Disclaimer: Sailor Moon, Sailor Senshi, and all terms, names, etc. associated with the series are copyrighted by Naoko Takeuchi and Kodansha. We make no claim to them and this work of fanfiction should not be seen as making a claim. Those characters that are original and the story "Chibi-Usa Times Two" are copyrighted (c) 1997 by Douglas Helm & Will Wolfshohl. This fanfic and over 300 other SM fanfics reside in "Tuxedo" Will's SM Fanfics Archive at http://log.on.ca/users/helm/anime/index.htm A Japanese terms used glossary follows the story. Send comments to: Douglas "Candle Light Author" Helm (dhelm@log.on.ca) or "Tuxedo" Will Wolfshohl (wwolfshohl@logicon.com) Rated: PG Chibi-Usa Times Two Part 1: Rabbit's trap That particular thought ran through Usagi's mind as she laid fully awake in bed. Through bloodshot eyes, she once more looked at the clock on the headboard of her bed. If she got to sleep right now, she'd just manage to have three hours of sleep. Usagi could feel the reason for the thought that was keeping her awake snuggled up against her. Usagi internally winced as she remembered having to clean her room today instead of going to the arcade. Suppressing the whine that wanted to escape Usagi continued to look at the wall. ****** Another week of sleepless nights was catching up with Usagi. One more day of dozing in class and yet another day of detention... Usagi heaved a mighty sigh as she trudged towards the meeting. She knew she was really late but figured running wouldn't help matters. she thought hotly, After forcing her foul mood as deep as she could Usagi climbed the shrine steps. ****** Chibi-Usa was happy... sort of. It wasn't so bad in the past. She still hadn't found the Ginzuishou. She knew that Usagi had it, This puzzled Chibi-Usa, she just couldn't figure out where a baka like Usagi would hide something where her obviously SUPERIOR intelligence couldn't find it. She had searched for months now in vain. Turning the corner Chibi-Usa heard a whistle. she thought as she looked around. Then she saw him floating above... Rubeus! Spinning on her heel Chibi-Usa started to run down the now deserted street. "What luck! I hadn't been looking for you but you obliged me by delivering yourself to me! And it isn't even my birthday!" Rubeus crowed, a feral grin spreading across his face. Turning another corner Chibi-Usa finally was forced to a sudden stop as she ran head first into a small brick wall. Bouncing back she landed with a thump on her backside. Hearing Rubeus' laugh she opened her eyes and looked directly into his dark heart. Letting out a scream of fright her crescent moon sigil burned brightly and shot a beam into the darkening sky. Rubeus at first was surprised and temporarily blinded by this development. When his vision cleared he noticed that his prey had started to scramble over the low wall she'd run into. "Not this time, Rabbit! I've got a snare for you!" With that dark energy streamers shot from Rubeus' hands and started to encircle Chibi-Usa making her stick to the wall. "I see I should have handled this myself instead of relying on those baka Sisters!" Chibi-Usa struggled against the bonds as Rubeus stalked towards her. She could see the gleam of anticipation in his eyes as he grew closer. That's when she heard the voice, that voice that sounded so familiar to her... "Depriving a girl of her sleep! How low can you go?! In addition to being healthy, a good sleep keeps a girl looking good. I am the Pretty Sailor Suited Senshi, SAILOR MOON. For depriving ME of my beauty sleep, in the name of the Moon, I WILL PUNISH YOU!!" Chibi-Usa thought, Giving a snarl Rubeus whirled around. "Come on out! I've caught one Rabbit... I can certainly trap the others." "Up here!" Rubeus swung his head up to see the Senshi standing atop a nearby building. Raising his hands Rubeus released a dark sphere of energy rushing toward the Senshi who easily dodged it. "BURNING MANDALA!" Mars shouted out. The attack missed Rubeus when he flitted out of existence and reappeared in midair. "Hey watch it, pyro!" Chibi-Usa shouted indignantly, "I want to live to see my next birthday!" Mars just snarled at the remark. "SPARKLING WIDE PRESSURE!" Jupiter called out and sent her attack flying towards Rubeus. It missed but managed to hollow out a section of wall. "I'll be back, Rabbit!" Rubeus snarled and then teleported away. "Chibi-Usa-chan, are you all right?" Sailor Moon asked as she rushed forward. Then noticing Chibi-Usa was injured, "Where'd you get that bruise?" Chibi-Usa raised her hand to feel a bump on her forehead starting to form. "Oh... must be from when I ran into the wall." She winced slightly as her hand brushed across the forming bruise. "I'm okay though." "I show indications that Rubeus is returning," Mercury stated calmly. "What!?!?" Jupiter and Venus alarmed asked as they started to watch for possible attacks. Mercury continued her scans. "I am detecting a low amount of Dark Energy consistent with the energy signature used by the Black Moon Family." "Where's it coming from... I don't see a thing," Jupiter said, "We're the only ones around. When we got here the street cleared pretty quickly." After tapping her minicomputer's keys for several seconds Mercury began to frown. Lowering her visor she started a more intense scan... After a few more seconds Mercury calmly said, "Well I've located the source of the Dark Energy." She waited until everyone was looking at her, "It's coming from Chibi-Usa-chan." Sailor Moon darkly thought. "What will it do to me?" Chibi-Usa asked worriedly as she latched onto Sailor Moon's leg, tears already forming in her eyes. "It is a small amount of energy and should be passed out of her body in the same manner any other contaminant would be." "Huh?!?" Sailor Moon and Chibi-Usa queried. "Since it is such a low amount of Dark Energy it should have no effect on Chibi-Usa. As it's a foreign agent it'll be attacked by her body's own defenses and will eventually leave." Mercury watched as Sailor Moon and Chibi-Usa chewed on this simplified explanation. "Why don't you just say what you mean?" Sailor Moon said still puzzled. She was too tired to try to muddle through what Mercury said. Chibi-Usa herself had an expression of being unconvinced. Heaving a sigh Mercury kneeled down and spoke softly, "Chibi-Usa-chan, don't worry you'll just poop it out." Mercury immediately blushed in embarrassment. "Eeewww!" Venus said, "I really didn't need to hear that!" ****** As Venus and Jupiter were taking Chibi-Usa home Mercury pulled the two remaining Senshi aside. Glancing around, Mercury made sure that they weren't observed. "Sailor Moon, I want you to watch Chibi-Usa carefully," she almost commanded. "But why?! You said she'd be fine... and there wouldn't be anything to worry about!" Mars frowned before saying, "Did you lie to her, Mercury? I think you should have told her what's going to happen even if she's a kid." "That's just it, I DON'T KNOW," Mercury stated firmly, "We've never encountered this problem before... It could happen just as I told her and it'll work itself out of her system or it could have dangerous side-effects on her. There's no way to know for sure with the data currently available." Turning to Sailor Moon who had already changed back Mercury reiterated, "Usagi, just keep an eye on her... please?" Her face showed signs of worry. "Oh... all right." With that Usagi sprinted away from the two other Senshi who were looking on in wonder. "She didn't even whine..." Mars slowly said, "That's incredible..." ****** Later that night Usagi was trying to complete the homework assignments she'd neglected for the past two days. A light knock at the door gave her an excuse to stop which she took full advantage of. When she opened the door she saw it was Chibi-Usa standing in the hall clutching Luna-P in her arms. "Usagi-chan, can I sleep with you tonight?" Chibi-Usa asked looking up with her puppy dog eyes. Usagi was surprised, usually the spore would simply come into the room and crawl into bed uninvited. Nodding she stepped out of the way to let Chibi-Usa in. The little girl entered the room and proceeded to snuggle under Usagi's covers. "What are you doing?" she asked. "Nothing..." Usagi said but it was hopeless. She imagined an angry Haruna-sensei sending her off to detention. She just sighed. She wasn't going to get her homework done in time for school tomorrow. She had enough experience to know that much. She glanced over to Chibi-Usa. Turning off the lights she also slipped in under the covers. Several hours passed. Chibi-Usa had soon drifted off to sleep but Usagi kept seeing the little girl trapped against the wall by Rubeus in her mind. Usagi thought, Sighing again Usagi closed her eyes but she just couldn't fall asleep. Curled up beside her was Chibi-Usa who was lightly snoring. It was going to be a long night. That was the last thought Usagi had before drifting finally off into sleep. Part 2: Paladin's Hand Usagi's classmates watched with some fascination as she loudly proclaimed she was asleep; in other words Usagi was snoring. Haruna-sensei's face contorted into a mask of rage. This had been the fifth time TODAY! "TSUKINO-SAN!!!!" Haruna-sensei bellowed. The reply was only the sound of Usagi's snoring. Usagi's head was lolled back, tongue hanging slightly out. She had become the center of attention of all her classmates. It was quite natural of Usagi to fall asleep in class once, maybe even twice but five times?! Clamping a tight grip on her anger Haruna-sensei stalked towards the oblivious Usagi. When she reached Usagi's desk Haruna-sensei reached out and gave Usagi a firm shake. After she withdrew her hand Usagi promptly rolled over and landed face first on the floor prompting a number of giggles. Sensei stared at the class to quiet them. The class watched for several seconds not quite sure what to do. Then the tired voice floated up to them, "HEY YOU LITTLE SPORE! It's bad enough you have to share my bed with you but you don't have to shove me out of it." There was a general intake of breath as several students glanced nervously at the Sensei who was standing stalk still. When Haruna-sensei spoke her voice was very calm yet there was definite venom, "And exactly who are you calling a `little spore'?" Usagi popped up and looked around bleary eyed. As exactly where she was dawned on her Usagi's eyes grew large with horror. She quickly scrambled to her feet but didn't dare do anything else. She knew Haruna-sensei had said something but wasn't exactly sure what it had been. "Pardon Sensei?" Usagi queried in a small voice. "Who are you calling a little spore?" The venom was gone but it was replaced with a definite bite. Usagi pondered for a moment and then gulped visibly. "Ah... my cousin." Haruna-sensei wasn't about to let it go so easily. "And why would you call your cousin a `little spore'?" Several students suppressed the urge to laugh. Usagi remained silent staring at the ground for several seconds. Haruna-sensei heaved a sigh and said, "Fine. Tsukino-san, take your seat, don't plan on going anywhere after school. Not even death would get you out of this detention; I'll be speaking with your parents about this." Sullenly Usagi took her seat, ****** "You know," Chibi-Usa said, "That baka Odango Atama really bugs me... I mean I'm definitely more intelligent than she is yet she can hide the Ginzuishou from me. How can that baka do it?" Mamoru blinked, he knew Chibi-Usa and Usagi didn't get along but he'd never heard Chibi-Usa say something that strong. "Chibi-Usa-chan, Usagi isn't that bad." "Oh yeah?!" Chibi-Usa retorted, "Then why did you smarten' up and give up that walking cement head?" Mamoru was rather stunned but Chibi-Usa was on a roll, "Mamo-chan, I need your help with something." "What?" Mamoru asked. "I know this'll bother you but you like me, right?" Mamoru looked suspiciously at Chibi-Usa for a moment before he said, "Hai, I do." "Good, now my plan is to trade a date with you for the Ginzuishou. She can give me the Ginzuishou and you can well put up with her for say... ten, fifteen minutes. She's sure to do it. Then we can both leave her forever." Mamoru took the defensive route, "I broke up with Usagi. It's painful enough to be around her. I'm certainly not going to go out on a date with her." "Please!?!" Chibi-Usa asked while blinking puppy dog eyes. "Iie," Mamoru firmly stated. ****** Two days had passed. Usagi was sleeping under a tree in the park. It was the only place that seemed to hold the cure for her insomnia. Chibi-Usa had become more obnoxious by the day, her speech and physical stances oozed with contempt towards Usagi. Around Ikuko it was well hidden and subtle but when Ikuko wasn't around it was very plain and open. Usagi had stoically put up with this. When she complained to her mother, her mother wouldn't hear of it. In fact Ikuko accused Usagi of making it up to distract her. Haruna-sensei had informed Ikuko of Usagi's behavior in class. Eventually this led to Ikuko berating her daughter yet again for the spectacle she made of herself. Unnoticed by the sleeping Usagi, Chibi-Usa sat in the tree directly above her. Usagi had snuck out of the house and Chibi-Usa was anxious to put her new plan of action into effect. Rubbing her hands in anticipation Chibi-Usa hefted the heavy water balloon. Grinning she positioned the watery bomb and released it. The watery projectile found its target perfectly and smacked Usagi right in her face. Usagi totally caught by surprise cried out and looked frantically around. Chibi-Usa not wanting to give her adversary time to figure out what happened promptly dropped two more balloons one after the other. Both were direct hits which finally shocked Usagi into action. She sprang up and started to run but managed to trip over a tree root landing face first into the dirt. Chibi-Usa grabbed another water balloon and took aim at Usagi's backside which was sticking up into the air. "This is too good to be true," she chuckled to herself. With a cry of revenge Chibi-Usa launched the watery missile. It narrowly missed its mark but managed to soak the lower portion of Usagi's body. Whirling around with ferocity Usagi glared at Chibi-Usa. She'd heard Chibi-Usa's cry and now watched as Chibi-Usa clung to the tree laughing loudly at the drenched Usagi. "When I get a hold of you..." Usagi screamed in rage, "I'm going to..." She was cut off by Chibi-Usa's sarcastic voice, "You and what army, BAKA ODANGO ATAMA?!!!" With that Chibi-Usa hefted another water balloon and tossed it at Usagi. It squarely hit its mark. Usagi's fight or flight instinct took over and Usagi started to run all the while being pelted by Chibi-Usa's accurately placed water bombs. Chibi-Usa gloated as her enemy retreated from the scene of battle. ****** Rei watched curiously as a dripping wet and thoroughly enraged Usagi stalked up towards her. She was about to make a smart remark to Usagi about being a klutz but wisely hadn't when she caught the look of anger in her friend's eyes. "What happened to you, Usagi?" Rei asked, she hoped Usagi wouldn't take it the wrong way. Usagi fixed Rei with a icy glare for a moment before replying, "That SPORE!!! I was sleeping in the park under a tree and that SPORE tossed water balloons at me!! Look what she did to me!" Rei's first impulse was to snicker. No sooner had the sound left her mouth then Usagi turned away and started to stalk out of the shrine grounds. Hurrying after her friend Rei said, "Oh come on Usagi, it just slipped out..." Rei suppressed another snicker with difficulty - her friend looked like a drowned `rabbit'. Every stitch of clothing was soaked through. Her normally beautiful flowing pigtails were a matted mass of stringy hair. "Ah... Is there something that I could do for you?" "Rei-chan, I don't suppose you have an extra set of clothing I could have until these dry off?" "Why come here? I thought you would've gone home." Usagi sighed heavily, "I couldn't... I snuck out of the house and if I came home like this... I'd be in even more trouble." "I think we can fix you up," Rei said guiding the still dripping Usagi towards her room. ****** Luna sighed as she listened to yet another argument between Chibi-Usa and Usagi. She was out on the roof of the Tsukino home but still she found no relief. She had to get away from it for awhile. Getting up she made her way over to Minako's home. Finding Artemis lazily sunning himself in Minako's bedroom window, she made her way up to him and then from the tree she pounced onto the dozing cat. Artemis gave startled cry of surprise and landed on the floor with a thud. Luna chuckled to herself as Artemis picked himself up and glared hotly at the black cat. "Hey! What did you do that for?!" Artemis growled out, "I was having a great dream!" "I'm sorry Artemis... I've just been having a rough couple of days and I guess I wanted to strike out at something." Artemis mollified by Luna's explanation nodded and made his way over to his visitor. "Luna, are Usagi and Chibi-Usa still going at it?" Artemis queried as he sat down. Luna frowned slightly, at least as much as a cat's face could frown, before saying, "Chibi-Usa's been a regular terror. I mean she hardly leaves Usagi alone anymore. Just a couple of days ago Chibi-Usa water bombed Usagi in the park. The day after that Chibi-Usa got together with Shingo and then pretty much had Usagi locked in her room when Ikuko left them alone for the afternoon. When Ikuko did finally come home Usagi got all the blame for the mess that Chibi-Usa had created in the kitchen." Luna's voice had started to rise in irritation. Taking a few deep breaths Luna continued her story, "And today Chibi-Usa was bouncing on Usagi's bed and managed to nearly destroy the thing. All the while demanding that if Usagi wanted her to stop that Usagi should hand over the Ginzuishou." Artemis pondered Luna's words for several seconds before he asked a question that had been nagging him since Minako had told them of their fight with Rubeus, "Could it be the Dark Energy, Luna?" "It's hard to say..." Luna trailed off in thought for several seconds, "I will drop by Ami's place later today and ask her for her opinion. We don't really know one way or the other. I mean Chibi-Usa's been rather rambunctious before... maybe it's just a phase. Maybe Rubeus' attack scared her more than we think and she's starting to get desperate for the Ginzuishou." "That brings up the another question, `Why exactly does Chibi-Usa want the Ginzuishou?'" "I don't know... I really don't." ****** Later that night Ami heard a scratching at her window. When she went to look she saw Luna patiently waiting. Lifting up the window she let the cat in. "Luna? What's going on?" Ami asked curiously. Usagi hadn't called and it was unusual that Luna would just show up. "Ami-chan, I want to talk to you about Chibi-Usa," Luna said. "I'm not exactly sure what's going on. She's becoming quite a menace!" Ami blinked, "Why?" "I was over visiting Artemis. When I got home she decided that she was going to try and hold me for ransom." Luna said angrily, "The price for my freedom was the Ginzuishou!" "I see you got away unharmed," Ami observed as she sat back down at her desk. Ami hid her amusement. Luna walked over and sat in front of Ami, tail twitching. "I left her with a reminder that cats have claws," Luna said. "Have you found anything new out from the readings you got on Chibi-Usa and the Dark Energy? Could it be affecting her?" Ami pulled out her minicomputer and started to tap the keys. After several seconds she said, "The results are still inconclusive. It was a minimal amount of Dark Energy. It should of dissipated or been excreted by now." After several more seconds of studying the results of her query Ami said, "I don't think Chibi-Usa's behavioral shift is due to the Dark Energy. Probably she's become more desperate for the Ginzuishou because Rubeus nearly captured her. If she hadn't released her energy beam or we'd been slow, he'd have gotten Chibi-Usa. I think she knows that." Luna remained silent before saying, more to herself, "I just hope you're right..." ****** Presetting her minicomputer to autoscan Chibi-Usa, Ami knocked at the Tsukino door. Ikuko promptly opened it and invited the girl in. After exchanging greetings, Ikuko went back to her work. Ami made her way partially up the stairs before nearly getting knocked back down them by Chibi-Usa fleeing headlong past Ami in a mad dash to evade impending doom. "GET BACK HERE YOU LITTLE SPORE!!! I'VE GOT A SPANKING WITH YOUR NAME ON IT!" With that enraged yell Usagi came bolting out of her room but stopped short when she saw Ami standing there in bewilderment. Ami judging that it be better to defuse this situation said, "Want to talk about it?" Usagi gave venomous glare towards the stairs Chibi-Usa had darted down and, uttering something acidic, stomped into her room. Ami followed, uncertain if she really wanted to be in such close proximity to a walking timebomb. When she did work up the nerve to come into Usagi's room she found Usagi scraping what looked like green slime off of her bed and into a trash can. "What is that?" "I don't know... just rather slimy stuff... the fungus probably leaked it out!" Usagi huffed. After a moment Usagi calmed down. "I'm sorry Ami-chan... It's just been rough. I don't get what's happening. I've never seen her this bad before. I mean I know she can be good but..." Usagi threw her hands up in a expression of non-comprehension. Taking out her minicomputer Ami looked at the results of the scan she'd just taken of Chibi-Usa. "The amount of Dark Energy remaining is less than my previous scan. These results indicate that the Dark Energy IS leaving Chibi-Usa's body." After tapping a few more times, "I don't think it's having any effect on her... However, I want you to keep a close watch on her for a few days more." "Iie," Usagi stated bluntly. "Usagi-chan, it'll just be a few more days, that's all." "Iie!" "Usagi-chan... would you want anything to really happen to that little girl?" Usagi thought, Heaving a sigh Usagi said, "All right Ami-chan... only a couple more days?" "Hai," Ami said. ****** Usagi plodded home the next day. She managed to stay awake for the entire class for once. She surprisingly had no detention and she even arrived at the Senshi meeting on time too. Usagi smiled at that thought, Walking to her home Usagi slipped off her shoes and called out a greeting to her mother. What she got in response was a muffled crash. Cocking her head Usagi listened again. "That's coming from my room!" Usagi screeched as she heard another crash and a curse. Bolting up the stairs the complaining grew louder with the occasional thud. "Where is that BAKA hiding it?!" Usagi threw open the door of her bedroom. What greeted Usagi's eyes looked like a demolition zone. The dresser was toppled over and the contents of the drawers were spread throughout the room. The bed was in shambles with the sheets and blankets tossed in helter-skelter fashion. Fluff floated down throughout the room from one of the torn pillows. At that moment, her closet was being systematically ripped apart with her clothes being tossed everywhere. "It's got to be here somewhere." Usagi let out a bellow of gigantic proportions and launched herself towards the closet. Seeing the perpetrator she grabbed Chibi-Usa up and by sheer force of will stopped herself from flinging the evil imp across the room. She neatly dropped the still enraged child on the bed and glared at her. "What are you doing in here?!!" "Give me the Ginzuishou!" Chibi-Usa demanded angrily. "You want it?!" Usagi had finally had enough. "HAI!!!" Chibi-Usa screeched. "Here then." Usagi grabbed her broach and was about to fling it at Chibi-Usa when an idea struck her. Usagi smiled evilly at Chibi-Usa who was just staring distracted by Usagi's sudden compliance with her demand. "MOON HEALING ESCALATION!" Usagi shouted. The Ginzuishou flared into life. Usagi thought as she poured all of her emotional power into the wish. Chibi-Usa seeing the Ginzuishou, the target of her long search, leapt and made contact with the broach just as Usagi completed her command to the Ginzuishou. And both were enveloped in a sphere of blinding white light! Part 3: The Good, The Bad, and The Outrageous After the light dissipated Chibi-Usa let go of the Ginzuishou and dropped to the floor with a mild thud. She looked up at Usagi in confusion for a moment. She slowly looked around the demolished room. Chibi-Usa stood there in shocked realization. Another moment passed before she found her voice. Standing up and giving a deep bow Chibi-Usa said humbly, "Usagi-san, I am very sorry for the mess I made. Gomen nasai." Usagi was taken aback and really not believing the apology snarled out, "Do you think simply saying `you're sorry' is going to get you out of trouble?!" Usagi's rebuke stung her deeply. Chibi-Usa remained silent for a moment before she moved over and started to pick up some strewn clothing. Usagi thought as she watched the little girl. Chibi-Usa kept turned away from Usagi not wishing to show Usagi her shame. However, a sound did make its way to Usagi's ears. She couldn't discern it at first then Usagi blinked. Usagi thought in disbelief but it was true. As the little girl moved around the room gathering up clothes she took on more of a dejected look, her crying and sadness quite apparent. Finally, Usagi got a good look at child's face. Her eyes were puffed up and tears were streaming down her reddened cheeks. She was fighting not to cry out loud. It was obvious to Usagi this was no deception. Usagi thought now feeling just a little guilty at causing such anguish to the little girl. Moving over to Chibi-Usa she said, "Are you okay, Chibi-Usa-chan? Are you hurt?" Chibi-Usa stopped her work and looked up into Usagi's eyes. Her eyes full of sadness, "Usagi-san... I'm fine... I-I'll clean up..." With that Chibi-Usa turned back to her task. Usagi beamed but Usagi quickly lost her joy. The more she looked at Chibi-Usa, the more she felt guilty about yelling at her. Catching the pile of clothing that had started to fall out of Chibi-Usa's arms, Usagi said in a soft voice, "I'll help you, okay Chibi-Usa-chan?" Chibi-Usa shook her head, "I made the mess... I-I have to clean it up," she sniffled out. This thought brought another lump to Chibi-Usa's throat and she let out another sob. Seeing the renewal of tears, Usagi dropped the clothing she had begun to pick up and kneeled down to look at Chibi-Usa, "Hey Chibi-Usa-chan, what's the matter?" Usagi asked concerned, "I'm sorry I shouted at you..." Usagi trailed off as Chibi-Usa shook her head once again. "It's my fault... I was bad..." The sheer sorrow contained in that statement pulled at Usagi's heart. Reaching out she pulled Chibi-Usa into a hug saying, "Iie, you weren't." Chibi-Usa looked at Usagi in bewilderment, "Hai I was... I hit you with water balloons... I could of h-hurt you... and... and... I-I... got you in trouble with Ikuko-mama and... and..." Chibi-Usa let out a gut wrenching sob before saying, "I wrecked your room!!" Usagi just continued to hug Chibi-Usa trying to calm her down. Rubbing the little girl's back Usagi spoke softly and consolingly repeating that she wasn't angry with Chibi-Usa for what she did. Eventually it seemed to work; Chibi-Usa calmed down and started to return Usagi's hug tentatively at first and then wholeheartedly. After a minute or so Usagi said, "We'll clean the room up together... Okay?" "Hai... Onee-san." A broad smile passed across Usagi's face. It was certainly contagious as a smile found its way onto Chibi-Usa's face as well. ****** Had anyone in the Tsukino household come up the stairs at that moment, he would have observed a glowing ball of energy hovering outside of Usagi's bedroom door. If that same person had stayed to watch, he would have seen the ball slowly coalesce into a humanoid shape and then solidify into the form of Chibi-Usa fully clothed in her school fuku. Shaking her head slightly Chibi-Usa looked around and noticed she was standing on the outside of Usagi's door. With that Chibi-Usa started towards her room and then noticed that she was still wearing her elementary school fuku. With that Chibi-Usa slowly went downstairs. When Ikuko was out of the kitchen Chibi-Usa stealthily went out the door and slipped into the street. After some thought Chibi-Usa started to head in the direction of the nearest mall. As the minutes passed she realized that she'd arrive after the mall closed if she walked so Chibi-Usa started to look for other transportation. A solution soon made itself apparent. A young girl about Chibi-Usa's age was happily riding her bicycle along the sidewalk. Chibi-Usa thought evilly. "Hi!" Chibi-Usa called as the girl rode past her. The little girl's head whirled around toward the unexpected sound. All she saw was Chibi-Usa's incoming fist slamming into her face. She dropped heavily to the ground, the surprise and pain paralyzing her. Chibi-Usa looked at the girl now at her feet and kicked her in the abdomen twice for good measure. Satisfied that the scared girl wouldn't try to stop her, Chibi-Usa hopped onto the girl's bike and sped off leaving the now crying and injured girl helpless on the sidewalk. "Arigato!" Chibi-Usa yelled over her shoulder as she continued to her destination. ****** Usagi sat down, noting with some awe that her room was cleaner than when she had left that morning. Chibi-Usa came over and in a tentative voice said, "Onee-san, are you sure you're not mad at me?" Usagi looked at Chibi-Usa curiously, then a notion struck her. She picked up Chibi-Usa. Chibi-Usa bleakly thought. To her surprise Usagi settled Chibi-Usa on her lap and while giving a hug of reassurance said, "Iie Imouto, I'm not mad at you. There is something I'd like to know. Would you tell me why you're after the Ginzuishou?" Chibi-Usa thought, After a few seconds Chibi-Usa said, "My mommy's in trouble in the future. I need the Ginzuishou to save Mommy. It's the only way to save her. Mommy had the Ginzuishou but..." Chibi-Usa lowered her head and sniffled. "But what?" Usagi said breathlessly. "It..it... disappeared," Chibi-Usa said almost in a hushed voice followed this time by a sob. "I don't know what happened to it. I should of told you before, Onee-san. Gomen... Please, will you help me save my mommy?" Hugging Chibi-Usa, Usagi said, "Imouto... I promise when Rubeus and the Four Sisters are dealt with I'll give you the Ginzuishou. I'll even get Sailor Moon to help too." "Really?" "Hai!" ****** Chibi-Usa had made it to the mall, carelessly flinging the bike to one side. Chibi-Usa visited two clothing stores in the mall. In both cases she was promptly escorted out because she was too young. Chibi-Usa decided to try a different strategy for the third store. She snuck in. She made sure to avoid contact with anyone in the store or look like she was the child of one of the other customers. The tactic worked. A while later Chibi-Usa was standing in a fitting room observing herself in the mirror. She was trying on some rather slinky one-piece outfits that she had got them from the store's petite woman department. Most of them, however, were still far too large for her. But this one seemed to fit her `relatively' well. It was size zero satin red dress with a slit running up either side from the bottom to around the waistline. It was rather seductive and suggestive to say the least. Taking it off and setting it aside Chibi-Usa tried on a few more outfits. After several more minutes, she made her decision. She crept out of the fitting room with three outfits. They were all too big for her but not ridiculously so. Chibi-Usa had a solution for this eventuality: she could use Luna-P to make them fit better. The thought of Luna-P made Chibi-Usa stop and frown, "Hey you!" Spinning around she saw a sales clerk bearing down on her. "Where are you going with those, little girl?" With a yelp she bolted out of the store and quickly disappeared into the crowd. The sales clerk gave up and returned to the store. After pushing her way through the crowd, Chibi-Usa's stomach reminded her that it was near supper time. Seeing a woman's purse, she causally walked up grabbed it and took off before any prying eyes could notice her. Darting into the women's restroom, Chibi-Usa entered a stall and then started to dig through the purse. When her greedy little hands came up from the purse she was holding a large wad of cash, "Time to go shopping!" she crowed gleefully. ****** Knocking on Usagi's door Ikuko said, "Usagi-chan? Chibi-Usa-chan?" Chibi-Usa opened the door and said, "Hai Ikuko-mama." She was almost finished cleaning up the room. Ikuko was speechless, Usagi's room was actually... clean!?!? Regaining her voice Ikuko said, "Come wash up for supper, Chibi-Usa-chan." "Hai! Ikuko-mama?" "Yes?" "Ikuko-mama... There is something I have to tell you." Ikuko looked at her expectantly. Chibi-Usa took a breath and continued, "I'm sorry for making a mess in the kitchen yesterday. I don't know why I did it but it was my fault...not Usagi-chan's fault. Please don't be mad at her." She suppressed a sob, "I'm sorry Usagi-chan got into trouble for something I did." Ikuko was again speechless, after several seconds she said, "Chibi-Usa-chan, it was very wrong of you to mess up my kitchen. It was even worse that you let Usagi be blamed for doing it." Chibi-Usa bowed her head in shame. "It took a lot of courage for you to come to me and admit you were wrong. I won't punish you but you have to promise never to do it again AND apologize to Usagi for getting her in trouble." "Hai! I did apologize to Onee-san and she forgave me. It was very nice of her. I promise to never be bad again," Chibi-Usa stated proudly. "I'm very proud of you. You are certainly acting mature for your age." Chibi-Usa just smiled sweetly. "Chibi-Usa-chan, now go wash up for supper." "Hai!" ****** Later that evening, Ikuko went upstairs and knocked on Usagi's door. It was promptly opened by Chibi-Usa already in her bunny pajamas. "Time for bed, Chibi-Usa-chan." Chibi-Usa looked past Ikuko at her room and then at Usagi for a moment before asking, "Onee-san, can I sleep in here?" Usagi who was still euphoric from having actually gotten through the day civilly with Chibi-Usa said, "Hai." Turning back Chibi-Usa said, "Ikuko-mama, can I sleep in here with Usagi-chan?" "Seeing that Usagi said it was all right... I suppose, but you have to go right to bed." "Arigato, Usagi-chan, Ikuko-mama." Chibi-Usa didn't waste any time, she scampered over to Usagi's bed and climbed in under the covers. Ikuko smiled gave Chibi-Usa a hug good-night and left the room. Chibi-Usa looked over at Usagi who was reading a manga and asked, "Onee-san, would you read me a story?" obviously looking forward to it with some delight. Usagi frowned slightly, "Okay, Imouto, what story should I read?" ****** Chibi-Usa snuggled close to Usagi and whispered, "Thank you, Onee-san, I was scared those bad people would come and get me. I feel safe here with you." Chibi-Usa felt just like she did when she was with her mother. She felt warm, safe, secure, and most of all, loved. "Don't worry, you ARE safe with me, Imouto," Usagi said in another whisper before both drifted off to sleep. ****** Well past midnight Chibi-Usa quietly slipped into the Tsukino home. This was no easy task because she was loaded down with her `purchases'. She gave a look of disdain at Usagi's bedroom door as she passed it. Going into her own room she looked around for Luna-P and noticed it wasn't there. Changing into pajamas, Chibi-Usa crept over to Usagi's door and after quietly opening it called out softly, "Luna-P?" Luna-P floated up from the bed and floated over to its mistress. Chibi-Usa grabbed it, quietly closed the door, and went back to her room. "Luna-P," Chibi-Usa said quietly, "I want you to make all these clothes fit me right." She gave a grin of satisfaction as Luna-P set to work modifying the clothes. Several hours later, receiving a call of nature Chibi-Usa, now dressed in a sexy nightgown, slipped out of her room. She was about to enter the bathroom when she heard Shingo mutter, "Chibi-Usa? I thought you were sleeping with Usagi." Then getting a better look at her nightgown, "And when did Mom buy you that?" Whirling around Chibi-Usa hissed out, "What I wear is none of your business, baka! And why would I be sleeping with that BAKA ODANGO ATAMA! What do you think I am?!" Shingo blinked then looked nervously around. Seeing his parents hadn't come to investigate in a softer voice, "I know what I heard. You went to sleep in Usagi's room. Did she kick you out for wetting the bed again?" Chibi-Usa snarled and went into the bathroom, she'd get her revenge on Shingo for what he said. Chibi-Usa smiled suddenly, she knew exactly what she was going to do! Part 4: The Coming Darkness Dawn arrived in the City of Tokyo. The sunshine first peeked through the bunny head curtains over the windowsill and then slowly filled Usagi's bedroom. It crept quietly over the three sleeping figures in the bed. Luna as usual was the first to wake; she looked around the room and noticed that Chibi-Usa had a rather large grin on her face. After a few minutes Chibi-Usa woke up, slowly at first. She blinked to try and get the sleep out of her eyes. She glanced over to Usagi sleeping peacefully beside her. Chibi-Usa was nice and warm. She hadn't felt this secure since she'd left Crystal Tokyo. She glanced at the clock and saw that it was still quite early. Chibi-Usa thought and watched the rising and lowering of Usagi's chest as the older girl slept soundly. Chibi-Usa felt content just quietly watching Usagi for awhile. Finally she decided she should get out of bed. Chibi-Usa thought and with that started to slowly pull herself out of Usagi's bed. Luna watched in disbelief. She'd never seen Chibi-Usa so considerate of Usagi before. Usagi continuing her slumber undisturbed was foremost in Chibi-Usa's thoughts so as quietly as she could, Chibi-Usa left the room and went into the bathroom. After a few minutes Chibi-Usa came back out and saw a rather groggy looking Ikuko just stumbling from her room. The little girl took on a pensive look walking towards Ikuko slowly. She whispered, "Ikuko-mama? Did I wake you up? Gomen." Ikuko looked bleary eyed as Chibi-Usa for several seconds before shaking her head, "Chibi-Usa-chan, what are you doing up this early?" Chibi-Usa considered this, "I just woke up," she answered honestly, "I promise I'll be quiet." Ikuko yawned and patted Chibi-Usa on top of her head. This brought a smile to Chibi-Usa's face. She hugged Ikuko's leg in return and then quietly skipped back into Usagi's room to get dressed. Ikuko reminisced, Unheard by Chibi-Usa, Ikuko muttered grumpily about the loss of her private time to wake up in the morning before entering the bathroom. ****** Chibi-Usa was sitting quietly on the floor of Usagi's room reading a children's book trying hard not to giggle loudly when Usagi's alarm clock went off. Chibi-Usa gave a yelp of surprise and another yelp when a well placed pillow arced through the air and neatly silenced the alarm. Chibi-Usa gathered up her book and started for the door, when she turned back however she saw that Usagi was not getting up. A small frown creased her forehead; walking over she gently tapped Usagi. "Onee-san?" The lump hiding under the covers mumbled something incoherent. Chibi-Usa was starting to worry. "Onee-san, are you okay?" The grumpy face of Usagi made an appearance and glared at Chibi-Usa before disappearing again under a pillow. Chibi-Usa reasoned and gave Usagi a firmer push while saying, "Please Onee-san, you'll be late for school! It's time to get up!" The growl that was emanated from the covers made Chibi-Usa take a step back. It sounded more like an animal than a teenage girl. Resolved that Usagi would walked her to school, Chibi-Usa took another step forward and shoved harder saying in a louder voice, "Usagi-san, it's time to wake up... Please!" Luna had been watching with this with some reservation. Luna thought, then backed up several feet as the covers suddenly heaved and a rather irate Usagi glared down at Chibi-Usa. "Listen here, spore!" Usagi started, "I'll get up when I'm good and ready!" Chibi-Usa's reaction was not what Luna had expected it would be. The child sniffled at first and turned away. Tears were forming in her eyes. This only seemed to irritate Usagi even more she moved to grab Chibi-Usa but what she said stopped Usagi dead in her tracks, "You don't really like me, do you?!?" Usagi paused, a look of confusion coming across her face. "Chibi-Usa-chan, of course I like you..." Usagi retorted, her mental capacity was not at its best this early in the morning so she was slow realizing what had just happened. There was another silence before Chibi-Usa asked, "Then why'd you call me `spore'?" Chibi-Usa asked while sniffling again. Turning Chibi-Usa to face her, Usagi looked at the little girl and said, "I'm sorry for calling you a spore... Gomen. I didn't mean to do it. Now why were you trying to wake me up... Imouto?" Usagi managed a smile. Chibi-Usa considered Usagi's apology for a little bit before replying, "Onee-san... I wanted you to walk me to school..." She gave Usagi a quick hug. Usagi looked at the clock and then back and to Chibi-Usa. Suppressing a grimace she said, "Okay... But we need to get ready." Chibi-Usa nodded and proceeded to get dressed but kept a watchful eye on Usagi who was constantly mumbling under her breath. ****** Chibi-Usa leisurely stretched out and looked at the clock, She continued to think about Usagi, Chibi-Usa made a face as she slipped out of bed. Then a slow smile spread across her face, "Chibi-Usa? I'll call that BAKA ODANGO ATAMA `Chibi-Usa'!" She reached for her school fuku and grimaced. Tossing it aside into a corner Chibi-Usa put on the red dress she had gotten the day before. After taking care of necessities Chibi-Usa slipped quietly down the stairs while constantly keeping a lookout for Ikuko. Seeing the bothersome grownup absent Chibi-Usa quietly slipped out of the door. Making sure Luna-P was with her Chibi-Usa started off down the street, the dress causing quite a stir as older people looked at the youngster who was making like an adult. ****** Chibi-Usa's shopping trip was cut short sometime around two o'clock that afternoon by a truant officer who came stocking towards her. "Why aren't you in school, little girl? Where are your parents?" the officer demanded. Chibi-Usa gave started to brush by him but he reached out and snagged her arm, "Let go of me you oversized gorilla! I am a princess. Commoners like you may not touch royalty!" The man didn't let go but said sarcastically, "Oh? Princess eh? Well `Your Highness', let's just see what your parents say about it... Now where are they?!" Chibi-Usa frowned severely, "Let go of me you great blundering ass! Luna-P!!!" With the cry of outrage Luna-P bolted forward and smacked the man right in his face. He began to fall backwards from the shock of the impact. Chibi-Usa wasn't finished. For good measure and for a bit of revenge, Chibi-Usa took her umbrella (she had "acquired" to go with her outfit) and drove it into the truant officer's groin. He did the expected thing and crumpled to the ground without a sound obviously in considerable pain. The crowd who had observed this child's shocking behavior became rather vocal about it. Two burly women started towards Chibi-Usa but with Luna-P's help, she managed to avoid them. Noting the time she took off for the Tsukino home to setup her trap for Shingo. ****** Usagi was happy, tired, but happy. She turned the final corner and found Chibi-Usa waiting for her outside the school entrance. As soon as Chibi-Usa saw her, she yelled happily, "Onee-san!" and darted forward. When she got to Usagi, she hugged her legs nearly tripping Usagi in the process. Chibi-Usa was acting the way she had always dreamed. "I'm glad to see you too, Imouto," Usagi said elated, "I'm going to take you home and then I'm going over to Rei's." "Onee-san, can I come too?" Chibi-Usa asked looking hopeful. "Gomen, Chibi-Usa-chan, but I think it would be better if I went by myself." "I'll be good! I promise!" Chibi-Usa said determinedly. Usagi thought, "I said iie, Chibi-Usa-chan," seeing the dejected look Usagi continued, "but if you're good today, I'll take you to the park tomorrow, okay?" "Hai! I'll be extra good." Taking Usagi's hand they started their walk home. ****** Chibi-Usa sat on Shingo's bed waiting for him to come in. She looked at the bucket above the door. Chibi-Usa thought, She chuckled with the thought. As if that thought was a cue Shingo walked into his room. The door opened the bucket fell and spilled its contents over Shingo. Chibi-Usa chuckled again and took out the new camera she'd also gotten today. She snapped a picture of this spectacle. "What the HELL's going on in here?!" Shingo demanded trying to get the large bucket off his head, "And what is that smell!?!?" This just caused Chibi-Usa to laugh harder. When Shingo lifted the bucket off his head the look he sent Chibi-Usa would have killed. At that instant, Chibi-Usa snapped another picture of the outraged Shingo. It became too hilarious so Chibi-Usa rolled around on the floor. The initial shock wore off and Shingo started to head toward Chibi-Usa. Seeing him, she took off running. "Get back here, spore!" "Hey, do it again, I need some more pictures!" Chibi-Usa shot back as she scampered through the kitchen and ran out the door. Shingo came down the steps and neatly slid across the kitchen floor as soon as his wet slippers made contact with the freshly waxed floor. Giving a yelp Shingo tried to remain upright but only managed to fall heavily to the floor. "What's going on?!?" Ikuko demanded as she came down the stairs and saw Shingo scrambling to get up while sputtering curses. "She... she..." Shingo managed to haul himself up and started towards the door. "`She' who? Usagi?" Ikuko questioned, "No that SPORE, Chibi-Usa!" Chibi-Usa was long gone. She had sped out of the kitchen and ducked around the side of the house figuring that any pursuer would go out into the street to look. Chibi-Usa thought. Slipping over the wall into the neighbor's yard Chibi-Usa considered her next move, it had to be big... Unseen by fleeing Chibi-Usa, Usagi came walking into the yard with Chibi-Usa chattering about her pleasant school day. They entered into the house to a rather curious scene. "There you are!" Shingo yelled and lunged to grapple Chibi-Usa. The little girl in fright ducked behind Usagi and wrinkled her nose, She made a face at the horrible smell. Usagi was rather blunt, "Shingo, you stink! Get away from us!" Taking this opportunity Usagi added, "On the other hand, considering what you usually smell like, it's an improvement." Usagi began to laugh until her mother's gaze caused her to think better of it. "That wasn't very nice, Onee-san," came the small voice of Chibi-Usa poking her head out from behind Usagi. "She's the one that did this to me!" Shingo howled and tried to go after Chibi-Usa. Usagi was in his way though so he only managed to collide with his sister. "Chibi-Usa, is this true?" Ikuko asked sternly crossing her arms. "Iie!" Chibi-Usa said horrified, "I would never do anything to Shingo-kun like that..." Chibi-Usa blinked, "Yeah I walked her home from school," Usagi explained, "Honest Mom, I don't think she'd do something like this." Ikuko considered Usagi's words for a few moments before looking directly at Chibi-Usa, "Chibi-Usa, I'm only going to ask you once more... did you do this?" "Iie, Ikuko-mama." "All right, I believe you since you were honest with me yesterday." Turning to Shingo, Ikuko said, "You, young man, will be doing a large amount of cleaning... and explaining." ****** "Who on earth bought you that!?!" Mamoru demanded. He was staring at Chibi-Usa in a dress not very appropriate for a child of her age. In fact, it wouldn't be appropriate for even someone Usagi's age. "Like it, Mamo-chan?" Chibi-Usa asked while batting her eyebrows, "I picked it out especially for you." "Chibi-Usa..." "My name's USAGI!" Chibi-Usa yelled, "That BAKA ODANGO ATAMA is Chibi-Usa!" Recovering herself Chibi-Usa said, "Would you take me out to dinner?" Mamoru opened his mouth and closed it again, "Only if you put on something more befitting your age." The glare he got back was loaded with venom. "As a princess I am entitled to wear whatever I want! Now Mamo-chan, I'm hungry... you wouldn't want to disappoint me, now would you?!?" Picking up his keys he stalked out of his apartment with Chibi-Usa in tow. ****** Usagi, smugly sat down at her place in Rei's room. The others were sending covert looks of disbelief. Rei was openly trying to deny the obvious, Usagi was on time for a Senshi meeting. "I have something to tell you guys!" Usagi crowed gleefully. "Usagi, I am not interested in your love life!" Rei yelled and then muttered, "What little one you have..." Minako snickered. Usagi ignored the barb, she was riding high on being Onee-san and had valuable information to share. Nothing was going to spoil this moment for her. Giving one huge smug look that practically shouted, "I know something you don't and I ain't telling!" Usagi launched into telling the Senshi what Chibi-Usa had told her earlier. They were all speechless; Rei was flabbergasted. Usagi simply sat smugly holding the other secret to herself. ****** Chibi-Usa slipped out of Usagi's room snickering to herself. With a motion she changed Luna-P back from the power screwdriver to its regular form. She had just removed every screw in Usagi's room. She would have stayed longer but the night was young, and so was she. Heading for the steps she noted the bothersome grownups were downstairs so she shinned out her window using Luna-P to guide her descent and slipped away into the night. Tokyo was in for a night. Usagi trudged up the steps, Chibi-Usa skipping behind her. Chibi-Usa was off to bed and Usagi was going to finish up her homework. Chibi-Usa had insisted on doing homework rather than going to the arcade and that annoyed Usagi considerably, The first indications that something was wrong was when Usagi went to open the door and it fell inwards. Usagi blinked for a minute and then stepped inside turning on the light, what she saw was horrific, at least to her. Every piece of furniture was dismantled and spread around the room. A large pile of what looked like screws sitting in the middle of the floor. Her first instinct was to blame it on Chibi-Usa, whirling around she glared at the little girl who was looking rather confused. Usagi considered it carefully, she had to ask though just to make sure. "Imouto?" Chibi-Usa raised her head and looked at Usagi with a bit of worry. Chibi-Usa realized. "Hai?" came the small reply. "Imouto... did you... did you do this?" Usagi tried to put it as gently as possible. Chibi-Usa at first felt hurt by the question and then thought about what happened that afternoon. "Iie! I didn't do this Onee-san, honest." Reassured, Usagi excused herself and stalked across to her brother's room. Pounding on the door she yelled, "Shingo!" He put his head out and glared at his sister, she glared back while saying, "Shingo, just because you were embarrassed to admit that maybe you were planning that joke and it backfired, doesn't mean you should try and get MY IMOUTO into trouble with HER ONEE-SAN!" Shingo snickered, just the thought of what Usagi was saying sounded odd. Turning around he said, "Yeah whatever!" and closed the door. That settled it for Usagi. Obviously Shingo was the culprit. Her imouto was as innocent as she appeared. Fuming Usagi headed down the stairs with a rather confused Chibi-Usa following along with one thought running through her mind, ****** "I'm glad to see you dressed according to your age," Mamoru commented to Chibi-Usa who was wearing a blue sailor fuku. Usagi was dropping her off at the door after their enjoyable afternoon at the park. Chibi-Usa looked confusedly at Mamoru who continued speaking to Usagi, "Usagi-san, I want to talk to you about that dress you bought her." "Nani?!?" Usagi questioned. "Don't play stupid with me, the red dress you bought Chibi-Usa... er Usagi and sent her over here in last night." Usagi gave Mamoru a pitying look before saying, "You must be working too hard." "Onee-san didn't buy me a dress..." Chibi-Usa put in, "Were you going to surprise me, Onee-san?" "Onee-san? What happened to `baka odango atama'?" Usagi ignored the comment. Obviously Mamoru was distraught because he broke up with her. Instead she turned to Chibi-Usa, "Imouto... Mamoru-kun will drop you home, okay?" "Hai." With that Usagi bent down, hugged her, and kissed Chibi-Usa's forehead. "Be good." "Hai, Onee-san," Chibi-Usa said while skipping passed the rather confused Mamoru. ****** Chibi-Usa was in a foul mood. Ikuko had caught her trying to sneak out and had ordered her up to her room immediately to put on more proper clothing. The only thing she could stomach, barely, was a blue sailor fuku. Putting it on she stomped down the stairs and into the kitchen. "There that's much better," Ikuko said. "Shove it!" Chibi-Usa retorted. "Pardon me, young lady?" Ikuko said incredulously. "You'll call me `Your Highness'. I'm a princess. I should be able to dress the way I like." "Not while living under my roof you don't," Ikuko replied advancing towards the child. "What's gotten into you?" She hadn't seen Chibi-Usa come in but Usagi wasn't with her so she figured Usagi maybe wanted some time alone. She must have dropped Chibi-Usa off at home. Keeping a comfortable distance between herself and Ikuko, Chibi-Usa scoffed, "A commoner like you wouldn't dare lay a hand on me!" Ikuko was still controlling her temper with difficulty but continued after the child. What Chibi-Usa did next startled her. With blinding speed Chibi-Usa grabbed two eggs that were on the counter and flung them. They hit their mark and splattered Ikuko. Chibi-Usa thought. Usagi had slipped down to the arcade, but now was entering the front yard. As she approached the house she could hear her mother's voice furiously demanding something. Usagi walked into the house. What she walked into was a battlezone. Ikuko was covered with food and was chasing a rather foul mouthed Chibi-Usa. "Nani?!?!" Usagi asked was promptly pelted with two eggs. "Imouto!" she barked. "I ain't your damn sister, `Chibi-Usa'!" Chibi-Usa yelled and launched another egg at Usagi who had the good sense to duck. With a snarl Ikuko lunged for Chibi-Usa but misjudged the distance and skidded across the floor. Chibi-Usa made a break for the door but was brought up short by Usagi who caught her arm. "And just where do you think you're going?" Growling furiously Chibi-Usa lashed out and kicked Usagi. However it was in vain because Ikuko had recovered and taken over for Usagi. She now had the child by the scruff of her fuku. "Now, what is going on with you?!" Ikuko demanded. "Yeah, I'd like to know that too!" a confused Usagi said. "Bite me, `Chibi-Usa'!" Chibi-Usa said. "Young lady!" Ikuko's voice was stern, "You will show the proper respect." Chibi-Usa thought this over for a moment before bowing her head, Chibi-Usa thought. She was intelligent enough to know that she first had to get Ikuko to let her go before making a break for it. "Hai, Ikuko-mama," Chibi-Usa said in her best terrified voice. Ikuko gave a stern look at Chibi-Usa and then let go of the child. As soon as she had moved a step away Chibi-Usa called out, "Luna-P, smoke cloud!" In an instant both Ikuko and Usagi were blinded by a smoke cloud and Chibi-Usa slipped out the door. Running as fast as she could she took her previous night's escape route over the neighbor's fence and out of sight. Chibi-Usa who had just spent and enjoyable afternoon with Mamoru had been dropped off. She was skipping toward the house when a rather irate Ikuko stormed out of the house with and none-too-pleased Usagi trailing close behind. "Ikuko-mama? Onee-san?" Chibi-Usa questioned softly. She took a step back as both sets of stern gazes locked onto her. "Young Lady," Ikuko said barely controlling her anger, "Get into this house and upstairs THIS INSTANT!" Ikuko emphasized her point by jabbing her finger toward the door. Part 5: Mirror Chibi-Usa stood there in shock for a few seconds, She tried to reason out what nasty trick Shingo pulled and blamed on her. Then looking back at Usagi and Ikuko, she felt her stomach start to churn. Catching a movement she saw Ikuko start towards her. Ducking her head Chibi-Usa ran by Ikuko and into the house. Chibi-Usa gasped as she came into the kitchen. Whirling around Chibi-Usa pleaded, "Ikuko-mama, I didn't do it... Shingo's trying to get me in trouble. You believe me, don't you, Onee-san?" Usagi stood mute. "Chibi-Usa, don't even try to talk your way out of this... NOW UP TO YOUR ROOM!" Ikuko ordered. She noted that Usagi was just looking at her sternly. Her stomach continued to churn. With tears welling up in her eyes Chibi-Usa made her way slowly upstairs. Her sniffling could be heard as she climbed the stairs and entered her room. ****** Usagi thought while grimacing, Usagi emphasized that mental thought by thumping the countertop. Ikuko looked at her and misinterpreted the physical motion. "Don't you worry, Usagi-chan... We both know it was her and she isn't going to slip out of being spanked." "Mom... ah, could I talk to her first, please?" Ikuko narrowed her eyes and looked at her daughter questioningly. "She's going to be scared of you. Maybe if I ask her... well... Chibi-Usa would talk more..." Ikuko considered it for a few moments before saying, "All right Usagi... but you're not to make her think she's got away with anything. She was very bad today." Running up to her room Usagi changed her dirty blouse and the slid down the hall to Chibi-Usa's room. ****** Chibi-Usa was streaming tears. she thought as she sat on her bed. Just then she heard the door quietly open. Looking up Chibi-Usa saw that it was Usagi. The older girl had a pensive look on her face. Slipping into the room she closed the door and quietly walked over to the bed. Sitting down she looked at Chibi-Usa for a few seconds before lifting her into a hug. "Chibi-Usa-chan... Imouto... why did you do that?" Usagi asked softly while hugging the still crying little girl, "I thought you were with Mamoru-kun at his apartment... Were you mad at me? I know you wanted to go to Rei's with me the other day." Chibi-Usa was quiet for a couple of minutes before saying, "But Usagi-san, I didn't do it... Mamo-chan dropped me off just when Ikuko-mama and you came outside. I think Shingo-kun did it to get me into trouble. I don't know why he's being so mean." She buried her head into Usagi's shoulder and continued to cry. Usagi wrinkled her forehead slightly and said, "Imouto, how can you lie like that and tell me you didn't do it when you hit me with two eggs?" Chibi-Usa's face went through a mixture of emotions. Sliding from confusion to fear and back. Shaking her head Chibi-Usa said confused, "Iie Onee-san, I would never do that to you... I love you. I told Ikuko-mama the truth... Won't you believe me... Please?" she begged sobbing. Usagi thought, Rubbing Chibi-Usa's back Usagi steeled herself before saying flatly, "Imouto... I know what I saw. I know what YOU did. You WERE in the kitchen." Chibi-Usa started to cry harder. She didn't understand what was going on. Everything was very confusing to her. After a bit she stopped crying and sniffled, Chibi-Usa snuggled a little deeper into Usagi before whispering out, "Onee-san... wha... what's Ikuko-mama going to do?" "That all depends..." Both girls jumped at the sound of Ikuko's voice in the doorway. Chibi-Usa slid off of Usagi's lap and walked over to Ikuko. "Ikuko-mama... Gomen nasai! Gomen nasai!" She sniffled, "I don't remember what I did but I believe it when Onee-san says I was bad." She stood with her head bowed waiting for Ikuko to do something. Usagi looked to her mother pleading with her eyes to be lenient with the child. Ikuko considered for a moment and made her decision, "I'm going to ground you, Chibi-Usa... for three days... that means no TV... Only school and here. You don't go anywhere else. Also, you have to go downstairs and clean up the mess you made in the kitchen," Ikuko said, "And this will be the last time I go easy on you, young lady... I think you're old enough to know what's right and wrong. Do you understand?" "Hai," Chibi-Usa softly answered bowing her head once more. With that Ikuko walked out of the room. ****** "Baka commoners!" Chibi-Usa growled as she walked down the street. "I have to get out of this disgusting outfit!!!" She was still wearing her blue sailor fuku and not enjoying it one bit. Another thought of more importance struck her, Seeing a small park Chibi-Usa entered and, making sure the bench was as clean as possible. perched on it. She sat there considering the possible locations. "Hello Chibi-Usa-chan, what are you doing here all by yourself?" a cheerful voice behind her said. Chibi-Usa jumped up and recognized it was Minako. "What did you call me?" Chibi-Usa snarled out. "Chibi-Usa-chan," Minako repeated now somewhat confused over the her reaction to it. "My name's NOT `CHIBI-USA'!!! It's `USAGI'!!!! That blundering baka Odango Atama is `CHIBI-USA'!!!" Chibi-Usa glared at the shocked Minako defying her to contradict that statement. "Umm... ah... Okay `Usagi-chan', what are you doing here all by yourself?" Chibi-Usa narrowed her eyes and squinted at Minako for several seconds before saying, "As a princess I have the right to go where I wish..." Then an idea formed and Chibi-Usa grinned subtlety, "Minako, you'd like to take me to your place for dinner, wouldn't you?" "I would?!?" Minako asked. "Sure. You're not that baka, are you? You're more intelligent than `Chibi-Usa' is, aren't you?" she said sarcastically. Minako was getting confused and just stood there blankly looking at Chibi-Usa. After a moment, Minako replied, "Sure I'd like to have you over to my place for supper." "Excellent! You may lead the way." Chibi-Usa hopped off the bench and followed Minako out of the park and down the street. ****** "I'll get it, Mom!" Usagi called and dashed for the phone, "Moshi moshi... Minako-chan... what's... What?!?!" This last bit brought curious looks from the rest of the family. Noticing this Usagi lowered her voice and continued, "Minako-chan, you've got be wrong... Well iie, she was in her room and I was doing my homework... Yeah but... I don't think... Hai, ja ne." Hanging up the phone Usagi stood there for a couple of minutes looking off into space. "What was that all about, dear?" Ikuko asked. This startled Usagi, "Ah... that was Minako. She was just telling me about her unexpected house guest she had." "What about HER house guest?" "Ah they... they got tickets to a show and... want to know if Chibi-Usa-chan and I wanted to go but I said we couldn't." Usagi knew by the look on Ikuko's face that her mother wasn't buying the story but to her surprise Ikuko didn't say anything else about the story. Instead she turned to Chibi-Usa who was sitting quietly at the table and said, "I think maybe you should go to bed early tonight." Shingo snickered and Ikuko turned to him, "Would YOU like to go to bed early as well?" Shingo became solemn and shook his head no. Chibi-Usa hopped out of the chair, said good night, and started up the stairs. She, absorbed in her thoughts, didn't hear Usagi following behind her. Chibi-Usa was about to open her bedroom door when Usagi asked, "Imouto, aren't you going to sleep in my room?" Chibi-Usa turned around and looked at Usagi, "Onee-san, you'd still let me? Even when I was bad?" "Hai," Usagi said. A smile spread across Chibi-Usa's face and she walked over and hugged Usagi's legs. Chibi-Usa slipped under the covers and listened to Usagi read her a bedtime story which improved her spirits ten fold. Something was bothering Usagi so after putting the book away she asked, "Imouto, did you want me to call you `Usagi'?" Chibi-Usa looked at her rather confused so Usagi continued, "You told Mamoru that your name was `Usagi' and in the kitchen you called me `Chibi-Usa'." Chibi-Usa couldn't help but giggle at the question. "Iie Onee-san, I WANT to be called `Chibi-Usa'. You're my onee-san and YOUR name is `Usagi'. It's a great honor for me to share your name. I love you very much." she giggled to herself. "I love you too... Ah Imouto... in the kitchen you also said you were a princess, are you?" Usagi's curiosity had to be satisfied. Chibi-Usa whimpered slightly before saying, "I let that slip?" "You did say you were," Usagi said while stroking her hair, "I just wanted to know if it was true, Imouto." Chibi-Usa was silent for a long time before saying softly, "Hai, it is true." Usagi sensing that Chibi-Usa didn't want to talk about it let the subject drop and said, "Good night, Imouto." Usagi thought, ****** The next day after school found Rei walking down the street. She was on her way over to the Crown Arcade when she noticed Chibi-Usa coming towards her in a blue dress that was just within decency codes. She couldn't believe it. Then a wry smile spread across her face, Rei noticed that Chibi-Usa was alone and headed for Mamoru's. Chibi-Usa wanted to see what his reaction would be to her new dress. Rei started to follow but suddenly felt an odd sensation. Stopping she pondering the situation, Ducking into an alleyway she called the others, "I think the enemy is after Chibi-Usa again." "Nani?!? Where?!?! I just walked her home from school!" came Usagi panicked voice. "Is she with you?" Ami asked. "Uh...." There was silence for several seconds while Usagi quickly checked before she said, "Iie and she isn't in her room. Damn!" Rei blinked. After telling the others where she was, she transformed into Sailor Mars. She then tried to find Chibi-Usa once again but the little girl had disappeared. ****** "Onee-san?" Chibi-Usa called. She had just gone to the bathroom but Usagi seemed to have left in a hurry for some reason. ****** Mamoru felt Usagi transform but before he could leave to help he heard a knock on his door. Answering it he saw Chibi-Usa in yet another inappropriate dress. "Konnichiwa Mamo-chan!" Chibi-Usa beamed, "I'm glad to see you're ready to take me out on a date but don't you think it's a little early?" "Ah Chibi-Usa..." "USAGI!" she corrected. "Right..." Mamoru looked confused for several seconds before saying, "What happened to Chibi-Usa-chan?" "I don't know why you care about that baka!" Bouncing Luna-P, she called, "Luna-P HENGE!" changing Luna-P into an umbrella. Mamoru wondered how Chibi-Usa was able to do such a trick. Before he could ask, she started to hypnotize Mamoru saying over and over, "You love me, Mamo-chan... You want to be my boyfriend, don't you?" Mamoru's mind struggled for awhile before he was overwhelmed by Luna-P's hypnotic powers. Smiling down at Chibi-Usa he said, "Usako, what do you say I treat you to a big dinner?" Nodding vigorously Chibi-Usa stepped out of the doorway and let Mamoru lead the way down the hall, ****** "Usagi, I'm telling you I saw her in a dress that would make ANY woman blush. I'm surprised it isn't against the law!" Rei fumed. Back in their civilian forms the girls were discussing the recent events. "Rei-chan, I saw her go upstairs... I figured she wanted to do her homework with me so I followed." Usagi shrugged, "When I checked she wasn't in her room and she wasn't downstairs..." "You were actually going to do homework, Odango Atama?" Rei asked. She looked like she didn't believe Usagi at all. Before a tongue war could start Ami interrupted, "Has she been acting strangely lately, Usagi-chan?" Usagi froze for a moment before saying, "Iie... Not that I could figure out. We had a blow up yesterday... and Minako-chan supposedly had her stuffed animals destroyed by Chibi-Usa..." "You don't believe me?" Minako whined. Makoto chimed in, "Well... it could have been Artemis, Minako-chan. I mean... he's always been jealous of them." Minako stuck her tongue out while Usagi snickered; they didn't normally get a chance to tease Minako. "Minna-san, I need to get back home," Usagi said, "Mom will start asking questions if I'm late and I've had my fill of questions for awhile." ****** The next day Chibi-Usa spotted Luna and smiled evily.