Mother and Daughter (1/4 Afternoon Michiru/Hotaru)

[Tomoe Hotaru]

(After Michiru's conversation with Usagi)

She hadn't been to this part of the Palace for quite some time. Compared to her normal running in and out of these chambers, it had been a long time indeed since she had set foot inside her Mama and Papa's rooms. Her hand rested against the warm wood, closing her eyes. Hotaru could almost imagine that once she opened the door she would find them inside, as she always did. Maybe with her mother playing the violin, the sweet rich music lifting her soul and making her wanting to join in. Or perhaps to her Papa's voice reading aloud from some novel while Mama listened, her head resting in Papa's lap. They would always welcome her with smiles and hugs, always ready to include her.

Tears pricked her eyes and she rubbed a hand across her face wearily. She didn't know how hard this was going to be for her until they had actually left. Of course she hadn't thought of it- she was old enough to look after herself, so why should it be a problem? Hotaru hadn't taken into consideration that she had rarely been without either of her parents for much longer than a day.

She had been missing them terribly since they had left, and hadn't wanted to say a word to anyone. It was silly; at almost 14 she shouldn't be so clingy and needy.

Squaring her shoulders, she pushed the door open and stepped into the darkened hall, pausing to flip a switch and flooding the area with a soft light. Inhaling deeply, she caught the barest whiff of perfume- the lovely scent that her Mama favored, and her heart tightened. Walking further in, she could see that everything was as it had been since she'd last seen it- since her parents had left. Pausing by the coffee table, she bent to pick up the small picture that was there. Her vision blurred with tears at the image of her own beaming face, Michiru's beautiful smile, and Haruka's grin.

"Mama. . . Papa. . ." she whispered quietly.

[Kaioh Michiru]

Michiru had come back to the apartments after the talk with Usagi. She knew that Haruka wanted to spend some time working out, but knew they'd be together for dinner - hopefully all four of them. She had gone into Hotaru's room, not disturbing anything, but simply thinking about what Usagi had said regarding Hotaru and how difficult all of this was for her.

Hearing the door to the suite open she slipped out into the living room area and smiled. "Firefly. I've missed you." She opened her arms for her daughter, seeing the lost look on her face. It had only been a bit more than a week, but she was beginning to have some idea of just how very much she'd missed in that time.

[Tomoe Hotaru]

At the sound of Michiru's voice, Hotaru's eyes widened, her heart jumping as she turned, the picture falling to the couch as she ran as fast as she could into the slender woman's arms.

"Mama!" she cried in a half whisper, her own arms circling tightly around Michiru's waist, pressing her face against her stomach. "I missed you too." Her voice was muffled, and she felt a few tears slip free. She had never been so happy to see her mother, and clung to her as if she would never let go.

After a few minutes, she managed to pull back slightly, blinking as she gazed up into Michiru's warm eyes. "When did you get back?" she inquired.

[Kaioh Michiru]

Michiru smiled as she held her daughter, gently stroking her hair and holding her tightly. She did not make any move to push her away, content to let Hotaru take whatever time she needed. She had to admit that she liked that her daughter, even as a teenager, was still happy to see her. That had been a small fear when she'd grown so quickly as a baby, that she'd go straight to teenager with all the angst that could bring. Fortunately, after Galaxia's defeat, she'd regressed some age-wise.

"About noon. Your Papa is in the salle, I believe, and I just got back from talking to Usagi." There was no reprimand in those words. Yes, she knew that some of Hotaru's reaction had hurt Usagi, but that was not Hotaru's intent, and regarding that, Michiru was more concerned about her Firefly than upset.

"How are you doing, sweetling?" Now that she had moved back, she gently guided her to the couch and pulled her down to sit beside her. She missed getting to cuddle the young girl on her lap, but that did not mean she would not find ways to cuddle with her daughter.

[Tomoe Hotaru]

Closing her eyes, Hotaru clung tighter and for the first time in an entire week, she didn't want to be an adult. She just wanted to let herself be hugged and comforted, and believe, however naively, that her Mama could make everything all right. Her arms loosened slightly, inhaling deeply the faint scent of the sea that always seemed to cling to Michiru, and was reassured that her family had finally came home.

Her face lit up to hear that her Papa was also home, but cringed slightly as Michiru mentioned Usagi in the same breath. She knew that Usagi had mentioned their conversation to her mother- she couldn't help but feel a bit betrayed, wondering how much of their conversation had been told to Michiru, but knowing that Usagi would not have said something if she hadn't thought it important. Duel sensations- an adult's understanding with a child's reaction, and she hated it.

Her dark lashes fluttered, amethyst eyes flickering up to meet Michiru's as she let herself be pulled down onto the couch. "I don't know, Mama," she said at last, her voice small. "I don't know how I am anymore." She wanted nothing more than to crawl into her mother's lap as she had done only a few years ago. "I hurt Usagi." A tear slipped free, tracing a glittering trail of moisture down her pale cheek. "And. . . Chibi Usa. . ."

[Kaioh Michiru]

Michiru did not care how big or how old Hotaru was. She would always be her little girl, and so it was that the Ocean Senshi was pulling her daughter into her lap and gently stroking her hair and back as she heard the pain in her voice. "Oh, sweetling." She kissed her forehead.

"Usagi is... just in an understandably sensitive place right now. I know she's already forgiven you, and I know that you didn't mean to hurt her." She kissed her forehead.

"So, I don't want you to worry too much about that. But tell me what's bothering you?" Oh, sure Michiru could guess, but she wanted Hotaru to have the chance to express herself and tell her what was wrong. She gently rocked her, making a point to just calm and love her daughter.

[Tomoe Hotaru]

Allowing herself to be pulled into Michiru's lap, Hotaru instinctively snuggled closer, resting her head against her mother's shoulder. She closed her eyes and just let everything go but the moment of this reunion, happy to have her family back.

The tight ball of guilt in her chest loosened slightly at Michiru's words. "I just wanted to help," she murmured. "But I don't think I did anything but make her hurt worse."

What was bothering her? Hotaru didn't even know where to begin, or how to condense everything into a manageable amount so she wouldn't ramble on and on. "Everything feels so wrong, Mama," she managed to say, her eyes downcast, trying to still the burning of tears that were fighting to get free. "Usagi and Mamoru breaking up is only part of it. So much is going on that I don't understand, and no one wants to explain anything to me because they don't want to think about it themselves or they think I shouldn't be concerned about it. And Chibi Usa - she's gone." Her voice broke on the last word.

[Kaioh Michiru]

Michiru gently rocked her daughter and listened. "Usagi knows that, Firefly. It'll be all right." She kissed her forehead and stroked her hair.

She sighed softly as she listened to Hotaru's woes. There was not much that she could do about any of it, and quite frankly until she found out what it was that everyone was "keeping from" Hotaru, she could not make her own decision about whether they were right. It occurred to her that that might be the very reason they weren't telling her. All the Senshi cared about Hotaru, but Haruka, Michiru, and Setsuna were her parents and would be the ones to make certain decisions.

"Oh, Firefly." She knew how close Hotaru had been to Chibi-Usa and knew she had to be disappointed and held her tightly. She had kind of expected this reaction, but there was little she could do to make that pain any better. "Is there anything I can do to help you feel better, sweetling?"

[Tomoe Hotaru]

Hotaru's dark lashed lids fluttered as she nodded against Michiru's chest. "I hope so. I couldn't stand it if I were the cause of anything that might bring her down or cause her to lose confidence in herself."

More than ever, she was glad that her family had returned home. While they were bound to be as overprotective of her as the other senshi, she knew they would at least fill her in on enough to help her cope. Michiru especially- she trusted her mother to keep Haruka and the others from smothering her in safety because of her age.

The understanding in Michiru's voice made the frail hold on her sorrow break entirely. She closed her eyes again, pressing tighter against her mother. "Just hold me?" she whispered, her voice trembling. "I don't want to grieve, but if I must, I don't want to do it alone."

[Kaioh Michiru]

"It's ok if you do, Firefly. And you know I wouldn't make you go through something like this alone." She kissed her daughter's forehead and held her tightly, gently rocking her back and forth.

She hummed softly as she rocked her, choosing one of her favorite songs that she had liked for Michiru to sing to her when she was little. For now she did not sing the words, just the tune, but she would simply hold her little girl and hum, offering what comfort she could.