DISCLAIMER: Sailor Moon and its characters are not owned by me, blah blah blah, and other legal junk. Sparrow Migoto is owned by my friend Christina, and used with her permission. Sparrow all of my pathetic characters. Well, with the possible exception of Kirsten from Fantaisie Sign... she rocks. (/shameless self-promotion)

Author's Note: This fanfic is a direct sequel to Looking Up To You, a Sammy/Ami romance fanfic that I wrote about a year ago. It's still on my profile, so I recommend that if you haven't read Looking Up To You, it would be best to stop, don't pass GO, don't collect $200, and go immediately to my profile to check it out. Otherwise, you'll be kinda confused.

Second Author's Note: This fanfic takes place after Sailor Moon Sailor Stars. (Serena, Ami, Rei, and Mina are 17. Lita is 18. Sammy is 14. Darien is older than all of them.) Also, if you're confused about some of the Senshi's attacks, that's because they got a whole set of new ones in Looking Up To You. So like I said, go check it out.

Reviews: (coming next chapter!)

---

"And the first skating pair for round two competition will be Sammy Tsukino and Ami Mizuno!"

Upon hearing their names called by the announcer, the young couple skated out onto the frozen pond. Serena and the others cheered them on from the sidelines.

"You can do it, Sammy!" Serena cheered. "And you too, Ami! Show 'em how it's done!"

"Skate your butts off, you guys!" shouted Rei. "And Sammy, don't worry about beating Rick and Mika... it's all about the two of you!"

"Hey, Rei, cool it...." Mina said quietly. "Rick and Mika are our friends too..."


"Yeah," said Lita. "We don't want anyone's feelings hurt..."

"Aw, don't sweat it," Rick said, smiling at Rei and the other girls. "No matter who wins, it's still good, as long as we have fun! Skating with Mika is gonna be a memory I'll treasure forever..."


"Oh, Rick, you really mean it?" Mika said, getting a smile and a nod from Rick in response. "That's so sweet of you..."

Sammy and Ami began their skating routine, which wasn't so much a 'routine' as it was just skating around for a minute or two, laughing and smiling the whole time. It wasn't the fanciest thing in the world, but the judges were quite moved by Sammy and Ami, and they were smiling almost the whole time.

"Ami, this is really great!" Sammy said, skating around the rink while holding Ami's hand and looking into her bright, blue eyes. "I'm having a wonderful time!"

"Me too, Sammy!" Ami said. "I could skate like this forever..."

But finally, after three minutes had passed, Ami and Sammy decided to stop skating, gliding off of the rink while still holding hands. The judges smiled, nodded, and handed their scores to the announcer.

"Well well well, Sammy and Ami were wonderful, don't you think?" said the announcer in her delightful, perky voice. "And the judges think so too... 31 out of 40 for Sammy and Ami! Great job, you two!"

"Did you hear that?" Sammy said happily. "We got a good score!"


"We got a great score," Ami replied. "We didn't really do anything, but..."

"The judges saw the love and passion that the two of you had, and gave you some great marks!" Mina said, smiling brightly. "Excellent performance!"

"Good job, Sammy! And you too, Ami!" Rick said. "Well, I guess it's time for Mika and me to head out there..."

"Yeah," Mika said, smiling. "No matter what happens, if we don't win, we'll be rooting for you guys in the semi-finals, okay?"

"Thanks!" Sammy said. "And good luck!"

As Rick and Mika took the ice, Mika's ice sculpture began to glow. Vestibule had been lying in wait for quite a while, and now, he seemed just about ready to emerge.

"Those two are the perfect first targets," Vestibule thought. "It's time for this angel to fly... and for Sammy's friends to die!"

As the sculpture began to float into the air, a deep, red glow emanating from it, several people who had been standing nearby began to scream. Sammy and Ami immediately turned around to see the sculpture flying straight toward them.

"Oh my God, it's Mika's sculpture!" Sammy shouted in a panicked tone. As the statue flew through the crowd, scores of people began fleeing from the clearing in a mad dash for their lives.

"Sammy, get down!" Ami screamed, diving upon Sammy and tackling to the ground, while at the same time taking out her henshin stick.

Meanwhile, on the pond, Rick and Mika stopped skating and turned around to see the commotion. Before Mika could even scream, the huge statue slammed into her, tackling her to the icy surface and shattering the frozen pond beneath her, plunging the girl into the icy depths. Rick slipped and fell on his back, just outside the large hole in the pond that had been created by the possessed sculpture.

"Mika, no!" Rick shouted in despair. He tore off his heavy winter jacket, his ice skates, and his sweater, preparing to dive into the water after Mika, gritting his teeth as the bitter cold stung his flesh.

"Moon Crystal Power!"

"Mercury Crystal Power!"


"Mars Crystal Power!"

"Jupiter Crystal Power!"

"Venus Crystal Power!"

The five Sailor Senshi stood just outside the frozen pond, having temporarily ducked into a grove of trees to avoid being seen while they transformed. Darien stood next to them, now in his Tuxedo Mask outfit. Sammy watched helplessly from several feet away, knowing that he had left his katana at home.

"We've gotta help Mika and Rick!" Sailor Moon shouted, and the other Senshi and Tuxedo Mask quickly nodded in agreement.

"What do I do?" Sammy shouted in frustration. "I'm not going to leave, Rick and Mika are my friends, and-"

"Stay here, Sammy," Mercury advised, turning her head to speak to Sammy. "We'll help your friends, and then this will all be over, okay?"

After Sammy nodded, Sailor Mercury turned back toward the pond. A small crowd, including the woman with the megaphone and the four judges, had bravely stayed to help Rick and Mika, but just as one of them was preparing to dive in, Rick pulled Mika from the frozen pond. He gently set her down on the icy surface of the pond and brushed her hair back from her face in an attempt to get her some more air. Her eyes slowly fluttered open, and she coughed out a small amount of water as Rick leaned over her, a worried look on his face.

"Mika, are you alright?" Rick said tenderly. "I was so worried, I-"

"I'm... okay," Mika said, still trying to regain her breath. "Rick, you... you saved me?"

"Yeah," Rick said, his voice trembling as freezing water and snow dripped off of his extremely wet upper body. "I... think I need a towel..."


As Rick finished those words, he flopped over onto his side, unconscious. His face had begun to turn blue. As he fell, Mika let out a shriek, and several people from the crowd rushed to Rick's aid, immediately wrapping the shivering boy in a towel. Mika began to stand, eager to run over and assist Rick, but suddenly, she stopped. Vestibule had silently floated out of Mika's ice sculpture, which was now floating in pieces in the watery pond. Now, he had suddenly decided to possess Mika, his wispy form immediately taking control of the young girl's body.

"Rick, Mika, are you guys okay?" Sammy shouted as he ran out onto the frozen pond, pushing his way through the crowd. "Lemme through, Rick is my friend!"

"Sammy, what are you doing?" Sailor Mercury shouted. "We don't know if the danger's passed or-"

"Sammy, I was so scared..." said the possessed Mika, slowly walking toward Sammy. "Is Rick going to be alright?"

"He'll be just fine, Mika," Sammy said. "I hope so, anyway... but are you okay?"

"As a matter of fact... I'm not!" Mika shouted, throwing her coat off and picking up an extremely sharp piece of ice from the frozen pond's surface.

"Mika, what's going on?" Sammy shouted, his face taking on a confused look. Sailor Moon gasped.

"Sammy, look out!" Sailor Moon screamed. But instead of stabbing Sammy with the piece of ice, Mika jammed it into her own shoulder, carving a large gash that immediately began dripping blood down her arm, staining the white sweater that she was wearing. Sammy gasped in horror.

"Mika, stop!" Sammy yelled at the top of his lungs. But Mika simply smiled at Sammy, her sweet voice taking on a sinister tone.

"Sammy, I'm not Mika... I am Vestibule, one of the Pale Mercenaries! And I shall kill your friend from within, forcing you to watch! Say goodbye to your precious Mika!"

Sammy's eyes widened.

"No, not another one of them!" Sammy thought, panic racing through his mind. "Just like Jekelai... he's trying to kill all of my loved ones!"

But as Mika prepared to stab herself in the chest, clearing a killing blow, Sailor Venus shouted out an attack.

"Venus Love Chain Encircle!"

A large, golden chain wrapped around Mika's wrist and tossed her to the ground, causing the sharp ice dagger to drop out of her hand and skid across the surface of the pond.

"You showed your hand a bit too early, Vestibule!" Sailor Moon shouted, standing next to the other four Sailor Senshi. "Now that we know who you are, we're going to defeat you in the name of the Moon!"

"We fight for love, and justice!" Sailor Mercury shouted.

"And we fight to protect our friends!" declared Sailor Mars.

"And for trying to hurt someone we care about..." Sailor Jupiter said.

"We'll punish you!" shouted Sailor Venus, still holding the chain wrapped around Mika's wrist. With a sudden burst of strength, Mika twisted her arm around, breaking the chain and sending Sailor Venus skidding across the pond. As she slid to a stop in front of Mika, she received a hard kick to the face that sent her flying back toward the other Sailor Senshi.

"Sailor Venus!" shouted the other Senshi in unison. Mika began to laugh triumphantly.

"I hope you know that you just broke this poor girl's wrist," said Mika, Vestibule still speaking through her. "Ah well, the more she suffers, the more Sammy suffers, and the more he suffers, the closer we are to extracting that Dark Crystal!"

Mika turned toward Sammy.


"Did you know that this girl feels every injury inflicted upon her body while I'm inside of it?" Mika asked. "That cut across the shoulder? Sailor Venus snapping the bones of this girl's wrist in half? She's feeling it right now, Sammy."

"GET OUT OF MIKA'S BODY RIGHT NOW, YOU SICKO!" Sammy shouted.

"And did you know that even while inside this weak, pathetic body, I still possess incredible strength? Watch this."

Mika pointed her right arm, broken wrist and all, straight at the crowd who was tending to Rick, just outside the frozen pond. Several of them had fled during the battle, but a few of them continued to stay, using towels to warm the unconscious boy's body. Sammy gasped.

"Not today!" Sailor Jupiter shouted, running toward Mika. "Jupiter... Lightning..."

"NO!" Sailor Mercury shouted. "Jupiter, you can't! If you use your powers on him, you'd be risking Mika's life!"


"That's right!" Sammy said. "We can't do that!"

"But he's about to hurt all of those innocent people!" Sailor Jupiter yelled through gritted teeth.

"She's got a point, you guys," Sailor Moon said quietly. "But I don't want to risk an innocent life..."

"Time's up!" Mika shouted. "Time to claim my first victims..."

A large blast of magical energy appeared in Mika's right palm.

"I don't believe it, he can use his powers while inside Mika's body!" Sammy thought. "No... all of those poor people... I can't let this happen!"

But just before Mika could fire her blast, Sailor Mars leapt in front of her, a sly grin on her face.

"What are you doing?" Mika shrieked. "I'll just have to kill you, then!"

"Look up," Sailor Mars said. Suddenly, Mika's body was engulfed in a bright, red flame.

"Sailor Mars, what have you done?" Sammy shouted. "Mika!!!"

"Sammy, wait... look!" Sailor Mercury said, pointing in the blazing Mika's direction. As Sammy turned his head to look, the fires had died down, and the unconscious Mika dropped to the ground. Vestibule was now floating above the girl's body, looking down and wondering what had happened. Sailor Mars bent down and peeled off a small, sticky piece of white paper from the girl's forehead and held it up for Vestibule to see.

"The last time I used this thing, it backfired on me," Sailor Mars said, still smiling. "So it was a bit of a gamble... but I see that my new and improved Ofuda Scroll did the trick."

The sticky scroll dissolved in a tiny blaze of fire. Vestibule growled at Sailor Mars, a look of rage on his face.

"You... you... you WITCH!" Vestibule shouted. "How DARE you! How DARE you interfere with my plans! I... I'll make you pay! I'll-"

"Mercury Ice Javelins!"


"Jupiter Thunder Axe!"


"Mars Flame Cannon!"


"Venus Arrow Of Beauty!"

A powerful torrent of ice, thunder, fire, and arrows flew up at Vestibule, creating a huge explosion that blasted him backward, causing him to land a few feet away from the crowd, his smoking and smoldering body covered in cuts and burns. As the crowd stepped back, the five Senshi, Sammy, and Tuxedo Mask all ran to check on Mika's condition.

"She's unconscious, and hurt," Sailor Moon said, placing her hand on Mika's forehead. "I'm going to heal her... Sammy, I promise she'll be alright. You guys should probably go finish Vestibule off."

"Sis, thank you..." Sammy said, smiling as glowing white energy began flowing into Mika's body, healing her wounds and mending her bones. Tuxedo Mask and the Senshi, minus Sailor Moon, ran across the pond toward Vestibule, who was slowly getting up from the beating that the Senshi had given him.

"It's over, Vestibule!" Tuxedo Mask shouted. "Your days of evil are numbered!"

"They've only just begun..." Vestibule said weakly, a grin on his face. Before the Senshi could attack, his body turned into wisps again. The wisps floated into the body of the girl with the megaphone, who turned toward the Senshi and began to laugh menacingly.

"Take the boy and get to the hospital as fast as you can!" Sailor Mercury shouted to the crowd, who quickly rushed out of the clearing, carrying Rick with them. The girl with the megaphone growled at the Senshi, an angry look on her face.

"What did you do that for?" she shouted.

"So you'd have no one else to possess!" Sailor Mercury said. "I did some quick research on my mini-computer, and it says that you're too weak to possess any of us."

"And you can't possess Sammy, since keeping him alive is your goal, right?" Tuxedo Mask said. The girl began to laugh.

"That's not it at all!" she shouted. "I would possess the boy and deliver him to Jekelai myself, but... you see, the Dark Crystal's power would destroy me as soon as I got inside. So I guess you're half right... I can't possess him, but I'd like to. But it doesn't matter anyway! This girl possesses exceptional hidden power... like this!"

The girl screamed into the megaphone, as loud as she could. Powerful magical sound waves blasted out of the instrument, blasting the Senshi back and causing the icy pond to shatter as the waves burst forth. The Senshi and Tuxedo Mask crumpled to the ground as Sammy and Sailor Moon scrambled out of the way, taking Mika with them.

"This isn't good..." Sailor Venus said, shielding her head from flying pieces of ice. "Not good at all..."

"What are we going to do?" Sailor Jupiter shouted.

"I'll tell you what!" Sailor Mars yelled, taking out one of her Ofuda Scrolls. "I'll just-"

But a blast to Sailor Mars' arm cut her off, sending the scroll flying into the wind. As Sailor Mars clenched her arm and groaned in pain, the possessed girl walked toward the Senshi, holding her megaphone menacingly in her hand.


"Yes, this girl has quite a lot of energy indeed," the girl said. "Just think... the Sailor Senshi destroyed, and by a mere human!"

"You're no human, you're a monster!" Tuxedo Mask shouted. "And somehow, we'll free that girl from your control!"

Tuxedo Mask threw a flurry of roses at the girl, but she simply leapt up and out of the way as the roses passed harmlessly underneath her. She must have leapt nearly twelve feet in the air, impossible for a normal human. After she leapt, she simply floated in the air, taunting the Sailor Senshi.

"Pathetic," she said, looking down at them. She lifted her megaphone to her lips again. "This time, I'll finish you for good!"


"Vestibule's influence is clearly working within that girl!" Sailor Mercury shouted.

"If I could just get close enough to use one of my Ofuda Scrolls, we could get that sicko out into the open again, and finish him off!" Sailor Mars said.

"Maybe you can," said Sailor Mercury.

"How?" Sailor Mars asked. Suddenly, another powerful and crippling wave of seismic energy rushed outward toward the Senshi, who were slammed into the ground by the powerful sound waves.

"We've gotta help them, Serena!" Sammy whispered to Sailor Moon as they watched the battle from a safe distance.

"Just about... got Mika healed," Sailor Moon replied. "Sammy, I know they can hold on just a little while longer... have some faith, okay?"

"What's the matter, Senshi?" asked the possessed girl, floating down just above the surface of the water in the pond. "You can't defeat a human? That's pathetic."

Sailor Mercury climbed to her feet and pointed her henshin stick at the pond. In an instant, the water froze underneath the girl's feet, turning back into slippery ice.

"What are you doing?" the girl asked. "So the pond's frozen again. So what! I-"


As the girl tried to walk toward the Senshi again, she slipped, her back slamming into the hard, icy surface of the pond. She lifted her megaphone to her lips again, preparing to shout into it, but before she could, one of Sailor Mars' Ofuda Scrolls covered her mouth, causing Vestibule's wispy form to fly out of her body and out into the open again.

"Damn you!" Vestibule shouted, clenching his fists in rage. "Fine! I don't need a vessel to destroy you pathetic Sailor Senshi! I'll fight you myself!"

"Moon... Blessed... Salvation!!!"

"WHAT?" Vestibule shouted as powerful waves of magical energy washed over his body. "IT'S IMPOSSIBLE! I CAN'T LOSE! NOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!"

The Senshi and Tuxedo Mask turned to see Sailor Moon standing on the frozen pond, holding out her henshin stick in the direction of the now-obliterated Vestibule. A few feet away, Mika stood next to Sammy, shivering, but conscious and unharmed.

"Great job, sis," Sammy said, giving Sailor Moon the thumbs-up sign.

"That was awesome, Sailor Moon!" said Sailor Mars. "Of course, I got him out in the open for you..."


"With Mercury's help," said Sailor Jupiter. Sailor Mercury giggled.


"I think we all helped," Sailor Mercury said. She turned her head toward Sammy and Mika. "Sammy, Mika, are you alright?"

"A little cold, but other than that, just fine!" Mika yelled back. "Thanks, though!"

"I'm glad you're alright, Ami," Sammy said, walking over to her and wrapping his arms around her chest. "You did a great job..."

"I'm just glad you're safe, Sammy," Mercury replied.

"Unnh... my head..."

The girl who had been possessed by Vestibule stood up, holding Mars' scroll in one hand and her megaphone in the other. She dropped them both onto the ice and stumbled over to the Senshi.

"Hey, guys," she groaned, her legs trembling as she tried to walk. "Thank you..."

"Don't mention it," Sailor Moon said. "We're the Sailor Senshi, and that's what we do!"


"The weariness is from the scroll that I had to use to get that creep out of your body," Sailor Mars said. "It should wear off in about an hour..."

"The couples skating contest was my idea," the girl said sadly. "Too bad it had to get ruined like this..."

"Hey, I know her..." Sailor Venus thought. "That's Bianca, from my journalism class..."

"The Winter Festival is ruined!" Bianca shouted, beginning to cry. Sailor Venus walked over to her and wrapped her arms around the girl's chest, trying the best she could to comfort her friend.

"It's okay... there'll be a Winter Festival next year, and I promise that it won't be ruined like this one was," Sailor Venus said solemnly. "And that's a Sailor Senshi promise."


"And a Sailor Senshi promise is never broken!" Sailor Moon said. "So don't worry... you won't have to worry about evil forces ever again!"

"Thank you," Bianca said, stepping away from Sailor Venus and wiping tears away from her face. "I'd better head back home now... Oh, and Mika? I hope that Rick is going to be okay... I'll pray for him."

As Bianca walked out of the clearing, Mika let out a gasp.

"You guys, we've got to go to the hospital!" Mika shouted. "Rick could be in trouble!"

"Yeah, I'm worried about him," Sammy said. "Let's hurry!"

"Should we detransform?" Sailor Moon whispered to Tuxedo Mask.

"Yes, Mika already knows our identities," Tuxedo Mask whispered back. The Senshi and Tuxedo Mask reverted to their normal forms, and then dashed toward the hospital, leaving the wrecked and abandoned Winter Festival behind them.

---

"Pathetic. I should've destroyed him when he killed Pharrusi. What recklessness and arrogance!"

"Jekelai, calm yourself, my lord," said an orange-haired woman, her long, green dress flowing behind her as she walked toward Jekelai, who was standing next to a large window, deep in thought. "Where Vestibule failed, I shall succeed..."

"My mercenaries are pathetic... she is the only one who could possibly take a task such as this," Jekelai said to himself, ignoring the orange-haired woman.

"You're not still thinking of... her, are you?"

Jekelai turned around and backhanded the woman in the face, sending her sprawling back. As she rubbed her cheek, Jekelai flew into a rage.

"How could you fools have let HER escape?" Jekelai shouted. "You did it so that I'd have to send you all on those missions, didn't you?"

"My lord, please... that was years ago..."

"She still hunts me," Jekelai said. "Follows me, taunting me in the darkness... she's followed me here, I know it."

"You should kill her," said the woman.

"I can't... because you see... I love her and I hate her..."

---

The scene was much different now. Five years before Jekelai had begun his pursuit of the Dark Crystal, his Pale Mercenaries had just been formed, and his headquarters consisted of simply a large, abandoned castle in the middle of a blazing hot desert, far across the galaxy on a distant world. A short, young man, apparently a messenger, dashed into Jekelai's throne room, desperate to inform him of something.

"We've done it, sir!" the man announced. "She is ours now."


"You've captured the Wolf of the Forest?" Jekelai asked, rising from his throne and walking over to the messenger boy. "Are you sure?"

"I am positive, sir...." the messenger boy said, his voice trembling. "It cost us three of our best men, but-"


"Bring her in!" Jekelai roared.


"At once," said the messenger boy, cowering out of the room. A few seconds later, the messenger boy returned, followed by a procession of twelve robed mercenaries, wheeling a large, thick wooden platform behind them. Standing on the platform was a tall, beautiful girl, who appeared to be about fifteen or sixteen. She was wearing a small, red breastplate around her well-endowed chest, and a short, red skirt around her waist, with large brown boots on her feet. She had long, silver-blonde hair, which perfectly accentuated the bronze color of her well-tanned skin. Her arms, slender, but with some muscle, had been chained together, with the chain hooked to a strong metal link attached to the platform. Her legs were chained in a similar fashion. As she was pulled over to Jekelai, a look of rage crossed over her face.

"You might be one of the most powerful warriors in the universe," said Jekelai, "but your manner of dress resembles that of a harlot."

The girl spit into Jekelai's face, which he quickly wiped off with his hand. He looked back at her and smiled.


"That fire... I can see it in your eyes," Jekelai said. "You will make a perfect addition to the Pale Mercenaries."

"I'll be dead before I see that happen," said the girl, her teeth gritted. "No... you'll be dead. I'll kill you where you stand!"

"I don't think so," Jekelai said, "and seeing as how it took twelve of my best men to bring you in, and you took the lives of three others... you will remain chained to that platform until you are completely obedient. Until I break you... you are my slave, Miss Sparrow Migoto."

With a loud cry of rage, Sparrow ripped away the chain linking her arm to the platform. As Jekelai's twelve mercenaries rushed in to subdue her, a huge, purple blast of energy rushed outward from her body, disintegrating all twelve of them instantly. Jekelai's messenger boy fled out of the room in terror as Sparrow burst the shackles binding her arms and ripped her legs free from the platform, kicking it away and advancing on Jekelai. He didn't move, completely unafraid of Sparrow's imposing presence.


"Don't you know it was a trick?" Sparrow shouted. "I let your men capture me so they could lead me to you."

"I suspected as much," Jekelai said. "Worthless, all of them. You are the supreme prize, my dear..."

"Shut your face!" Sparrow shouted. Her fist began to glow, and she shoved it into Jekelai's stomach as hard as she could, bursting through his skin and causing him to cry out in pain. Blood seeped out of the wound, oozing around Sparrow's arm as she began digging it deeper into Jekelai's body.

"Didn't... expect... that..." Jekelai said weakly. "But I've got a few tricks... of my own..."

Jekelai grabbed Sparrow's arm as hard as he could, sending an extremely powerful shock pulsing through it. With a shriek, she yanked her arm out of Jekelai's body and lifted it up to her face, watching in horror as crackling bolts of electricity slowly burned her skin.

"What... did you do... to me?" Sparrow shouted. Without a word, Jekelai pointed his arm at Sparrow's forehead.

"Restrictus!!!" Jekelai shouted. A bright, glowing design etched itself into Sparrow's forehead, sending her flying back and slamming her hard into the ground. As she slowly began to climb to her feet, she looked at her arm again. It had stopped burning.

"Oh, I wouldn't worry about your arm," Jekelai said, smiling. "I'd be more worried about what's on your forehead."

Sparrow gasped in shock as she felt the complex mark, etched into her skin.

"An Ultinius seal..." she whispered. "No... but... how? I'm immune to them!"


"You're only immune to magic weaker than yours, my dear little Sparrow."

Sparrow gasped again.

"No...." she whispered.

"That's right, you've finally met someone stronger than you. But really... it had to happen eventually."

Jekelai walked up to the still-stunned Sparrow and smacked her in the face with such force that it instantly knocked her out. Then, he pointed his arm toward the door of the throne room. Within seconds, the fleeing messenger boy flew back into the room.

"My lord, she's dangerous!" shouted the messenger boy, pointing at Sparrow's unconscious form.


"The Ultinius seal I placed on her forehead negates her powers for thirty-six hours," said Jekelai. "It drained a lot of energy out of me, and this wound in my stomach is quite severe... I must depart and recover my strength. Take Sparrow and chain her up in my room. I will return before the magic of the seal wears off..."

Jekelai teleported from the room, leaving the messenger boy alone with Sparrow.

---

About twenty-four hours later, Jekelai, who had mostly regained his strength, re-entered his palace and quickly went to his room to check on Sparrow. But when he arrived, he found something he hadn't expected. His messenger boy was lying on the floor, dead. Deep, purple markings around his throat indicated that he had been strangled to death, and next to his body, Jekelai found what had done the job.

"Even without her powers, Sparrow Migoto is still a force to be reckoned with," said Jekelai, picking up the chains from the ground. "The perfect assassin."

Suddenly, a chain tightened around Jekelai's neck. It squeezed and constricted his throat, but instead of choking, Jekelai simply chuckled.

"It's useless," Jekelai said, turning around to see Sparrow holding a long length of chain, pulling as hard as she could. "But excellent try."

The chain fell from Jekelai's neck and flew around Sparrow's wrists, tightening around them and quickly binding them together, looping and locking around a large chain link that had been firmly placed in the wall. Sparrow slumped against the wall, looking up at Jekelai with an angry scowl on her face.


"When this seal disappears, I will kill you," Sparrow said.


"Soon, my beautiful, beautiful Sparrow... you will kill everyone I tell you to," Jekelai said evilly.

---

"Go and abduct Sammy's friends, Rick and Mika. Bring them here to me," Jekelai said sternly. The orange-haired woman gasped.

"But my lord, what will that accompli-"

"GO!" Jekelai roared. A portal appeared, and the woman quickly dived into it. As it closed behind her, Jekelai pounded his fist against the window, creating a large crack and nearly shattering it.

---

Meanwhile, at the hospital, Rick was doing just fine. He was in a bed in the emergency room when Sammy, Mika, and the others arrived, and was sipping a large cup of hot cocoa. Mika ran over to Rick and looped her arms around his neck, hugging him affectionately and almost causing Rick to spill his cocoa. Once he had set it down on the table next to him, he returned the hug.

"Rick... oh, I'm so glad you're alright," said Mika.

"I'm glad you're okay, Mika... you're not hurt, are you?" Rick asked.

"I... well, I was, but the Sailor Senshi helped me," Mika replied. "I'm better now..."

"So, what did the doctor say, Rick?" asked Sammy. Rick smiled.

"Just a mild case of hypothermia, that's all," Rick said. "Until my temperature is back to normal, I get all the hot cocoa I want!"

"That's great!" Mika said happily.

"You can share it, right?" Sammy asked.

"Yeah, can you?" asked Serena.

"Sure, you guys can have my cup," Rick said, offering it to both Sammy and Serena. As he did, three adults, one male and two female, walked into the room.

"You guys must be Rick and Mika's parents, right?" Rei asked.


"I'm Mika's mother," said one of the women, "and those two next to me are Rick's parents."

They nodded.

"Well, now that everything is settled... I guess we can rest for a while, huh?" Mina asked.

"Too bad about the Winter Festival, though," said Lita.

"Guys, those mercenaries are still after Sammy," whispered Ami, so that only Serena, Rei, Lita, Mina, and Darien could hear. "And they're going to be after us, too... I think we should keep on our guard."

"Mm-hmm," Serena said. "But for now, let's just let Sammy be with his friends... they've had a rough day.

---

Boy, am I mean to main characters' friends, or what? ^_^ It's just not healthy being a main character in one of my stories. But they get paid extra! Oh, and thanks again to my friend Christina! The Sparrow Migoto character is hers, not mine... BTW, Christina, hope you like the way Sparrow was presented! You guys'll be seeing much more of her. Don't look at me, it was Christina's idea!!! *waves arms defensively* Nah, if you guys don't like Sparrow, you can just, um... take it up with me. In my review section! (in which you should also be telling me things you liked. Like Sparrow. *shakes fist* Like her... ^_^)