Ayato sat down near the back of the classroom, as usual. He didn't really love social interaction, so he always sat in the back, where barely anyone else in the class would sit.
Ayato was a posterchild for genius stereotypes: he came from an upper middle-class family, he knew things that some adults hadn't heard of, he went to cram school once a week, and he barely interacted with anything that could be considered human.
"We have a new student," the teacher announced, "he was kicked out of his other school due to his tendency to get into fights. He is looking for a fresh start, so please welcome him."
Ayato sighed. A delinquent, great...
A taller, curly-haired boy walked into the room. "I'm Makoto Kino," he said, "nice to meet you all..."
He didn't have a ridiculous pompadour, cringeworthy harem pants, or a trench coat thing going on.
Makoto wordlessly went towards the back of the room and sat down beside Ayato.
"So, uh..." Makoto muttered, "Nice to meet you."
"N-Nice to meet you," Ayato replied, politely. He waited a few moments, then raised his hand.
"Yes, Mizuno-kun?" the teacher asked.
"May I use the restroom?" Ayato asked.
"Yeah," the teacher replied. Ayato got up and left. The first thing he heard after he closed the door was "USARU TSUKINO!"
%%%
The day was over. The week was over. Ayato could go home and not worry about talking to others.
"Meow..."
Ayato paused. The faint meow made him look behind his back to seek a cat. It was black with a golden crescent moon shape on its head.
%%%
Makoto seemed friendly enough, Ayato thought, but it's hard to talk to him.
Ayato couldn't focus. That cat, Makoto, that guy who was getting yelled at in the hallway... All three of them were so familiar, yet he had only just seen them for the first time. He couldn't even focus enough to read. He fell asleep, despite himself.
"Ayato-kun! Ayato-kun! Wake up!" a female's voice said. He opened his eyes and saw the black cat from earlier staring down at him. He immediately thought it was a dream.
"So the cat from earlier was bothering me enough to have a lucid dream about it. Wonderful."
"Listen to me! You're the first Sailor Guardian, Sailor Mercury! And you need to hurry and transform! The Yōma Morga is attacking a downtown jewelry store!"
"Excuse me?"
"You'll believe me when you see it for yourself! Take this pen and yell Mercury Power, Make Up!"
"This isn't making any sense, but okay... Mercury Power, Make Up!" He threw the pen up into the air. Golden beams of light came out of thin air. He crossed his arms. The stone at the top of the pen glowed blue, and snowflakes started radiating from it. The pen disappeared, and in an instant, the room became the landscape of the planet closest to the sun—Mercury. Ayato's school uniform was gone. A snowflake fell into Ayato's palm, and he crushed it. We was encased in an iceberg, but not five seconds later the iceberg broke into small fragments, and Ayato was fully transformed. He struck his ending pose, and the room returned to normal.
"That was scientifically impossible! Even with our most advanced technology, it would take me about 80 days round trip to get to Mercury! Not to mention the violations of the law of conservation of mass—"
"Let's go already!"
%%%
"What are you doing to Naruo?!" Usaru demanded.
"Shutting him up," the monster replied. It dropped Naruo when the boy had passed out from a lack of air, "And you're about to get the same treatment!" Morga wrapped its hands around Usaru's neck. Usaru immediately began sobbing and begging for his life.
"Yield!" Mercury exclaimed.
"Huh? What's this?"
"Protected by Mercury, the planet of water and ice, a handsome Guardian of wisdom in a sailor suit! Sailor Mercury! Douse your head in water and repent!"
"Sailor Mercury? Pathetic. You're just a kid in a Sailor V costume."
"Crescent Beam!" a voice called out. It caused a small explosion that distracted Morga.
"It's Sailor V! He really does exist!" Mercury exclaimed.
"Looks like someone beat me to Morga. Oh, well. Now that you're here, my job will be easier," Sailor V said.
"Finish Morga off already, Mercury!" Luna exclaimed.
"Sorry!" Mercury replied.
"Yell Shine Snow Illusion!" Luna yelled.
"S-Sure..." Mercury extended his arm, and a large snowflake formed. "Shine Snow Illusion!" small ice crystals shot out from the snowflake and bombarded Morga.
"I-I actually did it!" Mercury exclaimed.
%%%
Sailor V was standing on top of a building. "Sailor Mercury, huh? It looks like the search for the prince has finally begun. I'll join them when the time comes..."
%%%
Ayato was in the bath. "I don't really understand what happened back there. It shouldn't be scientifically possible..." he said to no one in particular.
%%%
"Jadeite," Queen Beryl said in a monotone voice, "Your plan failed. And not only do we have Sailor V to deal with, but Sailor Mercury as well. I expect results from your next endeavor, Jadeite."
"Yes, Queen Beryl. Give me some time to plan out my next plan to get energy for our great ruler. I promise that I'll do better next time," Jadeite replied.
AN: I know this chapter was a bit fast-paced, but trust me, it gets better by Act 4. Just, just trust me on this one. I know Reito/Sailor Mars didn't make any semblance of an appearance in this Act, but it's hard when he's not Sailor Mars yet, and doesn't go to or live in the general vicinity of Ayato's house.
