Easier Said Than Felt

Author's Ramblings: My notes on this one (I'd written some dialog at
Miss Doyle's English Review while watching Bri-chan and Editor Christina
actually learn, though both will state that it did no good) were really
corny. So, I may not use them, given that I wrote a monologue for Helios
that sounded like something out of a made-for-TV movie and I do NOT want
this to be like that. I don't care if "Galactic" reminds Andrea of Alan
and Ann (add a plot twist, badguys send out monster thing, monster gets
beaten, badguys whine), because it's NOT a made-for-TV movie! So there!
***Also, Alexandra's name is STILL Alex. I don't care if the dub called
her Amara. As much as I like the dub, and as much as I approve of the
new episodes, I remain to be very partial to my names. So sue me.***
* * * * * * * * * * * *
Last time:

A Chibi-Scout blood bath, really. A bickering fight broke out, and the
kids WOULD NOT stop arguing. It was based upon the fact that, in taking
the junior high entrance exams, Celeste got every question right. She
just "knew" the answers and really couldn't explain why; it was later
blamed on the Keeper of the Nebulae. Ambriel also wanted to know where
she came from, and Aeris was lonely. And that was all she wrote, really,
except Alice has threatened the reproductive happiness of Todd Walker,
the young man who will not stop asking her to the prom. And Rob was
killed by Tina after they fought.

And that, my friends, is where the story beings.
* * * * * * * * * * * *

"Again with the flowers and candy and pretty gestures of
appreciation!" groaned the girl with a flip of her auburn-topped head.
"One of these days, I will go after that boy with a kitchen knife and
let him beg for mercy before he loses his..." Glancing at her parents,
both of whom sat on the couch, she paused and pursed her lips. "He'll
lose Chibi-Todd, let's just say that!!"
In a fashion rather typical to males, Ken Asanuma crossed his legs
before turning to his fuming daughter. "Something wrong, dear?" he
questioned in a falsetto tone, brown eyes darting from her to the wooden
block that held the knives and back to her. "You seem tense..."
With an audible groan, the teen opened a large black garbage bag
and turned it upside-down, spilling the contents on the coffee table as
she did so. Red, heart-shaped boxes of fancy chocolates, multiple
bunches of both silk and real flowers, books of romantic poetry, video
and cassette tapes, and other gifts--many of which were not yet opened--
spilled onto the table. Two pairs of eyes, one set chestnut and the
other emerald, widened to gape at the heap of goods.
Alice, on the other hand, tossed the bag over her shoulder and
sunk to her knees, slowly sorting out all the different gifts into piles.
"I hadn't gone to the orchestra room since right before spring break,"
she explained with a sigh and a shake of her head, "because I joined the
Tokyo Junior Orchestra at Crystal Music Academy again." She made a face
upon picking up a single rose that was the approximate shade of the
coffee table and sighed once again. "Well, Todd had been dropping gifts
in my empty locker almost everyday since we got back from break..."
"Two weeks," her father commented after counting on his fingers.
"...and I JUST NOW went to clean it out."
Wrinkling her nose, Lita placed her pencil on the table and folded
her hands upon her lap, glancing up from the restaurant bills that she
had been studying. "Well, Alice," she suggested rather pleasantly, "why
don't you just go to prom with the boy?"
"Because he's really NOT my type," sighed the teen with a wrinkle
of her nose. "I mean, he's smart, and sweet, and kind, and extremely
tolerant, BUT..." She shrugged noncommittally. "I don't know."
The two adults exchanged wary glances.
With a wistful gleam in her eye, the girl fell onto her back,
staring up at the white-painted ceiling rather serenely. "The truth is
that I really don't think a relationship with him would lead to eternal
bliss. It would never be true love..." Blushing a bit, she sat back up
and adverted her gaze from that of her parents'. "Not like you two have,
being as you're soul mates and all..."
Her mother sighed slightly at the comment, staring a secretive
smile with her best friend. Then, with a shake of her head, she focused
on her daughter and bit her lower lip. "Then what kind of guy do you
look for?"
"Well, I dunno," admitted Alice shyly, glancing up at the ceiling
as she pondered on the question. "I guess I'd want someone who's very
out-going and spontaneous... And smart..." She smiled and rested her
chin between her thumb and forefinger. "And he should be goofy, too, and
just a LITTLE wild, but--in the end--he should be a great friend." She
sighed, her grin turning almost bittersweet in nature. "Wouldn't that be
the day..."
Ken chewed thoughtfully on the eraser of his pencil. "Sounds like
your friend Phoebe, a little," he put in nonchalantly, not catching the
stern glare from his partner on the couch.
"Oh my God! Thanks for reminding me!" Jumping to her feet, the
teen grabbed her purse from the small table by the door. "I PROMISED
Pheebs I'd go over and help her and Haley with some errands!" she
exclaimed, starting out of the apartment. "Don't wait up!"
As soon as the front door closed behind her, Lita took one of the
many half-wrapped boxes from the coffee table and whacked her companion
upside the head with it. "Did you have a brain lapse or are you just
plain STUPID?" she spat, casting him an angry glare. "Of course that
'perfect guy' sounded like Phoebe!"
Ken tossed a handful of Mint Meltaways into his mouth and offered
the box to the fuming brunette. "These are good," he managed, chewing on
the sweet treats and wiggling the box right beneath her nose. "Want a
couple?"
She pushed the box away and leaned back against the couch,
clenching and unclenching her fists very slowly. "Alice is in love with
Phoebe," she explained in a tone very similar to that which a mother
would use when talking to a small child. "Didn't you hear what she was
saying?"
"Come ON, Leets," sighed the man, rolling his chestnut eyes as he
ate yet another piece of candy. "If she really cared about Phoebe...like
that..." He wrinkled his nose and buzzed his lips as he thought.
"Well... Wouldn't she tell us what was going on?"
"Of COURSE not!" she retorted angrily, lowering her green eyes at
him as he, once again, popped several of the candies into his mouth.
"She's an independent girl and doesn't want us to think she's
incapable... Besides..." Noticing that the man was too busy eating the
candy to listen, she groaned aloud and snatched away the box. "Give me
those, you twit!"
Sighing, he patted her on the arm supportively and flashed her a
hopeful smile. "If Alice was in love with her friend, don't you think
that we'd see more of Phoebe around HERE?"
Blanching a bit, Lita crossed her arms and tossed her ponytailed
head. "Not necessarily..."
"And don't you think that she'd at least MENTION the fact that
she'd found a love interest?"
She froze and her expression turned from smug to thoughtful.
"Well..."
"And don't you think that she has enough faith in us to know that
we wouldn't love her any less, even if she WERE gay?"
Nodding slightly, the woman smiled. "I suppose that to be true..."
"And--OOH! Chocolate-covered cherries? Cool!"
She lowered her eyes and glanced over at him. Already, the shaggy-
haired man was ripping open the large heart-shaped box and shoving
chocolates in his mouth by the handful.
"KEN!"
He glanced up and blinked at her. "What?"
She shook her head in a mix of annoyance and disgust and turned
back to the restaurant ledgers.
* * * * * * * * * * * *

"They're not DOING anything!" she whined, green eyes staring
through a small crack between the door and its frame as she spoke into
the telephone receiver. "They just seem to be TALKING, Miss Venus..."
A loud, obviously exasperated huffing sound came from the other
end of the line. "Well, that's not a very good recognizance report!"
grumbled the woman from the other end. "Can't you do any... Hang on...
NO! BECKY! You're fourteen! Act your age!" There was a sigh. "Tell me
exactly what you see, or I'll PERSONALLY see to it that you get to meet
a swimming pool really soon!"
Sighing, the small cat nudged the kitchen door a little farther
open and stared at the two figures on the couch. "She's reading," she
stated in a rather annoyed tone, "with her head resting a little bit on
his shoulder. Her hair is up in a high ponytail, like she usually has
it, and she's still wearing her school uniform." She wrinkled her little
pink nose, suddenly realizing how silly her supposed "mission" really
was. "And then Richard's sitting on the couch next to her, talking about
something... Can't make out his words... And she's nodding a little."
"That's IT?" grumbled the voice with a low growl. "What about
sowing the seeds of youth and having some FUN in your life?"
Cassiopeia raised a single silver eyebrow. "But, Miss Venus, I
thought that's what you DIDN'T want them to do..."
"Whatever. Bye." There was a click.
Sighing, she stepped on the 'off' button of the cordless phone and
watched the little red light blink off. "Why in the world am I doing
this for that insane woman?" she questioned aloud, staring at the white
object with another soft sigh. "I'm biting the hand that feeds me..."
She wrinkled her nose. "Almost literally."
Pushing the door open, she padded out into the living room, her
eyes focusing on the light tan carpeting as she neared the couch. Two
pairs of eyes glanced down at her.
With a slight smile, the young woman closed her book and cocked
her head toward the little kitten. "Is something wrong, Cass?" she asked
with concern in her voice, eyebrows knitting together in worry. "You
seem upset about...something..."
She hopped onto the small wooden coffee table and settled herself
down, sitting atop a small stack of magazines. "Is it wrong to go
against your friends for the sake of another person's happiness?"
Lyra blinked. "Excuse me?"
"Well..." The kitten sighed miserably and hung her head. "Let's
say that you made a promise a long time ago to do something," she began,
a guilty undertone in her voice, "and you were doing it. But then
pretend that what you were doing wasn't very nice and you feel bad, but
it was a promise and you don't want to break it and..."
"I don't understand what you're saying, Cassiopeia," stated
Richard, dark blue eyes staring through his glasses and at the saddened
pet. "Did you do something that you're regretting?"
She dared not respond but did nod slightly, still refusing to look
up.
With a slight smile touching her lips, the blonde sunk to her
knees before the table and caught the cat's chin between two fingers,
pulling the green-eyed gaze to meet her own stare. "Don't worry. If you
follow your heart, you'll meet what's right eventually." She ran a hand
down the silver-furred back of the small animal. "So, don't worry."
"If you say so, Lyra," sighed the kitten, hopping from her seat.
"If you say so..."
* * * * * * * * * * * *

He sighed and brushed a strand of hair from her beautiful
eyes before focusing back on his lunch of pork ramen and green tea.
"So," he questioned with a sly smile on his face, "what's today's game
plan, eh?"
The young woman smiled back and sipped her bottled water slowly,
smiling across the small stone table at her boyfriend. "I don't know,
Eric," she admitted with the same sort of sly smile touching her
features, "but it's a lovely spring Saturday, after all..."
And that, it was. The sun shone down on Tokyo Central Park as it
did on most other days, but today the birds were chirping, children
were playing, rowboat oars were splashing through the bay, and the
breeze was just strong enough to rustle the soft brown hair of a young
woman who was picking at her chicken teriyaki. Eric Hartford sighed and
took one of her hands in his, finding a small, startled gasp as his
reward. The girl blushed and smiled, trying not to meet her gaze for
fear she'd fall into the bright copper eyes that stared across the table
at her.
Instead, she poked at a piece of chicken. "We could rent a
rowboat," she suggested softly, suddenly finding herself at a loss for
both words and appetite, "and then see a movie, tonight."
Eric Hartford gently ran his thumb along the top of her hand,
still gazing longingly at the young woman. "You see?" he asked softly,
voice low and sweet. "THIS is why I love you so much, Haley."
Brown eyes flew wide as the hand was quickly pulled from the young
man's grasp. Curly brown hair was suddenly falling back into those eyes,
too, as the girl pushed back her chair and gaped at her companion.
"WHAT did you call me?!" she spat, confused, angry, and amazed at the
same time.
"Fiona!" he gulped, nearly choking on his half-full mouth of ramen
as he spoke. "I said Fiona! I quite clearly--"
"Liar!" she challenged, pointing an accusing forefinger at him.
"You called me HALEY!" Her voice carried in the wind and echoed across
the large park, and several bystanders at the nearby food stand turned
to stare at the brewing fight. "You called me Haley!"
Face slowly reddening, Eric ran a finger underneath the collar of
his shirt, avoiding the intense brown-eyed glare that he was the focus
of. Surely... Surely she couldn't... He gulped and faked a smile. "Isn't
your middle name Haley?" he managed, trying desperately not to sound too
pretentious.
"MY MIDDLE NAME IS CAROLYN!" she roared, capping up her water
quickly and throwing it into her backpack, no longer focusing her eyes
on him. Zipping the bag up, she turned her back and started to walk
away, muttering unkind things about the young man to herself.
"WAIT!" he pleaded, running forward and catching onto her shoulder
with a hand. "Isn't there something--ANYTHING--that I can do to make up
for this?"
Whirling around, Fiona gingerly removed his hand from her shoulder
and jabbed a single finger at his chest. "All you can ever talk about
is that ex-girlfriend of yours, you know," she hissed, her eyes slowly
tearing up as the glare faded away into sadness. "This entire time, it
was always about her. And I know you love her..." Stifling a sob, she
looked down at her shaking hand and sighed, removing her accusing finger
from the front of his shirt. "Eric," she whispered, wiping away a tear
with the back of her hand and glancing up at him, "follow your heart,
not your mind. Go back to Haley." She landed a small peck on his cheek
and forced a brave little smile despite the tears that were slowly
falling down her cheeks. "At least for my sake..."
With a sigh and a slight shake of his head, Eric Hartford watched
as the younger teen slowly strode down the dirt path, head held high. He
perched himself on the edge of the small stone table, neither happy nor
sad at her departure, but accepting each small step as a dull, heart-
wrenching part of life.
He sunk back in his seat, running his chopsticks through his ramen
and slowly pressing his lips together, deciding what to do with himself.
"I don't know what to think," he muttered, draining the cup of tea with
a contemplative expression on his face. "Yes, I love Haley... BUT..."
'You can't just keep breaking up with me for frivolous reasons,
Eric Hartford...this time, you're letting me go...for good...'
Groaning in annoyance, he slammed the table with his fist. "Damn!"
he swore, frustration and anger mixed within his tone. "I don't believe
that I'm living this life!" He leaned back in the seat and glared up at
the sunny blue sky. "The girl I love will never again look at me or love
me... The girl I had a chance with knows the truth..." He wrinkled his
nose and buried his head in his hands. "I can't do this alone! I need
some help!"
For a long moment, Eric was silent, contemplating his situation by
sitting on the cool stone chair, letting his ramen slowly lose its warm.
Then, with a slight smile, he perked up his head and clasped his hands
together triumphantly. "But," he exclaimed, grin growing even wider, "I
know just the person!"
* * * * * * * * * * * *

Laying alone in the large double bed, the young man sighed and
tucked his hands behind his head, staring up at the silvery-white canopy
above him. His breath came and went in ragged, almost unnerved, gasps as
he glanced from the canopy to a small, black box at his side. It was
beautiful little box, really, covered completely with velvet and trimmed
in gold. A box fit for a Queen... He almost laughed at the thought.
He sighed once again and sat up, placing the box in the palm of
his hand and staring at it with a slight smile touching his lips. "If my
Maiden knew how much anguish this was," he commented to himself, slowly
opening the hinged top to gaze at the treasure within, "she'd surely
giggle at me and do the honors herself..." His smile widened and his
blue-eyed gaze grew more wistful. "Such is my Maiden..."
Silently, he ran his index finger around the small gold band and
the bright, shining diamond that it held, licking his parched lips as he
did so. It was beautiful... The finest in Elysionian jewelry... A prize
for any woman...
Taking the ring from its case, he weighed it in the palm of his
hand, still staring at it with a sparkle of melancholy in his eyes. It
was so light, so feathery... Specially designed, really, just for the
one who would wear it... The only one he could ever have wear it... The
beautiful, irreplaceable--
"COME BACK HERE!" screamed a voice, and it was all he could do to
shove the ring back into the black container and shove it under the
nearest pillow before the bedchamber door burst open.
In flew Ambriel, her white Princess dress completely covered with
what appeared to be spaghetti sauce, her red braid dripping wet and
flopping behind her like a dead fish. She slid under the bed easily,
leaving a streak of red on the floor, panting. "Hide me!" she hissed
quickly, cowering as she pulled the large white quilt partially off the
bed to further hide herself. "Lisa's mighty mad..."
The stomping off feet could be heard as a tall blonde woman
trudged through the door. "Helios, where is she?" inquired Lisa, wiping
a trail of pasta sauce from her face. "Where is that naughty girl?"
He pursed his lip, trying not to laugh. "You look ridic..." The
young handmaiden, who was completely covered with red sauce and noodles,
turned her azure-eyed glare on him, and he cleared his throat. "I
mean... What happened?"
She brushed her pasta-ridden hair from her face and wrinkled her
nose at the young man. "She was trying to 'help' me make Serenity and
Endymion's lunch but decided to help me WEAR it, instead," she shot
darkly, not sounding to be the normally upbeat Lisa Warner. "When I get
my hands on her..."
Giggling sounded from beneath the bed. Young, female giggling.
"Ambriel! You're getting sauce all over the floor!" exclaimed the
young woman. Suddenly forgetting all her woes, she leapt for the red
streak that colored the white marble and wiped up the mess with the edge
of her already soiled apron. "I'm in enough trouble for giving you a
makeover last week and letting you write 'Go Angel Moon' on the wall
with your mother's lipsticks! Get out here right now!"
With a grunt of effort, the girl climbed out from beneath the bed
and wiped her hands on the clean part of her gown. "I'm sorry, Lisa,"
she mumbled, scuffing her feet together. "I didn't mean to make a
mess..."
She seized the child by the wrist and began to pull her out of the
room. "You'd BETTER be sorry!" she warned sourly, tossing her head.
"Could you imagine the mess you would have made if you'd gone into the
great library or something? Be glad that your Mama and Papa have so
little that can be ruined! And another thing..."
Helios sighed as he watched the young governess and handmaiden
drag the girl from the room and close the door behind them both, once
again leaving him to the sweetness of peace and quiet. He smiled
slightly, withdrawing the box from its hiding place and fingering the
soft fabric that surrounded it gently.
"I don't really know how Reeny will react," he lamented, shaking
his head. "I love her, and she loves me... But being together like this
is so different from marriage..." He leaned his head against the great
wooden headboard of the bed and closed his tired blue eyes. "I've wanted
to be with her since the day we met... But this..." He sighed a second
time. "God, what AM I doing?"
* * * * * * * * * * * *

Slamming the door behind her, Phoebe Urawa tossed her braids and
smiled at her friend. "Thanks for helping me with the groceries!" she
exclaimed, adjusting her three large shopping bags as she spoke. "I
never would have guessed how much trouble shopping for three mouths
would be! When it was me and Marie, there was no problem, but now..."
"I know," responded Alice with a smile, stepping into the kitchen
of the ranch house and placing her bags on one of the countertops.
"You'd never guess how much my dad eats, now that he spends so much time
with us!" Slowly pulling the different food items from her bag, the teen
smiled cheerily at the young blue-haired woman who sat at the kitchen
table. "Oh! Hi, Mrs. Urawa! Nice to see you!"
Suddenly, the world seemed to come to a jarring halt. The three
bags that the younger of the two teens held came crashing to the tile
kitchen floor as both girls stared at the woman in the middle of the
room. As always, the light blue hair was short and slightly wind-blown,
and the navy eyes were large and sweet even hidden between bifocals. She
didn't so much as glance at the auburn-headed child but instead focused
on her daughter, who was now scrambling to pick up all the things she'd
dropped. "It's been a long time," admitted Amy softly, tucking a strand
of hair behind an ear and staring at her daughter. "You look well."
Blushing slightly at the comment, the girl with the braids managed
to shove all her different groceries onto the counter before meeting the
intense stare of her mother. She felt her throat start to close up and
gulped. "Too long..." she whispered, her voice hoarse.
"Uhhh..." Grabbing her car keys from the counter, Alice Kino
flashed the two Urawa women a brilliant smile and started for the front
door, slightly red in the face. "I... I was just going..." she
stammered, brushing the hair from her chestnut eyes. "See you later,
Pheebs..."
Neither of the women really listened, even as the door slammed and
a car started in the driveway and roared away. They just stared, eyes
locked, neither speaking nor moving.
Then, without emotion, the adult folded her hands in her lap and
pressed her lips together. "So... How are you doing, dear?" she
questioned softly, wrenching her gaze away from that of her daughter and
focusing on the floor as she did so. "I've been meaning to call, but
I've been horrendously busy..."
Phoebe crossed over to the groceries that were scattered about the
counter top and began to put them in their proper places. "I'm sorry
that your job is more important than your daughter," she countered
coolly, slowly pulling a few remaining boxes from the paper bags that
Alice had brought into the house. "It's a shame, too, because there
have been times I've wanted you be with you, Mother."
"There are times that I have missed you, Phoebe," responded Amy
without annoyance at her daughter's bland criticism. "But that must be
thrown into the past, because you are fighting a new enemy. Without the
help of Sailor Pluto--"
"Damn it, Mother!" spat the teen, slamming a cup of instant
noodles onto the counter in anger. "We can actually do this by
ourselves! I don't believe you came back just to give a lecture on the
wonders of the Planet Mistresses!" She lowered her ice-colored eyes at
the woman, crossing her arms stubbornly. "Since the day this new enemy
first came, we've been fine..." She furrowed her brow, the bittersweet
memory of the Scouts' slight fear and lack of hope pressing its way into
the front of her mind. "Well, we were shaky, but not any more! We're
GOOD Scouts!"
With a sigh, her mother ran a hand through her short blue hair,
avoiding the hateful glare of her child. "All things considered," she
retorted rather dryly, "you Scouts are still children. And you're not
ready to face this challenge."
Throwing down the box of cereal she held, the girl made a face and
stomped across the room to face the adult face-to-face. "We can face
anything!" she spat angrily, clenching her fists and glowering down at
her mother. "We can believe in ourselves and fight for what's right and
save this planet from the same sort of thing that YOU saved it from! The
only difference is that--"
"I'm home!" called a pleasant voice from the hallway as the front
door slammed shut. "And Pheebs, you're going to be really pleased! There
was a two-for-one deal on boxes of nails, so we should be able to fix
the loose boards down in the dance studio..." Freezing in mid-step, the
young woman dropped her two bags and pressed her lips together
uncertainly. "Uhh... Am I interrupting something?"
Shaking her head violently, the braid-haired teen suddenly sprung
into action and scooped up the two ignored bags on the floor, placing
them on the counter beside the now-forgotten groceries. "Not at all!"
she exclaimed cheerily, flashing a sweet smile at her friend and mother.
"You're just in time, Haley, because Marie will be home any minute!"
Amy's navy eyes widened slightly at the mention of her silver-
haired sister-in-law. "Marie?"
"Oh, really?" questioned Haley as she started toward the pantry,
scratching her head and trying to stay away from the confused woman at
the kitchen table. "Then what should I make tonight?"
"What should SHE make?" inquired the blue-haired adult softly,
still amazed and confused at the same time. "What's going on here?"
Turning to face her mother, Phoebe sighed and shook her head
slowly, pursing her lips. Several times, she started to open her mouth
but then stopped, not sure what to say. The only sound in the room was
the clatter of cans and boxes in the small closet as the brunette teen
rooted around for something to cook for dinner. Finally, she took in a
deep breath and set her face into a determined expression. "We need to
talk."
Oblivious, Haley started whistling the song "Initial U" rather
loudly, pulling a few cans of pre-made spaghetti sauce from the pantry.
Amy nodded to her daughter and rose slowly, brushing off her hands
on her knee-length blue skirt. "The living room?" she asked in a tone
that was low enough that only she and her child heard.
The teen shook her head slowly and sighed softly to herself. "I
think that I should show you something first," she stated, starting for
the hallway.
Confused, the adult followed.
* * * * * * * * * * * *

"It's just her and me now," sighed the young, raven-haired woman
as she lovingly stroked the feathers of the large emu. Her hair, which
usually fell about her shoulders in a straight, wave-less mass, was
pulled back and into a low ponytail. Her normally nondescript black wool
uniform was replaced by a flattering, form-fitting ebony gown that
shimmered and sparkled as she moved. Once again, she sighed, pulling the
leather strap of the emu's saddle as hard as she could to tighten it.
"And I never thought that I'd stoop so low as to fight, especially not
dressed like THIS..." She scowled down at her outfit, the glimmering
fabric shining in the pale candlelight of the chamber as she moved.
With a shake of her feathered head, the emu yawned and stretched
one of his legs. "You always complain," he drawled, deep voice booming
through the makeshift 'stable' his young mistress had created. "But,
Tina, when the end comes..."
Laughing at her pet's antics, the young woman nodded and finished
tightening the saddle onto her bird. "You're right, of course, Norton,"
she smiled, freeing her tresses of the small rubber band and letting
them fall freely about her round, tanned face. "When Ginnie and I rule
the world, it will be wonderful." She placed a single boot in the
stirrup and pulled herself up onto the bird to sit sidesaddle, long
skirt flowing about her long legs as she did so. "And it starts, of
course, with finding the Crystal of Illusion and killing the Sailor
Scouts."
"Quite wicked, my dear," grinned the emu, unfurling his brown-
feathered wings and flapping them lightly in the room. "I'm proud!"
She patted his head lovingly. "You should be," she chortled,
seizing the reigns and wiggling her bottom to fit more precisely into
the saddle. "You helped teach me!"
Norton chuckled and, at that, began walking down the long chamber
and toward the light, ready for takeoff.
* * * * * * * * * * * *

"I've tried so hard to make her like me..." sighed the young man,
slowly stirring his cup of tea as he spoke, bright cobalt eyes dimmed by
despair. "And yet, she pushes me away..."
His companion, a tall sandy-haired woman with sparkling green-gray
eyes, sighed and crossed her legs as she glanced across the small table
at the boy. "That's tough," she admitted with a nod, neither smiling nor
frowning at his lament. "But why in the world would you ask ME to give
you love advice, Todd?"
He ran a hand through his dark brown, almost black, tresses and
took a long sip of green tea in silence, silent though the sounds of
other customers in the coffee shop echoed through his ears. "You're
smart, Miss Ten'ou," he finally responded as she continued to stare.
"And I thought, since maybe you know her through all your
instrumental...experience..."
"Oh, I know her," chuckled the blonde, draining her coffee and
motioning for the single, purple-haired waitress to bring her another,
"and I'll have to say that Alice takes after her mother in oh-so-many
ways." She smiled and rested an elbow on the table. "And--and you'll
have to trust me on this one--those Kino women are tough when it comes
to changing their minds."
Todd's eyebrows knitted together in a combination of thought and
displeasure as he listened to his piano teacher speak. "Really?"
Alexandra nodded and waited for the chipper waitress to pour
another cup of coffee before continuing. "Little gifts," she told him in
a slightly confidential manner, "mean nothing to Alice. Her mother would
have fallen head-over-heels for you, perhaps, but not that cellist."
She furrowed her brow and screwed her face into an annoyed grimace. "And
my guess is that the only way to bowl her over is to be straight
forward."
"Straight forward?" he echoed, confused and amazed at the same
time.
Sipping her drink, the adult nodded in response. "You have to go
up to her and tell her how you feel without the pomp and circumstance,"
she explained as she set her glass back onto its saucer. "You're looking
at the problem like most boys do; you're thinking that she needs to be
wooed and impressed." Shaking her head, Alex cupped her chin in a hand
and sent a slightly disappointed smile at him. "The only way to REALLY
impress her is to, of course, tell her."
"You think?" Todd questioned, sounding quiet uncertain. "Because,
after seeing the type of people that Alice hangs out with, it's hard to
think..."
"I know, I know," his teacher responded, rising slowly and
throwing a few bills on the table to cover the expense of the makeshift
meeting. "But, as your piano teacher and as some sort of screwed up
role-model, I'd suggest you listen." She pulled her sports coat from the
back of the chair. "See you on Monday at your lesson, and don't be
late."
He nodded and waved his thanks to her, staring at the woman's back
until the glass door of the coffee shop slid shut behind her. Then, he
sighed and frowned, focusing on his half-finished cup of tea.
"Tell her?" he questioned, staring at the steam as it rose off the
brown-black liquid. "Just say: 'Alice Kino, I'm in love with you?'"
There was a pause as his frown melted away into an impassive
pursing of lips.
And then, he smiled slightly, blue eyes brightening just a bit.
"That," Todd said to himself, "just might work."
* * * * * * * * * * * *

"This is..." Amy was incredulous as she perched on the edge of the
large, blue-sheeted double bed, gazing around the room with wide navy
eyes and an amazed expression on her face. "Nothing's changed, Phoebe!"
The teen nodded, leaning against the large oak bureau as she did
so, also examining the room. As it had been since Marie had forced
cleanliness upon the Urawa household, the room was spotless, free of all
dust and clutter. A dresser, bureau, and small desk were of polished,
shining oak, and both the bed and two table-clothed tables were cloaked
in fabric of deep, royal blue. The walls were a light azure color, which
appeared white in the sunlight that peeked through the navy-colored
draperies. Small knick-knacks and pictures were scattered about, as
they'd always been, at the eight shelves that adorned the wall were
still stacked with an impossible amount of books, ranging from college
texts to "pulp" novels to a few old picture books. "Why do you think
it's all the same, Mother?" questioned the braid-headed one softly, her
face devoid of all emotion.
The adult settled herself farther on the bed, drawing her long
legs up onto the soft surface and crossing them. "Did you miss us so
much, Phoebe?" she asked quietly, her eyes searching the girl's face for
any possible sign of emotion.
She found none as her daughter pulled out the desk chair and
straddled it, her long dancer's legs shown off by her khaki shorts as
she leaned her arms over the back of the chair and sighed. "I didn't
miss you, I don't think," she returned, still as icy in her demeanor as
her eyes were in color. "But I did think that you would come back. At
least to visit. At least at Christmas."
Amy nearly protested, but something, which sparkled slightly in
the afternoon sun, halted her objection. And that something was a single
crystal tear rolling down the face of her daughter. Gasping inwardly,
she raised a single hand to her opened mouth and felt herself
involuntarily gulp back the rising lump in her throat. "Phoebe, I..."
"Marie moved in only a month or two ago," continued the teen,
wiping away the traitorous tear and trying desperately to remain the
actress and to hold in all the pain and despair she felt within. "And
Haley only slightly after. Both had problems. Both needed me." She
choked back what seemed to be a sob and closed her tearful eyes quickly,
to hide her urge to cry. "It's nice to be loved, appreciated, and
needed, you know."
Rising, the adult took a shaky step forward, ready to console her
daughter, but it was too late. The teen, really no more than a girl in
the light of her heartfelt despair, hunched over herself in the seat,
resting her head against the back of the chair and crying softly as her
braids fell about her face. Amy took a deep breath, unsure what to say,
but could feel the cold hand of guilt grasping her heart.
"Phoebe..." she breathed, kneeling on the ground beside her crying
child. "Phoebe, I am so sorry. I didn't think..." She sighed and could
feel her own eyes begin to ache with the pain of unshed tears. "I know
that you have no need to forgive me, but with life so hectic... I
couldn't even... And I didn't..."
Suddenly, there was a loud beeping sound coming from the teen's
back pocket. With a long sigh, she pulled the small, blue-colored
Mercury computer from her back pocket and flipped it open as she wiped
away a few stray tears. "Phoenix," she coughed, rubbing her red eyes as
she waited for the grainy picture on the screen to focus. "What seems to
be the trouble?"
"I don't know exactly," responded a voice as the face of an older
teen with bright pink cone-shaped buns and pigtails, "but Diana just
rushed in babbling about transforming and giant flying emus and a
monster waltzing down the street that your school's on." She paused, and
her expression turned both serious and concerned. "Have you been
crying?" she questioned quickly, eyes seeming to run across the other
girl's face as she spoke. "Your eyes are red and your face is all
streaked with tears."
Rolling her bloodshot, ice-colored eyes, the younger teen shot one
long look at her mother before nodding at the screen. "Okay, then.
Crystal Music Academy. I'm on my way!"
The words "Moon out" were muffled by the snapping shut of the blue
computer. The braid-headed girl turned to her mother, who had climbed
to her feet long before the short conversation between Scouts had ended,
and smiled slightly. "There's a battle," she stated plainly, clambering
off the chair and putting the computer back in her pocket. "I think I'm
needed."
"Good," smiled the adult, running a hand through her short blue
hair as she looked at her daughter with adoration. Their eyes met, blue
against blue and--despite the good three inches between the two--they
managed to stand nose-to-nose for a long moment of silence before Amy
began to speak again. "I'm proud, Phoebe. Very."
Smiling, the teen quickly hugged her mother, her eyes sparkling
with delight. Then, she rushed out the door and tore her way down the
hallway, screaming, "Haley! We've got to go! Attack at C.M.A.! Let's
jet!"
With a wistful sigh, her mother sat back down on the bed and
listened as the door slammed and a car took off down the drive. "If I
had maintained that sort of spunk when I was a Scout," she mused to
herself, voice carrying through the now-empty room, "then I think I
would have driven the others crazy."
Her slight, sad smile was quickly replaced with an out-and-out
grin. "Then again, I would have been Serena," she chuckled, falling back
onto the warm, soft surface of her bed. "But we all changed, a lot,
during those two years. We grew, and learned... Matured, really... We
were taught so many things about ourselves and about human nature that
we couldn't escape nor turn our backs on our newfound knowledge..." She
sighed in memory and tucked her arms behind her head, studying at the
white ceiling as she recalled what her life as a Scout had been like.
"And now, I'm a Mistress, and all I have to say is--"
"Phoebe! I thought that you weren't going to nose around in here
except on cleaning days!" scolded a rather boisterous female voice. Amy
picked up her head to see a slim, shapely silhouette in the doorway,
hands resting on slender hips as the woman spoke. "What have I told you
about this?"
Chuckling, the doctor picked herself up off the bed and smiled at
the brown-eyed younger woman with the shining silver hair. "I still
don't understand how you got your hands on immortality," she teased, her
tone more playful than usual. "I mean, just because your brother and
yourself were sent from the Silver Millennium..."
"And I don't see how you got to be so rich and famous," came the
quick, glib retort from Marie Urawa as she tossed her head indignantly
and smiled cheerily at her sister-in-law. "After all, aren't the
Guardians of the King and Queen supposed to STAY in Crystal Tokyo?"
Amy just shrugged and started for the door, locking her gaze with
the other woman's in a gesture that began nothing short of a staring
contest. "It's amazing that you can put up living with my kid," she
stated rather blandly, resting a hand on the doorframe. "She's not a
neat-freak, you know."
"Should have seen the place when I moved in," replied Marie,
screwing her face into a rather grievous grimace as she spoke. "It was
about the messiest thing I'd ever seen in my life."
They both laughed, knowing the statement to be all too true.
Silence filled the room as the two woman stared at each other, neither
sure what to say. It was a rare occurrence that Amy came home, and it
was even rarer that Marie and her were within close vicinity. They liked
each other, of course, but the chances to meet were slim, if none.
Then, with a smile, the doctor sniffed the air and winked a blue
eye at the other woman before speaking.
"How about we dig into Haley's dinner?"
* * * * * * * * * * * *

"This thing's AWFUL!" groaned Sailor Aurora Borealis, collecting a
good half of her skirt in her gloved hands and trying to wring it free
of water without much avail. "It's spitting water, and it's COLD!"
With a roll of her bright brown eyes, Sailor Polaris dove away
from a long stream of the freezing liquid and sent an annoyed glare
toward the other Scout. "You COULD help out, you know!" she returned,
hopping from the ground to her feet and tossing her ponytail out of her
face. "After all, it's just another monster!"
Surveying the creature they were up against, the older of the two
Scouts raised an eyebrow as she thought of the bland comment from her
friend. The cretin of the day was a giant emu, standing a good fifteen
feet tall, with a wing span of double that and the ability to fly. Blue-
brown feathers, a strange color combination, glistened in the late
afternoon sun, and bright--though terrifying--blue eyes glowered down at
the group of nine Sailor Scouts.
Aurora Borealis pushed some of her dripping, limp hair from her
eyes. Yeah. JUST a monster.
"Damn!" swore Sailor Comet suddenly as she, courtesy of a strong
stream of water hitting her in the stomach, rammed right into the blue-
braided Scout and sent them both sprawling backwards onto the wet, cool
blacktop.
Chibi-Star and Chibi-Pluto, who had been fighting side-by-side,
sending one attack after another toward the big bird, met a similar fate
as the emu-thing threw a beam of water and sent the two of them to join
the pile.
Attacks flew from the hands and lips of several of the still-
standing Sailor Scouts, words mingling in the cool evening air as colors
flashed and energy flew right toward the giant bird.
It did no good, but none of the soldiers realized until it was a
few seconds too late.
The emu leapt into the air, using its giant wings to hold its
large blue-brown body above the street. Attacks collided with one
another beneath the bird's body, doing nothing more than nullifying each
other's effects. A few of the young warriors cursed aloud, readying any
and all other attacks that they knew how to send out.
Too late it once again was, for the bird began to fly in a slow
circle, spraying more water at the Scouts. The water, while not actually
a fast enough stream to really injure any of the five standing Scouts,
did knock them into the pile with the other four girls. Grunts and
groans emitted from the heap of warriors, but it was no use. They were
entangled to the point of no return.
The bird let out a sound that sounded oddly like a chuckle and
turned away from the strange stack of girls (and one little boy),
shaking its feathery head.
Trying desperately to get out of her position between Polaris and
the Master of Time, Sailor Moon grunted and let her red eyes go wide as
she watched the creature walk away. "SOMEBODY STOP THAT MONSTER!
ANYONE!" she screamed, nearly deafening her fellow Scouts. "THERE'S A
REWARD! SORT OF, ANYWAY!"
Suddenly, there was a mighty bellow unlike any of the Sailor
Scouts had ever heard in their separate lives:
"Space Sword BLASTER!"
The emu suddenly toppled onto its side, a glowing gold weapon
plunged into its neck. Blood slowly seeped out of the wound, dropping
onto the street. The Scouts all gaped at the strange weapon and then at
the two women who stood, back-to-back, near the now paralyzed creature.
Rose petals floated slowly through the air on a sudden breeze, and that
same breeze ruffled the long gowns of the two women.
"Lured by the threat of evil to my school," spoke the first,
tossing her head of sandy blonde hair as she spoke, "I am the
magnificent Mistress Uranus, acting gorgeous."
Her companion smiled gently. "Also lured by that same threat," she
stated in a stern, deep voice, "I am the magnificent Mistress Neptune,
acting gracefully."
Finally freeing herself of the Scout dog-pile, Sailor Moon slapped
herself in the forehead, groaning. "They never change, do they?" she
moaned, shaking her head in disbelief. "They're STILL 'invited by this'
and 'lured by that' and 'enchanted by such-and-such'..."
"Hey!" objected Uranus, pulling her sword from the emu-monster as
the skirt of her navy-blue gown swirled around her legs. "We just saved
your butt, and your thanks is mocking us?"
"Well, we DON'T need your help," admitted Sailor Phoenix, having
also pulled herself and two of the Chibi-Scouts from the mass of bodies.
"We were perfectly fine by ourselves..."
The blonde Mistress snorted, sheathing her sword before resting
her hands on her hips. "Oh, REALLY?" she questioned in a doubtful,
almost challenging tone. "Then explain the dog-pile, girlie!"
Neptune rolled her blue eyes in the direction of her wife and
started down the street. "Coming, dear?" she called, annoyance in her
tone.
"But...but..." stammered Uranus, still eager to hear a reasonable
excuse from the Sailor Scout of the Sun for why the girls were in a
giant heap. Glancing at her wife, whose retreat was seemingly becoming
faster with every passing second, she wrinkled her nose and tossed the
Space Sword back into null-space. "Wait up, Michi!" she yelled after the
other woman, her tone one of a woman who had just been defeated. She
turned to quickly glare at the other Sailor Scouts. "This isn't over,
you know."
"Yeah, SURE it's not," laughed Phoenix with a toss of her braids,
watching as the tall and tomboyish Mistress started down the street
after her partner.
Sailor Moon drew her sword and started for the motionless monster.
And Sailor Comet, in all her wisdom, shook her head sadly. "Thank
GOD I'm adopted," she mumbled to herself in a reassuring voice. "Thank
GOD."
* * * * * * * * * * * *

"You're WHAT?" gaped the short blonde man, nearly dropping the
stirring spoon into his pot of chili as he stared at the teen with the
gold-brown hair. "You're STILL in love with her?"
Scuffing his feet together, Eric nodded slightly and focused on
anything that was not his brother--namely, he focused on the
refrigerator and the Ten'ou family portrait and the calendar and the
skylight and the doorframe and... Sighing, he rested his head in his
hands and pursed his lips. "You make it sound like love is easy to get
rid of, Brian," he commented miserably, staring at the green countertop
that was the kitchen's island. "I don't know why I've been so horrible
to her, but..."
"Hindsight," put in Brian Hartford, pushing up his glasses with a
chili-covered finger, "is worth its weight in gold, young man."
Receiving only a confused glance in return for his wisdom, he chuckled
and tossed a few pieces a chopped onion into the pot. "I just mean that
you can look back at stupid things you've done and know they were
stupid, but looking at them when you did them was totally different."
His brother sighed once again and gazed at the older man, copper
meeting copper as the two sets of eyes met. Neither spoke for a long
moment, the uncertainty of Eric's situation causing a great, pressing
silence.
And then, the door burst open and a little boy rushed into the
room, his mop of brown hair bouncing as he stopped in the middle of the
kitchen and glanced straight at the blonde man. "Have you seen my dad?"
he questioned.
Brian shrugged. "I think he went out, Peter," he responded with a
smile, still stirring his dinner as he did so. "But you should really
check upstairs with your aunts to be sure..."
"They're not here!" he retorted, grinning as he struck an odd pose
and flipped his hair. "Because, 'Lured by the threat of evil' to their
school, they are the magnificent Outer--MMFPH!"
The adult nearly pounced on the boy, covering his mouth with one
hand and pointing to Eric with the other. They exchanged quick, hushed
words, none of which the younger Hartford brother could make out, and
then Peter was on his way upstairs, mumbling something about people
going when the Master of Time took over.
"That boy watches too much anime," managed Brian quickly, his own
excuse for the child's odd behavior sounding to be a question more than
a statement. "He's so taken in by superheroes..."
Rolling copper eyes, Eric rested his chin in a hand. "How do I
deal with Haley?"
His older brother shrugged and looked his sibling straight in the
eyes, expression slightly sad. "Maybe you don't," sighed he, shaking his
head a little and leaning on the island, staring at his brother. "Maybe
you accept the loss of her and move on with your life."
"Easier said," responded the younger man in a slightly mournful
tone, "than felt."
"Yeah, I know, but--"
He was interrupted by the slamming of the front door and the roar
of an angry female voice. "I could have HUNG that girl!" shot Alexandra,
obviously in bad humor as she stomped into the kitchen, her aqua-headed
wife right behind her. "First that STUPID little Reeny makes those
comments, and then Phoenix is all: 'We're fine. We don't need your help.
Never mind the Space Sword, Uranus. We'll be fine.'" She nodded to the
boy at the kitchen's island as she grabbed an apple. "Hi Eric. Nice to
see you." Turning back to Michelle, she clenched her fist around the
apple and continued her rant. "She acts like we're not even Mistresses!
She acts like we're helpless! She acts--"
"How are you doing, Eric?" questioned the woman with the aqua-
green hair, sitting down on a stool and completely ignoring her wife.
"You seem upset."
"Upset?" he asked, no longer staring at Alexandra in complete
confusion. "Well, a little..." he admitted in a quiet voice, picking at
a small piece of cellophane tape which was stuck to the countertop. "I
was just thinking about some girl troubles, and decided to ask Brian for
help..."
Snorting, the blonde woman plopped onto the stool on his other
side and laughed good-naturedly. "I wrote the book on girl troubles!"
she exclaimed, leaning her elbows on the surface and forgetting her
apple as she spoke. "What do you need to know? Wooing someone? Learning
the ways of lamour?" She elbowed him in the side as though they were
sharing a great secret.
Michelle rolled her blue eyes as her wife grinned wolfishly at the
young man, as though he was the catch of the day. "This from the woman
who groaned when Todd Walker called for help with the Kino girl," sighed
she, standing and starting for the stairs. "Well, I'll be getting ready
for my orchestra rehearsal tonight, ALEX. You should be doing that,
too."
All color drained from the tall woman's face, and a single eyebrow
began to twitch nervously. "That was tonight!" she exclaimed, hopping to
her feet and tossing the ignored green apple back into the fruit bowl.
"I've got to help teach all the new players the ropes! Stupid Tokyo
Junior Orchestra..." Sighing, she began to trudge toward the stairway.
"Wait! Miss Alex!" called Eric nervously, running a hand through
his hair as the woman turned around and raised an eyebrow toward the
teen. He gulped back the lump in his throat. "How do you rekindle lost
love?" he asked softly, afraid to meet her green-eyed gaze.
Smiling slightly, the blonde woman winked at him. "Just tell Haley
you love her, of course," she retorted.
He had every intention of asking her to elaborate, but by time
he'd raised his head, she had already thundered up the stairs.
* * * * * * * * * * * *

Her keycard slipped into the lock, and the light shone green.
Emotionless, tired, and completely dead to the world, Alice Kino
stumbled into the family apartment and managed to slam the door behind
her, rubbing her back. "What a day," she grumbled, kicking off her shoes
and thrusting her purse onto the little table right outside the door.
"I swear that Lyra needs to cut down on the french-fries. Should really
try a diet, that girl... Landed right on top of me and GOD did it
hurt..." Slipping on her favorite pair of battered navy slippers, she
stretched and started for the television. "And never mind the Home Ec
project due Monday, I'm catching a movie on the tube if it--"
"Excuse me?" questioned a timid voice from behind her, making her
jump nearly a mile into the air. She whirled around in her seat on the
couch, and her brown eyes widened noticeably. "Alice, can I talk to
you?"
Blue eyes implored her for attention. Dark brown bangs hung in
those eyes, giving them a mysterious but irresistible look. A young man,
tall and lean and extremely nice-looking, stood about ten feet behind
the couch, hands shoved in his pockets as he stared at the young woman,
wordless. Behind him, through the glass doors of the balcony, the sun
was setting over Tokyo, like a backdrop from a movie. Reds, purples, and
pinks swirled around, giving the dark apartment a beautiful, if surreal,
quality.
She stood, blinking a few times, and then set her amazed
expression into a stern glare. In three quick steps, she'd overtaken the
distance between the couch and the teen, her brown eyes full of hate
and annoyance. "Yeah, well, I've been meaning to talk to you," she shot,
raising a fist. Gaping, the young man gulped and stumbled back into the
peach-painted wall, displaying a fear that she knew was there... A fear
that she quite intended to use in her advantage. "I've been meaning to
tell you to knock it off," she continued, her fist raised slightly as a
challenge. "If I get ONE more gift, Todd--just ONE, mind you--then
you'll get to meet my black-belt in karate up-close and personal."
Taking a deep breath, he closed his eyes, trying to think of what
retort to make. He couldn't excuse it, he couldn't lie... He had to tell
the truth. He had to say it. The nausea in his stomach was enough to
make him want to crawl under a rock and die. Still...
"Why don't you like me?" he asked shakily, opening his two cobalt
eyes to stare straight at her. "Why won't you just go to prom with me?
Alice, I--"
With a blink of two brown orbs, she dropped her fist and, with it,
her guard. "You have no idea what I've been through with my parents,"
she said in a dry tone, turning away to gaze out at the indescribable
sunset. "You don't know how much my father has hurt me..."
Todd gulped and, stepping away from the wall, placed a shaking
hand on her shoulder. "I'm not your father, Alice," he returned, turning
her gently to meet her gaze. "I'm not like that..."
"I know..." she managed, holding back the tears that were slowly
welling up in her eyes. "I know that you're not... But I can't help but
think..." She clenched her fists tightly in frustration. "I'm only so
mean to you because I don't KNOW what to think!" she protested, trying
desperately to stop her voice from wavering more than it already was. "I
don't know if I should care or run... If I should tell you 'yes' or
'no...'" She set her face in a determined glare, the tears in her eyes
remaining behind their strong dams, not yet freed by her emotion. "And I
don't know if I should feel this...for anyone..."
Removing his hand from her shoulder, Todd took another deep breath
and touched the side of her cheek gently. The mere two feet between them
seemed to close as she smiled sweetly at him, the tears nearly freed,
now. "Alice," he whispered softly, caressing her cheek with a finger,
"I just want you to know that I love you..."
The gap was closed, now, as she fell into his arms, letting him
hold her to his chest. The dams, once so strong and indestructible,
collapsed as she buried her head in his shoulder, crying in front of a
stranger for the first time in her life.
Time past. The light slowly seeped away, and the city became a
glittering universe of lights, with a giant palace as its center point.
The palace as its nucleus.
Neither of the duo knew how long they had stood in that place on
the carpeting, the auburn-headed teen crying endless tears into the
shirt of the tall brunette, but finally, she picked up her head and
stared at him. And all Todd did was smile.
"I'm sorry," she sniffed, wiping the last remaining tears from her
eyes. "I just didn't..."
"Hush..." he whispered, placing a single finger on her lips before
she could finish her frivolous apology. Then, seeing that she had no
intention of speaking, he drew her closer, breath tickling her lips as
their noses touched. "Will you PLEASE go to prom with me?"
She gulped and leaned forward, pressing their lips together for
but a brief second. "Yes..." she breathed, her eyelids suddenly heavy as
she felt his breath even closer, and hotter than before. "Definitely."
And their lips touched again and, suddenly, they were in a world
all their own.
* * * * * * * * * * * *

He took a deep, shaking breath, focusing on the darkened city of
Tokyo as he paced the balcony of his bedroom, suddenly very, very
afraid. Footfalls echoed on marble as he strode down to the far end of
the little area and back, one hand in a pocket. His fingers gently
touched the soft, silky velvet of the small black box in his pocket.
Black box... Destiny... True love... Princess... Words echoed in his
head, words he didn't want to forget... Words he was just the slightest
bit frightened of...
He chuckled at his own antics, leaning against the cool wall of
Crystal Palace as azure eyes gazed out at the beautiful city of light
before him. Why was it so scary? She and he had been together for...
Well, not for years, really, because he'd been in Elysion and she on
Earth, but the two worlds did collide... He had promised... He took out
the box and glanced at it as it sat in the palm of his hand, a symbol,
to him, of the unsure feature.
"Reeny, will you..." He shook his head quickly, running his free
hand through his shaggy silver-white mane of hair. "No, that won't
do..." he grumbled, biting his lower lip in thought as he opened the box
and stared down at the beautiful, flawless diamond and the smooth, cool
golden band around it. "Hmmm... Reeny, would you do me the pleasure of
becoming my... No, that's not right..." Pulling the ring from its little
container, he slipped it onto his little finger, surprised to find it
was just large enough to slide past the second knuckle and sit in the
proper place. "Would you please... No... Reeny, I love you and... Not
quite... My Princess and love, Small Lady Serenity..."
"Helios?" called a soft female voice, and he jumped, shoving the
ring back in the box and stowing it in his pocket. His heart pounded in
his ears as he cleared his throat and leaned up against the railing of
the balcony. Now, or never.
"Out here!" he responded, trying earnestly to sound completely
calm. The truth was that, in all his years, he had never been so
nervous. There had been battles, and risks, and a seeming eternity of
waiting for the pink-haired angel to be his own, but now--as the box
weighted his pocket down ominously and his heart thumped so loudly that
he swore that the echoes could be heard in Kyoto--he wasn't so sure. In
fact, he wasn't sure of ANYTHING.
Except that he loved her. And she loved him.
Dressed only in her nightgown, which was long and pink and frilly,
the Princess of the Earth strode out onto the balcony, her bare feet
slapping against the marble rather loudly as she did so. Her buns had
been undone, spinning a web of wavy pink hair around her body, from head
to near the back of her calves. Helios drew in a sharp, almost painful
breath as he gazed at her lean, beautiful body and then into her deep,
passionate cinnamon eyes. With one hand he clutched the railing, still,
trying to restrain himself from turning tail to run.
"You alright?" questioned the young woman, taking a wary step
toward her Prince as she noticed the uncertainty in his fathomless blue-
eyed stare. "Something is different about you, Helios..."
Wordlessly, the young man took a shaky step toward the Princess
and dropped carefully to one knee, taking her hands in his and staring
at the marble surface beneath him. "My Maiden and Princess," he
breathed, looking up just long enough to brush his lips across the soft,
sweet skin of his love, "I will forever serve you."
Reeny gasped in surprise and awe, but was unable to take her hands
away from the man. Instead, she swallowed the lump in her throat and
managed to keep her voice steady. "Excuse me?" she questioned.
Gazing up at her, staring at the impossibly beautiful eyes that he
had loved for years, he smiled slightly and touched her hands to his
cheek. "Dear Maiden," he managed, tone wavering and shaking as much as
he knew his hands were, "you are my sound mind, body, and soul. You are
all I hold dear, all I protect..." His smile grew as the confused
expression on her face melted away into complete and total adoration.
"From the day I met you, hiding within your pure and beautiful dreams...
From the day you saved Elysion..." Reaching into his pocket, he clenched
a fist around the small, soft box and let all his worries melt away into
one large, loving grin. "I have forever loved you, Princess, and that
is why I give you this..."
She held back a startled gasp as the ring box was opened before
her, but the young woman could not control the slow blush that crept
across her face. Carefully, her Prince removed the ring from its space
in the velvet and slid it on her ring finger, gently kissing her hand as
he did so. Then, his expression lost all joviality as he gazed up at
her.
"The Princess of the Moon and Earth, Serenity of the Gold Moon
Kingdom," he breathed, voice little more than whisper to the wind as his
ocean-colored eyes gazed at her, "I love you. More than life, more than
sweet Elysion, and more that any words can say. Will you, my Princess,
become my wife?"
Unmoving, silent, the young woman stared down at her finger, her
hands trembling as she examined the ring. Her expression was impassive
even as a single tear traced its way down her cheek and fell to the
ground.
Then, she crumpled to her knees and wrapped her arms around
Helios' waist, burying her face in his soft, silvery tunic and setting
free a million tears at once. "Yes!" she cried in an elated tone,
picking up her head just long enough to cover his cheeks, lips, and
forehead in butterfly kisses. "Yes forever! Yes until eternity! YES!"
Her yelp echoed across the balcony and the courtyard below them,
and the couple smiled knowingly at one another. Then, wiping away a tear
with the side of her hand, the pink-haired Princess wrapped her arms
around the neck of her destined Prince and single true love. "From now
and forever..."
"My Maiden... My love..."
And, just as their lips were about to meet, a blonde woman peeked
her head out from around the corner of the door, glaring down at the
embracing couple. "Good evening, you two lovebirds," chuckled Lisa in
her normal laid-back lilt. "I just wanted to stop by and say that
Ambriel is down, in bed, and that I'm turning in..." She winked a blue
eye at the two. "And it's a good thing that I decided to go to bed,
too... Looks like you two would like your privacy..."
Both blushed.
"Well, goodnight," she called, waving her goodbye. "I hope you two
have a nice night..." She laughed at her own innuendo and strode away.
In a moment, the lights within the bedroom were off, bathing the entire
area, balcony included, in the sweet silence of night.
And Helios smiled. "Where were we, my love?"
She smiled back at him and drew her lips to his.
* * * * * * * * * * * *

RING!
Her eyelids slowly fluttered open and managed to glance at the
bright, fluorescent orange numbers of the alarm clock.
Midnight.
Sitting up groggily, the young woman rubbed the sleep from her
bloodshot brown eyes and she groped for the knob on her bedside lamp.
RING!
The light bit her eyes, but she ignored the pain and managed to
grasp the receiver and bring it up to her face. She could feel a strong
mix between exhaustion and outright annoyance battle within her mind as
she cleared her throat.
"Hello?"
There was a chipper laugh at the other end of the line. "How's my
little girl?" questioned a high soprano voice through the phone, causing
the blonde girl to lower her tired eyes into a glare almost immediately
upon hearing it. Only one woman in the world had that exact tone. Only
one...
"Mother!" spat Lyra, suddenly full energy as she straightened her
spine, glaring at the wall as though the adult was standing right before
her. "Do you know what time it is?" There was no response, but a slight
bit of laughter sounded from the other end. "I'll tell you, Ma, that
it's midnight and that I'm tired!" She clenched her hands into fists and
pounded her pillow angrily. "What do you want?"
She could practically see the woman shrug and toss her hands into
the air. "I miss you," responded Mina, not at all phased by the quick
shots that could have easily hurt the feelings of any other mother on
the planet. "You never come to dinner, and I'm sure that you mean to--"
Her daughter made a face. "Yeah right!" she retorted in a deep,
biting tone. "You're just completely convinced that me and Richard are
up to no good!"
"I know that you're not," lied the adult smoothly from the other
end, her voice hardly changed in either pitch or tone. "I just think
that you should finish playing this silly little game of being a
supposed grown-up and come home, so that I don't have to worry..."
"It IS about that!" screamed the teen, her voice echoing through
the room as she felt her eyes well up with tears. Already, her heart was
pounding and the adrenaline was pumping through her veins without
relent. A challenge, it was. And a challenge, she took it to be. "Well,
MOTHER, let me say this--NOTHING HAS HAPPENED!" She could feel the cold
hand of doubt, her doubt about her own abilities of being on her own,
touch the back of her neck. And she could feel the trust and love
between herself and her mother slip slowly away, a little bit escaping
with every second that the phone connection remained open. "I'm sorry
that you don't love me enough to trust me! And I'm sorry that you don't
understand how much I care about Richard, or what destiny means to me!
And I'm sorry--"
"What do YOU know?" challenged her mother from the other end of the
phone line, her once happy voice now marred with hate, anger, fear, and
disappointment. "I know that you two are just hormone-driven teenagers
who can't even begin to think before you do something stup--"
Hand shaking, Lyra placed the receiver back into its cradle. She
was silent for a long moment, her breath coming and going in ragged
pants as she held back her strong need to cry. Then, with one frantic
gulp, she buried her head in her hands and burst out crying.
And suddenly, there was a warm arm around her shoulder, and she
felt herself being pulled against a warm, soft body. Her sobs softened
slightly as the savior rocked her back and forth slowly, rubbing her
back gently. "Star..." whispered a low, sweet, masculine voice.
"Star... Shhh..."
She leaned against the young man, hands clawing her own sheets as
though she was in excruciating pain. "She... She hates us..." managed
Lyra between wracking sobs. "She doesn't care... Doesn't care that I
love you... Doesn't care that you love me..."
"Don't talk," Richard breathed, holding her tightly against his
chest and rocking her small body as though she were a small child.
"Don't talk at all..."
They sat in silence, her lithe form wrapped in his strong arms as
she wept into his warm, bare chest and let out all her woes as she sat
in his embrace. Then, gradually, her sobs subsided into whimpers, and
the whimpers were hushed by her raising her face and staring up into two
large, cobalt eyes. "I don't think I can love her, anymore," she sighed
as she rubbed her eyes and leaned further against him, breathing in the
mix of roses and sweat, a scent unique to her boyfriend. "If she can't
let us be together..."
"You'll always love your mother, Star," he responded, laying a
kiss atop her head of curly hair and still rubbing her back consolingly.
"No one can ever take that away from you..."
"But doesn't she understand that you and I love each other?"
questioned the girl uncertainly, still gazing into his eyes. "I cannot
love someone who can't love you..."
He swept his arms around her and lowered his face to hers, their
lips touching and pressing tenderly together for a long moment. Then,
the young man pulled away from his one true love only to find her brown,
slightly bloodshot eyes staring straight at him and absolutely
twinkling. He smiled slightly. "Lyra, what do YOU want?" he asked,
pushing a strand of loose, curly hair from her eyes. "Deep down, despite
your mother, what do you want?"
She pursed her lips for a very long moment, focusing on her hands
rather than on his face. "I know what I want," she said finally,
breaking the silence with her soft voice as she glanced up at him,
wrapping her arms around his neck and resting her chin on his. "I want
to be with YOU, Richard, whether my mother likes it or not."
"Then, that's your answer," replied Richard, bringing his face
down so he could once again taste her soft, sweet lips. Then, pulling
away, he smiled a devious smile and reached over, flipping off the
bedside lamp.
* * * * * * * * * * * *

CRASH!
SLAM!
"EEEK!"
She felt her face turn bright red as she pushed herself into a
sitting position, gasping for breath. But her gasping was not for
breath, as the figures in the doorway quickly realized, and the crimson-
faced young man also sat up, running a hand through his rumpled hair.
With a slight smile, Ken slurped the last of his soda from the
paper cup and placed it on the little table near the doorway. "Nice to
see you again, Todd," he called to the embarrassed boy before starting
into the kitchen. "If you need a snack, I've got a lot of candy in the
fridge..."
The young brunette just blushed further and focused on his sock-
covered feet.
Meanwhile, Lita had recovered from her less-than-ceremonial
entrance into the apartment as best she could be scooping up the dropped
paper bag and placing it beside her soul-mate's empty cup of pop. "How
did he get here?" questioned the nervous mother, looking over her
blushing daughter only to see a rumpled school uniform, and messy auburn
hair. "Wait, no, I can guess... KEN!"
A tall man poked his out around the corner of the kitchen, mouth
presumably full of candies. "Yep?"
"Never mind," sighed the brunette woman, rolling her bright green
eyes in the direction of her best friend and turning back to the guilty-
looking couple on the couch. "Well, I think that this will start with
you two saying your good-byes until tomorrow or Monday..."
Quickly nodding, Todd hopped to his feet and scrambled for the
door, kicking on his sneakers and waving to the girl on the sofa. She
smiled and waved back timidly, chestnut eyes not escaping the stern
glare of her mother.
And then, the door shut, and the family was alone.
"Now, Alice, I would like to ask--"
"Come on, Leets, don't be too hard on the girl," stressed the man,
plopping down in a plush chair with one leg draped over the arm. "You
can't blame her for giving into her feminine wilds." He took a long swig
of his milk, ignoring--or perhaps not noticing--that his daughter was
flushing an even deeper shade of red at the reference. "Besides, this
proves your theory wrong--she's not gay."
Alice's eyes, which were focused on the ground, snapped up to meet
her mother's face. All the red drained from her cheeks, with all other
color quickly following. She swallowed, hard, and then reacted the only
way she could.
"You thought I was GAY?"
Lita felt her ears start to burn.
* * * * * * * * * * * *

"I don't BELIEVE this!" announced Tina as she strode down the
hallway with the large, brown-feathered bird close behind her. "We
wasted nearly eight hours of our flying over Crystal Tokyo, and all I
managed to get was saddle-sore!" She stomped a foot and tossed her now-
messy black hair. "I cannot WAIT to get out of this dress and into my
pajamas!"
With a slight smile, the bird ducked his head to avoid hitting a
hanging light and shrugged his shoulders. "It's sometimes hard to find
what you're looking for," he commented reassuringly. "After all, if
finding a single person in Tokyo is like looking for a needle in a
haystack, finding a crystal that can disappear..."
She nodded in agreement. "...is even harder to do," she finished
for her pet as she punched an open button and walked through the door.
"Well, we'll cut through the throne room, get you to the stables, and
worry about the crystal again tomorrow..."
"And pray that Ginnie doesn't find out about the murdered
monster," sighed Norton, ducking through the door as he spoke. "She
could be mad..."
They slowly crept across the large throne room in silence, neither
wanted to really think of how mad their Queen would be. After all, she
had both impossibly strong powers and a very, VERY bad temper. Crossing
her was certain death...
Then, they both froze in mid-step staring at the sight before
them. Sitting on the floor, wrapped in a thick black quilt and
surrounded by either empty or half-full bowls of various snack foods sat
Evil Queen Ginnie. And in front of her was a big screen TV--playing
anime?--that her eyes were completely riveted to.
Clearing her throat, Tina glanced down at her Queen, smoothing her
long ebony gown as she did so. Ginnie glanced up, hitting the pause
button on her remote control. "Uh... My Queen, I'm back from my
quest..."
"Carry on, then," spoke the brunette woman, waving a hand at her
minion. "I don't have all night to chit-chat..."
"But, Ginnie--"
She held up a hand, silencing her companion. "I'll talk to you
tomorrow, Tina. Good night." She hit the play button and turned back to
her TV.
Norton glanced down at the confused, annoyed Tina and, using his
beak, grabbed her by the shirtsleeve and practically dragged her across
the throne room. Finally, once they had made it to the opposite door,
he let go and sighed. "Let her be," he suggested with a slight shake of
his head, "and maybe we'll live through all this, alright?"
She sighed and punched the button with her fist, hardly waiting
for the door to slide open before she trudged through. "I don't BELIEVE
her!" she shot, her voice echoing through the empty hall. "She's sitting
there, watching Neon Genesis Evangelion and ignoring her queenly
duties!"
He raised an eyebrow. "What's a Neo... Neo Geisha... Evangeline?"
he questioned, bewildered.
Rolling her brown eyes, Tina shook her head. "Never mind..."
* * * * * * * * * * * *

"Have you been up all night?"
The young woman turned slowly to face the door to the bathroom.
Standing in that doorway was another teen, her wavy hair falling around
her face and down her shoulders, a concerned expression on her delicate
features. Her pajamas, which were a pair of burgundy sweatpants and a
too-big yellow T-shirt, were dreadfully wrinkled, and her eyes were
tired.
Still, the visitor did not relent as she crossed the room to sit
on the edge of the bed beside her friend. "Is something honestly wrong,
Haley?" she asked softly, brushing a strand of her messy navy hair from
her eyes. "Because you know that you can tell me, or Marie, or even the
cats..."
"I'm fine, Phoebe," replied the young brunette woman, not meeting
the worried gaze upon her friend's face. "I just... Well, it's the fifth
of April, now, right?"
Glancing at the wall clock, the blue-haired teen nodded. "It's
nearly two a.m.," she stated, "which would make it the fifth."
"Well, I had to...do something...by the fourth, and I forgot,"
smiled Haley, her teal eyes gazing up at the ceiling with some amount of
guilt. "And I know that, if my moms found out, I'll be dead meat..." She
wiped a single tear away. "And I meant to do it, but I didn't, and..."
Phoebe folded her hands in her lap, staring at the older teen. She
had rarely seen the smart, happy-go-lucky teen so very upset, but then
again, that sort of thing happened to everyone once in a while. Even to
her friend, obviously.
She pursed her lips as the brunette trailed off, trying to think
of what she could say. And then, she smiled. "Do the thing now," she
suggested with a slight smile. "That way, you won't feel guilty, and
your moms can't get made at you for NEVER doing it..."
Grinning, Haley nodded quickly. "And then, I won't get in or leave
Tokyo!" Catching the confused glance from her friend, she shook her
head. "Sorry... Never mind..."
Her companion stood, nodding, the concerned expression really not
leaving her face as she crossed back to their shared bathroom. "Well, if
you say so..." she shrugged. "Good night, Haley."
"Good night."
* * * * * * * * * * * *

The next day, after sleeping on the entirety of her mother's
story, Alice Kino had but one question.
"You thought I was GAY?"
Choking on her breakfast of cereal and toast, the tall brunette
woman glanced across the kitchen to her pajama-clad daughter, who had
just woken up. She sighed miserably, gulped down half a glass of milk,
and then watched the teen as she began to break eggs into a bowl for
omelets. "I didn't know what to think, you know," shrugged Lita as she
stirred her dry cereal in the bowl. "I just didn't know any better,
either..."
The auburn-haired daughter chuckled, putting the eggs back into
the refrigerator and pulling out cheese, milk, and other breakfast-
making supplies. "I don't believe I came across as a lesbian," she
returned, pulling out an eggbeater. "And to think that you supposed
Phoebe and I were a COUPLE..."
"Oh, she was convinced," put in a masculine voice as Ken strode
into the room, wearing his favorite khakis and a polo shirt. "Thoroughly
convinced. And it was funny, too..."
His best friend rolled her green eyes. "Don't you ever knock?"
"I have a key," he retorted, laying a gentle kiss on her
ponytailed head before pulling a box of chocolates from one of the
cabinets. "Now, anyone for some toffee? It's the breakfast of champions,
you know..."
"And it's MY candy!" scolded his daughter, snatching away the box
and pointing the dripping eggbeater straight at his chest. "If you don't
want a kitchen utensil up your NOSE, you'd best stay away. OTHERWISE..."
She wiggled the beater before turning to plunge it back into the eggs.
Laughing, the woman at the table winked at the man. "Just pray she
doesn't ask about the Mint Meltaways..."
Not hearing the comment, Alice poured her egg mixture into a pan
and sighed. "I just don't understand it," she commented, watching as the
egg on the edges bubbled slightly once it made contact with the hot pan.
"How could you think I was gay? Because I hang out with Phoebe? Because
I take a class on homosexuality? Because I didn't want to go to prom?"
"Because you didn't tell me about your fear of love," responded
Lita, standing and walking to her child. "You never want to get close to
me, not even for a moment, and I was afraid to ask you what was going
on..." She sighed and wrapped an arm around her child. "I know that,
when you were little, you never saw a lot of me. I had a business to
run, and I ran it, but it was at a cost." She could feel the girl's
muscles tense and haw the two brown eyes gaze guiltily at the
countertop. "But, Alice, I'm here right now, and I will be here. As much
as you need me." Turning the girl, her daughter, to stare straight into
her eyes, she smiled. "Don't fear. Tell me, next time."
Nodding, Alice wrapped her arms around her mother's waist and
hugged her close. Ken applauded from his spot across the room,
receiving a rather angry glare in return. He shrugged and kept clapping.
And then, suddenly, there was a downright awful smell. In fact, it
was the exact smell of burning...
"My eggs!" cried the teen, pulling away from her mother and
frantically trying to salvage her omelet. "I must've turned the heat on
too high! Eek!"
Lita laughed and began to help her child with the task of making
breakfast.
"Once a Kino," drawled the man, reaching across the counter to
seize the box of stolen candy, "always a Kino." Then, Ken furrowed his
brow at his own comment. "Or something like that..."
* * * * * * * * * * * *

"It's eleven in the morning, and we've been out here since SIX!"
lamented she, adjusting her seat on the giant bird's back as they soared
through the air just above the clouds. Below, Crystal Tokyo was a
metropolitan bustle of activity, as always, with its many residents out
doing whatever they did on overcast Sunday mornings. Sighing, she
wrinkled her nose. Too much work. That was the only phrase that
described her search for the crystal. Too much trouble, and work... And,
according to Ginnie's code, she had to 'keep up appearances' by wearing
a dress in public. Some code. Separation of the sexes, it was. Wasn't
there a law or two against sexual inequality in the workplace? Was an
evil lair a workplace? She growled to herself and tightened her grip on
the reigns. "Go back to the northeast district and we can do another
sweep."
"Righto," agreed Norton quickly, turning to glance at his master
as he turned in midair. Then, he cocked his head to one side. "Something
wrong, Tina?" he asked, concerned.
She shook her head quickly, adjusting her sidesaddle position and
smiling slightly. "I was just thinking about how much I hate this job,"
she returned with a shrug. "It's so much work to put in, just to find a
crystal."
"Yes, well, when you're co-Queen of the Earth and then, the
Universe," grinned the emu, turning back to the cloudscape before them,
"you won't have to worry. Because you'll rule it ALL, Tina. All of it...
Well, Ginnie, too..."
"I suppose you're right," she admitted with a sigh, fishing in her
null-space pocket for something. "But I can't help but think that we're
good and doomed. Especially with the Galactic Sailors and the Chibi-
Scouts around."
He shrugged his wings noncommittally. "Well, they've had trouble
before," he replied. "You and I both watched the last battle from above.
A Scout dog-pile is hardly a good battle strategy..."
She nodded at his comment, pulling a small blue crystal from null-
space and gazing down at it. "Well, maybe this will help," she grinned,
tossing the little marble down through the clouds and watching it as it
disappeared from sight. "This way, we can pester the rest of Japan in
searching for the Crystal of Illusion, and the Scouts and be pestered by
a monster."
"It's not really going to stop them, you know," sighed Norton. "It
never has before."
Laughing, Tina patted his neck. "It doesn't have to STOP them,"
she retorted, grinning. "It just has to distract them. Now, let's go!"
He smiled. "Alrighty, then..."
* * * * * * * * * * * *

"Now we must answer the age-old question that has plagued those
such as us for generations: when do we announce this engagement?"
The question caught the pink-haired one off-guard, and she nearly
dropped her hairbrush. Turning to the young man, who was straightening
his silvery tunic, she raised her eyebrows questioningly. "Excuse me?"
Smiling gently, Helios set himself down in a small armchair and
sighed. "When will we tell the Galactic Sailors and the Mistresses about
our engagement, dear one?" he asked, watching as she turned her face
back to the mirror and slowly brushed the tangles from her long, flowing
hair. "I'm sure that you're nearly bursting..."
"I'm not," she replied, placing her brush on the vanity and began
to pull her hair into its familiar style. "I mean, I'm happy, but I was
thinking about the enemy, and I think that they have to be our focus."
She turned her red eyes to glance at him, her hands holding up half her
hair in a cone-shaped bun. She expected him to be disappointed, possibly
angry... But there was none of that in his expression. He looked
almost...relieved... "Helios?"
He nodded in response to her comment, his pursed lips curving into
another sweet smile. "I was thinking the exact same thing this morning
when I saw Ambriel in the hall," he responded rather pleasantly, playing
with one of her long ponytails as she finished her hairstyle. "We can't
worry about us, can we?"
"I wish we had that sort of liberty," Reeny sighed, turning to
face her fiancé, "but we don't. We have a planet to protect."
"Exactly," agreed Helios, his blue-eyed gaze sweet but extremely
intense. "The world, then us."
Nodding, she took his hands in hers, a smile creeping across her
face. "And I can't wait until it's finally us," she murmured, slowly
closing her eyes and leaning in for a kiss.
"I'd have to agree..."
"PRINCESS!" hollered a voice from the hall, and the door burst
open as both the blonde handmaiden Lisa and Ambriel--no, Angel Moon--
thundered into the room. "There's a monster in Courtyard!" exclaimed
Lisa, panting from her race to the room. "The Galactic Sailors have been
called to action, but it could be a while until they get here and...
And..." She blinked her blue eyes and stared at the couple, noticing for
the first time that they were sitting nose-to-nose, their fingers laced
together. "Am I interrupting?"
Reeny took a long moment to let her annoyance of being walked--or
ran, as the case was--in on before standing and tossing a ponytail
behind her shoulders. "Nothing is more important than defeating the
enemy," she stated, but her shaky tone told a different story for a
moment. Then, taking in a deep breath, she picked her locket up from
off the vanity and thrust it into the air. "Moon Galactic Power... Make
UP!"
The handmaiden watched as her Princess initiated her
transformation sequence, a confused expression across her face. "She
sure is acting funny..." she commented warily, glancing down at the
redheaded Angel Moon, who nodded in agreement. "Ummm... Helios... You
two didn't break up, did you?" she questioned nervously, pressing her
lips together.
He made a face. "Of course not!" he retorted quickly, his face
blanching. "Whatever gave you THAT idea?"
Suddenly, there stood Neo-Sailor Moon, in all her fuku-wearing,
saber-toting glory. "We have a battle to win!" she announced, footfalls
echoing on the marble as she charged out into the hallway. "Sailor
Scouts HO!"
Smiling, Angel Moon flapped her wings and started after her at a
much more reasonable pace. "Come on, Helios-papa," she called. "She'll
be mad if you don't come..."
He sighed, thinking to himself that maybe love WAS more important
than the enemy, and started off behind her.
* * * * * * * * * * * *

"Stupid monster!" roared Sailor Chibi-Star, watching as the emu-
creature held up a wing and deflected the attack without any real
effort. "It's like a bad dream!"
Sailor Phoenix just nodded at the girl, sitting in one of the many
large oak trees that were scattered about the Courtyard of Serenity,
typing furiously on the small Mercury computer. Beside her, sharing the
bough, was a VERY tired Sailor Comet, trying desperately to describe the
physical and magical attributes of the monster so that her companion
could enter data into the computer. Below her were all four Chibi-
Scouts, a Starlit Prince and a Priest of Elysion, and two other Scouts.
Left missing was Sailor Earth (not a shocking revelation) and Sailor
Aurora Borealis. Comet sighed and hopped out of the tree.
"I'm fighting!" she called up to her fellow warrior, stretching
her exhausted limbs as she spoke. "Good luck with the data!"
The braid-headed one just nodded numbly.
"Starlight Streak!" screamed Sailor Polaris, her voice echoing
through the green, grassy area as her silvery bolts of power shot
through the air and toward the bird. The creature countered with a
bright stream of sparkling blue electricity, and the two attacks
exploded in midair, sending the curly-haired Scout and her Prince both
flying backwards to land in the large white fountain nearby. The Pluto
twins tried their luck against the monster, but the deadly power of the
two attacks combined seemed to bounce off the feathers of the creature
and shoot right back. The Chibi-Scouts all screamed and dove out of the
way. Even Sailor Comet's attack disintegrated when it got too near the
monster.
No one moved for a long moment as the monster stood in the center
of the Sailor Scout circle, glaring at the young warriors one by one.
There was silence; neither friend nor foe called the bluff as they all
stood in deadlock.
Then, Sailor Phoenix snapped her computer shut and smiled, hopping
out of the tree. "It has no weaknesses to magic!" she called out, all
the faces of her friends turning to her. "We need a distraction so that
Sailor Moon can get in there and use her sword like a REAL sword!" The
monster roared and shot lightning into the air, causing all ten present
people to grimace in fear. The blue-haired Scout wrinkled her nose. "And
SOON would be nice!"
There were no volunteers.
"Wait!" called out a voice suddenly, and everyone turned to see
Sailor Aurora Borealis standing beside the sopping wet Starlit Prince
and Sailor Polaris. She smiled and stepped away from the fountain, not
shying away as all eyes were on her. "I'll do it! I'll distract the
monster!"
Grimacing, Sailor Phoenix pulled her computer out and began typing
quickly. "Then again, there might be a better way..."
With a chuckle aimed at her friend's antics, Aurora Borealis shook
her head and paced over to the other Scout, gently pushing the computer
shut. "Someone has to do it, Pheebs," she stated softly, smiling at the
nervous Scout. "Might as well be me..."
"You don't GET it," protested Phoenix, eyeing the monster as it
continued to scorch a bit of the beautiful white-marble palace with its
foul magic. "It will NOT die in one strike. It will need two. And you
won't be able to counter the monster twice..."
Gulping, the auburn-haired teen forced a pleasant smile and raised
her eyebrows, trying to hold back her fear. "Well, then..."
"Of course, there IS a way to have two people strike," spoke up
the Starlit Prince, pulling off his top hat and mask. "I'm the Prince of
the Silver Star, and--"
"Princes have swords!" grinned the blue-haired one gleefully. "Do
your stuff, Rich! And Moon--get ready!"
As a bright flash of silver enveloped the Starlit Prince, Sailor
Moon unsheathed her sword, its silvery blade glittering in the light
from the blue lightning. Aurora Borealis swallowed and clenched her
fists, ready to dash in and send a Rainbow Wave flying toward the
creature. Of course, if either of the sword-wielding soldiers missed,
that meant... She didn't let herself think of that...
Richard, the Prince of the Silver Star Kingdom, stepped out of his
silver light and drew his long, wide-bladed sword. All three of the
warriors glanced at one another, and they nodded.
Aurora Borealis rushed toward the emu, raising a hand.
"Rainbow..."
The emu roared and turned around, ready to send an attack at her.
Sailor Moon raised her sword and ran toward the monster, and it
didn't notice the incoming attack.
The Prince did the same, rushing at the bird. He did not go
unnoticed, however.
The bird turned a scant millimeter.
"WAVE!"
There was a flash of brilliant colored light.
A roar sounded as one sword plunged into the side of the bird,
slicing through feathers and into flesh.
The creature turned to counter the attack, but managed to push
Richard away with a wing. The young man gulped and screamed as he
stumbled backward.
Aurora's rainbow blew up in midair, but the lightning kept
streaming toward her...
And then, out of nowhere, a sword seemed to fall out of the sky
and into the back of the monster. Sailor Aurora Borealis dove out of the
way, and the electricity hit only dirt. Richard gasped for breath.
Sailor Moon watched as the bird reverted into a tiny marble-shaped
object.
From the high-above balcony, a blonde woman beamed. "Space Sword
Blaster?" she questioned, reaching a hand into the air. The sword, which
had fallen to the ground, levitated and rose right into her fist. She
winked and disappeared.
"Maybe," mumbled Sailor Phoenix with a sigh, "I was wrong about
the Mistresses."
* * * * * * * * * * * *

"You two are sure acting strange," commented Phoebe with a smile
as the Galactic Sailors, the Starlit Prince, Helios, and the Chibi-
Scouts sat down to a formal lunch at Crystal Palace--their unofficial
'reward' for killing the monster without leveling either the Palace or
the Courtyard of Serenity. "Is everything alright?"
The Princess of the Earth, who was clasping sitting with her hands
nervously folded on the tabletop and refusing to meet her boyfriend's
gaze, cocked her head at the navy-haired teen. "Wrong?" she asked, a
confused expression crossing her face. "How could something be wrong?"
From her seat at the other end of the long, wide table, the wavy-
haired brunette shrugged and sipped her water. "It's just kind of funny
that you and Helios are being so quiet," put in Haley casually, leaning
back in the wooden chair. "You're ALWAYS flirting..."
"Did you break up?" questioned Alice cautiously as she looked up
from the short 'menu' that the Queen of the Earth had thrown together
after the palace was saved.
"NO!" exclaimed the young lovers in unison before they both
glanced at each other and blushed.
Yawning, Celeste rested her hands behind her head and glanced at
her older sister. "And what about you and Richard?" she asked of the
curly-haired blonde, eyeing the duo across the table. "What's up with
you guys?"
The blonde teen had long ago pulled her chair right next her
boyfriend's and rested her head on his shoulder. They were holding hands
and those aforementioned hands were proudly displayed atop the long
mahogany table. She raised an eyebrow at her sister's question, but
didn't move from her comfortable spot. "What do you mean?"
"You're awful comfy," smiled Ambriel, a grin just short of devious
crossing her face. "You're never this cuddly in front of us."
Alice smiled as well. "Did you two get lucky?"
Springing apart, the couple both blushed crimson and adverted eye
contact. "WE DID NOT GET LUCKY!" they chorused.
"What does that phrase mean?" asked the green-haired Aeris,
leaning toward her brother. "Is that a term for sharing a kiss?"
The boy gulped and blanched. "Something like that..." he mumbled.
Snickering, Reeny cocked her head to one side and rested her cheek
in her hand. "You sure you're not basking in any afterglow, dears?" she
asked with a little wiggle of her eyebrows. "You certainly seem to be on
cloud nine."
The shared blush deepened.
"I think that someone's hiding something," chortled the blue-
braided girl in a singsong. "Don't make us weasel it out of you next
week, Lyra..."
"Nothing happened!" protested the blonde, focusing on the
tabletop. "We're just...in a good... Uhh... A good mood! That's all, I
swear! A good mood!"
The laughing, teasing, and denying continued, their voices echoing
down the hallway. And, as she strode down the hall with her head buried
in a thick finance report, Neo-Queen Serenity sighed. The sweet curve
of a smile touched her lips as she closed the packet of papers. "Ah,"
she cooed wistfully, "what I wouldn't give to be a kid again..."
* * * * * * * * * * * *

"Where have you been?!" scolded the woman, her hands resting on
her hips as she glared daggers at the blonde who had just waltzed in the
door. "We were supposed to be at the school for a staff meeting an HOUR
ago!" Crossing her arms under her chest, Michelle lowered her vividly
blue eyes further. "Well? Do you have an excuse or do you WANT to spend
a night on the couch?"
With a chuckle, Alexandra laid a short, chaste kiss on her wife's
slightly parted lips before shrugging and walking right past her, toward
the kitchen. "I was proving myself, that's all," she responded casually.
The musician blinked and then let her glare fade away. "Oh,
well... Wait!" she called, turning on her heel to once again shot a
stern glance at the blonde woman. "Don't you tell me that you went to
the battle and used that sword!"
Smiling, the blonde stopped in her tracks just long enough to
shrug. "Okay," she agreed, starting back down the hall.
Her wife let out a long breath she didn't know she'd been holding.
"I won't tell you."
Michelle groaned inwardly and, after resisting the urge to Deep
Submerge the other woman, stalked after her wife.
* * * * * * * * * * * *

The Galactic Sailors Say!

(Enter the five "original" Galactic Sailors, minus Tara, dressed in
normal clothes.)

Reeny: (scratching head) Did we learn anything today?

Haley: (plopping down on the edge of the stage) I don't know... I don't
really think there was anything we could have learned from this episode.
It was all a bunch of mush because Butler is a lonely, lonely writer.

Lyra: (nodding in agreement with Haley's comment) We need to get that
girl a boyfriend.

Alice: (snickers) Why? So she can get lucky, too?

(A little super-deformed Sailor Polaris begins to chase an SD Sailor
Aurora Borealis across the room, waving her arms and yelling threats.)

Phoebe: (scowling) Well, that was mean.

Alice: (without remorse; actually, sounding QUITE proud of herself)
Thank you.

Phoebe: (rolling her eyes) I actually meant the things they were saying
about Butler. She's not that bad.

(All music stops. The SD characters poof out of existance. Everyone
stares at Phoebe.)

Phoebe: (cue little cat ears and tail) What?

Reeny: (puts her hand on the other's forehead to check temperature) You
feeling alright?

Phoebe: (increasingly wary of the strange glances she's getting) Yeah...

Lyra: (raising both eyebrows) You SURE?

Phoebe: (more worried) Yeah...

Haley: (rubbing hands together) On three, guys...

(Phoebe starts to stand.)

One...

(The others all get ready to...pounce? Well, whatever--it certainly
LOOKS like pouncing...)

Two...

(Phoebe dashes out of the room, screaming bloody murder)

Alice: (sighing) I THOUGHT we warned her that defending the author could
get her sent to the funny farm.

Lyra: (shrugs) She never listens, does she?

Reeny: (leaning forward and peering out into the darkness of whatever is
beyond their stage) You don't think she's watching, DO you?

ALL: Who?

Reeny: (gulping) Butler.

(They all peer forward for a long moment and then step back and inch
toward the door.)

Haley: (nervously) Uhh, we all say...

(They dash for the door, and, as they do, a frantic scream choruses
through the area:)

ALL: See ya!

-I Know-
Look around...
(Ambriel stares down at Tokyo from the top tower of Crystal Palace)
So many things aren't clear...
(Aeris and Peter stand before the Gate of Time with terrified
expressions)
Don't worry, though...
(Haley smiles and turns a page in her book)
You know that I'll be there...
(Orion and Orb chase after the kittens)
A lot of things are so uncertain...
(Tara, near tears, bites her lip)
The future's on its way...
(Michelle holds Delaney, an amazed smile on her face)
Look into my crying eyes...
(Reeny wipes tears off her cheeks while Serenity watches nervously)
Don't take your love away!
(Alice slams the door in her father's face)

Sometimes, the road looks long...
(Lyra looks up at the North Star)
And sometimes, the world seems wrong...
(Phoebe hugs her mother around the waist)
But I know, I know, all you need is love.
(The six Galactic Sailors hold up their lockets)

Sometimes, you feel weak...
(Richard grabs onto the wrist of a falling Celeste)
And sometimes, the future looks bleak...
(Terrence shakes his head as Sailor Pluto walks through the Gate of Time)
But I know, I know, all you need is love.
(Ambriel, Celeste, and Aeris all hold up their transformation pens)

Times will change...
(Tara, robes flying, chases Joshua around the courtyard)
People will change, too...
(Haley plays with her now-long hair)
But deep inside...
(Helios takes Reeny's hands in his)
I always will love you...
(Richard bends down to kiss Lyra)
I suppose there are questions now...
(Peter tugs on Terrence's pant leg)
The answers are so far...
(Alice and Phoebe dive for a floating sphere and miss)
But look at me and smile now...
(Hannah and Brian both smile as Alex takes Delaney into her arms)
I am your guiding star!
(Lyra and Richard stare at Celeste and Peter, who are watching the
sunset)

Sometimes, the road looks long...
(Lyra looks up at the North Star)
And sometimes, the world seems wrong...
(Phoebe hugs her mother around the waist)
But I know, I know, all you need is love.
(The six Galactic Sailors hold up their lockets)

Sometimes, you feel weak...
(Richard grabs onto the wrist of a falling Celeste)
And sometimes, the future looks bleak...
(Terrence shakes his head as Sailor Pluto walks through the Gate of Time)
But I know, I know, all you need is love.
(Ambriel, Celeste, and Aeris all hold up their transformation pens)

I know...
(Chibi-Pluto, the Angel Moon, and Chibi-Star stand together)
I know...
(The Galactic Sailors stand together)
All you need is love...
(All nine girls stand together)
All you need...is...love...
(The Prince and Princess of the Stars kiss)
* * * * * * * * * * * *

Okay, this is over and done with. It didn't take too long, either...
Gotta LOVE summer break, don't you? Hmmm... What to say, what to say?

Oh! Everybody, check out the Galactic Picture by Katherine. She's a
great artist and, if I find her e-mail addy (hint! Katherine!), then
I'll give it out so you can send her mail. Okay?

--Kate