Episode #8 - Chaos in all its Forms
Serena sat up in her bed, cold sweat running down her face. "What the hell was that?" she asked herself quietly, reflecting on her dream. All she remembered was that they were all in a dreadful place. A place of evil and terrible enemies. That was all that she remembered. She looked around, her clock read 6:30. Serena slowly got up and looked out her bedroom window. Serena slowly got out of bed so she wouldn't wake up Rini and grabbed an outfit from her closet and went to shower and get dressed. She walked down the hall, garbed only in her bathrobe, when she felt a great pressure well up inside her head. It was as if someone had put a hydraulic car jack inside her skull and was preparing to pop it open from the inside. Serena heard screams of torment and incoherent gibbering tear through her head, and freakish visions swam past her eyes, like some half- imagined terror brought to life. Foul, disgusting things that looked like some foul blending of man and monster. She had to reach out and grab onto the bathroom doorframe to keep her balance, such was the nausea that gripped her. She slowly sunk to her knees from the pain in her head, and then, all of a sudden, the pain was gone. The freakish visions disappeared, the screaming and gibbering ceased. Serena got up and looked around, no one had seen her. She got back up, composed herself, and knocked on the door. "Just a Minute!" barked Sammy. He walked out ten minutes later with a slight gloating smile on his face. Serena just looked at him and walked into the bathroom. She quickly showered and then dried off. She got out of the shower and wiped the mirror off, it was then she noticed that she had a slight nosebleed, and her eyes had black bags under them, as if she had her nose broken. Serena reached up and tentatively touched her nose. It was fine. Serena thought for a few moments. She grabbed her communicator and keyed in Amy. "Hey Amy!" Said Serena in her usual perky, high-pitched voice. Amy's face flicked into the veiwscreen, Serena saw that she looked as bad, or worse, than she did. "You okay Amy?" Amy looked at her and said "Yeah, sort of..." Amy looked at her friend and said "Did you get a really bad headache a few minutes ago, then have it just fade out like it was never there?" Serena looked at her friend like she had read her mind. "Yeah, and did you hear screaming and gibbering too?" Amy nodded. "Amy, I think we need to call a Senshi meeting." Just as Serena had gotten her outfit on, she heard a soft moaning coming from her room. She gathered up her bathrobe and quickly walked into her room. Serena saw Rini sitting up in bed, holding her head and moaning softly in pain. Serena ran to her daughter and held her close, saying "It's okay Rini, it's gonna pass, your going to be okay." Serena clutched her daughter to her chest tightly and began to gently rock her back and forth. It was only a few minutes later when Rini stopped sniffling and moaning, and she looked up into the young eyes of her mother. Serena looked down and said, "You okay?" Rini wiped her eyes and sniffled again. "Yeah, I'm okay" she said. Serena looked at her, she could already see the bruises forming under her eyes and a small trickle of blood was beginning to seep from her nose. Rini said "Serena, what happened?! You're all bruised!" Serena nodded and said "I don't really know yet, but I think it's because of what you just went through" Rini looked at her and said "But how could you get hurt from me having a headache?" Serena got off the bed and walked Rini slowly over to the mirror. "See, you've got the same bruises I do, and I think I had the same thing happen to me a coupl'a minutes ago. Come on, you go get dressed and I'll contact the others, see if their okay, Okay?" Rini nodded and gathered up some clothes from her dresser. Serena quickly contacted the others, each of them they were the same, black eyes and a small nosebleed. She informed them all about the scout meeting, and went downstairs for breakfast. Serena sat down at the table and began to eat with her renowned land-speed record setting velocity. She was finished in less than five minutes and was back up in her room before anyone could see her. She applied foundation and blush liberally to hide the gruesome bruises. Rini walked in and said "Hey Serena, I'm ready." Serena looked at Rini, her eyes halfway closed and head bobbing just a little and said "Rini, you might wanna check yourself in the mirror." Rini walked over to the mirror and saw that her shirt was on backwards and inside out! Rini grumbled slightly and took her shirt off, turned it around and then put it right side out, and put it back on. Serena said "Rini, come here, I'm gonna cover up those bruises, okay?" Rini sleepily nodded and walked over to Serena. Serena lightly grabbed Rini's chin and lifted it up slightly. She repeated the process she had just finished on herself and she said "All done!" Rini looked in the small vanity mirror and said "Not bad, can't even see the bruises." They each walked down the stairs to the front door, grabbed a light coat with a hood, and hurried out the door. They pulled the coats on and flipped the hoods up, as to cover their faces. As they were walking, Serena bumped into someone and almost fell, but the man's quick reflexes and strong hand saved her. "Do we have to meet like this every time?" asked Darien. Serena looked up into her lover's eyes and said "Darien! What a nice surprise!" Darien pulled her up and said "Serena did anything unusual happen to you this morning?" Serena nodded. Darien looked at her and said, "Good, at least I wasn't the only one." Serena looked up at Darien, his eyes had the same bruising that Rini and she had. Serena looked at him and said "Darien, were on our way to a meeting and I think you should come along as well." Darien nodded and took Serena's hand in his own. They walked down to the Cherry Hill Temple and walked inside. Raye's grandfather peeked his head around the corner and said "Oh, hi Serena, Raye and the others are waiting for you in the Fire Chamber." Serena thanked him and knocked on the door to the Fire Chamber. It slid open slowly and Serena looked into Raye's eyes, they were bleary and had deep black bruises beneath them. "Raye, you okay?" Raye looked at her and said, "Yeah, Serena, I'm fine, save for this pounding headache that just won't go away." Serena looked at her friend and said "Raye, I know how you feel... believe me" Raye looked at her and said "Yeah, sure, you don't even have any bruises!" Serena nodded and said, "Well, I covered them up because I was going outside, alright?!" Raye just looked at her and muttered something unintelligible, waving them in impatiently. Serena looked at her friends, they were each in different stages of whatever it was that hit them, but they were all here. "So, anyone got any idea what this is?" Serena asked quietly. Amy looked at her and said "I've got some theories on it, but nothing conclusive yet" whispered Amy. Serena looked around, she hated to see her friends in pain, but there wasn't anything she could do. All of a sudden, a loud, garish heavy metal guitar riff peeled out across the room. Most of them just about hit the floor from the intense pain in their heads. Raye got up from the floor and walked to Chad's room. Serena heard Raye yelling at Chad, and then she heard a loud, distinctive "KER-TWANNG!!" Raye most likely imbedded the guitar in Chad's head. Serena watched Raye walk back into the Fire Chamber with a content smile on her face, and her priestess gown covered with splinters of wood. "I guess that's the last time he'll ever play for a, ahem, captive audience," said Amy. Raye smiled slightly and nodded, and she sat back down on the floor and held her temples. Serena looked at her friends, it seemed that some of them were finally coming out of it. Serena looked at each of them a tissue.
"Trust me, you'll need it" she said. Amy sat down and said "Raye, if it's alright, could you ask the Fire what just happened to us?" Raye shook her head no and said "Give me about an hour, I'll see what I can do then." Amy nodded. Serena looked at Amy and said, "You got any idea what just happened to us?" Amy looked at her and said "Nothing I'm willing to discuss yet." The door to the chamber slid open slightly and in walked Luna and Artemis. Serena looked at them, even they had deep bruising under their eyes. Serena looked at them and said, "Are you two okay?" Artemis walked with a slight limp, and Luna shut her eyes, like she were in pain. Artemis looked at her and said, "Not really, when that whatever-it-was just attacked us, I fell down a flight of stairs, and Luna smashed her head into a wall accidentally." Serena knelt down and picked up the two cats, lightly stroking their fur. Darien looked around, he noticed that each of the Senshi, depending on how long they had been a Sailor Senshi, were still in varying degrees of pain. Michiru and Haruka had bruises forming under their eyes, and Setsuna was holding her head, black bruises already deep under her eyes. Darien walked over to her and said, "Are you okay?" She nodded yes and shut her eyes. He thought to himself "This is really weird, they all seem to be affected still, even though Serena, Amy and Raye all seem to be getting over it". Serena watched as her friends all came out of the headache and looked at each other. Raye looked at Amy and said "I think I can try a reading now." She walked forward and began her scrying ritual. The fire surged upwards, revealing a strange scene to the assembled warriors. It showed Geoff standing triumphant in the future, himself on a black crystal throne and the other Senshi dead. His five children sat around him in a great hall of black crystal. A great black swirl of smoke invaded the scene, coalescing into a large, obsidian eight pointed star. Raye shrieked in pain and the scene faded from view. Setsuna walked forward. "Are you okay Raye?" she asked. Raye nodded and said, "I don't know what we just saw, but I get the distinct impression that we just saw the key to Geoff and his kids." Serena looked at the two cats in her arms, they were scared stock-still. "Luna, Artemis, you two okay?" Serena gave them each a light shake and they shook their heads slightly and Luna said, "Serena, did that symbol look familiar to you?" "What symbol?" Serena asked. Artemis looked at her and said, "That eight pointed star, did it look familiar to you?" Serena shook her head no.
"I know it," said Hotaru. Luna and Artemis looked at the young scout and said, "You know it?" She nodded. "Yeah, it's a Chaos symbol, it represents the free will and ability of choice that all humans have" "Its also the symbol that Geoff's army flies as it's banner, a gold chaos star on a black background" said Rini. "You sure?" asked Mina. "Believe me, I remember that infernal symbol well, I'll never forget it.... the fallen in Geoff's army have their graves marked by it... he's turned the earth into a barren wasteland... only the Crystal Palace remains intact... and Geoff's army is growing daily... my mother knows it's only inevitable that Geoff will eventually win through weight of numbers... that's why she sent me back, to see if we can stop him here.... and save all those who have fallen in the war, we have to stop him, we have to" Rini was near tears as she finished. "It's gonna be okay Rini, were gonna put him down like the dog he is" said Haruka. "I hope we can... in the future he's nearly invincible and has... never mind..." "Rini?" said Serena. "It's nothing... never mind..." "Rini, what were you going to say?" asked Amy. "Geoff's.... well.... he's beaten some of you in a challenge... the others.... he's... he's killed" "How many?" asked Haruka. Michiru grabbed her arm lightly but Haruka ignored her. "The only ones that were left alive were my mother... and myself" The others paled to a shade near pure white. "He... he defeated all of us?" asked Lita, slightly shocked. "Yeah... and he didn't even have to use any of his powers, he just grabbed a sword or something and won... no questions asked... he just destroyed them outright.... he... he shattered their heart crystals... they were beyond saving..." Rini was silently crying. "It's alright Rini, were all here right now, and with what you can tell us about him in the future will allow us to get a better understanding of how to beat him now" said Amy. "How would you know... you were the first one to go...." Rini said solemnly. "Well... how did you and your mom beat him?" "Well, that's the weird part.... he, well, he just walked away from us, saying something about being "not worth his time and beneath his notice" "That arrogant-" "We are beneath him mom... he could've snuffed us like candles..." Rini said sullenly. "You can't believe that Rini, you and I both know that we can beat him easily! Look around you! You've got nine of the most powerful warriors on the earth to help you defeat him, you know we can!" Rini smiled a little at this. "Yeah, you're right, we probably can beat him... I just hope it's in time..." "Whadda you mean?" asked Raye. "We hafta get rid of him within two years... that's when he starts becoming a real enemy to everyone." "Easily done Rini... we can crush him, just like any other enemy!" said Haruka. "Yeah, this time were gonna dig the grave for him!" said Mina. "We'll get rid of him, no question!" said Amy. "Thanks guys, I know we can do it!" said Rini, obviously cheered up by her friends. They all had left the temple and had gone home. It was later that night when Serena heard a knock at the door. Her and Rini went thundering down the stairs and Serena opened the door. Standing there was Hotaru, holding a small red ribbon in her hand. "Serena, you forgot this at the temple, I thought I would bring it by for you" she said, handing the ribbon to Serena. "Hotaru! It's so good to see you!" said Rini, hugging Hotaru tight. "Rini! It's good to see you to!" she said, throwing her arms around the body of her best friend. Haruka and Michiru were standing at the door when Serena went to shut it. "Hey meatball-head, Rini could stay with us if she wanted to" "Can I mom?!" Serena thought for a few seconds and nodded. Rini and Hotaru smiled and they ran up to Rini's room to collect what she had brought with her. "How old is she now?" asked Haruka. "Seems to be around Hotaru's age..." said Michiru. "Yeah, sure seems that way," said Serena. She smiled, at least she wouldn't have to put up with Rini all the time now, but it would be hard knowing that she was here and vulnerable to Geoff's attacks. Rini and Hotaru came rushing down the stairs. "Now hold it right there young lady!" said Serena. "What?" asked Rini. "Before you leave, you have to promise me something" "Okay, what?" "That you'll keep outta trouble at Haruka's place and try to keep out of harm's way" "You bet mom," she said as she put her arms around her. "Now, I hope that you have a better handle on your powers that you did last time" Serena whispered into her ear with a slight hint of sarcasm in her voice. "Much better..." Rini said with a smile, and she rushed out the door with Hotaru on her heels. "I just hope you two know what you've gotten yourselves into," said Serena. "Hey, if we can raise a baby... then I think we can handle those two," said Michiru. Serena bid the two of them goodnight and went to her room and she sat down on the bed. She changed into her pyjamas and went to bed.
Serena sat up in her bed, cold sweat running down her face. "What the hell was that?" she asked herself quietly, reflecting on her dream. All she remembered was that they were all in a dreadful place. A place of evil and terrible enemies. That was all that she remembered. She looked around, her clock read 6:30. Serena slowly got up and looked out her bedroom window. Serena slowly got out of bed so she wouldn't wake up Rini and grabbed an outfit from her closet and went to shower and get dressed. She walked down the hall, garbed only in her bathrobe, when she felt a great pressure well up inside her head. It was as if someone had put a hydraulic car jack inside her skull and was preparing to pop it open from the inside. Serena heard screams of torment and incoherent gibbering tear through her head, and freakish visions swam past her eyes, like some half- imagined terror brought to life. Foul, disgusting things that looked like some foul blending of man and monster. She had to reach out and grab onto the bathroom doorframe to keep her balance, such was the nausea that gripped her. She slowly sunk to her knees from the pain in her head, and then, all of a sudden, the pain was gone. The freakish visions disappeared, the screaming and gibbering ceased. Serena got up and looked around, no one had seen her. She got back up, composed herself, and knocked on the door. "Just a Minute!" barked Sammy. He walked out ten minutes later with a slight gloating smile on his face. Serena just looked at him and walked into the bathroom. She quickly showered and then dried off. She got out of the shower and wiped the mirror off, it was then she noticed that she had a slight nosebleed, and her eyes had black bags under them, as if she had her nose broken. Serena reached up and tentatively touched her nose. It was fine. Serena thought for a few moments. She grabbed her communicator and keyed in Amy. "Hey Amy!" Said Serena in her usual perky, high-pitched voice. Amy's face flicked into the veiwscreen, Serena saw that she looked as bad, or worse, than she did. "You okay Amy?" Amy looked at her and said "Yeah, sort of..." Amy looked at her friend and said "Did you get a really bad headache a few minutes ago, then have it just fade out like it was never there?" Serena looked at her friend like she had read her mind. "Yeah, and did you hear screaming and gibbering too?" Amy nodded. "Amy, I think we need to call a Senshi meeting." Just as Serena had gotten her outfit on, she heard a soft moaning coming from her room. She gathered up her bathrobe and quickly walked into her room. Serena saw Rini sitting up in bed, holding her head and moaning softly in pain. Serena ran to her daughter and held her close, saying "It's okay Rini, it's gonna pass, your going to be okay." Serena clutched her daughter to her chest tightly and began to gently rock her back and forth. It was only a few minutes later when Rini stopped sniffling and moaning, and she looked up into the young eyes of her mother. Serena looked down and said, "You okay?" Rini wiped her eyes and sniffled again. "Yeah, I'm okay" she said. Serena looked at her, she could already see the bruises forming under her eyes and a small trickle of blood was beginning to seep from her nose. Rini said "Serena, what happened?! You're all bruised!" Serena nodded and said "I don't really know yet, but I think it's because of what you just went through" Rini looked at her and said "But how could you get hurt from me having a headache?" Serena got off the bed and walked Rini slowly over to the mirror. "See, you've got the same bruises I do, and I think I had the same thing happen to me a coupl'a minutes ago. Come on, you go get dressed and I'll contact the others, see if their okay, Okay?" Rini nodded and gathered up some clothes from her dresser. Serena quickly contacted the others, each of them they were the same, black eyes and a small nosebleed. She informed them all about the scout meeting, and went downstairs for breakfast. Serena sat down at the table and began to eat with her renowned land-speed record setting velocity. She was finished in less than five minutes and was back up in her room before anyone could see her. She applied foundation and blush liberally to hide the gruesome bruises. Rini walked in and said "Hey Serena, I'm ready." Serena looked at Rini, her eyes halfway closed and head bobbing just a little and said "Rini, you might wanna check yourself in the mirror." Rini walked over to the mirror and saw that her shirt was on backwards and inside out! Rini grumbled slightly and took her shirt off, turned it around and then put it right side out, and put it back on. Serena said "Rini, come here, I'm gonna cover up those bruises, okay?" Rini sleepily nodded and walked over to Serena. Serena lightly grabbed Rini's chin and lifted it up slightly. She repeated the process she had just finished on herself and she said "All done!" Rini looked in the small vanity mirror and said "Not bad, can't even see the bruises." They each walked down the stairs to the front door, grabbed a light coat with a hood, and hurried out the door. They pulled the coats on and flipped the hoods up, as to cover their faces. As they were walking, Serena bumped into someone and almost fell, but the man's quick reflexes and strong hand saved her. "Do we have to meet like this every time?" asked Darien. Serena looked up into her lover's eyes and said "Darien! What a nice surprise!" Darien pulled her up and said "Serena did anything unusual happen to you this morning?" Serena nodded. Darien looked at her and said, "Good, at least I wasn't the only one." Serena looked up at Darien, his eyes had the same bruising that Rini and she had. Serena looked at him and said "Darien, were on our way to a meeting and I think you should come along as well." Darien nodded and took Serena's hand in his own. They walked down to the Cherry Hill Temple and walked inside. Raye's grandfather peeked his head around the corner and said "Oh, hi Serena, Raye and the others are waiting for you in the Fire Chamber." Serena thanked him and knocked on the door to the Fire Chamber. It slid open slowly and Serena looked into Raye's eyes, they were bleary and had deep black bruises beneath them. "Raye, you okay?" Raye looked at her and said, "Yeah, Serena, I'm fine, save for this pounding headache that just won't go away." Serena looked at her friend and said "Raye, I know how you feel... believe me" Raye looked at her and said "Yeah, sure, you don't even have any bruises!" Serena nodded and said, "Well, I covered them up because I was going outside, alright?!" Raye just looked at her and muttered something unintelligible, waving them in impatiently. Serena looked at her friends, they were each in different stages of whatever it was that hit them, but they were all here. "So, anyone got any idea what this is?" Serena asked quietly. Amy looked at her and said "I've got some theories on it, but nothing conclusive yet" whispered Amy. Serena looked around, she hated to see her friends in pain, but there wasn't anything she could do. All of a sudden, a loud, garish heavy metal guitar riff peeled out across the room. Most of them just about hit the floor from the intense pain in their heads. Raye got up from the floor and walked to Chad's room. Serena heard Raye yelling at Chad, and then she heard a loud, distinctive "KER-TWANNG!!" Raye most likely imbedded the guitar in Chad's head. Serena watched Raye walk back into the Fire Chamber with a content smile on her face, and her priestess gown covered with splinters of wood. "I guess that's the last time he'll ever play for a, ahem, captive audience," said Amy. Raye smiled slightly and nodded, and she sat back down on the floor and held her temples. Serena looked at her friends, it seemed that some of them were finally coming out of it. Serena looked at each of them a tissue.
"Trust me, you'll need it" she said. Amy sat down and said "Raye, if it's alright, could you ask the Fire what just happened to us?" Raye shook her head no and said "Give me about an hour, I'll see what I can do then." Amy nodded. Serena looked at Amy and said, "You got any idea what just happened to us?" Amy looked at her and said "Nothing I'm willing to discuss yet." The door to the chamber slid open slightly and in walked Luna and Artemis. Serena looked at them, even they had deep bruising under their eyes. Serena looked at them and said, "Are you two okay?" Artemis walked with a slight limp, and Luna shut her eyes, like she were in pain. Artemis looked at her and said, "Not really, when that whatever-it-was just attacked us, I fell down a flight of stairs, and Luna smashed her head into a wall accidentally." Serena knelt down and picked up the two cats, lightly stroking their fur. Darien looked around, he noticed that each of the Senshi, depending on how long they had been a Sailor Senshi, were still in varying degrees of pain. Michiru and Haruka had bruises forming under their eyes, and Setsuna was holding her head, black bruises already deep under her eyes. Darien walked over to her and said, "Are you okay?" She nodded yes and shut her eyes. He thought to himself "This is really weird, they all seem to be affected still, even though Serena, Amy and Raye all seem to be getting over it". Serena watched as her friends all came out of the headache and looked at each other. Raye looked at Amy and said "I think I can try a reading now." She walked forward and began her scrying ritual. The fire surged upwards, revealing a strange scene to the assembled warriors. It showed Geoff standing triumphant in the future, himself on a black crystal throne and the other Senshi dead. His five children sat around him in a great hall of black crystal. A great black swirl of smoke invaded the scene, coalescing into a large, obsidian eight pointed star. Raye shrieked in pain and the scene faded from view. Setsuna walked forward. "Are you okay Raye?" she asked. Raye nodded and said, "I don't know what we just saw, but I get the distinct impression that we just saw the key to Geoff and his kids." Serena looked at the two cats in her arms, they were scared stock-still. "Luna, Artemis, you two okay?" Serena gave them each a light shake and they shook their heads slightly and Luna said, "Serena, did that symbol look familiar to you?" "What symbol?" Serena asked. Artemis looked at her and said, "That eight pointed star, did it look familiar to you?" Serena shook her head no.
"I know it," said Hotaru. Luna and Artemis looked at the young scout and said, "You know it?" She nodded. "Yeah, it's a Chaos symbol, it represents the free will and ability of choice that all humans have" "Its also the symbol that Geoff's army flies as it's banner, a gold chaos star on a black background" said Rini. "You sure?" asked Mina. "Believe me, I remember that infernal symbol well, I'll never forget it.... the fallen in Geoff's army have their graves marked by it... he's turned the earth into a barren wasteland... only the Crystal Palace remains intact... and Geoff's army is growing daily... my mother knows it's only inevitable that Geoff will eventually win through weight of numbers... that's why she sent me back, to see if we can stop him here.... and save all those who have fallen in the war, we have to stop him, we have to" Rini was near tears as she finished. "It's gonna be okay Rini, were gonna put him down like the dog he is" said Haruka. "I hope we can... in the future he's nearly invincible and has... never mind..." "Rini?" said Serena. "It's nothing... never mind..." "Rini, what were you going to say?" asked Amy. "Geoff's.... well.... he's beaten some of you in a challenge... the others.... he's... he's killed" "How many?" asked Haruka. Michiru grabbed her arm lightly but Haruka ignored her. "The only ones that were left alive were my mother... and myself" The others paled to a shade near pure white. "He... he defeated all of us?" asked Lita, slightly shocked. "Yeah... and he didn't even have to use any of his powers, he just grabbed a sword or something and won... no questions asked... he just destroyed them outright.... he... he shattered their heart crystals... they were beyond saving..." Rini was silently crying. "It's alright Rini, were all here right now, and with what you can tell us about him in the future will allow us to get a better understanding of how to beat him now" said Amy. "How would you know... you were the first one to go...." Rini said solemnly. "Well... how did you and your mom beat him?" "Well, that's the weird part.... he, well, he just walked away from us, saying something about being "not worth his time and beneath his notice" "That arrogant-" "We are beneath him mom... he could've snuffed us like candles..." Rini said sullenly. "You can't believe that Rini, you and I both know that we can beat him easily! Look around you! You've got nine of the most powerful warriors on the earth to help you defeat him, you know we can!" Rini smiled a little at this. "Yeah, you're right, we probably can beat him... I just hope it's in time..." "Whadda you mean?" asked Raye. "We hafta get rid of him within two years... that's when he starts becoming a real enemy to everyone." "Easily done Rini... we can crush him, just like any other enemy!" said Haruka. "Yeah, this time were gonna dig the grave for him!" said Mina. "We'll get rid of him, no question!" said Amy. "Thanks guys, I know we can do it!" said Rini, obviously cheered up by her friends. They all had left the temple and had gone home. It was later that night when Serena heard a knock at the door. Her and Rini went thundering down the stairs and Serena opened the door. Standing there was Hotaru, holding a small red ribbon in her hand. "Serena, you forgot this at the temple, I thought I would bring it by for you" she said, handing the ribbon to Serena. "Hotaru! It's so good to see you!" said Rini, hugging Hotaru tight. "Rini! It's good to see you to!" she said, throwing her arms around the body of her best friend. Haruka and Michiru were standing at the door when Serena went to shut it. "Hey meatball-head, Rini could stay with us if she wanted to" "Can I mom?!" Serena thought for a few seconds and nodded. Rini and Hotaru smiled and they ran up to Rini's room to collect what she had brought with her. "How old is she now?" asked Haruka. "Seems to be around Hotaru's age..." said Michiru. "Yeah, sure seems that way," said Serena. She smiled, at least she wouldn't have to put up with Rini all the time now, but it would be hard knowing that she was here and vulnerable to Geoff's attacks. Rini and Hotaru came rushing down the stairs. "Now hold it right there young lady!" said Serena. "What?" asked Rini. "Before you leave, you have to promise me something" "Okay, what?" "That you'll keep outta trouble at Haruka's place and try to keep out of harm's way" "You bet mom," she said as she put her arms around her. "Now, I hope that you have a better handle on your powers that you did last time" Serena whispered into her ear with a slight hint of sarcasm in her voice. "Much better..." Rini said with a smile, and she rushed out the door with Hotaru on her heels. "I just hope you two know what you've gotten yourselves into," said Serena. "Hey, if we can raise a baby... then I think we can handle those two," said Michiru. Serena bid the two of them goodnight and went to her room and she sat down on the bed. She changed into her pyjamas and went to bed.