Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon
The Second Story

AN: When one is speaking Japanese, there is a tendency to trail off when one is uncertain or about to say something rude or negative that might be offensive to the listener. While I usually hate using '...' in stories, as there's so many other ways to express that particular part of speech, I've decided to include it simply because it actually makes sense to have them there. So don't mind them, there's a reason for them.

Also: I know that this is a lot to ask, you guys, but seriously. Could I get some honest feedback that actually helps me instead of making my review count go up? I love reviews that actually make me go 'huh' and get inspired. I've only gotten a handful of those on this fic and it's hard to write when I don't know really what you're thinking about what I wrote.

Tokyo, Summer, Present Day

The night was far to warm for comfort, and the incredible heat and humidity of the rainy season had not allowed for the blessed release of a cooling rain shower to cool the hot earth. Hino Rei tossed and turned on her futon; sleep did not come easily to her these days, for her waking mind was constantly filled with thoughts of the many responsibilities that came with running Hikawa Jinja. She had trouble shutting the endless chatter of her thoughts when the time for sleep finally came. The dreams once she fell asleep, however, were something that not even Rei could blame on her over-worked and sleep-deprived brain. The constant presence of whatever dark element was plaguing her resting mind was driving Rei to the point of near insanity.

She hadn't had a decent night's sleep in weeks now, and even though her friends all told her that she looked like shit, she would not go and see anyone about her problems. She had no reason to; she knew what the root of the problem was already.

Rei opened her eyes and scowled moodily at the ceiling of her bedroom. She was too hot, sweating in her already minimal pajamas. There would be no sleep tonight, it seemed. Rei didn't know why it bothered her so much to be plagued with these dreams, she couldn't even remember then when she woke up and no amount of self-reflection and meditation could help her to recall what she'd seen. The dreams, like so many other answers to her questions, eluded her.

She shoved the covers off herself and pulled herself to her feet once more, her jaw set resolutely. She was going to get to the bottom of this. She was so sick of not being able to sleep, of not being able to think because she was so tired. The dreams had to stop, and they had to stop now. She crossed the room in two steps and headed though the long corridors of the jinja, her eyes intent on her destination.

The sacred fire still burned strongly despite the late hour, and the already warm night made the fire room far too warm for Rei to be comfortable. She didn't care, however, this was something that she was used to by now, and the heat helped to focus her concentration. She sat down before the flame and closed her eyes, pulling all her thoughts inwards and looking for something, anything, that would help to direct her to the root cause of her insomnia.

The threads of the conscious mind are not easy to follow, but Rei pushed herself forward, plunging though her fears and uncertainties of her heart. The journey was not something that she would want to repeat, for it was only in these moments of reflection that Rei thought that she might be somehow missing something in life, given the fact that she was doing the work of a much older person at the tender age of twenty-one. All Rei saw, when she looked deep within herself, were missed opportunities and second chances that she was unwilling to give.

At the center of everything, however, was a great dark presence. Rei shifted her focus to concentrate exclusively on that entity. It should not have been there, and Rei was concerned, as she had not sensed it earlier.

She tensed; her mind's walls against her memory of these events were crumbling under her resolve.

The darkness was suffocating. Rei turned to the right, moving in a slow circle as she started out into the desolate landscape before her. Death was everywhere, the scent of it, the very feeling of souls being ripped from their bodies clung to this place. Rei shivered, her eyes slowly adjusting to the dim red light that provided the only spark of illumination to this dead world.

She was looking at the city, or what had once been the city. A great wave of destruction moved towards her from the center of the city and Rei could hear the cries of her comrades, falling in battle around her.

She tried to gather her power together, to attack, to defend herself against this great evil. Nothing happened and Rei fell to her knees, staring listlessly up at the sky. She knew, and yet she didn't know, that she was dying. Everyone was dying around her. Her mind flickered to life once more, desperately trying to push herself upwards.

She had to save her, she had to!

"The Silence is approaching, young Mars." A voice spoke though the gloom of Rei's impending death. "The fate of the world again rests on the princess and her senshi, you must find the talismans - they alone can stop the destruction."

Rei jerked, her body falling backwards against the Fire Room floor. She hissed quietly and righted herself with an angry glare at the fire. It seemed as though the answers were as cryptic as ever.

She would have to tell someone about this vision, especially if it was the source of her insomnia. Rei did not like the idea that they might have to fight once more, for she was perfectly happy to put the senshi business behind her once and for all. There were too many things that Rei wanted to forget about that time, and mentioning them to anyone of her friends would simply serve to further complicate the already complex series of mores that existed within their friends group when it came to talking about the past.

Rei closed her eyes. She didn't want to call her despite the fact that she might have the answers that Rei needed. She hated being dependent on that infuriating woman for interpretation of every single sliver of information that she'd ever managed to glean from the dreams of the past life and of their mission as sailor senshi. It made her feel weak.

Rei hated feeling weak.

They were going to be together at Usagi's for dinner tomorrow night; anyway, Rei would talk to Minako then.