The Tangled Web We Weave
by Crawlspace
~ Day 6, Part 1 ~
~ Thursday ~
The baby crying. Consciousness, if not
wakefulness, coming abruptly.
Soft grumbles on the pillow beside her ear. The swish of covers. A whoosh of cool air and
the creak of the bed. Ami
shivered as the warmth from the body curled against hers disappeared.
Her eyes still closed, she rolled
over and wrapped herself back in the blankets.
Hovering just this side on the edge of sleep,
she listened to the sounds of her morning, finding comfort in their
familiarity.
Bare feet padding
over the floor. Makoto’s voice gentle and calming, shushing the baby’s cries. Miki’s unhappy whimpering as he settled into
his mother’s arms. Soft
humming, the rustling of the diaper bag, the snick of tape as he was changed.
Ami grinned into her pillow, glad it
was Makoto’s turn this morning.
Quiet baby gurgles mixed in with
fussy mewls. The snaps
on his onesie.
More humming, Makoto’s voice low.
Feet moving quickly against the floor, and again the bed creaked. Two pillows thudded dully against the
headboard. The
slightest, airy squeak of plastic buttons against cotton thread. The baby suckling, slowly at first, then in
earnest, to prove he really was hungry and justified in waking them all so
early in the morning.
One of Ami’s eyes slid open lazily,
and her grin widened. The room was dim,
pre-dawn light barely making it in around the shades. Makoto grinned down at her, a warmness in her sleepy eyes. Then those green eyes closed, and she tilted
her head back against the headboard.
Shifting, Ami slowly scooted up,
pulling her pillow behind her. Her head
rested lightly against Makoto’s shoulder as she settled more comfortably
against Makoto’s side, and one of her fingers stroked Miki’s tiny fist. His fingers flexed at the feathery touch,
opening to wrap around hers.
Her grin softened into a peaceful
smile.
Their breathing. Their heartbeats. The familiar sounds of early morning. Ami closed her eyes, listening.
------------------
Kaya let out a long sigh as she
stepped under the hot spray of the shower.
The night had been both restless and uncomfortable. The pull-out loveseat in her grandmother’s
room had left her with an achy back, and her mind had barely stopped long
enough for her to get any sleep.
Again, she sighed. This was going to be a bad day. Every instinct she had told her that.
Putting off facing the world, she
stayed in the shower as long as politeness would allow once it was obvious Hana
was up and moving around. Slowly, she
dried off and wrapped herself in a thick robe, then opened the bathroom door.
“Good morning, sweetheart,” greeted
Hana brightly. She pulled a blouse from
the closet and held it up for Kaya to see.
“What do you think of this one?
Your mother bought it for me last year, but I’ve never worn it. It caught my eye today for some reason.”
Kaya grinned and stepped over to
her. She held an edge of the shirt
closer to Hana and spent several seconds contemplating how it looked. “I think it’s a good choice,” she answered
finally. “It brings out some of the
color in your cheeks.”
Hana laughed. “And I suppose at my age I can use all the
help I can get.” Smiling at her own
humor, she moved over to her dresser to assemble the rest of her morning
ensemble.
Catching Hana by surprise, Kaya came
up behind her and gently put her arms around her. “Thank you for not asking me what I did wrong
to be sleeping on your couch last night.”
Hana patted her hand. “I don’t expect that anything you may have
done is any of my business. And I can
see you’ve given it a lot of thought already, so you don’t need me to ask. I’m sure you’ve realized how to correct
things by this point. Especially after
finding out just how uncomfortable this couch can be.”
A rye grin touched Kaya’s lips. “Sleeplessness doesn’t necessarily lead to
solutions.” Kaya chuckled, but Hana’s expectant gaze and steady silence led her to amend,
“However, I will take care of it this morning.”
An approving nod was her answer
before Hana moved on to get herself ready for breakfast.
Losing track of how many times she’d done it
already, Kaya sighed one more time. She
briefly wondered if it was really possible for a person to deflate and float
away on a passing breeze if they sighed enough times. That would truly solve all of her problems.
------------------
There was a bright light shining against
her closed eyelids, which rather handily disturbed her sleep. Minako grumbled, then cracked open an eye
against a beam of morning sunlight to see what time it was. However, rather than finding the clock, her
gaze wandered over to Rei.
Once again at the window, her hands
flat against the coolness of the glass, Rei stared out with her eyes closed,
seeing things Minako could only guess at.
The blonde sat up, and for several moments, silently watched her mate. From this angle, she could see the small,
peaceful smile on Rei’s lips, and when that smile
quirked just a bit, Minako grinned.
Rising slowly from the bed, she
walked over and slid under Rei’s arms, leaning her back against Rei’s
front. Her hands rested on the window
beside Rei’s, and almost immediately, without having to look, the miko covered
them with her own.
They stood quietly for a moment, then Rei let out a long, warm breath beside Minako’s
ear. Her voice low, she said, “Let’s go
down to the lake tonight. Just us.”
“Okay,” answered Minako softly. Then she smirked. “We can say good-bye to your ghosts.”
Rei chuckled and opened her
eyes. Her hands dropped from the window
and draped loosely around Minako’s waist.
“Actually, I have something in mind.”
“Oh, really,” drug
out Minako playfully. A
fingernail came down to draw light circles against the top of Rei’s hand. “And just what might that something be, hmm?”
“You’ll find out. If you’re good,” teased Rei.
Minako giggled and turned in Rei’s
embrace. Her arms came up to rest around
Rei’s neck, and she smiled widely, a twinkle in her eyes. “I’m always good.”
Rei laughed, and shook her
head. “Hentai. Not
that I’m disagreeing with you or anything.”
“You’d better not,” threw back
Minako, giving Rei’s chest a playful swat.
Then, her curiosity bubbling to the surface, she asked, “Do you really
have something in mind, or were you just playing?”
“I do,” answered Rei. “But I need to think about it a little
more. I’m not quite sure how to go about
it yet.”
“I may be a hentai,
but you’re a tease,” pointed out Minako.
“Just one of your many fine points,” she added, leaning in to give Rei a
quick kiss.
Rei smiled at her, then let her
hands fall from Minako’s waist and stepped away before they could get too
terribly sidetracked. “Come on. We need to get ready for breakfast.”
“I call the shower first!” announced
Minako as she darted around a surprised Rei.
The bathroom door slammed behind her, and Rei heard the shower come on
full spray. Then, a moment later, the door
eased open just a bit.
“So much for not getting
sidetracked,” Rei chuckled. She grabbed
her robe from the end of the bed and made a point to watch the time so they
wouldn’t be late for breakfast.
------------
They were an odd lot. Good people, but odd. Hikari was used to their quirks, though, and
she chatted amiably with her mistress during the breakfast preparations.
As they talked, Midori measured out
an exact teaspoon of sugar and sprinkled it into a cup filled ¾ of the way with
dark coffee. She chuckled at an old joke
Hikari told and poured a precise tablespoon of cream into the cup. Then she folded a crisp, dark blue napkin
into a perfect triangle and laid it down beside the cup. A spoon was placed on top of the napkin, and
a small china plate was added, all of it sitting neatly on a polished silver
tray.
The same routine, the exact
measurements each time, a complete lack of variation from day to day. Hikari wondered if her mistress was aware of
just how exact it all was. Perhaps it
was her way, intentional or not, of bringing order to all the oddities in their
lives.
Midori was just reaching into the
cookie jar to add the set number of cookies to the tray when Kaya walked
in. Her greeting was pleasant and
casual, but the set of her shoulders spoke of quiet stress. However, if the mistress had noticed, she was
keeping it to herself.
Hikari busied herself and tried to
fade away as Midori said happily, “Good morning, sweetheart.” Then she grinned at the two cookies she
pulled from the jar. “Cinnamon
sugar. That means today will be a
good day.”
Kaya smirked as she poured herself a
mug of coffee. “If you
say so.”
“You doubt your mother’s cookies?”
Kaya sipped at her coffee.
“Well,” went on Midori. “You’re entitled to your skepticism. I’m going to take these up to your
father. When I come back, we can talk a
bit.”
There was a moment of uncertainty on
Kaya’s part as she watched her mother pick up the tray. In the few steps it took Midori to leave the
kitchen, though, she worked through that uncertainty and came to a quick
decision.
Surprised as Kaya called out for her
to wait, Midori stopped and turned around in the hallway.
“Let me,” said Kaya, reaching out
for the tray.
A small, pleased smile inched onto
Midori’s lips. Without any words, she
handed over the tray and walked back to the kitchen.
“Is everything all right?” asked
Hikari when Midori came back much sooner than expected.
“I think it will be,” answered Midori. Then she added, “Will you prepare two plates
and a pot of coffee to be taken upstairs.
My daughter and her father will be eating privately in his office this
morning.”
Hikari’s eyes
widened in surprise. But she
recovered quickly, wondering silently what cataclysm had befallen that her
master was being allowed to dine in his office.
And with a full pot of coffee, no less.
As Hikari began to question the good
fortune in her mistresses cookies, Kaya was standing
alone in the hallway, her feet taking their own good time to start moving
forward. She suddenly questioned the
sanity in this hasty plan. But here she
was, holding her father’s coffee and cookies.
Even if she didn’t go through with it, she was going to have to at least
go see him. Otherwise, things would
become ugly.
Rallying her courage, she took a
deep breath and marched up to his office door.
Balancing the tray awkwardly on one arm, she knocked lightly and waited
to be acknowledged. “Come in,” was
called out roughly, and she struggled to get the door open without spilling
anything.
This was the routine, Kaya mused,
picturing her mother’s movements as she went.
The tray would be set on the desk within her father’s reach without him
ever once looking up from his work.
Midori would kiss his cheek, then quietly leave
him to his reading, getting only a mumble or a grunt in response. Her mother was the silent constant, something
that would only be noticed in absence.
Feeling small under the weight of
this place, Kaya nonetheless moved steadily, ready to
face whatever she’d brought upon herself.
She set the tray on the desk and said, “Good morning, Father.”
Rin looked up, mildly startled. “Good morning,” he responded, subtly leaving
it hanging for her to pick up with an explanation for her presence.
“I asked Mother if I could bring you
your coffee this morning,” she continued, her voice sounding awkward to her
ears.
“Oh,” replied Rin. “Well… thank you.”
“You’re welcome,” answered
Kaya. She laced her fingers loosely in
front of her, the seconds ticking away with a thunderous force. He only stared at her, waiting for whatever
else she was going to say. She could
leave, she realized. He had what he was
expecting. Perhaps it would be best to
go, regroup, and gather her thoughts for another try.
“Sit.”
The command caught her off
guard. “Excuse me?”
Rin frowned at her. “If you’re going to stay, sit.”
“Yes, sir,” replied Kaya, following
the order as Rin reached for his coffee.
Her fingers began to fidget in nervous
agitation in her lap, a reaction to slow pace her father was moving at. A tiny sip was taken from his cup, and though
he didn’t smile in pleasure, the set of his shoulders visibly relaxed. The cup was carefully set back upon its
saucer, and with a gleam in his eyes, he picked up one of the cookies. He took a small nibble, then
carefully broke it in half. With great
care, one of those halves was dunked into the coffee, held to a silent count of
three, then joyfully devoured in one bite.
Kaya smiled, some of her tension
melting away. Watching him like this was
amusing in its own way.
The first cookie was gone and the
other halfway there when Rin finally looked back at her. “You should have brought some for yourself,”
he told her, shaking the last of the cookie at her in lieu of wagging a
finger. “I won’t feel guilty for your
shortsightedness in the matter.”
Kaya smirked as the last of the
cookie was dunked into the coffee. “I’ll
be better prepared next time.” She stood
and walked slowly around the room, glancing at bookshelves and trying to look
casual. A recent medical journal caught
her eye, and she held it up for her father to see the cover. “A new project at the
hospital?”
Rin shook his head and took a gulp
of coffee. “No. Just something that caught Jouku’s attention.
You remember Jouku?”
“Yes, though it’s been many years
since I last saw him.”
Rin hurrumphed.
“If you’d come home more often…
But if the old man lives a few more years, we may present it for
trials.” Something seemed to light
behind his eyes then, and he quickly gulped down the rest of his coffee. He waved a hand at Kaya’s chair, the signal
for her to once again sit as he stood to retrieve some files.
“I’ve wanted to ask for more
details, but haven’t found a chance,” he went on as he pulled out a thick
binder and several file folders. “The Goenburg Project.”
Surprised showed noticeably on her
face. “You know about that?” she asked,
though considering how publicized it was she shouldn’t have needed to. The month she’d spent working on it in
“Of course I do,” he returned
sounding almost insulted. Everything but
one file folder was dropped into her lap, and he sat in the chair beside her,
pulling it closer to hers. “It holds a
great deal of promise, and I’ve got the hospital approved for when clinical
trials begin.”
She looked down at the large blue
binder in her lap, the logo of her father’s hospital emblazoned on the cover
and a black 5 on a piece of white paper in a pocket on the spine. Beneath the logo in bold, black marker,
“Kaya’s Project” was written neatly.
“Your latest paper is in there,”
continued Rin. “I only got it a few days
before you arrived, so I haven’t had a lot of time to study it.” He pulled out some notes and a pen, then looked back at her, something akin to excitement in his
eyes.
“My project,” she said softly,
turning through the pages in the binder.
“You presented it to your board.”
Impatient with her sudden
distractedness, Rin grunted. “Yes, that
much should be obvious. Impressed them
when I told them you were my daughter. Some
of them had forgotten because you never come home anymore.” He reached over and turned the pages to where
he wanted her attention. “Now, look
here. I wanted some clarification on the
numbers and how they affect the timetable you projected earlier in the year.”
Papers were put under her eyes, her father’s scratched notations in the margins. Hand drawn graphs decorated what free space
had been left after his notes were made, his own calculations and conclusions
beside hers. She pushed up her glasses
and focused, both on the notations and her father’s voice.
“You want answers from me?” she
asked quietly.
“Of course. It’s your work. Who else would I ask?” he answered.
She could hear his impatience. She also heard curiosity, and behind that,
confidence that she would give him the answers he sought. Confidence in her words, simply because they
were hers.
She shook her head, clearing the
questions and the insecurities. The
doctor took over, the researcher finding herself in her element with a captive
audience. One she thought she’d lost
long ago. So the daughter sat back and
listened as two scientists talked, trying to decipher what was really being
said.
--------------
Coming in from the pool, their
laughter followed her into the house.
Setsuna smiled, the gesture reflecting the simple joy she felt at being
a part of her Small Lady’s childhood.
However, there were two voices missing in the playfulness of the
afternoon. The noticeable absence of
Michiru and Hotaru had brought her inside, ostensibly to pack for tomorrow’s
trip home.
Setsuna wondered if they honestly
believed they were keeping Hotaru’s behavior a secret from her. It would have to be discussed, perhaps should
have already been. Though it was a
conversation she and Hotaru needed to have alone. Regardless of that, she did love them for
trying to protect her feelings and give her some momentary normalcy.
The quiet of her room stood in stark
contrast to the excitement outside. The
peace was welcome, though, giving her a chance to better think things
through. A suitcase, already packed with
the things she no longer needed, was laid open on the bed. She looked around for a moment. There had to be a few more things ready to
go, just to keep her excuse from becoming a lie.
She looked in the closet first, but
the only remaining shirt would be needed in the morning, and she really wanted
to leave her dress hanging for as long as possible. There was no reason to check the bathroom. Everything in there would have at least one
more use before it could be packed. That
left only the dresser as her last hope.
Knowing what little she would find,
but feeling she should check again anyway, Setsuna reached for the top
drawer. Her fingers brushed the brash
pull, but paused as a distraction caught her eyes. She stood motionless for a moment, then brought her fingers up to lightly brush over the silver
hand mirror that matched the decorative brush and comb on top of the dresser.
To see.
The voice echoed in her
memories. Until that moment, she had
heard only love in that voice. Always
strong and confident, always gentle even in rebuke. All those things had been stripped away, that
voice now cold with fear and grief as blue eyes that seemed a shade dimmer fell
upon her.
And the orb. So that we
may never forget.
------------
A small smile hid the uncertainty
she felt, a trick she had perfected by the age of twelve to throw off both her
critics and her competitors. The
uncertainty remained, however, as Michiru zippered her suitcase and turned that
measured smile on Hotaru.
The little girl waited patiently to
receive both her mama’s approval for the job she’d done packing and the
dismissal of her punishment. Michiru
stepped up to her slowly and fussed a bit with her bangs. Very little had been said between them during
their morning together, none of it about what had brought them here. It felt wrong to send Hotaru on her way with
nothing resolved. However, trying to
force the matter felt equally wrong, and in truth part of her feared what she
might discover if she did. The fear
frustrated her more than anything else, even more so than Hotaru’s half answers
and shaded words.
“All right,” said Michiru
softly. “You may go play now if you want
to.”
Hotaru smiled widely at her. “Are you coming out to the pool?”
“Not today,” answered Michiru. “I think I’d like to spend some time in the
library.”
Hotaru’s smile fell. “Are you sure you don’t want to? Haruka-papa’s out there. So is everyone else.”
“I’m sure,” answered Michiru,
stroking a hand gently over Hotaru’s hair.
“I’m more in an indoor book mood today.”
“Okay,” replied Hotaru. “If that’s what you really want.” She reached out and hugged Michiru’s waist,
squeezing tightly.
Michiru hugged her back. Letting her go, she said, “Go on and keep
your papa out of trouble.”
Hotaru giggled, then grabbed her
flip-flops and trotted out to the pool.
Finding herself in the middle of a
mix of calm and chaos, Hotaru realized she was too late to keep her papa out of
trouble. Making up a large part of the
chaos, Haruka ran from behind a table to duck behind one of the lounge
chairs. Chibi-usa trailed along behind
her, a small watergun clutched tightly in her
hands. Haruka’s much larger canon was
quickly propped on the chair and aimed at their opponents.
“Give up now!” called Minako, three
lounge chairs now between them. A large
gun similar to Haruka’s was aimed and ready as Usagi stood back-up beside her.
“Or what?” called back Haruka. “From my point of view, we have the
advantage.”
Minako smirked, clearly indicating
she didn’t agree. “And what point of
view would that be?”
Haruka returned the smirk and
pointed her canon to the occupant of the middle lounger. Leisurely sunning herself, sunglasses
covering her eyes, Rei ignored all of them.
Minako laughed. “She’s wearing a bathing suit. A little water won’t hurt her!”
To which a watergun
was pulled seemingly from nowhere and pointed directly at Minako. Rei’s relaxed demeanor didn’t change at all,
her aim perfect, without her eyes even so much as blinking.
Minako quickly rethought her
position.
Hotaru giggled at it all. Setsuna probably wasn’t playing with them,
but it might be fun to try and coax her into it. She scanned the rest of the pool, looking for
her mama. Ami was in the water,
carefully floating around with Miki.
Mamoru was slowly swimming the perimeter. She didn’t see Setsuna at all.
On drier land, the little girl
focused on Makoto. Her watergun lying abandoned, she had found greater pleasure in
a paperback.
“Mako-chan,” Hotaru called as she
jogged over to the lounge chair.
Makoto looked up from her book, a
crooked smile lifting one corner of her mouth.
“There you are. Chibi-usa was
wondering how long you’d be. She didn’t
have anyone to defend her from Usagi.”
Hotaru grinned widely. “Haruka-papa seems to be doing an okay job of
that. But do you know where Setsuna-mama
is?”
“She went inside a little while
ago,” answered Makoto. “Said there were
some things she wanted to do while she was thinking about it.”
“Oh,” replied Hotaru, her mood
falling. A tiny frown touched her lips,
and she stood quietly for a moment.
Finally, she said, “I should see if she needs any help.”
Her feet moved, ready to take her
back to the house, when a high-pitched squeal sounded behind her. Two chubby arms latched onto her waist, and
there was Chibi-usa, smiling up at her with eyes sparkling playfully.
“Finally!” laughed
out Chibi-usa. “I thought I was gonna die without you here.”
Hotaru bit her lip, not sure what to
do as she stared down at her best friend.
Her eyes lifted back to the house.
Chibi-usa blinked up at her,
confused at her reaction. “What?”
“What about what?” asked Hotaru
looking back down at her friend and not at all meaning to sound silly. But she must
have, since Chibi-usa giggled at her.
“Are you gonna
save me or not?”
Makoto picked up her watergun and held it out to Hotaru. “Here.
Go rescue your future princess from the evil that is Minako with a water
canon.”
An instant of hesitation, then
Hotaru took the gun. She gave one last,
almost sorrowful glance back at the house.
The decision had been made.
“Okay,” she said, a smile coming
back to her lips and a playfulness appearing in her voice. She grabbed Chibi-usa’s hand to lead them
back into the fray. “I’ll save you!”
------------
Kyo popped a piece of candy into his
mouth, tucked the half empty snack bag into his pocket, then
sat on the step beside his nephew. The
boy ignored him, continuing to stare at his Gameboy,
so Kyo waited. He listened to the beep-beep-rrrrr
of an electronic spaceship mix with the ticking of the clock. Still being ignored, he pursed his lips,
tapped his foot against the carpet runner, and finally leaned all the way over
into Seiji’s personal space as far as he could without actually laying on him.
“Whatcha doing?” asked Kyo casually.
Seiji sighed as his ship took a
direct hit and exploded. “Just playing a
game,” he answered with a complete lack of enthusiasm.
Kyo raised an eyebrow at the answer,
causing the boy to fidget.
“Okay,” added Seiji. “I’m also avoiding Dad. He wants to talk about things I don’t. I know all of it already. I mean, I’m not the one who doesn’t get why
Ami isn’t Miki’s daddy.”
A smirk touched Kyo’s
lips, and he shook his head in amusement.
“I bet your mom’s having a lot of fun with that one.”
Seiji grinned as he reached up to
straighten his glasses. “Yeah.”
“I bet your dad is, too,” went on
Kyo. “But here you are, hiding from
him. And after the deal we made.”
Seiji’s grin turned into a guilty
frown. “I know I promised to let him
talk to me and pretend you hadn’t told me anything, but it’s embarrassing when
Dad does it. I know about Ami and her
friends, and I get it. I don’t want to
talk about it while they’re all actually here.
Especially with Haruka here,” he finished, the last sentenced mumbled
out.
Kyo clapped the boy on the back and
tried to offer some sympathy. The kid just need to jump in and get it over with rather than
dragging this ordeal out. So did Jurrou, judging by the stressed look on his face as he hid
behind the garage and chain smoked.
“I know it’s embarrassing,” said Kyo
with a touch of empathy. “But it will
still be better than what your Dad and I went through with our dad. Him sitting with that huge
desk between us and an encyclopedia sized text book in my hands. ‘Let’s read together.’” Kyo chuffed, amused
at the memory now that it was long behind him.
“Just let your dad do all the talking, nod in the appropriate places,
and promise to read whatever he gives you on your own time. And if you have any more questions, come to
me. I won’t break out into a cold
sweat.”
A lopsided grin appeared on Seiji’s
face, and he nodded. “Okay. But… do I have to do it now?”
“Yes,” answered Kyo. “If you can find him. The two of you have been playing some twisted
version of hide and seek all morning long when you should have been out at the
pool playing with everyone else.”
Seiji would have sighed and tried to
dodge a little longer if he hadn’t been cut off by Kyo’s
beeper. Over his uncle’s sudden unhappy
muttering he said, “You have to go again.”
“Yeah, I do,” answered Kyo unhappily
as he stood. “Find someone and tell them
for me before you go find your dad.”
“Okay.” A grin touched Seiji’s lips. Trying to lighten things up a bit and make
Kyo happier, he added, “Uncle Kyo off to save the world, cause a superhero’s
job is never done.”
Already lost in his own thoughts as
he headed down the stairs, Kyo answered without humor. “I’m only a superhero when I can save them.”
------------
Tired. That was the best word Kaya had to describe
how she felt. Exhausted would have been
overstating the matter, and to claim battled resolution would have been an
outright lie. She had gotten some
answers, though. Now if only she could
figure out the questions she might be able to get some of the rest she so
dearly felt she needed.
Her solitude after leaving her father
hadn’t yielded any results, and now she needed to take care of another
matter. Knocking lightly on the door to
Ken’s bedroom, she hoped he would forgive her for avoiding him this afternoon. He called for her to enter, and she opened
the door just enough to poke her head around it.
“Are we speaking again?” she asked
in a lightly joking tone.
Ken smiled. “I suppose so. How did things go?”
Kaya closed the door behind her and
moved to sit on the foot of the bed. As
Ken closed his laptop, she answered, “I’m not sure.”
This response was met with an
immediate frown. She was expecting that,
though, and held up a hand to stop him.
“People don’t change overnight,” she
went on. “We talked our way. He has every piece of work I’ve published and
knows them inside out. But you already
know that, don’t you.”
Ken grinned and shrugged.
One corner of Kaya’s lips turned up
into a crooked smile. “He asked
questions, but none of them were criticisms.
He studied them not because he thought they were faulted, but because
they were mine. He had faith in the
words because they came from me.”
“So now you know that you have his
confidence,” said Ken quietly. “Why are
you still confused?”
“Because I don’t know why, for the
last 15 years, he’s treated me like an embarrassment,” answered Kaya. “I don’t know what changed between us, or why
it’s suddenly better. You’re the only
thing that’s different, and at least I knew when it was you. Now I’m just as lost as I was before.”
“You could ask,” he suggested
carefully.
Kaya shook her head. “Mother knows, but I won’t ask her,
either. She’d only tell me to go to
Father. I know why she would, but why
did you? What did you see that I
missed?”
“I don’t think you missed anything,”
answered Ken. His hands ran lightly over
the cover of his laptop, and he leaned forward just a bit in his chair. “You and your father are a lot alike,
Kaya. If I didn’t know you, I wouldn’t
have seen what he was doing quite so easily.
I told you to talk to him because of the way he was talking to me. Every private conversation I had with him was
his roundabout way of quizzing me to make sure I not only knew your work, but
that I respected you for it. He pulled
out the Goenburg papers to get things started, only telling me that it was a new project the
hospital was interested in. Sneaky old
man,” he added with some admiring affection.
Kaya closed her eyes and held her
breath for several seconds. Releasing it
slowly, she tried to clear her mind, open up pathways and connect circuits in a
way that would give her a clear picture.
Unfortunately, most of her circuits were on miswired
boards, so all she was getting was static.
“I handle things like this much
better when they involve anonymous numbers and testable theories,” she muttered
ruefully. “I don’t want to test any more
theories tonight.”
“I suppose you’ve done enough for
right now,” replied Ken, setting aside his laptop and standing. “As long as you aren’t
taking it out on me anymore.”
Kaya opened her eyes and grinned. “I promise.”
“Okay,” smiled back Ken. “It’s almost time for dinner. We can get ready and then just relax for
awhile. Maybe find out what the girls
have planned for the rest of the night.”
She wasn’t certain how much she
could really relax, but Kaya found herself nodding regardless. His idea sounded good, and she wasn’t opposed
at all to trying.
------------
Rei buttoned her blouse, ignoring
the blue eyes burning a hole into her back.
Minako pursed her lips and stared
harder.
“I’m not telling you,” said Rei.
“Pleeeeeaaaassse,”
drew out Minako. “You’re making me
crazy.”
Rei grinned. “That’s the idea.”
A defeated sigh sounded behind her,
and she turned to see Minako’s shoulders slumped and her head bowed. Then those eyes peered up at her through
blonde bangs, and Minako smirked. “I’ll
get you back for this, you know. For
right now, though, let’s just hurry and get to dinner so you can finally tell me what you’re going to
do with me tonight.”
A saucy grin touched Rei’s lips and
her eyes gleamed.
“Arrrgggghhh!”
groaned Minako. Then,
as Rei started walking towards the door, “Hey, wait for me!”
“You said you wanted to hurry and
get to dinner,” returned Rei.
Minako fell in beside her and stuck
out her tongue. “Tease.”
Rei only smiled.
------------
Sitting perfectly still, Ami fought
the urge to fidget under her mother’s intense gaze. Dinner had been awkward, and she still didn’t
know what had happened earlier in the day to have her mother be so out of sorts
this evening. When the meal was
finished, her mother had pulled her aside and asked if she could take the baby
for awhile, ostensibly so she and Makoto could have a little time to
themselves. Makoto hadn’t had any
problems with it, had said it might be good for all four of them. She just needed a few minutes to get the baby
ready.
So Ami had been left with her
mother, just the two of them in the room Ken was using. And her mother had looked at her, about to
say something. Five minutes later, the
words still hadn’t come and that stare was holding, something significant
hanging between them.
“You can tell me anything,” blurted
out Kaya finally.
Ami’s eyes widened and her lips
formed a small, surprised O.
Kaya took a deep breath, though her
eyes never fell from Ami’s. She tried to
find the right words, the struggle obvious to her daughter. “You always seem to find ways to tell me
without words, but I know I’ve missed things.
You can tell me, if you want. Anything at all. If you want to.”
“O… Okay,” answered Ami, a small
sweat breaking out on the back of her neck.
Kaya nodded and let out a relieved
breath. She appeared as if a great
weight had been lifted from her, and Ami tensed even more, completely
confused. Kaya, though, smiled and stood
from the edge of the bed where she’d been sitting. “Well, now that we have that out of the way,
let’s go see if Makoto is ready with my boy.
I’m going to miss being able to spend time with him like this after we
get back home.”
------------
This really was taking much longer
than it should.
Usagi let out a puff of breath,
blowing her bangs eschew. Beside her,
Chibi-usa did the same thing. Obviously,
the novelty had worn off for her, too.
Mamoru was oblivious to both of
them, though, as he stared intently at something under the hood of his
car. Usagi wondered if he really was
still checking things over for the ride home or if he’d gotten caught up in an
‘oooo, pretty’ moment. Perhaps a well kept and shiny car engine was
a guy’s equivalent to a ½ karat diamond in an 18 karat gold setting. She grinned.
From that perspective, she could understand what was taking so long.
Chibi-usa continued to fidget beside
her, no doubt wishing she’d gone with Hotaru instead of insisting on coming
with them. That thought made Usagi think
of Haruka, and then Rei. She’d watched
both of them under the hood of cars, too.
They’d each had their own unique expressions in those moments. Rei, completely lost and angry at both her
lack of automotive knowledge and her car, unintelligible curses spewing from
her mouth at a rate that matched the white smoke spewing from her engine. Haruka, a twinkle in her eye that spoke of
true love and pride, her hands moving over her Porsche in a knowing and gentle
way that would make most women jealous.
Compared to them, Mamoru looked like
a kid in a candy store. He knew more
about what made a car go than Rei did, and he enjoyed his toy, but he didn’t
come close to Haruka’s passion over it all.
Usagi smiled as he rechecked the oil.
It was fun to see him acting like a happy child, even if she was feeling
a bit bored and impatient to get back to the house.
------------
Alone out back in the gentle warmth
of the night, Ami and Makoto rocked slowly in the cradle of the bench where
they sat. Makoto put her arm around
Ami’s shoulders and let her cuddle close.
“What’re you thinking?” asked Makoto
after a long silence.
“I’m not certain,” answered Ami.
“About what you’re thinking about?”
questioned Makoto, sounding dubious.
“Mmmm.” Ami’s
eyes turned to look up at her. “You find
that odd?”
“Well, yeah, sort of,” admitted
Makoto. “I mean, even when you’re not
thinking about anything, you know what you’re thinking about.” She contemplated a moment, and scratched at
the tip of her nose. “Though I suppose
if you were thinking about a whole bunch of things all at once you might forget
some of them or not know exactly which one when I asked. But your mind doesn’t forget like that.”
Ami chuckled lightly, her mood
easing. “Thank you,” she said. Then she added, “It’s not so much that I’m
uncertain about what I’m thinking.
Rather, I was thinking that I’m uncertain. Am I reading too much into what my mother
said? Or do you suppose I’m going to
have to dodge her the way I have been Uncle Kyo?”
“Your mother is nowhere near as
direct as Uncle Kyo,” replied Makoto.
“Even if she does suspect something, she’ll never ask you outright.”
Ami let out a long, tired sigh. “There is one thing I am certain of right
now. I will be very glad to go
home. This vacation has become
exhausting.”
Makoto tightened her hold around Ami
and pulled her closer. She placed a kiss
on her forehead, then carefully tilted her chin
up. Their lips met, and they found an
easy peace in this moment of solitude.
------------
The grass tickled at her sandaled
feet as they moved along at a leisurely pace.
Minako held Rei’s arm loosely by her side, the
night sounds a gentle accompaniment to their evening stroll. Minako’s eyes wandered from the darkness in
front of her to the shadow of Rei’s face.
She had something on her mind, Minako could tell. She was relaxed, enjoying the walk, but there
was an intentness in the violet of her eyes and a
concentration in her silence.
Their easy pace slowed even more as
they came within sight of the lake.
Small electric lanterns outlined the short pier, the dim lights creating
a bright beacon. Rei frowned just a bit,
and Minako wondered if it was because of the artificial light. Necessary as they were for safety, the
lanterns reflected in the water, obscuring the natural view and slightly
hampering their night vision. Whatever
had caused Rei’s displeasure, however, was quickly worked through in the quiet
of her thoughts. The frown disappeared,
and she led them to a comfortable spot near the water’s edge.
For a moment they stood, Rei staring
out as if she could see into the inky darkness.
Then Rei slowly pulled Minako in front of her so they were back to front
and wrapped her arms around Minako’s shoulders.
“I want to try something,” she whispered.
Minako smiled and whispered back,
“I’ve been waiting all day to find out what that something is.”
She felt Rei grin, and a warm
chuckle brushed past her ear.
“Okay. Have a seat.”
Rei moved first, guiding Minako down
with her and settling them in a way she felt would best make this work. Minako followed Rei’s lead, situating herself
in the V of Rei’s legs. She supported
her own weight rather than lean back against Rei, but they were close enough
that she could feel the rise and fall of Rei’s breathing and the steady beat of
her heart. Fingers brushed along her
forearm, causing goosebumps to rise, then tickled at
her palms.
“Like this,” Rei instructed softly,
turning Minako’s hands so they were held out, palms down. “Just rest them on top of mine, and let me
know when you’re comfortable.”
A few fidgets and a slight scoot
backward, and Rei’s arms were resting on her thighs. Minako smiled at the warmth, let her arms relax
with her hands on top of Rei’s, and said, “Okay, I’m comfy. Now what are…”
“I’m getting to that,” grinned back
Rei. “Let’s see… first you need to close
your eyes. I can’t see you, so I’m going
to trust you when you say they’re closed.”
A gentle giggle was her answer.
Rei chuffed. “I’m going to assume that means they’re
closed. If they are, I’m going to
introduce you to my ghosts.”
“What?” asked Minako, her voice
unnaturally loud because of the quiet around them. Her hands fell from Rei’s as she suddenly
craned her head around to stare at her partner.
“You heard me,” answered Rei, a
smirk on her face. She took Minako’s
shoulders and turned her back around.
She repositioned their hands and tightened her legs against Minako’s. “You kept bringing them up so often, I
thought you might like to say hello. Or, as you said this morning, good-bye.”
“But… how?” asked Minako, a deep
curiosity bubbling up. “And I thought
you said there weren’t really any ghosts.”
“They aren’t ghosts, per se,”
replied Rei, slowly trying to think of how to explain this properly. “But that’s as good a word as any for right
now. As for how… this is something we do
all the time. You wouldn’t notice, nobody does with these kinds of things. But I want to see how deep it goes, and see if I can use it like I want to for this.”
Minako swallowed hard, an
uncomfortable twinge in her chest. Her
fingers curled slightly, lifting her palm up from Rei’s. She knew she was frowning, and was glad Rei
couldn’t see her face. Hesitancy in her
voice, she asked, “What is it you think I haven’t noticed?”
“Don’t worry,” answered Rei. “It won’t hurt. It’s… it’s how I see
us sometimes when we’re together. I can
show a lot better than I can tell, assuming I can make it work. Trust me,” she said, a touch of frustration
creeping in as she twined her fingers through Minako’s to press their palms
back together.
“I trust you,” said Minako, shaking
her head. “I always trust you. It’s just…”
Her voice trailed off and she took a deep breath, trying to clear aside
her uncertain conscience. Letting her
hands relax, she told herself that just this once it would be okay. “All right. What do you want me to do?”
She felt Rei sit up straighter and
take a deep breath, and imagined those deep eyes closing as she spoke. “Just relax.
Breathe deeply. Slow your heart
down, no worries or cares, and clear your mind.
Concentrate on me, match my breathing.
It’s just us out here, and we are one.”
Minako flinched. If Rei noticed, she didn’t say anything, and
with just a bit of difficultly, Minako began to relax. She followed along, slowing her breathing to
match the pace Rei was setting. Slowly, the world around her faded away. She felt only Rei, heard only the soft
whisper of her breathing. They melted
together, one heartbeat, and in that she found comfort and peace.
And in her mind’s eye, she could see
it. Familiar wisps of bright red flitted
over and mingled with soft orange. The
two danced together in way that made it impossible to tell where one began and
the other stopped. The orange pulsed
brightly for a second, Minako smiling, and the red answered back in kind. Rei was damned proud of herself, and Minako
smiled wider. It was okay, and she would
be careful not to let it go too far.
Relax.
I
am.
You’re
thinking too hard. Stop.
Am not. But okay.
So she stopped thinking about it and
allowed Rei to take control. When she did, the world that had faded away flowed back in. This time, though, rather than seeing it, she
felt it and heard it’s song. The warmth of the wind, wrapping softly around her like a living
thing, almost as if it was cradling her.
An aurora of colors played out before her, cold blues speckled with
prisms, a cacophony of life, high pitched and frantic, but pleasant
nonetheless. Deep greens, tinged with
browns and oranges, their sound low and calming. All of it tied together with the hum of the
wind as it flowed, connecting everything, bringing harmony.
And in all of
that, a friendly curiosity.
The soft orange took on a brighter
glow, reaching out in equal curiosity.
But then the tune changed. The brightness of Rei’s aura flared an angry
red, and the soft music disappeared, replaced with a silence heavy with malice
and fear. The beautiful colors from
Rei’s ‘ghosts’ were overtaken with darkness, and before Minako could even begin
to decipher what was happening she was abruptly and roughly pulled out of it.
Confused and dizzy, overwhelmed by a
sudden sense of loss coupled with fear, Minako lay in the grass beside
Rei. She slowly lifted her head and
looked up, trying to focus. Rei had
pushed her away, she could tell that much.
Her eyes narrowed, watching the miko and feeling no comfort in what she
saw. Rei was still holding on to her
vision, and when her eyes opened, Mars’ flame flared brightly within them.
Then, without saying a word, Rei was
on her feet and sprinting towards the house, henshin wand in hand.
------------
The stars reflected in the surface
of the pond, turning it into a mirror of the night sky. Hotaru knelt down in front of it and touched
a finger to the still water. A slow
cascade of ripples radiated outward from her fingertip, disturbing the
stillness of the solar system and attracting the attention of one of the tiny
fish resting at the bottom.
Hotaru grinned as the fish nipped at
her finger. “Sorry,” she said as she
pulled her finger from the water. The
grin she wore grew when she heard Setsuna laugh softly.
Standing, the little girl walked over
and sat beside her mother on the bench.
Further ahead of them, she could see Haruka and Michiru strolling
through the garden. Haruka’s arm was
draped over Michiru’s shoulders as they enjoyed the quiet pleasantness of their
last night here.
Scooting over closer to Setsuna,
Hotaru snuggled against her side.
Setsuna put an arm around her, holding her close, and the two of them
sat quietly just listening to the night sounds.
After several minutes, with her eyes
focused on the moon shimmering in the pond, Hotaru asked softly, “How many
times have you been in love?”
Surprised, Setsuna looked down at
the little girl. “That’s an unusual
question. Especially
from you.”
Hotaru shrugged.
Looking back out over the garden,
Setsuna answered after a long pause, “Twice.”
“So there was another. But only one?” What was left of Hotaru’s grin fell
away. “I’m sorry. For what we did to you with
Uncle Kyo. We didn’t want you to
be lonely, but you seem lonelier now than you did before we got here.”
Setsuna reached down and gently
tilted the child’s chin up so she could see her eyes. “I’m not lonely. The last few days have left me feeling a bit
nostalgic, I think, and perhaps that’s what you see. And Uncle Kyo was not altogether
unpleasant.” She smiled softly, seeing
so much in those eyes, and ran a hand lightly over the child’s hair. “You don’t need to apologize, Hotaru. I forgave you long ago.”
Hotaru nodded. Then small fingers reached up and absently began
playing with the gold chain around Setsuna’s neck.
“I still have it,” said Setsuna, her
voice a whisper. “I keep it in the music
box Inara gave me.”
Hotaru’s fingers stilled,
then fell, and she swallowed hard.
“Setsuna, I…”
The beeping of their communicators,
coupled with Haruka and Michiru’s, cut them off. The soldier’s mentality emerged instantly,
and they activated the communicators to see a frantic Rei.
“They’re in the house! They want the baby!”