Hooky.
Chapter Three: Hearts in Bloom.
Saturday morning brought the rain and the promise of lasting friendships to Kakyuu as she awoke. She had always loved the rain and she stood there watching it for several minutes until she reluctantly turned away from the window.
After a few hours getting reacquainted with Usagi and her friends at Rei's home she had gone back to the loft after driving Ami, Makoto, and Minako home and gotten some groceries. She had gone inside her temporary home and slumped into a chair, tired but happy. She was really starting to like being on Earth.
She began the day with a simple meal and then she wandered around the apartment lost in thought. Kakyuu could not get the image of the handsome Motoki out of her mind. He seemed polite enough, but she could sense a bit of sadness in him as well. She had asked Usagi about him and she told her that he was her oldest friend in the world. She had known him since she was little and thought of him as her older brother.
The reason for his sadness, Kakyuu learned, was that his long time girlfriend, Reika, had sent him a letter from abroad stating that she was going to marry one of her fellow scientists. It had hurt him a lot, but he grew to accept it. They had been apart for far too long to make their relationship work. It was sad, but inevitable. Her mind went again to the memory of her own lover and a wave of sadness washed over her. She sat down at the piano, tears flowing down her face as she remembered him, his touch, his laugh, everything.
After a while she calmed down and wiped her tears. Her friends were coming over and it would be unseemly for them to see her like this on what promised to be a great day. Kakyuu turned to the piano and began picking away at the keys until a melody that Yaten had played for her a few times. It took her several tries but she finally remembered the melody and how to play it. The song was a sad, haunting melody entitled 'Forever' and it was this song she was playing when the door buzzer went off.
She almost didn't hear the buzzer at first, so enraptured she was by the music, but whoever was buzzing was persistent, so she got up to see who it was.
"Hello, who is it?" Kakyuu called over the intercom.
"Hi, it's us!" Several voices she recognized immediately called back. Kakyuu laughed and pressed the buzzer to open the door. She unlocked the door and sat back down at the piano, this time playing a more cheerful, welcoming piece. A few minutes later she could hear voices from outside and a knock on the door. "We're here!" The voices called.
"The door's open!" Kakyuu called back, not pausing from her playing. The door opened and Usagi, Ami, Rei, Minako, Makoto, Setsuna, and Hotaru marched in, each wearing expressions of surprise and delight at the sight of their host at the piano.
"Oh wow!" Usagi exclaimed. "I didn't know you could play the piano Kakyuu!"
"Well I haven't played in years, but with a bit of practice it all came back to me." Kakyuu replied without pausing.
"Just like riding a bike, eh?" Rei remarked casually.
"Huh? What's a bike?" Kakyuu asked, perplexed. Her friends stared at her. "Kidding!" She said with a grin. Everyone laughed.
"C'mon, let's go shopping!" Minako called. Everyone cheered and headed for the door after Kakyuu grabbed her purse, keys, and jacket. They bundled into Kakyuu and Setsuna's vans and took off for a day of shopping.
Meanwhile, back on Kinmoku…
"No! It can't be! What is she doing here?" Yaten exclaimed as she stared down at Chibi-Chibi. For her part, Chibi-Chibi peeked out at her from behind Seiya's legs where she ran after Yaten's agonized screaming moments ago. Taiki and Seiya were as surprised as their friend was, but weren't about to admit that anytime soon in case it would spoil their fun.
"Calm down Yaten, you're frightening the poor child." Taiki admonished.
"Yeah, besides she's a real nice kid once you get to know her, aren't you sweetheart?" Seiya asked the little girl who now stood in front of her.
"Chibi sweetheart." She replied. Seiya laughed and patted her affectionately on the head.
"Just come and say hello Yaten, I'm sure she won't bite you." Taiki said.
"Are you sure?" Yaten gave the red-headed child a wary glance, certain that if, given the chance, she would sprout fangs and lunge for her throat.
"We're positive Yaten." Seiya replied. Yaten swallowed nervously and took a few tentative steps forward until she stood in front of Chibi-Chibi. The two stood there looking at each other, Yaten looking wary, while Chibi-Chibi looked curious. Seiya and Taiki stood back a bit to watch. Partially it was to give them a bit of space, but mostly it was due to the fact that Yaten smelled awful.
"Chibi-Chibi?" The child looked up at Yaten with an inquisitive smile.
Yaten cleared her throat. "Um, hello, my name is Yaten. Do you remember me?" She looked at the child and tried to smile warmly, and only managed a weak grin.
Chibi-Chibi stared up at Yaten and looked like she was going through a mental Rolodex of names and faces until she reached Yaten. Images of a mean person with long white hair who had been angry at her and tried to take her toy, an incense burner, away from her. Her smile turned into a frown and she promptly kicked Yaten in the shins. She yelped more in surprise then pain and Chibi-Chibi ran behind Seiya again.
"I think she remembers you." Taiki commented with a laugh. Seiya had to put a hand on a nearby table to steady her self as she looked at the red-faced and fuming Yaten.
Yaten stood there looking like she was going to explode before abruptly turning on her heel and marching into the bathroom with a shout of 'I hate you all!' before slamming the door behind her. Seiya, Taiki, and Chibi-Chibi stood there and shook their heads sadly.
"Poor Yaten." Taiki remarked.
"Don't worry, she'll bounce back, she always does." Seiya stated.
"Chibi bounce!" Chibi-Chibi exclaimed as she hopped up and down a bit. Seiya and Taiki laughed and Seiya scooped the child off the floor.
"Let's leave Yaten be and go have some dinner, okay?" Seiya asked.
"Yay!" Chibi-Chibi exclaimed happily at the prospect of food. The three smiled and headed out to dinner leaving an annoyed Yaten sulking in the bathtub.
"We'll bring something home for you!" Seiya called out to Yaten as they left.
"Go away!" Yaten shouted back. Seiya laughed and closed the door.
And now, back to Earth and our heroes.
After several hours of shopping and walking around and generally enjoying each other's company, the party gathered, as usual, at the Crown. Motoki came up and greeted them this time.
"Hello Usagi, everyone." He greeted them warmly. "It's nice to see you again Kakyuu." He added to the slightly blushing Princess.
"It is nice to see you again as well." She stammered out while her heart pounded loud enough that she thought everyone in the place could hear it. Motoki grinned, took their orders, and headed off to fill them. Kakyuu stared after him while her friends traded conspiratorial looks.
"Oh yeah, she's gone." Minako whispered, grinning.
"Yeah, she reminds me of Usagi and Makoto from a few years ago." Rei replied.
"We weren't that bad!" Makoto and Usagi shot back.
"Uh-huh, do the words 'Love Senshi' ring any bells?" Rei retorted thinking of the time when her two friends tried to aggressively court Motoki and were crushed when they learned about Reika.
"Shadup!" They growled back. The others, save Kakyuu who was still in la-la land, laughed.
"Ah to be young and in love again." Setsuna remarked with a wistful sigh.
"I don't know Mama you get the same look when we watch that TV show Stargate. And also when we bought you that DVD set of MacGyver." Hotaru remarked.
"I do not!" Setsuna exclaimed growing a bit flushed.
"Oh no? Just the other day we were watching it and you were muttering 'Richard, you are so hot.' And, mmmmph." Hotaru's retort was cut off by Setsuna's hand being clamped firmly over her mouth. Setsuna looked up and saw everyone staring at her.
"Ah, hehehe, kids these days. Really overactive imaginations." Setsuna said with a nervous laugh. Hotaru just rolled her eyes. Setsuna gave her a dirty look and removed her hand as Motoki came back with a few of their drinks.
"Here you go." Motoki said cheerfully. If he noticed Kakyuu staring at him intently, he gave no sign. It was just another day for him, although he admitted to himself, she was an absolutely stunning woman. He began entertaining the notion of asking her out. He was brought back to reality by all of the girls thanking him. "You're welcome. Kim will be here with your orders soon. See you later." He waved and moved on.
Kakyuu followed him with her eyes until she brought herself back to reality. The others pretended not to notice her. "So, where are Haruka and Michiru today?" She asked.
"Mama and Papa are at home practicing for a concert next weekend." Hotaru replied.
"Really? That's wonderful!" Kakyuu exclaimed.
"I'll ask them if they can get you a ticket if you want to come." Setsuna stated.
"Would you, please? I would be grateful. Despite their differences, Taiki, Yaten, and Seiya really admired Michiru's musical ability." Kakyuu replied. Setsuna looked at her in surprise. The relationship between Haruka, Michiru, herself and the Starlights was, well, adversarial was too mild a term. While Michiru might say similar things about their music, she still didn't trust them fully, while Haruka wouldn't admit to admiring their musical ability under even the most refined of tortures. Setsuna still had one of the Three Light's CD's well hidden in case Haruka found it and used it for target practice. Hotaru did the same.
Just then their waitress, a young lady named Kim, brought their orders to them and soon they were eating and chatting away about normal everyday matters. Kakyuu's thoughts wandered to Motoki again as she ate. He seemed like a polite, charming man who was surrounded by several friends, but still seemed lonely. She could sympathize on that score. She saw her protector's everyday but still she yearned to share her life with a special person. Someone with whom she could let her guard down and truly be herself.
Again she felt a bit of envy as Usagi talked about her 'Mamo-chan' and Hotaru talked about her parents, and she hoped that one day she could find someone like that and have her own children. Usagi, sensing her friend's feelings, reached out a hand and gently placed it on hers. Kakyuu nearly jumped but caught herself. "Don't worry, you'll find someone and everything will work out." Usagi told her in a soft voice.
Kakyuu looked back at her, a bit startled. It unnerved her a bit that Usagi could sometimes be so carefree and laughing at one moment, and suddenly radiate infinite wisdom and compassion the next. The others watched the exchange and smiled knowingly. They were used to this side of their friend and leader after all.
"Thank you Usagi." Kakyuu replied softly. Soon she was engrossed in conversation with her friends again. Setsuna's cell phone went off and she moved away to answer it.
"Did you have any plans for tomorrow?" Ami asked Kakyuu.
"I thought that I would take a walk through the park I saw near the loft, it looks absolutely wonderful." She replied.
"Do you mind if we join you? We can show you some more of the city if you'd like." Minako said.
"I'd like that, thank you." Kakyuu said with a smile. At that moment Setsuna returned. She was still talking to someone on her cell phone as she smiled at Kakyuu.
"It's Michiru. She wants to know if you would like to come to our place for dinner tomorrow night."
"I'd love to! Thank you Setsuna." Kakyuu replied. Setsuna smiled and relayed the message back to Michiru. Hotaru's face brightened at the prospect as well and she smiled and hugged Kakyuu who returned the gesture. Setsuna suddenly laughed.
"No, you can assure Haruka that she isn't going to bring the three stooges to dinner." She paused then laughed again. "Okay, I'll tell her, bye Michi."
"What did Mama say?" Hotaru asked.
"She just wants me to tell you that dinner will be at 6:00 tomorrow night. Is that all right?" Setsuna asked.
"That will be fine. Does she want me to bring anything?" Kakyuu replied.
"No, but if you want to bring a bottle of wine, we won't say no." Setsuna said.
"All right then, 6:00 it is." Kakyuu confirmed.
"Good, we'll see you then. But I have to take Hime-chan home now she still has a bit of homework to do." Hotaru pouted a bit, but she made her farewells to Usagi and the others. Setsuna left enough money to cover hers and Hotaru's meals plus a tip and left with her daughter in tow. The rest of them paid their share of the bill before heading off to the arcade.
Two hours later, Ami, Minako, and Rei said that they had to go home, and so, they reluctantly parted ways again, each promising that they would meet at the park tomorrow. Kakyuu offered to drive Rei home again and she accepted. On their way out they ran into Motoki who stood with his hands behind his back.
"Before you left, I thought that I would give you a little 'welcome to Tokyo' gift." He said to Kakyuu. From behind his back he produced a small, brown, teddy bear that had a single red rose clutched in its forepaws.
"Oh Motoki thank you, that is so cute." Kakyuu gushed, her face lighting up. She smiled and looked at the little bear and the rose, beside her Rei did the same. Kakyuu stood on her tip-toes and kissed a surprised Motoki on the cheek. Usagi and the others, along with Unazuki, watched and giggled as Motoki turned bright red.
"Um, ah, I'll be in my office." He stammered as he rushed away. Kakyuu looked a bit crestfallen.
"Did I do something wrong?" She asked. Rei put a comforting hand on her shoulder as Unazuki walked up, shaking her head.
"No, don't worry. Sometimes he can be a bit shy though." Unazuki assured her.
"I understand completely. Thank you for your hospitality Unazuki. I'll see you later." Kakyuu bowed a bit then she and Rei left. Unazuki smiled as she went back to work.
As they were getting into the van, Kakyuu leaned over to Rei. "May I ask an odd question?"
"Sure no problem." Rei replied, raising a puzzled eyebrow.
"What are these 'Three Stooges' Haruka keeps referring to every time my protector's names are mentioned?"
Rei looked at her dumbfounded for a moment and then began laughing. "I'll explain a bit as we go, but we'll need to stop at a video store on the way back." She replied. Kakyuu just shrugged and started the van.