Sailor Moon Fan Fiction ❯ Breeze ❯ Breeze ( Chapter 1 )

[ A - All Readers ]

Konnichi wa minna, Iris-san desu. I hope you enjoy this strange little
alternate-reality story. Author's notes at the end. O-tanoshimi ni.

______________________________________________________________ ________

Breeze
by Iris
kanzaki_yukiko@y...
Rated G
_____________________________________________________________________ _

Kaze : Aki no Kaeru
Breeze : Changes of Autumn
________________________________________________________________ ______


I want to become a bird and soar through the skies
Aiming towards my hopes in the far distance
If I look down I see myself there, so small
I wonder if we're just living for nothing...

If I can gaze at everything this way
Nothing can hurt me and I won't be afraid of tomorrow

I want to ride the wind, flying towards my dreams in the
distance
To put on the wings of courage
I want to become a bird, continuing to hold this commanding
heart
To never lose to the reality of every day

Like a beast trying to choose a steep road
If I can scent out the right one, I will not fall
But as for human beings... it seems we can only get ourselves
lost
We don't possess the strength to battle loneliness

I want to ride the wind, surely heading towards my dreams in
the distance
To devote myself to courageous visions
Even more than beasts, I too can still walk the steep roads
Without losing my undefeatable heart
If this tiny me is able to find something
Nothing can hurt me and I won't be afraid of tomorrow


- Breeze
By Megumi Hayashibara
Slayers Try Opening Theme
_________________________________________________________________ _____

Usagi was dreaming.

She knew she was dreaming, and that in itself was peculiar
enough, but what was even stranger was the fact that she knew it
wasn't just any ordinary dream.

Something ... _someone_ was calling her, _needing_, _wanting_
her with a desperate longing that frightened her. Some remote, alien
part deep within her mind responded to the call with equal passion,
seething with frustration and impatience, urgently insisting,
clamorously _demanding_ that her body start to move towards the call
... and more specifically, the _person_ who was making the call, even
while the normal, everyday part of her was busy staring around herself
and being afraid.

Mist.

Mist everywhere, a pearly grey vapor that snaked and twisted
sinuously across her vision, curling and billowing around her slender
body like smoke, gripping her soft flesh with cold, insubstantial
fingers. She suddenly realized that she was wearing a white nightgown
... no, a dress. A ball-gown, to be specific. A long, flowing dress
made from some gauzy, gossamer-like material that shimmered, a pale,
opalescent white in the dim light, and clung to the gentle curves of
her willowy body, flaring out from her slim waist into a full,
billowy skirt. It was ... beautiful. A ... a princess dress. But it
did nothing to protect her against the severe chill of the frost
which bit painfully through the filmy white cloth.

" E..en....dy...mion... " Soft lips quivered as they
struggled unwillingly to form the unfamiliar word, whispering as if
terrified to shatter the fragile reality of the dream. The faint
sound echoed weakly into the murky blackness and became devoured by
the tomb-like silence. Even the rapid thudding of her heart seemed
muted, as if all sound was being smothered, stifled by the heavy
mantle of darkness.

Eyes.

There was something out there, watching her. Dark shapes that
writhed grotesquely in the blackness; by the goosebumps that rose in
patches on her skin, Usagi could tell that whoever it was, its
intentions were _not_ friendly. Her body stiffened instinctively,
limbs freezing like those of a startled deer, mesmerized by the
gleaming car head-lights rushing towards it. Somehow, she sensed that
it was _not_ the one who was calling her. This was something ...
Other; a strange, foreign entity, who had invaded the domains of her
dream.

Undeniably hostile. And curiously female.

She could _feel_ it. Pulsing waves of pure, undiluted hatred,
that she had never felt before in all fourteen years of her life,
emanated from those eyes - and engulfed her, threatening to drown her
in its sheer intensity and overwhelming volume, sending chills down
her spine which even the biting cold could not. A soft, animal-like
whimper escaped from her lips, her arms coming up involuntarily to
wrap around her willowy body as if to protect herself against the
thing.

The normal, ordinary fouteen-year-old Tsukino Usagi part of
her was cowering in fright, cringing and urging her leaden legs to
move, to do _anything_ , anything that would just ... just ... get
her away.

The other part, that strange, alien part of her, was cool and
calm, although Usagi could tell that it was just as afraid. But it
commanded her to stand still, to face the enemy bravely.

Not that Usagi could have done anything else. She was rooted
to the spot, her knees suddenly as weak as jelly, her body swaying
slightly as she strived to keep her calm, her sanity.

But then the next moment something happened that banished all
other thoughts.

Something ... someone was coming through the mist.

____________________________________________________________ __________


Light.
It flooded in pools on the wooden planks, and spilled like
golden-warm honey over a small girl with hair that was the exact
same color. It caressed her face gently, as if she was some glass
statue too fragile to touch roughly, warming the soft planes of her
sculpted cheekbones, highlighting each silken strand of gleaming blond
hair that spread in two lustrous streamers of glossy gold on the
coarse white linen surface of the futon she was sprawled across.

Two blue orbs glittering like sapphire jewels fixed their hard
gaze on the petite figure bathed in sunlight, softening as they
lingered tenderly over her round, pixiesh face with its tiny button
nose and perfect bow mouth. Loose tendrils of wispy golden hair that
had escaped from her ponytails curled against the delicate contours
of her face, and his fingers twitched slightly as he struggled
against the almost irresistible impulse to brush the silken threads
back from her soft, creamy skin.

She was asleep, one small hand still loosely clutching a
pencil within long, slim fingers, the other lying lightly on her flat
midriff. The balmy late afternoon breeze flipped the pages of the
thick textbook next to her carelessly, making a rhythmic flapping
sound that seemed to be in harmonic tune with the dry rustling of the
green oak leaves, the soft chirping of insects, and the distant
murmur of the sea ...

Rosy pink lips were slightly parted as her mouth hung open
childishly. Dusky-hued lids hid her eyes, long, dark lashes
fluttering as she breathed, chest rising and falling softly as she
drowsed in sweet slumber. In sleep she was still as she rarely was
when awake - a pain-stakingly crafted, perfectly carved marble statue
bronzed with golden light, sleeping within an eternal dream, waiting
only for her prince to wake her up with a kiss ...

His mind reflexively recoiled away from such thoughts, auto-
matically moving away to safer areas. He wondered if she was dreaming.
Something girlishly innocent, no doubt. Rabbits and sunlight and the
sticky-sweet rice cakes that she had so happily munched on for
lunch ...

The breeze was warm and soft.
_________________________________________________________________ _____


' Who are you ? ' the question flashed through her mind.
The other part of her supplied the answer immediately to her
lips, as if in an instinctive response.

" My prince. "

The words were in her brain before she could even wonder who
said them. The banks of mist receded, and she saw a glimmering
firefly light in the distance. Startled blue eyes caught the dark,
arresting silhouette of a boy ... no, a young man. Tall and lean, he
was a whole head taller than her, lithe and smoothly muscled like
some large black cat. Dark walls loomed mysteriously over him in the
shadowy background, and she could barely make out a seemingly endless
flight of stairs before her. He stood above her, at the base of some
enormous building ... a .. palace ... which towered intimidatingly
before her, tall, delicate spires of white marble spiraling almost
endlessly into the soaring heights of the black, starless sky.
He moved with fleet panther-like grace, even though his step
was quick, his stride hurried, and his long cape swirled dramatically
behind him as he lunged hastily down the marble steps ...

" Where are you ? Where are you ? "

His voice startled her, sending new shivers down her spine.
But this time, the chills were not of fright. More of ...
anticipation. His voice ... it was so ... so _desperate_, so swollen
with distress and agitation, filled with so much seething emotion. He
called again, this time with even more hopeless despair in his voice
than before. And that strange, foreign part of her, from which the
normal Usagi was somehow separate and yet the same, answered.

" My love. "
The words flew from her mouth before she could take them back.
But even as she drew in a sharp breath, he turned and saw her.
And stopped short.

" Serenity. " he whispered hoarsely. And the sound of that
word ... a name ? ... which was so strange and yet so familiar, made
the hairs at the base of her neck tingle. And yet, it wasn't the word
that made her start. It had been ... it had been the _way_ he had
said it. She had never heard anyone say anything with the same dark
relief and helpless wonder, the same possessive longing, the same
euphoric joy all compressed and combined into the syllables of one
single word. As if that word in itself meant everything in the world
to him. It made her ears go hot, as if she wasn't meant to hear
someone speak like that. Her pounding heart skipped a beat as she
peered into the gloomy darkness and mist.

His face was obscured by shadows, yet somehow, Usagi could
tell that he was staring at her. Staring at her as if she was the most
important, most precious thing in the universe to him, as if he had
been searching hopelessly for her for an eternity until he'd almost
abandoned all hope and given up. She was too astonished to move as he
suddenly erupted from stillness, like a statue suddenly come to life.
In a few long steps he was in front of her, his hands closing on her
thin shoulders possessively with an iron grip that was at once both
gentle and overpoweringly intimate.

Usagi was dizzy with confusion, her head swirling in dazed,
delicious bewilderment. There was something about his touch that
somehow seemed overwhelmingly familiar and safe. She initially shrank
back from his touch in maidenly alarm, faint shudders moving down her
spine, but then a feeling of peace and security, of .... _belonging_
washed over her like a gentle wave of warmth, soothing her frayed
nerves. He wrapped strong arms around her, burying his head into the
golden curtain of her hair, hoarsely repeating the same word over and
over again.
Her suddenly flushed cheek was pressed against the hard,
smooth metal surface of armour, the cool smell of steel and
inexplicable fragrance of roses mingling incongrously in her
nostrils. Even through the armour she could somehow sense the rapid
thumping of his heart-beat, and his breath was ragged with relief as
he held her close within a tight embrace. Her blood burned with the
overwhelming urge to see the face of this stranger, and she
cautiously tilted her head up slowly.

" Anata wa .. dare ? " she whispered.

Like the stroke of midnight on Cinderella's ball, the
question shattered the dream reality into a million glittering shards
of glass. Grey banks of fog rolled in again, quick and silent,
muffling her voice, wrapping everything within a pearly cocoon of
intangible smoke. The warm, solid body that was pressed against hers
suddenly seemed unreal and immaterial, as if it were made of the mist
itself. And then ... he was gone.

Her hands held only empty air.
And she was alone.

Suddenly, there flared a fluorescent white glow in the
distance, and her arms automatically came up to shield her eyes from
the incandescent glare as the scintillatingly brilliant light grew,
blinding her vision with white ... gradually, the blazing beacon
melted away ...

And then she was falling .... tumbling helplessly as she
plummeted weightlessly towards the dark, unknown depths of a
bottomless abyss ...

Sinking like a stone ...
Plunging ... into ...

... Light ...

______________________________________________________________ ________


Azure eyes that mirrored the color of the morning sky flew
open instantly, silver-blue irises flaring painfully as they adjusted
reluctantly to the brightness of the dappled sunlight that filtered
through the emerald green leaves to caress her bare arms and legs. A
fuzzy golden haze seemed to cloud over her vision, the hot sunshine
coating everything in a burnished sheen of gold, and she pulled
herself up on her elbows lazily.

There was someone before her. A little smile played on her
lips as she stared dreamily at the tall, strong build of the striking
figure who poetically knelt on one bent knee before her.

He was crouched at the opening of the tree-house, directly in
the path of the rays which streamed in from behind him. His face was
half-lit and half-shadowed, the sunlight creating a yellow halo around
his onyx-dark hair. Her dazed mind briefly mused that he seemed
awfully familiar, then quickly shrugged the thought off, content to
just gaze at him, afraid that if she spoke, the spell would be broken
again. Her prince leaned closer, shifting slightly, and the golden
light caught the aquiline planes of his face for one brief instant.

He was beautiful.
He was an angel.
He was ...

Chiba Mamoru.

Oh.

The realization was like a bucket of icy-cold water dumped
over her consciousness. Her eyes widened in startlement, and she awoke
fully as reality swiftly sank into her sluggish mind, shaking off
the lingering shreds of dreams that clung to her memory persistently.

Dark indigo blue eyes gazed down at her mockingly, a
mischievous twinkle of amusement glinting in their midnight blue
depths as a corner of his chiseled lips tweaked upwards in the quirky
smile she was so familiar with.

" What's the matter, sleeping beauty ? Were you waiting for
your prince to wake you up with a kiss ? "

His voice was as deep and rich as mahogany, but its tone was
teasing, taunting her, his words scathing her like a drop of hot water
scalding a hissing cat.

_____________________________________________________________ _________


He watched in amusement as a red sheen of anger creep across
her translucent skin. He remembered that pink flush from the old
days. It actually made her look even prettier, if that was possible.
The color brought out the golden highlights in her blond hair, which
was now disheveled messily in two loose ponytails. Her eyes sparkled
with indignant energy, flashing sky-blue fire as steam evaporated
from her ears in a potent mixture of both fury and embarrassment.


For which he was grateful for.

Mamoru grinned impudently in that maddening way which he knew
irritated her to no end. He settled in more comfortably at the edge of
the opening, leaning against the wooden wall, swinging one long,
denim-encased leg to dangle off from the treehouse.

Behind him, he could hear Usagi splutter with incoherent
fury and his lips curled in a content grin as he closed his eyes and
listened to her ranting, letting the sunlight fall on his lids. The
tension slowly seeped out from his shoulders as his body relaxed from
the tautness it had been drawn to.

He had been startled when she had suddenly murmured something
in her sleep. And then she'd awoken so suddenly. He had become even
more boggled when she had just simply stared at him, almost groggy
from sleep, that strange, undecipherable look in her eyes glazed a
glassy, almost transparent blue.
Usually they were chips of hard china when she glared at him
for teasing her, a bright jewel blue shining almost aquamarine in the
light like lapis lazuli whenever she bestowed a bright smile at
someone.

Just now though, when she had looked at him, they had seemed
to soften, the color fading, lightening to the palest possible shade
of purest crystalline blue, like the faintest streak of silvery-blue
that colored the sky just before sunrise. Fascinated, his breath had
caught in his throat, and he had leaned in closer, to inspect the
little flecks of silver swimming in the blue skies of her eyes.

Until she had snapped out of that trance.

And Mamoru couldn't quite decide whether that strange feeling
in his chest had been relief or disappointment ...

It was as if some spell that held them both in thrall had been
broken. All of a sudden she transformed back into Odango Atama again,
the girl next door who was like a ... a little sister to him. She was
cute, could perhaps be even considered pretty, but she wasn't
beautiful. Nah. Logic and common sense persuaded him that it had been
just one of those Inexplicable-Unexplainable-Stop-Thinking-Anymore-
About-This Mysteries-Of-The-Universe.

Now, if only he could convince his racing nerves of that
fact ...

His lips twitched in amusement as he heard the loud " Hhhrrru-
mmppphhh " of exasperation when she realized that he wasn't paying her
any attention, and the deliberate stomping of her feet as she gathered
her stationery haphazardly off the futon and flounced to the other
side of the treehouse, flinging herself heavily with a muffled thump
onto a soft pile of cushions. His ears picked up the sound of pages
being flipped decisively and he concluded that she was attempting to
get back to the studying she had been doing before she'd fallen
asleep. Even with his eyes closed, he could picture that adorable
pout of hers in his mind's eye as she muttered loudly about certain
conceited boys-next-door who had nothing to do except to vex nice,
cute blonde girls who were _doomed_ to do tons of stupid holiday
homework that would probably be of absolutely _no_ practical use in
real life anyway and ....

The slits of his eyes opened just a fraction as he peeked out
furtively from the corner of his eye. Her small frame was buried
within a pile of beanie cushions, tacky plush toys and manga. If
anything, Mamoru's grin widened even more at the sight of Usagi's "
corner " in the tree-house.

The old oak tree reached its limbs above the surrounding walls
in search of sunlight ; the upper branches dancing in the cool
afternoon breezes. The small wooden tree-house, nestled snugly within
the gnarled main branches, smacked of schizophrenia.

One side was immaculately, flawlessly neat, with thick books
stacked alphabetically within a small, polished wood cabinet that had
taken Motoki-kun and him an hour of strenuous huffing and puffing to
get up the tree. A small clock-radio rested happily on the dark
cherry wood of the cabinet besides a tiny, carefully trimmed Bonsai
bush. The only other indications of personality were a beautifully
carved pink marble chess set and a colorful bowl with a scented
candle in it which could be refilled.

Mamoru recalled in fond amusement how Usagi had wrinkled her
dainty nose in disapproval at the books in the cabinet. " Topics in
Bio-chemistry, " she read out aloud, the dubious expression that
contorted her delicate features displaying her emotions even more
expressively than a muttered " yick " of distaste would have. What
she didn't know, however, was that, buried behind the first row of
textbooks, was a collection of haiku poetry that would have made her
blush all sorts of interesting colors if he ever read them to her ...
excluding the fact that she actually _understood_ the haikus of
course ....

Usagi's " corner " couldn't have been more different if it had
been deliberately planned. It looked as if a volcano had erupted
beneath a mountain of plump, colorful cushions, plush toys of all
shapes and sizes as well as gaudy knick-knacks of all kinds.
The two empty milk crates piled next to his wooden cabinet
were _meant_ to contain her manga, but most of the books were now
scattered over the thick white futon mattress. Fragrant potpourri
scented her corner strongly, and the walls were liberally plastered
with gigantic posters of whatever idol singers that were in vogue
then, as well as colorful, glossy photographs of herself and her
friends.
The simple austerity of one side made a stark contrast to the
youthful, girlish exuberance of the other.

Mamoru's thoughts wandered from their idle survey of his
surroundings back to focus on the girl herself, and he mused for a
moment how she always managed to get his thoughts spiralling off on
some kind of tangent.

One small hand propped up her head, the other deftly twirling
a blue pen as she frowned in puzzled concentration over the
complicated questions in her Mathematics textbook. A pert nose
scrunched up in frustration before she suddenly sighed heavily,
blowing her blond bangs up in a puff of mock-aggravation before
leaning back against the wall, randomly grabbing a stuffed toy from
her side before hugging a large Ranma-doll to her chin, apparently
arriving at the final decision to completely give up on ever
deciphering the equations.

Her beautiful blue eyes seemed to be lost in thought as she
contemplated something pensively. There was something so innocent
about her, it made his heart split wide open. Warmth seemed to flow
right out of her, making Mamoru feel comfortable and safe. He couldn't
think of anywhere else in the world that he wanted to be at this very
moment. Mamoru smiled with rare contentment, feeling the tingle of
the sunlight on his skin, and he turned his head to stare out at the
blue, blue sky through the green crown of rustling oak leaves. He
took a deep breath of the warm air, which smelled of wild-grasses and
the salty tang of the sea. To the right, he could see the sun slowly
settling into the white-tipped peaks of the nearby moutains in a
blaze of golden light, reddish rays flooding across the top of the
valley, illuminating the treetops like a crown of moss-green jewels.
On the left he could make out the blurred shimmer of light dancing on
the turquiose-blue waters of the sighing sea.

Today would be the second-last day of the summer holidays.

Within fourty-eight hours the first day of the autumn term in
Moto Azabu High School would begin.

Summer had once stretched out in front of Mamoru a month ago,
hot and gold and resplendent in all its rich glory. Time seemed to
have slipped past him so quickly ... like gravelly golden sand
through his fingers ... Now it would be autumn soon and they would
have to leave Yumi Oba-san's home ... leave Furikawa tomorow and
return back to Tokyo ... It had been a fun vacation .. if only
perhaps just a _tad_ too eventful ...

The sky seemed bluer today, an endless expanse of bright,
unending color that stretched over the horizon. They reminded him ...
of a certain pair of blue eyes ...

A fierce yet gentle emotion suddenly surged in his chest - a
strong, simple wish that things wouldn't change, would always remain
the same as now ... Mamoru had never been one for changes. He
preferred being rooted to the ground, surrounding himself with
familiarity and stability. He wondered if that was a side effect of
being an orphan when he was young.

He had a family now. A warm, caring family who never treated
him as if he was a burden, as if he was just an adopted child ... a
few close friends ... and his princess ...

He wished that time would just freeze still ... forever ...
capturing this one instant of time which was uncomplicated and simple
and familiar ... At this particular moment where he felt at peace with
himself. And the world. He tried to analyze the feelings he was
currently experiencing, but it seemed to be made up of too many
things ...

Sunlight ... summer ending ... blue sky ... tuneful bird song
...

And a girl who seemed to be composed from of all of those
things and more...

The breeze carressed his cheek lovingly.
_____________________________________________________________ _________


Normally, Usagi did not bother analyzing her dreams. That was
mostly due to the fact that the young girl usually dreamt simple,
ordinary dreams - emerald-bright meadows dotted with fresh, fragrant
wildflowers, where adorable white rabbits hopped around, or bright,
colorful candy lands where she gorged herself fat on treacly sweet
confections ... sometimes they were dreams of her current crush who
would whisper sweet nothings to her and tell her that she was the
most beautiful girl in the world. Occasionally, she would have
morbidly funny nightmares about her bad school grades, the world
running out of Chocolate Delight ice-cream or her teachers and
parents tag-teaming up to rebuke her ... but _never_, _never_
anything as strange as that particular dream.

Even now she struggled to remember the phantom-like wisps of
the dream which was fading away in incorporeal vagueness ...

Baka Mamoru.

Her eyes narrowed as she glared daggers at the ignorant
figure before her who was staring out at the sky, innocently unaware
of her venomous gaze. How dare he tease her ?
And to think that she'd put up with him for ten years. Ten
whole years. It sounded like such a long time, almost an eternity for
a girl her age, and yet it had happened in a flash. Ten years with an
infuriating boy who always teased her, bullying her when they were
young, constantly mocking her about her weird hairstyle, calling her
embarrasing names like Odango Atama, making mean comments about her
childish ways, her lack of grace and eye-to-hand-to-foot co-
ordination, her bad grades, her .... ahem .... Usagi had the grace
to blush as she mentally recited the litany of faults in her mind.

And yet ... and yet ...

A tiny little smile unconsciously curled her rosy lips as she
oh-so-discreetly peeked at him from the corner of her eye, blue gaze
travelling slowly down the lean, classically sculpted profile whose
sharp planes were now softened by the golden glow of the sun in the
distance. The old, dismally stretched white t-shirt he wore flapped
loosely in the cool breeze and his eyes were closed, dark bangs
tumbling messily over his forehead, lulled almost into a half-sleep
by the low, liquid crooning of the birds.

He was a contradiction. A complete paradox. And a terrible
teaser who always managed to aggravate her. Tempermental. Broody,
with frequent bouts of mood swings. When he was in one of his darker
moods, he would bite the head off anyone who tried to disturb him. He
plagued her constantly, nettling her about her various faults. And
yet he would never allow any other person badmouth her, as if he was
the only one who had the sole right to do so. He had stood with her
through the years, a strange, complicated but assuring constant
through her life.
In her mind's eye, she pictured him as a rock. A strong,
safe, dependable rock that could be cold and hard at times, but that
was warm and steady and comfortable after being heated by the sun's
rays ...

The image made her giggle.

The silvery peal of laughter made him look up, startled, and
Usagi laughed even harder at quzzical puzzlement written on his face.
Her laughter faded away after a moment, strangled into a warm,
lethargic sort of silence that the normally talkative girl felt
strangely comfortable with. Blue eyes met each other, and similiar
smiles crept onto their faces, each unaware of the golden picture
they both painted.

_________________________________________________________ _____________


Suddenly a harsh, icy swirl of wind swept through the tree-
house, whipping Usagi's golden hair into a frenzy, causing their
abruptly chilled skin to break out in patches of goosebumps. Masses of
slate-grey clouds swallowed the sun for a moment, and dark shadows
leapt into existence from the gloom. Within an instant the tree
branches seemed to hover over the pair like gallow posts.

A tiny shiver danced down Usagi's spine, an ominous feeling
clutching at her stomach, and blue gazes slid away from each other,
jolted harshly from that pleasant moment of light. Hugging the soft
toy more tightly to her chest, she felt the lazy warmth dissipate into
an awkward ice that she was helpless to recapture.

Equally sombre, Mamoru jerked his gaze away, feeling strangely
... well, spooked. It seemed almost as if some veil of darkness was
conspiring to keep him seperate and alone, jealous of that moment of
warm, casual intimacy between him and her, a child of light. His lips
curved down in a frown at the sheer silliness of that ridiculous
thought.

The breeze was cold now.

For a minute, all was silent, and only the low, mournful tune
of the wind could be heard whistling in their ears. Even the sweet
crooning of the birds and the shrill chirping of cicidas seemed to be
muted into silence.

All of a sudden, a young, annoyingly familiar boyish voice
pierced the strained silence ringingly, shattering the uncomfortable
tension with a loud, childish chant :

" MAMORU AND USAGI SITTING IN A TREE !
K-I-S-S-I-N-G ! "

" NNAAA....NAAANNNNIIII ??!!!! "
Usagi screeched in shock, face reddening until it resembled
an overipe tomato, her girlish voice spluttering in embarrassment.
The searing heat burning his own cheeks informed Mamoru that he was
probably suffering from similiar exposure to nuclear-radiation as
well. Usagi leapt frantically up in an eruption of cushions and
stuffed dolls, ready to do her civic Onee-sama duty ie. pound the
crap out of her brother.

Unfortunately, she forgot the fact that her stationery was
scattered over the floor. Inevitably, one small foot stumbled over a
stray pencil and the petite blonde was sent cartwheeling with a small
shriek over ... into a pair of strong arms.

____________________________________________________________ __________


Mamoru grunted in mock-pain from the slight weight in his
arms, looking down at her from beneath the tumble of dark hair
shadowing his eyes. Startled azure eyes smiled into his own
gratefully, and strangely he felt something stir in his chest, the
way the wind stirred the emerald leaves of the oak tree.

She was so small ... barely reaching his chin ; so warm, as
if he had somehow captured a ray of golden sunlight in his arms,
so ... soft ... her hair like honey-gold silk spilling over his
arms ...

He had the curious sensation that catching her could be a
habit that he wouldn't mind getting used to ... Her tiny face was
only mere inches from his ...

" Daijoubu ka ? " he asked, low voice unusually gentle and
husky. Her golden head bobbed up and down enthusiastically in an
affirmative nod, and she looked up at him appreciatively, a small
smile lighting up her face with a glow that even sunlight could not
produce ...

" Arigatou, Mamoru-chan, " she replied sweetly.

Dimly he could feel himself slowly leaning in closer as if
instinctively guided by invisible hands ...

" FIRST COMES KISSING,
THEN COMES MARRIAGE,
AND THEN BAKA USAGI WILL BE WALKING DOWN THE
STREET WITH A BABY CARRIAGE !! "

The jeering, high-pitched voice of a young boy below the tree-
house continued singing the silly little ditty, breaking that
strange, dreamy mood, jerking both Mamoru and Usagi from their slight
trance. Quickly, as if in an immediate reaction, Usagi pulled away
from his embrace. Instantly, Mamoru's body protested the loss of
warmth, and his arms relucantly released their hold on her.
Somehow ... he felt almost ... peeved at Shingo ...


" SSSHHIINNNNGGGGOOOO !!! JUST WAIT TILL I GET YOU !! "

Mamoru hastily stepped back, clamping his hands on his ears
before he became deaf from the sheer volume of her seething
battle-yell. Growling savagely in anger, Usagi scrambled clumsily
down the rungs of the swinging rope ladder, nearly entangling herself
in the process. Steam evaporated off her head like a whistling kettle
as she chased a short, laughing ten-year-old boy with a thick thatch
of sandy brown hair and freckles lightly smattered over his nose and
cheeks, across the yard. The young boy's dark blue-green eyes danced
in playful mirth as he mockingly poked an insulting tongue out at his
fuming Onee-chan in her vain pursuit, always keeping one teasing step
in front of her.

Watching the comical scene play out beneath him like a piece
from some sitcom show, Mamoru burst out laughing. Suddenly he felt as
light and carefree as a seagull cavorting on a ocean breeze. Somehow,
he could still feel the lingering warmth of a small, soft body
pressed against his, the silky smoothness of spun gold brushing his
skin and the sweet scent of lavender and jasmine ...

Perhaps ...
Perhaps some changes _were_ for the better ...

" COME BACK HERE YOU LITTLE RUNT !! I'M GONNA SKIN YO - AAARR
RGGGHHHH !! I'LL GET YOU FOR THAT !!!!! "

Sweatdrop. ( > _