The school had been buzzing ever since theories of the detective's motives were confirmed. The senshi, who had fought evil in Juuban district for the past four years, were finally being investigated by professionals. Students and adults alike whispered about their own personal theories, many of which were quite absurd! Nonetheless, with such an event passing in their home terrain, they couldn't help but speculate. While students lingered much longer after the final school bell rang to discuss Juuban's biggest news break, five females anxiously departed to meet at their familiar spot.
Inside the temple walls they each exhaled in relief as though they had been holding their breaths since the moment they found out. Tension was present but no matter how serious the situation, some rituals just couldn't be ignored as the raven-haired miko unleashed her usual caustic remarks on her favorite target.
"Just be yourself Usagi-chan. It's not like they would ever suspect you of being part of the senshi, the main princess no less," Rei laughed in amusement. "If they did happen to piece together your involvement with the senshi then I would just turn myself in! No use trying to avoid them if they're that good."
Rei nearly keeled over in laughter, Usagi frowning as her fists clenched.
"Yeah thanks for the vote of confidence, Rei, you jerk," she huffed.
"Geez, Usagi, I meant it as a compliment! It's a good thing your personality is completely opposite of what people envision the senshi to be. That way there's no chance you can screw things up unless you decide to open your big mouth and expose us all!"
"I would never do that Rei! I'm not stupid!" Usagi said in her defense.
"Hn, could've fooled me," Rei replied.
"Why you!" Usagi cried as she lunged at the group's priestess.
They kept on yelling their insults towards each other as they wrestled roughly on the floor. They others sighed all the while shaking their heads as if this type of thing happened regularly.
"Guys!" Minako shouted. "I don't think fighting is the best way to discuss this!"
"Of course not," Makoto agreed. "But these two still keep at it nonetheless."
The bickering continued as Minako, Makoto and Ami tried to ignore them hoping that they would end soon. With Makoto leaning against a wall staring blankly out a window, Minako watching Rei and Usagi's spat in disapproval and Ami deeply engaged in the search she was running on her minicomputer, they patiently waited. After ten or so minutes the two finally quit, each breathing heavily as they moved themselves far from each other.
"Thank you," Minako mumbled, retrieving the attention of Makoto as she settled by the table.
Once Rei had caught her breath, she finally managed to ask the question she had been pondering since her video chat with Minako.
"Say Ami, how did your interview go with the police?" She asked.
Ami shrugged, eyes still glued to the computer.
"They don't suspect me," she stated. "But I had the feeling they were trying to recruit students in their investigation. I think they would have asked me had it not been for my mother's abrupt arrival."
"You're mother came?" Usagi blinked curiously. Ami nodded.
"She was quite upset that the school had allowed the police to interview minors without the permission of their parents. I believe she and a few other upset parents may be planning a lawsuit against them."
"Well that's good," Makoto chimed. "Won't that put a hold on their investigation?"
Ami shook her head. "I don't think so," she mumbled. "For an investigation involving so many officers, they can't have gotten permission to enter the schools without taking the proper precautions. I honestly don't think my mother has a valid case against them."
As if on cue, a small beep could be heard from her computer accompanied by a frown.
"What is it?" Minako bout curiously.
"I was right. The law has given them permission to use whatever lengths necessary to find the senshi," she informed, hastily resuming her rapid typing.
The room fell in silence, one particular question ringing through all their minds. Why? Why were the police looking for them and why did they get the feeling that the main motive that started this whole investigation was a bad one? They hadn't been doing much, as far as the senshi business goes, for the past year since enemies after Chaos were pretty dismal. From time to time they would have to deal with a straggling demon but it was nothing compared to how their activity used to be.
"Hmm," Ami hummed.
"What is it?" The girls unanimously asked.
They crowded around the blue-haired genius in attempts to see what it is that caught her eye but couldn't make anything out since the characters were scrolling about 100 meters per minute.
"Oh man," Usagi groaned, rubbing her head. "How do you read that fast?"
Minako and Makoto too both nodded in agreement at the question as they gave up on peeking. Rei, however, stubbornly stayed even though she herself couldn't keep up with the scrolling.
"Practice," Ami muttered.
Soon after she closed her computer, Rei long since given up on trying to read at the Ami's superhuman speed.
"So," Minako started. "What did you find?"
She looked hopeful although inwardly preparing for the worse. With a regretful frown, Ami meekly gave her answer.
"Nothing," she admitted.
The others seemed shock as the response was not one that came often from the blue-haired genius. With trivial glances they found themselves stumped, neither one able to decide what to make of this. Ami, however, spared them the awkward silence.
"I do however think we should be more cautious," she stated. "I have a theory about the order they implemented for interviews."
"Really?" Minako queried though she knew she shouldn't have sounded so surprised.
Ami bobbed her head and cleared her throat.
"I think they're going by grade point average. I would have been first but I was in the middle of a test. However, the second and third highest GPAs were also in that class and were interviewed later. To confirm my theory, I went to speak to the fourth highest GPA in the school and found out he was first to be interviewed in my stead."
Rei scoffed.
"Well then I guess that means Ondago-atama will be the last to get interviewed!"
A low growl was heard from Usagi as she was again tempted to lunge at Rei but she refrained, taking in deep breaths in attempts to sooth her wounded ego.
"Rei," Ami scolded. "Usagi has been working very hard on her schooling. She no longer has the worse grades in school."
Though Ami meant these words to be in defense of Usagi's honor, the message somehow fueled Rei's laughter as Makoto and Minako both had to hide their snickers. Oblivious to it all, Ami blinked in confusion as Usagi shook her head.
"Thanks Ami," she groaned.
Ami looked uncomfortable as her eyes shifted between Rei and the less bold pair of chuckling friends.
"What's so funny?" She questioned.
Rei grinned placing a consoling hand on Ami's back.
"I'll tell you later Ami," she said with one last laugh. "But back on topic."
"Right," Ami nodded. "Well when I spoke with the fourth highest, he told me that they had asked him to join the team."
"He just flat out told you?" Minako asked.
"Yes," Ami affirmed. "He likes to brag and since I told him I wasn't asked to join he thought he'd try to make me jealous."
"Ooh," Usagi chimed. "Sounds like someone likes you Ami-chan!"
As if thoroughly confused, Ami gave a strange look to Usagi before shaking it off.
"If you insist," she mumbled. "Anyways, I know we don't even talk about senshi business around our peers but we should be extra cautious around them since they may be working for the police."
"Cool, so stay away from the smart people," Makoto commented. "Sounds easy enough."
"Not quite," Ami interrupted. "I don't think they'll progress with the same interview pattern as today, since it would be too easy for the senshi to piece together that they're asking the top students at the school to investigate."
"Then why did they do it today?" Rei asked.
"To throw us off. It's a bit of a stretch to think this but at the moment it's better to be safe than sorry."
"So you're telling us to suspect all our classmates as potential spies?" Minako asked just to be sure.
"Yes," Ami replied. The whole room groaned.
"This is really starting to make me nervous," Makoto frowned. "Do you think they have clues to who the senshi might be?"
"Honestly," Ami started. "No. We're not obvious and we never leave a trail. Besides, Makoto works outside of school, Usagi is seen regularly at the arcade, I have extra schooling that I never miss, Rei is always here at the shrine working and Minako-chan...well to be honest Minako-chan I'm not sure what you do regularly but the point is we're all pretty much too busy to be able to be senshi, it shows in our schedules."
"Woo," Usagi sighed. "Hearing that from you Ami suddenly makes me feel less anxious."
"You're telling me," Makoto agreed.
Minako, however, appeared a bit uneasy as Ami's words seemed to further concern her. She had thought about her alibi quite often and for some unmentionable reason, she felt as though she might not be as safe as the others when it came to staying hidden.
"Well then," Usagi stated. "I guess that means this meeting is over."
The others nodded in agreement. They dispersed quickly, Ami rushing off to attend her mentioned extra classes and Usagi departing to hang out at the arcade with Naru. Rei waved goodbye to Minako who seemed less excited than usual but disregarded the fact once she saw Makoto going the opposite direction of her workplace to follow her.
With a long exhale she acknowledged the still prominent gut feeling that the time ahead of them would be a difficult one. But she returned to her chores nonetheless to keep up appearances.
"Hey Minako-chan, wait up!" Makoto called.
The blonde turned around with a smile, stopping as was requested.
"Mako-chan! Not ditching work are we?" She questioned playfully.
Makoto gave a light laugh before shaking her head.
"Of course not," she said. "I traded shifts with one of my co-workers since she has an important dinner to attend tonight so I'll be closing."
"Ooh," Minako somewhat grimaced. "Night shift on a school night? That's gotta be tough."
Makoto shrugged. "I guess, but at least I get paid," she smiled.
"That's always a plus," Minako remarked.
The two then commenced walking, Minako burdened by thoughts of the investigation and Makoto picking up on her distress.
"Minako-chan?" She said in a low voice. "Are you okay?"
Minako blinked as if shocked at the question and hastily nodded making sure she produced the brightest unperturbed expression she could.
"Of course I am," she said as she forcefully pushed a broad smile. The act alone made her heart sink as if the lie was too much to bear. Even her tear ducts seemed to be triggered as they threatened to give way. "Why does everyone keep asking me that?"
With a shrug Makoto could say nothing, frowning as she knew Minako wasn't being completely honest with her. Still she pretended to accept the answer as she no longer pressed her friend further. Minako knew that Makoto was probably still suspicious but it was never in her character to plague her friends with the concerns that she had even if they did ask. Though she was usually extroverted and sociable, she still had some surprising traits, one being that she did not like to share her personal problems.
"Well," Makoto stated after a period of walking in awkward silence. "I guess I'll catch up with you later. I've got tons of homework to do before I go to work and I wouldn't want to get a lecture from Ami about time management again," she said scratching the back of her head.
"Yeah," Minako smiled. "Those are never fun."
"Yeah," Makoto agreed, eyes cast to the ground as if feeling adversely about retreating so soon. With a heavy-laden sigh, she looked up, pushing a small curve in her lips. "Hey, do you think you could spend the night at my place tonight? I get lonely sometimes and it's always nice to have company..."
A sharp sting pricked at Minako's chest, her eyes forlorn as she noticed her friend's brief display of vulnerability. Makoto did that sometimes. Used her own pain to make herself appear weak and needy to guilt her into giving in to her attempts to discuss her troubles. Though it pained Minako to refuse despite the fact she had known Makoto had accidentally unleashed her own sorrows, she did.
"Thanks Mako-chan," she mumbled in shame. "But I doubt that my parents would allow it on a school night. Maybe some other time."
Makoto nodded, shaking the ache she had to feign an undisturbed expression. "You're probably right," she said. "I won't even be home anyways, so I don't know what I was thinking when I asked. See you later Minako-chan!"
The blonde waved slowly as the fleeting brunette disappeared from view. That certainly was not the comforting end that they usually had, Minako noted as she silently apologized to Makoto. She would be sure to try and make it up to her soon.
"These are all such strange theories," a young blond said aloud. "Why are we investigating this group again?"
"Because they think these 'heroines' might have something to do with the colonial disturbances in space," answered a chestnut-haired boy who was reclined in his seat with a hat over his eyes.
"Oh," was the simple response as the young man continued to review the files in his hands.
Three other males around the same age as the aforementioned two were also vacating seats inside the aircraft, each one distinctively different from the other. A stony unruly-haired boy sat with arms folded, eyes closed and appearing as though he was sleeping though the others speculated he may have just been meditating. Another rather stoic young man was seated by a window, deep green eyes observing the tiny landscapes they flew over and alas there sat a young Chinese man, scowl staining his face as he seemed to have an issue with their current assignment.
"Thinking about this mission makes me angry. Who is the fool that actually believes a group of teenage girls are responsible for those disruptions?" He bitterly questioned, grabbing the hilt of his katana as if nearly provoked to unsheathe it.
"Well," the blond spoke up. "I admit the idea that these girls actually exist and are responsible for the space disturbances are pretty questionable, but the lore behind the senshi's battles seem to fit quite perfectly with the timing of the disruptions. And I know, Wufei, you're not a believer of coincidence."
Wufei grunted with an affirming nod. "I am however a believer in foolish fans that use real situations to fit in their childish fantasies. The disturbances in space are public knowledge. Someone who paid attention to them could have easily imposed the time frames on their ludicrous stories about these so called 'senshi'."
"I suppose so," the blond seemed doubtful. He returned his full attention to the documents in hand, noting carefully to himself anything that might prove useful.
Though he too held suspicions about the validity of these accusations, he was still inclined to consider them. After all, the space disturbances were starting to become more volatile and the last thing he wanted to do was ignore possible leads. Scientists and doctors had labored nonstop over the causes of these strange events but could find nothing. Only a scientist on the brink of insanity could be found applying a theory and that theory was the senshi. At first it seemed almost a joke but as the scientist divulged numerous bouts of evidence supporting his claim, people had secretly started to believe it. Heero had been the one to meet with him personally and Heero had been the main person responsible for reuniting the former Gundam pilots for this offbeat mission.
With a sigh, Quatre flipped to the pages of information about the school they would have to enroll in. Juuban High. It would surely be an interesting field mission.
"Wow, so this is where all the babes are!" an excited chestnut-haired male commented. "I'm surprised I used to hate school so much!"
"Duo," a blond boy scolded. "Try not to be so loud. You're embarrassing me."
"Just being seen with him is embarrassing," grumbled a sleek-haired man under his breath. He shook his head in discontent as he noticed flocks of females shamelessly staring at them as they passed. Weak women, always nosey and never paying attention to things that actually mattered.
"This way," came a monotonous command.
The boys turned to follow the unruly haired character and gradually made their way into the cafeteria for lunch. Classes thus far were less than enjoyable for each of them excluding Duo. Introductions were ordered by each teacher identifying the blond as Quatre, the unruly haired brunette as Heero, the tallest of the bunch Trowa and the proud Chinese-man as Wufei. While the others were disturbed by the amount of attention they received, Duo was quite the opposite. Why, had it not been for his four peers, he might have been in the janitor's closet getting "acquainted" with a friendly red-head from third hour. He sighed. She had such nice—
"Duo, would you pay attention?"
"Huh?"
He blinked in surprise suddenly taking notice of a pigtailed girl who sat in a strange position as she rubbed her head. What was she doing on the floor? Instinctively he knelt down to help her up, looking desperately at his blond friend for some type of explanation.
"She ran into you," Quatre mouthed quickly and Duo nodded appreciatively.
"Sorry about that, babe," he said, wearing his trademark sheepish grin. "Hope you didn't break anything."
"Uh, no problem," she mumbled weakly. "I'm used to this type of thing."
Her legs quivered as she tried to stand up straight, the stranger reluctantly releasing his firm grip from her arms. For a moment she seemed to be swaying before suddenly stopping. After some time spent with no movement, she finally attempted a step before feeling her balance betray her. Suspecting another fall, she hastily tried to reach out her hands to lessen the impact but felt nothing. A strange warmth engulfed her, her body feeling as though it had been wrapped in a heavy blanket. Truly concerned by the foreign feeling, she opened her eyes to stare into a sea of cobalt blue.
"You alright there, babe?"
A deep blush covered the girl's cream skin as she diverted her eyes quickly.
"I-I'm fine, thank you," she stuttered trying to ignore her swooning heart as she lightly pushed her way out of his embrace. She smoothed out the wrinkled creases in her skirt and stuck out a hand.
"I'm Usagi," she introduced. "It's a bit embarrassing to meet like this but it seems to be my signature introduction as of late."
"I find it to be pretty cute," Duo winked, earning another mad blush to which he grinned. "I'm Duo."
He shook her hand like any gentleman would, noting how it seemed to fit perfectly inside his. He was always a sucker for those types of details since he was a man with crafty hands. Touch was always his forte as he had acquired a theory that by "feeling" in the literal and figurative sense he could derive what was right or wrong and she definitely was right. Her bright blue eyes shimmered humbly as those shiny blonde strands rested almost heavenly around her heart-shaped face. What a dream, he mused.
"It's nice to meet you," she said noticing the four others by him. Before she could open her mouth to acknowledge their presence, she jumped at the piercing sound of Ms. Haruna's all too familiar voice.
"Usagi-chan!" She bellowed. "I do believe I gave you lunch detention for the duration of the week for being late once again!"
Usagi winced, laughing nervously as she whipped around to face her teacher.
"Oh it was this week?" She said innocently. "I thought you meant I had detention all next week!"
Ms. Haruna scoffed, folding her arms with nose in air as she often did when perturbed by a student.
"You want detention next week too?" She said, Usagi waving frantically in denial, but to no avail. "Fine! You can have detention then too! In the mean time, report to my classroom and get started on cleaning the boards."
"But Haruna sensei," Usagi whined.
"No buts!" She cut in. "Get to work!"
Usagi's head dropped, her encounter with the confident new student soon being forgotten. School was such a drag and she was more than happy that this would be her last year. As she prepared to walk away, she was stopped by a hand that had again grabbed her own. Gulping, she turned to meet Duo's sparkling blues.
"How about we meet after school or something, since you look like you'll be busy for the rest of lunch."
She didn't know why he was so forward or even why she felt uncomfortable about it as she bit on her lower lip. He was undoubtedly handsome, standing much higher in height than she with gorgeous chestnut hair pulled back in a braid. Usually she would be giggling and flirting nonstop but something…peculiar kept her from doing so.
"Sorry," she answered hesitantly. "I'm kind of busy."
She walked away before he could say anymore, his friends watching him with mixed thoughts.
"What was that about?" His blond companion asked.
Duo merely shrugged.
"I was just trying to make friends," he explained. "Besides it would help to get more insider information from people that have lived here a while and what better way than to penetrate their circle of friends?"
As if Duo's choice of words triggered a secret code, the others looked around to see another blonde and a brunette conversing with Usagi before she finally left to fulfill her detention call.
"Aino, Minako," Heero muttered.
"Exactly," Duo smirked. "You guys should really start believing in me more often. I'm starting to get depressed by your lack of faith."
Four pairs of eyes watched as the blonde wearing a bright red bow in her hair alongside a fatigue looking brunette settled at a table occupied by a petite blue-haired girl. They promptly memorized the features of Minako's friend and tucked them away for later use. Phase 1 was complete.
angel313: Thank you for your review. I know the question of why the police want the senshi was only briefly discussed in this chapter but I plan to gradually reveal the motive as the story progresses. Hopefully it doesn't seem too dry in the mean time ^^;
angelic acquarian: Thank you for your review. Rei's situation of being at a different school will be discussed soon since I would hate for her to play less of a role just because she attends an all girls school and the pilots obviously cannot enroll there. I'm sorry to say but I do not particularly favor allowing people to vote for pairings because I'm not really that good of a writer ^^; I've got ideas of pairings though it pains me to pair everyone off because it could be argued as unrealistic. But as a hopeless romantic I simply cannot resist =] I can however say that I am not at all planning a Minako/Duo relationship outside of mere friendship which will hopefully come as good news for you! I am also glad that you think I have kept Minako in character. I find her to be a very complex person who is at times as ditzy as Usagi but serious instantaneously when given certain stipulations. So thank you for your input on her ^^ Always nice to hear that I haven't butchered any of the senshi's personas too much in this attempt at writing ;)
TopazDragon: Thank you for your review. I'm humbled that I've caught your attention and even more so that you have enjoyed the first chapter. Hopefully chapters continue to match and/or exceed the quality of the first since I often tend to become rather dull in my writing after a few pages. heh Anyhow, hope you enjoyed this chapter =]
Thank you for reading. And thank you to those who have taken the time to review, it is much appreciated.
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