The day was warm, especially so for early spring. It was the first days of April and the sun refused to hide behind the dark array of clouds in the sky. Despite the warmth of the sun's rays, she felt nothing but despair, nothing but a hollow sense of duty and darkness. Her days were full of the knowledge of their impending doom, that was... Unless they made a sacrifice. Would they, she and Michiru, truly bloody their hands with the blood of a fellow soldier. Senshi or not... Surely, Saturn had to be taken out, had to be taken care of, as Michiru might have put it. At one time, she might have seen the reasoning behind it, and truly she had been in this whole thing for months now, never swaying in her faith that this was the only way. But then... Then she met her.
Haruka slowed her pace to a stop, reaching a hand up to run through the back of her hair, a sigh escaping; that bright smile, the sweet scent of her perfume, the crystalline look to the teardrops that fell from her blue eyes... Each image passed before her eyes, leaving her breathless as the last of them sent her deep into a memory... The flicker of a smile, the soft profile shrouded in shadows, the billowing strands of hair... In the mirror, all the one bright, clear images had gone a murky gray, had blurred til they were nearly unrecognizable. Over the course of a week, the images had become this way, telling them the course of their princess' destiny in this world. Then, one day, they felt the shockwave across their galaxy, felt the piercing pain as if a blade had struck them right in their chests. Neptune arrived moments later, stricken and pale, a look to her that in all their millenia Uranus had never once witnessed. She was trembling as she fell into Uranus' arms, her mirror extended... The image upon it was too painful to look at for long; a sharp breath and Uranus snatched it away, but the mirror tumbled from her grasp and to her feet where it lay still and quiet, the bloodstained image burned into its surface. At once, it began to flicker, and then her own sword appeared, flickering with its bright glow. The two talismans began to resonate with something far, far away... They both felt the burst of power and she was materializing before their eyes, the sleeping soldier in purple. Her eyes began to open and the power was overwhelming... Uranus threw a hand out, shielding her eyes from the sheer light of the power Saturn was putting off. If she was awakening, then that was it... Something... Something had destroyed their precious kingdom, had taken the lives of their princess and queen. The pain of such a loss was truly too much... Uranus hit her knees, eyes upon Saturn as she touched down before them. Beside her, Neptune was staring straight ahead, her eyes full of unshed tears, her shoulders quivering. Saturn turned her gaze upon them both in turn, her sweet smile appearing only moments later. "Hope and rebirth..."
The memory let her go as quickly as it had taken her and Haruka stagged forwards, blinking back to reality. She peered around and at once, she caught sight of her, all alone upon that park bench. The same one they'd met at time and time again. It was as if fate was steering her in the correct direction. Pushing her hands into her pockets, she sauntered over, trying to adopt a cool, normal look in an attempt to hide just how shaken that memory had left her. As she approached, the blonde girl turned, and at once a smile spread across her features, illuminating her like the sun itself. "Haruka-san," her sweet, singsong vocals reached Haruka's ears as she came to stand behind the bench, the girl upon it turning completely around. "I thought maybe..." She trailed off, her eyes darkening and then she whipped back around, arms folding over her chest. "Maybe we wouldn't meet again."
Usagi had known she was coming, she could feel her aura a mile away it seemed. The two outer guardians were constantly on her mind. While they differed on the matter of saving the world and the sacrifices that had to be made, Usagi was firm in her belief that they could still work together. There had to be another way to stop the spread of darkness. No, she already knew that there was. Her hand rose up, the pads of her fingers trailing across the heart-shaped compact at her breast... Within that held the key. "I couldn't stay away," Haruka admitted, falling into place on the bench beside her. Usagi looked up and over, a brow arched in mild surprise. "I could never stay away entirely." She shrugged, as if they spoke of something mundane, but she turned to her, smiling but her eyes were grave. She longed to reach out and touch her face, to push away the stray hair from her beautiful eyes, to tell her that everything was going to be okay. But was it...? Haruka didn't know for certain. None of them did. The sorrow on the blonde's face deepened and for a sharp, poingnat moment, Haruka was reminded of the memory she'd only just remembered. That look of intense anguish, of pure broken-heartedness... It chilled her to the bone.
"Haruka-san, you're pale..." Usagi's voice suddenly pulled her free from her own mind and she felt the warmth of her skin as she placed her small hand over her own. "Are you alright?" Across the way, Michiru appeared, silent and still, watching through wistful eyes. They both longed to be nearer to her, but knew that they couldn't. It was their duty to protect her and the planet in any way possible. They could not involve the princess nor her guardians. They did not need to stain their hands with blood of another soldier. Nor would they ever, which was why they simply could not work together. Knowing their time together was up, Haruka rose up, tilting her head slightly as she looked upon the blonde. The girl turned to follow her line of vision, her blue eyes widening slightly at the sight of the aquamarine haired woman in the distance; but then she turned back to Haruka, a smile wobbling on her pink lips. "Will you come again? Will we see each other again?"
A small chuckle escaped and Haruka reached a hand up, running it through her cropped golden locks. "Of course." She said with confidence, knowing full well that their paths would most certainly cross again. No matter what, they were both soldiers, bound to war and so bound together. And more than anything else, she was her princess and Haruka would give her life for her. Haruka made to step away, but found she was unable to pull her gaze away from the blonde before her. "Stay safe, kitten," she murmured, unable to stop herself from reaching out to brush against her temple, the pads of her fingers trailing along the line of her jaw. "Until we meet again..." She then turned, striding away, completely aware of the eyes watching her walk away, of the heartbreak that surely resided upon the girl's beauitful face. As she approached Michiru, she could not help but to turn back, casting a longing glance over her shoulder, to catch sight of the blonde still seated upon the bench. They both stood, side by side, in silence as the young woman suddenly jumped to her feet, her right wrist held slightly aloft, her lips moving with words that they could not hear. And then she was gone, disappearing down the pathway, towards the main street. In her own pocket, Haruka heard the ping of her own communicator, telling both she and Michiru that another battle was surely to begin.
"Are you alright?" Michiru's voice was soft, her touch gentle as she reached out to take her hand in hers. Haruka chuckled, shaking her head as she pivoted to face the aquamarine-haired beauty. "I know... I know this isn't easy for you. But, it's for their own good. For her own good." Michiru felt Haruka grasp her hand a little tighter, but silence lasped between them and it wasn't until Michiru's communicator began to beep that they knew their time was up. It was time to fight.
[ x x x ]
"I won't let you hurt her!"
The shrill, emotional vocals tugged at Uranus' heart, but she stayed her ground, Michiru's presence beside her comforting. Across from them stood Sailor Moon and her guardians, the littlest of the senshi crouched beside a dark-haired girl who was near unconsciousness. "This is how it has to be." Haruka head Michiru say, her voice soft but her eyes said it all. None of them wanted to do what they planned to do, but it did have to be done. The only way to stop the spreading darkness was to sacrifice the messiah of silence, the soldier of destruction, the senshi that was locked deep away in the girl across from where they stood. "Move aside."
"No." Usagi gazed upon the three senshi with a fierce determination, her stance strong, her hands clenched into fists at her sides. "I won't let you harm this girl," she side-stepped, placing herself between Chibi Moon and Hotaru, her eyes never leaving Uranus' face. "I know if we just talk about this... We can work together to save the world without killing an innocent girl." Tears were sparkling in her eyes as she looked from face to face and then back to Uranus. "It doesn't have to be this way." Her hands came up, clasping together at her breast, the compact clutched beneath her palm. "I can save the world." She raised her eyes up and blinked away the tears, shaking her head. She turned to look upon Chibi Moon and Hotaru, who had come to by then, her awestruck eyes never once leaving her protector's face. "It doesn't matter how strong this enemy is or who the messiah of silence is. I will protect this girl and this planet. Even if it costs me my life!"
Haruka stepped back slightly, casting her glance towards Michiru, and then to Setsuna who then gave a small nod, turning as if she meant to go. "Let's go, Neptune." Haruka finally said, following Pluto's lead and turned to go. But then she heard her, calling back to her, forcing her to turn back around. Her blue eyes were wide and shining with unshed tears, her lip wobbling like a child's might have after a scolding from her mother. But in that look, she saw her princess, they all saw her. "Don't look so sad, princess... You should be happy to see us go." She turned back then and in an instant the three senshi had gone, disappearing from sight, leaving the five of the six senshi to stand in silence, all wondering the same thing...
Could they really be trusted?