Disclaimer: Sailor Moon copyright 2001 Naoko Takeuchi/Kondansha, Toei Animation. All rights reserved. Sailor Moon characters and their respective names are trademarks of TOEI Animation.
Licensed by DIC Entertainment, L.P.
AN: Yes, these are going to be very short chapters.
Tuxedo Mask had rushed to the scene as quickly as possible. Leaping from building to building from one side of the city to the other didn't really make for easy nor efficient heroine rescuing.
He didn't have a grappling hook, spider web, or some form of cable to use to swing himself along quickly; each jump had to be calculated individually. That's why he arrived just in time to see
the senshi disperse. Muttering curses to himself, he set off for his apartment.
Serena was so far away from home. She rarely came into this area and was very unfamiliar with it. Not quite sure she was going the right direction, Sailor Moon plodded along down alley
after alley. Something was off, something beyond the distinct smell of sickness outside the bar she had just passed. It soon became clear that with each step was growing harder to make.
With every movement, her body seemed heavier. Sailor Moon felt like she was swimming through Jell-o. "What is this? The youma?" she wondered. Thank goodness her mind was still sharp.
She reach toward her sub-space pocket to get her communicator. Perhaps Sailor Mercury had gotten a reading off of it that would cure this unpleasant condition.
Unfortunately for Sailor Moon, the effects really set in, freezing her arm mid reach. She sighed deeply, or as deeply as being completely frozen allowed. "This is gonna be a long night," she
thought.
Tuxedo Mask glanced down as he prepared for his final leap between buildings. He was finally home. Something in the alley caught his attention, causing him to stumble and almost fall over
the edge. He carefully leapt to the fire escape several stories below for closer inspection. The blonde buns were recognizable anywhere, though he wasn't sure what Sailor Moon would be
doing in his alley. Taking the stairs two at a time, he rushed to the ground.
Sailor Moon stood there, staring straight ahead with one foot poised midair, as though she were about to take a step. One hand was bent slightly behind her back, her hand curled in a way
that suggested it was trying to grip something. She didn't move. Upon closer inspection, she also didn't appear to be breathing.
Of all the people who could have come across Sailor Moon frozen in an alley, she was very glad it was Tuxedo Mask. He was always saving her! Her thoughts continued on to praise many of
his other qualities, notably the toned chest she so frequently found herself pressed against.
A quick glance in each direction showed that no one was around. Tuxedo Mask frowned. Someone had randomly left a life-size, extremely realistic Sailor Moon action figure in his alley. That
didn't really add up. Perhaps it was a ploy by the Dark Kingdom. He scratched his head as he stared at the statuesque heroine. It was probably a trap. It seemed he had two options: leave it
here to potentially injure some unsuspecting citizen or take it to his apartment, recreating a small-scale version of the Battle of Troy.
Tuxedo Mask shrugged. Troy it was. He put his arms around Sailor Moon's waist, which at any other time would have drawn shocked gasp from her. After an attempt at lifting her this way, he
realized that she was very awkward to carry. He set her gently back onto her feet and looked her up and down. Finally he settled on pushing her arms to her sides and her feet together before
bending her at the waist and tossing her over his shoulder.
Sailor Moon would have been blushing profusely at this point, fully aware that anyone passing would see directly up her skirt, but apparently even her ability to blush wasn't working. How
mortifying. Her hero was carrying her over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes. At another time, she would have been delighted at the prospect of seeing his apartment, but right now she just
wanted to be able to yell at him to put her down.