A Day in the Life
Summary: The mysterious Sailor Pluto, owner of the third talisman, has been incarnated onto Earth under the guise of Setsuna Meioh. She has helped save two of her dear friends, Haruka and Michiru, and the Holy Grail has appeared. It's the search for the Death Busters that leads her onto the trail of the young firefly, Hotaru Tomoe.
Author's Note: This is the episode with the first appearance of Mimet as the leading Witch through the eyes of Setsuna. As follows, the dialogue from certain sections are quoted directly from the show; however, as this is a fan fiction, I obviously added some parts that weren't there and such. The quotes were taken from the subtitles, not the actual English dialogue.
A Day in the Life
With the sun not yet risen, Setsuna awoke. She had been dreaming of the Silence. It was approaching quickly now; soon the Death Busters would reveal themselves. Soon the final battle would begin. She knew all of this, it was not new news. Nothing was new to her.
As guardian of the Time Gate she knew all that was and all that would be.
She took the Gate keys from around her neck and fastened them around her waist. Setsuna quickly readied herself for the day. Down the hall she could hear nothing; the sun had just began to rise.
Haruka and Michiru would be expecting her soon, but she was not ready to speak with them today. They would send her on a wild goose chase. Her daily mission was to search and observe possible Death Busters. She spent days on end searching for the Death Busters she knew she would not find.
It was forbidden to tell the secrets of the future, Setsuna knew very well, so day after day she spent countless hours hunting down false foes while Haruka and Michiru attended the Mugen Academy. How close they were to their query! How little they knew.
Setsuna treaded silently down the stairs, making not a sound. The stairway echoed terribly, and it was best to walk as silently as possible. As she stepped onto the sidewalk outside the building she wondered why she didn't just lie to Haruka and Michiru. Tell them that she had followed the suspect and made the proper enquiries. But Michiru had an uncanny knack for picking out lies. So day after day she would follow the suspects waiting for the proper time to reveal everything.
She quickly walked to the home of Haruka and knocked. Michiru answered the door and led her to the vast kitchen.
"Good morning," Setsuna greeted them as she sat down at the table.
"Would you like something to eat?" Michiru asked politely.
"That would be very nice," Setsuna replied with a smile.
"Our suspect today is a professor at Mugen," Haruka began, "A man named Doctor Tomoe."
"And what caused this sudden suspicion?" Setsuna asked calmly, not reacting to the name. That would give it away.
"He and his daughter miraculously survived a blast a few years ago, they were the only two to survive," Haruka went on.
"Why am I investigation them?"
"No one in that blast had the slightest chance of survival," Haruka said.
"So you want me to investigate Tomoe today?" Setsuna asked.
"No, we want you to investigate his daughter, Hotaru. She has been known to exhibit strange powers. We think she may be the Messiah of Silence."
"Are you sure?" Setsuna asked as Haruka handed her a folder.
"No, but we want to investigate. Michiru and I would do it, but we have another suspect to follow," Haruka said.
Michiru set a plate of food before Setsuna and smiled in her impish way.
"A possible candidate named Yosaku Eda," Michiru grinned.
"Isn't he a movie star?" Setsuna asked.
"He's so dreamy," Michiru laughed.
Haruka coughed into her hand, and Michiru laughed impishly.
"I think I'll go now," Setsuna said after a beat. She pushed her half eaten plate away and stood. Bowing slightly, she left.
… … … … …
Setsuna walked aimlessly for some time. It was much too early to begin observing Hotaru. The girl was probably still locked away in her dark house. She let her feet guide her, and when she finally looked up, she realized she was at the Hikawa Shrine.
"Setsuna?"
Setsuna looked around and saw Ami standing patiently near the bottom of the steps.
"Would you like to join us? We have a few questions for you," Ami said shyly.
"I can only stay for a little while," Setsuna replied, "But I will try to answer your questions."
… … … … …
"- If the correct person gets a hold of the grail the world will be filled with divine light, and evil of all sorts will be crushed. However, if evil hands get a hold of the grail the entire world will be ruled by darkness, and the age of shadows will begin," Setsuna said, "If that happens, the future will change as well, of course."
Setsuna saw Rei's face change into horror. She knew Rei was having the same vision of silence. Rei quickly stifled the look hopind no one had noticed.
"Setsuna, you have here from the future to tell us about that, right?" Ami asked.
"Yes," Setsuna replied, nodding her head and standing, "Well, I'll be going now."
It was a good time now to look for Hotaru.
"Eh? Why?" Usagi shouted surprised.
"I must find the messiah along with Uranus and Neptune."
"W-wait a minute!" Usagi chased after Setsuna, but the mysterious scout had already vanished.
… … … … …
Today was a vacation day of school, so Hotaru would have off. Setsuna looked at the folder Haruka had given her. It was just a basic description of her looks, and a picture. Miss Tomoe was definitely Saturn, of that Setsuna was sure; however, the girl could not be revealed now.
The folder said that Hotaru liked to sit at the Juban Nature Park. Again letting her feet guide her, Setsuna headed off towards the park.
… … … … …
There she was, Hotaru Tomoe, sitting on a bench all by herself. Setsuna sighed as she saw the girl's obvious loneliness. Her shoulders were slumped and a hat was pulled over her face. She seemed so fragile.
Setsuna knew that loneliness. It was common for her; it was self-induced. It did not pay to get ooclose to anyone other than her fellow soldiers and most of the time they did not understand her awkward position. She knew the future, but she could not act to change or alter it. She must do everything as was planned. With one misstep or one piece of information revealed the entire balance of the timeline could be thrown off.
Uranus and Neptune demanded many things of her, and they did not realize that they were estranging themselves from the true Messiah. They were blind to feelings of compassion and mercy towards anyone who stood in their way. It was necessary sometimes, but they did not realize the hole they were digging themselves into.
As the guardian of the Gate, Setsuna did not get out much. Her main friend was Small Lady, the only frequent traveler of the Time Gate. She understood Hotaru's loneliness.
Hotaru Tomoe was not doing much. She was just sort of staring wistfully at the sky. Maybe she wanted to fly away. Or maybe she was just day dreaming. Either way, she had a pensive look about her face.
Setsuna approached the girl.
"Do you mind if I sit here?" she asked.
"Oh! I was just getting up!" Hotaru said, jumping up quickly, offering the seat.
"You can stay," Setsuna gave a friendly smile, "There is enough room for the both of us."
"Are you sure?" Hotaru asked nervously, wringing her hands.
"Of course," Setsuna continued to smile, "I'm just taking a short rest before I move on."
"I see," Hotaru smiled weakly and sat down again. Setsuna joined her on the bench.
"So, what is your name?" she asked.
"Hotaru Tomoe," the small girl replied, "Who are you?"
"My name is Setsuna," she replied, "Why are you here all alone?"
"Well, my papa thought it would be a good day to go to the park, but he was too busy with work to come with me," Hotaru replied truthfully.
"You didn't invite any friends?"
"I-I...I don't have very many friends," Hotaru admitted.
"That's a shame, you seem like a nice girl," Setsuna comforted her, "I'm sure you'll make a bunch of friends soon."
"No," Hotaru replied, "I'm a freak, no one likes me."
"You don't look like a freak to me, Hotaru," Setsuna replied. She could hear someone approaching. If the timeline was correct, it would be Small Lady. Better not get caught.
"I think I hear a new friend coming now," she smiled and stood, "Farewell."
"Goodbye," Hotaru answered.
But she was gone already.
… … … … …
Later that evening, after the attack by the new villainess Mimet, the three outer soldiers gathered near the park bench.
"What did you find out about the girl?" Haruka asked.
"She's dreadfully shy," Setsuna answered, "I watched her, and I spoke with her. I don't think she is a prime suspect. We should keep looking."
"Are you sure?" Michiru asked questioningly.
"I'm sure, but I'll still keep an eye on her. Now I must go, I'll see you tomorrow," Setsuna said and walked away.
"If she's sure," she heard Michiru say to Haruka as she walked away, "I guess we have to keep looking."
Setsuna closed her eyes and let out a small sigh. The future was safe for now.
End.