He said : I can't stay with you.

And that was the end, for everything, it all came to an ignoble halt with one sentence designed, as it were, for unpleasant sensation; such sensation arising despite all efforts to quash, suppress, ignore, put aside. She could not even reply, for the door was well and truly shut, to open the way for a rebuttal not possible within the current scope of events. So she turned and she walked away, and he watched without moving, without speaking, and whether any regret passed through his mind or no, he made no move, spoke no further, simply watched as she passed further, eventually leaving his sight.

THE SPACE BETWEEN GALAXIES

"No way!" she shrieked, holding an envelope at arm's length. "This is totally a joke right? There's no such thing!"

Her cat sighed, as no cat in the world should be able to. It was a long-suffering sigh, the kind that indicated that, no matter the capabilities of other cats, this particular cat was well-versed in the art of the sigh. It was nuanced. This was a sigh that had been sighed many times before.

"Of course it's real," said the cat. "You're standing there talking to me, and you can't believe that a school for magic exists?"

"Luna!" pouted the girl. "That's not fair!"

"What isn't?" asked the cat called Luna. If cats had eyebrows, hers would be raised in exasperation.

"Usagi! Usagi! You'll never guess what came in the mail today!" cried another girl, running onto the scene waving a letter.

"No way!" shrieked Usagi again. "You got one too? Do you believe it? Can you believe it?"

"A school for magic! It's impossible! How could there be enough students for a whole school?" cried the impassioned girl.

"I assure you, Ami, it is very possible, and in fact is very real," said Luna sternly. "I expected you to have more sense, or at least more sense of proportion!"

"But Luna! Are you telling me that there exist in the world more people like us: indeed, enough people like us to fill a whole school?"
"You are right about one thing," conceded the cat, "there are not enough people LIKE YOU to fill an entire school. There are, however, quite a few people with talents similar to yours, and they do indeed fill a school: several schools, in fact."

"What do you mean?" asked Usagi.

"I mean that you, and Ami, and the rest of the soldiers, are unique in the world. But, there are others who possess a similar way of controlling and shaping their worlds, called ordinary magic, and those who possess it attend schools to refine their use of it."

The one called Ami was beginning to look interested. A remark along the lines of "tell me more!" was in fact about to pass her lips, and would have were she not interrupted by the arrival of two more girls, both bearing envelopes, both shouting over the other.

The cat would have rubbed her temples to soothe the incoming migraine had she had the proper appendages to do so.

"Wait, wait, calm down, Luna can explain," said Ami soothingly.

"Guys! You'll never believe what Luna was just telling us! Did you guys get the letters too? Can you even believe it? It's totally real!" exclaimed Usagi, her voice somehow managing to rise above to be heard over all three of the other girls.

"Real?" came a fifth voice, as a fifth girl made her way to the group, also bearing a rectangle of paper containing a square of paper with writing on.

"Yes, real. Let me please explain properly," said Luna, sighing once again. When all attention was on her, the cat began her tale.

You all have magic within you, as you well know. Each of your magics is unique to yourself. You each have sole access to the powers bestowed upon you by your guardian planets, your ancient birthplaces and birthrights.

However, there is another kind of magic; one that anyone with the potential has access to. It is this other kind of magic that is practiced at the school that each of you received an invitation to attend. You each have the potential to access this other kind of magic; it runs through the same channels that your planets grant you access to, although it is of a different type. Your planetary magic is so much a part of you - a magical signal completely unique to yourselves - that you can use it instinctively, and call on it whenever you have the need.

This other kind of magic requires a focus at all times, and as such, one can be trained to mold and shape it to one's will through the use of this focus. That is what the school is for. You have never been trained in the use of this other magic; thus, the invitations, slightly late as they are.

The cat paused for breath, and the girl with the long black hair jumped in.

"Why are we only getting these invitations now, if we've always had this potential? We've already started high school!"

The girl with the long blonde hair held back with a bow nodded, and chimed in.
"And why are they from a school in England, if there are magic schools all over? Are there none in Japan, or Asia?"

"I'm coming to that," Luna replied. "Let me continue."

There is one school in the Japanese countryside, well hidden; however, the school in England is the one that needs you. England is being menaced by a dark power that, if allowed to continue unchecked, will eventually sink the world into chaos and darkness. Your planetary powers would be a significant boon in their struggle, and this is why I have been asked to send you on a mission.

You would attend this school, learn all you can about this other magic, and use it along with your intrinsic birthrights to help to cast down the evil that is threatening society. There is a boy, called Harry Potter, also called the Chosen One, who has been prophesied to strike down this evil; however, he and all those who fight with him need all the help that they can get.

Luna surveyed the group grimly.
"The English school year starts in September. Will you take on this mission?"

The girls, uncharacteristically, were silent. They each looked a bit shell-shocked, processing this new information.

"Of course we'll go!" said Usagi suddenly. There were tears in her eyes as she continued: "We can't just stand by and let evil run free, even if it is in a different country; even if we'll have to leave our friends and family behind; even if we'll need to learn a completely new magic! We're the Pretty Soldiers, always ready to defeat evil in the name of our guardian stars and the Silver Millenium!"

The other girls nodded vigorously, chiming in their own agreement. "Plus, we need to protect our Princess," added Rei, smiling. "Who knows what kind of trouble she might get into without us around."

"Hey!" said Usagi indignantly, while the others laughed.

Luna smiled as well, trying to hide the tears in her own eyes. "I knew that you would choose to combat evil at any cost."

ONAJIKU

The five girls sat around a table in Lotteria, pigging out on fast food and talking animatedly about their new mission.

"I can't believe this whole magic society exists and we didn't know a thing about it!" exclaimed Makoto. "Even here in Japan!"

"How come they never lent us a hand?" complained Minako. "I sure could have used some extra help as Sailor V, before you all regained your memories."

"I could've used a break from all the monsters that attacked every other day!" exclaimed Rei. "Couldn't these magic people have dealt with a few of those energy-sucking lackeys, at least? And I never even caught a glimpse of this society in my sacred fire!"

"The fire had other things to be concerned about, I'm sure," smiled Ami. "After all, the evil overlord is in England, not Japan."

"I'm super excited!" squealed Usagi. "English boarding school! I can eat whatever I want, and I don't have to show my grades to my parents!"

"Luna will be there too, you know," said Ami, amused.

"Oh, right..." Usagi suddenly looked dejected. "Is Artemis coming?" Rei asked Minako.

"No, he's going to stay here and keep an eye on Tokyo while we're gone," replied Minako. "We can't abandon our responsibility to Tokyo and Neo Crystal Tokyo while we're gone."

"Mamo-chan's coming," said Usagi, looking infinitely pleased.

"Of course he is," giggled Minako. "You'd be completely useless otherwise, pining away every day!"

"Mamoru probably has the strongest access to this other magic, since his birthright is Earth," mused Ami. "You think Earth magic and this regular magic are the same?" asked Rei.

"No, but they're probably very closely related. This other magic might even have evolved from Earth magic," replied Ami. "I'll have to research it while we're there..."

The other five groaned in unison, while Ami blushed slightly.

"Let's go shopping!" cried Minako suddenly. "We have to look our best when we get to England!"

The girls, after all, had just started high school - even Usagi, she of the 30 percent test scores, had managed to pass the exam for an acceptable school. She had not, however, managed to get into the school that Minako and Makoto had chosen purely on the basis of its cute uniforms. Ami of course was attending the most prestigious high school in Tokyo, and Rei had continued into the high school affiliated with her junior high school - which, it must be said, had the cutest uniforms of all, which were a constant source of jealousy for the others.

"I wonder what the uniforms for this new school will look like," mused Minako as they exited Lotteria to walk down Meiji-doori.

"I hope they're cute!" said Makoto. "Imagine having to go back to something like what we wore in junior high!"

Makoto had grown into her height, and her skirt sat naturally high on her thighs - unlike the rest of the girls in her class, who had to roll their skirts up surreptitiously, Minako included. Gone were the days of modest, knee-length dark blue skirts.

"Ugh," exclaimed Minako and Usagi together. Rei, whose uniforms had always been cute, and Ami, who didn't particularly care what her uniform looked like, merely rolled their eyes.

SOSHITE

The white-bearded, venerable old man sifted through the drifts of paperwork gently sloping and almost falling off his large, venerable desk. In just one month, his very special school would be in session once more, and the Boy on whom so many hopes rested would once more grace the halls of the castle, and once more he would try, try, try his hardest to prepare every student as best he could to face the world outside of his impenetrable stone walls.

This year, however, the Boy would have outside help, help from beyond the walls of Hogwarts. Dumbledore was well-versed in studies relating to all kinds of magic, as well as all kinds of mythology. He knew about the supposed power of planetary magic, although he had never seen it himself. He in fact had thought that there was no-one left alive able to access it, until news events in Japan came to his attention approximately a year ago.

The fireplace flared.

"What sort of preparations should the girls undertake?" came the businesslike tones of a black cat as it calmly stepped out of the flames. "As you know, the school year is already well underway in Japan, yet in the face of this evil they will be pulled out of their schools in order to start at Hogwarts from the first day."

"We very much appreciate all that you are doing for us," replied Dumbledore gravely. "To make the transition as smooth as possible, and so as not to place excess strain on the girls, who after all are doing us quite a favor, I have had a few things prepared already, such as a potion for understanding and speaking English, and a collection of basic texts to catch the girls up to speed, since they will be joining the fifth year. They will need to find wands individually, as choosing a wand is an intensely personal endeavor. The day before term starts, they should be brought to Diagon Alley to pick up their school supplies and choose their wands."

"Of course," said Luna. "Will it be a problem, the girls starting in fifth year? Most of them will be fine when it comes to academic matters; however, they have not had any formal training in magic use. Their mother star powers are intrinsic and do not require specialized lessons."

"I'm sure they will pick it up admirably," replied Dumbledore.