Author's Note: You know, it's funny. I always write the author's note
before writing my new chapter, but by the time I post the new chapter, I
have to change the author's note because what I wrote is obsolete. Ah
well...
AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA (I am insane...)
Anyhow, I really, really, really apologize about updating so late, but I had a bad case of too much homework and a lot of writer's block. Hopefully, inspiration will soon hit me but for now, I'll be struggling. (especially with A.P. exams coming up)
Disclaimer: I can't draw. At all. I must be the only asian girl devoid of artistic talent. I don't even have the standard beautiful handwriting, mine is all scrabbly and masculine. Do you really think I would've been able to draw/create any of these manga?
***
**
*
Chapter Four: Lessons
*
BAM!
"Usagi, maybe we should work on getting you to walk without falling first. Then you can put the book back on your head and work on walking with grace." Barbara said with amusement.
Usagi scratched the back of her head and flushed with embarrassment.
"Gomen (sorry) Bara-chan, but I swear there was something on the floor!" Usagi said defensively.
"Like what, the carpet?" Tim asked.
Usagi's cheeks puffed up.
"For your information, there was a leaf!" Usagi said as she pointed to the ground.
"That's a pattern on the carpet." Barbara calmly pointed out, amusement dancing in her eyes.
"Bara-chan, YOU ARE NOT HELPING!" Usagi yelled.
"Whoever heard of tripping on a leaf anyway?" Tim retorted.
Usagi blew him a raspberry and walked up the stairs in a huff...before stumbling and losing her balance. She stood at an awkward angle, wind- milling her arms for a second that seemed to last a minute, before falling backwards. Momentum carried her and she rolled, head over heels, back to the spot she had started from...in front of Tim, Alfred, and Barbara.
"Let's go work on your etiquette first." Barbara said as she helped her up. "Alfred, please set up the dinnerware."
"Yes, Miss Gordon." Alfred replied
Usagi groaned as she was dragged away to the kitchen by Barbara, Alfred leading the way.
"What do you need all those forks for, anyway?!" She cried in anguish.
After Usagi was out of sight, though not out of hearing, Tim reached down and picked up the leaf that he had cleverly camouflaged in with the real leaf patterns of the carpet.
"Who could trip over a leaf, indeed." Tim said to himself with an affectionate smile as he twirled the leaf in his fingers.
*
Usagi flopped onto her bed and moaned. Learning all the skills required to be a great queen was giving her a headache. Bru-chan had even called in Bara-chan to help with her training while he was away on business. Here was this rich man giving her all these opportunities, but they didn't do any good because she was stupid and clumsy. It had only been two weeks and she already felt like giving up. Suddenly, she frowned.
"No, I can't do that. Minna-chan (everyone) gave their lives because they believed in me, so I can't let them down. I'm going to be the best queen in the universe's history. Even better than kaa-san (mom). I'm going to make everyone happy." Usagi said with resolve before promptly falling asleep.
*
"Mmmm...Five more minutes, Pen-san. Just five more minutes, please!" Usagi moaned.
"I'm afraid Master Bruce has insisted that you awaken right now, Miss Usagi." Alfred said with a smile.
"Bru-chan is back?!?" Usagi squealed excitedly.
"Yes, but he's brought..." Alfred started, but it was too late. She had already run out of the room in her bedclothes.
With a shake of his head and a smile, Alfred took a robe off a hanger and started down the hall. He only hoped he wouldn't miss the fun when Usagi arrived in the main hall wearing the sheer, white nightgown that Master Wayne had bought for her.
*
"BRU-CHAN!" Usagi yelled as she ran down the stairs and into the front hall. Although she had yet to break through his tough exterior, she had noticed that when she was charismatic and hyper, Bruce tended to lighten up a little and almost smile. She liked that. He had a nice smile.
Usagi was thrown out of her thoughts when she suddenly hit a very tall, solid, person. She fell flat on her behind. As she dazedly sat on the floor, she thought, 'That was a pretty rigid person. Must be Bru-chan.'
Bruce turned around and helped Usagi off her feet. That's when he finally registered what she was wearing. A nightgown. A very sheer nightgown.
"Gentlemen, if you'll just head on to the dining room on your own, I'll join you in a minute." Bruce said as he tried to hide Usagi's small form behind his own large one.
"What've you got behind your back Bruce?" A finely dressed man asked. He peeked around him and caught sight of a scantily dressed Usagi.
"You old dog, going for the young ones, I see!" Another man exclaimed.
Usagi blushed a beet red. These men thought she was doing dirty things with Bru-chan! Ecchi!
"No, no." Bruce said with a bright smile. "This is Tsukino Usagi. She's the newest member of my family. My foster daughter."
"Call her whatever you want, Bruce, but she's still a fine thing. Say, how much do you charge?" The man asked as he eyed her.
Usagi turned even redder than before and looked down at her shoes. She was being mistaken for a hooker!
"I assure you, Usagi is just an orphan under my care." Bruce said with a laugh.
Usagi turned big, teary eyes to "Bru-chan". He was hardly defending her. And why did he keep laughing? She'd expected Batman to strike the men down and fight for her honor.
Bruce felt his heart sink when she looked at him with those eyes. Those puppy dog eyes that made her look like she'd been beaten and abused. He felt guilty, but what could he do? He had an image to keep up as the multi- billion dollar playboy, Bruce Wayne. It had to be done.
Suddenly, Alfred arrived on the scene with a robe and helped Usagi put it on. He gave Bruce a curt nod, of assurance. Bruce Wayne's reputation had to be kept. However, Alfred's confidence in his decisions didn't lighten his heart as he watched Usagi shuffle away, snuffling.
'I'm so sorry, Usagi.' Bruce thought as he pasted a smile on his face and lead the ambassadors to the dining room.
*
Tim looked bewildered. Usagi had shown up in his room about an hour ago in her robe, sniffling and sad-eyed. He had asked her what was wrong and the dams broke. She threw herself on his bed and started bawling, incoherent words about "Bru-baka" escaping every once in a while. She had calmed down after a while and had stayed, face-down, on his bed as she hiccupped. Being raised by Bruce, Tim was at a loss of what to do in this kind of situation so he just sat on the bed next to her, rubbing her back. Apparently, this was the right thing to do because her hiccups quieted and she turned to him when they had stopped altogether.
"Bru-baka...he...he...he...he just stood there and laughed!" Usagi stuttered out.
"Usagi...I always stand there and laugh at you...especially during your lessons." Tim said as a sweat drop formed in front of his head.
"B-b-but they were calling me a hooker!" Usagi said.
Tim's eyes widened.
"WHAT?!" He yelled as he jumped onto his feet.
"I ran downstairs 'cause I didn't know anyone was with Bru-baka and those old hentais (perverts) saw me in my nightgown and started to ask me how much I charge!" She sobbed.
"Those filthy..." Tim started.
"And Bruce just LAUGHED and said I was his foster daughter, but he didn't stop smiling. I thought he would beat them or defend me, but he didn't even put on an angry face." She said sadly.
Tim sighed. Usagi wasn't that mad at the ambassadors, she would get over it. What really bothered her was the fact that he had begun to think of Bruce as a father-type figure and he had totally dismissed her.
"Usagi, Bruce has to act that way. It's how he keeps people from figuring out that he's Batman." Tim reassured her.
"But what if that's what he's really like?" She asked.
"It's not. That's the thing about Bruce. All of us superheroes have secret identities so that we can be ourselves and normal lives, but in Bruce's case, Batman is who he really is. 'Bruce Wayne' is the alter-ego he uses to make sure that Batman has enough funds for his gadgets and things." He said.
Usagi's eyebrows crinkled up. That was so sad. Everyone she knew fought so that they could enjoy their normal lives, but Bru-chan acted normal so he could fight.
"He just likes fighting?" She asked.
"I don't think he's a violent person, but Bruce's parents were killed right in front of him when he was just a kid. I think he fights because he feels like he has to make up for not being able to save his parents.
"Either that, or he doesn't want anyone else to go through what he had to. That's the main reason he took me and Dick in. Dick's parents were murdered by two-face. I grew up on the streets with my old man, but he was killed too." He said sadly.
"But you two aren't anything like Bruce." Usagi said.
"I dunno. I mean, Dick was a lot older than Bruce was when his parents were killed. I'm a lot closer to Bruce's age and Alfred says that I'm more like Bruce. Plus, Bruce took us in. Bruce didn't have anyone to help him out. Sure, he had Alfred, but Alfred didn't know what it was like to lose his parents. Bruce knew what it was like so it was easier for him to help us out."
Tap, tap, tap.
"Come in!" Tim said.
Alfred walked in with a bouquet of white roses. They had long ago learned that Usagi would burst into tears when red roses were in her line of sight.
"Master Bruce extends his apologies to Miss Usagi and would like to know if she would like to go shopping with him tomorrow." Alfred said with a bow and a smile on his face.
Usagi's face broke out into a grin.
"Accepted!" She said.
***
**
*
I know, I know, it's way too short but like I said, inspiration just isn't hitting me so please forgive!
SailorUniverse A.K.A. Sel: I'm going to set Usagi up with a few characters (a few, maybe two or three) because Darien said to make sure she's happy, and a thousand years is a LONG time. Hehe. In the end, her thousand years will be up and she'll marry darien and rule crystal Tokyo and have chibi- usa. HOWEVER, there's still post-crystal Tokyo to think about. *hint hint*
JoWashington: hmmm...Spiderman...not a bad idea. That one actually never occurred to me. I will put it on my "possible future dimensions" list. Actually, I've thought of her going to meet the x-men and I remember they did a crossover with x-men and spiderman in the same world, so I could have him just drop in from time to time (pun-intended).
AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA (I am insane...)
Anyhow, I really, really, really apologize about updating so late, but I had a bad case of too much homework and a lot of writer's block. Hopefully, inspiration will soon hit me but for now, I'll be struggling. (especially with A.P. exams coming up)
Disclaimer: I can't draw. At all. I must be the only asian girl devoid of artistic talent. I don't even have the standard beautiful handwriting, mine is all scrabbly and masculine. Do you really think I would've been able to draw/create any of these manga?
***
**
*
Chapter Four: Lessons
*
BAM!
"Usagi, maybe we should work on getting you to walk without falling first. Then you can put the book back on your head and work on walking with grace." Barbara said with amusement.
Usagi scratched the back of her head and flushed with embarrassment.
"Gomen (sorry) Bara-chan, but I swear there was something on the floor!" Usagi said defensively.
"Like what, the carpet?" Tim asked.
Usagi's cheeks puffed up.
"For your information, there was a leaf!" Usagi said as she pointed to the ground.
"That's a pattern on the carpet." Barbara calmly pointed out, amusement dancing in her eyes.
"Bara-chan, YOU ARE NOT HELPING!" Usagi yelled.
"Whoever heard of tripping on a leaf anyway?" Tim retorted.
Usagi blew him a raspberry and walked up the stairs in a huff...before stumbling and losing her balance. She stood at an awkward angle, wind- milling her arms for a second that seemed to last a minute, before falling backwards. Momentum carried her and she rolled, head over heels, back to the spot she had started from...in front of Tim, Alfred, and Barbara.
"Let's go work on your etiquette first." Barbara said as she helped her up. "Alfred, please set up the dinnerware."
"Yes, Miss Gordon." Alfred replied
Usagi groaned as she was dragged away to the kitchen by Barbara, Alfred leading the way.
"What do you need all those forks for, anyway?!" She cried in anguish.
After Usagi was out of sight, though not out of hearing, Tim reached down and picked up the leaf that he had cleverly camouflaged in with the real leaf patterns of the carpet.
"Who could trip over a leaf, indeed." Tim said to himself with an affectionate smile as he twirled the leaf in his fingers.
*
Usagi flopped onto her bed and moaned. Learning all the skills required to be a great queen was giving her a headache. Bru-chan had even called in Bara-chan to help with her training while he was away on business. Here was this rich man giving her all these opportunities, but they didn't do any good because she was stupid and clumsy. It had only been two weeks and she already felt like giving up. Suddenly, she frowned.
"No, I can't do that. Minna-chan (everyone) gave their lives because they believed in me, so I can't let them down. I'm going to be the best queen in the universe's history. Even better than kaa-san (mom). I'm going to make everyone happy." Usagi said with resolve before promptly falling asleep.
*
"Mmmm...Five more minutes, Pen-san. Just five more minutes, please!" Usagi moaned.
"I'm afraid Master Bruce has insisted that you awaken right now, Miss Usagi." Alfred said with a smile.
"Bru-chan is back?!?" Usagi squealed excitedly.
"Yes, but he's brought..." Alfred started, but it was too late. She had already run out of the room in her bedclothes.
With a shake of his head and a smile, Alfred took a robe off a hanger and started down the hall. He only hoped he wouldn't miss the fun when Usagi arrived in the main hall wearing the sheer, white nightgown that Master Wayne had bought for her.
*
"BRU-CHAN!" Usagi yelled as she ran down the stairs and into the front hall. Although she had yet to break through his tough exterior, she had noticed that when she was charismatic and hyper, Bruce tended to lighten up a little and almost smile. She liked that. He had a nice smile.
Usagi was thrown out of her thoughts when she suddenly hit a very tall, solid, person. She fell flat on her behind. As she dazedly sat on the floor, she thought, 'That was a pretty rigid person. Must be Bru-chan.'
Bruce turned around and helped Usagi off her feet. That's when he finally registered what she was wearing. A nightgown. A very sheer nightgown.
"Gentlemen, if you'll just head on to the dining room on your own, I'll join you in a minute." Bruce said as he tried to hide Usagi's small form behind his own large one.
"What've you got behind your back Bruce?" A finely dressed man asked. He peeked around him and caught sight of a scantily dressed Usagi.
"You old dog, going for the young ones, I see!" Another man exclaimed.
Usagi blushed a beet red. These men thought she was doing dirty things with Bru-chan! Ecchi!
"No, no." Bruce said with a bright smile. "This is Tsukino Usagi. She's the newest member of my family. My foster daughter."
"Call her whatever you want, Bruce, but she's still a fine thing. Say, how much do you charge?" The man asked as he eyed her.
Usagi turned even redder than before and looked down at her shoes. She was being mistaken for a hooker!
"I assure you, Usagi is just an orphan under my care." Bruce said with a laugh.
Usagi turned big, teary eyes to "Bru-chan". He was hardly defending her. And why did he keep laughing? She'd expected Batman to strike the men down and fight for her honor.
Bruce felt his heart sink when she looked at him with those eyes. Those puppy dog eyes that made her look like she'd been beaten and abused. He felt guilty, but what could he do? He had an image to keep up as the multi- billion dollar playboy, Bruce Wayne. It had to be done.
Suddenly, Alfred arrived on the scene with a robe and helped Usagi put it on. He gave Bruce a curt nod, of assurance. Bruce Wayne's reputation had to be kept. However, Alfred's confidence in his decisions didn't lighten his heart as he watched Usagi shuffle away, snuffling.
'I'm so sorry, Usagi.' Bruce thought as he pasted a smile on his face and lead the ambassadors to the dining room.
*
Tim looked bewildered. Usagi had shown up in his room about an hour ago in her robe, sniffling and sad-eyed. He had asked her what was wrong and the dams broke. She threw herself on his bed and started bawling, incoherent words about "Bru-baka" escaping every once in a while. She had calmed down after a while and had stayed, face-down, on his bed as she hiccupped. Being raised by Bruce, Tim was at a loss of what to do in this kind of situation so he just sat on the bed next to her, rubbing her back. Apparently, this was the right thing to do because her hiccups quieted and she turned to him when they had stopped altogether.
"Bru-baka...he...he...he...he just stood there and laughed!" Usagi stuttered out.
"Usagi...I always stand there and laugh at you...especially during your lessons." Tim said as a sweat drop formed in front of his head.
"B-b-but they were calling me a hooker!" Usagi said.
Tim's eyes widened.
"WHAT?!" He yelled as he jumped onto his feet.
"I ran downstairs 'cause I didn't know anyone was with Bru-baka and those old hentais (perverts) saw me in my nightgown and started to ask me how much I charge!" She sobbed.
"Those filthy..." Tim started.
"And Bruce just LAUGHED and said I was his foster daughter, but he didn't stop smiling. I thought he would beat them or defend me, but he didn't even put on an angry face." She said sadly.
Tim sighed. Usagi wasn't that mad at the ambassadors, she would get over it. What really bothered her was the fact that he had begun to think of Bruce as a father-type figure and he had totally dismissed her.
"Usagi, Bruce has to act that way. It's how he keeps people from figuring out that he's Batman." Tim reassured her.
"But what if that's what he's really like?" She asked.
"It's not. That's the thing about Bruce. All of us superheroes have secret identities so that we can be ourselves and normal lives, but in Bruce's case, Batman is who he really is. 'Bruce Wayne' is the alter-ego he uses to make sure that Batman has enough funds for his gadgets and things." He said.
Usagi's eyebrows crinkled up. That was so sad. Everyone she knew fought so that they could enjoy their normal lives, but Bru-chan acted normal so he could fight.
"He just likes fighting?" She asked.
"I don't think he's a violent person, but Bruce's parents were killed right in front of him when he was just a kid. I think he fights because he feels like he has to make up for not being able to save his parents.
"Either that, or he doesn't want anyone else to go through what he had to. That's the main reason he took me and Dick in. Dick's parents were murdered by two-face. I grew up on the streets with my old man, but he was killed too." He said sadly.
"But you two aren't anything like Bruce." Usagi said.
"I dunno. I mean, Dick was a lot older than Bruce was when his parents were killed. I'm a lot closer to Bruce's age and Alfred says that I'm more like Bruce. Plus, Bruce took us in. Bruce didn't have anyone to help him out. Sure, he had Alfred, but Alfred didn't know what it was like to lose his parents. Bruce knew what it was like so it was easier for him to help us out."
Tap, tap, tap.
"Come in!" Tim said.
Alfred walked in with a bouquet of white roses. They had long ago learned that Usagi would burst into tears when red roses were in her line of sight.
"Master Bruce extends his apologies to Miss Usagi and would like to know if she would like to go shopping with him tomorrow." Alfred said with a bow and a smile on his face.
Usagi's face broke out into a grin.
"Accepted!" She said.
***
**
*
I know, I know, it's way too short but like I said, inspiration just isn't hitting me so please forgive!
SailorUniverse A.K.A. Sel: I'm going to set Usagi up with a few characters (a few, maybe two or three) because Darien said to make sure she's happy, and a thousand years is a LONG time. Hehe. In the end, her thousand years will be up and she'll marry darien and rule crystal Tokyo and have chibi- usa. HOWEVER, there's still post-crystal Tokyo to think about. *hint hint*
JoWashington: hmmm...Spiderman...not a bad idea. That one actually never occurred to me. I will put it on my "possible future dimensions" list. Actually, I've thought of her going to meet the x-men and I remember they did a crossover with x-men and spiderman in the same world, so I could have him just drop in from time to time (pun-intended).