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Author of 25 Stories |
Of This World And Yesterday
Let the Door of Time split the
heavens and open to me....
-Chibiusa, Bishojo Senshi Sailormoon,
manga vol. 5
Chapter 1- Ripple
The library was a quiet place at night. Other
members of the makeshift ‘family’ were usually asleep, or moving about
other assorted tasks; studying for school, watching television, doing dishes.
So the library became the customary place that Meioh Setsuna, also called
Sailor Pluto, Guardian of Time, returned to in the darkness.
A small circle of mist swirled on the hardwood
floor, twirling in the checkerboard of moonlight let in though the high
window. Heeled feet filled the empty space, then a tap sounded as the tip
of the Timestaff touched the floor. Mist momentarily circled the elusive
senshi of time, then faded away to reveal only Setsuna, in a casual navy
colored dress. With a frown, she slipped off her sandals, walking out of
the room in her bare feet.
Youkai.
The word itself bothered her little. Down
the centuries, she had seen more than a fair share of the race. Their population,
in the more recent centuries, had dwindled. Fewer and fewer walked the
streets of Tokyo now, and those there did so cautiously. Over time, their
powers had not so much weakened as were overwhelmed by the sheer number
of humans, and the advancing technologies they developed.
No, fighting a youkai this night did not upset
Setsuna.
The fact that this youkai emerged out of a
distortion in the timestream did.
How? How had he pierced the walls of time,
without a timekey? The warping, apparently, but an alteration as massive
as that should have screamed for her attention immediately, not slipping
by, small enough to be checked out in leisure time. And the girl. There
was a girl there, and though the currents of time swirled around
her as well, she wore a school uniform, clearly of this era. Crossing time
was dangerous. What were they doing? The two spoke with familiarity, so
this had been going on for some time.
Why was the distortion so small? The logical
explanation would be that their time hopping was foreordained, but that
was preposterous. Having knowledge of the future was dangerous, and particularly
so in the hands of a youkai.
That weapon. A katana that transformed, growing
massive- much larger than even Uranus’ Space Sword. A youkai weapon, clearly,
and he had been preparing to use it on her just as she fired off a Dead
Scream.
Setsuna was worried. Ripples could spread
in the timestream quickly.
A tang of sulfur reached her senses as she
passed into the kitchen, seeing a small figure standing next to the counter,
lighting a partially melted lavender candle with a match.
She was still getting used to seeing the newest
member of their little family around the house. Kami’s joining them just
over a month ago was only now settling into routine, and she was still
accustoming herself to her new life in this era. Another example of the
timestream undergoing odd, unexpected distortions. Though in Kami’s case,
the distortions were very linear. Being reborn into this time, never having
been a senshi before; that kept things neat, and Setsuna was glad of it.
The newest senshi blew out the match as the
candle’s glow reflected up into her face. Her usual loops of black hair
were undone, plaited instead for sleep. Pale, lavender eyes glanced upward,
lids drooping slightly, though smiling at seeing the older woman.
“Konbanwa, Setsuna-san.”
“Konbanwa, Kami.”
Some small shade of worry colored her voice,
giving the other girl pause to look up, puzzled. “Daijobu ka, Setsuna-san?”
Dark brows lowered slightly, suspecting something wrong.
In reply, Setsuna sighed, shaking her head.
“Well enough. How is Hotaru?”
She glanced away for a moment, towards the
hallway that led to the room of the youngest of the Outer Senshi. A fond
smile formed on Kami’s lips as she reached out with her tentative powers,
searching for the slumbering mind of the little girl who would have been
her sister, in a very different time and place. “She sleeps. It is as well,
with Haruka-chan and Michiru-chan away...starting school again after you
schooled her here...she’ll need the rest.” Then her expression grew serious
again, the smile fading away. “Setsuna-san...you’ve been fighting, ne?”
The soldier of time sighed, running an hand
though her hair and meeting the small bun she held it back with. With a
frown, she unbound it, twisting the rubber band around her wrist as she
leaned forward against the opposite side of the counter. “Nothing to worry
about.”
Kami frowned, clearly hearing the word ‘yet’
at the end of Setsuna’s sentence. But she was not prone to prying, particularly
with Setsuna, who liked to keep her secrets to herself. She cupped the
worn candle in her hands, the remnants of her ‘birthday’ present several
weeks ago.
“Hai...then I’m going to get some sleep...if
things change...” she looked down, then worriedly at Setsuna. “Tell me,
onegai? I know I don’t know what I’m doing so much, but I want to help.”
Setsuna allowed herself a small smile. Kami
may be inexperienced, but for all the bizarre events that brought her to
them, she was coping fairly well. And nightly fulfilling her duties as
Sailor Dreamweaver. Slipping into and out dreams, the only other senshi
beside herself required to do her duties even when there were times of
peace.
“Hai...don’t worry about it, Kami. Get some
sleep. You’ve been working tonight too, haven’t you?”
That earned a shy smile in reply, and then
a polite bow as she turned in a swirl of white nightgown, reflecting the
candle’s glow in the darkness.
The past. Tomoe Kami, a young woman from the
past.
Ripples in time.
Youkai.
Setsuna frowned. Returning to the jinja was
necessary, to determine exactly how bad the distortions had become, to
see how much they influenced the present. Frowning, she ran though the
battle in her mind, picking out details. Youkai, though fairly human in
appearance. That meant strength, she remembered. Golden eyes had peered
into her own garnet colored ones, with slit pupils, like a cat’s. Her frown
twitched. No, not a cat. That was no feline. Quick, but not that quick.
White hair, long...and out of the top...ears. Shimatta, it’d been too long
since she’d dealt with a youkai. Various youma down the years, yes, but
youkai were not just any random creatures. Claws, ears, golden eyes...how
had he noticed her? She was silent in the shadows, and sensing her was
no easy task.
Wind sighed against the panes of glass in
the windows, and she glanced outside, seeing the wide backyard behind their
house, sketched out in the moonlight. Wind....
Dog. A dog youkai. Scent. He had picked up
on her scent, through the wind. And though she was transformed, and it
was Sailor Pluto who he fought, then he would easily recognize her through
her scent, were she to return as Meioh Setsuna. And there was no way to
know how long he would stay.
She glanced to where Kami had disappeared
into the hallway, heading for her small room. No, requesting help from
Kami was not feasible, not this time. Sending a woman with the majority
of her life experience in the eleventh century into a situation like this
was probably a bad idea. Kami was still trying to grasp the concept that
everything on television did not actually happen.
Normally, her request would fall to Haruka
and Michiru- they were more than capable of investigating. However, Michiru
had been invited to perform a violin concert in Vienna, and Haruka, being
Haruka, insisted on accompanying her. Hotaru was simply too young to go
wandering around by herself, as powerful as she was as a senshi.
Setsuna glanced at the phone, then at her
watch. A quarter til eleven. Her frown deepened, and she reluctantly picked
up the reciever, pressing speed dial. It rang, then after a moment, the
delicate voice of Mizuno Ami answered.
“Moshi moshi?”
“Ami-chan? It’s Setsuna...hai, I know it’s
late. Hai, everything is fine. I’d like to speak with you tomorrow, after
school....”
Inuyasha settled himself into a squat on the
floor of Kagome’s room, watching her as she moved around, shoving books
quickly but neatly back into place on her bookshelf. Her desk lamp was
on, the fluorescent light harshly white. Her family had not heard the fight
outside, and with a quick thought, Kagome told Inuyasha to meet her in
her room in a few minutes, after saying she was back. Mama had just been
turning out the lights, and was glad to see her daughter home for once.
Now the window remained open, Kagome’s curtains
catching on the wind and floating on either side of Inuyasha, who was watching
as she ran around, swiftly putting things away. And unfortunately, not
telling him what the hell she meant when she said that woman had saved
her life. Well, might have saved her life, he reminded himself, mentally
repeating it. He really hated it when he wasn’t able to save her himself,
and now there was another person running around out there who had. It was
getting seriously irritating.
“Oy, are you going to tell me what you meant
or not?”
“Nani? Oh! Gomen, Inuyasha...” she glanced
around distractedly, then began fishing through the drawers of her desk.
“Oy!”
She glanced up at him, shaking her head. “Inuyasha,
keep it down. Even Mama would have a fit if she saw you in my room. I was
looking for a clipping to show you but...” she looked around, then sighed.
“Mama must have thrown out her poster....”
“Poster?”
Kagome nodded, then turned the desk’s chair
around, sitting down sideways and leaning against the back of it, putting
her elbow on the ridge. “I don’t remember everything all that well, but
a lot better than Yuka-chan does. It was awhile ago, before I met you....”
Mugen Academy Memorial Dome
Approximately Four Months Before the Quest
for the Shikon no Tama Begins
Everyone was screaming wildly, while the crowds
pressed against Kagome’s sides, leaping up and down in excitement as a
figure appeared on the stage in a flash of bright orange and yellow lights.
Both girls screamed in excitement, waving along with everyone else in the
crowd. Kagome counted herself as lucky. Yuka had only been able to get
two tickets, and despite wanting to, nobody else could go. The concert
was special; only Mugen students were allowed to enter, since this was
the christening of the new concert hall. Yuka would only wink when Kagome
asked her how she had gotten ahold of the rare tickets, grinning and saying
she had connections. So here she was, wearing glitter and trendy clothes,
standing amid a crowd of top students from Mugen Academy, cheering on one
of the seniors, the now famous idol Mimi Hanyu.
“Arigatou, minna!” Mimi was saying as she
finished her first set. Brilliant yellow lights highlighted her short,
wavy orange hair, and glittered off the tiara on her brows. She put on
her best smile and beamed out into the audience as she spoke into the microphone.
“Mimi is so glad to be able to sing for her very special college!” She
winked at the front row, and though Kagome and Yuka were several rows back,
they screamed along with everyone else in response, clapping their hands,
applauding. Mimi stepped back a bit, and one of the stage hands handed
her a golden staff, the end of it twisted into the symbol of infinity,
a black star resting inside the curves.
The smile turned its attention back to the
crowd. “I love Mugen Academy and all of you. I’d do anything for the Academy.
I’d give all of myself. You feel the same, don’t you?”
The crowd’s response was a thundering cry,
rumbling up into the lofts of the auditorium. In response, the band behind
Mimi began to pick up, playing a soft, melodious song as Mimi continued,
“Then everyone close your eyes and relax...quietly listen to this song
I wrote for all of you....”
Kagome, at first, enjoyed the opening strains
of music, lyrical and drifting. But as the chords began to grow, it grated
on her senses, scraping harshly and making her wince. She grabbed her head
as a jolt of pain shot though it, accompanied by a wave of pained sleepiness.
Quickly, she looked to Yuka, was still standing and watching Mimi, completely
enthralled and showing no response to the discordant music. Though slowly,
her eyes were sagging, and she watched as Yuka and several Mugen students
began to sink to the ground, dizzily dropping.
New words overlapped the broken music, and
Kagome began to feel her knees give out on her as Mimi spoke. “Give me
and my master Pharaoh 90 your body...your heart...and your soul....”
Something inside Kagome shone, glaring brightly
in the dark auditorium. It sent waves of pain though her chest, the feeling
that something was being ripped out of her. In the aisle, she clutched
at her chest, fighting to keep that thing within her inside. Distantly,
through the feelings of pain, she saw something crystalize over Yuka, who
was now prone beside her. It glowed faintly, a small shining thing hovering
over her body. Wincing, Kagome tilted her head to see more of these crystals
begin to form, floating idly over the body of the one they belonged to.
The pain in her chest was incredible.
She grit her teeth, fighting the siren song
emanating from the stage. Whatever that thing was, Kagome was somehow resisting
it. And sadly, she seemed like she was the only one.
There was a booming noise, the sound of doors
being thrown open, and a shout from the back of the concert hall. “Stop
right there!”
Kagome couldn’t see who it was. But the voice
was clear, high and feminine, and quite obviously angry.
“Behind that cute facade and that beautiful
voice is the personification of evil! Don’t be fooled, minna!”
Mimi, on the stage, spun, surprised at the
interruption and furious. “Who’s that?”
Kagome heard the response, and the footsteps
that accompanied it. Whoever it was was running to the stage. “With the
blessings of Venus, the planet of beauty! The senshi of love, Sailor Venus,
is here!”
From the ground, Kagome pushed herself onto
her side, trying to see the happenings on the stage, focusing on that rather
than the searing sensation in her chest. Two figures stood there, Mimi
Hanyu and a second figure, dressed strangely, a skirt and collar in orange
and a bow of dark blue, long blonde hair tied back in a bright red ribbon.
The intruder, Sailor Venus, turned to the crowd, shouting, “Wake up, minna!
It’s still not too late!” Then something even more bizarre happened. Bright
light formed around the girl’s uplifted hands, and she grabbed a golden
chain, aiming it at the crowd. “Venus Love-me Chain!”
It cut out across the unconscious members
of the crowd, causing several to choke and sputter, and through the rows
of seats, Kagome saw several of the little crystals fade away as the members
of the audience stirred. Then, suddenly the lights went out, plunging them
into darkness.
“Take cover outside!” the voice of Sailor
Venus called out, now over the microphone system. The awakened ones managed
to move themselves, running for the exits as quickly as they could. Still
kneeling on the ground, Kagome tried to wake up Yuka, who remained draped
over her seat, the crystal still floating over her body.
The pain was constant, and it began to burn
in Kagome’s chest, throbbing and causing her to fall back again into the
aisle as something came over Mimi Hanyu. There was a shriek from the stage,
outraged and unmistakably ready for battle. Kagome watched as the idol
lifted her staff into the air, charging forward across the stage at the
girl who identified herself as Sailor Venus.
“Sailor Venus, I, Mimete, at Level 40, will
defeat you!” She reached out, pointing her black star-tipped staff forward
and shouting, “Charm Buster!”
The reply came instantly. “Venus Wink Chain
Sword!”
Mimi...Mimete...met the returning charge with
her staff, sending the golden whip crackling against a defensive shield.
“Venus!” A new voice called out, and there
were several approaching footsteps from behind, running into the auditorium.
Relief colored Sailor Venus’ voice. “Minna!”
Mimete was screaming out, calling for help
from some unknown and unseen watcher. “Kaolinite! Lend me your power! Send
a daimon to help!”
As the footsteps grew louder, the newcomers
rushing in to help, Kagome narrowly watched a girl from the front row.
She had fallen into the aisle, and was now doubled over, clutching at her
stomach, chest, face, groaning as she tried to contain something horrific
slowly sprouting from her back. Nauseous, Kagome edged herself out of the
aisle, out of the way of the battle, out of sight of the contenders, praying
this would pass, and that no one would see her, that the thing coming from
that student’s back couldn’t possibly come from hers.
Huge and black, laced with red, she heard
Mimete scream an order at the forming creatures, “Eat them alive, daimon!”
The daimon responded, all of them cloudy and
red and black with spidery arms and claws, roaring up over the seats, shadowing
and towering over Kagome, who tried to breathe though pain and shock. Yuka
still lay limp beside her on the chair, and she pulled her friend down
to the floor with her, doing all she could think of in such a strange and
frightening situation. Though oddly, through it all, Kagome felt calm.
Almost detached, analytical. Something that size was likely more terrifying
in appearance than power.
And in the next moment, she was proven correct.
A single voice called out, “Moon Spiral Heart Attack!” There was a splattering
sound, and a flash of bright pink light. The daimon exploded across the
air, destroyed by the counterattack Kagome could not see.
The girl before her let out a choked sob as
the daimon forming from her freed itself from her body, looming upward
and making a final charge.
Sailor Venus screamed a warning. “Tuxedo Kamen!
Sailor Chibimoon!”
The daimon was rushing straight for the two
on the fringes of the group, giving them barely enough time to turn in
shock, watching the final daimon swoop down.
“Deep Submerge!”
A sphere of aquamarine light smashed into
the final daimon as Tuxedo Kamen grabbed Chibimoon, throwing them aside
as the remains of the watery attack exploded, sending chunks of the daimon’s
body flying into the unconscious audience.
It came from the stage, and Kagome heard more
shouts, a furious screech from Mimete, and then a second cry, another attack.
“World Shaking!”
Golden light shot through the slats between
the seats, and Kagome covered Yuka’s head and her own as there was a final,
dying scream in the voice of Mimi Hanyu.
She breathed deeply, feeling her chest go
numb with the pain that was constant. Erased so suddenly, the lack of sensation
in her chest left her dizzy and feeling ill. Cautiously, Kagome moved upward,
peering over the edge of the seat before her. On the stage, two figures
stood. And after a moment, they spoke.
The one with wavy, teal colored hair and an
outfit in the shades of water spoke first, a mirror in her hand. “With
the blessings of the planet of the Sea, Neptune, the soldier of the Depths,
Sailor Neptune.”
Then spoke the second one, taller with short,
sand blond hair, “And with the blessings of the planet of the Wind, Uranus...the
soldier of the Skies, Sailor Uranus...are here.”
Kagome sunk to the floor, feeling the dizziness
tower up inside her, collapsing down next to Yuka and curling up in the
cramped little space between rows. Words were called between stage and
audience, from one group of soldiers to the other.
The same voice continued: “You don’t need
to know us.”
A little girl’s voice: “That hand mirror is
a Talisman!”
Startled voices: “Talisman!”
A man’s voice: “Did you say that mirror is
a Talisman?”
The silky voice of the mirror’s owner: “So
we meet again, little rabbit.”
Another voice, angry: “If you know something,
tell us! What’s going to happen?”
The sound of Sailor Uranus speaking: “Don’t
be mistaken. We don’t plan to fight together with you. I never said we
were allies...we have nothing to say to you....”
Music spun out from the stage, discordant
and painful music, the sound of a violin played far too harshly. Kagome
was beyond caring, the darkness having overcome her vision, and slowly
the sound of their voices was fading away into the nothingness as well.
The man’s voice sounded again: “Wait! Are
you the ones who will lead us to destruction? Answer me!”
“...and the last thing I heard was one of them...I
think it was the Uranus one...say ‘World Shaking’ again....” Kagome had
turned herself around during her tale, and Inuyasha was staring at her
in disbelief. Though of course he believed her. Kagome was hardly prone
to making up stories, particularly ones as bizarre as that. He was trying
to put together the story again, in his head.
“So she attacked them?”
Kagome nodded, frowning and looking at the
floor. She had removed her shoes earlier, and she dug her toes into the
thick carpet. “There’s more, though. A little bit.”
“Then what?”
Kagome sighed.
Juuban Memorial Hospital
Three Hours After Mimi Hanyu’s Concert
Kagome opened her eyes, blinking into the dull
light from the ceiling above. Distantly, she heard sounds; beeping, intercoms
calling people, the monotonous drone of a television nearby. Taken together,
she surmised she was in a hospital.
“Ara, you woke up,” a clear voice said, and
a face appeared over Kagome’s, violet eyes shrewdly looking down at her.
The face wore a smile, and after a moment it altered slightly, still friendly,
though now edged with suspicion. “Do you remember anything?”
Kagome blinked again, harder this time, clearing
her head as flashes of memory flooded her thoughts. She looked at the girl,
waiting there patiently beside her bed. She was in a nice dress, dark red
with a white blouse underneath, partially hidden by very long black hair,
falling straight around her shoulders.
The interest of this girl in what happened
earlier was a bit confusing to Kagome. She was still disoriented, puzzled
how she arrived here, but thinking clearly enough to say, “No. Nothing...why?”
Her observer frowned, brows drawing down intently,
and Kagome felt a bit nervous at the stare. It almost felt as though the
girl were trying to sense her thoughts. It was a silly idea, Kagome knew,
but regardless, she mentally closed down, focusing only on the girl’s intent
face, and being sure only to display polite curiosity on her own. The moment
passed, and the girl backed away, smiling again, the grin genuine and now
relieved.
“That’s all right. You’re at Juuban Memorial.”
“A...arigatou...how did I...?”
“Get here?” The girl flicked a lock of black
hair over her shoulder as she turned and picked up a purse from the hospital
room’s extra chair. “My friends and I brought you. A friend of mine has
a mother who’s a doctor here. You’ll be okay in no time.”
The stranger moved along the room, heading
for the door, and Kagome called out, “Wait!”
“Hm?” she paused, glancing over her shoulder
idly.
“Who are you?”
As a response, the girl smiled faintly. “Don’t
worry about it. You probably won’t remember me later, either. Just forget
about everything, whoever you are. This is our business.”
With that, the girl winked, turned quickly,
and fled out the door.
“If that was the same girl as before...I don’t
remember everything, Inuyasha. But that’s who I thought of when I saw her.
I don’t know why. Maybe because they both had long hair or something, I
don’t know....”
Inuyasha didn’t really know what to say about
this. Girls running around in short skirts, throwing magic spells at each
other as though it were an everyday occurrence? And not just any girls,
but human girls? Miko could carry magical power, but like that?
What, a slew of miko, running around? Yeah, sure. He blinked, staring at
Kagome. She wouldn’t joke about something like that, though.
Kagome took his silence for what it was; confusion.
She sighed, shaking her head. “Nobody really knows much of anything about
the Sailor Senshi. Until then, I didn’t even believe they existed. They’re
kind of like urban legends...everybody talks about them, but nobody really
believes they’re real. Not really, anyway. Sometimes there’s pictures of
them in the paper, or on tv. But they’re usually not clear, or from a distance.”
He was beginning to recover from the story,
assimilating the tale. There was one thing bothering him more than any
other. “One of these senshi people attacked the others, right? Well, the
two you said came at the same time?”
“Yeah...” Kagome said nervously. One attacked
the others. She was almost sure of it. It was what she remembered, and
she told Inuyasha as clearly as she could, of what she could recall. But
still, it was fragmented, blurry. Thinking more on it, she wondered if
maybe the Shikon no Tama- which would still have been inside her- had been
trying to get out. Maybe that was the pain she felt back then.
“Then we don’t know if that one that was out
there is friendly or not. Even if it was the same girl who you saw at the...uh...place
you woke up.”
“The hospital?” Kagome supplied, and he shrugged,
eyes flicking to the door as he heard muffled sounds. “Somebody’s up.”
Kagome hesitated, listening as water began
to murmur though the house’s pipes. Then she whispered, “It’s just Souta,
getting some water or something. He gets up sometimes.”
Inuyasha shifted a bit, considering, then
announcing, “I’m staying.”
“Nan...nani?” Kagome stuttered, suddenly envisioning
Mama coming into her room in the morning to find Inuyasha sleeping there.
As forgiving and understanding as her mother was about her bizarre time-traveling
situation, no parent would like to walk into her daughter’s room and discover
a boy snoozing away there from the night. “No way! You go back home! You
can’t stay in my-”
Already standing up, Inuyasha scoffed, “Feh!
I’ll be on the roof.”
“Inuyasha....”
“Nani?” he hesitated, looking at her and waiting.
“They may be real urban legends, Inuyasha,
but I’ve never heard a story saying they’d hurt anyone. They’re supposed
to fight with....”
“Fight with what?” he prompted when she broke
off.
“Oh...uh...nothing...nobody knows who they
fight with, really...” she shifted from foot to foot, nervously hoping
he wouldn’t figure out what she was thinking. “All I know is that Mimi
Hanyu was an enemy...and those daimon things....”
He snorted. “If you don’t know anything about
them, and they’re sniffing around here looking for something, then it’s
probably not hard to figure out what,” he took a meaningful step closer
to her, reaching out. She blinked as he took the fused shards in his hand,
dangling from the chain around her neck. After a moment, he let go of the
large fragment of the Shikon no Tama, looking down into her face closely.
Could they be after the Shikon no Tama? Why
though? How did they know to come here? If- if- she had been attacked
because Inuyasha was hanyou...but why was the Sailor Senshi there in the
first place? It didn’t make sense. He could be right...maybe they were
after the Shikon no Tama...two of the senshi had fought the others...who
knew which side was right? Or wrong? Could some of them be bad? Humans
could chase after the tama as well...maybe Inuyasha was right....
Inuyasha hadn’t moved yet, and was waiting
for a response. She looked up at him, his face expectant and near, eyes
watchful.
There was a light knock at the door.
Kagome nearly leapt out of her skin at the
sound, and Inuyasha backed away rapidly, turning and disappearing out the
open window, the only sound of his moving a flapping of cloth.
A second later, Souta poked his head into
the room, rubbing his eyes sleepily, while Kagome tried to appear entirely
casual. “Onee-chan...you all right? I thought I heard you talking....”
“Souta, get some sleep...it’s late,” she ushered,
trying to get him to leave. “We’ve got school in the morning...” saying
that, she glanced at the new, digital clock beside her bed. Red numbers
glowed out the time. Midnight. “Kyaa! Souta, go to bed! We’ve both got
school tomorrow morning!”
“Hai...” he mumbled, yawning and sleepily
shutting the door. “G’night....”
Once the door was closed, she sighed, relieved,
then ran a hand though her dark hair.
“Oy.”
Turning around, she saw Inuyasha’s head suspended
in the window, upside down.
“You really don’t need to stay.”
“Feh. I’ll be up here.” An upside down shrug
followed that, and then he disappeared from the window. Kagome stuck her
head outside, leaning around to see a flash of red disappear over the edge
of the roof.
“Good night, Inuyasha,” she whispered, closing
the window and drawing the drapes to a close.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Terms of note:
youkai: demon
youma: monster
daimon: literally, in Greek- ‘demon’
katana: a kind of Japanese sword
konbanwa: good evening
daijobu ka: Are you all right?
senshi: soldier
onegai: please
jinja: a shrine/temple
moshi moshi: ‘hello’ when answering the phone
gomen, gomen ne, gomen nasai: I’m sorry
minna: everyone
Okay, chapter 1 is down! Don’t forget to review-
they’re always appreciated, and get me to work more on the fic and procrastinate
with my homework. ^^; Which I’m seriously doing right now...bad me!
So, you met Kami very briefly in this chapter-
yes, she’s from the past, reborn into the present. I’ll explain more about
her as things go along, so you can follow some of the details. But like
I said in the beginning notes- there’s explanations. Don’t worry. Neither
group of characters knows anything about the other, though everyone’s met
her in one form or another...x.x
Kagome didn’t see Sailor Pluto/Meioh Setsuna
in the hospital. That was Hino Rei, Sailor Mars. Unlike the SM anime, the
senshi aren’t all that well known to the general public. So it’d be easy
for her to mistake who was who, not knowing any names. The scene from Mimi
Hanyu’s (sounds a lot like ‘hanyou’ doesn’t it? o.o) concert is from the
S arc. Uranus and Neptune took awhile before joining forces with the other
senshi. Sailormoon storyline picks up just after the SS manga...the
senshi are all in their most powerful forms, but haven’t faced their final
enemy yet.
I will be keeping one or two of the SM anime elements-
mainly descriptions of what someone's soul looks like- the heart crystals.
They're just glowing lights in the manga. It's just easier to describe
them that way. And Tuxedo Kamen will be keeping his roses. Why? Well, his
manga attack is fairly strong, but kind of dorky. I am not having the poor
boy run around shouting 'Tuxedo the Smoking Bomber' at things. x.x So roses
it is.
No goofy underclad monster women in the SM
manga. Daimon actually does mean ‘demon.’ That actually is a fairly important
thing in this fic, and you’ll see why as the chapters progress. ^.^ Actually,
that was one of the first connections I made between the two series...
1. Pluto would not like a random time warp in a
well.
2. Daimon...youkai...both mean demon...interesting...hmmm....ponders>
The lines Mimi Hanyu/Mimete is saying is taken
directly from the SM English translated manga...the scene is just retold
from Kagome’s point of view.
Last thing- though certainly not least- I’d
like to thank my circle of friends, who have been pre-reading this for
me. To Mina Maxwell I leave through, though, and All’s Fair In Love and
Perversion! To Miss Chiba Usagi, I leave good lines for Tuxedo Kamen, the
rare things that they are. To Miss Dream, I leave you the still-mysterious
thing that will happen to Hotaru. Have patience! And of course to Melete
and Ginger-chan, who have just started reading this- may you have fun!
Same to the rest of you. Have fun! I sure
have.
Til next time.
Ja ne!
~Queen
Coming up next in Chapter 2: Enemy-
Behind him, he heard running, and then Kagome was
beside him, the dropped Tetsusaiga in one hand from where she had retrieved
it. She angled herself down a bit, looking into his face. “Daijobu ka?”
“Feh. Fine,” he replied as he took back his
katana, now rusty and decrepit again. With a frown, he began to sheath
it, but something stopped him. The sound of heels striking cement. Inuyasha
and Kagome looked up to see the black and red clad senshi approaching,
her staff leveled for another blast.
“Step away from the youkai,” she said flatly,
garnet eyes hard and looking at Kagome. Normally, that tone was not one
to be contested with.
It was an order....