Biting gently on her bottom lip, Usagi's hesitant eyes jumped from the tiled bathroom floor to the object of her foreboding. The inanimate, completely impartial entity stared back up at her, unmoving as expected. The teenager exhaled, and finally placed one foot on the object, doing a half hop to hoist the other foot after it. The thick red pointer stood still as the dial spun, a blur of black and white, and finally stopped.
'101,' she said aloud in her subconscious, a smile of relief spreading brightly across her face. The cookie binge of yesterday apparently helped boost her weight to the gained five pounds, and she cheerfully adjusted her hair in the mirror before exiting the bathroom, already in school uniform. Pausing, she poked her head back in the bathroom to observe the now vague bruise on her cheek bone. She'd borrowed Kyou's bruise cream the previous day, and it'd worked wonders.
Stopping once more in her room to grab her school bag, Usagi met Tohru and Kyou down stairs at the front door. The three walked to school evenly paced, Usagi and Tohru chatting amiably about the upcoming picnic weekend while Kyou stayed silent, occasionally rolling his eyes at their fervor. When they reached Kaibara High, Tohru turned toward the younger girl with a pleasant smile.
"Usagi-chan, would you like to meet my friends Hana and Uo?" The brunette asked, "We have some time before school starts."
Forgetting she had to track down Hatsuharu and beat him up, or that she had to meet up with Hotaru to ask about the picnic, the blue eyed girl grinned and nodded enthusiastically. These important matters were replaced by desire to meet Tohru's infamous friends, scope out her brother's class, and more importantly, the 'Prince Yuki' Fan Club she had yet to meet. How wonderfully things worked out sometimes.
Kyou didn't harbor any objections, or none that he vocalized, he just continued to walk along behind the two girls through the halls of the school. Usagi bounced, or rather hopped along beside Tohru, excited as a kid headed to the candy store. The closer they got to the older girl's class, the rabbit suddenly noticed, the thicker the horde of females grew. Girls from every grade, some she recognized from her very own class.
A devilish grin spread across the short girl's face as she finally spotted the crown of silver hair through the crowd, and the expression made the ever observant Kyou more than a little uneasy. Before he could say something to restrain her, the temptation to cause chaos grew too much for Usagi to suppress, and she sprinted through the crown, knocking several people aside.
"YUKI-KUN!" Dead silence reigned through the length of the hall as the silver haired blur shot out of nowhere and launched at Yuki, landing piggy back style on his back. Usagi tightened her arms around his neck so she wouldn't fall and smiled cheekily at the wave of hateful glares that crashed over her. She did feel bad for her sibling however, as he turned deepening shades of red in embarrassment.
"How dare you!" The shrill cry brought Usagi's blue eyes to a tall girl on the left. Most girls knew and revered her in the school as Motoko, senior and leader of the Prince Yuki Fan Club. The silver haired girl ignored her completely, turning the girl scarlet with anger, as she climbed off of Yuki, to his relief.
"Good morning, 'niisan. I just wanted to say thanks again for helping me with my math." Usagi could barely finish the sentence before she collapsed in hysterics. If Motoko had been all shades of red before, she was now the complete opposite; as white as a sheet. The multitude of Prince Yuki worshippers held an identical expression, and the sight was too much for the rabbit to bear.
Yuki shook his head, but one could detect the amusement in his features, and Kyou's too once you looked past the rolling eyes and annoyed muttering. In the doorway of the nearest classroom, another girl was laughing now, this one tall and blonde. Usagi, still flushed with laughter, turned toward her and the girl at her side. She knew instantly that the two must be Saki Hanajima and Arisa Uotani, the two notorious friends of Tohru.
The brunette had already taken to introducing them, "Hana-chan, Uo-chan, this is Usagi Sohma. Usagi-chan, this is Uotani and Hanajima, my friends."
"Yuki's younger sister, eh? I think I like her already. Great stunt," the praise from Uotani brought a grin to Usagi's face. The alarm of the crowd transformed into whispers and murmurs as she turned toward the dark haired girl, whose expression remained completely neutral.
"She has pleasant dark waves," the statement was directed at Tohru, and it perplexed Usagi somewhat, but she didn't have time to ponder it. The bell sounded, turning the silver haired girl pallid, and she ran down the hall screaming, 'I'm late!'
She nearly ran headlong into her teacher as she crossed the classroom threshold. He looked down at her annoyed, while she muttered a winded apology and settled into her usual seat by Hotaru. Their instructor lazily took attendance and left them to their own devices for the rest of homeroom. Usagi immediately turned to her indigo eyed friend.
"Hotaru-chan! We're having a picnic this Saturday and you have to come." She spoke the words in one breath and waited for Hotaru to respond. The obsidian haired girl blinked a few times, processing the statement, before she nodded and smiled.
"Of course."
xXx
"Haru-chan," The white haired teenager turned, his bland expression not faltering the slightest, even under Usagi's angry tone. He simply looked down at her, the difference in their height taking a chunk off the intimidation factor, and waited for her to say something further. Instead, she balled her hand and punched him in the arm, though not very hard. "You're really a jerk, you know; even though I did get an A on my math homework."
"You look better. Still skinny, but not a stick," Hatsuharu completely ignored her statement and veered subjects, much to the rabbit's exasperation. Usagi lost her hair tie during gym just before lunch, and she pushed the stray hair from her face in annoyance as she followed the now retreating ox toward the roof top. Her pace slowed as her thoughts wandered, and soon he walked quite a distance ahead of her.
Suddenly, someone placed a hand against her shoulder and startled the poor girl so badly she jumped against the nearby wall. The hand belonged to a boy, a couple years older than her and a senior judging by appearance, who looked thoroughly amused at her reaction. His dark hair fell carelessly around his darker eyes, and he stepped forward, placing his hand on the wall by her head. He leaned in closer, his mischievous grin close to her contorted expression.
"Hey, Usagi, right? I'm Akira." The grin on his face made him look quite attractive, but Usagi wished he wasn't so close. She couldn't back away or move around him and risk transforming. "You're pretty cute. What do you say to a date on Saturday?"
"I say no. I have plans." The blue eyed girl attempted to plaster a cheeky smile on her face, but it felt strained. She tried to locate Hatsuharu down the hall, but he was clearly gone. Akira didn't take the news too well, either, by the frown that replaced his previous grin.
"What kind of plans?" Usagi, fed up, prepared her vocal chords for chewing this guy to pieces. However, the loud thud on the wall next to her startled her, and she lost her words. The boy and she both looked over at the fist that'd connected with the wall rather violently, then the rage filled face attached to it.
"Back off," with enough venom to make anyone shiver, the boy needn't be told twice. He backed up and walked swiftly away, leaving Usagi alone to sigh with relief and smile at her savior.
"Thanks, Kyou-kun."
"You and Tohru both, I swear. Where's the stupid ox, anyway?" Kyou grumbled, sticking his hands into his pockets roughly and continuing his walk toward the roof. Usagi sped her stride to keep pace, and walked contentedly beside him, smiling to herself. Kyou said nothing for a moment, then he turned to her and said shortly, "What's that look for?"
"Oh nothing," she replied, still smiling. "I was just thinking how valiantly you saved me; like a knight in shining armor." Her smile morphed into a grin at the desired result; a streak of red across the taller boy's cheeks. They stepped through the door to the roof, where everyone else was already assembled with their lunches.
xXx
As Usagi conversed with Hotaru in their last class, ten minutes before the bell freed them from school, she felt something collide with the side of her head. Perplexed, she turned toward the small, triangular folded piece of paper that now rested on the floor by her desk. Hotaru sent her an inquiring glance, but she could only shrug as she unfolded the triangle and smoothed the page flat.
A frown touched her face as she glanced to the left, two desks over and back at the paper in her hands. The ebony haired girl in front of her, twisted in the desk so they were face to face, grew tired of waiting and plucked the note from Usagi's hands. Her eyebrows rose, then crinkled, before she broke out in a mirthful smile and placed the paper back on her friend's desk.
"The second today," Usagi grumbled. She scribbled a 'no' on the paper, balled it up, and threw it two desks over. Then she remembered that particular subject hadn't been brought up during lunch so she relayed the story of Kyou's valiant rescue to the waiting Hotaru.
"If you aren't careful," the violet eyed girl paused to laugh as she thought of Yuki's crazed fan club, "they're going to start calling you 'Princess'."
"Oh ha ha," Usagi rose from her desk as the bell rang and followed the still giggling Hotaru from the classroom. The two girls parted ways at the school gates, and Usagi spotted Tohru amongst the crowd. She rushed over, greeting the brunette enthusiastically, and then volunteered to walk her to work.
Close to an hour later, Usagi entered Shigure's home, making sure to slide her shoes off. The dark haired man nearly had a heart attack when he'd walked into the kitchen the previous day and saw her sandal clad feet on his linoleum. Now in her socks, she walked down the oddly quiet corridor and up the stairs to her bedroom, dropping off her school bag. Glancing in the mirror over her dresser, she decided to change out of her uniform as well.
The silver haired girl descended the stairs again in a pair of jeans and an old Sailor V tee shirt, still slightly uneasy at the stillness of the house. 'I wonder...I know Yuki didn't have any after school activities today. Kyou's probably on the roof, but I thought Haru and Miji might come over.' Her mind quickly traveled to the donuts she'd hidden in the cupboard, and she shrugged off all other thoughts as she anticipated their jelly filled goodness.
Those stray thoughts returned, however, as Usagi stepped into the kitchen. Momiji jumped from his chair enthusiastically and gave her a hug, which she returned as her eyes took in the rest of the kitchen. Kyou leaned against the counter, his arms crossed and eyes closed, and Hatsuharu sat at the table, his chin rested in his hand as he stared at the wall with blatant boredom. Only Yuki returned her gaze, a slight smile over his otherwise troubled expression.
"Usagi-chan!" Momiji finally released her, his cheerful demeanor persistent as he led her over to the table. She willingly followed, and wondered why everyone was gathered here in the kitchen barely talking. In fact, she bet the most conversation came from the hyperactive rabbit at her side, but still wondered why they'd been so quiet when she came home a few minutes ago.
"Where have you been?" Hatsuharu asked next, finally tearing his chocolate brown eyes from the wall and to Usagi's face as she sat down. This looked to present a point of interest for everyone, as they all turned their eyes to her for an answer.
"Um, I walked Tohru-chan to work. Then I walked here. Have you been waiting for me?" Usagi meant the question for everyone, but she directed it across the table at Hatsuharu. He nodded, awkwardly given that his hand still held up his chin. "For what?"
"I think you should get transferred to our class," the white haired teen announced, inclining his head toward Momiji to explain the 'our.' Usagi already got that point, but she gave him a perplexed expression at the proposal. Her dark blue eyes looked over to Yuki, whose expression was unreadable, Momiji who looked anxious, and Kyou who appeared uneasy.
"Why?" A pause, while Usagi kept her confused eyes on Kyou, until it finally occurred to her. "You told them what happened." She turned back to Hatsuharu, "I don't need you to look after me. Besides, what about Hotaru? I don't want to leave her alone."
"She can transfer with you," Momiji suggested happily, looking genuinely excited, "Then all four of us could be together!"
"Look, just because two guys asked me out--"
"Two?" Yuki raised his eyebrows at her, and Usagi flushed, realizing that was probably the dumb thing to say. She fidgeted in her seat, but remained defiant.
"It doesn't matter. I'm not stupid and I'm not going to transform. I don't see any reason I should transfer classes."
"If you really don't want to," Yuki relented. Usagi smiled widely and stood, walking over to the cabinets to dig out her donuts. As such, she missed the grave frown on Hatsuharu's face and Kyou leaving the room. Momiji joined her in wolfing down jelly filled donuts and laughing at their puffed out cheeks as they chewed.
xXx
"That was not nice." Kyou turned as the crown of silver hair appeared over the edge of the roof, followed swiftly by the rest of the silver haired girl with a less than pleased expression on her face. Still, she took her time in crawling across the roof so she wouldn't slip and plummet to the ground. Finally, she settled next to Kyou and faced him with a frown, "Why did you have to go and tell Yuki and Hatsuharu, anyway?"
"I didn't mean to. It sort of slipped." Usagi observed the red eyed teenager skeptically, but she could tell by the look in his eyes that he was telling the truth. For a moment she stayed quiet, and then she laughed. He raised his eyebrows, clearly confused at the behavior.
"Kyou-kun, that's silly." The rabbit explained, still chuckling. She turned back to look at him, the laughter still shining in her eyes, "If that's true then I guess I can forgive you."
xXx
You've reached the office of Hatori Sohma. Leave your message. (Beep)
Hatori-san it's, um, Ame. Er, we're planning a picnic this Saturday at one of the Sohma summer homes and it would be great if you could come. Shigure and Ayame are coming, and, well, please come! (click)
Hello lovely caller! You've reached the fabulous, the glamorous, the absolutely wonderful Ayame! (rustling in the background) Of course, if you could see my pose you would agree! Oh, if this is Tori-san, the picture is in your second drawer so you can stop panicking! (laughter) If this is Yuki, brother dearest, you're calling! I have too tell Tori-san right away. Mine, get the ce-- (Beep)
(laughing) Aya! It's Usagi. Gure-chan warned me you never check your messages, but I hope you do this time! We're all going to a summer house this weekend for a picnic, so I hope you can come. (click)
HELLO? Oh I'm so SORRY I'm not here right now. I'm sorry! Please forgive me! I apologize! I APOLOGIZE TO THE ENTIRE WORLD FOR NOT BEING HOME WHEN YOU SO GRACIOUSLY CALLED ME! (Beep)
Oh Ritsu-kun! It's Ame. I haven't been to see you, so I'm the rude one this time! I'm very sorry! To make it up to you, I'd hoped you would come along with us to one of the summer homes this weekend. We're all going to have a picnic. I've heard you already met Tohru-chan! Please, please come, Ritsu-kun! (click)
xXx
Ha. Short chapter packed with my own personal humor. I wonder if it's actually funny? Picnic!
♥SachiNyoko♥
