Makoto held Usagi's hand the entire way. She really didn't need to, Usagi was pretty sure she could have navigated at least some of the walk on her own - goodness knows she'd made the journey often enough - but it was kind of sweet. They discussed Rei and how best to approach the sometimes prickly shrine maiden, but also the latest junior high gossip and how Usagi's lessons with Mamoru were going. Makoto could hardly believe the pair hadn't killed each other yet, let alone declared a truce.
"Of all the things I never thought I'd live to see," the brunette chortled, something like awe dancing in her tone. "If you can win over Chiba Mamoru, Rei-chan is putty in your hands!"
"I hope so," Usagi said, then grumbled, "He's better... but he's still a jerk though."
"Well, some people never lose that endearing quality," Makoto rolled her eyes. "Ah, and speaking of..."
"You see her?" Usagi giggled.
"Yeah, and she doesn't look too happy to see us," Makoto sighed, squeezing Usagi's hand for reassurance. She began to lead the girl up the shrine's stairs. Usagi had never realized before just how numerous they were. She was almost out of breath by the time they arrived at the top. Definitely a sign to work out more...
"Hey Rei-chan!"
Rei sounded taken aback. "U-Usagi! Mako-chan. I... I told Ojii-chan no visitors today."
There was a thread of uncertainty in her acerbic greeting that Usagi clung to. She released Makoto and took a ginger step forward.
"Don't be stupid, Rei-chan," she said, all affection and no bite. "We're not visitors. We're your best friends!"
"And some best friend I am," Rei snarled in a voice that was unmistakably strangled with some deeper emotion. "Couldn't even... argh!" There was a clatter like she had tossed aside her sweeping broom. "Go home, Usagi. Please. I can't see you right now!"
The tremor in her plea belied the fury with which Rei stalked off, leaving Usagi and Makoto standing there like put-out children. Makoto was especially uncertain.
"Maybe we should. She's clearly in a mood-"
"She's always in a mood. Come on," Usagi said firmly, and she fumbled for the other girl's hand. Makoto understood her unspoken summons and guided the determined blonde towards the direction Rei fled to. It didn't take them long to find their wayward friend - the cracked bedroom door an obvious clue. But Makoto drew back as they approached.
"This is really more a conversation between you and her. So I'm going to wait out here, okay?"
Usagi nodded. She ran her fingers over the grain of the wood and felt it give under her gentle pressure. It creaked anciently inward.
"Rei-chan?"
Stony silence met her greeting, but Usagi was not deterred. She carefully shut the door behind her and moved forward, into the center of the room. She wasn't exactly sure where to look, but sensed somehow that Rei was huddled on the bed, and so she settled her attention upon that general area.
"I can't," she opened with. A fish hook if she'd ever cast one. It had the intended effect; it garnered a response - albeit one of confusion.
"You can't what?" Rei whispered.
"Leave you alone," Usagi answered, simply. She shuffled a little closer, close enough to hear the tiny scoff Rei made in the back of her throat.
"Oh yeah?" she countered, bitterly. "It wasn't that hard for me, was it? Leaving you alone." The self-recrimination was almost as strong as the tears in her voice. "I failed you, Usagi! I'm supposed to protect you! And instead that... that thing..."
"That wasn't your fault," Usagi entreated, aching at the memory; at Rei's internal blame.
"I should have been faster! I should have gotten to you sooner!" Rei lashed out. "You should hate me. I've done nothing but let you down since that day!"
"Now you listen here, Hino Rei!" Usagi exclaimed, fiercely enough that Rei's jaw snapped shut, the noise like a startled crack. "What I did was stupid. I lured the enemy away from battle knowing it was going to come after me. Knowing the danger I'd be in. If anything the blames lies with me. But I don't blame myself, and nor should you. In fact I don't even blame that dumb monster! It's the Dark Kingdom who sent it. The Dark Kingdom who's terrorizing our city and the Dark Kingdom who we have to stop. They are pure evil, full of hate for our world. Are we any better if we give in to hate ourselves? We're only as strong as we are together. So whatever you think you did, I forgive you. And you should too, Rei-chan."
Usagi knelt down and reached for the bed, feeling around the plush coverlet until she encountered a hand, tightly fisted into the sheets. The vice-grip the priestess had on it clearly wasn't doing much good - she was still trembling like a leaf in a storm. Usagi squeezed right back.
"It's just not fair," the raven-haired teen choked out. "I just wish... It shouldn't have... of all the people, why you?"
"I know," Usagi said quietly, feeling so deeply inside herself all the things Rei was saying, and not saying. Her own eyes burned, begging to join in on the party but woefully unable.
"I would have stopped it. I would've."
"I know."
"I'm just so sorry."
"Me too."
"Why are you sorry, dummy!?"
Usagi smiled at the flicker of playfulness, finally returned within the shallows of Rei's gibe. There was the snarky old fire warrior she knew and loved! (Most of the time...)
"I dunno. Just seems like a day for it."
"You're an idiot, Tsukino Usagi... Never change."
And for the first time that she could ever remember, Rei hugged her, a sudden, breathtaking kind of embrace that Usagi fairly melted into, so happy was she to be back on familiar ground with her favorite shrine maiden. Rei let out a marveling sort of chuckle. "And you are not allowed to tell a soul about this. Got it?"
"I know, I know. Scary, mysterious reputation to uphold!"
"Ah hell. What am I saying. Get in here, Mako-chan!"
The door suddenly burst open as if the person had been lingering just on the other side, or - more likely - eavesdropping. Makoto piled onto their impromptu group hug with a teasing,
"Now this is more like it!"
They laughed and the sound of their joy filled the room, but as with all good things it was slowly drowned out by something less wonderful, more foreboding -
The beeping of their communicators. Usagi leaned back onto her heels frowning as she listened to Makoto and Rei sign on.
"Ami-chan, what's up?"
Ami sounded out of breath as she answered, undoubtedly already on the run. "The Moon Stick is going haywire! I'm tracking it to what looks like a building construction zone-"
She gasped and stuttered to a halt, voice dropping exponentially. "Zoisite's here with his black crystal! And a woman I don't recognize... This can't be good. Sending the coordinates now!"
Rei turned on Makoto as the communicators began to update with a series of numbers. "Mako-chan. You take Usagi home. I'll help Ami-chan hold them off until you can join us!"
Usagi was still sitting there numbly as she listened to her friends plan the battle around her. For all her rabble-rousing to Rei about the Dark Kingdom, it still brought pure terror to her heart to think about them fighting without the advantage of her properly operated Moon Stick. Instead they were going to throw all their powers into the rod and let it act as conduit, significantly weakening them in the process. She was so afraid of what that meant; so lost in her own worst thoughts that she barely registered when Makoto eased her off the floor and spirited her home, all the while making placating reassurances that Usagi could tell she herself didn't quite believe.
"Please be safe, Mako-chan," the odango-headed blonde begged, after she was deposited upon her doorstep.
"Oh, you know me. Always am!" the other girl chirruped with too much false bravado.
It didn't leave Usagi with any more confidence than before, and when she came back into the house to the overwhelming smells of dinner she forewent the kitchen and her family entirely and slipped back upstairs, hoping they'd think her to still be at Rei's. She just didn't feel like interacting with anyone right now, and the worry for her Senshi left no room for an appetite in her painfully constricted stomach. She went right to her desk and plopped down, burying her head in her hands.
What if this time, it didn't work?
What if the Dark Kingdom eventually found out, and began purposefully sending youma after youma to ensure they hadn't time to recover?
All these fears and more swirled around in Usagi's brain, too loud for her to concentrate on anything else. Luna would have provided a distraction, but she too had gone to assist in the battle. It helped a little to know that her guardian was going to be watching over the Senshi as well - for all her nagging she was a wealth of advice and strategy - but that also meant Usagi had to fend for herself. She scrubbed at her face and moaned, just scared scared scared. But then the solution hit her, and she wondered fleetingly why she hadn't thought of it before.
Of course. The locket! It always calmed her down.
Usagi rummaged around in her drawers until she found the item in all its star-shaped glory, the metal still as smooth and shiny and soothing to the touch as she remembered it. She smiled, holding it close to her heart, returning to the desk with already far less anguish than before. There was just something very special about this mysterious object, and not just because it belonged to Tuxedo Kamen. Some unnameable feeling would grab hold of her when she listened to the tinkling melody within, like... like home and happiness and warmth all rolled into one. She flicked open the clasp and then it played, that haunting song that she swore she'd heard before, just couldn't put her finger on when or where. She laid her head down next to it and closed her eyes, the locket lulling her into a comforting sense of peace at last.
Her last thought before drifting off to sleep was wondering if Tuxedo Kamen was worried about her, too...
The next day found Mamoru and Usagi back in the garden, but neither seemed to have their 'head in the game'. Usagi was distracted, more so than usual, and it was both irritating and unnerving to Mamoru who himself felt the creeping strain of exhaustion and pain at all times.
Yesterday night had been a doozy. First there was the fact that his best friend's girlfriend had been the target of Zoisite's latest scheme, and who ever would have thought that sweet, science-loving Reika was one of the Seven Great Monsters? With vicious aim to boot... he had definitely re-injured his shoulder, there was no doubt about it. The area was sorely inflamed and tender to the touch, and it had been all he could do not to yelp when Usagi accidentally bumped into it in the midst of their lesson. She had given him a strange look when he let escape a muffled hiss, but mercifully didn't ask questions.
Then there was the unexplained absence of Sailor Moon. He didn't understand it... she was at every battle. Every. Single. One. And suddenly she had to decided to what, call in sick? The Senshi hadn't seemed at all flustered by the lack of their leader, and so he even began to wonder if there had been a falling out...
He tried not to think about the disappointment that had fluttered in his gut, when he realized he wouldn't be seeing the boisterous blonde heroine that day.
The battle had been long and hard-fought, but somehow... providence smiled upon him. He ended up with the blue Rainbow Crystal, and it had been an opportunity he wasn't willing to squander. Ignoring Zoisite's fury and Reika's plight, he had fled immediately after, praying that Sailors Mercury, Mars and Jupiter were strong enough to finish it without him. It bothered his conscience to no end to have to sow those seeds of mistrust among women who should have been his allies - they seemed to be working against the same enemy after all - but he simply knew too little about them. He wasn't willing to offer blind faith when it had too often been used against him; he had a mission to fulfill and as far as he knew his and the Senshi's ultimate goals did not align. The only one he may have placed at least some trust in was Sailor Moon, but even she was a mystery he did not know how to begin to unravel. All he knew was that she felt familiar to him; like there was a connection there he should understand but didn't; a need to protect her at all costs that was almost as powerful as his need to do the dream princess' bidding. Almost enough to give it all up and surrender the two crystals he now possessed to the well-meaning Senshi.
Almost.
Mamoru shook his head, trying to clear it of last night's events to focus on the task at hand. Usagi herself seemed to be in her own little world, fingers rubbing unconsciously at the fabric of her collar, eyes a million miles away. Mamoru sighed loudly.
"Usagi-san... Maybe we should call it a day."
Usagi started, resurfacing from reverie with a, "No! I want to keep going. Sorry, I'll pay better attention, I promise!"
Mamoru didn't have the heart to scold her when he himself had been letting his mind wander. So he just brushed the apology off entirely. "I was thinking next we could work more on improving your tracking of sound. I'll hide, give a clap, and you'll need to locate where the clap originated from."
"So... you want to play hide-and-seek with me," Usagi deadpanned, a cheshire grin stretching out the corners of her cheeks. Mamoru grimaced, knowing the way it sounded.
"Well we're not just playing. It's not about finding me. It's about honing your auditory sense which is rather crucial when you lack the ability to see."
"Uh-huh. Okay," Usagi snickered, and Mamoru rolled his eyes. He grumpily stormed off until remembering he'd need to be a lot quieter if he wanted to make Usagi really have to work for this. He settled himself in the middle of a small copse of Bonsai trees before reaching out and swiftly bringing his hands together. He cringed at the reverberations that immediately afterward accosted his shoulder.
Usagi proved an amazingly fast study.
Everywhere he went, no matter how far or how well hidden, she sought him out, unfailing in her search. It was often only seconds, not even minutes, before she accurately determined from which part of the garden he'd clapped. It was almost ridiculous really, and he finally felt exasperated enough to tell her such.
"How are you finding me this quickly!?"
Usagi shrugged, the picture of nonchalance. "You're noisy."
Mamoru eyed her with heavy disbelief, feeling a bit like maybe she wasn't being truthful with him. But he didn't push the issue, and instead tried on their next go-around to make as absolutely, positively little noise as he possibly could, avoiding anything that might crunch underfoot, even going so far as to hold his freaking breath. And still...
She headed right for him.
"Seriously!?"
Usagi donned a triumphant smirk, but for all her appearances of success she completely missed the bulging tree root, and the girl went flying. Mamoru wasted no time rushing to her side.
"Odango!" he cried, completely forgetting to use her first name like he'd been doing all lesson. "Are you alright?"
Usagi sat up, wincing as she wiped at her dirtied knees and hands, looking more embarassed than anything. "Yeah," she sighed.
Mamoru crouched down beside her, reaching out to grasp her upper arm and help tug her back onto her feet - when he froze. Eyes stuck on the gold chain and the star-shaped locket that shimmered in the afternoon sunlight, having dislodged from beneath her shirt when Usagi tripped.
"What... where did you get that?" he demanded, sharply.
TO BE CONTINUED...
Author's Note: DUN DUN DAAA! Hope you guys enjoyed this as much as I did! It was a fun chapter to write! Sometimes the words just flow with no effort at all and this was one of those times :) Next chapter will very closely follow on the heels of this one and I already have it planned out, now to get it on paper! Or... FF document manager... LOL!
It would make my day to hear what y'all thought! And on that note thank you so very much to everyone who left feedback last time: Ruk, Moon Bunny, Serenity Red Eclipse, phillynz, Daire123, Jenbunny, lisasailor, karseneau1, missmartian369, NikkiBC, Deadly Aura, and Rufael. CANNOT give you readers enough love, you truly are the reason I write!
MWAH!
AngelMoon Girl