Author Note: I decided to post both Chapter 1 and 2 at the same time to get this story going. Enjoy!
I don't own Sailor Moon or any songs and have tried to the best of my ability to site my references. I couldn't find who actually wrote the O-Town song, but I did my best! Though my professors would hang me for making my citations non-alphabetical, I thought it would be easier to distinguish which song was which by the order they appear.
Takeuchi, N. (1991). Sailor Moon. Bunkyo, Tokyo, Japan: Kodansha Ltd.
Bachman, T. (1999). She's So High [Recorded by Tal Bachman]. On Tal Bachman [cassette], New York, New York: Sony Music Entertainment.
Angel, A.P., Estrada, E.-M., Miller, D., Penick, T., and Underwood, J. (2000). Liquid Dreams [Recorded by O-Town]. On O-Town [CD], New York, New York: J Records.
Chapter 2:
Minako finished showering and turned off the water. Once she had dried herself and her hair off enough to prevent from dripping on the floor, she hung the towels back up on the rack and walked out of the bathroom towards her laptop, which sat at a small desk at the foot of her queen-sized bed. Typing swiftly, her apartment was soon filled with music streaming from her computer.
- 'Cause she's so high, high above me. She's so lovely. She's so high like Cleopatra, Joan of Arc, or Aphrodite. She's so high, high above me. -
Minako began dancing a little as she shuffled in time to the music towards her wall closet. She went to the right-side of the closet and slid one of the mirrored, panel doors open to reveal her clothes. She reached in and grabbed some undergarments and her typical work uniform, which consisted of a white, cotton camisole, a black, short-sleeve cardigan, and black fitted slacks. As she threw them on her bed, her eyes caught a glimpse of herself in the mirrored panels.
Her creamy skin truly made her piercing, sapphire eyes stand out. Those eyes were usually the first thing people noticed about her besides her lustrous, blond hair. They sparkled with a confident, bubbly, carefree, laissez-faire attitude that reflected her personality. Her toned body was perfectly shaped in every way, thanks to her time on the volleyball court during her high school years and occasionally in her free time during her college years. By anyone's standards, Minako was gorgeous. Sure, she could land any man she wanted and had landed a few that caught her attention, but they never really lasted and she would end it fairly quickly. She smiled at her reflection,
That's because girls are so much more fun that guys!, she thought. She knew from a young age that she was attracted to both men and women and had explored relationships with both genders. It wasn't until college that her interests began leaning slightly more towards the female make up. Though those relationships lasted just as long or maybe a week longer than her relationships with guys before she would end them, she enjoyed the intensity of them quite a bit.
Which is partially why she chose the job she had and continued to work there, always surrounded by beautiful women looking to her for advice and expertise. She loved the attention. But even then, she hadn't found one that could keep her interest longer than maybe a month, let alone the one.
"Michi-chan is so lucky," she pouted as she got dressed, "Why can't I find someone like Haru-chan who's strong, independent, and confident so they're not always clinging to me?"
She paused and giggled to herself, "But not to the point that they don't even know I'm around and don't worship me like the love-goddess I am!"
Once she was dressed, she went back to the bathroom, grabbed her blow dryer from under the sink, and plugged it in to dry her hair. When she finished, she brushed it carefully and tied it up and out of her face with a bright-red bow, which was a birthday gift from her sister. Though red was not one of her favorite colors, Usagi was so excited to give her the gift that Minako couldn't help but feel a warm fondness for the item despite its color.
"Ok," Minako said to herself in the bathroom mirror, "Now the hard part."
She walked out of the bathroom and back to her closet. This time, she went to the left-side and slid both panel doors all the way to the right, revealing a floor-to-ceiling, cubby-hole cabinet. By its design, it was obviously custom-built for the closet. Within each cubby-hole were professional makeup cases of varying colors.
"Let's see," Minako took a step back to eye her collection, "What do I want to do today?" She contemplated her options for a while before smiling and reaching for an orange case towards the bottom of the cabinet.
"Natural it is!," she said to herself cheerfully. Bringing the orange case to the bathroom, she opened it to reveal a variety of organized makeup products ranging from concealers, lotions, lipsticks, lip-gloss, mascaras, eyeliners, blushes, and foundations in all forms imaginable with accompanying brush and sponge sets. She chose a few items and expertly began applying the products to her face, mixing various colors and powders with skill.
Once she had put on the finishing touches, she stood back from the bathroom mirror to look at herself. If there was any question about her beauty before, it would most certainly be cast aside. It appeared as if she hadn't used any makeup at all while, at the same time, she had the airbrushed and perfect image of a model in a magazine. She smiled at her reflection, knowing that she had achieved her goal.
She checked her watch, 1:35pm. Perfect!, she mentally congratulated herself, Just enough time to grab a bite and head out.
She made her way to the kitchen where she pulled out a frozen, savory pastry from the freezer and popped it in the microwave.
Wrrrrrr…
As that was heating up, she retrieved her cellphone from the nightstand and located her purse on the breakfast bar that separated her kitchen from the rest of her studio apartment. She casually threw her phone into the purse and checked to make sure it contained her wallet and keys.
Wrrrrrr…Ding!
Grabbing the keys, she put the purse over her shoulder and went back to the kitchen to retrieve her meal. With food and keys in hand, she went to the front door and slipped on a pair of comfortable, black heels to go with her outfit. She looking back into her apartment to make sure she had turned off all the lights.
"Ittekimasu!," she called cheerfully as she opened the door and headed for work.
Wrrrrrr…Ding!
The elevator doors opened and Rei exited down an extravagant hallway to her condo. She pulled at the front pocket zipper of her duffle bag and fished out her keys. When she arrived at her door, she unlocked it and walked in.
"Tadaima," she casually called out to the empty two-bedroom condo. Even though she felt a slight pang of loneliness every time from never receiving a response since moving here for college, it was a habit she couldn't bring herself to break as it was something her grandpa instilled in her at a very young age.
Now that I have time, I should really go visit the shrine, she sighed to herself. The last time she had visited her grandpa was in her third year of college during Spring break. It wasn't that she didn't want to visit, on the contrary, she didn't feel at home anywhere else. But, to prepare for graduation and going pro in archery, she really had to buckle down her last year and had barely any time to sleep or eat, let alone drive into the wooded hillsides to visit her beloved grandpa, It's been a while…It'd be nice to see Grandpa and be home again. She took off her shoes and left them neatly near the front door as she continued into her condo.
The condo had an open layout with a stained, dark bamboo flooring that spread throughout the condo, except in the bedrooms and bathrooms. To the left was an open kitchen with white cabinets, stainless steel appliances, and black-granite counter-tops that were accented by red kitchen towels hanging over the oven door handle. The kitchen was separated from the living room by a white, rectangular island with breakfast bar and black bar stools with white cushions. Further in on that side was a dining area with a heavy, dark-wood table perpendicular to the kitchen and had six, white-leather, high-back chairs tucked in snugly. A large, bay window, parallel to the table, allowed for a view of the city.
The living room area, directly in front of the entry-way, had a large, white sofa with a couple red accent pillows, the backrest parallel to the breakfast bar. This was facing an elaborately carved fireplace in the wall to the right. Above that was a 52", flat-screen, HD television, complete with cable service, which she got from her best friend when she moved in. Despite Rei's distaste for television, she wasn't so rude as to turn down such an expensive gift, even if it was meant to be a gag gift.
Further on the opposite wall from the entry-way were floor-to-ceiling glass panels with a sliding-glass door that lead to a balcony that stretched towards the right, beyond the wall that had the fireplace. This was framed on both sides by red black-out curtains and white, sheer curtains.
She took a right and followed the wall briefly until she reached a door to the right that led to her spare bedroom, which she converted into an archery equipment room and small office. She kept the room locked for safety reasons and used her keys to unlocking the door. When she opened it, it revealed a simple, corner desk with a laptop, lamp, and office chair situated at the far-left corner. That was the extent of the 'office' part. In the middle of the room was a large, long metal table on which sat a small, white remote, propane torch, allen wrenches, pliers, and organized stacks of rags, adhesives, various feather and plastic fletching, and bow strings. Lining the wall on the left was a series of racks that housed various groupings of arrows. The opposite wall from the door held bows of just as many and varying makes, models, and sizes.
Rei went around the table and dropped her duffle bag on the plush, white, carpeted floor. Gently, she set down her equipment case on the large table. She picked up the small, white remote and pointed it over her shoulder towards the laptop behind her. When she pressed a button, her office and the condo were immediately filled with music, courtesy of her online radio station and speaker system she had installed throughout the place.
- Now this hot girl, she's not your average girl. She's a morpharotic dream from a magazine. And she's so fine, designed to blow your mind. She's a dominatrix supermodel beauty queen. -
Rei nodded her head to the music as she unbuckled the latches to open the equipment case. One by one, she pulled out the arrows and carefully wiped them with one of the rags at her disposal. She examined each one carefully and, for some, replaced the fletching that was worn or damaged from the competition earlier in the day. Once complete with the meticulous task, she placed each of them gently on the vacant arrow racks on the wall. Lastly, she pulled out her competition bow and wiped it down with care. Examining the pulleys at each end of the bow, she picked up an allen wrench and adjusted the tension on the strings with expertise. When she was satisfied with her work, she placed it gently on a vacant bow rack. Returning to the table, she neatly put her tools back in their proper place, closed the equipment case, and tucked it under the table.
"Ok," Rei said out loud to herself, "Time to put away the rest of my gear, shower, eat, do laundry, take out the trash, get gas, and pack for tomorrow."
Ba da da Ba da da Ba da da da!...Ba da da Ba da da Ba da da da!...
Before she could start her list of chores, her cellphone rang in her pocket. She used the remote to turn the music down and pulled out her phone. She looked at who it was and smiled,
"Hey," Rei answered once she flipped it open.
"Hey, Rei! Haha! I can never get over how funny that is!," a low husky voice laughed on the other line. Rei rolled her eyes at her best friend,
"So, how old are we now, Haruka?" Rei asked sarcastically with feigned annoyance, "I can't believe you still think that rhyming my name with 'hey' is funny after all these years."
"You know you love that about me," Tenoh Haruka replied flirtatiously.
"And I'm sure Michiru would love hearing about you shamelessly flirting with me," Rei quipped.
"Whatever! She knows it's just a bro-mance," Rei could hear Haruka smiling on the other line and couldn't help but smile as well, "Anyway, I was calling to congratulate you on your win today, Flame Sniper-san. Good job!," Haruka said, fondly using the nickname the press had dubbed her since her first competition win due to her deadly accuracy and her affinity for the color red. Though Haruka was an only child, she always saw Rei as a younger sister and took it upon herself to watch over her as such.
Rei closed her eyes and focused her energy through the phone to the woman on the other line. She smiled when she could feel her best friend's familiar, royal-blue aura coming through the phone, laced with pride.
"Thanks, Haruka," Rei replied sincerely. "That really means a lot." As an only child, Rei saw Haruka as a cool, older sister and idolized her. Besides her grandpa, she and Michiru were the only other people she truly trusted and felt she could really be herself around. Thus, she considered them family. Since they became friends, Rei strove to live up to the examples they set and make them proud.
Haruka's also the one who taught me how to curse like a sailor!, Rei thought as the memory of her earlier conversation with Hitoshi came back to her. She shook her head and brought her attention back to the conversation,
"Congratulations to you, too. I read in the newspaper yesterday that the World Shaker did it again in the States," Rei quoted, returning the favor and using the press nickname Haruka was dubbed when she began her career as a race-car driver. A magazine article quoted Haruka's explosive win in her first race as 'shaking the world' of auto racing and the nickname had stuck ever since.
"Who's the flirt now?," Haruka teased. Rei huffed, Mataku, Haruka!
"Anyway, speaking of the States," Rei chose instead to ignore Haruka's teasing, "Are you sure you're going to make it back on time tomorrow? Want me to pick you up from the airport?"
"No worries, I'll be back on time," Haruka responded, "Nobuo-san's not driving you tomorrow?"
"No, I gave him and the team the weekend off," Rei replied, "Since you said the hotel already has good security, he checked it out and gave it the all-clear. So I thought it would be silly for him to just drive me there and back."
"Mmn, that makes sense," Haruka replied, "I didn't request any security detail either tomorrow since I thought it would be silly to get one just for getting off the plane. The hotel's already so ritzy and big-names go there all the time so they're pretty good about that stuff. Other than my friend giving us a great deal, it's one of the reasons Michiru and I chose this place so we could move around freely without having to be guarded 24/7."
"So, A.D.D.-san, did you want me to pick you up or not?," Rei smirked.
"Sure!," Haruka laughed, "If you can pick me up at the airport around 1:00pm, that would be great!"
"Ok, sounds good," Rei responded, focusing her energy again on the woman on the other line, "Also…have you been practicing?" Though she struggled a bit due to the distance, she could sense faint hesitation in the royal blue aura.
"Y-Yeah…but-" Haruka began.
"C'mon, Haruka!," Rei whined, relaxing her senses.
"I know, I know," Haruka sighed, "It's just…I don't know, Rei. It's really fucking dangerous."
"Haruka, you've seen me do it before at the shrine," Rei replied matter-of-factly, "You know how my abilities work, I'll be fine! As long as I keep myself in check tomorrow and you've been practicing then it'll all be ok. When I showed you how to do it, you did it perfectly. I know you'll do great. C'mon, I really want to do this, not just for you, but for Michiru too."
Haruka sighed, Sometimes Rei can be just as stubborn as me!
"Ok, ok. We'll do it, we'll do it," Haruka conceded with a sigh, "Luckily, I brought the stuff with me to practice here so you can just pick me up and we can go straight to the hotel." She paused, "Rei…I really appreciate what you'll be doing. I know Michiru appreciates it too…But if anything happens to you, I will never forgive you!"
"Yes, ma'aaam," Rei replied with a sigh.
"OH, SHIT!," Haruka suddenly cried, "Oh my fucking Gods, I can't believe I forgot! Rei, can you do me a favor?"
"What!? What is it!?," Rei asked with concern.
"I forgot I was supposed to pick up my outfit before leaving so I'd have it with me!," Haruka sighed. Rei nearly fell over in disbelief.
"It's still at the tailor shop," Haruka continued, "You know, the one next to the mall? They close tonight at 10:00pm and they'll be closed tomorrow for the weekend. Can you get it tonight and bring it with you tomorrow?"
"Of course," Rei sighed, "I have to go out and get gas anyways so I'll swing by there." Though she scanned Haruka's aura more times than she could count over the years to confirm, she sometimes still couldn't believe that Haruka was truly three years older than her. She smirked, "So, being a quarter of a century old is already making you start to forget really important things? Next, you'll be having Michiru feeding you congee, you old fogie!"
"Keep it up and you're going to get an ass-whoopin' from an 'old fogie' tomorrow!," Haruka replied warningly with a smirk, "Well, I have to go, my flight's really early in the morning and I still need to pack. I'll see you tomorrow, ok? Love you, 'bye!"
"Ok, see you tomorrow. Love you too, 'bye," Rei replied. She flipped the phone closed and mentally added picking up Haruka's outfit from the tailor to her growing to-do list. After a brief second, she opened her phone again,
I'll text Nobuo-san to let him know I won't be driving alone tomorrow. I know it's his job, but sometimes he worries like a mother!, Rei chuckled to herself as she typed a brief message to her bodyguard. Once the sound of a sent message came from the device, she closed her phone and checked her clock, 3:00pm.
Where did the time go?, Rei sighed, Well, better get started.
She unpacked her archery gear from her duffle bag and hung them on some pegs that were on the wall opposite from her desk. In the corner, across from the desk was a large trophy case. Behind the large, sliding glass doors of the trophy case were medals and trophies of varying sizes, neatly organized on staggered shelves. In the center was one of her most prized possessions: an Olympic gold metal in archery.
Once she was finished putting her equipment away, she closed and locked the door to her 'office' and went to her bedroom, which was through a door on the same wall as the fireplace, passed the guest bathroom.
Her bedroom had the same carpeting as the office. The wall to the left looked identical to the one in the living room, with floor-to-ceiling glass panels and a sliding-glass door that lead to the other end of the balcony, with matching curtains. One small indulgence she allowed herself when she moved in was her inviting, king-sized bed, covered in white, satin sheets and a lightweight red comforter. Having to consistently condition her body for tournaments, she would often come back to the condo sore and thanked Kami-sama for the invention of latex foam mattresses. She went to her walk-in closet, peeled off her clothes, and threw them in her laundry hamper before heading to the bathroom to shower.
If Minako was considered gorgeous, Rei would most certainly be at the same level, if not more. Her pale skin and jet-black hair made her mature amethyst eyes impossible to ignore. To most people, they only saw an aloof attitude and a fiery determination in her cold gaze. But, to those closest to her, her eyes revealed a strong personality, a fiercely loyal and caring heart, but haunted by a touch of pain, loneliness, and sadness. Her body was, of course, in excellent shape due to her years of training and moved with a seductive sway that would make anyone, man or woman, swoon.
But in all her years, she never once paid any romantic attention to a single soul. It wasn't that she didn't want it, she just never found someone who caught her attention in that way. And even if she had, she also just never…had time.
Haruka's so lucky to have a sexy and intelligent woman like Michiru, she pouted to herself as she lathered up her hair. Rei knew from a young age that women were her gender of choice. She used to be absolutely repulsed by men, but over the years her feelings towards men soften to…barely tolerating them. Other than Haruka, Michiru, and her grandpa, she didn't share this part of herself with anyone else. And even then, it wasn't until Haruka came out to Rei first that Rei decided to share her preference with her best friend. It wasn't that she was ashamed or trying to hide it, she was just confident and secure enough in herself that she thought of it as just another part of her, like her eye color. She just never saw the need to come out. It was her business, not anyone else's.
Though in all her years she hadn't met anyone that made her weak in the knees, she still hoped for love. When she was 10 years old and began practicing fire reading at the shrine, she would have…a reoccurring vision. The vision was always the same.
Rei was kneeling seiza-style, as if in prayer, with a shadowy figure of a woman standing in front of her, her back facing Rei. The woman had long hair that came past her waist, like Rei's, with an orange-gold glow around her. She looked over her shoulder and, though Rei couldn't make out her face, she sensed the woman was smiling warmly at her. The woman half-turned to face Rei and extended her hand towards the kneeling archer.
"Oide…," The shadowy figure said in an inviting melodic tone.
Rei's heart was pounding loudly in her ears, not out of fear but…what? She was hesitant, but found herself slowly reaching out to take the woman's hand. When their hands touched, a soft glow flowed into Rei through their joined hands as if the woman was filling her soul with a warmth that made her feel…complete.
The vision would always end after Rei took hold of the shadowy woman's hand. When Rei first began having this vision, she thought that the woman was her mother and, for years, actively revisited it in her fire readings as a way to be with her mother again. Thought she was happy to see her mother again, she was always shattered when she couldn't see beyond her taking her hand.
When Rei turned 13 and had honed her fire reading abilities more, she had come to find that the woman in her vision was not her mother. The woman's aura signature was similar, but not the same as her mother's. The woman's voice, though it was just as kind as her mother's, was just a touch higher in pitch.
Unsure of what to make of this recurring vision, Rei hunted down and consulted with the only person she knew would have an answer: her grandpa. After she had found him in the rock garden and recounted the vision to him, he smiled and lifted an eyebrow…
"Reiko…are you attracted to women?"
When Rei averted her gaze and blushed in silence, her grandpa took that as a 'yes'. He chuckled to himself as he placed a comforting hand on Rei's shoulder, "My dear Reiko," he said kindly, "This vision you're having is nothing to be worried about."
Rei lifted her head to look at her grandpa with confusion. He patted her shoulder and began walking towards the house, still smiling.
"But, Grandpa, what does it mean? If it's not Mama, who is she?," Rei asked in frustration.
Rei's grandpa stopped and responded warmly, "Patience, Reiko, patience. In time, you will know who she is."
He looked over his shoulder and smiled at his beloved granddaughter, "Because," he continued, "She will be your soulmate."
Author Note: Thanks for reading, let me know what you think.
Constructive feedback/reviews would be greatly appreciated.
(updated 07/2013)