Set me free...the wind howls, I am screaming. This cage, I cannot. Do you hear it? The Dark Angel approaches. Traitorous fool. With eyes of jade, and a black sword on her back...She plays the hero now? Kazuki? My...friend, my opposite. I care for her so deeply...Awaken. Show her who you are. Remember. You Are... I Am... Hikari. The Light. Blessed light, embrace me, us all, in the hour of darkness. May the souls of the wicked damned be forced into the brilliant glory of My Aura. Remember. Always. Until it is time...for me... Kazuki winced, shutting her eyes tightly as the area around them was filled with a bright, blinding light. For a moment, all she saw was white, and then a flash of silver and bright green. Mitsuki hurtled out of the light, sprinting toward Kazuki. The older woman barely lifted her arms in time to block the attack. She staggered backwards, and then gave Mitsuki a predatory grin. In the distance, she saw three others, and frowned. Senshi, she imagined. She saw their auras even from here. "Beautiful..." the dark-haired woman murmured. "They are so bright, so lovely." She unsheathed her sword, and nodded, closing her eyes for a moment. "This will certainly be interesting, won't it? Well then, Mitsuki," she murmured, addressing the youth who stood a short distance away, seething. "Let us begin." ------------------------------------------------------------ tell me what the rain knows The smoke turns the whole sky raven black And the world upon your back will crack Where will you go Now you've no home? Let the rain wash away your last days.... -Maaya Sakamoto, Tell Me What the Rain Knows -------------- "You must be careful, Venus," Pluto admonished, wincing slightly when a blast of cold wind washed past them. "This woman is dangerous. Her darkness...I can feel it." "A dark aura," Saturn murmured. Her Glaive glinted against the bright sun. "But there is some good in her, I think." Venus frowned, shaking her head. "She's attacking Mitsuki, and she's one of those women..." Saturn frowned, giving the blonde-haired Senshi a cool, level gaze. Her eyes were unreadable, and Venus shuddered slightly. "Mitsuki attacked first," the youngest Senshi pointed out, watching the two warriors fight amongst the snow, "and the other retaliated. She's defending herself." "We wait," Pluto added. Venus frowned. "You two can wait. I'm going! Venus Love-me Chain!" The bright golden chain shot out of her hands, gripping Kazuki around her neck. The dark warrior choked, gasping for air. She glanced up at Mitsuki, who had stopped, and now stood glancing at the golden-haired Senshi curiously. Venus tugged tighter on the whip, and Kazuki could feel the chain burning into her skin, feel heat against her palms, her face. She growled in frustration, trying to tug the energy chain off of her neck, to no avail. She sunk to her knees and winced, grabbing the chain again. Her eyes flashed for a moment, and dark energy snaked from her palms, wrapping around the brilliant, bright energy of Venus' attack. The chain faltered, turned black, and then evaporated into nothing. Kazuki stood to her feet, and then waved a hand, sending a blast of dark energy to catch Mitsuki squarely in the chest. The younger girl gasped in pain and flew backwards, knocking against the snow-covered ground and landing on her back. She struggled to get up, but Kazuki snapped her fingers, and shadow energy pulled from the ground, wrapping around the white-haired girl. Mitsuki screamed in pain as the searing magic snapped around her, threatening to pull the very light she so cherished from her. Kazuki turned to the Senshi now, and she was no longer playful. "You're a funny little girl," she murmured. "And very stupid." She sighed a bit sadly. "This was a battle between Mitsuki and me. But you had to intervene. No matter. I was ordered not to kill you. Though hurting you...that, I believe, is allowed." Mitsuki's screams raised in pitch, guttural and torn from very deep in her chest. It almost sounded inhuman; her sharp, piercing yells made the serene atmosphere seem surreal, unnatural. Venus shook in anger, clenching her fists. "Stop it! You're hurting her!" "That's the point, you little twit. She's supposed to die, don't you get it by now? Out of my way. Let me finish my task." "She's your friend! Why do you want to hurt her?" "Do not try to understand what you cannot. Many fools have lost lives doing so. And this is too confusing for most." She shrugged her shoulders, glancing at the two other Senshi who had not opted to assist their blonde friend as of now. "You should step down while you can. Become an observer in this war." "Shut up! Set Mitsuki free now! Venus Love-Me Chain!" The golden chain shot out from Venus' palms again, but Kazuki was prepared this time. She dodged agilely, volleying a hail of what appeared to be black spheres at the Senshi. The spheres cracked with bright purple energy, and Venus back flipped, feinting to avoid the attack. Kazuki watched in slight amusement, and then waved a hand, directing the energy spheres around. The Senshi dodged artfully, but it was only a matter of time before fatigue would win over. Mitsuki's screams of pain had stopped, finally, but Kazuki still felt the ghostly pull of her aura leaking through. She was alive, but barely. Just a moment longer, and they could finish... "Dead Scream..." a whisper carried over the sound of the wind, and Kazuki turned quickly. Her eyes widened as a massive, purple sphere of light hurtled toward her, blasting into her side. Her control over her attacks broke, and Mitsuki collapsed onto the snow-covered ground, steam rising from her body. Kazuki hurtled across the street, knocking violently into a streetlight. The post dented from the force of her fall, and she was still for a moment before struggling to her feet, groaning in pain and confused anger. She winced, wobbling unsteadily, and wiped a trail of blood from the side of her face. "Oh, that is IT. Which one of those..." The dark warrior gazed around desperately, trying to find a target. The woman gasped and shock and swung her sword up, barely blocking the dangerous, curved blade of the Silence Glaive. Sailor Saturn stared down at her impassively, and pushed, muscles tensing with the effort to break Kazuki's hold on her weapon. The older woman broke away, swinging her sword to block each of Saturn's skilled moves. Her concentration on the attacks toward Venus and Mitsuki had broken however, and Venus immediately ran over to the white-haired girl, trying to shake her awake. "Mitsuki! Come on! Get up!" The girl simply groaned weakly in response, her head lolling to the side. The armor disappeared, as did the sword, and she was once again clad in civilian clothing. Venus shook her again, her voice rising into a desperate pitch. "Come on, Mitsuki! Get up, please!" "W...why...Kazu...hurts so much..." the white haired girl whispered hoarsely, putting a hand to her chest. "Hurts everywhere..." Tears sprung into her eyes, and she turned her face away. "Why?" Venus cradled the slightly smaller young woman, staring at the battle unfolding in front of her. Her eyes narrowed. "It's alright...okay? Pluto and Saturn will take care of her..." "You..." Mitsuki glanced up, wincing as she tried to sit up. "You saved me the last time...Who are you?" "You saved me too," Venus pointed out. "And I'm Sailor Venus, pretty sailor-suited soldier of love and beauty, at your service! Are you okay though? Can you stand?" "I..." the girl struggled to move, and then collapsed, gasping in pain and exhaustion. "Sorry. I can't..." "It's alright...why don't you relax. Sleep. I'll get you home safely, okay?" "Okay...I'm...really tired. Will I...will I see you again?" "Huh? Oh!" Venus grinned. "Sure, you'll see me again. I promise." Mitsuki smiled wanly and pulled herself up slowly, gently brushing her lips against Venus' own. "Thank you," she mumbled sleepily, closing her eyes. Venus blushed and pressed a gloved hand to her mouth. "You're welcome..." she mumbled in surprise. Meanwhile, Kazuki desperately tried to dodge the melee attacks from the two Outers, growling in frustration. She lost her focus for a moment, and Saturn's glaive cleaved through the air, catching her in the side, tearing through her coat, and into delicate flesh. She bit down on her lip until it bled, to keep from screaming out, and whirled on the smaller Senshi. "I grow tired of this. Finite," she stated calmly, though the burning pain below her ribs was almost enough to make her pass out. Shadow energy surrounded the fighters, and Kazuki embraced it, glancing out at the group. "A pity," she addressed Pluto. I had hoped to talk amicably with you. And you," she muttered, glancing over at Venus, and Mitsuki. "This is not over. Goodbye." And she was gone then, as suddenly as she came. Saturn glanced down at the crimson spot in the white snow and frowned, shaking her head. "Persistent." "Venus!" Pluto called. "Take Mitsuki back inside!" Venus obeyed, gently hefting the smaller girl up. In her transformed state, she was a bit stronger, and as such, Mitsuki's weight would not be as much, though she was still a bit heavy. When she arrived back inside the Outers' abode, she gently set Mitsuki down on a couch and detransformed, frowning at the array of nasty scratches across the other girl's face. "I'm really sorry...wow...that lady was something else. And you..." she shook her head, brushing strands of golden-blonde hair from her face. "You were just tired, I bet. Didn't know what you were doing. Or maybe it's a funny custom from your planet to run around kissing people when they save your butt, huh?" She laughed, weakly. "Yeah. That's it." "Wha...?" Mitsuki's eyes opened slowly, and she frowned, shaking her head. "Minako? Huh? Wh-where am I?" She stood up suddenly, and reeled, slumping back on to the couch. "Where's Kazuki? And those women, the Senshi?" "Whoa, whoa!" Minako grinned, cocking her head to one side. "One at a time! All of those questions! You know what they say, 'Curiosity kicked the chicken.'" Mitsuki raised an eyebrow. "I...I beg your pardon? Um...anyway. I...Kazuki left? Oh! Setsuna and Hotaru! And you! Are you alright?" "That scary lady? Yeah, she left. Setsuna and Hotaru are fine, and so am I. The Senshi came just in time and kicked her butt!" "They did? Oh...I sort of remember...oh! Venus! She saved me again! Oh, I was probably too forward...but...she was very brave..." Mitsuki sighed wistfully, sinking deeper into the couch cushions. Minako frowned. Weird... "What did you do?" "Oh...I..." Mitsuki glanced down and blushed. "Well, I kissed her. It's proper etiquette to do that, right? I've been kissed a couple of times by people I've saved, but I'm not so sure if your planet is the same..." "Well, we don't usually do things like that," Minako muttered, and then quickly amended when she saw the horrified look on the other girl's face. "But I'm sure she didn't mind." "Really?" "Yeah, really! In fact, I'm positive," Minako said, with utmost seriousness. --------------- Kazuki leaned slightly on a wall for support as she walked down the large, empty hallways to the room. A young man, tall and lanky, with golden-blonde hair that spiked all about his head glanced at her as she dragged herself past him. "Kazu! You cool?" "I am most certainly not cool, Ginrou," Kazuki whispered through clenched teeth. "And I told you to quit calling me that." "Right, right." The boy grinned cheekily. "Need some help?" "I'd...appreciate it," Kazuki responded reluctantly, sighing. "Please lead me to her room. And keep your hands above my waist and below my chest, or I'll ignore my injury in favor of kicking your skull in." Ginrou nodded, his grin widening. "Can't make any promises, sweetheart. But I'll try, you know." "You better," Kazuki hissed, leaning against his shoulder for support. "Or nothing in the world will save you." "Feisty today, huh? Who kicked the Great Kazuki's ass anyway? Must have been some kinda amazing." "A little girl," Kazuki responded coldly, wincing at the pain in her side. "With a very big stick." "Must have been a damn big stick," Ginrou whistled, impressed. "We're here though. Last stop." "Thank you," Kazuki said, slipping away from his grasp, and turning toward the door. "You were surprisingly chilva--" She stopped when she felt a familiar squeeze on her backside. The loud smack, and Kazuki's following scream of, "PERVERT!" echoed throughout the empty hall. Ginrou laughed, running off and holding his bruised cheek, while shooting spheres of bright, white electricity at the shadow spheres volleyed his way. "Come on! I said I couldn't keep promises!" Kazuki only growled in reply, cursing under her breath when his laughter faded. "I knew I shouldn't have let him touch me..." she quietly made into the room, frowning at the darkness. "Are you in here?" "I am. Ginrou?" "Pervert," Kazuki hissed. "Why can't he grow up?" "He is...Ginrou," the woman responded. "He is energy itself, never still, and never silent. I trust he took his liberties with you? Again?" She sighed weakly. "Honestly, you would think he'd grow tired of the constant thrashings he's received..." "You would think that, but Ginrou never thinks, so that point is moot." Kazuki slumped into a chair and winced, unable to stifle a hiss of pain. "I ran into a bit of trouble..." "The girl?" the woman asked, moving toward Kazuki to check her wound. "The girl. Nasty weapon she's got." "I told you..." "I know, and I'm sorry for not listening. But could you fix this? I really don't want to bleed all over your chair." She frowned, and if one did not know Kazuki, they would have sworn she was pouting. "And this was my favorite jacket..." The woman laughed. "There will be other jackets, Kazuki." ----------- "Sooo..." Minako rocked back and forth on the heels of her feet, "What do you want to do now?" The two girls had left the Outers shortly after Mitsuki was well enough to walk, and they were now heading toward Minako's home. "Well...I suppose I ruined our day together, hm?" "Huh? Oh, no! Not at all! Weird stuff happens...you can't really prevent that!" Minako said, laughing nervously. Mitsuki gave her an odd look, and glanced down at her feet. "I bet you think I don't like you..." "Huh? to think of it..." Minako frowned. "You sure do jump a lot when I'm around, and you avoid me a lot...do you like me?" "I..." Mitsuki trailed off. "It's complicated. But I don't have a problem with you at all. It's...it's me. I don't know why, but...I'm sorry, for what it's worth." "It's okay, I guess," Minako said, scratching her head. "Let's get you home, okay?" "Oh, but I..." Mitsuki sighed weakly. "Alright."
Back to Angel of Venus Index - Back to Sailor Moon Shoujo-Ai Fanfiction