SOUL MATES
Chapter 4: "Secrets Aren't Secret Very Long"
A Sailor Moon fanfic
By Bill K.
The palace air car landed in a clearing near the two cabins. As Usa stepped out onto the porch, she could see the eyes of everyone except Helios were on the Elder Senshi emerging from the craft. Helios was oblivious to it, maintaining his contact with the dreaming. Usa remembered Hotaru had contacted the Elders and mentally chastised herself for forgetting to cancel the alert. She hoped her aunts wouldn't be too put out by running up to Lake Biwa for what was apparently nothing. And she hoped she wouldn't lose any of their confidence by seeming not to have everything under control.
"Any word on Palla-Palla?" Makoto asked. She was in the lead of the group. Minako and Ami were also focused on them. Rei, though, seemed distracted by something on the lake.
"She came back safe," Usa said, descending from the porch and walking over to meet the Elders. Her friends joined her, as curious as the Elder Senshi were. "Sorry to drag you four down here for nothing."
"Hey, it's OK," Minako replied, her mind easing visibly. "There's nothing like a trip to a rustic lake in the middle of the night to help your complexion. So what happened?"
"Yeah, you get anything out of her?" Ves turned to Usa, her look very urgent.
"She said she sensed some thoughts and got curious about them," Usa explained. "And wandered off into the woods to investigate. Apparently she met the owner of those thoughts. They chatted a while, then Palla-Palla thought she better get back home before, in her words, 'Ves-Ves got mad'."
Jun and Cere instantly glared at Ves.
"So who is this guy?" Ves demanded.
"She still doesn't want to say," Usa answered.
"That's suspicious," Minako commented.
"She says nothing happened," Usa spoke up. "That they just talked. I believe her."
"Well, she's not one to lie," Makoto observed.
"So why all the secrecy?" Ves fumed.
"She said the person she met was shy," Usa explained. "Maybe he heard we were here and he didn't want to mix with folks from the palace."
"A guy who doesn't want to meet me? Impossible!" Minako joked.
"Shut up, Blondie," Makoto sighed as Ami gave her an impatient look.
"So she's all right and everything's under control," Usa maintained. "Again, I'm sorry for dragging you four down here for nothing."
"It's quite all right, Usa," Ami smiled. "Better to err on the side of caution. This doesn't reflect upon your judgment." Usa's eyes met Ami's and she saw the all-knowing, all-seeing expression on the woman. Right then it made her feel four again.
"Hey! Where you going?" Minako shouted suddenly. Everybody turned to where Minako was looking. They all saw Rei walking south along the bank, in the general direction that Sailor Vesta had gone when she was tracking Palla-Palla.
"I want to check something," Rei replied.
"Great! I'll come with you," Minako began. Instantly Rei whirled and faced them.
"NO!" she barked. "I'll do this on my own." And she turned back to her original course, quickly disappearing into the dark forest.
"Yes, ma'am!" Minako replied sarcastically. "Man, I hate it when she gets all spooky like that."
"You suppose she sensed something?" Makoto asked. She turned to Ami and found her companion had already transformed into Sailor Mercury and had her Senshi Computer out.
"Getting anything?" Minako asked while the teens all looked curiously at each other.
"There seems to be a mass near the shore south of here," Mercury explained. "But my scan is unable to identify or categorize it."
"Like a big lake monster that likes to trash cities and rip down power lines?" Minako asked.
"Not necessarily," Mercury replied as Makoto shook her head. "I'm not even registering life sign readings. It could very well be a gigantic lump of trash or a submerged vehicle. With so little sensor information, it would be ridiculous to even postulate what it actually was." She closed the computer and glanced back at her friends. "But couple this reading with the fact that Rei clearly sensed the presence of something leads me to believe that the mass I scanned is very likely supernatural. Possibly a sentient entity, and if that's the case, it could very well be the entity that Palla-Palla conversed with earlier."
Immediately Ves started forward, intent upon following Rei into the woods. But a hand shot out and seized the teen by her shirt collar. Ves whirled angrily and came face to face with Minako.
"Ah ah, Ves," Minako admonished. "Rei wants to do a solo and she's probably got a good reason."
"If that thing's after Palla-Palla, I want to know!" raged Ves.
"And that temper of yours is another reason why you need to stay here," Minako added. Naturally Ves was about to rebel. Usa stepped in.
"Ves, let Aunt Rei handle it," she advised Ves.
"But . . .!" the teen fumed.
"Palla-Palla is safe," Usa persisted. "From what she told me, she's in no danger. But if this whatever it is turns out to be a threat, you need to be here guarding her."
That convinced her. Ves eased her shoulders and silently nodded. Out of the corner of her eye, Usa noticed both Mercury and Makoto nod with approval at how she handled the situation.
It made her feel a little better about herself.
Rei walked through the dark forest, unafraid of what might be lurking within. The hem of her robes brushed along the ground and against the roots of trees. She could sense there were no animals in the vicinity and if what she sensed was true, she knew why.
But a dragon?
She wasn't surprised that the dragon made its home in Lake Biwa. Lake Biwa was the largest fresh water lake in Japan and would be a natural habitat for a dragon. What did surprise her was that dragons still existed in this era. As human civilization progressed, dragons had become fewer and fewer, so her Grandpa had once told her. She had never met an actual dragon; only the demonic dragon created by the rage of the victims from the nuclear bombing of Hiroshima. Her hope was that this dragon was in a better mood. Dragons could become very cranky creatures if insulted or put upon.
At once she stopped. There was a small clearing by the bank. Without fear she walked up until she was twenty feet from the bank. Then Rei bowed respectfully to the lake.
"Forgive me for disturbing your peace, Dragon-San," Rei said as she straightened. "But there are questions I must ask and only you may answer them fully. I plead for a moment of your time so that I may grow wiser."
Before her eyes, the dragon materialized from the invisibility it used to maintain its privacy. Dragons had always done so, but more and more practiced it as humanity began to expand into the wild. It looked down on her. She could read that it was slightly annoyed by being disturbed, but respected her position and her spiritual power.
"Ask your questions," the dragon replied. "I will answer them truthfully."
"Have you lived here long?" Rei asked.
"For nearly eleven hundred of your years, Priest," the dragon told her.
"Peacefully?"
"I seek no confrontations," it said. "I merely wish to be left alone. You need not worry about my intentions."
"I am grateful," Rei said. "Earlier you met a girl?"
"The one called Palla-Palla," the dragon nodded. "She came unto me led by sight not as formidable as yours, Priest, but impressive nonetheless."
"Did she disturb or anger you?"
The dragon almost seemed to smile. "She came as a beam of sunlight upon me and brightened my existence for a few moments," he said, then seemed to sigh, "then was gone. I did not wish for her visit, but I was sorry to see her leave. Are you her guardian?"
"One of them," Rei responded. "I am very happy to hear that your meeting went well. I will bother you no longer."
With that, Rei bowed respectfully again to the dragon. When she straightened up, the dragon had slipped back behind its cloak of invisibility.
"Remarkable," Rei said to herself, a smile curling her lips. "Every time you think you've seen and heard everything possible, something proves you wrong."
As Rei approached the cabins, she was surprised to find everyone waiting for her.
"Why aren't you kids in bed?" she gasped, looking at Usa and the Asteroids.
"Because we're not kids," Cere responded under her breath, but it was loud enough to be heard.
"Did you find what you were looking for?" Makoto asked.
"I did," Rei nodded.
"And . . .?" Minako prodded.
Rei replied with one of her withering glares.
"Don't give me that look!" Minako howled. "I want to know if the girls are camping out next to Godzilla! Spill!"
"No," Rei replied stonily.
"Rei," Makoto began.
"What's out there is not a threat, to Palla-Palla or anyone else," Rei told them. "In fact, I think Palla-Palla managed to charm it. Beyond that it wants to be left alone and I intend to respect that wish, so that's all I'm going to tell anyone."
"Buzzkill," scowled Minako.
"You're sure, Aunt Rei?" Usa asked.
"Yes, Usa," Rei assured her. "You and the other girls don't have anything to worry about. Just try to avoid the part of the lake and the woods south of here. I wouldn't want you accidentally disturbing it."
"Well, if there's no crisis, perhaps we should return to Crystal Tokyo," Ami suggested. She glanced at Rei. "I yield to your authority in these matters."
"Sounds good," Makoto sighed. She turned to the teens. "You girls going to be all right?"
"Sure, Aunt Makoto," Usa smiled and nodded. She got a nod in return from Makoto and the four elders headed back for their air car.
"Come on, Rei, give!" they heard Minako badger Rei as the group headed back. "Did it have fangs down to here and big claws and ten foot bat wings?"
"Idiot," muttered Rei.
The teens headed into the cabin. As silently as they could, they opened the door to the bedroom Palla-Palla occupied and peered in. She was sleeping peacefully.
"Well I'm going to bed," Cere told them. "I've got an entire forest to talk to tomorrow and I want to get an early start." She smiled wickedly at the others. "But not too early. Nine's not too late for breakfast, is it?"
"I'll save you some," Hotaru chuckled. "Coming, Usa?"
"Might as well," she sighed. "Helios is going to be stuck in the dreamscape for most of the night." They waved to Jun and Ves as they left.
"I'm going to go to bed, too, Ves," Jun said. "How about you?"
"Yeah," Ves replied. Then she gestured to Palla-Palla's room. "But in there."
"Where?"
"I can sleep on the floor," Ves claimed. She looked away. "I just - - feel better about things if I was there with her."
"OK. Don't wake her," Jun told her.
Ves nodded.
On the flight back to Crystal Tokyo, Makoto piloted the air car. Ami sat in the front seat while Minako and Rei sat in the passenger compartment and bickered. As she guided the craft, Makoto glanced over and found Ami working on a portable computer work station.
"What are you researching now?" Makoto asked.
"Hmm?" Ami asked, drawn out of her focus on the computer. "Oh, I'm just looking up some myths."
"I've seen that look," Makoto smirked. "You're in problem-solving mode. You're trying to crack what Rei's being so mysterious about, aren't you?"
"I," Ami began, then sagged. "Yes. The clues were staring me right in the face, demanding to be extrapolated upon. I couldn't help myself."
"So what did you find?"
"Well, we have a large mass entity of supernatural origin," Ami explained. "It is amphibious and prefers to dwell in or around large bodies of water, but can exist in air or on land. What does that suggest?"
"She met a giant frog?" Makoto asked.
"Rei was concerned enough to investigate," Ami continued. "That indicates what she sensed has historically not always gotten along with humanity. But she said later that Palla-Palla charmed it, indicating intelligence and sophistication. Since I'm not well studied on Japanese mythology, I ran the facts through a database. It is my hypothesis that Palla-Palla encountered a dragon."
"A dragon?" gasped Makoto. "But dragons don't exist!"
"Apparently they do," Ami replied. They heard the cabin door open and turned to find Rei and Minako in the door way.
"You know, Ami," the priest sighed. "Sometimes you're too smart for everyone else's good."
"Then you confirm my hypothesis?"
"Yes," Rei admitted reluctantly. "Palla-Palla met a dragon."
"For real? Outstanding!" gasped Minako.
"Now I wish we'd stayed," Ami mused. "I would have liked to get more detailed scans of the creature." She glanced at everyone. "In the name of science, of course!"
"It just wants to be left alone, Ami," Rei told her.
"I wouldn't disturb it," Ami argued. "My senshi computer is very powerful at close range. It wouldn't even know I was there."
"Yes it would," Rei replied. "So respect its wishes and leave it be."
Ami sighed with frustration. "As you wish. But this is a unique opportunity to add to the knowledge of the world. I hate squandering it."
At seven the next morning, Ves suddenly awakened when she heard a noise. Crouched and ready to move, it took a moment for her to realize that what she heard was Palla-Palla stirring from her bed.
"Ves-Ves, why are you sleeping on the floor?" Palla-Palla asked, her legs dangling over the side of the bed.
"I was just making sure you were OK," Ves replied. She arched back and stretched, much the way a dog would in the morning. "What are you doing up?"
"It's seven o'clock. Palla-Palla has to get up and get her breakfast. Yumi-Chan's Toyshop is at seven-thirty. Palla-Palla doesn't want to miss it." The teen though a moment. "Can Ves-Ves set up the streamy thing so Palla-Palla can watch? Palla-Palla doesn't want to wake the Princess."
"Yeah, I think I can do it," Ves sighed. Listening to the childish antics of Yumi-Chan and her crew was a chore, but it was infinitely preferable to listening to Palla-Palla whine and moan if she missed it.
"Goody!" squealed the teen. She bounced out of bed and into the bathroom to get ready. As she thundered down the hall to the cabin's bathroom, Jun poked her head out of the other bedroom.
"What is it, war?" Jun asked. Though she was frazzled from lack of sleep, her jungle training meant she was alert no matter how little sleep she'd had.
"Worse," grunted Ves. "Palla-Palla can't miss Yumi-Chan."
"God forbid," Jun sighed. "I'm going back to bed. After all, even you couldn't mess up a bowl of Sugar Bombs. Just don't put ketchup on them."
"You're a riot," Ves scowled.
Pouring a bowl of the sugary cereal, Ves set it down on a table with a glass of milk next to it. Then she sat down at the cabin work station and began searching for the video stream of the show "Yumi-Chan's Toyshop". Finding the stream, Ves pulled up the latest episode and put it on pause so Palla-Palla could view it when she was done in the bathroom.
Ves whirled at a noise. Standing in front of the door to the bathroom, still in her footed bunny pajamas, was Palla-Palla. Her demeanor was intense and she stared out at nothing. Hackles raised on Ves.
"I know that look!" Ves exclaimed. "What are you hearing?"
But Palla-Palla didn't answer. She stared for a few moments more, then scurried back into the bedroom. Ves followed her and found the girl changing into her day clothes.
"What's up?" Ves asked.
"He's in trouble," Palla-Palla said. She shimmied into her light blue knit top and then headed for the door. Before she reached it, though, Ves grabbed her by the arm.
"Who's in trouble?" Ves demanded.
"Palla-Palla can't tell you! She promised! But she has to help him!" Palla-Palla exclaimed. She pulled out of the grip Ves had on her and flung open the door.
"OK, I'll go with you!" Ves offered because she didn't want Palla-Palla disappearing into those woods again, no matter what assurances Hino-Sensei had given them.
"No, Ves-Ves! You can't! Palla-Palla has to do this by herself! You have to stay here!"
And Palla-Palla was out the door, down the stairs and off into the woods as fast as she could go. As she disappeared into the woods, there was a flash of light, indicating that she had transformed into Sailor Pallas.
"The Hell I have to stay here," muttered Ves. Moments later, Sailor Vesta transformed into a red fox and bounded off after Sailor Pallas.
Continued in Chapter 5