Sailor Moon Fan Fiction ❯ Run Away ❯ Chapter 2

[ P - Pre-Teen ]

TWO

Usagi found out just how much trouble she was in when she got home to find her guide cat sitting on her bed with a scowl on her face, that is, if a cat can scowl.
"I can't believe you, Usagi!" the cat raged. Luckily, no one was home at the moment
Of course, that could be unluckily for me.
"Really! What were you thinking?! I mean turning into a police woman is one thing, but firing off a gun you don't even know how to use?! Are you insane?!"
Usagi creased her eyebrows in annoyance. "What was I supposed to do? Huh, Luna?" Usagi crossed her arms over her chest. "What, let them maul Rei?! I blew the stupid whistle! No one did anything!" Usagi began to pace the length of her room. "So what? Then I was supposed to give up? Go home? What did you expect, Luna?!"
Luna fixed her Sailor Senshi with a stern glare. "You could have called for back up. You could have called the real police. You could have made some sort of distraction. And, God forbid, you could have used your head!" Luna's silky voice turned mocking. "You do have a brain, don't you, Usagi? Here's an idea. Use IT!"
Now Luna began to pace.
"Look, Luna. I'm sorry. But at least no one got hurt." Usagi pointed out.
"This time." Luna looked away from Usagi. "What's going to happen the next time you don't think before you act?" Luna's voice was now much calmer then should have been. She was worried. "What would you have done if someone got hit by a stray bullet?"
Usagi was unable to fathom how that was possible. "I shot at the air. How could someone get hurt?"
"Gravity, Usagi." Luna replied logically. She sat again, but still didn't look at Usagi. "Do you know where those bullets were going to land?"
Usagi shook her head.
"Nor do I or just about anyone else. I'm not even sure Ami-chan would have figured it out in time." Luna sighed and now looked back at Usagi. "Don't you remember a few years ago, some children got hurt because some idiot shot the air near them? Usagi, that idiot could have been you today."
"...I-I'm sorry, Luna. I...I didn't think-"
"No, you didn't, did you?" Luna said quietly, interrupting Usagi. "Usagi-chan, don't worry about the other senshi. You've got too much already on your plate as it is. We'll figure something out."
Usagi looked at the cat hopefully. "Like what, Luna?"
The cat shook her small head. "I don't know. Maybe we'll make you top news again. Like I said; we'll figure something out." Luna jumped off the bed and walked to the open bedroom door. Before leaving he turned back. "Promise me you won't do anything stupid."
Usagi smiled cheerfully at her. "Of course..."
Luna smiled back at her and left. Usagi's face fell and she shut the door before siting on her bed. Of course, I can't promise that, Luna. You should know that by now. But, believe me. This is the last stupid thing I'll ever do. I swear.

Usagi lie awake in her bed, waiting for the lights in the house to go out. When they finally did, the clock read eleven-forty-five. Usagi sat up and listened. There wasn't another sound in the house. She went to her door and locked it. It would buy her more time if she needed it. Luna was in Shingo's room. After a rather interesting battle, Shingo had come to like Luna much more then he seemed to Like his own sister. Of course, that was all to the better. Luna would only get in the way and try to stop the resolved blond. Usagi pulled out her clothing and took off her pajamas. She dressed in her pink turtle-neck, sleeveless shirt, and her mid-thigh length skirt. The teen placed her white, small heeled shoes and lime green rain coat aside on her bed. Luckily for Usagi, the weather had turned foul. Now it would be all the more difficult to follow or recognize her. Usagi went to her vanity and looked at her hesitant reflection. She let her hair down in slow movements, trying to delay the inevitable. After brushing it out one last time, Usagi pulled a pair of sewing scissors from a drawer in the table. Her eyes fixed on the hair in her hand and the scissors made quick precise cuts. Usagi evened the shoulder length blond strands out and places the scissors down quickly. The quiet reflection looked back at its twin regretfully. Usagi pulled the unaccustomed short hair into a tight tail at the nap of her neck. Earlier that night, while everyone was getting ready for bed, Usagi had slipped down and gathers all the paper money in the house and slipped the credit card with that largest balance out of her father's wallet.
"Sorry, Dad," she had whispered. "I know this is going to kill your credit, but I'll buy the cheapest flight I can get."
All the money was now in her backpack purse. Usagi placed the letter she had written only a little before she said goodnight in her purse. She didn't have to read it, she knew exactly what it said.

Mamo-chan,

I'm trying not to let this letter sound too sappy, but I think that it's a hopeless cause, so I'm just going to write. I just want you to know that I'm sorry for all the grief I've caused, and I know that this is not going to help you or the girls or my family. I'm leaving, Mamo-chan. I'm running away from home. I'm going to make sure that the media will forget about all of you and concentrate on where I am. I won't tell you or anyone else, and I won't contact you, ever. I know that if I try to talk to you or anyone else, I'll get talked out of this. I can't let that happen. I'm sure we would come up with something eventually that'll get the media to leave you alone, but what about me? I can't live like this. My friends are ashamed of me. My parents don't know how to treat me. Even you are disappointed in me, for letting my guard down. You remind me of it every time we talk. I'm tired of having to sneak around, or making sure I don't make any contact with you or the others. It's too much for me, Mamoru, I think I might drive myself into the loony ben because of it. So I'm just going away. I'm sure someday, you find someone better then me to live happily ever after with. Too bad it won't be me. Give my love to the others, please, Mamo-chan. Take care of them for me. I love you. Je ne.

Usagi

put her coat on and walked to her window. She opened it quietly, not that the storm out wouldn't cover up any sounds she made, but better to be safe then to botch. Usagi slipped easily out of the window, from practice of sneaking out to battle or to do something or other, and climbed carefully from the sill. She dropped from it with a rather audible thud, but now Usagi was out. She walked to the corner. Before she turned, to looked one last time at the house, then she turned and ran to Mamoru's apartment.

Bam! Bam! Bam!
Usagi dropped the note and ran to the other side of a near-by corner in the hall way.
"Hello?" Mamoru asked the empty air, wearing nothing but a pair of slacks at the late hour. Usagi could see just past the edge of the wall and watched him pick up the note. Silently, he read it. "Usa-ko? Usagi?!"
Mamoru crumpled the letter in his hand angrily and walked back into his room, slamming the door hard behind him. Usagi took her eyes away from his door and leaned her back against the wall with a sigh. A pair a slow tear drops trickled down her cheeks and her slid down the wall and sat on the floor, dissolving into sorrow filled tears. She sat like that for a few minutes. "I'm sorry, Everyone. I'm so sorry, Mamo-chan."
The sound of a door opening and shutting made Usagi's head snap up and around the corner. Mamoru, dressed in a pink, button-down shirt--hastily put on, for it was rumpled and not tucked in--and had his umbrella in hand. Usagi jumped up and ran for the stares. The elevator would take too long, so, with luck, Mamoru would wait for the Elevator and completely miss Usagi. She shot out the door leading to the stairs and flew down them. As Fate would have it, unfortunately, luck was not with Usagi. Usagi could hear Mamoru's footsteps as well as her own. She ran faster, cursing herself and her echoing foot falls.
"Is someone there?" Mamoru suddenly made a choking sound as realization dawned on him. "Usagi! Usagi!
Faster, still, she ran, like a bat out of hell on its first nights hunt in centuries. Usagi stepped off the last step and smashed into the door, opening it painfully and hyperexstending her wrist in the process. She yelped and gathered the abused wrist to her chest as she flew out the sliding glass door as it opened in front of her. Usagi ran as fast as she could to the nearest alley. It was old and abandoned, as was the fire escape she managed to climb up to. The dumpster just happened to be right on the latter, and her climbed as many as she could before she heard Mamoru's foot steps. She stopped abruptly and crouched down to get out of sight.
"Usagi?!" His voice was nearly hysterical.
Usagi held her breath; she'd never really heard him like that. Not since he thought she and Chibi-usa had died. She tried her hardest to block out his voice. If she listened to him, she might lose her nerve to do this.
"Usagi, you can't go! The other...we all need you! God, Usagi! I..."
No! Don't say it! Usagi, don't listen!
"I...need you!"
A wash of tears flooded Usagi's eyes and her bit her lower lip hard to keep from crying out to him. After a moment, Usagi saw that he had left and that there was blood dripping from the corner of her mouth. She held her fingers up to her lip and pulled them away to see crimson stains on them that the rain quickly washed away. Usagi have bitten her lip so hard it bled. Usagi took her rain hood from her head and tilted her face to the sky for the rain the wash the blood away until she felt the bleeding stop. Combing the straggly wet strains of short hair from her eyes, usagi prodded at her wrist, and swore as pain laced through her arm. She'd have to get that taken care of when she got to where ever she was going. For now, Usagi needed to wrap it up so she wouldn't bend it and make it hurt more. After a quick mental check of the contents of her backpack, usagi resigned herself to the ruin of her shirt. She ripped the portion of cloth from around her midriff, leaving enough to keep her from exposing herself. Quickly and as best she could, Usagi wrapped her hand and wrist, tying it off with her unhurt hand and her teeth. She carefully tried bending the wrist to find the wrappings limited her movement enough. With more difficulty then ease, Usagi got herself down from the fire escape, cursing herself again for her stupidity and wondered what possessed her to make her go so high. When she got to the street, Usagi cautiously looked both ways before deciding it save. She pulled her hood back over her head and made her way to the airport.
Usagi came to the airport at the end of a long and very lonesome walk in the rain. The last time that she had felt this much sorrow in the rain was when Chibi-usa had gone missing that one time. Usagi bought a ticket to this place called 'Yuma.' The plane would actually stop in Los Angeles, and Usagi would have to go find the next plane that would take her to Yuma. She had never heard of this Yuma, but hopefully, maybe that meant no one else had either. Usagi cut her fathers credit card in half and put it in an envelop with her address on it. She dropped it into the outgoing in town mail box and went to the waiting area at the gate she was at. When it was time to bored, Usagi was one of only a few that were going in the same general direction as her. Altogether, there only seemed to be about twenty or twenty-five boarding her plane. Just as Usagi handed her ticket to the stewardess, she heard running.
"Usagi! Usagi-chan, stop!"
usagi didn't have to turn to know who it was. The voice was Minako's. Usagi walked down the boarding ramp, but before she turned and stepped onto the plane, she looked back. That had been a bad idea. Usagi lost herself to tears again as she looked upon their own tearful faces. All of them, and Mamoru's face broke her heart again. She mouthed 'Gomen,' and was gone.

Usagi touched down in Yuma with a little less then a clue as to what to do. Her dumb idea was getting dumber by the minute. Usagi's wrist throbbed terribly, she looked like she'd just got into a cat fight, and she was more then just a little depressed about the unruly short hair. Of course, none of it compared to the way she felt about what she had done to her friends. She could see ,in her mind's eye, there teary faces. Most of all she could see Chibi-usa and Mamoru. They were the ones most hurt by this. She was their only family, and now she'd left them. She could only imagine how they must have felt.
I'm sure they hate me by now. God! How could I be so stupid?! Usagi looked around the shops in the airport. She found a little clothing shop and walked in. She walked out in a pair of shorts, a tank top, and tennis shoes. Things were more expensive in America then they were in Japan, and Usagi left the shop counting what was left of her meager wealth. Quickly stashing it in the breast pocket of the tank top, Usagi silently praise herself for having the smarts to remember and exchange her yen for American currency. The woman in the shop had seen what usagi was going to buy and what she had been wearing, and gasped. She had taken Usagi to the side and asked her where the blond planned on going. When Usagi had told her that she didn't really know, she was just going to walk around a bit--using lots of hand motions and the very little English that usagi actually knew--the woman gaped at her. She had stuttered something about a black flag out at the base and how only stupid Yumans did something like that. Usagi hadn't a clue as to what any of that meant. She handed Usagi the pair of shorts and shirt she now wore. After that, she noticed usagi favoring her maltreated wrist, Usagi a piece of paper that she had written on and sent her out to talk to a man in a blue uniform at the mettle detector. So, Usagi did as she was told and made her way to a rather seasoned looking middle aged man. He was talking easily with a woman, equally accustomed to her work. Usagi stood behind him, unsure what to do, when the woman pointed her chin at Usagi. The man turned.
"Yes, Ma'am? Can I help you?"
Usagi pondered that over for a moment, and handed him the note. He took it gingerly, and read it. Then the man chuckled deep in his throat.
"Charlie? Get the first aid kit, would you?"
The woman nodded and went off in some direction.
"And grab a water bottle from the fridge!" he called after her. Charlie waved her hand back at him. He used his hands as he told her, "Stay right here."
Usagi figured that he wanted to stand where she was, so she did so. Her grasp of English was so terrible, she could hardly make anything out. That brought another thought to Usagi's mind.
I'm going to have to study hard. I think I need to get a bit smarter then I am. I mean, I don't really know what's going to happen now. I may never make it back to Tokyo. So I had better get some smarts like Ami-chan, so I can at least have a good paying job!
Within moments, Charlie was back.
"Here, Joe. What's it for?" she asked.
Joe chuckled again. "The girl wrenched her wrist, or so says Sally, over there. Also said the girl plans to walk around town."
Charlie looked at Usagi and then back at Joe. "On a black flag?! Aren't you going to explain it to her?"
Joe shrugged. "Sally said she don't speak English too well. How can I explain that a black flag means death...er...no working hard outside? How can you tell a girl from God knows where, who probably never been to a place that gets a hundred and twenty degree weather. Besides the weathers cooled a bit, and she looks like a smart girl. She'll go inside a store when she gets hot. That's why I sent you for the water bottle too."
Usagi stared dumbly at the two as they spoke. She didn't catch a single thing they said. What was all that supposed to mean? What on Earth was a 'black flag?' Before usagi could get the man to explain that to her, he opened a white box with a red cross on it. He pulled out an ace bandage and beckoned her to him. He unwrapped Usagi's swollen wrist from the tattered pink wrappings and rewarded it with the ace bandage.
he handed her the bottle of water that Charlie had also brought and sent her on her way, calling out a 'go inside if you get hot,' as she walked away. She wanted to ask him what that meant when she stepped outside. Now it made a little more sense. It was hot! As soon as she left the air conditioning, sweat began to bead on her forehead and upper lip. She shirt got warm and began to stick to her. Usagi was glad now that the shop woman insisted that Usagi get shorts and a tank top. Even with that little on, she felt like she was wearing her winter coat in the middle of summer back home. She quickly opened the water bottle and took a swig. She kept her pace easy and walked in the direction that seemed to have the most shops. She'd have to find a place where she could find some sort of help. What did one do here when they were alone? Wasn't she under age by American standards? What did a minor without guardians do here in America? She walked for a while until she found a book store that had a cafe built into it. It looked to be a half store, half coffee shop. Usagi could read what the store was called, but it looked familiar to her, so she went in. It was nice to be back in cool air. Usagi hadn't realized till that moment that she literally had sweat pouring down her face. The cold air sent her head pounding, and Usagi sat slowly in one of the many chairs around the store, and waited for the pain to ebb.
"Are you all right?"
Usagi's head snapped up, and she grimaced. The sudden movement sent her head throbbing harder.
The woman who spoke winced in sympathy. "You walked here didn't you? I know a girl who does that all the all the time. She comes here from Kofa for the Anime book meeting we have and she always comes in with a headache. It's the heat. It's does that to ya. So, you need some water?"
Usagi stared at her. "Gomen?"
The woman smiled. "You're from Japan, huh? What're you doin' in Yuma? Wait, do you speak English?"
Usagi shook her head slowly, so's not to worsen her headache, and narrowed her eyes in confusion. "Nani?"
The dark haired woman creased her brow, "Humm. Take that as 'no.' Do you," she pointed at Usagi, "have a place to go?"
Usagi turned that over in her protesting brain. Yes! usagi understood what she said. She shook her head slowly again.
"Humm. Well, then. Come with me." The woman helped Usagi up and took her to the back of the store to a pay phone. She pick up a thick phone book and leafed through it, murmuring to herself. "...Office...Ophthalmologist...here it is! Orphanage. St. Jude's Orphanage. It's the only one listed..." The woman put two silver coins in the slot on the pay phone and dialed.
"Hello, may I please speak to the owner?"
She paused.
"Hello. My name is Eliya Summerton. I work at Barns and Noble. I have a girl here. She's from Japan, I believe. I think she's an orphan. She says she is."
Pause.
"She's doesn't seem to understand English very well."
Pause.
"Yes, I'm sure."
"Her name? Let me ask." Eliya put her hand over the receiver and looked at Usagi. "What is your name?"
That was something Usagi memorized.
My name? I can't tell her my real name. Ummm...think fast, I can't take too long. Hey! They have a show about me don't they? What do they call her, Seleana? Serena? Rini? Hey, I know! "...Rina."
"She says her name is Rina."
Pause.
"I don't know if that's odd for a Japanese name. I'm not Japanese!" Eliya shot, annoyed. "Look, are you going to come check her out or what?"
Pause.
"All right. We'll be waiting in the Cafe."
Pause.
"Thank you." Eliya hung up. "Come on. They'll be here in a while to pick you up. Come one, I'll buy you a drink."
They waited an hour for whoever it was that was coming for Usagi.
"Eliya? Rina?"
Eliya nodded. "I'm Eliya." She jerked her head at Usagi. "She's Rina."
Usagi stood up. The woman was tall, with nice brown hair and jade green eyes. She looked vaguely familiar, but usagi couldn't place her.
"Hello, Rina. I'm Ms. Janis. It's nice to meet you."
Usagi stared at her, for the woman spoke perfect Japanese. Janis chuckled at her. "I'm sorry. My sister lived in Japan before she was killed. Beryl insisted that I learn Japanese as well."
Usagi nearly jumped. That's where she knew that face. She looked vaguely like Beryl! But that was the most improbable thing Usagi had ever thought of. This woman's Beryl couldn't be Beryl, late Queen of the Dark Kingdom. So what if her sister was killed and so was Queen Beryl. So what is they had the same name. Spoke Japanese...none of that meant that didn't mean that they were probably the same woman. Of course, just because it wasn't probable, didn't also mean it was impossible.
Usagi felt her self gulp. Better keep an eye on this one. Just in case.
"Well, Rina, let's go see about getting you into St. Jude. We'll have to go to Social Services first, but I think we'll manage."
Janis led Usagi off and she felt rather articulate.
And thus begins a cruel and terribly vengeful joke by Fate called Annie.