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Chapter 6
Makoto and Rei sat in the Crown Arcade together upstairs nursing warm drinks. Just like always, one of the group would bump into another member of the gang by what they gathered was pure coincidence.
"How are you, Rei-chan?" Makoto asked, sipping on her chamomile tea.
"I'm fine," Rei nodded. "The temple is a little crazy lately."
"Ah," Makoto mumbled sympathetically. "You can call if you need any help."
Rei smiled. "Thanks, Mako-chan." She then got up and drained her drink. "Well, I better get back to grandpa," she said, scrutinising the clouds outside. "You better get home Mako-chan if you want to avoid the weather. It looks like a storm is brewing."
Mamoru walked out of the café where he performed music every fortnight. He'd been doing this for a while and he used it like his escape from all thought and feeling. Usagi sometimes attended to watch him sing, play gentle riffs on the baby grand piano or simply strum on a guitar. She knew what it meant to him but today she was grudgingly studying at the library for a few, probably short, hours with Ami.
He took a few steps outside and shivered at the turning weather. He frowned at the black clouds gathering above him and he turned a corner to make his way home. After a few moments, he felt an unexpected wave of pain go through him and buckled onto the floor. He held himself partially up by using one arm to lean against a wall and he took a few deep breaths, clutching at his chest where he felt the pain. His head was thrumming, and he closed his eyes against the black that filled his eyes.
He recalled this feeling before. It was the feeling he had when he felt the Earth suffocating. When Usagi worried about her senshi, he told her not to worry on countless occasions. His reply was always that they were there for them if the girls ever needed them. And generally, that closed the conversation. There was truth in his statement, though. He tried not to bring up the subject of the Silver Millennium or what any of it entailed. He wanted Usagi to have the life that she wanted on Earth – without the weight of the world on her shoulders, the devastation and heartbreak. Yet, he had his own concerns. This feeling provoked thoughts of his Shitennou. Usagi and Mamoru were there for the time when the guardians of the solar system will be needed again. But Mamoru knew that if the Earth needed Mamoru, then Mamoru will need his Shitennou.
Zoicite sat patiently in front of Ami. She knew this was coming. Yesterday, she ignored the overwhelming trepidation that she had when she realised that she had no choice but to tell him what she was dealing with. It was easy when she was studying. She was always in another world. It had taken them so long to get beyond being study partners that this was going to take everything she had. She hadn't shied away from what she learned about herself, even though she didn't understand any of it. It was a source of great fascination to her, really. But to other people… it might be too weird or over the top for them to deal with. She was afraid of his reaction. Of course, she was. She had never wanted anyone's company like she did his. If he left her, she wasn't sure how she'd feel. It would be a rejection if he walked away after she trusted him to tell him what she had recently learned about her abilities… or whatever it was.
Ami sat fidgeting with her hands, all the while with restless legs, shaking underneath her chair. Every now and then she'd look up at Zoicite nervously, not quite sure how to begin. He just sat there, waiting for her to speak up. They had agreed that he would come to her to talk about such weird events that had seemingly gone ignored between them. However, they both realised it was Ami who needed to speak.
After a while, Zoicite got up and fetched two drinks for them and placed a glass of juice in front of Ami. He sat once again and silently drank from his glass. He stared out of the window of Ami's room and sighed. "Ami-chan, you really do need to speak before the sun goes down," he said warily.
"I'm sorry," she mumbled. "I just don't know what to say."
"How about you just start from the beginning?" he suggested. "After all, I get the impression something has been happening for a while."
Ami stared at him. "I really don't think I can start from the beginning. It's… difficult."
Zoicite stood up abruptly. "Ami, I can't sit in your room in silence for much longer. You're driving me crazy." He drained his glass and made to cross the room to escape the claustrophobic air.
"Zoicite, wait!" Ami cried out desperately.
He stopped but he didn't turn to look at her.
"I said that I couldn't start from the beginning. It's easier if I just show you."
Zoicite turned to her. "Show me? What do you mean?"
"Just sit down. Then we'll talk." Ami paused. "That's if you haven't left by then."
"Why would I –" Zoicite started until Ami put up her hand to stop him.
She sat down in front of the glass of juice that Zoicite had set down before her. She looked at the glass and looked again at Zoicite. He frowned but nodded for her to proceed. She took a deep breath and reminded herself of the sweet serenity and peace that only water gave her. She hastily raised her arm towards the glass and watched as she raised the water and then formed a ball. She kept her gaze focused on the water that defied all laws of physics and then raised her second hand and straightened her hand which instantly froze the water in air. It then promptly fell towards the glass where it bounced off the top and toppled the glass onto the rug which thankfully gave it a soft enough landing not to break. She watched as the ice ball followed suit and cracked on the ground. They both silently watched as the remaining water in the glass trickled off the table and made a puddle on the ground.
Zoicite opened and closed his mouth. Ami finally looked up at him, dropped her hands onto her lap. She shrugged when he looked at her. He was too dumbfounded to move. Many minutes passed, and Ami couldn't take anymore.
"Please, say something," she said desperately, alerting him to her presence. "I don't know what to say."
Zoicite got up and swiftly left her room. Ami stared after him, tears welling in her eyes.
Makoto had sat in the Crown for a while after Rei had left, hoping that a storm wasn't brewing. However, the time had come for her to leave. She stepped outside and felt rain drops fall down her bare arms. She pursed her lips and walked in the direction of her house. She looked up and noticed that the clouds were indeed black. Rei had been right. She had no idea why she and her friends never listened to Rei when she said something was going to happen. It always did. In the distance, she heard thunder clap and she saw the sky light up.
"Oh no," she murmured, hurrying a little more.
She was walking past the park and cringed, remembering her last encounter with such weather here. She jumped about a foot in the air when she witnessed a bolt of lightning strike a huge oak tree that dominated the Juban park. She stopped, her hand over her mouth. The tree had gone black and looked like it was dying. She could almost feel it cry out.
She shook her head and continued her way, skirting her way past the withering tree. As she turned a corner, she felt a small figure smack into her side. Being so tall in stature and strong in nature, it only made Makoto sway from the impact, but the other figure wasn't so lucky. She looked down and saw Usagi lying on the wet ground at her feet.
"Usagi-chan!" Makoto bent down and grabbed the trembling blonde's hands and pulled her to her feet. "What are you doing out in this weather?" She brushed her hand over her forehead, pushing away her dark, brunette bangs.
"Oh, thank you, Makoto. I'm sorry I crashed into you. Occupational hazard," she laughed. "I was on my way to see Mamoru and the weather suddenly took a turn for the worst."
"Yeah, I know what you mean," Makoto said, suddenly cutting off as her attention was caught by what was coming towards them. "Usagi!" she screamed, pushing Usagi out of harms way as a second bolt of lightning came down, only at the girls. Makoto raised her hands in defense, wishing that she could protect Usagi from what she once experienced. She closed her eyes expecting impact but instead felt a sharp static in her hands. She slowly opened an eye then stared in shock. Her hands were lit up like thunder, the electricity of the lightning whizzing around her fingers and through her palms.
Usagi gasped. This can't be happening. "Mako-chan, what is that?" she breathed out.
"Supreme thunder," Makoto murmured to herself. She rubbed her hands together and brought them apart, feeling the current now running through her right hand and hurled it up at the sky, where it collided with the pressure in the air and the whole sky lit up.
She bent down at Usagi's side and gasped. "Usagi-chan, your head."
Usagi dazedly reached up and touched her forehead. She looked at her hand and found it covered with blood. When Makoto had pushed her aside out of harms reach, Usagi had hit the corner of the wall on the sidewalk and hit her head. A nasty gash now graced her forehead from her hairline, in a diagonal across her skin to about an inch above her eyebrow.
"Usako!" the girls heard in the distance. Mamoru came running up to the girls and his eyes widening, dropped at Usagi's side, pulling her into him. "What happened? I came running out when I heard the thunder. Usagi, are you okay?"
Makoto stood up. "Please, take care of Usagi-chan. I need to go. I'm sorry." She turned and ran all the way to her home.
