"Twenty Kisses"
Rated T
Chapter Title: "Empty"
Setting: Future, pre-Crystal Tokyo
Genre: Any
Mamoru grabbed at the door frame, wishing futilely that he could pull strength from its solidarity; perhaps find a way to ensconce it in his hollow, shattered heart. The woman before him watched his silent struggle with equal pain and frangibility in her violet eyes. She wrung her fingers desperately, wanting to provide consolation but unsure of the right words. The raven-haired priestess decided to settle with a heavy and heartfelt,
"I'm so sorry, Mamoru-san."
Mamoru just grunted, averting his gaze to stare forlornly at the closed alabaster door. His midnight depths were hazy and dull. "Did you contact the others?"
"They're on their way."
Uncomfortable, emotionally-charged quiescence reigned once more. It was not broken for a full minute until Mamoru whispered, "They say she's awake. I just... I can't believe this happened; one minute we're all having dinner, the next... God, it was so fast! And we were so *sure*... but then..."
"There's still hope," Rei countered fiercely, grabbing at her old friend's quivering hand. She squeezed tightly, pleading, "I know you're afraid to face her; to see the agony in her eyes, but Usagi *needs* you. Her aura is pulsating with hurt beyond this wooden frame- she craves your comfort; your steady arms... she wants someone to tell her that it wasn't her fault, and that these things happen. Please, go to her. Share your sorrows together. You do nothing standing out here, trying to hide your tears as if they are a weakness."
Mamoru inhaled raggedly, squeezing Rei's hand back. He nodded. "You're right."
"Aren't I always?" Rei chuckled, supplying the man with a watery but sad smile. She let go of his appendage, turning away to choke out, "And tell Usagi she's welcome any time at the Shrine if she wants to talk. Sometimes girls just want to have heart-to-hearts in situations like these, y-you know?"
"I will," Mamoru whispered, before disappearing into his wife's hospital room. The sight he was greeted with wrenched the prince's heart terribly.
Usagi sat listlessly on her bed, cerulean eyes dim and unfocused. One hand stroked gently at her stomach, tender caress a knife that mocked memories of fruitless nights dreaming; dreaming about the future and a child who would never be. Her other kneaded the starched covers like an unconscious tick, gathering up the fabric tightly before letting it fall, limp, back to the mattress. Mamoru realized as he watched Usagi's fingers clench and unclench that the action disguised great distress- he could tell, after years spent in the blonde's presence, that Usagi's composure was only held by a tether. One little push was all it was going to take to send the girl tumbling over the edge. Apparently, the click of the door shutting was all Usagi's control could handle before her emotions rent loose.
"Mamo-chan," the petite Moon Princess sobbed, and with that one word Mamoru was instantly by her side, holding his wife close as she cried. Usagi latched onto his embrace like a starving child to food; a mewling infant to its mother. "Mamo-chan, they couldn't save him; h-he's gone..."
"I know," the ebony-haired man murmured, throat catching as he pet Usagi's golden locks back. "I know, love. But we still have hope. We'll have a beautiful daughter someday; we'll have the family we've been dreaming of for so long. We just have to be patient, alright?"
"Downy b-black hair, just like yours... and m-my eyes. H-he was so small; only seven months... so small..." the blonde murmured, clutching at her flat abdomen once more, as if the healing touch could bring her baby back to life. The Silver Crystal had always obeyed her every whim; every desire. It existed to protect, so why couldn't it protect when Usagi most needed it to? Why couldn't it have been spurred into action by love, when Usagi's love had been so strong; so bright? Her shimmering blue depths connected with Mamoru's darker hue as he laid a hand over hers. "I know we'll have a baby one day, but Mamo-chan, he was a part of me for so long... I *loved* him, and now I just feel... I just feel so *empty*."
The tears began streaming once more down Usagi's cheeks, and Mamoru found he could hold his own at bay no longer. He too began sobbing, mourning for their lost child- 'my son'- as the man laid anguished kisses against the soft stomach he'd only yesterday been whispering declarations of adulation and endless devotion to... A stomach once full with the exuberant and burgeoning seed of his and Usagi's union, now empty in the still wake of tragedy.
~o~o~
A/N: Bah, I feel so cruel ;_; Reviews appreciated!
AngelMoon Girl
