Here's the conclusion.  Note that this fic was divided purely arbitrarily, and 
should be read as one unit.

_____________________________________________________________


*****

     "Make yourself at home," Hotaru-Pluto told her 'sisters.'

     The younger Saturn looked around the apartment curiously.  
After riding everything in the amusement park twice, it had 
started to get dark, so Hotaru-Pluto had offered to let them 
come over to her place.  She had muttered something about it not 
being safe to be out at night.

     The apartment was simple, but far from empty.  Lamps of 
every description filled the room, some on, some off.  Other 
than the lamps, however, there was little in the room.  Just a 
bed, a dresser, and a desk.

     "Oh, sorry," Hotaru-Pluto said, noticing their looks.  She 
waved her hand and half the lamps disappeared.  "If I'm not 
careful, they tend to multiply out of control."

     "How do they do that?" the younger Hotaru asked.

     "Subspace answers to will and desires... I get nostalgic 
sometimes and my mind wanders.  The lamps are the result."

     Hotaru-Pluto sat down at the desk and gestured them over to 
the bed.  "Now, why don't you tell me a little more about how 
you got here? Your Pluto is on trial?"

     "Yes, though I don't see how what she did was that wrong," 
the elder Hotaru said.

     The younger Hotaru blushed.  "My friends can be a bit 
stubborn."

     "Oh, I believe that," Pluto said.  "Unless I miss my guess, 
things happened pretty much the same in my world as yours... 
Where Sailor Saturn is concerned, there are few variables.  In 
my world, however, Setsuna is the one saddled with the awful 
burden.  I and the Outers tried to stop her from becoming what 
was destined.  We failed, but perhaps that was for the best."

     The older Hotaru giggled.  "Sorry, it's just imagining 
Setsuna in my place..."

     "It probably does seem strange to you."

     "Will we get into trouble... for running off, I mean?" the 
younger Hotaru asked nervously.

     "I don't see how, just so long as you show up for the 
trial."

     The outer wall of the apartment suddenly exploded outward, 
to reveal a Sailor Pluto with pale blue hair floating outside.

     "Sailor Saturn, Sailor Saturn, you will come with me," 
Ifurita-Pluto said.

     "Then again, I could be wrong," Hotaru-Pluto said weakly.

*****

     Michiru-Pluto walked down the street chuckling to herself.  
The meeting with her fellow Plutos had gone well, and several of 
them agreed that something had to be done.  They'd wait until 
after the trial though, both to assure that they would be able 
to get away with what they were planning and to make it more 
dramatic.  No sense in achieving the impossible if you were 
blase about it.

     She was so busy congratulating herself on her little plan 
that she ran straight into Makoto Kino coming out of one of the 
fancier restaurants maintained here.  After recovering her 
footing, Michiru was surprised to see that Makoto had 
detransformed, and did not wear the uniform of Sailor Jupiter.  
Didn't she come from Crystal Tokyo? Michiru had thought that by 
that time the Senshi just stayed in their more powerful forms 
all the time.

     She reached down to help Makoto up.  "I'm sorry, it was my 
fault.  I wasn't looking where I was going.  Are you all right?"

     Makoto looked up at her.  "Michiru?"

     "Yes, that's right."

     The girl's face fell, and she pulled away.  "Oh, a Pluto.  
Great, you can be one too.  Everyone can except me."

     Michiru blinked.  "I'm sorry?"

     "Never mind.  Sorry to bump into you like this."  She 
turned and started to leave, but Michiru took her shoulder, 
turning her back around.

     "Please, I'd like to know.  Why are you so upset at the 
idea of me being a Pluto?"

     She still seemed reticent.  "Um..."

     "We don't have to stand in the middle of the sidewalk if 
that's what you're worried about.  We can always go back to my 
place."

     That might not have been the wisest thing to say; Makoto 
jumped back and stared at her suspiciously.  Michiru laughed, 
realizing what she was thinking.

     "Don't worry, I'm not going to try to seduce you.  I have 
my own relationship and am perfectly happy."

     Makoto relaxed somewhat, but still felt the need to give a 
warning.  "I'm married, all right? So no funny business."

     Michiru's smile grew wider.  "Congratulations! Who is she?"

     "She?" Makoto gaped.

     Down, girl, Michiru though to herself.  Remember that your 
world is a minority.  "Look, I really don't want to stand out 
here chatting all evening.  Why don't we go back to my 
apartment? No one's there at the moment, and you can relax and 
tell me what's bothering you."

     Makoto still looked wary, but followed the older woman down 
the street.  "Um...try not to take this the wrong way, but why 
are you curious about me? I mean, I'm used to Pluto just kinda 
being mysterious and inaccessible.  Even our new Pluto, who's a 
lot more outgoing, still doesn't really stop by to chat that 
often."

     "She's a Setsuna, right?" Michiru asked.

     Makoto nodded.

     "They're like that, for the most part.  All Plutos are not 
alike, I imagine you've been able to tell that by now.  I'm 
Sailor Pluto, but I'm also Kaiou Michiru.  That means I care 
more about what happens to the others, even if I can't always do 
anything about it.  Well, I phrased that badly.  All Plutos 
care, in some way.  But I can show it better."

     They'd arrived at her apartment, a luxury high-rise (of 
course).  She pushed the button for the penthouse, trying not to 
take her eyes off of Makoto's confused face.

     "I never really thought about that.  So how a world's Pluto 
behaves depends on who they are? Like, are Minakos who are Pluto 
ditzy and accident- prone?"

     Michiru laughed.  "Some of them are.  It's not a 
mathematical science, no matter how much the Setsunas and Amis 
want to make it one.  Each world is different, therefore each 
Pluto is slightly different.  There are hundreds of Setsunas 
here.  None of them are exactly the same.  I'm more openly 
emotional than most Setsunas, but on the other hand, some might 
say I'm more mischievous as well."

     The elevator opened, and Michiru got out her key.  The 
other girl remained silent until they'd gone into her living 
room and sat down.

     "But all of you are able to fulfill your duty as Sailor 
Pluto?" she finally asked.

     Michiru began to get a good idea as to what was bothering 
the girl.  "Yes, we do.  We have to.  Most senshi are allowed to 
grow into responsibility for their world.  We are not.  We have 
to be good, right away."

     Makoto looked down.  "And I'm the only one who doesn't have 
the strength to be able to do that.  I'm too weak to have what 
it takes to be a Pluto."

     Michiru sighed and sat back.  She'd have to handle this 
carefully.  If Makoto was anything like her world's, then this 
could be leading to a major depression.  She walked over to the 
picture window overlooking the area, considering her words 
carefully.

     "You remember what I told you about all Plutos being a 
combination of not just the duty and responsibility that comes 
with the position, but also the essence of their own 
personality?"

     Makoto nodded, still looking miserable.

     "That applies to the other senshi as well, not just Pluto.  
There are Amis who are Sailor Mars, and have a very different 
outlook on that position.  I once heard about an Usagi who was 
Sailor Saturn.  There was strength for you.  She managed to 
defeat Pharoah Ninety with almost no help at all.  It was all 
she could do to convince the others that Sailor Moon was still 
their future.  They wanted her to lead them."

     The young senshi boggled at the thought of their twentieth-
century equivalents begging Usagi to lead them.  "What was I in 
that world?"

     "Jupiter," Michiru replied.

     Makoto flopped back on the couch.  "I feel like I'm in a 
rut."

     Michiru walked up and sat down next to her, though with 
some distance so that the girl didn't get uncomfortable.  
"Despite what I told you earlier about not paying attention to 
mathematical progressions, I'm going to use some to make my 
point.  About 75% of Sailor Plutos are essentially Setsunas.  
Some totals are higher.  90% of Moons are Usagi, for instance."

     She took a deep breath.  "Almost 100% of Sailor Jupiters 
are patterned after yourself.  I think I've only seen one or two 
worlds where they weren't."  And even in those, she was Sailor 
Uranus, Michiru mused.

     Makoto blinked.  "This is supposed to make me feel better? 
The fact that everyone else is apparently capable of filling any 
senshi position, but I can only be Jupiter?"

     "What's wrong with Jupiter?" Michiru asked, raising her 
voice a little.  "I had no idea that Jupiter was so valueless to 
the senshi team."

     "That's not what I meant!" Makoto shouted.

     Michiru looked her in the eye.  "Then what do you mean?"

     Makoto was silent for a moment.  "I don't know, I guess."

     After a pause, Michiru continued.  "The Jupiters I've 
known, to a woman, have had one priority above all others: 
protecting Serenity.  Be she Sailor Moon, the Princess, or the 
Neo-Queen.  You are her protector, Mako-chan.  Her protector and 
her shield.  It's why Jupiter is so grounded in earth-based 
powers.  Earth and Moon, just like Endymion."

     Again, Michiru tried to think of an argument that would 
convince her.  "If you were Pluto, or an equivalent, and you 
knew that something horrible was going to have to happen to your 
Queen, something that none of the others could prevent, and 
something that HAD to happen to protect your future.  Would you 
try to save her?"

     "Yes."  Makoto didn't even have to pause.  "Always."

     Michiru grinned, moving her face right next to Makoto's.  
"And you regard this as a BAD thing?"

     Feeling that Makoto needed some time to think this over, 
Michiru got up and went to the kitchen to find them something to 
eat.  When she returned, she was happy to see that Makoto smiled 
back at her.

     "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have been so upset about this."

     Michiru cocked her head.  "Is this really just about you 
wanting to be a Pluto?"

     "No, not really.  I guess... Pluto's strong, you know.  One 
of the strongest, after Moon and Saturn.  Back home, you see, 
I'm Serenity's bodyguard.  It's something I take very seriously.  
For almost a thousand years, after the creation of Crystal 
Tokyo, I did my job.  I did it well, too.  Nothing ever got 
close enough to attempt to harm her."

     She paused to sip at the drink Michiru had handed her.  
"But recently... in the past twenty years, two people have 
gotten close enough to almost kill her.  First Demand in the 
Black Moon War, and then that Lina Inverse girl... twice that I 
needed to protect Serenity, and couldn't."

     Michiru sighed, and sat back down.  "Makoto, listen to me.  
First of all, the Black Moon War is something that every world 
with the Senshi in it must face eventually.  My world hasn't 
reached that point yet, but when it does, I know what will 
happen.  Serenity will be frozen in crystal.  And there is 
nothing I can do about it.  It is a nexus point in all 
universes."

     Makoto looked startled for a second, and then nodded, 
realization coming to her face.  "I guess I'm still getting used 
to the idea of other universes.  Geez, you'd think that with 
Sean hanging around Crystal Tokyo, the concept of alternate 
dimensions would come easily to me."

     Michiru nodded, then continued.  "And the Lina Inverse 
debacle was something that affected not just your universe, but 
countless others.  Serenities with an almost ungodly amount of 
power were defeated by her.  And besides, the girl who 
eventually stopped her had one very important factor that gave 
her the strength to do it."

     "What was that?" Makoto asked.

     "She was raised by Sailor Jupiter."

     Makoto didn't know how to respond to that.  Michiru pressed 
her point home.

     "Now, ask yourself another question: Would you still give 
your life to save your Queen?"

     The answer, again, was immediate.  "In a heartbeat."

     Michiru smiled.  "That's what's important.  And that is 
what makes you Sailor Jupiter.  Your stubborn caring, your 
putting others before yourself, your need to see them safe... 
all of that is what makes you Makoto Kino.  Together, they are 
an almost unbeatable combination.  So much so that almost no 
universe has ever tried."

     She could see the girl thinking about that for a moment, 
and then a shy grin came across her face.  "Thanks.  Thanks a 
lot."

     "Anytime, Mako-chan."

     Makoto sipped at her drink, finally looking around the 
apartment.  "I guess my analogue in your world must be very 
similar, huh?"

     Michiru coughed slightly.  "Well, there are a few 
differences."

     Now Makoto was the curious one.  "Like what?"

     "My world is very different from most of the ones here.  
Setsuna is Uranus, Hotaru is Neptune, and Haruka is Saturn."

     That got her attention.  "You're kidding?!"

     Michiru smiled.  "No, I'm not.  There are pictures over on 
the desk if you want to prove it."

     Makoto walked over and grabbed a picture, her eyes almost 
bugging out.  If Michiru recalled correctly, that had been the 
day they'd all spent the night at the beach front, and had to 
share the same room.  A lot had come from that evening.

     "Um...ah..."  Makoto seemed to be having trouble taking her 
eyes off the picture.  "So, in your world, Setsuna and Hotaru 
are...um...lovers?"

     "Yes.  Though recently we've...well, reached an 
understanding.  It was inevitable, really, considering the rest 
of the senshi."

     "Huh?" Michiru debated keeping it from her, and then 
decided to just try and roll with it.  "In my world, the senshi 
are lovers.  Not just Uranus and Neptune, as on most worlds.  
All of us.  Mercury and Venus are lovers, as are Mars and 
Jupiter.  Until recently, the pairings among the Outers were 
similar, but things happened one night, and now the four of us 
think of ourselves as equal partners."

     If Makoto's eyes got any bigger, they'd pop off of her face 
and onto the couch.  "Wait...Sailor Moon and Tuxedo Mask must be 
an exception."

     Michiru laughed.  "Well, she does wear a tuxedo, but that's 
about the only similarity between Yuriko and her counterparts."

     She amused herself by watching Makoto's eyebrows twitch.  
God, I wish I had a camera, she thought.  After a while she 
decided she'd better try to make up for shocking the poor girl 
so badly.  Besides, she needed to tell *someone* who wasn't a 
Pluto.

     "I'm sorry.  That's a fault of mine, I enjoy shocking 
people.  I'm planning on really shocking your friends Uranus and 
Neptune later on."

     Makoto looked up.  "What? What more are you planning to do 
to them?"

     Michiru giggles.  "Oh, don't worry, this is good.  You see, 
we're planning on..."

     After a few minutes, Makoto started giggling as well.

*****

     Ami sat in the library, leafing through yet another 
history, hoping she could find something that would help their 
Pluto win.

     She admitted privately to herself that it wasn't looking 
good.  Setsuna was guilty.  Unfortunately, the consequences of 
that guilt were going to be horrible for everyone.  Setsuna had 
admitted to Ami that if she had not done what she did, Hotaru 
would never have been able to control Saturn's reawakening.  
Their world would end.

     So Ami came here, hoping to research the history and rules 
of this place and find some sort of loophole they could use.  It 
galled her to resort to such tactics, but needs must as the 
devil drives.

     Besides, researching gave her an excuse to avoid thinking 
about this place.  She'd met a number of Plutos who resembled 
herself while Setsuna gave their tour.  Apparently, after 
Setsuna and Hotaru, she was the most popular template.  She 
didn't quite know what to think about that.

     Admittedly she and Setsuna's earlier self had always shared 
a certain rapport.  Ami found that, unlike some of the others, 
she could understand a few of the murky reasons behind what 
Pluto did.  Less so with this new incarnation, though, who 
seemed much... perkier than her predecessor.

     The library was unmonitored, surprisingly enough.  I 
suppose a Pluto isn't likely to steal library books, she 
thought.  Then again, if I've learned anything today, it's that 
there can be all types of Plutos.

     She wondered what she would have done differently if she 
had been Sailor Pluto in her own world.  Trying to stop Saturn 
from rising in the twentieth century, bringing Sean into their 
universe to prevent its fall, sacrificing herself to stop 
Demand... she reluctantly concluded that she probably wouldn't 
have done things much differently at all.  All of Pluto's 
actions made sense in hindsight, and if she had been Pluto, 
hindsight would have been what she used.

     Unfortunately, it didn't look as if any sort of temporal 
miracle was going to be able to save Setsuna.  There was one 
copy of the 'Rules to Abide By' in the library, which Ami had 
read three times through.  They were good rules.  They were also 
ironclad rules, and no matter how many times she read them, they 
wouldn't reveal anything to help her.

     Now she was reading the one history of this place, the 
Council Headquarters (or Club Pluto, depending on who was 
asked).  For all that the library contained the great works of 
literature for all the multiverses, there was almost nothing on 
the place that contained it.

     A loud crash and a muffled curse brought her out of her 
reverie.  Odd, she could have sworn she was alone in the 
library.  She got up to investigate.

     It turned out to be a good thing, as a large shelf of books 
smashed onto the floor where she had been sitting not a moment 
ago.  Ami noted with dismay that the volume she had been 
studying was now buried beneath a large pile of literature.

     Standing behind the pile was a girl wearing the uniform of 
Sailor Pluto, but that was the only thing similar to her and the 
Setsuna Ami knew.  For one she appeared to only be about 11 
years old, wearing her reddish-brown hair in two pigtails on the 
sides of her head.  She currently had a book in her hand, as if 
she had just removed it from the offending shelves, and an 
'oops' expression that Ami recognized from Usagi and Minako's 
faces over the years.

     For a few seconds she just stood there unmoving.  That 
didn't last, though.  She threw the book on the floor and 
proceeded to half stalk, half-leap around the library, pulling 
at her braids.

     "I don't BELIEVE this! Hayama, you devil, this is all your 
fault!" She then fell to the floor and started rooting through 
the books, and her screaming turned to annoyed muttering.  
"Stupid jerk, I know he did that to me somehow.  He's always 
turning up just when I don't want him to, and doing stupid 
things like being ecchi and trying feel me up and--" her 
monologue paused as she pulled a long elastic cord from the 
stack of books she was searching through, and she looked 
momentarily puzzled.  "How did that get there?" she murmured.  
Then she threw it away and was back to the pile, as if nothing 
had happened.  "Stupid jerk, and now he's out with Fuuka, not 
that I care, if she likes that devil she can HAVE him, why 
should I care if he likes her better than me, it's not as if I 
need him or anything, I can always go talk to Naozumi, and 
dammit, where is that winning friends and influencing people 
thing I -- what are you doing here?"

     Ami was so caught up in the girl's rant that she didn't 
even realize at first that she was being addressed.  She snapped 
out of her trance when the girl produced a time staff, topped 
with a blue sapphire.

     "You... you're a PLUTO?!?!" Ami's jaw was close to hitting 
the floor.

     The girl growled and made the staff disappear.  "Don't you 
start.  I get enough of that from all the OTHER Plutos here.  
Youth brings an open mind, y'know.  I'm ten times more talented 
than some of the other excuses for Plutos you see here."  She 
stuck out her hand.  "Sana Kurata.  Twelve-year-old actress in 
the Kowamari theater troupe, star of stage and screen, and 
secretly Sailor Pluto.  Are you one of the group that arrived? 
For the trial?"

     Ami was beginning to feel a little dizzy.  Too much 
information, as Sean or Hotaru might say.  "Um... hai.  Ami 
Mizuno, Sailor Mercury."

     The girl grabbed her hand and shook it vigorously, almost 
taking the arm off.  "Well, if you're from that universe you 
shouldn't have any problems with my age.  I mean, a few years 
ago your Pluto was exactly the same, and I didn't hear anyone 
complaining.  By the way, good luck to your group with the 
trial.  I really hope things go your way."

     The trial, Ami thought guiltily, realizing that she'd 
gotten distracted.  She looked back to where her book had been, 
now buried under a huge pile of volumes.  I wonder why it isn't 
computerized? she wondered idly.

     Sana seemed to misread her reaction.  "Oh, don't worry 
about the books.  They're just waiting for us to leave so that 
they can sort themselves out.  C'mon, this was built by Plutos.  
You gotta figure it's all cool and stuff."

     "Oh."  She looked down at the pile again.  For some reason, 
she really didn't want to get back to her research.  It was 
depressing her.  "Um... what were you looking for?"

     Now it was Sana's turn to look guilty.  Well, guilty 
bordering on frenzied.  She started bouncing up and down and 
waving her arms.  "Nothing, really! Ha ha ha ha ha! Honestly, I 
was just looking around here, I do that, you know, I'm not your 
average pretty television and theater star with millions of 
adoring fans, I have a mind too! I read a lot! And get good 
grades, despite my missing lots of classes for film shoots or 
commercials, and it's prolly a good thing Principal Naru-Naru is 
so nice about it, I mean, Mama didn't have to talk to him or 
anything, and are you OK, you seem really dazed, not that I'm 
insinuating anything, but you're sorta swaying back and forth, 
and I'm wondering if that's a Mercury thing, cause the other 
Amis that are Plutos are really cool and logical and stuff, and 
I can't relate to them at ALL, but you seem OK, must be a 
Mercury thing, or maybe you're not as old as them, no, wait, 
that's wrong, you're from Crystal Tokyo, so you've gotta be a 
thousand years old, so I dunno, um, should you really be 
flickering your eyelids that rapidly?"

     After a few moments, Ami realized that Sana had stopped, 
and now seemed to be waving her hands in front of Ami.  "Um, 
hello? Moshi moshi?" Ami quickly sat down in a chair and put her 
head between her legs, taking deep breaths.

     After a few minutes, she felt confident enough to look back 
up, and found that Sana was looking at her with a concerned 
expression.  It was hard to tell that this was the same girl 
that had been talking at such a clip only a minute or two 
earlier.

     "Sana, please don't take this poorly, but I must admit I 
find it difficult to believe that you can be Sailor Pluto."

     Sana's eyebrow twitched; apparently this wasn't the first 
time this had been pointed out.  After a moment, however, Sana 
calmed herself and sighed.  She pulled up another chair and sat 
down on it backwards, leaning against the back.

     "I know what you must be thinking.  Plutos are so 
responsible.  They're all level-headed, cool, secretive women 
who cannot interfere with the fabric of time.  But I'm sorry, 
Ami, that's not true.  Look around you.  Not all Plutos are 
Setsuna.  Not all Setsunas are alike.  And responsibility 
doesn't always mean being cool and reserved."

     Ami looked down, feeling ashamed about her earlier 
question.  "I apologize, Kurata-san."

     Sana laughed and scratched the back of her head.  "Gyaa, 
don't call me that! Sana, Sana!"

     I wonder if she's related to Minako somehow, Ami mused.

     Sana sighed, and leaned her chin on the chair.  "It's so 
hard sometimes.  I found out I was Sailor Pluto two years ago.  
You know what that's like.  You want a normal life, but you 
can't have it.  Destiny is calling you."

     Ami found herself nodding.  She knew only too well how 
difficult it was to make that choice to become a senshi.

     "It was even worse for me.  From what I've heard from the 
other Plutos, most senshi like you were just average high school 
students.  You could go off and do senshi things and the only 
people worried would be your parents.  But I've got a lot more 
than just school.  I have a schedule.  Being Pluto is a real 
pain."

     Ami felt herself feeling for this girl now.  Their Pluto 
had grown up in Crystal Tokyo, where such things were completely 
accepted.  What must it be like for Sana, who has a life and 
career of her own, to have to sacrifice it for the good of the 
world.  She remembered her own dreams of being a doctor and 
following in her mother's footsteps, and how they had to be put 
aside when she realized what she was.

     "Do the others help you?" she asked quietly.

     To her surprise, Sana laughed.  "What others?" There was a 
bitter tone to her voice.  "Luna isn't due to wake up for seven 
years.  That's when things will begin to happen.  Even then, 
let's get real.  How often does Pluto really get to talk with 
the others?"

     "I talk with Pluto a lot," Ami said.  At least I did, she 
thought privately.  Before she died.  Her new persona is... 
different.  I just don't feel comfortable around her now.

     Sana went on anyway, shoving the chair closer to Ami.  "And 
did you talk to her a lot back in the twentieth century? Back 
when you were a high school student?"

     "No," Ami said quietly.  She was beginning to realize that 
this girl's problems were a lot bigger than she'd anticipated.

     Sana appeared to notice this, because she took Ami's hand 
and smiled.  "It's all right, it's not as bad as I'm making it 
out to be.  I worked out a schedule with Mama, so we have some 
sort of excuse or explanation if I need to do something or 
attack some monster.  And we discussed the fact that I'll 
probably have to retire for a bit when the rest of the senshi 
are reborn..."

     Ami blinked.  "You TOLD your mother you were a senshi?!?!"

     Sana seemed to find this puzzling.  "You didn't?"

     Leaving that point aside for now, Ami asked, "Does this 
Hayama know about you?"

     The effect on Sana was instantaneous.  She rose out of her 
seat and backpedaled about 20 feet into a nearby wall, knocking 
over another stack of books.  "What?! Why would I tell that 
devil about me?! As if I care what he thinks! He's always 
insulting me, and trying to feel me up, and okay, he's always 
been there for me when I've needed someone, and he can be nice 
when he wants to, but... BUT THAT DOESN'T EXCUSE HIM GOING 
EVERYWHERE WITH FUUKA! What's so special about HER, anyway? I 
admit I haven't been seeing as much of them as I should, but 
it's hard, I mean I have to watch the time gates and destroy any 
odd monsters that might show up, and wait a minute, that must be 
it! He's thinking that I'm hiding something! Well, I mean, I am 
hiding something, but I think that's why... yes, of course! He 
wouldn't be doing this because he likes her better! He's just 
hurt because he thinks I don't care about him anymore!"

     Ami could feel herself getting confused.  "I thought you 
said you hated him...?"

     Sana waved her off.  "Shut up, I'm on a roll.  OK, so I've 
gotta tell Hayama everything.  But can I do that? I mean, I know 
Mama won't tell anyone, because she's Mama, but Hayama's 
different.  Of course, he's kept my secrets before... though 
usually he's been better at understanding when I say that I 
can't tell him! AAARGH! I can't figure this out!"

     Ami needed to get out of here.  She could empathize with 
the girl, but her switching from serious to abnormally hyper 
behavior was worse than Minako on her worst days.  "Um... I can 
see that you've got a lot to think about, and I need to figure 
out what we can do about the trial, so I really should be 
going..."

     Suddenly, Sana was leaping across the room, grabbing Ami by 
the shoulders.  "That's it! You can help me! Amis are supposed 
to be smart, and you're not an Ami Pluto, so you won't be as 
devious! I can show you what things are like, and you can give 
me a fresh, unbiased opinion!" She threw out her arm, and 
suddenly the time staff was in her hand again.  It began to 
glow.

     Eyes widening, Ami tried in vain to pull away.  "Um... 
isn't this forbidden? I mean, that's what the trial is about..."

     Sana snorted.  "They don't know what they're talking about! 
Besides, the universes aren't on the same timestream, that's the 
whole point! I'll have you back before you know it, no one will 
even know we're gone!"

     The staff glowed brighter and brighter, and Ami had to 
close her eyes to avoid being blinded.  "Help," she whimpered.

     Then the two of them vanished.  After a few seconds, the 
books floated in the air and began to arrange themselves neatly 
on the shelves.

*****

     Two Silence Glaives were aimed at Ifurita.

     "Hey! Not in my room!" Hotaru-Pluto exclaimed.

     Typically, Ifurita paid her fellow Pluto no mind.  "You 
will accompany me back to the Council Chambers," she said to the 
two Saturns.

     "Why?" asked the younger Saturn.

     Everyone else looked at her in amazement.  No one EVER 
asked Ifurita that.  Even Ifurita seemed a little shaken.

     "You are to return with me..."  Ifurita said, staring at 
the young Saturn disbelievingly.

     "Why? We aren't missing the trial.  Why can't we stay here 
for now?"

     Ifurita blinked with surprise.

     "Amazing," Hotaru-Pluto said.  "You know, I think that's 
the first time anyone has defied her."

     Ifurita was at a loss for words.  The elder Hotaru studied 
her for a moment.

     "You don't know the answer to it, do you?" she asked 
sympathetically.

     "I am the Enforcer," Ifurita said.  "It is my duty."

     Both Saturns exchanged a look.

     "How long have you been doing this?" the elder Hotaru 
asked.

     Ifurita looked puzzled as she considered the question.  "It 
is my duty to Serenity-sama.  She freed me from my former 
master."

     "Master?" the younger Hotaru asked.

     "I am from the world of El Hazard," Ifurita answered, not 
sure why she bothered to answer their questions.  "I was 
awakened from a long sleep by a human from Earth named Jinnai 
Katsuhiko.  He ordered me to lead an invasion of Earth.  I 
defeated and absorbed all the powers of the Sailor Senshi, but 
Serenity-sama freed me from Jinnai.  She is the holder of the 
Power Key Staff."

     "But that doesn't mean you have to be a mindless automaton, 
just following orders!" younger Hotaru exclaimed.  "Serenity-
sama would never allow that!"

     "She... she made me Sailor Pluto.  I must fulfill my duty."

     "Did SHE tell you to do what these bitches say without 
question?"

     "No... the obedience circuit... it is gone... but I must 
have... I killed.  I must have a purpose."  Ifurita held a hand 
to her face.  In truth, the job of Sailor Pluto was a quiet one.  
She guarded the gate and did not have to interact much with the 
others.  Serenity was so confusing, always trying to... to... "I 
don't understand.  Obedience is all I have.  I must obey 
someone."

     "Ano, what's an obedience circuit?" younger Hotaru asked.

     Hotaru-Pluto spoke up.  "Ifurita was created as a weapon on 
her world.  Her Serenity destroyed the systems that forced her 
to obey her master.  Teaching Ifurita to be human, however..."  
She shook her head.  "We don't even know if it's possible."

     "Right! We're going to teach her what it means to be 
human!" elder Hotaru said.

     Sweatdrops appeared behind Hotaru-Pluto and younger 
Hotaru's heads, showing that they watch too much anime in the 
real world.

     "Enough!" Ifurita-Pluto snapped.  "I must bring you to the 
Council."  With that, she raised her Time Key Staff.

     The elder Hotaru reached over and touched the tip of the 
staff.  Both she and Ifurita froze as a faint glow surrounded 
them.

     Hotaru-Pluto watched this with a frown.  "I wish she hadn't 
done that."

     "They're not in any danger, right?" the younger Hotaru 
asked worriedly.

     "I hope not."

*****

     Serenity sighed, sitting back in a lounge chair and sipping 
her Coke.  First the Hotarus and now everyone else seemed to be 
missing.  So she was sitting here quietly, waiting for everyone 
to get back to the hotel.  She'd even traded her white gown for 
a simple blouse and slacks, the first time she'd been able to do 
so in years.

     It would have felt better to relax if she didn't have to 
worry about the trial.  There didn't seem to be anything they 
could do except rely on the Pluto who was defending Setsuna to 
be able to argue on her behalf.  Certainly, if looked at in the 
cold light of law, Setsuna's actions seemed inexcusable.  But 
the consequences of those actions, on the other hand, seemed 
totally over the top.

     Serenity wished she could talk about this with someone.  
Unfortunately, no one was around.  Endymion had asked the 
permission of the Council to go back to their universe and 
inform the Asteroid Senshi what was happening.  Haruka and 
Michiru were in their room, saying goodbye to each other.  
Loudly.  Bridget and Yurika were asleep in Sean's room, after 
spending a number of hours trying to see how much mischief they 
could make.

     Suddenly a shout brought Serenity to her feet.  It was 
followed by a familiar yelp, however, and the scuffling after 
that was even more familiar.  Serenity relaxed and sat back 
down.

     After a few moments Rei came stomping through the lounge, 
adjusting a towel that was not quite big enough for her and 
muttering.  Serenity would have passed it off as normal if she 
hadn't noticed Rei's eyes, which seemed almost fearful.  Had 
Sean...? No, he couldn't have.

     "Rei, are you alright?"

     Rei gave a startled yip and jumped a few inches into the 
air.  "Um... no! No, nothing's wrong.  Um... Serenity, there's a 
problem with my room.  The... um... air.  Is bad.  And there's a 
water problem.  The bath flooded.  And the bed.  Um, burst.  So 
I can't use it.  So I need someplace to stay.  And I was gonna 
go ask Minako, but I thought that she would be thinking.  You 
know she likes to be alone when she does that.  And so, um..."

     Serenity got up and walked over to her friend.  "Rei, would 
you like to stay in my room for the night?" She lay a hand on 
Rei's shoulder, sensing she needed reassurance.

     It seemed to achieve the opposite.  Rei backed away a few 
feet, laughing nervously and tightening her grip on her towel.  
"Um... yes! Yes, that would be fine.  Just two friends, sharing 
a room.  Nothing wrong there.  Just like a sleepover.  I'll take 
the couch.  Or the floor.  The floor would be better.  I'll take 
the floor."

     Serenity was genuinely puzzled now.  "Rei, it's OK.  You 
can sleep in the same bed with me.  We've been friends for a 
thousand years.  Why are you so shy?"

     Rei put her hand to the back of her neck and giggled again, 
a sure sign that she was hiding something.  "Nervous? Me? I'm 
never nervous! No, that sounds OK.  So, um, I'll just go and see 
if I can find your room, and then I'll take a bath.  Yeah.  Bath 
is good."

     "But didn't you just have a bath?" asked Serenity.

     Rei started, and looked down at herself, as if noticing the 
towel for the first time.  She then muttered something under her 
breath and headed off towards Serenity's room.

     That was strange, Serenity thought.  After a few moments 
she heard a scuffling behind her, and turned to see Sean peeking 
into the lounge.  "Is it safe?" he asked.

     She frowned at him.  He was sporting a black eye, as well 
as a large red slap mark on his face.  That indicated he'd had a 
run in with Rei.  Serenity had worked out a private scoreboard.  
Facial bruises and black eyes were arguments or 
misunderstandings with Rei, lumps on the head (usually from a 
glaive) meant Hotaru had gotten mad at him, and any limping or 
shin bruises would show Bridget had taken offense at some 
parental decision.

     "Sean, did you say something to Rei?"

     "No!" He denied it immediately, a sure sign he was telling 
the truth.  "Look, I'm getting a Coke when she comes screaming 
down the hall, slamming into me, and waving her assets right in 
front of my face, not giving a damn about how that may make ME 
feel, and then she starts babbling to me about how this is all a 
dream and she can taste the color blue and then she... um... was 
getting really weird.  So I tried to snap her out of it."

     She sighed and massaged her temples.  "By slapping her."

     "Look, I wasn't in the best frame of mind, either.  Anyway, 
it seemed to work, because she stopped, and realized where she 
was, and then... well, she beat me up.  Again.  It was almost 
reassuring."

     Serenity just stared at him.  After a few moments he began 
to wriggle and try to sidle his way towards his hotel room.  
"Look, whatever made her get all weird, it wasn't me.  I swear.  
And I should really be checking on the kids.  Right.  So I'll 
just be going now.  Here I go.  Bye!" And with that he turned 
and tried to stroll nonchalantly towards his room, an effect 
ruined by his constant glancing over his shoulder at her.

     After he was out of sight she giggled, and returned to her 
seat.  It was obvious that Sean was NOT the cause of Rei's 
distress.  She'd have to find out more tonight.  Those two are a 
lot more alike than they'd like to believe, she mused.

     She perked up as Makoto came into the lounge, sitting down 
in a chaise across from Serenity.  She seemed to be over her 
depression... in fact, she seemed to be having a giggle fit.  
"Mako-chan, you're feeling better?" she ventured.

     Makoto grinned.  "Much better, thank you.  I talked with 
one of the Plutos, and she was able to remind me of a few things 
about myself that I'd forgotten."  She then snickered again.

     "Something funny, Mako-chan?" Serenity was getting more and 
more confused at the behavior of her friends.

     "Oh, just thinking about things.  Life.  How it can 
surprise you sometimes.  Bwahahahahahaha!!"

     Serenity began to move from relieved to concerned for her 
friend.  Before she could ask anything else, though, Minako 
walked in.  Well, skipped, to be more accurate.  She was beaming 
from ear to ear, and paused to spin around a pillar before 
landing face first on a couch.

     "Ah, life is good!" she sighed.

     Serenity smiled.  At least someone was acting normally.  
"Did you find your counterpart, Mi..."

     *SNORE*

     Serenity massaged her temples again, feeling the edge of a 
headache coming on.  "Mako-chan, have you noticed anyone acting 
weird lately?"

     "Hehehehehehehehehehe..."

     "Guess not."

     Suddenly another scream brought her to her feet again, and 
running towards the source.  She recognized that scream very 
well.  It was her daughter.

     Usagi came barreling down the hallway and slammed into 
Serenity, sending her staggering back a few paces.  She seemed 
to be gibbering, and her pupils were slightly dilated.

     Serenity hugged her daughter close, and then pulled back, 
holding her by the shoulders.  "Usagi, can you hear me? What's 
wrong?"

     Usagi was shaking.  "Gerehaghad!"

     Serenity blinked.  "What?"

     Usagi stared closely at her mother, as if questioning her 
existence.  "Geheraghlafen! Nergafel!"

     That did it.  Serenity had finally had enough.  "It's 
alright, Small Lady.  I'll take you back to our room, you can 
stay with me and Rei.  It'll be fine, just relax."

     Usagi merely nodded and continued to shiver.  Serenity 
wrapped her arm around her and began to lead her back out of the 
lounge.  Makoto, she was relieved to note, had stopped giggling 
and was looking concerned.  "Serenity..."

     Serenity smiled.  "We'll be fine."

     Her reassurance was interrupted by a squelch.  She and 
Makoto turned to see what at first glance appeared to be some 
sort of mire beast.  It moved forward, and resolved itself into 
a drenched, filthy Sailor Mercury.  Her hair had some sort of 
straw embedded in it, and there was a tear in her skirt in a 
very inconvenient place.

     Even Usagi seemed to come out of her trance to stare at the 
senshi.

     For a few moments, nobody moved.  Then Mercury stalked 
past, apparently heading for her room.

     "DON'T...EVEN...ASK," she growled as she moved by Serenity.

     Something seemed to snap in Serenity's head.  "That does 
it," she said quietly.  She turned to Makoto.  "Get Minako to 
her room, then go there yourself.  This night is over for all of 
us, by royal decree.  Do I make myself clear?"

     Makoto blinked, but answered straight away.  "Yes, Your 
Majesty."

     Serenity nodded curtly.  "Good."  She then wrapped her arms 
around her daughter, who had lapsed back into her fugue state, 
and headed for her own room.

     I can't believe I was considering asking Pluto if we could 
come here for vacations, she thought.

*****

     Elsewhere, Setsuna lay staring at the ceiling.  Her thought 
were simple.

     Dammit.  Dammit, dammit, dammit.

*****

     The next "morning" the Senshi found themselves whisked away 
to the cathedral-like Council chamber.  It was quite different 
from the austere, almost sterile setting they had last seen.  It 
was still imposing and filled with a sense of its own dignity, 
but now it was filled with something else, as well.

     Plutos.

     Hundreds of Sailor Plutos of every description filled the 
galleries to watch the trial that might have a vast impact, for 
good or bad, on their duties.  There were Plutos of almost any 
description, though most of them were Setsuna-like, there were 
some major deviations from the norm.  Sailor Mars spotted a 
blindfolded Pluto and tried to resist the urge to hide behind 
Serenity.  Sailor Moon had no such compunctions when a bat-
winged Pluto smiled at her.

     Sean, who had not seen the Council Chamber before, found 
himself gawking like a tourist and hoping that this didn't mean 
he was in trouble.

     There was a flash and the Council Members appeared.  For a 
moment Sean's mind tried to shut down at the idea of Minako as 
Pluto, but the rest of him reminded it that they had seen much 
worse... maybe.

     "Council is now in session," Minako-Pluto said solemnly.  
"We are gathered here to try one of our own on the charge that 
she willfully and maliciously attempted to alter the timeline of 
another universe and that by doing so has shown culpable 
negligence and is unfit to be Sailor Pluto."  She gave the crowd 
a slow, appraising glance before continuing.  "The maximum 
punishment for these crimes is temporal erasure."

     The silence that followed was overpowering.  The Senshi 
only had a vague idea of what was meant by temporal erasure, but 
all the Plutos seemed very chastened by the thought of it.

     "The Council will now hear the opening arguments.  
Prosecution?"

     Pluto-1, the Prosecutor, walked over to stand before the 
Council.  "Thank you, members of the Council," she said.  "It is 
the Prosecution's intent to show that the Defendant not only 
transgressed the bounds of her duty this one time, but that her 
deed is part of a history of willful actions exceeding the scope 
of her duties.  This was not an isolated incident but rather 
just one symptom of a larger pattern, a pattern that will show 
that the accused is unworthy of her position among us.  Thank 
you."  She sat back down at her place and looked smugly over at 
Setsuna.

     Ferine, the Defender, now stood.  "My fellow Plutos, I come 
to defend my client, not to praise her.  It is the Defense's 
position that she did not, at any point, violate her 
responsibilities and duties as Sailor Pluto.  Also, we intend to 
prove that the Prosecution is a bag of hot air and that these 
proceedings are a farce."

     There was some commotion from the galleries at that, 
including a rousing cheer (complete with pom-poms) from Sana-
Pluto and a few "Right on!" "You tell them, girl!" and "Power to 
the People!" from those Plutos still stuck in the Sixties.  A 
spasm of irritation crossed Setsuna's face as her Defender gave 
her a thumb's up before sitting back down.

     "Silence!" shouted the Council-Pluto with the metal sash.  
The Pluto with the sword and bandolier of stakes added a glare 
that silenced the chambers once more.  A few Plutos looked 
around, as if expecting someone to appear, but the Council's 
Enforcer was conspicuously absent.

     "Defendant, how do you plead?" Minako-Pluto asked.

     Setsuna rose.  "Not guilty," she said, her voice breaking 
slightly, "on all counts."

     Minako-Pluto nodded and turned back to the Prosecutor.  
"You may call your first witness."

     "I call Sean Patrick Gaffney-Tomoe, if it please the 
court."

     NOW Sean began to understand how much trouble he was in.

     With a few pokes and prods from various Plutos, Sean found 
himself seated in a very uncomfortable chair at right angles to 
the Council seats.  The Prosecutor stood before him while a Rei-
Pluto wearing a blindfold (who reminded him of the statue of 
Justice) swore him in.

     "Do you swear by the Infinite to tell the truth as you are 
capable of perceiving it?" she asked in a whisper.

     Sean blinked.  "Yes?" he hazarded.

     That seemed to satisfy her and she stepped away, leaving 
him pinned beneath the gaze of the Prosecutor.

     "Mr.  Gaffney, are you aware that you are well known to 
us?"

     "Huh? I mean, I am?"

     "Yes.  Your inclusion in the Defendant's timeline raised 
quite a stir here.  It was perhaps the first time that any of us 
raided another universe for raw materials."

     The Defendant looked at her counsel, expectantly, but 
Ferine said nothing.

     "Raw materials?" Sean asked.

     "You are not a native of your current home dimension, 
correct?"

     "Yes."

     "The Pluto of your current home played a part in bringing 
you to Crystal Tokyo, did she not?"

     "Well, I guess... she actually seemed pretty pissed that I 
was there, but if I hadn't been--"

     "If you hadn't been, then Saturn would have destroyed 
everything, correct?"

     "Hey! Hotaru's not--!"

     "Answer the question, Mr.  Gaffney."

     Again, the Defendant looked at her counsel, who seemed to 
be doodling on a piece of scrap paper.

     Sean took a deep breath.  "Yes, I guess so... but it would 
have been an evil thing that did it, not Hota--"

     "Did anyone ask you if you wanted to live in a world which, 
until then, had just been the dream of an animator?"

     "No, but it was an accident that--"

     "Do you believe that a Pluto allows accidents such as 
this?"

     "Um..."

     "Did you ask the Defendant to send you home after you 
arrived?"

     "Yes, but--"

     "But what?"

     "She said she wouldn't."

     "Wouldn't... not can't or couldn't... she would not do it?"

     "She did let me email my friends..."

     "So, she had the ability to return you to your home?"

     Sean began to squirm.  He was beginning to get an inkling 
as to where this was going.  "I guess..."

     "So, do you still think it was an accident that you were 
trapped in Crystal Tokyo?"

     Sean's shoulders slumped.  "No, I guess not."

     The Prosecutor turned to the Council.  "You can see, my 
fellow Plutos, how the Defendant has once before callously 
disregarded the boundaries of space and time to achieve her 
ends.  Thank you."  With that, she sat down at her chair.

     "Can I go now?" Sean asked quietly.

     "Your witness, Defense," said the Minako-Pluto.  The 
Defender now stood.

     Sean gulped.

     Ferine stared at the witness, pondering what she was about 
to do.  She really wished that his wife was here, because she'd 
feel a lot less guilty.

     "Mr.  Gaffney, I wonder if you could describe for us, as 
much as you can recollect, what your life was like before the 
defendant allegedly brought you to her universe."

     Sean paused, presumably attempting to see where she was 
going with the question.  "Um... well, I'd graduated from 
college, and was temping at various jobs while I tried to earn 
enough money to move to New York City.  In my spare time I wrote 
and talked online.  That's about it."

     Ferine nodded.  "So, you weren't exactly doing something 
that benefitted all of mankind."

     Sean's eyes began to narrow.  Good, she was getting on his 
nerves; maybe he'd show a little more grit up on the stand.

     "No, I wasn't."

     Ferine nodded, and then walked towards the judges.  "I 
spent some time doing a little research into Mr.  Gaffney's 
original universe, and would like to present the results as 
Exhibit A."

     The Prosecutor leapt to her feet.  "Objection! I haven't 
reviewed this exhibit in advance!"

     Ferine turned back to her colleague.  "Yes you have.  I 
gave you a complete copy of the evidence I was going to use 
yesterday.  If you chose not to read it or to ignore it, that's 
your own fault."

     The Prosecutor glared.  "You sent me a collection of comic 
books, trashy romance novels, anime tapes, and pop albums."

     Ferine grinned.  "Indeed I did.  The first trashy novel is 
Exhibit A.  It's an accurate rendering of what Sean's life in 
his original universe would have been like if he had not been 
snatched away by the Ginzuishou's power."

     The Prosecutor turned beet red, while Sean turned pale.  
"You're kidding, I hope."

     Ferine shook her head.  "Why not? There are several 
universes where the story of how you met Hotaru is available as 
a story on the Internet.  I simply broadened my search to find a 
universe where someone wrote a story that featured your 
alternate future."

     Minako spoke up from the bench.  "How did you manage this 
in less than 24 hours, Ferine?"

     "It's a sec..."  Ferine began, but paused as she saw the 
steel in Minako's eyes.  She decided to change her tack.  "It's 
a technique for gaining information I've been researching for 
quite some time.  The Amis have been helping me."

     Minako looked puzzled.  "Why?"

     Ferine shrugged.  "In case a situation like this came up.  
To be honest, Minako, this situation has been bubbling up for 
quite some time."

     The Prosecutor walked over and stood right next to her.  
"I'd like to know exactly what you're implying."

     Ferine shrugged and turned her back.  "It didn't 
necessarily have to be you.  But we knew that the rules were 
going to be challenged eventually.  That's what this trial is 
about.  You're merely an attractive decoration in a bigger 
picture."

     Ferine turned back to Sean, about to move on with her 
questioning, when she was struck across the face.  The blow 
wasn't particularly hard, but it took her by surprise, and she 
staggered against the witness stand.

     The Prosecutor stood behind her, arm still raised.  "HOW 
DARE YOU?" she snarled.

     Minako leaped to her feet.  "Setsuna, stop!" Another 
Setsuna was also rising, pulling out what appeared to be a 
weapon.

     "Ex-CUSE me?! I leave for two seconds and this is what 
happens?"

     In an impressive display of solidarity, every single face 
in the courtroom turned to stare at the woman who had just 
walked in.  She seemed, at first, to be the same Enforcer they 
knew.  The Icy blue gaze, the large and powerful Key Staff she 
carried in her right hand.  All of these combined to give a 
reassuring portrait of The Law.

     The whip was new.  It dangled from her left hand, which was 
subtly playing back and forth, letting the end slowly travel 
around her.  Behind her, three Hotarus stood, giving a sort of 
Gladys Knight and the Pips effect to the whole thing.

     Ifurita walked to the center of the room, giving a glance 
to all of the eyes on her.  She ended up locking gazes with the 
Prosecutor, who was looking far less sure of herself now that 
Ifurita was here.

     Ifurita smiled.  It wasn't like any smile they had ever 
seen on her before.  It wasn't forced, or false-looking.  It was 
a genuine, 100% authentic evil grin.  It was the most disturbing 
thing the Prosecutor had ever seen.

     "Apologize."

     The Prosecutor blinked.  "What?"

     Ifurita cocked her head to one side.  "You just hit Ferine 
in an open court.  If I wanted to, I could easily have you tried 
for assault.  After all, we're setting precedents here.  Now: 
APOLOGIZE."  Her voice had changed from a light airy tone to a 
cold steel.  The Prosecutor shuddered.

     "I'm sorry.  I was caught up in the moment.  I shouldn't 
have done that."

     Ifurita smiled.  "That'll do.  I'd ask you to apologize to 
Ferine, but we'd be here all day.  Carry on."  And with a toss 
of her hair, she glided over to her position at the head of the 
court, ignoring the murmurs that ran through the crowd.

     Even Ferine seemed to have lost her momentary poise, 
staring back at Ifurita for a moment.  She shook her head to 
clear it and then turned back to her witness... who appared to 
be quietly conversing with his wife.

     "Mr.  Gaffney? Ahem?" She tried to get the right annoyed 
yet polite-sounding tone in her voice.  In reality she was 
amused by the whole thing.

     Sean coughed and sat back, allowing his wife to take her 
seat next to their world's senshi.  "Sorry," he muttered.

     Ferine nodded.  She then picked up the book from where it 
had been left, on top of the judges' bench.  "This book has been 
found to be an almost exact prediction of what Sean's life would 
have been like had he remained in his original world.  And it 
shows that it was a totally normal, uninspiring life.  He got a 
job at an insurance company, where he moved up through the 
ranks.  He married late in life, to a young woman from Canada.  
On the morning of July 27, 2016, he and his wife were killed in 
a hit-and-run accident involving a drunk driver.  Their son went 
to stay with his grandmother.  He went on to a career as a 
journalist, but never married."

     Ferine sighed.  "It might sound harsh, but these are the 
facts.  Taking Sean out of his universe caused no major changes 
at all.  Without him, it continued on its normal course of 
events as if he'd still been there."

     She turned to face the judges.  "My client, even if she had 
been somehow involved in Mr.  Gaffney's being snatched from his 
original timeline, was not involved in any way with interfering 
in the events of another universe.  Sean's presence affected her 
own universe.  It didn't affect his.  And, as a Pluto, we all 
have to make decisions to protect our worlds as best we can."

     She turned to Sean, who was looking vaguely depressed 
again.  Hopefully his wife would be able to cheer him up a bit.  
"Thank you, Mr.  Gaffney."

     The Prosecutor sighed, looking through the other 
merchandise Ferine had given her that might turn out to be 
'evidence'.  "No further questions."

     Minako smiled.  "You may step down, Mr.  Gaffney."

     Sean smiled nervously.  "Thank you."  He quickly moved down 
from the stand and headed back to Hotaru and Bridget, giving 
each of them a quick kiss.

     Ferine stood back.  All in all, not bad for a first salvo.  
The Prosecutor was obviously a lot more flustered than she'd 
first thought, she could work with that.

     This next one would be much harder.

     The Prosecutor stood up.  "As my second witness, I call 
Miss Lina Inverse."

*****

     Elsewhere, on another world, a Pluto stood before two large 
cylinders.  Inside the cylinders floated people, one a short 
redhead, the other a well-endowed woman with dark hair.

     I hope this isn't a mistake, Sailor Pluto thought.

     There was a flash of light and both she and the occupants 
of the cylinders were gone.

*****

     Sean came back to his seat looking like he'd just eaten 
something nasty.  Hotaru sidled up next to him and whispered, 
"What's wrong?"

     "What do you think," he said.  "Finding out that if I'd 
stayed in my world, my life would have been drab and boring and 
affect no one isn't exactly a big happy Montclaire moment."

     Hotaru snorted.  "It wasn't a bad life, just normal.  
Besides, are you living that life?"

     Sean considered this.  "No."

     "Are you living happily with me and our daughter in Crystal 
Tokyo?"

     "Well, yeah..."

     "So do you have any reason to be depressed?"

     Sean pouted.  "I still can't find that CD of Neil Young's 
_Hawks and Doves_."

     Hotaru's eyelashes fluttered.  "Poor baby."

     Sean's gaze flicked back to the trial, and particularly the 
Enforcer, who was sitting on the side with her legs leaning 
against the wall, playing with her new toy.  "So what's with 
Ann-Margret over there?"

     Hotaru sighed.  "I was trying to cheer the other Hotaru up, 
and she came by to drag us back to the trial.  I reached out to 
grab her staff to stop her, and... well... things happened."

     Sean blinked.  "And these things would be... ?"

     "I interfaced with her memories."

     This came as a mild surprise to Sean, who still had a 
tendency to think of life as fictional if he wasn't careful.  
"Was this the talent you got when you arrived at El Hazard?"

     "Smartass," Hotaru replied with a grin.  "I don't know how 
it happened, but it did.  Maybe it had something to do with my 
healing powers.  She's had a rough life, Sean... first as 
Ifurita and then as Pluto.  I had to do something."

     "What did you do?"

     "Well, I gave her a lot of my memories."

     "Oh, good," Sean breathed out.  "So, she's going to be 
happy and mellow, with a side order of mischievous and horny?"

     "Essentially," Hotaru grinned.  "She's also got a side 
order of paranoia, a love of anarchy and disorder, and a taste 
for the bizarre.  Three guesses where *that* came from."

     Sean sweated.  "Um... the memories you gave her were--"

     "--were mostly the memories you gave me when I was being 
reborn.  So she doesn't just have my memories, but yours as 
well."

     Sean looked around, panicking.  "If you tell anyone, 
there'll be a riot."

     "Relax.  All of us talked with her for a long time after 
this, and aside from certain peculiarities--"

     "--like the whip--"

     "--right, she's absolutely fine.  Nothing to worry about."

     Sean looked back at Ifurita, who was flying up towards the 
top of the room, and seemed to be running the hilt of the whip 
across her lips.

     "Uh huh."

*****

     A hush fell over the collected Plutos as the next witness 
entered the Council Chamber.  She was not very threatening in 
appearance, a diminutive redhead, missing one arm, and moving 
slowly through the room.  She was very young, but she walked 
with the tread of an old woman on her way to the gallows.  Her 
eyes were haunted, moving from one Pluto to the next without 
really seeing anything.

     Next to the redhead stood a tall, statuesque woman with 
long dark hair and wearing a very skimpy costume consisting of 
leather and skulls -- typical evil sorceress fare if a bit taken 
to extremes.  She held onto her companion's arm gently, nudging 
her along the path she had to go and glared fiercely at the 
surrounding Plutos, like a lioness protecting her cub.

     "Lina Inverse and her companion, Naga the Serpent," 
Ifurita-Pluto announced, sounding quite bored.  She was 
currently floating over the proceedings, polishing her Time Key 
Staff.  A tense hush fell over the crowd as everyone realized 
that they were in the presence of a sorceress who had almost 
destroyed several universes in her lust for power.

     The Rei-Pluto who swore Sean in stepped next to Lina.  "Do 
you swear by the Infinite to tell the truth as you are capable 
of perceiving it?" she asked again in a whisper.

     Lina looked up.  For the first time, she seemed to realize 
where she was and her situation.  She slowly looked over at 
Naga, who gave her companion a warm smile (which would have 
shocked those who knew her and Lina) and nodded.  Everyone 
listened closely as Lina opened her mouth to speak.  It was one 
of those situations where a dropped pin would have made a 
deafening sound.

     Therefore, the scream that broke the stillness was all the 
more shocking.

     "AAAAAAGGGGGGGHHHHH! Ican'ttakeitantmore! 
TechniqueIDefinitely- Didn'tLearnAtKowamari--DEADSCREAM!" came a 
high pitched voice from the crowd.

     Gale-force winds tore through the crowd, sending Plutos 
flying like tumbleweed.  Each reacted differently to the crisis.  
Some went flying with all the coordination of a rock.  Others 
created mystical shields that protected them from the attack.  
But some Plutos, either too far from the front to see what was 
really going on, or too disconnected from reality to care, 
struck back, adding to the chaos.

     The Inner Senshi dogpiled onto Serenity and Sailor Moon at 
the first sign of trouble, shielding them with their bodies.  
The Outer Senshi took positions around their monarch, with 
Saturn holding her Glaive high.

     "Silence Glaive WALL!" she yelled, creating a powerful 
mystical defense against the chaos in the room.

     At the Council Table, Minako-Pluto watched helplessly as 
everything degenerated into chaos.  For the millionth time she 
cursed the unique nature of this subspace pocket that kept the 
gathered Plutos from foreseeing the future in this place.  She 
looked up at arguably the most powerful Pluto.

     "Do something, Enforcer!" she yelled at Ifurita-Pluto.

     Ifurita-Pluto cocked her head, as if considering it.  
Minako-Pluto could only watch in horror as she finally shook her 
head.

     "Nah," the Enforcer said.  "It'll do them some good if they 
get it out of their system... as long as they don't hurt 
anyone."  At that, she aimed her Time Key Staff at two Plutos, 
one of whom was about to bury a knife into the chest of the 
other.

     *BZAP*

     The knife disintegrated.

     "Play nice now," Ifurita-Pluto said, then added, with a 
smile, "Boot to the head," and unleashed a flying (literally) 
kick at the offending Pluto.  She went down with a crash.  
"Yeah! That was fun!"

*****

     "We've got to get out of here!" Sailor Mars screamed into 
her Queen's ear, as that was the only way to make sure she was 
heard.  "They've all gone mad!"

     Looking out at the sea of chaos that had engulfed the 
Council Chambers, Serenity found it hard to disagree.  "Sailor 
Teleport?"

     "If it'll work!"

     "Do it."

     The Inner Senshi quickly grasped hands... then everything 
became quiet as a red glow began to fill the room.

     "Heed me, oh spirits darker than dusk," spoke a small, 
quiet voice.  But when that voice and especially those words 
came from Lina Inverse, everyone listened.  "Red beyond crimson 
flow like blood.  In the name of those reduced to dust, I pray 
to the shadows."  Naga took cover among some stone columns 
behind Lina.  Plutos started running for the door in a mass 
panic.  "Mark ye these villains that bar our way and to my small 
strength thine own ally, to deliver doom, folly repay, come 
judgment from the grave..."  The red glow reached its peak.

     Minako-Pluto voiced the heartfelt feelings of all the 
Plutos at that moment.  "Oh, shit."

     "DRAGON SLAVE!"

     The Council Building exploded.  A huge, fiery dragon rose 
high into the sky over the rubble, screaming in victory, then it 
dispersed.

     Only two figures were still standing when the dust cleared: 
Lina Inverse and Ifurita-Pluto.

     "Cool!" the Enforcer said.  "I FINALLY got the Dragon 
Slave! Just wait till I see that Tennis Warrior Pluto again.  
Hmph, thinks she's so superior because she got memories from 
that boy.  This'll show her!"

     Lina just collapsed.  Naga, who had been generally well-
protected by her magic and from long experience with being 
blasted by Lina, was at her side in a moment.

     "How could you?" she yelled at the blue-haired Pluto.  
"You're supposed to protect others.  How could you let them all 
die?"

     Ifurita-Pluto snorted.  "Oh, none of them are dead.  I 
shielded them from the worst of it.  They deserved a roof or two 
being dropped on their heads for the way they were acting."  
Seeing Naga still looked unconvinced, she pointed.  "Look."

     Naga looked around and saw Plutos of all descriptions 
wearily dragging themselves out of the rubble.  To a woman, they 
all appeared dirty, bedraggled, and scorched, but aside from a 
few scrapes and bruises, they seemed fine.

     "Man, I tell you, this job is getting to be a real drag," 
Ifurita-Pluto complained.  She reached over and tossed the 
remains of the Council table off of the Council of Chronos.  
"Hey," she asked Minako-Pluto, "what's my severance package 
like?"

     "Severance package?" Minako-Pluto asked, still shell-
shocked.

     "Yeah, perks and bennies.  Whadda I get?"

     "Setsuna-chan!"

     Everyone looked over to see Serenity and Sailor Moon 
digging through the rubble.  "Pu!" Sailor Moon called.

     But it soon became apparent that the Defendant was missing.

*****

     Setsuna wasn't sure when she decided to run.  Throughout 
the trial she had stood still in the dock, not batting an eye as 
her prosecutor revealed her outlandish charges and her defense 
counsel set out to disprove them in the most embarrassing way 
possible.  Bringing in Lina Inverse was what made her realize 
what was actually happening.

     Ferine had done all of this deliberately, trying to create 
seeds of dissent in an effort to turn her trial into a madhouse.  
She had used Setsuna to further her own little political agenda, 
as seen with the 'evidence' she'd presented when Sean was on the 
stand.

     Setsuna hated being a pawn.  Bad enough that she had made a 
mistake that was going to cost Haruka her life, but now her 
punishment was being decided in some Pluto circus, with fairness 
and justice having gone out the window.  So she fled in the 
midst of the chaos, wanting to just get away and go somewhere 
where she could decide on a plan of action in case all of this 
ended in disaster, a course looking more and more likely.

     The streets were deserted at the moment, not a surprise as 
all the denizens were back at the trial.  Pluto stopped in the 
middle of the food court and went into one of the eateries, 
hoping to find a corner where she could relax.

     "Hey, Setsuna, what's up?"

     Startled, Setsuna looked up.  Across the counter was a face 
she knew well, short blonde hair framing her pixie-like face, 
and anachronistic glasses over her eyes.  She grinned and held 
out a plate to Setsuna, on which sat a delicious smelling slice 
of pepperoni and sausage pizza.

     "Beans? What are you doing here? Everyone's at the trial!" 
Setsuna said, while quickly snatching the pizza from her 
colleague's hand.

     Beans grinned and leaned back against the counter.  "Not 
everyone's at the trial.  Believe it or not, some of us aren't 
interested in the huge political maneuvering that goes on here 
day-in day-out.  Ferine, Setsuna, Setsuna, Setsuna, and Minako 
all have some big agenda involved here.  Your screw up just gave 
them a good excuse."

     At the mention of 'screw up', Setsuna's face crumpled a bit 
and she slipped onto a stool.  "Oh God, Beans, what am I gonna 
do?"

     Beans shrugged.  "Wait for this to die down, go back to 
your universe, and deal with the consequences."

     Setsuna looked back up, her eyes clouding.  "And Haruka 
will die."

     "Yep," said Beans.

     "You aren't helping."  Setsuna tried to give Beans a cold 
glare, but her heart wasn't really in it.

     Beans shrugged.  "Sugar-coating won't solve anything.  You 
messed up big time, and now you've got to pay the price.  Maybe 
it'll help you grow up."

     "Hey!" Now Setsuna was starting to get mad.  "I've been a 
senshi about 10,000 years longer than you have, Missie!"

     "No you haven't," Beans replied, still not batting an 
eyelash.  "You got reincarnated.  Weren't you telling me a while 
back that you were tired of people treating you like your 
predecessor? You can't have it both ways.  Eat your pizza, it's 
getting cold."

     Setsuna deflated again and sat down.  "Dammit, I want to be 
mad!"

     "No, you want to be miserable, you just *think* you want to 
be mad."

     Sighing, Setsuna muched on her pizza.  "When did I become 
such a loser?"

     Beans shrugged.  "You're not.  You just buy into the myth 
that all Plutos are wise, all-knowing and perfect, and then 
regard yourself as a failure when you aren't.  You told me about 
it often enough when I was starting out..."

     "Mmm," Setsuna said.  "I tried to be different, you know, 
Beans? I gave myself a childhood, when so many other Plutos 
never were allowed to have one."

     "Yes, you did.  And it means that you were a child, and 
grew up being raised as a child.  And do you know what that 
means?"

     Setsuna raised an eyebrow.  "Yes, all-knowing one?"

     Beans snorted.  "Just because you had a childhood doesn't 
mean you can still be childish.  Growing up is a process.  It 
doesn't happen overnight or at the snap of a finger.  When you 
grow up, you lose your child-like innocence in favor of 
maturity."

     Setsuna just stared at her friend, who had stated 
everything so bluntly.

     "Berf," Beans replied after a few moments of silence.  
Setsuna giggled.

     After a moment, she slid back into melancholy.  "Why does 
someone else have to pay for my mistake?"

     Beans thought about that for a moment.  "Maybe because it 
takes more of a shock to the system.  What would you say is the 
biggest defining characteristic of Plutos?"

     Setsuna pondered.  "Fashion sense?"

     "Arrogance," Beans responded, flicking her finger against 
Setsuna's forehead.  "The idea that they are the true Mistresses 
of Time, with the power of the world theirs to command.  They 
know their job doesn't tolerate mistakes, so they convince 
themselves they don't *make* them.  You thought you were going 
over to another universe to beat some sense into a Pluto who 
annoyed you.  It didn't really occur to you that something could 
go wrong."

     Setsuna got up and spun around, eyes watering.  "Why is it 
Plutos are so fucked up? We go crazy, we get people killed... 
hell, most of us don't even have boyfriends!"

     Beans was starting to get annoyed.  "Would you stop 
whining! Get over it! You have to deal with this, not moan about 
it to me! Don't go crazy, do something to make up to the others! 
Apologize to Haruka! Maybe help Michiru with her grief! Get a 
boyfriend, your Crystal Tokyo has lots of people! For God's 
sake, stop acting like such a PLUTO!"

     Setsuna stared at Beans, and recalled her memory from the 
other night.  "We've had this conversation before..."

     Beans flushed suddenly.  "Um... you said the same thing to 
me right after I became Pluto."

     Setsuna laughed.  After a moment, she said, "I guess I 
should head back to that travesty of a trial."

     "Yeah," Beans nodded.  "C'mon, I'll go with.  Just in case 
they decide to make you duel to the death or something."  She 
reached behind the counter and pulled out a small portable oven.

     Setsuna blinked.  "What's that for?"

     "Selling pizza.  Duels to the death always get appetites 
flowing."

     Setsuna groaned.  "I feel pathetic again."

     The blonde senshi grinned.  "Cheer up.  Think of the perks 
of being Pluto."

     "Like what?"

     "We get serviced more than Saturn does."

     "Feh," Setsuna muttered as they walked out the door.  "*My* 
Saturn's already got a guy."

     "Yeah, but you were the one who got him for her..."

     "True..."

*****

     The Prosecutor glared up at the Enforcer.

     "How could you let her get away?" she asked angrily.  This 
trial was not the way she had envisioned it.  Nothing about this 
trial was going right.

     "Excuse me?" the Enforcer said.  "How was losing her MY 
fault? I'm not the one who caused a riot and blew up the 
building."

     "You should have stopped it!"

     "Enough!" Minako-Pluto said, cutting through their 
argument.  The Council Chamber was slowly reforming, the damage 
magically fixing itself as subspace reacted to the wishes of the 
Plutos.  Minako-Pluto took her seat and looked at all the 
assembled Plutos.

     "This trial has gone on long enough," she said.  "I see now 
that by allowing the Prosecution and the Defense to make such a 
big production of this case, it has become a farce.  The Council 
will pass its decision as soon as the Defendent is found.  You," 
she said, pointing to a Pluto, "return Inverse and Naga to where 
you took them from."

     The Pluto nodded and went over to the sorceresses.  Naga 
was crouched protectively over a semi-conscious Lina, resting 
the red-haired girl's head on her lap.

     "Come," the Pluto said, offering her hand to Naga.  "It is 
time to return to the dream."

     Naga looked up and nodded, taking the Pluto's hand.  With 
that, the three of them vanished.

     "Now, we must find the Defendant," Minako-Pluto said.  
Beside her, the other Plutos of the Council took their seats.

     "I'm here," a faint voice said from the back of the room.

     Everyone turned to look at the doors to the chamber, and 
saw an apologetic Setsuna, accompanied by a pizza-toting Beans.

     "I'm sorry," the Defendant said.  "I got a little lost 
there for a moment."  She looked over at Beans.

     "Take your place," Minako-Pluto said coldly.

     Setsuna did so.

     Minako looked around, her gaze taking in the assembled 
Plutos and her fellow Council members.  "We convened this trial 
for two reasons.  First, because of the seriousness of one Pluto 
interfering with another Pluto's universe and, second, because 
the Council saw a means of furthering its power."

     Everyone started muttering at that, including a few of the 
Council members.

     "But, I think we can all agree that continuing this trial 
will only present more opportunities for chaos."

     At this, the other Council Members nodded.

     "I think there can be no question of the facts in this 
case.  The Defendant did knowing enter the Prosecution's 
universe and interfere with the time stream.  The only question 
is whether or not this is a crime, yes?"

     Again, there were nods.  A few seemed about to interject 
their own comments, but Minako-Pluto gestured to the Enforcer, 
who raised her whip.  She seemed eager to put it to use.  
Minako-Pluto nodded to her in thanks.

     "Very well, I think that it is something that should be 
stopped, if just out of simple sense of courtesy.  You do not go 
over to a neighbor's house and mess things up for kicks."  She 
looked at her fellow Council members, who slowly nodded in 
agreement "Defendant, step forward."

     Setsuna swallowed and took a step forward.

     "Because of the lack of good sense and common courtesy, we, 
the Council of Chronos, find you guilty of willfully entering 
another Pluto's territory with malicious intent.  You are hereby 
sentenced--" She paused for a moment, seeming to take special 
pleasure from the rising tension in the room.  "--to serve as an 
instructor to all new Plutos for the next 100 subjective years."

     The Defendant swayed slightly, though it was difficult to 
tell if it was from relief or horror.  Behind her, her fellow 
Senshi hugged each other and swapped enormously relieved grins.  
The Council members looked at each other, confused, but none 
made any move to argue with their Chair-Pluto.  It seemed that 
acting as an instructor was quite enough of a punishment for 
them.

     But not for the Prosecution.  "I object!" she said.  "That 
is not enough to punish her for her crimes!"

     Minako-Pluto looked at her slowly.  "I was just getting to 
you," she said ominously.

     "Me?" the Prosecution said in a suddenly small voice.

     "You showed remarkably poor judgment in bringing this to 
our attention.  All of the chaos that has followed since this 
trial began can be laid at your door.  This place is supposed to 
be a haven for Plutos, not a madhouse."

     "I was merely--"

     "Enough! As punishment for your lack of judgment--" Minako-
Pluto began.  Everyone tensed, waiting for the other shoe to 
drop.  "--I sentence you to take my place on the Council!"

     Everyone stared at her.  A few, like Sana, facefaulted.

     Minako-Pluto stood up, cackling madly.  "Free at last!" she 
crowed, grabbing an obviously prepared satchel from behind her 
chair.  With that in hand, she ran for the door, laughing all 
the way.

     Everyone stared after her, sweat-dropping, except for 
Sailor Venus, who cheered her counterpart on.

     "Can she do that?" the Pluto with the sword and stakes 
asked.

     "It is irregular," the emotionless Pluto said.

     "I don't WANT to be on the Council!" the Prosecutor wailed.

     That got the attention of everyone, including the unwelcome 
attention of the other Council Members (except Ferine, who 
seemed to be trying to keep herself from bursting out laughing).

     "We will... talk about this," the Pluto with the sword 
said.  With that, the Council and the Prosecutor vanished.

     Ferine took Setsuna aside and grinned at her.  "Went pretty 
well, don't you think?"

     Setsuna stared at her, not showing anything in her facial 
expression.  "Now that we're done, answer my question?"

     The short-haired senshi tried to look innocent (something 
Plutos have never been able to pull off).  "What question do you 
mean, Setsuna?"

     "What did you get out of this? Why did you decide to defend 
me? It can't be simply because you wanted to help me."

     "Why not?" Ferine's eyebrow twitched, and she moved closer 
to Setsuna.  "Why would it not be surprising that I'd want to 
help you? Our situations aren't that different, you know.  We 
both have made enormous sacrifices to help our worlds survive, 
and both have made horrendous mistakes in doing so.  Just 
because I have a boyfriend doesn't mean things are all happy and 
wonderful in my world.  The Black Moon War is coming up.  Sailor 
Mars still despises me with every fibre of her being.  And the 
Queen's child has only one friend in her life... me.  It affects 
me.  I hurt.  So don't tell me I have to have some ulterior 
motive.  I see a lot of you in me, and don't want you making the 
same mistakes I did."

     Setsuna looked away.  "I apologize," she said quietly.

     Ferine smiled.  "Thank you."

     "So did you have an ulterior motive?"

     "Yes," Ferine shrugged.  "But it doesn't mean I wasn't 
looking out for you.  You heard what I said in your defense.  
This trial was a lot more important than just a bitch-slapping 
contest between two senshi."

     Setsuna sighed.  "Yes, yes, the whole 'too much justice' 
thing."

     "Don't treat it so lightly.  You came close, very close.  
The only reason your punishment wasn't much harsher is because 
your Minako opened up the heart of her Pluto equivalent after so 
many years.  You might want to thank her."

     "I will," Setsuna said thoughtfully.  "But she quit the 
Council, and appointed my opponent in her place.  Won't that 
make things worse?"

     Ferine frowned.  "Yes, that was unexpected.  So was Ifurita 
leaving... though I'm glad she's over her guilt.  It certainly 
leaves a bit of a power vacuum on the Council."

     Setsuna's eyes narrowed.  "A vacuum you intend to fill?"

     The other woman laughed.  "Hardly.  I don't want a position 
of power.  I want to advise, nudge, adjust.  Tilt the scales a 
bit.  I'm on the Council, but I'll never run it.  Still, there's 
potential to be worked with here.  Your counterpart isn't as bad 
as she appears, she just dislikes dealing with her other selves.  
A few years on the Council will do her good."

     The idea of the woman who tried to have her killed 
obtaining a position on the Council of Plutos as her 
'punishment' still didn't sit well with Setsuna, but she merely 
grumbled a bit and dropped the subject.  "So that's why you 
defended me?"

     "Well, one of the reasons.  Life is rarely clear-cut, 
Setsuna.  Learn to deal with the fact that we don't know 
everything.  Accept your ignorance!" Ferine was positively 
beaming.

     "Ferine... why did you defend me?" Setsuna growled once 
more.

     Ferine grinned.  "That... is a secret."

*****

     Hotaru sat back, watching her friends talk quietly between 
themselves.  Pluto had been spirited off at the end of the 
trial, so they were a little confused about what to do next.

     "Hi? You okay?"

     Looking up, she saw the Saturn from the other world smiling 
down at her.  She made an attempt to smile.  "I'm fine."

     It must not have looked genuine, because Saturn shoved her 
over a bit and sat down on the bench.  "What's got you down? 
C'mon, you can't keep secrets from me!"

     Hotaru sighed.  "We really don't see enough of Pluto as it 
is.  And now she's going to be doing this Council thing..."

     Saturn shrugged.  "Shouldn't matter.  This is a different 
dimension, time isn't flowing back in our universes."

     Hotaru grimaced, feeling stupid.  "Oh, right."

     "That's not to say that she won't use it as an excuse.  But 
it isn't.  If you see less of Setsuna, it's because she wants 
to, not any Council stuff."

     Noting Hotaru slouching further, Saturn sighed.  "She's 
really got you submissive, hasn't she?"

     Hotaru tried to look defensive, but failed.  "It's not her, 
it's everyone.  I mean, I'm thirteen years old..."

     "Which means you're a teenager.  Perfect.  What better time 
to rebel?"

     "I don't want to rebel!" Hotaru added hotly.

     "I don't mean turn against your friends... not that kind of 
rebellion," Saturn added quickly.  "But you should stand up for 
yourself.  Look at the Plutos here.  There are so many who feel 
they should be all-knowing, mysterious and alone, when that's 
not the case at all.  They make themselves unhappy.  I think 
you're doing that.  You see yourself as useless, existing only 
to be told what to do by your father and the Outers.  Well, 
you're bringing that on yourself.  Question them.  Not just 
randomly, but think.  Do you like what they're trying to make 
you do? If not, tell them! Grow up, live a little! Just because 
you're Saturn doesn't mean you can't be a normal teenager."

     Hotaru was still a little unnerved at the idea.  "So... I 
can have ice cream after school if I want?"

     "Exactly," Saturn grinned.  "I'm not trying to get you to 
set fire to public buildings or anything.  But you can take the 
sullen young Goth girl too far."

     "But I like looking Goth..."

     The conversation continued for a while, just normal chat 
between two girls who felt they knew each other very well, 
despite being universes apart.

*****

     Rei stopped outside the door and sighed.  What had started 
out as a meeting to discuss Haruka's fate and how to deal with 
it ended up becoming more of a slumber party than anything else.  
Haruka seemed strangely calm about her impending death.  Even 
weirder, Makoto was positively gleeful, saying things would work 
out, and acting like a giggling imbecile.  That wasn't like her, 
and it made Rei worry.

     Unfortunately, that meant she hadn't been paying attention 
when they all decided who was going to go get the Cokes, and 
she'd been unanimously 'elected'.  So here she was armed with a 
handful of yen.  Still, it gave her time to think.

     This entire catastrophic trip had shown her that she wasn't 
nearly as together and prepared as she had assumed.  Most of her 
bravado had been burned away by that other Rei, the blind Sailor 
Pluto.  It wasn't merely her handicap that bothered Rei, it was 
her inner peace.  Something that Rei, with all her years as a 
shrine maiden, had never been able to achieve.

     Rei knew she had a temper, and it had nothing to do with 
Sailor Mars.  She just found annoyance in almost every aspect of 
life, and treated it as if it was an affront to her.  Peace was 
just not an option in her turmoiled mind.

     Unless she was around her queen.

     For reasons that she only admitted to herself late at night 
when she was alone, she felt a sense of well-being and happiness 
around Serenity.  The woman made her feel wanted, as if she 
wasn't merely there as a jumped-up police officer and traffic 
controller.  She cared about what Rei felt, what she believed.  
And Rei cared for her.

     Oh, did Rei ever care for her.

     She paused in her inner monologue to dump yen in the slots 
of the machine, then froze as she heard footsteps behind her.  
Loud, thumping, obvious footsteps.

     "Ah! Um... I can come back.  I'll wait a few minutes.  
Bye!"

     "Freeze, Gaffney.  We need to talk."

     This was the other thing Rei was dreading, even as she 
spoke the words.  After her... encounter with her other self, 
she'd run into Sean.  Literally.  The stream of babble that 
erupted from her lips at that point was enough to make her turn 
beet red, especially since she seemed to remember some of it 
being certain fantasies she'd had that no one was *EVER* 
supposed to know about.

     And worst of all, *he* was the one that heard it.  She'd 
never gotten along with Sean and his self-righteous 'a little 
bit of anarchy will be good for this city' attitude.  He didn't 
really like her much, either.  Which meant she needed to do some 
damage control before he could spread any stories.  Especially 
on the air.

     Rei opened her mouth to speak, but Sean beat her to it.  
"Look, I'm not saying anything to anyone about that incident the 
other night.  Trust me, it wasn't exactly a wonderful happening 
for me, either.  So don't worry."

     This had the effect of derailing Rei a bit, who was ready 
to go into one of her full-blown rants.  She glared at him.  "I 
bet you told your wife."

     Sean rubbed the back of his head.  "Well, yeah, but only to 
make sure that if they found my body in a ditch or anything... 
but moving on," he murmured, seeing Rei turning red again, 
"she's not the type to go gossiping.  She said she wouldn't even 
tell Serenity.  OK?"

     "...OK.  I accept that.  Thank you.  We'll just pretend the 
past few days never happened."

     Sean nodded.  "Sounds good to me."  He quickly went to get 
sodas for him and the two children.  "Um... about those Lunatic 
Parties..."

     Rei stopped, her fists clenching.  She knew he'd try to get 
something out of this, the bastard.  Still, she did feel a need 
to pay him back somehow.  "What Lunatic Parties?" she said, as 
quietly as she could.

     "Thank you," Sean said with apparent sincerity.  She nodded 
without looking at him and moved on.

     A few doors away from Serenity's, she heard a familiar 
giggling.  Setsuna had begged off from the meeting, saying she 
had to confer with a few Plutos on some matters.  Rei had 
suspected at the time that she was going off to get wasted with 
her compatriots, and now she suspected she was right.  She 
quickly creaked open the door a fraction and looked in.

     She could barely see anything, but the voices got louder.

     "Setsuna, please remove your ass from my face."

     "Well, your face makes a convenient resting place, sorry."

     "I need to pee."

     "Should have thought of that before you twisted into that 
position."

     And then a loud THUMP, puncuated by laughter and groans.

     Rei's eyes widened.  She closed the door quietly, grabbed 
the sodas, and ran back to Serenity's room as fast as she 
possibly could.  There were some things that mere mortals were 
just not meant to know.

     Back at the room, the conversation continued.  "Try again, 
folks.  Right hand RED!"

*****

     Haruka and Michiru sighed, relaxing by the beachfront as 
they waited for Setsuna to finish up affairs here and take them 
back to their world.  Truth to tell, they couldn't wait to get 
back.  This whole escapade had brought home to them how little 
they knew Setsuna, and also showed them a side of her that 
wasn't the 'all-knowing and powerful Mistress of Time' that they 
were used to.

     "May I speak to you for a few minutes?"

     Turning, both of them took a step back.  "S-Serenity..."  
Haruka stammered.

     The queen shook her head.  "I'm not your Serenity, I'm not 
even from your world, so don't show me any unnecessary 
formality."

     Michiru gave her a pointed look.  "Are you here to punish 
us for killing your senshi?"

     Serenity shook her head.  "No.  We shouldn't have been 
there, it was a stupid idea in the first place.  I'm as much at 
fault as anyone is.  Besides, I know that both of you already 
feel horrible for what happened."

     Haruka and Michiru looked down.  "Gomen," Haruka said.

     Serenity went on as if the woman hadn't spoken.  "I want to 
ask you something.  Why do you fight the way you do? I truly 
don't understand it.  You isolate yourselves, trusting no one 
but each other.  Do you truly see this as the best way?"

     Haruka opened her mouth, but no words came out.  Michiru 
answered, though, a crease on her forehead.  "It's the best way 
for us.  We have different goals, the others know this."

     Serenity nodded.  "You think Usagi is too caring to 
accomplish what sometimes has to be done, even if the cost is 
the loss of an innocent."

     Both nodded, though for some reason they still couldn't 
meet Serenity's eyes.  "Yes."

     Serenity nodded.  "I remember.  There was a time that our 
Haruka and Michiru thought the same way."  She paused, trying to 
find the proper words to say.  "I can't tell you to do anything.  
But please listen to what I have to say.  You're still 
teenagers.  You have so much of your life left to life, so much 
joy and happiness to experience.  Don't close it off because of 
a 'need' to be cold."

     The duo didn't reply, so she continued.  "Usagi was a very 
happy, innocent person in my world.  She held those twenty years 
she had as dearly as anything else."  She looked up, and there 
were tears in her eyes.  "But Usagi's dead now.  There's only 
me.  I have her friends, and her husband and daughter.  But I 
can never have her innocence.  And that's why I'm Neo-Queen 
Serenity, and not Tsukino Usagi."

     The tears stopped, and Serenity was looking serene and 
unflappable again.  "Please give your Usagi a chance to get to 
know you.  Otherwise she may spend the rest of her life 
regretting not knowing the two of you."

     Then she bowed and left, leaving the two senshi staring 
after her, speechless.

*****

     The senshi stood on the beach, ready to head back to their 
own universe.  All eyes were on Haruka, who had her arms around 
Michiru and Yurika and was trying to look noble and brave.

     "I just wanna say... the years I've had have been the best 
I could ever hope for.  Even with all the... troubles," she 
glanced at Hotaru, who smiled sympathetically, "I wouldn't trade 
my life for anything."  She stopped, choking up for a while, 
then smiled.  "I'm ready now."

     Setsuna wasn't even bothering to hide her tears.  She 
nodded sadly, then raised her staff.  But a glance around 
brought her up short.  "Where's Jupiter?"

     A quick glance by the others showed that Makoto had 
disappeared.  "I don't understand," Minako said.  "She was with 
the rest of us a minute ago..."

     "AHEM!"

     Spinning round, they saw a crowd of Plutos behind them.  
The one that looked like Michiru was in the lead.  Also 
recognizable was Sana, who waved at Ami brightly, and two of the 
Setsunas, who had arms around one another.

     Michiru-Pluto smiled sweetly, and turned to Setsuna.  "We 
were in the audience when we saw you get sentenced.  Training 
Plutos for the next hundred years... that's actually pretty 
stiff."

     Setsuna growled.  "Thank you, I know."

     The other Pluto cut Setsuna off.  "In fact, it's *such* a 
harsh punishment that it almost seems cruel to have to add to 
it, right?"

     Sana was bouncing up and down.  "RIGHT!"

     Michiru-Pluto held out a hand, gesturing to the others.  
"We were having a discussion a little earlier, some of us.  See, 
we're a little bit like you.  We want our worlds to be happy, 
and sometimes take... exceptional means to ensure that 
happiness."

     She sighed theatrically.  "But I can't just make that 
decision myself.  I'm biased, after all, because this is Haruka 
we're talking about.  And the rest of us all have, for one 
reason or another, something that prevents us from doing this.  
Playing God is not something you do lightly, after all," she 
said, giggling.

     "What we *need*," she said, gesturing dramatically once 
more, "is someone from that world who can try to present an 
unbiased opinion on whether or not we should take such extreme 
actions.  Hmm..."

     Suddenly Makoto appeared in front of the other senshi, a 
serious expression on her face.  "I can help you," she said.  
She then walked all around Haruka and Michiru, hands folded 
behind her back, studying them intently.  "Hmmm..."  She then 
turned back to Michiru-Pluto and made an 'OK' sign.  "Go for 
it!"

     Everyone by now was looking totally puzzled, except 
Setsuna, who was angry and upset.  Michiru-Pluto dropped the 
cute act and walked up to her.

     "You want to do this, but can't gather the courage to.  So 
we're going to help you.  There's no reason why Haruka has to 
suffer for your mistake, regardless of how much it will teach 
you in the future.  Reality isn't about hypotheticals, it's 
about people."

     Setsuna's brow wrinkled.  "You were listening to my 
conversation with Beans!"

     "Actually, they kinda got to me after the trial and 
browbeat it out of me," came a voice from behind her.  Setsuna 
turned to see a very embarrassed Beans rubbing the back of her 
neck and grimacing.  Next to her, Sean and Hotaru turned to each 
other, mouthed the name 'Beans?', then shook their heads.

     "Setsuna," came Michiru-Pluto's voice from next to her ear, 
"will you let us do this? Please?"

     Setsuna closed her eyes for a moment, then nodded.

     Makoto had turned serious as well, and walked up to Haruka.  
"Haruka, they say they can heal you.  I trust them, and I think 
you can too.  Will you let them try?"

     Haruka shivered, then looked down at Yurika and over to 
Michiru, who nodded at her.  "Hai," Haruka said quietly.

     The group of Plutos gathered around Haruka, who reluctantly 
separated from her partner and their daughter.  Almost 
immediately the area shone with a bright light, and the others 
had to avert their eyes.  When it faded, everything seemed to be 
exactly the same, except that many of the Plutos were quite 
tired.

     Haruka felt her body, noticing no difference.  "Did... did 
it work?"

     Michiru-Pluto smiled tiredly.  "It worked.  
Congratulations, you have your life back.  Make the most of it."

     Haruka was struck in a two way tackle by Michiru and 
Yurika, and therefore didn't respond to that.  Michiru-Pluto 
smiled and turned back to Setsuna.

     Setsuna was looking down, a flush across her cheeks.  
"Thank you," she whispered.

     Michiru-Pluto nodded.  "You'd do the same for us."

     "Now this *is* interesting."  Michiru-Pluto spun around to 
see a familiar blonde woman smirking at them.  Minako-Pluto had 
a satchel over one shoulder, and was regarding the whole affair 
with a considerable amount of amusement.

     For a second, Michiru-Pluto couldn't think of a thing to 
say, but then she remembered something important.  "You aren't 
on the Council anymore.  You can't hurt us now."

     "Well, I *could* report it to the current Setsuna... after 
all, we all know how much she loves this little group..."  She 
smiled sweetly as sweatdrops formed on the back of everyone's 
head.  "But I won't."

     Michiru-Pluto was looking puzzled now.  "Why not?"

     Minako-Pluto grinned openly now.  "Because if there's one 
thing I learned from this little escapade, it's that sometimes, 
even if it bends a few rules, you need to let love win."  And 
she winked at her fellow Minako for a moment before turning and 
walking back down towards the city.

     Setsuna stared after her for a moment, then she smiled as 
well.  "Let's go home."

*****

     Pluto-1, the Prosecutor no longer, tried not to yawn.  It 
felt like it had been hours since the other Council Members had 
taken her away to deliberate her fate.  Most of that time had 
been spent listening to the emotionless Pluto drone on.  The 
other Plutos had made their own points, however.  

     The Pluto wearing the sash and the looney were in favor of 
more 'creative' methods of punishment than Council membership.  
The emotionless Pluto claimed that Minako had the right to 
choose a replacement, and the blade-wielding Pluto agreed with 
her.  Ferine, once she actually shown up, had spent most of the 
time just listening to the bickering in amusement while working 
with a palm computer.

     Pluto-1 felt disillusioned.  THIS was how the Council acted 
behind closed doors?  She was starting to understand Minako's 
reasons for leaving.

     Ferine noticed the look on Pluto-1's face and decided it 
was time to cast her vote.  She paused her Tetris game and 
cleared her throat.

     "Since you four seem deadlocked, I'll throw in my vote.  I 
think we can keep her... but I also think she should not be able 
to be Chair for, oh, a hundred subjective years."

     There were grudging nods all around.

     Ferine grinned at Pluto-1.  "Congratulations, you are now a 
member of the Council.  Hope you enjoy it!"

     Emotionless Pluto spoke.  "Now that that is settled, we 
must elect a new Chair.  I will now read the appropriate by-
laws.  First--"

     Three voices spoke as one.  "I nominate myself!" 

     Ferine giggled as the looney, the sash-wearer, and the 
blade-wielder began to argue vociferously about their relative 
merits (or lack thereof) for Chair.  The emotionless Pluto 
merely spoke louder as she recited the by-laws from memory.

     Pluto-1 just sat there, aghast.

     "And after this," Ferine whispered to her, "we get to vote 
on a new Enforcer.  Won't THAT be fun?"

     Pluto-1 qroaned.

     Amazing how long a century can be, Ferine thought to 
herself as she returned to her game.

*****

     Ifurita-Pluto, no longer the Enforcer, looked almost 
nervous as she held her Time Key Staff before her.  She was no 
longer an automaton, a doll whose only purpose in life was to 
follow orders.

     But what was she to do NOW?

     That was the real stumper, an irreverent voice in the back 
of her head spoke.  She knew whose voice it was.  She and Hotaru 
had a long talk after she had received her memories.  She knew 
which memories and beliefs were Sean's, and that their influence 
would fade eventually, even if they never would quite leave.

     In the end, the decision of what to do next, however, was 
entirely hers.  It frightened her, and that was another new 
sensation.  She wasn't sure that she liked it.

     She knew that she could no longer be the Enforcer.  She had 
enough of following orders, and she was uncertain now that the 
Council's aims were ones she could agree with.  She definitely 
could not serve it while Sean's feelings were influencing her.  
She didn't know if she could ever serve it again.

     There was one person she thought she might serve... though 
serve was not the correct term.  She could swear allegiance to 
that person, however.  In a way, she already had.  But that was 
an allegiance born of her need to obey a master.  Now, she could 
willingly offer her service.

     But did she want to do that? She was finally completely 
free....

     There was, however, such a thing as too much freedom.  
Anarchy was not to her tastes.  She needed time to learn how to 
explore her freedom, to become comfortable with it.  And while 
she was doing that, she needed the right sort of people around 
her.  People who could support and encourage her, not simply 
order her around.

     There was only one choice... and, ironically, it was the 
same action she would have taken if there were no choice.

     She activated her Time Key Staff and the passage between 
universes was opened.  She stepped through it into the Court of 
Serenity.

     Bowing before her Queen, Ifurita spoke.  "Your Majesty, I 
have recently come into the possession of true human emotions 
and memories.  What you strove to do for me so long ago has 
finally happened."  She looked up at her Queen, her face full of 
need.  "I do not know how to deal with these things yet.  I 
ask... could you help me?"

     Neo-Queen Serenity looked upon her newest Senshi and 
smiled.  "Welcome home, Ifurita, at last."

*****

     After arriving back, and confirming that Haruka was indeed 
alive and lacking a large hole in her chest, the initial idea 
had been to return to Sean and Hotaru's for a quick nightcap and 
to discuss what they'd seen.  Setsuna had started to explain 
what the other Plutos had done, a long rambling monologue 
involving life force and inner harmonics.  But it became 
apparent after a few minutes that everyone was simply too tired 
to respond much, so it broke up fairly quickly.  Bridget was 
already fast asleep, and Sean picked her up and put her in her 
room before joining Hotaru.

     Hotaru was showing Setsuna out.  "Be careful; Sean'll want 
those back!"

     Sean paled.  "Um... you weren't giving her Lunatic Party, 
were you? I already discussed that with Rei..."

     "Hardly," Hotaru replied.  "She said she wanted to borrow a 
few fanfics that you had read out on the air.  Sailor Moon Z, 
Secrets, College Life.  Something about better research."

     "Weird.  You'd think she could get enough Pluto research at 
that Catskills they hang out at."

     Hotaru was frowning.  "She had a funny look in her eyes, 
too... kept asking me how you and I got along."

     "Uh oh," Sean replied.  "Um... she's not trying to tell us 
something using her subtle Pluto wiles, is she?"

     "Doubt it... she may have been referring to my being 
pregnant again, but I only found out a few days ago myself, how 
would she know?"

     There was a *thunk* from behind Hotaru, and she turned to 
see Sean lying flat on his back on the floor, a dazed smile on 
his face.

     Hotaru grinned sheepishly.  "Whoops."

*****

     Jeff was so busy plotting the latest wacky caper in Sailor 
Moon Z 20 that he missed the doorbell the first time.  He sighed 
and headed back downstairs.

     The doorbell rang a third time as he headed towards the 
door, grumbling.  "Coming, coming..."

     Opening the door, he was rather surprised to find a tall, 
busty woman in a dark green business suit smiling at him.  "Mr.  
Hosmer?" she asked.

     "Yeeees," he said warily.

     She grinned.  "I've heard that you're looking for work at 
the moment."

     Jeff's eyes narrowed as he got more suspicious of the 
stranger.  "Where did you hear this?"

     "I have my sources."  She reached into her breast pocket 
and pulled out an envelope.  "Now, the position I'm willing to 
offer you *would* involve a bit of travel..."


THE END


     Sean's Notes:

     This, believe it or not, is not Mike Loader's fault.  ^_^ 
In fact, it's John Biles who's to blame.  See, John hates Uranus 
and Neptune.  He won't admit it, he'll say that he both likes 
them and gets frustrated by them, but the truth is that he 
really dislikes them.  I tried to write a little email a year or 
two ago convincing him that they were OK after all.  In the 
middle of it I realized that all the really cool qualities I 
admired came from my reading the manga, and the stuff that even 
irritated *me* was all from the anime.

     I mentioned this to Jeff, who agreed that the Outer Senshi 
were far more sociable and open in the manga.  We jokingly had 
an idea that the manga Outers should watch the anime one day, 
then go over and beat their counterparts up.

     That was the genesis of Trials and Errors.  A year and a 
half, a few universe changes, a dead Haruka, a Council of 
Plutos, and enough cameos to shake a Time Staff at, it's finally 
finished.  It got a little bit out of control.  ^_^;;

     It's mostly comedic, but we both took an opportunity to 
seriously explore the conception of Sailor Pluto.  She's quite 
different in the two sources traditionally used, as well as in 
fanfics.  Is she friendly and a co-parent to Hotaru, or is she 
mysterious and cool, only appearing rarely? Is she unfeeling, 
evil, insane, lonely, whore, goddess? Various fanfics have 
portrayed her in all these ways.  This is sort of where the idea 
of the multiverse came from.  It was only a few drunken 
stumblings from there to Club Pluto.

     Of course, it couldn't have been done without my co-author 
Jeff, who not only writes better than I do, but whose weird 
ideas gave me the impetus to write my own weird followups.  Jeff 
would also like it pointed out that the final scene is 
completely and totally MY idea, written by ME, and therefore is 
not his self-insert.  Thank you.

     In addition, thanks to our pre-readers, John Biles, Chris 
Davies, Helen Szeto, and Amanda 'Greenbeans' Anderson for making 
this better than it has the right to be.  Oh, and the cameos.  
This fanfic features a few Plutos not created by us, but whose 
authors graciously allowed us to use them.  Thanks to Ken Wolfe, 
Jon Carp, Richard Beaubien, John Biles, and Greenbeans for 
abusing their Plutos like that (or in Beans' case, making hers 
up whole cloth).

     There may be a few stories written based around events that 
happened in this story or were referred to.  Sana-Pluto and 
Ami's adventure, the tale of the two Setsunas who fell in love, 
Michiru-Pluto's world and how that came to be, expanding on the 
story of how Beans got to be Pluto... no guarantees, but some of 
these may be jotted down.

     This fanfic has a lot of gratuitous scenes in it.  We hope, 
however, that it has still managed to be coherent and enjoyable.  
Thanks!


     Jeff's Notes

     You know, I was beginning to think this thing would NEVER 
be done.

     It has come a long way and bears no resemblance to the 
original concept.  I'm not sure if the result is a good one.  
That's up to you to decide, ultimately.

     We did have some fun writing it, though! :)

     Jeff Hosmer
     30 Nov 99


     GLOSSARY:

     There are quite a few obscure Plutos and obscure references 
in this fic.  Hopefully we can sort a few of them out.

     The Setsuna on trial, all of her fellow Senshi, Sean, 
Yurika, and Bridget come from Sean Gaffney's previous Sailor 
Moon fanfic 'Made of Stone'.  They're very manga influenced, but 
differ in a few small ways.  Generally, though, assume manga 
continuity.

     The Setsuna whose world was attacked, and who demanded the 
trial, is pretty much based on the anime, as are her senshi.

     Ferine, the defense counsel, is based on Ken Wolfe's Pluto 
from his fanfics, mostly 'Secrets'.

     The Council Plutos: 1) original to this fanfic 2) original 
to this fanfic 3) ditto 4) Based loosely on Setsuna from Jon 
Carp's 'Secondary Characters' fanfic.  5) Ferine, the defense 
counsel, is based on Ken Wolfe's Pluto from his fanfics, mostly 
'Secrets'.  6) Minako Pluto, original to this fic, but first 
seen in Jeff's 'The Importance of Being Pluto', which was 
released earlier.

     Himeko-Pluto is from John Biles and Jeff Hosmer's 'Sailor 
Moon Z' series.

     Tennis Warrior Pluto also gets a mention; she's from Biles' 
'Marmalade Moon'.

     Naru-Pluto is from Richard Beaubien's 'An Eating Guide to 
the Silver Millennium'.

     Michiru-Pluto is original to this fanfic.  On her world, 
Yuriko, a woman, is the equivalent of 'Tuxedo Kamen' and the 
senshi are all in various romantic pairings with each other.  
You can be fairly sure one or both of the authors will expand on 
it, since we're both essentially ecchi.  ^_^

     Ifurita-Pluto is, of course, based on Ifurita from the El 
Hazard OAVs.  Her backstory is original to this, however.

     Morrigan-Pluto is based on Morrigan from Darkstalkers.

     Sana-Pluto, perhaps the most insane idea Jeff and I came up 
with for this, is based on Sana Kurata from the anime Kodomo no 
Omocha (Child's Toy).

     Beans-Pluto is vaguely based on Beans from Amanda 
Anderson's College Life.  Please note that Beans will not become 
Pluto at the end of CL, this is merely an alternate future.

     All other Plutos mentioned here are in some way original to 
this fanfic.

     To find out why Lina Inverse and Naga the Serpent were in 
this fanfic, please read Jeff Hosmer and Chris Davies' 'The 
Crosstime Adventures of Athena and Sheila'.  This also explains 
when Hotaru got pregnant for the first time, and mentions Haruka 
and Michiru's child, Yurika.

     'Berf' (C) 1999 Amanda Anderson, all rights reserved.

     There are a few other REALLY obscure refs in here, such as 
calling Ifurita Ann-Margret, and the Neil Young CD, and so 
forth.  Do you really want me to explain each one? I thought 
not.  Just remember, if you don't get some obscure pop-culture 
ref, Sean wrote it.  ^_^




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