*Beep beep beep beep beep bee-*
Hotaru just shut her alarm clock off. Normally, she was up before it, but her dream had been a good one. She had thought herself over Trunks until she had this dream of him.
*** Sitting down at the lake in the park she'd flown to, Hotaru gazed at the reflection of the stars in the water. She missed home a bit, but not too much to return to it just yet. She'd only been here for 2 months. Still, her feelings were plain and clear as the night sky. She hadn't been dancing in a while, so she decided to dance. Putting her hands over her heart until her midnight-purple-colored sparkles welled up, she closed her eyes and concentrated. She cupped the sparkles in her hands, then blew them into the air above her. They engulfed her, and she was soon dressed in a shimmering white fuukuu, with an attached skirt of the same color. Her senshi earrings were there, and beautiful as ever, and in place of her normal choker was a fine silver chain with a scripted 'H' for a charm.
Walking over to the water's edge, Hotaru glided out onto the surface, making tiny ripples as she slightly displaced the water on the surface. She began to swirl around the lake's surface, carefree as the wind blowing it's soft breeze in harmony with her inaudible melody. She was free for once, and not tense as she normally was, not focused, just her light, beautiful self that no one ever saw. Every one was far to busy pushing her to train rather than trying to get to know her. But something made her slow down almost to a stop in the middle of the lake. A warm presence, kind, and genuine. She turned around, and saw Trunks gazing softly at her. She glided over to him, and extended her hand. How unlike him, though, he was dressed in black slacks that weren't as baggy as usual-- however they weren't skin tight either-- and a billowy white shirt. Taking her hand, they glided in a waltz across the lake's surface.
In an unspoken agreement, Trunks and Hotaru pressed closer as they whirled and twirled under the stars, and the beautiful crescent moon shown its light down upon the couple. They slowed down, and Hotaru faced Trunks. Suddenly, but pleasantly, they locked lips in a deep kiss. Passionate, but not ravaging, Hotaru and Trunks didn't realize that they had cared so much until now. But as Trunks broke the kiss, and they began dancing again, he dunked her, and they both saw the sparkle-- the crackle of life the other's eyes held, and knew that they were in love.***
Hotaru recalled it perfectly. She realized then that she had never gotten over Trunks-- instead she'd fallen in love with him. She didn't know when it had happened, but she knew it had. She was so at ease with this feeling that it scared her. In the other room, Trunks's alarm was still beeping loudly and monotonously, while he complained, sleepily begging for 10 more minutes. Hotaru smiled a small smile, and walked over to his room to shut off his alarm. Only then did she notice what she was wearing. Somehow, her pajamas had changed overnight. She was in the outfit from her dream. She looked at Trunks, and flung back the covers. He, too, was in the outfit from her dream. Then can it be, that Hotaru's dream was truly not a dream?
'No, that's impossible. I must have triggered my magic while I was asleep.' Hotaru thought, returning to her room. She went to her walk-in closet and got two towels. Walking into the bathroom attached to her room, Hotaru saw her necklace in the mirror. Not her usual senshi choker, but her beautiful, fine silver chain with the scripted 'H' as the charm. Her eyes widened, and she took it off. She went back into her room, and put it in the jewelry safe. She went back into the bathroom, and set the towels on the towel rack. Turning on the warm water, Hotaru undressed, and stepped into the shower. She pondered what had happened, as she showered, and reached for her strawberry smelling shampoo. After washing and rinsing her hair, Hotaru stepped out of the shower and grabbed her towels. Wrapping one around herself, she wrung out her hair, and wrapped her hair in one as well. When she looked to the ground where she had thrown the outfit from her dream, it was gone. Suspisciously, Hotaru walked over to Trunks's room, where he was still sleeping, and looked at his pajamas again. Only boxers.
Had she been imagining that she had awoken in that outfit? Hotaru reset Trunks's alarm to go off on the next minute, and went back to her room. She began to change when she heard his alarm go off. This time, Trunks got out of bed almost instantly after shutting off his alarm. Hotaru, now dressed, was working on drying her hair. Trunks went into the bathroom connected to his room, took a quick shower, and dressed just as quickly as Hotaru had. He knocked on her door.
"Are you awake yet?" he called softly.
"Yes, Trunks. I was the one who reset your alarm clock to wake you." Hotaru said, louder than he had called to her, but her voice carried a hint of amusement.
"Does that mean I can enter?" Trunks asked.
"Yeah, you can come in." Hotaru replied, laughing. Trunks opened the door, grinning.
"Good morning. Do you know what we have to be up for?" Trunks asked curiously.
"Yeah, I do... Why, don't you? Didn't your mother tell you?" Hotaru asked, confused.
"She never does. She just says, 'wake up, you have to do this tomorrow.' Sound like her?" he asked, laughing.
"Oh, I guess." Hotaru said. "Any way... Your mother said we were decorating for a formal banquet/ball. She also mentioned shopping for a dress for me?" Hotaru more so asked than told Trunks this information.
"Oh, that's right! I nearly forgot that Capsule Corp. was having a dinner party!" Trunks said. Seeing the confused look on her face, he elaborated. "Every year on the anniversary of Cell's defeat, *and on several other occasions because my mother is a big freak* Capsule Corp. holds a huge banquet/ball where everyone is required an invitation, and you have to be all dressed up. Every year my mother tries to get me to escort someone." Trunks said.
"Oh, I understand. If she hounds you about it, just look at her and say, 'I have better things to do than worry about who I'm going to walk around a dinner party with.' And then come complain to me." Hotaru said lightly, drying her hair with the towel. Trunks looked at her for a moment, and he could of sworn he saw emotion flash across her eyes.
"I can't say that. This year, she's fixed me up with somebody to escort. Some girl from school. She's totally convinced that I need a girlfriend, and I refuse to tell her when I like somebody, because she'd make a huge deal about it." Trunks said, sighing.
"Oh. Do you like anyone right now?" Hotaru asked him.
"N-not really." Trunks replied uneasily. It was not easy for him to lie to her, especially trying to conceal that he liked her when she had point blank asked who he liked.
"Oh, alright, no need to get huffy." Hotaru replied briskly. But before Trunks could defend himself, Bulma poked her head in, and asked, "Ready to go Hotaru?" Hotaru nodded, quickly running her brush through her chin length hair, grabbing a silver necklace from the jewelry box, and exiting her room all in one smooth motion, leaving Trunks hanging, then he finally left, as well.
****
"Did I interrupt something this morning?" Bulma asked Hotaru in the car.
"No, why?" Hotaru lied.
"Well, you two looked like you were having a serious and tense conversation. Apparently not?" Bulma asked, rather suspiciously.
"No, all you interrupted was a question about where I came from." Hotaru said, her tone light and dangerous. Bulma wasn't taking the hint the way she meant it, but she did be quiet. Hotaru focused her energy, and softly whispered, "Laptop!" Bulma looked over at her oddly.
"What's that for?" she asked Hotaru.
"This is my laptop. I can get it anywhere, even through a dimensional wormhole. I have to update my online journal, so that my mother knows I'm safe. Don't worry, she won't come wreak havoc over here, I'm not even mentioning that I'm in another dimension. Although my mother's advisor, Setsuna-san, may have figured that out... In my dimension she guards over time, as well as advises my mother. But they still need to know that I'm safe." Hotaru said. The black laptop was about the size of a CD jewelcase, and an emblazened purple symbol-- the one for Saturn-- adorned the top.
Hotaru booted up the computer, and the familiar hum, no matter how soft, comforted her. She began to type. Not anything to the effect of what she had told Bulma, but she wrote in it her dream. She coded it, and set it as a private entry so the public couldn't view it. She then posted another, rather harmless entry that gave no clue of her whereabouts, merely that she was safe and happy. And then Hotaru, seeing Bulma begin to peek at her laptop, placed it on public preview so that her dream of herself and Trunks could not be read, and she showed it to Bulma at the next traffic light.
"Do you mind if we pick up Trunks's escort on the way back from the dress store?" Bulma asked.
"No, not at all." Hotaru replied, her voice lighter than a feather. Her contempt for this morning was growing stronger and stronger with each passing second. Bulma parked relatively close to the store despite the crowded parking lot. The store was in the mall, so it was hard to park close, even at 4:00 in the morning. But they entered the mall, and not too long after, entered the dress store as well.
"Look around for what you like, and if you can't find anything you like, we'll look somewhere else. There are plenty of dress stores here." Bulma said cheerfully. Hotaru nodded, and began looking around. A black dress immediately caught her eye, however, at the very back of the store. She jetted off toward it, and Bulma followed surprisingly close behind.
The dress Hotaru had been looking at was stunning, and a great price, too. A halter top dress, it was shimmering and black. The ribbon lining that would go around the neck was soft as silk, and the dress cut off diagonally to one side at the bottom. Hotaru examined it, and decided that she was fond of it. She gestured to Bulma that she was going to try it on. She took it with her into the changing room, and changed into it with little difficulty. The only issue had been tying it, which proved easy enough in itself. When Hotaru came out, there were more girls looking in the store, the male salesman, and Bulma. Everyone looked at her when the changning room door slammed. Hotaru looked up to see several people gaping at her in awe.
"What, is there something on my face?" she asked lightly. Despite the fact that she knew that was not the reason, she felt she needed to hear the praise right then.
"Y-you in that dress... It's beautiful!" Bulma exclaimed softly.
"Exquisite! Exquisite! It's perfect on you! Not a one who tried it on before was worthy of its beauty... but your eyes accentuate the dress. I'll even give you a discount on it!" The salesman spoke, excited.
"Uh.. I'll take it, I guess..." Hotaru replied. She went back to change, and came out with the dress slung carefully over her left arm. The price tag read 1000 yen. The man looked at her.
"I'll give it to you for 500 yen." he said determinedly.
"That sounds fine to me." Hotaru replied. Bulma paid for the dress, however, despite Hotaru's protests.
Back in the car, Hotaru thanked Bulma profusely while blushing. Bulma just brushed it off, smiling. "Now, off to Midoriko's house." Bulma said, still cheery. Hotaru felt her gloom set in again, as well as her growing contempt for this day start in again. Bulma phoned Midoriko to have her know that she was about 5 minutes from her house.
When they reached it, Bulma beeped once, and Midoriko came running out with a bookbag and a garment bag. She got into the back of the car, and immediately spoke.
"Thank you for the ride Bulma-san." Midoriko's voice rang out, cheery as Bulma's. Hotaru scowled mentally, but left her face blank physically. They finally reached home, and Hotaru sought refuge in her room, and hung her dress up. Since it was a warm day so far, Hotaru chose to sit out on her balcony. Tears streamed down her cheeks, despite her willing them not to. Hotaru frowned, trying to dry them, but it wasn't working. Just then, her door opened, revealing Trunks.
"Hotaru, can we talk?" Trunks asked. Rather unwittingly, Hotaru faced him, showing him her tear-streaked face. "Oh, my are you alright?!" Trunks asked, suddenly concerned. He ran out onto the balcony, and shut the door behind them. Sitting down and pulling Hotaru close to himself, he cradled her in his arms.
"I don't have any idea of what came over me." Hotaru said, drying her tears. She certainly didn't want Trunks to see them, and she definitely didn't want him to tell anybody. But she was getting tired, and it was really hard to control all of your emotions when you felt like going to sleep.
"Are you sure? Because you know I'm here if you need me." Trunks told her. She knew why she was crying, somewhere deep down inside, he knew too. But he didn't realize. Trunks just held her there, until she fell back asleep. He carried her over to the bed, and laid her down. He closed the curtains around the bed, but left them open on the side with the balcony doors and the armchair. He sat in the armchair, watching her for a while, then he fell into a sound sleep just like her.
There was a soft knock on the door, and it opened.
"Hotaru-san? Bulma sent me, are you in here?" Midoriko called. She was dressed in her street clothes from this morning, and she had some powder with her, in a satchel tied to her belt. A very minimal amount, but enough to do the trick. It wasn't for Hotaru though, she'd have to slip it to Trunks. It might prove to be difficult.
It was only 6 AM, but when Hotaru didn't answer, Midoriko walked around the bed. There, she saw Trunks in an armchair, fast asleep. Midoriko laughed silently to herself, and said softly, ''This is going to be much easier than I anticipated.'' she opened the satchel, and dumped the powder into her hand. There was barely any there, and it looked like salt or sugar. She blew it at him generally at eye level. It reached his eyes, and it must have tickled his nose a little, because he shifted and kind of snorted. Midoriko looked over to her right, rather on the spur of the moment, and noticed Hotaru, also fast asleep. 'He was watching her.' Midoriko thought, glaring at the girl. 'Don't worry, soon, he won't care about you, Hotaru-baka. He'll only have eyes for me.' Midoriko thought.
****
"Vegeta, maybe the streamers should go there?" Bulma asked him, pointing to a spot on the ceiling.
"How about we just randomly place them on the ceiling in different colors of the rainbow?" Vegeta asked in an extremely agitated voice. Bulma had been questioning every little decoration idea she had since 5 this morning.
"That's a good idea, Vegeta! I wonder why I didn't see that before. Now, onto the table arrangements." Bulma said authoritatively. Vegeta just shook his head. If it were his decision, he'd forfeit his ability to fly to give to Bulma for days like this. She was really getting on his nerves. Not to mention he had to do all the decorating she couldn't reach. Which turned out to be most of it.
"Hey, Bulma?" Vegeta called down from where he'd started pinning the streamers.
"Yes honey?" she called up innocently. She had been watching him rather than starting the next decoration project.
"Didn't you and your father make that hoverboard capsule? Can't you get it and help?" Vegeta grunted, floating down. Bulma was holding a capsule. She pressed in the top button, like she always did, and Vegeta started running.
****
Midoriko left, closed the door softly, then knocked loudly. Inside, Hotaru and Trunks stirred. Trunks woke first, and he looked at Hotaru. She woke, and looked at Trunks.
"Just a second!" Hotaru called.
"Mornin'." Trunks said, his voice was still rather groggy.
"Were you watching me sleep?" Hotaru asked.
"Well, to a point... Then I fell asleep, too." Trunks replied sheepishly. Hotaru got up an bonked him on the head playfully. Trunks started tickling her and she burst out laughing, and fell on the bed, trying to get him to stop tickling her.
"No, stop! That TICKLES!" Hotaru laughed, and Trunks finally stopped. So Hotaru got even.
"HEY!" Trunks shouted. She was tickling him, too. She stopped, and they fell back on the bed laughing. Trunks looked at Hotaru and thought, 'This is a good change. I didn't like seeing her cry.' and Hotaru smiled at him.
"HELLO?!" Midoriko shouted from behind the door.
"Oh, I'm sorry!" Hotaru called. She got up, as did Trunks, and opened the door.
"Bulma wants you to help decorating." Midoriko said.
"Me, too?" Trunks asked, coming into view. "M-Midoriko... What are you doing here?" Trunks was startled. 'What a perfect way to ruin things,' he thought, 'with bringing the one other girl I like here. But then how will I be able to spend any time with Hotaru? And what if I fall back in love with Midoriko? This sucks.'
"Yeah, you too. Your mom and Hotaru here picked me up at my house." Midoriko replied cheerfully. 'And by the end of the night, you won't care, because we'll be kissing.' she thought.
"Oh, well, okay." Trunks said, and he and Hotaru followed Midoriko down to the ball room of Capsule Corp.
Vegeta and Bulma saw the door open, and Bulma pressed the little red button on the frying pan's handle, changing it back into a capsule and pocketing it. She busied herself with fixing the table decorations, while Vegeta stood next to her, crossing his arms. There were several bumps on his head, which Hotaru and Trunks noticed right away.
"Um, Vegeta-chan?" Vegeta looked up at Hotaru and actually smiled sheepishly.
"It was her fault." his brief smile contorted into a look of pure rage directed at his wife who picked up a capsule and waved it in the air for a moment. Hotaru suppressed her laughter, while Trunks patted his dad on the shoulder.
"It's alright dad." Trunks told him.
From then on, the decorating between the five of them went rapidly. Or it seemed to. The party started at 6, and it was already 4 o'clock. Hotaru, Midoriko, Trunks, and Bulma all ran up to get showers, while Vegeta stealthily flew off in the opposite direction. He was on his way to the flower shop, which nobody knew that, but he was getting his wife a large bouquet of roses. He'd ordered it the day before. Boy was she going to be surprised.
Trunks went up to his room to shower and dress for the occasion. Hotaru followed suit, and Midoriko was permitted to use the downstairs guest room for the day, so she didn't have the opportunity to follow Hotaru and Trunks upstairs. Walking up the stairs and laughing, Trunks and Hotaru were talking about Trunks's comical fall from the air while helping his father hang streamers. He actually had to fall, rather than use his flying power to save himself, although he did use it to cusion his fall ever so slightly, because using the hoverboards was just something he wasn't accustomed to. But Midoriko wasn't aloud to know about their ability, or he would be in severe trouble with his father, who was used to this kind of thing from working around people for so long.
Bulma showed Midoriko to her room, and went back the hallway further to her suite that she called a bedroom. It was large, and grand. Beautiful, to state it simply. Midoriko merely glanced into it before Bulma shut and locked the door. Quickly, Midoriko showered and dressed, then ran to Bulma's room, where she begged her to do her hair. Bulma obliged, and began to fix Midoriko's shoulder length blond hair into an intricate design of curls and twists. Midoriko knew that her beauty as well as her powder would attract Trunks's attention.
Up in Hotaru's room, Hotaru had also showered quickly, and pulled on her dress. She hadn't rewashed her hair, she'd used a shower cap. Hotaru left it the way it normally was, it was so much easier, and her hair didn't look all that great fixed up anyway. Trunks had just turned the wated off in his room, and stepped slowly out of the shower. He dried himself off, and his long purple hair, too. Then, he dressed in a simple, loose white shirt, and a pair of black dress pants. He pulled his hair back into the low pony tail, and left his bangs hang at the sides of his face. He then proceeded to put in an earring. Just to urk his mother and Midoriko.
Hotaru left in her senshi earrings, and since the dress came up like a choker, she opted to leave her regular silver chain necklace on. The diamond inlaid charm glinted in the florescence of the light, before Hotaru shut it off. She seemed to glow softly like her namesake, and she felt satisfied. 'This is pretty similar to home... The parties, the training, the family meals... Maybe that's why I'm so at ease?' Hotaru thought. She stepped into the hallway at the same time as Trunks. Trunks looked at her in awe, and Hotaru returned the look.
"You look stunning." Trunks said, softly. Hotaru felt a slight blush creep across her cheeks, and countered his comment.
"And you look extremely handsome. Go find your escort before she kills me for looking at you." Hotaru said, and she disappeared down the stairs, leaving Trunks behind her.
****
"Put them right there. We're the last couple to enter, and therefore, it would be easier for her to notice being up higher... Oh I'm glad you were able to do that, it's magnificent. Set it on stage." Vegeta instructed in his usual gruff voice. He had Bulma's flowers delivered promptly, and he even got the pedestal inscribed. It read, 'To: Bulma From: Vegeta' and it was in gold script against the black of the pedestal. 'If Bulma doesn't like this, I may as well eat my finest pair of pants.' Vegeta thought to himself.
****
"Oh, Midoriko, you look wonderful! That hair style looks marvelous on you!" Bulma said. Midoriko, dressed in lavender, had her hair half hanging half up, with a twist in the back, and random pieces were curled all over her hair. It was really very pretty for such a rotten personality.
"Thank you so much Bulma!" Midoriko feigned gratefulness and flung her arms around the woman. A tinge of guilt swept over her momentarily, but she brushed it off and left Bulma for the parlor. Trunks was standing there, talking to his grandfather, who was still in his white lab coat. He spun, and looked at Midoriko.
"You look very nice, Midoriko." Trunks said smiling. Midoriko grinned back at him.
"And you are so cute I could just eat you right up." Midoriko replied. Trunks's smile faded ever so slightly.
'What kind of compliment is that?' he asked himself. 'Why am I escorting her again?' but suddenly, he sneezed, and his eyes got all hazy. Then Midoriko's powder finally kicked in, and Trunks walked over and took her arm. "Are you ready to go?" he asked her.
Inside, Midoriko was smirking triumphantly, and outside she spoke. "Ready when you are, Trunks-koi." and when he didn't say anything about her calling him her koibito, Midoriko knew the powder worked.
****
In the study, Hotaru overheard every word spoken in the parlor. Including Midoriko's lovely, 'Trunks-koi'. Hotaru began meditating to rid herself of the unwanted emotion she was feeling at losing Trunks. She knew that they were only good friends. Those kisses had been a mistake. That dream had to be wrong. She didn't love him, she couldn't stand him.
****
The butler was announcing the last couple before he began the relatives of Capsule Corp.'s manager. From there, he would announce Bulma's parents, Trunks and Midoriko, then Bulma and Vegeta. Hotaru wouldn't be announced. Not only was she not from this dimension, but she didn't have an escort, and refused to be announced any way.
"Mr. and Mrs. Tsukasa!" he announced. (a/n: I had to make up Bulma's maiden name... I couldn't find it!) Everyone clapped for Bulma's parents.
"Mr. Trunks Briefs and Ms. Midoriko Amamiya!" he announced. There were gasps from the crowd. Trunks had never escorted anyone before now. Trunks was calm as he led Midoriko through the crowd to the table. After all, he was technically under a spell. But when they got there, Hotaru was nowhere to be found, and it jogged his memory for a moment, and he looked around. Luckily, Midoriko didn't notice. Hotaru stared like a hawk from the corner of the room nearest to where they sat. It was far more her style not to mingle with a crowd she didn't know.
"And last but not least, Mr. and Mrs. Bulma and Vegeta Briefs! But don't forget to look to the stage to see what's in store for this happy couple." Instead of watching Bulma enter, which angered her, they all averted their eyes to the stage. When Bulma finally looked to the stage, she forgot about yelling at the butler. Even from across the room, she could read it. A humungous bouquet of roses sat on a pedestal that read, 'To Bulma, from Vegeta.' Just as everyone was turning back to see her reaction, she kissed Vegeta. They walked down amongst roaring applause, and sat at their table. "Now you may begin the feast!" the butler announced, and waiters came out of the kitchen and took the orders of everyone who had come.
"When did you find the time to do that?" Bulma asked, happily eating.
"When you weren't looking." Vegeta replied, making her father laugh.
After dinner Bulma got onstage, and settled the crowd. "Thank you all for coming, and I hope you enjoyed the food." Bulma stopped talking, accustomed to the shouts of agreement she got from the crowd. "Tonight, I have a friend here who's been out of the country for a while. I just discovered recently that she has an incredible singing voice, and she's agreed to sing for us tonight, but only one song. I chose 'You light up my life.'" Bulma said, and she stepped down from the stage as Hotaru stepped up.
Then the music came on, the background music to the song she was to sing, and she was given 8 counts from there. Taking the microphone, Hotaru counted the rest of the beats, wondering why she agreed to do this for Bulma. She took a breath, and began.
"So many nights, I'd sit by my window,
Waiting for someone to sing me his song.
So many dreams, I kept deep inside me,
Alone in the dark, but now you've come along.
And you light up my life,
You give me hope, to carry on.
You light up my days
And fill my nights with song.
Rollin' at sea, adrift on the waters
Could it be finally, I'm turning for home
Finally a chance to say, "Hey, I Love You"
Never again to be all alone.
And you light up my life,
You give me hope, to carry on.
You light up my days
And fill my nights with song.
You, You light up my life
You give me hope to carry on
You light up my days
And fill my nights with song
It can't be wrong, when it feels so right
'Cause you, you light up my life. " Hotaru noticed as the music strains died down, that several people were agape, and quite a few were crying. When the last strain faded out, there was a roar of applaus, and Hotaru stepped down from the stage. She was immediately cornered by Bulma, who hugged her.
"You were wonderful, Hotaru! Absolutely wonderful!" Hotaru smiled weekly, and left to her corner.
"Let's have another round of applaus for Hotaru!" Bulma said into the microphone. When the applause settled, Bulma spoke again. "Now, we'll begin the first dance."
People got up and led their couples onto the dance floor, including Trunks. Hotaru had a perfect view of him. The dancing went on for a couple of hours, and people congratulated Hotaru on her solo. Just towards the end, as Hotaru was making her way toward Trunks, Midoriko noticed her. She pulled Trunks in for a kiss, and spun her back to Hotaru. Big mistake, as Trunks's eyes were open. He saw Hotaru, and was pulled out of his trance. Too late.
Hotaru ran as fast as she could to get out. Anywhere would be better than here. Trunks broke off the kiss to a stunned Midoriko, and pushed her away. A tear rolled down Midoriko's cheek as she watched him run after Hotaru.
Outside, Hotaru flew to the roof. Tears flowing freely, she didn't bother to shield her ki. Or her heart for that matter. In seconds, a strong whirlwind formed next to her, and a teenage girl popped in next to her. Almost an exact copy of her mother with pink hair, Rini was the one person Hotaru wanted to see.
"You summoned me through dimensions? No, impossible. Your heart lead me here. You're in pain, Hotaru!" the girl said. "Your mother and mine are both searching for you." Rini told her.
"I assumed they would be. Rini, if I told you I thought I fell in love, what would your reaction be?" Hotaru asked her, her tear streaked face pleadingly looking up at her best friend.
"You did? But wait, what do you mean you think?" Rini asked.
****
Outside, Trunks reached frantically for Hotaru's ki. Surprisingly, he found it. It was on the roof. Along with another strong ki. He flew up to the roof, but didn't fly into view just yet, he wanted to see if it was friend or foe before he killed the person near Hotaru.
****
"Well, I thought I fell in love with a guy here. I really thought I had fallen for him. And I thought he liked me too. But Rini, he was kissing another girl in front of me tonight. And he let her call him -koi. No objections. I don't know what to do, it was like he was under a spell. But I can't explain it..." Hotaru just let her head fall limply into her arms.
"You may well have fallen for this guy, Hotaru. And there is a way to see if he's fallen for you." Rini replied.
"You could just ask him." Trunks said, he was hurting. Everyone saw it. If possible, he was hurting more than Hotaru.
"Well, that too, but-- hey, who the hell are you?" Rini asked.
"Stay away from me you traitor." Hotaru said.
"I take it this is the guy?" Rini asked sarcastically. She knew this was the guy, no questions asked. They were both hurting.
"I can't. I do love you. That I know." Trunks said. He knew this wasn't helping.
"Then why were you kissing Midoriko?" Hotaru spat.
"She kissed me. And it's not what you think!" Trunks replied.
"Hotaru, were Trunks's eyes hazy at all today?" Rini asked. Thinking back, Hotaru nodded.
"Come with me, both of you." Rini said. They each took a hand she extended, and in a flash of light, they disappeared.
They were in the past, re-watching the day slowly as it happened. In fast- forward while they were together, and when they were apart, slowly, but not too slowly, it was like the scene split in half and showed what each was doing. But Rini seemed to be controlling the speed, as well as the time. She played one scene out normally before continuing to fast forward. It was a scene where they were sleeping, and Midoriko was in the room. Trunks gasped, and Hotaru choked on her tears when she heard, "This is going to be much easier than I anticipated." They watched her blow some powdery substance at Trunks, and watched her fabled first knock before it was fast forwarding again. And then it slowed and zoomed in on Trunks's 'screen' and showed his eyes grow hazy and his odd behavior began there. Another flash of light brought them back to the present.
"I love you." Trunks said. Midoriko stood below them, watching them at the top of the slant, they made her sick.
"YOU STAY AWAY FROM HIM HOTARU!" Midoriko shouted up at her.
"YOU STAY AWAY FROM ME, MIDORIKO AMAMIYA!" Trunks shouted down at her, and sent a ki blast to her at her right. She jumped, startled, and ran inside crying. He then proceeded to gather Hotaru up in his arms, and cradle her to his chest.
"I want to stay her for a while longer, Rini. Please, when I send you back, do not tell mother of where I am? She'll send the guards to retrieve me. But I want to stay longer." Hotaru begged.
"I promise you, I won't." Rini replied softly. The whirlwind appeared, and Rini stepped back into it, and was whisked away to her rightful dimension.
"I'm sorry about all of this." Hotaru said.
"It's alright. I love you." Trunks replied.
"I love you too." He kissed her, slowly and passionately. Neither before now had realized how much the other cared. Until now.
*~*~*~*~
Heh. I told you I would make it a longer chapter this time. ^_^ Well, I hope you liked it, please R&R! ~Krysta
Hotaru just shut her alarm clock off. Normally, she was up before it, but her dream had been a good one. She had thought herself over Trunks until she had this dream of him.
*** Sitting down at the lake in the park she'd flown to, Hotaru gazed at the reflection of the stars in the water. She missed home a bit, but not too much to return to it just yet. She'd only been here for 2 months. Still, her feelings were plain and clear as the night sky. She hadn't been dancing in a while, so she decided to dance. Putting her hands over her heart until her midnight-purple-colored sparkles welled up, she closed her eyes and concentrated. She cupped the sparkles in her hands, then blew them into the air above her. They engulfed her, and she was soon dressed in a shimmering white fuukuu, with an attached skirt of the same color. Her senshi earrings were there, and beautiful as ever, and in place of her normal choker was a fine silver chain with a scripted 'H' for a charm.
Walking over to the water's edge, Hotaru glided out onto the surface, making tiny ripples as she slightly displaced the water on the surface. She began to swirl around the lake's surface, carefree as the wind blowing it's soft breeze in harmony with her inaudible melody. She was free for once, and not tense as she normally was, not focused, just her light, beautiful self that no one ever saw. Every one was far to busy pushing her to train rather than trying to get to know her. But something made her slow down almost to a stop in the middle of the lake. A warm presence, kind, and genuine. She turned around, and saw Trunks gazing softly at her. She glided over to him, and extended her hand. How unlike him, though, he was dressed in black slacks that weren't as baggy as usual-- however they weren't skin tight either-- and a billowy white shirt. Taking her hand, they glided in a waltz across the lake's surface.
In an unspoken agreement, Trunks and Hotaru pressed closer as they whirled and twirled under the stars, and the beautiful crescent moon shown its light down upon the couple. They slowed down, and Hotaru faced Trunks. Suddenly, but pleasantly, they locked lips in a deep kiss. Passionate, but not ravaging, Hotaru and Trunks didn't realize that they had cared so much until now. But as Trunks broke the kiss, and they began dancing again, he dunked her, and they both saw the sparkle-- the crackle of life the other's eyes held, and knew that they were in love.***
Hotaru recalled it perfectly. She realized then that she had never gotten over Trunks-- instead she'd fallen in love with him. She didn't know when it had happened, but she knew it had. She was so at ease with this feeling that it scared her. In the other room, Trunks's alarm was still beeping loudly and monotonously, while he complained, sleepily begging for 10 more minutes. Hotaru smiled a small smile, and walked over to his room to shut off his alarm. Only then did she notice what she was wearing. Somehow, her pajamas had changed overnight. She was in the outfit from her dream. She looked at Trunks, and flung back the covers. He, too, was in the outfit from her dream. Then can it be, that Hotaru's dream was truly not a dream?
'No, that's impossible. I must have triggered my magic while I was asleep.' Hotaru thought, returning to her room. She went to her walk-in closet and got two towels. Walking into the bathroom attached to her room, Hotaru saw her necklace in the mirror. Not her usual senshi choker, but her beautiful, fine silver chain with the scripted 'H' as the charm. Her eyes widened, and she took it off. She went back into her room, and put it in the jewelry safe. She went back into the bathroom, and set the towels on the towel rack. Turning on the warm water, Hotaru undressed, and stepped into the shower. She pondered what had happened, as she showered, and reached for her strawberry smelling shampoo. After washing and rinsing her hair, Hotaru stepped out of the shower and grabbed her towels. Wrapping one around herself, she wrung out her hair, and wrapped her hair in one as well. When she looked to the ground where she had thrown the outfit from her dream, it was gone. Suspisciously, Hotaru walked over to Trunks's room, where he was still sleeping, and looked at his pajamas again. Only boxers.
Had she been imagining that she had awoken in that outfit? Hotaru reset Trunks's alarm to go off on the next minute, and went back to her room. She began to change when she heard his alarm go off. This time, Trunks got out of bed almost instantly after shutting off his alarm. Hotaru, now dressed, was working on drying her hair. Trunks went into the bathroom connected to his room, took a quick shower, and dressed just as quickly as Hotaru had. He knocked on her door.
"Are you awake yet?" he called softly.
"Yes, Trunks. I was the one who reset your alarm clock to wake you." Hotaru said, louder than he had called to her, but her voice carried a hint of amusement.
"Does that mean I can enter?" Trunks asked.
"Yeah, you can come in." Hotaru replied, laughing. Trunks opened the door, grinning.
"Good morning. Do you know what we have to be up for?" Trunks asked curiously.
"Yeah, I do... Why, don't you? Didn't your mother tell you?" Hotaru asked, confused.
"She never does. She just says, 'wake up, you have to do this tomorrow.' Sound like her?" he asked, laughing.
"Oh, I guess." Hotaru said. "Any way... Your mother said we were decorating for a formal banquet/ball. She also mentioned shopping for a dress for me?" Hotaru more so asked than told Trunks this information.
"Oh, that's right! I nearly forgot that Capsule Corp. was having a dinner party!" Trunks said. Seeing the confused look on her face, he elaborated. "Every year on the anniversary of Cell's defeat, *and on several other occasions because my mother is a big freak* Capsule Corp. holds a huge banquet/ball where everyone is required an invitation, and you have to be all dressed up. Every year my mother tries to get me to escort someone." Trunks said.
"Oh, I understand. If she hounds you about it, just look at her and say, 'I have better things to do than worry about who I'm going to walk around a dinner party with.' And then come complain to me." Hotaru said lightly, drying her hair with the towel. Trunks looked at her for a moment, and he could of sworn he saw emotion flash across her eyes.
"I can't say that. This year, she's fixed me up with somebody to escort. Some girl from school. She's totally convinced that I need a girlfriend, and I refuse to tell her when I like somebody, because she'd make a huge deal about it." Trunks said, sighing.
"Oh. Do you like anyone right now?" Hotaru asked him.
"N-not really." Trunks replied uneasily. It was not easy for him to lie to her, especially trying to conceal that he liked her when she had point blank asked who he liked.
"Oh, alright, no need to get huffy." Hotaru replied briskly. But before Trunks could defend himself, Bulma poked her head in, and asked, "Ready to go Hotaru?" Hotaru nodded, quickly running her brush through her chin length hair, grabbing a silver necklace from the jewelry box, and exiting her room all in one smooth motion, leaving Trunks hanging, then he finally left, as well.
****
"Did I interrupt something this morning?" Bulma asked Hotaru in the car.
"No, why?" Hotaru lied.
"Well, you two looked like you were having a serious and tense conversation. Apparently not?" Bulma asked, rather suspiciously.
"No, all you interrupted was a question about where I came from." Hotaru said, her tone light and dangerous. Bulma wasn't taking the hint the way she meant it, but she did be quiet. Hotaru focused her energy, and softly whispered, "Laptop!" Bulma looked over at her oddly.
"What's that for?" she asked Hotaru.
"This is my laptop. I can get it anywhere, even through a dimensional wormhole. I have to update my online journal, so that my mother knows I'm safe. Don't worry, she won't come wreak havoc over here, I'm not even mentioning that I'm in another dimension. Although my mother's advisor, Setsuna-san, may have figured that out... In my dimension she guards over time, as well as advises my mother. But they still need to know that I'm safe." Hotaru said. The black laptop was about the size of a CD jewelcase, and an emblazened purple symbol-- the one for Saturn-- adorned the top.
Hotaru booted up the computer, and the familiar hum, no matter how soft, comforted her. She began to type. Not anything to the effect of what she had told Bulma, but she wrote in it her dream. She coded it, and set it as a private entry so the public couldn't view it. She then posted another, rather harmless entry that gave no clue of her whereabouts, merely that she was safe and happy. And then Hotaru, seeing Bulma begin to peek at her laptop, placed it on public preview so that her dream of herself and Trunks could not be read, and she showed it to Bulma at the next traffic light.
"Do you mind if we pick up Trunks's escort on the way back from the dress store?" Bulma asked.
"No, not at all." Hotaru replied, her voice lighter than a feather. Her contempt for this morning was growing stronger and stronger with each passing second. Bulma parked relatively close to the store despite the crowded parking lot. The store was in the mall, so it was hard to park close, even at 4:00 in the morning. But they entered the mall, and not too long after, entered the dress store as well.
"Look around for what you like, and if you can't find anything you like, we'll look somewhere else. There are plenty of dress stores here." Bulma said cheerfully. Hotaru nodded, and began looking around. A black dress immediately caught her eye, however, at the very back of the store. She jetted off toward it, and Bulma followed surprisingly close behind.
The dress Hotaru had been looking at was stunning, and a great price, too. A halter top dress, it was shimmering and black. The ribbon lining that would go around the neck was soft as silk, and the dress cut off diagonally to one side at the bottom. Hotaru examined it, and decided that she was fond of it. She gestured to Bulma that she was going to try it on. She took it with her into the changing room, and changed into it with little difficulty. The only issue had been tying it, which proved easy enough in itself. When Hotaru came out, there were more girls looking in the store, the male salesman, and Bulma. Everyone looked at her when the changning room door slammed. Hotaru looked up to see several people gaping at her in awe.
"What, is there something on my face?" she asked lightly. Despite the fact that she knew that was not the reason, she felt she needed to hear the praise right then.
"Y-you in that dress... It's beautiful!" Bulma exclaimed softly.
"Exquisite! Exquisite! It's perfect on you! Not a one who tried it on before was worthy of its beauty... but your eyes accentuate the dress. I'll even give you a discount on it!" The salesman spoke, excited.
"Uh.. I'll take it, I guess..." Hotaru replied. She went back to change, and came out with the dress slung carefully over her left arm. The price tag read 1000 yen. The man looked at her.
"I'll give it to you for 500 yen." he said determinedly.
"That sounds fine to me." Hotaru replied. Bulma paid for the dress, however, despite Hotaru's protests.
Back in the car, Hotaru thanked Bulma profusely while blushing. Bulma just brushed it off, smiling. "Now, off to Midoriko's house." Bulma said, still cheery. Hotaru felt her gloom set in again, as well as her growing contempt for this day start in again. Bulma phoned Midoriko to have her know that she was about 5 minutes from her house.
When they reached it, Bulma beeped once, and Midoriko came running out with a bookbag and a garment bag. She got into the back of the car, and immediately spoke.
"Thank you for the ride Bulma-san." Midoriko's voice rang out, cheery as Bulma's. Hotaru scowled mentally, but left her face blank physically. They finally reached home, and Hotaru sought refuge in her room, and hung her dress up. Since it was a warm day so far, Hotaru chose to sit out on her balcony. Tears streamed down her cheeks, despite her willing them not to. Hotaru frowned, trying to dry them, but it wasn't working. Just then, her door opened, revealing Trunks.
"Hotaru, can we talk?" Trunks asked. Rather unwittingly, Hotaru faced him, showing him her tear-streaked face. "Oh, my are you alright?!" Trunks asked, suddenly concerned. He ran out onto the balcony, and shut the door behind them. Sitting down and pulling Hotaru close to himself, he cradled her in his arms.
"I don't have any idea of what came over me." Hotaru said, drying her tears. She certainly didn't want Trunks to see them, and she definitely didn't want him to tell anybody. But she was getting tired, and it was really hard to control all of your emotions when you felt like going to sleep.
"Are you sure? Because you know I'm here if you need me." Trunks told her. She knew why she was crying, somewhere deep down inside, he knew too. But he didn't realize. Trunks just held her there, until she fell back asleep. He carried her over to the bed, and laid her down. He closed the curtains around the bed, but left them open on the side with the balcony doors and the armchair. He sat in the armchair, watching her for a while, then he fell into a sound sleep just like her.
There was a soft knock on the door, and it opened.
"Hotaru-san? Bulma sent me, are you in here?" Midoriko called. She was dressed in her street clothes from this morning, and she had some powder with her, in a satchel tied to her belt. A very minimal amount, but enough to do the trick. It wasn't for Hotaru though, she'd have to slip it to Trunks. It might prove to be difficult.
It was only 6 AM, but when Hotaru didn't answer, Midoriko walked around the bed. There, she saw Trunks in an armchair, fast asleep. Midoriko laughed silently to herself, and said softly, ''This is going to be much easier than I anticipated.'' she opened the satchel, and dumped the powder into her hand. There was barely any there, and it looked like salt or sugar. She blew it at him generally at eye level. It reached his eyes, and it must have tickled his nose a little, because he shifted and kind of snorted. Midoriko looked over to her right, rather on the spur of the moment, and noticed Hotaru, also fast asleep. 'He was watching her.' Midoriko thought, glaring at the girl. 'Don't worry, soon, he won't care about you, Hotaru-baka. He'll only have eyes for me.' Midoriko thought.
****
"Vegeta, maybe the streamers should go there?" Bulma asked him, pointing to a spot on the ceiling.
"How about we just randomly place them on the ceiling in different colors of the rainbow?" Vegeta asked in an extremely agitated voice. Bulma had been questioning every little decoration idea she had since 5 this morning.
"That's a good idea, Vegeta! I wonder why I didn't see that before. Now, onto the table arrangements." Bulma said authoritatively. Vegeta just shook his head. If it were his decision, he'd forfeit his ability to fly to give to Bulma for days like this. She was really getting on his nerves. Not to mention he had to do all the decorating she couldn't reach. Which turned out to be most of it.
"Hey, Bulma?" Vegeta called down from where he'd started pinning the streamers.
"Yes honey?" she called up innocently. She had been watching him rather than starting the next decoration project.
"Didn't you and your father make that hoverboard capsule? Can't you get it and help?" Vegeta grunted, floating down. Bulma was holding a capsule. She pressed in the top button, like she always did, and Vegeta started running.
****
Midoriko left, closed the door softly, then knocked loudly. Inside, Hotaru and Trunks stirred. Trunks woke first, and he looked at Hotaru. She woke, and looked at Trunks.
"Just a second!" Hotaru called.
"Mornin'." Trunks said, his voice was still rather groggy.
"Were you watching me sleep?" Hotaru asked.
"Well, to a point... Then I fell asleep, too." Trunks replied sheepishly. Hotaru got up an bonked him on the head playfully. Trunks started tickling her and she burst out laughing, and fell on the bed, trying to get him to stop tickling her.
"No, stop! That TICKLES!" Hotaru laughed, and Trunks finally stopped. So Hotaru got even.
"HEY!" Trunks shouted. She was tickling him, too. She stopped, and they fell back on the bed laughing. Trunks looked at Hotaru and thought, 'This is a good change. I didn't like seeing her cry.' and Hotaru smiled at him.
"HELLO?!" Midoriko shouted from behind the door.
"Oh, I'm sorry!" Hotaru called. She got up, as did Trunks, and opened the door.
"Bulma wants you to help decorating." Midoriko said.
"Me, too?" Trunks asked, coming into view. "M-Midoriko... What are you doing here?" Trunks was startled. 'What a perfect way to ruin things,' he thought, 'with bringing the one other girl I like here. But then how will I be able to spend any time with Hotaru? And what if I fall back in love with Midoriko? This sucks.'
"Yeah, you too. Your mom and Hotaru here picked me up at my house." Midoriko replied cheerfully. 'And by the end of the night, you won't care, because we'll be kissing.' she thought.
"Oh, well, okay." Trunks said, and he and Hotaru followed Midoriko down to the ball room of Capsule Corp.
Vegeta and Bulma saw the door open, and Bulma pressed the little red button on the frying pan's handle, changing it back into a capsule and pocketing it. She busied herself with fixing the table decorations, while Vegeta stood next to her, crossing his arms. There were several bumps on his head, which Hotaru and Trunks noticed right away.
"Um, Vegeta-chan?" Vegeta looked up at Hotaru and actually smiled sheepishly.
"It was her fault." his brief smile contorted into a look of pure rage directed at his wife who picked up a capsule and waved it in the air for a moment. Hotaru suppressed her laughter, while Trunks patted his dad on the shoulder.
"It's alright dad." Trunks told him.
From then on, the decorating between the five of them went rapidly. Or it seemed to. The party started at 6, and it was already 4 o'clock. Hotaru, Midoriko, Trunks, and Bulma all ran up to get showers, while Vegeta stealthily flew off in the opposite direction. He was on his way to the flower shop, which nobody knew that, but he was getting his wife a large bouquet of roses. He'd ordered it the day before. Boy was she going to be surprised.
Trunks went up to his room to shower and dress for the occasion. Hotaru followed suit, and Midoriko was permitted to use the downstairs guest room for the day, so she didn't have the opportunity to follow Hotaru and Trunks upstairs. Walking up the stairs and laughing, Trunks and Hotaru were talking about Trunks's comical fall from the air while helping his father hang streamers. He actually had to fall, rather than use his flying power to save himself, although he did use it to cusion his fall ever so slightly, because using the hoverboards was just something he wasn't accustomed to. But Midoriko wasn't aloud to know about their ability, or he would be in severe trouble with his father, who was used to this kind of thing from working around people for so long.
Bulma showed Midoriko to her room, and went back the hallway further to her suite that she called a bedroom. It was large, and grand. Beautiful, to state it simply. Midoriko merely glanced into it before Bulma shut and locked the door. Quickly, Midoriko showered and dressed, then ran to Bulma's room, where she begged her to do her hair. Bulma obliged, and began to fix Midoriko's shoulder length blond hair into an intricate design of curls and twists. Midoriko knew that her beauty as well as her powder would attract Trunks's attention.
Up in Hotaru's room, Hotaru had also showered quickly, and pulled on her dress. She hadn't rewashed her hair, she'd used a shower cap. Hotaru left it the way it normally was, it was so much easier, and her hair didn't look all that great fixed up anyway. Trunks had just turned the wated off in his room, and stepped slowly out of the shower. He dried himself off, and his long purple hair, too. Then, he dressed in a simple, loose white shirt, and a pair of black dress pants. He pulled his hair back into the low pony tail, and left his bangs hang at the sides of his face. He then proceeded to put in an earring. Just to urk his mother and Midoriko.
Hotaru left in her senshi earrings, and since the dress came up like a choker, she opted to leave her regular silver chain necklace on. The diamond inlaid charm glinted in the florescence of the light, before Hotaru shut it off. She seemed to glow softly like her namesake, and she felt satisfied. 'This is pretty similar to home... The parties, the training, the family meals... Maybe that's why I'm so at ease?' Hotaru thought. She stepped into the hallway at the same time as Trunks. Trunks looked at her in awe, and Hotaru returned the look.
"You look stunning." Trunks said, softly. Hotaru felt a slight blush creep across her cheeks, and countered his comment.
"And you look extremely handsome. Go find your escort before she kills me for looking at you." Hotaru said, and she disappeared down the stairs, leaving Trunks behind her.
****
"Put them right there. We're the last couple to enter, and therefore, it would be easier for her to notice being up higher... Oh I'm glad you were able to do that, it's magnificent. Set it on stage." Vegeta instructed in his usual gruff voice. He had Bulma's flowers delivered promptly, and he even got the pedestal inscribed. It read, 'To: Bulma From: Vegeta' and it was in gold script against the black of the pedestal. 'If Bulma doesn't like this, I may as well eat my finest pair of pants.' Vegeta thought to himself.
****
"Oh, Midoriko, you look wonderful! That hair style looks marvelous on you!" Bulma said. Midoriko, dressed in lavender, had her hair half hanging half up, with a twist in the back, and random pieces were curled all over her hair. It was really very pretty for such a rotten personality.
"Thank you so much Bulma!" Midoriko feigned gratefulness and flung her arms around the woman. A tinge of guilt swept over her momentarily, but she brushed it off and left Bulma for the parlor. Trunks was standing there, talking to his grandfather, who was still in his white lab coat. He spun, and looked at Midoriko.
"You look very nice, Midoriko." Trunks said smiling. Midoriko grinned back at him.
"And you are so cute I could just eat you right up." Midoriko replied. Trunks's smile faded ever so slightly.
'What kind of compliment is that?' he asked himself. 'Why am I escorting her again?' but suddenly, he sneezed, and his eyes got all hazy. Then Midoriko's powder finally kicked in, and Trunks walked over and took her arm. "Are you ready to go?" he asked her.
Inside, Midoriko was smirking triumphantly, and outside she spoke. "Ready when you are, Trunks-koi." and when he didn't say anything about her calling him her koibito, Midoriko knew the powder worked.
****
In the study, Hotaru overheard every word spoken in the parlor. Including Midoriko's lovely, 'Trunks-koi'. Hotaru began meditating to rid herself of the unwanted emotion she was feeling at losing Trunks. She knew that they were only good friends. Those kisses had been a mistake. That dream had to be wrong. She didn't love him, she couldn't stand him.
****
The butler was announcing the last couple before he began the relatives of Capsule Corp.'s manager. From there, he would announce Bulma's parents, Trunks and Midoriko, then Bulma and Vegeta. Hotaru wouldn't be announced. Not only was she not from this dimension, but she didn't have an escort, and refused to be announced any way.
"Mr. and Mrs. Tsukasa!" he announced. (a/n: I had to make up Bulma's maiden name... I couldn't find it!) Everyone clapped for Bulma's parents.
"Mr. Trunks Briefs and Ms. Midoriko Amamiya!" he announced. There were gasps from the crowd. Trunks had never escorted anyone before now. Trunks was calm as he led Midoriko through the crowd to the table. After all, he was technically under a spell. But when they got there, Hotaru was nowhere to be found, and it jogged his memory for a moment, and he looked around. Luckily, Midoriko didn't notice. Hotaru stared like a hawk from the corner of the room nearest to where they sat. It was far more her style not to mingle with a crowd she didn't know.
"And last but not least, Mr. and Mrs. Bulma and Vegeta Briefs! But don't forget to look to the stage to see what's in store for this happy couple." Instead of watching Bulma enter, which angered her, they all averted their eyes to the stage. When Bulma finally looked to the stage, she forgot about yelling at the butler. Even from across the room, she could read it. A humungous bouquet of roses sat on a pedestal that read, 'To Bulma, from Vegeta.' Just as everyone was turning back to see her reaction, she kissed Vegeta. They walked down amongst roaring applause, and sat at their table. "Now you may begin the feast!" the butler announced, and waiters came out of the kitchen and took the orders of everyone who had come.
"When did you find the time to do that?" Bulma asked, happily eating.
"When you weren't looking." Vegeta replied, making her father laugh.
After dinner Bulma got onstage, and settled the crowd. "Thank you all for coming, and I hope you enjoyed the food." Bulma stopped talking, accustomed to the shouts of agreement she got from the crowd. "Tonight, I have a friend here who's been out of the country for a while. I just discovered recently that she has an incredible singing voice, and she's agreed to sing for us tonight, but only one song. I chose 'You light up my life.'" Bulma said, and she stepped down from the stage as Hotaru stepped up.
Then the music came on, the background music to the song she was to sing, and she was given 8 counts from there. Taking the microphone, Hotaru counted the rest of the beats, wondering why she agreed to do this for Bulma. She took a breath, and began.
"So many nights, I'd sit by my window,
Waiting for someone to sing me his song.
So many dreams, I kept deep inside me,
Alone in the dark, but now you've come along.
And you light up my life,
You give me hope, to carry on.
You light up my days
And fill my nights with song.
Rollin' at sea, adrift on the waters
Could it be finally, I'm turning for home
Finally a chance to say, "Hey, I Love You"
Never again to be all alone.
And you light up my life,
You give me hope, to carry on.
You light up my days
And fill my nights with song.
You, You light up my life
You give me hope to carry on
You light up my days
And fill my nights with song
It can't be wrong, when it feels so right
'Cause you, you light up my life. " Hotaru noticed as the music strains died down, that several people were agape, and quite a few were crying. When the last strain faded out, there was a roar of applaus, and Hotaru stepped down from the stage. She was immediately cornered by Bulma, who hugged her.
"You were wonderful, Hotaru! Absolutely wonderful!" Hotaru smiled weekly, and left to her corner.
"Let's have another round of applaus for Hotaru!" Bulma said into the microphone. When the applause settled, Bulma spoke again. "Now, we'll begin the first dance."
People got up and led their couples onto the dance floor, including Trunks. Hotaru had a perfect view of him. The dancing went on for a couple of hours, and people congratulated Hotaru on her solo. Just towards the end, as Hotaru was making her way toward Trunks, Midoriko noticed her. She pulled Trunks in for a kiss, and spun her back to Hotaru. Big mistake, as Trunks's eyes were open. He saw Hotaru, and was pulled out of his trance. Too late.
Hotaru ran as fast as she could to get out. Anywhere would be better than here. Trunks broke off the kiss to a stunned Midoriko, and pushed her away. A tear rolled down Midoriko's cheek as she watched him run after Hotaru.
Outside, Hotaru flew to the roof. Tears flowing freely, she didn't bother to shield her ki. Or her heart for that matter. In seconds, a strong whirlwind formed next to her, and a teenage girl popped in next to her. Almost an exact copy of her mother with pink hair, Rini was the one person Hotaru wanted to see.
"You summoned me through dimensions? No, impossible. Your heart lead me here. You're in pain, Hotaru!" the girl said. "Your mother and mine are both searching for you." Rini told her.
"I assumed they would be. Rini, if I told you I thought I fell in love, what would your reaction be?" Hotaru asked her, her tear streaked face pleadingly looking up at her best friend.
"You did? But wait, what do you mean you think?" Rini asked.
****
Outside, Trunks reached frantically for Hotaru's ki. Surprisingly, he found it. It was on the roof. Along with another strong ki. He flew up to the roof, but didn't fly into view just yet, he wanted to see if it was friend or foe before he killed the person near Hotaru.
****
"Well, I thought I fell in love with a guy here. I really thought I had fallen for him. And I thought he liked me too. But Rini, he was kissing another girl in front of me tonight. And he let her call him -koi. No objections. I don't know what to do, it was like he was under a spell. But I can't explain it..." Hotaru just let her head fall limply into her arms.
"You may well have fallen for this guy, Hotaru. And there is a way to see if he's fallen for you." Rini replied.
"You could just ask him." Trunks said, he was hurting. Everyone saw it. If possible, he was hurting more than Hotaru.
"Well, that too, but-- hey, who the hell are you?" Rini asked.
"Stay away from me you traitor." Hotaru said.
"I take it this is the guy?" Rini asked sarcastically. She knew this was the guy, no questions asked. They were both hurting.
"I can't. I do love you. That I know." Trunks said. He knew this wasn't helping.
"Then why were you kissing Midoriko?" Hotaru spat.
"She kissed me. And it's not what you think!" Trunks replied.
"Hotaru, were Trunks's eyes hazy at all today?" Rini asked. Thinking back, Hotaru nodded.
"Come with me, both of you." Rini said. They each took a hand she extended, and in a flash of light, they disappeared.
They were in the past, re-watching the day slowly as it happened. In fast- forward while they were together, and when they were apart, slowly, but not too slowly, it was like the scene split in half and showed what each was doing. But Rini seemed to be controlling the speed, as well as the time. She played one scene out normally before continuing to fast forward. It was a scene where they were sleeping, and Midoriko was in the room. Trunks gasped, and Hotaru choked on her tears when she heard, "This is going to be much easier than I anticipated." They watched her blow some powdery substance at Trunks, and watched her fabled first knock before it was fast forwarding again. And then it slowed and zoomed in on Trunks's 'screen' and showed his eyes grow hazy and his odd behavior began there. Another flash of light brought them back to the present.
"I love you." Trunks said. Midoriko stood below them, watching them at the top of the slant, they made her sick.
"YOU STAY AWAY FROM HIM HOTARU!" Midoriko shouted up at her.
"YOU STAY AWAY FROM ME, MIDORIKO AMAMIYA!" Trunks shouted down at her, and sent a ki blast to her at her right. She jumped, startled, and ran inside crying. He then proceeded to gather Hotaru up in his arms, and cradle her to his chest.
"I want to stay her for a while longer, Rini. Please, when I send you back, do not tell mother of where I am? She'll send the guards to retrieve me. But I want to stay longer." Hotaru begged.
"I promise you, I won't." Rini replied softly. The whirlwind appeared, and Rini stepped back into it, and was whisked away to her rightful dimension.
"I'm sorry about all of this." Hotaru said.
"It's alright. I love you." Trunks replied.
"I love you too." He kissed her, slowly and passionately. Neither before now had realized how much the other cared. Until now.
*~*~*~*~
Heh. I told you I would make it a longer chapter this time. ^_^ Well, I hope you liked it, please R&R! ~Krysta