Sailor Moon Fan Fiction ❯ Tides of Fortune and Destiny ❯ Chapter 9 ( Chapter 9 )

[ Y - Young Adult: Not suitable for readers under 16 ]

“The baby’s chance of survival is slim to none. I don’t expect her to live much beyond this week.” The doctor appraised the girls and Shitennou of the situation concerning Usagi’s baby.

“Maybe we should get a second opinion then, doctor,” Rei stated, her voice choked with tears, her eyes red with crying.

“The baby has four IV’s and is breathing with the help of a respirator, I doubt a second opinion will be much more optimistic, miss…”

“Hino doctor….”

“Yes, Miss Hino, well, I must go back and check on your friend.”

The doctor turned on his heel, and without another word walked thru the double doors, he had come thru seemingly scant minutes ago with the devastating news about Usagi and her little girl.

“What can we do for her…, maybe she can use the crystal?” Mina sobbed as she thought about that poor baby.

“She can’t use it in that capacity, Mina.” A caring voice came from behind the gang. Setsuna was there with Hotaru holding some flowers in her arms.

“You knew this was going to happen, didn’t you,” Rei accused as she stood before the guardian of time.

Setsuna, for her part, could only look at the distraught young girl with compassion in her dark-red eyes. “It would have been irresponsible of me to reveal that information and potentially deadly. The future cannot be revealed so carelessly. The same goes for Usagi using her crystal to save her child. It would be grossly irresponsible. If the baby is anything like her mother, then she will live. Usagi is a fighter, and I have a feeling the baby shares that quality,” Setsuna calmly explained to everyone as all focused intently on the woman standing before them, their burning eyes seeming to bore into her.

“She’s right. There is nothing else that can be done except support Usagi through this difficult time while her baby struggles to survive,” Ami spoke up as everyone's eyes turned towards her. Zoicite, at that moment, put his arm around her shoulders, the warmth seeping into Ami’s body, lending her strength and lifting her spirits a little. In the last month, both had come to an understanding.

“If this little one is anything like her mother -- as Setsuna has said, then I have no doubts that the baby will be healthy and live for a long time,” Kunzite added, speaking for the first time since leaving the baby shower.

“I wonder when we can go see Usagi,” Makoto asked also adding her voice as she looked around for a nurse, or someone to tell them they could visit their best friend.

“Let me go find a nurse or her doctor,” Rei stated solemnly as she walked off to look for someone. She came back a few minutes late with a sad look on her face.

“We are going to have to wait a while longer. She is still out from the drugs they gave her. They said it was also wise to let her have some time to adjust to the fact her baby may well die.”

“The baby won’t die,” Hotaru announced to everyone as all eyes turned to look at her. Setsuna made a shushing sound at Hotaru and looked at everyone helplessly.

“How can you be sure, Hotaru?” Nephrite asked as he bent down to her level.

“I just know, Nephrite, I just do.” Hotaru answered confidently.

So sure of herself, she wanted to continue, but was prevented by Setsuna’s stern admonition. “That’s enough, Hotaru. Everyone is upset as it is. I think it time we go. Kunzite, would you give these to the princess for us.” She handed the flowers to Kunzite, took Hotaru’s hand, and walked away from the group. In the hallway, she stopped and knelt down meeting Hotaru’s eyes.

“Honey, the future is not precise. There is still a chance the future could change, so, that glimpse you got of the baby growing up strong and healthy may not turn out to be true. Please, don’t blurt out information like that again,” Setsuna, told Hotaru firmly as the young girl nodded her compliance.

“Yes mama.” The little girl looked at her adoptive mother and pulled at her hand. “Let’s go get ice cream.” Setsuna laughed and let the little girl pull her towards the elevators.

~*~

Tiny cries were heard amongst the buzz of hallway noise as he looked into the window. Ten babies were inside the white sterile room. A set of parents dressed in equally sterile hospital gowns as the mother sat in a chair and put her arm thru one of the holes in the incubator and grasped her ill son’s tiny two-week-old fingers. He cried in response to his mothers touch. The mother was young with an older looking man standing over her looking at his son as the tiny infant wailed with his tiny little lungs. Hearing her son cry, the mother started to cry as well. The man put his hand on her shoulder in an attempt to help her through her pain at having to watch her son in his weakened state.

A nurse approached Mamoru from behind and gently placed a supportive and compassionate hand on his shoulder. He turned sharply. “It’s sad, I know, Mr. Chiba. You know you can go in there and see your daughter,” the nurse said as she looked past Mamoru towards the back of the room where a tiny being slept within a heated incubator, isolated away from all the other babies.

“I can’t. If I do….”

“If you do, you will realize this is really happening and it will hurt all over again. Well, Mr. Chiba, this is real and it is happening. You need to go in there and prove to your little angel that she is not alone as she seems to be,” the nurse scolded Mamoru as she continued to look at baby Chiba.

“I…I can’t not right now. What news of my wife?” Mamoru asked, tearing his eyes away from the nurse and looked at the parents of that sick little boy.

“She is awake and wanting to see her baby. But since she just had surgery, she can’t get up and come here. She has not been told yet about her baby. I think she needs you there when she is told her baby might die and that there is a chance she might not be able to have kids again.”

Mamoru’s head snapped around towards the nurse at her last sentence. “What did you say about having children again?” his voice had a dangerous edge to it.

“She might not be able to have children again Mr. Chiba. Her hemorrhage was serious and when the baby was born, there was some damage.”

Mamoru shook his head. “That can’t be. She is a normal healthy girl.” Mamoru was in denial.

“Something must have happened, because there was some unexpected damage to her reproductive organs. So if you know what it is, you might want to tell the doctor.”

“There is nothing I can think of that might offer any explanation for the damage to her reproductive organs.” Except for being Sailor Moon, Mamoru thought.

“Well I came to get you, because your wife is scared.” The nurse said simply as she turned to leave Mamoru alone. He turned away and looked through the window again at his little girl.

After a time, he moved away from the glass wall and opened the door that led out of the neo natal care unit.

~*~

“Where is Mamoru?” Usagi screamed at her doctor as she cried. Her doctor decided not to wait any longer and told her about her baby. Mamoru came bursting into the room after hearing her scream down the hallway.

“What did you say to her?” Mamoru demanded as he moved quickly to Usagi’s bedside and engulfed his wife in his arms as she cried.

“I waited for you, but I didn’t think you were coming.”

“Then tell your nurse not to talk so much when she is sent to bring people.” Mamoru shot back as he tried to comfort his wife.

“Like I said, I waited for you. I do have other patients to attend to, you know. I have informed her of the situation concerning the fact she may be unable to have any more children due to reproductive damage. Mainly her tubes have suffered the most scarring. I find it amazing that she conceived at all.”

“You could have waited a little longer to tell her that, doctor.” Mamoru was less than pleased.

“What do you plan on naming the baby?” The doctor asked the grieving couple, trying to steer the conversation away from causing any further distress.

Usagi looked up with bloodshot eyes. “Athena Hope, but we will call her Hope,” Usagi replied in almost a whisper as she put her head back onto Mamoru’s shoulder secure in his arms.

“Yes thank you, Mrs. Chiba. Also, you are going to be moved to a private room very soon and then your friends can visit you.” with this, the doctor scurried hurriedly out of the ward leaving the couple to themselves.

“Do you think all those years of battle made it so I will never conceive again.”

“He did not say never, just might be a chance. I would not worry about it love. We still have Chibi Usa to look forward to As well as our little Hope right now. She will live and we will get to enjoy her.”

“What went wrong, why did I hemorrhage, and why did this happen to our little girl?” Usagi fired off her questions in-between heartbreaking sobs.

“I don’t know what went wrong, Usagi. But things will be all right.” Mamoru looked up noticing a nurse had come in.

“It is time to move her, so dear, lay down so we can get you moved. You sir can bring your friends and meet us up on the maternity ward in room 238.” Mamoru nodded as he left the room. He moved down the hallway thinking about everything.

~*~

“What is taking them so long?” Rei huffed as she paced around the waiting room.

“Chill out -- fire brand…,” Jadeite spat out, as he was slightly irritated by her pacing.

“Shut up, moron,” Rei hissed at her former lover.

“Well, if you were not such a ….”

“Enough…, you two, they’re moving Usagi to the maternity ward, so if you want to see her, lets go then,” Mamoru told them and all gathered their things and followed quickly on his heel.