Sailor Moon Fan Fiction ❯ Hearts in time ❯ Blame it on the Rain ( Chapter 9 )

Hearts in Time part nine: Blame it on the rain
By
Lance The Flamesniper

Lance Jayd hated the rain. For as long as he could remember he always hated the rain. For him it always reminded him of some forgotten sorrow that evanesced when he tried to look for it. It was more than that though. It was like the shadow of an elusive memory. It had rained every day since the night of the duel, Lance dully noted. One week of steady rain-sorrow.

The duel, the spar against Sailor Pluto. It had been a thrill to battle a person who was an equal. But the reward was what stuck in his mind. That kiss from those lips. It had sent a jolt straight through him. And yet at the same time he felt like a heel. Here he was, Lance Jayd, who'd bent rules with deadly consequences, to meet the one woman he's dreamt of and what does he do? He goes and gets involved with not one but two women. He pressed his forehead against the nearest post and wondered just why he let this get out of hand....

******
Setsuna despised rain. All the tragedies of her past and future had come with the rain. It was raining on the Moon when her knight died saving her; it would be raining when the Black Moon clan came. She wondered idly what tragedy this rain heralded. One week of rain, since the night of that wonderful evening. Once again her mind went back to that evening.

She'd not been herself, she reflected. Or at least not the self that she usually was. Something about the man she was with had brought a part of her to life that she'd thought was long dead: the part of her that was a woman who needed, no wanted, to be loved and cared for. Not Setsuna the princess, all prim, proper and elegant; or Sailor Pluto, the lonely warrior whose only devotion was to duty, but Setsuna the woman. She found herself having missed that part of her dearly and now that it was back she wanted the person who brought it out of her too.

"I hope it doesn't rain tomorrow too..." A teenaged voice chimed from next Setsuna's ear, pulling her from her reverie. Setsuna smiled a little at the young woman who was now leaning against the wall next to Setsuna's chair. Though she'd gotten taller and healthier since they'd first met, Hotaru Tomoe had not really changed all that much. Height-wise she was just a little taller than Raye. She wore her raven hair a lot longer too, allowing it to rest neatly on her mid-back. While Amara hated to admit it Hotaru's second try at life had granted her a body that at sixteen was just starting to turn male heads. It wouldn't be long, Setsuna surmised, until Amara would be beating suitors off with a stick.

"Why's that princess?" Setsuna asked.

"Aunt Suna, did you forget that you wanted to have the Scouts model swimsuits from your new line on the beach tomorrow?" Hotaru asked.

Setsuna sighed. She had almost forgotten. "I almost did. Thank you for reminding me princess."

"Maybe you can invite whoever it is that has you distracted," Hotaru added lightly.

Setsuna blinked. That comment seemed to come from nowhere. "What makes you think it's a someone that has me distracted?"

"Aunt Suna, when Rini was here pining over Helios she looked just like you have been. So I guessed someone must have caught your eye somewhere. Besides, you've been like this for a week."

Setsuna could only think of one response to that. "Oh." Then with a nod of her head she elaborated. "Have you ever known someone who took your sensible existence made you realize you were missing something important just by their existing?"

Hotaru blinked. Had Setsuna forgotten whom she's talking to. After all, all the Scouts owed a great deal to someone doing just that. "I'm assuming you mean besides Serena?"

"Yes."

"Rini did that for me once. She showed me what friendship was. But somehow I doubt that is what you meant."

Setsuna nodded. "The guy that I went out with last week reminded me of how long I've gone without a boyfriend."

"How long was it?" Hotaru asked, almost dreading the answer.

"Six thousand years," Setsuna replied in a wistful tone.

Hotaru was right. She hadn't wanted to know. "Then this man must be very special."

Setsuna nodded. "He is. There's just something about him. Perhaps I will see if he'd like to come with us." If only to see him once again. Setsuna thought as Hotaru left.

*******

Wraith and Matt glared at Lance as they entered his spare room. Lance sighed then put on a slight smile. "How are you my friends?"

"We're ticked off that's how we are," Matt grumbled.

"I'm sorry to hear that Matt," Lance replied as he took a bite of his lunch.

"What he means," Wraith began. "Is that thanks to you and that woman you were with, we've spent the week in the doghouse."

"Again, I'm sorry to hear that."

"Dammit Lance, you could have told us you were dating Aphro-fricking-dite!" Matt roared.

Now Lance was smiling openly. "Ah, but I did tell you as much. I said that she was beautiful. It was not my fault you didn't listen."

"That may be true," Matt conceded. "But I'd rather blame you for it."

"I take it your dates did not go well?"

"We ended up having to wash dishes to pay for our meals," Wraith brooded. "Which makes me wonder how you, on a monk's salary, managed to pay for such an expensive place."

"First off, I'm not a monk. Secondly, Setsuna and I split the bill between us and her house mates," Lance replied as he savored his rice. "But the real story would be my spar with Sailor Pluto that same night."

"What?!" Both men responded.

"Yep she and I had a spar."

"And?" Wraith asked.

"It was a draw but I still got a reward," Lance answered his expression showing that he was both pleased and dismayed.

"What kind of reward?" Matt asked.

"She kissed me. I feel like a heel about it too. Here I am dating Setsuna, who just happens to be the most wonderful and beautiful woman I've ever seen and I don't even have the decency to ward off Sailor Pluto's advances."

"Man, you are an idiot," Wraith muttered.

"And just what do you mean by that?" Lance asked his eyes narrowing slightly.

"Sailor Pluto kissed you. You aren't engaged to Setsuna so there's not a real problem. I mean it's not like you slept with her or anything," Wraith responded.

"That's how you see it. Not how I do," Lance whispered as his cell phone began to ring. "Hello?"

"Lance?"

Lance's spine stiffened as that voice sent a jolt down it. "Hello Setsuna. How are you today?"

"I'm well...I've been thinking about you."

"I've been thinking about you too and been looking forward to seeing you again."

"How would you like that to be tomorrow?" Setsuna asked a smile evident in her voice.

"I will be counting the minutes my angel."

There went the sweet talk again and likewise there went her heart skipping a beat. "It won't be anything lavish, I'm doing a photo shoot for my newest line of swimsuits and was hoping you'd like to come along for a picnic on the beach?"

"That sounds perfect," Lance said. "Anything involving you and I together is perfect."

"Great! It's a date then. We'll be by to get you around seven in the morning."

"I'll be ready," Lance replied as he hung up the phone then noticed his staring friends. "What?"

"You'll be ready for what?" Wraith asked.

"If you must know, I'm going to the beach with Setsuna for some kind of photo shoot/picnic lunch," Lance replied.

"I see. So this is becoming serious between you and her?" Matt asked.

"I think so. Oh there is no greater joy than the love of a wonderful woman," Lance crowed.

"Spare me the poetic proclamations please!" Wraith grumbled. "Hey Matt, didn't you say that Lita had invited you to a beach party?"

"Yes.... You don't suppose that it's the same party do you?"

"Considering that Mina asked me to something similar, I'd say yes," Wraith intoned.

"Cool, see you guys there then. Now if you'll excuse me, now that the rain has stopped, I have chores to attend to," Lance replied as he began to walk out of the room.

"What are you going to do about the whole Sailor Pluto thing?" Wraith asked.

"I'll tell Setsuna about it, and beg her to forgive me," Lance replied as he escorted his friends out the door. Please if there's a divine being in the universe let her forgive me! He added silently.

*****

"So you're going to the beach with her are you Jayd?" Necros growled with a cruel laugh. "We'll just see how your little excursion ends. For one never knows what lurks in the deep seas..."


TBC
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