apologized as she brought the phone to her ear. Usagi understood. It was probably the hospital, calling with the results of Ami's pregnancy test.
"Moshi, moshi! Dr. Mizuno Ami speaking… Do you have the results of the test?… Oh, I see… No, that's okay… Thank you for calling. I'll see you tomorrow, Imafuku-san."
Ami sighed sadly as she put the cell phone away. Her friends didn't have to ask her to know the results of the test. It was written all over her face. Usagi reached across the table and squeezed the young doctor's hand. "I'm sorry, Ami-chan."
"No, it's okay," Ami said softly. "It just wasn't meant to be, I guess. Ryo and I will just have to try harder next time."
The doctor gave Usagi a small smile, but she could see the sadness in Ami's eyes. The girls finished eating their sundaes in silence, then agreed that they should probably go home. Nobody was really in the mood to shop anyway. Naru and Usagi said goodbye to Ami, then left.
Setsuna stared at the scrap of paper in her shaking hand, checking for the third time that she had the right apartment number. She did, but she still hesitated for a few seconds before she finally reached out and pushed the doorbell. The bell announcing her presence rang loud in her ears as she waited nervously outside the door.
"Thank you for coming, Setsuna-san," Mamoru said, answering the door. He showed her in and offered her a cup of tea, which she politely declined. Her stomach wouldn't be able to handle it.
She took a seat on the couch, looking around his apartment. Even though she'd known Mamoru for years, this was the first time she ever visited his place. Most of the time, the Sailor Soldiers held their meetings either at Rei's temple or at the Crown Fruit Parlor. For a guy, Setsuna had to admit that it was decorated rather nicely. She picked up a silver picture frame sitting on the small table beside her, but quickly set it back down when she saw that it was a picture of Usagi and Mamoru at an amusement park. "You have a very nice apartment, Mamoru-san."
Mamoru took the picture she was looking at and sat down beside Setsuna, his eyes focused on the image of Usagi. The time guardian sensed he was purposely avoiding meeting her gaze. "I can't take all the credit for it," he replied. "Usagi did most of the decorating."
"On the phone, you said that Usagi was acting strangely last night," Setsuna said, deciding to get right down to business. Mamoru glanced up in surprise, but immediately focused his attention back on the picture in his hands.
"She knows, Setsuna-san, and I'm afraid I've lost her forever."
He didn't have to say anything else. The tone in his voice was full of conviction. Sighing heavily, Mamoru placed the picture facedown on the coffee table and buried his head in his hands. It was the sight of a broken man.
"I know it seems bad right now, but you can't believe that," Setsuna said, refusing to believe it. "You and Usagi-chan will get married and become the rulers of the reborn Silver Millennium. It's your destiny!"
"Destiny?" Mamoru spat the word out as if it were a curse. "I wish I never went to the 30th century. There's a reason that people aren't allowed to see the future. All it causes is pain and misery."
Setsuna could definitely understand where he was coming from. It was a burden to know the future, one that weighed heavily upon her heart. Even as the guardian of time, she never allowed herself to look into her own future, fearing what it would bring. The only things she did know were from her dreams about her 30th century self that had awakened her in the present time. She too knew her destiny. She was to die during the final battle with the Black Moon Kingdom in punishment for breaking the final taboo, giving her life to save the kingdom. She would die alone, never knowing true love or happiness, but that was how it had to be.
After a few moments of silence, Setsuna rested a comforting hand on his knee. "I'm sorry, Mamoru-san, for everything. Maybe I should go."
She stood up as if to leave, but to her surprise, he looked up and reached for her hand, pulling her back down on the couch. For the first time since she arrived, Mamoru allowed himself to gaze into those blood red eyes and once again, he was hypnotized. "No, don't go. You're all I have."
Setsuna sucked in a shallow breath as Mamoru raised his hand to tenderly caress her cheek. This was what she always wanted, wasn't it? Usagi knew about the affair, or at least Mamoru suspected she knew, and it appeared that they were finally free to express their love, but Setsuna still felt a pang of guilt in her heart. Usagi was not only her princess, but also one of her best friends. This was wrong. However, she couldn't ignore the strong attraction she felt toward the handsome prince.
In spite of her better judgment, she didn't resist when Mamoru pressed his lips against hers, pulling her into a soft kiss. His hands found their way to the buttons of her blouse, which he quickly unfastened, and Setsuna moaned as he began a trail of butterfly kisses down her neck and stopped at her chest.
"Mamoru…" she whispered as she situated herself underneath him on the couch. He brought a finger to her lips, silently shushing her.
He kissed her once again on the mouth, this time more passionate than before. She responded hungrily to every kiss, every touch, every caress he gave her, falling deeper under the spell of his midnight blue gaze. They were so absorbed in each other that they did not notice when the front door suddenly opened and a woman came in.
At first, she was speechless, her entire body frozen in the doorway of the apartment as she looked on in shock. The world was spinning around her, making her sick to her stomach. It couldn't be true! This had to be a nightmare.
She closed her eyes for a few seconds, hoping that when she opened them again, she would be in bed with Mamoru by her side to comfort her like he always did when she had a bad dream, but it didn't work. By that time, the lovers had become aware of her presence and were staring at her as if they were a couple of deer caught in the headlights of a car. Mamoru stood up and started walking toward her.
"Usako."
Usagi shook her head, not wanting to hear his lies anymore. Tears threatened to fall, but she fought the urge to cry, not wanting to give him the satisfaction of knowing just how much he hurt her, how they both hurt her. She grabbed the extra set of car keys sitting on a nearby table. There was no way she was staying here for one more second.
"I didn't want to believe it," she stated, her voice as cold as ice. "But it is painfully clear to me now. Goodbye, Mamoru-baka!"
She then turned around and began running down the hallway of the apartment building, the sound of her crying filling the small corridor. Mamoru started after her, but stopped in the middle of the hall when she disappeared from sight. "Usako!" he shouted futilely, not caring if he disturbed any of the neighbors. "Usako!" But it was no use. She was gone. His princess was gone and he'd lost her forever. Mamoru repeated her name again, this time in a soft whisper, as he simply stood there as if he expected that Usagi would turn right back around and come running back into his arms.
From her spot in the doorway, Setsuna watched silently, tears streaming down her face. She quickly buttoned her shirt back up, using the collar to wipe away her tears. This wasn't supposed to happen. Usagi and Mamoru were destined to be together. How could the entire future change in just one single moment of passion?
She knew he didn't love her, not the same way he loved Usagi. Setsuna could see it in his eyes as Mamoru watched Usagi walk out of the apartment and out of his life. Usagi was the one he truly loved, not her. To him, she was nothing more than an object of desire, a delectable piece of forbidden fruit. And perhaps that was the same feeling she held for him. He was forbidden, and therefore desirable. But now, when she looked at him, she no longer felt that surge of passion that consumed her body before. Only a lingering sense of strong friendship remained.
Setsuna came up behind him and wrapped her arms around his waist, resting her head on his back. "I'm sorry, Mamoru-san," she apologized, her voice slightly cracking. "I'm so, so sorry."
He chuckled, but there was no joviality in his laugh. "It's ironic, isn't it? You always told me that it was impossible to change a person's destiny, but I guess you were wrong, Time Guardian-san."
"I'm sorry."
Mamoru sighed. "So am I, Setsuna-san, so am I."
They stood there silently for a few minutes until Setsuna finally let go of her embrace. "I better go."
He nodded as she quickly ran back into the apartment and grabbed her purse. They didn't say a word to each other when Setsuna passed him on her way to the elevator. There was nothing more to say. She pressed the down button, taking one last look at him. Their eyes met, but neither felt the supernatural attraction that had plagued them ever since the engagement party. Mamoru finally went back into his apartment just as Setsuna's elevator opened. She stepped in, glad that she was the only passenger, and cried for the best friends she'd ever known.
Yuuichiro was busy sweeping outside the shrine when Mamoru's red sports car pulled up outside the gates. However, he was surprised to see that it was Usagi who emerged from the driver's side, her face red from all the crying she did. The caretaker immediately dropped his broom and ran over to see what was the matter.
"Usagi-chan, what's wrong?" he asked. "Where's Mamoru-san? Did something happen to him?
She shook her head. "Where's Rei-chan? I need to talk to her."
"Rei-chan went to the store to buy some things for dinner. I'm sure she'll be back in a few minutes. Let's go inside and I'll make you some tea."
She didn't argue as Yuuichiro took her arm and lead her inside. He made her some green tea, saying that it would calm her nerves, but she didn't feel much like drinking. Green tea reminded her too much of Mamoru. It was his favorite.
A fresh batch of tears clouded her eyes as he handed her the glass of tea. Yuuichiro, sensing her need to be comforted, sat down beside her and let her cry on his shoulder, no questions asked. Sometimes it was better just to cry, rather than to talk. That's what she needed to do right now. To cry for her broken dream.
They stayed like that until Rei finally came home about fifteen minutes later. The priestess, of course, was furious to find that Yuuichiro had abandoned his chores. She stomped into the temple with the broom in her hand and a look of pure anger on her face.
"Yuuichiro-kun, when I get my hands on you, I swear I will-"
Her threat was left hanging in the air when she found the caretaker gently rocking Usagi back and forth in his arms as she cried, and the antagonistic look that was on her face just a short moment ago melted away into concern. Rei came over and relieved Yuuichiro from his burden, telling him to go back to his chores. Not wanting to get on Rei's bad side again, he quickly grabbed the broom and left the room to give the girls some time to talk.
An hour later, Rei came out and found Yuuichiro standing outside the sliding door. He expected her to yell at him like she usually did, but instead, she came over and kissed him on the cheek. "What was that for?" he asked.
"For being such a wonderful person."
He blushed a bright red. "Is Usagi-chan going to be alright?"
Rei shook her head sadly. "I honestly don't know, Yuuichiro-kun. She's heartbroken. I suppose you heard most of the story, right?"
He had. Although he hadn't meant to eavesdrop on Rei's and Usagi's conversation, he couldn't help himself. Besides, the walls of the shrine were paper thin. You could hear everything and anything that went on in there. Yuuichiro leaned on the broom, his chin resting on the top, with a thoughtful look on his face.
"I can't believe that Mamoru-san would cheat on Usagi-chan," he said. "I didn't know the guy very well, but I at least thought he was a man of honor. Did she tell you who the other woman was? She must have been very beautiful to lure him away from Usagi-chan. Mamoru-san was completely devoted to her."
"Usagi refuses to name the little seductress, which might be a good thing, because I just might be tempted to find her and burn her to a crisp for all the pain she's putting Usagi through. It's taking all my willpower not to go over to Mamoru-san's apartment and throw myself a little bonfire as it is."
"Well, he deserves it. If I were engaged to the woman I loved most in the world, there's absolutely no way I would ever cheat on you…er, I mean her."
Rei blushed very prettily at Yuuichiro's unintentional slip of the tongue, but quickly covered it up by turning away. "Would you please get back to your chores? I'm going to go fix Usagi a snack and call the other girls to let them know what happened."
Yuuichiro watched the priestess head to the small kitchen, his mouth open in shock. That was the first time in all the years he lived at the Hikawa Shrine that Rei ever asked him to do his chores, rather than ordering him. With a small smile on his face, the caretaker began sweeping the entrance, lightly humming a popular love song to himself. She likes me!