*lyrasoze@hotmail.com*
http://www.geocities.com/lyra_2040/lyras_studio.html
Hi all! Okay, let me splain. This is a fic based rather heavily in
Greek, Norse and various other mythologies. The Fates rarely interfered with humans, but for my purposes, one is going to do so. FYI,
I used several Thesaurus and Baby Name search functions to find
names that mean 'fate'. I use what they told me and am not
responsible if it is wrong. Most of the names I use
have multiple meanings.
Thanks to all those who email me and encourage me and to every
pizza place in the world for making that particular staple of
my diet!
Disclaimer: I will never own Sailor Moon. It's difficult to
come to grips with that fact, but I'll try to
pick up the pieces and go on with my life. There
must be a support group for people like me.
-....- indicates thought
Fortune to the Wind
by Lyra Matsuoka
Chapter 1
Parrae
Sailor Moon looked out on the carnage in utter disgust. A youma
lay in the center of the park fountain, it's green blood staining the
water black. Same old, same old. Every night the same bit. No variation, no change. Only the moon, its face calm and implacable, ever differed, it's never ceasing cycle the only thing willing to change in this nightly scene. Ordinarily, Sailor Moon was able to take great comfort in the silvery glow of her mother planet, but tonight was different. Tonight, Sailor Moon had had enough.
She had been late to school...again. She had failed a math
test...again. She had run into that baka Mamoru and been teased
about said math score...again. And now, Sailor Mars was yelling
at her...again.
"If Tuxedo Mask hadn't come along, you would have been crisped
by that youma!" Mars was screaming. Sailor Moon closed her eyes, and
leaned against a tree, prepared for the lecture of the night. But
as Sailor Mars listed all the things that were wrong with her, Sailor
Moon found herself unable to focus on the ever-increasing list of her
faults. All things being equal, the sound of Mars's angry voice was
probably the best part of her day. - Blah. What an utter waste of
good quality sleep time. -
Sleep sounded wonderful...her eyes were already closed...no
one would ever be the wiser...Sailor Moon allowed her mind to relax,
and felt sleep tug at her weary mind. But sleep and recuperation were
obviously not on the agenda. Needle sharp claws dug into Sailor Moon's
ankle, through the thick material of her boot. How interesting, that a cat's claws could accomplish what no minion of the forces of evil seemed to be able to do...make a dent in those boots. Barely conscious, Sailor Moon cracked an eyelid.
"Pay attention!" Luna hissed. Sailor Moon sighed. This whole
senshi business really stank. Late hours, *no* pay, and the costume
wasn't warm enough to warrant calls to arms at ungodly hours of the
night and incredibly early morning.
- *Other* superheroes get x-ray vision and telepathic powers not
to mention cool swords, and fast cars. *I* get late nights, an annoying
housecat who has a better vocabulary than me, partners who yell at me and a dinky little Moon Wand. I don't even get to leap high buildings in a single bound! Though I've never actually tried it...I wonder how that would work out... -
Grimacing, the self-proclaimed solider of love and justice forced her heavy and rather gritty eyelids back open. Tuxedo Mask was on his way over. Great. Now she'd have to listen to his griping as well. All this yelling and complaining and falling asleep in school really warranted a monthly paycheck. A large monthly paycheck. Perhaps the city of Tokyo could be persuaded to compensate Sailor Moon. She could always threaten to let the youma destroy the city if they didn't...
Tuxedo Mask had reached the group by now. He was glaring at her
over Mars's shoulder. Mercury was furiously scanning the youma, Jupiter was holding up another tree and Venus was talking to Artemis in hushed
tones. Sailor Moon sighed, and braced herself for another bout of angry
words. The wind blew softly through the trees causing the new leaves
to rustle, and Sailor Moon smiled slightly in spite of herself. Tilting her head back, she examined the stars as they twinkled ever so slightly
in the velvet of the night sky.
"Sailor Moon? Aren't you *listening*?!" and Mars was off,
continuing the ever growing list, repeating herself more and
more often as she ran out of character flaws to complain about
and her temper remained hot. Sailor Moon considered complaining, or
whining, or bursting into tears at Mars's cruelty, but these
tactics had never worked before, and she had no reason to
believe they would work now. Though it was on the tip of her tongue to suggest that Mars ask Mercury to keep a list of these so called deficiencies in Sailor Moon's battle strategy, tactics and execution, she decided to settle for tuning Mars out. Focusing her eyes on Mars's face, Sailor Moon allowed her mind to wander across the events of the horrible day and the possibility of the next day being exactly like it. Unbidden the most wistful of thoughts crossed her realm of consciousness.
- Where would I be right now if I weren't Sailor Moon? If I didn't have to fight youmas every night and worry about the fate of the universe, where would I be? What would the future hold for just plain old Tsukino Usagi? -
It was a simple thought, one that most humans consider at least three times a day. What if? Sailor Moon allowed the briefest of smiles to cross her lips before forcing her eyes to unglaze and her errant mind back to the topic of the moment, namely her own clumsiness and lack of leadership skills.
And the park exploded into a supernova of white light.
Sailor Moon threw up her arm, shielding her eyes from the glare. Tuxedo Mask threw himself at her, tackling her to the ground, his cape winding around them both and Sailor Moon pressed her eyes tightly closed. But the light dimmed as quickly as it had come, leaving a faint glow in its place. Sailor Moon pushed at Tuxedo Mask's shoulders, springing to her feet. The other scouts had recovered, and were ready to do battle. But the blinding light had not left a youma in its wake.
It had left a woman.
A woman stood in the center of the glow. Sailor Moon squinted. Upon closer inspection, the woman seemed to be the origin of the now softly pulsing light. Sailor Moon stepped closer to inspect
this stranger. Waist length coffee colored hair was caught back from
her face in a simple knot at her crown. High cheekbones, arched brows
and astonishing purple eyes looked back at the senshi calmly from a heart shaped face. A pure white toga was draped around the woman's body. The toga appeared to be held together by shimmering silver clasps that studded the shoulders. The clothes were plain, serviceable, but the physical look of the person in them made the entire ensemble...irrelevant. Her face was calm, smooth, as
though it had been carved from one perfect piece of marble.
Sailor Moon blinked, realizing suddenly that the woman wasn't gorgeous. She was lovely, no doubt, but there was a power, an intimidating height and posture that detracted from her features. But
there was infinite kindness reflected in the eyes. Infinite love
and acceptance. Sailor Moon looked again. No human had skin that white,
or stood that proudly. This woman carried herself like a...
"Goddess," came a rippling voice. Sailor Moon closed her eyes in rapture and in pain. That voice sounded of a rushing river and cracking ice. It was beautiful and terrible at the same time. Opening her eyes, Sailor Moon saw her fellow scouts braced for battle, but their eyes were wary, and more than a little frightened. Sailor Moon made a large concession for their distrustful nature. In their experience, good and happy things did not generally appear in the park in the dead of night.
"Who are you?" Tuxedo Mask's voice cracked like a whip. The
woman swung purple eyes to him, and waited. "What is your name?"
Sailor Moon swung her eyes to her hero, astonished to see beads of sweat standing on his forehead. Obviously she was not the only one who was intimidated by this woman. Her lips turned up in a smile, and Sailor Moon half expected that face to crack at the effort.
"My name," the woman mused. "There are so many. Which would
you like? Syntyche," she said, her voice like the calm surface of a
lake. Mercury blanched. The woman - *goddess!* - smiled again and turned to Jupiter.
"Niyati," and this time her voice sounded of the lightning that
cracks across the sky and the thunder and rain that respond. Jupiter
snarled. Again the woman turned, this time to face Venus and
Mars. "Decuma," she murmured, and her voice cracked like a
whip of flame. Neither Mars nor Venus moved. The woman turned
to Tuxedo Mask. "Verdandi," she whispered, and Tuxedo Mask grimaced,
not at the name, but at the sound of her voice, which now cut through
the air like a sharply honed razor.
Finally the woman turned to Sailor Moon, and she smiled. "But you can call me Parrae."
Mercury's brow furrowed. "Parrae. Niyati. Verdandi," she muttered, and then her eyes widened as her nimble mind and vast store of knowledge combined these names into some terrible and incomprehensible truth. "No...it's impossible..."
Parrae turned amused eyes on Mercury. "My dear child, I have lived long enough to know that nothing is impossible."
"But that means that you're a...you're a..."
"A Fate," Parrae ended. "Yes I am. Why is that so hard
to believe?"
"Because...because...," Ami seemed unable to form a complete
thought. Sailor Moon looked at Mercury, bemused. Mercury *never* had trouble thinking.
"The gods didn't exist!" Mercury finished triumphantly, but Sailor Moon saw a lingering doubt in her eyes. It was hard to maintain that stance when there someone standing in front of you who smashed all logic somewhere into the Pacific Ocean.
"Of course they did. As long as people believed in them, they
existed. Now, of course, many have faded away, but the Fates existed
long before gods and humans, and we shall exist long after you have
all passed from this plain."
"Which Fate are you?" Mercury demanded, the shadow of doubt growing in her blue eyes. It was easy to say that the ancient gods didn't exist when surrounded by science and history books, but denying their power when one stood right in front of you was a different matter
entirely.
"Lachesis," Parrae stated, her mouth curling in a smile. "Don't
try to pronounce it. You'd probably get it wrong."
It occurred to Sailor Moon that this lady was something of a snob. But if what she said was true, then Parrae had the right to be a little stuck up. And even if she didn't, Sailor Moon wasn't about to be the one to tell her so. Sailor Moon turned her mind back to the conversation at hand.
"Please call me Parrae," the goddess continued. "Now, my dear, if you would..." Parrae gestured and a gaping white hole blossomed in the air to her left. Sailor Moon gaped and turned her face toward the brilliant light.
"Me?!?!" Sailor Moon squeaked. "You want *me* to..."
"No." Tuxedo Mask stepped in front of her, pushing her behind him. The other senshi jumped in front of him, forming a human barrier between Parrae and Sailor Moon. Parrae just smiled, unruffled. When she spoke, it was straight to the senshi of the moon.
"Didn't you want to know? What if, Sailor Moon? What if you hadn't been running late that day you stepped on the kitty there?" Luna hissed and bristled at the insult. Parrae continued. "What if you hadn't met her, if she hadn't met you? What if she missed you entirely?"
Sailor Moon was gaping again. This woman, this goddess, knew so much about her, and the deepest part of her heart. This woman was the answer to her prayers! And by God, she wanted to know! It was her life, and she was sick to death of all this fighting. She wanted to be normal. Sailor Moon looked down at her boots, undecided. Parrae spoke again, her voice soft and seductive.
"I am the Weaver of the Tapestry of Life. Clothos creates and
Atropos destroys, but I am she who decides the destiny of all mortals
and gods. I have the power you seek. I can help you."
Mercury had reached for her computer again, and was typing furiously. The woman in front of her was giving of a strange aura, one that the computer was unfamiliar with. It wasn't evil, nor was it pure
and shining. It was the aura of one who had seen and done many things
that were terrible, and yet felt neither remorse nor regret.
"No way are you going with this chick, Sailor Moon," Jupiter
stated. Mars and Venus nodded, their eyes never leaving Parrae. Tuxedo
Mask just reached for her arm, pushing Sailor Moon behind him. And Sailor Moon, furious at his audacity and Mars's constant complaining and the whole superhero bit and her current life in general,
made her choice. If Mars thought she was doing such a horrible job,
then let Mars lead. *Sailor Moon* had had enough.
Raising her blue eyes slowly, Tsukino Usagi in a sailor suit stepped from behind Tuxedo Mask. Parrae waited calmly, her eyes focused on Usagi. And Usagi met her gaze fearlessly, and nodded. Just a slight inclination of the head, a barely perceptible gesture. That was all it took.
Parrae smiled and extended one slim white hand. Stepping forward, Usagi raised her gloved hand as well, stretching towards the goddess who was offering to make her dreams come true. Mars, Jupiter and Venus screamed a denial, and leapt to prevent the catastrophe about to occur. Tuxedo Mask was faster. Leaping high in the air, Tuxedo Mask
seized Sailor Moon around the waist and jumped into the air once more,
intent on carrying her far away from this strange woman and her
seductive promises. Usagi was stunned. How *dare* he interfere in
this?! It was *her* life damn it! Usagi began to kick and claw,
furious with this masked moron. With surprising accuracy, Usagi
lashed out at his chin and kneecaps at the same time. Tuxedo
Mask managed to survive the kicks to his kneecaps, but the upper
cut to his chin proved his undoing. With a grunt, Sailor Moon's
mysterious masked man dropped her.
"Ouch!" Usagi shrieked, glaring toward the caped figure who had
landed gracefully in a tree. Tuxedo Mask swung around and glared
at her.
"That was uncalled for," he stated as he descended from the
tree. He was trying to be subtle, trying to distract her until he
could grab her again. But Usagi was having none of that. She stood
to consider her options.
- I suppose I could pull the Moon Wand on him, but really.
What good would that do? It's just a happy little crescent moon
shaped piece of metal on a pink stick. The youma are never
intimidated by it, so why would this masked dunce pull back?
Okay, Moon Wand is out. I have to get to that woman! But the
senshi are surrounding her on the ground, and there is no
way they'll let me near her. So...-
Usagi turned on her heel, grinding it into the hard packed
earth. Quickly, she sprinted toward Parrae. Dimly aware that
Tuxedo Mask was in hot pursuit Sailor Moon shifted her course
and ran toward a park bench. Leaping onto it, Usagi rebounded
off the back support and executed a perfect leap. Flying through
the air, she cleared the ring of sailor suited warriors and landed
on one knee. The seshi gaped, unable to believe that Sailor Moon
had just managed such a graceful move. Parrae, however, smiled again,
and nodded. Usagi smiled in return, basking in the love
reflected in those eyes. Parrae extended her hand once more, and
before any of the others could say or do a thing, Usagi accepted
the offer. Another sharp pulse of white light surrounded them.
Usagi saw Tuxedo Mask flying towards Parrae, and saw the other scouts
reach for her, and closed her eyes in despair. It was over before
it had begun, now she would never know...
Tuxedo Mask landed right where Usagi had been mere moments
before. The other scouts gaped at the now empty center of their circle.
Silence reigned supreme. Tuxedo Mask turned toward them.
"I..." and Tuxedo Mask was gone. The senshi gaped at the
blank space where he had been. Ami reached for her visor to
scan, and discovered that the earring activator was no longer
in her ear. Glancing down at her body, Ami saw her school uniform
instead of her fuku. Disbelieving she looked at the other senshi.
All were in their school uniforms. Gaping, Ami turned to Luna.
"Luna, what..." Ami stopped. Luna was staring at the space
where Usagi had been standing mere moments before with a barely
suppressed rage. But when she looked at the scouts, something
else showed in her eyes. Fear.
"That miserable Fate!" Luna snarled, but the tremor in her
voice betrayed her. "*Now* she offers assistance! Where was she
when the Moon Kingdom fell? Where was she then?"
"Luna," Ami ventured again. Luna looked up at the senshi of
Mercury, and the anger drained from her eyes. But looking deeper,
Ami wished the anger would have remained a while longer. Terror
echoed in Luna's gaze.
"If Usagi..." Luna stumbled over her words, and paused.
"If Usagi chooses a different path, if she chooses not to be a
Sailor Senshi, then Lachesis would alter the Tapestry of Life to accommodate that choice."
Rei, Makoto and Minako stared on blankly, but Ami felt her
blood turn to ice.
"That means...but that's impossible!"
Luna shook her head. "Difficult, certainly. But Lachesis has indicated her willingness to attempt it. And that means that Usagi would have to choose to come back to this time, this moment, and continue forward."
Luna tipped her face back and stared at the moon. Slowly, the
other senshi turned their faces upward, and settled down to wait.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
So, what do you think? Good, bad, so totally far out that you are wondering exactly *how* much sugar and caffeine I had before I wrote this? Well, let me know! Oh, and I was inspired not only by my mythology interests, but by the movie 'Sliding Doors'. What if? I just love that question. So, mail me! Even if you only want the precise combination of caffeine and sugar I drink every morning. No, I do not want any coffee to go with my sugar and yuppie French Vanilla creamer...mail me!
lyrasoze@hotmail.com
http://www.geocities.com/lyra_2040/lyras_studio.html
Hi all! Okay, let me splain. This is a fic based rather heavily in
Greek, Norse and various other mythologies. The Fates rarely interfered with humans, but for my purposes, one is going to do so. FYI,
I used several Thesaurus and Baby Name search functions to find
names that mean 'fate'. I use what they told me and am not
responsible if it is wrong. Most of the names I use
have multiple meanings.
Thanks to all those who email me and encourage me and to every
pizza place in the world for making that particular staple of
my diet!
Disclaimer: I will never own Sailor Moon. It's difficult to
come to grips with that fact, but I'll try to
pick up the pieces and go on with my life. There
must be a support group for people like me.
-....- indicates thought
Fortune to the Wind
by Lyra Matsuoka
Chapter 1
Parrae
Sailor Moon looked out on the carnage in utter disgust. A youma
lay in the center of the park fountain, it's green blood staining the
water black. Same old, same old. Every night the same bit. No variation, no change. Only the moon, its face calm and implacable, ever differed, it's never ceasing cycle the only thing willing to change in this nightly scene. Ordinarily, Sailor Moon was able to take great comfort in the silvery glow of her mother planet, but tonight was different. Tonight, Sailor Moon had had enough.
She had been late to school...again. She had failed a math
test...again. She had run into that baka Mamoru and been teased
about said math score...again. And now, Sailor Mars was yelling
at her...again.
"If Tuxedo Mask hadn't come along, you would have been crisped
by that youma!" Mars was screaming. Sailor Moon closed her eyes, and
leaned against a tree, prepared for the lecture of the night. But
as Sailor Mars listed all the things that were wrong with her, Sailor
Moon found herself unable to focus on the ever-increasing list of her
faults. All things being equal, the sound of Mars's angry voice was
probably the best part of her day. - Blah. What an utter waste of
good quality sleep time. -
Sleep sounded wonderful...her eyes were already closed...no
one would ever be the wiser...Sailor Moon allowed her mind to relax,
and felt sleep tug at her weary mind. But sleep and recuperation were
obviously not on the agenda. Needle sharp claws dug into Sailor Moon's
ankle, through the thick material of her boot. How interesting, that a cat's claws could accomplish what no minion of the forces of evil seemed to be able to do...make a dent in those boots. Barely conscious, Sailor Moon cracked an eyelid.
"Pay attention!" Luna hissed. Sailor Moon sighed. This whole
senshi business really stank. Late hours, *no* pay, and the costume
wasn't warm enough to warrant calls to arms at ungodly hours of the
night and incredibly early morning.
- *Other* superheroes get x-ray vision and telepathic powers not
to mention cool swords, and fast cars. *I* get late nights, an annoying
housecat who has a better vocabulary than me, partners who yell at me and a dinky little Moon Wand. I don't even get to leap high buildings in a single bound! Though I've never actually tried it...I wonder how that would work out... -
Grimacing, the self-proclaimed solider of love and justice forced her heavy and rather gritty eyelids back open. Tuxedo Mask was on his way over. Great. Now she'd have to listen to his griping as well. All this yelling and complaining and falling asleep in school really warranted a monthly paycheck. A large monthly paycheck. Perhaps the city of Tokyo could be persuaded to compensate Sailor Moon. She could always threaten to let the youma destroy the city if they didn't...
Tuxedo Mask had reached the group by now. He was glaring at her
over Mars's shoulder. Mercury was furiously scanning the youma, Jupiter was holding up another tree and Venus was talking to Artemis in hushed
tones. Sailor Moon sighed, and braced herself for another bout of angry
words. The wind blew softly through the trees causing the new leaves
to rustle, and Sailor Moon smiled slightly in spite of herself. Tilting her head back, she examined the stars as they twinkled ever so slightly
in the velvet of the night sky.
"Sailor Moon? Aren't you *listening*?!" and Mars was off,
continuing the ever growing list, repeating herself more and
more often as she ran out of character flaws to complain about
and her temper remained hot. Sailor Moon considered complaining, or
whining, or bursting into tears at Mars's cruelty, but these
tactics had never worked before, and she had no reason to
believe they would work now. Though it was on the tip of her tongue to suggest that Mars ask Mercury to keep a list of these so called deficiencies in Sailor Moon's battle strategy, tactics and execution, she decided to settle for tuning Mars out. Focusing her eyes on Mars's face, Sailor Moon allowed her mind to wander across the events of the horrible day and the possibility of the next day being exactly like it. Unbidden the most wistful of thoughts crossed her realm of consciousness.
- Where would I be right now if I weren't Sailor Moon? If I didn't have to fight youmas every night and worry about the fate of the universe, where would I be? What would the future hold for just plain old Tsukino Usagi? -
It was a simple thought, one that most humans consider at least three times a day. What if? Sailor Moon allowed the briefest of smiles to cross her lips before forcing her eyes to unglaze and her errant mind back to the topic of the moment, namely her own clumsiness and lack of leadership skills.
And the park exploded into a supernova of white light.
Sailor Moon threw up her arm, shielding her eyes from the glare. Tuxedo Mask threw himself at her, tackling her to the ground, his cape winding around them both and Sailor Moon pressed her eyes tightly closed. But the light dimmed as quickly as it had come, leaving a faint glow in its place. Sailor Moon pushed at Tuxedo Mask's shoulders, springing to her feet. The other scouts had recovered, and were ready to do battle. But the blinding light had not left a youma in its wake.
It had left a woman.
A woman stood in the center of the glow. Sailor Moon squinted. Upon closer inspection, the woman seemed to be the origin of the now softly pulsing light. Sailor Moon stepped closer to inspect
this stranger. Waist length coffee colored hair was caught back from
her face in a simple knot at her crown. High cheekbones, arched brows
and astonishing purple eyes looked back at the senshi calmly from a heart shaped face. A pure white toga was draped around the woman's body. The toga appeared to be held together by shimmering silver clasps that studded the shoulders. The clothes were plain, serviceable, but the physical look of the person in them made the entire ensemble...irrelevant. Her face was calm, smooth, as
though it had been carved from one perfect piece of marble.
Sailor Moon blinked, realizing suddenly that the woman wasn't gorgeous. She was lovely, no doubt, but there was a power, an intimidating height and posture that detracted from her features. But
there was infinite kindness reflected in the eyes. Infinite love
and acceptance. Sailor Moon looked again. No human had skin that white,
or stood that proudly. This woman carried herself like a...
"Goddess," came a rippling voice. Sailor Moon closed her eyes in rapture and in pain. That voice sounded of a rushing river and cracking ice. It was beautiful and terrible at the same time. Opening her eyes, Sailor Moon saw her fellow scouts braced for battle, but their eyes were wary, and more than a little frightened. Sailor Moon made a large concession for their distrustful nature. In their experience, good and happy things did not generally appear in the park in the dead of night.
"Who are you?" Tuxedo Mask's voice cracked like a whip. The
woman swung purple eyes to him, and waited. "What is your name?"
Sailor Moon swung her eyes to her hero, astonished to see beads of sweat standing on his forehead. Obviously she was not the only one who was intimidated by this woman. Her lips turned up in a smile, and Sailor Moon half expected that face to crack at the effort.
"My name," the woman mused. "There are so many. Which would
you like? Syntyche," she said, her voice like the calm surface of a
lake. Mercury blanched. The woman - *goddess!* - smiled again and turned to Jupiter.
"Niyati," and this time her voice sounded of the lightning that
cracks across the sky and the thunder and rain that respond. Jupiter
snarled. Again the woman turned, this time to face Venus and
Mars. "Decuma," she murmured, and her voice cracked like a
whip of flame. Neither Mars nor Venus moved. The woman turned
to Tuxedo Mask. "Verdandi," she whispered, and Tuxedo Mask grimaced,
not at the name, but at the sound of her voice, which now cut through
the air like a sharply honed razor.
Finally the woman turned to Sailor Moon, and she smiled. "But you can call me Parrae."
Mercury's brow furrowed. "Parrae. Niyati. Verdandi," she muttered, and then her eyes widened as her nimble mind and vast store of knowledge combined these names into some terrible and incomprehensible truth. "No...it's impossible..."
Parrae turned amused eyes on Mercury. "My dear child, I have lived long enough to know that nothing is impossible."
"But that means that you're a...you're a..."
"A Fate," Parrae ended. "Yes I am. Why is that so hard
to believe?"
"Because...because...," Ami seemed unable to form a complete
thought. Sailor Moon looked at Mercury, bemused. Mercury *never* had trouble thinking.
"The gods didn't exist!" Mercury finished triumphantly, but Sailor Moon saw a lingering doubt in her eyes. It was hard to maintain that stance when there someone standing in front of you who smashed all logic somewhere into the Pacific Ocean.
"Of course they did. As long as people believed in them, they
existed. Now, of course, many have faded away, but the Fates existed
long before gods and humans, and we shall exist long after you have
all passed from this plain."
"Which Fate are you?" Mercury demanded, the shadow of doubt growing in her blue eyes. It was easy to say that the ancient gods didn't exist when surrounded by science and history books, but denying their power when one stood right in front of you was a different matter
entirely.
"Lachesis," Parrae stated, her mouth curling in a smile. "Don't
try to pronounce it. You'd probably get it wrong."
It occurred to Sailor Moon that this lady was something of a snob. But if what she said was true, then Parrae had the right to be a little stuck up. And even if she didn't, Sailor Moon wasn't about to be the one to tell her so. Sailor Moon turned her mind back to the conversation at hand.
"Please call me Parrae," the goddess continued. "Now, my dear, if you would..." Parrae gestured and a gaping white hole blossomed in the air to her left. Sailor Moon gaped and turned her face toward the brilliant light.
"Me?!?!" Sailor Moon squeaked. "You want *me* to..."
"No." Tuxedo Mask stepped in front of her, pushing her behind him. The other senshi jumped in front of him, forming a human barrier between Parrae and Sailor Moon. Parrae just smiled, unruffled. When she spoke, it was straight to the senshi of the moon.
"Didn't you want to know? What if, Sailor Moon? What if you hadn't been running late that day you stepped on the kitty there?" Luna hissed and bristled at the insult. Parrae continued. "What if you hadn't met her, if she hadn't met you? What if she missed you entirely?"
Sailor Moon was gaping again. This woman, this goddess, knew so much about her, and the deepest part of her heart. This woman was the answer to her prayers! And by God, she wanted to know! It was her life, and she was sick to death of all this fighting. She wanted to be normal. Sailor Moon looked down at her boots, undecided. Parrae spoke again, her voice soft and seductive.
"I am the Weaver of the Tapestry of Life. Clothos creates and
Atropos destroys, but I am she who decides the destiny of all mortals
and gods. I have the power you seek. I can help you."
Mercury had reached for her computer again, and was typing furiously. The woman in front of her was giving of a strange aura, one that the computer was unfamiliar with. It wasn't evil, nor was it pure
and shining. It was the aura of one who had seen and done many things
that were terrible, and yet felt neither remorse nor regret.
"No way are you going with this chick, Sailor Moon," Jupiter
stated. Mars and Venus nodded, their eyes never leaving Parrae. Tuxedo
Mask just reached for her arm, pushing Sailor Moon behind him. And Sailor Moon, furious at his audacity and Mars's constant complaining and the whole superhero bit and her current life in general,
made her choice. If Mars thought she was doing such a horrible job,
then let Mars lead. *Sailor Moon* had had enough.
Raising her blue eyes slowly, Tsukino Usagi in a sailor suit stepped from behind Tuxedo Mask. Parrae waited calmly, her eyes focused on Usagi. And Usagi met her gaze fearlessly, and nodded. Just a slight inclination of the head, a barely perceptible gesture. That was all it took.
Parrae smiled and extended one slim white hand. Stepping forward, Usagi raised her gloved hand as well, stretching towards the goddess who was offering to make her dreams come true. Mars, Jupiter and Venus screamed a denial, and leapt to prevent the catastrophe about to occur. Tuxedo Mask was faster. Leaping high in the air, Tuxedo Mask
seized Sailor Moon around the waist and jumped into the air once more,
intent on carrying her far away from this strange woman and her
seductive promises. Usagi was stunned. How *dare* he interfere in
this?! It was *her* life damn it! Usagi began to kick and claw,
furious with this masked moron. With surprising accuracy, Usagi
lashed out at his chin and kneecaps at the same time. Tuxedo
Mask managed to survive the kicks to his kneecaps, but the upper
cut to his chin proved his undoing. With a grunt, Sailor Moon's
mysterious masked man dropped her.
"Ouch!" Usagi shrieked, glaring toward the caped figure who had
landed gracefully in a tree. Tuxedo Mask swung around and glared
at her.
"That was uncalled for," he stated as he descended from the
tree. He was trying to be subtle, trying to distract her until he
could grab her again. But Usagi was having none of that. She stood
to consider her options.
- I suppose I could pull the Moon Wand on him, but really.
What good would that do? It's just a happy little crescent moon
shaped piece of metal on a pink stick. The youma are never
intimidated by it, so why would this masked dunce pull back?
Okay, Moon Wand is out. I have to get to that woman! But the
senshi are surrounding her on the ground, and there is no
way they'll let me near her. So...-
Usagi turned on her heel, grinding it into the hard packed
earth. Quickly, she sprinted toward Parrae. Dimly aware that
Tuxedo Mask was in hot pursuit Sailor Moon shifted her course
and ran toward a park bench. Leaping onto it, Usagi rebounded
off the back support and executed a perfect leap. Flying through
the air, she cleared the ring of sailor suited warriors and landed
on one knee. The seshi gaped, unable to believe that Sailor Moon
had just managed such a graceful move. Parrae, however, smiled again,
and nodded. Usagi smiled in return, basking in the love
reflected in those eyes. Parrae extended her hand once more, and
before any of the others could say or do a thing, Usagi accepted
the offer. Another sharp pulse of white light surrounded them.
Usagi saw Tuxedo Mask flying towards Parrae, and saw the other scouts
reach for her, and closed her eyes in despair. It was over before
it had begun, now she would never know...
Tuxedo Mask landed right where Usagi had been mere moments
before. The other scouts gaped at the now empty center of their circle.
Silence reigned supreme. Tuxedo Mask turned toward them.
"I..." and Tuxedo Mask was gone. The senshi gaped at the
blank space where he had been. Ami reached for her visor to
scan, and discovered that the earring activator was no longer
in her ear. Glancing down at her body, Ami saw her school uniform
instead of her fuku. Disbelieving she looked at the other senshi.
All were in their school uniforms. Gaping, Ami turned to Luna.
"Luna, what..." Ami stopped. Luna was staring at the space
where Usagi had been standing mere moments before with a barely
suppressed rage. But when she looked at the scouts, something
else showed in her eyes. Fear.
"That miserable Fate!" Luna snarled, but the tremor in her
voice betrayed her. "*Now* she offers assistance! Where was she
when the Moon Kingdom fell? Where was she then?"
"Luna," Ami ventured again. Luna looked up at the senshi of
Mercury, and the anger drained from her eyes. But looking deeper,
Ami wished the anger would have remained a while longer. Terror
echoed in Luna's gaze.
"If Usagi..." Luna stumbled over her words, and paused.
"If Usagi chooses a different path, if she chooses not to be a
Sailor Senshi, then Lachesis would alter the Tapestry of Life to accommodate that choice."
Rei, Makoto and Minako stared on blankly, but Ami felt her
blood turn to ice.
"That means...but that's impossible!"
Luna shook her head. "Difficult, certainly. But Lachesis has indicated her willingness to attempt it. And that means that Usagi would have to choose to come back to this time, this moment, and continue forward."
Luna tipped her face back and stared at the moon. Slowly, the
other senshi turned their faces upward, and settled down to wait.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
So, what do you think? Good, bad, so totally far out that you are wondering exactly *how* much sugar and caffeine I had before I wrote this? Well, let me know! Oh, and I was inspired not only by my mythology interests, but by the movie 'Sliding Doors'. What if? I just love that question. So, mail me! Even if you only want the precise combination of caffeine and sugar I drink every morning. No, I do not want any coffee to go with my sugar and yuppie French Vanilla creamer...mail me!
lyrasoze@hotmail.com