Visions of Sugar Plums
A Tale in the Saga of Sailor Moon
By Adam "Tempest" Leigh

	"I'm sorry, Molly," I hear myself say.  The pain is almost
unbearable, but I won't show my fear in front of her, or Zoisite.  "I
guess we won't be able to have that Chocolate Parfait." I really was
sorry, I see her face show signs of laughter and sadness.  I hope
that my last words don't haunt her for the rest of her days.  I
couldn't bear that.

	My body is going limp, I can't move my legs or arms anymore.  I'm
must be dead, I've never felt this way before.  I look up to Molly,
but I don't feel my head turn, or my eyes move, it's like my *spirit*
is moving without my corporal body.  She's holding me, shedding tears
over me, crying for me.  How could I have meant so much to her, I'm
just some scoundrel from the Negaverse, not worthy of this affection.

	Oh, how much I want to tell her not to cry.  It pains me to see her
like this, but I know there is nothing left for me to do. I'm dead, I
see my body disintegrate before her, its vanishing in a cloud of
sparkling light.

	So this is death.

	I've often wondered what it would be like, I had visions of endless
pain, torment beyond any dream.  But its not that painful at all,
really. I feel something new now, its like a pulling on my essence. 
My body is almost gone, the cloth bandage that was once on my arm is
now lying on the grass.  I guess whoever is in charge of these things
makes it so you can see yourself die. Or perhaps, I'm unique.

	The pulling is stronger now, if I had a throat, it would be
strangling me.  In my last action on this Earthly plain, I look to
those who had once fought me. To those who would be my enemy, the
ones who also made me see my feelings when I was too cowardly to act
upon them.  The leader, Sailor Moon� no Serena, was crying just as
much as Molly had.

	Why?  After all the pain I had caused them all, could they still
feel sorry for me?  There's so much that I wish I had time to know. 
Perhaps she is sad to see Molly in this condition, or maybe, just
maybe, she feels the way for me as she would a friend.

	Oh God upon Gods, the mighty one who controls this all, why am I
doomed to this fate?  I had just given up my heritage, I'd given up
all my power, just for love, and you punish me?  Oh why�WHY?!

	Darkness engulfs me and I await my fate.

	But I open my eyes, and my body is whole again.  I'm not in that
forestry area anymore, I'm in� I'm in a land of mist.  A place of
nothingness, a place I thought I'd never see, yet was trained to
recognize.  This is what they teach us to see as the Axis of Time.

	A robed figure approaches me, I cannot tell whether its a man or a
woman, for its clothes shroud its face, and turn its features into
flowing nothingness. It speaks with a voice that is equally confusing
for me, almost like its speaking in many voices, yet only one.  Could
this be the God that others strive to worship?

	It calls to me, "Nephrite," it says.  I can only answer.

	"That is me," I foolishly respond.  Where ever I am, I'm alone,
obviously the being knows who I am.  I don't know if it can read my
mind, but I continue to talk anyway.  "Where am I?" I ask.

	But the mist turns to slag, and I'm surrounded in a wooden booth
about waist high.  The shrouded figure is now standing high above me
on top a podium.  Its speaks my answer with one of its harsh voices,
"This is your end, Nephrite.  But from here, even I do not know where
you are to go."

	I take this as an insult, I don't know why.  "You mean you won't
tell me." I would slap myself if I didn't think it was unnecessary. 
Self inflicted pain will be the last thing I have to worry about. 
The being isn't angry, at least I can't tell if it is, but it just
continues in a slow monotone voice.

	"No, you are wrong, Nephrite, but your anger is a deciding factor in
the outcome."  Now I slap myself. "If you are wondering, this is a
trial.  There is no task to complete, there are no lawyers in terms
that you would know, there is just you, me, and your past."

	I'm confused, but I think it can see it because it continues to
speak.  "In all other conditions, you would be forced to embrace your
dire fate, but your past is unique."  I'm sweating, why?  I liked it
better when I didn't have a body.  "You are, in most terms you know,
evil.  But you have unusually earned the pure compassion of many
woman.  We are therefore going to look back upon your life and see
what fate your embrace."

	Now is the time to be scared, but I'm not.  Why would I be so calm? 
Its a question I can answer easily, I know my evils, and I'm ready to
be convicted of them.  I shouldn't have thought I could have gotten
away with hundreds of years of the actions I did and not have a
punishment.

	The judge leans on the podium quite leisurely.  "Tell me, what do
you remember of your past?" I really don't know anything about it, I
would say so but the judge continues anyway.  "Its not one of valor
if your wondering.  You have always been associated with the forces
of Queen Beryl, since way before that final battle on the moon."

	Moon? "Moon?"

	"Yes," the judge sits back now, I can't decide how to feel about the
judge.  Its personality keeps changing, but I listen with great
intent as it explains to me how I was a general of Queen Beryl over a
thousand years ago.  Together with her forces, we destroyed the
Kingdom of the Moon and with it, the peaceful coexistence of the
Silver Millennium.  I probably thought it was a good thing back then,
but now� now I think differently.

	The judge begins to talk with a heavy scorn.  "During the earlier
years of Queen Beryl's forces, you ran many runs of offense against
the Kingdom of the Moon.  Your tasks were of many genre, but often
they included the killing of some elder of one of the nine planets in
the Kingdom.  You were not gentle, and were very intent on
accomplishing the objectives of your mission.

	"Your associate generals were much like you, but strangely enough,
you often stopped excessive bloodshed.  When Malachite or Jadeite
would start to go too far, you would stop them and remind them of
their mission.  You were quite a fickle sometimes.

	"This had some endearing affect on some woman, and the only thing
more important to you than your mission, was your heart.  Odysseus, a
woman of the planet Jupiter, was one of your more tragic loves.  She
loved you, but you loved her with a passion that was unmatched, even
by her.  She could not understand how you could love her like that
unless you had some ulterior motive.  You did not, but she left you
anyway.

	Persius, a woman of Earth, also earned your love.  But unlike
Odysseus, she loved you as much as you loved her.  This love was
ended by your thirty-third mission for the Negaverse, you were to
kill her, a holding official in Queen Serenity's court.  You told her
to run, and you told Beryl that she was dead.  She punished you
greatly for lying, and Persius was caught eventually, and killed."

	I can feel my heart snapping.  How could I have been this way? 
Tears are welling in my eyes, but I don't know why.  I ask a
question, not to get out of my fate, but for curiosity. "I don't
remember this, does this affect my fate?"

	"Then lets look at what you do remember."  I just signed my warrant,
guilty as sin.  "Your record on Earth is not much better than that of
a thousand years ago.  You infected many people with the dark energy
of Queen Beryl, and made many people your pawns.  You used people,
you perverted them, yet still�" I look up and the voice has trailed
off, I feel as though the judge is frustrated, what could I have done
that would make this god have hate for me?

	"Still," it continues.  "you attracted the love of a young girl. 
She loved you dearly, and in the end you gave up everything for her. 
You do still love her?" Its asking me like a statement, but I'd reply
the same way no matter how that question was asked.

	"With all my heart," and I do.  Maybe the greatest admittance in my
life, and I can say it freely, now and forever.

	"You do.  And she returns you love, she may never be the same again.
 You used her and she still loves you, do you understand at all, what
this love means?"

	That's a stupid question, why would this judge ask me that? "Of
course, I've never felt more certain."

	"Because its the *only* redeeming value you have."  I can feel my
heart gets lodged in my throat.  I must have done something horrible
to this entity, why would it say that!?  It straightens itself and
speaks in a loud voice.  As it does, I can hear some of the other
confusing voices fall aside and one dominant voice stand out.

	"I hope you can find that fact warming, because this trial is over."
Nothing has changed since the beginning of this trial, but now I'm
nervous.  Before, I was calm with my fate in eternity, now a sweat is
breaking out.  The entity, who I can now identify a female voice
from, continues talking.  "Your heart has been weighed against your
sins, your undoubted passion is being compared to your skill as a
killer and general of Beryl's army."  Didn't she refer to Beryl as
"Queen" before?

	"My verdict is, failure." Not a surprise. But the judge persona was
dropped as soon as that word left her mouth.  The cloak fell, no,
flew from her body, dissipating into the surrounding mist.  She stood
high above him, yet she needed no height to be intimidating.  She was
wearing a similar Sailor Fuku as Sailor Moon wore, except this one
was full of purples instead of red and blue.  Her hair was a dark
green color, and she carried a staff that looked like a key.

	I'm familiar with this woman, I know I am, she's powerful yet is
hardly ever seen, I'll just speak and say whatever comes to mind. 
"Pluto.  Part of me is surprised, the other part is not."

	She raised an eyebrow and spoke to me.  "Punishment for losing this
trial is to be eternity in oblivion.  There are no ways to describe
it, because it is hardly existent, a place of little characteristics.
 As you shall soon see."

	I'm curious about something.  "Pluto, why has this trial occurred? 
This is not in any text."

	She looks upset, but she coldly responds, "I'm subject to the
Princess, always." And I understood completely.  The way she looked
when I was dying, the way she cried along with Molly, she did care
for me like a friend.  She gave me a chance to redeem myself, but she
should have known that a person like me is too corrupt to ever live
in happiness.

	This is it, the end.  I'm glad I understand it all before I go, to
where ever Pluto sends me, I don't care anymore.  "I'm ready for my
punishment," I say with dignity.  I kneel before her, and close my
eyes.

	This moment lasts for a long time, as I wait for my end.

	I hear a sharp scream, but I know it is not from me.  I raise my
head and I'm looking for the source, I can't believe it when I see
it.

	Pluto is equally as surprised, we both look upon two people who have
suddenly appeared within the mist.  One is a young woman, about five
feet tall, maybe taller.  She has similar hair to Sailor Moon, except
this hair is up in rabbit ears, and its shockingly pink.  She is
holding up a smaller version of the staff that Pluto holds, and is
holding up another person.

	An old woman, apparently very late into her life, is leaning on the
shoulder of the rabbit woman.  She has white hair now, dulled from
age, and her face is wrinkled, but I'd recognize it anywhere.  Once
it held a beautiful shade of red, and her skin, as smooth as silk. 
And she loved me, and she'll forever love me, as I her.

	I watch the drama unfold before me.  Pluto is first to speak, "What
are you doing here?" she asks, very annoyed.  The rabbit woman helps
Molly stand by herself as she speaks.

	"You can't do this to him, whatever his past crimes, he doesn't
deserve this," her voice is obviously weakened from age, but I still
revel in it, its beautiful.  "There must be some other way, I'd trade
my fate if it would make his better." This just can't do.

	"No you can't," I speak up. "I would never let you sacrifice
anything for me.  I love you too much."  I realize this is the first
time I've said this to Molly, but she doesn't look shocked.  I think
she knew that I did, even if I didn't know myself.

	She turns to Pluto as if ignoring me, but I see the tears from her
eyes.  "Please!" she cries. "If there is something I could trade for
his time in eternity."  She looks about to fall over from grief, or
some old injury, but the rabbit woman grabs her and steadies her. 
This time the rabbit woman speaks up.

	"Puu!  You know that everything the Kingdom stood for is what these
too have.  Don't let your petty vengeance get in the way of your
judgment.  You know this isn't right!"

	"You have spent too much time with your mother, Small Lady.  You are
becoming as demanding as she is.  But this is not your decision.  The
Princess told me to give him a chance, I have, but his past is too
incriminating."  Small Lady?  Mother?  This must be Sailor Moon's
daughter.  I can't let all these people get in trouble because of me.

	"All of you.  I thank you for trying, but I chose my fate long ago
when I decided to join Queen Beryl's forces." This is when it counts,
my last talk with her.  "Molly, I love you.  I probably always have,
and I'm sorry for ever having used you.  I can't express my guilt,
but you doing this is too much.  Please, my soul has been poisoned,
and I'm ready to take my place."

	I'm trying to be stern with her, but she doesn't return my attitude,
she manages to through her old body at me, and wrap her arms around
tight.  She's not the same person I knew, but I love her anyway. 
She's crying again, I've made her cry.  I can't escape this guilt.  I
can only hug her as warmly as I can, and hope she can live knowing my
fate.

	She's looking up to me now, the tears are coming, but they are
silent.  "I love you too," is all she says� before we kiss.  My first
and last kiss with her, ironic how things turn out sometimes.  When
we are done, I hear a soft voice speak to us.

	"If you trade what's left of your life, I'll let you both be
together."  Its Pluto, I can't believe it.  But I can't let it
happen.  But before I can do anything, Molly has already spoken.

	"Anything" she says, and Pluto waves her key.

	I'm scared as the light shines through the darkness, and Molly is
engulfed in it.  I can see her skin tighten, her face brighten, her
hair return to her vibrant luster.  She's becoming younger before me,
but when the process is done, she's not the same age as when I left
her.  She's in her middle twenties, about ten years older than when I
met her before.  She looks like a goddess, she's dressed in a pink
dress, and sparkling jewelry. Her eyes turn to me, and she holds out
her hand.

	I do what's natural.  I take it, and she pulls me towards her.  I
speak quietly to her,  "Forever, my goddess?"

	"For all eternity." She responds in a beautiful voice.  She turns to
the "Small Lady" and speaks. "Reenie, tell the others� what you want.
 But they must know at least one thing, I'm happy where I am."  The
woman nods and I look back at Molly just as she looks back at me. 
And the bright light engulfs both of us now, and I feel free, I feel
happy, I feel like I'm in a dream.

	For all eternity.

Author's Notes:
	This fanfic is dedicated to Jamie, a.k.a. Lady Eudialyte. The
General of Tourism.

	Sailor Moon was first told by Naoko Takeuchi and was brought to
North America  by DiC.  Although this story has several aspects owned
by others, the usage, plot, and character interactions are owned by
me, and are therefore �1997 by Adam Leigh.

Adam Chris Leigh
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-Tempest "Quoth the Raven, Nevermore..." -Edgar Allen Poe
Poet, Writer, Philospher, and Hopeless Romantic.<Omicron@sprynet.com>
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