Disclaimers: Sailor Moon and the Sailor Scouts and everything affiliated
with them are the property of Naoko Takeuchi, Toei Animation, Dic, and many
other big name people and companies with lots of money and lots of lawyers.
I do not own them so don't sue me; I'm only borrowing them for a little
while. Any other characters are mine. If anyone wishes to use them, please
notify me first.

Author's Notes: Hi everyone. It's me again, Johnny Ng, with my second
fanfic posting. For those who are wondering, my first fic was "Sailorpluto:
Duty" and no, they are in no way related. In fact, this one will be split up
into parts. Even though this is my second fic, I consider this my first
'real' fic.
For those of you who are wondering about continuity, I would
place this story just after Sailor Moon R, before Sailor Uranus and Neptune
appear, but it won't follow the storyline after that.

Just a bit of clarification:
the * * signify a person's thoughts
the ***** before a section signify either a memory or a shift into
the mindscape (don't worry, this will make sense eventually, I hope).

Please email me with your comments and/or criticisms at
engjng@worldnet.att.net. Heck, flame me if you want to. I'd like any
feedback I can get. Enjoy the story!


Brother's Keeper
Part 1
by: Johnny Ng
rating: PG


Two men stood facing each other on an empty field. The noonday sun
beat down mercilessly upon them, but neither seemed to notice.
"Don't do this...," said one, his blond hair and fair face marking
him as either American or European, but something in his eyes made him look
faintly Oriental.
"And why not?" asked the other, his black hair and porcelain
complexion portraying him as completely Asian.
"Let's just say...the consequences might not be what you expect."
The Asian man thought for a second. "No...I think I'll live with the
consequences. You however, may not." He got into a fighting stance.
"Prepare to defend yourself...brother."
"So be it."
The two men, brothers, leapt at each other and the earth shook with
their battle, but no one was there to record it.
In the end, only one was left standing, though barely.
The survivor ran his fingers through his matted black hair and spit
out blood. He looked down at his brother.
"You fought well, Trent, but you could never beat me."
Trent forced his eyes open a sliver and looked up at his brother. He
was dying, he knew that. His breath rattled in his punctured lungs and it
was with difficulty that he could talk.
"Daniel...," he wheezed, "Don't...don't do this. It's...wrong."
Daniel stood up straight and regarded his brother with disappointment
and pity. "I'm sorry you feel that way. But I won't let you or anybody else
stop me."
"Daniel...just listen..."
But Daniel was beyond listening. He raised his hand and energy
crackled around it. He looked at his brother.
"It is time to end this. I'm sorry." Daniel released the pent up
energy. Once again the earth trembled, and when the dust settled, all that
remained was a large crater where Trent lay.
Daniel lowered his arm wearily and started to walk away.
"Good-bye, my brother..."

An ovoid, white projectile was hurtling towards the ground.
Suddenly, a blond haired blur came out of nowhere and caught up to it.
Getting her fists under the ball, she smacked it upwards. It arched to her
teammate who promptly spiked it over the net, beyond the reach of the other
defenders.
The referee blew his whistle. "Match point!" he called out, "Winner,
Shibakouen Junior High."
Mina Aino's face lit up as she brushed her blond hair out of her eyes
and joined the rest of her team in a group celebration.
The spectators also joined in on the fun, in particular, a group of
four girls.
Serena Tsukino, the leader of the group, yelled out, "Hey Mina! That
was a great gaaahhHHHH!!!" Serena slipped on a spot of water and went
sliding across the court, her blond pigtails flailing out behind her.
Mina and the rest of the group ran to help Serena, who looked like
she was about ready to have a wailing fit.
"Serena, are you alright?" asked a tall brunette, worriedly.
"Oh, she's fine, Lita. She only hit her head on the ground, and we
all know that there's nothing vital there," retorted a raven-haired girl.
Lita Kino smiled, but was still worried about Serena.
Serena's tears dried up and she whirled on the dark-haired girl. "I
heard that, Raye!" The tears threatened to return as her voice began to
quiver. "Why are you always so mean to me?"
"I am not being mean!" thundered Raye Hino. She turned to the
blue-haired girl next to her. "Help me out here, Amy!"
Amy Mizuno shook her head slightly. "I agree with Serena, Raye.
That comment was rather inappropriate." Serena's face had a look of triumph
on it, but Amy continued. "However, Serena, you should have been more
careful. If you had paid more attention, you would have seen the sign that
said 'Caution, Wet Floor.' " Now Raye's face had the triumphant look, and
she stuck out her tongue at Serena, who responded in kind.
Their raspberry-blowing match was interrupted by Mina who said she
would meet the rest of them outside after she showered. The others agreed
and headed for the exits. As they were walking out, Mina heard Serena and
Raye arguing again. Sighing and shaking her head, she headed for the locker
room.
Fifteen minutes later, Mina walked out of the locker room refreshed
and with her hair tied up in its customary red bow. She saw her friends and
ran to meet them...and promptly ran into a person turning the corner.
"Oof!" Mina grunted as she fell backwards, but before she cold hit
the ground, she felt someone catch her.
"I'm sorry, I didn't see you and..." Mina started to apologize and
looked up...and saw the man of her dreams. He looked American and had blond
hair a shade darker than hers. His emerald green eyes stared back at her
with worry.
"It's okay," the man said in perfect Japanese. "It was my fault. I
should have been looking at where I was going." He stuck his hand out to
help Mina up.
Mina took his hand and pulled herself up, all the while looking at
his face. *Gods, he's gorgeous!* Mina snapped out of it when she realized
he was asking her something. "Um...what was that?"
The man smiled. "I asked if you were alright. If you're hurt, I
could take you to a doctor or..."
"Oh! I'm fine. Thanks for asking," Mina blurted out.
Just then, Serena and the others ran up to them.
"Mina, are you okay?" asked Serena.
Mina smiled at her friends. "Yes, everyone, I'm fine. I just had a
little accident." She gestured at the man who helped her up. "Everyone,
this is...uh...I'm sorry, I didn't get your name."
The man grinned. "That's alright, my name is Trent Powers.
Everyone quickly made introductions.
"So Trent, what school do you go to?" asked Serena. "You look a
little old to be in junior high."
Trent laughed. "Yeah, actually, I go to Mugen Gakuen. I was just
heading towards to library when I had a little 'run-in' with Mina." At this
Mina flushed a bright shade of red.
Lita nudged Mina and whispered in her ear. "I don't think it was
much of an accident, eh?" This caused Mina's blush to deepen.
Amy interrupted. "Pardon me for asking, Trent, but you don't look
Japanese, yet you speak it fluently. How is that?"
"Amy!" Mina exclaimed, shocked by the question.
"No, it's ok." Trent began to explain, "My father's an American
naval officer stationed in Japan. It was here that he met my mother, a
Japanese woman. They got married and I was born a year later. Growing up
in Japan, I picked up the language pretty quickly, though I also know
English, thanks to my dad." Trent chuckled. "Most people who see me think I
look exactly like my dad. We both have blond hair and are the same height;
though, I got my eyes from my mom." He reached into his pocket. "Here's a
photo of me and my parents."
The girls all gathered around. In the picture, Trent was standing
between his mother and father. Indeed, Trent's father looked like an older
version of him. His mother was a petite Japanese woman, but what was
startling were her vivid green eyes.
"Right now, my dad's away at sea, so I live with my mom." Trent
looked at his watch. "Look at the time! I better get going or the library
will be closed." He put his picture away and started to jog away. "It was
nice meeting all of you! I'm sorry for running into you, Mina! Maybe I can
make it up to you by taking you to out sometime!"
"That'll be great!" Mina yelled out. Trent smiled as he weaved down
the street.
Mina continued to stare after him for a couple of seconds before
turning around. "Wasn't he wonderful?" she asked breathlessly, her eyes
glazed over.
Amy and Serena giggled and Lita thumped Mina on the back.
"Girl, you got it bad!" laughed Lita. "And I don't blame you, he
sorta looked like my old boyfriend." Now Lita's eyes had a faraway look in
them.
"And it looks like you weren't the only ones impressed by him,"
Serena said, pointing a thumb at Raye, who was also staring at the
diminishing form of Trent.
Raye turned to Serena. "And what do mean by that?!" asked Raye
angrily.
"Just that you were ogling Trent hard enough to burn holes in his
back," Serena retorted.
"I was not ogling!" Raye declared, emphatically. She calmed down and
continued in a softer voice. "I sensed something strange about him."
Amy looked at Raye. "Strange? In what way?" She took out her
minicomputer and aimed it the direction the Trent went. "My computer doesn't
detect anything out of the ordinary."
Raye concentrated. "I don't know. I just felt...something."
Serena snickered. "Are you sure it wasn't jealousy? Him noticing
Mina instead of you?"
"No it wasn't, Spaghetti Brain!" Raye shot back, then she sobered.
"It was more like a buzzing, a warning...like the ones I got when we were
facing Beryl's monsters."
"Are you saying that he could be an enemy?!" Lita cried out, her eyes
flashing.
Mina was about to interrupt when Raye answered. "No...it wasn't like
that. Not really." She shook her head. "I think that we should keep an eye
on him."
Mina's eyes lit up. "I'll do it!"
Raye was about to disagree, thinking that Mina might have--no,
definitely have--ulterior motives for volunteering, but Amy spoke up.
"I think Mina is a good choice for keeping tabs on Trent. She has
experience at undercover work when she was Sailor V, her school is the
closest one to Mugen Gakuen, and it's obvious that Mina and Trent have
exhibited an interest in each other and..." Amy suddenly realized what she
just said and flushed pink in embarrassment.
"Amy!" Mina's entire face was bright red again.
Lita laughed. "Amy's right. Now this gives you an excuse to hang
around Trent and maybe...ask him out on a date. Hmm?"
Mina was about to sputter a denial when Lita's words clicked in her
mind and then she smiled broadly.
Serena giggled and cooed with delight. "This is so cool and
romantic. The beautiful heroine goes undercover and spies on the mysterious
stranger, and they fall in love and get married and..."
While Serena was busy detailing Mina's wedding plans, the rest of the
group turned to Raye. Looking around at their expectant faces, she sighed.
"Ok, I guess Mina is the best choice." She turned to look at Mina. "Just be
careful." Mina nodded, once again her eyes glazing over, thinking about her
upcoming date.
The sky was rapidly darkening over Tokyo and the girls all decided to
go home, agreeing to meet at Raye's shrine tomorrow after school.

A man in a dark suit stood staring out the window. He looked like he
was in his early forties, but looks were deceiving. His face was refined and
his hair had only the faintest streaks of gray. Many women found him
attractive and he knew it. Also, the fact that he was a billionaire and head
of a multinational corporation didn't hurt either.
There was a knock on his office door. He frowned and made a small
gesture. The door opened and his secretary walked in.
"Sir, here are the reports you wanted, as well as a memo from the
Hokkaido archeological operations. It seems they are requesting more men and
supplies."
The secretary finished speaking. Her boss just remained standing,
looking out at the Tokyo skyline outlined by the sunset.
"It's beautiful, isn't it?" the man suddenly asked.
Rather taken aback, the secretary fumbled for an answer. "I...I
guess so, sir. If you think it is."
He chuckled. "Oh come now. I didn't hire a 'yes' man to be my
secretary. If you have an opinion, just say it. I won't bite."
The secretary, even though she was still puzzled by her boss's
actions, relaxed a bit and joined him at the window.
"I think Tokyo is beautiful at night, sir. The Tokyo Tower
especially," she said softly.
The man grunted in agreement and the two of them continued to stand
there. After a while, the secretary began to feel tired. She was about to
ask for permission to leave when he suddenly spoke. "Do you have any
siblings, Mariko?"
Mariko started and mumbled out an answer. "I have a brother, sir.
He is studying in Germany now trying to get his engineering degree."
The man nodded and continued. "I too, have a brother. We haven't
seen or spoken to each other in years. To tell the truth, we had something
of a...falling out. I bet if he were to walk in here right now, I wouldn't
recognize him."
Mariko didn't know what to say. "I'm sorry, sir."
Her boss smiled. "It's alright, Mariko. It should be me
apologizing, for burdening you with my personal life. Ahhh, I've already
taken too much of your time. Thank you for the reports and tell the men in
Hokkaido that they'll get what they want. After that, I want you to take the
rest of the day off."
Mariko stood there, stunned. "But...sir..."
Her boss held up his hand. "Uh uh, no buts. You deserve it for
listening to my ramblings."
Mariko closed her mouth and smiled. She thanked her boss and fairly
ran out of his office.
The man also smiled and turned back to his window. His smile
faltered as he thought of his brother. *What has become of you Trent?*
The door to his office closed as Mariko left. The light from the
setting sun reflected off the name etched on the plate: Daniel Takazawa.
CEO--Takazawa Industries.