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Friends |
Okay, for those of you who follow Mixx Manga, this takes place at the beginning of Sailor Moon volume 5, right as the Black Moon UFO is kidnapping Jupiter. For those who follow the show (my fic follows the manga) here are some FYIs: the sisters, Catzi, Bertie, Prizma, and Avery, are killed by the Scouts; each of the Scouts, Mars, Mercury, and Jupiter, are kidnapped after each sister is defeated (respectively); Venus isn't taken because she is the bomb and no one can touch her - Avery just dies; Darien can talk to the four Dark Kingdom Generals, Jadeite, Nephrite, Zoisite, and Kunzite (Malachite) whenever he wants by summoning them - they used to be his generals during the Silver Millenium. Let me warn you: I saw fit to use the English translation names from the manga because in it Sailor Moon refers to Venus as V-babe and that is just too great to pass up. You'll see why as you read. }:) Oh, and please excuse the plagiarism.
"Jupiter!! JUPITER!!"
The light faded and Sailor Jupiter was nowhere to be seen. Just like Mars and Mercury, she'd been spirited away. Damn that Prizma!
"Sailor Moon!! Venus!"
Tuxedo Mask and Luna came running. Sailor Moon wailed against Venus, burying her face against the other girl's shoulder.
"Luna! Look!" cried Mask. A few yards away, in the center of a shallow crater, lay an earring.
"That's..." the cat began. "That's the earring that Black Moon's Prizma was wearing when she fought Jupiter!!"
"Stay back, Luna," Mask warned. "There's something strange about it."
"Luna!" Artemis' voice sounded over the comm. "Take that earring as a sample!"
"Okay, Artemis! Send me the special reinforced container!"
"Okay!"
The container faded into existence and the earring slid inside.
"Tuxedo Mask! Luna!" a distraught Sailor V called. "I'm sorry... We were right there, but... Now they have Jupiter...! How can this be...!"
Back at headquarters, beneath Crown Videogames, Artemis gave a speech: "Just this month, in the 23 wards of Tokyo, there have been over 200 UFO sightings. We've been monitoring then from here, but unfortunately we haven't been able to identify or trace where they came from. However, the one thing we do know is that these saucers are exactly the same as the ones that kidnapped Mars, Mercury, and Jupiter."
The two remaining Sailor Soldiers (Bunny and Mina), their cats (Luna and Artemis), and Tuxedo Mask (Darien Shields) discussed what to do. Emotions ran high as all were getting desperate and none had any idea what exactly was going on.
"Why are they doing this?!" Bunny demanded. "Because we have what they want, the Silver Imperium Crystal and Rini? Why don't they come right at us? I don't get it!"
"I hate it!" Mina cried. "It's like they're just playing with us...! They think they have the upper hand... I can't take it anymore! We can't wait for Rini to tell us what she knows! We have to get her to talk no matter what!"
Confronting the child went badly. Upon seeing the earring that Luna carried in her mouth, Rini freaked out and cried, rushing into Darien's arms. She refused to tell what she knew, being far too frightened, but she did swear that she was not their enemy.
"But if you're not going to help us..." Bunny said softly. "I don't think... We will be able to be friends."
The older dumpling head ran off as the others stared after her.
Mina found Bunny where she thought she'd be - the Tenth Street shopping district. The girls always spent so much time there it figured that's where she'd run. She sat on a bench in the park looking at her feet.
"Bunny," Mina began.
The other looked up, only slightly startled. "V-babe!"
"Are you all right? Bunny?"
Drawing herself up, the girl replied, "I'm fine. Just so frustrated! First Amy, then Raye... And now Lita!"
"I know... But don't worry about it! We'll get them back!"
"V-babe... But what if you're next? I... I don't know what I'd do... Not if I lost all of you...!" Her eyes began tearing up.
"Hey, hey!" Mina sat down next to Bunny and put her arm around her friend. "No Black Moon trash is going to get its claws on me! I'm Sailor Venus, Goddess of Love!"
Bunny wrapped her arms around Mina, sniffling. "V-babe..." Mina's body was so warm and comforting. She wanted to stay like that, caught in a soft embrace by someone who really cared for her... If only she could.
"It's getting late," Mina observed. "Maybe we should be getting home."
Bunny nodded. "Mina...? It's Saturday. Do you want to spend the night?"
The other girl smiled. “That’d be great! But we can’t stay up all night worrying.”
Bunny answered with a determined grin of her own. “We’ll get through this! Nothing can put down Sailor Moon!”
“That’s the spirit!”
The two girls walked back to Bunny’s house clutching fiercely to their hopes.
“Girls! Try not to make too much noise!” Bunny’s mom hollered.
“We won’t!” the girls chorused back. “G’night!”
Bunny kneeled on the floor in front of Mina, who sat on the bed brushing her friend’s hair.
“Ah, that feels great, V-babe,” Bunny cooed.
“Glad I could help you finally relax,” was Mina’s relieved reply. “Your hair is so long…” She ran her fingers through the golden strands.
“I like it that way.”
“It’s much more dramatic!” Both girls laughed. “Y’know, Bunny…” began Mina, changing to a more serious tone. “I’m glad you suggested this. Everyone’s worried about you. I’m worried about you…” The girl’s hand fell limply to her lap.
Bunny looked at her feet. “I’ll be all right… It’s just…” Here her eyes teared up a bit. “I miss everyone. Lita… Amy… Raye…”
“They’re all right! I’m sure of it!” Mina put forth more assurance than she really felt, though she did have the utmost confidence in her friends. “We’ll get them back…” She ran her hands through Bunny’s hair absentmindedly. The other girl hummed her pleasure. Sliding to the floor, Mina hugged Bunny from behind.
“Oh, V-babe!” Bunny burst into her trademark tears, prompting her friend’s embrace to tighten.
“Bunny…” Mina murmured. She almost yielded to the tears of sympathy that welled within her, but the girl knew she needed to be strong if only for Bunny’s sake. Clutching a hand on either shoulder, Mina turned her friend around to face her. Smiling weakly she placed a kiss on Bunny’s cheeks in every spot a tear had streamed down.
I’ll kiss your tears away, Mina thought. I’ll kiss them away if it takes all night…
“V-babe…” Bunny took a deep breath. “I’ll be strong, I promise.” She leaned her forehead against Mina’s and looped their fingers together. “Thank you.”
“What are friends for?”
The girls held each other long into the night and for that brief time the weight of the world wasn’t nearly as burdensome.