standard disclaimers apply. i don't own sailor moon. *sigh* i wish
i did though :) i also do not own the movie, a kiss before dying.
Love is a force more formidable than any other. It is invisible -- it cannot be
seen or measured, yet it is powerful enough to transform you in a moment, and
offer you more joy than any material possession could.
~ Barbara De Angelis ~
A Kiss Before Dying (alternate reality)
By: Hanako
E-mail: hime_hanako@yahoo.com
Characters:
Tsukino Keiji (means: cautious ruler) - Ikuko's husband, father to
Kyoko and Usagi
Tsukino Ikuko - Keiji's wife, mother to Kyoko and Usagi
Tsukino Kyoko (means: mirror), 22 - Usagi's twin sister, older than
Usagi
Tsukino Usagi, 22 - Kyoko's twin sister, younger than Kyoko, teaches
kindergarden and volunteers at the hospital
Furuhata (Aino) Minako/Mina, 22 - Kyoko and Usagi's cousin from their
mother's side, co-owns a restaurant called Tea of Roses with Makoto,
married to Motoki
Hino Rei, 22 - Usagi's friend, works at the Hikawa Shrine with her
Grandfather, engaged to Yuuichiruu
Kino Makoto, 22 - Usagi's friend, co-owns a restaurant called
Tea of Roses with Minako, going out with Shinozaki
Urawa (Mizuno) Ami, 22 - Usagi's friend, a pediatrician, married to Ryo
Chiba Mamoru, 24 - knows Usagi and is a family friend, he loves her
but she doesn't know, he is a Detective
Furuhata Motoki, 24 - Mamoru's best friend, friends with Usagi - like
her "brother", married to Minako
Kumada Yuuichiruu, 24 - works at the Hikawa Shrine with Rei, but does
some music on the side, friend of Mamoru and Usagi, engaged to Rei
*?* Shinozaki, 24 - A lawyer, friend of Mamoru and Usagi, going out
with Makoto
*someone please help me! i've looked everywhere and i can't seem to
find his last name. if anyone knows, please, please let me know! if
it helps his english name is ken. i really appreciate any help.
arigato in advance.
Urawa Ryo, 24 - Neurosurgeon, friend of Mamoru and Usagi, married to
Ami
Author's Notes:
- loosely based on the movie, A Kiss Before Dying, w/Matt
Dillon and Sean Young
Chapter 1:
Usagi sat in her apartment. Her golden hair was put up
in a loose bun. A few tendrils escaped, framed her face. Her long,
slender legs were stretched out over the plush, pink couch. Her blue
eyes scanned the lines of black ink of her favorite novel. She read
the novel as if it were her first time . . . smiling, laughing
slightly, or gasping softly from time to time.
Luna, her cat, sat lazily at the edge of the couch,
acting like a pair of socks, warming her mistress's feet from the
bitter November cold.
Outside, the rain fell slowly from the dark clouds,
almost like tear drops sliding down a nameless porcelain face. The
howling wind could be heard clearly throughout her tenth story
apartment. Its haunting sound beckoned those who heard it, challenging
them to decipher the hidden secrets being whispered through the city.
Usagi shuddered involuntarily, breaking her
concentration.
Looking up from her book, her azure eyes began
searching the apartment slowly, looking for anything that was out of
place. Suddenly, the phone rang and she jumped, causing Luna to fall
to the ground,
"Gomen Luna," she said stroking her cat's black fur
with one hand, while the other reached for the phone,
"Moshi Moshi."
"I'm getting married!" exclaimed Kyoko's bubbly voice.
"Nani? To who?"
"Hai, really. And I can't tell you who."
"C'mon onee-chan," Usagi whined, "Why not?"
"Oh, just because Usagi," Kyoko said giggling.
"Why Kyoko?"
"You'll meet him soon."
Usagi didn't know what to think. This was just so
sudden, even for Kyoko. She was happy for her sister, but at the same
time, she felt an overwhelming feeling of dread wash over her. She
knew what it was, she was worried about their father's reaction.
'He certainly won't be jumping for joy when he finds
out,' she thought.
Tsukino Keiji liked things done his way and his way
alone. His name meant "cautious ruler," and he lived up to that name
in more ways than one.
His over-protective nature didn't allow for much of a
love-life for his daughters, neither did his quick temper and biased
judgments of the men in their lives. To say that Kyoko and Usagi
never really had a steady boyfriend did not begin to describe their
situation.
Keiji and Kyoko often fought over his strict rules and
unfair decisions, causing much strife for Usagi, who often found
herself in the middle of these heated "battles." These debates made
Kyoko move out of the house, where she could continue relationships of
her choosing.
Usagi was not as lucky. She and Kyoko were the only
immediate family Keiji had left. Ikuko, Keiji's wife, died of cancer
when the girls were merely 16. The death of their mother left many
emotional scars on each of the girls in their own way. Kyoko seemed to
blame their father for their mother's illness, saying that if he
would've spent more time with the family, a lot of problems could've
been avoided. She resented her father for working late even after they
found out about Ikuko's illness. To a certain degree, so did Usagi,
yet she could not abandon her father so easily. Both her father and
her sister were very important to her . . . she could never choose
between them.
Sigh. "Does dad know," Usagi asked after a short
pause.
"What do you think?" Kyoko asked.
"I guess not. How are you going to tell him?"
"We're going to tell him after we elope. That way, he
can't do anything."
"I hope you're right."
"Don't worry. I know what I'm doing."
"I hope so."
"Talk to you soon."
"Wait! When are you getting married? More
importantly, when do I get to meet the lucky guy?"
"We're getting married next week. You can meet him
then. Ja!"
"Wa-" Click. Sigh. "Ja."
Usagi sometimes wondered where Kyoko got her fiery
personality from. They are identical twins, but are as different as
night and day. Kyoko is more outgoing and is more self-confident.
Usagi is able to make friends easily as well, but she tends to be a bit
shyer. Usagi has known most of her friends since birth. She is most
comfortable with them, especially her Mamoru-chan.
Usagi met her Mamoru-chan while volunteering at the
hospital. He was visiting a friend. Their first encounter was far
from "nice." They had bumped into each other on the street and again
in the corridors of Tokyo General. The fates always found ways for
them to bump into one another and it quickly became a daily ritual for
the two of them. Teasing one another became another aspect of their
daily ritual.
Through their interactions, they learned that they had
many friends in common, but it did not deter their constant arguing.
It wasn't until Usagi's mother died did they become *real* friends.
From that day forward, they were inseparable . . . they were best
friends . . .
```````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````
One Week Later . . .
The ringing of the phones and loud voices echoed
throughout the main office. Sighing, Mamoru got up from his papers
and closed the door to his private office, shutting out the outside
"world." He sighed again while walking back to his desk. Some dark
locks of his ebony hair fell over his eyes as he sat down and turned
the chair away from the desk and toward the window. He moved the locks
away from his eyes, revealing his piercing cobalt eyes.
His gaze traveled to the street below him. He had a
good view of the small shops lining the street across from him. He
could also see the officers, detectives, and officials entering or
leaving the precinct from the front door.
He turned away from the window and looked at his desk.
It was covered with papers, mostly reports of crimes, solved and
unsolved. He sighed as his eyes fell upon the silver frame in the
corner of his desk. Two smiley faces adorned the sides and the words
'Best Friends' embellished the top and bottom. He smiled as his large
hands grasped the frame gently.
The picture was of him and Usagi. He always called her
Usa, well, he used to call her Odango Atama. That soon stopped once
they became friends. Sometimes, he still calls her that "hated" nick
name, if only to annoy her and watch as her smile turns into a slight
pout coupled with a slight frown. She looked so kawaii to him when
she's like *that*.
'She's just kirei . . . plain and simple,' he thought,
his fingers touching her face, caressing it.
He had two nicknames for her, but he really wanted to
call her by another . . .
Usako.
He was broken out of his thoughts by a knocking sound
at the door,
"Detective Chiba."
He knew the voice, it was his Captain. He growled
slightly, it had nothing to do with the Captain . . . it had more to do
with being interrupted from his lovely thoughts.
He placed the frame back in its place and got up to
open the door,
"Yes Captain?" he said.
When no answer came, he looked up at the man before
him, noticing the grave expression etched in his face and present in
his eyes.
"Captain? What is it?"
"Mamoru, I have something to tell you . . . " he said,
shutting the door behind them.
Mamoru ran out of the building and into the parking
lot. Getting into his car, he turned on the engine and sped out, onto
the street.
It was 4:30 and the streets were getting more and more
crowded as more and more people left their jobs for the weekend.
The traffic was already piling up as Mamoru waited
*patiently* at a red light. His fingers tapped the steering wheel,
sweat beaded his forehead, and his heart beat rapidly. He didn't know
how he was going to do *this* . . . the only thought in his mind was
what HER reaction would be to the news.
He frowned and silently cursed the fates for doing
*this* to HER . . . for taking everything she cared about away, one by
one, starting with her mother. He didn't know what SHE would do. All
he knew was that SHE would need him.
The light turned green and Mamoru stepped on the gas
pedal, zooming away and toward HER apartment . . .
```````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````
Usagi washed some plates as she waited for the water to
boil. Placing the last dish in the drying rack, Usagi noted the time
on the microwave.
It read 4:45.
She turned to Luna, who was lying on the tiled kitchen
counter, absently licking her paws,
"Well Luna, I guess Kyoko is getting married as we
speak, ne?"
The cat merely looked up from her minstrations,
acknowledging her mistress.
Usagi walked over to her cat and scratched Luna's ear
affectionatley. The cat purred under Usagi's touch. Usagi smiled,
Sigh. "I wish I could get married. I mean, I can't
be destined to be alone all my life," Usagi said, turning from her cat
and staring out the kitchen window longingly.
She could see the hints of the sun's rays in the sky,
before being overtaken by the dark, almost black sky. There would be
no moon tonight, no light to help escape from the darkness of the
lonely night.
She watched the people in the street below. Each
person rushed to catch a bus or beat rush hour traffic. It was Friday
after all.
The sound of the kettle on the stove broke her out of
her thoughts. She shut the stove off and reached for a mug. She then
poured the steaming liquid into the mug and was about to place the tea
bag in it, when she heard someone ring the bell.
'I wonder who that could be . . . perhaps Kyoko?'
With that thought, she wiped her hands on a nearby
towel and checked her reflection in the hallway mirror. She didn't
want her brother-in-law to think badly of her,
"Just a minute," Usagi said, straitening her shirt and
moving some stray strands of her blonde hair away from her face.
She went to answer the front door, opening it, she
smiled,
"Mamoru-chan! This is a surprise."
"Gomen Usa-chan, demo, I'm here on business."
"Nani?"
"May I come in?"
"Hai," she replied. Motioning to him to enter, she
shut the door and led him to the living room,
"Please sit down. What's going on?"
He looked at her and wished that he didn't have to say
what he came here to tell her. The only reason he came was because he
knew her and didn't want someone else to tell her, over the phone or
otherwise.
"Usagi," he started as he walked over to her.
"Usagi? You never call me Usagi. What is it Mamoru-
chan? Tell me, onegai?"
"I have some news . . . bad news actually . . . "
Mamoru held her in his arms and whispered something in
her ear. A piercing scream could be heard throughout the apartment.
japanese words:
demo: but
gomen: sorry
hai: yes
kawaii: cute
kirei: pretty
moshi moshi: hello (when answering the phone)
nani: what
ne (?): eh (right?)
odango atama: dumpling/meatball head
onegai: please
onee-chan: older sister
the first cliffhanger! yeah for me! um, anyway, hope that you are
enjoying this fic of mine. please let me know what you think! ja!
*someone please help me! i've looked everywhere and i can't seem to
find shinozaki/ken's last name. if anyone knows, please, please let me
know! i really appreciate any help. arigato in advance.
hanako
just in case you forgot :) here is my email again:
hime_hanako@yahoo.com
(
geocities.com/tokyo/shrine/4094/hanako) (
geocities.com/tokyo/shrine/4094) (
geocities.com/tokyo/shrine) (
geocities.com/tokyo)