Title: Heaven, Hell, and Somewhere in Between
Authors: Stara and Nataku
Rating: R (meaning all you little kids who want to read this you have been
warned!!)
Genre: Romance/Alternate Reality
Disclaimer: Okay, it won't be long since you've already read it. WE DON'T
OWN SAILOR MOON! Also, if you're a person who is offended by this for
religious reasons, please check the disclaimer and author notes on the first
chapter. Thanks! ^.^
Author Notes: Ah, so we've had some questions as well as some complaints.
Okay, here we will address them.
What is with Lucifer and Serenity? That's so stupid!: We know! This is just
set up TEMPORARILY for plot purposes!!! Don't worry about it.
Hello! Beryl is EVIL and so are the generals. Why the hell are they angels?
And what about the scouts being demons?: *laughs* Listen to what you just
said, don't you get it? We're doing that on PURPOSE. You see we made it so
that all the "good" people were in hell and all the "bad" people were in
heaven just to make it funny. See? See? HAHAHAHAHA!
Any more questions? They will be answered! Promise. *do a peace sign* Um,
also, none of you like us enough to put us on your fav. author's list?
*cries*
Chapter 3-The Trouble with Blueberry Muffins
Lucifer watched solemnly, his face devoid of emotion, as she walked up to
the platform. Yes, today she would leave for Earth...and he would probably
never see her again. He shook his head. Damn it.
Damn it all to Hell.
Standing on the platform she looked at her surroundings one more time,
trying to figure out whether or not she would miss them. No, she wouldn't
miss this place, only him. She shook her head and waited for the steam to
rise. The only way to get back to the surface was to wait for the pressure
of the steam to build up, that was eminating from a nearby smouldering pit
of lava, until it exploded and pushed the platform she was standing on to
the surface. Suddenly she flet a lightness under her feet and she gasped,
falling to her knees. Looking upwards she saw the looming ceiling covered
with stalactites looming ever closer. A world shattering scream pierced
through the air and then there was nothing but darkness.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Three months. She had been on this f*cking planet for three months and
already she was sick of it! Taking a long sip of her french vanilla
cappucino Rei glared at a petite, blonde who was walking down the sidewalk
in front of her. Stopping to buy a copy of the paper she quickly counted out
her money while trying to keep an eye of the girl at the same time. She
dropped a quarter and bent down to pick it up, before realizing that the
girl was gone. Shit! Why had she let Lucifer talk her into this? He WOULD
choose HER to watch over the "pure" one. Her eyes glazed over a minute as
her mind reeled with flashbacks. Wait, was someone calling her? She blinked.
"Miss? Miss? Hello, miss are you okay?" She shook her head, looking at the
poor vendor who had been trying to get her attention for a few minutes.
"Here's your change." she looked blankly at her open palm as he placed the
money in it and returned to other customers.
"Thank you." she mumbled quickly, grabbing her paper and cappucino before
hurrying off. She rolled her eyes as she heard a crash of thunder. Great,
rain. Where could that girl have gone?
Unbeknowest to her, someone else was looking for the blonde as well. Three
someone else's actually...
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Minako laughed, her eyes twinkling as she wrapped a few golden strands of
her hair around her finger absently. Yes, plan D was being executed
perfectly. She checked her watch, 7:20. She still had ten minutes to flirt
with the hot stud in front of her before she had to look around for Serenity
now known as Usagi.
"So, Minako, you like clubs?" the blonde in front of her asked curiously,
raising an eyebrow.
"I love clubs, Motoki." she smiled, looking up at him through her lashes. He
gulped and they exchanged phone numbers before she waved bye to him and
hurried off down the street.
Plan Date, a.k.a. Plan D, proves its worth once again!
She smiled widely, an extra bounce in her step as she hurried down the
streets of Tokyo, looking for her blonde charge. She saw a flash of
lightening, but shook it off. She was even in too good of a mood to
complain. She loved earth, and had been thrilled when Lucifer had asked her
to go. Getting treated and taken on dates was not something she was able to
do it Hell and also something she had not wanted to give up. Twenty-one was
way to young of an age to die, she thought sadly. She was glad Lucifer had
let her come back the same age as she had been when she had died, why waste
a single day of being back on Earth? She cursed as memories of her death
flooded back to her.
It had been a pretty cliche scenario, she thought coldly. Having been
irresponsible back then she and her three friends had been out partying with
their "goody" boyfriends that night. She smiled. They had nicknamed the four
guys the "goodies" because they wouldn't try a lot of the things the girls
were into. Drugs, cigarretes, liquor, she had done it all. The girls had
gotten insanely drunk that night, but insisted on driving home claiming that
they were okay.
The four men would never forgive themselves for listening to them.
They had driven home in seperate cars, the guys in one, the girls in
another. It was raining and the roads were slippery. Makoto hadn't been able
to keep control of the car. They swerved and wound up ramming into their
"goodies"'s car as well, all eight dying instantly. She shook her head,
tears coming to her eyes.
She had killed her goody, her Kunzite.
She wasn't about to throw this life away like she had the last one. Taking a
deep breath and wiping away the tears before they fell she hurried towards a
cornor, where she saw a young, blonde crossing the street.
Jackpot.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Wiping some sweat off her forehead, Makoto turned off her radio that had
been blaring at its highest volume. A workout was just what she had needed.
She stretched, feeling rejuvenated, and checked the clock to make sure she
had enough time to take a shower. It was 8:30, she still had an hour before
she had to clock in at work.
Applying for a job at Usagi's company had been a stroke of genius. She could
sleep in, work out, and still keep an eye on the girl for basically the
whole day. She hopped into the shower and let the warm water pound out all
the knots that long, hard days at work had built into her shoulders and
back.
Coming back to Earth had been so easy for her. When Lucifer asked her to go
her feelings were really undecided. She hadn't particularly loved Earth or
Hell or hated them either. Now, though, she finally starting to accomplish
things. Her first life had been filled mostly with foolishness and things
that she didn't want to stir up and remember. Back when she was 14 she had
these great ambitions about becoming a chef and owning her own bakery and
flower shop. She smiled in rememberance as she lathered the herbal shampoo
into her hair. How she had loved baking! But when she turned 16 she had
moved to a new area and had starting hanging out with this girl called
Minako. The girl had confidence and attracted many people to be her
followers, but she kept only three girls close to her. Makoto had been lucky
enough to be one of those girls.
"Lucky." she snorted in sarcasm as she turned off the shower and began to
dry off. They had still hung out, even after death. The four of them, always
the four of them. Yeah, maybe she had been lucky to get such great friends,
even if they had steered each other down the wrong path. Well, she sure as
hell was going to screw up her second chance at life, even if she did have
to follows Usagi around throughout most of it. Looking at the clock one more
time, her eyes widened. How could she have been in the shower that long?!
The clock read 9:10 as it began to pour out.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Ami tilted her head slightly, looking around the thick book she was reading,
at a girl who was entering a nearby bakery. She shook her head. Did that
girl EVER think about anything but food? Holding up her umbrella
protectively from the enslaught of raindrops she pushed her glasses up her
nose a little more and leaned back in her chair. The setup had been working
out for her quite nicely.
Each morning she woke up at exactly 4 a.m. and took a nice jog around the
nearby park. After her job she would take a shower, grab a sandwhich, and
head to the nearby library for a few hours and absorb herself in new
philosophy books that she had begun to take an interest in. Brining a couple
books with her, she would stop at a cornor cafe and wait for Usagi to arrive
around. Usagi was always a couple minutes late, but then again, she lived on
the other side of Tokyo. Ami easily followed her from there until she
entered her work building and Ami set off for her own job, across the
street.
Yes, things went like clockwork, just like she liked it.
Setting down her empty coffee mug, she grabbed her briefcase as she saw
Usagi emerge from the bakery looking a bit perturbed. She raised an eyebrow
at that but shook it off as she followed the girl on her morning routine. 'I
wonder how the girls are doing...' Woah! Where had THAT come from? She
sighed and shook her head. She had promised herself not to think about them
too much now that she was back on Earth. They had been so close, but they
had made some bad choices and she didn't want to relive past mistakes. She
did miss their late night gossip sessions though...She smiled at that. No
one would have thought that SHE of all people who miss their gossiping. Just
because she wore glasses, was smart, and unusually sensible didn't mean she
couldn't enjoy a gab fest.
Gods, she hated stereotypes.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Usagi threw her hands up in frustration as the portfolio holding her
sketches slid down the stairs, scattering her designs to the wind. Mumbling
none to friendly words she chased after the precious papers and sighed as
she stuffed them backing into the black, leather case. Some of them were
beyond repair.
Today was going to be one of those days.
Brushing off her chic, black, dress pants she cursed the day that she had
decided to become a fashion designer. Fashion designing wasn't something she
had chosen to do, it was just something that had come naturally to her. When
she sat down with pencil and paper the sketches just seemed to flow from her
hands into gorgeous masterpieces filled with vibrant colors and exotic
materials. In her first month designing her clothes had become a major hit
all over the world, and she already had built a major corporation with many
designers beneath her.
"Well, that's all over." she hissed as she quickly pushed her way through
the crowded streets of downtown Tokyo. After her first few months of being
here, Earth had already corrupted her innocent nature. She smiled at that.
Funny, how Earth seemed to have done a better job of that than Hell had.
Having been gone from Lucifer for a week had been murder for her system. She
didn't really miss HIM as much as she missed the sex. Gods, she missed the
sex. Being with him everynight for over two years had taken a toll on her
sexual appetite and she always found herself needing a new fling to settle
her cravings. It hadn't been hard though, guys were always more than willing
to go out with her and it only took a week or so before she would call them
to her room. After a few weeks she would get bored with her boytoys, and her
sketches would become paler and less interesting. So, she'd get a new one.
She'd only had four since coming back to Earth, so she wasn't varnishing her
reputation TOO much. She rolled her eyes. But this month had been pure and
utter Hell for her. She was taking some college classes on designing to help
make her styles more consistent, and to learn about what other countries
were into. This was all good and dandy, but it was cutting a major hole into
her leisure time. This meant: no sex.
Without that stress release her designs were slacking and becoming more and
more...blah. She was failing miserably on the runway and many of her normal
models were refusing jobs from her. The onyl place she WAS making money was
from the designers under her, who were selling clothes under her label for
up to five-hundred bucks a pop in department stores. She would have to make
up for it with her new line.
A car drove passed quickly and splashed water all over her clothes. She
closed her eyes and stood there, fuming as she wiped futily at her new
pants. Of COURSE karma couldn't even come up with a less cliche thing to do
to her!! How could it POSSIBLY get ANY worse? She covered her mouth after
saying it, knowing that as soon as she uttered it, something worse would
happen. Something did.
It began to rain.
"NO! WHY ME?!" She shrieked running down the sidewalk, her portfolio tucked
protectively beneath her shirt. Sanctuary, she needed sanctuary! And then
she saw it, a bakery! Throwing open the door to her new found haven she
sniffed the air in anticipation.
Muffins.
Yes, muffins would make her day better. But, she didn't want just ONE kind
of muffin, she wanted a blueberry muffin. Licking her lips in anticipation
she blushed as she noticed the not to few stares she was getting from men
who were standing around in the bakery. She brushed them off and took the
black portfolio out from it's place beneath her now soaked, white shirt
before walking up to the counter, next to a rather sexy dark-haired man.
What? She was sex deprived!
"One blueberry muffin please."
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Endymion stood on the bridge, refusing to look anyone in the eye. He crossed
his arms over his chest and glared at area where the sun would rise in just
a few minutes.
Beryl checked her watch again. "Two more minutes."
Both Zoisite and Endymion shot her dirty glares. Endymion was pissed at
everyone in general, and Zoisite was berating himself for getting conned into
this mission. Neither was very happy about their reassignment to Earth.
"Oh, cheer up, boys," Beryl said with a smile. "Earth wasn't that bad, now was
it?"
The saint rolled his eyes and turned to face the rays of sunlight peeking up
from the horizon. "So what exactly are we supposed to do again?" He shielded
his eyes from the now glarring light.
Beryl removed a pair of sunglasses and put them on. "It's easy. As soon as
the sun finishes rising, you jump off the dock and just let yourself fall.
We're positioned right over the Tokyo Cathedral*, so you should end up in that
general vicinity."
Zoisite gulped as he looked down. "W-we have to jump?"
Beryl nodded. "You won't get hurt or anything...in fact, that's the thing that
most people seem to have trouble with. Just let yourself go..." she indicated
this with a wave of her hand, causing the saint to sway on the dock before he
steadied himself. She continued, "We have these little portals all around the
Earth, in specific locations. It just so happens that the very center is Tokyo
itself. Quite convinient for you, eh, Endy?"
Endymion gave her the bird.
It was all poor Zoisite could do to keep Beryl, God's right hand man, from
throwing herself at Endymion's form, for angels possess strength and agility
far beyond that of normal humans, and could quite easily have thrown him off
the dock, causing Endymion to drift around through various time periods and
places. Which, as it was, didn't seem like such a bad idea to Zoisite now...
"Don't PROTECT me, you gay wussy!"
Zoisite released Beryl. "Knock him six ways from Sunday."
Beryl charged at Endymion, but accidentally knocked Zoisite as well, causing
the three of them to totter around a bit, frantically looking for something
to grab onto as the dock swayed unsteadily.
"Oh shi-"
But he never got a chance to finish.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Mamoru opened his eyes. Big mistake. The illumination from the surrounding
flurescant lights nearly blinded him, and he shut them tight. A few moments
later, he slowly opened them again, allowing his eyes to gradually get used
to the brightness.
His surroundings seemed...familiar. He couldn't quite put his finger on why,
or just how, but they stirred memories in him that were begining to surface.
A lot of memories. Different memories.
He sat up quickly, but this was another faux pas. Something was connected to
him, holding him back, pulling on his wrists. He looked down at the wires
around his wrist, monitoring his pulse. He lay back down again.
Wait. IV tubes? Bed? MAMORU?!
He threw a desparate glance around the room. Medical charts at the foot of his
bed, heart monitors to the side, and a pristine white curtain around it all.
Behind it he could hear the muffled sounds of phones, voices, and footsteps.
What the hell?
And why was he...Mamoru? He was Endymion...wasn't he?
Mam...Endymion searched his mind. He could still remember Heaven, the guardian
angels...the works. But he also had a separate, distinct memory. It was like
perusing through a stack of files of someone else's brain...except they weren't
there. He was Endymion, but he was also Mamoru Chibi, age 23, born in Tokyo,
Japan. And according to those "files"...this was Mamoru Chiba's body.
He scanned the memory bank a bit more. Fuzzy, choppy details of flashing lights,
screeching tires, and a Porche the size of a damn elephant coming at him swirled
through his mind. With this new information, Mamoru quickly did a mental check
of his body. Nothing hurt, everything seemed to be in perfect order.
Just then, a cheery nurse with red hair poked her head in the room. "You're awake!
Great. Let me just do a quick check up, and you should be good to go. You're an
extremely lucky young man, you know. Most people wouldn't have survived being hit
by that car- but you, you don't have a scratch on you!" She shook her head and
continued about her business.
Mamoru settled back down onto the bed and tried to take this all in. The last
thing he remembered was that psycho Beryl coming at him with a muderous glint in
her eye before falling into sort of a flashing light...
"OWW! DAMMIT!" Mamoru felt a jolting pain through his spine. He looked up to see
the nurse with a guilty sort of hidden smile on her face and her finger resting
on a button on the wall. "Oh, I'm sorry! I probably should have warned you about
that before I raised the bed, shouldn't I?"
He rubbed his back and scowled at her. She didn't seem that contrite.
One of the doctors entered then. He glanced at his clipboard. "Chiba, Mamoru,
correct? How are you feeling today?"
Mamoru crossed his arms and folded them over his chest and didn't say anything.
"Fine, fine, I see," the doctored chuckled to himself as he scribbled something
down. "Well, Mr. Chiba, your test results show nothing's broken. You seem to be
in fairly good shape. If you don't have any objections, well...we can release you
before the day's out." He tucked a strand of his unusually long hair behind his
ear. "In the meantime, just concentrate on resting up a bit. That's your mission."
The doctor leaned against the wall, hitting a certain button with his shoulder.
"AHH!" Mamoru yelled again as the hospital bed began to fold up on him. The doctor
looked at his shoulder and grinned sheepishly.
"Oops...heh heh...sorry about that....Nurse? Will you.."
"Yes, doctor?"
"..accompany me to lunch in the cafeteria?"
"Why of course," she said cheerfully, and the two of them exchanged secret high
fives and left Mamoru to deal with the effects of the fold-up bed, which
threatened to take the life that the car had not.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
"M-r. Chiba? I-it's your breaktime. Mr. Chiba? Financial reports cannot be
that interesting..."
Mamoru looked up from his game of Minesweeper. Oh? They thought he was working
again? Oh well. Might as well play along. He adjusted his glasses a bit and
closed the the game window, and folded his hands carefully in front of him.
"Break time?" he asked slowly, a frightening calmness in his voice.
"Yes sir," the secretary said, her voice begining to fail her. Oh God, now
her boss was angry again...
"Excuse me, Miss Naru. At Chiba Industries for Advertising, we all try to work
as a team, so that we can give our customers the best quality possible for
their products. And in order to work as a functional and happy team, we all have
to do our fair share of work. That means we cannot waste time dilly-dallying
around on breaks all the time. Is that clear?"
The poor girl's knees were shaking now. "Yes sir. So sorry, sir." With that, she
dashed around the corner back to her desk, for fear that Mr. Chiba would think
her not a team worker.
Mamoru chuckled to himself. Yes, a man did have to keep himself amused in this
world, and keeping his employees on their toes was a wonderful distraction.
Not that there weren't enough "distractions" in life.
"For a nervous little mouse of a girl, she does wear an awfully short skirt.."
he allowed, an evil grin begining to spread across his face as devilish thoughts
formed in his mind on just where he would like to see that skirt- probably
somewhere bunched up in the corner of his room.
Oh, wasn't it breaktime?
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Zoisite leaned against the wall on the corner of a cafe, his eyes intently watching the bakery across the street. It had begun to drizzle slightly, and when it began to pour, he moved into the shelter of a covered walkway. Rain bothered him. It carried too many memories. Memories he wanted to forget, but couldn't. Ami...the girls...the car and the smash of metal...
He shook his head. Don't remember that. Remember something else. Ami liked rainy days, he couldn't help but recall. She liked to find a warm couch and read a thick book. He narrowed his eyes. Ami liked a lot of things. Some of them Zoisite didn't agree with. And somethings he would never forgive himself for letting her do...
He snapped to attention. Across the street, in front of the bakery, he could have sworn that he saw a flash of silvery green behind a yellow raincoat. Zoisite shook his head. He just missed Kunzite, that was all. A slow smile replaced his former grim expression as he thought about his long-haired angel...who was truly an angel...
Just then, Mamoru pushed open the doors to the bakery. Zoisite straightened up. Show time.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Mamoru pulled the hood of his raincoat down, though his black mane had managed to get soaked anyway. But at least he had a raincoat. The poor girl next to him was soaked to the bone...in a thin white t-shirt....oh, interesting...
Despite the tempting eye candy next to him, Mamoru turned his attention to the wonderful display case at the front of the bakery. Yes, that muffin was just calling his name... Most people would never have guessed Mr. Chiba, the daunting president of Chiba Industries of Advertising, had an incurable weakness for blueberry muffins, but...they were just so warm and delicious... He had to have one!
"One blueberry muffin, please."
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Author Notes:
(1) Okay....I really don't know if this is a real cathedral or not, but....HEE!
(2) In case some of you didn't catch it, this is Nurse Beryl and Dr. Zoisite...fun..
(3) *giggles madly* CIA! Mamoru works for the CIA!
Authors: Stara and Nataku
Rating: R (meaning all you little kids who want to read this you have been
warned!!)
Genre: Romance/Alternate Reality
Disclaimer: Okay, it won't be long since you've already read it. WE DON'T
OWN SAILOR MOON! Also, if you're a person who is offended by this for
religious reasons, please check the disclaimer and author notes on the first
chapter. Thanks! ^.^
Author Notes: Ah, so we've had some questions as well as some complaints.
Okay, here we will address them.
What is with Lucifer and Serenity? That's so stupid!: We know! This is just
set up TEMPORARILY for plot purposes!!! Don't worry about it.
Hello! Beryl is EVIL and so are the generals. Why the hell are they angels?
And what about the scouts being demons?: *laughs* Listen to what you just
said, don't you get it? We're doing that on PURPOSE. You see we made it so
that all the "good" people were in hell and all the "bad" people were in
heaven just to make it funny. See? See? HAHAHAHAHA!
Any more questions? They will be answered! Promise. *do a peace sign* Um,
also, none of you like us enough to put us on your fav. author's list?
*cries*
Chapter 3-The Trouble with Blueberry Muffins
Lucifer watched solemnly, his face devoid of emotion, as she walked up to
the platform. Yes, today she would leave for Earth...and he would probably
never see her again. He shook his head. Damn it.
Damn it all to Hell.
Standing on the platform she looked at her surroundings one more time,
trying to figure out whether or not she would miss them. No, she wouldn't
miss this place, only him. She shook her head and waited for the steam to
rise. The only way to get back to the surface was to wait for the pressure
of the steam to build up, that was eminating from a nearby smouldering pit
of lava, until it exploded and pushed the platform she was standing on to
the surface. Suddenly she flet a lightness under her feet and she gasped,
falling to her knees. Looking upwards she saw the looming ceiling covered
with stalactites looming ever closer. A world shattering scream pierced
through the air and then there was nothing but darkness.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Three months. She had been on this f*cking planet for three months and
already she was sick of it! Taking a long sip of her french vanilla
cappucino Rei glared at a petite, blonde who was walking down the sidewalk
in front of her. Stopping to buy a copy of the paper she quickly counted out
her money while trying to keep an eye of the girl at the same time. She
dropped a quarter and bent down to pick it up, before realizing that the
girl was gone. Shit! Why had she let Lucifer talk her into this? He WOULD
choose HER to watch over the "pure" one. Her eyes glazed over a minute as
her mind reeled with flashbacks. Wait, was someone calling her? She blinked.
"Miss? Miss? Hello, miss are you okay?" She shook her head, looking at the
poor vendor who had been trying to get her attention for a few minutes.
"Here's your change." she looked blankly at her open palm as he placed the
money in it and returned to other customers.
"Thank you." she mumbled quickly, grabbing her paper and cappucino before
hurrying off. She rolled her eyes as she heard a crash of thunder. Great,
rain. Where could that girl have gone?
Unbeknowest to her, someone else was looking for the blonde as well. Three
someone else's actually...
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Minako laughed, her eyes twinkling as she wrapped a few golden strands of
her hair around her finger absently. Yes, plan D was being executed
perfectly. She checked her watch, 7:20. She still had ten minutes to flirt
with the hot stud in front of her before she had to look around for Serenity
now known as Usagi.
"So, Minako, you like clubs?" the blonde in front of her asked curiously,
raising an eyebrow.
"I love clubs, Motoki." she smiled, looking up at him through her lashes. He
gulped and they exchanged phone numbers before she waved bye to him and
hurried off down the street.
Plan Date, a.k.a. Plan D, proves its worth once again!
She smiled widely, an extra bounce in her step as she hurried down the
streets of Tokyo, looking for her blonde charge. She saw a flash of
lightening, but shook it off. She was even in too good of a mood to
complain. She loved earth, and had been thrilled when Lucifer had asked her
to go. Getting treated and taken on dates was not something she was able to
do it Hell and also something she had not wanted to give up. Twenty-one was
way to young of an age to die, she thought sadly. She was glad Lucifer had
let her come back the same age as she had been when she had died, why waste
a single day of being back on Earth? She cursed as memories of her death
flooded back to her.
It had been a pretty cliche scenario, she thought coldly. Having been
irresponsible back then she and her three friends had been out partying with
their "goody" boyfriends that night. She smiled. They had nicknamed the four
guys the "goodies" because they wouldn't try a lot of the things the girls
were into. Drugs, cigarretes, liquor, she had done it all. The girls had
gotten insanely drunk that night, but insisted on driving home claiming that
they were okay.
The four men would never forgive themselves for listening to them.
They had driven home in seperate cars, the guys in one, the girls in
another. It was raining and the roads were slippery. Makoto hadn't been able
to keep control of the car. They swerved and wound up ramming into their
"goodies"'s car as well, all eight dying instantly. She shook her head,
tears coming to her eyes.
She had killed her goody, her Kunzite.
She wasn't about to throw this life away like she had the last one. Taking a
deep breath and wiping away the tears before they fell she hurried towards a
cornor, where she saw a young, blonde crossing the street.
Jackpot.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Wiping some sweat off her forehead, Makoto turned off her radio that had
been blaring at its highest volume. A workout was just what she had needed.
She stretched, feeling rejuvenated, and checked the clock to make sure she
had enough time to take a shower. It was 8:30, she still had an hour before
she had to clock in at work.
Applying for a job at Usagi's company had been a stroke of genius. She could
sleep in, work out, and still keep an eye on the girl for basically the
whole day. She hopped into the shower and let the warm water pound out all
the knots that long, hard days at work had built into her shoulders and
back.
Coming back to Earth had been so easy for her. When Lucifer asked her to go
her feelings were really undecided. She hadn't particularly loved Earth or
Hell or hated them either. Now, though, she finally starting to accomplish
things. Her first life had been filled mostly with foolishness and things
that she didn't want to stir up and remember. Back when she was 14 she had
these great ambitions about becoming a chef and owning her own bakery and
flower shop. She smiled in rememberance as she lathered the herbal shampoo
into her hair. How she had loved baking! But when she turned 16 she had
moved to a new area and had starting hanging out with this girl called
Minako. The girl had confidence and attracted many people to be her
followers, but she kept only three girls close to her. Makoto had been lucky
enough to be one of those girls.
"Lucky." she snorted in sarcasm as she turned off the shower and began to
dry off. They had still hung out, even after death. The four of them, always
the four of them. Yeah, maybe she had been lucky to get such great friends,
even if they had steered each other down the wrong path. Well, she sure as
hell was going to screw up her second chance at life, even if she did have
to follows Usagi around throughout most of it. Looking at the clock one more
time, her eyes widened. How could she have been in the shower that long?!
The clock read 9:10 as it began to pour out.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Ami tilted her head slightly, looking around the thick book she was reading,
at a girl who was entering a nearby bakery. She shook her head. Did that
girl EVER think about anything but food? Holding up her umbrella
protectively from the enslaught of raindrops she pushed her glasses up her
nose a little more and leaned back in her chair. The setup had been working
out for her quite nicely.
Each morning she woke up at exactly 4 a.m. and took a nice jog around the
nearby park. After her job she would take a shower, grab a sandwhich, and
head to the nearby library for a few hours and absorb herself in new
philosophy books that she had begun to take an interest in. Brining a couple
books with her, she would stop at a cornor cafe and wait for Usagi to arrive
around. Usagi was always a couple minutes late, but then again, she lived on
the other side of Tokyo. Ami easily followed her from there until she
entered her work building and Ami set off for her own job, across the
street.
Yes, things went like clockwork, just like she liked it.
Setting down her empty coffee mug, she grabbed her briefcase as she saw
Usagi emerge from the bakery looking a bit perturbed. She raised an eyebrow
at that but shook it off as she followed the girl on her morning routine. 'I
wonder how the girls are doing...' Woah! Where had THAT come from? She
sighed and shook her head. She had promised herself not to think about them
too much now that she was back on Earth. They had been so close, but they
had made some bad choices and she didn't want to relive past mistakes. She
did miss their late night gossip sessions though...She smiled at that. No
one would have thought that SHE of all people who miss their gossiping. Just
because she wore glasses, was smart, and unusually sensible didn't mean she
couldn't enjoy a gab fest.
Gods, she hated stereotypes.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Usagi threw her hands up in frustration as the portfolio holding her
sketches slid down the stairs, scattering her designs to the wind. Mumbling
none to friendly words she chased after the precious papers and sighed as
she stuffed them backing into the black, leather case. Some of them were
beyond repair.
Today was going to be one of those days.
Brushing off her chic, black, dress pants she cursed the day that she had
decided to become a fashion designer. Fashion designing wasn't something she
had chosen to do, it was just something that had come naturally to her. When
she sat down with pencil and paper the sketches just seemed to flow from her
hands into gorgeous masterpieces filled with vibrant colors and exotic
materials. In her first month designing her clothes had become a major hit
all over the world, and she already had built a major corporation with many
designers beneath her.
"Well, that's all over." she hissed as she quickly pushed her way through
the crowded streets of downtown Tokyo. After her first few months of being
here, Earth had already corrupted her innocent nature. She smiled at that.
Funny, how Earth seemed to have done a better job of that than Hell had.
Having been gone from Lucifer for a week had been murder for her system. She
didn't really miss HIM as much as she missed the sex. Gods, she missed the
sex. Being with him everynight for over two years had taken a toll on her
sexual appetite and she always found herself needing a new fling to settle
her cravings. It hadn't been hard though, guys were always more than willing
to go out with her and it only took a week or so before she would call them
to her room. After a few weeks she would get bored with her boytoys, and her
sketches would become paler and less interesting. So, she'd get a new one.
She'd only had four since coming back to Earth, so she wasn't varnishing her
reputation TOO much. She rolled her eyes. But this month had been pure and
utter Hell for her. She was taking some college classes on designing to help
make her styles more consistent, and to learn about what other countries
were into. This was all good and dandy, but it was cutting a major hole into
her leisure time. This meant: no sex.
Without that stress release her designs were slacking and becoming more and
more...blah. She was failing miserably on the runway and many of her normal
models were refusing jobs from her. The onyl place she WAS making money was
from the designers under her, who were selling clothes under her label for
up to five-hundred bucks a pop in department stores. She would have to make
up for it with her new line.
A car drove passed quickly and splashed water all over her clothes. She
closed her eyes and stood there, fuming as she wiped futily at her new
pants. Of COURSE karma couldn't even come up with a less cliche thing to do
to her!! How could it POSSIBLY get ANY worse? She covered her mouth after
saying it, knowing that as soon as she uttered it, something worse would
happen. Something did.
It began to rain.
"NO! WHY ME?!" She shrieked running down the sidewalk, her portfolio tucked
protectively beneath her shirt. Sanctuary, she needed sanctuary! And then
she saw it, a bakery! Throwing open the door to her new found haven she
sniffed the air in anticipation.
Muffins.
Yes, muffins would make her day better. But, she didn't want just ONE kind
of muffin, she wanted a blueberry muffin. Licking her lips in anticipation
she blushed as she noticed the not to few stares she was getting from men
who were standing around in the bakery. She brushed them off and took the
black portfolio out from it's place beneath her now soaked, white shirt
before walking up to the counter, next to a rather sexy dark-haired man.
What? She was sex deprived!
"One blueberry muffin please."
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Endymion stood on the bridge, refusing to look anyone in the eye. He crossed
his arms over his chest and glared at area where the sun would rise in just
a few minutes.
Beryl checked her watch again. "Two more minutes."
Both Zoisite and Endymion shot her dirty glares. Endymion was pissed at
everyone in general, and Zoisite was berating himself for getting conned into
this mission. Neither was very happy about their reassignment to Earth.
"Oh, cheer up, boys," Beryl said with a smile. "Earth wasn't that bad, now was
it?"
The saint rolled his eyes and turned to face the rays of sunlight peeking up
from the horizon. "So what exactly are we supposed to do again?" He shielded
his eyes from the now glarring light.
Beryl removed a pair of sunglasses and put them on. "It's easy. As soon as
the sun finishes rising, you jump off the dock and just let yourself fall.
We're positioned right over the Tokyo Cathedral*, so you should end up in that
general vicinity."
Zoisite gulped as he looked down. "W-we have to jump?"
Beryl nodded. "You won't get hurt or anything...in fact, that's the thing that
most people seem to have trouble with. Just let yourself go..." she indicated
this with a wave of her hand, causing the saint to sway on the dock before he
steadied himself. She continued, "We have these little portals all around the
Earth, in specific locations. It just so happens that the very center is Tokyo
itself. Quite convinient for you, eh, Endy?"
Endymion gave her the bird.
It was all poor Zoisite could do to keep Beryl, God's right hand man, from
throwing herself at Endymion's form, for angels possess strength and agility
far beyond that of normal humans, and could quite easily have thrown him off
the dock, causing Endymion to drift around through various time periods and
places. Which, as it was, didn't seem like such a bad idea to Zoisite now...
"Don't PROTECT me, you gay wussy!"
Zoisite released Beryl. "Knock him six ways from Sunday."
Beryl charged at Endymion, but accidentally knocked Zoisite as well, causing
the three of them to totter around a bit, frantically looking for something
to grab onto as the dock swayed unsteadily.
"Oh shi-"
But he never got a chance to finish.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Mamoru opened his eyes. Big mistake. The illumination from the surrounding
flurescant lights nearly blinded him, and he shut them tight. A few moments
later, he slowly opened them again, allowing his eyes to gradually get used
to the brightness.
His surroundings seemed...familiar. He couldn't quite put his finger on why,
or just how, but they stirred memories in him that were begining to surface.
A lot of memories. Different memories.
He sat up quickly, but this was another faux pas. Something was connected to
him, holding him back, pulling on his wrists. He looked down at the wires
around his wrist, monitoring his pulse. He lay back down again.
Wait. IV tubes? Bed? MAMORU?!
He threw a desparate glance around the room. Medical charts at the foot of his
bed, heart monitors to the side, and a pristine white curtain around it all.
Behind it he could hear the muffled sounds of phones, voices, and footsteps.
What the hell?
And why was he...Mamoru? He was Endymion...wasn't he?
Mam...Endymion searched his mind. He could still remember Heaven, the guardian
angels...the works. But he also had a separate, distinct memory. It was like
perusing through a stack of files of someone else's brain...except they weren't
there. He was Endymion, but he was also Mamoru Chibi, age 23, born in Tokyo,
Japan. And according to those "files"...this was Mamoru Chiba's body.
He scanned the memory bank a bit more. Fuzzy, choppy details of flashing lights,
screeching tires, and a Porche the size of a damn elephant coming at him swirled
through his mind. With this new information, Mamoru quickly did a mental check
of his body. Nothing hurt, everything seemed to be in perfect order.
Just then, a cheery nurse with red hair poked her head in the room. "You're awake!
Great. Let me just do a quick check up, and you should be good to go. You're an
extremely lucky young man, you know. Most people wouldn't have survived being hit
by that car- but you, you don't have a scratch on you!" She shook her head and
continued about her business.
Mamoru settled back down onto the bed and tried to take this all in. The last
thing he remembered was that psycho Beryl coming at him with a muderous glint in
her eye before falling into sort of a flashing light...
"OWW! DAMMIT!" Mamoru felt a jolting pain through his spine. He looked up to see
the nurse with a guilty sort of hidden smile on her face and her finger resting
on a button on the wall. "Oh, I'm sorry! I probably should have warned you about
that before I raised the bed, shouldn't I?"
He rubbed his back and scowled at her. She didn't seem that contrite.
One of the doctors entered then. He glanced at his clipboard. "Chiba, Mamoru,
correct? How are you feeling today?"
Mamoru crossed his arms and folded them over his chest and didn't say anything.
"Fine, fine, I see," the doctored chuckled to himself as he scribbled something
down. "Well, Mr. Chiba, your test results show nothing's broken. You seem to be
in fairly good shape. If you don't have any objections, well...we can release you
before the day's out." He tucked a strand of his unusually long hair behind his
ear. "In the meantime, just concentrate on resting up a bit. That's your mission."
The doctor leaned against the wall, hitting a certain button with his shoulder.
"AHH!" Mamoru yelled again as the hospital bed began to fold up on him. The doctor
looked at his shoulder and grinned sheepishly.
"Oops...heh heh...sorry about that....Nurse? Will you.."
"Yes, doctor?"
"..accompany me to lunch in the cafeteria?"
"Why of course," she said cheerfully, and the two of them exchanged secret high
fives and left Mamoru to deal with the effects of the fold-up bed, which
threatened to take the life that the car had not.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
"M-r. Chiba? I-it's your breaktime. Mr. Chiba? Financial reports cannot be
that interesting..."
Mamoru looked up from his game of Minesweeper. Oh? They thought he was working
again? Oh well. Might as well play along. He adjusted his glasses a bit and
closed the the game window, and folded his hands carefully in front of him.
"Break time?" he asked slowly, a frightening calmness in his voice.
"Yes sir," the secretary said, her voice begining to fail her. Oh God, now
her boss was angry again...
"Excuse me, Miss Naru. At Chiba Industries for Advertising, we all try to work
as a team, so that we can give our customers the best quality possible for
their products. And in order to work as a functional and happy team, we all have
to do our fair share of work. That means we cannot waste time dilly-dallying
around on breaks all the time. Is that clear?"
The poor girl's knees were shaking now. "Yes sir. So sorry, sir." With that, she
dashed around the corner back to her desk, for fear that Mr. Chiba would think
her not a team worker.
Mamoru chuckled to himself. Yes, a man did have to keep himself amused in this
world, and keeping his employees on their toes was a wonderful distraction.
Not that there weren't enough "distractions" in life.
"For a nervous little mouse of a girl, she does wear an awfully short skirt.."
he allowed, an evil grin begining to spread across his face as devilish thoughts
formed in his mind on just where he would like to see that skirt- probably
somewhere bunched up in the corner of his room.
Oh, wasn't it breaktime?
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Zoisite leaned against the wall on the corner of a cafe, his eyes intently watching the bakery across the street. It had begun to drizzle slightly, and when it began to pour, he moved into the shelter of a covered walkway. Rain bothered him. It carried too many memories. Memories he wanted to forget, but couldn't. Ami...the girls...the car and the smash of metal...
He shook his head. Don't remember that. Remember something else. Ami liked rainy days, he couldn't help but recall. She liked to find a warm couch and read a thick book. He narrowed his eyes. Ami liked a lot of things. Some of them Zoisite didn't agree with. And somethings he would never forgive himself for letting her do...
He snapped to attention. Across the street, in front of the bakery, he could have sworn that he saw a flash of silvery green behind a yellow raincoat. Zoisite shook his head. He just missed Kunzite, that was all. A slow smile replaced his former grim expression as he thought about his long-haired angel...who was truly an angel...
Just then, Mamoru pushed open the doors to the bakery. Zoisite straightened up. Show time.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Mamoru pulled the hood of his raincoat down, though his black mane had managed to get soaked anyway. But at least he had a raincoat. The poor girl next to him was soaked to the bone...in a thin white t-shirt....oh, interesting...
Despite the tempting eye candy next to him, Mamoru turned his attention to the wonderful display case at the front of the bakery. Yes, that muffin was just calling his name... Most people would never have guessed Mr. Chiba, the daunting president of Chiba Industries of Advertising, had an incurable weakness for blueberry muffins, but...they were just so warm and delicious... He had to have one!
"One blueberry muffin, please."
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Author Notes:
(1) Okay....I really don't know if this is a real cathedral or not, but....HEE!
(2) In case some of you didn't catch it, this is Nurse Beryl and Dr. Zoisite...fun..
(3) *giggles madly* CIA! Mamoru works for the CIA!