(5) Don't you give up yet

"Tomorrow's St. Nicholas' Day. Have you already polished your shoes?" Hotaru sat on a bank on the school's ground and watched her best - and only - friend making a snowman. The little girl was wrapped in a warm blanket and her cheeks were slightly redden from the cold and from excitement.

"Polishing? Those?" Chibiusa showed her dirty boots and hopped over the snow to hold her right one into the air. "There's so much mud on the streets in November and now I can't polish them, because I need them everyday in the snow. Surely St. Nicholas knows that and gives me something nevertheless."

"In those stinking boots?"

"I got something every year. And hey! My boots are not stinking. Taru!" Chibiusa sulked but had to grin as the dark haired girl giggled softly. "We're nice girls, we'll get something." She said self-confident and put a carrot into the snowman's face. There were already some stones in there and the white fellow grinned at them in a mad way.

"That's a cool snowman." Hotaru clapped in her hands which sounded muffled, because she was wearing thick gloves.

"Hai. It is." Chibiusa bounced up and down happily, but her face fell as the nearby church tower started to toll. "Oh no, it's already three."

"Do you have to go?"

"Hai. I've got private lessons in math now, you know. Mummy Tsukino forces us to take them, because Usagi failed so miserably in her last test. As if I am as bad as that baka." Chibiusa looked crestfallen. It was obvious that she wanted to spend more time with her new friend than brooding over a complicate math task which she would never use again in her entire life!

"No problem. It was nice of you to visit me." Hotaru smiled and blushed surprised as Chibiusa hugged her lovingly.

"See ya tomorrow. The same time?"

"If there's no emergency in school and my father allows me…"

"It'll be great, see ya soon." Chibiusa glanced cursing at her watch and rushed away, slipping and stumbling through the snow. Hotaru gazed after her and giggled at the clumsy girl. Then she leaned back and closed her eyes, to enjoy the silence around, the peace. Those precious moments when she did not feel so ill.

"Did you know she meets Chibiusa?" Haruka's mouth was nothing but a thin line and she eyed Hotaru uncomfortably.

"Isn't that Usagi's sister or something like that?" wondered Michiru. They had found out that Usagi was Sailor Moon, although no one knew their identity, but they never quite understood the relation between the two girls. They looked a lot alike, if you forgot the hair colour, they even lived in the same house, but as they investigated Usagi's family, they found out that Tsukino-san only had one daughter, officially at least.

"She could be in real danger hanging out with Hime-chan." Haruka rubbed her tired eyes. Of course they did not find any sleep during the past night. They rather discussed their discovery, without coming to a real solution. Lessons did not help at all, they were only a nuisance and made them restless. Right after the last one was over they decided to visit Hotaru and to convince themselves that what they had seen the last night was true.

Hime-chan.

Michiru was sure that Haruka did not even notice her own words. It was clear, the young woman hoped that they suffered of hallucinations rather than facing a terrible future. Michiru would have walked into the next mental home smiling as long as she did not have to harm Hotaru. She sensed that Haruka felt the same.

"Why should she hurt the other girl? I mean…" Michiru's voice died away as she saw the small girl's body suddenly glowing in a red light. A blood right one. A shadow emerged from it, looked around and sneered the same way it had done last night. She had done. There was a whirl of wind and the next second there was only a hillock of snow left where the snowman had stood moments before. Both, Haruka and Michiru, heard the mad laughter before the shadow disappeared again inside Hotaru's body. The little girl jerked awake and her purple eyes grew wide as she saw the damage before her.

"What happened?" Haruka and Michiru heard Hotaru's confused stammer. They watched the small girl peeling out of her blanket and walking over to the destroyed snowman Chibiusa had built with so much love. "Who did this?" Tears rolled down pale cheeks and Hotaru started to cough. She went down next to the heap of snow and cried silently.

"It's dangerous." Haruka buried her hand in her jacket's pocket. "Now it's a only a snowman, the next time it can be a human, maybe even Chibiusa."

"No!" Michiru grabbed the blonde's arm and held her tight, prevented her from dragging her henshin and killing the small girl. "There must be another way!"

"We talked all night, Michiru, there's no other way." Haruka tried to free herself, but desperation lend the sea beauty unexpected power.

"I'll talk to Sailor Moon."

"She can't help us! No one can!" Haruka shook her head and Michiru saw tears sparkling in green eyes. "It's our mission to destroy Mistress 9, no matter what!"

"Sailor Moon…"

"She can't change destiny."

"Maybe she can, at least we should try."

"What about our promise!"

Michiru looked at Haruka in silence for a moment, then she turned her head to see a small girl kneeling on the cold snow coughing, catching a cold. It was not Hotaru's fault, nor was it Haruka's.

You're not believing in that bloody promise. Neither of us ever ever did.

"Keep it if you like it so much!" Michiru let Haruka go and brought some distance between them. "I will fight for Hime-chan till the very end."

"That's ridiculous." Snapped Haruka and pulled her henshin free. It shimmered golden and Michiru hated the metal even more than on the day she touched it for the very first time. "There's no other way…"

"My whole life's ridiculous!" Michiru drew her own henshin and held it defensively before her suddenly shaking body. "I swear, Haruka, if you try to attack this little girl now, you'll have to fight against me. I won't back down!"

"Michi…"

"I won't give Hime-chan up, not until I've tried everything." Michiru held her henshin a little bit higher, showing her partner how serious she was. One wrong move and she would attack. No, she would not kill Haruka, but she would show her not to sacrifice loved persons so easily. The blonde studied her in silence, then she looked away and put her henshin back into her jacket's pocket.

"It'll only hurt more." She whispered and walked back the way they came only some minutes ago. Minutes that changed everything so it seemed. Michiru sighed heavily before she rushed over to the little coughing girl. To help her, to hold her, to make sure that everything was alright. At least right now.

I only want to protect you. Both of you.