Konnichiwa, minna-san!!!!! Hehe, long time, no see, huh?? I'm so happy!!!!
If you give me 10 reviews for this chappie, I'll break the 100 mark!!!!!
Can we try for that, PLEASE?????? If you guys give me lots and lots of
reviews, I'll be really happy, and happy authors write more!!!!! Please,
dahlin's??? Look, I'm on my knees, begging you!!!!!!
Anyhoozles, this chappie wil cover some of the big events that happened when Hiiro and Usagi were growing up. And, some small events that meant too much to be called small. You may find it tedious and boring for me to be covering so much of the past, but I believe that without knowing the past, the present and future are maeningless. Usagi and Hiiro's relationship has built over many years, many trials, tribulations, hard times and tender moments. Without understanding that, A depiction of a real, true love cannot be accurately portrayed.
Furthermore, Usagi is not going to jump into Hiiro's arms the second she sees him and declare her undying love. They're both scared of their feelings, and unsure if thair affections will be returned, and therefore unwilling to risk destroying their friendship. Usagi figures that she took a big enough chance when she kissed Hiiro before she left, and doesn't plan on pushing much farther. She's not an insane stalker like Ririna. Hiiro is confused, having been taught to hide his emotions deep within him, so that they cannot be found, and therefore uncertain of what he feels, how to deal with it, what to do, how he should act, what he should say, and most of all, how she would react. He thinks that he's only supposed to care for Usagi as a friend, a little sister at most, but his feelings run much deeper than that, and he's embarrassed and scared of that. Neither remembers that they were lovers in the Silver Millennium, as Hiiro has no recollection whatsoever of it, and Usagi's memory has been played with, tinkered with, screwed up, and drug around for so long that all she knows is that Mamoru/Endymion wasn't who she was in love with, but she doesn't know who was. And nobody can tell her, since only Fate and Destiny knew after her. She knows that she loves Hiiro, though and feels that if he can't remember who she loved in the Silver Millenium, she might as well not try and move on. She also can't tell which of her memories is real or not, having had her mind so played with and plagued with false memories, dreams, visions, and other things that she can hardly sort through it all. Her mind is a big jumble in need of severe housecleaning, but she hardly has the time or patience yet.
I'm going to quit rambling now, and continue.
Disclaimer: The usual.
~*~~*~~*~ ~*~~*~~*~ ~*~~*~~*~
Hiiro mentally groaned. He and the other boys had been called to Preventors Headquarters, and were currently sitting in Lady Une's office, waiting for her to show up, and he was bored out of his mind. He was also annoyed. The three-year mark had passed last week, and he had heard nothing from his Chibi-chan. She was perfectly skilled enough to hack into his computer and find his e-mail address and cell phone number. He'd made sure of that. He was also sure that she could take care of herself, but that didn't stop him from worrying about her, ever since they were children. They had gone through the roller-coaster of life together, and for that, she was always on his mind. So many memories.....
~~~Flashback~~~
A young Hiiro and Usagi sat in a tree, he about 9 years old, she about 6. "Ne, Hii-chan?" Usagi asked, not looking at him.
"Hai??"
"Can we be friends forever?" Hiiro blinked at this question. Why did she even have to ask?
"Hai. Of course."
"Yatta!!! Arigato, Hii-chan!!" She smiled happily. He smiled back, small and shyly.
"We better go back, it's getting dark."
"Kay!!!" Hiiro jumped out of the tree, closely followed by his friend and comrade. They took off running towards a dark building that loomed ahead of them. Hurriedly, Usagi tried to catch up to Hiiro, who was several paces ahead of her. Her short, six-year-old legs couldn't carry her as well as if she was as tall as Hiiro. The next thing she knew, she felt her foot catch on something, then she was face-down in the dirt, her ankle throbbing painfully. "Ugh. I think I sprained my ankle, Hii-chan." Her tone conveyed no actual pain, merely stating a fact.
Hiiro ran back to her, then lifted her, one arm under her back, the other under her knees. From there, he carried her back to the building in the distance. Anyone witnessing this event would suffer one of those uncontrollable little smiles that one makes when seeing something cute. Usagi had rested her head on Hiiro's chest, one arm resting on his shoulders, listening to his steady heartbeat as he walked, being careful to to run and possibly hurt her more. A gentle, tranquil smile graced her face and she sighed contentedly. Even as a six-year-old, she felt so comfortable in her best friend's arm, as if merely being in his presence made her feel stronger, like part of her torn soul had been mended.
~~~End flashback~~~
~~~Flashback~~~
They were sparring hard, neither winning or losing, and both seemingly drawing from a bottomless wel of strength, speed, agility, and stamina. Dr. J. was monitering them every so often, slightly amazed at the sheer amount of time that his pupils had been fighting. Suddenly, the screen that allowed him to see what was going on and record it so that he could pick out weak areas later went black. When it wouldn't start up again, he simply turned to the viewing window. What he saw was most certainly shocking.
Hiiro was officially freaked out, though it barely showed on his face. He and Usagi had been sparring, when suddenly she started to glow and he skittered away from her. A halo of white light burned around her, and her eyes rolled back, her body going rigid, an invisible wind blowing her golden hair that she had chopped off the week before. Gathering his courage, he slowly stepped closer to her, and stretched out his arm to stick his hand into the glow. He didn't know what he was expecting, but it had been to feel as if a warm, dry wind was blowing upward from Usagi's feet. Since it didn't harm him, he stepped completely into the aura, his hair starting to blow around, too. Suddenly, it died, and Usagi slumped forward to r knees, her eyes unfocused and almost completely closed. Her hair was silver now. And from what he could see of her eyes, they were much darker than before. He knelt in front of her, and pulled her limp body to his. As soon as he touched her, though, a blinding white flash filled the room and knocked them both out.
~~~Flashback~~~
They were racing at break-neck speed out of a base, Hiiro with a disk in his hand and Usagi with a folder full of papers that rustled in their mad dash. A gun shot rang out behind them, and Usagi ducked instinctively, practically flattening her body to the floor before immediately springing up again and continuing the escape. Hiiro was a few paces ahead of her, and pulled himself into the air duct first. She shoved the folder in his hands, then turned to fight the soldier coming at her. After a brief bout of hand- to-hand combat, the soldier quickly grabbed something at his side, and the next thing Hiiro saw was the soldier, who couldn't be much older than him, sink something into Usagi's side and twist it, then fall to the floor as Usagi delivered a hard kick to his head. She pulled the knife from her side, flipped the blade back in, and pocketed it, then allowed Hiiro, who was not particualarly worried, he knew she could take care of herself, to grab her hands and pull her up next to him.
Out of the base and back at the hotel they were staying at, they were calmly walking down the hall, when, suddenly, Usagi stopped, and weaved a bit on her feet, before muttering "I think I'm gonna pass out now, Hii- chan." As she finished the sentence her eyes rolled back and she went limp, her head cracking on the floor as she landed. Hiiro was worried now. Picking her up, he tottered a little trying to adjust to the dead weight, and carried her to their room.
He laid her out on one of the beds, then went over to his bag, which was stowed near the door in case they needed to leave quickly, and retrieved a bag of medical supplies. Returning to his friend's side, he pushed her dark tank top up a bit to reveal the wound. It seemed that the hadn't considered the length of the knife while in their rush. He pulled it from her pocket, and flipped the blade out. It was a good seven inches long, two inches wide, serrated, and it had been buried to it's hilt in Usagi's small body. Even a thirteen-year-old Hiiro knew that that was a dangerous wound. She had passed out from blood loss, and the wound needed to be closed and bangaged quickly. The only reason that she hadn't bled all over the place was that their clothes were made to absorb large amounts of fluid without it dripping on the ground and allowing the enemy to get blood samples, and from there, DNA structures, allowing them to be traced.
Hiiro used four butterfly closures on the hole in Usagi's side before wrapping the top of her hips, above which the knife was placed then driven in at a downward diagonal, up to the bottom of her rib cage in two layers of gauze before changing her out of her blood-soaked top into one of his T- shirts, which, though he was not particularly large, was more than baggy enough on her to cover the bandaging. She didn't wake up throughout the entire ordeal.
The next day, after Hiiro had brough the still-unconscious Usagi back to Dr. J., who expertly stitched up her oozing wound and changed the wrappings, he was told the long-lasting effect that it would have on her. It made little impact on Hiiro, as he didn't really understand such things and why they would be important, but to Usagi, when she eventually found out, after she awakened, it slightly saddened her, because she, at ten, was too young to really think about such things, but once she lost it, she wished she had it back. Due to the length of the blade, the twisting that had been done, her small frame, and the angle at which the knife had been driven, she was now physically incapable of ever having children.
~~~End flashback~~~
~~~Flashback~~~
Twelve-year old Usagi was enjoying herself, he could tell. There was a bright sparkle in her eyes, her cheeks were flushed, her breathing had sped up slightly, and her entire body, the ay she held her self and smiled spoke volumes about her mood. Hiiro was the only person that could read her like that. Anyone would know that she was happy by the sunny smile on her face, but only Hiiro would notice the ever-so-slight increase in her respiration, and the fact that one of the fingers on her left hand was twitching slightly, a habit that she had picked up from him. When Hiiro was bored or annoyed, his right index finger, his trigger-finger, twtiched. After being around him for eight years, Usagi had gradually started doing it herself, though she rarely noticed, and when she did, she laughed and blamed it on her Hii-chan.
That day, being the Hiiro that he was with Usagi, he had taken her to a carnival in the Sanq Kingdom capital. It was crowded, and he hated to be surrounded by so many people, but it was the eighth anniversary of the day he had found Usagi in her meadow, and on that day, Usagi got to do everything she wanted. He could tell that she wanted to go to a carnival for the first time in her life by the odd, slightly wistful expression that she wore for a moment when they had passed by the busy center of activity on their first day in the city.
She did not exactly revel in having so many people pressing around her either, but she did not mind quite as much as Hiiro did. Her main focus was the rides and games, and she paid little attention to the hordes passing her and sweeping her along in their current, as if they were a human river. She was going to have some fun.
That evening, returning to the house that Dr. J. had secured, Usagi carried a large stuffed bear that she had let Hiiro win for her, though she could have done it herself. It was so funny in her opinion. Hiiro had knocked down all of the jugs, and when the voluptuous woman running the booth gave him the bear and winked at him, he blushed ever-so-slightly, only enough that Usagi would notice, and mumbled something as he turned to Usagi and presented it to her. She hid a grin and snicker by pressing her face into the soft fur of her new acquirement and stole a look at Hiiro, eyes sparkling with mirth. They stopped at her bedroom door first, as Hiiro always made sure that she was safely in her room before retiring to his. She smiled at him, and he turned to go. He was halfway down the hall when she had a sudden change of mind, and, setting the bear down, dashed after him. She caught him by the elbow and he turned, and she smiled again, this time shyly, and, standing on her toes, pecked him on the cheek. "Arigato, Hii-chan."
Hiiro's eyes widened almost imperceptably. She had never done *that* before. "Hn. Anything for you, Chibi." For once, she didn't smack him for using the nickame that she so reviled. She merely smiled softly again, hugged him and went back to her room. Hiiro stood motionless in the hall for a while after that. As much as he tried to, he couldn't push down the fact that he had felt something when she had kissed him, even though it was just an innocent peck on the cheek. He also felt disgusted with himself for that. He kept mentally yelling at himself that he was fifteen, she was twelve, it was *wrong* for him to feel like that. Finally, awakening from his shock and reverie, he turned and went to his room.
Dr. J., having witnessed the entire thing, half-smiled. He could only feel happy for his students, in fact, he was quite near being ecstatic. Usagi had taken to considering him as a grandfather, even going so far as to call him "jii-san", so he was pleased that his adoptive granddaughter and his prize student were slowly but surely falling in love. But it also brought him pain and sadness. The worst lash of the war with OZ was coming soon, and he could not risk Hiiro's concentration. They would have to be seperated. But, not until he found somewhere that he deemed worthy of being graced by his "granddaughter's" presence. It would be a while yet.
~~~End Flashback~~~
His finger was twitching. It was the first time that Quatre had noticed it. He wondered if Hiiro's finger had always twitched like that, in such an irritating manner, and it had just gone unnoticed until that moment. He didn't know why it bothered him so, perhaps it was the severe case of boredom that he was trying to control and suppress. He also noticed that Hiiro had an odd, faraway expression on his face, unusual as the only emotions he ever showed were annoyance, anger, and his demand to be left alone, which was usually expressed with his gun, not his face. That was not the case at the moment. Hiiro looked almost sad, and at the same time amused.
Hiiro didn't notice that his finger was twitching. He did notice, though, the weird stare that Quatre was giving him, and glared at him, making Quatre blush and return his attention to Duo and Wufei's arguing. Hiiro thought that, over the shouts from the braided one and his favorite person to antagonize, he heard Lady Une coming. She was saying something loudly, angrily, but he couldn't hear what.
"Shut up!!" He barked. Immediately, everyone was quiet, and they could all hear Lady Une yelling at someone, getting ever closer.
"But........ Do you really think that..... Aw, Hell, do whatever, you crazy old man!!!!" A moment later, the door swung open to reveal Dr. J., carrying a blindfolded girl, who had been complaining about being 'abducted in my sleep by my own jii-san.' Apparently the old man was stronger than he looked Duo whistled, the girl was hot, Quatre blushed, Wufei mumbled something about injustice and baka onnas, Trowa, as usual, didn't say anything. They all looked to Hiiro to see his reaction, and they nearly fainted. He stood, smirking, and he looked almost as if he was actually capable of laughter. Duo was shocked into silence, for which Wufei was grateful. Lady Une merely looked stunned that the Perfect Soldier actually wore an expression, however small it was.
Looking directly at Hiiro, Dr. J. chuckled and said "Catch." He tossed the girl to Hiiro, who caught her effortlessly.
"Grrrrr..... Alright, that's it!!! Jii-san, I'll have my revenge, you can be sure of it." Then, Even with her blindfold, she whacked Hiiro upside the head, and amazingly, he didn't immediately press his gun to her head. "Hiiro Yui!!! I am not a football!!!!! If you think that you have to catch me, you can at least put me down!!!!" By this time she was kicking half- heartedly, wanting to get out of his grip, but not wanting to hurt him.
"Uhhhh.... How do you know that that's Hiiro, Miss?" Quatre asked.
"More importantly, how do you *know* Hiiro?" Duo added. The girl ceased her struggle for moment, and answered them.
"Heh, I'd know *this* baka anywhere. I've known him since I was about four, nad though he's grown considerably since I last saw him, I could recognize him if he painted himself blue and paraded around dressed like the Peacecraft Bitch. Oi, and I heard she was stalking you, Hii-chan!! That's gotta suck ass. Anyway, Buyo" She jerked her thumb it Hiiro "here found me and took me to Jii-san, or, as you know him, Dr. J." She then proceeded to give a mighty twist and tumbled from Hiiro's arms, where she had been so uncomfortable, since she wanted him so, and landed gracefully on her feet. She ripped the blindfold off, stuck her tongue out at Dr. J., sucker-punched Hiiro, and gave a self-satisfied smirk to the rest of the boys. "I could tell you things about him that you'd never guess in a million years, and all his habits, tendencies, and even embarassing stories."
"Yeah!!!!" Duo cheered, wantin desperately for some dirt on the now not-so-perfect soldier.
"But," Usagi added, "I'm too nice to do a thing like that!" She smirked again. "By the way, I'm Usagi, and I already know who all of you are." She then proceeded to ignore them and turn to Hiiro, engaging in what seemed to be a stare-down. Then, out of nowhere, she pouted. "Hii-chan."
"Chibi." Duo fell out of his chair from hearing Hiiro using a pet name.
"No fair!!!! You grew!!" Hiiro, when standing face-to-face with his best friend, could very easily tuck her head under his chin with room to spare. Enough room, in fact, that his chin would rest on the crown of her head, and he would be stooping slightly, even though Hiiro had no plans of ever doing such a thing..
"Hn. (translation: You did, too.)"
Usagi ran a delicate hand through her hair, sighing, and replied. "Whatever. I just wanna go home now." Understanding that home to her was wherever he was, he looked at Quatre, who nodded, dumbfounded.
"Come on." With that, he grabbed her arm and was halfway to the door before she wrenched her arm free and followed in willingly. When they were gone, Everyone turned to Dr. J., who had been standing by the door wearin an indulgent, amused smile. Sensing the eyes on him, he shrugged. "They've been separated for three years and a week." Then, obviously refraining from saying something else, left.
~*~~*~~*~
~*~~*~~*~
~*~~*~~*~
Review, please!!!!!!!!! I think this is longer than usual, hopefully it illicits some more reviews.
Anyhoozles, this chappie wil cover some of the big events that happened when Hiiro and Usagi were growing up. And, some small events that meant too much to be called small. You may find it tedious and boring for me to be covering so much of the past, but I believe that without knowing the past, the present and future are maeningless. Usagi and Hiiro's relationship has built over many years, many trials, tribulations, hard times and tender moments. Without understanding that, A depiction of a real, true love cannot be accurately portrayed.
Furthermore, Usagi is not going to jump into Hiiro's arms the second she sees him and declare her undying love. They're both scared of their feelings, and unsure if thair affections will be returned, and therefore unwilling to risk destroying their friendship. Usagi figures that she took a big enough chance when she kissed Hiiro before she left, and doesn't plan on pushing much farther. She's not an insane stalker like Ririna. Hiiro is confused, having been taught to hide his emotions deep within him, so that they cannot be found, and therefore uncertain of what he feels, how to deal with it, what to do, how he should act, what he should say, and most of all, how she would react. He thinks that he's only supposed to care for Usagi as a friend, a little sister at most, but his feelings run much deeper than that, and he's embarrassed and scared of that. Neither remembers that they were lovers in the Silver Millennium, as Hiiro has no recollection whatsoever of it, and Usagi's memory has been played with, tinkered with, screwed up, and drug around for so long that all she knows is that Mamoru/Endymion wasn't who she was in love with, but she doesn't know who was. And nobody can tell her, since only Fate and Destiny knew after her. She knows that she loves Hiiro, though and feels that if he can't remember who she loved in the Silver Millenium, she might as well not try and move on. She also can't tell which of her memories is real or not, having had her mind so played with and plagued with false memories, dreams, visions, and other things that she can hardly sort through it all. Her mind is a big jumble in need of severe housecleaning, but she hardly has the time or patience yet.
I'm going to quit rambling now, and continue.
Disclaimer: The usual.
~*~~*~~*~ ~*~~*~~*~ ~*~~*~~*~
Hiiro mentally groaned. He and the other boys had been called to Preventors Headquarters, and were currently sitting in Lady Une's office, waiting for her to show up, and he was bored out of his mind. He was also annoyed. The three-year mark had passed last week, and he had heard nothing from his Chibi-chan. She was perfectly skilled enough to hack into his computer and find his e-mail address and cell phone number. He'd made sure of that. He was also sure that she could take care of herself, but that didn't stop him from worrying about her, ever since they were children. They had gone through the roller-coaster of life together, and for that, she was always on his mind. So many memories.....
~~~Flashback~~~
A young Hiiro and Usagi sat in a tree, he about 9 years old, she about 6. "Ne, Hii-chan?" Usagi asked, not looking at him.
"Hai??"
"Can we be friends forever?" Hiiro blinked at this question. Why did she even have to ask?
"Hai. Of course."
"Yatta!!! Arigato, Hii-chan!!" She smiled happily. He smiled back, small and shyly.
"We better go back, it's getting dark."
"Kay!!!" Hiiro jumped out of the tree, closely followed by his friend and comrade. They took off running towards a dark building that loomed ahead of them. Hurriedly, Usagi tried to catch up to Hiiro, who was several paces ahead of her. Her short, six-year-old legs couldn't carry her as well as if she was as tall as Hiiro. The next thing she knew, she felt her foot catch on something, then she was face-down in the dirt, her ankle throbbing painfully. "Ugh. I think I sprained my ankle, Hii-chan." Her tone conveyed no actual pain, merely stating a fact.
Hiiro ran back to her, then lifted her, one arm under her back, the other under her knees. From there, he carried her back to the building in the distance. Anyone witnessing this event would suffer one of those uncontrollable little smiles that one makes when seeing something cute. Usagi had rested her head on Hiiro's chest, one arm resting on his shoulders, listening to his steady heartbeat as he walked, being careful to to run and possibly hurt her more. A gentle, tranquil smile graced her face and she sighed contentedly. Even as a six-year-old, she felt so comfortable in her best friend's arm, as if merely being in his presence made her feel stronger, like part of her torn soul had been mended.
~~~End flashback~~~
~~~Flashback~~~
They were sparring hard, neither winning or losing, and both seemingly drawing from a bottomless wel of strength, speed, agility, and stamina. Dr. J. was monitering them every so often, slightly amazed at the sheer amount of time that his pupils had been fighting. Suddenly, the screen that allowed him to see what was going on and record it so that he could pick out weak areas later went black. When it wouldn't start up again, he simply turned to the viewing window. What he saw was most certainly shocking.
Hiiro was officially freaked out, though it barely showed on his face. He and Usagi had been sparring, when suddenly she started to glow and he skittered away from her. A halo of white light burned around her, and her eyes rolled back, her body going rigid, an invisible wind blowing her golden hair that she had chopped off the week before. Gathering his courage, he slowly stepped closer to her, and stretched out his arm to stick his hand into the glow. He didn't know what he was expecting, but it had been to feel as if a warm, dry wind was blowing upward from Usagi's feet. Since it didn't harm him, he stepped completely into the aura, his hair starting to blow around, too. Suddenly, it died, and Usagi slumped forward to r knees, her eyes unfocused and almost completely closed. Her hair was silver now. And from what he could see of her eyes, they were much darker than before. He knelt in front of her, and pulled her limp body to his. As soon as he touched her, though, a blinding white flash filled the room and knocked them both out.
~~~Flashback~~~
They were racing at break-neck speed out of a base, Hiiro with a disk in his hand and Usagi with a folder full of papers that rustled in their mad dash. A gun shot rang out behind them, and Usagi ducked instinctively, practically flattening her body to the floor before immediately springing up again and continuing the escape. Hiiro was a few paces ahead of her, and pulled himself into the air duct first. She shoved the folder in his hands, then turned to fight the soldier coming at her. After a brief bout of hand- to-hand combat, the soldier quickly grabbed something at his side, and the next thing Hiiro saw was the soldier, who couldn't be much older than him, sink something into Usagi's side and twist it, then fall to the floor as Usagi delivered a hard kick to his head. She pulled the knife from her side, flipped the blade back in, and pocketed it, then allowed Hiiro, who was not particualarly worried, he knew she could take care of herself, to grab her hands and pull her up next to him.
Out of the base and back at the hotel they were staying at, they were calmly walking down the hall, when, suddenly, Usagi stopped, and weaved a bit on her feet, before muttering "I think I'm gonna pass out now, Hii- chan." As she finished the sentence her eyes rolled back and she went limp, her head cracking on the floor as she landed. Hiiro was worried now. Picking her up, he tottered a little trying to adjust to the dead weight, and carried her to their room.
He laid her out on one of the beds, then went over to his bag, which was stowed near the door in case they needed to leave quickly, and retrieved a bag of medical supplies. Returning to his friend's side, he pushed her dark tank top up a bit to reveal the wound. It seemed that the hadn't considered the length of the knife while in their rush. He pulled it from her pocket, and flipped the blade out. It was a good seven inches long, two inches wide, serrated, and it had been buried to it's hilt in Usagi's small body. Even a thirteen-year-old Hiiro knew that that was a dangerous wound. She had passed out from blood loss, and the wound needed to be closed and bangaged quickly. The only reason that she hadn't bled all over the place was that their clothes were made to absorb large amounts of fluid without it dripping on the ground and allowing the enemy to get blood samples, and from there, DNA structures, allowing them to be traced.
Hiiro used four butterfly closures on the hole in Usagi's side before wrapping the top of her hips, above which the knife was placed then driven in at a downward diagonal, up to the bottom of her rib cage in two layers of gauze before changing her out of her blood-soaked top into one of his T- shirts, which, though he was not particularly large, was more than baggy enough on her to cover the bandaging. She didn't wake up throughout the entire ordeal.
The next day, after Hiiro had brough the still-unconscious Usagi back to Dr. J., who expertly stitched up her oozing wound and changed the wrappings, he was told the long-lasting effect that it would have on her. It made little impact on Hiiro, as he didn't really understand such things and why they would be important, but to Usagi, when she eventually found out, after she awakened, it slightly saddened her, because she, at ten, was too young to really think about such things, but once she lost it, she wished she had it back. Due to the length of the blade, the twisting that had been done, her small frame, and the angle at which the knife had been driven, she was now physically incapable of ever having children.
~~~End flashback~~~
~~~Flashback~~~
Twelve-year old Usagi was enjoying herself, he could tell. There was a bright sparkle in her eyes, her cheeks were flushed, her breathing had sped up slightly, and her entire body, the ay she held her self and smiled spoke volumes about her mood. Hiiro was the only person that could read her like that. Anyone would know that she was happy by the sunny smile on her face, but only Hiiro would notice the ever-so-slight increase in her respiration, and the fact that one of the fingers on her left hand was twitching slightly, a habit that she had picked up from him. When Hiiro was bored or annoyed, his right index finger, his trigger-finger, twtiched. After being around him for eight years, Usagi had gradually started doing it herself, though she rarely noticed, and when she did, she laughed and blamed it on her Hii-chan.
That day, being the Hiiro that he was with Usagi, he had taken her to a carnival in the Sanq Kingdom capital. It was crowded, and he hated to be surrounded by so many people, but it was the eighth anniversary of the day he had found Usagi in her meadow, and on that day, Usagi got to do everything she wanted. He could tell that she wanted to go to a carnival for the first time in her life by the odd, slightly wistful expression that she wore for a moment when they had passed by the busy center of activity on their first day in the city.
She did not exactly revel in having so many people pressing around her either, but she did not mind quite as much as Hiiro did. Her main focus was the rides and games, and she paid little attention to the hordes passing her and sweeping her along in their current, as if they were a human river. She was going to have some fun.
That evening, returning to the house that Dr. J. had secured, Usagi carried a large stuffed bear that she had let Hiiro win for her, though she could have done it herself. It was so funny in her opinion. Hiiro had knocked down all of the jugs, and when the voluptuous woman running the booth gave him the bear and winked at him, he blushed ever-so-slightly, only enough that Usagi would notice, and mumbled something as he turned to Usagi and presented it to her. She hid a grin and snicker by pressing her face into the soft fur of her new acquirement and stole a look at Hiiro, eyes sparkling with mirth. They stopped at her bedroom door first, as Hiiro always made sure that she was safely in her room before retiring to his. She smiled at him, and he turned to go. He was halfway down the hall when she had a sudden change of mind, and, setting the bear down, dashed after him. She caught him by the elbow and he turned, and she smiled again, this time shyly, and, standing on her toes, pecked him on the cheek. "Arigato, Hii-chan."
Hiiro's eyes widened almost imperceptably. She had never done *that* before. "Hn. Anything for you, Chibi." For once, she didn't smack him for using the nickame that she so reviled. She merely smiled softly again, hugged him and went back to her room. Hiiro stood motionless in the hall for a while after that. As much as he tried to, he couldn't push down the fact that he had felt something when she had kissed him, even though it was just an innocent peck on the cheek. He also felt disgusted with himself for that. He kept mentally yelling at himself that he was fifteen, she was twelve, it was *wrong* for him to feel like that. Finally, awakening from his shock and reverie, he turned and went to his room.
Dr. J., having witnessed the entire thing, half-smiled. He could only feel happy for his students, in fact, he was quite near being ecstatic. Usagi had taken to considering him as a grandfather, even going so far as to call him "jii-san", so he was pleased that his adoptive granddaughter and his prize student were slowly but surely falling in love. But it also brought him pain and sadness. The worst lash of the war with OZ was coming soon, and he could not risk Hiiro's concentration. They would have to be seperated. But, not until he found somewhere that he deemed worthy of being graced by his "granddaughter's" presence. It would be a while yet.
~~~End Flashback~~~
His finger was twitching. It was the first time that Quatre had noticed it. He wondered if Hiiro's finger had always twitched like that, in such an irritating manner, and it had just gone unnoticed until that moment. He didn't know why it bothered him so, perhaps it was the severe case of boredom that he was trying to control and suppress. He also noticed that Hiiro had an odd, faraway expression on his face, unusual as the only emotions he ever showed were annoyance, anger, and his demand to be left alone, which was usually expressed with his gun, not his face. That was not the case at the moment. Hiiro looked almost sad, and at the same time amused.
Hiiro didn't notice that his finger was twitching. He did notice, though, the weird stare that Quatre was giving him, and glared at him, making Quatre blush and return his attention to Duo and Wufei's arguing. Hiiro thought that, over the shouts from the braided one and his favorite person to antagonize, he heard Lady Une coming. She was saying something loudly, angrily, but he couldn't hear what.
"Shut up!!" He barked. Immediately, everyone was quiet, and they could all hear Lady Une yelling at someone, getting ever closer.
"But........ Do you really think that..... Aw, Hell, do whatever, you crazy old man!!!!" A moment later, the door swung open to reveal Dr. J., carrying a blindfolded girl, who had been complaining about being 'abducted in my sleep by my own jii-san.' Apparently the old man was stronger than he looked Duo whistled, the girl was hot, Quatre blushed, Wufei mumbled something about injustice and baka onnas, Trowa, as usual, didn't say anything. They all looked to Hiiro to see his reaction, and they nearly fainted. He stood, smirking, and he looked almost as if he was actually capable of laughter. Duo was shocked into silence, for which Wufei was grateful. Lady Une merely looked stunned that the Perfect Soldier actually wore an expression, however small it was.
Looking directly at Hiiro, Dr. J. chuckled and said "Catch." He tossed the girl to Hiiro, who caught her effortlessly.
"Grrrrr..... Alright, that's it!!! Jii-san, I'll have my revenge, you can be sure of it." Then, Even with her blindfold, she whacked Hiiro upside the head, and amazingly, he didn't immediately press his gun to her head. "Hiiro Yui!!! I am not a football!!!!! If you think that you have to catch me, you can at least put me down!!!!" By this time she was kicking half- heartedly, wanting to get out of his grip, but not wanting to hurt him.
"Uhhhh.... How do you know that that's Hiiro, Miss?" Quatre asked.
"More importantly, how do you *know* Hiiro?" Duo added. The girl ceased her struggle for moment, and answered them.
"Heh, I'd know *this* baka anywhere. I've known him since I was about four, nad though he's grown considerably since I last saw him, I could recognize him if he painted himself blue and paraded around dressed like the Peacecraft Bitch. Oi, and I heard she was stalking you, Hii-chan!! That's gotta suck ass. Anyway, Buyo" She jerked her thumb it Hiiro "here found me and took me to Jii-san, or, as you know him, Dr. J." She then proceeded to give a mighty twist and tumbled from Hiiro's arms, where she had been so uncomfortable, since she wanted him so, and landed gracefully on her feet. She ripped the blindfold off, stuck her tongue out at Dr. J., sucker-punched Hiiro, and gave a self-satisfied smirk to the rest of the boys. "I could tell you things about him that you'd never guess in a million years, and all his habits, tendencies, and even embarassing stories."
"Yeah!!!!" Duo cheered, wantin desperately for some dirt on the now not-so-perfect soldier.
"But," Usagi added, "I'm too nice to do a thing like that!" She smirked again. "By the way, I'm Usagi, and I already know who all of you are." She then proceeded to ignore them and turn to Hiiro, engaging in what seemed to be a stare-down. Then, out of nowhere, she pouted. "Hii-chan."
"Chibi." Duo fell out of his chair from hearing Hiiro using a pet name.
"No fair!!!! You grew!!" Hiiro, when standing face-to-face with his best friend, could very easily tuck her head under his chin with room to spare. Enough room, in fact, that his chin would rest on the crown of her head, and he would be stooping slightly, even though Hiiro had no plans of ever doing such a thing..
"Hn. (translation: You did, too.)"
Usagi ran a delicate hand through her hair, sighing, and replied. "Whatever. I just wanna go home now." Understanding that home to her was wherever he was, he looked at Quatre, who nodded, dumbfounded.
"Come on." With that, he grabbed her arm and was halfway to the door before she wrenched her arm free and followed in willingly. When they were gone, Everyone turned to Dr. J., who had been standing by the door wearin an indulgent, amused smile. Sensing the eyes on him, he shrugged. "They've been separated for three years and a week." Then, obviously refraining from saying something else, left.
~*~~*~~*~
~*~~*~~*~
~*~~*~~*~
Review, please!!!!!!!!! I think this is longer than usual, hopefully it illicits some more reviews.
