SILVER SUN

A Sailor Ranko fanfic
by Jason Heinrich

Based on the Sailor Ranko story and webcomic by Duncan Zillman and Rebecca Heineman. With acknowledgments and thanks to Kevin D. Hammel and Arthur Hansen.


NEW AND OLD FLAMES

Galen Prasinos sat in one of the two chairs at Angwyn's small dining table, staring dumbly at the redhead, who sat on her bed. A couple of meters away, an amused Sailor Venus slouched in the other dining chair, which she had pulled out into the middle of the room to gain a better vantage on the two teens.

After their meeting in the hallway, Angwyn had invited Galen in out of politeness, then hurriedly run into her washroom to change back into some less audacious clothing. Venus, of course, had invited herself in, intensely curious about this hitherto unknown young man in Angwyn's life. This, in turn, had the desired effect of making Galen extremely uncomfortable as the senshi silently sized him up, an almost predatory look in her eye. Fortunately for Galen, years of after-school chores on her parents' farm had trained Angwyn to change quickly, so he had not been left under Venus's scrutiny for too long.

Galen had been understandably curious about the costume Angwyn had just changed out of, so she began to explain about her ability to use magic, her friendship with the senshi, how the fuku was a gift from Venus, and no, she wasn't really a senshi herself. This of course led to additional questions, and before Angwyn knew it, she had narrated nearly her entire life story to the young man sitting across from her, leaving out only her desire for the uniform to be real. Something about him made her feel comfortable, trusting. At the end she vividly illustrated the story - and her magic skill - with a demonstration of the candle trick.

Galen glanced back and forth between the flickering candles and Angwyn's face, which looked slightly anxious after divulging so much about herself to her classmate. Finally he found his voice. "That's... incredible. I had no idea you could use magic. A lot of royals could barely focus their magic enough to light a candle like that, let alone throw a fireball. Are you sure you don't have any royal heritage?"

Angwyn's embarrassed expression quickly changed to one of exasperation. "Yes, I'm sure," she said flatly.

Galen swallowed. Now was not the time to alienate his potential date. He struggled to get his thoughts back in gear. As amazing as Angwyn's skill was, he had come here for a different reason. "Okay, um... say, tomorrow's your birthday..." He trailed off.

"Yes, it is," Angwyn prompted, a little puzzled by the non-sequitur.

"Well, um, I know you like Rocket-Ball. And I got a couple of tickets for tomorrow's match. And they're really good seats! So, um... you wanna go?"

Angwyn opened her mouth, only to find that her mind had gone completely blank, her entire thought process derailed at the realization that the young man across from her had actually asked her out. On a date. Together. He'd always been friendly toward her, but she never thought… she glanced at Venus for some help.

There was no help to be found from the Senshi of Love, however, as Venus just kept looking back and forth between the two teens, her expression one of profound glee.

The sight of her friend did unblock the logjam in her brain however, as Angwyn was reminded of something. "Wow, Galen... that does sound like fun," she finally answered. "But the senshi are already throwing me a party tomorrow. I'm afraid I can't. Sorry."

Galen tried unsuccessfully to hide his disappointment as his heart sank. He knew he should have asked her sooner! Mentally kicking himself, he said, "I understand. That's okay." Though it wasn't. "I hope you have a good time."

Though unseen by either of the other two, the dismay on Venus's face very nearly mirrored Galen's. "We can change it!" she blurted out.

"What?" asked Angwyn and Galen in unison.

"The party. We'll just change the time," Venus quickly answered. "What time will the match be over?"

"Uh, about 9 o' clock," Galen responded.

"Hmm, that's a little late, but it can still work," Venus thought out loud. "There's no school the next day, anyway." She focused back on the redhead. "Angwyn, we'll just have your party when you get back. Won't be a problem at all!"

Angwyn wasn't sure whether to be annoyed with her exuberant friend or not. On the one hand, Venus had virtually declared that Angwyn was going to go on the date. Which wasn't surprising, really, knowing the blonde senshi. It was just that Angwyn had always been somewhat independent, having been an only child, and after having so much of her life dictated for her over the past year, she wanted to be able to make this rather personal decision on her own. On the other hand, a Rocket-Ball match did sound like fun, and though he wasn't the most handsome guy around, Galen had always been nice to her, unlike so many of the other royals at school...

"So what do you say?" Galen asked, interrupting her train of thought.

What the heck, why not? Angwyn decided. "Sure, sounds like fun," she answered.

"Great!" Galen exclaimed, not even bothering trying to suppress his excitement over her acceptance. "I'll pick you up at five, okay?"

Angwyn hadn't completely recovered from the surprise of being asked out, and her head still felt like it was spinning: everything was happening so fast, and she wondered if this was what a leaf in a river current felt like. A minor burst of rebelliousness caused her to wrest a small bit of control back over the situation. "Actually, I'll meet you there. By the receptionist's desk outside the arena."

Galen's smile didn't falter in the slightest. "Sounds good!" he said. Standing, he turned and bowed to Venus. "It was a pleasure to meet you in person, Sailor Venus."

Her predatory grin, which had returned in full force upon Angwyn's acceptance of the date, softened to something a little more pleasant - almost matronly. "Likewise," she replied with a nod of her head.

Angwyn stood and walked with Galen over to her door. As she opened it for him, he gave her a smile that made her heart skip a beat. "I'll see you at the arena tomorrow, Angwyn. I'm looking forward to it." As he walked away down the hall, she could almost swear that his feet weren't touching the ground.

Too quiet for anyone to hear, Angwyn surprised herself by whispering back, "Me too."


Beryl was not in the best of moods.

The events of recent weeks were forcing her to take action sooner than she had anticipated, and that haste was creating an uncomfortably high level of risk. The ineptitude of that worthless harvester that had gotten itself caught and killed couldn't have occurred at a worse time, being right at the height of the current Representative session. She hadn't even been able to slip out to the youma's lair under the old abandoned warehouse until two days after the fact. Taking out her frustrations on the harvester's direct supervisors - and then their supervisors - did little to make her feel better.

The icing on the cake was the increased level of security around the capital in general, and the industrial district in particular. Capital security and royal military forces alike patrolled the area thoroughly. As a result, life force harvesting had plummeted, as far fewer youma were able to slip in and out of the lair without risking detection. The situation was so bad, in fact, that they were barely harvesting enough to feed the youma she had. Creating new youma was simply out of the question.

Beryl had known when she had moved her horde of youma to Adalandis that there would be increased risk, but she had justified that risk with the far greater reward of the massive supply of energy that a major city provided. She still felt that the decision to move had been the right one, but that risk was now beginning to make itself felt as the existence of her youma became known.

Worse, the youma were becoming restless, restricted to the lair with little to do. Discipline among the ranks, which was barely civil at the best of times, was crumbling. Arguments were common and frequently degenerated into violence: she had already lost one infiltrator when a couple of stronger youma decided to blame it for the failure of the insane infiltrator at the security station. Beryl had set the few worker youma she had to digging new tunnels, to create exits further away from the focus of the patrols, but that did little to busy the rest of her horde. If something didn't change soon her entire small army would be at risk. And while she wouldn't hesitate to make an example of the occasional out-of-line youma, she was very concerned with their well-being as a whole. In some twisted way, they were the only family she had.

She had considered another option for protecting the youma back when they had moved into the city, one that she wasn't even sure was possible. Which was why she now stood before a certain cave entrance in a rocky field far outside of the suburbs of the capital. Bracing herself against the chill that ran down her spine, she lit her torch and stepped into the cave. A draft blew some of the torch's smoke into her eyes, and she cursed the annoying magical dampening field that nullified any technology within the cave. She knew it was how Metalia masked her presence and stayed hidden, but an electric lantern or even a flashlight would be so much more convenient.

Beryl made her way deeper into the cave, following the path that she had known intuitively ever since she had answered Metalia's first summons several years previous. She hadn't really known what she was doing back then, but now she had purpose. In a matter of minutes, she reached the large, deep chamber where the creature resided. Ignoring the ever-present wrongness that pervaded the chamber, she stepped in.

The light from the torch was cut in half almost instantly. Almost as quickly, Metalia's cold voice said from seemingly everywhere at once, "Beryl. Why have you come?"

Beryl looked quickly around the chamber, finally locating the glowing diamond sigil that pinpointed Metalia's "head." Apparently the creature's eyes were closed, as their yellow glow was nowhere to be seen.

"I need your help," Beryl finally answered, a tightness in her voice betraying her displeasure in making the request.

Beryl's tone either went unnoticed, or was ignored. "What is it you need?" Metalia asked bluntly.

Beryl forced her jaw to unclench, drawing upon her past year of experience as a representative to hide how she truly felt about the person she was speaking to. "As you are no doubt aware, the authorities in the capital have learned of the existence of my youma. They have not connected them to me, but our operations are at a standstill. The risk of detection is too great. In order to grow the youma's numbers to what will be needed to overcome the Moon Kingdom, I need more space - preferably undetectable - and the ability to come and go wherever we please."

"So what do you want from me?" Metalia prompted, her voice still cold and emotionless.

"I was wondering..." Beryl began, then stopped, suddenly feeling ridiculous. She was about to ask one of the most powerful creatures in the galaxy to essentially make the fictional video program Invaders From the Fifth Dimension real. Feeling childish, she almost turned around and walked out, but a small voice in the back of her head reminded her that if there was any chance that other dimensions actually were real, Metalia would be the one to know.

Gritting her teeth and swallowing her pride, Beryl finished, "I was wondering if there was any way to open a portal to an alternate dimension."

"Of course," Metalia answered simply.

Beryl was floored at the creature's easy answer, but Metalia wasn't finished.

"There are many worlds that could possibly be used as a home for your youma army, but traveling between those realms and this one requires a great deal of energy. I can search for the ideal one, but you will need to provide me with as much energy as you can possibly gather."

"But I can barely gather enough to feed the youma that I have!" Beryl objected. "I can't possibly spare any."

For the first time since Beryl had entered the cave, Metalia moved. The shadowy creature grew, filling the cave directly in front of the representative, its yellow eyes now open and commanding Beryl's attention. Beryl's instinct was to shrink back from the imposing presence, but she found herself rooted to the spot.

"Take all of your youma that are not needed for harvesting the humans' energy, and remove their heart crystals," Metalia commanded, her voice no longer emotionless, but insistent. "Bring the crystals to me. Collect as much energy as possible, and feed all you can spare to those youma."

Despite a nearly overwhelming desire to comply with Metalia's demands, Beryl blanched. "B-but my army! You can't take them away from me!" Another thought occurred to her. "What do you mean, 'feed them?' Without their crystals, won't the youma die?"

The roiling shadows around Metalia's head grew more agitated, and Beryl had the distinct impression that the creature was growing annoyed. "So long as the crystal survives, the body will survive as well, though without a soul. The youma will sleep, and through them you will provide me with the energy I need to perform the task that you have requested."

Beryl gasped as Metalia's overwhelming presence disappeared from her mind, the creature itself returning to its usual size. "Now go," Metalia ordered, "and complete your task. When you return with the crystals, I will prepare the magic needed to cross the barriers between universes."

Beryl stumbled back and retreated into the cave system, barely retaining enough presence of mind to follow the proper path back to the entrance without getting lost in the labyrinthine tunnels. Dropping her torch as she burst into the sunlight, Beryl doubled over, fighting back a wave of nausea. Breathing deep, she waited for her stomach to settle before shuffling over to a nearby rock and taking a seat.

Now that she had stopped moving, Beryl's hands began to shake. She glanced around the open, rocky field, then looked up into the blue sky, allowing its cheery expanse to drive out the suffocating terror that had gripped her heart when Metalia had unleashed her power and effortlessly overwhelmed Beryl's control over her own body.

The auburn-haired woman sat up straighter, angrily wiping away the moisture that had gathered unbidden in her eyes. She was no weakling, she reminded herself. Nor was she stupid. She was well aware that Metalia had been attempting to manipulate her mind, to bend Beryl to her will. Brushing off her skirt, Beryl stood, control over her emotions restored. As disturbing as it had been to be on the receiving end of that power, Metalia's attempt at mind-control had been pointless. Beryl had always thought of the youma as little more than disposable tools. Of course a large percentage of her army would have to be sacrificed. What else were they for, after all, but to aid her ascendency to the throne of the Solar System?

Once again feeling assured of her course of action, Beryl began the long hike back to her vehicle through the stony field.


Angwyn ignored the sweat that was trying to drip into her eyes and attempted to focus on proper form as she moved through the steps of her modified kata. Gradually her speed increased even as she kept her focus inward, feeling the cool flow of her ki in her center and carefully attempting to channel it throughout her arms and legs. As she reached the apex of the kata she dug deeper, past the ki to the warmth of her star crystal, and pulled the fire out to her fingertips.

At least that was the plan. In reality, nothing happened. Again.

Angwyn slumped in frustration. For the past hour she had been attempting to recreate her success from the previous day, but had been unable to summon even a flicker of flame. In a bout of superstition, she had even worn her senshi costume, but it hadn't helped.

Deciding that she had tried for long enough, she sat down next to the wall and took a drink of water. Glancing around the practice room, she wiped the sweat from her brow and reflected on her failure once again to summon her magic. It could be due to any one of a number of reasons, she realized. Perhaps, as Sailor Venus had theorized the day before, she didn't want to cause damage to the practice room. It certainly was possible, Angwyn admitted to herself, but she had deliberately been attempting to account for that by only summoning a small amount of flame around her hand. If it had worked, she would have just allowed it to dissipate rather than project it as a fireball.

And if she couldn't dissipate the flame... well, the large frying pan she had propped up against the opposite wall made a good fireproof target. Just in case.

The fact that today was her 17th birthday certainly could have been partly to blame. The confusing emotions that had been plaguing her all morning had definitely challenged her focus during both her initial meditation and then her kata. For one, it had been exactly one year ago that she had first discovered her ability to wield magic. That of course reminded her of her parents, which stirred up the old pangs of loss that the past year had eased, but not erased.

On the other hand, the past year had also brought her some truly incredible opportunities and friends. The Moon Queen, Serenity herself, had taken care of all of her material needs. She personally had gotten to know the Princess, who had the odd habit of occasionally popping into her apartment unannounced, and treated Angwyn as a kindred spirit. As much as Angwyn enjoyed Pandia's company, she still had a hard time viewing the princess as a peer. Then there were the Inner Senshi, who had each befriended her and helped her grow in their own unique ways. Cytheria in particular had become such a close friend that Angwyn truly couldn't imagine how she could have gotten through the roughest parts of the past year without her. Angwyn was both excited and a little nervous to see what the Princess of Venus had planned for her birthday party that evening.

Speaking of that evening, Angwyn's mind drifted once again to the other activity on her schedule: her date with Galen to the Rocket-Ball match.

Galen.

Though alone in the practice room, Angwyn rubbed her cheeks in embarrassment as she felt them heat up at the thought of the young man. What was wrong with her? She had never had this sort of reaction to him before. True, he had been a good acquaintance for several months. He was always kind and accepting, and actually seemed genuinely interested in her and not just her physical assets. But she had never seen him as anything more than a nice classmate who was pleasant to be around. So why, at the thought of meeting him for the match tonight, was her stomach trying to tie itself into knots?

Something had happened last night, she knew. He had caught her at a vulnerable point emotionally and she had let her guard down, pouring out her whole life story to him there in her apartment. And yet, despite being understandably surprised over her magical ability, he had accepted her one hundred percent, just as she was. It didn't bother him in the least that he was nobility and she was a commoner, or that she was an orphan being raised by the Queen and the Senshi, or that she was a freak of nature that could (sometimes) use magic without a drop of royal blood. He couldn't care less about the way all the royal girls in school looked down on her. He simply accepted her and wanted to be with her without any reservations.

Angwyn blinked as she came out of her reverie. Was it getting warm in that practice room?

She took a deep breath as she stood up. While she was finding daydreaming about Galen to be surprisingly enjoyable, her time in the practice room was nearly over, and she still needed to change out of the senshi costume. She flushed slightly in premature embarrassment as she imagined the looks she would receive if she walked out of the sports complex dressed like this. Walking directly from the palace's garage to her apartment in the south wing last night was one thing, particularly accompanied by Sailor Venus; but strolling across the well-lit palace grounds was something else, especially on a busy Saturday morning. Not that last night's walk had been completely without incident however, as they had run into Galen at her door.

Her blush kicked up a notch as, unbidden, she recalled how she had caught Galen glancing at her legs before she had run into her washroom to change. Initially she had been self-conscious about the fuku's short skirt, but on second thought, maybe it wasn't so bad, considering the reaction it got from him.

SMACK! With a snort, Angwyn removed her hand from her forehead and started to work the hidden fastener on the side of her costume. Get your head out of the gutter, she scolded herself. I am not going to think of Galen that way! She didn't have a lot of time, but maybe a cold shower before she headed back would be a good idea.


Several hours later, Angwyn found herself walking back down the path toward the athletic center for the second time that day. With Cytheria's help, her outfit had seen an upgrade over that morning's workout clothes. Casual pants and blouse were complemented by slightly dressier boots, and a light open jacket. Apart from simple stud earrings she wore no jewelry, but at the Venusian princess's insistence she sported some light blush and eyeshadow. "Not enough to stand out," Cytheria had said, "you're beautiful as is. We just want to make your features pop." Angwyn had to admit, the subtle makeup did look good.

As she strolled down the path, she was beginning to wonder if she should have been a little less stubborn when Galen had proposed meeting her at her apartment before the match. At the time it had been a fit of independence, but with a whole day of anticipation in between now and then, she regretted not having accepted his company. It wasn't like she was alone on the path: scores of people filtered towards the arena from the various residences scattered around the well-lit royal property and from the palace proper. Behind the arena, only just visible from her vantage point, she could see transports from the city and beyond descend into the sub-surface parking garage. But despite the crowd, she was still walking alone, and her anticipation gnawed at her; she felt like she was going to go crazy.

"Aargh, this is stupid!" she grumbled to herself. "I don't like him like that. I wish these butterflies would just go away." Stubbornly, her nervous stomach refused to cooperate.

So caught up was she with her internal melodrama, that she didn't notice an uneven section of the sidewalk and she stumbled, narrowly avoiding an embarrassing faceplant.

Angwyn stopped and glared at the offending pavement. "Every. Single. Time," she growled. "It's like that stupid sidewalk is deliberately trying to kill me." With a huff, she turned back towards the arena and continued on her way. Somebody really needs to fix that, she thought, before her eyes suddenly went wide and she started to giggle. Her nervousness was gone, she realized, the evil sidewalk imperfection having succeeded in distracting her. With relief and a renewed sense of boldness, she continued walking with a little bit more of a spring in her step.

Several minutes later, Angwyn pushed through the large main doors of the athletic center. The atrium was crammed with people milling around, chatting, munching on concessions, and waiting for others. To her left a line had grown outside of the archway that led into the arena, as personnel checked tickets and admitted the spectators. Angwyn turned the opposite direction, toward the receptionist's desk on the right.

Perhaps not surprisingly, Galen spotted her first. "Angwyn!" he called, waving her over. With a small smile, she waved back and weaved her way over to him. As she approached, he glanced at her approvingly. "Hey," he said a little nervously. "You look great."

"Thanks," she replied, feeling her cheeks grow warm at the simple compliment. "Uh, you look good too." Smooth one, Angwyn, she mentally berated herself.

Galen pulled a pair of tickets out of his jacket and gestured with them toward the atrium. "Shall we go inside?" Angwyn nodded, and they started through the crowd toward the line. After a couple of steps, Galen hesitated. "Um, do you want anything to eat or drink first?"

Angwyn thought about it for a second before shaking her head. "No, thanks. I'm not really hungry yet. Maybe we can get something after the second set starts, when it's not so crowded?"

"Sounds good," Galen said with a nod, and they continued toward the line.

It took longer than they expected to get through the line into the arena, and by the time they found their seats, only about 5 minutes remained before the start of the match. "Wow, these seats are amazing!" Angwyn gushed with excitement, her eyes shining.

"Yeah," Galen agreed. He knew that his uncle, as a season ticket holder, would have good seats, but he was still impressed. They were in only the fourth row up, and just a few seats to the right of the centerline. Stretched out before them, the arena, or "the Pit" as it was affectionately called by fans and players, was a seven meter deep oval-shaped depression, 50 meters long by 35 meters wide. At each end a one-meter hole in the wall marked the opposing goals. It occurred to Galen that had they been sitting up in the more affordable bleachers, the depth of the Pit would have obstructed part of the view. As it was, from their seats they could see the entire arena almost perfectly.

"This is gonna be so cool," Angwyn said. Glancing over at her, Galen found himself mesmerized by her brilliant smile. He felt that he could just sit there staring at her for the entire match, but instead quickly averted his gaze in embarrassment when Angwyn turned toward him. "So who are you gonna root for?"

"I don't know," he answered honestly. "I don't have a favorite. I didn't really think about it." His brow furrowed slightly as he considered the teams. "Probably Maskelyne: they're from the Moon, at least."

Angwyn's smile gained a competitive glint. "Well, I've never been to South Tranquility, but I am friends with the Princess of Mars. I'm rooting for Nanedi."

Galen wasn't highly competitive, but that almost sounded like a challenge. He grinned as an idea came to him. "Let's make it a bet. Loser buys the winner iced cream tomorrow!"

"You're on!" Angwyn laughed.

Galen's grin got a little bigger, and he leaned back in his seat. Automatic second date! he thought.

At that moment the lights dimmed, and the noise level from the crowd began to increase in anticipation. "LADIIIES AND GENTLEMENNN!" boomed the announcer's voice from the loudspeakers. Two spotlights burst to life, circling the arena. "WELCOME TO TONIGHT'S MATCH, A FARM TOWN BATTLE BETWEEN THE MASKELYNE MOLE CRICKETS AND THE NANEDI LIGHTWINGS! ARE YOU READY FOR… ROCKET-BALLLLLLL?!" The announcer had been loud, but the roar that burst from the crowd was deafening. Angwyn was right there with everyone else, fists in the air, whooping with excitement. Galen basked in her delight. He had never seen her more animated, and her excitement was infectious.

Music began to blare, and the two teams made their entrance to raucous applause as the announcer introduced the players. The spotlights focused on each player as they entered the arena, carrying their racket. The rackets looked a little clumsy, with a sort of scoop, called a "peeler" on one end, and a hammer, or "maul", on the other. But the players handled them with grace and balance, as if they were an extension of their own bodies. Once both teams had finished entering the pit and lined up facing each other across the centerline, they saluted each other by bumping rackets, then headed to their respective boxes, which were embedded in opposite walls of the pit and protected by clear crystal windows.

The match started, and Galen found that he could barely keep up with the frenzied action on the pit floor. He had seen videos of professional Rocket-Ball of course, but he was stunned at how much faster the game seemed to move in person. The teams faced each other five-on-five, but if the players had any kind of ordered positions, Galen couldn't see it. In fact, the only rules that he could discern were a) don't hit other players with your racket, b) you could only handle the ball (which was either called a "quip" or a "jerry" depending on who you talked to) with your racket, and c) you could only take three steps before passing, shooting, or dribbling the quip. The match had nine five-minute sets, divided into three periods. There were probably other rules, but Galen couldn't figure what they might be as he watched the high-speed activity. Angwyn would probably know the rules, he realized. Maybe that would be a good conversation starter tomorrow.

By the end of the first period, the score was tied 1-1. Maskelyne took an early lead at the beginning of the fourth set, taking control of the quip at the opening drop and commanding the play, sinking it into Nanedi's goal in under a minute. Nanedi tightened up their defense after that, however, and both teams remained scoreless for the rest of the second period. Galen had gotten so absorbed by the action that he was caught off guard when his stomach rumbled. Glancing up at the clock, he saw that only about a minute and a half remained in the period.

Reaching out, he tapped Angwyn's arm to get her attention. "Hey, you want to get something to eat before the intermission? We can avoid the lines."

Angwyn gave a cute little pout and looked like she was going to object to being pulled away from the match, but after a second of thought she smiled and nodded. They stood and worked their way out of the row, then up to the main concourse. Exiting to the atrium, they saw that Galen had been right, as only a few people were standing in line at the concession stand. In only a couple of minutes they reached the counter and ordered sausages, some kind of fried bread that Angwyn remembered from a fair that she had gone to a couple years back, and drinks.

As Galen paid for the food, Angwyn began to feel uncomfortable, as if something was bothering her, but she couldn't put her finger on why. She glanced around, first to the left, then to the right, before turning around completely to see a girl her age with shoulder-length wavy black hair staring at her intently. Upon seeing Angwyn's face, the girl's expression turned to shock.

"Angwyn?!"

Angwyn stammered for a second until her brain finally matched the girl's familiar face to a name. "Moria!"

Moria Parateos had been a classmate of Angwyn's at her school in the Haemus Highlands, and one of only a few Royals to attend school there. She looked Angwyn up and down, rubbed her eyes, then looked at the red-head again, as if to verify to herself that she wasn't seeing things. "You're not dead!" she blurted out.

Having retrieved their food, Galen turned to see what the fuss was about. Seeing Angwyn's former classmate, he nearly dropped the bag. "M-Moria!" he exclaimed.

Moria's gaze slid to Angwyn's date, and her expression brightened. "Galen! My, this night is just full of surprises! How have you been?"

Instead of answering, Galen glanced between the two young women. "You know each other?" he asked.

Angwyn had her mouth open and her finger raised, about to ask the same question. Putting her hand down, she answered, "Yeah, me and Moria were in the same class before I moved to the palace."

"Everybody at school thinks you died in that explosion at your house!" Moria said, turning on Angwyn. "How come you never contacted anybody?" Then she blinked, and her expression darkened. "Wait, did you say you were living at the palace?" Before Angwyn could answer, she added, "Are you two… together?"

Suddenly nervous, Galen and Angwyn glanced at each other. Galen stammered, "Well, um, we're not…"

"It's my birthday," Angwyn interjected. "Galen knew I liked Rocket-Ball and was nice enough to take me to the match."

"I… see," Moria said, her gaze inscrutable. "Yes, Galen is a nice guy, isn't he? I recall he was quite nice to me back when I lived here." She glanced pointedly at the young man in question, who fidgeted uncomfortably. Turning back to Angwyn, she draped her arm over the shorter girl's shoulder and turned her away from Galen and the concession stand. "Look, Angwyn, let me give you some advice. Galen is nice; too nice for his own good. Or yours, for that matter. Don't read too much into his actions, or you'll just get hurt. He doesn't know that his friendliness comes across as flirting."

Angwyn considered the other girl's words. Had she mis-read Galen's intentions for this date? Maybe she just thought he was interested in her because of the way she felt about him. That stopped her thought process cold. How did she feel about him? Could she possibly think about him as… as a boyfriend? Her emotions towards Galen had been so confusing ever since last night…

Wait. He was the one who asked her out. He was the one who came all the way to her apartment to invite her to this match, for a sport that he knew was her favorite. She remembered the disappointment on his face when she initially turned him down, and the unabashed joy when she accepted. There was no way to misinterpret all that. Her heart grew warm at the thought.

While Angwyn had been wrestling mentally with Moria's comments, the brunette had merely paused for effect. Her grip on Angwyn's shoulder grew a little tighter. "Don't forget that Galen is a royal. You may be going to the Palace Academy now, but it's inconceivable that he's fallen in love with a commoner."

Angwyn saw red. Angrily, she knocked Moria's arm off her shoulders, and rounded on her. "And what does that have to do with anything? So what if he loves me? So what if I love him? There's no law against that!"

A couple meters away, Galen just watched the two girls and kept his mouth shut. He hadn't been able to make out what Moria had been saying, but he had no trouble understanding Angwyn's heated response. His heart leapt while he felt his cheeks warm slightly.

Moria just looked at Angwyn like she had grown two heads. "It's a rule of society: there doesn't need to be a law! A commoner and a royal? It just isn't done!" Her gaze grew cold, and she drew nose-to-nose with the shorter girl. "Listen closely. Galen was my boyfriend before daddy dragged me off to that hell-hole of a hick community that you used to call home. But as soon as this school year is over, we're moving back here, and once I remind Galen what a real noblewoman is, you can kiss your fantasies of seducing your way up in society goodbye." With that she stepped back, and gave Galen a wink and a smile. "See you in a couple of weeks, Galen." Turning, she strode back towards the arena, and was quickly lost in the crowd.

Angwyn just stood there for a minute, trembling in fury. She had to fight the urge to launch a fireball at Moria's retreating back, and there was no doubt in her mind whatsoever that she would be able to do so.

Galen stepped up to Angwyn's side. "What was that all about?" he asked, having once again not heard Moria's side of the conversation.

"She said… to think that I would… Grrr!" Angwyn was too livid to form coherent sentences. Taking a deep breath, she forced herself to calm down, and looked up at Galen. "I think I just want to go home right now. Would you walk me back?"

Galen nodded. "Of course." Before he could start towards the door, Angwyn grabbed his hand and almost dragged him that way herself. His eyebrows shot up in surprise, but he wasn't about to complain.

As always, the lunar night under the dome was warm, and they walked in silence for a few minutes. Galen alternated between looking up at the gibbous Earth hanging in the sky, and down at the beautiful red-head walking close by his side. He tried not to hope that her hand in his meant more than just a distraught friend, but deep down he knew it was a hopeless battle. Unless she rejected him outright, he knew he was a goner: she had caught him hook, line, and sinker without even trying.

Galen decided to break the silence. "So how are we going to know who won our little bet?"

Angwyn glanced up at him, her eyes seemingly far away for a moment. Then comprehension dawned and she gave a small smile, the first since they had run into Moria. "Well, you're just gonna have to look it up in the sports report and let me know when you pick me up tomorrow."

"Why do I have to look it up?" Galen complained, but he was smiling.

"Oh, I'll check too," Angwyn answered. Giving him a nudge with her shoulder, she added, "To keep you honest."

They both laughed, and Galen was pleased to note that she left her shoulder pressed against his arm. He resisted the urge to let go of her hand and wrap his arm around her waist. That would have been too much, too fast.

Too soon, they reached the entrance to the south wing of the palace, and Galen held the door for Angwyn as she entered. In only a couple short minutes, they reached her apartment. They both stood outside the door in awkward silence for a moment before Angwyn finally looked up. "Well, thanks for taking me to the match. It really was a fun time; most of it, anyway." She glanced down and chewed her lip a second before continuing. "Galen…"

When she didn't continue, Galen prompted, "What is it?"

Angwyn looked up slightly, but not directly into his eyes. Her cheeks glowed red as she asked, "Wh-why did you ask me out tonight?"

Galen's heart suddenly seemed to beat very loudly. He was sure Angwyn must have been able to hear it. "Well, uh..." He swallowed his embarrassment and plowed forward. "Angwyn, you are… extraordinary. You're kind, and spirited, and beautiful, and your hair - wow! I've wanted to ask you out, to get to know you better for a long time. I'm kind of kicking myself for not having done so sooner."

Angwyn's eyes were wide at his adoration. "So, it's not because I'm close to the queen and the senshi?"

Galen frowned, puzzled at the question. "I didn't even know the queen was caring for you until last night. As for the senshi, I'd heard the rumors that you were friends with them, but I don't see what that has to do with anything. You're amazing all by yourself."

Angwyn looked up, eyes moist. "Thanks, I needed to hear that." She paused, biting her lip nervously, before continuing. "So, uh, I guess it's traditional for me to give you a goodnight kiss?"

Galen hesitated before replying, "Only if you're comfortable with that."

She nodded and leaned into him, face turned up, and he obligingly bent his head, turning it slightly for the expected peck on the cheek.

Angwyn, however, had been aiming for the opposite cheek, and as they both turned the same direction, their lips met.

Time stopped for both teenagers as their eyes locked onto each other, wide with surprise. Then those eyes closed, and they lost themselves in the warmth and electricity of the kiss. Angwyn's arms reached up to wrap around Galen's waist…

Then the moment was ruined as a squeal was heard through Angwyn's closed door.

Both teens leaped back in surprise, faces aflame. "What in the world?" Galen asked.

Angwyn buried her face in her hands. "Venus is probably inside setting up for my party."

Galen looked at the closed door in confusion. "But how…?"

"She's the Senshi of Love," Angwyn answered with a shrug, as if that explained everything.

The corner of Galen's mouth turned up slightly. "Is that what this is?"

He was rewarded by the renewal of Angwyn's blush. She punched him lightly in the arm. "Don't push your luck, mister." They stood in awkward silence for a moment before she said, "So, how about if you pick me up at 1 o' clock tomorrow?"

"Sounds good," he answered. "We can go to that iced cream stand in the palace mall."

"Oh yeah, that place is my favorite," Angwyn agreed.

Galen scratched the back of his head, a little unsure of what to say next. "Um, I guess I should let you get to your party. Have fun!"

"Thanks." She watched as he started hesitatingly down the hall; suddenly he stopped and turned around.

"I almost forgot," he said, holding up the bag with their food from the concession stand. Angwyn blinked, she had forgotten all about it. "You can have this."

Angwyn took the bag, but raised an eyebrow. "Your food's in here too. Don't you want it?"

He shrugged. "You can have it. Maybe reheat it for lunch tomorrow. The sausage is actually better as leftovers, or so I've heard." With a small frown he added, "Though you might want to eat the bread tonight. I can't imagine that would keep as well."

Angwyn chuckled. "No, probably not. Thanks."

Galen smiled warmly, and just like the night before, Angwyn felt her stomach flip. "Okay. Um, have a good night!" he said, turning back down the hall.

Angwyn gave a small wave. "Bye!"

Galen glanced back with a smile, returned the wave, then walked around the corner and was gone.

For a moment Angwyn just stood there. Her mind was awhirl with the activities, surprises, and emotions of the evening. Just 24 hours previous, she had never thought of Galen as more than a decent friend. Now, she could barely wait to see him again. The idea was a little frightening, but the possibility of having a real, steady boyfriend now felt very real and even welcome. Even more, they had shared their first kiss, and she even had a rival for his affections. The whole situation made her head swim, but it felt good.

She turned to her door and entered her apartment. Glancing to her left, she saw Cytheria standing in her kitchenette, hands clasped in front of her chest in excitement. An unfinished and forgotten bowl of party mix, which she had apparently been in the process of making, sat on the counter next to her. Upon seeing Angwyn, Cytheria gave a little squeal and ran over to her friend. "How was it?" she gushed, grabbing the shorter girl's shoulders.

"The date was fine, for the most part," Angwyn responded. She knew what Cytheria was really asking about, but decided to have a little fun by being deliberately obtuse. "The match was exciting. And Galen was a complete gentleman. He even bought me dinner," she added, holding up the concession bag.

"Well, that's good," Cytheria said. "But what about when he dropped you off?"

"That's when he gave me the food," Angwyn answered, pointing at the bag. She had to fight hard not to laugh at the look of frustration that crossed Cytheria's face. Deciding to show a little mercy, she added, "We're also going out again tomorrow for iced cream."

Cytheria brightened at that. "Ooh, that's a good sign!" Then she glared at Angwyn. "Come on, spill it! I'm a senshi, I can sense things. And I felt sparks! He kissed you, didn't he?" Angwyn couldn't hide the blush that colored her cheeks, and Cytheria crowed. "I knew it! That's my girl! So, is he a good kisser?"

Angwyn suddenly found the floor very interesting. "Um, well, uh…"

"Come on, give her a break," came Juno's voice from the other side of the room. Angwyn glanced up, noticing the tall brunette seated at the small dining table by the window for the first time. Juno stood. "If you grill her like that after every date, she'll never want to go out again."

"But we're talking about love here!" Cytheria protested. "It's kind of my thing."

Juno nodded. "Yes, but her dates are her business. If she wants to share, fine, but interrogating her is only going to make her uncomfortable." She gave Angwyn a warm smile, and the girl returned it, grateful. At least until Juno's expression turned hopeful, and she added, "So do you want to share?"

Angwyn groaned and dropped the concession bag on the counter, then turned to the washroom, leaving two disappointed senshi in her wake. "I'm going to get changed."

Half an hour later, the other Inner Senshi arrived. Much to Angwyn's surprise, Mercury arrived in senshi form, dragging the princess Pandia through the door.

"You can let go now!" the princess protested. "You didn't have to drag me, I know where she lives!"

"Yes," Mercury retorted, "but I didn't trust you to get here on time!" She turned to greet her teammates, and did a double-take upon seeing Angwyn already there. "Oh! Am I the one who's late?"

"No, I just came back a little early," Angwyn answered with a smile. She didn't think it was necessary to divulge the reason for her early return.

Mercury frowned with concern. "Did everything go well with your date?"

Cytheria swooped in before Angwyn could answer. "Are you kidding? She kissed him! On the lips!"

Angwyn covered her face in embarrassment. "I didn't mean to. It was just supposed to be a small goodnight kiss on the cheek."

Mercury chuckled. "I bet that was awkward."

"...Actually, it was kind of nice," Angwyn muttered. She ignored Cytheria's fist pump, and decided to change the topic. "So how come you're still in your uniform?"

As if in answer, Pandia's voice was heard from the kitchenette, "Ooh, is this white chocolate? Yum!"

"Still on duty," Mercury sighed. Cytheria and Angwyn just grinned.

At that moment Athena stood. "All right, everybody! Now that we're all here, I think it's time we get this party started. Juno?"

Juno came out of the kitchenette carrying a large birthday pie, with 17 unlit candles arranged in a circle. Angwyn had to swallow a sudden lump in her throat as she recalled her previous birthday with her parents, and the birthday pie that had been forgotten in the discovery of her magic ability. With all due respect to Juno's extensive baking experience, nothing would be quite the same as her mom's pie.

Still, as she looked around at the other ladies in her small apartment, she couldn't help feeling a little overwhelmed at the amazing turn her life had taken. On the farm she would have had to hide her magical ability. In the palace, surrounded by the nobility, magic usage was commonplace, and no one would think twice if they saw her using her skill. And while her parents had actively avoided the bustle and complications of urban and palace life, Angwyn didn't really mind it so much.

To top it all off, she had gotten to know personally some of the most amazing people in existence, many of whom were in this very room. The queen and princess, the senshi, the servant Sandrine, and especially Galen: all of them filled her life with joy, friendship, and love.

None of these things could replace what she had lost, or heal the pain that still occasionally caused tears to well up unbidden. Yet they made that pain bearable, and gave her life light when she so easily could have slipped into darkness. Looking at each of the smiling faces around her in her apartment, tears suddenly welled up again, but this time they were tears of happiness.

Athena gave her a wink as she gestured to the pie on the table. "Would you care to light the candles?"

Angwyn chuckled as she stepped up to the cake, wiping the moisture from her eyes. She raised her hands, intending to light the candles by focusing her magic through her fingers, just as she had figured out two nights before. She would have to do it in two batches, as she only had ten fingers.

Then she stopped, as something occurred to her. Earlier, when Moria had belittled her, she had known with absolute confidence that she would have been able to launch a fireball into the other girl's back. However, during her practice that morning, she had failed utterly to summon a single small flame. A memory rose to the fore of her mind, of a remark Minerva had made once about how emotion could fuel magic. She bit back a gasp as more memories came flooding in.

Her mother unconsciously manifesting her magic for the first time as she fell with the infant Angwyn. Fear.

Angwyn's burst of uncontrolled raw magic when she discovered her parents had been killed. Anguish.

The night before, she had the reminder of her parent's death and and a fresh rejection from the queen in the back of her mind. Could that have enabled her to throw the fireball out at the edge of the dome? Frustration.

Finally, the incident with Moria barely an hour before. Anger.

Every magical breakthrough she could think of had been associated with negative emotion. Was that really the answer? She didn't want to ruin the beautiful feeling of the joy and love that she could feel coming from her friends. Yet she had wanted so badly to replicate her mother's candle trick at this party, and she was getting tired of failures and the glacial progress of her magic skills. Was being able to light all the candles at once really worth it?

The rational part of her mind said no. She ignored it.

Closing her eyes, Angwyn focused on the contempt-filled look on Moria's face. On the image she had seen the other night of a monster on Earth, moments before murdering someone, just as other monsters of its type had murdered her family. She allowed the anger and bitterness and rage and anguish to flow freely, and felt the heat welling up inside her. She opened her eyes and stared at the candles, imagining each one of them to be a Moria, or a monster. She would dispense justice. She would destroy them.

Barely suppressing a growl, Angwyn waved her hand over the cake. All 17 candles burst into vigorous flame.

Unaware of what was going through Angwyn's mind, Cytheria and Athena cheered, while the other women looked on with pride at Angwyn's accomplishment. "You did it!" Cytheria said. "All 17 at once!"

"I knew you had it in you!" Athena added.

Angwyn wanted to smile with them, but couldn't. She felt dirty, corrupted somehow. She had ignored her reservations over using her negative emotions, and though they had given her the power to perform her mother's candle-lighting trick, she felt as if she had dishonored Cara's memory.

Queen Serenity had warned her, she realized. A senshi's heart must be pure, she had said. Angwyn sighed as her resolve solidified. She wouldn't give in to that temptation again. She had friends and maybe even a boyfriend - her smile returned at that thought - that supported her. She wouldn't betray them or their love. She would master her magic… but she would find a better way.


Author's Notes

The long hiatus is finally over! Sorry, I promised myself I wouldn't apologize for writing delays since they sound a little silly if you're reading a story straight through, but given the length of this one, I felt it was necessary. So, yeah. Thanks for sticking with me.

First of all, I have to give all credit for Rocket-Ball to Almech Alfarion and his story Shadow of the Sun: The Dark Side of the Moon. I first mentioned it back in Chapter 5, "Relationships", as one of the references to other fiction or popular culture that I like to throw in here and there. At the time I didn't expect to use it again, but when I decided to include Galen in the last chapter, it naturally fit as their first date. If you haven't read Almech's story, I recommend you do so.

I'll admit I was a bit nervous about writing this chapter. I'd never written a love scene before, and I was worried about being able to convey the characters' emotions. In the end, I was surprised to discover that the date was perhaps the easiest scene of the entire chapter to write. Go figure. As the saying goes, you never know what you can do until you try. As for the next chapter, it's one I've been waiting to write for a long time, so I'm excited to get started on it.

If Angwyn's practice session in the middle of the chapter seemed a little familiar, it's because we've actually seen it before. It's what Serenity and Pluto were observing in the crystal ball way back in the Prologue. See, continuity!

Moria is the result of a realization I had, that the story's heroine (Angwyn) and primary antagonist (Beryl) never meet. This isn't a spoiler: if you are familiar with Angwyn's backstory from the other Sailor Ranko stories, you know that Angwyn spends years in solitude before making her connection to the Sun. As a Moon Kingdom commoner, it seems extremely unlikely that she would have had the opportunity to confront Beryl, and if I tried to shoehorn that into this story it would have stretched its credibility. Moria provides a source of conflict for Angwyn beyond her own emotional and moral dilemmas.

Starting with this chapter, I will be including a "Behind the Scenes" section here in the Author's Notes. It will give me the opportunity to reveal some of my creative process, and hopefully give you a better understanding of why things are the way they are in the story. I have been wanting to share some of this information, even if it is just trivia, but I felt that options like a forum or dedicated web page would be too obscure and people who might be interested in this sort of thing wouldn't find it. So I decided to put it right here.

Behind the Scenes: Character Names

In all of her manga, Rumiko Takahashi gave her main characters meaningful names. For instance, the kanji in the name "Ranma" mean "wild horse", and Akane's name means "red" (presumably indicative of her volatile relationship with Ranma). I try to follow a similar methodology when naming my original characters. Some examples:

- "Galen" means "calm" and "Prasinos" means "green". Angwyn is Ranma's preincarnation, and as her love interest, his name is a deliberately opposite play on Akane's name and nature.

- Angwyn's parents' names, Aiden ("fire") and Cara ("fiery red"), both reflect Angwyn's magical element.

- Moria's last name, Parateos, means "jilted." Her first name was chosen mainly because it sounds menacing. Ironically, I didn't even think about the location in The Lord of the Rings with the same name when I chose it. Rather, it is a variation of Moriarty, Sherlock Holmes' arch-nemesis.

On a broader scale, a character's geographic and demographic background obviously influence their names. Some of the specific guidelines I follow:

- The nobility on both Earth and the Moon typically have Greek-inspired names. This is primarily due to the fact that the canon characters in this class, such as Endymion and Serenity, are inspired by Greek mythology. I decided to turn this on its head: the way I figure, many of the myths were based on oral stories passed down from the fall of the Moon and Earth Kingdoms to ancient Greece. By that point, the myths no longer portrayed actual history, and some characters' mythological counterparts (such as Juno) barely resemble the originals. For the same reason, the civilian names of the Outer senshi, who only spent time on the Moon when required for guard duty, vanished into obscurity. Their names may or may not be revealed in a later chapter.

- On Earth for a time, it was in vogue to name children after minerals. Thus Beryl, Kunzite, Albite, etc. While a few people on the Moon did the same, it wasn't nearly as popular. It's also worth noting that while this was a common practice on Earth, it wasn't universal. Plenty of people are not named after minerals, such as Titus in chapter 6.

- The Moon is a bit of a melting pot: like America in the 1800's people from all over Earth migrated there, and those from similar ethnic backgrounds tended to group together. While the Moon Kingdom culture is fairly universal, people's names in different regions reflect their heritage. For instance, the highland region west of the Capital has a definite British Isles flavor (e.g. the Weavers and Bowmans). Further west towards the dome's edge, the names are Japanese (e.g. the Mitsura clan, who may or may not be related to Setsuna). The capital city itself is the true melting pot, with names from all different cultures, though the high concentration of royalty in and around the palace means Greek names are commonplace.


Copyright Notice

The characters and stories of Sailor Moon and Ranma ½ are Copyright © Naoko Takeuchi and Rumiko Takahashi, respectively, and are used here without permission or license.

No claims to the above copyrights are made by the author of this work.

This work is for non-commercial use ONLY, and is produced for the enjoyment of fans only.

This work is the expression of the author and the depiction of the Sailor Moon and Ranma ½ characters herein are in no way represented to be a part of Sailor Moon or Ranma ½ as depicted by the original authors and copyright holders.