I Promised Her Day in and day out, thoughts of the aqua haired woman of her dreams infiltrated Haruka's mind. With her mind and soul at odds with each other, Haruka had stubbornly spent as little time as possible thinking about anything beyond her immediate needs. Still, she could not evade thoughts of her past, her future, the visions that plagued her and her destiny and duty that she still refused to acknowledge. But mostly, she could not evade the image of that woman... Flippant and apathetic as always, Haruka wanted no part of it. Instead, she threw herself into trivial pursuits such as senseless flirting and any hobbies that involved speed. Motorcycles, race cars, running, they were all sports that required her to forget the things that tore at her mind, anything to kill time. But lately, even running held little solace for Haruka. Sweat dripped from her brow and her arms pumped in time to her legs. Her heart beat slammed in her chest and her ragged breath was the only sound to reach her ears as she lost count of how many times she had pushed herself around the local running track. The wind. She wanted to be the wind. She wanted to throw herself to her element's mercy and allow it to take her wherever it wished. Anywhere but where she was. However, the wind had refused to comply. In the wind's embrace, Haruka had long felt welcomed, protected and powerful. It was only of late that her element had changed its nature. Where it used to react gently to her and with her, it now howled restlessly in her ears, urging her to follow her destiny. Yet could it be possible that it wasn't the wind who had changed, but herself? 'Impossible. I've been the same apathetic, quiet person my entire life. I've never been different, have I?' The breeze shifted slightly, pushing Haruka supportively from behind, as though urging her to follow her doubt, urging her that she was onto something. Yet, her brows furrowed as she considered that the change in her personality could have occurred in a past lifetime. She shook her head stubbornly and suddenly the wind changed course, gusting fiercely into her, as though trying to stop her, as though it were disagreeing with her. She refused to consider such an implication of a past life. She brushed it off as a foolish notion. It was the wind that had changed, not herself, she decided. Haruka's eyes watered as the wind continued to batter her form and slow her pace. It appeared that the wind had forsaken her. It had forsaken her to the memory of that aqua haired woman of her dreams. Neptune. Her own element wanted her to pursue that which simultaneously called to her and pushed her away. The wind wanted her to follow her heart, and her heart wanted her to follow Neptune. Haruka's legs pounded the track harder as the fought the wind. What could her heart tell her of her desires? She had long ago closed off access to her heart, what seemed like ages ago, possibly before her lifetime had even begun. 'But now I'm contradicting myself.' She realized angrily. The sweaty blonde frowned and ran faster yet. She stubbornly refused to believe that her dreams were shadows of a past life and she pushed away the thought of that woman with all her might. She was not strong enough for whatever nameless mission Neptune brought, she was not strong enough for that cobalt eyed woman. Although she wouldn't admit it, Haruka's heart, her very soul, had begun chipping away her resolve little by little like a tile roof to hurricane force winds. "Tenoh Haruka!" The tall blonde's ragged breath caught in her throat as she realized that her gait had slowed and she was being paced by a red haired woman. Haruka maintained her jog as she examined the smaller girl. Vibrant and energetic, short hair framed a tanned complexion and smooth features. Dark eyes were unable to mask the interest this girl found in the taller woman. Under normal circumstances, Haruka would have flirted with such a pretty face, but it was obvious that this girl meant business and so she held her tongue. Haruka's admirer grinned at her confidently and she noticed the other woman's surprise that she was not swooning over her as so many others did. Knowing not to wait for an invitation from the reserved woman, she spoke first. "I'm Elza Grey, we're on the same track team at school." A non-pulsed expression that spoke of indifference settled onto Haruka's face and so Elza continued. "I've just been dying to race you and coach hasn't matched us up yet. What do you say to a race?" "I'd say you'd loose." Haruka said bluntly. Yet for her cold words, a faint glint in her eye shined with mischief and competition that was not lost on her jogging partner. Elza's brows met conspiratorially. "At least give me a chance. Don't underestimate me!" Haruka's eyes opened wide as she stopped short, coming to a quick halt, her hazel eyes clouded and distant. flashback The hazel eyed girl sighed restlessly as their aging instructor coughed to draw their attention to him. "Neptune and Uranus. The first assignment of your training regime will be martial arts, hand to hand combat. As it will likely take years for you to refine your senshi powers, you must understand first your own bodies, and then each other's in order to work together as an effective team." Haruka cleared her throat in embarrassment at their instructor's words, and from the corner of her eye, she noticed her partner's mischievous smile that was directed at her, having picked up the unintended implication. Haruka melted in her gaze. Did Michiru know how much that affected her or was she really just as naive as she looked? "As senshi in training, I assume you have each had your own instruction on your home worlds. Let's compare techniques. Begin." He said as he stepped away to observe from a distance. Haruka frowned, her brows meeting curiously. "You mean you want me to attack Michiru?" The cobalt eyed girl in question smirked slightly, and her expression came off teasingly. "Afraid of losing to a girl, Haruka?" She asked flippantly. The tall blonde scowled. Two weeks together and already the Neptunian had adopted her own teasing nature with ease. She had been burned by her own fire! "As if. I just don't want to hurt you, that's all." She finally returned non-commitally. "I'm not as fragile as I may look. Don't underestimate me." Michiru said convincingly, an undeniable fire burning in her cobalt eyes. /flashback 'Neptune... Michiru?' With a heaving breath, Haruka snapped back to reality. That had been the most complete and vivid image she'd experienced outside of her nightmares of the Silence. And it was of that woman... That aqua haired woman! Only, this time, she hadn't appeared the frightening figure in the sailor fuku. Instead, she had seemed younger, a regular woman. A friend, even... Were they the same person? A scowl suddenly gripped her features and she stood tall once again, cold resolve shining in her eyes. 'No. No. No. It doesn't matter.' Her mind repeated the mantra, her muscles clenching painfully. Neptune's image was associated with fear and loneliness, nothing else. Nothing else... "So, will you race me then?" The recognition of Elza's voice reminded Haruka of her situation and she used the race as an excuse to push the emotion-laden images from her mind. "You're on." She growled. ---------- Once around the track, and true to her word, Haruka had maintained an easy lead over Elza, even after having run for more than an hour before hand. She gave the red head a knowing and uncompassionate nod but said nothing. After crossing the finish line first, words were unnecessary. She had made her point with actions alone. "That was incredible! I've been training for years and I still can't match your speed." Elza smiled, not one to be a poor sport. Tossing a sports drink in the blonde's direction, she tucked a stray lock of red hair behind an ear. She looked at her watch, but the action came off as premeditated. "Oh! Look at the time. Hey, can I buy you lunch or something? Catching the bottle with one hand easily, Haruka shook her head. "Pass." She said flatly. This girl, Elza, was cute, and would have been fun to flirt with, yet even for one who usually kept acquaintances at arm's length, the blonde wasn't in the mood for companionship at the moment. The vision that had broken through her consciousness minutes ago still weighed heavily on her mind and although she knew her heart wanted to dissect it's meaning, her mind simply wanted to escape. The red head shrugged easily, not put off by the handsome woman's refusal. "Some other time, then." She said with a smile as she grabbed her bag and waved goodbye. Haruka didn't care to watch Elza leave as she also turned and left the track to head for her car. A faint smile tugged at her lips. Her two seater convertible could always do that to her, no matter how bleak her mood. She fished in her pocket for her keys and hopped into the car. The leather, warmed by the sun stuck to her sweaty legs, but she welcomed the feeling. This car and her love of speed had been inherited from her father, they two of only a handful of mementos she had to remember her family by. It was also through her family name and her fame on the racetrack that she had talked the local principalities into assigning her a drivers license at so young an age. Her head rested against the seat, her hazel eyes hooded with tranquility as the powerful engine roared to life. A quick blip of the gas pedal caused the exhaust to growl menacingly and Haruka purred deeply in response. Finally, her thoughts were carried on the wind as her mind was lost to the music the machine made. Michiru. That had been the name of the girl she had seen in her recent vision. Yet she had also been named Neptune. Could that cute, mischievous girl of her vision be the same sexy yet dangerously frightening woman of her dreams? The names were right and their likeness was uncanny. In her mind's eye, she could see the budding wit and playfulness of the beautiful Michiru growing into the sensual confidence that was Neptune. Thinking of her dream of the Silence, Haruka wondered if she supposed to find this Michiru, this Neptune. Was she to fight along side her, or something more, as the flirtatious Michiru had suggested? Senshi, they had been called senshi. Haruka frowned from the information and sensory overload her mind subjected her too. It seemed that all her thoughts came back to an unknown duty. One that threatened to steal her happiness, to leave her empty and alone... but she was alone already. 'I've always been alone, haven't I?' She suddenly wondered the validity of her own memories. Her resolve floundering between a desire to know more about the aqua haired woman and a desperate need to push her from her mind, Haruka ran her fingers through her sweaty bangs as she growled in resentment. She didn't need duty or love to complicate her life. How could either of those things bring her any pleasure if the image of Neptune and this strange Michiru was so strongly associated with pain and fear at the same time? The blonde frowned resignedly. To even admit to the visions of a woman she seemed to know would be to consider the possibility of having met her in a pervious life. One where they had been together... "No!" Haruka growled, her voice stolen by the roar of her car's engine. In this life, she had a destiny of her own to follow. She was Japan's first ever accredited junior racer, a genius at driving racecars and motorcycles. The lure of speed and dance with danger was the only thing she wanted in this life. The only thing... Slamming the gear shift into first, Haruka revved the engine and launched her car forward, the gentle touches of a distant smile on her lips. ---------- As Michiru handed the cashier her money, she scrambled in her purse as her cell phone began ringing. Holding the phone precariously between her shoulder and cheek, she took the bag of clothes from the cashier, nodded politely and answered the phone. "Mother?" She asked formally. It had been at least a month since she'd heard from her. Such was the life of a famous musician. "Michiru, darling, this tour has just dragged on and on. I trust all is well?" She asked confidently. The younger Kaioh sighed. It wasn't that her mother had been a particularly bad mother, it was just that she hadn't been a particularly good one either, having treated Michiru as more of a distant friend than a child that had needed raising. "Of course." Michiru returned mechanically as she pushed open the door with her foot and entered the flow of foot traffic on the sidewalk outside the store. "And father?" "Oh, you know how it goes. Your old man's currently looking for inspiration in Italy." She returned cheerfully. "Ara. Is that so?" Michiru rolled her eyes, surprised that her mother still believed such a lie. It had been years since her father had produced so much as a painting. She had come to grips with the thinly veiled reality years ago, but apparently her mother was still in denial. "You sound distant, dear. Are you sure everything is all right? Do you have enough money between your sponsor and your father and I?" Maternal instinct finally kicked in as the Kaioh matriarch's voice rose slightly with worry. Michiru frowned as she shifted her bags of clothing from one hand to another. Money was never an issue. "Oh no, nothing of that sort. Nothing's wrong, I'm fine, mother." Her mother's response drowned in her ears as Michiru caught sight of a yellow sports car speeding down the street towards her... A flash of blonde hair, a chiseled expression, her concentration lavished on the street she flew down, Tenoh Haruka passed by Michiru in a torrential gust of wind. "Michiru? Michiru, dear, are you there?" The voice on the other end of the phone grew quieter as the phone began to slip from the aqua haired girl's shoulder. "I have to go, mother." Michiru's own voice barely registered in her ears as she pulled the phone from her ear with her free hand and came to a stop, causing waves of people behind her to part around her still form as she looked behind her. The yellow car had disappeared, taking Haruka with it. How did such a young woman even obtain a driver's license in the first place? Michiru wondered. She sighed. She would have given anything to have been in the passenger seat next to Haruka, her hand resting atop her own on the shift knob, riding along the shore, the sea's salty smell overriding her senses, feeling the wind in her hair that Haruka's speed brought... She wondered if the handsome blonde had even seen her at all. 'And if she had, would she have recognized who I am? Or even who I once was?' Michiru asked herself such a rhetorical question wistfully. The aqua haired girl frowned, her cobalt eyes stormy with mixed emotions. She had spent entirely too much time thinking about a woman she'd yet to even meet. 'What's wrong with me?' She berated herself. Suddenly, she could hear the roar of waves in her ears and her body went on full alert. 'The ocean is restless.' She realized, the phrase entering her mind unbidden. A call to duty gripped Michiru's heart like a vice. Instinctually, she knew the time for action was at hand. "Uranus..." She whispered, the ancient name dying on her lips. But no, Uranus would be of no help. Sailor Uranus herself had told her that she wasn't ready to be awakened yet. Michiru's resolve hardened. Until her fated partner was ready to join her, she'd have to go this one alone. Following her powerful sense of intuition, Michiru dashed down the street to an uncertain destiny. ---------- The aqua haired girl froze at the sight that greeted her. It was hideous... this thing. This youma. Her mind settled on the fitting term. The filth of the dark alleyway closed in on her as the creature, the brown mass with too many eyes, turned to her and recognized her presence. She had to fight this thing? For all its bulk and cumbersome shape, the monster came at Michiru quickly. Her eyes staring blankly ahead as it's short arms equipped with razor like talons slashed at her, she waited for the pain to come. Only there was no pain. Instead, there was a bright, searing light. The youma was knocked back, unconscious, and Michiru found herself standing in front of a glowing rod. Strange in appearance, it was feminine and garish. But it spoke of a power greater than any she had ever known, and it called to the deepest reaches of her soul. Unthinking, her long fingers reached out to the rod and she closed her hand around the smooth alloy. A rush of power filled her instantly, her wavy hair whipping back from her shoulders as an intense heat poured from her forehead. The character of Neptune burned its image into her vision as a voice so old that she had forgotten it as her own filled her ears. "Neptune Planet Power... Make... Up!" The rush of warmth and the tingling sensation that remained after the blinding light passed left her standing replenished and strengthened; yet wearing a strangely tight-fitting and scant outfit. She would have blushed at her unintentional lack of modesty had the youma not begun to rise. Adopting a defensive stance, Michiru followed Neptune's intuition, allowing the senshi knowledge that had been buried deep within the confines of her soul to surface. As the youma charged forward once again, her cobalt eyes squinted mercilessly. "Deep Submerge!" The words had come from her mouth but she barely registered them in her ears as a great power coiled from the center of her body and released itself forward. A bolt of energy shaped like the planet that was once her origin formed. Its blueness rivaling the deepest of oceans, the manifestation of her powers homed in on the ugly monster that had awakened it. Her attack was true, slamming the youma in the center of its otherworldly form and Neptune did not falter or even wince as its limbs were torn away from its hideous body and its blood coated the filth of the alley. It released a ghostly scream and the putrid smell of its remains stained the air with its death. Finally, its body receded into the darkness and then faded into nothingness. With a sensation of thousands of sakura blossoms caressing her skin, Michiru felt the power that the transformation into Neptune had brought her drain slowly from her body. 'Did I... kill it?' As her knees gave out below her, her vision faded to blackness. ---------- flashback A flash of her thighs and long legs caught Uranus' hazel eyes as Neptune leapt to the side and mercilessly shattered the last of the wooden and metal training droids. The lights automatically came to life with an electric hum, signaling the end of the exercise. Fists clenched tightly, Uranus huffed in frustration, irritated with her momentary loss of concentration that had allowed Neptune the win. The senshi of the sea chuckled to herself. Be it Uranus or Haruka, neither of the woman's two egos were very secretive of their admiration of either Neptune or Michiru's sex appeal. A mischievous smile pulled at her lips as she suspected that the blonde had no idea just how aware she was of such supposedly hidden admiration. The aqua haired woman sighed introspectively. For the past year that they had been in training as senshi, their game of shameless flirting that had begun the moment they had first met had intensified, the witty comments and sly suggestions thickly laced with innuendo. It was a game that she found she couldn't hold back from playing, even if she had wanted to. The suggestiveness of it all, the brief, soft touches, the words whispered in an ear, all these things were threatening to overpower the teal eyed woman as she hid her true feelings from her partner, sure that the other thought the game they played was just that, a shameless game. "Were you distracted by something, Uranus?" Despite the lingering heartache, familiar innuendo laced Neptune's voice as she continued their ritualistic flirting. At least the slight pain it brought was better than empty silence between them. The taller senshi snorted in frustration. "Ah." She said, her standard one syllable comeback that was really just a precursor to a stalling tactic. "Please, there's nothing to be distracted about." Neptune cocked an eyebrow mockingly. "Ara? Then you're up for another session perhaps?" "Bring it on." Uranus growled as she cracked her knuckles and hardened her resolve to concentrate on winning the next match. The aqua haired senshi frowned slightly. She had learned over time that the normally free spirited, happy young woman tended to turn serious in the face of duty, gaining an edge of harshness and deadly determination while they were on the field. But then, that was the essence of both Haruka and Uranus. The senshi of the wind was passionate about every act she performed, be it teasing her partner lightly or attacking savagely on the battlefield. The senshi of the sea couldn't help wonder what she'd be like as a lover... No. Neptune forced herself to focus. She had to get her mind off such thoughts. Once again the lights dimmed and the two partners wordlessly scattered. Their mission was a race to destroy every droid that was thrown at them, the winner being the one with the most kills. Such exercises advanced their individual skills in speed and stealth, and while both had excelled at fighting as a team, lately they had been concentrating on working individually in case of separation in battle. Uranus was fast, strong and agile, combining speed and strength in a deadly fashion as she hurdled her body over fallen trees and behind thick undergrowth in the simulated battlefield. Finding the first of their opponents, the blond haired senshi lashed out, wielding her sword expertly as she brought down droid after droid with her talisman. Her element of wind begged for release yet was not quite ready to be channeled, the manifestation of her budding powers telling in the puffs of wind that lapped at her heels as she ran, felling yet another droid in a shower of wooden splinters as it was cleaved in half. As she chased a path parallel to Uranus, Neptune was all agile fluidity and quiet tactic, always calculating and driven by rationality. That is, unless her partner was in danger, in which case her rational was questionable. Uranus, out to prove a point, was bent on claiming all the kills to be the game's victor, yet in her unthinking rush as she battled three oncoming assailants, Neptune knew that Uranus couldn't possibly detect the droid that quickly snuck up on her from behind. Despite the senshi of the wind's speed, her partner knew that she wouldn't be able to defeat all four opponents and come out unscathed. Thoughtlessly, the aqua haired woman leapt across the distance separating them and threw herself at Uranus' back. In a span of a second's time, the stealthy machine emitted a painful laser attack and Neptune took its impact as Uranus effortlessly defeated the others in front of her. The senshi of the wind flinched as she heard her partner's cry in her ear. The short, blonde hairs on the back of her neck stood on end as she realized that Neptune had somehow been injured. Uranus growled as she realized that, without her knowledge, her partner had gotten behind her and taken the brunt of an attack that had been meant for her. It had all happened so fast that she hadn't been able to detect of it in time. Enraged, the tall woman spun towards the fourth droid still hanging behind her and after dodging another of its laser bolts, prepared herself for another attack. An angry smirk pulled at her lips as she destroyed it with her bare hands, twisted chunks of metal and splinters imbedding themselves into her palms unnoticed. "Neptune!" Uranus barked, seeing her partner's fallen form face down in the leaf littered undergrowth. The tall woman fell to her knees as she pulled Neptune's limp body into her arms. The droids were capable of delivering immense electrical shocks to the human body in order to simulate a real life injury and she knew her partner was in terrible pain. Neptune's eyes cracked open slightly as she fought off the pain. She felt Haruka's strong arms around her, one behind her back, the other clutching her upper arm to hold the injured woman steady. Neptune's hazy mind realized that Haruka's hand on her arm was warm and moist. She struggled her way back to full consciousness as the realization dawned on her. She gasped as her own hands darted out to Haruka's, her own limbs heavy from the electrical shocks still traveling through her system. "Your hands are bleeding." She said softly, the pain muting her voice. Uranus brushed her off. "It's nothing. How can I care about my hands when you're injured?" She said through gritted teeth. Neptune smiled smally. "But I like your hands." She whispered. Touched by her partner's words, Uranus suddenly found herself lost in the oceanic depths of Neptune's cobalt eyes. She felt as though she could stay there forever... Suddenly, the pupils of those eyes dilated. "Uranus!" Neptune shouted a warning. A chill ran down Uranus' spine as the mechanical whine of a swarm of droids filled her ears. An ambush was closing in from the other end of the field. The tall senshi pulled her partner close to her chest in an effort to shield the smaller woman's body. "Uranus! What are you doing? We have to fight!" Neptune struggled weakly against the stubborn and reckless protection her partner afforded. The senshi of the wind shook her head and merely held Neptune closer. "I can't defeat them all and I won't let you get hurt again!" She barked. Neptune swallowed audibly in surprise at Uranus' selflessness that mirrored her own. "We still have a chance." She said, softer this time as her hands searched for help. Her Aqua Mirror, her own talisman, appeared in a soft, blue light. Uranus tentatively loosened her grip, allowing the senshi of the sea some space as the intuitive one of the pair thought out her strategy. "I think... I think I can use this to find their leader. Defeat that one and the others should fall." Her partner looked to her with searching eyes. "We can do this. Together, Uranus." Trusting in the aqua haired woman she'd grown to know so well, the senshi of the wind was willing to take the chance on her partner's intuition and she carefully rose with Neptune in her strong arms. She set her down on the ground gently as the smaller woman thrust her mirror in front of her body, surveying the rush of assailants. The tens of oncoming droids slowly faded in the mirror's reflection, leaving one solitary machine, an apparent loner who hung off to one side of the group. "There! The last one to the right!" Neptune shouted to her partner, indicating the leader of the machines. Uranus nodded grimly and leapt into the fray, propelling her body forward and to the side to avert the coming swarm away from her injured partner. She stood her ground as the machines adjusted their trajectories to home in on her. An eyebrow cocked and a smirk on her face, Uranus felt a deadly new power well up inside her body. Deeply buried instinct guiding her, she raised a hand to the dark canopy of trees and then thrust it to the ground. "World... Shaking!" She screamed detachedly, the release of a powerful bolt of magical orange energy recoiling from her body at the leader of the machines. "Deep Submerge!" Her partner's voice rang in her ears and she spared a moment to glance at Neptune, her hands in front of her and a wave of blue, wave-like energy similar to her own chasing after it. Together, the two forces slammed into the droid leader and the mechanical object was engulfed in magical energy. Instantaneously, its circuits fried and then burst apart and shrapnel flew from the force as the machine was obliterated, the blast taking out some of the others in its vicinity. Not a moment too soon, the remaining droids fell to the ground, skidding at Uranus' feet. The blonde senshi looked back to her partner in near disbelief. After an entire year of training, they had finally channeled the source of their elements. "The manifestation of our powers..." Neptune smiled knowingly. She understood why her powers had finally surfaced. She had been pushed to the limit and had been forced to reach into her reserves to protect the only person that really mattered. Had that been the case for her partner as well? Slowly, she took a shaky step towards Uranus, wanting, needing such an answer. The surprise of the surfacing of her powers, her relief over the safety of her partner and the pain of the electrical jolt still coursing through her system, the smaller senshi stumbled, her eyes closing in exhaustion as she awaited the impact of the Earth... The impact never came, and her partner's strong arms were much softer than the cold ground she had expected. How Uranus had gotten to her side so quickly was beyond her, but finally Neptune relaxed and trusted her weight in the other woman's arms. A smile spread across her face. "Michiru..." Uranus whispered softly, concerned, breathless as she realized she had breached protocol and called her partner by her civilian name. The aqua haired senshi let it slip with a slight laugh. She loved to hear her real name from her partner's lips. Effortlessly in her exhaustion, she hid her true feelings by reverting to their game. "Well, I guess that was a draw. I think we both won that battle." Uranus frowned and refused to comment as she forcibly tore her eyes from her partner's face. Slowly, she carried Neptune off the battlefield. 'But I haven't won.' She thought bitterly. 'Because even though you're in my arms, you're still so far away. /flashback 'Whose arms am I in?' Michiru wondered as she slowly came to, hoping that the battle with the youma had been nothing more than a nightmare and that reality was actually that of her memories of her past life. Was she in the arms of her partner? The unearthly stench of the dead youma still infiltrating her nostrils, Michiru realized with a groan which reality was the one that waited for her. The reality was that she had become Sailor Neptune and had slaughtered her first victim. Alone. Without the help her partner had given her in her latest memory. A team, they had always worked best as a team. Haruka... 'But then, who is holding me now?' Michiru's cobalt eyes opened in shock, her body tensing as she found herself looking into a pair of the bottomless garnet eyes of a green haired woman. "You! I saw you at the stadium during Haruka's race!" Michiru tried to shout, but found her voice more of a hoarse whisper. "What do you want from me?" Suddenly frightened, Michiru struggled to sit up, meeting no resistance from the other woman. Kneeling eye to eye with the strange, stoic woman, Michiru realized that the silent woman wore a similar outfit to the one she had worn when she had become Sailor Neptune. "Who are you?" She asked again, this time with more confidence. "My name is Sailor Pluto." The enigmatic woman answered. "Yes, I remember you from my memories." Michiru said introspectively, finding that she had already let her guard down in the familiar, friendly vibe she sensed from the sapphire haired woman. Her instinct had already told her that this woman was to be trusted. The senshi of time nodded, finding that her ally had remembered more of her past life than even she had hoped. "But you have another name too, do you not?" Michiru asked herself more than she did Pluto. "Setsuna! You were called Setsuna!" Pluto smiled sadly, a small smile that almost reached her eyes. "Yes. A long time ago I was called that." Michiru's expression of remembrance slipped into one of cautious wonder. "You told me of my destiny in my first life. Are you here to give me the destiny that awaits this one?" "If you are willing accept to it, that is my duty." Pluto responded cautiously, not wanting to push the newly awakened woman. "I'm ready for my destiny." Michiru said confidently, the intense emotions associated with the memories of her past life spurring her forward. "Once Uranus awakens, I'm confident that she and I will be able to defeat any foe." The dirty alley suddenly became much more interesting and Pluto's garnet eyes slipped to gaze at the ground. She could not lie to Michiru. "I don't know... when she'll awaken. She's not ready now, and I fear that any attempts to make her try may only push her father away. Uranus may never realize her destiny, Michiru." The aqua haired woman's expression fell as the mysterious woman's voice cut through her, rivaling the pain she had experienced in her previous remembrance. Pluto's expression was cold and her voice distant, but Michiru could feel the concern and sadness that emanated from her. They were close friends, once, and Pluto knew, as well as she did, that the Uranus of this time was not ready to be awakened. "I know, Pluto. In a dream, Uranus told me..." Michiru began haltingly, sadness lacing her voice. "Uranus told me that she wasn't ready to be awakened yet. But she also asked me not to give up hope." Pluto's eyes narrowed at the implication. Such information surprised even her. The spirit of Uranus had made contact with Neptune? Michiru's voice pulled her from her shock and she realized that she'd have to consider that thought later. "It's Haruka, isn't it, Pluto? Tenoh Haruka." Michiru asked, her stony voice surprising even herself. Pluto nodded silently, saddened and resigned. An unknown pain settled in Michiru's heart as the pieces clicked into place. The Haruka of her past life, the woman she had loved then was the Tenoh Haruka of this time. Her partner of old, Sailor Uranus, was Tenoh Haruka. But Tenoh Haruka refused to awaken to her duty. Tenoh Haruka was unwilling to accept her destiny. "I'll find a way to help Haruka. I'll find a way to make it work." Michiru whispered, her resolve hardened. She didn't know how she would approach the distant blonde. She didn't know what she would say or what she would do. But she believed, that if they had shared even only what she had remembered so far of their past lives, nothing could keep them apart in this one. "Are you sure you want this destiny? It won't be easy." Pluto asked softly, finally meeting Michiru's cobalt eyes once again. "Its who I am. I need this destiny. I need her." Michiru's fists clenched tightly, her knuckles white, but finally, a small smile touched her lips and her voice softened as a sweet memory filled her mind with longing. "I... I promised her that I'd find her first." Pluto swelled with a sense of hope she hadn't felt in a millennia. This time, the smile on her lips touched her ageless garnet eyes. "Then, are you ready to learn your new mission?" Michiru nodded deftly. "Yes." ---------- Preview, Chapter 4: The senshi of the wind froze, remembering her partner's sixth sense of intuitiveness. Had she been found out? Her heart skipped a beat in her chest. She was entranced as each second seemed to last an eternity. They were painfully slowly leaning closer to each other. Michiru's lips parted, her warm breath on Haruka's own trembling lips, but was it all her imagination? A loud, firm knock on the door and the sound of it swinging open on its hinges caused the girls to gasp as their eyes shot to the door in frozen surprise, Haruka tightening her hold on Michiru's waist protectively at the unknown threat. Sailor Pluto stood in the entrance with a blank expression on her face, for the first time in her life at a total loss for words in the awkward situation she'd found herself in. She eyed the two on the bed, trying to determine their relationship. They were close, very close, but her own intuitiveness told her that they hadn't admitted that their feelings for each other were the same. "If... if I've caught you two at a bad time, I can come... err... back?" She stuttered uncomfortably.
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