Dark Skies, Bright Heavens (part 8 of 11)

a Sailor Moon fanfiction by Immora

Back to Part 7
"Class, we have a new student. Everyone, this is Ten'ou Haruka."

Haruka bowed to the class, who had just finished bowing to the teacher, 
ignoring the stares of pretty much all the girls in the class. The guys 
all had jealous looks on their faces, immediately recognizing a rival 
for the girls' attention.

Kemmei-sensei pushed up his glasses and turned to Haruka. "Would you 
like to say anything to the class, Ten'ou-san?"

"No, thank you."

"All right, why don't you take one of the empty seats in the back? We'll 
be rotating seats soon, anyways."

Haruka nodded and went to the back of the room and took a seat off to 
the side by a window where no one else was. She winked as she went by to 
a girl who was staring especially hard at her. Might as well fit the 
part, she thought with a laugh. Guys seem to flirt at every cute girl in 
sight.

"Well, class, we better get going or we'll be late for tyourei. Everyone 
head for the stairs; no way we can all fit in the elevators, and after 
the fiasco last week..."

Haruka heard various groans as everyone lined up and walked downstairs 
to the courtyard. Haruka whistled under her breath at the number of 
students attending this school. Then again, with a school this enormous, 
they had better have a lot of people to occupy the space. She'd heard a 
rumor that there were actually some rooms on campus where students 
lived, those who had been sent from so far away that returning home 
except for weekends and holidays would be torture. She stood with her 
class, not really paying attention to the principal's speech, something 
about cherry blossoms and studying, somehow trying to connect them. Ah 
well.

The class went back to their room after that for History. Bleecccch.

While the teacher was talking about some silly historical thing, Haruka 
quietly wrote in her notebook. No sense in being bored. She got quite a 
number of poems finished. 

The teacher called on her to answer a question. Just as she opened her 
mouth to speak, it hit her again.

Blood red dripping across the sky, black splatters, waves of color Sharp 
pain of the wind, hit with the pieces of a falling building... Beautiful 
girl floating in the air, glowing, talking about the Silence, the 
Messiah, our duty...

"Ten'ou-san? Is something wrong?"

"No, Kemmei-sensei," she said, then answered the question.

Damn that vision! Why now?... Why at all?! What did it mean? She'd had 
it twice between the first and this, at least during the day, and she 
saw it when she slept. What did it mean? 

Once the lecture was finally over, the class had a long break, fifteen 
minutes to be exact, so they could talk a bit and get to their next 
class. Suddenly, it seemed all the girls in the class had swarmed around 
her.

"Nice to meet you, Ten'ou-san!" "Oh wow, he's SO cute!" "Do you have a 
girlfriend?" "Back off, he's MINE!" "*sigh* He has such nice eyes!" "Do 
you want some of my bento at lunch today?" "No way, he's gonna eat MY 
bento!" "_Mine_!" "MINE!"

"Ok ok, calm down, girls," Haruka said, about ready to throttle them.

"Suuuuure," they sighed dreamily. 

"Excuse me please, I have to go... I have another class to get to..."

"Ohhhh... fiiiine..."

Haruka rolled her eyes as she got on the elevator and went several 
floors up for the next class.

Oh yay, a language class of sorts... I really hate this subject... God, 
I can't wait for class to be over; this is so boring! Haruka lay her 
head down and almost fell asleep.

It was off to an appointment with the guidance counselor at the start of 
the next class. She had refused to take P.E. and had to discuss her 
'options' with the school.

"Now, while I find my things, tell me why you won't take P.E., 
Ten'ou-san," the old woman told her.

Haruka sighed. This would be _fun_. "I don't see the necessity of it. 
I'm already great at sports. I'm part of a racing team now--"

"Racing?"

"Motor-sports."

"Ah, really? Well, we require that you have some form of school board 
sponsored physical activity. Anything you'd be interested in? Lessee, 
basketball, volleyball, fencing, football..."

Haruka yawned.

"Well, what would you enjoy?"

"I dunno."

"Hmmm, there's after-school track... you could do that, and this could 
be a free period."

"Is this strictly our school?" Haruka didn't want to reveal her gender 
any more than she had to.

"Well, several schools meet a few times a week. There's only... lessee, 
one person from our school in there... but it would count in place of 
physical education."

"All right, that'll be fine."

"Good! Now, why don't you go to the library or something... do something 
educational, ok?"

"... Right..."



At lunch that day, Haruka once again had to fight off crazed girls, and 
finally left the cafeteria to find somewhere else to eat. If she'd know 
she'd get this much trouble from them, she might have just gone ahead 
and worn the girls' uniform.

"Hey, Haruka, how's it going?"

Haruka turned to see Murasaki waving to her. She smiled and waved her 
over. 

"Fine, Murasaki-chan, good to see you."

Murasaki lowered her voice and asked, "What's the guy's uniform for?"

"...I don't want anyone to know anything about me."

"That's odd. Ah well, whatever pleases you. Frankly, I think it'd be 
more comfortable than this..." Murasaki gestured to the skirt she wore.

"Er... well, this isn't so great... It's, ah... difficult... to make 
myself look flat in it."

"Well, depending on how you... Oh... Ouch!... Hey, didn't see you in 
P.E., are you taking it?"

"No, that would be giving it away... I doubt any amount of binding could 
hide it in those silly uniforms... I'll have track after school."

"That should be fun."

"What are you doing out of the cafeteria?"

"Just wandering, really, you?"

"Avoiding the annoying girls that seem determined to date me."

"Oh."

Haruka sipped her drink, then raised her eyebrow. "Say, where's Kanpeki? 
Why aren't you eating with her?"

"Oh, uh, her sister's been... kinda down in the dumps lately, so she's 
making sure she's ok... triplets... really close, y'know?"

"Ah. Must be... um, nice... to have siblings."

Murasaki, realizing it was a touchy subject, took off on another topic. 
"So, how's the racing going?"

"Great! First real race is Friday."

"That's wonderful! Hey, I'll come cheer you on, all right?"

"That'd be good."

Murasaki looked down at her watch. "Well, I better be going. Want to 
finish some homework early. See ya."

"See ya."

Haruka smiled. It was nice to have some family that cared.



School dragged on, but finally ended. It was time to head to the track. 
Running was easy for her, so she expected no challenge what-so-ever.

She opened the door to a building on the track property and walked down 
the hallway to a small office. A muscular woman with a long purple 
ponytail sat with her feet propped on her desk, talking on the phone, a 
rather angry look on her face. She slammed down the phone as Haruka 
entered.

"What do you want?"

"I'm going to be joining the team as a P.E. credit."

She raised an eyebrow and slipped her feet to the floor before standing 
up. She walked over to Haruka, smirking a bit as she stood nearly as 
tall as the blond.

"Do you know who I am?"

"I do not."

"I'm the instructor, Bofu, and you better not forget that. What's your 
name?"

"Ten'ou Haruka."

"And what school do you attend?"

"Goban Yobi-ko."

Bofu took several moments to size her up, then chuckled and flipped her 
ponytail. "You have some guts," she said with a grin, "waltzing around 
in the male uniform like that."

"... How could you tell?"

The instructor shrugged and smiled. "I have a knack for picking out 
people."

"Ah."

"If you want to join, you better show your stuff. You'll find some fresh 
uniforms in the locker room. I'm want to see just how good you think you 
are before I even consider letting you join. I don't care if you need 
the credit, you better prove yourself."

"Thank you, Bofu-sensei," Haruka said, and left.

It wasn't hard to find the clothes. It was just a matter of finding a 
uniform that could fit her tall, thin frame. She could tell immediately 
nothing would hide the fact that she was a girl. She was quite glad when 
she found one that fit and she could get out of that horrible stuff she 
was wearing, then she went out to the track.

Bofu stood on the side with a clipboard and stopwatch, sunglasses 
perched on her head. She nodded to some people that were trailing in to 
observe. Haruka remained off to the side, stretching on her own. A few 
of the regulars cast questioning glances at her, but she ignored them. 
It felt good to stretch out after being confined in that heavy suit all 
day. 

Bofu-sensei nodded over to her and waved her hand, and Haruka came over. 
"Well, quite a change from how you were in the uniform."

"I would imagine so."

"Ready to run?"

"Yup."

"Let's see how well you handle a hundred meter dash, all right? I'll 
wait at the end." 

Haruka nodded and walked down the track, then crouched down slightly. 
The regulars milled around to watch. She could hear them whispering, 
guessing it to be about her.

Bofu blew the whistle, and Haruka took off running as fast as she could. 
It wasn't that much of a challenge; 100 meters was easy. She carefully 
slowed when she finished and finally stopped. She turned and saw Bofu 
with an unreadable expression on her face.

"Nice."

That one word had the other runners seething within moments. Haruka 
didn't see what the big deal was.

"Ok... 500 meters."

Bofu walked to the finish and blew the whistle. Haruka shot off again, 
and earned an "impressive" comment from Bofu.

"Care to run the whole track, right back to here?"

Haruka shrugged, then nodded. Bofu smirked a bit, then lowered her 
sunglasses. The whistle shrieked, and Haruka started running as quickly 
as she could manage. She could feel her breath quicken very slightly. 
She was happy to note a breeze as she ran, and started trying to go 
faster. She could see the finish, and all the students standing around, 
but it was all flying by to quick to make out. She actually felt sweat 
bead on her. She almost stumbled after crossing the line, and stopped a 
little too soon. Breathing a bit hard, she turned back to Bofu.

The students were all lined up on either side of the instructor, looks 
of awe on their faces. Bofu's sunglasses once again rested on her head, 
as her eyes slowly shifted from clipboard to stopwatch readout several 
times. Her eyes stopped on the clipboard as she penciled in something, 
then she raised them with a wicked grin.

"Damnit girl, we'd have to kill you if you didn't join the team. All 
those runs were faster than anyone of these kids ever managed!"

Haruka's eyes widened in surprise, and the rest of the runners started 
clapping a bit.

"Um... sure, yeah, I'd love to join."

"Good!" Bofu slipped her sunglasses back on with a grin. "Ok, everyone, 
I want three laps right now for warm-up! Don't try to push top speed 
yet; I don't need everyone worn out. Ten'ou-san, hang back for now."

"Yes, sensei."

The others kids took off running without a glance back. Bofu waited till 
they were a bit farther along before turning to Haruka. "You're quite 
good at this. Had experience?"

"Not really. I just run for fun."

"Interesting." Bofu stretched her arms and adjusted her sunglasses. "And 
where did those scars come from, Ten'ou-san? You don't get those marks 
just anywhere."

"What scars?" Haruka asked softly, blood chilling. Damnit, she'd 
noticed!

"I can see several faint lines on your upper back. Suspicious looking." 
Bofu turned away a moment, then said, "You don't have to tell me. I know 
what those are. I don't know who did it, but I do recognize a child 
abuse victim when I see one. I--" Bofu waited a moment as some more 
visitors walked by. "I... well, if you need anyone to talk to, just come 
to me, okay?"

Haruka nodded slowly, wobbling a bit with dizziness. She sat down hard 
on the ground.

"You all right?"

Haruka held her head in her hands and mumbled, "I'll be okay... I'm just 
a bit ... overwhelmed."

"Hey, relax," Bofu said with a smile. "Yeah, I'm a bit gruff and I'm 
very tough on this team sometimes, but I'm not all hard-hearted, you 
understand? I push them so they can be the best they can be, but it's 
not like I don't care for them. Don't worry, you can trust me."

Haruka nodded and stood up.

"Now, why don't you go run with the others? You'll probably catch up 
easily."

Haruka grinned in agreement and started running again.



"See, what did I tell you?" Murasaki said with a grin.

Michiru squealed in delight as they entered the stadium. "Thank you, 
Murasaki- chan!"

"No problem."

Kanpeki pretended to roll her eyes, then laughed. "Michiru, you're so 
silly sometimes."

Michiru shrugged. "I get to see Haruka run, I think I deserve to be 
happy about it."

"What's the big deal?"

"Well, would you enjoy watching Murasaki-chan run sometime?"

Kanpeki blushed a bit. "Ok, ok, I see your point." She grabbed 
Murasaki's arm. "Let's leave her to watch her little sweetie, ok?"

"Okay, bye Michiru... have fun!"

"I will! ... Wait a sec, where are you two off to?"

"We won't be far. Over in the woods on the far side of the track, if you 
should need us."

Michiru raised an eyebrow. "Ohhh?"

"Hush, Michiru!" Kanpeki hissed, then winking at Murasaki. "Well, off we 
go..."

Michiru smiled as she sat down on the bleachers and leaned forward, 
elbow on her knee and chin on her hand. Haruka was much better than the 
other runners, and easily passed them. She looked so happy when she was 
running...

Michiru remembered that Uranus's element was the wind. Haruka should 
probably feel a natural affinity for speed and flight due to that, which 
explained her love for racing and running. Michiru sighed softly. Wonder 
if she had the visions at all...

Hmmm... Michiru had a good friend was a member of the team, but she 
wasn't at practice. Elza Grey was the best runner-- correction, now that 
Haruka was here, the second best. Then again, Elza did have a private 
trainer, and usually only participated in the races rather than the 
practices. She was fast becoming one of the top runners in Japan.

Michiru smiled wistfully as she watched Haruka more. If only she could 
tell her how she felt...

Her eyes snapped open. It was so simple! It had to work!

Elza would undoubtedly be racing Haruka at some point. She could have 
Elza introduce her, after a race or something...

She bit her lip. Elza didn't know about her feelings for Haruka. How in 
the world would she deal with that? She could tell the truth... and if 
Elza decided not to be friends with her...

Haruka was growing closer to Murasaki, she could always ask her...

Michiru pulled out her sketchbook and a pencil and drew a quick picture 
of Haruka as she ran. She wondered if Haruka could 'hear' the wind like 
she could sense the sea. Probably did without realizing it...

"Hey, Michiru!"

Michiru looked down and to the left, and saw Kirei waving to her. She 
was sitting with Suteki and some friends. Suteki was glaring in her 
direction, the girls with her also giving her vicious looks. She wavered 
a bit, then cheered up when Kirei got up, apologized to the others, and 
came over to where she was.

"Hi, everything going ok?" Kirei asked.

Michiru shrugged. "All right... why are they glaring at me?"

"Jealousy, I'd imagine. Sure nothing is wrong?"

"Onee-chan, why are you coming over here out of nowhere?"

Kirei looked startled. "What do you mean?"

"Well, after what happened the other night... and I overheard you and 
Suteki talking bad about me once..."

Kirei looked down at the ground. "Look, Michiru... I'm really sorry... 
about everything. You kinda get stuck going along with things, y'know, 
when other people are around... damn image to maintain," she grumbled. 
"Michiru, you're my sister, nothing will change that. Suteki is acting 
like some sort of high-and-mighty queen just because she thinks she has 
something over you now... how did she put it, 'guess little Miss Perfect 
ain't so perfect if she's going after girls'... but I don't agree with 
that, I really don't. I... I have to admit, I always thought it was... 
well, kinda weird... but knowing that you, um, are... well, it really 
changes how I look at things."

"Do you mean that?" Michiru asked softly.

"Yes, I do," Kirei said with a smile. "I'm really sorry... I wish we'd 
grown up closer... all of us really kept apart, but if you ask me...
well, okaa-san and otou-san really didn't encourage sibling interaction, 
y'know?"

"Oh, I know," Michiru groaned, then mimicking their mother, "'Time for a 
violin rehearsal, when will you finish that painting, oh you look so 
pretty but don't forget your manners...'... Lessee, then Kanzen is her 
little genius, and where does that leave the rest of you? Trailing 
along... in her mind... ugh."

"Okaa-san drives us all nuts," Kirei agreed. "We each have our own 
talents, but she just encourages the ones she thinks she can profit 
from... Hell, not even that, she ignored Kanpeki's art talent, she 
ignored my singing, she ignored Genki's computer skills, and she ignored 
Suteki's natural beauty..."

"She's a strange one, our mother."

"Yes, indeed..." Kirei dropped her voice a bit as she said, "You aren't 
going to let her find out about your interest in Ten'ou-san, are you?"

"And get kicked out of the house? I think not." Michiru sighed bitterly.

"Y'know, everyone I know think it's a choice--"

"Like hell it is!" Michiru spat. "Who would willingly decide to be part 
of a minority group that is ridiculed, attacked, and even killed for 
it?"

"Well, when you put it that way..." Kirei looked out at the track. "So, 
which one is Ten'ou-san? I forget what she looks like."

"The tall blond that is _way_ ahead of everyone else."

Kirei whistled. "_Damn,_ she's fast... God, I wish I had her figure! I'm 
so _flat_!" she whined.

Michiru couldn't help but laugh. "Some of us are... more endowed than 
others... and Haruka's one of them."

"And I'm one of the lesser..." Kirei looked around a bit. "Say, where's 
Kanpeki-chan? I thought I saw her a little while ago, with that friend 
of hers ... Murasaki, right? What are they up to?"

Michiru almost choked. "Um, well... maybe you should have a talk with 
her... they're, uh, in the woods... make noise when you approach so they 
know you're coming."

Kirei stared at her, looked away to think a moment, then her eyes 
widened and she laughed loudly. "Oh my! Oh my! Don't tell me... Both of 
you?! Oh wow... Don't tell me Genki is, too?!"

"Fine, I won't tell you."

"That is so freaky! Geez, I can't believe I didn't notice! All three of 
you!... Ah well... I'm going to go check up on our lovebirds, then. Hope 
they aren't too busy making out," she said with a wink.

"Er..."

"Heh heh, just kidding. Bye, Michiru."

"Bye, Kirei."

Michiru turned to watch Haruka again, sighing softly. She could go for 
hours just watching her.

Practice ended before she could watch too long, though, and Haruka left 
for the locker room. Michiru decided it was wise to leave before she 
accidentally bumped into her. Kirei, Kanpeki, and Murasaki were coming 
out of the woods at that moment, so she joined them to walk home.

"So, did you talk?" she asked them.

"Yeah," Kanpeki said, taking Murasaki's hand. She smiled at her sisters. 
"It's good that we don't have to hide it from each other."

"Yup," Kirei agreed.

"I call the phone when we get back," Michiru said. "I need to talk to 
Elza- chan."

"That's the red-head, right?"

"Yes. I'm surprised you remembered her."

Kirei shrugged. "I remember random people and forget others. Ah well."

They walked in silence awhile.

"Hey, Michiru-chan, when's the CD coming out?" Murasaki asked.

"This week, actually... I'm going to perform a couple nights to help 
promote it."

"You excited?"

"A bit. I used to hate doing all this silly stuff, but I enjoy it now. I 
love playing the violin. I don't do it for okaa-san, oh no... It's for 
me. I want to perform, to share my music with everyone."

"That's great," Murasaki said with a smile. "Maybe one day you could 
play a duet with Haruka on piano?"

Michiru chuckled a bit. "I hope so!"

She sat down on her bed once they got home, a bit nervous as she picked 
up the phone. She dialed Elza's number and waited for her to pick up.

"Hello, this is Elza. Speaking?"

"Hi, Elza-chan, it's Michiru."

"Oh, hello! How're you?"

"Fine, you?" 

"I'm great. Just got back from my training. I can't wait till next 
week's race!"

"Yeah, um... say, Elza? I need to talk to you about something..."

"You want me to come over or do it over the phone?"

"Uh, why don't you come here?"

"Be right over! I'll run, give me some practice!" Elza said with a 
laugh, then said bye and hung up.

Michiru was a bit nervous as she waited for Elza to arrive. She wasn't 
sure how to explain it, or how Elza would react.

Elza didn't live very far away, and being a fast runner helped her get 
there quickly. She waved to Michiru, slowing up as she approached her. 
Michiru smiled. Elza was so determined in everything she did. She was 
quite the star athlete. She had pale red hair, slightly wavy and cropped 
to her chin, hazel eyes, and a rich tan, and was always cheerful. "Hey, 
Michiru-chan!"

"Hey, Elza-chan."

They went inside and up to her room. They sat on the floor of her room, 
as usual.

"So, what's up?"

"I... I need some help, Elza. There's..." Michiru sighed and looked up 
at the ceiling. "I really don't know how to explain this..."

"C'mon, you can tell me."

"There's... there's someone I'm... I'm interested in... and I'd like you 
to introduce me sometime, after the next race perhaps?"

"Oh? Sure... someone on the team?"

"...Y-yeah..."

"It's Iki-kun, isn't it? He's quite the looker..."

Michiru lowered her eyes. "No, a recent addition, just today... first 
day at school."

"Oh? Well, give me a name so I know who to look for."

"... Ten'ou Haruka."

"Hmm, all right... So, what's he look like?"

"I... I'll show you a picture... A painting I did, actually, but... it's 
accurate."

She went into her closet and pulled it out, then turned it around for 
Elza to see.

Elza sat there a moment, looking at the painting with an unreadable 
expression. She then leaned back on her hands and looked up at the 
ceiling a moment. "Nice painting."

"Th-thanks."

"For Christ's sake, Michiru-chan, stop acting so nervous!"

Michiru looked at her with surprise. "What?!"

Elza stood up and bent over her, pointing her finger at her. "You're 
getting worked up over the fact that she's a girl, aren't you? You're 
worried about what I think, aren't you?" Elza chuckled, then said, 
"Well, you don't have to worry at all!

"Eh?!"

Elza laughed loudly. "Michiru, Michiru, Michiru, you never met my 
parents, did you?"

"No, I don't recall..."

Elza's eyes crinkled with amusement. "I don't even know my father. My 
mother has been with my new mom for... well, before I was born. I grew 
up around it, so you have nothing to worry about!"

Michiru stared at her in shock. "You're serious?!"

"Yeah, they raised my sister and I together. Never thought much of it, 
till some kids gave me a hard time about it... but they're just idiots. 
I love my mama and my okaa-san, and I know they're happier together than 
mama could've been with my real father. They really took care of us, 
too. I was really sick when I was little, but they always watched over 
me. Okaa-san always stayed behind with me, only time she didn't was when 
I was visiting my grandparents. They spoiled us, actually... We moved 
just because we didn't have a big enough backyard to play in!"

Michiru smiled, feeling tears in her eyes. "Th-thank you, Elza-chan..."

"Hey, don't cry... It's all right."

"I'm... I'm just so happy..." Michiru squeezed her hands together. "I 
mean, I'm really glad for you and all but... oh God, I'm finally going 
to meet her!"

"What do you mean by that?"

"Well, I saw her one day and... something just clicked. I was attracted 
right away. I've been following her since... I've never talked to her, 
she doesn't even know I exist... I've been so scared to approach her, 
she... she's gone through some rough times, but..."

Elza smiled. "Well, I'll be here to help you, don't worry." She gave her 
a quick hug.

"Thanks, Elza-chan! You're the best!"

"I am, aren't I?" she joked. "Say, I just realized, that name seems 
vaguely familiar... old neighbor of mine, perhaps... I dunno, maybe she 
played with my sister when they were little."

"What's your sister's name? I've never met your family."

"Cindy."

Michiru thought a moment. "Hmmm... that seems familiar, too... Her aunt 
mentioned a Cindy once."

"Well, maybe we'll re-introduce them, hmmm?"

"Yeah, she'd like that..."

Elza smiled at her and turned to leave her room. "C'mon, we have 
homework to do. I have a report to write, ugh! I'll see you later, ok?"

"Yeah, bye, Elza-chan."

Elza waved and said bye, then left. 

Michiru sighed and sat down on her bed. Thank God for Elza...

The phone rang and she picked it up, wondering who'd be calling her.

"Michiru-chan?"

"Yes... who is this?"

"Oh, this is Sunao. I thought you might be interested to know Haruka 
will be entering her first car race in a few days... want the details?"

"Of course!"

Michiru grabbed a paper and pen, frantically writing down the address 
and date. "Thank you, Sunao-san!"

"You're very welcome, Michiru-chan."

Michiru clapped her hands with excitement. Everything was working out, 
finally! She'd probably wait a few more weeks to meet Haruka, but it 
would be worth it!



**********



Dark red sky... shards of glass from the building cutting into my 
skin... can't breathe, too weak... pushed to the ground by the wind 
hitting me... blood running down my face... I look up... the girl... 
speaking, sad... "The Silence is approaching. We have to find the 
Messiah quickly. Only you and I can do this!" I try to cry out, what is 
the Silence, who is the Messiah? Why me?!

Haruka's eyes snapped open and she sat up tall in bed. She was trembling 
hard, sweating, unable to find her voice. The light came on and Sunao 
rushed in.

"Haruka, what's wrong?! I heard you scream..."

"S-sorry... I... I had a nightmare, that's all... I'll be fine..."

"You sure?"

"Yeah, it's all right, okaa-san... sorry I woke you up."

"It's ok... well, if you're sure you're fine... try to get back to 
sleep."

She shut off the light and left, gently shutting the door.

Haruka let out the breath she'd been holding and curled up into a ball. 
Damnit, why was she seeing these visions?! Same thing, over and over, 
only slight variations... She closed her eyes tight, trying to keep from 
remembering the images, the voice. It was so horrible, what could it 
possibly mean?

She stood shakily and turned on the television in her room, careful to 
keep the volume low. Maybe it would wear her out enough to sleep.

"--But I love you! Why did you fall for my twi--" Click. "C'mon down to 
Tomu's Cars--" Click. "We return to the late night movie--" Click, what 
was all this crap?

"In other news, citizens have reported seeing a mysterious group of 
girls calling themselves 'Sailor Senshi' in the area recently, following 
a wave of 'energy drains' to local residents, which may be linked to the 
strange meteor that fell last week. Witnesses to a recent attack say..."

Sailor Senshi... that name... strange, it seemed familiar... But she'd 
never heard of them before...

"The five, reportedly called 'Sailormoon', 'Sailormercury', 
'Sailorvenus', 'Sailormars', and 'Sailorjupiter', respectively, have 
rescued a number of people recently. It is unknown who they are or where 
they come from, or even why they're here... but Tokyo thanks these 
lovely heroines for the lives of many."

Haruka shut the television off and crawled into bed again. Something 
familiar about their clothing...

The girl in the vision had a suit on like theirs. Perhaps... another 
Senshi? But what did any of this have to do with Haruka?

Haruka yawned loudly and shut her eyes. Oh well... maybe now she 
wouldn't have the vision.



**********



Haruka woke up groggily, vainly reaching for the alarm clock that was 
out of her reach. She hadn't gotten used to the time school started, 
even though this was the fifth day of it. Goban Yobi-ko started earlier 
than her previous school had, and it annoyed her to no end. They seemed 
convinced that an early start somehow made them more alert.

She went into the kitchen and found a pot of coffee waiting, and her 
breakfast on the table. Sunao had to go to work just before Haruka woke 
up, but took time before leaving to make breakfast and coffee for her 
daughter.

Haruka sipped her coffee, and smiled to herself. Her first race was 
today ... oh, it was going to be so much fun! She'd be racing against 
Hayasa as well as some other men from the normal group, plus others she 
hadn't had the chance to race against. Some big names in racing would be 
there, and she couldn't wait. She smirked a bit. If only they knew they 
were racing a girl... she could imagine the looks on their faces when 
she beat them.

She walked to school, as always. She was never in a hurry; she left 
early so she'd have plenty of time. She smiled to some kids she 
recognized from class and track, and tried to avoid her "screaming 
fans," as she referred to them, trying to push gifts and bento on her. 
She tried to be nice to the poor, delusional girls, but no matter how 
many times she told them otherwise, they remained under the impression 
that "he" was interested in dating them, if they could only prove 
themselves better than the others. Haruka sighed; she wasn't interested 
in these crazy girls that only saw her as a handsome guy, she wanted 
someone that knew who she really was and wasn't ashamed of it.

She uttered a loud "ooof!" as someone accidentally bumped into her (she 
hoped it was accidental and not one of those girls trying to get her 
attention...)

"Oh my god, I'm so sorry!" the girl said.

"That's fine," Haruka said. "You hurt at all?"

"No, no, I'm ok... tripped over this stupid uneven pavement. I'm quite 
the klutz," she added, laughing a bit.

Hmmm, she seems familiar... "No harm done..."

"Do I know you?" the girl asked, looking at her quizzically. "You look 
vaguely like someone I knew when I was little... No no, you can't be..." 
she laughed loudly. "Oh, I'm so silly..."

"I was just thinking you looked familiar, too. I'm Ten'ou Haruka, you?"

The girl squealed and hugged her tight. Haruka pushed her off 
immediately, scared this girl, whoever she was, would notice her... 
extra assets.

"Haruka-chan! Just what do you think you're doing?" The girl frowned. 
"You don't know who I am, do you? It's me, Cindy Grey!"

"CINDY?!" Haruka stared at her, then laughed and hugged her. "My gosh, 
it really is you! I knew you looked familiar! You've certainly changed 
though... grew up cute," she teased with a wink.

Cindy chuckled. "Well, you certainly... didn't turn out like I 
expected." She looked around to make sure they were alone. "No offense 
or anything, but I swear, I thought you were a guy."

Haruka gave an embarrassed laugh. "Well, that's the whole point of the 
disguise..."

"Why are you... well, why do you want to look like a guy? Geez, I mean, 
you make a good-looking guy," she said, winking a bit, "but... why would 
you want to look like one?"

"Well... I... I'm trying to hide, actually... from my life, from some 
people... I don't want anyone to know who I really am, not yet."

"Well, they certainly won't know with you dressed like that! My opinion 
of you just dropped a notch."

Haruka flinched a bit. "Ouch! That was a cheap shot."

"Yeah, I know, I know... but geez, have you really thought this through? 
I mean, c'mon... you look like a cute guy, so all the girls are gonna 
flock to you, all the guys will think you're one of them... how will you 
ever get a date? Do you really want that?"

"Er..." Haruka blushed a bit, unsure of how to break it to her childhood 
friend... but then she remembered Cindy's interesting parents. "Cindy, 
actually I... well, let's just say, your mothers and I have something in 
common, hmmm?... You know what I mean?"

Cindy raised an eyebrow, then giggled. "Well! I guess the disguise 
_does_ work to your advantage then!"

Haruka laughed with her and they started walking again. "Well, I 
suppose... but not really. Those girls like me because they think I'm a 
guy. I want a girl who'll like me as a girl." 

"That makes perfect sense... but how are you going to manage that?"

"I have no idea, I didn't really think about that when I made this 
decision," she admitted. "But maybe one day I'll get lucky..."

"I hope you didn't mean 'get lucky' as in--"

"I didn't mean it like THAT!"

Cindy giggled and asked, "So, what have you been up to... besides the 
cross- dressing?"

"Oh hush!... Well, I've gotten into motor-sports now, and my first race 
is today!"

"Oh cool! I'll be sure to come, if there's still seats left."

"Heh heh, you do that... I joined the track team, but... eh, no real 
challenge. I need the P.E. credit though, and it gives me something to 
do."

"Track, huh? My sister races... She's heading towards the top, y'know... 
she's considered one of the best junior racers. Maybe you'll race her 
sometime."

"If she's part of our little group, I will. No offense or anything," she 
said, smiling a bit, "but no one can out-run me, _no one_."

"We'll see," Cindy said with a grin.

They exchanged phone numbers before they had to get off on different 
floors for their homerooms.

Ah, it was a beautiful day... Haruka smiled and sat back to wait for the 
bell to ring.



Michiru was running a bit late for school, so she left the house without 
breakfast. She'd never been tardy before, and she didn't want to start. 
Her siblings had all left ahead of her, leaving her with no one to hurry 
off with. Her parents had gone to luck, so there was no one to drive 
her. She groaned a bit and picked up her pace. The day had started out 
bad... But she was going to watch Haruka's first race today, so it 
couldn't be all bad... 

A cold shiver went down her spine. The sea was restless... No, no, she 
was just paranoid, there wasn't going to be a--

She heard a sound she'd never forgotten, and dreaded to hear. The scream 
of a daimon...

Damnit! Not now! She was going to be late!... But she couldn't just turn 
her back and ignore it. She had a duty... And she'd be damned if she 
turned her back on it.

There was no one around to see her. She transformed in record time, and 
just in the nick of time as well, for the daimon soon ripped its way 
through the hedges. It trained its eyes on her, and leapt to attack.

Neptune didn't have time to use her powers, so she dodged it, then 
brought back her arm and slammed her elbow hard into the top of its 
head. The daimon howled with rage and whirled around to face her again.

"Deep Submerge!"

Energy collided with flesh, and a ripple went through the daimon, before 
the form of a boy in a red and green school uniform appeared and 
collapsed on the ground.

Neptune gasped for air, stumbling over to the boy, then made sure he was 
alive. 

He was fine... but what could she do now?

Hmmm... they were both going to be late now, but she had her enhanced 
speed as Neptune... she decided she'd carry him to her school, 
detransform, and explain that she'd found him lying on the ground and 
just had to help, didn't know what school he went to... that's why she 
was late. Attacks from strange supernatural beings weren't exactly 
uncommon in Tokyo, and well, as for heroes...

Neptune chuckled as she ran with the boy in her arms. The Inner Senshi 
were awakened, and she knew they were fighting enemies out there. They'd 
become the fascination of the local media, the saviors of the meek, 
the...

God, she really needed to get more sleep.

She found a place to detransform, then struggled a bit to carry the boy, 
his bag, and hers at the same time. He seemed much heavier now that she 
was a normal girl again.

A school official ran outside when he saw her. He came over and took the 
boy from her. "What happened here?"

"I came across him on the way to school... he'd been attacked..."

"Thank you very much, young lady. You just might have saved his life."

She felt a cold feeling in her heart as she looked down at him...

I almost took his life... if the daimons can't be restored to a human 
when we finish battling them...

"I-I suppose I did."

"Here, take this pass and go to class. A situation like this shouldn't 
be counted as a tardy, hmm? We'll get him back to Mugen Gakuen right 
away."

Michiru slowly trudged towards the elevator. Why was she stuck fighting 
alone? Who knew when Uranus would awaken, and the Inner Senshi... they 
were separate from her... they had different obligations... 

But what were hers exactly? Pluto was never very clear about them...

"Pluto... if you can hear me... Please..."

Pluto's image shimmered in front of her. "I'm sorry I can't appear 
directly to you, but I cannot leave the Gate, not now."

"Why not?"

"There's--" her image rippled a bit, "a group trying to break through 
right now... I must--" It disappeared, then reappeared. "I hope you 
don't have anything important as your next class, because--" shimmer, 
"you'll have a vision that will explain every--"

The image disappeared, and Pluto's voice with it.

The elevator made a "ting" sound at that moment, and Michiru slowly 
stepped off into the hallway. She went to her classroom, gave her 
teacher the pass, and took her seat. Some of her classmates looked at 
her with amusement.

"What happened to being _perfect_?" someone hissed.

"Ooo, little musician can't get to class on time..."

"Stayed up too late working on your CD, huh? Guess we're too good for 
y--"

"Shut the hell up," she said between clenched teeth.

"Oooooo..."

"Excuse me," the teacher called out loudly. "The discussion going on 
back there needs to end, _now_." He then went back to his lecture.

Michiru sat back in his seat while he rattled off math, and closed her 
eyes. She could feel herself slipping into a dream-like state, and 
welcomed it.

It was as if she was back on the Moon, the Silver Millennium. Everything 
looked as it once did, the palace, the courtyard...

"Sailorneptune," a voice called out.

"I'm here," she said. She looked down at herself and noticed she was 
wearing her fuku. "Who's there?"

A woman walked up, smiling gently at her. Neptune was amazed at her 
appearance. Her eyes and hair were silvery in color, a gold crescent 
moon was in the center of her forehead, and her hair was pulled into two 
buns on either side of her head, with a long trail of hair spilling from 
each. Her white gown was simple, but elegant; sleeveless, fitted in 
places, with a bow of sorts in the front. She walked with a regal 
bearing, and there was something about her...

She fell to one knee and lowered her face. "My Queen," she murmured, 
filled with awe.

"Please... that was long ago. The time for formal titles has past."

"Queen Serenity... I..."

"Walk with me."

Neptune nodded and rose to her feet, unable to refuse her. This woman 
was the ruler of the Silver Millennium, heir to the Moon Kingdom, and...

"My Queen, what happened to the ginzuishou?"

Queen Serenity laughed a bit. "What a thing to ask! It's been so long, 
and that's the first thing that comes to mind?"

Neptune felt her cheeks flush with embarrassment. "I'm sorry, I... my 
mind seems at odds with itself sometimes, all these memories... I don't 
quite know why I do things sometimes."

"That's all right... As for the ginzuishou, my daughter has it now."

"The princess was safely reborn?"

"Yes, and..." Queen Serenity smiled sadly. "My little Serenity is now a 
Senshi, fighting alongside her old court."

Neptune's eyebrows raised in alarm. "But... the Inner Senshi were her 
protectors! She is... she is one of them now?"

"Yes, she is Sailormoon now. The power of the ginzuishou is now in her 
hands..."

"I never really understood the ginzuishou..."

"Well, there's not much known about it... it is hard to explain to 
someone who hasn't used it. The ginzuishou gives you the power to do so 
much good! To heal, to create, and it is made even more useful when 
combined with special wands and staffs... but... it can be deadly, if 
you try to do too much with it..." Queen Serenity looked away from her, 
and stopped walking.

"My Queen... if... if it isn't too painful to tell... how did you die?"

"I used all my remaining energy when I sent everyone to the future. The 
ginzuishou took too much out of me..."

Neptune gasped in shock. "Pluto... she never told me that..."

"Pluto is hard-pressed in her tasks, I'm afraid. She can't explain it 
all herself..." She turned to face Neptune again. "Which is why you are 
here with me. I need to explain what it _really_ means to be an Outer 
Senshi... and what your mission is now."

"The Outer Senshi are comprised of you, obviously, Pluto, Uranus, and... 
you'll discover that later. You three are the important ones for now. 
During the Silver Millennium, the Inner Senshi were the guardians of my 
daughter. They protected her from attack. The Outer Senshi guarded 
against outside invasions, a much larger task. Because of this, you were 
given stronger powers. You didn't interact with the Inner Senshi often; 
there was no need. You weren't meant to; you had separate duties. I wish 
that we'd thought to train you to work together, though...

"That's beside the point. You've been awakened now because you have 
something important to do... something that will ultimately lead to the 
destruction of Earth or its salvation.

"The Inner Senshi are busy fighting their own battle, but a new enemy is 
quickly building its forces. You have fought some, yes? The 'daimons'... 
these are the work of a group calling themselves the 'Deathbusters'. 
They want to take this world for their own, for their master. To do 
this, they need the power of an item known as the Holy Grail.

"The Holy Grail can be used for either good or evil. The power it can 
give is almost unsurpassed. Both good and evil have a Messiah in this 
battle, a Messiah of Light, and a Messiah of Dark. If the Messiah of 
Dark should gain the power of the Holy Grail, we are doomed. We need to 
get the Holy Grail and give it to the Messiah of Light.

"In order for us to have the Holy Grail, we must find the three 
Talismans. These are sealed within people with pure hearts. Those with 
pure hearts have a special crystal inside them, their 'heart crystal'. 
Three people have heart crystals that contain Talismans. You must find 
these people and retrieve the Talismans at all costs.

"The enemy is developing technology that can extract heart crystals. Be	
on the watch, and be prepared to fight many daimons in order to gain	
access to the heart crystals yourselves.

"You will know the Talismans when you see them. Do not be too frantic 
worrying about when the Deathbusters will move to find them; your 
partner will awaken before then. But be prepared."

Neptune trembled and had to lean on a column for support. "This... this 
is our mission?"

"Yes."

"The fate of the world..." Neptune felt hot tears sting her eyes. All 
this responsibility, the lives of everyone...

"I... I must warn you... if the heart crystal is away from a person's 
body too long, they will die. Therefore, if someone's heart crystal is a 
Talisman--"

"They will die." Neptune shut her eyes tight. "I understand..."

"Do you accept this mission?"

"I do." Not like I have a choice.

"Good luck... Michiru." Queen Serenity hugged her. "Good luck."



Michiru lifted her head from her desk when she heard the bell ring for 
the end of class. Some kids gave her odd looks as they left. Her teacher 
called her to his desk.

"Kaiou-san, in the future, please do not fall asleep in my class. I 
understand you've had a rough morning, but... you're my best student, 
and you need to set an example, all right?"

"Yes, sensei, it won't happen again," she said, bowing to him before 
leaving.



At lunch, she went over to sit by Elza as usual. Elza grinned widely at 
her. "Hey, Michiru-chan! Hope you don't mind that I brought my sister 
today."

The girl next to her smiled and waved. She looked a lot like Elza, with 
the same red hair and hazel eyes, but she was paler and wore her wavy 
hair long.

"Nice to meet you," Michiru said.

"Nice to meet you, too," Cindy said. "I can't believe we never met 
before."

"Well, that's Elza's fault," Michiru said, winking teasingly at Elza.

Elza chuckled a bit. "Hey, my family usually isn't around!"

"We are too," Cindy said, "you just aren't around when we're around."

"Oh, phooey..."

"You are both nuts," Michiru said with a smile.

"Yep," they said at the same time.

Michiru laughed and pulled her lunch out. It was nice to have another 
person to talk to for once. Elza was her best friend, her only real 
friend, and she was glad to have her, but sometimes she wanted to talk 
to more people than just her. Elza usually sat alone as well; people 
were nervous around her due to her growing fame. Now people were 
avoiding Michiru more than usual, as well, what with her great success 
in music and her CD having just come out.

"I just got your CD," Cindy said, eyes twinkling. "It's really 
incredible. I loved 'Windsong' the best."

"Really?" It was a song she'd composed about Haruka.

"Yeah, I _love_ your music... Elza's mentioned you before as being her 
friend, but I hadn't gotten the chance to meet you... This is so cool! 
Anyways, I'll be there for tomorrow's performance. I can't wait!... Hope 
I'm not acting too much like a crazy fan," she said with a laugh.

"That hasn't happened yet," Michiru said. 

A boy suddenly ran over to the table. "A-are you Kaiou Michiru?!"

Elza and Cindy giggled behind their hands, and Michiru said slowly, 
"Yes, why?"

He thrust a pen and paper out at her. "C-could I have your autograph?"

Michiru blinked several times, then took the pen and paper, asked his 
name, and wrote a brief message.

"Oh, thank you so much!" he said, bowing deeply to her, then racing off 
again.

"You were saying, Michiru-chan?" Elza said, bursting out laughing.

"Ha ha, funny, Elza. So, Cindy... um, what else has Elza-chan said about 
me?"

"Michiru-chan!" Elza seemed shocked. "You think I'd talk bad about you 
behind your back or something?"

"Of course not! I'm just wondering whether I need to inform her of 
certain things or if you mentioned them."

"Er..."

Cindy cut in, "Well, she knows that I was good friends when I was 
younger with someone you're interested in, so she mentioned that... She 
thought I might be able to help... And I actually ran into this person 
on the way to school today and exchanged phone numbers."

"Oh, wow, that would be great if you could... I mean, I'm still going to 
have Elza-chan introduce us--"

"Me and my great people skills!" Elza said, sticking out her tongue and 
winking.

"Hush, silly. Later, though, if... this person acts stubborn, I could 
use some help from a mutual friend."

"All right, that'll be fine with me," Cindy smiled widely. "So, you know 
a lot about this person, right? How have things been lately?"

"I..." Michiru considered just what to say. "Things... have been very 
bad. Hard times... Sunao-san had them move out into an apartment... 
Katai," Michiru spat the name, "was a real jerk."

"Oh boy, was he ever!" Cindy agreed. "I remember going over to the house 
and him telling me to leave, or not letting us play together... What an 
asshole! Well, I'm glad they moved away from him. I would if I was stuck 
with him."

"Yeah..."

Kirei popped up behind them and shouted, "Boo!" 

Elza and Cindy jumped a bit, not expecting someone to be there.

"Um, hi, onee-chan," Michiru said. Strange, she had known Kirei was 
there, and that it was her, before she said anything. "What brings you 
over here?"

"You wanted to go to that race tonight, right?"

"Yes..."

"And you weren't sure about ticket availability?"

"... Yes..."

Kirei grinned shyly and handed her two papers. Michiru's eyes widened as 
she took them from her. "Tickets for it?"

"I thought you would like them..."

"Thank you, onee-chan!" Michiru said, standing to hug her sister. 
Stepping back, she asked, "Why two?"

"Cuz I'm going too," Kirei said with a wink. "Chance to catch up, and 
plus... heh heh, there's this cute racer named Hayasa Erai..."

"Oh, an ulterior motive!" Michiru joked.

"Hey!... Well, Kanpeki said Murasaki-chan's friends with him... everyone 
calls him Hayasa instead of Erai... I was thinking--"

"Oh brother... or should I say sister..."

"You're so _funny_, Michiru," Kirei teased. "Well, I gotta be going... 
the silly clique thing, y'know? It really gets old, you're lucky to 
escape it..."

"Bye, Kirei."

"Bye, Michiru... and, uh, you two. I don't know you... oh well, bye 
all."

After Kirei had left, Elza commented, "I always thought your family was 
odd."

"Be quiet, Elza. At least she's trying to get along, unlike my parents, 
and of course Suteki..."

"Good point."

"Well, I really need to eat--"

"Oh yeah! Food!" Cindy smacked her forehead. "C'mon, little miss track 
star, need to keep your energy up."

Elza blew a raspberry at her, then they all began to eat.



At the end of the day, Haruka made sure she reminded Bofu that she 
wouldn't be going to be at practice, then went straight to the race 
track. She could feel her heart pounding with excitement. It was still 
early, and the race wouldn't be for a few hours, but she wanted to be 
there anyways.

Engi waved and smiled to her as she walked into the garage. "Well, 
Haruka- chan, you ready for tonight's debut?"

"You bet I am!" Haruka punched her fist into her palm. "I'm going to 
kick some serious ass!"

"Don't get cocky," he warned. "Go out there aiming to do a great job, 
and be happy if you do win, but don't be mad if you don't place first, 
ok?"

Haruka winked. "I'll be a bit disappointed, but hey, it's my first 
time."

"Can't win 'em all."

Haruka laughed and said, "Well, once I start making first place, I'll 
probably expect to."

Engi chuckled a bit and said, "I know what that's like... I used to 
race, you know. But I'm getting too old for this now. I'll let all the 
young guys-- and girls-- have all the glory and fame."

"I didn't realize you'd raced!"

"How'd you think I know so much about cars and racing them?"

"Uh... er... I don't know. I never thought about that." Haruka scratched 
her head, then looked around a bit. "Hey, where's everyone?"

"Some of them are getting off work still. Others, I don't know. Probably 
being lazy, don't feel like showing up yet. I've seen several cars that 
could use some last-minute tune-ups, but there's no one around yet. Too 
cocky." He shook his head. "You should always show up really early. Good 
habit."

"How's my car?"

"Why don't you take a look at her yourself?" Engi led her to the sleek 
red car she drove. "Unless there's been a change since yesterday, she's 
doing fine."

Haruka smiled. "Good. Man, I love this car!" She ran her hand along it, 
and commented, "Once I get a good amount of money racing, enough to help 
pay for school and things, I want to get my own car to drive around."

"The legal driving age is--"

"Yeah, yeah, so what if it's 18, I love driving and damnit, I'm going to 
drive! Besides, I could get a motorcycle license pretty soon... I'll 
turn 16 in the next school year..."

"Think you'd even want a motorcycle?"

"Why not? I'd like to try them sometime."

"Hmmm... that reminds me, you could try racing dirt bikes and things 
sometime."

"Let me enjoy F1 for now," she said, grinning, "but eventually I'll move 
on to other things as well."

"Good! I'd hate to see you waste all your skill on one thing." Engi 
quickly glanced over her car, then said, "Will your mother be coming to 
watch?"

"Yes, and my aunt, too, and maybe an old friend of mine."

"It'll be nice to have people you know be here."

"Yeah."

Someone rapped their knuckles against the door as they came in. Haruka 
looked to see Hayasa there, an amused look on his face. "Pizza 
delivery," he called, holding out a few boxes. "Thought we should have 
something to eat... Where is everyone?"

"Not here."

"Always the comedian, Haruka," he said dryly. "Well, they'd better get 
here soon. I didn't buy all these pizzas for no reason."

"Money out of your own pocket, Erai-kun?" Engi teased.

"Don't call me that! Yeah, I paid for it myself. Got the money, don't 
I?"

"I'll call you whatever I feel like, boy," Engi said, throwing a rag at 
him. "Now come on, let's eat. The others can join in once they get here. 
Oh, and Haruka," he turned towards her, "go ahead and get your fire suit 
on. We don't need to broadcast your gender to everyone. Some of the guys 
you'll race with are jerks that will report you just as soon as look at 
you." 

"Gotcha." Haruka went into a backroom and changed. She glanced at the 
clock and sighed bitterly. Hurry up and be time! She wanted to race 
right that moment, not wait. She didn't care that she still had to sit 
through the time trials, either. Just being in her car, driving it on 
the track was enough.

She wobbled a bit on her feet and had to sit down. Damnit, a vision 
coming... seemingly the same as always, and once it was over, she 
noticed someone was knocking on the door.

"Haruka-chan, you all right in there?" Engi called.

"Fine."

"Ok, you're just taking longer than usual. Sure you're ok? Pre-race 
jitters maybe?"

"I said I'm fine." What in the world... the vision was usually short, 
why would it be longer? It seemed the same... Oh well.

She opened the door with a smile. "Well, what are we waiting for? Let's 
eat!"



Michiru practically dragged Kirei by the arm to the race track. Kirei 
told her they had all the time in the world, but Michiru insisted on 
getting there at least half an hour early.

Michiru was excited to see they had front-row seats. Michiru looked 
around the stadium to see who else might be there. Murasaki and Kanpeki 
were several seats over, sitting with Sunao and Teinei. Kanpeki was 
coughing and fanning her face; she hated exhaust fumes. Teinei noticed 
Michiru and waved, then nudged Sunao. Sunao gave her a huge smiled, 
making Michiru quite glad. She had Sunao's approval to pursue her 
daughter, and it thrilled Michiru to know that at least one of them 
wouldn't have difficulties with their parents over the situation. Elza 
and Cindy were a few more rows back from that, and two women were with 
them, one a red-head and the other with black hair. Michiru assumed 
those were her parents; the red- head must be their real mom.

"Eeeee! There's Hayasa-san, walking on the edge of the track! Ohhh, he's 
so cute even from here! Ahhh! He's coming this way!"

"Calm down, Kir--"

"You know you'll just leap from your seat when Haruka walks out!" Kirei 
teased, smiling at her. "Let me have my fun."

Hayasa walked over to the fence in front of where Murasaki sat. They 
talked a bit, then Kanpeki pointed over to where the sisters sat. Hayasa 
smiled and winked. Kirei squealed with excitement, then shrieked as he 
walked over.

"Your sister tells me you wanted to meet me?"

"Yes, yes, I did! Hi!"

"Hi there. What's your name?"

"Kirei! Kaiou Kirei!"

Hayasa took her hand and kissed it lightly. "A pleasure to meet you."

Michiru chuckled as Kirei swooned.

"Ah, Kanpeki's triplet. Nice to meet you... what brings _you_ here?" he 
asked Michiru.

Michiru smiled a bit, then said, "I'm here to see a new racer."

"Ah, Ten'ou Haruka, perhaps?"

"Yes, you know he-- um, _him_?" Michiru almost slipped and said 'her', 
then realized Haruka might not have revealed her gender to the other 
racers.

Hayasa raised an eyebrow. "Yes, I know... him. We're good friends, 
actually, racing buddies." He leaned forward a bit. "You know more about 
Haruka than the others here, I assume. You almost slipped."

"Yes, I know her... she doesn't know me." Michiru inwardly smacked 
herself. What was she telling him this for?!

"Ahh, well then, I won't mention this to her..." He then winked at Kirei 
as he said, "But I'll just have to mention _this_ cutie I met. Maybe 
she'll be jealous that I met a pretty girl and she didn't."

Kirei blushed and giggled.

"Maybe we'll see each other again sometime? Just get Kanpeki-chan to 
tell Murasaki-chan... those two are joined at the hip! Murasaki's a good 
friend of mine, so she'll pass it on."

"Sure! Thank you!" Kirei waved to him. "Good luck!"

"Thanks, bye." 

Kirei sighed softly as he left. "This has to be the best thing that's 
happened to me in a long time. Wow, was he ever nice!"

"Yes, he was."

"Such a gentleman, too! Kissing my hand even..."

Michiru smiled. "He's older than you, you know."

"Not by much! Just a couple years."

"Do you like older men?"

"Not too much older, but yes. I don't want some dork whose voice still 
cracks. I want him to be more mature, but still fun."

"You have rather specific tastes!"

"Well, don't we all?"

They looked out to the track, where the time trials were starting to 
wind down. Some silly advertisement played on the screen. They started 
showing some pictures of the regular racers, then mentioned the "first 
race of Ten'ou Haruka, the youngest racer out here! Last year of junior 
high at Goban Yobi-ko. Heading for his time trial now."

Girls started screaming as they saw Haruka emerge from the garage. 
Michiru sat up in her seat.

"Whoa... if I didn't know she was really a girl, _damn_!"

"She does pull it off, I just don't know how... You'd think she was flat 
and had no hips, but that's not true... You should see her in her 
pajamas."

"_Michiru_! I would _not_ enjoy that!... You didn't watch her _undress_, 
did you?"

"NO!! God, I'm not a pervert, Kirei-chan!"

Kirei breathed a sigh of relief. "Ok, good. Had me worried there a 
moment..."

They sat back and watched their respective racers get into their cars. 
Haruka was the last trial, and after that, the race would begin.



Haruka breezed through the time trial, taking things leisurely, for her. 
She wanted to impress everyone by being a new racer that had some speed 
going, but still start far enough back to make things interesting. When 
she finished, they told her she'd be starting tenth. She got out of her 
car to get a last drink of water and stretch.

Hayasa finished up his time trial fourth, then came over to her. 
"Haruka-san, I know you can do better than that! Tenth!"

"Relax," she said. "It wouldn't be any challenge if I started first."

"You're a nut, Haruka-san. You better start first next race."

He stopped as someone came over to tell them to get back into their 
cars. Everyone else started revving their engines and getting ready to 
start.

"Good luck, Hayasa-kun!" Haruka shouted over the roar of engines.

"You too, Haruka-san!" he returned, winking as he gave her a thumbs-up 
sign.

Haruka slipped into her car, adrenaline already pumping through her 
veins. This was it. Her big moment. Suddenly, the helmet she pulled on 
didn't seem so constricting, the fire suit so hot and stuffy, her hands 
in her gloves so constricting, the fumes so nauseating, her starting 
place so far back. It all lead up to the race, the speed, the 
excitement.

She placed her hands on the wheel, anxious for the start. The sound of 
the engine seemed to beg to be put to work. Some people waved to her, 
and she waved back. She gripped the wheel. Come on, come on, come on...

Finally, they announced the beginning of the race. The lights came on. 
Ready, set...

The light changed, and the cars started moving at once. Haruka quickly 
pulled in front of a few cars that were near her, flooring the pedal to 
shoot ahead. Despite the shielding and her clothing, she could feel the 
wind perfectly. She felt herself move at speeds she could never hope to 
reach on her own. She easily turned a corner, noticing out of the corner 
of her eye that some other racers had bumped into each other trying the 
same corner.

Ah, here we go... Hayasa wasn't that far ahead of her now, with only a 
few cars between them. She waited for her chance, then pulled in front 
of the car just in front of her. This seemed to surprise the man now 
ahead of her. He didn't react as he should have, and she pulled in front 
of him as well. A long straight-away, this was where she was best. It 
didn't take much effort to pull right behind Hayasa. She smirked a bit, 
enjoying the speed she'd reached. There was a bend up ahead, and she 
prepared to turn. The man behind her was getting in position to try and 
pass her, and she noted that as she rounded it. She moved to block him, 
then noticed Hayasa was far enough away for her to safely pull in front 
of him as well.

Two more to go, and she'd be in first...



Everyone was standing up, screaming. Michiru felt excited for Haruka-- 
here she was, the new racer, and she was in third already! Kirei was 
screaming to, at Hayasa to regain his position.

"Wow, that new guy's great!" Michiru overheard someone say.

"And he's hot, too!"

Michiru smiled to herself, and went back to watching the race.



Haruka carefully edged closer to the car in front of her. He was being 
rather difficult, and she couldn't get ahead of him quite yet. He was no 
coward; others had moved out of the way, fearing a crash, but he just 
kept going, not backing down.

He would make a mistake. They always did.

There it was! He tried to pull in front of the first place racer, and 
had to fall back a bit when he couldn't get around. Haruka swerved out 
to the side, then shot in front of both of them. Her heart was pounding 
in her ears, and inside she was screaming in delight. She kept picking 
up speed, intent on widening the gap between her and the other racers. A 
quick glance revealed the audience on their feet, apparently screaming, 
from the sight of all the open mouths.

She completed the first lap with ease. She was intent on keeping her 
speed, but knew she'd have to slow for the turns. She checked to see how 
much distance she had between her and the others. Good, she could be 
cautious and not have to worry about them gaining too much. Heck, she 
could make a pit stop or two without losing her position.

It was a breeze to keep ahead of them all throughout all the laps. She 
lapped some people. She stopped to change tires and get some more fuel. 
The other racers posed no challenge. When she neared the finish line the 
final time, Hayasa had pulled into second, and was getting close. She 
quickly checked her fuel gauge, then decided to go all-out for the 
finish. Pressing the pedal down hard, she shot off full speed for the 
finish line.

Everything seemed to slow in her mind. She could see it coming. She felt 
a brush of wind against her cheek. Pressure pushed against her from the 
speed. Fans were screaming, jumping up in the air. The other racers 
moved farther and farther behind. There it was, coming closer, closer...

She literally shouted as she crossed it, well ahead of everyone else.



"HARUKA WON!!" Michiru screamed.

"Hayasa-kun got second!" Kirei added. 

They were both shrieking in excitement, then they hugged each other 
tightly on impulse.

"I can't believe it!" Michiru said. "She did it!"

"Hush, let's see what happens now."



Everyone finally slowed to a stop. Haruka leapt from the car, ripping 
her helmet from her head as Hayasa and Engi ran over to her.

"You did it!" Engi shouted, slapping her on the back enthusiastically, 
then pulling her in for a fatherly hug.

Hayasa gave her a high five and winked. "Beginner's luck," he teased as 
he gave her a bear hug.

"Sure it was!" Haruka laughed, throwing her arms up in the air, her head 
back. A gust of wind hit her at that moment, blowing her hair from her 
face. She closed her eyes, enjoying it. This is what she lived for. The 
speed, the rush, just like the wind, closer than any other human could 
be. She could hear it, feel it, taste it. And it was happy for her.

Hayasa grabbed her arm and dragged her to collect her trophy and prize 
money. Haruka paused a moment to wave and wink to all the screaming 
girls, then followed him.

The trophy was beautiful, the amount of money staggering. She couldn't 
believe her eyes. She got all this for having the time of her life?

Cameras were snapping pictures left and right, reporters trying to push 
their way towards her, video cameras rolling. Haruka caught a glimpse of 
Sunao's face, bobbing through the crowd, trying to get through.

"Okaa-san!" she shouted, waving. That got them to let her by. Sunao 
rushed over and hugged her tightly, and she seemed close to tears.

"Oh Haruka, that was wonderful. I'm so proud of you!"

"Thank you, okaa-san," she murmured.

This was truly the best thing that had ever happened to her.



**********



Michiru sighed gratefully as she stepped into the hot shower. Three 
weeks had passed since she saw Haruka race for the first time. She'd 
raced every week since, and Michiru made sure to go every time. She 
always started and placed first. The media was going nuts about her, 
plastering her face on magazines, newspapers, and television stories.

Michiru was having her own share of fame. Her CD was selling fast, and 
her performances were selling out. She performed every Saturday night, 
and again Sunday afternoon. People asked for her to play on Fridays, but 
she declined... after all, she had to watch Haruka race.

The daimon attacks were getting more frequent now, averaging two a week. 
Michiru was terrified. They were getting harder to fight, and she knew 
they'd just get worse. She needed Uranus's help. She needed it quickly.

Michiru shivered with excitement. Today was the day. Today she would 
meet Haruka face to face. Her face burned whenever she thought about it. 
What a way to start a new week. She didn't know how she'd make it 
through the day.

The sea was calm. Thank goodness; she wouldn't have to worry about a 
daimon spoiling things. Everything was going to be ok. Everything would 
be great.

She stepped out of the shower to dress for school. It was going to be 
ok. It had to be.



Haruka woke up screaming again. She stumbled out of bed into the 
kitchen. Thank God Sunao wasn't here to question her about it. The 
visions were more and more frequent now, not just every few days, but 
sometimes a few times a day. It had interfered with the start of a race 
the other day, but she managed to recover. She almost collapsed while 
running in her first track meet because of a vision, but somehow her 
body knew to keep moving, just going with the wind.

The wind... every few days now, she could feel it's uneasiness in the 
way it would rustle. She didn't know why she did, or how, but somehow it 
happened.

She had a track meet today. Maybe she could sort things out then. 
Running gave her time to think while letting her enjoy the company of 
the wind.

Was something going to happen today? The wind was being strange...



Finally, the school day was over! Michiru rushed to meet Elza and walk 
with her to the track for her meet. Elza would be racing Haruka, and 
would introduce her afterwards. Elza still remained confident she would 
win. Michiru knew otherwise.

She held her sketchbook in hand. Stay calm, Michiru. Just ask her to 
pose for a painting. Simple. If you have to, mention the wind... that 
will get her attention. She'll realize you aren't just some ordinary 
girl.

She sighed and sat to wait for the race to end.



Haruka stretched a lot, as usual, to make sure she didn't injure 
herself. A lot of kids were racing today, some she'd raced with before, 
others were new.

There was a cute girl with red hair racing by her. Haruka vaguely 
recognized her as a top racer. Haruka wasn't intimidated. The girl 
looked over at her, and said, "Hello there."

"Hi. Haven't raced you before."

"I haven't ran here in awhile. Been busy."

"Well, I always look forward to racing someone that's supposed to be 
unbeatable. You do realize I'm going to win?" Haruka questioned as she 
stood up tall, ending her stretching.

The vision hit her when she stopped stretching. For some reason, the 
girl in it seemed sadder than usual. When she came out of it, the 
red-head commented to her, "I've heard you're fast, but I'm not going to 
lose."

Haruka smirked a bit. "Oh really? Why's that?"

"I'm Elza Grey, and I lose to no one!"

They took up their starting positions. The gun shot rang out, and 
everyone took off. Some kids tried to get an early lead, others were 
saving energy for the end.

Elza wanted an early lead. Maybe she could last the whole race, if she 
got it.

Haruka took the early lead. She would definitely last the whole race.

Haruka ran effortlessly, as always. Elza was struggling hard, trying to 
keep up and get ahead. Haruka didn't give her full effort. A track meet 
wasn't worth it. It was easily won without going all out.

Haruka crossed the finish line and slowed to a stop. Elza finished 
second, breathing hard, a disappointed look on her face. Haruka didn't 
bother to stick around long. People congratulated her as she walked 
away. She went over to where the runners kept their bags and things, and 
pulled her racing clothes on over her track clothes. What a boring day. 
She couldn't wait to leave.

She heard footsteps approaching. Two people... hmmm... Who could that 
be? One hesitated, the other came forward.

Elza. She smiled and said, "Ten'ou Haruka! I've heard your reputation. 
You're really great." She paused briefly, then said, "There's someone 
I'd like you to meet. Come on, Michiru!"

Haruka fought to keep her jaw from dropping. She barely noticed Elza 
saying, "This is Kaiou Michiru. She is extremely intelligent and a 
brilliant painter. She really wants to meet you."

Really wants to meet _me_? This gorgeous girl? ... Lord Almighty, she 
was the most beautiful girl Haruka had ever seen. She had incredible 
deep blue eyes, soft but inviting; wavy seagreen hair that fell around 
her shoulders, held black with a black headband; full lips that looked 
so soft and sweet; a delicate chin and high cheekbones; small but 
elegant hands; a bit taller than average, slender, well-developed, quite 
feminine in appearance; wearing the school uniform, but looking much 
cuter in it than anyone else did. She was clasping a sketchbook in front 
of her, head lowered, having closed her eyes, a blush just barely 
flushing her cheeks. Haruka's heart pounded at the sight of her, and she 
felt her blood heat up. She was attracted to her immediately. She wanted 
to get to know her... she _wanted_ her. When Elza finished speaking, she 
opened her eyes and stepped forward.

She spoke, the voice of an angel, so sweet and kind, "You didn't break a 
sweat. I think you were holding back. Right?"

"What do you mean?" She could tell? 

Michiru tilted her head slightly, a sly grin appearing on her face. "You 
can hear the wind rustling, can't you?"

WHAT?! All traces of nonchalance were erased from her face and her eyes 
shot open. She stared hard at Michiru, who stared right back, but her 
gaze was wistful, taking her in, while Haruka's was one of horror. 

What... how... And suddenly, a sharp chill went through her. Oh no, no, 
it couldn't be... but gazing at Michiru, hearing what she said... this 
was the girl in the vision. The girl begging her to join her mission... 
to leave her life, to risk it for some strange cause. To give up all 
she'd worked for... all she'd tried to accomplish, to fight, be hurt, 
and maybe die. To make her life a living hell all over again, but this 
time it would be willingly.

Haruka felt like something in her had died. How could fate be so cruel? 
To give her a girl she was dying to be with, but place this price on 
being close to her.

How could she just give up her new life for her?

Fighting back her tears, she tried to sound and look disinterested and 
cold. She grabbed her bag up, slinging it over her shoulder. "You're 
strange," she said, turning away. "So, want do you want of me?"

She looked over her shoulder to see Michiru as she said in an excited 
tone, "Would you be a model for my painting?" Her voice left no doubt as 
to what she was feeling for Haruka.

Haruka's heart skipped a beat. No... Even worse, this girl was 
interested in her as well. "Pass! I don't like that kind of thing." I 
don't like that kind of thing, but I like _you_...

She could sense Michiru's pain, the hopes she'd crush. Her eyes 
threatened to brim over with tears as she walked away from Michiru.

God... I hate you. I hate you for doing this to me.



Michiru's head sagged, and she just stood there trembling, her face 
unreadable except for the tears welling in her eyes. She swallowed hard 
and turned to Elza.

"Michiru?... Are... Are you all right?"

"I'm fine," Michiru said, her voice carefully controlled. "I-It's just a 
minor set-back. She's probably just... just stressed from all that's 
happening. I'll talk to her again some other time. I'm fine..."

"Michiru, you look pale--"

"I'm fine," Michiru said again. Her knuckles were turning white from her 
grip on her sketchbook. "I'm going home now. I'll see you later."

"If you're sure... I'll see you."

Michiru calmly walked away from the track. Elza watched her leave, then 
turned away. 

When Michiru was sure no one could see her, she ran. She'd never run so 
fast in her life. She'd never felt this hopeless. She'd never felt this 
much pain.

How could she do this to me?! How could this happen to me?! After all 
these months, after all this waiting, all this time... she just gives me 
the brush off?!

She cried out as she stumbled and fell. She had run into her backyard, 
lay near the lake. She felt the sea share her agony. The waters cried 
with her. She screamed, tearing up the grass. 

I love her... I love her so much.... and she doesn't care.

She shook all over, racked with sobs. Ki ran outside to see what the 
commotion was, followed by the other children.

Ki tried to go to her, but Kirei and Kanpeki got there first. Kanpeki 
sat her up, hugging her tightly, and Kirei motioned for Genki to pick 
her up. She made Ki step aside as they carried Michiru up to her room.

How can I go on? How can I complete my mission, knowing she doesn't 
care? How can it be completed at all, if I don't have my partner?

"Michiru... please... stop crying," Kanpeki pleaded. "Please... you need 
to calm down."

Michiru pushed her away, crying out, "Leave me alone! Get away from me!"

"What happened?" Kirei asked softly. "I thought you were meeting Haru--"

"LEAVE ME ALONE!"

Kirei flinched, then bit her lip and left. Genki gave her a hug, then 
led Kanpeki out with him, shutting and locking the door.

Michiru lay back in her bed, too weak to move. She closed her eyes and 
tried to ignore the pain. She couldn't stop sobbing, and ended up 
coughing violently. She couldn't breathe, and she doubled over from the 
effort. Gasping, coughing harder, she ran for her bathroom and threw up.

She lay on the floor in there afterwards, not wanting to move. She 
struggled to stand and rinsed her mouth out, then went and flopped on 
her bed again.

"Michiru..." Setsuna. At a time like this.

"What the hell do you want?!" Michiru cried out. "Can't you see that 
I'm--"

And then Setsuna was there in person, in her fuku, as usual. 
"Michiru-chan, I know what happened. Please, don't give up. It's going 
to be ok."

"How can it be ok?!"

"Just keep trying. It'll be all right. Haruka's not one to rush into 
things, you should know that. She terrified right now. She's had the 
visions everyday now, and they're started to interfere with her life. 
She's afraid to accept the mission."

"Wh... what are you trying to say?"

Pluto smiled sadly, then said quietly, "It's not that she isn't 
interested in you. She's afraid of losing her life, the one she's made 
for herself. She doesn't want to be a Senshi."

"A-are you sure?"

"Yes." Pluto sat down by her and said, "Michiru, you're my friend, and 
I'm going to look out for both you and Haruka. Just give her time. Be 
her friend. It may take awhile, but she'll learn to get over her fear 
and accept things."

"How am I supposed to--"

Pluto chuckled and said, "I have... connections... at your school. I 
have arranged for you to switch around your classes so you'll have the 
same as her. You won't need to worry about P.E., they'll make an 
exception in your case." She winked and said, "They just won't realize 
it."

Michiru sniffled and said, "You're an interesting person, Setsuna-chan."

Pluto laughed and said, "When you're stuck by yourself for a long time, 
you learn to think your way through all sorts of possible situations." 
She stood up and smiled sadly. "Well, I've got to leave again. Remember, 
it's going to be all right."

"Th-thank you, Setsuna-chan."

"You're welcome, Michiru-chan." Pluto seemed to shimmer as she 
disappeared. 

Michiru hugged her pillow tightly. Could things really work out between 
her and Haruka? She was very grateful for Setsuna visiting her and 
talking to her, not to mention rearranging her classes. How in the world 
had she done it?

The doorbell rang. Michiru assumed someone else had gotten it. Shortly 
after that, she heard someone coming up the stairs, then knock on her 
door.

"Michiru-chan? It's me, Elza. Can I come in?"

Michiru got up and smoothed her hair, then unlocked the door. "Um, 
hi..."

Elza shut the door behind her, and handed over her sketchbook. "I 
figured you weren't as fine as you said you were. You've always been too 
good at hiding how you feel, especially when you're upset. Tell me the 
truth, are you all right?"

"I'll live." Michiru sighed sadly.

Elza hugged her, saying quietly, "I know it hurts to have her act like 
that, but like you said, she's been going through hard times, right? So 
she's probably just afraid of relationships right now."

"Yeah..."

Elza pulled away and said, "My ex-boyfriend... he was so rude to me at 
first, but he eventually came around. He treated me like a queen after a 
few months."

"Ex?"

"He moved to Europe last year," Elza said quietly. "I really miss him... 
But enough about me, right?"

Michiru smiled. "Thank you for coming over."

"No problem. We're friends, and friends look out for each other. Come 
on, let's go get some ice cream. Nothing like chocolate chip cookie 
dough to cheer you up. My treat."

"I think I'll just rest some... I'm fine, really. I'm just really 
tired."

Elza looked at her with concern. "Are you sure you're ok now? I mean, 
after what happened and all?"

"Well I... had a visit, of sorts."

"Huh?"

"Nevermind. Let's just say, I had a talk with someone. I'll be fine. 
I'll ... I'll try to see you at school tomorrow, but I'm changing my 
schedule."

"Um, ok. See ya."

"Bye, Elza-chan."

As Elza shut the door behind her, Michiru curled up in a ball on her 
bed. It'll be all right, she told herself. It'll work out. Don't start 
crying again. Things will be fine.



Haruka slammed the door of the apartment shut, making a picture fall 
from its hook on the wall with the force of it. Sunao tried to talk to 
her as she stormed past to go to her room. She slammed that door too, 
and flopped onto her bed.

Part of her was numb, unable to accept what had happened. The other part 
was screaming bitterly, sobbing hard. She lay their, eyes fixed on the 
ceiling, unmoving.

Sunao quietly opened the door and sat down at Haruka's side. "Is 
something wrong?"

"I-I'm fine, okaa-san, I..." Haruka left a long pause, continuing to 
stare at he ceiling. She closed her eyes and muttered. "I need to get 
away from here, from everything."

"Oh?... Well, do you want your own apartment?"

What a way to twist her words... but it would be better than being 
trapped here. "Please... I'll pay for it myself. I'll move today, I 
don't care..."

"I-If that's what you really want. I'll call some places right now."

Sunao got up and left, and Haruka buried her face in her pillow, crying 
into it. She tried to convince herself that it wasn't worth crying over; 
she'd just met this girl, knew nothing about her... but deep inside, she 
felt like she did know her, that somehow this girl was perfect for her, 
if only...

Why did the mission have to be a part of it? Why did that damned Senshi 
junk have to be mixed in? She couldn't accept it, and by refusing that, 
she refused Michiru. Why couldn't she just be with Michiru and not deal 
with the mission?

After half an hour, Sunao came in again. "I found a place for you in the 
downtown area. It's about the size of this place, rather nice... a bit 
pricey, but you can cover it, right? Closer to the school..."

"Fine. I'll be packing."

Sunao seemed almost hurt, but nodded. Haruka looked at her sadly, then 
said, "I'm sorry, okaa-san, I... I just need to be alone. I need to get 
away from everyone, even you. I can't let my troubles bother you. You... 
you really can't do anything for me now. I'm sorry."

Sunao lowered her head. "I... I'm sorry I couldn't be a better mother--"

"No, no, that's not it..." Haruka sighed. "I just have too many personal 
issues that I can't let you get involved with. Just... get on with your 
life. We'll still see each other... I'll call you..."

Sunao hugged her tightly. "I love you, Haruka."

"I love you, okaa-san."

Sunao sniffled a bit and left the room, and Haruka quickly packed her 
things, called the friend they'd borrowed the van from before, and drove 
it to the new address. She examined the apartment critically when she 
arrived. It was more than enough for her alone. It came with nice 
furniture. It wasn't too much money, considering what she earned racing.

After quickly unpacking her things, she went to stand out on the 
balcony. It was very windy that night, so she rested in the chair there, 
closing her eyes.

It wasn't like she'd see Michiru again... she'd never met her till that 
day, so they must not have any classes together. She could get over her, 
in time. It would be fine. She just had to avoid seeing her.

She almost screamed at the terrifying vision that entered her mind then.

"Haruka..."

It was too dark to see clearly... just a bright red coming from 
somewhere... too much wind to keep balance...

"Haruka... please..."

She struggled to look up and saw Michiru in her sailor fuku, her face 
more sad and pleading than ever. 

"Please... don't be afraid... we need you..."

Other Senshi could be seen faintly, fighting, dying?

"No, I can't... you don't need me! You can do this without me!" 
Michiru's eyes closed, tears streaming down her face. A silhouette rose 
up behind her, a girl with shoulder-length hair, wielding a large 
weapon... a glaive? It started lowering towards the ground, time seeming 
to slow as she did so.

"Please... Everyone is counting on us..."

"No!"

"Please, for the sake of the world--"

"NO!"

Suddenly, there was a bright flash of light, the sound of millions of 
screams. A cluster of metal ribbons shot out from the glaive, tearing 
first Michiru, then the other Senshi to pieces. They shot out 
everywhere, covering the Earth.

Haruka opened her eyes, finding herself lying on the floor of her 
balcony, sweating and crying.

"It's just a vision... just a vision..."

She shuddered and swayed as she stood up. It was just too vivid, too 
real... the pain seemed so real, the screams...

She passed out on the floor of the apartment before she could make it to 
her bed.

Onwards to Part 9


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