Sailor Moon and her friends aren't mine – thank you Uranus Knight AKA Ringlord202 for the correction – so here it is … (drum rolls please)
Sailor Moon is copyright © 1992 Naoko Takeuchi/Kodansha, TOEI Animation. English Language Adaptation © 1995 DiC Entertainment
What All Need to Grow
Chapter Two
So You Want to Be in Pictures?
Serena was walking down the street lonely, until she spotted someone she had expected to ever see again. "Hey, there's Darien."
"Hey!" She rushed up without thinking and latches her self to his arm as she used to. "Miss me, big guy?"
Unlike Serena, Darien has no memories of their past, outside of their many arguments he love to instigate. "Whoa! You scared me!"
"Oh come on, Darien. You don't have to be like that around me." Serena smiled.
Darien on the other hand was starting to feel really embarrassed by the situation. Mostly because of how right it felt to have this girl so close. "Oh, how come you know my name, but I don't know yours?"
"Oh okay, if you want to be that way. My name is Serena, and you and I were meant to be together." She calmly explained.
But that did no good with Darien. "He, he. This girl is a total wacko."
Then it hit Serena. "Huh? Darien. You really don't remember me, do you?"
She half muttered to herself, "I guess . . . I-I've got my memories back, but he doesn't. That means he doesn't remember anything about us."
It made her sad, and she clutched his arm tighter for some feeling of comfort. He didn't know why, but he wanted to give her that comfort.
Unfortunately, Ann noticed the two of them from across the street. "Oh hey, it's that hunkmeister I saw the other day. Ah! Serena, hang on to that guy for me, will ya?!"
The girl about gets herself killed rushing through a heavily trafficked street to get to the pair. Only then did Serena or Darien notice her, they had been lost in the melancholy of their situation. Serena was the first to see the other girl. "Oh hi, Ann."
"Whoa. Another wacky girl. What's going on?" Really, Darien didn't like the vibes he was getting from this new girl. Seeing some blonde guy walking up, Darien somehow knew that Serena would be okay if there was a fight. This unknown guy had his trust completely. So, Darien freed his arm from Serena's grasp and took off. "No offense, but I've got to get to work now."
"Darien?!" Serena cried out, but it was too late to stop him. She felt so cold and alone.
"WHY'D YOU LET HIM GO?! I NEARLY GOT KILLED TRYING TO GET OVER HERE! OH!" Ann yelled as she grabbed Serena's wrist hard to stop Serena from running after Darien.
Jedite sees this and picks up his pace. Still wounded from the previous night's fight, he was only out to get some air and ice cream for Zoicite (thanking that there was no request yet for pickles or some other strange concoction. The battle would have killed any unborn child for certain – even one as stubborn as Zoicite and Malachite put together (he shuttered at that eventuality).
Serena saw him coming and wasn't unduly afraid, only frustrated and irritated. "Will you let go of my wrist right now?!"
"So, his name's Darien. Thank you, Serena." Ann grinned predatorily. "Hey Darien, my name's Ann."
Thankfully, Darien was long gone. But, Serena did not like the implications before her. "Hey Ann, what are you up to? Darien is mine!"
"Oh, so Darien's YOUR boyfriend." Ann drolled out in a lazy, challenging tone.
Serena winced slightly at that. "Well . . . not exactly."
"THEN, he's not yours at all, is he? He's up for grabs. I'll make him mine forever by piercing his heart with my love arrow. He won't be able to resist me." Ann plotted. What a drama Queen!
"As if!" Serena snapped. But Ann was chasing after the dark haired guy.
Jedite finally made it to her side. "Don't worry Princess. She'll never capture his heart. Prince Darien may not remember yet, but soon he will – and he'll wait until then to give his heart to anyone."
"I hope that you're right Jedite. Why are you out of bed after I ordered you to bed rest?" Serena stared at him hard.
Jedite held up his hands in surrender. "Fresh air and a ice cream run. Can I make sure you get home safe? Neflyte lent me one of her other cars."
"Sure, only if we hurry and you go back home and rest. I want you three back around to cover my sorry butt when I make a mistake. It looks like I won't have my Tuxedo Mask to rescue me anymore." Serena tried to be grown up about it, but it was hard to hold back her tears.
Jedite saw that clearly. "Don't worry Princess. This is temporary at the best. Now ice cream and home then?"
Serena nodded and took off with him in a sports car similar to the one Neflyte preferred – only this one was black with a silver metallic finish. It reminded Serena of a starry night and screamed of him – one good reason not to drive it often she supposed silently.
In fact the entire drive to her house, Serena was silently contemplating all that had happened. She played with the engagement ring secured around her neck by a silver chain Darien had once given her. What became of their engagement now that Darien didn't know her? Would her parents and Sammy remember? What about all the pictures that were taken that day at the lake?
When they pulled up in front of her house, Serena smiled over at Jedite. "Thanks for not pulling me into a conversation."
"I still remember a certain headstrong Princess who would rather work out her own problems rather than burden anyone else with them. But remember this, Serena. Sometimes we can work our problems out on our own and need the help of friends. We're all just a call away." Jedite winked and smiled as Serena got out of the car a little more at peace than when she had first gotten in the vehicle.
Serena smiled and nodded as she went back in her house. Her mom was at the door. "So, how was school today dear?"
"It was a pain. First the principal had it out for me again, but Mr. Stanton fixed that." Serena sighed, trying hard to hold back her tears.
Irene smile showed her confusion. "Don't you mean Neflyte dear? Or don't you remember?"
"You remember? Do dad and Sammy remember too?" Serena gasped in shock.
"Of course we all do. Looks like Luna's right, we're just meant to know. I meant to wait until you gave me some sign that you remembered, but I let it slip. Now Neflyte took care of the problem at school?"
Serena gave a half smile. "That new girl Ann seems to want Darien, and I can't sow her my ring because he doesn't even remember me."
Before Serena could break down into tears, Irene pulled her daughter tight to her chest. "He will remember. After all the two of you couldn't have gone through all of this for nothing at all."
"Maybe you're right mom. I'm going to see what Luna's up to." Serena sighed back her tears, only slightly feeling better.
In Serena's bedroom Luna and Artemis were having a deep conversation, but not the one either of them really wanted to have – this time it was business. Luna sighed hard, in disappointment and worry. "This new threat really creeps me out. I think it's too much for the girls and our Generals to handle alone. Especially while three of them are hurt like now."
"Yeah, but the other Sailor Scouts are living peaceful, normal lives. Do we really have to drag them into this, Luna?" Artemis had always felt bad about ripping away Mina's childhood, and he honestly didn't want to do it to her again.
When Serena walked in she was still bummed out. "Major drag. Darien doesn't remember a thing about me. It's like we never existed."
Luna jumps over to sit next to Serena on the bed. "Don't worry, Serena. He'll probably be getting his memories back really soon, and so will the Sailor Scouts."
Inside Luna had already decided that have the entire group back would be better than watching the girls and Generals all get hurt like the night before.
Serena on the other hand took it the wrong way. "What? Why?! You don't trust me? I mean it's not like I'm completely on my own here. Molly, the Generals, and I can protect the earth."
She spun a volleyball on her finger to prove her point. Then she tossed it up into the air and catches it as it came down. "Don't you believe me? Look, look. Big Serena, little Earth. Relax, guys. Even if I were on my own, I would have it covered. But, I have two cats and five really good friends to back me up."
"Well . . ." Artemis was nervous because of the previous night's battle as well. He moved to sit next to Luna. But then decided to have a little faith in their Princess. "You know, you're right, Serena. You really whipped Queen Beryl into shape, so we should have total confidence in you, right?"
Serena grinned at that. After all she couldn't be a flake all of the time. "That's right. Leave everything in our capable hands. The world won't have a thing to worry about."
The she slammed the ball with a hard overhead serve. It ricocheted off of the wall and slammed her in the face. No Serena wasn't always a flake, but the times she was … she would go overboard with it!
"Still feel totally confidant, Artemis?" Luna sighed to her love.
He closed his eyes and shook his head in defeat. "Did I say that?"
The next day as Molly and Serena are in the blonde's room talking before head off to school.
"AH! WHAT?! YOU'RE GONNA BE IN A MOVIE?!"
Molly shushed Serena hard. "Shh! Keep it down, Serena."
"Oh . . ."
Molly got the feeling that Neflyte was being patient with her and Serena that morning – more so than usual. "I don't know for sure yet. The casting director just called and asked if I could come down for an audition this afternoon. But, momma and Neflyte both have a strange feeling about it and don't want me to go in alone."
"Hmm. Uh, how great." Serena figured that meant Molly wasn't going to go for it. Oh well, so much for knowing a movie star.
"Hey, Serena?" Molly shyly asked.
"Yeah, Moll?"
Molly took a deep breath. "Neflyte will be in a meeting this afternoon with the other Generals, and the other three are out of commission anyways. But I get this feeling like I need to be there or something. I'd feel a whole lot more comfortable if you'd come with me today."
"No problem! And while I'm there, maybe I can swing MYSELF an audition." Serena chuckled.
Molly just shook her head. "Serena, I think that you will never change."
"Hey at least I'm consistent!"
Both girls broke down into chuckles as they rushed out the door and off to school.
Mr. Yamada never knew that the girls were being released home after lunch due to their being so near finished with the curriculum. Ironically, the auditions were scheduled to be an hour after the group was out.
"Wow, Metro Studios! This is exciting!" Lita said to herself. She was the first student there.
"Hi, Lita." It was Amy, the class brain who helped get the accelerated class going in the first place!
Lita never knew why she had been put on the enrollment list. Her grades had never been spectacular, at least nowhere near what Amy's always were. "Hey, the school genius got an audition, too. I didn't know you were interested in this kind of thing, Amy."
"Well, I'm not really, but the casting director talked me into it. I think I might forget about it, though." Though she didn't believe any of the school gossip about Lita, Amy was still quite shy. Most of her friends were the students in the accelerated learning program.
"Huh? Oh well. Might as well give it a try." Lita shrugged.
Mina walked up with her only friend Raye. The blond was beautiful, but new and almost as shy as Amy when she got into anew surroundings. But Mina did pull her weight in the accelerated class. "Excuse me. Uh, are you two here for the audition too?"
Amy nodded, but Lita answered with a cheerful smile and confidence. "Yes, we are."
"Then why don't we all go in together? Movie studios are supposed to be mazes, and I wouldn't wanna get lost." Raye offered. She only really knew Mina, and only because they sat beside each other in the afternoons. The other girls were from their class, but Raye had no idea of their names. Figuring they were feeling the same nervousness, she started off the introductions. "Oh, sorry. I should introduce myself. My name is Raye."
"Oh, hi. My name is Lita."
"And my name is Amy."
"And hey, my name is Mina, and it sure is nice to meet all you guys." She tried to give off the same confidence as Raye and Lita, but it was hard.
All four looked at one another, as something clicked in their minds.
Raye started them off. "Huh? I have this weird feeling that I've met you before."
"I . . . don't think . . . so." Amy said uncertainly. It did feel as if they were all meeting to go somewhere together, like good friends – but why, as they had only just met?
Mina shook her head, trying to figure out the odd sensation of peace these girls were suddenly giving her. "Strange. I feel like you . . . guys are . . . familiar, too."
"It's way weird, but I got this déjà vu flash, too." Lita was unnerved. It felt like something important was coming into place. But what could it be?
On the moon, a lone figure watches with her mind's eye as Serena and Luna (who was in the girl's arms) saw the others arrive. Molly had already went in, but Serena wasn't allowed to go with her friend because she wasn't auditioning.
"Oh Serena, I hope that this helps you a bit. I cannot force his memories to come forward anymore than I can theirs, but you are going to need them seriously while three of the Generals are recuperating. The two of you will reunited, all you need now is patience and faith."
The figure of Queen Serenity listens as her precious daughter notes the names that went with the faces going into the building. "Raye . . . Mina . . . Lita . . . Amy . . . Oh . . . I sure miss 'em."
"You won't be for much longer, my darling. It will be righted in the end. You will see. Now I had better return. I have two children now, and one will be home from school shortly." Serenity chuckled as she faded away, leaving no trace of her presence ever have being there.
The director came in and his words almost sounded forced. "Sorry to keep you . . . waiting, but let's go ahead and get started right now."
Molly noted that the director had a strange look in his eyes. Once upon a time she would have brushed it off as over worked, but now she was certain that there was something behind it. She really wished that Serena had been able to come in with her.
"Um, excuse me, sir. I think I'd like to drop out of the audition today." Amy tried to interject, but the director acted as if he hadn't even heard her.
He opened up a curtain to reveal a strange set – like another world. Mina was the first to recover from her shock. "I didn't know this was a sci-fi flick."
"What a cool set." Molly tried to brush off as if she was an average teenager. She mentally sent messages to Neflyte and Serena. 'Neflyte … Serena … please hurry. There's a weird feeling about this place.'
Neflyte would have teleported right then, but he was driving to the studio in his car. So he sped faster to get to his love.
Serena nodded and looked down at Luna. "I think Molly is about to get in over her head. Neflyte's almost here, but we have to find our way to her – and fast."
All of the girls spied the male and female aliens standing on top of one of the columns. The male spoke without any feeling in his words and yet so passionately at the same time. "It's what my planet now looks like. You're in for more surprises."
Amy didn't like the feeling she was getting from any of this. "Oh, excuse me. I'm sorry, but I'm not interested in auditioning for a science fiction film. I think I'll just leave now, but thank you anyway."
The male spoke hard. "You have to stay."
As he began to play his strange flute – Molly recognized it as the same one Alan Granger had played when he hit on Serena! No it had to be a coincidence!
"Minotaur, come forth!" The female threw a card in the air – just like the one that Vampeel had changed into after the battle the night before!
"Minotaur! AAH!" The Cardian roared out.
"Awesome special effects." Mina had to gulp. This was too far past way weird for her.
Lita was just as shaky. "Yeah. If I didn't know better, I'd think . . . that was real."
Amy was still heading for the exit, but is block by the swift moving bull monster. "I think it IS real! AAAH!"
"Go to work, Minotaur. Steal their energy, all of it, right now!" The male alien commanded.
The Minotaur roared in acknowledgement. Molly was worried. She couldn't fight without her powers, and she couldn't just transform in front of the others girls – they didn't remember being Sailor Scouts! "It is real! Just run!"
"This way!" Amy suggested and they all rushed out of the monster's path just in the nick of time.
The female alien wasn't enjoying the action half as much as the male. "Alan . . . there's no need to scare them silly. Let's just steal their energy."
Molly gasped for a second before rushing to a temporary hiding spot. Had she really called that male Alan? Could that really be Alan Granger – the guy who's hung up on Serena bad time? She had to hear anymore of their conversation, but with the screaming, panicking, and roaring of the monster that was near impossible. And then she saw the female become human! Ann Granger to be precise!
"Serena, I think that we are in deeper trouble than any of us can cope with right now!" Molly muttered as she rushed off to keep a step ahead of the monster. 'Guys! Alan and Ann Granger are the aliens from last night! The guy has a flute like Alan's and the female called him Alan before turning into Ann right before my eyes!'
On the other side of the studio, Serena and Luna had been trying to find their way out to wait for Neflyte – only finding themselves right back where they had started from! "Oh no."
"We're just walking around in circles." Luna snapped frustrated that they couldn't get to Molly or outside to find Neflyte.
Serena was more worried about her friend Molly. "Uh . . . oh, stop complaining. It's hard to find the way out of here. It's like we're in a maze . . . or something."
"Oh, just admit it. You're totally lost." Luna snapped again.
And then they got Molly's message. "Alan and Ann are the aliens? Luna I think we are going to have to find the girls and remind them all about our mission and fast!"
Before Luna could say a thing, the studio door beside them opened and Ann walks out. Serena had no idea how to handle the situation with back up. "Oh . . ."
"Oh hey, Serena. So, wh-what are you doing here, I wonder?" Ann asked none to sweetly. Did she know that Serena and Molly knew the truth?
"Oh, ha, ha. Forget about ME. What about YOU?"
"That's really none of your lousy business!" Ann snapped harshly. Maybe she didn't know her secret was out?
What a lucky break, but Serena had to come up with something to say and fast! "Hah! None of yours, either!"
Might as well keep the hate rolling. But then someone rushes by them carrying all sorts of equipment. "Oh, sorry, girls. I'm in a major hurry."
Serena looked fast at the retreating figure. "That sounded like . . ."
But Ann finished the statement for her. "Darien?"
"Oh, of course! I knew it was Darien." Serena snapped as if she had known all along. If he was only there to help her.
"So, I guess this place must be where he works, then." Ann surmised, but before she could continue another voice brought both girls back to reality.
"Well there you are Serena. I've looked all over and was about to give up on ever finding you." It was Neflyte at last.
Ann slipped away to try and follow Darien, and no matter how badly she want to protect her man, her friends were in worse trouble. Making sure that they were alone, Serena worriedly looked up at him. "Did you get Molly's last message?"
"Yes. Who are this Alan and Ann?"
"Well, Ann just chased after Darien. She wants him to be hers! And I have no idea where Molly is right now. I can feel her close, but with the Negaenergy added on, I can't be sure." Serena felt like she was useless.
Seeing this Neflyte rested both of his hand on his Princess' shoulders. "Don't worry about Darien. He was with no one before you came into his life, and I doubt he'll start looking around for a date now. As to where Molly is, it's somewhere in this corridor. I'm still too weak from last night's battle to pin point her exact position."
Luna on the other hand had noticed black smoke emanating from the door directly across from the couple. The room was giving off such dark, bad vibes. She looked inside and finds what they all had been searching for. "No wonder Serena has kept returning to this spot … she had found the room without even knowing it!"
Molly felt as if her legs were about to fall off! How long had they been dodging the monster? And where were Serena and Neflyte?
Mina barely pulled her out of harms way in a moment where Molly wasn't watching behind her. "Hurry!"
"We've got to find a way out of this place!" Amy cried out.
Lita vainly looked around. With all of the dodging and running, she had lost track of where they were. "But how? Where's the exit?"
"I . . . can't run anymore." Molly sighed as she is barely caught by Amy and Mina. It was all too much. The nervousness about the audition, dealing with school, the battle the night before, and now this – she just couldn't take anymore without transforming. And she seriously doubted whether or not she had the strength to do that.
"I feel this strong urge to do something other than run around in circles." Raye growled.
Lita stopped and looked over at the other girls. "We've got no choice but to fight!"
Raye threw her purse at the Minotaur, and then took out one of the spell scrolls she normally carried with her. "Maybe an evil charm will work on this creep. It's worth a try. I banish you monster, NOW!"
Serena and Neflyte were stunned as they watched what was happening from the door for a moment. Luna smiled in awe of their friends. "They're really something. They fight against evil even when they're not warriors."
The scroll stunned the monster just long enough for Lita to throw it into a column, covering it in the debris. Neflyte transformed into his Moon Kingdom uniform. Seeing this, Serena knew it was time to step in and help. "Right. MOON PRISM POWER!"
At that moment it broke through, and wasn't happy about being thrown! Raye gasped in shock. "Man, what kind of a creature is this?"
"No one beats a Minotaur!" It called out as it eyed and attacked Molly.
Raye tried to intercede. "Watch out!"
"Someone help me!" Molly cried out as the monster began to drain her energy. "AAAAAH!"
A gravelly voice roared through the room. "MOLLY!!!"
Neflyte sent a star burst attack to throw the monster off of his love. Then he quickly gathered her limp body into his arms and softly whispered. "Molly? Molly, can you hear me?"
She groaned in response. Without a request sent, the other three Generals fed energy into their leader to empower the pair to fight before they all lost consciousness. Molly opened her eyes fast. "Fight time!"
"Hey, bull-face! Yeah, you with the horns!" Came from above.
Alan couldn't see who it was at first. "What's going on?"
From atop one of the ruins, Sailor Moon grabbed the monster's attention to give the others time to get out. "I really don't know what you're up to, pal, but I'm here to stop you. Understand? I stand for love and justice, and live to dump trash like you! On behalf of the Moon, I'll punish you!"
The Minotaur snorted in contempt. "Not likely."
While Moon kept the monster busy, Molly found a safe place to transform. "SOLARIS POWER!"
Lita Too saw the opportunity. "Come on! What are you guys waiting for? This is our only chance to get away."
"You're right." Amy agreed and the rest of the group dodged the beast and heroine to try for the doors.
"Dead end." Lita called out as they found themselves trapped.
Alan was not pleased with what was happening below him. "Oh, where can that Ann be anyway? All right, Minotaur. It's up to you now."
Then he disappeared.
Neflyte and Solaris tried their best to help but were quickly knocked out of the way. Again and again one or another of the three heroes were at the mercy of the beast's horns.
"Poor girls." Lita mutters in stunned awe that anyone would willing go and fight off that monster while protecting them.
Mina couldn't shake off another dose of that earlier feeling. "This seems so familiar to me, but I don't know why."
At one point, Sailor Moon felt that they had the upper hand on the monster, and thinking it was just another transformed human yelled out. "Relax, bonehead. I'll make you normal again."
After a few second, she quickly realized that she couldn't summon the Crescent Moon Wand!
Solaris barely dodged the Minotaur's attack. "What are you waiting for, Sailor Moon?"
"The Moon Crescent Wand! I lost it!" She gasped in dismay.
Neflyte realized what the loss meant … mostly to Sailor Moon. "It must have happened during the fight against Beryl!"
As Moon and Solaris took turns dodging and attacking the monster, Neflyte overheard the conversation between the girls behind him.
"This is nuts! Why are we standing here?! We've gotta help them beat this thing!" Raye was as shocked as the rest, including Neflyte. "Huh? What am I talking about?"
"Raye . . ." Luna too had heard it. "It's coming back to them as they watch Sailor Moon and Sailor Solaris fight. Oh, they're getting fried!"
Finally the Minotaur pinned Sailor Moon to the wall. "AAAAAH! I'm losing energy . . ."
"You're mine! End o' the line, Moon girl!" It lifted her high into the air. Every time, Solaris got an open shot the monster would put Moon in the way.
"I can't get a shot! If I try I'll hit Sailor Moon!" Solaris cried out in frustration.
Neflyte looked at the black cat behind him. "Luna there is no choice. The girls have to the Sailor Scouts they were born to be."
"He's talking to that cat." Mina pointed out to the others, but it didn't really seem that odd.
That is until the cat talked to them. "Quick! You girls have to help General Neflyte, Sailor Moon, and Sailor Solaris!"
"That cat talked!" Mina gasped in shock.
Amy didn't seemed phased by the turn of events – especially given all that had happened up until then. "What did you say?"
"Oh, I hope you won't regret this, but you girls have just got to help Neflyte and Solaris save Sailor Moon." Luna sighed. So much for letting the girls grow up as normal teenagers.
"How can we?" Amy asked. After all the three strangers had helped them.
After a moment to think, Luna couldn't believe how simple it really was. "The Luna Mind Meld, of course."
The girls' symbols glowed on their foreheads as Luna linked her own mind to theirs, returning their repressed memories.
Raye was the first to respond. "Queen Beryl and the Negaverse! We fought her alongside Sailor Moon."
"No, Princess Serena. I remember. We're all warriors sworn to protect her. And the Generals … they came back to our side!" Lita corrected.
"Right. So let's get to it, huh?" Amy excitedly said.
"MERCURY POWER TRANSFORM!"
"MARS POWER TRANSFORM!"
"JUPITER POWER TRANSFORM!"
"VENUS POWER TRANSFORM!"
Then all four cried out as they returned to their destinies. "SCOUT POWER!"
Finally the Sailor Scouts were whole! Solaris glimpsed the group by her fiancé as she was trying to avoid the monster's line of sight. "Mercury, it sees my every move before I can attack! Think you can lend a hand?"
"No problem, Solaris! MERCURY BUBBLES BLAST!" That blinded the monster long enough to let Venus get Sailor Moon out of danger.
Solaris was so weak, Neflyte had to pull her out of the way to keep his love from being trampled to death or worse. He could tell that the accelerated class was going on a vacation effective the next day after lunch.
"JUPITER THUNDER CRASH!"
That stunned the monster, while Mars and Venus set up a double team.
"MARS FIRE . . ."
"VENUS CRESCENT BEAM . . ."
"IGNITE!"
"SMASH!"
The twin attacks were powerful enough to defeat the monster, turning it back into a card.
"Sailors, savor your victory." Alan spat. Ann was leaning next to him. "It won't last. See ya."
"Hi, guys." Moon and Solaris said in unison.
Neflyte held Solaris tight in his arms. "Welcome back Scouts."
"Hey, bet you're glad we're back to save your butt. Huh, Sailor Moon?" Mars teased.
Jupiter chuckled. "It's good to be back."
Neflyte and Molly took the next day off from both work and school so that she could recover from the attack and they could have a little time alone. Neither one woke from their deep sleep until after one that afternoon – clutching tightly to one another.
"Hey beautiful." He smiled as she looked up at him with a contented smile on her face.
Molly never wanted to be with him again. "Hey. We slept pretty late. I'll bet I kept you from at least one meeting today."
"Doubtful I would have had as much fun as I did laying here with you in my arms. Are you hungry?" He asked.
Molly was simply enjoying the feel and sound of his voice reverberating in his chest under her ear for a moment. "Hum? Oh yeah. Let's head down stairs so that the others at least know that we're still alive."
Neflyte laughed heartily at that. It was a sound Molly loved to hear, and had ever since that night when she got him to honestly laugh for the first time she had known him.
Downstairs the others were just sitting down to lunch. Jedite could help but tease. "Well, the dead awake! I believe that the two of you owe me."
Both Malachite and Zoicite shook their heads in disbelief – the latter winking at her new dearest friend. "Malachite and I thought that the two of you wouldn't wake up until after sundown. So, now we owe him twenty dollars a piece."
"Well we might have if it weren't for the fact that our stomachs are too loud." Molly giggled.
Malachite nodded in appreciation of the sound. "As long as the pair of you are feeling better now."
"Much better old friend. So, what have we missed?" Neflyte chuckled as he and Molly sat down to help themselves to the over done lunch before them.
"The girls will be over here after school rather than going to the temple. They wanted to check on you and Molly, while having a Scout meeting at the same time." Jedite explained.
Zoicite smiled at Molly. "Serena wants me to try and talk you into a shopping Saturday."
"I don't think so. With skipping school and work today, and all of the meetings we have had to reschedule over the past few days, I think Neflyte and I will be at work Saturday." Molly smiled. "Besides, I doubt I'll be up to a full day of shopping."
Neflyte wanted Molly to have her life outside of their business. "Molly all of those meetings are set for next Wednesday. And it sounds like fun. Plus you have one more girlfriend to take along and two more guys to help carry things."
Jedite and Malachite both glared hard at their leader as they spoke in unison. "Don't go volunteering the two of us!"
"Malachite, think of this as time off before you two have kids. And Jedite, maybe we'll find you a nice girl?" Neflyte chuckled.
That made Jedite wince, but he wouldn't explain why.
Hours later the entire group was together again. Serena was flaking out in her happiness – laughing like a hyena! Most of the rest simply brushed it off as her right – after all she had to stop the first monster with only the Generals and Molly on her side, and it was harder than the first monsters.
Mina looked over at the group brain. "Guess what, Amy? I heard they cancelled that movie because the director and the producers are in the hospital for exhaustion."
"It was that Minotaur. It's no big deal for me 'cause I've got to get down to my studies." She smiled at it.
The overly exuberant leader on the other hand was annoying Raye. "That meatball-head Serena, braying like a donkey. We always have to bail her out of some mess."
"Oh, it sounds like old times, doesn't it? I hope you girls don't mind I gave you back your memories." Luna looked up at Molly , who's lap she was relaxing on.
"I like this better than us not knowing one another, Luna."
Lita jumped up with a grin on her face. "Hey, I'll take being a Sailor Scout any day. Forget that boring, peaceful life. Fighting the Negaverse! That's the ticket! Huh, Scouts?"
The group all nodded at that. "And it was getting a little on the boring side without the usual arguments and internal battles."
"Oh, ho. Oh, I'm so glad you guys are back." Serena chuckled out between belly laughs.
"'Til she and Raye have their first fight." Luna chuckled herself.
Zoicite shook her head. "I wonder if we really missed those fights."
Serena brushed it off. "Now, if I can just get Darien to remember me. Oh! Oh! I will. I will, I will, I will!"
You guys knew that I would bring the group back! Now how long will Darien be out of it? And when will we see a wedding? Give me some input everyone! It will get me to write faster!