Sensou Tenshi Usagi (War Angel Usagi) ~ VII


Midnight of Shadows

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Excuse#786573: I uh...have a...um.... uh...hmmmm (I need a really good excuse this time. Duo!

Duo: Nani?

Shorty: Give me good excuse.

Duo: Uh...I know! You broke your back playing Frisbee on the roof of the white house and you fell when you tried to catch it while doing a back flip and landing on one foot while singing Lady Marmalade and doing the Macarena! *cheez*

Shorty: I guess that'll work!)

Konnichi wa minna! I'm back. Well this chapter isn't too long, but I promise you the next two will be as some interesting characters enter the picture. ^o^

Translations:

Konban wa minna, motsu yoi ryoko suru? - Good evening everyone. How was your journey? (or something like that. I can't remember the exact translation, but hey, I got it out of a Japanese/English dictionary *grin*)
KISAMA - very rude word to call someone @o@
Gomen nasai - very sorry
Chotto matte - wait a minute
MUKUCHI NA - Silence!
Onna - woman
Yameru/yamu - stop it/stop
Onegai - please
Daijobu - it's alright
Arigatou - thank you

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Disclaimer:
Quatre nervously shuffles up to the edge of the computer screen, a white flag in his hands. He waves it tentatively before setting it aside and pulling a piece of paper from behind his back.

Quatre: The author and dear friend of mine would like to express her apologies to the fans of this story. She wishes to make up for her laziness by producing a chapter that will hopefully spark your interests once again and redeem her in your eyes. She expresses her grief by not being here due to her fear of tomatoes. She also asks that you not harass her spokesman, me, and instead take out your anger on the dummy provided. ALL RIGHT BOYS.... ROLL HIM OUT!

Trowa and Goten emerge from behind a curtain pushing a stand with a frightened man on it. He's been strapped to a steel backed thing with duck tape over his mouth to prevent him from screaming, but you can still hear it. Trowa and Goten leave after checking the restraints.

Quatre: Shorty hopes the dummy provided will be good enough to relieve your anger. If not, another can be provided. Shorty would also like to say, sadly, that she does not own Gundam Wing or Sailor Moon, and for that matter, Dragon Ball Z. She says however, that this will change as soon as she is mentally stable and able to leave the anime nut house. Once again, Shorty hopes that Mamoru-baka will provide you with an outlet to bestow your anger upon.

Quatre stops to give a sympathetic stare to the strapped Mamoru.

Quatre: Thank you and have a good day. *leaves*

Mamoru sweatdrops as he notices the mass amounts of angry readers glaring at him.

Mamoru: ..............O-O;
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Sensou Tenshi Usagi (War Angel Usagi) ~ VII


Midnight of Shadows



            "Konban wa minna, motsu yoi ryoko suru?"

            Heero had to physically restrain himself from jumping out of his skin. Duo on the other hand wasn't so lucky.

            "EEEEEEKKKK!" he squealed, "EGADS LADY!! YOU SCARED THE SKIZITS OUT OF ME!!" Wufei growled in annoyance and mumbled obscenities beneath Duo who happened to be covering his head.

            "Get OFF KISAMA!" Duo reluctantly climbed off. Usagi's eyes eventually returned to their sockets as her breathing evened out. Quatre paled considerably before flushing in embarrassment. Trowa was unaffected. Quatre put a hand behind his head and laughed sheepishly.

            "You gave us quite a scare there miss-"

            "Gomen nasai Quatre-san," she said, rudely cutting him off, "but no one was home so I decided to let myself in. I never meant to alarm you all so. Is everyone all right?" Her light blue eyes flashed with concern as she regarded the assembled teens. Her eyes rested on Heero and a flash of recognition danced across them. Heero allowed himself to grimace in annoyance before turning away.

            Quatre once again put on his host face and smiled warmly.

            "Why don't we go sit in the den and discuss why you're here?" This of course was directed at the young lady before them. She nodded her head regally and turned in the direction of the room, intent on leading the group.

            "Chotto matte!" Usagi's shout halted the girl's advance. Usagi walked right up to the girl and stood in front of her, her fists planted on hips in a threatening manner. Nobody snuck into Quatre's mansion and got away with it. And why didn't the others threaten the girl as they had so many other visitors? This all seemed a tad bit unusual to her. If anything, she wanted to know why the girl sparked a feeling of familiarity in her. Usagi felt she had seen this girl somewhere before.

            "Who are you and what are you doing here?" she asked hotly, her curiosity at its peek. The girl smiled warmly.

            "I should be asking the same of you Tenshi. But since I am familiar with your history and background already, I suppose an introduction from you is not needed," the gasp from Usagi was her only reply, "Since you don't remember me, allow me to break the ice. Watakushi wa Relena Peacecraft, Princess of the Sanq Kingdom."

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            Once they were all assembled in the den, Relena allowed herself to relax. She collapsed in an armchair and smiled gratefully as Quatre handed her a cup of tea, then took up residence in the armchair beside hers. Relena sipped her tea while the others chose seats. She opened her mouth to say something but was rudely cut off by Wufei.

            "Why are you here Peacecraft? The real reason and not some lame excuse to visit us like last time," His onyx eyes flashed steel as he glared at her.

            "It's a long story Chang-san, and I will tell it if you would stop questioning me and allow me to finish. Now to answer your first question, I'm here on behalf of Galaxia-sa--"

            "Galaxia!" exclaimed Usagi, worry etched into her features, "What's happened to her? Is she ok? Did Treize hurt her? Is she dead? KAMI-SAMA! She's not dead is she?! Oh I don't kno-"

            "MUKUCHI NA!" roared Wufei, "Onna if you don't be quiet we won't find out!" Usagi almost launched herself at Wufei, but Heero's hand grabbed the back of her pink overalls and prevented her. Instead she huffed and sat back down next to him. Relena frowned at her before returning to her sentence.

            "As I was saying, I'm here on behalf of Galaxia-sama. She's perfectly fine. Due to certain circumstances, she asked me to condone this meeting in her place."

            "And what do you need to know?" asked Trowa.

            "Only what happened while you were away," she continued, "Did Tenshi have any more visions since the last time Galaxia-sama saw her? And don't give me half an answer either. Galaxia-sama asked that I know exactly how many so she can determine Tenshi's status."

            "Six," answered Heero when the others failed to do so, "One at the train station, some minor ones during the week, and one the day before we came here." Usagi pouted in protest at Heero for telling her business. Heero ignored her. Relena nodded as she contemplated the situation.

            "I see the attacks are becoming more frequent. Did you encounter any trouble while you were gone? Any of Treize's troops show up? Any civilians try to stop you?"

            "No, no, and no," quipped Duo.

            "Anything damaged that could raise suspicion?"

            "No," growled Wufei while narrowing his eyes at a grinning Duo.

            "Did you contact anyone and let them know of your whereabouts?

            "No," spoke Quatre.

            "Did you encounter any spies or persons who were suspicious?

            "No," finished Trowa. Relena nodded after absorbing all the information.

            "Good. This meeting then is finished. I will inform Galaxia-sama of your progress and let her know you have returned. She should be here in a week's time or less." Relena stood up and gave a curt bow, then turned to leave.

            "Matte!" called Usagi once again. Relena stopped and turned around.

            "Hai Tenshi? What is it?"

            Usagi's nose wrinkled a moment in frustration, and then, "How do you know who I am?" Relena smiled as if it were obvious.

            "Why, Galaxia-sama told me of course."

            Usagi shook her head, "Iie, that's not what I mean. You keep calling me Tenshi, and if Galaxia had informed you about me, she would have addressed me as Usagi. Also, you said, I didn't remember you. Why wouldn't I remember you Relena? Have we met?"

            Relena frowned. So Tenshi was smarter than she gave credit too. She hadn't meant to let that information slip. She thought about it a moment, than finally retook her seat. If Tenshi wanted to know, she would tell her. There was no sense in denying her the information due her.

            "Tenshi, I want you to understand something. Galaxia-sama and I have a very long history together. True, she is working for Treize, but she was an agent for the Peacecraft family first. After Milliardo and I's real parents were killed, Galaxia-sama put us into the custody of foster parents. Milliardo was old enough to know these weren't his real parents, but I was too young. When he was old enough, Milliardo set out on his own, and that is his own tale to tell. I grew up with my foster parents. Once, when I was about seven years old, Galaxia-sama came to visit me once again. She had another little girl with her, someone I didn't recognize. I asked who that was, and Galaxia-sama introduced us. It was you. Tenshi, she called you, as if you had no real name. You were so happy to meet me, a little too happy...." Relena trailed off then, eyes downcast as she became lost in memory.

            "I remember that day so well. You and I, we became good companions and played all day long. Then, around sunset, we went to play in the sand box. I remember a great shadow seemed to fall over us and we looked up to see a dark man. He frowned down at us. He yelled at you, saying what a pathetic excuse for a soldier you were, what a waste of time and effort. And you cried. You stood there and cried as he yelled at you, calling you every vile name in the book. Galaxia-sama was in the house at the time, but she came out then and when she saw that man yelling at you, she went ballistic. She ran over and snatched you up. The man, Galaxia-sama called him C, he was furious. He and Galaxia-sama argued. He kept saying how she didn't have enough control over you. He said he would report this to Treize-sama. Galaxia-sama argued back saying how it was none of his business how she raised you and if he didn't like it, he should reconsider his position as Treize's advisor and become a trainer.

            "C said something to Galaxia-sama then, something I can't quite remember, and she went off. She yelled at him for a long time, and then...and then she...she shot the man in the head. I was shocked. Galaxia-sama just stared at his dead body. She put you back down then and told us to stay put. I couldn't move, I was too paralyzed with fear. You acted like it was nothing. When Galaxia-sama came back, she had a plastic bag and a wheel burrow. She put C's body in the bag and dumped it into the wheel burrow. While she was doing this, you suddenly collapsed, shuddering and writhing on the ground. Galaxia-sama told me to run, but I couldn't move. She pushed me then and told me to run into the house. I did. I was so scared I hid in the closet, shivering and crying. It wasn't until Pagan came looking for me that I finally emerged. When I asked him about Galaxia-sama, he said she'd left hours ago." Relena paused again to take a deep breath.

            "You see Tenshi, the conditions we met under were somewhat strained. That was the last I ever saw or heard of you. Galaxia-sama never paid me a visit until many years later. That is why I'm here now. She asked me for a favor and I could not refuse her."

            Usagi was a bit overwhelmed with the sleuth of new information and nodded. She sighed as Relena watched her. Why couldn't she remember that day? As hard as she tried, not one thing Relena said registered in her mind, not even this C person! She frowned and wrinkled her brow. Galaxia had killed this guy when Usagi was young right? So that would mean that Galaxia was a trader to Oz? Why was Galaxia still working for OZ then? Why put on the facade of being loyal when she had obviously been a traitor all along? Why hadn't Oz figured her out yet?

            "Miss Relena," spoke up Quatre, "If you'd like, you could stay the night." Relena shook here head.

            "Arigatou for the invitation Quatre-san, but I have to return to the Sanq Kingdom. A new situation has arisen that requires my immediate attention."

            "What happened?"

            Relena's eyes flickered with indecision a moment, but then became steel as she made a choice, "A new threat impedes on planet earth. It seems as though the faction known as Oz has developed a new Mobile doll and plans to test it on a few islands located on Earth. The first attacks happened a week ago in Jamaica."

            Duo frowned as he remembered the information on some disks Heero had obtained from the base he'd met Usagi on, "That's not like Oz to test on civilians. Are they the C dolls we heard about?"

            "A new prototype called Capricaucios. Unlike all the other dolls, this one has a faster reaction time and better speed. Our defensive units led by Lieutenant Noin have all but been decimated against th-," Relena paused then as Usagi caught her attention. The moonbeam on her forehead was glowing. The boys all turned to look at the quiet girl also. Duo paled.

            "Uh, Heero, now might be a good time to get her out of here," he whispered as the others got up from their seats and left the room, Relena trying to peer over Trowa's shoulder as he ushered her out the door. They knew how Usagi got when her visions came on.

            "What's going on?" Relena's voice echoed as they went into the next room.

            Heero rolled his eyes. They always left him to handle the girl. He frowned but turned to deal with her. Usagi was hunched forward in her chair now, her head hidden in her arms as she trembled. What ever she was seeing, she was trying to contain it. Heero hesitantly touched her arm, waiting for her to spring. Usagi didn't move.

            A whimper escaped her. Heero stood up and gripped her by both arms, lifting her from the chair. Usagi stood up and buried her face in his shirt, her hands gripping the black cotton material.

            "Yameru," she whispered so low Heero could barely hear her, "Onegai, yamu."

            Heero looked down at her face. The moonbeam was pulsating gently, the golden glow almost soothing. Usagi was still trembling, as if a great chill had overtaken her slight form. He flinched as she suddenly jerked her body violently, a sob escaping her throat. Reflexively, he wrapped her in a tight embrace to keep her from falling as he felt her knees buckle. Usagi was still trembling.

            "Don't hurt me. I promise I won't tell. I promise. I promise." she whispered again, tears falling down her cheeks. Heero's frown fell away as he realized just how much pain she was in.

            "Usagi," he called, hoping to bring her out of the vision, "Daijobu Usagi. Don't worry, you're safe," Heero felt odd saying things like this for they'd never been said out of his mouth before, but he let the feeling pass as he noticed the effect on her. Slowly, her body began to relax, her tears stopping. It was working! Heero decided to take it a step further and caressed her head, the rhythmic motion calming her. Usagi stopped trembling altogether and sighed as her body completely relaxed. Her moonbeam went dull and disappeared from her forehead. Slowly, her eyes fluttered open as she turned her head to gaze into Heero's eyes.

            "Arigatou," she whispered before promptly passing out. Heero stared at her a moment. The look in her eyes....

            He pushed the thought from his mind. He needed to put her to bed so she could rest. He scooped up her legs and turned to leave the room. That's when he saw Relena. A chill passed through his body as her cornflower blue eyes bored into him, an almost glare on her face. Heero glared back.

            "Quatre," he called. Relena frowned and turned away to walk back into the room with the others. Moments later Quatre came out, a worried expression on his face.

            "Hai Heero? What is it?"

            "I need a room for her."

            Quatre glanced to the comatose girl in Heero's arms. He then nodded and proceeded down the hall and up the stairs. He brought Heero to a big room with a king sized white bed in the center of it. Without hesitation, Heero placed the comatose girl on the bed and left with Quatre. They would have to wait for her to awaken to find out what happened.

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            Five hours later, the boys found themselves still waiting. Usagi had remained in a fitful slumber, her body jerking in sleep as the dream she was having took over her body and sense of time. Relena finally decided to leave after informing the boys on the new Capricaucios dolls. All through out the explanation, she cast furtive, accusatory glances at Heero, as if he'd betrayed her somehow. Heero ignored the looks. He knew Relena had been watching when he had subdued Usagi. She'd seen the whole ordeal and was none too pleased. She managed to keep her emotions in check though as she gave them the story on the dolls. After a two-hour question and answer session, she left. By then it was six pm. Quatre had dinner made and they enjoyed a meal. Afterwards they'd talked strategy on what to do next and whether or not they should involve themselves in the new war. Duo was all for it, while Heero and Trowa were a bit apprehensive about it. Quatre took up Duo's argument while Wufei offered nothing. They argued for a good hour or so and by the time they decided to turn in, five hours had passed. It was nine pm.

            Heero paused on his way to his room to check on Usagi. She was lying on the bed with her back to the door, her breathing slow and even. At least she had stopped twitching. Heero closed her door and went to his room. No sooner had he laid down than his mind began to fill with thoughts. He wouldn't get much sleep tonight.

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            Galaxia rubbed her tired eyes as she set the stack of papers on her desk. Five hours of research and she hadn't even come close to finding the answer to her problem. How did Treize expect her to answer the problem of the faulty cerebral units in the training modules if she only had so much data? Just her luck to be the head of the discipline squad in Oz.

            She sighed then, and swiveled in her oak chair to face to the huge office window. The sight of Earth greeted her, glorious in it's mellow blues and placid greens. They had six hours before re-entry into the Earth's atmosphere, and three more hours before they landed in Russia. The journey from Omega base to Earth had taken a remarkable twelve hours. Needless to say, she was not too pleased. The shuttle was progressing much too fast for her to make plans. She had no way of knowing where Usagi and the pilots had gone or if they had even remained together. If the pilots and the girl had journeyed to Russia as her sources informed her, she had no method of insuring that they had taken her warning of leaving only for a week and returning to the desert.

            Galaxia closed her ruby eyes a moment as she massaged her temples. So many problems and so little time to fix them. Why had she been the one chosen to be the princess's protector and guardian? Why hadn't she just stayed on Himtos and continued restructuring the planet?

            "Cause you're a damn fool," she whispered to herself. Galaxia frowned and leaned back in her chair, her eyes still closed. Maybe if she went to sleep, the answer to her problems would show themselves. With a contented sigh, she stretched her feet out and relaxed her body.

            *Knock Knock*

            Maybe not.

            "Hai," she called, turning in her chair to face the steel door. A moment later, a young brown haired cadet walked in, his green eyes looking around the room before focusing on her.

            "Nishikawa-san," she acknowledged, "What do you want?"

            "An encrypted message has been received from Earth. It is addressed to you Juniper-sama." Galaxia's interest suddenly perked.

            "Honto ni? Has any of the crew tried to decipher it?"

            "Hai. All efforts have proved unsuccessful," Nishikawa took a step back as Galaxia's expression suddenly turned feral. Galaxia noticed the young man's reaction after a while and she shook her head, regaining her senses.

            "Send the message to me," she ordered.

            "Hai, at once Juniper-sama," he answered and with a bow he left. Galaxia grinned once she was sure the coast was clear. Finally, she would get some answers.

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            Sleep hadn't been too generous to Usagi since her attack. For five hours her dreams had been nightmares full of ghosts from the past and events yet to come. Her mind made her relive the pain from her multiple deaths as Sailor Moon. Time and time again she had to watch her senshi killed by the forces of evil. Several times Usagi had snapped awake, a cold sweat covering her body as she trembled. She tried to remain alert after those abrupt wake ups, but her tired body would not let her and soon she drifted into another nightmare with the same pain and heartaches. Five hours later, after the last nightmare caused her to awaken screaming, she managed to stay awake and stare out the open window.

            At one point during the night, she glanced at the clock; right after someone had opened her door and looked in, and noticed it was nine pm. After the person left, Usagi changed her from her pink overalls to a white night gown she discovered in a dresser drawer. The gown was thin strapped and stopped at her knees, the silky material hugging her frame and keeping the desert heat from becoming unbearable. Who ever had occupied the room before her had definitely been female. Once she changed, she crawled back into the bed. Since then, Usagi had laid there, her body motionless as her thoughts drifted. She tried to meditate for a while to return to sleep, but nothing worked. Then she began to wonder if perhaps the bed was causing her to lose her much needed rest.

            She tossed and turned frantically, trying to get comfortable in the soft bed. But, no matter what position she took, or what part of the bed she lay on, she just couldn't fall asleep. She didn't know why, but something about the bed was just nagging at her. What was it? Was it too lumpy? She bounced on the bed and reasoned that it wasn't. It was neither too lumpy nor too soft. Was the bed too cold? It wasn't. They were residing in the desert for goodness sake!

            With a great sigh Usagi sat up and looked around the spacious room. She knew what it was, the room was too lonely. This was the first time that Usagi had slept somewhere without Heero since they'd met. As much as she hated to admit it, Usagi had grown used to sharing a bed with him, no matter how big or small. She was used to holding something while she slept and waking up to see him watching her from across the room, usually at his laptop. Always there'd be a space in the bed indicating he'd slept there the previous night. She just missed him period and figured she wouldn't get any sleep until she resolved that issue.

            With her mind made up, Usagi climbed off the huge bed and crept up to her door, pausing once to put on some pink slippers with bunny head on the tips. She opened the door slowly and peered out, wary of the night crew. It was midnight in the Winner mansion. When she was sure the hall was empty, she left her room and proceeded down the hall, creeping stealthily like a cat. Once a floorboard creaked and Usagi held her breath. Nothing happened. Loosing her pent up air, Usagi once again moved on, getting closer to Heero's door. She passed Quatre, Trowa, Wufei, and Duo's doors along the way, being sure to creep extra quietly by Wufei's door. No matter what anyone said, that Chinese boy had ears like a bat.

            Usagi finally arrived at her destination. The wooden door was slightly cracked and moonlight spilled through it into the carpeted hallway. She pushed on it hesitantly, holding her breath, as it swung open. The hinges never squeaked. After making sure no one was awake, Usagi slipped into the dark room, her sharp eyes making out the bed and the form sleeping on it. She deposited her slippers by the door and then paused to listen to Heero's deep rhythmic breathing, hoping he was out cold. For ten minutes she just stood there, listening to him breath and making sure he was definitely unaware of the rest of the world. Finally, gathering the last of her courage, Usagi stepped into the room. She stopped five feet away from the bed and listened again.

            Still sleep. She made one last final check, approached the bed and lifted up the cover.

            "Don't even think about," Usagi yelped and jumped back.

            "You're awake!" she squeaked. Heero rolled over in the bed to face her. He glared and she shrank a little under his stern gaze. So maybe he wasn't out cold.

            "What do you want." His tone was icy; he wasn't in the mood to play. He knew what she wanted, but wasn't about to make it easy for her. The perfect soldier did not share his bed. Usagi pouted and gave him her most pathetic look, blue eyes wide and pleading.

            "Can I sleep with you please? I don't like my room and my bed is too big."

            "No."

            "Please?"

            "No."

            "PLEASE?!?!?!"

            "No."

            "PRETTY PLEASE WITH SUGAR ON TOP?!?!?!?"

            "NO," Usagi pouted even more and sniffled, tears beginning to form in her eyes.

            "Onegai Heero? Just this once? I promise I won't be any trouble!" By now Heero's patience was shot. With an angry sigh he relented.

            "Fine," he growled, and flipped over, his back to her, "But stay on that side of the bed as far away as possible." Usagi squealed in joy and hopped into the bed, disturbing Heero and almost making him kick her out. She squiggled around a bit to get comfortable and finally he heard her contented sigh as she fell into a deep sleep. Muttering obscenities and cursing the day he ever met her, Heero finally drifted into a peaceful slumber. He never felt the smile on his lips as he slept, for as much as he hated to admit it, he missed sharing a bed with her too. In fact, he hadn't been able to sleep at all until now.

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            YAY! Another chapter! I know you all were wondering when I would finally get my lazy butt in gear and write some more. Actually, I've made a decision after debating for a long time. I've decided to only concentrate on this fic and worry about the others when I finish. This story only has a few more chapters before the end, so hopefully I can get this written and then concentrate on my other works. After this, I plan to write another SM and GW crossover, but it'll be angst, and not a lot of action. Well, this author's note is getting kind of long so I guess I'll end it here. Stay tuned for the next chapter, and don't forget to review.

 

Ja ne!

Shorty *^_~*

Email me! Quimon7@hotmail.com