Maybe Tomorrow Will Be Better
Author's Ramblings: The Seventh story. This one is going to be a bit more
serious than all the others. Don't be upset with me... Every story needs
a downer episode, right?
DISCLAIMER: Sailor Moon belongs to-Naoko Takeuchi, TOEI Animation,
Kodansha, and DiC Productions. Notice how these names do not include our
names? That's probably because I- Kate Butler-and her (points to blonde
girl who looks a bit like Lyra)-Christina Gifford-do not own Sailor Moon.
Never have, never will. However, the Galactic Sailors are ours. You
cannot have them. They're ours. However, if Naoko wants to buy them...
Note: Irina-the-concertmistress, Johanna-the-viola-player, Kevin-the-
orange-shirted-bassist, Matt-the-near-last-violinist, and Katie-the-
second-cellist are all real people. I borrowed them, and please don't
snitch on me. Well, actually, Johanna would be pleased! Oh, and Mr.
Bowling is really my high-school's orchestra teacher!
* * * * * * * * * * * *
Last Episode:
There was a ball. The Raiders went and tried to kidnap Reeny.
Hannah got drunk. Haley's old friend pissed everyone off. Endymion was a
jerk to Susan and Terrence after hearing the 'news'. Ken went back to the
states. Celeste is revealed as Chibi-Star. The Raider plot didn't work.
And that, my friends, is where the story begins...
* * * * * * * * * * * *
"Chibi-Star..." Touching the silken petals of the purple rose from
Richard, Lyra leaned back in her desk chair. "She's Celeste..." She
sighed, looking at a group photo from the ball. Haley, Alice, Tara,
Phoebe, Reeny, and herself, with little Celeste on Haley's shoulders.
Would that be their life from now on? A six-year-old girl living in the
shadow of her older sister and the other Sailor Scouts. And, if that was
the future, how would the little one survive?
A knock sounded at the door, and Lyra jumped, her rose landing
softly on the brown carpet.
"Are you alright?" Mina asked in a kind tone, walking into the
bedroom with a small smile on her face. "You didn't come down for
dinner."
Sighing, the teenager smiled sadly. "I'm fine, Ma," she assured
Mina in a shaky tone. "I was just...thinking..."
Her mother sat down on the edge of the bed. "This entire Chibi-Star
thing has really gotten you upset, hasn't it?"
Lyra nodded.
"Well, you can't worry about her, Lyra," Mina attempted, taking one
of her daughter's small hands. "She's one of the destined, Lyra, and you-
whether as Sailor Polaris or as yourself-cannot stand in the way of
that."
"But why her?" asked the girl, tears welling up in her brown eyes.
"Why not Becky or Sarah? Why did my destined sister have to be Celeste?"
Mina gulped and sighed deeply. "You should really ask your father."
"But you're the Planet Mistress!" protested Lyra.
Shrugging, the woman in the orange housedress and yellow apron rose
and ruffled some of the blonde curls. "Yes, but not even I know
everything," she admitted with a bit of amusement in her voice. "And
you'll figure it all out soon enough."
* * * * * * * * * * * *
"Alex, I don't want you to go drag-racing tomorrow!" protested
Michelle with a wavering voice.
The sandy-haired woman sighed and rolled her eyes. "Michi, I'll be
fine," she assured the musician. "You worry about me all too much."
Michelle shook her head quickly. "You don't understand. The seas
are stormy, and I can feel it!"
From her seat in the basement family room, Haley sighed deeply and
turned the page in her book. Nothing hurt more than listening to her
parents argue about things like drag racing. As Sailor Pluto had once
explained to the brunette girl, "Sometimes, when you fight, its because
you hate something. But, most often, its because you love something."
Hannah, who was actually playing Nintendo for the first time in her
life, sighed and shook her head. "I just don't understand those two
sometimes," she admitted. "Susan has always tried to explain their
relationship to me, and I still don't understand that how two people so
in love could fight so much."
The younger girl shrugged. "Don't you and Brian fight at all?" she
asked, still reading.
"Not really," Hannah reported. "I mean, we do have our words about
some things, but its never like those two..." Focusing back onto the
video game, she trailed slowly off.
Haley chuckled at her comic book before looking again at her
sometimes rigid and cranky elder sister. Beneath that sharp, severe
façade, there really was a loving Hannah Tomoe and Haley-despite her rude
words and annoying behaviors-really appreciated that side of Hannah.
"You love him, don't you?"
The raven-haired woman hit pause and proceeded to lean back, laying
on the light-green carpeting with her purple eyes on the younger girl.
"You know what, Haley?" she sighed wistfully. "I really think that..."
SLAM!
Both sisters jumped at the sound of crashing wood and quickly
sprang to their feet. "What the hell?" Haley exclaimed, throwing the
manga to the floor and involuntarily crouching into a battle-ready
position. "A Raider attack? Evil villains? Robbers?"
Rolling her eyes, Hannah mounted the stairs. "Thank you, Sailor
Impetuous. But I think that Alexandra just slammed the door too hard,
that's all."
"Oh."
Both girls took to the stairwell, walking slowly so as not to make
too much noise on the creaky steps. Sure enough, Michelle was now alone
in the big kitchen, slowly stirring her tea.
"You know what, girls?" she rhetorically asked, not looking up. "In
the twentieth century, she'd have stayed home if I felt the stormy seas.
Now...I don't know..." Michelle shook her head and looked up with teary
green eyes. "There are times that I wish she'd just leave and not come
back..."
Hannah gasped. "Now, Mom..."
"But I love her way too much," the musician admitted softly,
gulping down her drink. "Way too much."
* * * * * * * * * * * *
"You're being really quiet," sighed Terrence, sipping his hot
chocolate patiently. "What's wrong?"
Susan shrugged from across the table, rubbing her bloated stomach
lightly with one of her hands. "I'm just tired, Terry," she replied
softly, glancing out the restaurant window and looking at the full silver
moon that lit Crystal Tokyo.
Shaking his head, Terrence let his green eyes fall on Crystal
Palace, it's brilliant spires glittering in the pale moonlight. There had
been so many instances where he had glanced at photos of the Palace and
not understood its beauty, but he had a greater understanding, in a way.
It wasn't the Palace that was all so amazing as much as it was the
people who made Tokyo so wonderful.
"Hey, Sets," he softly murmured, reaching forward and taking her
hand. "Would you like to eat dinner at the Royal Palace with me some
night this week?"
She gasped, pressing her thin red lips tightly together. "At the
Palace?"
He chuckled. "Is there an echo in here?" he quipped playfully,
setting the mug down on the table. "Yes, I do want you to join me," he
said in a more serious tone. "You should spend some time around the
Palace and get to know everything about my family."
Trying not to laugh, Susan smiled mysteriously. "You forget how
long I've known your family, Terry," she reminded him sweetly.
Blushing a bit, he let out a sigh. "Just say you'll come, Sets.
Please come."
Susan slowly nodded, letting her gaze fall upon a small blue house
next to a large brown and white school. The school was Crystal Music
Academy.
And the house was home.
* * * * * * * * * * * *
Walking in a slow circle around the seven-pointed star, the Raider
King looked at the five remaining stones with disdain. Black, red, gray,
crimson, and silver-the symbols of the four living Raiders and the gem
for their guiding spirit.
"Your Majesty?" came a timid voice from behind him.
Whirling quickly around, the king glanced at Doubt and smiled slightly.
"Yes?"
Folding her hands together, she sat down in mid-air and proceeded
to float. "Well, uh, sir... I wanted to talk about the newest plot."
He rolled his crimson eyes. "I want you to cancel all previous
plots you have set up."
"Why?" Doubt inquired in a challenging tone. "Our newest idea will
work like a charm if you just..."
"I have," he interrupted, "a new plan."
His unexpected comment made her start. "A...new plan?" she
stammered nervously. "And what would that be?"
"I have heard," the King informed her, "that one of the Planet
Mistresses is very interested in drag racing."
"So?" she retorted, running her hands through the long white
strands that rimmed her pale face. "What does that have to do with..."
"Hush," he commanded. "Tomorrow, there will be an 'accident' at
White Streams racecourse, and the Raiders will start an anti-racing
committee."
Doubt smiled wicked, showing a pair of silvery fangs. "And we will
be the only on to comfort the unlucky Scout who loses their mother." As
she stretched and then allowed her feet to touch the ground, the evil
grin grew. "Brilliant, sir. Absolutely brilliant."
"Why do you think I thought of it?" he inquired with a toss of his
black hair. "But, never mind that. Dismissed."
She nodded, and a puff of white smoke took her away.
And-for the first time in months-the Raider King smiled.
* * * * * * * * * * * *
"Why," whined Phoebe while rubbing her upper arms, "are we out here
in the freezing cold?"
Lyra sighed and scooted closer on the metal bleachers to Richard.
At least he gave off some semblance of warmth.
Rolling a pair of teal eyes, Haley Ten'ou looked at her motley
group of friends and let out a steamy breath. "I told you," she responded
to the blue-haired teen's whining. "Michelle has a bad feeling about
today."
Gingerly leaning back against the next riser, Richard raised an
eyebrow. "I don't understand what you meant by that," the young man
commented, eyes half-closed in extreme ennui. "It's eight in the morning,
and you drag us all out here because someone had a 'bad feeling'..."
"You didn't have to come," Tara shot at him.
"I was supposed to be driving to Japan's finest Art museum with
Lyra," he responded coolly, "when she got this odd phone call and had to
run out to the racetrack." Sighing, Richard opened his dark blue eyes
completely and looked at the four girls. "But, Lyra's problems are my
problems, so..." Trailing off, he shrugged. "The only thing I don't
understand is..."
"Lyra!" whined the little blonde girl from her seat with Alice. "I
lost again!"
Laughing a bit, Alice leaned over, auburn hair falling gracefully
from behind her shoulders. "I'm sure that she thinks I cheat."
Celeste nodded. "Yep!" Picking up the deck of cards, she proceeded
over to where her sister sat and placed the cards on Lyra's lap. "Play
with me!" the girl commanded, crossing her arms.
Picking up a card, Richard chuckled. "What have we here?" he asked
in mock surprise, studying the deck, which had a Sailor Scout theme.
"More Sailor Scouts." Glancing at all the teen girls around him, he shook
his head. "Do you all have an obsession with the Scouts?"
"Yep!" grinned Phoebe, pacing up and down the bleacher seats
nearest the tracks. "I mean, it's not like they're bad people to..." Eyes
drawn to something near the track, she froze.
"Now up to the line..." came the loud announcement over the P.A.
system. "Alexandra Ten'ou with her car, Sky King, and a mysterious
opponent named 'Red' in his car, The Raider."
"Raider?" Haley ran toward the fencing and leaned so she could see
down on the track. "Red?"
"Are you thinking what I am?" asked a very nervous Alice, also
standing.
"On your mark..."
Jumping over the edge of the stands and landing agilely on the
ground, Haley sighed. "Alice, Pheebs-come with me," she demanded in a
calm tone. "The rest of you, wait up here and get ready to take the
situation to...drastic...measures."
As the both the blue and auburn haired girls leapt over the edge
and joined their brunette friend, Tara chewed on her lip. "Are you sure
that...uh..."
"Sure," answered Haley, cracking her knuckles. "Absolutely sure."
* * * * * * * * * * * *
"Well, this sucks." Reeny flopped down on her big four-poster bed,
sighing miserably. "Why do I have to stay home?"
The pink cat that was sitting on the desk rolled a pair of magenta
eyes. "Princesses," she informed her charge, "do not go to White Shores
Racecourse."
"And why not?" the girl whined, sitting up and glaring at her
feline guardian. "I'm sixteen years old, Di! You can't treat me like a
little kid anymore!"
Diana snorted. "Want to bet, Reeny?" she retorted. "You act like a
child, and you are still the Princess of the Earth, regardless!"
"And you," she told the cat, "are mean."
"Say what you like," sighed the animal, laying down and curling
into a ball, "but you're not going win this argument."
Reeny stuck out her tongue and got up, walking to the far side of
her bedroom.
"I don't see," she muttered, pacing, "how this is fair. Just
because I'm a Princess..." Looking into her long mirror, she took her two
pigtails and held them out at arms' length. "Mom was a Princess, wasn't
she? And SHE got to wander around Tokyo at her leisure." She flopped into
a chair. "And I get to sit around in my bedroom all day!"
There was a slight knock at the door, and a familiar face rimmed
with shoulder-length black hair peeked in. "Hi, Meatball," smiled Hannah.
"Can I come in for a couple of seconds?"
Reeny nodded, rising and smiling gently at her childhood friend.
"Hey, long time no see."
"Yes, well, that was my fault," she admitted, nervously wringing
her hands, just like in the twentieth century. "I'm not very good at
long-term correspondence."
The Princess gave her friend a tight hug. "Neither am I," she told
the raven-haired woman. "Neither am I."
Diana, who had been aware of the door opening, jumped off the oak
desk and walked over to where the young women stood. "What brings you
here, Saturn?"
"Well, Michelle had a bit of an...uh...episode...with Alex
yesterday," she stammered, blushing slightly. "And then, I had a
premonition, and Susan has a funny feeling..."
Flushing, Diana gulped. "Oh dear."
"And it all centers around drag racing, doesn't it?" asked Reeny,
fumbling through the closet for her parka.
Hannah nodded. "How'd you know?"
"Never mind that," Diana interrupted quickly. "The Princess is NOT
going to the drag strip, and that is final!"
"Bite me, you stupid fleabag," Reeny shot at the cat, pulling on a
thick down coat. "Desperate times call for desperate measures."
"But," the cat attempted, "Serenity would not be pleased..."
"Reeny's right!" cut in a new voice from the doorway. "Sometimes,
you got to do something that's against protocol."
Diana made a face. "Terrence..."
Stepping into the room, the prince bowed a bit to the Princess and
Hannah. "That's my name, don't wear it out," he told the cat. "These
girls have a mission-to protect the world from the Raiders, and to help
the Mistresses."
"So there!" Reeny stuck out her tongue.
Pushing up his gold-rimmed glasses, Terrence nudged the two out the
door. "So get gone!"
As they left, Diana glared at the man before her. "You're an idiot,
Terrence Chiba."
"So my girlfriend often tells me," he responded, bending over and
scratching the feline behind the ears. "But did you think that you'd
actually stop that girl?"
Diana made a face. "She has to learn some responsibility!" she shot
back, trying not to purr. "That girl is..."
"A lot like her mother," he finished casually, walking to the door.
"And you know what, Di?"
"What?" she asked in an annoyed tone.
"You're a lot like yours."
* * * * * * * * * * * *
"What's going on?" asked Richard as the three teens ran towards the
track. "I don't understand at all..."
Lyra shook her head. "I wish I could explain it to you,
Richard...but it's not important."
"Get set!" called the announcer's voice.
Climbing up onto the fencing, Celeste looked down onto the track.
"Do you guys see what I..."
Tara jumped up and grabbed the child, pulling her down into the
seats. "Shush," she demanded, lowering her green eyes. "It's not
important."
"But..." Pouting, the littlest Scout wandered off to a corner to
sulk.
Lyra and her raven-haired best friend exchanged nervous glances as
the cars began gunning their engines. Something was wrong... The air
about them smelled strange and the exhaust fumes from Alex's car seemed
to be the wrong color.
And overwhelming heaviness filled the air as the flag went down and
the announcer said the much anticipated syllable.
"GO!"
Just as the two cars took off down the track, Tara gasped and
jumped to her feet. "Danger!"
"No, really?" asked Lyra, sensing it as well. "We can't do
diddly-squat about it!"
As the three girls and one young man watched in complete horror as
The Sky King spun out of control and rammed head-on into a wall.
"ALEX!" yelled Hannah, running across the risers with Reeny on her
tail. "ALEX!"
Holding the woman back so that she wouldn't jump over the fencing
and run toward the track, Richard cleared his throat. "Would SOMEONE like
to explain to me what's going on?" he asked frantically, glaring at Lyra
with cold blue eyes.
Feeling a sudden heat inside her coat, the blonde sighed. "It's
hard to explain..." She reached into her pocket and wrapped her fingers
around the locket.
It was warm.
"Celeste?" she asked her little sister, who was staring in shock at
the wreck. "I want you to stay here with Richard, Hannah, and the
Princess."
"Are you and Tara going to..." Seeing the determined and angry look
on Lyra's face, Celeste nodded carefully. "Right."
Both teen girls jumped over the little railing, just as Haley and
the others had done, and took off toward the track.
As sirens began to wail in the distance, Richard looked at the
dark-haired woman, who had crumpled to her knees in grief. "Who is she?"
he asked the pink-haired Princess softly.
Reeny inhaled deeply, shaking her head. "This is Alexandra's older
daughter," she replied, staring out at the burning white car.
* * * * * * * * * * * *
The baton clattered to the ground as she conducted the orchestra.
"Ms. Kaioh?" stuttered the concertmistress, picking up the little
white stick as the teacher froze in place. "Are you alright?"
Gulping, Michelle let out a ragged sigh and began to shake. "Irina,
take over."
One of the bassists, a tall blonde boy with a bright orange
T-shirt, made a face. "But, Ms. Kaioh, you can't just leave!" he
protested as the woman started toward the doors.
"Hush, Kevin," Irina-the-concertmistress commanded, standing and
setting her violin on the empty seat. "We're starting at measure
sixty..."
The first-viola player ran a hand through her brown curls. "Do you
have any clue what could be wrong THIS time, Irina?" she inquired softly.
The Hispanic teen shrugged. "After three years of attending this
school, Johanna," Irina responded casually, "you give up on asking."
* * * * * * * * * * * *
"Take that!" Sailor Comet commanded, swinging brutally at Death
with a fist. "You won't live to see tomorrow!" Failing to land yet
another punch, the girl backed up, kicking at him yet still managing to
miss.
Sailor Phoenix avoided Violence's sword with an expert cartwheel
and glared at her brunette friend. "Comet..." she growled, backing up as
the armored man swung at her once again. "You're letting your anger take
over..."
The auburn-haired Scout dodged one of Death's fists as she looked
at the other two girl. "I'd let it take over too if I was in her boots!"
Aurora Borealis exclaimed as another double-team attempt with Comet
sailed far past its mark. "But let's talk later!"
An ambulance flew past, distracting Comet just long enough for one
of Death's fists to make contact with her chin. Falling backwards onto
her rump, the girl felt a warm trickle of blood trail down her chin.
That was too much for the Scout.
"I call upon the orbital power of the Comets!" she exclaimed, teal
eyes slowly shutting. "Surround this enemy, and make them pay for the
sins against Alexandra Ten'ou!"
Both the Raiders froze in place, looking first to each other and
then to the angry girl.
"Comet SUPREME Crater..." she announced, eyes flying open and arms
stretched far apart. "CLOSE!"
As the ground opened wide enough to swallow both of the men and
destroy them, another Raider appeared, clad in a shimmering gray gown.
"It's nice to know," she sighed, pressing a hand to the hole and
closing it before it caused any harm, "that I have to bail these men out
of everything."
"Who are you?" asked Sailor Polaris, running up to the battle
scene with a horrified expression on her pale face.
The Raider smirked, brushing a white strand of hair from her
eyes. "They call me Raider Doubt," she greeted with a mock bow. "The last
of the King's minions."
Earth, who had also just arrived, let her jaw drop. "King?" she
repeated in shock, gaping at the woman.
Doubt nodded and snapped her fingers. Both of the male Raiders
vanished, leaving her alone with the Scouts. "Yes, the Raider King. Our
master." Shrugging, she allowed herself to hover a bit above the ground.
"Of course, I am the master of disguise..." She snapped her fingers again
and became a believable facsimile of Zoicite. With another snap, she
became the original Sailor Moon, and, after one more snap, she became
Alexandra Ten'ou. "It's all relative," she smiled, fading back into her
Raider form. "And I intend to destroy you Scouts once and for all."
"Not without a fight!" roared Comet, clenching her fists. "We're
good and ready to chew you up and..."
Doubt snorted, cutting the girl off. "This is not the place nor is
it the time to battle, Scouts," she assured them with an evil gleam in
her black eyes. "I thoroughly enjoy having the home court advantage, and
I intend to do so." She winked and began to fade out of view. "Till then,
Galactic Sailors."
She was gone.
"Shit!" swore Aurora Borealis, kicking at a twisted piece of metal
that had fallen near her feet. "We lost her!"
"We lost the other two," sighed Comet, staring longingly at the
smothering car as the ambulance pulled quickly away, lights flashing and
sirens blaring the alarm. "And probably Alexandra..."
A timeless voice broke the ensuing silence. "She's a Planet
Mistress," sighed Susan, stepping forward. "And therefore has a high
constitution."
Sailor Comet turned to look at her aunt and finally allowed tears
to well up in her eyes. "Oh, Susan!" she cried, throwing herself into the
Time Guardian's warm embrace. "I'm so scared..."
"There, there," soothed the woman softly, entwining her hands into
the thick brown mop of hair. "There, there..."
Michelle came running up, tears streaming down her cheeks and
hair flying through the air while she sobbing. Throwing herself into her
friend's arms as well, she clenched her fists. "I felt it," she cried.
Susan sighed and closed her eyes a bit. "Soul-mates are always
with you," she suddenly declared, "no matter where they are."
And, in the distance, the sirens faded out of hearing range.
* * * * * * * * * * * *
Sitting alone in the kitchen, Phoebe sipped her hot cocoa,
continually staring at the brown telephone before her. Eyes unmoving, she
addressed the light orange cat next to her.
"Will they ever call?"
Orb raised one of his eyebrows. "You mean Haley and Hannah?" he
asked, confused.
Taking her gaze off the phone, she glared at the Moon Cat. "No,
stupid!" she shot. "My parents!"
"Whoa, down girl!" he retorted, jumping nearly a mile into the air
and backing slowly away from her. "I just assumed that you'd be a bit
more worried about Haley's mother because no one knows how she's doing."
Shaking his head, he noticed the unshed tears in his charge's ice-colored
eyes. "I'm sorry..."
"It's not fair," she softly commented, looking at a warm family
portrait that hung on the wall. "They left me here, alone, and are living
a real life without me."
Orb stepped closer to her, thinking of what he could say. "You
haven't heard from them?"
She gulped back the tears. "Well, I got an e-mail from Dad at work
and a letter telling me about the new house, but that was it..."
"Oh dear." Jumping onto her shoulder, he rested his chin on the top
of her head. "I wish I knew what to say without sounding snide."
"Around every corner is a memory," she sniffed, drawing her legs to
her chest. "I can't even look down the hallway without wanting to cry,
Orb." Burying her fingernails in the cat's fur, she felt one crystalline
tear roll down her cheek. "And I hate the feeling I have inside. I want
them to..."
The annoying clangor of the phone's bell cut Phoebe off and forced
her to jump into the air. "Hello?" she choked. Clearing her throat, she
tried again. "Hello?"
It was Lyra. "We're meeting at the hospital for a Scout meeting,"
she bleated, "and it's important."
"The hospital?" repeated the blue-haired girl, staring out the back
door at the aforementioned building. "How's Alexandra?"
The girl on the other end sighed. "Haley sounded really shaken up
but refused to tell me anything over the phone. We're meeting in the ICU
unit's main lounge."
"I'll be there as soon as I can," Phoebe assured her friend, saying
goodbye and hanging up the phone.
"What?" asked Orb nervously, jumping onto the floor.
Grabbing her coat, the teen sighed. "I have to go to the hospital."
She ran out the door, the cat close on her heels.
As the duo left, the phone rang again. After a few minutes, the
answering machine picked up.
"Hi, this is Pheebs!" it announced. "And I'm not home. Why not
leave a message?"
The person on the other end cleared their throat as the machine
picked up. "Hi, Phoebe? It's Mom," Amy said softly. "I was calling to say
I'm going to be in next week to see Susan..."
Clicking off, the answering machine began to rewind the tape, the
sound of it's mechanical voice echoing through the now empty home.
"End of tape. Deleting previous messages."
* * * * * * * * * * * *
"There's really been no word?" asked one of the male violinists
softly. "You've got to be kidding."
Alice slowly shook her head and looked at the rest of the
orchestra. "Frankly, if Ms. Kaioh knew what I'm doing right now, she'd
kill me," the cellist admitted. "But, since our emergency Saturday two-
hour rehearsal got canceled, I had to tell you guys SOMETHING..."
"Which reminds me," the second cellist, Katie, chimed in, "where
were you earlier this morning?"
Flushing, the first cellist stepped off the podium. "Never mind
that... Uh..." Rubbing her hands together for warmth, she smiled sadly.
"But, I'll be sure to tell you when we get any information."
Irina nodded a bit. "What is with Ms. Kaioh and Ms. Ten'ou,
anyway?"
"Yeah!" chimed in Johanna. "They spend a lot of time together..."
Kevin, the orange-shirted bassist, thought about this. "You know
what? Johanna's got a good point!" he announced in an enlightened tone.
Backing up, the teen blushed and smiled an embarrassed grin. "Now,
I have no right to comment..."
The concertmistress flushed. "She's right..."
"Thank you," breathed the auburn-haired Scout. "Now, if you don't
mind..."
It was then that the band-room doors burst open and Reeny raced in,
Celeste in tow. "Alice! We're meeting at the hospital NOW!"
Murmurs of 'the princess!' and 'why is she here?' coursed through
the group as the pink-haired teen looked blankly at the orchestra. "Get
to work!" she demanded of the instrumentalists.
Jumping, the lead violinist grabbed her bow off the stand. "C
concert scale. Now!"
The orchestra began playing in a perfect unison as Alice, Reeny,
and the little blonde girl started out the doors.
"Any news?" Alice inquired.
"Nope," Celeste sighed, latching onto the taller girl's hand.
"Haley wouldn't say."
Reeny sighed, listening to the chorus of strings as they strode to
the front doors of the school. "What I don't understand is why they
listened to me," she commented. "I'm just the Princess."
Alice chuckled. "That gives you power, Reen."
"But THAT MUCH power?" asked the then, sniffing the cool winter air
as she led the two others to her light blue car. "Then I think I like
this 'Princess' business after all!"
Shaking her head, Alice laughed heartily.
* * * * * * * * * * * *
"Our plan failed," sighed Death, rubbing a bruise on his thigh.
"And that Sailor Comet sure can kick."
Violence rolled his eyes. "Failed? We got that dumb Planet Mistress
good!" he exclaimed a bit soberly. "She's probably dead..." Pausing, he
smirked. "Or worse."
"Or worse?" asked Doubt, glancing up at him from her typing. "How
can you be worse than dead?"
Silence ensued while Raider Violence pondered that.
After a good ten seconds filled only with the sound of Doubt's
fingers on the keyboard, Death sighed again. "Anyway, when do we start
phase two?"
"When I'm done here," retorted the snowy-haired woman. "It won't be
much longer than twenty minutes."
The men nodded at her in approval before busying themselves with
other things.
* * * * * * * * * * * *
Seven Galactic Sailors and three Planet Mistresses, all in their
civilian clothes, sat in a large lobby at Crystal Hospital.
"No prognosis yet?" asked Alice for about the twelfth time in the
last five minutes. "What are they, stupid?"
Rolling a pair of green eyes, Tara glared at the girl, who was
working on a sewing assignment. "You could shut up and save us the
trouble of hitting you over the head."
Alice stuck out her tongue in response but continued sewing.
Sniffling, the brunette teen sighed deeply. "One of her legs was
broken in the crash, she was covered with burns, and unconscious when
they pulled her out of Sky King..." Trailing off, Haley leaned into
Susan's warm embrace.
"To think that this is all a hair-brained Raider plot!" exclaimed
Phoebe solemnly. "I have half a mind to hurt them all!"
Hannah, who was leaning against a Coke machine while sipping
coffee, shook her head. "I never thought this would happen."
"None of us did," Michelle agreed, shaking a bit under Reeny's
guiding arm. "As Scouts, we were always close to death. But this...THIS
is so different..."
Walking out of the small bedroom, the doctor sighed and smoothed
the folds of her white lab jacket. She was about thirty years of age,
with long sea-green tresses and darting gray eyes. "I'm looking for a Ms.
Michelle Kaioh, noted as next-of-kin."
Detaching herself from the Princess' warm embrace, Michelle rose
slowly to her feet. "I am Ms. Kaioh," she calmly said, wringing her
handkerchief.
"I would like to talk to you, Ms. Kaioh..." the young doctor
addressed the musician. "If you could step into my office..."
"No," Michelle told the doctor. "Anything you have to say, you say
to them, too."
The woman's gray eyes darted around the room at all the females.
"Is this the rest of your family?" she asked, incredulously.
Susan snorted softly. "You could say that we are," she responded in
lieu of the aqua-haired woman. "Most of us either saw the accident or are
close family members."
"Well," the doctor told them after a long pause, "my name is Doctor
Winifred Yioka, and I am Alexandra's ICU doctor." Taking a seat, she
smiled warmly at Michelle. "Ms. Kaioh, please sit down."
She did just that, gulping as Hannah came up and sat between
herself and Reeny. "Doctor Yioka..."
"Windy," smiled the woman.
Michelle nodded. "Windy, please tell me the truth. How is she?"
Windy's face suddenly turned very grim. "One of her legs is in dire
need of reconstruction surgery, and she's covered with second-degree
burns." Seeing Michelle's shocked face, the doctor paused for a long
moment before continuing. "She punctured her spleen, broke three ribs,
and has a major concussion."
This was too much for Hannah, and she began to sob uncontrollably
into Reeny's pink parka. "Meatball..." she whispered, calling the
Princess by her virtually unknown nickname.
"Shh..." cooed Reeny calmly. "Shh..." Patting her friend's head,
the Princess smiled feebly at Windy. "Go on... Don't mind her..."
Nodding once again, Windy allowed her gray eyes to make contact
with Michelle's green eyes, filled with tears...tears that must, observed
the doctor, take a super-human strength to hold back. "Michelle," she
said, "anyone else would have died as soon as the car hit the wall. But
your sister..."
"No," Michelle interrupted the doctor. "My girlfriend."
Windy smiled, not a bit phased. "But, your girlfriend lived. And
will live through the leg surgery." Beaming, the doctor rose and
stretched. "I have never, in all my years, seen someone as strong as
Alexandra Ten'ou. You're all lucky that she's so strong."
"We're just as strong," Celeste grinned sweetly. "We're her
friends!"
Putting on a polite smile, the young woman brushed a green hair
from her eyes. "She's still out from the anesthetic, but..."
"Anesthetic?" repeated Haley, looking up from the warm arms of
Susan. "You operated?"
"For the spleen," Windy replied, looking down at the brunette. "Let
me guess... Apprehensive teenage daughter?"
Beaming, the teen nodded.
"She'll be fine, you all," the doctor finished, starting down the
hall. "And, since the reconstruction in tomorrow, she'll be home in a
week."
Thanking the doctor, Michelle wrapped her slender arms around her
elder daughter's neck and shed the tears she had been so keen on holding
back.
But she shed them in joy.
* * * * * * * * * * * *
"Serenity!" called one of the many handmaidens in her chipper tone.
"There's a telegram for you, m'Queen." Placing the yellow envelope on the
Queen's desk, Lisa cocked her head of blonde hair to one side. "M'Queen?"
Stretching, the Queen of the Earth yawned and picked up her head.
"Hmm?" she muttered, glancing blankly at the maiden. "Oh! Lisa! Hello!"
Blinking her big blue eyes, the eternal woman smiled politely. "I'm
sorry; what did you say?"
The handmaiden giggled a bit. "Oh, m'Queen, you are such a riot!"
she exclaimed lovingly. "I came to give you that telegram." Lisa gestured
to the yellow envelope.
Blushing a little, Serenity nodded sweetly. "Thank you very much,"
she responded, taking the paper into her small hands. "Has there been any
news on Mistress Uranus' condition?"
"No, m'Queen," she responded, "but the Prince Terrence was going to
pick up the Mistress Pluto and the Princess Serenity and will surely
return with some news."
"Pluto?" Serenity picked up her golden crown and placed it upon her
head. "Are they going out tonight?"
Flushing, the younger woman fiddled with the clasp on her yellow
dress. "The Mistress Pluto is to dine at the Palace tonight, m'Queen."
Jumping up, she glanced at Lisa. "The first item of business is to
add 'kill Terrence' to my planner," mused the young Queen in a serious
tone. "And the second is to help me set up the dining room!"
As the two women frantically rushed out of office, Luna opened an
orange eye as she was hit in the head by something. "What in Heaven's
name?" she muttered, glancing with obvious annoyance at the envelope.
"Sometimes, I think that our Queen is not much less than an older Reeny."
Taking the yellow paper in her mouth and depositing it upon the mighty
oak desk, the black cat left the office, closing the door behind her.
* * * * * * * * * * * *
"Richard?" Lyra asked, scuffing her feet together as the two rode
in the little black sports car. "I was wondering..."
As he rolled to a slow stop at the traffic light, Richard looked
down at the blonde girl next to him. The pale red light from the signal
gave her an odd but beautiful glow. He smiled warmly, getting a nervous
smile in return. "Yes?"
"Uh..." Dismissing her original question, Lyra let her smile grow.
"How come I didn't see you at school the last couple of days?" she
inquired.
As the light turned green, he accelerated and then let out a sad
sigh. "It's all my dad's doing," he told her softly, turning the corner.
"He decided that I shouldn't attend Crossroads anymore... Which, of
course, is extremely hypocritical of the man."
"Why is that?" she asked softly, brown eyes studying his face.
"My dad graduated from Crossroads, that's all," he confided in her,
pulling up to a small apartment building. "And I don't think that's very
fair." Shrugging, he put the car in park and shut it off. "Well, here we
are."
"Why did I agree to eat dinner with you and your parents again?"
inquired the blonde girl nervously, pulling her black skirt straight.
He took one of her tiny hands and squeezed it. "Because you're a
very, very brave girl," he smirked, leading her to the front door of the
building.
* * * * * * * * * * * *
Stuffing a few more French fries in her mouth, Haley sighed sadly
and glanced at her sister, who was curled up in Brian's embrace. "You
know what I don't understand?" she asked Hannah in a slightly annoying
tone.
Opening a single purple eye, the older girl sat up a bit. "Give me
a fry and I'll pretend to care," she yawned, holding out her hand.
Chortling, the blonde man kissed the top of his girlfriend's head.
"Well, I want to know," he responded to the teen. "Tell me."
As Haley filled her sister's hand with the greasy food, she leaned
back in the armchair. "Why would the Raiders want to kill Alexandra?"
The words catching Hannah's otherwise diverted attention, the
Mistress of Saturn pulled herself from Brian's arms and looked
thoughtfully at the brunette girl. "To tell the truth," she admitted, "I
have no clue."
"Exactly," responded the teen, digging her teeth into a piece of
celery. "Don't you wonder what that means?"
Brian stole one of Hannah's fries and chewed on it carefully.
"Could they be onto you guys?" he inquired softly, scooting protectively
toward his girlfriend. "And, if so..."
"But we Scouts," cut in Haley, "make a point of staying together as
a group. The Raiders would never be able to pick us out as belonging to
our separate mothers."
Hannah nodded in agreement. "And Haley would be the least obvious
to them because she's adopted."
A heavy silence filled the air as the three pondered upon Haley's
musing. After a few minutes, Brian sighed and shook his head. "So, you'd
never guess what I saw while at the hospital."
"What?" asked his girlfriend softly, nuzzling closer to him.
He smiled sweetly. "I saw a sign-up for an anti-drag racing
organization. Meets at White Shores every Sunday morning."
"That's tomorrow," observed Haley. "Want to go?"
Hannah nodded. "I really would. Brian?"
"I'm in if you are," he cooed. "If you are..."
* * * * * * * * * * * *
As her twin green eyes slowly opened, Alexandra forced a wary
smile.
Michelle was asleep sitting-up in a hard plastic hospital chair
next to her, clutching one of Alex's bandaged hands.
The moon, which had risen in its nightly dance but two hours ago,
shone through the window, casting a silver glow on the aqua tresses.
Taking the hand wrapped around hers, Alexandra pushed her lips into
its palm. "Michi..." she murmured, pushing a few strands of hair from the
closed eyes.
Sitting up and yawning a bit, she smiled warmly and leaned forward
to give the blonde a gentle hug. "I was so worried," she whispered into
the woman's ear, trying desperately to rest her head on Alex's chest. "I
love you so much, and I thought that I'd lost you..."
"You knew, didn't you?" she asked, smoothing Michelle's hair. "You
felt it." Seeing her lover nod and feeling her shudder with sobs,
Alexandra gave her a tighter hug. "The minute I hit that wall, you know
what I thought of? You."
"Me..." sniffled Michelle, crying lightly. "Oh...Alex..."
"Shhh." The Mistress of Uranus cupped the other woman's chin her
hand. "You can't always get so emotional, you know that?"
Smiling through her tears, the musician let her eyes meet Alex's,
both pairs the exact same color of green. "You can be such a brat," she
choked.
The blonde chuckled and pulled Michelle into a tight embrace and
passionate kiss.
* * * * * * * * * * * *
"I'm so glad you could join us for dinner," smiled Serenity
politely across the table at her green-haired friend. "It's not every day
that the Mistress of Pluto comes to dine at your home."
From her seat on the windowsill, Reeny snorted. "Mom, this is
really no time to talk like an ambassador," the Princess protested,
staring idly out at the Moon. "She's just Puu."
Flushing, Susan folded her hands. "I'm just glad to be here with
friends," she smiled, stressing the last word. "I haven't spent proper
time with Terrence..."
Looking at his brother, the brown-haired Prince raised an eyebrow.
"How do these girls get away with using such big words?" he sarcastically
asked, sipping his wine.
"Maybe," suggested Endymion with a sly smirk, "you should ponder
on why you so often agree with the Princess."
"Not you too!" whined Terrence. "Help!"
Changing the subject, Reeny let out a deep sigh. "Do you ever
wonder how Helios is?" she wistfully inquired, staring out at the night
sky.
The adults all looked at one another but said nothing, stunned into
a nervous silence.
Bustling into the room, Lisa held out a large pad of paper. "Didn't
mean to be late, m'Queen," she blushed, standing nervously at the corner
of the table closest to the blonde woman. "Now, what would you like to
eat for dinner, my lieges and ladies?"
Reeny grinned and leapt off the windowsill and into her chair.
"Pizza!"
Rolling his blue eyes, Endymion shook his head. "A well-done steak,
please."
"Same here," agreed his younger brother, pushing the glasses up on
his nose.
Serenity chewed thoughtfully on her lower lip. "That actually
sounds really good," she smiled, looking to her handmaiden. "I'll take
one!"
The younger woman flushed but didn't say anything. Looking
expectantly at the last woman, Lisa smiled politely. "Mistress Pluto?"
she prompted.
"Pickled pig's snout." Susan brushed a green hair from her eyes.
"With extra gravy."
Clearing her throat nervously, the servant managed a chuckle. "Yes,
Mistress Pluto. Coming right up."
Shaking his head, Terrence laughed at his girlfriend. "Pregnant
women..." he muttered.
"And whose fault is it that I'm pregnant?" shot back the Guardian
of Time, lowering her maroon eyes.
Endymion rolled his eyes. "Here we go again..." he muttered.
* * * * * * * * * * * *
"Pass the rolls, please," smiled Lyra, nervously toying with her
napkin.
Molly smiled politely, looking to her husband, who was busy
reading. "Melvin?" she asked, gesturing toward the basket of bread.
"Right, right," he mumbled, handing the basket to the blonde girl.
"I knew that."
"Dad..." growled Richard, a blush slowly creeping across his face.
"Would you please put the book down?"
The computer programmer adjusted his thick glasses. "I'd love to,
but this is required reading, Rich."
Lyra groaned inwardly and continued to pick at her salmon. The
entire dinner had been a disaster, with Melvin ignoring her mere
existence and Molly trying to dig for personal information while
remaining polite.
"Melvin!" scolded red-haired woman, standing quickly up. "Can I see
you in the next room, please?"
"But..."
"Now!"
As his parents got up, Richard looked guiltily at his lap. "I'm
really sorry, Lyra..." he sighed, shaking his head. "This is a disaster."
"Can I be blunt?" she nervously inquired, smiling a little.
He nodded, expecting the worst.
Standing slowly, she came around and sat next to him in an empty
chair. "Richard," she smiled, taking his hand in hers. "I really like
you."
His blue eyes snapped up and stared at her. "What?"
Chuckling to herself, the girl smiled warmly at him. "I know that
we're just friends, and that's great, but..."
All the color draining out of his face, the young man stared
blankly at her. "Just friends?" he gasped, amazed.
"Well, aren't we?" she questioned, cocking her head to the side.
"I mean-sure-the movie WAS a love story...and there was that whole ball
thing, but the museum didn't work out and the pizza dinner was just
fortuitous... not to mention tonight..."
Richard laughed heartily and leaned forward, wrapping her in a
tight hug. "You're so silly!" he announced loudly, smiling. "I really do
like you, Ms. Lyra Star Mokoti." Pulling away, he looked deeply into her
pecan-colored eyes. "I asked you out because I felt something when we ate
that...fortuitous, was it?...pizza dinner, and I can't get you out of my
head."
"You're...kidding?" stuttered the teen, amazed. "You actually like
me?"
He nodded a bit. "Of course I do, Lyra," he smiled, pulling her
into another tight embrace. "Of course."
From her spot in the doorway, Molly Umino let her blue eyes fly to
Melvin. "So, that's squared away, isn't it?"
Taking off his glasses and polishing them on his white business
shirt, the man wrapped a protective around his wife's slender wait. "I
think so," he agreed, watching proudly as his son held Lyra close. "It's
an amazing thing, isn't it?"
"What?" requested Molly, a bit confused.
"That they've found each other without our poking and prodding." He
slipped the glasses back on in a fluid movement, sighing wistfully. "I
wish we could have done that."
Chortling, she leaned into his arms. "Well, you always said that
Serena was an amazing person, right?"
"I said that?" kidded Melvin, leading his wife out of the kitchen
doorway and into the family room.
* * * * * * * * * * * *
"Daddy?" asked a small voice.
Andrew looked slowly up from his paperwork and glanced down at the
blonde girl before him. "Hi, Celeste," he smiled, hoisting her into his
lap. "What do you need, sweetie?"
She sniffled, and he could see stains on her cheeks from what had
most likely been numerous tears. The usually chipper green eyes were
bloodshot, and she looked extremely upset. "I'm... I'm really worried,
Daddy," she stuttered, staring into his brown eyes. "I saw a lady almost
die this morning, and I realized that...that..."
"That you'll die someday?" he inquired, lightly touching one of her
pale cheeks. "Is that what you're so worried about, little one? That
you're going to die?"
Nodding, Celeste leaned into her father's arms. "I'm a Sailor
Scout!" she cried loudly, not looking up. "And so was Mistress Uranus!
But she's lying in a hospital bed and I'm right here... Who's to say that
I won't be next?" She stared up with teary moss-colored eyes.
"There's no promise you won't." He glanced at Mina, who was
watching the whole scene from the sink with a minor interest. "There's
this thing called faith, little one..."
Celeste sniffled. "So, I just have to believe in myself?"
"I know," Andrew admitted, "that I'll sound like Tuxedo Mask,
but... That's really all there is to it. "
Drying her hands on an orange towel, the blonde woman walked over
and glanced down at her little girl-a girl who was quite like the Scout
of Love had been at age six. "Today has been a bad day, hasn't it,
'Leste?"
"Yep," said the girl, a tear still dripping down her cheek. "But,
maybe tomorrow will be better."
Mina smiled proudly at her daughter. "I think you're right," she
told the girl. "I really think you're right."
* * * * * * * * * * * *
"That was fun," smiled Susan, standing beside her red corvette. "I
really enjoyed spending that time with you."
Terrence laughed lightly. "Did you like your supper, dear?" he
joked, putting his hands in his pockets.
Laughing, Susan tossed a few strands of green hair behind her.
"That was great, too," she replied. Noticing his wistful gaze, she froze
in mid chuckle. "What?"
"Sets, you know what?" Terrence put his hands onto her shoulders
and stared hard into her eyes. "You are the most wonderful, provocative,
carefully cold, beautiful, deep, impossible, and yet perfect woman I have
ever been near." Kissing her tenderly, he smiled. "In all my life, few
relationships have been so fulfilling and fun."
Not quite knowing what to say, Susan threw her arms around his neck
and gave him a passionately, breath-taking kiss.
Pulling away slowly, Susan climbed into the car and grinned. "It's
kind of funny that my best ever relationship came out of getting
pregnant," she commented as she put the key in the ignition.
He nodded and, as the car drove off, smiled sadly as he found the
planet Pluto in the night sky, sparkling with a beauty that could only
rival that of Susan.
Saying a silent prayer to the planet, he made his way into Crystal
Palace.
* * * * * * * * * * * *
"They did what?" Orb looked doubtfully at the three girls, who were
sitting around in the Urawa's living room watching Sunday morning
cartoons. "You're kidding, right?"
Yawning, Phoebe stretched and poured some more coffee into her cup.
"No, I'm not." She blew on the drink to cool it. "Haley told me that
there was an anti-drag racing committee, and she was so psyched about
going that..."
Cutting her off, Lyra laughed at the cat. "You worry too much!" she
exclaimed while helping herself to some oatmeal. "It's not like the whole
thing's a Raider pl..."
Everyone stared at the blonde girl as she trailed off and looked
guiltily at the floor.
"You don't think..." Alice shuddered, gulping nervously. "It
couldn't be..."
The cat growled at the girls. "NOW you understand what I'm
saying!" he shot at them as they all nervously stared at one another. "If
it's a Raider plot, Haley is a sitting duck!"
"Not to mention," added Alice, "Hannah and Brian."
"Oh, dear..." sighed Lyra, depositing her bowl unceremoniously upon
the coffee table. "Well, we have to get going."
"What?" Orb stared at her with wide gold eyes.
Phoebe stood too, downing the rest of her coffee in one fluid
movement. "You heard us," she told him nonchalantly, still half-asleep.
"We're going to the drag strip to try and save Haley."
He attempted to protest the idea, but Alice cut him off.
"You have to call Reeny," she assured him. "And Tara. Probably
Susan, too." Rubbing some of the sleep from her eyes, she stretched.
"We'll make this an all out-Mistresses and Scouts, protecting the world
together."
Nodding solemnly, he smiled up at the three teen girls. His charge,
Phoebe... Mina's daughter, Lyra... and Artemis' new care-taker, Alice...
All Galactic Sailors in their own right.
"Good luck," he smiled at them as they raced out the door. "Good
luck to you all."
* * * * * * * * * * * *
"Where the heck is Ms. Kaioh?" whined Johanna, stretching and
almost knocking a music stand over with her feet. "I'm missing some of
the best Sunday morning cartoons right now!"
Irina, who was flipping through a battered manga, glanced at the
curly-haired teen with obvious annoyance. "This isn't like her, and it
won't be," she responded casually. "She's been acting like a fruitcake
lately, and I won't deny it."
"Yeah!" chimed in Kevin, still wearing his repulsive orange shirt.
"And, besides, I'm missing wrestling!"
Everyone groaned in exasperation, and various blunt objects flew
toward the bassist's head.
Katie smiled. "Well, who cares?" she asked smugly. "Once again,
Alice ditched, so I get to play the solos!"
"What IS with that girl, anyway?" asked Matt, a violinist who sat
near the end of the section. "She's always running out, complaining about
lockets, hanging out with Ms. Ten'ou's sarcastic daughter..."
"MS. TEN'OU HAS A DAUGHTER?" chorused the orchestra, staring at him
in disbelief.
"Yeah," remarked he, not phased at all by the mass confusion. "Her
name is Haley."
Kevin hit himself in the head. "Haley Ten'ou, DUH! She's in my
modern issues class!"
"And..." prompted Johanna nosily.
"She's nice," he responded, plucking at his bass strings.
Just then, the doors burst open, and Michelle strode quickly in, an
older man with wild gray hair in tow.
"Well, class," she greeted them quickly, "I'm glad to see you've
made it here."
"How's Ms. Ten'ou?" asked Katie stupidly.
Johanna beamed her over the head.
"Fine," shot Michelle coolly, placing the score on her stand. "Now,
I can't run this rehearsal because my two daughters disappeared this
morning and I have to find out where they ran off to."
Matt grinned from his seat. "Do they have names?" he asked evilly.
Rolling green eyes, the conductor shot him a stern look. "Hannah
and Haley," she sighed, warranting fifty rough gasps in unison. Ignoring
them, she gestured to the man. "This is Mr. Tom Bowling, and he's a
visiting conductor from the States," she told the group. "You're going to
listen to him, and BEHAVE!"
"Yes, ma'am," responded Irina sweetly while the others all
snickered.
Mr. Bowling stepped onto the podium and smiled warmly at Michelle.
"I've got it all under control, Ms. Kaioh."
"Good." The musician waved to her class before jetting off the
podium and out of the room.
"Now," Mr. Bowling said. "Does anyone here know what time this
class ends?"
All the kids sniggered.
* * * * * * * * * * * *
"So, Susan, what REALLY brings you here?" inquired Alex, sipping
her hot coffee. "I mean, small talk isn't your thing, and I know it."
The green-haired woman blushed a little, but managed to change the
subject. "How's the coffee here?"
The blonde made a face. "Gross. I really don't like decaf," she
retorted, studying her friend's face expertly. "But, come on! You're
denying something."
Giving up, Susan took in a sharp breath. "Frankly, the Scouts are
in danger," she told the injured woman. "There's going to be a battle of
incredible proportions today, and all the Scouts are going to risk their
lives to save one."
"Who?" asked the racer, already knowing the answer.
"Haley," the Guardian of Time responded softly. "It will be Haley."
Nodding, Alex started to pull the IV out of her hand. "Well then, I
know what needs to be done, right?"
"That's just it!" yelled Susan, digging her red fingernails into
the woman's free hand. "I've seen the future in both cases, and-if you
fight... Let's just say that, in that instance, you're not IN the
future!"
Staring blankly into burgundy eyes, she considered this. "Both
cases?"
She ran her hand nervously through green tresses. "If you don't
fight, you live. And Haley lives. But..."
"But?"
"There's a good chance that Michelle will get hurt." Letting out a
breath, Susan looked at her friend. "That's why I had to tell you this.
If your soul-mate is in danger, you'll feel it, right?"
"Yes..." sighed Alex, sipping the drink once again.
"Exactly. You see...if you feel it and fight, you die. But, if you
feel it but still let Michelle get hurt, then everyone will live." Seeing
tears well up in a pair of green eyes, the woman gulped. "It's the
hardest thing you'll have to do, Uranus."
"It's starting, isn't it?" asked the other, ignoring the use of her
Mistress name. "The killing, the pain..."
"And," nodded Susan, "it won't end until the Raiders are banished
from this world."
Holding a hand to her face, Alexandra did something completely
unexpected.
She cried.
* * * * * * * * * * * *
Tara ran into her mother's room, where the Mistress of Mars was
working on paperwork.
"Mother!" called the teen, bowing a bit. "Mother!"
Raye looked up from the stack of bills and blew a black hair from
her eyes. "Yes, Tara?" she asked sweetly, with a tad of annoyance in her
voice.
The teen tried to smile, but it didn't work and she ended up
grimacing. "There is to be a battle today against the Raiders, and all
able Mistresses are to come."
"Already?" asked the adult, rising slowly. "I would guess that
they'd wait until after lunch."
Disregarding the comment, Tara looked at her mother. Green eyes met
purple ones. "Do you want to fight, Mother?"
"No," admitted the temple priestess softly, putting on hand on her
daughter's slim shoulder. "But I do want to make the world safe again,
and there's only one way to do that."
"Which is killing," sighed the teen with a sad smile.
Smiling at her child, Raye shrugged. "I've fought a lot in my life,
Tara, and I've learned only one thing from it." Removing the beads from
her wrist, she shook her head. "When it involves evil, dear one, killing
is inevitable."
The teen nodded. "So, shall we?"
Her mother held the beads high. "Mars Eternal Power..."
Tara raised the locket. "Earth Galactic Power..."
"MAKE UP!"
* * * * * * * * * * * *
"Mom!" Reeny went tearing through the marble hallways of Crystal
Palace, losing all her klutzy ways as she ran. "Mom!"
Turning a sharp corner, the Princess felt her breath catch within
her throat and managed to gulp. "Mom?"
Neo-Queen Serenity was sitting on a windowsill with a torrent of
tears streaming quickly down her pale cheeks as she stared out of the
window and down at the rose gardens below. "Hello Reeny," she choked, not
looking at the teen. "I'm glad you came."
"What's wrong?" asked the pink-haired girl, approaching her mother
more slowly than she had previously been. "Did something happen?"
The Queen chuckled. "Can't fool you, can I?" she rhetorically
asked, glancing at her daughter with tear-filled blue eyes. "I got a
telegram yesterday but never read it until this morning..."
"And?"
"You're like I was!" she observed with a wistful smile. "Always
nosy in that cute sort of way. Oh, Reeny..." She gulped back tears as her
eyes turned back to the gardens below where a few children-daughters and
sons of handmaidens, most likely-played in the cool winter air. "Remember
how the Silver Crystal touched all and gave everyone on Earth a life span
of about one thousand years?"
The Princess nodded, smiling at the antics of one little red-haired
girl in particular. "So?"
Serenity shook her head. "That doesn't protect against accidents or
heart attacks, and..." Sighing, the Queen wiped a tear away. "Your Uncle
Sammy died two nights ago of acute heart failure."
"WHAT?" Reeny felt tears come to her eyes. "Uncle Sammy?"
"He was old," the Queen sighed, fingering one of her two pigtails.
"And he was sick. But I constantly missed him..."
The Princess looked to her mother and let a tear roll down her
cheek. Carefully but slowly, the teen climbed into her mother's arms and
accepted a warm hug. "Oh, Mama..." she cried, tears streaming down her
cheek. "I have bad news besides." Red eyes sparkled as she glanced at the
Queen. "I'm to go into a battle and..." Sitting up a bit, she set a stoic
expression to her face. "And I am to take the Silver Imperium Crystal
with me."
"The crystal?" Serenity sighed. "Then make it so, Reeny. You are
the Princess." A glowing silver orb appeared in the air and floated into
the girl's open hand. "Good luck, my dearest one."
Willing the crystal to phase into the Locket of the Galactic Moon,
Reeny smiled enigmatically. "I'll need it," she replied, holding the
golden disc above her head. "Bye, Mom."
"Bye, Reen," the Queen of the Earth said softly, an amazed smile
crossing her face.
"Moon Galactic Power!" Reeny yelled, her voice powerful as it
echoed through the white marble halls of the Palace. "MAKE UP!"
* * * * * * * * * * * *
"I don't like this whole arrangement one bit!" announced Haley,
nervously glancing around the White Shores Racecourse. "Hannah?"
The young woman clutched nervously onto Brian's hand. "Yep. It's
the Raiders again."
"Raiders?" asked the blonde man apprehensively. "Should we be doing
something?"
Haley groped around for the Locket of Comets while Hannah pulled a
string of glass beads from her purse.
"Guys?" gulped Brian nervously.
Taking her locket into her left hand, Haley closed her eyes and
drank in the warmth it was sending out. "We're going to become our alter
egos."
Nodding, the dark-haired woman looked at the black and purple beads
solemnly. "You've got to hide, Brian."
"But..." he protested, making a face. "You can't risk your lives."
His girlfriend laughed and drew him into a tight hug. "As a mortal,
Brian, you can't possibly understand how many times I've nearly died,"
she chuckled, looking into his endless hazel eyes. "Or how many times I
actually have...I've died twice before."
"What?" he gasped in shock.
"I was born as Hannah Tomoe, and I died in a lab accident. My
father let an evil entity take me over to save my life. I was killed as
Mistress Nine, then, and allowed to be reborn." Smiling a bit, she kissed
him lightly on the cheek. "Death holds no fear for me..."
"It should!" called a strong male voice. Raider Death jumped down
from the tall announcing deck of the track. "Prepare for your end, Sailor
Comet!"
Hannah gasped. "ME?" she asked, tossing her beads quickly to Haley.
"I'm not a Sailor Scout!"
"Yeah, right," retorted the Raider, grabbing her by the front of
her shirt. "Your hair and eye color must change when you untransform
or...something..." he insisted menacingly. "And I intend for you to meet
your maker."
Pulling back his fist, Death prepared to punch her square in the
nose.
"Haley!" she called. "Now!"
"Comet Galactic Power!" the brunette screamed, forcing the Raider
to whirl around. "MAKE UP!"
* * * * * * * * * * * *
"It's starting..." muttered Alexandra.
Doctor Yioka looked up from where she was operating on the woman's
broken leg. "Did you say something?"
Heavily sedated but still awake, the blonde groaned. "The fighting
is going starting..." she mumbled, staring at the light-haired doctor.
"Haley and Hannah are in danger but I can't help..."
The three operating room attendants looked to Windy for guidance
and the doctor shooed then all out quickly. "Alexandra?" she inquired
softly.
"Here I am..." she continued. "A Planet Mistress and instead of
fighting I'm having my leg reconstructed..."
"Planet Mistress?" stuttered Windy. "Is that how you lived through
the accident?"
Alexandra groaned and drifted off to sleep.
Gritting her teeth, Windy Yioka shook her head. "Well, I'll be..."
She smiled to herself, continuing her work.
* * * * * * * * * * * *
"Sailor Comet!" announced the teen as she came out of her
transformation sequence. "Nice to see you again, Death. What's up?"
"Why...you..." Letting the woman free, the Raider glared at the
silver-and-orange fukued girl. "So you're one of those rotten Scouts?"
Smiling smugly, she lunched the beads into the air and toward
Hannah, who caught them cleanly and dragged Brian off the battlefield.
"That would be me," she greeted him. "So, how ARE you doing, Death? I
haven't seen you since yesterday and..." Rolling away from a bolt of dark
energy, she smiled sweetly. "Well, I was worried about you."
"Really?" he asked, jumping away as she kicked at him.
"Yep!" she assured him, attempting to knock his feet out from under
him. "I was afraid I wouldn't be able to kill you."
Death let another bolt of energy fly, and this one hit its mark.
"ARGH!" yelped Comet in pain as the darkness flew through her
veins.
"Stop!" came Sailor Phoenix's voice.
Comet opened her clenched eyes and saw Sailors Phoenix, Polaris,
Earth, and Aurora Borealis come running up, with the Mistresses of Mars
and Saturn close behind. "Hey guys..." she choked, passing out.
"Haley!" yelled Saturn, dropping to her knees in the purple satin
gown. "Are you okay?" Seeing that she was unconscious, the youngest
Mistress bristled. "You monster!" she screamed at the Raider, who was
watching the scene in amazement. "You could have killed her!"
"That was the plan," he coolly responded as the gleaming Silence
Glaive appeared in her hand. "Now, step back and contemplate defeat."
Another Raider, who was completely covered in red armor, appeared.
"Sorry I'm late, Sailor Scouts," Violence smirked, drawing out his sword.
"Who wants to fight me?"
Phoenix closed her eyes. "Phoenix Heat..." she began as her blue
braids levitated. "FLASHING!"
The Raider swung his sword, parrying the attack.
As Aurora, Phoenix, Polaris, and Earth battled against the red-
garbed man, the Mistress of Saturn pointed her Glaive toward Death.
"That," she spat, looking to the injured Scout, "is my sister, you scum."
"That's nice," responded Death, throwing out a ball of power.
Saturn held out an idle hand and the ball disappeared magically.
"I don't think," she told him coldly, taking a step forward, "that you
understand." She touched the tip of the Glaive lightly into his chest.
"I am the Mistress of Saturn, and I will avenge the wrongs you have
created."
Seeing both Sailor Chibi-Star and Mistress Venus appear, she waved
a hand toward the other battle scene. "Help them, Mina! I've got this
under control."
"You sure?" asked the fellow Mistress.
"Positive," replied Saturn. "Go."
Seeing the opening he so needed, Death kicked the legs out from
under the Scout and proceeded to use his magic to throw the Glaive from
her grasp. "Nice try," he smirked, pulling a dagger out of midair and
holding it to her throat.
"Death," she whispered angrily, "holds no fear for me."
* * * * * * * * * * * *
Michelle dropped her coffee cup as a tight feeling passed through
her chest. "Hannah," she softly whispered, shaking. "She's in danger!"
Taking the beads from her wrist, the woman looked solemnly at a
picture of her and Alex, remembering something that Susan had mentioned
the day before.
"Soul-mates are always with you, no matter where they are."
The woman laughed nervously. "I have to fight without Alex, don't
I?" she asked the sky.
Sailor Pluto appeared, clad in a fuku that was getting tighter as
the Scout got more pregnant. "Are you ready to go, Neptune?"
She nodded, holding up the beads. "Neptune Eternal Power!" she
called. "MAKE UP!"
* * * * * * * * * * * *
"Aurora Borealis..."
Violence threw Sailor Earth into the attacking Scout in one quick
movement, both landing near the already knocked-out Phoenix. Sailor
Polaris gulped and took a nervous step back. Four of the five present
Scouts were unconscious, as was the Mistress Mars.
The teen took a deep breath, knowing the truth.
She was alone.
"Ah, Sailor Polaris." The Raider took a step forward, warranting a
nervous gasp from the Scout. "So we meet again."
A purple rose flew through the air as the Starlit Prince gracefully
landed next to her. "Hello, Polaris," he said as the rose pierced
Violence's sword hand and the Raider screamed out in pain. "Quite a
scrape you've gotten into this time," he observed.
"Shut up," she sighed, ducking a the Raider clumsily swung his
weapon with his bad hand. "You don't need to be sarcastic."
"Die!" Violence lunged for the Scout but was pulled back by someone
tugging on the back of his armor.
"Didn't," began Mistress Venus, knocking him onto the ground, "your
mother teach you any manners?"
Polaris smiled as Chibi-Star ran up and gave her a bear hug. "You
okay?" asked the little Scout.
"I guess," shrugged the Scout, staring as Venus gave the Raider the
lecture of a lifetime.
"And another thing!" scolded the Mistress. "This armor is a mess!
You need to get it cleaned, young man!"
Groaning more in awkward annoyance than in pain, he blinked twice
and disappeared.
"Well, that's settled," smiled Chibi-Star, looking proudly at the
blonde Mistress. "Good job!" she cheered pleasantly.
Venus was about to respond when a blood-curdling scream cut through
air, and the woman froze.
"Michelle," she whispered, frantically running toward the sound.
* * * * * * * * * * * *
"Death," he hissed evilly, "should hold fear for you, Mistress
Saturn." The man brought his dagger closer. "It is the final step."
She closed her purple eyes slowly. "I shall be reborn," she
breathed as the metal touched her skin.
"Neptune POWER!" screamed a voice, and Hannah felt it.
The metal came away from her throat and she opened her eyes to find
Death sprawled a good ten feet away, Mistress Neptune standing over him.
"Uh..." Lightly fingering his now black eye, Death glared up at the
woman. Her dress was of an aqua silk, and its trim was darkest color of
blue that anyone could imagine. "So, Mistress Neptune," he coughed,
blinking as the bruise grew. "We finally meet."
Stepping lightly on his chest with her high-heeled shoe, she
lowered her green eyes. "You," she growled, "stay away from my family.
Understand?"
"Who's your family?" asked the Raider in a quasi- innocent tone.
Seeing Saturn rise and pick up her Glaive, he tensed. Very little time
remained for him to complete the plan.
But he would.
Neptune stepped down a bit harder. "Sailor Comet and Mistress
Saturn are my daughters," she informed him. "And Uranus is my
girlfriend."
Saturn walked over to where her mother stood. "Shall I?"
"Never again," swore Death, "will you have to worry about me."
Smiling smugly, he looked at the two Mistresses. "Because you are going
to die. EXPLODING DOOM!" he cried.
All energy, both positive and negative swirled about them, coming
quickly together in one compact ball.
"Run!" hollered Neptune.
"Not," protested her daughter solemnly, "without you."
The older Mistress took one look at the resolute woman and did the
only thing she could.
And, as her mother screamed, Saturn opened her eyes.
For Mistress Neptune had shoved her clear of the explosion.
* * * * * * * * * * * *
The scream made Brian jump.
From his spot inside of the men's bathroom, he shuddered. It had
been Michelle's scream, and he could feel someone's grief flowing through
his body.
Hannah's.
There was a flash of crimson light within room and a green-haired
woman appeared opposite him, a giant staff clutched in one of her hands.
"Susan?" he gasped, eyes wide.
She smiled. "You could say that," came the cool response. "I am
actually the Sailor and Mistress of Pluto."
He nodded, cautiously pushing his glasses up on his nose. "I see."
"But do you feel?" Pluto inquired of him in an ambiguous tone. "Can
you feel?"
Looking at the ground sadly, he proceeded to sigh. "Do I feel
Hannah's pain? Is that this feeling which sears through me?"
"It is," she softly responded. "For you are her soul-mate; the one
and only man destined for Saturn."
Suddenly, he was unable to move. Sailor Pluto, eyes closed, waved
her staff and her clothing changed from being a tight Sailor fuku to
being a long and flowing crimson gown with black trim. "As her
soul-mate," she softly whispered, "you are granted immortality."
"Imm...Immortality?" he stuttered, staring into her garnet eyes.
"How?"
"Some of the Mistress' soul-mates," she responded, "are from the
Silver Millennium of either the Moon, Earth, or Stars. Others are not."
Holding the staff directly between them, she rested her hands on the
enormous gem that sat atop the Key Staff. "Those who are not-and you are
but the second-are granted with immortality. But, the immortality is not
permanent. For, if Hannah Tomoe was to die..."
"I would as well," Brian finished, watching in shock as the orb
began to glow. "I love her, though... What should a little death matter?"
Smirking a little, the Mistress of Time considered his comment.
"Good answer," she finally said, closing her eyes once again. "Very
good."
Light, shimmering and silver, shot out of the Garnet Orb and
traveled into Brian's chest. "Does it hurt?" she asked, her eyes still
closed and hands still controlling the power which flowed freely into his
chest.
"It does not," he smiled, watching her with amazement on his face.
"Should it?"
"No."
After what seemed to be hours passed, the light died and Pluto's
Mistress clothing phased back into her normal clothing. "There," she
smiled, opening her eyes and watching the Key Staff vanish into thin air.
"I'm done."
"And Hannah?" he demanded, relieved that he could once again move.
"The battle?"
"Go now," she commanded, her voice growing timeless. "See what you
can."
He thanked her and burst out of the bathroom, feeling a new energy
and power with every step.
For it was the power of love.
* * * * * * * * * * * *
"Michelle!" screamed Venus, rushing over with two Scouts and the
Starlit Prince in tow.
Death doubled over, a bit hurt from the explosion. "Ugh..." he
managed, looking over at the motionless body of Mistress Neptune. "Got
her."
"Not so fast!" announced one last voice. Looking up, the Raider
groaned helplessly.
"For love and justice, I am the pretty sailor-suited soldier Sailor
Moon!" The familiar pink-haired teen, clad in the pink, red, and blue
Sailor fuku, stood upon a crate, looking at Death with angry red eyes.
"You've hurt my friends, you've nearly killed three Mistresses and
knocked another one unconscious, and I am just plan SICK of it!" Jumping
down, she walked towards him and clenched one of her hands into a fist.
"In the name of the moon," she announced, delivering a swift uppercut to
his chin, "I will punish you!"
The few remaining Scouts and Mistresses all cheered as Death flew
backwards into a building.
"You," Sailor Moon assured him, willing the crystal into her hand,
"are lunchmeat."
"Please," he begged. "I'm not ready to die."
She raised the crystal above her head and looked down at him with
hate-pure, searing hate-in her eyes. "See you in Hell," she spat as the
crystal activated and turned him into Moon dust.
* * * * * * * * * * * *
"How sweet," chortled Windy, scrawling on a chart. "Both of you in
the hospital at the same time."
Trying not to laugh, Michelle coughed several times and took a sip
of water. "I'm a Planet Mistress," she managed groggily. "I have a high
constitution."
"Yeah," commented Alexandra, hobbling around the white-walled room
on crutches. "But at least I'M mobile."
The aqua-haired musician threw her paper cup at the blonde. "Shut
up."
Doctor Yioka all out laughed at this. "Now, you two... You've got a
whole three days to share this room. Behave."
The door them burst open and Irina, Johanna, Kevin, and Katie burst
in, carrying to bouquets of flowers. "Hi, Ms. Kaioh! What's new, Ms.
Ten'ou?"
Smiling politely, Michelle looked at the four orchestra members.
"I'm alright, I suppose..."
Kevin nodded, smoothing the fabric of his orange shirt. "Haley
wasn't in school today."
"We..." The two Planet Mistresses looked at one another and
blushed. "I know," Alex smiled, staring at the floor. "She had an
accident as well."
Katie gave one bouquet-twelve enormous orchids-to Michelle and
smiled. "You guys have the oddest family...constantly getting into
accidents and injuring yourself!"
The two blushed again and, sitting on the edge of her lover's bed,
Alex cleared her throat.
"Alright, enough," she declared, looking at the quartet of
students. "How much do you know?"
"Know?" asked Johanna curiously. "You tell us!" She handed ten
lilies to the blonde with an evil smile on her face.
Irina rolled her eyes. "We're the four most observant..."
"And nosy!" added Kevin, interrupting the concertmistress.
"...students at your high school," she finished sweetly. "We
figured it out, guys."
"Oh dear..." sighed Michelle, shaking her head.
"We won't tell!" announced Katie loudly. "Don't you worry!"
Johanna nodded quickly in agreement, smiling. "You guys are, by
far, the best teachers at school. We can't hold anything like love over
your heads!"
After the three girls and one young man left, the two glanced at
one another. "That was...interesting," commented Alexandra, still sitting
on her girlfriend's bed.
"You're telling me," sighed the musician, staring at her orchids.
"So..."
"So..." Alex raised her eyebrows and leaned over, kissing Michelle
deeply, not really knowing-or caring-who would walk in next.
* * * * * * * * * * * *
A couple sat on a battered dock, watching the sun set over a
crystalline blue lake. The silence was overwhelming as they watched their
breath leave steamy trials in the late November air.
"Hannah," Brian breathed to the young woman in his arms, "I have to
tell you something."
She glanced up at him, purple eyes filling with dreamy stars.
"Hmmm?"
"When you were fighting and Michelle screamed," he murmured,
tightening his arms around her, "I felt this incredible grief run through
my veins." He looked into the sky, seeing the first signs of stars
appear. "And I knew that, whatever you were feeling, I was."
Inhaling sharply, she looked up at him. "That only happens with my
moms," came her amazed response. "Only with soul-mates..." Realization
dawned over her face.
He went on to tell her of the visit from Sailor Pluto, the silver
light, and immortality.
"...And I knew," he softly whispered, detaching himself from her
and staring straight into her eyes. "I knew that very moment that,
immortality or not, I wanted to be with you." Reaching into his pocket,
he presented her with a tiny gold ring. Set into it was a small but
beautiful diamond surrounded by fluorite-Hannah's favorite stone. "Hannah
Tomoe, I love you," he announced, getting onto one knee. "I love you!"
She blushed, laughing. "You're stubborn, rude, somewhat cold, and your
sister is a viper, but I LOVE YOU!" His voice echoed through the night
air. "And, if you don't marry me, soul-mate..." He sighed, turning
serious. "Well, immortality or not, Hannah, I'll die." He slid the ring
on her finger. "I swear that you'll want to use that Glaive of yours on
me at least once, dear, but it'll be worth it. And..."
"Shut up," she told him, tears of joy streaming down her cheeks.
"If you keep talking, I'll never be able to say yes." Wrapping her arms
around him, she sniffed. "You're my destiny, and don't you try to deny
it. If I lost you, I'd...I'd..."
Pushing his lips to her, Brian made sure that she'd never finish
that sentence.
* * * * * * * * * * * *
Galactic Sailors Say!
Haley: (appearing) Okay, this is the most obvious one yet...
Celeste: (appearing) If you're a drag racer and your newest opponent is
named Red and has a car named Raider and doesn't look like a nice
person-mmphf!
(Haley gags the little girl)
Haley: (clears throat) A-hem! ("Ein No Melody" Kate's favorite plays
in the background) Sometimes, bad things happen.
(Video clips of the car burning, Michelle in the hospital room, the
Scouts all unconscious, and Hannah with a dagger to her throat)
Hannah: (appearing) And, sometimes, good things happen.
(Video clips of Alexandra waking up, Katie giving flowers to Michelle,
the Scouts playing volleyball together, and Hannah in Brian's arms)
Reeny: (appearing) But, the point is that jellyfish are evil and Pokemon
yellow is the best video game in the world! (charming smile)
(Dead silence)
Haley: (smiling indulgently) Uhh... I was going to say that having faith
in yourself is important.
Hannah: And that destiny can be bad...
(Video clip of Alexandra crying)
Haley: It can also be wonderful.
(Photo of the six Scouts and Celeste at the Royal Ball and Gala)
Reeny: (pouting) I still say that Pokemon yellow is the best, you
stupid-heads!
(Picture of Pikachu)
Haley + Hannah: The SANE Galactic Sailors say...
All Scouts: See ya!
-I Know-
Look around...
(Tara, sitting next to Queen Serenity, stares up at the night sky)
So many things aren't clear...
(Phoebe looks blankly at a math book)
Don't worry, though...
(Lyra smiles while picking up her tuba)
You know that I'll be there...
(Sailor Pluto and Haley smile knowingly at each other)
A lot of things are so uncertain...
(Alice looks sadly at a clock while the sun sets over Crystal Tokyo)
The future's on its way...
(Reeny holds the Locket of the Moon, smiling)
Look at my crying eyes...
(Luna and Artemis console an upset Diana)
Don't take your love away!
(Hannah sighs, looking at a sleeping Haley)
Sometimes, the road looks long...
(Mina looks at her children with Andrew behind her)
And sometimes, the world seems wrong...
(Alex and Michelle smile at one another and then blush deeply)
But I know, I know, all you need is love.
(The six girls, untransformed, hold their lockets high)
Sometimes, you feel weak...
(Lita smoothes the hair of a crying Alice)
And sometimes, the future looks bleak...
(Raye and Chad stand behind Tara, who is staring at her locket)
But I know, I know, all you need is love.
(The six Galactic Sailors stand in a half circle)
Times will change...
(Amy looks out of a window and at Crystal Palace)
People will change, too...
(Endymion looks at Serenity, who is pouring over a book)
But deep inside...
(Lyra hugs Celeste)
I always will love you...
(Diana falls asleep on Reeny's lap)
I suppose there are questions now...
(Alice and Phoebe stare blankly at one another)
The answers are so far...
(Michelle stands in front of the orchestra, talking)
But look at me and smile now...
(Tara lovingly hugs her father)
I am your guiding star!
(Haley smiles at a studying Hannah)
Sometimes, the road looks long...
(Mina looks at her children with Andrew behind her)
And sometimes, the world seems wrong...
(Alex and Michelle smile at one another and then blush deeply)
But I know, I know, all you need is love.
(The six girls, untransformed, hold their lockets high)
Sometimes, you feel weak...
(Lita smoothes the hair of a crying Alice)
And sometimes, the future looks bleak...
(Raye and Chad stand behind Tara, who is staring at her locket)
But I know, I know, all you need is love.
(The six Galactic Sailors stand in a half circle)
I know...
(The Planet Mistresses stand in a circle)
I know...
(The Galactic Sailors stand in a circle)
All you need is love...
(The Mistresses and Sailors all stand together, holding hands, with their
eyes closed)
All you need...is...love...
(A single purple rose sits in a vase)
* * * * * * * * * * * *
Okay, so there's seven.
"You're my destiny" (a line used by Hannah) is actually from a
song-"Destiny" by Jim Brickman.
If you don't believe the whole "everyone lives for one thousand
years"...well, it's in a manga. Read it with my own two eyes (thanks
Misty!). So there!
-Kate and Christina
Merry Christmas!!
"You could give me wings to fly and catch me when I fall...
Pull the stars down from the sky so I could wish on them all...
But I couldn't ask for more, cause your love is the greatest gift of
all..."
-"Your Love" by Jim Brickman
"And someday we'll find it...the rainbow connection...the lovers, the
dreamers, and me."
-"The Rainbow Connection" from The Muppet Movie
Author's Ramblings: The Seventh story. This one is going to be a bit more
serious than all the others. Don't be upset with me... Every story needs
a downer episode, right?
DISCLAIMER: Sailor Moon belongs to-Naoko Takeuchi, TOEI Animation,
Kodansha, and DiC Productions. Notice how these names do not include our
names? That's probably because I- Kate Butler-and her (points to blonde
girl who looks a bit like Lyra)-Christina Gifford-do not own Sailor Moon.
Never have, never will. However, the Galactic Sailors are ours. You
cannot have them. They're ours. However, if Naoko wants to buy them...
Note: Irina-the-concertmistress, Johanna-the-viola-player, Kevin-the-
orange-shirted-bassist, Matt-the-near-last-violinist, and Katie-the-
second-cellist are all real people. I borrowed them, and please don't
snitch on me. Well, actually, Johanna would be pleased! Oh, and Mr.
Bowling is really my high-school's orchestra teacher!
* * * * * * * * * * * *
Last Episode:
There was a ball. The Raiders went and tried to kidnap Reeny.
Hannah got drunk. Haley's old friend pissed everyone off. Endymion was a
jerk to Susan and Terrence after hearing the 'news'. Ken went back to the
states. Celeste is revealed as Chibi-Star. The Raider plot didn't work.
And that, my friends, is where the story begins...
* * * * * * * * * * * *
"Chibi-Star..." Touching the silken petals of the purple rose from
Richard, Lyra leaned back in her desk chair. "She's Celeste..." She
sighed, looking at a group photo from the ball. Haley, Alice, Tara,
Phoebe, Reeny, and herself, with little Celeste on Haley's shoulders.
Would that be their life from now on? A six-year-old girl living in the
shadow of her older sister and the other Sailor Scouts. And, if that was
the future, how would the little one survive?
A knock sounded at the door, and Lyra jumped, her rose landing
softly on the brown carpet.
"Are you alright?" Mina asked in a kind tone, walking into the
bedroom with a small smile on her face. "You didn't come down for
dinner."
Sighing, the teenager smiled sadly. "I'm fine, Ma," she assured
Mina in a shaky tone. "I was just...thinking..."
Her mother sat down on the edge of the bed. "This entire Chibi-Star
thing has really gotten you upset, hasn't it?"
Lyra nodded.
"Well, you can't worry about her, Lyra," Mina attempted, taking one
of her daughter's small hands. "She's one of the destined, Lyra, and you-
whether as Sailor Polaris or as yourself-cannot stand in the way of
that."
"But why her?" asked the girl, tears welling up in her brown eyes.
"Why not Becky or Sarah? Why did my destined sister have to be Celeste?"
Mina gulped and sighed deeply. "You should really ask your father."
"But you're the Planet Mistress!" protested Lyra.
Shrugging, the woman in the orange housedress and yellow apron rose
and ruffled some of the blonde curls. "Yes, but not even I know
everything," she admitted with a bit of amusement in her voice. "And
you'll figure it all out soon enough."
* * * * * * * * * * * *
"Alex, I don't want you to go drag-racing tomorrow!" protested
Michelle with a wavering voice.
The sandy-haired woman sighed and rolled her eyes. "Michi, I'll be
fine," she assured the musician. "You worry about me all too much."
Michelle shook her head quickly. "You don't understand. The seas
are stormy, and I can feel it!"
From her seat in the basement family room, Haley sighed deeply and
turned the page in her book. Nothing hurt more than listening to her
parents argue about things like drag racing. As Sailor Pluto had once
explained to the brunette girl, "Sometimes, when you fight, its because
you hate something. But, most often, its because you love something."
Hannah, who was actually playing Nintendo for the first time in her
life, sighed and shook her head. "I just don't understand those two
sometimes," she admitted. "Susan has always tried to explain their
relationship to me, and I still don't understand that how two people so
in love could fight so much."
The younger girl shrugged. "Don't you and Brian fight at all?" she
asked, still reading.
"Not really," Hannah reported. "I mean, we do have our words about
some things, but its never like those two..." Focusing back onto the
video game, she trailed slowly off.
Haley chuckled at her comic book before looking again at her
sometimes rigid and cranky elder sister. Beneath that sharp, severe
façade, there really was a loving Hannah Tomoe and Haley-despite her rude
words and annoying behaviors-really appreciated that side of Hannah.
"You love him, don't you?"
The raven-haired woman hit pause and proceeded to lean back, laying
on the light-green carpeting with her purple eyes on the younger girl.
"You know what, Haley?" she sighed wistfully. "I really think that..."
SLAM!
Both sisters jumped at the sound of crashing wood and quickly
sprang to their feet. "What the hell?" Haley exclaimed, throwing the
manga to the floor and involuntarily crouching into a battle-ready
position. "A Raider attack? Evil villains? Robbers?"
Rolling her eyes, Hannah mounted the stairs. "Thank you, Sailor
Impetuous. But I think that Alexandra just slammed the door too hard,
that's all."
"Oh."
Both girls took to the stairwell, walking slowly so as not to make
too much noise on the creaky steps. Sure enough, Michelle was now alone
in the big kitchen, slowly stirring her tea.
"You know what, girls?" she rhetorically asked, not looking up. "In
the twentieth century, she'd have stayed home if I felt the stormy seas.
Now...I don't know..." Michelle shook her head and looked up with teary
green eyes. "There are times that I wish she'd just leave and not come
back..."
Hannah gasped. "Now, Mom..."
"But I love her way too much," the musician admitted softly,
gulping down her drink. "Way too much."
* * * * * * * * * * * *
"You're being really quiet," sighed Terrence, sipping his hot
chocolate patiently. "What's wrong?"
Susan shrugged from across the table, rubbing her bloated stomach
lightly with one of her hands. "I'm just tired, Terry," she replied
softly, glancing out the restaurant window and looking at the full silver
moon that lit Crystal Tokyo.
Shaking his head, Terrence let his green eyes fall on Crystal
Palace, it's brilliant spires glittering in the pale moonlight. There had
been so many instances where he had glanced at photos of the Palace and
not understood its beauty, but he had a greater understanding, in a way.
It wasn't the Palace that was all so amazing as much as it was the
people who made Tokyo so wonderful.
"Hey, Sets," he softly murmured, reaching forward and taking her
hand. "Would you like to eat dinner at the Royal Palace with me some
night this week?"
She gasped, pressing her thin red lips tightly together. "At the
Palace?"
He chuckled. "Is there an echo in here?" he quipped playfully,
setting the mug down on the table. "Yes, I do want you to join me," he
said in a more serious tone. "You should spend some time around the
Palace and get to know everything about my family."
Trying not to laugh, Susan smiled mysteriously. "You forget how
long I've known your family, Terry," she reminded him sweetly.
Blushing a bit, he let out a sigh. "Just say you'll come, Sets.
Please come."
Susan slowly nodded, letting her gaze fall upon a small blue house
next to a large brown and white school. The school was Crystal Music
Academy.
And the house was home.
* * * * * * * * * * * *
Walking in a slow circle around the seven-pointed star, the Raider
King looked at the five remaining stones with disdain. Black, red, gray,
crimson, and silver-the symbols of the four living Raiders and the gem
for their guiding spirit.
"Your Majesty?" came a timid voice from behind him.
Whirling quickly around, the king glanced at Doubt and smiled slightly.
"Yes?"
Folding her hands together, she sat down in mid-air and proceeded
to float. "Well, uh, sir... I wanted to talk about the newest plot."
He rolled his crimson eyes. "I want you to cancel all previous
plots you have set up."
"Why?" Doubt inquired in a challenging tone. "Our newest idea will
work like a charm if you just..."
"I have," he interrupted, "a new plan."
His unexpected comment made her start. "A...new plan?" she
stammered nervously. "And what would that be?"
"I have heard," the King informed her, "that one of the Planet
Mistresses is very interested in drag racing."
"So?" she retorted, running her hands through the long white
strands that rimmed her pale face. "What does that have to do with..."
"Hush," he commanded. "Tomorrow, there will be an 'accident' at
White Streams racecourse, and the Raiders will start an anti-racing
committee."
Doubt smiled wicked, showing a pair of silvery fangs. "And we will
be the only on to comfort the unlucky Scout who loses their mother." As
she stretched and then allowed her feet to touch the ground, the evil
grin grew. "Brilliant, sir. Absolutely brilliant."
"Why do you think I thought of it?" he inquired with a toss of his
black hair. "But, never mind that. Dismissed."
She nodded, and a puff of white smoke took her away.
And-for the first time in months-the Raider King smiled.
* * * * * * * * * * * *
"Why," whined Phoebe while rubbing her upper arms, "are we out here
in the freezing cold?"
Lyra sighed and scooted closer on the metal bleachers to Richard.
At least he gave off some semblance of warmth.
Rolling a pair of teal eyes, Haley Ten'ou looked at her motley
group of friends and let out a steamy breath. "I told you," she responded
to the blue-haired teen's whining. "Michelle has a bad feeling about
today."
Gingerly leaning back against the next riser, Richard raised an
eyebrow. "I don't understand what you meant by that," the young man
commented, eyes half-closed in extreme ennui. "It's eight in the morning,
and you drag us all out here because someone had a 'bad feeling'..."
"You didn't have to come," Tara shot at him.
"I was supposed to be driving to Japan's finest Art museum with
Lyra," he responded coolly, "when she got this odd phone call and had to
run out to the racetrack." Sighing, Richard opened his dark blue eyes
completely and looked at the four girls. "But, Lyra's problems are my
problems, so..." Trailing off, he shrugged. "The only thing I don't
understand is..."
"Lyra!" whined the little blonde girl from her seat with Alice. "I
lost again!"
Laughing a bit, Alice leaned over, auburn hair falling gracefully
from behind her shoulders. "I'm sure that she thinks I cheat."
Celeste nodded. "Yep!" Picking up the deck of cards, she proceeded
over to where her sister sat and placed the cards on Lyra's lap. "Play
with me!" the girl commanded, crossing her arms.
Picking up a card, Richard chuckled. "What have we here?" he asked
in mock surprise, studying the deck, which had a Sailor Scout theme.
"More Sailor Scouts." Glancing at all the teen girls around him, he shook
his head. "Do you all have an obsession with the Scouts?"
"Yep!" grinned Phoebe, pacing up and down the bleacher seats
nearest the tracks. "I mean, it's not like they're bad people to..." Eyes
drawn to something near the track, she froze.
"Now up to the line..." came the loud announcement over the P.A.
system. "Alexandra Ten'ou with her car, Sky King, and a mysterious
opponent named 'Red' in his car, The Raider."
"Raider?" Haley ran toward the fencing and leaned so she could see
down on the track. "Red?"
"Are you thinking what I am?" asked a very nervous Alice, also
standing.
"On your mark..."
Jumping over the edge of the stands and landing agilely on the
ground, Haley sighed. "Alice, Pheebs-come with me," she demanded in a
calm tone. "The rest of you, wait up here and get ready to take the
situation to...drastic...measures."
As the both the blue and auburn haired girls leapt over the edge
and joined their brunette friend, Tara chewed on her lip. "Are you sure
that...uh..."
"Sure," answered Haley, cracking her knuckles. "Absolutely sure."
* * * * * * * * * * * *
"Well, this sucks." Reeny flopped down on her big four-poster bed,
sighing miserably. "Why do I have to stay home?"
The pink cat that was sitting on the desk rolled a pair of magenta
eyes. "Princesses," she informed her charge, "do not go to White Shores
Racecourse."
"And why not?" the girl whined, sitting up and glaring at her
feline guardian. "I'm sixteen years old, Di! You can't treat me like a
little kid anymore!"
Diana snorted. "Want to bet, Reeny?" she retorted. "You act like a
child, and you are still the Princess of the Earth, regardless!"
"And you," she told the cat, "are mean."
"Say what you like," sighed the animal, laying down and curling
into a ball, "but you're not going win this argument."
Reeny stuck out her tongue and got up, walking to the far side of
her bedroom.
"I don't see," she muttered, pacing, "how this is fair. Just
because I'm a Princess..." Looking into her long mirror, she took her two
pigtails and held them out at arms' length. "Mom was a Princess, wasn't
she? And SHE got to wander around Tokyo at her leisure." She flopped into
a chair. "And I get to sit around in my bedroom all day!"
There was a slight knock at the door, and a familiar face rimmed
with shoulder-length black hair peeked in. "Hi, Meatball," smiled Hannah.
"Can I come in for a couple of seconds?"
Reeny nodded, rising and smiling gently at her childhood friend.
"Hey, long time no see."
"Yes, well, that was my fault," she admitted, nervously wringing
her hands, just like in the twentieth century. "I'm not very good at
long-term correspondence."
The Princess gave her friend a tight hug. "Neither am I," she told
the raven-haired woman. "Neither am I."
Diana, who had been aware of the door opening, jumped off the oak
desk and walked over to where the young women stood. "What brings you
here, Saturn?"
"Well, Michelle had a bit of an...uh...episode...with Alex
yesterday," she stammered, blushing slightly. "And then, I had a
premonition, and Susan has a funny feeling..."
Flushing, Diana gulped. "Oh dear."
"And it all centers around drag racing, doesn't it?" asked Reeny,
fumbling through the closet for her parka.
Hannah nodded. "How'd you know?"
"Never mind that," Diana interrupted quickly. "The Princess is NOT
going to the drag strip, and that is final!"
"Bite me, you stupid fleabag," Reeny shot at the cat, pulling on a
thick down coat. "Desperate times call for desperate measures."
"But," the cat attempted, "Serenity would not be pleased..."
"Reeny's right!" cut in a new voice from the doorway. "Sometimes,
you got to do something that's against protocol."
Diana made a face. "Terrence..."
Stepping into the room, the prince bowed a bit to the Princess and
Hannah. "That's my name, don't wear it out," he told the cat. "These
girls have a mission-to protect the world from the Raiders, and to help
the Mistresses."
"So there!" Reeny stuck out her tongue.
Pushing up his gold-rimmed glasses, Terrence nudged the two out the
door. "So get gone!"
As they left, Diana glared at the man before her. "You're an idiot,
Terrence Chiba."
"So my girlfriend often tells me," he responded, bending over and
scratching the feline behind the ears. "But did you think that you'd
actually stop that girl?"
Diana made a face. "She has to learn some responsibility!" she shot
back, trying not to purr. "That girl is..."
"A lot like her mother," he finished casually, walking to the door.
"And you know what, Di?"
"What?" she asked in an annoyed tone.
"You're a lot like yours."
* * * * * * * * * * * *
"What's going on?" asked Richard as the three teens ran towards the
track. "I don't understand at all..."
Lyra shook her head. "I wish I could explain it to you,
Richard...but it's not important."
"Get set!" called the announcer's voice.
Climbing up onto the fencing, Celeste looked down onto the track.
"Do you guys see what I..."
Tara jumped up and grabbed the child, pulling her down into the
seats. "Shush," she demanded, lowering her green eyes. "It's not
important."
"But..." Pouting, the littlest Scout wandered off to a corner to
sulk.
Lyra and her raven-haired best friend exchanged nervous glances as
the cars began gunning their engines. Something was wrong... The air
about them smelled strange and the exhaust fumes from Alex's car seemed
to be the wrong color.
And overwhelming heaviness filled the air as the flag went down and
the announcer said the much anticipated syllable.
"GO!"
Just as the two cars took off down the track, Tara gasped and
jumped to her feet. "Danger!"
"No, really?" asked Lyra, sensing it as well. "We can't do
diddly-squat about it!"
As the three girls and one young man watched in complete horror as
The Sky King spun out of control and rammed head-on into a wall.
"ALEX!" yelled Hannah, running across the risers with Reeny on her
tail. "ALEX!"
Holding the woman back so that she wouldn't jump over the fencing
and run toward the track, Richard cleared his throat. "Would SOMEONE like
to explain to me what's going on?" he asked frantically, glaring at Lyra
with cold blue eyes.
Feeling a sudden heat inside her coat, the blonde sighed. "It's
hard to explain..." She reached into her pocket and wrapped her fingers
around the locket.
It was warm.
"Celeste?" she asked her little sister, who was staring in shock at
the wreck. "I want you to stay here with Richard, Hannah, and the
Princess."
"Are you and Tara going to..." Seeing the determined and angry look
on Lyra's face, Celeste nodded carefully. "Right."
Both teen girls jumped over the little railing, just as Haley and
the others had done, and took off toward the track.
As sirens began to wail in the distance, Richard looked at the
dark-haired woman, who had crumpled to her knees in grief. "Who is she?"
he asked the pink-haired Princess softly.
Reeny inhaled deeply, shaking her head. "This is Alexandra's older
daughter," she replied, staring out at the burning white car.
* * * * * * * * * * * *
The baton clattered to the ground as she conducted the orchestra.
"Ms. Kaioh?" stuttered the concertmistress, picking up the little
white stick as the teacher froze in place. "Are you alright?"
Gulping, Michelle let out a ragged sigh and began to shake. "Irina,
take over."
One of the bassists, a tall blonde boy with a bright orange
T-shirt, made a face. "But, Ms. Kaioh, you can't just leave!" he
protested as the woman started toward the doors.
"Hush, Kevin," Irina-the-concertmistress commanded, standing and
setting her violin on the empty seat. "We're starting at measure
sixty..."
The first-viola player ran a hand through her brown curls. "Do you
have any clue what could be wrong THIS time, Irina?" she inquired softly.
The Hispanic teen shrugged. "After three years of attending this
school, Johanna," Irina responded casually, "you give up on asking."
* * * * * * * * * * * *
"Take that!" Sailor Comet commanded, swinging brutally at Death
with a fist. "You won't live to see tomorrow!" Failing to land yet
another punch, the girl backed up, kicking at him yet still managing to
miss.
Sailor Phoenix avoided Violence's sword with an expert cartwheel
and glared at her brunette friend. "Comet..." she growled, backing up as
the armored man swung at her once again. "You're letting your anger take
over..."
The auburn-haired Scout dodged one of Death's fists as she looked
at the other two girl. "I'd let it take over too if I was in her boots!"
Aurora Borealis exclaimed as another double-team attempt with Comet
sailed far past its mark. "But let's talk later!"
An ambulance flew past, distracting Comet just long enough for one
of Death's fists to make contact with her chin. Falling backwards onto
her rump, the girl felt a warm trickle of blood trail down her chin.
That was too much for the Scout.
"I call upon the orbital power of the Comets!" she exclaimed, teal
eyes slowly shutting. "Surround this enemy, and make them pay for the
sins against Alexandra Ten'ou!"
Both the Raiders froze in place, looking first to each other and
then to the angry girl.
"Comet SUPREME Crater..." she announced, eyes flying open and arms
stretched far apart. "CLOSE!"
As the ground opened wide enough to swallow both of the men and
destroy them, another Raider appeared, clad in a shimmering gray gown.
"It's nice to know," she sighed, pressing a hand to the hole and
closing it before it caused any harm, "that I have to bail these men out
of everything."
"Who are you?" asked Sailor Polaris, running up to the battle
scene with a horrified expression on her pale face.
The Raider smirked, brushing a white strand of hair from her
eyes. "They call me Raider Doubt," she greeted with a mock bow. "The last
of the King's minions."
Earth, who had also just arrived, let her jaw drop. "King?" she
repeated in shock, gaping at the woman.
Doubt nodded and snapped her fingers. Both of the male Raiders
vanished, leaving her alone with the Scouts. "Yes, the Raider King. Our
master." Shrugging, she allowed herself to hover a bit above the ground.
"Of course, I am the master of disguise..." She snapped her fingers again
and became a believable facsimile of Zoicite. With another snap, she
became the original Sailor Moon, and, after one more snap, she became
Alexandra Ten'ou. "It's all relative," she smiled, fading back into her
Raider form. "And I intend to destroy you Scouts once and for all."
"Not without a fight!" roared Comet, clenching her fists. "We're
good and ready to chew you up and..."
Doubt snorted, cutting the girl off. "This is not the place nor is
it the time to battle, Scouts," she assured them with an evil gleam in
her black eyes. "I thoroughly enjoy having the home court advantage, and
I intend to do so." She winked and began to fade out of view. "Till then,
Galactic Sailors."
She was gone.
"Shit!" swore Aurora Borealis, kicking at a twisted piece of metal
that had fallen near her feet. "We lost her!"
"We lost the other two," sighed Comet, staring longingly at the
smothering car as the ambulance pulled quickly away, lights flashing and
sirens blaring the alarm. "And probably Alexandra..."
A timeless voice broke the ensuing silence. "She's a Planet
Mistress," sighed Susan, stepping forward. "And therefore has a high
constitution."
Sailor Comet turned to look at her aunt and finally allowed tears
to well up in her eyes. "Oh, Susan!" she cried, throwing herself into the
Time Guardian's warm embrace. "I'm so scared..."
"There, there," soothed the woman softly, entwining her hands into
the thick brown mop of hair. "There, there..."
Michelle came running up, tears streaming down her cheeks and
hair flying through the air while she sobbing. Throwing herself into her
friend's arms as well, she clenched her fists. "I felt it," she cried.
Susan sighed and closed her eyes a bit. "Soul-mates are always
with you," she suddenly declared, "no matter where they are."
And, in the distance, the sirens faded out of hearing range.
* * * * * * * * * * * *
Sitting alone in the kitchen, Phoebe sipped her hot cocoa,
continually staring at the brown telephone before her. Eyes unmoving, she
addressed the light orange cat next to her.
"Will they ever call?"
Orb raised one of his eyebrows. "You mean Haley and Hannah?" he
asked, confused.
Taking her gaze off the phone, she glared at the Moon Cat. "No,
stupid!" she shot. "My parents!"
"Whoa, down girl!" he retorted, jumping nearly a mile into the air
and backing slowly away from her. "I just assumed that you'd be a bit
more worried about Haley's mother because no one knows how she's doing."
Shaking his head, he noticed the unshed tears in his charge's ice-colored
eyes. "I'm sorry..."
"It's not fair," she softly commented, looking at a warm family
portrait that hung on the wall. "They left me here, alone, and are living
a real life without me."
Orb stepped closer to her, thinking of what he could say. "You
haven't heard from them?"
She gulped back the tears. "Well, I got an e-mail from Dad at work
and a letter telling me about the new house, but that was it..."
"Oh dear." Jumping onto her shoulder, he rested his chin on the top
of her head. "I wish I knew what to say without sounding snide."
"Around every corner is a memory," she sniffed, drawing her legs to
her chest. "I can't even look down the hallway without wanting to cry,
Orb." Burying her fingernails in the cat's fur, she felt one crystalline
tear roll down her cheek. "And I hate the feeling I have inside. I want
them to..."
The annoying clangor of the phone's bell cut Phoebe off and forced
her to jump into the air. "Hello?" she choked. Clearing her throat, she
tried again. "Hello?"
It was Lyra. "We're meeting at the hospital for a Scout meeting,"
she bleated, "and it's important."
"The hospital?" repeated the blue-haired girl, staring out the back
door at the aforementioned building. "How's Alexandra?"
The girl on the other end sighed. "Haley sounded really shaken up
but refused to tell me anything over the phone. We're meeting in the ICU
unit's main lounge."
"I'll be there as soon as I can," Phoebe assured her friend, saying
goodbye and hanging up the phone.
"What?" asked Orb nervously, jumping onto the floor.
Grabbing her coat, the teen sighed. "I have to go to the hospital."
She ran out the door, the cat close on her heels.
As the duo left, the phone rang again. After a few minutes, the
answering machine picked up.
"Hi, this is Pheebs!" it announced. "And I'm not home. Why not
leave a message?"
The person on the other end cleared their throat as the machine
picked up. "Hi, Phoebe? It's Mom," Amy said softly. "I was calling to say
I'm going to be in next week to see Susan..."
Clicking off, the answering machine began to rewind the tape, the
sound of it's mechanical voice echoing through the now empty home.
"End of tape. Deleting previous messages."
* * * * * * * * * * * *
"There's really been no word?" asked one of the male violinists
softly. "You've got to be kidding."
Alice slowly shook her head and looked at the rest of the
orchestra. "Frankly, if Ms. Kaioh knew what I'm doing right now, she'd
kill me," the cellist admitted. "But, since our emergency Saturday two-
hour rehearsal got canceled, I had to tell you guys SOMETHING..."
"Which reminds me," the second cellist, Katie, chimed in, "where
were you earlier this morning?"
Flushing, the first cellist stepped off the podium. "Never mind
that... Uh..." Rubbing her hands together for warmth, she smiled sadly.
"But, I'll be sure to tell you when we get any information."
Irina nodded a bit. "What is with Ms. Kaioh and Ms. Ten'ou,
anyway?"
"Yeah!" chimed in Johanna. "They spend a lot of time together..."
Kevin, the orange-shirted bassist, thought about this. "You know
what? Johanna's got a good point!" he announced in an enlightened tone.
Backing up, the teen blushed and smiled an embarrassed grin. "Now,
I have no right to comment..."
The concertmistress flushed. "She's right..."
"Thank you," breathed the auburn-haired Scout. "Now, if you don't
mind..."
It was then that the band-room doors burst open and Reeny raced in,
Celeste in tow. "Alice! We're meeting at the hospital NOW!"
Murmurs of 'the princess!' and 'why is she here?' coursed through
the group as the pink-haired teen looked blankly at the orchestra. "Get
to work!" she demanded of the instrumentalists.
Jumping, the lead violinist grabbed her bow off the stand. "C
concert scale. Now!"
The orchestra began playing in a perfect unison as Alice, Reeny,
and the little blonde girl started out the doors.
"Any news?" Alice inquired.
"Nope," Celeste sighed, latching onto the taller girl's hand.
"Haley wouldn't say."
Reeny sighed, listening to the chorus of strings as they strode to
the front doors of the school. "What I don't understand is why they
listened to me," she commented. "I'm just the Princess."
Alice chuckled. "That gives you power, Reen."
"But THAT MUCH power?" asked the then, sniffing the cool winter air
as she led the two others to her light blue car. "Then I think I like
this 'Princess' business after all!"
Shaking her head, Alice laughed heartily.
* * * * * * * * * * * *
"Our plan failed," sighed Death, rubbing a bruise on his thigh.
"And that Sailor Comet sure can kick."
Violence rolled his eyes. "Failed? We got that dumb Planet Mistress
good!" he exclaimed a bit soberly. "She's probably dead..." Pausing, he
smirked. "Or worse."
"Or worse?" asked Doubt, glancing up at him from her typing. "How
can you be worse than dead?"
Silence ensued while Raider Violence pondered that.
After a good ten seconds filled only with the sound of Doubt's
fingers on the keyboard, Death sighed again. "Anyway, when do we start
phase two?"
"When I'm done here," retorted the snowy-haired woman. "It won't be
much longer than twenty minutes."
The men nodded at her in approval before busying themselves with
other things.
* * * * * * * * * * * *
Seven Galactic Sailors and three Planet Mistresses, all in their
civilian clothes, sat in a large lobby at Crystal Hospital.
"No prognosis yet?" asked Alice for about the twelfth time in the
last five minutes. "What are they, stupid?"
Rolling a pair of green eyes, Tara glared at the girl, who was
working on a sewing assignment. "You could shut up and save us the
trouble of hitting you over the head."
Alice stuck out her tongue in response but continued sewing.
Sniffling, the brunette teen sighed deeply. "One of her legs was
broken in the crash, she was covered with burns, and unconscious when
they pulled her out of Sky King..." Trailing off, Haley leaned into
Susan's warm embrace.
"To think that this is all a hair-brained Raider plot!" exclaimed
Phoebe solemnly. "I have half a mind to hurt them all!"
Hannah, who was leaning against a Coke machine while sipping
coffee, shook her head. "I never thought this would happen."
"None of us did," Michelle agreed, shaking a bit under Reeny's
guiding arm. "As Scouts, we were always close to death. But this...THIS
is so different..."
Walking out of the small bedroom, the doctor sighed and smoothed
the folds of her white lab jacket. She was about thirty years of age,
with long sea-green tresses and darting gray eyes. "I'm looking for a Ms.
Michelle Kaioh, noted as next-of-kin."
Detaching herself from the Princess' warm embrace, Michelle rose
slowly to her feet. "I am Ms. Kaioh," she calmly said, wringing her
handkerchief.
"I would like to talk to you, Ms. Kaioh..." the young doctor
addressed the musician. "If you could step into my office..."
"No," Michelle told the doctor. "Anything you have to say, you say
to them, too."
The woman's gray eyes darted around the room at all the females.
"Is this the rest of your family?" she asked, incredulously.
Susan snorted softly. "You could say that we are," she responded in
lieu of the aqua-haired woman. "Most of us either saw the accident or are
close family members."
"Well," the doctor told them after a long pause, "my name is Doctor
Winifred Yioka, and I am Alexandra's ICU doctor." Taking a seat, she
smiled warmly at Michelle. "Ms. Kaioh, please sit down."
She did just that, gulping as Hannah came up and sat between
herself and Reeny. "Doctor Yioka..."
"Windy," smiled the woman.
Michelle nodded. "Windy, please tell me the truth. How is she?"
Windy's face suddenly turned very grim. "One of her legs is in dire
need of reconstruction surgery, and she's covered with second-degree
burns." Seeing Michelle's shocked face, the doctor paused for a long
moment before continuing. "She punctured her spleen, broke three ribs,
and has a major concussion."
This was too much for Hannah, and she began to sob uncontrollably
into Reeny's pink parka. "Meatball..." she whispered, calling the
Princess by her virtually unknown nickname.
"Shh..." cooed Reeny calmly. "Shh..." Patting her friend's head,
the Princess smiled feebly at Windy. "Go on... Don't mind her..."
Nodding once again, Windy allowed her gray eyes to make contact
with Michelle's green eyes, filled with tears...tears that must, observed
the doctor, take a super-human strength to hold back. "Michelle," she
said, "anyone else would have died as soon as the car hit the wall. But
your sister..."
"No," Michelle interrupted the doctor. "My girlfriend."
Windy smiled, not a bit phased. "But, your girlfriend lived. And
will live through the leg surgery." Beaming, the doctor rose and
stretched. "I have never, in all my years, seen someone as strong as
Alexandra Ten'ou. You're all lucky that she's so strong."
"We're just as strong," Celeste grinned sweetly. "We're her
friends!"
Putting on a polite smile, the young woman brushed a green hair
from her eyes. "She's still out from the anesthetic, but..."
"Anesthetic?" repeated Haley, looking up from the warm arms of
Susan. "You operated?"
"For the spleen," Windy replied, looking down at the brunette. "Let
me guess... Apprehensive teenage daughter?"
Beaming, the teen nodded.
"She'll be fine, you all," the doctor finished, starting down the
hall. "And, since the reconstruction in tomorrow, she'll be home in a
week."
Thanking the doctor, Michelle wrapped her slender arms around her
elder daughter's neck and shed the tears she had been so keen on holding
back.
But she shed them in joy.
* * * * * * * * * * * *
"Serenity!" called one of the many handmaidens in her chipper tone.
"There's a telegram for you, m'Queen." Placing the yellow envelope on the
Queen's desk, Lisa cocked her head of blonde hair to one side. "M'Queen?"
Stretching, the Queen of the Earth yawned and picked up her head.
"Hmm?" she muttered, glancing blankly at the maiden. "Oh! Lisa! Hello!"
Blinking her big blue eyes, the eternal woman smiled politely. "I'm
sorry; what did you say?"
The handmaiden giggled a bit. "Oh, m'Queen, you are such a riot!"
she exclaimed lovingly. "I came to give you that telegram." Lisa gestured
to the yellow envelope.
Blushing a little, Serenity nodded sweetly. "Thank you very much,"
she responded, taking the paper into her small hands. "Has there been any
news on Mistress Uranus' condition?"
"No, m'Queen," she responded, "but the Prince Terrence was going to
pick up the Mistress Pluto and the Princess Serenity and will surely
return with some news."
"Pluto?" Serenity picked up her golden crown and placed it upon her
head. "Are they going out tonight?"
Flushing, the younger woman fiddled with the clasp on her yellow
dress. "The Mistress Pluto is to dine at the Palace tonight, m'Queen."
Jumping up, she glanced at Lisa. "The first item of business is to
add 'kill Terrence' to my planner," mused the young Queen in a serious
tone. "And the second is to help me set up the dining room!"
As the two women frantically rushed out of office, Luna opened an
orange eye as she was hit in the head by something. "What in Heaven's
name?" she muttered, glancing with obvious annoyance at the envelope.
"Sometimes, I think that our Queen is not much less than an older Reeny."
Taking the yellow paper in her mouth and depositing it upon the mighty
oak desk, the black cat left the office, closing the door behind her.
* * * * * * * * * * * *
"Richard?" Lyra asked, scuffing her feet together as the two rode
in the little black sports car. "I was wondering..."
As he rolled to a slow stop at the traffic light, Richard looked
down at the blonde girl next to him. The pale red light from the signal
gave her an odd but beautiful glow. He smiled warmly, getting a nervous
smile in return. "Yes?"
"Uh..." Dismissing her original question, Lyra let her smile grow.
"How come I didn't see you at school the last couple of days?" she
inquired.
As the light turned green, he accelerated and then let out a sad
sigh. "It's all my dad's doing," he told her softly, turning the corner.
"He decided that I shouldn't attend Crossroads anymore... Which, of
course, is extremely hypocritical of the man."
"Why is that?" she asked softly, brown eyes studying his face.
"My dad graduated from Crossroads, that's all," he confided in her,
pulling up to a small apartment building. "And I don't think that's very
fair." Shrugging, he put the car in park and shut it off. "Well, here we
are."
"Why did I agree to eat dinner with you and your parents again?"
inquired the blonde girl nervously, pulling her black skirt straight.
He took one of her tiny hands and squeezed it. "Because you're a
very, very brave girl," he smirked, leading her to the front door of the
building.
* * * * * * * * * * * *
Stuffing a few more French fries in her mouth, Haley sighed sadly
and glanced at her sister, who was curled up in Brian's embrace. "You
know what I don't understand?" she asked Hannah in a slightly annoying
tone.
Opening a single purple eye, the older girl sat up a bit. "Give me
a fry and I'll pretend to care," she yawned, holding out her hand.
Chortling, the blonde man kissed the top of his girlfriend's head.
"Well, I want to know," he responded to the teen. "Tell me."
As Haley filled her sister's hand with the greasy food, she leaned
back in the armchair. "Why would the Raiders want to kill Alexandra?"
The words catching Hannah's otherwise diverted attention, the
Mistress of Saturn pulled herself from Brian's arms and looked
thoughtfully at the brunette girl. "To tell the truth," she admitted, "I
have no clue."
"Exactly," responded the teen, digging her teeth into a piece of
celery. "Don't you wonder what that means?"
Brian stole one of Hannah's fries and chewed on it carefully.
"Could they be onto you guys?" he inquired softly, scooting protectively
toward his girlfriend. "And, if so..."
"But we Scouts," cut in Haley, "make a point of staying together as
a group. The Raiders would never be able to pick us out as belonging to
our separate mothers."
Hannah nodded in agreement. "And Haley would be the least obvious
to them because she's adopted."
A heavy silence filled the air as the three pondered upon Haley's
musing. After a few minutes, Brian sighed and shook his head. "So, you'd
never guess what I saw while at the hospital."
"What?" asked his girlfriend softly, nuzzling closer to him.
He smiled sweetly. "I saw a sign-up for an anti-drag racing
organization. Meets at White Shores every Sunday morning."
"That's tomorrow," observed Haley. "Want to go?"
Hannah nodded. "I really would. Brian?"
"I'm in if you are," he cooed. "If you are..."
* * * * * * * * * * * *
As her twin green eyes slowly opened, Alexandra forced a wary
smile.
Michelle was asleep sitting-up in a hard plastic hospital chair
next to her, clutching one of Alex's bandaged hands.
The moon, which had risen in its nightly dance but two hours ago,
shone through the window, casting a silver glow on the aqua tresses.
Taking the hand wrapped around hers, Alexandra pushed her lips into
its palm. "Michi..." she murmured, pushing a few strands of hair from the
closed eyes.
Sitting up and yawning a bit, she smiled warmly and leaned forward
to give the blonde a gentle hug. "I was so worried," she whispered into
the woman's ear, trying desperately to rest her head on Alex's chest. "I
love you so much, and I thought that I'd lost you..."
"You knew, didn't you?" she asked, smoothing Michelle's hair. "You
felt it." Seeing her lover nod and feeling her shudder with sobs,
Alexandra gave her a tighter hug. "The minute I hit that wall, you know
what I thought of? You."
"Me..." sniffled Michelle, crying lightly. "Oh...Alex..."
"Shhh." The Mistress of Uranus cupped the other woman's chin her
hand. "You can't always get so emotional, you know that?"
Smiling through her tears, the musician let her eyes meet Alex's,
both pairs the exact same color of green. "You can be such a brat," she
choked.
The blonde chuckled and pulled Michelle into a tight embrace and
passionate kiss.
* * * * * * * * * * * *
"I'm so glad you could join us for dinner," smiled Serenity
politely across the table at her green-haired friend. "It's not every day
that the Mistress of Pluto comes to dine at your home."
From her seat on the windowsill, Reeny snorted. "Mom, this is
really no time to talk like an ambassador," the Princess protested,
staring idly out at the Moon. "She's just Puu."
Flushing, Susan folded her hands. "I'm just glad to be here with
friends," she smiled, stressing the last word. "I haven't spent proper
time with Terrence..."
Looking at his brother, the brown-haired Prince raised an eyebrow.
"How do these girls get away with using such big words?" he sarcastically
asked, sipping his wine.
"Maybe," suggested Endymion with a sly smirk, "you should ponder
on why you so often agree with the Princess."
"Not you too!" whined Terrence. "Help!"
Changing the subject, Reeny let out a deep sigh. "Do you ever
wonder how Helios is?" she wistfully inquired, staring out at the night
sky.
The adults all looked at one another but said nothing, stunned into
a nervous silence.
Bustling into the room, Lisa held out a large pad of paper. "Didn't
mean to be late, m'Queen," she blushed, standing nervously at the corner
of the table closest to the blonde woman. "Now, what would you like to
eat for dinner, my lieges and ladies?"
Reeny grinned and leapt off the windowsill and into her chair.
"Pizza!"
Rolling his blue eyes, Endymion shook his head. "A well-done steak,
please."
"Same here," agreed his younger brother, pushing the glasses up on
his nose.
Serenity chewed thoughtfully on her lower lip. "That actually
sounds really good," she smiled, looking to her handmaiden. "I'll take
one!"
The younger woman flushed but didn't say anything. Looking
expectantly at the last woman, Lisa smiled politely. "Mistress Pluto?"
she prompted.
"Pickled pig's snout." Susan brushed a green hair from her eyes.
"With extra gravy."
Clearing her throat nervously, the servant managed a chuckle. "Yes,
Mistress Pluto. Coming right up."
Shaking his head, Terrence laughed at his girlfriend. "Pregnant
women..." he muttered.
"And whose fault is it that I'm pregnant?" shot back the Guardian
of Time, lowering her maroon eyes.
Endymion rolled his eyes. "Here we go again..." he muttered.
* * * * * * * * * * * *
"Pass the rolls, please," smiled Lyra, nervously toying with her
napkin.
Molly smiled politely, looking to her husband, who was busy
reading. "Melvin?" she asked, gesturing toward the basket of bread.
"Right, right," he mumbled, handing the basket to the blonde girl.
"I knew that."
"Dad..." growled Richard, a blush slowly creeping across his face.
"Would you please put the book down?"
The computer programmer adjusted his thick glasses. "I'd love to,
but this is required reading, Rich."
Lyra groaned inwardly and continued to pick at her salmon. The
entire dinner had been a disaster, with Melvin ignoring her mere
existence and Molly trying to dig for personal information while
remaining polite.
"Melvin!" scolded red-haired woman, standing quickly up. "Can I see
you in the next room, please?"
"But..."
"Now!"
As his parents got up, Richard looked guiltily at his lap. "I'm
really sorry, Lyra..." he sighed, shaking his head. "This is a disaster."
"Can I be blunt?" she nervously inquired, smiling a little.
He nodded, expecting the worst.
Standing slowly, she came around and sat next to him in an empty
chair. "Richard," she smiled, taking his hand in hers. "I really like
you."
His blue eyes snapped up and stared at her. "What?"
Chuckling to herself, the girl smiled warmly at him. "I know that
we're just friends, and that's great, but..."
All the color draining out of his face, the young man stared
blankly at her. "Just friends?" he gasped, amazed.
"Well, aren't we?" she questioned, cocking her head to the side.
"I mean-sure-the movie WAS a love story...and there was that whole ball
thing, but the museum didn't work out and the pizza dinner was just
fortuitous... not to mention tonight..."
Richard laughed heartily and leaned forward, wrapping her in a
tight hug. "You're so silly!" he announced loudly, smiling. "I really do
like you, Ms. Lyra Star Mokoti." Pulling away, he looked deeply into her
pecan-colored eyes. "I asked you out because I felt something when we ate
that...fortuitous, was it?...pizza dinner, and I can't get you out of my
head."
"You're...kidding?" stuttered the teen, amazed. "You actually like
me?"
He nodded a bit. "Of course I do, Lyra," he smiled, pulling her
into another tight embrace. "Of course."
From her spot in the doorway, Molly Umino let her blue eyes fly to
Melvin. "So, that's squared away, isn't it?"
Taking off his glasses and polishing them on his white business
shirt, the man wrapped a protective around his wife's slender wait. "I
think so," he agreed, watching proudly as his son held Lyra close. "It's
an amazing thing, isn't it?"
"What?" requested Molly, a bit confused.
"That they've found each other without our poking and prodding." He
slipped the glasses back on in a fluid movement, sighing wistfully. "I
wish we could have done that."
Chortling, she leaned into his arms. "Well, you always said that
Serena was an amazing person, right?"
"I said that?" kidded Melvin, leading his wife out of the kitchen
doorway and into the family room.
* * * * * * * * * * * *
"Daddy?" asked a small voice.
Andrew looked slowly up from his paperwork and glanced down at the
blonde girl before him. "Hi, Celeste," he smiled, hoisting her into his
lap. "What do you need, sweetie?"
She sniffled, and he could see stains on her cheeks from what had
most likely been numerous tears. The usually chipper green eyes were
bloodshot, and she looked extremely upset. "I'm... I'm really worried,
Daddy," she stuttered, staring into his brown eyes. "I saw a lady almost
die this morning, and I realized that...that..."
"That you'll die someday?" he inquired, lightly touching one of her
pale cheeks. "Is that what you're so worried about, little one? That
you're going to die?"
Nodding, Celeste leaned into her father's arms. "I'm a Sailor
Scout!" she cried loudly, not looking up. "And so was Mistress Uranus!
But she's lying in a hospital bed and I'm right here... Who's to say that
I won't be next?" She stared up with teary moss-colored eyes.
"There's no promise you won't." He glanced at Mina, who was
watching the whole scene from the sink with a minor interest. "There's
this thing called faith, little one..."
Celeste sniffled. "So, I just have to believe in myself?"
"I know," Andrew admitted, "that I'll sound like Tuxedo Mask,
but... That's really all there is to it. "
Drying her hands on an orange towel, the blonde woman walked over
and glanced down at her little girl-a girl who was quite like the Scout
of Love had been at age six. "Today has been a bad day, hasn't it,
'Leste?"
"Yep," said the girl, a tear still dripping down her cheek. "But,
maybe tomorrow will be better."
Mina smiled proudly at her daughter. "I think you're right," she
told the girl. "I really think you're right."
* * * * * * * * * * * *
"That was fun," smiled Susan, standing beside her red corvette. "I
really enjoyed spending that time with you."
Terrence laughed lightly. "Did you like your supper, dear?" he
joked, putting his hands in his pockets.
Laughing, Susan tossed a few strands of green hair behind her.
"That was great, too," she replied. Noticing his wistful gaze, she froze
in mid chuckle. "What?"
"Sets, you know what?" Terrence put his hands onto her shoulders
and stared hard into her eyes. "You are the most wonderful, provocative,
carefully cold, beautiful, deep, impossible, and yet perfect woman I have
ever been near." Kissing her tenderly, he smiled. "In all my life, few
relationships have been so fulfilling and fun."
Not quite knowing what to say, Susan threw her arms around his neck
and gave him a passionately, breath-taking kiss.
Pulling away slowly, Susan climbed into the car and grinned. "It's
kind of funny that my best ever relationship came out of getting
pregnant," she commented as she put the key in the ignition.
He nodded and, as the car drove off, smiled sadly as he found the
planet Pluto in the night sky, sparkling with a beauty that could only
rival that of Susan.
Saying a silent prayer to the planet, he made his way into Crystal
Palace.
* * * * * * * * * * * *
"They did what?" Orb looked doubtfully at the three girls, who were
sitting around in the Urawa's living room watching Sunday morning
cartoons. "You're kidding, right?"
Yawning, Phoebe stretched and poured some more coffee into her cup.
"No, I'm not." She blew on the drink to cool it. "Haley told me that
there was an anti-drag racing committee, and she was so psyched about
going that..."
Cutting her off, Lyra laughed at the cat. "You worry too much!" she
exclaimed while helping herself to some oatmeal. "It's not like the whole
thing's a Raider pl..."
Everyone stared at the blonde girl as she trailed off and looked
guiltily at the floor.
"You don't think..." Alice shuddered, gulping nervously. "It
couldn't be..."
The cat growled at the girls. "NOW you understand what I'm
saying!" he shot at them as they all nervously stared at one another. "If
it's a Raider plot, Haley is a sitting duck!"
"Not to mention," added Alice, "Hannah and Brian."
"Oh, dear..." sighed Lyra, depositing her bowl unceremoniously upon
the coffee table. "Well, we have to get going."
"What?" Orb stared at her with wide gold eyes.
Phoebe stood too, downing the rest of her coffee in one fluid
movement. "You heard us," she told him nonchalantly, still half-asleep.
"We're going to the drag strip to try and save Haley."
He attempted to protest the idea, but Alice cut him off.
"You have to call Reeny," she assured him. "And Tara. Probably
Susan, too." Rubbing some of the sleep from her eyes, she stretched.
"We'll make this an all out-Mistresses and Scouts, protecting the world
together."
Nodding solemnly, he smiled up at the three teen girls. His charge,
Phoebe... Mina's daughter, Lyra... and Artemis' new care-taker, Alice...
All Galactic Sailors in their own right.
"Good luck," he smiled at them as they raced out the door. "Good
luck to you all."
* * * * * * * * * * * *
"Where the heck is Ms. Kaioh?" whined Johanna, stretching and
almost knocking a music stand over with her feet. "I'm missing some of
the best Sunday morning cartoons right now!"
Irina, who was flipping through a battered manga, glanced at the
curly-haired teen with obvious annoyance. "This isn't like her, and it
won't be," she responded casually. "She's been acting like a fruitcake
lately, and I won't deny it."
"Yeah!" chimed in Kevin, still wearing his repulsive orange shirt.
"And, besides, I'm missing wrestling!"
Everyone groaned in exasperation, and various blunt objects flew
toward the bassist's head.
Katie smiled. "Well, who cares?" she asked smugly. "Once again,
Alice ditched, so I get to play the solos!"
"What IS with that girl, anyway?" asked Matt, a violinist who sat
near the end of the section. "She's always running out, complaining about
lockets, hanging out with Ms. Ten'ou's sarcastic daughter..."
"MS. TEN'OU HAS A DAUGHTER?" chorused the orchestra, staring at him
in disbelief.
"Yeah," remarked he, not phased at all by the mass confusion. "Her
name is Haley."
Kevin hit himself in the head. "Haley Ten'ou, DUH! She's in my
modern issues class!"
"And..." prompted Johanna nosily.
"She's nice," he responded, plucking at his bass strings.
Just then, the doors burst open, and Michelle strode quickly in, an
older man with wild gray hair in tow.
"Well, class," she greeted them quickly, "I'm glad to see you've
made it here."
"How's Ms. Ten'ou?" asked Katie stupidly.
Johanna beamed her over the head.
"Fine," shot Michelle coolly, placing the score on her stand. "Now,
I can't run this rehearsal because my two daughters disappeared this
morning and I have to find out where they ran off to."
Matt grinned from his seat. "Do they have names?" he asked evilly.
Rolling green eyes, the conductor shot him a stern look. "Hannah
and Haley," she sighed, warranting fifty rough gasps in unison. Ignoring
them, she gestured to the man. "This is Mr. Tom Bowling, and he's a
visiting conductor from the States," she told the group. "You're going to
listen to him, and BEHAVE!"
"Yes, ma'am," responded Irina sweetly while the others all
snickered.
Mr. Bowling stepped onto the podium and smiled warmly at Michelle.
"I've got it all under control, Ms. Kaioh."
"Good." The musician waved to her class before jetting off the
podium and out of the room.
"Now," Mr. Bowling said. "Does anyone here know what time this
class ends?"
All the kids sniggered.
* * * * * * * * * * * *
"So, Susan, what REALLY brings you here?" inquired Alex, sipping
her hot coffee. "I mean, small talk isn't your thing, and I know it."
The green-haired woman blushed a little, but managed to change the
subject. "How's the coffee here?"
The blonde made a face. "Gross. I really don't like decaf," she
retorted, studying her friend's face expertly. "But, come on! You're
denying something."
Giving up, Susan took in a sharp breath. "Frankly, the Scouts are
in danger," she told the injured woman. "There's going to be a battle of
incredible proportions today, and all the Scouts are going to risk their
lives to save one."
"Who?" asked the racer, already knowing the answer.
"Haley," the Guardian of Time responded softly. "It will be Haley."
Nodding, Alex started to pull the IV out of her hand. "Well then, I
know what needs to be done, right?"
"That's just it!" yelled Susan, digging her red fingernails into
the woman's free hand. "I've seen the future in both cases, and-if you
fight... Let's just say that, in that instance, you're not IN the
future!"
Staring blankly into burgundy eyes, she considered this. "Both
cases?"
She ran her hand nervously through green tresses. "If you don't
fight, you live. And Haley lives. But..."
"But?"
"There's a good chance that Michelle will get hurt." Letting out a
breath, Susan looked at her friend. "That's why I had to tell you this.
If your soul-mate is in danger, you'll feel it, right?"
"Yes..." sighed Alex, sipping the drink once again.
"Exactly. You see...if you feel it and fight, you die. But, if you
feel it but still let Michelle get hurt, then everyone will live." Seeing
tears well up in a pair of green eyes, the woman gulped. "It's the
hardest thing you'll have to do, Uranus."
"It's starting, isn't it?" asked the other, ignoring the use of her
Mistress name. "The killing, the pain..."
"And," nodded Susan, "it won't end until the Raiders are banished
from this world."
Holding a hand to her face, Alexandra did something completely
unexpected.
She cried.
* * * * * * * * * * * *
Tara ran into her mother's room, where the Mistress of Mars was
working on paperwork.
"Mother!" called the teen, bowing a bit. "Mother!"
Raye looked up from the stack of bills and blew a black hair from
her eyes. "Yes, Tara?" she asked sweetly, with a tad of annoyance in her
voice.
The teen tried to smile, but it didn't work and she ended up
grimacing. "There is to be a battle today against the Raiders, and all
able Mistresses are to come."
"Already?" asked the adult, rising slowly. "I would guess that
they'd wait until after lunch."
Disregarding the comment, Tara looked at her mother. Green eyes met
purple ones. "Do you want to fight, Mother?"
"No," admitted the temple priestess softly, putting on hand on her
daughter's slim shoulder. "But I do want to make the world safe again,
and there's only one way to do that."
"Which is killing," sighed the teen with a sad smile.
Smiling at her child, Raye shrugged. "I've fought a lot in my life,
Tara, and I've learned only one thing from it." Removing the beads from
her wrist, she shook her head. "When it involves evil, dear one, killing
is inevitable."
The teen nodded. "So, shall we?"
Her mother held the beads high. "Mars Eternal Power..."
Tara raised the locket. "Earth Galactic Power..."
"MAKE UP!"
* * * * * * * * * * * *
"Mom!" Reeny went tearing through the marble hallways of Crystal
Palace, losing all her klutzy ways as she ran. "Mom!"
Turning a sharp corner, the Princess felt her breath catch within
her throat and managed to gulp. "Mom?"
Neo-Queen Serenity was sitting on a windowsill with a torrent of
tears streaming quickly down her pale cheeks as she stared out of the
window and down at the rose gardens below. "Hello Reeny," she choked, not
looking at the teen. "I'm glad you came."
"What's wrong?" asked the pink-haired girl, approaching her mother
more slowly than she had previously been. "Did something happen?"
The Queen chuckled. "Can't fool you, can I?" she rhetorically
asked, glancing at her daughter with tear-filled blue eyes. "I got a
telegram yesterday but never read it until this morning..."
"And?"
"You're like I was!" she observed with a wistful smile. "Always
nosy in that cute sort of way. Oh, Reeny..." She gulped back tears as her
eyes turned back to the gardens below where a few children-daughters and
sons of handmaidens, most likely-played in the cool winter air. "Remember
how the Silver Crystal touched all and gave everyone on Earth a life span
of about one thousand years?"
The Princess nodded, smiling at the antics of one little red-haired
girl in particular. "So?"
Serenity shook her head. "That doesn't protect against accidents or
heart attacks, and..." Sighing, the Queen wiped a tear away. "Your Uncle
Sammy died two nights ago of acute heart failure."
"WHAT?" Reeny felt tears come to her eyes. "Uncle Sammy?"
"He was old," the Queen sighed, fingering one of her two pigtails.
"And he was sick. But I constantly missed him..."
The Princess looked to her mother and let a tear roll down her
cheek. Carefully but slowly, the teen climbed into her mother's arms and
accepted a warm hug. "Oh, Mama..." she cried, tears streaming down her
cheek. "I have bad news besides." Red eyes sparkled as she glanced at the
Queen. "I'm to go into a battle and..." Sitting up a bit, she set a stoic
expression to her face. "And I am to take the Silver Imperium Crystal
with me."
"The crystal?" Serenity sighed. "Then make it so, Reeny. You are
the Princess." A glowing silver orb appeared in the air and floated into
the girl's open hand. "Good luck, my dearest one."
Willing the crystal to phase into the Locket of the Galactic Moon,
Reeny smiled enigmatically. "I'll need it," she replied, holding the
golden disc above her head. "Bye, Mom."
"Bye, Reen," the Queen of the Earth said softly, an amazed smile
crossing her face.
"Moon Galactic Power!" Reeny yelled, her voice powerful as it
echoed through the white marble halls of the Palace. "MAKE UP!"
* * * * * * * * * * * *
"I don't like this whole arrangement one bit!" announced Haley,
nervously glancing around the White Shores Racecourse. "Hannah?"
The young woman clutched nervously onto Brian's hand. "Yep. It's
the Raiders again."
"Raiders?" asked the blonde man apprehensively. "Should we be doing
something?"
Haley groped around for the Locket of Comets while Hannah pulled a
string of glass beads from her purse.
"Guys?" gulped Brian nervously.
Taking her locket into her left hand, Haley closed her eyes and
drank in the warmth it was sending out. "We're going to become our alter
egos."
Nodding, the dark-haired woman looked at the black and purple beads
solemnly. "You've got to hide, Brian."
"But..." he protested, making a face. "You can't risk your lives."
His girlfriend laughed and drew him into a tight hug. "As a mortal,
Brian, you can't possibly understand how many times I've nearly died,"
she chuckled, looking into his endless hazel eyes. "Or how many times I
actually have...I've died twice before."
"What?" he gasped in shock.
"I was born as Hannah Tomoe, and I died in a lab accident. My
father let an evil entity take me over to save my life. I was killed as
Mistress Nine, then, and allowed to be reborn." Smiling a bit, she kissed
him lightly on the cheek. "Death holds no fear for me..."
"It should!" called a strong male voice. Raider Death jumped down
from the tall announcing deck of the track. "Prepare for your end, Sailor
Comet!"
Hannah gasped. "ME?" she asked, tossing her beads quickly to Haley.
"I'm not a Sailor Scout!"
"Yeah, right," retorted the Raider, grabbing her by the front of
her shirt. "Your hair and eye color must change when you untransform
or...something..." he insisted menacingly. "And I intend for you to meet
your maker."
Pulling back his fist, Death prepared to punch her square in the
nose.
"Haley!" she called. "Now!"
"Comet Galactic Power!" the brunette screamed, forcing the Raider
to whirl around. "MAKE UP!"
* * * * * * * * * * * *
"It's starting..." muttered Alexandra.
Doctor Yioka looked up from where she was operating on the woman's
broken leg. "Did you say something?"
Heavily sedated but still awake, the blonde groaned. "The fighting
is going starting..." she mumbled, staring at the light-haired doctor.
"Haley and Hannah are in danger but I can't help..."
The three operating room attendants looked to Windy for guidance
and the doctor shooed then all out quickly. "Alexandra?" she inquired
softly.
"Here I am..." she continued. "A Planet Mistress and instead of
fighting I'm having my leg reconstructed..."
"Planet Mistress?" stuttered Windy. "Is that how you lived through
the accident?"
Alexandra groaned and drifted off to sleep.
Gritting her teeth, Windy Yioka shook her head. "Well, I'll be..."
She smiled to herself, continuing her work.
* * * * * * * * * * * *
"Sailor Comet!" announced the teen as she came out of her
transformation sequence. "Nice to see you again, Death. What's up?"
"Why...you..." Letting the woman free, the Raider glared at the
silver-and-orange fukued girl. "So you're one of those rotten Scouts?"
Smiling smugly, she lunched the beads into the air and toward
Hannah, who caught them cleanly and dragged Brian off the battlefield.
"That would be me," she greeted him. "So, how ARE you doing, Death? I
haven't seen you since yesterday and..." Rolling away from a bolt of dark
energy, she smiled sweetly. "Well, I was worried about you."
"Really?" he asked, jumping away as she kicked at him.
"Yep!" she assured him, attempting to knock his feet out from under
him. "I was afraid I wouldn't be able to kill you."
Death let another bolt of energy fly, and this one hit its mark.
"ARGH!" yelped Comet in pain as the darkness flew through her
veins.
"Stop!" came Sailor Phoenix's voice.
Comet opened her clenched eyes and saw Sailors Phoenix, Polaris,
Earth, and Aurora Borealis come running up, with the Mistresses of Mars
and Saturn close behind. "Hey guys..." she choked, passing out.
"Haley!" yelled Saturn, dropping to her knees in the purple satin
gown. "Are you okay?" Seeing that she was unconscious, the youngest
Mistress bristled. "You monster!" she screamed at the Raider, who was
watching the scene in amazement. "You could have killed her!"
"That was the plan," he coolly responded as the gleaming Silence
Glaive appeared in her hand. "Now, step back and contemplate defeat."
Another Raider, who was completely covered in red armor, appeared.
"Sorry I'm late, Sailor Scouts," Violence smirked, drawing out his sword.
"Who wants to fight me?"
Phoenix closed her eyes. "Phoenix Heat..." she began as her blue
braids levitated. "FLASHING!"
The Raider swung his sword, parrying the attack.
As Aurora, Phoenix, Polaris, and Earth battled against the red-
garbed man, the Mistress of Saturn pointed her Glaive toward Death.
"That," she spat, looking to the injured Scout, "is my sister, you scum."
"That's nice," responded Death, throwing out a ball of power.
Saturn held out an idle hand and the ball disappeared magically.
"I don't think," she told him coldly, taking a step forward, "that you
understand." She touched the tip of the Glaive lightly into his chest.
"I am the Mistress of Saturn, and I will avenge the wrongs you have
created."
Seeing both Sailor Chibi-Star and Mistress Venus appear, she waved
a hand toward the other battle scene. "Help them, Mina! I've got this
under control."
"You sure?" asked the fellow Mistress.
"Positive," replied Saturn. "Go."
Seeing the opening he so needed, Death kicked the legs out from
under the Scout and proceeded to use his magic to throw the Glaive from
her grasp. "Nice try," he smirked, pulling a dagger out of midair and
holding it to her throat.
"Death," she whispered angrily, "holds no fear for me."
* * * * * * * * * * * *
Michelle dropped her coffee cup as a tight feeling passed through
her chest. "Hannah," she softly whispered, shaking. "She's in danger!"
Taking the beads from her wrist, the woman looked solemnly at a
picture of her and Alex, remembering something that Susan had mentioned
the day before.
"Soul-mates are always with you, no matter where they are."
The woman laughed nervously. "I have to fight without Alex, don't
I?" she asked the sky.
Sailor Pluto appeared, clad in a fuku that was getting tighter as
the Scout got more pregnant. "Are you ready to go, Neptune?"
She nodded, holding up the beads. "Neptune Eternal Power!" she
called. "MAKE UP!"
* * * * * * * * * * * *
"Aurora Borealis..."
Violence threw Sailor Earth into the attacking Scout in one quick
movement, both landing near the already knocked-out Phoenix. Sailor
Polaris gulped and took a nervous step back. Four of the five present
Scouts were unconscious, as was the Mistress Mars.
The teen took a deep breath, knowing the truth.
She was alone.
"Ah, Sailor Polaris." The Raider took a step forward, warranting a
nervous gasp from the Scout. "So we meet again."
A purple rose flew through the air as the Starlit Prince gracefully
landed next to her. "Hello, Polaris," he said as the rose pierced
Violence's sword hand and the Raider screamed out in pain. "Quite a
scrape you've gotten into this time," he observed.
"Shut up," she sighed, ducking a the Raider clumsily swung his
weapon with his bad hand. "You don't need to be sarcastic."
"Die!" Violence lunged for the Scout but was pulled back by someone
tugging on the back of his armor.
"Didn't," began Mistress Venus, knocking him onto the ground, "your
mother teach you any manners?"
Polaris smiled as Chibi-Star ran up and gave her a bear hug. "You
okay?" asked the little Scout.
"I guess," shrugged the Scout, staring as Venus gave the Raider the
lecture of a lifetime.
"And another thing!" scolded the Mistress. "This armor is a mess!
You need to get it cleaned, young man!"
Groaning more in awkward annoyance than in pain, he blinked twice
and disappeared.
"Well, that's settled," smiled Chibi-Star, looking proudly at the
blonde Mistress. "Good job!" she cheered pleasantly.
Venus was about to respond when a blood-curdling scream cut through
air, and the woman froze.
"Michelle," she whispered, frantically running toward the sound.
* * * * * * * * * * * *
"Death," he hissed evilly, "should hold fear for you, Mistress
Saturn." The man brought his dagger closer. "It is the final step."
She closed her purple eyes slowly. "I shall be reborn," she
breathed as the metal touched her skin.
"Neptune POWER!" screamed a voice, and Hannah felt it.
The metal came away from her throat and she opened her eyes to find
Death sprawled a good ten feet away, Mistress Neptune standing over him.
"Uh..." Lightly fingering his now black eye, Death glared up at the
woman. Her dress was of an aqua silk, and its trim was darkest color of
blue that anyone could imagine. "So, Mistress Neptune," he coughed,
blinking as the bruise grew. "We finally meet."
Stepping lightly on his chest with her high-heeled shoe, she
lowered her green eyes. "You," she growled, "stay away from my family.
Understand?"
"Who's your family?" asked the Raider in a quasi- innocent tone.
Seeing Saturn rise and pick up her Glaive, he tensed. Very little time
remained for him to complete the plan.
But he would.
Neptune stepped down a bit harder. "Sailor Comet and Mistress
Saturn are my daughters," she informed him. "And Uranus is my
girlfriend."
Saturn walked over to where her mother stood. "Shall I?"
"Never again," swore Death, "will you have to worry about me."
Smiling smugly, he looked at the two Mistresses. "Because you are going
to die. EXPLODING DOOM!" he cried.
All energy, both positive and negative swirled about them, coming
quickly together in one compact ball.
"Run!" hollered Neptune.
"Not," protested her daughter solemnly, "without you."
The older Mistress took one look at the resolute woman and did the
only thing she could.
And, as her mother screamed, Saturn opened her eyes.
For Mistress Neptune had shoved her clear of the explosion.
* * * * * * * * * * * *
The scream made Brian jump.
From his spot inside of the men's bathroom, he shuddered. It had
been Michelle's scream, and he could feel someone's grief flowing through
his body.
Hannah's.
There was a flash of crimson light within room and a green-haired
woman appeared opposite him, a giant staff clutched in one of her hands.
"Susan?" he gasped, eyes wide.
She smiled. "You could say that," came the cool response. "I am
actually the Sailor and Mistress of Pluto."
He nodded, cautiously pushing his glasses up on his nose. "I see."
"But do you feel?" Pluto inquired of him in an ambiguous tone. "Can
you feel?"
Looking at the ground sadly, he proceeded to sigh. "Do I feel
Hannah's pain? Is that this feeling which sears through me?"
"It is," she softly responded. "For you are her soul-mate; the one
and only man destined for Saturn."
Suddenly, he was unable to move. Sailor Pluto, eyes closed, waved
her staff and her clothing changed from being a tight Sailor fuku to
being a long and flowing crimson gown with black trim. "As her
soul-mate," she softly whispered, "you are granted immortality."
"Imm...Immortality?" he stuttered, staring into her garnet eyes.
"How?"
"Some of the Mistress' soul-mates," she responded, "are from the
Silver Millennium of either the Moon, Earth, or Stars. Others are not."
Holding the staff directly between them, she rested her hands on the
enormous gem that sat atop the Key Staff. "Those who are not-and you are
but the second-are granted with immortality. But, the immortality is not
permanent. For, if Hannah Tomoe was to die..."
"I would as well," Brian finished, watching in shock as the orb
began to glow. "I love her, though... What should a little death matter?"
Smirking a little, the Mistress of Time considered his comment.
"Good answer," she finally said, closing her eyes once again. "Very
good."
Light, shimmering and silver, shot out of the Garnet Orb and
traveled into Brian's chest. "Does it hurt?" she asked, her eyes still
closed and hands still controlling the power which flowed freely into his
chest.
"It does not," he smiled, watching her with amazement on his face.
"Should it?"
"No."
After what seemed to be hours passed, the light died and Pluto's
Mistress clothing phased back into her normal clothing. "There," she
smiled, opening her eyes and watching the Key Staff vanish into thin air.
"I'm done."
"And Hannah?" he demanded, relieved that he could once again move.
"The battle?"
"Go now," she commanded, her voice growing timeless. "See what you
can."
He thanked her and burst out of the bathroom, feeling a new energy
and power with every step.
For it was the power of love.
* * * * * * * * * * * *
"Michelle!" screamed Venus, rushing over with two Scouts and the
Starlit Prince in tow.
Death doubled over, a bit hurt from the explosion. "Ugh..." he
managed, looking over at the motionless body of Mistress Neptune. "Got
her."
"Not so fast!" announced one last voice. Looking up, the Raider
groaned helplessly.
"For love and justice, I am the pretty sailor-suited soldier Sailor
Moon!" The familiar pink-haired teen, clad in the pink, red, and blue
Sailor fuku, stood upon a crate, looking at Death with angry red eyes.
"You've hurt my friends, you've nearly killed three Mistresses and
knocked another one unconscious, and I am just plan SICK of it!" Jumping
down, she walked towards him and clenched one of her hands into a fist.
"In the name of the moon," she announced, delivering a swift uppercut to
his chin, "I will punish you!"
The few remaining Scouts and Mistresses all cheered as Death flew
backwards into a building.
"You," Sailor Moon assured him, willing the crystal into her hand,
"are lunchmeat."
"Please," he begged. "I'm not ready to die."
She raised the crystal above her head and looked down at him with
hate-pure, searing hate-in her eyes. "See you in Hell," she spat as the
crystal activated and turned him into Moon dust.
* * * * * * * * * * * *
"How sweet," chortled Windy, scrawling on a chart. "Both of you in
the hospital at the same time."
Trying not to laugh, Michelle coughed several times and took a sip
of water. "I'm a Planet Mistress," she managed groggily. "I have a high
constitution."
"Yeah," commented Alexandra, hobbling around the white-walled room
on crutches. "But at least I'M mobile."
The aqua-haired musician threw her paper cup at the blonde. "Shut
up."
Doctor Yioka all out laughed at this. "Now, you two... You've got a
whole three days to share this room. Behave."
The door them burst open and Irina, Johanna, Kevin, and Katie burst
in, carrying to bouquets of flowers. "Hi, Ms. Kaioh! What's new, Ms.
Ten'ou?"
Smiling politely, Michelle looked at the four orchestra members.
"I'm alright, I suppose..."
Kevin nodded, smoothing the fabric of his orange shirt. "Haley
wasn't in school today."
"We..." The two Planet Mistresses looked at one another and
blushed. "I know," Alex smiled, staring at the floor. "She had an
accident as well."
Katie gave one bouquet-twelve enormous orchids-to Michelle and
smiled. "You guys have the oddest family...constantly getting into
accidents and injuring yourself!"
The two blushed again and, sitting on the edge of her lover's bed,
Alex cleared her throat.
"Alright, enough," she declared, looking at the quartet of
students. "How much do you know?"
"Know?" asked Johanna curiously. "You tell us!" She handed ten
lilies to the blonde with an evil smile on her face.
Irina rolled her eyes. "We're the four most observant..."
"And nosy!" added Kevin, interrupting the concertmistress.
"...students at your high school," she finished sweetly. "We
figured it out, guys."
"Oh dear..." sighed Michelle, shaking her head.
"We won't tell!" announced Katie loudly. "Don't you worry!"
Johanna nodded quickly in agreement, smiling. "You guys are, by
far, the best teachers at school. We can't hold anything like love over
your heads!"
After the three girls and one young man left, the two glanced at
one another. "That was...interesting," commented Alexandra, still sitting
on her girlfriend's bed.
"You're telling me," sighed the musician, staring at her orchids.
"So..."
"So..." Alex raised her eyebrows and leaned over, kissing Michelle
deeply, not really knowing-or caring-who would walk in next.
* * * * * * * * * * * *
A couple sat on a battered dock, watching the sun set over a
crystalline blue lake. The silence was overwhelming as they watched their
breath leave steamy trials in the late November air.
"Hannah," Brian breathed to the young woman in his arms, "I have to
tell you something."
She glanced up at him, purple eyes filling with dreamy stars.
"Hmmm?"
"When you were fighting and Michelle screamed," he murmured,
tightening his arms around her, "I felt this incredible grief run through
my veins." He looked into the sky, seeing the first signs of stars
appear. "And I knew that, whatever you were feeling, I was."
Inhaling sharply, she looked up at him. "That only happens with my
moms," came her amazed response. "Only with soul-mates..." Realization
dawned over her face.
He went on to tell her of the visit from Sailor Pluto, the silver
light, and immortality.
"...And I knew," he softly whispered, detaching himself from her
and staring straight into her eyes. "I knew that very moment that,
immortality or not, I wanted to be with you." Reaching into his pocket,
he presented her with a tiny gold ring. Set into it was a small but
beautiful diamond surrounded by fluorite-Hannah's favorite stone. "Hannah
Tomoe, I love you," he announced, getting onto one knee. "I love you!"
She blushed, laughing. "You're stubborn, rude, somewhat cold, and your
sister is a viper, but I LOVE YOU!" His voice echoed through the night
air. "And, if you don't marry me, soul-mate..." He sighed, turning
serious. "Well, immortality or not, Hannah, I'll die." He slid the ring
on her finger. "I swear that you'll want to use that Glaive of yours on
me at least once, dear, but it'll be worth it. And..."
"Shut up," she told him, tears of joy streaming down her cheeks.
"If you keep talking, I'll never be able to say yes." Wrapping her arms
around him, she sniffed. "You're my destiny, and don't you try to deny
it. If I lost you, I'd...I'd..."
Pushing his lips to her, Brian made sure that she'd never finish
that sentence.
* * * * * * * * * * * *
Galactic Sailors Say!
Haley: (appearing) Okay, this is the most obvious one yet...
Celeste: (appearing) If you're a drag racer and your newest opponent is
named Red and has a car named Raider and doesn't look like a nice
person-mmphf!
(Haley gags the little girl)
Haley: (clears throat) A-hem! ("Ein No Melody" Kate's favorite plays
in the background) Sometimes, bad things happen.
(Video clips of the car burning, Michelle in the hospital room, the
Scouts all unconscious, and Hannah with a dagger to her throat)
Hannah: (appearing) And, sometimes, good things happen.
(Video clips of Alexandra waking up, Katie giving flowers to Michelle,
the Scouts playing volleyball together, and Hannah in Brian's arms)
Reeny: (appearing) But, the point is that jellyfish are evil and Pokemon
yellow is the best video game in the world! (charming smile)
(Dead silence)
Haley: (smiling indulgently) Uhh... I was going to say that having faith
in yourself is important.
Hannah: And that destiny can be bad...
(Video clip of Alexandra crying)
Haley: It can also be wonderful.
(Photo of the six Scouts and Celeste at the Royal Ball and Gala)
Reeny: (pouting) I still say that Pokemon yellow is the best, you
stupid-heads!
(Picture of Pikachu)
Haley + Hannah: The SANE Galactic Sailors say...
All Scouts: See ya!
-I Know-
Look around...
(Tara, sitting next to Queen Serenity, stares up at the night sky)
So many things aren't clear...
(Phoebe looks blankly at a math book)
Don't worry, though...
(Lyra smiles while picking up her tuba)
You know that I'll be there...
(Sailor Pluto and Haley smile knowingly at each other)
A lot of things are so uncertain...
(Alice looks sadly at a clock while the sun sets over Crystal Tokyo)
The future's on its way...
(Reeny holds the Locket of the Moon, smiling)
Look at my crying eyes...
(Luna and Artemis console an upset Diana)
Don't take your love away!
(Hannah sighs, looking at a sleeping Haley)
Sometimes, the road looks long...
(Mina looks at her children with Andrew behind her)
And sometimes, the world seems wrong...
(Alex and Michelle smile at one another and then blush deeply)
But I know, I know, all you need is love.
(The six girls, untransformed, hold their lockets high)
Sometimes, you feel weak...
(Lita smoothes the hair of a crying Alice)
And sometimes, the future looks bleak...
(Raye and Chad stand behind Tara, who is staring at her locket)
But I know, I know, all you need is love.
(The six Galactic Sailors stand in a half circle)
Times will change...
(Amy looks out of a window and at Crystal Palace)
People will change, too...
(Endymion looks at Serenity, who is pouring over a book)
But deep inside...
(Lyra hugs Celeste)
I always will love you...
(Diana falls asleep on Reeny's lap)
I suppose there are questions now...
(Alice and Phoebe stare blankly at one another)
The answers are so far...
(Michelle stands in front of the orchestra, talking)
But look at me and smile now...
(Tara lovingly hugs her father)
I am your guiding star!
(Haley smiles at a studying Hannah)
Sometimes, the road looks long...
(Mina looks at her children with Andrew behind her)
And sometimes, the world seems wrong...
(Alex and Michelle smile at one another and then blush deeply)
But I know, I know, all you need is love.
(The six girls, untransformed, hold their lockets high)
Sometimes, you feel weak...
(Lita smoothes the hair of a crying Alice)
And sometimes, the future looks bleak...
(Raye and Chad stand behind Tara, who is staring at her locket)
But I know, I know, all you need is love.
(The six Galactic Sailors stand in a half circle)
I know...
(The Planet Mistresses stand in a circle)
I know...
(The Galactic Sailors stand in a circle)
All you need is love...
(The Mistresses and Sailors all stand together, holding hands, with their
eyes closed)
All you need...is...love...
(A single purple rose sits in a vase)
* * * * * * * * * * * *
Okay, so there's seven.
"You're my destiny" (a line used by Hannah) is actually from a
song-"Destiny" by Jim Brickman.
If you don't believe the whole "everyone lives for one thousand
years"...well, it's in a manga. Read it with my own two eyes (thanks
Misty!). So there!
-Kate and Christina
Merry Christmas!!
"You could give me wings to fly and catch me when I fall...
Pull the stars down from the sky so I could wish on them all...
But I couldn't ask for more, cause your love is the greatest gift of
all..."
-"Your Love" by Jim Brickman
"And someday we'll find it...the rainbow connection...the lovers, the
dreamers, and me."
-"The Rainbow Connection" from The Muppet Movie
