Life At 902
By Douglas Helm and "Tuxedo" Will Wolfshohl
Those characters that are original and the story "Life At 902" are copyrighted ©2002 ShoujoFiction .com by Douglas Helm and Will Wolfshohl.
Authors' Foreword:
The Sailor Moon® R arc of the series is a popular place for writers, both veteran and newcomer alike. We've seen many different combinations set within, just before, or just after this particular time period.
One of the biggest obstacles to overcome when writing in this period is the simple fact that the fiction community has been saturated; SM R stories can begin to look the same. Not wanting to be in that crowd, Will and I came up with something different.
Specifically, toss manga and anime elements together and then twist them with a point-of-view that typically isn't taken.
This story and our other Sailor Moon stories reside at our Shoujo Fiction .com domain. Comment are welcomed and encouraged.
Chapter 1 - And So It Begins
"I, Tsukino Usagi 'Small Lady' Serenity, Crown Princess of Crystal Tokyo, am grounded." I breathed out with a sigh. It comes out more as a sigh of relief than my intended sigh of disgust. Diana, my Lunar cat advisor, or rather Lunar KITTEN advisor, twitched her tail glaring at me. "Quit looking at me like that, Diana. It wasn't my fault." My voice had taken on a distinctively whiny tone.
"Small Lady... what did you do?"
"They keep treating me like a little kid!" I respond irritably.
"Usagi knows how old I am but..." I made an exasperated noise. We both know how much I love Usagi. Nevertheless, while I'm in the past, she is just my klutzy teenage cousin, not my mother, even if I wished otherwise. "'Sides, I was TRYING to act my age -- proper age that is." A giggle came out then which just served to annoy the kitten even more.
"I can only imagine what you were like when you first came back to the past." Her eyes narrowed slightly as she sees the blush that is starting to make my cheeks glow. "Small Lady... exactly what happened?"
For several seconds, I pretended that something outside my small attic bedroom window had captured my attention. Diana muttered something acidic but before she could do anything too drastic, I relented.
"Kami-sama, all right, Diana," I relented, "But you have to promise me to listen to all of it." The grey kitten sniffs but settles down to listen.
"So, how long are you grounded for?"
Wincing, I grumble, "Oh... I likely could tell this story several times over." To prevent my guardian from scolding her charge, I rushed on with my tale.
- - - - -
The great Crystal Palace was quiet. The Black Moon Family had momentarily paused in their nearly constant attacks. The silence was eerie. I was trying to keep my mind from thinking about our present situation by reading. It wasn't working though. I kept thinking I should go and check on Father. My father, King Endymion of Crystal Tokyo, had been hurt and with Mother in stasis, encased in crystal, it was my job to see to his needs.
Don't worry. Father's injuries aren't life threatening. He just needs some rest. Unfortunately, with few people inside the Palace, Father has a lot of responsibility and little time for such a luxury. I do my part but we're under siege, so there's not really much to do.
Sighing, I put my book aside and stood up. Smoothing the wrinkles out of my dress, I pushed back one of my long pink pigtails. Yes, pink pigtails. My parents could never figure out why my hair had gone naturally pink. That and my reddish colored eyes made the Princess of Crystal Tokyo a fairly easy person to recognize.
Exiting from the cramped sparsely furnished living quarters that Father and I shared due to the ongoing siege, I walked down the hall. I could hear Artemis following behind me.
"Your Highness should get some sleep," the white cat suggested. He sounded as weary.
"Hai, I will, Artemis. I have to make sure that Father will get some rest too." I don't feel tired though. My mind raced with how we could get out of this stalemate. The only Senshi around were the Inners and they were acting like batteries for the Palace shield, the only protection from us joining the devastation in the rest of the Kingdom. They couldn't leave to fight nor could I. Yes, I was a Sailor Senshi, but long out of practice, even if Father and Sailor Pluto would allow me to venture out which they wouldn't.
Before I could reach where I thought my father was located, Diana came around the corner. Her grey fur looked immaculate as usual not betraying her true age. The Lunar cat was the sole offspring of Luna and Artemis, as I had been of Serenity and Endymion. Correction, I was the sole offspring of Chiba Usagi and Chiba Mamoru. I was born prior to the Great Darkness (as it was later called), which engulfed the world. I was five years old the first time the Darkness came, and now at 902, sometimes this princess felt that the Darkness had come again.
"Your Highness," Diana began while bowing slightly, "You must get your sleep."
"I am not a child."
"True, but even a Sailor Senshi needs her sleep." She regarded me then and the sternness in her eyes softened slightly. "Please, Usagi-sama."
With a sigh, I agreed, "Hai. All right, Diana, but AFTER I check on Father."
"I just came from there. He's asleep," the grey cat assured me. "Mama is with him." Diana indicates the direction of my room with her front paw.
"Please, Usagi-sama," Artemis piped in, "Get some sleep while you can."
"Kami-sama, all right, all right, you two," I grumbled out and turning, walked to my room. I give my Royal Lunar Advisor an annoyed look before closing the door. 'She sure became a grouch in her old age... just like her mother,' I giggled. Settling myself onto the rather plain bed, my gaze alights upon one of the photographs that I brought with me before leaving the Royal Suite -- a photo of my parents and I taken before the war.
Briefly, I wonder if my own descendants think about me. I hope they had escaped the attacks in time. I had my children long ago and no longer kept in touch with the many generations that followed. It had become too painful to watch them grow old and die while my Sailor Senshi constitution allowed me to live.
The mattress is more lumpy than soft. "Certainly nothing truly befitting a princess," I muttered to myself. Pulling the covers up, I looked at the ceiling and tried to think of a way out but my mind kept going in circles. 'If only Mother was here, she would know what to do.' It has always been Mother who decided truly critical matters. True, my parents and the Sailor Senshi have been my advisors when it came to day-to-day duties of running the Kingdom but I am not Queen. Nor would I want to be Queen while my parents are around.
Closing my eyes, I finally let my body relax and fall asleep.
- - - - -
It was another few days before anything significant happened, and I will admit now that it was my own fault.
Having had several centuries to dig myself into a rut when it came to routine, you can imagine how grating a siege was on my nerves. I suppose that if my parents and friends were not in danger, I might have tolerated it better but eventually, my frustrations built to the point where I lost my temper.
Losing one's temper is not something a princess should do, at least in public, so I've been told. Exactly what caused my patience to finally snap escapes me now although I do remember it was something minor. At any rate, I stormed out of the room leaving my father and the Lunar cats open-mouthed.
I caught myself marching towards where Mother was lying. The last thing the Queen needed was her grown daughter complaining that something couldn't be fixed. Wandering about eventually me led to where the Ginzuishou was kept.
The Ginzuishou -- that mystical crystal with such immense power. The very object that Neo-Princess Serenity used to destroy Queen Beryl and the Dark Kingdom and free the Earth from the Great Darkness nearly a millennia ago. Thought of the Great Darkness made me shiver as a childhood memory came to me. I had only been five when it happened, a turbulent time that was strange and very scary to a child.
Stopping before the Ginzuishou, my birthright, I examined it. It seemed to know that I was there. Tendrils of energy swept over my nerves.
The thought popped into my head that I could end this. I did not want my mother to be in suspended animation trapped inside crystal. I did not want anything to happen to my father or my friends. I was a Sailor Senshi and the Crown Princess after all. Didn't I have the responsibility to protect my future kingdom?
The glass case holding the Ginzuishou opened, as if inviting me to end the siege and send the Black Moon Family away. Impulsively, I reached forward and could feel the power pulsing from the mystical crystal. I paused then as a fragment of memory came to mind, one that made me shudder.
It happened when I was very young. I swear when I touched the Ginzuishou, I met somebody. Back then, I believed it was Sailor Moon. My parents had often told me of the legendary fighter. I couldn't glean very much detail but somehow, I knew it was she. Before I could say or do anything, it was over. The experience had left me awestruck.
I was soon brought back to reality by the sharp tone of my mother. Neither of my parents was pleased to find me handling an object that had been strictly placed as off limits to me. I dug a deeper hole for myself when I tried to explain what had happened. Of course, my parents thought I was just making it up. If you know my parents, you can imagine what followed.
'We could use her now...' I mused. 'Damn it! Sailor Moon's just a myth!' Why was I remembering some children's fairy tale? This is reality! 'Mother...' I think sadly, 'Mother needs my help. She's lying in stasis. Father won't let me help.' Swallowing my apprehension and reaching out, I went forward with my initial intention -- I touched the Ginzuishou. Then my heart stopped beating as before my widening eyes, the Ginzuishou flared slightly and turned into motes of light that faded away into nothingness.
"IIE!!!!" My voice sounded alien in my head as I wailed that single word out. What had I done? I had doomed us all! The shock was so severe that at first, I didn't hear the screeching of alarms or wailing of klaxons. I felt the Palace shudder.
Cold fear squeezed my heart. Our enemies were attacking once again and by the sounds of it, with great strength. In the distance, I heard Diana calling me.
'I can't have her find me here,' was my concern. Turning, I fled the room, taking a circular route back to the Central Control Room where I knew I would find my father.
- - - - -
"Why now?" Father was asking as he changed the view of one of the many monitors. "What caused them to attack now?" I stopped in the doorway, trying to regain my composure. The banks of monitors showed the multitude of Nemesis' UFOs circling the Palace.
"Your Majesty! Your Majesty!" Diana cried and shot past me so fast I nearly fell over. "The G... The Ginzuishou..."
"Nani?!?" Endymion asked.
"The Ginzuishou is gone, Endymion-sama!"
The room grew deathly silent despite the attack that was shaking the Palace.
"Gone?" he questioned, sounding very tired, almost defeated.
I nearly burst into tears at that point but fought them back. I couldn't tell my father that I was responsible. I felt his eyes regard me and suddenly, I was quite sure he knew I had taken it. Looking up, I saw that Father was not looking at me accusingly. For the briefest of moments, I could swear he looked thoughtful.
"We must act," I declared. A crazy plan had popped into my head.
The Palace shook with another large impact. My father turned and looked at a display. "Minna, the shield is holding but it's only a matter of time..." he trailed off. "We must find the Ginzuishou."
"We need more than the Ginzuishou," I remarked. Father turned to regard me. "The Sailor Senshi are holding but they can't last forever. Even if we find the Ginzuishou..." I paused. I knew they would not, unless I confessed my crime and what good would that do? "Even if we find the Ginzuishou, Father, who would wield it? You will not permit me to do so and Mother is encased in crystal." He frowned. "So unless you have another daughter, I know nothing about..."
"Usagi!"
The tone brought me up short. It was not a tone of a king, or of an angry man. The tone was something only a father could produce. Trying not to giggle, I apologized, "Gomen nasai, Otou-san." His angry look softened and he breathed out a sigh. "I didn't mean to sound like that."
"I know, Musume, but if you have a serious suggestion..."
"Someone needs to go to the past and bring the Sailor Senshi forward."
"I said a 'serious suggestion', Usagi."
"I am serious, Father. What Sailor Senshi here could help us? Only in the past do they exist. We need Mother to come forward and use her Ginzuishou."
Father shook his head. "It won't work, Usagi. There are too many risks involved. Besides, who could we send?"
"I'll go," I volunteered.
"I'm certainly not sending my only daughter..."
"I'm a Sailor Senshi, damn it!" I glared at him. "And I'm a grown woman. I'm 902 years old for Kami's sake!" Exasperation crossed his face but before he can say anything, a new voice intrudes.
"She is right, Endymion-sama."
Whirling, I stare at Sailor Pluto, Guardian of the Time Gate. "Someone must go back."
"And that someone is me," I reiterate and then moved to give my long time friend a hug. "Puu, it's been so long."
"My duties..."
"Hai, I know, my friend, but we never saw you again after Prince Saf... Diamondo and the Black Moon Family were banished."
A corner of her mouth twitched. Sailor Pluto has a beauty that doesn't fit into a simple category. Her black hair with dark green highlights flowed down her back. Those eyes make for a mysterious impression.
"She is a Sailor Senshi, Your Majesty. We can trust her to keep quiet about the future and protect the timeline," Pluto commented more to Endymion.
Scowling a little, I grumbled, "I'm right here, you two."
"But there are dangers..."
"I would not send none other but a Senshi," Pluto countered.
"See," I almost pouted out. My father gave me a quelling look. I knew what he meant now -- the 'adults' were talking and I was to keep my big nose out of it. This just irritated me more. Making a flicking motion, I produce my transformation broach.
That in itself caused startled looks, even from me. 'What are you doing?' I wondered. It had been decades since my last transformation. I wasn't even sure if I remembered my transformation phrase.
"Usagi..." My father's tone prompted me into action.
Holding the broach tightly in my hand, I spoke the words of power that bathe me in magical light. An eye blink later, I am no longer dressed as a princess but as Sailor Chibi-Moon -- a Sailor Senshi.
The true battle began then with Father and I heatedly arguing.
- - - - -
Princesses don't gloat, which was a pity because I desperately wanted to do so. Father had finally given into the idea, especially when the attack on the Palace not only continued but also intensified.
"She will have to find Sailor Moon," Sailor Pluto announced.
Blinking, I stared at her as if she's grown another head. "Sailor Moon?"
"Hai."
"Sailor Moon is only a legend," I pointed out. I believed and wished otherwise once. It was that legend that I aspired to be like when I was young. I had insisted on being called Sailor CHIBI-Moon for that reason.
"Not... exactly, Musume," my father admitted sheepishly interrupting my reverie. I frowned at him. "She DID exist."
"Honto? You always said that she was mythical." Feeling confused, this princess just waited for an explanation that would prove both my father and Sailor Pluto hadn't lost their minds.
Before he could explain further, Father broke into a fit of coughing. Pluto gave a very brief smile. I was taught princesses should not scowl because they get wrinkles. If I got a wrinkle from scowling, I'd be very upset.
"There are inherent risks in journeying to the past, Small Lady. You must be careful not to disrupt the timeline," Pluto warned. I glared at her. She knows I hate that name. No one has called me it for years. Even so, only she and Diana can get away with using it to me. "Come with me, Your Highness, and I will instruct you in the use of the Time Key."
"I want to know about Sailor Moon!" I protested.
"Knowledge will come with enough time," Father replied.
I really hate it when they think I'm some little kid that won't understand anything.
End of Chapter 1
Coming next in Chapter 2 - This Wasn't What I Expected
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