Title: Welcome To Reality
Chapter Title: The Mystery that is High School Food…
Summary: Serena Warren, now fifteen, graduates the tenth grade with honours and is offered a chance to go to Japan on a student exchange program. Here, she realizes that the reason her dreams seemed so real is that they were.
Author: Silver Sparklze
Reason For Writing: This story was written as a challenge set by Sage: The Dark Dryad.
Author's Notes: Ok, this is pretty much a filler chapter, not much happens…Serena cries a bit, and does some Darien-drooling though! Mmm…Darien-drooling…is it pathetic to have a crush on a cartoon character? I have tried to translate the Japanese next to the words, but even so, anything written in bold will be translated at the end of the chapter if not already translated.
~Juuban High Cafeteria, Juuban High, Tokyo~
Serena poked the unidentifiable green-ish object with her chopsticks, frowning.
"I have a policy of not eating anything that moves, breathes, or is covered in slime," she informed Kimi-chan. "What do you think?"
"I think it is as all three." Kimi-chan replied gravely, struggling to understand. Serena sighed, pushing her plate away.
"Gomen, Kimi-chan." {I'm sorry, Kimiko} She said, "Watashi ni toowako anata desu ka?" {Am I confusing you?}
"Hai. Eto eigo no kakarimasu." {Yes. But you're helping me with my English.} Kimi-chan replied. "So I do not mind." She reverted back to English, smiling and taking a bite of her own obentoo, which she had brought with her from home.
"You were the smart one." Serena groaned, holding her growling stomach. Kimi-chan giggled, and pushed her lunch over towards Serena.
"Have some," Kimi-chan invited, "I cannot eat it all. Mama…she is packing much."
"Thank you." Serena took a piece of sushi and ate it, dipping it in a large amount of wasabi first. "Mmm…" she said delightedly. Kimi-chan's eyes were wide.
"Are you insane?" She asked, "the wasabi…it is hot!"
"I like hot things." Serena said honestly, thinking about Darien. "I like hot things verry much." She stared out of the cafeteria window, watching a certain blue-eyed, dark haired hunk walk by. Kimi-chan followed her gaze.
"Ah…like him, ne?" Kimi-chan smiled wisely.
"Hai…" {Yes…} Serena sighed.
"Excuse me for interrupting." Mina Aino said from where she'd been having a heated discussion with Rei Hino and Lita Kino two seats away, "But you have no chance with him. He's Sere-ko's ex."
"I know," Serena groaned, "it's so unfair." Mina glared.
"What do you mean by that?" She demanded; blue eyes icy as she tossed back some of her golden hair.
"I simply mean that it's unfair that Sere-ko had to die, and that the guy of my dreams happens to be her ex, so I can't even make myself forget my pain that way." Serena said honestly, eyes shining with tears. "God, I hate this. Sorry." She got up, and fled the lunchroom, dashing tears from her eyes as she went.
Serena stared at her face in the Ladies Room mirror, seeing as if for the first time the deep circles under her eyes, and how thin her face was again. She hadn't looked this bad since The Dreams. She heard the lavatory door open, and quickly closed herself into a stall.
((AN: Ok, pretend that the people are talking Japanese here, k? Because I'm not very good with it, only being in year 11, so I'm just going to write the dialogue in English.))
"What was that all about?" A rather familiar husky voice asked the air. Serena's eyes widened. That was Lita!
"Yes. It was decidedly strange. I wonder why Serena-san got so worked up." Ami agreed thoughtfully.
"I don't like her." Mina insisted. "Sitting there looking like Sere-ko, acting like Sere-ko, and openly salivating over Darien-kun. It's not natural. There's something strange about her."
"Stop being silly, Mina-chan," Lita dismissed, "there's nothing odd about Serena-san. She's stuck in a foreign country, having just found out that a friend of hers is dead, and she has no one to talk to. Of course she's going to be extra depressed. It's natural."
"Entirely," Ami agreed, "well, I'm done, and I really need to do some research before Chem.…but our meeting's still on for tonight?"
"Yes," Lita said, "five o'clock sharp, as per usual. Well, I should be going to. My home Ec. teacher's been handing us a huge amount of homework, and I've got to create a new recipe for duck before next week."
"I have a lesson with my drama teacher now," Mina agreed, and the door banged shut behind them.
Serena sagged against the door of her cubicle, a harsh breath escaping from her mouth. It hurt to know that Mina didn't trust her. Princess Mina of Venus was her – Princess Serenity's – cousin. They'd been best friends back on the moon, Princess Mina covering for Princess Serenity more than once when she'd snuck to Earth to woo her love, Prince Darien. She'd even dressed up as Princess Serenity a few times and pretended to be her! They looked so alike that only Queen Selenity had ever been able to tell them apart.
"Sere-chan?" A hesitant voice asked. Serena opened the stall door, and smiled at Kimi-chan.
"Hey, Kimi-chan." She said wearily. ((In case you have not guessed, the 'Japanese' left when Mina did.))
"Genki da?" {Are you ok?}
"Yes." Serena sighed, and ran a hand through her hair. "Well, I guess we'd better get going to class, huh?"
"Yes, or, rather, to the Library. You wants to go there after class, remember?"
"Er…yes…" Serena nodded, taking a moment to exchange 'after' for 'before'. "Let's go, then."
~Serena's Room, Hikawa Shrine, Tokyo~
Serena typed away at her computer, composing a rushed email to Amelia, telling her all about the culture, the school, and, most importantly, the mall.
'It's so much fun here,'
She wrote,
'I have so much to learn. And already I've learnt more Japanese than I did by staying at home and studying through school.
'I have this great new friend. Her name's Kimiko Tomodachi. She's really nice, and very pretty. She's got dark hair (traditional of the Japanese, I know, but you'd be amazed, I've already met a whole bunch of people with the strangest hair colours), dark eyes, and skin the colour of tea.
'And she's sooo smart! Omigod, you wouldn't believe how smart she is! And we went to the mall yesterday, and had sooo much fun! I swear; I haven't had that much fun while not buying anything for myself in ages! ^_^.
Oops, must go, unless I want to have to send this email in two parts, it's already over ten pages long. Love ya, Ames.
Serena'
Serena turned off the monitor, planning to send the email later. Her ears pricked up when she heard murmurs just outside her window. Quickly, she hurried over, and peeked out.
((Once again, pretend they're speaking Japanese. I'm getting lazy.))
"…And then she ran out, crying," Lita said, "it was very strange." Rei nodded, dark eyes serious.
"Hmm…" Was all she said.
"What do you think, Aunt Trista?" Hotaru asked the scarlet-eyed lady. Trista frowned.
"Well, as I said before, I felt a definite shift behind the gates…but for some reason I cannot get an accurate reading. It's almost as if something's blocking me…but that's not possible. No one's that strong…except Galaxia."
"Impossible!" Mina said, "she's dead. Sere-ko killed her!"
"Does the energy feel evil?" Ami asked, typing away on her palm pilot, obviously the recorder of the minutes for their meetings.
"No…it felt almost…benevolent…and…kind." Trista said slowly. Serena frowned at that, her mind flipping through all the alternatives, before coming to rest on one person.
Selene. Obviously Selene was helping her keep her identity a secret. Perhaps she agreed with Serena that it was best to let the Scouts warm up to her as a normal person before she shared her secret…
Mind made up, Serena went to the kitchen to get some chocolate chip cookies.
((And now, back to non-laziness ^_^))
Serena was rifling through the cabinet that held the American processed food (plastic, like the rest of America ^_^) that she'd brought with her (even though she shouldn't have gotten past Customs), when she felt someone's eyes on her. She turned around, and relaxed when she saw Rini and Hotaru standing there, looking rather startled.
"Oh, thank Selene," she breathed in English, "you frightened me."
"Wakarimasen…" {I don't understand…} Rini said slowly.
"Oh! Er…" Serena bit her lip helplessly. She rifled through her brain, trying to find a way to express herself. "Domo Selene-sama. Watashi no…odoroki desu." {Thank Lady Selene. You…gave me a fright.}
"Ah!" Hotaru exclaimed, "tenkousei anata yo?" {You are the exchange student?}
"Hai. Watashi no namae wa Warren Serena desu. O namae wa nandesuka?" {Yes. My name's Serena Warren. May I ask your names?} Serena bowed slightly, pretending she did not know the two girls already.
"Hai, gomen. Atashi no Tomoe Hotaru, de itte atashi ni tomodachi no Tsukino Rini da. Shurai ni naru da." {Yes, sorry. My name's Hotaru Tomoe, and this is my friend Rini Tsukino. Nice to meet you.} Hotaru and Rini bowed.
"Anata mo." {You too.} She held out the tin of cookies. "Doozo, chokura chipu kuuki desu ka?" {Do you want a chocolate chip cookie?}
"Domo." Rini said, and they both accepted one, eating them quickly.
"Ja." Serena twiddled her fingers at them, and hurried back to her room, taking the sugar-loaded confectionary with her.
Obentoo: lunch. An obentoo usually has vegetables, sushi (chicken – cooked ^o^, or fish – raw ^.^), and some type of savoury rice.
Sushi: Traditional – Raw fish marinated overnight in vinegar (which pretty much cooks it anyway) before being placed on a bed of rice underneath which is some pre-water-soaked seaweed then rolled into a tube, before being cut into pieces about 5 cm wide. Tastes really nice with wasabi, even if you hate fish (and I do ~_^)
Non-traditional – Made with cooked chicken, placed on a bed of rice underneath which is some pre-water-soaked seaweed then rolled into a tube, before being cut into pieces about 5 cm wide.
Wasabi: Green pepper (spicier than red pepper) paste native to Japan, and used to spice up many dishes. Almost a staple, like fish…rice…and soy sauce ~_^
Ne: right?
Darien-kun: Darien (informal, sometimes used for boys instead of -chan)
Minutes: although this isn't a Japanese word, I thought I'd explain it anyway, just in case. In meetings there is always a recorder of the minutes, who pretty much writes down everything that goes on in the meeting, also bringing up any unresolved issues from former meetings, and making apologies (in other words, informing the assembled party of anyone who couldn't make it).
Ja: Bye