4 - A Date with Destiny?
"Argh I'm sooo nervous! I shouldn't be this nervous, should I? I mean, it's only a friendly trip to the cinema, right? With the hottest guy I've ever seen! Argh!" Alexia was a wreck, she was pacing around her room in a dressing gown, her usually plaited hair fell down her back in a wavy mass. Mina smiled from her position on the desk chair.
"Alexia you're rambling, now take a deep breath and calm down." the panicked girl sat down on her bed and gasped for air. Estrella shook her head.
"She's been like this all day. I went to meet her from school and Rei told me she was late and she failed an English test." Artemis sighed.
"All this fuss for nothing, if she doesn't get dressed soon she'll be late!" Alexia leapt up.
"Argh! I haven't dressed, done my hair, or anything!" Mina laughed.
"Alexia calm down! I swear I've never seen you this agitated since ever! I know Matthias is gorgeous, but like you said it's only a friendly date…"
"Don't say that word!" Alexia screamed, then leant into her friend's face. "This. Is. Not. A. Date!" Mina simply laughed again.
"Ahhh, poor Alexia doesn't want to admit that Matthias has the world's biggest crush on her!" Alexia's face turned red as she pulled on a white ribbed turtle neck sweater and a red skirt which she had borrowed from Rei.
"He doesn't have a crush on me! Now are you going to help with my hair?"
"Yes, if you can sit still for a few seconds." Alexia stuck her tongue out at the blonde and sat down on the floor in front of her. Mina grabbed a brush and gently began to run it through the Charonian's soft dark hair. Suddenly Alexia screamed again. "What now?"
"What if there's another attack tonight?!" she squeaked. Mina looked towards the cats inquisitively.
"Errrm…good point." Estrella stood up.
"Don't sweat it, Alexia, tonight's your night off – right, Artemis?"
"Right," the white cat smiled. "I'll tell Luna, we'll only get in touch if it's really necessary, alright?"
"I feel awful about it…but thanks." Alexia smiled gratefully.
x x x x x
Alexia yawned and looked at her watch furtively as she didn't want to let Matthias know that she was bored. Not entirely sure what any of these 'movie' things were about, since there was no such things where he was from, he had just picked a title at random…and it turned out to be the lamest film ever. I wonder why people enjoy coming to these places so much if all they do is sit in silence in the dark and watch such nonsense? He wondered in confusion. Alexia looked up at him and noticed a look of disinterest on his face. He noticed her glances from the corner of his eye and turned to look at her. He smiled as their eyes met.
"This is atrocious! Shall we go?" Alexia breathed a sigh of relief.
"That's the best thing you've suggested all night!" she leapt up.
"Hey sit still down there!" A voice called from behind.
"Sorry!" Alexia hissed as the pair left. "So, where shall we go?" she asked the handsome youth as they walked out of the cinema.
"Well as it's such a beautiful night…why don't we go for a walk in the park?" he smiled down at her again, the moonlight making his silver-grey eyes look even more attractive.
"Sounds perfect." she smiled back dreamily as he took her arm and lead her away.
"See? They look great together!" Mina whispered from nearby.
"The perfect match." Serena sighed romantically. "Just like me and Darien."
"Ha yeah right, Serena." Lita teased. The blonde opened her mouth to protest. "Chill out, I was just teasing! It's a shame Amy couldn't come - this is way better than studying!"
"Uuuh guys, do you really think we should be doing this? If Luna finds out we were spying on Alexia instead of patrolling…and if Alexia found out, she'd be so angry!" Rei commented.
"Awww don't be such a worry-wart! Come on, they're getting away!" Mina exclaimed. The group of girls giggled and followed their friend.
Matthias and Alexia walked along in complete silence. Neither of them was sure what to say.
"So…Risolto is a strange surname." Matthias commented to break the ice. Alexia smiled.
"Yes, it's Italian. My father originated from there."
"Oh, does it have any meaning?"
"Yes, it actually means 'resolved'."
"Resolved…that suits you." Matthias sat down on a bench. "You looked so determined to get the lead role at the audition…" Alexia smiled.
"That's what everyone says." the girl joined him. "So how about you? Tell me more about your family."
"Well I live with my mother, step father and Crystal. My parents divorced two years ago and my mother remarried last year. I get on quite well with Crystal and my step father, he's a really friendly guy."
"How did he and your mother meet?"
"That's quite a funny story actually…my mother was a dancer when she was younger and…" he began.
"Look at them, so sweet!" Serena squeaked joyfully.
"They look like they're really getting on." Mina smiled.
"Yeah." Rei agreed.
"…And so Yosho, that's my step father's name, said 'That can't be right, if I recall correctly Megumi was an ugly girl!' and with that my mother threw a glass of red wine all over his new white shirt! She apologised later, naturally, and Yosho said 'You know I really like a woman with an attitude - how about a date?' mom said 'With the man who once thought I was ugly? How about Friday?'" Alexia giggled.
"At least it had a happy ending, do you ever wonder what would've happened if she hadn't apologised?" Matthias nodded.
"I'm just glad she did." silence reigned once more. "Soo…"
"So…are you ready for rehearsal tomorrow?"
"As ready as I'll ever be - Ms. Yakamori can be a real slave driver!"
"Tell me about it! When I first joined the group the first thing she made me do was perform in front of everyone by myself! That could've been an embarrassing situation, don't you think?" Matthias laughed.
"No way, you're a brilliant dancer - I don't think I've seen anyone as good as you since…" he quickly stopped himself before saying 'since Princess Charon'.
"Since…?" Alexia urged.
"Since my mother. I've seen pictures and stuff - she looks so graceful in them."
"I'd like to see them one day, if that's alright."
"I'll…see what I can do." he noticed she was shivering. "You're cold. Here have my jacket." he quickly pulled it off and wrapped it around her shoulders.
"Awwwwww!!" the girls squealed from the bushes, causing Alexia to jump.
"What was that?" she asked.
"What was what?" Matthias looked confused. Alexia shook her head.
"I thought I heard voices, that's all." she looked at her watch and sighed sadly. "I better get going home Matthias, my parents will begin to worry…" Matthias nodded understandingly.
"I'll walk you back." he told her.
"Thanks a lot." she stood up and as she did Matthias's jacket fell from her shoulders to the ground. The couple both bent down to pick it up and as they did the youth's hand came to rest on Alexia's. Standing up, hands still entwined, their eyes met and Alexia felt butterflies in her stomach. The girls hidden in the bushes all took a deep breath in expectation as they stared at the pair who stood in the moonlight, unable to tear their eyes away from one another.
Finally Alexia cleared her throat and smiled bashfully.
"Thank you for a wonderful evening, Matthias."
"No, thank you, Alexia." the youth grinned back at her and they walked away, still holding hands.
"Awww…and just as things were getting interesting!" Mina exclaimed, feeling like she'd been robbed as the group stepped out of their hiding place.
"I seriously thought they were going to kiss!" Serena sulked.
"Come on, let's go, it's freezing out here." Rei responded, rubbing her hands together to keep them warm.
"Good idea." Mina agreed, shivering as they started to walk in the opposite direction to the couple.
x x x x x
"Lift your leg higher Alexia, it looks untidy - much better!" Ms. Yakamori praised the young dancer as she rehearsed with Matthias. The rest of the class looked on in awe as Alexia leapt gracefully into Matthias's arms. "Very good, just watch that leg Alexia. Matthias try to concentrate on your lifting - at one point I thought you were going to drop her! Anyway do your stretching exercises then you can go home. Ok, the girls who are the maids in waiting - let me see how you're getting on…"
"Good job, Alexia." Matthias grinned as they headed towards the dressing rooms after cooling down.
"You too, Matthias." she felt herself blushing fiercely as he looked at her. She couldn't think of anything to say for a moment as his gaze caused her mind to empty. "So…ummm…" she faltered. "I had a really great time last night, by the way."
"So did I, but I told you that already." the youth smiled. "I'm so sorry the film was bad, though."
"Hey, it wasn't that bad…" the words left Alexia's mouth before she really thought about them.
"Don't lie!" Matthias said, nudging her playfully. "You looked like you were going to fall asleep! Either that or walk out…"
"Well, we did walk out, didn't we?" Alexia's pale blue eyes shone merrily.
"Yeah…but I thought at one point you were going to leave without me!" the blonde exclaimed.
"You think that I'd really do that?!" Alexia exclaimed, feigning disbelief. The pair laughed, Alexia absent-mindedly placing her right hand on his left shoulder as they faced each other.
"Anyway I was wondering, do you think we could perhaps go out again sometime soon?" Matthias inquired as soon as their laughter died down. Alexia blinked her wide eyes, unable to believe her ears.
"O…of course! I'd love to!" she exclaimed.
"Good, because I really enjoy your company." her male companion told her, causing her to blush again.
"Hey, maybe we could invite Serena and Darien too, I think you and Darien would get along really well." she suggested.
"That sounds like a great idea, I really need to make some new friends around here." Matthias grinned.
"Cool, I'll ask them when I next see them. I'd better go and get changed now." she waved as she entered the girl's changing room.
"'Bye, Alexia." he responded. Pushing his hair back with his hands
he entered the male changing room nonchalantly.
"Hey, Matthias!" one of the other male dancers called over to him. "What's going on with you and Alexia? You looked real friendly out there!" Some of the others snorted and nudged each other knowingly. The boy known as Matthias to his fellow dancers turned sharply to glare at them, his grey eyes glittering dangerously.
"That is none of your business," he growled fiercely, definitely more like Caliban than his alter-ego. "And so if I were you I would keep my nose out." The dancers fell silent in an instant and went back to what they were doing before, not liking the threatening look in the youth's eyes one bit. Caliban looked at himself in the mirror, his eyes still narrowed.
I cannot allow myself to become distracted from the mission. He told himself firmly. However, it is hard not to be distracted by such a beauty…
"Here she comes!" Lita called as Alexia walked out of the dance school.
"She's with Matthias!!" Serena squealed excitedly.
"Hey you guys, what are you doing here?" Alexia grinned as she jogged up, Matthias close behind.
"We were bored, so we thought we'd come and meet you!" Mina smiled. "Rei's working, and Amy's studying as usual."
"Oh, right."
"Alexia, I have to go. It was nice to see you all again." Matthias smiled at the group then walked away. As soon as he was in the distance Mina grinned at her.
"So, how was class?" she inquired.
"Fine thanks." Alexia replied. "Oh and before I forget, Serena, I've got to ask you if you and Darien would like to go on a double…" she still couldn't bring herself to say the word 'date'.
"Double…?" Serena repeated inquiringly. "Double date?" she finally suggested. Alexia nodded and the blonde screamed excitedly and jumped up and down. "Yes, oh yes, oh yes!! As long as we don't end up spending the whole night in the freezing cold like yest-" she was cut off by Lita slamming a hand over her mouth.
"Sereeeenaaaaa…" she growled. Alexia's eyes narrowed in suspicion.
"What's last night got to do with any- wait a minute, did you guys…" her friends sweatdropped. "You did, didn't you? You spied on us!!" they could tell by her expression that she was unimpressed and very angry. "I knew I heard voices! Okay, how many of you were there?" Mina stepped forward with her head hung low.
"Myself, Serena, Lita and Rei." she murmured, her long blonde hair covering her face.
"Rei as well?! I thought she'd have more sense! Then again I thought better of all of you!" she spun around on her heel and stormed off.
"Alexia, please wait up!" Mina pleaded. "We just wanted to make sure everything went smoothly."
"Leave me alone!" she snapped. She really couldn't believe it - her friends had spied on her date! Wait - had she just said date? She shook her head and continued her walk home.
x x x x x
"You've been awfully quiet since last night," Nerissa remarked as Caliban played with the ship's computer. "How was your date with the wonderful Alexia?" the blonde youth sighed.
"It was perfect - she is perfect." Nerissa nodded solemnly. I just hope she's Charon, she thought to herself. Otherwise we have a rather large problem on our hands.
"Lucilius has been in touch, by the way," she spoke up again. "We are to try and capture the Scouts again-" she paused for a moment as a strange sensation ran up from the middle finger of her left hand right to her shoulder. On that finger was the silver ring that Florizel had given her, and at that moment it was vibrating slightly - a signal that she was wanted. "I'm going to see if I can find a good spot to strike. Why don't you go and choose a nice warrior for the job?" she concluded, casually placing her right hand over her left in order to stop the odd tickling sensation by pressing the jewel-button on the ring.
"Fine by me." Caliban muttered, getting out of his chair to go to a small room in the back. Nerissa teleported out as soon as he was preoccupied, and found who she had been contacted by in a small clearing nearby.
"Florizel." she greeted him, smiling. The man turned to face her and smiled back, his dark eyes sparkling in the sunlight which filtered through the surrounding trees.
"Ah, here you are, Nerissa," he responded in his deep and very pleasant voice. "I trust you are well?"
"Very much so; if not even better for seeing you," her green eyes softened as her smile broadened. "Anyhow, I am sure you are not here for small talk. So, what is our next step?" the man stepped closer to her and spoke in a quieter voice:
"I want you to follow this Alexia girl you were talking about, I want you to be certain that she is Sailor Charon."
"Very well, if it pleases you." she responded, nodding her head slightly.
"Very good," he placed his hand on her cheek, giving her an approving look. "I am very proud of you." he stated, looking deep into her eyes. "Farewell for now, Nerissa."
"Until we meet again." she murmured, feeling her face heat up slightly as he teleported away.
x x x x x
"Alexia you must calm down! Mina's very upset that you put the phone down on her!" Artemis exclaimed from the window ledge.
"No! She had no right to follow us around!" Alexia said back. She was still furious and refused to talk to any of her friends except Amy.
"Please, they were only making sure everything was alright. They were actually meant to be patrolling but when they saw you coming out of the cinema they couldn't help themselves!" Amy explained. She had come over earlier to try and see if she could smooth things over.
"It's no use Amy. She'll get over it soon, I'm sure." Estrella sighed. Suddenly a communicator bleeped.
"Quick, come to the park, there's a disturbance." Rei announced over it.
"I'm on my way…Alexia?" Amy looked at her hopefully.
"Sorry." Alexia sighed. "I can't." the blue-haired genius nodded sadly and ran out followed by Artemis.
"Alexia, you should be fighting!" Estrella scolded. "You shouldn't put some petty argument in front of the fate of the world!"
"Leave me alone Estrella." the girl muttered, resting her arms on the desk then her head on her arms. Estrella sighed with frustration and stalked out of the room to catch up with the others.
x x x x x
"Whispero! I call upon you." Caliban opened the Aathean bottle to release the creature then vanished. The warrior that emerged from the container was a tall pale yellow thing with 6 extremely long and bony arms and bright blue eyes. One pair of arms covered its mouth, whilst the other two pairs bared sharp, thin claws.
"There - look!" Rei yelled as she pointed at the monster. Nerissa watched the group from nearby.
"Hmmm…no Alexia, but still it looks like I have located the other Scouts." she murmured to herself, placing a finger to her lips in a thoughtful manner.
"Mercury Star Power - Make Up!"
"Mars Star Power - Make Up!"
"Jupiter Star Power - Make Up!"
"Venus Star Power - Make Up!"
"Moon Crystal Power - Make Up!" right before Nerissa's eyes the group transformed. She smiled contentedly.
"So, we have Mars, Venus, Jupiter, Mercury and Sailor Moon - but no Charon; perfect, my hypothesis still holds true."
"Scouts - attack!" Luna ordered. She turned to Estrella. "Where's Charon?"
"Not coming, she's still feeling bitter about last night." The smaller cat admitted nervously. Luna gave her an admonishing look, as if to tell the kitten she hadn't tried enough. "I'm sorry," Estrella continued quickly, in order to prove she had tried. "I know she's being a bit selfish."
"This is not like Alexia, she's usually so enthusiastic and a real team player." Luna muttered. "I think this Matthias is distracting her."
"Teenage girls – I'll never understand them." Artemis commented, shaking his head.
"Mars Fire - Ignite!" Mars attacked Whispero from behind as it was distracted by the cold mist that had been created by Sailor Mercury. All of a sudden the creature's bottom pair of arms stretched out behind it like elastic and grabbed Mars tightly, taking her by complete surprise. Despite the weak appearance of Whispero's arms their grip on the Scout was formidable. "Watch out guys!" she managed to call out as she struggled.
"Jupiter Thunderclap Zap!" Jupiter fired at it, but somehow the attack was deflected straight back at the Scout. "What's this? A force field?" she groaned after falling to her hands and knees.
"Venus Crescent Beam Smash!" Venus gained the monster's attention but unfortunately was grabbed by the other pair of arms.
"Help!" the blonde screamed as she and the half-unconscious Mars were lifted high into the air. Jupiter was still trying to get back to her feet and Mercury's attacks were simply being deflected by the force field Whispero had put up. Sailor Moon just froze, looking scared as all her friends were being beaten.
"You must do something Sailor Moon!" Mercury called to her. The leader's blue eyes widened as she realised her team mate was right.
"Moon Tiara Magic!" she snatched her tiara from her forehead and flung it with all her might at Whispero. With a flash of light it shattered the force field and hit the creature right in the stomach. The strength of the attack caused Whispero to immediately let go of Venus and Mars. Venus nimbly landed on her feet and, fortunately for the now totally comatose Mars, Jupiter had found her second wind and managed to catch the falling Scout before she hit the ground.
"Nice move, girlfriend!" Sailor V grinned, giving Sailor Moon the thumbs up.
"Mars, are you okay?" Mercury asked worriedly as the pale-faced girl came to.
"Yeah, I just needed some air." The raven-haired Scout murmured shakily. The girls were so distracted by their celebrations and concerns that none of them noticed as Whispero removed its hands from its mouth.
"Scouts, watch ou-" Artemis yelled, noticing the creature's action, however he was cut off as Whispero began to emit a piercing noise that cut through the Scouts' and cats' brains like a blunt knife. They all fell to the floor screaming and groaning, their hands covering their ears.
Little did they realise help was at hand…
"Oh no, please don't let me be too late!" Alexia gasped as she heard the screams. Not long after Estrella's departure the girl had agonised over her decision – how could she let something so stupid stand in the way of helping her friends? If something terrible were to happen to the other Scouts she'd never be able to forgive herself. With that realisation she'd dashed out of the house to where Rei had said the disturbance was. She pulled out her transformation pen and thrust it high into the air
"Charon Moon Power - Make Up!"
Nerissa, who had been watching the Scouts squirm with a serious expression on her face, heard the cry and turned just in time to see her theory proven. Alexia Risolto was indeed Sailor Charon.
"Just what I wanted to see." She murmured, a smile creeping onto her face.
Sailor Charon ran out from where she'd hidden to transform and saw the effect Whispero's high-pitched shrieking was having on her friends. Somehow managing to block out the hideous sound in order to save her friends she struck:
"Charon Psy-Wave!" the Scouts looked up as the sound was suddenly cut off.
"What the…?" Jupiter muttered as Whispero fell to his knees.
"Charon!" Sailor Moon exclaimed as she spotted the girl behind the weakened creature.
"You came!" Estrella cried out joyfully, feeling less of a failure. Sailor Charon smiled and shrugged.
"I couldn't've lived with myself if something had happened to you guys." She admitted, walking over to them. "And it looks like I arrived just in time!"
"You certainly did." Mercury smiled at her, and the green-haired Scout took a deep breath.
"Look, I was stupid, I'm so sorry for- agh!" her apology was cut short by Whispero, who had covered its mouth again and now held the Charonian Scout in its cruel grasp.
"Hey, that's cheating!" Sailor Moon exclaimed, her hands on her hips.
"Ummm…yes, but while you're shouting at it Charon's being crushed!" Mars yelled. "Celestial Fire-"
"Stop!" Mercury cried, halting the Martian before she could attack. "You're going to hit Charon – the creature's using her as a shield!" she was right – Whispero was holding Charon, whose head was lolling to one side, close to its body. Its blue eyes jeered the Scouts; but of course the girls weren't beaten yet.
"One…two…three – scatter!" Mercury called out, and the Scouts did as they were told.
"Hey ugly, over here!" Venus yelled, waving to Whispero from her position.
"No, here!" Jupiter joined in from where she was stood, directly opposite to the blonde. The pair continued to keep shouting to Whispero in turn in order to keep him distracted whilst the other three Scouts assembled behind it:
"Moon Tiara Magic!"
"Shine Aqua Illusion!"
"Mars Celestial Fire – Surround!" the three attacks combined just as they hit Whispero squarely in the back; and Charon was released at once.
"Now, Sailor Moon!" Venus yelled.
"Moon Sceptre Activation!" the Scout leader swung the Sceptre around her expertly before firing a powerful beam of energy at Whispero, who quickly shrivelled up and turned into a pile of dust.
"Sailor Charon!" Venus called out in concern, running to her friend. The others joined her swiftly, worried for their friend's welfare.
"I'm okay guys." She smiled weakly but reassuringly as she sat up. "And now I can finish what I was saying – I'm so sorry for being so petty."
"No, we're sorry." Sailor Venus hugged her.
"Apology accepted." Charon responded, smiling at her friends as they helped her to her feet.
"Group hug!" Sailor Moon announced, throwing her arms around Mercury and Jupiter. The others complied, laughing merrily as they did so. "Well, what a nice reunion." Nerissa appeared above them, her arms folded over her chest as she regarded them coolly.
"You again!" Sailor Moon exclaimed, annoyed that their moment of happiness had been interrupted. The orange-haired woman nodded.
"Yes, let me introduce myself." She floated down to stand in front of them. "My name is Nerissa and it is very nice to make your acquaintance."
"Can't say I feel the same." Jupiter muttered. "Anyway, enough with the small talk - what do you want?"
"All will be revealed soon enough, Sailor Jupiter. So, Scouts, until the next time we fight." Nerissa held her hand up to wave then vanished in a bright flash of light.
"What's going on? Why do bad guys always have to be so cryptic!" Venus muttered. Meanwhile Charon was stood in deep thought.
"I'm sure I've seen her somewhere before, there's something so familiar about her!"