Of Foxes and Scorpions Lita, still holding onto Ami's arm with an iron grip, opened a steel door leading to a small chemical lab further down the hall way. Then, with a roar of frustration and anger, she practically threw Ami into the room. The momentum was strong enough to send Ami crashing on top of a table, sending various bits of lab equipment crashing to the floor. Not giving her companion time to recover, Lita slammed the door shut and walked over to Ami. Since Ami hadn't had time to recover her balance or turn around, Lita grabbed her shoulders, jerked her to a standing position, then violently twisted her around to face her. Sounding strangely calm, Lita said, "Let's see now. First, you ignore me for an entire evening to do some research on a project you have perfected to the point of insanity. Next, you get lost trying to find your way to the construction zone you were supposed to be supervising today. Now, I find you breaking into a locker that only you have the keys to. Care to explain your rather odd behavior?" By this time, Ami had regained her balance and oriented herself. She decided to gamble again, this time by doing exactly what she thought Amy would do in a situation like this. The sharp slap came as a complete surprise to Lita. She stumbled back a step and rubbed her cheek gently for a moment as a red hand print started to form there. She blinked a few times to clear her head, then she looked down at Ami with a smile that had no humor in it and said, "Oooooh, you are good aren't you." It wasn't a question. As her face turned red, both from the slap and from ever-increasing anger, Lita grabbed Ami by the collar and lifted her off the ground. Then she threw Ami against the door and watched with some satisfaction as the woman's small frame slid to the ground. Despite her anger, Lita's voice had an almost amused sound to it. "Let's get to the bottom of this, shall we?" Not bothering to help Ami up this time, she said, "Why don't you try transforming, 'Amy'?" Without turning around, Ami put her hand on the door knob. She wasn't about to try to open the door and run, because she knew Lita could easily outrun her. Still, it was tempting. 'She knows,' Ami thought to herself. Serena had told her not to transform because her powers would give her away. But she had said the drug she had given her might help her to blend in. At this point, even if it didn't, being transformed into Sailor Mercury might at least give her a fighting chance of escaping. Besides, what other choice did she have at the moment? "Mercury Crystal Power, Make-Up!" Ami shouted the familiar transformation phrase, the militaristic uniform she had been wearing vanished, and in its place was her Senshi uniform. Or rather, Dark Mercury's uniform. Ami looked down at her outfit, surprised by the sight of the black Sekkou uniform even if it had been what she expected. Trying not to let that surprise show, she looked up at Lita and said angrily, "Satisfied?" "Yes I am, Ami." With another yell of anger, Lita stepped forward and sent a kick flying in Ami's direction. It missed, but it took Ami until after she jumped away from the door to realize that that was exactly what Lita was trying to get her to do. "Such a good performance. If only Serena had the brains to tell you the proper transformation phrase, you might have been able to keep me guessing." "Dark Jupiter Power, Make-Up!" With those words, Lita went through her version of her transformation. Unlike Ami's, Lita's resembled Makoto's transformation, only with black energy instead of the blue lightning that accompanied Makoto's. Then Dark Sailor Jupiter looked Sailor Mercury up and down for a moment as if she were appraising a purchase at the store. "Amazing. You look just like her. Serena must have given you some of her medication. That's the only explanation I have. How she convinced you to take that stuff I'll never know." Lita looked into Ami's eyes and her expression softened from anger to one of longing for a moment. In that moment, Ami saw the love for her partner that Lita had buried within the swirling madness of her mind. Lita raised her hand slowly to touch Ami's chin absently as she thought out loud. "You have everything you had within you when I fell in love with . . ." Lita's words trailed off for a moment as her fingers delicately touched Ami's jaw. That simple touch seemed to bring her back to what qualified as 'reality' for the Sekkou. Anger flashed in her eyes again, and she quickly brought up her hands to press them to each side of Ami's head. Then, as Ami yelled out in pain from the pressure, Lita lifted her off the ground. While her words were quiet, the rage behind them was obvious to Ami. "If anything happens to her, I promise you, you won't live to see another sunrise." Still holding Ami, Lita turned and dropped her on top of some of the overturned lab equipment. As she watched Ami land on the ground, rubbing her neck in pain, Lita said quietly, "Now, the question is, what do I do with you?" She smiled as she started to talk out loud. "It might be amusing to bring you to Queen Beryl and see what her reaction is. That's exactly what I would do, too, except she would be just as pissed to see you as she would be at us for letting you get this close to her." As Lita continued to rattle off a few other morbid ideas on the topic of fun things to do to Ami that would cause her extreme amounts of pain, Ami looked around her at the various lab equipment on the floor. Several shattered glass tubes, a few medication cups, some empty syringes, rubber gloves . . . nothing particularly useful as a weapon. Then her eyes fell on an object lying on the floor just within reach. An unassuming tool, about a foot long, rectangular in shape with a simple lever handle. A pill crusher. Made almost entirely out of steel. Ami gripped the handle just as Lita grabbed her and hauled her to her feet. Ami saw energy start to crackle around Lita's hands and decided now was the time to act. Before Lita could send electricity shooting through her, Aim swung the pill crusher and let it go at just the right moment so that it would fly right into the side of Lita's head. There was a loud cracking sound, and at first, Lita didn't do anything. She just looked at Ami with a surprised expression. Then the energy she was building up dissipated suddenly, and she dropped Ami as she crumpled to the floor with a thud. Ami backed up cautiously for a moment. When Lita didn't move, she moved closer and knelt down. For some strange reason, she felt a little guilty that she might have inflicted serious injury upon Lita. As she gently shook her, Ami asked nervously, "Are you really knocked out?" She nearly jumped out of her skin when Lita started to moving to get up again, saying sheepishly, and a little groggy from the blow, "Yeah, . . . no. Ya can't blame me for --!" Another loud crack rang out as Ami grabbed the pill crusher and in a panic once again smashed it down on the back of Lita's skull as hard as she could, similar to a person in a panic about the bug they just crushed not being dead. The bluenette tapped Lita with her foot a few more times, trying to make certain the woman was really out this time. Ami slowly opened the door, never taking her eyes off of Lita. Then just before she left she said, "I am sorry, but it is really for the best. For what it is worth, by the time you come to, I should have your wife back to you." Then she locked the door and closed it behind her. It was time to leave. ---------- Haruka's rather smug voice said over the telephone to Minako, "Ya know, they say not to hit someone with a closed fist, but sometimes, it sure is fun!" Minako shook her head. As the leader of the Senshi, she felt it was her job to be the responsible one. However, she knew the smile she couldn't keep back would betray her true feelings on the matter even over the phone, as she said, "You know you didn't have to hit her, right?" "Yeah, yeah, yeah. I'm such a bad girl. Well, anyway, I figured I'd let you know she is on her way home. She should be back any --" The end of Haruka's sentence was cut short by the sound of the front door to the apartment being thrown open, causing Minako to nearly drop the phone in surprise as the topic of conversation came storming into the room. Amy didn't even bother to close the door to the apartment as she hurried past while covering her right eye with her hand as she grumbled in frustration and anger to herself. Minako watched the woman until she got to her room and slammed the door shut. "Ah, there is our little princess now," Haruka said, trying somewhat unsuccessfully not to laugh. Minako sighed and replied, "It's easy for you to say. I have to sleep here, you know? Guess I'll find the first aid kit and go talk to her. Goodnight, Haruka." A few minutes later, Minako was standing outside of Ami's bedroom with the first aid kit, unsure if she was supposed to knock, just walk in, or wait for Amy to make the first move and ask for help. She could hear the Sekkou rummaging around the room looking for something. Just as Minako made up her mind and was about to knock, the door opened about half an inch and Amy's left eye came into view. To Minako she looked for all the world like a small, scared, angry animal looking through a hole in the wall at something that had come to eat her. The expression made her feel sorry for Amy. Just a little. After a few moments, Amy's voice asked in a strangely soft, embarrassed voice, "What do you want?" Minako couldn't believe it. Was Amy actually . . . crying? "I . . . was told you had a . . . rough time today after school, so I brought the first aid kit. Figured I'd help patch you up." There was a moment of uncomfortable silence while Amy thought about whether she wanted help or not. "I'll only let you come in under one condition." Minako smiled happily. Even if Amy was the enemy, she always did get a strange thrill out of helping people who were sick or injured, despite their complaints. "Sure! Anything!" Amy sounded dead serious when she said, "Don't flip out. This is embarrassing enough for me as it is. Oh, and while you are out there, you wouldn't happen to know where the toolbox is, would you?" Minako blinked in confusion and then asked dumbly, to make sure she heard right, "Tool box?" The eye disappeared out of view for a moment and a sound of something, possibly Amy's forehead, banging against the other side of the door could be heard. Between thuds, Ami said, "Yes, the toolbox." After going to get the toolbox from under the kitchen sink, Minako returned to find the door opened halfway. Taking it as an invitation to enter, she saw Amy sitting in the chair at the desk, turned away from the door. After another long, awkward silence, Amy said simply, "Flathead screwdriver please. Smallest one you have, preferably." As Minako rummaged through the box, she asked in an attempt to make small talk, "Are you having problems with a clock or something? I mean, a toolbox is a rather strange thing to ask for to help heal a punch in the face." Amy said nothing. Instead, she swiveled the chair around so she was facing Minako. The blonde just stared at her dumbly then said, "O.K. . . . uh, screwdriver it is then." While she had stopped crying, her cheeks still had a reddish tinge to them, giving away that the devil had indeed, been crying. That wasn't what had gotten Minako's attention, though. Instead of the usual purple bruising and swollen eye Minako had expected to see, Amy's entire right eye, including the eyelids, had been pushed in and to the left, leaving an opening where exposed wiring was clearly visible. Amy reached out and took the screwdriver from Minako without a word, and pushed at an area near her eyebrow until all of the skin on the upper right area of her face came loose. A quiet sucking sound was heard as Amy reached up and pulled off the artificial skin from her face, revealing the entire eye assembly, and what looked like tan plastic put in place to replace bone and cover electronic parts. The plastic casing was cracked, but intact. At the edge of the casing, Minako could see white bone right before where what she assumed was Amy's real skin started. And the structure that made up the eye consisted of the lens and eyelids, with a mass of wiring, tiny hydraulics, and servos. Several of the hydraulics seemed to have been knocked loose, and the artificial eye hung outward a bit after Amy removed the skin, allowing Minako to somewhat be able to see farther inside Amy's head. While Minako didn't know all that much about human anatomy other than the basics, it looked like the cybernetic work was possibly intertwined all the way to her brain. Amy flopped the synthetic skin onto the desk behind her, and started assessing the damage with her hand for a moment. She sighed in frustration, then asked, "Mirror?" Minako, still staring at the strange site before her, said, "Wha --? Oh, yeah." She opened a drawer on Ami's dresser and held it up so Amy could see herself. As she watched Amy quietly start fitting parts back together, an obvious question came to mind. At first, Minako felt it was a rather rude question to ask, but after a while she felt the silence and her curiosity getting to her. "So uh, . . . for the sake of conversation, I was wondering something. What . . . um . . . what happened to you anyway? Was it a car accident or something?" At that question, Amy froze for a few seconds. Amy's expression changed to one of annoyance, then Minako could see a faint green light, just barely bright enough to be visible, flashing underneath the plastic casing. It took her another instant to realize Amy was thinking of a reply. Amy lifted the pliers out of the tool box. She looked at them quizzically, then said, "Such primitive tools. I guess they'll have to do for now, though." She gave her mechanical eye a gentle tug, the pushed it somewhat back into place and set about pushing the tiny hydraulics back together. The blond frowned slightly and said, "Sorry. I suppose that's a touchy subject." "Not really. It's just a . . . a strange question, coming from you. You sure you want to know the answer to that?" Minako nodded her head, and Amy continued. "A few years ago, I challenged Mina for control over the Sekkou, since she seemed to me to be a poor choice of a leader. Our Queen found the confrontation to be amusing, and had us fight it out to finalize the answer, and of course, for her own entertainment. I failed to calculate why it was a ditsy blonde should outrank me." Minako started to apologize again for asking, but Amy held up a hand and said, "But wait! You haven't heard the best part." Once she was sure her audience would not interrupt her again, Amy continued, "It was a moment of indecisiveness. I had an opportunity to take her out, but I wasn't sure if it would work, so I held off my attack for a split second. Lack of confidence, I suppose. It was all the time she needed." Suddenly Amy slammed her left hand down on the desk as hard as she could, causing Minako to jump a bit. "WHACK! Just like that, I had a quarter of my skull, along with my right eye, and part of my brain removed by that damn whip." Amy froze a moment, then looked at her left hand in thought. "Since I had just long enough to see the attack coming, I foolishly raised my hand to block it." Wiggling her fingers for emphasis, she said, "The hand's fake too. I suppose in the heat of battle, she felt it necessary to break my left arm, and right leg just for good measure right after that. Can't say for sure though, since I was already out of it by that point." Minako thought another moment then said, "Why didn't all that show up on Ami's scan?" Amy shrugged and said, "Just a hypothesis, but it might be the biomechanical parts showed up close enough to the real thing to fool her. Of course, she could also have just been being polite, since she could probably tell that none of my cybernetic parts are enhancements. The world may never know!" Amy finished making the last adjustments, then gently fitted the synthetic skin back into place with a disturbing squishing sound. Then Amy smiled said, "Since you don't mind asking me so many personal questions, and I have given you honest answers, how's about I ask you one to make it even." "Um, all right, I guess . . ." Amy's smile had a slightly morbid look to it as she asked, "How does it feel knowing you have that kind of darkness lurking in your soul?" Minako got defensive at the question. The very notion that she had it in her to do something like that couldn't be true. "I'd never hurt Ami like that, even if she walked up to me and seriously threatened my life, let alone questioned my place. It's absurd to even think it." Amy's smile got wider as she said, "You know, every person has a dark side. It's nothing to be ashamed of. After all, even your beloved Ami-chan would tell you there is no such thing as negative emotions. That part of them that makes you just want to hurt someone when they offend you in some way. That part of you that knows that you are right, and the rest of the world is wrong. That part that knows you are better than everyone else. If I could take what you would would call that moral barrier that keeps you from acting on it, why, I bet you would be up to all sorts of things! Bet you would even start trying to take me apart right now, just for suggesting it." She folded her arms across her chest, nodded, and smiled as if that were the end of the conversation and she had won. 'Egotistical little thing, aren't you?' was Minako's thought. Amy wasn't the only one who could play mind games, though. Minako did something that Amy didn't expect. She sat back, and smiled. Minako thought to herself, 'You wanna play? All right, let's play.' She asked simply, "How about I answer that, by asking you a question. How does it feel knowing you are missing that? That you don't have much control over your own mind, and that you are missing a part of your spirit. Must be awful." Amy's smile vanished instantly, replaced by a look of sadness. "It's . . . sad. When you lose the ability to control your life, and can't directly question those who command you . . . well . . . you can live, but it isn't really your life." Then she started laughing and said, "This is silly of me. Why the hell am I telling you any of --" She stopped talking when she felt a hand on her shoulder. Minako was now standing beside her and said, "You know it doesn't have to be this way. We can help you. All you have to do is tell us why you are fighting us. Then we can --" Amy stood up, pushed Minako away angrily and said, "I can't." The blonde stepped in front of her and replied, "What do you mean, 'you can't!'? You've told me this much already! Why not just tell me a little more?" Amy sighed and sat back down. "You don't understand. I literally can't tell you. That little part of my mind that's missing? That part that's missing in all of the Sekkou? It makes us slaves to . . . someone else's will. We have thoughts of our own, but we don't have a . . . filter to sort them out or control them or the emotions that come with them. And, we can't directly act against our master." A grim look of determination replaced the look of self-pity as she finished, "But, we can indirectly make a challenge, and challenge that authority, we will." Amy sat quietly for several minutes thinking to herself. She would never admit it to Minako, but for some reason, she couldn't help but respect her, even if she was her enemy. She was willing to listen, after all . . . In a flash of inspiration, another thought came to Amy. A 'plan B' scenario she could start putting in place should the Sekkou's true goal become compromised. It was risky, but it would only require a short trip to get it in motion. It wouldn't be much, just the equivalent of setting up a chess board. But for now it would do. She stood up suddenly and started heading for the door. Minako followed her out of the room and said, "Where are you going?" Amy looked over her shoulder and answered,"Talking to you has inspired me to do something for you in return. Call it a . . . random act of kindness. Just because I am missing a chunk of my spirit does not mean I can't do something nice. Besides, It's better than sitting around here playing twenty questions with you. I can't tell you what it is though, because . . . well, it's a surprise! Why don't we go and have a quick talk with Makoto to get our minds off of such difficult conversation?" Minako followed the Sekkou out of the apartment, saying, "You reveal crazy sci-fi eye sockets to me and now you're going to surprise me? Oh, this should be good." ---------- Ami typed in a few more commands on a computer terminal and nodded in satisfaction when she heard the main power turn on. She only had a few more things left to do before the portal was fully activated. Then she would have to pray that Amy got near a reflective surface before the Sekkou found her. She walked over and flipped a few switches as she finished activating the matter/anti-matter containment field as she thought about her time on this side of the portal. Her only regret was that she hadn't had the time to figure out what had happened to change things so drastically between worlds. Obviously, Beryl had something to do with it, but what? Ami started walking up the stairs toward the portal. All she had left was literally to hit the power button, and pray that no one found her before she left. She got to the top of the stairs, and was just about to type in the activation command when something slammed down on top of her, knocking her on her back, sending a loud clang through the room. Luckily, Serena wasn't nearly as graceful at flight as the rest of the Sekkou, and fared much worse than Ami. There was a series of loud crashing and clanging sounds as Serena crashed into the landing behind Ami, and then wound up rolling down the stairs, coming to a halt on the same landing where Ami had broken her arm. Ami quickly stood up and was just about to try again, but Serena recovered quickly and was able to land behind Ami, grab her arms, and pull her away. The angry Sekkou yelled out, "What the hell are you doing? I said you are supposed to stay here!" Serena stepped back, frantically trying to keep Ami from completing the activation process. Ami felt panic and anger rise up in her. If she didn't get out of here soon, it was only a matter of time before she got herself killed. Along with that was the thought she shouted out loud. "I am sick of everyone smacking me around!" Ami kicked frantically for a moment, trying to get away. She realized Serena was trying to pull her back down the stairs. It was now or never. Ami, still struggling to get free, shifted her weight back just as she estimated Serena was standing on the first step, causing them both to start to fall. She felt Serena's grip loosen as she started to try to regain her balance. Ami pushed back at the Sekkou with her hands as hard as she could, giving herself just enough momentum to fall forward, sending Serena crashing down the stairs again. She didn't even look back to see what had happened to Serena. She didn't care. All she wanted to do was leave. Get back to Makoto, get back to her life, and get the hell out of here. Her finger once again stopped when she heard Serena's weak voice from below plead, "Please . . . don't go. We . . . need your . . . help." All she had to do was push the button and walk through the portal, but Ami just couldn't do it. Something her mother had drilled into her at a young age was, no matter what, you never ignore a cry for help. She sighed quietly, then walked back to the stairs and looked down. Serena staggered to her feet, clutching her side, saying, "Just listen to what I have to say, then you can leave. I just . . . if you are anything like Amy used to be, then maybe . . . maybe you can think of a way to help." Ami nodded. It was a simple enough request. Serena allowed herself to sink back down to the ground slowly, resting her back against the wall, then said, "You see, everything that has happened here is my fault. It seems like so long ago now." "It was during our last fight with Beryl. Everyone . . . all of my friends, and Darien had died. It was just me and Beryl, preparing to fight it out to the end." Serena sighed sadly, and added, "It was all too much." Serena looked up at Ami. Even from where she stood, Ami could see the guilt in her eyes. "Beryl stood before me, prepared to destroy all that existed to get revenge on us. If I failed, everyone on the planet would have been killed. If I succeeded, all of my friends would have died for a cause no one would have known about. I . . . couldn't live with either of those choices, so I chose a different one. I made Beryl a deal." Ami nodded and said, "What kind of a deal?" Usagi never talked about the fight with Beryl. It was just one of those things Ami felt was best not to ask about, since she figured it must have been hard on Usagi. Though, she had never thought about what must have been going through her mind at the time. Perhaps what happened here was one of the things she had been thinking about. Serena couldn't keep eye contact with Ami while she told her story. "I told her that I could force Metaria from her body and destroy her. Then, I wanted her to bring back my friends. I told her if she did, I would give Beryl the Ginzuishou and . . . allow her to control the earth without interference from us. I remember saying, 'Think about it. Why destroy the world when you can rule it for yourself?'" "She made one request -- that we were to serve her as replacements for her lost Shitennou. The price of failure and the price of success in my mind were both too great, so I . . ." Ami looked down at her own hands, which she hadn't noticed she had been gripping the railing with until now. She said quietly, "So, that's why you are different from the others." Serena nodded. The simple gesture reminded Ami so much of Usagi that for a moment, she forgot who she was talking to. "That's right. Beryl brought them back, just like she promised. But they were different. They seemed to lack remorse. The kindness they all had was gone. She . . . took away part of their souls. I, on the other hand, was normal Sailor Moon. Beryl still saw me as a threat, so she had Ami create the medication which runs through your veins. It helps me to be somewhat like the Sekkou, and binds me to the same rules as them. I was surprised Beryl didn't kill me at first. Then I realized she enjoyed watching me suffer with the knowledge that I handed my friends over to the devil. We can't defy Beryl, but perhaps you can." Ami had just one question while Serena was being so talkative. One that would help avoid any unnecessary surprises in the future. "Where is Mamo . . .I mean, Darien?" Serena said nothing. She didn't have to. The tears running down her cheeks said it louder than any words could have. Ami nodded slowly. "I see." She looked down at the broken Sekkou and couldn't help but feel sorry for her. ---------- About that same moment, Makoto was busy moving furniture around her living room. She hadn't reorganized the living room since her and Ami's date only two days ago. She had started this particular project to get her mind off of Ami for a while, but every time she moved something, she couldn't help think about that evening. The latest object in the room to have her frustration wrought upon it was an end table. Makoto set it next to the couch and stepped back. That simple action got her thinking about events that had taken place on that same couch the last time Ami was over. Ami, the one who had been through so much since this insanity started. Ami, the one who had made her life feel complete for the first time in ages. Ami, the one who shouldn't even have been involved in the fight at the mall. Ami, the one who . . . With a frustrated yell, Makoto gave the end table a violent kick, sending it toppling over. She hadn't realized how angry she was until she spoke. "The one who isn't here!" "Is now a bad time?" Makoto looked toward the apartment door, but saw that it was closed. She could have sworn she had just heard 'the one' speak. Sighing in frustration, Makoto flopped back on the couch and leaned her head back with her eyes closed. After a few moments, she whispered, "Now I'm even hearing you in my head." A small smile formed on her face as she said, "I've got it bad. But I suppose the voices in my head won't tell anyone." "Us voices hereby promise to keep our secrets." Green eyes flew open and looked up at a pair of beautiful familiar blue ones. Makoto tilted her head to the side and let her smile grow larger. It was funny seeing Ami looking at her upside down since the other was leaning over from the back side of the couch to look into her eyes. Makoto raised her hands to gently hold Ami's face. Gently drawing her love closer to her she whispered, "Is it really you?" Ami suddenly got an evil smile on her face as she whispered back huskily, "Close enough." Amy moved just in time to avoid the punch Makoto sent flying at her face. The sudden movement combined with Amy stepping back caused the couch to nearly topple over. Makoto was on her feet in seconds to face her opponent. With tears fighting to leave her eyes, Makoto nearly screamed, "What the hell are you doing in here?" Then, without waiting for a response, she yelled, "Stop playing games with me! Get the hell out right now!" Amy laughed, sounding indeed like it was a game. Acting as if Makoto couldn't kill her with one blow, she moved closer and stood the end table back up as she said, "Now now, that's no way to greet a friend, is it?" Makoto pointed at the door and said, "You're no friend. Why aren't you leaving?" "Because I am not breaking any of the rules you people set for me," Ami said, still sounding rather amused. "Like hell you're not! Where is your escort?" "Probably huffing and puffing her way up the stairs still, since the elevator is out of order." Her green eyes narrowed angrily as Makoto asked, "Then how did you get up here?" Makoto didn't realize it was possible for anyone to smile as big as Amy did when she answered, "I didn't fly, if that's what you are wondering. I walked. I used my ability to defy gravity and walked up the side of the building. Don't worry, no one saw me. You would be surprised how rarely people look straight up." Noticing the opened glass doors leading out to the balcony, the brunette walked over and closed them, trying to keep her calm. "As soon as Minako gets here, you are leaving. Understood?" "Actually, it's Minako I want to discuss with you." Absently, Amy picked up a picture of Makoto and Ami then sighed. It was the very same picture of Makoto feeding Ami some chicken with chopsticks that Makoto had been admiring before her last date with Ami. The Sekkou looked suddenly lost in sad, longing thought. Makoto's expression softened just a fraction, as she thought, 'You don't show it much but . . .' Then finishing her thought out loud she said, "You miss her too." The expression on Amy's face for a split second after she had spoken reminded Makoto just how much the Senshi and Sekkou of Mercury had in common. Just like that though, the evil blue devil snapped the picture back down angrily. Then she plastered a fake smile on her face and asked, "Where was I? Oh, yes. I have a favor to ask of you. You see, Mi--" "I'm not going to do you any favors. I don't owe you a damn thing. Shut up, sit down, and wait for Minako to get here so she can get rid of you." Glaring at the door in frustration, Makoto huffed out, "Where is she anyway?" Rolling her eyes and ignoring Makoto's instructions, Amy started over. "You see, Minako has shown me some kindness. I just figured before all of your unavoidable deaths at the Sekkou's hands, I would offer you a chance to repay the favor for me." "Oh please. We have dealt with more powerful beings than the likes of Amy Mizuno -- Amy interrupted to correct Makoto, "Anderson." "Whatever! You're the ones who are going to get trashed if you keep playing with us." Sounding like she was talking to a stubborn child, Amy said calmly, "Just shut up so I can finish, will you? All you have to do is listen." Makoto roared back, "I'm not going to listen to you! Ami wasn't supposed to be involved in that fight to begin with! We were trying to give her some time to recover from the last time you got your filthy paws on her! All we wanted to do was have a nice sunny Saturday at the mall and you freaks showed up and trashed it!" Amy shrugged and said in an irritatingly cheerful tone, "None of us can hide from our destinies." Makoto responded by waving a hand in her direction as she made an attempt to ignore Amy and resumed moving furniture. The Senshi of thunder figured the TV stand would be heavy enough to keep her distracted from Amy's words. "You see, where I am from, Mina, that's Minako's double, is absolutely crazy about Ray, who is Rei's double. Unfortunately, Mina is strangely shy about bringing it up to Ray. So I was thinking, since things in your world are similar to things in mine . . ." Makoto stopped moving for a moment, and shook her head. "Nope, mm-mm. Negative. Those two have shown no feelings toward each other like that." Amy stood up, moved to the opposite side of the TV stand, leaned to the side a bit and looked into Makoto's eyes. "Come on! You didn't openly show feelings toward Ami for a long time either, I bet. Ya know, I'm thinking that's something similar to our worlds. Lita and I have been trying to set Ray and Mina up for a month now. I bet Rei and Minako had been trying for the two of you too the entire time. Don't you owe it to them to at least look into it?" Makoto opened her mouth to say something and was cut off by Amy, "They probably looked around your computer. Tell me, how quick would it take someone to notice pictures of Ami on your computer if they were snooping around?" The look of annoyance on Makoto's face was something Amy would have paid good money to see again, if money were still in use in her world, that is. Amy didn't have time to think about that though, because the large TV stand suddenly flew forward as Makoto tried to crush Amy between the stand and the wall in frustration. ---------- Ami had helped Serena get to the top of the platform. It was all she could do to help Serena stand. The woman was clearly in pain. Ami said, "I'd better take a look at that. You may have broken a rib." Serena shook her head. "There isn't enough time. You said so yourself, your cover is blown. Once they find out, this will be the first place they look for you." Ami forced Serena's hand away and started feeling along the Sekkou's side for any sign of injury. "If it's left untreated, it could puncture your lung. It'll only take a second." Serena placed a hand over Ami's and said, "Don't worry about it. I'll tell them you hit me or something." It was Ami's turn to shake her head. "No, you are coming with me. Lita knows the reason I'm here is because of you. When they find you --" Serena sunk to her knees. As she did so, she reached out and hit the activation button on the control panel next to her. With a loud roar and a bright flash of light from the frame that made up the portal, Project Rainbow roared to life. Ami looked behind her to see a reflection of herself staring back at her. "Is that . . . ?" Serena nodded her head. Then she reached up, grabbed Ami's hand, and pressed something into it. Ami looked down to see another one of the star pendants used to get back to this reality. "Give that to Amy. Send her back. Now go." Ami reached down and tried to help Serena up again. She was just about to pull the Sekkou to her feet, when Serena jerked away, stumbling backward and crashing back to the cold steel walkway again. She lay there panting for breath. Ami tried to help her up again, but Serena raised her hand. "No. This is my fate. You have no right to decide this for me. Go, and think about what you have learned here. As strange as it sounds, you are the only hope my friends have of ever regaining their lost souls." Seeing the look of worry on Ami's face, Serena smiled and said, "Don't worry. I'll be fine. Go back to your friends and the one you love." Seeing that smile reminded Ami so much of Usagi. She always thought of others, even the truly evil. At the same time, it made Ami believe the Sekkou meant what she said. Just then, Ami heard something across the large room. She looked up to see the steel doors part away, and all of the remaining Sekkou, plus several military police storm into the room as fast as they could. Serena shouted, "There's no time! GO!" With that, Dark Sailor Moon used her remaining strength to jump to her feet and shove Ami through the portal. One moment Ami was standing in the dark room, the next, she was engulfed in a bright, blinding flash of light. Then, she heard and felt glass break all around her, as her body fell upon carpeted floor. Groaning, she rolled over, hearing the broken glass crack and feeling it cut into her more as she did so. The next thing she was aware of, was being jerked off the ground, even off her feet, and into a tight bear hug, as someone tall and strong peppered her face with kisses between whispering over and over, "I was so worried about you!" Ami said weakly, her head still spinning from everything that had just happened, "Makoto?" The brunette gushed, "Ami! I am never letting you out of my sight again! I --" Ami wheezed out, "Mako-Chan, I can't breathe!" With that, Makoto loosened her grip around Ami, but didn't let go. Now able to breathe, Ami looked up at Makoto longingly. For a time, she had worried she would never see her again. Green eyes looked down at her, watering slightly as Makoto fought to hold back tears. They both leaned closer and -- "Aw, such a Kodak moment. I don't suppose they bothered to give you anything so I could get home, did they?" Amy stood nearby, tapping her foot on more of the broken glass. "By the way, your landlord is going to be pissed when they find out you busted your bathroom mirror, and now, the glass doors to your balcony. Somehow, I doubt you will get your deposit back when you move out." Before Makoto could say anything, Ami tossed the Sekkou the small, star-shaped pendent Serena gave her, which Amy caught with a smug smile, as she said, "Last chance to take me out." Ami stepped away from Makoto, and toward her double. "Wait." Amy activated the portal, but stopped and looked at Ami curiously. Ami shook her head as she said, "It doesn't have to be this way. Serena is right. We can try to find a way to help you, just give us time. Amy looked at the portal, then looked at Ami as Makoto put an arm protectively around her waist. The Sekkou sighed quietly and looked down in an attempt to hide an expression that was a strange mixture of shame and anger. Despite her expression, when she spoke she sounded unemotional. "You just don't get it, do you." Makoto said angrily, "Then explain it to us!" Still not able to make eye contact, Amy said, "There is an old proverb that explains it better than any words I could come up with." Angry blue eyes shot up to look at them as she said, "There once was a fox that lived in a forest who was mortal enemies with the scorpion that resided there as well. One day, there was a forest fire, and the fox ran to the river to escape. At the river's banks, he saw the scorpion. The scorpion said, 'Give me a ride on your back across the river, and I give you my word we will never fight again'. The fox said, 'Oh no, I don't think so. If I let you on my back, you will sting me and I will drown.'" Amy stepped toward them clenching her fists angrily as she continued the old proverb. "The Scorpion replied, 'No no, if I did that, we would both drown.' The fox thought about it for a moment, then allowed the scorpion to climb up onto his back and he started to swim across the river. When they were half way there, the fox felt a sharp pain between his shoulders. The scorpion had stung him! As his limbs became weak, the Fox asked, 'Why? Why did you do that? We will both drown!" Amy stepped back into the portal to her world. Her ghostly voice finished the story from the other side just before it disappeared. "'Because,' said the scorpion, 'tis in my nature'".
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