"Teruno… san?"
Lulu nodded.
"You really don't remember me, do you?"
Mimi shook her head.
"I'm sorry, I don't. But you do look… familiar, somehow."
Lulu sat down next to the bed, gently grabbing Mimi's hand.
"It's alright. You just woke up from a long coma, after all. And after the accident at Mugen Academy, it's understandable."
"The accident… what happened?"
"I… I'm not quite sure myself, to be frank. The whole academy was destroyed in some accident. I must have gotten shocked pretty badly because I don't remember it… as well as the last few months."
"You… you lost your memory too?"
"Only partially. I can't seem to remember anything past that accident that destroyed Mugen Academy up to just a few days ago. When I learned about your whereabouts I had to come to check on you. I'm so glad that you're okay, I thought you had died…"
"I'm alright, for the most part, memory aside."
"It's okay, I'm sure you'll remember everything eventually, and so am I," Lulu reassured. "Until then, I'll make sure to come to visit you every day and make sure the flowers I brought remain healthy and pretty. How does that sound?"
Mimi smiled and nodded.
"I'd like that. Thank you, Teluno-san!"
"Sorry for the intrusion… hm?"
As Makoto entered the hospital room she discovered that Mimi was sleeping. Makoto couldn't help but sigh in relief.
Today she was the one charged with checking on Mimi. She had nothing against her but it still somehow felt awkward, given their past. The fact she wouldn't have to talk to her would make things easier and avoid uncomfortable long silences between them.
As she took a few more steps inside the room, Makoto noticed the flower pot by the window. Intrigued, she walked to it. The flowers seem too well kept to be maintained by the hospital staff. These seem to be the work of a gardener…
"Excuse me… who are you?"
Makoto winced and nearly jumped when she heard a voice coming from behind her.
She immediately turned back to discover a girl around her age of average height. Despite her very delicate, feminine appearance she seemed to have a rather athletic build. She had green hair tied into four odangos.
"I'm… an old acquaintance of Hanyuu-san," Makoto replied. "A friend of hers asked me to check up on her… and who are you?"
The green-haired girl stepped inside the room.
"I'm her friend too," she replied.
The girl seemed aloof in her mannerism, but not necessarily cold.
"A friend… of Hanyuu-san? By any chance, were you from… Mugen Academy?" Makoto carefully asked.
"Hm, why yes. We were classmates."
Without giving much attention to Makoto, the girl stepped closer to Mimi.
"I guess this is her nap time," she began. "Well, I can pass later. I'll just water the flowers then…"
"Oh, so you're the one maintaining those flowers?" Makoto suddenly asked.
A glimpse of interest shined in the girl's eyes as she answered.
"Yes. I come here every day to make sure they don't wither. I thought they would brighten the room and help Mimi recover faster."
"Ah, I see."
Makoto stepped closer to the flowers and leaned down to get a better look at them.
"Those are daffodils, right? Such a beautiful, bright yellow… I can see you took great care of them," Mako said.
"Yes, from the narcissus genus. I can also see you know your flowers…"
"Well, gardening has always been a passion of mine. And I have always been told I got a green thumb."
The girl suddenly smiled, giving off a much warmer and friendlier vibe than before.
"What a coincidence, it's the same for me!"
The green-haired girl then stepped towards Makoto.
"Ah, I haven't introduced myself yet. My name is Teruno Lulu. Since Mimi is sleeping for now, how about we go grab a coffee at the hospital cafeteria?"
Teruno Lulu… why did that name sound familiar? Eh, it probably didn't matter.
"I'm Kino Makoto. Mako for short. Nice to meet you, Teruno-san!"
Makoto seemed to be in a particularly good mood today. Ever since she came back from visiting Mimi at the hospital she was smiling and was lost in her thoughts.
"Mako-chan? Hey, Earth to Mako-chan!" Usagi called.
Makoto snapped back, looking at her friends. They were all currently in Rei's room, doing some homework. Makoto blushed with embarrassment.
"Sorry, I was lost in my thoughts."
"Yeah, we noticed," Rei said.
Makoto blushed even more.
"What got you in such a good mood?" Usagi asked.
"Well… I met someone," Mako began.
"Oh, a boy?"
"No, a girl."
"Oh. Ohhh…" Usagi reacted, blushing.
"No, not like that!" Mako exclaimed, flustered. "I mean, I made a friend today. Someone who shares my passion for flowers and gardening."
"That sounds wonderful, Mako-chan! Where did you meet her?" Minako asked.
"Girls, our homework…" Ami tried to speak.
"I met her at the hospital when I went to check on Hanyuu-san. We spent nearly an hour rambling about flowers."
"That's an odd place to meet someone," Rei said.
"Remember the pot of daffodils in Hanyuu-san's room? She's the one who's been maintaining them!"
"So… is she like, an hospital staff?" Usagi asked.
"No, she said she was a friend of Hanyuu-san."
"A friend? Back from Mugen Academy?" Ami suddenly asked.
"Hm? Yeah, why?"
Ami, Usagi and Minako exchanged a suspicious glance.
"What? What's wrong?" Mako asked, starting to feel worried.
"Did this girl tell you her name by any chance?" Minako asked.
"Well yeah, obviously. She said her name was Teruno Lulu."
Minako immediately stood up when she heard that name and rushed outside the room, much to Makoto's confusion.
"What…? What's going on!?" Makoto exclaimed.
"That's no friend of Hanyuu-san," Ami explained as she stood up too. "That's the witch Tellu!"
"And Hanyuu-san might be in danger," Usagi added. "We have to hurry!"
"So, Ami-chan… what's your verdict? Do you see anything evil in there?" Usagi asked.
Usagi and the others kept a reasonable distance while Ami was analyzing the flowers with her mini-computer. Thankfully for them, Mimi was sleeping at the moment so they didn't have to find an excuse to explain what they were doing there.
"I'm not done yet," Ami replied, still typing on her keyboard.
"Girls, I told you, those are just some regular daffodils-" Mako tried to argue.
"This is Tellu we're talking about," Usagi said. "Those could be a Tellun in disguise! I've seen what those are capable of. They can steal your energy or worse, your pure heart crystal!"
"I bet this is why she put it here. She's targeting Hanyuu-san," Minako added.
"I… I can't believe this…"
Makoto was in total disbelief. She thought she had made a friend with whom she shared similar interests, but it turned out, she might be an enemy.
"I got the results!" Ami suddenly interjected. "According to my analysis, those are… narcissus."
"Narcissus!? So she lied, those aren't daffodils-" Minako began.
"Narcissus are daffodils," Ami corrected.
"Ah."
"So those are regular flowers?" Mako asked.
"Yes. I couldn't detect anything abnormal or evil. Those are normal daffodils," Ami confirmed.
Makoto sighed.
"See? I told you those were just ordinary flowers. People can have the same name," Mako said.
"Teruno Lulu isn't much of a common name though," Rei replied.
"What are the chances that this Teruno Lulu you met, who went to Mugen Academy, has an interest in flowers and also knows Hanyuu-san is a different Teruno Lulu than the one who ended up becoming Tellu?" Ami asked.
"I mean… coincidences happen…"
"There is a limit to how many coincidences can happen," Minako said.
"Then what is her goal in visiting Hanyuu-san and bringing her normal flowers?" Mako asked.
"I don't know yet… but she's probably up to no good," Minako argued.
"Why are you so sure? You gave Mimete a chance…"
"That's…!"
"Mmm… what's going on here?"
Mimi spoke softly, rubbing her eyes as she sat up in the bed.
"Oops… we woke her up," Usagi whispered.
"It's not like you were keeping your voice down," Rei reprimanded them.
"Sorry, Hanyuu-san," Minako apologized. "Mako-chan just… wanted to show us the flowers in your room. Wow, they sure are pretty, huh?"
"Oh, right… that's totally why we're here," Makoto replied nervously.
"Ah, okay… I was wondering why Kino-san was back already, and with everyone on top of that."
"Do you know where those flowers come from?" Ami tried to ask naturally.
"Oh, yeah. They are from my friend Teruno-san. She comes every day to check on me and water them."
"Teruno-san? I didn't know you had a friend called Teruno-san. Did your memory start to come back?" Minako asked.
"Unfortunately, not yet. She introduced herself as my friend. An old classmate. I can't remember her, but she does feel familiar."
"Hm, I see."
"Is there something wrong?"
"N-no…! We're just glad you were able to meet one of your old friends. Right girls?" Mako said.
"Yep, totally!" Usagi exclaimed.
"Sorry again for waking you up. We'll let you rest," Minako said. "Let's go, girls."
"Oh, ok…" Mimi replied, looking confused and a little disappointed.
The inners left the room and headed for the exit.
"So, what do we do about Tellu?" Rei asked.
"You still don't know if she's Tellu or another girl named Teruno Lulu yet," Makoto replied.
"Well, we saw her student profile with Ami-chan," Usagi said.
"I guess we can't rule out the profile I pulled out was another Teruno Lulu," Ami said. "So even if she was the same, you could still claim it doesn't prove she is Tellu."
"That's ridiculous, of course she is!" Minako argued.
"You can't know for sure and just attack her with no proof!" Makoto retorted.
"Girls, calm down!" Usagi came between them. "There is a way to be sure."
They all stare at her.
"How?" Rei asked, looking doubtful.
"There is one person who actually met Tellu when she was disguised as a human," Usagi explained. "She should be able to recognize if this is the same Teruno Lulu."
"So, this is where she is," Rei said.
The group had arrived at an inner garden.
"She's doing volunteering work here," Makoto explained. "At this time, she's probably still there. But it's close to the public at this hour."
"I doubt a garden has much security," Minako replied. "Let's get in."
The others nod while Makoto remained doubtful.
Luckily for them, the door was still unlocked. There was still someone inside after all. Minako didn't lose any time and opened it, silently slipping inside, followed by her friends.
"I still think this is a bad idea," Mako said.
"We're just here to confirm our doubts, nothing more," Rei said.
When they reached the inner garden section, they all took cover behind a bush. There was something attending to the flowers not far away from them.
It was a green-haired girl, wearing a gardener apron.
"Is that her?" Rei whispered.
"Yeah. That's Teruno Lulu," Mako replied.
"What nefarious plan is she up to?" Minako asked.
"She… she's just watering some flowers," Usagi said.
"Evil flowers?"
"No, I don't think so…"
"Really now?" Makoto said.
"What? She did try to steal people's hearts with evil flowers before," Minako replied.
"That was Tellu. We don't know if this is the same person-"
"This is Tellu."
The inners nearly scream as they jolted in surprise.
"S-Setsuna…!? Don't sneak up on us like that…!" Rei quickly reprimanded.
"Sorry, I didn't want to make too much noise," Setsuna apologized.
"So, this Teruno Lulu is indeed Tellu?" Minako asked.
"Affirmative. This is the girl who sold me the Tellun who nearly stole my crystal heart," Setsuna confirmed.
"Ah…" Mako mumbled.
"So, what do we do?" Rei asked.
"We question her," Minako said.
"I'm on it," Setsuna declared.
"Wait!" Mako tried to intervene.
"Pluto Planet Power, Make up!"
Setsuna instantly turned into her senshi form and rushed towards the gardener.
"Tellu!"
Lulu stopped what she was doing and slowly turned back, tilting her head.
"... huh? Are you talking to me, lady? Also, how did you get in here? The interior garden is closed…"
"Don't play innocent. You know who I am," Pluto replied.
"... I am afraid that I do not…? And aren't you a little too old to be wearing a mini-skirt?" Lulu sneered.
"Do not take me for a fool, Tellu! What are you plotting!?"
"Miss, I'll have to ask to leave. You have the wrong person. Go back to the cosplay convention you came from-"
"If you keep acting dumb, I'll get the answers I want by force!"
Pluto suddenly stepped closer to Lulu, raising her staff.
"Whoa!"
Lulu jumped out of Pluto's trajectory and quickly grabbed a shovel that was lying on the ground nearby, wielding it.
"That's not funny anymore!" Lulu exclaimed. "You could have hurt me! A garden is no place to fight!"
"You really are persisting with this act of yours, Tellu."
"My name is Teruno! Teruno Lulu! I don't know who this 'Tellu' is!"
"Stop lying!"
"I'm not!"
"Pluto, stop!"
The inners, now transformed too, joined them.
"Oh great, more weirdos in mini-skirts," Lulu muttered.
"I really don't think she's lying," Sailor Moon said.
"I recognize her. She is Tellu," Pluto argued.
"I'm not denying that, but… maybe she doesn't remember. Like Hanyuu-san."
"Mimi? Hey, who are you? How do you know Mimi?"
"She really seems to don't know anything," Venus said.
"That's what I've been telling you!" Jupiter exclaimed.
"What are you even talking about? Who are you!? What do you want from me?!" Lulu let out.
"We just want to talk," Mercury tried to calm her down.
"No, no way! This weird woman tried to attack me! I'm out of here!"
As Lulu tried to run away, her path was blocked by two other senshi.
"Sorry, we can't let you go."
"Uranus, Neptune!?" Sailor Moon exclaimed.
"Great, more of them," Lulu grunted.
"You told them!?" Jupiter accused Pluto.
"They might have overheard our phone call," Pluto explained.
"Urgh, out of my way!" Lulu yelled.
She tried to force her way through Uranus and Neptune, nearly hitting them with the shovel. Uranus conjured her sword and cut the shovel in half.
"... No way…!"
"Now, don't make this harder than it needs to be, for your own good," Uranus softly threatened, "and obediently come with us."
As Uranus seized Lulu's wrist, the latter started to panic and tried to push her away.
"Don't touch me! Let me go! LEAVE ME ALONE!"
Suddenly, a black star flashed on her forehead as she successfully pushed Uranus away. Flowers nearby grew in size and grabbed the senshi of wind, emprisoning her.
"Urgh!"
"Uranus!" Neptune cried out.
"Tsk! She really was up to no good! Tellu!" Venus exclaimed.
Lulu began to pant as she started to stagger before stumbling to the ground.
"I… I did that…?" she weakly mumbled.
The black star on her forehead started to flicker. Lulu started to gasp in pain as she grabbed her head.
"Argh… what's going on…?!"
The flowers took back their original form, allowing Uranus to break free. Lulu genuinely looked horrified by what happened- by what she had apparently done.
"I… I didn't mean to… I don't know… ugh… ARGHhhh!"
Lulu curled up on the ground as a dark aura started to engulf her body.
"What is happening to me…!? Make it stop! Please, MAKE IT STOP!"
"Gladly," Uranus said as she raised her sword.
"Uranus, no!" Sailor Moon screamed.
Uranus swung her sword. But instead of hitting Lulu with the blade, she hit her with the handle. Lulu collapsed to the ground, unconscious. The dark aura immediately disappeared, and so did the black star.
"Uranus!?" Jupiter exclaimed.
"She's fine," Uranus shrugged. "I only knocked her out."
"So, what are we doing with her?" Mars asked.
"I don't think she was faking it," Sailor Moon said. "She genuinely didn't seem to understand what was happening to her."
"She's still dangerous," Pluto said. "She needs to be restrained."
"I don't think we should stress her out," Mercury suddenly said. "I think it's because we made her panic that this happened. We should avoid shaking her too much for now, while still keeping a close watch over her. I'll need to run some tests to know exactly what happened- what she is."
"That might be what is the wisest decision, for now," Neptune agreed.
The others nodded.
"Let's bring her to my place. It should be safe there," Mars proposed.
Jupiter lifted the unconscious Lulu and carried her on her shoulders.
"Then it's decided," Sailor Moon declared. "We are not harming her. We're going to help her. Just like with Mimete."
Almost all the Witches 5 are there now! So, what do you think is going on with Teruno Lulu/Tellu? Please let me know in a review!