Sunao lowered her head. "I... I'm sorry I couldn't be a better mother--"
"No, no, that's not it..." Haruka sighed. "I just have too many personal issues
that I can't let you get involved with. Just... get on with your life. We'll
still see each other... I'll call you..."
Sunao hugged her tightly. "I love you, Haruka."
"I love you, okaa-san."
Sunao sniffled a bit and left the room, and Haruka quickly packed her things,
called the friend they'd borrowed the van from before, and drove it to the
new address. She examined the apartment critically when she arrived. It was
more than enough for her alone. It came with nice furniture. It wasn't too
much money, considering what she earned racing.
After quickly unpacking her things, she went to stand out on the balcony.
It was very windy that night, so she rested in the chair there, closing her
eyes.
It wasn't like she'd see Michiru again... she'd never met her till that day,
so they must not have any classes together. She could get over her, in time.
It would be fine. She just had to avoid seeing her.
She almost screamed at the terrifying vision that entered her mind then.
"Haruka..."
It was too dark to see clearly... just a bright red coming from
somewhere... too much wind to keep balance...
"Haruka... please..."
She struggled to look up and saw Michiru in her sailor fuku, her face
more sad and pleading than ever.
"Please... don't be afraid... we need you..."
Other Senshi could be seen faintly, fighting, dying?
"No, I can't... you don't need me! You can do this without me!"
Michiru's eyes closed, tears streaming down her face. A silhouette
rose up behind her, a girl with shoulder-length hair, wielding a
large weapon... a glaive? It started lowering towards the ground,
time seeming to slow as she did so.
"Please... Everyone is counting on us..."
"No!"
"Please, for the sake of the world--"
"NO!"
Suddenly, there was a bright flash of light, the sound of millions of
screams. A cluster of metal ribbons shot out from the glaive, tearing
first Michiru, then the other Senshi to pieces. They shot out everywhere,
covering the Earth.
Haruka opened her eyes, finding herself lying on the floor of her balcony,
sweating and crying.
"It's just a vision... just a vision..."
She shuddered and swayed as she stood up. It was just too vivid, too real...
the pain seemed so real, the screams...
She passed out on the floor of the apartment before she could make it to her
bed.
 
 
~~~~~~~~~~
CHAPTER 9
~~~~~~~~~~
 
 
Haruka flopped into her desk, arriving early as usual. She glanced out the
window briefly. She had a bad feeling about today, and she wasn't sure why.
Kemmei nodded to her and went back to grading a test from yesterday. He was
an all right teacher, considering Haruka's low opinion of teachers in general.
Some other kids waved to her as they took their seats. Haruka went back to
staring out the window. It was fairly quiet in the room. She thought she
heard someone else come in the room and talk to Kemmei. She was a bit
surprised when the footsteps seemed to come towards her. She turned to look
and practically choked on the breath she sucked in.
"Well, hello, Haruka. Nice to see you again. Mind if I take the seat next
to you?"
Michiru... what was she doing here? She called her "Haruka"... just that,
no suffix... oh lord... "I--"
Michiru sat down and carefully put her bag on the ground. Haruka couldn't
help but stare at her curvaceous legs as she crossed them. Michiru smiled
faintly to Haruka. "How are you?"
"I... I..."
Michiru bent forward a bit and asked urgently, "You had a vision too,
much worse than before, didn't you? Last night?"
Haruka glared at her. "What do you mean? Are you nuts or something?!
Visions?!"
Michiru narrowed her eyes, then smiled. "You're still going to race this
Friday, right? I want to make sure the tickets I bought don't go to waste."
"_You_ watch racing?!" This elegant, classical girl?!
Michiru laughed and said, "No, no! I'm not really into racing..." she dropped
her voice as she smiled slyly. "I just enjoy seeing you out there."
Haruka gulped and fought back her emotions. "Oh..."
"You're a great runner, too. You shouldn't hold back, though. You're so fast
when you just cut loose." Michiru then giggled a bit, talking quieter as she
said, "Besides... that track uniform looks much better on you than all those
silly suits and binding and make-up... I think you look so silly in this stuff.
You look exactly like a man!"
She knows I'm a girl... Oh lord... But she's still interested in me...
Haruka tried to sound cold as she said, "Stop following me, got it? I don't
know why else you'd be in here--"
"Why, Haruka, I have all your classes now."
"You WHAT?!"
"Don't be so surprised." Michiru flipped her hair over her shoulder, glancing
over Haruka. "We'll be seeing a lot of each other..." Her gaze lingered on
Haruka's legs as she murmured, "Hopefully a lot more..."
Haruka thought she was going to melt in her seat, but managed to keep being
rude as she said, "I think _not_, Kaiou-san. You're not my type."
Michiru glared at her and hissed, "You're just scared of your mission. You
shouldn't treat me this badly because of it."
"I don't know what you're talking about."
"You're lying and you know it. You're afraid of getting near me because you
have a destiny to fight by my side. You can't stand the idea of throwing
away all you've worked for to fight for something you don't understand. I
would appreciate it if you were at least civil to me. I didn't choose this
anymore than you."
"Y-you're delusional..."
"Stop fooling yourself, Haruka. You can't avoid it, and you know it. Please,
just give me a chance. You don't have a choice anyways. Don't act like this.
Can't we at least be friends?"
"I don't need any friends," Haruka mumbled.
Michiru narrowed her eyes again and opened her mouth to speak, but a red-
headed girl bounded up the aisle to Haruka.
"Hey, Haruka-san! How're you? Haven't seen you since the other day... Oh,
Michiru-san! You're here! Hiii!"
Haruka wanted to thank God for sending Cindy. "Hi, Cindy-chan... You know her,
_Kaiou-san_?"
Michiru's eyes seemed to go flat and cold when she referred to her as "Kaiou-
san," and she said quietly, "Her sister is my best friend."
Cindy blinked rapidly. "Wow, you're actually talking to h-- oops, er, sorry,
nevermind me... Your race last week was really great, Haruka-san."
Haruka smiled. "Thank yo--"
"Don't you agree, Michiru-chan? I saw you there, too."
"Wonderful as always," she said in the same quiet tone.
"Eeeek! Gotta go, the bell's about to ring!" Cindy ran off, the bell ringing
just after she left.
The class stood up as Kemmei rose to his feet, then bowed to him. "We have
another new student. Kaiou Michiru has been a student here since elementary
school, but she just joined our class. Why don't you tell us about yourself,
Kaiou-san?"
Michiru lowered her head demurely and said, "I paint a lot and have my works
displayed in some museums. I play the violin professionally and give shows
every weekend, and I recently released a CD. I'm the middle of a set of
triplets, and have several other siblings as well."
Haruka felt her jaw go slack and carefully kept from letting it hang open.
"Wow, another star in the class!" Kemmei said with a laugh. "Sitting right
by each other, too!"
Michiru glanced at Haruka briefly then nodded.
"Time for tyourei, let's go."
The usual groans followed, then everyone got up and headed for the stairs.
As they were descending, Michiru's slipped a bit, and Haruka instinctively
grabbed her to steady her. Michiru stared up at Haruka, hands pressed to her
shoulders, and blushed a bit. Haruka coughed and let go of her, ignoring some
teasing whistles other people made.
She's just too wonderful, too beautiful... I can't help but be attracted to her,
but I can't give everything up... what am I going to do?
Michiru limped down the rest of the stairs. Haruka hung back to make sure she
was all right, eventually falling behind the others. When they reached the bottom
of the stairs, the class walked out, and Michiru surprised Haruka by grabbing
the door handle and pulling it shut. Haruka opened her mouth to question her,
but Michiru's finger on her lips silenced her.
"I really did hurt my ankle, but..." Michiru lowered her gaze. "Haruka, please...
talk to me. Don't shut me out. Please, try to be my friend... p-please..."
Haruka's eyes softened a bit. "Kaiou-san... I..." She shook her head, trying to
clear her thoughts and think rationally. If you become friends, you'll get close
to her. You'll fall even harder for her. How can you resist her then?
Michiru looked up at her pleadingly, lower lip trembling. Haruka could feel her
heart pound, moving to embrace her, soothe her worries... Haruka gripped the
railing behind her to keep from moving forward and said, "I-I can't promise you
anything. I can't say I'll make any effort but..." she lowered her head and said,
"don't be upset if I'm horrible to you. Got it? Just... remember that..."
Haruka bolted up the stairs, leaving Michiru stranded at the bottom. About five
flights up, she slowed to a halt as she heard shuddered sobs echoing in the
enclosed stairwell. She felt her eyes tearing, and slowly went back down the
stairs. She'd made Michiru cry, no, sob... all because of her. All because she
was afraid to be near her. She felt wretched, evil, corrupt.
Michiru was curled into a ball in the corner, her face hidden in her hair,
pressed to her knees. Haruka hesitated a moment, then knelt down next to her.
"Michiru-chan..."
Michiru lifted her head, biting her lip. Her eyes glimmered with a faint spark
of hope.
Haruka quickly pulled her into a hug, silently cursing herself for giving in.
Michiru cried harder, but Haruka saw that she was smiling; they were tears of
happiness. It felt so right to hold Michiru close, comforting her. It felt so
nice to have Michiru in her arms. She gently stroked Michiru's hair, surprised
at how nice it felt to hold her, not really awkward but rather pleasant.
"Michiru-chan, I'm sorry... I... I don't want to hurt you. I really don't.
But I... I'm so scared... I don't think I can do it. I can't take the mission.
I'm sorry... I'll try to be your friend, really I will... But..."
Michiru suddenly raised her head, her hands trailing to touch Haruka's cheeks.
Haruka shivered as she felt Michiru's breath on her as she whispered, "All I
ask is that you try... thank you... y-you don't know how much this means to
me..."
Haruka wanted to hold her close, kiss her trembling lips, never let her go. She
ignored the ache in her heart as she pulled away and stood up instead.
"I better get you to the clinic... um, have them take a look at your ankle."
Helping Michiru up and assisting her steps, she lead her out of the stairwell
and to the clinic.
 
 
Throughout the next few classes, Haruka fought to keep a straight face while
Michiru kept casting smoldering glances her way. When Kemmei would unexpectedly
call on her, she would stumble over her words, making Michiru giggle at her.
He'd then ask Michiru, who answered correctly.
When it came time for her free period, she was surprised that Michiru didn't
leave for a class. Haruka gathered her things to go outside to sit and think,
and Michiru started to follow her.
"Michi--" she started.
"What? I need to practice." She lifted up her violin case. "I have a performance
on Saturday night and need to prepare."
Haruka sighed grudgingly as Michiru carefully walked behind her into the elevator.
She hobbled a bit, trying to keep weight off her hurt ankle, but kept smiling at
Haruka.
"So... um... where are you performing?" Haruka asked.
"It's on a cruise boat, actually," Michiru said. "Taiyo cruise lines... It's
a charity event, actually, that I was invited to go to... help bring in more
money."
Haruka raised her eyebrow and said, "Well, I suppose I'll see you there. I'm
going because of my sponsors. Just a silly publicity stint."
Michiru laughed a bit and said, "You're actually giving in to them? It's not
like you to bend to someone else's wishes."
Haruka looked away and said, "I need something to do... and what would you know
about it being 'like me' or not?"
"I know more about you than you think," Michiru said softly with a sly grin.
"I'd like to be alone," Haruka snapped. "Don't follow me outside."
Michiru gave her a hurt look. "Haruka..."
When the elevator doors opened, Haruka rushed out, leaving Michiru behind,
unable to keep up. She took a detour and went to the library instead, just
in case Michiru decided to try to find her outside. She was terrified of
the girl. She promised to try and be her friend, but it was so hard to try
to be _just_ her friend. She didn't know if she'd be able to do it. It was
best to just try and avoid her as much as possible, no matter how much it
hurt. It would only hurt more if she got involved.
 
 
**********
 
 
Michiru sighed as she carefully arranged her hair. She'd lost her
enthusiasm for her performance, as Haruka's recent treatment of her had
brought her mood down. On Tuesday, it seemed like things would be all right.
Haruka had promised to try and be her friend, and had even held her. After
that, she gave her the cold shoulder, ignoring her as much as possible.
Michiru kept trying, but Haruka was unflinching, not responding to her
flirting in the least bit.
The daimons were attacking so frequently now. The visions were so
overwhelming. Every day, she ended up exhausted from battle. It was getting
to be too much. She didn't know how much more she could take without Haruka's
help.
Michiru picked up her violin and prepared to walk out on stage. She knew
Haruka was out there somewhere. She peered around the curtain and smiled to
herself when she noticed Haruka in a sharp black tuxedo, an untouched drink
on the table where she sat. She felt a bit of tingling in her stomach,
excited to be performing in front of Haruka. She walked out on stage and
smiled to the audience, to Haruka in particular. Closing her eyes, she
prepared to play.
Haruka felt her heart quicken as Michiru started playing. She looked so
beautiful, standing there in her white gown, all the attention on her. Her
playing was the best she'd ever heard. Haruka let out a tiny sigh, smiling as
she listened.
She could overhear the couple next to her talking about Michiru; "That girl
is Kaiou Michiru." "She doesn't look like a junior high girl. She must be
very popular at school." "I heard she doesn't make many friends." "Why is
that? She seems very nice." "Well, they say she dislikes people."
Haruka felt rather uneasy about the couple's words, and as soon as they'd
finished, she gave Michiru one last glance, then stood up and left the room.
She couldn't handle being there anymore, she couldn't handle the ache she felt.
The vision passed through her mind briefly as she walked, but she ignored it,
walking out into the hall, then entering the stairwell.
Michiru, though she played with her eyes shut, opened them and frowned,
feeling a strange feeling go through her. It felt as if her audience was sudden-
ly much smaller, not as appreciative. She noticed that Haruka was gone, and
felt let down. She didn't want to play anymore. She drew her song to an early
close, curtsied, and quickly left the stage. She ignored the hot tears in her
eyes as she put away her violin, then carefully descended the staircase where
one of her paintings hung. She sat down on the landing, her ankle throbbing
slightly where she'd injured it on Tuesday. She glanced up at her painting,
"The End of the World." After a particularly gruesome vision, she'd painted
it. A huge wave smashing into the city, destroying everything in its path...
Michiru sighed a bit. She felt as if there was no hope for the future, no
chance for Earth to survive. That painting could be the truth.
She was thrilled to see Haruka descend the stairs, then stop before her
painting, looking up at it, a tender smile on her face. Michiru trembled a
bit, wondering what Haruka must be thinking. Fighting back fear, she managed
a smile as she called out, "How do you like it?"
Haruka looked over to her as she said eagerly, "You are more than welcome here,
genius racer Ten'ou Haruka!"
"You know a lot about me, don't you?" Haruka said. Looking at the painting,
she asked, "Did you paint this?"
Michiru ignored the question. "You're famous, aren't you?" She deliberately
chose misleading words, flipping her hair over her shoulder as she said, "In my
school, there's lots of your fandom. One of your fans wants to ride along the
coastline with you in your car... even though she's a girl!"
The color drained from Haruka's face. Michiru wondered if Haruka realized she
meant herself. Haruka looked away and said, "The end of the world... How can a
pretty girl who won't hurt a fly paint such a horrible, imaginary painting?"
Michiru felt her hand shake. How could she say that? Haruka had the visions,
too! She stood up, glaring at Haruka. "It isn't imaginary! I can see it
clearly! As can you!"
Haruka snarled at her, "Ridiculous! I am Japan's first ever junior racer,
Ten'ou Haruka! Neither the memory of my previous life nor the end of the world
is my business! If it has to be done, why don't you do it? I don't want you
snooping around about me anymore!"
Michiru clenched and unclenched her hands while Haruka spoke. "Stop talking
that way!" she cried. "I don't want to do it either! I have a dream to be a
violinist! I just can't keep on doing stupid things like saving the world
from ruin!"
They stood staring at each other for several long moments.
Haruka came down the stairs a little way and said, "You're just too weak to do
it then. You don't need my help! Don't think you can push this on me! I don't
care what you say, there's no reason to think the end of the world is coming,
and that _I_ have some part in stopping it."
She turned to leave, and Michiru moved to stop her, but instead fell to the
ground when her ankle gave out and only brushing her fingers against Haruka's
pant leg. "Leave me alone, Kaiou Michiru! I'm through with trying to be your
friend! Go away!"
"HARUKA!" she screamed, trying to get to her feet. Haruka didn't even look
back.
 
 
**********
 
 
Michiru sat in her desk at school, head hung low as usual. Another
day, another disappointment. The bell was getting ready to ring, and she
couldn't wait. A month of Haruka ignoring her had been hard to handle.
She didn't understand it. Haruka had promised to try to be her friend, but
she was showing no signs of keeping that promise.
She tried to catch Haruka's eye, tell her she'd be at her race that night
(as always), but Haruka didn't even glance her way. Michiru clenched her
fist and was the first out the door when the bell rang. She didn't look back.
Haruka gathered up her books quietly. Pretty much everyone had left
by now. A couple girls tried to ask her out to dinner, and she politely
refused. She didn't have the time nor the interest to date either of them.
She closed her eyes, an image of Michiru flashing in her mind. If only she
didn't have to accept the mission by being with Michiru... if only there was
some way...
But there wasn't. The dreams had made that quite clear. She was exhausted
from school and needed a nap before her race, and it terrified her to think
that she could have another dream. She hated sleeping, the dreams that came;
visions of the Silence... and dreams of Michiru. It wasn't that they weren't
enjoyable, but they made it even harder to keep up the cold treatment of her.
She smiled a bit as she got into her car. She was glad she finally had
something to drive around the city. She didn't care if she wasn't the legal
age, she was going to drive if she felt like it. She could afford to buy her
vehicles. She had a nice, bright yellow convertible; reaching high speeds but
also letting her enjoy the feel of the wind against her face. The motorcycle
she had was fun too; she had to really put her body into driving it. The car
was much safer, though, and she could relax while she drove.
When she got up to her apartment, she found a message waiting on her answering
machine. Pressing the button, she was surprised to hear that it was Teinei.
She hadn't had the chance to talk to her in awhile.
"Hello, Haruka-chan! I've missed you... I've so much to say! I'll be coming to
your race tonight. Good luck! I wanted to know if you could come over for a
late supper afterwards. Your mother will be there, too... We haven't gotten to
see you in so long! Call me if you can... I'm assuming you're coming unless you
tell me otherwise. Bye."
Haruka smiled; it would be nice to see family again. She stretched as she lay
down on her bed. It always took awhile to get to sleep; so many thoughts racing
through her head made it difficult. She finally closed her eyes and let the
dreams come.
Michiru racing towards me, dressed in sailor fuku.
Arms outstretched, begging for help. The Silence is coming soon.
Red sky turned blue. Fuku turned to nice, white dress.
She reached for me, not pleading, but for an embrace. Eyes sparkling.
Her kiss so warm, so passionate, so loving... arms holding close...
Breath on my cheek, arms gently caressing my back... lips on my neck...
Her dress slowly falls to the ground...
Haruka's eyes snapped open and she quickly sat up, gasping for air. She
shook her head rapidly, swearing when she noticed she was running short
on time. She quickly slipped into her fire suit and gloves and rushed out
the door, not bothering with the elevator. She drove far faster than the
speed limit to reach the track, trying to outrace time and thoughts. The
dream was worse than usual. She shivered a bit, tightening her grip on the
steering wheel. She had to ignore it. She had to just race and forget
about it.
 
 
She wasn't at all surprised by her victory. Afterwards, her mother and
Teinei came over to her, hugging her tightly.
"It's been awhile," Sunao whispered, trying to keep the press from
overhearing. "Can you come to Teinei's?"
"Yes, let's just get away from this..."
The crowd parted to let her through, leading Teinei and Sunao to her car.
Sunao gave it a worried look while Teinei had a look of approval.
"Haruka, this is illegal," Sunao said, getting in the passenger seat.
"Let her have fun, she deserves it," Teinei said. "She has the money for it,
and besides, you know how she loves to go fast."
Haruka smiled at her in the rear view mirror. She started the engine and
pulled onto the road. They had no idea what had been going on lately in her
life. They didn't know what a help it was to keep her thoughts off Michiru.
They stopped at a restaurant to get take-out before heading to Teinei's.
Haruka felt strangely uneasy when they entered. Teinei and Sunao got the
table set while Haruka went to change into something else before sitting
down to eat.
"So, is school going all right?" Sunao asked. "I know how tough that place is
on some people."
"It's easy for me," Haruka said with a shrug. "Not very challenging."
"Have you been making friends?" Sunao asked her, giving her a strange look.
Haruka shifted uncomfortably. "Well, I ran into my old friend Cindy-chan, but
we don't get to talk that much... and I have track meets with her sister, Elza
Grey..."
"The famous runner?" Teinei asked.
"Yeah... she's, um, she's nice, but she can be bothersome..." Haruka recalled
the many times Elza had pleaded with her to give Michiru a chance.
"So..." Teinei pushed her food around a bit. "Are you seeing anyone? Have
an interest in anyone, by any chance?"
Haruka narrowed her eyes. "I'd rather not discuss that..."
"Oh? I've heard there's someone _very_ interested in you..."
"Many people would love to go out with me," Haruka said, pressing her fingers
to her temples. The endless barrage of fans got on her nerves sometimes.
"There's one girl in particular... that knows you're a girl... Michiru?"
Haruka knocked over her drink in shock. "How did you--"
"Because I'm her neighbor and I talk with her all the time." Haruka's eyes
widened with shock as a blushing Michiru walked in. "I-I'm sorry to interrupt
... but..."
Haruka's chair clattered to the ground as she stood and started for the door.
"HARUKA!" Sunao shouted. "Get back here right this--"
"LIKE HELL I WILL!" she shouted back.
"Haruka, this isn't what it looks like!" Michiru pleaded. "I just came to visit
Teinei, it's not like we planned to--"
"I'm through with you, Kaiou-san! LEAVE ME ALONE!" Haruka slammed the door shut
and jumped into her car, giving them no time to stop her.
 
 
"i... i didn't mean to... i didn't realize..."
"Shhhh, it's ok," Teinei said, gently rocking the sobbing Michiru back and
forth. "You didn't mean to upset her."
"i didn't know she was here... i just walked in and..."
"It's ok, Michiru, just calm down... It'll work out. Why would she _not_ want
a relationship with you?"
Michiru clenched her fists tight and sobbed harder.
 
 
**********
 
 
After two months of trying, Michiru felt she was no closer to gaining
Haruka's affections than before. She went home crying from heart ache and
wounds sustained at the hands of daimons. She couldn't take it anymore.
She _had_ to have Uranus at her side. There was no way to keep fighting.
Any day now, a daimon would appear that was too strong for her and would
kill her. Would Haruka care then? Haruka showed no signs of any feelings
towards her whatsoever, be they friendship or attraction. She was a cold,
hard slate.
Michiru tried to keep up hope, following Haruka to the race track for practice.
Though it was Friday, she didn't have a race today; it was scheduled for
Saturday instead. Michiru felt incredibly uneasy though; she'd had a strange
dream last night, picturing Haruka and Uranus simultaneously, and a young boy
curled up on the ground. Michiru hoped there was nothing wrong, and hid to watch
Haruka.
Haruka walked towards the garage, wondering why she heard painful cries
coming from inside. It sounded like the cries she heard in her dream last
night... A strange dream about Michiru in that sailor garb, fighting some
hideous creature. It pained her to dream about Michiru so much. Usually,
the dreams were so much sweeter, so wonderfully romantic... of things that
could never happen. It was getting harder and harder to resist her. Day
after day, Michiru gave her those wonderful looks, said those sweet things,
making Haruka almost willing to give up everything to be with her. But she
couldn't... she couldn't do that.
She ducked a bit to avoid hitting her head on the low door and called out,
"Is someone here?"
"Help..." A young boy in a red and green school uniform was doubled over in
pain on the floor. He was grimacing and sweating a lot.
"What's up? Are you okay?"
A strange shape loomed over him and suddenly he was engulfed by it, turning
into a monster. Haruka took several steps back. It couldn't be! One of the
monsters she'd seen in the visions... how could this happen?!
She grabbed a crowbar, trying to block it as it dove at her. She screamed as
it knocked her to the ground, the crowbar flying out of her hand. She felt
dizzy and confused, and an image of the boy appeared when she looked up at
the monster. How could she stop it?! It was an innocent boy trapped in this
body!
She gasped and shielded her eyes as a bright light appeared, pulsating, a
shrill sound filling her ears. A strange looking object appeared in the center
of the glow, a dark blue rod topped with a strange decoration. Fascinated,
unable to resist, she reached for it. Her hand was close to touching it, her
mind numb to whatever consequences it could hold. It felt right, she needed to
do it...
"DON'T!"
The glow disappeared and the rod fell as she turned to see who had spoken.
Her eyes widened. Michiru? Here?
"Don't touch it! Once you've touched it, you can never return to a normal
life."
Michiru's eyes closed, almost painfully, and she lifted a similar rod in the
air. Haruka stared, disbelieving, as Michiru was engulfed in light, and left
clad in the outfit from the visions.
Sailorneptune...
She wasted no time in attacking the monster. Once it had crashed into some
shelves and had been knocked to the ground, she turned to face Haruka.
Haruka shook with rage. She was thankful for her appearance, but how could
she attack an innocent like that? "Stop it!" she shouted. "This was a human
being until a little while ago! ... Are you okay with killing people?!"
Neptune narrowed her eyes. "The Silence is approaching!" she insisted. "If I
don't do this, there will be more sacrifices!"
"So, you choose this way?!" Haruka was quite ready for an argument.
"No, I don't choose this way--"
"Are you still--"
"LOOK OUT!"
Haruka barely had time to comprehend that the monster had dragged itself from
the ground and dove to attack, that Neptune had jumped in the way, before she
was momentarily winded by her impact with the ground.
She didn't think, she just reacted. It dared attack Haruka, she had to
protect her! She dove in her path, crying out as it's claws raked across her
back and arm, digging deep into her flesh. She was thrown onto Haruka, both
onto the ground. Haruka let out a huge breath, stunned from the impact. Neptune
fought back tears of pain, then a blush when she realized she was lying right
on top of Haruka. She carefully got to her feet and let loose her Deep Submerge,
not noticing what happened afterwards. She stumbled and fell to her knees, her
eyesight failing her for a moment as she saw only black and splashes of
color.
She could feel herself tremble as Haruka gently took her into her arms and
carefully, gently cradled her in them. She lay back in them, welcoming the
warm embrace. She felt Haruka's hands quivering a bit, her heart thumping
fast. She was too weak to move, trying to ignore the pain while welcoming
the comfort.
"The monster?" she whispered.
"It's returned to human form. Don't worry," Haruka told her. Such strong, but
gentle hands, carefully holding her so as not to aggravate her wounds...
"I almost killed it," Neptune said softly. "No, I'm sure I'll kill it next time.
It isn't easy... but I chose to become a Senshi."
"Then why did you protect me?" Haruka gently lifted her arm, looking over her
injuries. Her hand clasped Neptune's as she said, "If you hurt your hands, you
can't be a violinist."
Neptune fought back the warm rush in her cheeks. Her voice didn't rise above
a very soft level, and she could hear the tears she held back. "I didn't snoop
around just because you're a Senshi. Before I knew that you were the one... I
was watching you from nearby when you were racing for the first time. I always
wanted to ride in your car along the coastline just once... You never asked any
favors of anyone. You are always faithful to your feelings."
"I'm not faithful... I'm always running away," Haruka said.
Neptune felt the tears brimming closer to spilling, and told her, "I know
more about you than you do... because I watch you all the time! I don't
want you to take the same way I took. Still, I was happy when I found out
that you're the one..." A hot blush stained her cheeks briefly, and she
looked away, tears running down her cheeks. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to
talk about it... sorry..."
Neptune was terrified then. She'd confessed so much to Haruka... had she
ruined any hope she had with her? She closed her eyes and tried to stop her
tears.
Haruka trembled a bit, looking down at Neptune. She couldn't believe it.
She couldn't believe that Michiru really had been watching her, and that even
after this attack, she didn't want her help, for her to be a Senshi. After all