On Target
Mars…Flame…Sniper! Usagi let the arrow go, sending it flying directly into her target. She smiled as she picked up another arrow and loaded it on the string.
Brad stared wide-eyed at her as she easily shot off another one. "Jeez," he exclaimed. "No need to impress anyone. I'm lucky I can hit the other side. You're actually aiming!"
The princess blushed slightly. "I took an archery class a while ago back home by one of the best yeomen in Japan."
"Then maybe you can tell me what I'm doing wrong. I can't get the thing to fly straight."
The princess walked up behind him. "Take your stance," she said authoritatively.
Brad haphazardly placed his feet underneath him and pulled the bow up to shoulder height.
This, oddly enough, made the princess laugh. "Okay, not quite that insane." She spread her legs out underneath her so her balance was able to be shifted without hurting someone. "See? Your stance is going to get you hurt. Mimic me." He did. "Now, the bow comes up directly in front of you – don't bend your elbow, either – it won't fly straight." Instantly, Brad stiffened his elbow. "Pull back on the string…" He pulled back. "…your draw arm should be relaxed." The princess placed her hands on the arm drawing the string back, gently pulling it down so it was parallel with the ground. "Relax, Brad. Just relax. Now, let go!"
Brad let the string go, and the arrow went flying. It didn't hit his target, but at least it got closer than before.
Usagi walked away from him slightly, and smiled. "See? That's all you need to do other than practice."
Brad stared at the pink belly-dancer, his mouth, if it could be possible, dropped to the floor. "Wow. You're good."
The princess blushed as she shrugged. "I had an awesome teacher," she commented as she thought back to all the times Mars would take her out shooting. They used to spend hours together, firing off arrow after arrow at one tree or another.
"What?" Brad asked as he let another arrow fly.
"Hmm?"
"You're smiling like a goof. What's up?"
"Oh, just a memory." The princess began walking to the next booth over – the axe throw. "So, how do you do this?"
"Well," the vendor said, "you pick up an axe and throw it, trying to hit the target."
The princess looked up and saw a young man standing before her. Wow, she thought, he's cute!
"Uh," the princess stammered. "Okay." She pulled the axe back and flung it as hard as she could towards the opposite wall. The axe, much to her chagrin, fell short.
The vendor laughed. "Aww, better luck on the next one. Put a little more power behind it."
The princess blushed slightly as she nodded, pulled her arm back once again, and flung the axe. Not realizing it, she had tapped into her Senshi power, and added a bit more kick than necessary to the axe. Not only that, but she also hit the metal rod holding the stand up at such an angle that the axe flew in another direction, bouncing off the other corner and flying back towards her.
Lightning reflexes reached out and caught the axe by the handle, stopping it from striking her in the head. Only they weren't her reflexes. They were the vendor's. She looked up into the eyes of this handsome teenager with deep chocolate eyes, chestnut hair, and – dare she say it? – gorgeous pecs, kneeling on the counter in front of her. He smiled as he got down off of the counter, saying, "Honey, I said a little more power, not enough to wipe out the entire country."
Usagi flushed as she looked around her. Luckily, the only person who saw her was Brad, and even he was frozen in place.
The vendor laughed as he looked at Brad. "Don't worry. Your girlfriend is okay…"
"Oh," the princess and her friend said at the same time, "he's not my boyfriend."
The cute guy seemed intrigued. "Really? Then in that case…" He turned to Usagi and took her hand. "…would you do me the honor of joining me tonight?"
Usagi took a step back. "Joining you?"
"Yeah, you know. A date?"
The princess fixed him with a stare. "How old are you?"
"Sixteen. And I have a really awesome looking car that I bet you'd just compliment. Want to see pictures?"
She backpedaled. "Uh, sure, I guess."
The vendor reached into his pouch and produced a couple pictures of his car. It was a yellow corvette with black flames painted on the hood.
"Sweet," the princess commented.
"Yeah, I know. So what do you say? Want to go for a spin tonight?"
Once again, she backpedaled. "I, uh, have to think about it."
"Well, don't think too long, Princess," he said, a twinkle in his eye, "I may not be available in an hour or so."
The princess backed up a few steps, and nearly knocked over Brad. "I, uh, I have to go."
Brad followed her out of the game area, pulling her to a stop near one of the picnic areas.
"Hey," he said softly, "what's up? You okay?"
Usagi looked him in the eye. Gone was the show-off from before, and what she saw in his place was a truly concerned guy who, really, had some really nice, deep green eyes. She smiled a bit, despite her nervousness about the vendor.
"Nothing," she answered as she blushed a bit and looked away. "Let's just walk around for a while and see what other trouble we can create."
The two walked toward the main merchant street, looking into all the shops, and occasionally venturing into one and buying a trinket or two. By five o'clock, she had a few new hair clips that matched her outfit, a necklace with matching bracelet and ring, and a celtic weave anklet that just fit around her slender ankle. She was having fun pretending to be a civilian – as long as she could remember not to mention anything royal around Brad.
Every so often, though, the princess would sidle up to Brad, either taking his arm or just staying close. Out of the corner of her eye, she swore she saw the vendor from the axe throw following them around, and the thought of him following became a creepy reality.
"Brad?" she said softly as she caught the vendor looking at her. "I know it's early, but can we go find our parents?"
Brad was taken aback. "Uh, sure," he answered, hoping he hadn't done anything to offend her – he wasn't very well aversed in Japanese culture, and the last thing he wanted to do was offend her culture in any way. "Are you okay?"
She pulled him to the side. "I think the vendor from the axe throw is following us. I keep seeing him, and I'm really getting creeped out by it."
"And you'd like to be closer to your parents…"
"Particularly my father. Not that I think this guy'll do anything, but moreso because I just don't want him following me, and maybe if we're among the parents, he'll stop."
Brad smiled. "I understand, Usagi. I think I saw them a little bit ago over by the Globe Theatre. Let's check there first, and then begin heading towards the jousting field."
The couple walked over to the theatre, and luckily, found the parents laughing at the rendition of the balcony scene from Romeo and Juliet. Smiling, they joined their parents, Brad sitting beside his father on the outside, and Usagi sitting beside her mother.
So not to disturb her too much, Usagi wrapped her arms around her mother's arm and hugged it to her. For a few minutes, she watched the ludicrous display on the stage until her eyes wandered to the front right-hand corner. There, she saw the vendor once again. This time, however, he grinned and winked at her. Reflexively, she tightened her grip on her mother's arm.
Usako bent her head to meet her daughter's. "Usagi," she whispered, but the concern evident in her voice. "Are you all right?"
Usagi thought for a moment before deciding to just simply tell her mother the truth. She shook her head, "No," and allowed her mother to drape the arm she was holding around her shoulders.
The queen became concerned. "What's wrong?"
The princess glanced towards the same area of the stage where the vendor had been standing and found him gone. She sagged with relief, but at the same time feared where he would turn up next.
"Usagi," her mother's voice broke into her thoughts, "you're shaking!" Gently, the queen pulled the princess to her feet and quietly excused the two of them from the group whispering, "We'll be right back."
Mother and daughter walked out of the theatre area and over to a bench under a tent.
"Tell me what's going on," her mother prompted. "Why are you trembling? It's nearly ninety degrees out here, so you can't be cold…"
"Someone's following me," she said, cutting into her mother's rationalizations.
The queen tensed. "Following you?"
"Yeah," Usagi answered softly. "The one vendor from the game area. He tried asking me out, and I told him no, and he hasn't stopped following me ever since."
"Have you seen him recently?"
"Yeah, at the theatre."
"When you decided to cut off my circulation?"
The princess flushed. "Sorry, Mama. I didn't mean to…"
The queen caressed her daughter's cheek. "Sweetheart, it's okay. However, keep in mind that you're not six, so your strength is a bit more." When the princess looked at her mother and smiled, the queen continued, "For the rest of the day, I want you to stay with us."
Usagi smiled wide. "If you say so," she answered as she stood and walked with her mother back towards the Globe. The show was just ending and the audience was giving a standing ovation when the two royals joined their group once more.
Mamoru turned to his wife and daughter. "Everything okay?" he asked.
Briefly, in Japanese, the queen filled him in on what was going on while Brad filled his parents in at the princess's request. Afterwards, Mamoru became all the more protective of his daughter.
As they headed towards the jousting field for the final event of the day, Usagi suddenly stopped, grabbing her mother's arm and pulling her back.
"Usagi?" she said softly as the rest of their entourage also stopped. "What is it?"
The girl's fear was written all over her face as the two families turned to look where she was staring. There, right by the entrance to the field, was the vendor, looking directly at her and smirking.
"Papa," Usagi whispered, "can we just leave? I want to go back."
"Usagi," her father said softly as he approached her. "Are you sure?"
The princess nodded as Brad piped up, "I think it's a good idea. I've seen the joust a million times, and she's had a long day. She looks tired."
"Well," Melinda said softly, "if you're all sure."
Usako smiled apologetically. "She sees him," she said simply. "No matter what we try, we're not going to get her to budge unless it's towards the exit."
"Where is he?" Mamoru asked, a dangerous tone creeping out.
"I don't know," his wife answered him. "I don't know what he looks like. I just know she sees him, and it would be better if we just left. We can address the matter further at the bungalow."
The two families headed towards the gate, said their good-byes and promises to get together again, and then went their separate ways.
The hour plus ride back to the bungalow was quiet, both parents wanting their teenager to talk about what had happened, but neither knowing what to say to get her to open up.
Back at the bungalow, the princess went directly to the room she was sleeping in as her two parents watched. Fifteen minutes later, Mamoru stood at the stove finishing dinner while Usako sat at the table reading over a document that had been sent to her by Mars. She couldn't concentrate on it, though. Thoughts of her daughter kept invading the analytical mind she'd developed over the past years.
Giving up, she put the papers down and sighed, "I just don't know what to do."
"Well," her husband started as he took a pot off of the stove and set it on the counter to cool, "you could try to remember you're on vacation…"
"About our daughter, Mamo-chan. I can sense her anguish, her fear, and I can't do a blessed thing about it until she comes out and asks me to help!"
He smiled softly at her frustration. "I know what you mean, Usako. I feel the same way."
She threw him an exasperated glance. "I know you do, but what do we do? We can't alert the authorities without our complete exposure, but we can't let him get away with this, either. And we can't do anything about it on our own without breaking the treaty between our nations!"
Mamoru got a stern look in his eye as he looked his wife in the face. "Let him try and get close enough to our daughter again, and we'll see about that." At his wife's fearful look, he continued, "A man has a right to protect his family in this country, doesn't he? I won't go looking for this guy, but if he comes looking for her, you can bet I'll do something about it."
"Mama? Papa?" came a soft, small voice from the living room before Usako could respond. Both parents looked over and saw Usagi standing there, her hair out of her odango, and a kimono wrapped around her. "Can I talk to you?"
Usako smiled as she stood and approached her daughter. "Of course, Honey. Come sit down, and we'll talk." Usako led her daughter to the table as Mamoru also came over and sat down.
It took a few minutes of sitting in silence, but eventually the princess sighed and started, "I'm sorry."
Both parents started at this, almost identical incredulous looks spreading across their faces.
"Usagi, what in the world do you have to be sorry for?" Mamoru asked his daughter as he and his wife each took one of her hands.
"I ruined the day," she answered, a small sob creeping out unwillingly. "I was a scared little baby, and made us all leave early…"
"Usagi, stop," her mother commanded gently. "You did not ruin the day. Just because we didn't get to see the joust doesn't mean we didn't have a good day besides."
"But you were looking forward to the joust, and I…"
"Saw someone who's been practically stalking you all day! Usagi, it's not your fault, now stop thinking it is. Your father and I aren't upset with you about this."
"But you're upset…"
"Not about anything you did," Mamoru interjected. "We are frustrated by this because we don't know what course of action to take. As parents, we want to call the police, but as royals, we have to be careful doing that. Once we call the police, we have to identify ourselves, and once that happens, we're exposed, and the vacation's pretty much over.
"More importantly," the queen continued, "we're worried about you. We can sense your fear, Honey, and want to do something about it, but now you're old enough to know when you need help, so we don't want to take that choice away from you."
The princess smiled a bit. "You worry too much, you know that?"
The queen looked her daughter in the eye. "I'm your mother. It comes with the territory."
Usagi looked at both of her parents. "He called me princess, which is why I'm so freaked out by it. We're not supposed to be recognizable, are we?"
Her parents exchanged nervous looks as they hoped – no prayed – this guy didn't know who they were. And if he did, what could they do about it?
"Well," Mamoru said as he stood, "dinner's ready. Anyone hungry?"
The princess smiled as she stood and bowed slightly to her parents. "If it's all right, I'd like to just go to bed and forget today."
The queen nearly jumped out of the chair. "It is not all right, Usagi. You haven't eaten anything since lunch…"
Usagi turned to her mother, tears forming on the brim of her eyes. "Mama, I'm hungry, but I can't eat anything. My stomach's wrapped in knots, and I don't want to risk getting sick. Forgive me." Before either parent could argue, she went to her room and closed the door.
Usako faced her husband, both now having lost their appetites. Mamoru covered the rice dish and put it into the refrigerator to keep and sat back down beside his wife.
"I think we need to change plans," he said, knowing full well his wife was thinking it.
