When Haruka and Michiru got home, the first thing they did was pull Hotaru into a smothering tight hug, never letting her go.
"We missed you, little princess." Michiru smiled at her.
"Me too!" Hotaru gasped once she was finally let go. "But I thought you weren't expected back home for a few more weeks!"
"Something happened." She eyed Setsuna, who nodded briefly in understanding. "Everything has to be put on hold for now."
"Really? But my school is putting on our culture festival, and I have no idea what my class should do!" Hotaru pouted. "I've gone through every single idea."
"Really? Every single idea in the world?" Haruka asked incredulously, teasing her.
"Yes! Nothing sounds good! We've run through every theme!"
"Hmmm.." Michiru pretended to get a thoughtful expression on her face. "How about a dessert cafe? Oldie but a goodie, can't go wrong with that."
"If you make that, I'll definitely go!" Haruka grinned, getting nudged by Michiru. "What about something light and easy, like a parfait?"
Hotaru's eyes lit up. "That's a great idea! I knew you two would have the best ones!" She hurried away into her room, and the three women turned serious and looked at each other.
"Tell me what happened." Setsuna's tone indicated it wasn't a suggestion. She sat on the couch.
"Poseidon." Michiru answered. "I got my Eternal transformation as well." She pulled out the aqua brooch in her pocket.
"We were hoping to stay on the sidelines like usual, but it seems that is a fruitless wish. We're needed here." Haruka said. "This concerns us."
"I hesitate to ask, but do you know of this? Did you know there would be more threats?"
"The future can be a…very finicky thing." Setsuna began. "What I know isn't a constant vision, it can be changed through drastic means. Our fight with Galaxia showed that."
"So you don't know?"
"I can't know. All I can tell you is everything is on track so far."
"Have you found any information on these people?" Haruka asked, and Setsuna shook her head.
"Ami-san says all her searches come up empty. In a few months I'm scheduled to check out the telescope in Hawaii. I'll try to seek out answers there."
The three of them shared a worried silence together, Michiru leaning on Haruka's shoulder.
"Let's focus on the present. Hotaru is excited for her festival, we should all go tomorrow and congratulate her." Setsuna finally said. Michiru smiled.
"Oh yes! She'd love that."
/+/
Hotaru woke up early the next morning and got ready for school, excited to start putting together their booth. She wore a crisp white jacket and checkered blue bow with a matching pleated skirt, black tights, and grey Mary-Janes. Her hair was tied back in a simple braid with white bows on the top and bottom.
She attended a private and small academy that only had four rooms to house the tiny student body that was almost entirely girls, as that's what her guardians knew best. Hotaru truly flourished in a schooling environment, making some friends, including an old one from Chibiusa's childhood, Momoko, who was two grades above Hotaru but they bonded over their shared memories. Her mental growth had also slowed after the defeat of Galaxia, putting her at a proper level for her age, though she never gave up her natural intellect and curiosity. She devoured books like crazy and also had an interest in more advanced sciences like physics and astronomy thanks to her upbringing, and couldn't wait to be old enough to take student nursing courses to truly achieve her dream of becoming a nurse.
"Hotaru-chan! We were waiting for you!" Her friends waved as she ran up the stairs to the school. "Have an idea?"
"Yeah! Haruka-papa suggested we do a parfait shop."
"Oh, that's such a cute idea!" A girl with curly pink hair gushed. "Do we have time to make matching uniforms?"
"I want to make the food!" A girl with blue braids suggested.
"I'll help, I'll help!" A boy with blond wavy hair chimed in.
"I can make the sign!" Hotaru said, pulling out the chalkboard she bought for that very purpose and opening up the box of chalks. The trio busied themselves with clearing out all of the desks into one corner of the room and hanging up pink streamers and flowers from the ceiling and on the walls, sprucing up the otherwise beige and undecorated room. She wrote a colorful menu and introduction, smiling as she set it outside the classroom. The girl with pink hair, Mimi, sewed diligently to make uniforms, while the other two, Yuki and Robert, topped each parfait with a sprinkling of honey granola and fresh fruit.
When it was time for the festival to start, they wore striped aprons and hats, with Hotaru standing outside the room to greet everyone.
"Welcome to Sweet Taste Parfaits! Would you like a parfait?" She greeted everyone who walked by cheerfully.
"You're a natural!" Michiru smiled as she walked up with Haruka. Michiru wore a light blue wrap around a striped top and flowing white skirt while Haruka wore a blue top and pants with a heavy brown coat over everything. "Can we get something?"
"Be my guest!" She waved them in.
One class turned theirs into an art gallery, and another a ballet exhibition. The third class was a Chinese restaurant, and Hotaru smiled as she walked in, knowing exactly who ran it.
"Hotaru-chan!"
"Momoko-chan!"
The two girls ran to hug each other. Momoko had blossomed well and wore her lavender hair in space buns and a mess of hair clips everywhere. She was tall and very chubby and wore a bright pink qipao with long slits cut up her legs.
"I know it's stereotypical, but I just had to! I had everything at home already, so why not?" She smiled. "How is yours going?"
"Great! Want to look at the art gallery?"
"Sure!"
The two girls wandered off and looked at the art gallery, finding most stuff to be less serious and more amateurish. Some were random funny faces and Momoko burst out laughing despite her best attempts to not. Hotaru liked one somber piece of a shapeless figure sitting at a piano. Momoko liked one that was a collage of someone's house made entirely of common household objects.
"That wasn't as bad as I was expecting." Momoko said as they walked out.
"Yeah, I saw some nice stuff." Hotaru agreed.
Two women pushed past them and the blonde glared at them in disgust, making Momoko glare right back.
"Excuse you? What is your problem?! You bumped into us!" She snapped.
"I don't have time for a whiny brat!" The girl huffed before staring at her body. "Wait…your breasts are bigger than mine!" She shoved Momoko to the ground and pulled off her clothes, revealing she was Aphrodite. "Pity I don't make monsters. Hermes! Do something!"
The other girl pulled down her outfit too and pulled out a slab of marble, thinking about what to write or draw. Hotaru didn't know, as she grabbed Momoko and ran out of there, ordering her and her classmates to hide. Haruka and Michiru heard that and looked at each other, nodding.
"We can't transform here though…" Haruka looked around.
"My Téras!" Hermes shouted, finally throwing the slab down and creating a monster. He was dressed in a security outfit with a blue snake wrapped around his body. His face was covered entirely by a visor.
"Stratiótis!"
"What kind of monster is that meant to be?!" Aphrodite demanded.
"I don't know, I panicked!" Hermes sighed and the two vanished.
Haruka snuck up behind the monster and broke a chair over his head, watching him collapse. "I can brute force this if I need to!"
"Hopefully, you won't!" Eternal Sailor Neptune grinned as she appeared out of the shadows.
"Don't touch the art!" Stratiótis shouted, using his baton to slap Haruka across the face. She rubbed at her cheek and punched him, knocking him to the ground.
"Deep Submerge!" Neptune attacked, throwing her attack on the monster and dissolving him. She sighed.
"What a weakling." Haruka tried to laugh.
Hotaru was hiding under a desk with the remainder of her classmates, but she could still hear the whole thing. Once it grew silent, she slowly crawled out and wandered into the hallway, finding Haruka and Michiru standing there.
"Little princess!" Michiru smiled at her and pulled her into a worried hug. "Are you okay?"
"Of course I am!" She smiled back.
"The day is ruined." Mimi sighed.
"Nobody wants to finish our parfaits!" Robert lamented.
"On the contrary…" Haruka began.
/+/
That night, Hotaru refused to sleep until her parents and aunt were in the living room, watching her pace aimlessly.
"You didn't even transform, Haruka-papa! We need new powers, and we need them now." Hotaru said.
"That monster was a wimp." Haruka frowned.
"And what if the next one isn't?"
"Little princess, what's on your mind?" Setsuna asked gently.
"I….I want to see if I can level us up. Forcing my power into you." She stepped closer to Setsuna first, placing a finger on her forehead and closing her eyes, concentrating. She felt her own power surge through her body and surround her with a glowing warm light, but paid that no mind. She envisioned the warmth siphoning from her body and into Setsuna, imagining her outfit changing and performing a new attack. She then walked over to Haruka and did the same, then clasped her own hands together to envision her powers.
When she opened her eyes, all four of them were dressed in Eternal outfits in their own colors. They all had matching lipstick as well.
"You did it!" Uranus said in awe. "I thought it was only accessible in emergencies."
"Clearly, whatever this is is dire enough to be considered one." Pluto said.
Saturn felt all of her energy drain her at once and lost every piece of clothing she had on, collapsing to the ground naked.
"Hotaru!" The three women yelled in distress, back in their normal clothing. Haruka helped her to her feet and carried her to bed, while Michiru crossed her arms in front of her chest.
"I hate admitting it…that we have a new mission….and…" She trailed off.
"Yes?" Setsuna asked.
"Weeks ago, my mirror just showed me nothing but a foggy image. I asked it again last night on a random whim and I saw…all of the planet covered entirely in snow. Most everything was destroyed."
Setsuna was silent. Michiru turned and left the room.
/+/
Stratiótis-Greek for 'soldier'