THE PERSON I LOOK UP TO

Chapter 7: "Healing Time"
A Neo-Sailor Moon fanfic

By Bill K.

Sailor Moon sat against a tree, watching the members of Shinrin's clan busy themselves with work or play. She observed that they were a very close people, almost like an extended family. That was good. They worked well in this forest and that was good, too. The entire place seemed idyllic, so pleasant and simple and quiet.

"And absolutely boring," Sailor Moon thought. "Man, I miss civilization! All these people do is work and play and sleep in trees! There's no music! There's no holo-vid! And the fashions are so totally Flintstones! Helios, if you can hear me, save me! I'm dying here!"

Just then she noticed a girl looking at her. The girl was about ten, with the same deep tan, shaggy white blonde hair and animal skin clothes as everybody else in the clan. She had a pleasant face with large amber eyes that seemed enthralled with her.

Much the way Shoko had been.

"Hi," Sailor Moon said, smiling sweetly. Instantly the girl was won over by the innate charm of the Princess and edged closer. The edges of her mouth curled up. "Who are you?"

"I am Lada," the girl replied. Though still a child, she had a voice sweet as sugar and as much innate charm as Usa. "You are the girl."

"'The' girl?" Sailor Moon asked.

"The one that Shoko spoke of."

Sailor Moon grew curious. "Did you know Shoko?"

"He was my brother," Lada replied sadly.

"Oh, I'm sorry," Sailor Moon said quickly.

"What is 'sorry'?" Lada asked.

"Well, I reminded you of something sad," Sailor Moon explained, "and I didn't mean to do that. It's my way of trying to make up for doing that."

"Sorry," Lada repeated, nodding as she understood. "My brother was quite taken with you. I can see why. How did your hair come to be that color?"

"Accident of birth," Sailor Moon shrugged.

"Shoko was very impressed with you. Why did you not like him back?"

Sailor Moon looked down. "Your brother was a nice boy - - but I like another boy."

Lada looked down, disappointed.

"How are you and your family getting along," Sailor Moon ventured cautiously, "now that Shoko is gone?"

"It's hard," Lada said, choking up. Instantly Sailor Moon gathered her in and hugged her. "My parents are so sad. The Queen says that we must be strong and continue on without him - - but it's hard." Lada paused, letting a wave of emotion pass. "My brother and I would fight. He was stronger than I was and would always take advantage. And we would argue always. But he would always be there if I needed a skill he had or a boost up into the trees during a Ceelot attack. I miss him. I-I have no one to argue with now." She looked up at Sailor Moon. "Why did he have to die?"

Sailor Moon looked helplessly at her. "I don't know. They say accidents happen, but it's not much comfort."

"It was no accident."

The girl was certain. Sailor Moon stared curiously.

"Shoko would not go willingly to the great river," Lada said. "Shoko was wary of the Torgus and gave them much respect and distance. He believed the words of Sailor Hayashi - - the queen - - when she said the Torgus were not to be trusted. And he knew the current of the great river and would not venture near it willingly."

"Someone dragged him there?" Sailor Moon asked.

"Or tricked him," Lada replied. "Or chased him. Why? Why would anyone want my brother dead?"

Suddenly a scream pierced the tranquility of the forest. It was an unearthly scream, animal-like and guttural, but a sound hinting of great pain and rage. Instantly Sailor Moon reacted to it, pushing to her feet at she turned toward the origin of the sound. Moments later a second scream, this one human.

A frightened youth of eight stood rooted to the ground, frozen in fear. Bearing down on him from out of the dense forest was an enraged animal. It was roughly four feet high with a shaggy white coat, cloven hooves and rolled horns. Save for the beast's estimated weight of close to six hundred pounds and the set of pointed razor-sharp teeth in its mouth, the creature resembled a huge goat. It bellowed again, sounding deathly sick and deadly dangerous.

"A Ceelot!" shrieked Lada. Quickly the girl scampered up the tree to safety, then turned back to Sailor Moon. "Climb! It's the only safe place!"

Instead, Sailor Moon ran forward, toward the tragedy in the making. The latest bellow had broken the spell of fear on the boy. He turned and ran from the beast, but he was too late. The Ceelot was just two paces from him and closing fast. Sailor Moon's hand went to her tiara. But before she could invoke the power phrase, another person whizzed past her.

It was Danro.

The Ceelot knocked the boy down and in one motion plunged its teeth into the flesh of his thigh. The boy howled in agony and Danro let fly with a leaf. But this was no ordinary leaf. In what seemed like deja vu to Sailor Moon, the leaf shot through the air like a projectile and buried itself stem first in the beast's shoulder. It released the boy and bellowed its pain and rage to the sky. Its hooves flailed out before it blindly. The beast seemed in the grip of a disorienting spell and, while still a menace, suddenly possessed less ferocity to its aura.

Danro launched himself at the Ceelot and tackled the weighty beast, sending them both rolling away from the downed youth. Before Sailor Moon had moved two paces, Danro was up, his muscular arms wrapped around the neck of the Ceelot. Teeth gritted, Danro planted his feet on the ground and twisted the beast's neck. The Ceelot roared out an inhuman protest, its hooves flailing in the air trying to find purchase and break free. Muscles bunched in Danro's bare back as he kept on the pressure. The beast bellowed one last time. Then something snapped within it and the beast sagged limp in Danro's grasp. Only then did he relax and let it fall from his hands.

Relieved that the immediate threat was over, Sailor Moon ran over to the fallen child. Blood was pouring from the wound in his thigh and the boy bellowed out his agony. Pushing down her own nausea at the sight of the wound, Sailor Moon pulled the decorative pink ribbon off her skirt. Using it as a tourniquet, she quickly wrapped the wound and tied it off, the pink ribbon stained red with the boy's blood.

"It's a bad wound," Danro said, peering over her shoulder as Sailor Moon worked. "The Ceelot normally do not attack so boldly. But when one is stung by the poisoned barbs of the Neketah flower, they are driven mad and will attack anything. Few survive a Ceelot attack."

"Well he's going to be one of them," Sailor Moon replied resolutely.

She paused for a moment, reaching out with her mind to summon her mother. The girl was confident that her mother's heightened perception would sense the summons. Then she produced the Crescent Moon Wand.

"Moon Healing Escalation!" she said, the wand circling over the boy.

Pink particles poured from the wand, covering the suffering boy with their radiant glow. As the particles coated him, the boy's suffering began to subside and he started to rest more comfortably. Sailor Moon kept pouring out her power, even as she kept the tourniquet pressure tight.

"Are you healing him?" Danro asked in amazement.

"No," Sailor Moon replied softly, trying to maintain her concentration. "I can't heal him physically. I don't have that kind of power. But I can ease his pain and keep him alive until Mom gets here."

"This is a great gift you possess," Danro remarked.

"Just comes with being Sailor Moon," the girl shrugged modestly.

Though it seemed like an eternity to young Sailor Moon, Serenity and Shinrin appeared moments later. Serenity recoiled in horror at the sight of the wound, while Shinrin pressed in closer to observe.

"A Ceelot?" she asked Danro. Her mate nodded solemnly. "Does his family know yet? They should be with him in his final time."

"He's not going to die!" snapped Sailor Moon.

"Your concern for him does you great honor," Shinrin told her. "But few survive a Ceelot attack, and none who have lost so much blood."

"Perhaps that was true before, Shinrin," Serenity said. Shinrin and Danro glanced up at her and found Serenity glowing silver. "But not now. Let me show you something that is now within your power to affect."

Serenity knelt down between Danro and Shinrin. Her hands reached out and hovered over the wound, while Sailor Moon pulled back to give her space. The glow continued to grow brighter until it was impossible to look at directly. After flaring, the silver glow dissipated. Serenity leaned back on her heels, expelled a sigh of fatigue and put her hand to her temple.

"Serenity, are you all right?" Shinrin asked.

"Yes," sighed the queen. "It's just a little draining."

Wordlessly, the pair and the on-lookers who had gathered looked down at the boy's wound. Sailor Moon pulled away the tourniquet. The bleeding was stopped. All that was left was a faint scar on the skin. Shinrin looked back at Serenity.

"Serenity," she whispered in awe.

"I can show you how to do it," Serenity smiled modestly.

And Sailor Moon looked on from a few feet away with silent pride.


Hotaru, Jun-Jun and Cere-Cere sat at a table in the Asteroids' quarters. Their personal education computer terminals were plugged in so each girl could share the tutorial. They were working on their history at the moment because Sensei Aino-sama was threatening them with a test on the twenty-fifth century at any moment. However, things weren't going as well as hoped.

"OK, who proposed the unification agreement between the thirty-five ethnic regions of North America?" Jun-Jun asked.

Hotaru's brow furrowed. She should know this.

"Prince Jackson," grumbled Cere-Cere, allowing her head to sag to the table from its perch on her right hand.

"Prince Jackson wasn't even alive in the twenty-fifth century!" Jun-Jun scolded her.

"So? Neither was I! So why should I have to know this stuff?" Cere-Cere scowled.

"Now you're sounding like Ves," Jun-Jun sneered.

"Wash your mouth out!" Cere-Cere huffed.

"Any good news on the Ves/Palla-Palla front?" Hotaru ventured.

"No, they're still not talking to each other," Jun-Jun sighed. "And it's really getting old."

"Well, what do you expect? Ves is so damn stubborn! She was in the wrong. She hurt Palla-Palla's feelings. She should apologize."

"They were both wrong."

"Ves was MORE wrong."

"Who's a moron?" growled Ves-Ves. She entered the room, crossed over to a large chair and flung herself into it. Cere-Cere was about to respond, but a look from Jun-Jun silenced her. Instead she merely huffed in frustration.

"Need some help studying for the make up exam?" Hotaru offered.

Ves-Ves looked like she was about to refuse. Then she stopped, seemingly torn.

"It's no trouble," Hotaru prodded.

"No, I can do it. You've got your own studying to do anyway," Ves-Ves shrugged.

"Oh, would you just stop being such a macho jerk and get over here!" Cere-Cere fumed. "Honestly, I think you'd shoot your own foot off just to prove how tough you were!"

"Are you this pleasant with Gallan?" Ves-Ves cracked - - as she wandered over to the table. "And if you are, why does he like you?"

"At least I HAVE a boyfriend," sniffed Cere-Cere.

Just then Palla-Palla entered the room. Everyone could feel the tension between her and Ves-Ves. They all wanted to say something to try to mollify the situation, but none of them had enough confidence that they wouldn't accidently say the wrong thing and make things worse. But to everyone's surprise, Palla-Palla walked right up to the table and faced Ves-Ves directly.

For her part, Ves-Ves looked down. Her mouth was hard and she seemed to be holding herself back, unwilling to say or even look at her sister lest she lose control and give her mighty rage a way out. Palla-Palla seemed to want to speak, but though she towered above the seated girl, her nerve was clearly faltering. Cere-Cere looked at her almost tearfully, while Jun-Jun struggled to think of some way to rectify the situation and failed. Finally Palla-Palla summoned all of her courage and forced the words from her.

"Ves-Ves," the young blue-haired girl squeaked. "Palla-Palla is sorry if she hurt you. She only wanted you to try your best - - so you could be smart - - because Palla-Palla can't. She didn't know she was hurting you. She's not too bright. But Miss Makoto-Ma'am explained it to her and she understands now. Palla-Palla's," and her voice caught with emotion, "Palla-Palla's very, very sorry."

Jun-Jun, Cere-Cere and Hotaru looked to Ves-Ves. The girl still looked down. Her cheeks were flushed and the girl was openly struggling with her emotions. And Palla-Palla patiently, innocently waited. Finally Jun-Jun nudged her sister under the table. Ves-Ves glanced at the girl angrily, but Jun-Jun only glared back. Returning her gaze to the floor, Ves-Ves seemed to soften - - ever so slightly.

"OK," Ves-Ves struggled to whisper. "Anyway, you didn't hurt me that bad. I've had worse." Her jaw clenched. "How about - - how about we just forget it ever happened - - OK?"

"OK," Palla-Palla repeated softly.

But there was still a gulf. Palla-Palla knew it, but she was helpless to know what to do to bridge it. Ves-Ves knew as well and in that moment of lucidity, she had to decide what was more important to her: her relationship with Palla-Palla or her pride.

"Um," Ves-Ves began, "S-Sensei Mizuno-sama, she's going to give me a make up test, you know?" Palla-Palla nodded timidly. Ves-Ves gave her the merest hint of a wary smile. "You want to help me study for it?"

A huge smile broke out across Palla-Palla's face. With eyes wide and watery, she nodded enthusiastically. Grinning - - almost gratefully, though Ves-Ves would deny it - - Ves-Ves patted the spot next to her and Palla-Palla scampered to occupy it.


Off by themselves in a small clearing, Serenity and Shinrin sat by the jagged stump of a rotted and felled tree. Shinrin's eyes were closed. The woman looked inward, communing with her Emerald Crystal, speaking once more with the power that coiled within it and sought to do her will, provided she had the strength of soul to amplify. Serenity looked on, ready to catch her should she misstep, watching over her as she communicated with the jewel within her.

"What do I do now, Serenity?" Shinrin asked. As brave and as confident as she always sounded, Shinrin now had the tiniest hairline crack of doubt plaguing her. It was a doubt Serenity knew only too well.

"What do you want to do, Shinrin?" Serenity asked.

"The tree," she whispered. "It was a hearty tree for many years, bearing sweet fruit and safety for us all and sowing many seeds. I communed often with its spirit essence and took comfort in its strong boughs. I-I wish it to live again, Serenity."

"You wish to restore a life that has passed?" Serenity said. "That is something that is beyond even us, unless you are willing to make the ultimate sacrifice. And that would make me very sad."

"Then," Shinrin continued, "may I recreate this great and noble tree? Sow one more seedling from it, even thought seeds no longer grow from it?"

"Do you want it badly enough?"

Shinrin nodded, her eyes still closed.

"Then picture it in your mind," Serenity instructed, "open your heart and let the energy of your crystal flow from you."

Shinrin did as she was instructed. An emerald glow formed around her and grew in intensity. From some distance away, members of the clan turned and looked at the glow their queen was emitting. It continued to grow until it became so bright and intense that casual observers had to turn and look away. The entire forest was bathed in an emerald light for moments - - then it died away.

Her eyes opened slowly. Shinrin looked down. Instantly her hands went to her mouth as her eyes widened in surprise. Before her in the ground, in the shadow of the old stump, was a seedling eight inches high.

"It," Shinrin gasped softly, "it's a miracle! Serenity, did I do that?"

"Yes you did," smiled Serenity. "And quite well."

"Oh! Oh, Serenity, my friend! To create life where there was none - - what wondrous power we have! Oh, bless the Mother Forest for giving it to me! And bless her for sending you to me, so I may learn to use it for her greater good! Oh, thank you for all you have done for me!"

"It feels good, doesn't it?" Serenity grinned. "Someday this seedling will be a strong tree helping to protect and nourish your clan, and it's all because of you. It's a wonderful feeling to do for people, to use your power to help others."

"It is," Shinrin nodded, giddy with the moment. "It makes me want to do more! Such power can be a blessing to my people - - not just of my clan, but of the world!"

Serenity got up, then extended a hand to Shinrin. After she gained her feet, Shinrin brushed off her fur dress.

"It's a worthy ideal to aspire to," Serenity began cautiously, "but you must be careful not to do too much. I've learned over the centuries that while the charity of assisting those in need is a noble thing, you must be careful not to do too much for them and rob them of their ability and desire to succeed on their own. Protect them; care for them; but don't make them dependant upon you - - for if something would happen to you, where would they be then?"

Shinrin nodded. "You are wise in that. Our people have always been taught to be strong. The Mother Forest only protects us to a point. From that point, we must live or die on our own strength. I will heed your advice."

"Good," Serenity smiled. "If only my daughter minded me as well as you do."

"She is young," Shinrin told her friend. "The young feel the need surging within them to prove their worth and demonstrate that they no longer need the protection of the parents. They are conflicted with the desire to stay and the need to leave. Understand this and you will understand her."

"And how many children have you had?" Serenity asked.

"None," Shinrin replied, flushing slightly. Her eyes seemed to instinctively seek out and find Danro, off in the distance. "Yet."

Serenity followed her friend's gaze and smiled knowingly.

"But that must wait," Shinrin proclaimed resolutely. "I have a duty - - a calling. The birth of this wondrous power within me is a gift from the Mother Forest, but it is not a gift without obligation. I must use this power to bring harmony and enlightenment to all who reside on Kinotai."

Those words and Shinrin's tone disturbed Serenity. "Shinrin," she began.

"And you have shown me how to accomplish this, my friend," Shinrin continued happily. "Feel pride."

And off she sprinted toward her love, Danro, leaving Serenity with an uneasy feeling.

Continued in Chapter 8