Disclaimer: I do not own the awesomeness that is Tenoh Haruka. I simply borrow and worship. Give Takeuchi-sama the credit she deserves; I do.

Notes: What follows here is the drabbles/ficlets/fics I write for sm-monthly at LiveJournal's April challenge which is Outer Senshi. I do intend to write a ficlet for each day, but already now I'm one behind, so we'll see, but I do think I'll write more than one (also to regain the feeling of the characters of Michiru and Haruka and eventually continue with Destined Couple), so until then, please enjoy. I sure do. It feels wonderful writing short stories again.

This one was inspired by the theme: Plastic Surgery.


Metamorphosis (Unchanged)


It doesn't take any kind of plastic surgery to make Haruka appear to be a man; and very much so, at that. All it takes is the right clothing, the right movements and a slight edge of hoarse darkness to her voice that she has mastered for years by now. She already has the cool arrogance, the flirtatious smirk and what Michiru has dubbed her "prey look". None of these things are foreign to her, neither are they the result of careful study or simple elements of acting, but Haruka has long ago realised that to most people the difference is so subtle that it disappears in between all the other nuances of grey. She has stopped trying to explain it. The people who matter already know; like Michiru. And herself.

Neither does it take any kind of plastic surgery to make her look fully feminine again. Sometimes unbuttoning the two top buttons of her shirt is enough. Of course, no one questions her sex when she's in her Senshi fuku, but Haruka prefers to look like a woman without a skirt. A simple change of jeans can do the trick and strangers who mistook her for a boy the day prior, will turn their heads an extra time to stare; making sure their eyes didn't betray them. Luckily, Haruka has never minded the attention. She likes defying the limits that she experiences in the world around her. They challenge her – like the horizon – to outrun them and discover what lies beyond.

Haruka is well aware that this little game of hers is like always walking a tightrope, balancing on the thin line dividing the domain of male and female, and yet she never questions herself. She knows her true nature – who she was (the Princess of Uranus), who she is (Tenoh Haruka, the soldier and the girl) and who she will eventually become (Sailor Uranus of Crystal Tokyo) – and doesn't try to deny it, but unlike the simplicity of sex, gender is a many-sided concept.

And, when all comes down to it, being who she is (all that she is), it's in her blood to be somewhat of an explorer.


finis


The title for this is somewhat of a paradox. Metamorphosis is a Greek word that means transformation (it's also used in biology to describe the change taking place with for example butterflies after they've come into existance) and the word in paranthesis of course means exactly what it says. Unchanged. So, I've chosen this title to show that even though Haruka seems to be a very dynamic character, there's also an aspect about her that never changes.