Chapter Two, Genius:
She sat down at her desk to begin studying, but for once she had
serious trouble studying or concentrating on anything for that
matter. She closed her eyes, leaned back in her chair, and thought to
herself for awhile. *It's exhausting living up to everyone's
expectations of me,* she thought tiredly.
She was known as the genius, but she wasn't really much smarter
than anyone else. She had simply studied hard and applied her mind.
Serena could probably do almost as well in school if she just focused
and did all the required work Amy felt. How true that statement is
may never be known for sure, but it was definitely hard work that helped
get Amy that title. She was tired of always being known simply by her
intelligence though. Yes she enjoyed school and worked hard and was
responsible, but she had her own inner demons too. She had long ago
worked hard to get someone's attention. That's right. She was a super
achiever because she hoped it would bring her absent father home. No
such luck she thought ironically. He never had come back. She knew he
was divorced from her mother and that he was an artist who needed to
travel for his job, but he also had a famiy and a daughter that he
conveniently forgot to ever visit or help take care of. Sure he sent
child support, but the money wasn't what she wanted or needed. She
needed to get his attention and love. *Nothing I do will ever get his
attention though,* Amy thought miserably as she closed her textbook and
put it away in her backpack. *No use trying to study when I get like
this,* she silently realized. She looked at her watch. Almost time for
the sailor soldier meeting. She didn't want to be late.
When she got there, Luna and Raye were the only ones there. Lita
came in next. Mina was a tad bit late, and Serena came running in
breathless a fair amount of time later.
"Serena you need to start taking your responsibilities more
seriously," she said in a commanding tone of voice. "In fact you all
need to take your responsibilities more seriously," Luna added.
"Aw come on Luna we just want to have some fun," Mina said.
"Yeah," Serena added in the same light tone of voice. Mina and
Serena grinned and giggled together.
Luna shook her head. "Queen Serenity made wishes for all of you
so you would all have better lives, and you're all wasting your
opportunity," she said sadly, walking out of the door to be by herself.
Artemis looked at them all in distaste then followed Luna out the
door to give her company and comfort.
Amy was looking down in guilt. *Did we really fail Queen Serenity
when she gave us a new chance at life?* she wondered in guilt. Raye
was also pondering the words of Luna. Mina and Serena got Lita up to
dance with them and try to forget the harsh words of the cat who never
let them have any fun.
After the meeting, she went walking around downtown for awhile
before she met back up with Raye and Luna to train. "Where are
those three?" Luna asked in exasperation.
"They went to the arcade," Raye informed the curious cat.
Luna sighed. "At least Mars and Mercury came to train," Artemis
said hopefully.
Luna sighed again. "We need them all to come to the training
sessions. I swear those three don't take anything seriously, especially
Serena."
"You're always hardest on her," Amy commented.
"Well she is my charge. I daresay it would do Mina some good if
Artemis were stricter with her as well, but as it is Mina probably
controls Artemis more than he controls her."
"I'm not looking to control or be controlled by anyone," said
Artemis.
"Maybe you're right." Luna sighed again. "It's just so hard to
know what to do anymore."
"I don't think you're too hard on her Luna. I think Mina and
Serena need that," Raye chimed in.
"Aww just let them have some fun," said Artemis.
"Meanwhile let's all train," Amy said. The others nodded their
heads in agreement. "Mercury Power!!"
"Mars Power!!" shouted Raye.
In a twirl of lights the two sailor soldiers of Mercury and Mars
stood before the guardian cats to commence training.
The next day was an important one for Amy as she was going with
her after school club to see a new art exhibit at the nearby
museum. She was walking through the museum looking at all the paintings.
As she turned the corner, Amy bumped into somebody. She
jumped back, her cheeks flushed and her head looking down in
embarrassment. "Oh I'm so sorry, so sorry," she repeated breathlessly.
"No problem Amy. I didn't know you were going to the museum
today. Fancy meeting you here," said the tall Darien in a light pink
shirt.
"Oh Darien, so nice to see you. I'm here with my after school
history club," she said.
"Oh I see. It's really an interesting historical display," he
commented.
"Really?" she asked as the other kids began entering the area as
well.
"Sure, I'll show you around all right?"
"Great!" she said enthusiastically.
"You know it's really nice to have someone to share this with.
Serena doesn't really appreciate the finer things in life," he confided.
"That's no secret," Amy giggled. "Ah well we love her just the
way she is."
"That we do," Darien admitted, a grin on his face at the thought
of his other half.
That evening she packed up her bag to go over to Raye's temple
for the inners' sleepover. *Well not really just inners. After all
Hotaru was invited too.*
"Take that!" Lita exclaimed as she threw a pillow straight at
Raye's head.
"oh you're gonna be soo sorry you did that!" exclaimed Raye,
hitting Lita with a pillow full force. Lita grunted, and they all
laughed at the funny expression on Lita's face.
"How about we play Truth or Dare?" Raye suggested.
"Yeah!" Mina agreed.
"No way," Serena said.
"Let's not play that," Hotaru requested.
"Oh all right," Raye said, giving into Serena and Hotaru. An
unusual occurrence that they both were thankful for.
They all sat down in their sleeping bags and ate some milk and
cookies while they were each lost in their own thoughts before Hotaru
finally suggested they watch a movie, and everyone else agreed. There
was much debating as to which movie to watch, but eventually they
settled on watching a romantic and dramatic action/comedy to give
everyone a taste of what they liked best in a movie.
Amy sighed quietly and leaned back on the couch cushion. She
really wasn't in the mood for seeing a romance even with action and
comedy and drama, but she wisely kept her mouth shut since the other
five finally actually agreed on something. She vaguely listened to the
movie as she was lost in her own thoughts.
The next day Amy found a seat in the library to read in with
Trista.
Trista and Amy sat in the big chairs in the library reading
their books. Amy had one out on Quantam Physics and Trista was reading
up on alternate dimensional theories.
They smiled at each other and sat down to their quiet reading
time together, each relishing the alone time and quietness.
There was a meeting for all the sailor soldiers the next day.
Amy slowly got out of bed, prepared though not excited to face a new
day.
"We call this meeting to order!" Luna announced as all the
sailor soldiers sat down in their respective chairs in human form.
"Really LUna, things have been quiet for awhile. Is it
actually necessary to continue to have all these weekly meetings?"
Mina asked.
"I suppose bimonthly would be enough now," she reluctantly
conceded.
Mina smiled and Serena shouted "Yippee."
"It's nice to finally have some peace," Hotaru commented. The
others nodded their heads in agreement.
Seeing as there were no new events or fears, the meeting was
quickly over.
After the meeting was over, she agreed to meet Michelle for
swimming races.
Amy and Michelle took deep breaths as they dived into the
pool and raced against one another. Each breathing hard at the end
after a strenuous race that they did several times over. Michelle
winning the first two, them tying the next one, and Amy winning the
last one.
That night Amy went to bed with the questions and thoughts
running through her mind. Would she ever be good enough to attract
her father's attention? Would her mother ever stop during her busy
day schedule to really see and hear her own daughter? Would Amy ever
be good enough for her father, her mother, her friends, or herself?
The hardest of all was herself. She never felt good enough, no matter
how high of a score she got on her test or how well she did in school
or anything else for that matter. Beneath that genius lay an insecure,
scared little girl who fought evil with her brains.
To Be Continued...
She sat down at her desk to begin studying, but for once she had
serious trouble studying or concentrating on anything for that
matter. She closed her eyes, leaned back in her chair, and thought to
herself for awhile. *It's exhausting living up to everyone's
expectations of me,* she thought tiredly.
She was known as the genius, but she wasn't really much smarter
than anyone else. She had simply studied hard and applied her mind.
Serena could probably do almost as well in school if she just focused
and did all the required work Amy felt. How true that statement is
may never be known for sure, but it was definitely hard work that helped
get Amy that title. She was tired of always being known simply by her
intelligence though. Yes she enjoyed school and worked hard and was
responsible, but she had her own inner demons too. She had long ago
worked hard to get someone's attention. That's right. She was a super
achiever because she hoped it would bring her absent father home. No
such luck she thought ironically. He never had come back. She knew he
was divorced from her mother and that he was an artist who needed to
travel for his job, but he also had a famiy and a daughter that he
conveniently forgot to ever visit or help take care of. Sure he sent
child support, but the money wasn't what she wanted or needed. She
needed to get his attention and love. *Nothing I do will ever get his
attention though,* Amy thought miserably as she closed her textbook and
put it away in her backpack. *No use trying to study when I get like
this,* she silently realized. She looked at her watch. Almost time for
the sailor soldier meeting. She didn't want to be late.
When she got there, Luna and Raye were the only ones there. Lita
came in next. Mina was a tad bit late, and Serena came running in
breathless a fair amount of time later.
"Serena you need to start taking your responsibilities more
seriously," she said in a commanding tone of voice. "In fact you all
need to take your responsibilities more seriously," Luna added.
"Aw come on Luna we just want to have some fun," Mina said.
"Yeah," Serena added in the same light tone of voice. Mina and
Serena grinned and giggled together.
Luna shook her head. "Queen Serenity made wishes for all of you
so you would all have better lives, and you're all wasting your
opportunity," she said sadly, walking out of the door to be by herself.
Artemis looked at them all in distaste then followed Luna out the
door to give her company and comfort.
Amy was looking down in guilt. *Did we really fail Queen Serenity
when she gave us a new chance at life?* she wondered in guilt. Raye
was also pondering the words of Luna. Mina and Serena got Lita up to
dance with them and try to forget the harsh words of the cat who never
let them have any fun.
After the meeting, she went walking around downtown for awhile
before she met back up with Raye and Luna to train. "Where are
those three?" Luna asked in exasperation.
"They went to the arcade," Raye informed the curious cat.
Luna sighed. "At least Mars and Mercury came to train," Artemis
said hopefully.
Luna sighed again. "We need them all to come to the training
sessions. I swear those three don't take anything seriously, especially
Serena."
"You're always hardest on her," Amy commented.
"Well she is my charge. I daresay it would do Mina some good if
Artemis were stricter with her as well, but as it is Mina probably
controls Artemis more than he controls her."
"I'm not looking to control or be controlled by anyone," said
Artemis.
"Maybe you're right." Luna sighed again. "It's just so hard to
know what to do anymore."
"I don't think you're too hard on her Luna. I think Mina and
Serena need that," Raye chimed in.
"Aww just let them have some fun," said Artemis.
"Meanwhile let's all train," Amy said. The others nodded their
heads in agreement. "Mercury Power!!"
"Mars Power!!" shouted Raye.
In a twirl of lights the two sailor soldiers of Mercury and Mars
stood before the guardian cats to commence training.
The next day was an important one for Amy as she was going with
her after school club to see a new art exhibit at the nearby
museum. She was walking through the museum looking at all the paintings.
As she turned the corner, Amy bumped into somebody. She
jumped back, her cheeks flushed and her head looking down in
embarrassment. "Oh I'm so sorry, so sorry," she repeated breathlessly.
"No problem Amy. I didn't know you were going to the museum
today. Fancy meeting you here," said the tall Darien in a light pink
shirt.
"Oh Darien, so nice to see you. I'm here with my after school
history club," she said.
"Oh I see. It's really an interesting historical display," he
commented.
"Really?" she asked as the other kids began entering the area as
well.
"Sure, I'll show you around all right?"
"Great!" she said enthusiastically.
"You know it's really nice to have someone to share this with.
Serena doesn't really appreciate the finer things in life," he confided.
"That's no secret," Amy giggled. "Ah well we love her just the
way she is."
"That we do," Darien admitted, a grin on his face at the thought
of his other half.
That evening she packed up her bag to go over to Raye's temple
for the inners' sleepover. *Well not really just inners. After all
Hotaru was invited too.*
"Take that!" Lita exclaimed as she threw a pillow straight at
Raye's head.
"oh you're gonna be soo sorry you did that!" exclaimed Raye,
hitting Lita with a pillow full force. Lita grunted, and they all
laughed at the funny expression on Lita's face.
"How about we play Truth or Dare?" Raye suggested.
"Yeah!" Mina agreed.
"No way," Serena said.
"Let's not play that," Hotaru requested.
"Oh all right," Raye said, giving into Serena and Hotaru. An
unusual occurrence that they both were thankful for.
They all sat down in their sleeping bags and ate some milk and
cookies while they were each lost in their own thoughts before Hotaru
finally suggested they watch a movie, and everyone else agreed. There
was much debating as to which movie to watch, but eventually they
settled on watching a romantic and dramatic action/comedy to give
everyone a taste of what they liked best in a movie.
Amy sighed quietly and leaned back on the couch cushion. She
really wasn't in the mood for seeing a romance even with action and
comedy and drama, but she wisely kept her mouth shut since the other
five finally actually agreed on something. She vaguely listened to the
movie as she was lost in her own thoughts.
The next day Amy found a seat in the library to read in with
Trista.
Trista and Amy sat in the big chairs in the library reading
their books. Amy had one out on Quantam Physics and Trista was reading
up on alternate dimensional theories.
They smiled at each other and sat down to their quiet reading
time together, each relishing the alone time and quietness.
There was a meeting for all the sailor soldiers the next day.
Amy slowly got out of bed, prepared though not excited to face a new
day.
"We call this meeting to order!" Luna announced as all the
sailor soldiers sat down in their respective chairs in human form.
"Really LUna, things have been quiet for awhile. Is it
actually necessary to continue to have all these weekly meetings?"
Mina asked.
"I suppose bimonthly would be enough now," she reluctantly
conceded.
Mina smiled and Serena shouted "Yippee."
"It's nice to finally have some peace," Hotaru commented. The
others nodded their heads in agreement.
Seeing as there were no new events or fears, the meeting was
quickly over.
After the meeting was over, she agreed to meet Michelle for
swimming races.
Amy and Michelle took deep breaths as they dived into the
pool and raced against one another. Each breathing hard at the end
after a strenuous race that they did several times over. Michelle
winning the first two, them tying the next one, and Amy winning the
last one.
That night Amy went to bed with the questions and thoughts
running through her mind. Would she ever be good enough to attract
her father's attention? Would her mother ever stop during her busy
day schedule to really see and hear her own daughter? Would Amy ever
be good enough for her father, her mother, her friends, or herself?
The hardest of all was herself. She never felt good enough, no matter
how high of a score she got on her test or how well she did in school
or anything else for that matter. Beneath that genius lay an insecure,
scared little girl who fought evil with her brains.
To Be Continued...
