THE PERSON I LOOK UP TO

Chapter 2: "The Land Of Perpetual Forest"
A Neo-Sailor Moon fanfic

By Bill K.

"Why me?" Usa gasped incredulously.

"Why not you?" Queen Serenity replied. She was mildly perplexed by her daughter's attitude. "Usa, I thought you'd love the opportunity." The pair sat in the throne room as they talked. The other senshi had vacated. Now only Endymion and Luna remained, watching the proceedings with fascination.

"Why would you pick me to be your bodyguard?" sputtered Usa. "What about Pop?"

"Your father has to stay here," the queen explained. "One of us has to stay with the kingdom."

"Well what about Aunt Makoto? We both know she'll put someone through a brick wall if they so much as look funny at you."

"Dear, don't exaggerate. Mako-chan isn't - - right for this."

"Well wouldn't Aunt Rei's psychic stuff be more useful?"

"Not necessarily."

"Aunt Ami is smarter . . ."

"And would be distracted by observing an alien race."

"Aunt Minako's more experienced."

"Usa, it's just as important for the queen's escort to make a favorable impression as it is the queen. We'll be going into a strange world with strange customs and a possible mistrust of outsiders. My escort needs to be charming and trustworthy."

Usa digested this.

"So you picked me because people think I'm cute?" she asked.

"Honey, why are you so reluctant to accept this? I trust you to do a good job."

"Yeah, right."

"I do, you little brat!"

"Handing me some ceremonial job to make me look good? Stop spoon-feeding me, Mom! Either I can be Sailor Moon or I can't!"

"You are the most ungrateful child I have ever known!" fumed the queen. "Just forget about it if it's such an imposition on you!"

"Oh now we get down to the truth! Now you think I can't do it!"

"You don't even want to do it!" The queen slumped back into her chair, her arms folded over her chest and her shoulders hunched. "Do whatever you want to do."

"Oh, right, like I've got a choice! I'll be ready to go in fifteen," and she stormed out of the room. Endymion sat in his chair, stunned and confused.

"Once again a dazzling display of parental skills, Your Majesty," Luna sneered. "You must tell me your secret."

"Oh, shut up Luna," scowled the queen.

Out in the hall, Usa found Hotaru waiting for her. The girl quickly fell in step with her best friend.

"So are you going?" Hotaru asked.

"Like I've got a choice," the pink-tressed princess sighed. "I'm sorry you can't go along."

"It's all right," Hotaru shrugged modestly. "You royal folks have to do some things on your own sometimes."

"Knock it off."

"Are you excited?"

"Scared mostly."

"Why?"

Usa sighed. "Why does she even need me along? She can do anything. It'll be just one more chance to wither away in her shadow. I'll smile pretty when they look my way and be bored to tears the rest of the time."

"Well, maybe," Hotaru said softly. "But you could use it as a chance to see a new place. Maybe it's a planet full of beautiful men who love sexy young girls with pink hair."

"Maybe it's a planet full of gross-looking guys who can't talk to girls," Usa shot back. The pair enjoyed a giggle.

Then Usa sobered.

"Hotaru," she whispered, "what if there is trouble? What if I can't handle it? What if I mess up?"

"Just do your best," Hotaru replied.

"Hotaru, doing my best isn't good enough. I'm Queen Serenity's daughter. I have to be perfect every time."

"Usa, you put too much pressure on yourself. Just go and watch your mom work and have fun. Maybe you'll even pick up a pointer on being a better Sailor Moon - - or maybe you'll finally get a chance to step out of your mom's shadow." She flashed Usa a cute grin. "And now you get to skip the test on Vector Geometry tomorrow."

"There is that," Usa nodded in amusement. "We're leaving on the aero-pad in fifteen minutes. See me off?"

"Of course," Hotaru replied reassuringly.

Fifteen minutes later, Sailor Moon and Hotaru Tomoe walked onto the aero-pad atop the palace. Queen Serenity was there, along with King Endymion and the inner senshi. The senshi were gathered around their queen, doing their usual fretting and fussing.

"You're sure you know the way?" Rei asked.

"It's instinctual, Rei," Serenity responded. "Crystals of this much power stand out to the ascended like beacons."

"Got your carrots in case it's another race of rabbit people?" smirked Minako.

"How would you like to sing like a frog for a month?" Serenity glared.

"So do you know what kind of people you're going to meet?" Makoto asked.

"No," Serenity responded. "I'll just follow the energy signature. But I'm sure she's a very nice person."

"Try to remember as much as you can, please?" Ami requested. "And as specifically as you can?"

"I promise, Ami-chan, I'll take you on the next trip," Serenity smiled.

As Usa and Hotaru approached, Sailor Moon glanced back over her shoulder. Jun-Jun, Cere-Cere and Palla-Palla were by the door. Palla-Palla waved to her.

"Good luck, Princess!" Sailor Moon suddenly recognized in her head. She turned back to the Amazons. Palla-Palla beamed at her.

"Goody! You must have heard Palla-Palla, Princess! She tried to speak to you with her thoughts!" It was Palla-Palla's voice, but the girl's lips weren't moving. And Hotaru was right next to her, but wasn't reacting to the words.

"I," Usa began to think, then surrendered to her astonishment. "Um, thanks, Palla-Palla."

There was no response in her mind, but Palla-Palla looked like she got the message. She smiled even more broadly.

"What's up?" Hotaru asked, glancing curiously at Sailor Moon. "Second thoughts?"

"Um, well, yes and no," Sailor Moon answered.

"Right on time," smiled Serenity. "You're certainly better than I am in that regard." She looked her daughter over. "If you don't want to go, please tell me and I'll pick someone else."

"Hey, if you don't want me to go, just say so," scowled Sailor Moon.

The two glared at each other for a few moments. Then Endymion moved between them. He took Serenity's hand in one hand, Sailor Moon's in the other, and forced them to grasp.

"There," he said firmly. "Go."

"Clear your mind, Sailor Moon," Serenity said, her cheeks coloring. Sailor Moon, her own cheeks just as crimson, did as she was asked.

A silver light enveloped them, then grew so bright it forced everyone to look away. When it finally died and everyone looked back, Serenity and Sailor Moon were gone.

"Guide them safely, Kami of the skies," Rei whispered.

To Sailor Moon, the sensation was slightly akin to the effect she felt when she, Saturn and the Asteroid Senshi teleported. Only this was much faster and much more powerful. Sailor Moon always knew her mother dwarfed her in raw power. The Silver Crystal could generate exponentially more energy than her meager pink one could. The time lapse between leaving Earth and appearing on this new planet seemed like a single second.

"Well, that was an uneventful trip," commented Queen Serenity.

Sailor Moon looked around. They stood in an immense grove of trees that stretched as far as could be seen. The trees were thick and sturdy, as if they had been growing for a thousand years. To her estimation, the trunk of the nearest one was five feet in circumference and probably stood nearly three hundred feet in the air. Every tree was alive with thick clumps of green leaves arranged in ways so that golden beams of sunlight came through and lit up the ground in a kaleidoscope pattern of light and shadow. Concealed under the branches were thick clumps of blue and violet berries, clumps as thick as her head. The bark of the tree seemed soft from the look of it. At the feet of the huge trees were smaller bushes and a carpet of lush grasses. A fragrance wafted through the air that seemed hauntingly familiar, and yet Sailor Moon couldn't quite place it - - like several scents had blended together in an unfamiliar way.

"Is this where we're supposed to be?" Sailor Moon asked.

"Yes," Queen Serenity replied calmly. "I can feel the crystal. It's quite close."

"But - - there aren't any buildings."

"Maybe they don't use them," was all Serenity said.

"So where is everybody? There's no people, no animals, nothing."

Serenity seemed to concentrate on that for the first time.

"You're right," she said. "Perhaps they're trying to see if we're a threat."

With that, two figures descended from the trees and landed on the ground near Serenity and Sailor Moon. They were a man and a woman, human from their appearance. The woman's hair was snow white, as was the man's, and flowed down her back in a cascading mane that ended at her knees, while scruffy bangs dangled across her forehead. She was several inches taller than Serenity and Sailor Moon and her beautiful face looked at them with penetrating emerald eyes. She seemed youthful, perhaps twenty, and clearly made the outdoors her home. Her body was trim and fit, very athletic. It was clad only in a tight-fitting white sleeveless dress made of the pelt of a shaggy animal and held up by a single strap over the right shoulder, while a scalloped hem cut in a 'v' shape draped high on her powerful thighs. Completing her look were silver wristlets, sandals with long straps crisscrossing up her calves and a large jeweled pendant she wore around her neck.

Her companion stood inches taller than she did. He was youthful as well, perhaps in his early twenties, with an energetically handsome face and penetrating emerald eyes as well. His body was lean and sculpted from years of physical exertion, and his broad shoulders and smooth skin caught Sailor Moon's eye for more than a second. He wore only a white pelt loin cloth, the same type of sandals and wristlets as the woman, and a pendant that lacked only the jewels.

"Name yourselves and your business," the woman demanded. Her voice was strong and unafraid, colored only with suspicion. The man deferred to her, but was poised to defend her at the slightest provocation.

Sailor Moon crouched defensively, the Crescent Wand out and ready to use. However a gentle hand on her shoulder told her to relax.

"I am Queen Serenity of Earth," Serenity stated with her gentlest, most friendly manner. "This is my daughter, Sailor Moon. May I know who I am addressing?"

The man and woman looked them over for a moment.

"Until recently I was known as Sailor Hayashi of Kinotai," the woman said. She had a fearlessness about her that Sailor Moon found impressive. "I am now known as Queen Shinrin."

"And I was once Kamen Irori," the man added. He seemed supremely confident and that confidence gave him a calm serenity that, coupled with his physical stature, served to make him seem very attractive to young Sailor Moon. "I am now Danro Ganjou."

"And your new identities are connected with the recent ascension you both experienced, correct?" Serenity inquired.

"You are not of this place. How do you know this?" Shinrin asked.

"You have gained power and insight that dwarfs what you previously knew," Serenity continued. "You are perhaps uncertain as to how to control such power. I once experienced such an ascension and went through the same doubts and uncertainties. I offer you my experience and my advice, if you will have it, as another once guided me."

Shinrin and Danro Ganjou glanced at each other. Sailor Moon could tell there was a bond between them, much like the bond between her parents - - or between her and Helios.

"And what do you receive in return for this?" Danro Ganjou asked.

"A friend," Serenity replied with her warmest smile.

"And if I decline?" Shinrin asked.

"Then I will go," Serenity replied. "Should you change your mind or need me in the future, you need only reach out with your new power and call me. I will come. The choice is yours, Queen Shinrin."

The couple looked at each other again. To Sailor Moon, it almost seemed like they were intimate enough to know each other's thoughts. After a few moments, they turned back to her and her mother.

"I will - - confess that my new level of power baffles me from time to time," Shinrin admitted. "If you are willing to train me to become its master, I will accept you as my teacher."

"I'm glad," Serenity smiled warmly.

"Then I bid you welcome to the home forest of the ruling queen of Clan Hayashi," Shinrin said, her manner warming up to the visitors.

Immediately people began dropping from the trees all around them. Sailor Moon was startled at first and crouched defensively. Then she noticed that neither her mother nor Shinrin and Danro seemed startled or fearful. Cursing her ignorance, the young princess straightened up.

"My people bid you welcome as well," Shinrin smiled, amused by Sailor Moon's embarrassment.

In a moment's time there were thirty people surrounding them, each one gazing at the pair of strangers curiously. They seemed to come in all shapes, sizes, sexes and ages, yet they had some things in common. All the men wore mere loincloths and sandals, while all the females wore the same short-hemmed close fitting dresses. Some were pastels, mostly green or yellow with an occasional brown mixed in. Everyone's hair was long and scruffy, though the color varied from pure white to pale yellow, with an occasional brown mixed in.

And every person, from the youngest child of five to the oldest in his late forties was phenomenally fit. The thought occurred to Sailor Moon that perhaps these people lived in trees rather than buildings, like an entire race of ape men.

Then one lad in his late teens, with courage bred of curiosity, ventured forward. His hair was a pale yellow, his body lean and wiry and oh so smooth, and his face decorated with inquisitive coral eyes and a sensitive young mouth, ventured toward her. Sailor Moon didn't know what to make of him and froze. These people had shown no intent on attacking, so Sailor Moon didn't think it was wise to assume a defensive posture again. They were trying to make friends with these people.

But he just kept coming closer, so close that he made her nervous. What did he want?

The youth was near enough to touch her. He seemed mesmerized by her. The princess suddenly wished Helios was behind her. She swallowed nervously. Then he reached out to her.

And took the pink hair from one of her dangling gathers in his hand.

"Your hair," he gasped, oblivious to how uncomfortable he was making her. "It's color is so - - so strange."

"Yeah, I get that a lot," Sailor Moon said uneasily.

"Shoko," Danro Ganjou said with pronounced patience, "you are making our guest uncomfortable."

The youth's eyes widened in horror, as if realizing his mistake for the first time. He dropped Sailor Moon's hair like it was on fire and backed away several paces.

"F-Forgive me," he gasped, terror-stricken that he had offended them. "I was just - - I mean - - it's just that she's so - - um, I meant no offense!"

"No offense was taken, Shoko," Queen Serenity said sweetly. Her hands came to rest on Sailor Moon's shoulders. "And please don't feel bad. You're not the first boy who's been entranced by my daughter's beauty and you probably won't be the last."

Sailor Moon's cheeks burned with mortification.

"Your forgiving nature makes me happy, Queen Serenity," Shinrin said. "Your daughter is indeed quite exotic-looking. I suppose poor Shoko didn't stand a chance. Perhaps something might just develop from this visit besides our friendship?"

"My daughter's already spoken for," Serenity replied. "And please call me Serenity. I'm not a queen here."

"How fortunate for the mate you have chosen for your daughter," her counterpart replied. "And you must call me Shinrin, then. Do you wish food?"

"If it's not an imposition," beamed Serenity. "I've never seen the wisdom in turning down a meal."

"A wise queen you are, then," giggled Shinrin. She turned to the others. "Prepare food for our guests. We will dine before sunset."

The crowd immediately broke up to make preparations. Shinrin and Serenity began to talk about Shinrin's newly borne power while Danro hovered protectively behind her. Sailor Moon began to accompany them, then turned and looked back. Shoko was hurrying off to fulfill his obligations in dinner preparations. She looked him over again.

He was cute. Of course she loved Helios and would always love him. There wasn't any question about that. But now that there was a safe distance between them, she realized that Shoko was definitely cute- - forbidden fantasy cute.

With a lustful sigh, the pink-haired senshi returned to her mother's side.

Continued in Chapter 3