Chapter 1: A Birthday Wish

Usagi sat in her chambers, enjoying the few brief moments of quiet she would get for the rest of the day. Her beloved daughter, Chibi Usa, was turning 10 today and a huge party was planned. Ami, Rei, Makoto and Minako were coming along with their husbands and daughters, so it was going to be a large event. The door opened softly, and brilliant ruby eyes appeared in the opening. "Mama, they're almost here!" Chibi Usa's excited wiggling, opened the door wider, giving Usagi a view of the dress she had picked out. Usagi smiled at Chibi Usa, cherishing the sight of her only child being so wild with enthusiasm.

"Come here, Chibi Usa, I want to give you an early present." Pink curls flew in the air as she bounded into the room, her feet barely touching the carpet with each step. "What is it, Mama? Is it cute?" Usagi gave another indulgent smile and sat Chibi Usa in the chair in front of her vanity mirror. "Close your eyes, it's a surprise!" Chibi Usa gave a small, petulant scowl before closing her eyes with a grin. Usagi set to work, combing out all the tangles in Chibi Usa's hair. As she was styling it, Usagi caught a glimpse of an eye in the mirror. "Keep your eyes closed, or I'll stop now and you'll have to go to your party with half done hair." With a mischievous smirk on her face, she slid her eyes closed again.

After a few moments, Usagi put the final touches on her hair. "You can open your eyes now, Chibi Usa." Red eyes popped open instantly and focused on her reflection. A look of unbridled joy crossed the small girl's features briefly before a look of shock set in. "Mama, aren't these your special barrettes? The ones your mom gave you?" Usagi placed a gentle kiss on top of her daughter's head. "They are, but I think it's time that they came into your possession, now that you're older. Happy Birthday my beautiful girl."

A thundering crash followed by a cacophony of voices sounded down the main hallway, breaking the moment between mother and daughter. Chibi Usa leapt to her feet with a squeal, spinning in a tight circle. "That's them, Mama, they're here!" She ran from the room at top speed, leaving giggles in her wake. Usagi chuckled softly and shook her head, silently wishing she still possessed that kind of energy. Still shaking her head slightly, she followed the sounds of her daughter's laughter down the hallway.

"Minako, get a handle on your daughter!" Rei's voice could be heard over all the other noise in the entrance hall, sounding slightly squashed. Minako was of no help, as she was currently being held up by Kunzite, violent laughter racking her whole body. "Rei, she just missed you! After all, you are her favorite aunt, just don't tell Makoto." Makoto's face popped up from behind Kunzite's arm. "Hey! I heard that! Take that back or I'll mess up that pretty hair!" Minako let out a squeal and ran across the hall to hide behind Ami. "Help me Ami, Makoto is threatening me!" Ami let out a beleaguered sigh, and looked to Zoisite. "Nice to see things never change, right Zoi?"

"Never!" A new voice joined the din, and all fake arguments were forgotten as Usagi appeared in the doorway. Minako abandoned her hiding spot behind Ami and almost tackled Usagi to the ground. "Hey there, long time no see, huh?" Usagi returned the tight hug with fervor, having missed all her friends immensely. "It's so nice to see all of you again, thank you for making the trip out here." Rei walked up to Usagi and wrapped her arms around her. "We wouldn't miss our niece's 10th birthday, it really was no problem. Plus, Vesta has been pestering us for the last two weeks about this party. I think if we had tried to skip, that girl would have run away to come."

Usagi moved to hug Makoto and Ami, and all the men in turn, glad to feel like her family was home. "Ah, I thought I heard the dulcet tones of our precious nieces, Usagi. I see you survived the initial hello." Endymion walked into the room with a goofy smile on his face. He stood next to Usagi and kissed her gently on the cheek. "Brothers, welcome home. It's been too long!" Kunzite, Nephrite, Zoisite and Jadeite all hugged Endymion, making various jokes about too many women around for their liking. "I agree, shall we all go out for a drink after the party tonight? I think our lovely wives would like some alone time to catch up, too." Agreements were heard around the room, firming up plans for later that evening.

"Well, I think now that everyone's here, it's time to get this party going. Come into the dining hall, everyone!" Usagi led the way into the room, which was decorated with soft pink balloons and white and pink streamers everywhere. In the center of the massive table sat a large 5 tier cake with different shades of pink for frosting. "Well, I think it's safe to say that our niece likes pink," muttered Kunzite, earning himself a well-placed elbow in the solar plexus from Minako. With a soft grunt, he leaned towards his wife. "Save the rough play for later love, I don't want to scar the children." Minako turned to glare at her husband, ruined by the feral smile on her face. "Promise a rain check for later?" Kunzite chuckled lowly, kissing Minako on the cheek. "It's a date."

The young girls ran around the dining hall, entertaining themselves with silly games while the adults sat back and watched. "Juno, be careful not to hurt anyone! Remember your strength!" Nephrite's voice carried across the room to his daughter, who turned a shade of raspberry at the gentle reminder. "I swear, that girl has her mother's strength, I don't remember ever being that strong at age 10." Makoto lightly punched her husband's shoulder, and punched him a bit harder again when he feigned pain. "She gets her strength from both of us, and you know it. Don't play innocent around this bunch, they all know you too well." Nephrite grabbed Makoto's hand and brought it to his lips. "My wife, ever the sweetest, just like a garden rose with thorns." Makoto stuck her tongue out at him, but smiled anyway.

"Vesta has decided to pick up archery, on top of sword play. She's an excellent fencer as well, she's bested the best teacher we could find more time than he would like to admit. I don't know what to do with her." Rei shook her head. "Not to mention, she's got it in her head that she wants to be a perfect lady as well, taking etiquette lessons on top of her other lessons. Some days I wonder if she knows what she wants to be, but she keeps on top of it."

Ami laughed. "I know the feeling with the studying. I can't keep Palla out of a book long enough to take interest in anything. I can't be mad at her, I used to be the same way when I was her age." Zoisite snorted. "USED to be? Love, you're still the same. I'm convinced that she learned by example." A gentle kiss was pressed to Ami's temple. "She'll grow up to be smart, just like her mother, and it's going to be a good thing." Ami blushed slightly. "Well, maybe she'll take a liking to medicine, it's a very interesting field, if I do say so myself."

A shout from the other end of the hall broke up the conversation. "Mama! When can we have cake?!" Usagi laughed at Chibi Usa's impatience, and stood up. "I guess we can do it now, if you'd like birthday girl." Everyone gathered at the table as the candles were lit and 'Happy Birthday' was sung. Chibi Usa closed her eyes tightly, making a birthday wish with all her heart. 'I want to grow up to be a lady just like my Mama, and I wish everyone could stay here forever!' Opening her eyes, she quickly blew out the candles to the sound of cheers. Cake was served on dainty white plates, and conversations started back up.

"What did you wish for Chibi Usa?" Ceres' face was littered with pink frosting and little crumbs of cake. "She can't tell you Ceres, it won't come true if she does!" Palla's eyes slanted with frustration at her friend's ignorance." Vesta shot Ceres a look, scrutinizing the mess on her face. "You should find a napkin, Ceres. Ladies don't make a mess of their faces while eating." Juno rolled her eyes at Vesta. "It's not that big of a deal, Ves. She always makes a mess, it's part of her charm." Ceres face lit up, an idea swimming behind her eyes. Lifting a hand to her face, she wiped the mess off. Without any hesitation, she leapt at Vesta, swiping her dirty hand across her face. Vesta let out a shriek, alerting the adults to trouble.

Rei and Minako walked up to the group of girls, arms crossed. "What's going on over here girls, are we playing nicely?" The look on Rei's face darkened when she saw Vesta with cake on her new gown. "Vesta, what have you been doing? You know that was a new dress!" Vesta blushed deeply, pointing at Ceres. "It was all her, mother! She made a mess of herself and then attacked me with it!" Minako slapped a hand over her mouth, fighting the urge to laugh at her daughter's actions. Rei shot Minako a piercing glare. Sighing, she turned back to Vesta. "Go get cleaned up, it's getting late anyway, so you might as well go to bed." Vesta stood with grace and turned on her heel to float out of the room.

Rei turned on Minako. "I will leave you to speak to your daughter." As soon as Rei was out of earshot, Minako high fived Ceres. "Nicely done! Was the look on her face worth it?" Letting out a giggle, Ceres nodded vigorously. "She looked like someone had slung mud on her instead of cake!" Minako laughed along with her daughter, appreciating the joke. "Probably shouldn't pull that one again though, your Aunt Rei was not very happy." Ceres let out a small groan and nodded again. "Yes, mother."

After handling the catastrophe with the children had abated, everyone decided to split off for the night. The men went into town after the children were sent to bed, and the women retired to their favorite hangout spot in the castle. The rest of the night passed in amicable company, everyone eager to catch up with their friends.