Disclaimer: All characters belong to their respective owners. I don't own Sailormoon but I'll like to own Haruka & Michiru. ^_^ Previous part available at http://web.singnet.com.sg/~chiaty/fanfics.htm < > represents a character's thoughts. LIVING WITH MICHIRU Part 2 By GSL "Michiru?" Haruka knocked once on the door and walked in without waiting for a response. "Did you see my house keys? I remembered you took mine yesterday." She looked around in the empty room. Haruka herself was dressed ready for school whilst her partner was nowhere in sight. But the sound of running waters alerted her to the fact that Michiru was still bathing. She walked to the dressing table and found her keys surrounded by bottles and bottles of skin care products, cosmetics and the like. She gave an exasperated sigh and wondered briefly why women had to become slaves to such commercialised products. It was not as if Michiru needed them. Glancing quickly to her watch, she sat heavily onto the large bed. "Michiru, are you ready? We're going to be late for school." She was tired. Didn't daimons get to sleep? Apparently not. Yawning, Haruka lied back and tried to recover some sleep while waiting for Michiru to get ready. She barely registered the cessation of the running waters but the sound of door opening roused her from her indulgence. The first thing she saw when her eyes opened was indeed a sight to behold. It was Michiru, obviously, naked other than a flimsy towel held in place to hide her glorious beauty from Haruka's piercing eyes. Beads of water still clung to her skin, like a lover's hand. A sight so refreshing and inviting, beckoning Haruka to join them in caressing Michiru's body. Scarcely stopping herself from shaking, Haruka rooted herself in a seating position on the bed. Michiru had that knowing smile on her face which always added to the frenzy that Haruka felt whatever the moment was. She didn't trust herself to speak, but at this awkward moment, she managed a "sorry" with much difficulty. "What are you apologising for?" Michiru asked as she closed in on Haruka. "Uhm..." Just as her crazed mind attempted an answer, her heart nearly stopped when the towel Michiru had slipped, to be caught again by Michiru's agile violinist hand. She could almost swear that it was deliberate. "Oops, almost flashed you there." Haruka must had been doing a poor job of keeping herself calm because Michiru had noticed. "Why are you so flustered? We are both women and I have nothing that you haven't see before." "Nope. I didn't see anything." Haruka replied, albeit too quickly. "Are you hiding something from me?" Haruka almost jumped out of her skin when Michiru's line of gaze travelled downwards. "Nothing. What are you talking about?" Taking another deep breath, she willed for her confidence to return. "We better hurry or we're going to be late." She barely restrained herself when Michiru leaned down towards her, as if to kiss her, to finally pull back at the last moment reaching for the unworn uniform behind her back. "Well, what are you waiting for? I need to change, so if you would please." Michiru was celebrating a little victory in her head when she saw Haruka leaving almost reluctantly and she would bet with all her fortunes that Haruka held her breath for the longest time during her latest teasing attempt. ------------------------------------------------------------------------- What had just happened? Her walls literally crumpled in the span of a few minutes; walls that she built all her life to keep people away, to save herself from any hurt. With Michiru, there was almost no end to surprises. Was it normal practice for friends to flirt so blatantly with each other? Or rather, Michiru teasing her so mercilessly. Okay, maybe she might admit that she did enjoy some of the moments and maybe... maybe she did have some desire, no, her mind rejected the word, preferring 'curiousity' for the Neptunian princess. But her biggest question remained. Haruka gasped, Ding. Dong. Saved by the doorbell, she pushed the thoughts for later consideration, a decision that her mind accepted readily. "I'll get it," Haruka called out, moving to answer the door. A couple in their mid forties stood at the gate, impeccably dressed, their elegant personas contrasted deeply with the daggers in their eyes ignited by Haruka's presence. "Tenoh Haruka?" The man asked coldly. "Yes," was Haruka's equally hostile reply. Who were they to come to her house and give her such treatment?! Her mind thought angrily. "Mom? Dad?" Haruka swirled, seeing Michiru behind her, already dressed for school. Did she hear wrongly, she prayed. Michiru getting past her initial disbelief, smiled brilliantly and went forward to hug both her parents. There was a little small family reunion, which made Haruka feel awkwardly out of place. Still, Haruka certainly didn't miss the two elders continued distrusting gazes on her. And she knew that her life would never be uneventful. -------------------------------------------------------------------------- They arrived in school barely on time. As the classes droned on, Michiru could hardly keep herself awake. The night before was spent on fighting daimons and whatever time left for a restful sleep was robbed by dreams of the upcoming silence, reminding her the importance of the mission. Her eyes drifted briefly to Haruka and wondered if she had a good night's rest, unlike her. Then, she suddenly remembered her parents. Taking account of the obvious, she realised what this trip meant to them. Rubbing her temples, she could feel a headache coming on. A bell rang, signifying the end of the lesson. She revelled the five-minute break before the next lesson would start when Haruka broke her interlude. "Are you alright?" She could hear Haruka's concerned tone and took consolation in it. "I'm fine, just tired." She managed a smile. "Uhm, what are we going to do with your parents? I don't think they are too pleased to have me, a 'boy' staying with you." Haruka tried to ask nonchalantly. "I guess we just have to tell them the truth." Michiru smiled teasingly. Confused, Haruka advanced on Michiru's statement, "which is..." hoping that Michiru would continue. "The whole world thinks we are in love, don't they?" Michiru loved the expression on Haruka's face, a cross between bewilderment and embarrassment. Yes, Haruka made her troubles go away. She knew that for a fact now. "Class," a teacher interrupted their conversation, "I hope all of you remembered that there is a test today." "Test? What test?" Panic rose within Haruka as she turned to Michiru for confirmation. "Uh oh!" was Michiru's disturbing response. -------------------------------------------------------------------------- The drive back home was silent. There wasn't much to talk about, other than that Haruka was sure that she would fail the test. All she wrote on the answer booklet was full of crap, whatever things that she could squeeze out of her mind about the subject. Of course, there was some amount of reproaching on her part for forgetting about a trivial matter such as a test when she had to save the world. Not that the test results mattered, she just didn't want to come across as a fool who couldn't even pass a high school test. She stepped up on the accelerator as she visioned herself standing outside the classroom with a sign 'failure' hanging over her head. To make things interesting, her classmates would be laughing at her, her teacher was going to pick on her for the rest of the semester. Argh! Michiru. Michiru would... Haruka turned towards her companion. Something was disturbing her, she realised. The frown on Michiru's face wasn't a good sign by all accounts. Removing one hand from the steering wheel, she gently set it on top of Michiru's, and squeezed lightly. "Are you still tired?" "I had the dream again." Understanding surged within Haruka, but together with it, came the feeling of immense burden resting upon her shoulders. "We just have to take it one step at a time." "What if we are too late?" "Then at least, we have tried." Michiru seemed to ponder over her words. Seeing that they are nearing the house, Haruka retrieved her hand from Michiru's and returned to its position on the steering wheel. A thought crept into Haruka's mind which made her grin slightly. She was also aware that a bemused Michiru was looking her way. "And I thought I was the uncertain one," she couldn't resist herself from speaking, earning a slap on the arm from her partner. "Thanks for being so sensitive," Michiru pouted. Haruka could only laugh at their childish behaviour but she was soon joined by Michiru. ------------------------------------------------------------------------- The dinner utensils clanked loudly in the background. The silence was unnerving but it was much preferred than the alternative. Haruka had initially wanted to send Michiru back home and stay away while Michiru's parents were in town. She even got permission from the chief to sleep in his office at the garage. But apparently, Michiru's parents had other ideas; her presence for dinner was requested, if not demanded. The electric-charged atmosphere could make the best cuisine taste bland, so she didn't eat much. Flanked by both Michiru's parents on the dinning table also stifled Haruka so much so that the air felt too thin for breathing. "So, Mr. Tenoh, I hear that you are going out with my daughter." It was Michiru's father who spoke first, breaking the silence. There was no denying the inevitable. Haruka rested her utensils on the tabletop, while she gathered her thoughts. Michiru had wanted to answer but was hushed by her father who wanted to hear from Haruka herself. "I don't know what is written in those newspapers or magazines but I'll like to assure you that I'm serious about Michiru." She met him eye to eye. "Does that explain why you are living in my house, alone with my daughter?" Haruka could feel the anger behind Mr. Kaioh's eyes. It was justified after all, a worried father fearing that his little daughter was being taken advantage of. "I live in this house but that's it. Michiru and I occupy different bedrooms, if that is what you're worried about. We have not done anything morally wrong." "How do I believe your words?" "Don't. Believe in your daughter's." The evening had gone relatively better after that. Michiru cooked up some story that Haruka was staying in the Kaioh mansion to protect her from a stalker. There was a saying that lies led to more lies. By the end of the night, Haruka felt her nose as long as Pinocchio's. "You know, we have to write down the things that we tell your parents, else we forget." A tired Haruka spoke to an equally tired Michiru while they were alone, relaxing on a couch. Michiru's head dipped to rest on Haruka's shoulder, her eyes closed. "You do it. I'm too tired now." Seeing the serene face on Michiru's, Haruka couldn't protest. "Want me to sing a lullaby?" Haruka asked jokingly. When Michiru nodded, Haruka proceeded to sing as loudly and as out of tune as she could to disrupt Michiru's sleep. Once again, she earned a hit from her partner and more laughter ensued. -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Her eyes twitched involuntarily at the paper in front of her. Even if she had expected to receive such a result, she definitely didn't want it to become true. Crushing the paper in her hands, the epitome of her failure, Haruka whizzed at the idea of how a momentarily lack of studying could do this to her. To be exact, her mind scolded, she had not picked up her books since she picked up the henshin stick. But she had good reasons for slacking, not that she could tell that to her teacher. "I know you are a F1 racer, earning good money but you should still value your education. Not many people have a chance to study, you know." The teacher droned on. "I hope your relationship with Ms. Kaioh is not an obstacle to your learning." Haruka shook her head and quickly began her obligatory "sorry", saying that she would work harder. The teacher seemed satisfied but not before informing Haruka that her re-test was two days from now. She eyed Michiru from the corner of her eyes, who had patiently waited for her after school. Haruka walked briskly towards Michiru and gave a wry smile. "How did you do?" "I passed," was Michiru's mysterious answer. Did she passed well or was she a borderline case? Michiru might be academically better than her but still, Haruka didn't want to fare a lot poorer than Michiru. Her ego would be wounded, to put it simply, "Come on, tell me your score." "Not saying anything." Playfully and putting this to a stop, Michiru hooked her arm over Haruka's and pulled her out of the school. -------------------------------------------------------------------------- "I can't believe you are doing this." Michiru sighed. "Well, I can't help it. My re-test is coming and since we are waiting, may as well take the opportunity to study." Haruka defended herself, still reading the book in her hands. Both of them have sensed the presence of a daimon in this area. But nothing seemed out of place yet, what they knew for certain was that something was going to happen soon. So, they waited behind a bush in a park. "You know, this is a life and death matter. You should be more serious." Haruka looked up momentarily. "But I am. When the daimon shows up, I'll transform and kick its ass." To prove her point, she resumed reading. In exasperation, Michiru could only shake her head. True enough, a daimon appeared, only to be annihilated by the two righteous senshis. But to Michiru's utter annoyance, Haruka was still reading the book while walking back to the car. "Okay, I barely passed the test. 52%. Are you happy now?" Michiru contended. "What are you talking about? I'm just preparing for my re-test." Haruka tried not to show too much pleasure. But she did feel better knowing that Michiru didn't do that well. At least this didn't reflect too badly of her, when both of them didn't have much spare time left for studying. Even so, was it just a human trait that if one did badly, one would want others to do badly as well? Regardless, Haruka, you are such a lowly being, she told herself. And to atone for her mistake, she put away her book finally but gladly too. ------------------------------------------------------------------------- "We're home." Michiru called out, half expecting an affectionate "welcome back" from her mother. What she got instead was a stern "We're in the living room," from her father. Surprised, with a premonition of bad things to come, she quickly shared a glance with Haruka, who shrugged but nodded the way to the living room. There seemed to be two additional visitors for them today. With their backs facing the senshis, they couldn't ascertain who these newcomers were, but Haruka found the couple oddly familiar, with their crown of blond hair, seating posture, body frame, until the lady turned to face them. "Mother?" Haruka's brain went on an overdrive. Pleased as she was to see her parents, she couldn't drive away the ill feeling in her chest. "Haruka," Mrs. Tenoh responded, forcing a smile for her daughter. By now, even a child would know that a storm was brewing, so the senshis readied themselves for the upcoming eruption. But no amount of preparation could defend them from Mr. Kaioh's next few words. "Michiru, aren't you introducing me to Ms. Tenoh Haruka?" After that, the explosions came forth. Accusations flew, lies condemned, with the two teenagers situated in the centre of the battlefield. It took them five minutes before everyone could be calmed down. "Listen to us, please," Michiru almost close to begging. "Yes," Haruka emphasized, "we can explain." "So you're going to tell us another lie?!" Mr. Kaioh roared. "No." Michiru protested, but she couldn't continue after seeing the disappointment in her parents' eyes, so it was left to Haruka. "The reason I moved in here was to provide companionship for Michiru." "Were Ms. Kaioh and you..., you know," Haruka's father interrupted, never managing to ask his question properly, but Haruka probably got the message since there was a nice shade of red on her face now. "No, we are not... you know." Haruka drawled out. her mind countered. After shutting and scolding her mind off, Haruka mastered her confidence and continued her words, but not before stealing a glance at Michiru, "We're just friends, partners." Having settled that, Michiru tried to steer the conversation away. Knowing that her mother would support her more, Michiru pleaded with her. "We didn't mean to lie. We were at a loss when dad and you turned up and especially right after the magazine incident. The whole world thinks that the rookie F1 racer Tenoh Haruka is a man, we didn't want to jeopardize Haruka's career by telling the truth." "Then, you should at least tell us that. We're your parents. We worry about you." Mrs. Kaioh was promptly hugged by a remorseful Michiru whose murmurs of "sorry" were muffled by her mother's clothing. "I guess we were on a roll. We keep telling others that we are a couple. And when Mr. & Mrs. Kaioh came, we just fell into bad habits and made the mistake of telling the first lie. And to safeguard that lie, we had to tell more lies. Please forgive us." Haruka took over the duty to explain when it was obvious that Michiru wasn't able to. Everyone was silent after that. Parents wouldn't stay angry at their children for long, and they were living examples to that. Each family soon huddled together, partaking in a ritual of understanding and forgiveness. "Is it true that there is nothing between Michiru and you, Haruka?" Mrs. Tenoh whispered to her daughter as they embraced. "Because, it wouldn't surprise me." "Mother!" was all Haruka needed to say because her father had cut in, "You're not trying to encourage her, right?!" The uptight look on his face made the two woman of his life laugh. Not too far away, a Mrs. Kaioh who caught a bit of the Tenoh family's conversation was becoming worried once again. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ The next morning, the two families were seated around the dinning table for breakfast. Idle conversation became the menu of the day, just a simple quiet start to a brand new day. "So, Michiru, what are you doing afterwards?" Mrs. Kaioh asked nonchalantly. "School," Michiru was looking at her mother puzzledly. Where else would she go since she was already dressed in her school uniform? "And then...," her mother prompted again. "To my agent. He wants to speak to me about my future performances. I'm trying to cut down on my violin recitals so that I can concentrate on my studies." In her mind, Michiru was apologising for being not completely truthful to her mum but this was necessary. Besides it was only a small errs on the topic of her motives, the rest was true. Haruka watched the mother-daughter exchange intently. It seemed that Mrs. Kaioh was tying to feel Michiru out on something. Her questions never ceased until Michiru's schedule of the day was out. Even so, the way that the mother gazed at her daughter was a hint that she was searching something from Michiru's words. "So, Haruka and you goes to the same school and she drives you around whenever she can." After seeing the affirmation from Michiru, Mrs. Kaioh came up with her conclusion, "You spend a lot of time with her." Another confirmation. And Mrs. Kaioh could feel the beginnings of a panic attack. Haruka had not been paying attention to her family's conversation and this caused her a hit on the head, by her father. "Ouch, I'm going to grow stupid if you continue to do that, father." "This will teach you not to be disrespectful to your father." "I was not!" "Then, what was I talking about?" Sweatdrop. "The bakery was doing good business." At least, that was what she heard when she tuned in last. She nearly earned another knock on the head, if not for her agility. "I asked how's your grades?" The prominent 'F' in the last test she took rapidly floated into her mind. Of course, there were things that you never tell your parents. "Funny for you to ask that." Haruka tried to joke over it, but her father wasn't amused. "So," Mr. Tenoh repeated, a scowl forming on his face. "You should have more confidence in me. I never disappoint you in the grades area." She flashed a toothily grin, checked the time on her watch, and exclaimed, "Look at the time, Michiru, we have to go." Turning back to her parents, she waved them goodbye and rushed out of the house, but not before pulling Michiru along with her. ------------------------------------------------------------------------- School was uneventful and unparticular. The trip to Michiru's agent office lasted an hour, but there was this taxi that kept following them. Haruka's first impulse was to drive faster, shaking the taxi away. It was Michiru who rationalised that it was probably some crazed fan of theirs. Next, they went to a hotel that they frequent regularly. However, they distinctly heard a cry when they were about to enter the premises. It sort of sounded like an anguished "Nooooooo!" When they tried to locate the source of the voice, they found none. Since they felt no presence of a daimon, they just shrugged and continued onwards into the hotel. They got a table in their favourite coffee house and were promptly served. From where they were seating, they had a superb view of the city. This was where they would rest, discuss about their mission, and basically to wait for the next attack. Haruka noticed a lady dressed in black at a distance away. She found her oddly familiar but before she could do anything else, Michiru touched her hand and said two words, "children's playground". With that, they sprung into action. They ran, drove, and ran somemore. Upon reaching their destination, the world shook and the sea submerged, decapitating their enemy. Once the job was done, they reverted to their civilian personas and headed for home, not noticing a lady huffing and puffing away that just got to the scene. Dinner was later than usual since Michiru's mother wasn't back in time. However, it should be noted that this was the first time that Michiru saw her mother eat so much in all her life. And she received a second shock when her mother went to bed almost immediately after. Well, that just meant more violin practice for her. She hadn't a chance to play with her violin leisurely since her parents arrived. It was a ritual that she used to have. Since she didn't need to entertain her parents anymore, she took out her violin and began to play. Not long after, she found an audience in the Tenoh family. Through this small episode, the elder Tenohs' opinion of her seemed to have grown a few notches. And it pleased her in some way. Sleep still didn't come easy for the ex-Neptunian princess. After tossing and turning on the bed for something like an hour, Michiru gave up. Putting on a robe, she decided to walk outside the confinement of her room. To her surprise, the light to Haruka's room was still on. Why was Haruka up at three in the morning? Did she have trouble sleeping? Haruka didn't tell her. Tentatively, she knocked once on the door. Hearing no reply, she knocked a couple of times more. Still no response. Maybe Haruka didn't hear her, Michiru's mind reasoned. She opened the door and went in. The bed was empty. Before she could start to panic, Michiru saw a dozing Haruka slouched on the study table. The peaceful look on her partner's face brought a smile onto Michiru's one. Michiru spent a couple of moments staring into Haruka's face, memorising the contours, her features. Haruka looked so cute that she wanted to plant a kiss on the unwitting senshi but she resisted. Her logic took over and she decided to do something about Haruka's sleeping posture or else her irritable partner would complain of a backache tomorrow. Idly, she wondered if she could pick up Haruka. It didn't seem feasible since Haruka was larger than she was. Thus, she decided to be cruel and wake Haruka up. "Haruka." Michiru whispered into Haruka's ear, and repeated several times until she got a response. She thought she heard a soft "Michi-" from Haruka's lips. Was she dreaming about her? Wiping the smile away from her face, Michiru started to shake Haruka. "Sleepyhead, wake up. The bed is for sleeping, not the study table." Her final tactic had worked. Blue eyes met emeralds. Haruka was slightly dishevelled and shocked to see Michiru hovering so close to her. Then, she started to notice the pain streaking from her back. "Ouch!" Haruka began to rub on her sore spots. "You're lucky that I didn't let you sleep until daylight," Michiru said, feeling a little ignored. "Thanks! But my back is killing me already." "Come, rest on the bed." Michiru held one of Haruka's hands and helped her to bed, ignoring the protestations of Haruka that she could walk herself. "Lie down on your stomach," Michiru ordered and began cracking her knuckles. Haruka meekly obeyed and was rewarded with soft fingers massaging her back. "Were you studying?" Michiru asked, trying to make conversation. "Uh-hum." "From what I've seen, I don't think much went into your brain." "Hey!" Michiru laughed at Haruka's expense, of course. But annoyance couldn't beat the relief that Michiru was giving her. So Haruka let her have her fun. The circular motion directed on her back was also making her groan slightly. "This is really nice." -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Mrs. Kaioh just wanted a cup of water from the kitchen. But now, water forgotten, body pressed against the door, her entire being was poised for some serious eavesdropping. She knew she shouldn't be doing this, but she couldn't resist investigating the voices coming out from Haruka's bedroom. One of them she believed to be Michiru's. What was her daughter doing so late in another girl's room? Then, the groans came. It sparked the worst imaginations in her mind. She thought she heard wrongly, then she heard Haruka say something like "harder" and "you're great". Worry and anxiety proved to be a lethal mix. All formality was disregarded while she dashed into the room, having an eyeful of what Haruka and Michiru were actually doing. "Mum?" Michiru began, stopping her ministrations on Haruka's back. Haruka also turned to look at her and shifted slightly away. Mrs. Kaioh gave a nervous laugh, noting that they all had their clothing on and nothing was like what she was thinking. "I guess I got the wrong room. Oops. Sorry." Blushing, she promptly closed the door at the confused senshis. The door opened a second time, and Mrs. Kaioh's head popped in again, "Michiru, you should get to sleep. It's late already and you shouldn't disturb Haruka." With that, she disappeared again, leaving the two alone who didn't know what to think of the incident. ------------------------------------------------------------------------- "It's a shame that you have to leave so soon." The speaker was Haruka, a person whom Mrs. Kaioh had wondered and questioned of her importance to Michiru. Maybe she was imagining things, or she put too much weight on stereotypes and prejudices; a tomboy might not necessarily mean that they liked girls. "Well, Michiru's father has to go back to New York to look after the business there. And I have to look after the household. Sometimes I just wish that Michiru would relocate with us to New York. But she was persistent about staying in Japan." Haruka gave a little smile to that. Her parents had left already, catching a flight back to their hometown in the early morning. 'Can't close the shop for too long or the villagers will have no bread to eat,' she remembered her father saying. It suddenly seemed that Michiru and her would finally be left alone again. Michiru and her father soon came into view, lugging suitcases. Haruka went forward to help them, taking the weight off Michiru's hands and loaded them into a waiting taxi. The taxi driver had also taken over Mr. Kaioh's luggage, giving the family an opportunity to have their last minute good-byes. There was a little bit of hugging. When they separated, Mrs. Kaioh could see Haruka standing behind Michiru. She could almost see the link between them, how they would lend support to each other. Best friends, they said, but there was no point in testing that validity. Her Michiru seem happier now, much more than when she visited last. And how much of that was due to Haruka? In a surge of emotions, she asked Haruka to help her look after her little daughter, as a roommate would. After the final farewells, the parents were gone. "I think I miss my parents already." Haruka said, turning to look at Michiru. "When they are around, they can be so naggy and treat me like a three year old but... God, I really do miss them." This gave Michiru an evil thought, "I can do the nagging bit. Haruka, do the laundry! Haruka, clean your room! Do your homework!" There was a pained expression on Haruka's face as she drawled to the laughter of Michiru's. "That's not very funny." "Honestly, have you studied for the re-test?" "What?!" Recollection of what she studied proved to be difficult. "Not again?" Haruka lamented, grimacing at the big 'F' she would get. However, let's put on the record that Haruka did indeed pass the test. She was not a dumb blonde after all. ************************ Author's Notes: Believe me when I say I'm a slow writer, but it motivates me when I receive C&Cs. *hint* *hint* My gratitude goes to my pre-reader, Cass who also sacrificed web-space to host my fics. I also thank those who took the time to comment on my first part of Living With Michiru. This second part would not be possible if not for your encouragement. 16 June 2000