Hopelessly Lost "Hey, Haruka-kun, what's the deal? No pretty woman on your arm to celebrate another win?" The voice of Yamada Ichiro, Haruka's closest rival in the off-road motocross championships cut through the crowded room after another race. A mud covered competitor who had come in seventh laughed heartily and shot a smile in Haruka's direction. "No joke, Tenoh. What happened to that hot brunette that you've been with the past few weeks?" That started an uproar among the other guys and Haruka simply quietly evaded answering. "Ah." She replied, non-pulsed. Sometimes she didn't know what outcome would be worse with these men, for them to realize that she was a woman, or for them to realize that she was a woman who liked women. At least they weren't being sore losers, quite the contrary, her fellow racers either clamored to befriend her, or were jealous of her skill and popularity. 'What a waste of time and emotion.' She considered sourly. Truth be told, Haruka was surprised that even her superficial competitors had remembered the last girl her sponsor had thrown on her arm. She searched her memories and could at least confirm that she had indeed been a brunette. Arisa. A glance at a nearby tabloid confirmed the woman's name and Haruka shrugged apathetically. Just another nameless face in the long run, an entirely beautiful, yet forgettable supermodel paired with her to attract the media by her sponsors in order to uphold her 'dangerous playboy' persona. Not that she minded having such a beautiful woman on her arm, but the shallow women thrown at her simply didn't interest her. Glancing back at the tabloid, Haruka noticed that the picture next to the one of Arisa showed herself standing with a blonde woman this time, the caption reading, 'Tenoh, a cheater?' Haruka rolled her eyes. She'd barely even remembered seeing that girl before. She flipped over the tabloid to hide the offending article from view. In the end, all of the beautiful women she'd been paired with since making it big in the motorsports arena, be it car racing, motorcycle racing, or dirtbike racing, none of them had attracted her. Each one the same cookie cutter replica of the one before her, a slim figured, drop dead gorgeous older woman with the wit and personality of a potato chip, none had every managed to catch Haruka's attention. No one could hold her attention, except for her... Haruka frowned, her hazel eyes turning a stormy gray. She refused to even consider that her emotions for that confusing aqua haired girl were anything other than fear and repulsion, regardless of the previous 'dream' she'd experienced that had showcased this Michiru as someone wholly different than the stoic Sailor Neptune that came to take more than Haruka could rightfully give. Suddenly, Haruka sensed the quietness of the room and realized that the others had cleared the lounge, returning to whatever passed for lives for each of them. She sighed loudly, tired from the long race, and pulled at the velcro closure around the neck of her protective gear, exposing the curve of her slender neck. When a flash of aqua and cobalt caught her attention, her eyes immediately found something more than just her own reflection in the mirror. flashback "You're so tense." The aqua haired woman said quietly, meeting her partner's hazel eyes in the reflection of the mirror as her fingers began working the soreness of Haruka's back. "Michiru." Haruka sighed her lover's name and leaned back into her touch. The cobalt eyed temptress smiled mischievously and worked her partner's sore muscles with the deft precision of violinist's fingers, her motions becoming the ebb and flow of the ocean's waves across her lover's skin. A rush of power coursed through Michiru to see the tough, unyielding tomboy before her bend to her supple touch, and as she worked a particularly tense knot in Haruka's back, Michiru's lips found the edge of her lover's ear. "I take it that the powers that be were rather upset when they found that you'd returned from your mission early without notifying anyone?" She asked the simple question quietly but with a depth to her voice that caused the woman under her fingers to shudder involuntarily. "Ah." Haruka finally replied, attempting to regain some amount of control of her body under Michiru's mercilessly taunting touch. "I was only reprimanded with a few extra sets of physical training for my delinquent behavior." Michiru cocked an eyebrow at her macho partner and retracted her lips from the edge of Haruka's ear, to her lover's obvious displeasure. "Ara? Only that?" she mocked lightly, a playful expression on her features. "Oh, and I suspect that you think you won't get in trouble too? That they won't figure out that it was you that I came back for? Don't forget that you conspired with this delinquent." Haruka said haughtily, challenging Michiru's gaze in the mirror. A seductive smile spread across Michiru's lips and she rested her hands on Haruka's shoulders. "Conspired with a delinquent? Is that what we did?" Haruka grinned confidently. As of three days ago, she now belonged to Michiru, and Michiru to herself, and she would have given anything in the solar system she was bound to protect to simply do it all over again. Haruka laced Michiru's fingers in her own and spun her lover around to her front, accommodating Michiru with her lap. A blush crawled up the senshi of the sea's cheeks. Her forwardness slightly diminished once finding herself straddling her partner's thighs, she finally trusted her weight to Haruka's slim yet strong frame. Every touch and whisper from her lover still so new as to send a chill of joy and sheer exhilaration up her spine, Michiru let out a gasp as Haruka's lips found the tender skin of her neck this time. Introducing Michiru to a new form of turnabout, Haruka's fingers reached into her lover's aqua hair and gently eased out the pin that held it bound, releasing her shoulder length curls in a sensual wave. In a barely controlled frenzy that fueled them both, Haruka found the clasp to Michiru's dress, and with a boundless desire to re-explore her lover's body, slid its thin straps from her shoulders. /flashback The powerful emotions becoming too much for her overloaded mind, Haruka shook herself from her daydream. A heavy, panting breath and a fresh sheen of sweat across her body, the blonde realized that she had once again had a vision of Michiru, of Sailor Neptune, and she now understood a new layer of their relationship. They had been partners on the battlefield, friends as civilians, and also... lovers. But to admit to the existence of their relationship at all would be to admit that these visions that had come unbidden into her mind were not merely dreams, but memories of a previous life. It would mean that she would have to admit to the obligations of not only a duty that awaited her in this life, but also a certain aqua haired woman that brought that destiny. If that were the case, would that cobalt eyed woman want her in this life as she had in their last? A feeling of completion foreign to her constantly lonely mood washed over her... In a sudden wave of confusion, fear and frustration, Haruka's fist shattered the mirror before her and she ran from the lounge, small drops of her blood leaving a mournful trail of her escape. ---------- Her transformation from a bloodied Sailor Neptune back to her pristine civilian form hadn't even slowed Michiru down as she ran through the tree lined suburban streets. In her quest to find Haruka again, she found that it hadn't been difficult to find a schedule of the blonde's races online, she certainly had enough fan pages and official pages on the net. Michiru had been on her way to the motor cross arena when she had once again encountered youma, making it obvious that the monsters that heralded the Silence had reached even the outskirts of Tokyo. A bitter frown marred her features at the memory of the ugly creatures. This time, two of them had attacked. Fueled by her intuitive instinct, Michiru had had to delay her quest to find Haruka once being forced to fight as Sailor Neptune. She had managed to dispose of the youma, but had found that her latest battle had been more difficult to win than her first. The creatures had gotten stronger and had grown larger in numbers. The revelation left Michiru with the uneasy knowledge that she would need the help of Uranus soon and feared her current solitary role in the battle against the silence without her partner by her side. But at the moment with the threat of the youma gone, thoughts of duty were put on hold. She was late for a rather unscheduled meeting to which she assumed Pluto would be very upset, were she to know of its nature. At the moment, even the thought of awakening Uranus was not at the forefront of Michiru's mind. Instead, the memory of her confession to the Haruka of her past life encouraging her, she hoped to wake the Haruka of the present first. Michiru desperately needed to remind Haruka of who she once was, who she could become once again if only Haruka would let her in. 'The real Haruka is in there, hiding behind those frightened hazel eyes. I know it.' Michiru repeated the phrase like a mantra. She ran down the streets, dodging the sea of people that slowly flowed towards her, heading for the bus stops. Hearing bits and pieces of others' conversations, she learned that Haruka had won another race. Michiru realized that she had missed the end of the race, but she hoped she hadn't missed the blonde racer. She realized with a slight, hopeless chuckle that she didn't even know what motor cross was, but considering the grubby attire of its fans, she concluded it was some kind of off road motorcycle race. Nonetheless, such a trivial thought was useless. All that mattered was that she find this woman linked to her past life. She had to find Haruka, understand why she had so drastically changed from the lover she once was, and understand why she had yet to awaken as Uranus, why her natural carefree and passionate personality had changed so drastically. A blush crawled up Michiru's cheeks as the memories of her past life resurfaced. She didn't know how she'd approach the stoic woman, or even what she'd say, but somehow, she knew she had to make Haruka understand that she needed Haruka as much as Haruka needed her. Her cobalt eyes lit up when she finally saw the dirt track ahead of her, a squiggly path with hairpin turns, tall hills, humps and obstacles. She gazed in awe for a moment, considering the reflexes that must be needed to drive a dirtbike over such terrain, but she also knew it was naturally something that Haruka could do with ease. Motion to her right caught Michiru's eyes and she saw a number of men wearing protective gear covered in mud and carrying helmets under their arms. She realized that they had been competitors in the race and hoped they would know where to find Haruka. She headed towards them, but before she could even speak, she was stopped by a loud, low whistle aimed in her direction. "Hey there, hot stuff." One of the men with short black hair cat-called. "Looking for some fun?" Michiru's eyes narrowed and turned icy. What she wouldn't have given to use Neptune's powers and give those hormone laden men a cold shower... "I'm looking for Tenoh Haruka." She replied coldly, yet confidently, her icy voice stamping out the hopes of the men. "Keh." The black haired man snorted, his eyebrows furrowed in disgust. "That jerk gets all the women." He noticed the insisting features of the aqua haired woman standing defiantly in front of him before finally giving in. "He's in there." He said dismissively with a point of his thumb to the building they had exited. Not even affording them a nod, Michiru sauntered away before dashing towards the small building, her heart pounding in her chest with anticipation. The door was almost within her reach when she was suddenly grabbed by the wrist and pulled back behind a row of evergreens. Michiru barely had the time to stifle her scream, fearing one of the men had come back to try his luck again, when she recognized the scolding garnet eyes of her would be assailant. "Pluto!" Michiru exclaimed and then took a second glance, noting the rather demure burgundy power suit the tall woman wore. "Setsuna..." Michiru corrected, averting her eyes, unable to meet her friend's look of disappointment. She had betrayed Setsuna's trust by pursuing Haruka before the time senshi had deemed she was ready. At that moment, the sound of a door slamming caught Setsuna and Michiru's attention and through the dense foliage of the pines, exiting the building, they saw an angry Haruka emerge. Setsuna's grip around her friend's wrist tightened as Michiru's pupils dilated on the racer's form. Every fiber of her being longed to run to the blonde and sooth her unease, but she had to settle with simply trying to ascertain the reason for her anger. Her eyes narrowed as Haruka secured her helmet and mounted her bike. 'Her hands are bleeding.' Michiru realized, puzzled at the drops of blood that fell from tightly balled fists. As quickly as she had emerged, Haruka was gone, leaving only a cloud of dust and the fading sound of her bike's engine in her wake. The threat of an untimely meeting having passed, Setsuna finally released her grip around Michiru's wrist. "I told you she's not ready to be awakened yet." She said as calmly and consolingly as possibly. Michiru's eyes shone with defiance. "I know, but-" "But nothing, Michiru, she's not ready to see you yet! Do you want to push her even further away?" Setsuna interrupted. She sighed when her friend's determined frown fell into a hopelessly lost expression. Quietly, Setsuna led the two of them to a bench, sure that Michiru was unaware that she was even walking. She silently cursed the fates that had made the reunion between Haruka and Michiru so difficult on each other. "Listen, Michiru, Haruka hasn't been as receptive to all the memories and emotions you've experienced. You have to understand that if she sees you right now, she'll likely feel only fear and anger." Setsuna explained calmly. Michiru's quiet voice threatened to break. "But why Setsuna? What about me scares her? Why can't I make her see what I remember? Why can't I help her find the self she no longer is?" Setsuna sighed, her eyes garnet eyes trailing to the horizon. The sapphire haired woman considered her friend sadly. She understood Michiru's urgency, but feared that the barriers that protected Haruka's true personality were too strong, too well built. It was too dangerous to try to break them down yet. Michiru had to know that which had caused Haruka to build those walls in the first place. "You haven't remembered all of your memories of your past life yet, have you, Michiru?" "All of them?" Michiru asked slowly, suddenly realizing that the beautiful harmony that had been her previous existence would have had to come to an end eventually. Setsuna nodded sadly. "Have you seen the end of the Silver Millennium through your eyes? Have you seen that which contributes to Haruka's fear and anger?" Michiru gasped as the memories flooded her. flashback The sounds of the ball drifted to their ears. Light giggles and conversations floated aimlessly amongst the symphony of instruments that played joyously in celebration of Princess Serenity's eighteenth birthday. Of course, the outer senshi had been invited, but they had denied the opportunity to attend in favor of guarding the event, regardless of the fact that there was no supposed threat to it. Sailor Uranus eyed her partner with concern. Neptune was nervous. She didn't need to be as intuitive as her other half to understand that and so her white gloved hand reached out for her smaller lover's to give it a gentle, reassuring squeeze. "Do you wish we could have gone to the ball?" Neptune asked, yet her question was empty, meant only to fill the silence. Uranus chuckled lightly, suggestively. "I'd rather be anywhere as long as it was off duty and with you. But... we have our mission to think of. It would have been fun, though. With our separate missions, it's been so long since we've seen the inner senshi and our Princess." "I miss Queen Serenity, too." Neptune admitted. "We've been so busy of late, and I know she's as worried as we have been. Even though we have no clue to this nameless threat that we fear looms, no target beyond our unease, she needs to maintain a strong front for her people." The sound of a festive firework being launched screamed through the air. Momentarily its hues of reds and oranges claimed precedence of the night sky, but its bright colors did nothing to relieve the pensive mood of the senshi of the ocean. Uranus agreed with her partner's sentiment, but frowned, unhappy that Neptune was so melancholy. It would do no good to brood over an answerless question. "Hotaru was alright when you left her?" She asked, changing the subject and hoping that idle conversation would ease her. The aqua haired woman nodded, though her eyes were distant. "She really wasn't feeling well though. The growth spurts are very painful." The blonde frowned as she considered their adopted daughter. Hotaru had aged from a toddler to the physical appearance of fourteen in the short year that she'd been with them. Small manifestations of the knowledge and powers of Sailor Saturn had occurred in her within the last few weeks although there were still no detectable enemies outside their borders that should have triggered Saturn's awakening. The outer senshi had been on edge. Even the inner senshi had finally been notified of the situation and with the deteriorating relationship between Earth and the Moon, everyone had been cautious and careful of late. Neptune and Uranus turned a corner, patrolling the exterior regions of the busy Moon Palace, weary eyes on the lookout for suspicious activity. A sudden commotion caught their attention and they straightened into battle ready positions as a tuxedo-clad man came briskly jogging up the daunting stairs to the palace, flustered from the undertaking in his formal ware. The senshi relaxed as they noted the presence of the Earth Prince, Endymion, merely arriving late to pay homage to Princess Serenity. Though Earthlings had been banned from the Moon due to recent uprising caused by jealousy of the mortals from the blue planet, the senshi trusted the Earth Prince and they knew Endymion's love for young Serenity was fierce. Besides, the human knew well enough to hide his identity while in the Moon Palace, for the Queen and her guards would surely dispose of him were he to be caught. Dismissing the Earthling, Uranus continued forward but then stopped when she realized that her partner was not at her side. She glanced back at her lover who was still frozen in place while her cobalt eyes followed Endymion as he entered the main ballroom. "Neptune?" Uranus asked gently with kidding shock in her voice. "Don't tell me you've suddenly found an interest in men?" A trace of a smile reached Neptune's lips and finally, she shook her head and followed after her partner, slipping an arm through Uranus' own for support and solace as she questioned her sudden unease. "Ne, have you seen Pluto lately?" The senshi of the wind asked, trying to coax her partner back from the introverted world in which she had retreated. The senshi of the ocean shook her head, forcing herself to concentrate on Uranus. "No. It seems she's been busy lately. I'd guess she's at her post." "The Time Gate?" Uranus asked suspiciously. Neptune nodded deftly. "I wonder if she's pinpointed the disturbance we feel." She locked eyes with her partner. "The sea is restless." Uranus frowned, wanting desperately to ease her partner, to replace the haunted look in her eyes with happiness, with passion... "Nonsense, Neptune. Remember? We haven't detected even the smallest amount of negative energy outside our solar system that would have triggered Saturn's awakening. Although I'm glad she's with us, Hotaru having been born at all has to be some kind of... fluke!" The aqua haired senshi wanted to smile at her partner's childishly simple idea, but suddenly a chill ran down her spine. "Uranus, if we can't detect anything outside, then what if it's something inside the solar system that triggered Saturn's birth? The inner senshi may not have known to look for it." "You're thinking about Earth again, aren't you?" Uranus asked coldly, hating that planet for the attention her partner gave it. "Well stop it, it's not our job. It's the responsibility of the inner senshi to negotiate threats inside the solar system. Besides, there couldn't be anything from Earth powerful enough to have woken Sailor Saturn, not even Queen Beryl herself! Right?" Uranus' bravado diminished somewhat when she received no response or even eye contact from her partner. Could Neptune really believe that the uprising on Earth was connected to Saturn's awakening? The blonde senshi stiffened at such a thought, but refused to surrender to her fears. Her desire to ease her partner was stronger. With a quick movement, she grabbed Neptune by the wrist and spun her into her taller body, wrapping her arms around the smaller woman's waist. "I don't care what happens, Michiru, so long as I'm with you." Her words were light and husky, attempting to draw her partner away from her worries as she nuzzled her neck. "Maa..." Neptune sighed, both in surprise at her partner's actions that threatened to derail her train of thought and the use of her civilian name. She caught the senshi of the wind's eyes with her own and was immediately eased by the comfort she found in them. With a soft sigh, she surrendered to Uranus' ministrations and captured her lips with her own. If planet Earth did pose a threat, it was currently the furthest thing from Neptune's mind as another barrage of fireworks shot across the sky. Slowly, the pair backed against a wall, their forms disappearing into the shadows of the night as their actions became more brazen, more intimate. A delicious smile tugged at Neptune's lips as Uranus' hands slid sensuously down her back to cup her rear, causing the aqua haired woman to hike a leg up in response. As she felt her partner's lips on her neck and her warm breath in her ear, delightful chills ran down her spine as she allowed Uranus to support her weight. As much as she wanted to continue, Neptune knew they had a duty to perform and if she didn't rein her lover in now, there would be no stopping her. Standing on her tiptoes, the senshi of the ocean reached her partner's ear. "Shhh. Stop now." She whispered hotly, belying her true desires. Uranus slowed her passionate ministrations but refused to stop completely. The taller woman's hands still caressed her lover's curves gently as her head bent to the crook of Neptune's neck. "I know." She responded in disappointed understanding, her voice breaking from the effort to control her passion. Slowly, in tune to the sonata that carried on the wind from the ballroom, the couple swayed back and forth, allowing the music to calm them. Finally, the gentle notes acted as a desperately needed anchor and the senshi of the wind's hands settled on Neptune's waist and the senshi of the ocean's lips left the warm skin of her partner's neck. Each sighed deeply, their passions quieted for a moment as they danced together in the slow music. That was when a single scream ripped through the courtyard below them. Sailor Neptune and Sailor Uranus broke away from each other, looking down the long drop to the courtyard below where the scream was heard, but nothing of interest could be seen. It was then that Neptune looked up, high into the sky and she uttered a single, panicked gasp. On the white horizon of the moonscape approached Earth's Queen Beryl, her four generals and a mass of humans, their eyes glazed and unthinking as they charged forward, slaughtering all in their path. But behind them all hung a hideous creature of death and destruction, its shadowed silhouette reaching out with clawed fingers and sharp teeth, an unnamed terror of monumental power. This hellish figure was alive, a Medusa of enormous proportion, a menacing creature that threatened to set the sky itself on fire. Their enemy had been revealed. And it came from the Earth. The Moon Kingdom, the Silver Millennium, their Queen and Princess, their very lives... all they had ever known lay under attack. Wordlessly, Neptune and Uranus leapt down into the courtyard, springing on their toes and acquiring defensive battle positions as they prepared to meet the threat. As commoners of the Moon Kingdom trampled past them, eager to escape the coming terror, the two outer senshi held their ground, and as the first wave of unthinking humans crashed into them, the first line of the new enemy was leveled by their powerful attacks. "Deep Submerge!" "World Shaking!" The voices of the two women cried out above the massacre as their elemental attacks thinned the ranks of the approaching onslaught. Talismans were quickly called upon and the sound of a single blade slicing through the air overpowered even the fireworks that crashed in the sky above, those in the palace still unaware of the slaughter occurring below them. Their senshi training had been intense, yet nothing could have prepared Neptune and Uranus for the sudden ambush of the unnamed force from Earth. In the confusion of the battlefield, Queen Beryl and the Earth generals slipped around them, too far away for even their long range attacks to reach them. Helpless to do anything else, the two outer senshi blindly fought the Earth humans, though they knew the attempt to be futile. "Uranus, the source of their strength is that beast in the sky!" Neptune's voice carried on the wind to her partner as the senshi of the ocean balanced fighting the surge of opponents while utilizing her mirror to show her the truth of the battle. Uranus let go a brutal scream as she tore through the torsos of five men with a single blow of her Space Sword. A well placed elemental attack cleared the area around herself and her partner momentarily. "A whole lot of good that does us! These men are brainwashed, can you see it in their eyes? They're shielding her! There's no chance that we'll be able to reach that monster up there!" The two senshi slouched slightly, using each other's backs for support as they attempted to catch their breath. The time they had been granted was minimal, and before they were ready, a new wave of humans had surged forward, "Where's Pluto when you need her?" Uranus barked as she readied another attack for the soldiers that rushed forward. "Dead Scream." A purple blast of energy thundered from the heavens themselves and entire ranks of the approaching humans were once again decimated, coating the ground with their blood and spent bodies. The air around the two outer senshi rustled with anxious energy, a tangible mist circled and gathered, and finally, Sailor Pluto was revealed, her Time Staff gleaming menacingly in the red tinted sky. She looked weary and worn, but eager to help her friends. "You called?" The garnet eyed woman asked mystically. Uranus rolled her eyes. "Always the dramatic entry." She chided their ally. Neptune smiled in greeting. Pluto's help was no doubt a relief, yet even between the three of them, somehow she knew they wouldn't be enough. The coming attackers would be more difficult to fight back. They were larger in numbers, their chances of holding these humans back from entering the palace was bleak. Her unease mounted. And the telling look in Pluto's avoiding expression told her all she needed to know. She had known all along. And ...she knew what was to come. Suddenly, the hairs on the back of Neptune's neck stood on edge. "Deep Submerge!" She shouted, her projectile slamming into the front that had begun their approach. Her long range attack momentarily spent, she looked up to that menacing figure in the sky and her senses went on full alert. The black creature was looking at the three of them, thoughtfully considering its opposition, and in a charge of light born from the center of its form, Neptune gasped as she realized her fate. Over her shoulder, she saw Pluto skirt out of the way, her sideways feint almost akin to teleportation, but she still sensed her partner next to her side. "Haruka!" Neptune shouted, her arms pushing Uranus' form away from her with all her senshi strength. She breathed a sigh of relief when the blonde haired woman landed far enough away from her, but she knew there was no time left to save herself. A spark of blinding electricity arched through the sky and the air was suddenly alive with energy. It only took a second for Neptune to fall to the ground, unmoving. It had happened so fast that the aqua haired woman hadn't even had the chance to scream. With wide eyes, Uranus' jaw hung slack, unable to form words as she gaped in disbelief at the sight in front of her. The Uranian woman found herself crawling on her hands and knees to her partner's fallen body, stunned and unfeeling as the brainwashed humans apathetically marched around and past their fallen forms. Detachedly, she noticed the dark form of the creature in the sky advance without a second glance. The shouts and screams of death that emerged from the Moon Palace barely phased Uranus at all as she pulled her partner into her arms gently. The Neptunian woman's skin was burnt, singed and in some places open and bleeding. Her aqua hair was blackened and her senshi fuku was charred and torn. Though her body was still beautiful despite the pain it had endured, her facial expression was twisted into a contorted grimace. "Michiru..." Uranus said shakily, her halting voice barely a whisper in the destruction that screamed around her. Neptune could barely feel her own body, but could sense her lover's arms around her. Her skin was numb and she had to wonder if she even had any left at all. Her internal organs were sluggish, threatening to stop completely. She felt like she was on fire, yet she was afforded strength and security of knowing that her partner had made it through safely. "Haruka?" She asked shakily. "Haruka, I..." Blackness claimed her. /flashback "Haruka..." Michiru whispered, her voice barely audible, her mouth parched. Hot tears collected in her eyes and a shudder wracked her body as her hands shakily traced her arms as if expecting to find the injuries of her death by electrocution a millennia ago. She snorted unthinkingly, as though the smell of her own burnt flesh lingered still in her nostrils. She could detachedly sense Setsuna's grave concern, felt her supportive hand on top of her own. But it wasn't enough. Nothing was enough without Haruka by her side. "What happened to Haruka after I... died?" Michiru's words came haltingly, the violent memories playing again and again before her clouded eyes. Although the pain of reliving her own death was intense, the pain of not knowing what had happened to Haruka after she had died was even greater. Setsuna fidgeted slightly on the park bench. The harsh reality of the fall of the Moon Kingdom and furthermore, the events that had happened after that were not topics easily discussed, for they were the events that truly held the answers to Michiru's questions. The ancient woman's gaze hardened. Despite her reservations, it was time for Michiru to understand what had truly warped the woman once known as Haruka, and although Setsuna knew she faced certain repercussions for lingering too long from her post, she had a duty to her friend in addition to her duty as senshi. She owed at least that much to Michiru. Michiru turned her mournful cobalt eyes to the Guardian of Time. "Setsuna, please... I need to know." ---------- Preview, Chapter 7: Uranus shook her head, unbelieving. In the roar of the battle taking place around her, she heard only muted sounds as she stared dumbly at the broken beauty in her arms. This woman had shared with her the best of their years as friends and lovers. The thought of never hearing Michiru's signature giggle, never touching her sensuous curves or hearing the strings of her violin warm the room with her presence... it couldn't be true. Uranus simply couldn't imagine a future without her partner, couldn't come to terms with the fact that she had been left behind. Finally, her lover had gone to a world in which she couldn't follow. Unless... Gently, Uranus settled Neptune's body on the dusty ground at her feet. Tenderly, she brushed a loose strand of charred, aqua hair back from her forehead. She afforded her lover a small smile before leaning down to plant a soft kiss across her forehead. "Soon." She whispered.
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