Konnichi-wa minna-san!  Look who decided to rejoin 
the human race!  I can safely say that I am done with school 
*grin* and now, I have plenty of time on my hands.  Too 
much, in fact.  But I'm back to doing what I love!  I have 
another fic I'm working on, but it may be a while before I have 
something to show.  (Alicia, you know what I'm talking about! 
^_~ [By the way, make sure you read her newest fic, "Royal 
Flush."  It's awesome!])
	Anyway, this fic is different from what I usually do, 
but I like doing different things.  Blame it on the sappy 
country music I was listening the night I began this, but I felt I 
needed to praise my other fav senshi, Aino Minako.  She can 
be so understated at some times.  I've recently read another fic 
that was similar to this, but much more thought out than mine.  
I hope that Marisa (I forgot her last name!) decides to continue 
her story soon!  *grin*
	Oh yeah, one more thing.  I used the NA names with 
this one.  Any more questions?

Disclaimer:  Don't own it.  'Nuff said.


Mina's Lament
by Sailor Elysia





	Bitterness.  Bitterness, sadness, and perhaps a little 
pity was what it all came down to when she really thought 
about it.  She tried to hold back the tears, but it was no use.  
One by one they traced a shiny trail down her cheeks to 
disappear into the pillow she held between clutched hands.

	Crying won't help, she berated herself.  She'd just 
soak her pillow and then where would she be?  She glanced at 
her bookcase across the room, her eyes darting across the 
various novels that lined the shelves.  Her gaze fell upon one 
of her favorite mysteries, one written by Agatha Christie.  
'And Then There Was One."  It seemed ironic how one book 
could fit her mood on such a night.  That got a fresh batch of 
tears flowing again, and she buried her face into her pillow.

	Why?  Why was she the only one left?  Out of all her 
closest friends, she was the only one still single. Serena and 
Darien had each other, no one could ever dispute their love; 
Raye had (finally) stubbornly admitted she liked Chad; Amy 
no longer denied the fact that Greg was just a study partner; 
and just last week, Lita had announced that she and her best 
friend Ken were now an item. Even Luna and Artemis had 
each other!

	So why was it so hard for her, even Sailor Venus--the 
senshi of love, no less!--to find herself a man?  If everyone 
else could do it, why must it be so difficult for her?  All she 
had ever wanted, since she could remember, was someone 
who would hold her through long, stormy nights, comfort her 
when she was feeling down, or cuddle with when she needed 
to be loved.  Just someone to hold on to when there seemed to 
be nothing left.  She had to wonder sometimes, did even such 
a person exist any more?

	On this lonely Saturday night, Mina found herself in 
her room with only a dim bedside lamp to light it, surrounded 
by a swarm of stuffed animals, yet she still felt very empty and 
very alone.  They were just things, objects that held no 
feelings, who could no more comfort her than the soggy 
pillow she now held.

	She tried so many times--Heaven knows she had 
tried!--but it hadn't been enough.  She'd been cute, coy, 
playful, flirtatious, everything a girl could possibly be around 
a guy, but nothing had worked.  She even tried being smart 
like Amy was, or tough like Lita, but that didn't seem to have 
an effect either.  So what was she supposed to do now?

	Mina had never felt so alone in her life until this 
moment.  Her thoughts floated back through her memories, 
back to the time when she had lived in England.  Sometimes 
she actually missed the days she and Artemis spent bashing 
about the streets of London as Sailor V; eluding the police in 
so many different ways.

	And then there were the people who had affected her 
so.  Katarina, her best friend, only one of the few who knew 
about her first alter-ego.  Then there was Alan.  Mina sighed 
deeply.  It pained her heart to think of him, the one who she 
thought she had loved.  She had loved him, but not really.  It 
had been more like a brotherly-sisterly love than anything 
else.  Mina knew it was best to give him to someone who 
deserved his affections, realizing that Katarina had fallen in 
love with him.

	And so she had left England quietly, leaving behind 
those she cared about most in mourning.  She had staged her 
death during a warehouse explosion so it was easier to get 
away without having to answer any complicated questions.  
But what was so different from the life she led now to the one 
back then?  She was still fighting crime and evil--albeit a 
totally different field now--still using her powers, though she 
was now Sailor Venus instead of Sailor V. 'If only Katarina 
could see me now!'  Mina thought with a sardonic grin.  No 
doubt that England--as did the rest of the world--knew all 
about the famous Sailor Senshi of Tokyo.  With her new life 
and new friends, she had decided to leave her old life behind, 
not forgotten entirely, but tucked away into her memory.

	She tugged at the crimson red bow that held part of 
her hair back, causing her long blonde hair to fall down 
around her face.  She brushed the loose strands out of her 
face, and stared down at the red piece of ribbon that sat in her 
palm.  Red.  The color of love and passion.  The color of 
something she lacked and desperately longed for.  Mina 
leaned back against her headboard, and proceeded to tie the 
ribbon onto one of the bedposts, as a reminder of what she 
hadn't yet found.  But she wasn't about to give up hope yet.  
"Perhaps tomorrow will bring about new things," she said to 
herself and with that, Mina turned off her bedside lamp to 
dream of tomorrow's promises.





Like? Tell me!  No like?  Tell me anyway!  Oh, and one last 
note:  For those of you who were following a story I wrote a 
long time ago, "Memories of Yesterday,"  the revised and 
COMPLETE version is now up at ASMR.  For some reason, it 
wasn't listed on last week's new stories.  So if you want to 
read it, it's there.

Ja ne!
Elysia-chan