SAILOR ECLIPSE
Chapter 7: "Broken Little Sparrow"
By Bill K.
"Where's the airhead?" grunted Shingo, noticing the empty place
at the dinner table.
"She called and said she was going out to look for her friend,
Ami," Kenji replied. "And don't call your sister an airhead."
"Ami?" Shingo repeated, consternation in his tone. "What's
wrong with Ami?"
"Nobody seems to know. She apparently got some bad news and
isn't dealing too well with it."
"And of course since she's sixteen, it's probably the end of
the world to her," Ikuko commented. "I suppose even rational young
girls like Ami are susceptible to things like that."
"Now, dear," Kenji sighed. "I'm sure things like that happened
to you when you were that age. Don't judge."
"Does anybody know if she's all right?" Shingo asked. Kenji
noticed the worry in his thirteen-year-old son.
"I wouldn't get too worried just yet," he tried to reassure the
boy. "Ami's pretty smart, remember. She won't do anything drastic.
She probably just needs some time to be alone and sort out her
feelings."
"Yes, she probably just got turned down by a boy or something,"
Ikuko added.
That scenario didn't make Shingo feel any better. He still had
feelings for Ami that he hadn't yet managed to bury and the irony of
her going through what she'd put him through didn't make an
impression on him due to those feelings.
Ikuko, though, hardly noticed. She was busy trying to suppress
her own worries that this was some new threat that might just menace
her daughter next.
* * * *
"USAGI!" bellowed Luna as the cat, accompanied by Rei and
Makoto, followed after the young blonde girl. Usagi was streaking
down the street in a blind panic. "Usagi, wait!"
"You don't suppose she thought for a second that this might be
some sort of lure to trap her, do you?" Makoto asked Rei.
"Her? Not a chance," Rei scowled.
"The thought entered your mind, didn't it?"
"Yeah. I'm hoping it's not true, for Ami's sake."
Usagi stopped and waited impatiently for the others to catch
up.
"What is it, Luna?" she fumed. "And it better be important,
because the longer we wait, the more likely it is something's
happened to her!"
"I'm well aware of that," bristled the cat. "I was about to
suggest that, rather than run around all of Tokyo in a blind panic,
that we track Ami down by homing in on her Sailor Communicator. You
did recall that Artemis and I possess that kind of technology, didn't
you?"
Usagi avoided her gaze.
"I thought as much." With no more time to waste, Luna did a
double loop backflip and the tracer unit appeared. "Makoto, if you
would," she said, her paw resting on the unit.
"Sure. How's it work?" Makoto asked, picking up the device.
"First turn it on. It's the button on your left. Then, using
the keypad, punch in the code 'star 96'. That will activate the
homing program." Luna waited for Makoto to comply. "Now key in
212486 - - that's Ami's transmission code - - and hit 'enter'."
Instantly the device began to hum.
"The indicator's pointing northwest!" Makoto gasped.
"Let's go," Rei said. Noticing Usagi's worried look, she put
her arm around the girl.
"I hope she's all right," Usagi fretted.
The group was silent as they moved northwest from the shrine.
It was an awkward, eerie silence. No one seemed to want to voice the
thing they feared most, that Ami had encountered the fake Sailor V
and was now a prisoner or worse. Finally Usagi broke the stillness.
"You know, I was thinking," Usagi said, then paused for a
cutting remark from Rei or Luna. Thankfully they had the good graces
to keep still. "One of Sailor V's powers was to transform into any
identity she needed to use - - sort of like when I used the disguise
pen."
"Really?" Luna asked. "I wasn't aware of that."
"Well you're not 'Princess Deadly Sailor V Otaku', either,"
smirked Rei. Usagi made a face at her.
"So, if this other Sailor V has all of Sailor V's powers, and
so far it looks like she has, who's to say she isn't using Sailor V
Transform to look and act like Minako?"
"Hmm," Luna thought. "Sound thinking, Usagi. It's certainly a
possibility. And it would explain just who was in Mamoru's apartment
last night."
Usagi tensed. "You don't think she's after Mamo-chan, do you?"
"At this moment, I don't know what to think," Luna scowled.
"Even if we accept that her ultimate target is you," Makoto
offered, "what's she been doing? She had the opportunity to kill me
when she took me on, and didn't. Why take me on, then, if it wasn't
to eliminate an obstacle to you?"
"I know, she could have killed me, too - - twice!" Rei added.
"But she didn't. So what did she really want with us?"
"Maybe she was testing you," Usagi offered. "To see if she
could beat you."
"Why, so she can do it again?" Makoto asked. "If that's her
objective, why not take me out when she had the chance?"
All further lines of inquiry ceased. The group came up onto
the library. Usagi and Makoto looked at each other.
"Wow," mused Rei. "Guess she wanted to be among friends." She
nudged Makoto and the tall girl moved forward. The indicator was
pointing straight into the building.
With Luna waiting outside, the trio ventured into the library.
Their search of the building wasn't long in getting results. On the
second floor, sitting alone at a table with a huge medical text in
front of her that she clearly wasn't reading sat Ami. The young girl
looked so frail and forlorn that it broke each of their hearts.
"What could have happened?" Rei whispered.
"I'll go talk to her," Usagi said, turning to the others. "I
guess she's not in any danger after all. If you guys want to go
. . ."
"Hey, she's our friend, too," Makoto said. "I've already
abandoned one friend tonight. I'm not going to do it twice." Rei
nodded. "We'll wait over here. If all three of us come up, she
might clam up."
Usagi cautiously approached her friend. So lost in her misery
was she that Ami didn't notice her until Usagi sat down next to her
and touched her arm. The eyes Usagi looked into were as despondent
as she had ever seen Ami look.
"Ami-chan?" Usagi asked tenderly.
"I'm sorry if I worried you," Ami apologized meekly. "I've
probably got Mother worried sick, too. I . . ."
"That's not important," Usagi said. "Ami, what happened?"
Ami let out a huge, defeated sigh. "I fell in love."
"With Komatsu-sensei?" Usagi asked. Ami nodded. "And you
don't think it'll work? Is it . . ."
"He told me as much today."
"Well why? Is it because of your ages, or because he's your
teacher? Did he come out and say he didn't love you, because . . ."
"He's married."
Usagi swallowed.
"With a three-year-old daughter," Ami said, on the brink of
tears, "and another on the way."
Helpless to do anything else, Usagi gathered Ami in her arms
and hugged her. She felt Ami's tears begin to stain the shoulder of
her blouse.
"How could I have talked myself into thinking he'd be
interested in someone like me anyway?" Ami quietly sobbed.
"Ami, don't say things like that," whispered Usagi.
"He's a grown man and I'm - - I'm a foolish, love-struck little
girl. And he's so kind and beautiful and I'm so plain and mousy."
"Ami, stop," Usagi pleaded. "There's nothing wrong with you.
Nothing. Any man would be proud to have you. He just - - found his
love before he met you, that's all. It happens."
"I was so foolish to think I even had a chance with him."
"Well don't beat yourself up about that. Half the class is
head over heels about him. He's just got that combination of looks
and personality that makes a girl go weak. I'd be worried about you
if you didn't flip over him."
"So now what do I do?" Ami asked desolately. "This is why I
hate falling in love. I lose my mind when I fall in love. My life
goes topsy-turvy and I can't concentrate on anything but him. What
do I do?"
"He loves someone else, Ami," Usagi said. "There's nothing
else you can do but accept it and move on."
"Is that what you told Shingo?" she whispered. "I bet he'll be
happy hearing that the shoe's on the other foot now."
"Not if he knows what's good for him."
She stroked Ami's hair, but it didn't seem to help.
"Ami, the only thing I know about love is I love being in love.
And that when I'm faced with the prospect of not being in love or not
being with the man I love, I kind of fall apart. So maybe I'm not
the best person to ask, but you've got to believe that there's
someone out there for you. He might not look like that guy you
fantasize about, but if you let yourself fall in love with him,
afterwards you won't notice. I mean, just look at Naru and Umino.
Nobody would have paired them up in a million years, but they're just
nuts about each other. And there's a guy out there for you, too.
You just have to be like Mako-chan. When she gets her heart broken,
she just tapes it up and keeps going, because she believes the next
one may be the right one, and odds are she's going to be right at
least once. I mean you're the math whiz. You figure it out."
Ami's mouth turned up in spite of herself.
"And you've got to believe the same thing - - because you're
going to be a wonderful companion to some lucky guy some day and he's
going to be a wonderful companion to you. You can't throw away that
chance crying over one that got away."
Ami glanced at her out of the corner of her eye.
"You should go into politics," she whispered, the corners of
her mouth curling again. "You've very persuasive." She sighed
again. "It's going to be hard getting over him if I have to spend an
entire school year in the same room with him."
"You can do it. And anytime you need to lean on me, you do it.
And Mako-chan and Mina-chan and Rei-chan are there, too, and they'll
help you any way they can - - because we're family, Ami. We may not
be blood, but we're family. And I'll do anything I can to help you
- - anything."
Ami glanced at Usagi with a timid grin. "Would you lend me
Mamoru for a few months?"
"Well, anything but that," smiled Usagi and the girls hugged.
Looking past Usagi, Ami noticed Rei and Makoto hovering on the
other side of the room. They waved and gave her hopeful, encouraging
looks.
"Did they come with you?" Ami asked, nodding to them.
"They're just as worried as I was," Usagi smiled. "Come on.
We'll walk you home."
"I suppose," Ami sighed. "I'm certainly not doing any good
here." She closed the book and gathered up her satchel. Together
the two girls walked over to their waiting friends.
"How are you doing?" Makoto asked.
"Back from the precipice," Ami commented. "I'm sorry I put you
through this."
"No charge," Makoto smiled. "Don't worry. You'll get over him
eventually."
"How did you know?" Ami asked.
"Because I've seen that face you're wearing in my bathroom
mirror more times than I care to count. Take it from an old hand,
this too shall pass."
"And if you need anything from us, even if it's just a ear to
listen to you or a shoulder to cry on, we're here for you, no matter
the time or place," Rei told her.
Touched, Ami reached out and hugged first Rei then Makoto. The
four girls gathered and headed for the exit to collect Luna.
Outside, Luna waited impatiently for some word. She paced back
and forth near the door, wondering what could be happening.
"It's just so inconsiderate," she mumbled to herself. "It's
the same story, too. They think just because I'm a cat, I have no
feelings at all. It's bad enough I have to put up with the indignity
of not being allowed in the building . . ."
A noise off to her right alerted Luna to movement approaching
her. She turned to it and focused on the figure approaching her.
"Usagi, what are you doing out here?" demanded Luna as Usagi
approached her. "Did you find Ami? And where did the others . . ."
Luna stopped when the evening breeze carried Usagi's scent to
her nose. It was off just enough to make the cat suspect that this
wasn't Usagi. She looked up into Usagi's blue eyes and saw a look of
superiority that she'd never seen there before.
"Figure it out?" Usagi asked. "Or did my scent tip you off? I
suppose I really should do something about that."
"Who are you?" Luna asked, her body coiled to move in any
direction if necessary. "And what do you want?"
"Who do I look like?" 'Usagi' asked, smiling. Luna never
thought the sight of Usagi smiling could chill her, but she was. "As
for what I want, I just want to pet my dear, sweet little kitty."
The first hint of movement sent Luna lunging to her left, even
as a crescent-shaped disk impacted with the pavement to her right,
kicking up cement fragments as it careened up into the night.
However, the cat realized too late that the throw had been designed
to maneuver her to lunge that direction. Like twin cobras striking,
the Usagi impostor's hands locked around Luna's ribs, snatching the
cat in mid-air.
"Luna, why are you being so mean?" 'Usagi' said, in a whining
voice that was at once eerily familiar and at the same time
calculated to mock the real Usagi. "I just want to hug my dear
little friend!"
"I'm not your 'dear little friend'!" snarled Luna, slashing at
her with open claws.
"Careful," 'Usagi' giggled, holding Luna at arm's length. "You
could hurt someone that way."
The blonde impostor turned suddenly. Luna glanced in that
direction and saw the real Usagi exiting the library with Ami, Rei
and Makoto. She started to call out to them, but the impostor
flipped the cat away and ran. Twisting her body and tail in mid-air
to right herself, Luna landed on her feet with no more than a mild
shock.
"Girls! Quickly!" Luna called to them. "The impostor was just
here! She's masquerading as Usagi!"
Instantly Makoto and Rei lurched forward and ran toward Luna.
"She ran off in that direction!" Luna shouted, pointing with
her paw. "Try to catch her if you can, but be careful!" The two
girls nodded as they ran past Luna in pursuit of the impostor.
"Luna, are you all right?" Usagi squealed, scooping Luna up in
her arms. Luna gratefully rubbed her head on Usagi's chin.
"I'm fine, Usagi," Luna said. "All she seemed interested in
was taunting me. But I didn't like the look in that woman's eye - -
not one bit. We need to resolve this - - NOW!"
continued in part 8
Chapter 7: "Broken Little Sparrow"
By Bill K.
"Where's the airhead?" grunted Shingo, noticing the empty place
at the dinner table.
"She called and said she was going out to look for her friend,
Ami," Kenji replied. "And don't call your sister an airhead."
"Ami?" Shingo repeated, consternation in his tone. "What's
wrong with Ami?"
"Nobody seems to know. She apparently got some bad news and
isn't dealing too well with it."
"And of course since she's sixteen, it's probably the end of
the world to her," Ikuko commented. "I suppose even rational young
girls like Ami are susceptible to things like that."
"Now, dear," Kenji sighed. "I'm sure things like that happened
to you when you were that age. Don't judge."
"Does anybody know if she's all right?" Shingo asked. Kenji
noticed the worry in his thirteen-year-old son.
"I wouldn't get too worried just yet," he tried to reassure the
boy. "Ami's pretty smart, remember. She won't do anything drastic.
She probably just needs some time to be alone and sort out her
feelings."
"Yes, she probably just got turned down by a boy or something,"
Ikuko added.
That scenario didn't make Shingo feel any better. He still had
feelings for Ami that he hadn't yet managed to bury and the irony of
her going through what she'd put him through didn't make an
impression on him due to those feelings.
Ikuko, though, hardly noticed. She was busy trying to suppress
her own worries that this was some new threat that might just menace
her daughter next.
* * * *
"USAGI!" bellowed Luna as the cat, accompanied by Rei and
Makoto, followed after the young blonde girl. Usagi was streaking
down the street in a blind panic. "Usagi, wait!"
"You don't suppose she thought for a second that this might be
some sort of lure to trap her, do you?" Makoto asked Rei.
"Her? Not a chance," Rei scowled.
"The thought entered your mind, didn't it?"
"Yeah. I'm hoping it's not true, for Ami's sake."
Usagi stopped and waited impatiently for the others to catch
up.
"What is it, Luna?" she fumed. "And it better be important,
because the longer we wait, the more likely it is something's
happened to her!"
"I'm well aware of that," bristled the cat. "I was about to
suggest that, rather than run around all of Tokyo in a blind panic,
that we track Ami down by homing in on her Sailor Communicator. You
did recall that Artemis and I possess that kind of technology, didn't
you?"
Usagi avoided her gaze.
"I thought as much." With no more time to waste, Luna did a
double loop backflip and the tracer unit appeared. "Makoto, if you
would," she said, her paw resting on the unit.
"Sure. How's it work?" Makoto asked, picking up the device.
"First turn it on. It's the button on your left. Then, using
the keypad, punch in the code 'star 96'. That will activate the
homing program." Luna waited for Makoto to comply. "Now key in
212486 - - that's Ami's transmission code - - and hit 'enter'."
Instantly the device began to hum.
"The indicator's pointing northwest!" Makoto gasped.
"Let's go," Rei said. Noticing Usagi's worried look, she put
her arm around the girl.
"I hope she's all right," Usagi fretted.
The group was silent as they moved northwest from the shrine.
It was an awkward, eerie silence. No one seemed to want to voice the
thing they feared most, that Ami had encountered the fake Sailor V
and was now a prisoner or worse. Finally Usagi broke the stillness.
"You know, I was thinking," Usagi said, then paused for a
cutting remark from Rei or Luna. Thankfully they had the good graces
to keep still. "One of Sailor V's powers was to transform into any
identity she needed to use - - sort of like when I used the disguise
pen."
"Really?" Luna asked. "I wasn't aware of that."
"Well you're not 'Princess Deadly Sailor V Otaku', either,"
smirked Rei. Usagi made a face at her.
"So, if this other Sailor V has all of Sailor V's powers, and
so far it looks like she has, who's to say she isn't using Sailor V
Transform to look and act like Minako?"
"Hmm," Luna thought. "Sound thinking, Usagi. It's certainly a
possibility. And it would explain just who was in Mamoru's apartment
last night."
Usagi tensed. "You don't think she's after Mamo-chan, do you?"
"At this moment, I don't know what to think," Luna scowled.
"Even if we accept that her ultimate target is you," Makoto
offered, "what's she been doing? She had the opportunity to kill me
when she took me on, and didn't. Why take me on, then, if it wasn't
to eliminate an obstacle to you?"
"I know, she could have killed me, too - - twice!" Rei added.
"But she didn't. So what did she really want with us?"
"Maybe she was testing you," Usagi offered. "To see if she
could beat you."
"Why, so she can do it again?" Makoto asked. "If that's her
objective, why not take me out when she had the chance?"
All further lines of inquiry ceased. The group came up onto
the library. Usagi and Makoto looked at each other.
"Wow," mused Rei. "Guess she wanted to be among friends." She
nudged Makoto and the tall girl moved forward. The indicator was
pointing straight into the building.
With Luna waiting outside, the trio ventured into the library.
Their search of the building wasn't long in getting results. On the
second floor, sitting alone at a table with a huge medical text in
front of her that she clearly wasn't reading sat Ami. The young girl
looked so frail and forlorn that it broke each of their hearts.
"What could have happened?" Rei whispered.
"I'll go talk to her," Usagi said, turning to the others. "I
guess she's not in any danger after all. If you guys want to go
. . ."
"Hey, she's our friend, too," Makoto said. "I've already
abandoned one friend tonight. I'm not going to do it twice." Rei
nodded. "We'll wait over here. If all three of us come up, she
might clam up."
Usagi cautiously approached her friend. So lost in her misery
was she that Ami didn't notice her until Usagi sat down next to her
and touched her arm. The eyes Usagi looked into were as despondent
as she had ever seen Ami look.
"Ami-chan?" Usagi asked tenderly.
"I'm sorry if I worried you," Ami apologized meekly. "I've
probably got Mother worried sick, too. I . . ."
"That's not important," Usagi said. "Ami, what happened?"
Ami let out a huge, defeated sigh. "I fell in love."
"With Komatsu-sensei?" Usagi asked. Ami nodded. "And you
don't think it'll work? Is it . . ."
"He told me as much today."
"Well why? Is it because of your ages, or because he's your
teacher? Did he come out and say he didn't love you, because . . ."
"He's married."
Usagi swallowed.
"With a three-year-old daughter," Ami said, on the brink of
tears, "and another on the way."
Helpless to do anything else, Usagi gathered Ami in her arms
and hugged her. She felt Ami's tears begin to stain the shoulder of
her blouse.
"How could I have talked myself into thinking he'd be
interested in someone like me anyway?" Ami quietly sobbed.
"Ami, don't say things like that," whispered Usagi.
"He's a grown man and I'm - - I'm a foolish, love-struck little
girl. And he's so kind and beautiful and I'm so plain and mousy."
"Ami, stop," Usagi pleaded. "There's nothing wrong with you.
Nothing. Any man would be proud to have you. He just - - found his
love before he met you, that's all. It happens."
"I was so foolish to think I even had a chance with him."
"Well don't beat yourself up about that. Half the class is
head over heels about him. He's just got that combination of looks
and personality that makes a girl go weak. I'd be worried about you
if you didn't flip over him."
"So now what do I do?" Ami asked desolately. "This is why I
hate falling in love. I lose my mind when I fall in love. My life
goes topsy-turvy and I can't concentrate on anything but him. What
do I do?"
"He loves someone else, Ami," Usagi said. "There's nothing
else you can do but accept it and move on."
"Is that what you told Shingo?" she whispered. "I bet he'll be
happy hearing that the shoe's on the other foot now."
"Not if he knows what's good for him."
She stroked Ami's hair, but it didn't seem to help.
"Ami, the only thing I know about love is I love being in love.
And that when I'm faced with the prospect of not being in love or not
being with the man I love, I kind of fall apart. So maybe I'm not
the best person to ask, but you've got to believe that there's
someone out there for you. He might not look like that guy you
fantasize about, but if you let yourself fall in love with him,
afterwards you won't notice. I mean, just look at Naru and Umino.
Nobody would have paired them up in a million years, but they're just
nuts about each other. And there's a guy out there for you, too.
You just have to be like Mako-chan. When she gets her heart broken,
she just tapes it up and keeps going, because she believes the next
one may be the right one, and odds are she's going to be right at
least once. I mean you're the math whiz. You figure it out."
Ami's mouth turned up in spite of herself.
"And you've got to believe the same thing - - because you're
going to be a wonderful companion to some lucky guy some day and he's
going to be a wonderful companion to you. You can't throw away that
chance crying over one that got away."
Ami glanced at her out of the corner of her eye.
"You should go into politics," she whispered, the corners of
her mouth curling again. "You've very persuasive." She sighed
again. "It's going to be hard getting over him if I have to spend an
entire school year in the same room with him."
"You can do it. And anytime you need to lean on me, you do it.
And Mako-chan and Mina-chan and Rei-chan are there, too, and they'll
help you any way they can - - because we're family, Ami. We may not
be blood, but we're family. And I'll do anything I can to help you
- - anything."
Ami glanced at Usagi with a timid grin. "Would you lend me
Mamoru for a few months?"
"Well, anything but that," smiled Usagi and the girls hugged.
Looking past Usagi, Ami noticed Rei and Makoto hovering on the
other side of the room. They waved and gave her hopeful, encouraging
looks.
"Did they come with you?" Ami asked, nodding to them.
"They're just as worried as I was," Usagi smiled. "Come on.
We'll walk you home."
"I suppose," Ami sighed. "I'm certainly not doing any good
here." She closed the book and gathered up her satchel. Together
the two girls walked over to their waiting friends.
"How are you doing?" Makoto asked.
"Back from the precipice," Ami commented. "I'm sorry I put you
through this."
"No charge," Makoto smiled. "Don't worry. You'll get over him
eventually."
"How did you know?" Ami asked.
"Because I've seen that face you're wearing in my bathroom
mirror more times than I care to count. Take it from an old hand,
this too shall pass."
"And if you need anything from us, even if it's just a ear to
listen to you or a shoulder to cry on, we're here for you, no matter
the time or place," Rei told her.
Touched, Ami reached out and hugged first Rei then Makoto. The
four girls gathered and headed for the exit to collect Luna.
Outside, Luna waited impatiently for some word. She paced back
and forth near the door, wondering what could be happening.
"It's just so inconsiderate," she mumbled to herself. "It's
the same story, too. They think just because I'm a cat, I have no
feelings at all. It's bad enough I have to put up with the indignity
of not being allowed in the building . . ."
A noise off to her right alerted Luna to movement approaching
her. She turned to it and focused on the figure approaching her.
"Usagi, what are you doing out here?" demanded Luna as Usagi
approached her. "Did you find Ami? And where did the others . . ."
Luna stopped when the evening breeze carried Usagi's scent to
her nose. It was off just enough to make the cat suspect that this
wasn't Usagi. She looked up into Usagi's blue eyes and saw a look of
superiority that she'd never seen there before.
"Figure it out?" Usagi asked. "Or did my scent tip you off? I
suppose I really should do something about that."
"Who are you?" Luna asked, her body coiled to move in any
direction if necessary. "And what do you want?"
"Who do I look like?" 'Usagi' asked, smiling. Luna never
thought the sight of Usagi smiling could chill her, but she was. "As
for what I want, I just want to pet my dear, sweet little kitty."
The first hint of movement sent Luna lunging to her left, even
as a crescent-shaped disk impacted with the pavement to her right,
kicking up cement fragments as it careened up into the night.
However, the cat realized too late that the throw had been designed
to maneuver her to lunge that direction. Like twin cobras striking,
the Usagi impostor's hands locked around Luna's ribs, snatching the
cat in mid-air.
"Luna, why are you being so mean?" 'Usagi' said, in a whining
voice that was at once eerily familiar and at the same time
calculated to mock the real Usagi. "I just want to hug my dear
little friend!"
"I'm not your 'dear little friend'!" snarled Luna, slashing at
her with open claws.
"Careful," 'Usagi' giggled, holding Luna at arm's length. "You
could hurt someone that way."
The blonde impostor turned suddenly. Luna glanced in that
direction and saw the real Usagi exiting the library with Ami, Rei
and Makoto. She started to call out to them, but the impostor
flipped the cat away and ran. Twisting her body and tail in mid-air
to right herself, Luna landed on her feet with no more than a mild
shock.
"Girls! Quickly!" Luna called to them. "The impostor was just
here! She's masquerading as Usagi!"
Instantly Makoto and Rei lurched forward and ran toward Luna.
"She ran off in that direction!" Luna shouted, pointing with
her paw. "Try to catch her if you can, but be careful!" The two
girls nodded as they ran past Luna in pursuit of the impostor.
"Luna, are you all right?" Usagi squealed, scooping Luna up in
her arms. Luna gratefully rubbed her head on Usagi's chin.
"I'm fine, Usagi," Luna said. "All she seemed interested in
was taunting me. But I didn't like the look in that woman's eye - -
not one bit. We need to resolve this - - NOW!"
continued in part 8