We Need to Work Together

Hoshiko sat at the computer at her house, attempting to balance a pencil on her nose. It kept falling to one side, though, and in the middle of evening out the sides Dai looked at her.

'What are you doing?' the cat asked, and Hoshiko let the pencil go, successfully balancing it.

'That.' She said shortly and the cat rolled her eyes. 'So, who was the guy that saved me?'

'You keep referring to him, and I keep telling you I don't know.' Dai answered and Hoshiko took the pencil off her nose.

'Ugh, fine. Maybe if I put myself in danger he'll come and save me again and then I can ask his name.' She said, and Dai shook her head.

'Honestly, child, that is no reason to put yourself in danger.' Dai answered and Hoshiko put her hands on her hips.

'I was only kidding.'

'Sure.'

'You know, I liked you better when you didn't talk.'

'I'm sure I'd like you better if you couldn't talk.' She said, and Hoshiko stuck her tongue out at her. She then smiled, picked the cat up, and started petting her on the head.

'Dai, you're my favorite kitty in the whole, wide world.' Hoshiko said in a rather baby voice, grinning.

'I know.' Dai answered, letting her owner pet her. The door then rang, and Hoshiko put Dai on the ground to get it. She snatched her glasses off and put them in her pocket before she opened the door. Normally she wore contacts, but she wasn't today because she didn't plan on leaving the house. The door rang again, and she opened it.

'Hell- oh, it's you.' She said, and her smile turned to a frown. It was Yuki.

'What are you doing here?' Yuki asked with an impatient look on her face.

'I live here.' Hoshiko answered. 'What are you doing here?'

'I was given this note to come here, but I guess I got the wrong house.'

'I guess so, goo-' Hoshiko said and started to close the door, but was stopped by the sound of Dai's voice coming from behind her.

'No, no, this is the right house!' she said hurriedly and looked up at Yuki. Yuki's eyes got as large as saucers, and she looked down at Dai.

'Your cat can talk!' she said, and Hoshiko nodded.

'Yes, imagine that.' She said and Dai looked up at Hoshiko.

'Are you going to let her in?'

'Do I have to?'

'Yes.' Dai said, and Hoshiko heaved a sigh while letting Yuki in. Yuki continued to stare at the feline, and when she didn't move Hoshiko grabbed her arm.

'Come on in, Yuki.' She said, and when Yuki realized what was happening she jerked her arm away.

'Ew, don't touch me, I'll get a disease.' She said, and Hoshiko's face turned red with anger. Dai sweat dropped while the two girls suddenly faced off.

'You have enough money, you think you could afford some manners?' Hoshiko asked, putting a fist up. Yuki just stuck her nose up in the air and turned.

'Me? You just yanked me in here.'

'You wouldn't mo-' Hoshiko started when Dai jumped up onto the table and shouted.

'Enough!' she said, and the two girls stopped, looking at her. 'Are you two going to act like children, or can we get to serious business?' The two girls looked at each other, then her, then each other again, Hoshiko turning, going to the fridge and Yuki sitting in a chair. 'Thank you. Now, I have to get something. Try not to start the next world war.' She said, and jumped off the table, into Hoshiko's room.

'Want a drink?' Hoshiko mumbled and Yuki looked at her.

'What?'

'Would you like a drink?' Hoshiko said louder, and added 'None of it should hurt your complexion.'

'Haha. And yes, what ever you have.' She said, and Hoshiko threw her a soda. She caught it gracefully and put it down on the table, tapping the top and opening it. Hoshiko sat at the opposite side of the table and opened hers, while Dai came back in the room with a pen in her mouth. She jumped back on the table and sat in the middle of the two, who were currently staring at their soda cans.

'This, my friend, is a pen.' She said, and Yuki looked at her as if she were crazy.

'So?'

'It's a transformation pen. Your transformation pen, it will come in handy. You are, you see, a Sailor Scout.'

'Sailor what?'

'Sailor Scout. You can change into a girl with super-powers. You are Sailor Venus. Neo Venus, to be exact, and your going to be needed to help save the world.' She answered, and Yuki lifted an eyebrow.

'I am not working with her.' Hoshiko said shortly and crossed her arms.

'You have no choice.' Dai said, and Yuki stood.

'Well, it's been a nice visit, now, I think I'm going to leave.' She said and turned to go. Dai jumped off the table and stood in front of the door, blocking her way out. When she tried to move the cat with her foot, she was introduced to Dai's claws, which scratched her leg. She cried out in pain and clutched her shin.

'Owie!!!' she cried and hopped around Hoshiko's apartment. Hoshiko and Dai both sweat dropped, watching the new Sailor Senshi crying about the minor cut on her leg.

'You picked her for a new Senshi?'

'I don't pick them, I'm just told who they are.' She said, and Yuki stopped, wiping a tear from her eye.

'You're serious, aren't you?' she asked and Hoshiko nodded.

'Yeah, you got it straight from the cat's mouth.' She answered, and Yuki sniffled. A talking cat did say it…

'So, the pen's mine?'

'For ever and ever.' Dai said, smiling. 'I apologize for your leg, but I couldn't let you leave.' She said and Hoshiko forced a smile.

'Come on, we don't want your precious leg to become infected.' She said, and led Yuki into her bathroom, where she searched for a band-aid in the medicine cabinet. She found one, and was about to give it to Yuki, when there was an explosion out side.

'Not today…' Hoshiko groaned, and ran to her window. Not very far off, smoke was rising. 'Come on, Yuki, we've got to go.' She said, and Yuki followed cautiously.

'Where are we going?' she asked, and Hoshiko grabbed her compact from the table.

'To save the world, what else?' she said, and Yuki nodded.

'Of course, what was I thinking?' she asked sarcastically and Hoshiko put on her shoes, running out the door.

'I'm staying here this time, good luck!' Dai said to Hoshiko and Yuki, who were currently running to the explosion. 'You'll need it.'

The two rushed down two blocks until they came to the explosion, but there was no enemy to be found.

'He's got to be around here somewhere.' Hoshiko said through gritted teeth, looking around. Off in the distance they could see a small figure shooting laser beams around random places. 'There he is. We've got to change.'

'How do you change?'

'Say what I say with Venus instead of Moon. Neo Moon power make-up!' Hoshiko cried, and went into her transformation. On the screen the compact was spinning, until a hand grabbed it in mid-air, right side up. The Cancer sign flashed on the heart before Hoshiko's eyes were put as the main focus. After a second the screen pans out to the rest of her body, which is made up of bright blue beams of light, save outlines. While it pans out Hoshiko takes the compact and opens it, a bright light coming from the inside. She passes it in front of her face, where it leaves a trail of light behind it. The compact disappears, and the light twirls around her, connecting itself to the parts of her body which have the suit covering it. In a bright flash, Hoshiko is revealed as Sailor Neo Moon. 'Sailor Moon!' she cries, striking a pose with two fists in front of her face, legs apart. Her skirt and sailor flap are a bright blue, while her boots, bows, and rings on her elbows are a deep maroon.

'Neo Venus power make-up!' Yuki cried, and she too went into her transformation. In hers, her hand grabs her pink and orange pen in mid-air. It shines in light until it pans out from her hand, revealing her body with outlines and pink hearts. Bringing it down from below her waist, she makes a heart from the pink light coming from the end of it. Her pen disappears, and the light raps itself around her, gaining orange stars. It spins on her body, then forms into her suit. Her high-healed shoes, skirt, sailor flap, and elbow rings are a light pink, while the bows are orange. 'Sailor Venus!' At the end she strikes a pose with her left arm perpendicular to her right arm, right arm on the bottom, hand holding her left elbow. Her left hand is palm open, and her head cocked, legs together.

'Whoah…' Venus said when she came out of her transformation, looking down at her new clothes.

'He's gone…' Moon said, looking in the sky.

'Where could he have gotten to?' Venus asked, but their questions were answered when they heard a scream from a near-by alley. They ran to the spot, and found the enemy cornering a mother and her child, both cowering against the wall. The enemy was holding a ball of energy in the palm of his hand, looking ready to strike when he wanted.

'Hey, you, don't touch them!' Moon cried, and its attention became diverted to them. It just threw an energy ball at her, and she avoided it by jumping over it, and landing closer to the enemy.

'Moon ray shot!' she cried, and put her hands out, a large beam of light coming from her hands. It hit the enemy, and blasted him into the far wall of the building. While she fought the enemy, Venus ran to the mother and child, who were still cowering, and put a hand on the mother's shoulder.

'It's all right, ma'am, go.' She said, and the woman nodded, picking up her child and running down the street. Venus then turned to the other two, and ran up to Moon. 'Hey, you can't have all the fun!' she said, and stood next to Moon, hip-checking her out of the way. Moon staggered to the side and her attack stopped. Venus then put up both her hands, tracing a heart in the air, and from that came a heart-shaped beam that hit the enemy straight on.

'Venus love beam!' she said, and the enemy collapsed on the ground. She smiled contently with herself, until Moon shoved her.

'What did you do that for?' she asked, obviously peeved. Venus just stuck her nose in the air and crossed her arms.

'What does it matter, I destroyed it, didn't I?'

'I could have finished it off myself!'

'Yeah, I'm sure. You needed my help, don't deny it.' Venus said, and the two girls failed to realize that the enemy had started to stir again, and it looked at them with venom in its stare. It then created a large energy ball, and aimed it at the arguing girls. It smiled at its own vengeance, and threw it at them. It hit the two, and they were thrown back into the opposite building, screaming when they were hit.

'Ow…' Venus said, wincing in pain.

'It wasn't destroyed…' Hoshiko said, standing up. Before she could do anything, though, it hit her again, this time knocking her out.

'Hey that's mean!' Venus said, and looked angrily at the enemy before hitting it with another Love Beam. It hit it again, and the enemy staggered back a little before throwing another attack. Venus avoided it by jumping out of the way, and when she landed, she went to Hoshiko, pulling at her hand.

'Come on, Hoshiko, wake up!' she said, and dodged another attack. She shot out another, and ran to the other side of the street, where she avoided two more. After a moment Moon began to stir, and as she looked blurily at the battling two Venus was finally hit, and Hoshiko shook her head, throwing out a Ray Shot. It hit the enemy, throwing it on the ground, and she smiled.

'Leave her alone.' She said, and hit it again, this time, it didn't get up. 'Venus?'

'Yeah, I'm here…' Venus said in reply and looked at the enemy. 'Is it…'

'No, not yet, I have the strangest feeling we need to work together to do it. Want to try?'

'Fine.' Venus said, and they ran to each other, Moon pressing her brooch. In her hand appeared her scepter, and with it she drew a circle in the air.

'Attack into it.'

'What?'

'Attack into it, this is how the attack works.'

'All right. Venus love beam!'

'Moon Ice plummet!' Hoshiko and Venus both attacked into the circle, and it closed itself up. Hoshiko then took her scepter over her head, and threw the super-charged ball of energy at the enemy. 'Planet link destroyer!' she cried, and the attack hit the enemy. It disappeared, and while Venus beamed, Moon posed with a peace-sign. Moon then stuck her hand out at Venus, and Venus looked at it.

'Team?' she asked, and Venus looked at her face, then her hand again.

'Fine, but only here.' She said, taking it. Moon shrugged as they shook, and put her hands behind her head.

'Fair enough.' She said and started walking towards her house. 'See you next time the world is threatened.'

'Right. Bye.'

'See you.' Moon said, and they went their opposite way to their opposite houses. Hoshiko then pressed her brooch and she changed back to her regular clothes, scepter disappearing.

A dark figure stood on top of a building and looked at the two shaking hands. He wore a suit similar to the previous generals. In fact, he looked just like one of them, and it was rather difficult to tell if it was a woman or male, the long sandy hair suggesting female, body suggesting male. He just smiled to himself and watched the two leave.

'Fools, I doubt they even know their being watched.' He said to himself. 'Zoisite, you're going to be the top general now.' He said, and walked to the other side of the building, fading into thee sky.