Chapter 4

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Rei looked at Usagi. Usagi looked at Minako. Minako looked at Makoto. And Makoto looked back at Rei. Each girl had the same expression on her face--one of utter bewilderment and confusion. For almost a full moment they were all quiet until the self-proclaimed Goddess of Love broke the silence and voiced what they were all thinking. "That was weird."

Usagi nodded. "I know! She looked just like Ami!"

"But her hair was longer," supplied the ever fashion-conscious Minako.

"She was a little taller," Makoto added.

Rei wasn't to be outdone. "Her aura was somewhat different."

All heads turned to their resident priestess-in-training. "How so?" Makoto asked.

The raven-haired girl made a face. "Auras are hard to explain," she told them, thinking carefully about what she was saying and how to phrase it, "Normally Ami's aura is pale blue in color, very pensive and about as shy as auras get. But this girl? Much darker blue, almost navy, for one thing. Still thoughtful but more collected and strategic. And, I don't know, she was . . . " Rei paused, thinking hard about how to say this. The words just weren't coming. " . . . dangerous maybe? I couldn't quite place a finger on it. And she was sad. Very sad. Somehow, seeing us made her sadder."

Usagi stuck out her tongue in frustration. "Well, pooh. That gets us no where. But Ami might know."

Minako nodded. "We'll catch her after cram school." The other girls agreed.

***

"Two years ago, in this time, each of the inner senshi was given a power boost," Ami supplied to Heero's unasked question. She wasn't too sure what it was but she answered it anyways. "Mars could extinguish fires, Minako could charm her way into anything, Usagi got a new attack, and Makoto could retain her super-strength even in her normal form. As the weakest of the group-"

Heero cut her off. "No way you were the weakest. I've seen you pissed and that was anything but weak."

The returning smile was feeble, almost wistful. "What you've seen was Sailor Mercury as the only remaining scout on earth after two millennia of improvements but that's just a little beside the point. At the time the only one weaker than me was Chibi Usa and she didn't count. So they gave me two boosts--an ice javelin that replenished every time it was used and an enhanced memory. In effect, I'm a Recorder."

'She never ceases to amaze me.' It was the only thought that ran through his head. Recorders were very, very rare. People with such incredible memories that anything they saw, heard, knew, anything they experienced was stored in their consciousness for access at any time. They didn't forget a single thing . . . and she had been a Recorder for two thousand years. 'Kami-sama,' he thought, 'That's a long memory. Talk about being able to hold a grudge.'

But Ami wasn't finished talking. "Here, in 2002, I have those boosts. I remember very clearly the afternoon the rest of the girls approached me, saying that they had seen and talked to some woman in the arcade they had mistaken for me. Rei specifically said that she had a rather different aura, and not necessarily a good one. When money was stolen from my family's bank account by someone who looked exactly like me-"

Once again, Heero had to interrupt. "Perhaps it was you," he supplied."

Her eyes went wide. "Simply put, Heero-chan, that's brilliant." She slung her arms around his neck and kissed him soundly before sitting back down on her bench. "That's what happened!" she told him excitedly, "I stole money from myself. It's like we were already here only we weren't but really we were and . . . crap, I hate all this time stuff." Ami managed to crack a decent smile. "You, my love, are a genius. Now come on, we've got a robbery to plan."

It didn't take too long, since technically they had already done it. It was simple enough, an easy get-in-get-out without any real offensive techniques needed. Arm in arm they walked to the Tokyo International Bank where Heero waited outside while Ami went in to get the money. She tied her hair loosely behind her neck, trying to draw as little attention as possible to its length. Slipping back into her shy persona, she grinned once at Heero before disappearing inside.

Slowly and carefully she walked up to a teller, looking up at him with a smile in her eyes. "Konnichiwa, Matsura-san."

He glanced down. "Why if it isn't Miss Mizuno Ami. You haven't come by in months!"

She ducked her head, blushing. "Hai, I know. I have been very busy. Mother would have come today but she was stuck in a meeting. We're planning a trip up north and she sent me to make a withdrawal." Digging in her pocket she pulled out the slip of paper on which she had forged her mother's signature. "250.000 yen [A/N: $2,000, I think], please."

He glanced at the paper and then back at her. "That's quite a large sum, little lady. But you wait and I'll be right back."

Fifteen minutes later she and Heero were walking back to the park with two-hundred and fifty thousand yen cash. "I wish I could show you everything in my time," she said with a soft sigh as they strolled around, arm in arm. "But when Setsuna tracks her key down and sends the hounds we have to go."

"So we'll be zapping back up to the gates, ditching the hounds, and coming down somewhere else?"

Ami smiled gratefully. "Exactly. Truthfully there isn't any way to destroy them. They're pure energy and totally intangible. Not that anything could touch them anyways." She shuddered. "I've told you, if something hits it, it gets teleported away. Layer by layer. The whole object doesn't go at once, pieces get taken as they touch it. I've seen it happen."

He had one other question. "How long should it take her to track us down."

Another sigh. "No idea. If she were sane, we'd be dead. But with Setsuna acting as irrationally as she is, it could take anywhere from a few hours to a few days. We do have an advantage over her, however." He brightened and she continued. "When the Negaverse possessed her and increased her powers, it also increased the powers of everything she controlled. Including the time keys." She showed him the one around her neck. "This thing now has inter-dimensional abilities."

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yes, I did take the idea of a Recorder from some 'star wars' novel. it's not mine. whoops.

and as for the questions you raised . . .

fluffy pink bouncy bunny: no need to know anything specific about inuyasha, just the plot and characters. and you might want to read my inuyasha fic, cause i'm probably gonna use this story to follow up on it.

violet eyes: personally, i am a quatre/ami fan (i'm a fan of anything but wufei/ami) but you are entitled to your opinions. as to my opinions? down with usa-baka

rogue angel barton: are you joking?!? I LOVE EYE OF THE MIDNIGHT STORM! (note to all: read it. now) all the 'z's make your reviews a little hard to read, that's my only complaint, i'm probably the worst at grammar. btw . . . when are you going to finish 'eye of the midnight storm'? or have i just not checked it recently enough?

fyre eye: cool name. no threats, please. flames i'm okay with, but i gotta serious problem with threats.

kaiya: i'd be glad to help. as soon as i can get my hands on more computer time. i'm kinda banned at the moment (don't ask). and a quote for you . . . mary had a little lamb, the doctor was surprised. (A/N: ew!)

fate's child: but that's my normal chapter length!!!!

minimerc: you will know, you will know . . . in later chapters. The g-boys will show up, but i don't know how yet.

suisei no mitsukai: the problem is that if ami runs into herself, they both cancel out (check the last chapter of 'I & W', see what happened to zoisite)

huffpuff: i think this chapter might have answered your questions for me.

sakura: the mallet thing was my attempt at humor. now i wish i could take my own advice and hit my friends back.