Chapter 38
The Snow, the Mountains, Friendship and Monsters
"Hey, let's go up to the snow! Come on it'll be fun! And it says right here that this weekend, they're having this great Moon Princess contest up at the Ski Resort," Usagi said excitedly as she showed her friends a flyer she found.
"That seems like an odd coincidence," replied Minako.
"Yeah, it's perfect! A contest like this is tailor made for me to win, don't you think?" grinned Usagi.
"Let me see," said Rei.
She took the flyer out of Usagi's hands.
"Wow, so the contest winner gets to be crowned Moon Princess at night in front of a big crowd of people?" she asked.
She began to think of herself skiing down the mountain and being crowned Moon Princess.
"I can already see myself there," sighed Rei.
"So is that, yes?" asked Usagi.
"I'm good with all this. But I'm wondering what Luna and Artemis will think about it," replied Makoto.
"There's no need to worry about that, I'll just tell them we're all going up to the mountains do some serious training," assured Minako.
"I'm kinda surprised you'd suggest telling them that," mused Usagi.
"What, it's the truth," replied Minako.
"Well, a bit of training seems fine with me. But I'm sure we'll have some fun at the ski resort," said Sora.
"Yeah, you said it Sora. So I know they'll believe what Minako says," agreed Ami.
"Great, that means all of us can go!" cheered Usagi.
"But how are we gonna find a hotel on such short Vacancy notice?" asked Rei.
"I think I can help you out with that, guys," Yuuichirou said as he arrived.
"What makes you say that. buddy?" asked Axel.
"My folks own a place up there that's big enough for all of you to stay," he told them.
"That sounds like a reasonable idea," said Riku.
"Yeah, we would so appreciate that," agreed Usagi.
"Sure, well, then it's all settled. I'll make this weekend off, and then I'll just-" Yuuichirou said.
"Hold on, so does that mean you're coming too?" asked Rei.
"Oh, is that a problem?" Yuuchirou said sadly.
"Not at all," replied Sora.
"Yeah, that'll be fine, right Rei?" agreed Makoto.
"It's like they always say: you won't know until you meet your destiny," said Roxas, which cheered Yuuichirou up.
"You mean, by chance a meeting could be your destiny, right?" piped in Minako.
"Oh thanks," snipped Roxas, making everyone laugh.
As Rei took a look at the flyer again, Kunzite was also looking at the same flyer he was also holding.
"I know that they'll fall for this, because these fools are quite predictable," he said.
"Are you sure?" asked Endymion.
"As sure as rain, Big E. Sure, we may be underestimating these losers, but through our previous failures we may plan ahead and outfox them with a bit more planning and coordination. As Sun Tsu would say: To know your enemy, you have to think like the enemy. And that's the number one rule we follow in the Art of War," replied Pete.
"Very well said, Pete. After all, Endymion's been secretly helping Sailor Moon for so long, I'm sure he knows everything about those dullards, but I know them too! I will do whatever is required to defeat everyone of those ungrateful pests!" said Kunzite.
He glanced at the picture of himself and Zoisite, the image of Sephiroth mercilessly killing him still haunting him, as Endymion stalked away. At the station to the ski resort, everyone stepped off the train and saw the mountain above.
"Wow, how pretty!" Usagi said excitedly.
"I can't believe we're actually here," agreed Makoto.
"I feel bad leaving Luna and Artemis behind," said Ami.
"They'll be fine. Besides, I'm sure they'd rather be curled up somewhere warm," Minako assured her.
Minako was right. Luna and Artemis were happily resting peacefully in Usagi's house, safe and sound.
'"There's nothing more relaxing on a nice warm kotatsu, Right Artemis?" said Luna.
She perked up and saw that he was still asleep.
"Aw, he looks so peaceful there. Why would anyone wanna pass up being here than go train up in the freezing cold? Well, good for them," she said, yawning and falling back to sleep.
"My parents are at our swiss chalet right now, so please make yourselves right at home," said Yuuichirou, as everyone marveled at what they saw.
"Thank you, Yuuichirou," replied Namine.
"This place is so huge," said Rei.
"Gawrsh, I sure wish Maxie would be happy to visit," mused Goofy.
"Hey, Yuuichirou, seeing as you come from a family of good people, why'd you come to Hikawa Shrine?" asked Sora.
"I trained so I could become a better person," replied Yuuichirou.
"Oh, right," Rei said hesitantly.
"I'd say that's a swell idea, pal. Learnin' how to be a better person does take a bit of practice," agreed Mickey.
"Become a better person, my butt. He just wants to spend all day smelling your hair," whispered Usagi.
"Ah, Phooey! I know that Yuuichirou would never stoop that low!" quacked Donald.
"Donald's right! Being respectful of other people is a good way to make your bond stronger!" agreed Goofy.
"And if our foes saw us infighting with each other, we'd all get transformed into Heartless, before we get the chance to set aside our differences," said Sora.
"Well, why are we all sitting here? Let's go skiing," suggested Makoto.
"Yeah!" agreed everyone.
They all went out to the ski resort, and were marveling at the people around them, as they began skiing down the gentler slopes.
"Oh, Wow! Look at all the snow, this is so awesome!" giggled Usagi.
"This is perfect weather for skiing," agreed Makoto.
"That's for sure," grinned Minako.
"Wait a sec, where'd Rei and Yuuichirou go anyway?" asked Ami.
"I have a pretty good idea where they went," said Sora, pointing towards the mountain.
Sure enough, they all looked to see Rei and Yuuichirou racing down the slope, next to the chairlift towards them, and skidded to a halt.
"This area's flat as a pancake. Let's go further up the mountain, okay?" she said.
"Yeah, let's do it, Rei!" agreed Sora.
"No thanks, I'll pass," Makoto declined politely.
"Maybe you'd better go on ahead with these guys," added Minako.
"I'll be over at the beginner's slope practicing," smiled Ami.
"Yeah, we'll be fine," agreed Usagi.
"Hold on Usagi, weren't you planning on entering the Moon Princess contest that's being held way up there on the mountain, up at the top?" inquired Yuuichirou.
Usagi turned and looked to where Yuuichirou pointed. Her eyes popped in surprise.
"What!?" she cried.
"Besides being good looking, you also need to be a good skier, or you won't have a chance of being named the Moon Princess," said Yuuichirou.
"Are you kidding?" asked Usagi.
"What'll you do now, drop out?" Rei asked in response.
"Rei makes a valid point, Usagi. If you quit now, you won't get a chance at being named Moon Princess. So I say, let's rise to the challenge!" declared Sora.
"You know what, you're right Sora!" replied Usagi.
This time she was determined to win the title of Moon Princess no matter what. Together, she, Rei, Sora, and Yuuichirou, all began the long trek to the starting line, to participate in the contest. Unknown to the four of them, Kunzite was also at the top of the mountain, talking to a skier, who had succumbed to the darkness, and became a servant of the Dark Kingdom.
"Do you see anyone that might be her?" he asked the skier.
"No, not yet," she replied.
"Give it time. With the monster power that I've endowed upon you, you should have no trouble uncovering Sailor Moon's true identity. Go on, get to work," Kunzite said.
"Leave it to me, Master Kunzite," the skier said, nodding slowly.
On the chair lift, Usagi looked down, as she sat with Rei, Yuuichirou, and Sora, shivering anxiously.
"Look at that. I sure hope this isn't where I'm supposed to ski," she shuddered.
"Nah, this is nothing compared to how steep it is, up at the top," grinned Yuuichirou.
Poor Usagi, didn't feel brave at all, especially when she saw other skiers and snowboarders at the starting line for the contest they entered.
"Welcome to all you lady contestants, the fourth annual Moon Princess contest, will begin in just a moment. Tonight our very first Moon Princess will guide you down the course, Moonlight instructor Saeko Yamamoto," announced an MC.
"And now here are the contest rules: whichever of you deemed by the judges will be the fastest and most graceful skier to cross the finish line of the Moonlight course, will be crowned Moon Princess. Even though you'll be racing in the dark, the course is well lit, so there's no danger," Saeko said to the contestants.
Lights flickered on, and the skiers all stood at the starting line, ready to go, while Usagi gulped nervously.
"Ready, set, START!" announced Saeko.
Then the skiers cast off down the slope, and the contest was on. Usagi still felt nervous, but she knew that Sora and Rei were right about rising to the challenge, but felt like she had to quit until Yuuichirou and Sora approached her.
"Usagi, ,you can't fall this far behind in the race," he said.
He then gave her a push, sending her down the slope, as Sora transformed into his Keyblade Armor, and followed her on his Keyblade Glider.
"You can do it, Usagi!" he cheered, trying to bolster her confidence.
"That's the way to ski, Usagi! You can do it if you try!" called Yuuichirou.
Saeko, however, also followed them, under orders from Kunzite to uncover who Sailor Moon truly was. Ahead, beyond a few dozen skiers, Rei was having the time of her life, as she skied down the slope.
'This ski course will be their one way ticket to oblivion," chuckled the first Moon Princess.
She soon began altering the landscape, but Rei anticipated it thanks to her foresight, and immediately adapted to it, while the other skiers arrived unprepared and fell hard on the soft snow. Glancing around for any signs of trouble, she soon dismissed those thoughts and surged on ahead, while Usagi whooshed past her.
"I can't slow down!" she cried.
Rei was impressed, but was still adamant on winning the race, when Sora raced by on his Keyblade Glider.
"We got trouble Rei! Try to catch up with Usagi!" called Sora.
Rei nodded and soon caught up with Usagi. Behind them, Saeko, still imbued with the darkness, saw what was happening.
"Well, it looks like one of those two skiers must be the real Moon Princess, Sailor Moon," she said.
"Usagi, you've got to slow down! You're gonna get hurt!" called Rei.
"If I could I would have done that by now! How are you supposed to stop these things!?" replied Usagi.
They didn't notice Saeko causing a tiny part of snow to drop behind them, and become a giant snowball that rolled towards them.
"Oh no!" gasped Sora.
"Uh, Usagi, start skiing a lot faster!" cried Rei.
"But, Rei I don't know control at all here!" replied Usagi.
"Wait, that sure sounded like an avalanche. That means Rei's in trouble," said Yuuichirou, who heard a loud booming sound from nearby.
"Just keep going!" called Rei and Sora, who raced ahead of the boulder.
Behind them, Saeko soon transformed into Blizzar.
"Time to get serious," she said.
She began altering the course to make it be surrounded by walls of ice.
'What's happening!?" asked Usagi.
"Trouble!" replied Sora, now knowing that Kunzite was involved.
They surged through the narrow route, with the snowball right behind them.
"Hey Rei, it's me, Yuuichirou! Don't you worry Rei, I'll save you!" called Yuuichirou.
He jumped down, into the narrow passageway, and stood firm in front of the snowball.
'YOU SHALL NOT PASS!" he shouted bravely, but was run over by the massive ball.
"I could swear I heard a noise, back there," said Rei.
"That must've been Yuuichirou!" replied Sora.
"Very impressive, Princess. Now let's see if you can escape this!" cried Blizzar.
She began making the walls of ice, slam against each other, like the walls of a garbage compactor, when Rei caught Usagi, and stopped her just in time. The next walls closed in on the snowball, making it explode, spitting Yuuichirou out, and sending him flying to land right next to Rei and Usagi, while Sora jumped off his glider, de transformed in front of them, and landed at their side.
"What should we do?" asked Usagi.
Rei tried to climb out of the chasm, believing that the Dark Kingdom was up to its old tricks, but slipped and fell to the ground.
"Uh, Rei, are you all right?" Usagi asked the Raven Haired Shrine Maiden.
"No, not exactly! Now come on, we need to climb up this snow bank, and get out of here!" snapped Rei.
"Forget it, Rei! That's not going to work! I'm gonna send out a flare to let our friends know that we're in trouble so they can rescue us," said Sora.
"What if no one shows up and we all transform into Ski Cycles!? You've got to suck it up and tough it out!" barked Rei.
"Haven't forgotten our warning about letting anger and hatred fuel the darkness inside our hearts!? Both Usagi and I know that someone else may have been crowned Moon Princess, because of the Dark Kingdom's Interference! And because of that, we nearly got crushed by a giant boulder of snow, which is less worse than that boulder Doctor Henry 'Indiana' Jones had to escape from!" shouted Sora.
"Probably, thanks to me saving a certain someone, I missed my chance!" grumbled Rei, who tried climbing up again.
"Mom, Dad, please stop fighting," muttered Usagi, as she pulled out the music box and listened to the tune it played.
Rei turned around, when she heard it, and slowly clambered back down to Usagi and Sora.
"Oh, I'm sorry, Rei," she said.
"That used to be Tuxedo Masks, right?" asked Rei.
Both Usagi and Sora nodded.
"When I'm sad, and I listen to it, it kinda helps to take away my sadness," said Usagi.
Rei nodded, looking up at the stars above.
"Sorry, I didn't mean to brag or anything, I was trying to keep things positive! You know, trying to change the mood here. I hope I didn't hurt your feelings by bringing him up," Usagi said quickly.
"There's no reason to think that, it really doesn't bother me anymore," replied Rei.
"Oh, but I thought…" Usagi said.
"It's okay, Usagi. We both understand by the fact that while Mamoru and Tuxedo Mask are the same person, Rei understands that, a lot more than we could possibly imagine. But when he saved you from being struck down by Zoisite's wrath, that proved that he truly cared about you. Believe me, the only one to blame is the Dark Kingdom, and we intend to pay them back for hurting him, no matter what. So don't forget what I'm about to say to you. A life without love, friendship, happiness, and light, means That the darkness will win by making you think you're alone. You aren't alone, not while you keep us in your heart," said Sora.
"Sora's right, Usagi, first we got to defeat those Dark Kingdom guys, and bring peace to the world," agreed Rei.
"Yeah, you're right," replied Usagi.
"See, you can't give up. Not now. But the first thing we should do is get ourselves out of here. If Rei transforms into Sailor Mars, she and I can combine Fire Soul with my fire magic to unleash Mega Flare," Sora explained.
"Whoa, that's right!" agreed Rei.
As Usagi stood up as well.
"That's a good idea, Sora!" smiled Usagi.
"Thanks, but, whenever any of us have ideas, we tend to hold off until we're ready to give them a test drive," said Sora.
"You know, Sora's right. Let's transform!" agreed Rei.
She was about to change into Sailor Mars, when she heard Yuuichirou's voice from beneath the snow.
"It is you, thank goodness, you're okay!" he cried out happily.
"Hey Yuuichirou!" Sora said happily.
"This is gonna be a miracle of love!" Yuuichirou said proudly.
He gently took Rei's hand.
"This is a safe way out. Come on, let's go everyone," he said.
"Not so fast!" called Saeko.
Everyone looked up at her.
"It's miss Yamamoto!" cried Rei.
'No, it's another of Kunzite's henchmen," said Sora.
"I am Blizzar! And I've been ordered to eliminate Sailor Moon!" she announced, transforming into her monster form.
"If you want Sailor Moon, you'll have to go through me!" shouted Sora, brandishing his Keyblade, and standing in front of the girls.
"Very well, I'll eliminate you first, boy!" replied Blizzar.
"No, Sora! Don't throw your life away!" cried Rei.
"Don't worry, Rei! I promise to keep you and Usagi safe! Besides, I already had a feeling this was gonna go south the minute Queen Beryl's thugs were involved! But the real Sailor Moon is right here with us!" replied Sora.
"Silence! My judgement has never ever been wrong!" roared Blizzar.
She then sent a powerful burst of icy wind, right at them, but Yuuichirou stood in front of them, until he was bound in ice, and fell over.
"You're gonna pay for this!" shouted Sora.
"You said it, Sora! This is our chance to transform!" agreed Rei.
"You heard the lady, Usagi! Let's do it!" added Sora.
"Okay!" replied Usagi.
Then together, Rei and Usagi became Sailors Moon and Mars, and prepared to battle the dark creature.
"I don't believe this! So you're both Sailor Guardians!?" snarled the ice demon.
"That's right! And they've got a Keyblade Master on their side!" remarked Sora.
"We'll never forgive you for trapping us in this ice! Don't you know that it's not nice for people to let their tummies get cold!?" declared Sailor Moon.
"How dare you freeze my Yuuichirou into a statue! You're gonna pay for this, you monster!" cried Sailor Mars.
"It's time to end this, right here, right now!" shouted Sora.
"I agree with your words, boy!" replied Blizzar, summoning an Ice lance.
She flung it at them, but Sora deflected it with his Keyblade.
"All right, girls! Let's do it!" Sora said to them.
HE and Rei then combined their strength.
"MEGA FLARE!" they cried.
Their attack surged towards the demon, who dodged it, and tried to strike back, but was stopped by Tuxedo Mask.
"Oh my gosh, Tuxedo Mask!" Sailors Moon and Marks cried out for joy.
"Good evening everyone, nice to see you," replied Mamoru.
Blizzar looked out in confusion.
"I'll handle these fools, once and for all. Blizzar, stand aside and watch!" he said.
He began brandishing black roses, and threw them at Sora, Sailor Moon, and Sailor Mars, but the brave Keyblader deflected them.
"Cease your meddling, Sora!" Endymion said darkly.
"Save it, Mamoru! I can see exactly what you've become!" snappeed Sora.
"So what now?" asked Usagi.
"Tuxedo Mask, have you really forgotten who we are!? You used to be on our side, remember!? You've always fought to protect Sailor Moon, because you loved her, so much!" called Rei.
"He's not Mamoru anymore. He's just a pawn of the darkness," said Sora.
"I'm begging you, try to think back to that time!" pleaded Rei.
Mamoru hesitated, but Blizzar burst out from behind them, and tried to strike them down, only to be stopped by him with a single rose.
'Why'd you stop me, Endymion!?" she demanded.
"You guys, now's your chance!" cried Rei.
"Right!" agreed Sailor Moon and Sora.
"Saeko Yamamoto, it's time for you to face the light!" cried Sora.
"Moon Healing Escalation!" called Sailor Moon.
At last, Saeko returned to normal. Then, Sora and Usagi glanced up at Tuxedo Mask.
"Ha, my time is too valuable, to defeat you fools right now, so farewell, for now. We will meet again," he scoffed.
As he walked away, the rose soon turned black, as it wilted, but Sailor Moon swore that she'd find a way to return Mamoru to normal.
"You're such an idiot, Yuuichirou. Always risking your life to save me," said Rei.
But she thanked him, and gave him a kiss, just as Saeko awoke, and looked around.
"What am I doing here?" she asked.
"Honestly, you don't wanna know," replied Sora.
The four friends then sat down, after setting up a campfire. The heat then slowly awoke Yuuichirou, making everyone relieved that he was okay.
"Oh, thank goodness, you're safe Rei!" cried Yuuichirou, making Sora laugh.
"Yeah after you passed out, the Pretty Guardians showed up, and rescued us," replied Rei.
"Well, not without my help," added Sora.
"Oh, well I'm sorry. I wasn't up to the job, but I did try," Yuuichirou said sheepishly.
"Hey, what are you talking about? You acted so cool and brave back there," protested Usagi.
Yuuichirou blushed, as Usagi asked Rei if he did, to which the raven-haired shrine maiden nodded in agreement.
"That took a lot of courage to protect us from that snow monster," said Sora.
"Well, I'm glad to hear that," replied Yuuichirou.
The four of them laughed, when they're friends arrived.
"There you are, where have you all been?" asked Makoto.
They all turned to see her stern face.
"You know, we've been worried sick about you guys," she said.
"Yeah well, all's well that ends well, right?" replied Sora.
"That was very well said, Sora!" cheered Minako, who went up to him, and pressed her lips onto his, making everyone surprised.
"Aw, man. I'm never gonna get a boyfriend," moaned Makoto.
"Don't be too sure, Makoto. I know that there's someone out there who doesn't see you for what you are on the outside, but rather see's what's in your heart," assured Terra.
When Minako moved away from Sora, who blushed and rubbed his head sheepishly, making her giggle.
"Well, we had some fun, except we had to tackle a vicious snow monster that tried to interfere in the contest Usagi and Rei were participating in," said Sora.
"Yeah, that's right. And we even had a little chat about friendship," added Usagi.
"Me, be friends with Usagi, when pigs fly!" scoffed Rei.
"Be nice, Rei," warned Axel.
"I'm trying, okay!?" she snapped furiously at Axel, as the two pyros butted heads against each other.
"Aw, stop fighting Mom and Dad!" wailed Usagi.
