Hi!

Here is the new chapter, hope you enjoy it. I'm Always happy to know what you Think.

I don't know Sailor Moon, still.

/StarbrightAngel

Chapter 3: The interview

Motoki sat the full cup of coffee down on the table in front of his friend and then rested his arms against the counter. The arcade was not too busy yet, but it would soon be filled with kids once the schools were out. He might as well take this chance to rest a little bit.

"So how are your exams coming Mamoru? Are you doing okay?" He asked, a bit concerned. His friend was a college student in a medical school, and he knew he had a busy period right now with a lot of exams coming up. Mamoru took a sip of his coffee before answering him.

"I'm doing just fine. Since when did you have to worry about my studies Motoki?" He said with a little smile and continued to drink his coffee.

"True", Motoki said and answered his smile. Then he remembered something that he should be more worried about. "By the way Mamoru, have anything strange happened to you recently?" Mamoru frowned at him.

"What do you mean?"

Motoki shook his head.

"Never mind… Oh, have you seen Usagi today?"

"No", Mamoru said, a bit confused about this whole conversation. "You need her for something?"

"No not really…" Motoki trailed off as said girl just walked in through the arcade doors.

She walked right up to them, ignoring the dark haired man, but smiling brightly at the blonde one.

"Hi Motoki, can I have a chocolate milkshake please?"

"Coming right up Usagi", he said and smiled back at her before disappearing into the back room to get her milkshake.

Mamoru tried hard to not look at her, tried really hard to ignore her presence. But just as usual, he could not withstand the temptation.

"Pigging out after school again, Odango?" He said with his usual smirk. The girl slowly turned towards him, and he expected her eyes to be blazing with anger, as they usually were. But to his surprise they were composed and calm, as if she had been expecting this. That made him feel even more annoyed. This was not how she was supposed to respond!

"For your information, Mamoru, I am a healthy teenage girl, and I need the sugar to keep my body in balance. Unlike you." She smiled sweetly at him and Mamoru raised his eyebrows.

"No nicknames? You're awfully nice today, Odango."

"Guess I am. But it seems you're not going to return the favor."

Mamoru snorted.

"Of course not. You will always be Odango, and nothing else."

To his surprise, she did not protest.

"I guess I just have to accept that for today then." she said and looked up at him. "The truth is, I need you help with something."

Mamoru almost choked on his coffee, that was how surprised he was.

"You need my help with something? Whatever would that be, Odango?"

Usagi took a little while to answer, since Motoki just returned with her milkshake. He gave them both a weird look before leaving to serve some other customers that had just arrived. Usagi stirred the milkshake with the straw and took a sip before turning back to the man beside her.

"Well, we're doing an assignment in school right now… about superheroes."

Mamoru still did not get it.

"So? What has that got to do with me?"

"There are different ways to approach this subject", Usagi continued. "I have decided to focus on the heroes that actually protect this country."

"You mean the Sailor Senshi?" Mamoru asked and Usagi gave him a look that he could not read.

"Yeah the Senshi… and Tuxedo Camen. Anyway, I decided to do interviews with people to see what they think about the heroes!"

"So basically you just want to interview me?" Mamoru said, not believing that Usagi was actually doing her homework.

"Yes, that's right! Can I?"

Mamoru thought about this for a while. He had to be careful not to let anything slip that could reveal who he really was. What would she say if she knew that he was actually one of those heroes? He almost chuckled at the thought of her surprised face. But of course, she could never know. Just knowing would put her in a lot of danger. He could never do that to her.

"Since you asked so nicely I guess I can't turn you down. I'm honored you value my opinion so highly, Odango."

Usagi rolled her yeyes.

"In your dreams."

She then proceeded by picking up a notepad from her bag. She opened a page and Mamoru was surprised at how serious she seemed about this.

"Have you ever seen any of the Senshi in person?" was her first question.

"No", Mamoru answered. That was his first lie. Of course it was a lie. He had seen them many, many times, even up close when he had to rescue Sailor Moon from a battle. He could even give her a description of their clothes and accessories that many people did not even know about. He could even tell her about the feeling of Sailor Moon in his arms as he pulled her away from danger… But that was going a little bit too far.

He was distracted by Usagis pen moving against the paper, surprised of how much she could write down from his short answer. She then looked back up at him again.

"So what do you think about the heroes? Do you think they are doing… a good job?" She tilted her head a bit as she waited for his answer.

Mamoru had a hard time finding a good answer to that one. It was a bit hard to talk about himself and the Senshi as if they were people he admired, when he was actually one of them. But when he thought about Sailor Moon… Of course he admired her. She did a good job, even if she was a bit clumsy sometimes. She was just a girl, and yet she had been given so much responsibility.

"Of course", he answered. "The things that they are protecting us from, is not something the police could ever handle."

Usagi went back to writing things down in her notepad, before continuing.

"And what about "the things" that they are protecting us from? Have you ever seen one with your own eyes?"

"You mean… the monsters?" Mamoru said, thanking himself for his fast reactions. He had almost slipped up there, saying "youma". But that was not a word normal people would use, was it?

Usagi nodded.

"No. I have never seen one, apart from on tv."

"Is that so…", Usagi said, almost sounding a bit disappointed, and wrote something down again. "If you could ever meet someone of the heroes, who would it be?"

"Sailor Moon", Mamoru blurted out without thinking, and regretted it instantly. But that one was not a lie at least.

Usagi smirked at him.

"Never thought that you of all people would have a thing for Sailor Moon."

"I don't have a thing for her, she's just someone I would like to meet, that's all. It would be way better talking to her than to a kid like you", Mamoru said, fully expecting Usagi to insult him back. But she just smiled sadly at him.

"Yeah, sure." She then stood up, collecting her things. "Thanks for your time Mamoru, I have to go now." And then she was out the door, before he could even react. He stared after her, a thoughtful expression on his face. What was that all about? Usagi had not been acting like herself at all.

Mamoru heard footsteps behind him, and then Motokis voice.

"Mamoru… did something strange happen to you just now?"

Mamoru did not turn around to look at his friend, he kept staring at the door when he answered.

"Yeah", he said. "Something really strange just happened; Usagi actually did her homework."

That alone, was strange enough to turn the whole world around.