[FFML] [Fanfic] Bishoujo Senshi Sailor Gemini: Episode Five - Magical Boy

[Douglas A. Reeves]

Hello, everyone.

It's been a long, long time, hasn't it?  I don't know how many of you will 
remember this story, but I hope that some of you do.  For those who don't, I 
highly recommend you check out my webpage (www.stormwalker.org) for the 
previous chapters before diving into this one.

I hope you all enjoy it, and as always, comments would be greatly 
appreciated.

Stormwalker <stormwalker at stormwalker.org> presents...


     Even if the convention had not been scheduled to end that day, it
would have been over after the destruction we had wrought on the hotel's
lobby.  For that matter, as I stood behind the police line watching
investigators pick through the remains of the battle zone, I began to
doubt there would ever be another anime convention in this city again.
Part of me wanted to be angry.  Who gave this Fluorite, whoever he had
been, the right to take something precious away from all the people who
had been at this con?  They hadn't done anything to him, after all.  It
was a trivial matter, true... but it offended my sense of justice
somehow.

     Then again, I thought as I felt Sharon slip her arm around my waist
and pull me close to her, he had tried to take something far more
precious to me than that.  I suppressed a shudder as the images flashed
through my mind again of his sudden appearance behind Sharon and the
terror on her face as she scrambled to escape his attack.  Trying to
push that thought away, I squeezed Sharon gently.  I guess I just needed
to reassure myself that she was really there  and unharmed.

     She seemed to sense the shift in my emotions, and looked up at me
questioningly.  "You okay, Jon?" she asked quietly.

     I nodded slightly, not really able to put my concerns to voice
amidst the crowd that had gathered.  "...I'm all right.  Longer I look
at this, though, the more disturbing it gets."  The sheer amount of
collateral damage that had been done to the area during our battle was
staggering to look at.  The lobby was a total loss.  What walls were
still standing were scorched black, slashed, or riddled with cracks and
holes.  Giant chunks of concrete from the foundation had been ripped up
through the floor by Taurus' attacks, and the entire glass entryway had
been  blasted in by Leo's first sonic burst.  My mind searched for any
kind of disaster, natural or otherwise, that this resembled, and came
up with nothing.

     "...yeah," Sharon agreed quietly.  Her tone was hushed, and I
wondered if she was drawing the same conclusion as I.  If the local news
had not reflected well on us after the first incident, what were they
going to think of this?  We would be branded as a menace for certain.  I
sighed, and she looked up at me again with worried eyes.  "...let's go,
Jon," she suggested.  "I don't want to think about this right now."

     I nodded my agreement, and we turned to go.  Still, as we left the
battle zone and the convention behind us, I could not help but think the
events of this past weekend had so irrevocably changed us that we would
never quite escape them, no matter what was to come.  We were going
home, perhaps, but those homes and the lives they represented would
never be the same.

************************************************************************

Bishoujo Senshi Sailor Gemini

A work of fanfiction by Douglas A. Reeves

Episode Five - Magical Boy
------------------------------------------------------------------------

I don't own Sailor Moon, nor did I create many of the concepts
used in this story.  These are used without permission, and with no
intent or effort to profit by the work.

If you haven't read the first four chapters of this story, or are
interested in reading any of my other tales, they can be found on my
website at:

     http://www.stormwalker.org/

or if you prefer, you can email a request to:

     stormwalker at stormwalker.org

************************************************************************


     The drive away from the con was a surprisingly emotional moment for
me.  It was time, I knew, to take Sharon home, back to her parents'
house... and then for me to go back to mine.  It seems, I suppose, a bit
silly now; the con had lasted not even three days, and it really is a
very short time for such a change as I experienced in my feelings toward
her... yet those three days had seemed like so a lifetime in and of
themselves.  We had gone into battle together, risked our lives
together, faced fear and doubt and hurt together, and formed a bond that
was impossibly deep for the little time we had shared it.

     I think for the first time, I began then to realize that there was
something more to this than just those three days, that emotions of this
depth had to have a basis in something greater than simple common cause.
There was something magical about the whole thing, something that drew
me to Sharon and her to me, something beyond any of our comprehension.
I wasn't sure what to think of that.  Ash, I was certain, would call it
the echo of a forgotten past... not that I had any intention of asking
for her opinion.  And then there was Fluorite, who had called me by
another name, one I did not know.

     I didn't want to think about that, didn't want to spend what little
time I had left to share with Sharon over this weekend thinking about
things that might or might not be.  I just wanted to make the moments
last as long as I could manage, to enjoy them as much as I could.  I
suppose it's a little irrational, considering that we lived close enough
that I could see her almost any time I wanted, but the echoes of the
morning's battle still weighed in my mind.  I'd almost lost her once,
and I wanted to be with her, to stay with her and keep her safe.

     Of course, her parents would have different views.  I was nervous
about seeing them; they knew me already, and even liked me, but that was
before I'd fallen in love with their daughter.  Sharon had always
described them as overprotective, and while I'd never run up against
that tendency to say much about it, I had to wonder what they would
think if they even picked up a hint of the degree of affection I held
for her now.  Probably best that they didn't know the whole truth;
trying to explain that could make for entirely too sticky of a
situation.

     I looked over at Sharon, who was sitting silently in the passenger
seat, wearing a thoughtful expression.  "Whatcha thinkin'?" I asked as
casually as I could manage, trying to smile a bit to hide my own
concerns.

     "I don't want to go home," she answered softly.  She looked down
with an embarrassed expression, as if she had not meant to say it aloud.
"I mean... I know I have to, and it's not that I don't want to be there,
but..."

     "I know," I agreed, my voice hushed.  "I don't want to take you
home, either.  I don't want to let you out of my sight."

     She looked up at me again, seemingly relieved at my answer.  "I
don't know why, but it makes me happy to hear you say that," she said,
blushing a little.  I don't know that I'd ever seen her act like this
before; Sharon is usually the outgoing, bubbly type; now she was being
reserved, quiet, even shy.

     I could relate.  There were a million things I wanted to say then,
and there simply weren't words for them, and I was afraid to say
anything at all for fear of it not being enough, of not putting the
depths of my feelings into words.  It was like something had awakened
inside me, something familiar and yet not, something that I knew in my
heart, but didn't understand in my mind, and I didn't trust myself to
give voice to it.  How could I?  Logically, it all made no sense.  For
all that had happened, for all the power of these emotions, my disbelief
held me back; it was like a dream, really.

     Looking back, I think I was afraid the dream was about to end.  I
was afraid that I would drop Sharon off at her parents' house, and I'd
go back home, and everything would go back to normal.  Not that normal
was bad--I'd have given almost anything to be rid of that Senshi girl
body--but the thought of losing what I'd discovered with Sharon over the
weekend was unbearable to me.  If the price of that discovery was that I
spent the rest of my life dealing with the chaos and the change and
everything that went with being a Senshi, it was worth it.  I'd hold on
to it and cherish it and fight for it if need be.  I would not let that
go.

     The time passed in silence, as neither of us seemed to have words
for it, and all too soon we were pulling up in front of her house.  As
we stopped the car, she glanced quickly in my direction, then nervously
in the direction of the house.  Then, with a heavy sigh, she turned back
to me.  "...you'd probably better just drop me off, Jon.  My parents are
going to want to know all about the mess at the hotel, and it'll be
easier to lie about it if it's just me."

     I nodded slightly.  "All right.  Should I call you later?"

     "Please do."  She forced herself to smile, and in the sadness of
her expression in that moment she was almost painfully beautiful.  I
wanted to reach out and hold her then, and not let her go... but I knew
that would not fly well with her parents, either.

     I sighed.  "Okay, I'll talk to you then.  I'll drop by in the next
couple of days sometime, too.  We'll go out and do something."

     She smiled, seeming a bit happier this time.  "Okay."  She glanced
back up at the house anxiously, then said reluctantly, "I need to go.
My parents are going to have to find out about us sometime, but I'd
rather it not be from us sitting here like lovebirds in the car in front
of the house.  My dad would kill me."

     I tried not to laugh, but I couldn't help it.  Fortunately, she
giggled a bit, too, and her mood seemed a little lighter as she opened
the door and slipped out of the car.  "You better call me, Jon," she
warned.  "I'm going to hold you to that."

     "I will, I will," I answered, then leaned over so I could lower my
voice a bit.  "I love you, Sharon."

     She didn't look back, but she answered just loud enough that I
could hear as she walked away.  "I love you, too."  Then she walked
quickly up the front steps to her house, trying to put on a good show of
being in a good mood for her parents.  She had a lot of explaining to
do, and having to explain about me wouldn't help matters.

     Of course, if I sat there in the car in front of her house all day,
it would only make things worse.  Starting up the car again, I pulled
away, my  thoughts turning to my own explanations that would have to be
made.

*****

     As expected, there were a thousand and one questions waiting for me
when I got home.  Don't get me wrong--if I had been in my parents'
position, I'd have wanted some answers, too--but as I listend to the
questions and tried to answer them as tersely as I could, my only
thought was how nice it was going to be to move into my apartment.  Just
a month away, and it would make my life *so* much easier.  Of course,
that presupposed that I didn't get *caught* by my parents before then;
as much as I hate to admit it, Leo had me pegged.  I'm a terrible liar.

     I tried to say as little as I could, to pretend lack of any kind
of knowledge.  "You probably know more about it than I do," I told them.
"I haven't even seen the news yet.  Nobody at the hotel had any idea
what happened, that I talked to."

     They didn't seem to like that answer, but they accepted it.  In
truth I was probably worried more than I should have been.  Since I
graduated from high school, they let me do pretty much whatever I wanted
so long as I stayed out of trouble, and it's not like they could blame
*me* for the damage at the hotel.  I think my mother, especially, was
just happy to see me alive and unharmed.

     Of course, she still had to carry on about it.  Mom's the worrying
type, which is probably where I get it from, and she went on and on
about how I should be careful, and should stay away from dangerous
people and places... as if I could have avoided the situation.  I'm just
glad they didn't know I was *part* of it.  I'd have never lived it down.

     My father was calmer about it.  "Now, dear, it's not as though
anyone could have anticipated this," he reassured her, before turning to
me.  "I'm more concerned about how you are feeling.  They said several
people were taken to the hospital for examination with excessive
fatigue."  He looked me over for a moment.  "Obviously, you can't be too
badly off, though, since you drove home."

     I nodded.  "I'm a little tired, but I'm okay.  I took Sharon home
first... she seemed a little worse off, but I don't think she'll have
a problem."

     "Sharon?" my mother asked, curious.  "Is that your girlfriend?"

     I blinked, trying to hide the sudden embarrassment that would
certainly give me away.  "...Mom, you know Sharon.  The girl from the
anime club?  She was at the con and didn't have a ride home."

     She gave me a knowing sort of smile.  "Yes, yes, of course."  I
sighed.  Mom had always been pestering me about finding a girlfriend.
Why, I don't know.  You'd think she would want me to concentrate on my
schoolwork or something.  Now she was jumping to conclusions.  The fact
that she was right didn't help, either.

     My father just shook his head slightly from his vantage point on
the couch.  I knew *that* look well... every man in my family has it.
It's the one that reads, "I'm not getting involved."  Unfortunately, I
have yet to master that particular expression... though I suspect with
the company I keep now, I'll learn it quickly enough.

     <Fine, leave me with no backup,> I thought in his direction, and
I'm sure that look was more than apparent on my face.  Turning back to
my mother, I just shrugged.  "I won't deny that I like her a lot, Mom,"
I said, opting for the understatement tack, "but it's not like we're
going out or anything."

     I felt kind of guilty over that.  I hadn't lied... Sharon and I
hadn't gone out on any kind of 'date' yet--unless you count a burger
joint at 3 AM, and I don't--but it was a sort of deception.  Honestly,
I just didn't feel like talking about it.  It's not that I'd mind my
mother knowing, so much, but she'd make a big deal over it, and just
end up embarrassing me in front of Sharon or my friends.  No thanks,
y'know?

     Of course, that didn't mean she didn't see through it.  "Well, you
should invite her over for dinner some time, Jon," she told me.  I
glanced again at my father, looking for some kind of rescue, but none
was forthcoming.  In fact, from the smirk he was wearing I think he was
rather enjoying his neutral ground.

     I couldn't exactly refuse, either; aside from our relationship,
just Senshi business would keep Sharon and I in much closer contact than
we'd been before.  Of course, most of that would be conducted *away*
from my family, but it would be impossible to keep from them that I was
spending as much time with her as I expected to.  If I didn't pass the
invitation on to Sharon myself, I was certain my mother would do it for
me.  And then Sharon would demand to know why I hadn't invited her
myself.  And... it was a no-win scenario.  Accepting defeat, I shrugged.
"All right, I'll ask her sometime."

     Mom smiled.  "Be sure to find out what she likes for dinner," she
reminded me, as if expecting me to run out and invite her over this very
weekend.  Dad smirked a bit at that, but still kept himself carefully
out of the discussion.

     "Right," I answered, trying not to sound dismissive or sarcastic,
though I felt very much both of those.  They may let me do things my way
most of the time, but disrespect doesn't fly with either of them.  Then
I yawned, and for all that it might have been the perfect time to affect
weariness, there was no act involved.  I was sleepy... very sleepy,
really.  I guess the lack of sleep and all that combat had finally worn
me down.  "Mom, Dad, I think I'm going to go rest a while."

     Mom looked worried again.  "You're sure you're okay, Jon?"

     I nodded a bit.  "I didn't sleep much this weekend.  Too much to do
at the con."

     She frowned, but nodded.  "All right.  Be sure you get up in time
for dinner."

     I nodded, heading down the hallway toward my bedroom.  "I will."  I
would, too.  After all, I'd promised someone a phone call, and her
parents wouldn't like it too much if I called too late.

*****

     There are few feelings more annoying than wanting to rush through
something when there are too many reasons why you can't.  That night,
dinner was that way.  I wanted to just wolf down my food and run back to
my room so that I could call Sharon, but I knew better than to do any
such thing in front of my parents.  Aside from the fact that they would
be upset at me for being rude, it would tip my mother off to just how
much I wanted to talk to Sharon, and the last thing I needed was to give
her any more encouragement as to the conclusions she had drawn.  So I
sat and made conversation with my parents, trying to eat as quickly as I
could without seeming like I was trying to escape from the table.

     Though it seemed like an eternity at the time, I did in fact excuse
myself from the table in quite a bit less time than I might under normal
circumstances.  Why I was so anxious to call Sharon I don't know... I
just felt a need to talk to her.  I think part of it was that I was
worried, and wanted to know things had gone with her parents.  Still,
there was more to it than that.  Ever since all of this had begun, I
found that I felt incomplete whenever I was apart from her... as though
the part of me that was most dear to me was missing.  I understand all
of this now, in light of all that I have learned since, but at the time
it was puzzling, even worrisome to me.

     This is not to say that I ever doubted my love for her, or ever
hesitated in my committment to her.  I could feel, though, the presence
of the magic that was and is wound about our souls, and I was still not
comfortable with that; I feared that it would carry us in directions
we were not prepared to go, perhaps.  I did know this much, however:
wherever Sharon went, I would follow, prepared or otherwise.

     All of this said, it was a great relief to hear her voice.  She
seemed a little exasperated, but not truly upset; it seemed her parents
had given her a difficult time much as my mother had given me, though
perhaps the questioning was a bit more pointed with her family.  "You
wouldn't believe it, Jon," she told me, speaking in a conspiratory
whisper.  "Either they're paranoid or they're psychic, because they
asked me fifteen million questions about you.  I reminded them that they
had already met you, of course, and then they remembered, but that
didn't stop them asking.  I didn't even try to lie to them... well, not
about us anyway.  I obviously didn't tell them about the whole Senshi
thing.  I don't think that would have gone over very well."

     I had to smirk at that.  "No, I imagine not."  I paused, a bit
uncomfortably, before posing the next question.  "So what did they
say?"

     "About us?" Sharon responded.  "Well, I didn't tell them that we're
together or anything... but I think they kinda guessed.  It's okay, I
think... I mean, we already know they like you.  I just... I don't think
we should tell them how we really feel about all this.  It's so much, so
soon, and I don't think they'll understand.  I mean, I don't even
understand it.  It's just... something I know."

     "I know," I agreed softly, my thoughts drifting a little.  There
was something else to this, something that kept popping up in the back
of my mind, but I couldn't quite put my mind on it.  "It doesn't make
sense, you know," I finally said to her.  "If you look at it rationally,
I mean.  If you had told me a week ago that we'd be having this
conversation, I'd have told you that you were crazy.  Yet now, I can't
imagine being any other way.  It's like something just... woke up.  It
can't be coincidence.  It's connected to all these other things somehow.
I just can't quite see the link."

     There was a long silence then, and I found myself worried that I
had said something wrong.  Then, hesitantly, Sharon answered, "Jon...
when I first met you, I was sure that I'd seen you before.  That I'd
known you before.  I asked you about that, remember?"

     I remembered.  How could I forget?  It's not often one has a pretty
girl (and Sharon *is* beautiful, in an understated sort of way.  You'd
have to meet her to understand.) walk up to you and ask, "Have I met you
before?"  I have to admit I didn't know what to think at the time... the
question caught me off-guard.  And yet she had seemed familiar to me,
except that as I'd looked back in my memory there hadn't been anyone
quite like her.

     "I remember," I answered, my thoughts running in parallel with the
conclusion I knew she was drawing.  It... it wasn't something I wanted
to believe in.  There were implications in it that frightened me.  Even
so, it was difficult *not* to trace the evidence to that end.  "She's
right, isn't she?" I asked.  "Ash, I mean.  There's more to all this
than just the here and now."

     "Maybe so."  Her voice was scarcely a whisper.  I think she knew
how much the thought worried me... and perhaps it even worried her, too.
Certainly it brought questions with difficult answers.  How much of this
path had we chosen, and how much was chosen for us?  What had gone
before that we did not recall... and who had we been, that we did not
remember?

     "It doesn't matter," I said finally, and from her gasp in response
I realized there had been more edge on the words than I had intended.
"Sharon, I'm not going to sit and worry about what brought us to where
we are, or whether we chose this for ourselves.  I know what I want...
I know who I love.  The how and why isn't important, so long as I have
you.  The rest... either we'll find out or we won't.  I'm not going to
dwell on it.  I can't.  I know that I love you, and that's all I need to
know."

     She was silent a long moment, leading me to worry again if I had
said the wrong thing.  When she did finally answer, though, there was a
sense of relief in her voice that quieted my fears.  "I love you, too,
Jon."  She paused again, as if hesitant to go on, then added, "but then,
I've loved you since I first met you.  I was afraid to say it... afraid
you wouldn't understand... but I've always loved you.  And I think you
should know."

     I had no answer for that.  Nothing I could say seemed adequate,
really.  In memory I looked back across the year and some that I had
known her, and suddenly things began to make sense.  The way she always
smiled when she saw me, or always made time for anything that I was
doing.  The gifts... she never forgot my birthday, and sometimes would
just give me things out of the blue.  I wish I could say I'd been as
good about it, but, well... I'm bad about that sort of thing.  Before,
I'd thought that was just the way she was--and it is, to an extent,
but with me it was always more.

     "Maybe I wouldn't have," I answered softly.  "Before all of this
happened, I didn't believe in that sort of thing.  Or maybe I did and
didn't know it.  Now, though... after what I've seen, I can't deny it,
can I?  I don't want to deny it anymore."  I shuddered a bit at those
words, for the reflected a larger change in my viewpoint than just as
regarded Sharon.  I needed now to know the truth, to face the truth.  I
couldn't go on trying to pretend that larger forces weren't working in
my life.  "It's too important to deny."

     "Yes," she agreed, and if ever I have wanted to reach through a
phone and hold her, it was in that moment.  I think she could sense the
greater turmoil in my heart, and I could *feel* her love for me, even
over the distance, calm my fears and steady me.  This was, I realized,
her true power... to give of herself freely, without hesitation, to
strengthen those around her.

     And that, perhaps more than any other reason, is why I love her.

*****

     It was about noon the next day when Stephanie called.  Ignoring
the raised eyebrow from my mother when she handed me the phone, I tried
to push back the sleepy fog which was hanging over me.  I had not slept
much the night before, having too much on my mind, but if I had learned
any one thing about Sailor Leo, it was that I didn't want to be mentally
slow when dealing with her.  "This is Jon," I answered, my eyes falling
in the direction of my mother who obviously had no intention of leaving
the room.

     "Well, aren't we the pleasant one today?" she responded in her most
infuriatingly cheerful tone.  Before I could respond, though, she added,
"Your mother told me you were still in bed.  Are you doing okay?"

     I looked reproachfully at Mom, who just shrugged in my direction
and turned back to whatever she was pretending to do.  "Oh, she did?
Yes, I'm fine.  Just catching up on sleep after the weekend, you know
how it is."

     Stephanie laughed, recognizing my evasive answer for what it was.
"She's still in the room, isn't she?  Well, I'll make this quick, then,
and we can discuss details sometime when you're alone.  We need to get
everyone together for a planning session.  I figured we should hold it
at Ash and Cali's place... since they share an apartment, we won't have
to worry about anyone else popping up at inopportune times."

     I nodded.  "That makes sense.  My schedule is pretty open, so
whenever they think is good will work for me.  You should probably check
with Sharon, though."

     "I already did," she answered, and I could sense the smile in her
voice.  "Unlike some people, she doesn't sleep until noon.  She thought
that tomorrow afternoon would be good... that gives us a lot of time
without having to worry about getting home too late and irritating her
parents.  She needs a ride, though.  Can you pick her up?"

     I glanced quickly at Mom again.  In a sense, I was caught here...
I wasn't sure how Sharon going out with me again so soon would sit with
her parents, but I couldn't exactly voice that misgiving in front of my
mother, either.  "Yeah, I can do that," I agreed.  Sharon had, after
all, said she thought her parents had guessed about us already anyway,
so it should be all right.  I hoped.

     "That's perfect, then.  Does three o'clock work for you?"

     I thought about that a moment.  "Sure.  I'll need directions,
though.  Can you email them to me?"

     "I already did that, too," she answerd.  I blinked at that, then
realized that Sharon must have given her my address.  She laughed
softly, evidently sensing my surprise.  "You really do underestimate me,
Jon," she said, and I could almost see her not-quite-smug expression in
my mind.  I should have been expecting that, too, I suppose; Stephanie
seemed the sort of person who took a sort of pride in being one step
ahead of everyone else.

     "Well, then, I guess I'll go check for those.  Was there anything
else you wanted?"

     "No, that should do it.  I trust you will work out the details with
Sharon... so I'll see you tomorrow, then?"

     "Sure.  See you then." After she hung up the phone, I set it
lightly on its cradle and then glanced again in Mom's direction.  "I've
got another call to make, but I'm going to go back to my room."

     "Now, don't run off, Jon," she answered, a curious look in her
eye.  "Who is this Stephanie person, anyway?  I don't think you've ever
mentioned her before...?"

     "She's one of Sharon's friends, Mom.  I just met her this weekend,
actually, so I don't really know her very well yet, either."  I
shrugged, trying to play down our acquaintance.  "They're going out with
some of their other friends tomorrow, and invited me along."

     She smiled a bit.  "Oh, so you and Sharon must be closer than
you've been letting on, if you're going out with *her* friends," she
teased.

     Ouch.  I'd stepped into that one, hadn't I?  Still, I recovered
fairly quickly... I may be a poor liar, but I do think well on my feet
when I have to.  "Sharon doesn't have her driver's license yet, so I
think they just needed someone with a car."

     "Surely one of them could have picked her up, though," Mom pointed
out.  "If you were invited, there must be *some* reason for having you
along with them."

     "Who knows?" I answered, trying to sound dismissive.  Somehow I
don't think I was as effective as I would have liked to be, because the
knowing look never went out of her eyes.  "It's not like I have a whole
lot to do, since I'm not working this week, so I said yes."

     Evidently deciding she wasn't going to get more of an answer than
that out of me, she just shrugged.  "If you say so.  If you really do
think there is nothing to this, though, you might want to be sure that
Sharon sees it the same way..."

     I shook my head, trying very hard not to smile.  "Trust me... you
don't need to worry about *that*."

*****

     It seems odd to say, after everything I had been through in the
previous week, that I was nervous standing on the doorstep of Sharon's
house.  But as I lifted my hand to ring the doorbell, I found myself
hesitant, even fearful.  I can't even really explain why... it was not
as if I had never met Sharon's family before, and I had always gotten
along well with them in the past.  I guess I was worried because I knew
Sharon was worried.  Or maybe just because now it was more important
that I get along with them than it had been before... in the past I
hadn't really given it much thought.  Now, I was terrified of making
some misstep that would cause me problems for, well... the rest of my
life.

     The rest of my life.  Yes, even at that point, I thought in those
terms when it came to Sharon.  I guess that's where the intimidation
factor really came in.  With all the seeming fate and destiny that had
pushed Sharon and I together, and all the magic that seemed to swirl
about the two of us, I simply couldn't envision ever being apart from
her again.  Her parents didn't know that, of course.  They couldn't know
that.  To them, I was just another young man with an eye on their
precious daughter.  There was no way to explain it to them, either... so
if they decided to make things difficult, I would just have to ride it
out.

     Sharon's mother--a tall, fair-haired woman who looked about ten
years younger than the forty I knew her to be--answered the door,
and I tried my best to look as though I was *not* frightened out of my
wits.  Since I'm not very good at these things, I'm sure I wasn't very
convincing.  Stil, she smiled warmly at me and invited me inside.  "Oh,
hello, Jon.  Sharon said she would be down in a minute, so please, make
yourself comfortable."

     "Thank you, ma'am," I answered in my most polite voice, relaxing
ever so slightly.  At least she still seemed friendly.  Following her
into the living room, I took a seat on the couch, trying not to glance
too anxiously toward the stairs where I knew Sharon would appear.   I
mentally chided myself... I was acting *exactly* like what I *didn't*
want to seem... a high-school kid picking up a girl for their first date.
Frantically I tried to think of something to say, but the only topics
that came to mind--the weekend, Sharon herself, and the like--were
exactly what I *didn't* want to talk about.

     I was rescued from that particular snare, however, by Sharon's
voice from somewhere upstairs.  "Mom, can you come here a minute
please?" she called out.

     Mrs. Reine smiled pleasantly.  "I'm sorry, Jon, can you excuse me a
moment?"  I nodded quickly, hoping I didn't seem are relieved as I felt,
and she turned quickly and walked toward the stairs.  Left by myself, I
glanced around the room a little.  I had forgotten just how well-off
Sharon's parents were; while their home was not extravagant in any sense
of the word, everything in it was of high quality... my parents could
scarcely afford even one piece of furniture from this room, much less
all of it.  Even so, there was something about this place that made me
feel welcome, more so than in my other friends' homes.  It was even
enough to make me relax a little.

     Of course, that just meant that my guard was down when Sharon's
father appeared from out of the kitchen.  "Oh, hello, Jon," he greeted
me pleasantly, extending his hand to me.  "How's it going?"

     I stood, shaking his hand firmly, though as always I doubt that I
impressed him much.  Mr. Reine is not a tall man, but he has broad
shoulders and a powerful musculature, and his grip was quite a bit
stronger than anything I could manage in my natural form.  "Pretty
well," I answered, giving my standard response.  Better not to
elaborate, I thought, lest I provoke questions I really didn't want to
answer.

     He nodded, still smiling, and took a seat in the leather recliner
off to one side of the couch.  I was just sitting down myself when he
spoke again. "That was quite an adventure you had this weekend, wasn't
it?"

     I stiffened a bit at the question, and sat down a little more
awkwardly than I intended.  "I... well, I think we missed most of the
interesting parts."  I silently cursed myself once again; it was a lame
answer at best, but now I had to run with it.  "From what was left of
the hotel, though, I think I'm glad."

     "Got a good look at it, then?" he asked.  "We saw you two on the
news, in the crowd looking at the scene."  On the news?  There had been
a news camera there?  The pieces suddenly fell into place; no wonder our
parents had known about us!  We'd had our arms around each other on TV!
How did we miss THAT?  "We were worried at first that y'all had been
involved, since you seemed kind of shell-shocked, but I guess looking at
something like that first-hand would spook anybody."

     I nodded weakly, knowing I had to tread carefully here.  I still
didn't know exactly what story Sharon had told them, and if I said too
much I ran the risk of contradicting her.  I hate this kind of thing...
deceiving people just doesn't sit well with me, but I couldn't exactly
tell the truth, could I?  I was more worried that if they caught us in
a lie that they'd think something worse, though.  I had to carry this
off somehow.  "It... was pretty disturbing."

     He seemed to study me for a moment, as if I'd let something slip,
but not quite enough for him to figure out what it was.  He was being
entirely too perceptive for my liking; I needed a way to derail his
speculations.  Then, as suddenly as it had come on, he relaxed and
leaned back in his chair.  "Well, I was still concerned. Sharon's not
the kind of girl to tell us a story, but she also wouldn't want us to
worry about her.  If you say you weren't there, though, that's good
enough for me."

     I breathed a soft sigh of relief, hoping it didnt show on my face,
and was quietly thankful that he had no idea how close he had come to
losing his precious daughter. I remembered how *I* had felt in that
moment--how I still felt, even two days later--and I didn't want to
imagine how he would react.  Even so, I felt guilty; as Senshi, she and
I faced that threat constantly... one mistake and we could be killed,
and our parents might never know what had happened to us.  Even if they
knew, they would never understand what we had died fighting for.

     Somewhere in the depths of my heart, I swore that would not happen.
I would make provisions for my parents, should anything happen to me.
For Sharon... I would make sure her parents never needed to know.

     I don't know how long the silence lasted, only that it was broken
by the sound of Sharon's hurried footsteps coming down the stairs.
"Come on, Jon!" She burst into the room.  "We're going to be late!"

     Her father glanced at her appraisingly for a few moments before
nodding his approval, and I realized that he'd been evaluating her mode
of dress.  Ok, maybe they *were* overprotective, I thought, considering
that she was in jeans and a t-shirt.  He then turned back to me.
"You take good care of my daughter, son... and remember, she has to be
home by midnight."

     "DAD!" Sharon burst in protest, flustered.  "It's not a date!
We're going out with Stephanie and her friends!"

     "Listen to your father, Sharon," her mother's voice floated in from
the stairs, where she was just coming back down.  "We just want what's
good for you."

     She sighed.  "Yes, mother."

     I just agreed, not wanting to drag this out any further; like
Sharon had said, we were already running late.  "Midnight, then."
Ignoring the how-dare-you-agree-with-them look Sharon fired in my
direction at that, I smiled at her and motioned to the door.  "Let's
get going."

*****

     We were about a block away from her house when all the pent-up
annoyance and frustration she'd been holding in finally exploded.  "Jon,
it's horrible!  They won't leave me alone!  I was ready to go ten
minutes before you got here, but Dad got all upset because he said the
skirt I was wearing was too short... but they didn't get mad when I was
dressed up as Sailor Moon, and that was--"

     "--a lot shorter, yes." I started to comment that her version of a
Senshi skirt had *still* been longer than her Sailor Cancer fuku, but
realized that I'd probably already misstepped by admitting I'd noticed
such a thing at all.  Better to change the subject... "That was *before*
they saw us hanging on each other on the twelve o'clock news.  Remember
the scene at the hotel?"

     Her eyes went wide and she slumped back against the seat.  "Well,
that explains a lot.  Mom's been dropping hints all morning that there's
something I need to tell her... and Dad is just convinced that this is
some kind of date, ever since I told him who was picking me up."

     I had to smile a bit at that.  "Yeah, I've been getting the same
kind of treatment.  And I was trying to convince my mom it was nothing,
too.  Now I know why she didn't believe me."

     She sighed a little, then gave a bit of a shrug.  "It could be
worse, though.  They could know about the *other* thing."

     "Don't even say that!"  I pointed at the fake woodgrain paneling on
the dashboard.  "Knock on that!  It'll have to do!"

     She laughed.  "I *know* they don't know about that.  This they
might let slide, but that?  I'd never hear the end of it."

     "...you're just determined to jinx us, aren't you?"

     "You know it," she answered, sticking her tongue out at me.  Then,
seeing a convenience store on the side of the road, she pointed it out.
"Stop there a minute.  I skipped breakfast; didn't want to put up with
the interrogation at the table."  Then she sighed.  "I guess I'm going
to have some explaining to do when I get back home."

     I shrugged.  So much for any chance of being on time.  "It's like
you said... it could be worse."

*****

     Thankfully, Ash's and Cali's apartment wasn't too difficult to
find, so we only wound up about ten minutes late.  Of course, that was
more than late enough to open us up for a few pointed barbs from various
corners.

     "Well, the lovebirds finally arrive!" Cali announced upon answering
the door.  "Come in, come in... what kept you?  Trying to sneak in some
time alone?"

     Sharon was evidently not in a mood to put up with the teasing.
"If I've said it once, I've said it a thousand times.  It's--"

     "--not like that?" Leo looked up from the spot she had staked out
on the couch.  "I have video that says otherwise, Sharon-chan.  You two
really need to be more careful about the PDA, you know."

     Sharon rolled her eyes.  "Et tu, Stephanie?"

     The Senshi of Leo shrugged.  "I just don't see why you keep trying
to deny it.  Your parents obviously know, and there's no reason to hide
it from anyone else, right?"

     Cali grinned, slipping an arm around my shoulders before I could
avoid her advance.  "If you're ashamed of him, I'll gladly take him off
your hands.  I'm sure he's lots of fun in..."

     I almost laughed.  Almost.  Two sudden realizations, however, put
a quick stop to that response.  The first was that Cali was serious.
She wanted me, and even the fact that I was clearly in love with Sharon
was barely enough to hold her back, to keep her remarks in the realm of
innuendo and humor.  That came to me as a surprise, but the other
realization was far *more* shocking.

     Sharon was angry.

     It wasn't an obvious thing... anger isn't in Sharon's temperament,
and when she *does* get angry it's not explosive or even boiling.  She
didn't raise her voice--in fact, she didn't say anything--or turn red or
change her expression at all, except for the slightest narrowing of her
eyes as she looked at Cali.  I wondered at the intensity of the emotion
behind that gaze... Sharon seemed larger than herself, as though
something great and powerful had been awakened by her fury.

     It was enough.  Cali's voice trailed off in mid-sentence, and she
took a slow step back away from me.  A long, tense moment passed, then
Sharon sighed softly, and placed her own hand on my shoulder.  "I guess
this is my fault, isn't it?  I'm sorry, Cali, I should have made it
clear."  Her voice was soft and almost regretful, and yet there was a
certain resolution that seemed to grow in it with each word.  "He's
mine.  He's mine and I'll never let him go... and I'd prefer you stop
trying to take him from me."

     The words left me almost breathless.  For as long as I'd known
Sharon, she'd never claimed anything as her own.  If someone wanted
something that was hers, she'd give it to them.  If someone took
something that was hers, she wouldn't ask them to return it.  This was
someone who would take up someone else's cause at the drop of a hat,
but I'd never seen her fight for anything of her own.

     And here she was ready to fight for me.

     The significance of that moment to me is something I can't quite
put into words.  I won't even try.  I wanted to answer her, to affirm
her devotion, but how do you respond to something like that?  You can't.
So I just placed my hand atop hers and squeezed it gently.

     Cali shook her head, seemingly a little stunned by this sudden
development.  "I'm... sorry, Sharon.  I didn't realize you were that
serious.  Really."

     Sharon sighed a bit, and her hand turned to grasp mine tightly.  "I
know.  I know it's sudden, I know it's... so *much*.  I get embarrassed,
and I give the wrong idea.  It's my fault, really.  I mean that."  She
then smiled a bit, adding, "It's still not like *that*, though.
Stephanie can comment all she wants about what a prude I am, but I'm
proud of it, and I'm not planning to change anytime soon."  She waggled a
finger in Cali's direction in mock reproof.  "So don't assume!"

     Cali grinned, and the tension in the room seemed to abate.  "I'll
assume what I want!  You can't take away *all* my fun!"

     At that, I did laugh, and drew Sharon closer to myself, slipping my
free arm around her waist.  I was still somewhat at a loss for words,
but I was not quite ready to let the moment slip past yet.  It was yet
another hint at something deeper between us than our surface experiences
justified, another indicator of a bond that transcended the kind of
affection formed in a period of days.  Perhaps even more than that,
there was something else tugging at the back of my mind, a faint sense
of having known these feelings before.

     Stephanie's voice called me back from such reflections, her tone
edged with a certain irony.  "The way you too hang on each other, you
make it hard to believe there *isn't* something going on there, you
know, Sharon.  I hope for your sake that you tone it down in front of
your parents."

     Sharon blushed, and at a quick glance from her I let my arm drop
by my side.  "I think I'd be afraid to stand next to her when her parents
are around," I mumbled under my breath, hoping to change the tone of the
discussion.  Looking around the room, I found an even better
opportunity... a chance to change the subject altogether.  "Where's Ash,
anyway?  I thought you said she lived here with you, Cali?"

     "She went out to get some food," Cali answered, moving over to one
of the chairs near the TV.  "Make yourself comfortable... we can't get
started 'til she gets back.  It shouldn't be long.

*****

     After about half an hour, it was clear that Cali was starting to
worry.  "This isn't like her," she mumbled, perhaps not intending to
voice her concerns aloud.  "She's never late like this.  Maybe I
should call her."

     "Maybe she's standing in line at the store," Sharon suggested,
trying to be helpful.

     "I suppose... but she didn't have that much to get.  She could
have used the express--"  She never finished the sentence, as four
Senshi communicators chose that moment to simultaneously announce the
answer to our question.  While Sharon and I fumbled for the sources of
the insistent beeping, Cali had hers almost immediately in hand as if
it were nothing new to her.  "Something wrong?"

     "Is everyone there?" Ash's voice was cool as usual, but there was
a note of tension in it that belied her calm demeanor.

     "Yeah, they've been here a while now."  Cali glanced meaningfully
in our direction, and between her expression and her careful choice of
words, I knew what she was getting at.  No names, at least until we knew
how secure these communicators were.  "What's going on?"

     "You might want to turn on the TV."

     I frowned; there was something about the way she had said it that
gave me a distinctly bad feeling about what was coming.

     Stephanie picked up the remote, aiming it in the direction of the
TV set.  "What channel?" she asked as she clicked it on; the image
resolving into what looked like a news update.

     "Any channel."

     "Goodness..." Sharon breathed, the soft sound of her voice
audible over the voice of the news anchor, and I turned toward the TV.
The words "Monster Attack" were emblazoned across the top of the screen,
with images below of a crowd of our favorite green, scaly friends
tearing through what looked like a jewelry store of some sort.  It took
only a moment longer to realize that this was in a shopping mall, and
from the bodies strewn about randomly over the area, it had been a busy
one.

     "--no idea if the bystanders are dead or merely unconscious," a
reporter was explaining.  "Emergency workers and police have tried to
approach the scene, but anyone who comes near to the attacking creatures
collapses almost immediately.  They seem to be searching for--oh, god,
they're coming this way!"  Suddenly, the image broke into static and was
replaced by a "technical difficulties" logo.

     A few seconds later, the anchorman came on, looking visibly shaken.
 "That was the scene from Valley Ridge Mall just a few moments--", he
began, his voice abruptly cut off when Stephanie shut off the TV.

     "I think we've seen enough.  We need to go put a stop to this."

     Sharon cast me a concerned glance, then nodded.  I looked at both
of them, then at Cali who indicated her agreement as well.

     "I'm on my way there," Ash's voice cut in.  "I'm only about two
blocks away already, so it would just delay you if I tried to come
back."

     "We'll meet you there."  Cali cut off the connection.  "All right,
how are we going to do this?"

     "Good question," I answered with a shrug.  "I was hoping we could
work out plans for this sort of thing today.  We can't just transform
here; if we all go running out of the apartment in Senshi form, we're
advertising our secret identities to the whole neighborhood."

     Sharon frowned.  "All of us showing up on the scene in one car
isn't going to be much better, unless we can transform somewhere a few
blocks away."

     I sighed.  "That's true, too.  Times like this I wish we could just
teleport--"

     Stephanie's laugh cut me off in mid-sentence, and I stared blankly
at her for a moment before I realized what it was that she found so
amusing.  "Jon... we *can*."

     Cali blinked in surprise.  "That's right, we can.  Ash and I had to
do it once, and if two of us can, then four can for sure.  Everybody
transform, I'll show you how it's done."  While the others dug out their
henshin pens, Cali went around turning out lights and locking the front
door.  As they all changed, I found myself turning my back just to keep
from staring.  Besides, like I'd said before, my own transformation
sequence made me self-conscious enough.  Drawing a deep breath, I
whispered the words.

     "Gemini Star Power... Make up!"

     It's funny how every time you go through the transformation, a
different aspect of it jumps out at you.  The first two times, I'd been too
obsessed with the change in my body to really notice anything else.  The
most recent time, I'd noticed the temporal distortion that seems to
surround the event.  This time, I think, was the first time I really
noticed the costume itself as it came into being.

     I remember from the series that each Senshi has their own "effect"
that surrounds the transformation, something related to their element...
and as I really observed my own for the first time, I wondered what it
said about me.  The fuku did not so much seem to "appear" or
"materialize" as it did with the others... instead, it *changed*,
shaping itself along with my new form, seemingly from the same substance
as my old clothes, yet once it was done the composition was something
far more exotic.

     I'd never really noticed before that point the form of my own
costume.  It was standard Senshi fare, really: a stylized sailor fuku in
white trimmed with light blue.  The boots were tall, not quite like
Sharon's or Stephanie's, but enough that they came up to just below my
knees, and the gloves were long, almost up to my elbows.  The skirt, as
with all such things, seemed impossibly short, but I'd resigned myself
to that.  At least it wouldn't interfere with my ability to move.  On
the whole, I have to admit the outfit looked good... and perhaps that
was the thing that disturbed me about it most of all.

     In a way, it seemed almost beyond my likes and dislikes anyhow...
it was, like the body it accompanied, a part of me, and not something I
really had any say in.  I tried not to think about what that might mean.

     Once the change was done, I turned back to the others.  They were
standing in an open square, with Sharon and Cali extending their hands
to me to form the final link.

     As I took their hands, Cali explained.  "This is easier than it
sounds, really.  Just concentrate on where we want to go, and let the
magic carry you... just like when you first transformed."

     I decided not to point out that I'd been drunk when I first
transformed; the last thing I needed was to give either Cali or
Stephanie more ammunition the next time they wanted to torment me.  I
closed my eyes, feeling the magic resonate through the link we shared.
Then, as the others gave voice to the command, I found the words on my
own lips as well.

     "Sailor.... TELEPORT!"

*****

     We appeared a little closer to the action than I think any of us
intended, in the center of the mall's main court.  We came in right on
top of them, and if surprise is a combat objective, we certainly
achieved it.  The problem was that we weren't exactly expecting us to
pop in some twenty feet off the floor, either.  Did I say we appeared
right on top of them?  Yeah, we did.  Literally.

     Mind you, a twenty-foot fall isn't much for a Senshi, even when
we're not expecting it.  Falling in the midst of a horde of green scaly
monsters, however, definitely qualifies as a less than optimal
situation.  Fortunately, Senshi have quick reflexes... at least, most
of us do.  Sharon... isn't the most coordinated of people, even in her
Senshi form, and we'd fallen halfway to the ground before I realized
she was going to land badly.

     Fortunately again, Senshi have quick reflexes.  Already holding
her hand, I was somehow able to sweep her up into my arms before we
hit.  It didn't do wonders for my form upon landing, I'm sure, but as
Sailor Gemini I could take a hard fall and hardly notice.  Leo and
Taurus, not having to worry about anyone but themselves, were already
unleashing their attacks even as they hit the ground.  With the sonic
shockwave to our left and the seismic blast to our right, we created an
alley for ourselves in the midst of the enemy.

     It bought us just enough time.  No sooner had I set Sharon lightly
on her feet than the enemy were upon us again.  There was no time for
anything cute; this was the superpowered version of a knife fight.
That suited me just fine; I was equipped for it.  "DIVISION BLADE!" I
called out, summoning an ethereal broadsword to my hands and hacking at
the two monsters who immediately made a grab for us.

     I'm not sure how many monsters there were in this place.  Whatever
they were after, it had to be important... in the past they'd come at
us in twos, threes, maybe even fives... but this was a horde of them,
and we were surrounded on all sides.  For every one that I cut down or
that Leo or Taurus blasted, another stepped up in its place.  We stood
back to back to back, with Sharon in the center trying to shield us as
well as she could manage.  We were holding our own, but if the odds
didn't change soon... well, this wasn't the kind of fight our powers
were designed for.  I was doing all right, but the energy-wielders in
the group needed more space to break out their powerful attacks.

     One of these days I'm going to learn to wish for such things
sooner rather than later.  Almost the very moment that thought crossed
my mind, I heard a familiar shout.

     "EMBER FLASH!" Sailor Aries shouted from across the court,
vaporizing four of the enemy in a burst of sudden flame and leaving a
gap in their ranks.  Sensing the opening, I motioned to Cali to make a
break for it, but she was already moving.  Grabbing Sharon's hand, she
bolted through the narrow breach to where Aries was waiting.  Stefanie
followed closely behind, barely squeezing through as the enemy ranks
reformed... closing me in.

     They had me trapped.  Surrounded.  All I could see on all sides was
a wall of green, scaly, vaguely humanoid creatures with glowing red
eyes, long, razor-sharp claws, and long, jagged teeth.  There was
nowhere for me to run, nothing to hide behind.

     Somehow, I wasn't afraid.

     I don't know how.  I don't know why.  The previous fights had
certainly scared me enough--once the initial shock wore off, anyway.
Maybe it was just the intensity of the situation, that there wasn't time
to be afraid.  Maybe it was the combat-toughness of Sailor Gemini taking
over.  Maybe I was just angry because of all the trouble these monsters
were causing... but I think it was something else.

     In the last fight, in the convention hotel, I'd started to realize
something about myself.  I'd started to learn how these crazy powers of
mine worked, and what I could do with them.  I'd even started to figure
out my role.  So when they closed me in like that, I think that
subconsciously I realized something about the battle.  By fighting me in
close quarters, they'd taken away their main advantage--they couldn't
use their energy beams without hitting each other.  That brought them
down to melee... and if I'd learned anything about my powers by then,
it was this.

     Melee combat is what I do.

     Three of them pounced, catlike, swiping with their claws.  I
reacted instinctively, leaping high into the air over their attacks.  I
swung the sword in wide arcs as I came down, severing one's head and
slicing another in half; both disintegrated before I hit the ground.
I landed facing the third; he slashed out at me with his claws, which I
blocked with the sword.

     Another attacked me from behind, I felt the attack coming and
stepped out of the way.  It was automatic, reflexive; if I'd had time to
think about it, I could never have done that.  Maybe I had been wrong
about having to train; it seemed the powers came with training of their
own.  The sword was getting in my way, so I let it dissipate and fought
with my fists.

     Another attack came from the rear; each time I turned to face one,
there was another behind me eager to plant his claws in my back.  I
couldn't completely dodge that one, and felt the talons rake across my
skin.  It didn't hurt as much as it should have--just stung, really, and
I could feel the airflow across newly-exposed skin.  I countered without
looking, a backhand blow that caught the creature in the face and flung
it back into the crowd.  I didn't look to see if it got up, there were
too many still in range to worry with.

     One tried to jump on my back then; I spun underneath the attack and
caught it with a rising punch that launched it ten feet in the air.  The
impact must have been enough to kill it, as it came back down in a rain
of dust.  I grimaced in disgust but kept fighting, finishing two more
with a jumping spin kick.

     Another claw swipe that got through, this one across my abdomen,
told me that I couldn't keep it up forever.  They hadn't managed to
hurt me badly yet, from what I could tell, but I knew better than to
expect that to last.  At the same time, I *could* feel my costume coming
apart, and that had me really ticked off.  From the drafts I felt, I
didn't think I was exposing anything critical yet, but I wasn't thrilled
with the idea, either.  Weren't these costumes supposed to be
indestructible?  I needed to make some space, to get back to the others.

     Where *were* the others?  I'd lost any sense of direction in the
chaos of the melee, so I tried to just dodge attacks and listen for the
energy blasts to pick out a direction.  Just as I thought I had it, I
got the spark of an idea of how to get there.  The enemy seemed to like
the whole scream-and-leap idea of tactics, so I waited for the scream,
then sidestepped the leaper, grabbing by the legs as he went by.
Spinning around, I threw him in the direction I was trying to head,
bowling over several more of the enemy in the process.

     Then I charged.

     It was a crazy idea.  I fully acknowledge this.  One of the perks
of being super-strong and largely invulnerable, though, is that
sometimes you can do crazy things and make them work.  Like any guy my
age, I was a football fan... so I just put my head down and did my best
imitation of a running back hitting the line.  Packed too closely
together for any kind of evasion, they fell like dominoes.  What I had
not counted on was how quickly they would recover, and I found myself
in the center of a swarm  with no room even to move.  I'd almost made it
to the edge of the crowd, but not quite... and then I was in trouble.

     Fortunately, the other Senshi were fighting as fiercely to get to
me as I was to them.  As I braced myself for an onslaught I had little
hope of surviving, I felt the reassuring warmth as Sharon's shield
enveloped me.  No more than a second after that, that shield was
tested... not by my enemies, but by a barrage of searing heat and
crushing stone and by a deafening concussive blast of sound.  Senshi
magic crashed against the wall of enemies between us; a dozen and more
enemies fell in seconds.  The sheer force of the assault drove me to my
knees, even with the shield to protect me; without such protection, the
horde reeled and were driven back.

     The others were at my side before the enemy could regroup and mount
a counterattack.  Sharon knelt beside me, letting the shield drop, and I
felt a little of her power flow into me, dulling my pain and giving me
the strength to stand again.  I turned to face the enemy, intending to
charge back into the fray... but there was little left to charge.  More
than half the enemy force had been decimted by the massed attacks, and
those that were left had broken into smaller clusters.  I couldn't see
clearly how many were left; a haze of smoke and dust lingered in the
air, and a field of broken glass and metal made it difficult to advance.

     Aries and Taurus were exchanging fire with the remaining enemies,
driving them back toward the cover of the pillars that surrounded the
edge of the courtyard.  Energy blasts rained in on us from multiple
directions now, but the smoke in the air seemed to affect them at least
as much as us, as they were not very accurate.  With each exchange, the
return fire grew a little thinner, but the danger was not yet passed.

     "Watch your attacks!" I warned the others.  "They're moving to use
the support pillars as cover, if you blast them you'll bring down the
upper level!"  The smoke was starting to clear, and I could see more
clearly the damage we had done with our concentrated strike.  The area
looked like a war zone; the wreckage of several kiosks littered the
floor, and water from a smashed fountain spilled out across the broken
tiles.  Residual fires still burned in a couple of places, where cloth
had been ignited by Aries' pyrotechnics, and the floor itself had been
shattered by Taurus' detonations.  If we applied that kind of force
against actual structure... the results could be catastrophic.

     "Agreed," Ash answered, sidestepping an energy beam and
vaporizing the assailant with her Ember Flash attack.  "Something
doesn't seem right.  They're still too coordinated..."

     In that moment, there was a shimmer in the air, a ripple, as though
reality itself was pushed momentarily aside... and out of that
disortion a dark-clad figure appeared.  "Like someone is giving them
orders, you might say?"  He held up a hand, and the energy blasts
stopped.  "Very perceptive.  I can see how you defeated Fluorite... but
you will not fare so well against me."

     I clenched my fists, biting back the sarcastic comment before it
could escape.  Let him talk, I told myself, he might tell us something
useful.

     He was, of course, a Dark General.  That much had been apparent
before he had spoken a single word.  The superior attitude and the
posturing only served to reinforce that conclusion.  Even I could sense
a difference in this one, though.  The distortion had not quite faded,
and the haze that had floated in the air seemed to cling to him,
swirling about him and obscuring his form.  I wasn't really sure what
that meant, but it couldn't be good.

     Aries, apparently, was not going to wait to find out.  "Flame
Blaster!" she shouted, unleashing a stream of fire directly at him.  The
attack detonated spectacularly on impact, showering sparks and flame
across the open court, but when the smoke cleared our adversary appeared
completely unscathed.

     "Well, that was rude," he chided.  "I haven't even introduced
myself.  I am Tanzanite, humble servant of my dread Queen, and I've come
to kill you."

     He gestured with his hand then, and an invisible bolt of force
blasted Sailor Aries off her feet.  Thrown across the courtyard by the
violence of the impact, she smashed through one of the glass storefronts
and into a shelf-covered wall with a frightening crash.

     "Aries!" Taurus shouted in horror, looking first back at the scene,
and then to Tanzanite.  "You... I'll tear you apart!  Blast Wave!"  The
floor exploded beneath Tanzanite's feet, showering him with shards of
concrete, and yet he did not even flinch.

     "If that is the best you have, I shall be most disappointed," the
Dark General answered.  "Please don't waste my time with such a pitiful
effort."  Thrusting his hand out toward Taurus, he struck her with a
wave of power that rippled the air in its path.  She put her arms up to
block, but to no avail as she was thrown back.  The attack slammed her
up against one of the pillars that supported the upper level, and she
slumped to the floor bonelessly.

     This was getting bad, and quickly.  Aries was climbing out of the
wreckage of the storefront, but from her tentative movements it was
clear she was still in a lot of pain.  Taurus wasn't moving at all.  I
looked to Leo and Cancer, at the horror that showed on their faces.  The
sheer violence of his attack was overwhelming us already... we had to
take back the initiative somehow.

     Deciding that fell to me, I gathered all the power I could and
charged at him.  He turned to me, still with that arrogant smirk, and I
could feel my rage build.  I'd wipe that smug expression off his face
with one punch, I thought, throwing all the power I'd gathered behind my
right fist...

     ...and I struck a solid, immovable wall about two inches from his
face.  In that moment, I understood; the haze that seemed to gather
around him was a forcefield, the same kind of energy he was throwing at
us with his attacks.  This was Tanzanite's power, his impregnable
defense and his brutal attack.  If there was just some way to penetrate
it...

     The moment passed, and in the next I paid the price for that piece
of knowledge.  He smiled; I could swear he was laughing, but the howl
of the air around me as his force bolt struck me drowned out any sound.
Every muscle, every bone, every nerve in my body screamed in pain, and
so did I, as an invisible hammer of force pounded me into the ruined
floor.  Splinters of glass and rock dug into my flesh, and while they
did not penetrate it, my seeming invulnerability did not lessen the
pain.

     I struggled to regain my feet, to recover some form of defense, but
he never gave me the chance.  The second force bolt struck me while I
was still on my knees, flinging me head-first through a stone wall.
Lances of pain shot down my spine, and then everything seemed to blur.  My
vision dimmed... and everything went black.

     It could not have been more than a few seconds later when I
recovered consciousness.  Dragging myself back to my feet, I tried to take
stock of my situation.  My costume was in tatters, a condition I would
later come to regret, but in that moment I was too angry and too hurt to
really care.  Every part of me ached or stung, but my flesh was unpierced
and I could still stand to fight.  I turned back toward the battle zone,
only to find myself facing a wall of the green scaly guys we'd become so
familiar with.  I shook my head to clear the mental haze and forced down
the protests of my battered body... there was no time for pain; we were
fighting for our lives.

     Once again, the words came to my mind in exactly the right moment,
and I drew in as much power as I dared as the enemy closed in around me.
Then, at the last possible moment, I let that power loose.

     "Aura Burst!"

     The shockwave of blue energy erupted from my body in all directions,
smashing as easily through the monsters before me as it did through the
wall behind.  They disintegrated before they even hit the ground, and I
found my way clear.  Stepping back out into the battle arena that the
mall courtyard had become, I tried to take stock of the situation.

     Leo was holding her ground, somehow, even as Tanzanite tried to
pummel her with his force bolts.  Powerful claps of thunder shook the
walls and floor around me, and I realized she was using her sonic power
to counter the force of his attack.  Still, I knew from experience with
our powers that she could not keep that up forever... and Tanzanite
showed no signs of tiring.

     Aries had rejoined the battle as well, but she was more than busy
keeping the green-and-scalies from mobbing Leo.  Her flames ravaged any
that dared approach, but it was all she could do to maintain a defense.

     Cancer was kneeling beside the fallen Taurus, who seemed to still
be unconscious.  No... she was moving, just a little.  That at least was
encouraging, though after the shot she had taken I was not sure she
would be in any condition to fight.  Even if she did, her attack had
been shrugged off by Tanzanite before.

     We were in trouble.

     My mind raced to come up with a tactic, an approach that might be
able to penetrate Tanzanite's defense.  None of my attacks were going to
scratch him, though with my newly-discovered ability I had a better
defense against his assault than before.  Leo was hard-pressed to hold
him off.  Maybe Taurus or Aries had another trick up their sleeve I
hadn't seen yet, but other than that...

     I had an idea.  Moving to Leo's side, I told her, "Let me defend
his next attack.  When I do, I want you to hit him with everything
you've got."  She looked at me questioningly--and a little fearfully--
for a moment, then a certain determination overtook her and she nodded.

     She had barely turned to face him again when the next force bolt
bore down on us.  After seeing a couple of those attacks, though, I had
learned how to read it; just as the blast was about to strike, I
unleashed my aura burst.  The two powers detonated spectacularly when
they met, shattering the floor before us and raining debris all around,
but vertically dispersing the force of the attack, and providing our
opportunity.

     "SONIC FANG!" Leo shouted, locking her hands together with first
fingers pointed at Tanzanite.  I did not so much see the attack as feel
it, a piercing shriek that seemed to rip the air open between them,
Even off to one side, it set my teeth on edge, and the world seemed to
reel around me as the aural assault disrupted my equilibrium.

     For a moment, the haze around Tanzanite seemed to thicken, then for
another instant it was gone entirely.  He screeched in pain, clutching
at his chest where the piercing wave had struck him.  He staggered, and
nearly fell from where he hovered before us.  Then, as suddenly as it
had gone, his forcefield snapped back into place, and he regarded us
with a vicious smile.

     "You actually managed to hurt me; I will give you that.  As a
reward, I shall make your end a quick one."

     "No, it's over," an unfamiliar voice sounded from above and behind
me.  I turned, and standing on the railing of the upper level was a
tall, thin figure in a tuxedo and a mask.  In his hand, he held a single
rose.

     I stared.  It could not be, I told myself.  It *could* *not* *be*.
I was the man of this group, there was no room for a rose-throwing
bishounen here!

     Even so, there he was... and what did that say about ME?

     Before I could dwell on that thought, his words brought me back to
the battle at hand.  "You have done enough damage here, villain.  This
battle ends now."

     Tanzanite's eyes went wide with shock and fury.  "YOU!  I'll--" he
started to shout, then cut off abruptly as the rose was thrown.  He
screamed in that moment, and the swirling haze went still.  A flare of
light shone from the point of contact, silver cracks gleamed brightly
in his barrier... and then it shattered like crystal dropped on a stone
floor.  "NO!" he screamed.  "No, you can't!"

     The tuxedo-clad mystery boy cut him off.  "Sailor Aries, use your
fire attack!"

     Aries wasted no time following that instruction.  "Flame Blaster!"
she cried out, unleashing a stream of fire at the wounded, staggered
Dark General.  It struck him square in the chest, where the rose still
stuck out from his tunic.

     Tanzanite screamed again, a horrible sound of agony, as he burst
into flame.  Instants later, he was gone, leaving only a pile of ash on
the floor below... and a silvery metallic rose.

     I stared in shock.  I was not the only one.  While the rest of us
looked on, Tux-boy jumped down from the railing, landing with impossible
lightness on his feet next to Tanzanite's remains.  He picked up the
rose, tucking it in his pocket, and turned to Sailor Aries.

     "Well done, Sailor Aries!"  He smiled at her, and I could feel the
resentment brewing in me already.  What had Aries done that the rest of
us hadn't?  Used an attack the enemy had already demonstrated he could
shrug off?  I could not help but think there was something more going
on than I could see.  Something did not add up.

     I pushed that thought down.  He had just helped us, after all.  I
had to give him the benefit of the doubt for that.  Still... who WAS
this guy?  I was about to ask, but his next move froze the words on my
lips.

     He took Aries' gloved hand, leaned forward, and kissed it.  "Just
as I would expect, from the Captain of the Senshi," he told her.  For
a moment, there was a stunned silence that fell over us all... then he
stepped back, and spoke again.  "Remember, in your darkest hour, look
for me... I will be there."  With that, he jumped back up over the
railing, and as abruptly as he had arrived, he was gone.

     Taurus spoke first.  "Who the hell was that?"

     Aries shrugged and smiled, and I wondered to myself if that was
the first time I'd ever seen her look happy.  "Who else could it have
been, but Tuxedo Kamen?"

     If I'd bitten my lip any harder in that moment, it would have bled.
Senshi invulnerability, or no.

*****
End Episode Five

-----

     Next Episode: As if the appearance of Tux-boy wasn't enough for me
to worry about, I have to go back to my job.  Worse than that, I have to
face my friends... can I even look them in the eye after all of this?
Of course, there's another Senshi coming, too... wait, this one wears
her glasses with her costume?  What kind of anime IS this, anyway?  Next
episode, Innocence and Experience!  And you thought being surrounded by
beautiful girls would be fun.