Michiru was quick to hear her child but Haruka never woke up. This was something that the senshi of Neptune could understand. She had just exhausted her, after all. She quickly quieted Kiseki down by feeding her. After she had burped the little girl, she sat on the couch and rocked her back to sleep, which took forty five minutes inside of its self. A little while after Kiseki had fallen asleep, so had she. She was propped up against the arm of the couch so she wouldn't accidentally roll over on top of the baby.
The next morning, at eight o'clock, Haruka found herself alone in her bed. She knew she would have to get used to the idea of waking up alone. She got out of bed and headed over to the bathroom to take a shower. Half an hour later, once she was dressed, she quietly went down to the kitchen to make herself some tea. She was unaware that Michiru was already awake.
Michiru watched as Haruka walked past her, completely oblivious to her presence. She choked back a laugh as the blonde nearly tripped over her own feet. She looked down at Kiseki as she started to stir. She cradled the child closer to her chest as she stood up and walked to the kitchen. She saw Haruka sitting at the table, facing the opposite way. She walked up to the blonde and ran her hand over Haruka's hair, which was still a little bit wet.
Haruka turned with a start. She let out a sigh of relief when she realized that is was only Michiru. She took a deep breath to calm her pounding heart. "Good morning," she said with a bright smile.
Michiru smiled back at her then looked at Kiseki as she sat down across from her wife. "Sorry I scared you."
Haruka shrugged and stood up. She went over to where Michiru sat and knelt down next to her, resting her arms on Michiru's knees for balance. "Do you want me to take her for a while? You look tense," she offered, holding out her arms.
Michiru was glad that she offered and carefully let Haruka take Kiseki out of her arms. It felt a little strange to her now to have her hands free. She had gotten quite used to holding her daughter. "So who called when we got home?" she asked as she stretched her arms. It felt good to finally stretch her muscles.
"Oh, yeah. That was Rei. She said that she had been calling three or four times a day to see if you were home yet," Haruka explained. She went back to her chair and sat back down. She smiled down at Kiseki. "She really is a miracle, Michi." She chuckled before continuing. "Our beautiful little miracle."
Michiru thought that she was going to cry. She managed to hold back her tears as she stood up and walked out to the living room. She sat down on the couch and picked up the receiver of the telephone.
"Who are you calling?" Haruka asked, standing up. She forgot about her cup of tea and went out to the couch. She sat down slowly so she wouldn't hurt Kiseki. She smiled down at the child and then kissed her.
Michiru smiled. "I'm going to invite everyone over to see her, starting with Sets." She dialed Setsuna's phone number and waited for her friend to pick up. Once she had invited Setsuna and Hotaru, she proceeded to call the other senshi. She finally hung up the phone for good fifteen minutes later. "Everyone's coming over, with the exception of Usagi and Mamoru, of course. They'll be here in about fifteen minutes," she said though she knew that Haruka wasn't paying attention.
Haruka stared lovingly down at Kiseki as she held her tiny little hand. She was caught up in her thoughts about her daughter's future. "Hey, Michi? Do you think she'll be a senshi?" She hoped that Kiseki would be one but she didn't want her to at the same time. The thought of a new enemy hurting Kiseki scared her but she didn't know why. She had already gone through it all with Hotaru.
Michiru shrugged. "I don't know. Probably." She stood up and walked over to where Haruka sat, coming up behind her. She bent down, wrapped her arms around Haruka's neck, and hugged her. "I'm gonna go take a shower," she whispered into her wife's ear. She smiled at Kiseki before kissing Haruka's cheek and walking off towards the stairs. She headed up the stairs and went to their bedroom for a change of clothes before heading to the bathroom.
Haruka heard Michiru turn on the water just before she heard a car pull into their driveway. "That was quick," she thought. She turned her head and arched her neck to look out the window. She saw the recognizable color of Setsuna's car sitting in the driveway. The driver's side door opened and her friend got out. When the passenger side door opened, Haruka knew that Setsuna had let Hotaru stay home from school. Michiru didn't tell her if Hotaru would have been coming or now. She stood up and walked over to the door to welcome her friend and daughter. "Good morning," she said when she opened the door.
Setsuna looked at Haruka and smiled. "Morning," she said as she walked towards the mansion's entrance-way. She stopped in front of Haruka and looked down to see what she was holding. "Oh, Haruka! She's beautiful!" she exclaimed, admiring her friend's child.
Hotaru, who had obviously woken up not too long ago, walked up to her parents silently. She rubbed her eyes as she let out a long yawn. "Good morning, Haruka-papa," she slurred. She had yet to see Kiseki as she kept her eyes closed the whole time.
Haruka chuckled. "Morning, Hime-chan," she said as she reached over and ran her hand over Hotaru's hair. "Do you want to go back to sleep?" she asked in another chuckle. She adjusted Kiseki in her arms to steady her hold on the girl.
Hotaru hadn't the strength at the moment to speak so she just nodded. She heard Kiseki coo and opened her eyes in curiosity. She looked at the baby and then up at her papa. "Is that my sister?" she asked cautiously. She looked back at Kiseki and stared at her.
Haruka nodded and smiled. She got down on one knee so Hotaru could fully see Kiseki. She looked up at Setsuna, who also knelt, and then back at Hotaru. "Her name's Kiseki." She watched as Hotaru stared at Kiseki in amazement.
Hotaru cocked her head. "I've never seen a baby that small before." She was lightly nudged by Setsuna and was instantly silent. She looked at Kiseki for another moment before yawning again.
"Don't worry about it, Sets. She doesn't know any better," Haruka murmured. She seen Setsuna shrug and then stood back up. "Come on in, you guys. Hotaru, you can go back to sleep for a while if you want. There's an empty room just over there," she explained as they all walked into the mansion. She closed the front door and followed Setsuna into the living room as Hotaru went to the empty guest room.
Setsuna helped Haruka sit down on the couch and then sat down herself. "Where's Michiru?" she asked, looking around the living room. She admired the way that the pair had decorated the room and had half a mind to redecorate her own house when she got back.
Haruka lightly rocked Kiseki in her arms. She missed being able to do this since Hotaru had grown up so quickly and had gone to live with Setsuna. "She's upstairs taking a shower. She should be down here pretty soon." She listened for the running water and when she heard nothing, it only confirmed what she had said. She looked over to find Setsuna staring at Kiseki again. "Do you want to hold her?"
Setsuna was almost shocked when Haruka asked. "Are you sure?" she asked, a little nervous. She hadn't really been around a whole lot while Hotaru was that little due to her being in college and she had never had the chance to hold a child as small as Kiseki before. When Haruka nodded, she held out her arms and very, very carefully took the tiny child, supporting the head and cradling her as Haruka was instructing her to. A slight movement caught her eye a moment later and she looked up to see Michiru walk into the living room. "Morning, Michiru."
Michiru smiled at the sight of her best friend. "Good morning. I see you've met Kiseki," she said as she sat down between Haruka's legs on the cough and snuggled into her. She didn't have to ask where Hotaru was because she had heard Haruka offer to let her go back to sleep. Haruka wrapped her arms around her wais and sighed.
"How are you feeling?" Setsuna asked, looking back down at Kiseki. She smiled as the little girl slept soundly in her arms.
Michiru also smiled. "I'm fine. I'm a little tired, though. Kiseki woke up at, like, 3:30 this morning and didn't go back to sleep until five o'clock," she grumbled. She put her hands on top of Haruka's, turned her head, and kissed her wife.
All was silent in the mansion as everyone basked in the beauty of everything around them. It was a perfect day outside and there was nothing that needed to be done, with the exception of being with everyone who was considered family. They all heard a car pull up to the house and looked out the window to find Rei walking up to the front door rather quickly.
Michiru got up and opened the door for her friend, only to be greeted by a quick and tight hug. "Hi, Rei," she said in a laugh. She was released by the younger girl and stepped aside to allow her to come in.
Rei walked into the mansion and was amazed. She had never been inside her friends' house and was astonished by the interior of it. "Wow. I love your place, Michiru," she absent-mindedly said as she looked around.
"Thanks," Michiru said as she sat back down with Haruka. "Want to sit down, Rei?" she asked with a chuckle, watching her bewildered friend. She looked over at Setsuna, who was just staring at her daughter, and laughed. "Sets, you think too much."
Rei came out of her reverie and looked at the eldest senshi. "Oh, is that your daughter?" she asked as she walked over to the couch. She bent over slightly and looked at Kiseki. "She looks a lot like you, Haruka."
Haruka blushed a bit, though she didn't understand why. She rested her chin on Michiru's shoulder and chuckled softly. "I think she looks more like Michi," she whispered into her wife's ear.
Rei smiled at the sight of the two lovebirds. "You two are so cute. What's her name?" She reached out and gently held the baby's fragile, tiny hand.
Michiru smiled and snuggled into Haruka. "Kiseki," she answered after a moment of complete silence. She looked out the window and seen two cars pull into the driveway. She groaned quietly and leaned back into Haruka. "I don't feel like getting up anymore," she grumbled.
Everyone laughed. Then Rei stood up and went to the door. When she opened it, she seen Ami get out of one car and Makoto and Minako get out of the other one. She let her fellow senshi inside the mansion and closed the door.
"Morning!" Minako said for all three of them. "Mako-chan just got up, so don't mind her." She looked over at her girlfriend and smiled at her.
Makoto looked at Minako through sleep-filled eyes. "Well, excuse me. I had to work late last night," she explained. She walked over to the empty couch (Haruka had suggested buying two in case of gatherings like this) and sat down with Minako right behind her. She leaned back into the comfort of the soft cushions and relaxed.
Minako sat down next to Makoto and looked over at Michiru, who kissed Haruka lightly and looked back at her. "How are you feeling, Michiru?"
Michiru shrugged. "Just tired." She looked over at Ami and Rei, who were talking over by the front door. "Are you guys gonna stand there all day?"
Once her friends had walked over and sat down next to Minako, she turned her attention to Haruka. "You're being awfully quiet. You all right?" she whispered. She turned her body so that she was facing her wife.
Haruka shook her head. "I'm fine. I was just thinking." She took Michiru's hands and squeezed them lightly.
Michiru looked into Haruka's teal eyes. "What are you thinking of?" She let go of one of the blonde's hands and caressed her cheek. "It's nothing bad, right?" Michiru knew that her lover had been thinking a lot since her father had died three weeks ago. She also knew that those thoughts were about death, but more specifically, her own death.
Haruka closed her eyes and lowered her head. "I'm sorry Michi. I've been trying not to, I swear." She lifted her head and went completely silent when Michiru put a finger to her lips.
The musician smiled, trying to cheer her wife up. "It's ok, Ruka. Just remember that you have me, and everyone else," she whispered. She leaned forward and rested her forehead against Haruka's. "I love you."
Haruka felt a bit better. "I love you, too." She didn't fight when Michiru full-out kissed her. Normally, she didn't like to kiss Michiru in front of all their friends but she didn't care at that moment since nobody was paying a bit of attention to them; they had all gotten up and had gathered around Setsuna to look at the baby.
Minako, feeling very curious, decided to ask them the one question that had been plaguing her for the last six months (since she found out that Michiru was pregnant). "I don't mean to be so blunt about this, Michiru, but just how did you get pregnant, anyway?" She felt daggers coming at her from all directions and almost regretted asking the question, but she wanted to know.
Michiru just chuckled then turned to face her friends. "Well, Usagi and I had been talking about having families a few months before she became the Neo-Queen. She promised me then that once she had 'claimed the thrown', she would grant my wish. Now, we have Kiseki," she explained. She smiled at her friends and chuckled. "Thank you, all," she said randomly.
AN: Well, what do you guys think? Good chapter? Please review and lemme know. Oh, and don't ask about the whole "Haruka's father died" thing. I just felt like adding that in there to explain the thoughts. I might do a little side fic about it, though, since I did bring it up.