I'm sorry this was a year late, everyone. I know you've been waiting a long time. A lot has happened since I last updated, and a lot is still happening this year. I hope you're all still following and want to read! I will try to keep this going as long as I can, and update as much as possible. Thank you for remaining dedicated. And, oh- please don't forget to review, please! Your thoughts are always appreciated. :-) xoxo.
PakuPaku was so… HUNGRY.
PakuPaku hadn't had a Persona Flower to eat in DAYS! And, after those two targets had escaped him, he'd been searching for them ever since. Not ONLY had he initially been ordered to 'annihilate them' by the great Mistress Eris herself, but his general instinct was to EAT their Persona Flowers. Not that it mattered much. PakuPaku's MEALS usually died anyway, one way or another.
AND, right now, as PakuPaku hopped and skipped behind the bushes, he started to think of the red target. How her fire attack had TASTED so delicious. He was CERTAIN her Persona Flower would taste just as good… if not BETTER!
THEN, like a wonderful, dark, DELICATE BLESSING sent by the Mistress Eris herself, the specs of pupils in his white, wide eyes SPOTTED HER in mid-stride. THE RED TARGET.
THE RED TARGET WAS WALKING RIGHT BY PAKUPAKU.
HIS BIG GRIN GREW EERILY BROADER. HIS EYES SILENTLY TRACKED HER. HE HAD FINALLY FOUND ONE OF THEM.
AND THEN PAKUPAKU HOPPED OUT OF THE BUSHES, FILLED WITH EXTREME EXCITEMENT AND HUNGER AND ADRENALINE AND CHASE. HE RAN OVER TO HER, THEN SLOWED TO A SILENT WALK IN ORDER NOT TO DISTURB HER.
HE STOPPED BEHIND HER WHEN SHE STOPPED. HIS ROUNDNESS ALMOST TOUCHING HER FABRIC CLOTHING.
HE COULD SMELL HER SWEAT. HE COULD SMELL HER EMOTIONS. OOOOOH. AND HE COULD DEFINITELY SMELL HER PERSONA FLOWER.
YUUUUUUMMMMMMMYYY. HE COULD EAT HER UP.
PAKUPAKU LIFTED UP PAKUPAKU'S FORK, INTENDING TO STRIKE. TO STAB. TO YANK THE DELICIOUS PERSONA FLOWER OUT OF THE RED ONES BODY AND CONSUME IT.
THE FORK CAME DOWN.
- x -
"Luna!" Usagi exclaimed when the familiar black cat walked briskly up to her, just as she was exiting the Crown Arcade. "Where have you been?" The blonde crouched down and held her arms out.
The feline hopped into them, and purred through the embrace as Usagi began to walk alongside the shopping strip again. "I was… investigating," she admitted scantily.
The blonde raised a teasing eyebrow. A smirk played on her features. "Oooh, Investigating', huh?" Amusement and mischief was thick in her voice as an underline, more inappropriate implication hid behind her words.
"Usagi, you pervert!" Luna rolled her eyes… though she did blush slightly. "I was trying to discover more about our new enemy."
The teasing ensued. "Neh, Neh - Was Artemis with you?" The Rabbit wiggled her eyebrows.
"Yes, but-" Luna replied hesitantly.
"Ooooh~" Usagi giggled behind her hand.
"Stop it! It wasn't like that!" The black cat finally replied with irritability.
"Okay, okay," Usagi submitted, allowing her silly laughs to subside. Obviously, Luna had something important to tell her, and she couldn't deny the fact that she was a little curious about her guardian's discovery anyway. "So, where did you go? Did you find anything?"
Luna was silent for a moment, then she sighed. "It doesn't matter… We didn't come across anything," She admitted shamefully, "And, we're not going to. We barely know anything about the new threat…" The midnight cat's face saddened in defeat.
The Rabbit's features softened, her eyes rimming with slight sympathy as she looked down to glance at the black feline. Her walking came to a halt, and she tousled her pet between the ears comfortingly with her hand. "Awuh, don't be like that, Luna!" The blonde solicited supportably, a soft smile coming to her face. "We'll figure it out! I mean… for starters, we know that they want 'Persona Flowers', right?" She offered cheerily. Baby blue eyes looked up at the sky in ponder, and a slender finger thoughtfully tapped her chin.
Hm… what did baddies usually want? "Well… maybe, they want power! Like… taking over the Earth, or even the whole universe!" She exclaimed/suggested, singing a thundering "dum dum dum" shortly after and making, what was supposed to be, a threatening face. That's what Galaxia and Nehelenia had been after. But… then… their first enemies, Beryl and Metalia, had just wanted the world to be covered in darkness… and what about the Black Moon? They'd come to do more than take over – they'd come to change the whole future!
"Yes… perhaps that's why they're collecting Persona Flowers…" Luna mused.
"Or, maybe…" Usagi continued, "maybe they're trying to find something special… like with the Death Busters…" They had been searching for heart crystals in order to find the three crystal "treasures", which, when combined together, had been fabled to make a very powerful, magical chalice… the "holy grail". Originally, they hadn't wanted power. Just to wake the Messiah of Silence. Though… of course… maybe, now that Usagi thought about it… in the grand scheme of things, they had actually wanted to destroy the world, too…
Luna nodded. "That, too." Her feline features tinged with seriousness. "But… they could also be aiming for something completely different this time, Usagi-chan," She warned. "Be extra careful."
Usagi nodded understandably, and then began walking again. The warning echoed in her head, and she wrapped her arms around the black cat delicately.
In a few moments of silence, her thoughts suddenly traveled to what her sky senshi friend had told her not even a half an hour ago.
And, naturally, all she could do was question… why?
Why did she have to hide her feelings for Rei-chan, when, obviously, Haruka seemed to know all about them? Why did it matter if she liked her best friend or not? Of course, Usagi wasn't too keen on admitting it so broadly. She still held love for Mamo-chan… and she wasn't sure how the others would take such a confession…
But… what if… one day… she wanted Rei-chan to know how she truly felt? What if… one day… she didn't care what anyone else thought? What if… one day… she just simply felt obligated to tell her?
But, Haruka-san wasn't telling her not to tell her. She had simply told her not to… date… Rei-chan. Not to… be with her.
And, although she was with Mamo… although… as everybody knew, she loved Mamo dearly and was supposed to marry him… although, they were destined to have Chibi-usa-chan… and… although, they were meant to be Queen and King of Crystal Tokyo…
…something… just… felt…wrong… about not ever able to be romantically involved with Rei-chan.
And, that's… that's what made it hard. Of all the times she had felt butterflies around the miko, and of all of the days she had been silently crushing on her, never had Usagi once envisioned them in a relationship. Never. Never had she once ever gave the idea much thought… if any at all. The thought of the two of them romantically… physically… being together…
It confused and frightened her… but, at the same time… it also somewhat thrilled her.
And, she vaguely, subconsciously, found herself wondering if… by the chance that Rei-chan ever liked her back… by the chance that she ever confessed to her…if such an idea could ever become an actual possibility…
But, that's when she heard a shrill shriek. A familiar shriek that shook her from her thoughts and startled her being. Her attention instinctively settled forward, watching in alarm and horror just as Luna called out the ravenette's name in distress.
The slender beauty fell to her knees, her hand clutching her bleeding stomach.
The monster... the big one from before... he stood behind her with a gigantic fork. He'd stabbed her.
He'd stabbed Rei-chan.
No.
"Rei-chan!" she screamed. Her blues eyes wide. Worried. Her face full of fear. She dropped Luna, and ran to the fire senshi's side without hesitation.
The miko shot her odangoed friend a hazardous look, shooting her other arm out to motion 'stop'. "Usagi!... Don't!"
"Rei-chan!" The blonde didn't yield, and collapsed on her knees beside the fire senshi, putting her face near hers. Surveying her wounded stomach. "You're hurt!"
Rei seemed to repress the urge to roll her eyes or make a snide remark. "I told you not to come over here!" she snapped.
"But- But, you're bleeding! You're hurt!"
"Don't worry about me, Odango-atama. It's not that bad."
Usagi cautiously touched the stab wound, testing it, fingers brushing it, and jumped as Rei winced. The moon senshi's face hardened, concerned for her best friend's well being. "It is, too, bad!" She retaliated evenly.
Their bickering, of course, caught the attention of the round youma. "PAKUPAKU HUNGRY." He turned to the two targets with an even larger grin and a hungry, wide-eyed stare.
The fork rose up.
"Usagi!" Luna called out.
The blonde looked to her feline friend, only for her eyes to notice the humongous fork hovering over her. She only had time to gasp, fore it was coming down fast.
- x -
"Usagi! Watch out!" Rei screamed, pushing both herself and her odangoed friend out of harm's way. The stab wound got the greater contact as they both landed on the ground, the shrine maiden lying just an inch or two away from her princess. The ravenette gritted her teeth in pain, and watched as the fork simply punctured the air. She was relieved to have shoved Usagi away from the youma, and was glad the odango-atama didn't have to suffer the fork's bayonet all the way through the stomach as she had.
She glanced at the youma, who was currently being clawed out by Luna, who had tackled PakuPaku's face - a distraction to save time, the miko assumed. It, however, did not last long, as the monster soon took it's bare hand, grabbed Luna, and threw her to the side.
Usagi sat up, and after one worried glance toward the injured, bleeding Rei, then toward her beloved black cat that had been so idily tossed onto the sidewalk, the odangoed girl's face hardened. Her blues sapphires became determined, dutiful, and daring... and senshi of fire knew The Rabbit meant business.
The Blonde swiftly hopped to her feet and pointed at the youma, who was obviously guilty. "You'll pay for this, you horrible monster! Moon Eternal, Make-up!"
The next thing Rei knew, Usagi was transforming into Eternal Sailor Moon.
"How dare you hurt my dear friend, Rei-chan and my favourite feline, Luna! And, how dare you come after me!" The moon senshi scolded with hands of righteousness on her hips. Needless to say, Usagi Tsukino had become the ever-famous moon soldier now. Next, came her signature pose and quote... "I am Sailor Moon, senshi of Love and Justice! In the name of the moon, I'll punish you!"
The ravenette propped herself up on her elbows, wincing as her puncture filled with pain and her stomach felt as if it was ripping apart. She had to help Usagi. She had to transform, too. She would not be defeated by something so simple and stupid as a flesh wound. She would not. And, she would never forgive herself if she didn't become Sailor Mars; if she didn't do her duty and protect the person that was most precious.
Rei raised her wand, only to be halted by Sailor Moon, who had crouched down and put a hand over the henshin item with a shake of her head. "No, Rei-chan. I can handle this." she told her reassuringly.
The shrine maiden opened her mouth in retort, but was interrupted. PakuPaku stepped forward in two huge steps, drawing stares from both girls in anticipation of an attack. He turned to Rei with a ravenous glint in his eyes. Usagi sprung to her feet, sliding in front of her firey friend in order to protect her.
"PAKUPAKU WANTS PERSONAFLOWER." The youma took another step forward.
Eternal Sailor Moon stood her ground. Rei braced herself.
"Sailor Moon..." she warned apprehensively, wanting - hoping - she would be careful.
The moon senshi nodded, and stared the youma down. "What do you want it for?"
"FOOD."
"Well, you can't have it! Not Rei-chan's! Not anyone's!"
Then, PakuPaku was charging again. Determined to get what he wanted, probably.
However, Eternal Sailor Moon was determined not to give him the chance. She held her weapon up. "Silver Moon Crystal-"
The youma slammed into her, knocking her Eternal Sceptre out of her hand and Sailor Moon herself onto the hard concrete.
"Usagi!" the ravenette shouted in concern. Then, she was looking up, caught by surprise at the starving youma that towered over her. She tried to crawl backwards, to get away, but the damned wound interfered with her movement and caused too much pain to get very far. She managed a good few inches away from the enemy, clenching teeth, before holding her henshin wand up. She would have more strength as a senshi, she was certain. "Mars Crystal Po-"
But, not before the monsterous obesity slapped it out of her hand. The red transformation item clanked, and rolled onto the ground.
"Shit," she swore, eyeing her wand that now rested feet away. Her amethysts glanced back at PakuPaku as he chuckled goofily.
This, of course, made the senshi of fire even more determined to stop the idiotic thing. "Do you think this is funny?!" she angrily asked. She pulled out an ofuda. The only resort she had left. "Evil spirit...Begone!"
PakuPaku merely impaled the sacred scroll with his fork and stuck it in his wide mouth to chew on.
Rei's eyes widened, alarmed and unsettled. Dammit. "Is there anything you won't eat?!" She was getting really tired of this. She hated to admit it, but she needed help. The ravenette looked around, her amethysts landing on Luna, who was still unconscious. No help there. She scanned the area for Sailor Moon, who had been down, but was just now getting to her feet. A combination of relief and fear washed over Rei, seeing that her princess was alright, but also still in potential danger.
PakuPaku laughed, finding the red target to be both humorous and appetizing. He raised his fork up high, higher than he ever had before. "ITTEKIMASU."
She was suddenly zapped with her sixth sense. She blinked, and she felt it before it was happening. All of her psychic intutions were telling her to flee, to avoid what was occurring at all and any costs. She could feel the life beginning to be sucked out of her. Something in the pit of her stomach was afraid, and it was not because of the wound she was suffering. She felt the energy around her intensify, become thicker. She met eyes with Usagi, knowing she would be next if she didn't run now. A protective worry and a diligence covered her expression. "Run." she said. "Get Luna and go far away from here!"
Then, she was imprisoned by an invisible force. She felt something being pulled out of her. It felt like her spirit. Her soul. Her very essence.
She screamed.
"NO! REI-CHAN!"
She heard Usagi's heart-wrenching yelps, but... all she could feel and see was agony. Something was being ripped out of her. Like a heart, but worse. Something that was supposed to be there... something that... was her mind and body and spirit. Something that was her. Someone was tearing her apart, and all she could think and feel and see was pain, pain, pain.
And, then... just like that. It was gone.
Pain was gone.
Feelings were gone.
Thoughts were gone.
Everything was gone.
And, Rei Hino was left empty.
