Disclaimer: Naoko Takeuchi owns all things Sailor Moon including PGSM. The ideas of the AU though is mine!
AN: So I have come up with another idea for a story. This is basically retelling pgsm but with one major difference- Have you ever wondered what it would be like if Rei was the one who had a sickness, not Minako? Would their lives be any different? Would they have still met for the first time in the church? Would Minako still pretend to be the Princess and be obsessed with the past life? Would Rei still be the first Senshi to awaken? Would Minako still isolate herself from the others or would Rei. Most importantly would Minako react the sam way to Rei's death like she grieved for Minako? And would their relationship work? Find out all in IIWY!
It starts with their first meeting- earlier in Act 12 I hope you enjoy reading it as I really enjoyed writing it!
Oh and those who are following WAO I haven't forgotten it! I'm just having a problem with chapter 5 so I thought I'd start a different story instead- but I promise that I will go back to WAO once I figure out where its going!
Chapter One- Act 12 Part 1
Rei watched the traffic and pedestrians while sitting on the edge of the hospital rooftop. She swung her legs over the edge and sighed. It seemed that everyone had a destination, except that for her, it felt as though time had stopped. She knew she should be grateful because it gave her extra time to live. Due to a hereditary heart failure, soon she would join her mother. The doctors had told her that she only had six months left to live and suggested that she should live the rest of it to the fullest. But how could she do this with the constant trips to the hospital?
Rei sighed again. She pulled up the left sleeve of her red and white checkered shirt and saw that she was still bleeding from having ripped the IV out of her arm. She hated hospitals; they reminded her of her mother's death. She had only been six years old when that happened but she could remember watching her mother slowly waste away. Rei let out a scream of frustration and refused to let the tears fall.
She knew that she should be grateful for having friends like Usagi, Ami and Makoto but there were certain times when she couldn't stand their company. She had told Ami once that the reason why she was afraid of making friends was because she was tired of watching people leave her. This was only half true; she promised that she wouldn't get close to anyone so they wouldn't have to suffer like she had. Therefore, she kept their friendship at a strict professional level.
Rei cursed. She couldn't understand why she was given her Senshi power. At times, her sickness drained her power and she struggled to stay conscious after transforming. She didn't want to show her comrades how weak she was so she often ran away and dealt with the consequences after battles. This was why her hospital visits were becoming more frequent; the lack of energy made her collapse.
Rei stared at the sun to estimate the time. It seemed she had been sitting here for at least a hour and decided that she should go back to her room. She drew her legs up and hugged them tightly. She didn't want to go back and was tempted to walk out of the hospital. She got up slowly and walked down the stone steps until she got to the fire door and pulled it open enough to peak through. She made sure no one was in the corridor and walked slowly back to her ward.
………………………………………………………………………………………………
Minako heard her door slide and expected Usagi to bounce in. The enthusiastic teenager had forgotten her notebook, after all. It wasn't until she looked up that she realised it was the last person she had expected. 'Mars!' "Can I help you?" Minako silently cursed to herself when she heard how shaky her voice was.
Startled, Rei bowed, "I'm sorry… I thought this was my room." Rei backed away to make a quick escape.
"Wait!" Minako smiled. "You can stay for a bit if you want."
"Aren't you busy?"
"No. I'm just surfing the net."
"Surfing the net?" Rei took several steps forward into the room.
"Un. Do you surf the net often?"
"Me?" Rei pointed to herself, "No, not really. I don't have internet connection at home and I only browse the net when I'm researching for a school project at the library."
"I see." Minako thought this was interesting. She gave Mars a point for not recognising her as she didn't surf the net but what were her other excuses?
"Are you sure you want me to stay?"
"Un. I'm sure. I was kinda lonely before you came." Minako closed her laptop to emphasise her point and briefly panicked when she saw that Usagi's notebook was on the bedside table. She didn't want Rei to make the connection, so she discreetly leaned over and knocked it off the table.
Rei flinched at the sound. "What was that?"
"Sorry. I knocked something over."
"Aren't you going to pick it up?"
"No. It's just a magazine." Minako got up out of the bed and flopped down on the sofa, "You can join me if you want."
Rei hesitated; she knew she needed to sit down but the thought of being close to the girl scared her. She realised this was stupid and positioned herself on the other sofa. The silence made Rei become uncomfortable and she looked for a way to break the tension, "Why are you here?" She asked.
"I was hit by a truck."
"A truck?" Rei examined Minako closely, "You don't look hurt."
Minako raised a delicate eyebrow.
"Not that it's a bad thing. I mean I'm glad it wasn't serious, unless it was serious and you've been here awhile-"
Minako could no longer keep a straight face and let out a giggle, quickly followed by another.
Rei didn't know how to react to Minako's laughter, "What?"
The question brought another wave of giggles.
Rei grew impatient, "What's so funny?"
Minako tried to control her laughter; she didn't want to scare off her visitor. "Your face…"
"My face?" Rei suddenly grew self-conscious, "What's wrong with my face?"
"Your facial expression…" Minako couldn't form complete sentences, "When you were rambling..."
"What about it?"
"You reminded me of someone I knew a long time ago."
"I did?" Rei stared at the idol curiously, "Where is this person?"
Minako grew sober, "She's gone."
Rei crossed one leg over the other and folded her arms. "Well, maybe she will come back to you, perhaps she wants to find you but something's stopping her."
Minako smiled, "Maybe…"
Rei seemed satisfied with Minako's response and nodded her head and smiled.
Minako shivered. She hadn't expected that this Mars would have the same smile as her alter ego. She suddenly grew claustrophobic; and struggled to compose herself.
"What's wrong? Are you cold?"
Rei's concern snapped Minako out of her musings. "I'm fine. Just daydreaming."
Rei narrowed her eyes. She got up quickly and grabbed the blanket from the bed. In a quick and clumsy motion, she draped the blanket around Minako's shoulders. Rei kept her arms around the idol's shoulders which made Minako's heart beat fast.
"Is that better?"
"It's much better. Thank you." Minako was enjoying Rei's embrace. "To answer your question, a truck appeared from nowhere and was going to hit me but someone pushed me out of the way just in time. I hit my head on the sidewalk… I think I passed out. The next thing I remember was waking up in the ambulance. The doctors wanted to keep me here under observation."
"Thank goodness." Rei pulled away form their embrace and sat next to Minako. "I'm glad it wasn't serious."
Minako longed for Mars' touch again and intertwined Rei's fingers with her own. She smiled when Rei didn't pull away. 'Maybe Reiko is closer to the surface than I thought.'"Why are you here?"
Rei shot up from the sofa; she was hoping this question wouldn't be asked. "Oh… I'm just anaemic."
"Eh? I didn't think anaemics were admitted to a hospital."
Rei cursed herself for not coming up with a believable excuse. "I also have dizzy spells and fatigue."
Minako grew concerned; she knew Rei was lying to her. She didn't want to push the Martian so she stayed silent. "Fatigue?"
"Un. I'm a miko at a shrine and I sometimes find it hard to balance my duties with schoolwork."
"A miko?"
"Un." Rei settled herself down back on the sofa, "What do you do?"
"Me?" It was Minako's turn to be uncomfortable. "I'm a-"
The door suddenly slid open revealing a middle aged doctor. "Hino, there you are!" The woman approached slowly, as if she might be weary of Rei. "Hino-san, why'd you remove your IV?"
From the corner of her eye, Minako examined Rei's shirt and to her horror she saw a crimson stain on the left sleeve.
"I didn't need it."
"Since when have you become a doctor?"
"I haven't. I just know me."
"Fine, Hino-san. Why don't you go back to your room and I'll examine you again."
Rei looked down, "I thought this was my room."
The doctor sighed again, she had feared that Rei had made an escape and hadn't expected that she'd remained in the hospital. She had heard Rei's voice in passing and decided to investigate. "Your room is three doors down to the left."
Rei made her way to the door obediently. She was too tired to have an argument. As she was leaving she turned to Minako and smiled, "Bye."
Minako couldn't help but smirk despite the situation. "Bye." She watched Rei's retreating form and felt the pain of loneliness return to her heart. She had been so close.
"I'm sorry she disturbed you, Aino-san."
"Eh?" Minako turned to face the doctor. "She didn't bother me, Sensei. She was good company." Then she added, "I don't think she realised who I was."
The doctor chuckled.
Minako would've laughed if the circumstances had been different, "Sensei, is Hino-san really okay? She told me she's anaemic but I don't believe her."
"I'm sorry, Aino-san. I'm not allowed to reveal any information in regards to Hino-san's condition due to confidentially."
The doctor smiled and walked out of the room leaving Minako deep in thought.
Minako hadn't expected that Rei would be the mirror image of Reiko; everything was the same; she'd even kept her fierce protectiveness. It made Minako smile just thinking of Rei's concern and she snuggled deeper into the blanket envisioning Rei embracing her like she'd done previously.
"Minako, do you really think Mars is lying about her health?" A male voice asked.
"Yes I do. I know her, Artemis and I know when she's lying."
"But you don't know her, Minako. She's not your Reiko, she died. You all died. Remember?"
"But we were given a second chance to live… and love."
"She doesn't remember you."
"I think she does, Artemis. Couldn't you tell by the way she acted? It's like she knows deep down that I belong to her, like she belongs to me."
"I think you're delusional, Minako. It must be due to your concussion-"
"Get out!"
"Minako-"
"I said get out! I don't want to hear you antagonising me any longer. She is Reiko and I'll prove it!"
Artemis shook his head and jumped onto the window's ledge, "I hope for your sake you're right, Minako. I don't want to see you get hurt."
"I won't."
"But like you said she is lying to you about her condition. It might be a lot worse than you think."
"Don't say that. She's going to be fine!"
"If that's true then why is she lying?"
Minako tired to defend Rei but she couldn't. Artemis was right, Rei was hiding something from her and she didn't understand why. The idol knew Rei wasn't anaemic.
Artemis shook his head again and walked out of the open window to find a place to lie down in the sun for a much deserved nap, leaving Minako alone.
…………………………………………………………………………………………….
Minako slammed down Usagi's notebook in frustration. She had gone through it several times to look at the photographs of the other Senshi. Minako wondered if Rei had lied to them as well. She needed a distraction and sat down at her desk to design a new mascot for her website. She heard the door being opened forcefully and stood up to investigate. "Ah Shacho."
Minako noticed that there was something different about her manager. At first she thought he was angry because she was behind on paperwork but his facial expression unsettled her. She watched in horror when his left arm glowed red and vines suddenly wrapped around her body.
Shacho grinned evilly, "Sailor V… no, Princess."
"It can be… you're a youma!"
Shacho pulled the vines to draw Minako closer to him, "Where's the Ginzuishou?"
"I don't know."
"Don't you have it? You're the Princess, right?"
Minako loosened the bindings and was able to call for a crescent moon to cut through them which caused the youma to loose his balance.
"You can't get away!" He tried to grab hold of her but she managed to evade him.
As he came closer Minako kicked him forcefully and he slammed against the wall. She was shocked to see that her attack hadn't fazed him. Minako ran out of her room and tired to get away from the youma.
Rei, who had heard the commotion, stuck her head out of her door to investigate. She saw Minako run past and almost on instinct, Rei decided to run after her. She felt another presence and realised a youma was chasing after them.
Minako turned to see if she had gotten away from the youma and saw that Rei was behind her. She glanced back again and saw that the miko was tiring. The idol slowed her pace so Rei could catch up with her and grabbed her hand to pull her along.
Both Minako and Rei were too distracted to notice a pair of arms appear from nowhere and they were both pulled into the closet.
Despite the white coat, glasses and modified hairstyle, Rei recognised her friend immediately. "Usagi, why are you here?"
"It doesn't matter now; we have to save Aino Minako!"
"Aino Minako?" Rei turned to face the girl who was still holding her hand tightly, "You're an idol?"
End of chapter one
Please leave feedback!
