souna no miko
Disclaimer: Sailor Moon and all original characters mentioned in this story is owned by the great Takeuchi Naoko. There is no way I would claim them as my own. The song/s that will be used as part of the story are not mine either, they are owned by their respective writers and singers.
Chapter 17Saturday the 13
The week passed by swiftly without any of the girls noticing. At the Tenou household, silence remained to be their constant guest. Not one of the four outer senshis wanted to speak about what had transpired the previous weekend, the subject was too delicate and they knew that opening it with either one of the Tenou siblings, Haruka in particular, would create total chaos that not even Hotaru's ability to end all life on a planet would be able to put an end on. The two siblings also made it a point to stay away from each other, making sure that they were not in the same room at the same time— Haruka making all the effort of doing this.
Saturday, 5:25am, the Tenou household is already almost empty. Setsuna, being the usual early bird, has already left for her Saturday class at the university. Hotaru was at a sleepover the previous night and is not expected to be home 'til tomorrow.
Haruko, clad in her light lavender silk night top and shorts sleepily walked inside the kitchen only to find Michiru busily preparing pancakes for breakfast.
"You're up early today Michi." Haruko commented after a wide long yawn.
"I have a practice for my next recital in an hour and a half."
"That's early." Haruko replied as she sat on a chair by the counter.
"Yeah well, we're running out of time. You?"
"Yaten and I are going on a picnic with the others today. You know, princess-guardians bonding thing. I have to cook our food before they get here."
"Don't you mean Draco?"
Haruko smiled as she laid her head on top of the counter,
"Yaten, Draco, whatever. He told me I can call him whatever I like and I choose Yaten."
Michiru smiled as she rolled her eyes while flipping the pancake.
"By the way, does Haruka know about this trip?"
"No."
"You should tell him. He's still your biological brother and he'll always worry about you no matter what. And I bet his worry leveled up to the nth power when he discovered who you really are." Michiru paused for a moment before adding, "A part of him is still Alexis and that part cares for you very much."
Ignoring Michiru's statement Haruko took a bite off of a pancake before asking,
"So where's the little runt anyway?"
Michiru sighed,
"He already left for the race tracks. I think he's planning to join the next F1 race."
"That's good to know, he's been out the circuit for quite some time now. I wonder if he had a hard time signing back in."
"He's a crowd favorite. He didn't have any problem at all, especially when he ran a lap for the committee."
"Show-off." Haruko huffed before continuing, "Well at least he's back to racing. Man I miss the track."
Michiru chuckled and said,
"I think so too. Why don't you join him?"
"Michi!" Haruko replied, jokingly displaying an appalled look upon Michiru's remark.
Michiru laughed as she turned off the stove and placed the last pancake on top of the stack of pancakes she had previously finished cooking.
"Anyway, going back, tell Haruka where you're going today so he wouldn't launch the whole battalion looking for you."
"I'll leave a note before leaving."
Michiru grabbed the cordless phone from the wall and gave it to Haruko.
"Call your brother and tell him where you'll be for the day."
"Michi I—"
"Call him."
Haruko sighed as she took the phone from Michiru. They both waited as Haruka's cellphone rang.
"Voicemail." Haruko said after the call was diverted.
"Leave a message then."
Haruko stared at Michiru annoyingly but was once again defeated. Haruko sighed,
"Hey Ruka, it's me, Haru. Listen, I'll be out the whole day with Yaten, I mean Draco, and the others. We'll be going on a picnic so…" Haruko paused for a moment, looked at Michiru and continued, "I'll be home by 4 or 5pm I guess. That's all…goodluck on the track today." Haruka added that last sentence but spoke it to almost a whisper.
After giving back the phone to Michiru, Haruko sighs as she begins eating.
Michiru left at around 6:15 am and Haruko was just starting to chop vegetable, hotdogs, and chicken breasts. Her menu – which she carefully planned until 12 midnight of the previous night – consisted of onigiri, hotdog octopuses, breaded chicken strips, omelet rolls, vegetable sticks with sour cream and thousand island dips at the side, and clubhouse sandwiches.
By 7:54 she was already done. She smiled blissfully as she finished the obento for the vegetables when suddenly the doorbell rang. Imagine the surprise on Haruko's face when she opened the door and see the smallest starlight standing on their porch.
"Ohayou Haruko-chan."
"Yaten…you're…early…" Haruko, not able to contain her surprise, replied.
"Sorry. I could come back later if you want to. I was just –"
"It's okay." Haruko cut off, "Come on in. I just finished cooking our food so I'm not really dressed yet, but I'll be finished in a few minutes. Where are the others?"
"It's okay, take your time. The others? It'll be just you and I…I told that didn't I?"
Haruko was stunned. She didn't think that Draco's idea of picnic was something that's just between the two of them.
"I cooked a lot of food." Haruko replied wide-eyed.
"I'll eat them all then!" Draco replied enthusiastically.
Haruko sighed and just told Draco to wait for her in the kitchen. After giving Draco a cup of coffee and a plate of pancakes – which were leftovers from what Michiru prepared earlier – she quickly ran upstairs to take a bath and get dressed.
After 30 minutes she finally went down wearing a black tank top, khaki shorts, and purple hi-cut 'chuck taylor' converse shoes.
"Ikimassho!"
"Hai!" Draco replied with equal energy but with higher excitement as he carried the basket out to the shiny new black car waiting outside
"Ho-shit…" Haruko managed to say under her shocked breath after stopping dead on her tracks.
Draco smiled widely when he followed Haruko's line of sight.
"Is that what I think it is??" Haruko asked breathlessly.
"It depends…if you know your cars." Draco replied with a sickeningly wide smile.
"Are you kidding me?! I race for crying out loud! And on top of that both Haruka and I are car enthusiasts!" Haruko exclaimed exasperated, Draco flinching at the mention of Haruka's name.
Draco smiled as he walked towards the back of the car to try and fit the medium sized basket inside his new car's trunk.
"Sure, everybody can say that. But do you really know what it is?" Draco teased.
Haruko raised her brow and replied in a calm manner,
"You have an Aston Martin Vanquish S. It has a five-point-nine liter V12 engine with the power of five hundred twenty horsepower at seven thousand revolutions per minute. It can accelerate from 0 to 62 miles per hour in just four-point-oh seconds and can run a top speed of two hundred and four miles per hour. When did you get it? And How?? It's not supposed to be on sale here 'til December of this year."
"You sure do know your cars. Well I got extra cash from our last gig so I figured why not get myself a new car." Draco commented as he successfully managed to stuff the basket.
"Okay, I can see the logic in there…buthow did you get it??"
Draco peeked from the trunk to give Haruko a big wide devious smile before replying,
"It's not being sold here yet, but it already is in Europe, so…."
"…so you had it shipped?!" Haruko asked incredulously.
"Yep."
"Damn it Yaten you're unbelievable, Ruka would have flipped when he saw you with this. He's more of a sports car enthusiast you know….Ruka would love to try this baby out for a spin." Haruko said absent-mindedly as she stared at the car.
Draco pouted and deliberately slammed the trunk to get Haruko's attention, which he did. Haruko snapped out of her reverie, half ran to the passenger's seat where Draco was already politely holding the door for her. With a quick turn of the key the engine purred to life and they were finally off to the lake.
Haruka just finished his 3rd run on the tracks before deciding to take a breather. He went to the locker room and was surprised to find both Taiki and Calliope.
"Ohayou." Taiki greeted.
Haruka with his eyes wide in shock regained his composure and asked,
"You race?"
"Once in a while." Taiki shrugged.
"And you?" Haruka asked referring to the lady standing beside Taiki.
"Yes." Calliope replied.
"I didn't know that."
"Well apparently you don't know anything do you?" Taiki snapped.
Haruka's eyes shot a sharp glare at Taiki who just chuckled at his glare.
"You sure have gotten your sharp tongue back….Soul."
"Don't call me that. I find it really primeval. No need to dwell in the past."
"Tss…you should say that to Yaten."
"Draco. He prefers that now."
"I know. And you agree with it?"
"'To each his own' I always say. If he wants that then let him."
Haruka just 'hmph'-ed in response.
"Your turn during the 7th lap of your 2nd run was quite good." Calliope remarked.
"Thanks." Haruka muttered.
After saying that the golden brown haired bishounen noticed that his phone was flashing and excused himself from the conversation,
"Moshi Moshi."
"Haruka-papa, doko wa? (Where are you Haruka-papa?)"
"Hotaru? Why are you asking?"
"I wanted to ask you if you could bring my books here at Takiko's place. I forgot to bring them and she wanted to borrow them. They're neatly stacked at the top of my study table."
"I'm at the tracks today Hotaru, why don't you call home and ask someone else to bring it to you?"
"No one's at home Haruka-papa, didn't you know?"
"Know what?" Haruka's eyes narrowed.
"Setsuna-bachan(1) has a Saturday class. Michiru-mama has practice and Haruko-nesan is having a picnic with her starlights."
Haruka quickly eyed Taiki and Calliope who were busy tightening their protective gears.
"Did you say she was with her starlights?"
"Hai."
"All of them?"
"That's the idea."
Haruka's eyes fell in the shadows as his hand curled into a tight fist.
"I'll try to bring it to you before dinner." Haruka said in the calmest manner he could.
"Okay. Thank you Haruka-papa!" Hotaru beamed before letting go of the line.
Haruka turned to the two starlights and said,
"Taiki, Calliope let's talk."
At the Music Repertoire, the studio where Michiru was currently practicing, Michiru was patiently tuning her violin when someone suddenly came into the room apologizing for his tardiness. Recognizing the voice, Michiru turned around only to confirm what she had feared,
"Seiya what are you doing here?!" Michiru asked angrily.
"Whoa Michiru I'm sorry if you don't want to be in the same room with me but I have practice here too."
"You being in the same room with me is not the problem. What are you doing here??"
"I told you, I have practice. So wait, what is the problem then?"
"Haruko told me she's going to have a picnic with you….all four of you."
"No she's not."
"Well obviously. How could this happen? How could she lie to me? But most importantly, where is she??"
"The picnic you're probably thinking of is the one Draco's having with her at the lake."
"What?"
"Last Monday, Draco asked her to go on a picnic today."
"But why did she tell me that she'll be with all of you?"
"Hmm….I don't know exactly but I have a feeling that that's probably a misunderstanding. You know how it is with Haruko, sometimes you need to tell her everything in detail or else she'll just assume things. Draco probably forgot to tell her that it was just the two of them who was going to have a picnic. Either that or Haruko totally forgot he said that or she missed it when Draco asked her out."
Michiru contemplated the possibilities that Seiya presented and came up with the conclusion that everything he had just said is indeed a possibility when it comes to Haruko. She was amazed for a moment at how much Seiya knows Haruko already; considering that they've only met a few weeks ago. She was about to ask him about that when a dangerous thought suddenly crossed Michiru's mind,
"Shit."
"What? What's shit?" Seiya asked in panic.
"Where are Taiki and Calliope?"
"They went to the race track early this morning."
"They race?" Michiru asked, side-tracked by the thought that mild mannered Taiki races.
"Yeah they do. Taiki actually is a good racer and in fact I think he wants to—"
"Which race track?" Michiru interrupted once she regained her focus, her dangerous thought was too frightening for her to be completely side-tracked.
"The one near the docks, why?"
"Double shit."
"What is it?? You're making me worry princess."
"You should be, because if Haruka finds out that Haruko is alone with Draco…" Michiru trailed off but Seiya already knew what she was thinking and ended her sentence for her,
"…he will kill somebody…"
"Exactly."
It just took Haruko and Draco an hour and a half to get to the lake. Draco quickly laid out the cloth for them to sit on and Haruko brought out all the obentos she prepared that morning. Draco sat beside Haruko, staring at the wide array of food laid out in front of him.
"Boy when you said you cooked a lot of food you sure weren't kidding."
"I told you. It's a pity if we just let them all go to waste."
"Don't worry they won't be wasted. Besides we can bring the leftovers back home and I'll make sure Soul and Caleb would get to taste your delicious food."
"Soul and Caleb? Did Seiya and Taiki asked to be called by their original names too??"
Draco frowned and replied,
"Oh yeah I forgot, no they didn't."
"Yaten, why are you so obsessed with your original name anyway? I mean, Yaten Kou is a pretty good name and everybody's used to that so why choose to change it?"
"I just don' want to forget who I really am
"Why?"
"Because…"
"Because?"
Draco looked away from Haruko's probing eyes and turned to grab an onigiri,
"Hey this rice ball looks so yummy!"
Haruko, not wanting to ruin the day, rolled her eyes and decided to drop the subject. She picked up an onigiri her self and exclaimed,
"Itedakimasu!!! (Let's eat!!!)"
While packing up her violin Michiru's phone started flashing, reluctantly she answered it.
"Moshi Mo-"
"Michiru did you know where Haruko is going today?!" Haruka's voice suddenly blared through the receiver that Michiru had to pull her phone away from her ear to prevent her from going deaf.
"Calm down Haruka I-"
"So you knew and you didn't tell me?!" Haruka barked.
"I asked her to call you and she did, check your voicemail."
"I already did but she said that she'll be with her starlights, all of her starlights; and do you know who are standing right beside me??"
Michiru sighed as she prepared to reply but Seiya suddenly appeared behind her and answered,
"You're with Taiki and Calliope. Hey guys, how's the track?"
"Hey Seiya, it's great." Taiki and Calliope replied in unison.
Haruka's eyes swelled in anger as he howled,
"Seiya?! What the hell are you doing with Michiru?!"
"I have practice where she's having her recital practice."
"Why are you listening to our conversation?!"
"I'm not actually, but you're shouting loud enough it makes you sound like you're on speakerphone." Seiya replied casually which evidently pissed the other man greatly.
"Where the hell are they?!" Haruka growled.
"How should I know? But I do remember Draco mentioning the lake two days ago."
"Which lake?"
"I don't know but it's probable that they're at the lake going to Mt. Orime. Just a hunch though."
Haruka glared at the two starlight guardians beside him but they just shrugged at him innocently.
"Listen Haruka, we really don't know where they are, did you try calling Haruko?"
"Yes but she's not answering."
"She probably left her phone on top of the kitchen counter again." Michiru whispered under her breath.
"Did you hear that?" Seiya asked.
"Yes. I asked Taiki and Calliope to call that Yaten…"
"Draco." Seiya corrected.
"Asshole fits better." Haruka snapped back.
"Can't argue about that." Seiya replied matter-of-factly, his eyes looking up at the ceiling.
"He's not answering."
"That's because his phone is with me. He left it this morning as he hurriedly and excitedly left the apartment. When I learned from Michiru what happened I decided not to answer his phone anymore."
"Damn it I'm going to kill that guy."
"Calm down Haruka. It's probably nobody's fault. As I've said to Michiru Haruko must've forgotten that the picnic was just between the two of them, or she missed it when Draco asked her out. Either that or Draco forgot to explain it to Haruko. Either way they're both at fault so don't blame everything on Draco."
"That's easy for you to say."
"No it's not. One is my princess whom I've sworn to protect and the other is my subordinate who I also have a responsibility of taking care of. On top of that I have to stay civil while relating to other hyper emotional soldiers such as you."
Michiru giggled at Seiya's remark but admired him for his composure – the mark of a true leader, something that Haruka lacked.
"I'm sorry if Draco disrespected you as Haruko's biological brother. I'll be sure to reprimand him but you don't' have to worry, Draco is still a starlight and he will not let anything bad happen to her."
Haruka felt a tinge of pain when Seiya said 'Haruko's biological brother' but he did his best to hide it from the two starlight guardians that were with him.
"What time did she say they might be back?"
"4 or 5pm." Haruka replied, a bit calmer than a few minutes ago.
"Then expect them to be home by then. If not then you have all the right to get mad."
"But still I can't be sure that—"
"As I've said, Draco is a starlight and with his knowledge of his duty plus the feelings he has for her I am positive that he will not let anything bad happen to Haruko."
Haruka was once again shot with a pang of pain, words circling around his head.
…the feelings he has for her….Haruko's biological brother…not let anything happen…
"Haruka?" Seiya called for the 3rd time.
Haruka, snapping out of his trance regained his stern composure and replied,
"Sure, whatever."
Haruka clicked the end button and stomped away to go to the race tracks leaving the two starlights who started laughing out loud the second they were sure he was out of range.
Seiya heaved a long heavy sigh before handing Michiru back her cell phone. He slowly fell on his knees and warily sat on the floor.
"Daijoubu desu ka Seiya-san? (Are you okay Seiya?)" Michiru asked worriedly.
When she moved to Seiya's front she saw how tormented his facial expression was. He slumped on floor haphazardly before shifting his eyes to meet Michiru's own blue hues.
"That was the scariest thing I have ever done in my entire two lives. He made dealing with Galaxia and Akashtra a walk in the park." Seiya said, still in a daze.
One look at Seiya's face made Michiru start a fit. She sat messily in front of Seiya, the fabric of her dress scattered scantily on the floor, laughing so hard tears came out her eyes.
Seiya looked at Michiru and smiled, it has been a long time since he last saw her like this, billions and zillions of years ago, when she was his maiden.
It was already past 3pm when Draco asked Haruko if she already wanted to go home but Haruko asked if they could stay until the stars come out. It's been a long time since she had a good look at the stars, she reasoned. Happy to be with her longer than planned, Draco graciously agreed. Forgetting the time, they left the lake at around 9:30pm without stopping somewhere to call home.
Tsuzuku…
A/N:
(1) bachan = short for
obachan which means grandma or old lady, affixed to the name
to insinuate that the person is old.