I know I promised I'd finish this fic up by Saturday. An unexpected, and
thankfully brief, bout with the flu kicked that in the nuts. All I've
managed to complete is one more part, but I *will* have more soon.

Now, a bit of status report...

-For those of you interested, Pencils 4 isn't too far off. We're just
waiting for a bit more crucial material from two of the writers.

-Onna: Red Side acts 1 through 4 are currently in revision, with old
mistakes being fixed, narrative being smoothed out, and new material being
added. The first two chapters of O:RS/Perfect Collection are being released
this morning. Act Five will be underway as soon as that is complete.

-Sailormoon Crystal: Suiseiki is on temporary hold while I get some other
things out of the way. Probably in January, I will begin chapter 12,
provided I don't decide to put Suiseiki through the same revision process
that O:RS is going through.

-Other projects will be continued as I find the desire to work on them. I
expect this to take a while...see why below:

-Not counting the probable sequel to Perfect Star, I've begun having major
brainstorms for Tenchi fics. Seems like writing Perfect Star has opened the
floodgates...^_^;; Anyway, so far I have two other Tenchi fics lined up;
one focusing on everyone's favorite GP duo, the other taking a broader and
more twisted approach to the series in general. A teaser for one of them
follows the feature presentation.


And now, Perfect Star part four. Same disclaimers as posted before apply
now. C&C is always welcome.


PART FOUR: No Need for Arrest


"I don't get it," Mihoshi said around a mouthful of sticky sap and pastry.
"Why did you kidnap all those girls? I mean, you didn't do anything to
them, you didn't demand any ransom..."

Across the table, Kagaboshi sat, still wearing his armor. The two of them
were eating Juraian sap cakes and drinking tea, neither fearing the other.
He smiled as he took a sip of tea. "My reasons are above petty plays for
domination or capital gain, beautiful star. What I do, I do not to harm, to
profit, or to gratify."

"So...why *do* you do it?" the blond asked again.

The silver-haired young man sighed, a far-away look entering his dark blue
eyes. "Long have I known that my destiny is to be the holy protector and
voice of the velvet landscape in which we wander. Long have I traversed the
heavens, long have I watched mortal stars take flight in the immortal
night, some shining brightly, others exuding the darkness of the fallen. In
all of this, I have been alone.

"Until one day, recently, as I encroached upon this region of the galaxy.
The heavens then spoke to me, and imparted upon me the knowledge that it is
no longer my destiny to shine in solitude among them. I learned of one, a
perfect star, whose shine would be as one with mine forever more.

"It is then, that I began searching, began removing the most beautiful of
stars from their vessels, began judging their shine. Alas, none have proven
to be the one, the perfect star...their shine is flawed, marred by the
mundanities of a life chained to their native soil. On behalf of the
heavens, which speak through me, I saw fit to banish them from the stars,
until such time as their shine becomes stronger, more pure."

Mihoshi tried to digest all that, blinking several times. "So...why were
they all in comas when you put them back?"

"It is an aftereffect of the holy power through which I pass judgement upon
them," Kagaboshi said.

"Power?" Mihoshi asked.

Kagaboshi's dark blue eyes began to glow slightly, their hue changing in
rapid pulses. After a long moment, they returned to their normal dark blue
shade.

"That's a neat trick," Mihoshi said, drinking her tea.

"What thou referest to as a trick is the holy power by which I judge the
worthiness of the stars I pluck from the vast curtain of night," the
silver-haired man said. "It allows me to see into their souls, to determine
the strength of their shine."

"Wow," Mihoshi said, suitably impressed. "So you did that to Kiyone?"

Kagaboshi looked away slightly. "Thou art the same Mihoshi of which she
spoke, then."

Mihoshi blinked. "What's wrong? What did she say?"

Kagaboshi turned to face her, and smiled slightly. "It matters not. What
does matter, is that my holy power fails to pierce thine soul. I cannot
perceive thy depths, and yet...thy shine is so brilliant I do not need the
inner sight to view it. Certainly, this be a sign from the heavens
themselves, that I have at long last found the perfect star."

"Well, that's great!" Mihoshi enthused. "So you won't be kidnapping anybody
else." She blinked. "Umm...so what exactly is the perfect star?"

Kagaboshi blinked. He reached across the table, and took the blond
detective's hands between his own. "It is thee, Mihoshi. Thou art the
perfect star."

Mihoshi's eyes widened. She looked back and forth between Kagaboshi's eyes,
and his hands upon her own. A faint blush crept onto her cheeks as
understanding set in. "Oh," she said quietly.

"It is destiny," Kagaboshi said. "Long have I sought thee, and at long last
mine search has ended. Wilt thou shine with me among the stars, my
beautiful one? Wilt thou unite thine beautiful shine with mine own, to rule
the velvet night for all time?"

Mihoshi's face grew even redder. "You're not asking me to marry you or
something, are you? I mean..." she trailed off.

"We two are destined to be as one," Kagaboshi said. The adoration in his
eyes threatened to overwhelm the detective.

Mihoshi gently pulled her hands away from Kagaboshi's. "I, um, I mean, I'm
flattered, really, but...I mean, well, you're a wanted criminal and I'm a
police officer...I mean...well...you know..." She paused for breath. "I
mean, I just met you, and..." She bolted to her feet. "I gotta go! I'm so
late!"

Kagaboshi sighed. "I see then. Very well. Remember this, then: our paths
will cross again. I shall await that day."

Mihoshi bowed. "Thank you for the snacks. It was nice talking to you!" She
then bolted for the door.

Kagaboshi smiled sadly to himself. "Yes, my perfect star...our paths will
cross again, and sooner than you might expect. It is fated in the heavens."



BONUS PRESENTATION:


"Looks bad out there," Sasami commented, peeking out the window as she
sipped her tea.

"Mm," Katsuhito nodded. "The spring rains are often like this."

The two sat in the shrine, quietly sipping tea and watching the rain.
Ryo-Ohki nibbled on a carrot nearby. A rather loud party was going on in
the main house; the girl and the cabbit had come out to the shrine for some
peace and quiet. Outside, rain beat down in heavy sheets, the occasional
flash of lightning and rumble of thunder punctuating the rhythm of the
steady rainfall.

There was a sudden flash outside which had nothing to do with lightning.
Ryo-Ohki looked up. "Mya..."

"That...looked like a ship landing," Sasami noted.

Katsuhito nodded, adjusting his glasses. "Now, who would be coming down in
the middle of this weather, I wonder?"

Sasami peeked out the window. "Looks like the Yagami," she said.

******

There was a faint but persistent knock at the front door, barely audible
over the rain and the din of the party. "Tenchi, be a dear and get that,
would you?" Ryouko said between gulps of sake.

"Really, Ryouko," Ayeka scoffed, "it would not kill you to move your lazy
bones once in a while and do something, instead of leaving it all for
others to do."

"Yeah, so? Nobody asked you anyway," Ryouko sniped, punctuating her rude
retort with a long belch. Ayeka turned away with a 'hmph', pointing at the
ceiling with her nose.

Meanwhile, Tenchi opened the front door...and took a step back as a
shivering, dripping wet young woman collapsed into his arms. "H-hey!" he
cried out. Recovering from the shock, he dragged the unconscious woman into
the house. "Someone roll out a futon," he ordered. The others looked up in
mild surprise.

"Who's that?" Ryouko wondered.

"I have no idea," Tenchi said. Ayeka appeared with the futon, and Tenchi
laid the woman upon it. "I think maybe she's Galaxy Police, though," he
commented after a moment.

She appeared to be in her early twenties, and even in her present state of
unconsciousness and dishevelment, she was quite attractive. Strands of her
long, seafoam-green hair were plastered to her face and neck, having
escaped the topknot she wore which was held in place with a simple orange
cloth. Curiously, one lock of hair which trailed down her right cheek was
darker in color, and was intertwined near the temple with a curl of almost
blond hair. Her lightly tanned skin was flushed slightly with fever. She
wore a Galaxy Police uniform, as well as a heavy pair of sweatpants and a
dark blue jacket. "We need to get her out of those clothes and into the
bath," Washuu noted. "She's already running a high fever."

"You're right," Tenchi said. "Can you girls handle it?"

Just then, the woman began coughing, and stirred slightly. Tenchi
unconsciously took hold of her hand, much to the consternation of Ryouko
and Ayeka. "Miss? Are you alright?" he asked softly.

The young lady's eyelids fluttered open, and she focused on Tenchi with
sharp, deep blue eyes. "Ten...chi..." she said hoarsely.

Everyone blinked. "How...how do you know my name? Who are you?" Tenchi
demanded.

The woman's eyes became slightly unfocused. Her voice trembled as she
replied, "Kiyo...no, Miho...that's not right...I don't know," she finished.
"I...I don't know anymore." A pitiful sob racked her frame.

A loud rumble of thunder filled the silence as Tenchi, Ryouko, Ayeka, and
Washuu glanced around at one another uncertainly.


---------------------------------------------------------------------------
That's the fullest moon I've ever seen...

The Eternal Lost Lurker
Insane evil fanfic writer type nutcase otaku
White Knight of the Knightly Order of Mihoshi Enthusiasts
eternallostlurker@worldnet.att.net
http://www.geocities.com/~etlostlurker
ICQ# 22559724