The brilliance of simplicity For the moment, Makoto didn't have to worry about work, since her restaurant was now undergoing a massive remodel. Thus, she had plenty of time to chauffeur Ami around until she got a new car, which gave her the wonderful opportunity to spend just a little more time and to take her out for a date after a hard day's work. After everything the teacher had been through, Makoto felt she could use a night out on the town. The problem was coming up with something that would get her girlfriend back home in time to get a decent night's sleep before she had to work in the morning. She had tried the last few days, but hadn't thought of much to do other than bringing her some flowers the first time she came to pick her up. The other times had been rather anticlimactic at best. This time, she vowed it would go differently. To kill time and get advice while she waited inside her car parked in the school parking lot, Makoto was on her cell phone with the self- proclaimed love doctor. "It's just frustrating is all, Minako. I've got all the time in the world at the moment, and her job is keeping her busy most of the time. Now I know how Luna and Artemus must feel when you and Usagi are out." Minako laughed, then said, "Oh, I don't think Luna minds being alone so much with Usagi as a roommate, but Artemus, on the other hand, keeps suggesting we should get a goldfish to keep him company." The thought of what the white Mau would do to a goldfish if left in the same room unattended made Makoto smile. "Somehow, I think companionship isn't his goal." Minako's bubbly voice said over the phone, "See? Now you, on the other hand, are feeling completely different from them, my friend! You are feeling longing, desire, passion, and . . . yes? What's this? Could it be? Why yes, I think it is! A small touch of lust!" Drumming her fingers on the steering wheel, she replied, "Focus, Minako, focus. I was asking you for advice for a cheap date that could end at a reasonable hour and still be romantic." The romance adviser grumbled, "Cheap is bad, Mako-chan. Nothing screams 'you aren't worth it' more than cheap. You gotta throw some money around to impress a girl. Maybe you should go back to that restaurant you two had your first date at?" "Oh, I don't think so, Minako-chan. You should have seen Mamoru's face when I showed him the bill for that. That place is out of my price range, I think. I'm just wanting something simple. Besides, I don't need to impress Ami at the moment, just help her relax a bit." She glanced in her rearview mirror as she became lost in thought. She had a perfect view of the exit her girlfriend would use. So far, no Ami. Where was she, anyway? There was a loud, repeating, cracking sound on the other side of the phone for several seconds. It took Makoto a moment to realize Minako was banging her phone against something. Once Minako was sure she had Makoto's attention, she said, "Why don't you just go to a movie, pick up some fast food, and come home? That's so cheap and overly simplistic that it's almost barbaric. Not too romantic, but hey, when you're cheap and unfeeling, who needs romance?" Makoto was just about to politely thank her friend for the vote of confidence, when an idea came to her. Perhaps she could turn that suggestion into something truly romantic after all. "Yeah, Minako, you just might be on to something." The voice on the other end asked, with just a hint of sarcasm, "Don't suppose you could pick up some chicken nuggets for me, could you? By the time I get home from this hard afternoon of shopping and fun, I'm going to be starving. Sweet and sour sauce would be good too." Makoto had come up with a truly witty remark this time for Minako, but a loud tapping sound startled her and caused her to drop her phone. She looked over and saw Ami waving at her from the passenger side window. She picked up her phone and unlocked the door in one swift motion, then said "Gotta go, she's here." Then she turned off the phone and tossed it in the back seat. However, Minako barely heard those words, since in Makoto's hurry to open the door, she hadn't noticed she had been holding the phone upside down. Ami buckled her seat belt and set her bag in the back seat. "Sorry I'm late. I had to help Hotaru with a question she had about her homework." Makoto made a small sound indicating she understood as she put the car in drive. After a few minutes, Ami said shyly, "Thank you for the ride home. I promise I wont take advantage of you for long. I plan to start car shopping tomorrow. Haruka is going to come with me since she is convinced none of the rest of us knows how to choose a proper car." Makoto made another quiet sound. As Ami relaxed, she couldn't help but be pleased with how responsible of a driver her girlfriend was, paying attention to the road so much and all. Not wanting to distract Makoto, Ami leaned back in her seat and closed her eyes, just enjoying being with Makoto. She didn't even need to say anything to do that. After a while Makoto said, "Hey Ami, can you do me a favor?" "Yes?" "Keep your eyes closed." Naturally, the first thing Ami did was open her eyes. Looking out the window as they came to a stoplight, Ami said, "This isn't the way home, Makoto." As she turned round a corner, the driver pleaded, "Oh come on, Ami-chan, humor me. This'll be worth it. I'll have you home at a reasonable time, I promise." Ami fidgeted in her seat for a moment. "Well, it's just I have some papers I need to grade and -- " Makoto knew her girlfriend didn't like having her usual routine interrupted, but she really did feel this was worth it. She put a hand over Ami's mouth playfully and said, "Be honest. Lately, you get home and what's the first thing you usually do?" Her usual routine was to get home, and start chatting with Makoto either on the phone or online while she looked over her already refined plans for classes three weeks in advance. Rather than admit that out loud, Ami pushed Makoto's hand away, sat back and closed her eyes again. After a few more minutes, she asked, "Can you give me a hint as to where we are going?" Makoto smiled as she put the car in park and said, "I don't need to. We're already there." Ami opened her eyes and smiled. She hadn't been here in years. "You know, getting dressed up, going out to eat at a fancy restaurant, and dancing is all well and good, but this is quite possibly more romantic than even that." Makoto nodded, truly pleased with herself. "So, guess that means you remember what happened here almost 15 years ago?" Ami unbuckled her seatbelt and gave Makoto a hug. "How could I forget? This is where we met, after all." "Yeah." Makoto looked at the building through her windshield and sighed. "It's too bad they tore down the Crown Arcade ten years ago." Ami opened her car door and said, "It's ok, Mako-chan. It's the thought that counts. Besides, we can get something quick to eat at a McDonald's and still have time to maybe catch an early movie or something." Makoto smiled at how easily she had managed to get Ami to stop thinking about work and have some fun for once. It had to be some kind of sign. Perhaps, just this once, everything would go according to plan. ---------- So far, everything was going according to plan. The first thing she did was throw Artemus in Minako's closet and closed the door so the cat wouldn't get on to who she was. He fussed from time to time, but after Mina closed the door to Minako's room, no one could hear his muffled protests. Then it was on to setting things up. The blonde Sekkou paced around the living room nervously as she made last-minute adjustments to the lighting and furniture. Everything had to be absolutely perfect. After all, this might be her only chance to get this right, should anything go wrong. One thing she hated about the apartment was the size of the living room. It was the biggest room in Ami and Minako's apartment, thus making it the most suitable for her purposes. However, it wasn't nearly big enough to suit her, and it was also the most cluttered. Minako's stuffed animals she kept around from her childhood seemed to take up half the room, and who knew Ami had so much Star Trek junk? Luckily, she found Minako's room to be the perfect dumping ground for all the unnecessary garbage. She needed room for candles anyway. Then, there was the furniture. A third hand blue couch, an ugly and badly built build-it-yourself pressboard TV stand, and three book shelves. She moved the book shelves to Minako's room and threw a white sheet over the couch to make it a little less visible. However, there wasn't much she could do to hide the hideous TV stand, so she put some more candles on top of it and decided to hope for the best. Then, she had to decide on something to wear. It had been a long time since Mina had been able to dress up, since her duties as a Sekkou hadn't allowed for such luxuries. She had wanted to go shopping, but because she hadn't been able to procure one of Minako's credit cards or some form of valid I.D. she had to make do with what her double had in her closet. After selecting a tight-fitting red evening dress, and adjusting her trade-mark red bow in her hair, she was all set. She had everything. Except that Rei was late! Didn't that woman know that time is bread and butter? If she didn't show up soon, and Minako or Ami got home early, this show would be as pointless as watching paint dry in the grass! Glancing at the clock, she made a split-second decision. If that woman didn't show up in 10 minutes, she would have to call the whole thing off and try something different. It was a shame, really. She had managed to twist corn into bronze, but it was possible no one would ever see it. Well, except for Ami and Minako, but what did those two matter to her? This was a matter of love! Just as importantly to her, this was a matter or revenge! Surely this would show every one of the Sekkou she could get anything she wanted, take anything she wanted. Even love and affection from sworn enemies. If that didn't assure her leadership over them, nothing would. However, it would all be a waste of time if Rei never showed up! She was just about to abandon all hope four minutes later, when she heard a knock on the door. Mina walked over to the door and stood there another moment, until a somewhat impatient and louder knock sounded. That had to be her. She was tempted to wait for Rei to knock one more time to get back at her for making her wait, but Rei delivered a warning should 'Minako' try that. "Open this door right here, right now, or I will never speak to you again." The door flew open so quickly Rei jumped back a step. Without so much as a hello from her date, she latched onto Rei's arm and yanked her bodily into the room. As soon as Rei was clear of the door, 'Minako' slammed it behind her and stood between her and the door as if she were worried Rei would flee. Finally, Mina opened her mouth to greet her date. Before she could speak, though, she received a sharp slap to the face. Stepping back and rubbing her cheek, she glared at Rei and growled, "What in the hell was that for?" "That," Rei said, "was for playing games with me! How dare you tell me 'no' to my face, and then call me up 40 minutes later and beg me for a date! Consider that your first strike. Do not play games with me, and do not test me. Because I promise you, you will lose! By the way, in case you weren't paying attention, that was my arm! That hurt! It's n -- !" Mina had planned this down to the last T. If she was going to pull this off, she needed Rei's cooperation. Thus, she felt a change in conversation was in order. To shut Rei up, she covered the other woman's mouth with hers. For a moment, Rei tried to push her off, but Mina was faster and wrapped her arms around the other woman until she felt Rei relax and return the embrace. Mina made a mental note in her to do list. It wasn't supposed to be in this order, but so long as she got all her goals in, what did order matter? First kiss: Check. So far, so good. ---------- So far, everything was going good. The line at the theater was unusually long, and Makoto was about to suggest that they do something different, but the look on Ami's face told her that her companion was looking forward this. So instead, she casually held Ami's hand in hers since she felt that it was best and somehow more romantic to humor her. While she listened to the dull rumble of distant traffic, Makoto felt her lips form into a small smile as a thought came to her. Ami was her senior by nearly 3 months. That was reason enough for Makoto, since that officially made Ami her new senpai. So as far as Makoto was concerned, far be it from her to argue with her new senpai! Makoto had been telling Ami about some of the things that the contractors would be doing to her restaurant, and Ami, for her part, politely listened, nodding her head occasionally. After a while, Makoto ran out of things to say, so she once again stood quietly in the midst of the murmuring crowd as she waited for either Ami to start talking, or the tickets to go on sale. Whichever came first. Something Makoto found cute about Ami was that she kept looking down at their hands and blushing a slight shade of pink, then would casually look up to see if anyone was watching. She hadn't thought about the fact that Ami might not be used to such a small display of public affection. She thought Ami might be uncomfortable at first, but when she didn't pull her hand away, Makoto felt that meant it felt appropriate to her. Ami spoke so softly that for a moment, Makoto wasn't sure she had said anything. "Do you realize that this is the kind of thing I always dreamed a romance to be like?" Makoto tilted her head and regarded Ami with an amused smile. "How so?" Blushing a bit more, Ami admitted, "It's the commonality of it all. Fast food and pretending to argue over who should pay the bill, waiting in line at the theater to see a movie you probably won't like, followed by a ride home." Ami let out a happy sigh and said, "It's just so normal. Romantic dates are all good, but this is what I always dreamed a relationship would be. If I had to sum it up in one word, I'd describe it as comfortable. It's so romantic because it just feels so . . . natural." Makoto felt her smile grow just a bit more. It pleased her to no end to know she was fulfilling one of Ami's dreams. She was just about to say a truly smashing romantic comment to those words, when Ami's relaxed voice chimed in with one last comment. "Even if it is cheap." Makoto tried to hide her own embarrassed blush by looking at her watch as the line started to move. "You know, tickets are going to go on sale any moment now, and by the way, I'm buying." ---------- Rei's date was fairly romantic so far, even considering how cheap Minako was. Minako had put in a movie that neither of them paid attention to. It was the first time in a long while that Rei had spent an entire movie talking to someone. Then, the two of them had spent the time before dinner arrived making yet more small talk. Mostly just random conversations about what they expected from the relationship, things they'd like to do, and when to tell their friends. Dinner at home was a romantic concept for a first date, but since Minako was a terrible cook, it had consisted of cheap wine tucked away in the cabinet and delivery pizza. Rei supposed it was fortunate it wasn't frozen dinners. However, now that dinner was done, the two had become quiet. Minako had snuggled up next to Rei, almost as if waiting for something. However, it had been so long since Rei had been on any kind of a date, that she couldn't remember what that something was. Her date sat quietly next to her, buffing her finger nails on the edge of her skirt. When she started working on her other hand, 'Minako' asked nonchalantly, "So, Rei, tell me. Have you ever been with a woman before?" "Well, no, but I. . ." Rei stopped and looked at Minako, suddenly feeling a little startled as the pieces fell into place, and said, "Don't you think it's a bit soon to be thinking like that, Minako? I-I-I mean, we don't want to rush things, right?" Then under her breath she asked cautiously, "Are you sure you're not a little drunk?" Mina giggled at Rei's last comment and was just about to start pouting for effect, when the sound of a key unlocking the front door got her attention. Fearing it was Minako, Mina ignored the strange look Rei was giving her and ran to the door, slamming it as hard as she could in the person's face just as it started to open. There was a muffled yelp of surprise from the intruder on the other side. Rei calmly got up and walked to Mina and crossed her arms as she said, "So . . . you didn't tell Ami about this, did you." It wasn't a question. As the person on the other side tried to open the door again, Minako pushed with all her weight, trying to keep it closed. Then she locked the door again and said sweetly, "Well . . . I just don't want any interruptions is all . . and . . ." She stopped talking to quickly lock the door again as the person tried to unlock it. "and . . . well, I just don't want them to know this soon, is all. You understand right?" Rei rolled her eyes. "It's just Ami. I'm surprised she wasn't home already. Geez, Minako, if you didn't want her to know, why in the world did you decide to do this here?" Rei put a hand over her eyes for a moment in both anger and embarrassment as Minako and the person on the other side continued their contest of who could lock or unlock the door quicker. Makoto's muffled voice asked from the other side of the door, "Are you sure you're using the right key?" Ami's comment was nothing more than a quiet muffled sound, but it was enough to reassure Mina that wherever Minako was, she wasn't here. She was just about to back away, when another voice said, "Let me try mine." Mina gritted her teeth in anger. It was the last voice in the whole of existence that she wanted to hear. Ami and Makoto's greetings were indistinct, but Rei had clearly heard the other person. This time Minako locked both the door knob lock and the deadbolt. It was clear from the expression on her face that Rei had heard something unusual. She stepped back and looked into the woman's eyes as if searching for something. Surely it was her imagination. Surely it was just paranoia. Feeling it best to be sure, Rei called out, "Minako?" The bubbly blonde's voice called back form the other side of the door, "Rei? Is that you?" Then, quieter, to Ami and Makoto, she asked, "How did she get in there? Did you give her a key?" There was a pause as Ami answered, then Minako said, "Rei, I know you're upset about earlier . . . but I really think now isn't the best time to discuss this . . ." Rage began to boil through her blood at the game she had just played into perfectly. Narrowing her eyes at the woman in front of her, Rei growled, "You're not Minako, are you." The blonde looked at Rei with a look that said her mouth wouldn't melt butter and was just about to say something, but Rei wasn't going to have any of it. "We have a serious problem here!" "Yeah, I know," both Mina and Minako said at the same time. As Minako mumbled an explanation to Ami and Makoto on her side of the door, Rei looked deep into Mina's eyes where she could tell the woman was furious about being interrupted, and Rei was sure the Sekkou could tell just how mad she was about having her heart used as someone else's plaything. Somewhere at the back of her mind she couldn't help but wonder what her enemy had been playing at, but she would think about that later. Controlling her anger, Rei spoke as slowly and calmly as she could. "Open the door." In response, Mina's transformation wand appeared in her hands. "Well, I guess this concludes our date. Before we move on to the foreplay, I do have one question I'd like answered." Rei's wand appeared in her hand, but instead of transforming, she waited quietly for her opponent to speak. "Up until you knew who I was," Mina said bitterly, "Weren't you enjoying yourself?" ---------- Meanwhile, out in the hallway, Minako looked at the door as it once again locked itself. This time she pounded on the door and yelled, "Come on, Rei! Stop playing with us! This isn't funny anymore!" There was no answer. Ami looked up at Makoto with a worried expression on her face. "Something is wrong. Rei can be stubborn, but this just isn't like her." Makoto smiled and asked playfully, "What? You want me to break down the door? Wow, who knew the two of you were so destru . . . oh." Green eyes looked back and forth at the two for a moment in amusement, until she saw Minako nodding her head enthusiastically. "Don't you think that's a bit extreme?" Ami said quietly, "Perhaps knocking down the door is a bit unorthodox. I have an idea we should try before that. Minako, you put your key in the deadbolt, I'll put mine in the doorknob, then I shall count to three. When I get to three, the two of us will unlock the door while Makoto pushes. If we synchronize it perfectly, Rei won't be able to respond quickly enough to lock the door again before we open it." The three got into position, and then Ami whispered, "Ready?" Makoto and Minako nodded with determined looks on their faces. "Ok, on three. One . . . two . . ." The brunette flapped her hand in front of Ami's face and said frantically, "Wait wait wait! Ami-chan, do you mean, one-two-three then push, or, one-two, then push at the same time you say three?" Her blonde friend nodded her head and said, "Yeah yeah, that's a good question, Mako-chan. I was thinking one two three, then we go for it, but now that you mention it, Ami could have meant the other way." Rubbing her forehead as if she were getting a headache from her friends actually complicating such a simple plan, the strategist replied,"Well . . . I suppose it should be coordinated better." She sighed, then said, "Let's go with one two, then execute on three." Then she got back into position and said, "Ok . . . ready? One . . . two . . ." Rei watched as the door flew open and her friends tumbled in, flailing their arms and yelling as they lost their balance and crashed to the floor, landing on top of each other in protest. Somehow, the welcome mat wound up on top of the three of them. If the situation weren't so serious, Rei would have laughed. However, Dark Sailor Venus stood behind her with one arm around Rei's waist almost possessively, and the other holding a large knife from the kitchen pressed firmly against her neck, causing Rei's nearly perfect posture to look just a bit straighter. The Sekkou looked at the three would be rescuers and hissed angrily, "Get back! Back! Everyone does what I say, and no one gets hurt. Understand?" As if her point needed emphasis, she pressed the knife ever so gently into Rei, just barely cutting skin, letting just a small amount of blood run down her neck. It was the first time in a long time any of them could recall seeing Rei look downright scared. She didn't even protest. Aside for shaking ever so slightly, Rei didn't even move. As her friends started pulling themselves to their feet, Rei spoke in a shaky voice, "Do as she says." Seeing the worried expressions on their faces, Rei said, trying to sound brave, "Don't worry. I'll be fine." Mina was most worried about Makoto making some heroic attempt at a rescue since she was sure the tall woman could easily overpower her, but was both relieved and amused when Makoto stepped back out into the hallway with the others. "That's right, kiddies, nice and slow. Keep your distance. You know the drill." Then Mina brought her hand not holding the knife up so that it was resting on Rei's shoulder, gently nudging her out into the hallway as well. Dark Venus walked backwards down the hall toward the elevator, guiding her captive with her. In a voice so calm it almost sounded out of place, Mina said, "Now, the two of us are going to have a little chat." Then, to Rei, she demanded, "You get to work the elevator, sweetie. I'd do it, but as you can see, I have my hands full." Makoto looked for all the world like an attack dog on a leash, just waiting for the collar to snap. Ami stood beside her frantically trying to make some sort of rescue plan, while the expression on her face showed one of deep concern. She had no wish for any of her friends to go through what she had at the hands of their enemies. It was Minako who finally spoke. "You told us to keep our distance, but you said nothing about following you." Her double gave her a wicked smile and a wink as the soft chime of the elevator rang out then replied, "Oh, you are more than welcome to try." Then the doors opened, and she forced her hostage inside. Taking that as the signal to begin the chase, Makoto, Ami, and Minako ran for the elevator as fast as they could. At the last instant, Rei brought a hand up as if trying to reach for her friends just as the door closed. Makoto pounded on the door with her fist once in an effort to let off some steam. "Damn it! I'm sick of always having to chase after them!" Minako stared at the stainless steel doors as if they would answer as she asked to no one in particular, "How could she have been so stupid to fall for a pathetic trap like that?" Ami looked up and watched the floor number change, then started running for the stairs, yelling, "Their going for the roof!" ---------- At the moment, Rei couldn't help but wonder how she had been stupid enough to fall for this. The soft ding signaled the elevator had reached its destination. Without a word, Mina cautiously lead her captive out with her. They were now standing in the rec room of the apartment building. For some reason, being held hostage at knifepoint surrounded by foosball and pool tables was a surreal feeling for Rei. She didn't have time to dwell on that as Mina pushed her toward the exit leading out to the roof. This time without being prompted, Rei opened the door and allowed herself to be forced outside. They walked out to the open roof underneath a star filled sky, and as they approached the center of the open area, Mina said, "Looks like we are going to make a clean getaway. This is easier than I thought." A somewhat surprised look crossed Dark Sailor Venus's face as she heard three voices yell out at the same time, "Stop!" Sailor Venus said, "How dare you capture a young shrine maiden and . . . and . . . you know, Usagi is much better at giving the speeches." Sailor Jupiter nodded. "That's all right Venus, but it doesn't matter anyway." Sailor Mercury smiled then added, "Because in the name of the moon," All three of them yelled out enthusiastically, "We'll punish you!" Rei's face scrunched up. "You know, when you actually stop to listen to that, the whole speech thing sounds a little lame, doesn't it?" Dark Venus rolled her eyes and pressed the knife back against Rei's neck again, not even bothering to turn around. "Don't the three of you ever give up? You're not going to win anyway." With that, she threw the knife at Makoto with far more of an expert aim than any of them would have thought possible. As the Senshi of Thunder dodged the knife, Mina simply tightened both arms around Rei and lifted them both into the sky shooting away from the building as fast as she could carry the two of them. Rei's surprised screaming rang out, but quickly faded as the distance increased. Just like that, they were gone. Minako looked at Ami, waiting for an explanation while Makoto bent down and pulled the knife where it had gotten lodged in to the ground. The bluenette blushed and answered her leader's unasked question. "Well . . . I thought Rei weighed more than you, and they can't carry more than an object of equal mass, so . . ." Minako turned red this time and said, "So . . . guess this means I weigh more than Rei." Deep down, Makoto knew this was their way of not panicking over a situation none of them could change, but as she looked at the knife in her hands she just couldn't keep her temper down any more. For the second time that night, Makoto swore and tossed the knife in the direction Dark Venus had gone with her hostage. Minako looked at Makoto and, half in an attempt to get her to calm down, and half being honest, said, "That was a birthday present from my mother." The three quietly looked out in the direction Mina and Rei had gone. Minako sighed and said, "What do we do now?" ---------- Dark Venus touched down on another roof top far from the building she had just made her escape from. When they touched down, Mina let go of Rei, letting the raven haired woman stumble forward as she fell down, exhausted from using so much energy in her flight. After a few moments, her panting turned to giggling and a fit of laughter. Once she calmed down, she said, "Man, that was fun! Did you see the looks on their faces when I threw that knife at them? They totally bought it!" Rei turned around and narrowed her eyes at the crazed blonde as she put her hand over the cut on her neck. "They're not the only ones who bought it. That hurt, you idiot! When I told you I would help you escape, I didn't expect you to try to stab me!" Then as her temper cooled, Rei said to herself, "So . . . what do we do now?" Mina got to her feet and embraced Rei, saying, "Aw, did I hurt you? Let me see." Then she pulled Rei's hand away gently and started kissing Rei's neck. Rei tilted her head for a moment and bit her lower lip. Angry as she was at the woman, she had to admit Mina was good at tempting her. Suddenly, though, Rei remembered her original deal with the Sekkou and pushed her away. "No, we discussed this already back in that elevator. No matter what we feel for each other, it's not right to get involved until the Senshi and Sekkou aren't fighting, and we do need time to truly get over Minako and Ray." Mina put her hands behind her back and bobbed up and down on her tippy toes with a huge smile plastered to her face. "Oh come on now, don't be like that. Just one goodbye kiss is all I ask." Rei shook her head sadly. It was clear the attractive blonde wasn't taking her seriously. "I mean it. Unless you are going to stay and try to help us defeat the Sekkou, we can't do this. It's wrong no matter how you look at it." This time Dark Venus walked to the edge of the building and looked out over the city in quiet contemplation. After a moment, she said, "I can't do that. I'm not going to abandon my friends." She felt Rei walk up behind her and somehow knew the woman was looking over her shoulder at the city with her. After a few minutes, she said, "You know . . . it would help us greatly if you just came with me and joined us." She felt Rei's arms wrap around her gently as they stood in silence. Taking that to mean the Miko was actually considering her offer, Mina turned around in her arms to look into into her eyes and said, "Come with me, Rei." Rei still had no idea what the Sekkou were truly up to. Perhaps if she did, she might have said yes. However, given the circumstances, her answer was predictable. Even still, Mina felt like someone had just stabbed her in the heart when Rei's eyes started to water and she said, almost pleading with the woman, "Stay." "Well I . . .I . . ." Mina looked into Rei's eyes and for an instant, Rei thought the other was going to say yes. After several tense moments though, Mina gritted her teeth as her eyes suddenly turned cold and angry a second before she violently pushed Rei away. Stepping over the edge of the building and hovering so that her face was just a few feet higher than Rei's, in an attempt at making herself look intimidating, she said, "I could force you to come with me, you know." Despite the tears starting to trace their way down Rei's cheeks, she looked up at the Scout. Her voice didn't hide the fact that she was angry, but it still held hope as she said, "But you won't." Dark Venus glared down at Rei for a few moments, then finally, she reached up and touched her star pendant on her choker, activating a portal behind her. "I'll show you no quarter the next time we meet." With that, she spun around in the air to face her portal and left without another word. As the portal disappeared behind her enemy, Rei walked to the ledge again and looked out over the city. She took a long, slow breath as she got a hold of her emotions again and said, "Then that is the way it shall be." She knew in her heart she didn't mean it. ---------- In her heart, she knew this was the moment she had been waiting for. Even still, Trista felt it best to be sure. "My Queen, we have a serious breach of security on our hands." Beryl looked at the two women who stood before her. She had known they had been there for quite some time, but it wasn't like Trista to speak without being spoken to first. Whatever it was she wanted to discuss with her, Beryl was now certain it was important. Looking away from her crystal ball, she said almost absentmindedly, "Continue." Trista bowed. "Yes, madam. Earlier today, Mina Aino attacked Amy Anderson, stole one of the activation pendants, and went on an unauthorized mission, of which we do not know the details, to the Senshi's dimension. She returned approximately one earth hour ago." The slightest smile crept to her lips as she asked, "Shall we detain her and bring her to you for questioning?" Beryl merely gazed back into her crystal ball as if her servant had said nothing. Hotaru bowed and said, "We also learned that several hours before this transpired, Dark Venus was spurned in her romantic overtures to Ray Hino. It is our belief that Mina was making an attempt to fraternize with the enemy." Without even looking up, Beryl responded "Yes, I know." Trista and Hotaru traded glances at each other in contained surprise. This time without bowing, Trista stated, "Then it may also interest you to know that -- " Beryl cut Dark Saturn's words off by raising a hand. She looked up at the two of them and said in barely contained anger, "As queen, it is my duty to know what transpires in my kingdom. I am aware of the plan the guardian Sekkou have of trying to overthrow me, and I am pleased to hear that your two apprentices hang on your every word." Beryl gave her two subordinates a smile and stated, "It is doomed to failure. There are too many lies, yet not enough secrets amongst the Sekkou." This time Dark Saturn didn't bother to hide her irritation. "If you are aware, why do you not act on it?" "You forget, I have done this before. Their failure serves as the final seal to their fate, and it stands to eliminate the weakest links amongst the Sekkou. Once they fail in trying to kill me, they will be too demoralized to try again. In the process, they will eliminate most or all of the Senshi eventually, allowing me another universe to control as I see fit." Still looking into her crystal ball, Beryl whispered, "So much power. Yes, they will fail. All of them will. They always do." Spreading her arms out, almost in defeat, Dark Pluto said in disbelief, "Then you bid us to do nothing?" Beryl finally moved away from her crystal ball and stood in front of her two loyal servants. "I am also aware that the two of you are completely loyal to me and owe me your very lives for what I have done for you. Your lust for power serves me well, and your performance thus far allows you certain rewards and privileges. What is it you so seek?" Trista put up a hand to signal Hotaru to let her do the talking. "We wish to be given the honor of punishing Mina on your behalf for her treasonous acts against the throne, after which, we would be honored to be allowed to assume leadership of the Sekkou. If you wish, we won't even interfere in their plans to overthrow you until the bitter end. At which time, we will loyally aid you in their defeat." Beryl clapped her hands once, the sound echoing through the cavernous room like thunder. Her voice seemed eerily quiet as she sealed the deal. "Done." Letting her joy at the news show, Hotaru said eagerly, "We shall go at once and prepare a plan to carry out your bidding my lady." As a final reminder to them as to who was in charge, she narrowed her eyes, and gave them a dismissive wave. "Then you are already late."
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