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It was just another summer day at Crown. Another day discussing the new Three Lights idols, the new enemy turning normal humans into Phage monsters, the new Three Lights idols, the Sailor Starlights, the new Three Lights idols, the new sweater Yaten had worn today--
“Minako!” Rei slammed her fist down on the table, jolting Makoto out of her trance drawing small hearts on the condensation of her peach milkshake’s glass wall. “Enough about the Three Lights!”
“You’re just jealous, Rei-chan!” Minako retorted, waving her index finger as if scolding a child. “You’re jealous that these big celebrities attend our school now instead. All four of us have direct access to the premier celebrities of the century!”
“No, I’m just tired of you incessantly talking about them,” Rei groaned, rubbing her temples with her index fingers, but her lower lip pouted slightly, betraying her feelings. “We have more important things to talk about.”
“Like the enemy,” Ami piped up, seemingly encouraged by the change in subject.
“Or the fact that Mamoru-san finishes his first year of medical school soon,” Makoto offered.
“Wait a minute.” Rei held up her finger. “You just said something about Mamoru-san and my eardrums are still intact. Where is Usagi?”
As if on cue, the door to Crown Parlor swung open, a loud “Motoki-oniiisan! One double chocolate milkshake please!” sung joyously before the noisy rabbit barreled herself up to her four friends, nearly knocking over a barstool as she did. “Everyone!! We have to go to America right away!!”
Ami choked on her iced tea, and three pairs of eyes stared at Usagi, who seemed to be swimming in the many pale white envelopes that her small arms were carrying. Ignoring the lack of response, she dropped her arms, the envelopes littering their table.
“What are these?” Makoto picked one up, flipping one over to read the address label.
“They’re my letters from Mamo-chan!” Usagi exclaimed, waving her arms up and down. “We have to go to America, I’m worried about him!”
That got everyone’s attention. “What do you mean? Is he in danger?” Rei asked.
“Yes! Well.” Usagi faltered. “I…don’t know. But!” Usagi grabbed a specific envelope and ripped out the letter. “Look at this, it’s his most recent letter!
Ami took the letter from her and began to read out loud.
“‘ Dear Usako,
I’m so glad to have received your letter. As you know, my first year is wrapping up soon. I’m honestly very tired of studying all the time, and I miss seeing you and the girls — spending time with you all was always a wonderful time and a most welcome distraction. I appreciate your concern in the last letter, and thank you for sending me those chocolates and shrimp chips from Souyi’s — you always seem to remember that the location by the train station has my favorite snacks, thank you. People in America are nice, and my classmates and professors are kind, but the material is, of course, overwhelming. I am fine, though, and have enough appropriate resources nearby to help me.
I’m happy your first year of high school is going well, and I hope you remember to ask Ami for help with reviewing for your English final. It’s nearly July too, so the next volume of Joan should be coming out in a few weeks (I’m sure the bookstore will run out quickly, it’s a very popular manga from what I remember you telling me). I hope you all are staying safe in the battles against the new enemy, and keep me updated on new information you find. These Starlights sound like they may be helpful, but they remind me of how Haruka and Michiru were before they joined us permanently. Stay careful, Usako.
I wish we could see each other, and actually a small part of me wishes you could come here. It would be fun to show you around Harvard and New England in general, but goodness knows how expensive plane tickets are. I don’t think your combined allowance would be able to cover it (and please don’t ask Rei or the shrine to borrow money — I don’t think Rei would appreciate that). As we discussed earlier, my research mentor wants me to present at a nearby conference, but that’s during the later part of the summer, so maybe I can figure out a way to come home for a week or two. No promises, but I will surely try my best.
Thanks again for the snacks and give my best to the girls.
All my love,
Mamoru. ’”
A silence followed as Ami finished reading and looked up from the letter. Usagi waved her arms in a gesture they all took to mean “See? He’s in danger!”, but they all seemed to be pondering over the contents of the letter before Ami spoke up again.
“Usagi-chan, you didn’t tell me you had to review your English -- no wonder you didn’t do well on your final.”
A collective groan chorused from the table, and Usagi half-fell on her friend as a gesture of defeat, “Ami-chan!” she groaned. “That’s what you took away from his letter?!”
“He writes like an old man,” Rei said with a smirk, to which Usagi stuck her tongue out at her in response.
“Okay but what did he mean by ‘appropriate resources’?” Minako raised an eyebrow, leaning in, “I want to know what he meant by that.”
“Oh for heaven’s sake, Minako.” Rei rolled her eyes. “Mamoru-san obviously meant that he has textbooks and study materials.”
“Okay but what if he means something else?”
“Like what?”
“Rei-chan.” Minako placed her hand on the priestess’ shoulder. “You clearly don’t know the danger of gorgeous American model tutors.”
“And you,” Rei retorted, brushing her hand off of her, “have been watching too many American movies.”
“Yeah! Mamo-chan would never cheat on me!” Usagi puffed her chest proudly. “Every one of his letters is signed off with ‘All my love’!”
“Or, he’s just saying that to throw you off his scent,” Minako drawled before taking a sip of her melon soda.
Usagi’s double chocolate milkshake was placed before her, but she kept staring at Minako. “You….think so?” she asked hesitantly.
“Minako-chan is just being ridiculous, Usagi-chan,” Makoto interjected, shooting a look at Minako before pointing at the ring on Usagi’s finger. “Mamoru-san loves you. Rei-chan is right, he most likely meant textbooks. Ami-chan, tell her, he probably meant actual study materials.”
“Yes.” Ami nodded. “Besides, it’s not like medical students even have time to…” she trailed off, her cheeks turning a dusty pink with realization.
“Even have time to what?!” Usagi demanded.
Ami hesitated. “T-Time to….date….?”
Usagi visibly deflated. A pregnant pause enveloped the table before Minako stood up, pose triumphant and fists clenched as she announced, “Sailor senshis, we are going to America!”
“How?” Usagi grumbled. “You heard Mamo-chan, plane tickets are expensive.”
“Yeah, but we beautiful ladies have an alternative mode of transportation,” Minako said, winking at the other blonde.
Makoto choked on her peach milkshake as Usagi’s eyes brightened once again.
“Oh no,” Ami whispered, “Minako-chan, we can’t, what if something happens here? Sailor Moon will be needed--”
“We’ll be back in time.” Minako waved a hand dismissively. “Besides, Haruka-san, Michiru-san, Setsuna-san, and the Starlights have us covered.”
“You can’t be serious,” Rei deadpanned.
“As serious as can be, my dear!” Minako chirped, crawling out of the booth to hold an awestruck Usagi’s hands in her own, “Usagi-chan, we’re gonna Sailor Teleport our way to America!”
Mamoru rubbed his eyes with his fists, his eyes glossing over as he re-read the same page for the umpteenth time. It felt like the material was sitting there, mocking him for staring at it for over an hour now. How many times was he destined to review the steps to the urea cycle before it finally stuck in his mind?
He let out a sigh as he leaned back in his chair, rolling away from his desk. It had been over a week since he sent his last letter to Usagi, and he was already contemplating sending another. Their agreement had been to send one letter at a time to one another (a rule necessary to prevent Usagi from blowing her monthly allowance on shipping enormous care packages to him), and to limit phone calls to once a month (so Usagi’s father wouldn’t be extra annoyed at him for extravagant monthly phone bills for international calls) but he found himself missing her and her letters even more today, and he wasn’t sure why. Maybe it was because the summer had begun, and both of their birthdays were around the corner, a time when they both could celebrate together. He had gotten so used to spending his birthdays with her and the girls that he forgot what it felt like to celebrate before he met them.
He missed Juuban, he missed Chibiusa, he missed spending time with the senshi, and most of all, he missed Usagi and her cheerful presence in his life. Studying medicine everyday was fascinating but exhausting, and he finally understood what his mentors meant when they said it felt like drinking out of a firehose. He felt lucky to have classmates who were helpful and were more than happy to invite him to their outings, but most of them had been raised in America and didn’t understand the emotional tug being an international student could have on a person.
Mamoru sighed again and ran a hand through his hair. Alright, maybe a quick break and then it’d be back to studying.
He walked to his kitchen, noticing that he was nearly out of the shrimp chips Usagi had sent him. He made a mental reminder to ask her in his next letter if she could send him some more, when a loud crash and yelps from outside his apartment door interrupted his thoughts. He cautiously approached his door, ready to transform, before leaning in, glancing through the peephole when he felt both his stomach drop and his heart rise at the same time.
Mamoru swung the door open, revealing Sailor Moon and the sailor senshi standing outside of his apartment, dusting off debris from their arms and legs. The five senshi immediately ceased their grumbling as they took him in.
“MAMO-CHAN!!” Sailor Moon exclaimed and immediately crashed into him, the blow a thousand times more powerful than her usual greeting (Mamoru suspected the new wings were at fault) and causing him to stumble back and fall onto his floor.
The agreement was a quick tour around the city for the day and then they had to teleport back to Juuban -- it was too risky to leave the city alone without Sailor Moon. Minako had brushed off his concern, but Mamoru was too distracted by the fact that they had all sailor teleported to America. It was a brilliant idea he couldn’t believe he hadn’t thought of earlier, and at the same time he wondered if it was too easy to think of.
Not that he had the chance to properly think about it, as Usagi and Minako posing in front of various campus buildings for Ami to take pictures of as Makoto and Rei appreciated campus architecture made him feel like he was having a fever dream.
But as Usagi intertwined her fingers with his, beaming happily up at him, the warmth in his chest made him realize that this very much was not a fever dream, and that this was happiness.
“Say, Mamoru-san,” Minako asked while Usagi posed in front of the campus entrance, Makoto taking her picture. “I wanted to ask. What resources do you have here at campus?”
“Oh, you mean for studying?” Mamoru asked as Ami frowned.
“Yeah.” Minako gave an odd smile, as if hiding a secret from him. “I’d like to know what resources you have for studying.”
“Well, there’s the student success center, that was near my apartment where you all teleported in. There’s textbooks, content reviews, anatomy models--”
“Models, huh?” she hurried up to him, giving him her undivided attention, “It must be difficult to focus with all those attractive American models around, right?”
“Oh, no, they’re not like that,” Mamoru laughed. “I meant models like those mannequins you see at the store. They’re made of plastic, but their layouts mimic human anatomy to help us when we don’t have access to the anatomy lab after hours.”
“Wait, is the anatomy lab where they have those dead bodies?” Makoto asked, her nose wrinkling in disgust. “Ew.”
Mamoru laughed again. “Yeah, it’s not the most pleasant smell. We often joke that the formaldehyde stays in our clothes for weeks.”
Usagi and Rei exchanged disgusted looks while Ami’s eyes sparkled. “I wonder if I could swing by the admissions center for a tour,” she asked, a slight jump in her steps now.
Mamoru nodded. “As surprised as they’d be about the last-minute drop-in, I’m sure they wouldn’t mind you visiting.”
“Mamo-chan!” Usagi looped her arm around his again, the familiar move tugging at his own heartstrings. He really did miss her. “Can we walk around campus, just you and me maybe?”
“Yes, you two go on!” Makoto encouraged before Mamoru could respond, and Ami nodded beside her, “We can walk around and tour the place ourselves.”
Minako huffed. "I still have some questions for Mamoru-san about these so-called models and resources.”
“Well, we can look together!” Ami chirped, grabbing Minako by the arm, “We can go to the admissions center together.”
Rei’s eyebrows furrowed. “But--”
“Yes, together!” Makoto echoed, linking her own arm with Rei’s and trying to drag her in the direction Ami was moving.
Mamoru turned back to Usagi, who seemed to be vibrating with excitement. “Well then,” he smiled at her and offered her his arm, “ready to be shown around?”
The two had settled on a park bench, Usagi enjoying her first American hot chocolate from a local coffee shop (“for the American experience, Mamo-chan!”) as she prattled on to Mamoru about what was going on back home. It was almost like they were back home, seated side-by-side, him silently listening as she'd talk about everything and everyone, as if she were his personal news reporter. He didn't realize how much he had missed this routine with her.
“...and these Sailor Starlights!” she exclaimed, eyes wide in wonder. “It’s just like you said, they act just like Haruka-san and Michiru-san before they joined us! They’re looking for a certain ‘princess’, I wonder if that’s me too?”
Mamoru gave a small smile after he sipped his own coffee. “I’m a little doubtful that their princess is also you, as they would have recognized you through your hairstyle.”
“Maybe it’s just like when we were battling the Dark Kingdom?”
“But we had lost our previous memories at the time -- these new senshi seem as if they just lost her, so they wouldn’t have been reborn with new memories, right?”
“Oh!” Usagi suddenly nodded, understanding in her eyes, “You’re so smart, Mamo-chan.”
Mamoru chuckled, and Usagi leaned her head against his shoulder. He tilted his own head, letting it rest on top of hers as they watched other students and faculty spend time in the park in front of them. All of a sudden he felt so exhausted, her familiar touch and scent overwhelming him with homesickness. “I miss you, Usako,” he said softly.
“I miss you too, Mamo-chan,” Usagi responded, turning her head to face him. “I hope they’re treating you well here.”
“They are.” He gave a slight shrug. “I mean, as much as higher education can treat you well.”
“Do you need a caretaker?” she asked seriously, and Mamoru laughed lightly.
“No, it’s just a lot of material. Nothing Tuxedo Kamen can’t handle.” he winked at her.
Usagi giggled, but tightened her fingers around his. “Maybe Tuxedo Kamen can handle it, but Mamo-chan is who I’m worried about,” she said gently.
Her words had caught Mamoru off-guard, and his lips parted in surprise. Usagi laughed again and kissed his forehead before standing up from the bench, her hand outstretched towards him. “C’mon.”
--
“I can’t see anything,” Rei grumbled, a pair of binoculars in front of her eyes as she watched their future king and queen sitting on a park bench. She turned back to Minako behind her, an annoyed look on her face. “I also don’t understand how this would help us figure out if Mamoru-san was ‘staying in line’.”
“Allow me to be the judge of that,” Minako countered, snatching the binoculars from the priestess. “Mamoru-san’s shifting eyes will be evidence enough.”
The four inner senshi were standing behind a tree, watching their prince and princess enjoying each other’s company on the other side of the park grounds. Ami was shyly pretending as if she was not involved in the group activities, tightly clutching her admissions brochures (the admissions committee had been thrilled to set up a future visit and tour for her). Makoto, meanwhile, was behind Minako and Rei, fretting that they would get caught, but also getting occasionally distracted by the handsome students roaming the campus.
“See?” Minako asked, gesturing to Makoto, “Even Mako-chan is distracted by the pretty people here! There’s no way on Earth Mamoru-san is not tempted here.”
Makoto let out a squawk in protest as Rei rolled her eyes. “Still not convincing.”
“Excuse me.”
The four girls let out a collective shriek in surprise, turning to face a tall brown-haired man staring at them, his hands wrapped around the strap of his shoulder bag. He adjusted his glasses, a small nervous smile on his lips. “Are you all looking for something, or perhaps lost?”
“We’re okay.” Rei waved her hand, turning back to stare at Usagi and Mamoru. “Thank you, though.”
The man seemed unconvinced, but his smile remained in place. “I, uh, hope you don’t take this the wrong way, but is this your first time in America?”
Minako immediately whirled around, scrutinizing him. “Mamoru-san sent you, didn’t he?”
“Wh--”
“You’re trying to distract us, prevent us from spying on him and discovering his intentions!” Minako held up an accusing, perfectly manicured nail at the poor man, who only held up his hands in defense.
“N-No, I--”
“Minako-chan, I think he--”
“Well it’s not going to work, Mr. Handsome! You can tell Mamoru-san that sending a pretty boy to distract us isn’t going to work!”
“Wait, what? N-No, that’s not it!” the young man immediately turned to his bag and pulled out a brochure, “I’m a student worker at the admissions office, and they told me an international pre-med student had passed by for some information, but that she had forgotten to take the financial aid brochure. They told me to find ‘a girl with blue hair’ traveling with a group, but I wasn’t sure if it was you all, so I asked if you all were from here,” he trailed off, now looking at his shoes.
The five were silent as Ami gingerly took the brochure from his hands. “I’m sorry,” she whispered. “Thank you for dropping it off.”
The man bowed before squirreling off, and Makoto faced Minako. “That wasn’t very nice.”
Minako pursed her lips. “I may have overreacted.”
“Hey, where are Usagi and Mamoru-san?” Rei asked.
The four turned back to the park bench where their prince and princess had just been sitting moments earlier, now abandoned.
“Maybe they’re spending some private time alone together?” Ami piped up, but Minako shook her head, turning in the direction of where the brown-haired student went.
“Oi!” she yelled out, racing towards him. “I have a question for you!”
The young man started, surprise evident on his features before he started to walk faster, trying to escape Minako.
“Minako-chan!!” Makoto yelled after her friend, her other two friends following along with her. “Leave him alone!”
“Where is Mamoru-san?!”
After interrogating the student -- Ken, they learned, a fine arts undergraduate student who definitely did not know who ‘Mamoru Chiba’ was -- the four senshi decided to give up and head back to Mamoru’s apartment, defeated. Luckily, Ken was able to help them find their way to Mamoru’s apartment complex, and gave Ami the admissions office number if she had any further questions.
Rei groaned as they headed up their second flight of stairs. “Well, that was a total bust.”
“I keep telling you guys, I really don’t think Mamoru-san is cheating on Usagi-chan.” Makoto rolled her eyes, leading the pack up the stairs. “I really think he’s just been exhausted with school.”
“I refuse to let up on the case until I have solid evidence that his ‘resources’ aren’t beautiful American women,” Minako said, shaking her head as they rounded the corner of another staircase. “I’ve seen some absolutely gorgeous girls here.”
“Yeah but maybe that’s just America,” Makoto laughed.
Ami softly knocked on Mamoru’s door before glancing down at the doorknob. “Huh, it looks like the door isn’t completely closed.”
She opened the door, and the four senshi walked in to see Usagi and Mamoru lying on the living room sofa, both asleep. Mamoru’s arms were wrapped around Usagi, her head against his chest, and a maroon blanket was wrapped around them as they both softly snored.
Minako immediately held her hands up to Rei and Makoto’s eyes. Rei rolled her eyes and slapped her hand away. “They’re both fully clothed, Minako,” she hissed.
Makoto held up a finger to her lips, quietly shushing them as she led them all back outside to the apartment hallway. After closing the apartment door, she turned to them, a soft smile on her lips. “We should let them sleep. Goodness knows they both need it.”
The four stood in contemplative silence until Ami gestured to the stairs. “How about we grab a bite to eat? We can take something to-go for Usagi-chan, and then maybe after we can head back to Juuban.”
“I’m down for that.” Makoto grinned, starting to head down the stairs.
“I guess so,” Minako grumbled as Rei followed the brunette down. “I guess this mission could be paused for the time being.”
“Oh please,” Rei scoffed. “There is no mission. There’s no way Mamoru-san is cheating on Usagi.”
“Oh Hino-san, how quickly you’ve changed sides!” Minako clutched her heart, feigning hurt. “Betrayed by my own second-in-command.”
“Minako.”
The four trekked on towards campus as street lights began to turn on for the evening, the silent hum surrounding them as they glanced around. As they discussed what they were in the mood for, Minako turned to her friends.
“Do you guys think Ken is single?”