Usagi Tsukino, Champion of Love and Justice and future queen of the Earth,
held her weapon carefully as she lined it up on her target and swung,
chopping off another uneven slice of potato.

She pulled her knife back and studied the lopsided triangular chunk,
looking for some cut that would even it out.  She was tired of preparing
delicious curry that looked like garbage.  This time she would get it
right.

"Making dinner mother?"  A nine year old girl with pink hair done up in a
style even more rabbit like than Usagi's asked as she peeked into the
kitchen of the Tsukino home.

"Why yes Chibi, with the rest of the family traveling this weekend, I
thought we could have a quiet dinner with Mamo-chan, like an ordinary
family," Usagi answered her daughter of the same given name, and only
eight years her junior, through a twist in time.

"Um, could you make enough for four, please mother?"

Usagi's two years of almost continuous combat against the forces that
would deny Love and Justice had left her with a keen eye for traps.  Chibi
never called her mother unless she really wanted something and she usually
considered her mother-to-be a completely worthless person, "Why, who else
will be here?"

Chibi-Usagi shyly reached her hand out and a boy of about her age stepped
up and took hold of it, "I'd like you and dad to meet somebody mother.
Rin, this is my mother Usagi Tsukino."

"Hiya!"  The boy had purple hair in a page-style cut and something about
his attitude rubbed Usagi the wrong way.

As Chibi launched into an energetic monologue, Usagi considered the
situation.  Chibi obviously didn't care what Usagi thought at the moment,
she was just trying to get Usagi to do or say something that would
compromise the position of Neo Queen Serenity back in the future.  That
would serve her future self right for dumping her kid back on herself, but
Usagi didn't want to let Chibi have the satisfaction of quoting her own
words back to her a thousand years later.

"...and we have so much in common.  We were even lovers in past lives on
the moon, isn't that romantic?"  Chibi paused to hear Usagi's reaction to
that.

"I just want you to be happy dear, but one thing..."

"Yes?"  Chibi took her hand back from her once and future lover and
took up a defensive pose.

"...what does Hotaru think about all this?"

"Who's Hotaru?" Rin asked.

"Damn you mother!"  Chibi ran off in tears.

"Chibi, wait!"  Rin ran after her.

Usagi turned back to her curry.  Chibi would be back by dinner, even if a
little heartbroken, but it was better to get it out in the open now,
rather than having her string the two of them along.

	Henry J. Cobb	hcobb@slip.net          http://www.io.com/~hcobb
Who was it who said that this mating would make Species II look like Pokemon?