Title: Shipwrecked

Author: Lisa

Chapter: 4

Rating: G

Author's Notes:

Hi minna! I know it's been awhile, but I managed to get some free time and figured I owed you an update. I hope you enjoy, and please drop me a review at the end! :)

Disclaimer: Sailor Moon and the others don't belong to me, but this story does.


Usagi awoke to the first rays of sunlight that pierced through the opening in their makeshift shelter. She squinted, allowing her eyes to adjust to the obtrusive light before groggily scanning her surroundings. So it was real after all, she realized gloomily; yesterday's (had it really only been one day) devastating turn of events had not simply been a nightmare from which she could escape by simply regaining consciousness. Her eyes fluttered closed as the pain in her hand and various other parts of her body returned with vengeful glee before they shot open quickly at the thought of her unwilling patient. Had he…?

His shallow breaths sent an all-too-familiar rush of relief through the girl. He had made it through the night at least—that had to count for something, right? Wasn't it the first night that was the most uncertain for someone with serious injuries? Usagi desperately hoped that was true, and she had not made that up in her frenzied attempts to assure herself of Mamoru's successful recovery. She watched as he continued to sleep, memorizing the way the locks of hair fell into his eyes, the way his eyebrows scrunched up on his forehead. Even in his sleep, it seemed, Mamoru was incapable of escaping his troubles. Usagi smiled slightly, and she couldn't (or rather didn't) resist the urge to brush aside the stray locks that covered his eyes.

It was in doing so that she felt the unnatural warmth of his forehead. Usagi felt a lump form in her throat.

"Mamoru," she spoke shakily, her voice barely above a whisper, "Mamoru, wake up." To her immense relief, his eyes fluttered open, but his gaze was distant, unrecognizing. Usagi bit her lip nervously as he pinned her with those clouded eyes, like a fog that hid the ocean's true brilliance beneath its filmy blanket.

"Father…?" His voice was hoarse and his speech hardly coherent.

Usagi felt tears prick the insides of her eyes at his confusion. "No, Mamoru," she replied gently, trying all she could to maintain composure, "it's Usagi. Your father…your father isn't here with us."

"Usagi…" His eyes closed again, and the blond had to consciously remind herself to keep breathing. When they re-opened, Usagi all but cried out in joy at the recognition that now registered in his stormy orbs. "Gomen," he breathed as he ran a shaky hand through his hair, "for a second…I…"

"You're running a fever," she blurted out quickly, her face betraying her once more by flushing inexplicably. "It's completely understandable that you'd…see things that you really wanted to see."

"You make it sound like my seeing you here instead is a bad thing," he gave a chuckle that turned into a half-cough.

Usagi bit her lip. "Isn't it?"

"Usagi." He placed a surprisingly firm hand on her arm. "I would've died out on the beach last night if it wasn't for you." He smiled warmly, and it was her turn now to feel feverish. "I owe you my life."

"Mamoru…" Usagi turned away before her body traitorously carried out the suddenly strong urge to kiss the man before her who now supposedly owed her a life debt. 'He's grateful to you, Usagi, not attracted to you,' she berated herself silently. 'Get a grip. Mamoru won't owe you his life much longer if you keep sitting here fantasizing about him instead of getting him help.' She stood up, effectively ending her internal monologue.

"I'm going to see what I can find in this place," she announced to Mamoru while skillfully avoiding making eye contact, wishing he would stop looking at her so intently with those ocean-blue eyes that she had grown to both adore and dread. "You need to have some water at least."

"And so do you."

"Don't worry about me," she said more gruffly than she had intended. She had to reestablish boundaries between them quickly. Hadn't he made it entirely clear already that he had no interest in her? If not for this impossible situation, Usagi was sure he wouldn't have spared her another glance without the not-so-subtle prompting of his father.

She stood shakily, glad that her legs were still cooperative enough to remove her from their current confines. "Please try not to injure yourself further while I'm gone," she quipped.

"Usagi." The blond gasped audibly as she stared down at the hand that now grasped her good wrist. "Please be careful. I—" Mamoru looked away and sighed; he hated the feeling of helplessness that enveloped him. Wasn't he supposed to protect her? Why wasn't he able to live up to his name? "I couldn't forgive myself if something happened."

She drew her arm away from his inviting warmth but dared to give him a small smile of reassurance. "Lesson two: I'm much tougher than I look." With that, she crawled out of the small entrance, leaving Mamoru again wondering just who this girl really was and exactly what she was capable of.


Usagi had been gone for an hour, or perhaps a minute; Mamoru had lost track of time in his half feverish, half panic-induced state. He gritted his teeth as alternating waves of pain shot up from his side and his ankle, as if each body part was competing to see which could cause him more anguish. The only thing—or rather, person—who kept insanity and the ever-inviting call of unconsciousness at bay was the young blond who was now out in the unknown bravely fighting for their survival.

Mamoru was embarrassed to admit it, but in the wake of the previous night's horrors, the feeling of her petite body pressed against his had meant more, much more to him than simply the need to retain body heat to stave off the chill of night. He had felt something stir within him last night, a deep and primal need to hold and protect the girl who had put him ahead of her own well-being, that frightened him to his core. Mamoru was no stranger to female attention, yet he had never felt that kind of warmth that Usagi had ignited in him. Unfortunately, he was all too sure that she didn't feel the same way, if her behavior this morning was any indication. He groaned out loud, wishing that his head would stop spinning and allow him a brief respite to sort through the myriad of conflicting emotions that vied for domination within him.

How long had it been now? Two hours, two minutes? If the fever and his injuries didn't claim his life, he was pretty sure Usagi would.


After a fair bit of walking, Usagi had reached a patch of trees that provided welcome shade from the summer heat. The hot sand had begun to burn the bottoms of her feet in her trek across the island, and she was overjoyed when she came across a small pond near the center of the shaded area. She gingerly dipped her toes in the clear water and let out a small laugh of relief as the coolness soothed her aching feet. The water looked safe to drink, and Usagi desperately hoped she had not been deceived as she cupped her hands into the inviting blue liquid and swallowed a mouthful. She cried as the water trailed down her throat like a healing balm and greedily took in two more handfuls before her thirst had been satiated.

"Now…how can I get this to Mamoru?" She wondered out loud, her eyes scanning her surroundings for anything that could even remotely be useful in transporting water. Her gaze fell upon some pieces of tree bark lying about twenty feet ahead of her, and she forced herself up onto her protesting feet once more.

Two pieces of bark proved to be somewhat of a successful find, as the curvature of the wood allowed for about a cupful of water to be carried in each. Usagi noted silently that she would have to be very careful when walking back, especially with her injured hand and her natural propensity for accidents. She had never been the most graceful of girls—chairs, desks, and even walls somehow always seemed to get in her way—resulting in various trips and falls growing up. For Mamoru's sake, however, she was determined to change her admittedly klutzy ways. She gathered a few more pieces of lighter bark as well, hoping that they would be enough to make a fire for warmth tonight. Though that meant Usagi would lose an excuse to mold herself against Mamoru again tonight… She shook her head at the distressing turn of her thoughts, wondering why the man always seemed to intrude her mind at the most inconvenient times.

Further searching in the area revealed several berry bushes clustered around the opposite side of the pond. Usagi looked hungrily at the plump red berries, her stomach growling in anticipation at the inviting sustenance. As the first berry was only inches from the blond's lips, however, she paused. She had remembered reading about poisonous berries in one of her classes…was it possible that these…? She studied the small round item carefully, rolling it around her fingers as if the berry would have some kind of indication of its deathly contents. Her stomach protested loudly again as Usagi closed her hand around it.

Perhaps it was selfish, but if she were to die from eating poisonous berries, Usagi didn't want to die here, alone. Ever the optimist, she picked a good amount more; in the lucky event they were not poisonous, then she and Mamoru would have something to sustain themselves for the day.

Mamoru…fear suddenly gripped her insides at the thought of what might had happened back in the cave. He had already had a fever when she left…? Without a further moment to lose, Usagi stood up carefully with her treasures and began making the journey back to their shelter.


She found him half sitting against the side of the cave, and in the dim afternoon light, she made out his smile at seeing her return safely. She smiled back before gingerly setting her precious finds on the cave floor.

"It's not much, but…" He stopped her self-deprecation with a hand on her shoulder.

"It's perfect." He surveyed the water thirstily, before turning his gaze to Usagi. "Did you drink already?"

"Hai, don't worry about me," she said quickly, then realized it was the second time she had said that to him today. "I had plenty back at the pond," she added gently.

Mamoru nodded before taking one piece of the bark and quickly draining its contents with satisfied gulps. "Arigato."

Usagi bit her lip, feeling her heartbeat quicken involuntarily at the sound of his voice. The man was positively going to drive her crazy by the end of all this. But she wasn't entirely sure if she minded if he did. "How are you feeling?"

"Never been better," Mamoru replied with false cheer. His ability to speak was quickly hampered by the feel of her small hand against his forehead.

"You still feel warm," she noted, her eyes refusing to meet his. Before he could fully process what was happening, she had ripped another piece of fabric from her shirt, dipped it into the remaining water and was now applying the cool cloth to his burning skin.

Mamoru closed his eyes, reveling at her touch and the coolness of the fabric. They darted open with (admittedly not unwelcome) surprise when he felt her hands now tugging at the bottom of his shirt. His face began burning again, but not from the meddlesome fever that made his world spin. He suppressed a gasp from the feeling of her cool hands against his bare torso, frozen by the tiny jolts of electricity that sparked from her fingertips.

"I need to clean your wound and make sure it's not infected," Usagi mumbled, acutely aware of the way his strong muscles tensed beneath her touch. As she dabbed carefully around the injury, she was again possessed by a traitorous desire, this time to kiss the injury that was causing Mamoru such pain. As a child, Usagi had inevitably felt better whenever her mother would tenderly kiss her cuts and bruises. It was completely ridiculous and naïve, she realized, but she wanted to help ease his suffering, even if just a little. She swallowed the lump in her throat and again quashed the urge, which would undoubtedly traumatize the poor man even further. Instead, she focused on removing the remaining dried blood and grime around the gash, trying her best not to cause him any additional discomfort.

After the longest few minutes of both Usagi and Mamoru's lives, she completed her work and sat beside him wordlessly.

"Usagi, I—" Mamoru struggled with the words that mockingly evaded him, wishing desperately to convey his gratitude and the undeniable pull toward the blond who was trapped with him in fate's cruel game. He wanted to tell her so much and wanted to know her so badly, yet the words could not, would not come.

"Mamoru, there's something else…" She pointed to the small pile of berries lying in front of them. "I haven't tried them yet…and I wasn't able to find any other food."

She shifted uncomfortably, and he understood the implication immediately. "Let me," he whispered and took a small berry within his fingers, twirling it in the dim light as Usagi had by the pond.

"Mamoru." Her hands were grasping his arm now, almost desperately. "If it actually is poisonous, I can't…"

"It's alright, Usagi," he smiled, his heart soaring with morbid pleasure at her distress. "If I do die, then…you'll have a much better chance without having me here to drag you down…"

"Iie," She shook her head, the walls she had built around herself quickly crumbling before her. "I can't do this without you."

He smiled again before popping the berry into his mouth and chewing slowly.

"Mamoru…"

Usagi made up her mind then that if something did happen to him, she would take the poison as well. Without food, how long could she make it with only water? How long would it be before someone would think to look for her on this deserted rock? How could she continue to stay in this cave if he…?

The minutes passed as Usagi kept her eyes trained on the man before her, half trembling with fear that he would collapse at any given second. She needed something to distract her, something to allow her to continue holding the reins on her sanity.

"Tell me about your father, Mamoru." It was perhaps not the most appropriate topic of conversation, but it was the first that Usagi could think of in her panicked state. "This morning, when you first woke up, you thought I was him…"

Mamoru sighed, and Usagi could tell that she had brought up a sore subject. "We don't have to talk about him," she added quickly, "I don't know why I can never say the right things." She felt hot tears form behind her eyes and didn't bother to stop them as they began trickling down her cheeks.

Mamoru lifted her chin and forced her to meet his gaze, carefully wiping the fat tears from the blond's flushed cheeks. "My father is—or was—a good man."

"Is," Usagi supplied forcefully between sniffles, and Mamoru smiled ruefully.

"He loved my mother very much. My childhood was—ah—the kind any child would hope to have, I suppose." His gaze grew nostalgic as he recalled those blissful times when pain and anger had been foreign concepts to him rather than constant companions. "Mother could light up any room with a single smile, her presence was that powerful." 'Much like you,' he noted silently. "After the accident, Father was just…not the same."

"Gomen," she pressed her face against his arm, and he drew comfort from that simple gesture. "How old were you when she passed?"

"I was ten. From then on, my father just threw himself into his work and providing the best service that he could, and I did too, in a way." He laughed, a bitter, hollow sound that sent a shiver down Usagi's back. "I've always excelled at school."

Usagi was grateful for the small glimpse into Mamoru's past, into the tragic events that had molded the man before her. "I didn't mean to pry. It seemed like you two were close back on…" She couldn't finish her sentence before her mind began replay the horrifying screams from the passengers.

"I love him," he whispered truthfully, "but…I don't…I don't know if I can ever be close to him again. To anyone again. It's been so long since…I'm not sure I know how anymore."


As the sun gradually dipped below the horizon, the dim light of the cave became cloaked in darkness once more. Not being able to make out Mamoru's features, Usagi settled for hearing the sound of his breathing. With the remaining bark, Mamoru managed to make a small fire by the entrance, and together the pair sat, watching as the flames danced against the cave walls and the smoke escape in a thin line through the opening.

"Looks like I may make it through another night after all," Mamoru joked to lighten the mood, for which he promptly received a gentle slap from Usagi.

"I won't have that kind of talk, especially not after everything I've done to keep you alive."

Mamoru was mesmerized by the way the fire danced in her eyes. What he had said before was true—he wasn't sure if he could ever learn how to open up to another person again, how to accept and provide such closeness—but if anyone could teach him a thing or two, it would be her.

"I think I'll have some more of those berries now." He grabbed a handful and savored their subtle sweetness. There was a chance that he may not wake to another sunrise, but for tonight, he thanked his lucky stars for making it so far. "Maybe you should wait to see if I am still breathing in the morning before…"

He trailed off as he watched Usagi eagerly pop five or six berries at once into her mouth before flashing him a rare grin. "If I do die, at least it won't be on an empty stomach."

He laughed despite himself, and Usagi soon joined in. For that moment at least, the future looked a little less bleak.


Well, there you have it! Hope it's not too horrible, I felt a little rusty when writing this. Please stay tuned for the next chapter (which, by any luck, won't take me another six months to write!), and be sure to leave me a review! Your kind words are what keep me going. :) Also, time permitting, I've been toying with the idea of doing a short, mushy one-shot in honor of Usa's birthday this weekend—let me know if that's something you might be interested in!

This chapter was written and posted June 2015.