Sailor Moon Fan Fiction ❯ Runaway Heartstrings ❯ Hunted ( Chapter 5 )
[ T - Teen: Not suitable for readers under 13 ]
By: Kihin Ranno 
Anime/Manga: Sailor Moon Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Suspense / Romance / Psychological / Drama | Type: Alternate Universe | Uploaded On: 09.29.2002 | Pages: 7 | Words: 4.4K | Visits: 233 | Status: Work In Progress
Anime/Manga: Sailor Moon Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Suspense / Romance / Psychological / Drama | Type: Alternate Universe | Uploaded On: 09.29.2002 | Pages: 7 | Words: 4.4K | Visits: 233 | Status: Work In Progress
Runaway Heartstrings
Chapter Five: Hunted
by Kihin Ranno
6/15
goddess_branwen@hotmail.com
http://www.geocities.com /kihin_ranno/starlithorizon.html
R
~~Started: May 13, 2002~~
~~Completed: May 20, 2002~~
~~Revision Begun: September 18, 2002~~
~~Revision Completed: September, 21, 2002 ~~
This story is an alternate reality taking the characters from Sailor
Moon and inserting them into a different situation while remaining in
their own universe. In essence, I am screwing around with the story of
Sailor Moon because I can. This in no way reflects Naoko Takeuchi's
version of Sailor Moon or the anime version. However, I hold no claim
onto Sailor Moon as that is owned by Naoko, Bandai, Kodansha, Toei
Animation, Mixx, DiC, Cloverway, and I'm sure about 100,000 others. I
am merely doing this for my own sick amusement and once again, because
I can.
~************************************************************ *********~
Usagi eyed the hand precariously. She didn't even know this person and
she had such a horrid phobia of anyone touching her since she had never
experienced a warm touch... Save for her earliest years. All touches
had caused pain...
But then she remembered her savior's words... Maybe it was over.
Usagi took a deep breath and grasped it weakly, "I'm Tsukino Usagi,"
It was then that both of the girls got an overwhelming flash of deja
vu. They quickly released each other, their hands flying to their head
in confusion. They stared at each other for a very long time, their
eyes wide. Their minds were working at a furious pace trying to
remember where they had met or why they felt that way. Both of them
felt like they knew each other, but neither of them were sure as to
why.
Rei finally shook her head, and wondered if it had just been because of
her dream, She didn't think so but decided they were wasting enough
time just standing here and said, "Come on, you look exhausted."
Usagi followed as the priestess beckoned, feeling she wasn't worthy
enough to protest. This girl, Hino Rei, commanded respect and there
was no way that Usagi would even be able to work up the nerve to go
against her. She wasn't even sure if she'd ever speak to her with any
amount of ease...
But there was something she had to know. "Listen umm... I actually
never caught his name..."
Rei was a little surprised. Names were usually the first thing that
you knew about a person when you first met them. Then again she had
done the same thing...
Usagi probably hadn't felt much like talking. "He's Chiba Mamoru."
Usagi blinked at the name and thought, 'Protector of Earth... That does
suit him well,' Usagi shut her eyes and inhaled the fragrant air of the
shrine, reveling in the smells of cherry blossoms and smoking embers...
And wondered why she seemed to remember it well.
************************************************************ ***********
Mamoru practically ran down the stairs, eager to get away from Rei. He
had seen the look in her eyes when she saw Usagi in his arms. It had
not meant anything, but she had seen more into it. She had a habit of
doing that. Everything had more meaning than face value with her.
There was a hidden motive in how you _breathed_ with her. And while
sometimes it proved useful, it often made things more difficult than
they already had.
Mamoru had only been helping her up the stairs. Was that a crime?
The young man sighed, stopping his descent. He knew full well why Rei
had seen more than was there. She still had feelings for him... Or
maybe it wasn't so much that as how suddenly it had come. She had had
literally no warning or indication of when he was going to break it
off. Things had been going okay... It wasn't like they fought like the
senshi did. Well they didn't fight much anyway...
But he just hadn't felt right about what he was doing.
Mamoru knew that Rei had taken the break up much harder then she let
on. She took everything that way. But it wasn't as though there were
anything he could do about it. It pained him to even think of her
because of his guilt, and speaking to her always made him pray that if
he was damned for all eternity, Rei would NOT be his hell...
So of course she insisted on speaking to him as often as possible.
Mamoru ran a hand through his hair and looked up at the sky. The sun
was just beginning to rise... He heard one of Rei's crows cry out and
a soft wind began to blow. he picked up on the usual scents, but
Mamoru had a very keen sense of smell, so he picked up on the foreign
aroma almost immediately.
He furrowed his brow in puzzlement. It was like a rose but not a
rose... And very much like those he threw in battle.
Mamoru shook his head and continued moving down. "I still would like
to know where the hell those things come from..."
Had he had a keen sense of hearing, he would have heard an ancient
voice whisper something on the wind.
************************************************************ ***********
Usagi and Rei had not yet gone inside.
Usagi shivered slightly as the cold wind blew against her, cutting
through her thin ratty clothes and chilling her to the bone. She had
always hated the cold... But now she felt a chill on the inside as she
watched him leave...
It was so strange... Usagi could not look him straight in the eye
without being frightened. But she felt as though he would protect
her. And hurt her. Her heart cried heal. Her brain cried hurt.
It was an ongoing battle and she had no idea what to do.
It was like running into a dark alley for safety. It would save
you from who was chasing you, but dangers lurked their too...
And those dangers could hurt you even more.
Usagi snapped out of it when Rei laid a hand on her shoulder. For some
reason she did not jump, and felt her body warm instantly. It was as
though some sort of heat was radiating from the girl's palm. It was
comforting... Almost magical.
Rei smiled as Usagi relaxed at her touch, praising Ares for granting
her the powers of fire and heat... They did come in handy. She took
her hand away and spoke the girl's name aloud in as gentle a way as
possible, fearful if she spoke too harshly she'd run like a scared
rabbit.
Come to think of it she looked kind of like a rabbit too.
"What is Rei?" Usagi asked, her voice bordering on cheerful (albeit
forced). The blonde turned to look at her, blue eyes catching the
moonlight that still shone brightly at that hour... But Rei stopped
walking when she remembered something.
There was no moon.
Rei gasped slightly as a vision came to her without even trying. A
girl dressed in a long white gown standing on a shimmering lake. She
was looking up at the planet earth in the distance. Her face was calm,
but her eyes nearly glowed with her curiosity.
"Rabbits don't always run,"
Then Rei blinked and the vision was gone. Well that had made
absolutely no sense... Why on earth would some chick in a white dress
be babbling on about rabbits?
Rei noticed Usagi was giving her a very strange look and she knew that
she must not behave in such a way in the future. She just hoped that
no more spontaneous visions would force themselves on her while she was
there.
Rei smiled as if to reassure the girl that all was well and said,
"You look as though you're freezing to death out here. Come along
inside. We've dawdled enough. You need rest."
Usagi nodded weakly, shivering again. She hated the cold... All of the
cold...
Rei led the girl inside, ignoring her grandfather's questioning look
as they passed. The priestess felt the blonde beside her tense when
she saw the priest. Rei moved a little faster. She understood that
it would be a long time before the girl trusted anyone again... She was
lucky the runaway wasn't flinching at her touch now...
Especially since Rei didn't doubt her run was not complete.
After Rei showed her to her room, she ran into her grandfather. She
sighed and gave him a quick run down about what was happening. The
old man didn't seem fazed in the slightest and merely said, "As soon
as she's up to it, she's going to have to work you know... By the way,
what was that dream about?"
Rei blinked in surprise and said, "Dream?"
"The one that you had last night. You were hysterical. Don't you
remember?"
"Oh that! I don't remember a lot of it actually... I think it had
something to do with her coming to us." the miko furrowed her brow and
said, "I wonder why I can't recall a single detail..."
******************************************************* ***************
Rei could not have been more correct about Usagi's run just beginning.
Just outside of Tokyo, a man only known by Tsukino Yukio drove in a
battered truck. Oddly enough, he was dressed in a wrinkled and torn
up suit that had once been quite nice. Only now it had small spots of
blood, beer, and ash on the once pure white dress shirt. He reeked of
beer and smoke along with a lot of cologne in a futile attempt to cover
up the offensive smell. He drove like a madman, causing accidents and
near altercations alike. Each time that happened, he would stick his
head out the window to scream at the few other cars on the road or
to the whores that still walked the streets at this hour.
Yukio was not just drunk... He was livid. Usagi could not leave him.
He may not have cared if she lived or died, but he could not let her
escape alive... No one left him like that.
Amazingly enough, he was not reprimanded for his road rage and drunk
driving. Probably because if any police were on the road, they were
pulled off to the side, sound asleep. It was hard to work a beat at
that hour, and they would not be blamed as long as no one died...
And no one did die amazingly enough... But in Yukio's mind, that would
not last.
Although no one would die that night, injuries would not be escaped.
As Yukio stuck his head out to yell at some innocent people who were
walking along the side of the road, their car having stalled or broken
down a few kilometers back, he did not notice his car slowly moving
into the right lane.* He also did not notice the car coming towards
him or the speed that both cars were going.
Yukio looked back to the road just in time to be blinded by the
headlights of the oncoming car...
*********************************************************** ************
In the dull morning light, a girl with hair down to mid thigh slowly
crept towards the shrine. She kept in the shadows, always looking over
her shoulder, always making sure no one followed. She walked with a
slight limp and kept hissing in minor pain each time she took a step
with her left leg. Her blue eyes were fairly luminescent in the sun's
rays and her hair shimmered as it waved from side to side, catching the
light without her knowing...
When she reached the numerous stairs of the shrine she sought, she
nearly ran up them with a cat like grace despite her limp. She reached
the top quickly and walked to the shrine, tapping lightly on one of the
doors.
The priestess opened it almost immediately and narrowed her eyes when
she saw who it was, "Minako... Why are you here? You hate the early
morning hours."
Minako was not offended in the least and breezed past the raven haired
girl, saying, "I didn't go to sleep last night. Can't you tell?" the
blonde gestured to the dark circles under her blood shot eyes.
Rei nodded firmly and said, "Another nightmare I assume?"
Minako shook her head and said, "Not the kind you mean... This was
different. I don't remember it all that well, but it had something
to do with some blonde chick with an incredibly kooky hairstyle and
it was in the woods I think... What is it? Why are you giving me that
look?
Rei blinked in surprise and said, "That's uncanny..."
Minako whirled around and said, "What do you mean? Don't tell me you
had the same dream?"
Rei shook her head and said that no that was not the case, "I had a
nightmare and I vision... I can't remember the first, but the vision...
Well it makes absolutely no sense."
"What happened?"
"Not much... Some girl told me that rabbits don't always run,"
"What the heck does that mean?"
"Minako, if I knew, I wouldn't be standing here speaking to you with a
confused expression on my face now would I?"
Minako sighed, knowing she had once again overlooked the obvious. But
it did piss Rei off. She did enjoy seeing the smoke come out of her
ears. But she was more upset about the fact that not even Rei could
make sense of her own visions and said, "Joyful and rapturous shi--"
"Minako!" Rei cried a bit too loudly, "Please, we are on holy ground!"
Minako rolled her eyes but ignored the comment. She looked over to a
door on her right. It was sealed off. Only Rei could open it. The
blonde looked back over going over that information in her mind and
said, "I don't suppose there has been a change?"
Rei shook her head and said, "They still slumber... They won't awaken
until we find her. You know that,"
Minako nodded and said, "I know... But... He's my guardian. I can't
keep this up without him,"
Rei scoffed and said, "Its better you're without him. Maybe you can
learn to stand on your own,"
Minako narrowed her eyes dangerously and cried, "How dare you say that!
I am not dependent on him, but I am not having the best of times! And
the rest of you are not exactly people I would like to tell my troubles
to! I am sick of not having him there! Keeping it inside is affecting
my skills... How else do you explain this damned injury?"
Rei stuck her nose up in the air and said, "I figure you were always
incompetent. You've just been horribly lucky up to now."
Minako growled angrily and turned on her heel screaming, "I don't have
to listen to this!" she whirled around just before she exited and said,
"You know Rei, I suggest that you remember that there is a reason why
you were placed as second in command under me... I didn't do it just
to screw you over,"
"Sure you didn't." Rei hissed. Then the dark haired girl turned and
stalked off to get going on her chores at the shrine.
Minako stifled a scream and briskly power walked out of the shrine,
still fuming about the words she had just had with Rei. She was about
to walk down the stairs when she remembered her leg. That speedy exit
hadn't exactly helped it. She groaned and cursed her stupidity aloud.
After checking to make sure Rei hadn't heard, she moved over by a bench
and sat down. Then she resumed the now monotonous practice of
massaging the leg in hopes to ease the pain away.
Minako sighed as she slowly worked the kinks out of it and said, "Let
us find her soon... We'll never be able to unify without her..."
********************************************************** *************
It hadn't taken Usagi to fall asleep after Rei had shown her to her
room, but it seemed very difficult to stay asleep. Every time she
closed her eyes she was plagued with memories of beatings and of times
when she'd only had her own tears to clean her wounds.
Each time she would wake up, feeling as though there were no air. She
kept thinking that she would fall asleep and wake up back in that
horrible house, much worse than ones they could have afforded had her
stepfather not been a lush and an alcoholic. Instead, they were
forced to live in a rural cottage far away from most of society. It
kept them sheltered with what little bit of his policeman's salary he
managed to hold on to and kept them away from the general public. No
one but her stepfather's friends who would come over every few days
knew of the beatings. But they were the same as he was... Abusers,
rapists, murderers... Hiding behind their jobs, status, or shielding
themselves in nature's depths like her stepfather. Her old home, if
she could force herself to think of it in that respect, had electricity
and running water, but her stepfather rarely had money to pay any
bills...
She knew full well where that money went.
Usagi kept lying down and trying to sleep calmly, but it was a futile
effort. Perhaps these people could protect her here, in the real
world. But her mind was unable to be guarded by anyone. She could not
be shielded from her own thoughts.
And so Usagi gave up the hopeless search for slumber and sat up in
bed. She looked out the window and saw that the sun was already
up.
Her first real day free... It was overcast and the sun wasn't all that
bright. As a matter of fact, she had a feeling it would rain... And
yet it was the most beautiful thing she had ever seen.
Suddenly, Usagi's ears perked up as she heard the sounds of muffled
yelling. Her heart leapt into her throat. She froze upon the spot
in fear, thinking it was her stepfather. Thinking he had found her or
had always known where she was...
Then Usagi realized the voices were female and she relaxed. She
should have just crawled back in bed and tried to sleep once more.
Or perhaps continued staring at the dull beauty of that cloudy
morning she was holding so dear. However, her curiosity got the
better of her. After all the times her precocious attitude had gotten
her into trouble with Yukio, she should have known better. But this of
course was not the case.
Usagi tip toed out into the hallways were she could hear them better.
However, she only got there in time to hear Rei have the last word,
something she sensed happened often. Whoever she had been arguing with
had not appreciated them. Usagi could hear both of them going their
separate ways.
Once again, Usagi could not help herself and immediately went in the
direction Rei had gone... She trusted her and wanted to see what was
going on. However, when she found her, she was far too busy involved
in deep meditation. Usagi decided that disturbing her might get her
into trouble...
That is when Usagi suddenly turned around to find the girl Rei had been
arguing with... Why? She'd probably never know.
It did not take Usagi a long time seeing as the girl had not left yet.
Usagi stared at the blonde for a moment, as though she should remember
something about her... She wanted to thank her for something... She
wanted to cry and run to her and beg forgiveness... She wanted to help
her...
But she didn't know why.
Usagi sighed as she realized that all of these people around her were
going to confuse her for quite some time. And she was going to have
to hunt for the truth...
If there was a truth to hunt.
************************************************************ *********
As Usagi was hunting for the truth, another hunt was in full swing...
Mamoru's hunt for Ami and her mother at the hospital.
It was Sunday and school was out, so Ami would more than likely be
helping her mother in the Emergency room at the hospital. However,
the ER was swamped that day due to a series of car accidents from
early that morning. They had all been caused by one drunk driver, but
the most serious seemed to be the one that had stopped the madness.
Both drivers were drunk, and they would make it...
Normally it would seem unfair. But amazingly, no one had died.
Mamoru growled as he walked in and out of trauma rooms. The dark black
hair of Dr. Mizuno and the blue one that belonged to her daughter was
constantly evading him. It was beginning to look as though the search
was futile. He had looked everywhere twice and still no sign of either
of them.
Mamoru ran a hand through his messy black hair and looked around again.
Suddenly, he spotted Ami's distinctive hair and breathed a sigh of
relief. He quickly pushed his way through the crowd and spun her
around, saying, "Ami, thank God I found you!"
Ami blinked in surprise and blushed slightly saying. He only realized
in passing how tired she looked, "Mamoru... What is it?"
Mamoru quickly relayed her as much of the story as he felt was
necessary. By the end of it, Ami was very close to tears... The girl
had always had a problem with being overly empathetic. She did not
even wait for Mamoru to request she look for her mother. She merely
grabbed his wrist and physically dragged him to where she was. Under
normal circumstances, Ami would have been unable to drag Mamoru
anywhere, but he was weak from lack of sleep and the events of last
night so he could not hold his spot for too long.
Ami found her mother immediately. Dr. Mizuno had just begun to check
on the man in the bed by seeing if he was still unconscious. She was
interrupted by her daughter's near frantic cry, "Mother!"
The doctor spun around, surprised at her daughter and said, "Ami?
What-- Oh Mamoru. You look as though you've been to the dead and
back again. Are you sick? Is that what this is about?"
Mamoru shook his head, thankful that he knew Dr. Mizuno through Ami
and from applying for his residency at that hospital, acceptance
still pending. He tried to look as healthy as possible so that Dr.
Mizuno would not try and check on him which would waste time. He
began by explaining why he had not slept. Then he told the tale of
the girl, very much like a doctor would, "She looked like she'd been
beating multiple times. I wouldn't be surprised if she has broken
bones or fractures that have not been properly healed... She was
covered in cigarette burns and bruises. Her clothes looked worn out
and about two sizes too small. She's shorter than five feet, but I
think she only weighs about seventy pounds. That's all I can
remember. I'm sorry,"
Dr. Mizuno narrowed her eyes and said, "I assume her father is the one
who beat her?"
"Yes," Mamoru said, guessing.
Dr. Mizuno pursed her lips and said, "She sounds pretty bad... What's
her name?"
Mamoru flushed slightly and said, "Well uh... To tell you the truth, I
never asked her..."
Dr. Mizuno shook her head and said, "That is the first thing you should
ask. But then I suppose that she wouldn't have entrusted you with her
name considering all you have is her physical appearance. Well maybe
she'll talk to me. Where is this girl?"
Mamoru smiled, glad that the doctor was going to help and said, "I
knew I couldn't get her to a hospital without a parent or guardian so
I took her to Rei's... I mean, Hikawa Jinja."
The woman nodded and said, "I know of it, but I'm sure my daughter
knows the way... And no you will not take us Mamoru. You will however
get yourself to your apartment and into bed. You need sleep."
"But--"
"I will call you if there's anything incredibly wrong with this girl.
And I'm sure you'll be down there later anyway. From what Ami tells
me, you hang around the Shrine a lot.
"Anyway go home and get some rest. You have classes tomorrow."
Mamoru begrudgingly agreed and left the room with the Mizunos trailing
behind him. The man on the bed was completely forgotten, the doctor
just assuming he was unconscious, but alive...
She should have checked.
~******************************************************** *************~
* Since the Japanese are on the metric system, the use kilometers and
drive on the left side of the road.
yes it seems like missing the obvious, but I happen to have a theory.
People tend to miss the obvious answer because they focus on one thing
and don't bother to look at the other factors. For instance, Rei was
so busy thinking about why the girl in her vision had been talking
about rabbits, she didn't think it could be the princess of the moon.
And she also didn't connect it with her nightmare from earlier.
The fact that she forgot it later helped too. ^^; And forgetting a
dream right after you have it isn't all that uncommon... You start
thinking about something else and pretty soon you forget you even
had it. Rei just held onto it longer because of her abilities.
This is dedicated to victims of abuse along with their friends, and
families. And if you are suffering from abuse of any kind, it isn't
hopeless. There are people and organizations that can and will help.
Also, if you know or suspect that someone is being abused, don't keep
it to yourself. Don't be a coward and look away. Do the right thing
and confront the problem. Get help, for yourself or for them...
please... don't do it because I'm telling you to. Do it for yourself
and the ones that didn't make it.
If you need help, call:
The National Domestic Violence Hotline
1-800-799-SAFE
The Rape, Abuse, Incest National Network (RAINN)
1-800-656-HOPE
Childhelp USA National Child Abuse Hotline
1-800-4-A-CHILD
Or call your local authorities or any state/local agencies that can
help you or someone you know get out of your situation.
Coming Soon: Chapter Six: Healing
Chapter Five: Hunted
by Kihin Ranno
6/15
goddess_branwen@hotmail.com
http://www.geocities.com /kihin_ranno/starlithorizon.html
R
~~Started: May 13, 2002~~
~~Completed: May 20, 2002~~
~~Revision Begun: September 18, 2002~~
~~Revision Completed: September, 21, 2002 ~~
This story is an alternate reality taking the characters from Sailor
Moon and inserting them into a different situation while remaining in
their own universe. In essence, I am screwing around with the story of
Sailor Moon because I can. This in no way reflects Naoko Takeuchi's
version of Sailor Moon or the anime version. However, I hold no claim
onto Sailor Moon as that is owned by Naoko, Bandai, Kodansha, Toei
Animation, Mixx, DiC, Cloverway, and I'm sure about 100,000 others. I
am merely doing this for my own sick amusement and once again, because
I can.
~************************************************************ *********~
Usagi eyed the hand precariously. She didn't even know this person and
she had such a horrid phobia of anyone touching her since she had never
experienced a warm touch... Save for her earliest years. All touches
had caused pain...
But then she remembered her savior's words... Maybe it was over.
Usagi took a deep breath and grasped it weakly, "I'm Tsukino Usagi,"
It was then that both of the girls got an overwhelming flash of deja
vu. They quickly released each other, their hands flying to their head
in confusion. They stared at each other for a very long time, their
eyes wide. Their minds were working at a furious pace trying to
remember where they had met or why they felt that way. Both of them
felt like they knew each other, but neither of them were sure as to
why.
Rei finally shook her head, and wondered if it had just been because of
her dream, She didn't think so but decided they were wasting enough
time just standing here and said, "Come on, you look exhausted."
Usagi followed as the priestess beckoned, feeling she wasn't worthy
enough to protest. This girl, Hino Rei, commanded respect and there
was no way that Usagi would even be able to work up the nerve to go
against her. She wasn't even sure if she'd ever speak to her with any
amount of ease...
But there was something she had to know. "Listen umm... I actually
never caught his name..."
Rei was a little surprised. Names were usually the first thing that
you knew about a person when you first met them. Then again she had
done the same thing...
Usagi probably hadn't felt much like talking. "He's Chiba Mamoru."
Usagi blinked at the name and thought, 'Protector of Earth... That does
suit him well,' Usagi shut her eyes and inhaled the fragrant air of the
shrine, reveling in the smells of cherry blossoms and smoking embers...
And wondered why she seemed to remember it well.
************************************************************ ***********
Mamoru practically ran down the stairs, eager to get away from Rei. He
had seen the look in her eyes when she saw Usagi in his arms. It had
not meant anything, but she had seen more into it. She had a habit of
doing that. Everything had more meaning than face value with her.
There was a hidden motive in how you _breathed_ with her. And while
sometimes it proved useful, it often made things more difficult than
they already had.
Mamoru had only been helping her up the stairs. Was that a crime?
The young man sighed, stopping his descent. He knew full well why Rei
had seen more than was there. She still had feelings for him... Or
maybe it wasn't so much that as how suddenly it had come. She had had
literally no warning or indication of when he was going to break it
off. Things had been going okay... It wasn't like they fought like the
senshi did. Well they didn't fight much anyway...
But he just hadn't felt right about what he was doing.
Mamoru knew that Rei had taken the break up much harder then she let
on. She took everything that way. But it wasn't as though there were
anything he could do about it. It pained him to even think of her
because of his guilt, and speaking to her always made him pray that if
he was damned for all eternity, Rei would NOT be his hell...
So of course she insisted on speaking to him as often as possible.
Mamoru ran a hand through his hair and looked up at the sky. The sun
was just beginning to rise... He heard one of Rei's crows cry out and
a soft wind began to blow. he picked up on the usual scents, but
Mamoru had a very keen sense of smell, so he picked up on the foreign
aroma almost immediately.
He furrowed his brow in puzzlement. It was like a rose but not a
rose... And very much like those he threw in battle.
Mamoru shook his head and continued moving down. "I still would like
to know where the hell those things come from..."
Had he had a keen sense of hearing, he would have heard an ancient
voice whisper something on the wind.
************************************************************ ***********
Usagi and Rei had not yet gone inside.
Usagi shivered slightly as the cold wind blew against her, cutting
through her thin ratty clothes and chilling her to the bone. She had
always hated the cold... But now she felt a chill on the inside as she
watched him leave...
It was so strange... Usagi could not look him straight in the eye
without being frightened. But she felt as though he would protect
her. And hurt her. Her heart cried heal. Her brain cried hurt.
It was an ongoing battle and she had no idea what to do.
It was like running into a dark alley for safety. It would save
you from who was chasing you, but dangers lurked their too...
And those dangers could hurt you even more.
Usagi snapped out of it when Rei laid a hand on her shoulder. For some
reason she did not jump, and felt her body warm instantly. It was as
though some sort of heat was radiating from the girl's palm. It was
comforting... Almost magical.
Rei smiled as Usagi relaxed at her touch, praising Ares for granting
her the powers of fire and heat... They did come in handy. She took
her hand away and spoke the girl's name aloud in as gentle a way as
possible, fearful if she spoke too harshly she'd run like a scared
rabbit.
Come to think of it she looked kind of like a rabbit too.
"What is Rei?" Usagi asked, her voice bordering on cheerful (albeit
forced). The blonde turned to look at her, blue eyes catching the
moonlight that still shone brightly at that hour... But Rei stopped
walking when she remembered something.
There was no moon.
Rei gasped slightly as a vision came to her without even trying. A
girl dressed in a long white gown standing on a shimmering lake. She
was looking up at the planet earth in the distance. Her face was calm,
but her eyes nearly glowed with her curiosity.
"Rabbits don't always run,"
Then Rei blinked and the vision was gone. Well that had made
absolutely no sense... Why on earth would some chick in a white dress
be babbling on about rabbits?
Rei noticed Usagi was giving her a very strange look and she knew that
she must not behave in such a way in the future. She just hoped that
no more spontaneous visions would force themselves on her while she was
there.
Rei smiled as if to reassure the girl that all was well and said,
"You look as though you're freezing to death out here. Come along
inside. We've dawdled enough. You need rest."
Usagi nodded weakly, shivering again. She hated the cold... All of the
cold...
Rei led the girl inside, ignoring her grandfather's questioning look
as they passed. The priestess felt the blonde beside her tense when
she saw the priest. Rei moved a little faster. She understood that
it would be a long time before the girl trusted anyone again... She was
lucky the runaway wasn't flinching at her touch now...
Especially since Rei didn't doubt her run was not complete.
After Rei showed her to her room, she ran into her grandfather. She
sighed and gave him a quick run down about what was happening. The
old man didn't seem fazed in the slightest and merely said, "As soon
as she's up to it, she's going to have to work you know... By the way,
what was that dream about?"
Rei blinked in surprise and said, "Dream?"
"The one that you had last night. You were hysterical. Don't you
remember?"
"Oh that! I don't remember a lot of it actually... I think it had
something to do with her coming to us." the miko furrowed her brow and
said, "I wonder why I can't recall a single detail..."
******************************************************* ***************
Rei could not have been more correct about Usagi's run just beginning.
Just outside of Tokyo, a man only known by Tsukino Yukio drove in a
battered truck. Oddly enough, he was dressed in a wrinkled and torn
up suit that had once been quite nice. Only now it had small spots of
blood, beer, and ash on the once pure white dress shirt. He reeked of
beer and smoke along with a lot of cologne in a futile attempt to cover
up the offensive smell. He drove like a madman, causing accidents and
near altercations alike. Each time that happened, he would stick his
head out the window to scream at the few other cars on the road or
to the whores that still walked the streets at this hour.
Yukio was not just drunk... He was livid. Usagi could not leave him.
He may not have cared if she lived or died, but he could not let her
escape alive... No one left him like that.
Amazingly enough, he was not reprimanded for his road rage and drunk
driving. Probably because if any police were on the road, they were
pulled off to the side, sound asleep. It was hard to work a beat at
that hour, and they would not be blamed as long as no one died...
And no one did die amazingly enough... But in Yukio's mind, that would
not last.
Although no one would die that night, injuries would not be escaped.
As Yukio stuck his head out to yell at some innocent people who were
walking along the side of the road, their car having stalled or broken
down a few kilometers back, he did not notice his car slowly moving
into the right lane.* He also did not notice the car coming towards
him or the speed that both cars were going.
Yukio looked back to the road just in time to be blinded by the
headlights of the oncoming car...
*********************************************************** ************
In the dull morning light, a girl with hair down to mid thigh slowly
crept towards the shrine. She kept in the shadows, always looking over
her shoulder, always making sure no one followed. She walked with a
slight limp and kept hissing in minor pain each time she took a step
with her left leg. Her blue eyes were fairly luminescent in the sun's
rays and her hair shimmered as it waved from side to side, catching the
light without her knowing...
When she reached the numerous stairs of the shrine she sought, she
nearly ran up them with a cat like grace despite her limp. She reached
the top quickly and walked to the shrine, tapping lightly on one of the
doors.
The priestess opened it almost immediately and narrowed her eyes when
she saw who it was, "Minako... Why are you here? You hate the early
morning hours."
Minako was not offended in the least and breezed past the raven haired
girl, saying, "I didn't go to sleep last night. Can't you tell?" the
blonde gestured to the dark circles under her blood shot eyes.
Rei nodded firmly and said, "Another nightmare I assume?"
Minako shook her head and said, "Not the kind you mean... This was
different. I don't remember it all that well, but it had something
to do with some blonde chick with an incredibly kooky hairstyle and
it was in the woods I think... What is it? Why are you giving me that
look?
Rei blinked in surprise and said, "That's uncanny..."
Minako whirled around and said, "What do you mean? Don't tell me you
had the same dream?"
Rei shook her head and said that no that was not the case, "I had a
nightmare and I vision... I can't remember the first, but the vision...
Well it makes absolutely no sense."
"What happened?"
"Not much... Some girl told me that rabbits don't always run,"
"What the heck does that mean?"
"Minako, if I knew, I wouldn't be standing here speaking to you with a
confused expression on my face now would I?"
Minako sighed, knowing she had once again overlooked the obvious. But
it did piss Rei off. She did enjoy seeing the smoke come out of her
ears. But she was more upset about the fact that not even Rei could
make sense of her own visions and said, "Joyful and rapturous shi--"
"Minako!" Rei cried a bit too loudly, "Please, we are on holy ground!"
Minako rolled her eyes but ignored the comment. She looked over to a
door on her right. It was sealed off. Only Rei could open it. The
blonde looked back over going over that information in her mind and
said, "I don't suppose there has been a change?"
Rei shook her head and said, "They still slumber... They won't awaken
until we find her. You know that,"
Minako nodded and said, "I know... But... He's my guardian. I can't
keep this up without him,"
Rei scoffed and said, "Its better you're without him. Maybe you can
learn to stand on your own,"
Minako narrowed her eyes dangerously and cried, "How dare you say that!
I am not dependent on him, but I am not having the best of times! And
the rest of you are not exactly people I would like to tell my troubles
to! I am sick of not having him there! Keeping it inside is affecting
my skills... How else do you explain this damned injury?"
Rei stuck her nose up in the air and said, "I figure you were always
incompetent. You've just been horribly lucky up to now."
Minako growled angrily and turned on her heel screaming, "I don't have
to listen to this!" she whirled around just before she exited and said,
"You know Rei, I suggest that you remember that there is a reason why
you were placed as second in command under me... I didn't do it just
to screw you over,"
"Sure you didn't." Rei hissed. Then the dark haired girl turned and
stalked off to get going on her chores at the shrine.
Minako stifled a scream and briskly power walked out of the shrine,
still fuming about the words she had just had with Rei. She was about
to walk down the stairs when she remembered her leg. That speedy exit
hadn't exactly helped it. She groaned and cursed her stupidity aloud.
After checking to make sure Rei hadn't heard, she moved over by a bench
and sat down. Then she resumed the now monotonous practice of
massaging the leg in hopes to ease the pain away.
Minako sighed as she slowly worked the kinks out of it and said, "Let
us find her soon... We'll never be able to unify without her..."
********************************************************** *************
It hadn't taken Usagi to fall asleep after Rei had shown her to her
room, but it seemed very difficult to stay asleep. Every time she
closed her eyes she was plagued with memories of beatings and of times
when she'd only had her own tears to clean her wounds.
Each time she would wake up, feeling as though there were no air. She
kept thinking that she would fall asleep and wake up back in that
horrible house, much worse than ones they could have afforded had her
stepfather not been a lush and an alcoholic. Instead, they were
forced to live in a rural cottage far away from most of society. It
kept them sheltered with what little bit of his policeman's salary he
managed to hold on to and kept them away from the general public. No
one but her stepfather's friends who would come over every few days
knew of the beatings. But they were the same as he was... Abusers,
rapists, murderers... Hiding behind their jobs, status, or shielding
themselves in nature's depths like her stepfather. Her old home, if
she could force herself to think of it in that respect, had electricity
and running water, but her stepfather rarely had money to pay any
bills...
She knew full well where that money went.
Usagi kept lying down and trying to sleep calmly, but it was a futile
effort. Perhaps these people could protect her here, in the real
world. But her mind was unable to be guarded by anyone. She could not
be shielded from her own thoughts.
And so Usagi gave up the hopeless search for slumber and sat up in
bed. She looked out the window and saw that the sun was already
up.
Her first real day free... It was overcast and the sun wasn't all that
bright. As a matter of fact, she had a feeling it would rain... And
yet it was the most beautiful thing she had ever seen.
Suddenly, Usagi's ears perked up as she heard the sounds of muffled
yelling. Her heart leapt into her throat. She froze upon the spot
in fear, thinking it was her stepfather. Thinking he had found her or
had always known where she was...
Then Usagi realized the voices were female and she relaxed. She
should have just crawled back in bed and tried to sleep once more.
Or perhaps continued staring at the dull beauty of that cloudy
morning she was holding so dear. However, her curiosity got the
better of her. After all the times her precocious attitude had gotten
her into trouble with Yukio, she should have known better. But this of
course was not the case.
Usagi tip toed out into the hallways were she could hear them better.
However, she only got there in time to hear Rei have the last word,
something she sensed happened often. Whoever she had been arguing with
had not appreciated them. Usagi could hear both of them going their
separate ways.
Once again, Usagi could not help herself and immediately went in the
direction Rei had gone... She trusted her and wanted to see what was
going on. However, when she found her, she was far too busy involved
in deep meditation. Usagi decided that disturbing her might get her
into trouble...
That is when Usagi suddenly turned around to find the girl Rei had been
arguing with... Why? She'd probably never know.
It did not take Usagi a long time seeing as the girl had not left yet.
Usagi stared at the blonde for a moment, as though she should remember
something about her... She wanted to thank her for something... She
wanted to cry and run to her and beg forgiveness... She wanted to help
her...
But she didn't know why.
Usagi sighed as she realized that all of these people around her were
going to confuse her for quite some time. And she was going to have
to hunt for the truth...
If there was a truth to hunt.
************************************************************ *********
As Usagi was hunting for the truth, another hunt was in full swing...
Mamoru's hunt for Ami and her mother at the hospital.
It was Sunday and school was out, so Ami would more than likely be
helping her mother in the Emergency room at the hospital. However,
the ER was swamped that day due to a series of car accidents from
early that morning. They had all been caused by one drunk driver, but
the most serious seemed to be the one that had stopped the madness.
Both drivers were drunk, and they would make it...
Normally it would seem unfair. But amazingly, no one had died.
Mamoru growled as he walked in and out of trauma rooms. The dark black
hair of Dr. Mizuno and the blue one that belonged to her daughter was
constantly evading him. It was beginning to look as though the search
was futile. He had looked everywhere twice and still no sign of either
of them.
Mamoru ran a hand through his messy black hair and looked around again.
Suddenly, he spotted Ami's distinctive hair and breathed a sigh of
relief. He quickly pushed his way through the crowd and spun her
around, saying, "Ami, thank God I found you!"
Ami blinked in surprise and blushed slightly saying. He only realized
in passing how tired she looked, "Mamoru... What is it?"
Mamoru quickly relayed her as much of the story as he felt was
necessary. By the end of it, Ami was very close to tears... The girl
had always had a problem with being overly empathetic. She did not
even wait for Mamoru to request she look for her mother. She merely
grabbed his wrist and physically dragged him to where she was. Under
normal circumstances, Ami would have been unable to drag Mamoru
anywhere, but he was weak from lack of sleep and the events of last
night so he could not hold his spot for too long.
Ami found her mother immediately. Dr. Mizuno had just begun to check
on the man in the bed by seeing if he was still unconscious. She was
interrupted by her daughter's near frantic cry, "Mother!"
The doctor spun around, surprised at her daughter and said, "Ami?
What-- Oh Mamoru. You look as though you've been to the dead and
back again. Are you sick? Is that what this is about?"
Mamoru shook his head, thankful that he knew Dr. Mizuno through Ami
and from applying for his residency at that hospital, acceptance
still pending. He tried to look as healthy as possible so that Dr.
Mizuno would not try and check on him which would waste time. He
began by explaining why he had not slept. Then he told the tale of
the girl, very much like a doctor would, "She looked like she'd been
beating multiple times. I wouldn't be surprised if she has broken
bones or fractures that have not been properly healed... She was
covered in cigarette burns and bruises. Her clothes looked worn out
and about two sizes too small. She's shorter than five feet, but I
think she only weighs about seventy pounds. That's all I can
remember. I'm sorry,"
Dr. Mizuno narrowed her eyes and said, "I assume her father is the one
who beat her?"
"Yes," Mamoru said, guessing.
Dr. Mizuno pursed her lips and said, "She sounds pretty bad... What's
her name?"
Mamoru flushed slightly and said, "Well uh... To tell you the truth, I
never asked her..."
Dr. Mizuno shook her head and said, "That is the first thing you should
ask. But then I suppose that she wouldn't have entrusted you with her
name considering all you have is her physical appearance. Well maybe
she'll talk to me. Where is this girl?"
Mamoru smiled, glad that the doctor was going to help and said, "I
knew I couldn't get her to a hospital without a parent or guardian so
I took her to Rei's... I mean, Hikawa Jinja."
The woman nodded and said, "I know of it, but I'm sure my daughter
knows the way... And no you will not take us Mamoru. You will however
get yourself to your apartment and into bed. You need sleep."
"But--"
"I will call you if there's anything incredibly wrong with this girl.
And I'm sure you'll be down there later anyway. From what Ami tells
me, you hang around the Shrine a lot.
"Anyway go home and get some rest. You have classes tomorrow."
Mamoru begrudgingly agreed and left the room with the Mizunos trailing
behind him. The man on the bed was completely forgotten, the doctor
just assuming he was unconscious, but alive...
She should have checked.
~******************************************************** *************~
* Since the Japanese are on the metric system, the use kilometers and
drive on the left side of the road.
yes it seems like missing the obvious, but I happen to have a theory.
People tend to miss the obvious answer because they focus on one thing
and don't bother to look at the other factors. For instance, Rei was
so busy thinking about why the girl in her vision had been talking
about rabbits, she didn't think it could be the princess of the moon.
And she also didn't connect it with her nightmare from earlier.
The fact that she forgot it later helped too. ^^; And forgetting a
dream right after you have it isn't all that uncommon... You start
thinking about something else and pretty soon you forget you even
had it. Rei just held onto it longer because of her abilities.
This is dedicated to victims of abuse along with their friends, and
families. And if you are suffering from abuse of any kind, it isn't
hopeless. There are people and organizations that can and will help.
Also, if you know or suspect that someone is being abused, don't keep
it to yourself. Don't be a coward and look away. Do the right thing
and confront the problem. Get help, for yourself or for them...
please... don't do it because I'm telling you to. Do it for yourself
and the ones that didn't make it.
If you need help, call:
The National Domestic Violence Hotline
1-800-799-SAFE
The Rape, Abuse, Incest National Network (RAINN)
1-800-656-HOPE
Childhelp USA National Child Abuse Hotline
1-800-4-A-CHILD
Or call your local authorities or any state/local agencies that can
help you or someone you know get out of your situation.
Coming Soon: Chapter Six: Healing