~*~*~*~
Michiru just stared at the older student in shock. She wasn't sure if she had heard him right through all the noise being generated by the news crew. "Excuse me. did you just say that someone died?"
The male student snorted with a quick rolling of his eyes. "What're you, dense? That's what I just said. Someone kicked the bucket during class today. She just fell dead. No one knows why."
Michiru looked to Haruka in fright. THAT was why the ambulance had come during their first class. No one had attacked. yet it was still odd that someone would just drop dead just like that. Neither of two knew how to explain the event, nor did they really care to. They backed away from the chaotic crowd and slowly began making their way to the coffee shop.
~*~*~
The rest of the day was relatively uneventful for the duo. They attended their other classes, keeping mostly to themselves. They hadn't really ever been ones to be really open with others. The older they grew, the more loner-like they had become without meaning to. They just became less and less dependent of others. It seemed as though the only other person they really hung out with was Mamoru, and occasionally the four Americans that were training under Yamcha, but even they had begun keeping to themselves.
~*~*~
Not only was this day the first day for college, but the first day of eighth grade for Usagi and her friends as well. Nothing nearly as interesting as what happened at Mugen School had happened to the girls on their first day. It was just another normal first day for them. There was no strange loner-kid who seemed extra interested in earth. No one wanted to see Usagi's broach, which she still wore on the front of her uniform. Things were finally getting back to normal for the protectors of Earth.
The last bell of the school day filled the building with noise, but only for a moment. It was followed by the its students shifting around the room to gather their things. It wasn't long before the halls filled with laughter.
Usagi and the rest of the girls were one of the last groups out of their classroom, for once. Their faces were long and disappointed as they slowly eased their way out into the hall. None of them said a word until they reached the stairway, which led to the first floor. Usagi, being the most bummed out, leaned against the wall and dropped her bag with a sigh. "What's the world coming to anyway?"
Makoto sat down on the top stair and rested her head in her palms and her elbows on her knees. "No kidding. Things sure do change when you reach the eighth grade."
Minako joined her friend on the stair, placing her bag on the step below. "And we thought we had it bad before. This is horrible."
Sighing, Rei looked down at her feet. She never thought she'd see this day. this horrible day. "It's just not fair. First we have to come back to school and now this."
Ami playfully frowned at her friends. She didn't find their situation all that horrible. "Come on you guys. It isn't that bad."
The other four slowly turned their attention onto Ami, looking at her as if she were an idiot. She was talking crazy now. How could she not think THIS of all things wasn't bad? Minako took the liberty of replying first since no one else seemed to want to. "How can you say that? Homework on the FIRST day back?! That's ludicrous!"
Usagi stood away from the wall with a nod. "Yeah. Now I have to go home and get it done before I can do anything else. This totally sucks!"
Makoto curiously looked straight up at Usagi. "I thought you didn't have to be home until later."
Everyone had expected Usagi to be upset when she gave her answer, but strangely enough, she seemed somewhat cheery. She grinned as she gave her answer. "Nope. Not anymore. With age comes benefits. Mom said that now that I'm a thirteen I can have a later curfew. but only if I get my homework done first."
Rei smiled wide. Her grandfather had also begun to give her a later curfew as well now that she had become a teenager. "That's great. So what's the deal?"
Usagi grin turned into a smile. She could remember exactly what her mother had told her. "I have to come right home when I have homework and do it. If I'm done in time before dinner's done, then I can go out again, but I have to be back for dinner. If I finish too close to dinner I have to stay home and eat. but then I can go back out again afterwards, until. get this. NINE O'CLOCK! But only as long as mom knows where I am, otherwise she'll worry. But hey, it's a lot better than what I was getting before!"
Makoto smiled. "Wow, that's a big step for your mom. She's letting you go back out after dinner, and until nine no less."
Usagi smiled even wider. "Yep. And I don't even have to go to bed until ten! I'm so happy! I didn't even have to ask her for any of this either. Neither did dad! She just came up with it on her own about a week ago! Isn't that SO cool!? My mom is so cool!"
None of the girls ever thought they would hear those words come out of Usagi's mouth in one sentence. Usagi had always hated the rules her mother had put on her, but now it had all paid off. She was older now, and therefore deserved more freedom, which is exactly what she had gotten.
Usagi bent down and picked up her bag. "I'll see you guys later!" With that, she raced down the stairs, completely disregarding the 'no running in the halls' rule.
Minako stood up and brushed her skirt off. "Chi-Chi's really changing."
Makoto stood up next. "That's not a bad thing. That woman really did need to lighten up."
Ami grabbed Minako's bag and handed it to her friend. "She was only worried about her. My mother was the same way. she still is a little. But she isn't nearly as stubborn as Chi-Chi. That's why she's worse than my mom."
Makoto grabbed her own bag and started down the stairs before her friends. "I have to get home for a little bit too. My parents wanted to tell me something but there wasn't time this morning. I'll try to catch up with you all later."
The three remaining friends waved goodbye. Rei turned to Minako and Ami with a grin. "So there's only the three of us."
Minako grinned wide as an idea started brewing in her head. "Anyone wanna go to the arcade with me?!" She happily chirped.
Rei laughed as she wrapped her arm around the blonde's shoulder. "Sure. We can have a race tournament or something."
Ami shook her head with a playful smile. "Count me out. Whenever any of you people get together for a innocent race tournament you always end up making it a war. I don't particularly wish to be a part of it this time. However I WILL watch. I always love to be entertained by my friends' antics."
Rei and Minako exchanged looks with each other, quickly turning back to Ami. Rei patted the blue haired on the back with a sigh. "Thanks for making us sound like monkeys. We sure do appreciate it."
Ami giggled. "Come on you guys. You know exactly what I mean."
Minako smirked. "Do we? Do we really?"
"Come on you two monkeys, let's get down the arcade. Mamoru should be working the shift now. He told me that he's going to work a little bit instead of going straight to college last time I saw him."
Minako stared blankly at Ami as the three made their way down the stairs. "What? Mamoru. working?! That's impossible! He's got no work ethic. The man is a bum."
~*~*~
Usagi still couldn't believe that she had gotten homework on the first day of school. The first day had always been laid back in the past, why change it? Sure she was getting older and the work was more involved than before, but was that really a reason to get an early start? Just the day before she had been on vacation, and now she was jumping right into things without being eased in first. At least she had a couple of the teachers this year that she had had the year before, they had been easy. But all the other four assigned work to be ready and turned in by the next day.
She raced home as fast as she could so she would be able to finish her work as fast as possible. The faster it was done, the more time she got to hang out with her friends. Once home, she dashed in the front door, allowing it to slam shut on its own. It had taken her twenty minutes to get home, twenty valuable minutes she could have been spending with her friends had her teachers not given her homework. "Mom, I'm home!" She called out to let her mother know she was there. She slipped her shoes off and walked by the kitchen, which was empty. She proceeded into the hall and then on into the living room where she found her mother sitting alone, reading a magazine. "Hi, mom." She said happily.
Chi-Chi hadn't expected her daughter home so soon on this day. She didn't think that she would have had any homework on the first day. "Hi, dear. Aren't you going to hang out with the girls today?"
Usagi frowned as she slid her book bag off of her back and set it next to the chair her mother was in. "I would, but I have to uphold my end of our deal, right?"
Chi-Chi sympathized with her daughter's obvious disappointment. She put her finger on the page she was reading and carefully closed her magazine so as to not lose her place. "Homework on the first day? Really?"
Usagi nodded with a frown. "It totally sucks! But I know I told you I'd come home and do my homework before I do anything else from now on so I can have the entire night to have fun. So I came home!" She happily replied.
Chi-Chi smiled at her daughter as she picked up her magazine and re-opened to her page. "Good girl, Usagi. You're growing up to be very responsible young lady. If you prove to me now that you can uphold this deal, I may be apt to change it in the future."
Usagi smiled wide. She loved hearing comments from her mother like that. It was a lot better than being reprimanded for being irresponsible. She was beginning to understand her mother more and more. You give the woman what she wants and she begins to give you what you want. It was perfect. If only she had figured this out when she was younger. She could have gotten away with a lot more than she had. "Well, I gotta go do my homework. and then I'm off. But don't worry, I'll be back in time for dinner!" And with that, she grabbed her bag and made a run for it into her room.
~*~*~
While Usagi raced home, Makoto took her sweet time getting to hers. She had no idea what her parents wanted to discuss with her, nor did she really wish to. Whenever they both tried to talk to her it was usually bad. They probably had a reason to discipline her, and her father was probably the one to be behind the entire idea of doing so. Nevertheless, she couldn't put them off forever. She would have to see them sooner or later. She didn't even bother stalling when she got to her house. She just went straight in and tried to act as casual as possible. She didn't want to let on that she knew she was going to be punished for something. That would only make her look weak, and knowing her father, he would probably take that as another opportunity to yell at her, which would lead to her mother yelling at him, and he would yell back, which would induce yet another argument between the two adults; something Makoto definitely didn't want to see again.
Sighing to herself, she walked to the front door and reached out for the knob. This was it, she would finally find out exactly what they wanted to speak with her about. Taking a deep breath, she turned the knob and firmly pushed in. "Mom? Dad?" She called out as she tossed her shoes off of her feet. She dropped her bag next to the door and stepped up into the house. "Mom?" She called out a second time.
"In the dinning room, dear." Her mother called back.
Makoto slowly walked through the kitchen and into the dinning room to see her parents both sitting at the table with smiles on their face. She was caught a little off guard at the sight. Her father never smiled, at least, not at her. He had always resented her for being a 'weak little girl'. But this was different. The last time she could remember him smiling like that was the first time she had won a karate tournament when she had just turned five years old, before she had even met Usagi and Minako that day in the park. It had been the last tournament she had ever entered under the training of her father. She was completely speechless as she stared at them.
Mrs. Kino patted the chair next to her as she continued to smile warmly at her daughter. "Come dear, sit with us. We have something we'd like to tell you."
Makoto was a little weirded out by her parents' behavior. She had never seen any parent act like this before, not even Minako's, and they were the most in-love parents she had ever met. "Alright." She said calmly and quietly. She walked to the chair next to her mother and sat down, careful not to stare at her father too much for fear that he may become angry with her. Instead, she looked at her mother. She didn't need to ask anything, her eyes did all the talking for her.
"Makoto, honey, your father and I have been growing apart over the past few years and."
Makoto's eyes widened to their fullest. She had heard so many conversations start like this and end in divorce. She had never even imagined her parents splitting up. Even though she didn't really care for her father all that much, she still couldn't ever wish a divorce on him. "You're getting a divorce?!" She cried out, not wanting her mother to say it.
Mrs. Kino turned around to her husband wanting to burst out in laughter, but she didn't. She just looked at him with a crooked smile and turned back to her daughter. "No, no. It's nothing like that. We've just decided that we need to get to know each other a little more, that's all. But that means we're going to have to take time off of work to do it. Now, we've planned a little trip for ourselves for a couple of months."
"Without you." Mr. Kino finished with ease. He stared at his daughter, who glared back at him. He didn't exactly hate his daughter, but he didn't completely like her either. And it wasn't because of something she had ever done to him. He had been raised with the mentality that the first child of any man should be a boy, but he had Makoto, a girl, something he had never really been forgiven for within his family. And for that, he had never really learned to appreciate her.
Makoto decided to ignore her father's rude comments. She didn't care what he had to say any other time, why care now? "What about me?"
Mrs. Kino grabbed her daughter's hands and brought them into her lap. "You know I hate to leave you here like this while we go have fun, but we need some alone time. You understand, right?"
Makoto looked down at her knees. She wasn't sure if she understood. She had a feeling this had to do with her. Her parents had grown apart because of her. Her father had always been down on her for doing things wrong and being weak and it had always been her mother to defend her. Now they needed to be 'alone'? To do what? "I guess." She lied just so she wouldn't hurt her mother's feelings. "But where am I supposed to stay?"
Mrs. Kino smiled as she dropped her daughter's hands. "I knew you would understand. You're such a good girl. You always have been." She stood up, her smile widening. "Why don't you ask some of your friends if you can stay with them for a while?"
Mr. Kino intervened here. He had never really been too fond of his daughter's friends either. "I don't want you staying with that tailed girl. Her family's weird."
Makoto frowned. He barely knew Usagi, and he knew her family even less. "What are you talking about? Usagi's normal and so is her family."
Mr. Kino slammed his fist onto table. "Don't contradict me, Makoto! You're not staying with her. You're not staying with that blue headed girl either. She's too weak. No daughter of mine will spend any extended time with someone like her!"
Mrs. Kino slapped her husband in the back of his head. "Stop it! Ami is a very nice girl! She and Makoto spend an extensive amount of time together!"
Makoto nodded with a glaring frown. "She's not weak! She's been trained by Goku! The same person I trained under!"
Mr. Kino slammed both fists into the table this time. "I said don't contradict me, girl! I mean it! The other blonde is too ditzy!"
Makoto couldn't believe what she was hearing. For seven and a half years she had known Usagi and Minako. She had known Ami for five and a half. Her father had always ignored her friends, never saying anything. And NOW he just starts brining up supposed faults in them. She wasn't going to stand for it, but what could she do? He was her father and there was nothing she could do about it. She would have to live with him until she was eighteen and ready to move out of the house. Then she could back-talk him anytime she pleased without worrying about having to face him again. "That only leaves Rei."
Mr. Kino chuckled. "You mean that brunette?" Makoto said nothing. She was waiting for him to find a fault with her too. "I guess I wouldn't care if you stayed with her. She's the only normal person you hang out with."
Makoto wanted so badly to lash out at her father, but she knew she couldn't. Maybe this trip would change him a bit. Maybe he would be more refreshed and willing to accept her when he returned. "Fine. I'll ask her when I see her. Can I go now?" She asked, her teeth clenched.
Mr. Kino waved her off. "Go." Makoto angrily stood up, causing the seat to fly out from behind her. Mr. Kino growled at his daughter. "Watch that attitude, young lady!" Makoto ignored her father and stormed out the door. She didn't even bother with saying goodbye to her mother.
~*~*~
~~Crown Arcade~~
Usagi and Mamoru hadn't really done anything all that big with the Crown Arcade like they originally had planned when they bought it after winning the bet with Piccolo and Vejita. They had never really gotten the time. They were either busy fighting off new threats, or going to school. They just kept it the same as when they had bought it, which was actually how they liked it. It would have been too strange to change it.
Minako burst through the doors at a quarter to four. She, Rei, and Ami had stopped along the way for the ice-cream and had been sidetracked by a group of high school guys, whom Minako just HAD to gawk at. They had become her new hobby over the past year. "Hi guys!" She yelled out as she entered the arcade. She wasn't surprised to see Mamoru behind the counter, yet she was surprised to see Motoki standing in front of it. That was a sight she never in her life imagined she would see. Motoki was back. After his parents sold the arcade, he had decided not to continue working in it. He didn't like the idea of working under someone else, even if it had been one of his best friends, Mamoru. "Hey, Motoki! Long time no see!" She shouted.
Rei and Ami walked in from behind and froze when they saw Motoki. "Motoki! You're back!" They cried out in unison.
Motoki turned to the girls. His eyes nearly jumped out of his socket when he saw them. "Oh my god! Look at you guys! You've grown so much!" He stepped away from the counter and walked to stand next to the three girls whom he had known since they were just little fourth graders. "You guys aren't little pipsqueaks anymore. You're big pipsqueaks."
Mamoru chuckled. "No. Odango's still a little pipsqueak."
Motoki laughed at his friend's comment. As he recalled, Usagi always had been a bit smaller than the rest of the gang, but he was sure she had grown quite a bit too. for a Saiyan. "I haven't seen you in so long."
Minako giggled. "Neither have we. But I see you've grown into quite a hunk."
Rei grabbed Minako from behind and covered her mouth. "She's a little boy- crazy at the moment. You'll have to excuse her."
Motoki chuckled. "Well, it was bound to happen sooner or later."
Mamoru came out from behind the counter with a smile. "Guess what guys? I'm giving Motoki my half of the arcade."
"WHAT?!" The three yelled at once. They all knew how Mamoru had loved being in charge of something, it gave him a sense of purpose.
Minako; "You just GAVE it away to him? You didn't make him buy it or anything?" Mamoru crossed his arms and shook his head. Minako couldn't believe it. Mamoru had openly given something to someone without being an ass about it. "Mamoru. that's so. unlike you."
Mamoru frowned. "He's my friend. I knew how crushed he was when his parents sold the place to us. I figure it's the only thing I can give back to the guy for letting me fun with it for a while. But I'm not a kid anymore. I should start thinking about college, and getting married, you know?"
Rei grinned. "Wow, Mamoru. Moving fast, aren't we? I think you actually have to have a heart to get married. Love IS a prerequisite."
Mamoru rolled his eyes. "Very funny, KIDS. You don't know me nearly as well as you think you do. I have feelings, I just don't show you any because little kids like you don't need any love."
Minako growled. "We're not little kids. We're teenagers now!" She stuck her tongue out and crossed her arms to pout.
Motoki laughed. "Very graceful, Minako." Minako turned her face around as she blushed. Maybe she was still a kid at heart. "So where's my business partner?"
Ami; "At home, doing her homework."
Mamoru walked to the door. "That's good to know. I need to tell her about the new situation. She and Motoki are running this place together now, not that she even tried doing anything with it. She was always too busy." He pushed the door open, only to be stopped by a firm hand on his arm. He turned around to see Motoki staring at him. "Yeah?"
"Thanks for keeping this place alive while I was gone. And thanks for giving it back."
Mamoru smiled. "No prob., anything for a friend. Just make sure YOU keep it alive now. I'll see ya around."
Motoki nodded. "Yeah, see ya." He let go of Mamoru and turned back to the girls. "Alright! Let's get this show on the road!" He rubbed his hands together with excitement. Finally, he was back where he belonged. He had practically grown up here. Nothing could keep him away now.
Minako waddled to the snack bar and sat on one of the stools. "We sure did miss you while you were gone, Motoki. It wasn't the same without you here, running everything."
Ami sat next to her friend and rested her arms on the counter. "Yeah. It always seemed like it was missing."
Motoki leaned on the other side of the counter and stared into his little friends' eyes. "Well don't worry cause I'm back and I'm NOT going anywhere anytime soon. Mamoru may not be satisfied here, but I sure am. I missed this place so much." He said, looking up into the eaves of the ceiling.
Rei stood next to Minako. "I just can't believe Mamoru gave you his half without expecting pay."
Motoki grabbed a wet rag and began wiping up the counter. "You guys are too hard on the guy. He's not really all that bad once you get to know him. He's a pretty good guy."
Minako frowned. "You weren't picked on by him for the past seven years! You weren't beaten up over and over by his friends like Usagi was. I was even beaten up a few times by them. It wasn't fun at all."
"How is Usagi anyway? She still got troubles with people picking on her?"
Rei; "Not really. People have grown past that, thank god. They used to give her such a hard time. It was so horrible. I think she's gotten over it too."
"That's good. Kids were giving her such a hard time for a while there."
~*~*~
Mamoru went straight to Usagi's after leaving the Arcade. He didn't want to wait too long to tell her of the change in ownership of the Arcade. What he said had been true. He WAS older, and he DID need to think about going to college, but first he wanted to live a little. He was finally getting ready to move into his own apartment, where he dad couldn't control him. His financial system was great, even after buying the Arcade with Usagi. He wouldn't have to worry about begging his father for money. Now all that was left to do would be living life as his own person, learning a bit about himself and the rest of the world before he really had to settle down and go back to school.
Landing not too far from the Son house, he noticed that Goku and Krillin had just arrived as well. Those two had really been going at it with one another ever since the incident with Tatsuo. And even though Goku was the better fighter and would always be able to pound Krillin at any time he wanted, he would always hold back. That was a concept he had never really understood. His father had never held back on him, and he had never held back on his victims, especially Usagi.
Goku was just about to enter his home with his best friend when he noticed someone approaching. He wasn't alarmed though. He could sense that it was only Mamoru. "What brings you here?" He asked sarcastically as if he expected for the boy never to show up of his free will. Even though he and Usagi had sort of patched things up, he didn't care one bit for the man. He still saw Mamoru as the kid who ruthlessly beat up his little girl, and that's how it would always be. Whenever he saw them together he always watched closely to make sure he wasn't giving Usagi a hard time. He knew Usagi wouldn't stand up for it, but being her father, he wanted to know if she was being harassed.
Mamoru knew the feelings Goku held for him. He had a perfectly good reason to. He had always been horrible Usagi in the past, something that a father wouldn't easily let go. "I need to talk to Usagi about the arcade, is she home."
Goku grinned as he glanced down at Krillin. "Can't you feel her inside?" He asked again, just as equally sarcastically as had before.
Mamoru ignored the sarcastic remark and stepped forward, only to be met by a stern father blocking the door and smiling down at him. "May I see her?"
Goku grinned even wider as he stepped to the side. "Go right ahead, young man." He answered. He turned around and opened the door, rudely taking the first step inside and allowing Krillin in second.
Mamoru knew Goku was only trying to get at him, which was exactly why he didn't show any anger. "Thanks." He said under his breath. He proceeded through the family room and down the hall into the living room, where he saw Chi-Chi standing up to go fix dinner. "Hi, Chi-Chi."
Chi-Chi smiled at the young man. She wasn't too fond of him either, but she still tried to put on a happy face. She had been trying so hard not to be such a sourpuss anymore, and it was finally paying off. "Are you here for Usagi?" Mamoru nodded. "You can talk to her when she finishes her homework. Go ahead and poke your head in there, but if she's not done then don't bother her."
Mamoru nodded with the full intention of respecting the woman's requests. He knew better than to mess with Usagi's schooling when Chi-Chi was around. No matter how reformed she would ever get she was still a maniac when it came to messing with her child's education. "Ok." He took notice that Goku and Krillin were coming into the room just as he turned to enter Usagi's bedroom.
Chi-Chi looked at Krillin, and then her husband with a stern frown. "We're feeding another person tonight?"
Goku gulped as he looked into his wife's eyes. He knew better than to bring people over without telling his wife first. He knew how angry she became when she wasn't told of these things. "Well.?"
Chi-Chi sighed. "You're lucky I didn't start dinner yet."
~*~*~
~~Usagi's Room~~
Mamoru quietly entered Usagi's room, hoping not to disturb her. But it didn't do much good. Usagi could hear anything that walked through that door. "Who is it?" She called out, not sensing his power signature to find out who it was. She was hunched over her desk, finishing the last of her math homework up.
Mamoru closed the door behind him and leaned against it. "Got a minute?"
Usagi threw her pencil down and quickly turned around in her chair, surprised to hear his voice in HER room. "Mamoru! What are you doing here? I didn't tell you to come over?"
Mamoru frowned as he crossed his arms. "Well gee. I guess I'll just be leaving if I can't be here without the princess' permission."
Usagi frowned back. She absolutely hated it when he called her that. She didn't want to be reminded that she was the princess. That wasn't who she really was inside. "Why do you have to be so rude all the time?"
"Me? You're the one who can't even welcome a guest right!"
Usagi stood up from her chair, becoming angry. "You're the one who came here, uninvited! I don't have to welcome anybody! Now if you have something to say to me, say it! Either that or leave!"
Mamoru growled as he glared at the girl. He couldn't believe she had gotten so upset over nothing. "I just wanted to tell you I gave my half of the arcade to Motoki! You don't have to have a cow. God, I'll leave now!" He turned around to the door and prepared to leave.
Usagi's frown slightly faded at the news. "What? Motoki's back?." She paused to think harder about what he had just said. "Wait a minute. you GAVE him your half? You loved owning an arcade."
Mamoru turned back around to Usagi with a nod. "I DID love owning it. But I'm not a kid anymore. I need to move on. But don't worry, Motoki knows what he's doing."
Usagi smirked as she crossed her arms and leaned into her desk. "It's ok as long as Motoki's going to be running it. I never have anytime to do anything with it. School and mom always keep me busy. I WAS going to give it to you, but then I wouldn't get free games."
Mamoru grinned. "Got that right. There's no way I'd ever give YOU anything free. You want it, you pay. It's a good thing Motoki isn't like that. Because I gave him my part of the arcade, I don't have to pay for any future games I want to play." He turned back to the door, pausing just before opening. "I gotta go. I have an for an apartment." With that, he pushed the door open and left the girl's room.
Michiru just stared at the older student in shock. She wasn't sure if she had heard him right through all the noise being generated by the news crew. "Excuse me. did you just say that someone died?"
The male student snorted with a quick rolling of his eyes. "What're you, dense? That's what I just said. Someone kicked the bucket during class today. She just fell dead. No one knows why."
Michiru looked to Haruka in fright. THAT was why the ambulance had come during their first class. No one had attacked. yet it was still odd that someone would just drop dead just like that. Neither of two knew how to explain the event, nor did they really care to. They backed away from the chaotic crowd and slowly began making their way to the coffee shop.
~*~*~
The rest of the day was relatively uneventful for the duo. They attended their other classes, keeping mostly to themselves. They hadn't really ever been ones to be really open with others. The older they grew, the more loner-like they had become without meaning to. They just became less and less dependent of others. It seemed as though the only other person they really hung out with was Mamoru, and occasionally the four Americans that were training under Yamcha, but even they had begun keeping to themselves.
~*~*~
Not only was this day the first day for college, but the first day of eighth grade for Usagi and her friends as well. Nothing nearly as interesting as what happened at Mugen School had happened to the girls on their first day. It was just another normal first day for them. There was no strange loner-kid who seemed extra interested in earth. No one wanted to see Usagi's broach, which she still wore on the front of her uniform. Things were finally getting back to normal for the protectors of Earth.
The last bell of the school day filled the building with noise, but only for a moment. It was followed by the its students shifting around the room to gather their things. It wasn't long before the halls filled with laughter.
Usagi and the rest of the girls were one of the last groups out of their classroom, for once. Their faces were long and disappointed as they slowly eased their way out into the hall. None of them said a word until they reached the stairway, which led to the first floor. Usagi, being the most bummed out, leaned against the wall and dropped her bag with a sigh. "What's the world coming to anyway?"
Makoto sat down on the top stair and rested her head in her palms and her elbows on her knees. "No kidding. Things sure do change when you reach the eighth grade."
Minako joined her friend on the stair, placing her bag on the step below. "And we thought we had it bad before. This is horrible."
Sighing, Rei looked down at her feet. She never thought she'd see this day. this horrible day. "It's just not fair. First we have to come back to school and now this."
Ami playfully frowned at her friends. She didn't find their situation all that horrible. "Come on you guys. It isn't that bad."
The other four slowly turned their attention onto Ami, looking at her as if she were an idiot. She was talking crazy now. How could she not think THIS of all things wasn't bad? Minako took the liberty of replying first since no one else seemed to want to. "How can you say that? Homework on the FIRST day back?! That's ludicrous!"
Usagi stood away from the wall with a nod. "Yeah. Now I have to go home and get it done before I can do anything else. This totally sucks!"
Makoto curiously looked straight up at Usagi. "I thought you didn't have to be home until later."
Everyone had expected Usagi to be upset when she gave her answer, but strangely enough, she seemed somewhat cheery. She grinned as she gave her answer. "Nope. Not anymore. With age comes benefits. Mom said that now that I'm a thirteen I can have a later curfew. but only if I get my homework done first."
Rei smiled wide. Her grandfather had also begun to give her a later curfew as well now that she had become a teenager. "That's great. So what's the deal?"
Usagi grin turned into a smile. She could remember exactly what her mother had told her. "I have to come right home when I have homework and do it. If I'm done in time before dinner's done, then I can go out again, but I have to be back for dinner. If I finish too close to dinner I have to stay home and eat. but then I can go back out again afterwards, until. get this. NINE O'CLOCK! But only as long as mom knows where I am, otherwise she'll worry. But hey, it's a lot better than what I was getting before!"
Makoto smiled. "Wow, that's a big step for your mom. She's letting you go back out after dinner, and until nine no less."
Usagi smiled even wider. "Yep. And I don't even have to go to bed until ten! I'm so happy! I didn't even have to ask her for any of this either. Neither did dad! She just came up with it on her own about a week ago! Isn't that SO cool!? My mom is so cool!"
None of the girls ever thought they would hear those words come out of Usagi's mouth in one sentence. Usagi had always hated the rules her mother had put on her, but now it had all paid off. She was older now, and therefore deserved more freedom, which is exactly what she had gotten.
Usagi bent down and picked up her bag. "I'll see you guys later!" With that, she raced down the stairs, completely disregarding the 'no running in the halls' rule.
Minako stood up and brushed her skirt off. "Chi-Chi's really changing."
Makoto stood up next. "That's not a bad thing. That woman really did need to lighten up."
Ami grabbed Minako's bag and handed it to her friend. "She was only worried about her. My mother was the same way. she still is a little. But she isn't nearly as stubborn as Chi-Chi. That's why she's worse than my mom."
Makoto grabbed her own bag and started down the stairs before her friends. "I have to get home for a little bit too. My parents wanted to tell me something but there wasn't time this morning. I'll try to catch up with you all later."
The three remaining friends waved goodbye. Rei turned to Minako and Ami with a grin. "So there's only the three of us."
Minako grinned wide as an idea started brewing in her head. "Anyone wanna go to the arcade with me?!" She happily chirped.
Rei laughed as she wrapped her arm around the blonde's shoulder. "Sure. We can have a race tournament or something."
Ami shook her head with a playful smile. "Count me out. Whenever any of you people get together for a innocent race tournament you always end up making it a war. I don't particularly wish to be a part of it this time. However I WILL watch. I always love to be entertained by my friends' antics."
Rei and Minako exchanged looks with each other, quickly turning back to Ami. Rei patted the blue haired on the back with a sigh. "Thanks for making us sound like monkeys. We sure do appreciate it."
Ami giggled. "Come on you guys. You know exactly what I mean."
Minako smirked. "Do we? Do we really?"
"Come on you two monkeys, let's get down the arcade. Mamoru should be working the shift now. He told me that he's going to work a little bit instead of going straight to college last time I saw him."
Minako stared blankly at Ami as the three made their way down the stairs. "What? Mamoru. working?! That's impossible! He's got no work ethic. The man is a bum."
~*~*~
Usagi still couldn't believe that she had gotten homework on the first day of school. The first day had always been laid back in the past, why change it? Sure she was getting older and the work was more involved than before, but was that really a reason to get an early start? Just the day before she had been on vacation, and now she was jumping right into things without being eased in first. At least she had a couple of the teachers this year that she had had the year before, they had been easy. But all the other four assigned work to be ready and turned in by the next day.
She raced home as fast as she could so she would be able to finish her work as fast as possible. The faster it was done, the more time she got to hang out with her friends. Once home, she dashed in the front door, allowing it to slam shut on its own. It had taken her twenty minutes to get home, twenty valuable minutes she could have been spending with her friends had her teachers not given her homework. "Mom, I'm home!" She called out to let her mother know she was there. She slipped her shoes off and walked by the kitchen, which was empty. She proceeded into the hall and then on into the living room where she found her mother sitting alone, reading a magazine. "Hi, mom." She said happily.
Chi-Chi hadn't expected her daughter home so soon on this day. She didn't think that she would have had any homework on the first day. "Hi, dear. Aren't you going to hang out with the girls today?"
Usagi frowned as she slid her book bag off of her back and set it next to the chair her mother was in. "I would, but I have to uphold my end of our deal, right?"
Chi-Chi sympathized with her daughter's obvious disappointment. She put her finger on the page she was reading and carefully closed her magazine so as to not lose her place. "Homework on the first day? Really?"
Usagi nodded with a frown. "It totally sucks! But I know I told you I'd come home and do my homework before I do anything else from now on so I can have the entire night to have fun. So I came home!" She happily replied.
Chi-Chi smiled at her daughter as she picked up her magazine and re-opened to her page. "Good girl, Usagi. You're growing up to be very responsible young lady. If you prove to me now that you can uphold this deal, I may be apt to change it in the future."
Usagi smiled wide. She loved hearing comments from her mother like that. It was a lot better than being reprimanded for being irresponsible. She was beginning to understand her mother more and more. You give the woman what she wants and she begins to give you what you want. It was perfect. If only she had figured this out when she was younger. She could have gotten away with a lot more than she had. "Well, I gotta go do my homework. and then I'm off. But don't worry, I'll be back in time for dinner!" And with that, she grabbed her bag and made a run for it into her room.
~*~*~
While Usagi raced home, Makoto took her sweet time getting to hers. She had no idea what her parents wanted to discuss with her, nor did she really wish to. Whenever they both tried to talk to her it was usually bad. They probably had a reason to discipline her, and her father was probably the one to be behind the entire idea of doing so. Nevertheless, she couldn't put them off forever. She would have to see them sooner or later. She didn't even bother stalling when she got to her house. She just went straight in and tried to act as casual as possible. She didn't want to let on that she knew she was going to be punished for something. That would only make her look weak, and knowing her father, he would probably take that as another opportunity to yell at her, which would lead to her mother yelling at him, and he would yell back, which would induce yet another argument between the two adults; something Makoto definitely didn't want to see again.
Sighing to herself, she walked to the front door and reached out for the knob. This was it, she would finally find out exactly what they wanted to speak with her about. Taking a deep breath, she turned the knob and firmly pushed in. "Mom? Dad?" She called out as she tossed her shoes off of her feet. She dropped her bag next to the door and stepped up into the house. "Mom?" She called out a second time.
"In the dinning room, dear." Her mother called back.
Makoto slowly walked through the kitchen and into the dinning room to see her parents both sitting at the table with smiles on their face. She was caught a little off guard at the sight. Her father never smiled, at least, not at her. He had always resented her for being a 'weak little girl'. But this was different. The last time she could remember him smiling like that was the first time she had won a karate tournament when she had just turned five years old, before she had even met Usagi and Minako that day in the park. It had been the last tournament she had ever entered under the training of her father. She was completely speechless as she stared at them.
Mrs. Kino patted the chair next to her as she continued to smile warmly at her daughter. "Come dear, sit with us. We have something we'd like to tell you."
Makoto was a little weirded out by her parents' behavior. She had never seen any parent act like this before, not even Minako's, and they were the most in-love parents she had ever met. "Alright." She said calmly and quietly. She walked to the chair next to her mother and sat down, careful not to stare at her father too much for fear that he may become angry with her. Instead, she looked at her mother. She didn't need to ask anything, her eyes did all the talking for her.
"Makoto, honey, your father and I have been growing apart over the past few years and."
Makoto's eyes widened to their fullest. She had heard so many conversations start like this and end in divorce. She had never even imagined her parents splitting up. Even though she didn't really care for her father all that much, she still couldn't ever wish a divorce on him. "You're getting a divorce?!" She cried out, not wanting her mother to say it.
Mrs. Kino turned around to her husband wanting to burst out in laughter, but she didn't. She just looked at him with a crooked smile and turned back to her daughter. "No, no. It's nothing like that. We've just decided that we need to get to know each other a little more, that's all. But that means we're going to have to take time off of work to do it. Now, we've planned a little trip for ourselves for a couple of months."
"Without you." Mr. Kino finished with ease. He stared at his daughter, who glared back at him. He didn't exactly hate his daughter, but he didn't completely like her either. And it wasn't because of something she had ever done to him. He had been raised with the mentality that the first child of any man should be a boy, but he had Makoto, a girl, something he had never really been forgiven for within his family. And for that, he had never really learned to appreciate her.
Makoto decided to ignore her father's rude comments. She didn't care what he had to say any other time, why care now? "What about me?"
Mrs. Kino grabbed her daughter's hands and brought them into her lap. "You know I hate to leave you here like this while we go have fun, but we need some alone time. You understand, right?"
Makoto looked down at her knees. She wasn't sure if she understood. She had a feeling this had to do with her. Her parents had grown apart because of her. Her father had always been down on her for doing things wrong and being weak and it had always been her mother to defend her. Now they needed to be 'alone'? To do what? "I guess." She lied just so she wouldn't hurt her mother's feelings. "But where am I supposed to stay?"
Mrs. Kino smiled as she dropped her daughter's hands. "I knew you would understand. You're such a good girl. You always have been." She stood up, her smile widening. "Why don't you ask some of your friends if you can stay with them for a while?"
Mr. Kino intervened here. He had never really been too fond of his daughter's friends either. "I don't want you staying with that tailed girl. Her family's weird."
Makoto frowned. He barely knew Usagi, and he knew her family even less. "What are you talking about? Usagi's normal and so is her family."
Mr. Kino slammed his fist onto table. "Don't contradict me, Makoto! You're not staying with her. You're not staying with that blue headed girl either. She's too weak. No daughter of mine will spend any extended time with someone like her!"
Mrs. Kino slapped her husband in the back of his head. "Stop it! Ami is a very nice girl! She and Makoto spend an extensive amount of time together!"
Makoto nodded with a glaring frown. "She's not weak! She's been trained by Goku! The same person I trained under!"
Mr. Kino slammed both fists into the table this time. "I said don't contradict me, girl! I mean it! The other blonde is too ditzy!"
Makoto couldn't believe what she was hearing. For seven and a half years she had known Usagi and Minako. She had known Ami for five and a half. Her father had always ignored her friends, never saying anything. And NOW he just starts brining up supposed faults in them. She wasn't going to stand for it, but what could she do? He was her father and there was nothing she could do about it. She would have to live with him until she was eighteen and ready to move out of the house. Then she could back-talk him anytime she pleased without worrying about having to face him again. "That only leaves Rei."
Mr. Kino chuckled. "You mean that brunette?" Makoto said nothing. She was waiting for him to find a fault with her too. "I guess I wouldn't care if you stayed with her. She's the only normal person you hang out with."
Makoto wanted so badly to lash out at her father, but she knew she couldn't. Maybe this trip would change him a bit. Maybe he would be more refreshed and willing to accept her when he returned. "Fine. I'll ask her when I see her. Can I go now?" She asked, her teeth clenched.
Mr. Kino waved her off. "Go." Makoto angrily stood up, causing the seat to fly out from behind her. Mr. Kino growled at his daughter. "Watch that attitude, young lady!" Makoto ignored her father and stormed out the door. She didn't even bother with saying goodbye to her mother.
~*~*~
~~Crown Arcade~~
Usagi and Mamoru hadn't really done anything all that big with the Crown Arcade like they originally had planned when they bought it after winning the bet with Piccolo and Vejita. They had never really gotten the time. They were either busy fighting off new threats, or going to school. They just kept it the same as when they had bought it, which was actually how they liked it. It would have been too strange to change it.
Minako burst through the doors at a quarter to four. She, Rei, and Ami had stopped along the way for the ice-cream and had been sidetracked by a group of high school guys, whom Minako just HAD to gawk at. They had become her new hobby over the past year. "Hi guys!" She yelled out as she entered the arcade. She wasn't surprised to see Mamoru behind the counter, yet she was surprised to see Motoki standing in front of it. That was a sight she never in her life imagined she would see. Motoki was back. After his parents sold the arcade, he had decided not to continue working in it. He didn't like the idea of working under someone else, even if it had been one of his best friends, Mamoru. "Hey, Motoki! Long time no see!" She shouted.
Rei and Ami walked in from behind and froze when they saw Motoki. "Motoki! You're back!" They cried out in unison.
Motoki turned to the girls. His eyes nearly jumped out of his socket when he saw them. "Oh my god! Look at you guys! You've grown so much!" He stepped away from the counter and walked to stand next to the three girls whom he had known since they were just little fourth graders. "You guys aren't little pipsqueaks anymore. You're big pipsqueaks."
Mamoru chuckled. "No. Odango's still a little pipsqueak."
Motoki laughed at his friend's comment. As he recalled, Usagi always had been a bit smaller than the rest of the gang, but he was sure she had grown quite a bit too. for a Saiyan. "I haven't seen you in so long."
Minako giggled. "Neither have we. But I see you've grown into quite a hunk."
Rei grabbed Minako from behind and covered her mouth. "She's a little boy- crazy at the moment. You'll have to excuse her."
Motoki chuckled. "Well, it was bound to happen sooner or later."
Mamoru came out from behind the counter with a smile. "Guess what guys? I'm giving Motoki my half of the arcade."
"WHAT?!" The three yelled at once. They all knew how Mamoru had loved being in charge of something, it gave him a sense of purpose.
Minako; "You just GAVE it away to him? You didn't make him buy it or anything?" Mamoru crossed his arms and shook his head. Minako couldn't believe it. Mamoru had openly given something to someone without being an ass about it. "Mamoru. that's so. unlike you."
Mamoru frowned. "He's my friend. I knew how crushed he was when his parents sold the place to us. I figure it's the only thing I can give back to the guy for letting me fun with it for a while. But I'm not a kid anymore. I should start thinking about college, and getting married, you know?"
Rei grinned. "Wow, Mamoru. Moving fast, aren't we? I think you actually have to have a heart to get married. Love IS a prerequisite."
Mamoru rolled his eyes. "Very funny, KIDS. You don't know me nearly as well as you think you do. I have feelings, I just don't show you any because little kids like you don't need any love."
Minako growled. "We're not little kids. We're teenagers now!" She stuck her tongue out and crossed her arms to pout.
Motoki laughed. "Very graceful, Minako." Minako turned her face around as she blushed. Maybe she was still a kid at heart. "So where's my business partner?"
Ami; "At home, doing her homework."
Mamoru walked to the door. "That's good to know. I need to tell her about the new situation. She and Motoki are running this place together now, not that she even tried doing anything with it. She was always too busy." He pushed the door open, only to be stopped by a firm hand on his arm. He turned around to see Motoki staring at him. "Yeah?"
"Thanks for keeping this place alive while I was gone. And thanks for giving it back."
Mamoru smiled. "No prob., anything for a friend. Just make sure YOU keep it alive now. I'll see ya around."
Motoki nodded. "Yeah, see ya." He let go of Mamoru and turned back to the girls. "Alright! Let's get this show on the road!" He rubbed his hands together with excitement. Finally, he was back where he belonged. He had practically grown up here. Nothing could keep him away now.
Minako waddled to the snack bar and sat on one of the stools. "We sure did miss you while you were gone, Motoki. It wasn't the same without you here, running everything."
Ami sat next to her friend and rested her arms on the counter. "Yeah. It always seemed like it was missing."
Motoki leaned on the other side of the counter and stared into his little friends' eyes. "Well don't worry cause I'm back and I'm NOT going anywhere anytime soon. Mamoru may not be satisfied here, but I sure am. I missed this place so much." He said, looking up into the eaves of the ceiling.
Rei stood next to Minako. "I just can't believe Mamoru gave you his half without expecting pay."
Motoki grabbed a wet rag and began wiping up the counter. "You guys are too hard on the guy. He's not really all that bad once you get to know him. He's a pretty good guy."
Minako frowned. "You weren't picked on by him for the past seven years! You weren't beaten up over and over by his friends like Usagi was. I was even beaten up a few times by them. It wasn't fun at all."
"How is Usagi anyway? She still got troubles with people picking on her?"
Rei; "Not really. People have grown past that, thank god. They used to give her such a hard time. It was so horrible. I think she's gotten over it too."
"That's good. Kids were giving her such a hard time for a while there."
~*~*~
Mamoru went straight to Usagi's after leaving the Arcade. He didn't want to wait too long to tell her of the change in ownership of the Arcade. What he said had been true. He WAS older, and he DID need to think about going to college, but first he wanted to live a little. He was finally getting ready to move into his own apartment, where he dad couldn't control him. His financial system was great, even after buying the Arcade with Usagi. He wouldn't have to worry about begging his father for money. Now all that was left to do would be living life as his own person, learning a bit about himself and the rest of the world before he really had to settle down and go back to school.
Landing not too far from the Son house, he noticed that Goku and Krillin had just arrived as well. Those two had really been going at it with one another ever since the incident with Tatsuo. And even though Goku was the better fighter and would always be able to pound Krillin at any time he wanted, he would always hold back. That was a concept he had never really understood. His father had never held back on him, and he had never held back on his victims, especially Usagi.
Goku was just about to enter his home with his best friend when he noticed someone approaching. He wasn't alarmed though. He could sense that it was only Mamoru. "What brings you here?" He asked sarcastically as if he expected for the boy never to show up of his free will. Even though he and Usagi had sort of patched things up, he didn't care one bit for the man. He still saw Mamoru as the kid who ruthlessly beat up his little girl, and that's how it would always be. Whenever he saw them together he always watched closely to make sure he wasn't giving Usagi a hard time. He knew Usagi wouldn't stand up for it, but being her father, he wanted to know if she was being harassed.
Mamoru knew the feelings Goku held for him. He had a perfectly good reason to. He had always been horrible Usagi in the past, something that a father wouldn't easily let go. "I need to talk to Usagi about the arcade, is she home."
Goku grinned as he glanced down at Krillin. "Can't you feel her inside?" He asked again, just as equally sarcastically as had before.
Mamoru ignored the sarcastic remark and stepped forward, only to be met by a stern father blocking the door and smiling down at him. "May I see her?"
Goku grinned even wider as he stepped to the side. "Go right ahead, young man." He answered. He turned around and opened the door, rudely taking the first step inside and allowing Krillin in second.
Mamoru knew Goku was only trying to get at him, which was exactly why he didn't show any anger. "Thanks." He said under his breath. He proceeded through the family room and down the hall into the living room, where he saw Chi-Chi standing up to go fix dinner. "Hi, Chi-Chi."
Chi-Chi smiled at the young man. She wasn't too fond of him either, but she still tried to put on a happy face. She had been trying so hard not to be such a sourpuss anymore, and it was finally paying off. "Are you here for Usagi?" Mamoru nodded. "You can talk to her when she finishes her homework. Go ahead and poke your head in there, but if she's not done then don't bother her."
Mamoru nodded with the full intention of respecting the woman's requests. He knew better than to mess with Usagi's schooling when Chi-Chi was around. No matter how reformed she would ever get she was still a maniac when it came to messing with her child's education. "Ok." He took notice that Goku and Krillin were coming into the room just as he turned to enter Usagi's bedroom.
Chi-Chi looked at Krillin, and then her husband with a stern frown. "We're feeding another person tonight?"
Goku gulped as he looked into his wife's eyes. He knew better than to bring people over without telling his wife first. He knew how angry she became when she wasn't told of these things. "Well.?"
Chi-Chi sighed. "You're lucky I didn't start dinner yet."
~*~*~
~~Usagi's Room~~
Mamoru quietly entered Usagi's room, hoping not to disturb her. But it didn't do much good. Usagi could hear anything that walked through that door. "Who is it?" She called out, not sensing his power signature to find out who it was. She was hunched over her desk, finishing the last of her math homework up.
Mamoru closed the door behind him and leaned against it. "Got a minute?"
Usagi threw her pencil down and quickly turned around in her chair, surprised to hear his voice in HER room. "Mamoru! What are you doing here? I didn't tell you to come over?"
Mamoru frowned as he crossed his arms. "Well gee. I guess I'll just be leaving if I can't be here without the princess' permission."
Usagi frowned back. She absolutely hated it when he called her that. She didn't want to be reminded that she was the princess. That wasn't who she really was inside. "Why do you have to be so rude all the time?"
"Me? You're the one who can't even welcome a guest right!"
Usagi stood up from her chair, becoming angry. "You're the one who came here, uninvited! I don't have to welcome anybody! Now if you have something to say to me, say it! Either that or leave!"
Mamoru growled as he glared at the girl. He couldn't believe she had gotten so upset over nothing. "I just wanted to tell you I gave my half of the arcade to Motoki! You don't have to have a cow. God, I'll leave now!" He turned around to the door and prepared to leave.
Usagi's frown slightly faded at the news. "What? Motoki's back?." She paused to think harder about what he had just said. "Wait a minute. you GAVE him your half? You loved owning an arcade."
Mamoru turned back around to Usagi with a nod. "I DID love owning it. But I'm not a kid anymore. I need to move on. But don't worry, Motoki knows what he's doing."
Usagi smirked as she crossed her arms and leaned into her desk. "It's ok as long as Motoki's going to be running it. I never have anytime to do anything with it. School and mom always keep me busy. I WAS going to give it to you, but then I wouldn't get free games."
Mamoru grinned. "Got that right. There's no way I'd ever give YOU anything free. You want it, you pay. It's a good thing Motoki isn't like that. Because I gave him my part of the arcade, I don't have to pay for any future games I want to play." He turned back to the door, pausing just before opening. "I gotta go. I have an for an apartment." With that, he pushed the door open and left the girl's room.