Sailor Moon Fan Fiction / Yu Yu Hakusho Fan Fiction / Dragon Ball/Z/GT Fan Fiction / InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ The Unexpected Seasons. ❯ Finding the others. ( Chapter 3 )

[ T - Teen: Not suitable for readers under 13 ]

Haruka and Michiru had little luck finding anyone that made the amethyst blink until about two fifteen. They were walking hand in hand, looking like a normal guy-girl couple since Haruka was dressed like a man, and had just stopped to look in the window of a clothing store. Haruka smiled as she saw a dress that would look perfect on Michiru, which she mentioned. Michiru blushed, as the dress was a little bit less classy than what she normally wore. Before she could say anything to the contrary, Haruka pulled her into the shop and got her to try it on.
"Haruka, come on, we're not supposed to be shopping. We are supposed to be looking for the Seasonals."
A salesgirl came over to Haruka, looking at whom she thought was a hunky guy. "Can I help you sir?"
Haruka smiled. She always enjoyed fooling people into thinking she was a guy. "No. I'm just waiting for my friend to come out of the dressing room." Just then, Haruka noticed that the amethyst Saeko had given them had begun to glow and vibrate. She walked past the girl, whose nametag said Akino, and it started to glow brighter and faster; when she got farther away, it dulled and slowed. "Hey, um, Akino, have we met before? You look familiar." *Oh, yeah, like that one is going to work... just start with one of the oldest pickup lines in the book... even if you weren't already with Mich, she's not even your type! True, she is pretty... but tall blue-eyed blondes with full figures were never really what I liked... Oh well, I have to get her to go to this party somehow.* Just then, Michiru came out. Haruka sent her a look, then indicated that this girl was the one by pointing to her and then reaching into her pocket to hold out the amethyst for a minute, then slip it back inside. Michiru understood that, and then figured out that that meant they'd have to somehow get this girl to the party, which also meant that Haruka would probably need to flirt, since the girl was already obviously drooling over her. She would have to play her part as well. She clears her throat to get attention. "Well, Har, since you forced me to try this on, you could at least tell me what you think... remember, we weren't supposed to find significant others today, we're shopping for outfits for the party." Oh that certainly got enough attention. Haruka stared at her, noticing how hot she looked in that dress, and smiled. "Oh, come on Mich, I'm going to need a date too... and, oh yea, that dress is the one... definitely." Haruka smiled and let her gaze wander. "Yup, that's the one." Michiru blushed, then noticed the girl looking between them. *I guess I'll have to convince her, for now anyway, that we aren't a couple.* With that thought in mind, she used one of her favorite deceptions. "Hey Cousin, how bout you buy this for me, and I wont tell everyone that you were slacking on the job." Haruka caught on to the family bit, and, playing it up, she frowned. "Blackmail... you play dirty Cousin... If you weren't family and a girl, I would beat you to a bloody pulp for even thinking that... but you win." The salesgirl, Akino's, eyes had lit up at the cousin remarks, and decided she would flirt back with this hunk, who was obviously free to do so. "The answer to your earlier question is no. I don't think we have met before... I definitely would have remembered if we had." She looked at the pretty girl with aqua colored hair and smiled, since she liked this person's attitude so far. "Would you like me to wrap and ring that up for you?" Michiru liked that this girl was friendly... she hoped that it would remain that way after all of the truth had come out. "Okay... let me go change... Har, I'm going to call the others, give them an update... okay?" Haruka knew that she was giving her an opportunity to ask this girl to come to the party and nodded in agreement. "Sure... just hurry up... I have been feeling the urge to eat, and I saw a noodle house down the road." Michiru once again disappeared into the dressing room. She got her communicator out and called the others. "Hey guys, just an update, Haruka and I found one in a shop on the East Side of town. Haruka is making some moves as we speak." Usagi's voice came in loud and clear. "Oh, I guess that means you are going to act like she's a guy then huh?" Michiru sighs and murmurs an agreement. "Darn, that means we all have to go along with it... Okay, make sure she gets that girl to come here for the party." Michiru just finished getting changed. "Okay, I'm sure she already has that girl, hook, line, and sinker. Michiru out." She disconnected the communication, picked up her stuff, and left the room. Just as she thought, Haruka had the girl wrapped around her finger. "So, would you like to go with me? I really would prefer to have a date, just in case I get bored..." The girl nodded enthusiastically. "It sounds like fun. I'll go with you." Michiru sighed as she came up behind them, acting as if she were tired of Haruka always picking up girls. "God Har, if you bring a date, then that means I'm going to have to find one as well... I guess that means I'll have to get Seiya-kun to suffer my company..."
Akino turned at that name. "Did you say Seiya? As in Kou Seiya? Of Three Lights?"
Michiru smiled. She had almost forgotten about the idol side of their allies. "Yes, the Three Lights are our friends. All three of them will be at our party... so I guess, even if you don't get along with your date, you will at least get a chance to meet our favorite stars... but when you meet them, please act like they are just normal people. They hate it when people make a big fuss over them."
Haruka got an ugly look on her face, which Akino missed, that spoke volumes of what she thought of the Three Lights. She had never completely trusted their intentions, but their Princess had ordered them to make nice, so that's what she'd done. She schooled her features and, while Akino rang up their purchase, she wrote down the address of the place of the party, and the details, then handed that paper to the blonde. "Here Akino, this is the info you will need." Akino thought that a temple sounded like a strange place to hold a party, but she wasn't in charge. She smiled and waved goodbye as they left. Haruka waited until they were around the corner, and then looked at Michiru with narrowed eyes. "Why did you have to bring him up?" Michiru smirked. "Haruka, that was a back-up plan. In case Akino changes her mind about going with you, she'll still have a burning need to go to the party, just to meet the famous Three Lights. Plus, I love ticking you off that way." Her eyes sparkled. "We have to make it look as though we aren't a couple until the Seasonals have been reawakened. Even if we don't like it." With that, the subject was closed, and they headed for the cafe. They didn't even notice that the sun was shining twice as bright as before they'd gone into the store and that it was a few degrees warmer as well. It was as if the weather itself was happy.
On the West Side of town, Minako and Yaten walked along the sidewalk hand in hand. They had gotten to know and like each other since they had learned of their mutual Senshi status. Yaten was wearing a pair of dark sunglasses and a baseball cap with jeans and a T-shirt, in order to discourage his being recognized. Suddenly, as they turned a corner, they ran straight into Rei and Seiya, and Setsuna as well. BAM! Everyone ended up in a heap on the ground, groaning and complaining. Rei was the first one up, helping first Minako, then the guys, to get up. "Is everyone okay?" All replied with a yes, and the guys fixed their disguises. They decided to join up, since two of the Seasonals had already been found, and they all wanted to help find at least one of the last two. It was three o'clock, and everything was going well. They walked aimlessly around the city, looking for someone who would make the gems glow.
Almost at the same time, the others who hadn't been at the first two Seasonal findings, Chibi-Usa, Chibi-Chibi, Hotaru, Ami, Makato, and Taiki all saw each other in front of a restaurant on the North side of town. They decided to all get something to drink together, and sat and ordered. None of the girls noticed until their drinks came that their amethysts had all started to blink and vibrate whenever their waitress walked by. Of course, Hotaru and Chibi-Usa were too busy talking about how fun it was to be looking for the Seasonal Senshi... and Ami and Taiki were caught up in a pro vs. con debate of the wisdom of teaching astronomy to middle-school kids. Makato was having a revelation about the cake recipe she'd been working on, and the cats were cleaning themselves (AN: I doubt Luna, Diana, and Artemis would appreciate that, but I had to get Chibi-Chibi alone so that... well you'll see... I'm just hoping that if Luna and Artemis were real, and reading this, they would forgive me for that embarrassing mental picture... ^_^;). Chibi-Chibi just sat there, waiting for her chocolate milk to come. When she saw the gem glowing in Chibi-Usa's pocket, she grabbed at it. Chibi-Usa noticed Chibi-Chibi's attempt, and tried to stop her, until she noticed it as well. She fell silent, as did Hotaru. She mentioned this to Makato, sitting next to her, who passed the word down. Everyone stopped talking to watch the glow of the gem rise and fall as their waitress passed by the table. Suddenly, the glow stabilized and they realized that the girl had stopped at their table to drop off their drinks. Everyone thanked her, but the only one she really paid attention to was Taiki, who wore no disguise and was obviously himself, the idol, there, in front of her. She blushed a little bit, but made no comment that there was a singing superstar sitting right in front of her. Seeing the opportunity, Taiki took over and introduced himself to the girl, saying that he and the band had been looking for some back up while they were in town. (AN: Can you tell that this isn't lying, just finessing the truth?? I actually thought that bit up within a couple of seconds, and I am very proud of myself about it... sorry for the interruption... we now return to the fic!) "You are exactly what we have been looking for... what is your last name, Hayakuro? You wouldn't, by any chance, be able to sing? How old are you?" This last was almost an afterthought; and although this would be a dream come true, the girl looked at him like he was an alien come to do experiments on her. She thought she was dreaming. He rethought what he'd said, and finding it all good, he looked at her again. "Um, are you okay, Miss Hayakuro? Maybe I asked too many questions at once." Makato tsk-tsked him, and apologized to the girl.
"I am so sorry for Taiki's lack of manners... he often doesn't think when inspiration hits..." She pulled the girl down to sit next to her. "I assume you are a bit, what is that American term, shell-shocked? He blurted all of that out without giving you any time to think..." She glared at Taiki for effect, taking on the mothering role she could play so well. "Shame, Taiki, for scaring the poor girl to death that way. You really should work on your people skills."
Taiki, who saw this for the sham that it was, played along. "Well, you know me... I am often too blunt for my own good... I apologize, miss, I really didn't mean to startle you that way... It's just that we feel the time is coming when we will need back-up, and it is coming soon."
The girl blushed some more, her voice finally letting itself be heard. "No, it's only that I never really thought of myself as idol material... I was very surprised by your offer... which I will accept, if you agree to tell me the terms of the deal before anything is finalized... I have a sick mother to care for, and I cant be indulging in whims that could prove harmful to our situation. Oh and in answer to your questions, I am Hayakuro Yasomishi, I sang in chorus when in high school and was always highly praised, and I am eighteen years old."
Ami was thinking, and you know that can be very good for all sorts of problems... She spoke up then. "You see Miss Yasomishi (AN: She's always so proper...!), we have several spots, and we want to wait until all of the girls are together to discuss the benefits of you girls joining the group." At Hayakuro's weird look, that said, 'Why is this girl saying this?' she remembered her manners. "Oh, I'm sorry, I forgot to tell you... we are the Three Lights special effects and crew managers... we're the people behind the scenes." She sent an apologetic look to Taiki when the girl looked away. "We would prefer to explain everything all at once, overcome any difficulties you may have with the arrangement together. That way, everything will all be done and over with and taken care of." *Okay, could I have repeated myself a little too much there?? Oh well, its done now.* The girl smiled. "Okay, when and where would you like me to show up?" Everyone sighed a little, inaudibly of course, and thanked God for Ami's quick thinking. Taiki was the one to reply to that question.
"The meeting/party/get-together will be held this Saturday, at the Cherry Hill Temple..." He took her order book and pen from her, and began to write down the address and time, and anything else relevant to the party. This seemed to snap her out of the shock she was in and realize she was a waitress who was about to get fired if she didn't do her job... Luckily, she noticed that there were no new customers and none of the old ones were complaining about her absence from servitude. *Thank God it is always slow in here at this time of day.* She waited and took the book and pen, and the separate piece of paper got placed in a pocket in her jeans so that she wouldn't loose it. She thanked them, and left the table.
By this time, everyone had finished their drinks, and paid the bill. They all waved goodbye and made sure that she promised to be there at the party before leaving. As soon as they were outside, Chibi-Usa got out her communicator and called in. "Everyone, we found another one. She will be at the party." Mamorus' voice came in loud and clear. "Thank you, Chibi-Usa. We will see you all at the cafe at four and talk about our findings. Mamoru out."
Ami had a far away look in her eyes, and was worrying her bottom lip with her teeth. "I feel guilty about lying like that..."
Taiki, ever the cynic, replied. "So we lied. People all over the world have been lying to each other for years. She'll get over it once she and the others are reawakened."
Everyone agreed to some extent and they all started walking to the cafe where they were supposed to meet the others.
Meanwhile, the last group, which consisting of Rei, Seiya, Minako, and Yaten, was feeling a bit frustrated. It was almost three, and they hadn't found the last girl. Finally, they just decided to head back to the cafe. They all started walking and talking. Suddenly, the amethyst that corresponded to the emerald around Phobos' neck began to glow. Rei looked into it and the face of a girl shone clearly through it. She looked overhead for her crow, and when she saw where the bird was circling she headed in that direction. She saw the girl sitting on a corner bench, crying her eyes out. She went ahead of the others, actually acting sensitive, to see what was wrong.
Minako watched and thought to herself. *Oh my goodness, would Usagi be surprised if she saw Rei acting this way.*
Rei approached the sad girl carefully. She knew how to handle it when Usagi cried, considering she did at least five times a day, but when it was someone she didn't know, she wasn't sure. She put her hand on the other girls' shoulder and tried to find out what had made her so upset. "I am Hino Rei... my friends and I saw you crying and wondered what was the matter... want to tell us? Sometimes emptying your problems on a stranger is the best way to let it out..." The girl looked up at the raven-haired person standing next to her. Her gaze went past her and immediately fell on the others. Luckily for them, she didn't recognize the Lights right away. "My boyfriend broke up with me... to be with someone he met while we were still dating. He was cheating on me with her, and when I just caught them a few minutes ago, he said that he hadn't cared about me for a while... and was only staying with me because he hadn't figured out a way to pull it off without hurting me. " Her whole body shook and her mid-thigh length, jet black hair swayed behind her, her electric-blue (dyed) bangs falling into her face. Her silver flecked aqua blue eyes were filled with unshed tears. Everyone, even the guys, became more sympathetic.
Minako came up and sat on the other side of the girl. "What's your name? And more importantly, what's his? I happen to have some very influential friends who could probably make his life a living hell..."
The girl smiled sadly. "My name is Toyohashi Sayuki, and his was Hayato Omni (AN: ok this is the screen name of a friend of mine... so if you ever read this Omni, I'm sorry... I needed a name and yours was the only one I could think of...). But don't bother... he's not worth the trouble... by the way, what are your names?" This last was directed at the three who had yet to introduce themselves. The single thought of *Uh-oh* was on the two boys minds.
"I am Aino Minako. The guys are Se--" The guys grabbed her and pulled her back out of hearing distance for a moment. "What do you think you're doing, BAKA??!!!" Yaten was furious... Minako knew that he didn't like to be shown to the public as this Three Light persona... he HATED the way the earth girls reacted to him, as if he were chocolate and they were starving... *UGH! * Seiya calmed Yaten down with, "Well, she's going to find out sooner or later... might as well get the screaming out of the way..." Minako nodded. "But maybe we should at least do it somewhere where the screaming really won't be heard...?" The boys nodded and sighed, then they all returned to where Rei was talking about going to the ex-boyfriends house to give him something. Minako clears her throat.
"Sayuki, we were heading to the park nearby... we know this quiet spot great for thinking... want to come with us?" At Sayuki's look of indecision, Rei tried to convince her to come. "Oh, yes, please come with us... I can't read a thing from you out here where there are so many people, but in the park I might be able to pick something up..." Sayuki stared at Rei for a moment with a look that said 'What the heck??' Minako chuckled. "Rei is our favorite psychic. She can see the future... plus, you'll only get to find out who these guys are if you walk with us..." Sayuki's eyes widened a fraction, then narrowed. "Why? Who are they?" The guys hurried away, towards the park. "You'll have to catch up with us to find out..." This started a chase with the girls running after the boys. After a moment's indecision, Sayuki ran after them, her long legs making it easy to catch up. When they had reached their spot by the lake, everyone was a little bit winded. But they did as promised and introduced themselves properly to her.
Seiya started, since Yaten was more than a little reluctant to give up his identity. "I am Kou Seiya, and this is my brother Kou Yaten... you know, from Three Lights..." He didn't get to say anymore to the girl, because she squealed. "OhmygodSeiyaand YatenfromThreeLights!!! .... Wait a minute... Why should I believe you??" Rei and Minako did that fast-appearance thing on either side of the guys and got ready to take off the disguises. Minako started. "Because its..." and Rei finished with "... the truth!" and they pulled the caps and sunglasses off at the same time. The startled boys stared at the girls, and Sayuki stared at all four of them. She began to giggle hysterically. "You guys are funny..." Then she stopped. "Why did you guys bring me all the way out here just to tell me who you were?" The guys sweat-dropped. "Because we didn't want the screams coming from you that Seiya and Yaten of Three Lights were out in the city without bodyguards..." This came from Minako, who blushed when Yaten voiced his next thought aloud. "And with two lovely young ladies... although I'd say you two would make excellent body guards..." Seiya continued those thoughts. "Yes, they would be better bodyguards than the ones we have working for us that's for sure... If the media found out about us being out here with a couple of hot girls, they'd have a field day with the information..." Rei had blushed at the hot girls comment, and Minako turned an even deeper red. The guys were having fun, seeing who could make them blush more.
Sayuki watched this, thought for a moment, then sat on the grass to rest after the run and excitement, not caring if the cargo jeans she was wearing got grass stains. "So why tell me?" The girls stopped blushing and everyone joined her on the ground. "Because you were so sad, and we wanted to cheer you up." That came from Rei, which was promptly followed by an exclamation from Minako, who had just looked at her wristwatch/ communicator. "Oh my god! We're gonna be late!!" It was ten to four, and they were fifteen minutes away from the cafe. They looked at one another, then at Sayuki. Rei took out one of the cards she had been making for the temple lately and wrote the time and day of the party on the back. "Sayuki, we're having a party, and I was wondering if you'd like to come." She handed the card to the girl. "Its going to be exciting... and you'll get to meet Taiki too... please say you'll come??" Sayuki smiled. She liked these people. "Of course I'll come. Thank you for inviting me." Everyone sighed and smiled. Rei finished up the conversation as they were all getting to their feet. "The details are all on the back. See you there!" They all bid their good-byes and Rei, Minako, Yaten, and Seya started running in the direction of the cafe. Sayuki smiled and watched them leave, then walked toward her house, which was close by.