I want to thank everyone for their responses and reviews so far. I love
the feedback.
~Virgo15~
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Usagi gasped as she sat up quickly. The pale moonlight painted her room in muted blues and purples, while a soft night breeze rippled the curtains of her window. She pressed the palm of her hand to her chest as if to will her heart to slow. Her breath came in shallow gulps as she swung her legs over the side of her bed. Resting, she waited until her breathing and heart rate returned to normal. She smiled to herself at the effect a dream had on her.
" That was the second one this week…but much more strong…vivid. I could almost feel his hand. " She thought as she closed her eyes, remembering the dream.
For a brief moment she almost thought that she could smell the salt air again, until the angry noises of the city street below interrupted her. She lifted herself off the bed and crossed the room to her balcony. She slid open the door, and stepped to the cool pavement. She looked at the sky, wishing she could see the stars in the city, but only a faint light penetrated the city's glow. She leaned against the railing, allowing the comforting sounds of the nightlife calm her mind. She thought about Seiya and wondered what he was doing now. It had been a long five years since Galaxia's defeat. The dreams about him started slowly at first, one or two a month, but then nothing for a few months. Recently however the dreams started coming more often, and were longer and more intense. They were all different except for one thing; Seiya coming back for her. She looked at the sky again and wondered what it meant. Slowly a gnawing thought at the back of her mind came to the forefront. She turned the thought over in her mind like a puzzle, and wondered if the idea wasn't so crazy anymore. She shook the thought out of her mind as she went back inside. Usagi decided to call Ami the next day in order to work it all out.
Ami Mizuno hurried across the road in front of Usagi's apartment block, her heels clicking on the pavement and the tiles of the lobby. She was a little surprised at the call she received this morning.
" Ami I really need to see you."
" Can't wait to see the movie on Friday huh?" Ami laughed.
" No it's not that" Usagi replied with a smile in her voice, " I just need you to listen to me for a while. Do you think you can drop by today?"
Ami paused before replying, Usagi's tone was light but she could sense that she was preoccupied with something serious.
" My hospital rotation is done at 2 this afternoon, I can drop by after. " Ami was quiet for a moment, " Usagi is everything OK?"
There was a slight hesitation before Usagi answered. " Everything's fine Ami, I just need so sort some things out. I'm really glad you're coming. I'll see you later OK?"
"OK Usagi."
Ami pressed the button for the elevator and thought again about Usagi. The five-sailor senshi had gone their different ways after the Sailor Wars ended, but the bond they shared could not truly separate them. She had seen Usagi the most in the last five years only because she has stayed behind in Tokyo to attend the University with Usagi. Her hospital residency took up much of her time, but she still managed to meet Usagi for a movie or dinner off and on. Ami realized suddenly how independent Usagi had become. She had finished her University education and excelled in politics and languages. She found a job at the Japanese Embassy in Tokyo soon after graduation and had risen to be the lead attaché for the Ambassador. Her job took her all over the world, rubbing shoulders with the political elite. She jokingly said it was sometimes "boring as hell" but also and said that it was good preparation for her eventual role as the Queen of Crystal Tokyo. Usagi had a quick mind and razor wit and often had the girls breathless with laughter at quirky stories about political life.
The soft ring of the elevator doors opening brought Ami out of her reverie. She walked down the hallway and knocked twice on Usagi's door. A soft voice beckoned her inside and she let herself in. Usagi's spacious apartment was always a comfortable place to Ami, and sometimes more than a little messy. She glanced at a nearby bureau cluttered with pictures, and something caught her eye. She reached down and picked up a picture in a heavy silver frame. It was a picture of the Three Lights with the inner senshi and Usagi during their time together at school. She felt a slight tug as she looked at Taiki, but it was Seiya that drew her attention. The self-confident smirk and sparking eyes wrought havoc on many a teenaged girl, not to mention the Inner Senshi. With a soft sigh she placed the picture back and walked to the kitchen.
Usagi was seated at the table, her hands encircling a coffee mug. Her long legs were crossed as she sat deep in thought. Ami almost didn't know what to say, but Usagi looked up quickly with a bright smile on her face. She leapt up and grabbed Ami in a big hug, taking the smaller girl's breath away.
"Usagi! What's gotten into you?"
Usagi let her go, and stood back at arms length. " Nothing Ames, I'm just really glad to see you." She said with absolute sincerity.
Ami smiled as Usagi sat back at the table. "Help yourself to anything to the fridge."
Ami grabbed a bottle of water and kicked off her shoes. She sat across from Usagi and searched her face for any clues, but Usagi looked perfectly at ease. She waited a minute, but couldn't stand it anymore.
"What is the matter Usagi? I know something is on your mind."
Usagi drew serious. She played with the coffee mug in her hands before replying.
" I dreamt about him again."
Ami looked deeply into Usagi's eyes as she spoke. She didn't know how to decipher that comment. " Seiya? Again?"
Usagi frowned, " It was different this time Ames, it was so real. I could smell, touch and almost taste everything. I know this means something. I can feel it in my soul. Something is calling me to him, drawing me to him. There hasn't been a day in the last five years that I haven't thought of him."
Ami looked at Usagi's unwavering face and reached her hand across the table to clasp her hand. " Was he the reason that you and Mamoru parted Usagi? Tell me honestly."
Usagi thought for a minute before replying. " Honestly Ames? I can't say no but I can't say yes either. He was definitely the catalyst for the realization that I couldn't live my life based on what had happened in the past, not alone over a thousand years ago. I loved Mamoru, I truly did. However as I grew up, I realized that if I was going to rule Crystal Tokyo for thousands of years I had to do it on my terms, and mine only. Once I let Mamoru go I felt like I could do almost anything, and I have."
Ami smiled. Usagi was speaking the truth, she had turned her life around herself and in doing so had become a very strong person. She was someone that Ami would be happy to follow, out of both respect and love.
Usagi rose from the table and walked to the window. She looked at the cerulean sky before turning back to Ami. Once she did Ami could see tears pricking the corners of her eyes.
" I just can't do it anymore alone Ames, I'm going to find him."
Ami was shocked. "Usagi are you sure?"
Usagi walked over and kneeled in front of Ami and clasped her hands in hers. " Ami I have to know. I have to know if is alive, and if he still loves me. In all my dreams Seiya comes to me, but I know that he will never do that. When he left I had my future with Mamoru, so there is no reason for him to come back to me. He pursued me the entire time that we were together, but I stubbornly ignored my feelings for him and focused on Mamoru and my 'destiny'. I owe it to him and myself to find him." She laughed as the tears started coming down her cheeks. " Who knows? He might tell me to piss off or I might not even find him, but I have to try. I love him Ames. I love him more than anything. "
Ami looked into Usagi's crystal eyes and felt herself starting to cry herself. The raw emotion in Usagi made her own heart ache in sympathy. She realized that Usagi had thought about going after Seiya for a long time, but just made up her mind after last night's dream. Ami took a deep breath and drew Usagi into a fierce hug as she whispered in her ear; " Go Usagi, and don't look back. Whatever happens from this is better than the unknown, right? "
Usagi collapsed into Ami as she started crying harder, but her voice was full of joy. "Thanks Ames, I just need to her you say that I was doing the right thing."
~Virgo15~
************************************************************************
Usagi gasped as she sat up quickly. The pale moonlight painted her room in muted blues and purples, while a soft night breeze rippled the curtains of her window. She pressed the palm of her hand to her chest as if to will her heart to slow. Her breath came in shallow gulps as she swung her legs over the side of her bed. Resting, she waited until her breathing and heart rate returned to normal. She smiled to herself at the effect a dream had on her.
" That was the second one this week…but much more strong…vivid. I could almost feel his hand. " She thought as she closed her eyes, remembering the dream.
For a brief moment she almost thought that she could smell the salt air again, until the angry noises of the city street below interrupted her. She lifted herself off the bed and crossed the room to her balcony. She slid open the door, and stepped to the cool pavement. She looked at the sky, wishing she could see the stars in the city, but only a faint light penetrated the city's glow. She leaned against the railing, allowing the comforting sounds of the nightlife calm her mind. She thought about Seiya and wondered what he was doing now. It had been a long five years since Galaxia's defeat. The dreams about him started slowly at first, one or two a month, but then nothing for a few months. Recently however the dreams started coming more often, and were longer and more intense. They were all different except for one thing; Seiya coming back for her. She looked at the sky again and wondered what it meant. Slowly a gnawing thought at the back of her mind came to the forefront. She turned the thought over in her mind like a puzzle, and wondered if the idea wasn't so crazy anymore. She shook the thought out of her mind as she went back inside. Usagi decided to call Ami the next day in order to work it all out.
Ami Mizuno hurried across the road in front of Usagi's apartment block, her heels clicking on the pavement and the tiles of the lobby. She was a little surprised at the call she received this morning.
" Ami I really need to see you."
" Can't wait to see the movie on Friday huh?" Ami laughed.
" No it's not that" Usagi replied with a smile in her voice, " I just need you to listen to me for a while. Do you think you can drop by today?"
Ami paused before replying, Usagi's tone was light but she could sense that she was preoccupied with something serious.
" My hospital rotation is done at 2 this afternoon, I can drop by after. " Ami was quiet for a moment, " Usagi is everything OK?"
There was a slight hesitation before Usagi answered. " Everything's fine Ami, I just need so sort some things out. I'm really glad you're coming. I'll see you later OK?"
"OK Usagi."
Ami pressed the button for the elevator and thought again about Usagi. The five-sailor senshi had gone their different ways after the Sailor Wars ended, but the bond they shared could not truly separate them. She had seen Usagi the most in the last five years only because she has stayed behind in Tokyo to attend the University with Usagi. Her hospital residency took up much of her time, but she still managed to meet Usagi for a movie or dinner off and on. Ami realized suddenly how independent Usagi had become. She had finished her University education and excelled in politics and languages. She found a job at the Japanese Embassy in Tokyo soon after graduation and had risen to be the lead attaché for the Ambassador. Her job took her all over the world, rubbing shoulders with the political elite. She jokingly said it was sometimes "boring as hell" but also and said that it was good preparation for her eventual role as the Queen of Crystal Tokyo. Usagi had a quick mind and razor wit and often had the girls breathless with laughter at quirky stories about political life.
The soft ring of the elevator doors opening brought Ami out of her reverie. She walked down the hallway and knocked twice on Usagi's door. A soft voice beckoned her inside and she let herself in. Usagi's spacious apartment was always a comfortable place to Ami, and sometimes more than a little messy. She glanced at a nearby bureau cluttered with pictures, and something caught her eye. She reached down and picked up a picture in a heavy silver frame. It was a picture of the Three Lights with the inner senshi and Usagi during their time together at school. She felt a slight tug as she looked at Taiki, but it was Seiya that drew her attention. The self-confident smirk and sparking eyes wrought havoc on many a teenaged girl, not to mention the Inner Senshi. With a soft sigh she placed the picture back and walked to the kitchen.
Usagi was seated at the table, her hands encircling a coffee mug. Her long legs were crossed as she sat deep in thought. Ami almost didn't know what to say, but Usagi looked up quickly with a bright smile on her face. She leapt up and grabbed Ami in a big hug, taking the smaller girl's breath away.
"Usagi! What's gotten into you?"
Usagi let her go, and stood back at arms length. " Nothing Ames, I'm just really glad to see you." She said with absolute sincerity.
Ami smiled as Usagi sat back at the table. "Help yourself to anything to the fridge."
Ami grabbed a bottle of water and kicked off her shoes. She sat across from Usagi and searched her face for any clues, but Usagi looked perfectly at ease. She waited a minute, but couldn't stand it anymore.
"What is the matter Usagi? I know something is on your mind."
Usagi drew serious. She played with the coffee mug in her hands before replying.
" I dreamt about him again."
Ami looked deeply into Usagi's eyes as she spoke. She didn't know how to decipher that comment. " Seiya? Again?"
Usagi frowned, " It was different this time Ames, it was so real. I could smell, touch and almost taste everything. I know this means something. I can feel it in my soul. Something is calling me to him, drawing me to him. There hasn't been a day in the last five years that I haven't thought of him."
Ami looked at Usagi's unwavering face and reached her hand across the table to clasp her hand. " Was he the reason that you and Mamoru parted Usagi? Tell me honestly."
Usagi thought for a minute before replying. " Honestly Ames? I can't say no but I can't say yes either. He was definitely the catalyst for the realization that I couldn't live my life based on what had happened in the past, not alone over a thousand years ago. I loved Mamoru, I truly did. However as I grew up, I realized that if I was going to rule Crystal Tokyo for thousands of years I had to do it on my terms, and mine only. Once I let Mamoru go I felt like I could do almost anything, and I have."
Ami smiled. Usagi was speaking the truth, she had turned her life around herself and in doing so had become a very strong person. She was someone that Ami would be happy to follow, out of both respect and love.
Usagi rose from the table and walked to the window. She looked at the cerulean sky before turning back to Ami. Once she did Ami could see tears pricking the corners of her eyes.
" I just can't do it anymore alone Ames, I'm going to find him."
Ami was shocked. "Usagi are you sure?"
Usagi walked over and kneeled in front of Ami and clasped her hands in hers. " Ami I have to know. I have to know if is alive, and if he still loves me. In all my dreams Seiya comes to me, but I know that he will never do that. When he left I had my future with Mamoru, so there is no reason for him to come back to me. He pursued me the entire time that we were together, but I stubbornly ignored my feelings for him and focused on Mamoru and my 'destiny'. I owe it to him and myself to find him." She laughed as the tears started coming down her cheeks. " Who knows? He might tell me to piss off or I might not even find him, but I have to try. I love him Ames. I love him more than anything. "
Ami looked into Usagi's crystal eyes and felt herself starting to cry herself. The raw emotion in Usagi made her own heart ache in sympathy. She realized that Usagi had thought about going after Seiya for a long time, but just made up her mind after last night's dream. Ami took a deep breath and drew Usagi into a fierce hug as she whispered in her ear; " Go Usagi, and don't look back. Whatever happens from this is better than the unknown, right? "
Usagi collapsed into Ami as she started crying harder, but her voice was full of joy. "Thanks Ames, I just need to her you say that I was doing the right thing."