Note on Planet Names: Ten'ousei=Uranus; Kaiousei=Neptune; Meiousei=Pluto; Dosei=Saturn; Kasei=Mars; Suisei=Mercury; Mokusei=Jupiter; Kinsei=Venus ---------------------------------------------------------------------- "Hello, Kashin-kun. Welcome to my planet." Mizuno Kashin, his three children and the only Kino girl behind him, bowed to the Queen of Kaiousei. "Thank you, Shousha-san. Your kingdom is quite beautiful, though I may be partial to a water world as King of Mercury. Amami always liked this place. This is my heir, Ami, Shousha-san, and these two are the twins, Hakuchou and Kaichou." Shousha bowed to the children as they moved on to greet Michiru and Haruka. Kino Makoto bowed to Kaiou Shousha. "Thank you for inviting me." "Pleasure, Kino Makoto. You were on Suisei?" "Yes, visiting Ami. She was kind enough to come to my planet, so I thought I should return the gesture." "Very thoughtful of you." Shousha felt a twinge, deep in her heart, and she knew that Makoto and Ami were lovers. Why would Kashin, Meika, and Meisha allow that? "Papa!" Makoto, forgetting everything she had learned as the Princess of Mokusei, jumped into her father's arms as the Kino family appeared in the room. Meisha returned the embrace, glad to find his only daughter in such a good mood. "You guys came!" "Of course we came," her father smiled. "Go see your mother while I greet the queen." Makoto joined her mother and brothers while Meisha spoke to the Queen of Kaiousei. "Hello, Little Sister," Ken'nin greeted. "How was Suisei?" "The nights are not very long, but otherwise, fine." Ken'nin laughed. "Nights, huh? Now I know what you and Ami-chan were up to. Mother, I think Father wants speak with you." Meika nodded and joined her king, exchanging formalities with Kaiou Shousha. "Here, Mako-chan; Setsuna-san said that we should give this to you now." The oldest Kino child held up the necklace heirloom of Jupiter, and Makoto slipped it on. "I was wondering when you would give this to me. I saw Ami's and realized that you must have had mine. After all, Mother wasn't wearing it." "It's yours. Do you think you can get all of the Senshi together sometime tonight so we can tell them something Setsuna-san told us?" "Sure. I'll call you. Go meet the queen while I go see Ami to her room." Ken'nin laughed as Makoto left, taking Ami's arm and walking with the Mizuno family. "They look good together," Saiki commented. "Shall we go greet the princess this party is for?" Michiru smiled as the brothers approached, bowing to them. "Welcome to my planet." "Greetings, Michiru-san," Ken'nin smiled. "Thank you for inviting us. Haruka-kun, how are you? Sleeping well?" Haruka grinned, her gaze touching her wife. "Sometimes. It's nice to be back here." "But you miss your home." Haruka nodded. "Sometimes," she whispered softly, eyes distant, feeling Michiru squeeze her hand sympathetically. "Just before Neptune sets, or Mars, or Jupiter, I think about the blue rings of Uranus sinking beneath the horizon, reaching for the sky as night descends. I miss my planet and I miss my father." "He misses you," Ken'nin whispered, too low for anyone outside the circle of five to hear. "He sent messages to everyone, every kingdom, asking us to find you. He didn't mention the Space Sword or your henshin stick, only you. He loves you and misses you." Haruka looked up, realization dawning in her eyes. "You did figure it out. The necklace I was given by Queen Serenity told you that I must be Ten'ou not Urakaze." Ken'nin nodded. "Yes, my friend. We told no one, but we did go to see Setsuna-san." Haruka chuckled, pulling Michiru into her arm. "She was not happy when she showed up on Earth a moment too late to stop us. She did eventually wish us luck, though." Ken'nin bowed. "So do I. After the party, we need to talk to all of the Senshi." "We'll be there. Go enjoy yourselves." The Aino family, complete with Hino Rei, appeared a moment later, and Shinrai bowed to the Queen of Kaiousei. Asakaze touched Shousha's hand, smiling. "It's nice to see you again, Shou-chan. How is your daughter?" "Well. Introduce me to your children, Asa-chan." "Minako you've met once or twice, and these are my young twins, Fujiiro and Gin'iro." Shousha smiled at the children, her eyes touching Rei. Minako and Rei, too. What were the Inner queens thinking, letting their daughters fool around together? She would never let Michiru think about dating a girl. Rei's family was the last to arrive, her brother embracing her briefly before following his father's lead and introducing himself to the queen. Akaneiro, Rikuriko, Kazan, and Momoiro left with the Aino family while Rei and Minako went to find a room. Shousha was preparing to leave when two final guests appeared in a flash of white and deep garnet. Meiou Setsuna smiled to her friend, embracing Shousha warmly. "You seem a bit happier, Shou-chan." "It's nice to see my friends again. Since Kazeko died, we haven't seen each other often. Who is this?" Michiru joined her mother as Pluto revealed her companion. The small girl, her purple hair no longer than Ami's, smiled, purple eyes searching the crowd. "Dosei's rulers couldn't come, but this is their daughter, Hotaru." Michiru gasped, eyes wide. "The girl from my vision," she whispered. She fainted. *~*~*~*~*~*~* "She'll be fine," Haruka growled, annoyed that Shousha would question her. "This happened before and she woke up a little while later." "What did she mean, the girl from her vision? She had a vision?" Haruka nodded as she watched her wife's sleeping face. "The Aqua Mirror is not kind to its bearers." "What? But she's never even touched the Aqua Mirror!" "She should have!" Haruka glared at Shousha, green eyes flaming. "You haven't been able to hear the damn thing since Kazeko died and you never had the courage to give it up! Michiru should have inherited it and her henshin stick years ago! It came to her while we were on Kasei, and it showed her the end of the world. And the end involved the awakening of Saturn." "No," Shousha whispered. "That's not possible. There is no reason for Saturn to awaken. There is no evil threatening our Solar System and no enemy on the move. Saturn hasn't awoken in years, hundreds even. We've been at peace for so long, and the last incursion by Queen Metallia's forces didn't even make Saturn's princess blink. This can't be true." "It's true; she told me. It knocked her out, and seeing Hotaru knocked her out again." "It's not that girl's fault," Shousha whispered. "She can't help what Fate is doing to her." Haruka glared at the queen, seeing the fear and trepidation she had come to expect from her father. "You are afraid of Hotaru, aren't you? But you won't do anything about it." "Like what?" "Kill her. Prevent the birth of Saturn." "No! Never! No mother should be deprived of her child, especially her only child and heir." Haruka sighed, fingering the henshin stick in her pocket. "You would sacrifice our worlds and our futures so that one of your friends could keep her heir? How selfish." "It's too late for another Princess of Dosei to be born. Hotaru has already proven that the Star Seed, the power of Saturn, has passed onto her. She is linked to that planet, and if she dies, the kingdom dies. It's too late to kill her." "Perhaps if you hadn't been so lost in your grief over Kazeko's death, you might have seen this future in the mirror when there was still time. It's all your fault. Now this generation of Senshi has to clean up your neglectful mess." Haruka turned away from her mother-in-law, never stopping to think about how her speech was changing. She was forgetting the persona of Urakaze Haruka that she had built up over the past months and was reverting to Ten'ou Haruka's arrogance and self-assurance. She was acting like the princess she was born to be, but Kaiou Shousha was too distraught to recognize the change for what it was. Hiding her tears, Shousha turned and left, not trusting the words threatening to spill from her mouth. *~*~*~*~*~*~* "Kazeko," Shousha cried, burying her sobs in her blankets. "Where are you? You promised me long ago that we would always, always be together, but when I need you, you are nowhere to be found. He's right, Kazeko. He's right about everything, and I fear that you are speaking to him and not to me. I don't think I care anymore about the world. I don't care if Saturn rises and kills us all, and that Duke has more fire and determination to save the kingdom than I do. What's wrong with me?" Slowly, Shousha's sobs faded as she slipped into an uneasy dream, her breathing steady once more. Beside her bed, shining in the late morning sun, a transparent woman appeared, green eyes full of tears. 'I'm sorry, Shousha,' she whispered, resting her hand on the sleeping queen's shoulder. 'I had to protect her. I will see you again for real when the world ends as your daughter has foreseen, but for now you must trust our children to take the path we could not and preserve the future for us all. Today, enjoy your last day as Sailor Neptune, and tonight I will visit your dreams.' Kazeko kissed her lover's lips, and Shousha smiled as memories of her dead girlfriend filled her dreams. The spirit vanished. *~*~*~*~*~*~* Haruka looked up as the Space Sword glowed, the golden light fading a moment later. "Did you comfort her?" 'As well as I could. I'll visit her dreams tonight, if you two can give me the power. Now that you wear those stones, I can leave the sword for a little while and calm my Shousha. She misses me dreadfully, and I cannot bear to see her in pain.' Haruka nodded, watching as Michiru slowly opened her eyes. "Haruka?" "I'm here. What happened?" "Seeing her, like that, just surprised me, and the vision I had earlier overwhelmed me. I saw a little bit more, though, and I think Queen Metallia is breaking free of her bonds. She's found a slave here and will soon be loose." "I think we can handle Metallia. Our mothers did. The only thing I don't understand is why Saturn would be awakening just for her." "I don't know. Where's Mother?" Haruka walked over to the window, feeling a twinge of shame. "I told her what I thought of her policy regarding your henshin stick and the Aqua Mirror, which she hasn't been able to use because of grief since my mother died. I told her that she was afraid to do what must be done, and she ran off. Kazeko went to see her." "Mother hasn't ever been really strong. She's powerful, but her strength came from love, and she doesn't see that anymore. She misses Kazeko more than she can ever say. Besides, Haruka, it's too late. Killing Saturn won't help." "What do you mean?" "She's linked to Dosei. The ancient Queens of Saturn never separated their Star Seeds from the lifeforce of their planet because Saturn would never be able to awaken, and she has been useful before. Especially in the Sailor Wars Solar Systems away. Since she is so closely linked to her planet, Dosei would die with its princess, and an explosion of the sixth planet could well ruin the orbits of the rest, destroying us without stopping Metallia. She and her Star Seed cannot be so calmly eradicated." Haruka hung her head, pulling the topaz out of her tunic. "Then the end really is coming. She will rise and destroy everything." Michiru joined her melancholy lover. "Nothing happens without reason, Love. Perhaps Saturn is meant to save us, instead. Maybe she is the only Senshi who can stop the coming darkness." "Maybe." *~*~*~*~*~*~* Setsuna led her young charge around during the party, afraid that others knew of Michiru's vision. No one seemed to know what the princess had seen, though, and Setsuna began to relax as Hotaru began to enjoy the party. The Queen of Kaiousei returned with her daughter and Haruka about an hour after Michiru's fainting spell, both women looking fresh and ready for anything. Setsuna suddenly wondered why Kazeko's spirit lived with Haruka and not Shousha. Did she hide herself in the Space Sword so she could protect her daughter or so she could one day be reunited with her lover? Shousha cleared her throat, catching the attention of the royals and nobles scattered through the room. The only kingdoms not represented in the crowd were the Moon and Ten'ousei, though Haruka represented her planet. Setsuna smiled when she caught sight of a young woman in a long white robe, hood shadowing her delicate features. That girl was most certainly Serenity, the young princess of the Moon, and the robed man by her side had to be Endymion. Setsuna moved closer to the pair, knowing that if anyone else realized that there was a Human in the crowd, there would be a riot, and she had to protect her prince and princess. She quelled the sudden tide of motherly love that filled her as she looked at the golden-haired princess. That part of her life was over. "Welcome, nobles and royals of the Silver Millennium. Thank you for coming to my daughter's birthday party. Today is a very special day, not only for her and Kaiousei, but for the entire Silver Millennium, for today my daughter, Kaiou Michiru, becomes Sailor Neptune." Shousha took the henshin stick and Aqua Mirror from the pillow a nearby servant held, bowing as she handed them to her daughter. "I pass these on to you, my child, trusting in you to protect Kaiousei and the entire Silver Millennium as I, Ten'ou Kazeko, Mizuno Amami, Aino Asakaze, Hino Rikuriko, and Kino Meika did and as Meiou Setsuna continues to do. Welcome, Sailor Neptune." "Welcome, Sailor Neptune," the crowd echoed as Michiru took the stick and mirror. Both glowed fiercely turquoise at the touch, causing murmurs to spread through the gathered nobles. It wasn't supposed to do that. Shousha was quick to ease their fears. "The mirror and henshin stick recognize the great things their new master will do. You have a bright future ahead of you, Michiru." As the cheers swelled and died down again, Shousha gestured for Haruka and a short, gray-haired man dressed in priest robes to step forward. "Allow me to introduce Urakaze Haruka. My daughter's husband." Shock spread through the room, though the Inner princesses were unaffected by the general air. They knew what had happened on Earth. The priest bowed. "I am Yoruno Kiyoshi, Priest of the Order of the Winds of Ten'ousei and Oshou of the Ten'ou no Utsukushii Uta Temple. I am the one who preformed the marriage, not seven days ago." "You can't be serious! Michiru-san hasn't even been dating anyone." Kiyoshi bowed deeply. He knew the speaker, Kazan, very well, and only his long training as a priest kept his voice calm and his tone respectful. "Hino-sama, all I can tell you is that I married these two people; I don't know why they wanted the marriage." Michiru took Haruka's hand, glaring at the men who had been her suitors. "I am married now and happier than I have ever been before. You may not know Haruka and you may not trust this person, but believe me when I say that we are in love and we are married. That's all that matters." It took a while for the disappointed suitors to calm down, and Shousha helped the mood by having her servants begin to play a song. Haruka took her wife's hand and led the aqua-haired Senshi into the middle of the floor, beginning the dance. Hours later, Haruka and Michiru stumbled back to their bedroom, leaning on each other for support. They were met by Ken'nin and his brothers as well as all of the Inner Senshi and Setsuna. Haruka raised an eyebrow at Pluto. "I'm surprised you came, Setsuna-san." Pluto nodded. "I didn't plan to. I never expected your charade to last so long. But it has, and even Shou-chan has yet to figure it out. It won't take her much longer, though." "What did you need to talk to us about, Ken-chan?" "Only about your necklaces, imouto-chan." Ken'nin pointed to the necklaces that each of the young women wore. "Setsuna-san tells us that they control your planets and were once part of you, part of your Star Seeds, many lifetimes ago. When the time comes, when the final battle draws near, you all must return those stones to yourself, link yourselves to your planets. If you don't, the future will perish along with the present." Setsuna nodded. "I have already taken mine. When you know how, do it. You will figure out the when by yourselves." Haruka nodded, fingering her stone. "Thank you, Setsuna-san. We will all remember." Haruka and Michiru were finally allowed into their room after one last congratulation by their Inner friends and Setsuna, and Haruka grinned mischievously. "What should we do now?" "Would you like to come over and find out?" Haruka raised one eyebrow as her wife backed away teasingly, her sapphire eyes alight in the faint illumination in the huge bedroom. "We could go to bed. After the stress of that party, I could use some sleep." Michiru responded as Haruka knew she would. "Sleep? What's that? It sounds boring." "Of course it is. I never get to have any fun." "I can fix that," Michiru purred as Haruka gently pushed her down onto her bed. "Do tell."
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