AN: So, I think I have reached a new personal record in being late with my new chapter. However, I wanted to get this done at least before Christmas. And as a small compensation I post a long chapter, which was originally designed as two shorter ones. We continue right where we left off, right after our dear Senshi watched the insights of the mirror into Methys' and Ami's shared past. Enjoy.
Peviously:
My life was anything but boring." Methys reassured her.
"I hope one day you will tell me about it."
Methys did not respond. She just smiled… and it was bittersweet. It was worried. It was a myriad of other things ranging from sadness over pain to longing. Ami did not see it, since she had wisely averted her gaze.
However, Michiru saw it and it unsettled her greatly.
She had a feeling this talk between them was not finished, but in the next moment it was for her, for all of the other Senshi, when her surroundings dissolved again into colorful dust.
Ami and Methys vanished to be replaced by a bare swirling void.
Only the shapes of the eight Senshi remained, baffled by these new revelations about Methys and Ami.
They got more answers. They finally knew what this encoded book was for and why Ami carried around the faked Clonazepam pills. Why the Inner Senshi missed memories from the time after their fight against Metallia.
They also got to know that Haruka had been right in fearing that the late Senshi might overtake their bodies. Apparently, they have done so before, at least for the Inners and none of them had known.
Well, that wasn't entirely correct.
Ami had.
For that very reason Michiru should be angry with her for withholding information, for keeping secrets, for not telling what she was obliged to tell.
However, after witnessing those memories herself, after truly seeing the turmoil and anguish all of this caused for her, that anger blew off before it truly had the time to build up to something that deserved to be labeled as such.
And… Ami had planned to tell them.
She might have been conflicted about the whole topic, but she had planned to tell them.
That had to count for something.
In fact, she must have gotten to know about everything the morning before Michiru's art exhibition, at least that is the time frame this last conversation indicated.
The morning before everything went downhill.
So, she never got the chance to share her newfound knowledge, before she was caught in the robbery. At least the part about Metallia was new wasn't it? That didn't mean that she did not have plenty of time to share her other secrets about her own past…
However, could she really blame her? After all, neither Haruka nor she shared her past with the Inners and they never bothered to ask them about theirs. They had not been forthcoming about those matters either, so in essence Ami was right that she never was obliged to share the matter about her arm, when nobody else was willing to do the same. They might not like it now, but if they wanted to blame her, they were guilty of the same crime. Each of them.
So, for those reasons that topic wasn't really the one that bothered Michiru all too much.
In fact, she might be able to let that matter slide.
However, she wasn't sure she could do the same with Methys. Ami conversed with her all this time and they never noticed. This was more of an active deceit than keeping quiet of her arm ever was, especially considering her arm did not pose a problem anymore for the time, they have known each other. However, Methys was a different matter. She was all of their business. She was there all the time. She might have been of help in all their Senshi crises. Their awareness of her being there might have changed certain things. They should have known that the late Senshi souls were still somewhat alive in them. About a manifestation of one of them walking amongst them… of sorts.
And still Ami kept quiet.
For four years.
That was no minuscule amount of time. Even if she had troubles of sharing her secrets… goddamn it was still four years. Why didn't she reach the conclusion of letting them know earlier than what her talk with Methys indicated? What held her back besides her promise to Methys to keep quiet? Was it lack of trust? Was it the fear of incomprehension? All of it combined?
What the hell were you thinking, Ami?
It was hard to believe that whatever it was justified her long silence.
And her recent decision to tell them… would she have pulled through with it? If circumstances wouldn't have turned to the disaster they had now, would she have truly told them? Or would she have found a way to back down on her word… How determined has she been to come out with the truth?
For all they knew this talk might have just ended in a fleeting decision…
After all they only witnessed a fraction of their conversation.
They did not even know how it ended.
They only saw it indirectly with the mirror, Michiru's talisman. As an… accident?
Was it even by accident?
Whatever the mirror was doing, these memories were not related to the Silver Millennium. They were related to Ami and Methys. They showed them missing pieces, things they did not know before about those two. Whatever they saw so far had one of them or both starring in it. Michiru didn't know how this was possible, why the mirror ignored her initial request to get to know more about the former Serenity and Methys, but this was apparently what was happening. Where did the mirror get instructions from? Did it even need those or did it have a life on its own? The only other possibility, coming to her mind was, that this was Michiru's own doing? Maybe in her subconscious mind those questions that had accumulated about Ami and Methys overruled the one, she had asked the mirror for real, in importance? Maybe the mirror somehow sensed what she needed to know the most.
At the end she could not know what caused this.
She just knew it was happening.
And she was afraid this wasn't the end of it. On the one hand she had desperately wanted to know these things, on the other hand she didn't know, whether she was ready for it. What more was there to come? Whatever it was, it might be too much. She had been eager to dive into the mirror for answers. Now she wasn't sure, whether that had been a good idea and she wasn't even seeing the answers she had been looking for.
I can't forget again, what I see here. And it will change things. It changes what I think about Ami, what I know about the Senshi… Did I really think this through to the end or was I just rash in sating my curiosity while neglecting to ponder about the consequences?
It's too late now. I chose this path and the mirror has taken all further decisions out of my hand.
She kind of knew they were far from done with those snippets into the past. Afterall, they still were not back at Ami's hospital bed.
And she was proofed right, when the swirling colors around her took on new forms. Michiru braced herself.
There was no blue this time. Only shades of gray.
Slate gray. Ash gray. Tape. Graphite. Charcoal.
And the room they have been in, Ami's room, had extended to a huge hall.
Michiru recognized this hall immediately and a lump clogged her throat. It suddenly felt too tight and outright revulsion burned like bile in her stomach.
I have been here before.
Methys' shimmering form appeared in front of her and this time she looked sad, heartbroken… and angry.
I can imagine why.
She looked right through them. As for the previous memories the Ice Senshi did not realize that any of them was there. They were again reduced to be unnoticed bystanders that witnessed things that have never been meant for their eyes. Everyone was facing Methys, but she was focusing on something behind them.
Michiru knew what it was. She didn't want to turn around, though. She didn't want to see it. Not again.
Then Methys stepped forward right through them and she had no choice anymore. If she wanted to follow her movements, if she wanted to see what she was doing, she had to turn around. She braced herself, knowing, it wouldn't be a pretty sight.
Out of the corner of her eyes she saw the silent reactions of the others. Shock. Disgust. Horror.
She knew those feelings all too well. After all, she has seen the same gruesome scene before… and back then she had felt the same.
The ones out of their group, who didn't see it the first time, reacted more strongly than the others. She could relate. She didn't want to see it a second time either or was it even the third. After all, the mirror had already shown them a similar scenario once before. However, it hadn't been that bad back then. It had been right when she was shot.
Not when she was already lying on a dusty floor for ages, while slowly bleeding out.
Not when the concrete beneath her had already turned crimson.
Not when she looked as if death was already gripping her in its tight and relentless clutches.
Not when they haven't cleaned her from the worst of the blood on the backseat of Haruka's car, yet.
Michiru forced herself not to focus too much on Ami's broken body, but to watch the Ice Senshi approaching her. It was so much easier to look at her, when she crouched down next to Ami's prone form on the ground.
A tense whisper escaped her grim lips and her eyes looked so old right now. "Why do you keep doing this to me… little one?" The question sounded so tired and hurt. She briefly lowered her head. However, she did not touch her, although her gestures implied that she wanted to. In fact, she looked lost about what to do, her hands hovering in midair, before she let them drop uselessly at her side.
"Ami, can you hear me?" She finally attempted to speak to her. The crestfallen look on her face only deepened, when she got not the semblance of a response.
"Ami?!" She tried a bit louder. "You can't sleep. You need to wake up!"
She was on the verge of shaking her, halting her movements at the last moment, frustration evident on her face.
"Ami! Come on, wake up! I can't touch you. You need to follow my voice!"
Finally, she stirred, her face contorted in pain, her eyes barely opening to slits.
"Me..thys…" She breathed weakly, her voice raspy and tired.
The ghost of a forced smile appeared on her face. "Yeah, it's me. Glad to see that you are still with me. You know this is a really bad time to indulge into sweet dreams. I am afraid you have to be bear with my nagging self and reality for the time being. I know it's far from pretty right now, but stay awake, ok?" Her voice was hoarser than it should be, and she subtly cleared her throat to make it sound more normal.
"I… can't …"
"Yes, you can. Just keep talking to me." The Senshi insisted.
"I am .. dying." She croaked and the finality in her words was frightening.
"Not this time. Not if I can help it." Methys claimed steadfastly.
"The ice… that was you… you … meddled…" She almost appeared astonished by her own observation.
A dark chuckle answered that comment. "What else am I supposed to do, if you insist on doing those stupid stunts on me? Seriously, why did you not transform beforehand? Why did you insist on facing those thugs on your own? Use those damn brain cells of yours, they are not just for decoration, and don't play the hero, when you are alone with no backup!" She snapped almost angrily.
Ami groaned. "Don't … lecture…"
"The hell I will. I am sick of you lying around somewhere on the verge of dying."
"D..itto." She flinched in pain and her breath hitched.
Concern immediately flushed Methys' face. "Does it hurt?"
Ami looked at her as if she had grown a second head, not able to voice her thoughts through the pain.
Methys grimaced. "Ok, dumb question… you needn't answer that one. I am already trying to heal what I can, but they really did a number on you. We have to limit the blood loss. In case you forgot. You got your message out. Your friends are on their way. They will be here in a heartbeat. Just hold on for a bit longer, ok?"
"Glad… you're …here. Don't …want'o die alone." The slur was evident in her words.
"Don't you dare start talking like that. We are far from exchanging goodbyes. You will stay here with me, you hear me. In fact, you will have to live with my eccentric self for quite some more decades. You are the Senshi of Mercury. You won't die just because of a tiny bullet."
"Head's worse…" Her mumble was barely audible.
"Can't be that bad, if you are still lucid enough to contradict me." Her expression betrayed that she knew exactly how bad it was. Ami however, did not respond. The few words she had spoken, had already exhausted her tremendously and it showed.
Methys' frown only deepened. "I need you to do something for me. You need to lay your hand on your stomach wound. Can you do that?"
Ami's eyes had lost all expression and she did not even react upon her request.
"Ami!" Methys' eyes widened. "Come on, move your hand! I can't do that for you. I cannot even rattle you awake. Now MOVE!" She almost screamed the last word into her ear and Ami startled back to attention, groaning pitifully.
Methys' face fell. "I am sorry, but you have to move your hand! Please."
Ami sluggishly followed her request, fighting for the strength to position her hand, where instructed.
Methys nodded tensely. "Good, and now we are going to freeze that wound. You already did that before, but that ice patch is already melting, so we have to renew it. Come on, it's a piece of cake. I know you can do it."
"…you…"
"Yes, it's my doing that you can form these ice patches. Question answered. The rest I am gonna explain at a time when you are not bleeding all over the place. Now don't ask irrelevant questions, listen to me and save your energy for something worthwhile. I am going to place my hand next to yours and we will do this together, ok? Just do what I say. I can help you with the freezing, but the brunt of the work has to come from you. Only you can induce the ice forming right now, you understand?" She put her hand where indicated barely a palm away from Ami's. "You remember the feeling from last time. You have to want it. You have to imagine it. Think of ice. Think about your feelings when you conjured the fog, when you froze the patch the first time. Just concentrate, Ami."
Her eyes were barely open, now and it looked as if she would lose consciousness soon.
Methys could not miss the obvious signs. "Don't make me yell at you again. Stay awake and concentrate. There will be a test later on and I demand of you to get full marks for it."
A pitiful scoff left her mouth which was more of a weakened whine.
An icy glow suddenly engulfed her hand and Ami flinched slightly when the ice finally formed, biting back another groan.
"I know it hurts, but it will keep the rest of your blood where it belongs. At least if we manage to do the same with your head… ok, Ami? We will do the same again… so just…"
Suddenly, she stopped mid-sentence and flinched visibly.
A far-away shell-shocked expression appeared on her face, and her head whipped around, her focus straying from Ami, caught entirely by something else. She stared over her own shoulder right into nothingness, into the same direction everyone was standing. Michiru knew she was not seeing them, though. Whatever it was she saw, it frightened her and a myriad of emotions danced over her features including utter shock, confusion and disbelief.
"What the…" she mumbled astonished. "What was that? What was that feeling? Who…" She talked to herself. Suddenly, an expression of awareness appeared on her face. "The Henshin Stick. Of course … Someone…" The sentence trailed off unfinished.
"Me..thys?" Ami's questioning and worried plea made her attention dart back to her injured charge.
"I am here. I am still here." She appeased her gently, but somewhat distracted. "Don't worry, I am not going anywhere, but something just happened. I am not sure… what …but…" She forced her focus back on Ami. The concern was evident in her voice, but apparently, she tried her best to put Ami first, in favor to whatever ominous threat she felt.
"Don't worry. Whatever it is, it's not important right now. It can wait. I am all yours." She reassured her, pulling herself together. "Let's proceed with your head. And afterwards I am gonna tell you a little Senshi fairytale. If you wanna hear it, you have to stay awake, ok?"
"Not… fair." Ami croaked.
"You already start complaining, when I have not even begun. It's a good story, I promise. One that is true. It will be worth your while. Now, get your hand moving. The earlier we seal your head wound the earlier you get to hear it." She kept the banter light, but her motivation behind it was evident.
She still appeared distraught and her gaze jumped from time to time to the same corner, as if she was afraid something would jump out of it engaging in some kind of a sneak attack. Her eyes never strayed from Ami for long, though.
Ami heaved up her hand as if it weighed a ton.
Methys watched her closely, encouraging her. "Come on, you are almost there. Don't stall for time out of worry about quick-freezing your brain cells. You won't even notice if you lose some…"
Ami grunted in obvious disagreement, when her hand finally touched its destination.
"That's it. And now you are only one step away from your reward. A little Silver Millennium story just as I promised."
"Am no kid… for bed time… story." Ami hissed.
"Of course not. I don't want to lull you into sleep, quite the opposite. That's why this is an adventure story. It's going to be about a stupid princess…who ventured heads over heals into a fight only to realize that she wasn't fit enough to be of any help. At the end she underestimated her enemy and got her ass handed to her. Sounds familiar?"
After a rattled breath she just croaked. "That's… cheating…"
Then Ami suddenly groaned when the ice patch formed. "Ouch…"
Methys just continued to distract her from the pain. "Aah, cheating is just a matter of perspective. This was just a short summary to pique your interest. The whole story is full of action: scheming royalty, fancy sword fights, furry beasts, a city under siege, a solo attempt that almost went wrong and family ties that are bound to be tested. Oh, I almost forgot … there is also a nice dip into a lake. You will like it. Just …"
Suddenly, Methys' hand shot to her head clutching it in apparent pain and her face was crunched up.
"No… not again. That can't be…" She squeezed out the word through her clenched teeth. "Not now."
This time she could not ignore it any longer. Instead she struggled to her feet as if dazed, still staring in the same direction as before, focused on something invisible, something that bothered her enough to get her in a state of frenzy. Enough to even distract her from Ami. If she had been troubled before, it only ten-folded with this second incident.
Michiru had a vague idea what caused this strange behavior, when a recent memory popped up in her mind. The Henshin Stick. Somebody touched it again. The first touch might have been Inspector Hattorima, but this stronger second one that apparently got under Methys' skin… it can only be him. He told them himself during their fight, how he touched the Henshin Stick and awakened because of it.
Methys confirmed her fear with her next words.
"Laertes…" The name left her lips as a painful hiss and immediately a shudder run down Michiru's spine.
It is him.
Methys made a tentative step forward, her feet somehow carrying her on their own, and the shock left her features only to be replaced by an expression of painful longing. "Is that you?" The question was so breathy and soaked with astonished disbelief, that it almost sounded like a prayer to an incarnated god.
Michiru stopped short upon that unexpected reaction. This isn't how you react to a mortal enemy, is it? But it must be him. It was the name he had given them. You can call me Laertes. That's what he said at the end of their fight right after he tossed Ami's lifeless form into the pool. And Methys used exactly that name right now.
So, I don't get it? Am I wrong?
Michiru eyed the Mercurian Senshi now closely.
A sharp gasp escaped Methys' mouth and suddenly her expression hardened abruptly and her already pallid face turned into a mask of hard-edged alabaster. Her features morphed further into something vicious, something dangerous and she snarled in an almost feral way.
"You filthy parasite…" The insult was equally unexpected as fierce.
Michiru frowned in confusion. What kind of mood swing was that? One second it sounded as if she was overjoyed and the next she called him nasty names. Not that she couldn't understand the latter, but why the soft tone at the beginning? Did she really feel the touch of him or had it been Inspector Hattorima? But she did clearly call him Laertes and not Ithoran. This made no sense at all.
Don't ponder about it now.
Watch her closely. Don't miss anything. This is your only chance to see every detail up close. You can worry about reasons and explanations later on. Just focus on her for now.
There wasn't much to observe for several seconds.
Methys appeared frozen on the spot, deeply rattled by whatever she sensed. Tense. Her fists balled in suppressed agitation. Her jaw clenched tightly. Her muscles taut. Attentive. Alert. Focused. A dark frown on her face. As if she was listening to something only she could hear. As if she was waiting for nothing short of an apocalypse.
The moment seemed to last a small eternity.
… before she finally dared to relax. She exhaled in a long puff, deflated like a tire with a hole, shrinking into herself, into someone that appeared much smaller. Her figure lost all of its rigid stance, in fact it almost looked as if she was seconds away from sinking to her knees.
She appeared indecisive, reluctant and torn.
Her gaze dropped to the floor briefly, before it suddenly shot skyward as if she just remembered a certain detail. She whirled around almost in a panic.
"Ami?... Ami?!"
The injured bluenette did not react anymore, to none of Methys' pleas, no matter how loud she shouted her name.
Methys sunk to her hackles in defeat. "Shit!" The exclamation was fierce and angry and it echoed in the vast factory building like a cannon beat.
Ami was unconscious and she had no means to rouse her anymore.
Her posture sagged even more until she was sitting on the floor in a resigned heap. There was a moment of uneasy silence, before she spoke again, knowing fully well that Ami was hearing none of it. "This changes everything. If he is here, I don't know, whether I can save you anymore." The whisper was weak and raspy. "… this is gonna become a living nightmare… and I… I... must…" The words died on her lips and her next ones were barely audible. "What.. what shall I do, Ami?"
Of course, no one answered her desperate plea.
She just sat there, her head hung low and her bangs hiding her eyes.
Then, the depressing scene burst into swirls of gray.
Michiru felt as if a hole had opened in the floor to swallow her, the final scene still burned into her retina and mind. It just refused to fade.
And for the first time a certain fact truly registered, one she should have taken for real way earlier. But even with everything she has seen so far, it took the sight of a desperate Methys sunken to the floor pleading an unconscious Ami for help.
It finally sunk in.
She never wanted this. She does care for Ami a great deal.
The hints have been always there even before witnessing these memories.
I only did not understand them. I got it all wrong.
All of the previous memories showed she cared. However, Michiru only realized now, how much.
You made it so hard to understand you, because you tried to smother every semblance of emotion in our presence. You kept us at a distance. You played an act and we fell for it.
Methys wasn't as cold as she wanted everyone to believe. She wasn't uncaring or indifferent, although that was what they accused her to be countless times. This situation was tight for her. Until the fight with Laertes started, she had never truly noticed how bothered she was. And this made it apparent that it has already started way earlier. Back then, she had never truly pondered about her connection to Ami. From the first moment Methys stepped into their lives, she had just seen her as what the late Neptunian Senshi would be to her. A stranger. A relict. Part of history. An idol far out of her reach on a pedestal that she had erected herself.
However, this wasn't true for Ami and Mercury. They shared a bond. They have been close.
They have established a relationship over time, one, none of them was aware of.
And no matter what came between them, it was genuine friendship that bound them together.
For a moment she felt envy towards Ami.
Part of her wondered, whether she could have had such a bond as well. Part of her wondered where her Senshi guardian was, when she needed her… When she was in trouble, when she wrestled with the notion of killing someone, with the pressure of finding the talismans, with her nightmares of world's ending.
Methys came to Ami's help back then in this forest, didn't she? Why didn't the late Neptunian do the same for me?
I could have used some moral support as well. Some guidance. However, my Senshi guardian never made an appearance. Why not? What made me different?
Why did she stay silent all this time?
Michiru battled these thoughts down. What would it help to go there?
Nothing. It just adds another point to the long list of things that rattle you.
And still now that she thought about it the first time, it was difficult to silence these questions again. They just joined the uproar in her mind and silence was the furthest thing she could find there. Silence would have been great. Silence would grant her a moment to breathe, an opportunity to center herself. She, a passionate musician, has never longed for silence that much.
She rarely got what she longed for.
This time was no exception.
The shapes of color were still indistinct, when the timbre of voices reached Michiru's ears.
She recognized one voice specifically, although she knew it only from tapes. Audio records always changed the tune slightly, but the difference could not be more apparent, when you listened to your own voice. Because you never hear your own voice the same way others did.
"…Jupiter, there is a pulse… Makoto listen…" Her former self insisted urgently. Their surroundings were the same as before, only this time additional people had joined them.
The moment when we found Ami.
She saw herself kneeling right in front of Ami, surrounded by the solid shapes of Jupiter, Uranus and Pluto, their former selves to be precise. However, there was another figure: The Ice Senshi stood as an invisible solemn shadow right behind her watching her every move, her expression unreadable.
Methys observed Makoto hoisting up Ami's body. She winced when the ice broke and a dark mutter left her lips. "Please, tell me you brought some bandages."
When Makoto started her slow path to carry her away, she eyed her with a resigned sigh. "Guess not."
Methys followed them out of the building.
When Makoto briefly had to wait for Haruka to adjust the car seats and blankets, the Mercurian stepped closer.
With a painful smile she leaned over Ami's head and whispered. "I have to leave you for a moment. You are safe with them. But… please do me a favor and don't do anything stupid, while I am gone. Just keep that heart of yours beating. That's all I am asking of you. I'll be back in a heartbeat. I promise."
With those words her form faded, until there was nothing left but faint sparkles.
However, this time her silent spectators followed her, when she reappeared in a dark alley. The moon was their only light source. Methys looked around carefully, probably to orient herself. Then she walked forward following several turns, passing waste containers and several rear exits that haven't been used for ages from the looks of them.
They followed her reluctantly.
In fact, they didn't have another choice. It was as if they were being dragged behind her like a magnet pulled to another one.
Finally, she turned a corner and walked right in the middle of a commotion, you would only expect to see in a stereotypical crime TV series.
The police and ambulance staff were everywhere and the blue flickering lights of the police cars illuminated the scenery eerily, while beams of flashlights complemented the picture. Strict and professional voices filled the air and shiny badges flashed in a cold silver and ice blue, whenever the emergency light was reflected by them.
Everyone was busy, and no one took notice of her as she stepped right into the middle of the crime scene.
They could not see her.
She just walked slowly past the uniformed police officers taking a look around, until she stopped right in front of a shabby brick wall. She looked skyward to the edge of the building and then to the ground, as if she tried to confirm something.
And Michiru understood, when she spotted the fire staircase, her scrutinizing gaze was fixed on. That must be the spot where Ami lost her Henshin Stick.
And indeed, Methys' gaze scanned the ground and her eyes narrowed, when she spotted a labeled sign with the number five.
There was nothing else there.
It's not here anymore. Apparently, Kato and Hattorima must have both touched it considering the strange reactions she had earlier. And now the Henshin Stick was gone. One of them must have taken it and according to his bragging during their face-off, it could only be Kato...Laertes… man, these multiple names got confusing. The fact remained, he had it back then.
Apparently, she Methys wasn't pleased by not finding the Henshin Stick.
The frown on her face deepened, before she looked up and scanned the crowd of people buzzing around her. She looked at every individual police officer and walked around in their blocked off area entirely unnoticed. Then she halted abruptly and they could see her stare to a point in the darkness, right above their heads. A small movement outside of the flashlights of the police had caught her attention. A sliver of white and a glint of ruby and metal.
There in the darkness the end of a staff was barely visible on a rusty balcony attached to one of the shabby brick buildings.
A tiny smug smile appeared on her face. "Setsna." Then it disappeared in a heartbeat and she appeared almost annoyed with herself. "No, not her. The other one. I swear this look-alike copy thing is driving me crazy one day."
Michiru immediately froze upon hearing her mumble that and her gaze darted to their Setsuna, who was standing right next to her. She was not the only one. Questioning gazes from everyone bore into her until she couldn't take it anymore and gave a tiny albeit slightly forced affirmative nod.
So, Setsuna had been there that time. Now that she thought about it, the left her behind when they rushed away with the injured Ami by car. She had offered herself because of the limited space in Haruka's speedster. Apparently, she had used the time to have a look at the crime scene.
She did not mention it. But apparently Methys had now that she thought about. And now it was revealed how she could have known that. She had seen her here.
Michiru focused again on the Mercurian when she heard her murmur. "So… did you come to scout? To get some insights into what happened here? Well, do as you please. I am not here for you."
With these words she averted her gaze and concentrated again on what was happening right before her. Walking through the busy crowd of police officers she crossed the crime scene.
Suddenly, she tensed and her path got more purposeful, as if she spotted something of interest.
Or rather someone. She approached one particular police officer, who had his back turned towards them. According to his uniform he was a junior officer, quite young and his long hair was bound to a loose ponytail.
Michiru stiffened immediately. That's Kato. Laertes. I don't know… one of them… or both.
Methys stalked around him like a wildcat circling its prey.
She appeared careful, apprehensive and unbelievingly tense. As if she wasn't sure what to expect of him, but fearing he might lunge out at her in a sudden lightning-quick attempt to close his hands around her throat.
Which isn't too far off the scenario that turned real later on…
When she finally stood in front of him, she looked him straight in the eyes, although the mere effort seemed to pain her.
For a moment, she appeared torn, for a moment there was a flicker of vulnerability, amazement and recognition, a semblance of hope and despair on her face.
Then, as if she turned a switch her eyes turned stoic. Cold and withdrawn.
A low hiss left her mouth. "I don't know who you are at the moment…, but I know who you will be. I should have killed you, when I had the chance. I won't hesitate again. You die. I won't let you get the upper hand this time."
From their perspective it looked inept. Her death glare directed at him, when Kato was completely oblivious to her presence. He just followed his duty, fumbling with some bags that obviously contained pieces of evidence he collected. From the looks of it, he came across as a normal human police officer and not as the psychopath Michiru knew, he would turn into.
Methys continued to watch him with sharp hawk's eyes, scanning his every move apparently in the search of ... something.
Her eyes widened, when he suddenly stumbled.
The young man touched his head in confusion.
Methys' eyes were now glued to him, intrigued to witness what would happen next. "Come on, show me…" She mumbled impatiently, threateningly.
However, the next moment her shimmering body flickered, her whole form fading in and out of existence like a lightbulb shortly before it burned out. She cursed. "Oh, you have to be kidding me, I just need another minute."
Michiru frowned in confusion. What was happening? Why was she fading? A thought popped up in her head. Ami must be in our car right now. Driving away… Maybe, the distance between them is getting too far…
Methys appeared to think something along the same line, but the flickering got only worse. "No, I can't return! Not yet! Laertes!" Her enraged outcry was accompanied with an outstretched hand in his direction that never reached the young police officer, who still clutched his head as if nursing a particular nasty attack of migraine.
Then her form vanished completely.
And their surroundings vanished with her.
The new image was still fuzzy at the edges, when Haruka's dark timbre already reached her ears, a desperate all too familiar tint to it. "Stop it, Sailor Moon! Stop the healing."
Michiru realized then, that the scenery had changed again after the last snippet. The alley and the shrill lights of the police cars and the ambulance were gone. The icy gray shadows of the night had been replaced with the familiar warm colors of her home. They jumped ahead in time and this time their past selves were again present, standing around Ami's unconscious body that was draped on their living room table. She could only watch how things enfolded the same way they did last time, when they tried to heal Ami.
Usagi's screechy voice yelled in despair engulfed in a halo of light that had its origin in her moon scepter. "I can't. It's not reacting anymore." Suddenly, an arm shot forward and blue light met blinding white, before Usagi's scepter was thrown out of her hand and she ended as a heap thrown against a cupboard. And this time she could hear Methys' enraged shout. "No! Not like this! Do you want to kill her?!"
She remembered this. It was right before the first time Methys appeared to them. And she looked pissed.
The next moment the scene vanished again.
Michiru got dizzy with all these rapid changes. She felt the adamant urge to lean on the wall that had appeared right next to her, only to realize that this wall wasn't real. Not even her own body was. She had nothing to steady herself on and her head was swimming.
She needed a moment to pull herself together. There were still voices surrounding her, but they were hushed, subdued. She blamed her own state of mind for it, before she realized that she wasn't the one responsible for it. In fact, the owners of these voices were nowhere in sight.
She could only listen.
"We could threaten her to tell us the truth and promise on everything she holds dear to stay away from Ami or we cease looking for her Henshin Stick." That was Minako's voice for sure.
"That won't work. We can only stop her from pursuing Ami by finding the Henshin Stick. Otherwise, we push her exactly into the direction, where we don't want to have her. And I am not believing any of her reassurances and promises anymore. Therefore, she has lied too often. If we try to force her to promise us anything, she will only tell us the things we want to hear." Rei.
"So we proceed with our search for the Henshin Stick as planned, at least if she comes up with some more clues where it might be. I don't like to be her henchman, while she is planning to deceive us, but this is our only chance at the moment. And we should not forget that we have no evidence against her. We will give her the benefit of the doubt and cooperate as long as she does…" That was her own voice.
… and if she makes even one wrong move in Ami's direction, then we agree in one thing: Attack with everything you have to stop her?" Haruka.
"Yes, that's what we agree." Usagi.
I know this conversation. That's right after the disaster with Methys and Ami's mother, when they got suspicious of Methys' intentions and decided to keep Ami always guarded by two of them. Right after they decided to heal Ami's assailants at the hospital and wipe out their memories of her….
Michiru looked around. She wasn't in Ami's hospital room but in the anteroom where Usagi, Makoto and Ami's mother were held captured in Methys' ice prison during Kato's attack.
That's why the voices are faint. I am not in the same room with the speakers. I am right next to it.
Her breath hitched when she realized there was a brooding figure standing right next to her, leaning at the wall. A figure who listened as intently as she did.
Methys.
She has known. She has been there. She has been always there. We just did not see her.
That very notion shocked her. Everything they planned, everything they did, she has already known way in advance. And she had planned according to that knowledge…
There was never a chance for us in succeeding to protect Ami from her, was there?
Still, Methys had struggled. It was evident, that sacrificing Ami wasn't something she wanted to do. All those memories they have seen before proved that. During the fight Kato winded her up with not getting rid of her host fast enough. Back then, she had barely reacted to his taunts, but what she has seen here proofed that she really wanted to save Ami. Before, her behavior had always been ambivalent, one time reprimanding them for their attempted healing with the Silver Crystal that only endangered Ami's life more, while plotting behind their backs to take over her body at the same time. They could have been never sure with her intentions. She had always followed her own agenda, seeking to reach her end and none of them had truly known, whether she meant harm or help. Finally, they got the truth. Finally, they got to know that whatever outcome they had to deal with now, Methys was on their side. Yes, she defended them during the quarrel with Kato, but even after that, they still doubted her underlying intentions, because of what happened with Ami at the end. Whether she wanted to protect them, their ancient Senshi selves or something altogether…
Now they knew.
Now they at least knew, she genuinely cared for Ami.
She has helped her with her problems all along.
They knew and interacted with each other for years.
They were pretty familiar with each other and joked around in a way Ami rarely did with anyone else.
Maybe she even knew her better than anyone of us did.
And what she told them about wanting to save her, about helping her healing her wounds, about the connection between their souls; none of it had been a lie.
The only question was, what did it change to finally have that knowledge? Ami was still gone.
Whatever good intentions she might have had, what are they good for when they looked at the situation they were in, now?
It helped to know that she cared, but at the end she still decided against Ami's best interests. She had decided to take over and to bear the consequences. She killed her.
She did not let on, but considering what I know now, that decision must have been hard.
Hard as in excruciating and grueling.
I know better than anyone. I did sacrifice Setsuna and Hotaru against Galaxia. People I love like my own family. And still I ripped their talismans out of their chests…
I am not allowed to judge her. I am not even allowed to condemn her for what she did.
… because I did the same. It's not to my credit that my family managed to survive at the end. That was Usagi's doing. She saved them. I only killed them.
I might have been under Galaxia's influence back then, but I knew the prize of giving up my own talisman. I chose obliterating the fiend over saving my family…
I know exactly how it feels to choose sacrificing my loved ones in order to save the world.
And to make it only worse… the same as Methys, I did not succeed. My enemy continued to live… Galaxia lived the same as Laertes does… and those we sacrificed paid the heaviest price for naught.
Methys was not so different from her, and Michiru had to admit grudgingly that Kato probably was an even better reason to justify her doings than Galaxia. Ok, maybe not better, she could hardly be the judge of that, but he was a serious threat. What did she say, when he was unconscious? He is the one responsible for the fall of the Silver Millennium. He is the one who killed the late Senshi. Methys was afraid of him and from what she has seen so far, rightly so.
If I am honest with myself, I fear him more than Galaxia.
She might have been cold and heartless, but not as sadistic as him.
I might hate it, but I can relate all too well to what she did. I understand her. I understand why she did what she did.
And I kind of pity her for having to make that choice.
I know how it feels to fail, when you are not allowed to fail.
When everything is at stake and when you only have the choice between a rock and a hard place.
What would I have done in her stead faced with the same choice? I know how I decided back then, but would it have been the same this time as well? I changed, didn't I? I wouldn't have done something like that again, would I?
She feared the answer to that question.
She was saved from delving into that dark topic when the mirror decided to show them something else.
Michiru groaned.
I am not ready to see more. Give me a break… All of this wakes demons of the past; I have neither the strength nor the time to face. And still with every passing second, those demons become an army rising in numbers, while I stand alone. If I don't put a stop to this, then I will be felled by their combined superior might.
She needed some time to digest what she has already seen, to come to terms with it, to put it accurately into context with what she already knew. She wanted to share her thoughts with the others, wanted to hear their opinion on the matter, instead of being forced to silence. All they could do now, were exchanging vague looks and glances or communicate with mere gestures. That wasn't enough. Not at all. She wanted to talk. She wanted to find solace in Haruka's arms soothed by her gentle touch and her reassuring words. She wanted someone to appease her, to soothe her worries, to tell her that everything would be fine. She wanted to vent her anger, surprise and frustration in verbal discussion with people, who felt the same as she did. She did not want to be alone anymore with all her confusing thoughts and feelings.
However, this wasn't going to happen.
The mirror had apparently other plans.
Damn it, why do I have a talisman that is not doing what I command? Is that now also your doing Michiko? Am I not worthy of it the same way I wasn't worthy of your attention?
There was no answer.
Yeah, why should I even expect one?
All she got was another change in location.
This time they found themselves in Ami's hospital room.
It was darker than usual and Michiru gasped, when she recognized the scene playing out before her instantly, not that anyone could hear.
Her eyes immediately darted towards Makoto right beside her. The brunette's tense form betrayed that she remembered as well.
It was night. The night after formulating their apparently not so secret plan on how to deal with Mercury in case she crossed the line. Back then they couldn't agree on Ami's guarding modalities. Everyone wanted to stay with her, so at the end everyone did.
Besides Usagi, who was lying on a proper bed after her exhausting ordeal at the hospital, everyone else was littered on the floor deeply asleep. Only Makoto slouched uncomfortably on a chair right next to Ami, hands intertwined and head resting on the mattress. It might have been a somewhat peaceful picture, if not for her.
She stood in the doorframe.
Her expression unreadable.
Michiru was not really surprised seeing Methys here.
Not after all I have seen already. We have been so careless. Entirely clueless about her presence we were vulnerable, sleeping soundly, oblivious to the danger in their midst. A danger we were naïve enough to believe having it under control.
Were she truly evil, she could have done so much worse.
Instead she was just standing there.
The sight reminded of the very first time she had seen her in person, standing in a similar doorframe, the very moment she first realized they lost Ami, right before Kato showed his true colors. However, this time her face wasn't as guarded and hostile as back then. In fact, she appeared to be astonished, even slightly amused.
Then Methys sneaked forward right towards Ami's hospital bed.
Makoto had been right with her anxiety all along. She had mentioned before that she had the feeling of her being here that night, and even before she had insisted most out of all of them that Mercury posed a danger. However, none of them took her apprehension serious enough. Not until it was too late. We should have listened to her.
She glanced again towards the almost transparent Jovian that was as much as her forced to watch the scene again. Her fists were clenched into tight balls and her fierce glare followed every single one of Methys' steps.
Why do we have to watch this…? It only brings forth more agony to be confronted with our mistakes in such a cruel way. What good should come out of this? What purpose does this whole farce serve?
Wait. Even if Methys was there that night, she did not take over Ami's body then. She only did that later on. So, what was she doing here?
This must have been the perfect opportunity. So why did she let that pass?
Michiru's eyes immediately traveled to Makoto's sleeping form and she noticed their clasped hands. With a note of sadness and pity she realized a piece of clothing tied tightly around their palms. Makoto had tried more than anyone and this made it only more apparent. Haruka's words from their heated argument still rang in her ears… her accusations that she did not do enough to protect Ami.
It's not true. And as soon as this is over, I need to make her realize that it's not true. Haruka owes her an apology. And I will make sure she receives it.
She was distracted again, when the Ice Senshi finally reached the sleeping pair.
Michiru held her breath in anticipation.
With a small and somewhat unbefitting half-smile, the Ice Senshi leaned down and started to whisper in Ami's ear.
Although the words were hushed, Michiru still understood as if she was standing right next to them, as though she was the one voicing them and not Methys.
"Hey little one … I am not sure whether you can hear me, but… our time is limited and… well… I won't have another opportunity to say what I want to say to you before everything turns to hell." She paused before adding morosely. "… Not with what I plan to do..."
She hesitated, before she begun again. "When I first thought about seeking you out this way, I quickly told myself that this is a stupid idea. Back then I was convinced that it would do nothing but weaken my resolve. That any kind of justification or apology would serve no purpose in light of you losing your life in the course of the events I instigated. That showing myself here offering meaningless words would just fuel the shame and averseness I feel. Despite of these initial doubts I am here, now. What changed? You might ask. Well, that is hard to tell. Maybe the coward afraid to face you, remembered that this is not about herself, that she owes you at least that kind of respect and an explanation about what is bound to happen. At the end it does not really matter what changed. I am here, now, willing to give this a try." Again, her words trailed off and her whole form seemed to be smothered under a heavy blanket of crippling remorse, almost suffocating her.
The following inhale seemed to carry the weight of the world.
"So, I am… gonna tell you what I initially wanted you to hear, because whatever may come to pass… I need to say this… even if you can't hear it, even if those words at the end reach no one but me; I need to get them off my chest. I cannot allow myself to be distracted during the oncoming battle. I cannot question myself or lament in self-pity in the fight to come. He will use all these emotions against me. Too much is at stake. The future for all of you rests on my shoulders and I am not sure I can bear that weight on my own. In fact, out of all the former Senshi I am the likeliest to fail in this task. However, I cannot let my own doubts beat me, before I even get the chance to fight for the future. I need to find strength and resolve somewhere or my indecisiveness will be the end of me, before it even truly begun. Well, … typically that strength came from you, not that you ever noticed, but… the prospect that even if I manage to secure the future, that it won't be yours anymore... it…" she made again a pause not sure how to finish that sentence. " well… it does not sit well."
She snorted weakly. "Anyway, the fact remains that I must not lose and if talking to myself helps then so be it. And if there is a chance you hear me, then all the better. Although these words might not mean much to you, I will still say them anyway, because it's the least I can do. In fact, I owe them to you. So… prepare yourself, here they come: I am ... deeply sorry." She lowered her head and there was genuine remorse in her words.
"You have to believe me, that this is not how I wanted this to play out. You must already know these excuses by heart and I must sound like a broken record with all the other incidents that happened before. However, I don't know what else to say. I know it's too much of a platitude and you deserve better… way better, and still… I always only apologize to you and then I do further things to apologize for. You must be sick of it by now. Man… I should really stop rambling like that. Believe me, this sounded way better in my mind, and… I guess this time you can't even tell me to shut up and… well, if there was a time when I would recommend bolting out of the room, it would be now… only it is not really an option now either, is it?"
She exhaled shakily. "Anyway, if you really can hear me, I am afraid you have to listen to this to the very end. So, let's make this apology a little bit more long-assed. If I do not score any points for originality than at least for length. Someone who is as much of an overachiever as myself should understand. So, let's try that again with a little bit less sappiness. I … I sincerely apologize for my actions but you have to understand; I have no choice in this matter. I promised you I would never again occupy your body without having your consent. I told you that back then after Metallia was a one-time occurrence. I told you it was never my intention to live again. Well, surprise ... I have to back down on my word. I have to let you down again. I know it's what you fear most, a betrayal of trust, but I can't help it. I need your body to stop him. You have always forgiven me for my trespasses, but this time you might not even get the chance. If I take over your body you will be gone, but if I don't, then he will kill you anyway. You and everyone you hold dear. You and all the other Senshi. And… I know him… He won't even stop then… he might not stop ever … and for sure not before he has turned this entire world into a lifeless lump of rock. Just like the others. I cannot let that happen. I must stop him at all cost. This is my responsibility. There is no other way. None of you is equipped to face him, to even pose a challenge. This has to be my burden and facing him is not possible without sacrifices. Three souls, including you, have to pay the price for this world to prevail. I know it's unfair and I wish there was another way… and believe me I have looked for one. I gave this matter thorough thought, in fact it's all I have been thinking about, since I knew I would have to face him. At the end I am always going in circles, though, ending up with the very same conclusion. This is the only way. I just want you to know: I didn't take this decision lightly and I am feeling like a monster for doing this to you. All of this means more to me than you will ever know in more than one aspect… but my feelings cannot matter in the grander scheme of things." She paused for a moment to collect her thoughts and it seemed as if she needed the moment to pull herself together.
"You have been so brave over the years… and I know I have no right to take that decision away from you, you deserve so much more than to perish on a plain hospital bed without even the chance to fight for your life. At least you have the right to decide for yourself, but I can't even grant you that simple concession, can I? I am forced to make that decision for you and I can only do this with one simple certainty in mind: You always do what is right. You know what sacrifice means. After all, you stood tall in front of Star Maker, didn't you, sacrificing your Starseed for hers? You stayed behind at the North Pole so that the others could proceed to face Metallia. On those occasions I would have very much liked to whack you on the head for it, thinking: That stupid selflessness of your princess must be contagious. Well, I am afraid that it has never been just that. You always sell yourself short, but at the end it's what you have always been." There was a mixture of bitter pride and resigned acceptance in her words.
"I may not be able to ask you for your permission to commit this… atrocity, but I think I know, what your decision would be if asked. I know how much they mean to you and that you would do anything, including sacrificing your own life to save them. I am afraid that is exactly what I must demand of you. Whatever may come to pass, know that I will do everything in my power to protect them in your stead. This is meant as an oath, as exchange for taking what is not mine to take… or at least as a small compensation. Even if it kills me, I will hold on to that promise, that much I can assure you." She paused shortly as if to sort out her thoughts.
"Well, back when I first planned to talk to you in this manner, this would be the end of my sappy monologue. I told you what I initially planned to say. Justifications. Apologies. Reassurances. Nothing, you could put to any use. Just simple words that changed nothing in the end. It's still what I wanted to tell you, so … consider that done. However, since the first moment when I planned this to now, something has changed. I fought that change tooth and nail, but to no avail. Whenever I was near you, those carefully rehearsed words were way too insufficient for a final goodbye… and they got stuck in my throat, before I even opened my mouth. I told myself: It's fine. It's anyway not the right moment. Your friends won't let me near enough to do it. There is still time. And… I need to be sure that Laertes truly awakened, that he has the Henshin Stick… that that spike of evil feelings oozing with Mercury's power, I felt in the warehouse where you were wounded, was truly him. That he intended to continue where he left off so many millennia ago. I found one excuse after the other to postpone what needed to happen anyway. Plenty of opportunities passed, when your friends were still blissfully unaware of my intentions and I let them. I realized that my connection to you blinded me, made me grow soft up to a point I could not afford… that I finally needed to take action or I never would… So, I steeled myself and when the time finally came, I tried and… screwed up again. With most of your friends out of the way, I stood right in front of your hospital bed with nothing but your mother between us. I could have done it then. I could have separated the both of you. I should have. That was the plan. Catching you alone, touching you and taking over. Simple as that. Your mother would not have posed a true problem. Not really."
She snorted weakly.
"Until I started arguing with her instead of using the necessary force to get her out of the way. Until I forsook seizing what I came for, only to quarrel with her for your benefit. You know the two of us never get along. Well, in a way as two people, who don't see each other for the most part, cannot get along. Have you ever wondered why? Well, for once she reminds me too much of my own mother in some aspects and believe me that's not a good thing... You cannot imagine how often I wished she could hear and see me, how much I bit my tongue in the one month I was in your body after your death at the North Pole. I knew it wasn't my place. I knew I could not give her a piece of my mind, while she was thinking I was you. But here I finally had the chance… the golden opportunity to face her without having to hold back. And before I even remotely understood what was happening, everything else I intended to do, faded into the background. All my immovable priorities, vows of duty, steeled resolve and carefully laid out plans to save the world tossed into the wind in a heartbeat."
She scoffed theatrically; amused by something that shouldn't be amusing. "I just stood there and squabbled with her as if I had nothing better to do. If the situation wasn't that serious, it would have been funny. Ridiculous even. The way I scolded her for not being there when you were lonely and distraught, for being so blind to all your needs and desires, for putting everything and everyone first to her own daughter… and the fact that she did not get anything I said at all. I was so angry for her audacity to stake her claim over you, when she has never done enough to be there for you in the first place. All I saw in front of my inner eye was you and my own mother and the rest just evolved into something, I did not even intend to do… And before I truly realized what happened, they came. Their appearance doused me like a cold shower. A brunt wakeup call to what the hell I was doing! What a stupid idiot I was … It's embarrassing really, back at my time no one would have labeled me an idiot, other nasty names for sure, but an idiot was never among them. Well, I guess even a prodigy can be an idiot and I for sure fulfilled the necessary prerequisites." She just shook her head in amused disbelief.
"Well, the fact remains that I royally screwed up. Until your friends arrived, I was too caught up in the moment, to realize how much time I wasted with those senseless endeavors… trying to speak in favor for the very same person I came to kill, trying to open the eyes of a mother that would never get the opportunity to correct her errors. It was silly really, what benefit should you ever have from me opening your mother's eyes, when you were supposed to die by my hand?" She lowered her head in shame.
"But it got even worse… that experience was also a wakeup call on a totally different level. I came to understand then, that whatever I planned, would not work. It would fail. Not because the plan was flawed, but because I was. I was so torn between… everything that it took so little to distract me from my duty, to twist my priorities to the complete opposite and to lose my focus entirely without even noticing until it was too late. And I suddenly realized going into a fight like this, would be nothing short of a death sentence. A suicide attempt that would accomplish nothing at the end. My silly attachments and weaknesses got the best of me and not even the impending end of the world could keep them under wraps. It's weakness, I know, the same weakness I could not get in check even back then. It cost me my life and… so many more." She exhaled loudly.
"You know, the Senshi are supposed to be creatures of duty, our focus has to lie in the big picture not in single individuals. We have to be beacons that everyone looks at to bring by all means order to the chaos, the ones that have to make the horrendous sacrifices so that those under our protection don't have to. We enforce stability by being the shields that take stick and by being the blades that serve penance. That is the duty and responsibility we take up as soon as we took our vows. That's how it ought to be, that's what I have been told since I have been little. However, if it was all there is to it, the Silver Millennium would have never seen its own birth, but rather a premature end. Individuals do matter and some are special enough to put even the brightest beacon to shame with a light that is just... liberating." She started to wring her hands in a restless manner and it was clear that she did not like to talk about this particular topic for much longer. She loathed talking about the past and it could not be more apparent by her demeanor.
"You are special, Ami… at least to me. It needed that moment for me to finally accept, what I have known all along in the deepest corner of my heart. It was apparent and still all this time I tried so hard to ignore it. I needed to try this and fail. I needed to feel it. The relief when your friends burst into the room, because it meant my window of opportunity had passed. My heart leaping in joy when I left the room from the bare knowledge that yours was still beating at all. I came to make a decision afterwards, one that might be our doom, but… I can't simply kill you. My initial plans required at least three deaths in order to save everyone else. Him, his host and you. I cannot save him nor his host anymore, but … there is still a tiny chance that I can save you, even if going for it, will put me at a disadvantage. Even if it puts everything at stake, I have to try. More than anything I want you to live and I need that hope to have something to fight for. If no one else, at least I need to save you. I will not lie to you, the plan I devised is risky, it depends on you the same it does on me and there is no guarantee for success, on the contrary, it decreases our chances of winning against Laertes. Who am I kidding, if this fails then I doomed the world, so... you might understand my initial hesitation. Still, I am willing to try though, no matter the risks." A small bitter smile appeared on her face.
"Tsk, and you were accusing me I would not trust in you and your abilities. Well, I do. And this will be the ultimate test. Admittedly, I would have preferred one with far less at risk, but beggars cannot be choosers, can they? Everything that happened shows me that this is the path to tread. Were you awake, you would probably consider me nuts for risking the world just to save your life. I know you would not agree. You would insist, you are not worth it. Well, to put it bluntly, I don't care. I have made my decision and I know it will help me fight with all I have, even if I don't want to. I owe you as much as to at least give you a chance to likewise fight for your life. That's what we have been doing so far, haven't we? Fighting together. Well, we will continue doing so just at different fronts, so not much change there if you ask me. To make a long story short, I am neither here to fuse with you right now, nor to bore you with my sentimental laments longer than necessary. I am here to tell you that I have not given up on you. I will try to save you, Ami and you need to be ready when the time comes.
My plan can succeed, but it depends on the correct timing and on you. I am afraid it still includes fusing with your body. There is no way around it. However, it has to happen at the right time, when Laertes is already here to be precise. The part you need to do, I will tell you directly in your mind, when I initiate the fusion, since I am still not sure you comprehended even one thing of what I told you so far. Why not tell you everything in your mind, when the time has come, you might ask? Well, we will only have a short time frame between the initiation and me taking over, to talk. A minute at most. That's why I am telling you the less important things right now, while keeping the things you direly need to know for later. However, there is only one thing I cannot point out strong enough: When I initiate the fusion, don't fight me! Fighting it will be detrimental to the both of us. We only will lose magical power, we direly need elsewhere, I to fight Laertes and you to connect with the Henshin Stick. So, I beg you: you need to trust me in this and refrain from defending yourself. Just relent, ok? I am counting on you. You need to be ready when the time comes. Well,… that's all for now. We will see each other then. Now, you need to excuse me, there is something else I am here to do this night. Until later… little one."
Ok, this chapter has actually more cross references than I can count. The most prominent ones are the warehouse scene and the last one where Methys speaks to an unconscious Ami (Special comment to the Drifter: You might recall asking me ages ago what Methys whispers in that scene in Chapter 18 to Ami. Well, here is the answer. I hope it was worth the wait ;-). I somehow felt compelled to show all of this from Methys' perspective to shed some light on her side of the story.
And again my sincerest apologies for the long wait.
Thanks to all of you for your kind support in the last year. Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year and peaceful and relaxing holidays. See you next year.