Title: Training in earnest
Author: Ree
Theme: Haruka/Uranus (unaccustomed to losing : day 7)
Genre: General
Version: Anime/Manga silver mellinium (Fates story line)
Rating: G

This complex lady and her friends belong to Takeuchi Naoko. I just asked if they could play for a while.

Training in earnest

Phoebe stared at the woman standing across the circle. She was completely different from the laughing, smiling lady she had become accustom to. 'She's not even wearing a dress today. This is the first time I've ever seen her in pants.' The pale blue-green eyes staring back at her looked like ice chips. 'No.. not ice... stone... glittering jewels that would never soften. And the face that they are set in looks just as hard.' The women stood as still as a statue, her practice blade held in a defense position.

Hemera spoke in a cold, toneless voice. "Get up. You need to try again."

Phoebe pulled herself up to a sitting position and tried to plan the best strategy. She had been sparring with Lady Hemera for the past two weeks, but everything had changed since Hemera figured out that she was Sailor Uranus.

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Hemera had cornered her in the library. Phoebe looked at the message she had received with her breakfast again. "Why did you want to see me here?"

Hemera gave her a scrutinizing look, and with a decisive nod, she said the one thing Phoebe never expected. "You are Sailor Uranus."

Phoebe felt herself nodding in agreement before the words finished sinking in. Hemera shot up from her seat, and started pacing. She spun about and faced Phoebe. "Your main weapon is a sword, and they don't have you in any type of training?"

The shock started to wear off, but Phoebe knew it was too late to convince this astute lady that she was wrong. 'How did she find out? And how does a lady from Saturn know what weapon Sailor Uranus uses?' Meeting Hemera's gaze, she felt compelled to set her right. "The sword is one of my weapons, but I have more powerful attacks." 'And of course they're not training me in those either.'

Hemera caught the fleeting look that crossed the princess' face. 'So they aren't even training you at all.'

Hemera waved her hand dismissively. "They should know better than to only train you in one type of attack. You need to be trained how to use your sword properly. The whole system is relying on you to protect it."

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Pulling herself up once again, Phoebe charged at the cold statue across from her. Hemera moved so quickly that Phoebe only caught the blur. The edge of Hemera's practice blade traced its way across her thigh. Spinning as quickly as she could, she barely blocked the next blow.

Even though she was unaccustomed to losing, that was what Phoebe did many times over the next half hour. After she landed on the floor with a solid thunk, she laid still hoping for a reprieve. She didn't hear Hemera move, but she felt a hand on her shoulder. Turning to look at the lady who had driven her mercilessly, she felt her hope of a reprieve sink. Hemera's face was still cold and blank.

Hemera looked down at the girl she had tried really hard not to beat into a pulp. 'Princess Phoebe is good, and one day I think I can give her an honest fight. One where I won't have to worry about hurting her.' Looking closer at her opponent, she realized how tired the teenager was. "Its time to stop."

Abruptly standing, Hemera crossed the circle. Listening to Phoebe pushing herself up reminded her of Nix. 'She and Sailor Neptune are the only things that protect our system from the outside. They are the ones that keep Sailor Saturn from awakening.' Hemera ruthlessly blocked the memory of Nix's face when she found out who she was, and what Sailor Saturn was meant to do. Hemera knew she had to remain cold awhile longer.

Stopping just inside the circle, Hemera turned to face Phoebe. "You have to learn to be ruthless. You have to learn to hide the fact that you care."

Phoebe forced the dizziness away that was threatening to engulf her. "Why? Aren't Sailor Senshi the senshi of love?"

Hemera almost screamed. 'Has no one explained to her her duty. What she is supposed to do? Surely this is not my calling in life?' Keeping her frustration from showing, Hemera answered. "Yes, but love is shown in many ways. You are one of the protectors of this system. It is your duty to guard it from all external threats."

Phoebe looked surprised. "I'm supposed to protect the Queen and the Princess."

Hemera nodded. "Yes, but from afar. The four Guardian senshi are to guard her person, deal with the politics, and be the diplomats. You are the one who makes sure that they can."

Phoebe looked into the cold face watching her. "All by myself?"

Keeping a groan locked in, Hemera answered. "No. You have a partner, Princess Rhode, Sailor Neptune."

Phoebe looked shocked. "Rhode is Sailor Neptune? Is there a Sailor Pluto and a Sailor Saturn that will help us?"

Hemera felt her mask almost crack when Phoebe mentioned Nix. "No." 'I don't know of a Sailor Pluto, and I won't tell you what Saturn's duty is.'

"So, there is only two of us."

"Yes, there is only the two of you. So you must decide how far you can go to protect the ones you are to guard. Can you kill the innocent bystander, the helpless captive, or even yourself to protect them?"

Phoebe was sure that her face looked as horrified as she felt. Hemera continued her list of questions. "Can you hide your emotions behind a wall, a barrier so thick that none will ever know that you really have a soft heart? Can you stand to be so far away from the ones you are to protect, so alone, and still be on constant guard? Are you willing to be that warrior?"

Phoebe looked down at the practice blade she still held tight in her hand. Could she do that? Could she show the world, her friends, the cold blank face looking at her now from across the circle? Her heart told her the answer. "I can. I am."

Hemera almost lost her barrier. "Then I'll teach you everything I know. And the first thing is..." She stepped out of the circle, and then let go of the cold wall she had around her. Smiling her normal carefree smile, Hemera continued. "..to know when you have to hide your heart."