"Aino Minako?" Usagi asked. She and Makoto were walking along the path to school together before stumbling across this portrait. The beaming face of teen megastar Minako Aino smiled back at them, winking.
"Oh, is this the girl who invented Sailor V?" Makoto asked. Usagi nodded.
"But what is she doing on a poster? Not unless…" Usagi said, before trailing off. Makoto read the caption on the poster.
"Coming to Japan to perform the hit single C'est La Vie live, Aino promises a night of fun for the town of Tokyo!" Makoto read. Usagi swooned. Her heroine, flying in to Tokyo. She vaguely wondered whether her parents would permit her to attend.
That afternoon, Usagi and Makoto, accompanied this time by Ami Mizuno and Luna, made an intentional diversion by the nearby airport. Sure enough, on her own private jet, Minako Aino had landed in Tokyo. Upon seeing the large crowd that had come to greet her, Minako gave a large wave. Behind her, an indistinct, small white shape appeared, and climbed up to her shoulder. Minako nodded thoughtfully, and cleared her throat.
"Citizens of Tokyo, listen well! Upon seeing the joy upon each and every one of you has displayed, before my concert, I will host a little friendly singing competition. The winner will receive two backstage passes!" Minako said with a cheer. She winked, and the crowd went even more delirious with joy.
"I don't trust this…" Luna said. Makoto nodded. She looked at Usagi, who was as mad as the crowd.
"Nor do I. But we're not talking Usagi-chan out of this. I will accompany her, and make sure she is safe," Makoto said. Luna nodded.
"Will you need us, Mako-chan?" Ami asked.
"No, Ami-chan. I don't think you'd like to be in such a charged atmosphere for so long, and Rei-chan wouldn't waste her time with someone like Aino-senpai. If I need you, I'll call," Makoto said, turning on her heel. Usagi shook herself out of it, and turned to see Makoto's retreating back.
"Hey, good day, Tokyo! Welcome to this friendly little competition! I am Minako Aino, but you may simply call me Minako! Well, the list I got was incredibly large, so let's get this started! Naru Osaka, let's go!" Minako called from atop her stage. She hopped to one side, and Naru climbed on the stage, beginning to sing. Makoto looked thoughtfully around the auditorium. Nothing looked out of place, but Makoto had experience with Dark Kingdom traps. The instant Minako looked even the touch out of the ordinary, Makoto had her pen ready.
"Usagi Tsukino! Let's go!" Minako asked. Makoto let Usagi go on stage, and watched her performance. She sung Moonlight Denetsu, but botched the song horribly mid-performance. Makoto's eyes were trained on Minako. She had no focus to spare for Usagi. When Usagi finished, Minako politely applauded, and her eyes followed Usagi back to her seat. Minako looked the seat over from Usagi, directly at Makoto.
"You there, with the chocolate hair! What's your name?" Minako asked. Makoto was caught off guard by the question.
"I am Makoto Kino, friend to Usagi," she responded. Minako looked behind stage, and had a conversation with someone Makoto could not see. She turned back around.
"Why not have a chance at singing?" Minako asked.
"No, no, I don't sing. Besides, that's not what I came for," Makoto insisted.
"No, no, I insist! Your voice is amazing! I want to hear more of it!" Minako insisted right back. Makoto looked around, and realised that she would not be making it out of this situation without singing a song for Minako. Her thoughts drifted to her transformation pen. Her prior thoughts about jumping at Minako as soon as she showed her colours as a Dark Kingdom threat were quashed by the logical reasoning that the transformation was wholly impractical inside the auditorium. She was well and truly cornered.
"If you insist…" Makoto said. Minako beamed.
"Any preference?" she asked. Makoto shook her head.
"If I'm going to sing, it might as well be a song I wrote myself. Doubtful you'll have it on your files, Minako," Makoto told her. She cleared her throat, and started her song.
When I think about the first time;
I thought I found someone who cared for me;
But things were not as they appeared to be;
Rainy day man;
On your shoulder I cried;
When my first brush with love;
Left me shaking inside;
Rainy day man;
Ever since I can remember;
Just like a brother you've been strong and true;
Always been the one to see me through;
Rainy day man;
You're much more than a friend;
I would give anything;
Just to see you again;
Rainy day man;
Always been the one to see me through;
Rainy day man;
On your shoulder I cried;
When my first brush with love;
Left me shaking inside;
Rainy day man;
You're much more than a friend;
I would give anything;
Just to see you again;
Rainy day man.
Makoto's performance had led to a huge wave of applause. Minako, in particular, was clapping really hard. Makoto furiously blushed at all of the praise.
"What do you think, Tokyo? Did she win?" Minako asked, looking at the audience at large. The crowd chorused their agreement. None of them had the courage to try and beat that effort themselves. Minako smiled, a smile Makoto was somewhat nervous about.
"Well, Mako-san, the audience has spoken. You've won my friendly little match!" Minako said cheerily, handing Makoto the two promised tickets. As she did so, she stumbled clumsily into Makoto, her face landing on Makoto's shoulder.
"Bring your pet," Minako said. Those three words made Makoto instantly realise that Minako was more than she appeared. She knew about Luna. Makoto was willing to bargain that Minako knew Luna's secret.
"Zoisite! What have you found for us?" Queen Beryl barked at her currently operating Shitennou. Zoisite was kneeling before Beryl, her eyes cast directly down. Her knees did not ache on the stone floor. She was used to that by now.
"Tokyo is currently being visited by one Aino Minako. Kunzite has told me about her being dangerous to our English forces. He reckons that Aino Minako is Sailor V," Zoisite reported. She briefly found humour in reporting something that a widely regarded fictional character may exist.
"A Sailor? Zoisite, do not let your guard down. If Aino Minako is indeed Sailor V, she has a cunning plan. And if Sailor V just happens to be one of the Sailor Senshi that have ruined the efforts of both Jadeite and Nephrite, your very position among the Dark Kingdom is at risk," Beryl pointed out. Zoisite nodded.
"I will need to capture Aino Minako, and make sure she is not in contact with the Sailor Senshi. I have a plan," Zoisite stated.
"You better," Beryl said. Zoisite showed no fear.
Makoto and Usagi walked up behind the massive auditorium on the day of the concert. As promised, Luna was in Usagi's arms, her eyes darting nervously from side to side, two band aids covering her mark. They couldn't be too careful around the eccentric Minako. Makoto wanted to transform into Sailor Jupiter early, but Luna brushed the idea off as too extreme. After knocking on the back door, they were let in.
"Mako-san! So glad you could come! And Usagi-san as well! And look at that, it's the cat!" Minako said, smiling. Luna jumped from Usagi's arms, and went to sit on one of Minako's couches before she went insane and jumped at her.
"You seem ill at ease. Rest, Mako-san. You can't afford to expend so much energy so early," Minako said. Makoto looked even more shrewdly at Minako, but Usagi hurriedly shoved her into a chair next to Luna's. The soft fabric worked wonders on Makoto's muscles, and she fell asleep almost immediately.
"Your friend seems worried, for some reason," Minako said.
"Yeah, she and Luna had a good long conver-" Usagi said, but stopped. Minako smirked.
"Conver-? Would that have been conversation?" Minako asked.
"No! No! No! Not a conversation! A conver… conver…" Usagi started, wondering frantically how to cover her mishap. Minako smiled, and tied Usagi up, laying her on a third couch, making sure to gag her.
"You are the Sailor Senshi! Of course you are! Minako must have known that when she hosted that little backstage contest. I was too late. But no matter. The real Minako will be far, far away from here… and I will be able to snuff you out like a light before she returns!" Minako said. Luna arched her back, but stopped her charge when she heard a voice.
"Mina-chan! You are needed onstage!" a deep voice sounded from the direction of the stage. From his position, Usagi's bonds were obscured by the couch she was sitting on.
"Coming, Artemis!" Minako said, back to mimicking Minako perfectly. Usagi squealed into her gag, but Artemis paid the sound no mind.
Until Minako left the room, at which point he ran up to the couches. In the flesh, Artemis was a white cat, and not a person, as Usagi had prior presumed.
"Luna? Is that you?" Artemis asked. Luna screeched, and Artemis nodded. He jumped onto the couch, and uncovered the band aids intended to hide Luna's true nature.
"Ah, thank goodness. I hated those things. Anyway, more important question… Artemis, what are you doing with the Dark Kingdom?" Luna asked. Artemis took a personal affront.
"I'll have you know that I had no idea Mina-chan was replaced. I'll be having a few words with her about personal safety… but enough about her. How many Scouts do you know?" Artemis asked.
"The other four. Sailors Mercury and Mars are otherwise occupied, but I can summon them as needed. Sailor Jupiter is asleep over there, probably drugged or something, and Usagi over there is Sailor Moon. We probably should do something about her," Luna explained. Usagi moaned in agreement. Luna jumped over to Usagi in three bounds, and first scratched off her gag. Usagi nodded thanks.
"Moon Prism Power, Make Up!" she shouted.
Usagi turned into an Usagi-shaped rainbow figure. Spinning around on the spot, her white and blue leotard appeared, as did a golden locket-fastened red bow. Her white gloves showed up, as did her red boots. Spinning again to make a blue skirt appear, her hair parted, and a golden tiara draped her face. Red glass dots appeared on her odango, and Usagi opened her eyes, giving a salute.
"Sailor Moon! What happened?" Luna panicked. Sailor Moon looked down, and noticed that the bonds were still attached to her.
"How is that possible?" Sailor Moon panicked. Luna took some heaving breaths, and scratched at the bonds. They held fast.
"Mina-chan doesn't have ropes this strong… the Dark Kingdom have done something to Sailor Moon," Artemis said. Luna gasped, and jumped off Sailor Moon, running to her own communicator.
"Luna to Ami! Luna to Rei! Come in!" Luna called into the device. Ami and Rei's faces appeared on the communicator.
"What is it, Luna?" Ami asked.
"It was a trap! Aino Minako was a fake! Sailor Moon is trapped by unslicable ropes, and Makoto is really far gone!" Luna said. She turned to Makoto, to see Artemis jumping on her belly. Makoto was stirring, but not awakening. "We could really use Sailor Mercury and Sailor Mars right about now!" Luna shouted. Ami and Rei nodded, and broke their connection.
Luna jumped from the couch, and started pacing. With the fake Minako on the loose, every second that action was delayed, even necessarily, stung worse than the band aids. Artemis stopped jumping on Makoto, and went to join Luna, before he heard something.
*Rose*
A red rose appeared on Sailor Moon's bonds, splitting them apart. Luna and Artemis gasped, and looked up.
"Tuxedo Mask!" Sailor Moon swooned.
"How did you know to come?" Luna asked, on her guard.
"The same way I always know. …I have no idea. Call it gut instinct, I suppose. Sailor Moon, the real Minako is on her way. Get Sailor Jupiter in action and appear on stage before five minutes pass, and get started on catching that fake Minako!" Tuxedo Mask explained. Sailor Moon nodded, and grabbed Makoto's wrist.
"Wait, how did you know Makoto was Sailor Jupiter?" Luna asked again. But Tuxedo Mask had already vanished. Makoto finally awoke, and looked around. Seeing Sailor Moon, and not Usagi, she realised there was trouble afoot.
"Jupiter Power, Make Up!"
Makoto clapped loudly, summoning a vicious bolt of lightning. The bolt circled itself around Makoto, and was brought into her core with another clap. Her leotard and skirt, fashioned in green, was summoned. White gloves and green leather boots appeared on her limbs, and a tiara wrapped itself around her head.
Watashi ga watashi de iru kagiri!
C'est la vie!
Anata o aishi tsudzuketai!
The fake Minako's song had the entire town of Tokyo bent under her will. She was slowly sapping away the energy of the crowd with each passing lyric. By the end of the song, or maybe an encore, she could have harnessed enough energy from pre-release hype and pure fanatics to combat the Legendary Silver Crystal.
"Hold it right there!" Sailor Moon cried out from backstage. Minako faltered in her song, and turned to face Sailor Moon and Sailor Jupiter. As Tuxedo Mask had planned, they weren't the only Sailors on stage.
"Stealing the image of others is just not cool, girl!" another blonde Sailor said from the stage's rafters. She jumped down onto the fake Minako, and back flipped to one side. Her outfit was similar to Sailor Moon's, but with thicker shoulders and a red mask. Sailor Moon recognised her immediately.
"Sailor V!" she said in surprise and awe.
"The one and only. Surprised to see some little Dark Agent didn't get that memo. Now, are you going to come quietly, or am I going to have to kick your butt around a little first. Because I won't hesitate to do it!" Sailor V said, in no uncertain terms. The fake Minako shook her head.
"Dark Power, Make Up!"
The fake Minako, already dressed somewhat like a Senshi, simply waved her hand at the edges of her trims. They grew jagged with each pass, culminating with the appearance of a crown of evil. Minako twitched slightly, and her clothes shone a dark tint.
"I will not tolerate you meddlesome Sailor Senshi a minute longer. I am Dark Venus, the Guardian of Hatred and Energy. Surrender now and you just might be spared," Dark Venus gloated.
"I don't think so!" a voice called from the rafters. All four Senshi turned, to see two new figures atop the beams.
"Mars Fire Ignite!" Sailor Mars cried out, shooting a fast shot of flames towards Dark Venus. Dark Venus was knocked backwards, and Sailors Mercury and Mars landed beside Sailor Moon. The five Senshi had Dark Venus surrounded.
"Oh my… well isn't this trouble…" Dark Venus said. She turned, and looked straight at Sailor V.
"Might as well go down with the girl who made this all possible!" Dark Venus said. Sailor V pulled out a ray gun, and started shooting Dark Venus immediately. To the audience, it looked like a cleverly staged Sailor V act. One or two people had even whipped out their phones to film the fight. But Sailor V was fighting for keeps. Dark Venus spread her hair out wide, and grabbed each one of the other Sailor Senshi.
"Playtime's over, Senshi. What's it going to be? Dark Kingdom or me killing the Senshi you worked so hard to join?" Dark Venus asked.
"Don't listen to her, Sailor V! You'll make too good a Dark Kingdom ally!" Sailor Jupiter shouted.
"Sailor Mercury! My prayer slips are in my pocket! See if you can grab one!" Sailor Mars shouted. Sailor Mercury swung around, and started reaching down Sailor Mars' skirt. Sailor Moon's eyes darted around, looking for the comforting sight of the man dressed to the nines, hopeful he'd save the day twice. Sailor V looked at the sight of everyone involved, and decided to use her secret weapon.
"Venus Power, Make Up!"
Minako pulled out a whip, and started circling it gently around herself. Pulling it up violently, her orange leotard and skirt spawned. White gloves and orange heels appeared, and a golden tiara at her head. Minako threw the whip skyward, and it fell down her spine, along her hair, to create a beautiful silver hair crown.
"I am the Senshi of Love and Beauty, Sailor Venus. In the name of the planet Venus, I will punish you!" Sailor Venus cried out.
"Venus Crescent Beam Smash!" she followed up, shooting a beam of two crescents in shape. The shot went straight through Dark Venus, sending her lying on the ground. Sailor Moon pulled her tiara from her forehead, and gripped it tightly.
"Moon Tiara Boomerang!" she cried out, swinging her tiara in a wide arc. The tiara passed straight through the Dark Venus, turning her to dust. It took a few seconds for time to pass correctly, before…
"Woo hoo!"
"We love you, Sailor V!"
"You go, Minako! Way to blow our minds!"
Sailor Venus looked at the crowd with surprise and apprehension. She looked at the Sailor Senshi, all of whom were smiling at her. Sailor Venus nodded, and turned back to the crowd.
"I know you weren't expecting that… and to be honest, neither was I. I got a call from a mystery-shrouded agency about this, and was given only moments to react. So, as a nice little break for both me and you, how about I go get this dust out of my hair, and then a round of C'est La Vie in which you won't fall asleep?" Sailor Venus asked. The crowd roared their assent. Sailor Venus smiled, and all five Senshi went backstage.
"You're joking, Mina-chan?" Rei said, looking at Minako with surprise. They were barely familiar enough with Minako to warrant using her nickname, and Minako was asking this of them?
"Oh, Rei-chan, you're such a soil-sport! It's not every day the world's most famous superstar offers you a part of her act!" Usagi countered. Rei rolled her eyes.
"Not good enough reasoning, Usagi. As a Sailor Senshi, you'd probably ask her anytime anyway. The rest of us just aren't into that thing! No offense," Rei counter-countered, aiming the last line at Minako.
"None taken, Rei-chan. Probably too much to hope that all four of you were Aino Minako fans anyway," Minako said.
"Um, I'm kinda cool with this. I'm never going to get back to my studies at this rate anyway, and Aino Minako is cool enough in my book…" Ami pointed out.
"And after all that, I think I have some respect for you, Mina-chan. The more I think about exactly everything that happened between you coming to Tokyo and the Dark Venus battle, I'm sure you planned everything ahead," Makoto said, giving a clumsy curtsey.
"Thanks. I did plan it ahead. I saw you at the airport, with Luna, and knew she was Artemis' counterpart. I organised the bonus draw to get one of you backstage, and with Usagi-chan's mistake, I had to get you instead. So you see, I tried to get you to meet me and Artemis, and note we were one of you. We didn't plan Dark Venus, though," Minako said in thank you. Makoto's praising smile widened even further.
"Well, looks like I'm outnumbered. I guess I've always wanted to see if I've actually got stage fright or not," Rei said humbly, coming up with an excuse on the spot for her change of heart.
The lights around the stage went dim suddenly. The crowd, previously unsure as to whether Aino Minako would return, had their fears dimmed when the onstage lighting returned, revealing five cutely dressed girls. Minako stood in the middle, and was surrounded by the girls that had helped in the Sailor V demonstration. The music began to play. The crowd was applauding, before Minako put the microphone to her mouth, and began her song.
Doushiyou mo nai shoudou ni;
Tsuki ugoka sarete ima;
Watashi no sore wa hajimatta;
Kimi o motomeru omoi;
Yotei chouwa no chousetsu ya;
Eiga ga tsumaranai you ni;
Jinsee mo sukoshi zure tara;
Omoshiroi no kamoshirenai;
Atsui kimochi wa C'est la vie!
Watashi ga watashi de iru kagiri;
C'est la vie!
Anata o aishi tsudzuketai;
Me no mae ni aru;
kono shunkan ga;
Ikiru basho;
Ka-ke-nu-ke-te!
Hito ha naze ichido dake shika;
Ikiru chansu ga nai no;
Toki ha naze ichibyou sae mo;
Tachi tomaranai no darou;
Omoi ga kenai doko kagane;
Kutsuzure o okosu mitai ni;
Tokidoki ha mune no doko ka ga;
Setsunakunattari suru kedo;
Kitto mitsukaru C'est la vie!
Watashi ga watashi de aru riyuu;
C'est la vie!
Anata ga anata de aru riyuu;
Nani mo mienai;
Dakedo nani ka ga;
Mitai kara;
O-i-ka-ke-te!
Yotei chouwa no chousetsu ya;
Eiga ga tsumaranai you ni;
Jinsee mo sukoshi zure tara;
Omoshiroi no kamoshirenai;
Atsui kimochi ha C'est la vie!
Watashi ga watashi de iru kagiri;
C'est la vie!
Anata o aishi tsudzuketai;
C'est la vie!
Watashi ga watashi de aru riyuu;
C'est la vie!
Anata ga anata de aru riyuu;
Me no mae ni aru;
Kono shunkan ga;
Ikiru basho;
Ka-ke-nu-ke-te!
Ka-ke-nu-ke-
C'est la vie!
C'est la vie!
"Thanks for listening, Tokyo!" Minako called out.
The following day found Aino Minako, teen megastar, sweeping dust in the Hiwaka Shrine.
"Mina-chan, are you sure you don't want to find a school here?" Artemis asked.
"No, Artemis. I'm just going to get mobbed by Aino Minako fans anyway, and it was never like school did anything but find me boyfriends and trouble," Minako assured Artemis.
"Yeah, I get that, but still… part time miko work? Are you sure your time couldn't be better spent?" Artemis tried, one last time, to cajole something out of Minako.
"When I figure something out, you'll be the first to know. I haven't had much chance to get out and enjoy nature, and I'll relish these moments as much as I can. Now if you don't mind, I think Luna might want to see you again," Minako insisted. Artemis sighed, and went back inside the shrine to meet Luna. Minako went back to sweeping dust. She looked up only briefly, to see Usagi running past.
"I think one terminally late Sailor Senshi is enough," Minako said, setting down her broom, and heading into one of the smaller shrines to briefly meditate.
Inspiration struck, and I found myself doing something I never would have expected: a Sailor Moon story.
This story is non-canonical, in the sense that is as many canon elements as I could. You'll find some anime, some manga, some PGSM, and some fictitious elements all rolled into one. I have no idea how that counts as non-canon, but hey, I guess two rights have to make a wrong somewhere. The story takes place whenever Sailor Venus was due to appear. I'll shamefully admit I haven't gotten that far in either manga or PGSM.
And, as weird as this sounds, Dark Venus was a late element, and her arrival allowed more characters to appear. I highly doubt Rei or Mamoru would have appeared had I not chosen to make the story's youma Dark Venus. All because I used the word 'energy' in the right place. I knew something was odd about that when I first heard Queen Beryl talk about gathering great amounts of energy.
Sunshine Eternal Magic, Make Up!