watsonma@hotmail.com
New Friends
It was finally Saturday. I got dressed in my casual Khaki's, a white baby tee and a dark blue sweater-jacket. We met Mrs. Scott at the club. Which turned out to be a large estate overlooking the bay. It was a beautiful day to be outside. It was cool and the wind seemed to hold a touch of warm sea air. It was quite beautiful, with large golf course and tennis courts and an indoor swimming pool.
Mrs. Scott was dressed in the classic tennis outfit of a white shirt and skirt. She looked great. I knew she said she had a son in college and a daughter in high school but I would never guess, looking at her, that she was old enough to have kids that age. She looked so young.
CeCe, who had disappeared a little while after we arrived reappeared, dressed in her own tennis outfit and she was bringing a tall blonde man with her as she walked towards us. Mrs. Scott's eyes brightened and she got up and gestured to the gorgeous, smiling young man who stood beside my aunt.
"Serena this is my son Jason; Jason this beautiful young lady here is Mr. Chandler's daughter from Japan. My husband, Eric, is busy at the office today so you won't get a chance to meet him."
We both said hello and Mrs. Scott continued. "Jay's a junior in college, but he acts like a high school freshman."
Serena laughed at that and laughed even harder when Jay stuck his tongue out at his mom, proving her point. He then said: "Look who's talking. This from the woman who still thinks she's in college."
It was fun to watch them tease each other like two teenagers. They almost reminded me of the way I used to bicker with Raye. Almost. "Why don't you show Serena around and introduce her to everyone, while I beat CeCe at Tennis " Mrs. Scott suggested. CeCe raised and eyebrow and said: "I think you mean you'll try to beat me at Tennis."
"I'd love to," Jason said grinning. "Come on Serena, I'll introduce you to the other three members of the musketeers."
"I wasn't aware Chandler had any children," Jay said to me.
"Neither did he until eleven years ago."
"So, Why did you move here?" He asked me as we walked.
"I just needed to get away from my life in Japan for a while. My friends and I weren't getting along and I needed to get away from my ex-boyfriend, not to mention, things in school were definitely not going well. This whole situation with my Dad and my other dad well that's another story." I couldn't believe I just told him all that. I just felt comfortable talking to him.
"Well you're here now, so I guess it's time for a new life. My sister goes to your school; have you met her? Her name's Faith."
"Faith is your sister? She's one of my friends. What a coincidence!"
"Yeah the little brat's a member of my family. How long have you lived in Japan; you speak such good English."
"My mother was born here, but my family moved back to Japan before I was born. I learned English from them and I also learned English in school."
"Cool. Maybe you can teach me Japanese."
"Sure, Why not."
"O.k. here's the thing. You see my friends and I are very competitive sometimes and Nick got us all into this primitive bow and arrow stuff and now they are all competing over there by those trees. I think we should scare them a little, maybe sneak up on them and surprise them.
"I can't believe you're getting me into mischief already."
"We all have to start sometime," he said with a sly grin, winking at me.
We crept up into the woods and hid behind a few trees watching a clearing where three tall guys, one with long white blonde hair and very broad shoulders, another tall broad-shouldered man with dark auburn-brown shoulder length hair and another thin man with dark blonde long curly hair. They were all standing around with bows and arrows in hand staring at a tree, on which was a bulls eye with an arrow in the middle and they all seemed to be having a minor argument over whether it was centered or not. They finally resolved their argument and the blonde man stepped back and prepared to shoot his own arrow.
Jason looked at me and whispered: "NOW!" We jumped up and yelled, "BOO!" Causing the white-haired guy to jump, turn, and release the arrow, which made the other two to drop to the ground to get out of the way. In an attempt to redirect the arrow, the white-haired guy swung his arms up into the air and the arrow flew up into the air and into the trees.
There was a screech and bird fell down to the ground and into the arms of the guy with the auburn hair. I rushed over to him and looked at the bird in his hands whose wing was pierced all the way through. I was so sorry; this whole thing was all my fault. I took the bird in my hands and I wished the whole thing never happened. I felt power coursing through my arms and I touched the bird's wounds and watched as the wound closed and the bird flew up and away.
I turned around and the guys were staring at me with their mouths open.
"What the hell just happened?" The white-haired guy asked when they got their voices back.
"Umm, I ahh," I mumbled trying to explain just what happened. They were all staring at me oddly, but the auburn-haired guy seemed as though he was staring right through me. I heard him gasp again and he fell to his knees. "My queen," he muttered, staring at me as if he'd seen a ghost. The other's turned to stare at him.
"What are you talking about?" the white-haired guy asked. The other guy with long blonde hair also gasped and falling to his knees he said: "It's the princess." It was my turn to be shocked. Jadeite and the other guy with white hair also fell to their knees and said. "Princess Serenity." Now this was getting too weird.
"Who are you guys and how do you know who I am?" I asked nervously.
"You don't recognize us?" The white-haired guy asked.
"I'm sorry. I have no idea who you are or how you know who I am."
We are the Reincarnated guardians of Prince Endymion of earth. I am his first guard now known as Michael, formerly Lord Malachite," said the white-haired guy.
"As you know me as Jason, formerly known as Lord Jadeite," Jason said.
The guy with the auburn hair introduced himself as Nicholas formerly Lord Nephrite and the other blonde I found out to be Zach, formerly known as Lord Zoisite. I was shocked, but having all my memories of the moon kingdom now intact prevented me from going hysterical over the fact that in front of me stood the four generals of the Negaverse which I had destroyed so long ago. I wondered if they even remembered that?
"I remember you all from the moon kingdom," I said, suddenly recognizing them also as the Dark kingdom generals. They didn't seem to be evil and Jay seemed like a pretty nice guy. I decided to test their memories and added: "and Beryl's army."
"Who?" they all asked at once. I guess that answers my question. "It's a long story." I said. "One which I can't tell you if you're all going to stay down there on your knees. Really, you don't have to bow to me. I'm just a normal girl." Jason raised his eyebrows at that. "Ok maybe not so normal. Why don't we go somewhere more comfortable where we can talk," I suggested.
We decided to take a walk along the nature trails just outside the club. This place was beginning to seem more like a park than a posh country club. Jason attributed it to the health-conscious California lifestyle. The five of us spent the rest of the day catching up on our past lives and eventually our present ones.
My new friends and I continued walking through the woods until we came to a clearing. So far I had learned a lot about the guys so far. I soon came to realize that they had absolutely no recollection of ever being generals of the Negaverse. To the best of their knowledge they had grown up with their parents in the United States or in Zach and Nick's case traveling between Europe and the States. Mike had also spent time in Hong Kong and Tokyo. They gradually became aware of their previous lives during the Silver Millenium through dreams and vague memories. It seemed fate had brought them together.
Jason or Jay as everyone calls him, is a mischievous troublemaker. He still lives with his parents, who adore him, or so he likes to claim, and he's in his third year of college. He's a business and finance major, when he's not at a frat party. He will do anything for a laugh and so far he's made me laugh a lot especially the way he and Nick were always arguing.
Nicholas, a.k.a. Nick or Nikki when being teased by Jay, had graduated less than a year ago but he was already in business with Michael. He used to travel with his Dad and lived in Paris and London for a while. Together He and Michael run a web Graphics Company called Golden Millennia or GM. They are doing really well and Jay gets plenty of practice checking their financial situation. He's planning on joining them in business after he graduates as well as being a free-lance financial advisor.
Mike graduated a little over a year before and worked with a graphics company before starting his own company with Nick a few months later. He is very serious and business-like not unlike Nick, except Nick has this air of Mystery around him and I heard plenty from Jay about his consultations with the stars. Mike is the obvious leader of the group.
Zach is rather quiet and reserved. He immediately reminded me of Amy. He is the brain of the group. He is in his final year of college, with a major in biology. He's going to graduate in a few months and go on to medical school to concentrate on genetics. Amazingly enough he and Jay get along well. He sometimes protects Jay from getting pounded on by the older and more serious Mike and Nick, and sometimes he allows Jay to sucker him into using his intellect to play tricks on the other two. I guess even the really smart have a mischievous side and can have fun. I wish someone would tell Amy that.
I really liked them, but I was slightly worried that the only reason these guys who were so much older than me would even want to talk to me was because I was some ancient princess. I frowned at that thought. I don't want things to be the way they were in the past. Not long before I had left Tokyo I had began to wonder if the only reason the Sailor Scouts had been my friends was because of their duty to me as their princess.
I don't want anyone to feel obligated to be my friend just because of who I am or used to be. Mike had been looking over at me and didn't miss the disturbed look on my face. "Is something wrong he asked?"
"No. Nothing's wrong," I answered a little too soon.
"Something's bothering you. You can tell us you know, Jay said. "Because Mike and Nick look really scary doesn't mean you can't talk to us. They only look like they're going to bite."
"Why thank you," Nick said sarcastically. "Remind me to hurt him later."
"Don't worry, I'll most certainly remember," Mike said.
I smiled at that. I was prodded on by Zach to talk about what was bothering me and I finally gave in.
"I was just worried that you guys are only being nice to me because I'm princess Serenity. The only reason anyone your age would want to talk to some teenager is out of obligation. I was kind of hoping to avoid that especially after what happened in Tokyo."
"Well I wouldn't worry too much about that," Nick said. Even if his mother hadn't introduced you to Jay, he'd probably find a way to talk to you anyway. He can't resist beautiful women."
Jay pouted and turned his head up like a spoilt child and grumbled. "Like you guys are any better."
"And anyway, Nick continued in an annoyed tone at the interruption. Jay is a big child and that has probably rubbed off on the rest of us. So technically we're all barely any better than teenagers."
"Speak for yourself, Mike said. I do not want to be in the same age group as Jay. I am guaranteed to be older than ten."
"Hey, I resent that!" Jay said.
"Besides," Nick continued, "with the amount of power I can feel you emitting, if at any time we aren't nice to you, you could always just zap us into outer space."
I had to laugh. I felt so relaxed around them. It was so natural to be talking to them like this. They reminded me a lot of the Scouts except no one here pointed out my faults, not that I even had many of those any more. In fact I hadn't had a klutz attack since I got here.
After that spectacular event with Queen Serenity there have been some amazing changes in my life. The guys had a lot of trouble believing I used to be an air-headed ditz who would trip over everything in sight. Now I was graceful and I knew things about the universe that even my teachers, or anyone else on the planet didn't for that matter. I found myself understanding languages I never even knew I could speak not to mention the ability to read long forgotten ancient languages like Sumerian and Egyptian Hieroglyphics.
I remembered etiquette and various lessons in being graceful that had been pounded into my head well over ten thousand years ago. I even began to remember small lessons in self-defense that I had learned from the scouts. Back then I hadn't been a scout so intense training in defending myself had never been a priority. I was always dependent on the scouts to protect me. I was determined to learn how to protect myself though. Something told me that I would have to know how for the future. That was another thing. I had recovered the ability to sense the nature of things, whether good or evil as well as feelings and glimpses of the future and things happening in various parts of the Universe.
It was easier to carry the weight of being the one on whom the safety of the universe depended, now that I truly remembered who I had been and all the knowledge I once had. I felt so much older. I had come such a long way in a short time. "The guys noticed my silence and Nick asked me if everything was ok. I smiled at him and for the first time in years I could easily tell a friend just how I was feeling. "I was just thinking, how different things are and how much I've changed. I used to hate being the one who had to save the world all the time. I just wanted to be a normal teenager.
"And now?" Mike asked.
"Now, I don't mind that much anymore. I've finally accepted my life. I wouldn't wish this on anyone else but I don't really mind. I feels so much older and wiser then I did just a week ago, it's somewhat unnerving. I couldn't even speak English last week and now
"Even my body has changed."
"What do you mean?"
"I guess I just feel stronger than I ever have. You know, in my mind I used to separate myself from the princess. Now for the first time I realize I am her. It's like discovering a whole new part of myself."
The guys just nodded in understanding.
"I'd like to ask you guys another favor."
"Sure Rena. Shoot," Mike said. I smiled at my newly acquired nickname and thought: It sure beats being called meatball head.'
"I was wondering if you guys could show me how to defend myself in hand to hand combat. I know how to perform magical attacks but I never learned how to defend myself physically."
"I'd be happy to" Mike said.
"Great! I can't wait!"