Sorry for the wait. It's the final part; it's longer than the previous chapters. Thanks to all those who continued reading and special thanks to those who reviewed.
Ninja Usagi, Part 5- End of the Darkness
By Dudly
PS: Italics mean flashbacks.Love- no one had ever given a decent definition of it.
Once, Mikako had asked her mother an innocent question… "Mom, what's love?"
At this time, she was only six years old. Never before that day had she heard the word… never. Children mocked her for hours for her ignorance.
Why was it strange that she ignored the meaning of "love"? Those kids barely knew how to count to 100 or to write in kanji. She could.
"Didn't anyone ever tell you 'I love you'?"
Mikako had frowned. No, nobody ever did. Did they have a problem with that? And why wouldn't they answer her question, anyway? If anything, they didn't know the meaning of love. They were just pretending to make her feel dumb.
"Mommy, what does 'I love you' means?" The little girl was sitting on her mother's legs, gazing at the woman's face with interest.
To her utter surprise, her mom had glared. "Nothing. People only tell you they love you to get the better of you. But it's a lie."
Little Mikako was confused.
"But, mom, what's love?"
Perhaps it was because her mother never gave her the information she needed that, all those years later, she still wandered on the path of life alone.
Alone with no one but the shadow of herself, that reliable partner that she learnt to use as a perfectly fitting mask.
--
"I can't believe her!"
Reika sighed, for the hundredth time that evening. "I know you can't."
"Did you just see the way she stared at him?" A pause. "And then how she looked at Usagi?"
"I did," Reika accorded lamely. She really had enough of her friend. The alcohol was making her head spin, and right now, she only wanted to cuddle with her Motoki.
No such luck. Saori was fuming. "Then why are you so calm?"
Before replying, Reika cast a glance at her boyfriend. The man appeared to be in deep conversation with one of his long lost friend- she wasn't getting out anytime soon.
If that how things were going to be, she told herself, then she could at least clear things with Saori.
"First, I'm not calm, I'm drunk," Reika drawled with a somehow proud smile. "Second, I don't care about any trick Atsuo can pull off. None of the lies she can say can affect Usagi. Third, I also trust Mamoru. Nothing she can do will make him hurt his darling…"
She stopped abruptly; thoughts were rushing in her head and it hurt.
"Dammit! If you're that angry with her, Saori, just go and slap her… and leave me alone!"
When she looked up, the image of Saori gaping made her laugh.
"I can't believe I never saw you in that state before," the girl muttered. Then, a smirk graced her lips. "That was a good suggestion though. And, after seeing you like that, I think I can blame anything on alcohol."
And she was off.
--
God had built the Earth as we now know it; he had formed everything we're used to, everyone around us.
Yet, even he couldn't create something that could stop Mikako at this exact moment.
She was a girl with a mission.
-
"How about we disappear together about now?"
Mikako had lost sight of Mamoru, so she had decided to find their hostess instead…
She had found both.
"You know I can't," the little lady scolded, rolling her eyes. "Haruka and Motoki are waiting for me inside. I have to stay until the party is over."
Some part of Mikako stared in admiration at the blond beauty. The morality of the woman was incredibly strong, if she refused a night with Chiba Mamoru!
"Well, once the night will be over…"
Tsukino Usagi had smiled. "I'll come and meet you."
-
It infuriated Mikako.
A lot.
--
Saori hesitantly walked up to Mikako. "Hi, Atsuo-san."
"Do I know you?"
Swallowing nervously, the brunette shook her head.
"Not yet."
The teenager with the silver hair considered her for a whole minute before smiling. "You're Saori, right?"
"Yes," she acknowledged, her shoulders relaxing from the stress.
Mikako had smirked. "You might be useful to me."
Saori hadn't got it. Instead, she had grinned and said "Let's be friend!"
--
Ten years later, she was still hesitantly walking toward Mikako.
But, this time, she wasn't afraid of the other girl's reaction; she was scared of her own.
When she fixed her eyes on her old friend, she saw betrayal; she remembered every selfish trick she was the victim of.
She recalled every bitter conversation and more.
Her brain automatically rejected any recollections of good times. Didn't Mikako prove, countless times already, that the bright side of her was just a mask?
She had nothing to be afraid of. Mikako was just a plain woman who grew bitter all too fast.
"Hey there," she greeted smoothly, plastering a smile on her face.
Mikako stiffened. "What do you want?"
Really, nothing had changed in a decade. She was still the polite girl she used to be, and Mikako was still rude and tactless. But roles could be reversed… this time she was the one in control.
"Since when do you care about what I want?"
With a serene smile, she let the crisped silence rule for a moment, spreading a cold wind around them. Mikako seemed pretty preoccupied, if not upset. Saori didn't bother to ask why… she didn't care either. No more was she being patient and nice with people who didn't deserve it.
"I came to stop you before you do something stupid."
The woman in the red dress stiffened and glared. "Did you see Mamoru flirting with that blond tease?"
Saori twitched; she had to bite her lip to make sure no insult or vulgarity would come out of her mouth. "Maybe I have. Did you?"
Her ex friend stared at her, utterly confused. "Of course I did!"
"You saw it clearly?"
"Naturally. I wouldn't tell you about it otherwise…"
The brunette smiled at the obliviousness of the girl. "Then you can't have missed it."
The declaration was lost on Mikako, but the future policewoman didn't mind much. She actually enjoyed the exasperation she caused by playing it mysterious. It was a funny game, driving the sad excuse for a lady to her limits.
And, as expected came the annoyed "what are you talking about."
"Chemistry," Saori replied simply. "They have a blinding connection. You know it's true. We all do. We can almost see the red string linking them together."
She watched as her vis-à-vis struggled to form ideas, counter backs and arguments in her head. This time, she didn't smirk. She only waited- she felt that she couldn't miss the chance to finally bring a conclusion to their failed friendship.
That conclusion was now or never.
"I've seen it," Mikako confessed after a short moment. "I never saw anything of the kind before. It was mesmerizing while staying simple."
Saori nodded.
"But it doesn't make it right, Saori! They are both married. Mamoru finally found himself a wife, and he's blowing it away."
"Tell me, you would like to be Usagi, don't you? To be the one to betray Mamoru's secret wife."
The question took Mikako aback- she was now one foot from falling from a cliff. It was a dangerous territory, the silver haired woman told herself.
Partly because she didn't know the answer.
What would have she done, if Mamoru had agreed to follow her somewhere else?
Blank filled her head. Gone were the fantasies she had before seriously questioning herself. With a small voice, she voiced that she wouldn't have.
"Not with a married man," she added.
Instead of snapping some witty reply, Saori was dragged back 6 years prior.
--
"Wow. You're house is beautiful."
Saori gazed around with huge eyes. The place couldn't be described with mere words. It was magic, gorgeous, sad and lonely at the same time. Luxurious both in looks and feelings.
Young Mikako shrugged. "I guess it could be qualified as that. Too beautiful for comfort."
"Don't say that, it sounds as if you didn't like it. Where is your mom?"
Saori watched her friend's face scrunch in disgust at the mention. The bored tone switched to a cold, faraway voice. "Mother is in her room."
"Oh… where is your father then?" Saori felt uneasy with the new atmosphere she created.
If Mikako's face was one of loath a second ago, it now spoke of pure hatred. "I do not wish to speak of him right now."
So they didn't speak at all.
--
Saori didn't understand why a meaningless memory came to haunt her at that moment. But she did what she did the best: go with the flow.
"Where's your father, Mikako?"
Mikako froze. A glint of panic passed through her eyes. "Why do you ask?"
"Because you never answered."
"I met him last summer. The guy is rich. Happily married to another woman, one he was already with when he met my mother," she recited, keeping her voice even. "I was a disastrous accident. Don't ask me more."
"Mikako…"
"If Tsukino-san believes that Mamoru loves her, they'll create their own little disaster. Nobody wants that."
Saori looked- no, more than just look; she pierced the frail woman's soul. Hiding in the corner of the blue orbs, there was a small child begging for a meaning, dying for someone to show her…
"Love," Saori stated aloud.
Again, Mikako looked stricken. Briefly, Saori wondered if it would be the only reaction she'd get from the girl she called a bitch- pure shock. "What?"
"I just understood what your life was all about," the brunette replied, her features softening in forgiveness. "You just want to find love… without knowing what it is."
"Shut up!"
Mikako's elegant face reflected a hint of distress. Her façade was beginning to crumble.
"You know nothing about my life…"
The fair woman took no offence. "Which is your fault. But I forgive you, Atsuo Mikako."
Doubtful eyes locked with her confident ones.
"You do?"
Nodding, Saori pointed to the opposite side of the room. "You see that angel over there? Go talk to her. She knows everything you don't."
Hesitantly, Mikako accepted and walked away. A few steps ahead, she turned back to Saori. "I'm sorry… for everything."
Saori arched a slender brow at the apology, but it sounded sincere, so she smiled.
Closing her eyes, she had a little regret.
If Usagi had been among us sooner, then a lot of pain could have been avoided.
To be concluded
Arghh… That was a bit messed up, the ending turned out awkward. So I cut the ending and I'll end it next chapter for sure... xD