Busted Rei's sleep hadn't been particularly peaceful. Then, to make things that much more unpleasant, a loud, frustrated groan escaped her lips when the first raindrop landed on her nose. At least it wasn't raining hard . . . yet. After turning off her communicator she had just curled up into a ball near a large rooftop air conditioning unit and went to sleep. She hadn't originally expected to stay where Mina had left her the night before, but she hadn't felt like facing her friends just yet. At the time, it had seemed like the easiest thing to do. She hadn't even bothered to de-transform from the previous night. A night on a hard roof wasn't the most comforting place to sleep, and the shooting pain from her muscles as they protested being used for the first time that day was her first hint that it had been a stupid idea. Not entirely sure if she meant her decision to sleep on the roof, or her behavior toward a woman who was supposed to be the enemy, Rei rubbed her eyes and said out loud to herself, "What in the hell was I thinking?" "Do you know the answer to your own question, or are you asking me to answer it?" Rei forced herself to stand up despite the numbness she now felt in her left foot as Setsuna stepped out from behind the air conditioning system. Clenching her fists in frustration Rei growled, "How long have you been here?" Then she waved her gloved hand as if to dismiss her. "Never mind. I don't have time to talk to someone who practically sold us out." A small smile appeared on her lips as Setsuna ignored Rei's outburst. Bringing up a hand to block Rei from departing, she said, "So, you don't know." Rei stretched her arms and yawned before saying, "Oh please! I'm not awake enough for this garbage yet. Can't you torment me later?" For the first time since Rei had known the woman, a look of inpatience crossed Setsuna's face. "No time like the present." Rei pushed past her as she said, "I'm not going to talk to you until you tell me why I should even trust you, traitor." She said the last word as if it were a swear word. As if to emphasize her point, the pace at which rain drops darkened the surface they stood on quickened. Without turning around, the Senshi of time said simply, "Because you and I are on the same side now, for lack of a better description." Turning just enough to look over her shoulder at Rei, she continued, "My job has never been to protect any of you or save the earth. That's your job. My responsibility is to insure that time flows how it is supposed to. For both to happen . . ." She turned around to regard Rei closely as she finished, ". . . I need your help just as much as you need my help, Rei Hino." Rei felt hope flutter though her soul for a moment, but traded it for anger. Stomping her foot in frustration, she yelled, "Like hell I'm going to help you! You told them about us! If you hadn't meddled in their lives, we wouldn't even be having this conversation! How many ways can I say this? You're a traitor, Setsuna. You practically handed Ami over to people you knew were going to wind up as our enemies when you could have warned us about them! It's your fault they even found us to begin with! If you hadn't done any of this then maybe--" The glare Setsuna shot at Rei made her cut her words short. Setsuna let the uncomfortable silence hang in the damp air a moment before speaking. "Don't you dare question my intentions." For some reason Rei wasn't sure of, Setsuna's anger felt like a slap in the face. After letting her words sink in, Setsuna continued. "If I hadn't done anything, their world would have been doomed to a fate it didn't deserve, and the woman you long for would be cursed with an eternal fate worse than death. What's more, you, and all of your friends' destinies would have been forever altered. Their future and yours would have been destroyed. They would have spent the rest of eternity as slaves, and the eternal peace that you and the other Senshi strive to bring with the foundation of Crystal Tokyo would never come to be. I did what I did because I had to do it to protect you, your friends, them, and both of your worlds from destruction. Most important of all, it insures the proper flow of time. The cost is expensive, but it is a necessary expense." Rei opened her mouth to say something, then closed it as she thought about what Setsuna had said. "What do you mean longing for?" She quickly stuttered out, "I . . . I . . . I'm not longing for anybody!" Setsuna grabbed Rei's shoulder and turned her around violently so she was facing the other direction as she said, "You mean you aren't longing for her?" In the time it took Rei to blink, everything, including her clothing had dried and night had returned. She blinked a few times in the darkness, but was surprised by the fact that her eyes didn't need to adjust. Just as she was about to ask Setsuna a question, she saw Dark Venus touch down on the rooftop several feet away from her, clutching Rei . . . herself . . . close. Despite the fact that it was a moment of her own life from just the night before, Rei suddenly felt like an intruder on a moment that belonged to someone else. Everything, even the night breeze froze just after Mina let her cargo stumble forward and allowed herself to fall to her knees in exhaustion. Rei walked toward the two in wonder. They were as still as statues. She stopped to look at herself and said, almost laughing at the absurdity of it all, "Man! Talk about your out of body experience!" She . . . that is her from the night before . . . had stopped in mid step as Mina had let her go, her arms out at her side as if she had been pretending to be an air plane. Her expression was one of surprise from the sudden landing. Her hair had frozen exactly as it was in the air, every strand exactly how it had been the moment Setsuna had . . . stopped time. Suddenly feeling horrified, Rei turned to look at Setsuna and said nervously, "I thought if you stop time, that you go . . ." Rei made a sound that resembled static and spread her arms out slowly before continuing her thought out loud, "You know, Kabluey!" Shaking her head slowly, Sailor Pluto replied, "No, this is different. This moment has already happened. We are just observers." Rei's face scrunched up in confusion. "But, if we are still moving, then that means this is a moment of our lives, which means time hasn't stopped for us. So if you stopped time, then we are still going through time. You know, as in our lives, time? So, even if you stop time in the past you should . . ." Rei kept moving her hands without talking as she tried to work through the problem at hand. As the gears in her head frantically turned, she had just enough brain power left to think that not even Ami could have answered this one. Instead of answering the technical question, Setsuna put her hand on Rei's shoulder and turned her gently toward Mina. "Look into her eyes and tell me what you feel." Rei's rambling stopped the moment she made eye contact with the frozen Sekkou. Despite being tired from her recent ordeal, Dark Venus was smiling. Not an evil demented smile, but a genuine one, full of life and hope. It probably had only lasted a few seconds, but it had happened. Her heart started to beat just a little faster as she looked deeper and deeper into that face. She found herself getting lost in the eyes of her enemy. The blonde looked so vulnerable, frozen like that on her knees. That observation made Rei's heart ache just a bit. Without even thinking about it, she started to bring up a hand to try to help her up. Rather than wait for Rei to answer, Setsuna spoke for her. "It's different from when you look at Minako, isn't it? It's not quite love, not quite like looking at a friend, and it's definitely not like looking at an enemy, is it. That feeling you have is longing, Rei. You are longing to get to know her. Longing to touch her, and have her. Possess her, even. Maybe even to . . . love her." Then, Setsuna turned Rei back to face her, and just like that, the dreary rainy morning returned. "I'm here to tell you, that if you want to do more than long, you will have to help me, Rei." Setsuna put a hand on Rei's shoulder and said, "Come with me. I have something I need you to see." Rei knew it was her imagination, but she was certain it was raining just a little harder. ---------- Ami unbuckled her seatbelt and grabbed her bag from the backseat, saying, "Thank you for the ride to work, Mako-chan. I would have been soaked by now if I had to walk." "Don't mention it," Makoto said. "Besides, it's my fault you're late. It's the least I could do." Ami's cheeks turned a slight shade of pink as she thought to herself that it hadn't entirely been Makoto's fault. She hadn't exactly tried to put a stop to the early morning activities. Instead of commenting, she said, "I'll see you here after work, Makoto." Then she opened the door to get out, and started running toward the building. Ami had only taken a few steps before Makoto rolled down the window and yelled, "Hey! Didn't you forget something?" Ami turned back around and ran to Makoto's driver side window. When she got there she said, "I don't think so. Is it important? If not, I think I should jus--" Makoto wrapped her arms around her and pulled Ami's face into the car and gave her a quick kiss on the lips. Then she said, "That's better, now you can go." A flustered Ami looked around for a moment to be certain no one saw, then she straightened her damp hair as best she could before resuming her run for the doors. Makoto turned around in her seat and watched Ami in the rearview mirror as she ran toward the building before putting the car into drive. The instant the doors closed behind Ami, she heard someone clear their throat. "It's not like you to be late, Mizuno Sensei. Classes start in five minutes. You wouldn't want to be a bad example for your students, now, would you?" She cringed inwardly, and looked in the direction the voice had come from. Assistant Principal Yukichi Nakamura gave her a disapproving glare. Ami bowed politely and said softly, "My ride had some car trouble, sir. I'm sorry to cut this short, but I must hurry to be sure I make it to my first class on time." Ami felt bad about lying, but she had no wish to be chewed out by administration twice in one week, and unlike Principal Takahashi, Assistant Principal Nakamura wasn't as easy a man to please. She looked up, and was grateful to see him nod his head dismissively as he said, "Don't make it a habit, Sensei. I'd hate to see your career at our fine, respected school come to an untimely end if you did." Yukichi watched Ami bow politely, then scurry on her way down the hall. Once he was certain she was out of hearing distance, he grumbled to himself, "Your ride, indeed. People like you have no place in proper society." He shook his head once in disgust, then stepped back into his office to attend to more important matters. He would deal with Mizuno later. ---------- Makoto knew her presence here wouldn't change the fact that her contractor's progress with the remodel was slower than she had hoped, but she just couldn't find it in her to stay away. After fumbling with the keys to unlock the door, she stepped into the middle of an orchestrated mess. The windows were covered with plywood from the outside to conceal the chaos within, which was a good thing in her opinion. Stacks of plywood and table saws had replaced the old tables and booths, half of the light fixtures had been removed along with a quarter of the ceiling, and the floor had been stripped to bare concrete. The workers hadn't arrived for the day, so she was alone. She walked past the remains of the dining room to enter the kitchen. Here, the sound of the rain banging against the roof like pebbles was louder since the entire ceiling had been stripped to the point she could see the superstructure and what remained of the ductwork. All of the cabinets, sinks and appliances had been removed, save for one. It had been Makoto's decision that they would keep the old steam table. She knew it was silly, but she wanted to keep it for sentimental reasons, a link to the past of sorts. On the up side, she was happy to see the workers had completed something. The new white linoleum flooring had been put in, so the workers could at least start working on finishing up the kitchen. As she looked around, she tried to imagine how it would all look when it was done. White, clean, new. Panda Paradise and Bakery would have all the trappings of a modern, five star restaurant. Romantic corner booths, snazzy lighting, interesting art work, a first rate modern kitchen. The works. Or at least, for what Makoto was paying for the remodel, it had better be. Some of this wasn't so hard to see, since the walk in freezer was apparently completed as well, still with a protective layers of film over the surface of the door. She couldn't help but admire it since she saw it as a glance into the future of her business. A glance into the future of her very life's work. She walked over to the new stainless steel freezer door, and ran her fingers over it in a way that might have made Ami just a tad bit jealous. It was so smooth she could see her reflection in it. As she looked at herself, she couldn't help but feel worried. This remodel had been a risky business move on her part, since it would involve being closed for at least a month. She was paying her most experienced help a full time pay check to try to keep them, but since she couldn't afford to do that for everyone, she knew she was going to have to scramble to replace several people before the grand reopening. Then, there was the worry that some of her regular customers might find other places to eat and not return. It was worth it, though. They would be doubling the seating capacity in the dining room and space in the kitchen since she had bought the shop next door that had been closed up for years, and the new look would draw a crowd, she was sure. Still lost in her thoughts, she patted the steel door again. She said, "Yeah, it'll be great." Then she laughed at herself for how silly she was being. Everything would be fine. Her mind made up, she turned to leave. Then, she heard a quiet knocking sound and froze in her steps. At first, she chided herself for being so jumpy. It was probably just a draft. The sound stopped, and she started leaving again. She had only taken one step before the sound started again. This time, she heard it a little louder, and just a bit too regular to be coincidental noise. "Who's there?" Whoever this vandal was, they were going to get the surprise of their life. "I'm warning you, if you don't leave now, I'll make you wish you had." The quiet tapping continued, almost like someone keeping time to music. It sounded like it was close, but she couldn't tell where it was coming from. She turned around slowly, and without warning, the sound stopped. The only thing she saw was the steam table, new flooring, unfinished walls . . . nothing else. No one was there. She shook her head in frustration. Perhaps she was just jumping at shadows after all. She looked back at her reflection in the freezer door and said to herself, "Guess I need a vacation anyway. Add that to my list of reasons why all of this is a good idea." Her reflection winked at her and gave her a thumbs up in response. Ami had told them all about her first encounter with the Sekkou, so Makoto knew what was coming. Her transformation wand appeared in her hand and she felt electricity wrap around her. Half way through her transformation phase, her attacker balled up her fist and threw a punch, badly denting the new door. Sailor Jupiter jumped as the loud sound shattered the silence. She readied herself, determined the first blow would be hers, and watched as her double threw a kick in an attempt to break out of her steal prison, with much the same results as her first attempt. Makoto stepped away and tried not to laugh. The Sekkou couldn't get through! After a third clang rang out, she folded her arms in front of her chest and gave her double an amused smile. "Don't you realize that thing is expensive?" This time, she didn't hold back her laughter as her double stepped back and rubbed her hand. Sailor Jupiter said between fits of giggles, "Aw, did you hurt your wittle hand? Serves you right!" Lita glared at her and said something. While Makoto couldn't hear a sound from the woman's lips, she was certain it was an insult of some sort. Makoto, sensing the danger had passed (minus the repair costs for the new fridge) shrugged and said, "Well, you win some, you lose some. Better luck next time, champ." With that, Makoto casually walked back into the dining room to leave. Still smiling confidently to herself as she made her way to the door, she said, "Well, this'll give me something interesting to talk to Ami about." She giggled to herself as a thought came to her. "She's so cute when she babbles about physics, even if I don't understand a word she's saying." She reached for the door handle and froze perfectly still. "You've got to be kidding me." In the dim light, she could just make out her reflection in the glass door. Dark Jupiter's smile was anything but friendly. Lita's lips moved again, and while Makoto still couldn't hear her, this time she didn't have to. The words 'You're mine!' are not that hard to lip read. Makoto yelled in surprise as Lita's fist broke through the glass, and yanked Makoto through the glass door and the protective plywood, sending her slamming into the middle of the parking lot. Dazed momentarily, Makoto just lay where she had crashed, clutching her side which had been badly cut as she had passed through the window. Then she forced herself to stand and face her opponent. Once again, she transformed into Sailor Jupiter as Dark Jupiter calmly started walking toward her. Before the Sekkou reached her, two portals opened up to either side of her attacker as Dark Hotaru and Saturn literally stepped back into Makoto's life. Seeing as she was injured and now outnumbered 3 to 1, Makoto did something that she had learned only from years of experience in fighting. Still clutching her wound and swallowing her pride, Makoto did the only thing she could. She turned toward the street and ran as fast as she could. As she ran from her attackers, she moved her hand away from her injury just long enough to activate her communicator. She needed help, and she needed it fast. ---------- While her students took their test on the latest chapter of Earth Science, Ami busied herself grading her students' homework. She put a circle around the last answer on this student's paper, then quietly flipped the next before her. As she stared at the paper, her mind wandered back to Makoto for the third time this morning since she had been dropped off. This time it was about Makoto's eyes and how they sparkled in the star light during their first date. And how that same sparkle dimmed somewhat when Ami didn't say 'I love you' back to her. She still hadn't, now that she thought about it. She didn't know why it had just occurred to her that she had yet to say those words to Makoto. She had said them to herself when thinking about the woman, but she just felt awkward when ever she tried to say it out loud, as if it were something bad, or at times, silly. Perhaps it was years of her mother rubbing in to her that it was something one was supposed to be extremely careful to say to someone else. 'Don't ever give your heart away too quickly, or you will be asking to get hurt', she had said over and over. She removed her glasses and rubbed her eyes, trying to ward off the headache she was starting to get. Love and romance had always been the most complicated subject for her. She whispered to herself, "You have to stop beating yourself up over pointless little things." Out of nowhere, a student quietly asked, "Uh . . . Sensei Mizuno? Could you please answer your cell phone? It's distracting us." Ami sat up straight, as if she had been struck by lightning. Reaching for her bag to retrieve her cell phone, she said nervously, "Oh, I must have forgotten to turn it off. I am so sorry. I--" Then she realized the steady beeping sound wasn't her cell phone, but her senshi communicator tucked away in her pocket. None of them dared use their communicators at this time of day anymore unless it was for a very good reason, since all of them had jobs to worry about. For appearance's sake, she grabbed the cell phone and said to her class, "This will only take a moment." She closed the door to her classroom and ignored the sounds of her students chattering in her absence as she looked around to make certain she was alone. She flipped on her communicator and Makoto's face appeared on her screen. Before Ami could speak, she yelled, "I'm near . . . 4-11-26 Minami Azabu Minato-ku and I need assistance now!" Before she could say anything else, the screen flashed bright blue as the transmission ended abruptly, cutting Makoto off mid scream. Ami tried to make a few adjustments to the signal, but nothing happened. Trying to stay calm but unable to keep her voice from shaking, she said out loud, "Makoto?" She didn't answer. That meant something had probably happened to her communicator, or worse. This was the situation they all knew would happen eventually. If an enemy ever attacked during a work day, it was most likely that few, if any of them, would be able to get away long enough to even answer their communicators, let alone be able to sneak away from work without giving away there identities. Unless they just outright walked off the job. The choice was easy for Ami. If she was lucky, she could walk away with a reprimand. Her career was important, but not nearly as important as Makoto. She walked back into her classroom and started packing her bag. As her class quieted back down, she said as calmly as she could, "I'm sorry class, but I have to leave. An emergency has been brought to my attention that I must attend to." She put her bag over her shoulder as she turned toward the door. "A substitute teacher will be here to--" Then she stopped dead in her tracks at the sight before her. One of the girls in Ami's class yelled out, "Hey, cool! Two Sailor Senshi." Dark Mercury and Dark Venus stood just outside her classroom door, waiting almost casually for Ami to notice them. When Ami made eye contact with them, Mina smiled and waved as if they were old friends. Ami went over to the class representative student sitting in the chair closest to the door. The girl shrunk back in her seat nervously, as if Ami were going to ask her a question she didn't know the answer to. "Yes, Mizuno Sensei?" Ami said patiently, "Tanaka-san, I need you to lead the class out the other door and lead them to the gym. Tell Yoshida Sensei that rather unusual circumstances have caused me to have to evacuate the building. When it is safe to do so, elaborate as best you can. Pull the fire alarm on your way out, and whatever you do, don't let anyone come back. Understand?" A quiet murmur went up amongst the students that had overheard her as the class rep asked, "Where will you be?" Ami looked back up as the two women stepped inside. "I am going to try to . . . reason with them." Seeing the worried expression in her students' eyes she added, "Don't worry. I'll be all right. Go." Just as the class rep started to speak, Dark Venus' whip formed in her hand and she cracked it over the students' heads. The enraged Sekkou shrieked, "Go on! Scram!" That was all the warning the children needed to flee. However, few of them listened to the class rep as she tried to maintain order, instead choosing to run wildly out of the room in any direction they could that would take them as far away from there as possible. As the last of the panicked students left, Mina declared, "There now, wasn't that a much simpler form of crowd control? No innocent bystanders to interrupt us while we have our little . . . chat." Then she raised her whip with every intention of making an attempt at cleaving off one of Ami's arms. Just before she could send the lethal weapon in Ami's direction, Amy brought up her hand to stop her, yelling, "Wait!" Mina protested, but Amy ignored her, instead turning her attention to Ami. "Before we begin the festivities, I do have one question to ask you." Ami had already started to transform the moment the last student left the room. Trying to stall for time as she frantically thought of another plan, she asked, "and that would be?" A perplexed expression crossed Amy's face. "Why a teacher?" The question hadn't been anything like what Ami had expected her demented double to ask. It was all Ami could do to reply almost dumbly, "Uh . . . excuse me?" Spreading her arms out wide, Amy repeated, "Why teach?" She pointed at herself and said, "I don't know about you for certain, but I always wanted to be a doctor when I was growing up. I never got a choice in what I would do with my future, though. Instead, I have spent the better part of fifteen years in the service of her majesty, doing her every bidding. If I had a choice of what I could have actually done in that time . . . well . . . I can't say I'd have become a doctor, but teaching just strikes me as . . . somewhat beneath my abilities in the way of choices." The strobe lights and blaring sound of the fire alarm filled the room at that moment, causing Mina to lose her patience. "We don't have time for this!" she hissed at her subordinate. Then she pushed Amy out of the way and sent her whip flying at Ami's head. Ami rolled to avoid the lethal attack, but was blown off her feet by an attack from Dark Mercury, sending her crashing against the far wall. As school supplies, paper, and parts of desks crashed around her, Ami started to stand and defend herself, but was stopped when Dark Venus put her foot on Sailor Mercury's stomach, pinning her in a sitting position against the wall. Smiling triumphantly, Dark Venus said, "And now, my pretty little friend . . . you will die." She dramatically swung her whip around, wanting to see fear in Ami's eyes before her untimely end. However, Sailor Mercury wasn't about to give her the satisfaction. Instead, she held up her hands and called out, "Mercury Aqua Mirage!" At point blank range, the results were spectacular. The blast of water was so powerful that it sent Amy and Mina flying away from her to smash against the opposite side of the room. However, it also blew the entire section of wall, part of the floor, and Ami away from the building. Ami had known this would happen. The tremendous destruction to her classroom had bought time for her to get a head start toward Makoto. If her two attackers played their parts right, it would also lead them away from the school, hopefully to a more suitable fighting ground. As Ami fell through the air, she suddenly found herself thinking about the only 'down' side to her plan. The class she had been teaching was on the third floor. She screamed as she watched the parking lot pavement rush up to greet her. ---------- "You wanted me to see the inside of a Starbucks coffee shop?" Rei took the offered Styrofoam cup from Setsuna and took a sip before saying, "You know, I fail to see what espresso has to do with my future, Setsuna." Setsuna shrugged and said, "Sometimes the path through life takes you to fantastic locations, others it takes you to unexpected . . . and rather mundane ones." Taking a sip from her own drink, she finished, "The place is rarely of importance anyway. It's the events that transpire there that are. Besides, I like a cup of coffee first thing in the morning." Rei rolled her eyes and turned toward the window to watch the rain continue to fall. At least the caffeine would help her wake up before whatever her reason for being here came about. After several more minutes, nothing happened. Just the usual chatter and clanking of dishes. Nothing ground breaking what-so-ever. It was so . . . boring. "I don't even like coffee." After downing another sip, Rei set her cup down and scoffed, "This is stupid. We've been here long enough for us to drink two cups of bland, overpriced coffee and nothing has happened." Outright ignoring Rei's rant, Setsuna said simply, "Muffin?" "What?" "Would you like a muffin? It may help keep you from getting heartburn later." Rei didn't even bother to respond. She just turned back to the window for what felt like the thousandth time. After waiting even longer, Rei let her impatience control her. Thumping her hand on the table just loud enough to get Setsuna's attention, she said,"This is a waste of time." "I beg your pardon?" Rei looked at the woman seated across from her and grumbled, "Whatever is going to happen, it's not going to happen here." With that, Rei grabbed the umbrella Setsuna had brought with her and said, "Well, I'm sorry to ruin your wonderful little plan, Setsuna-san, but I am going to leave. Destiny can find me. I'm not going to sit around and wait for it to fall in my lap." She stood up and started to walk away from the table, eager to end whatever game Setsuna was playing. Taking another sip of coffee, Setsuna said calmly, "As you wish." Rei stopped and looked over her shoulder in annoyance at her companion. "You aren't going to stop me?" When Setsuna said nothing, Rei decided to speak for her. "Let me guess. I'm supposed to walk out? Whatever it is that's supposed to happen isn't even here?" Throwing her arms up in the air, Rei bit out, "Why have we been wasting our time here when we should just be waiting somewhere else?!" Setsuna didn't even look up. She just took yet another sip of tasteless coffee and asked, "Would you rather have waited in the rain?" Rei went back to the table and gripped it in frustration. If it hadn't been bolted to the floor, she might have overturned it. Ignoring the looks from bystanders, she yelled, "Stop playing games with me, damn it!" Almost on cue, Setsuna took one final sip then stood up. As if they were having a perfectly civil conversation, Setsuna said, "Excuse me, Hino-san, but I must be going now. I have other matters that require my attention. I hope the day treats you well, and do try to stay dry, Rei-san." As Setsuna walked away, Rei spread her arms out in disgust. "What? That's it? You're just leaving without even waiting around to witness your handiwork?" In response, Setsuna calmly walked out the exit without even acknowledging her. Rei just glared in the direction the Senshi of time had gone. Then she said to herself, "Oh no. I'm not going to play your flipping game this time. I'm going to sit down and wait for it to stop raining, then I'm going to go home and go back to my abnormal-enough-as-it-is life." Then she took her place at the table again, intending to do just that. "Yes sir, no destiny making events for me today, thank you. She picked up her cup and swirled it around, looking into it as if it would give her her fortune. Then, as she brought the cup up to her lips for another drink, she stopped when she saw what was going on outside. Through the window, she saw several terrified people running down the sidewalk. Then after a few seconds she witnessed Sailor Mercury and Jupiter running side by side in the same direction. Jupiter stopped running and started to turn around, but Mercury grabbed her shoulder and gave her a hard push, clearly indicating she felt the taller woman should keep running. When Makoto did as her companion advised, Ami stopped just long enough to fire off an attack at something out of view before running after Makoto again. Rei threw her cup on the table, not caring whether it spilled or not. She swore under her breath as she ran for the door into the pouring rain, cursing Setsuna for ever existing. ---------- This time when Makoto stopped, something about her posture told Ami she wasn't going to keep running anymore. Ami would have tried again to convince her to keep moving, but she was too out of breath to do so. Instead, Makoto tucked her damp hair behind her ears and placed her hand on Ami's shoulder, saying, "We make our stand here." Instead of arguing, Ami looked up and watched the five Sekkou circling overhead and managed to wheeze out, "Why here? I thought we agreed . . ." She stopped for a moment to take in a few breaths and finished ". . . to somewhere more remote?" Makoto smiled. "Because I don't think you nor I can run much longer, and because here, the odds are better." Still gasping for air, Ami looked at Makoto and said "Normally . . . huff huff . . . I'd agree with . . . you . . . that two against four . . . gasp . . . aren't bad odds but . . . wheeze . . . but you . . . you are injured." Before Makoto could elaborate, their pursuers touched down and started walking in a circle around the two of them like a pack of hungry wolves ready to make the kill. Mina growled, "Aw, so our foxes have tired of the hunt so soon, have they?" Trista said, "Now now, we mustn't rush this. Victory tastes so much better when you savor the flavor of it." "Not so fast!" The four Sekkou stopped circling and looked in the direction of the newcomer to the fight. Sailor Mars stood on top of a parked car and shouted, "I can't stand it when people interrupt my coffee break! For love and justice I am the beautiful sailor-suited soldier, Sailor Mars! In the name of Mars, I'll punish you!" "As will I! Sailor Pluto, appearing gracefully," added Setsuna with a nod as she stepped from behind the car. A thunderclap tore through the air when Dark Jupiter decided not to waste time with words, sending a deadly bolt of electricity flying straight at Rei. It missed, but blew up the car she had been standing on just moments before. The explosion threw her in exactly the direction Lita had hoped she wouldn't go. Straight toward her. Setsuna had already started running toward the Sekkou an instant before Lita's attack, her staff raised high as she prepared to continue the fight with Hotaru. Their staffs smashed together rapidly as the Sekkou of time eagerly took up the challenge. As Rei crashed into Lita, Ami and Makoto turned their attention to the remaining two Sekkou. Mina cracked her whip in warning as Amy switched on her visor. Makoto said almost eagerly to Ami, "Well, which one do you want? The blue one or the yellow one?" Ami looked into her double's eyes as her own visor sprang to life. She started formulating a plan for attack against her opponent. She looked into Amy's eyes . . . and lost almost all control over her thoughts as a flood of terrifying memories came back to her in an instant. The last time she had felt like this she had been weak and unable to fight back. This time . . . This time revenge was the only thing pouring through her mind and blood as she charged forward with what Makoto would only have described as a roar. She didn't even bother to use an attack, just ran at the Sekkou, letting her anger control her. It caught Amy completely by surprise, which gave Ami enough time to wrap her hands around the woman's throat. Then Ami kneed her in the stomach and let her go, watching with a strange amount of sadistic glee as the woman slumped to the ground in agony. Then, with tears of pure rage running down her face, Ami began repeatedly stomping on Amy. Mercilessly. She almost lunged forward to stop Ami, because in the back of her mind it scared Makoto that Ami had let that much anger build up inside, but she stopped before she even started moving. This was something Ami needed to do on her own. This was personal. "Well, I suppose that answers that." Instead, she cracked her fingers and turned her attention to Mina, saying, "Shall we dance?" Dark Venus smiled. "But of course. Venus Metallic Crush!" Makoto dove to the ground just in time to avoid a lamp post as it came flying out of nowhere, smashing itself into the ground where Makoto had stood only moments before. She had just enough time to jump out of the way again as Dark Venus sent her whip cracking at her. Sailor Jupiter jumped to her feet, but a third attack never came. Sailor Mars stood behind Dark Venus, holding the woman in a headlock. Rei said to Makoto as she strained to keep control of the situation, "Let's say we switch dance partners." Before Makoto could even respond, she found herself dodging an attack from her new opponent. The fury of Lita's attack was startling at first, until Makoto realized the reason for it. She was the only thing standing between Lita and Amy. At first, Lita was able to land a few blows on Makoto, since she wasn't able to fight as well due to her injury. After a blow landed against the side of Makoto's face though, a thought came to her. Makoto was the only thing between Lita and Ami! From somewhere deep with in her, Makoto found it in her to start bringing the fight to her attacker. She delivered a powerful kick to Lita's ribs, causing a loud cracking sound to fill the air. It didn't even slow the woman down. Meanwhile, Trista stood aside, watching the fight rage on around her as if it didn't concern her. True, she could have rushed to any one of her comrades' aid and turned the battle to their favor at any moment. However, that wasn't the objective this time. Her purpose in this fight didn't require combat. The purpose of this fight was to deliver a different sort of damage to the enemy, as well as take care of an . . . internal problem. She watched with some amusement as Rei and Mina began dodging each other's attacks. "A lovers' quarrel," she said to herself. Her smile grew just a bit more as Mina delivered a punch to Rei's gut. "Now, now darlings, that's no way to solve a problem." Then, she heard what she had been waiting for. Police sirens wailed in the distance. "Now this, this is how one solves a problem." She arrogantly walked through the rubble toward the Sekkou and Senshi of Mercury. Ami was in so much of an animalistic rage as she delivered another powerful kick to her opponent, that she didn't even see her walking up. Dark Saturn grabbed Mercury by the throat and threw her to the ground seemingly without effort, then twirled around and tossed a ball of energy at Sailor Jupiter, sending her flying out of the street and crashing through a store front window for the second time in a day. As she pulled Amy to her feet, Trista yelled out, "Fall back! We're leaving!" Her mission completed, she activated her portal and departed. Without question, Hotaru and Lita followed her lead. As Amy picked herself off the ground, she groaned out in pain, but not before she glanced at Mina. In mock confusion she asked, "Oh, is something wrong?" Mina tapped her pendant several times, but nothing happened. Feeling her frustration grow she looked up at Amy and said, "It's not working." For emphasis, she removed her choker and held it out for Amy to see, then said, "It's not a problem. I'll come with you." Just as she started to take a step, the battered woman shrugged, activated her portal and left. It collapsed as soon as Amy was through it Mina just stood there, looking at the now empty place Amy had been moments before. Just like that, they had left her behind! Ami, Setsuna, and Rei stood around her, waiting to see what she would do. Before the lone Sekkou could come to her own decision, the situation changed drastically. Several Tokyo Police Department vehicles screeched to a halt as what looked like the entire precinct began rushing into position around them. Men started shouting orders as several drew their guns and aimed them in their direction. A man called out over a loudspeaker as he stated the obvious. "We have you surrounded, and there is nowhere for you to go. You are all under arrest! Put your hands behind your heads and walk slowly toward the nearest police officer." Rei looked around at the men, feeling somewhat lost as she asked, "Are they talking to us?" Mina glared at the men as they continued to form their perimeter around them. "They speak to us as if we are commoners." Ami rubbed her throat where Trista had grabbed her and asked the question she was accustomed to everyone else asking. "What do we do?" Setsuna answered her as if they were talking over morning tea. She put her hands behind her head. "We stand down, and hope Makoto has the intelligence to stay out of sight." Then, she started to walk forward as the officer on the loud speaker bellowed out instructions to her. The other Senshi reluctantly started to follow her lead. Rei saw movement out the corner of her eye. She looked just in time to see Dark Venus rise off the ground, her whip re-forming once again in her hands. Sailor Mars yelled out, "Mina! No, don't do it!" Dark Venus once again sent her whip flying through the air, this time intending to slash the officer that had been sending orders through the loud speaker in half. Without hesitation, a rifleman took aim and fired before it ever reached there. Mina let out a shriek of pain and surprise after the bullet flew through her shoulder as she crashed to the ground, yelling in pain and rage at being taken down by a mere mortal. Rei started to run toward her, when one of the police officers grabbed her wrists and snapped a pair of handcuffs on her as he grumbled, "You're lucky we don't shoot all of you." Makoto groaned and brought her hand to her head as she came to. As she opened her eyes, she saw a blurry black form standing above her. A man's voice asked, "Are you all right?" As her eyes cleared, she realized she was looking at the dark uniform of a police officer. Clearly something had changed after she had been knocked out. She sat up suddenly, but winced as pain shot down her side from her wound. A hand seemed to come out of nowhere, pushing her back down. Makoto groaned, "Where are they?" She didn't expect to get an answer from the man, so she was surprised when he said, "Don't worry about them, you're safe. Look, just relax, lady." When Makoto started to try to get up again, he put his hand on her shoulder and again forced her to lie down. "You're a bit banged up, but from what they did to the street, you're lucky to be alive, kiddo." Makoto focused on his face for a moment. He couldn't possibly be more than 23 with a face like that. She said, "Don't you talk to me like that, Kiddo. I'm nearly 30." Rather than fight with him, though, she stayed down this time. It hurt to move anyway. The last thing she could remember she was fighting with Lita and then . . . She didn't remember anything after that. She looked around for a moment trying to get her bearings. She had apparently been hit so hard that she had de-transformed when she had been knocked unconscious. She was lying on a stretcher that was carefully being loaded onto an ambulance. The police seemed to be everywhere but she couldn't see . . . Then she saw Ami's familiar yet nervous blue eyes looking at her from the back of a squad car. She looked back at the officer who had been helping the paramedics get her in the ambulance. "You arrested them? But they saved my life!" she said, doing her best at pretending to be a helpless bystander. The officer shrugged and replied, "That may be, but I don't think the captain was too pleased when one of them tried to kill him." When Makoto started to protest again, he held up his hand and said, "Don't worry. I'm certain that everything will be sorted out with them down at the station. Take care, kiddo." Then he slammed the doors to the ambulance shut, ending any more questions from what he saw as just another confused bystander.
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