Two: Murder

Helen lay in her narrow bed in the room she shared with another girl, and let sleep claim her slowly. For the first time since her mother's death, she was able to fall asleep peacefully, and without tears. She had the extraordinary Dr. Goodman to thank for that. She had felt so comfortable and safe in the older woman's presence from the beginning, and the meal they had shared had been a revelation. Helen's thoughts replayed the evening in her mind as she drifted off to sleep.

****

"I'd like that," Helen replied.

They had gone to a small deli a couple of blocks from the auditorium. It was a warm place, with the smell of fresh bread, spicy pasta sauce, and cigarette smoke. They found a small booth near the back of the place, and ordered hot sandwiches and soft drinks from the waitress.

"Did you enjoy the lecture?" Dr. Goodman asked.

"Yes, I did. I haven't been to school much lately...I don't feel so guilty now," Helen replied.

"You seem like a bright girl, what's the problem with school?"

"I don't get along with the other students. They don't like me all that much. I think...I think I may have hurt some of them," Helen's face reddened with shame at her admission.

"I'm sure you didn't hurt anyone intentionally. Sometimes we all have reflexive reactions," Dr. Goodman said.

"It was kind of like that, but...." Helen trailed off as the waitress arrived with their food.

"I don't know....it really doesn't make sense when I think about it now," she finished when the waitress left.

Argent could see the girl was confused and hadn't yet accepted what her mind knew was true. She changed the subject to spare Helen from something she was not ready for yet.

"These problems sound like they're very recent. Is this a new school for you?"

"Yes, I had to change schools after my mother....after she...died. She had a stroke about three months ago. My father was killed a few years ago, so I had to go to a group home for....kids without parents," she couldn't bring herself to say that awful word just yet.

"I...well...I found out that my mother wasn't really my mother. I mean...I found out I was adopted. You know, it was like losing two mothers in the same day," Helen used her napkin to stop the tears that threatened to flow, and Dr. Goodman put a comforting hand on her trembling arm. This time, Helen accepted the gesture.

"I'm sorry if I've brought up painful memories for you. That was really not my intention," Argent said gently.

"It's okay, really. It does help to talk about it. I just get emotional sometimes..." Helen gave Dr. Goodman a rare smile.

<Oh, Helen....Himiko...If only I could tell you the truth. I wish I could give you your real mother back right now, but you're just not ready yet.>

***

The bond that formed that day strengthened and grew over the next several weeks as Helen and Argent Goodman spent more and more time together. Helen stopped cutting classes, and began to catch up on missed schoolwork. The teachers admired her newfound determination, but were still wary of the auburn haired girl. Mostly, the students avoided her. Fear and ignorance spawned hurtful gossip, but no one tried to confront Helen again. She rushed home after school to complete her chores so she could meet Dr. Goodman for their daily excursion. It was always something different, and always had meaning. Once, they visited the children�s wing at a local hospital. It was hard for Helen to breathe at first, as the smells assaulted her senses, bringing back painful memories, but the children made her forget. Some of their illnesses were so sad and hopeless, but each child remained positive. None of them wallowed in self-pity or grief. They all played and sang and laughed like it was just another day, one of many. Helen had been moved to tears, but found the message the Dr. Goodman had been trying to send her. Don't give up.

Another day, it had been a homeless shelter. That made Helen appreciate her new home.

There were also trips that Helen didn't really understand, though on some level, she did. Seminars and lectures on psychic abilities, mental hospitals that housed patients that no doctor understood, these places had disturbed Helen, but held her curiosity just the same. As they passed one of the many rooms in the mental ward, a name came to Helen's mind, and before she knew it, she had voiced it out loud, "Sue..." <no....Tsu.....Tsukino> some deep part of her mind answered. Helen looked startled. Dr. Goodman only smiled.

***

Argent Goodman knew the time had come to tell Helen about her heritage and her destiny. After hearing her say that name last week, and then hearing her thoughts make the correction, Argent knew Helen was ready.

"Where are we going today," Helen asked cheerfully as she arrived at the little deli where they always met.

"I thought we'd go someplace private and talk today. How about my apartment?"

Helen agreed, but was nervous. She had learned from past experience that private discussions usually held bad news.

***

"Helen, it's time to talk about what happened to those students," Argent said calmly after they had settled down on her overstuffed sofa.

"I don't know what you mean, " Helen began.

"I think you do. I think you've always known, but haven't been able to accept that part of yourself," Argent said.

"It's impossible. I've gone over it in my mind a thousand times, and each time the answer I get is impossible.." Helen whispered.

"No...."<now...listen....can you hear me, Helen?>

"I heard you, but you didn't speak," Helen's eyes widened, and panic began to overtake her. <Oh My God! I'm crazy! Now she'll want to lock me up like Sue! NO! Not Sue.....Usagi. I'm crazy! Now I'm arguing with myself!!>

"Helen. Look at me. You're not crazy, and Usagi is real. Calm down, I won't lock you up. Please, look at me for a moment," Argent gently turned Helen's face toward her own, and the panic in her eyes ebbed. Helen nodded and sighed loudly.

"You heard my thoughts," Helen said softly, "and I heard yours. How is this possible, and who is Usagi? Her name feels so familiar to me, but at the same time, I'm sure I've never met her."

"Usagi was a girl much like yourself," Argent began. "She was thrust into a world she was unfamiliar with, but it happened to her at sixteen, where you were only a baby..."

Helen listened to the tale with astonishment in her eyes. At times, tears fell, and at others, she laughed along with Argent. The true meaning of the story hit her like an anvil near the end, "What do you mean, I'm not of this world? Am I an alien?" she asked incredulously.

"No, not a alien, although there are such things. Time is an ever- changing entity. Because of this, there are many planes of existence. There is this plane, but perhaps also another where you father still lives, and another where you were never born, and another where you still live with you birth parents. It is possible to cross over to some of these other planes, but only under specific circumstances." Argent explained. "This plane and another where Usagi is from and now lives again, are connected because of her."

"You said she had powers. Do you think I have powers, as well?" Helen questioned.

"I am sure of it. You were able to read my thoughts, and you have some sort of defensive attack. That's what you used on those students and that aide in the hospital. You also seem to be able to drain energy from others." Dr. Goodman said.

"I hurt people...I'm dangerous," Helen said in a small voice.

"You only used your powers when you felt threatened. You didn't injure anyone badly, and you had no control over it then," Argent said to console the girl.

"This is your destiny. You are a senshi. I can see your sigil."

Helen brought one shaking hand up to her forehead, and for an instant, felt a strange warmth there. "How long have you been able to see it?" she asked.

"From the very beginning," Argent replied.

"You want me to cross over to this other plane, don't you?" Helen asked.

"Only if you want to. There is someone there I think you should meet."

Helen nodded and said softly, "I'll think about it."

***

"The body that was found at a downtown construction site last month has been identified as sixteen year old Glen Oaks resident Ryan Thomas. There have been no developments in the case, which has been described by the police as a ritual mutilation. In other news..."

Argent clicked off the television and closed her eyes. She had known, of course, but hadn't wanted to upset Helen. She hoped that the fragile girl hadn't been watching the news. She got up to switch off the lights, and paused for a moment to gaze into the rain swept street in front of her house. Lightning lit the sky in the strange, mystic patterns of its primitive dance, and thunder boomed the accompaniment. She sighed from the depths of her soul and went into her bedroom.

Argent was hovering in that hazy world between sleep and wakefulness when the sound of her doorbell brought her fully awake. She involuntarily clasped her hands to her ears in a defensive gesture that stopped nothing. The thoughts she heard so clearly were chaotic and frantic, and Argent knew the owner of such thoughts would be in even worse shape. She hurriedly pulled on her bathrobe and went to let Helen in.

The girl that stood in her living room was soaked and shaking, more from fear and shock than from cold. Her eyes rolled and she could only sob as Argent tried to comfort her. The thick towels helped to dry and warm her skin, but could do nothing for the icy fear that encased Helen's heart. The rain poured down as Helen poured out her grief over the death of her friend. Finally, exhaustion won over anguish, and the girl fell into a fitful sleep.

Argent carried her into the guestroom and laid her on the bed. She gently removed Helen's shoes, and pulled the coverlet over her sleeping form. Even in rest, occasional sobs shook her frail body. Argent carefully read Helen's thoughts, and found that she had indeed seen the newscast, and had also, somehow, read the anchorwoman to learn a very disturbing, and intentionally left-out detail. The police had Helen as a prime suspect.

AHH! The cliffhanger.....I couldn't resist leaving it off like this. I haven't gotten any feedback on this story, and would appreciate knowing how you like it so far??

Until next time...

Usa

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