Author's Note: Hello, everyone. I'm back and I'm trying to get back into writing. This is nowhere where I used to be but I found 64 damn prompts and now I'm trying to write more. I wrote this almost two months ago and I've just gotten around to posting it. It's really short because I'm just getting back into writing and I apologize! Constructive criticism is always welcomed. I really want to become a better writer, so please help me out.
Title: Lock and Key (2 A.M.)
Summary: No rest for the wicked. (A strange AU I have no plans for.)
Characters: Ami Mizuno
1: 2 A.M.
In a disarray of books, writing utensils, and notebooks; Ami Mizuno slept. In an attempt to watch the "comets" that were currently plaguing the night sky for the past week. These comets, much to Ami's annoyance, were celebrated by the press as an "unexpected and beautiful gift from the Cosmos". They were also advising everyone the best times to watch with a telescope. (Much to everyone's shock, Usagi wondered aloud if there was spike in telescope sales by some shady shop that conveniently just set up town. Minako joked that she was becoming self-aware.)
The sleeping soldier of wisdom laid still on her side with her legs curled to her chest and one arm held a book to her chest and another folded behind her head. This was the third night in a row where she had fallen asleep at this time, despite the energy drinks and the small exercises to help her blood flow; she did these to stay awake. Usually, she had no issue staying up this late. She easily breezed through the final hours of the night and the early hours of morning before finally closing her eyes at five and not waking up again until precisely a quarter until nine. Although Ami knew what kind of toll it was on her body, it didn't bother her too much. Ami spent most of her nights reading and analyzing the current events in the city or her friends' lives. They always seemed to be having a more challenging time than she.
Compared to her friends—particularly her fellow guardians—Ami thought she had a rather easy life. Her parents were well-off and both living. She had a distant but friendly relationship with both. They let her take care of herself how she felt it was fit and were never condescending. They respected her as a person and were never too concerned with her affairs. When she saw her fellow senshi's parents, she felt a pang of loneliness but shrugged it off quickly, believing that she had raised herself fairly well.
She stirred in her sleep and her grasp released the book. Her relaxed arm and the book made separate but quiet thuds against the floor. In the studio apartment, the curtains began to blow gently in a non-existent breeze and the window began to rattle until it opened. A figure crawled in from the patio, as if to stop her heels from clicking.
Once on the carpet, the woman's legs swept underneath each other in order to stand. The movement was fast and soundless. She kicked the mess of supplies surrounding the young soldier. The books' paths jutting all over the otherwise neat living room and kitchen.
When she finally reached her destination, she crouched once more. Her long fingers curled around Ami's jaw. With her other hand, she dusted the girl's bangs. Satisfied with herself, the woman smirked. The hand that tenderly brushed the sleeping girl's bangs became rigid and her fingers began to extend beyond their joints. She pressed her long fingernail into the center of Ami's forehead. In an act of defense, the symbol of Mercury began to its brilliant cerulean. Although she was still asleep, her eyes tightened as if to aid the symbol.
Despite Mercury's reflex, the fingernail continue to delve deeper into the soldier's skull. The woman's eyes began to flash with reflections of her memories and knowledge. Her cackle filled the room at an ear-splitting volume. Her laugh ceased when she uttered in a honeyed and high-pitched voice,
"It's nice to see you again, princess."
She removed her fingernail from Mercury's forehead and her hand from around her jaw. Mercury fell to the ground with a loud thud.
"I won't kill you today." She said through her teeth. "You should be proud of my self-control." She spat on her face. "Gods know you didn't have a drop of it." The woman walked back to the window and slammed it shut. Then jumped off of the balcony into the bustling lights of the city.