FATE AND FRAILTY

A revelation.
Can be a double-edged sword,
A deadly white rose...


Haiku 9: Eye Opener

After the door was shut, the room inexplicably grew colder. Minako shuddered and hugged herself protectively. She watched, in great incredulity, as the shadows behind the little girls grew wider. She watched the dimness spread all over the room until everyone within was enveloped by a thick black endless space. What was odd though, was that the furniture remained untouched by the shadows. The twins jerked their hands to their sides, and several slender throwing steel knives appeared in their grasps. There was a manic gleam in Deedee's crimson eyes, and indifferent happiness in Dumdum's.

"Wha-what are you going to do with those?" Minako stuttered, trying to move away. One would've thought that the infinite blackness would've been as far as the eye could see. But it wasn't-- and she felt herself backed up against some sort of invisible wall. "This is a joke, right? Kaioh-san hired you clowns to play a trick on us? Right, Kaioh-san?" She turned to look at a terrified Michiru who furiously shook her head 'no' at her.

"Oh? You want to hear a joke?" Dumdum grinned and twirled her knives between her fingers and into the air skillfully. "What's a Senshi about to be skewered? A Senshish kebab!" This sent the white-haired girl into a hysterical giggling fit.

Deedee groaned. "That was stupid, Dumdum-onee-chan."

"It was? I thought it was funny, Deedee-onee-chan."

"You're here to kill us?" Haruka interrupted, strangely calm and confident. This sort of thing was what she was trained for after all. She was not only a political aide; she was also a professional bodyguard. She stood in front of Michiru and Rei protectively-- ready to shield them if any of those knives were flung in their direction. She held her hands up in a pacifying gesture. "Think about it... If we scream, the guards will come in. You'll get caught and go to prison. You kids don't want to go to prison at such a young age, do you?"

"Haruka-san..." Michiru look at the tall blonde hopefully. It was as if Haruka's words had given them all a spark of courage-- reminding them that even if they were children with knives, they were just children. They were bigger and smarter than they are-- and they clearly outnumbered them. Seiya and Makoto nodded to each other, and tensed-- ready to jump on them and grab their weapons away when the opportunity came.

"Time stopped outside this room. No one will notice anything." Deedee revealed with a smirk, and then her face darkened as she tightened her grip on her knives. "Enough talk... It's time to die, senshis!"

"NOW!" Seiya yelled, and lunged for Deedee while Makoto went for Dumdum. But they had all been thoughtlessly wrong to have underestimated the twins. As if expecting the sudden attack, Deedee fell backwards and slammed her hands flat against the floor for leverage. Seiya was surprised when her arms went around nothing; her prey had suddenly disappeared in front of her. Then she felt the little girl's feet planting themselves onto her abdomen.

Dumdum grabbed Makoto's outstretched arm and used her momentum against her. She allowed the other girl to move forward, and while keeping a tight grip on her wrist, she rolled against her body until she was behind her. It was like a dance step in waltz-- she had just twirled the brunette around. Then, Dumdum recoiled and flung the tall girl back to where she came from like she weighed nothing.

Both Seiya and Makoto were catapulted into the air-- with the black-haired tomboy narrowly missing the edge of the table while the brunette flew over it. Then they crashed against the black wall, both women releasing grunts, before they slid to the ground coughing from having the wind knocked out of them.

"Makoto!" Without thought of her own safety, Ami ran to the brunette's side. Yaten and Taiki also ran towards their downed sister to check if she was okay.

Rei was looking around frantically for anything that looked like a weapon. But the dark prison they seem to be in indicated nothing else but nothingness. She felt helpless. Then she jumped when Haruka suddenly rushed forward. She watched the tall blonde engage the twins in powerful successions of fierce, hurtling fists and controlled kicks-- all straightforward but devastating attacks.

Haruka was a formidable foe, but she was only one person. And the twins were quick and acrobatic-- evading all of the deadly strikes, but clearly having a hard time laying an attack of their own. Deedee and Dumdum exchanged quick glances before they hurled several of their knives away. Haruka's green eyes widened. She was not the weapons' intended target however. "Move out of the way!" She screamed at Makoto, Ami, and the three sisters.

This was all the distraction, the twins needed. They moved in a synchronized motion, delivering a roundhouse kick right in Haruka's unprotected chest. She flew several feet back, and then fell to her knees gagging and choking. Her vision was darkening, but she resisted the urge to pass out. 'Focus, Haruka! Breath slowly!'

Meanwhile, the rest watched powerlessly as the deadly blades sped towards them. But at Taiki's quick-thinking, she lurched forward to topple the table on its side causing the food to fly everywhere. She barely missed some of the knives but the table managed to block the lower projectiles. Everyone behind her was safe for now. "Quick!" She called over to Minako, Rei and Michiru. "Hide over here!"

"Oh no you don't!" Deedee snarled, jerking her arms again-- more knives appeared in her hands. She ran towards them but when she passed Haruka, the blonde instantly grabbed her waist. Deedee fell face-first to the ground, and the older woman lay heavily on top of her while pinning her hands on each side of her head. "FUCK!" Deedee screamed, her eyes wild with rage. "Onee-chan! GET THEM!"

"Yes, onee-chan!" Dumdum ran for her targets, just as they dove for the table. She licked her lips and was about to throw her knives to stop them when she felt something hit her head. The white-haired girl stopped short to watch an orange fruit roll to her feet. Then she tilted her head towards the table where Yaten was standing beside Taiki and Seiya, their arms laden with food, dishware, and other utensils. "That was not nice." She pouted at them and threw her weapons at them.

They immediately crouched for cover. Yaten jerked away from the table she was leaning against when one knife practically was plunged halfway through the thick wooden surface just centimeters away from her head. "We can't go on like this." She told the others somberly. "We're going to get killed!"

Ami frowned and suddenly moved away from Makoto, she made sure she was still hidden from view from the twins, before she started to feel along the invisible wall behind her with her hands.

"What are you doing, Ami-chan?" Minako asked her. She and Michiru were clutching each other's hands for support and were both looking at her curiously.

"I have a theory..." The blue-haired girl answered thoughtfully. "That this is all just an illusion." Then she felt it. With a grim smile she tugged hard, and a banner seemingly materialized out of the darkness. It fell over her lap. The words 'Omedeto' were clear for all to see.

"Ami-chan!" Minako launched herself towards her best friend and hugged her furiously. "You're a lifesaver!"

"We should find the door and escape." Rei whispered to the rest. Then she craned her head slightly to peek over the table when Dumdum ceased her assault and was now walking over to where Haruka was holding her darker sister down. "Oh no... Haruka-san..."

But her guardian had secretly recovered in that short time since she pinned Deedee to the ground. When she felt Dumdum approach, she pushed her body up and swept her feet over the white-haired girl's legs-- causing the shocked little girl to fall back to the ground. Haruka staggered to her feet, and held her fists up in front of her defensively. She was a little winded and in pain but she was apparently ready for action. "Your fight is with ME, bastards..."

'Haruka-san...' Rei thought and bit her lower lip. The mannish woman was very capable of defending them, but she knew that she could not hold out much longer.

"We'll distract them," Makoto suddenly said, breaking the dark-haired girl's worried thoughts, as she crawled over to where the cross-dressing siblings were. She grabbed one of the apples in Yaten's arms and tightened her grip on it determinedly. "You guys run for the door, then call for help. We'll stay behind to support Haruka-san."

"No Mako-chan." Taiki shook her head and laid a firm hand over the other girl's arm. "You need to go with the others and protect them. WE'LL stay behind."

"Yeah, we'll take over from here. You watch their backs, Mako-chan." Seiya grinned cockily and gave her friend a thumb's up. "You've got to protect your girlfriends with your life."

"I'm not--!" Both Rei and Minako cried out at the same time, while Ami looked down and blushed. Makoto sighed. 'They'll never let me live this down, will they?' She thought sourly, but nodded in agreement all the same.

"I'll go first." Michiru spoke up, her tone indicating that she would not be swayed if they would try to discourage her. "I remember where the door is supposed to be. Then you guys follow me after I find it."

"Becareful, Kaioh-san." Minako told her and received a reassuring nod in return.

"On three then." Makoto said. The others tensed. "One... Two... Three!" The brunette shot up and threw the apple in the twins' direction. Taking her cue-- Seiya, Yaten and Taiki also began flinging everything they had at psychotic children.

"QUIT IT!" Deedee yelled angrily. And Dumdum tried to cover her head with her arms, yelping.

Michiru ran for the hidden door. She reached out to grab the spot where the knob was supposed to be. But she couldn't be wrong... her intuition was screaming at her that it was definitely right there. Then she twisted her hand and pushed the door open. The light poured into the dimness. "Come on everyone!" She called over her shoulder and ran outside-- the others hurriedly rose from their little sanctuary to follow suit.

The twins moved to go after them, but Haruka hurriedly barred their way. The tall blonde was smirking. "You're not going anywhere. You failed!"

"On the contrary..." The rage easily fell away from Deedee's face to reveal the triumphant smile underneath. "It's all going as planned." Dumdum raised her right arm, parallel to the ground, and snapped her fingers. The shadows twitched in response. Then several bulbous shapes pushed themselves forward, the blackness clung against them like wet cloth. The room reverted back to normal. Several dark, hunching, humanoid figures stood in sporadic locations. Everyone, except the twins, gasped in horror.

"You didn't think it was going to be that easy, did you?" Dumdum giggled.


Stopping time was impossible, and Michiru had thought that the twins were lying when they said that it had. But as she and the others ran down the corridor-- the people they passed by all seemed to be frozen on the spot. There was no way they could ask any of these people for help. Their only recourse was to get out of this stadium and hope that time was not affected outside.

The air was not immune to time's dormancy and breathing in this thin atmosphere was hard. Everyone, except Michiru and Ami who were actually trained swimmers and could regulate their breathing easily, was feeling very light-headed and faint.

Minako stumbled then clumsily collapsed to the ground. "I-I can't do it." She rasped; she was having a difficult time trying to suck in some air into her oxygen-deprived lungs. Then Makoto stopped in front of her, and knelt on one knee.

"Climb up," The brunette smiled at her reassuringly. Blushing slightly, Minako mounted Makoto's back-- painfully aware of their closeness despite the dangerous situation they were in-- and wrapped her arms around her neck. The taller girl unhesitantly placed her hands underneath the blonde's bare legs, to support her weight, before she rose to her feet and ran to catch up with the others.

Michiru knew that the last left turn in the intersection ahead would lead them to the exit. When she ran around the bend, she stopped abruptly and shrieked. The others barely kept themselves from colliding against each other. In front of them, standing between themselves and their path to freedom, was a large shadow youma. It took a threatening step towards them. Knowing they had no other options left, they ran in the opposite direction.

"This will take us to the field!" Rei shouted upon recognizing the route they were running to. They will be sitting ducks out there if the enemy was trying to look for them.

"We have no choice." Michiru panted. "We'll just exit through the other gates."

Ami couldn't help it, but she felt that they were all being led into some sort of trap. But she wisely kept that thought to herself. There was no sense in panicking the others just yet. "Is there no other way, Kaioh-san?"

"No."

Makoto glanced behind her to see the youma slowly catching up to her. "You better run faster, you guys! It's catching up to us!" Driven by fear and the desire to live, everyone ran faster-- their lungs and legs burned with effort. Minako was no light-weight, and she worried over the fact that Makoto looked ready to fall in exhaustion. Thankfully she saw the open gate leading to the field appear a few meters ahead.

Michiru burst through, followed by Rei. They both stood on each side of the entryway and held their side of the metallic, sliding gate. Ami ran out next, then turned to watch Makoto struggle on with her best friend on her back. The youma was closing in on the girls, and when it lashed an arm out-- its alien-like fingers brushed through Minako's blonde hair. There was sheer terror on the teen idol's pale face when it grazed her.

"You can do it, Makoto!" Ami yelled forcefully. "Run faster!" She threw her arms wide open, ready to catch her if... no, WHEN she made it through.

Then Makoto burst into the field, and Michiru and Rei desperately pushed the gates closed. The youma crashed into the metal barrier with a resounding clang. Michiru hurriedly bolted the gate to ensure that the youma would not be able to open it from the inside.

Makoto stumbled forward, her legs feeling rubbery and weak, then she collided heavily against Ami who immediately wrapped her arms around her to keep her steady. When they came into a stop, Minako slid off of her savior and planted her feet gratefully to the ground. Trembling, she pressed her face against the brunette's back and cried.

That had been too close. Way too close...

"It's alright now, Mina-chan." Ami soothed over Makoto's shoulder, who was desperately panting for breath, then freed one hand to pat her best friend's bent head in comfort. "We're safe now."

"No we're not." Rei hated to burst their bubble, but it was imperative that they escape this place ASAP. "We're still in the stadium, and there might be more of those things in here somewhere. We need to move. NOW."

Everyone quietly nodded in agreement. Feeling a little concerned for the teary Minako, Makoto decided to stay close to her side. Ami did the same on the opposite side of the blonde. As they began to hurriedly trek across the field to reach the other side towards another gate, the stadium lights were suddenly switched off and bathed their surroundings in total darkness.

Then the large video screen came to life. The twins' menacing and grinning faces filled the display. "This is the end of the line for you, stupid senshis..." Deedee's childish, gleeful voice echoed into the air.

The implication of the children being here brought a sick feeling to Rei's stomach. "Where is Haruka-san!" Makoto frowned, echoing the dark-haired girl's fears, and began to worry for her friends' safety.

"She's fine." Dumdum told them, earning a hard slap on the face by her sister.

"As fine as they can be... without their souls." Deedee added ominously.

"WHAT HAVE YOU DONE TO THEM!" Makoto roared and started forward but Ami and Minako held her back by her arms. They did not like the way the darkness seemed to shift and wriggle as if it were alive.

"The same thing our pets will do to you." The black-haired little girl laughed, delighted by the brunette's anger. The lights blinked on once more, and nearly blinded the rest of the girls by the suddenness of it. When their visions cleared, they could see that they were utterly surrounded by hundreds of shadow youmas. Then Deedee addressed the monsters, "CRUSH THEM!"

The youmas released a shrill shriek and started towards their targets, only to have the closest ones be blown away to bits by an arched bright energy beam and took down three or four of the monsters behind them. All heads swiveled up towards a slender silhouette that was crouching on the head of one of the nearby lamp posts. Cheshire wriggled her fingers at her shocked audience in greeting. "Howdy."

"Cheshire!" Dumdum exclaimed. "What-- why are you doing this?"

"Traitor!" Deedee yelled. "I knew it!"

"Oh no, little Maestros." Cheshire protested lightly. "You have to remember... I was created to keep the balance of the game." She pointed a finger at the youmas and started counting, then gave up on the fifth one. "Oh my... You have too many soldiers on the field. Tsk, tsk, tsk... Wasting valuable resources again, I see."

"Who is that?" Michiru whispered over to Rei, who was glaring up at the newcomer hatefully.

"I don't know, but I don't like the way this is turning out."

"There is only one thing left to do, I believe, or it's game over too soon." The cat-woman continued on thoughtfully and put a thumb on one of the six red stripes on her mask-- the one on her right cheek. The children's eyes widened before they started screaming at her to stop. But Cheshire was not listening. "Time to fly out of your cage, little canary..." Then she wiped the stripe away like she was cleaning off wet blood from the smooth porcelain surface.

Minako stiffened beside Makoto. Her forehead felt like it was burning which began to spread like tendrils all over her body. She shuddered, hugged herself tightly, and fell to her knees. In her mind's eye, she saw images-- images she could not understand but recognized. She was seeing herself yet she did not know who it was that she was seeing.

A masked woman in a strange sailor uniform striking a V-sign with her right hand.

A normal school girl giggling over something at what the blonde pig-tailed haired girl said beside her.

A princess in flowing, Grecian-like, white gown kissing the knuckles of her queen in reverence.

It was too much. All too much. Minako felt like her head was going to explode if she couldn't stop the images from coming. She clutched the sides of her head tightly, and squeezed her eyes shut. 'It hurts...'

"Aino-san!" Makoto cried out and bent to grab her shoulders. "Get a hold of yourself!"

"Mina-chan?" Ami gasped when she saw that her best friend's hunched figure began to glow a dazzling, yellow light. Then Minako threw her head back to reveal the sign of Venus burning brightly on her forehead. Then the blonde screamed a spine-chilling scream which even caused the youmas to recoil. But some of them recovered quickly, and launched themselves over to the helpless group with a piercing cry. Acting quickly, Cheshire slashed her kodachis in curvaceous motion and released another arched energy beam at the attacking beasts.

Makoto had been about to meet the lunging youmas halfway when they exploded in front of her. "SHIT!" She exclaimed in shock before she glowered over at Cheshire. "Next time you do that, warn me!" Their unlikely savior simply cocked her head at her.

"Mina-chan!" Ami was kneeling beside her best friend now and was taking the screaming girl into her arms. "What's wrong? Please calm down!"

"Is she alright?" Michiru ran to their side and looked down at them with a worried frown.

"I don't know! But her body feels hot." The blue-haired girl was close to tears. She did not like to see Minako in pain, but she did not know what to do. She felt useless.

"Heads up, everyone!" Makoto warned them. "Those things are going to attack!" She punched one of the approaching youmas where its face was supposed to be, and watched fly back. But a few seconds later, it staggered to its feet like the blow did not even affect it.

Cheshire leapt off the lamp post and landed a few meters away from the girls. She was still for a moment as she inwardly sought her center of balance before she moved in a whirlwind of motion, not giving the surrounding youmas any chance to attack. She hacked and slashed her way through the inhuman bodies towards the other girls. Seeing that the mysterious newcomer was a bigger threat to them than their other quarry, most of the youmas focused their energies in trying to subdue Cheshire.

"What is she doing! What is she doing!" Dumdum fidgeted with her long sleeves frantically. "Stop!"

"Fuck! Let's go, onee-chan, before she ruins everything!" Deedee snarled, before the twins ran out of the camera's perspective. The screen was left showing nothing but a bare, bright green wall.

Michiru screamed and stumbled back when a youma reached out for her. Then it stiffened, before it crumpled to the ground to reveal a kodachi imbedded firmly onto its back. Cheshire pulled her weapon out of, causing its dark blood to noisily squirt out of the wound and begin to pool around its body. Michiru winced in disgust. Suddenly, the masked woman leaned forward to peer closely into her face.

"Don't be frightened, beautiful." Cheshire purred flirtatiously. "I won't let these beasts lay a hand on you." Michiru blushed. Then the cat woman jerked backwards just as a dark leg swiped past into the air where her head was supposed to be. She plunged her kodachis onto the ground for stability before she lifted her legs and wrapped them around her attacker's neck. She twisted, and brutally brought the youma down to the ground. The last thing the youma saw was the cat-mask's wickedly grinning features before its head was decapitated from its body.

Even with the combined efforts of Makoto and Cheshire, the youmas still continued to inch closer and closer towards the huddled group.

Just then, Deedee and Dumdum emerged from the stage and leapt down to the ground. With Minako in their sights, they dashed towards their target-- their knives gleaming maliciously between their fingers. They could not waste another second. They had to kill the blonde before she could awaken. They sprang impossibly high into the air and threw all they had of their hidden blades at their defenseless preys-- not caring if they killed their own comrades in the crossfire.

Even with the mask on, it was clear that Cheshire's face was full of alarm. Even she could not stop this rain of steel nor escape with the youmas enclosing them from all sides. "Venus!" She called out desperately. Only a senshi's power could save them now. "Wake up Sailor Venus!"


Minako stood in naked in the middle of the room full of pictures. As a celebrity, she savored these kinds of things-- people watching her, people worshiping the image of her, her image being objectified by television screens and photographs... But she was not the object of these pictures. They were pictures of the people she envied... Of a smiling Ami clutching on to a bewildered Makoto's arm, of a laughing Michiru playing with her daughter and her happy husband holding her steady on the shoulder behind her, of her parents bringing their wine glasses together in a celebratory gesture with the image of England's glimmering city lights in the back ground, and of other everyday people happily living their lives...

With an enraged cry, she tore the pictures down. It wasn't fair! It wasn't fair that they were all happy and she was not! She had EVERYTHING! But why did she feel like an outsider in this happy world! She collapsed to her knees and buried her face in her hands. She sobbed long and hard-- letting all the anguish finally break free from the cage she had kept locked inside her for so long.

'I will always be alone...' She thought.

Then she felt someone lay a hand on top of her head. And she looked up tearfully to see a blonde, pigtailed-haired girl smiling beautifully down at her. Even though she was simply dressed in the same school uniform she often saw her best friend wear, there was something phantom-like and angelic about this other girl. "It's alright, Mina-chan... You're never alone."

"Who..." Minako began hoarsely. "Who are you?" The shining ghostly image did not answer but knelt in front of the other blonde and pulled her into a comforting embrace. Minako stiffened at first before she relaxed into her arms. 'She's so warm...' She thought, feeling very peaceful and loved in this strange apparition's presence.

"It's time to help your friends, Sailor Venus." She heard the other whisper into her ear before she felt her pull back to press her lips against her forehead. Minako's amazed blue eyes followed the image as she stood up, unaware of the sign that was glowing radiantly on her own forehead. The other girl smiled and offered a peculiar-looking pen in front of Minako. Her mouth moved but no sound came out. But Minako knew what this phantom was trying to say, and wanted her to repeat it somehow.

"Venus!" Someone cried out from an unseen place, and the voice reverberated inside the room like an unwelcome intruder. But the blonde ignored it; her eyes were glued on to the object in front of her. Her heart was pounding so hard, she could practically hear it throbbing against her ears. "Wake up Sailor Venus!"

Then she grabbed the wand, and the room was enveloped in white light.


When Makoto saw the volley of knives about to impale them she instinctively ducked and covered her head. The rest, except Cheshire and the youmas, did the same. Ami buried her face into Minako's hair and prayed that some of them would at least come out of this alive somehow. But then, she felt the body underneath her tremble before she was forced to let go of Minako when the blonde shot to her feet and held a wand up over her head.

"Mina-chan! What are you---!" But Ami was not given the opportunity to finish her sentence because when the blonde recited the following words, everything went still.

"Venus Power... MAKE UP!"

Ami, blinded by the light that suddenly emanated from her best friend's form, winced away and covered her eyes. Distantly, she could hear the youmas screech as if it pained them. When the light faded and the blue-haired girl could finally look at Minako, she gasped at what she saw.

In her best friend's place stood someone else-- dressed in an orange and white sailor fuku with a dark blue bow. Ami knew, logically, that the person who stood in front of her was Minako. But no matter how much she tried to search this person's face for any signs of familiarity-- she could see none. It boggled her mind.

"Venus!" Cheshire yelled again, which snapped Sailor Venus out of her trance. The blonde had no time to wonder what had happened though, because when the cat-woman pointed at the knives that were about to impel them to death-- she panicked. "Quick! Point your finger up and focus your energy on it. Then yell 'Crescent Beam Shower!'"

Sailor Venus did not hesitate and pointed her finger up at the twins, like she was about to shoot them with a make-believe gun, and concentrated. Beads of sweat started to form at her temple as she felt her energy being drained from inside her to gather at the tip of her finger. In that millisecond, she could feel the power start to build. In that millisecond, it felt like an eternity. The power burned inside her, but she was not sure how to release it. Then she remembered what Cheshire told her. "Crescent Beam Shower!" It was like a key had twisted the lock inside her, and she felt herself let go.

A golden ray burst out from her finger which multiplied in mid air which disintegrated almost all of the knives in their path. When the twins saw what was happening, they tried to scramble away. But that was a hard thing to do, considering the fact that they were airborne after all. The beams hit them like a barrage of white-hot lasers.

Sailor Venus did not need to look up to see the twins drop to the ground, and even if she had to she could not, because she was too drained to try. She felt what was left of her unearthly power ebb away and her sailor fuku faded back to her normal clothes. She was about to fall bodily to the ground when she felt someone catch her, and carefully eased her onto the bed of grass. At first she thought it was Ami, but when she looked up she saw Makoto's awe-filled green eyes looking down at her.

"You did great, Minako-san." Makoto whispered in a humbled and grateful tone. "You saved us."

"Makoto-san..." The blonde murmured tiredly, feeling the warmth of the other girl's sincere words envelop her like a comforting blanket. She closed her eyes and drifted off into blissful unconsciousness.

"Took her long enough..." Cheshire clucked her tongue which earned her a withering glare from Rei.

"What did you do to her!" The dark-haired girl yelled, and rose to storm over towards the masked woman. But the remaining, excitable youmas started for Rei as soon as she did so. Without the twins commanding them, Cheshire was the obvious authority figure, and she waved a hand at the monsters to halt them.

"That's the wrong question. But since it is an important one, I shall consider it." She paused and gestured over at Minako. "I simply returned her memories... And showed her a glimpse of what her 'alternatives' were like."

"Shut up you traitor!" The rest of the girls whirled around in surprise towards the site where the twins had landed. Smoke was rising out of their semi-burnt bodies, but they were apparently alive. Deedee was struggling to get up, but it was obvious that the action was causing her a lot of pain. "I don't care what you say, you're a traitor! The queen will have your head for this!"

"I was simply doing as I was told." Cheshire cocked her head forward almost apologetically. "From this point on, the real game begins."

"What game? What are you talking about!" Makoto snarled. She had a feeling that this woman was toying with them somehow-- pulling their strings like a puppet, and she hated this feeling of subtle manipulation. Distrust and anger colored her eyes dark. "Why are you doing this to us!"

"Live and fight another day, senshis. Follow the clues set before you if you desire the answer." Cheshire ran a loving hand down her mask as she said this before walking around the girls and moved towards the twins. The children flinched when they saw her approach, and cowered as she stood before them. It was one thing to mouth off on Cheshire from afar, but it was another thing when they could not get away... With the masked woman's back turned on the rest of the girls, they did not see her eyes become cold and hard as she gazed down at Deedee and Dumdum. "You nearly killed me, little Maestros... But you have your purpose, like I have mine... So we'll consider this a draw."

Taking their silent cues, the youmas began to sink to the ground in a black puddle which also started to evaporate into the air in a series of black smoke. Cheshire waved a hand over towards the huddled group, and the smoke began to rapidly move around them trapping them within a wide tornado. Everyone tried to protect their eyes from the smoke. Then as quickly as it happened the smoke quickly died away-- and where the Maestros used to be were not there anymore.


+Author's Note+

If you're wondering what martial art Haruka was using, it's Shotokan.

Yeah... Sorry for the delay. I have summer classes now. So from now on, I will be updating this fic every weekend instead of every two or three days. I hope y'all would understand. (bows) But I have a treat for you guys!

Here's a little something I made just add the http thingy before each of these links (this document stuff in FF dot netis screwing up my texts... UGH):

1024x768

img151.imageshack.us/img151/8946/loveisdestructive19zl.jpg

800x600

img107.imageshack.us/img107/4489/loveisdestructive23qb.jpg

And you must be wondering what the Maestros and the queen really looked like so here:

img177.imageshack.us/img177/1536/guesswho9zb.jpg

The colored version will come in the next chapter. Until then, these are gifts to you guys for being such loyal readers and awesome friends!