Part V
"What a bother!" Yaten huffed as he set Minako down on the bench. "Wake up already would ya?!" He shook her to get her out of her temporary coma.
The night was still and there was the sweet fragrance of spring in the air. He had almost forgotten the little things about Earth that he loved. Although he completely abhorred its people, Yaten really did love Earth and it's scenery and serenity. He felt movement beside him and it made him wonder how long he had been caught up in this dream.
"You're awake huh?" He asked poking Minako in her side to bring her completely out of her slumber. He hadn't felt right about leaving her on a park bench in the middle of the night and he sure as hell wasn't about to carry her all of the way home!
"What hit me?" She asked as she rubbed her arm getting up.
Yaten sighed and rolled his eyes. "You knocked me out of the tree and in turn, maybe out of sadistic revenge, I fell on you! Do you always make up super powers at random with odd accessories?"
Minako laughed a little bit. "A girl always has to be prepared!" She soon had her arms wrapped around him in a friendly fashion. She couldn't very well tackle him any more, not the way she used to when she just thought he was another teen idol. No, now she had respect for him as a human, senshi and her friend. "It's nice to see you again." She smiled as she pulled back from their embrace waiting for his response.
"Yeah, it's always nice to see me isn't it?" He flipped his hair over his shoulder in true arrogant Yaten fashion. Minako got a disgusted look on her face as she stood up from the bench and started to walk off. "Wait! Minako." He said getting up to follow her. "That wasn't very nice, I'm sorry, but I have to ask a favor from you. What do you say?"
"Why should I do a favor for you?" She asked with her eyes narrowed and her hands on her hips.
"Because."
"Because isn't a good enough reason!" She said before turning away again.
"Please Minako, just hear me out." Yaten grabbed her arm and turned her around to face him again. "Will you please not tell anyone that you saw me tonight? It's important."
Minako started to get that far off dreamy look in her eyes. "You came to Earth to secretly meet with the beautiful charming Minako Aino?"
Yaten just rolled his eyes yet again and brought his hand up to his forehead. "Yeah right, do you really believe that?"
Minako snapped out of her daze and met reality abruptly. "No." She pouted.
Yaten actually felt a bit bad about having to snap at her, it was, in a sick demented way, endearing that she would even consider that. "Our Princess has come to Earth again and we're here to find her and leave."
"All of you are here?" Minako smiled. "That's great!"
"Shhh. You can't tell anyone that we're here, you weren't even supposed to know! If it wasn't for your damn belt tactics I would have been able to keep my cover!"
"Yeah right, you're a terrible spy!"
"Oh really? Well I guess that means that you saw me all of those times that I used to spy on you last time we were here?" He said with an eyebrow raised.
"You spied on me, the incredibly beautiful Minako Aino?" She had that far off dreamy look in her eye again.
Yaten sighed. "No, I meant we used to watch you Earth senshi before we knew who you were."
"Oh." Minako looked down.
Yaten noticed. "Don't expect me to say something to make you feel better."
"Yeah, I know you better than that!" Minako smiled at him. "Will you walk me home?" Yaten nodded and they started walking. "So, why did your Princess come here?"
"I don't know." Yaten had his hands shoved in his pockets. "She had tried to get us to come here but we wouldn't, well we couldn't. and we think she came just to get us to come here and look for her. Kind of like a sick game of hide and go seek."
"Why wouldn't you want to come here, or why couldn't you?" Minako looked questioningly at him as they neared her house.
Yaten gave her a sideways glance that seemed to say 'what-are-you-nuts?'. "Let's just say that I don't think it would have been in good health for Seiya."
"Oh." Minako said realizing the stupidity in the question. "Well here's my house." She smiled.
"You promise you're not going to say anything to anyone?"
"I promise!" She smiled holding up her right hand as if to swear on it. "I'll let you know if I see Kakyuu. by the way, how am I supposed to get a hold of you?"
"I'll find you." He said as he turned to leave. "Ja!" He waved.
"Wait!" Minako called. "If you find your princess before I do, I'm never going to see you again am I?" She asked kind of down heartedly.
"Probably not." Yaten said facing her.
"Well then I'll just have to find her first!" Minako said as she quickly stepped forward and gave Yaten a kiss. "Ja!" She waved and walked in her house leaving Yaten smiling and confused.
~@~@~@~
"Please?" Helios looked at me pleadingly while Kakyuu just sat and stared. "Will you help us?"
I cocked my eyebrow at him. "Who the hell do you think you're talking to?" I asked and he got a puzzled look on his face. "Of COURSE I'll help you!" I smiled.
"REALLY!?" Helios stood up and gave me a huge hug which in turn caused me to turn a wide rainbow of colors.
"Uh. Helios? I think you're killing her!" Kakyuu tapped him on the shoulder when she noticed my lack of oxygen.
"Oh, sorry!" He let go and looked a bit embarrassed.
Kakyuu sat me down so I could catch my breath. "Are you sure you want to do this?"
I looked at Helios. "I think you should be asking him that question."
"Why?"
"Well think about it, who saved your life from Nehelenia?" I asked already knowing the answer. "Don't you think that if Chibi-Usa wasn't around you would have died?" Helios didn't answer immediately so I continued. "Since Chibi-Usa has traveled to the past and become part of the battles here in this time the outcome of some of them may be different. What if by doing this you're destroying Earth?"
He sat there puzzled and I could tell that he hadn't thought about this before. "Is this all really worth it to you?" I asked, personally I didn't really care, I could just as easily go home and change the channel if I didn't like the outcome but he had to live in it.
I saw him take a gulp and breathe out. "I believe in Sailor Moon." He said simply. "I will always believe and in that belief lies the hope that of the future of our world and the future of man kind."
Kakyuu smiled at him. "Then it's settled then."
"I always thought that Usagi and Seiya belonged together." I said smiling.
"What?" Helios looked at me like I was completely retarded. "You were just drooling over him a little while ago? How could you always think of him with some one else?"
"I don't know?" I shrugged I couldn't tell him that I knew an obsession with a cartoon would get me nowhere so I told him the other reason instead. "Those two are just so cute together, they belong together." I smiled. "Besides, Mamoru was always so boring and dull. Seiya on the other hand! Look out! That smooth seductive voice, that charming personality, those crystal blue eyes." I began to drool again until Helios smacked me in the back to bring me out of my thoughts. I quickly stood up and regained my composure. "And besides, you can tell that he always held the purest of loves for Usagi."
They both smiled at me and started to walk away. "Wait." I called them back. "Will you help me with my little problem when we're done?"
"What's that?" Kakyuu asked.
"Will you help to get me home?"
~@~@~@~
"Did you find any signs of Kakyuu?" Taiki asked as he sat across from Yaten at the small table of the café.
Yaten took his attention from the populous of the café and turned to Taiki. "No, and it doesn't appear as though the Earth senshi, well at least the inners have heard from her either."
"Yeah, I got that impression too. Well we can't totally rule out the outers. Who knows, Kakyuu may have gone to them because they are more powerful. We'll just have to wait until Seiya gets back to see what he's discovered." Taiki sipped his tea.
"I wouldn't hold my breath." Yaten said slinging his arm over the back of the chair. "I saw him at the outer's house, so he did go, but as I followed Minako and Usagi I saw him following Usagi when the two broke off."
"Oh just great!" Taiki said in a fashion completely unusual for him.
"What's great?" Seiya came in looking a little better than he had the last time they had seen him. He pulled up a chair next to the table.
"Yaten said you were following Usagi!" Taiki looked at him with a little more than annoyed look. "Care to explain yourself?"
Seiya sat, still as casual as ever. "I went the outer's house, like I was supposed to and realized that Kakyuu wasn't there and that they had nothing to do with her. I also realized that Mamoru had made Usagi walk home in the dark by herself."
"No Minako was with her." Yaten spoke up and immediately regretted getting himself into this conversation.
"So Seiya, if Minako was with Usagi then why wouldn't they get home safe with Yaten looking over them as he was supposed to?" Taiki tried to stay calm.
"Why don't we ask Yaten?" Seiya looked over at Yaten putting the whole weight of the mess on his shoulders. "Did Usagi get home safely?"
Yaten looked at Seiya like he was going to kill him but then looked at Taiki's stare causing him to look down at the tabletop. "I don't know." He said quietly.
"And why not?" Seiya said still sitting casually and with a cocky grin he had been known for. "Did some one have to stay and watch Minako?"
"Shut up!"
"Both of you shut up." Taiki said shaking his head. "We're not going to start bickering amongst ourselves when our Princess is missing."
"But she's not missing." Seiya said turning the teacup in front of him round. "She's hiding. There's a difference."
"There has to be a reason."
~@~@~@~
Nighttime. She never had a problem sleeping before, but now a days it was different. She would wake up in the morning just dreaming of the time she would find herself back in her own bed. In her dreams that's where she could finally be with the person that she so desperately longed to be with.
The days were slowly stretching into weeks and she knew that her love would never be returned. The sweet memories that she had of the times that she had spent with her love were all she had to go on. This world could be so cruel with no remorse for what it was doing to her.
She wished that she had had the courage to tell that one person that she loved them and how much she wished she could hold them in her arms. Time was still moving on bringing her no closer to any resolution. Rei looked out her window at the big bright silver moon that hung high in the sky blanketing the city with its cool sereness. "Aishiteru Usagi."
"What a bother!" Yaten huffed as he set Minako down on the bench. "Wake up already would ya?!" He shook her to get her out of her temporary coma.
The night was still and there was the sweet fragrance of spring in the air. He had almost forgotten the little things about Earth that he loved. Although he completely abhorred its people, Yaten really did love Earth and it's scenery and serenity. He felt movement beside him and it made him wonder how long he had been caught up in this dream.
"You're awake huh?" He asked poking Minako in her side to bring her completely out of her slumber. He hadn't felt right about leaving her on a park bench in the middle of the night and he sure as hell wasn't about to carry her all of the way home!
"What hit me?" She asked as she rubbed her arm getting up.
Yaten sighed and rolled his eyes. "You knocked me out of the tree and in turn, maybe out of sadistic revenge, I fell on you! Do you always make up super powers at random with odd accessories?"
Minako laughed a little bit. "A girl always has to be prepared!" She soon had her arms wrapped around him in a friendly fashion. She couldn't very well tackle him any more, not the way she used to when she just thought he was another teen idol. No, now she had respect for him as a human, senshi and her friend. "It's nice to see you again." She smiled as she pulled back from their embrace waiting for his response.
"Yeah, it's always nice to see me isn't it?" He flipped his hair over his shoulder in true arrogant Yaten fashion. Minako got a disgusted look on her face as she stood up from the bench and started to walk off. "Wait! Minako." He said getting up to follow her. "That wasn't very nice, I'm sorry, but I have to ask a favor from you. What do you say?"
"Why should I do a favor for you?" She asked with her eyes narrowed and her hands on her hips.
"Because."
"Because isn't a good enough reason!" She said before turning away again.
"Please Minako, just hear me out." Yaten grabbed her arm and turned her around to face him again. "Will you please not tell anyone that you saw me tonight? It's important."
Minako started to get that far off dreamy look in her eyes. "You came to Earth to secretly meet with the beautiful charming Minako Aino?"
Yaten just rolled his eyes yet again and brought his hand up to his forehead. "Yeah right, do you really believe that?"
Minako snapped out of her daze and met reality abruptly. "No." She pouted.
Yaten actually felt a bit bad about having to snap at her, it was, in a sick demented way, endearing that she would even consider that. "Our Princess has come to Earth again and we're here to find her and leave."
"All of you are here?" Minako smiled. "That's great!"
"Shhh. You can't tell anyone that we're here, you weren't even supposed to know! If it wasn't for your damn belt tactics I would have been able to keep my cover!"
"Yeah right, you're a terrible spy!"
"Oh really? Well I guess that means that you saw me all of those times that I used to spy on you last time we were here?" He said with an eyebrow raised.
"You spied on me, the incredibly beautiful Minako Aino?" She had that far off dreamy look in her eye again.
Yaten sighed. "No, I meant we used to watch you Earth senshi before we knew who you were."
"Oh." Minako looked down.
Yaten noticed. "Don't expect me to say something to make you feel better."
"Yeah, I know you better than that!" Minako smiled at him. "Will you walk me home?" Yaten nodded and they started walking. "So, why did your Princess come here?"
"I don't know." Yaten had his hands shoved in his pockets. "She had tried to get us to come here but we wouldn't, well we couldn't. and we think she came just to get us to come here and look for her. Kind of like a sick game of hide and go seek."
"Why wouldn't you want to come here, or why couldn't you?" Minako looked questioningly at him as they neared her house.
Yaten gave her a sideways glance that seemed to say 'what-are-you-nuts?'. "Let's just say that I don't think it would have been in good health for Seiya."
"Oh." Minako said realizing the stupidity in the question. "Well here's my house." She smiled.
"You promise you're not going to say anything to anyone?"
"I promise!" She smiled holding up her right hand as if to swear on it. "I'll let you know if I see Kakyuu. by the way, how am I supposed to get a hold of you?"
"I'll find you." He said as he turned to leave. "Ja!" He waved.
"Wait!" Minako called. "If you find your princess before I do, I'm never going to see you again am I?" She asked kind of down heartedly.
"Probably not." Yaten said facing her.
"Well then I'll just have to find her first!" Minako said as she quickly stepped forward and gave Yaten a kiss. "Ja!" She waved and walked in her house leaving Yaten smiling and confused.
~@~@~@~
"Please?" Helios looked at me pleadingly while Kakyuu just sat and stared. "Will you help us?"
I cocked my eyebrow at him. "Who the hell do you think you're talking to?" I asked and he got a puzzled look on his face. "Of COURSE I'll help you!" I smiled.
"REALLY!?" Helios stood up and gave me a huge hug which in turn caused me to turn a wide rainbow of colors.
"Uh. Helios? I think you're killing her!" Kakyuu tapped him on the shoulder when she noticed my lack of oxygen.
"Oh, sorry!" He let go and looked a bit embarrassed.
Kakyuu sat me down so I could catch my breath. "Are you sure you want to do this?"
I looked at Helios. "I think you should be asking him that question."
"Why?"
"Well think about it, who saved your life from Nehelenia?" I asked already knowing the answer. "Don't you think that if Chibi-Usa wasn't around you would have died?" Helios didn't answer immediately so I continued. "Since Chibi-Usa has traveled to the past and become part of the battles here in this time the outcome of some of them may be different. What if by doing this you're destroying Earth?"
He sat there puzzled and I could tell that he hadn't thought about this before. "Is this all really worth it to you?" I asked, personally I didn't really care, I could just as easily go home and change the channel if I didn't like the outcome but he had to live in it.
I saw him take a gulp and breathe out. "I believe in Sailor Moon." He said simply. "I will always believe and in that belief lies the hope that of the future of our world and the future of man kind."
Kakyuu smiled at him. "Then it's settled then."
"I always thought that Usagi and Seiya belonged together." I said smiling.
"What?" Helios looked at me like I was completely retarded. "You were just drooling over him a little while ago? How could you always think of him with some one else?"
"I don't know?" I shrugged I couldn't tell him that I knew an obsession with a cartoon would get me nowhere so I told him the other reason instead. "Those two are just so cute together, they belong together." I smiled. "Besides, Mamoru was always so boring and dull. Seiya on the other hand! Look out! That smooth seductive voice, that charming personality, those crystal blue eyes." I began to drool again until Helios smacked me in the back to bring me out of my thoughts. I quickly stood up and regained my composure. "And besides, you can tell that he always held the purest of loves for Usagi."
They both smiled at me and started to walk away. "Wait." I called them back. "Will you help me with my little problem when we're done?"
"What's that?" Kakyuu asked.
"Will you help to get me home?"
~@~@~@~
"Did you find any signs of Kakyuu?" Taiki asked as he sat across from Yaten at the small table of the café.
Yaten took his attention from the populous of the café and turned to Taiki. "No, and it doesn't appear as though the Earth senshi, well at least the inners have heard from her either."
"Yeah, I got that impression too. Well we can't totally rule out the outers. Who knows, Kakyuu may have gone to them because they are more powerful. We'll just have to wait until Seiya gets back to see what he's discovered." Taiki sipped his tea.
"I wouldn't hold my breath." Yaten said slinging his arm over the back of the chair. "I saw him at the outer's house, so he did go, but as I followed Minako and Usagi I saw him following Usagi when the two broke off."
"Oh just great!" Taiki said in a fashion completely unusual for him.
"What's great?" Seiya came in looking a little better than he had the last time they had seen him. He pulled up a chair next to the table.
"Yaten said you were following Usagi!" Taiki looked at him with a little more than annoyed look. "Care to explain yourself?"
Seiya sat, still as casual as ever. "I went the outer's house, like I was supposed to and realized that Kakyuu wasn't there and that they had nothing to do with her. I also realized that Mamoru had made Usagi walk home in the dark by herself."
"No Minako was with her." Yaten spoke up and immediately regretted getting himself into this conversation.
"So Seiya, if Minako was with Usagi then why wouldn't they get home safe with Yaten looking over them as he was supposed to?" Taiki tried to stay calm.
"Why don't we ask Yaten?" Seiya looked over at Yaten putting the whole weight of the mess on his shoulders. "Did Usagi get home safely?"
Yaten looked at Seiya like he was going to kill him but then looked at Taiki's stare causing him to look down at the tabletop. "I don't know." He said quietly.
"And why not?" Seiya said still sitting casually and with a cocky grin he had been known for. "Did some one have to stay and watch Minako?"
"Shut up!"
"Both of you shut up." Taiki said shaking his head. "We're not going to start bickering amongst ourselves when our Princess is missing."
"But she's not missing." Seiya said turning the teacup in front of him round. "She's hiding. There's a difference."
"There has to be a reason."
~@~@~@~
Nighttime. She never had a problem sleeping before, but now a days it was different. She would wake up in the morning just dreaming of the time she would find herself back in her own bed. In her dreams that's where she could finally be with the person that she so desperately longed to be with.
The days were slowly stretching into weeks and she knew that her love would never be returned. The sweet memories that she had of the times that she had spent with her love were all she had to go on. This world could be so cruel with no remorse for what it was doing to her.
She wished that she had had the courage to tell that one person that she loved them and how much she wished she could hold them in her arms. Time was still moving on bringing her no closer to any resolution. Rei looked out her window at the big bright silver moon that hung high in the sky blanketing the city with its cool sereness. "Aishiteru Usagi."