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.