Greetings from the Nexus!

Well, it's more or less official. I'm back, and operating on my own 
connection now, so the old email addys work. I'll be updating the webpage 
slowly over the next two weeks, so expect new things to come in and around. 
The fiction is also coming along, including new chapters of All Work and No 
Play, and a revision on Homemade Viagra. I've also been doing a lot of work 
around the good people at Improfanfic, so you might want to stop there and 
check it out (and sign up for a story while you're at it. It's too much 
fun!)

Anyway, I'm sure I released this before, but here's the third installment in 
the Sailor Moon/Devil Hunter Yohko crossover. Chapter 4 to follow.

Ja ne!
-Kenji Murasaki

_________________________________________________________________
Chat with friends online, try MSN Messenger: http://messenger.msn.com


-- Attached file included as plaintext by Ecartis --
-- File: awanp03.txt

Most of the following characters are not mine, nor do I attempt to claim
them. I'm just borrowing for a good story. Sailor Moon characters are
property of Naoko Takeuchi and associated parties. Mamano Hunter Yohko
characters are property of Gaku Miyao and associated parties. I'm broke,
don't hurt me...


*****     *****     *****     *****     *****     *****     *****     *****


All Work and No Play

A Devil Hunter Yohko/Sailor Moon crossover

By Kenji Murasaki

Chapter 3: Starting the Show: The Plight of Many


*****     *****     *****     *****     *****     *****     *****     *****


	The morning market eatery became a bustle of activity, but it was of no
concern to him. He was only here to bid his time until the eventual battle.
He had no guarantee that it would even take place, but long ago he had
learned to trust his instincts, and that was what had let him last so long
against persecution by the Devil Hunter's hands.

	What his gut, or what served for his gut, was telling him at the moment
was that there was going to be something happening this day, and it was
going to be within this area. All he needed to do was sit and watch, and
let everything else fall into place.

	He mused on revelations. Usually, it would simply be the Devil Hunter he
would have to deal with, but that little 'invasion' of the young one's mind
revealed something more, another player in this growing game of War. He
merely wanted to get a chance to gauge his opponent, and he had gotten a
look at something entirely different, and extremely powerful, from what he
saw. It bode investigating further.

	Until then, he would wait, and let the players come to him. They would
always do so, afterall; it was a human's nature. Soon the Devil Hunter
would come, and the real fun could begin. It had been a moment since he
truly had a chance to cut an annoying Devil Hunter, and he was finding
himself eager to take on the girl who had fallen the Dark Queen, and even
more, the mighty Tokima.

	He sipped his tea, and waited patiently for the time to come.


*****     *****     *****     *****     *****     *****     *****     *****


	She could have stayed at home.

	The shrine didn't have unhospitable occupants, nor did it welcome
unfriendly guest. The atmosphere was actually quite lovely. The town, from
what she had seen so far, was pleasant in itself, and held the promise of a
good deal of fun.

	Her problem was the demons that seemed to plague the area. She was more
than used to them, being a Devil Hunter and all, but these were an awkward
brand. The few she had seen so far were very different from what she was
used to. She could have simply stayed at home for all this vacation was
turning out to be.

	She expected to at least have some relief in dealing with them, since one
of Juuban's most popular whispered rumors, the Sailor Senshi, were here to
deal with them. That seemed not to be the case. As far as she could tell,
they were barely able to take the problem themselves, including Sailor
Moon, who was supposed to be the more powerful of them.

	Yohko turned in her futon, looking at the sleeping girl next to her. Rei
had been attacked twice, and during both situations, Yohko had been little
to no help at all, and all because of her own selfishness. Well, she had
already decided that was going to end. The hardest obstacle is how the
demons would take to it. They had already targeted the girl, and there
seemed to be more than one. She wasn't used to dealing with anything else
but isolated scenarios, not that she wasn't willing to learn.

	It was time to fight back. The only pang she held of the whole situation
was she was unsure, and a bit afraid, of her what Rei's reaction might be
when she told her finally. The last thing she wanted to do was frighten the
girl away. Despite that, something still had to be done about the new
demons massing.

	Yohko got up from her cot and grabbed her toiletry items to wash up for
the morning. Then it was off to see grandpa, and see about that training.
The demons had another thing coming if they thought that they were going to
get a hold of what they desired. The Senshi might not be able to do
anything, but she was more than willing to show that she could.


*****     *****     *****     *****     *****     *****     *****     *****


	It was nearing noon when the girls held their meeting at Makoto's house.
Everyone was more or less making themselves comfortable with cookies and
milk. Rei was undergoing another scan from Ami while the others looked on.
A scratching sound got Makoto's attention. She got up from her seat, and
singled out the sound to the window, where Luna and Artemis were trying in
vain to get it to open. She lifted the latch, and allowed to two guardians
in, where they received a very animated welcome.

	"Just where have you two been?" Usagi all but shouted. "There's been a
lot going on, and you two were supposed to be here for it!"

	Artemis looked away nervously, while Luna was outright hostile. "Let's not
bring it up." She warned icily.

	Usagi shrunk away from the cold look in the feline's eyes, and decided not
to pursue it. Ami came to her rescue. "But seriously Luna, you really
should have been around. We have a new enemy."

	"So I've heard." The cat nodded, and they took a seat by Usagi and Minako.
"What's been happening?"

	"Well, for one thing, we have a new enemy, and they seem to have it out
for whatever Rei has."

	The priestess nodded from her horizontal position on the couch. "They've
attacked twice, and they got something from me the second time around. Some
crystal, the way Usagi tells it."

	"Uh huh." The blond nodded. "That woman that was there called it a Heart
Crystal. Do you know anything about that Luna?"

	The cat guardian furrowed her brow. "It does sound a bit familiar, but I'm
not really sure."

	"I think I do." Artemis spoke up. "I remember that for one thing, every
living being has one; it's a sort of representation of one's inner purity
and life. There was also some legend behind it, but I'd have to think about
it some more."

	"Well, then would that legend have something to do with why they're after
Rei's Heart Crystal?"

	"It probably would, but then why would they be after her?" Artemis tried
to recall the legend, to no avail.

	"Well, they've attacked me twice. You think they'd go after someone else."
The girl grumped.

	Ami spoke up. "They just might Rei-chan. They were only successful in
obtaining the crystal the second time, thought they didn't get to keep it
long."

	"So I take it you girls stopped them?" Luna asked.

	"Afraid not Luna." Makoto answered. "Only ones there were Usagi, Mamoru,
Rei's friend, and those new Senshi."

	The cats both turned to that. "New Senshi?"

	"Yeah." Minako answered. "They stopped the first Daimon thing that
attacked, and left Sailor Moon and Rei's friend to take care of the next
one."

	Luna blinked. "Wait a minute. Rei's friend?"

	"Yeah. According to Usagi, she's got weird powers and stuff."

	"Is she a Youma?"

	"No!" Rei shouted, rising from the couch, and startling the whole group.
"I think I'd know about it if that was the case!"

	"Nothing personal Rei-chan." Luna said. "But as far as I know, there are
no other gifted humans save for you girls. I'd think that her not being
human would be the first suspicion."

	"Well, she's not." The girl snorted. "I've known Yohko-chan for a long
time. There's no way she could be another evil. Besides, from what I did
see, she was defending me!"

	"Rei-chan? You mean you were awake?" Usagi looked slightly confused. She
thought the girl had been rendered unconscious.

	"Well, I was, sort of. I just remember bits and pieces. That Daimon was
over me, and then it got blown away, and Yohko was there." Glowing, she
didn't add.

	"Well, it's still something to be wary of.  You should practice caution
around her Rei-chan." Luna said.

	Artemis spoke up. "Now what about these new Senshi?"

	"We're not sure ourselves." Ami replied. "They did help out, and they
destroyed the first Daimon, but they always run after battle."

	"This isn't looking too good girls. We've a lot of planing to do. The
first and easiest thing to do would be find out about our allies." Luna
turned to Rei. "I'm not sure about this Yohko person, but do what you feel
is best. She isn't an enemy, but be cautious."

	The raven-haired girl frowned, but nodded.

	"As for the rest of it, I suppose we'll just have to wait for their next
attack."

	"Alright then," Ami said, putting away her computer. "I think I'm going
to get some studying done."

	"A good idea." Luna said. "It's actually something that you all should
be doing. You're entrance exams are not to far off."

	Usagi smiled. "Well, I don't think I have to worry about that then.
Mamo-chan's tutoring me."

	"What?" the girls said collectively.

	"When did your dad allow that?" Minako asked.

	"Actually, it was mom's idea. She hired him to help me with my studying."

	"I'm not sure I agree with this." Luna said with a skeptic look.

	"I can spend more time with Mamo-chan, and still keep my grades. What's
to worry about?" The blond smiled. Of course, the breaks from studying
could become interesting, the more she thought about the whole thing.

	"Hate to burst your bubble Usagi, but Mamoru is a really hard worker. He's
not gonna let you slack because of him." Rei spoke up.

	Usagi made a face. "You just don't like it that I get to spend more time
with him. Still jealous about that guy you saw, huh?"

	Makoto and Minako were on her in a flash. "Guy? Is he cute?"

	"Did you get his number?"

	"Hey! He already had someone with him!" Rei blushed.

	Their faces fell, and Minako flopped onto the couch. "What cruel player is
fate to curse us with men who are already taken?"

	The girls blinked at her, but she appeared unfazed. "Maybe we can run into
him, and talk him away from her?"

	"I'm game. I need something to do anyway. This missing battles is the
pits." Makoto frowned.

	Ami sweatdropped. "Guys, don't you think it would be better to worry about
our current problems, and your grades?"

	"Grades can wait Ami-chan, it is break afterall." Minako smiled and stood
up. "For now, let's go out and do some shopping and meet some cute guys!"

	"Yeah!" Makoto and Usagi agreed.

	"Well, you guys do what you want. I have to get back to the temple."

	"Rei-chan?" Usagi asked. "Are you gonna be back later?"

	"Yeah, but I want to get this thing wrapped up right now. I know she isn't
evil, or a danger, and I'm going to prove it."

	Usagi's face grew pensive. "Um, maybe I can come with you?"

	"No, I can take care of this. I'll call if it does get bad, okay?" the
girl said.

	Usagi slumped somewhat. "Okay."

	Rei left, still scowling. She would get to the bottom of this little
ordeal, and find out just what her friend hadn't been telling her.


*****     *****     *****     *****     *****     *****     *****     *****


	Souichi Tomoe gazed at the woman with a concerned eye. Well, the only good
eye that he had, but it was still a concerned one. It had only been a day
since the experiment with the second Daimon egg, but Kaolinite seemed to be
on edge, more than she should be. Idly he wondered what kind of silly pride
would push his most apt pupil to such an anxious state of mind that she
would fill her own coffee with salt.

	After she took a sip, and began making disgusted faces, the doctor put
down what he was working with and turned to her. "You're stressed."

	She immediately turned to the man, a small, near-invisible blush appearing
on her cheeks. "It... is of no concern. I can still perform."

	"You have only had two missions Kaolinite, and both were admittedly field
test for the eggs, tests that they passed excellently. Why would you be
berating yourself for success?"

	"Sensei... I failed." She stated with a touch of anger. "I did not
eliminate any of the those annoying women. And there is still that other
girl that I have worries about. We anticipated the Senshi, but this girl
could be a major problem if she is not dealt with."

	Tomoe resisted the urge to sigh. "My dear, if it troubles you that much,
then for all intents, take out the final prototype and draw them out."

	Kaolinite looked shocked. "Professor?"

	"We have one more Daimon until our energy resources allow us to mass-
produce the eggs. If anything, it will make an excellent field test to see
if these girls are truly so powerless against us. Take it out, pick a prime
target, and bring the Heart Crystal back here. Eliminate any of the Senshi
if you wish. If that girl shows up again," It was a simple stare, but what
it implied shook Kaolinite to the core. "deal with her."

	The professor turned back to his paper, and smiled. "Oh, and please see to
Hotaru. She has just awoken from her rest."

	"Yes sir." And then she was gone, leaving the man to catch up on stock
reports.


*****     *****     *****     *****     *****     *****     *****     *****


	Okay, she could do this. Not a problem. Just relax her nerves, and
confront the problem. Absolutely nothing to be afraid of around her. It was
not that difficult--

	Yohko let out a small shriek of pain as the ofuda burned her hand. That
was the fourth one, and it wasn't getting any easier. Her head was
pounding, her stomach was growling, and her face was scowling. This was not
the idea for improvement that she had in mind.

	"So tell me again just what this little technique is supposed to do?" She
asked the diminutive priest for the eighth time.

	"Improve your outlook of things, basically." He said with a shrug. "I'm
certain that you'll get it. You just have to keep trying."

	"But... why can't you just SHOW me the technique?" She grumbled.

	"If it was that simple, then Madoka-san would have never sent you my way."
The short man gave her a shrug. "I assure you that once you master it, you
won't have as much difficulty as you're having now, but for this stage in
learning, you'll have to make due."

	Yohko grumbled again, and began the now-familiar concentration exercise
again, doing her best to ignore the pounding headache she seemed to
irritate even more with every try. "Okay... focus on the irregularity, feel
out the bump, and grab..."

	Morihito listened to the girl repeat like a mantra, completely unaware to
what was going on around her. She was very good, every bit as good as
Madoka had bragged. At this rate, she was going to hit that brick wall real
soon, and then the real mastering could start.

	"Ouch! What the hell was that?"

	Or then again, maybe not. "Focus Yohko-san. You have to focus for it to
take affect."

	"That sucked." Yohko sat gracelessly on the mat she was standing on, and
rubbed her head absently. "Can we continue this later? My head hurts too
much."

	"Of course, though you sounded rather insistent about learning it this
morning." The old man went to his desk and picked up a tray of tea and
cookies. "You still haven't told me why exactly."

	Yohko watched him walk over, suddenly a bit unsure. "Well, I think I'm
gonna need it, Grandpa. Whatever those things were, they aren't letting up
on Rei until they get what they want. I've got a duty to protect her, and
this shrine." She sighed. "I just don't know how to tell Rei-chan all of
that. I've already brought things down around her head."

	"Well, those are admirable reasons, but I wouldn't say that you're the
cause of these monsters." The priest set down the tray in front of the girl
and began pouring tea. "There have been attacks here, without your
presence. I highly doubt if you matter to them now."

	"This place was attacked before?" Yohko could hardly believe her ears.

	"Well, yes. Numerous times." Hino-san gave a sad smile. "We seems to
attract a lot of the attention of the monsters. The Senshi are around, so
it's not as big of a worry as I used to think it would be."

	Yohko frowned, but the man kept going, oblivious. "But we have something
even better now. Our own Devil Hunter to stop these horde of evil demons!"
The old man fixed her with a gaze that made her very wary of herself. "You
will fight in the shrine's name, won't you?"

	"Uh... I think I'll get back to practice now."

	"Good! A very fine picture to see a woman so dedicated to her goals and
promises. You'll make a fantastic Devil Hunter, Yohko-san!"

	Yohko sweatdropped, and turned back to the task of finding wards. Much
better than having the old man spook her out.


*****     *****     *****     *****     *****     *****     *****     *****


	Bored.

	Impossible, but true. There were so many interesting things that had taken
place within the last forty-eight hours, and Minako had not been able to
get there to participate in a one of them. New enemies and threats did make
her a little sad, because she knew eventually she'd be needed to fight that
evil. But for the meantime, she was totally, one hundred and twenty percent
out of her mind--

	"Bored." Makoto spoke up, polishing off another cookie.

	Minako nodded. "So how come we aren't doing anything about it?"

	"I'm not sure. I mean, has it ever been just us before?"

	Minako did think about it. Besides Artemis, she really couldn't remember
the last time she was out with just one person. Ami was busy trying to do
some analysis on those readouts, without turning up much luck from what she
had seen. Rei was with her friend, so her hands were tied. Usagi was on her
way home to talk to her mother after receiving a call about her new study
schedule. Until tomorrow, both Minako and Makoto had really nothing to do.

	"No, it hasn't. But that's an opportunity."

	"What do you have in mind?" Makoto asked.

	"Maybe catch a movie, and go to the mall?" Minako stuffed a cookie in her
mouth, and chewed. "When the boredom sets in, we can always scout around
for stuff to do there."

	Makoto smiled. "Better than nothing. You got any particular one in mind?"

	"Movie?" The girl got up. "We'll find out when we get there."

	Makoto rose and got her coat. "Fine with me. Anything is better right now
than just sitting around." She opened her apartment door, and let Minako
walk out first. "Action doesn't want to come to us, so we go to action."

	Minako giggled. "Right! Everyone else seems to have some project going on,
or someone to take their time. We need to find something to do!"

	"You mean besides wait until study group tomorrow?" The taller girl
smirked.

	"Yeah. Usagi's got Mamoru, now more than ever. Ami's always occupied, and
now Rei has guests to entertain. We need something to take up our time."

	Makoto closed the door behind her, and they made for the elevator. "True.
Maybe we could try and figure out those two new senshi?"

	Minako shrugged. "That sounds good, but we haven't even seen them. You
gotta clue about them?"

	"Well, someone has to figure it out eventually. I mean, if they don't know
us and all, that's fine. But you have to wonder what their up to. They
didn't even stick around to talk to Sailor Moon." Makoto pressed the
elevator button. "Those are some pretty big mysteries that need to be
solved."

	"But for the meantime, movie and mall-trolllin?" Minako asked.

	"Of course. Beats being bored and waiting around for attacks." The girls
got onto the elevator, and headed to the lower floor and out the building.


*****     *****     *****     *****     *****     *****     *****     *****


	Rei got off of the bus, and walked up the temple steps, deep in thought.
The memories of yesterday's skirmish were still fresh in her mind, and the
more she dwelt on it, the more she was certain that her friend was hiding
something. It was hard to just go up and accuse someone of that when they'd
given no hint whatsoever that they WERE hiding something.

	Yohko didn't seem too different from the carefree little playmate she knew
from long ago. She was taller, of course, and more firm, her entire build
speaking loudly what her grandmother's training had done for her. Bubbly
when excited, focused when necessary, that is what she remembered about her
friend. There were still many factors that hadn't presented themselves, and
the ones that had were the ones that troubled her.

	For one thing, that training. She would never be the first one to speak
out about being weird, knowing what her life was, but from what she
recalled, that training was very rough. Very rough. To the point where Rei
only participated if demanded. Yohko looked very healthy, so it was logical
to assume that her grandmother had kept that training going. You had to
wonder why, though.

	Then there were the events of this morning. It was the second morning that
she had awoken to the sight of Yohko and her grandfather messing with some
ofuda, supposedly at Yohko's request. Rei knew the scriptures on those
wards, and they were very hard to make. If made properly, they were
supposed to be bathed in an illusion, and appear as if they weren't there.
She did try to make one, but the technique wasn't necessarily a family one,
and she ended up with sloppy results.

	The final little odd peg on her friend's behavior was that ring she
insisted on taking just about everywhere. The thing gave her the creeps the
more she thought about it. It was gold band, with two long hooks leading
to either side of Yohko's palm, and some sort of demonic skull ornament,
the same gold make, with two red jewel eyes, and another green jewel at the
forehead. Not normal jewelry, and she just barely remembered the eyes on
the ring glowing when Yohko was glowing in that battle.

	Rei wasn't sure of what to make of it, but she knew the only way to find
the truth was to ask the source herself, and put away all that doubt and
paranoia that Luna had managed to arouse.


*****     *****     *****     *****     *****     *****     *****     *****


	Yohko's head was pounding thrice times the headache yesterday, but she was
happy. Progress was made, since she had been able to locate the rest of
the ofuda without being hurt. The modified ones that Grandpa Hino had put
up were killer on the hand, and he had only let her use the one her Devil
Hunter ring adorned. The resulting hit or miss left her brain aching, but
for what it was worth, she'd found all of them, painfully or not.

	A bath was in order, and then something relaxing, like watching the clouds
go by. Yohko idly wondered where Rei had gone. It was getting into the
afternoon, and the girl had not returned yet. She still had that explaining
to do about her heritage, and she'd rather get it out of the way as soon as
possible--

	"Yohko-chan?" Was the call by the temple stairs.

	Okay, she's back. So... the bath first, or just straight up tell her?
Yohko's head decided for her when that now-familiar ping shot through her
senses, making her head throb more. She began rubbing her temples as Rei
walked into their shared bedroom. "Something wrong Yohko?"

	"No. Just headaches. Those little exercises of grandpa's are murder."

	"Well, I guess so. What are you supposed to be doing with them Anyway? I
haven't seen him use those wards since he was trying to teach me how to use
them."

	"Well, I'm not even too sure myself. I just learned yesterday that grandma
sent me here with a secret agenda, which is whatever he's teaching me."
Yohko stopped rubbing her head to collect some bathing items. "It makes my
head hurt though."

	"Are you trying to sense them?" Rei asked with surprise.

	"Sense? I guess I am. I know he hides them and has me find them." Yohko
shrugged. "But those ones from today... they kept shocking me when I passed
one I didn't see."

	"Shocked?" Rei began to get pensive. "But how? The stronger ones aren't
supposed to react to anything that doesn't have a tinge of evil to it." But
if it shocked Yohko... Rei mentally slapped that thought down. It couldn't
be possible. Yohko wasn't an enemy... she hoped.

	"... Oh." Realization hit Yohko. The wards must have reacted with her
ring. That would explain the stipulation grandpa Hino had made. "Well, the
whole thing's over for the day; all I want is a bath now."

	"Okay." Rei nodded absently. "I'll take one with you. I wanted to talk to
you about something."

	Yohko smiled lightly. "Sure. I do want some company right now."

	Rei nodded again, and gathered some of her own toiletries, trying not to
think about the fact that Luna might have been right afterall.


*****     *****     *****     *****     *****     *****     *****     *****


	Hair was appropriately wrapped, and clothing discarded for the laundry.
As Rei and Yohko scrubbed down and entered the furo, she realized one
thing:

	She was jealous. Horridly so.

	It wasn't as if she was ashamed of her own body, but Yohko's had a way to
make her feel inadequate. She seemed to fill out every part of her body
with an ease the slightly shorter girl did not have. Everything was snug on
her, from her skirts to her undergarments. It was unsettling, to a degree.
The girl was fifteen, and that gifted already?

	"Yohko-chan, just WHY don't you have a boyfriend again?"

	Yohko gave her friend a curious look to her friend as they stepped into
the hot water. "Hmm?"

	"Why don't you have a boyfriend?"

	That caught the girl off guard, that much Rei did see. "Well, I guess it's
complicated. I just have really bad luck with boys." Mostly because they
try to destroy me as part of some demon's plan, she didn't say.

	"Well, I guess that's always the case. I saw how you locked up when you
met Mamoru yesterday." She grinned. "You looked like someone gave you a
hunk of chocolate and then took it away."

	"Like you didn't look the same when you saw that Haruka guy?" Yohko shot
back. "Besides, don't you already have something going with Yuuichiro?"

	Rei's face reddened. "I already told you nothing is going on between us!
If you're so infatuated with him, YOU take him."

	Yohko gave it a thoughtful look. "I just might." she said with a smile.

	Rei scowled, but couldn't hide the blush. "Whatever."

	Yohko giggled, and lay back, letting the water relax her. "Anyway, what
did you want to talk to me about, Rei-chan?"

	Rei looked at the water, and sighed mentally. Better now than never, she
thought. "Yohko, about that attack yesterday..."

	Yohko became slightly nervous. "Yeah?"

	"I don't remember too much of it very well. All I can recall clearly is
pain." She saw her friend wince, but continued regardless. "It wasn't your
fault Yohko-chan. From what I saw, you were trying to protect me.

	"Still, there was something about that fight that I haven't been able to
figure out." The girl looked pensive. "I'm not sure, but I thought I saw
you glowing. Did they attack you too?"

	"Well..." Yohko dueled briefly with her worse fear, being hated for being
what she was, and promptly decided to stop. It was time for some truth. All
these secrets didn't suit her. "Rei, I'll be truthful with you. Do you
remember all those training sessions with Grandma?" Rei nodded, and Yohko
continued. "Well, about a year or so ago, I learned what it was for. There
were these demons, powerful ones, that tried to destroy me."

	"Demons?" The girl asked blankly.

	"Yeah. They tried to kill me, and hurt Chi, and tried to take over the
world, from what I saw. That was when Grandma revealed that our family is
a long line of Devil Hunters, women that have dedicated their lives to
using the power they possess to eliminate the demon problem from the Earth.

	"She told me that I was the 108th in the line, and I was to go out and
fight the damn things. I didn't believe her until that incident with
Osamu." Yohko shuddered at the memory. Even though he was possessed, she
never really spoke to him again, and he did his best to avoid her, out of
awkwardness and fear.

	"She gave me that ring you saw. It's over hundreds of years old, and is
the key to the majority of my power. I used it to stop their Ceremony of
Blood, when they were trying to make a portal to the demon plane and use it
to take over this world.

	"I've been fighting them ever since. It's really been hell though. Almost
everywhere I step, there's another to cause evil. It's one of the reasons
that I wanted to get away. They massed up all at once, and kept me busy for
a month destroying all of them."

	Yohko bowed her head. "I was hoping that they wouldn't follow me here, but
they did it anyway, and now you're part of their targets. I'm sorry for
that Rei. I shouldn't have gotten you involved with that."

	"You... feel responsible for that attack?" Rei was an emotional mess.
Yohko answered her question about the girl's power, but it left a slew of
new ones to wonder. "Yohko, you have to know that wasn't your fault."

	"Then who's is it? That was the second time they targeted you in two days!
It didn't start until I got here."

	"It was probably a coincidence Yohko-chan." Rei answered back. "Monsters
attack here often enough. Didn't the Sailor Senshi stop it?"

	"Well, when those other two arrived, yeah. But that's what doesn't make
sense to me." Yohko looked at Rei with guilt in her eyes. "I should have
just taken out the damn thing in the first place instead of worrying about
some silly little secret. I almost cost you your life, Rei-chan."

	"But..." Rei was a bit speechless. Things were running through her head to
fast to make any real sense. Those Daimon creatures were strong, but Yohko
sounded like she could beat them without effort. Just how strong was she if
that was only a small portion of her power? What could she possibly hope to
accomplish against a menace that Sailor Moon couldn't seem to stop? What
kind of evil was out there in the world that needed generations of fighters
to keep them in check? And for a topper, "Shouldn't you be worried about
your identity, in case they come after you?" she asked aloud.

	"They already know where to find me, and the Devil Hunter line has always
been known and feared by the demon race, according to grandma. She's yet to
be wrong about that." The girl sighed. "I was stupid for thinking I could
get away for a moment."

	"Yohko, you have help, you know." Rei tried to speak up. "The Sailor
Senshi have been taking care of the monsters in Juuban for two years now.
Isn't that one of your reasons for coming?" She tried to smile at her
friend. "Because you knew you might not have to fight them alone?"

	"Well... yes, I thought of that. Grandma and Azusa could handle things at
home, so I didn't worry myself into a further wreck that I already was. I'm
just... not happy with the situation."

	There was a moment of silence as they each went into their own thoughts.
Finally, Rei just shook her head. "Let's just forget about it for the
moment, okay?" she said. "It won't do much to worry about it, you'll just
have to wait until next time to do something about them."

	"I guess. I'd just like to be rid of these dumb devils for once." Yohko
said morosely.

	"Well, let them be for the moment, and do something fun." Rei was glad
that Usagi wasn't present. She'd have teased Rei about wanting to play
instead of doing something important that needed to be done. However, Yohko
wasn't looking too happy, and that stabbed at Rei's heart. The Daimons and
the new threat would show again, but for now it was better to just have fun
while fun was to be had. "Maybe go shopping? I do have some money, and I'm
sure you brought some."

	"I did." The girl looked at Rei, finding some ease in dark violet eyes. "I
guess it would be okay to do that for now. They'll come knocking on the
door anyway."

	"Good! Let's get dressed then, and head out. We've still got a half a day
left to play with." Rei rose from the furo, and went to get some towels.

	Yohko smiled at her friend. "Thanks Rei-chan. Thanks for understanding."

	Rei thought to just how much she might understand. "You're welcome Yohko."



*****     *****     *****     *****     *****     *****     *****     *****


	The day was fairly active, to say the least. Usagi could well attest to
that simple fact. True, she had spent the majority of that time within the
house, but what had taken place had taken her entire day. She had sat down
with both her mother and her boyfriend, and did the best impression of a
gaping fish as she could while the two elder people relayed her entire
study schedule to her. It largely consisted of major changes in her normal
schedule, which wasn't organized enough to be legitimately recognized
as one.

	Most of her lousing time (sleep, eat, whatever) was gone, replaced with
some mandatory hours in self-study, which she had to show to her mother
every night, or face dire consequences. If she didn't have an afternoon
extra curricular, then she was to be with her friends with their study
group (who's scheduled sessions Ami had provided to Tsukino-san earlier).
She was to bring in what she had completed from there as well. The whole
ordeal left little to no private time that wasn't weekend based, and it
would stay that way until her grades improved and were maintained to a
level where both Tsukino-san and Mamoru were satisfied.

	Usagi's head was hurting from all of it, and she wanted nothing more than
to run from it. Mamoru had sympathetically obliged her with a car trip to
the mall. Away from her mother, she finally let loose the final hope of
getting away from the horrid, evil, and just plain icky schedule from hell.

	"Mamo-chan! You really can't be making me stick to that awful schedule? I
don't have any free time with it!"

	She watched with hopeful, tear-filled eyes, as he shook his head. "No
doing Usako. You're mother's basically right about you. You're more than
capable of what you're putting out, and it's time you saw that too." He
smiled slightly. "You'll be better for it."

	"But..." damnit, it wasn't working! He wasn't seeing sensibly! "There's
so many things going on as is. What about the new enemies?"

	"We will take care of that Usagi, you know that. Most of your time is with
me or the girls, so I doubt that it will be too much of a problem. They
will slip, and we'll catch them." He turned into the parking lot, and
headed down to the lower levels.

	"I just don't like it Mamo-chan. Why do I have to do all of this? I can
raise my grades on my own!"

	Mamoru's eyebrow twitched, a curious sight to the younger blond. "I'm not
saying you can't, but you can't say that this won't be good for your study
habits. Even Luna agrees to that. We're not trying to punish you Usagi. I'm
honestly looking forward to actually being able to help you not get
horrible marks when both you and I know that you can do better."

	They pulled into a lower level lot, and parked the car. Usagi hopped out,
and Mamoru locked up. Usagi tread beside her boyfriend, not quite sure what
to make of her dilemma. "Mamo-chan..."

	He turned to her, and she had to flinch at the solid look in his eyes. She
had seen it before, and knew that his stance was adamant on the subject.
"You can do better Usagi, and you're going to. All silliness aside, I won't
let you slump like this if I can do something about it. And as your tutor,
I WILL do something."

	Defeated. Not a shot fired, and she was already laid to rest. Usagi did
her best not to let the sadness, frustrations, and overall anger show in
her face. No tears either. She DEFINITELY wouldn't be crying, not for this,
not like this. She'd be better about it, she'd just find another way later.
In the meantime...

	"Mamo-chan. Can we go get some ice cream?"

	"... Sure Usako."


*****     *****     *****     *****     *****     *****     *****     *****


	... It was beginning.

	Rather amazing. They're were several wandering this mall, all teeming
with a power distinguishable from one another, but almost the same. Maybe
signatures from the same power source? There were four nearby, and then
another one, but it didn't match the auras of the first four.

	It made no matter; it simply proved his instincts true. A subtle approach
would do, since he didn't sense the Devil Hunter anywhere near by. But she
would show, he was confident of that. One way or the other, he would see
her today.

	In the meantime, it was nice enough to sit back and watch the oncoming
events take place. Besides which, this coffee was really good.


*****     *****     *****     *****     *****     *****     *****     *****


	Minako and Makoto slurped their straws, watching the cute couples passing
by, sighing all the while. The movie didn't do much to improve their mood,
and they had felt rather sad since they had stepped into the market area
for drinks.

	Minako swirled her cola idly. "Hey, isn't that Usagi?"

	"And Mamoru, yeah." Makoto waved to the couple, and flinched when she saw
Usagi's look. The closer she came, the more anxious that Makoto became.
"Hey Usagi-chan. What's wrong?"

	The girls made space, and Usagi sat down, while Mamoru went to order some
food. "It's Mamo-chan and mom. They've taken away all my free time, and
are making me study. I won't have any time to do anything else but study."
The girl's expression was bleak enough to let Makoto know that this was a
little more serious than usual.

	"It can't be that bad, can it?" Mina asked. "You have some time left to
play with, right? And you're still studying with us."

	Without a word, the sulking girl pulled a daily planner from her purse.
"I don't have anything left except Sunday. They want reports on everything!
They're being cruel and heartless!"

	"... Wow." Makoto said, flipping through the small book. It was new, and
already in good use, seeing as several weeks in the calendar was filled out
with session times, notes on deadlines, and more. "Mamoru's putting this
much effort into it?"

	Usagi nodded. "That's just the beginning. I won't even have much of a
two week break with what they've got planned."

	"That's terrible." Mina said, whistling. "I don't think I'd be able to
survive that. What did Luna say?"

	"That traitor's all for it. Says that it'll be good for me." Her face grew
red with frustration. "Don't they realize that I'm not a study creature? I
have to be treated delicately, or my head will explode!"

	The two girls laughed. "It won't be that bad Usagi-chan. We'll be helping,
remember? We'll help you out." Makoto said.

	"... Not you too?" Usagi looked ready to fall in on herself. They were
joining her mother's side? "I'd expect it from Ami-chan, but you two?"

	"Expect what from me?" Ami walked up to the group, tray of light food in
hand, and book bag on her shoulder.

	Usagi spun on her heel, facing the blue-haired girl. "Traitor! How could
you let them do this to me?"

	Ami stepped back on reflex. Usagi looked... scary. "Usagi-chan, it's for
your own good, and it's only until you can bring your grades up. Mamoru
said that he was going to lighten the workload when your scores improved."

	Logic. Hadn't helped her all day. "No one will defend me..."

	"Usagi," Makoto chided. "It'll only be for a month at the most. You can't
live with that?"

	"No!" the girl snapped. "I need space! I need to breathe! They want to
strangle me with books and math, and I HATE math!"

	"Well, you'll just have to tough it out Usagi-chan." Mina giggled. "I'm
sure you'll pull through. It is something that counts, and you've always
come through on things that count."

	The girls turned to their shakes and Ami sat down with her food while
Usagi sulked about the unfairness of it all.


*****     *****     *****     *****     *****     *****     *****     *****


	It had taken some close effort, but it was done. The girl's had finally
stopped, and she could make her move.

	It had taken them long enough. All of that window shopping and browsing.
It was more than enough to promptly remind her just WHY she didn't want
anything even remotely resembling children.

	Kaolinite watched the two girls, one of which the earlier Heart Crystal
victim, and the other the odd girl, and her target along with her, looking
highly pensive.

	It was of no concern. She was an extra in the plan, and she would not let
the professor's work, and her mistress's plans go into folly. She doubted
if the girl had the power, but she had annoyed Kaolinite enough for her
to acknowledged that she needed to be terminated, and terminated quickly.

	She threw the Daimon egg to a coat on a rack display in front of a
clothing store, instructions already implanted within the creature's mind.
Then she saw a nice shop, and decided to do some minor indulging until the
show began, the wonderful performance it promised to be.


*****     *****     *****     *****     *****     *****     *****     *****

	"Rei-chan, can we sit now?"

	"Spoilsport." Rei shot a tongue at her friend, who didn't even bother to
respond. "I thought you were up to some shopping?"

	"I was, about forty stores back." She emphasized by pointing back down
the section of market they had just explored. "It's not that I'm tired. I'm
just hungry. Getting off my feet is a bonus."

	Rei pouted. "Fine. The food court is in the mall, not far from here. But
then we hit the clothing store, okay?"

	"Gonna stare at something all day?" Yohko smirked.

	"No, I need a new skirt." Rei shot her tongue at the girl. "Now come on
already!"

	Yohko allowed herself to be pulled along, almost not noticing that tingle
at the back of her head. Another one? But what was it? "Rei..."

	"Hmm?" the raven-haired girl asked, not slowing up by much.

	"Rei, I think I sense something." Yohko's eyes darted about the crowd,
trying to focus on the feeling of something odd about her surroundings. No
specific place, but she knew it was there.

	"Are you sure?" Rei was wary now, almost touching her communicator in her
pocket to give the distress signal to the rest of the Senshi. "You mean
like the wards?"

	"No. Those were harmless. This is... power." Yohko shook her head, which
had begun to throb. Now wasn't the time for her to be reminded of her
headache. "I'm not sure, but it's definitely not like the ofuda. This is
different, because it's... moving."

	Rei fought the urge to be impressed. That technique was helping her, even
if she was trying to... wait. She WAS doing it wrong. "Yohko-chan, you're
doing it wrong. Stop trying to force it. Just relax and probe."

	"Huh?"

	"Grandpa didn't let you know? It's harder to do when you force it. It's
more on a play of your senses, and you have to let it come naturally, or
you'll give yourself a really bad headache."

	Yohko blinked. "He wouldn't tell me that." Come to think of it, when she
wasn't concentrated on things, she would notice the pings much better than
if she was pressing for the feeling.

	She put Rei's advice to use, and stopped trying to feel for it. For a
moment nothing happened, and then she felt it again. Growing. Shifting.
Moving in on itself, and growing again. She still couldn't tell where it
was, but she knew that it was there now.

	"You're right, but I'll ask how later. It's something weird, but I can't
sense where it's coming from."

	"Maybe we should move before whatever it is presents itself." Rei said,
her own senses suddenly on edge. "We don't to be caught in the crowd when
it shows--"

	"No. I'll track it, and fight. I won't have these stupid demons attacking
us again." Yohko stated coldly.

	"Yohko?"

	The brunette girl smiled at Rei. "It'll be alright. It won't get the drop
on us this time. I'll take care of it, and that demon woman if she shows."

	As if mentioned, there was a blood-curdling roar, and the crowd seemed to
shift and flood against them. Yohko and Rei fought their way out of the
rush, and caught a glimpse at the disturbance.

	It was decked in furs, with a weird scarf and some... very suggestive
garments within the coat. It also had four people unconscious  before it,
Heart Crystals floating above them.

	The two worked their way away from the crowd, and Rei hit her distress
communicator with a gesture of her wrist. Yohko had wasted no time, and had
just blasted at the Daimon with the same spiral of red energy as before.

	The Daimon looked up, and dove out of the way of the blast, shouting
obscenities at the Devil Hunter.

	"Rei, go ahead and get out of here! I'll handle this!"

	Rei went to war with herself for a moment, and decided to follow that
advice. "Alright Yohko. Be careful!" She turned and ran toward the mall
entrance, swearing that backup would be on the way. Quickly.


*****     *****     *****     *****     *****     *****     *****     *****


	The girls all jumped at once when their communicators when off.

	"Enemy? Already?" Minako asked.

	Ami pulled out her pocket computer and began typing. "I'm seeing some
energy spikes from outside."

	"Alright! Finally, some action!" Makoto got up and reached for her henshin
stick. "Let's get going already!"

	The others nodded, and rose from the table, looking for a secluded spot,
when the crowd charged into the mall eatery area, screaming in terror. Rei
was soon distinguished from the crowd, and seeing the others, ran her way
toward them. "Yohko's fighting the Daimon on her own! We've got to back her
up!"

	"What?" Usagi said.

	"A Daimon attacked, and she's out there fighting on her own!"

	"So she's got powers to do that? I wasn't imagining things?" Usagi asked
happily.

	"No, you weren't! I'll explain later, lets just go before she's hurt!"

	The girls rushed off, needing no further encouragement.


*****     *****     *****     *****     *****     *****     *****     *****


	Yohko dodged another charge, and backflipped into a defense stance. The
Daimon rushed her again, and again she dodged, this time answering back
with a kick to the jaw. It screamed in pain and annoyance, but Yohko was
oblivious to it. She delivered two more blows to it, and blasted it into
the wall of the mall eatery market.

	The Senshi, just arriving on the scene, paused at what they were seeing.

	"Did... she just blast that thing into the wall?" Jupiter asked.

	"Yohko-chan?" was all Mars could say. She was horribly speechless. Any
doubt about the girl's fitness to take care of herself went well out the
window.

	"RrraaaaaaaaAAAAAAAAAAAGH!"

	Then again...

	"Damnit! Stay down!" Yohko tried to gather another blast, when suddenly
she was grabbed and flung for a loop by seemingly nothing at all. She
crashed through a display in another store.

	Her attacker, Kaolinite, merely chuckled from above. "So this is all the
strength you possess girl? The Senshi would fair better."

	Yohko merely grumbled about someone stopping the damned phone from ringing
in her head.

	"Well, it's time you were eliminated. Can't have loose factors afterall.
Daimon!"

	The creature pulled itself from its impact point, and roared.

	"Time for that intervention." Venus stated.

	"Stop right there!"

	Both Daimon and Kaolinite turned to the voice. "Ah yes, speak of the
devils, and they arrive."

	"Attacking innocents at places of leisure and shopping is unforgivable! In
the name of the Moon, we'll punish you!" Sailor Moon's gaze darted from
place to place, not really sure what to head to first. "Guys?"

	"Mars, go and see if Yohko's alright." Mercury called out. "I'll check on
those victims she mentioned. You guys deal with those two."

	The reacted on the given plan, scattering in all directions. Venus shot a
Crescent Beam at Kaolinite, who deftly dodged while floating.

	"She's not gonna be an easy target." Jupiter growled.

	"So pick a place and fire! We gotta buy Sailor Moon some time to deal with
that Daimon!" Venus let another golden beam rip loose, and Jupiter
followed suit with a sparkling ball of lighting. The woman dodged both, and
motioned with her hands, tearing up the pavement and pushing them both
back with extreme force.

	"Little girls, don't you have something better to do? Daimon, hurry and
finish the job! I wish to bring home some trophies in the Deathbusters's
name!"

	"Deathbusters?" Jupiter rolled out the way of another blast of force. "So
that's the new enemy?"

	Meanwhile, Sailor Moon had more than her fill trying to avoid the
outrageously dressed Daimon, as it proved to be much faster than it should
have been. It lashed out with its scarf, and snared her by the ankle,
spinning her like a bola over its head.

	Sailor Moon turned three shades of green. This was just not a good day,
and it didn't look to get any better--

	An angry Daimon scream and some vertigo later, she was tucked away safely
in the arms of Tuxedo Kamen. "Thanks." She managed to mumble, trying not to
look too sick.

	"Don't thank me yet, the battle's not over." He pointed where the Daimon
was recovering. "You have to blast it Sailor Moon. Now!"

	Usagi tried to still the world enough to focus on her target, and charged
her power. "MOON PRINCESS... HALATION!"

	A brilliant shower of carnation energy caught the Daimon head on, and did
little more than injure it.

	Usagi allowed her jaw to hang freely this time. It didn't WORK? Before
she might have counted it to not having the element of surprise, but the
Daimon was fully unaware! Just how tough were they?

	She didn't get the chance to answer, as it straightened and let loose a
howl of pain, and threw a hail of buttons at high velocity toward her. They
ripped into her with fast and precise accuracy, tearing at her uniform, and
making her cry out in pain.

	"Sailor Moon!" Several heads turned at once, and saw the girl and her
well-dressed retainer come under the assault of what looked like bullets.


*****     *****     *****     *****     *****     *****     *****     *****


	Such an... interesting match.

	He calmly sipped his tea from his observation point, somewhere far enough
from the action as to not be affected, and so far he liked what he had
seen. Save for the Devil Hunter, none of the combatants seemed to have
enough power to be effective against the menace. Their one trump was trying
to clear her head, and what looked like their strongest fighter was being
manhandled by some rather unorthodox weaponry.

	Amazing indeed, but it didn't look like it was all. Whatever the enemy had
come for, they were powerful. He could sense the energy potential, and it
was vast. Their tools of gathering them were rather weird, but bared more
looking into.

	In the meantime, he sat back and enjoyed himself. It looked like more
were about to come to the head fighter's aid.


*****     *****     *****     *****     *****     *****     *****     *****


	"SPARKLING WIDE PRESSURE!"

	Jupiter turned and flung it at the attacking Daimon, and it shrieked from
pain, but showed little other sign of effect. "There's got to be a way to
deal with this!" She growled, and jumped pass another idle attack from
Kaolinite.

	"We're too far spread out. We need to regroup, and try for a Planet
Attack." Venus said.

	"We don't have the time necessary for that! Something has to interfere
soon, because this isn't something we can hold."

	On the other side, Mercury finished putting in the crystals to their
rightful owners, and ran toward her comrades, wondering just why those
Heart Crystals were promptly ignored. Weren't they the focus of the
attacks?

	"SHABON SPRAY!"

	The area went clouded, and she quickly found her two friends. "Venus!
Jupiter! We need to focus on helping Sailor Moon! I'm beginning to suspect
a trap here!"

	"What? A set up?" Venus asked.

	"I don't think it was meant for us though. Where's Yohko and Mars?"

	"Still looking for her buried in that department store, last I saw."
Jupiter blinked. "You don't think that this was meant for her, do you?"

	"I can't confirm, but right now we need to deal with the immediate threat,
that Daimon."

	The girls both nodded, and Mercury lifted the fog, and pointed toward
their intended target...

	Only to stop and stare, like everyone else, at Yohko. She was glowing.
Again. A brilliant aura outlining her, almost making Mars invisible from
where she stood at the girl's side.


*****     *****     *****     *****     *****     *****     *****     *****


	The dust cleared, and she felt like shit. That was stupid of her to forget
the little wombat of a demon that looked more or less like the one
operating things.

	It wouldn't happen again.

	"Miss!" came a somewhat muffled call. "Are you okay? Speak to me if you
can hear!"

	"I'm... fine." She said after a fit of slight coughing. That had hurt.
Yohko swore to pay it back tenfold. "Just a scratch. Nothing compare to
what she's about to get."

	She climbed out of the remains of the racks and displays, and made her way
to the voice, one of the Senshi, in a red fuku. Sailor Mars, if what she
remembered from Chi was to be trusted.

	Sailor Mars came up to the girl and looked her over. "I told you, I'm
fine. Nothing to worry about." Yohko frowned with memories. "I've had
worse."

	Before the girl could get in a word edgewise, Yohko took off for the front
of the store. She saw the display, two of the Senshi fighting that bitch,
and the one from yesterday, Sailor Moon, and her escort defending against
the Daimon, which was giving them a run for their money. Then the whole
area went up in fog with two spoken words.

	Perfect.

	She gathered her wits, and waited for the smoke to clear before opening
herself to the rest of the power within her ring, lighting her in a
brilliant red glow. She hardly registered the presence behind her, which
was staring in open shock.

	"In one town or another, you of the demon world continue to stalk and
disturb the innocent. My soul will never know peace as long as you exist!

	"And now you dark beings dared to attack the ones that I have taken for
my own, my family, and strike my honor? I WILL NOT STAND FOR IT!"

	Yohko leapt into the air, and her clothes literally burst into nothingness
all around her. Energy swirled around her, then melded itself to her. Yohko
landed, now sporting a tight, slinky Chinese dress with slits up the side
exposing her thighs, and a high-design yin yang symbol on the chest. Her
ankles and wrist were in flexible, gold bracers, and Chinese red slippers
replaced the sneakers that she had. Her left hand, with her ornate ring,
was glowing white.

	"Demons cringe! The one-hundred and eighth Devil Hunter Yohko is here!"

	Sailor Moon BLINKED. Did anyone else realize just how... revealing, that
transformation was?

	Tuxedo Kamen was not sure just what to say. He was also certain that if
Usagi even thought he was going to speak, he was going to be hurt. So he
said nothing.

	Kaolinite raised an eyebrow. That... was a show. But that wasn't what
bothered her. The power the girl possessed was phenomenal. Perhaps even
more than some of the Witches. Should they have run against this force
without knowing...

	"Sword of my soul, appear!"

	Kaolinite's eyes nearly bugged out of her head. A Talisman?! The girl had
one of the Talisman, and was actively using it?

	The Devil Hunter in question wasted no further time, and went after the
first target most convenient, the Daimon.

	Said Daimon charged the girl, and ended up folded and rolling from the
strike Yohko landed. Everyone watched on in fascination as it rose again,
a nasty gash within its belly, spilling black ichor along the ground. It
was coughing and growling, eyes focused in hatred toward its assailant.

	Yohko gave no acknowledgment, but inwardly she was impressed. If that
Daimon could withstand a slash like that, then this wouldn't be as simple
as she thought it would have.

	The Daimon shot a gesture at Yohko, and the girl spun out of the way,
holding her shoulder. She painfully pulled a sharp cufflink out of her
collar where it had drawn blood, and quickly began to duck and dodge more
of them as it shot them out.

	It was a dizzying show, and no one wanted to look away. Yohko would flip,
duck, roll, and run away from the projectiles hot on her heels. Kaolinite
gasped as she saw that the girl was leading it into a position where she
could counter the attack, and readied to assist it herself...

	If it weren't for the three attacks of ice, lightning and energy that hit
her all at once. She let out a shrilled scream of anger as she hit the
ground.

	"Not so fast lady. You're fight's with us." Jupiter spoke up, another ball
of electric pain crackling within her palm.

	"Surrender now, and you won't get hurt. Tell us what the Deathbusters are
after!" Venus added.

	"You... annoying brats. That hurt." She rose to her knees, and glared
Jupiter in the eyes. "It won't do interfering with our work, and you only
bring more misery to your people by opposing us."

	"What do you mean!? You're the one snatching out people's Heart Crystals!"
Jupiter shot back.

	"It doesn't matter what you little Senshi want or do. We will purify this
planet, and the universe." The woman let out a low chuckle. "Why don't you
go play with someone you can handle until purification comes?"

	She vanished, and then was above them, striking the three into the
pavement with a blast of gravity. She turned her head, sick of the little
interventions. It was time to do away with this target and proceed with the
plan. "Daimon! Finish her off!"

	The creature would have complied, but could do little to actually nail the
annoying gnat again. It gave up its projectiles and charged at the girl.
Yohko met the monster with a charge of her own, and with a savage cry, ran
the Daimon through with her sword.

	Yohko's eyes narrowed, and with a shout of, "The final blow!" she brought
the blade through the Daimon's torso, and back down in a powerful stroke,
cleaving it in half. The Daimon flickered, and all that remained was a fur
coat, cut in half, and two separate pieces of the Daimon egg, which burst
into smoke and blue fire when they hit the ground.

	Yohko turned to Kaolinite, cold look still on her face. "Your turn,
demon."

	"This girl... will be a problem." She muttered angrily. Aloud, she spat
venom at the girl. "This will not continue, girl. I will strike you down
myself. You won't be allowed to interfere!"

	"If your plan is to terrorize and murder the humans here, then I will
interfere in every way." Yohko replied coldly.

	Kaolinite's hands began glowing, when more voices butted in. "I believe
you're outnumbered."

	She looked up at two more Senshi on the roof, smirks on their faces. The
others were around on the ground, two tending to their leader and her
escort, and the others ready to attack her. Then there was that girl,
that... BRAT, looking at her, ready to unleash a blast of energy her way,
her sword not ceasing its eerie white glow as it played against her red
aura.

	"This won't be the end." She said as she vanished, mere milliseconds in
front of three blasts of white, blue, and yellow that impacted on where she
had been.


*****     *****     *****     *****     *****     *****     *****     *****


	Yohko swore silently. That coward demon ran away again, and her head was
pounding, and her shoulder was bleeding, and... bath. Definitely the way to
go when she got back. First thing to do was to make sure people were doing
fine, then find Rei.

	Her sword flickered and vanished, and she gazed around the battlegrounds,
looking for the bodies of the four fallen people from earlier. Favoring her
shoulder, she made her way over to where she had spotted them last.

	It was an odd silence that took the Senshi as they watched the girl make
her way to the people attacked by the Daimon.

	"Shouldn't someone say something?" Sailor Moon whispered to Mars.

	Mars looked at her leader, then back to her friend, the Devil Hunter.
Before, she didn't want to believe that heavily in it, but she had just
seen the evidence for herself.

	"Um, hello?" Yohko asked, looking up from examining the people on the
ground. "Shouldn't we call an ambulance for them, or something?"

	Mercury decided to break the ice, so to speak. "No, they should recover on
their own. It's was just an attack on their energy."

	"Energy? But... they weren't out to kill them?"

	"They'd die eventually if those crystals weren't restored to them, so I
guess that would be their intent, but not this time."

	Yohko let go of the small breath she had been holding. Most of the victims
around her battles never survived the encounter. That also brought up more
questions about the strange way these demons behaved. What would they need
with energy?

	"Um, if I may ask," Venus spoke up, "Can I have your sword?"

	Yohko blinked. "What? NO! It's a family heirloom, and I don't think I'd be
able to give it to you anyway."

	"Drat."

	"Who are you, exactly?" Jupiter finally asked.

	"My name is Yohko Mano, and I'm the 108 Devil Hunter of my line." She
answered, almost as if practiced.

	"And what are you doing here?" Mercury spoke up.

	The Devil Hunter stood from where she was, and started looking around
again. "Um, I'd really like to sit out and answer all of your questions,
but I have to find my friend. Could we do this some other time?"

	Mercury blinked in a bit of confusion. "Another time?"

	"Yeah. I'm sure we could arrange a meeting of some sort, right?"

	"Yes. That might help, actually." Mercury turned to Sailor Moon, who was
merely watching the conversation, then back to Yohko. "Do you have
somewhere in mind?"

	"Well, if you guys really need to look me up, I'm at the Hikawa Shrine,
okay?"

	"... Alright then." That was weird, but strangely relieving. Mercury had
never really known a strange person involved in situations of good and evil
to stick around for twenty questions, at least in her experience. Yohko, on
the other hand, seemed more than willing to be able to offer information.
"Well meet at a later time tonight... ten."

	"Great. In the meantime, I've got to go. I'll see ya." Yohko jumped over
the Senshi's heads, and took off in the general direction of the mall.


*****     *****     *****     *****     *****     *****     *****     *****


	"That went... remarkably well."

	"It did. But you saw what I did as well."

	"The girl's sword?" Neptune asked. "You think it's a Talisman?"

	"Is there any other explanation?" Uranus replied. "We can't afford to be
thinking otherwise. I'm positive that Kaolinite saw it as well. We have to
see this through. If she is a Talisman keeper, then it's our job to see
that it doesn't fall in their hands."

	Neptune looked at her partner's burning eyes, and nodded reluctantly. "I
understand."

	"Hey! You two!"

	The two Senshi turned to gaze at their younger counterparts. Uranus merely
shook her head. "We've no time to spend here. We know what's going to
happen, and I'd like to prepare."

	"We won't chase after her now?"

	"... No. I have a better idea." With that, Uranus jumped from her
position.

	"I see," Neptune said, following.


*****     *****     *****     *****     *****     *****     *****     *****


	"Damnit, they did it again." Jupiter sighed.

	"Well, I'm not letting them get away," Venus said. "They still have to
explain just who they are and why they're not with us."

	"We still have other things to attend to guys." Mercury said. "Like Yohko.
She's a bigger situation right now."

	"That still seems too weird to me." Mars said. "I've seen it for myself,
but it's still so... and where did she get that sword from?"

	"Did you guys see the way that woman's eyes lit up when Yohko drew it from
wherever she hid it? Do you think it's what they might be looking for?"
Venus asked.

	Jupiter shook her head. "Too much coincidence for me. I guess we'll all
find out tonight."

	Mars nodded from her position at her side. "I suppose you guys need to
hear it too. I haven't heard the whole thing myself. In the meantime, I
think we better make ourselves scarce."

	"It didn't work..." Sailor Moon finally spoke up.

	"Sailor Moon?" Mars asked.

	"My attack just hurt it. It didn't work at all..." The girl looked past
her friend, and seemingly into nothing at all.

	"Usagi... we'll get them next time, alright?"

	Sailor Moon only nodded curtly in reply. Then they departed before further
attention seekers arrived.


*****     *****     *****     *****     *****     *****     *****     *****


	"Rei! There you are!"

	"Yohko! Your shoulder!" Rei rushed her friend, feigning surprise and
shock.

	The brunette shook her head. "It's nothing but a small puncture wound.
That's more than I can say for that demon though."

	"You beat it?"

	"You expected otherwise?" The girl grinned at her friend. "I even got to
meet some of the Senshi, but that other demon woman escaped." Yohko looked
to the ground nervously. "Um, the Senshi wanted to meet with me, so I said
that they could come to the shrine later on tonight. I hope you don't
mind."

	It was Rei's turn to look nervous and uncomfortable. "Um... I guess not.
We can worry about that later though. I'd rather find something to help
with that wound."

	"Actually, I think I have something a bit worse to worry about."

	"What?" Rei asked.

	Yohko looked at Rei with an embarrassed expression. "Usually I have no
problem wandering around in my Devil Hunter uniform after a fight, because
I usually go straight home. But I don't want to attract anymore attention,
and I can't really transform back because then I'd just be naked." Yohko
had frowned as she mentioned her attention. As much as she liked boys, the
ways that the shopkeepers and shoppers were staring at her were giving her
the creeps.

	Rei nodded, more sympathetic with Yohko's feelings than she'd admit to
anyone else. Perverts, all of them. "Well, I'm afraid I don't have much
except for eating."

	"Maybe a jacket would work?" Yohko wondered.

	"I guess, if you're sure they're not oogling your legs." Rei smirked at
that.

	"I don't mind the attention to my legs. But my chest is something that's
completely different."

	Rei nodded. "Alright then. We'll get a coat and leave. I need a rest at
this point anyway."

	"You said it." Yohko agreed.


*****     *****     *****     *****     *****     *****     *****     *****


	What an interesting fight. So many things to play with.

	For one, the Devil Hunter would be a threat, but one that would need a
special touch to deal with. Subtlety would be the big factor in her death,
and he would take great care in making sure her last moments were filled
with special torture and pain before he took her life.

	The next were the Senshi. Not really much of a threat, especially if their
need for teamwork was exploited. The elders that had shown up later might
be much of a problem, but from what it looked, they would be pushovers,
given the right motivation.

	The Deathbuster woman was the most interesting. Her skills and eyes were
very good, and it would be a treat to know more about her, and the minor
shells that she called forth to do her bidding. They would be the greatest
use to him, and eventually, so would she. The thing licked its astral lips
in delight. Indeed she would be.

	He dropped two coins from his pocket, and retrieved his coffee. Wonderful
stuff, that. Amazing what kinds of ideas humans could come up with if
motivated. What better motivation than paranoia and fear of being attacked
at their most vulnerable?

	He would have to play to that soon. Midnight looked as to be a busy time
this night. He'd best be ready to settle in and take notes.


*****     *****     *****     OMAKE     *****     *****     *****


<And now it's time for another stop at...>


<THE FOURTH CORNER>


<Scene opens to Azusa Kanzaki and Usagi Tsukino with respective uniforms on
starring at the camera. Usagi is smiling, and Azusa is scowling slightly.>

AZUSA: Hi hi, and welcome to another edition of--

USAGI: Usagi Says! I'm your host, and this is my cute little sidekick,
Azusa! Say hi to the people!

AZUSA: *Stressed look* Nani? Sidekick? I'm the CO-HOST! And this isn't
Usagi Says--

<Kenji holds up a sign from his chair behind camera, which reads 'Roll with
it'. Azusa grumbles.>

USAGI: Anyway, in today's episode, we saw continuing development of a very
complex plotline, but a lot of people have been asking, just how do you put
Mano-san in with the Senshi? Isn't she more powerful?

AZUSA: *mumbling* You bet your sweet kitty she is.

USAGI: *glares* ... ANYWAY, Kenji saw many problems with this as well, but
feels that he found a sufficient, and new way to deal with the problem that
should be entertaining for the audience.

AZUSA: Does that mean he's gonna let someone else write the fight scenes
from now on?

USAGI: Don't I wish. *watches Kenji twitch* But nope! All will be revealed
with the continuing chapters, and hopefully pocky-for-brains will get it
right!

<Kenji growls from his producer's seat, but says nothing.>

USAGI: Anyway, for an interesting fact, did you know that Yohko's color
base will be taken from the anime and not the manga?

AZUSA: I'm thankful for that... HEY! Those are my lines!

USAGI: *ignores her* Yup! Her braid ornaments are red instead of the
manga's blue, and her sword is the steel color, while her ring is gold,
instead of the dull green that they were cursed with!

AZUSA: Now just a minute--

USAGI: But enough of the obligatory facts. Kids, be sure to purchase your
Sailor Moon plushies today! They're located at your nearest store! Make
sure to scream at your parents until you get them!

AZUSA: *frustrated* Now wait just a minute...

USAGI: Well, that's all the time we have for today. Tune in next time, and
I'll go over the finer points of the ginzuishou, and how to be a self-made
superstar! Ja ne!

<Usagi bounces off screen, leaving a now furious Azusa on-set.>

AZUSA: Are you SURE we can't replace her?

KENJI: *shrugs* Believe me, I'm trying. Just iris out already.

<Azusa grumbles some more as the scene blacks out.>




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