WATER by Sievert Dinar
Disclaimer - Sailormoon is owned by a lot of people, most of whom
are not me, so don't get all worked up about my using the characters
in ways they weren't meant. I'm just a common or garden fanfic
writer without a hope in this dark and cruel world. Maybe.
The two Senshi stood at the entrance to the cavern, staring
into the dark corners of its ceiling, trying not to look at the
vast fountain-pool, now emptied of water but replaced with a
million... perhaps a billion... flowers, from grieving people all
over the globe.
The Queen was dead.
The cavern, which had once been a place of escape and
tranquillity for the young Queen had been turned into a vast shrine.
The Queen would not have been happy to see the changes wrought to
this once-quiet place. There were already plans to redecorate and
redesign much of its interior, to make it brighter and less like a
tomb. All that was going to occur in the distant future, however,
as the important events of the young Princess's ascension to the
throne took precedent.
And anyway, the two guarding Senshi were glad the hubbub of
the past few weeks was over. Millions of people had streamed
through the entrance to see the place the Queen had died. Even
more, to mourn the fact that, even though many of the infiltrators
who had stormed the palace that day had been caught, the actual
perpetrator of the crime had not. And, it seemed, would never be.
But the anger over this had found no source upon which it could be
vented, and thus dissipated into the miasma of grief.
"What time is it?" The first guard looked down at her shorter
compatriot as she scratched her nose.
"Why do you ask?" The second shifted on her feet. "You want
to get out of here early, or something?"
"I hate this place. It's so morbid, it gives me the creeps."
The second guard shook her head, chuckling mirthlessly.
"She isn't going to make a reappearance, you know." She
turned to the first, wriggling her fingers at the taller Senshi with
an evil expression on her face. "Vengeance from beyond the grave."
"Stop that." The first huffed. "Not in here, of all places.
If the Sergeant sees us...."
"She won't. She wants to be in here as much as we do." The
second crossed her arms, feeling a slight chill. "Dammit, I wish
these uniforms were a bit more substantial. They aren't half
breezy."
"Not people like us who designed them, was it?" The first
nodded, sympathetically. "I mean, if it were up to me, I'd have a
summer uniform and a winter uniform. Then we can choose, depending
on the weather, what uniform we're going to put on in the morning.
These short, pleated skirts don't do anything for me, I have to say.
Throw the things off and put something decent on when I'm off duty."
The second snorted at the comment.
"Yeah, they could also choose less clashing colours. I mean,
look at mine..." She gestured to her uniform. "Red and green. I
mean, could they have chosen anything WORSE for me?"
The pair went silent for a moment, taking in the darkness of
their surroundings once more. The first looked away from her
partner, biting her lower lip. "Jeez, here we are, guarding the
place the Queen died and we're talking about the state of our
uniforms."
There were a few moments of silence as the second thought over
a good response. "Well..." She took a long breath. "What DOES one
talk about in a place like this? I mean, it's not as if there is a
guidebook for this sort of thing."
"I know that, but..." The first held out a hand, as if trying
to grasp the words she wanted to say from the air. "I mean, this
place... is now SO important, on a worldwide scale. It almost
boggles the imagination to think I am standing here, talking about
the state of my uniform as if it were just any old place."
"But it IS just any old place." The second sniffed. "It
isn't as if this cavern chose its destiny for itself. It didn't
want the Queen to be assassinated in here. It didn't want to become
a memorial to her memory. It doesn't really give a damn what we all
make of it. It's just a place, like any other place. Like your
quarters, back in the barracks. What would you feel if the Queen
were to have died in there?"
"Pretty pissed off, actually." The first nodded. "For the
first part, it'd probably mean I'd have to move out and find
somewhere else to stay, and secondly, I'd probably be arrested for
her murder, simply because it took place in my quarters." She
paused for a moment, looking over her shoulder, through the
entranceway.
"What is it?"
"I thought I heard someone coming." The first relaxed a
little, looking down at her feet as she folded her hands behind her
back and did a little two-step to keep the blood flowing in her
legs.
"Wish things could have been like this a week ago..." The
second followed her partner's example. "It was such a pain, trying
to maintain a calm composure in front of all those people."
"Yeah, I know what you mean."
"Who did you get partnered with, then?"
"Hmm?" The first turned to her partner. "Shoko? Why do you
ask?"
"I was partnered with Arisa for a while." The first let out a
long moan.
"Oh no, not HER?"
"Yeah. Maybe it was a bloody good thing we didn't have to say
anything to one another, eh?"
"It must have been murder for the poor girl, not being able to
talk at a moment like that." The first shook her head, a wicked
grin on her face. "Damn, I wish I could have seen that. Shoko with
her mouth shut... That WOULD have been a sight to remember."
"Pity it had to be during times like these." The second
stopped moving about and lowered her face. "I hear Tomomi is giving
the game away because of all the misery in this place."
"You're kidding me?"
"No... Although I suspect it is more than just the atmosphere
of this place that has gotten to her of recent. She was given guard
duty on Jupiter's office, afternoon shift. It drove her spare, just
having to stand there for eight hours a day. Then, with everything
going to pieces like it has, well..."
The first shook her head, sadly. "Same thing with Ryoko and
Maki. They're so depressed about what has happened, they've taken
early retirement. Although, I have to say, I'm not surprised about
Maki. She always did let these kinds of things get to her.
Remember how she was during the service memorial for Neptune?"
"Oh yes... A complete basket case..." The second paused,
then gestured to the first. "Somebody IS coming, this time."
The two senshi stood to attention as a young girl, dressed in
disheveled clothing, but washed as if trying to keep up an
appearance, carrying a large bunch of white flowers, walked into the
cavernous room, ignoring them as she passed them by. They both
watched as she stepped up alongside the flower-filled pool, at
precisely the point where the Queen had been standing when she was
shot.
"Oi..." The first nudged her partner as she whispered in her
ear. "What does she think she's up to, dressed like that in the
grounds of the Palace?"
"They don't pick and choose the mourners they let in on the
basis of their clothing, you know?" The second whispered back.
"Yeah, but look at where she is standing." The first nodded
at the girl. "That's where..."
"Yeah, I know, I know." the second gritted her teeth with
annoyance.
The girl looked down into the pool of flowers, feeling
surprisingly detached from the scene, especially considering all
that had happened that day. She had had plenty of time to think
about what she had done, and about the effect it had had on everyone
around her.
She didn't have any choice. She had repeated that to herself,
time and time again. Circumstance had seen her fall in with a group
of dissidents, all of whom had made her feel exceptionally welcome,
like family. Or, at the very least, like a collection of like-
minded people. She couldn't have seen how dark and manipulative
they truly were, not back then, when she was so vulnerable.
It had struck her as ironic that, of all the members of the
group who had stormed the Palace that day, she was the only one to
have escaped without being caught. When news of the events she had
brought into motion came to light, all of those members of the group
who had not been part of the Palace operation scattered to the four
winds, so that, when she finally got back, there was nobody to greet
her. Congratulate her. Protect her. Comfort her.
There was nobody. But herself. As it had always been.
And now she stood on the spot where the Queen had met her
death, at her hands. She wished she had not dropped the gun. It
would have been so fitting to have annihilated herself here, falling
into the pool of flowers in the same way the Queen had fallen into a
pool of water.
And nothing changed the fact that she had, so completely, so
utterly, done the wrong thing. How could she have gone through with
it? She had asked herself that question repeatedly, and found no
answer. To the point where she stopped questioning herself, and
allowed those fateful moments to replay in her mind. Until, this
day, she found herself wandering the streets of Crystal Tokyo, with
this bunch of flowers in her hand, towards the Palace gates.
"I... I forgive you." The Queen had said. "I... I
forgive you." How could she? She had just been murdered by someone
she didn't know. She wanted to throw the flowers she was holding
into the pool with bitterness and anger. How DARE she be forgiven
by the person she had killed. It somehow didn't seem right.
"There is no point in inflicting further pain upon yourself."
The soft voice echoed through the girl's ears. "My words were
spoken truthfully. I forgive you. Now you must learn to forgive
yourself." And the girl raised her face to the apparition, floating
in ethereal beauty.
The two senshi felt their jaws hit the floor as the spirit of
the Queen floated over the pool of flowers towards the girl. After
a few moments of silent conversation, the girl raised the flowers to
the Queen, who took them like they were the most important gift she
had ever been given...
=^.^= niya
Sievert Anathea Dienar sievertd@start.com.au
Disclaimer - Sailormoon is owned by a lot of people, most of whom
are not me, so don't get all worked up about my using the characters
in ways they weren't meant. I'm just a common or garden fanfic
writer without a hope in this dark and cruel world. Maybe.
The two Senshi stood at the entrance to the cavern, staring
into the dark corners of its ceiling, trying not to look at the
vast fountain-pool, now emptied of water but replaced with a
million... perhaps a billion... flowers, from grieving people all
over the globe.
The Queen was dead.
The cavern, which had once been a place of escape and
tranquillity for the young Queen had been turned into a vast shrine.
The Queen would not have been happy to see the changes wrought to
this once-quiet place. There were already plans to redecorate and
redesign much of its interior, to make it brighter and less like a
tomb. All that was going to occur in the distant future, however,
as the important events of the young Princess's ascension to the
throne took precedent.
And anyway, the two guarding Senshi were glad the hubbub of
the past few weeks was over. Millions of people had streamed
through the entrance to see the place the Queen had died. Even
more, to mourn the fact that, even though many of the infiltrators
who had stormed the palace that day had been caught, the actual
perpetrator of the crime had not. And, it seemed, would never be.
But the anger over this had found no source upon which it could be
vented, and thus dissipated into the miasma of grief.
"What time is it?" The first guard looked down at her shorter
compatriot as she scratched her nose.
"Why do you ask?" The second shifted on her feet. "You want
to get out of here early, or something?"
"I hate this place. It's so morbid, it gives me the creeps."
The second guard shook her head, chuckling mirthlessly.
"She isn't going to make a reappearance, you know." She
turned to the first, wriggling her fingers at the taller Senshi with
an evil expression on her face. "Vengeance from beyond the grave."
"Stop that." The first huffed. "Not in here, of all places.
If the Sergeant sees us...."
"She won't. She wants to be in here as much as we do." The
second crossed her arms, feeling a slight chill. "Dammit, I wish
these uniforms were a bit more substantial. They aren't half
breezy."
"Not people like us who designed them, was it?" The first
nodded, sympathetically. "I mean, if it were up to me, I'd have a
summer uniform and a winter uniform. Then we can choose, depending
on the weather, what uniform we're going to put on in the morning.
These short, pleated skirts don't do anything for me, I have to say.
Throw the things off and put something decent on when I'm off duty."
The second snorted at the comment.
"Yeah, they could also choose less clashing colours. I mean,
look at mine..." She gestured to her uniform. "Red and green. I
mean, could they have chosen anything WORSE for me?"
The pair went silent for a moment, taking in the darkness of
their surroundings once more. The first looked away from her
partner, biting her lower lip. "Jeez, here we are, guarding the
place the Queen died and we're talking about the state of our
uniforms."
There were a few moments of silence as the second thought over
a good response. "Well..." She took a long breath. "What DOES one
talk about in a place like this? I mean, it's not as if there is a
guidebook for this sort of thing."
"I know that, but..." The first held out a hand, as if trying
to grasp the words she wanted to say from the air. "I mean, this
place... is now SO important, on a worldwide scale. It almost
boggles the imagination to think I am standing here, talking about
the state of my uniform as if it were just any old place."
"But it IS just any old place." The second sniffed. "It
isn't as if this cavern chose its destiny for itself. It didn't
want the Queen to be assassinated in here. It didn't want to become
a memorial to her memory. It doesn't really give a damn what we all
make of it. It's just a place, like any other place. Like your
quarters, back in the barracks. What would you feel if the Queen
were to have died in there?"
"Pretty pissed off, actually." The first nodded. "For the
first part, it'd probably mean I'd have to move out and find
somewhere else to stay, and secondly, I'd probably be arrested for
her murder, simply because it took place in my quarters." She
paused for a moment, looking over her shoulder, through the
entranceway.
"What is it?"
"I thought I heard someone coming." The first relaxed a
little, looking down at her feet as she folded her hands behind her
back and did a little two-step to keep the blood flowing in her
legs.
"Wish things could have been like this a week ago..." The
second followed her partner's example. "It was such a pain, trying
to maintain a calm composure in front of all those people."
"Yeah, I know what you mean."
"Who did you get partnered with, then?"
"Hmm?" The first turned to her partner. "Shoko? Why do you
ask?"
"I was partnered with Arisa for a while." The first let out a
long moan.
"Oh no, not HER?"
"Yeah. Maybe it was a bloody good thing we didn't have to say
anything to one another, eh?"
"It must have been murder for the poor girl, not being able to
talk at a moment like that." The first shook her head, a wicked
grin on her face. "Damn, I wish I could have seen that. Shoko with
her mouth shut... That WOULD have been a sight to remember."
"Pity it had to be during times like these." The second
stopped moving about and lowered her face. "I hear Tomomi is giving
the game away because of all the misery in this place."
"You're kidding me?"
"No... Although I suspect it is more than just the atmosphere
of this place that has gotten to her of recent. She was given guard
duty on Jupiter's office, afternoon shift. It drove her spare, just
having to stand there for eight hours a day. Then, with everything
going to pieces like it has, well..."
The first shook her head, sadly. "Same thing with Ryoko and
Maki. They're so depressed about what has happened, they've taken
early retirement. Although, I have to say, I'm not surprised about
Maki. She always did let these kinds of things get to her.
Remember how she was during the service memorial for Neptune?"
"Oh yes... A complete basket case..." The second paused,
then gestured to the first. "Somebody IS coming, this time."
The two senshi stood to attention as a young girl, dressed in
disheveled clothing, but washed as if trying to keep up an
appearance, carrying a large bunch of white flowers, walked into the
cavernous room, ignoring them as she passed them by. They both
watched as she stepped up alongside the flower-filled pool, at
precisely the point where the Queen had been standing when she was
shot.
"Oi..." The first nudged her partner as she whispered in her
ear. "What does she think she's up to, dressed like that in the
grounds of the Palace?"
"They don't pick and choose the mourners they let in on the
basis of their clothing, you know?" The second whispered back.
"Yeah, but look at where she is standing." The first nodded
at the girl. "That's where..."
"Yeah, I know, I know." the second gritted her teeth with
annoyance.
The girl looked down into the pool of flowers, feeling
surprisingly detached from the scene, especially considering all
that had happened that day. She had had plenty of time to think
about what she had done, and about the effect it had had on everyone
around her.
She didn't have any choice. She had repeated that to herself,
time and time again. Circumstance had seen her fall in with a group
of dissidents, all of whom had made her feel exceptionally welcome,
like family. Or, at the very least, like a collection of like-
minded people. She couldn't have seen how dark and manipulative
they truly were, not back then, when she was so vulnerable.
It had struck her as ironic that, of all the members of the
group who had stormed the Palace that day, she was the only one to
have escaped without being caught. When news of the events she had
brought into motion came to light, all of those members of the group
who had not been part of the Palace operation scattered to the four
winds, so that, when she finally got back, there was nobody to greet
her. Congratulate her. Protect her. Comfort her.
There was nobody. But herself. As it had always been.
And now she stood on the spot where the Queen had met her
death, at her hands. She wished she had not dropped the gun. It
would have been so fitting to have annihilated herself here, falling
into the pool of flowers in the same way the Queen had fallen into a
pool of water.
And nothing changed the fact that she had, so completely, so
utterly, done the wrong thing. How could she have gone through with
it? She had asked herself that question repeatedly, and found no
answer. To the point where she stopped questioning herself, and
allowed those fateful moments to replay in her mind. Until, this
day, she found herself wandering the streets of Crystal Tokyo, with
this bunch of flowers in her hand, towards the Palace gates.
"I... I forgive you." The Queen had said. "I... I
forgive you." How could she? She had just been murdered by someone
she didn't know. She wanted to throw the flowers she was holding
into the pool with bitterness and anger. How DARE she be forgiven
by the person she had killed. It somehow didn't seem right.
"There is no point in inflicting further pain upon yourself."
The soft voice echoed through the girl's ears. "My words were
spoken truthfully. I forgive you. Now you must learn to forgive
yourself." And the girl raised her face to the apparition, floating
in ethereal beauty.
The two senshi felt their jaws hit the floor as the spirit of
the Queen floated over the pool of flowers towards the girl. After
a few moments of silent conversation, the girl raised the flowers to
the Queen, who took them like they were the most important gift she
had ever been given...
=^.^= niya
Sievert Anathea Dienar sievertd@start.com.au