Disclaimer: "Fighting evil by moonlight. Winning love by daylight…" I don't think I watched the Japanese version. I also think the fact that the American theme song used a chorus of young girls who can't sing in tune, especially in "Never running from a REAL fight," actually has a really effective charm on viewers.
Whatever songs I use for "Sailor Planets" are legitimate Sailor Moon songs. I'm getting them off . Check it.
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Chapter VII
"Oh no, I forgot! I can't wear nail polish when I play!!" Usagi cried at her now uneven paintjob of pink.
"Hey Down Syndrome, use a pick," Rei tossed a spare one to Usagi who fell over trying to catch it midair. Luckily, Ami was nearby to catch Usagi's electric guitar before it fell as well.
"Rei-san, why do you call Usagi that? It's rather harsh," Ami said, leaning Usagi's instrument on the couch. They were in the common room of the three girls' dorm.
"It's that dumb smile, and her face is pretty round…" Rei remarked, eying an unaware Usagi, indeed smiling after fetching the pick out of her tangled pigtails. She rolled her eyes at the sight and started strumming an old classic of "Sailor Planets' absentmindedly on her acoustic guitar. It just happened to be the debut duet song of Sailor Mars and Sailor Venus, where Rei sang more than just backup for the first time. Along with her strumming, Rei began to hum her part of the song,
"…first date was a Sci-Fi movie.
Next, my head was about to flood.
Whatever this girl's feeling
is surely, nothing beats it.
I want to take a drive and kiss.
Even with a little headache, I like to remember—"
And then, on cue at the chorus, Minako joined the raven-haired guitarist,
"Say you love me, say I'm dear.
Little by little, I easily get used to you.
When we quarreled and passed each other.
I will suffer exactly that, if you want to visit.
I love your heart,
Straight out, I believe you want to visit no matter when."
The last note resounded, none of that pitchy uncertainly that should have come from a year without practice. The quiet three smiled at the two singing and then to one another. How natural, how obvious.
"Wow guys, you sound really good!! We don't even need to practice—let's go get cake!" Usagi shouted.
Usagi's last comment ignored, "Yea, you guys sound ready for performance. What was that song called again? Did Rei write that one, Minako, after you begged her to do a duet with you?" Makoto asked.
"'Say You Love Me,'" Ami came in. "Yes, Rei wrote it after Minako…suggested...Rei make use of her dormant singing ability. But now that I'm actually dissecting the lyrics, why did Rei write abo—"
Minako started the song again, impatient to sing her part of the song,
"What head is confused
when it remembers your smile?
I saw you in my dreams, but you're not my type.
Your magic eye speeds up my heartbeat.
If I don't do anything, I can stay near you.
The clouds, the road, and the mind leave singing."
Minako and Rei continued to sing their combined chorus together.
Meanwhile, Makoto said, "Hah, oh Ami-chan, can you imagine little old Rei writing these lyrics for Minako and then herself? She totally nailed them. I hate to admit it sometimes, but Rei is devilishly bright. Well, sometimes. She's totally missing it now."
"Now Makoto, we always sang about love, so it wasn't out-of-place for those two to be singing that song," Ami said.
"Yea yea, we sang for love, blah blah. But love doesn't have to be romantic! They could have sung about friendship or family!" Makoto said.
"I like love love songs the best!" Usagi chirped.
"So are we going to play old stuff or write new love songs then?" Minako joined the conversation, only catching Usagi's outburst.
"We should probably use our old songs as promotion, and if we're successful, we invest in writing new material," Rei said. She said this out of sheer knowledge that she was the lyricist of the group. Makoto only really liked to beat the drums up, Ami's intelligence fueled her verbosity but overshadowed her creativity, and Usagi was…Usagi. Rei really was poetic by nature, so it worked for the band. Minako often paired up with Rei in writing songs, and together they produced moving ballads and catchy tunes.
The band nodded in accordance with Rei, their behind-the-scenes leader, and the limelight leader of the band glomped Rei on the large couch, practically climbing into the guitarist's lap, "You're so smart, Rei-chan! What would we do without you?" Minako patted at the hollow of Rei's chest bone, while bringing her face embarrassingly close to Rei's face.
Even for Rei, the public gesture seemed more outrageously flirtatious than usual, and Rei tried to ignore the fact that Minako was straddling her left thigh. The other three tried not to stare as they picked up their own instruments, running through what they remembered of their music repertoire. With Usagi's attention span, they would move to trying on their old outfits. Usagi could not button her skirt up anymore, and Makoto joked that Usagi had been eating too many sweets. Ami suggested Usagi go running with Makoto and Rei. Usagi cried. The usual.
Minako continued her invasion on Rei's lap as she fixed Rei's collar that didn't need fixing and changed topics so quickly that Rei felt like she was in a whirlwind.
"…mhm, sure Rei-chan. Yupyup. So…when's your next date with Mio?" This time Minako paused, so Rei was prompted to speak.
"Oh…uhmmm, probably Saturday night again. She doesn't work that shift, and I don't go to parties anyway," Rei said matter-of-factly.
"Hm…you've always been a serious person, Rei-chan." Minako's tone lacked sincerity, but she meant it nonetheless. "You wouldn't just date casually—is she the one?" Minako said almost mockingly.
"What? I don't know Mina...it's my first time dating anyone, so I think it's too soon to say," Rei said.
"So she certainly wasn't love at first sight. Do you believe in that?" Minako said offhandedly. But she was curious, not sure how she felt about it herself.
Rei chewed on it for a while, and she answered Minako earnestly, "Yea...I think there's such a thing as love at first sight. But it's not always obvious. Sometimes people can be blind to their own feelings. If the love happens to grow to obvious proportions, then it'll just click."
"Are you telling me you didn't fall for me first sight?!" Minako partially feigned hurt.
"I did not, vain one," Rei partially lied in return. As she had said, she wasn't aware that her absolute pull to Minako as a child was probably due to some premature love, the love that lasts beyond friendship, into a family and lifetime spent together.
"How cruel, Rei-chan. What if I had been secretly harboring romantic feelings for you since I first met you, but I was too afraid of rejection?" Minako provoked. She didn't like how she could hear a crack in her voice, as if she was possibly revealing a secret to herself.
"Then why would you date Zoicite?" Rei stated, like a rhetoric question, deadly serious. Minako arms had been wrapped around her, hands playing at the back of Rei's neck. Her hands stopped.
"Oh my goodness…" Dawning came upon Minako's face like a dark sky. "I can't believe I never figured this out…y-yo-you!!" Minako said, wagging a pointed finger at Rei's crossing eyes.
"I don't know what you're talking about!" Rei said panicked, not ready to bear Minako figuring out her feelings for her.
"I can see it in your eyes. It's so obvious now…" Minako leaned into Rei's eyes.
"Just say it then, God!" Rei shouted.
"You never liked Zoicite. You never answered my questions or ever really gave an opinion about him," Minako said calmly. "That's one of very few things you share in common with Haruka—"
"I want nothing to do with her. What did she do to you in the bathroom last Sunday? I'll reign hell on her. She thinks she's so tough; I'm not scared of her in the least," Rei spoke with absolute conviction, so strong that it eclipsed her fear that Minako had unearthed her feelings for her.
"Well you guys are both important to me," Minako chose to ignore Rei's comment to skim over what Haruka discussed with her earlier and to get them back on her track, "and I want to know why you both dislike my boyfriend so much. So 'fess up," Minako stared Rei down.
Rei seethed through gritted teeth and waited a moment before she spit out, "He's not good."
"Okay Rei, you're going to have to give me a little more than usual this time," Minako urged, moving her hands to hold Rei's face. It produced a feeling of warmth and pressure on Rei. "How is he not 'good?'"
Rei's face grew hot under the contact, the seriousness of the situation, and she gave in, "He's not good…enough. For you," Rei whispered the last part.
"What did you say, I didn't hear you, silly," Minako patted and rubbed lightly down Rei's cheek, jaw, to her neck. Minako began to feel the rumbling of Rei's throat, as if Rei were about to growl.
"He's not good enough for you!" Rei choked out, not loudly, but it sounded painful nonetheless. She looked and felt like she wanted to cry.
As bad as Minako felt for putting Rei in such an uncomfortable situation, she earnestly had to know this, "Who do you think is good enough for me then?" She wanted to laugh at the absurdity of the idea, that Rei could think so highly of her. Rei didn't answer her immediately, so Minako went off-hand without filter, "I don't think Mio's good enough for you." Rei eyed her warily and then let her eyes droop again.
"No one, alright? No one. And Mio has nothing to do with this now," Rei said petulantly, pouting about her feelings. Letting the Mio comment go, Minako had to physically anchor herself from kissing Rei's unnervingly, adorable expression, but the main pull was that Rei seemed to esteem Minako so highly.
Minako sunk her forehead into the easy curve of Rei's neck. In turn, Rei linked arms around Mina's back, pulling Minako into a safe hold. "Well that sucks. Do you really think I'm meant to be alone then…?" The question hung in the air like big-city pollution. Rei could ignore it, but she'd be heartless to not take action.
"No. I'm just selfish," and I want you all to myself, Rei thought miserably. Minako gasped, unsure of whether Rei wanted her to be "alone" with her in bitter-buddy glory, or that maybe, maybe Rei wanted her for herself? Minako's heart instinctively clung to the latter, and she felt dizzy. "Look, I never say anything, because…I just want you to be happy. If he makes you happy, then I'm a horrible person for saying otherwise. Don't listen to me."
But Minako listened; she always cherished every jewel that left Rei's mouth. And Minako knew, knew that as the tears picked up in falls, knew that as her heart beat traitorously, she knew she wasn't happy with Zoicite.
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DIE STORY DIE. sigh.
