for the glory or the money. She was *really* a writer. She wrote books
made for everyone. They were the books that gave people hope, a reason.
She made people want to live each day, waiting for their own peace of
happiness that every character in her books eventually found. Those
characters went through everything, but in the end, when it seemed all
was lost, fate came through.
She was lost in thought. The paper in front of her was covered
in the various jumbles of thoughts that had spontaneously jumped into
her mind. Throwing the pen down frustradedly, she rose from the kitchen
table and poured herself a cup of cocoa. She rubbed her finger in a
clock-wise direction on the brim of the cup and whispered silently,
'cool the fire.' Taking a long sip, she smiled as it was at the perfect
temperature.
Usagi took another look at the note-book laying half-open on
her table. Shaking her head furiously, she walked straight past it into
the living room and sat in her favorite chair. Her body relaxed and she
closed her eyes while imagining a blank image in her mind. Blocking out
all around her, she found the whiteness of the image slowly changing,
melting into a blur of colors. The mass straightened, revealing a pair
of young people. They were standing at a beach's edge, the girl crying.
He made a move to comfort her, but she merely pushed him away and began
running away.
Her eyes opened abrubtly as she shot up in the chair. Looking
around herself, she sighed, finding herself back in her home. She stood
wearily and picked up the small lump of black fur that lay on her white
carpeting.
"I've got to stop doing this don't I Luna?" she directed at the
ball. It merely lifted it's tail a few inches, then let it drop lazily
back to the floor.
Usagi laughed at her own childishness. 'I'm talking to a cat.
What's next?'
Her slippered feet made only a quiet shuffle of noise as she
walked the stairs to her room. She rubbed her eyes tiredly and opened
the door. She plopped down and only got the covers half-way up before
she fell into a deep, dreamless state of unconciouness.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Dancing. She was dancing freely, streams of color flowing from
her body and splattering the bleack blackness that was surrounding her.
She spinned, the colors surrounding her in a tornado of beauty. When
she stopped, she wasn't the regular her any more. She was flawless. Her
hair smooth, the curls bouncing happily around her shoulders. Her eyes,
a hazel-gold, wise and all knowing. Her skin radiated the life that
inhabitated her soul, filling the world around her with love.
Suddenly, she felt a warm smudge on her cheek. Lifting a finger
to the spot, she jumped when the feeling prodded on. Her eyes searched
the surroundings frantically, her brain screaming when they found
nothing there.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Her eyelids opened of their own volition, being met with those
of midnight blue. She half-smiled as she lifted a hand and proceeded to
pet the purring cat right behind the ears. It purred louder, and rubbed
back against her hand. Luna jumped away and Usagi succombed without
complaint.
The sunlight poured in radiantly through the sliding glass
doors of her porch. She walked up to them and squinted her eyes as she
proceeded to scan the horizen. The world was a shining orb of white as
the sun made the three feet of snow glisten magically.
Turning away from the blinding sight, she went to the bathroom
and began her usual routine. Take a shower, brush her teeth, go to the
bathroom, wash hands, brush hair, get dressed. The same thing over and
over again, the repition of it becoming mechanical.
She pulled the thick woolen sweater over her head, adjusting a
sleeve that had bunched up uncomfortably. She reached behind her head
and tugged gently on golden chain that protruded from the collar. She
released it and the four feet of hair dropped neatly down her 5'7"
frame.
Luna was sitting patiently next to her empty food bowl when
Usagi came down the stairs. She reached for the wet food with one hand,
and lifted the dry food with the other. After filling the bowl half-way
with the dry stuff, she poured the wet food over it, pushing away the
hungry cat unsuccessfully as she did so.
Usagi stood and put the food away, clasping her nose closed at
the awful smell of the small can. She threw it away and went on to the
next task of making her own breakfast. She took the small package from
the cardboard box and poured it's contants into a bowl. She poured in
a bit of water and placed it in the microwave. After closing hte door,
she went to get the paper left on the porch.
She picked it up and pulled it out of the blue, plastic
covering. Opening it to the front page, she turned a deep, angry shade
of red at the headline. 'Chiba Mamoru Named Best New Author Of The Year
By Tokyo International Publishing.' She folded it back neatly, then
used all the strength she could muster to quickly shred it into a
million different pieces. The scraps of paper floated down to the cold
cement. Except one, that landed on her head. She furiously grabbed at
it and yelled out frustradly at Mamoru's smiling face.
Turning on heel, she walked back into her house and slammed the
door. Usagi stormed angrily to the kitchen to grab her purse, and flew
just as angrily out the door again, leaving a perplexed cat and a cold
bowl of cream of wheat.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
The brunette sat straight in her chair, filing multitudes of
paperwork into a cabinet. Then she heard the sound. That sound was of
her boss, Tsukino Usagi, ready to explode. The blond writer came
bursting through the front doors of her office, her face set in a look
that could only be described as true anguish. Either that, or just
really, REALLY pissed off.
"Read the paper huh?" the short haired girl asked calmly at the
volcano that was her boss.
"Oh yeah, you bet I did. That jackass, that asshole, that self-
absorbed, impertinent bastard. I'll show him." Usagi steamed violently.
Usagi's usually bright blue eyes shone with a bright blue fire
that could make you turn to ashes in one glance.
"Usagi-chan, why don't you get some coffee. It'll calm your
nerves," stated the brunette soothingly. She reached out and lightly
patted the clenched hand that gripped menacingly to the desk.
"Your right Naru. I'll get some coffee." After a long sigh
from the blond, she walked into her office.
Usagi looked into her coffee cup, the brown liquid slightly
lighter from the package of cream she'd just poured into it. Her
swizzle stick made the concoction mix in a spiral clash of dark and
light. She rolled her eyes upward as she gulped down the entire mug in
one sip. The caffeine immediatly began to eat at her brain, making her
the alert, perky person she usually was.
She re-emerged from the office and took a glance at her
secretary. Usagi walked smoothly from the doorway and sat at the edge
of the desk.
"So what's on the agenda for today Naru?" she asked, only half
interested in the real answer.
"Well," she began, dragging her voice on the word. "It looks
like a reporter from Tokyo Today is coming at 10. At 1, your agent is
coming in, and..." she silently ended.
"And what?" Usagi asked suspiciously, raising an eyebrow in the
direction of her usually direct Naru.
Naru took a quick look at Usagi, then defeatedly lowered her
head to the schedule in front of her.
"And at 3, Chiba Mamoru is coming in." Glancing at her boss,
she was immediatly unnerved at the lack of movement coming from her.
Usagi just sat there, blinking only a few times before the color of
earlier returned.
"WHY THE HELL IS THAT ARROGANT EXCUSE OF A MAN COMING INTO *MY*
OFFICE?!" she screamed at the innocent Naru.
"I don't know. He just called before you came in and asked if
he could possibly see you today."
"And you gave him an appointement?! What were you thinking! You
know how much I despise that man."
Naru gazed sadly at the floor.
"Gomen nasai, Usagi-chan. I was just doing my job."
Usagi turned her head towards her forlorn secretary and smiled.
Reaching over, she took the younger girls hand in her own.
"Don't worry about it Naru. Now I have an excuse for shopping
during lunch," she joked.
The brunette smiled and joined in the laughter.
"Whenever the reporter get's here, send him in."
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Usagi took a sip from her Cherry Coke as she brushed her hand
along the material of a snazzy looking outfit. Deciding that the collar
was too high, she moved onto a nearby rack of dresses. She gripped the
material of one dress tightly as her thoughts wandered back to her
meeting with the reporter. Turns out he only wanted to know what she
felt about Chiba Mamoru. She'd lied to the man of course, cause she
could hardly tell him that she thought Chiba Mamoru was a plauge among
the everyone on the planet. That would not go over well.
A black dress caught her eye, and she pulled it from the rack.
It went down to her knees and had a very sexy v-neckline. The material
was very soft and the look was breath taking. Not even caring to look
at the price, she walked over to the cashier and bought it.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Usagi entered her office at around 12:45. Umino was crouching
once again over a mountain-load of paperwork. Picking up her messages,
she walked into her office and closed the door. The messages weren't
that important. Her mom wanting to visit. Her sister asking for money.
Her brother wanting to meet for dinner.
Tossing the pieces of paper nonchalantly on her desk, she shut
the shades, and unbuttoned her blouse. After discarding both her shirt
and skirt, she slid on the black dress. The material clung tightly to
her figure and tickled her skin. She put the other outfit into the bag
and shoved it into a nearby closet.
She sat in her chair and pulled out a mirror. She quickly
brushed on some light blush, and put on some light blue eyeshadow, then
adding some darker blue eyeshadow above it. The affect brought out her
eyes and lengthened her eyelashes.
A quiet knock was heard from her door and Usagi jerked up her
head to see who it was. Naru's head peeked around from the door.
"Ms. Tsukino, your agent is here."
Usagi merely nodded her head and watched the door open fully,
revealing the dashing blond haired man that was her agent. He sat in
the chair opposite her and smiled a dazzling white, toothy smile in her
direction. She smiled back flirtaciously brushed a stray strand of
blond hair back behind her ear.
They both listened to the sound outside the door, neither
moving until they heard Naru returning to her work. Standing simultan-
eously, he leaned over the desk and pulled her onto it, know putting
her in the position of standing on her knees.
Their lips came together passionatly, each clinging to the
other. Her hands ruffled his hair while his roamed freely along the
expanse of her back. Need for air broke their mouths apart, both
breathing heavily.
"I missed you," he whispered sweetly into her ear, making the
hairs on the back of her neck stand on end.
"Not as much as I missed you," she replied, nipping his ear.
He sat back down on the chair, bringing her to sit on his lap.
She rested her head on his shoulder, her left hand playing with his
tie.
"How's the new book coming along?" he asked after a few
minutes. She shrugged and lifted her head so that they were now eye to
eye.
"I got an idea last night while I was meditating. I got really
strong feelings from it. I'm going to start on it when I get home."
"That's good. You really need to get at it. Especially with
that Chiba guy being named best new author."
"Don't remind me," she answered gruffly. He squeezed her
tightly and kissed the top of her head. "Don't worry love. With your
talent, you'll blow that guy out forever."
She smiled and hugged him back, reveling in the feel of being
in his arms again.
Their relationship had started when they'd first met. They'd
decided to meet at a resturant and had hit it off. Ever since then,
she'd write, he'd give it to the publisher, and they'd celebrate it
together.
"I really needed to hear that."
He began to stand, as did she.
"That's why I said it silly." She plastered a pout on her face.
He chuckled lightly and kissed her once more.
"I'll be in touch soon. Hurry with that story though would
you?"
She nodded and waved to him as he left the office. She returned
to her desk and turned on her laptop. Opening up WordPad, she wracked
her brain for what she'd seen last night. The image appeared clearly
and she began to write.
Usagi looked from the screen to her clock and almost fainted.
It was 2:56. She looked at the clock again and shook her head. She was
totally dumbfounded that she'd spent almost two hours writing. A little
pound of pain in her temple told her otherwise.
She stepped out of her office and told Naru she'd be right
back. Then, she walked out to the hall and to the end, where the fridge
was located. Scanning over the contents quickly, she decided on some
strawberry yogurt and some Evian(water).
When she returned, she found that Naru standing with her back
to Usagi, shifting uncomfortably from one foot to the other.
"Naru, daijobu?"
Naru spun around quickly and sighed in relief.
"He's here Usagi-chan. He's in your office waiting for you
right now."
Usagi nodded and walked over to the door. After giving herself
a quick mental pep talk, she opened the door. She saw him holding a
picture on her desk and smiling amusedly. She forced a cough and took
it away from him.
"Please sit," she said in the cheeriest tone she could muster.
He did so and lifted his feet to rest them on her desk. His expensive
leather shoes perched comfortably on the desk as he put his hands
behind his head.
"Konnichiwa, Tsukino-san. How's your new book?" he asked cooly.
She tilted her head and smiled, turning the laptop screen to face him.
He nodded and returned his gaze to her eyes.
"Well Chiba-san, congradulations on the award. It's quite an
honor. You should be proud."
"Eh," he stated as he tilted his head.
It took all of Usagi's self-control not to jump over her desk
and just wring the man's neck. How could he just respond so uncaringly
about something like that? she thought. Shaking away the thought, she
stared at him once again.
"What brings you here anyway, Chiba-san?" she asked, growing
more and more impatient with the baka.
"Well, I suppose I just wanted to get to know a fellow writer
better. Would you like to go for dinner or something so we could talk
on more comfortable terms?"
"Certainly," she answered pleasantly. On the inside, Usagi was
seething and on the brink of insanity. He had just compared a writer
like her to a writer like *HIM*? It was crazy just to think about them
being on equal planes.
"Great. My limo'll pick you up at 7," he told her as he stood
up and headed to the door.
"Wait, don't you need to know where I live?" He merely shook
his head and left.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Her reflection in the mirror looked dazzling, a figure of
elegance. But unfortunatly, that's not what she saw. She licked a
finger between her lips and twirled a lock of hair making it even
bouncier than the two hours worth of curling had made it. Playing with
it a little bit, she smiled when she pulled it all the way out, then
released it. The curly lock bounced back gently, grazing her blush
covered cheek.
She turned away from the object and fiddled with a hem in her
dress that had begun to unravel. Becoming frustrated that she couldn't
simply pull it out, she took her key off the counter and rubbed it
against the string until it finally came off.
Usagi stood to her full size and rubbed the area on her lower
back that had been giving her problems since that roller blading
accident. She'd been going for an outside ride when a rock from the
nearby construction had found it's way between her wheels. In the end,
she fell hard onto the cement, and chipped her tailbone.
The pain eventually subsided and she went into her room,
scavenging the closet floor for the elusive, strappy shoes. Her fingers
roamed blindly on the dark carpeted floor when the music of her
doorbell began to ring out.
"Coming," she yelled as she scrambled to her feet and flew down
the stairs.
Upon opening the door, she was met with a man who seemed to be
around her age herself, waiting patiently in a black formal tuxedo.
"You must be Ms. Tsukino."
"Yes I am. Are you Mr.Chiba's chaffeour?"
He nodded and told her he'd wait in the limo, which was parked
conveniantly at the end of her walkway.
"Certainly. Just give me a few moments," she began, but rolled
her eyes when she saw that he'd already walked back towards the car.
'Just like his boss' she thought disdainfully.
Returning to the search for the shoes, she was over joyed when
she saw them strewn neatly at the end of her bed. 'I must have put them
their while I was getting dressed.' She shoved her feet into the shoes.
She walked down to the awaiting limo, and was surprised when
the young man popped out from the driver's seat to open her door. She
smiled appreciatingly and sat down. Withing a few moments, he was also
strapping himself in and beginning the car.
The ride to the resturant was quiet except for the tiny sound
of elevator music that played annoyingly from overhead. She was still
completely stupified with just why she was here. By that meaning, *why*
was she in Chiba Mamoru's limo, driving to have dinner with *him*. Her
questions were left unanwsered though as they pulled into the driveway
of a *very* expensive looking resturant.
Her door was open by an American looking man, with an obviously
fake french mustache. Cheesy. VERY cheesy. She just slapped on a smile
and walked past him to the ma�tre d', who didn't do the French much
more justice than the other guy.
"Welcome madam' to Chez' Paris. I am Donald. And what is your
name?" Usagi bit her bottom lip hard to prevent bursting with laughter.
"My name is Tsukino Usagi. I'm supposed be meeting with Mr.-"
"Yes, Mr.Chiba. Right this way ma'am."
She smiled in spite of herself at his antics and followed him
to a booth in the far corner of the room. She couldn't really see him
from this distance, but as they got closer, she could make out his
features in the light of the candles.
The ma�tre d' motioned for her to sit, and she obediantly
complied. Mamoru hardly looked up when she arrived, for he was fully
expecting her to look worn and boring like the others writer's he'd
seen to meeting with.
"Would you like anything to drink? Or perhaps an appetizer?"
"I'll have a... Arbor Mist please," Usagi replied politely.
"Give me a red wine. The most expensive you've got."
The servers eyes got a sparkle in them and those words and he
quickly whisked away. As Mamoru turned his gaze towards where she now
sat, he held back a gasp at the sight of her. The candlelight was
making her skin and hair glow in a mysteriously sensual way. Her eyes
were glittering orbs of sky that looked down into her lap. Those blue
orbs lifted to his and time stopped for the two of them as their
surroundings got kind of hazy. They sat their for more than what was
customary just staring deeply into the other's gaze, comtemplating the
readings they both got from the other.
The ma�tre d' had been standing their for over five minutes,
poking either person in the arm repeatedly with no response. Becoming
extremely frustrated, he picked up an ice cube from a wine bucket and
dropped it non-chalantly on the black haired man's head. It took a few
seconds for the cold to hit him, and still the man simply shook his
head and let it drop off. Mamoru, after wiping a way a few water
droplets, turned to the server blankly, looking totally surprised to
see him there.
"Your drinks, sir," he stated stuffily as he poured each of
them their orders.
"Have you decided what you'd like?"
Usagi and Mamoru both blushed crimson at the realization that
neither of them had done anything but look at eachother since they
ordered their drinks.
"Could you give us a few more minutes please?"
The waiter just walekd away shaking his head as he went along.
The pair lifted up their menu's to block their faces, awaiting the
streak of color to melt away.
Usagi gazed warily at the multiple arrays of food that were
offered on the menu. Steaks, fish, salads, caviar, escargo, all that
stuff that regular people expected the rich to eat. She found a steak
that sounded very appealing until she looked at the price. It was over
twenty dollars. Usagi, though rich, had never felt comfortable when
people would buy things for her, espesially things that cost an
extremely large amount of money. Deciding finally on a bowl of soup and
a shrimp appetizer, she placed the menu gently on the table and took
a gulp of her wine. She swished the fruity liquid around in her mouth,
filling every corner of it with it's taste. She swallowed it and opened
her eyes, looking expectantly at the man across from her.
His dark blue eyes were looking anxiously across the menu,
stopping occasionally only to move on to yet another one. Usagi noticed
the ma�tre d' approaching and grew nervous that he wouldn't be ready.
Deciding on something cheap had not been an easy task, and she wasn't
about to order first.
"Have you decided on you meals?"
"Yes, I'll have this steak," Mamoru said, indicating the choice
Usagi had discarded earlier.
"Excellent choice sir. And for you miss," he asked, raising
expectant eyes from the pad to her.
"I guess I'll have the shrimp platter and light salad with
caeser dressing for starters. Then I'll finish it with you chef's
choice soup." She extended the menu to the man, which he took sharply,
looking agitated that she hadn't ordered more. Mamoru on the other
hand, looked extremely happy that she hadn't, for the last author he'd
taken out had nearly broken his wallet.
"So, are you starting any new books Chiba-san?" Usagi asked
after a long sip of her wine.
"Um yes actually I am. I haven't gotten too far into it. It's
still a work in progress."
"I see," she answered in a tone that disgusied her boredom.
"What about you? How's you life in general going. Any secret
lovers that have aquainted you fancy lately?"
Usagi sharpened her gaze at the last comment, knowing he was
referring to a rumor that had arrisen last year that she was cheating
on her boyfriend with a flower delivery boy. Her boyfriend, Greg, had
believed them and left her the next day.
"No, but I heard you've had your share," she spat out at him.
Mamoru laughed amusedly at the woman across from him. She was
beautiful but she sure had quite a tongue.
"Not at the moment."
She raised a questionable eyebrow at him over the rim of her
glass. Looking skyward, she gulped down the remainder of the wine.
They both sat their in silence, Usagi circling the rim of her
glass with her forefinger. Mamoru, for his part, found it appealing to
just look at the busboys working frantically to clear off a large table
that had just been vacated by a group of at least twenty people.
Neither had noticed the time that had passed because soon,
their food had arrived. Each of them began to eat their food, stealing
glances at the other every so often.
"Why did you ask me to dinner anyway" she asked curiously as
she began to eat her soup. (If you can really eat soup.)
"Well, I thought I'd like to know my fellow writers on a more
personal letters, so I can see how their works reflect themselves."
"But wouldn't you want to know how the writers personalities
affect their work instead?" she asked, dumbfounded that he'd look at
their work before the person behind them.
"No, I do exactly what I just said" he replied, becoming
irritated at her challenging manner.
"I see," she answered in the same tone.
They finished the rest of their meal in silence once again,
neither attempting or wanting to continue the conversation. It wasn't
until they were walking to the cashier and paying the bill that they
spoke again.
"Thank you for the meal," Usagi said in a very business-like
tone, never looking directly at him.
"Your welcome. Thank you for coming."
"Your welcome."
He began to walk towards the limo, but stopped when he saw her
moving in the opposite direction.
"Where are you going?" he asked at her retreating back.
"Oh, I'll just take a taxi home."
Before he got the chance to voice his disagreement, she'd
already entered one and shut the door.