Sailor Moon Fan Fiction ❯ Born in Poverty; Saved By Love ❯ The Beginning ( Chapter 1 )

[ P - Pre-Teen ]

Born in Poverty; Saved By Love --
Part 1 --
The Beginning




Chiba Mamoru, Japan's second-richest man,
smiled as he watched his little sister ride the
*very* expensive pony. It was Meiko's tenth birthday
and she had wanted -- as every child does -- her very
own pony. The grounds of Chiba mansion weren't made
to house a horse, so Meiko had settled for a pony
being brought to the estate so she could ride it,
at least only for her birthday.

Mamoru's and Meiko's parents had died in a
horrible car crash years ago, leaving the two to fend
for themselves. Luckily, Mamoru had been sixteen, so it
had only been a few short years before he had been
able to take over the estate and inherit the money.

"Mamoru! Look at me!" Meiko called.

He smiled at her, waving. "Hold on tight, Meiko!"
Mamoru called.

Giggling, Meiko lifted the reins to show him
that she had a tight grip. Smiling and nodding in
acceptance, Mamoru glanced over at where the servants
were cleaning up the remnants of the cake. Shaking
his head in amusement, Mamoru entered the house to
go to his office and finish some paperwork.

--------

"Usagi, come on!"

The girl sighed, turning away from the
store window where a veritable buffet of delicious,
mouth-watering desserts were being displayed. Never
had Usagi been able to sample something such as that.
She was forced to eat the dry meat and stale bread
that the orphanage served.

Yes, she, Tsukino Usagi, was an orphan. She
had been found on the doorstep of the Crescent Orphanage,
swaddled in blankets. There had been no one around,
and nothing to attest to who she was, except for the
embroidered crescent moon and bunny on the blanket she
had been found in. So she had been dubbed Tsukino
Usagi -- rabbit of the moon.

Trudging after her "caretaker," Usagi wondered
if she could somehow ditch the woman who was surely
a demon in disguise. Why else would she be treating
Usagi in such a despicable way?

Making her way across the street, Usagi
ignored the tantilizing scents wafting from a nearby
bakery and headed toward the familiar but despised
orphanage. It was a routine that she had followed
often... Wake up, choke down the sickening breakfast
of stale bread, runny eggs, and half-spoiled milk;
ignore the taunts of the other people at the orphanage;
go with the day's "caretaker" to the grocery store
to get the *good* food that was fed only to the
*special* children, and to the adults who ran the
orphanage; trudge back to orphanage while trying to
ignore the tempting scents wafting from the many
food stores; suffer her way through the rest of
the day and force down the equally disgusting dinner;
then finally find a small measure of peace at night,
when her dreams could take her anywhere she wanted
to go.

Entering the orphanage, Usagi made her way
past the snobby girls who turned up their nose at
her, whispering behind her back. *You're no better
than I am,* Usagi thought. *We're all at this place
because our parents abandoned us!*

But she would never dare to say something
like that out loud. That would get her in trouble.

------

Looking out the window, Mamoru looked up
at the crescent moon shining brightly in the sky.
He longed for someone to love, someone who would
understand him. The woman -- princess -- he had seen
in his dreams. Was she real? Would he find her? Or
was it all just a stupid dream of a bitter, old
man?

Not that Mamoru was old... No, he was only
twenty-five, nearing twenty-six, but still... He
knew that his "good" years were long gone. If only
he could find the woman he was supposed to love...
*I wish I could find her,* he thought.

------

Usagi touched the blanket gently, wondering
who had made it so lovingly. Had they cared for her?
If so, why had they left her on the doorstep of a
cold, uncaring orphanage?

Sighing, she moved to peer out the dirt-stained
window, catching a glimpse of the moon. It reminded
her of the man she had seen in her dreams. Her protector,
the man who would always be there for her. *I wish I could
find him,* she thought.

-------




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