Last upload for a few days, I'm going to be away. Enjoy! J
Three
Minako skipped through the park, lavishing the morning breeze and the fresh smells that always followed rain. The Juuban autumn was so exhilarating, so full of change with wild, flashy storms and crisp, clear days. Her knee-length maroon skirts swayed against her legs gently and she pulled her woolen gloves off, tucking them into her coat pockets. It was warmer here than it had been in Cardiff, her home city. She was used to chilly weather.
She stopped by the lake, marveling at the mirrored quality the sun's morning light gave it, making it appear to be a lake of liquid silver.
It reminded her of home. Not of Cardiff in Britain, where she had spent most of her current life; but of Venus. In another time, Venus had boasted lakes of silver and ferns of virulent teals and sapphire. In this life, she had learned that it had become a topaz wasteland; never to view the sky or the stars again. What a waste of such beauty.
Minako sighed, and moved to walk back home, turning her thoughts to what she could dig up for breakfast. Some tea and-
'It's cold,' a childish voice said by her side.
Minako startled. She had thought she was alone. Her mind had been a couple of million miles away, she reasoned.
'Good morning,' Minako nodded to the coated child, stooped over making pictures in the dirt and leaves with a twig, face hidden by a hood of deep, dark green. 'The storm brought autumn to us truly, it seems,' she tried to catch a glance of the child's face. She thought she saw some strawberry coloured hair.
'It will only get colder,' the girl said in the same careless, girl-child voice.
'Hai,' Minako agreed. 'Winter is approaching.'
Who was this little girl, Mina wondered? What was she doing in the park, this early in the morning by herself?
'Are your parents nearby, little one?' Minako stooped to the girl, who couldn't have been more than five years old.
The girl started to draw more vigorously in the dirt, swirling spirals and sharp angled patterns.
'No,' the cloaked child grated with intensity beyond her years.
Minako's mind was automatically switching to defensive mode, and she chided herself. She surveyed her surrounds; it was clear, the lake was in front of them, a tree line was behind them. Neither of them were in danger.
Calmly she rose, resolving to call the police when she left the park, just to make sure the little girl wasn't all alone.
'Good bye, dear,' Minako smiled hopefully as she turned and walked towards the trees.
No reply came, only the sound of more frantic drawing and scratching on the ground.
She reached the treeline, and had still heard nothing. She turned back, and noticed that the green-coated child had gone.
Minako shook off the oppressive vibes she had been emitting herself and smiled, slowing her pace along the path through the trees once more.
A hand snaked out from a tree, quick as a flash, grabbing Minako's neck.
Mina gasped and grabbed the wrist attached to the hand, digging her nails into it.
The hand was strong; the body stronger, and Minako found herself lifted off the ground a good foot.
She tried to isolate her thoughts and focus, meaning to kick her leg around in a sweep to hit whoever had captured her in the face.
Before she could act, she was slammed into a tree trunk, and the pungent smell of strong, sickly flowers filled her nostrils. A face pressed up against hers, and she saw glowing, cornsilk-blue eyes reflecting her own, horrified face.
Minako coughed, trying to speak.
'Winter is here,' a matured female voice grated. Minako's head felt so heavy…she held the hand at her throat, staring shell-shocked into the pale blue eyes, trying to identify the familiar, heavily shadowed face. The lips were prominent, pink and pouty, and either side of the dark green hood, Minako could make out a sheath of long, strawberry-blonde hair.
'The storm did not bring it,' the voice continued. 'You brought it on yourself.'
'What?' Minako rasped.
The young woman smirked unkindly, and her other hand rose to Minako's face. She extended a finger and slowly moved it towards Mina's temple. Minako tried to take the opportunity to kick her feet up from under her and lob the stronger woman in the gut, but as soon as the finger touched her skin, she felt burning, and instant paralysis.
'You're dead,' the woman whispered, then vanished in thin air. Minako fell to the leafy ground, landing in a crouch. She coughed again. That little girl – she hadn't been little at all! And those glowing blue eyes – there wasn't an earthly thing about them.
Mina's hand snaked to her temple, where the burning was persisting. She could feel a slight lump of skin, like a blister almost, in the shape of a triangle. She let her hand fall to the ground unsteadily.
There was a new enemy, and she was strong. She had fooled Minako, and put the Goddess of Love out of commission before she'd had the time to think and act against her.
She rose shakily and brushed the pieces of stray bark out of her hair, trying to regain her composure.
Quickly, she left the park, finding the nearest phone booth.
She dialed Usagi's number.
Ring-ring.
'Moshi-moshi.'
Minako burst into tears.
