Author's Note:
Today for the Rei Hino fans among you I have a very Rei-centric episode starring Rei Hino.
Rei Hino being combative. Rei Hino being proud. Rei Hino being kind. Rei Hino being angry. Rei Hino being awesome. Rei Hino being sweet. Rei Hino being smug. Rei Hino being lovesick and Rei Hino being self-indulgent.
Meanwhile, in the fifth chapter of the sequel to TRTCT, Eternal Sailor Moon, Sailor Venus, and Sailor Saturn are advancing into the center of a city almost entirely abandoned by humanity. But only by humanity. Pray for their well-being as they get closer to springing the trap they walk into while trying to save the last inhabitants of Novosibirsk.
And please pray for me to succeed in wrapping up the chapters taking place during the first age in this story of the future by the end of the year :p
I would love to be able to publish that first period in 2024. But I don't know if I will have a finished screenplay for the other periods of the story by then and I kinda need to have a relatively detailed vision of the future periods to make sure the first period properly relates to them if that at all is intelligible.
Anyway, enough about my authorial insecurities.
Please enjoy Rei-chan's adventures and leave me a comment if you are so inclined.
The burden hardest to bear
Chib-Usa was nervously sitting on the tatami floor with the rest of the spectators behind her - most of them being members of Minato Muay Thai Gym.
A few meters in front of the pinkette, her friend Rei was listening to some advice from her trainer before starting her qualification fight.
Rei's opponent was a senpai in the club. Sadako Kon was an experienced tournament fighter.
Chibi-Usa remembered Rei telling her that beginners were obliged to hold their own against one of the most experienced members of Minato Gym if they wanted to try and represent the club in a tournament.
Rei wanted to make sure she was confident in her training before issuing her challenge. That is why hours upon hours of rigorous training - four to five times a week on top of her duties at the shrine and study for school - saw Rei often appear exhausted at get-togethers.
Had there been enemies to fight during the past year they might have felt her fury and frustration at being pushed to the extreme with so little rest.
The result of her arduous training, however, was that Rei felt confident not only in her chances of lasting the five rounds with her senpai but also in making Minato Gym proud during her first official match if she won the coming friendly bout.
Usagi had expressed a jittery anxiety about witnessing her friend's qualification match and she and Mamoru had been hauled off by her parents to look at a new living room anyway with the aim of getting to know their daughter's boyfriend better even if the blonde had wanted to brave her fears.
Rei didn't mind that she wouldn't witness the fight, feeling Usagi's presence might distract her.
She had been able to force a concession that her friend would come and watch her first official match though.
Minako nor Makoto were able to attend either, having their weekends filled with their own new absorbing activities.
Ami had to take a mock test at her cram school.
Shingo and Hotaru were at the latter's tennis club.
Setsuna was busy at her internship.
Haruka was attending a concert by her lover.
Yuuichirou really really wanted to come, but he was prevented by Masao Hino, who insisted he assist him at the shrine.
That only left Chibi-Usa to watch the thrilling fight.
Well. Her and…
"Give it your all, Rei-chan! Make your club and your parents proud! Show your peers what perfection you attained through perseverance and application!
Failure is unacceptable!"
Chibi-Usa sweatdropped as she looked up at the passionate bearded pottery artist in the blue jacket and black trousers who sat to her right.
"Please, Ibuki-san," The girl in the white shirt and the pink suspender dress smiled anxiously. "The match is about to start. Let's keep a respectful silence so that Rei-chan can perform well."
Kengo's wild eyes looked down on the 12-year-old. The man with the dark-brown ponytail seemed to calm down at the sight and hemmed shortly.
"My apologies, Chibi-Usa-chan," Rei's cousin sheepishly chuckled. "I'm just a little hyped to see the results of my niece's passion."
"Rei-chan doesn't seem to be intimidated at all," The duo heard a young woman behind them say. "That's promising."
Chibi-Usa and Kengo watched how Rei left the side of her trainer.
The muscular man in the white shirt and pants walked to a distance of the two combatants and observed with folded arms while one of the female members of the club stood in between Rei and Sadako.
The short-haired brunette in the black T-shirt and short skirt motioned with her hands for the opponents to come closer.
Rei's hair was bound in a high ponytail. She wore a red-and-black top and loosely fitting black shorts with a red waistband. Her hands were clad in fiery red-and-orange gloves.
Jumping up and down a little to warm up, she approached her opponent: A young woman of slightly taller stature whose long white hair was similarly bound up.
Sadako Kon wore a golden top and shorts with silver-and-light-blue gloves.
As the umpire signaled for the match to start, both young women came at each other without hesitation.
Sadako's white ponytail flew back with a flash as she tried to sweep Rei.
Her opponent easily blocked the attack and went on the offensive with a combo of punches that forced the blancette back into a defensive stance.
Upon moving to the right and regaining the initiative, Sadako exchanged multiple punches with Rei.
Chibi-Usa watched in awe at the exchange of blocks and punches.
"They're so fast! I can hardly register what's happening."
"I know," Kengo Ibuki said with gritted teeth. "I hope Rei can."
Sadako attempted to land a kick toward Rei's midsection, forcing Rei to dodge.
Then the blancette aimed a punch at Rei's face, but her nimble black-haired opponent danced to the right, and, with her long ponytail trailing behind her movement, landed an elbow against the side of Sadako's face.
A respectful applause followed from the club members while Sadako punched Rei's shoulder.
Rei responded with a volley of punches that kept her opponent busy blocking the attacks.
"Not what I expected," A girl in an orange top and shorts whose black hair was braided into two ponytails that rested just over her shoulders said.
"Sadako-chan regularly spars with Rei-chan. She seems far less in control from the start than she should be."
"Yeah," A beefy young man with wavy brown hair who wore a blue-and-black T-shirt with light-blue shorts said.
"This match should have put Rei-chan at a serious disadvantage. I didn't even get why she chose to challenge Sadako-chan out of all her senpais."
'Probably because she knew she would be at a disadvantage,' Chibi-Usa thought to herself with a smile.
"It's as if her fists are on fire!" Kengo breathed. "She's so fast."
Rei's punches followed one after another. Sadako blocked and got in a few punches of her own, but her opponent's rhythm had taken her by surprise and landed several hits.
After five minutes of fighting, the umpire stopped the match and both young women returned to their trainers.
Chibi-Usa saw Sadako discuss the first round with her trainer while the blancette had a drink and got her sweat wiped.
"I'd say Rei-chan is definitely ready to enter tournaments if she can keep this up without tiring herself out," The girl with the braids behind Chibi-Usa said.
"But the second round is where Sadako-chan's experience might kick in."
As the two combatants approached each other again, Sadako immediately took the initiative.
The blancette landed a surprise kick which Rei barely blocked and punched her opponent against the side of the upper arm.
Rei was pushed into the defensive as Sadako attacked her with a quick succession of low kicks and then a high kick toward the blackette's face.
The sixteen-year-old miko successfully blocked all but one of the kicks, but she had to turn the momentum in her favor fast if she didn't want to lose the round.
The blackette quickly moved to the left and used her right foot to push a kick from her opponent's left leg to the side, leaving Sadako open to an attack from Rei's left fist.
Having broken the blancette's offensive, Rei followed up with an elbow trust which Sadako barely blocked, and a series of kicks that resulted in one clear hit.
Sadako and Rei exchanged a few kicks, allowing the blancette to come closer and attempt a clinch. Rei didn't give her the chance, but she received a punch against the left shoulder before the second round ended.
"It's so close," Chibi-Usa said. "Rei is so strong!"
"Yes she is," Kengo smiled admiringly. "To think my little niece became such a brawler. I always recognized her resolve and empathy, but it is unacceptable that to this day I did not see this capacity in her."
'Mister, you have no idea,' Chibi-Usa chuckled internally while looking up at the bearded man.
Rei and Sadako approached one another with more caution this time.
Neither girl had found the key to piercing the other's defenses yet and they didn't see the other tiring down.
Sadako opened with a kick toward her opponent's waist but Rei blocked with her knee and followed up with her right fist.
The sleekly built muscular young women exchanged a few dazzling kicks that kept them out of each other's range for a while, but when Sadako turned to the left to evade a kick, Rei clinched her.
The blackette had her opponent in a headlock and attempted to kick her into the midsection.
As she received a painful blow to the right knee while blocking, Sadako tried to move her arms inside of Rei's hold to take over the clinch.
Her instinct inspiring her with an idea, Rei let go of the other girl's head instead of struggling to retain her dominant clinch.
With a fast punch to Sadako's left bicep, Rei jumped to a distance and blocked the blancette's kick.
The two young women continued to exchange several kicks.
The distance between them gradually closed when Rei cunningly locked her white-haired opponent in a duel of knee trusts.
As her black-haired opponent got the better of her in the duel, Sadako realized Rei had noticed the wound she inflicted on her earlier.
The young woman tried to alter the motion of the exchange by throwing in some punches while continuing the brutal altercation between her painful knee and Rei's unrelentingly attacking knees but received several bruises in the process.
"Rei-chan is quite cruel," The beefy young man behind Kengo grinned. "I didn't expect her to be so vicious in a battle."
Desperate to get out of the exchange, Sadako found an opening to aim an unsuccessful elbow trust toward Rei's face and landed a partially blocked kick against the side of her opponent's butt.
The third round, however, ended with Rei having clearly dominated.
When the two young women returned to their confrontation after another short break, the blackette presented both of her fists to her opponent.
But Sadako was not about to admit defeat yet.
The icy blancette shot out with her right foot and struck Rei against the side of the face.
"Wow!" Chibi-Usa exclaimed. "Rei doesn't seem like she even felt that though."
"She has to bite through the pain," The girl behind her informed the pinkette. "If she as much as recoiled from the attack, Sadako would have as good as won the round already. You can't show weakness during a match because judges will award your opponent for it."
Rei tried to go on the offensive with a punch-combo but her opponent evaded her blows and attacked with a barrage of high kicks.
The blackette was able to block the successive kicks well enough, but she couldn't get any closer.
Landing a kick of her own against the side of Sadako's midsection, Rei immediately had to endure another kick to her upper leg.
The beautiful blackette danced to the side and tried to advance on her foe, but her pursued white-haired opponent was too good at using her legs in a fight.
Sadako kept up a fast tempo, holding Rei at bay with desperation.
Back and forth the long shapely legs of the two girls went, flicking out at each other with violent speed.
But then, Rei saw an opening.
With a sharp kick, her foot struck Sadako against the right knee, breaking the blancette's momentum. Her first instinct had been to catch Sadako's leg during the girl's previous attack, however, and that moment of hesitation cost Rei as her opponent moved to the left and elbowed her kohai against the shoulder.
The fiery blackette immediately closed the distance nonetheless and unleashed blow after blow upon the face of the shocked blancette who wasn't able to block the first few of the punches and received a few smarting bruises across her cheeks.
The fourth round ended with the umpire awarding the majority of points to Sadako.
"It's a pity Usagi couldn't be here," Chibi-Usa smiled sadly. "I have a feeling she would have loved to see this."
"Don't worry, Chibi-Usa-chan," She heard Kengo Ibuki comment on her regret.
The pinkette turned her eyes his way and saw the dark-brown eyes of Rei's perfectionist cousin beckon hers toward a club member who was recording the match with a digital camcorder.
"I suspect the club might want to gain a few Yen by obliging us with a copy," Kengo winked at his niece's friend.
As the final round began Sadako mimicked Rei's gesture from the start of the fourth round.
Rei felt quite far from having to submit, however.
Trying to measure each other up, the two square-shouldered young women glared at each other while circling.
Chibi-Usa had never seen Rei appear so imposing and intimidating.
Then the blackette flashed her opponent a confident wink and held her hands at either side of her face, making a beckoning gesture by curling her gloved fingers inward.
Sadako jumped forward, aiming a kick with her left foot, her white ponytail trailing behind her during the movement.
Her elegant black-haired opponent cunningly evaded the attack.
With her long black ponytail snaking behind her, Rei danced to the right and aimed a punch at Sadako's face before her opponent's foot reached the floor again.
Sadako recoiled in surprise at the speed of the unexpected attack and reacted with a punch of her own.
With that, Rei had her opponent locked in a duel of her choosing.
The two handsome combatants flashed out their fists and elbows at each other at a dazzling speed.
Rei had to dodge a few times to evade Sadako's punches, but she was able to put tremendous pressure on her senpai.
Attempting an elbow trust, Rei's white-haired opponent received a smarting punch in her ribs.
'This is not the way we usually fight our enemies,' Chibi-Usa reflected. 'So I can't say Rei's combat experience trumps Kon-san's tournament experience. But it does seem like she has her senpai on the ropes.'
An elbow from Rei managed to hit Sadako in the shoulder.
The blancette tried to punch into her opponent's stomach, but the agile blackette moved faster and landed a punch against the inside of her senpai's right bicep.
As the red and the silver gloves impacted on each other again and again, gradually Rei started to overwhelm Sadako who found herself unable to match the other girl's speed and stamina.
Upon being forced to step back no matter how she tried to hold her ground, Sadako threw her arms around her opponent's head and clinched.
To her despair, she wasn't entirely successful, since Rei's right arm took the inside route with a clinching action of her own. As a result, neither combatant had a dominant headlock on the other.
Gasping for breath the blancette leaned against the blackette who pulled her opponent's head close.
The long high ponytails of the two girls bobbed up and down as their knees and feet struck at each other, swinging closer and closer together.
Exhausted from the fight the combatants panted and gasped, pulling on each other and striking at the other from every direction with their powerful legs.
With a sharp flick, Rei's black ponytail whipped Sodaka's white ponytail toward the other side of the seventeen-year-old's head.
Then, the fiery beauty's right foot swept her opponent's right foot from under her and brought the stately yuki-onna to the floor, landing on top of her.
With her arm around the other girl's head and a punch to the stomach, Rei established dominance over her opponent and ended the match with a large lead in points.
An hour later, comfortable autumn weather saw Chibi-Usa and Kengo traverse Minato-Ku's residential area toward Usagi's parental home together with the radiant victor of the bout.
"Ah… I'm glad Sadako-senpai didn't feel bad about losing," Rei smiled while stretching her arms behind her head. "And that the bout didn't result in injuries that'll bother us in any upcoming tournaments... Except for Senpai's knee that is."
"I hope her knee heals quickly," Chibi-Usa remarked while watching a bluebird flutter from the roof of a nearby house to the tree on the other side of the street.
"Don't worry," Rei reassured the girl with a pat on the head. "We both suffered similar injuries over the past year from sparring with each other and Senpai also from tournaments. It's a natural aspect of the sport."
"Well, I can shelve the image of my kind and warm-hearted niece whom I hoped would find a nice boyfriend to protect her," Kengo Ibuki said while pensively stroking his beard.
"And how exactly am I not kind and warm-hearted anymore?!" An insulted Rei exploded in the passionate artist's face.
"That's not what I meant," Kengo sheepishly grinned as his niece crossed her arms with a huff.
"Living so secluded in my cabin, whenever I visited you at the shrine and went home again I used to worry about you and Masao-san living by yourselves in this large metropolis."
"I worry more about you living alone in the woods, Kengo-Ojisan," Rei sternly interrupted her cousin. "You never know what criminals might seek refuge from the police and feel a lonely cabin to be just the right place to find shelter. Not to mention your tendency to depreciate yourself. Honestly, why you can't come and live with us is beyond me."
"Never mind that," Kengo smiled at the young woman in the orange sweater over a pair of dark-green trousers. "I would only be a bother to you if I came to live with you and that is simply unacceptable. But the point I wanted to make all along is that even with Kumada-kun keeping you company at the shrine these past years I tended to get anxious about the well-being of my dearly beloved niece.
I happily learned today that I don't need to worry any longer, since you are clearly able to take care of yourself."
Chibi-Usa saw Rei share a warm and confident smile with the man in the blue jacket and black trousers, giving her some insight into the deep mutual understanding and affection between her older friend, who saw so little of her parents, and Rei's fond cousin.
"And you don't have to worry about Rei-chan's kindness either, Ibuki-san," The pinkette remarked. "She's been quite the hero at school."
"Oh? What's this about? Unacceptable that I didn't hear of this earlier!" Kengo frowned at his niece.
Rei observed the displeased countenance of the man. She always felt his long dark-brown hair and beard made him resemble a brown bear and jokingly told him so once in a while.
"Oh that's nothing," She peevishly reacted. "I'm just looking after a classmate at school who was getting bullied."
"And that's nothing?" Kengo reacted with indignation. "Coming from a loner like me, that's just about the most heroic thing a person can do. I demand to hear more!"
"See," Rei suavely started to recount. "Since the beginning of the school year this fad has sprung up at school of not just greeting someone with a good morning but to add a how-do-you-do? - like Americans would say it - and expect a response.
Now there is a girl in my class who has a bit of a rough life. She's not very bright and frankly seems to suffer from a slight mental disability.
Asuka-chan needs to go to cram school for supplementary lessons where the material we are taught is clarified to her so that she more easily understands and then to another cram school to prepare her for university entrance exams like most of us.
She's quite nervous by nature and needs lots of sleep to recuperate from each day after applying her brain from morning to ten in the evening.
As a result of all this, she's always sluggish and cranky during the day.
Asuka-chan confided in me that the state of her brain and body from Tuesdays to Fridays is such that every effort is an actual painful experience.
But she is afraid of saying such things to others for fear they would laugh at her…"
A white kitten emerging from the bushes around a nearby house spotted the trio and ran toward Chibi-Usa.
The pinkette spotted Diana as the kitten reached her and winked up at her friend.
"Experiencing every day as torture - at least until lunch, when she often sneaks out of class to lie down in a broom closet, an unused room, or the chapel - Asuka-chan got annoyed and reacted peevishly when she exchanged the ordinary greeting with girls from class and was then also expected to answer to their "how-do-you-do?",
since obviously, Asuka-chan isn't doing well at all." Rei continued during their stroll.
"Classmates took offense to this and started to pester her by constantly throwing their "how-do-you-do," at Asuka, which resulted in the girl isolating herself from the rest of the class."
"I can't believe people are still so spoiled as to gang up and behave like that to someone who stands out by their weakness," Kengo sighed with an exasperated facepalm. "Such shameful behavior is simply unacceptable!"
"I agree," Rei nodded sagely. "So I approached Asuka with an offer of friendship.
Understandably, she didn't trust me at first, since I am generally in the middle of my classmates' attention, but gradually she started to realize that I felt sorry for her situation and openly and empathically desired to help."
"As expected of you," Kengo smiled heartily. "I'm proud as always."
"The only snag in all of this is that Rei-chan has been finding herself increasingly isolated as well," Chibi-Usa sweatdropped.
"Phuh!" The person in question huffed. "I used to try and avoid the constant praise and clinging of those happy-go-lucky klutzes anyway. To be honest, it feels kind of liberating to be ostracized because they're angry at me for siding with Asuka-chan."
"Hey guys, I think someone needs our help over there!"
Sweat-dropping at Diana's lack of awareness, Chibi-Usa and Rei suddenly and theatrically shushed the sheepishly grinning white kitten.
Looking ahead, however, Kengo saw a short girl in a black bolero jacket over a light-blue shirt and a frilled blue skirt looking up a telephone pole a few dozen meters further at the corner of the street.
"You're right, Chibi-Usa-chan!" The man in the blue jacket and black trousers observed to the relief of his companions. "She seems quite distressed about something."
As Kengo sped up toward the weeping teen, Rei, Chib-Usa, and Diana followed at a trot.
"Tama! Please don't move, Tama!" The girl could be heard crying out.
Rei ran ahead of her pink-haired friend in the pink suspender dress as she got a clear look at the girl's face.
"But that's…" The blackette muttered as she also ran past her cousin.
When the trio one by one approached the scene, the short brunette with the red bow in her hair turned her face toward them.
"Rei-sama! Rei-sama! Please, do you have a cellphone,!" She wept almost hysterically.
"Junko-chan!" Rei exclaimed upon coming to a standstill next to her classmate. "What's wrong? Why are you crying?"
"Oh, Tama…" Junko whimpered while looking up the telephone pole at two meters distance from her. "He just jumped from the tree…"
Diana lept up Rei's dark-green trousers and her orange sweater to perch on her right shoulder while the blackette and her companions looked up.
Close by the telephone pole, in the corner of the garden of the nearby house was a tall pear tree.
"While I was studying, my poor Tama got out and climbed our pear tree. That wouldn't have been so bad, since he is a great climber. But he got overly adventurous and jumped from one of the branches onto the telephone pole," Junko wept. "And now he's afraid and doesn't know how to get off."
Rei and Kengo looked from the pear tree to the top of the telephone pole. There they found a bright gray cat fearfully looking down.
"Please, can you watch over him here so I can go inside and call the fire brigade?"
"No need, Junko-chan," Rei solemnly stated with a focused gaze at the top of the telephone pole.
Within a second after dumbfounding her classmate, the blackette simply jumped up onto the top of the telephone pole, standing with confident balance in her dark-gray running shoes, and caught her friend's absurdly shocked cat in both hands.
"You have a lot to answer for, you little rascal," Rei gently scolded the cat while standing up on top of the utility pole. "You better think twice about pulling this stunt ever again."
"That counts double for you, Rei!" The unnerved white feline who was holding on to Rei's shoulder for dear life freaked out. "Couldn't you issue a warning?!"
"Hahaha!" Diana's conveyance loudly laughed. "This is part of the risk if you try to hitch a ride. Did your mother never warn you of the dangers associated with shoulder-perching a Senshi? She used to endure much worse."
"I think we need to have a family meeting," The white kitten peevishly sweat-dropped at Rei's amused and insinuating grin.
"Hang on!"
Holding Tama securely in her hands, Rei jumped up from the top of the telephone pole and elegantly landed next to his astonished owner.
"Here is your Tama, Junko-chan. He'll need your care to overcome his fright, but I hope he's learned his lesson."
"Oh, Tama-kun!" The shorter teen exclaimed with love and relief as she hugged the overcome gray cat to her bosom. "I'm so glad you're safe. Thank you so much, Rei-Sama. Thank you so much."
"Rei-sama…" Kengo, Chibi-Usa, and Diana muttered in unison while rolling their eyes.
"It's not like I ever asked anyone to call me that," An annoyed Rei huffed with her back towards her two companions.
"Thank you so much," Junko smiled at her classmate. "Can you join me back home for some tea to thank you?"
Rei was about to say something but was interrupted by her cousin.
"I'm sorry, but that is unacceptable," Kengo adamantly stated. "We are on our way to a prior appointment."
"Oh?" Junko sadly reacted with her eyes on her classmate.
"I'm sorry Junko-chan. But what my cousin says is true: We are expected at a friend's house in a few minutes."
"Ah… I understand," Junko muttered with a look of disappointed acceptance at the gentle apology of her classmate.
Rei observed the deflated expression of the shorter girl with a pang of regret.
"I'm so…" Junko began upon looking up just before she was interrupted.
"Do you know where Minato Gym is?" Rei inquired.
"Huh?" Junko blinked.
"It's the Muay Thai club where I train after school," Rei smiled. "Can you meet me there next Monday evening at eight?
Asuka-chan often meets me at the club on Mondays and we get something to eat together before she goes from the cram school where she takes supplementary lessons to her regular cram school.
Maybe the three of us can get a meal together?"
The pained expression on Junko's face slowly changed into an awkward smile while she hugged a purring Tama.
"Yes. If that's alright with you I'll treat you both," The short brunette said.
"Thank you, Junko-chan," Rei smirked. "That's very kind of you. But in contrast to a certain dumpling head, I would feel ashamed if you were to fund my current calorie intake. I would appreciate it very much if you treated Asuka-chan though."
"Hahaha," Junko laughed freely at the remark that made Chibi-Usa sweatdrop with suspicion that the girl must be aware of Rei's frequent tsundere remarks concerning her future mother. "Okay. It's a date."
When Chibi-Usa and her two companions later shared dinner at the Tsukino residence, however, Rei had a tougher opponent than Sadako Kon to grapple with.
It wasn't easy to hide her overjoyed blushes and extreme happiness when Mamoru and an exhilarated and overawed Usagi watched the DVD of her bout on the television in the living room.
The blackette did manage to endure the ordeal successfully though. Even though Usagi kept gushing about Rei's performance up until the miko and her cousin left the blonde's home. And even though - for some reason - Usagi passionately embraced Rei and kissed her on the cheek before parting.
It wasn't until she lay in her bed at the end of the day and remembered the kiss and the embrace while her body heated up that Rei Hino - with a slight feeling of guilt - finally gave in to weakness like an ordinary mortal.