Senshi: the Gathering of Five Part Sixteen
The living room was nearly empty, only a large chair sitting over to one side. The curtains on the windows were new, the carpet on the floor having been pulled out and replaced. There was an odd feeling of sorrow in the room, a sense of grief and pain lingering in the air.
Usagi walked into the dim room, her long blonde hair falling in two streams down her back. She knelt down in front of the window, laying the sheathed katana she carried across her knees. Softly, "I'm sorry, Mom, Dad, Sammy. I wish I had known...."
Her head bowed, Usagi let the painful memories run across her mind's eye. The attack on their home, the Youma breaking the front door down lead by the brown haired young man. Her father shoving her behind him, the splash of red as he was cut down. Luna cried out to her in alarm and Usagi ran for the stairs even as Mamoru was overwhelmed.
'No he wasn't,' Usagi thought to herself bleakly, 'Mamoru went willingly.' She had rushed back downstairs with her katana to find a few Youma lingering, the blood and the bodies. Seeing her mother and little brother laying there, the sightless eyes... she had snapped. Katana in hand she had cut them down, all the while wishing she had been able to do so before the attack.
Usagi stood the blade up, resting the hilt against her cheek, drawing an odd sort of comfort from it as she forced herself back to the present. "I just wanted to tell you," she said softly, "I won't rest until I find them, until I avenge you. That bitch may have been my biological mother," Usagi's eyes flashed as she thought of Serenity, "but you are my family."
With that Usagi rose, the sword at her side as she paced into the small kitchen. She looked around her, smiling slightly at the different atmosphere in there. Makoto had made it her domain since she had come here, livening it up with bright colors and some delicate knick-nacks that were so out of character from the amazon.
'It's odd," Usagi mused as she pulled the covered plate from the dinner, 'this is the first night I've been alone here in weeks, but I feel oddly relieved.' Not that Usagi minded having Makoto here, but it was nice to be alone occasionally.
With that, the doorbell rang into the silence. "Never mind," Usagi muttered, sliding the plate into the microwave.
Usagi left the food in there while she went to answer the door. Ami Mizuno smiled tentatively, "Good evening, Usagi."
"Ami." Usagi blinked in surprise then said, "What can I do for you?"
Surprisingly a faint blush touched the blue haired young professor's cheeks. "I was hoping to talk to you about the Oni," Ami said, "is Makoto home?"
Usagi fought back a smile. It was clear that Ami liked Makoto, but how deep that emotion went was hard to say. "Come on in," she smiled slightly adding, "I'm sorry to say that Makoto's gone out for the evening."
"Oh," Ami frowned slightly. She followed Usagi into the kitchen where she sat at the dining table and Usagi put the microwave on. "Oh, you haven't ate? I'm sorry, I didn't realize..."
"It's all right," Usagi smiled, putting the kettle on for tea.
There was the soft sound of paws hitting carpet as Luna came down the stairs. "You should have woke me," the cat chided her gently. "Good evening, Mizuno-sensei."
"Good evening," Ami smiled as the cat jumped onto a seat then up on the table. "So," she asked both of them, "what do you think of Sailor V?"
"Minako you mean," Usagi pulled her hot dinner from the microwave, setting it on the table before getting the tea and a saucer of milk for Luna.
"I don't trust her," Luna said firmly.
"I do," Usagi sighed, digging into her food. She looked up at Ami, "And you?"
"I'm reserving judgment until I have more information," Ami admitted with a smile, sipping at her cup of tea. "My first impression of her wasn't good, but she's been here when we've needed her," she calmly said.
"Just like a scholar," Luna noted, lapping at her milk.
Usagi chuckled softly. "I wish we knew what the Oni are planning," she frowned, chewing happily, "we've fought the Youma recently, but no signs of their masters."
"I think that most of the Oni have yet to awake," Luna offered, "it's why the Youma are still working so hard to gather energy."
"It's a good working theory," Ami acknowledged. She frowned, drinking some of her tea, "Do you know if it takes a certain amount of energy to awaken an Oni? Or for that matter how many of the Oni there actually are?"
Luna shook her head no, "Sorry."
"The Youma have gotten away with some energy in our past few engagements," Usagi didn't look happy, "I wonder if it was enough to awaken more Oni?"
"No way to know," Ami shook her head grimly. She blushed slightly, "I was wondering... where is Makoto tonight?"
"I don't know exactly," Usagi admitted, "but I can probably guess." At Ami's curious look she elaborated, "She's probably getting into a fight."
************
Crack! The young man dropped like a stone, blood streaming from his nose. The others gathered around looked on in awe and a bit of fear at the young woman standing before them. Tall, strong, and beautiful her long brown hair flowed away from her face like as banner.
"I leave the neighborhood for awhile," Makoto said as she cracked her knuckles, "and you all decide I'm not coming back?"
"You.." the leader charged, lead pipe in hand...
...only to have an arrow knock the weapon out of his hand. She emerged from the shadows, long black hair framing a serious face. "Pulling weapons in this sort of fight is so crude," Rei Hino said with a ghost of a smile, looking around the deserted lot.
"What are you doing here?" Makoto asked her, seemingly ignoring the young man who was running right at her. At the last moment she stepped aside and then stuck her led out, sending him sprawling to the ground.
"Usagi asked me to keep an eye on you," Rei said casually, the shrine maiden dressed in her traditional garb. There was a unusual aura around her, an almost supernatural presence, and the boys all seemed to feel it.
Makoto blinked, then laughed, "Yeah, I guess she would." She turned back to the young toughs and smiled, "Take your best shot, guys."
After some quiet whispering one of the young men stepped forward nervously to ask, "Ah, are you part of a gang now, or something?"
Makoto chuckled softly, "You could say that."
"And are they all as tough as she is?" he nodded towards Rei.
"No," Makoto smiled to herself slightly, thinking of Usagi and Minako, "some of them are even tougher."
"Hey!" Rei protested.
The young men exchanged nervous glances then, one by one, they left. "Makoto-sama," the apparent leader actually bowed slightly, "we don't need the grief that fighting you would cause. We give the district to you."
Rei moved over to Makoto's side, putting her bow away smoothly. "Did you just scare them off with a massive bluff?" she asked curiously.
Makoto flashed a smile, "I wasn't bluffing." She hesitated a moment, studying the dark haired woman, then said, "But thanks for the help."
"You're welcome," Rei smiled back. The two of them walked to where a group of young women waited, looking at Makoto with pure admiration in their eyes. An admiration, Rei found herself noticing, that was extended to her.
"Thank you for all your help, Makoto-san," the girl beamed.
"Call my pager if there's any more trouble," Makoto smiled, taking an envelope from the girl, "but I doubt they'll be back."
"We will," she beamed and Rei and Makoto walked away.
"You really do fight for money," Rei noted, the oddest look on her face.
Makoto put the envelope away casually, not opening it to check what was inside it. "My parents died ion a plane crash six years ago and left me nothing," she said calmly, "I've had to look out for myself since then."
Rei's eyes widened, "I'm sorry."
"Nothing to be sorry for," Makoto shrugged, "just a fact of life."
To be continued....
Deviant Hearts Archive | Back to main index