PRETTY SOLDIER SAILOR MOON: FUTURE
Chapter 45: Soothsayer of Flame
A month passed since the last confrontation with the Animus Syndicate, and the chilly autumn weather gradually made the leaves fall throughout the last few days. It was a Thursday afternoon after school, and VesVes returned home before the others did. After leaving her belongings behind, she went up to Midori's apartment door and knocked several times.
"Hey, Midori! It's VesVes! Can I come in!?" she called out.
She waited for a minute until the door opened a crack. To her astonishment, she saw a disheveled Midori standing there in her nightgown as she scratched her messy hair. She didn't look well either, judging from the distinct bags under her eyes. Midori grumbled, "Do you need something from me?"
"Well, I just wanted to talk to you for a bit. You haven't been coming to school for the whole week, and Chibi-Usa was wondering what was going on with you. Were you sick?"
"It seems I caught a particularly virulent strain of influenza, which has made me bedridden for this entire time," Midori explained before sneezing. "Today's the first day I finally have enough strength to get out of bed. I could go to school tomorrow if I wanted to, but I'm worried about spreading this around, so I'll be absent until Monday."
"Oh, uh… Am I bothering you or anything?"
"No, although I don't have the energy for your usual hijinks."
VesVes pouted a little but opted not to argue about it. Midori made herself some coffee, then curled beneath a blanket on the sofa before asking, "So what did you want to talk to me about?"
"Well… I don't know how to put it delicately, so…"
"If it can't be put delicately, then you might as well say it as it is."
"Fine, whatever. I've been noticing that you've been really tired lately. I mean, before your flu and all of that of course."
"Isn't fatigue just part of normal life? As long as the teachers get my homework and grade it appropriately, then everyone's happy."
"Sure, you've been handing in your assignments early and getting good grades, but there was that one time where you fell asleep during our math test!"
"Why were you paying attention to me anyway when you should have been focused on the test?"
"Well, I wanted to see if you knew the answer to one of the harder problems, but you were out cold even when I poked your back with my pencil. I think I heard you snore a couple of times!" VesVes restrained herself from guffawing.
Midori shot her a curt glare. "I can't tell if you're actually concerned for me or just trying to be funny."
"Oh, come on! I'm being serious here!"
"Then get to the point already. I don't appreciate being the subject of satire."
"All right, all right! You've been really, really tired lately, haven't you? You haven't been paying attention to what other people say, you miss your cues during music class, you spend the whole weekend in bed, and the other students found you sleeping over some books in the library that other day!"
Midori shifted her eyes away from the excitable VesVes. She couldn't deny that she was getting more and more exhausted as time went on. Juggling her double life was literally draining the life out of her.
VesVes continued, "JunJun told us about what Sailor Arsenic Hyena said. She warned that the Animus Syndicate will take advantage of any potential discord and blow it out of proportion in order to feed the Erisians. Since you've been involved in so many attacks lately, they might have one of their monsters feeding off of your stress as we speak! It's just like those monsters that devour human energy and leave their victims completely drained! I bet that's what's going on with you!"
"Is that so," Midori murmured, then thought, Good grief. My words are coming back to bite me.
"Aren't you worried in the slightest!?"
"Well, I can't say I'm completely okay with all of this, but-"
"See? You're tired because of that!"
"Could you let me finish?"
"Huh? Oh, you were gonna say something?"
"Honestly… I was going to say that I feel safe knowing that you guys are the Sailor Soldiers who can stop them. Therefore I don't feel as stressed about these attacks as you are assuming."
"Oh, really?" VesVes scratched her chin. "Then what seems to be the problem?"
"It's simply everyday stress. You're just exaggerating things because of the enemy, that's all."
"You sure? Chibi-Usa's been worried about you acting all weird and distant lately."
Frustration swelled within Midori as she wanted to drive VesVes away, but doing so would only make them worry more about her. Instead of keeping them away, she decided to go along with it and find ways to satisfy their curiosity, thereby hopefully giving her more space once they were certain that the issue was resolved. She sat back and drank some coffee before asking, "Then what would you have me do so that you guys won't worry about me needlessly?"
"'Needlessly'!? We're your friends, for cryin' out loud!" VesVes exclaimed. "It's only natural for friends to care for each other!"
"True, but you also need to think about yourselves too. It would be a destructive cycle of worrying about others while neglecting your own needs. After all, I've been hearing that you guys are struggling with your studies. With all of this worrying going on between each other, that could wind up being another source of discord that the Syndicate can reap, right?"
"Well, sure, but…"
"Then there must be something that I can do in order to satisfy your concerns and allow you to focus on your studies. After all, it would be rather embarrassing if you were still in fifth grade over the next few years, and I would be ashamed if I was the cause of that."
VesVes folded her arms and pondered deeply for a moment, having calmed down after listening to her friend's reasoning. Then she smacked her fist on her palm and remarked, "I know! How about visiting Rei's place!?"
"Rei?"
"That's Chibi-Usa's friend, Hino Rei. She's the head priestess of Hikawa Shrine, and is a really good fortune teller!"
Midori remembered her name from conversations she listened in on either at the palace or from Chibi-Usa and the sisters' apartment. Rei was also known as Sailor Mars, and was VesVes' counterpart as Sailor Vesta. If there were any guardians Midori was most worried about, it was Mars in particular. All of her planning and subterfuge would essentially be worthless to someone with extra-sensory abilities, so she had to take a different approach if she wanted to keep her identity secret from Rei. She knew how lucky she got off with Michiru, but she doubted she could pull that feat off twice in a row.
"I don't think a shrine maiden would be able to help me," Midori tried to dismiss the subject. In her mind, if she couldn't fight an obstacle, she would just avoid it entirely.
"It's not just her abilities. She's actually really beautiful and smart!" VesVes countered. "Just being at Hikawa eases the mind and relaxes your nerves. Even if Rei can't help you, I think that kind of environment is exactly what you need!"
"You're dead set on bringing me there, aren't you?"
"Come on! I just talked to her on the phone and she asked me if I could volunteer for the Shichi-Go-San ceremony she's holding there this Saturday, and she wanted to see if any of my friends would come with me."
"Why not just bring Chibi-Usa and your sisters with you?"
"Chibi-Usa's the class president, remember? She's busy with the school festival, and the others are helping her out with that. I need to catch up on my volunteer hours, so I told Rei I'd pitch in for her event. You still need to do your hours too, don't you? I thought this would be the perfect opportunity for you!"
Way to throw a monkey wrench into the works, VesVes… Midori thought bitterly.
"Well now that that's settled, let's meet in front of the shrine at-"
"Wait, wait, wait, wait! What exactly has been 'settled', pray tell!?"
"You coming with me. What else?"
"I never agreed to any such thing!"
"You never said no, so I figured it meant a yes."
"Of all the asinine-!"
"Tomorrow after school. Don't be late!" VesVes exclaimed and rushed out of the apartment before Midori could argue any further, leaving the frustrated girl hanging on countless words that she wanted to yell at her. She let out an annoyed huff and sat back in her chair while muttering to herself, "And this is why I get along with VesVes the least of the sisters…"
After another sip of her beverage, she thought, Well, I suppose it wouldn't hurt to scour the shrine and see what its owner is like.
Meanwhile, VesVes scurried back to her apartment and immediately made a phone call to someone. After the person on the other line picked up, she said, "Hey, Rei. It's me."
"I was waiting for you," the shrine maiden replied. "Did you convince her to come to Hikawa?"
"More like I had to force her to come with me. She didn't seem too keen on going, but I roped her in all the same."
"Good. I've been wanting to meet her for a while, but Chibi-Usa told me that she hasn't been feeling well lately."
"Are you sure you should be suspecting Midori so much? I've heard a lot of crazy things, but her being the same person as Sailor Arsenic Hyena is a bit out there, don't you think so?"
"I honestly don't know what to believe, other than my instinct that she is involved in this whole affair far more than we know. I want to see if I'm correct or it's just my imagination. The only way for me to do that is to meet her and see what kind of a person she is. You haven't told Chibi-Usa about my theory, have you?"
"Nope. Mum's the word."
"Thanks. I don't want her to get any crazy ideas until I have proof."
The following day after school finished, VesVes told Chibi-Usa and her sisters where she was going, then ran out of the elementary school as fast as she could toward Hikawa Shrine. Upon arriving there, she saw Midori sitting on a nearby bench working on a crossword puzzle while waiting for her.
"Hah… hah… hah… sorry to keep you waiting…" VesVes panted.
"I'm pretty sure it was you who said not to be late," Midori retorted.
"Oh, don't be such a killjoy. You ready to go in?"
"Anytime you are."
The duo headed up the long flight of concrete steps toward the shrine. Midori felt chilly and adjusted her shawl, but as she did so, she failed to notice a pair of black birds diving toward her. Once they let out several threatening caws, the girls glanced up in surprise, kneeled low and covered their heads to avoid the birds.
"What in the world!?" Midori yelped.
"Hey! What's the big idea, you cackling nutjobs!?" VesVes screamed at the crows. "I'll have you for dinner if you pull that stunt again!"
They heard a young woman's voice call out, "Phobos! Deimos!"
The birds heard the command and flew towards a woman in her early 20s who had long silky hair as black as her avian pets' feathers. Together with her traditional miko outfit and mysterious purple eyes, she truly was the embodiment of an ideal shrine maiden; beautiful, yet surrounded by a supernatural aura.
The girls stood back up, and VesVes waved, "Hey, Rei! What's up with those birds of yours!? They usually don't attack people, right!?"
"I'm so sorry!" Rei apologized fervently and bowed. "They must have mistaken you both for intruders!"
"Geez. They've seen me here plenty of times before, so they should recognize me!"
"Like I said, I'm really sorry!"
Midori sighed and adjusted some hair that had gotten mangled during the scuffle. Rei's eyes shrunk in surprise. Once she saw Midori, some unusually powerful emotions moved her very soul. It wasn't quite the same as the demonic atmosphere she would feel if a source of evil was nearby, but Rei was certain that something wasn't entirely right with the green-haired fifth grader. Phobos and Deimos nearly attacking her was also another indication that someone was wrong. If Midori wasn't potentially a demon, then what was the source of this horrible miasma? Misfortune? Sadness? Isolation? Or something much darker brimming within Midori's soul waiting to be released?
"This is Midori, our neighbor from the apartment complex in Ginza," VesVes introduced her to Rei. "She's been through some hard times lately, so I thought a visit to your shrine would help her out."
"I've heard about you from Chibi-Usa. Welcome to Hikawa," Rei bowed. "I'm the head shrine maiden, Hino Rei. If you need anything, don't hesitate to ask me. Things are a little messy since we're preparing for the Shichi-Go-San ceremony starting tomorrow."
Midori listlessly replied, "Don't mind my intrusion. VesVes was the one who brought me here against my volition anyway."
"What is that supposed to mean!?" VesVes exclaimed. "I'm just trying to help out 'cause you haven't been acting right for the last while! You don't need to be so rude about it!"
"Now, now, please calm down. This is a venerated place, so I ask that you behave yourselves accordingly," Rei chided.
"Right, right. The shrine's just over here."