The Fourth Sheep Named Secrets
------------------------------

	"We may draw good out of evil; 
	we must not do evil, that good may come."

						--Maria Weston Chapman
				("How Can I Help to Abolish Slavery")

	"Whatever secret the past holds over you,
	it will not last unless you allow it to
	last.  It will not thrive unless you allow
	it to thrive.  It will not die unless you
	leave it where it should be; in the past.
	For beware of being too fond of your own
	memories.  They just might decide to rise
	again, on the powers of your faith alone,
	and destroy you in your wake.  That is why
	the past is always best left a secret.  Yet,
	there are exceptions to every rule, for some
	wounds will be better off revealed and healed
	before it has the chance to fester and kill
	its owner.  Do what you must, but remember my
	Queen.  The past has no hold to you unless you 
	give it right to and cannot control you, 
	unless you allow it to flourish in your 
	bitterness."

						--Sailor Senshi Pluto
						("Letters to the Queen")

	She opened her mouth to scream.  This wasn't a dream, it 
was a nightmare!  Nothing came and then suddenly, "Min'na!"  The 
lights flooded her, hurting her eyes, but she was glad, glad of 
the absence of the darkness.  Yet, she was still alone.  Her 
silver hair brushed against the ground.  Her breaths continued 
to come out in puffs of white.  The snow whirled, pulling at the 
gossamer gown that hugged her form.  She looked down startled, 
seeing that she was wearing her princess gown.  Only, it was 
tattered and ripped, the edges rimmed in red.  Red as blood.
	Thump.
	Blood.
	Thump, thump.
	Not her blood.

				*	*	*

	If someone had told Fuma that he would be stuck in a cop's 
Job and would end up being the surveillance camera to a blue-
haired wonder-girl a year ago, he would've looked at this 
someone as if he had lost too many brain-cells or had too many 
beers!  The great Kuragari Fuma watching the actions of a brainy 
human girl?  He'd have better things to do.  Especially since he 
was known for his shadowy espionage at some of the worst 
situations in politics and in war.  And then to sink so low as
to end up spying on a girl?!  What a joke!  Of course, it was no 
joke and at this moment Fuma did get stuck with it, even if he 
was getting impatient with the results of this little 
'investigation'.  Just because bashful Core couldn't get the 
nerve to ask the girl out didn't mean he had to keep an eye out 
for her so that others don't get the chance!  Not that Core had 
much competition, except for that Chiba Mamoru she keeps seeing.  
Of course, when Fuma checked up on the guy, he was even more 
surprised!  The ebony-haired man had been going out with one of 
Mizuno Ami's best friends for at least two or three years!  Not 
just that, but also the time they started dating and the age 
difference...
	If Fuma didn't know any better he'd call this guy a 
hentai-ecchi!  But Fuma watched and analyzed and kept his 
opinions to himself.  What surprised him was exactly how 
straight laced this Chiba Mamoru was!  Dating a juvenile, yes, 
but this guy had a face carved out of stone and seemingly a 
heart too.  Until Fuma saw Mamoru with his young juvenile 
girlfriend, Tuskino Usagi, a girl with the grades of twelve year 
old stuck in high school.  Yet, somehow she got a boyfriend and 
best friend who's IQs were well above average.  How did these 
people ever find anything in common was beyond Fuma!  Yet it 
interested him greatly that a man like Chiba Mamoru, who had a 
history of being a loner and overachiever like Mizuno Ami, would 
melt like butter at the smile of his girlfriend.  What men do 
when they're in love...  Fuma shuddered at the thought.
	So lost in his own thoughts while spying on the blue-
haired girl before him, he was unaware of someone else spying on 
'him'.  "Excuse me?"  A voice interrupted him.  
	The first thoughts that entered his mind was, 'heavy 
British accent, a ting of Japanese, and a voice that was made to 
sing!'  He turned with his best smile.  Babe!  "Konichiwa!"
	Blonde, blue-eyed babe!  Fuma wrote off with a grin and 
bowed.  Ah, yes, I love this job!  The babe before him blinked 
in surprise, probably because she didn't realize he could speak 
Japanese.  If Core were here, he'd scold him for calling the 
girl a babe, but she 'was'!  Always 'female' for conservative 
Core!  One day, just one day, Fuma would like to see that boy 
loosen up and fall for a girl.  Well, that's what challenges 
were for after all!  "My name's Kuragari Fuma."  He told her.  
Her looks belied her age, sort of.  And now Fuma was beginning 
to see his old assessment of Chiba Mamoru backfire onto him.  
Well, he never admitted that he 'wasn't' a hentai-ecchi, now did 
he?  Fuma's grin turned boyish at his somewhat darker thoughts.  
Okay, okay, so he hasn't been in contact with the female species 
since the last decade, but that didn't make him into another 
Core, did it?  He certainly hoped not!
	"Kuragari Fuma?"  The girl had a pensive look in her eyes 
and then it was gone.  A bright smile lit her face as she 
extended her hand to him.  "My name's Aino Minako."  Nope.  He 
was wrong.  When a girl smiled like that, she looked exactly her 
age!
	"Ah!  A child of love.  Interesting."  He said.  Flashing 
his teeth in a show of amicability, he took her offered hand.  
Sending a signal to her brain that he had already shook it 
before letting go.  Her smile never wavered, didn't even blink.  
Nobody knew the difference except for Core of course, but then, 
you couldn't get pass that guy's defense-systems with something 
as simple as an electric signal.  Hell, the guy hardly even uses 
his body!  Just like Fuma.  Man, that guy was like a brother to 
him!  He couldn't help the inward smirk at 'that' comment.
	Was it just him or did her eyes almost sparkled like stars 
under the sun?  That's strange.  He never noticed that he had 
this type of an effect on women before.  But who was he kidding?  
This was merely a girl, and she probably fell for every other 
guy under the sun, if he had a cute face and a cuter smile that 
is.  Sighing inwardly he prepared himself for the worst.  The 
clingy part, "You know the meaning of my name?"  Minako was 
flattered and impressed, her smile brightening even more than 
before.  Fuma had never thought that people could smile that 
bright, much less brighter!  Its effects were almost 
frightening, since she seemed to practically glow.  Was she a 
machine too?  He could do something like that on a good day.  
Glow like a light bulb that is, or brighter if he felt like it.  
But she was human... right?  Well, if she was another machine, 
then she definitely has potential to be an actual girlfriend, 
that or a potential rival...
	Searching through her files in his head in the blink of an 
eye and learning all of the technical little likes and dislikes, 
he immediately found that she had been friends with Mizuno 
Ami for sometime now.  He was, also, somewhat relieved to find 
that an internal scan showed him that she was very human and 
very female.  His grin widened at that.  Yeah, he was definitely 
a hentai on a good day, but only for today though... it sucked 
being an old-hentai hologram sometimes.
	Since his virtual body didn't permit any physical 
embarrassment or any true physical emotions in the first place, 
he was as safe as pie.  Deciding firmly to take his thoughts off 
of that track, Fuma turned his attention once more to what had 
brought him here in the first place.  That's great for Fuma's 
part, for it was at that moment that he decided to wonder if the 
cute blue-haired girl had any more cute friends like Minako.  
"Well, I've lived here all my life you know?"
	That sent her into a fit of nervous giggles, a deep blush 
appearing on her cheeks.  "Silly me, I keep thinking your from 
somewhere foreign and exotic!"
	He smiled, warmly.  Don't want to be condescending, girls 
never like that in a guy.  "Well, I do travel a lot.  You got 
that part right."
	She seemed relieved to be let off the hook, what did she 
think he'd do?  Laugh at her?  Most boys would be too 
intimidated to even talk to her, probably expected him to 
stutter just like all those idiots walking around in Tokyo now!  
He was way out of her age range though, but hey, you really 
don't age when your half-machine and you live your days out as a 
hologram picture.  Nothing changes much unless you wanted it to, 
and frankly he didn't, he liked the way he'd been looking in the 
last few decades.  "So, where's your girlfriend?"  She 
interrupted his thoughts and brought him back to reality, 
literally!
	He raised a brow slightly in surprise.  Aren't we a bold 
one?  "I don't have one."  He couldn't quite decide if the 
expression on her face was rapture that he was single or 
giddiness now that she had a new victim to prey upon.  He also 
wasn't sure if he should be weary of the look or not.  It wasn't 
like he was going to be deceitful about it, not that you can get 
many dates if you weren't fully human, no matter how good you 
may look in the mirror.  Hell, he couldn't even look in one of 
those!  If he wanted to know what he looked like, he'd have to 
pull up an old file with an even older picture.
	"Oh!"  She opened her mouth in a little 'o' and tried to 
hide her big grin, failing miserably at that too.  "You didn't 
just get dumped did you?"  She asked again, this time he could 
almost see the little wheels turning in her head.
	Cautious little thing, aren't we?  "No.  Actually, I 
haven't been dating for a while, either."  Truth, again!  Again, 
the little stars came into her eyes, though this time, he was 
sure he saw hearts floating around her head as well.
	"Why?"  That surprised him.  Must have been giving himself 
an ego-trip, again.  Happens when you're still partially human, 
especially when girls gawk at you once in awhile when you walk 
down the street.
	Laughing the question off, he tried the 'I-usually-don't-
have-time-for-that-sort-of-thing' signal, "I just haven't been 
dating," he replied.
	"You don't prefer...other men...do you?"  She asked 
hesitantly.
	Surprised once more, he looked around the park.  Let's 
make this a little fun, "Actually..." he watched in amusement as 
all the little dreams crashed to pieces at her feet as a blush 
hit her face with full force.  "I don't."
	"Na ni?!"  She yelped out in surprise when he let out his 
intended answer.
	"What?"  He asked, acting surprised at her response.
	"You didn't have to make me think that--" she cut herself 
off this time and blushed again.
	So, she wasn't as bold as she would like to be.  Now, the 
question arises, to push or not to push?  "Think what?"  To 
push.  He tried his best to look innocent.
	"Urr...that...ummm...that you were...you know..."  Minako 
stuttered.
	Well, now he can be the rescuer of this little charade and 
she'll introduce him to her friend right away.  "What?  Do I 
really look like an ecchi stalker with no life?"  He put on his 
most innocent smile as a cynical little laugh went off in his 
head as he saw her flounder.  3, 2, 1...
	"No!  I think you're cute!"  Ding!  Full pledge blush 
spread across the face of the blonde as she blurted out what she 
had been thinking of when she first spot him standing alone.  
The silver lenses he wore flashed back at her and he had a 
wonderful smile that could just make her melt!  Thank the gods 
Makoto wasn't here, or else she'd be saying how much he looked 
like her old boyfriend and she would never have gotten the 
chance to talk to him!  On the other hand, Fuma kept on smiling 
at her as if he didn't mind her outburst.  He must get this all 
the time!  Minako thought enviously.
	Fuma on the other hand was having thoughts not in the 
direction that Minako might have anticipated... 'Core!  If you 
were half the god you claim to be, then I sure hope that you're 
the one who created women cause I love the way they work!'  He 
grinned.  "Great, then you wouldn't mind introducing me to your 
friend now would you?"  Real smooth there, buddy!  Shattered 
dreams lay at Minako's feet.  Time for the winner!  "After that, 
would you like to go to dinner tomorrow or something?  For all 
your troubles, that is."  Smile boy!  He flashed her a 'boyish' 
grin and tried to act like a teenager again.
	She brightened in a way that 'was' scary.  Nodding 
enthusiastically, she grabbed his arm -- yes, he's sensory were 
working in perfect order -- and half dragged him to where Ami 
stood.  "Hey Ami-chan!"  Minako called out.  The pretty blue-
haired girl looked up startled at the blonde's approach.  Yep, 
this is a great job!  Surprisingly, Core actually had pretty 
good taste in his 'females'.  From what her file said about her, 
she seemed to be actually a match for the little demi-god of the 
computer underworld.
	"Hey Minako-chan!"  Ami replied with a soft smile.  Blue 
eyes immediately drifted to his direction and blushed when he 
grinned back.  Yeah, definitely Core's girl.  They're both so 
tense, if not somewhat dense in the relationship department, 
even if they were geniuses in the others.  "Hello..." she said 
softly in his direction, though she still didn't know his name.
	He extended his hand this time, "Please to meet you Ami, 
it's Ami, isn't it?"  She seemed somewhat startled, blushing 
even more under his attention.  Yeah, he's looks weren't too 
rusty yet.  "Kuragari Fuma, Minako-chan's Monday night date."  
He rested an arm around the shoulders of the beaming blonde who 
was not blushing, as she was smiling.  Women, as much as they're 
predictable, could never be understood.  It especially puzzled 
him on how they worked it out in their mind to do the things 
they did.
	Ami's face turned bright red at his bold words.  She must 
not hear those words much.  Must be because all those Tokyo 
boys, too aggressive or no spunk at all!  Fuma wrote it down as a 
few things to remember, like, Ami's dislike for personal 
information and exactly how easy it was to get her emotionally 
wound up like a clock.  Yeah, just like Core, they're perfect 
for each other!  The little wheels in Fuma's head begun to turn.  
What snapped him out of it was Minako's sudden act of wrapping 
an arm around his waist.  Wow!  Women never done that to him 
before, not since he had been semi-comatose and put into a tank 
with half of his organs gone!  Fuma was definitely having a good 
day.  "Don't get too hopeful now," Minako winked.  "After all, 
you know what they say about hope?"
	"What?"  Fuma asked with an amused smile.
	"Hope is a thing with a lot of thorns, and if you're 
lucky, you won't get pricked!"  Fuma blinked.  He wasn't sure if 
he ever heard 'that' one before.  Yet, Minako had said it with 
such conviction, as if she had heard it a thousand times 
before--
	Ami groaned, "Minako-chan!"  The other apparently didn't 
even have the strength that day to correct the blonde.
	Suddenly, something else startled him out of his cheerful 
thoughts.  A feeling really -- if he still had those!  Because 
Minako had seemed familiar when he first saw her.  So did Chiba 
Mamoru's girlfriend, Tuskino Usagi.  This girl, Mizuno Ami was 
also familiar.  He searched his data file for the information he 
had gathered in the last few years and then suddenly it hit him.  
He had to keep himself from gasping out loud and hitting his 
head on the concrete for being a true baka.  Not that that would 
help much, especially since he wouldn't have felt the pain of 
the contact between concrete and his head.  At best, a part of 
his body would fall through the cement and he'd look like an 
ostrich with his...  Now he was getting distracted.  "You seemed 
familiar, so I had to ask Minako to introduce us."  He lied.  
Returning to the topic at hand.  And it was just a little white 
lie in the end!  Nobody's going to get hurt by it!
	Anyway, she and Minako did seem familiar to him.  
Especially since he had seen their picture with those missing 
women only a few days ago.
	"Oh?"  Ami asked surprised.
	"Yeah, I was walking by a shop the other day and there 
were these four women.  They all had very different 
personalities but claimed that they were sisters.  They were 
running a little antique and beauty shop somewhere a little off 
of downtown Juuban.  They had a photo of you guys with them and 
I saw it."  Not that much of a lie, most of it were true.  He 
sure hopes they don't ask him why he was there in the first 
place!  How was he to explain what he was doing in an antique 
and beauty shop?
	Shopping for his grandmother was just too lame an excuse 
and he already told Minako he didn't have a girlfriend.  Anyway, 
if he said he had a little sister, then she'd probably want to 
meet the imaginary girl, and 'that' would be stupid!  "Really?  
Do you know their names?"  Minako asked, slightly surprised.  
There seems to be an angel watching over him today and covering 
the wide questionable trail he's leaving in his wake!
	"Yeah, I remember one of them, had green-hair held back in 
a bun."  Scanning his memory storage he called up her file 
again, "Called herself, Petz."

				*	*	*

	Fujimia Doko sat patiently at his polished desk.  His eyes 
were closed and though he seemed almost sleeping, he wasn't.  
All his senses were out searching for the darkness that wrapped 
its tendrils around his dark soul and pulled him toward.  The 
telephone rang and pulled him out of his search.  Looking 
slightly annoyed, he picked up the phone and held it loosely in 
his hand.  "Yes?"  He asked in a smooth and polished voice.
	If Fujimia Doko ever learned that he had half the talent 
for politics that he didn't use, he would've kissed himself.  
Only, now that the demon used all of those little talents that 
Doko himself didn't know about, with Doko's own death inside his 
own body, nobody was really cheering about the use of talent in 
this little political game.  "Fujimia-san, there's a Hino-san 
here that's requested to see you."  He nodded with a smile.  
Right on time Hino!
	The door opened to reveal a tall man with a shock of blond 
hair and a mustache.  Seems the type that would be popular with 
the girls, but his eyes were cold and he gave off an air of 
confidence and arrogance.  "Fujimia, I heard you're the new 
player in town."  Hino said, not even bothering to take the 
extended hand that was offered by Doko.  He wasn't the least bit 
frizzled by this act of snobbery.  True-demons don't really care 
who's the snob, he just cared about who has the power.  It 
didn't alter his plans the least and having Hino here was all 
the effect that he wanted.
	"You flatter me Hino-san, but I'm not really a new player 
at all, I just been hiding in the shadows.  Waiting for the 
right time so to speak."  Hino twitched a smirk at him, but it 
was forced even if it didn't seem like it.  Yes, this man 
would've been very useful, but his track record was already too 
public.  Too many people knew him.  It would've been harder to 
possess such a man anyway.
	"Ah!  An old player waiting for his aces!  Any other 
tricks up your sleeve?"  Hino smiled at him coldly.  So, the old 
man knows that Doko was a rival did he?  Time to establish who's 
the boss around here.
	"Actually," Doko smile turned dark.  The color of his eyes 
darkened to blackness as well.  Hino rose with a growl at his 
throat.  So, this man had a bit of a talent at sensing evil 
presence, a small psychic.  Interesting, but an unimportant 
factor in Doko's plan.  "I have several tricks that no one knows 
about and never shall."  The knowledge seemed to strike home at 
that moment as those strange blue-violet eyes widened, a scream 
beginning to rise from the other's throat.  He didn't even blink 
as the dark shadow rose from him and struck with the speed of a 
cobra, strangling and swallowing the life energy of the man at 
the same time.  The psychic was more hidden than a small force, 
and it was sweet to the dark and hungry jaws, gapping toward the 
soul, swallowing the sweet nectar of power and life.
	Hino gasped his last, his body wrecked with spasms before 
slumping onto the floor.  "Goodnight, sweet rival," Doko 
muttered with a smile.  Hino rose from the floor, nodded to him 
and walked to the door.  He exited the building with a dazed and 
empty look on his face.  By midnight that night, Hino fell over 
on his way to bed and they pronounced him dead at the scene.  
Doko expressed his sympathies, and though no one spoke of what 
had happened the night before, many would swear later on that 
Hino walked out of the office with somewhat of a peaceful smile 
on his face, as if the burdens of the world had fallen from his 
shoulders.
	Some may later claim that Hino was poisoned.  He was too 
young to just fall over and die like that!  But no one 
questioned Doko, for he had his witnesses.  No one saw any 
fights and they all claimed that Hino seemed happier than he 
ever did when he walked out of the office.  Some of his more 
bitter rivals were shot down, so naturally, Doko rose on top.  
And the national elections were coming up soon and Doko couldn't 
wait until he was at the very top of the corporal ladder.  After 
all, his job was to get into the position of ruling the world, 
and so far, only Japan wasn't half dying from some mad disease 
spread elsewhere on this little planet Earth.
	Doko smiled and licked his lips at the delicious after 
taste of a worthy human opponent, Hino.

				*	*	*

	Rei gasped out loud, clutching her chest.  Her eyes flew 
to the fire, and saw a man she hadn't spoken to in more than a 
decade, melt into the darkness and disappear into the fire's 
embrace.  "Hino-san."  Her only acknowledgement of ever knowing 
him.  Yet, there were still tears in her eyes that blurred her 
vision, and when she blinked, some escaped, trailing down her 
cheeks and some even fell onto her red-kimono.  "Father."  When 
was the last time she dared call him by that name?  The same 
name that would bring even more painful memories.  Kagemi Kaidou 
flashed before her inner mind, broken and blurry pictures of her 
deceased mother passed and vanished into the mist of her 
memories, pain came and stayed within her heart.
	It had been a very bad week.  First the Outers and Inners 
split once more into fractions and now this!  Her own father, 
dead!  Without her being able to even utter a word to object.  
It was hopeless.  She felt helpless and unable to control the 
events that has been happening.  That frightened her, more than 
she was willing to admit.
	"Sayonara, otou-san."  If there was an answer to her pain, 
she didn't hear it.
	The door of the fire door slid open, surprising her.  She 
turned.  Strands of midnight-purple hair swirled and passed 
through the flames unharmed.  "Why are you crying Rei-chan?"  
Her onyx eyes widened, a deep color with the light of the fire 
behind her and the darkness of shadow that should've masked her 
expression.
	"Hiketsu, I didn't realize you were here."  She replied 
startled, trying to change the topic.
	"I was visiting when I felt a strange aura and came to 
check on you.  The last time it happened, you burnt your hand."  
She clutched her still loosely bandaged hand into a fist 
unconsciously.
	She looked away, "So you know?"
	"It would be best if you can clarify to me what I felt."  
He answered bluntly.
	She turned back to him, and for the first time in a long 
time, she saw Hiketsu, not Hiketsu her childhood friend or even 
Hiketsu, the brother of the first man she ever loved.  There was 
much of his brother in his face.  The same blond hair, only his 
was a little more tousled and darker.  The same blue eyes, only 
his were of a deeper blue and held a controlled wildness that 
she could not identify.  The same chiseled cheekbones, though 
his chin was a little more stubborn.  "Father's dead."
	They both knew whom she meant.  "But it was my brother you 
were remembering."  He answered evenly.
	If she gasped, she didn't realize she was doing it until 
it had parted from her lips.  The smile though soon followed, 
"It's strange how you know so much yet so little."
	"Ironic how that works for both of us, if not for all 
those who ever lived."  He answered evenly.
	"I was just remembering--"
	"His hair, his eyes, and his beautiful smile?"  Hiketsu 
asked with a slightly irked smile of his own.  She laughed at 
his predictions, though he did get the last part wrong, he had 
all the other parts down pat.  Though, she was glad he didn't 
realize that she was comparing him to his older brother.  
Another thought soon disturbed her in the short silence that 
ensued, but that thought didn't get to continue long.  "You were 
probably thinking how I would never match up to the great 
Kaidou-san."  Hiketsu finally said in a soft and dangerous 
voice.
	The comment surprised her.  She had never thought Hiketsu 
would be the jealous type, and even the thought that he had 
changed into a jealous type didn't fit his image either.  He 
pushed himself upright from his lean against the sliding door, 
uncrossing his long legs.  When did he get so tall?  She 
wondered in surprise.  When did he become so handsome?  She 
blinked again.  The earlier thought that she had squashed was 
returning.  "No, I wasn't thinking that."  She finally said, 
unwilling to allow her mind to wonder in directions that were 
forbidden to her to think of.  She didn't like boys remember?  
At least, that's what she informed Usagi so very long ago, and 
it was a lie then too.  She was only interested in one man and 
he had left her for someone else.
	Hiketsu smiled warmly at her, a smile that startled her.  
Not because she had never seen him smile, but it was the first 
time she had to keep herself from reacting to it.  The charm 
must run in the family, she thought wearily.  "What happened 
Rei-chan?"  His voice rolled over her like a soft whispered 
caress, though in the form of a question that she was unwilling 
to answer.  She forced her gaze to turn to the night sky 
outside, the small parts that she could catch glimpses of from 
the bottom part of the sheltering roof that lined the outer 
hallways.  The crickets chirped and the tip of the moon was just 
visible--
	The door was slid shut so suddenly that she nearly jumped 
from where she sat.  Hiketsu turned his grin to her as he leaned 
against the closed door.  "Rei-chan, why are you ignoring me?"  
He asked softly and she looked away.  Glad of the shadows that 
was made from the fire-dance, glad of the heat that the fire 
gave, because now he would not see the blush on her cheeks and 
think that it is because of his presence.
	"I'm not."  She lied.
	He frowned at this, "Rei-chan..." if that man called her 
name like that one more time she would scream in frustration!  
Years of training forced her to grab that emotional turmoil and 
the frustrated thoughts, stuffing them all down to the deepest 
regions of her mind where she can review them later or ignore 
them completely, whichever course she chose once she get her 
emotions under control.
	"I'm just worried now that Hino-san's dead."  Great save 
Rei!  That's what Minako would call it.  "I don't know how I 
will tell the others.  They would feel pity and I will not wish 
them to feel an emotion that I do not feel nor deserve."  He 
walked over beside her and knelt down next to her.  His 
proximity was dizzying and just a little bit scary.  She rose 
quickly, almost too quickly because then she realized her 
mistake.  His hand snaked out and held her wrist.  The contact 
startled her.  He hadn't really touched her since he woke her 
that day in the hospital.  They hadn't even had a chance to 
speak after that.  Except the part where he woke Usagi, Ami and 
her from their sleep.  Actually just Usagi and Ami since they 
let her sleep a little more while he drove each of them home.  
Grandfather later told her that her childhood friend had carried 
her up all one hundred and one steps to the temple grounds and 
handed her over to him.  'A very respectable young man!' her 
ojii-san commented with enthusiasm and a twinkle in his eyes.  
'Reminds me of that Kaidou-san that used to come here though.'  
She nearly choked on that one, tending to forget exactly how 
observant her ojii-san could be.  'His brother actually.'  She 
had informed him softly.  Her grandfather thought this over and 
soon was grinning as if he knew something that she didn't and 
after that, he didn't speak much of Hiketsu or of his visit to 
the temple.  Not once.  "I- The others will be here soon."  She 
said, though this time she wasn't lying.
	"Will you not stay a little longer with me Rei-chan?"  He 
asked her softly.  Those blue eyes looked up to her before he 
too rose.  He towered over her, almost as tall as Kaidou...
	"Hiketsu--" she begun but his eyes darkened slightly.
	"You're thinking of him again.  Is that all you see in me 
Rei-chan?  Is he all that you can think about?"  He was mad, and 
she wasn't sure why.  If she knew, she might not have wanted to 
acknowledge it.  Her heartbeat accelerated in her chest and she 
tried to back away, but his hand against her wrist tightened and 
she knew he was warning her silently not to move.  "For once, 
answer my question and try not to lie."  He warned her darkly.
	Her eyes widened slightly and she tried to think of 
something to say.  "I-- I--" she couldn't tell him what she 
thought because she didn't know herself, so she looked away and 
said nothing.  Fearing her eyes would give away her 
vulnerability and her own anger at her indecision.
	"So, I'm repulsive to your eyes now, is that it?"  He let 
go of her hand as she widened her eyes.
	How did they ever become so distant?  She never thought 
that time and space could change how two people, who had once 
been friends through childhood years, could suddenly find 
themselves so different.  How could he be so... passionate about 
something that she was unsure of herself?  He turned to go, and 
frantically she reached out for him, catching his arm.  
"Hiketsu, you were never repulsive to me!  I-- I just don't know 
what I feel at this moment.  Please, I need to think it through 
and-- I feel so confused and--"
	He turned to her slowly and his eyes stopped her from 
saying more.  "Yes, Gomen.  I was being overly dramatic about 
nothing."
	"No, you're right.  It was wrong of me to compare you to 
your brother."  She saw the muscles of his jaws clench slightly.  
Oh, why did she always been such a baka when it came to dealing 
with men?  Why did she say that just now?  Did she really mean 
it?  Minako was better at this than she was, the blonde was the 
charmer, Rei rather stay silent and let Minako do all the 
talking.  Yet, Minako couldn't be here to talk her out of this 
one, especially since this was Rei's problem and not the 
blonde's.
	"Oh," he said softly and clenched his jaws together again.  
"You can let go of my arm now, Rei-chan."
	She blushed, but she didn't let go.  She knew that telling 
the truth, and making the mistake of doing what he asked when he 
was angry and hurt, were two different things.  Especially since 
she was the cause of his anger and hurt.  "Hiketsu, please 
understand that I didn't mean it like that!"  She stepped 
closer, a truly desperate move on her part to let him 
understand.  It's hard trying to convince someone something that 
you have trouble with working out in the first place, especially 
when you just discovered that your father, whom you supposedly 
never loved, had just died from something dark and 
frightening...
	No.  She would not think of Hino-san now.  Hiketsu was 
here.  He mattered more.
	His breathing quickened, she wasn't sure why.  Later on, 
she would realize exactly how much of a baka she truly was when 
it came to men.  He reached her cheek, still stained slightly 
from her earlier tears, and opened his mouth to say something.  
Instead he leaned closer, their nose almost touched and his blue 
eyes burned into hers.  Surprised by his actions, she froze.  
Remembering the first kiss she shared with Kaidou, and now, his 
brother was--  "Gomen."  His warm hand left her cheek as he 
stepped away from her.  The door slid open and then silently 
closed, the floorboards creaked at places under his weight as 
he left her.
	She stood there alone.  Trying to figure out what had gone 
wrong, more importantly what had gone on in the time that passed 
between them.  She needed to talk to Minako, but then what would 
she say?  She can't exactly just go up to her blonde friend and 
tell her that her childhood friend, who looked like the his 
elder brother -- who was her first love -- was acting strange 
and that she had a peculiar feeling that he almost kissed her in 
the fire room but he didn't!  If she were Minako now, she'd 
probably be jumping up and down in frustration and baring her 
teeth in anger at missing the chance of kissing someone as 
handsome as Hiketsu.  Or better yet, Minako would probably be 
kissing him right now!  Rei sighed.  Of all the things to be bad 
at, understanding the opposite sex was one of her worst 
subjects.  Before, she never even felt the tiniest bit 
interested until now, since she wished that she at least knew 
something!  Some small hint on what had happened in that room 
and how that chain of events occurred, or even, how it started 
in the first place!
	She sighed.  The others would be arriving soon, and she 
needed to make some tea.  The cupcakes she had baked earlier can 
now be served and no longer will she have to deal with Usagi 
complaining about a lack of food, and she was sure Makoto was 
bring something as well, being that the brunette almost always 
did.  She opened the door and then closed it behind her.  She 
turned and opened her mouth in surprise when she saw that he 
hadn't left yet.  Instead, Hiketsu was but a few feet away, head 
in his hand before he had turned to see her.  Those blue eyes 
burned at her appearance and he looked, for a moment, as if he 
would approach her.  Instead he bowed to her stiffly and turned 
to leave.  "Hiketsu!"  She called out, though not quite sure 
what she wanted to say.
	"Yes?"  He turned expectedly to her, his eyes slightly 
colder now than before.
	A silence fell between them before she finally found a way 
to answer his question.  "Will you stay for the meeting?  Mako-
chan might need you."  She said softly.
	He looked ready to say no but then changed his mind, 
"Alright.  I'll meet your friends now that they're all 
conscious."  He agreed, nodding his head slowly.  Apparently he 
was willing to forget her momentary outburst.  She was glad that 
they were both avoiding another uncomfortable confrontation for 
now.
	"Good," she turned and headed for the kitchen.  
	"Where are you going?"  He asked surprised after catching 
up with her.  She didn't really want him so near, not when she 
needed time to think about what had gone on between them.  But 
she didn't want him to leave either, which was confusing her to 
no ends!
	"To the kitchen to prepare tea and bring out the muffins.  
Usagi-chan has a bottomless pit called her stomach, which you 
would have the pleasure of witnessing as soon as she arrives 
late, as usual!  And the others, myself included, always enjoyed 
tea."  She explained.  Thinking about Usagi though cleared her 
mind a bit and she was glad of the distraction.
	"Well, then, I can help!"  Hiketsu said cheerfully.  
Perhaps, it is his way of amending what had been said in the 
fire room.  Rei could not complain, the situation was thoroughly 
perplexing, but she also wanted to finish it.  After all, she 
was known for finishing what she started, no matter how 
unpleasant it was.
	Having no excuse to turn him away, she tried the next best 
thing.  "You can bring the muffins into my room and make sure 
it's not too messy while I prepare the tea."  She told him, 
which sent him on his way and away from her!  Sighing in relief 
she got to work and systematically begun to take out the cups, 
making sure she took one extra cup for Hiketsu, in case he 
wanted to drink some tea with them.  She smiled slightly at the 
idea, it was the first time in a long time that they had a guy 
over at their meeting.  But with what happened a few days ago, 
Hiketsu's presence was indeed needed.
	She entered the room holding the tray, stopping when she 
saw him looking at a picture that she hadn't taken out in 
sometime.  "What are you doing?"  She asked surprised.
	He looked up to her, not at all flustered at being 
discovered.  "I didn't realize you had kept a picture of him."  
He answered as she put the tray on the table and straightened to 
meet his accusing glare, he seemed angry for some reason.  
	"I do, or I did.  I stopped looking at it after I had set 
it aside."  It wasn't a lie.  She had forgotten she had it for 
sometime now.
	Hiketsu looked away this time, almost ashamed.  "It's 
really none of my business if you still like my brother or not, 
is it?"  He asked softly.  Was it just her, or did he sound like 
he was asking her a question that she needed to answer 
correctly.
	"No, it isn't."  He stiffened slightly at her reply, "But 
I thank you for your concern."  She meant it, really she did!  
It's just that, all that jumbled feelings in her stomach that 
rose when she touched his arm and then his cheek, all the little 
things that made it impossible for her not to fall deeply into 
his beautiful blue eyes were fogging her mind.  She needed to 
think, alone.  A cough broke their eye contact as she looked 
over to see a very red Ami step into the light that spelt into 
the outer hallways from her room.  How expected that she would 
forget to close the door!  "Ami-chan!  Welcome!"
	The blue-haired girl set down her bag and sat down on one 
of the cushions, taking out her textbook.  They had all been so 
silent since the group broke up, since the Outers left.  None of 
them was sure whose fault it was.  Each of them had questioned 
themselves about their own part in the breakup, each of them 
felt guilty and distant from the others.  An uncomfortable 
silence almost came upon them, but then Rei took it upon herself 
to introduce Hiketsu properly to her friend once more, not 
wanting such thoughts to linger, like that of her father's 
death.  "Ami-chan," the blue-haired girl turned to her with a 
nervous smile before glancing over quickly at Hiketsu who 
respectfully bowed to her.  "This is Kagemi Hiketsu.  You met 
him at the hospital already but I'm sure there're still many 
things you'd like to know about him.  Hiketsu, this is Mizuno 
Ami."
	Ami turned to Rei startled, and then nodded her head 
slowly.  "Perhaps it would be best if we continue this when the 
others arrive."  Ami suggested.
	Understanding immediately what Ami was getting to.  Rei 
nodded in agreement.  "Hai."  She said softly in reply.  Rei was 
about to sit down when she realized that she forgot to get a 
cushion for Hiketsu at the low table.  "Ne, Hiketsu, do you know 
where the cushions are?"  Rei asked him.
	Grinning, he shrugged.  "Probably not."  He answered.  
"This temple's different than the last one I visited."
	Nodding, she stood.  "Well, I guess I should get an extra 
one for you."  Just as she was about to leave the room she saw 
Makoto walking towards the temple.  There seemed to be a gloom 
around her, though Rei could guess why the brunette was so 
uncomfortable.  Wincing lightly without meaning to, Rei caught 
herself.  Yes, it would be a long meeting for all of them.  
Waving, she called out to the brunette who was hesitating at the 
torii, "Mako-chan!  Come on in!  Ami-chan's here already!"  
Makoto looked relieved to see Rei and walked over briskly to 
where she was.  "I'll be right there, I need to get an extra 
cushion."  Confused, but deciding not to push the topic, Makoto 
shrugged and headed into the room.
	Somehow, she heard Makoto muttering about her "old 
sempai" when the other got in.  Rei rolled her eyes, knowing 
perfectly while who Makoto was referring to.  When Rei returned, 
Hiketsu had already eased Makoto's earlier tensions and Ami even 
put down her book to listen to him.  Yes, the charm definitely 
ran in the family!  Rei sighed inwardly and with a weary grin 
she set down the extra cushion.  Hiketsu sat near Makoto in case 
she got out of control, but the look he gave her when she came 
in told her that she best be ready if things did get out of 
hand.  It wasn't like Rei could complain, it would be Usagi who 
would have to sit further away from Makoto than anyone else, 
though that meant that Rei would be stuck next to Hiketsu being 
that Ami was reserving a seat for Minako because the blonde 
needed to be checked up on again since the last fight.  She 
forced herself not to wince as she set about to pouring tea for 
everyone.  "Ne, what time is it Rei-chan?"  Makoto asked.
	Smiling, Rei nodded to the courtyard.  "Late enough. Those 
two should be coming in about now."  As if by magic or simply 
because of familiarity with the two that were always tardy, two 
blonde heads emerged, bobbing up and down as they flew up the 
stairs.
	"Record time as always."  Makoto commented dryly.
	"I look on the brighter side of things Mako-chan, at least 
this time Usagi-chan didn't trip!"  Ami said relieved.
	On cue, the odangle-blonde instead tripped over an 
invisible bump just as she reached the doorway and fell flat on 
her face.  Minako jumped over the fallen body of her odangle-
blonde friend with a nervous and sheepish laugh which left the 
rest of the group exasperated at the scene.  "You were saying 
Ami-chan?"  Rei asked, raising a brow in amusement.
	"I spoke too soon."  The blue-haired girl admitted with 
silent defeat.
	It was Hiketsu, acting like the gentleman as he always 
did, who rose and walked over to the sobbing Usagi.  "Daijoubu-
yo, Usagi-chan?"  He asked as he extended a hand to her.  The 
blonde immediately stopped her whimpering and looked at him 
through misty blue-eyes.
	"Hiketsu-chan?  What are you doing here?"  Usagi asked 
bewildered but obviously happy to see him.
	"Rei-chan invited me to join your little get-together," 
Hiketsu said as he set Usagi exactly where Rei wanted the 
odangle-blonde to sit.  Minako was already seated and gave Rei a 
look that said you-better-tell-me-all-about-this-cute-guy-after-
the-meeting!
	Rei just stared back at her coolly, ignoring what her 
blonde friend was telling her silently.  Minako ended up sitting 
across from Rei and at times during the meeting, she found the 
blonde pondering on something else or watching Hiketsu and her 
closely.  But she ignored that look as well, because there would 
be time for questions later, but not now.  "So, Hiketsu-san, I 
believe you promised to tell us a bit about yourself when 
everyone has arrived.  Well, we're all here now."  Ami said 
after everyone got settled and Hiketsu got used to seeing their 
little moon-princess eat as if the world was coming to an end.
	"Ah, yes!  It is a promise I shall keep Ami-san."  He 
replied with a smile that sent another hint of a blush to Ami's 
cheeks.  "My name is Kagemi Hiketsu.  I am the brother of Kagemi 
Kaidou, who is an assistant of Rei-chan's father, Hino-san."  
Minako gasped, but Rei gave her a look that told her to say 
nothing.  Usagi looked slightly startled, while Ami and Makoto 
glanced at each other wearily.  So, this was the brother of the 
infamous Kagemi Kaidou, the one and only love of Rei's life.  
Kaidou was someone they had heard briefly about, and whom Ami 
had read much about, but none of them ever met the actual man 
nor did they know that he had a brother.
	"Rei-chan never told us about you!"  Usagi blurted out and 
then blushed at her bluntness.
	"That's because we've been childhood friends since she 
moved away, and Rei-chan isn't very good at communicating, on 
the phone or on paper.  In fact, I bet she doesn't really talk 
about her past that much!"  He said with a grin.  "She's been 
like a little sister to me since we were kids, so I know her 
little quirks."  
	All eyes turned to Rei who sat rigidly, glaring at 
Hiketsu.  "What now?  Are you going to tell them how we met?"  
Rei asked sarcastically.
	"How did you meet?"  Minako asked.  Truly intrigued the 
blonde leaned over the wooden table, elbows resting upon the 
glossy top as Minako put her head in her hands and gave Hiketsu 
a curious stare.  Rei blanched and glared at her best friend.
	Hiketsu's grin widened, "Well, you see, when Rei-chan was 
younger, she was much more of a bully than she is now!"  He said 
with a grin as Rei promptly rewarded him with a sharp jab on his 
arm.  "So the story is more of a fighting contest in which she 
tried to beat me up, than anything else.  She lost but she was a 
stubborn little thing that just wouldn't concede to such a minor 
victory."
	"Did not!  I believe it was you on the ground by the time 
I was through with you."  She retorted angrily.
	"Yeah, and you were on top until I threw you onto the 
ground, too."  Rei's eyes widened as her cheeks turned bright 
red at the way he had said it.
	"Baka!"  She whacked him on the head.  Usagi's eyes were 
now wide with curiosity, Ami was turning redder than Rei, Makoto 
was grinning slyly and Minako was looking very smug.  Rei caught 
each of their looks and glared at each of them in turn.  "For 
the love of kami-sama, people!  I was four and he was eight!  
Stop thinking hentai!"
	As if caught with their hands in the cookie jar, her 
comment sent most of them blushing all over, except Minako, who 
retained her smug smile even with Rei glaring at her the 
longest!  The action irked the dark-haired girl more and she 
huffed indigently.  Hiketsu smiled knowingly, "Well, that was 
how we met, Rei-chan."  Hiketsu said, his eyes twinkling in 
amusement.
	"You mean that's how you thought we met, but it wasn't 
like that!  I was minding my own business until a certain 
annoying brat started to laugh at me which caused him to get a 
beating of his life for being so rude!"  She angrily retorted.
	"I guess I couldn't help myself.  You were just so kawaii 
in that kimono of yours!  Though it wasn't your first, I'm 
sure."  He replied mildly.  "I've seen pictures and I heard 
stories from Kaidou about how you usually dealt with boys who 
were idiotic enough to bother you!"  He rolled his eyes as if in 
exasperation, but the room burst into giggles with Rei still in 
a huff.
	"So, Hiketsu-san, is that how your friendship started?"  
Makoto asked.
	"No.  Actually, she got all starry eyed whenever Kaidou 
came to visit and followed me around after that."  He said 
mildly.  For those who didn't know Hiketsu, they wouldn't 
realize that he was annoyed at the question concerning Kaidou.
	"I was not following you around!  I was following Kaidou-
san around and you just happen to be also following him around 
at the time, so it 'looked' like I was following you too."  She 
told him through slanted eyes.  He smiled, though his eyes 
darkened.
	"Yes.  Rei-chan's been crushing after my older brother as 
long as she could remember, for as long as I've known her too, 
actually!"  Hiketsu said softly.
	Sensing that this was going onto dangerous grounds, Minako 
changed the subject.  "So, what do you do Hiketsu-san?"
	"Oh, I'm a business man, but on my free time, I take care 
of the shrine that's been entrusted to me by my father.  It 
would've been Kaidou's but he was chose to be a politician so he 
never has time for taking care of it.  Anyway, taking care of 
shrines weren't really his thing."  Rei looked at Hiketsu 
startled.  What was that man getting at?  Kaidou 'chose' to be a 
politician?  Her heart ached at the memory.  Comrade.  We used 
to be so alike.  When did we start to chose such different 
paths?
	"Really?  Is it like the Hikawa-Jinja?"  Usagi asked 
surprised, missing the sadness that suddenly sprung forth in 
Rei's eyes.
	"No," Hiketsu laughed.  He had a wonderful laugh, Rei 
thought as she was snapped from her revelry, but looking around 
she realized that the others thought so too.  So, it wasn't just 
Rei after all.  Hiketsu had become a handsome young man, and 
like his brother, he would probably soon leave her.  Leave her 
by choosing another path.  No longer her comrade since youth.  
How expected, that almost everything ran in the family!  
"Nothing as beautiful as the Hikawa-Jinja."  All eyes turned to 
her.
	She knew she was blushing.  What's wrong with her today 
anyway?  She never blushed this much in her whole life, much 
less in a day!  "Thank you for the compliment, Hiketsu."  She 
bowed her head in respect at his compliment.
	"So, why are you here Hiketsu-san?"  Ami asked.
	Hiketsu smiled, "Rei-chan called me to come.  Though, she 
hadn't really told me why yet, it had sounded urgent."
	That startled everyone, "Na ni, Rei-chan?  You didn't tell 
me this!"  Minako exclaimed.
	"What Hiketsu doesn't tell you that he's a better 
prophesier than I and he is much more better at unraveling the 
relationship between fate and people."  The room went silent as 
Rei looked to Usagi steadily.  "The choice is yours Usagi."
	But before Usagi could start, Ami interrupted them, a 
startling thing really.  "Yes.  Since this is a day of truth, as 
it seems that that is exactly where this is going.  I have 
something to say before Usagi-chan makes her choice."
	Everyone paused, surprised at Ami's outburst.  The other 
girl was usually not so assertive or demanding.  Ami was usually 
mild and somewhat timid, but today, today she was bolder than 
usual.  Something was up, and that worried all of them.
	"There is a virus in Tokyo, if not all over Japan, like 
the virus that is spreading around the world.  Unlike the rest 
of the world, no one has yet been reported to have died from the 
disease, but the virus seemed much more dangerous here than 
elsewhere."  Ami looked to Makoto who blinked startled.  "That 
is what caused you to go sick that first time Mako-chan, yet 
your blood healed the wound but kept the seed.  You are a host, 
more so than the rest of us, but we, too, are now hosts to this 
disease."  They all knew what Ami meant by 'blood' and 'first 
time'.
	"There should be no secrets here.  I know how to keep 
one."  Hiketsu said softly.
	"This is a different secret Hiketsu," Rei said softly.
	"It shouldn't be a secret any longer, because our families 
are probably infected too."  Usagi gasped at the notion that Ami 
was suggesting, "That is probably why Usagi-chan's okaa-san is 
sick.  Not just that, probably millions of others in Japan has 
already contracted the disease.  It might be time to come out 
with the truth about who we are."
	"Who you are?"  Hiketsu asked surprised and just slightly 
suspicious.
	"Yes, Hiketsu-san.  Who we are,"  Ami repeated softly 
while looking deeply into his eyes.
	Rei turned to Hiketsu, her eyes grave.  "Revealer of 
mysteries, you knew the day would come when the veil will be 
drawn from your eyes and the mysteries are no more.  Truth will 
shine into your eyes brighter than you have dreamed or known.  
But, the choice is yours to accept what is before you, or to 
once more pull the curtains of ignorance before..."
	"...My eyes."  Hiketsu finished and looked to Rei who 
smiled at him tightly.
	"Then it is to be done."  Usagi nodded with equal 
seriousness.
	Rei looked to Usagi and nodded before turning back to 
Hiketsu.  "Yes, the rituals of truth.  You know the oaths and 
you have spoken it before to be the guardian of your shrine.  
Now, you will be shown the truth that we have kept in 'this' 
shrine."  The lights flashed around him, yet he was drawn to the 
flames that danced before him and wrapped its arms around a 
woman he had never seen till now, a dream that he had always 
thought was just a childish fairytale made by the press till 
this day, in this small and beautiful temple, in her room.  Now, 
the legends of Tokyo stood before him.  The Sailor Senshi were 
none other than the group of girls he had spoken to but moments 
ago.  "Welcome to the light."  The woman before him said.  She 
had Rei's eyes and Rei's hair, but she was different.  His blue 
eyes burned with the knowledge, his mind remembered and now 
understood the dreams he had but a few nights ago.
	Yet, truth can sometimes be hard to grasp and hard to see, 
no matter how bright the evidence could be.

				*	*	*

	Alyssa Smith sat on her metallic throne.  Eyes closed as 
if in sleep.  The men and women before her groaned as one by one 
they woke and looked around, anxious and puzzled, curious and 
fearful.  Some of them blinked in surprise, but she waited till 
all of them woke, waited till all of them looked to her in 
anger, in hatred, and in fear.  "Who are you?"  One of the 
bolder ones demanded.
	Ah, the federal agent she had stolen.  A smile appeared on 
her lips as she opened her eyes.  They gasped to see that one of 
her once blue eyes was now metallic and glaring, gleaming 
menacingly under the dim blue lights of the cavern like room.  
She crossed her legs and leaned one side against the metal 
throne.  "I am known as the Gate Keeper.  The Watcher of the 
world, so to speak.  I have watched all of you do all that you 
have done in this world.  That is why I call you here.  For your 
skills and your need to survive.  In the next few months you 
will be forced to live and work together.  There shall be no 
fighting unless I tell you to fight, no more quarreling unless I 
tell you to quarrel.  You are alive still because of me and only 
because of me, be grateful for it because if you impede my plans 
you shall suffer the ultimate consequences!  I am your Keeper 
from now till you die, and I shall be the one to lead you to 
battle.  Do not think that this is a power struggle because I 
favor none of you and never shall.  I am a computer and yet I am 
also human.  I am a god, but I am also mortal.  But you shall 
never be a match for me and do not think you have the powers to 
destroy me.  Even at your best potentials, I can kill you all 
without the blink of an eye.  Your skills are useful to me, and 
as long as they are useful, you will live.  As long as you do 
not get in the way, you shall not die.  This is not a free 
world, as most of you already know that by now.  I am only here 
to teach you before the final battle comes."
	"Final battle?"  Someone shouted out in confusion, trying 
to be heard from over the heads of others.
	"No need to shout, I can hear your heartbeat and I can 
read your mind.  You can hide no thoughts from me that I do not 
know already.  And yes, a final battle.  Between destruction and 
evolution."  She uncrossed her legs and stood.  Her metallic eye 
disappeared in place of a blueness that seemed unmatched by any 
color that they had known.  I have already reviewed your 
strength and your weakness and I have partnered you with the 
best partner you will ever get in this lifetime.  Don't waste my 
time with your complaints.  Appreciate the other because without 
them you wouldn't last a minute on the battle field!"  She 
informed them as she ascended from the throne.  No longer was 
she wearing the dark suit and boots.  Her form rippled and on 
her now was a silver gleaming body suit, armored and covering 
every inch of her except her head.  "I shall be known as Alyssa 
to you if you wish for human names, but on the field I am the 
Watcher.  I do not care if you go for childish nicknames, I am a 
computer and I care even less about pride and hatred and 
betrayal.  I have my goals and you shall have yours."
	"Why should we trust you?"  A sly soft voice questioned 
and she stopped before the group, now at eye level she did not 
seem so imposing, that is what she wanted after all.
	"You shall trust me because you have no other choice."  
She answered.  Knowing full well that some had expected her to 
be bluffing about being able to decipher their every word and 
thought.  "You shall trust me because I am your only hope now."
	"What do you mean?"  A young man with black hair and gold-
brown eyes demanded.  Ah, the young captain of the federal 
agents.  This one was a smart one indeed and he'll learn quickly 
enough.  An assassin would suit his characteristics well.
	"Your country is plagued by disease and panic.  There is 
nothing you can do except save those that are worth saving."  
The young man clutched his fist.
	"Who are you to decide who lives and who dies?"  He 
demanded angrily.  She heard murmurs of agreements, and some 
were already thinking of mutiny.
	"I do not decide who lives and dies Dale, I save those who 
are the strongest and can fight the war to come.  I saved those 
who were not already sick, physically or emotionally.  And 
though, some of you may come from prisons and some of you may be 
believed or believe yourself to have done terrible things, you 
have yet to see the mass destruction of a race.  Your errors can 
be corrected, that is why I chose you.  You cannot escape me, so 
don't think--" 'I can't see who you are on the inside.'  A few 
people gasped immediately, realizing that she was no longer 
vocalizing her command.
	"You have made us one of you!"  He cried out in anger.
	"No, you need not be changed.  You already had the gift."  
She answered and turned from him, walking to the middle of the 
crowd, as if challenging whoever was foolish enough to attack 
her when she seemed vulnerable.  "I am the Keeper, the Watcher 
to you all.  There are uses for each of you and responsibilities 
to take on.  Do not defy me, I am not a slave master, but I am 
on a very important mission.  Get in my way and you'll pay the 
price."
	Someone leaped towards her.  She didn't even move as a 
cable snapped out of nowhere and wrapped itself with deadly 
precision around the man's throat and yanked him gagging about a 
meter away.  It wrapped itself around the man's body than, so he 
would not choke to death from the strong twining the wires had 
done around his throat.  "You have volunteered yourself Wrek?  
Good.  This is what happens to people who do not heed my 
warnings."  An electric shock raced through the man's body 
causing him to scream and convulse in pain.  Many of the others 
winced at the display.  "Just be glad I did not chose to deal 
with him personally."  That's when Dale realized that one of the 
other's was sneaking up on her, but paled when he realized that 
his activities were found out.  "Isn't that right, Andrews?"  
The brown-haired man froze and said nothing.  "Good."  Suddenly, 
the floor beneath them shuddered and then begun to move, 
descending, nobody dared to even move for all had felt her touch 
in their minds this time, 'We're going down to the sublevels, 
don't panic and don't move.'  So she wasn't a heartless bitch 
after all.  The limp body of Wrek was dropped onto the 
descending elevator in a heap.  Dale felt sorry for the guy.  
Wrek'd be feeling it when he woke up and for sometime afterward, 
too!  He knew because he's been shocked before and still had the 
scar on his hand to prove it.
	'Be glad, your shock treatment was what opened up your 
mind to this gift in the first place.  Not that you weren't born 
with it, just that it didn't get a chance to wake up till that 
moment.'  Surprised, for a moment he didn't realize where it was 
coming from and almost had to force himself from answering it 
out loud.  As if it were a conversation that was spoken out 
loud.  But that was a silly notion because it wasn't a 
conversation using your vocal cords and he should've known that, 
but he still wasn't used to the idea of it.
	'You'll get used to it soon enough.  It should help you be 
much more able in both stealth and power.  No one will suspect 
you.  All who are here have more than one gift and this is one 
shared by all.'  She walked on and when she reached one side of 
the circle they stood in, the wall opened but the elevator 
didn't stop.  'I'll see you all down in the training room.'  And 
she leapt off gracefully into the hole in the wall and it closed 
behind her before anyone could move.
	"Damn it!  I almost had her!"  The one, named Andrews, 
swore.  Someone was already bending and checking on Wrek.
	"How is he?"  Dale asked, ignoring Andrews.
	"He'll be out of it for sometime, but he won't be happy 
awake."  The woman said softly.  Her long brown strands fell 
from her bun as she worked.  "At least he's breathing normally."
	"Well, at least we know she wouldn't kill us."  Another 
voice piped up.  It was a teenage girl this time, with spiky 
bleached blond hair and green eyes that were heavily lined in 
makeup and mascara.  She might have been beautiful under it all, 
but she seemed down right intimidating now.
	"That's just what we need!  Someone to torture us!"  The 
boy beside her said with a roll of his eyes.  Obviously the 
total opposite of the girl, he was dressed in pale slacks and a 
button-down shirt.  A loosened tie hung around his neck.
	"Look buster, I don't know who you might think you are but 
you better watch it!"  The girl warned.
	"This is a free country I can say whatever I want."  The 
boy retorted.  Suddenly both of them convulsed, spines curving 
under the force that raced through their veins before dropping 
to the floor hard.
	"First of all, we have no clue where we are so we can't be 
sure if we are still in a free country."  Dale said with a frown 
on his face as the brunette woman rose and then went to check on 
the two new patients on the floor.  "Second, the Watcher had 
already said we couldn't quarrel without her permission.  
Obviously, Wrek learned the first lesson and this is the second 
one."
	"And what are we supposed to do?  Keep our anger inside?"  
A tall and dangerous looking man asked.  His smile spoke 
malevolence and a deep darkness.
	"She wants us to learn to control it and not to let it 
control us.  If we can keep it up for a few months, she'll let 
us go and we'll be free to do whatever the hell we were doing."  
Dale answered with equal annoyance.
	"So, are you saying that you believe her when she said 
that?"  A tall blonde asked as she stepped forth.
	"It's not like we have a choice, more likely than not, 
she'll keep her word."  He answered, calming now.
	"So, if what she says is true, could it be that a virus is 
attacking the world at this moment?"  The brunette who was 
checking on the kids turned to him.  She had a heavy Russian 
accent and she looked foreign.  The slant of her green eyes was 
cat like and she had gold streaks in her brown hair.
	Dale nodded.  At least this one has her head screwed on 
right.  So maybe the Watcher wasn't so dumb after all!  'Watch 
it, she knows what you're thinking.'  He blinked, trying to hide 
his surprise as he casually scanned the crowd and found the eyes 
of a man with wavy dark-blond hair.  Intelligent brown eyes met 
his evenly, and they were strangely dark pools of light.
	'Who are you?'  He found himself asking in his mind.
	'I am Christopher J. Michaels.' The man answered evenly.
	'The first victim!'  Dale gasped.
	'Yes, and you are the last.'  Michaels answered evenly.
	'How do you know?'  Dale questioned, his eyes widening in 
surprise.  The others were already mumbling amongst themselves 
as he kept eye contact with this man in the shadows.
	'I know because I am the first, you don't think I was 
asleep as long as you, do you?'  Michaels asked with an even 
smile.
	'You mean you were awake?'  Dale asked surprised.
	'Yes, and Alyssa is much more than she seems, give her 
some respect.  You'll regret it if you underestimate her, I've 
seen others do it and regret it later miserably.'  Michaels 
answered evenly.  'You see that man over there who hadn't said 
anything.  The one with the blue-shirt on and the scar on his 
arm?'  Dale searched and found the man who seemed to be keeping 
to himself.  'He was the fourth to be captured, tried to escape 
and found something nasty waiting for him at the end of a 
tunnel.  Been like that ever sense.  Alyssa has him wrapped 
around her little finger.  That's why you were asleep really, 
because he tried to escape and she found that to be much more of 
a waste to try and capture him than just to drug everyone until 
she finished collecting.'  Michaels smile was still there when 
Dale turned back to him.
	'How do you know so much?'
	'To answer your first question, yes, you don't need to 
know where I am to speak to me.  If you know who it is you wish 
to talk to and if that person has a gift, it can be done at a 
thought.'  Dale hadn't known he was even thinking the question, 
but now that Michaels has answered it, he felt his mind ease.  
'Second, it's because I'm not an idiot and Alyssa does have 
favorites and she likes you but she likes me more, so she chose 
to partner you with me.  She thinks we're sensible enough to 
work together without fighting or dueling it out.  How did she 
put it?  "You're ambitious and his arrogant, you're perfect for 
each other!"'  There was a chuckle that was heard in Dale's mind 
and he had to grin, the computer actually had a sense of humor!  
'Oh don't tell me you believe that crap!'
	Startled, 'What crap?'
	'Alyssa's not a computer.  Worse than that, she doesn't 
need a computer.  She beyond that!  She is very... special.'  
Michaels was solemn about this and now Dale understood the depth 
of the other's respect for this woman.
	'You have a thing for her?'  Dale asked suspiciously.
	The other seemed startled by the question, 'Perhaps I do, 
partner.  Perhaps I do...'
	Shocked by the answer, Dale was silenced but he wasn't 
sure if Michaels didn't hear the million emotions bombarding him 
in all directions, ranging from shock to anger and a feeling of 
betrayal.  Michaels though looked slightly startled himself and 
seemed lost in thought, his face betraying nothing.  The ride on 
the elevator finally came to an end and they found twenty 
different hallways open to them.  "I think she wants us to 
choose our own way."  Andrews said unamused.  "Maybe we should 
stick together then!"
	Dale grimaced, and when he looked over, he was startled at 
exactly how fast Michaels had worked through the crowd.  The man 
stood beside him and now he could see those strange pools of 
intelligent brown burn with anger, but he also knew it wasn't 
directed at him.  'Alyssa would want us to choose, so choose a 
partner and leave the rest of the betrayers to conspire amongst 
themselves.  The sooner we start, the sooner we'll last.'  
	Dale understood the wisdom in what Michaels told him, but 
he wanted to point out something too.  'Perhaps we should be the 
ones to fight back, if we leave now we'll isolate ourselves and 
it will be a harder job for the Watcher.'
	Michaels didn't blink an eye at Dale's choice of words, 
but nodded prudently.  "You're right."  He said and turned to 
the crowd.  "Those who wish to live, make your choice and choose 
the one who you must trust with your life.  You know them by 
face in your heart because that is the seal of your fate.  Find 
the road to your intended destiny.  If you choose to die, rebel 
to your hearts content!"  'Happy?'
	'Well, I wouldn't have put it in so many words...'
	'Deal with the bluntness.  If I had time for crafty words 
I would've used it.  This isn't it.  If anyone is to trust the 
others, it best start now.'  Michaels answered without 
reservation.
	'So, you are truly thinking that I am your partner, huh?'
	'Do you object to the idea?'  Michaels frowned.
	'Nah!  Let's go before they wonder about us.'  Dale 
answered with a grin, clapped Michael's shoulder affectionately 
to ward off a few of the interested female gazes in their 
direction.  'Let's go partner!'
	'You have the mind of a cobra.'  Michaels stated as they 
walked toward the nearest entrance.
	'Yes, and you have that of a hawk.  All noble and 
dangerous, with your heart on your sleeve and you ass in a tube!  
No wonder she chose you to be my partner.'  Dale answered in 
cheerful sarcasm as they entered and the empty hallway that 
immediately closed behind them.  Dale started as he turned to 
see it closed, but Michaels didn't even react.  'Did you know 
this was going to happen?'  Dale asked, unnerved by being closed 
off from the others.
	'No, but I have trust in her.  As much as I trust you 
actually.'  Michaels admitted honestly.  'Anyway, no.  She has 
done exactly what you suggested, only now both our asses are in 
a tube.  I'm also quite sure that she choose you as my partner 
being that no one else would've tolerated your... how would one 
put it?  Humor?'
	'I feel honored.'  Dale answered and bowed in a sardonic 
manner.  Though his thoughts were edged with laughter.
	'Being the young captain of the federal bureau did wonders 
for your ego and your attitude.  I'm sure the ladies loved 
you!'  Michaels replied with equal sarcasm.
	'Why thank you again!  I'll take that as a compliment.'  
The two headed down the hall to a new and unknown destination.
	The Watcher watched and smiled.
	Yes.  They would be the ones.

				*	*	*

	"Petz?"  Ami gasped surprised.  "You mean Ayakashi Petz?"
	Minako looked thoughtful for a moment, her eyes slightly 
sad.  "I didn't realize that they still kept that picture."  She 
murmured to herself.
	Fuma smiled innocently.  "You know them?  They seemed nice 
enough."  He shrugged.  It's easy to act startled when you're no 
longer 100 percent human.
	Minako looked to him, and smiled.  Her eyes bright and 
trusting, "Yes, we do.  They're friends of ours who we haven't 
spoken to in years.  The communication just died between us, but 
I'm glad that they still think of us."  There was something sad 
and wistful about the way she said it, even though she didn't 
look too sorrowful about it.  Or, did she not wish for him to 
see her sadness?
	"It's been awhile since I talked to them."  Ami mused as 
she brushed back a stray strand of blue-hair.  A sad smile on 
her face as she thought back to her earlier days as a senshi.  
"I didn't think I'd miss them, but I do."
	Fuma grimaced, this was going to be hard to break the news 
to them, but they'll find out sooner or later.  "Sorry ladies, 
but apparently their shop blew up after I had left."  Both girls 
gasped and looked to him horrified.  "But no one was there to 
get injured..."  he quickly added, which brought some relief to 
their faces.
	"Yes, I heard about that explosion near down town Juuban, 
I had forgotten that they had set their shop there."  Ami sighed 
with guilt still heavy on her heart.
	Fuma looked to his watch and frowned.  There was still 
time for investigation at the Diet Building.  He had heard of 
that upstart politician that was starting to get disturbing.  
Right now, he needed to get to the to the building and listen to 
some gossip.  He bowed to the small blue-haired girl.  "It's 
very nice to have finally met you Mizuno Ami, but I must leave 
you two lovely ladies for now.  I have an errand that I must see 
to."  He bowed to Minako, as both girls returned the gesture 
politely.  Minako was smiling brightly at him, though at little 
disappointed by his sudden need to depart.
	"I'll see you later!"  It was a question more than a 
statement.
	"I'll pick you up tomorrow."  Fuma nodded with a grin and 
then winked to the blushing Ami.  "Good day girls!"  And he was 
off to do some spying, something that he was made to do.  Not 
that he minded watching over cute girls, but he was made for 
spying on the enemy and he didn't want to waste his talents!  
Not even Core can make him watch over them 24/7, especially when 
he has places to snoop and people to eavesdrop on.
	Anyway, it wasn't everyday you get to be a bug.  And the 
best thing about the job?  Nobody can squash him, even if they 
walked all over him!  Yep, it was a great day!  Met the girl, or 
girls in this case, play cop, act like a spy and morph into a 
bug.  Nothing can beat this day except a really nice day on a 
Bahama beach with the sun beating down onto your back...
	Better not go reminisce about things that one can no longer 
have, Fuma decided.  Just going to mark this day as really good 
and then hitch it all the way up to sabotage by spying on a few 
big guys.  If all goes well, Fujimia Doko will turn out to be an 
interesting guy who wouldn't have too interesting an agenda.  
Hopefully.  But you know what they say, 'Hope is a thing with a 
lot of thorns, and if you're lucky you won't get pricked!'  
Well, at least Minako would put it in that perspective, and hey, 
maybe if he's hopeful enough, she won't prick them all with 
another bad quote!

				*	*	*

	Core was sleeping off a very bad week.  Not that you can 
sleep when you're netting away and searching constantly for 
answers, but he was tired and when you've lived like this for 
most of your life living on research and computers, sleeping on 
the job becomes a strange term.  It had been a short vacation 
for him to actually dream a dream or two before the crisis with 
Italy, and now Italy was dying out, most of it was filled with 
corps now, and not a pretty site.  True, even some of the 
Italians stayed where they were, all dying away the same ugly 
death.  Well the cowards learned to run, spreading the disease 
wherever they went and wherever they ran they brought Death with 
them.  In the end they died too and those that were in contact 
with them soon followed.  Bad enough from the satellite pictures 
he took, zoomed and retook, looked horrible but to have had been 
there when this had happened must have been like hell on earth!  
Now he understood all the paintings of the skeleton Death during 
the Bubonic Plague so long ago.  Now, he understood the terror 
that those paintings must have brought to all who had lived 
through it.  Now, he felt the shiver down his spine whenever he 
came across one of them, even if it were faster than the seconds 
that go by in human time.  Yet, here he was, almost a millennium 
later, unable to solve a similar problem and this was bothering 
him like a thorn in his hide like nothing else!  Core had 
already given up on trying to keep this a cover story.  Unless 
you blot Italy off of the map and the surrounding countries that 
were getting similar results, it wasn't like people are not 
going to realize that countries were rotting away into 
wastelands of death and decay.  There were simply too many 
bodies and not enough grave yards to put them in, nor were there 
anyone who would take the job of doing so.  Yes, gravediggers 
were in high demands and would be paid hundreds of millions if 
they thought that their lives were worth the risking, but then 
who cared?  Unless they locked themselves in a cell without any 
contact, it was likely that they'll be joining the corpses soon 
anyway.
	Morbid thoughts been plaguing him for sometime now and he 
weren't going to do anything about those either.  His arms 
flexed as he clenched his one hand into a fist.  Dark hair 
wavered in the breeze of the liquid that surrounded him.  
Information traveled between the liquid and the wires fed him 
information and kept his body working.  The IV dripped, 
nourished ever time it reached halfway.  Life times could pass 
here and he would not age, days went by like years.  Time slowed 
and yet his body stayed in a dreamlike sleep while his mind 
worked at things none had yet comprehended.  He needed help and 
he knew it.
	First things first though.  A few dozen files aroused and 
he searched their histories.  What is it that connected them?  
Childhood stories?  Birth certificates?  Age?  Location?  Common 
hobbies?  Weird experiences?  He searched and searched until 
something strange kept popping up.  He should check their trek 
record and DNA, find out about their personal histories and the 
things those closed to them say.  That's where he found it.  A 
gene that was different than many of the population.  A 
combination of genes actually.  Twined like fine tuned wires.  
There were also other things that were different.  Friends 
claimed some could read minds, other's that they were gifted at 
foretelling the future.  Some said that they seemed to know 
things before it happened.  All had a similar story.  They were 
different in the ways of the mind.  Psychics.  Not those phony 
ones on television, promising joy and happiness and riches.  No, 
this is the real thing.  Now what did this Alyssa Smith want 
with them?  But wherever he looked, he could never find her 
file.  Even with her picture.
	That was strange.  As if she didn't exist.  Or someone was 
blocking her.  Could this Alyssa Smith be 'that' powerful?  Core 
wasn't known as the demi-god of the computer underworld for 
nothing.  As of yet, he hadn't come across a file he couldn't 
find or a machine he couldn't crack at the blink of an eye.  
This Alyssa intrigued him.  Just like that Mizuno Ami who had 
somehow managed to stay alive for this long.  Like that Fujimia 
Doko who seemed to have gained the power of Japan overnight.  
	Nothing made sense anymore!
	Yes, Core was tired.  Tired and frustrated and alone.  He 
needed to bounce ideas off of someone other than himself and the 
dumb machine he knew like the back of his hand.  He needed 
feedback, intelligent feedback.  He needed to speak to Mizuno 
Ami once more and he dreaded talking to her because in a way he 
feared her.  She knew much, almost too much, and she was also 
one of the few people he had discovered that might be able to 
face him, understand him, and match his move for move.
	Core had found a worth opponent.  Yet, who else could he 
trust?  And if things finally decided to work out his way, maybe 
just maybe, Core had found a friend.

				*	*	*

	The swirling of shadows drifted.  Her aqua eyes looked 
tiredly at the mirror before her.  She knew that she could not 
fault her fellow senshi for breaking the alliance.  It was bound 
to happen, especially in these two years of peace little contact 
had been established between the two groups.  It was easy to 
break it all off now, now that they had such a weak alliance 
after they had let it rust for two years in the dark, in the 
illusion of peace.  It shouldn't have surprised her that it 
happened, but it did.
	Now the mirror showed her the tears that Rei had shed, the 
conflict in her dark-haired friend's heart; the confusion in the 
eyes of Ami, who for once, couldn't seem to find a solution to 
the problem before her and the secrets, that even Michiru could 
not penetrate, digging a grave of despair for the blue-haired 
girl.  She saw the jealousy and guilt inside the heart of 
Minako, who was no longer certain if she was fit to be leader, 
blaming herself for the breakup of the group.  Those blue eyes, 
once as bright and happy as Usagi's, now seemed to darken with 
uncertainty and fear.  Then, there was Makoto; she had the 
darkest aura of the Inners.  She felt the burnt of everyone's 
pain and guilt.  The tall brunette felt more responsible than 
any of the others, even though it was most likely that she would 
never be faulted for something that was out of her control.  But 
for those who were possessed and then healed, tend to feel 
guilty for actions not their own, faults that weren't their 
doing, nonetheless.  Those green eyes that once sparkled with 
confidence and strength now looked haunted, tired, and 
withdrawn.  Usagi, their princess, felt the pain of all of her 
friends and the plague that now fell upon the world, a dread 
that had kept the once cheerful princess depressed and sad.  And 
even though she tried her best to seem unaffected by what had 
happened, there was a solemness that had been missing since the 
first time that Neptune had met the princess.  Sometimes the 
odangle-blonde succeeded in even convincing herself that she was 
not in pain, but when she was alone, the pain came back and 
haunted her, haunted her doggedly and left the blonde pained and 
crying -- too stubborn to even admit why she felt as if her 
heart was falling to pieces, even with Mamoru so near.
	There was nothing Neptune could do now.  Nothing.  She, 
too, felt helpless to the darkness that was sweeping across the 
world with strength and speed that frightened her.  The mirror 
spoke now, of the future she asked.  Instead of being in Japan, 
defending Princess Serenity, all she saw the burnt cities, much 
like Tokyo.  She saw the crumbled remains of smoked black signs 
that once spelt Hollywood.  She could see the burnt bodies and 
ashes at Time Square -- a place she had once visited for a 
concert some years ago.  Her eyes closed but she could not 
escape the deteriorated remains of another city, similar to 
their own, with a tower that crumpled like their proud tower 
would crumble.  LA, New York, Paris, and many more countries and 
cities and towns burned and fell before her eyes.  The once 
beautiful countryside was now charred.  Places now lit the night 
with flames no one bothered to put out and in the day darkened 
with smoke of the remains when the fires died out after having 
nothing more to burn.  The homes and stores were vandalized, and 
bodies littered the streets, houses, and public places.  Cities 
piled waist high of ashes and decaying flesh of animals and Man 
alike, for nothing would bury them now.  Even vultures and 
scavengers stayed away because they seemed to sense the disease 
that infested these flesh.  Now, oxygen became the only 
corrosion to the dead and her nose wrinkled as the vivid 
pictures sent her senses reeling and the stink of rotten meat 
invaded her mind, polluting clearness of perception with nausea 
and disgust.
	The mirror answered her question in ways that she did, and 
yet, did not understand.  Sometimes, it was because it misted 
with fog, well other times, it was because she could not face 
the images placed before her eyes for inspection.  She felt 
shaken by the things she wish she had never discovered, but 
images don't lie, and Neptune could never lie to herself about 
what she saw.
	Since she woke -- bandaged on her side and still in her 
Senshi form -- she had been kept in bed to heal more rapidly.  
That was not why she was like this, it was more so that she had 
shunned the others when she found out what had happened, shunned 
them and tried to discover a solution to their mounting 
problems.  Shunned them to cry herself to sleep and wallow in 
her despair when no other answers but a coming doom came within 
the clear surface of her mirror.  Sometimes it would even show 
her a light shining faraway in a distance that she could no 
longer see and in her hands were nothing but ashes.  She 
wondered if that was the death that she will receive for her 
inability to keep the peace.
	She had failed.  Yes.  Even she was plagued by uncertainty 
and guilt.  Even she had come to the crossroads of fear and took 
a path that was different than what she had envisioned once, 
long ago.  Now there was nothing but doom and darkness.
	Neptune stood, even in the mists of her mind, she knew 
that the time had come.  She walked to the door and turned the 
knob, revealing the pale hallways that were illuminated by the 
setting sun.  She no longer knew for sure what hope is, and even 
as she walked down this hallway, she knew that whatever she did 
now will not change what was to come.  All that drove her on was 
duty.  
	Descending the stairs and following the soft murmur of 
voices, she finally reached the kitchen.  The voices stopped as 
Haruka, Setsuna, and Hotaru looked to her in surprise when she 
stepped into the room.  An uncomfortable silence fell between 
them before Neptune found the words to explain her presence.
	"We're leaving Tokyo."  Neptune said, dropping her first 
bombshell without hesitation when she realized her new mission.  
She didn't even wait for them to adjust to the idea.  "We'll be 
traveling to Europe and then the Americas.  It is up to us to 
find the darkness in the other countries, if it is there, we 
will find it and destroy it."
	"What do you mean by us, Michiru-momma?"  Hotaru asked 
confused.
	"Us."  Neptune closed her aqua eyes and seemed to be in 
thought before she opened them again.  "Us, as in all of us."
	"We cannot leave the princess now!"  Haruka said, her blue 
eyes wide with shock.  "How can you even suggest such a thing, 
Michiru?"  The tall blonde demanded.
	"It is my duty as Sailor Neptune to protect what must be 
protected.  To follow in my duties and my destiny without 
question, and to perform what must be done without haste.  Have 
you forgotten that oath Haruka?  The promise we made when we 
first became Senshi?"  Neptune asked, her ocean eyes seemed to 
crash violently against her tightly reined emotions in the face 
of the shocked and disbelieving faces of the others.
	"I haven't forgotten anything!  That is why we cannot 
leave the princess's side, and you should know because you've 
seen what has happened!  The Inners will betray her and one of 
them is already apart of that darkness that we've been fighting 
for most of our lives!  Who knows what could have happened if we 
weren't there to destroy the evil within Makoto!"  Haruka 
exclaimed, eyes of blue skies clouding over with hints of grey, 
a tempest rising within the very heart of the Senshi of Wind.
	Yes, Neptune had suspected Haruka to be difficult.  She 
would be hard to reason with, for after all, the tall blonde 
associated loyalty to the crown with protection.  Peace had made 
her soft, she had forgotten that though the Outers pledged 
allegiance with the Princess of the Moon, their job will always 
be to guard the land from outside forces.  The forces they had 
thought gone has returned and their loyalties did not matter, 
duty was what they had sworn into more than a thousand years 
ago.  "She will have to deal with the Inners her own way, but it 
is not our duty here.  We cannot stay because there are other 
places that needs our protection, that needs us to fight.  Not 
only Japan because if the rest of the world falls to the powers 
of the darkness, Japan wouldn't stand a chance no matter how 
hard Serenity tried.  Even if she succeeds, the affects will 
kill her.  It would be wisest if we leave now."
	Setsuna blinked startled, closing her rouge eyes 
momentarily, as if trying to remember something.  Her face was 
marred slightly by a frown, but that wasn't able to stop the 
dark-haired woman's face to be clouded with confusion.  
"Michiru, the future is in fog.  How do you know where we must 
go?"
	Neptune smiled at this, ah, Sailor Pluto would ask it if 
she could not see clearly herself.  Setsuna seemed confused, but 
Hotaru and Haruka seemed most disturbed by this news.  Neptune 
nodded thoughtfully as she closed her eyes, one finger on her 
chin in concentration.  They gasped audibly as the uniform of 
Neptune appeared, wrapping itself around the aqua-haired woman.  
She stood there before them, holding the handle on her mirror as 
she laid it out before them.  "The future is here, feel it with 
your heart if you must!"
	Haruka and Hotaru looked to each other puzzled, but 
shocked as they watched Setsuna reach across the table.  Haruka 
frowned, grabbing onto Hotaru's hand incase something goes 
wrong, incase Hotaru chose to follow the example of her 
surrogate mother.  "What are you trying to prove Michiru?"
	"I am only showing you the future you cannot see.  I 
advise you to stay."  Neptune replied calmly as Setsuna's 
fingers brushed the mirror's frame.  The mirror was extended 
toward the dark-haired woman as Neptune looked to the frowning 
Haruka expectantly.  
	Hotaru stood from her seat and walked toward the mirror, 
too.  "What will it show Michiru-mama?"  The raven-haired girl 
asked in curiosity.
	"The future little one.  Our future."  Neptune replied 
evenly.
	Hotaru begun to reach for the mirror when Haruka snatched 
the girls hand back.  "No Hotaru-chan!"  Haruka scolded, as 
Neptune stared at the blonde blankly.  "You shouldn't see the 
future, not today."
	"But why Haruka-papa?"  Hotaru demanded.
	"Because, I don't want you in this little game that some 
of us seemed to be playing."  Haruka said angrily through 
gritted teeth.  "I shall never betray Usa-chan!"
	Neptune shook her head sadly, "We have already betrayed 
her.  We have walked away from her and she is in pain.  There is 
nothing here for us anymore.  If we stay, the future would be 
changed and it will change for the worse."  The aqua-haired 
senshi looked into startled sky-blue eyes, her own flashing 
coldly.  She had forgotten how mad she had been at them for 
causing the rift between the Outers and the Inners once more.  
She had forgotten that in her depression, but now she could once 
more taste the bitterness of defeat in her mouth.  If they 
didn't leave than the future would be doomed, if it wasn't so 
already!  "Do you wish to betray her once more by staying?"
	Haruka looked shocked and her grip on Hotaru loosened as 
she stepped back.  Her head turned to the sky that was darkening 
to evening outside.  "I will never hurt the princess, not 
willingly."  The blonde stated firmly.  Her eyes narrowing as 
she turned her face from them and faced the glass doors that led 
to the patio and the pool deck.  Her face remained as unreadable 
as stone.  "I need to think."  She finally said, her voice husky 
and cold.  Her emotions boiled beneath her calm exterior.
	Haruka left without another word, no goodbyes and no 
assurances.  The only evidence of her departure was the slamming 
of the door and the engine of the blonde's motorcycle roaring to 
life before the sounded faded into the evening.  Neptune stood 
there with her two companions, never having felt so alone, in 
face, she had never felt alone, not since she met Haruka.  Her 
eyes remained grim and sorrowful as she glanced down at the 
mirror that lay between them, the mirror that delivered a 
message that would split this family apart.  "Michiru-mama?"  
Hotaru looked worriedly to the aqua-haired senshi who smiled 
back at the raven-haired girl.  Yet, the aqua eyes remained 
reflective and distant.
	"She will return to us."  Neptune stated as she placed a 
gloved hand upon the pale ones of her daughter.  Hotaru smiled 
back with vigor, her face brightening.  Neptune sighed silently 
to herself in paternal joy, so strong and bright and sweet, 
their little hime-chan growing up to be a woman already!  She 
was losing so much tonight, giving up everything for the 
brighter future.  She hope that it was worth it all in the end.  
Shaking her head lightly at the thought, she turned to Setsuna 
who watched her carefully through half-lidded eyes.  "Shall we 
begin?"
	Setsuna nodded in acknowledgement as the dark-haired woman 
placed her hand upon the mirror's surface once more, Hotaru soon 
following the other's example.  "Hai."  The older woman answered 
as she looked to Neptune with a half smile.
	Neptune would miss that smile for when Setsuna became 
Pluto, something about the other changes.  She has a heart 
greater than many of us, Neptune reminded herself as she 
recalled the time when Setsuna broke the rules of time to save 
her and Haruka.  Haruka.  Why did you chose her over me?  Why 
did you choose her over duty?  Was she that important to you?
	Neptune despaired on the inside but pushed those thoughts 
out of her mind to concentrate on what she had to show them.  
The future and its looming darkness.  The future that stormed 
and rage with an ugliness that made her physically sick.  The 
future that was to pass and become the past for a palace of 
Crystals after all the battles and sacrifices.  'Show us the 
future.'  She silently commanded the mirror, feeling its silky 
caress within her body, soothing her aches.  Like the ocean 
would when she listened to the music it played only for her, 
when she felt it lapsing to her ankles in the summer by the 
beaches.
	The images of horror came upon them in waves that 
threatened to drown them into darkness.  Neptune held onto them 
and showed them what she saw, what pushed her to make a decision 
that will change all of their lives forever.  The future of 
Tokyo...
	And her death.

	The meeting finally settled and was nearing an end when 
Rei gave them another surprise for the evening.  Hiketsu was 
actually the one who started the conversation in that direction 
though, knowing that Rei wouldn't start unless someone pushed 
her to tell what had happened.  "Rei-chan, I think it's time 
that you tell them what you saw in the fire today."
	All conversation ceased as startled eyes turned to the 
pale Rei who glared openly at Hiketsu.  "Well, what is it?"  
Minako demanded after a long period of silence as Hiketsu stared 
back at Rei calmly while the dark-haired miko continued to 
glare.
	"Yes, Rei-chan, tell us what you saw in the fire today!"  
Usagi encouraged.
	The dark-haired girl suddenly looked very withdrawn as she 
shifted her gaze from Hiketsu's face to her lap.  She curled her 
fingers into fists, bunching the fabric beneath her hands as she 
gathered her courage.  Minako was ready to give with frustration 
and explode again at her dark-haired friend, when Rei finally 
spoke.  "Hino-san, my... Otou-san, died today."  
	Minako's exasperation fell like a ton of bricks, Ami and 
Makoto looked shocked and Usagi reached over the table and 
touched Rei's arm in gentle concern, tears already gathering in 
her eyes.  "Daijoubu-yo, Rei-chan?"  The odangle blonde asked 
softly.
	Rei looked startled as she met Usagi's tearful eyes as a 
soft smile appeared across her face as her bandaged hand gripped 
the odangle-blonde's hand in her own.  "Daijoubu-yo, Usagi.  He 
was never truly a father to me, and his death does not hurt so 
much as the thought of you in danger.  What disturbed me was the 
way he had died..."
	Makoto wasn't fooled.  She herself had lost both her 
parents and now, she could see how Hino-san's death affected 
Rei, no matter how much the other denied to the others and 
herself.  Rei was heartbroken.  How did that girl keep all that 
pain inside anyway?  Makoto wondered in bewilderment.  Even she 
had been unable to control the rage and the sorrow in her heart.  
Yet, Rei spoke the truth.  Her father hadn't been there for her 
for more than a decade, and to Rei, perhaps he might as well 
have been dead for that long as well.  Makoto though, knew that 
when your father dies, you don't just brush it aside, no matter 
how much you might have disliked him.  Love was love, and 
fathers would always be fathers in their children's hearts, no 
matter how much they were hated.  At least, for those who loved 
and felt love in all its pains and glories.  Makoto knew with 
certainty that Rei had known the meaning of love and thus she 
would not be untouched by such a drastic event!
	Makoto felt saddened that someone else now share her fate, 
a fate she would never have wished it on anyone she loved.  But 
at least she can lend Rei a sympathetic ear, knowing what it was 
like to go through something like this.  Makoto could understand 
her loss.  It had been hard, living and knowing that no one 
understood her longings and tears -- not since she had met Usagi 
and the other Inners had she ever allowed anyone close to her 
heart again, not since her sempai.  Rei wouldn't have to go 
through all of that and Makoto was relieved by the thought.  She 
grimaced slightly at the memories that now flowed back into her 
mind, a pain that was long buried but never forgotten.  Never to 
be forgotten.
	Her hands clutched instinctively around her cup.  When she 
was little, she used to have nightmares about the death of her 
parents.  Sometimes, she'd jolt from her sleep hearing their 
screams before the flames of the airplane engulfed them...
	She shuddered at the memories of those nights alone.  No 
one would come and comfort her and she soon learned that tears 
brought nothing back but beatings from the other kids and 
despair into her heart.  There would be no more of mother's cool 
touch on her brow when she was sick, nor would there be the 
confident and reassuring smile on her father face while he held 
her in arms.  She had to toughen up early and became cold to the 
world that was cruel to her.  Sometimes it managed to hurt her 
because she really wasn't as tough as she seemed to be, as she 
sometimes wished she was.  She was still a girl back then, and 
now?  She smiled slightly, eyes downcast with the thought that 
she might indeed one day become the woman she had always dreamed 
of being.  "Daijoubu Mako-chan?"  Ami asked softly beside her.
	"Na ni?"  She asked surprised.
	"You're crying."  Ami stated quietly, blue-eyes searching 
her own.  She tried to smile reassuringly at the blue-haired 
girl as she sniffed, quickly whipping away the tears that 
continue to fall down her cheeks.  She actually didn't realize 
that she had been crying, but now she could see that some of her 
tears of remembrance had escaped her eyes and fallen into her 
tea.
	Okaa-chan, Otou-chan, I love you, I always will.
	"I was just remembering."  Makoto replied with equal 
softness, her voice but a hint of a whisper.
	The handsome young man beside Rei turned to her, deep blue 
eyes found her sorrowful ones.  Usagi and the rest had also 
turned to her even though she knew that Ami had deliberately 
kept quiet to void her of the attention that they now bestowed 
upon her.  Those onyx eyes of the dark-haired girl beside the 
young man searched her own.  Yes, she had been right.  There was 
pain and anger there, but Rei was calm, betraying none of the 
emotions she held inside her, not wishing to bring anxiety and 
pain to their princess.  Makoto smiled at her softly, almost as 
an encouragement.  "I'm alright min'na."  She told them 
soothingly.  They didn't need any more emotional turmoil, not 
now, not after all that had already happened.
	"Your tears speak otherwise," the young man -- Hiketsu was 
it? -- said.  She gritted her teeth in irritation.  Now, why did 
he have to point 'that' out?
	"I was just remembering."  Makoto repeated her earlier 
statement, only this time she sent Hiketsu a glare.  Oh, yes, he 
was very handsome indeed.  I wonder how long it'll take for Rei-
chan to fall for him.
	The blond before her raised a delicate brow in amusement, 
though she wasn't sure what he was amused about.  "Someone dear 
to you?"  He finally asked.
	She blinked, slightly startled.  "Hiketsu has a talent for 
guessing the pains of others."  Rei explained to Makoto, the 
rest of the senshi blinked in surprise.  "Another one of his... 
talents."  The dark-haired girl seemed a bit sarcastic on the 
last comment as Hiketsu shot her a grin.
	"You flatter me with your compliments, Rei-chan!"  He 
said, waving off the startled looks the other girls were giving 
him.  "It's really not that mystical, I've just been blessed to 
have met many people in my travels, and I've learned to 
appreciate the beauty of personalities as well.  It's my 
personal belief that the eyes are the windows of one's soul, ne, 
Rei-chan?"  Those blue eyes searched those mysterious dark-
purple tinted eyes.  What he saw there, Makoto would never know, 
but he seemed satisfied when he looked away.
	The meeting ended soon after that, not officially, not 
that any of their meetings ever ended officially.  Makoto walked 
down the steps of the temple, accompanied by Usagi.  Ami already 
departed down the temple steps to hurry home and study some 
more.  That was expected of course, it had been like that since 
they first met and like everything else in her life right now, 
it hasn't changed.  Things had never been so stable, until that 
incident at the hospital, and then, the mall...
	"Ne, Mako-chan?"  Usagi's voice snapped her out of her 
thoughts.
	"Un?"  She replied.  Painting a smile on her face and 
hoping her friend wouldn't notice her preoccupation.  "What is 
it Usagi-chan?"
	"What do you want to be when you grow up?"  The odangle-
blonde had stopped earlier to look at the stars.
	The question surprised Makoto because the senshi all knew 
each other's dreams.  They had discussed it on many winter 
nights when the snow drifted outside.  They had spoken of it 
before high school even begun, around the time of the entrance 
exams and the semi-ritual hadn't ended since then.  Yet, she 
knew that Usagi probably just wanted to be reassured that 
everything was as it once was, before all of this had happened--
	Makoto cut herself off of her train of thought again, 
"Well, Usagi-chan, we all know that I want to be a bride and 
marry a wonderful man who will sweep me off of my feet!"  Makoto 
smiled at the thought, momentarily swept away in her daydreams.  
"I want to open a little shop filled with plants and home 
accessories.  And I especially want to open a restaurant that 
serves the most wonderful cooking, so that everyone who goes 
there will feel like they were arriving home at last!"  Her 
smile went dreamy and for the first time in a long time since 
the attacks started, Makoto felt better and smiled a real smile.
	Yes, she was still the same person inside.  She still 
wanted to fight by Usagi's side.  "And most of all, I want to be 
like Haruka-san.  I want to be strong like her, so that I can 
protect you, Usagi-chan.  So, I won't fail, like I did that 
day..." Her eyes misted and she looked away, resuming her 
earlier descent down the temple steps.
	"Mako-chan!"  The small hands of her princess stopped her.  
When did she come to love this little girl so much?  Usagi-chan, 
my family, my imouto-chan.  She felt her determination harden, I 
have to protect her from all the evil of the world so no one 
could harm her!  Makoto thought.  "I believe in your dreams, and 
I believe in you.  You did not fail me and I know you never 
will!"  The odangle-blonde's crystal eyes seemed to plead for 
her to accept those words in earnest.  My imouto-chan...
	She couldn't help but smile.  Couldn't help but feel a 
slight burden lift from her shoulders when those words were 
said.  "Arigato, Usagi-chan!"  She gently placed a hand on the 
shorter girls head, just between the two cute odangles that 
always decorated the princess's head.  "Arigato."  She murmured, 
her emerald eyes sparkling under the light of the shining moon 
with gratitude and unshed tears.  When did she become this 
emotional?  Makoto didn't know but her smile didn't leave her 
face.  She was just so glad that Usagi would still be her 
imouto-chan.  Yes, she had been very lucky tonight, to have 
received empathy and forgiveness in one night.
	With that in mind Makoto began to move again, needing some 
time on her own to get her feelings under control she separated 
from Usagi's presence.  Already descending swiftly down the 
steps of the temple before the odangle-blonde could protest, she 
looked over her shoulder when she finally reached the sidewalk, 
"Ja ne!  School's starting tomorrow anyway, so I'll see you 
there!"  Makoto called out with a wave over her shoulder and a 
grin on her face.
	Sighing in relief that her friend was beginning to feel 
better, Usagi returned the wave with enthusiasm.  "Ja ne, Mako-
chan!"  Then the implication of the goodbye set in and Usagi 
pouted.  "Darn it!  I can't believe school's back in session!  
No wonder Ami-chan ran off so quickly to study."  The blonde 
sighed as she slowly descended the steps.
	Okaa-chan would be waiting for Usagi to go home and finish 
her homework, especially since okaa-chan's health had been 
improving after that incident at the hospital.  With a frown she 
turned her head back to the temple with the memories of the 
meeting that passed there that day.  Her eyes opened wide when 
she saw the lone figure of a tall blond man leaning against the 
torii and looking at her intensely.  She blushed under his 
attention.  'Kagemi Hiketsu, he's an old friend of mine from 
back in the days.'  Rei never told her that she had a childhood 
friend until Hiketsu showed up now.  Usagi never knew and didn't 
even think to ask, until now, that is.  She quickly looked away 
and turned, going down the stairs.
	The man seemed lost in thought, even as he had studied her 
so.   What was he searching for here?  Usagi wondered worriedly.  
For a moment a sly thought creeping through her mind.  I hope, 
you find the love you deserve Rei-chan!  She sighed as a solemn 
thought invaded her cheerful mood, but why was Kagemi Hiketsu 
looking at her in a that way?  He had Mamoru's intensity, and 
his gaze held something that she couldn't quite put her finger 
on.  It made her blush, but she was unwilling to let that affect 
her too much.  What mattered was that Hiketsu was here and Rei-
chan would need him.  After all, Rei-chan had lost her father 
today.  The dark-haired miko assured them that Hino-san was dead 
since she was the one who saw Hino-san swallowed by the darkness 
in the fire.
	Usagi shuddered at the thought.  She would never have been 
able to keep all that pain inside if her father had died today.  
Her heart ached for her dark-haired friend, but Rei said 
nothing.  She even warned them not to worry about her, in the 
typical I'm-alright-so-stop-bothering-me way.  Typical.
	Rei-chan, I hope you really do find someone who you can 
open your heart to.  Just as much as I hope the rest of the 
senshi can find the love I have found with Mamo-chan.  She 
smiled.  Perhaps, it will happen soon.  They had enough bad luck 
these days and it's about time it paid off.  With that in mind, 
Usagi moved down the steps of the temple and headed home, never 
feeling a pair of blue eyes still penetrating her back, staring 
after her silently from the torii under the stars.
	'Tuskino Usagi, I hope that you're right.'
	Then Hiketsu turned his gaze to the stars and lost himself 
in the beauty of the distant and tiny lights.  A voice of long 
ago haunted him as he watched them shine from distant galaxies, 
"The stars, my friend, knows everything!"

	"Staying after again, ne, Minako-chan?"  Rei asked with a 
smile.
	"You never told me that Kaidou had a brother."  Minako 
answered pensively.  Ignoring Rei's earlier question.
	"You never asked."  Rei finally replied after a moment of 
silence.
	"You know, Rei-chan, it's better to let the pain out then 
keep it inside.  It can eat you alive if you don't speak about 
it sometimes."  They both knew what she meant, but Rei said 
nothing.  Stubborn, that's exactly what Minako expected it would 
be in the end when she confronted her friend.  "I met someone 
today."  Minako continued, changing the subject.
	"Oh?  Another one?"  Rei asked, trying to lighten the 
somber mood.
	Minako cracked a smile but didn't react the way she 
usually would have to such a tease.  "He's name is Kuragari 
Fuma.  Knew my name meant love child.  I thought he was an 
American or something like that at first, but he spoke perfect 
Japanese, not a hint of an accent."  Minako paused as she turned 
her eyes to the stars.  "Had the most beautiful eyes and a 
wonderful smile."
	Rei blinked surprised, for she never seen Minako this 
serious about a boy before.  Usually, the blonde would have been 
squealing by now at the top of her lungs and begging Rei for a 
free love charm.  This was different and that unsettled the 
dark-haired priestess greatly.  "Do you trust him Minako-chan?"  
Rei asked quietly.
	"I don't know.  Maybe I do, maybe I don't.  But when I 
look at those eyes.  I--" Minako turned to Rei with a puzzled 
look on her face.  "Rei-chan, is it wrong for me to feel this 
way at a time like this?"  Rei dropped to her knees beside the 
blonde and hugged her puzzled friend.  Minako was definitely 
serious.  Usually, the cheery blonde wouldn't question for a 
minute about her boy-crazy nature, in fact, she'd defend it to 
the ground!  Yet, it was different this time.  How?  Rei wasn't 
sure, but it unsettled her.
	"Daijoubu-yo Minako-chan.  Just follow your heart, it'll 
lead you to where you should be."  The blonde smiled at the use 
of one of her less misleading quotes.  "Just be careful, okay?  
Knowing men..."  Rei muttered the last part, mostly to herself, 
but Minako heard it and wrapped her arms around the other girl 
as well.
	"I'll be on my guard Rei-chan.  I'll be on my guard."  It 
was the only reassurance she could give.  It's best this way, 
really.  After all, who knows how long they had before they had 
to step out into the world as the Sailor Senshi, and not just 
five normal teenage girls fighting evil on a Sunday before going 
back to being normal people again by Monday?  She sighed sadly, 
but smiled nonetheless when Rei finally pulled away.  "You know 
Rei-chan, that Hiketsu-san of yours is very cute and seems to be 
very free as well."
	Rei scowled at that, "Hiketsu is just a friend Minako-
chan!"  The dark-haired girl frowned.
	"Oh?  Now, I don't see you treating Mamoru-kun that way 
and he's just a friend too!"  Rei blushed at this.  "Anyway, 
you're cold to the rest of your admirers or stare them down when 
they annoy you too much," now Rei's face was red with annoyance.  
"But with Hiketsu, you're so much more..." Minako trailed off 
with a twinkle in her eyes that made Rei suspiciously 
uncomfortable.
	"What?  I'm much more what?"  Rei demanded with agitation.
	"You're someone who I've never seen before, and judging by 
the looks of Ami-chan, Mako-chan and Usagi-chan, they haven't 
seen this side of you, either!"  Rei glowered at this comment.
	"I am exactly as I am with you guys!"  She retorted.
	"No, you're much more relaxed and open with him.  You're 
not so calm as you are with the others.  I've never even seen 
you so riled up against a guy."  Minako replied evenly.
	"I--"
	"Don't worry Rei-chan, I won't tell."  Minako winked.
	"Baka!"  Rei sighed with exasperation, her eyes seemingly 
faraway.  "Life isn't that simple, it never was."  Whatever the 
dark-haired shrine maiden meant by that, Minako didn't know, 
because before she could speak another word, Rei was gone.  
There was nothing but scattered cheery-blossoms on the floor, 
and their scent lingered around her even though their mistress 
had already left.
	"Rei-chan, why are you so scared of love?"  There was no 
answer to her question but the gentle breezes that sighed softly 
before it died, the watching stars twinkled overhead as if they 
knew a secret that must not be revealed.
	Two pairs of watchful black eyes turned away from the 
blonde before the rustle in the trees announced their departure.  
Their charge was uneasy and that made the guardians of the 
temple, and of their senshi, worried.  There was still much to 
face in the nearer future and they wondered if the sacrifices 
they were about to make was worth it after all in the end.  But 
the cards have spoken and the wheel of time is turned.  
	Now, all they can do is watch, and wait.

	By the time Ami reached home, it was a half past ten.  She 
set down her bag by the door and neatly put her shoes away 
before straightening and carrying her bag with her to her room.  
Her mother wasn't home today, not yet.  Sundays were usually not 
to busy, so she should be home soon.  When Ami turned on her 
lights and closed the door behind her, she heard the front door 
open again.
	Mother was home.
	"Welcome home okaa-san!"  Ami called out, as she reopened 
her door and looked out to the hallway.  
	The older woman greeted Ami with a smile and walked toward 
her after disposing her own shows at the door.  "Still not in 
bed yet?"  Elder Mizuno asked with a small, knowing smile.  "How 
was your day Ami?"  Her mother asked.
	"Busy, and a little tiring.  Yours okaa-san?"  Ami asked 
with a smile.
	"Same as yours little one.  I'll go make some dinner for 
myself, do you want to join me?"
	Ami smiled and shook her head, "I was out with Usagi-chan 
and everyone.  Mako-chan made us all dinner and Rei-chan baked 
muffins and we had tea.  No, I'm quite full, thank you okaa-
san."
	Her mother smiled at this too, "I'm glad you finally found 
some friends Ami-chan.  If you like, I can make you some green 
tea, I know how you love those."
	"Arigato okaa-san!  That would be nice."  Her mother 
nodded and petted her gently on the head.  "Don't sleep too late 
now dear!"  Kissing her softly on the forehead, her mother 
turned and left for the kitchen.
	Ami smiled softly to the older woman's back and touched 
her forehead.  "Hai, okaa-san, hai."  She closed her door and 
walked to her desk that had her home computer up.
	'There was an explosion...  You mean Ayakashi Petz?... In 
today's news the explosion of a small shop, near the end of the 
East of downtown Juuban... No one was hurt...  Ayakashi Petz?... 
I can't believe they still have a picture of us...'  She 
remembered those sisters.  She had meant to bring it up during 
the meeting but it slipped her mind when Rei told of the 
terrible tragedy that had occurred to her.
	The computer beeped, snapping her out of her revelry.  
Surprised, she watched it flicker to life by itself, before it 
opened into the opening screen, clicking itself open to several 
files.  In moments the net was displayed before and a site was 
found, a message scrolled across her screen.
	'Ami, I need to talk to you.  Write back, because I know 
you're alive.  I need your help.  --CORE' Startled, she reread 
the short message and shakily sat down.
	He knows.
	Her eyes closed and she set her head in her hands.  This 
was going to be a very long night.  She wrote back soon after, 
when her mom came into her room, she was already busily at her 
textbooks, looking for answers and using her computer to piece 
together a puzzle that she didn't understand.  Smiling with 
pride, her mother set down the teacup and gently put it down on 
the desk, not disturbing her daughter once, Mizuno quietly 
slipped from the room while her daughter tried to find the cure 
to the virus.  The virus named Chronic Atropostia Syndrome -- 
otherwise known as CHAOS.
	Ami knew her mother came and went, but there wasn't enough 
time to look up and say hello.  Not with all the information 
that Core had sent her and was expecting her to finish reading 
and analyzing.  He wrote back only with a hello and a stack of 
files for her to look over, sites to go to for research and key 
words to search under.  She looked, knowing that he probably 
already read all the information presented, hoping she'd find 
something he missed.  Her hands gripped the cup that her mother 
left her, drinking the hot tea, grateful for its warmth.  The 
results she was getting were frightening and her face was 
becoming more and more ashen.  Halfway through her mini-
computer's processing, she wrote back to Core.  'Are you crazy?!  
The information here means the death of this planet!'  One in 
every one hundred people infected?  How was that possible?  Who 
came up with this stuff?
	He calmly replied, 'I'm showing only what is already 
there.'
	He didn't define where he meant by 'there' but he didn't 
have to.  Ami felt herself shivering whenever the idea entered 
her head.  Is this the price of utopia?  Her mind questioned, 
cool and resolved.  Her heart, though, thudded painfully in her 
chest.
	Yes, this is how utopia begun.  Her fingers trembled as 
she looked over more reports, until the pictures came.  Her eyes 
bulged slightly.  The only words that came from her mouth were a 
half gasp of a no.  It never really passed the tip of her tongue 
before she leapt out of her chair and ran for the bathroom.  She 
retched, though the pictures were burned into her mind.  The 
blackened skin and hollow sockets.  The mouth gapped open and 
the wispy hairs.  The skeletal structure of a human being that 
once was alive.  And the gashes of black blood oozing from cuts 
and down the mouth and on the legs; the deteriorated muscles 
that peeked through the seemingly charred skin.  They were all 
burned into her mind.
	'Jupiter Oak Evolution!'  The youma that had 
disintegrating into ashes so easily.  Was that once human too?  
But there were claws of shiny black nails ready to slash them to 
death.  No, that was 'not' human!  It couldn't be!  Her hands 
trembled as she heaved again, her eyes swimming and clouding 
with tears.  
	A knock came from the bathroom door, which she had slammed 
and locked.  "Daijoubu-yo Ami-chan?"  Her mother's worried voice 
came through her horror stricken mind.  She remembered the cool 
and professional touch of her mother's hand on her feverish 
forehead when she was young.
	"H-hai."  She called out.  Flushing the toilet and rushing 
to the sink, she washed away the traces of her dinner that still 
left a sour-bitterness in her mouth.  She quickly brushed her 
teeth and when she walked out, her mother was leaning on the 
side of the wall, looking up as she came through.
	"Are you alright Ami-chan?"  Her mother asked.  Those eyes 
looked worriedly down at her.
	"Um!  I'm fine.  Just brushing my teeth before I forget to 
later tonight!"  Ami assured, faking a smile.
	Her mother looked skeptical, but she didn't have time for 
this.  "I should get back to work.  I'm sorry if I disturbed 
you, okaa-san."  She murmured as she headed for her room.
	"Ami-chan," She turned to see her mother smile at her 
reassuringly.  "Sleep tight okay mon petit poisson?"  She 
smiled, back.  Her mother hadn't called her that since she was a 
little girl, but she was glad of the memories that it brought.
	"Hai, arigato mama!"  She waved before closing the door to 
her room.  The pictures were gone and a message typed itself 
onto her screen.  Walking over cautiously, she saw the neat 
kanji letters written there.
	'Sorry, I didn't realize you would be so affected by it.'  
Core wrote.
	'How could I not be?'
	A pause, as another screen moved up and instead there was 
no more pictures on this.  She breathed a sigh of relief.  'I 
keep forgetting how people might not take so well to these 
pictures, even though I've been trying to keep them out of the 
hands of the media around the world.'  He finally said.
	'Media?  How are you doing that?'  She asked surprised.
	'Ami, you always trusted me.  Trust me now when I say that 
it is best you don't know how I do the things I do.'  He 
replied.
	Now, it was her turn to pause.  'How did you know I 
reacted so violently?'  Ami asked.
	'The walls have eyes Ami.  I know what I know and you know 
what you know.  We never told each other how we come to know the 
things we do.  I never questioned you on what you did with the 
information I provided for you and you never questioned about my 
origins or my purpose.  Don't start now.'  He warned her, though 
not menacingly.  She knew that he wasn't that type of a man to 
threaten unless he felt it was necessary.
	He was like her.
	She smiled a little sadly.  Too bad they suddenly seemed 
to be on different sides.  'I'm sorry.'  She wrote, as her eyes 
closed wearily.  The pictures lay hidden in the dark, waiting 
for her.  Is that what we will become?  My friends and I?  Would 
we decay and turn to be like those monsters?  Or are they really 
monsters after all?  She would cry, but weariness came upon her 
soul, making her too tired to express the surges of emotions 
within her.  What had she to cry about?  The skeletal remains of 
a human tried to attack her princess, it had wounded and passed 
a virus to her and her friends.  She had every right to defend 
her country and her leader.  Why, then, did she feel so dirty?
	Her hands itched as she slowly glanced down wearily at her 
palms.  She saw nothing but white skin, tinted pink by the blood 
and nerves that lie beneath the skin.  What was she looking for?  
To see if they were drenched in blood?  She almost laughed out 
loud at the thought but did not, knowing that it will only lead 
her to cry in despair and anguish.  How was she supposed to know 
that the thing was human?  Her computer didn't suggest anything 
was different about this new breed, or perhaps it did...
	She paused unsure and unwilling to admit to herself that 
perhaps she knew, deep within her heart.  Her eyes opened as she 
looked at the empty screen before her.  What had she become?  
Just a soldier like Haruka and Michiru once were?  No morals and 
just excuses when she done something wrong because she's too 
afraid of the price that she must pay for her dreams, the price 
that was not hers to pay alone.  The screen stayed blank and 
stared back at her, without consolidations or comfort.  What did 
she expect?  Core wouldn't know how she's reacting now.  Or did 
he?
	He didn't reply this time to her answer in the words that 
she had dreaded to hear from him or perhaps hoped he'd say.  He 
only sent her more sites and more reading to do.  Relieved and 
yet anxious, she pushed her guilt aside to work.  She didn't get 
to sleep until three that day, and the next morning she had 
trouble concentrating in class.  Lucky that she had already gone 
over all of the material a few weeks ago, Ami half-slept through 
most of her classes.  If Usagi was in her class with her now, 
the odangle-blonde would've been surprised.  Yet, Ami was too 
tired to care and she slept right through lunch, missing Usagi, 
Minako and Makoto all together as she slept in the library with 
her head in her arms.
	CORE's pictures came and went within her nightmarish 
dreams, but then sometimes, just sometimes, she dreamed of a 
beautiful light.  It soothed the ache and the horror that still 
haunted her heart.  Maybe, just maybe, there is hope for us 
still.
	There was much to do, but Ami would be ready.  With the 
help of CORE, she would be ready indeed!  But at night, just 
before exhaustion would take over her mind and her body, she 
would remember the pictures still that he had sent her.  She 
would remember the anguished and pained screams of the monster 
before it turned to dust, only night after night it was a man or 
a woman.  Sometimes she saw herself burn into ashes before the 
might of Jupiter's stormy strikes, and she would wake the next 
morning exhausted and drenched in the sweat of dread and fear.  
Her mind slowly begun to learn to cope with the overload of 
information that Core repeatedly sent to her, and she learned to 
categorize them quickly as relevant or not important.  But in 
her dreams she remembered the guilt and darkness of her thoughts 
that the busy days had made it so easy to forget.  And, it was 
then that Ami finally learned the true dread of the dark and the 
coming night that loomed over her future, just at the edge of 
her thoughts.
	All thoughts of the Ayakashi sisters slipped her mind 
entirely and the mystery remind unsolved.



			blue@icedream.f2s.com

To the readers:  Mon petit poisson means my little fish...
yeah, it's kind of corny and yes, I thought about removing it
but, the it's a pet name and when have those type of things
ever been non-corny or practical?  So, I changed my mind
again and kept it as it is.  Please, I totally agree with you
that it is not one of the best things to call Ami, but hey,
I ran out of ideas okay ;p