Lita the Lionhearted

by Alison Wonderland

Lita and Freddie broke up years ago, so why is Lita still thinking about it? A look into the heart of my favorite character.

*(Author's Note:
Although I do know a bit about the Japanese version of Sailor Moon,
I use mostly DIC info. So, sorry if I screw something up.
To any webmasters (webmistresses) I send this to, please feel free
to separate this into two or more parts if you think it's too long. Oh,
and thanks for putting my fic up!
Sailor Moon belongs to Naoko Takeuchi, Kondansha comics etc. etc.
and I'm not making any money off of this WHATSOEVER so don't sue me. The
characters Dara and Nicole, I completely made up, but they're not HUGE
characters in the story.
Sorry for people who are big fans of the other scouts. I'm really
biased, and as you can tell by the title, this is a JUPITER fic. I also
apologize to people who are really into the idea of Lita and Ken being a
couple, but that doesn't happen in this story. Why? Well, personally, I'm
not too fond of the idea, 'cause I have a guy for a best friend, but I
*have* read some really great fanfics (Lady Jupiter?) in which they are a
couple.
Well, that's about it. Don't get mad, don't sue me, and don't think
I'm leaving something out.
Enjoy!)*


***** Lita the Lionhearted *****
a fanfic by Alison Wonderland

My name is Lita Kino. I'm 15 years old. Chances are, if you're
reading this, you know who I am, and you know a lot about my life.
Some of it didn't make it into the history books, though.
So why am I writing this? To tell you the truth, I don't know. Maybe
I want to release some stress.
Maybe I'm just sick and tired of being a Sailor Scout. The stress of
knowing I could die any minute could be what's getting to me. Or maybe
it's the fact that I've just handled a year at a new school. That wasn't
exactly easy. Maybe it's because I miss all my friends back at my old
school, like Ken, and Nicole....and Freddie.
Freddie...

Maybe I should just start from the beginning...retrace my steps.
I've had a pretty strange childhood. I remember a long time ago, my
kindergarten teachers saw my "violent behaviors" and put me in a class
for kids with special needs. I got teased a lot.
I never let anyone get away with insulting me or being rude to me. I
had a bad temper when I was little, and would often threaten to beat
people up. I remember once when I was about six, I picked up this boy by
the collar of his shirt, lifted him a foot off the ground and threatened
him. I don't remember what he said that got me so mad, though.

I met Dara and Ken on my first day of first grade. Dara and I hit it
off almost immediately. Because I was still quite immature, I didn't
think of guys as being potential friends, but I didn't exactly have the
same cootie-hatred most of my classmates had. I don't know how Ken put up
with me.
Dara was great. We had so much in common. We both wanted to be movie
stars. I remember when she would come over to my house and we would play
dress up. My mom's red lipstick glowed like a beacon on my face (I always
put too much on. Hey, I was seven!) and Dara's silver toy tiara would
always sparkle beautifully in her long jet black hair.
We'd pretend we were in a movie together. Despite our glamorous
feminine "princess" looks, the movie would always be jam-packed with
action. I never could settle for a story with no adventure in it. I
couldn't even play "house" right without some kidnapping or spy
conspiracy. Dara felt the same way.
We would always talk after school and make up stories together. She
would illustrate. She was always such a good artist. She tried to teach
me to draw like her, but I was hopeless.
After a year, Dara moved. She couldn't go to my school anymore.
Luckily, she didn't move too far away, so we still kept in touch.

In second grade, I was really lost. Without Dara, I wandered from
friend to friend, hoping to find someone to play with and talk to.
Someone to understand me like Dara did. But all the girls did was take
advantage of me. There was this one girl Alice who I called my best
friend for about a month. She never spoke to me when we were in a group,
but called me often to get homework assignments. Then there was Kirsten.
She liked my toys more than she liked me. And Kathy-....well, you get the
point.

Third grade was when everything seemed to change. My parents had me
take martial arts lessons so I could learn discipline. I really liked my
instructor. I learned to control my temper through my training, but there
are times even now when I kinda explode at people, but that comes in
handy when I'm fighting some Negaverse monster.
The friendship situation was still pretty bad for the first few
months. I was friendly with a lot of people, including Ken, and I still
called Dara every so often, but I still felt lonely.
My parents understood. They enrolled me in lots of clubs and
organizations, trying to get me to find new friends, but I guess I was
too outspoken. Too extroverted. I scared people off.
Mom and Dad stuck by me though. I remember my ninth birthday. They
took me to the mall to get my ears pierced and then threw the nicest
party for me when we got home. We had this beautiful chocolate cake. It
was small, but around the edge, it had a bright rainbow frosting. It was
the best cake ever.
Then Mom, Dad and I snuggled on the sofa and watched a movie. I knew
then, more than ever, exactly how much I truly loved them.

The next day, they had to leave on that business trip...

I didn't go to school the day I found out. I spent the whole day in
my room. I never cried. I was too grief-stricken for that.
My parents had taught me to be independent and self-sufficient. I
decided to live by myself. None of our family were very close and by some
fluke of nature, no one noticed that I was just a little nine-year-old
all alone.
When I went back to school about two days later, no one seemed to
care. Well, they probably did, but no one knew me enough to know how to
comfort me.
About a week after my parents died, I noticed that Ken wasn't in
school. That afternoon, I got a call from him.
"Hello?" I asked.
Ken was crying. "Lita, something happened today."
"What?"
"You know my dog Krystal?"
He had mentioned her in class a few times. "Yes."
"I found her dead in the basement this morning."
"Oh. Oh, I'm sorry."
"I wanted to talk to someone, and I figured you'd understand."
I would understand. Out of all the people he could call (Ken was a
fairly popular guy, unlike yours truly) he chose me. That weird karate
maniac Lita Kino.
Okay, so maybe losing a dog was something totally different than
losing your parents, but Ken needed me. *Someone* needed me.
Now, what do I say? "I feel really bad for you. I- I know you're
going through a lot of pain right now, but...but everything's gonna be
okay."
I fought back tears. Ken was counting on my support, he didn't need
me crying now.
"Everything's gonna be okay," he repeated.
"Yeah. If you're feeling sad again, just call me, all right?"
"You can call me, too."
"Cool."

From then on, Ken and I were best friends. We didn't exactly
announce it, or really decide to be friends. It just... happened.
I felt the same happiness I felt back when Dara and I played
together, except this time I felt even happier. Maybe I didn't know it
then, but I was truly grateful that Ken was such a good friend.
We would always *always* talk after school about anything and
everything. I could make him laugh at any time and vice versa. We kinda
made it our mission in life to find humor in anything and everything,
including each other. Every now and then, we'd tease each other about
something, but I'd never intentionally say anything to make him mad. We
understood things about each other that no one else did. We could even
speak to each other without saying a word.

We stayed best friends throughout fourth and fifth grade. This was
the longest relationship I had ever had with anyone. He was always there
for me to listen to my problems, and I was always there to help him. He
defended me from people who would tease me. Once or twice I had defended
him from some bullies, but both times I never had to hit anyone to do so.
People began to respect me. By the time I was in sixth grade, I had three
years of martial arts training, and everyone knew it. They also knew that
although I had control of my temper, I would transform into a vicious
tiger if anyone threatened Ken.
Even though people knew my dark side, through Ken I met several new
friends who saw me as just a nice misunderstood girl who had the ability
to throw a full-grown man twenty feet. They were great. A few of them
thought I was kinda weird, but they were all really nice to me.

Dara and I *still* kept in touch. We had a tradition that we would
have a sleepover at least once each year. I noticed that through all the
changes we had gone through growing up, we still had so much in common.
We still loved action-packed adventure stories, and we also still
collaborated sometimes just for old time's sake. This time, though, we
added a little romance in them.

That's right. I was getting to *that* stage. No, I wasn't totally
boy-crazy to the point where I'd have a crush on any guy who just walked
by, nor was I boyfriend-hungry to the extent that, horror of horrors,
I'd start hitting on Ken. I was curious, not stupid.
I was about twelve at the time. We had a few new students the year I
was in sixth grade. I remember Ken turning to me and pointing out this
tall guy with brown hair.
"You see that guy over there?" he asked me.
Of course I did! But I didn't reply. Standing on the other side of
the schoolyard was the most gorgeous guy I had ever seen. He was actually
taller than me. He leaned nonchalantly against the school building,
looking out into space. His rich brown bangs hid his eyes, making him
look like some mystery man.
"Hello?" Ken tried to get my attention.
Suddenly, the guy turned his head towards me. Terrified, I turned
back to Ken.
"Uh, yeah?" I asked, "What about him?"
"He used to live in my neighborhood. His name is Freddie."
"Freddie..."
Ken looked really confused. "Yeah, Lita... It's short for
Frederick."
"Mm-hm...Interesting.....So, does he have a girlfriend?"
"What?"
That's when I came back to my senses. What the heck was I *doing?!*
As an unspoken rule of thumb, one did not let one's platonic guy friend
know that one actually dealt in mushy stuff like love and crushes.
I had to make up an excuse fast. "I just want to know if he has time
for friends. Some guys who have girlfriends are totally obsessed with
them." God, how I hate lying to Ken!
Ken saw through that quickly. He smirked at me and said, "Uh-huh.
Sure, Lita. No, he doesn't have a girlfriend at the present time. He's
all yours."
"No! No! That's not what I meant!"
I looked directly into Ken's sky-blue eyes. This was my best friend.
He would never judge me. Playfully tease me, maybe. Judge me, no.
"Okay. He's kind of a-....a-...."
"Stud? Looker? Oh! How about a 'hunk'? Or are you the type of girl
who prefers 'hunkmeisters'?"
"You're really enjoying this, aren't you?"
Ken laughed some more. Then he raised his voice about an octave in a
pathetic attempt to imitate a girl. "Looks like you're the new kid in
class. Would you like to be my lab partner *big boy*?"
I couldn't help but start laughing, too. "Shut up!" I cried between
gasps.
Ken always knew when any more teasing would be going too far. "Lita,
you don't have to be ashamed. You're human, for crying out loud. I want
to know that when I find some model look-alike that I can tell you all
about her without you thinking I've gone insane."
"Love and insanity. Aren't those the same thing?"
"Probably."

As the days passed, I got to know Freddie a bit more. He seemed to
be a really nice guy.
Ken was happy that I was getting to know him better. It turned out
that he and Freddie had been good friends when they were little.
Freddie was always doing things for me. He'd walk me home, wait for
me every morning just to talk to me, carry my books (not that I'd need
someone else to carry them for me, but it was nice). When I was sick
once, he took down my homework assignments. Ken usually did that, and
when I told him what Freddie had done, he just kinda smiled.
About a month and a half after I first saw Freddie, we had become
close friends. One day, he was walking me home, when it started to rain.
I loved rain. I never told anyone, but I did. And I still do.
I guess Freddie didn't appreciate the rain like I did. "Oh, no. Come
on, lets head over to the gazebo in the park so we don't get wet."
"Okay," I said.
He put his arm around my waist as we hurried to the park. Once under
that huge pink gazebo, we sat together on a little bench. The rain
started to let up.
Freddie and I were silent the entire 20 minutes we stayed under our
little protective "umbrella". When the rain finally disappeared and
patches of blue could be seen in the once gray sky, I got up.
"Well, that's over. Let's get home. I've got so much homework--" I
started.
Freddie stood up and wrapped his arms around my shoulders. "Don't
you want to watch the rainbow with me?"
"Rainbow?"
"Yeah. Look."
He pointed into the distance, his head resting on my shoulder. I
could feel his hot breath on my ear.
My gaze followed his finger to the bright spectrum illuminating the
sky.
"Oh," I gasped, "It's....lovely."
A pause. "Not half as lovely as you."
"Huh?" I turned my head to face Freddie.
Suddenly, I realized that my lips are pressed against his. I was
almost afraid; his kiss caught me completely off guard. I felt like I was
gonna fall, but then his arms wrapped around me, supporting me and
pulling me closer to him.
Just when I felt like I couldn't hold my breath any longer, he
stopped the kiss and pulled his head only a few inches away from my face.
I looked up into his eyes, which were so often shielded by his bangs. He
seemed like a different person, an insane person.
"Lita Kino," the stranger's voice said, "Will you go out with me?"
I paused. Freddie could be my first boyfriend! I only had a few
seconds to decide. Would I be Lita the Loser for the rest of my life, or
would I finally mature and accept a man into my life?
"Yes," I answered.

"You *what*?" exclaimed Ken.
"I said yes," I replied, "Really, Ken, I don't see what the big deal
is."
Ken grinned. "This is your *first* boyfriend! A major milestone in
your life! I didn't think you were so into romance."
"Neither did I. It's just that Freddie's so nice and he really
really likes me."
"That's great news Lita. I always knew you'd get a great guy."
I took his word for it.

A year passed. Throughout sixth and seventh grade, when we
transferred to Forest Academy, Freddie and I saw more and more of each
other. He was so sweet, always making plans with me to go see movies, or
to go out to dinner. A few times we went miniature golfing. I was so
happy.
I made sure to spend time with my friends, though. As much as I
loved Freddie, I kept in mind that I couldn't spend every living moment
with him. Not right now, anyway. Sometimes, I had nightmares that I would
spend so much time with him that I'd forget about Ken and Dara. I'd wake
up from those dreams with nausea. I'd keep reassuring myself by chanting
"friends are forever" in my head.
Speaking of friends, I met a new friend that year in sixth grade.
Her name was Nicole. I thought she was really cool. She was almost as
tall as me, and had really long brown hair. Nicole often came over to my
house to visit me. She was warm and friendly.
I just had to introduce her to Freddie.

"Hi!" I yelled to Freddie one day after school.
When I realized he had acknowledged my presence, I approached him,
dragging Nicole behind.
"This is my friend Nicole!" I exclaimed, almost too excitedly.
"Hi, Nicole," said Freddie slowly. I was too hyper to notice the
strange look in his eye.
Nicole shook his hand. "I'm glad to meet you. Lita's told me all
about you. Rumor has it that you two are quite the item!"
Freddie just stared. "Uh, yeah. We've been together since the
beginning of this year."
Nicole seemed odd, too. "Well, I gotta go. Bye!"
"Bye Nicole!" I shouted as I waved. Then I turned to Freddie, "Isn't
she nice?"
Freddie nodded. "Yeah, she's okay. Why did you *have* to introduce
me to her?"
I stepped back. "Well, I just thought you'd like to know all my
friends. I mean, you *are* my boyfriend. You should know almost
everything about me."
I decided not to mention the fact that I knew very few of his
friends.

Freddie soon became a popular guy. Really popular. I don't think
there was one kid in our entire school who disliked him. Naturally, I was
considered popular, but not as much as Freddie was. Some still remembered
my past reputation for being the karate maniac.
He and Ken got along really well. They would often get together and
reminisce about old times. I'd try to join the conversation, but I always
wound up just sitting and listening, having no idea what was going on.
Ken sometimes tried to change the subject to something I could relate to,
like what some weird teacher said last week, but Freddie always went back
to some long-ago experience that he and Ken shared.
Popularity does take its toll. I realized this when I called him one
day (he didn't call me as often as he used to) about our next date.
"Hi, Freddie?"
"Yeah?"
"Well, you were kinda quiet today. I just wanted to know if anything
was wrong."
"No."
I noticed that he was kinda brief with that 'no'. "Are you sure?
You're not mad at me or anything?"
"I'm not mad, Lita."
He seemed to just brush that away, too.
"Okay," I said, "I was just asking. Anyway, are we still on for this
afternoon?"
"Oh, I can't make it."
"What?"
"Yeah, I'm going to watch wrestling with some guys."
"But we had this planned..."
"Is there anything wrong with me hanging with my friends?"
"No. I just was really bored and wanted to spend some time with you.
Hey, do you think it would be possible for me to come, too?"
"It's a Strictly Guys' night. You know how it is."
"Okay."
"We have more time to go on dates."
"Yeah."
"Bye."
"Goodbye."
Immediately after I hung up, I called Ken, Dara, and Nicole and made
plans to go to the movies the next day. I guessed that Freddie needed a
bit of space for a while. Maybe I *did* cling a little too much to him.
Some time with my friends would help cure me of that, and everything
would get better.

But everything *didn't* get better. Freddie seemed more spaced out
than ever. I started analyzing my every move. What was I doing that was
making him act this way? He hardly ever talked to me anymore when Ken or
Nicole wasn't with us. When they were around, he blabbed on at a mile-a
-minute, always about things I couldn't understand or relate to.
He kept ditching our plans for dates. I tried another approach:
inviting him along with a group of friends. Sometimes this worked, but
when it did, I felt even more excluded.
Every now and then I'd ask him if I had done anything wrong. Every
single time, he'd brush me off with a short "no". As a matter of fact, he
brushed me off almost every time I talked to him alone.
I also noticed something else. He and Nicole were becoming *very*
friendly. I remember that time when we had to correct each other's papers
in math class. He got an okay score, but he still got a few problems
wrong.
He asked Nicole for help.
"Oh," she said looking at his paper, "I see what you did wrong."
I don't remember what the problem was with his paper, but Nicole
started to help him out. I couldn't help but look over his shoulder.
"It's pretty easy when you get the hang of it," said Nicole.
Freddie shook his head. "I don't know what I would do without smart
girls like you. But I'm not quite sure I've got it right."
Nicole seemed silent, so I stepped in. "Wow, you're really close!
All you have to do is remember-"
"HEY!" Freddie shouted, "Just 'cause you think you're so brainy,
doesn't mean you have to criticize me all the time!"
Okay, *now* I was getting angry. "I wasn't criticizing you! That's a
very common mistake!"
"Oh just shut up!"
"Hey, you asked for help!"
"Not from you! Lita, if you're so smart, why don't you just transfer
to a better school, huh?!"
I didn't know what to say. Nicole looked very uncomfortable.
"Listen," he said, calming down, "I'm not angry with you. I'm
frustrated with this math, and that's why I yelled. But you should learn
to keep your comments to yourself."
I whispered quietly, "Okay," and sat back down in my seat.
Nicole's gaze followed me. I wondered if she suspected something
wrong with Freddie. I also wondered if she enjoyed this little scenario.
That afternoon, I wanted to call Ken and tell my problems to him.
But I remembered...
He and Freddie were *very* close friends. I had no doubt in my mind
that he still considered me his best friend. But Ken was always the
peaceful type. If I told him Freddie and I were having problems, he
wouldn't choose sides. If Freddie and I still were at odds, he might be
forced to choose between us, and I didn't want that to happen. I didn't
even want to have to burden him with the choice.
And besides, Freddie was Mr. Popular. If I let the world know I was
angry with him, I would be back to Lita the Lonely. I would lose Nicole
as a friend, if she ever was one in the first place.
In the back of my mind lurked a little fear. A dark fear. A horrible
fear. What about Ken? Would I lose Ken, too? No way. Ken was the most
loyal guy I knew. The possibilities of that happening were.....what were
they? Was *I* the one at fault here? Ken wouldn't leave me right away, I
knew that for certain. But if the bitterness between my boyfriend and I
continued and it *was my fault*....I didn't want to know what would
happen.
How could it not be my fault? People don't just turn the cold
shoulder on you for no reason, right? I had to have done something. I
thought maybe Freddie just wanted to spare me from knowing I caused him
pain.
Yeah, I thought, that was it.
I thought I should try harder to make him happy. I decided to ask
him out to a romantic movie that weekend, and we would talk things over
afterward.
I called him, and he said his schedule was free.
I went to bed that night with a smile on my face. Everything would
be okay again.

BOOM!!!
I woke up. Lightning flashed outside of my window.
"Huh?" I wondered to myself.
Looking at the clock, I noticed it was 2:01 AM
Suddenly, a strong feeling gripped my heart. I felt like I couldn't
breathe. The storm raged outside as a heavy gust of wind burst into my
room, rearranging the clutter on my desk. Papers flew everywhere. A
postcard from Dara flew from my desktop and onto my bed.
Out the window, I saw the sky was lit up just like every night. The
bright lights of Tokyo always created an orange fuzz over the horizon at
night.
But something was different. I felt like the orange cloud
was...speaking to me.
I shook my head, got up and shut the window. I got back into bed and
noticed the postcard. It was pretty old, from a few months ago when Dara
went to Tokyo for a vacation. The picture was of Tokyo Tower.
Thinking this rather strange, I went back to sleep.

The next day was a day off from school. I woke up to find that my
homework to be due the day after had been ruined when it blew off my desk
and into the spray of rain coming in the window.
"Oh, great," I said as I picked up the papers. The ink had run on
each one of them. One was so bad, that you couldn't read any of my
writing and the ink had run to form what looked like a big weird-looking
four.
I was about to discard all the papers when I noticed the one with
the big four on it. Was that paper in the rain for that long? I
specifically remembered it had only been there for a few seconds when I
closed the window. The ink wouldn't have run *that* much, right?
Must've been one hell of a storm.

I got a call from Freddie that afternoon. It was the first call I'd
got from him since.....I couldn't remember.
"Hello?" I asked.
"Yeah, it's me, Freddie. I called to tell you I can't go out with
you this weekend."
"Why?" Half of me wanted to cream him, the other half figured that
it was pretty important if he actually *called* me to cancel plans.
"I've got to study for that math exam next week. You know how bad I
am."
Oh. Well, that wasn't so bad. "Okay. Maybe next weekend."
When we hung up, I went for the usual plan B. Make other plans with
friends.
But what? We'd been bowling, mini-golfing, to the movies, to the
arcade, to the carnival....Hmm....Freddie was sure busy a lot.
Then I thought about the first time Freddie blew off plans. He said
something about a Strictly Guys' night. How about a Girls' Night Out?
Yeah, that was it. I'd invite Dara and Nicole out to go shopping at the
mall. Hey, it *had* been a while since I'd last bought a new outfit.
I called Dara and we set plans to go that Saturday.
Then, I called Nicole.
"I'm sorry Lita," she said, "I've already got plans. Maybe we should
make a rain check, okay?"
Well, at least Nicole told me right away when she had to cancel.
"Oh, okay," I replied, "Hey, just out of curiosity, what are you doing?"
"Right now?"
"No, this Saturday."
"Lita, don't take this the wrong way but Freddie and I are going to
see a movie. We're just going as friends, so don't be jealous or
anything, okay? We're just die-hard fans of that American movie series
Star Wars, and we thought it would be cool to see the latest one
together. Lita?.......Lita?......."
I just gripped the receiver, gritting my teeth. Then I hung up. How
*dare* she do this to me? How dare *Freddie* do this to me?
Three seconds later the phone rung again.
"Yeah?!"
Nicole. "What's wrong, Lita?"
"You're asking me what's wrong?! I'll tell you what's wrong!!!
Freddie blew off plans to go out with me this weekend, because he said
that he had to STUDY!!! Then I find out he's going to the movies with
you! You keep saying that you're just going as friends but DON'T I HAVE A
RIGHT TO BE SUSPICIOUS?!?!"
What was I *doing*? I had made a promise with myself a while back
that I wouldn't let anyone know about the tensions between me and
Freddie! Nicole probably thought I was Lita the Loathsome, now.
"Oh, my God..." came her reply, "Lita! Oh, Lita, I'm so sorry! I had
no idea! I can't believe that *jerk*!"
Whoa. I didn't expect that. "Neither can I."
"You had a right to be suspicious. I noticed he'd been acting a
little weird around me, too. I thought it might have been possible he had
a crush on me, but I thought you guys were so close."
I smiled. I knew she couldn't see it, but I was so happy to know I
had at least one person on my side.
Nicole continued. "I know my saying that he's a total dork doesn't
give you any proof, so I promise I will ditch that idiot and join you and
Dara for a nice long shopping spree on Saturday! Hey, I gotta go. I'll
call you later and we can talk about our 'friend' Freddie, all right?
Bye!"
I didn't need any further proof. Nicole was a true friend.
That reminded me: I had two *more* true friends! Ken and Dara! I
could tell them all about this and get it off my chest. I reached for the
receiver...
Uuuuuuuuhhhhhh, not quite yet. I decided I should talk to Freddie
first and get this all straightened out. Or get *him* all straightened
out, whichever came first.

That good feeling I had that afternoon was gone by nighttime. I
still wanted to be back with Freddie. For over one whole year, I had been
his girlfriend, his lover. Should I lose that now, just because of a
silly little argument? A one-sided argument? God, he didn't even know I
was mad at him!
But could I take this any longer? For that one year we were
together, I had been excluded, pushed aside, and treated like some pest.
Whether it was my fault or not, I had to end this! But HOW?! I had done
everything in my power to try to get him back! I'd given him room,
inflated his ego, allowed him freedom, and even tried to become part of
his life again!
Did I do the right things? Did I give *him* the impression that *I*
didn't like *him* anymore? I didn't know! I didn't know!....
I knew one thing.
I couldn't take this anymore.
I had to get away from him.
I didn't care where, but I had to get away.
His words from the day before echoed in my mind. "Why don't you
transfer to another school?"
Could I?
Did I have the courage?

I had a dream that night.
I was running through a huge storm in a big city. Each thunderbolt
was like a power surge running through my body. The city was completely
deserted, and the only light was from the untamed electricity crashing
throughout the air.
I was running for a purpose. I was determined to get somewhere.
Finally, I saw another sign of life. A young girl in an elegant white
dress was dashing towards me. Two other women were with her. A third was
running behind them.
It was the third woman who interested me. She kept looking behind
her. Then, she stopped, yelled at the others to go ahead, and turned to
face what was behind her. To my horror, I saw a strange swirling black
cloud about fifty times my size headed for these four girls.
The third girl just stood there.
"Hey, you!" I shrieked, "Get out of there!"
She didn't listen. She shouted something and a blast of fire shot
out at the gaping hole.
The girl in the white dress saw me, ran, crying, and wrapped her
arms around me. "Oh, Lita, I'm so glad you're here!"
Only she didn't call me Lita. I couldn't make out what she actually
said, but in the dream state of mind I was in, it might as well have been
Lita.
"They're after us!" cried one of the girls. She had very short hair.
Then the other girl who kinda looked like some video game heroine
said, "We have to protect the princess, so let's get out of here!"
The girl in white (I guessed she was the "princess") nodded and the
four of us started running away. But something bothered me. That fire
girl was still there, trying to fight off the weird evil mist.
"I'll be right there," I said and ran to help.
As I was running, the thunder got louder, and my body was surrounded
by bolts of electricity. I joined the girl. She said something to me, but
I couldn't hear her over the crackles of several hundred volts around me.
I stared deep into the pitch black abyss. This, beyond a shadow of a
doubt, was the source of all evil in the universe. All the anger I had
kept up inside of me flowed through every vein in my body, creating even
more light and noise.
I screamed something completely incomprehensible, and using all my
strength, I hurled the concentrated ball of energy at the evil portal,
creating the most spectacular thunder crash that had ever graced human
ears.

BOOM!
Again, I woke up in the middle of the night. It was right in the
middle of an even bigger storm.
The window was open again and the wind was blowing harder, but
nothing was blown about in my room. The strangest part was that I knew a
storm was coming, and I specifically remembered closing the window, so
nothing would wake me up.
I got up and closed the window. Then, I checked my bed to make sure
no postcards were lying on it.
Should I really go to Tokyo? I thought. I figured that it was fairly
easy to find an apartment in Tokyo, and that if I *was* going to
transfer, I might as well move, too. Then, I'd be *really* far away from
Freddie.
Something deep inside of me was telling me, "Yes, you're doing the
right thing. Go to Tokyo. They need you there.
They? Who's they?
Before I went back to sleep, I took a look at the clock. Again, it
was 2:01 AM.

Immediately, I began making arrangements to move. Within the next
three days, I'd found a great Tokyo school called Crossroads Junior High,
with an unbelievable cooking class so I spoke to my principal about
transferring. Also, one afternoon after school, I got a train ride into
the city and went apartment-hunting and there was this really cool high-
rise apartment building with awesome prices.
Everything seemed to go my way. It was as if the world wanted me to
move and was doing everything it could to make that possible. My
principal agreed to let me transfer as soon as possible.
I did have enough money for the apartment. You see, ever since my
folks died, my aunt in Germany has been sending me money. Not a lot, just
enough for me to get by on (and afford a little treat on the side
occasionally). She promised that as soon as she got settled down and had
enough money to *really* support me, she'd send for me and I'd come live
with her. It's been about five years since she promised me. She still
sends me the money, but I don't know if she's going to live up to her
promise.
Anyway, the rent at this place was a lot better than the condo I
lived in now.
I was so excited.

"Hey, Lita," said Ken to me that Friday, "you might think I'm kinda
odd..."
I couldn't resist. "When do I *not* think you're kinda odd?"
Ken smiled. "Funny. Anyway, I've noticed a change in you."
"Oh? Like what?"
"You seem a lot happier now, but you've been acting like something's
wrong."
"Oh, nothing much."
"Nothing *much*?"
Damn! I should've known he would've spotted something. Okay, I told
myself, tell the truth, but don't blurt out everything.
"Well, Freddie and I have kinda been at odds lately," I replied
casually, "It's my problem, not his. We'll work it out."
"So why are you transferring?"
"Oh, that has nothing to do with it. You know how my dream is to own
a restaurant?"
"Yeah."
"Well, the Home Ec class at Crossroads is exquisite! And the rates
at my condo are monstrous compared to the ones at this place in Tokyo.
I'll save even more money that way."
I wanted to pat myself on the back. I had told the truth (sort of)
and not let anything slip! But Ken looked kinda...well...sad.
"You *are* still going to keep in touch, right?"
"Of course! I've still got my e-mail account. And with all this
extra money I'll be saving on rent, I can take a bus or train up here
anytime to visit. And there's always the telephone."
I thought I was doing fine until I actually started listening to
myself. I was acting all chipper about moving away from my friends. It
felt like I was ditching them. No, I told myself, it's better this way.
I'm not ditching them at all. Long-distance relationships are just fine.
One has to have a very small mind (not to mention heart) to believe that
distance means the end of a friendship.
"Well, that's good." Ken sounded reassured.
But then we were silent for a few moments. We knew we would still be
friends until the end of time. It's just that we wouldn't see each other
as often. We didn't need to say that we'd miss each other.
So I decided to change the subject. We talked on and on about movies
we'd seen and popular songs we liked and crazy stuff our classmates had
done in the past.
But everything stopped dead when I saw Freddie approach us.
"I'd like to speak to you," he said to me, "privately."
"Why?" I asked.
He smiled. That was the first time he had smiled at me since before
we started dating. My heart immediately melted. All the tension and the
anger and the hatred from the past few days just fell into a puddle at my
feet.
"No reason," he said, "I just want to be with you."
Ken suddenly picked a new subject from out of the blue. "Hey, it's
starting to rain."
"Oh," I said, "Here, Ken, you can use my umbrella for now. I think
I'll be walking home with Freddie."
As I handed my umbrella to Ken, I noticed something was wrong. Ken
wasn't exactly thrilled with my abandoning him.
"I promise I'll call you when I get home, okay?" I said, trying to
replicate the warm smile he always gave me.
Ken nodded. I noticed he kept glancing at Freddie.
"Yeah," Freddie chimed in, laughing, "And I promise I'll bring her
back in one piece."
My best friend usually laughed along with Freddie's witty remarks.
That day, he was annoyed. Well, I didn't think Freddie was acting quite
"in character" either, but Ken *really* seemed disturbed by it.
"Come on, Lita," said Freddie as he wrapped his arm around my waist
and we headed off.

The rain was so beautiful. It sang its little "tap tap" song as it
fell upon the pavement and the roof of the great pink gazebo.
Like little rain drops, happy thoughts danced through my mind.
Freddie and I would work this all out. We'd be happy again. There wasn't
much I could do about moving or transferring, since most of the
arrangements were already made. But we would keep in touch, and still get
together every now and then. Our love would last forever, despite
distance. Distance. What is that, anyway? Air molecules, that's what. Air
molecules that are measured and used to measure other stuff. There was no
way we were going to let a bunch of air molecules stop our love.
I was hypnotized by the spring shower. Freddie stood a few feet
behind me.
He cleared his throat. "I just had to see you one last time."
ONE LAST TIME?!?!!!!!
"What do you mean?" I asked. Surely this must all be some joke.
"Well, you're moving aren't you?"
"Yeah, but just to Tokyo. That's only a few miles away."
"But you'll be going to another school."
"So?" I almost laughed, "We can still write."
"Yeah, but I'll miss you."
"Well, I'll miss you too."
"Sorry, that's too much for me to take. I'd feel too much pain."
What was he saying? More importantly, what was he doing?!
"Freddie..."
He interrupted me. "You know, Lita, you're really brave."
It was a compliment. But he didn't say it like it was a compliment.
I knew something worse was coming.
And it did.
"I could never transfer to another school and leave all my friends."
Leave all my friends? He thought I was abandoning everybody?!
I shook my head. "That's not what I'm doing! You'll still be my
boyfriend!"
"You'll forget about me, I know it."
"No, I won't!"
"Listen, feel free to date other guys."
Those words sounded like a generous offer, but the tone of his voice
indicated otherwise.
"Freddie, no....."
He looked at his watch. "I gotta go."
"Freddie..."
There was no stopping him. He took his umbrella and calmly walked
out of the gazebo. I just stared at him, wondering if this was all just
another dream. He kept going.
"Freddie!" I called after him as I ran out from under the protective
roof.
He didn't respond. Of all the cruel things he'd ever done to me, I
called his name and he *didn't respond*. That was the last straw. My
heart tore in half and I started crying.
The lovely rain pattered all around me, but I paid no attention. I
cried so hard, that I couldn't tell my tears from the drops of water. In
the state of mind (and soul) I was in, the rain might as well have been
all my tears.
How could this have happened? Was he really hurt by my leaving? Did
I really have to move? Did he like me all along and I was just paranoid?
Then, I looked down and saw another shadow next to mine, and I
wasn't getting as soaked as I had been a few seconds ago.
"His loss," said a familiar voice. It was the one voice I wanted to
hear most right then.
I turned my head to my right. There was Ken, holding the umbrella
over my head.
"How did you know?" I asked.
"It's strange," he said, smiling, and almost laughing, "but I have
no idea. You said that you guys were having problems, and I thought there
might be more than that. Freddie was acting kinda weird when he was
talking to us earlier. In fact, ever since you guys have been dating,
he's been acting weird. I mean, you'd think a guy would pay much more
attention to his girlfriend."
"You were right."
"About there being more to this problem than meets the eye?"
"Yup." I dried my eyes.
Then I spilled everything. All my fears, all my worries, and
everything I'd ever thought regarding Freddie in the past year. It just
all came tumbling out. I probably sounded totally incomprehensible, but
Ken was used to me rambling on, just not in total hysterics like I was
then.
"And I didn't think I could tell you, 'cause you and Freddie were
such good friends and I didn't want to put any stress on you. I know that
sounds really stupid, and I should've trusted you more, and I feel really
bad about it now. I'm sorry."
Ken nodded. "Well, I guess in a situation like that, you don't
realize what you actually have and who's really on your side."
I just stared at him. He looked downward a bit, surprised by his own
words. As another unspoken rule, not just between us, but a subliminal
feeling I guess all people have, words of wisdom are said by great
ancient philosophers, not present-day teenagers.
But this was an exception. And I was glad.
"Thanks," I told him, putting a friendly hand on his shoulder.
"You're welcome."

The next day, the "Girls' Night Out" I'd been planning turned into a
moving day. Ken, Nicole, and even Dara came all the way to my condo to
help move stuff into Nicole's dad's van. Since the dad worked at the
moving van company, he gave me a special discount and agreed to help with
the loading.
"Oh, gosh," said Dara, "Now *you're* moving."
Fearing a repeat of yesterday's episode, I quickly replied, "I can
still write, call, and e-mail you."
"Oh, of course!" she said, smiling, "but it still sucks that we
won't see each other as much. Oh, well, we'll go to the same college,
right?"
"Sure! Maybe we might even be roommates."
"Just a few more years!"
"You'll still keep writing, right?"
In all truth, that was something I'd pretty much kept to myself. I
usually don't write to show other people. Just Dara. Just to keep old
times alive.
"Oh, yeah," I replied, even though I'd been doing less of it than
I'd done a while ago. Maybe I'd been too preoccupied with Freddie.
A few minutes later, Nicole pulled me aside.
"I hope this doesn't make you feel bad, but I have to tell you
this," she said as if she were keeping back a juicy secret, "You'd be so
proud of me."
"Shoot."
"Freddie came to my house asked me out, officially, this morning."
"What did you do?"
"I slapped that loser right in the face! I told him that I hated the
way he treated you, and if that's what I had to go through to be his
girlfriend, then, I'd rather be crushed under the reeking feet of
Godzilla!"
I half-expected to feel bad after she said that, but the Godzilla
remark cracked me up! I did feel a bit jealous that she got to slap him
before I did, but it's the kind of jealousy that really doesn't bother
you or anyone else.
We got the van all loaded up.
"Well guys," I said, "I'd better be on my way."
Ken spoke up, "Not without us, you're not!"
"Huh?"
"Can we come, too?" asked Dara.
"Oh, can we?" Nicole pleaded.
I laughed. "Sure, why not?"
They came with me and helped me set up the apartment. Then, Nicole's
dad drove us all to the nearest movie theater and we watched one of the
funniest comedies I've ever seen.
The time came when they *did* have to leave. It was pretty late.
Nicole and Dara piled into the van. Ken stayed a moment longer to
talk to me.
"That was some movie, huh?" he started.
I nodded slowly. "Yup."
"So, how often will you visit?"
"Enough to annoy you."
We both laughed. I knew that it was true, though. I'd probably be a
regular Steve Urkel in his house. Hey, could you blame me?
I dried a tear of laughter, "Anyway, thanks for helping me out
yesterday."
"Hey, I was just in the right place at the right time."
"And I'm glad you were."
With that Ken got into the van and the van left.
I felt alone. Not too alone, because I had three great friends who
would always be beside me, even if they were far away. Still, I wished I
could've spent more time with them.
Then, I thought about my old apartment. The feeling that I got
calling me to Tokyo was speaking to me again. I had to go back, just for
a minute. I just had to take one last look at my old condo.
In my pocket was change for a train ride.

It was so empty. I could smell the plaster smell of a new house. But
it wasn't my house anymore. Memories flooded back to me. I had lived in
this house all my life. I remembered my parents. Usually, I would start
crying, but I just felt peaceful.
Well, that was my last look. I closed the door behind me, went
downstairs, and left the key in the manager's mailbox.
On the train ride back, I thought about my future. Why was Tokyo
calling me? What was that dream about?
I noticed that this train was also taking a bunch of foreigners to
Tokyo. They all looked European. Maybe they were French, or English.
Well, anyway, they were all speaking in a language I couldn't understand.
The train stopped. On my way out of the car, I bumped into a girl,
no older than me. She had long golden hair and a huge red bow. She was
definitely one of the foreigners.
I said nothing to her. How could she understand me, anyway?
"I'm sorry!" She said.
She knew Japanese? "That's okay," I replied.
She walked away. There was something very...strange....about this
girl.
I finally made it back to the apartment. As I turned the key in the
doorknob, I looked up at the number on the door.
The golden metal numbers spelled out 201.

I had to wait about one week before the school year ended, and then
I had to wait all of vacation. Finally, I could experience what
Crossroads Junior High was like.
It wasn't much different from Forest Academy. I mean, the Home Ec
class was what I expected, it was great! In the first couple of weeks, I
learned a neat new recipe for meatloaf. Meatloaf soon became my favorite
food. That and cherry pie, which I've always loved.
But socially, I wasn't doing so well. My past reputation somehow
reached these kids. There was a rumor that I had been kicked out of
Forest for fighting! I wish. I still visited my friends back home, but at
school, I was without friends and known as Lita the Lunatic.
One morning I was feeling especially down. Then, I saw some really
huge guys in a corner. I wondered what they were doing, so I went over to
take a look. These bullies were pestering a short girl with odd
pigtails...

And the rest is history. Everybody knows how I saved the girl (her
name was Serena, by the way) and became a Sailor Scout. Sailor Jupiter,
in fact.
That first battle was strange. I mean, I was attracted to another
guy, already! He turned out to be a total jerk, but something about
him...his appearance...I couldn't explain why, but he reminded me of
Freddie.
I got teased by my new friends a lot. I guess I was really anxious
to get a boyfriend. Maybe, subliminally, I thought that if I did, I could
move on, past Freddie, and I wouldn't feel any pain anymore. But still,
sometimes, I still felt the pain and wanted to hurt him.
Well, I don't want to write about the bad parts right now.
My new friends were pretty cool. Serena was really nice, always
trying to be friends with everyone, even though at times she could get
annoying. The others teased her playfully sometimes, but I never really
found a reason to. Actually, I thought her hairstyle was rather
interesting.
Amy was amazing. She had an IQ of 300, and she wasn't a geek. Both
of us are victims of stereotypes. I'm the stupid, violent one, she's the
brainy nerd. I liked hanging around her, especially when Serena was being
so annoying I needed a break. We were complete opposites, which made it
easy to give each other advice. She helped me study, and I once helped
her out with her boyfriend Greg.
Raye and I never really hung together much. I guess in that case, we
were too much alike. But I did admire her fighting abilities and
determination.
After a while, Mina came along. We had a lot in common. I found it
easy to sympathize with her and vice versa. Now that I think about it,
she reminded me of Dara.
My friends were great. I wasn't as close with them as I was with my
old friends, but I hadn't known them as long.

Being a Sailor Scout was really something! Every time I fought a
monster, I felt as if I were releasing some of the anger inside me. Maybe
that was why I was the most violent one of the team. That was probably
the one time in my life I didn't mind being thought of as violent.
I loved my powers! It was really cool being able to throw
electricity, like in my dream. Well, I thought *everybody's* powers were
cool. I loved combining my powers with Mercury's because everybody knows
water and electricity don't mix! Venus's powers always amazed me; I
couldn't figure out what they were. I mean, lasers don't hurt anyone,
right? Not unless you aim it in the eye. I guess Mina had her very own
photon torpedoes like the ones I hear about in sci-fi shows. Mars'
powers....well, who *hasn't* secretly wanted to play with fire? But
Sailor Moon's powers were the strangest. They were the most effective,
but no one could really explain what they did, except turn people into
dust, and free victims from evil spirits.
We fought together for the longest time. We stuck together through
the wrath of Queen Beryl, Alan and Ann, the four Dark Moon Sisters, and
The Wiseman's forces.
One of my most important battles was during Alan and Ann's attacks.
Ken visited Tokyo to try to find my apartment, and...well, that's
history, too.
I was so glad to see him again. Too bad it wasn't under the best of
circumstances. I didn't even get a chance to really talk to him.
You know, I'd been scared before, but when he fell onto the
sidewalk...I felt like I couldn't move. The lion kept attacking, my mind
was screaming for revenge, but everything else was frozen. I didn't know
whether I should go after the monster or run to help Ken.
Luckily, the lion left when it saw Amy and Serena. I guess it didn't
like handling more than a few people at once. Once the lion was gone, I
raced down to where Ken lay. I was so afraid for him. More than that, I
was afraid for me. What would I do if I lost him?
But there was no time for fear. I had to help him. The paramedics
soon arrived, and I came with them on the way back to the hospital. When
they told me he needed an immediate transfusion of type O blood, I
offered mine with no hesitation.
Lying there in the hospital bed, Ken was only a few feet away from
me, but I couldn't tell him all about what's been going on in the past
few months. I mean, I'd visited him, but I couldn't tell him about being
a Sailor Scout and how interesting it was.
Well, soon after I left the hospital, we met up with the lion again.
Despite the fact I was weak from blood-loss, that was one of my finest
fights. I guess my anger and thirst for revenge made up for the lack of
energy.
I still didn't get to talk to Ken after he left. His mom came to the
hospital to take him back home. But the next day, I called him to ask how
he was doing, and we got to talk then, but I still knew I couldn't tell
him about the way I fought as Sailor Jupiter.

Well, you know the story of how we fought the Sisters and Rubeus,
and the Wiseman, so I'll skip all that and get to a few weeks ago.
Raye called us all to the temple one afternoon.
"I'm getting strange readings from a new enemy," she said as she
sat, concentrating in front of the fire.
"Already?" wailed Serena, "We just finished trashing the Wiseman!"
Amy spoke up, "Well, that *was* almost a month ago."
"Well, now that we're superheroes on-duty all the time," Mina said,
"That does sound like a while."
Something told me that this enemy meant Trouble. Lots of it. "Do you
know anything else, Raye?"
Raye strained herself, trying to find something. "Well, it's
attracted to great amounts of energy."
Serena almost laughed, "Oh, yeah, like *that's* news."
Raye continued, "It's looking for a certain source...and a certain
kind of energy...but I'm not sure what." She sighed, and the fire died
down a bit. "That's all I can get today. Maybe when it gets closer, I can
get more info on it."
"Well," I announced, "We should be ready for it."
"Yeah," agreed Raye, "everyone keep an eye out for signs of
trouble."
We all nodded. "Right!"

The next afternoon, I got a visit from Ken. He had brought some
rented videos, so we just sat and watched them for a while.
"Hey," I asked him between videos, "You want a snack?"
He shook his head and grinned, "Knowing you, you'll take all day in
the kitchen."
"You're right."
"Oh! I just remembered: there's going to be a class party this
weekend. I wanted to know if you'd come along."
"Really?"
"Yeah, it's a formal event, though."
"Oh, I'll find something. There's this shop down the way that sells
used prom dresses at unbelievable prices."
"Are you sure you want to go?"
"Of course! Why wouldn't I?"
"Well, Freddie's gonna be there."
I was silent for a moment. Could I handle seeing him again? Why not?
"There will be a lot of people there. I bet I won't even notice him."
"I hope not. It'd be really nice if you'd come. Some of our
classmates really want to see you."
He put in the next video. I didn't pay too much attention to the
movie. This thought kept nagging at me. Could I *really* handle Freddie?
Even for just a few hours?
I thought I was past him! I thought I'd let go a long time ago. I
guess I hadn't. How could I? I wondered if I would have to confront him.
More importantly, I wondered if I had the guts. Tuxedo Mask once said I
had guts, but he was possessed at that point.
This feeling stayed with me long after Ken and I said goodbye for
the afternoon. I think it was Wednesday night when I had the dream that,
as Sailor Jupiter, I was in combat with Freddie. I didn't use any of my
powers, but we both gave each other a savage beating.
All throughout the week, I kept preparing myself for meeting Freddie
again.

When I went to go shopping for a dress for the reunion, Mina
insisted that she come with me.
"This will be so much fun!" said Mina.
I was surprised at my friend's enthusiasm. "We're just shopping for
a dress."
"How can you say that?! We're shopping for *formal* dresses, isn't
that cool?"
I smiled. "Whatever you say, Mina."
Mina *did* make it fun. Every time I tried on a dress, I'd show her
and she'd scream, "Oh, you look so good in that!" and hand me another
dress to try on saying, "Just try this one on, in case it looks even
better." I trusted her, 'cause she wanted to be a model so much. It was
like she was on a sugar rush, and taking me with her. That sugar rush
skyrocketed when she got a look at the great prices.
"They're so low!" she shrieked, "Once you've chosen one, I'm buying
one for myself. Here's another dress."
She handed me a long, dark blue one. It looked kinda plain, but I
really liked its shape.
I took it in the dressing room and tried it on.
Wow, I thought. I couldn't think anything else. The person in the
mirror just couldn't have been me! She was lovely! I had no idea exactly
how thin my waist was. Battling evil sure was a great way to lose weight.
The skirt of the dress actually went past my calves! At my height, that's
amazing!
I stepped outside of the dressing room to show Mina. Expecting more
screams of glee, instead I got dead silence. Mina just stood there with
her mouth hanging open.
After a few seconds she slowly said, "Lita, don't tell me you're
*not* going to buy that dress."
"Oh, I am, I really like this one."
I returned into the dressing room and changed back into my regular
clothes. Wow, I had been a princess for about a minute.
Then, it was Mina's turn. She chose a sleek little red number that
she completely fell in love with.
We bought the dresses and walked out of the store.
"See," said Mina, "I told you it would be fun."
"You were right!"
As soon as I got home, I tried on the dress again. I felt so pretty!
But Freddie would still be there. I would have to figure out what to
do if he actually tried to talk to me.

"This looks bad," said Luna.
"A Galactic Elemental. How scary," Serena worried.
Darien asked, "What *is* an elemental?"
We were all gathered in Raye's temple. Raye had found out what the
new enemy is. It was called a Galactic Elemental.
"A Galactic Elemental," Luna explained, "is a being that specializes
in one form of attacks, much like you scouts. Some attack using water,
others use metals, some use just the motion of earth. Each one wants to
control the universe, so they constantly battle each other for control.
They travel from planet to planet, trying to collect as much of their own
power as possible. This one has chosen Earth."
"What is it looking for?" asked Amy.
"We're not quite sure," said Artemis, "It depends on what type of
Elemental it is, which we don't know."
"We don't even know when it's coming!" exclaimed Luna, "So be
prepared for anything!"

Saturday night.
The news blared from the other room. Something about a lot of
blackouts.
I just sat in front of the big mirror in my room, doing my makeup. I
hoped, prayed, that I wouldn't have to talk to Freddie that night.
Then, I actually listened to my own prayers. What I really needed
was to put him behind me once and for all. If that meant confronting him,
then so be it. If that meant proclaiming to the world exactly how much I
hated him, then so be it. I loved this new courage.
When I was done, I took a long look at myself. I looked like a
totally different person. The sight of my own reflection got my mind off
unpleasant thoughts.
Looking at the clock, I realized it was almost 7. Time to go.
The taxi I ordered was waiting out in front of my apartment building
for me. I walked down the stairs and headed out to the car.
The drive there was so long! We got stuck in traffic for twenty
minutes. At least, I thought, I'll be fashionably late.
I wasn't the only one. Ken was on his way in, too.
"Whoa," we both said in unison when we saw each other.
"Well *you* look different," he told me.
I just kinda smiled at him. "I never thought I'd see you in a
tuxedo."
"I never thought I'd see you in makeup!"
"Hey, I've worn makeup before!"
"Really?"
"Lip gloss."
"Oh, yeah. Heavy duty stuff, Lita. By the way, I *really* like your
dress."
I think I blushed, or just turned red. "Thanks."
We entered the building. It was huge! The reunion was organized by
one of the richest kids in our class, so the party was at the top floor
ballroom of this fancy expensive hotel. To this day, I still can't
believe that anyone (royalty excluded) would spend so much money on a
party.
Ken and I could see a perfect mirror reflection of ourselves in the
gold doors of the elevator.
"I wonder how much wax they use on the doors," I muttered.
Ken laughed.
When the doors opened, we stepped inside.
"Wait!" a voice called from outside the elevator.
Ken held the "door open" button. A few seconds later, in stepped a
man. A man whose presence shattered every hope of my having a good time
that night.
Freddie.

When our eyes met, one could cut through the tension with a
chainsaw. Ken moved a bit closer to me, assuring me that he was there for
me if I needed backup. The elevator doors shut, trapping us in there with
my ex-boyfriend.
Trying to be the diplomatic one here, I attempted a conversation.
"Hi, Freddie."
He looked at me. Actually, no, it was more like he looked *through*
me, like one looks through glass. Did he think I was hiding someone
behind me?
Still, silence.
I wanted to try dialogue again, but I didn't want the same response.
The elevator kept ascending. It seemed to be taking forever. I
would've given anything to just open the doors and GET OUT!
Suddenly, the elevator stopped. The emergency lights came on and the
regular lights were gone. Great. The one time I need to leave someplace,
and I can't!
Freddie swore. I guess he dreaded seeing me as much as I dreaded
seeing him.
He grumbled, "Why the hell is this happening?"
"There have been many blackouts all over the world lately," stated
Ken.
"Really?" I asked in astonishment. Then I remembered that I'd heard
something about that before I left.
Ken nodded. "The entire city of Paris was pitch-black one night last
week."
"Listen, will you two just SHUT UP?!" Freddie shouted. He was really
becoming paranoid.
We just stood there in the dim light for an eternity. I had heard
somewhere that if you're locked in a room with your best friend, you will
go insane. So, of course, that got me to wondering what would happen to a
person if she were locked in a tiny "room" with her best friend and her
worst enemy.
Then, we all heard strange noises coming from above.
"The cable's snapping!" Freddie shrieked.
"Now, why would that happen?" Ken asked. "It's just a blackout, not
Armageddon."
I listened closely to the noises. They certainly didn't sound like
cables snapping. There were distant crashes of furniture being thrown
around, human screams, the general sounds of...battle? Then, I heard
something else. The all too familiar boom of thunder. It seemed to be
coming from the top floor.
"See, Freddie?" said Ken, "It's just a storm."
But I knew it wasn't a storm. The crash didn't sound quite right.
Someone was throwing thunderbolts, much like I could.
Then, I heard a crackle of static.
Lita! said a familiar voice, Come in! Lita!
Oh, crap. Amy was trying to contact me on my communicator. Ken and
Freddie just stared at me, wondering what the heck was going on.
"Just my beeper, guys!" I laughed, then grabbed my communicator out
of my purse. "Yes, Amy?"
You're in big trouble!
"What?"
The Galactic Elemental! We just met up with it a few minutes ago!
"Oh, no..."
Serena and Raye are unconscious, Mina's bleeding like crazy, and
I've broken so many bones, it hurts just to talk!
"I'll be right there as soon as I can!"
No!
"Why?"
The Elemental....it's element is electricity. It's taken he power
of several major cities all over the globe. Do you know why it came here?
It knows about the Sailor Scouts! And it knows about you! Lita, you're
the greatest source of electricity to be found on this planet! It knows
where you are, and at the speed that thing travels, I wouldn't be
surprised if it were already there!
"You mean..."
Yes. It wants you, Lita. Just you.
BOOM!!!
The thunder roared from the upper floors.
We'll be fine, just don't get hurt, and don't let it take your
powers!
"You're right, Amy, it's here."
"Uh, Lita," Ken started, "Is there something you haven't told me?"
Freddie just cowered in the corner.
"Yes," I answered sternly, "but I had a good reason. Now if you'll
excuse me...JUPITER STAR POWER!!!"
And I transformed right there.
"You're Sailor Jupiter?" asked a completely amazed Ken.
"Yup. Sorry I didn't tell you before."
"I understand." Ken had read enough comics to know about the secret
-identity thing.
Freddie didn't share my friend's enthusiasm. "You're a superhero, so
get us out of here!"
"Are you claustrophobic or something?"
His lack of a response I took as a "yes".
"Well, *I* have to go upstairs and fight the monster," I explained,
"You two should stay down here where it's safe."
CRASH! Another thunderbolt.
We all cried out. *Then* came the snapping of the cables.
"Like I said, you'll have to come with me."
I jumped up and kicked the ceiling panel open, helped Freddie out,
then Ken, then I jumped out.
"It's not going to hold much longer!" warned Ken.
Looking around frantically, I saw an emergency ladder on the other
side of the shaft. "Okay, guys, we're going to have to jump."
"What? All the way over there?" complained Freddie.
"Yeah, or you're going to wind up all the way down there," I
threatened, shoving my fist two inches away from his face, "You won't
even have to wait until all the cables snap; I can make it happen even
quicker."
Freddie's eyes grew wide with fear. It would have been funny if we
weren't fearing for our lives. He leaped and barely caught the ladder. He
hung and struggled to get a foothold.
Once he was secure on the ladder, I commanded, "Start climbing up!
We need room, too!"
I didn't get a chance to see him carry out my orders. All the cables
snapped.
The elevator plummeted down dozens and dozens of floors, and judging
by how high the building was and how long it took to get up there in the
elevator, we still had a ways to go.
"Ken, jump!"
"Not without you!"
"Just DO IT!"
With that, I shoved him as hard as I could, and prayed he caught on
to the ladder.
I leapt off of the car, reaching out. My hands slapped against
metal, and I closed my fist, trying to grab on.
I missed.
"No!" I shrieked.
Luckily, I felt more metal bars hit my hands as I fell. I was still
close to the ladder. I tried to grab on again, and succeeded.
Only a few seconds later, I heard a tremendous crash, but not of
thunder. The elevator car had smashed on the bottom of the shaft.
Fearing that I would find Ken's body down there, I created a small
spark of light between my fingers to get a good look. The light was
enough for me to see the wreckage. The elevator car was completely
annihilated.
"Oh, my God!" I heard a familiar voice *above me* say, "Where's that
light coming from?"
"Ken!" I exclaimed.
"Yeah?"
"Thank goodness you're alive!" I looked up and could barely see him
a few stories above me. "Sorry I shoved you. Wait right there, I'll be
right up."
When I finally met up with Ken, I couldn't resist muttering, "I
wonder how Freddie's holding up. That coward."
"Shh!" Ken said, stifling a laugh, "There might be an echo."
"I don't care! HEY FREDDIE!!! YOU'RE A BIG FAT COWARD!" I hollered
in a sing-song voice.
Then, I just laughed and laughed.
"I'm glad to see you're feeling better, Lita."
"What, you're not going to admit me to the asylum now?"
"We've known each other for years and I haven't admitted you yet."
"I wonder what this says about us."
"That I should be there in the loony bin with you?"
"Yup. That pretty much sums everything up."
I was beginning to believe I actually *was* crazy. Did I actually
insult Freddie? Did I actually not care if he heard me? Remembering the
scene up on top of the stalled car, I couldn't believe I had the courage
to threaten him and boss him around like that. Tuxedo Mask was right. I
*did* have guts. Though that might have been because I was transformed at
that point. Maybe Lita Kino's not as brave as Sailor Jupiter, but she had
plenty of time to learn.
We climbed up until we met up with Freddie.
"You're *not* dead?!" Freddie exclaimed in astonishment.
God, this guy was a DORK! "Sorry to disappoint you," I said coldly
as if I were spitting out the words.
"Ugh," Ken groaned, "my arms are so tired."
"We're almost there," I told him.
"Aren't you weary at all?" asked Freddie.
"Comes with being a superheroine."
Freddie kept interrogating me. "Why do you want us to come with
you?"
"Rather have been back on that elevator?"
"No, but I thought you might actually want to keep us safe. But
you're bringing us up with you into the fight with that elemental
thingy."
He was accusing me again. I *was* bringing them with me. What was I
*thinking*?! The courage I had a few seconds ago completely faded.
Ken must've sensed this. "Well," he said to Freddie, "I thought you
might actually want to help her fight. I know I will."
Isn't it great to have good friends? "You don't have to do that,
Ken," I said, "Besides, I think I'd better handle this one alone."
"I know you've got superpowers and experience and all, so I'll let
you call the shots, but it'll be two against one! The odds are in our
favor! Please?"
"All right. As weird as it seems, I have a better chance of keeping
you guys safe that way. Who knows where that thing is? It'll be better if
you stick by me."
Freddie fumed, "So you automatically assume *I* can handle a battle
against a walking fusebox?"
"You don't want to go up? Fine. You have another option. It's a long
way down, Freddie," Ken muttered between clenched teeth. Yet another bit
of evidence that Ken and I think alike.
FINALLY, Freddie decided to shut up.
We made it up all the way to the top floor. Using a few electrical
sparks, I rigged the elevator doors to open.
What we saw when we opened the ballroom doors will haunt us for the
rest of our lives. The walls and floors were charred where lightning had
struck. Furniture was smashed all over the room. Bodies lay everywhere,
obviously victims of the Elemental's wrath. The worst part was, since
these were kids from Forest Academy, all the bodies were familiar. I
recognized almost all of them, even if I didn't know their names.
Freddie couldn't take it. He started throwing up, Ken was crying
silently, and I...I was in total and complete awe. I had seen disaster
areas before, but nothing this bad.
Then, a dark blue shape on the floor caught my eye. It was the same
kind of dress I had bought, and Nicole was wearing it.
I burst into tears, screamed "Nicole!", and ran to her.
With tears streaming down my face, I checked for a pulse.
"Oh! Holy Cow, she's alive! Guys, check the others!"
I just held her for a moment, eternally grateful that she was all
right. I realized that in my shock, I had not really taken a good look at
the situation. There was no blood anywhere, and the victims all seemed to
be in an all-too-familiar state of peaceful relaxation, instead of the
almost panicked silence of those brutally murdered. There was a
difference, but people who hadn't experienced battle and death like I had
wouldn't notice it.
They hadn't been killed, their energy had just been drained.
"I've checked a few. They seem all right," reported Ken, "just
unconscious."
"Yeah, they all are," I explained, "but it's gonna be a while before
they wake up."
"I'm so afraid."
"Me too."
"WHAT?!" Freddie shrieked, "You mean *this* scares you? Lita,
haven't you been in situations like this before?!"
I was about to remark on that rude comment when I decided to cut him
some slack. I knew the evils of the Negaverse like the back of my hand,
and Ken had experienced them before. Freddie had no experience at all and
I was his fearless leader. Of course he would be nervous if he knew I
was.
"Yeah," I said, "but it freaks me out every time."
Then, lightning flashed on the other side of the room. A being
materialized out of nowhere. She looked like a punk rocker, with frizzy
black hair and leather clothes. Her skin was pure white. In fact, I could
see no resemblance of color on her entire body, save for her many studs,
chains, and silver jewelry. Just midnight black, cold silver, and
blinding white.
"Hey, Sailor Jupiter," she greeted me nonchalantly, "I'm so glad I
found you!"
She took a look around the torn-apart room and put the tips of her
fingers to her black lips. She giggled mischievously.
"Did I do that?" she said, "Sorry about the elevator, but I just had
to get you up here."
"Who are you?" I demanded.
"Name's Voltra. I'm the Galactic Elemental of electricity, and the
future ruler of the universe. Sorry about your friends here, too. I
didn't kill any of them, just grabbed some of their brain electricity. I
can't kill them, 'cause a ruler needs subjects, right?
"And that's why I want to talk to you. Missy, you're the most
shocking little gal this side of the Andromeda galaxy, and, well, I need
a bit of your firepower to conquer my universal-domination-thirsty
siblings."
"No way."
She laughed again, as she slowly approached me, grabbed me around my
neck with one hand, and lifted me into the air. "I'm afraid that's not an
option."
Her grasp tightened. Ken lunged at Voltra, but she easily pushed him
away. This woman had super strength. She reached for my tiara, the
conductor of my powers.
"You want electricity?" I choked, "You got it! JUPITER THUNDER
CRASH!!!"
I made sure the crash was low enough so I wouldn't get hurt. I
didn't want a repeat of what you might remember as Day of Destiny.
Voltra immediately dropped me. Lacking a plan, I grabbed both Ken
and Freddie's wrists and led them into the hallway. I could hear Voltra
laugh as she slowly followed us. She didn't even bother to run.
We ran up the small stairway that led to the roof. I could sense her
behind us.
"Listen you guys," I said when we made it to the roof, "This girl is
bad news, and I mean *really* bad. You had better let me handle this."
Ken protested, "Lita, I can't just leave you!"
"You can help me," I instructed him, "but let me do most of the
work, okay?"
Somehow, I just knew he wasn't going to listen. Freddie, on the
other hand, had no problem.
BANG! The metal door to the rooftop swung open.
"Honey, I'm ho-ome!" Voltra giggled.
Ken and I wasted no time. We charged at her. Her strength was pretty
good, but not good enough to keep her standing upright. She hit the
ground hard...and kept laughing. She sent a charge of electricity through
us, and we released her.
"Ken, are you okay?" I asked.
He nodded. The blast hadn't been fatal.
Voltra chose Freddie for her next victim. "Haven't seen you take
action, yet."
My ex cowered in terror. "D-don't hurt me!"
"Chicken!!! That's it, you're chicken! Ha-hah! Chicken boy!" She
then sounded like Homer Simpson, "Mmmm....chicken.....Fried Chicken!!!"
She sent a huge bolt flying at him. Wailing like a baby, Freddie
scrambled out of the way.
"JUPITER THUNDERCLAP ZAP!!!"
The electric discus hit her right in the back. She convulsed for a
moment, then stood completely still.
"Is she dead?" Ken whispered.
He got his answer when she turned her head and stretched. "Whooooo
-eeeee! That felt good! Like one of those massage chairs!"
In a flash, she was standing inches in front of me. "But, I get the
impression that you wanted to hurt me. Meanie!"
With that, she kicked me hard with her clunky boot that was probably
five times the size of her actual foot. I flew about ten feet and the
wind got knocked out of me.
Ken slugged her. Finally, *somebody* hurt this monster!
"Naughty boy," she whispered.
I watched in horror as she picked up Ken by the collar of his shirt.
Her fingernails, I noticed, were actually tiny blades! She swung her free
hand...
"No!" I screamed as she brought her claws across my best friend's
face. Then, she threw him aside.
I was once again her main target. At the speed of light, she was
right beside me. I tried to get up, but she kicked me down and put her
boot on my back, right at the base of my neck. Five small razors were
slowly raked across my back.
"Give up, Jupiter?"
Then, she suddenly stopped. I looked to my side to see a red rose
was stuck in the rooftop.
"Ouch!" she complained.
Tuxedo Mask spoke up. "Sailor Jupiter, I have always thought of you
as having a shocking personality. You are like electricity."
Jeez, does this guy know what he's talking about half the time?
He continued, "Electricity is a type of energy, and as everybody
knows, it cannot be destroyed. Don't let your inner power burn out!"
Okay, that made sense. But sometimes, I wish the guy would just
start fighting and can the sappy speeches.
"Oh," Voltra remarked, "How pretty! A rose! And you're not so bad
-looking yourself, Penguin Man. Hey, we even shop at the same clothing
store!"
She took her boot off me and attacked Tuxedo Mask. Now was my
chance.
"JUPITER THUNDER CRASH!!! JUPITER THUNDER DRAGON!!! JUPITER
THUNDERCLAP ZAP!!!"
All three attacks shocked her badly. She turned to throw something
at me, but Tuxedo Mask was lightning quick (no pun intended) and beat her
several times with his cane.
I ran towards him to help, but Voltra was quicker. She blasted him
with a huge ball of light. Tuxedo Mask flew back several feet and lay,
unmoving.
I had to find out if he was okay, so I dashed to him.
"Tuxedo Mask! Tuxedo Mask, speak to me!"
He was till alive, but totally unconscious.
"Lita, watch out!"
That's when I saw it, an entire wall of cracking, sizzling lightning
shooting straight for me. I was right near the edge of the roof, so I
couldn't move back.
Suddenly, something...someone...pushed me out of the way.
No! I thought, Nononononoooooo!
I had a split-second flashback of the day Ken and I met the lion
cardian. It was happening all over again. Ken had ignored my warnings and
pushed me out of the way. It was happening again. But this time, if he
fell, no amount of donated blood would bring him back.
Not this time. In mid-air, I grabbed him, determined to either keep
him on the roof, or fall off with him. When I finally landed, I was
hanging by my waist over the side of the roof, hanging on to Ken with all
my strength, as he dangled over the side. My body was delicately balanced
on the edge. If I moved, I'd upset the balance and fall to the sidewalk
an eternity of floors beneath me. The wall of electricity passed right
above us.
Help was needed. "Freddie! Pull us back!"
We waited. Ken was completely silent.
"Hang on, buddy, " I reassured him, "I'm not going to let go."
Freddie still didn't come. At this point, I'd do ANYTHING to get him
to save us, even become his girlfriend again. He still didn't come.
Voltra saw her chance. "Oooh! I *love* your boots, Jupiter! If only
they came in black. Can I get a closer look at them?"
At first I couldn't figure out what she was doing. Then, I found out
when my feet were lifted up and I lost my balance.
For the second time that night, I was falling.
"Ken," I whispered as we plummeted, "I don't have any powers to stop
us from falling."
Even in the face of death, Ken kept the same generally happy
attitude that held our friendship together all these years. "See you in
the next life," he told me.
But I guess it wasn't our time yet. An arm wrapped around my waist
and stopped me from falling. Voltra had followed us in our descent. And
she had the power to fly. She had Ken in her other arm.
"Looks like you really care about this kid, don't you?" asked
Voltra.
No answer came from my mouth. It was too late to keep anything from
her, but I was still afraid to say yes, for fear she might use the
knowledge to her advantage.
"I'll make a deal with you, okay? I'll put you back up there on the
roof, and I'll leave. In a half hour, I'll meet you back at the ballroom
and you'll give me your powers and everything will be okay."
I nodded.
She continued, "Oh, and one more thing..."
Ken cried out as he disappeared.
"What did you do to him?!" I shrieked. I would've started fighting
her, but I wasn't exactly in a position to do so.
"He's okay. You know, I really don't want to kill anyone, but I need
that electricity. That reminds me. I don't want to see you in that tacky
Sailor outfit when I return, no matter how cool the boots are. Just
cooperate and hand over that tiara and you'll get him back."
She drifted back up to the roof and let me go.
"Remember, if I come back and you aren't de-transformed and ready to
give me your tiara, the deal's off!"
She faded away.
"What happened?" Freddie asked me.
Turning to face him, I glared directly in his dark eyes. "What
happened? You want to know what happened?! From the look of things, you
don't seem too concerned about what happened!!!"
"You don't have to yell at me!"
"No, I don't have to yell at you, I WANT TO!!! I called for your
help, and you didn't come! If you had, Ken would still be here!"
"Hey, shut up! You're supposed to handle everything!"
"That doesn't give you an excuse to desert us!"
"No wonder you were such a crappy girlfriend!"
I punched him as hard as I could right in the face. "I HAVE HAD IT
WITH YOU!!!!!"
He didn't have enough time to recover from that blow when I kicked
him in the solar plexus.
Then, he tried to use a takedown move, but I got out of the way. He
punched me in the gut. I tackled him to the ground. He tried to push me
away, but I hit him several times in the face, giving him one heck of a
bloody nose.
When I finally let him up, he charged at me, trying to force me to
the ground, but I leaped high over his head and landed behind him. Before
he got a chance to turn around, I grabbed his arm and twisted it around
his back.
"Well, you were a crappy boyfriend! Always spending more time
working on your perfect popular guy image than paying the slightest scrap
of attention to me! Worse yet, you were hitting on Nicole! Well, I
shouldn't get so angry, because after you 'broke up' with me, you waited
an entire day out of grief to go courting others! Freddie, you have a
tiny mind and an even smaller heart! I don't see how any woman would ever
find you worthy of her love! I HOPE YOU ROT IN HELL!!! JUPITER
THUNDERCLAP...."
But I couldn't give the final blow. Freddie, no matter how evil he
was, he was a civilian. As a Scout, I had sworn an oath to protect all
civilians. Besides, he didn't deserve to die. When he does die, there
will be no doubt where he will go, but that won't happen for a while.
I stopped the flow of electricity and just settled on letting his
arm go and kicking him to the ground.
Then, out of the corner of my eye, a black figure moved.
"Tuxedo Mask!" I cried as I ran to him.
He sat up. "What happened?"
"Voltra's holding Ken hostage. She wants my tiara in exchange for
him."
"Where are the others, Jupiter?"
"They're hurt. They tangled with Voltra only a few moments before
she came here. You have to go save them."
"You're in more trouble."
"They need you. If Voltra wins, we need the rest of the team to
defeat her. If you go help the others, it'll be you, Sailor Moon, Sailor
Mercury, Sailor Mars, and Sailor Venus fully powered against her."
"If she beat all four of them, how can we go up against her again?"
"Hey, there's still a chance I can take her on! Maybe I can stop her
*and* get Ken back."
He nodded. "You're really courageous, Lita."
"Thank you. I need to ask you for one more favor. I'm expecting this
to be a huge battle. Is there any way you can get the victims out of the
ballroom?"
"Not by myself, I can't. I'd need to teleport them all out using all
of the scouts' powers."
"Do you think we can tap into their powers from here?"
"Might as well give it a try."
Turning on my communicator, I tried to contact the other scouts, but
no answer came. They all probably passed out. This was not really a
problem. I could always make like Princess Serenity and call on their
powers mentally. But would it work for me?
"Okay," I told Tuxedo Mask, "go help the Scouts."
When he left, I went downstairs into the ballroom.
Okay guys, I mentally called out to the other scouts, I need your
help. There are a lot of people who will get hurt if we don't get them
out of here.
Then, as if from inside my head, someone shouted "MERCURY POWER!!!"
It was almost audible and followed by cries of, "MARS POWER!!!" "VENUS
POWER!!!" and "MOON COSMIC POWER!!!"
Thanks, I told them before shouting, "JUPITER POWER!!!
Then, all the bodies in the room began to glow. I thought of a
little park relatively close to the hospital, where they would surely be
noticed and receive help, and concentrated on sending them there.
The victims disappeared.
Freddie came down the stairs.
"What do you want?" I demanded.
"I think I have an idea."

I waited in the ballroom, no longer Sailor Jupiter, but plain old
Lita Kino, wondering how much time had passed since Voltra and I had made
that deal. She had said she'd come back in a half-hour. Thoughts and
fears bombarded my brain. What if she didn't keep her promise? What if I
never saw Ken again? What if Freddie didn't follow the plan and he didn't
come through for me?
The glittering gold tiara lay in my hands. I took it off before I
de-transformed, so I would still have it. I couldn't believe I actually
told her I'd give her my powers. What if they were just enough to give
her the edge she needed to defeat her siblings and rule the universe?
But I wasn't surrendering my powers, I reminded myself. Just as long
as Freddie does his part, I wouldn't have to.
A bolt of lightning struck the middle of the room and Voltra
appeared again.
She commended me, "Good girl, Sailor Jupiter! You really *do* care
about what happens to your friend. Well, don't worry..."
Ken suddenly materialized about thirty feet away from us.
"See?" said Voltra, "I told you he would be okay."
"What's going on?!" Ken shouted.
"Hand over the tiara." Voltra held out her hand to me.
SPLASH! A few gallons of water drenched the enemy.
Freddie could be seen fleeing the room with a huge empty bucket. I
wasn't so annoyed with his cowardice this time; I had promised him he
could split the scene after he did his part.
You see, water *really* messes up one's ability to control lightning
attacks. She could still try to attack me, but she'd electrocute herself
in the process.
Now came my part: transform, and kick her butt!
"JUPITER STAR-"
But I had forgotten that although Voltra specialized in electricity,
that wasn't her only talent. Before I even had a chance to transform, her
chain belt suddenly lengthened, shot itself out at me, and wrapped around
me several times.
"Nice trick, now hand over the tiara!"
The chains lifted me high above the floor and Voltra went with them.
I was pulled to only about a foot away from her. That's when Tuxedo
Mask's words to me earlier reminded me of something very VERY important
about my powers and the tiara.
"Lita!" Ken called.
I looked down, "Get out of here! I'll be fine!"
Did I mention how I hated lying to him? He reluctantly headed for
the door.
I gave the tiara to Voltra. Victorious, she placed it on her head.
"Ha-ha!!!" she laughed, "Time to test out my powers! JUPITER THUNDER
CRASH!!!"
Nothing happened.
"JUPITER THUNDER DRAGON!!!"
Still nothing.
"Guess what?" I asked mischievously.
"Huh?"
"The tiara is only the CONDUCTOR for my powers! The power is in me!
The electricity is in me!" (Thank you, Tuxedo Mask! His words didn't make
sense to me at first, but now I understood, even if that's not exactly
what he meant.)
"How can I get it?"
"I will call on the power and transfer it to you."
"Well, call on the power!"
Fool, I thought.
I closed my eyes and gathered up all the courage I had. "My
protector, Jupiter, call on a storm!"
I could feel the surge of energy.
"A mighty storm!"
The antenna on the tiara shot up.
"With lightning more brilliant than a thousand suns!"
Bolts collected around the antenna.
"With thunder more deafening than the blast of a super nova!"
A trail of light blasted through the roof and connected with the
antenna. The electricity caught on some of the drapes as well, and they
caught flame.
"A storm that rivals the eternal Great Red Spot Hurricane!"
A ball of electricity surrounded us both.
"A storm to end all storms!!!"
Voltra lifted her face to the heavens and laughed maniacally, as if
she were on some insane energy high, loving and savoring every minute of
it.
"JUPITER SUPREME THUNDERSTORM!!!"
For the first time in the entire battle, Voltra stopped smiling. She
realized that actual transfer of powers was impossible. She realized that
I was not as weak as she thought I was. She realized I was very, very
clever. But she realized it all too late.
We were surrounded by light. The charge always came to the tiara, so
it came straight to Voltra. I knew though, that the chains that held me
were *excellent* conductors of electricity.
Too bad I didn't get to say goodbye to my friends.
The ultimate lightning struck us. Our bodies shook violently. I
remember vaguely her body actually becoming dust and the chains
disappearing.
I also remember the bright white of lightning giving way to the
reddish hue of flames that had spread all over the ballroom.
I hit the floor.
Then, all was dark.

beep....beep...beep....
Where am I? I thought.
The steady beeping continued.
I opened my eyes. In front of me was a silhouette of one of those
adorable flop-eared bunnies. I reached out to pet it.
The rabbit screamed. "Lita! Oh, Lita, you're okay!"
The screaming sent shots of pain through my head.
I looked up. Serena was standing next to me. I was in a bed, in a
hospital. Around me were Mina, Raye, Amy, Darien, and Ken. The scouts
were in tons of bandages (Amy was in a wheelchair!) Darien had a bandage
on his head, and Ken had a few bandages, too.
I was alive!
"Mina," Raye said, "go get a doctor and tell him to come quick!"
"What...?" I started to ask.
Raye nodded. "Voltra's gone. You did it!"
"How am I alive?"
"It doesn't matter!" exclaimed Serena, "You're still with us!"
I couldn't share their joy yet. "Darien, what about the victims in
the ballroom?"
"They're all being taken care of."
Amy spoke up, "You were asleep for days!"
"What about you guys?" I asked, "Amy, how long will you be in that
wheelchair?"
"Not very long," replied Amy, "We'll all be perfectly fine. You and
I are the only ones who have to stay here, but I'll be free to go soon,
and you will too, if everything goes well."
"Oh!" said Darien, "We bought you a lot of hats!"
"Why?"
"No offense, Lita," Raye said, "but you'll be needing them for a
while."
"What? Is something wrong with my-" I got my answer when I brushed
my hand through my hair and got shocked. Serena held up a mirror, and I
looked like an 80's rocker. My hairstyle wasn't as bad as Voltra's
though.
I laughed. Everyone laughed with me.
Then the doctor came in and told everyone that they had to leave, so
that he could check up on me to make sure no permanent damage was done.

The next day, Freddie came to visit me. He brought flowers.
"You know, Lita, " he told me, "you were right."
"About what?"
"When you were beating the living daylights out of me. You were
right. I *did* deserve it."
"Glad you woke up and smelled the coffee."
"I'm so, so sorry."
"I bet."
"I want to make it up to you. I also want to start over. Will you be
my girlfriend again?"
I paused.
Freddie continued, "I promise I won't let anything like that happen
again! I swear! I love you so much, Lita, nothing will come between us!"
I sighed. "Freddie, you have a lot to learn about people. I believe
that you are truly sorry, and maybe you might do things differently. But
once you lose a person's trust, it's gone for good. I can't be your
girlfriend again."
"Lita, no..."
"Listen, someday, you'll find a nice girl who you'll love a whole
lot. Make sure she knows that. Pay attention to her feelings. Pay
attention to *her*! Make room for her in your life as you've made room
for her in your heart. Then, maybe, if you're lucky, you'll be happy."
Freddie stood up. He reached for the flowers he had put on the
bedside table, but decided to leave them. He slowly walked out the door.
I thought about the course of events that led to our breakup. The
entire time, I was convinced that I'd done something wrong. What could I
have possibly done wrong? He was acting like a jerk and I was suffering
for it. I did the right thing moving to Tokyo. True, I should've told him
off sooner, but this way, I got to pass on a bit of wisdom. Someday, he
might actually take my advice, and I would be partly responsible for his
happiness.
That quick battle with him the night of the fight with Voltra sure
released some of that anger I had built up inside me! I don't think I
would've had the courage not to scream at him that afternoon had I not
released my anger then.
I took a nap.

"Lita? Hey, Lita." I felt someone gently tapping my shoulder.
Opening my eyes, I saw it was Ken. We talked for the longest time. I
told him about my encounter with Freddie earlier.
"Wow," Ken remarked, "Are you sure you didn't scream your head off
and you were just hallucinating?"
"Nope. I was so calm."
"Cool."
Then, I thought of something.
"Ken?"
"Yeah?"
"The ballroom was on fire. How'd I get out of there?"
Ken didn't answer. He just nervously put his hand behind his head.
"Ken?"
"You know, you're not as heavy as you say you are."
"You *carried* me?!"
"I know you told me to get out-"
"Down all those stairs?"
"Not all of them. I kinda dragged you most of the time. When I got
about three-fourths of the way down, I met up with the firefighters and
they took it from there."
"And you *didn't* get a hernia?"
He laughed. "No."
That's when I noticed a bandage on his arm. "Yes, you did."
"No, that's a burn." He suddenly winced as if he let a secret slip.
"I'm sorry. You told me to save myself-"
I sat up and put a hand on his shoulder. "That's okay. I would've
done the same thing."
We were really quiet for a few moments. Then I asked, "So, what
happened on that new game show while I was here?"
Ken and I talked some more. We acted as if none of this had ever
happened, except for the fact that every now and then, he would snicker
at my hair, and then I'd hit him with a pillow.

And that pretty much brings us to today. I'm feeling much better.
I've been out of the hospital for about two weeks now, and my hair is
back to normal. (But the hats that my friends bought me are still pretty
cool, and I wear them often!)
But best of all is how I feel emotionally. Even after I moved to
Tokyo, I still hadn't quite gotten over Freddie. Luckily, I got a chance
to confront him and finally get past him using peace and wisdom, not
violence, although violence *did* help a bit.
Maybe that's why I wrote this. I've been feeling better about
myself, but I haven't really understood why until I re-read everything I
just wrote. The same voice that called me to Tokyo and guided me
throughout my days as a Scout was the voice that convinced me to write
this.
Courage. I knew I had it. I had shown it when I moved, when I became
a Sailor Scout, at various times during my battle with Voltra, not to
mention the battles I've fought in the past, and the battles yet to come.
I have shown courage as Sailor Jupiter *and* as Lita Kino.
Now, when I look in the mirror, I see a clever girl, a tough
warrior, and a good friend.
Lita the Lionhearted.
Yeah, that's me.