A PITTED ASTEROID ORBITING THE EARTH'S TALE

Chapter 11: Drop of the Ball

A Sailor Moon/Lord of the Rings crossover… and perhaps a bit stereotypical?

SUMMARY: Serena Usagi Tsukino is tired with the plans of Fate and Destiny and rebels, paving a path of her own filled with many uncertainties. A SM/LOTR Xover

DISCLAIMER: Don't sue because I got nothing worthy. I cannot possible hope to claim the works of Naeko Takeuchi and J.R.R. Tolkien so lay off. All original characters as well as the plot however, are exclusively mine. That is all.

LAST TIME ON PITTED ASTEROID:

The watcher took out a pale hand from her navy blue cloak, which was well worn and had grown thin. Yet it still preserved its warmth as it had since it was made, perhaps by some charm unknown to mankind. Those complicated blue eyes glanced briefly down at the crumpled message that lay in her hand. There was a weathered portrait of a regal lady clad in white and script of ancient runes followed by a hastily scribbled directive at the end. The script read:

The guardian shall fall and destiny shall fail.

Her path shall break into darkness

Her heart shall be put to test.

In the end the dark will consume

And chaos rule supreme.

Beneath the runes was scribbled: Watch and wait.

The observer briefly closed her eyes and returned the message to the folds of her cloak.

Yes, watch and wait was all she could do for now, much as she longed for the wait to end.

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A Pitted Asteroid Orbiting the Earth's Tale Chapter 11: Drop of the Ball

Today was it. Today was THE day. Nodding self consciously to herself, Usagi sat up straighter. Today she WOULD talk to Mamoru. Biting her lip, Usagi squared her shoulders and marched down the streets of Juuban to Mamoru's apartment.

She had woken up for the past few days with a terrible feeling in her gut. More than the usual feelings of doom and gloom anyway. But in particular, she knew more than anything that her life was not hers anymore. It was as if Usagi Tsukino was now fading to exist.

Usagi still felt the same… but at the same time, was quite unsettled as to what the future might hold. When she thought about life ahead, that sense of security no longer comforted her. It was as if things had become… unbalanced. And more than anything, she needed to talk with Mamoru, to tell him of what she felt, and to sort out just what was going on. That may include telling him about her mysterious stalker.

Yet as much as Usagi was apprehensive about the future, she couldn't help but feel a little elated, and more than a little independent. If her gut instinct was right, then perhaps her future wasn't so set in stone as she was led to believe. Perhaps this warrior of the moon could choose which path she wanted to walk, and live the life she always wanted. If not a normal life, than a life filled with choices made by herself.

It was Usagi's secret little dream to have a life unbidden by the ancient powers who seemed so set to use her as their little pawn in the game of Good vs. Evil. She liked fighting the good fight. But the ability to choose her battles, and make her own decisions, was a freedom she longed to have.

And so, picking up her heels, Usagi made her way to her boyfriend's apartment with a little more eagerness than she felt moments before.

It's surprising how a small realization can unfold a whole new set of options. Such was the case for Usagi by the time she raised her hand to knock on Mamoru's apartment. She could do this.

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On yet another plane of existence, between the fabric of time and space…

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Pluto eyed the distant actions of the princess from her ancient mirror and frowned. Odd, she thought, What's this?

The mirror had begun to take a glazed sort of look, the kind where if one squints their eyes hard enough, the image blurs together. Alarmed, Pluto waved her staff over the mirror, and attempted to push the fog away. Unfortunately, the white mist overtook the mirror completely, blocking the actions depicted in the mirror from view.

Not good, not good at all, she thought grimly to herself, this calls for a personal visit.

With a bang and clang of her ornate staff, Pluto reinforced the guarded spells over the Gate of Time, and with another swish of her hands and a flashing purple light, she was gone.

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Back on Earth…

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"Hey."

"Hey Usa, this is a surprise. Come on in."

"Arigatou Mamo-chan."

Usagi silently slid in and slipped off her shoes, and followed Mamoru into the living room.

"Want anything to eat? I was just making a snack…"

"No thanks."

Mamoru frowned. Usagi seemed to be acting awful weird and she refused food, "Everything okay Usa? Is something going on that you want to tell me?"

Usagi opened her mouth to speak but closed it and furrowed her brows. She glared at the carpet as if drawing some strength from the coffee stain on the floor a few feet away.

"Usa?"

"When did I stop being Usako?"

Mamoru became even more confused by this, "What do you mean? Of course you're my Usako…"

"Am I really, Mamoru?"

"Usag… Usako, what's wrong? Why are you saying this?"

Usagi took a deep breath to calm her nerves. She needed to say this right. She owed him that much.

"Mamo-chan… Mamoru, what – what is this?"

"Is what Usa? What is what?"

"What is us? I mean, what are we?"

"Usagi," Mamoru laughed nervously, "You're not making sense."

"Yeah," she let out a dry chuckle, "I'm not making sense to myself."

A few moments passed before she spoke again, "I need to tell you something I realized the other day. I mean, it's probably nothing, but it's just been nagging me forever. Don't worry," she assured, seeing the tense look on Mamoru's face, "I just… need to clear some questions up. Okay?"

Mamoru stood where he was, looking at her intently, as if reading the answer on her face. Then he grinned and plopped down next to her on the couch, "Yeah… Alright. Shoot odango atama."

Usagi smiled softly, "I miss that, you know. You haven't called me that in ages." Taking a deep breath, Usagi gently took Mamoru's hands in hers, and gazed at him thoughtfully.

"Just listen, because I don't think I'll have the strength to finish if you speak," she said, as Mamoru nodded, and squeezed her hands reassuringly.

"I've been doing a lot of thinking – yeah, me thinking, what a riot right? But seriously, have you ever thought of the future? I know – I mean, we're supposed to rule Crystal Tokyo someday. We're supposed to get married and have Rini and be like, these all powerful rulers. Doesn't that seem like a big jump?

"I mean, do you really think me, a sixteen year old teen from Juuban who has a passion for video games and strawberry milkshakes, and you, a twenty year old college buff are really you know… meant for each other?" Seeing the alarmed look on Mamoru's face, Usagi rushed to explain, "I'm – no, it's not what you think – it's just that I'm confused, and I began thinking about the future – and oh bugger… I'm sorry Mamoru I'm going about this all wrong!"

With a wail of frustration, Usagi collapsed on the couch and buried her face in her hands and moaned loudly.

"Usagi…"

More moaning and muffled cries of befuddlement.

"Usa…"

"Usako… aishiteru," My rabbit, I love you.

"Oh Mamo-chan," Usagi sobbed, burying into his shoulder as he sat next to her, "watashi wa anata ga aishiteru." Oh my Protector, I love you too.

The destined duo sat there, comforting each other and being true soul mates, completing the other half as they were meant to be.

A few hours later, Usagi woke up, having fallen asleep on the couch against Mamoru. Blushing at the compromising position they were in, she got up and smiled at her soul mate. Giggling softly at his boyish smile in his sleep, Usagi traced the outline of his face, brushing a few strands of ebony hair away.

"Ohayou Usako," said Mamoru sleepily, grinning lazily up at her while bringing a hand of his to caress hers. Hello my rabbit

"Baka!" Usagi playfully bit back, "You were awake the whole time!" Stupid

"And I don't regret it odango."

"Silly Mamo-chan!"

"Only for you koneko." kitten

Usagi smiled at Mamoru's endearment, but then bit her lip, "Mamo-chan, I'm sorry about earlier, and just bursting in like that. I don't regret us being together, it's just we've been distant lately and I just naturally began questioning where it was going and how much of this relationship is of our own free will."

Mamoru smiled, and brushed a few bangs from his soul mate's face, "I understand Usa, I've had the same thoughts, especially when I was in America. But I thought about it, and I don't know if it was the physical distance of being in another continent or what, but I came to a few realizations.

"I don't know if Fate and Destiny really exist. I don't know and I don't care if we end up ruling Crystal Tokyo and have Rini…"

"But we saw it for oursel…"

"Usako I know," Mamoru hurried, explaining what he knew was her concern, "I know we saw the future. But think about it this way, what if was a possible future? One not necessarily meant for us? What if, should things stay on a certain track, that future would be the definite outcome, but should things not stay the way they are, then things change? All I know is that a future with Rini does exist somewhere out there. Whether our lives end up like that has yet to be seen. But I believe there will always exist a Rini, a Neo Queen and a Neo King. It doesn't mean that they are necessarily us, you know?

"And I'm not really too concerned if I end up there or not. Just as long as wherever I end up now is with you."

Usagi gazed up at Mamoru as he finished, her eyes misted over with the beginnings of tender tears, "Mamoru… that's what I'd like too…"

"Aww odango, don't get all mushy on me! Wouldn't want you to look all red and splotchy when we go out to get some ice cream, ne?"

"Ice cream? What are we waiting for Mamo-chan? Hop to it!"

Laughing, the couple made their way out of Mamoru's apartment, and into the daylight beyond. Usagi happily skipped along beside Mamoru, content and at peace with the way things were.

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In a place beyond the confines of time and space, existing in a dimension above all others…

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"Interesting."

"Yes, quite peculiar."

"They are stronger than we thought."

"Will our tampering break their bond?"

"In all of our calculations, no. It has not in past trials, thus there is no reason to suspect otherwise."

"But…"

"As with all calculations, there is of course, some margin for error."

"We must have absolute certainty. Any amount of error is not acceptable."

"It is unfortunate then, that Chance is a funny matter. It matters not, for there is little we can do."

"Everything is set then?"

"Yes."

"How soon?"

"Now."

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AUTHOR'S NOTE:

Hey guys! Don't kill me! It's been years, I KNOW. Life got in the way big time. That and a heft case of writer's block. But good news, I've done a huge arc of the story so I know where I am going, and it's all mapped out (loosely mind you but nonetheless done). Thanks to everyone for being patient and for supporting me. And especially to those of you who have been consistently there from the start and/or bugging me to update.

Because I've been putting this off forever, I have officially decided Usagi WILL be going to Middle Earth in the NEXT chapter, even if I have to make it 50 pages for it to happen. I will crank it out before I go further. So sorry to keep you guys for waiting a little longer, but I hope it will be worth it.

Let me know what you guys thought of this chapter! REVIEW PLEASE! Don't punish me for procrastinating so long!

Devine-desire: I hope I haven't driven you to insanity with the wait! Sorry for the long period of no updates but I hope this chapter BEGINS to make up for it. I know the rest of the story will ). Thanks for the excellent review as always, I love hearing from you! Review again please!

Akirah, la nieta de vegeta: thank you for your comments! Please review again!

Crystal Moon Magic: I said that? I don't know where but it I did I'm SOOOO sorry. I hope you aren't too bored with my story. Like I said, she's definitely going to ME next chapter. I hope you can wait for that! I promise it will be worth it! And the secrets will be solved soon… I'm cutting back on them… or I hope I am! Review please!

Angelwings6117: Ooh you're a very good guesser. Yes I know this is weird… I was rereading my story and I realized how abstract it is. Don't worry, I'm going to pull things together once Usa gets into ME. And yes, I made Aragorn hesitant about fighting the orcs for many reasons, primarily b/c he isn't as experienced as he is with the fellowship. Thanks for the lovely review though! I hope this chapter is to your liking. Review please!

Jayden-the-Jaded: Interesting thoughts. Pluto can't interfere because her title is guardian. She can only interfere when an outside force threatens to change the future. Or interfere according to her senshi duties. Duty and honor are important things in this story and to the senshi way of life.

Elven Sailor Girl: Thanks for your LONG review ) and your email egging me on to update. After that email I actually worked on this story significantly, but I didn't like where it was headed so I stopped again due to major writer's block. But now I'm back on track and better than ever! Or so I hope. Don't worry too much about the portrait and the script… it isn't something you can read into. It is what it is. I reallllly hope I haven't tortured you with the LONG wait. But like I said I'm back and updates will be coming MORE frequently. How is the rest of your fic going? Let me know if you still need a beta! I hope you got my comments on the first part of your fic! Review again please! I look forward to hearing what you have to say!

Princess moon shadow: Thanks! Good luck with your authorly pursuits! Sorry I haven't updated soon, but I hope you can forgive me now that I'm back on track! Review again please!

Callisto Star: Thanks! I forget what the website was you wanted. Do you remember? I think it was lotrfanfiction(dot)com but I'm not sure. Check it out and let me know if that's it. Thanks for reviewing and review again please!

Devilsheart: Thanks! Review again please!

REVIEW PLEASE! FLAME, CONSTRUCTIVE CRITICISM, OR APPRECIATION, EVERYTHING IS WELCOME!