Thorny Roses
Chapter 3
Rei, Ami, Minako, and Makoto sat in a booth at the arcade. They barely acknowledged the waitress who passed around their drinks.
Rei massaged her right shoulder while Ami placed a cold hand on a bandage on her forearm. Minako winced as she prodded the blue area around her knee. Makoto, though without any scratches or bruises, was absolutely exhausted.
"Guys," Minako spoke up. "I know we beat the enemy today, but we cut it real close."
None of the other girls responded but they each agreed with their temporary captain. Minako sighed, continuing. "I think we should bring Usagi back."
Makoto slammed a fist on the table, shaking their drinks. "But Rei's grandfather still won't tell us the location of her home. He told us Usagi didn't want him to tell anyone."
Rei darkly smirked. "We could always find a way to persuade him."
Ami sadly smiled at her violet-eyed friend. "Rei, we're not going to harm your grandfather." Ami turned to Minako. "Usagi-chan will come back when she's ready. We all know about the pain she went through." At this, they all furtively glanced at a man at the counter. He was tall and graced with black hair. However, his blue eyes and large stature seemed shrunken, almost empty. A little pink-haired girl was sitting beside him. Her wide red eyes also seemed troubled, much too troubled for such a young girl.
"I know, Ami," Minako sighed. "I just don't know how much more we could take."
At that moment, a tall woman walked into the arcade. She gently tapped her umbrella on the floor, little drops of rain cascading down it. She was dressed in a long trench coat, though it couldn't shield her bare legs from the downpour outside. She wore a large hat that covered her face.
The girls casually watched as the woman scanned the arcade, her gaze momentarily landing on them, then on Mamoru and Chibiusa at the counter. She turned her head down, walking into a booth behind the girls.
"Who do you think that is?" Makoto whispered.
"I don't know," Ami shrugged. "I've never seen her here before."
"She looks like she came right out of a movie…" Minako commented. The woman took off her hat, exposing her golden blonde hair. However, the collar of her trench coat concealed much of her face.
Minako gasped at the sight of her hair—it was so familiar. It screamed Usagi.
"Is…is that Usagi?" Minako's china blue eyes welled up with tears.
The other girls tried to examine the woman despite the fact that she was so concealed.
"I don't think so," Makoto said. "She's way too tall and way too skinny."
"Not to mention her hair is too short," Rei murmured. "Way to get our hopes up, Minako." Though she had criticized Usagi the most, she was truly grateful to the young girl for being such a good friend.
The arcade doors slid open once again, allowing four, tall, muscular men to walk through. Each of the girls felt their mouths drop. But after a few seconds, their admiration became black anger. Minako's hand slammed on the table as she stood up in fury.
The other girls found themselves standing up as well. The men at door stood still, shocked by the hostility that greeted them. But their expressions soon melted into recognition, as well.
"What are you doing here?" Minako yelled.
"Yeah, I thought you were all dead!" Makoto yelled. Rei was turning a dark red and even Ami was pink from anger.
"Well, I guess you thought wrong," Jadeite snorted. Kunzite glared at him before sighing and turning to the Sailor Senshi.
"If you'll let us explain, everything will become clear," Kunzite reasoned.
"Like hell we will!" Rei yelled. "You people are dangerous!" She yelled as she transformed into Sailor Mars. The other girls were right behind her, but Ami hesitated.
"Wait, you guys! Maybe we should listen to them," she calmly spoke.
"Ami, have you forgotten what they did to us in the past? Not to mention our past lives?" Makoto yelled, lightening already swirling in the air around her. Ami froze before she transformed as well.
During this encounter, Mamoru had transformed into Tuxedo Mask and was cradling Chibiusa to his chest. Fire lit in Mars' palms as Venus' gold chain appeared. The past Generals stood still, unsure of what to do. Attacking them would only give them the idea that they were evil. But none of them wanted to get their butts kicked.
"That's enough!"
All ten people in the room turned around to face the person who had just spoken. The girls gasped in shock as Mamoru and Chibiusa froze.
Usagi stood in all her golden glory, anger and disappointment painted on her beautiful face. She motioned for the Generals to leave for the moment, which they did without a moment's hesitation. Each of the Sailors stared in shock as their transformations faded.
"U-Usagi?" Rei murmured.
"Honestly, I'm so disappointed in all of you! I was hoping to do this a little more peacefully, but of course not. I mean, you are all lucky that there was no one else in this arcade besides us! Can you imagine what a mess that would have been? I—"
Usagi was cut off by the multitude of arms that wrapped around her in that moment. Ami, Makoto, Minako, and Rei had all clustered around the surprised young woman, tears leaking out of their eyes.
Usagi, her anger evaporated, slightly laughed. "It's nice to see you guys, too."
"Usagi, you idiot!" Rei cried. "How could you leave like that?"
"Shhh, Rei. It's alright, I'm back now."
"To stay?" Minako questioned. Usagi smiled, nodding.
Makoto stepped back, wiping away her tears. She smiled. "Look at you! You've gotten so tall and skinny!"
"But is that a padded bra or the real deal? I mean, you're as big as Makoto!" Minako teased. Usagi laughed but she didn't blush, which confused Rei and Ami. These two had known their leader for a longer time than the other two, so they noticed how mature Usagi had become. Ami shook away her surprise and smiled at her best friend.
"You cut your hair," Ami said, touching Usagi's golden hair. It was long and wavy—so different from her old hairstyle.
"Yeah," Usagi sheepishly explained. "I felt it was getting in the way. I cut it after my first month away because it was hard to train with such long hair."
"So you really were training?" Rei teased. "I thought you would be slacking off as usual!"
"Haha, Rei," Usagi rolled her eyes.
"Well, no problem. We'll just have to test how much she's trained," Makoto winked. The girls enveloped themselves in laughter. It was so nice to be together again.
"U-Usagi? Is it really you?"
Usagi turned around to face Chibiusa's large red eyes. They were glazed with unshed tears and the little girl's lower lip was quivering. Usagi's eyes softened as she kneeled down to the girl's height.
"Yeah, Chibiusa. It's me," Usagi softly said.
Chibiusa's eyes widened even more. In that one moment, Usagi looked so much like her mom from the future: her eyes were soft and mature—Usagi even had the same stature as her mom. The only difference was that Usagi's hair was cut.
Chibiusa broke out into tears, running into Usagi's opened arms. Chibiusa sobbed—it was just like hugging her mom. Usagi smiled, running her hand through Chibiusa's hair. She closed her eyes. Somehow, this felt so right.
Usagi opened her eyes, feeling someone's eyes on her. She looked up, catching dark, midnight blue eyes. Suddenly, there was no one else in the world, just her and Mamoru. He stared at her in shock, his hands in his pockets. However, his shock quickly dissipated, leaving nothing behind but bitterness. At least, that's what he was trying to look like. Usagi could still see some other emotion in his eyes.
She looked away from him, not able to bear his heavy stare. Just one look in his eyes reminded her of that painful night.
Usagi pulled away from Chibiusa, smiling at her.
"Come on, I'll take you home." Chibiusa nodded, smiling at her.
"Is it safe to come back in?" They all looked up to see the Generals in the doorway. Usagi stood up, watching the Sailors' reactions. They were apprehensive but no longer hostile.
"Girls, I'm sure you know the Generals," Usagi began.
They all looked at her in bewilderment. "Usagi? Did they come here with you?" Rei questioned.
Usagi nodded. "Yes, they did. While I was away, my mother sent them to me. They've been with me for the past five and a half months."
"So…we can trust them?" Ami hesitantly asked.
"That's up to you," Usagi responded. "I trust them. Now, if you'll excuse me," she said, picking up Chibiusa. "I have to take this little squirt home. I'll call you all tomorrow and we can meet at my flat."
"YOU'RE FLAT?" The girls screamed. Even Mamoru looked up in surprise.
"Well, of course. After six months of training, I realized that we needed a sort of headquarters. Besides, I feel too old to live with my parents." Usagi giggled a their expressions.
"Bye," she waved, picking up Chibiusa. As she walked into the rain, her smile faded. It had been so difficult to see Mamoru. A tear leaked out of her eye.
"Usagi, are you alright?" Chibiusa's voice pulled her out of her misery. She smiled at the young girl. It had been so nice to see her—Usagi hadn't realized how much she missed the young girl until she came back.
"I'll be okay," Usagi smiled.
/\/\/\/\
Usagi cradled the cup of coffee in her hands.
After going to her parents' house, she had come to her new flat. The movers had placed everything nicely around the pretty apartment. It was spacious, with a living room, separate kitchen, two extra bedrooms, a bathroom, and the master bedroom with a private bathroom. It had cost quite a bit but Usagi had enough.
Her father had been stunned when she told her parents about her new place. Heck, they had been practically traumatized when she showed up on their doorstep. Immediately after her mother opened the door, her crying mother had enclosed Usagi. Usagi had only smiled, patting her mother's back.
Her father had also been surprised to see her, hugging her close. Even Shingo was happy to see her.
However, all of the happiness in the moment became frustration when Usagi told her parents that she would not be living with them. What had angered her father the most was the fact that, not only was she informing them of her new home, she was explaining it so calmly that he knew she had matured.
Her parents had tried to put up a fight but they had both realized it was useless. Usagi smiled. In order for them to accept her decision, she had promised to visit her parents once a week for a meal. It had been her mother's idea.
Usagi placed the coffee mug on the table, leaning back on the couch.
Her father had questioned her where she'd gotten enough money to afford such a place and the furniture. Usagi had only smiled, replying it didn't matter.
Rei's grandfather had found a job for her—though it had been a difficult one, it had paid very well. Usagi had found a pearl-diving job. It was highly dangerous as well as a job looked down upon. Pearl divers were usually poor women whom had dropped out of high school. As a result, they were one of the drudges of society. However, it paid extremely well. Besides, along with the money, Usagi got an excellent source of exercise.
Usagi still blushed at the memory of the job. The swimsuits for the job had to be extremely scanty, as to not get in the way. It had been a single strip of cloth across the chest and a short skirt that wouldn't constrict the movement of the legs.
It doesn't matter, Usagi thought. It's in my past.
Usagi stood up, taking her coffee mug to the sink to rinse it out. She walked towards the balcony, opening it to allow the warm summer breeze into her apartment. She stepped out onto the balcony, overlooking Tokyo Bay.
Well, Mamo-chan. I'm back. And this time, I'm here to stay.
Wow, sorry it took so long. I was having massive writer's block. But a special thank you to the top ten reviewers for my last chapter:
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