Ayune entered the room stoically, having to find purchase among the many bodies that had managed to squeeze into the small room. The laughter had been so loud she had heard it from the hallway; ringing, chiming off the walls and reverbing through the hallways.
"Maaaaaah."

Her entrance seemed to sober them, and she barely betrayed a twitch when an inflated glove spazzed by her head then landed, forgotten on the tiles. Her voice was level and even, a tinge of a smile in it at the childishness in her daughter's voice.
"Yeees?"

"They won't..ah.." A comfortable silence seemed to fall over the room, and a blush covered her daughter's cheek. It seemed she too, was seeing the irony in the situation. The rest of her words came out in a mumble. "...bring me my homework."

At this, Ayune tilted her head back and let out a light chuckle. Her eyes flashed through the room, surveying the group thankfully. "Good. You'll worry about that when you're back in your own bed."

Ami awoke to an empty room. She found it disconcerting, considering there had been someone at her side constantly since she had begun her stay here. The room was quiet and peaceful though, the beep of her monitor steady through the empty room. When her mother walked in, she was still trying to blink the sleep from her eyes; the numerous medications made her head fuzzy and clouded.

The woman smiled warmly to her before flicking eyes back to an opened folder she held and taking a seat next to her. A warm hand laid itself on her own and she handed her the folder with the other. "Well... I don't know how, but your blood tests are normal. I'm positive you had some internal bleeding, but it's stabilized now."

Unsure of a response to this, the Mercurian only smiled at her, leaning into the touch that tucked a strand of wispy blue behind ear. "A normal patient I'd have insisted stay here for at least a week... But that's not you, hn?"

The woman was moving to cover the spot with a kiss, but Ami's eyes wordlessly flew open in alarm, pulling away to see her. Her mother only smiled warmly back at her, her features calm.
"Rei told me. I sent her home for some rest."

Ayune laid a hand on her head, ensuring this time that her kiss fell to the bluenette's forehead. When she pulled away again, Ami was staring back at her with shining orbs.
"Mah..."

She only smiled in response, patting the hand again.
"You'll always be my daughter, no matter what. You remember that."

Ami only stared at the woman, mouth agape in surprise. Before she had found a response, she was wrapped in a strong hug. A whisper rang in her ear that she felt more than heard. "I'm so proud of you."

The woman pulled away, leaving a hand to lay on shoulder and scooted closer. She let one leg hang over the edge of bed, throwing the other to lay alongside Ami.

"She told me why a genius girl would choose silence over safety. Why my most important person would pull away from me. What she didn't tell me, was how I let a stranger come between me and my daughter."
Ami laid a head on her mother's shoulder, listening to the hum of her mother's words. She found it hard to grasp onto any single thought and keep it there before it floated away again. Her head was fuzzy and she blinked at the lilting room, finding comfort in the sound of words and warmth of touch. She was pulled out of her thoughts when she was wrapped in another hug, which she returned tiredly.

"Now's not the time for that."
A friendly hand patted her knee.
"I was going to keep you longer, but.. you were ready yesterday. I sent Rei home to get ready for you. We don't want to keep her waiting, do we?"

She pulled her head away to blink at her mother in confusion, not sure if she had begun hearing things. The doctor blinked, gathering her thoughts before continuing on. "She's taken more than adequate care of you, up 'til now. I think I did more harm than good, with what I thought were my good intentions. And my daughter is a very smart woman. She knows what's best for her. So does her Rei."

A pause as she tilted her head, listening to something only she could hear. "I wouldn't call the apartment livable right now, anyway. I've already started looking, I think I found one. Closer to the temple. It'll be a longer commute, but I can see my daughters that way."

She cracked open sleepy eyes to see Rei walking through the whitewashed room, smiling at her. She managed a weak smile back, as the woman set a bag down next to her, pulling out a familiar pair of pants.

The change was painful, as much for her pride as physically. She had never sustained injuries this long before, and she wasn't used to needing help for simple things like putting on a shirt or slipping into pants. As always, Rei's ginger touch, soft but guiding, was patient and her gaze even. Even through Ami's winces of pain, she could see the touch of excitement coloring the woman's eyes.

The cracked ribs made everything, even breathing, a painful task. It made walking near impossible but the fact that she only had one good foot completely destroyed that option. Besides that, the assortment of blues and greens that had begun to form on body since her arrival made the trip hellish. Particularly bad, was the sickly green that had appeared on her cheek and ran along her chin to her ear. She couldn't remember bruises ever taking this long to heal on her body, but she assumed her body was a bit overworked at the moment.

Always the punctual one, her mother appeared inside the room shortly after the change. Ami was, by then, a bit pale from the effort but she choked out a smile just the same, as well as to Haruka, wheeling in a wheelchair behind her. Rei's whispers were short in her ears. "Gotta pick you up."

She nodded, and wrapped a cooperative arm around neck. The woman lifted her easily, placing her as gently as possible into the chair held by Haruka. She looked up to see her mother tearing slightly, but she wiped an angry hand at one before it fell. She was wrapped in a gentle hug, and she could tell the woman was restraining from squeezing too hard. "I love you."

Ayune pulled away, and this time she wasn't fighting the tears pooling in the corners of her eyes. A soft hand fell on her own, gripping.
"You call me if you need anything. And I'll visit, all the time."

Ami could only nod, gripping the hand back.
"I love you too, Maah."

And with that, her mother stood, turning to Rei and wrapping her in a grateful, stronger hug.
"You two take good care of each other..." A sniffle of a laugh caught in her throat. "I'll find out if you don't. I'm going to keep a close eye on my daughter."

Rei only smiled, hugging back.
"I wouldn't have it any other way."

The doctor pulled away, regarding the three of them. It was hard, saying goodbye. She never thought this day would come so soon, but life is funny that way. The smile on both women's faces told her she was doing the right thing. With a final sniff, she pulled her figure up, and gave an affirmitive nod.
"Okay, then."

Haruka threw a bag over her shoulder, Rei took her place wheeling Ami, and the four of them made their way out the hospital. Haruka's car was waiting, and Rei placed her in just as gingerly as the wheelchair. And then, Ami was waving goodbye to her mother through the window, her vision swimming as she faded from view.

Rei sat in back with her and she lost herself to the hum of the vehicle. Her head laid itself on Rei's shoulder, and the woman wrapped a protective arm around her. Haruka usually drove with a hard, professional edge but today she took turns with a gentle care, warning before any bumps or stops.

It wasn't until she drove up to the curb and she turned her eyes up to the long flights of stairs that she remembered they would be an obstacle. "Rei.. the stairs?'

The woman smiled glintingly at her as Haruka disappeared from the car altogether. By the time the racer had moved to their side, Rei was already lifing her out of the car in gentle arms. The racer moved as if to help, but Rei's head shook and she let out an affronted "Uh-uh" with a shake of her head. The taller woman assented, returning to their side up the harsh trek with duffel and chair over shoulder.

The stairs were painful and seemed to go on forever. Ami knew Rei was trying to take them lightly, but each step jarred and shook her, stabbing achingly at her ribs, shaking her inside her frail frame. In the end, she tucked her head into the nook of Rei's neck and did her best to breathe, willing it to be over. By the time they reached the top, Rei's breath was labored and she could feel the tremble of her limbs, but she knew the woman being too stubborn to accept help. She turned her head to see the screen open, and Grandpa smiled wizenly up at them.

They only nodded wordlessy to each other as Rei stepped into the cool walls of sanctuary, Grandpa stepping aside to give them clearance.
"Glad to see my girls home."

By the time they reached the room, Rei was shaking futily and she laid them both down on the bed with a huff. The bluenette cast her eyes around to the familiar room, falling to the unfamiliar furniture.
"New bed?"

It was at least a full size larger, and already she was smiling at the extra space proffered. Her miko smiled to her, sitting up and pulling sweaty strands out of her eyes. Her form leaned back on elbows with a tired smile. "Apparently your mom stopped by earlier this week. Got delivered this morning."

A blush covered Ami's cheeks, but she said nothing. Instead, her eyes fell to Haruka, dropping the last of her burdens in a corner. A familiar, childish smirk covered her the racer's features. "Well.. that's that, then.

She let out a diminished smile, and then a soft hand was ruffling through her blue locks, to be replaced by a soft kiss.
"You guys take care, now. I'll let you two get settled."

Dimly, she heard the called thankyous from Rei beside her. The familiar sound of a sliding screen door sounded, comforting, and she closed her eyes to the sound of it, enjoying the warmth and familiarity. Her head fell of its own accord against the pillows, and she was blearily realizing how tired she was.

A warm hand fell against her forehead and had her blinking tiredly at the room around her. Intense, familiar amethysts greeted her, along with the weight of body on bed. Something was being placed in her hand and she took it obediently.
"Here."

She looked down to see an assortment of pills held in her hand, and she turned her eyes questionably to Rei, a glass held in the miko's hand.
"Painkillers. I know you'll be needing them by this point. Your mom said we don't really need to worry about dosage requirements. Sorry about the stairs."

She smiled, nodding tiredly as she closed her eyes and made a weak grab for the cool glass. And then, the strong scent of Rei was upon her. It smelled of fiery ash, incense, and sandalwood. The familiar mane of sweet scented hair was upon her and she was bathing in it, the scent and feel of her lover. Soft breath was against her neck, and gentle hands were upon her face.

The whisper was low so only she could hear it.
"Welcome home, love."

A/N: It's finally done! I hope everyone enjoyed the trip with me, it's been a long, hard journey. A HUGE thank you to my favorite Kue-chan, for sitting through all my OCD disorders, and making sure it got out on time. Read and reviews are welcome, and I LOVE criticisms and reviews. If anyone's interested, there's already another in the works, so please keep your eyes posted. Also, TheKueken has some works up and some more should (hopefully) be going up soon.