Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

A streak of sunlight poured through a pair of wrinkly, half-closed curtains inside a dingy apartment. It wasn’t a particularly large apartment—the kitchen and living room were essentially just one room, the couch only a few feet from the sink. There was no laundry room, and neither the bedroom nor the bathroom were especially big. The floor was littered with emptied bags of chips, candy wrappers, and ice cream containers, the garbage can in the corner having long since overflowed. The television, a small flatscreen, was covered in dust on its edges, wires from various game consoles plugged into it and strewn across the floor, all of which only added to the chaos.

The bedroom wasn’t much cleaner, similarly covered in garbage and dirty, unwashed clothes pouring out of a small laundry basket. Cans of beer littered the ground, leading to a trail of garbage that was sorely in need of being picked up. Despite this, the trash can was already quite full of its own mess, desperate for someone to take it out and junk it.

Unfortunately, it was going to have to wait a while.

“Hello, my name is Usagi Tsukino! I’m just calling to check on what you think of my resume…again. I submitted it last Thursday, and I haven’t heard back from anyone since then, so I just wanted to call and check in with you! My number is…”

Usagi’s voice trailed off as she awkwardly bit her nails, decidedly not a fan of how things were progressing. She looked unrecognizable: her hair was cut short and her lengthy pigtails were long gone, leaving her odangos mere stubs. All she had on was a pink t-shirt and a grey pair of sweatpants, a rather lazy manner of dress. As she hung up the phone, she grabbed a remote and turned the television on.

“Alright, now that that’s taken care of,” she mumbled to herself, “maybe I can actually play some g—”

Her train of thought was interrupted by the ringer on her phone going off. Frantically she grabbed it, her face brightening up.

“Hello?”

“Usagi?”

Usagi’s face fell upon hearing this, though she immediately felt ashamed at such a reaction.

“Naru? What’s up?”

“Oh, I just thought I’d check in on you and see how things were going,” came Naru’s chipper reply. “You doing okay?”

“Well, I…”

Usagi scanned her garbage-filled surroundings, her eyes coming to a halt at her own slovenly attire.

“I’ve been…worse?”

There was a pause on Naru’s end of the line, causing Usagi to cringe at her choice of words.

“…Well, alright, if you say so,” said Naru, her voice finally cutting through the silence. “Anyway, I actually have something for you! Want to hear?”

“Uh…suuuuuure?” Usagi replied hesitantly.

“So, Gurio found this opening at a place close to work called Kishim—”

“Kishimura Tech?”

Naru paused. “How did you know?”

“I already applied there…”

An awkward silence came between the two before Naru awkwardly coughed. “Oh…I see. Have you heard back from them yet?”

“Well…not really, no. Still…y’know, waiting and all.”

Usagi could almost hear Naru struggling to think of what to say to reassure her. After all, it wasn’t like there were opportunities open for her everywhere.

“Well…I’ll keep looking and let you know if I find anything. Just keep your chin up, okay? And remember, don’t feel ashamed if you have to ask for anything, I’d be more than happy to get you whatever you need!”

Usagi sighed. “Thanks, Naru. Talk to you later?”

“Of course! Talk later, Usagi!”

And like that, the phone call ended. Usagi gently tossed her phone against the couch, exhaled through her nose, and grabbed one of the controllers to her console.

Tomorrow, she thought. I’ll definitely find a job tomorrow. Just gotta forget about it until then.

Taking a deep breath, she zeroed in on the television and soon lost herself in the monotonous rhythm of the game.

God, I need a drink…

“Almost done…”

The sun was beating down on the miko as she wiped her brow, sweeping a portion of the shrine’s floor. She tugged at her kimono, her body too small for the loose garment, and brushed her seafoam green hair out of her eyes.

“Gahh…I wish they’d gotten one of these in my size…” she sighed. “This feels like I’m wearing pajamas!”

“You’re still sweeping, Emi?” said another girl, this one with short crimson hair. She too was a miko, though she was hardly working. She rested her back against the steps of the shrine, idly playing on her cell phone. “You know we don’t, like, actually have to do much, right? Just make it look like we’re working hard and then we’ll get done with this by the end of the month.”

Emi rolled her eyes. “Kae, that might be easy for you to say. You’re only doing this because your dad caught you trying to sneak out. I actually wanna learn from this!”

Kae snorted. “We both got caught sneaking out, but whatever. The old crow who runs the place is still meditating, so I doubt she’s actually watching us. It gives me the time to check on Twitter.”

“Hey, she is not an old crow!” Emi countered, her kimono sleeve obscuring the index finger pointing at her friend. “Miss Hino’s been teaching me a lot about Shinto practices, it’s really cool! Did you know that mikos in the old days would actually go to villages and drive out evil spirits and stuff? Kinda like The Exorcist!”

“Maybe for a nerd like you, it’s cool,” Kae mumbled. “I don’t see any relevance this woo-woo stuff has for me. Anyways, it’s getting kinda late. You think you could let her know that we’re about to go?”

Emi sat the broom against the wall of the shrine. “I’m not sure that she’ll appreciate me interrupting her…”

Kae rolled her eyes. “Fine, I’ll do it.” She set her phone down and walked into the shrine. Rounding a corner, she entered a room containing a huge, crackling fire, embers gently flying through the air.

A woman in a red hakama and a white kosode sat in front of the flame, her legs crossed and her eyes closed. Her skin was pale, her raven black locks growing down to her waist. She was thin, her fingers long and spindly, crossed in front of her chest. The only sounds in the room were the flames and a whispered, almost hypnotic chant.

“Rin…Pyou…Tou…Sha…Kai…Chin…Retsu…Zai…Zen…”

For a moment, Kae didn’t say anything, too nervous to intrude. The feeling within the room was something else…something otherworldly as if a single creak of the floorboard would disrupt the mood. Kae stifled a cough, then roused herself and finally pushed to say something.

“Hey, Miss Hino?”

The woman suddenly stopped chanting. She turned to look at Kae, purple eyes shining with an ominous glow. Kae gulped. It didn’t really feel like Rei was looking at her…it was more like Rei was looking through her. It was hard to gauge what she was feeling—her face, stoic as ever, was the perfect picture of neutrality.

“I take it you two are done for the day, Kae?” she asked, her voice calm and measured. 

Kae nodded. “Uh, yeah—I mean, yes, ma’am!”

“Great. I’ll walk you two home, then.”

Kae suddenly tensed up. “Wait, what?! Miss Hino, we were just gonna take the bus, you really don’t have t—”

“Actually, I do,” Rei countered, her lips curling slightly. “Your parents explicitly said that they wanted me to walk you and Emi home tonight. Apparently, they want to make sure that you’re actually doing the work I’ve given you…which you are, right ?”

Kae gulped. “Yeah, yeah, totally, Miss Hino!” she lied, her tone not convincing in the slightest.

Rei’s eyes narrowed as she stood up, her arms crossed in front of her chest. Kae nervously backed away until she was up against the wall, her heart beating steadily faster as Rei slowly approached her.

“Kae…” she began, her voice stern.

Oh crap, I am so fired, Kae’s panicked thoughts rushed through her head. Oh crap, Mom is gonna kill me, CrapcrapcrapcrapCRAP.

Rei loomed over the poor girl. For ten agonizingly long seconds, not a word passed through her lips.  Then, she slowly opened her mouth…and suddenly started laughing.

“You are such a bad liar, you know that?” she chuckled.

Kae blinked. “I-I’m not lying, h-hones—”

“Maybe it would be better if you didn’t underestimate an ‘old crow’ like me, Kae,” Rei said with a sly smile. She moved her hand down to her hip as she relaxed her posture. “I’m not as young as I used to be, but I’m still pretty sharp.”

Kae nodded. “U-Understood, Miss Hino.”

“Ugh! Please, just call me Miss Rei,” Rei said as she rolled her eyes. “You’re gonna make me sound really old if you call me ‘Miss Hino’.”

“Er, right, Miss Hi--Miss Rei.”

Rei smiled and began to take a step out of the room. “I’ll go and slip into something more casual. Don’t wanna dirty my robes up before the festival tomorrow…you two are planning on showing up then, right?”

Kae winced a little and then nodded again sheepishly. “Kinda have to, yeah…”

Rei nodded and clasped her hands together. “Third day here and you’re already working a festival. You’re coming along nicely!”

“Ah, right! Thank you, Miss Rei!” Kae said with a hasty bow. “I’ll go tell Emi we can get ready to leave.”

“Alright, see you girls in a bit!” Rei said as she ducked into the dressing room.

Whew! That girl’s definitely a handful sometimes, Rei thought with a sigh. Reminds me of certain people…

Still, Nanako had asked her to look after Kae, and Rei was hardly in a position to refuse someone who had worked at the shrine before, never mind someone who looked up to her. And really, it’s not like she was that difficult—she just needed a firm hand every now and then. Emi was a lot easier to handle, thank goodness. It was hard to believe she was Yuichiro’s daughter…they barely looked anything alike.

Rei entered her bedroom and began loosening her sash, rummaging a hand through her closet. Her hand slid past a few familiar choices. There was a red t-shirt with jeans ( too casual ), a pink suit with a tie ( too formal ), and even a noticeable pair of pink overalls (too 90’s). She bit at her nail, thinking over what else to get out when she heard voices from the other side of the door.

“Is that a Sailor Moon plushie you’re looking at?” said a voice recognizable as Emi’s.

Rei’s body tensed up. She supposed she was always going to have a reaction to this old topic. In fairness, it wasn’t something people brought up as much anymore. People weren’t exactly living in fear of monster attacks every day.

“Hmm? Oh, yeah, I was just thinking about buying it for my sister,” she heard Kae reply. “She grew up back when Sailor Moon was still around.”

Rei wondered for a moment if she could get away with interrupting this conversation, but decided against it—might as well just let them get it out of the way now.

“Cool!!” Emi chuckled. “My dad worked here back when Sailor Moon was around! He says she saved the shrine so many times! He had, like, the biggest crush on Sailor Mars.”

“Eh, I dunno, I think Sailor Venus was cooler. She always seemed strong and focused, really capable, y’know?”

In spite of herself, Rei gave a small snort of derision. It had been years since she had even spoken to Minako, and her contact with the others was sporadic at best. Sometimes a birthday card or a Christmas card would come from Ami, more rarely Mako. Minako might send a postcard here and there. The last she’d even had a phone call from one of them was Ami calling her after a bad breakup.

And then there was Usagi…

Rei shook her head. Resolving to get on with it, she gripped a hanger and pulled down a modest red blouse and black skirt. It wasn’t anything special, but it would be enough for now. She quickly put them on, all while Kae and Emi continued to chat just outside.

“What about Sailor Moon, though?” offered Emi. “You gotta admit, she’s really awesome. My dad still remembers the Infinity Academy incident, y’know!”

“Yeah yeah, he was hiding in the shrine’s bathroom or something, you’ve said it a million times.”

“Not the point, Kae!”

As Rei slipped a boot on, something caught her attention out of the corner of her eye. A stray beam of sunlight bounced off a hand mirror. She walked over to it and picked it up, not saying a word. She simply stared at her face—the bags that had grown under her eyes, the pale complexion of her cheeks. Her eyes glanced over to a photo beside her bed, from when she was still in high school. A photo of her in her cap and gown, smiling during her graduation. She looked so different from the woman she was now.

How long has it been?

Rei quickly shook her head and set the mirror down. Now was not the time to dwell on such things—she had promised she would take the girls home, and she wasn’t about to let whatever stupid emotional hang-ups reared their ugly heads to get in the way. She swiftly slipped on a pair of boots, grabbed her purse, and left the room. Outside, she found Kae and Emi, still deep in conversation with each other.

“Hey, don’t go dissing Sailor Chibi Moon like that! She doesn’t deserve all the hate she gets!”

“Emi, she was literally the worst.”

“You take that back!”

“Alright, you two!” Rei cut in. “Are you girls ready?”

The girls paused their argument, staring at Rei. That Rei would wear something other than her usual shrine robes was something that had never crossed their minds. Rei, taking notice of the girls’ reactions, chuckled.

“Contrary to popular belief, girls, I do have an actual wardrobe.”

“So cool…” Emi muttered under her breath.

Kae rolled her eyes and crossed her arms with a sigh. “You really are a dork, Emi.”

Emi gasped. “Yeah well, you’re…you’re a meanie, y’got that?” she exclaimed.

Kae stuck her tongue out at Emi, who responded in kind. The two of them started up a new barrage of insults, glaring at each other all the while.

Rei blinked. So that’s how it feels on the outside, huh?

“Hey, cut it out!” she exclaimed, grabbing both girls by the wrist. “I’m getting you two home in one piece, got it?”

“Yes, Miss Rei…” both of them sighed.

Rei huffed as she led the girls down the steps and to the sidewalk, already feeling mildly exasperated by these two and their shenanigans.

Well, guess this is my life now. I guess it could be worse.

The evening sunlight filtered through the dimly lit room as a child sat in front of a TV, diligently focusing on his schoolwork. It wasn’t anything especially hard today—just some math problems and a short paragraph about someone he admired. The math problems had been easy enough, but he was having trouble putting his feelings into words for the second assignment.

My mom’s always looking out for me. It’s just the two of us, but she always works really hard, and…

Hm, what could he put here? There was a lot of stuff he could say here, but it was honestly hard to choose. Was there a way he could say it all at once? Maybe…

Just then, the door to the apartment jostled a bit, and then the lock clicked and the door swung open.

“I’m home!”

Across the apartment to the boy’s right, the sound of jingling keys and shuffling footsteps gave way to a tall woman with messy brown hair making her way inside, wearing a noticeably sweat-stained black button-up shirt with a collar and rolled-up sleeves that exposed her muscular arms. She was already switching into her slippers when she gave a yawn, mumbling under her breath.

“Friggin’ Ikuhara…” grumbled Makoto Kino as she sleepily trudged into the apartment. “I swear, if he talks to me like that again, I’m gonna…”

She blinked, having just now noticed Hiro working in front of the TV.

“Oh, heh…sorry Hiro,” Mako said as she made her way over to her adopted son. “Didn’t see you there. Have a good day at school today?”

“It was alright,” Hiro answered as he got up to greet his mother. “We learned about the solar system today.”

“Oh yeah?” Mako replied, taking a seat right next to him. “You know, I just happen to know a little bit about the solar system myself.”

“Doesn’t everybody learn about it?” asked Hiro. “That’s not that surprising.”

“Gah!” Makoto leaped back slightly, feigning shock. “My own son, doubting me! How could it have come to this?”

She grinned, a mischievous glint in her eyes.

“So you think you’re pretty smart, huh?” she taunted. “Well, I’ll show you, buster!”

In the blink of an eye, Hiro found himself pinned on the ground, trying to wriggle out of his mother’s grip before she applied her most dangerous weapon…

“MOTHERLY TICKLE TORTURE!”

“NOOOOOOOOO!”

They continued this for about a minute, both laughing as Hiro tried in vain to escape. Then Makoto suddenly released him, taking a few deep breaths and she sank onto the floor.

“You…you okay, Mom?” asked Hiro, also trying to catch his breath.

“Yeah…I’m fine…” his mother answered, though it was clear just from looking at her that her energy was spent. “Just had a long day at work, that’s all. I’m just gonna lay here for a bit.”

Hiro nodded. This sort of thing was hardly unusual in their house, and he knew just how to deal with it. He silently walked over to a nearby chair and grabbed a blanket that had been left there, along with a small pillow from the couch. Taking both of them back to Makoto, he gently lifted up his mother’s head and placed the pillow under it, before draping the blanket over her.

“You’re the best, kiddo,” Makoto said sleepily. “Listen, I managed to get time off this weekend for the festival. Why don’t the two of us head down there, and see if we can’t have a bit of fun, huh?”

“Yeah, that sounds great!” answered Hiro. “Don’t worry about dinner, I can make something for myself.”

“Okay…” Makoto muttered. “You’re the boss…”

With that, Makoto closed her eyes, and in no time at all, she was snoring like a bear.

Hiro sighed, trying to think about what he could do for dinner by himself. There were a few options, but it wouldn’t exactly be a feast.

In any case, that could wait until he was finished with his schoolwork. Returning to the assignment, an idea struck him, and he began to write once more.

…she always works really hard, and she never, ever gives up.

“Okay… reply to emails, check…compile test results, check…finish the last report, check…wait, I still have that last spreadsheet! Hang on, hang on…”

Ami Mizuno’s fingertips flew across her keyboard as she blew through her workload at a breakneck pace. In the past, she would have chided herself for such impatience, but she had found that being overly conscientious cost her valuable time, in any case, she had learned to balance speed and quality long ago.

“Let’s see…that one passed the clinical trials, that one failed, that one passed, that one failed, passed, passed, failed, passed, passed, passed, failed, failed…”

This continued for about ninety seconds as Ami continued to record the test results for Kurumada Pharmaceutical Corporation’s newest products. Meticulous, detailed record-keeping was a part of the job Ami found oddly soothing—it was reassuring, knowing that everything was being filed away, ready to be called up at a moment’s notice. Everything was nice and aboveboard—nothing would slip between the cracks. Or at least, that was the ideal scenario—in practice, things could be a lot…messier. Still, there wouldn’t be any mess when she was on the job, no sir.

“One last summary there…aaaand…YES!”

Ami excitedly jumped into the air, pumping her fist in the air in triumph. Finally, after so many weeks of work, so much time of lost sleep and microwave ramen, she had FINISHED her report.

“Finally! An actual weekend, here I c—”

She paused. She looked around her apartment, her grin slowly fading as she felt a knot in her stomach.

Her apartment was quite spacious—a large living room area with a decent-sized couch and a widescreen TV, and a kitchen with a state-of-the-art oven, refrigerator, and microwave. It had everything she could ever need.

Except for the fact that it was also incredibly lonely.

Ami sighed, plopping back into her desk chair and swiveling around in it. She would probably feel less depressed about this if she got some friends, but with how work was, well…that wasn’t exactly easy for her.

She crossed her arms in front of her chest, entering a state of deep thought. The ring on her right hand bristled against her blouse, stirring memories Ami would rather have left behind. She shook her head and took a slow breath through her nose.

“I’ll just order a pizza tonight,” she quietly said, returning to her couch and pulling her laptop back out. Maybe she could watch a movie tonight—Netflix had to have something worth watching, right?

Suddenly, she heard a hum coming from her cell phone. Ami grabbed it and saw, to her mild surprise, a local news notification about the upcoming Juuban Culture Festival.

Hm, I’ve been so busy that I had forgotten all about it, she thought. Could I…maybe…

Ami shrugged and went back to selecting a movie to stream, but the idea wouldn’t leave her head. Maybe a weekend outing would be just what she needed…

The Sasaki Hotel was unusually quiet this time of the evening. It was usually on the nights when visitors seemed to pile in the most, but right now it was largely a ghost town. The concierge, a messy-haired brunette with “Yoshiko Tomita” on her nametag, idly tapped her fingers on the desk, bored out of her wits. Her eyes began to droop as she looked at the time.

8:00 PM.

Keep it together until you get home, at least… she thought to herself. Her brain seemed to have other thoughts, though. Her head began to tilt as her eyes slowly closed, the worries of her job slowly beginning to vanish--

“Excuse me, I’d like to check in. I have a reservation.”

Yoshiko snapped to attention as a new guest arrived at the concierge desk. It was a woman in her thirties, with shoulder-length blonde hair decorated with a large red bow. Her outfit, meanwhile, was…unusual, to say the least: red and white blouse with ruffles around the collar, a matching red bowtie, and an unusual orange pair of plaid shorts mixed with black and yellow stripes. The whole look, Yoshiko decided, was best described as “hipster meets wannabe circus ringmaster”. But the look didn’t matter. It was time to get to work.

“Ah, certainly!” she said, shaking off her shock at the woman’s bizarre appearance. “May I have your name?”

“It should be under Aino?” the woman asked. With diligent fingers, Yoshiko quickly found the reservation.

“Ah, here you are, ma’am!” she said. “You will be staying with us for…three days, is that correct?”

The woman nodded curtly. “I’ll be finding alternative arrangements after that. My expenses should already be covered.”

“Of course, ma’am,” said Yoshiko. She took the room key from under the desk and handed it to the woman. “Room 201, second floor, first on your left. Do you need help with your luggage?”

“I’ll manage, thank you,” said the woman, who was carrying both a large blue duffle bag and a black rolling suitcase. She took her key, gave Yoshiko a quick “much appreciated”, and then turned to leave.

“Oh, we also offer breakfast in the lounge, as well as—oh, she’s gone,” said Yoshiko, somewhat put off by the woman’s rudeness. Then again, she supposed people who dressed like that had a lot on their minds.

Looking down at the reservation book, she silently stared at the new guest’s name. Hadn’t she heard it before now?

The blonde woman, meanwhile, had already entered the elevator, never letting up her stoic expression. When she arrived on her floor, she quickly found her room, unlocking the door. She dragged her suitcase in, then closed the door and locked it behind her. She turned on a light and moved to close the blinds…but not before getting a good, long look at the city beneath her. The bright neon lights of Minato Ward, the still heavy traffic and people hurrying in just about every direction, ready to head home after a long day…

The blonde gave a small, wistful smile as she looked at this innocuous scene, sighing through her nose. “Been a long time, Juuban…” she said to herself, before grabbing the curtains and closing them. She pulled her duffel bag out and unzipped it, and removed a rather unusual outfit for a woman her age: a sailor fuku, blue heels, and a big red pair of glasses. Clothes from a bygone era, from days long passed.

Or at least, they were supposed to be.

Minako Aino held the fuku up, giving it a good look over.

“Alright…time to get to work.”

The squeak of a damp towel rubbing against a glass mug was by far the loudest sound in the bar that night. The bartender wiped at his brow as he placed the mug back with the others. It had been a long night—the usual pack of drunken businessmen and the occasional alcoholic or two had come and gone, though luckily they left the place intact. The chairs were still pushed against the tables, not yet stacked, and the booths had yet to be swept of crumbs and beer stains. It was a mess, most certainly, but it was a manageable mess.

The bartender yawned. Thursdays were one of the rowdier days at the bar, though he knew tomorrow would be worse. Fridays always were. For now, though, all he had to do was show the last customer out and he could be one step closer to home.

“Ma’am, it’s closing time,” he said, directing his attention to the woman whose head was currently laying next to an empty mug of beer. The last customer of the night…the last customer every night she was there, sitting at a table in the corner, close to passing out.

Usagi’s legs dangled awkwardly from the bar stool. Her eyes were barely open, caught somewhere between dreamland and the waking world. She wore a white blouse that gave way to a blue skirt, as well as a pink jacket that sported a distinct symbol on the back: a cartoonish drawing of a round, white bunny’s face, with dotted eyes, whiskers, and two long pointed ovals as ears.

The bartender gently tapped a finger next to Usagi’s head. She responded with a sudden snort, returning to consciousness…for a given definition of consciousness, that is.

“Awah! Ohh…everything’s spinning…” she whined, giving a meek hiccup. She awkwardly raised her head, her eyes swirling like goldfish in a glass bowl. She let out another hiccup, before looking at the bartender. Her entire body was rocking back and forth, close to teetering off the stool. She stifled a small belch, covering her mouth.

“Ghhng…time to go already?” the woman asked.

The bartender gave a bemused chuckle. “Ten o’clock every night, Miss Tsukino,” he replied. “I’ve already called you a cab if it helps.”

“My mom is -HIC- M-Miss Tsukino, thank you!” the blonde whined, woozily struggling to get off the stool. Her legs swung against the air, her hands awkwardly gripping the table, before she clumsily slid off…and promptly landed face-first on the floor. She let out another groan, almost as if the fall was a minor inconvenience.

“Ngggh…little help here?” she said.

The bartender gave a sigh. “Of course.”

He maneuvered over to the poor drunken mess and hoisted her upright with ease. Usagi let out a groan as her head tilted back against the table, mumbling a slurred “Thank you” under her breath.

“You do have a job to get to, right?” the bartender asked.

Usagi shook her head, a dopey grin on her face. “If they ever call me back, maybe. But don’t worry, I’ll be sober by morning, Mister uh…Mitsubushi?”

The man chuckled, rolling his eyes. “It’s Mitsuishi.”

Usagi gave a dopey chuckle. “Right, right…” Her legs hobbled and jerked to the door, the poor girl kept afloat by the bartender’s grip. The lights of a freshly arrived cab shone brightly against Usagi’s eyes.

“Mmmgh…morning already?” she asked. “Oh wait…right, cab.”

“You, uh, better hope you sober up quickly before you get home,” Mitsuishi said. “That was a lot you packed away tonight.”

Usagi simply laughed it off. “No more than I do every night!” She swung the door of the cab open, only to flop right on top of it. Yeah, she was gonna need help.

Mitsuishi once again grabbed Usagi and delicately helped set her down in the cab’s seat. The boozy blonde gave a buzzed snort, falling onto her side.

“Mmh…hey, Mr. Mitsuishi?” she mumbled.

“Yes?”

“Thanks.”

Mitsuishi gave a chuckle. “You have a good night, Bunhead.”

With a sudden hiccup, Usagi’s drunken smile started to waver. She felt growing nausea in her stomach as she swallowed back some spit, her cheeks turning pale. She hoped she could wait until she got home before throwing up—she didn’t want to embarrass herself more tonight.

The door closed and soon enough, the car was in motion. With no one watching, Usagi let her face crumble into despondency. The only sounds inside were the soft jazz from the radio and her own tired, melancholic breathing. She looked at the lights of the Juuban district that danced against the roof of the car and felt a familiar warmth flow through her. Something about them felt so welcoming to her.

And yet, the bartender’s words still echoed in her ears…

“Good night, bunhead."

She sniffled, a tear dripping down her cheek. Letting out a cough, she awkwardly moved upright as her hair tossed around, messily laying against her hips. She wiped her nose, a dribble of snot staining her sleeve.

“Fun night, ma’am?” the driver asked.

Usagi shook her head. “No. No, not…not really.”

The driver nodded. “I see. Drinking to forget, eh?”

Usagi hesitated before she responded. “Y-Yeah…to forget…ten, twelve years of forgetting, I guess.”

For a brief moment, she could almost see a smile. Not from the driver, though—a smile from a memory. His black hair flounced in the wind, the way his blue eyes shined brightly against the dark….

“Well, we’re here!”

The cab had pulled up to Usagi’s apartment building. The driver, apparently feeling generous, got out and opened the door. Usagi shook her head in a vain attempt to sober up, and then shakily got out onto the sidewalk.

“Alright there, ma’am?” the driver asked her.

“Yeah, yeah…’m fine…” Usagi muttered sleepily. She reached into her bag and pulled out what she was pretty sure were two 1000 yen bills.

“Here, buy yourself something nice…” she said as she pressed the bills into the driver’s hand.

“Um…thank you!” the driver said, sounding oddly surprised. “Thank you very much! You, um, get home safely, now.”

With that, the driver got back in his cab and sped off.

Now came the hard part. Usagi’s legs wobbled as they took her inside, climbing up the stairs to her room. Halfway up, she paused, feeling a heave in her stomach. She covered her mouth with one hand, her head jerking forward. Her other hand gripped the railing, her knees trembling as she took a deep breath through her nose, her insides quieting for just a moment.

Fuck…close one…

Usagi reached around her necklace and pulled out a key. Admittedly, it wasn’t the best place to keep a key, but she wasn’t in the right state of mind to be thinking about that at the moment. She unlocked the door, tiptoed inside, and silently crept to her room. She didn’t make any effort to wash up—as soon as she had closed the door, she immediately flopped down onto her bed. She managed to pull herself together just enough to set her alarm for the next day, and then she collapsed into a heap. She closed her eyes and tried to will her drunken haze to carry her off into a deep sleep so she could forget it all, but it was no use—no matter how hard she tried, his face never faded from her mind.

She hated seeing his face. His stupid, perfect face in those stupid purple pleated pants of his. That stupid, perfect smile, those stupid, perfect teeth.

“We’ll be together forever, Usako. Just you and me.”

She laid her head against a pillow and sobbed. Just like every night.

As the sun set on Juuban, the city began to calm down, but only slightly—the nightlife was as robust as ever, be it in bars, dance clubs, movie theaters...or perhaps less reputable establishments. Regardless of what they were doing, however, everyone was occupied with something or other, and few bothered so much as to even look up. Of course, that would hardly be surprising—a city’s skyline wasn't all that interesting after the hundredth time you saw it.

But if they had looked up, this is what they might have seen:

Perched on one of the higher rooftops in the city was a young woman—at least, she appeared to be a young woman, and maybe she was. The woman had short, light orange hair, with bright yellow eyes that seemed to gleam in the night like a cat’s. Her clothing was relatively simple—a dark shirt, shorts, and shoes, wrapped in an equally dark cloak. Normally, she dressed a bit more…extravagantly, but she had decided—or rather, it had been decided for her—that it would be best to remain inconspicuous, at least for the time being.

Mind you, her way of doing so was rather questionable—she had hung her feet over the edge and was absent-mindedly tracing shapes in the air…shapes that then took form out of strands of light that flowed from her fingertips.

“Geez, talk about boring,” she muttered as she silently traced a sideways figure eight above her head. “What the hell is taking her so long?”

“I was working,” a voice said from behind her. “I suppose it’s too much to hope that you were doing the same.”

The orange-haired woman turned to see a new arrival had soundlessly appeared behind her. She was another woman, though her hair was long and dark purple. Her eyes were a dark blue, and when they fixed on you, you couldn’t help but feel like you were about to get skewered by her gaze. She also wore a dark cloak, though underneath the other woman could make out her usual clothing--a regal, black military-style uniform with silver trim.

“We’re barely on schedule as it is, you know,” the stern woman continued. “Slacking off hurts all of us, Eros.”

“Hey, just because I’m not running myself ragged like the rest of you doesn’t mean I’m not working!” Eros shot back. “In fact, I’d say that I’m ahead of schedule.”

The long-haired woman raised an eyebrow as she folded her arms. “Then you’ve reached our quota of energy?”

“Um…well…I mean…not that far ahead,” Eros said, averting her eyes somewhat. “But I did get a pretty good start on it! See, I set up this one restaurant scheme, and well…did you know people are REALLY into the idea of eating spice until they pass out? Either way, it was one hell of a windfall for us.”

“I suppose that’s an acceptable start,” admitted the long-haired woman, albeit with a touch of reluctance. “The others and I have begun similar strategies, though I believe two of us will be focused in this part of the world for the time being.”

Eros cocked her head, looking confused. “That a good idea? What about the, uh…problem ?”

The long-haired woman grimaced, tightly gripping the sleeve of her uniform. “That will be…dealt with. In any case, our operations abroad should keep them busy enough that they won’t come here.”

Eros shrugged. “As good a plan as any, I guess. So, what do you have for me?”

The long-haired woman held out her hand. There was a flash of light, and then a small crystal appeared, floating above the palm of her hand. Light danced across its surface, and when Eros looked at it, she could see fragmented reflections of herself—and…something else—staring back at her.

“Nice,” she said appreciatively. “She really went all out on these, huh?”

“This sort of thing deserves to be done properly,” her companion replied. “Anyway, it’s all yours.”

She pushed the crystal outward, causing it to float toward Eros until it came to a stop between them. Eros raised her hands, and then, taking a deep breath sent several threads of light from her fingertips into the crystal. The crystal began to glow softly, with several different colors flashing out of it. As Eros poured in more threads of light, the glow grew in both size and intensity. In no time at all, it was the size of a human. Eros then began to pull on the threads, manipulating them like one would a marionette. The crystal’s light began to morph, and soon it was in the shape of a human as well.

Finally, Eros drew back her hands and snapped her fingers. The strands of light disappeared, and the glow faded. Where the crystal had been was now a figure, kneeling on the roof in front of them. It was a girl, probably not older than 17, with short black hair and wearing the uniform of one of the local high schools...or at least, that’s how it appeared at first glance.

The long-haired woman nodded in approval.

“You may rise,” she said, motioning upward.

The girl got to her feet, and as she did so, Eros saw that where her eyes should have been, she had two shimmering, crystalline surfaces.

“You are a Crystal Knight,” the long-haired woman said to their new creation. “Born to serve the Empress and to exact her will upon this Earth. Our wish is your purpose, our commands your life. Do you understand?”

The girl bowed, and when she raised her head again Eros saw that the crystalline surfaces had been replaced by two, seemingly ordinary eyes.

“Yes, Lady Philia,” the Crystal Knight said in a monotone. “I will obey whatever orders you see fit to give me.”

Man, I hope I can give some of these things a bit of personality, Eros thought to herself. This one’s as dull as dishwater.

“Very good,” said Philia, who didn’t care one whit about personality. “Now then…the mission we have for you is merely one phase of our plan. I expect you to use all your strength, but in truth, whether you actually survive is irrelevant. What’s more important is the energy and data that you will provide.”

“What is your bidding?” asked the Crystal Knight with a bow, and Eros couldn’t help but roll her eyes at just how little self-preservation the thing seemed to have.

“You will infiltrate Hikawa Shrine during the upcoming Festival,” said Philia. “And then you will destroy it.”

Chapter Text

“I hate mornings…”

Rei took a long, slow sip from her coffee mug, the aroma doing little to ease her tired eyes from the morning sunshine. Her raven hair laid messily around her shoulders, a slight migraine pounding in the front of her skull. If she could have gotten away with it, she’d have stayed in bed all day, but there was, unfortunately, a bit of a pressing matter at hand.

Her finger idly scrolling over her phone’s calendar, Rei looked over the various tasks she had today. The local festival did not only mean more visitors, it meant more work in general. It meant work in town, work outside of the shrine, and it all had to be planned out months ahead of time. Rei was no stranger to planning and arranging big events in a timely manner, but it didn’t make it any less stressful for her.

She looked out her window for a moment, listening to the distant but familiar caws of the crows outside. It was odd—she had always been fond of crows, of course, but for some reason the sound felt off to her today, almost ominous…

Rei shook her head. She shouldn’t dwell on things like this—it would be better if she just picked out some clothes and took a shower.

Though there was something else that needed her attention…

Despite still being in her pajamas, Rei awkwardly placed her robes on and made her way to the Sacred Flame of the shrine.

I’ll just meditate for a few minutes. Maybe that’ll calm my nerves.

The flame’s warmth spread over Rei’s face as she sat in front of it, eyes closed and legs crossed. Taking a deep breath, she willed her mind to empty itself of all distractions. In only a few seconds, everything fell away from her, and Rei felt almost nothing. Not the floor, not the wind, not even her own breath. All she felt was the flame.

She had long since mastered this ritual, although it had been some time since she truly had cause to perform it. At first, she saw nothing. That was hardly surprising—after all, what was there to see? Sometimes a few faint images would appear, maybe a glimmer of a face or two. Right now, however, it was as if there was no flame at all—a void, cold and lifeless.

Rei concentrated further. She knew there was something here—there had to be.

Slowly, something came into focus. A city…Tokyo, maybe? Yes, it had to be—she could see Tokyo Tower right in the center, the sun setting behind it. It was an oddly peaceful vision, not what she had been expecting. Buildings slowly darkening in the growing nighttime, cars running through the streets, people walking home.

In a momentary loss of control, Rei allowed herself to relax. Perhaps she had overreacted. Perhaps there wasn’t any danger after all.

Then, as if fate itself was mocking her naïveté , the vision changed, like a train thrown off its tracks . The city, previously full of people, was suddenly desolate and lifeless. Tokyo Tower was broken, toppled, and lying ruined across the city streets . Cars were abandoned, buildings were in flames. Rei gasped as more images of destruction throughout the city flashed before her eyes . The screams of children and their mothers, explosions tearing through the sky, fire and death…and then silence.

“No…no, this…this can’t be…”

There was a flash, and the image changed again. This time it was New York City in flames. The crumbled corpse of the Statue of Liberty lay in the ocean, its torch and the hand that held it both missing . The city itself looked as if it had been carpet-bombed , shattering windows and entire highways, and there were yet more screams, more crying, more chaos. 

The visions kept coming as more cities revealed themselves, recognizable by their famous landmarks that now lay in ruins. Beijing, London, Paris, Moscow… the list continued to grow as the visions accelerated with each second. The screaming only grew louder as fire melted iron and concrete was splintered, torn apart by some…some oppressive, unseen force that even Rei, a mere spectator to this phantom of a future, could feel bearing down on her…

She felt her stomach seize up as waves of nausea rolled over her. She had heard stories of prophets seeing visions of the end of the world, but she hardly expected she would be the poor fool to see it for herself—twice in one lifetime, at least. She wanted to look away, to run and never turn back, to avoid the burning of the flame. But the vision was not yet finished.

After what felt like an eternity of utter carnage, the chaos subsided . Rei saw an abandoned city street in the midst of the ruins, coated in fog and smoke. There, right in the middle of the street, she could just make out a silhouette in the fog. At first, it was formless, impossible for her to make out who it was, but before long it became clearer. It wasn’t one silhouette but five, all standing next to each other. The one in the center glowed with a distinctive pink light, stirring an all too familiar memory in Rei.

And then, she heard it.

“MOON ETERNAL POWER! MAKE-UP!”

With that, the image vanished . Rei slowly opened her eyes and realized that she was absolutely drenched in sweat as a bead rolled off her nose and landed on her knees. She felt a weight crushing against her chest, barely able to breathe. She clutched her stomach, panting and feeling the urge to wretch.

“What the hell …” she mumbled, her voice withered into a rasp.

She hurriedly stumbled to her feet, rushing out of the room without even bothering to close the door behind her. She struggled to calm her breaths, her chest heaving as she began to hyperventilate. Her hand trembled as she grabbed at the wall, taking a shaky step forward.

“This can’t…this can’t be...”

A loud, vibrating buzz cut through Rei’s panicked murmurings. Taking a deep breath, she entered her bedroom again and retrieved her phone. It was a simple text message from Emi: “I’m getting ready for the festival, Miss Rei! Do you have our robes ready?”

“Shit…” Rei mumbled. She hurriedly texted back.

“I’m in the bath, would you mind giving me a few minutes?”

She would be met with a thumbs-up emoji—she’d bought herself a moment of respite for the time being. Hurriedly, Rei took her robe off, grabbed some clean clothes, and entered the bathroom. Soon enough, she would be in steaming warm water, valuing the few seconds she would have to relax before the rest of the day dawned for her. She took in a deep breath, feeling her hand twitch against the rim of the bath.

The image of fire still ran through Rei’s mind. She did her best to bury it, to act as though it was all some hallucination brought about by overwork. But no, that did not ring true. She hadn’t been wrong all those years ago with Pharaoh 90—why would she be wrong now? She wished she had someone to talk to about this. Someone who actually understood the severity of this situation…

Wait.

The others…

Usagi’s headache beat in rhythm with her alarm clock as she felt the pain of the morning sun hit her eyes. She could barely open them, though—everything felt as though a flash grenade had gone off in her bedroom. She feebly slapped her hand against her alarm, hitting the snooze button after three failed attempts.

Gradually, her eyes adjusted to the light, though her headache was only made worse by a nauseous feeling in the pit of her stomach. It took her even longer to place her legs on the ground, only to feel them turn into spaghetti.

C’mon, she thought to herself. You can do it.

Well, maybe that was more confident than she really felt. Still, the sooner she got up, the better she’d feel…right?

Fumbling her legs forward, Usagi had to grip the wall just to keep herself upright, fighting back another heave from her stomach. After several seconds of struggling that felt far longer in Usagi’s hungover mind, she had made her way to the kitchen, grabbed a cup, and poured herself some water from the sink. She took a heavy sip and panted, slouching against the fridge.

“Fucking…note to self…get at least some hydration before passing out…” she mumbled. As she opened a bottle of aspirin, a sudden knock pounded through her ears, causing her to drop both it and the contents within on the ground.

“Ghhhh…coming…” she moaned, haphazardly picking up whatever aspirin she could and swallowing it down. Hobbling over to the door, Usagi slowly opened it…and quickly found herself knocked back onto the floor by an excited child screaming directly at her face.

“AUNTIE USAGIIIIIIIIII!!!”

Standing over her was a young girl with short red hair in a boyish cut and an almost unnervingly wide smile, dressed in a peach-colored yukata.

“Oh…uh…hey, Naoko,” Usagi muttered, trying her hardest to avoid making eye contact. “Sorry about this…Auntie Usagi’s not feeling her best… another long night… ”

“ Wow, did you get into a bar fight? That’d be SO cool if you did!! ” Naoko said excitedly as she crouched down next to Usagi.

“ N-No, nothing like that!” Usagi bashfully replied, horrified by the thought of doing something even dumber than her current blunder. “ I just had just a bit too much last night, but I’ll be okay.”

“You’re so cool!” said Naoko, eyes lighting up with admiration. “I wish I could get into a bar fight ! Why, I’d jab some thugs left and right like they never saw me c— ”

“Naoko, don’t say things like that!” said Naru, chiding her daughter as she entered the room. “You’re only eight! Little girls don’t drink. Or get into bar fights!”

“Awwww, but mom!” the little girl replied. “It’s so cool in the movies!”

Usagi hobbled herself upright, blinking away stars as she saw Naru dressed in a yellow yukata. She tilted her head in confusion.

“Is…something going on today?” Usagi asked, feeling like she was missing something important.

Naru sighed. “Today’s that big festival Hikawa Shrine is putting on, remember?”

Usagi felt a sinking feeling in her stomach at the mention of Hikawa Shrine. She gulped. “O-Oh, yeah, huh? Um… did I want to go to that? I dunno if I can, I mean…”

“You mean what?” Naru asked, confused. “ You told me you wanted to come with us.”

“Ohh uh, hehe… d-did I?” said Usagi, giggling nervously. “ W-Well, uh, I mean... plans do change, I guess. I mean, I’d need to shower, find my yukata, make sure it still fits…you’d be waiting way too long for me, it’d be better if you just went without me!”

“You sure about that, Usagi?” Naru asked, a tone of worry in her voice. “You’ve been cramped in here for a while…something social might bring your spirits up! Plus, Naoko’s really been looking forward to spending some time with her favorite auntie again!”

“C’mon, please!” said Naoko with her wide, pleading eyes. “We can scoop goldfish, eat takoyaki, shoot fireworks into cops’ faces — ”

“You can do everything but that last one!” Naru said hurriedly. She was pretty sure her daughter was joking, but she felt that it was always best to head her off. “Well, Usagi? What do you say?”

“Well, I…”

The truth was, Usagi didn’t really know what to say. On the one hand, part of her really did want to spend time with Naru and Naoko, but on the other…she wasn’t sure if she could bring herself to leave. Especially if it meant running into…

Naru, appearing to notice Usagi’s hesitance, appeared concerned.

“Usagi,” she said, “if there’s anything you want to talk about, we can—”

“Oh no, there’s nothing like that!” Usagi said hurriedly. “I can still go with you guys! Maybe I can skip the yukata this year, know what I mean?”

She gave a laugh that even she knew sounded forced, but that didn’t matter to her right now—she just wanted to make the subject was dropped .

Naru simply gave a sigh, a small smile creeping over her face. “If you wanna, I guess…just get yourself cleaned up and we’ll be waiting outside, okay?”

“Right!” Usagi replied. “And don’t worry Naoko, we’ll scoop as many goldfish as you can carry!”

Naoko gave a cheery giggle while Usagi hobbled over to the bathroom, eager to get a nice, warm shower. Maybe this would help relieve her from this hangover, or at least enough that she could actually tolerate being sociable.

Naru crossed her arms and tapped an idle finger against her elbow as she waited, her smile fading into a worried expression. This was…not going as she had hoped. She had known that Usagi had it rough sometimes, but she had thought today she would have had herself more together.

“Hey, Mom? Why does Aunti Usagi drink so much?” Naoko asked.

Naru stiffened and shook her head. “I’ll tell you after the festival, dear. It’s a long story.”

And one I barely even know, at that.

It had been a long time since Ami had broken out her yukata for a festival, but once she had arrived in town, it was clear why.

The noise hit her like a sledgehammer. Everyone was talking and packing into the street, their voices blending into a miasma of conversations, words piled on top of words. Walking in the street or even on the sidewalk, filled with vendors hawking their booths, was like walking through a war zone to her . No matter where she turned, she couldn’t escape it—if anything, it only got worse, as though she was being boxed in. No one was touching her, and yet she felt like she was being squeezed from all sides, forced into a corner until she could hardly move any longer. Coming out had been a mistake—she had to leave, had to—

Ami’s panicked thoughts had come to a crashing halt as she suddenly stumbled into someone. Fortunately, she was unharmed—in fact, it had managed to jar her out of her anxiety, at least for the moment. Staying stuck inside her own head had only made it worse.

“Oh, I’m so sorry!” Ami said automatically, turning to the person she had collided with. “Are you alright?”

“Hikawa Shrine…”

Ami blinked. “I’m sorry?”

The girl Ami had run into turned to her. She had short black hair and appeared to be a teenager, wearing a local high school uniform. For a moment, she appeared dazed, almost like she was in a trance, but then her eyes lit up and focused on Ami.

“Can I help you?” the girl asked, tilting her head slightly.

“Oh, I was…um…just saying I was sorry for bumping into you just now,” Ami said, rather put off by the girl’s nonchalant demeanor.

The girl didn’t show any outward reaction to this. “Oh, did you? I didn’t notice.”

“Um…oh, okay. Sorry for troubling you, then!”

Ami turned to leave, her face flushing with embarrassment when the girl suddenly grabbed her arm.

“GAH!” Ami yelped, jumping slightly. “Wh-What are you…is something wrong?”

“Can you help me?” the girl asked evenly. “I need to get to Hikawa Shrine.”

“Oh, um…well, I can definitely try pointing you in the right direction…” Ami said nervously. She hadn’t planned on talking to many people like this. Granted, if she was going to be out and about, it might be a good idea to get used to it…but something about the girl as…unnerving. “My name’s, ah…Ami Mizuno, by the way. What’s yours?”

The girl said nothing, simply continuing to stare at her, not even blinking.

“Ooookay…” Ami said, not sure how to react at all to this. She supposed an introvert like herself was hardly one to judge, but this girl just seemed…well, weird beyond measure. “Let’s see, it’s been a while since I’ve been to the shrine. I think it’s in… that direction?”

She pointed down the street, knowing that she was being frustratingly nonspecific. And yet, the girl didn’t seem to mind at all…

“But I really don’t know exactly where,” she said apologetically. “You might have better luck asking one of the booths.”

“I’ll do that, then,” the girl said, and then walked off without another word.

Well, that was strange , Ami thought, before turning around. Still, it had gone better than she might have thought it would have. Maybe the festival wouldn’t be so bad after all.

She had only taken five steps when something dawned on her—namely, why would someone who attended a nearby high school need directions to somewhere as locally well-known as the Hikawa Shrine?

On instinct, she turned around…but the girl had already vanished from sight.

Usagi could already feel herself cheering up. Sure, the festival was as hectic as usual, and she could still feel the pangs of a migraine against her head, but she could ignore all that as long as she was with her friends. It helped that Naoko seemed enthralled by her stories…though her father would beg to disagree.

“So my dad actually wore a dress and everything?” Naoko giggled, regaled by her auntie’s tale of a certain competition from years past.

“Mhm!” Usagi replied. “Honestly, he really rocked it! Even if he couldn’t really get the voice right.”

“It’s not like I was a voice actor or anything,” a certain bespectacled nerd mumbled, rolling his eyes at such an old memory.

“Hey, you looked good in it, Umino!” Usagi protested.

“I told you, I took Naru’s family name!” exclaimed the man formerly known as Gurio Umino. “Just call me Gurio, alright?!”

“Yeah, but…”

“But what?”

“You just…feel more like an Umino to me?”

Gurio let out an annoyed groan, his hands pulling his hair as his cheeks turned red. Behind him, both his wife and his daughter were getting a good laugh at his expense.

“It did take me a while to finally call you by your first name, now that I think about it ,” Naru noted.

“IT TOOK YOU THREE YEARS!” Gurio whined, his voice cracking.

“Jeez, chill out, Umino,” Naoko smirked, exchanging a knowing glance with her auntie.

“N-Naoko…” muttered Gurio, his eyes starting to water. “How could you…”

“Now now, Naoko, don’t tease your father too much,” Naru gently noted, affectionately patting her husband’s shoulder. “You know how he gets.”

Usagi couldn’t help but laugh. In spite of everything, this really was shaping up to be a great time. She took a moment to take in the sights of the festival—takoyaki stands, goldfish scooping, Ami, shooting galleries—

Wait.

Usagi paused, the smile on her face faltering as she zeroed in on a woman only a couple of feet away from her. A woman with a short blue haircut, round glasses and a yukata…

Before she could think about what she was doing, she was already walking away from Naru’s family like she was in a trance, approaching her old friend with a mixture of worry and panic.

Does she even still recognize me? What do I say? Should I just—

“ …Ami?”

The woman froze like a deer in headlights, then slowly turned around.

“Usagi?”

The two stared at each other without a word for several minutes, as Usagi looked Ami up and down. She could see that the years had left subtle changes to Ami’s face—her face looked rough and gaunt , her eyes had some noticeable bags under them— but it was still recognizably Ami’s. A bittersweet feeling welled up in Usagi’s stomach. This…she had not planned for this at all, what was she going to do? She had to say something…something…

“Um… so…how’re you doin’?”

Ami blinked.

“How am I…doing?”

Crap, crap, crap, crap!

“W-Well, I mean…” Usagi stammered. “I just thought…”

Usagi was cut off by the sound of Ami chuckling. Not a derogatory chuckle, though—this had a bit of… warmth to it.

“Hey, what’s so funny?!”

“O-Oh, it’s nothing, it’s just…” Ami replied, awkwardly fidgeting with her glasses. “It’s been so long, I guess I’ve…missed you making me laugh.”

At that, Usagi couldn’t help but give a little chuckle of her own. “Hey, guess I’m still good at something, yeah?” she joked, nudging Ami with her elbow. It was like a weight had been lifted from her shoulders. Something from her past that she hadn’t thrown out the window…

“Auntie Usagi’s got another girlfriend??” came a familiar voice, as Naoko suddenly ran up behind them.

“W-What??” Ami blushed, caught off guard by such a brazen comment.

“Naoko, she’s not a girlfriend,” Usagi grumbled, crossing her arms. “She’s just an old friend of mine and your mom’s.”

“Her mother?” Ami asked. “Wait…”

Suddenly, bursting out of the crowd (and shoving a fair few people out of her way), a seething Naru grabbed a hold of her rambunctious daughter, followed closely by her panicked husband.

“NAOKO OSAKA, HOW MANY TIMES HAVE I TOLD YOU NOT TO RUN OFF WITHOUT US??”

“H-Hey, I was just trying to find Auntie and her girlfriend!” the little girl whined, pouting as she was lifted right off the ground.

“She’s not my girlfriend!” Usagi fired back. “She’s just a friend ! And one your parents already know, at that!”

“Hm?” Naru looked up at Usagi’s companion, confusion visible on her face.

“I’m sorry, have we met?” she asked.

Ami blinked in surprise. Surely she didn’t look that different, did she?

“Naru, you mean you don’t recognize her?” Usagi asked in surprise. “But this is — ”

“Oh, of course, Ami Mizuno!” Gurio suddenly exclaimed , reaching out to shake Ami’s hand like he was meeting the Prime Minister . “It’s been ages!”

“Ami?” Naru said . She didn’t exactly remember everyone from middle school, but…the name did sound familiar…

“You’re the girl who had the best marks in school right?”

“Best marks?!” Gurio exclaimed. “She was the smartest person in the whole school—the country, even!”

Ami bashfully nodded, a meek smile on her face. “I-I suppose I did leave a bit of an impression at times…”

“Hey, you left one on me!” Usagi chuckled, playfully elbowing Ami once again.

“Heh…I did, didn’t I?” Ami replied.

“ Well, why don’t you come with us, then?” offered Naru. “We can take the time to catch up.”

“That…”

A knot formed in Ami’s stomach. Sure, she was with people she could trust, but after everything that had happened…would this really be the best idea?

Then again, what did she have to lose?

“…that sounds lovely, thank you,” said Ami, politely bowing her head. “Where should we go first?”

“Ooh, Mommy, can we go to that shooting gallery?” Naoko asked Naru excitedly. “I wanna put one right between the eyes!”

“Oh, we should get some more takoyaki too!” Usagi cut on. “Can’t walk around all night on an empty stomach!”

“Naoko, let’s not talk about it like that, okay?” Naru said as the two of them began to drag her back into the festival. “And Usagi, I don’t think your stomach’s empty right now! Listen, you two—”

Ami kept about a foot of distance between herself and the rest, quietly looking the scene over. To think that here of all places, she would meet Usagi again. And with Naru and her family? What were the odds?

More than that, however, was the ever-present knot in her stomach. A feeling of unease that remained despite her moment of happiness. A familiar feeling she’d experienced for some time now.

There was something about a family that left her feeling empty inside.

“Miss Rei, we’re having a situation out here!” 

Rei was snapped back to reality by a panicked Kae clutching at her sleeve, pointing in the direction of their booth. Right behind the poor girl, Emi was hurriedly trying to find beads and charms, a lengthy line of frustrated customers standing a good couple of feet out.

“ Oh right…w hat’s wrong?” she asked.

“It’s getting really out of hand out there!” Kae explained hurriedly. “All of the sudden we started getting a ton of people for some reason! We’re trying to keep everything organized, but there are just too many of them! What should we do?”

Rei thought fast. If Kae was just coming to her now, there should still be time to manage this, but every second they waited, they risked things spiraling out of control.

“I’ll take care of this,” she said authoritatively. “You just do exactly what I tell you.”

Emi and Kae nodded nervously as Rei stepped forward. Surveying the crowd, she cleared her throat and clapped twice, grabbing everyone’s attention.

“Good afternoon , everyone!” she announced brightly. “Hikawa Shrine is immensely grateful for your patronage today! However, seeing as there are so many of you today, we’re going to need to do things a little differently than usual. If we could just ask for a few moments of your time, we’ll adjust our set-up so that we’re able to get to everyone in a timely fashion. Rest assured, everyone here will — ”

“Exactly how long is this gonna take?” said someone further down the line.

“There’s some freaky stuff going on here, lady!” another voice chimed in. “I’m telling you, my neighbor put a curse on my dog!!”

“I can assure you,” Rei interrupted, “we will provide you with charms momentarily, just please b—”

“Momentarily isn’t enough!” the same voice chimed in. A few grumbles from the crowd seemed to support their frustration.

Rei sighed. “Alright…let’s mix things up a bit.”

She swiftly grabbed three charms, holding one each between her fingers. Then, in one swift motion, she threw them forward to the first three people in line. They each caught their charm rather awkwardly, looking amazed.

“Now then,” said Rei, now holding three charms in both hands. “Time to speed this up.”

She quickly went to work, tossing out charms six at a time. Kae and Emi could only watch in awe as she worked her way down the line, cutting the crowd down to size in seconds. Rei’s arms were a blur, her movements carried out with the utmost precision, almost as if they were second nature to her.

“So cool…” Emi mumbled, stars in her eyes.

“Uh…yeah, sure, I guess,” Kae replied.

Within a few minutes, Rei had successfully cut the line down to a mere couple of people standing in front of the booth, who she decided to politely hand charms to. That didn’t stop some of the customers from staying around and staring at Rei with anticipation. Some even clapped when she had finished.

Rei took the attention in stride, giving a sly bow. “Please, everyone, your service is enough. I’m just doing my duty.”

Mercifully, the crowd decided to disperse after this. Rei detected some apprehension still among them, but overall they seemed very satisfied. Hopefully, things would be more peaceful from now—

She did a double-take. It had just been for a moment, but she thought she saw something…familiar…

Blonde hair…and a red bow…

No, there’s no way…she hasn’t been here in years…

She blinked, thinking it was just a trick of the light. But try as she might, the image was clear: a blonde-haired woman with a red bow in her hair, far off in the crowd like a distant image. Yet Rei could catch a glimpse of her face. Just a glimpse, an image barely able to be made out, but one that was firmly etched in her mind’s eye.

“Um…Miss Rei, you alright?” Kae asked.

Rei barely seemed to register her question. “Yes, I’m fine, just…”

Another image flashed before Rei’s eyes. The image of destruction…burning carnage everywhere…

Could it be…

“I need a moment, I apologize,” Rei said hurriedly, then taking off before either of the girls could respond.

The woman was no longer in sight, but Rei swiftly moved in the direction she had seen her in. She considered calling out, but didn’t dare try—the last thing she wanted was to make her presence known.

Come on, she can’t have gotten far …

She quickened her pace, fervently scanning her surroundings , barging past large crowds of people as she searched for her target . She was here, there was no mistake. All she had to do was—

“OOF!”

Rei was tossed onto the ground, her eyes spinning as she lost her bearings. She dazedly looked upwards to the sight of a taller woman on her knees, her hands clutching her face in panic.

“Oh my gosh, I am so sorry, did I hurt you??” the woman exclaimed.

Rei winced. Something about this felt familiar…

“Uh…sorry, just having a rough day,” she mumbled, struggling to her feet…only to be hit with another familiar realization.

Brown hair. Flower earrings. Tall, buff, and dressed in a green skirt.

It couldn’t be…

“…Makoto Kino.”

Makoto looked confused. She blinked several times, opened her mouth only to close it again as she furrowed her eyebrows…then her face lit up in astonishment.

“REI?!?”

The mission was proceeding as planned. The route to Hikawa Shrine had been established, and infiltration was underway. Once on-site, the second phase would begin.

Contact had been established with a possible obstacle, but the threat level presented was negligible for this operation—of all the potential threats, only one was likely to be a factor.

Infiltration was the current priority. Programming had been rushed somewhat, so interaction had to be limited, but this was not an issue for the task at hand—by itself, remaining inconspicuous was simple.

Contact was made again—a middle-aged man who was in a rush.

“Ah, I’m so sorry, young lady! I should have been watching where I was going!”

“It’s no trouble. I have to get going.”

“W-well, that’s…ah…well, okay then.”

Better awareness of the surroundings was necessary—too much attention would make things difficult. Surveying the area was simple, and did not take up much time, so--

Wait.

Directly behind, approximately 10 meters away. A woman in her 30’s, with blonde hair and a conspicuous red bow. This was one of the potential threats and a rather sizable one at that, certainly far more than the previous encounter. But she didn’t seem to take notice of anything strange. She was on her phone, distracted.

Infiltration could continue. It would be necessary to ascertain any defenses within Hikawa. Given the owner, she was likely to have a few tricks up her sleeve—the power of her charms could already be felt through the festival. Another thing to take note of—magic was still strong here.

Wait. Something was wrong. The Sailor left her seat. Where was she? She could not be allowed to remain unaccounted for, she had to be—

Ah, there. Twenty meters behind her. A subtle change in demeanor could be observed. She was on edge, that much was clear. Did she know the plan? Impossible to say now—a test was necessary. A momentary detour, away from the shrine.

Round the corner through the crowd. Round another corner. A sharp turn back in the opposite direction. There was no mistake—the Sailor was following. She knew, and that left no recourse.

She would need to be directed to an isolated area, preferably an alleyway of some kind. If she gave up the pursuit, that was acceptable.

If not, measures would be taken.

Chapter Text

“Oh my gosh, Rei! How long has it been?”

Today had already been a pretty good day for Mako—being able to spend time with her son was more than enough to satisfy her, especially since she rarely had the chance to do so. Time and time again work had kept her away from home, forcing her to make do with what few opportunities she had to spend with Hiro. A whole day off, let alone for a festival, was practically miraculous—running into an old friend too? She couldn’t remember the last time she had as good a day as this.

And if she thought it was odd that Rei seemed to wince slightly upon seeing her react this way…well, surely it wasn’t anything to worry about, right?

“Erm…fift…fift…” Rei stammered uncharacteristically, before clearing her throat. “Fifteen years, I think?”

“Fifteen years??” Mako exclaimed. “Gosh, time really does fly, huh?”

“Um…Mom, who’s this?” came a soft voice from right behind Mako. Hiro had been awkwardly standing behind his mother, visibly unsure what to make of this new arrival. His discomfort would have been instantly recognizable to anyone who had to suffer through their parents endlessly talking to their friends at the grocery store…but Mako never actually had, so she was completely oblivious.

“Oh, Hiro!” she said, eager to make introductions. “This is Rei Hino, she’s an old friend of mine! She works at the Hikawa Shrine…or wait, I guess she runs it now, heh…”

Mako playfully knocked her head with her knuckles, before gesturing to Hiro.

“Rei, this is Hiro. He’s…” 

A lump formed in Mako’s throat, but she pushed it down and continued.

“Well, he’s my son.”

At that moment, everything just stopped for Rei. This was…well, this made things a lot more complicated.

Time marched on—for all of them, not just her, she knew that much. But in the years since they had all parted ways, Rei had done her best not to think about her former friends in detail—the last thing she had wanted to do was dredge up painful memories of their parting. So she had allowed herself to crystallize her mental images of them and had never seriously entertained the notion that they had changed at all since then.

But now, here was Makoto Kino, standing in front of her with a boy that couldn’t be any older than eight, the picture of happiness.

Happiness that would be all too easy for her to shatter.

“Your son?” she repeated numbly, as if Mako would only laugh and say she’d been joking.

She shook her head. She had to get it together—that was the least she could do right now.

“That’s…that’s wonderful!” she said, doing her best to crack a smile. “Congratulations! He’s lucky to have such a great mother.”

“Well, I try…” Mako awkwardly chuckled, glancing down at her son with an expression that seemed equal parts loving and melancholic. “He didn’t have anyone there for him until me…and I guess neither did I.”

“Mom, come on, don’t just say stuff like that!” said Hiro, looking extremely embarrassed.

Mako’s eyes widened, then she just laughed.

“Oops, sorry!” she said as she rustled Hiro’s hair. “He, uh, doesn’t like talking about that kind of stuff. But, um, moving on…how have you been?”

Rei hesitated.

Oh, just fucking peachy, Mako! Feeling nostalgic for high school? I sure hope so, ‘cause I just had a vision of the end of the world and now we need to team up to stop it like it’s 1997 again! 

Well, that would be one way to scare her off, and maybe traumatize a grade-schooler in the process.

Maybe…she just shouldn’t say anything at all? What right did she have to force Mako back into a life they had given up years ago?

…But then wouldn’t she just be taking the decision out of Mako’s hands? Surely she wouldn’t thank her if she found out that Rei had been keeping this a secret from her…

“Listen, Mako…” Rei began hesitantly. “There’s something I need to talk to you about…”

Mako paused. “Yeah?”

Rei took a deep breath. “I-I…”

“And then we all hid behind a guy while we spied on her!” came a familiar laugh. 

Rei could practically feel her hair standing on end.

Ooooh no…

“I-It wasn’t exactly my proudest moment,” came another voice, softer and more embarrassed. At this, Mako visibly tensed up in turn.

“ Shit …” Rei cursed under her breath.

“I wonder what Rei’s been up to, though,” Ami said. “I would have thought she’d be front and center here.”

“Oh please,” Usagi scoffed. “This place is so packed, we’d be lucky if we bumped into h—oh…”

Okay, thought Rei as she locked eyes with the last person she wanted to see right now. This is very bad.

Nostalgia was often a double-edged sword. It was all too easy for the good parts of the past to obscure the bad. The parts where you remember all the fun you had with your friends make it easy to ignore how you later lost them in a fight. Maybe the fight doesn’t matter after so long. Maybe it was all over nothing.

Usagi Tsukino, for her part, had little trouble focusing on the good memories and was practically an expert by now at pushing away the bad ones. But as soon as her eyes locked onto a certain familiar face, the atmosphere of the crowd became so tense that a knife could cut through it. She felt a chill run down her shoulder as an unwanted memory snuck back to the fore of her mind.

After a while, some fights don’t matter anymore.

“If you walk out that door, Usagi…I’ll never forgive you…”

But some fights do.

“Uh…h-hey there, Rei…”

“Usagi,” acknowledged Rei, her voice noticeably strained. “It’s been a while.”

“Well, you know…life has a way of…getting in the way, am I right?”

Usagi let out the most authentic-sounding laugh she could muster, but it apparently wasn’t enough, as no one else joined her. She continued half-heartedly for a moment, then let it fade out. She cleared her throat and then stared awkwardly at the ground, wishing that she could erase that from everyone’s memory.

“Well…this is certainly something, isn’t it?” said Ami, hoping to nudge things in a more positive direction. “I mean, who would have thought that we’d all be meeting up like this today? The only one we’re missing is…”

Unfortunately, the wind was knocked out of her sails when she made the mistake of looking at Mako. She had simply crossed her arms across her chest while not even bothering looking Ami in the eye, contempt written all over her face.

“Mi…na…ko…”

Any attempt at further conversation died in Ami’s throat as she assumed a similar posture to Usagi.

“Mom, are these more of your friends?” asked Hiro, now even more eager to leave. One old friend was one thing, but now the level of awkwardness was reaching critical mass.

Mako simply sighed and nodded. “Usagi’s another old friend of mine, yeah.”

Ami hadn’t expected much from Mako, and yet that still hurt more than she had expected it would. She briefly glanced at Hiro, a knot forming in her stomach.

“Anyways, it’s nice to see you again, Usagi,” Mako continued, “but I think we should really be go—”

“Wait.”

Mako paused. Rei had grabbed her arm with a tense grip, her eyes looking panicked.

“…Rei?” Mako asked. “Is everything alright?”

Rei winced, her eyes darting back and forth between Usagi, Ami, and Mako. She had most of them here. She swore she’d seen Minako a moment ago. They were here. They were all here.

Then why was it so hard to say anything?

“You doing okay, Rei?” asked Usagi. “You look kind of pale. Maybe you should lie down for a bit…”

“You think so, huh?” Rei suddenly snapped back. “I guess you’re an expert on that, aren’t you?”

“E-Excuse you??” Usagi exclaimed, her cheeks turning crimson with a mix of embarrassment and indignation.

Rei grit her teeth, taking a deep breath as she tried to reorient herself. “Look, it’s been a long day, I just n—”

“Rei, what the hell is wrong with you??” Mako fired back, breaking from Rei’s grip. “You haven’t seen Usagi in years and this is how you treat her?”

“It’s not as though we all left on good terms,” Ami said quietly.

Mako shot her a piercing look, causing Ami to take a few steps back in alarm.

“Well there you two are!”

Another voice suddenly piped into the awkward meetup as Naru ran up to Usagi and Ami, not yet noticing the visible discomfort on their faces.

“You girls having fun with your little reunion?”

Looks were exchanged by all involved. Naru swore she recognized the two women there…though that was somewhat overshadowed by the incredibly tense atmosphere. Everyone either looked like they were about to cry, or like they were about to break something.

“Um…did I come in at a bad time?”

With a sigh, Mako turned and grabbed Hiro’s hand.

“I’m gonna call it quits for now,” she said as she made her leave. “It was nice seeing you again, Usagi—we should catch up more later.”

“Mako, wait!” Rei called after her, but she and Hiro had already vanished into the crowd. She felt a knot in her stomach. She was so close…she had three of them here again, and she screwed it up with her big mouth. She wanted to stick her head in the sand and hide from everything.

But there was no time for that. She had to fix this.

“Um…Rei?” Ami asked.

“Stay here, talk later!” she said hurriedly, before dashing off into the crowd after Mako.

Ami watched her go, the pain in her heart fading somewhat as it was replaced by pure confusion.

“So…I guess we just stay here, then?” she said.

Usagi gave a sigh, turning around and walking off without saying a word.

“Usagi?”

She paused, turning around to face Ami. “I’m just…going to get a drink. I’ll see you in a bit.”

And like that, she continued to walk off, her feet shuffling against the ground and kicking up pebbles.

“Okay seriously, what did I miss?” Naru asked, bewildered by this sudden turn of events.

“I’m afraid I only know half the story,” Ami matter of factly said. She sighed, walking off in Usagi’s direction, shaking her head at this turn of events. Yet something still nagged at her about this whole ordeal.

What did Rei want to talk to us about?

“Mom…is everything alright?”

Mako stopped walking. They had gotten a good distance away from the shrine, so now seemed like a good moment to catch her breath. She must have been running on fumes, though, because as soon as she stopped, a sudden weariness overtook her. She let go of Hiro’s hand and bent over, taking a few slow, deep breaths to steady herself.

“Don’t worry, I’m fine, I’m…”

At that moment, she chose to look at Hiro. His face was etched with worry, his eyes full of uncertainty. He didn’t seem to understand what he’d just witnessed a few minutes ago…nor did he understand just why his mother had gotten so angry about it.

“Oh, honey,” said Mako, placing her hands on his shoulders, “I’m sorry you had to see that. All of that doesn’t have anything to do with you, I didn’t mean to drag you into it.”

“It’s okay,” Hiro said quietly, not quite meeting his mother’s gaze. “Did you guys, um…break up?”

Mako blinked for a moment, stunned. Then, as her head wrapped around what Hiro had just said, she suddenly started laughing.

“Oh gosh, oh gosh!” she managed to gasp out, taking a few more breaths to calm herself down again. “Well, I…um, yeah, I guess you could say that. There were some rough patches, and a few differences of opinion, and, well…honestly, it’s all pretty complicated, I’m not sure I even remember most of it.”

That was not strictly true, but really, she didn’t see any need to trouble Hiro with the details.

“Look, what are we doing, talking about me?” Mako asked brightly as she leaped back upright. “We’ve got the entire rest of the night ahead of us! What do you wanna do?”

“Well…” Hiro said, a slight blush covering his face. “I-I had a friend who said she’d be here t—”

“HIROOOOOOOOOOO!!”

At that moment, the piercing cry of a rambunctious eight-year-old pierced through the crowd, and Hiro found himself on the receiving end of a tackle by a red-haired lunatic. The poor kid was practically in a daze as he saw the girl’s cattish grin only a few inches from his face, eager for mayhem.

“H-Hi…Naoko…” he whimpered. The girl leaped off her target, her grin unyielding as her attention suddenly turned towards Mako.

“Oh my gosh, is this your mom??” she exclaimed. “You didn’t tell me she was so buff!”

Mako couldn’t help but chuckle at that. She could already tell this girl was a bit on the eccentric side. “I’m guessing this is your friend, Hiro?”

“Y-Yeah…” he stammered out. “This is Naoko Osaka…”

“Well, well, well, Yoshihiro Kino…you didn’t tell me you were dating!”

“WE ARE NOT DATING!!” both children suddenly exclaimed in unison. Naoko stuck her tongue out and blew a raspberry, insulted by such a comment.

“He’s just my friend!” she protested.

“Sure, sure, whatever you say,” Mako said, holding her arms up in mock protest. “You just meet me right here when you get done, okay Hiro?”

“You want me to go alone?” Hiro asked. “Without you?”

“I mean, would you want me to follow you and your friend around like some kind of uncool mom?” Mako asked.

Hiro’s eyes sheepishly turned from his mother to Naoko, the little redhead practically bouncing up and down in excitement. He could manage without adult supervision for a bit, right? It wasn’t like they were going to be separated by too much.

“W-Well…if you think that’s okay…”

“I’ll bring him back in one piece, Ms. Kino!” Naoko assured, grabbing Hiro by the arm to drag him off wherever. “Now then, Hiro…you know anything about goldfish scooping?”

He’ll be fine, thought Mako as she watched the two go. You need to trust him a bit , right? It’s not like he’s going to be a kid forever…

Mako blinked as a pang of melancholy jolted her heart. Where did that come from?

Anyway, now that Hiro was gone…

“I know you’re there,” she said evenly, in a quiet voice that she nonetheless knew would be heard by the person she intended it for. “Might as well come out if you’re going to be like this.”

Behind her, a panting Rei emerged from the crowd.

“You…saw I was there…huh?” she said as she gasped for breath.

“Didn’t feel like making another fuss about it,” replied Mako with a shrug. “That…didn’t go the way I was hoping.”

Rei let out a long sigh.

“Yeah, probably…probably should have seen that coming,” she admitted.

Mako nodded. “So?”

Rei looked at Mako, confused. “‘So’…what?”

“You said you wanted to talk, right?” Mako reminded her. “So talk.”

“Well, I, um…” stammered Rei, not having expected to be put on the spot. “I was kind of hoping we could have this discussion with all of us…”

“I’d like to know what I’m getting into before I head to the big reunion,” said Mako, her eyes narrowing as she crossed her arms.

Rei took in a breath through her nose, straightening her posture, and took a step forward. “I…I had a vision. A big one.”

Mako released a low, rattling breath, her stomach filled with lead. “How big, exactly?”

“Apocalyptic. The whole world was…destroyed. And we’re…we’re the ones who have to stop it from happening.”

All of the color drained from Mako’s face as a wave of nausea washed over her. Part of her instinctively thought that Rei was lying, that this was some sick joke…but that couldn’t be it. Rei would never lie to her about this, not about her visions. But if that was the case…

“So…” Mako began to respond, aware that her mouth had gone dry. “Us meeting again…”

“It’s no coincidence,” Rei finished. “I’m sorry I couldn’t tell you earlier…”

Mako sighed. “And do you know who the enemy is this time?”

Rei shook her head. “I just had the vision this morning. I wouldn’t know where to sta—”

Suddenly, an ear-piercing scream broke through the crowd. Rei immediately turned to a nearby corner where a small crowd had gathered. A chill ran up her spine as a familiar feeling began to tingle in the back of her head. It had been a while since she’d felt something like this…

“What’s going on?” Mako asked.

Rei pulled a slip of enchanted paper from her sleeve. “Nothing good,” she dryly replied.

The two rushed past the crowd, hearing bits of conversation about whatever had transpired.

“Did somebody get a good look at them?” asked one person.

“She really needs an ambulance,” said another.

“I swear, she had claws…” said a third.

“Excuse me,” said Rei to a nearby elderly woman. “Has something happened?”

“Oh, it was just terrible!” said the woman. “Everyone was having a wonderful time, and then there was this horrible scream, and the next thing you know a poor girl was being attacked by this dreadful woman!”

“No no no, that’s not right!” objected another nearby woman. “The attacker was the one who was a young girl! One of those terrible delinquents you hear about on the news, I’d say! She was clawing at her and biting here and doing all sorts of unspeakable things—just awful!”

“Hang on, that’s not right!” protested a young man. “She came at her with a knife, I’m sure she did!”

“No, she bashed her on the head!”

“You need your eyes checked, she obviously broke her arms!”

“How can you—”

Rei loudly cleared her throat, causing the arguing crowd to turn towards her.

“Maybe we should focus on getting this person some medical attention, rather than arguing about what happened?”

The crowd grew silent, looking at each other awkwardly. They didn’t show any indication of continuing to argue, but none of them seemed willing to be the one to make the first move either.

“For God’s sake,” Rei muttered under her breath.

She shoved her way through the crowd, kneeling in front of the person they had centered upon. It was a blonde woman dressed in a blue mini-skirt and a white blouse, with cuts across her arms and her abdomen. Her abdomen looked like it’d been clawed , really. She was turned on her side, so Rei couldn’t see her face, but something about her seemed…

In an instant, recognition blazed through her mind.

Oh no, she thought. Nononononono…

“Rei?” Mako asked. “What’s going on? Who is this?”

Without thinking, Rei turned the woman on her back, and then there was no mistake.

There, laying on the ground, battered, bloodied, and bruised, lay Minako Aino.

“Blugh…I hate diet soda…”

Usagi clutched a pale can of cola in her hand, wincing as the artificially sweetened taste made her whole body cringe slightly.

“Then why do you drink it?” Ami asked.

“I couldn’t find any alcohol,” Usagi sighed. “I need something that’ll burn my throat. It’s the only way I can deal with this day.”

“Isn’t that, um…a bad thing?” Ami asked. It certainly seemed to imply there was a bigger problem at play than Usagi was admitting to…not that Usagi was going to say anything about it.

“Don’t recall asking for your opinion…” said Usagi in a surprisingly sullen tone of voice.

Ami winced. It was like everything she said was the wrong thing somehow—everyone just seemed so…snappy today. She awkwardly crossed her arms and mumbled a meek “Sorry”.

Without warning, Usagi’s demeanor suddenly changed. “Ugh, look at me, whining about myself!” she said, bouncing slightly on her heels. “Come on, let’s talk about something we actually care about! Y’know like, uh…wait…”

Their attention suddenly turned to the festival stalls, as the sight of a panicked crowd and the arrival of a police car signaled something was going on.

“…huh,” Usagi deadpanned. “Um, that, I guess?”

It was like a crime scene was unfolding right before their eyes. Policemen were questioning people and writing in their notebooks while onlookers talked with one another. A few people were already making their way to leave, their afternoon spoiled by this sudden crime. In the distance, the two could make out Naru talking to a tall figure…

“Is that Mako?” Usagi asked.

Ami gulped. “I…think so?”

Usagi could make out Mako talking to Naru, holding a little boy’s hand…that had to have been Hiro. She could see Naoko standing right behind Mako, cautiously walking up to her mother. Some words were exchanged, and Mako let go of Hiro’s hand, walking off and leaving him with Naru.

“Ami, am I wrong, or…did Mako just leave her kid with Naru?”

That was indeed what it looked like to Ami, and she wasn’t quite sure what to make of it. Despite everything, she knew how responsible Mako was—if something had caused her to leave her son…

“I…I think we need to have a talk with her,” Ami said, her voice wavering. Usagi looked at her in alarm, but noticing the serious look in Ami’s eyes, simply nodded in agreement.

The two sprinted to the scene, more details of the chaos becoming clear. A few people seemed to be in a panic, with one woman being comforted by a police officer as she struggled to control her breathing, and a child huddling close to his father as they walked out of the festival, looking dazed and confused. As Usagi and Ami approached Naru, they spotted Naoko and Hiro, both of them looking as though they didn’t understand it either.

“Naru, what’s going on?” Usagi asked.

Naru awkwardly crossed her arms, biting her nail. “I…don’t know…” she said. “ Somebody got stabbed back there or something, and the next thing I know, that Makoto lady is telling me to watch her kid.”

“She said something about taking care of some business,” Hiro added. “She looked kind of scared…”

“Wait wait wait,” Usagi interrupted. “Somebody got stabbed? In Juuban?”

“Strange times we live in,” Naru sighed. “I already called Gurio to tell him to get us dinner. I don’t think we’ll be staying here.”

Usagi tilted her head. Behind Naru, Naoko was clinging to her mother’s yukata, her usual grin replaced by a scared frown. The poor kid looked terrified. Usagi approached her and gave her a light pat on the head.

“Hey. It’ll be okay,” Usagi reassured her. “We can do fun stuff soon, kiddo.”

Naoko didn’t say anything, but she gave a nod.

“So…” Usagi said. “I guess we should see about going h—”

“Do you know where she went?” Ami interrupted.

“Where who went?” Naru asked.

“Mako. Where did she go?” Ami’s voice sounded almost…forceful? Well, forceful for Ami, but it was enough to catch Usagi off guard.

“My mom said something about a shrine,” Hiro said. “I-I forget the name, um…Hika--”

“Hikawa…”

Ami’s expression darkened.

“And…the stabbing you were talking about,” she continued. “Did you get any clue about the perpetrator?”

Naru shook her head. “I heard something about a schoolgirl? I didn’t exactly stick around to talk, y’know.”

That was all Ami needed. Without hesitation, she grabbed Usagi by the arm, pulling her into an intense stare. Usagi tried to protest, but any words she tried to form were snuffed out by the dreadful glare Ami gave her.

“Usagi…we have to go. Now .”

The first thing that Minako noticed was the pain coursing through her abdomen—just breathing sent a stinging sensation coursing through her entire body. The second thing she noticed was a bright, burning light as she opened her eyes, slowly regaining the rest of her senses. She could feel the roughness of the cot she was currently laying on, though she could hardly turn her head to see the rest of the room. It didn’t stop it from feeling very familiar, though.

Steadily, as her hearing returned to her, she could make out fragments of a conversation next to her.

“…sure we should be leaving, Miss Rei?”

“Look, I don’t want you girls in any danger out there. It’s better if you take our stand down and go home.”

“B-But Miss Rei!”

“Do NOT make me repeat myself.”

Minako’s head tilted, her vision stabilizing as she could make out the sight of two teenage girls dressed in miko outfits, and a woman with raven black hair talking to them, a stern expression over her face. It took a moment before Minako could make out who it was.

“Ghh…R-Rei?”

Rei turned toward her injured friend, and her harsh demeanor broke into one of relief.

“Miss Rei, just who is that?” Kae asked.

“An old friend,” Rei said, her voice laced with a wistful melancholy. “A very old friend.”

Minako couldn’t help but roll her eyes at that, a pained but relieved smirk on her face.

“Um…o-okay, I guess we’ll go then,” Emi said, giving Rei a respectful bow. “C’mon Kae.”

“I can go just by myself, thank you,” Kae huffed.

“Ugh, you’re such a jerk!” Emi whined. The two girls would exit the shrine in the middle of another heated argument, the usual mockery mixed with their tongues sticking out. Once again, Rei couldn’t help but find this very familiar.

“So…I’m a very old friend, huh?”

Rei scoffed as she walked over to Minako. “You know I didn’t mean it like that.”

“I’m only, like, 30, jeez!” Minako snorted, only to be met with more stinging pain in her ribs. Well, she had just lied a bit there, so maybe this was a bit of karma. 

As her hands moved to clutch the source of her pain, Rei crouched onto her knees and gently guided Minako’s hand away. It quickly became obvious why,  as Minako registered the feeling of fabric over her wound.

“You got hurt pretty bad out there,” Rei said. “Took me a bit to clean up the blood. Luckily, I had some help.”

“Help?” Minako asked. “From who?”

“From me,” a familiar voice said. Minako could barely turn her head to look, but she didn’t need the help to recognize the speaker.

“Mako?”

“Sorry if I’m quiet,” Mako said, her voice surprisingly dour. “Just…thinking about a lot right now.”

“We all have a lot to think about,” Rei admitted. “There hasn’t been a monster attack in Juuban in nearly fifteen years.”

She turned to Minako. “What happened, anyway? How much do you remember?”

Minako paled. This could be…awkward.

“Well,” she began. “I was in the area for the festival, thought I might drop by the temple…but right when I was getting close, this weird high school girl jumped me, and then, like, slashed me? I guess it wasn’t anything too deep, but it sure hurt like hell. It was too fast for me to do anything, I…”

Rei noticed her eyes darting all over the room, as if she was fishing for an excuse for what happened.

“…I guess I passed out from the shock?” Minako finished somewhat anticlimactically. “Pretty lame for a former Sailor Guardian, huh?”

“Well, if it was a monster, then it was probably stronger than it looked,” said Rei. “And I suppose we have been out of practice the last several years…”

Minako silently rolled over so that her back was to Rei.

“Yeah,” she said. “That’s probably it…”

A silence came over the room. Mako idly kicked her foot against the ground, taking in the room’s finery. Even though it’d been years since she’d last entered Hikawa Shrine, this room felt familiar to her. Memories she hadn’t experienced in a long time, the five of them strategizing, studying, or just hanging out. She crossed her arms and rested her back against the wall, then let out a deep sigh.

“So…how are we getting Usagi into this?” she asked.

Rei visibly winced. “Well…I suppose I can always apologize to her…we do need her for this.”

“Need her for what?” Minako asked. “What’s going on?”

Rei gave a sigh. “Had a vision. End of the world. We’ve gotta stop it.”

Minako gave a confused blink. “Huh. It has been a while since we stopped an apocalypse, hasn’t it?”

Mako groaned. “I can’t believe this. Weren’t we supposed to be done with all of this? Crystal Tokyo wasn’t going to happen, and we’d all just have to find normal lives? There hasn’t been anything like this in years —why now ?”

“We can’t stop threats from emerging,” Rei chided her. “Whatever happens, it’s our responsibility to stop it from taking over.”

Mako cast a brief look of annoyance at Rei, before scowling and returning her gaze to Minako.

“Hey, I’ll do whatever you guys need me to,” Minako said, before grabbing her side as she winced in pain again. “But don’t we need— ow— the transformation wands first? I thought we gave them to Luna?”

Rei shook her head. “Before Luna and Artemis left, she…gave them to me.”

Mako turned to her in shock.

“And you never thought you should maybe tell us about that?” she said, raising an eyebrow.

“Well, it’s not like we were in touch at that point!” Rei said defensively. “And nothing was actually happening, so I didn’t think I needed to disrupt anyone. Now, let’s just find Usagi and Ami, and then we can—”

Suddenly, the sound of approaching footsteps cut their conversation off. A wheezing, panting breath filled the air as Usagi awkwardly clung to Ami’s yukata, trying in vain to restrain her visibly frustrated friend.

“Hfff…Ami, just…don’t make this another fight…” Usagi whimpered, struggling to catch her breath. It had, after all, been years since she last climbed all those stairs.

“Look, I don’t know what’s going on here,” Ami said, her eyes fixed on Rei, “but you have a LOT of nerve disappearing on us earlier! Now, are you going to tell what exactly is going on here?”

“F-For the record, I had nothing to do with th—wait, Minako??” Usagi exclaimed.

Ami’s stern expression faded, replaced with one of surprise and confusion. Her eyes, along with everyone else’s, immediately turned to Minako, who sat frozen on her cot. 

“Um…I…” she stammered briefly, before offering a nervous smile. “…surprise?”

Chapter Text

“…and that’s about everything,” Rei finished explaining, looking expectantly at Usagi and Ami. “Well? What do you think? We can count you in, right?”

Usagi felt dizzy from all of the information that had just been thrown at her. More monsters, apocalyptic visions…it’d been so long since she had had to deal with this, it was almost like it had happened to someone else. She felt a pang in the front of her head as her migraine chose the worst time to return, and her stomach began to churn unpleasantly.

Can’t I catch a break for once? she moaned inwardly.

“You still with us, Usagi?” asked Mako, noticing that their friend had begun to space out.

“Huh?” 

Usagi blinked, trying to focus on what the others were saying.

“Ehehe, yeah, why wouldn’t I be?” Usagi laughed nervously as she rubbed the back of her head.

Rei sighed. “Could you please try to take this seriously? This is important!”

“Well…it is a lot to consider…” Ami said, her eyes kept shifting around the room. “And it’s just the five of us?”

“I mean, unless one of us is still in touch with Haruka and the others,” Mako dryly noted, a cynical tinge to her voice.

“Look, what’s the issue?” Rei retorted. “We’ve done this before! I mean, after a while, we didn’t really need Luna and Artemis to guide us, and now we’re all adults!”

“Well…” said Ami hesitantly. “…Isn’t that the problem?”

Problem? Rei didn’t know what to say to this. After all, Ami had been a Sailor longer than her, and she’d hardly hesitated in carrying out her duties before. And now suddenly, she was reluctant to return?

Or…maybe it’s not that sudden after all…

“Uh, hey, hello, girl who got attacked by a monster here,” Minako interrupted, waving her hand as she slowly tried to sit up, the pain in her abdomen jabbing her over and over again. “Ghh…look, nobody is saying this is gonna be easy , Ami. I mean, when was it ever easy for us? But like, who else is gonna stop an apocalypse?”

“I-It’s just…” Ami stammered, awkwardly crossing her arms in front of her chest. “I have a job, I can’t just give all that up for superheroing again…”

“We balanced school with Sailor stuff!” Minako countered.

“Barely!” Ami fired back.

Minako huffed, her expression turning dark. She clutched her abdomen, the pain only adding to her growing frustrations.

“So what, you’re just going to ditch us?”

“D-Don’t put words in my mouth!”

“ Enough, you two,” Rei cut in. “Ami, I know this is a daunting task, but if we don’t put a stop to…whatever this is, none of us will even have a job to go back to.”

“I…I know, Rei,” said Ami, looking down at the floor. “And I do want to help! I just…I need some time to think about this.”

Rei nodded understandingly, then turned to Mako.

“What about you?” she asked. “I…I know you have your son, so…”

“I’ll do whatever I need to keep him safe,” Mako said seriously.

Rei sighed in relief. “Thank you, that’s—”

“Let me finish,” Mako cut in, and Rei felt her heart sink. “I…I don’t know if I can keep him safe if I’m out there risking my life like we used to.”

“Mako, I…” Rei wasn’t sure what to say to this. She had known this was a possibility, but she still hadn’t been able to think of a way to counter it.

“If we don’t fight this—” Minako began again, but Mako cut her off.

“This isn’t just about me,” she said. “Hiro is my son . I’m responsible for his safety.”

“You’re responsible for the safety of the planet ,” Minako shot back. “And if we don’t have you out there with us, he might not be as safe as you think.”

“Minako…” Ami said warningly, but no one took any notice.

“I really hope you didn’t mean for that to sound like a threat,” Mako said darkly, glaring down at Minako, “because the rate things are going, I don’t think I have it in me to be especially patient tonight.”

“I am NOT threatening you ,” said Minako, ice in her voice , slowly rising to her feet as best she could . “If you really think that you can protect anyone by staying cooped up at home—”

“You SERIOUSLY think I just stay home and do nothing??” Mako fired back.

“Oh if you only knew what I’ve been dealing w—”

“Would you cut it out?!” said Rei, this time physically getting between the two of them. “Minako, what’s gotten into you? Mako has a right to be worried, any of us would in her situation!”

Minako opened her mouth to object, but something in Rei’s expression—the pleading look in her eyes—caused her to back down.

“…right, I’m…I-I’m sorry…” Minako winced. “It’s been a…rough day for me.”

“It’s been a rough day for all of us,” Mako said bluntly, though she quickly regretted it—after all, only one of them had actually been attacked.

Rei turned to Mako. “I…I know this is a lot to ask of you,” she said, “but we can’t do this without the five of us. I promise you, no matter what, we’ll do everything we can to keep Hiro safe.”

“I…thank you,” Mako said softly. “I just…”

She did want to. It was the right thing to do, no one needed to tell her that. But every time she tried to say “Yes”, her mind conjured familiar images…images that everyone else knew well.

“If something happens and I don’t come back…I’ve already died twice, yeah? What if the next time is it?”

“I…I know how you feel,” said Rei. “But even when things were at their darkest, we still found a way through. As long as we stand together at Usagi’s side, I know we can…”

Rei trailed off. She had gotten so caught up in the others’ arguments, she hadn’t noticed that Usagi hadn’t said a word. The others seemed to be of a similar mind, as they all turned to Usagi, who was just sitting on the floor, not looking at anyone.

“Usagi?” Rei said with trepidation. “What do you think about all of this?”

“Gah!” Usagi yelped as she looked up with a start, glancing around nervously. “Well, um, I mean…it’s gonna be pretty tricky, right?”

“Well, yes…” Rei said, not sure what Usagi was getting at. Still, even if they weren’t on the best of terms, she could still tell that something was eating at Usagi. “Is something the matter?”

“I-I…” Usagi stammered, a bead of sweat forming around her forehead. She idly tapped her fingers together, unable to stop her mind from going to…dark places. “I-I’m still, y’know, trying to get a job and all…a-and…”

Usagi fell silent and looked at the floor again, her face drained of color.

“Usagi…?” Rei gently prodded, but there was no response. She looked…almost dead, honestly.

“…are you sure you actually saw all that, Rei?”

Rei shot an angry glare at Usagi’s direction.

“Name me one time I’ve been wrong in my predictions.”

“I-I just mean, y’know…it could be a fluke, right? We don’t have to do this anymore, do we? Maybe you just had a bad dream and—”

“A bad dream?” Rei said, her voice going cold. “You can’t be serious.”

“I-I mean, it could be…” Usagi said, though she sounded like she didn’t believe it. Or rather, she wanted to believe it was a bad dream.

“Why do you always have to make things so difficult, Usagi?” Rei bluntly asked through gritted teeth. Her voice sounded like a strange mix between anger and hurt…like she was offended by the very idea of Usagi’s reluctance.

“Rei…” Ami said worriedly. Next to her, Mako shot a glare at Rei’s direction, a clear warning not to repeat the earlier outburst at the festival.

Rei cut herself off and turned away slightly, not wanting to look at Usagi.

“H-Hey, don’t let me take over the conversation like that!” Usagi said, her voice forcibly perking up. “I-It’s nothing, really, just…stuff I need to think about. I-I’ll be fine, just being stupid ol’ me like usual, yeah?” 

She said that, but her voice sounded anything but fine.

Rei huffed and shook her head.

“We can’t do this without Sailor Moon being there. We’re a team, alright?”

Usagi silently nodded, a look of reluctance over her face.

“Anyways,” Rei continued, “first thing’s first: we get our transformation pens and find out where the monster will strike next. We’ll probably need t—”

“Erm, Rei?” interjected Ami, raising her hand up like she was answering a question in class. “I…I-I think I know where that will be.”

“What?” Rei said, shocked. “Where?! How?!”

“Well, earlier I ran into this girl at the festival,” Ami explained.

“Schoolgirl, black hair, really mean looking?” Minako asked.

 “Yes, actually…” Ami said. “She was behaving kind of strangely, but the one thing that she was absolutely set on was finding, um…Hikawa Shrine.”

Nobody said a word as they digested this information, simply sitting there in silence.

A silence that was swiftly destroyed by the sound of an enormous explosion just outside.

When the five of them rushed out, they were met with a terrible sight. Most of the courtyard was in complete disarray as if a bomb had gone off. Smoke burned through the grass and some of the nearby trees, while the roof of the temple itself was lit by small flames burning at its edge. It wasn’t completely doused in fire yet…but one more blow and it could be done for.

Standing in the center of the courtyard was the dark-haired school girl, and by now it was obvious that she was something else entirely. The ground rumbled as a powerful aura seemed to radiate from her, and her eyes glowed a hateful red as she glared viciously at the five new arrivals. Her posture was slouched, almost animalistic, as a low growl escaped from her lips.

“Destroy… ” she snarled, taking a forward. “ I will destroy…this place…”

From their huddled position inside of Rei’s house, the girls could only see part of the chaos unfolding. Minako gave a worried look as she heard the voice of her assailant. Everyone else was visibly panicked…except for Rei.

Rei looked mad .

Before anyone could say anything, she pulled several ofuda out from her robe and assembled them between her fingers like a fan, preparing for a makeshift exorcism.

“Um, Rei,” said Mako worriedly. “I don’t think antagonizing her is a good idea.”

“This’ll only stun her,” Rei replied. “It’ll buy us some time unt—”

At that moment, the “schoolgirl” threw back her head and let out an unearthly scream. A gust of wind blew through the courtyard, nearly knocking the five former Sailors off their feet as the monster was enveloped in a blinding light. The twin komainu statues and even the outer entrance to the shrine were instantly shattered by the sudden blast. When it faded, the schoolgirl was gone. In her place…well, if they hadn’t seen it for themselves, they wouldn’t have imagined such a thing could exist. 

Its face resembled a demonic kabuki mask, white with sharp black stripes and an enormous fanged grin. It had long, wild black hair, and wore a sweeping black robe. Sprouts from both of its sleeves where its arms ought to be were thin tendrils, two per sleeve, and looking like they could choke the life out of whoever was unfortunate enough to get caught in them.

“…Okay, that’s new,” Minako said, taking a painful step back. “Ow…”

“Well…” Rei feebly said, wincing at the sight of the ongoing destruction, “I’m open to ideas here…”

“Where did you say you had the wands?” Ami asked, cowering on the ground from the monster’s onslaught.

“They’re in my room,” Rei said. “I’ll need a minute or so to get them.”

 Minako watched as the monster’s appendages began to glow with energy, before they came crashing down on the singed ground. “I…don’t think we have that long.”

Suddenly, an idea came to her. A pretty stupid, very risky, and quite frankly ridiculous idea.

In other words? A totally Minako idea.

“HEY YA BIG DRAMA QUEEN, SHE TOLD YA TO LEAVE!”

The monster paused, its glow dissipating as it looked around for the source of this insult.

“MINAKO??” Rei exclaimed. She immediately wheeled around, and saw that Minako was no longer behind her like she had been moments ago.

Indeed, Minako was jumping up and down with a noticeable hobble to her step, waving her arms and trying to get the monster’s attention, sticking her tongue out and making all sorts of childish insults.

“THOUGHT YOU GOT RID OF ME, HUH?” she exclaimed, almost grinning over this second encounter. “I DON’T GO DOWN THAT EASILY, JACKASS!”

“What does she think she’s doing?!” Rei asked in horror.

“Distracting it!” Mako said as she pushed Rei back inside. “Now go! Get the wands!”

Rei hesitated for a moment, unsure what to do. They couldn’t face this thing without the wands…but Minako was risking herself this way. One false move and…

“Then you need to go out there and help her distract it!” Rei said.

“On it!” Mako exclaimed.

“W-Wait, are you crazy??” Usagi exclaimed. “We’ll get killed out there without the wands!”

“You got any better ideas?” Mako bluntly remarked.

Usagi could only stammer incoherently, unable to form words. She did have one idea…but she knew that none of the others would go for it.

Meanwhile, the monster’s sights were firmly locked on Minako, its head tilting with an inquisitive, almost baffled expression on its colorful face.

“YOU’RE LIKE THE WORST MONSTER THIS TOWN’S EVER SEEN, YOU KNOW THAT?” Minako continued, shouting out whatever popped into her head. “WHY DON’T YOU GO BACK TO WHATEVER THIRD-RATE PORNO YOU CRAWLED OUT OF, YOU HENTAI REJECT?!”

The monster turned towards Minako, narrowing its eyes.

“…Mock…me…?” the monster growled, its voice grating like iron scraping across a road. “You…mock…me…?”

“Uh…” Minako said, her voice faltering a bit. Her eyes darted towards the shrine, hoping to see a familiar face. And as luck would have it…

“Yeah, she’s mocking you!” Mako exclaimed. “You look like you can barely bench training weights!”

“Um…y-your kabuki mask is lacking in authenticity!” Ami nervously continued, faltering with her insults.

“And uh…you look gross!” Usagi half-heartedly added.

The monster cocked its head again, saying nothing. Then, without warning, one of its tentacles snaked out and grabbed Usagi.

“OH GOD, IT’S GOT ME, IT’S GOT ME, IT’S GOT ME!” Usagi screamed in terror, as the monster brought her inches from its face. Its tentacles started to glow again, and Usagi felt her body go numb as energy began to seep out of her body.

“You…are…nothing… ” it snarled. “ Only food…food for the Crystal Knights…”

“Crystal…what-now?” Usagi gasped out as she began to feel her body growing weaker. She tried to pull herself free, but could barely summon the strength to make an effort. “Look…I really…don’t taste good…”

Just then, something flew through the air, smacking the monster in the face. Unfazed, it glanced down, only to find…a shoe?

“Let her go, you Usagi-eating creep!” Minako shouted, noticeably only wearing one shoe.

The monster snarled again, but complied with the request…by throwing Usagi straight towards them.

“Not what I meant!” Minako shouted in panic.

Mako immediately leapt forward, arms outstretched. Fortunately, she managed to catch Usagi in mid-air, though the force of the impact knocked them both to the ground.

“Thanks, Mako…” Usagi muttered, dazed and weak from the monster’s attack.

“Don’t mention it…” Mako replied, wincing as her arms and back stung from the impact.

The monster’s appendages once again began to glow. The girls huddled together, unsure of what to do next.

“So…any ideas, Minako?” Mako asked.

“…this was kind of all I had,” Minako admitted. “I panicked, okay??”

Usagi gulped, an awkward smile coming over her face. “Well…you were always pretty good in a panic, Minako…”

The glow brightened in front of the girls. Usagi could hear her heart beating into her eardrums as she cursed her own stupidity. Why did she agree to this? She couldn’t just stand by and not defend them…but was it worth this?

She turned to her side. Right next to her, Ami looked on the verge of tears. She grabbed both her hands against Mako’s, who looked surprised at such a gesture. On the other side, Minako looked almost calm. Eerily calm…like this was inevitable.

Usagi took a deep breath.

Maybe we’ll see each other again, Mamo…

Suddenly, a different glow interrupted the scene. A loud, red glow that felt so familiar to them. The monster turned itself in the direction of this intruder, taking its aim off the girls.

“Who…dares?” it growled.

Its answer would come in the form of a familiar cry.

“MARS! FLAME! SNIPER!”

An instant later, a streak of crimson light struck the monster dead-on, causing its front to erupt in flames. It howled in pain as it staggered back, trying to shield itself from further attacks.

“That was—!” Ami exclaimed as the four of them whirled around.

“YES!” Minako shouted, punching the air.

It was dark, and somewhat hard to see far, but the glow of the fiery attack had illuminated a silhouette that the four of them knew all too well.

“Protected by Mars, the planet of fire, the Guardian of War!” exclaimed the newly transformed Rei, her body crackling with what looked like red lightning. “I am Sailor Mars!”

Pointing at the monster, she struck a pose the others hadn’t seen in years.

“And in the name of Mars… I’ll chastise you! ”

At that moment, a snicker escaped from Minako’s lips.

“Really?” she asked, cracking a smile. “That’s still the best you can come up with?”

Rei rolled her eyes, a light smirk growing over her lips as she ran over to her teammates’ side. “How about you come up with something better?” she said, handing Minako a familiar wand.

Minako gave a smirk back as she playfully twirled it in her hands like it was a baton. “You girls ready?” she said.

Mako gripped her wand tightly, hardly able to believe that she was holding it again. “I’m ready.”

Ami didn’t say anything, merely adjusting her posture to something more composed. She brought her legs together and took a deep breath through her nose, then turned to Minako and gave a silent nod, a look of determination on her face.

Finally, Usagi received a much different object that was still all too familiar: a golden, heart-shaped brooch that hummed with tremendous energy. She looked at it with a pained expression, her grip tightening as she felt a weight in her stomach.

“VENUS CRYSTAL POWER, MAKE UP!”

“JUPITER CRYSTAL POWER, MAKE UP!”

“MERCURY CRYSTAL POWER, MAKE UP!”

Three multi-colored blasts of light burst forth, bathing Usagi in their brilliance. Taking a deep breath, she readied herself for what was to come. Her hand trembling, she held the golden brooch to her chest, and uttered four words she hadn’t said in years…

“MOON ETERNAL, MAKE UP!”

At that moment, a light enveloped her body, and she felt a rush of warmth spread through her, embracing her as she felt her rapid heartbeat steady. In mere seconds, she felt her clothing change, her wardrobe molding into a familiar ensemble that tightly hugged her figure. An energy surged through her that made her feel younger, while any sort of migraine or ache dissipated. She felt renewed.

The light faded, and the others looked on in awe. There she stood, magnificent, radiant, resplendent…

“Sailor Moon…”

Usagi blinked. She looked down at her outfit. It certainly looked familiar—the same vibrant blue and white trimmings. She turned her head and in an instant felt two long tails of hair grown down to her hips. In her hand, she held her old wand, which had manifested out of thin air.

She looked at the others. They all seemed, well… younger . All the stress on Ami’s face had melted, her glasses replaced by a familiar blue visor. Minako’s hair was visibly longer as well, and any sign of a limp had vanished as she struck a triumphant pose, eager to kick butt. Next to her, Mako grit her teeth, cracking the joints in her neck and her knuckles.

One thing confused Usagi though.

“Uh…didn’t I have wings?”

At this, Rei facepalmed. “That’s what you’re focused on?”

“Well I never had a downgrade when I got into costume, so this is kind of weird!” Usagi fired back. “And why is my hair all long again?”

“We haven’t done this in a while,” Ami said. “Think of it like playing an instrument, putting it down for a few years, and picking it back up again.”

“But I don’t even play instruments…” Usagi whined.

“ENOUGH”, the monster exclaimed, slamming a tentacle onto the ground. “EMPRESS…SHALL HAVE…YOUR HEADS.”

“First Knights, now an Empress?” muttered Ami. Just who was this new enemy?

“Fight now, questions later!” declared Minako, readying herself for battle. “You’re on, Sailor Moon!”

“Uh…r-right!” Usagi stammered, unnerved at having been put on the spot. Still, she stepped forward and put her hands on her hips, doing her best to project an aura of confidence.

“How…How dare you intrude upon this holy place of worship!”

“This isn’t exactly a church, y’know…”

“I’m out of practice here, okay?? Anyways, we are—”

“DEAD.”

The monster lashed out once more with its tentacles, prompting the newly reassembled Sailors to dive out of the way. Mako and Rei managed to tuck and roll, but Ami and Usagi were less prepared, sliding roughly across the ground in a rather undignified manner. 

Minako was the only one who stayed on her feet—it appeared that her injury had healed upon her transformation, or at least it didn’t carry over to her Sailor form. The second she was clear of the monster’s attack, she pointed straight at it, energy gathering at the tip of her finger.

“CRESCENT…BEAM!”

A blast of light shot out from her out-stretched hand. This time, however, the monster was prepared—it quickly drew back its tentacles and crossed them in front of itself. The Crescent Beam struck, but it didn’t quite have the desired effect—the tentacles began to glow, appearing to shield the monster from the worst of the attack. The barrage pushed it back a few feet, but it didn’t appear to be otherwise wounded.

“It’s too strong!” shouted Usagi.

“Then I’ll just give it more power !” Minako responded. Tightening her focus, she cried out, and the Beam intensified. Still nothing changed, however—the monster was still on its feet, and even slowly began to take a few steps forward.

“Hold on!” said Ami, her visor rapidly flashing. “You need to—!”

“Okay, out of the way!” Mako cried out as she rushed forward, crossing her arms. “SUPREME…THUNDER!” 

With a deafening boom, lightning flew from her tiara, striking and crackling against the skin of the monstrous foe…and yet still it seemed unaffected.

“YOU NEED TO STOP!” shouted Ami. “ITS TENTACLES ARE ABSORBING YOUR ATTACKS! YOU’RE JUST MAKING IT—!”

The monster let out a roar, and whipped its tentacles forward. A second later, a shockwave of energy rushed forward, tearing through the ground and knocking the Sailors off their feet. Crying out in shock, they all landed hard on the ground with a sickening thud.

“…stronger…” Ami finished weakly as she struggles to get up. “Let me finish next time, Jupiter, okay?!”

“You could just fight instead of standing around and lecturing!” Mako fired back, one hand glowing as she readied a different attack.

“I was analyzing the situation!” Ami huffed.

“We need less analyzing and more fighting!” Rei replied. “This thing is already trying to burn the shrine down!”

The monster would roar once again as if affirming Rei’s judgement, before slamming a tentacle against the temple’s wall, denting it on impact. Just from looking at it, it was clear that just one more swipe could collapse it.

“DESTROY…HIKAWA…”

Usagi grunted, grabbing hold of her wand and shaking it.

“U-Uh…Starlight uh…how the hell did you guys even remember your attack names?” she whined.

A bead of sweat dropped down Rei’s forehead. In a panic, she would once again raise her hands and flicker with energy…not even noticing that Ami was doing the same thing.

“SHINE AQUA ILLU—”

“FIRE SOUL!”

“MARS, WAIT!”

Ami had no time to call off her attack. A torrent of water fired from her hands, only to be met by Rei’s concentrated blast of fire. Both beams extinguished each other without doing any damage to the monster.

The monster merely gave a laugh, its tendrils charged with electricity of its own.

“Pathetic…Sailors…are weak …” the monster smirked, before slamming its tendrils onto the ground.

“MARS, LOOK OUT!” Usagi exclaimed, rushing to tackle Rei from the oncoming attack.

The girls could only brace themselves as another shockwave rebounded against them, knocking them all onto the ground at once. Tiles from the temple’s roof fell down and clanked against the ground as the old building looked increasingly worn.

“Empress…wants this temple…gone…”

“Ghhh…we need…a better plan…” Minako groaned, awkwardly trying to get up.

“We’d have a better plan if you’d just listened to me!” Ami complained.

Without hesitating, Rei firmly stood up, brandishing her ofuda and chanting to herself.

“ Rin, pyo, to, sha, kai, jin, retsu, zai, zen…EVIL SPIRIT, BE EXORCISED! ”

She tossed the charms at the monster. Once they landed on it, the beast suddenly let out a pained scream and limped back a few paces. For just a moment, it appeared frozen in place.

“This is only gonna buy us a few seconds,” Rei huffed. “So, how about we actually TRY thinking of something?”

Her glare, obvious to everyone present, was fixed squarely on Ami.

“I WAS trying!” Ami shot back. “It’s not my fault that no one will take a moment and listen to me!”

“There’s a LOT going on at once,” Mako bluntly responded. “It’s not our fault.”

“That thing is destroying my Shrine, we need to take it down now ,” Rei replied to Ami, flames circling around her fingers.

“We need to have a plan to take it down,” Ami countered.

“THEN COME UP WITH ONE!” Rei shouted.

“Reckless endangerment is not going to solve anything!” Ami snapped.

“Then quit bickering and figure something out!” Minako fired back.

“Well, so much for teamwork,” Mako groaned, shaking her head.

“EVERYBODY CALM DOWN!”

Everyone present turned in shock as Usagi rose from the ground. Her knees were noticeably buckling. She looked like she was on the verge of tears.

“I-I just…this…we c-can’t fight l-like this…w-we’ll die if…if we don’t stop…so please…j…just…”

Usagi took a deep breath, then belted out one final plea.

“JUST GET IT TOGETHER!”

For a moment, everyone was silent as they exchanged awkward looks.

Usagi sniffled. “I-I’m sorry, I’m j—”

“No no…you’re right,” Ami said, giving a sigh. “I’m…I’m sorry. We shouldn’t be throwing around blame. We need to focus on what’s important.”

“Right.” Mako nodded, approaching Ami’s side. “Let’s put our heads together on this one.”

At that moment, an ear-splitting shriek filled the air. The Sailors immediately turned to see the monster had broken free of its paralysis, Rei’s ofuda scattered around its feet.

“KILL YOU!” it snarled, lashing its tentacles against the ground. “ KILL YOU!”

Before it could do anything, however, Rei rushed forward.

“FIRE SOUL!”

Another burst of flame engulfed the monster, causing it to stagger back in pain.

“No more talking!” Rei said hurriedly. “Plan now!”

The Sailors all went silently, minds furiously racing as they tried to think of something, anything that could give them the advantage. For a moment, it looked like they would come up empty, but then Minako raised her head.

“I’ve got an idea. An actually good idea.”

“What is it?” Rei asked, firing off yet another volley of flame at the monster.

“That monster is weak to your fire, right?” Minako noted. “Then we need to hold it back so you can burn it. Then Sailor Moon can use her tiara and kill that damn thing.”

“It… could work…” Ami noted. “We’ll need to direct it away from the shrine but we’ll need something strong…”

As if on cue, all eyes turned to Mako.

“…girls, I really don’t know if I’ve got it in me…” she hesitantly replied.

Another roar from the monster cut off any further discussion, as it had managed to shrug off Rei’s flames.

“DESTROY…HIKAWA…”

“We don’t have a choice,” said Rei. “Right now, it’s do or die.”

Mako swallowed nervously, but nodded. “Venus…when I say ‘Now’, do it.”

Minako nodded.

Mako rolled her shoulders back, joints popping all through her body, before stretching out her arms…

“NOW!”

… and tackled the monster right in its abdomen. The beast tried to lash its tentacles out at her, but it was swiftly met with a blast of ice against its appendages.

“SHINE AQUA ILLUSION!”

“BLASTED…VERMIN…”

“VENUS LOVE ME CHAIN!”

A chain of light whipped out from Minako’s arm, wrapping itself firmly around the monster. It howled in pain, struggling with all its might and nearly lifting Minako off her feet.

“DESTROY…DESTROY…”

“Mars, give me some help here!”

Rei rushed forward, pouring every bit of energy she had into one final attack.

“FIRE…SOOOOUL!”

Again, the monster was engulfed in a pillar of fire, this one stronger than any of the previous. The monster’s screams grew louder, but it wasn’t finished yet.

“Now’s your chance, Sailor Moon!” shouted Ami.

Usagi took a deep breath. Her mind was in total chaos right now—honestly, hardly any of this seemed real to her. Despite everything, though, what she had felt entirely natural to her. Maybe…maybe some things never truly went away…?

She stepped forward, and in one smooth motion, removed her tiara and hurled it at the monster.

“MOON…TIARA…ACTION!”

“DIE…”

The monster suddenly let out a scream as the worst came to pass. Sailor Moon’s tiara, glowing with a bright light and spinning like a discus, shot right through its body…and soon, it was glowing with energy, its body dissipating right before the Sailors’ eyes.

“NO…NO… SERENITYYYYY…!”

With one last dying scream, the beast’s body would dissipate into the ether, leaving nothing behind except the damage it had inflicted to the shrine. All around them, there were still a few mild fires and rubble. The temple continued to stand, but it looked on the verge of collapse. Trees and grass were badly scorched, and smoke still filled the air. But despite all of this, standing on the lawn of Hikawa Shrine were five women—all of them utterly exhausted, but satisfied, at least for the moment.

After about a minute of silence, Minako spoke up.

“So…we should probably call the fire department, right?”

“You’re saying this was a monster attack?”

The fireman looked down on the five women as they sat outside of the shrine, all of them exchanging awkward glances as they relayed their story…or at least a heavily amended version of it.

“Stuff like that used to happen here all the time when I was in high school,” Rei said, technically not lying. “Honestly, we’re just glad the Sailor Guardians showed up right in the knick of time to save us.”

“Uh, yeah!” Minako chuckled. “Those Sailors sure were awesome!”

The fireman’s stony face made it hard to tell if he bought into their recollection of events. Still, it’s not like there was any evidence that the fire could’ve started from anything else.

“You look like trustworthy ladies,” he finally said. “You’re lucky those Sailor girls came in to help out. Been a while since they showed up here.”

“ Very lucky indeed…” Ami muttered to herself.

“Anyway, the fires are out, but the damage to the temple is pretty serious,” the firefighter continued. “It doesn’t look like it’ll collapse on its own, but it easily could if it’s disturbed. We’ve closed it off for now, but if I were you, I’d look into repairs as soon as possible.”

Rei nodded, though inwardly she was worried. They had managed to make a decent amount of money at the festival, but it was nowhere near enough to pay for something as extensive as this. She didn’t have the first clue of what they were going to do…

“Well, if you don’t have any questions, I think we’re about done here,” the firefighter said. “Stay safe.”

“U-Um, right!” said Rei, pushing her worries aside. She quickly stood and offered a bow. “Thank you very much for all you’ve done!”

As the firefighters filed out of the shrine, Rei turned to the others, a forlorn expression over her face.

“So…that’s one more thing for me to worry about, I guess.”

“Do you think that’s what the monster wanted?” Mako asked. “To destroy the temple?”

“I think it wanted more than that,” suggested Ami. “Maybe it could detect something here.”

“We won’t know what it wants until we start looking into things,” Rei said. “We’re back together again, now all we need is to plan the next step. This isn’t gonna be easy but if w—”

“Can we maybe wait first?”

Rei’s eyes suddenly darted over to Usagi. The poor woman looked small and pale compared to everyone else. Her eyes continued looking off into the distance like she wasn’t entirely there, her focus on something else entirely.

“Usagi, there is no waiting,” Rei bluntly said. “We either go ahead with this or something else might happen.”

“You know how this goes for us,” Minako said, noticeably limping again.

“I-I just…need a moment to think, okay?” Usagi hesitantly said. “This is still a lot and…I-I mean, we’re not all together again, right? Luna, Haruka, Chibiusa, they’re not exactly here either…”

“What are you talking abo—”

A realization suddenly struck Rei.

“This is about Mamoru, isn’t it?”

Usagi froze. Her eyes stared into Rei’s with a fragile softness, like glass that could break from just a light breeze. She didn’t say a word—from the looks of it, she didn’t know what to say to this.

“Rei, please don’t do this,” Mako interjected. “You know this is a lot for her to deal with.”

“I know, but…” Rei hesitated, unsure if this was wise. But if she didn’t say it, would things ever change? “Usagi, it’s been more than ten years since he…I know it’s hard, but…I mean…I care about him too, but…I think we…have to accept by now that—”

“HE’S NOT DEAD.”

Usagi suddenly reared her head up, her eyes stained with tears as she looked at Rei with a furious glare. She took a few pained breaths through her nose before yanking her brooch and holding it in her hand. More tears fell as she clutched it, her hand balled into a fist.

“I’m sorry…I just…I can’t do this…not again…”

With a look of pure shame, she laid the brooch into Rei’s hand.

Rei held Usagi’s brooch in her hand, her eyes darting between it and Usagi’s shattered expression. She could feel powerful energy within the brooch, vibrating between her fingers with an unyielding presence—the Silver Crystal. So many people had fought and died for this…and Usagi was giving it all up?

“You…you mean it?” Minako asked in disbelief.

“YOU FUCKING IDIOT!” Rei suddenly screamed, tightening her grip on the brooch. “You’d SERIOUSLY risk the fate of the world, the fate of EVERYONE you care about, because of your own fucking hangups??”

The group went silent. Their eyes turned towards Rei, her face burning a deep red as her breath was strained by her anger. Meanwhile, Usagi didn’t say anything, not even looking at Rei. Her head was bent towards the ground, a sad, distant look over her face.

“What? Not gonna say anything?” Rei asked sarcastically. “Y’know, I really thought you’d changed. I really thought that for once in your life, you’d finally grow up. But after everything, you’re still stuck in the same state of mind you’ve been in for the past ten years.”

“Rei…” Ami awkwardly interjected, “I-I think she’s heard enough, there’s no reason t—”

“No, it’s fine,” Usagi suddenly said. Her tone was almost devoid of emotion, but her eyes were barely able to hold back tears. She turned towards Rei.

“Do you seriously think…after all I’ve been through…after losing Mamo, losing you all…you think I’d want any of this back? I’m done losing. I’m done sacrificing myself for this.”

“And we haven’t lost anything either?!” Rei replied. “I almost lost my fucking TEMPLE because of this! I dedicated myself to our mission and I never fucking stopped!”

“Well maybe I don’t WANT to be a part of this fucking mission! MAYBE I don’t wanna save the world anymore! I didn’t exactly have a say in it the first time!”

“I can’t fucking believe you! You were the best of us! You’re our princess! Our leader! Our—”

“I’M NOT YOUR PRINCESS,” Usagi suddenly roared. “And I'm NOT a hero! I've lost enough of my life thanks to this, this…BULLSHIT! Lost sleep, lost friends, lost…”

At this point, Usagi’s words had degenerated into blubbering, wailing cries of anguish. She collapsed onto her knees, covering her eyes. Mako ran to her side, wrapping an arm around Usagi in a protective hug.

“Rei, that’s enough ,” Mako firmly said. “She’s not the only one who has bad memories of all this.”

“And??” Rei violently hissed. “SHE didn’t have to die TWICE. I gave my life to this! All of you left, I stayed here! Now’s the time we need to be together and SHE can’t get over her bullshit for one minute??”

Mako’s eyes turned cold.

“I said that’s ENOUGH .”

Rei wanted to feel stunned by this—indeed, a part of her was. But no, another part of herself whispered—she had no excuse for not seeing this coming.

“You…you little…” she said, her voice scarcely above a whisper as she choked back tears. “How could…how could you just…”

“You wanted me gone anyways, didn’t you?” Usagi pitifully said.

Rei hesitated at this remark.

“I never…you left on your own,” she admitted. “But—”

“You said…you’d never forgive me if I left…what happened to that?”

No, she was right—Rei knew full well what kind of person Usagi had become, and just how little all of this meant to her. She had known that for a long, long time.

Rei looked Usagi straight in the eye, and in that moment, Usagi took a step back in shock. The two of them had always had their disagreements, but never in all the time that they had known each other had Rei ever looked at her with hatred like this.

“For one moment in your life…would you grow up…” she whispered.

Usagi couldn’t respond. Part of her knew Rei was right. She was hardly in a healthy state of mind. But what could she do? It didn’t just hurt, it infuriated her that Rei was right. Rei was always right. Always the same old thing about “responsibility” that everyone told her about. Why couldn’t she be allowed to feel pain? She deserved it, didn’t she?

“Fuck off…”

Rei winced, turning her back away from Usagi.

“Leave,” she croaked, her voice barely audible.

“Wha—”

“JUST LEAVE!” she shouted. In a move surprising even herself, she shoved Usagi away, causing her to stumble backward.

“IF YOU WANT TO ABANDON EVERYTHING WE’VE FOUGHT FOR, THEN I WON’T STOP YOU!” she shouted, tears welling up in her eyes. “I’LL JUST STAY HERE AND MAKE SURE THE WORLD DOESN’T FALL APART BECAUSE SOMEBODY WON’T FIGHT FOR IT!”

“Rei, wait!” cried Usagi, but it was too late. Rei had already turned her back, heading straight towards her house. She went in and slammed the door behind her, not even bothering to look back.

Everyone else looked at the scene with varying degrees of discomfort. Minako had wisely chosen to stay out of it, though she looked sick from seeing her two friends fight so intensely. She crossed her arms in front of her abdomen, a hint of nausea in her stomach.

“What exactly happened between you two?” Mako asked. For as much as Rei’s behavior had upset her before, there was clearly something more going on between them.

Usagi didn’t respond. She simply stood and cried, mumbling under her breath.

“Usagi,” Ami started to stay, “she doesn’t—”

But Usagi didn’t bother to stick around, instead turning and running towards the shrine gate.

“Wait, Usagi!”

Mako tried to reach out for Usagi, but she was a few seconds too late. Usagi quickly passed the ruined statues at the entrance, tears streaming down her face as she just barely managed to keep her footing on the steps. Bitterly cursing herself, she nonetheless didn’t dare to turn back, resigned to the fact that she had once again spat in the face of one of her oldest friends.

Mako could only watch with sorrowful eyes, before stepping back, taking a deep, exhausted breath through her nose. For a second, her eyes caught Ami’s. Beneath the rim of Ami’s glasses, she could see tears staining the lenses.

The three remaining women exchanged looks. Minako took a seat on the grass and shook her head, thinking over what needed to be done after this.

“I’ll talk to Rei once she’s calmed down,” she spoke up, her voice low and serious. “What about you two? You both have work, right?”

Mako looked at the wand in her hand, her fingers idly rubbing against it in thought. Work was honestly the least of her worries right now, as strange as that would have sounded yesterday.

“I’ll, um…I’ll need a moment to consider this,” she said. “And um…Ami?”

Ami almost winced as she heard Mako mention her name. There were a million things racing through her mind right now…but she wasn’t nearly brave enough to consider saying any of them. She took her glasses off and rubbed the tears out of her eyes, before putting them back on.

“I-I’ll also…need some time…”

“Then uh…guess you two should head off for the night, yeah?” Minako asked.

Mako nodded. “Yeah, just uh…need to pick up Hiro and go home.”

Ami looked like she was about to say something to Mako, but whatever it was found itself stuck in her throat. Instead, she shook her head, turned around, and began to walk down the steps, unable to give a proper goodbye. Mako followed suit, giving a small wave in Minako’s direction as she left.

Minako just sat on the grass, looking over the charred remains of the temple. She sighed. Something about this place felt so nostalgic, so...bittersweet. But after tonight, was it really worth feeling that way? She glanced for a moment at Rei’s home, but held back on entering just yet. There was a bigger problem than whatever had broken Rei and Usagi apart, one Minako found herself pondering as she watched the sun set against the emerging lights of town.

What happened to us?

“So, what do you think?” asked Eros.

Philia closed her eyes, her brow furrowed. The Knight they had sent had been able to acquire some energy from Hikawa Shrine’s untapped well of potential. In that respect, everything had gone as planned. However…

“That Crystal Knight was strong, but it was only capable of what little we programmed into it,” she said. “By design, it would have easily been trumped by Sailor Mars alone. Against all five, it should have been no contest. Instead…”

“Yeah, complete shitshow,” finished Eris. “So, what do we do now?”

“From a purely military perspective, we should strike again as soon as possible, wipe them out while they’re still disorganized,” answered Philia. “That said, I doubt the Empress would approve of that strategy. I will need to report this immediately. I imagine it will take some time to receive a response, though.”

“Fair enough,” said Eros. “But what do we do in the meantime?”

Philia raised an eyebrow. “Who says we do anything?”

“Oh come on, you can’t just let this slide!” Eros shot back. “Look at them—they don’t have a clue what they’re doing! You can’t just waste an opportunity like that!”

Philia sighed. Far be it from her to complain about her allies, but Eros could always be…difficult to work with. The lack of professionalism was only part of the issue.

“We may act on our own volition in the meantime,” she admitted. “But I’ll need time to think about how to handle this. Do not act without consulting me first.”

“ Fiiiine ,” groaned Eros. “I guess I can wait a bit.”

Shaking her head in exasperation, Philia turned to leave. The air shimmered around her, and a second later she had vanished.

Eros sighed, looking down at the streets below. Philia could think what she liked, but was it so wrong that she was impatient? There was barely anything to do at home these days—everything was so boring!

Hey, I’m fine if the Empress doesn’t want to squash ‘em all at once, she thought. We can have a lot of fun with fuck-ups like these…

Chapter Text

Mako took a deep breath as she looked over the number she’d written down on a slip of paper. Right before she’d left the festival, she’d made sure she had Naru’s address for when she needed to pick up Hiro. Earlier she had felt guilty, foisting her son at the least minute on someone she hadn’t spoken to in years. Now that guilt had only worsened, creating a sinking feeling in her stomach exacerbated by the rising elevator that hummed to the third floor. She crossed her arms in front of her chest, her posture tense, her eyes already feeling heavy with drowsiness. What would Naru think of all this? She was far later than she had promised…had she been careless, leaving Hiro with them so suddenly?

She shook her head as the doors to the elevator opened, taking another deep breath through her nostrils and walking a few paces down the hall until she found the number. Steeling herself, she reached out and knocked on the door.

“Coming, coming!” came Naru’s voice from the other side. A few seconds later, the door opened, and Naru stood there, beaming.

“Um…was I…interrupting something?” Mako asked, Naru’s cheerful demeanor not at all what she had expected. 

“Oh no, it’s fine, it’s fine!” Naru said, waving her off. “Come in, make yourself at home!”

Mako followed her inside, taking off her shoes at the entrance. The apartment wasn’t particularly fancy or anything, though it looked a bit more well-kept than her own. A large bookshelf covered one corner, while the other was taken up by the living room, where they found two children being regaled by a…dubious story.

“And there we were, on stage at the Couples Contest, when suddenly a dastardly demon attacked! Your mother was terrified of course, Naoko, but I heroically leapt to defend her, and with the strength of a hundred men I beat it back, before–”

“Gurio, you could barely lift me during our wedding,” Naru snarked, rolling her eyes at her husband’s boasting. “In fact…I seem to remember you were unconscious at that part.”

Gurio huffed, stammering out a response while Naoko laughed at her father’s misfortune.

“Okay, maybe it less than a hundred men–”

“It was barely the strength of one man.”

“Naru!”

Naru and the kids both laughed. Gurio overdramatically crossed his arms and gave a groan, while his daughter playfully ribbed him for his misfortune.

“Daddy’s a chump!” she teased.

“Am not!” Gurio fired back.

“Are too!” Naoko smirked.

“Gurio, Naoko, the two of you can take your little grudge match elsewhere, thank you,” Naru interrupted. “Hiro, your mother’s here to see you.”

Hiro turned around, a sheepish but content smile on his face. He was already about to leave the couch when Mako got on her knees and wrapped him in a tight hug, her movement almost instantaneous.

“I’m sorry I’m so late!” she said hurriedly. “I just…things at the shrine my…I-I didn’t mean to…to…”

She hesitated. She could feel a load of guilt over her shoulders lying to Hiro about this…yet she knew she couldn’t tell him the whole truth. How would he even handle it? She already struggled to make time for him…

“Um…Mom?” Hiro said, gesturing to the ash covering Mako’s arms and skirt. “Was there a fire or something?”

“O-Oh, this?” Mako said, fumbling around the truth. “It’s, um…y-yeah, we had an issue with a fire breaking out. We were lucky that the uh…the firemen came to help…”

This wasn’t technically a lie.

“What about the woman from the festival who was hurt?” Naru asked, concerned, “Is she okay?”

Mako gave a nod. “She’s being taken care of. She’s someone me and Rei knew from high school.”

“Well…I guess crazy stuff was bound to happen when you girls got back together,” Naru said. “Feels kind of nostalgic, huh?”

“Kinda wish it didn’t,” Gurio grumbled, before being met with a stern cough from Naru. She gave a reassuring chuckle, though it didn't seem to have an effect on Mako. In fact, Mako’s eyes appeared downcast as she sighed through her nose, gently grabbing Hiro by the hand and taking a step out.

“Look, it’s been a…a very stressful day,” Mako quietly said. “I’m sorry, it’s just…a lot’s on my mind right now. We need to catch the bus home.”

“Oh, say no more!” Naru said. “And if you ever need us to watch Hiro again, he’s always welcome to come visit.”

“He’s the only person who likes Daddy’s stories!” Naoko giggled, prompting another annoyed sigh from her father.

This, at least, was somewhat reassuring to Mako–perhaps everything would work out after all.

“Right…” she said slowly. “Thank you so much. Again, I’m really sorry this was last minute and all, I–”

“Ah, there was one thing I wanted to ask before you leave,” interrupted Naru. “Did um…did Usagi show up while you were there?”

At this, Mako felt an uncomfortable twinge in her stomach. It had barely been an hour since Usagi had run off.

“She…she was there, yeah. Things got really hectic and uh…she’s…she’s not in a good place…”

Naru sighed, her face appearing resigned, giving Mako the distinct impression that this wasn’t the first time she had had to deal with this sort of thing.

“I’ll check in on her tomorrow morning, then,” Naru said. “Don’t worry, I’m sure she’ll be fine.”

Mako nodded, though inwardly she winced–if anything, she was one of the people who had to worry the most .

Waving goodbye to Naru, she and Hiro left the apartment, making their way back to the elevator. They got in, and for a moment just stood there with an awkward silence only broken by the ding of the elevator and the hum of its descent.

“Soooooo…” Mako said, searching for a way to lighten the mood, “Mr. Osaka have any other good stories to tell you?”

“Oh, just a few from when he was in middle school,” Hiro said, a slight smile on his face as he thought of them. It was obvious to anyone listening that Mr. Osaka was prone to slight exaggeration in his tales, but they still made for good entertainment.

“Oh? Did he mention me at all?” Mako asked with a wry grin. “I did have a bit of a reputation back then, you know.”

Hiro nodded. “Well, he said you were really scary, but I don’t know if I believe him there. You’re not scary at all around me.”

At that, Mako couldn’t help but laugh. Sure, she could be…fairly intimidating when she wanted to be, but it had been a long time since people were outright scared of her like in middle school. It’s not like schoolyard reputations tended to stick after graduation.

“Well, plenty of people were pretty scared of me,” she admitted, walking out of the elevator. “But y’know, I was new and really, really tall. I couldn’t even wear the school’s uniform, I had to use my old one! Honestly, I was just glad I made a few friends anyways.”

Mako gave a wistful sigh as they left the building and walked down the sidewalk, the sun setting behind them. She pulled her phone out for just a minute and checked the time. To her relief, they had fifteen minutes until the bus arrived to take them home. Maybe she could get some decent sleep before she went to work the next day. She gave a yawn as she sat down on the bench, one arm spread over the back of it as her other hand continued to grip Hiro’s own. Just one little five-minute nap before the bus arrived wouldn’t hurt, right? Just one little nap…

“Hey, Mom? Do you know who Sailor Moon is?”

Well, that didn’t last. Mako immediately jolted awake, struggling to think of a cogent response to this question. It just had to be today of all days that Hiro asked this.

“Um…yeah, I…I remember Sailor Moon,” she said. “Why, did Mr. Osaka talk to you about her?”

Hiro nodded. “Oh yeah! He said she and the Sailor Guardians were super cool! But they haven’t been around in a while…do you think they’ll ever come back?”

The light of the bus illuminated Mako’s left side as she thought about this question. She looked at Hiro again…he was always so shy, but seeing him smile like this was so welcoming. She just wished it wasn’t part of such a bittersweet day.

“Well…they might, kiddo, who knows,” Mako matter-of-factly said, leading Hiro onto the bus with her. “They probably have some stuff to sort out first.”

“Oh?” Hiro asked. “Well, I hope they can do it soon!”

Mako sighed, looking out of the bus’s window in deep thought.

“I hope so too…”

The impact thrust her forward, bashing her head against the dashboard. At the same time, the windows all burst open, showering her with glass. None of this hurt for some reason, but she wasn’t worried about that–what was much more alarming was the water rushing into the car.

It took mere seconds for the sea to rise all the way to her chest. As the water inched closer to her chin, she was already hyperventilating. There was no land in sight–only the ocean. Her car continued to plunge down into the black abyss as the water continued to creep up to her neck . Yet for one moment, she could hear a distant voice calling out.

“Usako?”

No.

Not that.

Not again.

She tried to respond, but it was too late –the water was already up to her nose. She panicked and began to flail around , kicking against the car as her body struggled to move against the ever-increasing pressure. Yet his voice was coming in clearer.

“Usako, please…help me…”

She tried to scream his name. Tried to say something to him, anything. But whatever light remained began to dim. She kept flailing in vain, feeling herself suffocating…

Usagi awoke in a panic, panting heavily as her eyes frantically shot around her bedroom. Realizing it was just another nightmare, she took deep breaths, doing her best to push down her fear. When the palpitations in her chest finally ceased, she gave a sigh of resignation, rolling over onto her side…and swiftly realizing that, in her terror, she had fallen out of the bed.

Why can’t I just put this behind me? she thought bitterly, shuffling upright with a meek groan . Why can’t this just stop ?

But it was foolish for her to think it would stop now, after all these years. Especially now, with everything that had happened.

Why can’t you get it through your head, Rei? I’m not the person I used to be…if I ever was in the first place…

Her sulking would be interrupted by the sound of someone knocking on her door. She sighed and got up to open it, fully expecting it to be Naru again.

Minako was just about the last person she’d expected.

“Um…so, hi again…” Minako awkwardly said, looking, well…a lot more put-together than Usagi. She still had her red bow on, while her outfit was a slightly more subdued mix of a pink t-shirt, a light cyan jacket, and beige capris—far less sloppy than Usagi’s current lack of pants.

Usagi groaned. “I’m not in the mood, Minako.”

“I mean, uh…yeah, I kinda figured you wouldn’t be, I guess…” Minako said softly. “Look, I…I don’t know what all happened between you and Rei, but if you let me try, I c–”

“I just said I’m not in the mood,” Usagi bluntly replied, slowly beginning to close the door on Minako. But her old friend wasn’t going to give up quite that easily. Stubbornly, Minako shoved her arm between the door and its frame, blocking it for just a moment…and bruising her arm something fierce.

“Ghhh…okay, probably not my smartest move…” Minako sighed. “But look, I…I know you’ve gone through–you’re going through– a lot. Believe me, I’ve been to some pretty dark places myself…and y’know, maybe, to an extent…we’ve all been there.”

She struggled to wrestle the door open. Usagi’s grip relaxed, allowing Minako at least some relief as she stumbled into Usagi’s apartment.

“Thank you,” said Minako, who took a moment to look around. The whole place was…well, she didn’t like to use the word “pigsty” loosely, but she was pretty sure crushed beer cans and dirty underwear didn’t belong in the same pile. What trash bags that were in the room were piled up in the corner, patiently awaiting a trip to the dumpster that may or may not come anytime soon. Minako had only seen this sort of scene in manga before now, and of all people, she wouldn’t have expected Usagi to bring it to life.

“Um…would you mind if I maybe helped…sort some of this out?” Minako meekly asked, looking over at Usagi for just a moment. She barely recognized her as the same person she knew growing up, or indeed from just a few hours ago. Not only were her clothes a total mess, but her eyes…they didn’t just look sad, they looked dead .

“Whatever,” Usagi groaned as she walked over to her fridge, opening it with an almost robotic motion. She took out a can of beer, popped it open, and began chugging it down.

“It’s not like it’ll make any–” she began, before interrupting herself with an enormous belch. 

“…any difference.”

“Hey, you don’t know that!” Minako said, forcing an awkward chuckle. “Sometimes cleaning up your house is good to clear your head, y’know? Just uh…” She approached one particular corner of the apartment and noticed a plethora of beer cans lying around. She cautiously picked one up, and couldn’t help but note just how many of them there were. There had to have been well over a dozen or so.

“Um…you sure like beer, huh, Usagi?” she asked, picking up one old can. A few drops fell into her hand.

Usagi shrugged. “It helps, I guess.”

Minako glanced at one of the bags in the corner. Most of its contents were the same. “Right, but…this is a lot of empty cans over here…”

“…What are you implying, Minako?”

“Just that, well…it might be a good idea to cut back a little?” Minako ventured cautiously. “…Especially at ten in the morning…”

“I’m fine ,” said Usagi, more than a little forcefully. “It doesn’t get in the way or anything. Beer doesn’t have that much alcohol anyway.”

“I’ll…admit, I’m not an expert on that,” Minako said, “but still, this does look a bit much…”

Usagi huffed, shooting Minako an annoyed glare. “Minako, I’m fine. I don’t need you or Rei treating me like a basket case. I. Am. Fine. Why can’t any of you accept that?”

Minako sighed. Part of her wondered if this was even worth it. Usagi didn’t even sound like herself anymore–she had never known her to be this cold and dismissive before now. Her denial clearly ran a lot deeper than any of them were truly prepared to handle.

But still, didn’t she have to try?

“Please don’t hate me for saying this, Usagi…”

“Saying what?” Usagi scoffed. “The same shit Rei tells me?”

“Look, maybe she was too harsh with you last night,” Minako cautioned, “but whatever went down between you two, you do need help. The fate of the world–”

“WOULD YOU STOP ALREADY??” Usagi suddenly shouted. Minako reeled back as Usagi shot her a scornful look. Then she sighed, averting her eyes for a moment. It seemed even she could recognize she might have been going a little too far.

“You’re better off without me,” she sighed. “Please, just…just leave…”

Minako was at a loss for words, uncertain of what she should do. On one hand, it didn’t seem right to leave Usagi like this, alone and despondent. On the other hand…she couldn’t help but feel that she had made things worse, and no matter how she looked at it, she couldn’t see how staying right now would do anything other than continue a downward spiral.

“Okay…” she said softly. “Okay…”

She slowly walked towards the door. As she pulled it open, however, she turned around.

“But listen…Usagi…”

Usagi made no acknowledgment of her, which at the very least, didn’t seem like an objection, so she forged ahead.

“I’m not giving up on you, though. Okay? I…you’re my friend. And I’m sorry I couldn’t be there when you needed it. But I promise you that I’ll be there for you from now on. I’m here if you wanna talk.”

She closed the door behind Usagi, and an uneasy silence fell over the room again. Not a sound outside of Usagi sniffling as she stood in her kitchen, her mind lost in a haze. As her gaze wandered around the room, she started to see the scattered trash with a new eye. A small voice began to echo in her mind, wondering why she had just let Minako leave like that.

Go after her! it yelled.

But her feet refused to move.

It was still the weekend—Rei could afford a bit of extra sleep today.

After everything from the previous night, she felt tired— obscenely tired. The joints in her back popped as she stretched into her covers, flicking her alarm clock off and giving a sigh. That’d been the third time she’d reset it, but no part of her felt like getting up. She merely wanted to lay in the warm embrace of her covers and do nothing but sleep.

Of course, the world had other ideas.

A knock echoed through Rei’s door as she gave a long groan, reluctantly pulling herself out of bed and stiffly walking towards the offending noise. She opened the door and sighed as she saw who it was.

“Uh…morning, Rei,” Minako said, not even able to muster her usual chipper attitude.

“Morning,” Rei yawned.

“So, um…were you planning on sleeping some more, or…”

“Well I was going to ,” Rei said, “but I guess not.”

Rei exited her room and made her way to the kitchen, pulling out a container of coffee grounds and dumping them into a coffee maker.

“You want some coffee?”

“Oh, uh, sure,” Minako nodded. “Do you mind if I…”

“Just sit anywhere you’d like,” Rei calmly said.

Minako nodded, taking a seat by a nearby table. Rei’s home had changed a lot over the past several years—a bit more modernized than she remembered it from back in the day. It still had the same old sliding doors and wooden walls, but there were some noticeable new additions—a fridge, a flatscreen television, some furniture…

“So…I looked through the phonebook and uh…talked with Usagi earlier…”

Rei froze, right in the middle of pouring herself some coffee.

“And?”

Minako’s fingers fidgeted slightly.

“She still doesn’t want to come back.”

Rei sat down at the table, passing Minako her cup.

“Figures,” she muttered, glowering.

Minako stared at her reflection in the cup of coffee, hesitant to drink. Something here wasn’t adding up; she was missing something important…

“What even happened between you two?”

For a moment, Rei was silent, staring down at the table. She opened her mouth to speak a few times, but each time fell silent. After about a minute of this, however, the words began to come out, albeit haltingly and with considerable brevity.

“She came to stay here after Mamoru…y’know. I tried my best to help her but she just kind of…she wasn’t the same. She started drinking a lot and we got into a fight. I said some stuff, she said some stuff…and she walked out.”

Minako blinked a couple times.

“…Okay, that can’t be it.”

“Look, do you really need me to lay everything out for you?” Rei said irritably. “It was a long time ago—the details don’t matter.”

Minako, noticing that Rei’s tone had sharpened considerably, decided not to press the issue further for the moment. Maybe she could get more info when the time was right. She couldn’t help but notice, however, that Rei sounded a lot like Usagi.

“So how do we get her back?” she asked.

“We don’t,” Rei replied bluntly.

Minako had half-expected this response, but that didn’t make it any more welcome. Aware that Rei was on edge, she said, “You know we can’t just leave it at that. We might as well just admit we’ve lost.”

“We will not lose,” Rei fired back. “Do you think I like the idea of doing this without her? If she doesn’t wanna come back, that’s on her, not on me. The only person who can make Usagi get her shit together is herself, and I’m not playing caretaker to her anymore.”

“I mean…I don’t want to put anyone down…” Minako said carefully. “But, um…she’s usually been the one to actually beat the big bad, if you know what I mean?”

“Then maybe this is our chance,” Rei said. “We’ve been by her side long enough, haven’t we? Her right hand and her left hand.”

“…I’m confused, am I the right hand or…”

“Uuuuugh…” Rei groaned, pinching the bridge of her nose. “It’s a metaphor .”

“But don’t you see the problem with that?” Minako went on. “We might be the hands, but the hands need to be connected to the body to do…hand…things…”

She trailed off, not really knowing how to continue this line of reasoning.

“Sorry, just…it doesn’t feel right…”

Rei sighed. Part of her didn’t want this–as angry as she was, she didn’t want to go out without the leader of their quintet. But with how desperate things were looking…

“Let’s talk about this some more later,” Rei said quietly, “Why don’t we discuss something else?”

“Like what?”

“Well…been a while since I heard about your career,” Rei said, a smirk growing over her lips “ Miss Hollywood .”

To Rei’s surprise, Minako blushed.

“Well, I mean…I’m more or less done with acting and stuff,” Minako chuckled, her eyes darting from side to side. “Last thing I did was, uh…I was in a movie, actually.”

“Really?” Rei asked, intrigued. “Which one?”

“Well, um…do you know who Werner Herzog is?”

“Can’t say I do, no.”

“Oh thank god…” Minako sighed. “Was some weird arthouse thing, I didn’t really like how it turned out, and uh…well, I decided I might as well go for something a bit more…boring?”

“You? Doing something boring ?”

“Well…so, I got a journalism degree at Oxford–”

“WHAT?!”

“What, like it’s hard?” Minako replied, a smug smirk growing over her face.

“I mean…” Rei struggled to find the words. “ I assumed so?!?”

Minako raised an eyebrow. “You mean that you wouldn’t have thought that I could do it?”

“No offense, but your grades were never exactly Ami-tier,” Rei replied sheepishly.

“In middle school, maybe!” Minako shot back. “But I cleaned up my act in high school!”

“Well yeah…” admitted Rei. “But you never really crafted the impression of an academic superstar.”

“Well, hard as it might be to believe,” Minako said, placing a dramatic hand on her chest, “every so often I do actually know what I’m doing. Now, what was I talking about?”

“You doing something boring.”

“Right, right. Anyways, I’ve got a job lined up as a reporter for a morning TV show. Figured it’d give me a chance to do my stuff and uh…put my ear to the ground, so to speak.”

Now it was Rei’s turn to arch a suspicious eyebrow. “What, you’re going to be Sherlock Holmes too? You sure that isn’t a little much?”

“Hey, it could help!” Minako protested. “Besides, with whatever we’re dealing with, we’ll need to keep our eyes and ears opened. Some of our old enemies acted in plain sight, right? Who knows, maybe I’ll find something!”

Rei yawned, rolling her eyes at Minako’s exuberant defense of her new career. On the one hand, it did feel like it could be useful…but on the other hand, it felt a bit too convenient.

Still, she didn’t put much stock in it. She took another sip of her coffee, before pulling her phone out and looking at her schedule.

“Ah right, I’ve got company coming over tomorrow,” she dryly noted.

“Those two girls from yesterday, right?” Minako asked.

Rei nodded. “Yuichiro’s daughter and Nanako’s daughter,” she said. “Handfuls, the both of them.”

“Would you need me to get out of your hair, then?” Minako asked. “I mean, I do need to pick my stuff up from the hotel, if you’re letting me stay here and all.”

“I’m sorry, what? ” Rei said, suddenly standing up and glaring down at Minako. “When did I agree to that?!”

“Last night, right?” Minako replied evenly. “I was like, ‘Hey, can I crash here?’ and you were like, ‘Yeah, that’s fine.’ It’s a lot cheaper than that hotel, let me tell you.”

“But you can’t just—I didn’t—I don’t have the—”

Rei’s protests faded as she looked down at Minako’s face, adorned with a dewy-eyed, puppy dog-like expression expertly crafted through years of experience. Any will she had to resist silently withered away–one estranged friend was enough.

Silently facepalming, Rei sighed in defeat.

“You can have my grandfather’s old room,” she muttered. “Do not make a mess.”

Minako pumped her fist into the air, giving a cheerful “Yessss!” at the news.

Rei, meanwhile, gave another groan. Another headache was added to her growing litany of concerns. Taking care of two apprentices, dealing with another global threat, the continued distance between herself and Usagi…

And now a new roommate.

Well…at least I won’t be living here alone, I guess…

Ami nervously drummed her fingers against the table in the empty meeting room, the ambient silence almost painful with the anxiety it gave her. She knew very well when the meeting would begin…she just hoped showing up early would make her look more punctual. She wore an office standard dress, a blue and white blazer with a matching skirt of a shade similar to her hair, and dress shoes that nervously tapped on the carpet.

The silence was broken as another figure entered the room…and by the way he carried himself, it was clear this man was an important figure. He wore an important suit—ironed, buttoned, and adorned with a respectable red tie. He wore important shoes—black ones that shined like they were freshly cleaned for a dime. He walked with an important gait, stiff but measured, each perfectly timed and calculated step carrying his important self forward. He sported a neutral glare one might describe as a grimace, his sunglasses only adding to his important expression.

As he entered the room, he paused, slowly taking his sunglasses off and putting them in his pocket. Ami could feel the glare of this man pierce right through her. She knew that glare very well by now—sometimes she felt like her boss could kill with just this singular glare.

“O-Oh! Good afternoon, Mister Furuya!” she nervously said, trying her best to sound chipper against the silent judgement of her department’s head. “I just figured I would go ahead and come in early before the meeting began. Punctuality, you know?”

The man sniffed. “I don’t recall your name.”

“I-It’s Mizuno, sir, A-Ami Mizun–”

“I didn’t ask for your name. I said I didn’t recall it. Learn to listen.”

Ami gulped, her head tilting back down. “Y-Yes sir, understood. M-My apologies.”

As Furuya took a seat, Ami awkwardly sat there, her cheeks turning pink as she looked all the more nervously around the room. She briefly fumbled with the stack of papers in front of her, before taking a deep breath through her nose.

It’s fine, it’s fine…you’ve prepared for this, haven’t you?

In time, more people entered the room, each one carrying themselves with the same demeanor as Furuya: important, cold, and conveying the same level of condescension that only served to unnerve Ami. She felt so… small compared to them, both in stature and in personality.

One of them smirked as he took a seat next to her. “Jeez, didn’t realize we were bringing the office drones into this one.”

Ami sighed, straightening her posture. “I’m only here to give a proposal.”

“If there’s time,” Furuya said brusquely. “Now then, everyone seems to be here, so we’ll get right to business. As some of you are aware, at the end of this quarter we’ll need to have…”

And so the meeting went on, extensively detailing the company’s finances and future plans. Furuya spent the most time speaking, with one or two of the higher-ranking employees giving brief presentations, and a few others occasionally being asked to provide some quick data. Ami was not called upon herself, but she still paid close attention, taking detailed notes; which was more than what some of her peers were doing, she thought as she saw a few of them slouching a bit in their chairs, looking bored.

After about an hour, things started to wind down.

“Now then, I believe that’s everything,” said Furuya, “so unless anyone else has anything to add, we can wrap this–”

At that moment, Ami’s arm shot into the air. She became aware of several pairs of eyes shooting daggers at her—maybe she had been too eager, or they could have just wanted to get back to their desks. Inwardly she cursed herself, but she soldiered on regardless.

“I, um, did have one proposal,” she said hesitantly as Furuya leveled an impassive gaze at her. “I promise it will only take a few minutes.”

Furuya sighed. “Very well. As long as it’s brief.”

“Thank you, sir,” she said, getting to her feet. She stood as if she were at a public symposium, looking past her glasses over at her audience. A feeling like a steel weight sank into her stomach.

“I was going over our numbers from this past quarter,” she began, “and I noticed that we’ve been experiencing a decline in sales relating to certain antidepressants on the market. I did some research, and I think we could find a way to improve our sales if we lower the price of our product to make it more affordable. I’ve prepared some charts to sh–”

“I’ve heard enough,” Furuya interrupted, raising his hand to silence Ami. She stammered at her boss, barely able to form coherent words.

“B-But sir, I–”

“Miss Mizuno,” Furuya said, pronouncing Ami’s name like it was a threat, “I am well aware of your…esteemed reputation, but this is not high school. You are not the first person to bring this to our attention, nor does it have any bearing on our company going forward. The problem is already being attended to. Is that clear?”

“B-But…”

“Is that clear ?”

Ami looked around the room for a moment. The stares she was getting only made her feel like she was being put on display to be ridiculed. When there wasn’t the occasional moment of snickering, Ami could see them look at her like she was something they stepped in, all judging her. She grabbed her papers in her hand, sighed, and sat down, head hung low as she avoided eye contact.

“Y-Yes, Mr. Furuya.”

“Good,” he dryly noted, leaving his chair and checking his watch. “I have other business to attend to. That will be all for today, everyone.”

As the rest stood and began to file out, Ami didn’t move from her chair. She could hear the same snickering, the same pointed remarks. She couldn’t hear them clearly, but even someone half as smart as her would know what they were talking about. She could feel her heart beating faster inside her chest as a bead of sweat rolled down her cheek. Her breathing became faster as her body rocked back and forth, her heart pounding like a drum as it pulsated right into Ami’s ears.

What happened next was a blur. Ami lost track of where she was or what she was doing, her body on autopilot for several minutes, her senses numbed to everything around her. When she regained some sense of awareness, she found herself alone in a bathroom stall, crying and rocking herself like a scared child.

Why am I even here? she thought to herself. I’ve worked so hard… I’ve never gotten any respect from anyone for it…what’s even the point?

After a few more sobs, she started to catch her breath. At that moment, it dawned on her that she couldn’t just stay here forever—eventually someone might need to use this stall, after all.

I did this to myself. All alone…I miss her…

Gathering all her courage, she got up and opened the stall to leave. The best thing she could do right now was head back to her desk and bury herself in her—

“ OOF!”

Ami was knocked to the ground, her papers scattering over the floor. Having been so wrapped up in her own problems, she hadn’t noticed that anyone else was in the bathroom, much less right in front of her stall.

“Oh my goodness, I’m so sorry! Are you alright?”

Ami looked upward to see who she had run into. She was a tall woman, smartly dressed in a black business suit and matching skirt with fine high heels. Her platinum white hair was done up in a bun, and her intelligent grey eyes laid behind a pair of horned-rimmed glasses.

“Oh!” the woman said with a start. “You’re…you’re in Furuya’s department, aren’t you?”

The mention of her boss sent a stab of panic through Ami’s mind, but she forced it down.

“Um, y-yes,” she said quickly, trying to disentangle herself from the situation as fast as possible. “I’m very sorry, I—”

“Oh, it’s no trouble,” the woman said evenly. “I wasn’t paying much attention myself.”

She looked down at Ami curiously. “Are you alright?”

Ami, realizing that her eyes were likely bloodshot from crying, blushed from embarrassment.

“I’m fine,” she said as she began gathering up her papers. “I’m sorry, I really need to get back to work. If you’ll excuse me…”

She got to her feet and quickly made for the door.

“Ah, Miss!” the white-haired woman called after her. “You forgot your—”

But Ami was already gone.

The woman shrugged, picking up the paper Ami had left behind. Curiosity getting the best of her, her eyes flew over its contents.

Well now, she thought, isn’t this interesting…

“Not my best work,” said Eros with a shrug, “but hey, it’s not like I’m being paid for this.”

“Goodness, and here I thought you were honored to serve the Empress,” Philia remarked drily, her eyes flicking over to her compatriot’s attempt to balance herself on the edge of the roof they had selected for their latest meeting.

“I guess I’ll just have to settle for the exposure…” Eros said, pretending to sulk as she stood on one leg, her body forming a tree pose.

Philia ignored her, returning her attention to the new Crystal Knight. This one had assumed the form of a gruff-looking young man, dressed like a gang member with a leather jacket and large pompadour haircut. Eros, it seemed, had decided to spice things up a bit for this go around.

“Show me,” Philia commanded. The Knight nodded, holding out its right arm. With a flash of light, the arm transformed into an enormous red pincer, looking strong enough to snap a man in two.

“Very good,” said Philia. “As you were.”

The Knight lowered its arm, resuming its normal appearance.

“Well?” asked Eros, turning towards Philia expectantly.

“It’ll serve well enough,” answered Philia. “Not exactly inconspicuous, but I suppose subterfuge isn’t what we had in mind.”

“Just wish you’d let me really go to town for once,” Eros grumbled. “This guy’s still so boring. ”

If the Crystal Knight was offended by this, it certainly didn’t show it. It continued to stare straight ahead, awaiting its next orders.

“I told you, the Empress does not wish for a full-on assault,” Philia replied, having lost track of the number of times she had had to repeat this to Eros. “Enemy fatalities are acceptable, but not the goal. Believe me, I would prefer to make this quick as well, but we’ll just have to make do.”

“Well, it’d be easier if You-Know-Who would get off their ass,” Eros said bitterly.

“You shouldn’t talk about your comrades-in-arms behind their backs,” Philia chided her. “ “…Though I’ll admit the lack of communication is…annoying.”

“ Bleh ,” spat Eros as she sat down, swinging her legs over the edge of the building as she gazed down at the city below. “Anyway, how much longer do we have to sit around here?”

“Not much,” replied Philia. “We just need to wait for the right opportunity…”

She walked over to Eros, sharing her view of Juuban.

“…and then, we’ll strike.”

Chapter Text

“You’re late, Kino!”

Mako fumbled her way past the entrance to Ikuhara’s Diner, grumbling under her breath as her boss’s terse words met her almost immediately upon entry. She was already in a bad enough mood as is. She had missed her bus today and arrived right in the middle of lunch, hurriedly putting on an apron as she avoided the stares of customers who were confused why this large woman was being yelled at by such a small, scraggly man. 

The diner was hardly the fanciest place in town, but it was still a very well-respected Teishoku restaurant. Its tables were well spread out to allow its patrons enough room to comfortably maneuver as needed, and while small, could be pushed up against each other for larger parties. Meanwhile, the traditional Japanese decor gave the place a quiet, elegant atmosphere that, while doing little to alleviate the hustle and bustle of the busier days, at least allowed Mako to achieve some peace of mind…usually.

“Nothing gets by you, Mr. Ikuhara, sir ,” she sarcastically replied, walking right past him and making her way to the kitchen without stopping.

“Don’t give me that backsass, Kino!” Ikuhara shot back. “Sarcasm doesn’t cut the meat! Now get in the kitchen and get ready for the lunch rush!”

I was already doing that, Mako thought, but she held her tongue this time. 

With a sigh, she opened the door to the kitchen and grabbed a hairnet, wrestling her hair under it. The kitchen itself was divided by a large metal table that ran right through the middle, with a sink in one corner surrounded by dirty dishes. Mako hurriedly washed her hands, shook the water off, and grabbed a nearby spatula before hurrying to a grill, the smoke from the meat sizzling on top spreading out like a fog. There were two other chefs in the kitchen, but neither of them seemed to put much heed to her presence, all of them focused on the job. Mako didn’t begrudge them for this, though—was slipping into the same state of mind as they were. The “zone”, as they not-so-originally called it.

“Table 4–grilled salmon with rice, miso soup, and a salad on the side!” came an oddly chipper voice from outside, as a waitress’s hand poked in with an order. Mako wasted no time grabbing it and getting down to business, her arms moving without her even needing to think. She had this practically down to a science —she pulled out a knife, twirled it between her fingers, and within minutes, she rang the bell and passed the order along.

"Keiko, grilled salmon with rice, miso soup, and salad!" she exclaimed, before yanking another slip of paper from yet another waitress. 

She cracked her neck, attempting to invigorate herself, though it proved to be rather disorienting at the same time . The smoke caused Mako to sweat a little as she sighed, stretching her arms behind her back and letting her joints crack.

“Strong gal, ain’t ya, Kino?” came a nearby voice. Mako turned to one of the other chefs, who was scrubbing a spatula. He was visibly younger than Mako, looking like he’d only graduated college a few years prior.

“I try to keep in shape,” Mako said confidently, playfully stretching her arms for emphasis.

“In shape?! Woman, you’re freakin’ jacked! ” another chef exclaimed. He was a portly man with a noticeable beard, hair covering his arms and knuckles. His head, on the other hand, was noticeably balding at the top, though his hair was awkwardly combed over to hide it.

“Fuckin’ hell, I’ve been working here for ten years and I’ve still got a gut!”

“Aww, c’mon, Sato, don’t be so hard on yourself!” Mako chuckled. “You look great for your age!”

“Feh. Wait until you hit my age, Kino,” the chef named Sato chuckled, his voice a hoarse, gravelly tone that only added to his old-fashioned bluntness. “The back hurts, the neck hurts, and next thing you know, you’ll be stuck working the same dead-end job under the same cheapskate for the next ten y–”

“Ay, easy, man!” the younger chef interrupted, rolling his eyes. “We can complain during the break, alright? You know how Ikuhara is, the man’s got the ears of a fox.”

“Feh,” the older chef grumbled. “Guess you’re right.”

Mako idly shook her head, tutting under her breath as she refocused her efforts. The sound of another order came, though there was something off about it. For one, that chipper voice from earlier had returned…but it wasn’t as chipper as before.

“T-Two orders of tempura and one…one order of pork, all with colas, no sides…”

Mako paused.

“Um…Keiko, you okay? You look a little pale…”

The waitress on the other side of the wall was just barely visible, noticeably pacing outside of the window. Her face was downcast, fingers twiddling against each other as she avoided eye contact.

“…It’s nothing, Mako,” she mumbled.

It sure doesn’t sound like “nothing”… Mako thought to herself. As she held the order in her hand, a familiar feeling brewed in her chest. Seeing someone in distress was not something that sat well with her. When something was wrong, she had to help whoever needed it.

Of course, when a little thing like a job was in the way…

“…one of you guys mind handling this while I use the restroom?”

Next to her, the younger chef gave a slight groan but took the paper from Mako’s hand regardless. “Alright, Kino, but you owe me.”

Mako nodded before slipping out of the kitchen. She tiptoed around the corner, hoping to avoid detection as she watched the waitress, Keiko, making her way to another table. Close by, at Table 3, she could make out a trio of customers who seemed a bit shady…

For one thing, they were obviously well-off– very well-off, if she had to hazard a guess.   All of them had a pale complexion, with some in khaki shorts and polos, others in well-kept suits. Each of them was well-groomed, with slick hair and finely manicured fingers, and at least one of them was visibly wearing an obviously expensive watch. The rather obnoxious display of wealth made Mako grind her teeth, but that wasn’t what set off her alarm bells. No, it was more of the way they looked at Keiko . The… vibe they gave off.

“God, did you hear that bitch from Sales today?” complained one of the men, this one with an expensive watch. “Always butting in and telling us how to do our jobs. Like she fucking knows how things work around here!”

“How’d she even get promoted, anyway?” asked one of the others in a nasal voice. “What, is her daddy in management or something?”

“Haven’t heard anything like that,” commented a third with shining glasses and a wide smirk. “I’ll bet she’s got a sugar daddy, though—the ones with a stick up their ass always do.”

The one with the watch let out a low whistle. “Wouldn’t wanna be the poor bastard who had to handle her. Though she does have nice tits…”

Mako immediately tensed up, clenching her fists. 

“ Good afternoon, gentlemen! What can I get you on this… lovely day?”

Mako saw Keiko bow and take a deep breath, clearly screwing up all her courage. With what outwardly seemed to be no effort at all, smiled.

“ ‘Bout time,” the man with the watch muttered before half-heartedly glancing at the menu. “Colas for all of us. Pork for me, tempura for the boys. No sides. ”

The man with the nasal laugh snorted. “ What, the wife nagging about your weight or something, Shiozawa?”

The man with the watch rolled his eyes. “ Oh shut up, Takagi—just felt like mixing it up, that’s all. Like that bitch is gonna tell me what to do…”

The man with the glasses chuckled. “You always say that, but then she walks all over you . Should just follow my lead—not dating at all .”

“And how’s that working out for you, Kashiwakura?”

The one called Kashiwakura grinned. “Never better.”

Mako watched as Keiko gulped, scrambling to get the orders down on her notepad. 

She’s doing alright, Mako thought to herself. She’ll get it down quick, then she’ll be done, no fuss.

She wanted to say something—do anything to give Keiko some encouragement, but she couldn’t manage to catch her eye.

“Um, so…one pork, two tempura, all with colas, right?” asked Keiko. “A-Anything else?”

The one with the nasally laugh, whose name seemed to be Takagi, snorted. “Yeah, why dontcha show us a smile or somethin’, sweetheart ?”

Oh God damn it! Mako screamed in her head.

Keiko froze up. “W-Wha?”

“ I said you should smile more, babe! You look uh…what’s the word?”

“Like an old maid,” Shiozawa snorted.

“Yeah, yeah, what he said ! Like an old maid!”

Keiko clearly wasn’t sure how to respond. Mako could think of several things to say, but none of them would come out right now—she stayed rooted to the spot, albeit simmering with rage.

“I...I’m only 28…” she stammered out, and Mako knew immediately that this was the wrong thing to say.

The one called Kashiwakura chuckled. “Well, I wouldn’t say that so loud, if you know what I mean…”

Keiko blushed in response. “I-I...wh-what are you…?”

Shiozawa coughed. “ Just, you know…you look older than that, is all.”

Do not get involved, Mako told herself as her hands began to twitch. No matter what, you absolutely cannot get involved.

“W-Will that be all, sir?” Keiko stammered, doing her best to bring the focus back to the order.

Takagi smirked. “I didn’t get that smile from ya, did I ?”

Keiko gulped. Slowly, she took a step away from the table. “Y-Your order will be ready in the next few mi–”

She stopped. A hand was grabbing tightly at her wrist. Takagi gave a wicked grin, looking right into Keiko’s eyes.

“Smile.”

Keiko shuddered, frozen like a deer in the headlights . The other two men looked at her with twisted anticipation, like this was all some kind of joke.

“What’s wrong? Smile . It ain’t that ha-”

He didn’t have a chance to finish his sentence, as without warning Keiko shoved him away. Unfortunately, it was a little too hard–Takagi staggered back, flopping onto his chair and falling over. It was ever-so-slight, but Mako thought she heard a small RIP . Takagi looked down in horror, and Mako realized that she could just make out a small tear on his suit.

Keiko gasped, covering her mouth with both hands.

“I-I am so sorry, that was an a–”

“ GAH , YOU STUPID BITCH” Takagi shouted in shock. “WHAT THE HELL DID YOU JUST DO!”

“I’m really very sorry, sir!” Keiko said hurriedly, her professionalism briefly overtaking her dread. “Please, just let me—“

“Do you have any idea how much this suit even cost, you bitch?!” Takagi shouted in her face. “It’s worth more than you’ll ever make in your life!”

“Uh, Takagi, man?” Kashiwakura said as he nervously glanced around the restaurant at people who were starting to stare at them. “Maybe you should…”

Takagi ignored him. Keiko attempted to back away, but Takagi grabbed her upper arm.

“Where do you think you’re going?” He growled, his grip like a vice.

In that instant, Mako didn’t even have to think. Her body moved on its own, barreling towards the scene with a powerful sprint, not even caring about the consequences.

Takagi had little time to react. The next thing he knew, he was lying on the ground, dazed . He had been flipped over on his back so effortlessly it was as if his body was made entirely of paper mache. He felt a sting course through his ankle like someone had kicked him, while his eyes dizzily spun as he struggled to get a good look at his assailant . To his horror, it wasn’t Keiko who had struck him, but someone else…someone VERY tall.

Mako’s apron barely hid the muscle on her arms, the poor thing nearly ripping apart from the marvelous judo flip she had just done . The look on her face was nothing short of pure contempt . Her hands were balled into fists, and her posture was like a professional fighter, steady and well-rehearsed.

“What the fuck ??” Takagi yelled, crawling on his back in a panic.

“Don’t you ever lay your hands on her again,” Mako growled as she brandished her fist. “Got it?”

“M-Mako, i-it’s fine, r-really…” Keiko awkwardly mumbled.

“That guy was about to attack you, Keiko!” Mako said, not taking her eyes off Takagi. “Like hell it’s fine!”

“KIIIIIIIINOOO!”

Keiko groaned inwardly, knowing that things were about to get a lot worse.

Ikuhara angrily stomped into the scene, his face redder than a Roman candle an d his teeth clenched so tightly they looked close to shattering. As he approached the scene, his eyes swept around the room before pointing an accusatory finger at the tall woman.

“I thought I told you no threats to the customers?! Look at Mr. Takagi here, you could’ve broken his neck with that!”

Mako crossed her arms and grumbled, looking down at the man. “With all due respect, Mr. Ikuhara, that man was harassing and came close to assaulting one of our waitresses . Am I not allowed to care about our staff’s wellbeing?”

“You can care WITHOUT harassing and assaulting our customers!” Ikuhara shot back. He put a hand to his forehead and let out a deep sigh, before looking back at Mako with an expression of exasperation. 

“ Alright, only one way to handle this,” he said in a tight voice. “You. Overtime. No pay. Starting tomorrow .”

“WHAT?!” Mako exclaimed, eyes growing wide in disbelief . “Sir, you can’t just do that! After what they were doing to Ke–”

“ Any more gab from you and you’re getting double overtime, got it? You can’t just play superhero over every little thing, Miss Kino!” the manager fired back. He turned to the rowdy trio and helped Takagi up to his feet.

“I’m very sorry for her behavior, Mr. Takagi, sir,” he said deferentially. “I promise you, we’ll get you a new order, no charge, and—”

“Screw that!” shouted Takagi, roughly pushing Ikuhara away. “‘Overtime?!’ The crazy bitch should get her ass arrested for this!”

“Cool it, man,” said one of his companions as he put a firm hand on Takagi’s shoulder while eying Mako warily. “Let’s just cut our losses and go, alright?”

“Sorry for all the trouble,” the third man, Kashiwakura said to Ikuhara, suddenly speaking formally. “If it’s all the same to you, we’ll just have our current bill voided and leave it at that. Will that be acceptable?”

“Um…yes, of course!” Ikuhara said hurriedly, as he gave a deep bow. Keiko quickly followed suit, and then Mako, albeit highly reluctantly, did the same. Unpaid overtime was bad enough—she couldn’t afford anything worse.

“And Miss Kino?” Ikuhara added. “Is there anything you have to say?”

“I… deeply …regret my actions, sir,” she said in an almost robotic tone , feeling nauseated just saying this . “They were…entirely unacceptable, and I should have known better.”

The two men muttered something noncommittally before heading off, taking a still-fuming Takagi with them out the door. Once they had left, Ikuhara turned to Mako, gave her a stern look, then shook his head and shuffled away from the scene. All that was left were Mako, Keiko, and a rather nervous crowd of onlookers trying desperately to pretend they had not witnessed the scene that had just transpired.

Mako bowed her head and sighed.

Why do I get the feeling I’m not gonna last much longer in this job?

She began to march back to the kitchen, an exhausted look on her face.

“U-Um…Mako?” came a soft voice. She turned around and saw Keiko, her hands crossed in front of her waist. “T-Thanks for…for helping me out back there…”

A soft smile crawled over Mako’s face. Without a second thought, she placed a firm hand on Keiko’s shoulder. “You’re a lot stronger than you think you are, okay? Don’t let those guys scare you.”

Keiko awkwardly nodded in reply, then started to giggle.

 “Gosh, for someone so tough, you’re really sweet,” she teased, offering Mako a small smile. “Maybe Mr. Ikuhara is right, you do sound kinda like a superhero!”

A blush ran down Mako’s cheeks, her smile turning more sheepish. “I-I’m not a…I mean, I w–…do you need me to help you clean this up?”

“Oh no, you don’t have to do that!” Keiko said, already picking up a few upturned plates. “I’ll get this done in a jiffy! You get back to the kitchen, okay?”

And that was that; in no time at all , Keiko was back to her usual upbeat attitude, and Mako couldn’t help but feel a bit proud . Sure, things hadn’t turned out so well for her , but she’d still helped Keiko . And that’s what mattered, right? Of course, now she had overtime to deal with…that wasn’t gonna be easy to explain once she got back home… yeah, things really hadn’t turned out well for her…

She spent the rest of her shift in the kitchen, ignoring the worried glances from the other chefs. She didn’t know what they thought about the ordeal, but she didn’t particularly want to know either. And all the while, Keiko’s words rang through her head.

“You do sound kinda like a superhero!”

If only she knew.

Usagi gave a loud grunt as she hefted a garbage bag over her shoulder. Taking a few small, quivering steps, she slowly made her way out the door, headed in the direction of the nearest dumpster.

Come on… she told herself as she struggled to keep the bag aloft. You can…do it…

She was only a few steps away from the dumpster when she felt the plastic begin to rip across the side of the bag. Usagi let out a panicked yelp and desperately grabbed the whole bag with both hands, speeding to the edge of the dumpster.

Fuck fuck fuck gross gross gross aaaaaaaah what the hell is this sticky stuff on here???

With one quick swoop, she tossed the bag inside, the plastic finally tearing apart as the bag burst against the green metal…and immediately, Usagi fell face-first onto the ground.

“Guhhhhh…” she whined, scraping off some dirt and gravel from her cheeks as she stood up. She wasn’t wearing anything more than her pajamas, a hoodie, and some sneakers, and even those sneakers looked worn and messy.

“Usagi?”

Usagi hobbled back to her feet and saw Naru approaching her, carrying a garbage bag that was visibly lighter than the one Usagi had just chucked into the dumpster.

“Uh…surprised to see you here,” Naru said.

Usagi tilted her head. “Why? Figured I’d change my routine up at least a little . Besides, my room is, y’know…not in great shape.”

“Well…yeah.” Naru said, tossing her garbage into the dumpster. “But um…look, I don’t wanna sound like a jerk here, but I’d really been meaning to talk to you about something.”

Usagi cursed under her breath.

Since when was it “Get Usagi Some Therapy” Day?

“It’s about the drinking and stuff, isn’t it?”

Naru reluctantly nodded. “And…other things. The job stuff, the sleeping-in all day, the…I know you don’t want me to say it–”

“I don’t, no…” Usagi said.

“And…” Naru paused and sighed, her eyes downcast. “And I’m worried. I’m worried that you’re hurting yourself a lot more now than in the past. And I know you might disagree, you might say it isn’t a problem–”

“Naru.”

Naru paused, eying Usagi with interest.

“Can I please… say something ?”

“Go on…” Naru prompted.

“I …I get it. I get why you’re worried. It’s just one big black cloud over my head…I-I can’t…sleep without nightmares…and y’know…keep thinking about mistakes I made…trying to forget the bad thoughts anyway I can…”

Her eyes darted to the ground as she paused, hesitating for a moment. The fact she was saying any of this at all was something she hadn’t expected . It took her long enough to accept she had a problem. But at the same time…this wasn’t just one small problem.

It was a big problem. And Usagi still couldn’t face it.

“I don’t think you should worry about me, though,” she sighed. “I’m hopeless.”

Usagi’s pained comments made Naru tense up.

“Usagi…I’ve known you for years. You’ve done a lot for me…for my family…” She gave a sad smile and placed a reassuring hand over Usagi’s shoulder. “You helped us with Naoko for years. You know how she is, she still loves you. But even she knows you’re hurting. And I just…want you to be okay. Get the help you need.”

Usagi shook her head, her eyes empty. “I… um …don’t really think there’d be a point to it.”

A sigh crossed Naru’s lips. Of course. Usagi was still too deep in this. She still couldn’t accept help. And yet, despite this constant denial…

“If you mean that…then why’d you do all of this?”

Usagi paused, turning to the dumpster. 

“What, clean up? I…I guess I just…y’know, i-it was about time and all, I…”

Why had she, though? She hadn’t cleaned her apartment in months . Had she, despite everything , still taken some of Minako’s words to heart? 

She wordlessly stammered in front of Naru, who just looked at Usagi with an expression of…humor? What was so funny about this, anyway?

 Naru just chuckled, pulling her phone out of her pocket and thumbing through her contacts.

“Tell you what,” she said. “I’ll text you the name and number of a therapist I know. Can you promise me you’ll at least try to call them?”

Usagi stammered a bit more. “U-Um…I’ll think about it.”

“Alright,” said Naru. “Just…try to keep an open mind, alright?”

Usagi nodded dazedly, before turning to head back inside.

“Oh and uh, by the way, Usagi…”

Usagi turned around. “Yeah?”

“So, there’s this video that’s been going around today. Some footage of a new Sailor Moon sighting?”

In that instant, Usagi could feel her heart almost bursting right out of her chest as a wave of anxiety crept through her body.

“…oh, yeah?”

“I know, right?” Naru nonchalantly said. “Total nostalgia bomb there, isn’t it? Been wondering what she’s been up to lately.”

A sickening pain crept through Usagi’s stomach. It still felt so fresh in her mind…everything that had happened last night. That look Rei had given her during their fight…the things they had both said…

Usagi painfully gulped, fumbling her hands inside the pockets of her hoodie as she gave a pitiful sigh.

“I…guess I’ve been wondering too.”

A cloud of ash rose up from Rei’s shoe as she walked across the temple grounds. She had to admit, this all was new for her—despite everything that had happened in the past, their homes had never truly suffered for it. Looking back, things almost seemed simpler when they had first been Sailors. For whatever scrapes had happened in Hikawa Shrine, it never left more than a scratch. This, though…Rei could see centuries of ancient tradition, passed down from generation to generation, singed and unrecognizable.

Was that just how things were now? They had grown up, so the world demanded that they face greater consequences?

Rei crossed her arms and sighed. She was being stupid—there was no reason why those things were different now. They just were, and they had to accept it. All of them had to.

How the hell are we going to convince her to do this? Rei thought. It’s not like we can just undo everything that’s happened…

Or maybe it was her own fault? Maybe she should have realized that something like this would happen one day. Maybe she should’ve–

“Ah, excuse me, ma’am?”

Rei jumped in a panic, whirring her head around to see another arrival: a studious-looking woman in a suit, her black hair tied in a bun, holding a microphone within inches of Rei’s face. Behind her was a man wearing jeans, a t-shirt, and a baseball cap, pointing a large video camera right at her.

“Hello, I’m Ibuki Shirano from TBS,” the woman said. “I was hoping you could tell me about yesterday’s incident?”

A weight suddenly sank into Rei’s stomach.

Ah shit…

“I-Incident?” she stammered, forcing out a phony laugh. “Why, ma’am, I-I don’t know what you could be referring t–”

“Uh, hello, the whole fight between the Sailor Guardians and that monster?” the woman interrupted. “ We have footage captured from a drone flying over the area –it’s been going viral all day!”

Rei paused. She supposed she shouldn’t have been surprised, but to have the news travel that fast was terrifying.

“Ma’am, this has been a… very traumatic experience for me…” Rei bluntly said, gesturing to the burned exterior of the temple. “I am not in the mood to talk about Sailor Moon and her girl-power posse.”

“But ma’am!” the interviewer exclaimed, thrusting her microphone even further into Rei’s face, almost smacking her right in the chin. “This is the first we’ve seen any indication of Sailor activity in years! Surely, you have a story f–”

“Ack, excusing me, excusing me, move out of ze way!”

Rei’s growing frustration with the ambush interview was suddenly replaced with baffled exasperation as she noticed a rather familiar face intruding on the scene. Despite the awful black wig she wore, a dab of ink dotting her cheek, and square sunglasses covering her eyes, it was obvious to Rei that her new “roommate” was getting involved.

“Um…and who are you supposed to be?” the interviewer asked.

“VAT?? You DARE ask me who I am??” Minako shouted, putting on a ridiculously thick German accent of sorts. “If I didn’t care so much for Miss Rei’s image, I vould SPIT on you right now!”

“Minako, what the fuck are you doing?” Rei tersely whispered through grit teeth.

“Just play along Rei,” Minako whispered back, briefly breaking character. “I have a plan.”

She coughed and turned to the interviewer, forcibly poking the poor woman in the chest with a firm index finger. “Miss Rei ist a busy voman, unt she does not need FLIES such as yourselves to interrupt her during an othervise tragic time! Get away, ze lot of you!”

“Now just who the hell are you t–”

“Who ze hell are YOU to intrude vithout even leaving unt call!” Minako fired back. “Now leave, or I shall report zis to ze police as tresspassing!”

“Why you little…” the reporter mumbled, before turning to her visibly uncomfortable cameraman, who gave her a silent look that indicated they had probably overstayed their welcome. She groaned and reluctantly turned around, cursing under her breath about blowing a potentially important interview. As the intruders passed down the steps to the street below, Minako turned back to Rei, flashing a dopey smile.

“Well, I think I put my acting talent to good use back there!” she chuckled.

For a moment, Rei said nothing. Then, with one swift motion, she reached out and tore the wig off of Minako’s head.

“AH!” Minako shouted, grasping her real hair in shock. “Hey, what gives?”

“Oh, ze imposter, she ist suffering ze stupids, ja ?” Rei asked, mimicking Minako’s attempted accent. “Perhaps she might wish to mind her own business and not be so annoying , hmm ?”

Minako groaned, rolling her eyes as her shoulders slouched. “Hey, it worked, didn’t it? It’s just a little trick I had to learn in my career. Press people are really annoying.”

“Didn’t you just tell me you were a journalist?”

“Yeah, but I’m not a tabloid vulture !”

Rei grumbled and crossed her arms in front of her chest. She hated to admit it, but Minako was right… sort of . “Fine, fine…just don’t do that again.”

“No promises,” Minako chuckled, rocking back and forth on her heels like an energetic child. “Sooooooo…need another moment?”

Rei silently turned her gaze back to the temple. She didn’t want to go inside in case something happened and the whole building fell on her, but she still felt the urge to regardless. To see the flame inside…see if it had any answers to their current dilemma. A part of her could feel its warmth flickering away, dimmed but still alight. A flame that had stayed lit for centuries…

“…yeah,” Rei mumbled, her voice going quiet. “I just…need to th–”

A sudden vibrating noise interrupted her as an electronic chime rang out. Rei cursed under her breath and pulled her phone out of her pocket, sliding her finger across the screen to answer it.

“Yes, hello?”

At first, she couldn’t make out anything beyond the sound of static and…screaming? A broken, garbled voice tried coming out of the chaotic din, and gradually Rei could make out something familiar…

“Rei?? Can you hear me??”

Rei gave a start. “ Ami ?”

A Few Minutes Earlier

Mako sighed as she gave the dishes a hard scrubbing down. The day had been…tough, there was no denying it, but she was almost done now. She only had one more hour left, and then she’d be home free.

“Hey Mako?” came a familiar voice. Mako turned to see Keiko standing right in the middle of the doorway, a confused expression on her face. “You know how people say ‘give my compliments to the chef’ or whatever? So like…someone wanted to give you those compliments in-person or something?”

Mako resisted the urge to roll her eyes. Sure, it kept her from her work, but hey, someone actually was actually happy with her today! That was worth something, wasn’t it?

“Alright, send them in,” she told Keiko.

Keiko nodded and briefly stepped away from the doorway. In her stead, another person entered…and Mako’s joy was washed away by a great wave of anxiety.

The entire kitchen, save for the sounds of smoke and water, was silent as a woman with blue hair and sad eyes entered , dressed in a blue and white suit typical for an office worker. She didn’t make eye contact with anyone–she looked far too scared for it . Heck, she looked like she would be scared by a gentle breeze. She attempted to speak, but what came out was a stammer.

“H-Hi…” she quietly said. 

Mako wasn’t sure how to reply at first. “What are you doing here?” probably wasn’t the best thing to say, given the circumstances, but it was the first thing out of her mouth, so it was what she had to deal with.

The other two chefs in the kitchen exchanged a confused look amongst themselves, completely out of the loop.

“Uh…Kino, you know this lady?” the younger chef asked.

Mako hesitated, before giving a nod. “Y-Yeah, I…e-excuse me, I, um…need to step out… cover me for just a bit , okay? ”

Without waiting for an answer, she made for the door, taking a moment to grab Ami’s wrist and pull her along with her. Ami, for her part, didn’t try to resist, likely understanding the awkward position she had put Mako in. Quickly finding a table in the far corner of the restaurant, Mako sat down, gesturing for Ami to do the same.

“Okay, just…” Mako said in a low voice, gesticulating frantically as she struggled to find the words. “… what the hell?”

“I-I’m sorry!” Ami whimpered, looking embarrassed with the situation. “I-I didn’t even know you worked here, I-I just…well, I came here after work, I-I saw you in the kitchen, a-and…”

“And you thought it was a good idea to come in while I was at work?” retorted Mako. “It just…it really puts me in a corner, you know.”

Ami didn’t look Mako in the eye. She already felt the disappointment, the frustration in her voice. She scratched at her wrist, her voice sounding quieter with each second.

“I-I’m…I-I know if I keep saying sorry, it’ll lose meaning, but…I just want to talk. I-If this is a bad time, I can always wait…”

Mako quietly drummed her fingers against the table.

“Well, you’ve got me close to the end of my shift, so I guess this isn’t bad timing…”

“R-Right…” Ami said, giving a sad sigh. Another cold silence came between them as Mako crossed her arms, her face sporting a look of mixed emotions. Bitterness, anger, a hint of sadness…

“So…liked my cooking, huh?” Mako asked.

Ami nodded. “Y-Yes…I…didn’t realize how much I missed it until now.”

Mako gave a dry chuckle, though her lips barely formed a smile. “I guess you were always the first to ask for seconds. Except when Usagi was around.”

A blush crossed Ami’s cheek. “W-Well…p-perhaps…”

Another moment of silence.

“…have you, erm…given any thought about yesterday?”

“About what? Going back to Sailor duty?” Mako asked. “Well…I was feeling kind of mixed about it until the monster showed up.”

“Yeah?”

“And…” Mako paused. “ Before I was worried about not being there for Hiro…but I also have a responsibility to protect him. And the best way to do that…”

“How is Hiro?” Ami asked suddenly. “Is he…is he doing well?”

Mako just glared at her.

“Don’t see why you’d care.”

“ You care about him,” replied Ami. “Isn’t that reason enough?”

Mako just sighed. All well and good for Ami to care now —it wasn’t like that had mattered to her before.

“Why are you really here?” she asked. “You didn’t come just to congratulate me on my cooking, and you didn’t come just to talk about Hiro.”

“Well…maybe those are just part of the bigger picture…” Ami said quietly. “Maybe…maybe I’m here because of you .”

Mako blinked twice, unsure how to process this.

“…What are you saying?”

“Mako, I…” Ami paused, unsure what to say, before deciding to just say it outright. “I…I miss you.”

Mako hesitated, unsure of what to say . All sorts of mixed emotions welled up inside of her as she struggled to think of a response. What could she say, anyway? She was beyond frustrated with… just about everything to do with this, even a bit angry about it.

“And that’s it?”

Ami winced. “W-What?”

“And that’s it? You come here, tell me you miss me? What, not even an ‘I’m sorry’? Not even a ‘Oh, Mako, I totally screwed up running away from everything ’?? I’m busting my ass trying to take care of Hiro and you…you…”

She stopped . She could see the look in Ami’s eyes— those sad, beaten eyes full of regret and pain. Mako didn’t want to raise her voice too much, her day had been enough of a mess. But just looking at Ami, the poor woman on the verge of tears… it was obvious her day wasn’t going so well either.

“M-Mako?”

Mako sighed, standing up and pushing the chair away as she grabbed her apron. “I have to go back to work. My shift ends in about forty minutes.”

“R-Right…” Ami nodded. “Right, I…t-this was probably a mistake, anyways…”

Mako didn’t reply to that, merely shaking her head. A knot formed in her stomach as she looked back at Ami, her mind clouded with a flurry of emotions that she struggled to process. She slowly moved away from the table, taking a step towards the kitchen…

…and froze as an ungodly screech came from outside. The loud, piercing cry shook the walls and the floors, and the few remaining customers in the restaurant rose from their seats in a collective panic, peering through the windows to see what could be causing such a disturbance.

Ami took a few steps back, whatever sadness remained on her face tempered with steely calm . She grabbed her purse and quickly pulled out her wand, cautiously holding it against her chest. For a moment, everything was still. The only sound Mako could hear was that of her own heart beating against her chest, pounding faster, faster, faster…

And with yet another screech…

“BRING ME THE SAILOR GUARDIANS.”

…a car flew right through the window of Ikuhara’s.

Chapter Text

“EVERYBODY GET DOWN!”

If there was good news, it was that the number of customers at Ikuhara’s was fortunately not large. The building currently held maybe a dozen or so patrons who had expected a regular, boring mid-afternoon meal. Of course, whatever sadistic unseen forces that happened to govern the world had other plans. Today, those plans took the form of a blue Toyota being thrown right into the window, showering shards of glass over the floor as thankfully vacant tables and chairs were crushed into splinters.

All of the diners screamed and ran to the other side of the restaurant, some ducking against the walls in panic. The chefs ran out of the kitchen to see what the commotion was all about, only to be shocked by the crumpled mess of a car that had made itself at home on the dining area. The car had had its paint torn by what looked to be claws, the metal crushed and one of the doors barely hanging onto its hinges. Whatever had done all of this was obviously strong. Absurdly strong.

“BRING THE SAILOR GUARDIANS OUT. LET THEM FACE THEIR PUNISHMENT.”

The same rumbling voice resounded yet again. Mako and Ami both knew it was another monster, but this felt different. The last monster was targeting a specific location. This one, on the other hand…

“Mako,” Ami whispered, her wand pressed against her chest, “I think it’s looking for us .”

“Does it know who we are?” Mako whispered back.

“I’d rather not find out, personally,” Ami replied quietly. She sternly looked through the gaping hole left by the crumpled car, listening out for any sight of the monster. “Either way, we need to get out of here and transform.”

“What about everybody else?” Mako shot back. “We can’t just leave them to fend for themselves!”

Ami looked to the crowd in thought. On the one hand, they needed to find a place safer than this. On the other hand, with how dangerous this monster was…who knew how much damage it could cause if left alone?

“I’ll call some backup, then,” Ami said, pulling her phone out of her purse. “You get everyone to a safe place.”

“You still have Rei’s number?” Mako asked.

Ami nodded, offering a small grin in spite of the situation. “Haven’t used it in forever, but I never did get rid of it.”

As Ami made her call, Mako’s attention was diverted to the panicked customers. None of them dared to leave, unless they wanted to run headfirst into whatever it was rampaging through the street. But staying here was just as dangerous, even if they didn’t realize it yet.

“We need to get these people to safety,” said Mako, turning towards one of the other chefs, “away from the windows. The kitchen’s probably the best bet, at least until this thing leaves.”

“R-Right!” the chef said, nodding somewhat hesitantly. He turned around to the terrified crowd and gave a cough. “U-Uh, everyone? Let’s all go into the kitchen and hide. Duck under any tables, get on your knees, cover your heads and…l-let’s just hope it blows over before too long…”

Reluctantly, the crowd complied—it wasn’t as if they had much of a choice, after all. The doors to the kitchen opened, and they walked in like it was a storm shelter. Noticing the waitresses following behind them, Mako reached out and stopped one of them before she could enter.

“Hey, Keiko?”

Keiko nodded. “Y-Yeah?”

“I’m gonna need you to be strong here, okay? Tell everyone that it’ll be alright until this blows over.”

Keiko nervously glanced around, as if desperately trying to find a hidden exit of some kind. “Why can’t you?”

Mako paused. Her eyes turned to Ami, who had just finished her phone call. The smaller woman’s eyes gazed back at Mako’s as she gave a nod. Immediately, Mako knew what this meant.

“I have something I need to do.”

Mako wasn’t sure exactly what impression this gave Keiko, but the waitress gave a start and nodded like she understood. As she hurried into the kitchen, Mako turned back to Ami.

“I think now would be a good time for a distraction.”

Ami nodded, brandishing her wand once again as she approached the hole left behind by the car. “I don’t remember our escapades being quite this violent.”

“These guys aren’t screwing around,” Mako sternly replied, following Ami outside of the restaurant.

 The street was riddled with carnage. Lampposts were bent, fire hydrants were torn apart, water was spraying everywhere…and there in the middle of it all was some kind of thing . It looked vaguely human, with a torn leather jacket, but its eyes looked to be on stalks…and its hands were massive red pincers. More horrifyingly, it was visibly growing in size, its body swelling with muscle and turning a darker shade of red.

“THE EMPRESS DEMANDS YOUR HEADS, SAILORS! COME OUT AND FIGHT, COWARDS!”

Mako rotated her neck and cracked its joints, her eyes firmly focused on their new foe.

“Ami, got a plan?”

Ami nodded. “We have at least twenty minutes until Rei and Minako can get here. Our current goal should be to minimize damage and restrain it as much as possible. I can try to freeze it, but I’ll need you to hold it back.”

Mako pounded a fist into her open palm and cracked her knuckles. “Alright. I think I can do that.”

Ami paused for a moment, cautiously looking at Mako. “You’re taking to this very well, aren’t you?”

“Let’s just say I have some aggression I wanna work out,” Mako dryly replied. “Anyway…you ready?”

“Ready as ever.” Ami nodded.

“JUPITER CRYSTAL POWER!”

“MERCURY CRYSTAL POWER!”

“MAKE UP!”

“ We interrupt this program with breaking news!”

Usagi groaned. She had turned on the TV to try and get her conversation with Naru out of her head for a bit, and she had just started to settle in with her shows when the news had flashed on. What could be so important that—

…Wait a minute. Hadn’t she done breaking news stuff just yesterday? Wasn’t that supposed to be a new thing?

“ We have confirmed reports of some sort of hostile creature in downtown Juuban,” the newscaster continued. “This creature is attacking anyone who comes near it, and has repeatedly challenged the Sailor Guardians to appear before it!”

“ Whhhhhhhhhhhy? ” Usagi groaned, collapsing onto the floor. Why was it that the second she tried to act responsible, the world decided to amp everything up to eleven?

“We take you now live to our news crew at the scene,” said the newscaster. “ Shirogane?”

“Majima, I don’t say this lightly, but it is chaos out here!” exclaimed a second newscaster, a haggard-looking man who was crouching behind the corner of a building while said chaos was unfolding in the background. “ Just minutes ago, the people of Juuban were going about their business, when out of nowhere this creature appeared, a creature that can only be described as some sort of lobster-gangster hybrid—a ‘lobangster’, if you will.”

Not even that painful attempt at a portmanteau could relieve Usagi of the overwhelming wave of frustration stirring inside her. She knew this was important, she knew this was serious. But how could she possibly deal with it?

She glanced at her phone, still open to the video Naru had told her about. It wasn’t the best quality footage, but there was no mistake who was depicted: the five Sailors, fighting against that weird tentacled kabuki monster while Hikawa Shrine burned behind them. The comments on the video were a mixed bag—some were adamantly denying it was real, saying it had to be a bunch of special effects, and that it was all part of a government conspiracy to establish the new world order or something. Others…made Usagi want to scrub her brain out with bleach. But most of them were actually praise . 

“These girls saved my life when I was in high school!”

“Sailor Moon is the greatest!”

“I wanted to be a Sailor when I was little!”

Usagi groaned. Would they feel the same way if they knew what she was really like? And after yesterday…would the others even want her back?

“It seems the monster is now beginning to mutate into something more crustaceous,” the newscaster continued. the camera cutting between live footage of the monster attack and the news desk. “ Government officials are urging citizens to remain calm and stay indoors. Meanwhile, we are receiving reports that Japanese Self-Defense Force units are on standby for a–”

He was cut off as a figure just out of frame passed him a piece of paper. The newscaster didn’t miss a beat, but his tone noticeably shifted.

“Erm…ladies and gentlemen, I’ve just received breaking news…it appears that none other than Sailor Mercury and Sailor Jupiter have arrived on the scene and have engaged the monster in battle !”

With that, Usagi sprang to life, watching the scene unfold with renewed vigor. She hadn’t seen much footage of her or her friends when they were in action—at most, she had only seen pictures. But seeing this was something else. Ami and Mako barely looked like themselves—while they certainly had a vague resemblance to how Usagi knew them, she might not have noticed that if she hadn’t known it was them. The differences were subtle, but they were enough that they didn’t look like Ami Mizuno or Makoto Kino…anyone could tell they were Sailor Mercury and Sailor Jupiter.

Usagi watched as the fight played out in real-time. Sailor Jupiter, bringing down a flash of tempest lightning and wind as she forcefully wrestled the monster with her own two hands. Sailor Mercury, blasting the monster with a mountain of ice, paralyzing its legs. Despite the carnage around them, they still kept fighting. Nothing could deter them.

Why can’t I be like that?

Usagi crossed her arms over her chest, rocking back and forth on her knees like a scared child.

Why am I so scared? Why can’t I…

She froze in place. Her stomach felt like it was being squeezed by the panic she felt.

Why am I STILL thinking about myself?

She collapsed into a heap, burying her face in her hands.

I used to be happy…I used to LIKE being myself…But the moment everyone needs me, I’m…

She closed her eyes and took a deep breath through her nose.

I’m full of nothing but self-pity.

Slowly, she stood up. Her hands trembled as she balled them into fists, gritting her teeth with growing determination.

I can’t keep doing this…I can’t…be a FAILURE…

With a renewed focus she hadn’t felt in forever, Usagi marched into her bedroom and yanked a blue jean jacket out of her closet—a familiar ensemble, plain and small, with the cartoon image of a rabbit on the right chest pocket.

I need…I need to make an effort.

“SUPREME… THUNDER!”

The monster roared in agony as Jupiter’s lightning struck home. It lashed out with its pincers, but they met only empty air as Jupiter leaped back just in time. Behind the monster, Mercury fired another blast of ice, pinning its leg to the ground as it tried to wrench itself free. The monster let out a roar, clubbing the ice with its claw as its eyes glared at the two, each one facing a different direction in a manner that was more than a little unsettling.

“Ghhh…this guy can take a hit,” Mako huffed, her hands encircled by bright, crackling lightning.

“Don’t exhaust yourself too much!” Ami cautioned, analyzing the monster with her visor. “Its carapace is strengthening the longer we fight it!”

“Then how are we supposed to take it down?” Mako shot back. “We can’t just let it run amok!”

“Keep it contained for now,” Ami told her. “Eventually we’ll find a way to beat it.”

The “eventually” didn’t fill Mako with confidence, but she nodded in reply.

“YOU…WILL…PERISH!” the monster roared, before jamming a pincer into the ground. The impact sent a shockwave through the street, nearly toppling Mako over. The monster wasn’t done, however—the second she lost her footing, it lunged at her, closed a pincer around her arm, and with an ease that Mako couldn’t help but find embarrassing, flung her through a nearby coffee shop window.

“Jupiter!” Ami shouted in horror.

Mako shook her head, dazed by the impact. Fortunately, the couple who had been seated at the table she had landed on had fled just in time, so they hadn’t suffered the misfortune of taking either shards of glass or a Mako to the face. Mako, however, wasn’t so lucky--as she struggled to get her bearings, she noticed the monster looming over her. It swiftly stabbed a claw downward, and Mako only barely managed to catch it between her hands before it could pierce her throat.

“Gng…get out of here!” she shouted to the shop’s terrified patrons and baristas. “It’s not safe!”

Everyone hurried to the nearest exit, whether it was out the front door or the employee exit in the back.

Well, at least we’re clear of civilians , Mako thought. A part of her couldn’t help but be surprised at herself--she never would have called them “civilians” in the old days.

Most of her, however, was concentrating on how not to die. Strong as she was, her arms strained like burning rope against her monstrous foe, plaster falling everywhere as the edge of the lobster’s claw began to scratch against her chin.

“MERCURY AQUA RHAPSODY!

A powerful blast of water suddenly impacted the monster, causing it to let out yet another scream. Ami had hit the thing right in its eyes, blinding it. With its focus lost, Mako could finally work on freeing herself.

“WHERE? WHERE DID YOU GO?”

Mako smirked. Even when Ami was improvising, she was a sharp thinker. Her hands glowed as she glared at the monster, forcing the claw open with a mighty push.

“Hey, crabby! Can ya see THIS?” she exclaimed. “SPARKLING WIDE PRESSURE!”

Two disks of pure electricity were flung right against the crab’s eyes, the beast letting out another whine as it was blinded by the attack. Mako fell out of its grip, landing on her feet and tossing her hair with smug satisfaction. If she couldn’t do this to her boss, she was sure as hell gonna take it out on this crab weirdo.

“PATHETIC SAILOR!” the monster screamed, slamming its claw against the ground, the pavement shattering as a crack spread out over the road. “THE EMPRESS WILL HAVE YOUR CORPSE!”

As the monster’s vision cleared, it let out another roar. Behind Mako, a chilled wind blew behind her. She turned around to see Ami blasting a huge wall of ice behind them.

“Jupiter, maneuver to the opposite side of the monster!”

The monster hissed, slamming its claws down over and over like a child throwing a tantrum. Without a way to see, it was lashing out however it could, just hoping that it would hit something related to its mission.

“SAILOR MERCURY IS WEAK! WEAKEST SAILOR!”

Ami’s expression, already serious, turned into an angry glare. Her hands suddenly whirred with glowing blue energy as a distinctive ☿ symbol appeared on her hands.

“MERCURY AQUA MIRAGE!” she exclaimed, firing an explosive blast against the crustacean menace. The giant lobster-thing was hit right in its abdomen, pushed back by several feet before being knocked right onto its back. The sheer pressure of Ami’s blast had left a sizeable cut against its carapace.

The monster’s eyes darted back and forth, struggling to focus on both its enemies simultaneously. While Ami was on one side, Mako had seemingly disappeared.

 “WHERE IS…SAILOR JUPITER?” 

It quickly found an answer when a well-timed kick hit it right in the eyeball.

“AAAAAAAAAAAGH!!”

Mako didn’t waste any time--she grabbed the crustacean by its eyestalk and spun off like she was twirling down the pole of a firehouse, skidding back onto the ground. She would have laughed if she didn’t feel almost completely winded.

“That the best ya got?” she practically gasped out.

“RAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARGH!!” the monster growled, its voice bellowing into a sound halfway between a roar and a gurgle.

“Mercury, do you see them anywhere?” Mako asked, readying for another attack.

Ami looked through her goggles as she readied her own follow-up attack, desperately scanning for any sign of Rei and Minako.

It was difficult, if not impossible to focus on searching for the others and fighting for her life at the same time. Not for the first time, she had to fight off the urge to just collapse from exhaustion.

“Mercury, do you see them??” Mako yelled again, hands glowing as the monster attempted to swing its claw again. “Where are they??”

Suddenly, just in the corner of the horizon, Ami could make out the faint outline of two people. She could hardly make out their faces or anything else, but…could it be?

“HOLD IT RIGHT THERE, CRIMINAL SCUM! IN THE NAME OF VENUS, WE’LL WHIP YOU RAW!”

…No doubt about it.

Minako gave a smug grin as she dramatically pointed at what she had tentatively decided to call the “weirdass crab thing”. She had spent the entire rush to the scene thinking of a new battle cry, and she personally thought she had done a pretty good job.

“‘Whip you raw’? Seriously?” Rei asked in disbelief.

“Girls, I really don’t think this is the time!” Ami exclaimed from across the street. Yet another blast of ice and the monster’s leg was frozen again, though she doubted it would last for long.

“She’s right,” Rei sternly said. “We’re all that’s standing in the way of this thing.”

Minako’s smile faded for a moment as she heard that. She rested her arms against her chest, a steely look over her face.

“Okay. Let’s take this crab down.”

And like that, the two were off. Several ofuda suddenly manifested between Rei’s fingers as she ran to the monster, chanting before tossing them against the crustacean’s body.

“EVIL SPIRIT! BE EXORCIZED!”

The monster let out a roar as its body suddenly began to smoke, its limbs becoming stiff as it struggled to resist. Above it, Minako soaring over the monster’s head, her hands glowing as she suddenly…blew a kiss at the monster?

“VENUS LOVE AND BEAUTY SHOCK!”

Oh. Right.

The monster was hit by what could only be described as an effervescent heart that slammed into it with the force of a semi-truck into a brick wall. Already unable to move its muscles much without straining, the beast could only scream helplessly as it was slammed into the ground. Behind it, Minako spun right over it, before triumphantly landing right next to Ami and Mako with a twirl, which she followed up with a bow like she was performing for an audience.

“Alright. You two did the hard part for us,” Minako said. “We just need to keep tiring it out.”

“How are you gonna kill it?” Mako asked. “Usagi normally ended this for us.”

“Mars said she wants to burn it,” Minako replied. “Let’s just restrain this guy and let her do her thing.”

“And you’re sure that will work?” Ami cautioned. “That monster’s carapace is getting harder by the minute, the flames might not work!”

Minako’s brow furrowed, her hands glowing as a yellow chain spread across her palms. “For our sake, let’s hope she’s right. We can’t afford a loss right now. “

A sigh crossed Ami's lips. There was a seriousness to Minako’s expression that just seemed…off. It wasn’t hard to tell what might have been causing it…and Ami couldn’t help but empathize.

Noticing Ami’s concerned look, Minako hastily grinned.

“Hey, crabs cook pretty easily, right?” she said with a smirk. “How hard can it be?”

She turned back to the monster, and with a deep breath, attacked.

“VENUS LOVE ME CHAIN!” 

Minako fired her chain at the monster, wrapping its other leg down before yanking hard, causing it to buckle. The monster’s knee slammed against the road, the beast struggling to free itself.

“SAILORS…FOUR OF THEM…” it said, its voice sounding slower and weaker. “SO…EASY…”

“Mercury, you restrain the claws. Jupiter, take out its eyes,” Minako commanded. “I’ll hold this thing from here.”

The two of them nodded. Without hesitation, Ami quickly ran between the monster’s legs and launched two blasts of ice in the direction of its claws. She continued to fire more blasts of ice, the monster’s arms flailing stiffly as it tried, and failed, to resist.

“Jupiter, you’re up!” she exclaimed. Mako cracked her neck, her hands glowing with a ♃ symbol as a ball of lightning formed between her hands. She took a few steps back until she had hit the ice wall Ami had constructed, then sprinted a few paces before jumping right into the air.

“JUPITER COCONUT CYCLONE!” she exclaimed, tossing the lightning right into the monster’s eyes, a sharp gust of wind wrapping the beast’s eyestalks together.

“Venus, is the chain holding together?” Mako shouted as she landed.

Minako heaved, giving a thumbs up. “He’s barely moving now! I think we’ve got it!”

“Then let’s roast this thing!” Mars shouted triumphantly. A red flame glowed in her hands as she stretched them outward, bringing her palms together as radiant energy roared across her fingers, before spreading across her entire body. Flaming orbs spun around her body, all of them dotted with kanji.

“BURNING MANDALA!”

A flurry of fiery disks flew out like boomerangs, hitting the monster like bullets. With each impact, the blaze grew, until the monster was completely hidden in a towering inferno.

“That did it!” said Minako. “We’re gonna win!”

“Oh, are you?”

The four Sailors looked up to see a strange figure sitting on top of a streetlight. It was a young woman, probably in her early twenties, with a slim figure and bright orange hair, playfully wagging her index finger with mock disapproval. Her outfit looked rather gaudy compared to her opponents’: a red and white top that left her toned abdomen on display, followed by a red skirt, black leggings, and white gogo boots, with her hands adorned with white gloves.

“Not gonna lie, kind of disappointed you guys are bodying this one?” she said with a shrug.

“But hey, it smells delicious ,” she added, giving the air a long sniff.

A chilled air came over the girls as they saw this strange new arrival. It was, admittedly, the usual for them. There was always some smug henchwoman who would show up with the monsters, gloat for a bit, and then just peace out whenever she didn’t get what she wanted. Minako, for one, was just glad to be in familiar territory.

For Rei, however, this only reminded her of her vision. While her face was outwardly calm, her eyes burned with renewed intensity.

“So you’re the one behind the attack on Hikawa Shrine,” she said, preparing to attack just in case this new foe decided to join the fight. “Who are you and what are you doing here?”

“Wow, you’re rude,” the new arrival responded with a roll of her eyes. “Not even gonna bother introducing yourself, huh? Name’s Eros, thank you very much.”

“Well, at least it’s not another person named after a rock,” Ami muttered to herself.

“Your last monster didn’t hold up so well against us,” Rei said, trying her best to sound confident against Eros. “Unless you enjoy being burned alive, I suggest you leave right now .”

“ Oooh , scary! ” Eros taunted, mockingly wiggling her fingers. “You didn’t do that great yourself at the Shrine, you know. You really think you can take on little ol’ me with just the four of you?”

Rei tensed up in response, her hands suddenly glowing with flames at Eros’s barbed tongue. “You don’t know what you’re talking about!”

Eros’ eyes narrowed, her smirk vanishing as she glared at Rei.

“Don’t I?” she hissed. “Oh, I’m going to enjoy stomping you flat.”

Eros rosed up into the air, energy crackling around her. Before any of the Sailors could do anything, she turned to the still billowing fire and extended a hand towards it. A wave of power coursed through the air, and the monster began to rise to its feet. With a roar of fury, it raised its arms, as if throwing the flames off of it itself, and the fire was suddenly extinguished. The ofuda Rei had tossed were incinerated, and the ice surrounding its claws was snapped apart.

“SHIT!” Minako exclaimed, her chain still wrapped around the monster’s leg. Within seconds, the monster had tossed her aside, sending her flying into the air and landing facefirst into the ice wall.

“MY STRENGTH IS RENEWED!” the monster exclaimed. “THE SAILORS SHALL DIE!”

“Technically, I’m not supposed to go too hard on you,” said Eros as the monster began to stomp forward. “But it wouldn’t be any fun if you all could win with just the four of you, would it? So let’s see just how much you can take, hmm?”

Rei cursed under her breath. Of course. It could never be easy for them, could it? The one time they tried to handle things without Usagi, and someone comes in to make it worse.

Whatever , she thought to herself. I do NOT need her.

Rei’s hands glowed with crimson fire as the shape of a bow and arrow formed in her grasp. With a cry of “MARS FLAME SNIPER!”, a volley of burning arrows was unleashed upon the advancing monster. Unlike before, though, it had little effect–if anything, some of the arrows seemed to be bouncing off the monster’s skin.

“Mars, stand back!”

Across from Rei, Mako was gearing up for another bout. She sprinted after the beast, tackling it from the side with as much strength as her tired muscles could manifest, but the monster merely grunted and smacked her away before she could so much as shout another attack.

“PATHETIC!” the beast exclaimed, continuing its advance. “ALL OF YOU, PATHETIC!”

Mako was knocked right into a lamppost, denting it considerably upon impact. She grunted as she tried to stand up, clutching her bruised arm. She stumbled a few steps forward, her head spinning as she struggled to remain focused.

“Mars, its carapace has nearly quadrupled in thickness!” Ami exclaimed. “It’d take a force of nearly–”

“I DON’T CARE HOW MUCH IT’LL TAKE!” Rei shouted, desperately firing off more blasts of flame against the advancing beast. “WE CAN BEAT THIS!”

Nearby, Minako hobbled upright, her fingertips glowing as she prepared to unleash an attack of her own.

“CRESCENT BEAM!”

She fired right at the monster’s eye, narrowly grazing one of its stalks. Yet this, too, did not seem to do anything.

In a last-ditch effort, Ami fired another blast of ice at the monster’s legs, claws, anything she could aim for, but none of it did any good. The monster broke out of each ice casing, walking off like it was nothing, its eyes fixated on one target.

“SAILOR MARS DIES.”

“Mars, you need to stop!” Ami exclaimed. “It’s too strong!”

But Rei didn’t heed her warning. She continued firing whatever she could, smoke emanating across her arms as she grew more and more desperate, though any confidence or fearlessness on her face had since vanished. The monster was mere feet away and Rei was reduced to tossing a barrage of flames at the beast in a mad rush to get something, anything that could slow it down. 

But nothing worked.

“Mars!” Ami exclaimed. “Please!”

Rei panted heavily, the heat making her pour with sweat. She cursed under her breath again, sinking to one knee.

“What was that about being burnt alive, again?!” Eros shouted down at them. “You were talking all that good shit just a second ago, and now you’re just gonna flame out?”

The monster loomed over Rei, disdainfully sneering down at her.

“Pun intended, by the way,” Eros added, before turning to the monster. “Alright, so the Boss Lady says that given the choice, we shouldn’t actually kill her…but other than that, go nuts?”

“ACCEPTABLE,” the monster said, slashing its claws together like it was sharpening knives. “SAILOR MARS WILL BE CRUSHED.”

Maybe we really couldn’t do it… Rei thought to herself. Maybe…maybe it was all for nothing… For a brief moment, she closed her eyes, waiting for the final blow to be struck. Even if it didn’t kill her, what else could she do? She had lost. They had all lost. All she saw were flames…all she saw was…was…

“WAAAAAAAAAAAAIIIIIIIIIIIT!!!”

…what?

Rei whirred her head around as the sound of a familiar voice echoed through the street. Everyone else looked in the direction of an approaching figure who was running towards them, panting and wheezing and stumbling over her own two feet, looking like she had crawled out of her home still in her pajamas.

“What,” Eros said flatly, all of her earlier smug bravado having evaporated, replaced by a look of utter bafflement. Even the monster seemed confused, briefly hesitating its attack as it looked at the stranger. Ami, Minako, and Mako all stood up, bruised and beaten but nevertheless walking towards her

It was all too clear who it was. And Rei didn’t know whether to be happy or to punch her in the face.

“Hfff…ffff…holy SHIT …how did I even…run this much…in high school?” Usagi panted, struggling to catch her breath as she came within a foot of Rei.

“What the HELL ??” Rei exclaimed, turning her ire towards Usagi. “You said you didn’t want anything to do with us!”

“Let her talk,” Mako interrupted, raising a firm hand to silence Rei.

Usagi sighed, turning her head away from Rei as she struggled to catch her breath. “I…was wrong…I want… need to be here…”

“Usagi…” Mako said hesitantly, “did you…run all the way here?”

Usagi slowly turned her head and nodded. “Y-Yeah…I saw…you needed help…”

The others silently exchanged looks. Minako looked almost relieved. Mako seemed calm, but she couldn’t quite hide her amazement.

And Ami…she hugged Usagi right in the middle of the street, tears staining her visor.

“I’m…so glad…you came back!” she said in between sobs.

“Am–Mercury, jeez!” Usagi exclaimed, feeling suffocated by her brainy friend’s surprisingly tight grip.

“But how is she going to transform?” Mako asked. “She doesn’t have the brooch.”

“ Ahem …perhaps I can be of assistance,” Minako smirked. In her hands was the distinctive pink brooch, humming with the energy of the Silver Crystal.

“…did you have that with you this whole time?” Rei asked.

Minako gave a snide chuckle as she handed Usagi the brooch. “The Goddess of Love has many hiding places.”

“Oh my fucking god…” Rei groaned, facepalming. “Never change, Venus.”

“No no, it’s fine, take a minute, I’m good, not waiting on you or anything…” Eros said, watching the reunion unfold with apparent amusement. “...Nah, I’m just kidding, beat the shit out of ‘em.”

The monster roared and lunged forward again, forcing the Sailors to scatter. Realizing it was now or never, Usagi held the brooch high in the air.

“MOON ETERNAL, MAKE UP!”

The ground exploded with energy as the monster lobbed a claw down onto the street below, ready to smash Usagi into the pavement like a nail into a board of wood. But no sooner did the pavement shatter into gravel than it became clear something was wrong…

“WHERE…WHERE DID THEY GO?” the monster roared, noticing a distinct lack of bloodstained chunks of the street in its grasp.

“Over here, shrimp!”

The monster whirred its head to see a familiar sight. Standing right behind it, posed confidently, her blonde hair flowing in the wind, her tiara shining brightly against the lowering sun…

“How DARE you keep this street hostage with your tyranny! Destroying cars and small businesses, conspiring to intimidate the local populace, all of it is unforgivable! I am the pretty guardian who fights for love and justice! I am Sailor Moon! And now, in the name of the moon–”

She struck a pose, followed by the rest of the Sailors.

“WE’LL PUNISH YOU!”

Something in the aura the Sailors gave off was overpowering, causing the monster to take a step back. Eros, meanwhile, held her ground, though she seemed to have been caught off guard by the sudden rallying behind Usagi.

“Hm…guess I didn’t expect to see you like this…” she muttered.

“Expect the unexpected!” Minako said triumphantly, pointing a finger at the monster. “Now eat this, creep! CRESCENT BEAM!”

“SUPREME THUNDER!”

“MOON TWILIGHT FLASH!”

A triple onslaught of energy beams slammed into the monster all at once, sending it skidding several feet down the street. The monster let out a roar, but the force of the impact had clearly damaged its shell, having cracked it where the beams had struck.

“It’s working!” Ami exclaimed. “The carapace is breaking! Keep going!”

Rei grabbed several more ofuda and chanted, before tossing them in the exposed area of the crab’s shell. The monster let out a scream as if it had been splashed with holy water.

“EVIL SPIRIT, BE EXORCISED!” Rei shouted, before tossing one more ofuda, pointing a finger at it, and suddenly dousing it with a torrent of fire.

“FIRE SOUL BIRD!”

The fire rushed out of Rei’s fingers, spreading across the ofuda and taking the shape of a phoenix as it slammed into the crab. The monster could barely stand after this. Its claws swayed like a man in a drunken stupor, its eyes blinking repeatedly as it looked on the verge of unconsciousness. It fell backward, slipping onto its back…

And quickly found that it was now resting on top of a pillar of ice.

Ami was right next to the monster, her hand resting on the ground as it glowed with intense energy. “Sailor Moon, take him out!”

Usagi’s tiara glowed as she reached out to grab it. This was business as usual, it would only take a few seconds. One toss and it’d be over with…

Usako…

Whatever focus Usagi had up to that point vanished completely. She stood there, frozen, her eyes glazed over as she heard that same voice again from her dreams. That same voice that had tortured her for years.

Get out of my head, Mamoru…

“Sailor Moon, it’s right there!” Ami exclaimed. “You can do this…right?”

Usagi didn’t respond. Her heart was beating louder and louder inside her chest, her focus lost.

I’ll be back by our wedding, Usako…I promise…

Get OUT of my head, Mamo…please…

The monster’s head began to rise. It let out another screech, weakened but still dangerous.

“Sailor Moon!” Minako exclaimed, running to Usagi’s side. “Sailor Moon, we need you!”

It’s just one more day here, and I’ll catch the first plane back.

GET OUT OF MY FUCKING HEAD.

The monster slammed its claw down onto the road, letting out another blood-curdling screech.

“SAILOR MOON…”

Without warning, it began to run towards Usagi. Not even walking, just running towards her with reckless abandon, the ground shaking as it prepared to smash her right then and there.

“FIRE SOUL!”

The monster reeled back in pain. Rei had run right between Usagi and the monster, cutting loose with more fire as she struggled to hold the monster off.

“SAILOR MOON, SNAP OUT OF IT AND KILL THE DAMN THING!”

Usagi blinked. Her hands trembled as they slowly reached for the tiara, her motions on pure autopilot as she grabbed it. She took in a deep breath and steadied herself.

I need to do this…I need…just one second…

She took a step back, her eyes refocused…

“MOON TIARA ACTION!”

The sound of a loud *CRUNCH* came as the tiara struck the monster like a bullet, glowing as the poor beast let out a sickening screech.

“NO! NO! NOOOOOOOOOOOOO! SERENITY!!”

And just like that, the monster was no more. Its body disintegrated, leaving only smoke and the smell of fried seafood.

“Well, shit,” said Eros as she watched her pawn crumble into nothingness. “Guess you guys managed to pull it together after all, huh?”

The Sailors turned to face her as she hovered over them, looking more than a little disappointed.

“Ah well,” she said with a shrug. “At least it wasn’t a total loss.”

“This was only one battle,” Rei said, a fierce look of determination in her eyes. “The war’s only just started.”

“And you WILL lose,” Minako added. “We’ll make sure of it.”

“Wow. Dramatic, much?” Eros snarked, rolling her eyes with a half-interested sigh. “The next Crystal Knights won’t be this boring. How about next time, we get things started for real, ‘kay? Later.”

And before Minako had a chance to shout “Where do you think you’re going?!”, Eros snapped her fingers. The air distorted around her, and by the time it settled, she had vanished.

With the battle over, all that was left in the wreckage of the street–among the cars that had been crushed by the monster, the torn buildings, the smashed gravel, and the dented streetlights–were the five triumphant Sailor Guardians. The five exchanged glances between each other as they processed what had just happened.

“Crystal Knights, huh…” Mako said, her eyes occasionally darting between the girls and the ruins of Ikuhara’s.

“Eros can’t be the only one of them,” Ami noted. “There’s always more.”

Rei briefly exchanged a glance with Usagi. A plethora of emotions ran through her head, none of which she particularly wished to voice at this present time. It was easy to tell, however, that Usagi was more than a bit zoned out, her hands still shaking.

“Let’s regroup at Hikawa,” she said. “We can discuss this in more detail there.”

“–appears to have been vanquished, Majima, and eyewitnesses report that it was Sailor Moon who dealt the killing blow. Unfortunately, footage of the fight appears to be sparse, and accounts of the incident differ considerably. We may never know exactly what occurred here today. However, we can confirm that the Sailor Guardians—”

Usagi rested her head against the wooden wall, legs crossed as she watched the broadcast on Rei’s television. It was a familiar sight to themselves on the news again, though she never really paid attention to that stuff when she was a kid. Still, the fact that people were thankful for them saving the day again was…definitely welcome, after everything that had happened. The others sat beside her, all of them sore and exhausted. Mako seemed to be halfway to falling asleep, her head occasionally tilting forward as if she wanted to nod off. Ami was next to her, awkwardly fiddling with her fingers. Minako had a goofy smile on her face, being the most excited at seeing themselves on TV.

And Rei…wasn’t even sitting down. She was pacing right in front of the television, deep in thought. She seemed only dimly aware of the broadcast, which did make sense—right now they had much greater concerns.

“So, let’s go over this one more time,” she said, turning towards the others. “Our enemies are the Crystal Knights. They serve an Empress. They’re targeting us, they don’t care about innocent civilians in the way, and their goal is something…apocalyptic.”

“Do you think they’re aliens?” Mako suggested.

“Unlikely,” Rei replied. “Most races don’t want anything to do with conquering Earth, not after our battle with Galaxia.”

“We’ll, defeating an intergalactic conqueror will do that,” Minako added. “I wouldn’t rule out aliens, though. A lot of the people we fought were lone wolves, like that Fiore guy.”

“It could be an interdimensional threat,” Ami suggested, scratching her chin in thought. “Their Empress could be something like Pharaoh 90. Some kind of intelligence from outside our plane of existence.”

“What do you think, Usagi?” asked Mako, yawning.

Usagi tilted her head upwards, pausing as she thought it over. “I don’t know…just wait it out and see?”

At this, Rei gave an audible groan of annoyance. “We need to be more proactive than that. We can’t just wait to get information, we need to seek out information.”

“So, why not do it like we used to?” Usagi asked. “Y’know, wait for another monster to show up, fight it, baddies give a speech, the usual?”

“And what good did waiting ever do us?” Rei shot back. “It just means more lives at risk, more time for the bad guys to put together their plan—”

“Well, we won , didn’t we?” Usagi interrupted, glaring at Rei. The two of them locked eyes, and for a moment, it looked like things were about to explode again.

“Um…”

The two of them turned to the source of the interruptions, only to see Ami sheepishly raising her hand.

“I-I can always try to track their energy signatures,” she suggested. “Maybe make some new communicators so we can keep in touch?”

Rei’s eyes turned back to Usagi with a noticeable coldness to her glare. She sighed, before nodding at Ami’s suggestion. “Alright. We’ll need your expertise here, Ami. We don’t exactly have the same tech Luna and Artemis had.”

Usagi sighed as well, crossing her arms as she began to tune out the conversation. Her eyes didn’t seem to be focused on anything in particular.

Even when I try to do something good, I still screw it up.

“Usagi,” asked Minako, putting her hand on her shoulder. “You gonna be okay?”

Usagi shook her head to clear her thoughts, then flashed the biggest grin she could muster.

“Yep!” she said. “Totally fine! You know me, I’m not, uh, really good at these planning things, aheheh…”

Minako gave a sigh and turned to everyone else. “Let’s try to keep things positive, okay? No fighting and stuff?”

Rei gave another terse sigh, crossing her arms and exhaling through her nose. “Alright.”

Suddenly, Mako raised her hand, blearily raising her head as she struggled to stay focused.

“So uh…how exactly am I supposed to help the rest of you when I’m kind of out of a job now?”

“You got fired?” Minako asked. Mako stared back at her with a frustrated look.

“Well my workplace kinda got a car thrown right through the front, my boss kinda hates me, and with how much it’s gonna cost for him to repair the restaurant, I’m kinda shit out of luck here?”

“…oh,” Minako said, looking a bit apologetic. “Well, that’s uh…kinda messed up.”

Mako grumbled, giving a halfhearted yawn. “I don’t know if it’s the stress or what, but I always feel so tired this time of the day…I barely made enough money to pay rent and take care of Hiro.”

At this, Ami awkwardly scooted a touch closer to Mako. “U-Um…if you’d like I c–”

“I’ll help you out then, Mako,” Rei interrupted.

“O-Oh…” Ami stammered, blushing a bit out of embarrassment.

“Help me out how?” Mako asked.

“If you need money, I’d be more than happy to give you some,” Rei explained. “You don’t have to pay me back.”

“Well, I dunno…” said Mako, rubbing the back of her neck. “Doesn’t feel right, exactly…”

“Mako, we’re friends ,” Rei said in an exasperated tone. “And it’s just to help you out while you get another job. You don’t have to do everything by yourself, you know.”

Mako sighed. She was too tired to put up a fight over this. “I…I guess I can agree to that, sure.” She shook her head as she stood up, still lost in thought.

“Hey, Mako?” Usagi suddenly spoke up. A knot formed in her stomach just trying to ask this. “Um…if you need help with job hunting and stuff…you think you and I could maybe do it together?”

Rei raised an eyebrow at this, but Usagi ignored her.

“Sure, I don’t see why not,” said Mako. “Dunno if we’ll be hitting the same qualifications, though.”

“Eheh, that’s fine,” Usagi said sheepishly. “I just need to start putting myself out there, y’know?”

“That’s one way of putting it,” Rei muttered, which Usagi ignored again.

“Well anyway,” Mako said as she got to her feet and stretched, “I’m gonna go call home and check on Hiro. How much longer do you need us for?”

Rei glanced at a nearby clock on the wall. It was well into the evening, and the sun was already setting outside. “I think that's enough for tonight. We need to start actively investigating, though, so let’s just try to meet at least once a day to go over things from now on. Is that good for everyone?”

The others nodded.

“Then we should go home and rest up,” said Rei. “Tomorrow, the real work begins.”

Chapter Text

“I see there’s no cure for fools,” said Philia as she glared at Eros, who had only just arrived. After the Crystal Knight had been destroyed, Philia had sent word that they were to meet in a Juuban park at sunset, and now the two of them stood under a shady tree, well away from any passerby.

“Well ex cuse me for wanting to stretch my legs a bit,” said Eros with a roll of her eyes. “I mean, did you really want them to tear the Knight apart without Sailor Moon showing up? Seems like it’d defeat the point if we weren’t testing the full roster. Hell, I even told it not to kill Mars.”

“Yes, congratulations, you didn’t have a woman torn in half when you had the chance,” Philia said flatly. “You do realize, I hope, that they know your name and face now? We were supposed to keep a low profile.”

“Oh, like that would have lasted,” Eros replied, sliding down to the ground against the tree. “Relax, it’s not like they actually know anything about us yet. We still have the initiative.”

“Perhaps,” Philia conceded, “But I imagine it won’t be long before they start investigating. And they’ll be looking for you .”

Eros looked up at her and gave a large, sinister grin. “Who said I was hiding?”

Philia’s eyes narrowed for a moment as she mulled this over, and then her face lit up.

“Ah…you mean…”

“Like you said, they know to look for me,” continued Eros. “ Me. ”

“Yes, that’s…actually a good idea,” Philia muttered. “I didn’t think of that.”

“See, that’s your problem, you’re too direct,” Eros said, rolling her eyes again. “You like to march down the streets and start breaking down doors, that’s where it begins and ends with you. No layers to it, not very subtle.”

“That’s not all I know how to do,” Philia said, with just a touch of bitterness in her voice. “But fine, you have a point. What do you have in mind, then?”

“I want two things,” Eros said, ticking them off with her fingers. “Number one: you let me have full control over all Crystal Knights that go public.”

“Done,” said Philia, who had never really shown much interest in that process anyway. “And the second?”

“I need you to talk to the Empress for me,” Eros admitted, “because I might end up killing some people.”

Rei yawned as she poured herself a bowl of cereal, her eyes blinking away remnants of sleep. Her focus was decidedly off-kilter this morning, although she admittedly had trouble with mornings in general. Everyone who knew Rei said she was a natural night owl, and she wasn’t about to disagree. Still, the past few days had been particularly exhausting, given everything on her mind, and she didn’t anticipate that this was likely to change.

She poured some milk into her bowl and made her way to a chair, turning the television on without a second thought. As she took a bite of cereal, the usual newscaster’s voice was broadcast over her TV.

“We here at Nippon TV would like to give a hearty welcome to our newest member, Miss Minako Aino. Miss Aino, any words to the audience?”

Rei nearly spat out her cereal, but managed to catch and swallow it at the last second. 

What the hell?!?

For a moment, she was sure he had misheard him— this was Minako? Dressed in a professional, and decidedly not tacky, pantsuit and bow tie, she looked like an up-and-coming businesswoman, with just a touch of hipster. And even more bizarrely…her signature hair bow was completely absent.

But no, there was no mistaking it—somehow Minako had managed to squeeze out every last drop of herself and achieve mainstream appeal. Presumably, it would be injected back into her veins once she was done.

Minako, for her part, wasn’t about to give any hint to this dramatic transformation. She gave the camera a confident smile as she calmly exhaled through her nose. 

“I’d like to thank everyone here for this opportunity,” she calmly replied to her new co-anchor. “I’m very happy to be here, and I hope I can provide the kind of top-notch journalism the Japanese public deserves.”

The voice was unmistakably Minako’s, if a bit slower and more serious than normal—more “grown-up”, so to speak, than her usual excitable and unfocused tone.

“Well, let’s get right to it, then,” said her co-anchor. “We’ll begin with continuing coverage of yesterday’s top story, what is believed to be the second appearance of the Sailor Guardians after not being seen in nearly fifteen years.”

Rei sighed, rolling her eyes at the news. Really, it wasn’t that she was displeased with the praise they were getting. What annoyed her was how… hyperbolic it felt, in a manner of speaking. It was like they were celebrities, except nobody actually knew who they were. She wondered how Minako could read this story off with a straight face.

If these people knew us personally, I doubt they’d be saying these kinds of things, she thought to herself, quickly flipping to another channel and getting back to her breakfast. She absentmindedly picked up her phone and looked through her calendar.

Let’s see…I’ll need to find time to do some sleuthing…see what anomalies may be present, if these Crystal Knights are doing an energy-draining scheme…if they’re just making monsters out of nothing, then I’ll need to look out for whatever shady new businesses pop up out of nowhere… Of course, they might wind up trying something new…

Her train of thought was derailed, however, when her eyes fell on her 3:00 PM slot. More specifically, a meeting with the shrine staff that Rei had completely forgotten about.

“…shit,” she muttered under her breath. She couldn’t exactly throw all her plans out the window for no reason. Those girls were her responsibility for a reason. And really, it wasn’t as though she wouldn’t have time to do investigations later—it was still morning, after all.

But I can’t just rush off , thought Rei. What if I get held up? I’m normally always on time for this sort of thing, what will they think if I suddenly start postponing them?

She let out an annoyed groan, slumping into her chair. There was no way around it—she couldn’t afford to go galavanting off. This was her job , after all.

This was so much easier when I was 14… she thought to herself, flipping the channel again. With a sigh, she realized it was back on the same news channel as before, with Minako still reading off some news story Rei wasn’t particularly invested in, something that seemed minuscule compared to the whole “end of the world” thing going on.

But then a realization struck.

It wasn’t as if Minako had much else going on after work, right? And while she could be, on occasion, a bit…less than reliable…

It could work, right?

With little hesitation, Rei swiped over to her text messages. She didn’t have to look hard for Minako’s—the mischievous blonde had left several texts that Rei hadn’t even bothered checking until now, mostly just memes that Rei neither understood nor liked, plus the occasional dumb joke that elicited an audible groan.

What do they call money in space? Star bucks! xD xD xD

What do you win in a space talent competition? A constellation prize! Lol!

Why couldn’t the star stay focused? She kept spacing out!! Get it?

It was always space puns with her. Rei didn’t really understand why.

Shaking her head, Rei rapidly typed down a message.

Hey, I need a favor. Can you come over?

Rei had just hit the “Send” button when she realized that Minako wouldn’t be able to reply immediately, what with being on television at this very moment. Facepalming, she got up and resolved to prepare as though Minako had refused her request. With someone as flaky as her, it never paid to assume everything would work out.

A half an hour later, as she was sweeping the kitchen, she received a reply.

It was a downright ancient-looking GIF of a cartoon cat giving a thumbs-up.

Needless to say, there would be more facepalms to be had before the day was out.

“Agh! Hot!”

Usagi stuck her tongue out in pain as a surge of burning heat ran through her taste buds. It had been forever since she’d had coffee, and suffice to say, the temperature of this particular brew was much hotter than what she had expected. But since she was at a cafe, she might as well have something.

“I warned you,” Mako dryly chuckled, taking a sip from an iced cappuccino, a somewhat more sensible option by comparison. “You could’ve just ordered a cold drink.”

“No no, it’s fine…” Usagi sighed, struggling not to yawn in front of Mako. “I didn’t really sleep well last night. I kind of need something to keep me awake.”

“Well, maybe a bit of job hunting could give you a pick-me-up,” Mako said as she opened up her laptop. “Let’s see here…there’s this one for a secretary at a law firm?”

“Pass. I’d suck at that.”

“Yeah, same, honestly,” said Mako, continuing to scroll. “Let’s see…oh, here’s one at a bar, I kind of have experience with—oh, wait, wait, not that kind of experience, never mind.”

“Why, what kind of place is it?” asked Usagi, looking over Mako’s shoulder.

“Not important!” said Mako, quickly scrolling down. “Uh…children’s daycare center?”

“Wouldn’t I need, like, a degree for that?” Usagi asked.

“I…don’t think so?” Mako replied, not really sure one way or the other. “It’d be taking care of kids and stuff.”

“Mmh…not sure…” Usagi said. “I’m not always great with kids, but…I kind of wanted to be a teacher a while back.”

“Hey, it’s not too late,” Mako told her. “Sure, it’ll take some work, but if you think you’d like it, it’s worth a try, right?”

“Well, I…”

Usagi struggled to find the words. There were some obvious concerns to be had with her behavior, admittedly. Things that didn’t make her the most certified for child care. Then again, just blurting out about those issues would be more than a little embarrassing…

What am I supposed to say? “I can’t teach because nobody wants a hungover mess in their classroom”?

“I…would probably need to see about the qualifications?”

Mako shrugged, seemingly accepting that answer. “I guess that makes sense.”

“Yeah…” Usagi said, her thoughts drifting off for a moment. “I mean, you know how it is. Some dreams aren’t uh…meant to come true, I guess.”

“Tell me about it,” Mako sighed, rolling her eyes.

Usagi tilted her head, visibly confused by that comment. Though, come to think of it, she did remember Mako having a particular dream for her future when they were teenagers…

“Are there any florist jobs?” she asked. “You always talked about opening a flower store growing up.”

Mako tensed up, her hand gripping her iced coffee just a bit tighter. “I tried it. Turns out I’m bad at business…among other things,” she bitterly remarked. She paused for a moment, then added, “But uh…y’know, maybe I’ll find a job like that, I dunno.”

“I hope so,” Usagi said thoughtfully. “It’d be a shame, you know…if you weren’t able to do it again…”

“Um…yeah, it would be…” said Mako quietly. For a moment, neither of them said anything as they silently stared at their drinks.

“But…hey, you don’t have to worry about me!” Mako said hastily. “We’ve got bigger fish to fry, right? You’ll be ready for our next meeting with the others, right?”

“...Yeah, I guess…” said Usagi, a morose note creeping into her voice. “As long as Rei can cool it for once…”

“Hey, she’ll come around,” said Mako. “She’s just stressed, that’s all.”

Usagi wanted to believe this was the case. With what they were dealing with, they were all at least a little on edge. But Usagi knew the tension she had with Rei went back much further than that.

“I…I don’t know if that’s it,” she said. “You saw how we got after the first monster. I…said some dumb stuff.”

“Well yeah, I guess so,” Mako said. “But we all kinda do, y’know? You two were super close when we were kids, there’s no reason you can’t mend fences. ”

Usagi shook her head. “I don’t know…last night I felt so out of my league. I’m supposed to be in-charge, but I have no idea what we’re even doing. And I dunno, I…I feel like Rei knows it.”

“…Look, Usagi, if you need anything–”

“I’m fine!” said Usagi, a little too forcefully. “Fine…I mean, I’ll be alright, Mako, but thanks. I’ll…I’ll figure it out on my own. Maybe it’s just how things are now. Sailor Moon doesn’t have to be in charge all the time.”

“Right, but…” Mako said with concern, “That doesn’t mean you don’t matter to the team. We wouldn’t have beaten either monster without you.”

Even though I froze in the middle of the last fight… Usagi bitterly thought to herself.

“I can always try talking to Rei, maybe sit her down with Minako and Ami to help smooth things over,” Mako suggested. “But whatever she might think right now…well, she knows you just like we do. I don’t think she hates you.”

“Blugh…” Usagi groaned, not quite paying attention to Mako as she reached out to drink some more coffee…and wincing when she remembered the temperature hadn’t changed at all. “Not exactly a pick-me-up when I’m still a jobless loser.”

“… ahem ,” Mako bluntly replied.

Usagi looked at her for a moment, suddenly realizing that she might have been coming off ruder than intended. “Right, right, sorry…didn’t mean to…y’know…”

“Look, I get it,” Mako sighed. “You’ve been jobless for way longer than me, I can’t blame you for feeling down about it. But that doesn’t make you a bad person, it just means that you’re going through a bad time. Not everyone handles bad times the same way.”

“I guess…” Usagi moaned. “This bad time hasn’t exactly been letting up the past few years, though…”

Mako exhaled through her nose, barely looking at any results she got on her computer.

“Are you…are you sure you don’t want to talk about what’s bothering you?”

Usagi tensed up. “I-I don’t, um…don’t really think I should…”

“You don’t have to,” Mako gently said. “But whatever’s making you feel down, well…I won’t judge you or anything.”

Usagi sighed, crossing her arms and averting her gaze for a moment. In her slightly oversized pink hoodie, she looked more like a child than a woman in her thirties.

“Maybe later…” she quietly said. “Let’s just keep looking, alright? We’ll find something eventually.”

Mako nodded, returning her focus to their search. But she couldn’t shake off the feeling that there was something Usagi wasn’t telling her…

Maybe it’s none of my business, she thought to herself. But…maybe I should talk to her about it soon… while we still can…

Some days, Ami felt like the only thing keeping her awake at work was the blue light of her computer shining into her eyes. It wasn’t exactly hard work, but it didn’t take long for the malaise of it all to bring her down. Just endless documents, numbers, emails, and barely any actual conversation with people. She wouldn’t have disliked it so much if she actually had people to talk to, but considering who she worked with, well…

“Say Nojima, is that a new watch you’ve got there?”

“You bet, Takahara. Top of the line Rolex—excellent precision, durable casing, and it

shines so bright that it could double for the sun and nobody would know the difference.”

“Not bad, not bad. Got my own right here–accurate to the second, gleaming silver finish, and you could drop this baby off the roof and it wouldn’t get a scratch.”

“Impressive. Very nice.”

“U-Um…excuse me?”

The two men paused their conservation as they turned to face Ami. The two of them, having previously seemed rather laidback, had suddenly adopted very tense, almost condescending glares.

“Can we help you?” one of them—Takahara—said in a manner that suggested this had better not be the case.

“Oh, w-well, I was just…um…” Ami stammered, realizing she hadn’t actually thought of what she was going to say. “I...got these new earrings? I think they’re pretty nice…”

“We were talking about watches,” Nojima replied with a roll of his eyes.

“Oh, I j-just…I thought it was accessories in general…?”

“No, just watches.”

“Oh…okay…” Ami said, her gaze sliding to the floor, desperate as she was not to look at their faces right now. “Sorry, I…I didn’t mean to interrupt…”

“Wait, hang on,” said Takahara. “You’re the lady from the meeting…Mizuna, right?”

“Mizuno, actually…”

“God, you realize how much you pissed off Furuya?” he continued, ignoring her correction. “Figures, dumb kids like you making trouble for the rest of us.”

“I-I’m sorry!” Ami said frantically, realizing too late that the tears were starting to well up again. “I really didn’t mean to, I was just trying to help!”

“Yeah? Well next time you can--”

“A hem .”

The three of them turned around. Standing next to them was a white-haired woman in glasses--the same one, Ami realized, whom she had bumped into in the bathroom the same day as the ill-fated meeting.

“Don’t you gentlemen have work to do?” she said, her gray eyes locked firmly on Takahara and Nojima.

“I…um…”

“Then get to it.”

The two men said nothing, just turning around and walking back to their desks as quickly as possible. Sighing, the new arrival approached Ami.

“I hope that wasn’t too much to deal with,” she said, taking a tissue out of her pocket and handing it to Ami.

“Oh, it’s…it’s nothing I can’t handle,” Ami lied, gingerly taking the tissue and dabbing her eyes with it.

The woman raised an eyebrow, but made no further comment on this.

“I don’t believe I introduced myself last time,” she said, offering a hand. “Hestia. Hestia Tokugawa.”

“Ami Mizuno…” Ami said as she nervously took Hestia’s hand and shook it.

“Nice to meet you, Miss Mizuno,” Hestia said evenly. “But of course, I already know who you are.”

Ami raised an eyebrow, unsure what she meant by this—she wasn’t that well known, was she? But her questions were swiftly answered when Hestia produced a wrinkled piece of paper from her pocket.

“You dropped this when you ran out of the bathroom,” she explained. “My apologies for not returning it sooner, but I found it…rather intriguing.”

Ami gave a start as she recognized the charts she had tried to show Furuya.

“Oh, that’s, um…nothing important,” Ami said, quickly taking the paper from Hestia while she desperately tried to avert her eyes. “Just some idea I had, it didn’t really end up going anywhere. It’s probably all wrong anyway.”

“Is that so?” Hestia said softly. “I don’t suppose you actually got to show these to anyone, hm?”

Perhaps Ami should have been surprised that she had figured out that much…but then again, it probably wasn’t that difficult. After all, Furuya had rejected it out of hand, and everyone else…

Ami sighed, a knot welling up in her stomach. Of course, she didn’t even have the courage to try showing this to anyone else. And even if she did, what difference would it have made? Her coworkers (a term that felt like it only applies in the loosest possible sense) were more like grotesque caricatures than actual people.

“No, not really,” she answered numbly.

“Well then, if you don’t need it anymore…” Hestia ventured, “…then I suppose you wouldn’t mind if I took the full report off your hands?”

Ami blinked, not sure how to process what she had just heard.

“Why?” she asked.

“Oh, I just think it’s an interesting idea,” Hestia replied. “Everyone’s just proposing the same things again and again—I would appreciate something fresh for once.”

“B-But, it’s already been—”

“It’s really no trouble,” Hestia reassured her. “Unless you’d like to keep it?”

Ami nervously chewed on her lip. Truth be told, she kept meaning to throw it out, but she had put so much work into it that she couldn’t bear to. What was even worse, though, was the thought of it burning a hole in her desk, a constant reminder of her failure.

“Well, okay…” she said, opening up a drawer of her desk and fishing the rest of the report out from under a pile of assorted clutter. “Just…please don’t…um…”

“I won’t go passing it around, if that’s what you’re worried about,” Hestia said gently as she took the report from Ami. “I just want to give it a proper once-over. You don’t have to worry about a thing.”

“Alright…” said Ami, still doing her best not to make eye contact. “Um…let me know if you…see anything you…like?”

“Of course,” said Hestia with a small incline of her head. “Anyway, I must be going. Have a good day, Miss Mizuno.”

“You too…” Ami said as Hestia walked away. Once she had turned around a corner and vanished from sight, Ami sank back into her chair. Putting her face in her hands, she took a few seconds to realize that she hadn’t thought to ask Hestia where in the company she worked.

Honestly, what was she thinking, just giving that away like that? What if she hated it? What if she started showing it to everyone so they could make fun of her? What if she got fired? What if—

Ami took a deep breath. Hestia had seemed nice, unlike everyone else here—most had either been jerks to her face or ignored her, with a few giving her a bit of generic courtesy. None of them had ever pretended to be nice to her, just to embarrass her later.

No, most likely, nothing would come back of this—most likely, Hestia would return it to her and say it wouldn’t work, or she’d get so caught up in her work that she’d just forget about it. No point in hoping for any more than that. Better to just be glad it was gone and get back to work. Better to focus on things that actually mattered .

“Say Nojima, is that a new watch you’ve got there?”

“You bet, Hanamura. Top of the line Rolex…”

Passerby turned as Emi flew past them on the sidewalk, her mess of long green hair blowing behind her as she fumbled with her kimono sash, struggling to tie it as she carefully held a piece of chocolate between her teeth. Barely able to get any words out, she only gave muffled attempts at “Excuse me!” while she sped off to the steps of Hikawa Shrine, not even stopping to breathe. She simply ran up the steps, triumphantly raising her hands into the air…and then flinched as her chocolate fell out of her teeth and onto the ground.

“Crap, crap crap!” she said, frantically wondering if she could save it somehow. Alas, it had landed firmly on the regularly trodden-upon ground, so she resignedly wrote it off as a lost cause.

 “On time as usual,” came a snarky reply right across from Emi. Kae simply stood with her phone out, texting somebody and not even bothering to make eye contact with Emi.

“Well sor ry!” Emi huffed, crossing her arms with a pout, her hands disappearing into her kimono’s sleeves as she did so. “I was just, y’know, catching up on the news and stuff!”

“You were rewatching those new Sailor Moon clips.”

“CATCHING UP ON THE NEWS, KAE!” Emi shouted, stomping her foot with another pout. “Besides, so what if it was Sailor Moon related? It’s good to see somebody fighting these new monster creeps!”

Kae briefly took her eyes off her phone and glared at Emi, her eyes slowly moving to face the burned husk of the shrine. “Yeah. Reeeeaaaal good work they’re doing.”

Emi winced. “Yeah well…let’s just get started before Miss Rei chews us out.”

With the temple wrecked, they were to report to Rei’s house to start their shift. Kae knocked on the door, expecting to see Rei, but instead…

“Hel -looooooo there, shrine maidens!” a goofy voice exclaimed, as a cheerful blonde woman slid the door open with a dramatic, over-animated thrust of her arm, proudly revealing a priestess outfit she had, evidently, stolen from Rei’s wardrobe. “Introducing Shrine Priestess Minako Aino!”

Emi and Kae both blinked with confusion.

“Uh…who?” Kae asked.

“Oh, did she forget to tell you?” Minako replied. “Rei’s out running some errands. She put me in charge of you two for today!”

Emi and Kae exchanged confused glances. Neither of them had been given a message about this. How strange for Rei to forget something like that…

“…are you Miss Rei’s girlfriend or something?” Emi asked.

Minako’s face immediately flushed. “Erm…n-no, I’m her roommate…long story.”

“So you’re her secret girlfriend.”

“MOVING ON!”

She motioned for the girls to follow her, then led them into Rei’s house. Without skipping a beat, she took a folded-up note out of her robe and opened it, revealing a checklist of things Rei wanted to be done that day.

“Alright, let’s see here…she wants you two to…do some more sweeping…”

“Ugh, again? ” Kae groaned.

“Clean the statues…”

“Wow, I am so thrilled…” Kae groaned again.

“And get the omikuji ready for visitors.”

“Well, that shouldn’t be so hard,” Emi shrugged. “It’s just paper.”

“Did I mention there are a lot of them?”

“…Oh, never mind then.”

“Fine, let’s just get this over with…” Kae said resignedly. “Where are the brooms?”

“Right over here!” said Minako, opening up a nearby closet. “Choose your weapons, ladies!”

“Ha ha,” Kae said flatly as she and Emi both selected a broom. Once they had done so, they headed outside to sweep the grounds, only to find Minako following them, her own broom in tow.

“Oh, you’re helping?” asked Emi.

“Well, yeah,” said Minako. “Why wouldn’t I?”

“Well, it’s not like Miss Hino ever really helped us with sweeping,” Kae grumbled, already working to brush some dust and ash away. “She usually did her weird little meditation thing.”

Minako chuckled. “Well, I’m not Miss Hino,” she said, playfully sticking her tongue out. She suddenly took her broom and spun it around like it was a bo staff, showing off to the two girls. “I’m a superstar! ”

Kae just rolled her eyes. Emi, on the other hand, was full of stars in her eyes.

“Oooooooh, a superstar? Like how?”

“I’ve been in movies!” Minako chuckled. “I acted with Tom Cruise, y’know!”

“…who?” Emi asked.

Minako paused, briefly losing her momentum. “Uh…the movie star? Y’know, Interview With a Vampire? Mission Impossible?”

“Never heard of them,” Kae grumbled.

“Yeah well…I still got to meet him,” Minako said, struggling to save face.

As a background extra , she bitterly thought to herself.

“Ooh, and when I was just a few years older than you guys, I was an idol!” she added.

Or, uh, I competed in an idol competition… she thought to herself, remembering a certain emotional day with a certain silver-haired alien pop singer.

“I don’t listen to idols,” Kae dryly said. “Manufactured pop stars aren’t really my thing. I prefer real music.”

“…not a Three Lights fan, I take it?” Minako asked, a nervous bead of sweat dripping down her forehead.

“Literally who?” Kae replied.

“OH COME ON!” Minako huffed. “I’m not THAT old, am I??”

“Ooh, ooh!” Emi, excitedly jumping up and down. “I’ve heard of the Three Lights! They were huge back in the 90’s! But one day they just kind of disappeared, and they haven’t done anything since.”

“Yeah, well…some groups just kind of vanish into the ether like that,” said Minako, hoping that her face didn’t betray her insider knowledge. “It’s not that unusual for guys like them.”

“Oh, but if you remember them…” said Emi, “…then maybe you remember the Sailor Guardians?”

“Would you let that rest for a bit, Emi?” said Kae, but she was the only one lacking in enthusiasm.

Minako’s face suddenly broke out into another grin, this one dripping with giddy excitement. Finally, she could put one of her talents to good use and entertain these girls properly .

“Well of course I remember them!” she exclaimed, triumphantly raising her broom into the air. “They were the best superheroes this country ever saw!”

“Then…can you tell us about them?” Emi asked with growing interest.

“Here we go…” Kae sighed.

Minako smirked, thrust her broom around like it was a microphone, raised her hand into the air like she was addressing a crowd at a rally, and began her story.

“It was a dark and terrifying time! Monsters appearing left and right, shady businesses creeping up and sucking unsuspecting customers into all sorts of experiments! What kind of experiments, you may ask? Some details are far too gruesome to recount, I’m afraid!”

She paused to gauge her audience. Emi leaned in, enraptured by Minako’s dramatic recounting. Kae, on the other hand, just looked bored.

 “But then!” continued Minako as she suddenly pointed the broom up in the air. “One night, there came a warrior with golden blonde hair, a magic wand, and wings like an angel…Sailor Moon! A brave, beautiful, and bombastic superhero, protector of good and enemy to all monsters!”

Emi jumped up and down in excitement, while Kae proceeded to roll her eyes.

“With her came the Sailor Guardians!” said Minako, her arms spread wide. “Sailor Mercury, icy and intelligent! Sailor Mars, fiery and fearsome! Sailor Jupiter, enormous and electric! And the goddess of love herself, the gorgeous and gallant Sailor Venus, second only to Sailor Moon among the team!”

Placing her hand on her chest, Minako couldn’t help but give a prideful grin at that last description. The girls didn’t seem to notice, however—they were either paying too close attention to the story, or far too little.

“And who could forget Sailor Moon’s dear beloved Tuxedo Mask?” Minako continued. “The mysterious phantom of the night, thief of hearts and vanquisher of villains!”

“But there were more, right?” Emi asked eagerly.

“Well of course!” Minako said, pointing her broom at Emi. “Sailor Chibi Moon, the daughter of Sailor Moon! Sailor Uranus and Sailor Neptune, the fearsome battle couple! Sailor Pluto, guardian of time! And Sailor Saturn, the maiden of the apocalypse!”

“You made that last one up…” muttered Kae.

“Hey, people called her that!” said Minako, knowing better than to elaborate. “Anyway, together, they faced off against a whole horde of villainous scum! Monsters from other planets, other dimensions! Evil snow comets, evil flowers, evil vacuum cleaners!” Minako punctuated each list of evil monsters with a thrust of her arms, as if she were acting on the stage. Emi wasn’t even sweeping anymore. She was just standing there, broom on the ground, eyes shining with excitement, taking in Minako’s one-woman performance with glee.

“Yeah, and the whole city got destroyed like three times,” Kae sarcastically replied.

“Okay, it was NOT destroyed,” Minako fired back, looking more irritated with Kae’s barbs by the second.

Kae merely gave an unimpressed glare in response. “Sure got wrecked pretty bad. They seemed alright, I guess, but like…shouldn’t heroes do stuff without a chunk of Tokyo getting destroyed?”

She shrugged, lightly gripping her broom and halfheartedly sweeping it.

“I mean, I don’t really get this whole thing people have about them. My mom likes them, but I’m kinda meh. What’s so special about them being back, anyways?”

Minako didn’t know how to respond to that. It certainly felt strange for a middle school student to be saying these kinds of things, but this had a…personal sting to it.

“How can you say that!?” shot back Emi. “They saved so many peoples’ lives in just the past two days! Doesn’t that count for anything?”

“Didn’t you remember what Ms. Haruna told us?” Kae replied. “Not everyone was saved, Emi.”

“Just because they can’t do everything doesn’t mean they can’t still save the day!” Emi fired back.

Kae rolled her eyes with a sigh. “Can we just drop this and move on? You know neither of us is gonna budge.”

Emi huffed, crossing her arms with a pout. “Yeah, yeah, whatever…”

Silence fell between the two girls, leaving Minako in the middle looking confused, a growing unease in her stomach.

“Erm…” she began hesitantly, hoping to change the subject. “So, Emi…wanna, uh…tell me about your family?”

Emi shrugged. “My dad worked here when Miss Rei was my age.”

“…your last name is Kumada, isn’t it?”

“Wait, you know him?” Emi asked, her face lightening up a bit.

“Of course I know him!” Minako exclaimed, returning to her cheery disposition. “Yuichiru had, like, the biggest crush on Rei!”

“…he WHAT??” Emi exclaimed. “MISS AINO, I NEED DETAILS!!”

“Ugh, here we go again…” Kae groaned, tossing the broom aside and walking away. “I’m gonna go clean the statues or something. Avoid listening to… this …”

“You do that!” Minako called after her, before returning her attention to the captivated Emi. “So, it was this time when Rei’s grandpa was, like, really crazier than usual…”

It was dusk when Rei finally returned, a fact that she was highly resentful of. Nearly the entire day was spent hunting for clues, and she had found absolutely nothing of value. She had been all over Juuban, especially the area surrounding the last monster attack, and the usual schemes weren’t anywhere to be found. No suspicious new businesses. No shady people popping up. Everything was exactly as it had been before.

These things take time… she thought to herself, trying to hold onto some hope that this wasn’t for nothing. Just need to keep going out there…maybe have Minako take care of the girls some more …ugh, but she’s got her own job, she should focus on that…I can’t just drag her around covering for m–

Her train of thought was interrupted as she trudged into her home. Minako was sitting on the couch, having changed her clothes yet again. She was wearing a pair of red gym shorts and a plain white t-shirt, lacing up a pair of tennis shoes. She looked like she was ready for volleyball again…but it was awfully late for exercise, wasn’t it?

Rei blinked. “Um…going to the gym?”

Minako suddenly darted her head upward. “Uh…oh, you mean this? Just going for a jog!”

“This late?” said Rei, her head tilting in confusion. “Is that a good idea?”

“Eh, I’ll be fine,” Minako laughed. “If anyone tries anything, I’ll sock ‘em right in the jaw!”

Rei snorted. “Well, I never said I was worried about you …”

“Ack! You wound me, madam!”

“Any problems with the girls?” asked Rei, changing the subject.

“Nah, no big issues,” Minako said as she got to her feet. “We mostly just talked while we worked. Emi’s pretty nice…that Kae girl’s kind of a stick in the mud, though.”

Rei sighed, nodding in agreement. “Total opposite of her sister. You remember Nanako?”

Minako thought for a moment. “That little girl who tried copying you and stuff? Had the same robes and that wig?”

Rei chuckled remembering it. “Yeah. Kae is her little sister. Sometimes she can be a bit…difficult.”

That’s one way of putting it , Minako thought to herself. “So two people who worked at the shrine at different times, and they’re having you take care of their family…why, exactly?”

“They want them to learn responsibility,” Rei said, before breaking into a yawn. “They got caught doing…stuff kids their age do, and I’m supposed to give them some tasks outside of school. I guess it’s preparing them for whenever they get actual jobs or something.”

Minako chuckled at that. “Jeez, and I thought my parents were strict.”

At this, Rei couldn’t help but chuckle as well. “I don’t think I could believe that.” She yawned again, pinching the bridge of her nose as she tried to fight the continuing onslaught of drowsiness against her eyes.

Minako tilted her head. “Sooooo…find anything?”

Rei shook her head. “Not yet. Either I’m not looking in the right spot, or these guys are smarter than our old enemies.”

“Yeah, you’d think starting up a random new business would be, like…way more suspicious?” Minako noted, stroking her chin in thought. “But hey, I guess when you sell stuff people want, nobody’s gonna notice.”

“Starting to wonder if I’m way off base here,” Rei sighed. “Maybe I should go back out tomorrow. There has to be something I’m not getting.”

“Uh, didn’t you say you’d take care of your shrine maidens tomorrow?” Minako asked.

Rei blinked. She let out an annoyed groan, facepalming as the memory came back.

“Fuuuuuuuuck…you’re right, you’re right, I need to…take care of that…” she muttered, rubbing her brow in frustration.

“Why don’t you get to bed?” Minako suggested. “You look like you’re about to pass out.”

“No, no…I’m fine…I…” Rei tried to say, before she was interrupted by an enormous yawn. “Ugh…I just need a minute…”

Minako merely gave a stern look. “Rei, seriously. I know you’re hard on yourself over this, but you need to focus on your job too, right?”

Rei wanted to argue. The seriousness of the threat hung over her head, visions of flame repeating themselves incessantly. And yet her body seemed to be telling her it really needed to sleep.

“...Fine…alright, fine…g’night…”

With that, Rei turned around and shuffled to her bedroom. Minako waited until she heard the door shut, then let out a sigh. Hopefully, she’d stay asleep for awhile…

Minako silently slipped into her own bedroom, creeping over to a piece of luggage she had brought with her the other day during her impromptu move-in. She carefully unzipped it, her eyes darting around to make sure Rei didn’t suddenly wake up.

She pulled out a red domino mask and held it in her hand. A familiar mask, to be certain. A part of an outfit she had worn for a while now.

I guess I don’t need this, she thought to herself, giving a sigh. She looked down at her arm, her fingers tracing the red lines that stretched across like highways. She bitterly studied the scars, her hand balling into a fist as she remembered where they came from, the pain they caused her.

Some hero I am… she thought, wrenching her gaze away. She shook her head and tossed the mask back into her luggage.

I don’t want them to know what I did for all those years. But if I keep having to lie to them…

She winced.

No. They won’t find out. That part of my life is dead. And besides…

She turned the light off and exited the room, swiping a pair of keys from the counter. She started to sprint down the steps at a steady pace, before rounding a corner to the sidewalk, briskly jogging in place.

A little lie about why I came in the first place won’t hurt, right?

Chapter Text

 “Just how long is this supposed to take?” asked Philia.

“You can’t rush art,” Eros shot back. “But I suppose you wouldn’t know…”

Philia scowled and turned her attention to the latest Crystal Knight. It was a decidedly different model than the previous two–for one thing, it looked like a grown woman, with a big, poofy mess of red hair grown down to its backside, like an embodiment of 1980’s fashion. The Knight was tall as well, easily standing at six and a half feet, its arms and legs rippling with muscle.

In its mouth, though, were a pair of fangs resting against its pert black lips. Almost like a vampire…

“Well, you like?” asked Eros. “Little more fun than your ‘RAWR, SCARY MONSTER!’ ideas, right?”

“Why does it have this much…hair?” asked Philia.

“Eh, I saw it in a magazine once, thought I’d try it out,” Eros answered. “Say hello, Caramella!”

“Hello, Caramella,” the Knight said in a low, sultry voice.

“How amusing,” Philia muttered dryly. “‘Caramella’?”

“Because her voice is rich and creamy, and makes you want to chew her right up!” Eros answered eagerly.

“…No comment.”

“Anyway, she can actually, like, hold conversations now?” continued Eros. “Historic moment right there. Who wants a monster that’ll just kill you, right? At least make it something that’ll buy you a drink first.”

“You can give them as much life as you like,” said Philia, “but please remember that our objective is to fight the Sailors? If they can’t do that, then we’ll make little progress.”

“Cool your jets, I know what I’m doing,” Eros said with a dismissive wave of her hand. “And hey, having a few basic social skills goes a long way.”

“Is that so?” replied Philia, turning to Eros’ creation. “And what do you have to say for yourself?”

“I offer my allegiance purely to you, Madame Philia, and the court of our Empress,” the vampiric Knight replied, giving a respectful bow. “I am fully prepared to make sport of the Sailor Guardians and provide the necessary energy for our Empress’s arrival.”

“Hm,” Philia said with a raised eyebrow. “Then tell me, how do you intend to achieve this?”

The Knight smiled, giving Philia a good look at her glistening white fangs.

“Why, however you require, my lady.”

Lunch was one of the few times Ami could get at least some small modicum of relief from office tensions. There was a particular cafe a short distance away from work that she would walk to, order a sandwich, and relax until the hour inevitably passed and she was back in front of her computer.

With things as they were, however, she had to sacrifice a little of her lunchtime peace for more serious matters. She sat at her table just outside of the cafe, her legs dangling above the ground, one hand resting beside a glass of water, and the other hand typing a text message on her phone. She briefly looked up as a bell rang, and a waiter placed a tray of Ami’s usual meal on the table, a toasted BLT with cheese. Ami gave a polite nod, not saying anything more than “Thank you” as the waiter departed, though she was reluctant to eat just yet. She was still waiting on someone.

It didn’t take long before Minako’s shuffling footsteps entered the scene, the blonde hurriedly pulling a chair up and sitting down in front of Ami, panting like she had run all the way there…which she kind of had.

“I…am so sorry…” Minako coughed, taking Ami’s water without even asking and desperately chugging it down. “Guhhh…I got lost on the way here…”

Ami blushed and tried grabbing for her water, though she could hardly put up much of a fight against Minako. “Um…sure, I guess you can have it.”

“Thanks,” said Minako, though it didn’t look like she knew what exactly she was supposed to be thankful about. As she took a deep breath, her eyes drooped a bit, and her head began to sag.

“Are you alright, Minako?” Ami asked. “You look tired…”

Minako jerked her head up, her eyes wide open.

“Yep, never better!” she said. “Just a busy week, I’ll be fine. New job and all.”

“Well, alright…” said Ami, deciding not to force the issue. “Anyway…”

Reaching into her purse, she pulled out a couple of diagrams drawn on sheets of printer paper. Not professional diagrams by any means, but improvised blueprints she made while in her cubicle.

“I’ve started working on some new communicators in my spare time,” she explained, “along with some new energy tracking software. Hopefully, this will make us more prepared than it was before. I-I think I could get these made in a few days, but I’ll need some help.”

“Hey, anything you need, I’m sure we can provide!” Minako assured her. “I mean, within reason and all. This isn’t gonna be, like, nuclear powered, is it?”

Ami tilted her head, a confused expression spreading across her face. “N-No?” she said, unsure of how to process this question.

Minako chuckled, waving her hand in front of her face as a symbolic gesture of brushing the question away. “Ah, I’m just messin’ with ya!” she laughed.

Ami didn’t laugh back. She sighed, silently taking a bite out of her sandwich.

“Uh…you good?” Minako asked. “Sorry, it was probably a dumb joke anyway, I shouldn’t have–”

“You’re fine,” Ami interrupted. She swallowed, crossing her arms in front of her chest, head bent down just enough that the sunlight obscured her glasses and hid her pupils. “Just some…things going on is all. Personal things.”

Minako, too, fell silent for a moment. Ami was always the most socially awkward in their group, but it was easy to tell when something was weighing on her. And right now, it seemed like a pretty big something.

“Can I ask you something, Ami?” Minako gently requested.

Ami didn’t say anything, but she gave a nod.

“You and Mako were together during the last monster attack,” Minako said. “It wasn’t a coincidence, was it?”

Ami’s cheeks turned pink, her eyes widening with fear as she realized what this meant.

“I-I…I-I don’t want to talk about it, Minako!” she said. “I-I am perfectly entitled to my privacy, thank you!” It was rare for Ami to actually sound angry like this—it left Minako with an uncomfortable feeling in her stomach just hearing it.

“Alright, alright,” Minako sighed. “I won’t pry into it.” An awkward silence fell over the two of them, Minako looking somewhat sullen herself as those words kept repeating in her head. “Privacy”. Sure, she kind of wanted to pry. She wanted to know what Ami was thinking of, to help her feel better. But a small voice kept repeating in her head each time she thought of it.

Hypocrite .

Minako idly glanced at the diagrams, grabbing one of them as she ignored the thoughts in her head. “This is the energy tracker, right?” she said, noting the rectangular shape of the drawing. It looked like a calculator of sorts, but with a radar dish on it, plus an old-fashioned antenna.

Ami nodded. “Yes, I was planning on making this with some equipment I had laying around at home. It’s been a while since I had a project like this, so it’ll be a few days.”

“I see…” Minako said. “You uh…you like engineering stuff?”

Ami gave a nod. “If I didn’t have my current job, I feel I probably would have been some kind of engineer.”

“You like your job?” asked Minako.

Such an innocuous question would normally inspire a brief answer right off the bat. Ami, on the other hand, looked like a deer in headlights from hearing that. She fumbled over her words for a moment.

“I…um…well…I-I suppose I do, yes,” she said, as blatant a lie as she had ever told. “It’s tough, but I manage alright.”

Minako didn’t look like she believed it. It was obvious Ami was dealing with something, but as nosy as Minako could be, she didn’t want to pry into it too deeply.

Though, sometimes Minako could play things subtle…

“Got any friends at work?” she asked.

Ami paused. “I…n-no, not a friend , per se…n-nobody is really friends there, anyways. Strictly professional.”

Minako had a feeling that this wasn’t exactly true, but again didn’t say as much.

“Hey, it never hurts to try,” she ventured. “Maybe if you talked to a few people, you could—”

“That’s not going to work,” Ami interrupted. Apparently surprised by the abruptness of her own reply, she cast her gaze downward.

“I…did talk to one person, recently,” she admitted. “She helped me out of a jam, and said she’d take a look at a proposal I had. I don’t think anything’s going to happen, though.”

“Hey, it’s something!” replied Minako. “Maybe if you talked to her some more, you could make some more progress with that?”

“Maybe…” Ami said, a note of uncertainty in her voice.  “Doubt it’d work, though…”

“You won’t know unless you try it!” Minako chuckled. “Don’t be such a pessimist, Ami!”

Ami bitterly sighed at this, her expression turning downcast.

“She used to tell me that,” she quietly muttered to herself, just low enough that Minako could barely make it out.

“What was that?” Minako asked.

Ami shook her head. “Nothing.” No point in dwelling on lost causes. “Ahem, going back to the energy tracker…”

“Oh, right,” said Minako. “You said it’d be done in a few days, right?”

Ami nodded. “Yes. But I’ll need help. We’ll need to meet at Hikawa again to handle this. Do you know when Rei might be available? I’ve tried calling her but she hasn’t responded at all.”

Minako bit her lip, awkwardly shuffling her feet against the ground, eyes darting to the side.

“Um…yeah, that’s…kind of an ongoing problem…”

As Rei walked down the street, she couldn’t help but focus on one fact.

There were a lot of shops in Juuban.

On every street corner, in every building, there was a shop of some kind—locally-owned businesses selling anything from firecrackers to pets to food, usually run by one or two people. On the one hand, it was good to see they weren’t run out by the bigger brands, but on the other hand, this meant a villainous threat could easily set up shop for some nefarious scheme. The number of times that had happened was far too many to count.

Her hands firmly shoved into the pockets of her cardigan, Rei stopped at the edge of the sidewalk, cars zipping by as she pressed a button on the crosswalk light. As she made to cross the street, her eyes carefully scanned every business she could see. It was an eclectic bunch, ranging from brand new stores with gleaming signs and windows, to much older ones where the text was faded and worn. They all registered clearly in her mind…but none of them seemed the slightest bit suspicious.

Should I just pick one and go in? she thought to herself. See what happens? Usually, these schemes are pretty innocuous but–

Rei was then quite suddenly interrupted by a door slamming right into her face.

OW, WHAT THE FUCK?!

Reeling back a few steps, she cupped her hand over her nose, a sudden dizziness washing over her as she struggled to stay on her feet. 

Am I bleeding? she thought as she gingerly felt her nose. Okay good, I don’t have just another thing to deal with.

“My goodness, I’m so sorry!” came the voice of Rei’s accidental assailant. She spoke in a womanly tone, rather high class and refined. “A-Are you okay, miss?”

Rei didn’t get a good look at the stranger’s face—or rather, she didn’t really bother to. She was only focused on two things: her original goal…and not yelling at this person and making a scene.

“Oh no, it’s fine, my fault entirely, I’ve just been so…distracted. Have a good day.”

She continued to walk off, mostly ignoring the other woman, though she did notice how she seemed to have a rather…familiar shade of white hair…

She impatiently brushed this aside. How was she supposed to focus on her mission if she really was getting distracted?

…Then again, maybe that wasn’t quite the issue…

Fuck’s sake…if I didn’t even notice a door flying into my face, how am I supposed to tell what those Knight freaks might be running? What’s wrong with me?

With a heavy sigh, Rei continued her walk down the street, now only briefly scanning each storefront. Really, a cursory glance was all she needed—most of the shadiest businesses they had dealt with before had been tailored to draw in enthusiastic crowds as quickly as possible, but she didn’t see anything like that here. If she was being honest, it was mostly boring—drab, even. The street was full of places that either had little business, were on the brink of closing, or already had. Some of these buildings were just completely empty, not being used at all.

Though one of those abandoned buildings did catch Rei’s eye.

The doors were locked, the lights inside were out, and a faded sign on the door said the building was for sale. However, it was the logo that Rei was fixated on. The lettering was faded but still legible, and all too familiar.

Game Center Crown.

“Guess Motoki finally decided to close it down, huh?” she muttered to herself.

She gasped as she was struck by the weight of her own words. This was something she hadn’t expected—part of the past that’d been left behind. The shrine, damaged as it was, would still be there in the end, same as it always was. Sure, she and the others were older and greatly changed, but they were still them , when you got down to it. And even if some of their friends…weren’t there any longer, it wasn’t as though they were around to remind them of that.

But this, this was…a corpse. Everything that had made the arcade what it was was gone, stripped away, leaving only an empty shell. Fifteen years had killed it, and it had been left here to remind everyone of that inevitability.

And what about us? whispered a small voice in Rei’s head. How much life do we have in us before we end up like that?

Rei gazed down at the ground and exhaled silently, then looked up at the window into the empty building.

No , she thought, we’re not going down that easy.

“Excuse me, miss?”

Rei turned around to the approaching voice…and immediately took a step back as she realized the stranger approaching her was a good head and a half taller than her. It was a woman, her skin pale, her body well-built and toned, and her red hair tied into a bun. Resting atop her nose was a pair of sunglasses that completely obscured her eyes from view, and her gleaming white teeth were set in a confident grin. Teeth that looked oddly like fangs…

“Ah, pardon me,” the woman said, “it’s just that you’ve been staring in there for such a long time, I had begun to think something was wrong.”

“Oh! N-No, nothing’s wrong,” Rei stammered—something about the woman’s appearance seemed to be throwing her off her game. “I just, um…have a lot of memories about this place. Can’t believe they closed it down…”

“Well, it happens,” the woman replied smoothly. “You can’t expect old places like these to last forever.”

Rei winced at the comment. While it wasn’t wrong , per se, it didn’t make it hurt any less.

“Yeah…I guess so…”

“Flier?”

“…pardon?”

The woman was holding a freshly printed flier in her hand, pressed slightly against Rei’s shoulder with somewhat forceful intent. 

“Oh, I do apologize!” she said with a smile. “I’m just trying to promote my new ice cream parlor. It would mean so much if you came as a customer!”

“Oh, um…of course!” Rei said in spite of herself, her hand almost automatically reaching forward and taking the flier. “I’m a little busy today, but…maybe I could come by in a few days with a friend?”

“Oh, that would be just wonderful!” the woman said, her eyes sparkling. “Please, bring as many people as you like! The more the merrier!”

With that, the woman turned on her heels and swiftly walked away, not even bothering to give her name.

As soon as she was gone, Rei looked the flier over. There was nothing outwardly suspicious about it, from a surface glance. Just a normal flier with cartoonish drawings of happy children eating ice cream, a list of some prices and flavors. But still, Rei couldn’t help but feel there was something suspicious about this.

New business…strange woman covering her eyes…unnaturally pale skin…either she’s got some kind of condition or…

She folded the flier and stashed it into her pocket, immediately turning back as fast as she could.

She’s our next target.

“So…the search hasn’t been a total bust.”

Rei stood in front of the couch, her arms crossed and her brow furrowed, holding the flier in her hand. The rest of the team sat across from her like they were taking in a lecture—which in a sense, they were. This was supposed to be a check-in regarding their current mission, the first of many.

“I was scouting today, and a strange woman handed me this flyer for a new business that’s opening up. It fits the usual M.O. of our enemies—something that’s easy to market, can attract plenty of customers, and can be spread to a large population. I propose that a few of us go and do a stakeout to investigate in more detail.”

Her tone was confident and decisive. She had it all planned out: investigate this place, fight at the first sign of danger, and hopefully get some intel about the villains. It was foolproof.

So why did everyone look so unenthusiastic?

“Is…that it?” Mako asked.

“…What else is there supposed to be?” Rei replied, having been taken decidedly off-guard.

“Well, all we have is a piece of paper,” Mako pointed out. “That’s not exactly a lot, y’know?”

“Wh…you didn’t even see the woman who gave it to me!” Rei countered. “She was like…really tall and muscular, and had like…fangs!”

“So, me during Halloween,” Mako snarked. “I don’t doubt these Crystal Knight weirdos might go for a more intelligent monster this time, but this still seems a bit…I dunno, weak? To decide on a stakeout already?”

“Well…okay, so I don’t have enough to go on, maybe,” Rei meekly admitted. A drop of sweat fell down her cheek as a sinking sensation gripped her abdomen. “B-But we always have the energy trackers, right?”

Before Mako could say anything, Ami gave an awkward cough, her cheeks blushing ruby red as she averted her eyes for a moment.

“ Ami, please tell me you have an energy detector ready,” Rei replied.

“Soon,” Ami promised, “very soon. I just need a little more time to work out the bugs, and then I’ll need to do some testing. Until then…”

“We’re pretty much stuck like this, huh?” said Mako with a sigh.

Rei grumbled, crumpling the flier in her hand. “Look, I know it’s not exactly ironclad reasoning, but come on , girls!”

“Hey, I think we should try it!” Minako chimed in. “It’s not like we have anything else to go on, right? Maybe it won’t pan out, but we might be able to find another clue while we’re there.”

“And if we don’t find anything?” Mako asked.

“Then…fuck it, I guess back to square one or whatever,” Rei grumbled, rolling her eyes. She crossed her arms in front of her chest, exhaling through her nose with a slight pout. She wouldn’t deny she was frustrated—finally something they could take action on, and so far the response was ho-hum at best.

  Silence fell over the room for a moment, the kind of awkward silence that came when nobody wanted to be the first person to talk, desperately waiting for someone else to speak up.

“U-Um…I have something to say.”

Rei’s eyes darted towards Usagi, who had been largely quiet during this. She was huddled on the edge of the couch, perched on the armrest like an anxious gargoyle of sorts. She shrunk back slightly as Rei’s gaze fell upon her, but she didn’t look away.

“What would that be?” Rei asked. Her voice didn’t sound quite as blunt as before, which gave Usagi some relief.

“Well…I do agree with you about doing a stakeout,” Usagi suggested with a nervous smile. “I know it might not be a lot to go off, but Minako’s right. We might as well try.”

Another silence came over the five before Mako gave a reluctant sigh.

“Alright. I know when I’m outvoted,” she respectfully said. “We can try a stakeout.”

“Good,” said Rei with a sigh of relief. “I mean…thank you. I know this doesn’t all sound like a lot to go on, but I really do think this is our best shot.”

“I do think we should be cautious about how we do it, though,” Ami noted. “I can’t guarantee my own participation in a stakeout when I have work.”

“Yeah, me neither,” Minako added with a yawn. “They need me early tomorrow for some orientation stuff.”

“I can go!” offered Usagi. “It’s not like I have anything—”

“No.”

Everyone turned towards Rei, her arms folded as she glared at Usagi.

“…wha?” asked Usagi, confusion evident on her face.

Rei sighed. There was a hint of frustration across her face, but that wasn’t the only emotion she sported. The way she frowned, the way her fingers tightly gripped at her elbow, she looked almost…melancholic.

“In our last fight, you froze,” she pointed out. “I don’t know why you did it, but I know it had to be something serious.”

Usagi gulped. “I-It was just one time!” she protested, forcing out a fake-sounding chuckle. “I-I’m just a little rusty, w-whats th–”

“You’re not ready yet,” Rei bluntly said. “We need you on the team, but you’ll need to actually be on the team, you get what I’m saying?”

“Rei, I…I’m sorry, I…”

“Just what are you implying here, Rei?” Mako suddenly spoke up, rising up from the couch and looking down at Rei with an angry glare. Just seeing this was enough to make Rei adjust her tone slightly.

“I…I’m not trying to be rude here, I’m really not,” she sheepishly said. “I just…Usagi, I know you’re going through a lot, but if this becomes a recurring thing…”

“Are you saying it’s my own fault?” Usagi said.

“That’s not what I–”

“Then what are you saying, Rei?”

Rei sighed.

“I don’t know if I trust you enough to help.”

Rei expected a few reactions from Usagi. Maybe some crying, maybe some yelling.

She didn’t expect Usagi to laugh at that. A coarse, frustrated, almost pitiful laugh.

“Heh…don’t trust me enough, huh?” Usagi said, a bitter chuckle escaping her lips. “Fine. Fine, I get it. I’m a mess. And nobody wants Sailor Moon to be a mess. So y’know what, Rei? I’ll do whatever you say. Tell me what to do and I’ll do it, no questions asked, no disagreements, no gripes, no fighting, I’ll do WHATEVER you want and I’ll accept it. Deal?”

“Usagi…” Rei 

“What? I’m doing what you want!” Usagi shouted as tears began to form in her eyes. “I-I’m trying to make myself useful! What am I doing wrong!?”

“I don’t…I don’t…don’t…”

Rei’s voice faltered as the words caught in her throat. Her vision suddenly grew blurry. Her breathing quickened as her heart hammered against her chest with the force of a sledgehammer, the sound pounding in her ears.

Minako suddenly jumped up from the couch, running up to Rei and placing a hand on her shoulder. “Rei? You feelin’ okay?”

She tried to speak, but she couldn’t form the words…or do anything else, for that matter. Her mind and body…it was like an invisible wall had separated them…like she was in a dream…

“REI!”

As her legs gave out, her eyes rolled into the back of her head, and the room began to fade…

The charred ruins of Tokyo stretched out for miles. Rei could smell the burnt plastic of a nearby children’s park. She could see a torn swing set, ash sprinkling the seat, the ground beneath it stripped of any vegetation. The earth itself was scorched beyond recognition.

She was walking through the ruins, though she couldn’t feel her legs moving. She felt like she was in a trance. This place felt so familiar to her, like she’d walked through these very streets before…

And soon she realized why it felt so familiar.

It was an average, middle-class house, albeit burned almost beyond recognition. The roof was destroyed and the windows shattered , but she knew this place well . She had been there so often when she was a teenager.

It was the Tsukino family residence. Usagi’s old house.

“Why…why am I here?” she whispered to herself. “What does this mean?”

“It is a warning, Rei Hino.”

Ice cold dread suddenly ran up Rei’s spine . Sure, she could sometimes hear voices in her visions, but this was…something else altogether. This voice resounded with authority, a deep, commanding tone that sounded positively ancient.

And yet it sounded so familiar…

“Should you and the rest of the Sailor Guardians fail to unify, the world will fall with you.”

“B-But…I’m doing what I can t–”

“You have not!” shouted the voice, vibrations causing the very ground beneath Rei to shake.   “The gap between you and Usagi Tsukino only grows wider. And should that gap continue to widen…”

With an enormous rumble, the ground in front of Rei tore open into a jagged fissure that, in seconds , ripped the house in half.

“The damage you leave behind will be catastrophic.”

“Rei, wake up! REI! ”

Rei’s eyes shot open, but it took a moment for her to register what she was seeing—four blurry silhouettes stared down at her, one of them lifting her head up as a pounding headache pulsed through her skull.

“Is she okay?” one quiet voice asked, easily recognizable as Ami’s.

“That was some panic attack…” another voice—Mako’s—added. “I-I didn’t think your eyes could…well, do that …”

Rei blinked a few times as dizziness swept through her, everyone coming into view.

“I’m…I’m alright…” was the first thing she had the presence of mind to say. “I think…how long was I out?”

“About ten minutes,” answered Minako as she helped Rei sit up. “Rei, what happened? One minute you were fine, the next…”

“Right, I’m…I’m sorry…” Rei said quietly. “I…had another vision.”

“Another one?” Mako asked. “You can have those without meditating?”

“Well…not until now…” Rei said. Her voice sounded hoarse and ragged like she had just been yelling a lot, even though she had barely said much at all.

“What did you see?” Ami asked. “How serious was it?”

Rei hesitated. Her eyes darted between her friends. Minako, surprisingly calm, gently trying to keep Rei balanced. Mako, arms crossed and brow furrowed, looking both serious and worried. Ami, scared out of her mind at seeing something, to put it bluntly, absolutely freakish.

And Usagi…

She didn’t look angry anymore. She was sitting on the ground close to Rei, knees curled up to her chest. She had been crying a lot more in those few minutes, anxiously rocking back and forth.

“I…I saw…”

Rei paused. Usagi looked at her for just a second, eyes wide with fear. Like a puppy that had been kicked too many times, wondering what it had done wrong.

“M-More of the same. Just…fire and chaos and the usual…the usual stuff…”

Usagi blinked away a tear and looked back at Rei.

“…Look, I think we have a good plan of attack laid out,” Rei said. “Let’s call it here for tonight. Meeting adjourned.”

“W-What??” Ami exclaimed. “Rei, we’ve barely even talked about the stakeout, h-how could this be i–”

Rei raised her hand, and Ami suddenly went silent.

“Ami. Meeting adjourned.”

Mako rolled her eyes and groaned, looking mildly disappointed with how things concluded. “I’ll try to join you tomorrow, Rei, but we have some things we need to talk about. Cuz uh…this?” She gestured to the general area of the room. “This isn’t working.”

Rei didn’t say anything to that. She merely watched as Ami and Mako exited, with Usagi quickly following behind. Rei sighed as she saw Usagi walking off…those damn eyes kept looking at her. Trembling with fear…

“Okay, real talk,” Minako said once the door had shut behind them. “What did you actually see?”

Rei cursed under her breath. Why did Minako have to pick the most inconvenient times to be observant? Still, maybe it was better this way…

“I…I saw Usagi’s old house…” she said slowly. “…destroyed…”

Minako said nothing for a moment.

“Okay,” she finally answered, “that was probably a good call. But is that all you saw?”

“I heard a voice,” Rei continued. “It told me that we’d lose everything if we couldn’t unite…and, well…I think the big problem is Usagi and me.”

Another moment of silence from Minako. Her expression was focused, oddly serious compared to her usual dopey disposition.

“And…?”

“That’s it.”

“Well okay,” said Minako. “So, what are we going to do about it, then?”

There were three words Rei hated saying the most. Three words that, right now, were exactly what needed to be said, but it made Rei feel sick just thinking about them.

“…I don’t know.”

Minako let out a deep sigh.

“Rei,” she began. “I don’t want to say this lightly—you aren’t doing a good job handling Usagi.”

“You don’t think I know that?!” Rei shot back, suddenly frantic. “But what the hell am I supposed to do!?”

“Nothing!” Minako answered forcefully. “Because handling Usagi. Is. Not. Your. Job!”

Rei’s hands shoved against her face as she let out a loud, angry groan. “You didn’t see her after Mamoru’s crash. While you were playing Hollywood, I took care of Usagi. I…I saw what she turned into…”

She hesitated for a moment. A tear fell down her cheek as she tightly gripped her sleeve.

“She didn’t just lose Mamoru. She lost her happiness. She lost her drive. And no matter how much I fought her over it…nothing got better.”

One tear became several as Rei bitterly sobbed, her bangs obscuring her eyes from Minako.

“I did everything I could to get her to stop but she wouldn’t listen to me. Maybe I was too forceful. I didn’t know how to get her help and all of you were off doing other things. I yelled and screamed and she yelled and screamed and…and she left. And maybe I’m still mad about it, I don’t know…”

Rei sniffed as she wiped away a few tears from her eyes, feeling sick. She couldn’t remember the last time she had laid all of this out before, if she ever had. Some might have said that it ought to have made her feel better, but right now it only made her feel far worse.

Just then, she felt two strong arms around her. Opening her eyes in shock, she saw Minako behind her, wrapping her in a tight embrace.

“I’m sorry for yelling…” Minako said gently.

Rei sniffled. “Y-You’re fine…I-I kind of deserved it…”

Neither of them talked for a minute. The only sounds in the room were Rei’s sobs, slowly becoming quieter as she struggled to calm herself down.

Minako coughed, still hugging Rei. “Remember how I went to Usagi’s apartment the other day?”

Rei nodded.

“I saw a lot of beer cans there…I, y’know…tried pointing it out and Usagi got mad at me. But she still came back at the end of the day to help us.”

“Y-Yeah…” Rei meekly admitted. “She did…”

Minako paused, lowering her gaze toward the ground. “We can’t force her to suddenly change and be like the old Usagi we knew. Some of her problems are ones she needs to face on her own. But we need to be her friends and help her however we can. Listen to her, check in on her, talk to her. That’s, y’know…that’s what friends do.”

Rei meekly exhaled through her nose. “And what if she still acts out?”

Minako shrugged. “The road to recovery isn’t an easy one, Rei.”

Rei didn’t say anything after that. She leaned her head against Minako’s shoulder, still sniffling. Silence crept over them as neither of them moved an inch, just sitting there for a moment. 

Eventually, Minako looked at a nearby clock. It was already getting rather late for her.

“Rei. I need to go to bed.”

As she made to get up, Rei grabbed her sleeve.

"Please…” she said quietly. “Just stay for a bit…please?”

A blush crossed Minako’s face. It was well-known to her friends that Minako didn’t understand the concept of personal space to save her life, but being on the receiving end of it was…different.

“R-Rei, I need to–”

She stopped, gazing into Rei’s plaintive eyes. It struck her just then how… alone Rei had been over the past several years. How alone they had all been, really. At that moment, Minako realized that Rei couldn’t stand to be alone at that moment…and really, neither could she.

“...Alright,” she said as she sat back down, letting Rei rest her head against her shoulder once more. “Just for a little longer…”

Usagi had lost count of how many shots she had downed in the past few minutes. At least, she thought it was a few minutes. Time felt weird when she was drunk.

Her head wobbled, her balance completely thrown off as she tried to leave the stool. Nearly falling on her ass, she managed to grab the counter and prop herself up at the last second.

C’mon … she thought blearily. Big plans tomorrow…gotta get up…gotta–

“I won’t be gone long, Usako, trust me.”

Usagi suddenly froze, nausea spreading through her stomach as she heard it again.

Leave. Me. Alone.

She hobbled to her feet, taking another step, knees buckling the whole way.

I just need to get into a cab…get back home…wake up, show that I’m responsible…yeah, I’m fucking responsible alright, gonna fucking puke at the bar. This is why Rei doesn’t fucking trust you, Tsukino, you’re a fucking washed up c–

“Hey, don’t be upset! I just gotta do this thing and I’ll be back.”

She froze again as bile crept up her throat.

Damn it damn it damn it damnitDAMNITDAMNIT—

She didn’t bother to fight it this time. The contents of her stomach immediately hurled themselves from her mouth, splattering all over the floor and the front of her shirt.

“Oh shit!” exclaimed the bartender, rushing over to Usagi as she fell to her knees, violently heaving as her tears began to mix with her vomit.

Usagi tried to apologize, but what came out were unintelligible gargles mixed with more heaving. She sounded completely incoherent.

“Hey, hey, bunhead, you okay?” the bartender asked. Against his better judgment, he reached his hand to Usagi’s shoulder…

And reeled as she suddenly slapped it away.

“STOP CALLING ME THAT, MITSUISHI!” she shouted, eyes wild as she pushed him away. “STOP FUCKING CALLING ME THAT!”

Mitsuishi immediately reeled back, staring at her in shock. Usagi, realizing what she had just done, cast her eyes to the ground, looking ashamed. For a moment, the bar was silent, both thankful that they were the only two there.

“I-I’m sorry…” Usagi whispered. “I’m really sorry…”

“I’m…gonna go call you a ride, okay?” Mitsuishi said as he awkwardly shuffled away, reeling from what had until that night been unprecedented behavior from Usagi.

Usagi sat there, not saying anything. Her thoughts weren’t just empty, they might as well have been nonexistent. Just a mess of booze and the feeling of a dark cloud floating over her head, hiding any sunshine to brighten her day.

Maybe Rei was right, a dull, quiet voice came through the drunken haze. I’m not trustworthy…I’m not responsible…

She didn’t even pay attention as Mitsuishi gently led her out of the bar and into a taxi, nor did she pay attention as he buckled her into her seat. She couldn’t feel anything, nor did she particularly want to. Better to let it all just disappear, vanish into the ether.

Better for her to just disappear.

“We can’t give up again, Usagi Tsukino…”

Usagi jerked her head up, suddenly feeling…well, something instead of nothing.

“Ma’am?” the cab driver asked. “You alright?”

“Don’t make the same mistake I did, Usagi…”

Usagi hesitated. That voice wasn’t Mamoru’s…but why did it feel so familiar?

“N-No, I…I’m not alright…” Usagi stammered.

“ Don’t give up …”

Usagi gave a sigh and started to close her eyes.

“Don’t give up…”

I won’t give up. But it’s not like it’s gonna get better.

Not unless something changes…

Chapter Text

“Usagi, open up!” Mako shouted as she banged on her friend’s apartment door. “You said we were going to meet at 10, that was over an hour ago!”

No response…not that she had really expected anything different.

Mako groaned as she pulled out her phone for the fifth time in ten minutes, impatiently scrolling through her text messages. It had been three hours since she’d woken up and Usagi still hadn’t answered her. She had tried calling her, but each attempt ended the same: ringing, ringing, and then voicemail. That had only made Mako more worried, so she had stopped waiting for Usagi to get back to her and went over to her apartment herself, but so far she hadn’t had any better luck on that end either.

Is she even here? Mako asked herself. What if she’s somewhere else? What if she’s hurt? Oh God…

She was just about to knock on the door again when, to her relief, she heard a click , and then the door slowly swung open.

Usagi didn’t say a word. She just looked at Mako with sad, tired eyes, baggy and bloodshot and red from crying. Her skin was pale, with a little green around her cheeks, and she winced as light filtered through her room.

She croaked out a quiet “Hi…” her voice sounding worn and rough. “I’m sorry I didn’t answer…”

Mako breathed a sigh of relief. “Well…a-at least you’re safe, right?”

Usagi shuffled her foot against the ground and sniffled.

“Do most superheroes feel like this?”

“What do you mean?”

Usagi couldn’t help but wince. She wanted to say something, but with every word she tried to say, she had to fight back tears. She could feel her stomach heaving again with the same sickly feeling from the night before. She felt ill, and she wasn’t sure if it was the booze, the anxiety…or both.

She held her phone up and opened a text message, showing it to Mako. Mako looked down at it and saw it was a message from Naru.

This is Dr. Kobayashi’s number. Please give him a call, he’ll be a great help.

Mako didn’t recognize the name or the number, but she could recognize the intent behind the message.

“This is a therapist, isn’t it?”

Usagi nodded. “Y-Yeah…I-I don’t…I don’t know if I should…”

She could barely hold it in anymore. She clutched her chest and started to cry again.

“I-I threw up at a bar last night…I-I got so drunk I could barely make my way home…b-but I’m supposed to be a superhero, right? I-I’m Sailor Moon, I…I-I can’t be weak or sick o-or anything…S-Sailor Moon is…s-supposed to help people…s-supposed to protect the world…”

She fell to the floor, dropping her phone and covering her eyes as she continued to sob. It dimly occurred to her that these breakdowns were becoming a habit, but she supposed this was just where she was now. 

“Hey, come here,” she heard through her sobs, only to gasp as she felt strong arms embrace her.

“Come here,” Mako whispered again as she wrapped Usagi in a tight hug. “It’ll be okay…”

“How can this possibly be okay?” Usagi sobbed back, though she made no attempt to wriggle out of Mako’s warm grasp. “Rei’s right…what can I do for anyone…I just feel so useless…” She grit her teeth for a moment, balling her hand into a fist.

“Every day I keep hearing his voice…keep freezing up hearing that same FUCKING VOICE…”

She faltered for a moment. It was bad enough to raise her voice at people she barely knew, but raising her voice in front of one of her friends felt even worse.

If Mako thought anything of it, though, she certainly didn’t show it.

“What do you mean ‘his voice’?”

The sick feeling in Usagi’s abdomen tightened like a serpent around her stomach. She hadn’t told the girls about this before…really, she hadn’t told anyone about this before.

“Well…” Usagi said, her voice cracking a bit. “I keep having these…dreams…”

“Now, when you say dreams…” Mako interrupted, “you mean like… bad ones, yeah?”

Usagi shyly nodded. “Nightmares. Of…of Mamoru…of me drowning…of us drowning…”

She sniffled again. She struggled to resist the urge to wretch right in front of Mako. She had to get this out. Bottling it up any longer was only hurting herself.

“M-More than nightmares, though. His voice…I-I heard it during the last fight. I keep hearing it everywhere…I-I could be doing literally anything and then I hear it. The last things he told me before he…”

She hesitated to say the next word.

“I-I still miss him…i-it’s supposed to be Sailor Moon and Tuxedo Mask, yeah? Serenity and Endymion…”

She paused for a moment and looked at Mako’s face. Mako wasn’t crying. She had been listening attentively the whole time. Her face appeared sympathetic, but Usagi thought that her eyes seemed…sad?

“You remember how I lived alone growing up?” she asked.

Usagi nodded. “Yeah. Your parents died when you were little.”

Mako sighed. The years since had left it only a distant memory, and yet some days it felt like the pain had only scarcely dulled. “After it happened, I…had lots of nightmares about plane crashes. They always felt so real, it scared me. I’d just get this vivid feeling of falling from the air, smoke everywhere, always waking up before I could land…”

Mako took a deep breath, letting out a shudder before turning back to Usagi.

“So I do think I have an idea how you’re feeling, at least,” she finished.

Usagi recoiled a bit. While she was glad Mako was empathetic of her plight, the fact that those dreams sounded so similar to her own was…mildly unsettling, to put it lightly.

“When did the dreams stop?” she asked.

A small smile crossed Mako’s lips. “Honestly? Around the time we became friends.”

Usagi blinked. “B-But why would–”

“Look, Usagi…I’m not gonna dive into all the stuff I’ve dealt with. I’ve been low more times than I want to count. Before I moved to Juuban, I was the big, scary kid who got into fights and made the teachers mad. But when I met you…you didn’t judge me. You weren’t scared. You liked me for me . And then…I found out you were my favorite superhero.”

It was a memory so faded that Usagi had completely forgotten it, but now that she thought of it…when they had first met, Mako did mention something like that.

“You looked up to me before we even met, didn’t you?”

Mako nodded. “When I saw you, Ami, and Rei as this trio of superheroes…I thought I could be like that. Saving people and protecting them. I thought you three were fearless. I guess I decided before I even knew I was Sailor Jupiter to emulate you. So…when I saw a certain little blonde girl getting in trouble with some creeps on her way to school…”

Usagi’s eyes widened as she realized what this meant.

“…you intervened.”

“All in a day’s work,” Mako casually shrugged, giving a playful chuckle. “Finding out you were Sailor Moon just made me respect you a lot more. Because you were just like me. We weren’t the best at school, we both got up to dumb shit with boys…but at the end of the day, you were always there to fight. To help people. And no matter how bad things got, you didn’t stop.”

Usagi thought for a moment. She still felt numbed by everything going on, like an empty shell that could barely process all the emotions she felt. Yet knowing the threat that faced them…she wanted to prove to Rei that she was useful, didn’t she?

“I want…I want to help you girls out,” she said. “I-I don’t think I…can be the same Sailor Moon that I was as a kid…but I can’t back away from this. I just…need to work on some things…”

There was a certain warmth to Mako’s hand as she laid it gently atop Usagi’s shoulder, the taller woman giving a reassuring nod to her friend.

“That’s all we can do, sometimes. And…you don’t have to do it alone.”

Slowly, Usagi’s expression changed. She was still sniffling, her eyes still red, but her lips slowly began to curve into a smile. What’s more, mixed with the sniffling was another sound.

An all too familiar giggle.

“Y-Y’know…you were always really good at this. Cheering people up and all.”

“I have a little experience,” Mako chuckled. “Anyways…Rei’s still doing the stakeout. I was going to go and join her. If something does happen, she might as well need backup.”

Usagi’s expression faltered a bit. The little…incident from the night before was still fresh in her mind. She knew Rei had rejected her help last time, but…

“I’m going too.”

Usagi suddenly stood up, trying her best to look confident as her stomach continued to churn.

“You don’t have to go if you don’t feel you can,” Mako said. “If you need a personal day, we c–”

“Mako.”

Usagi’s expression wasn’t sad anymore. It was determined…more determined than she’d been in a while, really. Mako paused, waiting to see what she would say next.

“I want to…to prove I’m useful.”

Mako didn’t say anything at first. She slowly stood back up, resting her arms behind her head, and nodded.

“That same Tsukino stubbornness is coming back, ain’t it?” she teased.

Usagi gave an awkward blush, wiping some snot off her nose. “W-Well…maybe not stubbornness , but…it wouldn’t be me without some crying, right?”

Mako burst out laughing at that remark.

“Hah! Well, alright then, Tsukino…get yourself ready.”

“Well, here we are.”

Rei stood with the others in front of the ice cream parlor, silently surveying the premises. The outside seemed rather normal…though with some aspects that felt…wrong. The outside sported sickeningly sweet art of cutesy children excitedly eating ice cream. The logo proudly sported the name “Caramel Dancing”, which only made Rei groan internally.

About fifteen years late to that, aren’t they?

“…I think I owe you an apology, Rei,” Mako said, looking at the store with absolute bafflement. “This place is uh…way more off than I expected.”

“Aw, I kind of like it,” said Usagi. “I mean, it looks pretty popular.”

She pointed at the window, through which they could see plenty of customers happily chowing down on ice cream.

More people in the crossfire, thought Rei. What are we going to do about them ?

It was plainly obvious to anyone looking at her that Rei was dead tired, from the greyed look in her eyes to the flat tone of her voice. Neither Usagi nor Mako wanted to say anything, however—after their meeting the night before, they were afraid of how she might react.

“Let’s just go in,” said Rei, pushing open the front door.

The air inside hit Usagi like she was walking into a freezer. It was cold…weirdly cold. Sure, ice cream needed to be stored in cooler temperatures, but since when did the actual ice cream store feel as frigid as a meat locker?

The parlor itself wasn’t exactly the fanciest establishment they’d ever been to. The windows were tinted slightly and the walls were painted a pale yellow, while the floor was covered in black and white tiles forming cross-like patterns. The counter sported numerous photos of ice cream, detailed enough that Rei felt her stomach growl a little bit just from looking at them.

Of course, that could have been because she skipped breakfast.

Unsure how to proceed exactly, the three of them approached the front counter, where–

“Hello, welcome to Caramel Dancing, the newest and grooviest ice cream parlor in Juuban, how can I help you today?”

Rei blinked, exchanging a brief glance with the other two, who looked similarly put off by the sheer cheerfulness of the girl at the counter. Sure, friendliness was to be expected, but was it just Rei, or did that girl’s smile seem oddly…fixed? And her eyes…they almost looked dead .

Well, nothing they could do for now–they had to stay inconspicuous.

“Um, I’ll have a…chocolate and strawberry cone, with…those little star-shaped sprinkles,” said Usagi as she carefully studied the menu above the counter.

“Vanilla dish, chocolate syrup, cherry on top,” Mako said evenly.

Rei, more focused on studying their surroundings, simply pointed at Mako and said, “I’ll have what she’s having.”

(This prompted a tiny giggle from Usagi, which Rei determinedly ignored.)

“All excellent choices, ladies,” the girl said with a bow. “You just make yourselves comfortable, we’ll get right to it!”

The three nodded and thanked the girl before walking over to a nearby table and taking a seat. As they did so, Rei took another look around. The place seemed nice enough, sure…but as she glanced around at the other employees…they all looked like the girl at the counter, like their expressions weren’t natural. Something was…wrong.

I wonder…could that be…?

“Here you are, ladies!”

Rei snapped back to reality to find that the girl from the counter had arrived to personally deliver their orders.

Quick service , she thought to herself, thanking the girl again as she took the dish from the tray she was carrying, Mako and Usagi doing the same.

“So…” Rei began tentatively, hoping to gain a bit of intel, “...how long have you been working here?”

“We opened just a couple days ago, madame!” the girl replied. “I started then with everyone else.”

Of course, stupid, Rei scolded herself. The woman she had met had told her it had just opened, after all.

“And you…like working here?” Mako ventured further.

“I would never want to leave!” the girl laughed…a laugh that lasted five seconds, and prompted a few of the nearby customers to stare, though the other employees seemed unconcerned. Rei did her best to just smile, but inside she winced. The laugh sounded almost…robotic. Like it was pre-programmed or something.

“…that’s kinda creepy,” Usagi muttered to herself, prompting Rei to give her a stern glare. Usagi paused and faltered slightly. She didn’t need to read minds to know what Rei was implying.

The girl, at least, didn’t notice. She simply bowed, said “Please enjoy!” and walked back over to the counter. Once she was a good distance away, Rei leaned in towards the other two.

“Okay,” she said in a low voice, “so I’m not the only one thinking–”

“That this place is weird as heck?” Usagi finished.

Rei shot another look in Usagi’s direction.

“ Subtlety , please,” Rei said harshly, dropping her voice to a whisper. “We can’t arouse suspicion here.”

Mako rolled her eyes. “You do realize arguing is only going to make things more suspicious to them, right?”

Rei paused. She wanted to rebut this, but nothing she could say would’ve made the conversation work in her favor. And besides, there were more pressing matters going on. Instead, she exhaled through her nose and groaned.

“Sorry, sorry. Just…dealing with a lot right now.”

“Yeah, well, so am I,” Usagi replied in a whisper. “But I’m here, aren’t I? I’m trying to take this seriously. Stop treating me like I’m a child.”

Rei wanted to shoot back with something snappy like she usually did. But that same sad look in Usagi’s eyes kept her silent. It was the same look she saw the night before, after her vision…after she had told Usagi she couldn’t join them.

She crossed her fingers together, bent her head down low, and hunched her shoulders over. She knew what she had to say: “I’m sorry.” But despite this, her stomach seized up every time she tried to form the words. Maybe it would be better if she said nothing. The gap between them was wide enough as is.

After a few more moments of silence, Usagi just sighed and got to her feet.

“I’m going to the bathroom,” she said, handing her ice cream to Mako. “Here. Dunno if I’m all that hungry anyway.”

“Are you sure that’s a good idea?” Mako asked. “If something happens…”

“It’ll only be for a second,” Usagi said. She clutched the pink brooch across her chest, her transformation pendant safely resting against her.

As she walked away, Mako turned to Rei. Not a word was spoken between them, but Rei could pick up on the implications of Mako’s annoyed glare.

Maybe this isn’t the only gap widening between us, Rei thought to herself.

“You’re sure it’s them?”

In a dark room in the back of Caramel Dancing, the shimmering red visage of Philia loomed over Caramella, her eyes glowering at her with intrigue and disgust. The room itself was cold enough that the vampire could see her breath, but it had its perks, namely keeping any curious customers away.

“Positive, ma’am,” the monster answered silkily. “They walked in only minutes ago.”

“Hm…” Philia stroked her chin. “If they suspect, then they would seem to have shown a surprising lack of caution…but I suppose it makes little difference either way.”

“What would you like me to do?” asked Caramella.

“How many customers are currently in the building?”

“Right now, twelve. I don’t think any of them will be leaving for a bit.”

Philia nodded. “That will suffice for now, then. Make the necessary preparations, then begin. You are to leave enough in the Sailors to keep them alive. As for the rest…”

Philia inhaled for a moment, then sighed.

“...take your fill.”

“How long is she going to be in there?” Rei muttered, idly tapping a spoon against her emptied bowl of ice cream.

“Hey, give her time,” said Mako. “You know this has been hard for her too.”

“I’m aware,” Rei said bluntly, before wincing. Too late, she realized this was probably not the best thing to say, but despite this, Mako remained calm. 

“Look…I don’t wanna fight you about this,” said Mako. “I can tell there’s something going on with you. But Usagi is… y’know . We can’t push her around and make her feel awful.”

Outwardly, Rei didn’t seem particularly focused on this, but that wasn’t because she was trying to ignore it. Maybe it was because she was tired, or maybe it was something else, but whatever the reason, she looked like she was only half there.

“God, I feel so tired…” Rei groaned, giving a yawn.

“Trouble sleeping?”

Rei nodded. “Yeah.”

“Funny. Usagi was telling me she was having a tough time with that too. I don’t suppose you’ve talked to her about it?”

“I don’t—”

Rei was about to say, “I don’t think she’d want to hear it,” when suddenly a sharp pain ran through her body. Her first instinct was to cry out and jump out of her seat…which made it particularly bizarre when that didn’t happen.

I don’t…what’s going on?

She tried to get out of her chair but immediately found that this was impossible. Her limbs had gone stiff, a painful tightening coursing through her muscles like they were being squeezed all over. Any attempt at moving was met with jagged pain like pins and needles stabbing her joints. Her jaw felt limp, and her breathing slowed…mostly because it felt painful to even breathe at this point. That didn’t, however, stop her heart from pounding faster and faster as panic came over her. She tried to scream, yell, or make any noise out of her mouth, but the only thing that came out was a wordless series of grunts. Even when she strained herself as much as she could, the result was the same—apart from some slight twitch, she was completely paralyzed.

At first, she thought this was the onset of another vision, since she had been unable to move her body then too. But no, she could see Mako, eyes with panic, visibly straining to move as well, a spoon falling out of her hand. And it wasn’t just her, either—every customer in the parlor (or at least, the ones she could see) appeared to have been rendered immobile as well, letting out whatever sounds of distress they were able to without control of their tongues.

“Well now, what have we here?” came a sultry voice from behind Rei. A clicking sound like boots tapping the ground gave way to a big, strong arm wrapping around Rei’s chest, squeezing her hard as if to rub her paralysis in.

“What’s wrong, darling ? ” the voice, now all-too-familiar to Rei, whispered in her ear. “Cat got your tongue?”

Rei let out a scared grunt, sweat suddenly pouring down her face as her breathing intensified, her chest painfully contracting as her body refused to move.

Fuck’s sake, we walked right into a trap…

“And what’s this?” Caramella smirked, undoing her grip over Rei and walking up to Mako, playfully dragging her finger along the table. She placed her hand on top of Mako’s hair, yanking her head upward to look her directly in the eye. Mako’s expression was frozen in an angry scowl, but it could hardly mask the fear she felt from looking into those piercing red eyes.

“Looking so tough, dear!” the monster laughed, her voice purring as she licked her lips. She leaned into Mako’s ear and whispered. “Not so strong when you’ve got a little paralytic in you, hm?”

She ran a hand through her hair, playfully bumping her hip against Mako’s chair as she turned to the rest of her captive audience. Behind her, several waitresses followed, lazily shuffling like they were in a trance…which, going by the blank looks in their eyes, was probably the case.

“Ladies and gentlemen, you may have noticed that our product contained just a hint of a paralyzing toxin. I just want to let you all know that this is a perfectly normal ingredient in our ice cream products, which will wear off momentarily…”

She suddenly flashed a pair of brilliant white fangs, with her hands now sporting long, sharp claws.

“...after I’ve sucked you all dry, mind you,” it added, its voice turning demonic. “So please just sit back and relax, and try to ignore any slight discomfort you might feel. It’s all in the name of the Empress, after all!”

And of course she’s going to eat us, Rei thought to herself. Lovely .

She continued to fidget in her seat, trying to force her body to move, jerk around, do anything to break the paralysis. Try as she might, she couldn’t even leave her seat.

Shit…Usagi, please, we need you…where are you?

“HOLD IT RIGHT THERE!”

Rei couldn’t believe that had actually worked, but she wasn’t about to look a gift horse in the mouth.

The monster turned its head, its smug expression fading as it saw a familiar sight. Even with the paralytic in action, the eyes of almost everyone in the parlor lit up at the sound of that voice.

“ You… ” the monster growled, its sharp claws glistening against the light.

“How DARE you paralyze these innocent people with your criminal confectionary treats! Ice cream is a beloved dessert and you’ve polluted it with your evil! I am the pretty guardian who fights for love and justice! I am Sailor Moon!”

She twirled her wand in her hand, pointing it like she was prepared to fire…and as its crescent glowed with a ball of light, the monster’s eyes widened.

“And now, in the name of the moon, I’ll punish you! MOON PRINCESS HALATION!”

The monster didn’t even have time to react. A barrage of light flung itself right into the vampiric woman, sending it flying right through the glass window and tumbling right into the sidewalk.

“Alright, that’s it! ” it growled as it struggled to its feet. “ Face the wrath of CARAMELLA!”

It thrust out its hands, unleashing several bolts of black energy from its fingers. Usagi yelped in fear and frantically leaped out of the way, looking almost like she was doing a strange sort of jig.

“Hey, watch it!” she protested. “You could hit one of the customers!”

I don’t think she cares, Usagi, Rei thought helplessly. Her confidence level wasn’t exactly what she’d call sky-high at the moment, but still, every second Usagi stayed live was a step closer to victory.

“So, you’re afraid of getting someone hurt? ” the monster asked with a satisfied smirk as it climbed back through the shattered window. “ WAGE SLAVES, ATTAAAACK! ”

“Wait, you call them ‘wage slaves’?” Usagi asked in disbelief before she was interrupted by the hypnotized employees getting between her and the monster. Their expressions vacant, they nonetheless began to shuffled forward, arms outstretched.

C’mon… Usagi thought to herself as her eyes darted around the parlor, searching for a way out. Think, think, think…

As she frantically glanced around, her eyes fell on a nearby table, where several bowls of ice cream sat, barely touched as their contents slowly melted away.

Wait…that’s it!

Making a feint in the other direction, Usagi then suddenly dove towards the table with the ice cream and snatched up the bowls. There were four employees she needed to subdue, and fortunately four bowls of melting ice cream to work with.

“MOON DAIRY FARMER CATAPUUUULT!” she shouted at the top of her lungs as she began rapidly tossing the bowls at her brainwashed assailants.

“What?” the monster asked in disbelief as, with almost perfect aim, each bowl gave an employee a face full of ice cream. “What are you…?”

Suddenly, each of the hypnotized employees seized up, and one by one, fell motionless to the floor. At once, the monster realized what had happened–mere minutes ago, it had used the magic Eros had given it to remotely activate the paralytic agent in the ice cream. Anyone who ingested it or had recently ingested it would then completely lose control of their bodies. And since each of them had gotten a face-full…

“NOOOOOO! ” the monster screamed in a panicked rage. “ YOU’LL PAY FOR-”

“SAILOR MOON KICK!”

Before the monster could react, it suddenly received its own faceful of red boot as Usagi slammed a kick right into Caramella’s jaw. Usagi slid onto the sidewalk in a perfect three-point superhero landing, before standing back up. She brushed some dust off her shoulder and walked toward the monster, twirling her wand again as she prepared to fire another blast. The red crystal on her tiara glowed as the monster hissed, getting up and cracking its neck.

“Do you have ANY idea what we’re capable of, Sailor?” the monster hissed, its body suddenly popping and contorting, muscles growing bigger as its entire body started to increase in size.

“Do you have any idea what I’m capable of, Crystal Knight?” Usagi fired back, completely unphased by the monster’s sudden change.

“More than you can know,” the monster growled, its voice deepening as its hands glowed with a black mass of energy. “Would you like to see?”

The beast was easily towering over Usagi at a massive eight feet tall, its hair growing longer and wilder as its fist rose into the air, before slamming it back down to the ground. The earth shook, the pavement cracked, and the monster roared. But Usagi remained firm.

I am useful. I AM useful. And I’ll prove it. To Rei. To everyone.

Her tiara glowed with a red laser, firing it against the monster with one brilliant blast of light. With a cry of “MOON TWILIGHT FLASH!”, the monster was slammed right into a nearby lamppost. It groaned, slowly lifting its head up, baring its fangs at Usagi.

“Not bad, Sailor Moon.”

The monster suddenly raised its hand, a black cloud of energy coursing through its arm.

“But let’s see how long you’ll last by yourself.”

“—still unclear just what it is we’re witnessing, although we can say for certain that Sailor Moon has—”

“Yes, I knew they were there!” Minako whispered frantically into her phone, trying to stay inconspicuous as the studio buzzed with activity around her. Nearby, two of her colleagues were on camera as they reported what was currently known about Sailor Moon’s latest battle.

“But I didn’t know things would go pear-shaped so quickly, or else I would have been there!” she continued. “Are you sure you can’t make some kind of excuse?”

“I can try , but I’ve already ruffled a lot of feathers here,” said Ami’s voice on the other end. “It’s not like I have any family.”

“Usagi’s alone against that thing, we can’t just leave her there!” Minako shot back. “And what about Rei and Mako, who knows what happened to them?!”

Her question met with a momentary silence, Minako closed her eyes and sighed. This was probably a low blow, she didn’t have any illusions there. But if she needed to light a fire under Ami’s ass, then she’d say whatever she had to.

“…I can be there in five minutes,” Ami replied at last, “but I’ll need to sneak out. I just hope nobody notices that I’m gone…”

“Good, see you there,” Minako said curtly, before hanging up. She turned her head and watched the chaos unfolding in the studio. One monster attack was a surprise. Two was a cause for worry. Three meant a new status quo, and this was not one anybody wanted to return to.

“We need someone to go there as our on-air reporter!” one producer exclaimed. “Where the hell is Ibara?”

“He’s still healing from the last on-air assignment,” another sighed. “We don’t have anyone else t–”

“You need a volunteer, guys?”

The whole room turned its attention to Minako.

Play it cool, play it cool, she told herself.

Placing a satisfied hand on her chest, she announced, “Because I’m your girl!”

A slow breath escaped Rei’s lips as she struggled to move her eyes towards the window. She could hear all the sounds of fighting outside, the violence and the destruction, and she felt a twinge of panic up her spine as she could only imagine what was unfolding outside.

Usagi was facing the monster on her own. And Rei had no idea how long she could hold out.

Come on…come on, I need to…move…I need to help her…

She continued to fight against the paralysis. Her arms refused to move, but her muscles kept straining, struggling in vain to break free.

I’m sorry I tried to keep you out of this…

Suddenly, she felt something move. Ever so slightly, her right pinkie began to curl.

But we’re a team…

Her hand began to ball into a fist.

And I can’t…

Her head slowly began to turn.

Let you go out alone…

Suddenly, the paralysis broke all at once, and Rei leapt up from her seat, breathing heavily.

“Mako, can you move?” she asked.

Mako let out a groan, as her entire arm trembled. Grinding her teeth, she slowly began to regain feeling as she took in a deep breath.

“Y-Yeah…” she stammered, kicking her chair down as she stood up, with her legs hobbling as they regained mobility. “Kind of.”

Rei turned to the rest of the victims. They were all beginning to move as well, albeit in fits and spurts, their bodies twitching irregularly as they slowly broke out of paralysis. The employees Usagi had defeated just moments ago were still on the floor, though they, too, were starting to move.

“Mmmh…where…where am I…” one of them moaned.

Usagi must have snapped them out of it, Rei thought to herself.

“Mako, let’s get these people out of here,” she said.

Mako nodded, moving to help the other victims to their feet.

“Ugh, my chest…” one man said, clutching his shirt as he felt a tightness in his ribs. “Where are we going?”

“They probably have a back exit,” Mako told them. “Let’s get out through there.”

It was a clean getaway. The back exit led right past the dumpster outside, with everyone hobbling out as quickly as they could. Everyone, that is, except for Mako and Rei. With the other victims dazed from the affects of the paralytic and so focused on escaping, it was easy for the two of them to slip back into the ice cream parlor unnoticed.

“Got your wand?” Rei asked.

Mako nodded. “How long has she been out there by herself?”

Rei pulled her wand out of her pocket and quickly glanced at her phone. “Six minutes.”

She paused, noticing she had gotten a text message from Minako.

Me and Ami are on our way! Don’t worry!

Rei breathed a small sigh of relief. At least something was going right for them.

“Minako and Ami are coming,” Rei said. “Now remember, we need to restrain the monster, not kill it. We need answers.”

Mako pulled out her wand and cracked the joints in her neck. After being frozen in place for so long, it was good to loosen herself up.

“Right. Pummel it until it can’t fight anymore. I think I’m pretty good at that.”

I hope that’s enough, Rei thought to herself. If Usagi freezes up again…

Rei shook her head. This was no time for worst-case scenarios. Just bringing this up again made her feel sick. They had bigger things to worry about.

“Alright then,” she said, holding up her wand. “You ready?”

Mako nodded as she did the same. “Let’s do this.”

“Mars Crystal Power!”

“Jupiter Crystal Power!”

“MAKE UP!”

Smoke filled the air as Usagi’s legs hobbled. She fell to one knee and grunted, breathing through gritted teeth as she shot an angry glare at the monster. If that vampiric woman had seemed big before, she was utterly enormous now, built with enough muscle to bend steel and towering at over eight feet tall. Usagi could feel burns over her uniform, gloves singed and covered with ash. For a moment, she struggled to find the monster in all the smoke…but the sight of its glowing yellow eyes soon brought it into focus.

“Pathetic,” the monster growled with a smirk, before letting loose another blast of energy that slammed into Usagi like a truck. Grunting in pain, she was blown backward but somehow managed to stay standing, holding her ground as strong as she could.

Come on, they’ll be here any minute now…I just need to keep this monster busy…I need to prove I’m not holding the girls back…

“The only reason we’ve kept you alive is the will of our Empress,” the monster snarled, waving a hand to blow the smoke away. A mighty gust of wind blew through the street, clearing the air between them.

“M ake no mistake, Sailor Moon…if it were up to me, I’d be throwing what’d be left of you in a dumpster . But we have bigger plans in mind ...so I guess I’ll just have to settle for a light snack .”

Usagi weakly raised her wand up with both hands, struggling to maintain her balance. Her breathing was strained, and her legs were wobbling. But even now, she still could not, would not yield.

“MOON PRINCESS HALATION!”

A blast of energy came from the wand, the recoil enough to send Usagi flying several feet backward into a car. The monster let out a roar as the blast connected, feeling its body burn with the white-hot energy of the wand. It wasn’t enough to actually kill it as Usagi had done in the past, but that didn’t stop it from hurting like hell.

“OH, YOU BITCH !” the monster screamed at her, any previous sense of decorum thoroughly dashed. “ I’M GOING TO MAKE YOU WISH THAT I KILLED YOU, YOU HEAR ME?! GONNA PUT YOU IN FUCKING TRACTION!”

“Well, that’s not very nice!”

The monster turned to see a bright light shining through the air…one that immediately slammed into its face, nearly knocking it off balance.

“Oh great. MORE of you.”

Standing atop the hood of a nearby car, Minako flashed a wily grin and struck a pose, before sticking her tongue out at the monster.

“Hey, I like big, buff girls as much as the next person, but jeez lady…you’re just a big, buff bitch! ”

“VENUS! LANGUAGE!” a nearby voice shouted. Ami shot Minako a cross look, looking especially annoyed at the blonde’s antics.

Minako rolled her eyes with a huff. “Okay, okay, but I’m still right!” she pouted, before jumping off the hood of the car, somersaulting in the air, and landing on her feet like a cat.

“Anyways, if anybody’s gonna mess with Sailor Moon they have to deal with us! Sailor Venus!”

“And Sailor Mercury!” Ami shouted.

“GRAH, IT DOESN’T MATTER HOW MANY OF YOU THERE ARE!” the monster screamed. “ I’LL STILL CRUSH YOU ALL MYSELF!”

“You know, they say that,” said Minako, “but it never really pans out. You really oughta try lowering your expectations. Anyway, VENUS LOVE ME CHAIN!”

With a flash of light, her chain whipped forth and wrapped around the monster’s legs with enough strength to bind them together. With one hand still holding the chain, Minako raised a finger into the air, golden light radiating from its tip.

“CRESCENT BEAM!”

The brilliant attack blasted the monster right in the face. It tried to raise its hand to strike back…but suddenly a chill ran up its arm, as it found it couldn’t raise it, or even move it at all.

“SHINE AQUA ILLUSION!”

A shimmering mist, covertly conjured by Ami, was covering the parts of the monster’s body Minako hadn’t ensnared. The monster’s attacks were nullified as long as its arms were completely covered, rendering the massive vamp unable to do anything but hiss and roar and curse all she wanted. She wasn’t going to go anywhere.

“Keep her restrained, girls!” Usagi shouted. “I’ll give her one last blow and we c–”

I’ll be back soon, Usako.

Usagi froze, eyes widening, her arms unable to move. 

Minako swore under her breath as her grip on the chain began to falter as the monster jerked its leg, struggling to free itself.

“Sailor Moon, what are you waiting for??” she shouted. “Let’s knock her out!”

Ami was still blasting ice at the monster. Yet no matter how much she threw at it, the monster’s arms were still fighting back, struggling to move. She turned to the sight of Usagi, her entire body stiff as a board…

Oh no… she thought to herself. Not again…

The monster looked down at this…and laughed.

“HAH! And THIS is the great Sailor Moon? Pathetic.”

Usagi winced, her entire body feeling like it was locked up. That damned voice was playing in her head again, at the worst fucking time…

The monster slammed its arm into Ami, knocking her aside and breaking free from the ice. It then flexed its legs, and Minako’s chain snapped, disappearing in a flash of light.

“Oh sh—” Minako began, but before the expletive could leave her lips, the monster was right in front of her. An instant later, a fist struck her right in the jaw, sending her sprawling to the ground. It would have been almost comical if the reversal of their fortunes hadn’t been so grim.

The monster raised its hand, wrapped in pulsating, shadowy energy, and balled it into a fist.

“They told me not to kill you…but I’ll settle for crippling you at least. And who knows! Maybe the Empress will like you better that way.”

Usagi could feel her heart pounding against her chest like it was trying to rip itself free. Her hands trembled as a few stray tears fell down her eyes, and the grip on her wand went limp.

Stupid…stupid…they deserve better than me…

With a mighty roar,  the monster slammed its fist down, the ground shaking from the impact…

But not against Usagi.

Instead, it had slammed right into an entire barrier of flame. When the expected impact didn’t happen, Usagi opened her eyes, feeling a rippling heat like a campfire surrounding her. Standing in front of her was a familiar face, clad in red high heels and hair as black as a raven…

“What in the…”

Rei shot the angriest glare she could muster, an expression so furious that it looked like it could cut through steel.

“Sailor Moon…is our leader…and if you mess with her…you mess WITH ALL OF US!”

She revealed several ofuda laying between her fingers, and tossed them like shuriken.

“EVIL SPIRIT, BE EXORCISED!”

Rei’s charms stuck to the monster, and after a second had passed, the monster let out a scream, its body seizing up as fiery energy coursed through it. It sank to its knees, moaning in pain.

Satisfied that the monster was disabled, at least for the moment, Rei turned to Usagi.

“Sailor Moon, you still with me?”

Usagi faltered for a moment. After everything between them, Rei was still trying to save her? Usagi couldn’t understand her at all.

“M-Mars…I-I’m sorry…”

Rei paused. Usagi looked at her with those same sad eyes from last night…the eyes of someone who blamed herself for everything.

Without even thinking, Rei placed a hand on Usagi’s shoulder.

“Listen…” she said gently, “I was wrong.”

Usagi did a double-take. If she didn’t understand how Rei was still trying to save her, she understood this even less.

“Y-You were?”

Rei nodded.

“I…I was…” Rei began, uncertain if she could get it all out. “I was so bitter…so angry…and I didn’t…always act like a friend to you…”

Usagi noticed the unmistakable sight of a tear across Rei’s eye.

“I-I was being a coward…” she meekly replied. “Y-You were right…I shouldn’t have been on this mission…”

Rei fiercely shook her head.

“No… I was the coward…”

“W-Wha?”

“I was…I was too scared of you hurting yourself…” Rei said, clearly struggling with how to put her feelings into words. “And I was worried that…you wouldn’t be able to do what needed to be done.”

“And now I’m screwing everything up,” Usagi said bitterly. “You were right.”

“No, I wasn’t!” protested Rei. “I know everything you’re dealing with…you can’t handle it alone; I don’t know if anyone could. But you’re not alone! We’re a team. You matter to us. We need each other…we need you .”

Rei took Usagi’s hand and helped her to her feet.

“We’re all here for you,” Rei told her. “ I’m here for you. I can’t force you out of this but…but…”

She didn’t get the chance to finish. Usagi was already hugging her tightly, squeezing Rei and refusing to let go, sobbing a mix of sad and joyous tears. She didn’t say anything, though it wasn’t really necessary—in moments like these, Usagi tended to wear her heart on her sleeve.

“H-Hey, hey…” Rei awkwardly said, trying her best to chuckle and lighten the situation. “Don’t be a crybaby on me, okay?”

Despite herself, Usagi chuckled back, wiping the tears from her eyes. “S-Sorry…y-you know me, I’m…emotional…”

Just then, a roar came from behind them. The two turned to see the monster getting to its feet, clearly enraged.

“Oh, I am going to ENJOY draining the energy out of you girls.”

“Guess we should take care of this first,” Usagi said as she and Rei assumed a fighting stance. “I can cry on your shoulder later, right?”

Rei’s eyes widened slightly, and she shook her head for a moment as if to clear her thoughts. “Uh…right! Let’s do this!”

“By the way, where’s Jupiter?”

“HIIIIIYAAAAAAAAH!”

Suddenly, Mako rushed out from behind the corner of a nearby building. Before the monster could react, Mako wrapped her arms around it and, with another mighty yell, bent back and suplexed it.

“…Right there,” Rei said somewhat unnecessarily.

“GACK!!” the monster exclaimed, its head cracking the pavement below.

Mako stood up, tilted her head just enough to crack the joints in her neck, and took a fighting stance herself, raising her fists like she was a boxer.

“What’s the matter?” she taunted. “Can’t handle five-on-one?”

“You expect this to be a challenge to me?” the monster hissed. Before Mako could react, the monster slammed its fist right into her abdomen, sending her flying.

“Your power is but a drop in a BUCKET compared to our Empress. And once I’ve sucked you dry, it won’t even be—”

“Hey!”

The monster turned to see who had dared interrupted it…only to receive a blast to the abdomen of its own. As it reeled back, Mako to her feet, looking at her savior in surprise.

“Don’t you dare mess with her!” Ami shouted at the monster, her hands glowing with a familiar symbol, fingers covered with ice. “SHINE AQUA ILLUSION!”

An icy blast was unleashed upon the monster, momentarily stunning it as it was pushed back a couple of paces. When it reared its hand back to retaliate a shadowy blast of energy, Mako had already stood back up, the antenna on her tiara rising as her hands crackled with electricity.

“SUPREME THUNDER!”

The monster was blasted by a giant bolt of electricity, pressing it back even further. It was panting now, clearly tired as its red eyes glared at the team.

This was just the opening Minako needed.

“SAILOR VENUS KICK!!”

The monster couldn’t even react. Minako had tied a chain to a lamp post and tossed herself into the air, slamming her heel right into the monster’s face. With its balance off-kilter, Minako swung her chain back around the monster’s legs, gritting her teeth as she pulled with all her strength.

“SAILOR MOON, YOUR TURN!”

Usagi pulled out her tiara and briefly turned to Rei.

“Hey, Mars? You remember how you mixed your Fire Soul with my tiara before?”

A smirk crossed Rei’s face.

“I like the way you think, Sailor Moon.”

Both of them turned back to a monster, and as one, unleashed their assault.

“MOON TIARA…ACTION!”

“FIRE…SOUL!”

A marvelous ball of flame flew through the air, spinning like a discus. The monster reared its hand to block it, but to no avail. It felt its whole arm go up in flames as it let out a pained scream. It couldn’t move. It couldn’t escape.

“AAAAAAAAAAAUGH…YOU…CAN’T…”

The Sailors watched as light—energy—appeared to leak out of the monster. As this happened, the monster slowly shrunk in size, its intimidating features slowly disappearing until it was back in its relatively normal human form.

“Honestly, kind of surprised that didn’t kill it,” said Minako. “Kind of underwhelming for a finisher like that.”

“That’s fine,” said Rei as she walked toward the monster. “We wanted it alive anyway.”

“I’m not an it , Sailor…” the monster wheezed, glaring at the Sailors with two bloodshot eyes. “My name…is Caramella. And I am a servant of the Crystal Empire.”

“Then talk,” Rei bluntly said. “Tell us what you’re planning.”

“Well, aren’t you being rude.”

Everyone looked up in alarm as Eros warped in, hovering in midair.

“I worked so hard on Caramella, you know,” she said with a sigh. “It’d be a shame if you just went and blew her up.”

She snapped her fingers, and the air began to shimmer around the monster.

“Take a breather, kid,” Eros said with a grin. “You’ve earned it.”

“Thank you, Master Eros,” Caramella nodded, before turning to the Sailors with a smirk. “Ta-ta, dears!”

“NO!!” Rei shouted, flames whirring around her hands as a familiar bow and arrow shape formed.

“MARS FLAME–”

“Crystal Diabolica,” Eros said calmly. A wicked-looking bolt of red and black lighting coursed through the air and struck Mars’s attack in an enormous explosion of light, prompting the other Sailors to shield their eyes. When their vision recovered, the monster was gone, and Eros was standing in front of them with a smug smile on her face.

“Shame, looks like that was a bust for you, huh?” she said with a laugh.

“We saved innocent people from you!” Mako shot back. “I’m not calling that a waste of time!”

“Really?” said Eros as she raised an eyebrow. “I’d say that depends on how long they stay saved, wouldn’t you? Can you really save everyone from us?”

“We can and we will,” Minako said firmly.

“Hah!” Eros snorted. “Oh honey…you don’t even know how deep our operation goes.”

“Well, why don’t you tell us?” Rei said, her eyes narrowing. “Or maybe you’d rather we beat you here and now.”

“Oh please, if a single Knight gives you trouble, you wouldn’t last a minute against the four of us,” scoffed Eros, before realizing what she had just said. “Wait, shit !”

“The four of you?” asked Ami. “You and who else?”

“Yeah, I’m not gonna say anything else,” announced Eros as she flew back up into the air. “Just take that one as a freebie, for all the good it’ll do. Anyway, I’m gonna go. Later.”

Flashing a “V” sign, Eros vanished into thin air, quick as she came.

The five Sailors exchanged looks for a brief moment.

“Well…at least it’s something ,” Rei sighed. “Fat lot of good that did us, though...”

“Guess we’ll need to keep hunting for front operations, huh?” said Mako.

“Yes, but…she mentioned their operation running deep,” Ami said. “It could be something far greater than just front businesses…but what that something is, well…”

“We’ll need to regroup and think this over later,” Rei said. “I think some of us have a few other things to do.” Her eyes glared at Minako, whose expression suddenly shifted from nonchalance to panic.

“FUCK, MY JOB!!” Minako shouted. “Shitshitshit, I need to make it look like I got caught in some rubble or something, byyyyyyee!” She suddenly sprinted off, disappearing as quickly as she had appeared. Ami, too, was leaving the scene, hurriedly but not nearly as loudly as Minako. It was just Rei, Usagi, and Mako left.

“Doing more job hunting after this?” Rei asked.

Mako shrugged. “Need to make the most of my free time.”

“I suppose I can’t argue with that,” Rei said. “Anyway, we should probably make ourselves scarce. Text me when you’re back at home, okay?”

She turned to leave, but before she could go far…

“Mars!”

Rei turned back to see Usagi looking at her like she was on the verge of saying something, but unsure how to handle it.

“I just…I wanted to…um…”

“Yes?”

“Thanks,” she finally said after several seconds.

A small smile spread over Rei’s face. She placed a gentle hand on Usagi’s shoulder and nodded.

“Anytime, Sailor Moon.”

Usagi gave a chuckle, crossing her arms in front of her chest and idly kicking her leg against the ground. “Sooooooo, uh…didja save me any ice cream?”

Rei did a double-take, sputtering with confusion for a second.

“The same ice cream that paralyzed us all?? Are you kidding?!”

“But I’m huuuunnnngrrrryyyy !” whined Usagi.

“Then why didn’t you eat anything?!”

“I was depreeeeessssssed !”

“You’re gluttonous is what you are!”

Usagi pouted with a “Hmmph!” and stuck her tongue out at Rei like a child. Rei rolled her eyes right back and stuck her own tongue out in return.

“Well…glad to see you two are friends again,” Mako chuckled. 

Usagi gave a sigh, still sulking like the immature woman she was. But then again, Mako had a point…maybe this was what they had been missing.

Maybe their friendship wasn’t so broken after all.

Chapter Text

Ami had never considered herself unathletic, but running this much was leaving her breathless. It was well over a mile between the scene of the fight and the location of her office, and she was already tired from beating up the monster. A jagged pain ran through her ribs as she pressed her hand against her abdomen, panting and sputtering with almost half the distance left to go. Her glasses drooped down her nose and nearly fell off before she caught them.

She sucked in a few huge breaths, then willed herself to keep running. Sure, her muscles were killing her, but if her boss found out she'd skipped out of work without permission, he'd really kill her.

The few of her co-workers who bothered to look up from their desks as she returned to the office gave her some perplexed glares, but it was clear they didn’t think much of it. That was a good sign, right?

“Finally back, are we?"

Ami froze. She fumbled with her glasses and pressed them against her face, getting a clear view of the man in front of her, his stern eyes piercing her like daggers.

“M-Mr. Furuya, I-I–”

“Do you mind telling me why you abandoned your station?” he bluntly asked, cutting her off.

Ami gulped. There was no way she could come up with a satisfactory explanation for this.

“W-Well…y-you see…I-I had to…”

“ Had to , is that it?” Furuya scowled. “Something is more important to you than your job , Mizuno?”

Ami fumbled trying to reply, knowing that her fate was already sealed. “I…well, you see, sir…I—”

“I’ve heard just about enough out of you,” interrupted Furuya with a sneer. “Mizuno, you’re f—”

“Ah, there you are, Ms. Mizuno.”

Ami whirred her head around to the sight of a familiar voice. That same woman who had actually taken interest in her report…

“Ms. Tokugawa!” Furuya said in shock, promptly straightening up. “You, ah…wanted to talk with Mizuno? I was just about to—”

“Oh, it’s nothing important,” Hestia said with a smile. “I just wanted to thank her for running the errand I asked of her earlier today. You needn’t worry about her work, Furuya—it's all in my hands. I trust that won’t be an issue?”

“W-well, I-I…” Furuya stammered as he nervously loosened his collar, “as long as everything’s in order, there shouldn’t be any problems…”

“Wonderful,” Hestia said, her smile widening. “Now then, I have to speak with Ms. Mizuno, so if you don’t mind…”

“Of course! Right away, ma’am!”

Furuya turned around and quickly walked away, almost tripping over himself in his haste.

“You…why did you do that?” Ami whispered as soon as he was out of earshot. “I didn’t…I wasn’t…”

“I believe it’s polite to offer a ‘thank you’ in cases like these,” Hestia said wryly.

“I—yes ma’am! Thank you, ma’am!” Ami said, almost snapping to attention.

“It’s fine, it’s fine,” Hestia said with a laugh. “I just thought I should help you out. I know you’re a diligent worker, so I knew you wouldn’t run off for no reason. And, while I usually try to take a hands-off approach…being on the board of directors does give me a bit of power.”

Ami nearly jumped right out of her skin at that comment.

She’s WHAT??

“W-Well…I-I do appreciate your assistance.”

“You’re very welcome. So, what was the problem? Family emergency?”

“Erm…something like that.”

“I see,” Hestia said with a sage nod. “Well, in any case, you really ought to be more careful—I was able to cover for you this time, but in the future, that might not be an option.”

Ami suddenly looked up at her, eyes wide with fear.

“Oh, please don’t misunderstand, I’m not trying to threaten you,” Hestia gently reassured her. “I’m just saying that you could stand to be smarter about this. Now, I’m sure you’d rather keep this private if you didn’t inform management, so I won’t pry too much. Tell me, though—was this a one-time thing, or do you think it may be a regular occurrence?”

Ami gave a start. Just what did Hestia suspect here?

“I…I think it could happen again, yes,” she said slowly.

“I see,” said Hestia. “Well, how about this? You keep me in the loop for these…unscheduled absences, and I’ll be able to smooth things over. Would that be alright with you?”

Ami’s mouth opened and closed for a moment, even as no sound came out. Did she really just…?

“Thank you!” she said when she managed to overcome her shock. “Thank you so much! I…I don’t know what to say!”

“It’s really no trouble,” said Hestia. “You see, I’ve always felt that here, we ought to treat our co-workers like family, and families stick together, don’t we?”

“I…if there’s anything I can do to repay you…”

“I assure you, that isn’t necessary,” said Hestia. “Although…there was one thing I was hoping to speak to you about. It’s by no means an obligation, but if you’re interested, I think you might find it far more fulfilling than what you’re doing right now…”

Ami’s eyes widened with surprise and just a little bit of excitement. This really had to be a dream…but no, this was as real as real could get.

“O-Oh? M-Miss Tokugawa, what are y–”

“Oh please, call me Hestia!” she chuckled. “And we can talk about it over lunch tomorrow. I have some other matters to attend to today. You get back to your station then, alright, Mizuno?”

“Y-Yes ma’am, of course!” Ami nodded, barely able to hide the wide smile currently spreading across her face. “A-And again, thank you, thank you so much!”

“Anytime!” Hestia nodded, before turning around and walking to a nearby elevator.

For a moment, Ami just stood there, the grin refusing to leave her face. It was almost too much to take in. In all her time working at this god-awful place, she never expected a light at the end of the tunnel.

Maybe this will be the start of something good.

“And in other news, the recently-returned Sailor Guardians have once again made headlines, this time involving a musclebound vampire woman and, of all things, an ice cream parlor!”

“Rei, my segment’s coming on!!”

Minako was practically bouncing out of her seat as she watched the morning news, still dressed in her pajamas from the night prior. She hardly looked like she was ready for a day of work.

Beside her, Rei took a sip of her morning coffee, washing away the last remnants of sleep lingering in her eyes. The scene on the television transitioned into a shot of the wreckage of the downtown area, right outside the parlor where the fight had occurred. Minako’s voice was audible on the television, though much calmer and more professional than her current excitable tone. Where her face was visible, she looked like she'd just crawled out of a sand dune, her hair a dusty mess and her face covered in ash.

“ Who could have suspected that such a humble eatery could have contained such unspeakable evil? That such horrors would be lurking amidst the most delicious of desserts? What follows is an eyewitness account.”

“Well, I didn’t actually see or hear anything, but my husband’s sister’s lawyer said that–”

“So…how’d you hide what happened from your coworkers?” Rei asked.

“Oh, it was easy!” Minako chuckled. “I just dumped a bunch of gravel from the wreckage on me and made it look like I got hit.”

“And they bought it just like that?”

“Yup yup!” she giggled, giddily kicking her legs. “Apparently they didn’t want a ‘potential liability’ or whatever, so they just sent me home for a couple of days to recover. Not the first time that’s happened, surprisingly.”

“You do realize that’s still lying, right?” chided Rei. “I mean, I get we’ve had to…stretch the truth a little bit with our work, but you come off a little too eager to do it.”

“Hey, whatever it takes, right?” Minako shrugged, taking a bite out of a doughnut. “Had to lie my ass off to even get there, then I had to come up with an excuse for why I wasn’t on-camera when I went Venus. Just gotta keep coming up with stuff to keep them from suspecting me.”

“And how long do you think you’ll be able to do that for?”

Minako laughed. “Oh, you’d be surprised…”

Rei rolled her eyes. “You worry me sometimes, Minako.”

“Aww, that just means you care!” Minako teased.

The newscast continued, having moved on to a more reliable witness.

“Sailor Moon saved our lives. I don’t know how we can repay her, but…she means a lot to us. She’s not just an icon, she’s a savior. A real hero. I know we’ll always be in safe hands thanks to her and the other Sailor Guardians.”

“Reporting from Azabu-Juuban, this is Minako Aino.”

The Minako Aino on the screen vanished as the news cut back to the studio. The Minako Aino on Rei's couch smirked. "And speaking of care…I could’ve sworn I saw you and Usagi hugging after the fight.”

Rei’s eyes widened, a light blush crossing her cheek. “Y-Yeah, me and her just kinda…talked. I apologized for being, y’know…”

“Kind of a bitch to her?”

“…the fact you aren’t technically wrong does not give you the right to say it,” Rei huffed. “But yeah, we made up.”

“Well hey, that’s one big personal issue fixed!” Minako chuckled. “We just have, what? Fifty more to go?”

“I don’t even want to think about that right now,” Rei sighed. She was right, after all—it was only a drop in the bucket of everything they had to deal with. Usagi was still dealing with a lot of her own problems. And that voice in the vision…something about it made Rei extremely concerned. Something about it had been so familiar …

“You still tired?” Minako asked.

Rei jerked her head up. “Huh? No, just thinking…anyways, hopefully today, we don’t have as much i–”

Suddenly, a loud knocking noise resounded through the walls. Rei nearly jumped out of her seat, the sudden pounding like a heavy fist trying to break through.

“Shit!” Minako exclaimed. “Is it Eros?”

Rei cautiously reached for her wand, but hesitated. There was another noise outside that sounded like murmuring…and cameras…and…

“I ask you, how can we, the people of Japan, be asked to simply stand aside and watch our national heritage be destroyed?” came a refined voice just outside. “It is simply disgraceful.”

…Oh no.

“Minako, I need you to stay here.”

Minako’s expression suddenly turned sullen. She had almost forgotten about this.

“It’s him, isn’t it?”

Rei let out an exhausted sigh. She reached for her mug of coffee and immediately chugged the rest of it down, almost oblivious to the burning, bitter liquid scorching her tongue.

“Yes,” she bluntly replied, already on her way to the door.

She threw it open and was immediately met with a faceful of cameras, all flashing as they took photos of the scene. Rei tried her best to muster a fake smile, but she could barely hide anything more than contempt for this. 

“Ah, there you are, Rei.”

A strong arm wrapped around her shoulder, and the looming face of an older man with an equally fake smile stood next to her.

“And how is my little ghost?” the man asked through his fake smile.

It took a lot of restraint on Rei’s part to avoid kicking her own father in the leg.

“Doing just fine… father .”

“Wonderful,” said Ryuuji Hino, almost blinding light reflecting off his glasses as he stared down at her, before returning his attention to the cameras.

“Understand, this issue is personal for me,” he solemnly said to the assembled reporters. “This shrine has been under the care of my late wife’s family for generations. I could scarcely believe it when I heard that it had been subject to such a vicious and cowardly assault. But in the spirit of our nation, we will not bow down to those who would do us harm. Tear down our homes, break our bones, do whatever you will—you will never break our spirit.”

“Representative Hino,” one of the interviewers asked, raising her hand like she was in class. “I’m Ibuki Shirano from TBS. Many have pointed out that the return of the Sailor Guardians has raised questions regarding the government’s handling of these recent monster attacks. What are your thoughts on the matter?”

“Up to now, I have abided by the decision our government made decades ago, amidst the litany of disasters that afflicted our nation,” he answered. “But sooner or later, we must ask ourselves: why must we continue to put our faith in five women we know nothing about? Must our government, our people, continue to accept our weakness in the face of extraterrestrial, supernatural threats? Our people would be better served if they knew just who they were being asked to trust.”

A few more photos were taken, a few small follow-up questions were asked, and soon enough the horde of reporters had begun to exit the premises, leaving Rei alone with her father. Her camera smile had vanished, replaced by a neutral but displeased expression as she turned to face him.

“Always a photo-op with you, huh?” Rei dryly said.

Ryuuji frowned, his gray hair reflecting against the morning sun. “Perhaps if my daughter were to call more often, I would have more reason to visit.”

“Implying I’d want you to visit at all,” Rei grumbled. “What do you want, dad?”

Ryuuji scoffed. “A grown woman and you still treat me with suspicion. If you must know, I’ve hired people to renovate the shrine. After our little Sailor ‘Guardians’ destroyed the place, it’s only natural I have it fixed.”

“Excuse you??” Rei exclaimed. “The Sailor Guardians put in the work to save the shrine from the monster attack!”

“Are you really that naive?” Ryuuji said with a cold glare. “Over fifteen years without them, and they just happen to reappear at the same time, in the same place?”

Rei clammed up at this. If he saw a connection there, she didn’t want to risk saying anything incriminating.

“But it’s no matter,” he said, turning to leave. “I will raise the question among my colleagues in the Diet. No doubt we will have a great deal to discuss.”

“What do you mean by that?” Rei growled, her blood starting to boil.

“At this juncture, I couldn’t say,” Ryuuji said evenly. “Goodbye, Rei. If there are any problems with the repairs, please contact my office.”

“ Goodbye?? ” Rei exclaimed. “Excuse you??”

Ryuuji paused, flashing a stern look with his cold eyes. “Lower your tone when speaking to your father. Maybe if you had a husband, you’d learn a thing or two about respect.”

Rei didn’t say anything after that. She felt her chest tighten, her hands balling into fists as Ryuuji walked off. She simply watched him leave in frustrated silence.

Always have to win with that one, don’t you, old man?

She stomped back into her house and slammed the door shut with such force that she nearly knocked it loose. She walked until she fell onto the couch, grabbed a nearby pillow, and screamed into it.

“Soooooo…didn’t go well, huh?” Minako said, trying to sound encouraging. Unfortunately, she sounded like she’d made the understatement of the century right there.

Rei raised her face from the pillow and scowled, looking at Minako with an annoyed expression. “He held a fucking press conference right outside my house, and told me he was gonna pay for people to fix the temple.”

“Oh…” Minako said. “Well, that’s…nice of him?”

“And then he blamed us for the monster attacks.”

“Ah, yeah, there it is…” Minako sighed. “He hasn’t really changed, has he?”

“Of course he hasn’t changed,” Rei growled. “He’s just the same sociopath he always is! Cares more about his stupid politics and his stupid donors and his stupid image over his actual fucking family!”

Rei sighed, laying her head back against the pillow, looking defeated. This always seemed to happen when dealing with her father. She detested that man with every fiber of her being. All her hard work with the shrine and he treated her as a promotional tool.

Minako shuffled her legs, her index finger pressed against her chin in thought. “Hmm…you wanna go out for lunch or something?”

Rei slowly lifted her head back up. “Huh?”

“I mean, you’ve been doing a lot of work lately and all, and I’ve got the day off…I’unno, could be fun to just have some noodles and chill, you get me? Just kinda…forget about all that’s going on for a moment.”

Rei thought for a moment. She had been pretty stressed the past few days for obvious reasons…maybe Minako had a point.

“Just this one time,” Rei said. “But um…thanks, I guess.”

“What for?”

Rei shrugged. “I don’t know, I guess just for…being a good friend these past few days. Getting me to think straight and deal with all this stress.”

Minako blinked. A warm feeling spread through her chest as her heart thumped faster, cheeks flushing a touch pink. “Y-Yeah, well…me and you always got along pretty well growing up, yeah?”

Rei let out a snort at that comment. “That’s one way to put it, sure.”

Minako awkwardly chuckled at that, nervously twirling her hair around her finger, her heart beating even faster at that. “Yeah, so, I guess I’ll just take a shower and get dressed real quick, okay?”

“Sure thing,” Rei said. “Just don’t take too l–”

Before she could even finish her sentence, Minako had darted into her bedroom, slamming the door shut and shaking the walls.

“...long. Wonder what’s gotten into her?”

Unbeknownst to Rei, Minako was frantically undressing for the shower, scowling at her own awkwardness.

What’s wrong with you, stupid? she thought to herself. Why are you acting so weird around her?

She stood for a moment, halfway undressed, her arms fully exposed. Somehow, in the sunlight peeking through the window, the scars on her arms seemed so much brighter.

This isn’t a crush. You don’t have crushes. You’re just anxious about living with her, that’s all.

With luck, if she told herself this enough times, it would actually be the truth.

The sounds of her smoothie being slurped up through its straw kept Mako focused as drowsiness threatened to overwhelm her. She had been getting up at a consistently early time for years, and yet somehow it felt exhausting trying to stay awake in the cafe, poring through whatever listings she could find on her phone.

“Still nothing?” she asked. Across from her, Usagi was typing away on a laptop, struggling to find something, anything really that would suffice for gainful employment.

“Not even an opening at McDonald’s…” she sighed. “God, I’m really gonna be jobless for the rest of my life…”

“I mean, you have an apartment, don’t you?” Mako pointed out. “You have some money, I’m assuming.”

“Eh, some of it is from old jobs,” Usagi said, shrugging her shoulders as she scrolled down the page. “Not that they lasted, really. I worked at Dairy Queen for a bit, but then they closed down and left the country…most of my money comes from handouts from Naru. Kinda feel guilty about it.”

“From Naru, huh?” muttered Mako, averting her eyes slightly. “Well, I hope you don’t feel too guilty about it.”

“What's wrong?” asked Usagi, noticing something strange in Mako’s tone.

“Well, it’s just that I thought we could use some help with the job search, so I asked around, and well…”

“Hi, girls!”

The two of them turned to see none other than Naru, who had just entered the cafe.

“Sorry if I kept you waiting,” she said as she took a seat next to Usagi. “Naoko wound up being a bit late for school—she saw a frog outside and tried to chase after it, and it took me a while to catch her. Anyway, how’re things going on your end?”

“Um…they’re okay, I guess?” Usagi said hesitantly, a wave of anxiety coming over her as she meekly crossed her arms and hunched her back, sulking. “Just didn’t expect you, was all…”

“Well, me and Makoto had been talking after the festival,” Naru explained. “She explained how she lost her job, how you two were doing some job hunting, and I figured, y’know, what the heck, I’d help! I’ve got a fair bit of experience with this.”

She pulled a notebook out of her purse, the entire table shaking as it slammed down with a thud. Usagi’s eyes widened.

Oh goddamn it, I thought I didn’t have to study things anymore after college…

“Anyways, the big thing about job hunting is that you need to sell yourself to an employer!” Naru explained. “That isn’t just about acing the interview, it’s about resumes, cover letters, that sort of thing!”

“…what’s a cover letter?” Usagi said. Even she felt that what she’d just said was pretty dumb.

Naru and Mako both stared at her for a moment, before Naru exhaled and gave a small sigh.

“This might take a while,” she said.

“Remind me why exactly you saved this one?” asked Philia.

“Uh, because she's hot as fuck?” Eros replied. “Next question, please?”

The dark room they occupied was illuminated by the light of whirring computers and other machines, glowing various shades of green and blue, with no windows in sight. The ceiling scaled several dozen feet high, making the room feel like a cavern. Monitors hissed and whined but beyond that, there was silence.

“Same question,” Philia said, “but answer it seriously this time.”

“Hey, I like this one!” Eros said as she waved her glowing hands over Caramella’s wounds, causing them to slowly vanish as if they had never been there at all. “You want me to just let them trash all my hard work? This is a work of art , madam!”

Caramella winced as the scars on her body began to disappear. She was laying on a metal table like some kind of Frankenstein, still worn from going all out on the Sailors, her body still sporting bruises and a few singe marks across her hair. “This was only my first mission, Master Philia. I will do what I can to avoid another failure.”

“Indeed,” said Philia brusquely. “Well, if anything, this saves us effort making more. But how exactly do you intend to utilize this one?”

“Easy!” Eros said in a cheery tone. “Pair her up with another one of the gals and show her the ropes! We’ve got a fucking amazon vampire over here, let’s use her to our advantage!”

“I am rather strong,” Caramella smirked. “Master Eros took great care in creating me.”

“And besides, sending one of our Knights out to fight the Sailors is becoming too much of a hassle,” Eros added. “If we’re gonna take ‘em down, we need more firepower. One of our Knights can give them a hassle…get two or three of them into a fight, though? We’ll be lucky if that runt Sailor Moon will even be able to walk. ”

“It’s a viable strategy,” admitted Philia, “though I do wonder how long we can expect to have them on the ropes. If they manage to get their bearings, then that may not be as favorable a matchup as you’re expecting.”

“Hey, that’s fine!” Eros said hurriedly. “Just as long as they’re kept busy, right?”

“I suppose,” said Philia. “Now—”

Just then, a chime rang out. Frowning, Philia looked down to see a blinking red light emitting from a gemstone affixed to her wrist.

“Hm, haven’t heard from her for a while,” she muttered, before lightly tapping the gemstone to activate her communicator. “This is Philia, what is it?”

For a moment, there was static, and then a clear, monotone voice filled the room.

“I understand your progress in Juuban has stalled.”

“Our current focus is keeping the Sailors occupied,” replied Philia. “However, Eros and I have devised alternative measures to supplement the traditional strategy. Combine that with Storge’s initiative, and we will soon be well on track.”

“That is acceptable,” the voice replied. “But these alternatives must not be discovered.”

“Damn, Agape, why do you have to worry so much?” Eros said as she slid next to Philia. “We’ve got plenty of time!”

“The Empress would be unhappy to hear you say that,” said Agape, her voice a tinge sharper.

“We understand,” Philia said firmly. “Rest assured the plan will be completed to her liking. It is our highest priority.”

“Good,” said Agape. “Now, regarding the preparations for the next phase, I will be sending you a list of potential site coordinates. The Empress would like you to inspect them as soon as possible.”

“I’ll begin tonight,” replied Philia.

“See that you do. Dismissed.”

With that, the communicator went dark, and the room fell silent once more.

“‘Dismissed’,” Eros said in a mocking voice. “Who does she think she is?”

“The Empress’s right hand,” replied Philia, her eyes flicking towards Eros meaningfully. “Remember that.”

Eros sighed. “Yeah, yeah, I know. Anyways, if we’re getting new coordinates for operations, we’re gonna need some backup, yeah?”

Philia raised an eyebrow. “You just want Caramella in the field again, don’t you?”

Eros flashed a wily little smirk. “I keep tellin’ ya she’s useful, y’know.”

Philia rolled her eyes.

“Fine, make a new one if you must,” she said. “But I’ll be handling tonight’s op myself.”

“Pffft, as if I’d make a new one!” Eros chortled, before turning to her vampiric comrade. “Hey, Cara, wanna get some training from a Knight with a little more experience in the field?” She seemed to phrase that oddly suggestively…

Caramella tilted her head, looking a bit confused by the suggestion. “You have others like me?”

“Well with our operations, we kinda have to keep some hands on deck!” Eros said. “C’mon, lemme introduce you to Jennie.”

“So, generally you’ll want to boast experience wherever you can,” said Naru. “For example, instead of just saying you had a job stocking shelves, talk about your ‘strong organizational skills.’ Are you following me, Usagi?”

“Uhhhhh…” Usagi tilted her head, looking half-focused as she tried to parse what Naru was explaining. “So like…if I worked at a fast food place a while back…would I put down that I have cooking skills?”

“...Well, I mean, you could ,” Naru said hesitantly. “But…I don’t think you…um…”

“Yeah, that’s fair.”

“Speaking of which, Mako, you actually do have some experience in that area,” Naru said, turning her attention toward her other impromptu student. “So you should focus on punching up the other parts of your resume.”

Mako crossed her arms, an exhausted, frustrated look on her face as she thought it over. “Well…I do have some experience with owning a flower shop…”

“Oh, that’d give you tons of skills to add!” Naru exclaimed. “Customer service, creativity, organization, business sk–”

“Nothing business related, please?”

Naru tilted her head. “Um…you sure?”

Mako sighed. “Sorry, just…it’s a whole… thing , I don’t wanna go into it.”

“Oh…I see…” said Naru. “Well, in that case, I still think you should see about including some of those skills. Gotta make sure you look good enough to be hired.”

“Do people actually read all of this, though?” Usagi said. “I mean, they’ll probably overlook it anyway, they’re bound to get a whole bunch of applications…”

“Depends on the job, though, doesn’t it?” Mako countered. “If it’s one where you’re the only person to apply, that’s an instant hire, I’d think.”

Usagi sighed. “Doubt I’d ever be hired, in that case.”

“Well, I’m sure we can find something!” Naru said hurriedly. “No need to get discouraged!”

Usagi shook her head.

“Naru?” she asked. “Do you think I’m…old?”

“What? No!” Naru said, somewhat taken aback by this. “I mean, sure, a lot of people might say you are…but that doesn’t mean you actually…wait, hang on, that didn’t come out right…”

“It’s fine, I know what you mean,” Usagi said glumly. “It’s just…if I was 20, all of this would be one thing, but…fuck, I’m 36…most women my age have more experience.”

“Well, sure…” said Naru. “I mean, maybe it’s not easy, but with a little help you can still find something you want to do!”

“I thought I already knew what I wanted to do, though…” Usagi muttered.

“I know what you mean,” said Mako sympathetically. “I really had my hopes set on the florist thing.”

“And I was supposed to be queen of the world by now,” said Usagi.

Naru just blinked a few times.

“Um…you were supposed to be what?” she asked.

Usagi and Mako both exchanged awkward glances with each other. They’d said too much.

“J-Just a dumb little in-joke!” Usagi chuckled. “I-I mean, you know how I was as a kid, always going on about princess stories and stuff, yeah?”

“Oh yeah!” Naru giggled, seemingly none the wiser. “Yeah I…I get it. Dreams are kinda…they don’t always come true, y’know?”

As Naru turned her attention back to assisting the two of them, she didn’t notice Mako’s expression grow dark.

“…Right,” said Mako, her eyes downcast. “They don’t always come true…”

Naru paused. Mako’s voice sounded unusually quiet. She turned to Usagi, who didn’t say anything at all…but she certainly looked quite uncomfortable.

“Um…Usagi?”

Usagi lifted her head. “Yeah?”

Naru grabbed a pair of papers from her purse. “I have some model resumes over here, if you wanna take a look…”

Usagi took a moment before slowly grabbing a paper, looking it over with bleary, unfocused eyes.

“Thanks,” she quietly said, almost like an automated response.

Naru sighed.

I need to talk to her after this…

It was after lunchtime before the three of them had concluded their business. Mako and Usagi were clearly spent from Naru’s lectures as they trudged out of the cafe.

“Ugh,” Mako grumbled. “I don't wanna hear the words 'job application' for the rest of my life.”

“Welcome to my world,” Usagi grumbled back.

“Everything alright, you two?” Naru asked.

Mako’s face immediately flushed. She didn’t want to sound mean about this…this was good work Naru was doing.

“O-Oh, nothing! I really do appreciate your help, Naru,” Mako said, trying her best to at least sound positive. She didn’t hate the lecture, but it was a lot to deal with for one day. “Thanks for coming by!”

“Oh, anytime, Mako!” Naru chuckled. “Please, feel free to ask for more help if you ever need it!”

“Of course,” Mako nodded. “Anyways,  I’d better get home and get ready for Hiro getting back,” said Mako as she began to walk down the street. “See you later.”

Waving goodbye to her friend, Usagi meant to go her own way, but was interrupted by a cry of “Wait up!”

Turning around, she saw Naru following after her.

“Could we talk?” she asked Usagi after taking a breath.

An anxious feeling came over Usagi’s chest. She knew those words were usually about something serious…

“Um…what about?”

“You got my text about the therapist, right?”

Usagi’s eyes widened. She awkwardly flicked at one of her odangos, trying to think of a suitable excuse to get out of this. Of all things, this was something she really did not want to talk about.

“U-Uh…yeah! And don’t you worry, I’m gonna contact him as soon as possible! Just need to figure my schedule out and st–”

“Your schedule?”

Usagi’s voice faltered. Perhaps she had been a bit too obvious there. It wasn’t like she had a full schedule in ages.

“W-Well…yeah, I’ve been, y’know…hangin’ with the girls from high school again, and stuff. Ami, Rei, Minako…”

“Right, I remember,” Naru nodded. “And I’m sure it’s important for you to reconnect with friends and stuff…I mean hey, you and I reconnected and it was like, what, middle school when we’d last hung out?”

“Something like that, yeah…”

“But Usagi…I’m sorry, but I really do think you need to step back a minute and focus on this. You need help.”

Usagi wrung her hands, her arms shaking as she tried to give a response. Her voice stammered and quivered as her mind went into overdrive.

“Naru…what I’ve got going on…I don’t know if there’s a single therapist out there who can help.”

 “You don’t know unless you try, though.”

Usagi hesitated. Naru’s face looked like it was pleading, concerned eyes drilling holes in Usagi’s resolve.

“Would you just…stop looking at me like that?!” Usagi suddenly shouted.

Naru took a step back. “I-I’m really not trying to be forceful here, b-but–”

“But nothing!” Usagi exclaimed. “Naru, I know you wanna help, and I’m glad you’ve been putting up with me for so long, but this? ” She gestured to her head, pointing with both fingers and tapping at her skull. “ THIS? You don’t know half of it!”

Naru fell silent, and for a moment, Usagi thought she had finally convinced her. Then with a sigh, she turned around, and said, “Maybe I know more than you think I do.”

“N-Naru? What d’you–?”

“I’ll see you later,” Naru said without turning around, and then she walked off without a further word.

Usagi stood on the sidewalk, her lip quivering, watching as Naru walked off. She wanted to say something. She wanted to run after Naru. She wanted to fix this. It was just an angry little blow-up, right? They’d fix this, right?

But as Naru rounded a corner and disappeared, Usagi didn’t move. She sniffled, slowly turning her head in the direction of a nearby bench.

When her feet finally moved, she walked in the direction of the bench and sat down. Though a few tears dotted her eyes, she didn’t cry. She just sighed.

Me and my fat mouth…

Chapter Text

“Everyone else was saying ‘A rap? For Zelda? That’s crazy!’ But, screw those guys, y’know? I loved it! Best experience of my life. My life !”

Rei blinked a few times. “The best experience of your life was a kitschy commercial for The Legend of Zelda ?”

“Hey, don’t hate,” Minako said with a smug smile, digging into her noodles and slurping some up. “You’re just jealous because I make an incredibly dashing Link!”

Rei’s eyes darted up from her bowl, looking Minako over. “With that hair?”

“Oh, I had it cut for the role,” Minako chuckled. “Honestly, I should wear it shorter more often. Maybe I should go to a hairdresser…”

Rei let out a groan, lifting her chopsticks and taking in another bite of food. It was a relatively nice place they were at, all things considered. Not too busy, excellent service, and the food was…okay. Maybe not the best, but it wasn’t horrible. It was…adequate. Perfect for an hour or two of relaxation.

But try as Rei might, she still couldn’t relax.

“You sleepy?”

Rei blearily raised her head. Minako’s tone had shifted to friendly concern.

“Yeah…” Rei yawned. “Sleep has been awful for a while. Just a bunch of…bluh.”

“Bluh, huh,” Minako repeated back. “I get it. Stress does that. One time I had this nightmare about a talking pizza th–”

“Can we please be serious for a moment?”

Minako recoiled. Rei’s eyes flashed with a bit of steamed rage, before quickly subsiding with a groan.

“Sorry. Just…what’s keeping me up is…all of…”

She gestured around her, arms limply flailing like wet noodles, the words struggling to come out. There was a lot Rei could list that was keeping her up but she couldn’t figure out how to say it…

“Your father's intruding into your life, you're worried about both the new magical threats and our ability as a team to combat them, and you probably want to talk strategy with me,” Minako said. "Did I miss anything?"

Rei blinked.

Minako didn’t say anything for a moment, taking a deep breath before looking at Rei, her expression neutral.

“I can focus,” she said calmly. “If you want me to.”

Rei, noticing the change in Minako’s demeanor, calmed herself. It wouldn’t do to be too harsh—they were here to discuss important business, after all.

“Alright,” she said. “Now, I think there are…a lot of issues we need to work on. As a team, I mean.”

“In what regard?”

Rei took a deep breath.

“The vision I had the other day made me think…as much as Usagi and I need to unite and work together, we also need the whole team to unite. But we have all this baggage between us. It’s like there’s a wall we can’t quite break through. You get what I mean?”

Minako felt a twinge of apprehension in her stomach. “Well…Mako and Ami still have something going on between them. And I guess in general, a few years does make a difference to our whole…y’know…”

“Our team dynamic,” Rei finished. “Minako, we’re not kids anymore. Time apart changes people. And while I do think we’re making some strides…”

“We’ve been doing pretty decently on the battlefield,” Minako pointed out. “Those past few fights have been way more intense than our old ones.”

"We're winning on the battlefield. That's not the same as doing good, or pretty decently,” Rei said, her tone growing ever more wistful and melancholic. “We could end the fights sooner and stop a lot of needless destruction if we all had our acts together, and... we just don't. Heck, we barely even know what we're fighting against. When it comes to us as friends, well…”

She hesitated for a moment. This wasn’t a surprise, really. Ami was busy at work a lot of the time and tended to be very quiet during meetings. Mako had been very vocal about her issues with Rei’s leadership. And Usagi…that was still going to take some work between them.

“Well what?” Minako asked.

Rei closed her eyes and silently put her hands together, almost as if she was praying. It was so long ago now…long enough that it felt like an old dream…every weekday they’d meet after class, read manga, study, and fight monsters…sometimes they’d go to the beach, sometimes they’d go to outer space…but it was still fun . 

This wasn’t fun anymore.

“Rei?”

Rei opened her eyes and looked at Minako.

“Sorry…just zoning out right now.”

A twinge like a somersaulting butterfly tightened in Minako’s abdomen. She wrung her hands, struggling to think of something to say…if she could say anything at all.

“Rei…while we were gone…what all did you do without us?”

Rei looked almost colorless, her face set with the same stoic, tired glare she had perfected over the years. But Minako knew that wasn’t all there was to it–she could feel the confused torrent of emotions inside Rei.

“Nothing. I…did nothing. I just ran the shrine, took on different shrine maidens, and…didn’t really do much else. Sometimes I’d chat with Yuichiru or Koan or someone else, but they’re all so busy, and I…”

Rei’s voice was almost a whisper, like a hesitant breeze. She was borderline inaudible.

Minako hesitated. Without even thinking, she gently placed her hand on Rei’s shoulder.

“You don’t have to tell me more if you don’t want to,” Minako said. “But you’ve got me, okay? And if we’re still struggling to rebuild what we used to have…I’ll help you.”

Rei didn’t say anything. She just gave a silent nod, continuing to stare off into space. The quiet awkwardness only began to dissipate once she returned to her meal, slurping up more noodles between her chopsticks.

“I might actually have an idea, now that I think about it…”

Rei paused mid-slurp, bits of noodle hanging out of her mouth. “Mmh?”

“Well, I did some improv stuff at one point…long story…but we did these, like, teambuilding exercises to get better at playing off each other? Maybe we could do something like that?”

“What exactly do you have in mind?” asked Rei.

“Hmm…” Minako said, pressing her finger against her cheek. “Well, we never really tried to train our powers, right? We mostly just, y’know…kept fighting and then got power-ups or whatever. But from what I can remember of our past lives, we should have more powers than what we used up to high school.”

“So…do you want us to spar or something?”

“We could!” Minako chuckled. “Or we could do some target practice or something. Just some exercise that can be both a workout and a bonding experience. Think of it like a trust fall with lasers!”

“…erm,” Rei said, flashing a confused expression. “I suppose that’s not a bad idea. But we’d need space for that, and I don’t think the shrine will cut it.”

“…Okay, so I haven’t thought that far ahead,” Minako admitted, “but give me some time, and I’ll knock your socks off, trust me!”

“Well, that’s a confidence booster,” Rei muttered. “Anyway—”

BZZZZZZT! BZZZZZZZZT!

At that moment, Rei’s phone suddenly started to vibrate.

“It’s Usagi,” she said after a glance at the screen. “Hope things aren’t too bad with her.”

"Rei…I fucked up.”

Usagi sat on a park bench, her legs curled up to her chest. Some of the passersby might have given her strange looks, but she didn’t exactly care right now. She awkwardly clutched her phone with a loose grip, anxiously waiting for a reply.

After a moment, she heard a long, exhausted sigh over the phone. She couldn’t help but flinch, unsure if that was a good sign.

“Tell me what’s wrong,” said Rei in a tired voice.

Well, that’s not so bad, thought Usagi.

“I…I got into a fight with Naru,” she said. “She told me I should go see a therapist, a-and, well…”

“You got defensive?”

Usagi gulped.

“…y-yeah.”

Another pause. Rei audibly exhaled through her nose, seemingly unsure of what she wanted to say.

“What do you need me to do?”

“I-I don’t know, like…I don’t know what I’m supposed to do! She gave me the guy’s number and everything, said I needed to deal with some stuff, and…w-well, I got mad about it!”

“And why did you get mad about it?”

Usagi let out a whiny groan, almost flailing her arms around at Rei’s interrogation. “Oh, I dunno, maybe cuz my problems aren’t exactly like everyone else’s? How the hell am I supposed to talk about stuff like this?!”

There was a hint of hesitation in Rei’s voice as she fumbled for an answer.

“I guess you…well…maybe you…”

“Rei?” Usagi asked with trepidation.

“I…ugh…” Rei audibly groaned, sounding defeated. “Usagi, I’m sorry…”

“Uuuuuuuuuuuuugh…” Usagi let out a groan of her own.

Another exhale over the line.

“Usagi, I’m trying , okay?” said Rei. “Do you expect me to have all the answers?”

“Well, no…”

“Look, I have one idea. You’re gonna have to bear with me on this one, but please just consider it.”

Usagi pinched the bridge of her nose. She was exhausted. Wracking her brain for suggestions for this dilemma was tiring enough, but the constant fear that it would fail…it gnawed at her.

“I’ll consider it…what is it?”

“You call the therapist. Book an appointment if possible. One of us can come with you for backup. Wait a couple of hours, maybe a day, go find Naru, and apologize.”

“And…if it doesn’t work out?”

“If it doesn’t work out, then we’ll decide what to do next,” replied Rei. “For now, just focus on doing this—it’s the best path forward.”

“A-Alright, I’ll try…” said Usagi. Truth be told, she wasn’t entirely sure she could do this…but she had to give it a shot.

“Hey, Rei?” she said suddenly.

“Yeah?”

“…Thanks.”

She could hear a small chuckle from the other end of the line. She couldn’t see it, but she swore it felt like Rei was smiling.

“Anytime, Usagi. Talk later?”

Usagi nodded. “Yeah. Talk later.”

Once Rei had hung up, Usagi took a deep breath.

… I have to do it now, Usagi told herself. Now, before I chicken out.

Trembling, she took out the number Naru had given her and, with shaking fingers, dialed it.

The phone rang…and rang…and rang…

“Hello! You’ve reached the office of Dr. Ishiro Kobayashi! Please leave us a message after the tone and we’ll respond as soon as possible, thank you.”

…Oh. So she didn’t have to talk to anyone now after all.

She was so relieved at first that she didn’t register that the tone had rang, and the realization that it had quickly sent her into a panic.

“Crap! Um, I mean, hello!“ she said hurriedly. “My name is Usagi Tsukino, and I would like to set up an appointment…”

She kept her message brief and left them her number. As she hung up, a wistful sigh escaped her lips as she gave a small smile. She’d done it. She’d really done it.

Y’know…maybe things won’t be so bad…I should text Mako and see if we can meet later today. Maybe I’ll finally get a job! Maybe I’ll–

She peered down at her phone’s text messages. Naru’s name was right there. No new messages, but it didn’t matter. It was right there…and Usagi felt her stomach do a somersault.

Right…right…

She exhaled through her nose, idly tapping her fingers against her leg.

I’ll fix this. I just need to give her a little space is all. I can do this.

She put her phone down. Another exhale. And slowly, the faintest signs of a smile spread over her face.

I can do this!

“I trust nobody’s been giving you any grief?”

Ami fidgeted with her fingers, squirming in this unfamiliar seat she had found herself in. It had been a simple request: Hestia had offered to take Ami to lunch, and Ami could hardly say “no” to her. But being there reminded Ami of why she hated the office cafeteria. The noise was unbearable—so much clamor all around her, with so many people talking over each other that she could hardly hear her own thoughts. And then there was the smell—a bizarre mix of grease, plastic, and cleaning products that were more than enough to spoil her appetite

“N-No, not really,” Ami gently said, awkwardly wringing her arms back and forth. She hadn’t even touched the greasy pizza on her plate. It was moister than it was appetizing.

“Oh? Well, that’s good to hear,” Hestia said, gingerly sipping a cup of tea. “I had worried there might be more trouble, so I’m glad that everything’s gone smoothly. But onto more important matters…”

She coughed, straightened her posture, and looked down at Ami with a serious, businesslike expression.

“Regarding what I wanted to ask yesterday: would you be able to provide a better look at the numbers you gave in your earlier proposal? I would like to see a full explanation of how this could work for the company.”

Ami’s eyes widened. “T-The…price lowering for our antidepressants, yes?”

Hestia nodded. “I really want to put this proposal into action, but I need in-depth proof of how this could impact our profitability. If it proves to be a net gain…well, we have several products coming up that we would like to move quickly, and I feel that this could give them the boost we’ve been looking for.”

“I…of course!” Ami said, counting herself fortunate that she hadn’t been rendered catatonic by this offer. “I mean, I’ll need some time…a few days…”

“Would a week suffice?” Hestia asked her.

“Yes!” Ami said eagerly. “Yes, that’s more than enough, thank you!”

“You’re most welcome,” Hestia said with a smile. “I think, Ms. Mizuno, that this may be the start of a wonderful partnership between us. Please, if there’s anything more you need, don’t hesitate to ask.”

Anything she needed… Ami was still not used to that. For a moment, the noise in the cafeteria felt just a bit less unbearable.

“W-Well…I do want to ask…why me specifically?”

Hestia paused. “I’m confused, what do you mean?”

“Why me ?” Ami asked again. “I-I hardly stand out from the rest of the staff, so why choose me?”

Hestia gave a slight smile. “I think you underestimate yourself. You have more potential than you give yourself credit for.”

Ami let out a sad sigh through her nose.

“I don’t know if I believe that…”

“Really?” Hestia asked. “I was given to understand you were one of the top students in the country during high school. Your university records weren’t too shabby either. One of the best GPAs out of everyone who works here.”

“T-That’s true, yes,” Ami said. “I don’t see it as worthy of praise, though.”

“Why not?”

Ami hesitated a bit. A single memory came to mind. A distant flicker of the past…a tall figure in a white dress, sporting the biggest, happiest smile Ami had ever seen…

“You go from that to the real world and it just…doesn’t matter anymore. Life still feels empty.”

Hestia didn’t say anything for a moment. Ami gulped.

“I-If I’ve said too much, y-you can tell me, I–”

“No, no, I understand.”

“You…you do?”

“Well, I did look into your file,” Hestia said. “And it said you were diagnosed with…ASD, correct?”

Ami stiffened, eyes widening like a deer in headlights. Suddenly feeling exposed, she instinctively drew her arms closer to her. 

“A-Autism, yes…” she sheepishly admitted. “Really, it’s not been a bother with my work, I–”

“It isn’t?” Hestia asked. “If you need accommodations, that’s more than fine, Miss Mizuno. We ought to treat our workers like family here. It must be so hard to deal with so many unfamiliar people, especially when some of them are…quite cruel.”

This all was a bit much for Ami, and a part of her wanted to get up and leave. However, she fought the urge down—Hestia had been nothing but kind to her so far. Surely she was just trying to look out for her.

“And speaking of your file…” Hestia added, “I seem to recall it saying that you were married.”

Ami gulped. Did she know about that too?

“I-I was… am, yes…”

“Who’s the lucky man?” Hestia asked.

“…woman, actually,” Ami corrected. “We separated. Never divorced. We’ve reconnected some lately, but…strictly on a professional basis.”

“Professional in what regard?”

Ami hesitated for a moment. She quickly rattled off a half-truth to cover her tracks.

“Helping her find a job, that’s all. A car crashed into the diner she worked at, and now she's out of work.”

“Oh?” Hestia said, an intrigued look spreading across her face. She took another sip of tea.

“How long have you known her for?”

Ami was barely bothering to look Hestia in the eye now. She wrung her hands back and forth even faster, her foot tapping against the floor. The din of the cafeteria felt like it was getting even louder.

“C-Could we not talk too much about this?” Ami asked.

“Of course,” Hestia politely replied. “My apologies if I made you uncomfortable.”

She looked down at Ami’s plate, noticing that she hadn’t even made a dent in it.

“Not hungry?”

“O-Oh, it’s not that!” Ami exclaimed. She looked down at the pizza. The grease was practically melting the plate. She couldn’t picture anyone willingly eating this, but in an effort to be polite, she gingerly reached down and picked up the pizza. For a moment, the gooey cheese stuck to the plate, and she thought that maybe she’d been granted a reprieve, but a second later it came undone. Seeing that there was no point in delaying it further, she brought it up to her mouth and bit off a chunk. It tasted like wet cardboard covered in expired tomato sauce, nearly causing her to gag, but instead somehow just barely managed to swallow it.

“ Mmm , tasty!” she said, not at all convincingly.

“Mhm, it’s awful, isn’t it?”

Ami’s eyes bugged out slightly. “…w-well, I didn’t want to be rude , Miss Hestia.”

“Oh, no need. It’s awful. Everyone knows it's awful.”

Ami reluctantly put the slice down and sighed. “I-I usually go to this sandwich shop nearby for lunch…I-I just can’t stand the cooking here. It’s so… greasy , ugh…”

“Well, you don’t have to impress me by eating this slop,” Hestia chuckled. “I swear, my kingdom for a competent chef around here...." She trailed off and looked at Ami with a gleam in her eye. "Say, your friend who's looking for work. Did you say she worked at a diner?"

Ami felt a knot form in her stomach.

“Y-Yes?”

“Would you be open to me giving her a job interview?”

The knot grew tighter.

“R-Really? I-I mean, that’s…i-it wouldn’t be a bad idea, but…”

“Is there a problem?” asked Hestia. “It seems like the least I could do for someone you’ve known since, erm…how long was it again?”

“S-Since middle school, ma’am,” Ami said.

Well of course there’s a problem! Ami thought to herself. I’d be working with my ex-girlfriend! We have enough baggage to fill an entire hotel!

“E-Erm…i-it would be a bit awkward, I’ll admit…”

Hestia simply smiled. “Well, what sort of job experience does she have?”

“Well…she worked as a chef at a restaurant…and she used to own a flower shop.”

“Really? Quite the pedigree there. Business and culinary skills?”

“M-Mostly culinary skills…” Ami sheepishly admitted.

“Perfect. Can I have her contact details? Email, phone, whichever?”

“Erm…I don’t…I don’t…”

"How about this? If you'd be willing to put aside those misgivings and indulge me in this thing, we can have a real lunch at that sandwich shop you mentioned. No worries about running over your break period, and it's my treat."

“…if you insist,” Ami said nervously, somewhat embarrassed that Hestia was willing to go this far for her.

“I do,” said Hestia as she stood up to leave. “Now then, shall we be off?”

As they made to leave (surreptitiously depositing their uneaten food in the trash as they did so), Ami could hear the sounds of the cafeteria fading away. In fact, most sounds seemed to be fading away. Things were feeling calmer on the surface…but that knot just wouldn’t go away.

Maybe I'm just getting anxious over nothing, she told herself. She's being so nice to me, and to Mako! It just might be a little awkward around the office for a while, that's all…

She walked after Hestia, and ignored the knot in her stomach.

Maybe this will work out.

It was a fairly quiet afternoon in the local park in Juuban–the only people there were a small family playing with their dog, a friendly-looking Shiba Inu. The rest was quiet, nothing but freshly cut grass and a few shady trees. The buds of some blossoms were already growing. In a few months, they would be blooming into a gorgeous pink menagerie. But right now, it was a little drab.

Rei didn’t look much different in that regard. She kept her hands in her pockets, her head bent down and her shoulders arched up, a sour, melancholic expression over her face. Even Minako’s exuberance seemed to be dampened by Rei’s attitude—she was actually walking for once instead of skipping or bouncing.

“I know Usagi is…going through a lot,” said Rei. “But this is…I’m not sure I’m going to be able to deal with it.”

“Well, that’s what the therapist is for, right?” Minako replied. “So the person who is dealing with it is someone who’s trained for it.”

“I suppose…” Rei muttered, though she still looked downbeat. Minako exhaled through her nose. This was supposed to cheer Rei up…why wasn’t it working? Maybe she would need to do something different here…

“Hey, so…remember when the Death Busters were after pure hearts and stuff? And I was mad that they didn’t come after me yet?”

Rei lifted her head up for just a moment, her icy eyes looking back at Minako’s. “Yeah?”

“And I was doing all this stuff to prove I was pure of heart, so I donated a lot of blood until I was dizzy?”

Rei raised an eyebrow. “I’m not sure I know where you’re going with this…”

“Just, y’know…remember how funny that was? I swear I was going somewhere with this…”

“Uh-huh,” Rei replied in an unamused tone.

“Uh…okay, wait, I remember!” Minako said, slapping her forehead. “You're trying to donate all your emotional blood to Usagi's nervous system!”

“…my what to her what?”

“Uh…digestive system?”

“Why are you bringing this up?” Rei huffed.

“My point is you need to, y’know…chill a little bit,” Minako explained. “Like, I get it, you’re worried about her, but you’re not her therapist. We can’t just make her get better on her own.”

Rei didn’t say a word. She gave a quiet exhale through her nose and continued walking with a hunched gate.

Well, that’s not working… Minako thought to herself. Maybe small talk will help?

“Soooooooo…how’s Yuichiru been?”

Rei stopped in her tracks. “I don’t see him a lot anymore,” she said.

“Well…he’s doing good, right?” Minako asked.

“He stopped working at the shrine shortly after my grandfather died,” Rei said. “He found a wife and a new job. Something about wanting to start a new life.”

“…huh,” Minako said. “Figured he’d stay there forever. I mean, c’mon, he seriously had a crush on you back then.”

“Mh, I guess,” Rei said. “He’s not my type, though.”

“Eh, figured,” Minako chuckled. “He seemed a little desperate sometimes. God, remember when he thought you were hooking up with Haruka? And he tried challenging her to a fight?”

Rei couldn’t help it. She actually chuckled a little bit remembering that. The sheer drama Yuichiru had put on in that moment, and the total confusion everyone else felt at that same time…he meant well, but he was such a dork.

“Ooooooh, is that a smile on your face?” Minako chuckled.

“Oh shut up,” Rei said, rolling her eyes. “It was a little funny, okay?”

“And here I thought you’d gone ice cold on me, Flame Sniper!”

“Uuuuuuuuugh…” Rei groaned. “Fine, fine, you win. But if we’re on the topic of the past…”

“Mhm?”

“What else did you get up to in Britain?”

Now it was Minako’s turn to falter a little, her smile flaming out for a moment as she thought over what to say.

“Like, beyond the acting and university stuff?”

“Yeah. The acting wasn’t all you did, right? You used to talk about being an idol…”

Minako shook her head. “I thought about it some, but uh…did you know that the idol industry is, like, REALLY messed up?”

Rei just stared at her.

“…no. Really. Who would have ever guessed?”

“Oh, cool it with the sarcasm, Miss Grouchy-Pants!” Minako huffed. “I just wanted to do more than just stand on stage and look pretty, I guess. I wanted to actually write stuff. Be creative. Do something to leave an impact on people!”

“And did it?”

“…well, I found other ways to make an impact, anyway. And don't worry, I did stuff outside of work! You wouldn't believe what kind of nightlife they've got in the big city, shrine girl.”

“Why do I feel like you're using 'shrine girl' to mean something vaguely insulting?” Rei said.

“I'm using it to say you're missing out!” Minako laughed. “Come on, you said it yourself, you're not doing anything! Why not spend a weekend somewhere new and live a little? I bet you could really piss your dad off if you had a fling with a hot dude.”

“Hot woman.”

“Oh, yeah, that would really piss him off. Wait, what?”

Rei suddenly froze in place like a deer in headlights. “Oh…I….I didn’t tell you already?”

“Noooooooooooooooooo?” Minako replied. “So, you’re…”

Rei sighed, deciding that she ought to leave as little room for confusion as possible.

“ Gay ,” she said bluntly. “I’m gay.”

If she expected Minako to be blown away by this revelation, she was disappointed.

“Huh,” Minako said as if Rei had just told her her favorite color. “I guess I shouldn’t be surprised?”

Rei’s eyes narrowed. “I’m…not sure how to take that.”

Minako waved her hand as if to brush it aside. “None of us are straight, Rei, I mean, c’mon. Like, all of us had it bad for Haruka, and I’m pretty sure Usagi had a crush on us anyway. Even Mamoru had that Fiore guy.”

Rei gave a quiet “Mmh,” in reply. “I guess you’re not wrong…”

“Uh… yeah, ” said Minako as she looked at Rei expectantly. “So…how’d you figure it out?”

Rei shrugged. “I had a crush on someone. I kept it to myself. From there it spiraled.”

“Dawwwwww, maybe I should hook you two up, then!” Minako giggled.

Rei tensed up at that remark. “Yeah, uh…how about no?”

“Awwwww, but I’m already planning a crazy scheme!” Minako whined.

“That’s a no , Minako,” Rei bluntly replied. “I’m not really interested in a relationship right now, anyways. They’re…a lot of work.”

Minako’s expression faltered a little. “Yeah…yeah, I…I guess you’re right.”

Another silence came between them. The awkwardness of it all only made Minako tense up even more.

She glanced down at Rei’s hand…her fingers tensed up…she pictured herself holding Rei’s hand…

Don’t do this.

She shook her head. She had to say something. She had to break this silence.

“So, does uh…does he know? Your dad?”

“No,” Rei said. “And I don’t want him to know.”

“But like…you’re an adult ,” Minako pointed out. “I mean c’mon, it’s your life, why hide it from him?”

“Oh yeah, sure, maybe I ought to tell him I’m a superhero too, while I’m at it,” Rei grumbled. “He’d ruin my fucking life , Minako! More than he already has, at any rate.”

Minako winced. She was generally used to Rei’s temper flaring up, but this was different. There was genuine bile in her tone. Righteous fury.

"The Shrine was my place, and now he's ruining that too with his stupid construction scheme! I just…wish there was somewhere I could go and be myself, you know? Like when we were kids? Messing around, hanging out at the…”

She paused. The sudden change in her demeanor threw Minako off-guard.

“The what? The cafe?”

“No no no…”

Rei suddenly began to pace around, muttering to herself. After a moment of this, she looked at Minako, her eyes gleaming with excitement.

“Okay so, remember when we talked about finding a place to train?”

“Yeah?”

"We’d need to talk to the others, but fair warning...what I'm thinking of might be, and very likely is, highly illegal."

Minako blinked. There were many things she could say at the moment. An average person would caution Rei on this or tell her she was sounding absolutely insane.

Instead, Minako merely flashed a cheeky smirk.

“Now that’s living a little.”

“With the rise in monster attacks over the previous days, public debate has intensified regarding the protection of civilians. Fear of future attacks has led to a spike in parents withdrawing their children from public schooling, while others have discussed organizing protests against the government’s handling of the emerging crisis.”

“So…this is bad, right?”

Naru shot an annoyed glare at Gurio. The television continued to blare out various observations of the growing panic that was beginning to grip the country, each one making Naru tense up more. Even if the report was a bit too hysterical, there was a growing sense of dread creeping on her. A twinge in her chest that felt familiar and painful…

“Turn it off,” she quietly said. “I don’t wanna hear about it.”

Gurio reached for the remote and did so without another word. Naru took in a deep, shaky breath through her nose and slowly exhaled through pursed lips, the twinge in her chest turning into something tighter.

Breathe, she thought to herself. Breathe.

A few seconds later and the tightness would fade. The thumping in her chest softened until she couldn’t feel it at all.

Gurio looked at her growing concern.

“We don’t need to call Dr. Koyabashi again, do we?”

Naru shook her head. “I don’t know…maybe. Been so long since we had to worry about this, I just kinda…forgot how it felt, I guess.”

“I get it…” Gurio nodded. “I…I don’t really know how to process it either. Do we need to pull Naoko out of school, or…?”

Now it was Naru’s stomach’s turn to tense up. She bit on her nail, a million thoughts all racing together at once.

“I mean, I want her to be safe,” she quietly said. “But…would it really be good to uproot her life like that?”

“We moved away from Juuban when we started high school,” Gurio said. “It wasn’t exactly the best thing in the world, but, y’know…better than the panic of going to the store and BOOM, monster attack.”

“Better than being kidnapped by a bunch of monsters, that’s for sure,” Naru sighed. “But…I don’t know. It all seemed pretty simple back when our parents did. But we’d have to find a new house, a new school for Naoko…I don’t know if she’ll even fit in. Hiro’s kind of her only friend….gosh, and then we’d have to think about jobs , you know it’ll be a whole thing with my mother—”

“Let’s not overthink it right now,” Gurio cautioned. “I get it, it’s a lot, but…it could always blow over, right? With the Sailor Guardians back, anything’s possible.”

“Yeah…the Sailor Guardians,” Naru quietly said, her voice sounding almost distant.

“You okay?”

“It’s nothing, I just…”

“Naru…” said Gurio, giving her a knowing look.

Naru’s fingers curled, her hands almost balling into fists.

“Do you think we can rely on them forever?” she asked. “I mean, we’ve got superheroes but…what happens if the superheroes need saving for once, y’know?”

“Uh…I…don’t know?” Gurio said, confused. “What would make you think that?”

“Ugh, never mind…” Naru sighed. She crossed her arms and sank to the floor, her head resting against the back of the couch. She briefly raised her head up as she felt a familiar hand gripping her own. Gurio was sitting down next to her now, his glasses pulled down just enough that Naru could see his eyes. His tired, concerned eyes.

“I’m just thinking, like…maybe we should try doing something?” Naru asked. “Are we just going to sit here and wait to be rescued?”

“I get it. It’s…frustrating to know that there’s stuff we can’t control,” Gurio said, a hint of sadness in his voice. “But I don’t know what we can do about it except…try to keep ourselves safe.”

“Safe…” Naru repeated to herself. “Are we really safe, when monsters could show up anywhere, at any time?”

“Well, no…” Gurio admitted. “But if we move out, we can–”

“What part of anywhere are you not getting??” Naru exclaimed. “We did move and then what? Tokyo got ripped apart, the whole country lost power, and this psycho alien woman with red hair tried taking over the planet! We can’t just run away! We can’t be bystanders!”

At this, Gurio tensed up, an awkward blush creeping over his face. “L-Look, Naru, maybe you should calm d–”

“I’m CALM, Gurio!” she shouted. “I am VERY CALM!”

“Naru…”

“We just need to make some adjustments! I could walk Naoko to and from school every day! I could chaperone school trips! There's a self-defense program at the YMCA, I could take that! Get some pepper spray! Get a knife! SOMETHING!”

Gurio’s voice faltered into a quiet whimper. “I-I don’t think a knife will–”

“Then WHAT , Gurio?,” Naru shouted. “I can't be a bystander this time! I can't sit here and let my daughter get hurt like how I got hurt!”

“Mom? Dad?”

Startled, Naru turned towards the hallway. A drowsy Naoko walked into the room, rubbing her eyes as she looked at her parents with confusion. Whatever anger Naru had felt just a second ago immediately dissipated.

“Sweetie, I thought you were napping?” Gurio asked quietly.

“I was…” Naoko said. “I heard momma yelling…what’s going on?”

Naru exchanged a look with Gurio. It didn’t take telepathy for either of them to know what the other was thinking.

“It was nothing, sweetie,” Naru said, putting on the gentlest tone she could at the moment. “Your father and I were just talking about something serious, that’s all. Nothing for you to worry about.”

“Oh…okay…” Naoko yawned. “I’m gonna do my homework now.” With that, she immediately turned around and returned to her room.

Naru took a deep breath, and then, when she was sure Naoko couldn’t hear her, turned to Gurio and said, “I’m sorry. That was…that was too much.”

“It’s fine…” Gurio said softly. “I understand, this is…difficult. I guess…it’s one thing to deal with all of this when you’re a kid, but when you’re a parent…”

He trailed off, though he didn’t need to finish; both of them knew all too well what he was thinking.

Naru winced. Her chest began to tighten again. She inhaled through her nose, and exhaled through pursed lips, trying her best to slow her breathing.

“I’m gonna need to make that call tomorrow,” she said to herself.

“Did we have to come here?”

Hiro tugged on his mother’s hand, pouting a little as he followed her down the apartment hallway. Not their apartment hallway, no–they were visiting someone this evening. Judging by the bag of takeout Mako was carrying with her, this might be a while.

“It’s a long story, kiddo,” Mako reassured him. “Kinda felt bad leaving you home alone for so long. Figured we could take the time to have some fun together.”

“I keep telling you, I’m fine being alone!” Hiro protested. “I’m getting better at cooking, y’know!”

“Well don’t you want me to spend more time with you?” Mako said, a slight chuckle in her voice.

“…I didn’t say that,” Hiro sheepishly admitted. He definitely appreciated getting to see his mother more often, at least.

“Well, either way,” Mako said, “we’re gonna meet an old friend of mine. I think you’ll like her.”

“Miss Tsukino, right?”

“Yup!”

“I kinda already saw her at the festival…” Hiro pointed out.

Mako shrugged. “You saw her, sure, but that’s not quite the same as meeting her.”

“Well, what’s she like?” asked Hiro as he and Mako walked down the hall to Usagi’s apartment.

“She’s very nice,” Mako told him, “she’s just a bit…scatterbrained sometimes. I’m sure you’ll like her.”

Arriving at Usagi’s door, she inhaled slightly and knocked.

“We’re here!” she announced. 

“Hang on!” a voice called out from inside. “I’m cleaning up!”

“Watch this,” Mako whispered to Hiro, before calling out “I brought dinner!”

It took a mere three seconds for the door to be thrown open, as Usagi nearly barrelled right into Mako, her mouth watering like a starved wolverine as she caught a whiff of the meal. A broom fell out of her hand and landed on the ground with a thud.

“Hamburgers…” Usagi said. “Gimme!!”

She reached her arms out to grab the food, but she was stopped in place by a strong hand pressed against her forehead.

“Did we forget our manners, Miss Tsukino?” Mako teased.

Usagi let out a whiny “A-Awwwwww…” and pouted, crossing her arms and turning her head away from Mako. “Can’t blame me for being hungry! It’s been a long day!”

“Oh? Well, I guess somebody isn’t getting dinner tonight.”

“NO!” Usagi whined, suddenly getting on her knees like she was a priest at an altar. “P-Pleeeeeeease, Mako, can I have a burger?”

Mako flashed a wry smirk. “You’re so easy to mess with, y’know that?” she laughed, giving a playful roll of her eyes before handing the bag to Usagi. Instantly, Usagi perked up, jumping into the air with the bag in hand.

“Awww shuddup, you love me!” Usagi giggled, playfully slapping her hand against Mako’s arm.

Just then, she noticed Hiro standing next to Mako. The boy was rather put off by her antics, tilting his head as he struggled to say something polite. Mako did tell him that if he couldn’t say anything nice, don’t say anything at all…

“You’re Miss Tsukino?” he finally asked.

Usagi blinked, her eyes darting between Hiro and Mako. Something about this…didn’t feel right to her…

“Uh…you can just call me Usagi!” she chuckled. “I’m guessing you’re the ‘Hiro’ I’ve been hearing so much about? Sorry, didn’t see you there at first.”

Hiro gave an awkward nod, his arms crossed behind his back. “Yes ma’am. And don’t worry, Mom told me you were, um…I think she said ‘scatterbrained’?”

“Don’t be rude, Hiro!” Mako exclaimed, mortified. “Usagi, I—”

“O-Oh no, it’s fine!” Usagi chuckled. “I know I’m a little all over the place!”

Hiro tilted his head into the doorway, already moving past his mother as he examined Usagi’s apartment. A dustpan rested against the wall, covered in a plethora of its namesake. Hiro wrinkled his nose when he saw this–dust always made him sneeze. Usagi followed behind, placing the broom next to the dustpan.

Mako sighed. “Why don’t we get started then? Hiro, since it’s the weekend now, you don’t have to worry about starting your homework right away, so why don’t we get you situated, and then the two of us will…”

“IS THAT A NINTENDO??”

Before Mako could even respond, Hiro had rushed over to the couch and immediately grabbed one of the many game controllers that lay on the floor, holding it like it was a holy relic. His eyes were as wide as dinner plates.

“Y-You have so many consoles!!” Hiro exclaimed, practically bouncing as a smile grew over his face. “Everyone at school keeps talking about games but we can’t even afford them!”

“Some of them look kind of old…” Mako noted. “Usagi, isn’t that your old 64?”

“Yup!” Usagi chuckled, lifting up a visibly battered controller. “Still has some of the damage from when Rei threw it that one time!”

“And you kept all of them?”

“Well, only a couple…” Usagi explained. “Kinda sold the Dreamcast for some extra yen and uh…oh hey, wait, Hiro, look at this!”

As Hiro gently fumbled with an old controller’s joystick, Usagi dashed right past him and opened a cabinet directly underneath her television. She pulled out an old cartridge and blew on it, shaking it in the air before putting it in the console.

“Star Fox 64! We used to play this game all the time when we were kids!”

“Star…Fox?” Hiro asked. “It’s about foxes?”

“Well kinda, yeah!” Usagi chuckled. “You fly around in a space plane thing and shoot enemies and stuff, and it’s even got multiplayer! C’mon, I’ll show you how to play!”

“Usagi, we have work to do!” Mako protested.

“Can’t she, Mom?” asked Hiro. “Just for a bit?”

“ Pleeeeeease ?” Usagi begged.

Mako looked back and forth between the two of them, looking at her with pleading puppy-dog eyes. Unable to stand up to their combined force, she sighed.

“Ten minutes,” she said.

“Yayyyyy!!” Usagi exclaimed, grabbing a controller and turning the console on. “Okay, so what you’re gonna wanna do is…wait, hold on, it’s being a jerk about starting up again, one sec!”

Mako watched as Usagi began to explain the game to Hiro. This wasn’t quite what she had expected from having the two of them meet, but she wasn’t about to complain. There was more joy present on Usagi’s face at this moment than there’d been in the past week.

“And what you’re gonna wanna do is tilt the joystick juuuuuuuuuust a little bit…”

“Like this?”

“Yeah! You’re gettin’ it, kiddo!”

Mako chuckled. Maybe she’d give them a little extra time. Just a little bit.

“So, this Jennie…is she normally this late?”

Caramella looked around the dark alleyway they had been waiting in for the past couple of hours, not exactly bored but a bit confused. Beside her, a fuming Eros sat on the ground with her arms and legs crossed, cursing to herself as the minutes turned to hours. It was all supposed to go swimmingly. She had set up a perfect meeting with one of her star Crystal Knights, but APPARENTLY , Little Miss Starshine here was too “busy” to care about showing up on time. 

“Well, not usually ,” Eros sighed. “Uuuuuuuuugh, where the hell is she? I swear to god, if she doesn’t show up in the next few minutes, I’m gonna freaking–”

Before she could finish that sentence, she was interrupted by an odd sound. Not quite a thump, or a stomp, or really any kind of footstep…it was more of a drumming noise. The sound of a drum being gently tapped with brushes, as a double bass soon joined in a distinctive rhythm.

As a flute noise began to kick in, Eros jumped into the air, her scowl replaced with a big smile. “Ooooooh, here she is! That’s what I’m talkin’ about!”

A cloud of white fog like dry ice at a concert filled the room, as a figure dressed in a suave suit and tie entered, slowly walking like there were cameras watching her every move. Her black hair was cut into a bob, while her skin was pale as could be…in fact, on closer inspection, she looked like she had walked right out of an old black-and-white movie from the 1950’s. She snapped her fingers and swayed her hips, and it soon became clear that the music wasn’t coming from instruments…it was coming from her . Soon enough, she began to sing, her voice low and husky like a mix of whisky and sandpaper, but with a smoothness that was downright jazzy.

“Flyyyyyyyyy me to the moon, and let me playyyyyyyy among the stars…”

Eros playfully rolled her eyes. “Always the showoff, huh?”

The music suddenly stopped, and the dapper figure gave a low chuckle.

“What can I say, doll?” she purred in a surprisingly deep voice. “Jennie Fontaine always has to make an entrance.”

“Yeah, yeah,” Eros said with a wave of her hand. “Anyway…”

She turned to Caramella and nodded.

“Caramella, meet Jennie Fontaine, lounge singer, and my first foray into Crystal Knight creation.”

“And the prettiest!” Jennie chimed in.

“A pleasure,” Caramella said, inclining her head slightly as her eyes glittered mischievously. “Though really, I think that spot’s been taken.”

“Well god damn , doll, someone’s been hittin’ the roids!” Jennie laughed. “Buff vampire in a dress, how cute! But you can’t beat the original, hon.”

Caramella slowly furrowed her brow, glaring down at Jennie. “Excuse you?”

“Girls, girls, you’re both pretty, chill out,” Eros suddenly interrupted, getting between the two of them with her hands raised up. “C’moooon, we’re all friends here! And as friends, you know what we need to do , right?”

Jennie and Caramella exchanged glances. A bead of sweat dripped down Eros’s forehead. There was some obvious tension between her two Knights…

“Alright. I’ll show the rookie the ropes,” Jennie shrugged, suddenly whipping out a cigarette and giving it a puff. “What’s the plan?”

“Oh, just show her how to, you know…send people to sleep with the fishes?” Eros said with a shrug. “Everything that comes with being a Crystal Knight, I suppose. I don’t think we usually have veterans for this sort of thing, know what I’m saying? Anyway, after that, we put our plan into action.”

“A plan, huh?” Jennie asked. “I thought you didn’t want those Sailor gals dead if you could help it, though.”

Eros gave her a wide grin.

“Oh, we’re not gonna try to kill them,” she said, “but we’re gonna make them wish they were dead.”

“Hello, this is Usagi Tsukino…I saw you had an opening for a new position and I was wondering if it was still available. My number is…”

Mako crossed her arms as she slumped onto a chair by the table, feeling very dissatisfied. It had only been a couple of hours, and she’d already applied for half a dozen positions, yet she could feel her apprehension growing as time crept by at an agonizingly slow pace. It didn’t help that Usagi’s apartment was…snug. It was only meant for one person, after all, and that was before Usagi had made herself at home and packed the floor with video game consoles. She had a distinct feeling, however, that this was Usagi on a good day, so she supposed she had to be thankful for that.

“Any luck?” she asked Usagi as she hung up her phone.

Usagi groaned, burying her face in her hands.

“Like two, maybe three positions. Nothing great, though.”

“Well, maybe you need to rethink your approach,” said Mako, getting up out of her chair. “Did you have any references from your last jobs?”

Usagi shook her head. “My last job was a bust. Saved up on money from it, but didn’t exactly leave on good terms.”

“What kind of job was it?”

“Retail.”

“Ouch…” Mako winced. “Hold on, let me see…”

She bent over Usagi’s shoulder to get a look at her laptop screen.

“Wait, are you sure you’ve only applied for two or three?” she asked. “I see a lot of good ones for you here.”

“You think so? I don’t. I mean, come on!”

Usagi scrolled through the listings. “Working at a bakery? I'd just gobble up all the food. Being a librarian? I'd fall asleep! And…” Usagi squinted at the next one. “Huh, this kinda looks interesting. Working with exclusive clientele as a waitress at the Rose Fountain Lounge, big tips guaranteed—”

Oh, crud, not that one again. Mako grabbed at the mouse and scrolled past that listing. “Nope, nope, nope, not a good fit for you.”

“Hey!” Usagi pushed Mako's hand away.

“Just trust me on this.” Mako suppressed a shudder at the thought of Usagi working at a place like that, but then looked at the screen and found her mood brightening again. “Ooh, I see a babysitter position is open…heh, maybe you could be someone’s nanny?”

“As if!” Usagi whined. “I’m not exactly Mary Poppins!”

“Well, no, we’d need to redo your whole wardrobe for that,” Mako joked, poking at Usagi’s rumpled hoodie. “But it’s taking care of kids, right? You’re pretty good with that.”

“Pffffft,” Usagi razzed. “I’m not that good. Not enough to be a babysitter.”

Mako scratched her chin, thinking it over.

“Didn’t Naru say you took care of her daughter for a bit?”

Usagi winced. “I…I don’t wanna talk about that right now.”

Mako shrugged. “Well, in either case, just look at you and Hiro. I haven’t seen him get that excited in a while!”

The two of them looked over at Hiro, only to find that after having worn himself out with Star Fox , he had settled down for a nap in front of the TV, having paused the game beforehand.

“I mean, he was excited earlier ,” said Mako, getting up to put a pillow under his head. “But you get what I mean, right?”

“Well…maybe…but, I mean…”

Usagi’s voice wavered as she tried to think of a response. But despite her best efforts, her attempts at self-deprecation were only becoming more obvious. Every time she tried putting herself down, Mako was there to counter it and pull her back up.

“You know what made me decide I wanted to take care of a kid?” Mako asked.

Usagi shook her head. “Not really, no.”

Mako let out a chuckle. “Well, I’ll be honest, it might sound kinda silly, but…remember when Chibiusa first showed up?”

Usagi’s eyes widened, her stomach folding over itself. “Y-Yeah?”

“Well, y’know…I guess it was nice to take care of her sometimes. I just loved how her face lit up whenever I made her curry or cookies or, well, anything! It made me think…having a kid would be nice. I dunno, it’s kinda dumb when I say it out loud but–”

“I get it.”

Mako paused. “You do?”

“I…I was kind of looking forward to it. Being a mom, I mean,” Usagi said in a quiet voice. “But then…that…didn’t work out…”

Silence fell over the room as Usagi’s thoughts began to wander. She had lost count of the number of times she had envisioned it, their perfect family. Mamoru, dressed in a gorgeous suit as they walked down the aisle. Several months later, they’d bring a pink-haired daughter into the world. Someone Usagi already knew, but who she’d get to know even better…someone she could actually raise and bond with.

Mako gently placed a hand on Usagi’s shoulder. “Hey. It’s never too late.”

Usagi exhaled through her nose. Part of her wanted to say something, but the words felt lodged in her throat.

Isn’t it, though?

“How’d you do it?” she asked instead.

Mako’s eyes turned to the couch where Hiro was sleeping.

“I dunno,” she said. “Seems a bit silly to say it came naturally, but…I guess I always focused on what we needed, and it worked out…for the most part. I already had to raise myself, anyway.”

Turning back towards Usagi, Mako smiled.

“You know what’s something you’re really good at, Usagi?”

Usagi shook her head. “No. No, I…I don’t…”

Mako's smile didn't yield at all. “You have a big heart. You care. And to you, everyone is worth showing kindness.”

Usagi chewed on her lip. Compliments…actual compliments…try as she might, she wasn’t able to get it through her head that they were supposed to be good things, instead of just another set of expectations she’d fail to reach.

“You…you really think so?” she asked hesitantly. “I…I dunno if I deserve that…”

“ Deserve it?” Mako said, her eyebrows shooting up. “Whether you think you deserve it or not, it’s true . Trust me on that.”

Usagi winced again. She crossed her arms, her body tensing up like a scared puppy. “I don’t…think I’m always like that, though. I’m a jerk sometimes.”

“Not everyone is nice all the time,” Mako shrugged. “I mean, you remember how Minako and I fought a lot in the past, right?”

Usagi actually chuckled when she heard that. “You two were pretty awful sometimes, yeah.”

“But she was still my friend, right? So…yeah, we could be jerks, but we still cared about each other. And that’s you. Maybe you act like a jerk one day, but you can still make up for it.”

Usagi nodded. Mako had a way with words that made her stomach unknot itself from whatever was making her nervous. It was…nice. Time hadn’t hampered their friendship whatsoever.

“Alright. I…I think I’ll try broadening my search, and maybe I’ll–”

Before she could finish, she was interrupted by a sudden blaring BZZZZZZT, BZZZZZZT .

“Oh, that’s for me! One second!” Mako said, reaching into her purse and grabbing her phone.

“Hello? Yes, this is she, who is this calling?”

Usagi watched as Mako listened to whoever was on the other end, before suddenly her eyes lit up.

“…oh? … OH? ” she exclaimed in surprise. “O-Oh gosh, I…I-I’m surprised you’d just call me like that, I mean, i-it’s so late and I…y-yes, of course, I’d love to!”

Mako nodded eagerly, apparently forgetting that the person on the other end couldn’t see her.

“Any other jobs? W-Well, I’ve applied to a few but…really? Tomorrow?” she asked. “Well um…yes, I should be able to! A-Alright, thank you, thank you so much! Bye!”

Mako hung up and then, without warning, squealed in delight.

“Who was that?” asked Usagi.

“They were from Kurumada Pharmaceutical Corporation!” Mako said excitedly. “They offered me a job cooking at their cafeteria!”

Usagi knew she should be happy for Mako, but instead she could only feel stunned.

“Just like that?” she asked.

“They said someone had recommended me!” replied Mako. “I dunno, maybe someone from my old job told them I was looking for work? I guess it doesn’t matter, this is great! …Right?”

Mako had stopped smiling, having noticed the look on Usagi’s face. Whatever positivity Usagi had shown earlier was gone, replaced by a frown and downcast eyes that looked utterly unfocused. But it wasn’t mere sadness Mako detected in Usagi. The combination of her fingers feebly touching each other, her mouth wordlessly mumbling, her eyes deliberately avoiding Mako…

“That’s great!” Usagi exclaimed as she suddenly looked up, her mouth spreading into a big grin. “When do you start?”

The sudden change in demeanor only made Mako more apprehensive. Usagi wasn’t this good at hiding her emotions, was she?

“U-Uh, I have an interview tomorrow…” she said. “But we can still work on helping you find a j–”

“Oh no no, it’s fine!” Usagi laughed, waving her hand as if to brush Mako’s worries aside. “You go ahead and get back home, you’ve gotta get good sleep for an interview, uh-huh! I speak from experience here!”

“Um…okayyyyyyyyy…” Mako said, turning around and making her way to the couch. She gently nudged Hiro, who slowly started to come to with a yawn.

“Mmmm…was I asleep for too long?”

“No, just…got some good news for ya, kiddo,” Mako said. She briefly turned back to look at Usagi. Her eyes were staring back at Mako with a distant emptiness to them…

“Let’s talk about it outside, alright? We gotta get back home.”

“Awwww…” Hiro whined. “Can I come over here again to play video games?”

“Come back whenever you want!” Usagi chuckled. “I’ll have plenty of games waiting for you!”

“We’ll be sure to visit again soon,” said Mako. “Bye for now, Usagi.”

“Bye, Ms. Tsukino!” Hiro said with a wave.

“Bye, come again later!” Usagi exclaimed, waving them off.

The door closed. With the silence in Usagi’s now-empty apartment, it was like a firecracker had gone off. The whole room was quiet, not a single peep from anything or anyone. Usagi just stood in place, her smile fading away, her eyes fixed on the door.

It’s good that Mako’s got a job offer lined up. She deserves it.

Her hand slowly balled up into a fist as a cloud of disgust swarmed through her head.

But…why am I so upset about it?

Scowling at herself, she trudged over to the fridge and opened the door. Without even needing to think about it, she withdrew a can of beer and popped it open.

Well , she told herself, no point worrying about it now.

Chapter Text

“Tell me a story, Auntie!”

Naoko was laying snugly in her bed, eagerly looking up at Usagi as she sat next to her. Meanwhile, Naru stood by the bedroom door, silently watching them with a smile. If she had had any worries about whether Usagi would mix well with Naoko, they had long since been dispelled.

“Now Naoko, you know Auntie has to get to bed too, right?” Naru said in a teasing tone.

“Awww, but Mom!” Naoko whined. “Auntie tells the best stories!”

“What can I say?” Usagi chuckled. “I’m a natural!”

Naru sighed. “ Okay, okay, fine,” she conceded. “…as long as Auntie can stay awake for it.”

The two of them squealed in excitement.

“What kind of story would you like?” asked Usagi.

“Tell me a story about a princess!” Naoko whined.

A cheeky grin crossed Usagi’s face. “Oh yeah? I know the BEST story about a princess! It’s one you’ve never even heard of!”

Naoko’s eyes widened with anticipation, and she tugged her covers all the way to her face, covering her nose and mouth with anticipation. Usagi cleared her throat and began her tale.

“Once upon a time, there was a kingdom on the moon, ruled by a white-haired queen and her daughter, Princess Serenity. She was a beautiful girl with long, flowing hair and a gorgeous smile…but she was lonely. The rich life of the kingdom couldn’t compete with a desire for love.”

Naoko mouthed those last few words to herself, something she couldn’t hide no matter how hard she tried. Naru chuckled.

“So one day, she went to Earth, to the Golden Kingdom. There, she met the prince, Endymion. He was a kind man, calm and pretty and very, very smart. It was love at first sight! Their love would blossom until one day, it looked like their kingdoms would be united!”

“But…did something happen?” Naoko asked. Something always did, after all.

Usagi’s expression slowly changed. Sadness took over her voice as she gently breathed out through her nose.

“Well, their story isn’t the happiest one,” she said in a melancholic tone . “Endymion’s servant, Beryl, was jealous of the union between him and Serenity. She wanted Endymion for herself. So she called upon dark magic and became a powerful and wicked queen, ruling the Dark Kingdom. A kingdom of evil and wickedness…and so she attacked the moon kingdom . There was a terrible battle… and the prince and princess…”

Usagi fell silent. She let the words hang in the air as Naoko watched with anticipation. Sometimes, saying nothing at all could tell much more than mere words.

“…that’s a horrible story!” Naoko exclaimed, crossing her arms with a pout. “You’re supposed to tell happy stories, Auntie!”

“Oh, it’s okay!” Usagi suddenly spoke up, expression shifting back to her goofy smile. “It’s still a happy story, silly!”

“But they died!” Naoko whined.

“Says who?” Usagi teased. “I never said anything about that!”

“…wait, what?” Naoko asked, now enraptured in the story again.

“Silly Naoko,” Usagi chuckled, sticking her tongue out at the little girl. “Serenity and Endymion’s love was so strong that it destroyed the Dark Kingdom! They lived for hundreds of years in harmony and peace! Legend has it that every time they pass on , they reincarnate as new people, all to fall in love and reunite over and over again!”

“Oh,” said Naoko, who pondered this for a moment before nodding. “That’s a good story, then! Kind of short, though. You should probably flesh it out more.”

Usagi blinked, flustered. “W-Well…I was just winging it! You put me on the spot, that’s all!”

“Well, maybe next time you can make it longer,” replied Naoko. Any further criticism, however, was silenced when she suddenly let out a huge yawn. “Thanks for the story, though…g’night, Mom…g’night, Auntie.”

With that, she curled up the covers and closed her eyes, and in what seemed like no time at all, she was fast asleep.

“You’re really good with her,” whispered Naru.

“You think so?” Usagi said, suddenly motionless as she faced away from Naru. “But then, you really shouldn’t trust me, should you?”

“…What?”

“After all…” Usagi continued as she slowly turned towards Naru, “… you never know who might be a demon in disguise.”

With a sickening crack of her neck, Usagi’s head turned a complete 180 degrees, her eyes glowing with a red light while sharp teeth suddenly grew out of her mouth, a sadistic, hungry smile on her face. Her entire body contorted itself back with more sickening cracks and pops, as Usagi’s skin began to change into a sickly purple hue, like a decomposing corpse. Her arms and neck became elongated and thin, her head looking almost like a skull, while a raspy, guttural laugh escaped her lips.

“No…” Naru whispered, frozen in fear.

The monster just laughed, extending its long, spindly fingers toward her. Naru could feel a cold, icy grip surrounding her as her body grew weak. Her arm began to shrivel, turning pale and grey. She could feel her skin wrinkling, her heartbeat weakening as her energy drained out of her. Her knees buckled as she fell to the floor, helpless , a husk of her former self .

“N-No…” Naru managed to gasp , her voice struggling to rise above a withered whisper . “No, this can’t…it isn’t…”

“ Can you trust me now, Naru? ” The monster croaked with a throaty chuckle, as it grabbed the sleeping Naoko, ripping her right out of bed like she was a flower in the ground. The little girl didn’t even react, still fast asleep. The monster had its hand right across her head, its intentions all too clear.

“ Can you trust me to keep her safe? To keep YOU safe? ”

The monsters began to pull…

“ USAGI PLEASE! ”

The monster just laughed, and as Naru screamed…

Naru cried out as she sprang up in her bed, her body drenched in sweat. Her ribs tightened as she felt her heart thumping louder and louder against her chest, her breathing strained and her arms shaking. Casting a panicked glance at the clock, she saw it was one in the morning, several hours before she had to get up. Hardly a comforting thought for her, especially when the darkness only made the room feel strange and unfamiliar.

Just a dream… she told herself, chest still heaving. Just a dream…

“Naru…?” came a tired groan from beside her as Gurio sleepily raised his head. “You okay?”

“I’m…yeah, I’m fine, honey…” Naru said as she managed to steady her breathing. “Just…had a nightmare, that’s all.”

“Oh…” Umino said quietly, no doubt going through the considerable number of potential causes for this in his mind. “…You wanna talk about it, or…”

“…I don’t even want to think about it,” Naru said, resignedly laying her head on the pillow once more. “Just try to get some sleep, alright?”

Gurio hesitated for a moment. As tired as he was, it didn’t feel right to set the issue aside like this. In the end, though, it was tiredness that won out.

“I…I guess I can for now…” he yawned, laying his head back down as well . “Good night.”

Naru, however , didn’t close her eyes. The jolt of the nightmare had been a shot of energy to her body. She was tired, her eyes barely able to stay open…but she couldn’t go back to sleep.

“Yeah…good night…” she weakly whispered, knowing that it was going to be anything but.

What the hell was that noise?

Rei couldn’t feel her mattress beneath her. The whole room was dark, but the rattle of something CLANGING nearby kept her from losing total focus. She struggled to open her eyes, wincing as another CLANG shook the floor. An even more annoying SCREEEEEE noise, a whining mechanical buzz, resounded next.

Ugh…the hell kind of dream is this?

With great effort, she forced her eyes open…and immediately wished she hadn’t. They were in pain from an incomplete slumber. She slowly tried to raise her head up, before bumping it against something. A closer inspection would reveal her nightstand and an alarm clock that said 1:35 AM.

Uuuuuuuugh…what could be going on THIS early…

“BANZAAAAAAIIII!!!!”

Oh, that wasn’t good.

By some miracle, Rei forced herself upright and hobbled out of her room, every joint in her body begging to rest. It felt like her body was made of plaster that cracked with each step. She threw the door open and found that Minako, too, had woken up, albeit a little loopier than usual. For one, Minako’s eyes were still closed, and it didn’t look like she knew if she was awake or asleep. For another…Minako was waving around a giant sword.

Oh goddamn it, where did she find that thing??

“BEGONE FROM OUR KINGDOM, YOU DREGS!” Minako shouted, carelessly swinging the sword around and nearly chopping off a chunk of Rei’s wall. “THE SILVER MILLENNIUM SHALL GIVE YOU NO QUARTER! IN THE NAME OF VENUS, I SHA–”

“WHAT THE FUCK ARE YOU DOING??”

Well, that got Minako to wake up a little more. Her eyes suddenly opened up as she slipped on her socks, landing butt-first on the ground, the sword falling right next to her.

“Oh, Rei…” she mumbled with a yawn. “Is it over? Did I scare them off?”

“No one’s attacking, idiot,” growled Rei. “Just let me check outside…”

Shuffling over to the window, Rei peered outside to see a whole crowd of construction workers surrounding the temple. Everywhere she looked, hammers banged on nails, drills hissed  as they screwed down wood, and electric saws revved and whined as the burnt portions of the temple were painstakingly removed and replaced.

Oh, right. It’s them.

Minako walked beside Rei to take a peek out the window as well. She tilted her head with a half-asleep, doe-eyed expression as she saw the work in progress .

“Isn’t it a little late for them to be doing this?” she asked. “Or…a little early?”

Rei winced as another saw revved up to cut wood. “I’m guessing he wanted people to work while I wasn’t awake…but I can’t exactly sleep when they’re doing that .”

“So what, then?” asked Minako. “You gonna go out and let ‘em have it?”

If looks could kill, Minako would have been dead a thousand times over.

“Or…we could… not …do that…” she added sheepishly, trying to ignore Rei’s quiet glare.

“Go back to bed, Minako,” Rei sighed, already turning back towards her bedroom. “And put that sword back wherever you—wait, where did you even find that?”

“ The Holy Sword of the Silver Crystal?” Minako asked, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. “Same place you kept Usagi’s transformation pen. Was that where you kept our wands?”

Rei let out a groan. “Right…forgot…” she grumbled. “Just put that thing back where you found it. If this keeps going, I’ll…probably find us a new place to meet with the others, I don’t know. Good night.”

Not bothering to wait for a response, Rei stalked back to her room as quickly as she could. Flopping back onto her bed, she closed her eyes and tried to will herself to sleep. She could feel her body sinking into the mattress, sleepy thoughts returning…and then a nail gun went KA-CHUNK outside and woke her back up.

It’s going to be a long night, isn’t it?

“This doesn’t look too casual, does it?”

Hiro took in the sight of his mother as she looked at him imploringly. In front of him, she wore a white blouse and black skirt, and her unkempt hair had been properly combed and straightened. It was an unusual look for her, but not an entirely unknown sight for Hiro. As he slowly scooped a spoonful of cereal into his mouth and carefully swallowed it, he pondered what he should say.

“I think it looks good,” he answered after thinking for a bit . “But I don’t think it’s that different from the others you showed me…”

“Well…some of them have different stitching…” Mako awkwardly replied.

“If you say so,” said Hiro, continuing to eat his cereal.

Mako gave a pout, huffing as she walked back to her bedroom to finish getting ready. She pulled out a mascara wand from a nearby dresser and applied it to her eyelashes, while simultaneously slipping into a pair of black dress shoes she’d left next to her bed.

“Y’know, one of these days I’m gonna have to teach you a thing or two about fashion, kiddo,” she said, setting her mascara aside and swiftly grabbing a perfume container. “You’re gonna have to wow the girls at your school sometime, y’know!”

Hiro winced at that comment, pausing mid-chew. “I-I’m not into any girls, though!”

“Oh? Into any boys?”

“N-No!”

He might not have seen Mako smirking, but he could certainly feel it. “That Naoko girl definitely seemed into you, at least.”

“S-She’s just my friend!!” Hiro whined, giving a sad little pout as he tried to change the subject. “A-And besides, I think there are more important things to talk about than crushes!”

“Oh?” Mako chuckled. “Like what?”

“Like, uh…you going to another interview? Again?”

Mako sighed. “You let me worry about that, alright kiddo?”

“But you’re asking m—alright, I guess…”

Hiro sighed, returning to eating his cereal. “You still go to interviews a lot…” he mumbled mid-chew.

Mako paused right in the middle of putting a pair of flower-shaped earrings on. “Um…could you repeat that, Hiro? I couldn’t hear you…”

“…Nothing, never mind.”

Mako walked out of her room and crossed her arms against her chest, looking down at Hiro. The poor kid looked down at his half-eaten cereal, unsure of what to say.

“Got something on your mind?” Mako asked. She gently placed her hand against Hiro’s shoulder and flashed a reassuring smile. “You can tell me, kiddo. I won’t be upset.”

Hiro slowly lifted his head. “I know I’m not supposed to be worried but…you can fail an interview, right?”

Mako paused for a moment to think of a response. “Well…yeah, lots of people fail interviews. That just means finding another place and doing better at the next one. I think I’ve passed enough interviews not to be worried, though.”

“But that’s…I don’t…” Hiro couldn’t quite make out what he wanted to say. He was too young to really understand all of this. He fumbled with his hands, stammering a little as the words struggled to come out of his mouth.

“You always seem so mad about your new jobs…you’re not gonna be mad about this one, are you?”

“Well…I don’t think so…” Mako said hesitantly. “It’s just…well, when you’re a grown-up, sometimes things can get a little rough, and that can be…frustrating. But if you can tough it out, it’s all worth it in the end.”

“Worth it how?” Hiro asked.

Mako just gave a smile. She reached her hand out and ruffled Hiro’s hair.

“ That way, I can be there for you as much as I can.”

“…do you have to work at places you don’t even like just to do it, though?”

Mako froze. Slowly, almost absentmindedly, she stroked Hiro’s hair for a moment, then knelt down and looked him in the eye.

“Hey, it’s not that bad, kiddo,” Mako said gently. “It’s just…well, sometimes there aren’t a lot of good choices. But between you and me, I’m pretty tough.”

She winked at him, jokingly flexing a bicep. Hiro wasn’t laughing, though.

“You promise?” he asked softly. “You’ll be okay?”

Mako’s expression faltered for a moment. A cold chill ran through her chest as an unwanted memory flicked through her mind.

“If something happens and I don’t come back…I’ve already died twice, yeah? What if the next time is it?”

She looked at Hiro. He looked so innocent. He only knew as much as any normal eight-year-old would. He hardly knew about Mako’s job issues…or about her other career.

“I promise you, Hiro, I’ll be okay.”

Hiro still seemed a little unsure, but he managed a firm nod. Satisfied for now, Mako went to gather her things, checked herself one last time in the bathroom mirror , grabbed her purse , and then made to leave.

“Don’t throw any wild parties while I’m gone, okay?” she joked, giving Hiro a kiss on the cheek as she left.

“I’ll keep everything spotless!” Hiro said, waving her off with a shy little smile. “Good luck!”

But even after the door closed behind her, Mako didn’t walk. She stood and thought for a moment, clutching her purse’s handle as a tightness grew over her chest.

I promised him…I’m not lying to him, am I? But…he still doesn’t know that I’m…

She shook her head. No. Now was not the time for this. She took a deep breath, relaxed her shoulders, and set off for the bus stop. She had other things to worry about .

Usagi felt like a mallet was hammering away at her skull; the usual for her hangovers, of course, but it was the last thing she needed right now. Woozy as she was, she was trying to make herself more presentable for this. She had changed out of her pajamas for something less sloppy, wearing a simple green t-shirt under her pink bunny jacket, as well as relatively neat jeans and sneakers. Hopefully it was enough.

I’ve gotta keep it together, she thought to herself as she walked down the apartment hallway, wincing slightly at her headache. I owe her that much.

Arriving at Naru’s door, she took a deep breath. She raised her hand to knock, but hesitated. Her knuckles almost touched the door by mere centimeters.

Well, here goes…

Throwing caution to the wind, she knocked.

“Hey Naru, you there?” she called out. “It’s Usagi!”

No answer. Usagi sighed before continuing to knock.

“Hello, Naru? Look, I just need to talk—”

Suddenly the door opened. Usagi jumped back in surprise, only to tilt her head in confusion when instead of Naru, she was instead greeted by empty air. Her confusion was answered, however, when she looked down to see Naoko staring back up at her.

“Auntie Usagi?” the young girl asked, puzzled. “What are you doing here?”

Usagi blinked. “O-Oh, hey, Naoko! Just needed to talk to your mom! Is she around?”

Naoko shook her head. “Nah, Mommy and Daddy went off for a walk. They said they needed to talk about ‘grown-up things’. Bleh!”

“So…they left you here alone?” asked Usagi, blearily shaking her head . That didn’t make any sense to her—they usually knew better than to leave Naoko by herself. The little girl’s body was practically on autopilot half the time.

“They said they’d only be gone for a bit, but it’s been wayyyyyyyy more than a bit,” Naoko grumbled as she crossed her arms and pouted.

Despite the panging in her head and the ick in her stomach, Usagi knew she couldn’t leave this be. Something about that girl’s situation made the pain feel less intense, like she was willing herself to focus.

“Wellll… ” she said as she casually stepped inside, “maybe I could stay with you until they come back? Must be awfully lonely.”

“Sure,” said Naoko as she closed the door behind them. “Was getting pretty boring, yeah.”

Usagi looked around the apartment, thankfully still in one piece. The couch wasn’t torn, the TV wasn’t busted, the fridge was fully stocked… on the surface, nothing was out of the ordinary…though that didn’t mean it was so. Usagi quietly ignored the hunger in her stomach as she carefully studied Naoko, the little redhead sitting on the sofa with a glum expression .

“Somethin’ got ya down, Naoko?” Usagi asked in as gentle a voice as she could muster.

Naoko shrugged. “Mommy’s upset and I don’t know why. She won’t tell me. It’s ‘grown-up’ talk or something.”

A chill ran up Usagi’s spine when she heard this.

Naru’s still upset? Shit, how mad did I make her?

“Did she say why she was upset?”

Naoko shook her head. “She just said something about the news and the monsters and stuff.”

“Oh…” Usagi said, breathing a quiet sigh of relief through her nose. Deciding she needed something to drink, she walked into the kitchen and poured herself a glass of water.

“I wouldn’t blame her, then,” Usagi said to Naoko as she took a sip. “ Those monsters are scary stuff .”

Naoko gave a huff. “But that’s the thing, Auntie! Sailor Moon can just beat them now that she’s back!”

Usagi half-choked, half-spat out her water, making a noise that sounded something like a “GGHHACK!!”

“Auntie! Auntie, are you okay?!” Naoko frantically asked as Usagi continued to gag.

“I’m fine…” Usagi said weakly as she got her windpipe under control. “ Just…you think Sailor Moon…can beat those guys that easily?”

“Well, Daddy told me she’s done it before!” Naoko eagerly explained. “She’s cool and strong and I saw on the TV where she showed off these super cool powers! She can defeat the monsters no problem!”

“Your…dad told you, huh…” Usagi slowly repeated to herself.

Figures that Umino would tell her…

“Yeah! He said Sailor Moon saved the world before! She’ll save it again, right?”

It was anxiety-inducing enough for Usagi to be in Naru’s apartment with just Naoko present, given the circumstances. But this being added into the mix made her stomach heave a little. She swallowed some saliva back, her cheeks tinged green.

“Right, auntie?”

Usagi gulped…and donned a fake grin.

“Y-Yeah, of course! Sailor Moon always saves the day!”

Naoko triumphantly pumped her fist into the air, bouncing with a giddy grin on her face. “Hell yeah! She kicks bad guy butt and blows ‘em up!”

“Right!” said Usagi, trying her best to feign enthusiasm.  “Probably shouldn’t talk like that around adults but right! Now, um, I-I don’t wanna stay here too long. Did your mom say when she’d get back?”

“In about an hour…” Naoko sighed , her enthusiasm suddenly dropping. She slumped against the couch, messy red hair crinkling against the back .

“…Are they going to be okay , Auntie ?”

Usagi winced, a painful knot forming in her temple from the throbbing headache that refused to go away. 

“Naoko…I…”

Usagi didn’t finish. The sound of a key being placed inside a lock and the rattling of a door echoed through the apartment. Usagi let out a gulp, eyes widening like a deer caught in the headlights.

“Naokooooooooo, daddy’s home!” came Gurio’s nasal voice, as he proudly brandished a styrofoam bowl of ice cream. “And we bought treats! Not monster-y ones!”

“Get it while it’s cold!” came Naru’s voice. “It’s your favorite, cookies and cr–”

Naru suddenly fell silent , her expression changing into a similar one to Usagi’s.

For a moment, nobody said anything. Gurio awkwardly shuffled over to Naoko, handing her the ice cream.

“Why don’t we eat in your room?” he said quietly, gently nudging her away from the rising tension. Naoko’s eyes darted between her mother and Usagi, and she hesitantly nodded.

Even after the door to Naoko’s room closed, Usagi and Naru continued their shared silence . Usagi coughed, keeping her hands close to her chest.

“U-Um…hey,” she finally said.

“…hey,” Naru said back, her voice lowering into a quiet whisper.

Another moment of silence. Neither of them could figure out what to say. Usagi thought something was off about Naru’s expression—it wasn’t just awkward or anxious…something about it felt scared .

Before Usagi could speak up, though, Naru took her chance.

“Can we…talk outside?”

If Usagi’s stomach could sink any lower, it would be in an underwater trench.

“S-Sure…”

There was no one else inside the elevator when Mako stepped inside. The only sound was the humming noise of going up the floors and the dinging whenever they arrived . When it reached the fourth floor, Mako took a deep breath.

You can do this. You’ve got this. Just put on a smile, act nice, and then you can make this last.

The doors opened up. She felt confident. She felt self-assured. Nothing could possibly go wrong here.

She took one step forward…and bumped right into another woman, knocking the coffee right out of her hand.

“O-Oh gosh, I’m so sorry!” Mako exclaimed. Thankfully, her own outfit was unscathed. The coffee had mostly spilled on the floor…unfortunately, some of it had landed on the woman’s papers that were also on the floor. The woman didn’t look particularly happy about that. She shot a silent but angry glare at Mako, before grabbing her things and huffing away. As she left, she muttered something that Mako couldn’t quite make out, though she was sure she’d heard the word “Beanstalk”.

Yeah, well, screw you too, Mako thought bitterly . It was hard enough to hold her anger back on a good day, let alone a day this important . She did her best, however, to push it out of her mind. If she was going to be working here, she couldn’t afford to hold grudges…she just hoped that they wouldn’t either…

“Oh, don’t worry about that,” came a nearby voice. “Accidents happen, after all.”

Mako turned to see a woman with white hair tied into a bun and horn-rimmed glasses looking up at her. It was strange, she hadn’t even heard this woman walking by her. But what was more, while the mystery woman was definitely taller than many of the workers here, she was a head shorter than Mako herself. It seemed no matter where she went, Mako’s height was always going to stand out.

“S-Sorry…” Mako nervously said. “Just a little excited I guess…I’m here to see a…Hestia Tokugawa?”

“ Speaking ,” the woman politely nodded. “That would make you Makoto Kino, then?”

“Yes ma’am!” Mako said, giving a swift bow. “Thank you for having me.”

“The pleasure’s all mine,” said Hestia. “Come into my office, we’ll talk more there.”

Mako followed Hestia through the winding corridor of cubicles and computers until they arrived at an office with a big brown desk right in the middle, full of drawers and stacks of paper lying on top of it. The place felt cluttered, to put it mildly; folders and sticky notes littered the corners of the room , boxes stacked across the floor and rose into the ceiling, with the computer in the middle of the desk being covered in various notes and reminders, plus one random sticker of a rabbit.

Mako had to squeeze her shoulders together just to fit through some of this clutter, before grabbing a black office chair. She pondered for a moment whether to sit in it—the chair was big enough for her to fit , but it was clearly set for a much shorter person. Mako attempted to fiddle with the lever to raise it, but it didn’t budge , presumably being stuck that way . She sat down, her hands awkwardly crossed beneath her chest.

“Now then, Miss Kino, ” Hestia said, pulling out one of the folders and opening it up, “I have your file here…why don’t you start by telling me a bit about yourself?”

Mako awkwardly shifted in her seat. It was a horrid thing to balance, trying to make eye contact with a much shorter person without scaring them off. She couldn’t hunch over, she had to stand straight and firm, but not so firm that she looked imposing.

“ Well…” she began, trying her best to sound confident, “ I’ve lived in Juuban for… about half my life , I think? I mean, I moved at one point, but that was a long time ago, I can’t remember exactly when. Now let’s see, what else… I’m a single mother, but I have a lot of experience balancing that with work… I always do my best to get along with my co-workers, and I try to be nice to everyone I meet and treat them with kindness.”

“I see,” Hestia said, nodding . “And your previous work experience?”

Mako gulped. This was going to be the hard part.

“Well…I owned a flower shop in Roppongi at one point…we called it the Cherry Blossom Clinic…”

“We?”

Mako suddenly let out a squeak as she realized what she’d said.

Crap.

“W-Well…okay, when I say I owned it, I meant more…co-owned…with…my partner… ”

“Your partner?” Hestia said with a raised eyebrow. “Hm…incidentally, are you married? You have a ring on.”

Mako fidgeted with her fingers as she placed a hand over her ring. “Yes, but…separated.”

“I see,” Hestia nodded. “ Well, it happens. Moving on, what other jobs have you held in the past?”

Mako let out a breath she hadn’t realized she was holding, glad to leave the topic of marriage behind.

“Well, I…I was a cook at a diner called Ikuhara’s. But it closed after a monster attack.”

“Oh, I’m sorry to hear that,” said Hestia, giving her a sympathetic look. “What terrible luck. Those Sailor Guardians weren’t able to stop it?”

“Oh, no, they did in the end!” Mako said hurriedly, feeling the urge to defend herself. “We all made it through, so that’s what’s important, right?”

“Hm…well, I suppose I can’t argue with that,” Hestia said, her expression impenetrable. “Now then, seeing as that position appears to be most relevant to this one, could you tell me a little more about it?”

“Oh, well…” Mako said, collecting her thoughts while she talked. “I… well, I cooked a lot of food for people, of course. Some days we would have dozens of people coming in at a time during the lunch rush, and that’s not even getting into the dinner shift… we always used fresh ingredients, those taste the best…”

“Ah, wonderful!” Hestia said with a smile. “We were actually hoping to expand our cafeteria and improve the quality of our ingredients—that kind of experience would be a great help.”

“Oh!” Mako exclaimed, somewhat surprised that her grasping at straws had worked out so well. “Yes, I can definitely help with that!”

“Excellent,” Hestia said with a nod. “Well then, I suppose it’s about time for us to wrap this up, hm?”

Mako blinked. No longer paying attention to her, Hestia pulled out a folder, turned her chair towards her computer, and began typing up a spreadsheet . It was like whatever had transpired in the past few minutes hadn’t happened at all…

“I-Is…is the interview over?” Mako asked cautiously.

Hestia slowly turned around, smiling . “Oh, my, so silly of me! Yes, you’ve got the job, Miss Kino.”

“Oh gosh, thank you so much!” exclaimed Mako, momentarily forgetting herself. She quickly stood up and bowed her head, doing her utmost to look grateful.

“Of course,” Hestia said with a friendly nod. “You’ll start on Monday at 7 AM. We’ll provide you with a uniform, but please wear something you won’t be afraid to get dirty. Is that acceptable?”

“Yes, of course!” Mako said eagerly. “That won’t be a problem at all!”

“Wonderful,” Hestia said, as she stood up to show Mano to the door. “Then all I need you to do is simply to sign here…”

She pulled out a contract and slid it towards Mako, offering her a pen. Accepting it, Mako eagerly signed where she was directed, and in no time had filled out the whole form.

“Perfect,” said Hestia as she took the contract back. “And let me be the first to say, ‘Welcome to the family .’”

“ T-Thank you! You won’t regret this, I promise!” Mako exclaimed, giggling with a childish glee that she could barely bother to hide. Her nightmare was over. She’d found another job. She could be secure now. She could be–

“Oh, and one more thing.”

“Ah! Yes, Miss Tokugawa?”

“ Please give my regards to Miss Mizuno for the recommendation.”

It was like a piece of glass had shattered inside Mako’s chest.

“I-I’m sorry, I…w-what do you–”

It was too late. Hestia had closed the door, leaving Mako standing alone, clutching her purse even tighter than when she’d entered the room.

W-What was that? she thought, her mind spinning. Did…did she mean…did Ami…?

Noticing that she was starting to get strange looks, Mako hurried out of the office, trying to piece together what had just happened. She meant that Ami had recommended her, right? Of course, there had to be more than one Miss Mizuno in the world…but then again, she only knew one. So it certainly seemed likely it was her…but c’mon, that wasn’t a bad thing, was it?

Then why did she feel a knot forming in her stomach?

She made her way into the elevator, forcibly jabbing the “Close” button. As she waited for it to descend, however, she felt her phone vibrate. Checking it, she saw a text message from Rei had been sent to the whole group.

we need to meet at Ami’s tonight. urgent. here’s her address.

Well, Mako thought, this was one way she could get answers…

The hallway seemed to close in on Usagi as they exited Naru’s apartment. It had only been a day since she had last spoken to Naru, having wanted to give her the space she needed, but now that they were talking again, it was like something had Usagi’s chest in a vice.

Naru didn’t say anything right away, which only made Usagi’s apprehension grow. Without thinking, she made the first move.

“I was, um…kinda looking for you…” she explained. “I saw Naoko was alone and kinda invited myself in…sorry if that was, like, weird or anything.”

 Naru quietly sighed , but still seemed to hesitate. Usagi gulped, continuing to talk.

“I-I, um…just kinda thought that leaving her by herself was a bad idea. It felt, irresponsible, I guess…”

“Usagi…”

Naru’s tone was slow and halting, like she was reluctant to speak up. But she forced herself to talk regardless.

“I…know that I kind of…ran off suddenly and all…”

“Don’t apologize,” Usagi interrupted. “I’m really sorry for how I acted…”

Naru hesitated again. Usagi could feel her shoulders tense up.

“I-I called the therapist,” Usagi said.  “I felt bad about making you storm off like that and…I-I know I need to change a few things…I’ve been trying to talk more with friends, get out of my apartment and find jobs. I spent a couple of hours job-hunting with Mako yesterday, and something actually turned up! Not for, um, me, Mako got an interview. But hey, good for her, right? Maybe I'll be the lucky one next time?”

She forced a smile, mustering up what little confidence she could to look reassuring. She felt like she was doing a decent enough job. She was an expert at this, right?

“So, yeah. I'm fixing things, for real. And I know I couldn't do it without you, so I'm really, really, really sorry about yesterday. I know I can be kind of tough to help, but I want you to know that... it means so much that you're still always here for me.”

Naru looked surprised. Usagi pondered if this was a good thing. Maybe this wouldn’t be so bad after all?

“I think…” Naoko said hesitantly, “…I need to…change a few things too.”

“…Like what?” Usagi asked.

“Like…all of… this, kinda?” Naru waved her hands around frantically, unsure how to verbalize it properly. “Look, I don’t wanna start another fight…I-I’m glad you’re getting help, I really am, but this constant, emotional… volatile behavior, it’s too much for me. I can’t keep trying to help you anymore…I’m sorry… ”

The headache that Usagi had worked so hard to get under control returned with a vengeance. As nausea swelled inside her, she leaned her hand against the wall to steady herself, panting slightly.

“Usagi?” Naru asked, concerned. “You okay?”

“I’m fine…” Usagi wheezed. “I’m fine…”

Naru drew back, looking conflicted.

“I…Usagi…” she said nervously. “I…the thing is…I’m starting to think I’m doing too much. I’m…not sure that’s good for you.”

“B-But you’re not doing too much !” Usagi protested. “Y-You’re just helping me out while I–”

“While you get back on your feet, yeah,” Naru interrupted, her tone sounding more frustrated as she finished Usagi’s sentence. “You've gotten jobs before. What was it last time, retail? And Dairy Queen before that, before they closed down? You've gotten your new job and cleaned up your act, and I've been so happy for you. I've been really thinking that this was going to be the one. And then it lasts a little while, until something happens, I don't even know what, and the job is gone and you're back to square one, begging me to cover your rent. You're stuck in a cycle, Usagi, and…”

Stuck. Was that what she called it? Stuck? Usagi made something between a groan and a sigh, feeling a little angry hearing this.

“No, I know, but this time really is different! I'm seeing the girls again, I'm getting outside more often, and I'm taking better care of myself. I'm okay! ”

As was quickly evident from Naru’s sudden glare, this was the wrong thing to say.

“See, this is exactly what I’m talking about!” said Naru, starting to raise her voice. “You’re not okay! Sure, some days are better than others, but do you know how many times I’ve had to practically drag you out of your apartment just to do literally ANYTHING except lock yourself indoors?”

“I never asked for you to drag me anywhere !” Usagi shot back. “You were always who came to me!”

“Because I care about you!” answered Naru. “But how can I help you if you don’t even care about yourself? I took you to the festival because you needed something to do other than mope! But no matter how many times I see you smile while we’re out there, what happens? You crawl back into the apartment, mope again, and the cycle keeps going! Do you think I’m happy letting you near my daughter when you’re like THIS?? ”

Usagi’s face turned pale as nausea ratcheted back up. Naru wouldn’t…no, she wouldn’t go this far…would she?

“Like what?” Usagi sniffled. “L-Like what? ”

“Like an ALCOHOLIC , Usagi!”

Usagi froze. Even if part of her knew this was where Naru was heading with this, it didn’t make it hurt any less.

“You’re killing yourself like this!!” Naru frantically continued. “ You wake up looking nauseous and smelling like beer, and I’m just supposed to be fine with it? I have my life, my family, my career, and…I’m not a fucking doctor, alright?? I can’t fix you, not when you don’t even seem to know that you have a problem! ”

“What makes you think I DON’T know??” Usagi fired back, leaping to her feet. Naru didn’t know when she had crossed the line. No…she just didn’t know when to shut. The hell. Up .

“ All these years puking my guts out and it somehow never occurred to me that something was wrong?!” she ranted. “But what the hell was I supposed to do, anyway? What would have been the fucking point?”

“That’s—”

But Usagi wouldn’t let Naru get a word in.

“Oh, I’m so sorry I don’t have your perfect little life!” she practically snarled. “ Miss Pretty Little Two-Shoes with her loving husband and kid! You don’t know anything about what I’m dealing with, and if you did? You’d wanna get plastered too! Something to forget how fucked up everything is!”

Naru took a step back in shock. Of all things she had expected from Usagi…this was so much further. For a moment, she was at a loss for words…but only a moment.

“Maybe I don’t have your life,” she said in a harsh, yet quiet voice, “but you cannot expect me to believe this is remotely acceptable. Not with Naoko, not with anyone.”

“Hey, I care about Naoko!”

“THEN ACT LIKE IT!”

It took all of Usagi’s self-control not to let out a scream of incoherent fury. Like chaining an angry bear, she somehow managed to get herself under control, but only just.

“…I know I have a problem,” she said out of clenched teeth. “But I'm not some sort of…out of control drunk. I would never let my problems hurt Naoko. And if you think I would, then you don't know me at all."

“I know you better than you think ! ” Naru shouted.

“What could you possibly know!?” Usagi shot back.

“I know you're–”

Naru stopped short and stared at her. Usagi saw the same watery red eyes she had reflected back at her.

“I know you're not in control like you think ,” she whispered. “I know that Naoko thinks the world of you, and that she's smart enough to notice things about you even if you try to pretend nothing's wrong… ”

She hesitated for a moment, her lip quivering as her breathing became strained.

  “ And that she's going to realize what her favorite aunt is doing one day … and you're going to break her heart.”

Usagi wanted to fight back. She wanted to rebut Naru’s point somehow. She wanted to prove that Naru was wrong…but she couldn’t. And it made her furious that she couldn’t say anything to this.

“You wanna know something messed up, Usagi?”

Usagi didn’t answer, knowing she wasn’t going to like what came next. Naru took in another shaky breath through her nose. The last words she had to say were practically choking her as she struggled to talk through an ever-growing amount of tears.

“I…get so exhausted talking to you, sometimes. It feels like the only time you reach out is when some new thing has gone wrong in your life and you need something from me. I want to be your friend, Usagi! I want to talk to you without spending the whole conversation wondering what you're about to spring on me this time! It's exhausting! It…it hurts…”

Naru sniffled, clenching her fists. Usagi didn’t say a word. She desperately wanted to be somewhere else right now—anywhere at all, as long as it wasn’t here. For a moment, she felt like she had left the room, like she was watching a movie about her and Naru…

…and then she blinked, and it all came rushing back. The tension in the room could be cut with a pin drop.

“Usagi…”

Usagi slowly lifted her head up. Naru’s tear-stained eyes looked back at her like a sad dog’s.

“I-I’m sorry…I’m…I just…”

“I came here to apologize .”

Usagi’s voice was quiet and shakier than Naru’s, but it was enough to shut Naru up. Her eyes looked exhausted and defeated, red with tears. But they stared at Naru unblinkingly , long enough to let Naru see the dull rage burning behind them.

“If you want to cut me off, fine ,” Usagi spat. “I don’t need your help. But don’t tell me that you know me.” Her voice rose just a bit, and then lowered again. “You don’t .”

She turned around and walked away, and didn't say another word.

Naru let out a gasp and sank against the nearest wall. She sucked in a breath through her teeth, and wiped her face with her sleeve, feeling a stabbing pain in her torso like she'd ripped a bandage off and taken the skin with it. Hearing all the horrible things she'd said to someone who meant so much to her, the thoughts still ringing in her ears.

And she'd say them all again if she had to. She wasn't sure whether that knowledge was comforting, or the worst part of all…but maybe this was good. Maybe this was the push her friend needed. At least Naru could tell herself that.

Her breathing steadied. Naru rubbed her eyes, feeling…something like emptiness, in her chest. Or maybe she just felt less weighed down.

“I'm sorry.” Her voice was quiet enough that no one else could hear. She stared down the empty hallway.

Briefly, she would think back to old memories. Thoughts of school days and Usagi complaining about her grades, the two of them hanging out and listening to music or looking at jewelry. Thoughts of peaceful times…nicer times…

Naru winced, tears streaming down her face.

“Best of luck…Sailor Moon.”