Sailor Moon Aeons.
Book 3: Crystal City.
Act 1: Generations.
Episode 4: Light and fire.
By Razor Knight
Last update: February 23, 2019
"How was school today?"
"Boring, as usual. Why do I need to go? I can learn all I need from books."
Terry shook his head. "Son, you'll never make any friends if you just stay home."
"Tsuki is smart like me. Why would I need any more friends? Kids at school are dumb."
Ami cringed at that. "Takamaru, don't say that."
"But mom..."
"No buts, you shouldn't call people 'dumb' just because they aren't as smart as you. My best friend was quite average at school, and yet she was the wisest at times. Came up with plans at times I was unable to think of one."
"Your best friend? You mean aunt Usagi?"
Ami gave a small smile at that. Most of the Senshi kids had always thought of other adult Senshi as 'aunts' or 'uncles.' Proof that they were still as close as during their school years. "She is Queen Serenity. Sailor Moon. You know that, right? Would you say she's dumb?"
"No, she's cool." The boy looked at his father. "I know what you mean. Will making friends make school fun?"
"It did for me," Ami said, "Usagi was the first friend I had, I was always too focused in studying before I met her, but..." she smiled. "Books can teach you a lot of things, Taka, but they can't teach you how friendship feels. They can put it in words, but you would need to feel it yourself to really understand."
"Oh. Now I wonder if Tsuki is really my friend?"
"You get along," Terry said. "But you should figure it out yourself."
The younger Usagi was, once again, watching a mock fight between the two Youngers. Hisako was fourteen now, and at Guardian level. Hikaru was twelve, and a Cosmic Senshi. They had really gotten a head start. And the older they got, the easier it had been for her to see something about them. Something the two were unaware of, but unlike her mother, she wasn't going to help them with it. She hadn't even told Hotaru about it.
The other kids were not ready yet, unfortunately. Takamaru was eight, and Aiko had been helping him with magic for a while. Tsuki, Naru and Umino's daughter, was seven, and had yet to use magic. The potential was there, but she wasn't aware of it. And Kyouko was four, and already using magic. Usagi wouldn't hide her pride at that fact.
"Light Explosion!"
"Flame Buckler!"
Younger Venus frowned as her light attack was blocked by a small fire shield. "Okay then, let's try.-"
"Flame Chains."
Flame tendrils shot out from the ground around Venus, wrapping around her before she could react. "Damn, this again? Light Explosion!"
Mars had been about to attack again, but gasped as her chains were blasted apart by Venus' attack. She saw Venus lying on the ground and rushed to her. "Hikaru!"
Venus opened one eye and looked at her. "That plan... Worked better in my head."
Moon walked to them. "Hikaru, that was reckless."
"But it got me out of the chains, so-"
"Really, and hurting yourself badly was worth it?" Moon frowned. "And think about how Hisako feels. Would you like seeing her hurt herself just to win a mock battle?"
Venus looked at Mars as Moon started healing her. "I... Sorry, I won't do that again."
Moon sighed. "Getting hurt during training is not impossible, but injuring yourself for no good reason? I taught you better than that."
"Usagi, it's okay."
Moon looked at Mars. "You girls, I've grown to think of you as family. You're like younger sisters to me. I hate seeing you get hurt."
Venus hugged her. "I'm sorry..."
Moon smiled and patted her head as she sobbed softly. "It's okay, don't cry." She then shook her head. "I guess that's going to be all for today. Go home, rest and calm down. Both of you."
Venus nodded at that, and teleported away. Mars looked at Moon. "I... I wish she would stop trying to show off."
Moon smiled. She didn't want to push them, but maybe dropping a hint would help them. "Try to figure out why she's doing it. Why she wants to impress you so badly. And if you can't do that, then maybe you should ask her about it."
"I... You know why she's doing it?"
"I have a guess, but I can't tell you. I could be wrong, and it could harm you both."
Mars nodded. "I'll... See you tomorrow."
Moon closed her eyes as Mars left. "Mother, a Queen shouldn't eavesdrop."
Serenity 'appeared' a few meters from her. "I knew you knew I was there all along."
"So, is my guess right?"
"Yes, but it may be a one-sided deal."
"That could really mess things up."
"Not likely. I don't see Kage glaring at Hotaru, or at you. Things could be complicated for a while, but I think they're the kind of friends who can survive that."
"Hope you're right."
Ami smiled as her daughter 'appeared' in her house, along with a small boy. "Hi."
Aiko smiled back. "Hi mom. Yuki should be here in a minute." She looked at the boy. "Fubuki, manners."
"Hi grandma."
Ami's smile widened. "Hi Fubuki." She knew the boy wasn't very sociable, but it's not like Ami herself had been any better as a kid.
Yukiko appeared right then. "Sorry for being late. Had a couple Warwitch fans nagging me."
Ami nodded. "We all still get those once in a while."
Yukiko looked at her son. "I guess he proves your theory, right?"
"Yeah." Ami sighed. "A male born from two females. The Ginzuishou can be a surprising thing."
"What is really surprising is his power."
"Serenity told me. But it's not that surprising, you both are powerful mages, of course your child would also be a mage."
"Ky'ma, it's been a while."
"Sorry, Serenity. Helping Zephyr run a company that large keeps me too busy. Even if I don't need to sleep or eat, there are limits to how much I can look at numbers before I feel like screaming."
Serenity smiled. She could see Ky'ma, or Kim as her chosen human name was, was upset about something. "You don't need to be so formal."
The woman turned into her real form, a featureless; humanoid form. "You may have forgotten I can sense magic, and it's not something I can turn off. Your power is- From this close, and even though I know you, I still feel like I'm about to get crushed."
Serenity nodded. "To be honest, I forgot you could... Here, is this better?"
Ky'ma blinked. Serenity's power had dropped to a level even a novice mage would shrug at. "How?"
"The power is still there, but I can make it 'vanish' almost completely."
"I can see it could be very useful in battle."
"Never had the chance to use it that way, but yeah."
The alien woman looked out the window as her form again changed, to that of the 'cat girl' she had used the most. Serenity knew that, even nowadays, that was he one Kim saw as her true form. "The city has become blinding to me. So many magic auras around, even some of the youngsters..."
"I know." As Kim stared at her, she decided to explain. "My special power is similar to yours, but in a much larger scale. I can 'see' every magic-using being in the planet, and if I focus, I could tell you where any particular being is. Like how Terry and Ami are in Mako's restaurant right now."
"That's both awesome and frightening."
Serenity looked at her. "So, is this just a social visit?"
"Not really. Is Endymion around? I need to talk to him about a project that might help improve the city's popularity."
"He's in Europe right now. It's one reason I dislike diplomacy."
Ky'ma smiled at that. "Well, lit can wait."
"Can you tell me about it? I'll pass the message along."
"Using a Queen as a messenger, I don't-"
"Do you really see me as someone who would care for protocol? Also, I'm curious to hear about that plan."
"Well, Ami and Terry could explain the details better, but our company is building a satellite that could cleanse the planet of pollution."
"That sounds good. I don't think he'll be against that idea."
Several days passed without another training incident, but Hisako had started to see what Usagi meant. Something was different with Hikaru. She seemed distant, like she was mad at her. She couldn't tell what it really was, but she hesitated to ask her. Her friend would not keep a secret from her, would she?
Hikaru let out a long sigh. Training had been tough today, but she was still enjoying it. She had only realized it a few weeks ago, but she knew what she felt for Hisako. She had always looked up to her like an older sister, but now... She was seeing her as something else.
"There you go again."
Hikaru looked at her friend. "Hisa?"
"Lately you don't talk to me much outside training. And I've noticed you aren't looking at me in the eyes, most of the time. Did I do something to make you hate me?"
The blond girl flinched. Could she tell her? What if her friend didn't feel the same? What if saying those words- No, she was done hiding it. "Hate you? Actually... It's all the opposite." That last part was almost impossible to hear, if not for Senshi's hearing being far stronger than normal.
Hisako froze. The way her friend was looking at her... She had seen it before. It was the way Usagi and Hotaru looked at each other. "Hikaru, are you..."
Hikaru looked down. Hisako was about to guess it by herself, so what was the point in hiding it? She looked up and smiled. "Hisako, I like you. But not just as a friend. I'm sorry I kept quiet about it, but-"
"I..." Hisako looked at her friend. So this was what Usagi meant. Hikaru was her best friend, she didn't want to hurt her, but she couldn't lie to her, either. That would hurt more, in the long run. "Hikaru, I'm sorry, but-"
"No. Don't say it. I know. I was just being stupid, hoping you would-"
"I'm sorry."
"It's not your... Fault."
As Hikaru vanished, her friend felt a shiver run down her spine. The way she had looked at her before leaving, was that anger? Frustration? Pain? Perhaps all three. "Hikaru..."
Minako looked up from the computer and gasped. She could see the dome of light outside the city, but she could also sense its source. "Hikaru!"
Rei had been the first to arrive, followed by Minako. They could both see Younger Venus standing in the center of a light bubble, her face wet with tears. To Rei, this scene was painfully familiar. "What the hell happened..."
"Hikaru, calm down!"
Younger Venus looked at her mother. "Go away!"
The two knew it was dangerous to get close. That bubble was no normal spell, it was similar to the one Rei had used the day Yuu died. Even Holy Senshi could get hurt badly by it. But no, they had to take the risk, Hikaru's body was too young to take all that power for much longer.
But before either adult could act, Younger Mars appeared near them. "Hikaru, please don't do it!"
Minako was shocked. The way Hikaru was glaring at her friend was just wrong. Just what had happened between them?
"Please, Hikaru, I'm sorry I hurt you, but I-"
"Shut up!" Younger Venus sent a ring of light out, and the two Elders leapt up to avoid it. Younger Mars, however, didn't move. It wasn't that she was scared, and her training would have let her react, but- Hisako had smiled at her, just before the blast hit. As her friend fell, Younger Venus paled, her rage gone. "I- What did I... Hisako!"
Moon appeared near them. "Shit, I feared this could happen."
Mars saw Younger Venus had knelt on the ground, her power was back to normal, and she was just looking at Younger Mars' form. "Okay, what the hell was that for?"
"Rei..."
Venus looked at Moon, who was healing Hisako. "Usagi, you know what this is about?"
Younger Venus staggered up. "Hisa... Is she alive?"
"Barely," Moon said. "If you really had meant to kill her, she would be dead."
Venus walked to her daughter. "Hisako, what were you thinking?"
The young girl looked down. "For a minute there, I wasn't thinking at all. And I hurt Hisa. I'm such a dumbass."
Rei sighed. "Listen, both your mom and I want to know what happened. Can you tell us?"
Younger Venus smiled as she looked at Hisako, who was now sleeping. "I... I had been keeping something a secret from Hisa, but today she nagged me enough to make me say it. I knew what she would tell me, and yet I let myself think that she- I'm so stupid..."
Rei looked at Minako, whose eyes had widened enough to look painful. "I think we can guess, but what was it you told her?"
"Aunt Rei, would you hate me if I said..." she paused for a second. "I love Hisako. But the problem is, she doesn't. I could feel something 'snap' in my mind when she told me that, and felt the power rising, so I came here, outside the city. Away from her..."
Minako let out a long sigh. "I didn't think that could trigger such a reaction, but... You hurt Hisako. I know she'll forgive you for it, but it doesn't change-"
"Mina, stop it."
"Rei?"
"I know just how hard it is to think straight during that... If not for Usagi back then, I could have burnt the Earth to ashes. I won't say I'm not upset, but I can forgive Hikaru. And I'm sure Hisako will also understand."
Moon nodded. "You'll just have to talk to her about it."
Hikaru's suit was replaced by her civilian clothes. "What's there to talk about? I love her, she doesn't. I even attacked her for something that selfish... If she hates me for it, I deserve it."
Minako looked at her daughter. "You're just going to quit after one try? That's quite disappointing."
"Mom?"
"You didn't fall in love with her in a second. I don't even need to ask, you've been acting silly for weeks.I just didn't know why."
"That... Yeah, you're right."
Rei smiled. "Hisako has always seen you as a younger sister, and even as a rival when it comes to training. But that doesn't mean she will always be that way. I didn't really care for Yuu at first, but he slowly changed that, made me fall for him."
Hikaru looked at Hisako. "So you won't mind if I try to change that no into a yes?"
"As long as Hisa doesn't mind, then I can see no reason to get in your way."
The young girl turned to Minako. "Mom, let's go home, I'm kind of-"
Minako caught her daughter as she fell forwards. "It's amazing she could keep talking for that long after doing something like that."
Rei smiled. "Guess I need to take Hisa home too."
Moon nodded. "I'll tell Hotaru what happened. Just in case... I don't think it will be needed, but we may have to train them individually."
Rei noticed Minako had left. "No, that won't be needed."
"Okay, I trust your judgment."
Minutes later, Usagi was talking to her mother about what had happened. "... And I trust Rei so I will keep training them together."
Serenity frowned. "Perhaps you should have, as you so nicely say it at times, 'butted in.' It could have made it easier for both of them."
"I'm not you, I don't have fun playing matchmaker. I will admit that it could have gone better, but... Those two are very good friends. They'll be fine, even if they don't become an item."
"I've seen enough of them to agree with that. Let me know if you need help."
The next morning, Hisako stood right outside the door. She had been to Hikaru's room plenty of times before, but this was the first time she felt scared of entering. "Hikaru, can I come in?"
"Yeah..."
Hisako walked in, and saw her friend sitting in her bed. It was clear she had been crying for a while. "Hikaru-"
"Sorry for what I did."
"Don't worry about that. Listen, I... I never thought about you as anything but a friend. My best friend. But mom said you had told her something different than what you told me."
"Different?"
"Can you tell me what you told them? If you can do that, and then listen to my reply without going on a rampage... It would help us both move on."
What she told them? But she had told them the same, hadn't- No, Hisako was right. Even as she blushed fiercely, Hikaru still managed to stand up and look at her friend. "Hisako Hino, I love you. And even if you don't love me now-"
"You are my best friend, and I never even thought about that kind of love before. So, I can't tell you yes or no right now. Will you still be my friend?"
"Of course I will, even if that 'maybe' never becomes a 'yes.'"
