On a string I was held.
The way I move, can you tell?
My actions are orchestrated from above.
So I swing and I sway.
Wave my hand. Kick my leg.
And it's always right with the music.
"'til all that swaying starts to make you sick."
-Bright Eyes
"Finally coming to I see."
Propped up against a cold stone wall, Pluto squinted toward the voice of the speaker, her vision blurred, head throbbing.
"If you had slept any longer, I would have thought you were losing your edge."
That... voice…
Despite the flare of anger that flashed within her, the Guardian of Time forced herself to remain calm. Pluto felt the speaker's hand take hold of her chin, which she violently shook off. She gritted her teeth and closed her eyes to steel herself against the piercing pain that shot through her head.
"Nothing to say? Not even to your savior?"
Pluto opened her eyes again and glared at the figure squatting next to her.
"Neptune would be ashamed of you," she spat out in disgust.
The captor's arm shot out, grabbing Pluto by the neck.
"Neptune... would understand."
The grip tightened momentarily before lessening. Pluto let out a gasp of air.
Her assailant stood and moved to the entrance, passing through the force field with ease, "I'm the only reason you're still alive. Just remember that."
Pluto raised a hand to her neck, gingerly touching where she knew she would begin to bruise before the accelerated healing of the guardians kicked in.
"Pleasant, isn't she?"
Pluto turned her head in surprise toward the sound of the new voice. She hadn't realized she had company in her cell.
A handsome, but ragged-looking young man with short dark hair approached and knelt beside her.
"Are you alright?"
Pluto nodded.
"She's a regular ball of sunshine, that one," he offered a small cup of water to her. "I learned the hard way not to get on her bad side."
"Thank you," said Pluto, taking a sip.
"I take it you two...know each other?"
"Something like that," she replied noncommittally.
"Pluto, was it?" The young man stuck out his hand.
The Guardian nodded as she accepted the greeting.
"And you are…?"
"Tenoh Haruka."
"…the young racing phenom has been missing for more than two weeks. No further developments have been reported. In other sports news…"
click
Seated at her kitchen island with a bowl of cereal, Michiru Kaioh turned off the small television. Tenoh Haruka... She didn't understand why, but she always felt a slight shiver every time she heard the racer's name.
Before she could ponder the odd feeling any longer, she instantly became aware of the sound of hurried footsteps coming down the hallway. Michiru sighed and mentally braced herself for the impending verbal onslaught from her little sister.
"So tell me all about Sailor V!"
Michiru mentally kicked herself for not keeping her mouth shut.
"Hotaru, I told you before there is nothing to tell…"
The 14-year-old immediately bounded in front of her.
"The Champion of Justice herself slept over last night—in your bed might I add—and there's nothing to tell?"
"It's not like I was in the bed with her!"
"But you were thinking about it, right?"
The violinist let out a groan of frustration and stood quickly to place her bowl in the sink. "I wasn't thinking anything of the sort."
"Yeah right," Hotaru snorted. "I can't believe you had the woman of your dreams IN YOUR BED and you did nothing about it."
Michiru counted to 10 before slowly turning toward her soon-to-be-murdered sister. "She is not – and I repeat, not – the woman of my dreams."
Hotaru rolled her eyes and began tallying with her fingers. "Let's see… hot blonde… check…sailor fuku…check…need I go on? You've only been drawing her since… forever!"
"Those drawings are fiction. Lest you forget, dear sister, fiction means not real." Off the incredulous look on her sister's face, Michiru forged on, "And even if they were, my drawings have a woman with short blonde hair."
Hotaru shrugged. "She probably just needs to cut it."
"Ugh! I am done with this conversation." Michiru began to make her way to her bedroom to get dressed for the day, with Hotaru quickly in tow. "If you'll excuse me, I have a business meeting scheduled."
"Fine. Well, if Sailor V isn't your true love, then maybe Minako Aino is…"
Any retort Michiru might have given was cut short by the door slamming in Hotaru's face.
"How long are you going to ignore me?"
Minako looked at the furry white tail preceding her up the stairs to the hidden backdoor entrance of her talent agency's building. Despite the look of relief on his face when he first caught up with her a few blocks from Michiru Kaioh's condominium, Artemis had, for the most part, refused to acknowledge the idol as they traveled to the agency.
"If it'll make you happier to say 'I told you so,' then go right ahead," she continued and still received no response. "I'm sorry, Artemis, but she needed our help."
The white cat stopped in his tracks and turned toward her.
"And just who is going to help you, Mina? You lucked out this time, but what about the next?"
"Point taken," Minako nodded, pleased she got him to speak to her again. "But everything worked out, didn't it?"
"If by 'working out,'" Artemis made exaggerated quotation mark motions with his paws, "you mean getting pummeled, passing out and being carted off by a potentially dangerous stranger, then yes, job well done oh great Champion of Justice."
"Dangerous stranger?" Minako asked incredulously as she entered the building. "Michiru Kaioh is far from dangerous."
"You don't know that," Artemis replied, following behind her. "Even you have to admit there's something strange about her."
"There's something strange about Usagi too, but I wouldn't call her dangerous."
Minako stopped at her dressing room door and looked down at her partner.
"She helped me, Artemis, and that makes her one of the good guys as far as I'm concerned," she continued, remembering the warm surge of power she had felt from the other woman. "We need to worry less about Michiru and more about that youma."
Artemis sighed. He hated to admit it, but the idol was right.
"We should keep an eye on her then," he said, hesitating before he added, "We should tell the others too."
"No," Minako shook her head. "Not yet. I don't want to worry them… especially the Princess."
"Mina…"
"She's getting married tomorrow, Artemis. I want her to be happy and peaceful for as long as possible."
"And what of your peace, Mina?"
The idol smiled sadly at the cat before opening the door to her dressing room and walking headfirst into…
"Miiiiiinaaaaakoooo-chan!"
"Oh…Boss…"
Sugao placed his hands on her shoulders, turned her and immediately escorted her back out the door and down the hall.
"You, my dear, are late," her manager began before stopping abruptly. "Eh…weren't you talking to someone just now?"
"Ah.. n…no…." From the corner of her eye, Minako saw a little white tail whip around a corner.
"Hm. Well, more importantly, do you realize who you're not talking to right now?"
"Um…"
"Michiru Kaioh."
"R-right… you see…"
"It's ooookay, Minako-chan!" Sugao hurriedly continued. "She rescheduled the meeting. Apparently she was involved in some sort of mugging last night!"
"You don't say…"
"Tsk, tsk," Sugao sniffed in disgust. "It's just dreadful. Well to make it easier on her, I agreed to have us meet at her creative studio. By the way, Minako-chan, why were you late this morning?"
"Well, actually…"
"It's a long story…"
It had to have been the worst bit of news Rei had received in quite a while. And it just so happened that the bearer of the bad tidings was none other than one of her best friends.
"…but in a nutshell, Naru managed to organize one for Usagi at the Lexington Queen at the last minute," Makoto said as she took a sip of tea. She, Rei and Ami had gathered around a small table in Rei's bedroom.
"A bachelorette party?" Rei felt a sinking feeling in her stomach. The last thing she wanted to do was spend her night in a loud, crowded, smoky club with drunken morons.
"Her mother booked the VIP lounge," Ami explained. "It wasn't easy on such short notice but it didn't hurt when we mentioned that one of the guests would be the one and only Minako Aino."
Rei fought the urge to roll her eyes and remained silent as she tried to come up with an excuse, ANY excuse, to avoid the torture of a nightclub. I was just in the hospital...
"Don't even try it, Rei," Makoto said. "Nothing you could possibly say can get you out of this."
The priestess blushed, but attempted to remain cool. "I don't know what you're talking about."
"Oh, of course you don't," the taller girl said dryly, adding, "Besides, you wouldn't want to disappoint the princess… or Minako."
Before Rei could even point a scowl at Makoto's direction, the telephone rang. Sighing, she stood and walked to the receiver by the side of her bed.
"Hello?"
"Hi Rei, it's me."
The miko cursed her heart for always melting at the mere sound of her voice.
"Hi, Minako." Rei said as disinterestedly as possible, pointedly ignoring the quick grin on Makoto's face.
"I just wanted to apologize for not being able to see you this morning…"
"That's alright. Ami and Makoto said you were called into the agency."
"Um, yes. I'm actually meeting the artist I'm going to collaborate with on my next album. Michiru Kaioh."
"Oh, the violinist. My grandpa is in love with her…"
"That doesn't surprise me. She is quite beautiful."
"…music." Rei finished lamely, feeling her stomach twist in what she refused to acknowledge as jealousy.
"I didn't mean to bother you, Rei. I just wanted to make sure you were all right."
"Of course I'm all right," Rei snapped, almost indignantly. "Why wouldn't I be?"
"Ah right. I forgot I was talking to the almighty Mars Reiko-san who wasn't just lying in a hospital bed yesterday."
Before Rei could reply, Makoto yelled loudly, "Minako, we'll see you at the Lexington Queen tonight at 11!"
"Is that Makoto?"
"Unfortunately," Rei grumbled, which garnered a small chuckle from the pop idol.
"Why are we meeting at the Lexington Queen?"
"It's for Usagi's bachelorette party," the miko sighed, not even bothering to mask her resignation.
"That sounds like fun."
Rei could only grunt in response.
"You'll save a dance for me, won't you Mars Reiko-san?"
The miko growled.
"I'll take that as a yes, then. See you tonight!"
"Tonight?"
Luna was irritated as she entered Usagi's bedroom with Artemis in tow. She had been on her way to the Hikawa Shrine before the white cat waylaid her and asked to return to the Tsukino household.
Artemis took a deep breath to steel his courage. "Yes. We need to contact Queen Serenity. Tonight."
"What on earth for?" the black cat asked, somewhat taken aback by the request.
"There's… there's a new enemy."
Luna was flabbergasted, to say the least. "How do you know this?"
The white cat felt guilty for betraying Minako's trust. But what choice did he have? He had sworn a long time ago to never again stand idly by and watch his charge get hurt. He had learned the hard way about the mortal consequences of his previous inaction. He refused to let her bear the burden alone again.
Luna glared at the white cat, who continued to remain silent.
"Artemis," the black cat growled. "What exactly haven't you been telling me?"
"I'll explain what I can to you, Luna, but first we need to speak to the Queen. Something dark is approaching… and I have a feeling it'll be worse than Mio and a few clowns."
"Please wait here, Aino-san, Michiru should be with you shortly."
The 13-year-old girl who escorted Minako into the studio could barely contain her glee as she spoke to the pop idol.
"Thank you," Minako replied, smiling at the young girl who nodded in excitement before leaving the room.
As the singer waited, she took stock of her surroundings. The space itself was modest, yet spacious, with hardwood floors, bright walls, and clean lines. In one corner, a lone chair was positioned next to a sheet music stand.
The walls were adorned with several pieces of artwork, one of which caught her eye – a shimmering watercolor of a white palace amidst a starry sky.
The building in the picture wasn't in sharp focus, its edges blurred as if seen through a haze. And yet, she instantly recognized it.
Silver Millennium.
The idol moved to the painting and leaned toward it. Upon closer inspection, she could just barely make out eight silhouettes standing around a figure in a flowing dress.
It can't be…?
"Beautiful, isn't it?"
Minako whirled around from the painting in surprise, somewhat embarrassed that she hadn't sensed another's presence. The idol watched as Michiru Kaioh approached and stood next to her in front of the painting.
"I always lose myself whenever I look at it… like a memory from a past life."
Past life… Minako returned her gaze to the artwork and tried to remain calm even though her heart began thumping harder in her chest. Who are you, Michiru Kaioh?
"Forgive me, where are my manners," the woman said, holding out her hand. "I'm Michiru Kaioh."
"Minako Aino," the idol replied.
As she shook the idol's hand, memories of the previous night and Sailor V unexpectedly flashed through Michiru's mind. She shook her head. What on earth…?
"This is going to sound silly, but have we met before?"
The idol seemed to hesitate slightly before answering with a small smile, "I don't think so, Ms. Kaioh."
"Besides, I doubt you would have forgotten me," Minako added with a wink.
Michiru smiled and raised an eye brow. "But of course…"
"A-Ha! There you two are!"
Sugao Saitou exclaimed as he shimmied up to the two women. "Already acquainted, I see. Excellent, Excellent. Ooookay! Let's talk business, shall we?"
"Absolutely," Michiru replied. "Why don't we step into my office…"
Throughout the meeting, the violinist had a difficult time keeping up with Sugao's excitable utterings, but made sure to nod and make other approving sounds at the appropriate moments. Of course, things might have been easier if she had not been focusing so intently on Minako Aino while pretending not to be.
She didn't care what the pop idol said. They definitely had met before. And if her suspicions were correct, they had met as recently as last night. It didn't matter that Minako Aino didn't have Sailor V's blonde hair or blue eyes. With her discerning artist's eye, Michiru recognized the small details in the singer's features that tied her to the so-called Champion of Justice—the shape of her eyes, the curve of her jaw, the contours of her lips. She had become familiar with them as she watched over the fuku-clad woman the night before.
I have no doubt she's Sailor V. But what that meant, Michiru had no clue. Could Minako Aino be tied to the mysterious soldiers in her dreams; dreams that she had been having with more and more frequency lately?
Minako's eyes suddenly locked onto hers. Michiru felt her face flush as looked away quickly, embarrassed that she was caught staring.
"…be a marvelous album," Sugao said..
"Most definitely," Michiru nodded in agreement, even though she had no idea what the man had just said.
"Publicity, of course, is always key," the manager continued. "The more people see you together, the more excitement we can drum up. You both should make an appearance at the Lexington Queen tonight."
"Oh that won't be necessary..," Michiru began at the same time Minako chimed in with, "Boss, actually tonight, I…"
"Ooookay, okay, okay!" Sugao squealed as he quickly flipped out his cell phone and proceeded to make the arrangements. "Don't fret about a thing. I'll have it all taken care of."
"You failed last night."
"Forgive me, m'lord."
"I've told you before. One cannot prevail against the senshi directly. Your carelessness might have fully awoken Neptune. We need her as an ally, not an enemy like Pluto."
"It will not happen again."
"See to it that it does not."
The Lexington Queen was already packed by the time they arrived at 11, and Rei already could feel the beginnings of a headache forming behind her eyes. Even in the "private" VIP lounge, the cacophony was almost unbearable for the priestess. If not for the unabashed glee of the princess and her friends, she would have bolted from the premises the moment she stepped inside. Next to her on the overstuffed leather sofa, the girls-Usagi, Ami, Makoto, Naru, Kanami, and Momoko - were eagerly discussing the upcoming wedding... and the even more anticipated "honeymoon." As much as she loved Usagi and Mamoru, the former prince's potential... prowess... was the last thing Rei needed to hear about.
She allowed the sound of their chatter to fade into the background, which wasn't particularly difficult considering there was nothing but noise everywhere. Despite herself, Rei's eyes kept wandering every so often in the direction of the club's entrance. Minako's late. She had not heard from the singer since their brief phone conversation earlier that day, and try as she might to fight it, the miko couldn't help but anticipate seeing Minako again. Although she would never admit it to the idol, she had thoroughly enjoyed the time they spent together, even if they did bicker more often than not. Only Minako had the ability to infuriate her one moment, and make her feel completely charmed the next.
Rei stifled a groan. How could the singer still make her feel this way after so many years? She had thought that whatever fascination she had concerning Minako would diminish with time, but it was the exact opposite. If anything, it had deepened over the years. It was absolutely maddening. It didn't help matters, either, that Makoto took a perverse pleasure in teasing Rei about Minako every chance she could get. Although she knew it was pointless to fight her feelings for the former Guardian of Love, the miko's deep stubbornness prevented her from admitting defeat. And yet, the more she tried to ignore it, the more Rei found herself drawn to her. Just let it go, Hino. There will never be anything between you two. Ever.
Lost in thought, the miko didn't realize that her companions' eyes were all on her.
"Reeeeeeiiiiiii-chan!" Usagi whined. "Don't ignore me!"
The priestess winced. "What? I'm sorry, Usagi, you were saying?"
"I said it's your turn!"
"My turn for what?"
"The 'Who I Love' Confession Corner!"
"The...the what?" She could feel the color rising in her cheeks. They couldn't read minds. Could they?
"Come on, Rei, the title speaks for itself," Makoto oh so helpfully added.
"Makoto and Usagi already went... although really they didn't need to," Naru said to murmurs of agreement. "So who do you love, Rei-san?"
"Er... no one."
She was greeted by groans of disbelief from everyone except Ami.
"Oh come on, Rei-chan, there has to be someone!" Usagi said, waggling her eye brows.
"Yes," Makoto nodded sagely. "Perhaps someone we all know and love? Someone like..."
Rei narrowed her eyes at the florist in a warning. She wouldn't dare...
"Minako-chan!" Usagi exclaimed.
The miko's heart stopped.
"Minako-chan is here!" The princess had already jumped from her seat to bum rush the idol.
Rei let out a breath she didn't even realize she had been holding. She glared at Makoto, who merely grinned in response, before turning her attention to the princess, who was now excitedly hugging Minako. The Lexington Queen was no stranger to celebrity patrons, but the air itself seemed to electrify with the presence of the idol and... her guest...?
Following behind Minako was an older, elegant looking woman with shoulder-length wavy hair.
She was beautiful, Rei noted with a frown. A beautiful someone who was radiating... something. Rei couldn't figure out what it was exactly. She could sense the power within the new comer's aura - but whether it was good or evil, Rei did not know. She glanced at the others and was not at all surprised that they, Usagi especially, hadn't sensed anything unusual about the stranger. But Minako... surely she felt something. But no. The idol proceeded to introduce her new friend, Michiru Kaioh, to the others as if they had known each other for years.
Even though she smiled and shook the attractive violinist's hand, Rei remained cautious. The fire reading this morning had been ominous, to say the least, and the appearance of Michiru Kaioh and her strange aura only served to raise her feelings of unease.
"Waaaaai you got here just in time, Minako-chan!" Usagi squealed. "Rei-chan was just about to confess her love."
Minako raised an amused eye brow and glanced at the stiffened miko. "Was she now?"
Usagi nodded excitedly.
"This is ridiculous," Rei exhaled in exasperation
"Come now, Rei, don't leave our little princess waiting on her special night."
Rei could tell that that Minako was already beginning to thoroughly enjoy herself.
"Who do you love?"
Rei's eyes locked onto Minako's, and she felt horribly exposed under the singer's intense and, oddly expectant, look.
You! I love you, you damned infuriating fool!
The miko gritted her teeth and quickly shut down that train of thought. If they wanted an answer so badly, they'd get an answer.
"Fine. The person I love is..."
The others leaned in expectantly.
"Chiba...Mamoru."
silence
Makoto howled with delight at the confused look on Usagi's face.
"Ehhhh! Rei-chan you can't love Mamoru!"
"You can't help who you love, Usagi," Rei shrugged and smiled evilly, while the others joined in Makoto's laughter.
"Ohhhh you're all so mean!"
Haruka Tenoh watched as the sailor fuku-clad woman named Pluto paced near the force field surrounding the entrance of their cell.
"I don't mean to sound rude, but would you mind letting me in on what the hell is going on here?" The racer asked. "Where are we? Who are those people? What do they want?"
The guardian stilled her movements momentarily and turned toward her cellmate, but remained silent.
"You must have some idea," Haruka pressed on when she didn't receive an immediate response. "You're dressed like one of them for heaven's sake!"
"Yes, Pluto," a third voice rang out from behind the guardian. "Do enlighten our young friend."
Haruka's body went rigid.
"Uranus..." Pluto acknowledged the "visitor."
"Tell our friend how I saved her from an eternal prison."
"Her?" Pluto threw a confused glance at Haruka.
Haruka merely shrugged. "I never said I was boy."
"Tell her about the 'pure' and 'benevolent' ruler," Uranus continued sarcastically, "who forces people to give up their hopes, dreams, loves, and confines them to solitude for years upon years… only to die at the hands of a whiny brat's selfishness."
"What are you two talking about?" The young racer felt more and more confused.
"You're… twisting things," Pluto responded to Uranus, ignoring Haruka.
"Am I?" Uranus began pacing outside of the cell. "Our precious duty? It's nothing more than an eternal prison."
Piercing green eyes locked with garnet ones.
"When exactly did you go insane?"
"And when exactly did you become so blind? We've been given a second chance, Pluto, and I'll be damned if I fall into the same hell."
Without warning, Uranus raised her right hand, deactivated the force field, and pushed the Guardian of Time against the stone wall with a gust of wind from her left hand.
"If you'll excuse me, I need to borrow our little friend here."
Haruka moved backward until her back was pressed up against the stone wall. "Stay away from me, you bitch!"
"Or you'll what?" Uranus mocked. "Glare me to death. You are nothing."
With her right hand, the Guardian of Wind pinned the racer with the same power with which she held Pluto.
Struggle as she might, the Senshi of Time could not break free from Uranus' hold. As she approached the young racer, Pluto was astonished to feel an aura of power originate from Haruka Tenoh. The power of... wind? It can't be... Haruka Tenoh is...
Pluto watched helplessly as Uranus began to fade into a silhouette that merged into Haruka Tenoh. And in a blink of an eye, the wind trapping Pluto against the wall dissipated and she fell unceremoniously back on the floor, her power drained.
When she looked up, Haruka Tenoh stood before her. The sigil of Uranus glowed on her forehead.
"So this is your answer, Uranus?" Pluto spat out. "Betrayal?"
"No, Pluto," Uranus replied, speaking through Haruka. "My answer is liberation."
Sweet escape. Rei wished she could find a way, but she was trapped amid a swarm of bodies on the dance floor. Normally, Rei would rather have died than be caught dancing in public. But she had no one to blame for her current predicament except her stubborn pride. When the rest of the girls began coaxing her to join them, the miko had politely declined. All was going well until Minako, as always, jumped into the fray.
"Come on, Rei, you promised to save me a dance."
"I did no such thing!"
"Aren't you a little young to be experiencing memory loss?"
"I don't know what you're talking about."
"Oh that's right, you don't like talking about the past."
"..."
And then the idol did it - the one thing Rei could never back down from. She issued a challenge.
"I guess I don't blame you."
"..."
"I wouldn't want to be outshined by yours truly, either."
"Please, I would so put your ass to shame."
"Is that so? Then prove it, Mars Reiko-san."
Hook.
Line.
Sinker.
And Rei was on the dance floor.
She supposed it wasn't so bad... Oh who am I kidding? This is a nightmare, she thought with a grimace. With the crush of people crowding every corner of the club, there was less actual dancing, and more swaying and gyrating. She was hot, sweaty, and ready and willing to pummel the next guy who just 'accidentally' brushed up against her.
Despite her irritation, she couldn't help but feel amused every time she glanced in the direction of Usagi. Even with the tight quarters, everyone gave the princess as wide a berth as possible as she flailed her arms and legs wildly to the beat of the music. While Ami and Naru were adept at avoiding Usagi's dangerous limbs, Makoto had already been smacked a few times in the face, which made Rei chuckle in vengeful delight. She deserves it after encouraging Usagi and her stupid love game.
On that train of thought, the miko's gaze drifted toward Minako, who danced near Kanami, Momoko, and Michiru. Rei's eye's narrowed as she regarded the violinist, who she thought seemed a little too interested in Minako. Granted, many people took an interest to the idol; Rei was guilty of that herself. Strange aura aside, the way Michiru would look at Minako when she thought no one was watching that particularly set Rei on edge. And to make matters worse, the pop singer seemed to also be noticing Michiru in return.
A few hours later, Minako followed Michiru outside the club. She welcomed the feel of the cool night air against her hot, glistening skin. A limousine was already parked and waiting by the curb; the path toward it lined by Lexington Queen bouncers who kept a small crowd of paparazzi at bay.
"You have amazing friends, Minako-san, especially Tsukino-san" Michiru said. "Thank you for letting me share the evening with them."
"It was my pleasure," the idol smiled, pleased and relieved that her boss's idea turned out so well. They reached the limo, and the driver opened the back door for Michiru.
"I'm sorry I can't stay longer, but I have to get back home to check on my sister."
"Of course," Minako nodded, remembering the young girl she had met briefly at Michiru's studio.
"If you'd like, I can take you back to your hotel?" Michiru asked.
"Thank you, but that won't be necessary. I'll be staying with a friend tonight."
The violinist nodded and began to enter the limo, before pausing.
"Minako-san?"
"Hm?"
"If by chance you ever run into Sailor V, could you please give her a message from me?"
Minako did her best not to show any emotion even though her heart rate skyrocketed. "I can't say I've ever made her acquaintance, Michiru-san, but yes, I will."
"Please tell her thank you for the other night." Michiru leaned toward Minako and placed a small kiss on her left cheek.
Minako froze as flashes of light from the paparazzi's cameras illuminated the two women. With a knowing smile, Michiru entered the limousine and departed.
"Aino-san! Aino-san! Can we get a comment!"
"Aino-san, please look this way!"
The idol, still in a daze, turned around, squinting against the rapidly flashing bulbs. As soon as her eyes adjusted from the bright haze, Minako found herself locked under the glare of a certain miko, who stared darkly at her from the entrance of the club.
A/N: Gah! I can't believe it's been more than a year since I last updated. If anyone is still out there and still giving this a chance, thank you thank you thank you! I promise to have solid Rei/Minako interactions in the next chapter.