An Afternoon at Harajuku
by Mitch
wells17@gte.net
It was a rather pleasent Saturday. Mina had called me the previous
night and asked me if we could spend the next day shopping at Harajuku.
I figured deserved the rest with all that had happened to me lately.
First, that vine monster, then Amy gets kidnapped by a monster that
reminded me of...planes, and finally I was trapped with Ann during an
earthquake. I guessed I could have some fun for once. I'm Lita Kino,
I'm also Sailor Jupiter.
I hadn't been at Harajuku for a while. I've been so busy with
schoolwork and being a Sailor Scout since I moved to the 10th Section
that I feel almost confined. It was great just to shop like an
ordinary girl for a while. After a lot of window shopping and a little
buying, we went to the food court and sat down.
"You know," I whispered, "Serena once told me that she and Amy had
an adventure starting here once."
"So I heard," replied Mina, "but let's try to not talk shop,
okay?"
I silently agreed. I liked being Sailor Jupiter, but there was a
lot of pressure that came with the job. Mina had that pressure longer
than the rest of us, so she would know. I sipped the drink I had
bought earlier, hoping to forget my recent problems.
"That's a lemon-lime drink, right?" asked Mina.
"Yeah, so?"
"You shouldn't sip it so fast, or you'll look like cross between
yourself and Serena's hair! HA HA HA!!!"
"Uh, yeah. That's...funny," I sputtered out. I never could get
her jokes, but I tried to be a good sport about it.
"You know," I said, "all this time, we've never really gotten to
talk. What was your life post-Silver Millinium, pre-Sailor Scout?"
And she told me. Mina told me of her parents, her friends, how
she met Artimus, and her early days as Code Name Sailor V.
"You went to Rome?" I exclaimed. "I'm so jealous! I always
wanted to visit there!"
"Well," said Mina, "I really wanted to see Hawaii, but Rome wasn't
bad maybe you'll see it someday."
"I hope so," I said while smiling. I glanced at Mina and noticed
how femimine she is. She was almost sterotypical. Sometimes, I've
wondered what I'd be like if I was more femimine. I already knew I'm
not the tomboy people said I was. Still, sometimes I wondered...
My thoughts were interupted when I saw people running out of a
nearby apartment store.
"Think it's a closeout?" asked Mina.
"Doubtful."
A monster appeared from the store. It was female and looked like
a walking mirror. She was laughing manically, as some of the monsters
we've fought are prone to do.
"I am Bad Reflection!" she delaired, "I have come to take the
energy of shoppers!"
"So much for a day off," I said.
"I don't know," said Mina, "this seems like an easy one."
In all the craziness, we transformed and faced the monster.
"Hey, you!" I shouted, "Malls are for browzing, not for
terrorizing!"
"Too bad for you that we're out of money," said Sailor Venus, "so
prepare to be served some justice!"
"We are Sailor Jupiter...!"
"And Sailor Venus!"
"We will right wrongs...!"
"And triumph over evil!"
And that means you!" We said the list line in unison.
"HA HA HA!" laughed Bad Reflection, "You Scouts have been
troubling us far too long. It's time for you to see the light!"
The reflection on her mirror surface shone at us. I blocked my
face and wondered how Venus was doing.
"VENUS CRESENT BEAM SMASH!"
My question was answered when a familiar yellow light beam
shattered the mirror part of Bad Reflection in half.
"I'm not so worried," said the monster, "gaze upon your
reflections, kids!"
I looked at the mirror part of her. I saw Lita Kino, but it was
the way others saw Lita. She was grim, scary, and bullying. She was
nasty, menacing, and unpleasent. Was that me? Was that how people
saw me? Was I really all muscle and no...compassion?
"No! -No-! NO!" I shouted. "I'm not really like that! That's
just how some people see me! Maybe that's how I seem to come across
sometimes, but that's an exaggeration!"
True, I was tough sometimes but I was hardly without feeling.
I had my own loves, losses, and interests like everyone else. I had
friends and I had morals. I was hardly a bully and I never actually
-looked- for fights. I just got involved in one when I figured I was
struggling for what was right. I was a -person-, not a monster.
Bad Reflection just smiled at me.
"Would you like a -closer- look?"
"NO!" I would have broken my part of the mirror, but Venus was
under it looking at her's. I wouldn't endanger her like that.
Just then, a familar white rose came down between us and the
monster. I looked up and saw the Moonlight Knight, standing on the
top of an escalator.
"Sailor Scouts," he said, "when the world has a bad reflection on
you, you must prove them wrong. Prove that you are more than what
people say you are."
I turn back to Bad Reflection, about to do what he suggested. All
the monsters I destroyed was never because of malice, but out of
compassion for the victims. Actually, I was always ticked at the
monsters, but consern for the victims came first. You might say that I
was always fighting for love, like Sailor Moon always said she did.
"Want to do this together?" asked Venus, a little more quiet than
usual.
"Yeah," I answered.
"JUPITER THUNDER CRASH!"
"VENUS CRESCENT BEAM SMASH!"
I always liked the combined attacks. I figured that they brought
more togetherness to the team.
Our attacks hit the monster. She turned into a tarot card with
her picture on it which burned out.
I looked up and saw the Moonlight Knight.
"Well done Sailor Scouts. Adeu."
He stepped into the shadows like he always did. I really admired
him, but so did Sailor Moon. At least she was still after Darien. I
sighed. Sailor Moon had her Tuxedo Mask, but I didn't think I was that
lucky. Strange, how this guy reminded me of both Darien and Tuxedo
Mask. Well, it was Lita who was looking for a boyfriend, not Sailor
Jupiter.
I turned to Sailor Venus. She was looking surprisingly down.
"Venus?" I asked almost hesitantly, "what...did you see...if you
want to talk about it?"
She sighed.
"Jupiter, I saw a very fragle Mina Aino. -Very- fragle. A very
weak girl."
She turned to me.
"Jupiter, am I really like that? I mean, I'm probably the most
delicate of us but does that mean...?"
"You? You've been doing this longer than the rest of us. Just
because your physically more vulnerable than us doesn't mean you're
weak. It would be like judging me from my...height."
She stood blankly at me for a second.
"Jupiter, I...er...that is...I'm sorry..."
"No, that's okay. It's over now. Sometimes first impressions
can be wrong impressions."
She smiled.
"And there's usually more than meets the eye."
"You know, we should change back."
"Yeah."
That night, Ken called me about the mall incident. I told him
that Mina and I were never near the monster, which was true in a way.
I hated to keep things from him, but it was part of the job sometimes.
I told him that we should get together soon. I never really introduced
him to my friends. He agreed and we hung up.
I lay on the bed thinking about that day. I was more gentle than
people thought. I was more than a black belt. I was a cook, a
flowerist, and a homemaker. None of those are usually in the job
description of a bully. Besides, I had friends who cared for me and I
liked them back. Bad Reflection was wrong and she was wrong about
Mina. There's more than one way to be strong and Mina was one of the
strongest people I knew. I went to sleep with only my potted plants
to keep me company.
End