Chapter 19: Congratulations, Reenie!!! Happy Birthday, Cecelia!!! Well, hello again. Chibi-Mamoru here. We're near the end, so please bear with me. I just want to remind you that the world of Sailor Moon isn't mine but Naoko Takeuchi's. The only things I own here are this very story, the Sailor Scouts' daughters, the fathers of the Outers' daughters, the Adaptation Sceptre, and Scholar Sailor Moon. Oh, I forgot to add that the tournament judges Shelly LaPhoenix (aka Selraina Despicability Vitaliter) and Sandra Naturalier (aka Sandigeo Grekari Rockheart) and their parents are mine as well. Enjoy!!! *********************************************************** *******Royal Palace Ball Room: July 19, 2996, 5 pm******* There is a massive party celebrating the acquistion of my court members. Everybody is eating and drinking like there's no tomorrow. "Hey, everybody, can I have your attention?" my dad King Endymion announced. "On behalf of everyone here, I just want to congratulate Reenie on her victory in the tournament against her court members today and wish Cecelia a happy birthday." On that note, Cecelia's dad Griffith MacGrinrun brings in a large cake and Cecelia's mom Alexandria Haruka Ten'oh lights the candles. After we sing 'Happy Birthday', Alex encourages Cecelia to blow out the candles and make a wish. "What did you wish for, Cecelia?" Irvette asked when Cecelia had blown out the candles. "I can't tell you or it won't come true," Cecelia laughed at her sister. I suddenly find two little hands over my eyes. "Guess who!!!" a cheerful voice giggled. "Cara?!!" I guessed. I am whipped around and Cara gives me a peck on the cheek. "Cara, I missed you!!!" "Reenie, I'm so sorry I wasn't able to be there to see you win over Cleopatra and Claribel," Cara apologized as she hugs me. "Sailor Jupiter was going to beat up my mommy." "Why, Cara?" I asked. "What made you stick your hand up Clotilda's dress even though you knew I was looking to you for support?" "Reenie, I wish I knew why I did that," Cara sighed sadly. "I'm paying dearly for that now, Reenie. My mommy and daddy are making sure of that. I love Clotilda to death and I would never have done what I did if I knew it would hurt her as it did. I'm sorry, Reenie; I feel as if I let you down." "Congratulations, Reenie," Shelly said. "You now have your own court. And a very happy birthday to you, Cecelia." "Thanks, Shelly!!!" I exclaimed. "I hope you have many more, Cecelia," Sandra agreed. "Thank you both," Cecelia told Sandra and Shelly. "Can I get you guys a slice of cake?" "No, thank you, Cecelia," Shelly replied. "Sandra and I have to watch what we eat." "So what are you and Sandra going to do now?" I asked Shelly. "How about returning to Pollianus with your parents?" a voice suggested. "That's not what I was going to say," Shelly said. "Shelly . . .," Sandra gulped nervously, "look behind you." Shelly turns around to see her parents Professor Gravitus La Phoenix and Detective Despicability Vitaliter standing behind her. Who invited these party crashers!??! "You two have some nerve just walking in here and spoiling my daughter's victory party!!!" Endymion snarled as he storms towards Gravitus and Despicability with his fists clenched. "Not to mention my daughter's birthday party!!!!" Griffith bellowed as he too storms towards Gravitus and Despicability with his fists clenched. "You'll be sorry you challenged me, human!!!" Despicability threatened Griffith as she wrenches his left arm backwards and then breaks his arm at the elbow. Cara and I wince at the sound of tearing cartilage and breaking bone. She then punches Griffith in the face and throws him 20 feet into the air. Griffith lets out a grunt when he lands and then is still. I hold Cara tightly to me to assure her that everything's going to be okay. "Daaaaaaaaaad!!!!" Cecelia screamed, torn between anger at Despicability for hurting her father and fear that he may be dead. Alex grabs Cecelia as she tries to run towards the unconscious Griffith. "Alex, let me go!!! I can take her!!!" I look over at poor Irvette who's scared senseless by the whole event. "You hurt my daddy!!!" Irvette yelled at Despicability. "I could also say the same of you stopping me from getting my daughter back!!!" Gravitus growled as he grabs Shelly/Selraina and telekinetically lifts Endymion about 20 feet in the air. "Hey!!!" Endymion shouted at Gravitus. "You put my daddy down this instant, Gravitus!!!" I exclaimed as I disengage from Cara to kick Gravitus sharply in the shin. Despicability reaches down and scoops me up before I have a chance to react. "Sandigeo, run!!!" Selraina shouted as she struggles futilely to free herself from Gravitus's grip. "Let go of me, you brute!!! You're hurting me!!!" "Selraina, I can't leave you like this," Sandra/Sandigeo replied. "Don't worry about me; save yourself!!!" Selraina shouted at Sandigeo, still trying to wrestle herself away from Gravitus. Sandigeo heads out the back door and leaves . . . only to be stopped in his tracks and cornered by Director Grekari Naturalier and Sergeant Tycallie Rockheart. "Just where do you think you're going, young man?!!!" Tycallie heartlessly asked Sandigeo as she grabs him. "Don't you know that resisting arrest is against the law!??!" At this, Selraina abruptly stomps on Gravitus's foot, forcing him to release her and King Endymion who falls to the floor like a sack of potatoes. "Are you all right, sire?" Selraina asked Endymion when she catches him. Endymion says that he's unharmed. Selraina then cuts loose with a lightning bolt at Despicability, causing her to drop me. Selraina then concentrates really hard and I go up into the air. The Sailor Scouts and their daughters look awestruck at the display of power that takes place before them. Then Raye decides to break the silence. "What is going on here?!?!" Raye demanded. "I can tell you that, Raye!!!" Lita barked. Pointing at Gravitus and Despicability, Lita says, "They were holding Reenie prisoner on Pollianus and we rescued her from them." "That man," Amy ejaculated, pointing at Gravitus, "hurt Michelle!!!" "So you're the creep who hurt my girlfriend!!!" Alex roared as she practically throws Cecelia at Lita and charges toward Gravitus who appears to just stand there and take the beating Alex was planning to give him. I blink and see that Gravitus has Alex in a high half nelson ready to break her arm. "You know, I could literally break your arm off and beat you senseless with it, human," Gravitus warned Alex as he releases her, "but I don't want to start an intergalactic war." "STOP!!!!" Serenity yelled. Alex stops dead in her tracks and everyone else jumps in fright. Selraina lowers me into her arms and hands me to Serenity who then sets me down and faints. Sharon Setsuna Mei'ou rushes over to catch Serenity and lower her gently to the floor. "Mommy!!!" I cried as I rush toward Serenity. Claribel restrains me. "Let me go, Claribel!!! I have to help my mommy!!!" "The best thing you can do to help is stay out of the way so my mama can do what needs to be done, Reenie," Claribel told me. "Serenity will be okay, won't she, Mama?" "Yes, she will be, Claribel," Sharon replied. "Your mother is still breathing, Reenie. However, I want to leave you with a bit of advice: sometimes, cooler heads prevail." Sure enough, Serenity comes to and I greet her with a big bear hug. "Serenity, are you okay?" "Yeah, I'm fine, Sharon," Serenity replied in a choked tone of voice, turning to me, "but that'll soon change if I don't get any circulation to the rest of my body." I look blankly at my mom. "Reenie, you're holding your mother too tightly," Endymion said. I release Serenity. "Okay now, let's sort this out like rational beings," Serenity said as she gets up off the floor. "I think that we need to get acquainted first. As you know, I am Neo-Queen Serenity." "I am King Endymion," Endymion said. "I am Professor Gravitus La Phoenix and I am Selraina's father," Gravitus said as he shakes hands with Serenity and Endymion. "I am Detective Despicability Vitaliter and I am Selraina's mother," Despicability said as she shakes hands with Serenity and Endymion. "I am Sergeant Tycallie Rockheart and I am Sandigeo's mother," Tycallie said as she shakes hands with Serenity and Endymion. "I am Director Grekari Naturalier and I am Sandigeo's father," Grekari said as he shakes hands with Serenity and Endymion. "Okay now, these are the Sailor Scouts," Serenity declared, indicating the Inners and the Outers who are standing to either side of her. Pointing to each Sailor Scout in turn, Serenity introduces her court member by member and I do the same for their daughters, with the exception of Cleopatra because she is not present, which are my court. "Now, Selraina, Sandigeo, why are you two here on Earth?" "We're here to judge the tournament and make certain Reenie has a fair chance against the other girls," Selraina replied. "I don't get it; of all the . . . . decillions of planets in the Universe, why did Reenie choose Pollianus?" Michelle Michiru Kai'oh asked. Everyone looks blankly at Michelle, partially because of her use of the word 'decillion.' "Mommy, what's a decillion?" Irvette asked Michelle. Gravitus counts silently to himself on his fingers. "It's a one with 33 zeroes after it, Irvette," Gravitus replied. As for your question, Michelle, it's a good one even though it has nothing to do with what's going on here." "Michelle, I think you have too much time on your hands," Serenity said. "So, Selraina, you and Sandigeo are here to judge the tournament?" "Selraina and I are also here because our parents are trying to separate us!!!" Sandigeo piped up, wrestling free of his mom's clutches. Holding Selraina tightly, Sandigeo adds, "She and I are also here to spend some time away from our meddlesome parents," Sandigeo looks at his parents and then shifts his gaze to Selraina's parents, "*by* ourselves." Sandigeo then pauses to hug Selraina before continuing. "I love Selraina and I have no idea why our parents are trying to separate us, your majesty." Selraina and Sandigeo then kiss each other. "Ewwwwww!!!! They're kissing!!!" Hermione cried, pointing to Selraina and Sandigeo. "Oh, I don't know, Hermione; I think kissing is a very beautiful way to express affection," Cara said as she smooches Hermione on the lips who then pushes her away and slaps her. "Hey, Cara!!!!" Hermione spat as she slaps Cara again. "What's your problem!?!? You a freaking lesbian or something?!!?" Cara runs to Mina for comfort in tears. "I should ask that of you, Hermione!!!" Clotilda growled as she storms toward Hermione and grabs her in one hand while making ready to slug her with the other. "Clotilda Kino, don't you dare!!!" Lita barked. Clotilda lets go of Hermione and gives her a sharp shove. Ken grabs Clotilda roughly telling her, "That'll be enough of that, young lady." He then escorts Clotilda outside. "Mommy, will I have to defend Crystal Tokyo with these girls someday?" I asked Serenity. "Well, I hope that if I ever have to send you and your court to battle, you girls will have grown up some," Serenity told me. "A BIG some. Lita, whenever I see a kid with THAT violent a temper, I can't help but to ask questions." "Ken and I weren't on anything when we conceived Clotilda if that's what you're referring to, Serenity," Lita said. "Clotilda has been known to do a lightning- fast one eighty from being a kind but shy little girl to what you just saw." Serenity looks at Amy and Mina who return in agreement about their kids. "Clotilda is a real Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. Somehow I have to teach her not to fly off the handle at every little provocation." "You, Cara Aino, are going to have to learn to keep your hands to yourself," Alan told Cara as he alternately slaps her hands. "But, Daddy," Cara whined tearfully as she holds her hands, "that's going to be torture!! I express my love for everybody by touch. It's also how I learn about my world, Daddy." "Cara, you haven't been alive long enough to understand what love is," Raye stated before Mina could. Cara blinks and then runs off. "Cara, wait!!" I shouted as I start off after her. *******Royal Palace Back Porch: July 26, 2996, 5:45 pm******* When I finally catch up to Cara, I find her slumped up against a plant crying. "Cara?" I asked gently. Cara turns toward me. "Reenie, do you love me?" Cara asked. "What!?!?" I asked Cara as I clutch my chest in surprise. "DO YOU LOVE ME?!!?!" Cara growled at me. "Yes or no?" "Yes, Cara, I love you," I replied, "enough to tell you what you did to Hermione was not appropriate. I think that you should go apologize to Hermione as soon as possible. You should also apologize to Clotilda for what you did to her in the stadium and thank her for intervening on your behalf when you did not deserve it. Then I would get down on my knees and thank God that getting slapped was the only thing that happened to you back there." "Reenie, can you do something to show me how much you love me?" Cara requested. "What do you want me to do?" I asked Cara. "Sit down next to me and give me a belly rub while I lay across your lap," Cara directed me. I look at Cara like she's flipped her lid. "Please, Reenie." With a sigh, I look around and decide to do what Cara asks. As I rub Cara's belly, I notice that she is still crying slightly. "Cara, are you going to be okay?" I asked as I stop rubbing. "I don't get it, Reenie," Cara said as she sits up. "I was only showing Hermione how much I love her. Given all the crap she has to endure, Hermione needs all the love she can get; yet when I give it to her, she gets angry with me. I think she hates me." "That's not true, Cara," Claribel said as she joins us. "What's not true?" Cara asked Claribel. "Hermione does not hate you, Cara," Claribel said, shaking her long raven-haired head from side to side. "Hermione may not be too terribly happy with you right now, Cara, but you have my word that she *does* NOT hate you." "Why did she attack me then, Claribel?" Cara asked. "Hermione did not attack you, Cara," Claribel replied, impatience starting to show. "In fact, you attacked her first. She was only defending herself." Cara gives Claribel a blank stare. "How do you figure that?" I asked Claribel. "I thought an attack had to be something like a punch." "Not so," Claribel answered as she sits down and puts her arm around Cara. "Civil law defines an attack as *any* type of unprovoked contact that a reasonable person under normal circumstances would deem as unwelcome and offensive or feel threatened by." Before Cara could say anything, Cecelia joins us out here. "Hey, guys!!!" Cecelia announced. "Whatcha doing out here? The party's getting lonely without you!!!" "Just licking my wounds, Cecelia," Cara replied with a smile. "I see they've healed nicely," Cecelia told Cara. Cecelia then falls silent and frowns. "Reenie, I was supposed to tell you something. Now what was it?!? Oh, yeah, I remember now. Your folks sent me to fetch you for something." "Did they say what they wanted, Cecelia?" I asked. "Your Pollianian friends are spilling their guts in there, Reenie," Cecelia replied. "When I left, Sandigeo mentioned the Adaptation Sceptre and told your mom that he had sent it to you." "WHAT!?!?!?" I shouted as I start back inside. *******Royal Palace Ball Room: July 26, 2996, 6 pm******* "So what can the Adaptation Sceptre do?" Endymion was asking Sandigeo. "It can make a copy of an enemy's powers, store them, and release them at the will of the holder, sire," Sandigeo told Endymion. I pause at this. "In the case of that tournament, the enemy is each of the Sailor Scouts' daughters. When Reenie retires the Adaptation Sceptre, the light of it vanishing erases the short term memory of anyone who has seen it." "We must find the Adaptation Sceptre and destroy it!!!" Sharon ejaculated, pounding her fist into her hand. "Wait, Sharon; there's no need to be hasty," Endymion reasoned. "Reenie isn't in any danger and the Adaptation Sceptre does have its pluses." "It warned us that Clotilda was going into insulin shock the other day so that appropriate action could be taken," Selraina recalled. This evokes cries of awe. "So just how did it do that?" Alex asked. "Sandigeo and I were talking to Reenie about the second half of the tournament," Selraina explained, "when all of a sudden, the Adaptation Sceptre appeared above our heads and flashed the symbols for Venus and Jupiter on the floor." "This reminds me of 'The Thundercats'," Chad remarked. "Yeah, that dumb cartoon Ariadne is always watching when she *should* be doing her chores," Raye scowled, looking down directly at Ariadne. "Sword of Omens, give me sight beyond sight," Ariadne said as she draws and holds up an imaginary sword and giggles. "Yeah, something like that," Sandigeo said of Ariadne's demonstration. "Anyway, I suggested to Reenie that she grab the Adaptation Sceptre and say the words 'Sceptre, investigate'. We saw a scene of Clotilda looking real green around the gills and Cara was trying to keep her calm and asking Ariadne and Hermione who were out of the picture if they've found any. Selraina said she'd go get some sugar and told Reenie and me to keep Clotilda calm until she got back. Fortunately, she got back in time and everything was just kosher from that point on." "Yes, Sandigeo, you and your girlfriend did save my daughter's life," Ken admitted. "For that, I can never thank you enough. But there's no overlooking the fact that you left my daughter unsupervised in the first place." "Yeah, Ken, you tell 'em!!!" Chad agreed. Greg and Alan chip in their assent. "You're just lucky nothing bad happened to them," Greg added. "See, I told you it was a bad idea to leave the girls by themselves," Selraina chided Sandigeo. "But did you listen to me? Oh, no!!! That's too much like doing the right thing. And another thing . . ." "Selraina!!!" Gravitus interrupted. "Yes, Daddy?" Selraina asked Gravitus. "CAN IT!!!" Gravitus and Despicability shouted at Selraina. "Reenie, do you have the Adaptation Sceptre?" Serenity asked as she kneels down to my eye level. I slowly nod my head. "May I have it, please?" I summon the Adaptation Sceptre and clutch it to my chest. "Sharon said she was going to destroy it," I said, withdrawing a little. "Reenie, I promise you that it won't be destroyed," Serenity declared. "What are you going to do with it, Mommy?" I asked Serenity as I hand her the Sceptre. "Well, for now, I'll hang onto it," Serenity told me. "Later, we'll examine it to determine how it works, when it can do, and how it can be useful to us in the near future." Serenity then straightens up and shows the Adaptation Sceptre to the six Pollianians. "Is this the Adaptation Sceptre, Sandigeo?" "Yes, it is, your majesty," Sandigeo replied. "I got the Adaptation Amethyst, the magical jewel that gives the Adaptation Sceptre its powers, from the fiery planet of Pyranina. Although the electronics that store the powers Reenie has taken from her court as well as the metal skin of the Sceptre itself are of the industrial planet Metalicon, the design of the Sceptre is Pollianian." "Yeah, that's Sandigeo's handiwork all right," Grekari affirmed. "And a very real drain on the pocketbook, too," Tycallie added with a sigh. "Amy, Michelle, I would like you two to learn everything you can about the Adaptation Sceptre, but *no* destructive testing," Serenity said as she hands the Adaptation Sceptre to Amy. "Yes, Serenity," Amy and Michelle responded. "Serenity, you're making a BIG mistake," Sharon disagreed. "The very presence of that Sceptre is messing up the time line. It must be destroyed." Now Neo-Queen Serenity can be many things, but one of the things she rarely ever is is angry. I don't mean mildly irritated; I mean ENRAGED!!!! "Sharon Setsuna Mei'ou, you listen to me and you listen good!!!" Serenity said as she advances on Sharon pecking her in the chest with her finger. "*Nothing*, and I mean NOTHING," Serenity had scored a good peck that time, "will be destroyed in Crystal Tokyo, on Earth, or on the Moon UNLESS *I*," Serenity had scored a real good peck that time, "give the word!!!! Do you understand me?!!?!? Am I making myself PERFECTLY clear!?!?" A very frightened Sharon is now on the floor looking up at a very angry Serenity. "Okay, I'll shut up about the Adaptation Sceptre," Sharon said as she gets up off the floor and nurses the place on her chest where Serenity pecked her. Somehow I just feel that Sharon has no intention of keeping her word. I know I'm probably right but hope that I'm wrong. "So tell us about Pollianus," Endymion said to the six Pollianians. "What's it like there?" "Gravitus, you want to take this one or shall I?" Grekari asked. "No, go ahead," Gravitus encouraged Grekari. "Well, Endymion, there is no universal correct answer to that question," Grekari said. "The part of Pollianus I have to deal with everyday is different from what Gravitus or our wives have to deal with. I am the director of an orphanage that's closed down right now due to a violent incident. As director, I have to make sure the money the orphanage gets on a regular basis gets spent appropriately. The money is used to maintain the building, feed and clothe the girls and get them medical care to prevent diseases so that they don't get to be virulent. I also make sure the girls go to school and maintain order. Unfortunately if something happens that's out of my control, I'm the one who gets held accountable. If one of the girls I watch over breaks the law, I get held accountable. But despite that, I like what I do otherwise I wouldn't be doing it." "Despicability and I deal with law enforcement," Tycallie said. "I'm at the rank of sergeant and Despicability is at the rank of detective. We both work for the Cold Falconian Police Department." "You mean those cops that were chasing us, Despicability?" Mina asked. Despicability gives Mina a blank look. "Oh, yeah. I remember now, Mina," Despicability finally said. "Not all those cops worked for Cold Falconian. We were only 50 miles east of Clemency Lemon. Their jurisdiction and Cold Falconian's overlap the 150- mile area in between them. The cops that were chasing you were probably mostly from the Clemency Lemon Police Department since we were closer to Clemency Lemon." "I scanned the surrounding area with my computer and it said that the atmosphere was 65% oxygen and that there were methane deposits everywhere, Gravitus," Amy said. "That sounds like a time bomb to me," Christine remarked. "You're both correct," Gravitus agreed. "One good spark could easily destroy the whole planet. Since fire is a very real concern for all Pollianians, we try to get as much methane out of the ground and use as much of it as we can as quickly as we can to bring that risk down." "Michelle told me that you guys have set your speed limits very high," Alex said to Gravitus. "Again, that's to use up methane, Alex," Gravitus said. "Oh, I almost forgot, Alex," Despicability exclaimed as she reaches in her pockets and fishes out some keys. "Your friends abandoned your car in order to get away from the police. I recovered your car and have it in the ship on Hokkaido." "But Mina said that she had to leave it because it ran out of gas," Alex recounted as she accepts the keys from Despicability. "I started the car up and it had almost a half tank," Despicability told Alex. "Mina Aino, you lied to me!!!!" Alex bellowed as she storms toward Mina, fists clenched. "Come on, Alex; I'm sure Mina is *very* remorseful of what she's done," Michelle said as she tries to hold back her lover. "Aren't you, Mina?" Michelle is looking directly at Mina now. "Yeah, I'm sorry I lied to you, Alex," Mina said. "The truth was that we came to a dead end and we had no room to make a U-turn, so with the police on our tail, we had to ditch your car." "I'm not trying to hear your excuses!!!" Alex growled at Mina as she shoves Michelle aside and throws a punch. "Help!!!!" Mina yelled as Alex chases her out of the ball room. "Aren't you guys going to help my mommy?" Cara asked, tears forming in her orange eyes. Michelle gets up off the floor shocked by her lover's actions. "I did what I could for your mommy, Cara," Michelle said as she picks Cara up and comforts her. "She did exactly as I wanted her to, but my plan still backfired." "So, Gravitus, what do you do?" Ken asked. "I'm a scientist, Ken," Gravitus replied. "Not too long ago, I figured out a way to tap into the vast power of a quasar." This gets everyone's attention. Michelle nearly drops Cara. "You mean that . . . you're responsible for my daughter's quasar-driven powers?" Kerwin asked Gravitus as he unconsciously clutches Claribel. Gravitus starts to answer Kerwin's question but stops himself to formulate his response. "Well, I am partly responsible for your daughter's quasar-driven powers as well as those of her friends, Kerwin," Gravitus replied. "But how all that came to be is a long story that requires parental discretion as far as when it's retold goes. Say, where are Clotilda and Cleopatra at?" "I dunno," Ken replied. "Lita's probably home lecturing Clotilda or hanging around here somewhere, Gravitus." "Zaccheus is home lecturing Cleopatra, or at least he better be if he knows what's good for him," Christine said to Gravitus. "Cleopatra is going to be in hot water with me for her conduct during the tournament when I get home." "So are you going to tell us the story of how you're responsible for our daughters' quasar-driven powers or not?" Michelle asked Gravitus. "Well, Michelle, we had planned to come here tonight, get our kids, and leave for Pollianus in the morning with them," Gravitus replied. "Come on, Gravitus; we can hang around here for a little while," Grekari urged. "It's really not necessary that we leave tomorrow morning," Despicability agreed with Grekari. "Yeah, I suppose we can hang around for a while," Gravitus decided. "All right, we'll stay. Now we need somewhere to spend the night." "How about the Embassy Suites we're staying at?" Selraina suggested. "Celestial idea, Selraina!!! We can keep an eye on you and Sandigeo better," Despicability exclaimed. "Excellent, let's go get our stuff and check in," Tycallie remarked as she drapes an arm around Sandigeo and turns to leave. "I hope you guys have no hard feelings about us crashing your party," Grekari said. "We were only looking for our kids." "Don't worry about it; I'm sure any of us would have done the same if we had been in your shoes," Alan said. "Congratulations on winning your court, Reenie!!!" Despicability told me as she escorts Selraina out. "How does . . . here at 8 am tomorrow sound?" Gravitus suggested. Alan, Chad, Ken, and Kerwin report that they would like to attend but have to go to work in the morning. Greg says he'd like to attend but has correspondence work to do, but Griffith comes to and says that he's game. Ken adds that Lita has a resturant she's getting ready to open and won't be able to attend. Raye says that she has a business to run and Christine and Amy say that they have patients to see. "Well, I have some clothes I want to finish tomorrow, but I'm willing to delay them for a day so that I can find this out," Sharon volunteered. "And Kerwin, Chad, Alan, Ken, Greg, Christine, Amy, Raye, Lita, I also think that you guys can also take a day off from your busy lives to learn about your daughters." Sharon then gives them *that* look. "On second thought, my employees could use a vacation from me for a day," Kerwin said. "I could use a personal day off from work myself," Chad said. "Yeah, that goes for me too, Chad," Alan agreed. "I guess taking one day off from my correspondence work won't hurt me since I'm weeks ahead of everyone else," Greg chipped in. "I don't think shutting down my Temple for a day will kill me," Raye sighed. "I guess Amy and I could get substitutes," Christine piped up, stepping on Amy's foot gently. Amy starts to object, but a stomp from Christine and an icy stare from Sharon silence her and convince her to go with the flow. "We'll be there," Michelle told Gravitus. Satisfied, Gravitus leaves after congratulating me for my victory today and wishing Cecelia a happy birthday. *******Royal Palace Ball Room: July 26, 2996, 7:45 pm******* "Mommy, I like this party!!! Let's do it again!!!!" Ariadne squealed to Raye. We couldn't help but to laugh at Ariadne. "Imagine that; we were visited by aliens from another planet," Claribel said thoughtfully when the laughter died down. "My peers will have a field day with this story." "Yeah, Claribel," Irvette agreed. "This is WAY too weird for school." "It looks like we're not the only beings in this Universe," Cecelia added. "Amy, are you an alien?" Hermione piped up. This catches everyone by surprise, especially Amy. "Hermione, I'll have to take a raincheck on your question," Amy replied kindly. "Yeah, like a decade," Greg told Hermione. "NO!!!" Hermione declared, starting to cry. "I want to know NOW!!!!" Hermione looks Greg and Amy in the eye with her face in a pout and her fists clenched. "I think it's past someone's bedtime," Greg said of Hermione as he picks her up. "Congratulations on your victory today, Reenie," Amy said as she and Greg leave. "That goes for you too, Cara," Alan said as he takes Cara from Michelle. "Good night, everyone." "I'm worried about Mommy, Daddy," Cara told Alan. "That makes two of us, kiddo," Alan agreed with Cara, "but that's a matter out of our control." "Don't worry, Cara; I'll take care of your mommy and get her home to you," Michelle promised as she and Griffith escort their daughters out. "Good work on getting your court today, Reenie." "It's time we left, too," Raye agreed as she watches Ariadne let loose a wide yawn. She and Chad then take their daughter by the hand and walk out. "Mommy, Daddy, am I an alien?" Ariadne asked her parents as the trio are leaving. "We'll talk about that in the morning," I heard Chad tell Ariadne. "Right now you need your rest." Pretty soon everyone else files out for the night after congratulating me for my victory today. THE END So what do you think? You weren't expecting the judges' parents to show up on the scene by crashing this party, were you? Anyway, I am very proud of Reenie because of what she has just accomplished. So what do you think lies ahead for Reenie and her court? Stick around to find out!! Email address: CMDChiba@hotmail.com Please put the title of this fanfic in the subject line of your letter. Doing so will enable me to get back to you much faster.