Subject: [FFML] Re: [SM/???][vignette] The Education of Usagi Tsukino: Lesson 0
From: SkyeFire@aol.com
Date: 11/19/2002, 11:04 PM
To: aerolbj@i-next.net, ffml@anifics.com



    Standard C&C disclaimer:  Thisw C&C is mine!  All mine!  So there!  (:)

 3184 CE
 70th Year After Purification
 7th Year of the Reunification:

    Hmmm...  guessing the Purification would be the end of the Great Ice, and 
the Reunification would be the end of the Black Moon War?
  
     Green fields, blue skies and crystal clear rivers passed 
 swiftly by, a panorama in motion of Nature's beauty. The 
 sense of wonderment and splendor that the scene was supposed 
 to convey was lost on one Usagi Tsukino-Serenity, Crown 

    Tsukino-Serenity?  Poor Mamoru -- no "Chiba" in there at all, huh?  So, 
did he end up taking his wife's name when they got married?

 Princess of Crystal Tokyo, Small Lady. Though the term 
 Small Lady maybe a bit of a misnomer now that she'd grown. 

    Tense confusion:  should be "Might be," not "maybe"

 Sixteen years old, with her birthday a few months away, she 
 was, like her mother, a bit of a late bloomer. Her sudden 
 growth spurt at the age of fifteen left her at five foot 

    Sug:  "...had left her at..."

 four inches and still growing. She was starting to become 
 the very image of a beautiful young princess.

    Usagi (which one?  Guess):  "Wait, I'm from a Metric nation.  What's 
five-foot-four in centimeters?"
    Heh heh.  If Usagi-chan's tranformation into Black Lady was any 
indication, she'll be a real heartbreaker when she finishes filling out.
  
     Currently, she was a very bored young princess. She 
 sighed as she stopped looking out the window and stood up 
 from her chair to stretch a little. She surveyed the 

    Repetition of "she" three times in as many lines.

 surroundings of the Royal Coach, the special train 
 compartment used whenever her parents had need to travel 
 via rail. The full bookshelf in one corner, along with a 
 table filled with copies of the latest newspapers and 
 magazines from the world over. 

    This last sentence lacks a verb.

 Her father was taking a nap 
 on the couch and her mother was seated comfortably on one 
 of the other chairs, a sketchpad in one hand, a pencil 
 delicately balanced in the other. She was exercising 
 one of her few passions, drawing.
 
     Usagi noted that even half-finished, Neo-Queen 
 Serenity's sketch of her husband was starting to look 
 really well. If she weren't the Queen of the world, the 

    I think that should be "good", not "well."  "well" is more of an adverb 
than an adjective, IIRC.

 young princess thought, she'd probably make a great 
 artist, which she was. She smiled at the thought. She 

    Repetition of "thought"

 remembered reading about her mom's previous occupation 
 before ruling the world: a manga artist with quite a few 
 best-selling hits under her belt. A few of them were made 
 into anime and Usagi had often seen them as reruns on 
 late-night TV. The Serenity Cult gobbled it up like candy.

    A religion with anime and manga as its Holy Writ.  The mind boggles...
    Serenity:  "Hey, don't knock it -- do you *realize* what my spare copies 
are worth now?  Even a Queen has to have a golden parachute for her 
retirement, you know."
  
     After the Reawakening and the Purification, her 
 mother's manga creations, already expensive to collectors 
 and enthusiasts, were considered as holy artifacts by some 
 people and the stuff's prices went up astronomically. 

    The "expensive to" seems a bit awkward.  Sug:  "...already rare and 
prized by collectors, were..."

 Especially those with her mother's autograph. She had 
 managed to read all of them, borrowing from Aunt Rei's 
 extensive manga collection and she loved all of them. 

    Rep of "them," and needs a comma after "collection."
    Sug:  "She had managed to read every manga her mother had ever written, 
borrowing (plundering?) from Aunt Rei's extensive collection, and loved them 
all."
    And one has to wonder why *Rei's* collection has a *complete* run of all 
of Usagi Senior's works...  
    Rei <blushing>:  "HEY!  It's not LIKE that!  They were... investments!  
Yeah!"

 They had ranged from romance, fantasy, horror, etc. Name 
 the genre, Usagi Tsukino wrote it. Ironically enough, her 
 mother wrote only one series with a magical girl in it. It 

    Usagi Tsukino's mother only wrote one series with a magical girl in it?   
Bit of pronoun confusion, here.  
    Sug:  "...Usagi Tsukino wrote it, although ironically enough she had only 
ever written one series with a magical girl in it.."
        I guess what Heinlein said in "Cat Who Walks Through Walls" is true:  
you should never write about anything you know proffessionally.

 was one of her first successes and made her name in the 
 businness. All of the rest shared all the elements that 
 made them bestsellers: wonderful characters you can't help 

    Past-tense narration; should be "couldn't" rather than "can't," I think.

 but love, well-made plots that made sense and were 
 believable and, of course,  the gorgeous art. There was 
 also a second level to it that she had noticed when she 
 read the old tankoubons. The stories had a depth and 
 understanding of the human condition that just grabbed 
 the reader and gave him or her an insight into it. They
 made the reader think. 

    Usagi Senior:  "Actually, they were all part of my mind-control process 
to get human civilization ready to worship me after the Great Ice.  Do you 
have any IDEA how hard it is to bury strong subliminal messages in 
non-animted print format?"
  
<snipzilla.  graaaaaaarrrrrr>
  
     "Moooom, will you please calling me Small Lady! I'm 
 sixteen! At the very least call me with a grown up name 
 like Usagi or something."
 
     Her mother smiled lightly and shook her head. "You will 
 always be either Small Lady or Chibi-usa to me, my dear. 
 Which do you prefer?"

    "C:  None of the Above.  Try again, Mom."
  
     Usagi grimaced at the thought of being called Chibi-usa 
 again to which her mother responded with a wide smile. Then 
 Usagi remembered what started the conversation.

    Need comma after "again"
  
     "How did you know?"
 
     "You were looking at the clock and had this puzzled 
 expression on your face. Logical conclusion would be 

    "The logical conclusion..."

 something troubling you concerning time or something 
 relating to time. And since you haven't had another lesson 
 from Setsuna about temporal mechanics recently and the fact 

    "...and given the fact that..."
    Sug:  Lose the first "and."

 that you looked momentarily out, I deduced your thoughts 

    "Looked out" what?  The window?  Maybe "Looked outside"?

 related to time and the speed of the train. It would be 
 elementary to follow the line of thinking to your 
 questoning why we after going on a sudden trip we are not 
 going at faster speeds."

    That got a little awkward.  Sug:  "...to your wonder why, after leaving 
on such a sudden trip, we are not moving more quickly."
  
     "Mom, you're talking like Sherlock Holmes. I hate it 
 when you talk like Sherlock Holmes. I had enough of that
 when he showed up last month."

    .....
    !
    Ooookay, there's GOT to be a story behind THAT one.  Setsuna, have you 
been indulging your Basil Rathbone fetish again?
  
     Her mother laughed. "Sorry about that, Usagi-chan."
 
     "'Usagi-chan'? Where did that come from?"
 
     "You did say you wanted to be called something 
 different, ne?"

    Something more different that THAT...
  
     "But you just put a '-chan' at the end!"
 
     "It is significantly better than Chibi-usa, ne?"

    "Sure, the same way terminal cancer is better than a heart attack.  Geez!"
  
     This time it was her daughter's turn to shake her head 
 and smile. The young princess was silent for a few moments, 
 looking out again at the passing scenery, and returned her 
 gaze to her mother. 

    Sug:  "...scenery, before she returned her gaze..."
  
     "Mom, to return to the original question, _why_ are we 
 going by train?"
 
     Neo-Queen Serenity inclined her head a bit to the side, 
 obviously thinking something over. After a few seconds, her 
 neck straightened and she motioned for her daughter to take 
 the seat opposite her. 

    "her neck straightened"?  Umm... I dunno about that line...
  
     Usagi sat down and waited for her mother to explain. 
 There was a peculiar look on her mother's face that she 
 couldn't put her finger on. Usually she was pretty good at 
 reading her mother's moods but this time was an exception.

    Repetition of "her mother" three times in four lines.  
  
     "Well, it's time for you to find out about a lot of 
 things, because the person we will be visiting is the 
 reason for most aspects of life in Crsytal Tokyo and the 
 rest of the world."

    SP:  Crystal.
  
    "I thought that was supposed to be you?", Usagi said 
 with a puzzled look.

    Comma outside quotes
  
     Her mother laughed gently at this and shook her head. 
 "Technically, but that person made me into what I am 
 today, by teaching me all that I know. You don't 
 understand, do you?"

    Sug:  "...but the person I'm referring to made me..."
  
     The look on her daughter's face said it all.
 
     "Do you remember that letter I gave you when you came 
 back to the past for the second time?"  
 
     "Yes. That always bothered me. You knew kanji well 
 enough. Why did you use katakana?"
 
     "Because if the earlier version of me found out how 
 much I would change to become the Queen, I don't think 
 I'd ever have gone through with it."

    Um... Okay, I need a clueX4, here.  That whoooosh you just heard was the 
joke going past my head...  (my own fault, most likely)
  
     Usagi nodded. "I remember thinking of you and the 
 past version of you as two different people since you 
 were so... so..."

    You're not the only one, Usagi-ch -- er, Small -- er, um, you know who 
you are.  (Aspirin, I need ASPIRIN)
  
     "Opposite?" Her mother sugested.
 
     "No! Not that! You're still the Usagi I knew in the 
 past at times. But, you're more refined, more graceful, 
 and much more -"

    Does Usagi-ch -- I mean, Usagi-II break off here, or trail off?  It 
*sounds* more like she trailed off, but that would call for an ellipsis, 
rather than a double-dash.
  
     "Harder? I remember one of the newspapers nowadays 

    Usagi-II ended with "more," and Serenity picked up with "harder".  Which, 
combined, makes "more harder."  I'm not sure Serenity would have done that.  
Maybe "harsh" or "inflexible," or just "hard."  Or, Usagi could have just 
trailed off at "and...and...um..."

 describing me as ruling with a velvet-gloved iron fist," 
 the Queen said with a smile, "Intelligent? I remember a 
 time when I was a failing at Japanese, Usagi-chan. 
 Nowadays, I am fluent in fifteen languages. When I was 
 a teenager, I would never have even dreamed of getting 
 a Ph.D. in Political Theory. Along with my degrees in 
 Literature, Philosophy and History."

    Sug:  "Much less my degrees in..."
  
     Neo-Queen Serenity looked out the window sadly. 
 "When I was young I would only read simple books and 
 manga. Now I read reports on economies, political 
 situations and other things that would have put me to 
 sleep back then."

    "And since they don't put me to sleep any more, my insomnia is just 
TERRIBLE.  And now Ami-chan is threatening to cut off my barbituate supply..."
  
     The Queen returned to look at her daughter again, 
 smiling a little. "The person we're going to visit 
 suggested that we take the scenic route. I think my 
 old friend is trying to teach me a lesson again."

    Hmm...old "friend," not "teacher"?  Interesting.
  
     "The person we will be visiting taught me 
 everything. Sensei first taught me how to learn and 

    Need another space before "Sensei"

 how to love to learn. Then we started on from there. 

    Sug:  "...continued on..."

 Along the way, I met every intelligent person that 
 has ever lived: Socrates, Plato, Aristotle, Pythagoras,
 Confucius, Lao-Tze to Machiavelli and Aquinas to Locke, 
 Hobbes, Rousseau and all the others. I disagreed with 
 Nietzche and flirted with Marx." The Queen of Crystal 

    I could quibble and point out that these are only the intelligent people 
who got *recorded* by history, but I get what she's saying.  Although, were 
there no Silver Millenium philosophers/thinkers/nutbars worth studying?  

 Tokyo had a look of nostalgia on her face as she said 
 all of this to her daughter. "I got taught the sum 

    "got taught"?  Seems a bit Ranma-ish for Serenity.  Maybe "was taught"?

 entirety of human philosophy and knowledge. At least,
 those of three thousand years. And even beyond that. 
 Sensei thought that I needed all of it. I don't know how, 
 but Sensei was right about that."

    Why only three thousand years?  There is stuff predating 1000BC that can 
be studied, although granted it's not as well recorded.  The Code of 
Hammurabi, for example.  The tale of Gilgamesh, Beowulf, heck, even the 
Christian Bible.
  
     "Since I see you're quite confused, Usagi-chan. 
 Since this trip will probably be a long one, I might as 
 well tell you the story of how I learned to be a Queen. Or 
 as Sensei puts it, learned to be a human being."

    First line doesn't go anywhere.  Suggest losing the first "since". 
  
     So as her daughter listened, entranced, Neo-Queen 
 Serenity, who used to be a young girl by the name of Usagi 
 Tsukino in the city of Tokyo in the later half of the 
 twentieth century, began her story where it all began.

    Sug:  "...who was once a..."
  
     Breakfast.    

    <facepalm>  Oh, of course.
    Serenity:  "Well, it *is* the most important meal of the day."
    Luna:  "So how come you never woke up early enough to EAT it?"
    Serenity:  "I was, um... saving room for Mako-chan's great lunches!  
Yeah, that's it!"
  
<son of snipzilla:   Grrarr>

 1996:
 
  Usagi Tsukino paused in mid-bite and mid-run. It was
 painfully obvious that this was an unnatural position since
 she teetered on her one foot. The inevitable was, as always,
 unavoidable.

    She only has one foot?  Ouch.  How did that happen?
  
  Ikuko Tsukino winced in sympathy as her eldest child
 crashed to the floor in an undignified heap. 
 
  "Ow." 
 
  The matriarch of the Tsukino family sighed a long-
 suffering sigh and helped her daughter up, wiping some of
 the butter and toast off her face. 
  
  "You got me a tutor?" 
 
  "Yes, Usagi."
 
  "Why?"
 
  "As if that weren't obvious." Shingo wisecracked as

    Comma, not period, after "obvious"

 he danced around his mother and sister to reach the door 
 and leave for school.
 
  "Shut up, Shingo!" Usagi shouted after her brother
 as her mother and father both shook their heads.
 
  "Shingo's partially right, Usagi-chan. You're not 
 exactly the picture of scholastic excellence." Kenji 
 said as he sipped coffee at the breakfast table while
 reading the newspaper.

    Comma, not period, after "excellence".  
  
  "But my grades have gotten better!"

    There are SO many wisecracks I could make here...
  
  "Better, yes, and we're proud of you for that."
 Ikuko personally thought it was that Mizuno girl's 
 influence and she silently thanked the kami for small 
 favors. "But they're not good enough for a university.
 You do want to go to college don't you?"

    "No, I was just going to shack up with Mamo-chan and let *him* handle all 
the thinky-type stuff."
  
  The question was met by nervous silence.
 
  Kenji peeked over his newspaper with an arched 
 eyebrow. Usagi was twiddling her thumbs and his wife
 was getting that look again. 

    Sug:  "That Look."  I bet it would be capped in his thoughts....
  
  Oh yeah, defuse-the-ticking-time-bomb-that-is- 
 my-wife time. 
 
  And I quit my old job to marry her, Kenji thought
 with a smirk. This was at least twice as dangerous as what
 I used to do.

    <blink>  Okay, this is more Kenji characterization than I recall ever 
seeing outside of Biles's "Children of Fire."  And I *like* it.  I'm also 
wondering what his old job *was* -- was he really a bomb-squad tech?  Kewl.  
  
  "Of course, Usagi-chan wants to go to college, Dear.
 She's just worried that it would be too much for her." Hope
 Usagi sees the winking and Ikuko doesn't. 

    Heh heh.  "Like a bridge over troubled waters..."
   
  "Weeeell, yes. I think." Usagi twiddled her thumbs
 some more.

    "Maybe.  Sorta.  In a way.  Kinda.  In a manner of speaking.  From a 
certain point of view.  Um... define "want"..."
  
  "Usagi, you are going to go to college and to do that
 you'll need a tutor. Mei'ou-san, that nice guardian of young
 Hotaru-chan suggested a tutor that would be just right for 
 you."

    Need another space before "Mei'ou-san" and a comma after "Hotaru-chan".

  "Setsuna gave you suggestions for a tutor?" Usagi
 blinked. This was either one of those Guardian of Time 
 intricate plot things or Setsuna just being helpful. Or it
 could be both.

    Re:  "Setsuna just being helpful."  I have two (seperate) responses:
    1:  Like hell.
    2:  BWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAAAAAAA!!!!!!!
  
  "Yes. And you'll be going there this afternoon."
 
  "But, Moooooom, me and the girls are going out!"

    "And meet our boyfriends, and have lots of hot monkey se-- er, did I say 
that out loud?"
  
  "Well, I'm sorry, Usagi. But Weyland-san was a 
 difficult person to get and she insisted on screening you 
 personally."

    "difficult to get"?  Mmm.  Sug:  "But Weyland-san takes very few 
students, and..."
    Weyland?  Heh.  The only Weyalnd I can think of is the evil scientist who 
created SHIVA in Biles's "Dance of Shiva."  But I'm pretty sure that's not 
who you mean here.
  
  She's probably some evil entity from beyond space and
 time and Setsuna wants me to get properly introduced before 
 we start with the insanity again, Usagi thought darkly as 
 she reluctantly agreed to go to her new tutor's house and be
 subjected to an interview.

    That's *such* an Usagi-ish thought.  Not to mention all-too-likely 
true...  

  It was shaping out to be a bad day.

    Shaping *out,* or *up*?
    
 *    *    *    *    *    *    *    *    *    *    *    *   
 
  The ravens cawed at her as Usagi looked up at the

    Sug swapping "Usagi" and "her/she"

 iron gate that barred her from the large estate beyond. The 
 pair of them gave her regarding looks, as if they were royal 
 guards considering a petitioner to a queen.It wasn't exactly
 what she was expecting from a private tutor, but Setsuna was
 involved thus strangeness was bound to happen.

    Tee hee.  She really is *not* too happy with Setsuna, is she?
  
  "Just my luck. I'm betting she's gonna be like Rei."
 Usagi whined under her voice as she suffered the avian gazes
 aimed at her. 

    You mean, totally, hopelessly in love with you, always by your side, 
loyal until (and beyond) death?  Gee, what's so bad about that?
    Oh, yeah.  "Meatball head," tongue wars, diatribes, bossiness... 
  
  With a simultaneous squawk, both birds launched 
 themselves from their perches and disappeared from view. 
 The iron gate yawned open. Moments later, one of the ravens 

    Yawned open why?  Might add a bit of apprehension on Usagi's part that 
there doesn't seem to be any mechanism *doing* the opening...

 fluttered gracefully lighted on her shoulder as if from

    Missing an "and" in there, I think.

 nowhere in a move so silent that she only noticed its arrival 
 when she felt the sudden addition of weight and the talons
 pressing through her uniform blouse. 
 
  She would have shrieked in surprise but there was a 
 restraining power in the look that the raven gave her, a 
 glint in the eye that betokened supernatural intelligence, 
 that she only tilted her head in response.

    Given the "that" in the last line, I suspect you meant the first line to 
go "...was *such* a restraining..."
  
  The raven nodded and cawed with seeming delight. It
 gyrated its head in an odd motion that Usagi quickly
 interpreted.
 
  "You want me to follow you?"

    See?  hanging out with Rei, Deimos, and Phobos comes in handy.
  
  Nod, nod.
 
  It was times like this that Usagi really wanted to 
 rather bad, long and painful things to the Guardian of Time.

    Snicker.  
    "To" what?  to "do"?  
  
  Having no other recourse, she followed the bird as 
 it fairly leaped from its perch into the estate within.
  
 *    *    *    *    *    *    *    *    *    *    *    *   
  
  The trip inside was an eerie one. The estate was vast
 in its own way, rather spacious for suburban Tokyo. The 
 place must have cost more than a bundle. 

    "Welcome to the Tendo Do--"  No.  I am NOT going there...
  
  The raven winged its way slowly giving the blonde a
 chance to follow. The cobbled path slowly gave way to a
 marble one lined with rosebushes.  

    Need a comma after "Slowly"
  
  The path led to a looming Gothic-style mansion. The
 great oak door yawned open as she and the raven approached. 

    Again, what opened the door?

 They entered and Usagi was awed by the dark beauty of the
 mansion's interior. Items radiated age and wealth in an 
 understated way that only added to their worth. Suits of
 armor from East and West, Turkish rugs and Hindu tapestries,
 this was an incredible treaure trove from all over the 
 world.

    Quite perceptive of our "dumb" Usagi.  But then, she never was dumb, 
just... um...  how to put this...?
  
  Another raven joined the one that led her and they
 led her into a dark roomm filled with books. The voice 
 surprised her.  

    SP:  Room
  
  "You have arrived it seems."

    Need comma after "arrived"
  
  It was a woman, sitting in a high backed chair, black
 leather gloved hands steepled before her. The room's only 
 window was behind the chair, the setting sun's rays 
 creating the peculiar effect of a blood-red halo around 
 the chair and its occupant. Dressed in a black high collar 
 military-style tunic and matching trousers, her white face 
 made even more striking by her dark surroundings.

    The last sentence lacks a verb.
    This was, of course, the moment that a wild-eyed young gaijin blasting 
through the window yelling something about "PH34R MY L33TN355, ZOMBIE QUEEN!" 
pursued by a ninja calling plaintively after "Great Teacher Largo..."
   
  The twin ravens swooped to land on opposing sides of 
 the chair. The woman regarded Usagi with a single eye, an 
 eye that seemed to glow with fearsome power in the afternoon 
 twilight. That eye was set in an aristocratic heart-shaped 
 face framed by reddish black hair cut in a helmet style. The 
 eyepatch over the left ey\e only emphasized the cyclopean 

    Extra character in "eye"

 nature of the woman before her. The eye was the center of 
 everything about Weyland-san.

    Sug:  "That eye was..."
  
  "Ah...Weyland-san-"
 
  "You are the Tsukino girl?" The voice was like honey 
 on broken glass, a harshness barely disguised by a soprano
 voice.
 
  "Yes, I-"
 
  "All you have to do is answer three questions, 
 Tsukino-san. Then I will determine whether you are worthy."
 
  The statement had a weird tone of finality that made
 Usagi nervous.
 
  "Er...worthy of what?" 
 
  "Everything, Tsukino-san. Everything." A dagger-sharp
 smile flashed on that terribly beautiful one-eyed face.

    "Like, continuing to breath."
  
  "Look into my eye and we shall begin."

    "Oookay... did you know you have pink-eye?"
    "Ahem!  No, it's just bloodshot.  Now, where were we...?"
  
  Hesitating for a moment, Usagi squared her shoulders. 
 Whatever this woman may say, she was _worthy_. 

    That's our Neo-Queen!  Kick her @$$, Usagi!

Besides,
 Mom would be totally kick my behind if I don't get a tutor.

    Well, that too.  Wah!  Ikuko-san is scary!

 A bare moment after that thought, another flashed through 
 her mind and she just had to ask something first.
 
  "Ah....there isn't going to be a math question, is 
 there?"

    <facefault>
  
  Weyland-san's lips quirked in amusement.
 
  "No. There won't be math questions, Tsukino-san. May
 we begin?"

    Okay, at least she has *some* sense of humor.
  
  "Er...yeah." 
 
  Taking a deep breath, she gazed into Weyland-san's eye
 and was suddenly swallowed by the fiery power radiated by 
 that cyclopean orb. The word boomed ins

    That last line ended rather abruptly.
  
  "Who are you?" 

    "I dunno, but Kosh is gonna be calling you about trademark infringement."
  
  Weyland-san's voice held undeniable power, the question
 suddenly seeming to reverbrate in Usagi's mind, giving the
 simple query a dire import.
 
  Who am I? The question drew forth separate answers 
 from her mind, almost as if they were summoned at the woman's
 call. From this multitude of voices, rose four voices
 
  I am Princess Serenity of the Line Serenity. Inheritor
 of the Silver Throne. Protectress of the Silver Sea. Champion 
 of the White Order. Wielder of the Power Argent under the 
 Pact Serenity. In my blood lives all of my line, and under 
 their guidance and grace, I live to rule.  

    "And sleep.  And eat.  And latch onto Mamo-chan like a limpet mine..."
  
  I am Sailor Moon, warrior of love and justice. I have
 defended this world from forces that would destroy it a 
 thousand times over. I fight reluctantly for peace.

    "And really enthusiastically for Mamo-chan!  It's HARD having a 
chick-magnet for a boyfriend!"
  
  I am Usagi Tsukino, daughter to Kenji and Ikuko 
 Tsukino. I am normal girl, though a bit lazy, with all the 
 normal wants. I go to school and date my boyfriend. I go 
 out with my friends. I live a normal life, hoping for a 
 happy future for all the ones I love.

    Okay, wiping away a tear now.  Damn hotel room, must have dust in the 
heating ducts...
  
  I am Neo-Queen Serenity, the future yet to be born. I 
 lie asleep and wait in fearful anticipation for what is to 
 come.

    Niiiice.
  
  Usagi was confused at the answers that seemed to bubble
 up from within her, as if summoned magically by the woman's
 voice. Groping for an answer from the multitude, she blurted
 out the most honest answer she could find.  
  
  "I don't know."

    "BZZZT!  You ARE the weakest link!"
   
  Well, that totally blew it. To Usagi's surprise, 
 Weyland-san only just smiled and asked another question. 
  
  "What do you want?"

    "Okay, Morden's gonna be calling you too..."
  
  Another explosion occured within Usagi's consciousness, 
 the power in that voice was once again irresistible and her
 mind responded.
 
  I want peace on earth.
 
  I want peace for me.
 
  I want love.
 
  I want to put an end to all pain and evil.
 
  I want an ice-cream sundae. With chocolate syrup,
 sprinkles...mmm...better make that a double. Plus maybe
 a few more sweets on the side. Plus a milkshake.

    ROTFLMAO....
   
  Usagi noticed Weyland-san arching an eyebrow, obviously 
 noticing the hungry-glazed look in her eyes. Wincing, she
 just blurted out what she honestly knew.

    "You're...drooling on my priceless ancient Persian rug, Tsukino-san."
  
  "I don't know."
 
  The eye concentrated on her and focused like a 
 camera. The smile on Weyland-san's face was wider. She spoke
 but her voice seemed to be missing the earlier power that
 it had.
 
  "Two rather distinct and very old philosophies 
 summarized into two questions. And answered rather well by 
 a sixteen year old. Now, my dear, the final question, why 
 are you here?"

    "And Lorien, too.  Gee, you're just ticking off *all* the elder races 
today, ain'tcha?"
  
  "Er...I thought I was here for a bit of tutoring for
 the college entrance exams. Now...I don't know."

    Well, if you find an answer that works...
  
  A grin was evident on Weyland-san's face as she 
 regarded her. "Expectations, as my sister is oft to say, 
 are always shattered. Tsukino-san, as of this moment, you
 will call me Sensei and I expect you to do your best in all
 the things that I seek to teach you."

    Her sister?  Hmm...
  
  "You mean I passed?"
 
  A throaty laugh preceded her new tutor's answer. "Yes,
 Tsukino-san. Passed with rather flying colors if you might 
 ask."

    "And I didn't even have to use my lifelines!"
  
  Weyland-sensei gestured with a hand and one of the 
 ravens left its perch. "Huggin, will show you out. I expect
 you to come here at the same time tommorrow."

    <boggle>  If you're using the raven I *think* you are, I think the 
correct spelling is "Hugin."  Which would make his counterpart Munin.  
Thought and memory.  Sooo, Weyland is connected to the Norse pantheon?  Or 
did she just like the names?
    Wait... eyepatch???   Ravens???  Holy...
  
  Usagi could only nod as the raven called Huggin landed
 on her shoulder with a squawk. Before she forgot, she better
 tell Weylan-sensei.
 
  "Weyland-sensei, my mother was asking about your pay-"
 
  "Teaching someone like you, Tsukino-san, is reward 
 enough. Tell your mother I'll take you on free as a favor to 
 Mei'ou-san."

    "After all, if I can educate such a hopeless case a *you,* I can get free 
beer at Teacher's Conferences for the rest of my life."
   
  "Uh...thank you, Weyland-sensei."
 
  "Don't thank me yet, Tsukino-san." Weyland-sensei 
 dismissed her with a perfunctory gesture.

    "After all, I'm a graduate of the Genma Saotome School of Hard-Kocks 
Education."
  
  As Usagi followed Huggin out, she could swear that
 mad laughter echoed from within the dark mansion.
 
  Great. More insanity. I will really kick Setsuna's
 ass for this. 

    Do it!  Do it!  
  
 *    *    *    *    *    *    *    *    *    *    *    *   
 
 Author's Note:
 
 The "godesses" are now complete. Well, they're godesses
 in a cosmology that is a synthesis of Lovecraft, Hodgson, 
 Haggard, Blackwood, Machen, Tipler, Isamov, Wollheim, and 
 de Chardin. Really weird shit.

    Isamov, or Asimov?  And I'll admit, I only recognize Lovecraft from that 
list.  Are you going to give us a bibliography for this series (please, 
ghod!)?
  
-- David McMillan, Imagineer at Large. Chief Systems Analyst and Integration Engineer, Exotic Technologies Division, <Censored> GmBh. Mecha and Weapons Design Specialist. "Agent Mulder? My name is Neo. I believe I may be able to show you part of the truth you've been searching for. I should warn you, however -- it's not what you think." -- .---Anime/Manga Fanfiction Mailing List----. | Administrators - ffml-admins@anifics.com | | Unsubscribing - ffml-request@anifics.com | | Put 'unsubscribe' in the subject | `---- http://ffml.anifics.com/faq.txt -----'