The characters in this story belong to their respective creators and rights holders. 
Ranma 1/2 is the creation of Rumiko Takahashi. Sailor Moon is the creation of Naoko 
Takeuchi. All original content is the creation of Samuel Phoenix. Recognition is given to 
John Sanchez for a small kick of inspiration that helped produce this story, and to 
Harold Ancell who has been a near constant source of input, information, and ideas.  
  
Awkward Consequences   
Chapter 3: Truth  
PsyckoSama (syp104@psu.edu)
http://www.fanfic.net/~psyckosama/

Haruka gave Hotaru a harsh glare, "Oh, shit? Is that all you have to 
say for yourself, young lady?"

Hotaru gulped. How would she keep her secret? What would they do? She 
was not ready for this! Hotaru sniffed and looked down. What could she 
say without damning herself immediately? "Err... I think so."

Haruka's eyes narrowed but she was silenced by a wave from Michiru. 
"Hotaru. We're worried about you. You're to young too be having sex."

Hotaru scowled. "Mama, Papa, how old were you when you started having 
sex?"

Michiru sank back for a second. "Sixteen...."

Hotaru smirked. "Exactly! Who are you to talk? I'll be sixteen in a 
month. How am I too young?" 

Michiru lowered her head, "Hotaru, we're just trying to protect you..."

Hotaru narrowed her eyes. "Protect me from what?"

"Yourself!" cut in Haruka. "Let me guess: the reason why you went to 
Nerima was so you could sneak off and fuck your boyfriend! Someone who 
is old enough to have sex should have outgrown sneaking off and secret 
boyfriends."

"It was not like that!" cried Hotaru.

"Ok then, just what was it like?" 

Hotaru sighed. I a dreamy voice she said, "It was great. He does this 
wonderful thing with his tongue..." Hotaru eyes jetted open, and her 
hand went to her mouth. Did she really say that out loud? Blushing, she 
looked down, trying to hide her embarrassment.

Haruka screamed in exasperation. "Not that! I don't want the fucking 
details! How did it come about?!"

Hotaru blushed. "It... It just kind of happened."

Haruka face stiffened and her glare started drilling into Hotaru. "Like 
you 'kind of' forgot to use protection?"

Hotaru gulped and looked at Haruka through pleading eyes. Please don't 
go there, nothing good will come of it.

"That is why you are too immature for this. When your mama and I had 
sex, when we were younger, there was never any threat of pregnancy. 
We're both women, it does not work that way." Haruka walked toward her 
daughter and looked down, towering over her. "You, on the other hand, 
are dating a boy. You can get pregnant! How long have you known him 
anyways?"

Hotaru was frozen. Her stomach was twisting, she was light headed, and 
she was doing her best to avoid bursting into tears. "Two... two 
months, Papa." 

"Two months! Are you ready to marry this boy, cause that is what you'll 
have to do if you get knocked up..."

Hotaru had decided that it was the best option. She hoped he would ask 
her, their child deserved a father. She also had a purely selfish 
reason as well. She did not want to be alone anymore. Ranma was so 
nice, a kind accepting heart that didn't cast her away. It also did not 
hurt that he had a really cute butt, no matter his form. 

Without thinking, she blurted out, "If he asks." After a moment, she 
winced. Considering the situation, it was not a bright thing to say.

Haruka growled in exasperation. "That's fucking wonderful! Girls now a 
days!"

Hotaru looked up. Now this was stupid. "Haruka-papa, you're less than 
five years older then I am."

Haruka snarled at having her words thrown back in her face. "Well, 
Hotaru, what if you get pregnant and he doesn't marry you? Your honor 
will be ruined, that's what. Your only real choice would be an 
abortion!"

Hotaru froze and her hand unconsciously lowered to her stomach. No! She 
was never going to get an abortion. She was not going to kill her baby! 
The simple fact that Haruka had suggested it was a personal betrayal, 
but she stood fast.

"Even if you got married you would have to drop out of school, and if 
he didn't your reputation would be ruined. You would be thought of as 
no better then those little sluts who whore themselves at the bars 
downtown! Well, Hotaru, you want to end up like that?"

Hotaru could no longer hear what Haruka was saying. The shock was too 
great. Tears started to stream from her eyes as she though about what 
Haruka had said. Was she just a little whore who had ruined her life? 
Would she ever be able to amount to something? Was she really that 
pathetic? Why would Ranma ever want a girl like her?

Hotaru released a cry of bitter anguish and pushed her way past her 
parents. Ignoring their calls, she ran out the door, into the night 
street. 

------------------------

"It started about two months ago, when Mike, a friend from school, you 
know, one of the American overseas students, invited me to a party at 
one of the dorms."

Ryouga gave Ranma a feral grin and cracked his knuckles. "Yeah, Ranma, 
and how does that make cheating on Akane and knockin' up some poor girl 
not your fault?"

Ranma glared at Ryouga. Could the pig shut up for a second so he could 
explain? "Hey, I was getting to that! So he invited me to this party. 
Okay, at the party they had booze. Lots of booze."

Ryouga rolled his eyes, "What? You gonna tell me that you got drunk? 
You don't drink, Ranma."

Ranma rolled his eyes and reached into his shirt. "I don't smoke, 
neither," he said as he lit up a cigarette with burst of Ki.

Ryouga gawked. "When the hell did you start smoking?"

Ranma shrugged and took a drag. "I'm not sure. I think it was before my 
fight with that Akuma guy, but after I rescued Akane from the Squirrel 
King... Anyways, I only smoke when it gets too stressful."

Ryouga raided an eyebrow. "Pack a day?"

"Sometimes," replied Ranma.

"That sucks. Those things'll kill ya."

Ranma groaned, "So will crazy Amazons, violent tomboys, obsessive 
chefs... hey, why do you care?"

Ryouga gave Ranma a wide, predatory grin showing his fangs. "That's my 
job."

"Yeah, yeah. I hear it every damn day! So where was I?"

"You were getting drunk..."

Ranma laid down and continued his tale. "I was not getting drunk. At 
least not yet. They tried to rope me into drinking with them, but after 
only two or three of shots of some nasty crap they called 'Rotgut' I 
decided to give that up. It was then that I saw a cute girl hanging 
around the punch bowl. She looked lonely and out of place, so I went 
over to talk to her. You know, cheer her up? Well, we were both glad to 
have someone who was not drinking their ass off to talk to. We grabbed 
some punch and spent a while hanging around. We talked, but eventually 
things start to blur out."

Ryouga gave Ranma a funny look. "Saotome, I though you said you stopped 
drinking?"

Ranma chucked, and took a drag of his cigarette. "Remember the saying 
'don't drink the punch'?"

Ryouga nodded, "Yeah..."

"We drank the punch."

"Oh... then?"

Ranma rolled his eyes. "I woke up in bed with her. That's what!"

Ryouga sighed. In a regretful, but at the same time playful tone he 
said, "Well... this sucks. It really ain't you fault. Now I can't kill 
ya."

Ranma plinked and placed his hand on Ryouga's forehead. "You sick man? 
I thought I just hear you not blame me for something."

Ryouga growled and pulled Ranma's hand off of his head. "What, you want 
me to blame you?" He paused for a moment then continued, "So, how do 
you know she's pregnant?"

"I was getting to that. When we woke up she kinda freaked but, I calmed 
her down. After that we talked for a little while, and told each other 
a little bit about ourselves and I told her where to find me if she 
ever needs help. Earlier today she showed up and told me she was gonna 
have my kid."

"So, what are you going to do about it?"

Ranma rubbed his temple, "I have no idea. Absolutely no idea. I want to 
do the right thing but, what is it man? I still have three fiancées, my 
life is a train wreck, and chaos follows me where ever I go. How can I 
drag her into it?"

Ryouga shook his head, "Don't be an idiot, Saotome. That is not your 
choice. You're not going to chicken out on this one, cause if you do I 
WILL KILL YOU!" 

Ranma though about what Ryouga said. The fool was right. He could 
explain things to her but beyond that it was her choice, not his. Ranma 
smiled at his rival. "Thanks Ryouga."

Ryouga blinked. "Saotome, did you just thank me for something?"

Ranma nodded. "Yeah. Ya really helped me out." Ranma paused for a 
moment. "So how is Akari?"

"Don't even ask..." growled Ryouga. 

Ranma blinked. Oh, well best not to get pig-boy started. "So... I'm 
headed to my mom's. See ya Ryouga," said Ranma as he jumped to his feet 
but was stopped by Ryouga's hand on his shoulder. 

"No way Ranma. I will not be letting you out of my sight. I'm going to 
be you conscience. You do something wrong and I'll send you to hell."

Ranma looked in Ryouga's eyes for a moment. The lost boy was serious. 
"Fine. Just keep up. I'm not going to be waiting around for you." With 
that out of the way, Ranma bound off the roof with a cry of, "You 
coming, P-chan?" 

"Don't call me P-chan!" growled Ryouga as he pursued.

------------------------

Chibi-Usa smiled as she breathed in the crisp night air. She liked the 
past. Everything was just so simple. She was free to just be Chibi-Usa, 
a normal fourteen year old school girl, and not Neo-Princess Serenity. 
Here, she could just lay back, have friends, and enjoy life. 

Tonight she was visiting her best friend, Hotaru. While she was not 
exactly fond of walking all the way to Hotaru's house, it was well 
worth it to see her.

Chibi-Usa was knocked out of her train of thought and onto her ass as 
she turned the corner onto Hotaru's street. She scowled as she got to 
her feet. Whoever that was, is really going to get some lip. 

"I'm sorry..." whimpered the crying girl who had knocked her over. 

She froze. She knew that voice better then any other. In a flash, 
Chibi-Usa was bent over helping the girl up. "Hotaru-chan? What's 
wrong?"

Hotaru looked up and threw herself into her friend's arms. She began 
sobbing out everything that happened at home. Hotaru's voice was too 
fast and choked up for Chibi-Usa to understand even a fraction of what 
she was saying. The words she did hear, such as 'whore', 'baby', and 
'abortion' really alarmed her. She was getting a very, very bad feeling 
about this.

She gave her friend a tight hug then pushed her away so she could look 
her in the eyes. "Hotaru, lets go to the park, okay?"

Hotaru nodded and spent the entire walk crying on her best friend's 
shoulder. When they arrived, Chibi-Usa sat down on a bench and guided 
Hotaru next to her.

Hotaru nodded lightly and sat on the bench.

"Hotaru, could you please start from the beginning?"

She looked at her friend through tear-filled eyes and whispered 
something. Chibi-Usa sighed, and gave her friend a hug. She looked like 
she needed another one. "Hotaru, I'm sorry but I couldn't hear you."

Hotaru nodded and started to sob once more. After a few moments she 
spoke again. Her voice was low and unsure, but Chibi-Usa was able to 
make it out. It was not what she expected.

"I'm pregnant."

Her best friend was what?! Chibi-Usa felt her body go numb with shock. 
Hotaru told her everything, and nothing she remembered had ever pointed 
anywhere near this direction. "How?" Chibi-Usa managed to choke out.

Hotaru sighed, and looked toward her friend. "Remember that party, the 
one two months ago?"

Chibi-Usa nodded. Hotaru had been so excited. One of the boys from her 
school had asked her to come to a party with him. Though, afterwards, 
she had uncharacteristically refused to say much about it.

"The reason he invited me was because it was a college party, he needed 
to bring a girl to get in. He correctly guessed that I would jump at a 
chance to go on a date. He... needed a girl that the college guys could 
get drunk and...."

Chibi-Usa gasped. "Hotaru, you didn't!"

Hotaru sighed and nodded. "Yes, but not quite how you think. When we 
arrived he left me at the punch bowl and walked off. I stood there for 
a while, rejecting drunken college morons and being uncomfortable. That 
was until Ranma came over. He was really sweet, and he did not fit in, 
either. We talked for a while and had some snacks and punch. I think 
the punch must have been spiked because I woke up the next morning in 
bed with him in one of the dorm rooms."

Chibi-Usa scowled. "Sounds to me like he was just trying to get you to 
trust him so he could take advantage of you."

Hotaru shook her head. "No, not Ranma. When we woke up he was so kind. 
I freaked out when I woke up and he calmed me down. We talked for a 
while, and he told me where to find him if I ever needed help with 
anything. Someone looking for a one night stand would never do that."

Putting aside her skepticism, Chibi-usa inquired, "So, this 'Ranma' is 
the father of your baby?"

Hotaru nodded.

Chibi-Usa sighed and slowly started to digest the information. It was 
hard to chew. "When did you find out?"

Hotaru wiped her face with her shirt sleeve and continued, "The night 
before last, but I have been suspecting for weeks."

"And you didn't tell me?"

"I... I was hoping that I was just sick... that my period was just 
late... I didn't want to believe it.."

Chibi-Usa paused for a few moments then look towards Hotaru. "Does he 
know?"

Hotaru sighed, "Yes... that's how..." Hotaru looked down and started to 
cry. "That's how I got into the mess I'm in now."

"What mess?"

Hotaru's wiped her eyes, but the tears continued to come. "When I went 
to see him... he was so kind to me. He didn't reject me, he called me 
beautiful." Hotaru blushed, but continued, "Chibi-Usa, I seduced him. I  
didn't remember our night together, and wanted to know what being with 
a man was like, so we made love. Please understand..."

Chibi-Usa shallowly nodded to her friend. While she could understand 
Hotaru's need for secrecy, she wished Hotaru had told her. They were 
best friends and she wanted to be there for her. She blushed and looked 
at Hotaru, "So... what was it like?"

Hotaru giggled, "It was like nothing I've ever done before. Ranma's 
amazing! He knows the female body in a way no man ever could, and boy 
can you tell!"

Chibi-Usa cocked her head in confusion. "He knows the female body in a 
way no man ever could? What do you mean by that?"

Hotaru looked at Chibi-Usa for a second, then spoke. "His life is... 
well... not much different then ours. He has been forced to deal with a 
lot of chaos and madness. One of the strange things about him is his 
curse."

"Curse?" inquired Chibi-Usa.

"He's kind of like the Starlights. He turns into a girl when he gets 
wet."

Now, it's getting really weird. Chibi-Usa gave Hotaru an incredulous 
look. "Did he prove it to you?"

"Yes," replied Hotaru, "He dumped a glass of water on his head, and I 
watched him shrink into a cute redhead with my own eyes!"

Chibi-Usa nodded. She had been through stranger. She could believe that 
Hotaru's 'boyfriend' had that kind of curse. Such weirdness was 
probably a requirement for having a relationship with a Senshi. One 
question was still on her mind though. "Why are you so upset? Did your 
family find out?"

Hotaru looked down and started to cry again, "They found out about 
Ranma and me. Haruka-papa was so cruel!"

Whatever Haruka had said really hit Hotaru hard. Chibi-Usa silently 
swore that she would not let her get away with out a severe tongue 
lashing.

Chibi-Usa embraced her friend. She turned her head to Hotaru's ear and 
said. "I love you Hotaru. You're the sister I never had. I'll always be 
there for you and your baby."

"Thank you...," sniffed Hotaru. The Senshi of Saturn stood up and 
turned to her friend. It was obvious that she was ready for more 
questions.

"How did they find out?"

"They... saw the stains on my panties. After we made love I didn't 
exactly have a chance to take a bath before getting home. Somehow they 
knew to check the hamper." Hotaru sighed. "So much for trust," she 
whispered to herself more then anyone.

"Do they know... about the baby?"

Hotaru's tears began to flow once again. "No... and how could I tell 
them? You didn't hear the things Haruka-papa said! Would they hate me? 
I want to keep my baby, Chibi-Usa! I will never kill my child! But... 
the things Haruka-papa said..."

Chibi-Usa shushed her friend with a raised hand. "Come on, Hotaru. You 
can come to my place. I think we should talk to my mom about this. She 
might know what to do. Tell her what you told me, okay?"

Hotaru smiled and nodded. "Okay. Thank you, Chibi-Usa. You're always 
there for me." 

Chibi-Usa giggled then started pulling her friend along. "That's what 
friends are for!"  As they walked, her eyes narrowed, and her mouth 
twisted into a perverted glance.  "So, exactly what was it like with 
Ranma?"

Hotaru smiled and blushed, "Well..." 

------------------------

Ranma gulped as he pressed the doorbell of his childhood home. Now he 
had to talk with his mother. While Ryouga gave him some ideas, and an 
'incentive' to do the right thing, it would be he mother who had the 
greatest say about his fate. She would know what would preserve honor.

Nodoka quickly answered the door. Her face filled with joy the moment 
she saw who her visitor. "Ranma! How are you, my son!" She quickly 
yanked Ranma into the house, but paused when she saw Ryouga. She 
recognized him as one of the boys who was always fighting with her son. 
"Ranma, isn't this one of your adversaries?" she said in a stern voice. 

"Yeah mom..." replied Ranma. 

Nodoka looked over the fanged boy with a very stern, critical eye. She 
remembered this boy. He and her son were always fighting, and they 
could cause a great deal of damage. She did not want that in her home, 
especially after the last time. "You may come into my home, young man. 
But you will not lay a hand on my son or damage my house or its 
contents. If you can't control yourself I will ask you to leave."

Ryouga gulped. He was obliviously unnerved by the severity of the look 
that she was giving him. "I agree, Saotome-san."

Ranma quickly jumped to Ryouga's defense. It was obvious from his tone 
and posture that he thought Nodoka was overestimating the problem. 
"Mom, give Ryouga a break. We go a long ways back. To tell you the 
truth, me and him..."

"He and I," corrected Nodoka. "A manly man is one with proper grammar."

Ranma scratched the back of his head and continued, "Err... ok. Well, 
we're rivals, Mom. We may kick the crap out of each other, but he's my 
friend."

Nodoka scowled. She hated it when he cursed, but really couldn't blame 
him. He was raised by Genma and her husband could have a very foul 
mouth at times.

Ryouga blinked for a moment but said nothing. Nodoka on the other hand 
turned her head to Ryouga and smiled brightly. "You are my son's 
friend?"

Ryouga nodded. "I guess so, Saotome-san."

Nodoka smiled and shook her head. He was her son's friend, no need for 
such formality. "Please call me Auntie Saotome."

Ryouga blinked and shook his head, like he was both flattered and 
confused. "Okay... Auntie Saotome."

Nodoka smiled serenely and led the two to the living room. Moments 
later she returned with tea and snacks. One of the most important 
things to Nodoka was being a proper hostess. 

Once she was seated, Nodoka asked her son, "Ranma, I am very happy to 
see you. What can I do for you?"

Ranma gulped and looked down. "Mom, I'm in trouble..." 

Ryouga glared at Ranma. "No kidding."

"What kind of trouble?" Nodoka's eye focused sharply on Ranma and after 
a moment she took a guess. There were few things that could upset Ranma 
like this. If Akane was kidnapped then he would be off rescuing her. If 
it was a challenger then he would be fighting or training for a 
rematch. No, there was only one thing that could distress her manly 
young man like this.  "Another fiancée?"

"Something like that," replied the youth.

While Ranma was disturbed by his mess of fiancées, most of them thanks 
to her idiot husband, she was proud that he son could attract so many 
women. Unfortunately his answer was far from sufficient. "Please, 
explain."

"I... kinda... well..." Ranma gulped and looked down.

Nodoka frowned, whatever it was it really was hurting her boy. "Please 
continue, Ranma."

Ranma sighed and just spit it out. "I kinda... knocked a girl up."

Nodoka just gawked. Her mind raced with possibilities. As she stood 
there blankly, Ranma began to get more and more nervous.

"Ranma..." said Nodoka, her voice low and contemplative.

"Yeah, Mom..." replied Ranma. He was obviously nervous and was sweating 
heavily.

"You're so manly!" cried Nodoka as she jumped forward and embraced her 
son.

"Mom?"

Nodoka stepped back, her face glowing with happiness. "I'm going to be 
a grandmother!"

Ranma blinked. This is not what he had been expecting. "Well, yeah...."

Nodoka began questioning him at almost mind numbing speeds. "Who's the 
mother Ranma? Is it Akane-chan, or that boyish chef... It better not be 
that silly Gaijin girl. She would never make a proper wife..."

"Mom...." interrupted Ranma.

Nodoka paid her son no heed and continued her rampant chatter. 
"Anyways, while it was manly of you to pleasure a woman, it was 
irresponsible to forget to use protection."

"Mom!" yelled Ranma. He really wanted her to listen to the rest of the 
story.

"Yes, my oh-so-manly son?" Nodoka replied, her voice dripping with 
pride.

"Ranma, your mom's scary" Ryouga whispered in his rival's ear.

Ranma gave Ryouga a quick nod then acknowledged his mother. "She is not 
one of my fiancées."

Nodoka scowled. It was obvious that she was still happy, but her 
disappointment was obvious. "Ranma, while it is manly for you to seek 
the company of women, you have placed this family in a very delicate 
situation."

"I know."

"It is a matter of family honor that a Saotome marry a Tendo," replied 
Nodoka.

Ranma scowled, it was time to make a point. "Mother, what about the 
other two or three dozen engagements that my Old Man made? What makes 
them any different? Those were nothing but the Old Man's bullshit. What 
the hell do I have to stick to this one?"

Nodoka nodded. "I know, my son. I would like to ask your friend to step 
out for a moment." She turned to Ryouga, "I wish to speak to my son 
alone."

Ranma stood up and turned to his mother. "Can we talk outside mom?"

She nodded, "Very well, son."

"Ryouga, wait here. Don't go anywhere."

Ryouga growled but did as he was told.

Once the mother and son duo were outside, and sitting down, Nodoka 
began. "Our family honor is in a very difficult situation thanks to 
your father. He has run our name through the dirt for the last ten 
years. I do realize this. I almost hate Genma for it, but I see little 
way out of it. I have to preserve what little honor your father has 
left us with."

Ranma nodded, "And that is why you were so obsessed with that damn 
contract?"

Nodoka nodded. "Yes... we have to preserve what honor we have left, but 
it is not easy! I never wanted to hold you to that contract, but it is 
all I had left!"

Ranma thought as he looked at his mother. "Mom... what about the 
engagements?" 

Nodoka closed her eyes, "Tell me about the mother of my grandchild."

Ranma nodded, and told his mother the full story. Everything that 
happened that night until he arrived at the Saotome home. He left out 
few details. Unlike the abridged version he told Ryouga, he did fill 
her in on the conversation and subsequent sex on the roof.

Nodoka stayed silent the entire time. Her son deserved that much, but 
when he finished she started to chuckle. "Ranma, I can see only one way 
to deal with this."

Ranma gulped. His mind was clouded with apprehension. His mother's 
words may very well decide his fate. 

------------------------

"...and that was when I ran into Chibi-Usa," finished Hotaru. For the 
third time today she had repeated the story of how this all started. 
She hoped Usagi would have some ideas. She was out. 

On Usagi's face was a gentle, friendly smile. Pulling the younger girl 
into a hug, she said, "Hotaru, this is a time for joy, not sadness. 
You're going to me a mother. Congratulations, Hotaru-chan!"

Hotaru smiled, "Thank you, Usagi. It's just going so fast. I feel like 
I'm being swept away!"

Usagi sighed and placed her hand on the younger Senshi's shoulder "I 
know this is just so much in so little time. It must be very hard, 
especially after what Haruka said."

Hotaru nodded. Usagi was right, it was hard.

"What about the father? Do you know what he plans on doing?"

Hotaru sighed and laid back onto Usage's bed. It felt so calming, so 
restful after what she had been through. "I'm not sure," she replied.

Usagi nodded, "Do you trust him?"

Hotaru sighed and looked at her princess. She could tell that Usagi was 
hoping for the best, as she was. "I do. I think he is going to ask me 
to marry him."

Usagi smiled, "That's good, but is it what you want, Hotaru-chan?"

"I... think so, but I don't want him to marry me just because of 
responsibility." Hotaru hoped Usagi would understand. If they married, 
then they would have to raise a child together, maybe even children, 
and she did not want to spend decades of her life with a man who 
resented her. 

Usagi nodded, "I understand, Hotaru-chan. You don't want to be married 
to a man who does not love you."

Hotaru sighed and looked down. He had said some wonderfully nice things 
about her, but how could a man like him ever love a girl like her.

"Don't worry, Hotaru! Once he knows the real you, he won't be able to 
resist falling in love!" chirped in Chibi-Usa.

Hotaru smilled. Chibi-Usa always knew the right thing to say when she 
needed cheering up. 

After a moment, Hotaru's frown returned. What about her family? Would 
they reject her once they knew the truth? "What about Haruka-papa and 
Michiru-mama?"

Usagi sighed. "I'll call them Hotaru. I'm going to tell them to come 
here so we can... talk about this."

Hotaru nodded, "Are you going to tell them about the baby?"

Usagi nodded, "I really can't think of another way, but I won't tell 
them if you don't want me to."

Hotaru curled up into a ball. She had not been this afraid since the 
night she found out. Tears started to stream down her eyes. They would 
find out tonight and she could only hope that she still had an intact 
family in the morning. In a meek, fearful voice she said, "Tell them."

------------------------

"I hope Hotaru's okay..." grumbled Haruka. All three out the Outers 
were waiting for Hotaru to return home. They knew there had been some 
harsh words and both Michiru, and especially Haruka were looking for a 
chance to apologize.

"You should apologize, Haruka. You went too far," growled Michiru. 

Haruka sighed and looked at her lover. "I was just worried about 
Hotaru, that's all. Someone had to be tough with the girl and I doubt 
you're willing to... but I kind of went too far."

"Really?!" screamed Michiru. She was very angry about the situation.

"Hey, I was upset! I had a right to be angry. Our little girl was 
sleeping around with some guy without even telling us, her family, that 
she had a boyfriend, and to top it all off she was doing it without 
protection!" replied Haruka in a fevered tone. She turned her head to 
Setsuna, who had her nose in a book, and asked, "What do you think?"

"I agree with Michiru," said Setsuna, as she looked up from her 
favorite copy of Machiavelli's 'The Prince'. They should really calm 
down. Everything was going to plan.

Michiru took this to her advantage. "That's right! I wanted to sit her 
down and talk about it, not scream at her until she ran off crying!"

Haruka growled, "That's total bullshit! You just short of ambushed me 
when I got home, waved a pair of dirty underpants in my face, then 
demanded I do something! Setsuna..."

"I want absolutely no part of this argument." grumbled Setsuna.

Haruka glared nastily at the outer-most Senshi, "For someone who claims 
to be one of Hotaru's parental figures you don't do much."

Setsuna scowled and set down her book, "Exactly... She is a big girl 
now. She needs her independence. I'm giving her space and a shoulder to 
cry on when she needs it. I do keep a look out for major personal 
events though. It never hurts to double check."

Michiru scowled, "The ability to see the future is no replacement for 
good parenting..."

"Would that be the same kind of parenting that sent her running out the 
door crying?" 

Michiru went silent while Haruka began to really fume. Setsuna took 
this as an opportunity to continue reading. Moments later, the phone 
rang.

Setsuna looked to the side. Yet another distraction. She placed the 
book down. "Fine. I'll get it." Without another word said she answered 
the phone.

"Hello, Usagi," said Setsuna moments after she lifted the phone.

A couple of seconds later she replied, "What about Hotaru?" This 
immediately got the rapt attention of the other Outers.

The conversation only took a few moments, but both Michiru and Haruka 
were confused when they saw Setsuna put down the phone. They had never 
seen her look quite so animated. Her face was twisted into a strange 
little smirk and her left eyebrow was twitching. 

"What's up with her?" asked Haruka as Setsuna slowly walked to the 
kitchen. Moments later she returned clasping a large glass and bottle, 
which Haruka recognized as Setsuna's emergency bottle of something 
called 'Kentucky Moonshine'.

"Setsuna, what's wrong with Hotaru-chan?" inquired Michiru, as Setsuna 
filled the glass with the vile liquid.

"Congratulations, here is to the most idiotic action performed in my 
recent memory! Cheers!" said Setsuna raised as the glass to the two 
Outers, and chugged the entire content.

Haruka winced. She had once been stupid enough to try that stuff. The 
'liquor' made her go temporarily blind. "What the you talking about?"

Setsuna smiled. "Haruka, you really put you foot in your mouth this 
time!"

"What?" 

Setsuna's smile twisted into a big comical grin. "It seems our child is 
with child." Setsuna quickly thrust the bottle out to the other Outers. 
"Drink?"

Notes: Please comment. All C&C will be appreciated, applause will be 
happily accepted, criticism will be considered, ideas would be useful, 
and flames will be quickly discarded. Thank ye! ^_^

Thanks to everybody for their comments and help. :)