"Thanks again for agreeing to this interview and for your hospitality," Nezu said.
"There's no need to thank us, really," Michiru replied with an enigmatic smile. "Please, sit down."
Haruka and Michiru were both sitting together on the couch while Nezu sat in an armchair in front of them. She pulled out a small notebook and pencil, ready to take notes.
"I must admit, I was surprised by your sudden call. Not that I'm complaining," Nezu said.
"Well, let's just say, we heard things about you and we needed to have this interview with you," Haruka replied.
"Ah, good things I hope?"
"That depends on how this interview goes," Michiru replied, pulling out her mirror.
"Oh, what's that?"
"My talisman."
"Hm? Is this like, a lucky charm of some sort?"
"You could call it that. It allows me to see people's past lives and take a glance into their soul."
"I see, interesting. And what do you see right now?"
Nezu didn't seem put off by this and continued to conduct herself in a professional manner.
"I see you used to be a warrior, from a faraway planet."
"So, like, an alien? I see, that's quite interesting. I like that. Then let's get going! First, if it's not indiscreet to ask, what's the nature of your relationship-"
"You're an independent journalist, right?" Michiru suddenly interrupted.
"Hm? Oh, yeah…"
"But you worked at Ginga TV before, am I correct?" Haruka added.
"Ah, I see you've done your research on me. That is correct indeed."
"Why did you leave?" Michiru asked.
"Have you seen the place recently? It was completely destroyed. There's no work there anymore."
"So that's why you became an independent journalist," Haruka said.
"Mhm. But let's remember whose interview this is. I should be the one asking the questions-"
"You have a funny name, you know that? 'Nezu Chuuko'," Michiru said. "It sounds really… mouse-like, wouldn't you say?"
"Quite fitting for the nosy little mouse you are," Haruka added.
Nezu tapped the tip of her pencil on the notebook, remaining quiet for a moment.
"I'm not quite sure I'm following… are you calling me small? Because I do own my shortness, thank you very much-"
"Why were you so persistent in interviewing us?" Michiru suddenly interrupted her.
"What's that all of a sudden? Who wouldn't want to interview you? Do you realize how much of a big deal you both are…?"
"Why don't we stop this masquerade and cut to the chase already, Iron Mouse? And tell us what you're actually up to," Haruka dropped.
Nezu's pencil froze on the notepad. She stayed quiet for a moment before she stared at both of them.
"I must admit, I'm completely lost… What are you two talking about? Ironmouse? That sounds like someone who'd do videos online… I'm a journalist, not a YouTuber-"
"You really are going to play innocent despite your obvious scheme being revealed huh."
"Whoa, whoah. One second. What's going on? Is this a joke? Am I getting pranked? Or is this some kind of high advanced-level roleplay? Because I must say… I'd be flattered, but not interested…"
"Haruka, I'm starting to think she's not faking it…"
"Don't tell me you trust her-"
Ring! Ring! Ring!
They both turned back when their phone started to ring.
"It's probably them," Haruka said. "Usagi-chan and the others."
"Yes. They learned sooner than we expected," Michiru replied.
Haruka turned back towards the journalist.
"We don't have all day, Iron Mouse. You better talk now…" Haruka began.
But then she noticed Nezu was strangely silent. She was now staring blankly at nowhere in particular.
"Nezu-san?" Michiru called with some concerns.
Ring! Ring! Ring!
"Eek!" Nezu let out a cry.
"Whoa! Huh!?"
Nezu had jumped off the armchair and crouched on the floor.
"Okay, what are you playing at now?" Haruka asked, confused. "Just tell us what we want to know already."
As she tried to seize Nezu, the latter had a reaction of panic and pushed her away.
"Nooo! Please, give me another chance! Don't kill me!"
"W-what…? Hey, let's not exaggerate now…"
Nezu crawled under the coffee table and curled up.
"Please, let me tell you a joke first..."
"Huh…? What are you even on about… Get out from there… !"
Haruka grabbed the coffee table with the intent of lifting it to force Nezu out but Michiru stopped her.
"Haruka, no. You're going to damage the furniture."
"Michiru! We have a rodent under the table and she refuses to get out! Some property damage is the least of our concern…"
"I also don't think this is the best way to deal with someone who's having a panic attack."
"Huh, panic attack? But… why?"
Ring! Ring! Ring!
Nezu was now covering her ears and shivering.
"I'm not quite sure, but I do have an idea," Michiru said. "Haruka, go answer the phone, and turn it off after."
"Hm, okay."
As soon as Haruka answered the phone, Nezu stopped shivering. She still remained curled up under the table, gripping her shoulders. After a moment, Haruka hung up the phone and turned it off.
"They are coming," she said. "So what are we doing with her?"
"Nothing much we can do but wait," Michiru replied. "Go fetch a blanket, would you? So she can at least be comfortable there."
"Er… sure."
As Haruka exited the room Michiru sat down on the couch and sighed.
"Nyanko-san, slow down!" Usagi exclaimed.
"I won't forgive myself if something happens to Mouse!" Nyanko let out. "I won't let them hurt her!"
Nyanko rushed towards the villa, pulling out her transformation bell.
"Mau Star Power, Make up!"
Instantly, Nyanko was in her white cat senshi outfit, ready to burst the door open.
"Nyanko-san, wait!" Usagi shouted desperately.
But before Nyanko could reach the door, it suddenly opened, revealing Sailor Uranus.
"You…! Out of my way!" Nyanko cried out. "Where's Mouse…!?"
Nyanko tried to force her way in but Uranus was faster. Nyanko had barely the time to step inside that Uranus grabbed her arm and twisted it behind her back.
"It's rude to come in uninvited," Uranus said, tongue in cheek.
"Gah! Let me go!" Nyanko hissed.
She tried to break free by elbowing Uranus but the latter dodged and pinned her against the floor to restrain her.
"Ugh!"
"What a feral kitten you are… first a mouse, and now a cat. It's starting to look like animal control over here…"
"...mouse? Mouse!? Where is she!? You better not have hurt her, or else-"
"Or else what?" Uranus taunted.
Nyanko started hissing and growling as she desperately struggled to break free from Uranus, in vain. She really did look like a feral cat.
"Whoa, you better calm down," Uranus warned.
"Uranus, please, let her go!" Usagi pleaded.
"She's the one being aggressive," Uranus argued. "She's being unhinged."
"She's just worried!"
"Still, she better calm down!"
"Uranus!"
Neptune had stepped down inside the room.
"There's no need for this. Nyanko-san, you can rest assure. Nezu-san is fine. We didn't harm her in any way," Neptune reassured.
Nyanko stopped struggling.
"Mouse… is alright?" Nyanko said, her voice softened.
"Yes, Nezu-san is alright," Neptune reiterated.
Nyanko didn't seem to notice Neptune wanting to confirm Iron Mouse's identity. She simply looked relieved and Neptune gestured to Uranus to let her, which she did with some reluctance.
"Where… where is she?" Nyanko asked.
"First, I'll have to ask you to untransformed," Neptune said. "Unless you're fine with Nezu-san seeing you like this."
Nyanko looked hesitant for a moment before she finally disbanded her transformation.
"It's probably for the best if she doesn't see me like this."
Usagi was impressed by how quickly and effectively Neptune had deescalated the situation. Even Uranus seemed in awe by her girlfriend.
"Now come. Nezu-san is resting in the living room," Neptune said softly.
"O-okay."
Neptune led Nyanko to the living room, where she was surprised to discover Nezu laying under the coffee table, wrapped in a blanket.
"What… what is she doing there?" Nyanko asked.
"She had some sort of panic attack and is refusing to come out," Neptune explained. "We made sure she was at least comfortable there."
"Panic attack…!? What have you done to her!?"
"Nothing!" Uranus was quick to defend herself. "She freaked out when the phone rang."
"The phone…?"
"Oh… Yeah, that makes sense," Sailor Moon said.
"What do you mean?" Neptune asked.
"A phone call is the last thing she heard before Galaxia… killed her."
"... Ah. So she does remember?" Uranus asked.
"Not necessarily. Trauma can be a tricky thing," Neptune replied. "Even if she doesn't remember being Iron Mouse, the trauma she experienced is still there, buried into her subconscious…"
"But are we really sure she doesn't remember?"
"She's not the one behind the attack, that's for sure," Nyanko said.
"I can confirm that," Usagi concurred. "We checked her alibi."
"Mm, I see…"
"Nyanko-san, do you think you can make her come out? She's not answering to us," Neptune requested.
"Huh, I can try…"
Nyanko stepped towards the coffee table and crouched down.
"Hey, Nezu-san… you can come out now. Everything is alright."
Nezu didn't answer.
"She's gone. She can't hurt you anymore, Mouse," Nyanko suddenly added. "The Golden Queen is no more."
Nezu continued to stay silent but slowly, she crawled out from under the table. Nyanko immediately reached out and helped her get back on her feet.
"She… she's gone?" Nezu mumbled.
"Yeah. She can't harm you anymore."
Nezu looked like she was still dissociating for a moment until she finally came back to her senses.
"Wait… who's gone?" She asked, confused, before she noticed Nyanko. "Ah, you! What are you doing here!?"
"Uh, I…"
"You heard I was interviewing Tenoh Haruka and Kaioh Michiru and you wanted your slice of the cake too, huh!?" Nezu accused.
"I… yeah. You got me," Nyanko pretended, shrugging.
"Ahah, I knew it! You sly, sleazy cat burglar trying to steal my scoop!"
"Haha, you know me…" Nyanko nervously replied.
Nezu pouted at her for a moment before looking at her surroundings.
"Huh… did something happen? Where did Tenoh-san and Kaioh-san go?" She suddenly asked.
Uranus and Neptune discreetly glance at each other.
"Ah… you suddenly didn't feel well during the interview and collapsed," Usagi tried to salvage. "Haruka-san called me to come check up on you, and since it was starting to get late they both had to leave… yeah."
"What!? So, I missed my chance to interview them?! Geez… guess I'll go back home then."
"Let me accompany you," Nyanko proposed.
"Eh? I can walk home by myself, thank you very much."
"I know…! But… if you suddenly felt bad and collapsed once today, it might happen again. It might be safer if you have someone with you."
Nezu looked hesitant for a moment before she let out a sigh of resignation.
"... Fine. But it's not because I appreciate you or anything, you got that?"
"Affirmative!"
Nyanko looked at Usagi one last time before leaving the villa with Nezu. When they were both gone, Uranus and Neptune untransformed.
"So she confirmed that Nezu-san is indeed Iron Mouse. Good to know," Haruka said.
"You said her alibi had been confirmed. Are you sure of that?" Michiru asked.
"Yes. During the party, Nezu-san left with a model named Handa Mitsune. We confirmed with her that Nezu-san had left before the attack and took the bus. It seems unlikely she could have come back in time and been the one who attacked us."
"Hm, it does seem like it," Michiru agreed.
"Handa Mitsune… I've met her," Haruka replied. "Very unpleasant. She's quite the player and doesn't really respect people's boundaries…
"I believe she has a younger sister," Michiru added. "She's often in the company of a little girl when I see her at the studio."
"Haruka-san, you don't like her? I thought she kind of reminded me of you," Usagi commented.
"Tsk, we have nothing in common."
"Regardless, I guess we can clear Nezu-san from the suspect list," Michiru concluded. "So this only leaves two remaining suspects."
"Yes," Uranus nodded. "Lead Crow and Aluminum Seiren."
After she had accompanied Nezu back to her place, Nyanko decided to pass by the studio. She wanted to check on Reiko and Karasuma. After what happened with Nezu, she was suddenly worried about them. But she couldn't help but think one of them had to be the culprit.
"No, it can't be!" Nyanko thought. "I can't believe Seiren to be capable of such deceitfulness. And Crow… there's no way she wouldn't have beat me up a pulp by now if she remembered me… remembered what I did to her."
Nyanko was suddenly overwhelmed by guilt. Even if she had been corrupted and mind-controlled at that time, she could never forgive herself for what she did to those two. That was why she only wished them to live in peace in this new life and couldn't bring herself to suspect them. They were given a second chance, away from the memory of their past sins, and Nyanko wanted to protect that at all cost. Because she wasn't fortunate to get that fresh start, rid of her guilt. And she knew she didn't deserve it.
"There has to be an explanation. A way for none of them to be the culprit…"
As she was lost in her thoughts, Nyanko didn't watch where she was going and walked right into someone.
"Whoa!"
"Eek!" Nyanko cried out.
They both fell off to the ground.
"Ugh…! Hey, watch where you're going!" The other person reprimanded.
"Sorry!" Nyanko immediately apologized. "... Huh?"
Nyanko was surprised to discover Karasuma on the floor. The latter was wearing a fancy red suit.
"Cro- Karasuma-san."
"Huh? Do I know you…?"
"Oh, uh…"
"Ah, right. I saw you, at the charity party. Suzu, isn't it?"
"Ah, y-yes!"
Nyanko remained convinced there was no way she was the Crow she knew. She obviously didn't remember her.
As Karasuma stood up, something fell from her pocket. It looked like a notepad. Instinctively, Nyanko reached for it, being the polite thing to do.
But as soon as she got a hold of it, she froze in shock.
No, it can't be.
It was Seiren's notebook. The one who disappeared from Ginga TV's safe.
Karasuma was now staring down at her.
"K-Karasuma-san, where… where did you get this?"
Karasuma remained silent.
"This… this is… this belongs to Seiren. How did you… are you… do you remember? All this time? Was it really you? Answer me, Crow!"
Karasuma clenched her fist.
"Seiren…" Karasuma mumbled. "You… Nyanko."
"...!?"
"I won't let you hurt her again. YOU WON'T TAKE HER AWAY FROM ME THIS TIME!"
Before Nyanko could even react Karasuma kicked her down, knocking her out instantly.