[Scene: The Midori house. Zoi is eating cereal and waiting for his father to get up.]

Chief Midori: Morning, Son. You'd better get going, you're going to be late...[hunts through the fridge for leftovers]... I got a call from Sue, by the way. She said you and Mamoru made up last night and she wants to know when you're coming over for dinner again.

Zoi: I'm not.

Chief Midori: Why's that?

Zoi: I can't hang out with him, because Minako told Mamoru we can't be friends anymore.

Chief Midori: Who told you that?

Zoi: Mamoru.

Chief Midori: Oh?

Zoi: Dad, sit down. We need to talk. There are a lot of things I really need to tell you before you go to work. But you might have a hard time believing any of it.

Chief Midori: [pulls up a chair] My only child came back from the dead as a magical sprite so he can marry the devil. There isn't a whole lot I'm not willing to believe at this point...Go ahead, son.

Zoi: First of all, your friend Susan Chiba is a weirdo. I know I have no right to judge, but if the two of you have a past, I don't ever want to hear about it... Second, does the FBI know about the watch you found?

Chief Midori: No, not yet.

Zoi: Good. You need to get rid of it.

Chief Midori: Get rid of it? No, I need to run it through forensics.

Zoi: No, you don't. It's a red herring... If you follow up, you'll discover the watch was purchased by a local girl named Usagi Tsukino, who, when questioned, will probably tell you she gave it to her boyfriend Mamoru Chiba...Mamoru being the six foot tall guy you saw running from the crime scene.

Chief Midori: You're kidding, right?

Zoi: Don't I wish. Here's the thing. I recognized that watch right away and I went over to Mamoru's last night...to...ask him about it. He admitted he was there, but told me he was trying to administer first aid to the victim. I believe him. I think when the guy wakes up in the hospital, he'll tell you the same thing.

Chief Midori: Even so, Mamoru's a witness. I'm going to have to take him down to the station to file a statement.

Zoi: IIIII wouldn't do that, if I were you.

Chief Midori: Why not?

Zoi: Dad. Mamoru is really messed up in the head right now, and he's probably not going to be able to tell you anything useful anyway.

Chief Midori: Excuse me?

Zoi: You see, he's just starting to remember how Beryl killed him in a previous lifetime...Kunzite told me how Beryl killed his entire family right in front of him when he was a small child, then she proceeded to torture him for years, right up until the day she murdered him and his new girlfriend when he tried to run away from her... I'm using the word "torture" euphemistically here, so I really don't think he's going to snap out of it and let bygones be bygones... The thing is, before he died, his new girlfriend, who was the Princess of the Moon-

Chief Midori: Did you say Princess of the Moon?

Zoi: Yes. The Princess of the Moon. There used to be a palace on the moon, with fountains and a rose garden and everything...I told you this story would be hard to swallow...Anyway, this moon princess somehow gave him superpowers. All these powers came back the same time as his memories, so Mamoru's supernaturally strong now. And he can heal people with a touch. I've seen this firsthand.

Chief Midori: [narrows his eyes] When and how did you see this firsthand?

Zoi: [hasty] That's not important...What's important is that you need to give him some space...Same with the rest of the C'est La Vie gang... They all have magic powers.

Chief Midori: They do?

Zoi: Uh huh. They're also from the moon, or they were, before they were killed by Kunzite.

[Chief Midori shakes his head as if to clear it.]

Chief Midori: Did you just say they were killed by Kunzite?

Zoi: Yeah. You're hearing all this correctly...Kunzite murdered all these girls a thousand years ago, but they just got their memories back this month, so let's just say they're still a liiiittle irate about it...You know that disease that nearly killed me a few days back? It somehow gives all the former moonpeople back their memories of their previous lifetime.

Chief Midori: How?

Zoi: Don't know...But Kunzite's fairly certain that the next time they see him, it'll freak them out, and they'll try to kill him. That's why he's been keeping a low profile around Hen Tie lately.

Chief Midori: Huh...Wait? Kunzite already knows about all this?

Zoi: Not all of it...probably...I'm waiting for him to get back to fill him in on what little I've learned...But you need to know all this right now, so nobody gets taken out by friendly fire.

[Chief Midori nods]

Chief Midori: So what has been causing all the disappearances?

Zoi: [shakes his head] I have no idea. It sounds like Mamoru knows, but he's not telling...He just said it's like a hostage crisis, so it's better not to get involved... He's also certain he and his friends are all going to die trying to fight this thing. Soooo, while normally I'd ignore his warnings and go check it out anyway, in this case I don't think you should.

Chief Midori: [shrugs dismissively] Yes, well Mamoru and his friends aren't professionals...

Zoi: Dad. One of them has fire powers, and she's psychic. Another can summon an icy mist that blinds people. The other one can summon lightning. And Minako? She is the deadliest of them all. They've been cutting school to try to stop these disappearances, but from what you told me, they're not even slowing this thing down... If they can't do anything with their superpowers, I don't see what you're going to be able to do with just a gun and a Kevlar vest.

Chief Midori: I guess we're going to have to find out.

Zoi: Dad, no!...Please...don't... Wait until Kunzite gets back, and let's have a talk with him before you do anything rash.

Chief Midori: [sighs] Son. Innocent lives are at stake...I've been talking with Kunzite, and he seems to know a lot less about this than you do.

Zoi: See what I mean? Kunzite is stronger than the entire C'est La Vie gang put together! If this thing is powerful enough to hide from him, I don't want you going anywhere near it until you are lit up like a Christmas tree with defensive magic!

Chief Midori: Sounds like I need to have a long talk with Mamoru and these girls, one by one, down at the station.

[Zoi shakes his head vehemently]

Zoi: Oh, no, Dad. Don't do that.

Chief Midori: Why not? I'm just going to bring them in for questioning.

Zoi: Because, there's something else I need to tell you. They know I'm a Shitennou.

Chief Midori: What?...How?

Zoi: I told you, one of them is psychic...They know I'm a Shitennou...the same kind of evil monster that murdered them, and everyone they ever knew... That's why they've been staring daggers at me at school. They think the real Zoi is dead. To them, I'm just some vile imposter, and my close and personal relationship with the guy who brutally murdered them isn't helping matters any.

Chief Midori: I can imagine.

Zoi: For now, they've been taking a wait-and-see approach, but if they so much as suspect I'm making trouble for them, they'll probably come over here and try to kill me.

Chief Midori: The hell they will.

Zoi: Dad. Think about it. If you show up at their doorsteps, and start asking questions about life on the Moon, they'll know I was involved and they'll see it as an act of aggression...These girls were my friends, but they're also trained killers, bred for combat, and they don't see me as human anymore...If they come after me, they'll want a fight to the death-

[Zoi heaves sad sigh]

Zoi: From what Kunzite said, I could probably kill them quite easily...but I'd rather not have to.

Chief Midori: Ok. Fine. I see your point...I'll mind my own business, as long as you promise to come straight home from school, and stay inside.

Zoi: [overjoyed] Really?

Chief Midori: [nods glumly] If it makes you feel better that much better... I'll even run interference with the FBI for your friends...but only until Kunzite comes back...Then we're shutting this gang down and ending these disappearances once and for all.

[Zoi hugs his father]

Zoi: Thanks, Dad. You're the best.

Chief Midori: Yeah, yeah. Now, go to school.