DISCLAIMER: I do NOT own any part of Sailor Moon. All of it goes to the one who made it. I only claim my own character in this story, and the plot. All characters, themes, and otherwise are the works of Naoko Takeuchi.
"Everyone, we have a new student today." The teacher said to her class.
Next to her was the new student, with forest green eyes and ebony hair pulled back into an intricate braid. She did not wear the uniform for the Juban High School because, as it turned out, they did not have any her size. She was taller than any other female student in the school, just a few centimeters shy of one hundred eighty-three centimeters, though fit for her height. For a moment, Ami spared a thought for her friend Makoto, who still could not find a uniform that fit her for the very same reason. This girl even appeared to be taller than Makoto.
"I am Tabibito, Outai. Please, treat me kindly." The girl said.
Something was off about this girl, though. She was not ugly - far from it; she was really rather pretty, though not so much or so graceful as Michiru and Haruka. She was very tall, but that wasn't it either. Perhaps it was because the girl did not smile. Really, it looked like smiling was beyond her capabilities. Ami felt sorry for the girl. What she must have gone through, to be so sad, to have so much pain in her eyes, she didn't want to imagine. She herself had been that way once before, or close enough to it, before she met Usagi.
The new girl took a seat next to Ami, her focus on the chalkboard in front of the classroom, where the teacher was already writing down the day's assignments. Something about that girl made Ami feel uneasy. The way she held herself...It was almost like she was a born fighter with a violent nature. Well, one should never judge a book by it's cover. She was probably used to having to stick up for herself against those that would tease her about her height. She knew first hand just how mean kids could be.
Ami didn't know if it was because she had spent the day sitting next to someone who made her uneasy, or if she was just growing impatient lately, but for some reason the day seemed to stretch on forever. It was none too soon before the final bell rang, announcing the end of the school day. As she gathered her things and exchanged her school slippers for her outdoor shoes, she reminded herself to look for Usagi and Makoto so they could go to the shrine for study group together. Usagi was perpetually late, and she meant to see her on time today. Especially with all the attacks lately. Besides, it was safer to travel in a group.
It didn't really take long for Ami to find Usagi. She was standing outside her classroom once again, being punished. It was a toss up between punishment for tardiness or for sleeping in class. Or perhaps another bad grade.
"Usagi, again?" was all she said.
"That teacher is really mean!" Usagi wailed, "It's not my fault English puts me to sleep!"
So, it had been sleeping in class after all.
"Let's go, Usagi. Makoto is probably waiting for us."
As she turned to leave with Usagi in tote, Ami noticed the new girl leaving their classroom. Her face remained neutral, but in her green eyes Ami saw anger and frustration. The girl reached behind her, as if to scratch her back, but instead pulled off a note that must have been stuck between her shoulders. With a look of disgust, she crumpled it into a ball and tossed it into a nearby trash bin.
"Hey, that girl is really tall." Ami heard Usagi saying. "She's taller than Mako-chan."
It happened to be just her luck that Outai, the new girl, passed by them as Usagi opened her big mouth. To Ami's surprise, she said nothing, and her expression did not change. Perhaps she was used to people commenting on how tall she was.
"Usagi, I don't think that was very considerate. She's new here."
"Oh, so that's the new girl? Let's go say hi, Ami."
"I don't think-"
Ami was cut off as Usagi ran down the hall after the girl. With a sigh of exasperation, she followed her rather outgoing friend, fully expecting the new girl to be angry. What she did not expect was to see Usagi brushed off.
"Hey, I'm sorry for what I said back there." Ami heard Usagi saying. "I didn't mean to hurt your feelings."
There was no anger in her face or her eyes. There was no relief, either. There was nothing but grim neutrality on her face, and sadness mingled with determination in her eyes. Outai looked at Usagi carefully, but said nothing.
"So, what's your name?"
Again the girl said nothing.
"Hey, I'm talking to you?"
The new girl moved so suddenly that Ami thought for sure she was going to hurt Usagi. She was too far away to do anything to help her bun-headed friend, but reached out as if to protect her anyway.
However, the movement did not stop on Usagi. Rather, the girl pulled Usagi off to the side just in time for a student from the neighboring class room to come lunging out into the hall. Really, the way the girl pulled Usagi to safety almost resembled a dance, a graceful twirling of Usagi so that she was out of the way. The student fell to the floor from his own momentum - Ami saw that the boy had medium brown hair and gray eyes - but quickly got back up, once again lunging for Usagi.
This time Ami WAS close enough to do something. She pushed her friend out of the way of the attack, just as a stone-fisted punch collided with her shoulder. With the strike, she could feel something seeping into her soul, something dark and putrid, like a slick of rancid oil on water. It made her want to vomit. Biting back a yelp of pain, Ami stood in front of Usagi, protecting her. For some reason, the new girl was no where to be seen.
If she could transform, she might be able to protect Usagi. However, there were still too many students in the building - some of which had come out to see what the commotion was all about - and she couldn't risk any of them seeing her transform. As the boy lunged again, she threw Usagi and herself into a nearby classroom, which she discovered was thanfully empty. Pulling what looked like a sword without the blade, she began her transformation. Usagi seemed to take the hint and did the same.
"Mercury Crystal Power, Make up!"
"Moon Eternal Power, Make up!"
In moments, water swirled around the blue haired genius of Juban High School, soon becoming ribbons that wrapped around her body, fading into her senshi uniform of white and blue. Usagi's transformation was a bit longer, and included a cloud of feathers swirling around her as piece by piece she transformed into Eternal Sailor Moon.
Their transformations had not come a moment too soon. No sooner were they done transforming than the crazed student broke into the classroom, gray eyes full of hatred and malice. Someting about all of it seemed off. Those eyes...aside from the darkness she saw in them, there was something else. Something was missing from those eyes. This student was dangerous, and she had to get Usagi away.
"Bubble Spray!"
Firing off a thick spray of bubbles that burst into a thick fog that filled the room, Ami was able to make a cover for her and her friend. The problem was getting this student away from the others so they would not be hurt, all the while not hurting that student. There HAD to be a way to get through to him. Thinking quickly, she opened a nearby window.
"Sailor Moon!"
Taking the hint, her friend jumped out of the window, which was on the ground level of the school anyway. She followed behind, and was surprised when the crazed student followed soon after. She hadn't thought he'd be able to see through that fog.
'Hate. Kill.'
The thought came out of no where, taking Sailor Mercury completely by surprise. She had NEVER had thoughts like that before. It amost sounded like another voice, one that was not her own, and for some reason it was accompanied by such anger and hatred that, for a moment, she was afraid she would lose herself in the torrent. However, as quickly as it came, it passed as though it had never been. In the moment it took for the thought to come and go, for Ami to hold firmly to herself, the boy lunged at her.
"Moon Halo!"
A ring of light appeared out of nowhere, wrapping around the assailant's arms, pinning them to his side. No, it wasn't just one ring, but three - one around the shoulders, one around the waist, and one around the legs, binding him so he could not move. In spite of the rings of light, though, the boy still growled and gnashed his teeth, seeming little more than a mad dog.
Ami and Usagi - Sailor Mercury and Sailor Moon - looked in the direction of the voice that had cast that binding spell, and saw a sailor scout, all in gold and black, holding a long staff mere centimeters taller than she was, with a crescent moon lantern dangling from one end. She was approaching them from a dark corner of the school building, walking as if nothing at all were going on. However, her eyes belied her relaxed demeanor, full of grim determination.
"Who are you?" Sailor Mercury couldn't help but ask. Was she friend, or foe?
Forest green eyes met blue eyes, fierce and piercing, as though the new scout was gazing at her very soul. Intense sadness flashed in those determined eyes, enough to make Sailor Mercury want to cry. The scout all in black and gold raised her staff, the crescent moon lantern now glowing, so that it was parallel to the ground in front of her. She suddenly spun, the lantern leaving a streak of light behind as she made one complete turn.
"Moon Halo!"
The one ring suddenly became three, binding Sailor Mercury in the same fashion as the boy.
"Why did you do that?" Sailor Moon demanded of the new scout. "She didn't do anything!"
"Your friend is tainted." the new scout said, as though it had been obvious from the start. It made sense, though. First was that feeling of something staining her soul, then that sudden, dangerous thought only a moment ago.
"Liar! Sailor Mercury is one of the purest people I know!"
"Even the pure can be tainted."
The new scout raised her staff again, this time low to the ground, and began to spin. The crescent moon lantern dangled from one end, glowing, leaving streaks of light behind it as she began to spin. However, just as she completed one turn and went into the next, Sailor Moon jumped on her, taking her staff in hand, trying to take it away.
"Stop it! I won't let you hurt my friend!"
The new scout glared at Sailor Moon with eyes like daggers.
"Would you prefer I let your friend become little more than a beast like that boy? Would you prefer I leave her to the taint until it eats her soul away, until there is nothing left to be saved?"
"What?"
The news took them both by surprise. Neither had known what was going on with that student, or what had happened a few days ago at Rei's with the two boys that attacked them, and suddenly this person had an explaination. A taint on her soul? She had dealt with negative energy, energy being stolen, energy being turned black, hearts being stolen, and even dreams being molested, but never once had she dealt with anything of the soul. The soul was dangerous territory for toying around with. It was the soul that gave life.
In her moment of surprise, Sailor Moon loosened her grip on the girl's staff. She took that opportunity to push Sailor Moon away and begin spinning again, raising the staff higher with each pass. As the staff came above her head, she stopped spinning - a total of three passes - and the lantern on her staff seemed to explode light.
"Gates of Heaven!"
Light beneath them in a pattern like a decorated circle with symbols Sailor Mercury recognized as alchemy symbols, used in the days before chemistry, when 'scientists' believed they could change one thing to another, exploded beneath them. A feeling of peace washed over her, like nothing could ever go wrong. This light in her soul seemed to dissolve the putridness she had felt ooze into her earlier until it was as though it had never happened. She hadn't realized how tense she had become under that taint until her shoulders relaxed when it disappeared.
"Sailor Mercury!"
Sailor Moon rushed to her friend, concerned for her safety. She had seen the two boys from a few days ago get purified in this same manner. She had seen how there was nothing left of them but two empty shells, alive, but devoid of a soul.
"I'm okay, Sailor Moon." she said, reassuring her friend.
Suddenly the rings binding her disappeared. Sailor Mercury stood and brushed herself off. As the woman turned to leave, Sailor Moon forestalled her.
"Wait! At least tell us who you are."
"I am who I am."
"Wait!" this time it was Sailor Mercury's turn to forestall the new scout, "What is this taint you were talking about?"
This time the new scout did stop.
"You are scouts, just like me. You deserve some knowledge, so you don't stab yourself in the foot on accident. The taint is a type of evil that invades the mind and devours the soul. Worse, it is contageous. If you are touched by someone who is tainted, you will become tainted as well. Get as far away from anyone who is tainted as you can, if you value your sanity."
"Why must you hurt those who are tainted?" Sailor Moon cried after the woman.
An odd thing happened then. Anguish flashed in her green eyes, and this time it was not quickly replaced by grim determination or anger. It seemed almost like regret.
"Just keep your distance." was all she said before she left, not leaving either of them time to respond.
Moments later, Ami and Usagi found the new girl unconscious on the floor of another classroom devoid of students. Usagi had been the one to come back to reality and remember that the girl had disappeared first, and had been concerned for her safety. It shouldn't have been surprising, really - no matter how ditzy she was, Usagi cared abot everyone. Perhaps she would be good for Outai, who didn't seem to have any friends.
It didn't take much to wake the girl - just some gentle shaking, and forest green eyes stared up at them as though wakened from a short rest. The girl tensed when Usagi threw her arms around her, grateful that she was okay, but managed to politely pull Usagi off of her before standing silently.
"Hey," Usagi said as the girl was about to leave, "thank you for saving me, and I'm sorry you got hurt because of me. You and Ami both."
"Why are you so determined to talk to me?"
The question took them both off balance. Was she offended? She didn't seem to be. Still, what kind of question was that.
"Well, why not?" Ah, Usagi. Always blunt as a spoon and as honest as babe.
"You're not threatened by me?"
"Should I be?"
"Most others are. You're an odd one."
"I'm Tsukino, Usagi, and my friend is Mizuno, Ami, the school genius. What's your name?"
"Tabibito, Outai. Miss Mizuno, please continue to take care of your friend. She's an odd one." And with that, she turned and walked away.
