Hotaru walked home slowly, tired after school and everything

Shimai No Hamesu

By Saturnian Blonde

All right, this is my new story, an idea I got after watching my favourite movie, which I cannot tell, else it'll give away the nonexistent ending. I have a couple ideas where this is going, and any suggestions for help is greatly appreciated, just no flames… and if you have to flame… I dunno, say it in a nice way, and soften the blow…I hope it ain't too obvious or anything, I kind of hate that… and don't worry, the epilogue for Dark Nightmares is coming… just, slowly… had to scrap a couple ideas… so I'm gonna shut up now…. What? I gotta write a disclaimer?? What the hell for??? Oh… I see… *damn no-paying job, I don't know why I stand this frickin…

Prologue

Hotaru walked home slowly, tired after school and everything. She wished Chibi-Usa were still around, she desperately wanted a friend. Everyone at school still gave her the cold shoulder, but they had eased off her recently.

She walked past a large group of people, all dressed all in black. What's this? A funeral? She thought, and confirmed her suspicions as they crossed the street and entered a nearby cemetery. Strangely enough, Hotaru found herself following the group, as they walked up to where the grave was. Hotaru stood back from the group a bit as she listened to what the priest said. She stood there until it was over and she was among the last people there. An older woman in black slowly walked up to her.

"Did you know our daughter?" she asked as she finished wiping tears from her eyes. Hotaru lied, saying they had met at school.

As Hotaru looked from the grave to the supposed mother, she asked quietly, "How did she die?"

The mother nodded her head slowly, and with one last glance at the burial, she whispered, in a shaky voice "They said it was a terrorist attack. She was killed in an explosion. But it couldn't have been, she's the only one that died." Hotaru watched as the mother's eyes teared up and she walked away from the graveyard, and turned again to look at the stone above the grave, engraved with lilies and fireflies.

"Hakai Yuri" Hotaru read aloud as she stared at the grave. She felt… weird. Like she had known this girl… Yuri, it sounded terribly familiar, but a large blank was presented to her. She stared a moment longer before she too took her leave.

*****

"How was your day?" Haruka asked as Hotaru entered the door and threw her books down on the ground.

"Weird… something was amiss." Hotaru replied cryptically as she fell down into a chair in the living room. Haruka looked at her sideways.

"What's that supposed to mean? Please don't start sounding like Setsuna, I never know what she's talking about…" She said with a grin. Hotaru stifled a giggle as she saw Setsuna creep up behind Haruka with a bucket.

"Watch out for that bucket…" Setsuna said as she raised it above her head.

"See? I never know what she's talking about – HEY!" she cried out as Setsuna tipped the bucket of water over Haruka's head. Hotaru burst out laughing as she saw Haruka looking like a wet puppy.

"Sesuna! I'll get you for that!" Haruka screamed as she took off running after her, but Setsuna got away and hid in the secret passageway. Only Hotaru knew about it, but she had shown it to Setsuna the last time they needed to get away from Haruka.

Hotaru walked towards the kitchen, and opened the fridge before someone shut it on her. Hotaru looked up to see Michiru above her, holding grocery bags.

"Get out of there, you'll spoil your supper. Come, can you help me with these?" She said as she dropped the bags on the counter. "Where's Haruka?" Michiru asked as she and Hotaru started to put away the items.

"She's having breast reduction surgery." Hotaru said nonchalantly as she put some stuff in the cupboard.

"NANI!?" Michiru gasped out as she stared at Hotaru. Hotaru stared back until she couldn't keep her face straight, then both of them started giggling until they were rolling on the floor, laughing.

Haruka and Setsuna ran by the kitchen, skidding to a stop as they looked at the two girls who were still on the floor. When the two girls noticed that they were being watched, they turned, and gaped at Haruka. She was soaking wet, but what they saw was a Haruka in a wet tee shirt – Without a bra. Hotaru quickly averted her eyes, and started snickering, while Michiru's face turned red and she continued to stare.

"What???" Haruka asked, as she looked at the two strangely, before catching on and looked down at her torso. "Shit…" she muttered before covering her chest and leaving for her room. Setsuna and Michiru burst out laughing, and the laughter continued for a couple more minutes before they finally calmed down.

"Hey Hotaru, did you see her face- Hotaru?" Michiru asked as she looked at Hotaru, who was staring pensively out the window at something. "What are you looking at?" Michiru asked as the two approached the kitchen window.

"That girl standing outside…" She trailed off as she continued to look out. Michiru and Setsuna looked through the glass in the direction Hotaru gazed at, but the saw only an empty street.

"Who? I can't see anyone." Setsuna asked as she looked at nothing. "Are you sure there's someone out there?"

"Yeah, she's standing by the street light… she's right there…" Hotaru continued to stare.

"Come on, Hotaru, lets go upstairs and start your homework…" Michiru said as she drew Hotaru away from the window.

"She's crying… she asks for help…" Hotaru said obscurely before she slid sideways into oblivion.

Chapter I

Where am I? Hotaru thought as she walked through empty corridors of a building. It looked like a laboratory of sorts. She saw the odd scientist-type walk by, carrying tools and bottles of sorts. She walked through the hallways, coming to a fork in the corridor. She was about to head left, until she heard a cry from the right. Who is that? She asked herself as she followed the hall to a door, partially shut, with a purple light emanating from underneath, as she pushed the door open slowly, she saw a young girl, who looked to be her age and height, facing away from her. She had shoulder length hair, like Hotaru's, but it was a pale white, almost silver. She looked to where the girl stared, through an observation window to a large laboratory below them.

"Leave… please, run, it's not safe here…" the girl whispered in a sad voice. Hotaru took a couple steps closer to the girl, and she gasped as she saw her turn around. It was the girl from the street! She found herself staring into dark violet eyes, fearfully like her own, with a pale complexion, that, with her hair, made her look like a lily. "I don't want to hurt you too, I don't want to hurt anyone…" she said, as tears welled up in her eyes. Hotaru walked up to her and gently took her hand on her own.

"Don't worry, it'll be alright… maybe I can help?" Hotaru asked her. Hotaru remembered the time she was possessed by Mistress 9, and felt a great desire to help this girl.

"They're gonna use me… I don't want to be evil… to hurt anyone…" she said as she fell into a hug, Hotaru cradling her in her arms.

"Shhh… I'll be there… let me help. I'll fight for you, we won't be alone… never again." Hotaru said as she heard shouts from below in the laboratory. Suddenly, she heard the shattering of glass and felt a rush of fiery energy surround the room, and surround them, attacking them…

"NOOOO!!!" Hotaru cried as she jolted up from her bed, gasping for air. Within moments, Haruka, Michiru and Setsuna rushed in the door, worried expressions over their faces.

"What's wrong?" Haruka asked as she reached the bed first.

"I – um, nothing," Hotaru stammered out, trying to calm herself. "Just a dream… well, a nightmare… but, yeah…" Hotaru said as she looked around her room. "How's I get up here?" she asked, lastly remembering that she was in the kitchen.

"Well, you said you saw someone outside the window, and when we tried to move you away, you passed out…" Michiru said, worrying that something was deeply amiss. Setsuna looked on coolly, judging Hotaru and her reactions. 'What's she seeing?' Setsuna asked herself before rising and heading towards the door.

"Was it an enemy? Haruka asked, always worried about more attacks. Hotaru shook her head, but seemed to slip into a comatose state, staring ahead into nothingness.

"No, nothing bad… it was a girl… shimai…" she said serenely, invoking a gasp from the other Senshi and a shocker expression from Setsuna. Setsuna almost ran over to Hotaru's bed and laid her hand on her forehead. When she removed it, the sigh of Saturn glowed briefly before fading away. Hotaru blinked a couple times, then looked around quizzically at the other women.

"What am I doing here?" she asked as she realized for the second time that she was in her room.

"Nothing, you just fell asleep, and we carried you up to bed." Setsuna said before turning to walk out of the room, quietly muttering something about being too early and damn memories. Haruka looked at Michiru questioningly, before excusing themselves and leaving to talk to Setsuna.

When they caught up to her, they had plenty of questions.

"Ok, so what the hell was that?" Haruka asked accusingly as she approached the other woman. "Since when does Hotaru have a sister?"

"It was a long time ago, she doesn't need to know about it, and we don't need you guys to tell her…" She said in a crisp tone that left no room for discussion. With that, she turned and, with her henshin wand in hand, left for her room, then, the Gates of Time.