Vulcan's Lament Chapter 1: Meeting With Destiny, a sailor moon fanfic

VULCAN'S LAMENT
Chapter 1: "Meeting With Destiny"
A Sailor Moon fanfic

By Bill K.

Special thanks to Homer for showing me the way.

Artemis lazily lifted his head from where it rested on his front paws and looked around. The apartment was the usual din of morning activity. Minako was racing around trying to gather herself and get to the studio for the morning run-through of this week's shooting script for her television series, "Island Princess". She was racing because, as usual, she'd been forever trying to rouse herself from sleep and then she'd been two hours in the bathroom making herself presentable to her satisfaction.

Toshihiro was racing around trying to get out of the apartment on time because he'd only now just gotten access to the bathroom and was trying to shave in under five minutes. He had already eaten, dressed and made notes on the script he was going to be running through for the series he was directing, "Sensei Versus Class".

Sighing, Artemis lay back down. It was so hard to sleep in the morning.

"Toshi, I'm going!" Minako called out loud enough so she could be heard in the bathroom.

"Could you put the breakfast dishes in the dish washer?" Toshihiro replied, popping his head out of the door. An electric razor was in his hand.

"And chip my nail polish?" Minako gasped in horror. "I just put it on!"

"Why don't you use that stuff that coats it so it won't chip?" Toshihiro asked.

"Because make up will just have to take it off for the show and it'll take longer if I do that."

Toshihiro stopped and digested that. "Then why put it on?"

"Toshi! I have an image to maintain!" Minako barked. "Can't you put the dishes in?"

"I'm running late now!" Toshihiro exclaimed.

"Don't look at me," Artemis said as he shifted position on the arm of the sofa. "You know how I feel about water."

"Then leave them for when I get home," Minako said.

"You mean when I get home," grumbled Toshihiro.

"Oh yeah, I'm going to be late getting home," Minako announced, pausing at the door. "I've got a meeting with the CEO of Horizon Pictures. My agent says he wants to personally find out what I'd like to do for my next picture. See what good buzz can get you?"

"I knew it would happen," Toshihiro smiled. "Your last picture, 'Lily Of The Lake', really showed people your range."

"Yeah, and in just a supporting role. And the buzz over 'The Handmaiden' is even stronger. No more bimbo comedies for me," Minako beamed. "Well I've got to go! I'm keeping the studio car waiting! Bye! Love you!"

"See you tonight, Mina," Toshihiro said as the door shut. Then he looked at the breakfast dishes still on the table and sighed. "Artemis, has she always been like this?"

"I've only known her since she was thirteen," Artemis replied, glancing back at the portly man. "But I'd say the odds are pretty favorable."

"Yeah," he grinned ruefully. "I'm really running late, Artemis. I don't supposed you ...?"

"Sorry, but stoneware is a little heavy for me," Artemis replied.

"Yeah," Toshihiro sighed and scooped up the dishes.

Rei Hino was inspecting the garden at Hikawa Shrine, her breath visible in the cool November air. There wasn't much to inspect, really, as all of the flowers and most of the trees were hibernating for the winter. But she inspected it anyway, to see if a visitor had done any damage - - but mostly for the feeling of control it gave her. Rei ran Hikawa Shrine and it gave her a sense of accomplishment. It also gave her a sense that she was honoring her mother and grandfather by keeping the place up. And the beauty of the place attracted people with discretionary incomes who might have the impulse to buy a charm or some incense.

A pair of teenage girls buzzed past her, looking for Akira-Sensei. The behavior always gave Rei a pleasant feeling of nostalgia. After all, it wasn't THAT long ago that she saw the same behavior in Usagi and Minako.

"Or me, if I looked in a mirror," Rei grinned to herself.

Deimos and Phobos suddenly flew down and perched on either shoulder. Deimos squawked at Rei almost petulantly. The priest brought up her hand and rubbed along the crow's neck. Not wanting to neglect the bird's sister, she brought the hand over and rubbed Phobos, too. The priest continued on a few steps, the birds riding on her shoulders. Then she stopped, for a joyous feeling came over her.

"Good morning, Usagi," Rei said before she turned. Usagi was staggering up, once more brought low by mounting the steps to the shrine. "What brings you here?"

"Just," Usagi gasped out between heavy breaths, "wanted to visit. Hi, girls," and she waved to the crows.

Normally skittish around other humans, Deimos held her ground and leaned forward expectantly. Usagi was the only person other than Rei that Deimos would do that for. Usagi came over and stroked both birds on the head and neck.

"Needed an excuse to ignore your deadlines?" Rei smirked. Usagi shot her a petulant face. "Or are you still checking up on me?"

"I'm not checking up on you! Why would I check up on you?" Usagi growled. Rei replied with a stone face of disbelief. "OK, I'm checking up on you! I worry, OK!"

"You don't have to worry," Rei assured her. "I stopped jumping at shadows days ago."

"Rei?" gasped Usagi in alarm.

"Joking," the priest replied. "It's getting better. The more time passes, the more unreal it all seems. Besides, he didn't actually rape me. You stopped him in time. I just have to be a little bit more careful." She glanced at Usagi for a second. "What tickets?"

"Oh, yeah! Michiru sent me tickets!" exclaimed Usagi. "You knew she and Haruka are going on that concert tour, right?"

"Yeah. Aren't they playing Konshu tomorrow?"

"Uh huh! And the tour is supposed to wrap up here in Tokyo in February!" Usagi explained. "And Michiru sent me tickets to give to everyone, on her. You're going to go, aren't you? Ami has already said 'yes'!"

"I wouldn't miss it," Rei replied. "But isn't Michiru's violin concertos a little highbrow for you?"

"A little," Usagi shrugged. "But I go just to see Michiru on stage." Then she leered, "And to see Haruka in a tux."

"Oh yes, I forgot about your tuxedo fetish," Rei grinned.

"IT'S NOT A FETISH!" bellowed Usagi. "What's a fetish?"

Rei didn't get to answer, because she spotted Makoto coming up the walk with little Ichiro in tow. Usagi turned and saw them as well and her face lit up.

"Ichiro!" Usagi exclaimed. She knelt down and the child pulled out of his mother's grasp and ran over to her. Usagi enveloped the boy in her arms and hugged him.

"Hi, Anny Usagi!" the boy beamed. Usagi released him and looked him over.

"Oh, I just love hugging handsome men!" she squealed. Then she went digging in her purse. "And I think I've got something for you!"

"Would it do any good to ask you not to do that?" sighed Makoto.

"Would it do any good if you hit her with a board?" Rei quipped. Usagi ignored them and presented Ichiro with a piece of candy.

"T'ank you, Anny Usagi!" Ichiro grinned, clutching the candy. Makoto wiggled her hand and Ichiro dutifully took it.

"I hate to be a bother, Rei," Makoto began.

"Yes, you can leave him with me," Rei replied patiently. "I've only told you that five thousand times. What's wrong?"

"Akiko's teacher wants to see me," Makoto scowled.

"Uh oh," Usagi grimaced.

"Maybe it's something positive," Rei offered.

"It better be," Makoto told them. "Otherwise she's not going to be able to sit down for a month. I keep trying to get her to act like a lady, but it goes in one ear and out the other."

"It'll come, Mako-Chan," Usagi assured her. "But in the mean time, why don't you just let her be a kid first."

"She's actually making sense for once," Rei agreed.

"After all, none of us were perfect children and look how we turned out," Usagi offered. Then she shot Rei a wary glance.

"It's too easy," Rei smirked.

"I guess," Makoto sighed. "Hey, maybe her teacher wants to tell me she's a prodigy and she's earned a scholarship to some big-shot university." She knelt down to her son. "OK, Champ, you be a good boy while you're with your Aunt Rei, OK? And Mommy will be back to pick you up around lunchtime. And we'll go have lunch at some nice restaurant."

"McDonalds?" Ichiro asked hopefully.

"No, not McDonalds," Makoto frowned. She glanced at her friends. "They watch way too much TV." Ichiro went over and took Rei's hand. Makoto blew him a kiss and started off.

"Oh, Mako-Chan, wait up!" Usagi exclaimed, chasing after her friend. "You've heard about the concert tour Michiru and Haruka are doing, right?"

Mamoru entered the records office of the practice he shared with Ami Mizuno and found Ami there. It had been the first time he'd seen her that morning. When he'd arrived for work that morning, Ami was already in with a patient. Her strict promptness in seeing patients at the appointed time had actually begun to shame him into imitating her. There was a lot about Ami Mizuno's behavior that motivated him to do better, because she was already a better doctor than he was despite being four years his junior.

"Good morning, Ami," he smiled, then went back to searching for the medical records for the next patient he was due to see. The medical assistant who usually retrieved records for them was out with the flu.

"Good morning, Mamoru," Ami smiled in return. She always had a smile for him.

"Did Usagi get hold of you yet?" he asked.

"About the tickets for Michiru's concert?" Ami asked. "Yes, she met me earlier this morning here at the office. I was quite touched that she would think of me, and that Michiru would, too. I'm quite the enthusiast about Michiru's music."

"Well good. I know she was very eager to get the tickets distributed," Mamoru replied. Then he darkened. "Did she offer you one to give to your mother?"

Ami seemed to go limp for a moment. "Yes," the doctor admitted, reluctant to even deal with the subject.

"I apologize for that," Mamoru told her. "I warned her not to bring that subject up."

"Usagi is an incurable optimist," Ami observed. "She thinks any problem can be solved through positive thinking and persistence. It's a wonderful outlook to have, even if it can be naive at times."

"Is there any progress?"

"No, Mother remains as stubborn and intractable as ever," Ami sighed. "She refuses to admit that being a general practitioner is not a colossal waste of my abilities as a physician and I refuse to bend to her will as I have so often in the past. We haven't spoken in months. She doesn't even call with job prospects any longer."

"Maybe she's finally realized that you're not going to give in on this point," Mamoru offered.

"Undoubtedly," Ami said dourly. "Mother was always a very shrewd judge of behavior - - with the possible exception of her own. Perhaps she just wishes to have nothing to do with someone she considers 'lacking in drive'."

"Or maybe she doesn't know how to bridge the gap," Mamoru proposed. "She's crawled out onto a limb, and she's too proud or too scared to crawl back."

"All scenarios I've contemplated," Ami nodded, scanning the history of her next patient. "There is one other scenario that you haven't proposed."

"Being?" Mamoru asked.

"She will only love on her terms," Ami forced out, "and my act of rebellion has destroyed any feelings she might have had for me."

And Ami left the records room before the stunned Mamoru could reply further.

Minako and her agent, Takashi Shiro, exited the elevator onto the thirty-second floor of the high-rise office building that housed the Tokyo offices of Horizon Pictures. They were greeted in moments by Yushima Saito, executive assistant to the CEO of Horizon. Saito was about thirty-five, with thick black hair and a handsome, confident appearance. He looked like a man who got things done, a man who could be depended upon to carry out an order loyally and efficiently. From the look of his suit, he was also very well compensated for his loyalty and efficiency. Minako instantly noticed the ring on his finger. It was very ornate and very expensive, and it wasn't a wedding band.

"Ah, Aino-San," he said, bowing crisply and deferentially, "Shiro-San. Thank you for your promptness. Please wait here for just a moment. I'll tell the CEO that you've arrived."

"Nice," Minako leered as Saito exited into the inner office. "I gotta get me one of those."

"Behave, Minako," Shiro whispered to her. "It isn't every actress who gets invited to a personal meeting with the CEO of Horizon."

"What is he, a recluse?"

"No, just very hands off. He puts the right people in place, then sits back and lets them do their jobs while he rakes in the money," Shiro explained. "It's the best situation to be in, if you can find it. Nobody harping about budgets and bottom lines, nobody throwing marketing research in your face. It's a very favorable atmosphere for a creative person to be in. I guess it's because Saijou Takeda used to be in the business on the creative side, so he understands it."

"Oh yeah?" Minako inquired. "What was he, a director?"

"Actor. He had some television show about fifteen years ago or something. I don't remember what. Only lasted one season; then he dropped out of sight for the longest time. Must have made a bundle somehow, because he resurfaced and bought Horizon a few years back. It was right about the time you got 'Island Princess'."

"Wow," mused Minako. "I wouldn't mind being rich enough to own my own movie studio."

Saito emerged from the office. He gestured for Minako and Shiro and they came up.

"Takeda-Sama will see you now," he told them. "Please go in. There is a refreshment station inside the office. Please help yourself. And let me know if you require any other amenities."

Entering the office, Minako let her vision wander. The room was huge, at least sixteen feet square. Bookshelves lined the walls on two sides and contained both hardbound volumes and bound scripts. Below the shelves were cabinets of expensive oak. The carpet was a thick blue pile with the Horizon logo stitched into the center of the carpet in red and gold just before Takeda's desk. Along the third wall was a wide-screen plasma TV with decks for VHS tape, DVD, DVD-rom, CD and Blu-Ray. To each side of the TV were twenty-four inch speakers. Below the TV were cabinets filled with Horizon releases and some product from other studios, as well as an MP-3 player with a play list of several thousand selections. Acoustic drapes divided the room strategically to enhance sound quality.

Behind the main desk was a wall-length picture window overlooking the Odaiba district and the harbor beyond it. In the distance was the Rainbow Bridge. The desk was large and impressive, made of solid oak. The chairs were oak as well with plush cushions. They and several smaller end tables, as well as a bar in the corner, were also solid oak. There was a chrome sofa with thick blue cushions positioned against the side wall opposite the wide-screen. Minako marveled. The money it took to apportion this office alone could buy her parents' entire home.

As her eyes became accustom to the light from the picture window, Minako could better focus on the man behind the desk. He was immaculately dressed in a tailor-made black suit and tie with a beige shirt. His light brown hair was long, below his shoulders, making him seem very youthful. It reminded Minako of someone she'd gladly put in her past. The very thought of him suddenly made her uneasy. She would have to depend on all of her skill as an actress not to show any discomfort in this man's presence.

Then she was able to clearly see his features. The blood seemed to evacuate from her body. Minako stopped dead in her tracks, causing Shiro to glance inquiringly at her. As such, he saw the look of shock and horror on her face.

"Good afternoon, Aino-San," Takeda said with charming politeness. "Please have a seat."

"Ace," Minako whispered.

Continued in Chapter 2