A.N.: So I know that was awfully mean of me to take what I had already written and reconfigure it into four chapters instead of two, but truth be told, not many people had read those two (long) chapters anyway. Plus, I wasn't sure if I'd be able to keep up with a 22-page standard chapter… I think that those are kinda hard to get through unless you're already sucked-in to the story pretty deep.

So that gave me a chance to sort of do some rewording and reworking of what was already there and also to familiarize myself again with the story and where I had wanted it to go. I hope this holds up to expectations.

The Dancing Dream

Chapter Five

By Magawa

Usagi woke slowly, letting the warmth of the sun splash upon her face for a few seconds longer. She couldn't remember the last time she'd felt so warm, comfortable and cared for. She snuggled even further into the warmth of his embrace blocking out the dying rays of the sun. The transition from dreams to wakefulness was a slow process; the dream so much like the reality that it was hard to differentiate the two.

Squinting her eyes against the blinding sun, Usagi lifted her head and began to sit up. Strong arms prevented any further movement. Usagi's eyes widened until she was fully alert. The arms that held her captive loosened their hold enough so that hands could reassuringly caress her arms from elbow to shoulder before unconsciously finding her hands and gripping them firmly between his own.

Usagi squeaked in surprise to feel light kisses pressed to her hair and forehead. Shifting slightly to see her affectionate captor, Usagi glanced at the man holding her for a long, agonizing moment. He looked like her Mamoru-baka but… different somehow.

He looked relaxed and younger than his 21-years. His face was smooth of any laugh or worry wrinkles making his face seem more statuesque than real. His dark hair was strewn messily about his face and Usagi repressed the desire to tuck back strands of his hair.

His mouth was curved upwards; a child-like hint of a smile. She knew that if he lifted those dark eyelashes his eyes would be the color of a storm on the sea.

As if sensing her thoughts, Mamoru's eyelashes lifted a little further revealing full, dark eyes still dilated and hazy from sleep. Usagi pulled back as much as his arms would allow her. Had he been awake the whole time or just when she'd shifted to look at him? She shook her head as if to push away those embarrassing thoughts.

For his part, Mamoru had been awake as long as she had been, but figured that she really didn't need to know that. The sensation of having her in his arms again after finally knowing everything was amazingly reassuring. When it came down to it, Usagi would probably pass off the little caresses as an unconscious thing he did in his sleep. She'd probably be too embarrassed to bring it up with him anyway.

Seeing her pull away from him and shaking back those blonde tresses in an unspoken 'no' was enough to tear at his newly remembered heart. Was she rejecting him already? Or just rejecting the idea of waking up to kisses from a man who used to be a constant source of insults?

"No?" Mamoru drawled lazily. "What exactly are you shaking your head at me for? For your information, Odango, I haven't even said anything that you could negate."

"Don't call me Odango!" Usagi bristled, a pout on her lips.

Mamoru smiled encouragingly. "See? That nap did you some good. You've got your old fighting spirit back already…"

"Argh! You have to be the most annoying man on this planet!" Usagi cried out.

"Oh at least," Mamoru agreed, causing Usagi to glare at him. "Now let's get you home like I promised, okay Odango-chan?"

"Odango-chan? And here I thought your name-calling couldn't sink any lower…" Usagi dropped her head into her hands willing her tomato-red face to cool. She couldn't even remember the last time she was this embarrassed and she hadn't done anything more incriminating than fall asleep… Even if it was curled up in her tormentor's gentle embrace. She closed her eyes wearily. Could things get any stranger?

"All right Odango, I've taken the hint," Mamoru teased playfully. "You can stop hiding your face; I won't tease you anymore. Well, actually I probably will, just not anymore today. It's just that I need you to tell me which one of these is your house…"

Usagi glanced at him long enough to be assured of his sincerity before mumbling, "The blue one, here on the right…"

Pulling over and parking, Mamoru quickly jumped out of the car to open Usagi's door for her. Tired and slow Usagi had still been gathering her things when the door opened. Usagi turned suspicious eyes on him before accepting the hand her offered her as she clambered out of his car. Luna crept out of the backseat where she had stashed herself before weaving around Mamoru's legs. As he shut the car door Luna muttered at him, "Slowly Earth Prince."

Mamoru nodded once in acknowledgement before walking Usagi to her door.

"All right Odango Atama, go get a good night's sleep so that when you come and annoy me at the Arcade tomorrow you'll at least have the energy to throw back insults and not just fall asleep on me again." He turned and began to walk back down her sidewalk. "Later!" he called over his shoulder.

"Mamoru-baka you big jerk I will kill you if you tell anybody about this!"

"That's the kind of talk I want to hear!" Mamoru called back as he got into his car again to drive off.

"That man is going to drive me crazy…" Usagi mumbled to no one in particular.

"If it makes you feel any better," Luna quipped, "I think you already are."

"Luna!"

That night Usagi slept better than she had for days.

Of course, she never really stopped to think about the reason why that might have been.

The weekend passed in relative tranquility. There were no youma attacks, no terrifying death dreams – just a dose of normalcy – if you could call seeing that Mamoru-baka for everyday of it normal. Or if you could call his behavior normal…

It wasn't anything too weird or strange. Not enough to really catch her attention… But it wasn't often that she saw him on a Saturday and it was very rare to see him on a Sunday and yet she saw him both days. It was as if he made hanging out at the arcade or mall or wherever she was at his own personal hobby.

His actual behavior towards her was a little… off, too. She still got the teasing nickname and the insults but there was something about them now that just didn't quite fit with the taunting behavior she was used to. She could hardly find herself getting angry at his insults. In fact, she was finding herself to be more angry about why she wasn't responding to the words that normally sent her into verbal tantrums with him.

If Usagi had actually asked Mamoru about it, he'd have told her it was because the teasing nickname was more of an endearment and the insults were not meant at all. Mamoru's words were teasing, but they had an entirely different overtone that Usagi didn't understand at all.

It was normal for them to get in each other's faces and yell and scream at each other, but now… they still got in each other's faces but their closeness just seemed to … well, she wasn't sure what exactly was going on. Just that neither seemed to be really angry or annoyed anymore – as if their constant bickering was fueled more by habit than anything else.

And it was now Monday.

Her ballroom dancing classes started on Monday.

If ever there were a time to be accidentally hit by a car, or klutz out and break a vital organ now was it. Any excuse would do really, just so long as she didn't have to take the moonforsaken classes.

Usagi dropped her head into her hands and praying for a miracle or a mugging or something. "I'm really not picky," she mumbled half-heartedly.

"Too true," Mamoru piped up from somewhere close by as someone else snorted back a laugh.

"Mamoru-baka, what are you doing here?" Usagi ground out, instantly perturbed that the source of her self-violent thoughts had disturbed them.

"Oh well, I ran into Makoto-san," Mamoru started as he gestured towards the source of the previous snort-laugh, "and she mentioned this ballroom dancing class you two are taking together. I thought we could all go together since I happen to be teaching that class anyway."

"You're teaching it?" Usagi gaped in disbelief, her mouth slack with surprise.

"Of course I am," Mamoru smirked. "You didn't think I'd actually be there to learn, did you?"

"Yeah, actually I did," Usagi half-snarled. "Rei said you were just going to be there. And really, what kind of freak of a guy already knows ballroom dancing?"

"Well, obviously one who is tall, dark and handsome as well as incredibly suave and smart. Oh and did I mention…?"

"Stop right there jerk. We really don't need to hear you stroke your ego, okay?"

"I wasn't saying that that description fit me," Mamoru stated innocently. He turned to Makoto still wearing that false innocence, "Usagi thinks I'm tall, dark and handsome, suave and smart, isn't that interesting? I didn't think our little Bunny would ever be interested in boys."

Makoto let out a little bark of laughter at the look on her princess' face. Usagi was about two heart-beats away from strangling Mamoru. And as amusing a fight as that would prove to be, Makoto knew that they had to head off to lessons at some point. After all, this was scout business. Shaking her head at having to miss a fight (and actually preventing one), Makoto stepped between the two effectively ending the 'conversation.'

"Come on you two play-babies," Makoto said as soothingly as she knew how. " We don't want to miss this class, right?"

All she received for her effort was an intense growling from her left and a brilliant smile from her right. Makoto sighed in defeat. Serenity this is going to be a long afternoon…

A.N.: I'll try to keep up-to-date on this sucker as much as life permits. In case anyone is interested, I'll be graduating from college 3-18-05, and then I have to get a real job, an apartment and a life… which I have to say, sucks. On the upside, I have applied for Teach for America and I have an interview on 3-29-05… And if that doesn't pan out, I'll apply for the JET program and maybe teach English in a Japanese high school. Doesn't that sound like fun?

3-2-05