Disclaimer: As much as I wish I owned Sailor Moon, I don't. That's why I'm writing fanfiction. Cuz I'm a fan. So please don't sue me. I don't own Moonlight Densetsu, either-I just drew inspiration from the song's lyrics to create a title for this fic, since it needed a title. So please don't sue me for that, either.
Sailor Moon: Haato Wa Mangekyou
Stars. The heavenly bodies that twinkle in and out of existence, with their constant light, sparkling in a dazzling display of white against black, dancing forever in tandem with the dark emptiness that surrounds them, never faltering in their steps and leaps across the vast sky. Their light holds many things; for some, it holds a wish, a wish for the future; for others, it holds hope-the hope of something better, the hope of something more; for others still, it holds scientific meaning, a methodical sort of existence simply waiting to be charted and measured and figured; for others, it holds nothing more than a fleeting thought, a mere splash in an ocean of things more important than something so far away from home.
But for some, the light of those stars is a reminder, a reminder of a promise made long ago, of memories long buried in the passage of time, forgotten beneath crumbling silver ruins, frozen in eternal sleep. The light serves as a reminder, a reminder of that forgotten past. The light is a beacon, drawing close the hearts and souls of those whose memories lie forgotten beneath the moon, of those who are drawn to hope. Yes, the light of the stars beams brightly as a center of peace, hope. Hope for the future.
But, light, of course, is accompanied by darkness. And such a bright light as that which the stars give out in their exuberant displays of hope can only be accompanied by a dark void just as strong. Darkness, unlike light, is not so bold; shadows do not take the straight and fast path towards the hearts of many. Instead, it travels the subtle, more lasting paths, winding, worming, squeezing its way into the soul. And once it has burrowed deep into the heart, it lies there and festers, like an ever-painful sore, growing in its power, multiplying in its presence, until it not only engulfs the soul but also eclipses the light. And so the unfortunate soul is lost to the dark, drowning in its deep expanses.
And yet, if even the smallest ray from the light of the stars can penetrate those deep waters, banished are the shadows-to the side do they flee, quivering in fear of the silvery wisps, cowering in a corner as the silver light shines strong and clear. Nonetheless, in its cunning, the dark will slowly creep forth, swallowing the light until it is blanketed.
What, then, is the meaning of light? For can it not then be an endless cycle? Light pierces dark, and dark snuffs out light?
No. It is not so.
Within one heart lies not only light, but the light of all the stars and more. This heart holds not a single shadow, purer than the stars themselves, clearer than their ever-present light, brighter than their everlasting brilliance. For in this heart lies serenity itself.
Wherever this heart shines, so, too, do the hearts of others react to its presence and let forth their own light. Such a wondrous power shares it's brilliance with all whom it touches, and those touched by this light, too, become beacons in the dark, shining with an eternal light more awesome and infinite than the stars.
Yet the deep darkness knows that this light can drown it. For, although dark and light cannot exist without one another in reality, this pure light exists beyond the realms of reality and defies reality itself. And so, although dark and light cannot exist in reality without one another, the mere existence of this pure light that banishes the dark causes reality to change so that reality becomes unreal, and the unreal becomes reality.
The darkness does not like this. It does not like the power of this light; it does not like the utter powerlessness that it holds against the light. It does not like this light. And so the darkness coalesced into one being, drawing itself in, smaller, stronger, deeper, until all darkness existed within one entity. And this entity sought out the light with its tendrils, seeking to drown it, to cause it to flutter, to spasm, to choke into darkness. For then darkness would be complete.
And so the story begins with this light of lights, brighter than all the stars put together, and yet smaller than a single star...
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Usagi stumbled forwards, a garbled cry escaping her lips around the loaf of bread smothered between her teeth, her limbs flailing wildly and her golden tresses trailing behind her, catching the wind she disturbed as she fell. Her hands shot out in time to stop herself from receiving any injury, and she quickly righted herself, nostrils flaring as a whoosh of air escaped her. She spared only enough time to wipe the dirt and rocks from her knees and hands, and then she began rushing forward, her shoes clacking roughly against the pavement in a staccato pattern as she raced towards her destination.
Passerby blinked in surprise as a golden, white and blue blur rushed by them, leaving a faint gust of air in its wake. The sound of a high-pitched, wailing voice reached many a businessman's ears as he walked to his office, and many a mother dropping her child off at school flinched when the piercing squeals reached their ears.
"Latelatelatelate LAAAAAATEEEE!" cried Usagi as she ran full-kelter to her High School. Despite her best efforts, she felt tears welling up in her eyes, and with them came the realization that her little brother was right-she was a crybaby. Not that this realization made Usagi any happier; in fact, it seemed to make her even more upset, and the tears that she had managed to keep in check suddenly spilled onto her cheeks, and she dabbed them furiously away. God, she just needed to get to class on time today! That was all she needed, and so Usagi sent a quick prayer to Kami-sama that he let her, for once in her life, NOT be late to school. Unfortunately for Usagi, Kami-sama seemed to have either a strong hateful resentment towards her, or else an obnoxious and very inconvenient sense of humor, because five minutes later found Tsukino Usagi standing outside the locked classroom door, her shoulders hunched in defeat.
Usagi dredged towards the stairs that led to the main office, already foreseeing the terrible reaction that her mother would have at Usagi's fourth tardy of the week, and the detention that would come with it. Her mother would be furious, and Usagi cringed at the image of her mother's rage-darkened face framed by billowing blue hair, surrounded by flames. Well, all right, so maybe there wouldn't be an inferno surrounding her mother, or hair billowing in an unseen wind, but Usagi knew that she would undoubtedly be on the receiving end of a lecture and a punishment that would leave her grounded for at least two weeks.
When she entered the office, the secretary glanced up at the young schoolgirl, an amused smile upon her age-weathered features. "Late again, Miss Tsukino?" she asked as Usagi reached for the clipboard on the edge of the woman's desk.
Usagi smiled weakly in response, nodding her head wearily. She was still breathing raggedly from her run to the school-which, she realized now with a pang, had been absolutely futile-and so she spared no excess energy in forming words. Feeling absolutely miserable, she picked up the pen beside the clipboard and uncapped it.
The older woman laughed softly, reaching an arm out across her paper-enveloped desk and placed it gently upon Usagi's hand as the young girl scribbled her name and reason for being late onto the paper.
"It's all right, Miss Tsukino. You tried your hardest."
Usagi smiled again at the old woman in response, trying not to let the woman know that her comment hadn't helped and had instead made the girl feel slightly worse. "Thank you," she murmured as the older woman passed her a pink tardy slip.
"Good luck," said the older woman. Then her eyes looked past Usagi, and another amused smile crossed her face as the glass doors opened and admitted another student whose rapid breaths were, if anything, more labored than Usagi's had been.
"Why, Miss Aino," said the secretary, her eyes twinkling in amusement. "What a delightful surprise! You're here..." the woman glanced at her computer screen, checking the time in the bottom right-hand corner. "Three minutes earlier than Tuesday!"
Usagi turned around to see a rather disgruntled-looking student whose exuberant smile contrasted with her windblown appearance. As the girl strode forward to write her name on the clipboard, her waist-length hair floated behind her, and Usagi noted the red bow atop her head that held her hair in place.
"Three minutes! All right! Is that a new record, Mrs. Tanaka?" asked the girl, her blue eyes sparkling as the pen scribbled something down quickly.
The secretary looked very thoughtful for a moment before she opened a drawer and began shuffling through various papers. "No, no... I think that... Yes, I'm almost sure of it," she muttered. With a flourish, the older secretary pulled out a small folder and began sifting through its contents, finally stopping on one page and letting out a triumphant hum. "No, no, Minako-chan, your fastest time was last month, when-"
The girl had begun to laugh, and she spoke at the same time, resulting in a strangled sort of speech. "That time when Artemis scratched my face-how could I forget?" the beautiful girl- Aino Minako, if Usagi had caught her name correctly-suddenly seemed to notice Usagi's presence in the room, and her eyes widened.
Usagi felt a sort of electric shock run through her body as this Minako girl's jaw slid open, her eyebrows shooting way up off her forehead. Then the girl seemed to collect herself, and cleared her throat.
"G-good morning!" she said, her blue eyes still gazing piercingly into Usagi's. Usagi shifted under that gaze, slightly uncomfortable with its intensity.
"Hi," she said with a smile, pushing away her unease and letting her natural happiness take over.
"I'm Aino Minako," said the girl, leaning forward in a slight nbw.
"Tsukino Usagi," Usagi said as she returned the bow. Usagi watched as the girl received her tardy slip and then curiosity overtook her. "Are you always late?"
The girl looked surprised, and then a sheepish grin and a slight blush colored her cheeks. "Yea, it seems like it." The girl let out a small laugh that, had Usagi known better, she would have noted was tinged with nervousness.
Usagi's eyes brightened suddenly. "So you have a detention, too?" Usagi had been dreading her detention, and now that she knew it was certain she would have to attend, she hoped that she could at least have some form of friendly company while she was there. And this girl seemed very friendly to Usagi-she seemed to radiate a certain happiness that Usagi couldn't help but feel drawn to.
Minako nodded. "Yup, I do. But you don't mean that you have one?" she asked, a slightly flabbergasted look crossing her face.
Usagi laughed. "Well, this is my fourth tardy this week." She waved her pink slip sheepishly. "I can usually keep it down to three a week, so I don't get a detention..." her voice trailed off in a sigh. "I guess I've just had a lot on my mind lately," she lied. Usagi knew exactly why she kept oversleeping, why it was so hard to wake up in the mornings, why she could never seem to catch enough sleep. Lately, Usagi's dreams had turned into nightmares, and no matter how hard she ran, she'd never been able to outrun that strange, dark cloud with gleaming red eyes.
"Tell me about it," Minako agreed, and for the first time Usagi noticed the dark circles under the girl's eyes, hidden by the happy aura that the girl gave off. Minako's mouth seemed tight, as though she were dealing with too much stress; her pale limbs seemed to move gracefully, but wearily, as though hindered by small, invisible weights; Minako's blue eyes, too, seemed sad and tired beneath her slightly drooping eyelids. "Lots of homework, y'know?" she said, waving her hand dismissively.
Usagi nodded fervently in agreement. "Yea! Tons! Ms. Haruna-"
"I'm sorry to interrupt, girls, but I really think you ought to head to class now," interrupted the secretary's voice, and with a jolt, Usagi realized that she and Minako had been talking for several minutes.
Both girls exclaimed in surprise and then bid hurried goodbye's before running back to their respective first period classrooms. Mrs. Tanaka stared after their rapidly retreating forms with a quirked eyebrow. "Honestly," she muttered to herself. "Those two could be sisters, they're so alike." The old secretary let out a small chuckle as she returned Minako's file to her drawer. "Maybe I should start a Tsukino Usagi folder, as well." The girl certainly was late often enough to warrant one. The wrinkled secretary couldn't keep the smile from her face as she began to record the two girls' names into the system for their tardies.
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Usagi stretched her arms behind her head, stifling a yawn as her eyes welled-up with tears, grateful that the class had finished and she would finally be able to sleep during this class, as it was homeroom. She released a huge gust of air from her mouth as she relaxed, and then she registered some sort of buzzing in her ear, a high-pitched buzzing which was actually forming some form of coherent words that were really being said by a person.
Usagi opened her eyes, squinting, to see her best friend's red hair sticking out from the corner of her eye. Usagi opened her eyes fully and turned her head slightly to face Naru-chan, who was now talking animatedly about the magazine she was currently waving back in forth, her brows knit together as she explained something to Umino. Umino had a concerned expression on his face-or, at least, Usagi thought he was concerned. It was sort of hard to tell what Umino was thinking, or even feeling, since he kept his eyes hidden behind his huge, opaque glasses. Nonetheless, even though Usagi couldn't see his eyes, it was clear that Umino was focused intently on whatever it was Naru was talking so excitedly about. Usagi decided that, if Umino was so intent on listening, Naru must be saying something interesting, and so she quickly tuned in to their conversation.
"-beating those Youma for over three years now, so you'd think she'd be older than this! But according to this article, people are speculating that she's no older than seventeen, maybe even younger than that! Most of the guesses are that she's either fifteen or sixteen! Can you believe it!?" Naru's voiced had grown in volume, and Usagi couldn't help but smile at how, when she was passionately speaking about something, her normally calm and quiet friend would suddenly become excited and loud.
Umino nodded, pushing his glasses up his nose. He swept his brown bangs to the side of his head, only to have them fall back to their original place in front of his eyes. "I believe it. But I still don't understand how they were able to ascertain this information. After all, she has some sort of magical glamour-type shield protecting the public from discovering her identity, so why couldn't that same magic be making her appear younger or older? It-"
"How do you know she's got some... Magical barrier thing that's keeping people from finding out who she is?" Naru asked hotly. "Those weird games you play have been giving you weird ideas-"
"Nono, Naru-chan! Listen!" Umino's cheeks began to pinken slightly, and he suddenly seemed just as excited as Naru. "You know how she wears a red mask to cover her face?" Umino paused, waiting for some sort of response from the girl before him. Naru nodded somewhat warily, and Umino took this as his cue to continue. "Well, I've done some experiments, and it seems that masks shaped like hers shouldn't drastically alter the wearer's appearance or the way others perceive their appearance. In other words, a mask like that shouldn't really hide what you look like! But hers does, you see?"
Naru shook her head, eyes closed, a somewhat frustrated look on her face. "Umino, that doesn't make sense. First off, nobody knows what she really looks like-"
"But that's it!" Umino said, grabbing Naru by the shoulders. "Nobody knows what she looks like! Even though, according to my research, people should be able to discern what she looks like! What other explanation is there? She has to be using some sort of magical glamour to cover up her true appearance!"
Naru sighed, disagreement evident on her face. She didn't voice her opinion, though, as she caught sight of Usagi watching them. A smile lit her face.
"Usagi-chan!" cried Naru, waving the magazine she held as she headed towards the blonde girl, weaving around desks. "Look what I have!" Naru proceeded to slap the magazine down onto Usagi's desk with a great abundance of enthusiasm. Usagi couldn't help but giggle at her friend's antics, and then she glanced at the cover of the magazine.
A picture of a blonde young woman in a sailor outfit met her. The youth's eyes were hidden behind a red mask with small protrusions that reminded Usagi of wings. A lustrous crescent moon gleamed on the girl's forehead, and a faint blush tinged her cheeks a rosy hue. Voluminous blonde hair twirled behind the girl as she struck a pose, her long, thin limbs adding a grace and elegance to the pose that would otherwise have been absent. One hand was poised on her hip, and the other stretched in front of her, middle and index fingers forming a V. Usagi sighed wistfully, wishing that she could have hair that beautiful, or a body that graceful.
"Sailor V-chan," she said, letting her eyes skim over the print that declared the young woman a hero on the magazine's cover. "So she saved some more people from a Youma attack?"
Naru nodded, opening to a page in the middle of the magazine that detailed the events of the newest attack. "They caught it on camera from a store across the street. The Youma was sucking up all the life-energy of the people in a bookstore, and then Sailor V showed up." Usagi nodded, indicating that Naru should go on. "Apparently, the Youma knew she was going to show up, so it had backup hiding behind some of the shelves, and they snuck up on Sailor V while she was doing her pose and making her speech." Naru laughed a little. "But she noticed them, or something, cuz she managed to avoid their combined attacks. It really goes into detail about how she beat the Youma in the article, but apparently she got pretty banged up."
Usagi looked down at the article on her desk, glancing at the various pictures of the masked Superhero fighting the Youma. One of the pictures showed Sailor V as she was struck by one of the Youma's attacks. The caption underneath this particular photo read "Sailor V being hit and thrown into a wall by one of the Youma's projectile-based attacks. The Youma that used this attack called out the name, but as there is no available sound accompanying the footage that was acquired, the attack's name remains unknown."
Usagi winced as she read it, and she regarded the picture of Sailor V with a new level of admiration. "Ouch," she said, and Naru giggled. Usagi was struck by a thought as Naru picked up the magazine and began perusing its non-Sailor-V-related contents.
"Hey, Naru-chan," she said, and Naru glanced up from the magazine, eyebrows raised. "Don't you think she gets tired of battling all those Youma all alone? I mean, she battles some practically every day, and she still isn't able to save everyone from attacks."
Naru looked thoughtful, then shrugged. "Well, it's not like there's anybody who can help her fight those Youma. She's the only one who can face those things without having her energy sucked away."
Umino, wearing his backpack and adjusting the glasses perched on his nose, chose this moment to sidle up next to Naru, who appeared simultaneously revolted and embarrassed at his sudden proximity to her. "This is a very interesting discussion you two are engaged in here. Mind if I share some of my information?" He didn't wait for the girls to respond, however. "You see, Youma are creatures that, as you know, seem to suck the life-force away from their prey. Bullets and sharp-edged weapons have proven to be ineffective against them in combat, resulting in only temporary wounds or mild discomfort to the creatures. So far, it seems that only Sailor V has the abilities to defeat them, and she uses magical attacks to do so. In other words, Sailor V is the only person capable of beating Youma because she is the only person capable of using magical powers against them." Umino ignored Naru's snort and continued, and Usagi could almost swear that she saw his glasses glinting as his fervor heightened. "So it's not really a question of whether or not she gets tired fighting Youma. She's the only one who can fight them, or the only one who will fight them, so it's obvious that she feels it is her duty to do so. I know that if I had magical powers like hers, I'd be out there fighting alongside her."
"In a miniskirt and high heels just like her, no doubt," Naru smirked, and she and Usagi burst into giggles at the thought as Umino's face reddened.
"N-no!" he stammered. "I was thinking something more along the lines of..." he began sifting through his backpack. "This!" he exclaimed, pulling forth from his bag a picture of a figure who seemed to be midway through a leap between two buildings.
Usagi and Naru gasped. "Who is that?" Usagi asked, staring hard at the blurred picture of a man who appeared to be wearing some sort of tuxedo, complete with top-hat and cape.
"That, my good friends, is Tuxedo Kamen."
"Tuxedo Kamen?" repeated the two girls in unison, blinking.
Umino nodded sagely. "Yes. Tuxedo Kamen is a relatively unknown, masked thief who goes around and steals jewels from all over the town. It's impossible to track his movements because he escapes using the rooftops..." Here he paused and looked at them in a somewhat dramatic manner. "Just like Sailor V! The two have even met before, although their meetings have only been brief, since she's always in a rush to go after some Youma. However, two years ago, at the Princess D ball, Tuxedo Kamen and Sailor V both showed up and fought Youma that had appeared!"
Usagi's eyes slid back to the fuzzy picture of the masked man. "So... He can fight Youma, just like V-chan?" she asked.
"Yes, he can. He dispatched two of the five Youma at that incident, though he hasn't done so since-at least, he hasn't done so where there have been any camera crews, reporters or photographers around."
Usagi smiled at the picture Umino was still hiding. "He's so cool!" she squealed, and Naru laughed.
"Mysterious guys like him are your type, eh, Usagi?" teased Naru, poking her blonde friend. "I hafta say I agree with you on that one. He does seem really cool!"
Umino huffed at Naru's words. "Well, anyway," he said loudly, before either Usagi or Naru could start talking about other things that made Tuxedo Kamen attractive. "I was thinking that if I had superpowers like him or Sailor V, I'd be using them to save people, not to go around stealing precious gems."
Naru laughed. "Hey, if it's just jewelry he wants, he can come over to my place, right, Usagi-chan?" she asked, nudging Usagi.
Usagi giggled-after all, Naru's mother owned a jewelry shop. "You're right! And then you and him can have little baby tuxedo kamens!" Usagi couldn't help but giggle at the adorable image, and her laughter only grew in volume at the pink color that rose to Naru's face and the vein that began throbbing in Umino's neck.
A tap on her shoulder caused Usagi to turn around, still in the process of wiping tears from her eyes. When she saw who it was who had tapped her shoulder, she stiffened, biting her lips, he eyes widening slightly as she attempted to act nonchalant.
"M-Ms. Haruna! Fancy seeing you around here? How're you doing? How's life been treating you?" she asked breezily, scrunching up her eyes in a smile too bright to be genuine.
Ms. Haruna simply raised her eyebrow, used to Usagi's antics when the girl hoped to avoid a situation, particularly one she knew would not lead to any positive news. "Ms. Tsukino, I am your homeroom teacher-I'm always here," she said. "And yes, I am quite well, thank you for asking. But that's not why I came over here to talk with you, now is it?" The teacher's dark, green eyes bored into the wide blue ones before her.
"W-wha-"
"I think, perhaps, that we should speak in private, Usagi-chan," said Ms. Haruna, her tone business-like and her eyes gleaming sharply.
Usagi's lips tightened for a fraction of a second before her shoulders slumped. The girl turned to her friends, who had been watching the events unfold-Naru, with apprehension; Umino, with curiosity.
Ms. Haruna led Usagi outside into the hallway, leaving the door open only a small crack so that she could hear the students inside the room. The teacher raised one of her hands, which had been hidden from Usagi's view, and Usagi saw that in it the teacher held a slightly crumpled piece of paper. With red lettering all over. Usagi moaned internally at the sight.
"You know what this is," said Ms. Haruna, her voice stern. Usagi nodded reluctantly. "Then I assume you know why I'm not pleased with the grade you received on it." Ms. Haruna handed the paper to Usagi, who received it with a grimace on her face.
The girl tried to avoid looking at her score in the upper part of the page, but-like moths to a flame-her eyes slid slowly but surely to it. A breath of air whooshed from her mouth, unbidden, as she read it.
36.
"It is rare that I have a student drop so dramatically in her grades, Ms. Tsukino. While you were never an A-student in my class, you nevertheless received acceptable, passing scores. I have noticed the recent drop your test and quiz scores have taken, Ms. Tsukino, and they are not beneficial to your overall grade in this class. If this keeps up, you will not pass this semester."
Usagi bit her lip as she listened to Ms. Haruna's stinging words, never letting her eyes stray even once from the red ink denoting her miserable score. She took a deep breath, trying to stave off the panic that she felt rising within her from the pit of her stomach, and the tears that were beginning to wet her eyes.
"I..." she began, not sure what she was even going to say. Could she really justify this significant drop in her grades? Her mother would definitely not listen to any excuse she made. Would Ms. Haruna be any different? After all, high school students shouldn't let their grades drop due to one nightmare. Sure, it was a nightmare that woke her up repeatedly every night, sweat glistening on her body as she gasped for air like a fish out of water, legs tangled in the sheets, hands curled into tight fists as she fought back tears and cries of pain.
And the mysterious voice she heard, urging her to wake up, to go, to go save them, although she had no idea to whom the voice was referring. Flashes, images, faces, bodies, would all appear in her mind's eye as she slept, but they changed every night, never returning to the same face, and there were so many faces, even if there was a face that was repeated, she would not be able to recognize it. Add to this the fact that Usagi had noticed, with a growing sense of unease, the correlation her nightmares had to Youma attacks, and the high school girl felt utterly exhausted, drained, and scared. Scared because she didn't know why her dreams were connected to Youma attacks. Scared because she didn't know how to stop the nightmares.
But how could Usagi tell Ms. Haruna any of this? The teacher would probably just send her to the Nurse's office with the order to get some sleep, and maybe tell her parents to get her a counsellor or a doctor. No, it would definitely be for the best not to tell Ms. Haruna anything about her nightmares.
"I'm sorry," Usagi finally murmured, her eyes on the floor. Ms. Haruna stared at the young girl for several minutes, eyeing the dark circles under her eyes, red rims around them, the uncombed hair that fell from the girl's head, the dejected and weary stance she took.
"Ms. Tsukino," Ms. Haruna said, a gentle tone entering her voice as her eyes softened and her arms uncrossed. "I am willing to work with you and come to an agreement that will give you more opportunities to increase your semester average if you promise me that you will put forth 100% in my class from now on."
Usagi's head whipped up, her eyes wide and her mouth open. "R-really?" she asked.
Ms. Haruna nodded, her brows knitted together in a stern manner. "It won't be easy, Ms. Tsukino. I will offer you make-up opportunities for exams like this one, but the maximum grade that you can get on a make-up test is a 70, which is not a high enough grade to make you pass my class. That means you'll need to make an effort to improve your grades-I'll expect to see you at my tutorial sessions every Tuesday and Wednesday after school. I will offer opportunities for bonus credit as well." Ms. Haruna's expression softened once more. "I don't want to see a smart young woman like you fail my class, Usagi-chan. You and I both know that there's more to you than that."
Usagi felt her eyes burn slightly as her vision blurred. She sniffed once, quickly, and looked into Ms. Haruna's eyes. "I promise to do my best, Sensei," she said softly. A small smile lifted her lips. "Arigatou, Sensei, for believing in me."
Ms. Haruna smiled, placing a firm hand on the girl's shoulder. "You're very easy to believe in, Ms. Tsukino. Now, let's get you back into the classroom-I think Yamamoto-kun and Nakamura-kun are getting a bit too close to tearing out each other's throats." The teacher held the door open for Usagi and followed the girl inside the classroom.
"Oi! Nakamura-kun! Get your hands off of Yamamoto-kun this instant! Or are you looking forward to your parents meeting with the principal later this afternoon, because I assure you that if the two of you don't stop fighting right now, you'll be facing detention for a week!" The two boys in question sprang apart, faces glowering and casting dark glances at each other, but they nonetheless returned to their seats.
Usagi slipped through the groups of students back to her desk, where she plopped down with an almighty huff, staring at the paper in her hands. She glanced up at Ms. Haruna, who seemed to be absorbed in her lecturing of Yamamoto-kun. Usagi took this opportunity to crumple up her test, out of sight of her Sensei, and stuffed it quickly into her bag. Naru plopped down in the chair next to her, a concerned expression on her friend's face.
"So what was that all about, Usagi-chan?" Naru asked. Usagi sighed, blowing the bangs off her forehead as she propped her arms on the desk and leaned on them.
"I failed another test, and Ms. Haruna wants me to get my grades up." Usagi let out a strangled, frustrated sound. "I want to, I really do! I agreed to go to tutorials and take make-up tests and do bonus work and everything! I don't want to upset Ms. Haruna! But it seems like lately, no matter how hard I try, I just can't seem to do anything right!" Usagi put her head back on her arms. "What's wrong with me, Naru-chan?"
Naru patted Usagi gently on the back. "It's okay, Usagi-chan. You're just going through a tough time. It'll all turn out okay, eventually."
Usagi closed her eyes, making a noncommittal sound that Naru seemed to take as an agreement. As Naru returned to talking with Umino, Usagi closed her eyes, scrunching them hard to keep the wetness pooling in her eyes from sliding free. She knew that Naru meant well, but Usagi knew better. No, it wouldn't get better. It couldn't. As long as these strange nightmares plagued her, Usagi knew that her grades would continue to slip, no matter what she tried to do to prevent them from falling. And she felt as though her world was slowly slipping away with her disappearing grades, falling slowly but surely in a decline that would only get steeper and steeper from here on out.
Usagi groaned slightly, shaking these dark thoughts from her head. She took several deep breaths, and eventually her breathing evened out as she slipped into a dreamless sleep that would last only for another forty-five minutes until the lunch bell rang.
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Sailor V swept her hands in a wide arc, summoning throbbing power into her hands as she somersaulted backwards, hissing as a sharp blade scratched her cheek. If she had moved even a second later, the blade would have soared right into her forehead.
"Rolling Heart Vibration!" she cried, twisting as she landed and thrusting her hands forward, sending the energy she had gathered earlier crashing outwards towards the two Youma she was fighting. The glowing energy struck one of the monsters, instantly disintegrating it into ash, but it's partner- a foul-faced, dark blue creature with horns protruding from its neck and claws that served as projectiles- managed to dodge the attack by lurching to the side and ducking behind a jewelry case holding gleaming necklaces.
The Youma poked its head out from the side of the case, and the young hero instantly took advantage of the creature's unintentional opening.
She aimed her finger at the Youma, gathering glowing energy that pulsed with her heartbeat at the tip of her index finger. "Crescent Beam!" she shouted, her throat dry and scratchy from use, as this was the third Youma battle of the night and she had been calling out attacks for several hours now.
A stream of light-concentrated energy hurtled towards the Youma, whose eyes widened. The creature's head disappeared behind the jewelry case once more, leaving a smoking scorch mark on the tiled floor where its head had been mere moments before. A roar shook the ground as the Youma screamed in rage, and Sailor V stumbled from the raw energy that the creature had sent into the air with the sound.
The girl quickly recovered her footing, however, and none too soon, for the Youma leapt out from behind the jewelry case just as Sailor V righted herself.
The creature raced towards her, it's claws gleaming, and then it swept its arms forwards, sending dozens of nails filed to a deadly point towards the young Senshi.
Sailor V vaulted behind a pile of rubble that had been created by the Youma she had already defeated. She turned snd crouched down behind the debris, wincing reflexively as the nails collided into the rubble before her, impaling the rubble with painful-sounding thunks.
Taking a deep breath, Sailor V prepared herself for what was to come. Then, like a rocket bursting forth into the atmosphere, she flew up from behind the rubble, surprising the Youma, who had begun to approach the pile of rubble warily. She took advantage of its momentarily stunned state, raising her arm once more and gathering energy to the tip of her finger. "Crescent Beam!" she yelled, and pure golden energy shot forth once more, this time punching through the Youma's skin. The Youma had time only to let out an ear-splitting, keening screech of pain before it crumbled into a pile of ash.
Sailor V landed in a crouch beside the pile, sending pieces of the ash twirling into the wind. Her breathing was ragged, and her eyes beneath the mask were roving over the store, watchful for any other signs of Youma activity within the department store. Nothing registered in her vision, and so the teenager relaxed slightly, though the tense edge to her movements didn't vanish as she slowly approached the victims of the Youma attack.
There were several men and women, even a few children, that made up the energy-depleted victims lying across the floor. Sailor V quickly checked each victim for signs of life and gave a relieved sigh to find that every single one of the victims was breathing.
"Minako!" The voice startled the girl, causing her to jump and whip around.
"Artemis!" she gasped, both relieved and exasperated at the small white cat that was speedily padding its way towards her through the wreckage of the store.
"The police are on their way," said the cat, never one to mince words. "We need to move now. To the park."
Minako's heart began to sink. "You mean-"
"There's another attack, yes," said the cat wearily. "Only one Youma, thankfully, but the park is a big place and we have lots of ground to cover if we're going to find it before it drains its victims to the point of death."
The young Senshi nodded, scooping up the white cat in her arms and placing him on her shoulder as she began to run out of the store. Once she had exited the place, she jumped onto the roof of the building across the street, and then began to leap across the rooftops in the direction of the park.
"Artemis," she began, exhaustion evident in her voice as she leapt over an alley and landed on a roof, then began running to the edge of the new building. "Do you think this will be the last one?" Minako heard Artemis let out a sighing breath, the warm air tickling the side of her neck as she launched herself onto another building.
"I think so. The accumulated energy they've been able to gather from all of these attacks is pretty substantial. It's more than usual. But I think they've grown weary, too. And the attacks that have been occurring during daylight hours are the ones they've been keeping a close watch on. These night attacks are, as we've discussed, probably just to wear you down till they think they can get rid of you." The cat shifted on her shoulder as she landed softly on the street across from the park. "I don't like this. They're toying with us, Minako, and they're getting more powerful."
Sailor V wiped a bead of sweat from her brow. Her eyes followed the white cat as he leapt from her shoulder to the ground, shaking his stiff limbs. "Once we get home, Artemis, I've got news."
The cat's ears turned, his whiskers twitched, and his tail froze. He whipped his head around to point piercing blue eyes at her face. "What sort of news?" he asked.
Sailor V put a finger to her lips. "I'll tell you when we're home, somewhere not out in the open where our enemies could easily overhear us," she murmured, eyes scanning the dark park. She hopped across the street, closing the gap between her and the foliage that surrounded the park. Artemis glanced quickly from side to side to ensure there was no traffic, and then he followed suit, landing behind the girl just before she jumped onto a tree branch and began using her higher vantage point to look for any Youma activity.
Sailor V pointed in the direction where she had seen a soft blue glow, imperceptible from her previous position on the ground. "There," she whispered softly so that only her cat companion, who had joined her on the tree limb, could hear her.
"You go on ahead. I'll catch up," whispered the cat in return. Minako didn't pause to nod; instead, she dropped nimbly to the ground, landing with only a slight sound, a skill that she had acquired after years of sneaking up on Youma. She raced off in the direction of the eerie glow, running as quickly as her heels would allow without giving off any sound so as not to alert the Youma to her presence.
Sailor V found the Youma twenty-seven seconds later, a blue swirl of light coalesced in its hands. Two trails of pale blue light led to the bodies of two humans. Sailor V eyed them and was relieved to find that they were both still breathing. Still alive, then-although, judging from the thin trails of light ebbing from them, not for much longer.
Sailor V pointed her finger at the creature, then frowned as a thought occurred to her. It'll see me of I do that. Her Crescent Beam gave off a rather bright glow as she charged energy into her finger to power the beam. In this dark, the Youma would easily spot the glow from her attack, and the element of surprise would be ruined. The girl silently lowered her arm. She blinked, and then summoned her compact into her hand, eyes narrowing as she shifted her position in the shadows.
Quick as a flash, she threw her compact at the Youma like a boomerang, and the compact collided squarely with the back of the Youma's head. The creature stumbled forward, it's grip on the energy loosened. During this short time, Sailor V had begun to charge energy into her finger, which was aimed at the monster's head. As the Youma lost its firm grip on the energy and whipped its head around to see what had hit it, she released the stored energy in her finger.
"Crescent Beam!" she yelled, and the Youma had time only to widen its eyes as it noticed the oncoming attack. It screamed in pain, and then crumbled to dust on the grass. The energy that it had been holding dispersed immediately and returned to the humans on the ground.
As the two people began to stir, Sailor V heard small, familiar footsteps behind her, and she turned to see Artemis's blue eyes blinking at her from beneath his crescent moon bald-spot.
"Good job, Minako-chan," Artemis said warmly. "I just checked in with Boss about the status of the Youma attacks tonight. Boss says that there aren't any more Youma presences. We're done for the night."
Sailor V's knees trembled, and she slipped to the ground, a great sigh of relief tearing from her. "That was awful," she murmured as she rubbed her face and leaned against a tree, adjusting her legs into a more comfortable position. She closed her eyes and leaned her head into the warm trunk. "Three people, Artemis," she whispered, sadness tinging her voice, which cracked from the yelling she had done that night. "One tonight. Three people." A heavy breath escaped her lips. "The Dark Kingdom knows what it's doing. They've got me completely exhausted, and I'm not even able to save people properly anymore!" Her voice had grown in volume to the point of a weak yell, and her eyes snapped open to look at the white cat before her.
Artemis laid a gentle paw on her knee. "I know," he said. "But once we find our comrades, they'll be able to help. And then we'll be able to search for the Princess-"
Sailor V gasped. She slapped her head. "I can't believe I forgot about that for a few minutes there! Artemis, we have to get home." She scooped him up in her arms and began hopping along the rooftops towards her house, ignoring the cat's protests. "It's about the Princess!" she whispered urgently, effectively silencing his complaints.
Sailor V and Artemis travelled the rest of the way home along the rooftops in silence, both too tense and deep in thought to speak. Sailor V took a roundabout sort of route to her home, but after thirty minutes, she found herself on her street. Sailor V finally alighted softly upon the roof of her own house. She crept along the roof to her window, which she had left open, the curtain fluttering gently in the small night breeze. The youth slipped inside after peering around to make sure the coast was clear. She closed the window and drew the curtains shut, then collapsed onto her bed, allowing her transformation to fade away in a soft glimmer of light and stars.
Artemis jumped onto her bed, curling up next to her face, his tail tickling her chin. "Minako-chan," he said seriously, and Aino Minako opened one eye, staring at his gleaming eyes through the darkness. "What did you find out?"
A small smile lit Minako's lips. "I saw her today, Artemis."
The cat's eyes widened, and he leapt to his feet. "You mean, you..." his voice trailed off, and his tail quivered with excitement, hope, disbelief.
"Yea," Minako said, laughing softly. "She looks a little different, acts a little differently, but it's definitely her."
Artemis sat down slowly, his eyes wide. "Where... How..." He shook his head, and then a halfhearted stern look appeared on his face. "You should have informed Boss and me the moment you found out," he said.
"Boss will be fine," she said. "The Princess is safe, and healthy, apparently." She rose from her bed and glided softly across the room, digging through her backpack until she produced a folded sheet of paper, then returned to the bed.
"You know how I was late to the first Youma attack?" she asked, a tinge of regret coloring her voice. If she had to repeat today's events, she wouldn't have changed a thing, but a life is a heavy burden to bear. It was because of this decision that she had been too late to save one poor businessman's life; she had arrived just as the Youma had sucked the last tendril of energy from the man. "I stayed late at school today because I got a schedule change."
Artemis gaped. "You mean you met her-you didn't just see her?"
Minako nodded. "Yup," she said. "Tsukino Usagi is a second-year student at Juuban High. I hacked into the school system during computer lab and found her class number. I'll be joining her class tomorrow."
Artemis beamed at her as she returned the paper to her backpack. "I can't believe it!" he said. "Now you can protect her, and at the same time, we can look for the other Senshi!"
Minako smiled by way of response. She knew, from her memories of the Silver Millennium, that the Senshi were drawn to the Princess. It was an ancient magic, the kind of which is evoked when a Senshi pledges her fealty to a monarch, and the bond between Senshi and sovereign becomes unbreakable.
"They're here, too," she said. "They know her, even if they aren't friends yet." She was absolutely certain of this. She herself had been drawn to the Princess-the others must have also experienced this.
Artemis padded softly to her pillow, curling up beside her head. "Boss, did you hear that?" he whispered excitedly, gazing at a pen lying on Minako's desk across the room.
The tip of the pen blinked with a red light. "Yes," a metallic voice replied, sounding simultaneously relieved and excited. "I knew she would be in the area; it seems the Ancient Magicks that attract the Senshi to one another are stronger than I anticipated. We no longer need to explore the entirety of Japan-this district will suffice."
Minako gave a small laugh. "Boss," she said sitting up to stare at the pen with a twinkle in her eye. "I think I know who you are, now."
The red light from the pen blinked a few times as though in surprise. Then the metallic voice spoke again. "I don't doubt that you have figured it out, Princess Venus. But I, too, have changed in the thousands of years since last we met. I am not quite who I once was-merely the coalesced memories and will of the one you knew, left behind to ensure the safety of Princess Serenity and her Senshi. "
Minako pulled her knees up, resting her chin on them as she watched the pen thoughtfully. "Do you still want us to call you 'Boss'?" she asked.
The pen winked its light once. "Yes. I think it would be unwise to do otherwise, Minako-chan. The enemy should be left unaware of my existence."
Minako nodded. "As you wish," she said. Then a great yawn escaped from her. "Aw, geez," she said. "I'm super tired."
A snort sounded from her pillow. "You've been fighting Dark Kingdom agents all night," said Artemis said. "It's been this way for two months, Minako-chan. Of course you're tired."
Minako sighed, then turned to the pen once more. "Boss," she said, lowering her voice. "I lost another one today."
The pen's red light winked in and out of existence for several seconds. "It is not your fault, Minako-chan. The Dark Being is at fault-she has caused all of this. Were it not for your bravery and courage, many more lives would be lost now." The metallic voice paused, the light winking hesitantly, gauging Minako's reaction. The girl's head was lowered, her long hair veiling her face. But she girl's slumped shoulders indicated that she was still upset.
"Sailor Venus, Captain of the Inner Senshi of the Silver Milenium," said the pen, metallic voice ringing with power and the red light shining brightly. Minako's head whipped up, eyes wide. "Do not despair," said the voice in a gentler tone. "Your Princess holds the Maboroshi no Ginzuishou-the Silver Crystal of power. Once she has recovered her memories, she will be able to use its full power and restore life to these people."
Minako sighed. "But their deaths still cause grief for their families." The girl shook her head. "I'm sorry for behaving this way, Boss. All these attacks are getting to me, I guess."
The red light winked twice in understanding. "Sleep, Minako-chan. Your energy must be restored for tomorrow."
Minako rested her head against her pillow. "I... I don't know what I'll say to her," she admitted. "I can't mention anything from our past lives, and I can't talk about the Youma. She seems like the same person, but different. I mean, I guess we're all like that, though. The same person, just different." she snorted, an expression she had picked up from Artemis. "Well, good night, you two."
Artemis purred slightly in response, already close to sleep. The red light of the pen glowed softly for another minute, watching as Minako drifted quickly to sleep, her breathing evening out and the worry disappearing from her face. Then the light, too, disappeared as it winked out of existence.
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Faces. A blonde woman with short hair-a child with dark pigtails. A young man wearing a baseball cap, an old and wrinkled woman. A young businessman with circles under his eyes-a middle-aged woman carrying grocery bags. All of them, crying out in pain, fading away slowly as a new face came into view.
Then a voice. A low, resounding voice. It sent shivers down her body, and she turned, trying to find the one to whom this voice belonged.
Go! You must! You must use your power-only you can save them! You must save them!
Faces. New ones. Screaming voices, growing in volume. And then a new image-ruins, blood, chaos, swords. Familiar faces, lying on the ground, coated in their own blood. Friends-her friends- yelling and screaming as they struggled against monsters, demons. Youma. A man, dressed in dark armor, standing before her, his face hidden. His blood. Screaming. Her screams. Pain-pure, absolute pain in her chest. End it please just end this. Cold steel against her chest-and then silence.
Abruptly, the scenery changed, and she was alone. No, not alone. A dark figure was before her-no, a cloud. No. Pure darkness. A ringing, shrieking laugh, gleaming red eyes, fear, absolute terror.
She ran, she had to run, to get away, to leave. She had to escape, but even as she ran, it seemed to grow only larger, the shadow bearing down upon her, and she screamed as it bore down on her, its red eyes laughing at her, the star on its forehead growing, widening, and it swallowed her-
Usagi jolted upright, sweat slicking her body, panting. The blood rushing in her ears calmed as she registered the dark room around her, the soft moonlight gently filtering down from her window. She groaned, placing a hand on her forehead, the other unconsciously trailing slowly to her heart.
It's okay, she thought. It's all right. Tokyo is fine, my friends are fine, I'm fine. There hasn't been any huge battle with Youma. Nothing like that. The fingers at her heart curled into a fist. No sword here. Nope. No big, black, evil cloud-thing chasing me. No unknown faces screaming as they die. Nope. That still didn't seem to console her rapidly beating heart, but it did calm her slightly. She leaned back slowly, letting her head sink into the pillows beneath her.
Again. She had had that dream again. The exact details of the dream still eluded her, but she could remember the feelings. Fear. Fear for her friends. For her family. For... Someone else. Anger towards the Youma that had attacked her home. Anger at herself for being unable to stop the chaos around her. Sadness-a terrible, gripping sadness. And pain. Pain from the loss of her friends, pain from the loss of her family, pain from the loss of someone very dear to her. And then physical pain, a piercing feeling, as something cold slid into her heart, slicing through her body easily. And then, that dark cloud of evil-the only thing from the dream that she could recall.
She shivered, and a sour taste entered her mouth at the memory of that... thing. Go to slee, she commanded herself, but she knew it was no use. She glanced at her clock, then closed her eyes in frustration. 2:00. She had been asleep for all of four hours before the nightmare woke her up. And she knew that she wouldn't be getting back to sleep for at least another hour; it had been this way ever since the dreams started a year ago. So, she knew that she would, at most, get another four hours of sleep. And then she would be late to class again-not that it mattered anymore this week, anyway. She already had detention tomorrow-oh, wait, that would be later today.
Usagi sighed, rolling over onto her side to face the moonlight streaming onto her bed through the window. Ever since she had been little, the moon had always calmed her, earning jokes from her family that usually revolved around her pounding mochi.
The moonlight soothed the teenager, her breathing finally returning to an even pattern. In an hour, as she had predicted, the soft flow of silver light filtering in from her window had lulled the girl into a deep sleep.
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"My Queen," said the young man, his unruly blonde hair casting a dark shadow across his blue eyes in the eerie light of the cave. "Our attacks have been successful. Today we managed to gain unprecedented amounts of energy by siphoning life-force from the humans, and since we didn't drain the humans completely, it seems that Sailor V has not been able to pinpoint our daylight locations."
A man with curly dark hair stepped forward now, as the younger blonde took a step back. "I have come to a conclusion as to why our daylight attacks have been successful, My Queen," he said in a low voice. "Our night attacks have been successful in that they have caused Sailor V to become clumsy. She no longer fights with the same finesse and ease she once commanded, though she is still a formidable enemy and poses a threat to our cause. Danburite failed to see her power, and that is why she was able to vanquish him. Now, however, we are whittling her down slowly but surely. I believe her to be of school age-though I am still unsure of this. Her magic is strong, and she could be using it to disguise herself as a younger self to fool us. Be that as it may, she is, like most humans, involved in either schoolwork or a daytime job during daylight hours, so she is unable to leave her school or job to stop our attacks during the day. I have found, however, that attacks around lunchtime tend to fail, as she occasionally appears and incapacitates our Youma.
"As I mentioned earlier, her attacks and defenses have become sloppy as of late. I believe the time to finally confront her is near at hand. I believe that two weeks is all we need wait before her guard is low enough for one of us to defeat her."
The dark haired man stepped backwards, joining the young blonde in the deeper shadows of the caverns.
Before them, sitting upon a throne of frozen stone, sat a woman with fiery red hair that fell in waves to her feet. Her narrowed eyes watched the figured before her, and then returned to the crystal ball in front of her. She waved her hands around it in a complicated motion, and then an image played in its depths of a young, masked girl sending a stream of pure energy hurtling towards one of the woman's minions.
"Zoicite," she hissed, and one of the shadowed figures stepped forward, bowing. His long hair was pulled back into a ponytail, and his eyes were closed as he rose from his bow.
"My Queen?" he asked, voice soft and deep.
"Have you discovered the identity of this Senshi?"
A frown darkened the man's face. "A strong magical barrier protects her, my Queen. And following her is difficult. She and her companion, that cat, are very watchful, always making sure that no one is trailing them. A strange cloaking magic follows her, and I am unable to tail her for longer than ten minutes. And she does not take a direct path towards home-as expected. She's taken steps to ensure that her identity is not easily discovered. Nonetheless, I have pinpointed her location to the Azabu-Juuban district, based on the amount of time it takes for her to arrive at Youma attacks throughout the city. It's possible that she lives in downtown Tokyo, but I think it unlikely."
The woman hissed. "I am not pleased, Zoicite. I asked for her identity, not her possible whereabouts. If this failure continues, the consequences will be unpleasant for you."
Zoicite bowed low, then returned to the shadows, worry lining his face.
"Kunzite!" called the woman, and another man, white hair flowing behind him, stepped forward. He inclined his head.
"My Queen," he said.
"Kunzite, how goes the search for the Maboroshi no Ginzuishou?"
The man, Kunzite, raised his eyebrow. "As well as can be, from the clues that we have."
He received a glower from the woman. "Do not anger me, Kunzite. You have had three years to search for it."
Kunzite's head inclined. "And absolutely no information other than it is here on the earth, somewhere. I have searched most of the world, and my search has borne no fruit. Only since I have started searching Japan have I encountered any leads."
The woman glared at him. "Kunzite," she hissed. "As leader of the Shittenou, I expected better of you. The Maboroshi no Ginzuishou is necessary for our Leader's revival. If you do not recover it soon, She will be displeased with you."
Kunzite inclined his head once more. "I will find it, Queen Beryl-sama. It is only a matter of time."
"Well, time is running short," she hissed at him. "Shittenou!" she barked, calling the previous three men forth from the shadows. "The four of you are dismissed, but hark my words: if your failures continue, you will perish by my own hand."
"Yes, my Queen," they said in unison, bowing. Then they summoned dark portals, and vanished into the void, the eyes of their Queen glaring down upon their disappearing forms.
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A/N: Well, that's the first chapter! I hope you like it! I'm going to write more, but it took me a lot of time to write this chapter, and with school right around the corner, the updates will probably be far and few. But I hope you enjoy the story!