Something has gone wrong. Very wrong! Five of the Sailor Soldiers are in...Ancient Rome?!

And now Ami and Hotaru are off to Rome itself!

Sailor Moon belongs to Naoko Takeuchi, Toei Animation, DiC, and Cloverway, in that

order. I make no money by this. More's the pity.

All other characters _not_ taken from History are mine, and you must ask permission to

use them, if you can find a way of using them outside this.

_This_ is emphasis. *This* is thought.

Kudos to the movie Gladiator, which was the inspiration for this.

And now, Scorpinac Fanfic Productions presents:

******************************************************************************

Sailor Moon

Roman Legends

by Scorpinac

Chapter 6: Reunion

That evening after dinner, Hotaru went through her dresses, and set her purple toga aside

for the next morning, then carefully packed the rest into her new bag. She removed her current

dress, the orange one, and laid it on her chest, then donned her night dress. As she finished

putting it on, she heard a knock at the door.

"Who is it?" she called, not taking any chances.

"Just me, Hotaru," Ami's voice called back. Hotaru walked over to the door, and opened

it. Ami held out her hands, which held some familiar garments in them - the ones she'd been

wearing the day they'd been shot back in time. "I thought you might like these back since you

have your own bag now," she said. Hotaru blinked. After they'd settled into the house, they'd

both taken to wearing togas and roman dresses so as to fit in with the time, and she had sort of

forgotten about their original garments.

"Thank you, Ami," Hotaru said, and took the blouse, skirt, and socks and sneakers over

to her bag and placed them carefully inside. "Anything else?"

"Well," Ami said thoughtfully, "I was wondering... Do you understand what Hrisoula

means about 'games' in the Colosseum?"

"Gambling?" Hotaru beamed back at her, and Ami face faulted. "Just kidding, Ames. She

means gladiator stuff, right? Like in the historical shows on the History Channel, or that old Bugs

Bunny/Yosemite Sam cartoon?"

"Yes," Ami replied, resuming her proper footing. "Only this will be very real, with people

dying, and there's nothing we can do to stop it!"

"You think I'd want to?" Hotaru asked. "If possible, I want to stay away from the

Colosseum!" She then thought for a moment. "Unless they throw Eleutherios in with the lions

without a sword. That I'll be too happy to watch," she added.

"Hotaru!" Ami snapped. "You're a Sailor Soldier! You know better than that! You

shouldn't wish such a fate on anyone, no matter what they've done!"

"Sorry, Ami," Hotaru said, admonished. "I just can't help being angry at him and hating

him after... you know..."

"I understand how you feel, Hotaru, honest," Ami said softly. "But as Sailor Soldiers, it's

our duty to _protect_ people, not hurt them."

"I know," Hotaru replied. "I know."

Listening from her own door, Damris couldn't help but blink. *Sailor Soldier? What's a

Sailor Soldier?*

* * *

The next day at sunrise, the house was closed, the doors locked tight, and the six residents

thereof walked out of town and up to the caravan as it was getting ready to ship off. Ami wore

her shawl that day, not wanting to attract unwanted attention.

The caravan consisted of eight huge passenger wagons, at least forty feet long and fifteen

feet high each, and at least half a dozen smaller wagons for the servants about twelve to fifteen

feet long and nine feet high each, as well as at least ten five foot long by four and half foot high

carts that carried food supplies, water, and other heavy baggage. The large wagons had six to

eight horse hitched to them and eight wheels, four of which were in the center, the lighter wagons

four to six horses and six wheels, and the baggage carts had six horses each and a standard four

wheel setup.

Hrisoula booked them passage aboard, and was taken to the third large wagon and helped

aboard. She instructed Iosif to ride with her, and to bring up Zacharias as well. The boy glanced

at his sister, but she just smiled.

"It's okay, Zacharias," Damris told him, "I'll only be a few wagons down the way with

Ami and Hotaru. You'll be just fine with Lady Hrisoula."

"Okay," Zacharias said nervously, and let himself be handed up to Hrisoula by Iosif, who

climbed in just behind. Iosif then turned and looked back as he was handed a slip by the

attendant.

"Take care, ladies," he said. "Ami, my dear, I shall think of you constantly until we arrive

in Rome."

"Thanks, Iosif," Ami blushed, "But's it not like you won't be able to see me while we're

traveling."

"Don't be so sure," Iosif said, and slipped inside. Hrisoula then popped her head back

out.

"Ami, as the eldest, I want you in charge of them," she stated, indicating Hotaru and

Damris. "Make sure they stay out of trouble."

"Yes, Hrisoula," Ami replied.

"Oh yes, we are just little kids who like to jump in the mud," Hotaru sing songed.

"Gimme a break!" Hrisoula smirked lightly and slipped back inside.

"Okay, let's go," Ami said, taking charge as instructed. She turned to the attendant who

had brought them to the cart, and asked, "Where do we stay?" He glanced at his papers.

"You three ride in Servant Cart Four, this way," he said, and lead them down the line to

the twelfth cart in the caravan, and instructed them to board, handing Ami a small page as he did

so. "Berths five to seven," he said, and then walked on to take care of other duties before

departure.

The three hopped in and looked around. The cart's interior was simple; four small bunk

bed like affairs along each side, with a small area near the rear for storing small bags and such.

Other servant passengers already were lying quietly on their bunks or talking with each other

while awaiting the caravan's departure. A quick glance saw ten in all.

Ami glanced at the paper she'd been given. It read, "Servant Berths V, VI, and VII leased

by Lady Hrisoula of Tercham for servants Ami, Damris, and Hotaru." Glancing at the beds, she

saw that Roman Numerals were engraved on small gold plates nailed to the bottom side board of

each bunk. Following them down, she reached the last two bunks, one marked "V" on top and

"VI" on bottom, and the other marked "VII" and "VIII" respectively.

"Here's ours," Ami said.

"How do you know?" Damris asked.

"It's right here on the sheet," Ami replied and handed her the paper. Damris looked at it

for a moment before looking back at them.

"Uh, I can understand the numbers," she said, "but the rest is, well, gibberish..."

"You can't read?" Hotaru asked.

"Not really," Damris admitted. Ami just smiled.

"That's okay," she said. "We can teach you while we're on route. Hrisoula let me

borrow some of the scrolls from her library to read."

"Really?" Damris blinked. "Thanks."

"Anyway," Ami said, then indicated the three appropriate bunks, "These are our bunks

while we're here."

"Dibs on a top bunk!" Hotaru cried, and jumped up into berth V.

"Sneak!" Damris said, and quickly hopped up onto berth VII next to Hotaru's. Ami

shook her head quietly and sat down on the lower berth VI, setting her bags to one side, having

been allowed another one for the scrolls by Hrisoula. She sat the pillow up against the post so she

could lean against it comfortably for a moment.

"Hey, Ami," Hotaru said, dropping her head over the side of the bunk, "How long do you

think it'll take us to get to Rome?"

"Depends on how far away we are," Ami said. Three more people entered the wagon,

two taking berths across the way, and one taking berth VIII under Damris, a young man of about

sixteen wearing a simple brown toga and a defeated look.

"Well, this wagon is full, anyway," Hotaru commented. "Can't be long before we ship off

to Rome."

"I'm in no rush," the young man said. "My master takes me there to die in the

Colosseum."

"Gee, I'm sorry," Hotaru said. A few moments later there was noise up at the front of the

wagon of men climbing into the driver's seats, and then a moment later the wagon began to jostle

as it started to move.

"Here we go, Hotaru," Damris said. "We're going to see the grandest city in the whole

_world_ soon!"

"Yeah," Hotaru grinned, "Can't wait." Ami just lied back and rested for a little while

longer.

* * *

In Passenger Wagon three, Hrisoula had set her stuff down at her berth. Here the decor

was more posh, the beds done in semi elegance. Hrisoula had been given berth IV, and Iosif and

Zacharias were using berths V and VI next to it. Unlike the Servant Wagons, the beds were set

up in one standard bed, and one bunk bed next to it, five times over on each side, allowing for

fifteen passengers a side, thirty in all.

Iosif had taken berth VI, and had helped Zacharias up to berth V. Hrisoula had given the

boy some toy blocks she'd picked up for him on the way out of the city, and he was busy playing

with them in his bunk when the caravan commenced movement. Iosif was sitting quietly on his

bunk, his back to the tarp, and Hrisoula was looking at a scroll, glancing up only briefly when the

wagon began to move.

Zacharias looked up, and nervousness filled his eyes.

"Damris?" he asked quietly. Hrisoula looked up, and saw the boy's pensive state. She

rose and patted him on the back comfortingly.

"It's okay Zacharias, it's okay," she said, "We've just started on our way, that's all."

Zacharias leaned over and timidly hugged Hrisoula, who hugged him back.

"You're really nice, Lady Hrisoula," Zacharias said. "I wish you were our mommy."

"Well," Hrisoula's eyes softened in a way Iosif had never really seen before, "You never

know..."

* * *

The caravan traveled for what seemed like forever. As the time passed, Ami and Hotaru

began teaching Damris how to read, and Zacharias and Hrisoula grew closer. On two occasions,

the caravan stopped at another town and re-supplied, and some passengers left and others took

their place.

The daily routine was simple - the caravan traveled at a brisk pace until midday, then

stopped to allow the horses and drivers and attendants and passengers to have a quick meal and to

relieve themselves, then pushed forward again until about an hour after nightfall, when they

stopped for a decent supper and a good night's sleep. It was no mystery, however, that the

wealthy passengers in the first eight wagons were getting really good food while those in the

servant wagons were getting slightly less decent. The old "rank hath its privileges" routine in

action.

The Caravan began to follow along an aqueduct on the third day, so from then on every

other day they took an extra long time at midday to allow some to bathe in one of the collapsible

wooden baths kept in the baggage wagons, there being five in all. Again, the wealthy passengers,

as well as Iosif and Zacharias, got to use them first, and then the servant passengers after them, at

which point the water, though heated for the wealthy, had been allowed to cool. Ami did her best

to take it in stride, but Hotaru tended to grumble about the "second class" treatment they were

getting, which eventually Damris started to agree with. Hotaru also didn't like the idea of having

mixed baths with any of the men traveling in the caravan, but Ami made her deal with it.

Fortunately, everybody generally kept to themselves in their 'class'.

Contrary wise, the "first class" travelers tended to converse over meals and baths like they

were simply standing in the streets. Iosif personally kept his nose out of the conversations, but

Hrisoula gossiped with the best of them, little Zacharias quietly listening all the time.

Zacharias's health continued to bolster all the time, and soon you couldn't tell he was ever

malnourished. His mental health also increased. Hrisoula had been aware that Damris had been

severely beaten by her previous owner when she'd bought the girl, but Damris had already

recovered some by the time of said purchase, as Biagio was one of the few slave traders around

who actually cared about the condition of his "wares", physical and mental, and had taken

measures to build the girl's health prior to sale, and had in fact been a little reluctant to sell her so

soon, not so much because he thought he could have gotten more for her, but because he thought

he could make her a little more healthy before selling her to someone.

Hrisoula had done all she could to make the girl comfortable, removing her chains and

seeing to the continued improvements to her health on her own, and now she turned those skills

to the shy and bashful Zacharias, and soon he was accepting compliments from some of the other

travelers on how cute he was.

All in all, the trip itself was generally uneventful.

* * *

The caravan pushed on, and eventually a full seven days had passed from the time they left

Tercham. At midday on the twenty-sixth day of Ami and Hotaru's stay in Ancient Rome, the

caravan came to a halt as usual, only this time there was a lot of commotion going around. Ami

looked up from the scroll she was reading with Damris, and noticed some passengers were

collecting their things.

Ami stood and walked to the entrance and glanced out...at one of the biggest cities she'd

ever seen! Spotting certain historical, and one still very present in the twentieth century,

landmarks, she knew exactly what all the commotion was about. They had arrived...in Rome!

"All servants who are accompanying their masters to Rome please disembark from the

wagon!" the tertiary driver called down from the front as the other two began tending to the

horses. Ami zipped over to berth VI and rolled up the scroll, quickly stowing it in her scroll bag.

Then she got Damris's bag from her bunk while Hotaru handed her bag down to Damris and

hopped down from the bunk. Damris handed Hotaru back her bag and then claimed hers from

Ami while Ami got her bags, and the three quickly got out of the wagon and began moving

forward to Passenger Wagon three to meet the others.

As it happened, several of the passengers were disembarking and gathering their luggage,

some of it carry on, some of it larger from the baggage wagons. People were scurrying around all

over. And even worse, it looked like people were all over the place in the city today! It was

bustling! It took several minutes, but the three girls, who quickly formed a human chain to keep

from losing each other, finally made it to Passenger Wagon three.

As they got there, they saw Hrisoula, Iosif, and Zacharias already outside, glancing around

for them. Zacharias was sitting on Hrisoula's shoulders, piggy back style, a smile on his face.

Ami quickly lead Hotaru and Damris through the crowd and up to them.

"Hrisoula, Iosif, here we are!" she called.

"Ah, for a moment I feared you were lost," Iosif said. Hrisoula looked at how they were

holding on to each other, Ami holding Damris's hand and Damris holding Hotaru's.

"What a clever way to stay together," she admired, and grabbed Iosif's hand, which

startled him no end, his face blushing bright red. "Take Ami's hand, Iosif, and we shall head into

the city," she instructed. Iosif did so, still blushing lightly, and Ami felt herself blush a little as

well, and they began working through the crowd toward the city of Rome itself.

Quickly navigating through the city, they wound down streets and passed through a few

large open squares packed with people. Movement seemed to be occurring everywhere, people

walking back and forth, standing near buildings, statues, and even fountains discussing life, the games,

or any of a thousand other subjects, and a few vendors at stands around the place selling food,

snacks, souvenirs, or combinations of the three. Finally, Hotaru called up to Hrisoula.

"Hey, Hrisoula!" she called, "Where are we going?!"

"To Fertitia Street," Hrisoula called back. "To the dwelling of Tatius Rex and his wife

Ariadne. They are old, but last time my husband and I came to Rome on holiday we found decent

lodgings there for a reasonable price. Hopefully they will still be open. Otherwise, we shall

simply have to find a hotel somewhere."

"Oh, okay," Hotaru replied. They continued walking in silence, working their way

through the bustling streets. It seemed like forever, but eventually they made it through the

crowds onto a more empty street. They moved over to a two story building that had been white

washed and was in fairly good condition in comparison to some of the slums they noticed as

they'd worked their way through the city.

Hrisoula came up to the door as they released their hands, and knocked on the door,

having Iosif take Zacharias from her shoulders and lowering him to the ground. A few moments

later the door was answered by a young girl of about seven or so with blond hair and tan-brown

eyes.

"Hello," she said, "Can I help you?"

"Yes," Hrisoula said, "Is this still the residence of Tatius and Ariadne Rex?"

"Yes, they are my masters," the girl said.

"Please fetch one of them, girl," Hrisoula commanded. "Tell them that Lady Hrisoula of

Tercham wishes to rent some of their spare rooms, if any are open."

"Yes, my lady," the girl said, and obediently walked off into the house. The six of them

waited outside patiently, and a few minutes later an elderly woman with silver hair and faded

green eyes came to the door.

"Lady Hrisoula! It's been years! What brings you back to Rome?" she asked.

"I felt like a holiday, and the Caesar Commodus's games seemed like the perfect pretense,

Lady Ariadne," Hrisoula told her.

"You know very well I am not a refined Lady like yourself," Ariadne stated.

"Fine, I shall call you simply Ariadne and you shall call me Hrisoula," Hrisoula said.

"As you wish," Ariadne said, and then opened wide the door. "Please, do all come in."

"Ariadne, I don't wish to impose, but I was hoping to rent your spare rooms, if they are

available," Hrisoula stated as she entered, the others just behind. Ariadne closed the door after all

were within.

"Oh, well my son, Thernacius, and eldest grandson, Georgio, are currently visiting, along

with a young lady friend that Georgio has set his sights upon, but I think we have enough room, if

your slaves share one or two," Ariadne said. They entered the lounge, where the blond girl was

quickly cleaning up. "I believe you already met our new slave, Felicia," Ariadne said, indicating

the girl.

"Yes, but we didn't actually catch her name before," Ami replied, then blushed as she

realized she'd spoken out of turn and without permission.

"It's alright, dear," Hrisoula said. "I believe you know Iosif, but these are more recent

acquisitions," Hrisoula told Ariadne. "This is Ami, Damris, Hotaru, and Zacharias," she indicated

each in turn.

"Where is Eleutherios?" Ariadne asked. Hotaru inwardly cringed.

"Gone," Hrisoula answered, setting down her bag in one corner and indicating for the

others to do the same. "I will explain later. Where is your husband?"

"He, Thernacius, Georgio, and Serena are running a food stand near the Colosseum with

our other new slave, Galea," Ariadne explained. At this, Ami and Hotaru jumped.

"Did you say 'Serena'?" they asked together, grabbing the attention of all in the room.

"Yes," Ariadne said, "She is the young lady friend to whom I referred to earlier, the one

that has caught my grandson's fancy. Personally, I think she's a fine match for him."

"This Serena," Ami said, "Would she happen to have blues eyes, blond hair in two long

pony tails down just past her waist with two buns on either side of her head like a pair of

meatballs, and a gold brooch in the shape of a heart with white wings?"

"Why, yes, that's her exactly!" Ariadne said, her eyes widening at the exactness of the

description. "How did you know?"

"Where is this stand she's working at?" Hotaru asked, her eyes incredibly intense.

"Like I said, it is near the Colosseum, along the west side, twenty horse lengths away from

the main entrance I should think," Ariadne stated. "Now, please, answer my question."

"She's a friend of ours, an important one," Ami said. "Hrisoula, with your permission,

may Hotaru and I go and meet with her?" Hrisoula thought for a moment before speaking.

"Ami, I shall allow you to go if that is what you wish," Hrisoula stated, and Ami beamed.

"But, Hotaru shall remain here. Not that I don't trust you, but I don't want both of you getting

lost out there, especially now."

"Thank you, my lady," Ami said. "I understand. Hotaru, just wait here. I won't be long,

I hope." With that, she grabbed her shawl from her bag, tied it firmly around her head, and turned

toward the door.

"Ami," Hrisoula called. Ami stopped and turned. Hrisoula fetched a paper from her own

bag, and handed it to her. "This states fervently that you are my property, should anyone try to

take you on the street by force," she told her.

"Thank you, Hrisoula," Ami thanked her, and tucked the paper into her pocket, and

walked out into the street. As she started on her way down the street, Ariadne tapped Hotaru on

her shoulder.

"Correct me if I'm wrong, but you came with Hrisoula from the north, yes?" she asked.

"Yeah, that's right," Hotaru said.

"But Serena came with my son and grandson from their home in Tarria, in the south,"

Ariadne said. "If she lived with her family there, how could you be friends?"

"Uh..."

* * *

Ami carefully worked her way back through the bustling streets of Rome towards the

awesome behemoth that was the Colosseum. As she drew closer, she felt more and more amazed

at the marvel of engineering that stood near the heart of the city. Sure, she'd always heard of the

Colosseum, and had dreams of one day seeing it in person, as well as the Egyptian Pyramids, the

Eiffel Tower in France, Stonehenge in England, etc., etc.

But to actually be here, and not only here, but at a time when the Roman Empire was at

it's height, well that was something she'd never dreamed would be possible.

*On the other hand, since we know Sailor Pluto, it's really amazing we never thought to

ask her for permission to take educational field trips into history, if she'd let us,* Ami thought as

she continued to move through the streets, drawing ever nearer to her goal.

A few moments later she turned a corner, and found herself looking straight at the curved

wall of the Colosseum. For a moment she compared the structure as it was now to how it looked

by the twentieth century, and was again amazed at how well it had, er, was going to hold up over

the next one and nine tenths millennium.

Cutting her awe short, she started walking around the building, trying to avoid attention,

and find the Rex's food cart. After a few moments, she spotted a pair of large arches at least ten

feet tall over paths leading into the Colosseum.

"Okay, that's probably the main entrance for spectators, so now I just have to find the

stand," Ami said to herself. She began glancing around, seeing if she could spy anything that

looked right. With all the people around, though, it wasn't easy.

"For instance, this young lady seems more than eager for today's games to continue," a

male voice said behind her. She turned to see two men standing nearby, one with dark brown hair

cut close to his head and slightly curled and black-brown eyes richly dressed in one of the fanciest

togas Ami'd seen yet, and one with brown eyes and silver hair in a slightly less fancy toga. The

first one was indicating her. Some soldiers stood a few paces behind them, but Ami just figured

they were there to maintain crowd control.

"So it would seem," the silver haired one said. "But she might also simply be lost."

"You could say that, actually," Ami said, turning to them fully. "I'm looking for a food

cart run by the Rex family, Tatius and his son, Thernacius? Would you gentlemen know where

that is?"

"Could you be more specific?" the brown haired one asked.

"Um, well there should also be a young slave girl there, and a young man in his teens

along with a young teenage woman with blond hair in two buns on her head and two long

ponytails therefrom," Ami rattled off. The two men glanced at each other.

"I think I recall noticing a young woman with such a hairstyle, Senator Gracchus," the

brown haired man said to his companion.

"Yes, I agree," Gracchus said. "I believe the stand she was at was over in that direction,"

he told her, indicating the direction.

"Thank you, Senator Gracchus," Ami stated, then briefly turned to the other man.

"Senator," she said, and quickly went off in the indicated direction.

"Me, a senator?" Commodus chuckled. "What an interesting young lady."

"Every citizen of our empire may know your name, my Caesar," Gracchus said, "But I

doubt every single person knows your appearance."

"Hmm, a good point, Gracchus, very good," Commodus conceded. Then a thought

occurred to him. "Gracchus," he said, "Is it just me, or did that girl's hair, what we could see of

it under the shawl, look blue to you?"

* * *

Ami pushed through the crowd carefully, and came to a small line of stands selling various

items; food, souvenir items such as broken clubs, wheels, weapons and other stuff salvaged from

after the various battles within the giant arena, snacks and sweets, and some even sold make shift

toys of the still surviving gladiators.

She looked further, and noticed a stand with three men selling food at it. One was an

elderly gentleman with greying hair and aged hazel eyes. The second was about mid thirties with

short brown hair and brown eyes. And the last one couldn't have been more than mid-teens, with

short cut raven hair and blue eyes. Looking closer, she spotted what looked to be blond hair

behind the boy.

She moved forward, and stood herself to one side, but before she could get a clear view of

who was behind the men, the boy saw her and turned to her.

"Hello, miss," he said, "Can I help you?"

"Maybe," Ami said. "Is your name Georgio?" The boy blinked in surprise.

"How'd you know my name?" he asked. Ami pulled out her identification papers and held

them out for Georgio to see.

"I am the property of Lady Hrisoula of Tercham, and have come with her to Rome on

holiday," she said. "My mistress is making arrangements with your grandmother, Ariadne, for us

to stay at her and your grandfather's home for the interim." Georgio glanced at the paper, then

turned to the eldest man.

"Uh, grandpa?" he said. "Girl here to see you.."

"Oh?" the man said, and turned to look. He glanced at the paper, then looked up in

surprise. "Lady Hrisoula's returned to Rome? Well, I'll be damned!"

"Yes, sir," Ami said. "You, I presume, are Tatius?"

"Yes, yes I am," Tatius replied. "And this is my son, Thernacius," he indicated the third

man who was selling a couple some fresh cooked steaks. "But why'd you come out to see me?"

he asked.

"I didn't, sir," Ami said. "I wanted to see if a young lady in your keeping was a friend of

mine." The old man's eyes widened, and he turned to the back of the cart.

"Galea, come here," he said. As he turned back, a young girl the same age as Felicia, but

with long dark, raven hair and bright blue eyes, came to the front of the stand. "You know this

girl?" he asked.

"No, sir." Galea said.

"No, Mr. Tatius," Ami said. "I meant the other..."

"Yo! Order up! Three steaks ready to go!" a very familiar blond haired girl said as she

popped up between Tatius and Thernacius with a plate full of fresh cooked meat on it, setting it

on the front counter. As she turned, her bright blue eyes locked onto Ami. Her face went slack in

surprise.

"Ami?" she gasped.

"Serena..." Ami said, her eyes brimming with tears.

"Ami!" Serena dove forward, and Ami did, too, the two hugging each other tightly over

the stand's counter.

"Oh, you meant my future granddaughter-in-law," Tatius said. "I'm sorry, my mistake."

Galea quickly turned back to the food still cooking in the back as Ami and Serena released each

other. Thernacius glanced over.

"Friend of yours, Serena?" he asked.

"Yeah, one of my best," Serena said, her eyes wet from joy. "How'd you get here,

Ames?"

"More or less the way you did," Ami answered. "I'll tell you later after we get back to..to

Tatius's place."

"Fair enough," Serena said, then noticed the paper in Ami's hand. "What's this?" she

asked as she grabbed it away to look at it.

"Ah! Serena, I..." Ami started, but Serena had already gotten the gist of it.

"Ami... You're a SLAVE?!" she half screeched.

"In name only," Ami said. "I'm more like a live in maid, or unpaid hired employee, really!"

"But this person you're with still has the right to sell you like one of our steaks, right?!"

Serena pushed.

"Well, technically..."

"God, just like Rini..." Serena moaned.

"Now, now," Ami tried to calm her Princess down a bit, then her eyes went wide. "What

do you mean, 'just like Rini'?!" Serena glanced up, her eyes tearing in emotional pain.

"Oh, Ami..."

"Serena," Ami said sternly, "What's happened?! Tell me!" Serena just stared at her sadly

for a moment.

* * *

Hotaru and Damris quietly placed their things, and Ami's, in their new room for the next

couple of weeks, then sat down on the bed. The house had eight rooms on the second floor,

counting the master bedroom used by Tatius and Ariadne. One room was being used by

Thernacius, another by Georgio, and one by Serena. And one was used by both Felicia and Galea

at present. That left three for let.

Hrisoula took one for herself, and arranged for one room to be shared by Iosif and

Zacharias while the girls shared the other. Since each room had only one bed, Iosif had been sent

to collect extra blankets and pillows from the market place, while Felicia was collecting straw

from a nearby barn to make small sleeping mats on the floors of the rooms with.

The room Hotaru and Damris sat in was simple, with a medium sized clothes chest against

one wall, a window in the east wall, and a second, smaller chest in the northwest corner, just shy

of the door.

Hotaru had done some quick thinking in explaining her and Ami's friendship to Serena.

She'd told the others that she and Ami had lived in the same town as Serena at one time, but had

moved far north five years ago, hence their passing through Tercham at the time of their

"purchase" by Hrisoula. Now she just had to talk with Ami and Serena before they were

questioned on the subject so they could keep their stories straight!

"Hotaru," Damris said, "what do you think the games will be like?"

"I dunno," Hotaru replied. "People killing each other for no reason, the crowd roaring

it's twisted approval, stuff like that probably." She had hesitated on adding 'people tossed in

unarmed to be eaten by lions and tigers.'

"Oh," Damris said quietly. She was silent a moment, then stated, "I'm not sure I want

Zacharias to see any of that at all."

"Frankly, I'm not too eager to see any of it, myself," Hotaru agreed. Damris just kept

quiet for awhile.

A moment later, Felicia came in with a heavy bundle of straw, and laid it down on the

floor next to the bed.

"Ariadne says two of you are to use this for bedding while the third takes the bed," she

said.

"Yeah, we heard," Hotaru said. "Thank you."

"Thank you," Damris said as well. Felicia then went back through the door and picked up

another, smaller, bundle of straw, and took it to another room. After she left, the room was again

silent.

They sat that way, just thinking, for several minutes. They could hear Hrisoula and

Ariadne catching up on "old times" downstairs, but that didn't concern them. At least, not right

now. Then Zacharias came in, and walked up to his sister.

"Damris," he said, his eyes wide and innocent, "where's our mommy?"

"I told you before, Zacharias," Damris replied, "Mother and Father were taken away by

Hecate to the Elysion Fields in the domain of Pluto." *Pluto?* Hotaru thought.

"Excuse me," Hotaru piped in, "but do you mean they were taken to a woman with light

brown skin, pink-purple eyes, and long green hair carrying a long key-like staff with a magenta

orb in a heart shaped crest on the top?" The two just stared at her a moment.

"No," Damris finally replied, "I mean Pluto, the god of the Underworld, ruler of the lands

of the....d, e, a, d."

"The what?" Zacharias asked, but Hotaru had understood perfectly. Their parents were

dead. Hotaru quietly wished she'd paid better attention to her ancient mythology studies. She'd

picked up that the names of the planets were Roman, but it had slipped by her that they were the

names of Roman gods! At this point, as if to distract them away from the current conversation,

Felicia returned.

"Ariadne says I can have a little time to myself right now, so I thought I'd come spend time

with you," she said. "It's boring without Galea."

"That's okay," Hotaru said, secretly glad of the reprieve. "Was there anything specific

you wanted to do?"

"Well, I wanted to ask you if you knew Rini," Felicia replied. Hotaru felt herself tense all

over again.

"Rini? Well, she was very small when I saw her last, but, yeah, I know her," Hotaru

answered. "Wait, no one said anything about her earlier. Are you saying she's here, too?"

"Um, well, she's not living here in this house," Felicia said.

"Then where is she?" Hotaru pushed.

"She was stolen from her mother by Barvus Cephiro," Felicia said. "He's the same slaver

who sold me and Galea to Lady Ariadne."

"What?!" Hotaru gasped, trying to keep herself from slamming the girl to the floor.

"Then where is she?!"

"She was sold," Felicia answered, "to some boy named Lucius Verus. Cephiro and his

people seemed really happy about it, but probably cause he paid them three thousand gold for her,

and another three thousand for Salina." For a few long moments, Hotaru was frozen to the spot,

her mind reeling at the revelation.

* * *

That evening was an interesting one. Ami returned with the others, and introductions went

around for those who had not previously met. Before too long, Zacharias decided that he felt

completely safe around Serena, but was a still a little timid around the three males. Galea was the

same as Felicia, Hotaru, and his sister to him, another little girl who'd lost her mommy.

Tatius, Thernacius, and Georgio treated the young girls amiably, and it was obvious to

Ami and Hotaru before too long that he was _totally_ infatuated with Serena. They also tried to

be as nice as possible to Zacharias, having heard from Ami about his shyness, and the cause

thereof. Zacharias still tended to cling either to Damris or Hrisoula, though.

Galea quickly took to making friends with the new girls nearer her own age, and was also

very nice to Zacharias, who was willing to be a little less shy around her like he was with the other

girls. And Iosif treated Serena politely, but she could tell he was more interested in Ami. So all

in all, it looked as though relations would be steady.

Serena offered to let Ami sleep in her room with her for now, and Ami accepted. While

they shifted Ami's things and makeshift bedding and blanket and pillow into Serena's room,

Hotaru asked permission to join them to "catch up on 'old' times," and Hrisoula allowed it,

having no real need of her for now.

Once safely in her room, Serena related her tale to Ami and Hotaru, arriving in Ancient

Rome, meeting Barvus Cephiro and Darvinian Cavinus, losing Rini, meeting the Rex's, traveling

to Rome, retrieving Rini's brooch while on route, learning of Rini's sale, and ending with her

decision to make and sell food stuffs at a stand during the Colosseum games till she had three

thousand gold to buy Rini back with. What had surprised even her was when Georgio had offered

to help her, and then the rest of the Rex men had jumped in. Ariadne had then suggested having

Galea and Felicia help too, since she didn't really need them at home all the time, and they had

taken turns so that one was still around to help the elderly woman around the house.

When Serena had explained who Lucius Verus was, Hotaru felt chilled. *The Prince of

Rome?* she thought, *What's he doing to her, making her do?* Ami had similar thoughts on that

line.

Ami and Hotaru then told Serena their story, though generally uneventful. When they told

her how Eleutherios tried to rape Hotaru, she jumped.

"You're kidding!" she snapped. "And he got away?!"

"Yeah, clean away," Hotaru grumbled. "If only I'd reached my wand, I'd have shown

him who he was really dealing with."

"Probably best you didn't," Serena commented.

"Yes," Ami said. "We've avoided doing so to avoid attracting the attention of the current

day Sailor Scouts."

"The current day Scouts?" Serena blinked. "I...hadn't thought of that..."

"Huh?" Ami stared at her. "Then why haven't you transformed, yourself?"

"Uh, hello!" Serena said. "I go prancing around using my powers and you know what

people are going to say? They're gonna scream 'witch!', that's what they're going to say! And

you know what's gonna happen to me then? They'll burn me at the stake, that's what they'll do!

I don't know about you, but I do _not_ want to end up looking like a well roasted Sailor

MARSHMALLOW!!"

Her two fellow Scouts just stared as they digested her logic. Not only was it impeccable,

but it was an angle that hadn't dawned on them themselves. They probably would get cries of

"WITCH!" if they used their powers in public here, and public burning of believed witches was

common practice in this time.

"Oh," Hotaru finally managed, and Ami continued to just stare into the air, wide eyed.

"I think I fried her brain," Serena said, feeling Ami's forehead. A moment later, the

Senshi of water snapped out of it.

"Sorry, where were we?" she blinked. After that, they finished their tales, and agreed

upon the following story to explain their friendship:

As Hotaru had claimed earlier, they had been friends in the same southerly town until

seven years ago, when Ami and Hotaru's family had moved to the north. Recently, as had been

stated, their "father" had left and died in the war in Germania, while their "mother" died of illness,

so the two had been heading south to see about taking residence with Serena and Darien's family.

But sadly they'd little to nothing after the tax men had gone through their home, and had no

choice but to steal some extra clothes and food, leading to their purchase by Hrisoula. Serena

quickly prompted them that she and Darien were married, and that he was still alive and in the

Roman army somewhere, since that was about the only thing that kept Georgio at bay, lest he try

on her what Eleutherios had attempted on Hotaru.

Their story in mind and ready, they got up to see what was on the menu for dinner. What

they didn't notice was Damris quickly speeding back to her and Hotaru's room, and slipping

inside as they emerged from Serena and Ami's.

*Sailor Scouts? Witchcraft? They have powers of some sort?* her young mind raced.

*They're even lying about how they know each other! But why? What are they hiding? Are they

even who they say they are? And if not, who are they really?!*

* * *

The next day, while Serena, Tatius, Thernacius, Georgio, and Felicia worked the stand,

Hrisoula paid for her and her servants to have third row seats along the right side of the Arena

during the games that day. By majority decision, Zacharias was left at the Rex home with Ariadne

and Galea, none of the girls, even Serena, wanting the small boy exposed to such horrific things

right now. And Hrisoula wholeheartedly agreed.

They took their seats as the crowds rushed inward for the first round of games, many

eagerly awaiting the contest of blood! Ami maintained indifference, Iosif and Hrisoula were

impassive, and Hotaru and Damris felt totally trepidatious. Hotaru felt even more sick when she

saw some parents bring their children in to watch, even instructing them on who to cheer for.

One high booth was separate from the rest, and a small handful of people walked into it, flanked

by guards.

One was a young woman, another a boy of about eight or so, and the other one Ami

recognized as the younger Senator she'd encountered the previous day.

"Wow, they're richly dressed," Hotaru mused. "I wonder who they are?"

"Well, the guy's a Senator," Ami said, pointing to him. "I sort of bumped in to him

yesterday."

"Unlikely, girl," a man said behind her. They turned to the speaker, a man of forty

something in a rich red toga with a bright blue sash over it. "That's the Caesar's box, there!

Only the Caesar Commodus and his family get to sit there! And any personal slaves or servants

they drag along."

"The Caesar?!" Ami screeched. "Oh, god..."

"What's wrong, Ami?" Hotaru asked.

"When I met him yesterday...I called him 'Senator', right to his face!" Ami explained. "I

can't believe he didn't stop me and correct me, or worse, have me killed!"

"Even a Caesar can forgive a simple mistake of identity," Hrisoula said.

"After all," Iosif added. "I didn't know what he looked like, myself, until today." Before

more could be said, a trumpet sounded, and all turned their attention to the main arena.

"Romans! On this wonderful day of the games, we have a special treat!" a portly

announcer in a seat just under the Caesar's personal booth rose his voice to be heard above the

murmuring of the crowd.

"All the way from the southern arenas of Derorium, from the camp of the once proud

gladiator Theophilus, a woman warrior of no simple skill, who today shall battle not one, not two,

but five stout men till only one person is left standing!" the man continued. At this point five

burly male gladiators entered the ring from a lower arch, and began taking positions around the

arena.

Glancing back at the Caesar's personal booth, Hotaru blinked as she saw two more

persons step in, carrying trays with refreshments, then taking a seat next to the small boy sitting

beside the woman. One had red hair, and Hotaru looked past her. The other, however...

"Ami, look!" Hotaru hissed into her friends ear while pulling on Ami's arm, and pointed to

the booth. Ami glanced over, and her eyes widened.

"Oh, my god," she lightly gasped. She recognized the other little girl instantly, despite the

fact that she was wearing her hair down. Because she only knew of one person in this time who

could possibly have hair that vibrant a shade of pink!

Rini was sitting quietly between the boy and the other girl, wearing a white roman dress

with red lining, and it looked like something shiny was on her right wrist, but from where they

were sitting they couldn't rightly tell.

"Well, she looks alright, anyway," Ami mused, then noticed that a small elevator was

raising the sixth gladiator to the arena floor from the storehouses underground. The woman was

kind of young, about mid-teens, with light brown hair tied back in a pony tail, dressed in Roman

armor, and she also wore what looked from where they sat a pair of rose earrings...

"No, it can't be..." Ami felt her heart sink, and Hotaru just froze in her seat.

"Ladies and gentlemen, young and old," the announcer cried, " I give you the woman

wonder!

"Let's hear it for LITA THE MAGNIFICENT!!!"

* * *

Trista quickly locked the Science Room door from the inside, then used her powers to

return to the Time Gate. Once there, she scanned for the locations of the five absent scouts, but

they were nowhere to be found. So she began to scan for the current location of the other four

scouts, the cats, and Darien.

She found Amara and Michelle first. They were at home together, in...

*Well, they can just find time for their "happy hour" later,* Trista thought. She then

scanned for the others, and found all three cats in Rini's attic bedroom at the Tsukino household.

Luna and Artemis were giving Diana a special tutoring lesson on how to be a proper guardian to

Rini.

*Well, they can just put that on hold, too, for now,* Trista thought. Next she found Rei,

meditating at Hikawa. Nothing to interrupt there, so she quickly found Mina, who was laying on

her bed at home, listening to a CD, and flipping through a magazine full of pictures of "cute,

dreamy guys!" Thinking about it for only a moment, she left the gates and entered Mina's room

first.

"Ooh, you are a delicious looking stud, aren't you Charles?" she purred at a picture in her

magazine.

"Ahem," Trista cleared her throat, "Excuse me, Mina, but we have a situation." Mina

jumped a mile into the air, then shoved the magazine under her pillow before turning around, her

face bright pink in embarrassment.

"Trista!" she said, "What brings you here?"

"As I said," Trista replied, "we have a situation. Grab your wand and I'll take you there.

I'll explain once we're all together." Nodding, Mina jumped from the bed and pulled her

transformation wand from her desk, and stood next to Trista, who waved the Garnet Rod and

transported them first to the Time Gate, and then to the Science Room.

"Hey," Mina blinked, "Isn't this Crossroads Junior High?"

"Yes," Trista answered. "Please wait here." And with that she returned to the Time

Gate, then transported to Rei. Rei looked up as she appeared.

"Something's happened to Serena, hasn't it?" Rei asked.

"Yes," Trista said. "Rini, Ami, Lita, and Hotaru as well. Get your wand and I will take

you to the place." Rei quickly stood and took her wand from her robes, and Trista transported her

the same as Mina. Upon arrival, they found Mina glancing at the mysterious machine that was the

culprit of the current situation.

"Keep Mina and yourself away from that while I get the others," Trista instructed, and

transported herself again, this time going to Amara and Michelle. She watched them for a

moment as they "enjoyed" each other's company. Then she tapped the floor with the foot of her

staff.

"Huh?" Amara said, looking up from the covers, Michelle just behind. "What's up,

Trist?"

"How long have you two been in there?" she asked.

"Umm..." Amara scratched the back of her head.

"An hour or so," Michelle blushed.

"And you never sensed it?" Trista asked.

"Sensed?" Michelle blinked, then focused her mind. A moment later her eyes snapped

open. "Dear god, the ocean has gone mad!"

"Yes, something has gone greatly wrong," Trista confirmed. "Now get your clothes on

and grab your wands, and I'll take you the place of the disturbance's origin." Trista then did

something a little uncharacteristic. "Unless you want to traipse around the site naked?" she

grinned.

"Har, har," Amara said sarcastically, and jumped out of bed and tossed on some clothes

before getting her wand from the vanity. Michelle did likewise, and once they were ready, they

moved over to Trista, and were taken to the Science Room.

"I'll be back soon, and then I'll explain," she told them, and transported herself to the

cats, who were still in the midst of their lecture.

"And then," Luna said in a "teacher" voice.

"Excuse me, Luna, but you'll have to cut this short," she said. The three cats looked up,

surprised.

"Pluto!" Diana said, smiling.

"Hello, Sailor Pluto," Luna greeted her. "Is something the matter?"

"Sailor Pluto...I mean, Trista," Artemis said. "What brings you here?"

"Serena, Rini, Ami, Lita, and Hotaru have vanished," Trista stated, and the cats' eyes

went wide. "Come with me and I shall explain everything." Without a word, the three moon cats

stepped up to Trista, and she transported them quickly to the Science Room. Once deposited,

they quickly took an interest in the machine.

"Please, do not touch that," Trista told them. "I will return in a moment. I just need to

retrieve Darien." With that, she returned to the Time Gate once more.

She quickly scanned for her future King, and found him stepping into his apartment,

flinching from the sudden feeling that something was wrong with Serena. She quickly transported

in, and braced herself for a throttling.

"Hello, my Prince," she greeted him.

"Okay, what happened!" he said, straight to the point. "And don't give me any attitude,

cause I _know_ something has!"

"I'm afraid there's been...an accident," she replied,

"What kind of 'accident'?" he asked.

"Serena and some of the others have...disappeared..." she told him. Suddenly two hands

were grabbing her by the collar.

"SERENA'S WHAT?!!!!" Darien bellowed.

"Please close your door," Trista asked. Forcing as much control into himself as he could,

Darien did so, then returned to Trista, who transported them both to Crossroads. Once there, she

took a deep breath.

"Alright, everyone," she said aloud, gaining all their attentions, then indicated the

machine. "I'm not sure how, but somehow that machine there has caused Serena, Rini, Ami,

Hotaru, and Lita to vanish from the face of the Earth..."

******************************************************************************

Well, that's the Ami and Hotaru section. Now on to the Lita section! Don't worry, I

won't forget about the Colosseum fight! (I'm not that evil.. No, wait, yes I am!) So be

here next time for Chapter 7: Gladiator.

Wish to converse? To send me a bomb-o-gram? E-mail me at Scorpinac@sa-tech.com!