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Chapter 2

Rini was a year old. Usagi looked at her daughter as she took unstable steps but she was sure of herself. She was also talking. The year old was strong and nothing Usagi ever was in her life. Usagi was proud of the little girl who she gave birth to, she'd never told Mamoru why this little one had come too soon, and she wouldn't if she could help it. But the girl was stronger and making progress as if she was full term.

Usagi looked to her mother in this life-time, and perhaps a woman she deemed more of a motherly figure in her life. Selene had sacrificed her life and loved her daughter fiercely but growing up Serenity hadn't had much contact with the mother she envied. Even then Serenity was a weak imitation of the strength her family heritage needed. Her mother looked delicate but had the grace of the generations before her and she also had the strength to send everyone to the future when the world around her was falling down around her and her daughter was so weak as not to live without her love and killed herself. Selene was a woman Usagi was proud to call her mother.

However Ikuko was the warm, motherly figure Usagi wanted her daughter to have and call grandma. One she was glad of growing up herself to have the love and support of who was there to protect her and guide her when she was unsure. She actually had two of those figures, Luna was another one.

Luna would be like a grandma to Rini as well, but less so and more of a return to traditional advisor to her daughter as she would be advising Usagi throughout these coming years. Artemis as well, but he was never that close to Usagi in the first place, they got along and he liked her well enough but his loyalties, Usagi suspected truly lied with Minako and anything she decided to do he'd try to advise against but in the end go with her. He was a typical cat in that respect.

Their kitten would be Rini's friend and conscious, Usagi was sure. She'd spotted the cat every once in awhile when they came to visit, the gray cat who could talk could only be Luna and Artemis's. They didn't know Rini was their child when they came; just that they had to help Rini's parents and save her mother.

Usagi was smart enough to put together the queen and king they were saving was Rini's parents and that made Mamoru and her, her parents.

They didn't see her again until the day Usagi was forced into labor. Rini was also getting better at not seeing Usagi and Mamoru for longer and longer periods of time. Usagi hoped that would hold true for tonight.

Mamoru had not touched her for the last six months. She'd missed it desperately. Sure he hugged her and kissed her cheeks, her forehead, and occasional a slight peck on the lips but he feigned that he was busy with work and that they hardly saw each other as it was, was accurate, Usagi grudgingly allowed. He did seem too, a lot more tired recently. After the girls had started taking care of the midnight shift for a couple of months until Rini stopped crying her eyes out at every moment, they both had been getting better sleep.

Everyone seemed fine.

That was another thing Usagi regretted though, because of being a queen, she was doing what her mother had done with her, saw her the spare moments she could. Usagi took Rini with her to a lot of the less pressing delegate meetings and other events and functions where a one year old was either fawned over or not a nuisance. Selene had been on her own, Rini at least saw her father every once in awhile, as much as she saw her mother.

Usagi could not fault Mamoru for that; he at least made an effort with his daughter. She was determined to find out what was wrong with her and why he stopped being interested in her since she gave birth their child. Maybe she had gained a little weight from the pregnancy? She hadn't been as active the first couple of months, she had hurt and even until a few months ago, Usagi had felt a pain every once in awhile. Now she was a lot better and she believed she was fully healed.

So Usagi looked up to her mother with a smile, her mother's hair was turning bluer than normal before it turned to a grayish-white.

Her mother was human and grew at the normal pace. Usagi sighed sadly, her life would continue until it was her time. Usagi almost envied that life; she on the other hand had not aged for the last ten years. Her younger brother was now older than her physically.

Ikuko played with her granddaughter with a soft smile on her face. She received the weird hair colors that the women in her family were known for. Hers was a purplish blue brown and her daughter's- she looked at Usagi and found her daughter watching her, Usagi blushed at being caught and looked instead at Rini. Her daughter's hair was blond, a strange color to be in Tokyo by two Japanese, but Ikuko wasn't worried, neither was Kenji, it was tradition for the girl to have an odd color. Now her granddaughter, she had almost pink hair in her blond-ish mane that was now passed her chin.

"I'd love to take her with us tonight and watch her." Ikuko told her daughter and Usagi returned her gaze back to her mother.

"Thank you, Ikuko-mama." Usagi grinned. "You have no idea what this means to me."

"I have an idea." Ikuko smiled back, she'd had two kids and knew the pressures they put on a marriage. "Say- Usagi-chan." She questioned and Usagi focused on her mother fully and nodded. "This is a little personal, but when was the last time you and Mamoru-san had sex?"

"Mama!" Usagi cried in shock, her mother had never talked to her this candidly about it before, always using subtly when she suspected Usagi and Mamoru were having sex when they first started dating. It hadn't been that early in their relationship, but Usagi listened to her mother's advice and allowed her to bring her to the gynecologist and got birth control pills then, just incase and was also told not to let her father know a thing about anything.

"Well?" Ikuko waited.

"More than a year."

"What?" Ikuko was surprised Mamoru had kept his hands to himself that long. "Did you guys have sex while you were pregnant?"

"Sometimes, Mamoru was afraid despite Ami's assurance that it wouldn't hurt me or the baby."

"I thought having sex around your due-date was a surefire way to getting the baby on time."

"It's a myth momma, but we were having sex up until the seventh month." Usagi bit her lip, she didn't like speaking this way to anyone and her mother just made it that much more awkward. "Then after the birthing complications he reasonably left me alone for awhile. He seemed like he was ready to try it again after I was getting better and moving it there myself, but he's always concerned something will happen to me. What I don't get is why it's been such a long time, when I was getting to that point; he suddenly just stopped anything that would be considered leading to that point."

"Maybe he thinks you don't want it?" Ikuko suggested, Kenji had been a little concerned, but they'd talked it through soon after Usagi was born and the time Shingo was, well, he could hardly wait to get trying for that third child, one that never came, but they had fun trying anyways. They still had fun trying, even knowing that it'd never happen. Ikuko had given Kenji's mother the kids some nights to baby-sit, she'd enjoyed the time with them, and so had her mother. Now it was Ikuko's turn to fulfill that unspoken desire in her daughter's eyes.

She'd get more time with her grandkids than she ever imagined, and soaked it in gladly, but also sadly that Mamoru's mother couldn't enjoy the little pink-haired child as well. But everything might have turned out differently if he'd had parents.

Ikuko reached over and hugged her daughter when tears began to sparkle in those crystal orbs. "It'll be all right, I'm sure it will be."

Usagi nodded and hugged her mother back, there was nothing like the love from a mother, and the comfort she gave.

Usagi pulled away shortly and gave her mom a reassuring smile, knowing she'd worry anyways and then stood up and hugged her daughter tightly to her and then kissed her cheek. "You're going to be staying with Ikuko-mama ok Rini? You'll be back tomorrow; you want to stay with grandma don't you?"

Rini looked at her with blue eyes so much like her fathers that Usagi froze thinking he was looking at her with that gaze, the knowing one. Rini nodded and a huge smile broke across her face. "I want to be with Grandma!" Rini shouted and then wriggled free of Usagi's arms and went to be picked up by her grandmother and Ikuko picked her up to receive a strong hug. Ikuko and Usagi shared a smile and Ikuko winked before walking off toward her home that was just down the street.

Usagi checked her watch, her mother's visit screwed up her time-table, she just didn't want to go, she was enjoying the non-expecting company of her mother. Usagi looked around the still, peaceful and best of all, empty gardens and started laughing and then spun around until she got dizzy. She sat down hard but she was happy- she was very content with just being here. However she knew she had to go, that she had duties to take care of.

Usagi got up, brushed herself off and went to work.

It was a long rest of the day and by the time she ended, it was almost ten o'clock at night.

When she got to her room, Mamoru looked at her in concern. "Why do you let them run you so late?" He demanded. "I thought we agreed neither of us would work after eight."

Usagi shrugged her shoulders wearily, after today she was tired, but she was also determined, she'd go through with her plans. Mamoru rubbed his hands together and rubbed her shoulders. "I got delayed and since I took such a long personal time, I figured I could devote more time to work, I'm sorry." Usagi replied and moaned when his hands found tender spots and his ministrations were putting her to sleep.

"I waited for you before going to tuck in Rini and retrieving her from Makoto. I swear that woman is teaching her bad things-" Mamoru gripped. "Do you want to go with me?"

Usagi waved her arm; she was already almost asleep without realizing it and didn't hear anything Mamoru just said. He sighed and picked up his wife and deposited her in the bed.

When he was walking away to go, she registered what he'd said to her and she grabbed his arm. "Makoto doesn't have her." Usagi explained when Mamoru looked down at the hand on his arm.

"Oh really?" He asked with a raised eyebrow, Usagi was now wide-awake. "Where is she?"

"She's with my mother for the night."

"Why?" Mamoru questioned, he didn't know his grandparents and that Rini was with them for the night confused him.

"Because she's Rini's grandmother and they want to get to know each other better." Usagi explained and then smiled slyly at him. "And I want to get to know you better again." She pulled him towards her and he came willingly, putting a knee on the bed and leaning over her, and she leaned up to kiss him passionately.

He didn't have anything to do with the fact she pulled him so fast he lost balance and she rolled over on top of him and kissed him again and started undressing him.

He lost his inward battle with himself and allowed his need for her override him. He soaked her in, relished every feel of her, her skin, her curves. She was bigger in certain areas than she used to be, even when she was pregnant. They joined and Mamoru savored the pleasure he released in her and kissed her deeply as they crashed together.

Usagi laid her head on his chest and drifted off to sleep, knowing he already was fast asleep. The clock on the nightstand read midnight and she couldn't remember a time she was happier.

When Mamoru woke up in the morning and he looked at his precious wife, he smiled in remembrance of the night before and at the beauty of her just lying there, then he remembered. Mamoru checked her visually for any signs that it hurt her and rest assured that she wasn't going to die on him right then and there; he groaned in frustration and wanted to pull his hair out and scream, he was an idiot and he made the biggest mistake of all, one he was trying to avoid. He was a fool who succumbed to his most basic instincts and desires.

He pulled her naked body close to him and rested his cheek against hers, her breathing brushed his ear and he just enjoyed the feel of her close to her. He vowed nothing would happen or come of that last nights joining. He'd have to talk to Ami when would be the earliest to check for pregnancy.

He knew that Usagi was still on birth-control and he hadn't used any additional protection the night before.

He couldn't corner Ami for several more nights, and he had to shun Usagi's advances one night, and he even pulled himself out of bed and took his pillow and a blanket and headed into the study to sleep on the couch.

He knew he was hurting Usagi's feelings but he couldn't let it be a repeat of the previous night, he just couldn't.

Usagi had reached for Mamoru but he pushed away her hand and even got out bed! She cried herself to sleep that night, he'd only allowed himself to sleep with her before because he needed to release the need, it wasn't because he still desired her, but for pure enjoyment and for his release.