The ballroom was filled with the apathetic clink of glasses and uninterested din of meaningless talk. Rich people in suits walked around, pretended to care, and maybe danced the waltz a little, just to keep up appearances. Kane frowned disapprovingly on all of them.
"These people need to go to a rave or something," he said with a sigh. Yamiko smiled and nodded a little.
Realizing her mistake, she frowned. She didn't want to give Kane the false impression she was having a good time. "I don't really expect much from people like this," she responded. "It's not like they really have lives. They just sit in their office and work all day. Then they go out to eat or play golf and pretend to have fun."
Yamiko scanned the crowd dully to see if she could remember anyone from when mom and dad were still alive. She did spy one familiar face; there was a girl with brilliant silver hair, pretending to smile at a handsome young gentleman who seemed very absorbed by her presence. Yamiko wracked her brain for the name of the girl, but she couldn't recall ever talking to her or hearing her name; just that she was familiar. "Who's that?" she finally asked Kane, motioning toward her.
He looked over toward the girl, raised an eyebrow and turned back toward Yamiko. "I'm surprised you don't know," he responded. "That's Mayumi Hatsuhara. She's the number one selling artist in Japan right now--she's expected to tour in America this summer. In fact, the guy she's talking to is Seki Shin'ichiro; he owns Synapse Entertainment, one of the top musical producers in Japan, and he's the one that's funding the tour. He's also gotten some attention recently for taking an unusual..."interest" in Mayumi. It's a good thing he's young and attractive, or Synapse would be dead because of the scandal that could cause. As it is, it could be bad for Mayumi's ratings, especially with men."
"I think I remember hearing about her," Yamiko replied. "Isn't her music kinda--"
"Disgustingly cheerful? Putridly cute? Surpassingly sappy? Yeah, pretty much. Honestly, her music makes me a little sick. She's supposed to be a nice person, though. Whatever."
Yamiko nodded. "Well, that explains why she looks familiar to me," she mused. "Though for some reason I feel like I remember meeting her somewhere. Maybe she was hanging around when I used to go to my parents balls. They introduced me to so many people back then that I couldn't keep them straight." She sighed. "Funny how I met so many people but didn't make friends with any of them."
Kane smiled. "Well, you have a friend now, right?"
Yamiko looked at Kane. His smile was warm, but its mere existence was suspicious. He had come up to her one day seemingly at random--just to compliment her. He was always showing up around her and her sister, and he went out of his way to be nice to her when he hardly knew her at all. Sayoko seemed to put some implicit trust in him, but the whole situation was shady. It must be true that he was rich, or else he wouldn't be here...right? When they came in, he gave no more affection to his parents than a nod of his head, and they responded in kind. But even that was not so unusual. After all, she had only given her parents marginally more affection than he did, even though she had lived in the same house. Yamiko frowned. By the time she realized her mistake, it was too late...
"Do you mind coming with me, Yamiko? There's a reporter that wants to ask some questions," Kane said. He looked at his parents, who were motioning toward him; they stood beside a man with a camera. Yamiko nodded, and he took her gently by the hand and lead her toward them.
"So, we've heard mixed reports on what you plan on doing with the business once your son has graduated college. Do you plan to hire on Kane?" the reporter asked the morosely frowning woman, whose arms were crossed disapprovingly toward the world. Yamiko cared little what the woman answered and promptly zoned off; but she did notice Kane staring upwards, toward the tops of the elaborate, Corinthian pillars that adorned the ballroom. There was a sort of archway on top of a horizontal support between each of the pillars, and on one of these horizontal supports sat--much to Yamiko's surprise--a man. He had long, blonde hair--Yamiko could see that much, even from far away--and he wore some sort of light, creamy orange garment. Some golden object--an instrument, maybe?--sparkled in his hands.
Without warning, Kane gasped. He turned around, grabbed onto Yamiko's shoulders, and sent both of them barreling onto the ground. Kane was lying on top of her, and even from under him Yamiko could hear the bystanders scream and run in panic, darting around like fish disturbed in a pond.
"Kane!" Yamiko shouted. "Are you okay? What just happened?" His face was squarely in front of hers; she couldn't see anything. She craned her neck to the side, and Kane's head fell limply down onto her shoulder.
Yamiko could feel the color leaving her cheeks. Kane's tuxedo jacket was rapidly saturating with blood--there was a golden arrow lodged in his back, shining proudly against the murky darkness of the fabric around it. "Run, Yamiko," he murmured vaguely, his voice little more than a whisper. Yamiko could feel tears in her eyes; he grunted in pain as she cautiously pulled herself away from under his body.
The man was now on the ballroom floor; he spread his arms out as though in supplication. "Come forth, mine own Shine," he said aloud. "Bask in the knowledge that thou art mine, and mine to command until thine ashes lie before me."
A small, glimmering square appeared before his outstretched arms; Yamiko could vaguely make out the form of a woman painted on it. An arm reached out grotesquely from within; then another, and the two disembodied hands latched around the edges of the small painting and pushed it behind them. A face emerged; then shoulders, torso; finally, a flowing, fluttering skirt. The entire form flashed in brilliant light; Yamiko had to cover her eyes until the light subsided, revealing a woman in a long, flowing black gown.
The man stood there and looked Yamiko over, unimpressed. He held a golden bow in one hand and a loose arrow in the other; the woman stood in front of him, silent, her face covered with a veil.
"Who are you?" Yamiko shouted, standing protectively in front of Kane. "Why did you do this to him? He's just an bystander!"
He smiled; it was a casual smile. "To answer your first--disappointingly cliché, I might add--question, my name is Eros of Aphrodite, Priest of Venus. Or at least I was the Priest of Venus, until I left for...greener pastures."
"A priest? Like Helios?" she responded, dumbstruck.
"As a Moon Senshi, I would think you would know what a priest is. I'm rather disappointed, I must confess. But yes. Like Helios. Only better, of course--better looking, more charming, much smarter." He smiled knowingly. "You seem a bit slow, but you do understand, don't you?"
"Of course I understand! It's--" Yamiko paused as she looked downwards; she saw her expansive black skirt, strewn with elaborately sewn beads.
It wasn't a Senshi uniform. Yamiko bit her lips.
"Ah," he said, his smile broadening. "Now you see."
Yamiko backed away a couple of steps. No; there was no time to think about this now, when Kane was in danger. She would think about the implications later. "Phoebe prism power, make up!" she cried; she was momentarily enveloped in the embrace of shadows before transforming into Sailor Phoebe. "Who the hell do you think you are?" she shouted, simply angry now that she was no longer defenseless. "Why have you done this to him?"
"Who, why, what....it is simply this: I aimed the arrow; he, unfortunately, saved you; my arrow stayed true, and he was shot in your stead. Quite sweet of him, was it not? I knew something of such things, long ago. We will do anything in our fits of passion."
"You're the one who sent the youma, aren't you? Why are you doing this?"
"My motives are my own, girl, and no concern of yours. If you're so interested, yes, the Shine are mine. They have always been mine, now, and once long ago--though they tried to escape me." His eyes twinkled madly. "No matter. They now know their place. Skoteine! Take what we need and leave. My work here is done. I must say I'm disappointed...I had thought to get farther." He turned as if to go, and then stopped; "No; I think I shall stay and watch until the deed is done." Then he turned around and looked at her.
"First," the youma said monotonously, "to get rid of him." She drew her hand backward, one finger pointed up; she brought it forward, pointing toward Kane's now inert figure.
Without thinking, Phoebe ran in front of Kane. The blast of dark wind flew at her; she fell over, and the force of the gust sent her sliding backwards into him. Even though Kane's body slowed her backwards motion, they still slid across the polished marble floor. Kane left a trail of oozing blood behind him as he slid; Phoebe could hear him moan faintly.
"Kane!" she cried, looking down at him. Why did he have to get pulled into this? He was just a bystander...
I just want to get to know you. I think you're an interesting person....
"I'll never forgive you for this!" she cried, pointing a finger toward Eros. "You understand! I'll never forgive you!"
Eros laughed. A deeply mocking laugh, a horrible, scathing laugh that scraped against Phoebe's spine. Sailor Phoebe cringed. "What's so funny?" she asked, glaring toward him.
"Nothing," he replied. "Quite the opposite. It's just all so horrible, isn't it? It's just pathetic."
"I don't have time for your ambiguity," Phoebe hissed, her anger rising within her. Kane was barely holding on for life, but this fop was laughing at his suffering. "Shadow Dragon!" she screamed as a dark, spiraling dragon flew toward Eros and his companion. Eros effortlessly teleported to one of the archways, but Skoteine shrieked in inhuman terror as the dragon bit straight at her torso, leaving a gaping and bloody wound.
"Pathetic, Skoteine," he shouted from the archway, leaning nonchalantly on a pillar. "This is a battle of eros, and you have disgraced it! I expect to see greater passion from my Shine." With this, he snapped his fingers and the wound--and her dress--healed.
Phoebe could feel herself shaking as Eros grinned at her wickedly. He turned toward Skoteine. "Now, Skoteine--"
"Double drill!" a shrill voice screamed. Eros eyes' widened as a volley of fire and ice, spiraling around each other, came hurtling towards him. He teleported away not a moment too soon; the archway where he had been sitting was hit head-on and fell to the ground, a surreal combination of scorch-marks and frost covering its surface.
"The moon of fire and ice, I know the path of dual nature. The soldier of change, Sailor Io!" Sailor Io pointed toward him; she stood angrily behind the rubble of the arch Eros had perched on only moments ago. Her hair was a brilliant silver; her sailor collar and skirt were silver to match, and her bow and shoes were a eye-catching shade of reddish orange. She seemed a blaze of light, her outfit reflecting the glow of the ballroom chandeliers.
"I thought I felt something foul about you," he said with a sneer. "It figures as much. You aren't with the others. Where did you come from, anyway?" he said, casually pulling an arrow out of nowhere and fitting it to his bow.
"I came from Japan," she said matter-of-factly.
Eros rolled his eyes. "A little slow on the uptake," he remarked. "But no matter. Skoteine, I grow weary of this. Kill the boy."
"No you don't!" Phoebe screamed. She leaned forward; she was moving down to protect him, to cover him, if possible, by shielding him with her back. But before her palms reached the cold marble floor--before she could see the golden arrow sticking obscenely out of his back--she was lifted up again and flying backward.
She could vaguely hear a dull "thunk" as she flew into a pillar. She could feel herself sliding to the ground, unsure if she had broken any bones, and if so, how many. She couldn't move without pain. With difficulty, she forced her eyes open.
"Double drill!" Io cried once again, the fire and ice spiraling toward Skoteine, who hovered over Kane, a black knife in her hand. Skoteine teleported, avoiding the attack and landing a few feet away from Kane; the charybdis of fire and ice shot above him, narrowly missing his back.
"No," Phoebe murmured hoarsely. Her breath was short; her ribs were wracked with pain. "No!" she managed to shout, her face contorting with the effort. Skoteine moved back toward Kane, the dagger re-materializing in her hands. "If you keep attacking the youma like that," she continued to shout, turning toward a bewildered Io, "you could kill him, too!"
"I know," Io shouted in response. She turned toward Eros. "This is sick! You're going to kill a defenseless boy! What did he ever do to you?"
Eros paused at this, his face suddenly thoughtful. "He's done a lot of horrible things," he replied. "But mostly, he's just been insufferably stupid."
Phoebe could vaguely see Io turn back toward Kane. Skoteine paused for a moment, almost as though she was expecting something.
"I'm not interested in you. So just give up."
"I don't expect you to be interested in me. What kind of an asshole do you think I am? I just want to get to know you. I think you're an interesting person. That doesn't mean I'm interested in you, per se, but I find you interesting."
"What's so interesting about me, anyway? The way I treat you badly, or my attempts to push you away at every turn?"
He had chuckled. "Everyone has a secret. The more interesting the person and the more interesting the secret, the more they try to hide it."
What is it? Phoebe thought to herself, watching Kane's inert form and the youma hesitating above it. What does he find so interesting? "Always," she murmured to herself, "Always he is trying to find me. Its like there's something in me that he's looking for. I want to know what it is."
"What is it, Yamiko?" Eros said mockingly, with a smile. "Why don't you speak up?"
"No one's ever wanted to know me," she said, louder, despite the pain. "And I didn't want to know what was inside of myself because I thought, whatever it was, it was ugly. But I want to know!" she could feel her lungs splitting apart in pain. "I want to know--even if it hurts--what it is about myself..." she gasped, trying to find the breath. "That he finds worth knowing!"
"Too late for that," Skoteine said, her hand moving downward.
"No it isn't," she replied. "Dark...garrote!" she cried, pushing herself upwards, one hand clenching the air as if to seize it for a handhold.
Phoebe's clenching hand was, in truth, a pathetic parody; a real hand, black and turbid, seized the youma. Its smoky, oily hands covered her body and wrapped around her diaphragm, squeezed together her lungs, pinched her neck. Skoteine's bones crunched under the deadly hand's grasp as if she was no more than a garden beetle. Phoebe's eyes became dark and desperate as her hand gripped the air. Then, no longer able to sit up, her head and torso fell to the ground. She could vaguely see Skoteine disappear, evaporating into a red mist and leaving only a small, minature portrait behind her. Darkness soon followed.
A dull, clunking thud resounded throughout the room as The Crimson Eagle landed on the ballroom floor. Ikkoku fluttered down to alight upon him, landing her claws on the cape-covered shoulder pad she had claimed for her own--a decision that The Crimson Eagle was beginning to lament, given that it left eight little claw holes in the canvas.
Taking stock of his surroundings, he noticed a strange Moon Senshi he had yet to meet, and more importantly, the unconscious form of Yamiko. One of her hands was outstretched toward a young man, an golden arrow lodged in his back.
"Looks like you're a bit late," Ikkoku remarked dryly.
"By the time she was really in danger, it was too late," he replied. "I don't think anyone was expecting this to happen. Regardless, we need to get help." He turned to Yamiko, then back to the boy. "What we need here is Sailor Pinkmoon," he said conclusively.
"I..." The unfamilar Senshi interjected uncertainly, "I was going to call the ambulance. The villains just left, moments ago."
"Who were they?" he asked, turning his face toward her. She stepped back a little, in awe of the mysterious man and the imposing mask he wore. "Never mind," he said, cutting her off as she began to open her mouth. "You can explain it to us later. Do you have a communicator?"
"Uhh..." she began, pausing for a moment. "You mean this?" she answered, holding up a reddish orange and silver watch.
"That's right," Ikkoku responded. "If you open up the top, there's a keypad in it. Type 'Luna'."
"R-right!" she responded. Looking at the top of the watch, she pulled at the red and silver face. The lid flew open suddenly, revealing a small screen and a set of English buttons. "Umm...Luna..." she paused; 'Luna' was pronouced with a heavy Japanese accent. "So, in English, that's R, right?"
"It's 'L'," The Crimson Eagle corrected her. "In English, L and R are two different characters. So it's spelled L-U-N-A."
"R-right!" she responded. "Of course." She typed it in; several seconds passed without answer.
"Hmmm...maybe Diana tampered around with the transformation equipment too much," The Crimson Eagle said pensively. "I was hoping creating the channel might summon it up on the other side, even if she didn't have it, but--"
"Hello?" a voice called out from the silver-uniformed Senshi's watch.
"You're Princess Lady Serenity!" she said in surprise. "I've always wondered what kind of person you were, since we were about the same age."
"No time for that," The Crimson Eagle admonished her, walking toward the Senshi and craning his neck down toward the watch. "Sailor Pinkmoon. Phoebe has badly injured herself, and a bystander has been injured as well. We need you, or Helios. This may be a lot to ask, given Phoebe's relationship with you in the past, but--"
"Think nothing of it," Usako interjected. "We'll be there as soon as we can. Where are you?"
"The Golden Angel," The Crimson Eagle responded. "You know, the huge hotel they hold so many parties at." Usako nodded and the image on the watch vanished.
"My name is The Crimson Eagle," he said, turning toward her. "It is my duty to protect Sailor Senshi from harm."
"Why don't you tell her who else you are?" Ikkoku suggested, flapping a wing against his head in irritation. "You don't need that mask. Take it off! Take it off!" she began chanting.
"I refuse to consent to an order so obviously phrased to sound lewd," The Crimson Eagle replied in annoyance. "But I will say that my name is Erik vonDarkmoor, and that I work as a teacher at Goban High School, where most of the other Moon Senshi can be found. I'm not sure of your motives, but I hope that won't be taken as an invitation to go there and start a fight with any of them, because I will defend any or all of them to my last breath."
The girl clapped as her sailor uniform dissolved, revealing an pretty girl of around 15, clothed in a pink and white evening dress that looked, perhaps, a little too cutesy for her age. "I'm Sailor Io," she replied. "You don't have to talk so formally, I hear enough formality at school. I'm not usually a Sailor Senshi," she added. "I'm too busy, so I don't have time to start any fights, even if I wanted to. Usually I'm singing, you see. My fans would be disappointed and I'd get in a lot of trouble with my dad," she explained. "Oh! My name is Mayumi Hatsuhara. 15 years old, my sign is Saggittarius. My favorite food is skittles, my strength is singing and making friends and my weakness is...um, well, just about everything else," she admitted sheepishly.
"Why are you listing off all those personal statistics?" Ikkoku asked. "Are you trying to set up a formal date of some kind with Erik? I must warn you, he has both lost his family fortune and become exceedingly irate in his old age."
The Crimson Eagle unhooked his cape, causing it fall from his shoulders and reveal his armor. More importantly, however, it brought Ikkoku--who had been unwisely perched on his shoulder at the time--tumbling to the floor with it, leaving her buried in a mass of canvas cloak.
"Ow," she whimpered as The Crimson Eagle walked toward Yamiko, kneeling down and looking with concern at her injuries.
"It looks like she's broken some of her ribs," he said with concern. "Thankfully, nothing fatal." He got up and moved toward the boy, looking down at him with concern.
"Will he be okay?" Mayumi asked.
He knelt down and removed a glove, putting a well-calloused hand on the boy's neck. "He's still with us, thank god, but it's weak," he told her. "I'm surprised he lost as little blood as he did. Of course, the arrow went through very cleanly, and it probably helped stop some of the blood loss. Still, it's no good where it is."
Mayumi turned away, her face pale, as The Crimson Eagle gingerly turned the boy over on his side. She could hear a distinct snapping noise.
"I've taken off the head," he said. "That will make it easier to pull out, but I'll wait until Pinkmoon gets here to remove the arrow. No use in making him lose more blood. How did all of this happen, anyway?" he asked, turning toward Mayumi.
Mayumi paused, her pale face beginning to flush. "A strange man appeared, with blonde hair and blue eyes--he looked American, or English--he called himself Eros. He attacked the ball, and shot that boy there. I think Eros was trying to shoot that Sailor Senshi...um...Phoebe? But the boy protected her. I missed a lot of it, because I had to get away from the crowd and transform, but...when I got back, they were trying to finish off the boy. Phoebe seemed to know him really well. I think they're boyfriend and girlfriend or something, or maybe they will be." Mayumi grinned enthusiastically. "It was kind of romantic, you know?"
"Mayumi, dear," Ikkoku piped in, having finally extricated herself from The Crimson Eagle's cloak, "continue, if you please."
"Oh! Right!" she said sheepishly. "At that point, the youma was about to kill the kid. But at the last minute, Phoebe summoned a powerful attack! It was very dramatic, like a movie or something. You could tell she was totally digging on that boy. Anyway, She shouted something...um, dark...something with a "ga"...anyway, it killed the youma." Mayumi grimaced. "She crushed it. It was really gross. It makes me feel sick just thinking about it...anyway, the youma disappeared after that, thankfully."
"He said his name was Eros?" Ikkoku asked.
"I think so," Mayumi replied, sounding unsure. "I left as he was introducing himself. Something about Venus, I think. I didn't hear that well. He was wearing this weird outfit. It was creamsicle colored, with blue. It looked a teeny bit like Helios' outfit, I think."
"Did you hear that, Erik?" Ikkoku said, jumping up from the floor and alighting on The Crimson Eagle's shoulder. She seemed, much to her chagrin, to be having difficulty keeping a grip on his metal shoulder pad. "This...would explain..." she grunted, her claws sliding awkwardly on the metal. "Why you were having so much trouble finding them on your first go."
The Crimson Eagle paused. "You mean my past life, right?"
"Of course," Ikkoku responded, eventually giving up and landing on his head. The Crimson Eagle walked back toward his cape and replaced the clasp on his cape--allowing, much to both Ikkoku and The Crimson Eagle's relief, the falcon to resume her place on his shoulder.
"Who are you?" The Crimson Eagle asked, looking at her. First she knew about his fortune, and now this..."Within the course of the past hour's events, you've shown that you know both my previous life's history and my current one. How did you come by such knowledge, in such a conspicuous form, unobserved?"
"I am a falcon," Ikkoku replied. "I pursue that which I desire, and none can stop me. Knowledge is not such an elusive a thing to those who zealously desire to have it."
"Whoa," Mayumi responded, impressed, "That was foreboding. you sound kinda like you come from a movie or something, too. Can you see the future or something?"
"She's just avoiding the question," The Crimson Eagle said, turning toward Mayumi. "And trying to look cool." he sighed. "I suppose I shouldn't have bothered asking; she wasn't going to give me an answer."
Ikkoku fluffed her feathers proudly. "Anyway," she continued, "now that we've established that I'm cool, I'd like to know what happened to Eros after his youma disappeared. Did he disappear along with it?"
"Sort of," Mayumi said. "It wasn't the same, though. When the Youma disappeared, it was like--you know...'Lovely!' or 'Cleansing!', or 'Moon Dusted!', kinda. But when Eros disappeared, I think he just teleported away. He said something about things coming along nicely, or something like that."
"Youma don't really say lovely or cleansing when they've been defeated," Erik told her, "nor does Sailor Moon say moon dusted. They just put those in the movies."
"Really?" Mayumi said, surprised. "Huh. I did always think that was kinda weird."
"Something's amiss," Erik said, grasping the pommel of his sword as he thought. "The boy, receiving such a wound, would already be close to death. And according to you, Eros seemed to be out to kill him. I can see him mistaking the boy as already dead, and leaving him because of that, but he knew that he had to finish him off because he evidently instructed the youma to do so. And although I can see him wanting the youma to do his work for him, wouldn't it be just as easy to kill the boy himself, since he was already there? Maybe he didn't want to expose himself to the danger of getting attacked by you...Plus, why would he say things were coming along well? Even though Sailor Phoebe was hurt badly, she wasn't killed, nor was the bystander...and his youma was destroyed! It just doesn't fit together...the whole thing seems totally haphazard, like Eros wasn't thinking this through at all!"
"Maybe we're missing something," Ikkoku said. "Mayumi, are you sure that Eros said his mission was successful?"
Mayumi nodded with certainty. "As sure as I can ever be about anything."
"I definitely think we're missing something," Ikkoku reaffirmed. "I'm not as familiar with the inner circle of Sol, but even for a priest of Venus, that's pretty dull. And from what little I have heard of Eros, he was known to be quite perceptive. Maybe not as smart as Ouranos or Morpheus, but certainly not dull."
"Who are they?" Mayumi asked.
"The priests of other holy lands," Ikkoku told her. "They're--"
"I'm here!" Sailor Pinkmoon cried, pushing her way through the door, breathless. She ran toward The Crimson Eagle. "Where are they?"
He motioned toward Yamiko and the blonde haired boy. "You'd better heal the bystander first," The Crimson Eagle told her. "He's almost dead."
"I'll heal the boy," Helios said, pushing past Sailor Pinkmoon and running toward Kane.
"Wait," The Crimson Eagle said, kneeling downward and removing the arrow from the boy's back. Dark red blood gushed as though it had been waiting long for the opportunity to escape. The Crimson Eagle put his ungloved hand over the boy's wound, hoping to prevent the flow of blood. "You should heal him quickly, now that I've taken out the arrow."
He knelt downward and began to pray in what The Crimson Eagle was pretty certain was Latin. As he began, Sailor Pinkmoon turned toward Yamiko.
"Moon Healing Escalation!" Sailor Pinkmoon cried, holding her crystal aloft as a soft light flowed around Yamiko. Yamiko groaned and sat up; she could see the soft light of Helios' spell glowing around Kane, whose wounds were rapidly disappearing. A look of infinite relief spread across Yamiko's face as she ran toward him, taking his hands in hers as Helios finished his strange incantation.
"Kane!" she cried happily, tears beginning to flow into her eyes. "Are you okay?"
"You almost sound worried about me," he replied, grinning. "More importantly, are you okay?"
"I'm fine," she replied.
Kane smiled. "I'm sorry that the ball was ruined for you."
"I wasn't that enthusiastic about it anyway," she said. "Can you walk okay?"
Kane stood up, putting an arm around Yamiko and using it as leverage. Yamiko's hands continued to clasp around his, as though she were afraid he would disappear. Erik turned his back to them.
"Well, Ikkoku," he said, "it seems our work is done." He walked toward the exit, his inky black cape flowing behind him.
"W-wait! Um, come to my next concert!" Mayumi shouted, blushing.
"You're okay," Kane said happily, unclasping his hand and putting it on Yamiko's cheek. Yamiko took his cupped hand and gently lowered it to his side. Part of her was still unwilling to trust this mysterious stranger. Despite that, she smiled vaguely. She couldn't banish his stupid act of heroism from her mind.
"We should probably leave them," Helios said knowingly, turning toward Mayumi and Sailor Pinkmoon. "I told Queen Serenity to tell the police they didn't have to get involved, so there shouldn't be any interruptions," he continued with a wink. Mayumi nodded vaguely as the three headed out the huge double doors of the Golden Angel.
Yamiko and Kane were left alone. "Thanks for saving me," Yamiko said quietly.
"I wasn't really thinking about it at the time," he said sheepishly. "It just sort of happened. As long as you're okay."
Yamiko paused.
"I feel sorry for Seisui," she had said with a sigh, "but at the same time, she brought it on herself."
"Do you know her?" he asked, a little surprised.
"Why do you ask?"
"Because you called her 'Seisui.' Not Han'i, or even Seisui Han'i..."
"Errr..well, you know, she's such a criminal and all, she doesn't really deserve to be treated with respect."
"You don't call your enemies by their first names," he persisted. "What are you hiding, Yamiko?"
"I just want to help you out, okay? I promise.
"I promise."
"Yamiko, I--" he began.
"The truth, is, Kane..." she interrupted him quietly, taking a deep breath, "I'm a Moon Senshi. Sailor Phoebe, to be exact..."
"Yeah," he replied in the same subdued voice. "I thought you might be. After I found you knew Seisui, and that she even asked you to help her to depose the Queen, I figured you weren't just your ordinary high school student. What would a normal high school student be doing mixed up in stuff like that? But I wasn't sure. I mean, being a Moon Senshi...that's pretty far out for someone you meet shopping in Shibuya. But when I saw that weird guy looking down at you, it just hit me. I knew..." He paused, looking down toward the blood-stained marble floor; it looked like the site of some ancient Greek sacrifice. "And I knew what he planned. That sickening, antagonistic glare...he may have been almost angelic in appearance, but his eyes..." he trailed off.
"Because of you, I was able to defeat that monster..." she mumbled. "And you almost lost your life for my sake. I suppose..." she stopped, swallowing her words.
"This place looks like a dump," he said, grinning. Yamiko supposed he was trying to distract her. "It's a shame things turned out this way. But at least you get to keep your dress. Why don't I drop you off at your place? I'm sure that after all we've been through tonight, you aren't all that interested in a well-dressed night on the town."
"No," she said. "The dress is nice, but it isn't that comfortable." She paused.
"Well, shall we go then?" Kane said, motioning toward the door. "I'll call the car." He pulled a cell phone out of his pocket, and announcing the name "Kuro" into the phone, instructed his chauffeur to pick him up at the front of the building.
"You know..." Yamiko began awkwardly, looking away from him. "If you want to hang out with me and Sayoko, we could watch some movies or something...since I didn't really get anything to eat, I'll probably make dinner, too."
"Sure," he said with a smile. "That would be cool. Maybe I should invite a friend, for Sayoko's sake?" he said with a grin.
"For Serenity's sake, no."
Kazeko looked down at Seisui; the slinking darkness of Black Water had all but vanished, and she sat alone, resigned and tired. Kazeko clenched an oak branch thoughtfully.
She closed her eyes. Old sap, spring growth...her grip relaxed, and she could feel the knotty bark of the oak beneath her hands. Her body may have been relaxed, but her soul still trembled in fear and anguish, unwilling to accept her destiny.
"There is still the earth," she tried, half-heartedly, to reassure herself with. "And I am not the only one who needs guidance."
She climbed down from the tree and came up to Seisui, watching her as she sat in the midst of a confused cloud, her bench the only island in her mind's troubled sea. She approached her from behind and held a hand out, coaxingly, as though Seisui were a bird she could encourage to approach her. She dropped her hand, realizing the ridiculousness of the venture. Seisui couldn't even see her, of course; from where she sat, she was facing the other direction.
"Um," she finally said, her voice trembling.
Seisui turned around, her glassy eyes vaguely recognizing Kazeko. "Oh," she said apathetically. "It's you."
"What happened to your spirit?" Kazeko asked, sitting at the other end of the bench. "He disappeared."
Seisui shook her head, and she looked uneasy. The same, slinking darkness passed over her; but this time, It felt weak and uneven. "Nothing," she said. "There's really nothing to say. I've just begun to realize how pointless everything has been so far."
Kazeko paused, unsure of what to say.
She couldn't save them. The wind whistled through these strange trees, these foreign streets. She could see the airport behind her and the crowded streets ahead of her, and she cried for fear...
"Iain...where are you now?"
"I found out you were right," Kazeko finally managed to mumble. "I am a Moon Senshi."
"Really?" Seisui said weakly. "Which one?"
Kazeko pulled out her locket, looking at its lavender and blue-purple face.
The moon of prophecy, each generation home to a prophecy-maddened Queen...
"Ariel," she replied. "If you want...." Kazeko began tentatively, "I could read your fortune. Maybe it would help you see where you should go."
Seisui shrugged; Kazeko pulled out her bag of runes, and, drawing some of them from the bag, looked down at them pensively.
"Thurisaz," she mumbled, her voice troubled.
"What does that mean?" Seisui asked. She seemed only half interested in Kazeko's runes; her eyes showed that her thoughts were elsewhere.
"The rune of Thor," she repeated, this time in Japanese. "Destruction and change...basically, something big is going to happen. It's going to happen to you."
Seisui looked down at the stone. Emblazoned on it, there was a vertical line; against that vertical line sat a triangle. It looked a little like the english letter 'P.' She seemed skeptical. Kazeko, however, knew better. It seemed ironic that as Black Water retreated within her, ominous things would come even closer on the horizon. But Seisui, Kazeko saw, was holding him within her--binding him purely with the force of her own will--and that struggle to hold her power back could manifest in any number of inevitably bad ways.
"Going to happen?" Seisui said blandly. "Haven't enough things happened already?"
"Well..." Kazeko trailed off pensively. "Just because a lot of things have already happened doesn't mean that more aren't on the horizon." She paused. There were a lot of things eating up Seisui right now, and for her to find any measure of peace, Kazeko knew, she would have to fight them back. "Maybe whatever is coming isn't necessarily bad, at least not in the long run. Maybe it will be the solution to all of the problems you've been having."
"I don't want to talk about it," Seisui responded with a sigh. "As far as I'm concerned, it's all in the past. I have to move on..." She sounded half-hearted. Kazeko looked up at the oak tree. Maybe she shouldn't have left it after all...she was no good at this...she wasn't even sure what she was trying to accomplish. "Now that you know you're a Moon Senshi," Seisui asked apathetically, "what will you do? Do you still see the Sailor Moon as a god?"
"I don't know," Kazeko said weakly. "I-I-I..." she could feel herself beginning to show signs of breaking down again; her speech was broken, she could feel her nose becoming runny.
Seisui looked at her. "Regardless, it seems all of us are being pulled into this conflict. And it attacks wherever we're likely to be nearby, almost as if--" Seisui stopped abruptly.
Kazeko looked at Seisui questioningly. "A-a-almost as if what?" she asked. "I thought even the fomorii couldn't see through your--er, our--mortal guise into, um, our Fenian--er--Senshi form."
"There's certainly no record of it," Seisui said with concern. "Nothing I learned in school about the Sailor Senshi likens it--though naturally, that information could be biased. Still, I heard nothing of it from my mother as well, and though she tried to discourage us from openly attacking the queen, I still learned many things only councilors such as my father knew from her."
Kazeko looked concerned. "Do you think the enemy knows who among the people are Tuatha de Dannann--er, Sailor Senshi?"
"I'm not sure," Seisui said. She seemed to be regaining her vigor; for the time, at least, the present conversation had distracted her from her troubles. "There have only been two attacks; the one we were involved in, and, apparently, the one at the Church shortly after we left."
Kazeko looked toward Seisui with surprise. "There was an attack at the temple?"
"Not too long after we left. I read it in the newspaper--Sailor Miranda killed a youma that attacked a bunch of churchgoers. But even as disturbing as that is, they're still only two attacks. We'd have to wait and see if there was a definite pattern as to whether they always occur nearby us."
Kazeko clutched her trinity knot, it's points digging painfully into her hand.
"But how do they know?"
"They say that they take stock of everyone baptized at the kirk, and if they don't match up with the registered citizens..."
"Where do they get the registries?"
"There's worms in every government. Most people don't even know what some of these bishops are about, and who they hold sway with..."
"Mummy? What are you talking about?" She tugged on her mother's dress, looking confused.
"I-I-I hope that it's j-just a coincidence," she said fearfully.
"Is something wrong?" Seisui asked. She sounded confused.
"No," Kazeko replied, looking downward. She knew she wasn't convincing. Hopefully, hopefully, she would leave it at that. Kazeko tried to calm herself down; she glanced furtively at Seisui, who, she surmised, knew she was lying. Seisui frowned and shook her head.
"I suppose it's none of my business," Seisui said at last. "I, too, have plenty of things to hide...." A chill passed through Kazeko. She could feel Seisui fighting something back inside of herself. Seisui cringed and clutched at something inside of her pocket. "I better go," she said after a moment's pause.
"Are you going to be okay?" Kazeko asked, watching as Seisui stood up. She could feel, even through the pavement, the undulating waves of darkness that were pulsing through Seisui.
"I don't think I'll ever be okay," Seisui replied. "But I've been forced to try, perhaps by my own volition."
Kazeko paused. "I don't think I understood you correctly," she responded, annoyed at her limited abilities to speak.
"I think you understood," Seisui said, walking away. "I just don't think there was anything to understand."
"You're home, Fubuki," Michito said, wiping her hands on her apron.
At least her nana didn't boss her around, Fubuki mused. "I am," she said coldly. She threw her bag on a nearby couch and haphazardly took off her leather boots. Usually she kept them on in order to further dirty the white carpet her mother so prized--and because it was so unspeakably rude. She hadn't talked to Jirou yet today. She'd have to call him. A day of silence between them was too much.
"Won't you talk to your mother?" Michito asked, turning toward her. "She's been in her room all day. I haven't heard a sound from her."
"Good," Fubuki snapped. "Then I won't hear her voice."
"Fubuki, I know things have been hard between you and your mother, but--"
"Don't lecture me!" she shouted, turning toward Michito with a look of death. "Hard is no word for it! The sight of her makes me sick!"
"Both of us know that isn't true," Michito responded. "I'm the one that has to deal with it when you get in fights at school. And most of them are when some poor sod makes the mistake of getting to you by mentioning your mother. Fubuki, we both know that you still--"
"I haven't cared about my mother for years!" Fubuki retorted. She walked up to Michito and glared defiance. Michito looked calmly back, long since used to Fubuki's outbreaks. If Michito wasn't responsible for the household's food, Fubuki would have given her a piece of her fist instead of a piece of her mind. "Not since--"
"Dad, on Saturday, can we go the park--
"--his daughter, his life--"
"I'm heading out, honey--"
"We gather to mourn the loss of one of Queen Serenity's bravest--"
"Not since dad died," she finished. She cringed as she held something back inside of her, something cold and hot and painful all at once, which crawled into her throat and suffocated her. She loathed her own feelings of vulnerability. She bit her lip in disgusted anger.
"Fubuki, I know you miss your father, but he's been dead ten years. You need to try and pull together the family you have instead of glorifying someone who's gone. You may admire your father, but even he was hardly--"
"Goddammit, what do you know about my father?" Fubuki hissed, jabbing her face up next to Michito's. "You never met him. You weren't even here until after the feds came and brought you to look after me. You want to know about my father, ask someone who knows. Me! Whatever faults he had, he was a fucking miracle next to that ratty ass whore." She paused, glared down at the floor. "I can't pull together my family, Michito. I don't have one! Sometimes I still remember my mother before the accident--the only good memories of her that I have. But I can't enjoy them. It's like snorting flour and hoping that since it looks like fuzz it'll make you high. It just ends up hurting and making your nose feel like shit. When I think of being with my father and mother, Michito, I feel like shit, because I immediately remember that my mother will never, ever be that way again. For the rest of her life until the day she dies, she'll just be a stupid bitch, a stupid bitch who treats me like shit. I can't stand it! I hate her!"
"Fubuki..."
"So I'm not going to go in there. I'm not going up to that door again, in the hope that she 'snaps out of it' or whatever. She won't snap out of it, she never did! I hope she stays in there for all of eternity, until this planet collides with the sun or whatever the hell is gonna happen. Maybe then I can have freedom at last! Maybe then I can finally forget about the bitch she's become, and remember how we all used to be something that at least resembled a family."
Michito watched as Fubuki flashed one final glare at her and walked upstairs--without another word to anyone.
"Bad news for the love god," Coeus grinned, walking into Eros' room. He seemed to have made "progress" in redecorating it over the past week or so; several gold ornaments filled his room--probably foraged from Aphrodite--reflecting his chronically foppish taste. He had begun hanging the tiny portraits of his former girlfriends, the paint of their perfect porcelain faces cracking like the clay-like makeup they wore so long ago. Eros was currently engaged in this very task; he selected a vibrant blonde-- her perfect, ringlet-like curls framing an ivory face--and placed it on the black, glistening wall of his room on Nemesis. He did not turn around at Coeus' remark.
"Or should I say, more bad news? Given the success of your mission today," Coeus continued, seating himself in a mahogany chair, padded in velvet and in disgustingly decadent taste.
"If my mission today is bad news," Eros replied nonchalantly, "I should hate far more to hear good news. The mission was a complete success."
Coeus frowned, watching Eros' meticulous work. "In what way is getting your youma destroyed, setting a new Sailor Senshi against yourself and encouraging an existing one to harness a much greater power a success?"
"The higher they climb, the harder they fall," Eros replied.
"Are you referring to yourself?" Coeus asked, raising an eyebrow. "If so, you're only reaffirming my point. Of course, if we're speaking of me getting to work in Tokyo sooner as the point of success, then yes, your mission was a complete and utter success. I'm practically going out to buy the champagne."
"No," Eros said snappishly, turning to face Coeus and grabbing another portrait. "I mean, the Sailor Senshi. Sure, Yamiko has gained more agathon now, but I assure you that the euphoria that she is reaching toward will only make her plummet all the more debilitating."
"Oh, this is all part of your little pet plan again."
"If you want to call it that. And I assure you, it will be a complete and utter success. Yamiko will be devastated in a way that you have never experienced."
"I've felt plenty of kakon in my day. My own shadow grew as strong as yours, Eros. Let's not turn this into a contest of whose pain is fiercer."
Eros grunted and attached another painting to the wall.
"But back to the original intent of my visit," Coeus continued, leaning forward in his chair. "The bad news. The whole hall is astir with it. Looks like you were the last to know. Even Mauros knew before you, which is pretty bad."
"Of course he did," Eros replied. His eyes were as cold as orange eyes can be, and that, Coeus knew, meant his words were chilling him. "You're his brother, remember? I'm sure you told him the minute you knew."
"Regardless," Coeus continued, ignoring the comment, "you may be interested to know that Oceanus has an assignment in Tokyo."
"Oceanus?" Eros said quietly, turning back toward Coeus suddenly. His eyes wandered nervously back to his paintings, and he grabbed another one hastily. He was trying to make himself look busy. Trying to make it look like he didn't care. Coeus grinned. "I thought he was assigned to Germany. Isn't that enough? Nemesis thinks that it's as important as Tokyo."
Coeus shrugged. "So she says, who knows what she thinks. Certainly, that front is important. All I know is that he has an assignment in Tokyo." Coeus grinned as he saw confusion and anger cross Eros' face. "But don't worry. He won't interfere with your raven-haired pet project. I did hear a rumor that it was something to do with Seisui."
"Seisui?" Eros paused again. He held up the painting he had grabbed hastily, this one of a brunette with deep blue eyes and hair that fell like a waterfall down her cheeks. "Nemesis made a point of telling me to stay away from Seisui."
"Maybe she thought you weren't competent enough to handle her," Coeus suggested.
Eros' brows knitted. "Be careful of your words, sickening Nereid," he snapped, "or you make wake up with an arrow in your back."
Coeus laughed, cold and careless. "If you try such a moronic antic," he told Eros, standing up from his chair and heading toward the door, "you may wake up missing something far more dear to you than your meaningless life."
Eros threw a golden bauble at the back of Coeus' head, but it a swift "shick" noise resounded through Eros's room. A small, mechanical gargoyle leapt from the doorway behind Coeus and caught the bauble in it's hands. Coeus snickered mockingly as he took the golden trinket from the creature's hands and placed it on the floor. Then he, along with his mechanical pet, made a cackling exit. Eros sat irritably on his bed as Coeus left the room, nursing the emotional wounds that he told himself could not matter and planning the descent of a pale-faced girl.
~EPISODE THIRTEEN: FIN~
Kokoro kareteru
you ni asu ga kuraku naru kara
Koe ga kurushiku kasureru hodo
sakebitai
Donna toki mo kimi no ibasho sagashite
Setsunai
omoide mo mune ni motte
Sorazorashii wake no kage ni kakureteru
boku mo iru
Sadame wo kowaseba mirai nante aru ka na
Demo
maketaku nai kara akiramenai yo donna aite demo
Sadame to iu mono
ha michi wo kimeru dakedo
Kaiki gesshoku demo kimi wo me ni
suru
Kimi ha umarekawattemo boku no Radiance dakara
Because, as if
my heart's withering, tomorrow will get darker
I want to scream
until I get painfully hoarse
Searching for where you are no
matter when it is
And holding painful memories in my chest
There
is also a me who's hiding behind empty reasons
If I destroy
predestination, will there be a future at all?
But because I don't
want to lose, I won't give up, no matter who my opponent is
That
which is called predestination decides our paths, but
Even during
a total lunar eclipse, I'll remember you
Because, even though
reborn, you are my radiance
NEXT EPISODE
Seisui: Through the worst of lessons, I see my mistake. From now on, my tongue's a stone...
Fubuki: The pages of time flip onwards, the paragraphs repeat. I lock the door of my memories and throw away that key; I look forward, inviting this future with horrifying promise.
Tokimo: Finally, our obstacles are beaten. We can be together again, friends as always.
Erik: A shadow darkens her face, and soon she will not be the only one who wears the iron mask...
Yamiko: A new strength inside me, and a door of promise. For the first time, I feel a future that I can invite. I will walk through that threshold, and invite the warmth within...
Next time, on MOON SENSHI: UNMEI NO KODOMO--
"The Brightly Shrouded Threshold"
Mayumi: Everyone needs a little forgiveness.
