Green Eyed Monster

Chapter 7: "Perilous Decision"
A Sailor Moon fanfic

By Bill K.

In the bedroom of the Ikegami apartment, Makoto sat on a mat by the bed and held her four month old daughter Akiko to her breast. The child suckled at her mother's breast calmly, at peace with the world. Makoto looked down on the precious little bundle and smiled.

"Times like this," she whispered to her baby, "makes all the grief you give me worthwhile."

Akiko seemed to coo between sucks.

"Of course anytime you want to start acting like a good little girl is fine by me, Little Miss Stubborn," Makoto smirked.

The baby just ignored her and went on drinking.

"You think that's good?" Makoto whispered. "You just wait until you can take solid food, Missy. I'm going to cook so many things for you." She stroked the baby's head with her support hand. "You're going to get fat, kiddo."

The door buzzer sounded and for a moment Makoto was gripped with a sense of dread. Her mood was sensed by the baby. Akiko spit the nipple away and gurgled with alarm.

"It's OK, Hon'," Makoto whispered to Akiko. "Killers don't go around pushing door buzzers. Mommy's just being a silly old goose."

Gently so as not to further disturb Akiko, Makoto got to her feet and went to the door. She peered out the peep hole, exclaimed in surprise and opened the door.

"Usagi!" the woman beamed as she greeted her friend. Usagi was about to greet her in return. Then her eyes popped in surprise and she turned, shielding them with her hand. Makoto was puzzled for a moment, then remembered her blouse was open. "Oh! Sorry. I was just feeding Akiko."

"You answer the door with your breast sticking out?" gasped Usagi, red with embarrassment.

"It's just a breast," Makoto shrugged.

"But in public? Besides, your breasts have never been 'just breasts'!"

"At least I know Akiko will never go hungry," joked Makoto. Just then Akiko began grunting and reaching for Usagi.

"Ohhhh, Akiko-cutie!" Usagi cooed. "May I?"

"Usagi, you never have to ask permission to hold her," Makoto grinned, passing the child over. Usagi took the child in her arms and held her so they were face to face. Akiko, fascinated by Usagi, reached out with stubby fingers and felt along the woman's jaw.

"Mako-chan, she just gets cuter every day!" squealed Usagi. The three went inside and sat down on the sofa. "One of these days you're going to give her to me and I won't be able to give her back!"

"You'll give her back," Makoto smiled slyly. "The first time she wakes up at two in the morning and starts crying, you'll be glad to give her back."

Makoto watched Usagi grin and coo at Akiko, while Akiko seemed enchanted by Usagi's mere presence. The woman hugged the child to her breast. Only then did Makoto notice her smile dim.

"Mako-chan," Usagi began. "Rei and Ami have figured out what's killing the babies in the district."

"Good," Makoto replied with interest. "You guys run him down yet?"

"Not yet. Rei realized it's a demon named - - um, I forget the name she called it."

"A demon? An honest to goodness demon?" Makoto asked. She seemed a little more concerned.

"Yes," Usagi replied hesitantly. "We're going tonight to try to destroy it, or at least trap it so it can't kill anymore babies." Usagi paused reluctantly. "We were - - well, I - - I was hoping you'd help."

Makoto looked down nervously. "Hon', you know I want to do anything for you. But Akiko depends on me, too, and with that thing out there . . ."

"It's all right. Ami says it only feeds every eight or ten days, so . . ."

"Feeds?" gasped Makoto. "This thing is-is feeding off of infant children?"

"Yeah. That's kind of why we want to stop this demon now. Ami says it'll be another five days before it needs to eat again. That's why I'm asking. If there was any possible threat to Akiko, I wouldn't even be here. But Ami says that she's safe for now, and she's usually right about these things. And we could use your help. We can always use your help."

Makoto scratched the back of her neck nervously. Everything Usagi told her made sense. And yet every maternal instinct she had was screaming at her to stay with Akiko. Was she being cautious - - or paranoid?

"I'm sorry I put you in this situation, Mako-chan," Usagi apologized, handing Akiko back over to her. "Forget I asked. Your responsibility is to Akiko now. We'll manage."

"Usagi," Makoto said, grasping her friend's wrist gently, but firmly. "I'll be there. Just tell me when, so I can call San-San and have him watch the baby."

"Mako-chan, you don't have to do this," Usagi told her.

"Yes I do," Makoto said softly, slightly embarrassed by her behavior. "I've got lots of responsibilities, Usagi. One of them is to you and the other senshi. You need me and I've got to come." She forced a smile on her face and looked at Usagi. "Besides, the sooner we get this thing, the sooner I can stop worrying whether every shadow may be some threat to my baby."

"Thank you, Mako-chan," Usagi replied gratefully. "Is seven a good time for you?"

"Yeah. Why don't you and the others come over. I'll fix us all a good meal before we go out."

"You don't have to do that."

"It's OK. Cooking relaxes me."

"In that case, we'll do it," Usagi replied. Then she grinned impishly. "Besides, eating relaxes me."

Akiko felt her mother's chest shake with hearty laughter.

In Minako's cluttered, cramped apartment, Minako sat cross-legged on the floor peering over Artemis' shoulder. Artemis worked on his laptop computer, plugged into a database on Japanese demonology.

"Anything?" Minako prompted.

"Not so far," Artemis reported. "This doesn't seem to have been a widely publicized case. But I'll keep looking."

"Thanks. I'd like to know what I'm up against. Fighting blind tends to get your head handed to you."

"It never stopped you when you were Sailor V," Artemis jabbed as he typed. "You know, you could have stayed at the shrine and listened to the research Rei and Ami were doing."

"That was an unhealthy atmosphere," Minako scowled.

"It wouldn't be if you and Rei would stop sniping at each other. Maybe you could make peace?"

"Why don't you ask me to do something easier - - like leap Mt. Fuji?" Minako replied. "Rei's on the warpath now and saying 'I'm sorry' isn't going to be enough."

"Whose fault is that?"

"Mine, OK? Stop telling me what I already know and tell me what to do!"

"Well you could start with 'I'm sorry'," Artemis told her. "It might not be enough to solve things now, but it's a first step. You can't get to point B without taking that first step."

Minako sighed. "Man, life blows sometimes."

The door buzzed. Waiting for Artemis to conceal his laptop, Minako went to answer it. She found a surprise waiting for her.

"Mom?" Minako gasped, finding her mother at the door. The woman was still trim and fairly beautiful, though beginning to show her age. Minako noticed a little grey beginning to filter through the auburn hair atop her head. Then she saw the pot in her hand and grew a cynical smile. "Made too much for dinner 'again' last night?"

"Well," her mother grimaced at being seen through, "you know how I hate to waste food." She entered and set the pot down. Artemis adjourned to the bedroom to continue work.

"You know, Mom, 'starving artist' is just an expression," Minako cracked.

"Sometimes its hard to tell," her mother replied, eyeing the shabby apartment with her usual critical eye. "So, gotten any new offers yet?"

Minako looked away. "Not yet," she sighed.

"Well isn't that nice man of yours helping? He got you your last job, didn't he?"

"Toshi's got his own career to worry about, Mom. He was put out of work when they canceled 'Sure Cure For Swelling' just like everybody else. Besides, that IS why I have an agent."

"Well he must not be a very good agent if you haven't gotten an offer YET," sniffed her mother. "You'd think someone as glamorous as you would have people coming up to her in the street with offers."

Minako suppressed a wince and glanced away.

"Minako?"

"Mom," Minako said in a tiny voice, a voice her mother hadn't heard in over a decade, "what if you were right? What if I've just been fooling myself?"

"This is what you still love, isn't it?" she asked. "It's what you still dream of doing, isn't it?"

"Yeah," Minako replied, as vulnerable as the day she returned from England with similarly crushed hopes. Her mother remembered it well. "But what if I'm not good enough?"

"You're good enough," her mother told her. "I admit I didn't believe you'd amount to anything doing this. I was wrong. The camera adores you, Minako. You've got a lovely voice and a natural sense of acting." Her mother paused. "Your choice of roles is often questionable, but you do have talent."

"Gee, Mom, and you were going so well there, too," Minako observed dryly. "You don't think I made a mistake?"

"Not anymore. This is what you love. Pursuing it can't be a mistake. It may never pan out the way you want to, but if you love doing it, then do it. Believe me, Minako, giving up your dreams and settling isn't a road to happiness. You spend the rest of your days wondering 'what if'." Her hand came up and cupped the back of her daughter's head. "Now marrying Tomoharu. THAT was a mistake. And the minute you sobered up, you realized it."

"Mom, I was NOT drunk," Minako fumed for the hundredth time.

"You weren't happy, either. You proved that by cheating on him with that Ace person. But this makes you happy. Don't let a setback drive you away from what makes you happy. You'll regret it. And besides, it's not like you're qualified to do anything else."

"You know, Mom, you really have to work on your pep talk skills," Minako replied cynically. "OK, I'll keep trying."

"That's my girl," her mother smiled. "Keep trying. I just know I'll see you on television again. You know, your father and I never missed an episode of that filthy doctor show you were on - - except for when The Giants were playing, of course."

"Of course," Minako smirked. "Nothing can separate my dad and The Giants."

"Would you like to come over for dinner tonight?" her mother ventured. "You can bring your young man."

"Sorry, Mom," Minako apologized, recalling the mission. "I've got an important job tonight"

In the Lotus Blossom Shrine's scroll and book room, Ami and Rei sifted through five hundred years of recorded Japanese history, all at the local level. They were searching for the story of how Kaji-sensei's ancestor trapped the demon Meshiwokuu Eiji.

"These are some fascinating journals, Rei," Ami commented, skimming through one of the older volumes. "I'd love to come back here some day and read all of them. There's such a local flavor to them."

"I don't think Kaji-sensei would mind," Rei told her. "He's always been something of a historian." She smiled at a sudden memory. "When I was a girl, he once told me stories about surviving the American bombing raids during World War II. His descriptions were so vivid, I didn't sleep for a week after. I was sure the Americans were going to drop a bomb on the shrine while I slept."

The two women heard the shuffle of feet and turned to the door. Kaji-sensei was standing in the doorway with a puzzled look on his face. Then he focused on Rei and brightened up.

"Rei-chan!" he gasped with delight. "I didn't know you were here! You should have announced yourself."

"Kaji-sensei, I just said 'hello' to you this morning," Rei remarked.

"You did? I must be getting absent-minded," the withered old priest mumbled, scratching his brow. Then he brightened again. "No matter, it's good to see you again. Were you looking for something in particular?"

Rei and Ami traded alarmed glances.

"Yes, the story of how your ancestor trapped Meshiwokuu Eiji," Rei told him.

"Meshiwokuu Eiji?" the priest exclaimed. "Why would you want to know that? The demon isn't loose, is it?" In a panic, he turned and headed for the outer door. "Must check the stone! Kami, please let it be intact!"

Instantly Ami was up and headed the old man off. He looked at her, unable to recognize her and unsure of her motives.

"We've already established that, Sensei," Ami told him gently. "Don't you remember? Rei is going to handle it. She's going to trap the demon again, as soon as she locates the description of how your ancestor did it."

"She is?" Kaji-sensei asked, helpless in his confusion. "Thank you, Rei-chan. Oh, if only I had a younger priest who could take over for me." He turned to Ami. "Have we met? I'm afraid I forget things."

"Yes, Sensei, we've met. I'm Ami Mizuno, Rei's friend." She began leading the priest into the kitchen. "Would you like me to get you some tea, Sensei? Then you can sit and try to collect your thoughts."

"Yes, that would be good," the priest murmured as Ami led him off. "Thank you. It's harder for me to lift the kettle these days. I'm not as young as I used to be."

Rei watched the entire scene with a lump in her throat and tears in her eyes. Despite her feelings for her father, she had nothing but good memories of her other grandfather. Kaji-sensei had been part of her life as long as she'd lived. She could still recall him and her maternal grandfather in the garden of Hikawa Shrine discussing philosophy. They would often erupt into boisterous arguments until she feared they would come to blows, only to part friends as if nothing had happened. He was always calm and centered, the exact opposite to her maternal grandfather's boundless energy and aggressive optimism. Now to see him like this - - frail and confused, his center gone and his sharp mind withering - - was too much to take. It brought back unhappy memories of her maternal grandfather's last days, bedridden and discouraged.

"Why do things like that have to happen to good people?" she whispered bitterly. Remembering the importance of her mission, Rei forced herself to return to the scrolls.

A while later, Ami returned. Rei looked up and silently inquired.

"He's resting," Ami told her. "Has he been to a doctor recently?"

"I don't know," Rei replied. "What's wrong with him, Ami?"

"Without a full examination, I'd only be guessing," Ami hedged. "Confusion and memory loss could be symptomatic of several things, worst case being the onset of dementia or Alzheimer's. It's because of this that he really should see his physician as soon as possible."

"Can't you do anything for him?"

"It would be better if he saw his own physician," Ami hesitated. "His own physician is more familiar with case history and better able to make an accurate diagnosis. If something happens and he's in immediate danger, of course I'll treat him. But his own doctor is better equipped to handle this and more likely to be trusted."

Rei looked down, pained. "I guess now we know why it took three months to realize that Meshiwokuu Eiji was loose. I'll try to get him to a doctor, Ami. But this has to come first."

"Of course," Ami nodded. She picked up a text and resumed skimming it.

Working down the scroll she held, Rei began to realize that this was the scroll they'd been looking for. Excitement grew in the young priest as the scroll described the detection and naming of the demon who ate babies. All thoughts of Ami and Kaji-sensei were momentarily forgotten as Rei lost herself in the story.

Then a passage passed before her eyes and Rei's blood ran cold.

"Rei?" Ami asked, shaking the priest from her shock. "Did you find something?"

"Um," Rei hesitated. "Yes. This is it. This scroll tells the tale of the demon's defeat and imprisonment at the hands of a priest named Sakamoto."

"Excellent! Does it give enough detail?"

"Yes. I can, um, um, use this as a blueprint to defeat the demon when we track it down tonight."

"May I?" Ami asked, trying to snag a look at the text of the scroll. Rei quickly closed it.

"Better let me handle it, Ami," Rei replied cautiously. "My area of expertise, after all."

"If you think it best," Ami responded curiously. She turned and began gathering the other books and scrolls to reshelve them.

Rei stared off into space. The scroll had described perfectly how Sakamoto-sensei had found a maiden in the area who had once given birth to a stillborn child and who could now sense the presence of the demon. Together Sakamoto-sensei and the maiden had run the demon down to these very grounds, where Sakamoto bound the demon with his spirit wards and then trapped him within the specially prepared rock. The emerging city of Tokyo was no longer set upon by the evil of the demon Meshiwokuu Eiji.

But that peace came at a price - - the maiden had died.

Continued in Chapter 8