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Michiru asking for a favor was never a good sign. Implying she might like something was more of her usual style, talking around the matter until Rei found herself offering to do whatever task before it had even been named. A flat request was serious. A flat request was a need.
Rei stood at the door of the Kaioh-Tennoh house, unsure of what to expect inside. A body to hide? A body to kill, and then hide? It would be uncharacteristic of Michiru to do anything without a plan, but Rei had to prepare for the worst-- on that thought, maybe Michiru was going to ask to get connected to Rei’s father, though surely she had enough money to draw the senator’s attention herself…
“Come in, please,” Michiru called from inside. The door was not locked, it seemed, and Rei stepped over the threshold, ready for whatever lie ahead of her.
The foyer and the living room beyond it lie empty and undisturbed, as did the kitchen and the hall. That made Rei even more uneasy than if the place had been torn apart.
And then she heard the retching.
She found Michiru in the half-bath, curled around the toilet like a child around a stuffed bear. She was pale, shakey, and still in her nightclothes. Her hair was tied up in the least elegant fashion Rei had seen on her.
She greeted Rei with a wane smile. “It seems I find myself indisposed.”
“Are you…” Rei stopped, racking her brain. There had been a mention, months and months ago, of thinking towards a child, and then nothing more. Rei had not thought to look in the fires to see what might come. She was not sure Michiru would have approved, if she had.
“I don’t know. I haven’t been able to move for a while.” She gagged, and hid her face. “I apologize.”
“What do you need?”
“I need you to go upstairs and get a test from the medicine cabinet. And I need you to not tell a soul about this, whatever happens.” Rei nodded and turned, but Michiru grabbed her leg. “ You’re the only one I trust to do this, Rei. Not a word.” There was such fear in her eyes, for a moment Rei wished this all had been about a murder.
It had been very different when Usagi got pregnant. Not a soul didn’t hear about it the moment she suspected. All of the Inners had been there, when she’d taken her first test at home. Makoto had brought cake so whatever the result, there was something to be happy about, and then, of course, there had been something to be very happy about.
Michiru instead had a big, lonely house, silent besides for the sounds of her own body’s protests and Rei rummaging through the cabinet.
“Should I call Haruka? Or Setsuna?” she asked when she returned.
Michiru shook her head. “We’re trying not to get anyone’s hopes up, in case something---” She ducked back towards the toilet, and Rei looked away out of respect. “In case something goes wrong.” She blew her nose. “I’ve seen a lot that might go wrong.”
Rei felt a tenderness that was usually reserved for Usagi, and sat down on the cold tile to rub Michiru’s shoulder. “Sometimes nightmares are just bad dreams. Sometimes we see what we fear, just because we fear it.”
“It’s not like you to voice such drivel.”
“It’s not drivel.” Rei shook her head. “You’re lucky I don’t go off on you, keeping this a secret from me.”
“I will count my blessings.”
Rei moved to her feet. “Do you think you can stand, with my help?” She took her hands, and helped her lift her nightgown to sit. Rei’s hand brushed Michiru’s stomach, and for a moment, she swore she felt a spark of new life. Their eyes met, and neither dared to say a thing. Rei handed over the test and, feeling there was nothing more to do, knelt at her side while she used it. This was sacred, whatever happened. This was a moment that would burn forever.
“I need you to look for me.” Michiru stared at the wall, as though petrified. She swallowed hard. “I need you to look, and not dress up the result in pretty words.”
“So that’s why you called me,” Rei said, but neither of them so much as smiled. The minutes ticked by, achingly slow, until the little lines appeared in the window.
“Michiru…”
“Tell me, Rei.”
“You’re--” It caught in her throat, unexpected. She had cried about Usagi’s child, but she had not suspected she would now. “It’s good,” she managed.
Michiru collapsed into herself, shoulders shaking. “Haruka will be so happy.”
A little annoyance flared beneath Rei’s tears. “Who cares about Haruka? This is about you right now.” She crossed her arms. “We’re going to breakfast, if you can manage. That place off Main you like, even though it’s overpriced. My treat.”
Michiru looked up, a weak but genuine smile on her lips. “Rei Hino, throwing frugality to the wind? It must be an occasion.”
“It is. I expect that’s my godchild I’ll be feeding.”
She laughed. “The spoiling begins.” She paused. “Thank you, Rei.”
“It’s nothing. And I won’t tell anyone, since I know you’re still worried.”
“And I like to think I’m discreet.” She let Rei help her up, and they made their way upstairs to dress for a day out.