Legal Disclaimer: We don't own the Scouts. We couldn't if we wanted to. This idea is sort of ours, though.
by: Cynthia and Emerald J
The Sailor Scouts.
Or rather, their human identities. Darien, Serena, Raye, Amy, and Mina had all managed to get up early, regardless of the late-night meeting they'd had before. It had been, as usual, hard to get Serena up, and Raye wouldn't be all that certain she was awake really.
Neither am I, really. The Warrior of Mars shivered just a little, wondering if they were going to be doing the right thing. She did trust Lita, but the thought of bringing back one of their former greatest enemies did send chills down the young priestess' spine. We are going to do this, though. I believe he has changed...but this is something that we've never done before. And we have to be sure we not only do this right, but that it's the right thing to do.
Her inner reverie halted as they came up to Lita's door and Serena knocked on it. None were truly surprised when Neflite was the one who opened it, especially when they heard Lita coughing from inside.
"Come in, please," the ex-Negaverse general motioned them in and shut the door behind them. "Lita hasn't had a chance to make breakfast yet, but we've got some tea made for those who want it."
True to her nature, Serena perked up almost at once, her wide blue eyes dancing at the mention of anything edible or potable. "I'll have some, please!"
As they came into the living room, they saw Lita sitting on the couch, coughing into a handkerchief. She weakly raised one hand and waved briefly to them. "Morning," the sick young woman croaked as Neflite headed into the kitchen. Despite having only been there, and solid, for a few hours, he seemed to be rather familiar with the kitchen apparatus, and they heard him clinking about with the tea making equipment.
Mina stared at the door for a moment, then appeared to come to some sort of decision. Before any of the others could say or do anything, she was up and heading in there. Neflite, clad in that same general's uniform all the others had worn but with some differences that made it unique. She took a quick breath, focusing on what she wanted to say.
"Hi." Good start. Now don't look like an idiot. You've got to let him know some things.
Neflite turned around briefly, and smiled. She at once understood how he could have captivated Lita's heart so quickly. As the Senshi of Love, she knew better than any of them that this was no fluke or trick going on in here. This was the real and true thing. Lucky little so and so's. "Can I help you, Mina?"
"I just wanted to ask if you really love Lita," that wasn't exactly what she had been thinking about, but it was close enough. Neflite just smiled, seemingly unoffended.
"With all my heart and soul," the solid ghost replied. "I'd rather die a thousand times than let her be hurt once."
Mina's eyes widened; it had been quite some time since she'd heard utterings of that sort! "How can you love her when you've only really known her for less than a day?"
Again he seemed unruffled. "How can Serena and Darien love each other when they barely knew one another? Some things are simply meant to be. I was born for her, and she for me."
He loaded up the tea cups on a tray and turned towards her. With a patently false, yet somehow amusing English accent, he said, "Tea time?"
Lita nodded a little, managing to be able to speak for a few minutes. Her constant coughing was worrying all of them. "We did figure out that the dancing is just dancing. Nothing else."
The sense of relief in the room was palpable as all the Scouts leaned back in their various chairs and couches. "We'll be doing that at midnight," Neflite continued. "I'm not quite certain just how we're going to pull off the rest of the list, though."
None of them had asked just how it was he had gained this list, and as they watched him put his arms around Lita in a casual motion, none of them really cared. What mattered was that they could and would pull all of that off.
Silence reigned for a few minutes, then was suddenly broken by Lita coughing. Everyone stared at her as instead of relaxing after a few minutes, the coughs came harsher, fiercer, and more hacking. Neflite started to rub her back, doing his best to halt the spasms. He reached to the table, picking up the cough medicine and quickly measuring out a dose. He hoped this would work; she had to feel better, or he'd just die!
Again.
Slowly she drank the medicine, leaning into his arms as the spasms began to ease off. "T..thank you..." she breathed softly when she was able to again. She closed her eyes for a moment and then looked at him. "I'm going to bed. You guys play nice."
Serena smiled briefly. "We will."
Everyone watched as she headed for her room, and Neflite was on her heels. She smiled briefly as he laid a warm blanket on her, tucking it gently around her shoulders. "Go talk to the others," she told him quietly. "Please."
"All right." He kissed her lightly on the forehead, then left, shutting the door behind him. He would still be able to hear if she needed him.
When he returned to the other room, the only two that were still there were Amy and Darien, but from the sound of voices, the rest of the group was doing something in the kitchen. If they mess up anything, Lita is going to rise up from her deathbed if necessary to kick their rears.
"Hi," was all he said as the other two turned to look at him. Amy smiled briefly, then got up.
"I'm going to go watch Lita for a little bit," it was obviously a pre-rehearsed statement, but he said nothing as she went into the room. He glanced over at Darien for a few moments, who was sipping his tea and looking at him just as calmly as Neflite was looking at him.
It wasn't exactly the most comfortable moment the ex-general had ever had in either his life or death. Darien had been his prince once, and he had been one of his most trusted advisors and companions. Neflite decided it was time to speak, to say ...something. Even if he didn't know quite what. "It is nice to meet you. Under better circumstances."
"Yes." Darien nodded. "We knew each other during the Silver Millennium."
Neflite nodded. "I know. Your Highness."
"Just Darien." the former prince of the Earth suggested. "Are you willing to help us? Fight, once you're alive again?"
"Always." Neflite's answer was quiet and firm. Though there was no enemy they were up against right at that moment, it didn't hurt to be prepared. They could use that lull to train and learn how to use their powers as a team. Luna and Artemis had said something about possible upgrades in their future, and it would be better learning how to manipulate their powers in a practice field than in a real battle.
Darien sipped at the tea, staring down into it. "I remember very little about my past. You're going to have to help us all."
"I'll do my best." Neflite didn't have full memory of their previous lives, but he sensed he knew some more things than they did.
"Just be nice to Lita." Darien insisted. That was something all of the team wanted to be certain of. If not, Neflite would have to deal with lunar energy, roses, fire, ice, and light in various parts of his anatomy. He smiled briefly. "Aren't you curious as to what happened about your alter ego Maxfield Stanton?"
Neflite just smiled. That had been something he had checked into as soon as he had been able to once again. "I already know."
"What?"
"Supposedly I have went into hiding for a 'mental' reason." He had wondered what the executors of his estate had stated about him. Those were some of his Negaverse lackeys who had taken care of the things he had set up in the mortal world. One thing he had quickly learned once entering it, those who vanished without a trace were searched for, especially if they were rich. He had made a back up plan the night he had went looking for Molly. He hadn't expected, or wanted, to die...but he had thought ahead. Just in case.
"I think being dead is a good mental reason for hiding."
Neflite chuckled. "I suppose. But I will soon be all better." He sighed a little. "I hope...the scouts don't resent me for what I did before, though."
Darien raised one eyebrow. "Just a little, but I don't think it'll last long. If it wasn't for you creating that crystal, we'd still be fighting Beryl. Or worse, we would've lost. You did us a favor. Sort of."
"I'm glad you won." Neflite told him. "The only thing I regret was, I wasn't there to give you a hand."
The dark-haired young man smiled as he leaned back, sipping the tea. "Me too. What kind of tea is this? It tastes delicious."
The two of them indulged in various forms of small talk until the sound of a door opening up interrupted them. Amy emerged frowning. "I think I'd better leave."
"What's wrong?" Neflite was already on his feet, worried and ready for anything.
Amy just smiled, though. "She ran out of cough medicine. We'll be back." She poked her head into the kitchen. "Come on, we need to make a trip to the drugstore."
"Do we all have to go?" Serena's familiar whine filled the air. "I'm right in the middle of some curry!"
The Warrior of Mercury sighed. "Yes, we do. Lita doesn't need us all eating up all of her food, and we've got some studying to do, too. We've got that test on Tuesday, remember?"
Neflite couldn't help but smile as Amy herded the rest of the group, including Darien, out. She might not be as skilled in love as Mina was, but she could tell when it might be a good idea to leave two people alone for a while.
"Five more hours," Lita said softly. "Five more hours to wait."
He sighed. "It won't be forever." The last few hours until they performed the first of the tasks necessary to return him to life were slowly ticking away, and it seemed as if they would never be over.
"I know. I just want to be held by you."
Neflite smiled as he wrapped his arms around you. "I know." Holding her was fairly tops on the list of things he loved to do. Lita grinned up at him.
"I bet you like holding me." She purred softly into one ear, smiling as it turned ever so faintly a shade of pink.
"I do." He told her. "I was born loving you." When she laughed, he frowned. "What?"
She grinned at him. "You are so full of it!"
"I'm serious!" he insisted. He was; he had always known that he loved her, but he just hadn't know who she was. He had known he was in love with someone, and had searched for her wherever he went. He had come close to finding her in Molly, but though they had been very close, it hadn't been the same as being with Lita.
The Lightning warrior smiled. "You're still full of it." The two of them cuddled for a few minutes and she leaned against him. "I love you. I feel so sure of it."
"I love you too."
The romantic moment was spoiled somewhat as Lita held his hand...and sneezed. Neflite just smiled and handed her a handkerchief. She blew her nose, handing it back to him, and almost immediately sneezing again. "Just keep it," he smiled as she sneezed again and again. "You need more cold medicine."
"Amy got me plenty."
He put a hand on her forehead, not liking how hot she was. I wonder if I could talk her into going to a hospital...no, she won't do that. Maybe if half her body was ripped apart...maybe. "Take it, please."
"I didn't say I wouldn't!" Lita smiled as she poured herself out a dose and sipped down the bitter-tasting tonic. Slowly she closed her eyes and curled up on the bed, smiling as she felt his arms going around her. "Night, night."
"Good night my love."
"Until midnight."
Slowly the two of them fell asleep in each other's arms, waiting until the hour of eleven struck, the hour they had chosen to awaken at in order to prepare for the first step in his return to true life.
What he saw made his jaw almost quite literally hit his knees in shock. Lita wore a long pale green gown with a rose design on the bodice, a pair of light slippers, and her hair was down and flowing instead of up in it's usual pony tail. The only word that made the slightest bit of sense coming out of his mouth was "Uhhhhhhhhh....."
"I thought I'd make it special," Lita smiled as she turned to face him, and liking the effect the outfit was having on her. She rarely had the chance to wear this gown, which had belonged to her mother, and was really the only 'fancy thing' she owned that looked decent on her thanks to her height and figure. Her mother had been the same way, and had left her daughter this outfit.
Neflite gasped, "You're beautiful."
"Thanks." Lita smiled as she motioned for him to sit down and laid out a plate of some of her finest cooking. Neflite started to eat, and his eyes almost fell out of his head.
"This is delicious!"
Lita blushed faintly at the praise, nibbling briefly at the plate she'd put for herself. She stifled a cough before it could get started. She was not going to let anything spoil this night for them. She would get him back to full life. He had only a short time, not quite an hour, before he would once again be a ghost, and it was during that time they would have to dance. She wanted to be ready.
"Are you ready?" she coughed just a little in the question, but stayed on her feet and determined.
"Always." The music began with a flick of her hand, and he held his right hand out to her. Slowly she took it, feeling just the faintest hint of solidity there, and the two of them began to dance. As they moved next to each other through the motions of the dance, slowly he began to fuse into her.
This is so weird! Her eyes widened as she felt his mind and soul and being within her.
I know...
I am part of you. And you are of me. She knew they had done it right, they were one. Together, they moved through the dance, each step and turn and grace falling as naturally as if they had been born to it. Perhaps they had been.
We are one.
For a while.
Yes.
For two hours of perfect bliss the two of them moved in elegant grace over the room, then finally Lita collapsed on the floor. Neflite stood, his ghostly form intact, and stared down at her. "Whoa....how do you feel, Lita?"
"Tired..." she breathed softly, then coughed.
He smiled quietly. "Rest." He meant for her to get up and go to bed, but she simply lay where she was, coughing and curled up. He frowned, not liking what he was hearing, and touched her hand gently. "Lita, you might want to get into bed."
"All right..." she sighed, slowly making her way up and leaning against the wall. Without even bothering to change clothes or tie her hair up, she collapsed into bed, half-asleep already.
"Sleep well." he said softly, gazing at her.
"Bye bye Neflite." she whispered, drifting to sleep with the soft touch of his ghostly lips on her cheek. Neflite sighed, then vanished. He had something to do.
"Amy?" she looked up to see Neflite appear before her, faint and luminous. "Your mother is a doctor, correct?"
She nodded. "Yes."
Neflite sighed, sitting down on her bed. She was rather surprised to see he didn't go through it, as one might think since he had no mass, and made a note to talk to him about that someday fairly soon. It was obvious something else was on his mind, however. "Lita needs her."
"I've asked her to go in for a checkup." Amy had been trying to get Lita to see her mother ever since she had started to get sick, and Lita had refused every time. She had insisted all she needed was just a suitable application of cold medicine and chicken soup. It was getting more and more obvious that wasn't working.
The ghost looked near to be crying. "I think she's gotten worse. I didn't want to hurt her, but I think I did!"
"I'll ask my mother to check her out at home." Amy promised him. Neflite smiled. "I'll talk to her in the morning."
"Thank you!" Neflite brightened up by several orders of magnitude and sat up a little straighter. Then he sighed again, something else occurring to him. "It's my fault she's worse."
Amy raised one eyebrow. "Are you sure?"
"She wasn't this bad, before we danced." he admitted. Amy shrugged.
"It could've just been a matter of time."
Neflite sighed. "I hope you're right, Amy. I'd hate to think that I'd done anything to hurt her."
Amy looked as confidant as she could. "My mom will figure it out." She made a note to also do a scan of Lita with her mini-computer; it might give some sort of answer that would help. How she'd convince her mother of anything she found she didn't know. But she would try to find a way if necessary.
Neflite nodded at her briefly, then vanished, presumably going back to Lita to keep an eye on her as she slept. In his ghost-form he didn't need to rest, and that was all to the good. She needed someone to watch her right now. Amy stretched and smiled, then turned back to her books. Everything was going to be all right.
She hoped.