And now for something completely different, Stormwalker Soulfire
<stormwalker@airmail.net> presents...
Hello, my name is Jonathan Thompson. I know, I know... it
sounds strange. You're wondering how a five-foot-six, redheaded,
very well-built seventeen year-old *girl* ended up with a name
like that, aren't you? It's a long story, trust me. And the
real story is how a name like that ended up with this body. You
sure you want to hear this one?
You're sure. I've got to warn you, though... you'll think
I'm insane. Everyone does at first, but I have witnesses for
most of this. It really did happen. You sure you want to hear
this? Okay... it begins about a year ago, back when I was
*male*...
*********
Bishoujou Senshi Sailor Gemini
A work of fanfiction by Douglas A. Reeves
Chapter One - Callings
-------------------------------------------------------
Disclaimer : This story was inspired by John Biles' "Senshi : The
Merchandising", and is based upon a similar concept. It is not
set in the Sailor Moon universe, but uses concepts from that
series. These concepts are used without permission, but I'm not
making any money off of this, so please be merciful and don't sue
me. I don't have anything to take, anyway.
You might call this parody, as it is in its own way... but it has
some serious story elements as well. At any rate, comments are
DEFINITELY appreciated.
********
It all begins about a year ago, with a videocassette that
one of my friends gave me. Said it was from Japan, something
called "anime". He talked about how cool it was, so I took it
home and watched it. It was Neon Genesis Evangelion, and it
definitely *was* cool. I decided I could get into this anime
thing, but I never knew just how much it would get into me.
Pretty soon I was addicted. I had a part-time job at the time,
working after school; I was saving money for a better car. Never
got the car, but I got a lot of anime. It was never enough,
though.
I wanted the new stuff; stuff straight from Japan. I wanted
tapes you couldn't get here yet. So I found a club, and met some
"fansubbers". I got what I wanted.
There's good anime, and there's bad anime... and then
there's Sailor Moon. Both good and bad, from what I saw. Of
course, that wasn't much... just the R movie, and a couple of
episodes, but it was enough to get me hooked. SM kinda grows on
you--a lot like a cancer. The first time you watch it you laugh,
because it's so silly. The second time, though, you start to see
through the silliness... and that's when it gets you. The third
time? I was hooked. I started buying the manga, even though I
couldn't read it.
I still hadn't seen more than a few episodes, though, and I
didn't know much about it. My first anime convention would
change all of that. It was late May, right around my birthday,
and though I really didn't know what to expect, I knew it would
be a weekend to remember. So off I set, looking for otaku
paradise.
If you've never been to a con, there is really no describing
it. For an entire weekend some unsuspecting hotel is transformed.
There is anime *everywhere*. From the costumes (some very good,
some not so good, but all interesting) to the video rooms, to the
panel discussions, if its anime, it's there.
On top of that, there is the dealers' room. Every sort of
merchandise you can imagine, from anime, to manga, to toys, to
music, to models, to computer games... and more, so much more.
It was in the dealers' room that my friend Sharon found me.
Sharon, you see, was a Sailor Moon fan. A *big* Sailor Moon fan.
To give you an idea, when we met she was dressed up as
Sailor Moon. Not a half-bad costume, either, though her hair
just doesn't look quite right in Usagi's meatball 'do. She even
had that "klutz" act down--not that it *was* an act, mind you. I
never thought a person could be as uncoordinated as that in real
life, until I met Sharon.
"Hey, Jonathan!" she called out from halfway across the
packed chamber. "I found something cool! Come over here!" I
shrugged and started picking my way through the crowd; sometimes
my opinion of "cool" disagreed with hers, but it couldn't hurt to
look. When I finally reached her, she thrust a small, light-blue
stick into my hands. "Happy birthday!"
"It's not my birthday till next--" I started to protest,
then stopped. "Is this what I think this is?" I asked.
"Yeah! It's a transformation wand!" she answered excitedly,
showing me the one she'd bought for herself as well. Hers was
silver, with the tiny image of a crab embossed at one end. Mine
had a pair of twins rendered in similar fashion, I noted, turning
it over in my hands, then glanced up at her oddly.
"Aren't they good replicas?" she gushed. "They must be
handmade!"
They were well-constructed, I had to admit. They looked
*real*, so much so that I couldn't even tell what they were made
from. Too heavy to be plastic, too light to be metal. Wood
carvings, maybe? If so, the maker had hidden it well. "Where'd
you get these?"
"Table back that way," she answered, looking over her left
shoulder. "Hey, the guy's gone!"
"Must've sold out."
"I can see why. The price was right... but I didn't see
anyone else at the table."
"Oh, well," I shrugged. "Thanks for the gift. Now come
on... there's so much more to see! As we slipped through the
crowd toward one of the exits, I dropped the wand into a pocket.
Something tugged a little at the back of my mind just then,
but I didn't think much of it.
* * * * *
So, are you getting the idea now? Yeah, I'll bet you are.
You're already looking at me like I'm insane. I wish I was,
trust me. That would be easier to deal with. Look, if you don't
want to hear this...
...ok, I'll keep going. But wipe that silly look off your
face.
* * * * *
I saw some more Sailor Moon that night; I hadn't planned to
catch that particular showing, but I just felt like it for some
reason. It wasn't one of the better episodes, though, so I sort
of lost track somewhere along the way. Stuffing my hands in my
pockets, I found the replica wand again.
There was something about that wand... it bothered me. Some
kind of touch on my mind. In fact, there were words to go with
that touch. Then, though, I just shook my head and decided I'd
been watching too much of this stuff--not that I intended to
stop. Still, I couldn't quite get it out of my head. Of course,
I had other things to be concerned with... my friends and I were
going to slip into one of the room parties that night.
All I'd heard from them was how fun it was, and the crazy
things that happened sometimes, and how I couldn't miss it. So I
went.
You have to understand... I'd never really *done* anything
blatantly stupid in my life, so I had no idea what I was getting
into. No sooner had we found our way in when my friends all
seemed to disappear. No problem, though. I found my way over to
one of the tables and got myself something to drink.
That was, of course, my second mistake. My first was
listening to my friends and going to the party to begin with, and
my third was yet to come. You see, I'd never had alcohol before,
and after a couple of drinks I was totally plastered. I ended up
in the middle of a group of people talking about costumes, and
whose were good, and whose weren't. By this time, my judgement
was evidently a bit clouded, because I vaguely remember my own
voice saying...
"You think that's a good costume... take a look at this!
Gemini Star Power, make up!"
Suddenly, I was dead sober, looking at an instantly silent room
full of stunned otaku--all of whom were staring at me. Fuzzily aware
of what had just happened, I looked down at myself and screamed.
Gone were the t-shirt and jeans I'd been wearing. In their
place was a light-blue and white stylized sailor fuku, complete
with ridiculously short skirt... and the body to match. I looked
up, to the hand now thrust over my head, and there was the
transformation wand, slowly fading out as the lightshow around me
dissipated. My mind froze from shock, unable to deal with what I
was seeing.
Just then, the door flew open, and another girl, similarly
dressed, burst into the room. Grabbing me by the arm, she yelled
something about being late for cosplay and dragged me out the
door, sparing me further embarrassment. Once safely away, I took
a good look at her. It was Sharon.
That was the first and last time I ever got drunk.
*****
Desperate to get away from the crowds, we trudged out to my car.
On the way out, we heard a couple of shouts of "Great costume!" and
the like, but no one really seemed to pay that much attention to us.
For that, I was grateful.
As we passed through the front doors of the hotel, I got a brief
glimpse of my reflection in the glass. A violent shudder passed
through me then, and I'm sure I must have looked odd as I jerked back,
then recovered myself and went on.
Finally reaching the car, I slumped down into the driver's seat,
barely remembering to unlock the other door for Sharon. Not wanting
to see myself, not wanting to think about what had happened to me, I
focused on her. Sharon was stunned, blankly staring out into the
parking lot as she sat with her knees pulled up to her chest, the
rather short skirt drawing my eye for a moment as it left an
interesting view... but one I really wasn't interested in under the
cicrumstances. Instead, my gaze moved to her face, where a single
teardrop formed at the corner of her eye.
For a while we just sat like that, neither of us able to find
the words we were looking for. There weren't words for this, anyway.
Finally, after a while, I said, "This can't be real. This has to be
some kind of crazy dream."
Sharon shook her head, but still did not look at me. "It's
real." she answered, her voice thin and weak, yet carrying a
certainty that chilled me. "I've... dreamed of this before, and it
wasn't like this. Didn't *feel* like this. Can't you feel the power
inside you now? Dreams don't do that."
I sighed, trying to deny it. I had to deny it, even as I felt
the stirrings of magic within me. "It has to be a dream. I've been
watching too much anime... I'm too worked up over the con. Something.
This is the real world, and this doesn't happen."
Sharon unfolded her legs, leaning forward to look up at the stars
through the windshield. For several moments she sat like that...
moments I will never forget. Sharon, as I'd known her, was gone,
transformed. There was a presence about her that she hadn't had
before, and a seriousness in her eyes I'd never seen. Something had
awakened inside of her, and that something was beautiful.
More importantly, it *was* real. Sailor Cancer. And, my mind
added silently, if Sailor Cancer was real, then so was Sailor Gemini.
The weight of truth bore down on me in that moment, smashing through
all my denial.
This really was happening.
Then she turned to me, and the spell broke. "I'm sorry, Jon,"
she whispered. "This is all my fault. I gave you the wand, even
after I felt the power in my own."
I shook my head slowly, trying to take everything in. It was
too much. Magic come to life, Sharon's transformation... my own,
more startling one. "It... it can't be your fault, Sharon," I
stammered. "You can't blame yourself for this."
My mind was running triple-time, a blaze of discovery and
revelation coming too fast to interperet. This was magic, and I was
unused to the way magic worked. I could feel things I couldn't feel
before, and see in ways I hadn't. I fought through the mad scramble
of images and sensations, searching for a way to explain it all.
"Sharon... this was... meant to be, somehow. You didn't choose the
rods; they chose you. They know us, somehow."
She nodded, and I could see something change in her eyes.
"In the series... they won't work for just anyone."
"Yeah," I agreed, feeling a new weight descend upon my
shoulders. "Which means I'm stuck with this."
"Jon..." she whispered, reaching out to touch my shoulder. I
pulled away, not wanting to feel. This body *felt* differently, and
I didn't want to be reminded. "Wait," I whispered. "Let me try..."
I concentrated, and felt a warm flow over my body. I didn't have
to look at myself to know; even if Sharon's worried look hadn't
relaxed then, I could feel the difference as I returned to my own
body. "Ok... I can change back, then." Looking at the little rod
that brought me all this trouble, I sighed. "It's not... too bad,
then. Maybe I won't have to use it."
Even as I forced a smile with the words, though, the new voice
in my mind knew better.
*****
End Chapter One
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Stormwalker Soulfire <stormwalker@airmail.net> - Douglas Alra Reeves
Computer tech, anime fan, general hopeless romantic, and sometime writer
Tempest - http://web2.airmail.net/a0011387/
Fanfiction Archive - http://web2.airmail.net/a0011387/fanfic/
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'"White!" he sneered. "It serves as a beginning. White cloth may be
dyed. The white page can be overwritten; and the white light can be
broken."
'"In which case it is no longer white," said I. "And he that breaks
a thing to find out what it is has left the path of wisdom."'
-- Gandalf the Grey, "The Fellowship of the Ring"
------------------------------------------------------------------------