Sailor Moon Fan Fiction ❯ A Soldier's Duty ❯ Chapter 4 ( Chapter 4 )

[ P - Pre-Teen ]

A Soldier's Duty

4th Labor, Chapter 4

"The whole art of life is knowing the right time to say things." - Maeve Binchy

"While the Art of Conversation is knowing when not to say things." - Shade

-------

The door exploded inward.

"For destroying a hard won's evening of relaxation,
where music and pleasant company ease the day's end,
the beautiful soldiers of love avenge this loss!"

"For this crime, you cannot be forgiven! - HEY!"

"Hey! Don't grab me there you ecchi!" Sailor Venus started struggling with some blonde woman in a strange leather version of a Nazi SS uniform.

"Jagermeister," said Venus' opponent.

"Get off!" Sailor Jupiter started prying her own opponent off of her. "This isn't how these things are supposed to go!"

The bouncy Germanic barmaid hugging Jupiter merely said "Schnapps!"

"Oh dear," said a girl in a blue sailor suit. "Mercury Aqua..."

"Beer!" "Scotch!" "Uzo!"

..."Rhapsody!" Mercury's attack rocked Scotch. Unfortunately Uzo grabbed her and Beer pinned her.

Mimette noted there was enough energy to rebuild the door, so she did. There would be no more interruptions. With these new energy sources, she ought to get enough in a few minutes to impress the Wizard and prove how valuable she was.

Someone checking the door and briefly silhoutted at the window was of no concern. From the way the boy limped off, he wouldn't even be a good source of energy.

A car alarm went off in the parking lot. There was a brief roar of an engine. Followed by the window being smashed open by someone's compact car going through it. The car alarm continued to bleep and beep and warn off intruders, even as the car emitting all those noises came to a stop partially inside the bar.

"Tequila!" A Latino seductress prepared to spring.

"Sorry, i'm underage," said the boy, stretching a chain between his hands.

"Oh," said Tequila, turning around to go play with that nice girl with the blue hair.

Grey wasted a moment, blinking in confusion as the various "daimon" lost interest in him.

"Daimons! What are you doing? Get him!" Mimette squeaked. What was wrong with them?

"Vot? He iv underage," explained Jagermeister in a thick Germanic accent. "Vot you not understand?"

"I'll deal with him myself!" Mimette raised her staff and turned back to the boy only to notice a very *sharp* crescent blade was heading towards her at high speed. And it was less than a foot away. "EEEP!"

*Poof!*

"Teleports pretty quick," commented Grey, then looked around. "Oh heck. How the blazes am I gonna deal with *this*?"

-----------

"...beginning to wake up..."

Ami struggled to wakefulness, she felt strange. Then slowly peeled her eyelids open. "Urgghhh?!" Eyes shut.

"Slow, Ami-chan, slow please."

Ami whimpered and curled up in a painful little ball. She had no idea how a sea urchin had crawled up inside her skull, but she was really wishing it would go away. Quietly.

Rei mumbled something, got a bleary look around, then shrieked.

They were the Sailor Senshi, the best of friends, they'd gone through thick and thin. And each one of them entertained a brief desire to (quietly) strangle Rei.

"...please don't do that again..." mumbled Usagi.

"-Mizuno-san, is that coffee ready yet?-"

"-Almost done. I've put a pot of tea on too. My goodness, I haven't seen anything like this since I graduated from med school. The graduation party, well, it did have a resemblence to this. Just rather larger.-"

Rei moaned inarticulately. Cheerful banter was *not* appreciated. "Shard-san? Why are we in Ami's apartment?"

"-Something about apartment? Oh heck, i'm *major* tired at this point, Mizuno-san, could you explain?-"

There were a few pitiful moans as the doctor entered from the kitchen, a few styrofoam cups and a decanter of coffee entering with her. "-Certainly, and you might as well call me 'Mother' or 'Kumori-san', we're practically family. If you'll get the tea?-"

"-That isn't the impression i've gotten from Ami-chan. But call me Grey-san if you like. As for the tea, certainly. Though i think administering it or the coffee via IV would be a good choice at this point.-"

"Unnnngghhh." Ami managed again. Her head hurt more than her entire body had during that fight in Antarctica, she felt nauseous, and she couldn't even open her eyes without another flash of pain.

"Uhmmmmhgg," agreed several other voices.

"-Here, Ami-chan.-"

Ami felt herself being held, and a warm cup of something being held to her lips. The aroma of coffee seemed to shrink the sea urchin a bit, and Ami gratefully latched on to the relief. Holding the cup herself, letting its heat sink into her hands, felt good. She felt herself squeezed lightly, her hair stroked gently, then the presence left her to assist her mother with the others.

Ami cracked an eye open again, observing her fiance. Okay, maybe he had his uses. Still, wouldn't this interfere with her studies? On the other hand, how could she even consider sending him away when family honor demanded... but then...

Minako looked around blearily after taking a few sips of the hot tea in her hands. "Uhm, how did we get here?" ~And out of Senshi identity?~

"Grey-san called me and asked if I could possibly give him some assistance getting you all home." Doctor Mizuno shook her head. "I have to get back to work now that you're all okay. Thank goodness the case load is light tonight. Be more careful in the future."

Various eyes closed again as the Doctor returned to her hospital.

"Tonight? What time *is* it?" Minako didn't want to open her eyes and check.

"Time? Time seven thirty is. You no worry. Kumori-san call parents, let them know you with her. Everything..." There came a rustle of pages as Grey looked up a word. "Hunky-dory? You stay over is problem not is you rest they told... okay?!"

"...ami-chan," croaked Usagi. "please please please teach my dad to speak Japanese..."

Mutters of agreement from various young girls.

Minako, with the greatest facility for English, took a sip of tea but was mainly content with breathing in the steam. Finally she opened her eyes. "-How come we...- AAAAAAAA!"

Briefly, many minds pictured killing one Minako Aino. As the worst of the pain was fading, this was banished even faster than the earlier set involving Rei.

"-What's the matter?-"

"-We've grown?!-" Minako carefully set the cup down and checked.

"-Hmmm? Oh that was due to 'Beer' using her 'Beer Bust' attack. i think she can dispel it. We can go back and fix that. i was more concerned with getting you all to safety.-"

"-The daimon are still alive?!-" Minako's opinion of Nebula dipped slightly.

"-Spirits, Aino-san. Completely different set of operating rules. They thought of the whole thing as play. And could you please not do that?-"

Minako realized that she had been checking out her new 'talent' in front of a guy. "Oh."

"What the?!" Others, wondering what was going on, were discovering the change. Shock was helping to further clear cobwebs and the caffeine was pushing the pain back enough for some basic functioning to occur.

Grey looked distinctly uncomfortable for a moment, trying NOT to stare, despite being a fifteen year old boy. "Excuse me. Coffee more make i will."

"No wonder my bra feels tight," offered Rei a few moments later. "This'll certainly get attention. We should probably get this dispelled as soon as possible."

"Hmmmm," said a distracted Usagi.

Rei growled. "Usagi, they're real. Don't do that."

"Hmmm?! Oh. Hahhahahahahaha... uhm." Usagi looked back down.

"You know, if that daimon *hasn't* been dispelled, and she can do this, she could become very popular." Minako immediately grasped the benefits of such a power.

"Hmmmm."

"-Here's more coffee... ACK!-"

Everyone briefly glanced at the door that a boy had just entered from, turned around, and then fairly leapt back through.

"Americans are so uptight about a little skin," noted Usagi, pulling her shirt back down. He was her dad, after all, one expected a bit more composure.

"Maybe because me and Minako were adjusting our bras," suggested Makoto with an evil gleam. "What do you suppose would happen if we..."

"Let's not," said Usagi, feeling sorry for her dad. Besides, Ami was now glaring at Makoto. Or was that a wince?

"Well, Ami doesn't want him," began Minako.

"So maybe someone else should take up the engagement," Makoto suggested. "I mean, he *is* kinda handy to have around." ~Though if he were taller, I'd consider him myself. He's what? Five foot five? Doesn't look a bit like my sempai. It'd sure be handy to have a boy around who wouldn't freak at the stuff we go through.~

Oddly enough, the same thought (more or less) was going through Minako's head.

Though the wind outside briefly picked up and seemed to mutter something about how Sailor Pluto had already staked a claim.

Odd how everyone ignored it. The wind muttered something uncomplimentary about that as well.

--------

Haruka "manfully" bit back a groan.

Getting a hangover would *not* be elegant. Therefore Michiru did not get one. She merely carried herself *very* carefully and flinched at anything approaching a loud noise. As throwing up would also be inelegant, she would absolutely not do such a thing.

Haruka wasn't nearly so elegant, and after having carried Michiru out of the bar, past the gaping hole a car had made out of that one window, had gone from drunk to hung over. Badly hung over. She'd drank alcohol before, of course. Nothing too heavy. Wine with Michiru, beer after a successful race with some of the guys who did *not* find a woman racer a threat to their "manhood", or other such social occasions. Rare occasions to be sure. This beat all of them together without serious competition.

In many ways, their current opinions notwithstanding, it had been Haruka's finest moment so far. She had managed to get herself and Michiru out of a *very* bad situation, where they might easily have been defeated or at least discovered, despite an enormous handicap. (ie: being so drunk that she couldn't walk a straight line if her life had depended on it). The two had collapsed along the side of a drainage ditch, found some measure of refuge under a bridge, and Haruka had spent several long minutes being quite ill.

"I'm not sure what exactly happened," whispered Michiru, who found that everything after they'd decided to visit "Karaoke Underground" had turned to a muddled haze, "but I remember one thing. That chain."

Haruka wasn't sure. There had been something. Maybe. She had been mainly concerned with getting Michiru away from some hentai waitress. Or something like that. Some kid had smashed the window open by driving a car through it, that she clearly remembered. Another spike of pain and nausea kept the sometimes Sailor Uranus from replying other than by grunt.

At this point Haruka didn't care about the Silence, about the guy with the chain, about the girl with the weird hairstyle, or about those hentai waitresses. She wanted some aspirin.

-------------

The conversation had started innocently enough. Grey had asked to be caught up on what had happened before he had met them, specifically what had occurred as far as things like that daimon. He'd pulled out his chain, saying it would help him focus, and if they'd switch to Senshi mode they'd all be speaking the Lunarian language - thereby overcoming the language barrier.

As the group eagerly started off, they'd begun to lose enthusiasm as the boy's expression continued to look more frustrated and upset. Though with one girl interrupting another to correct or expand on points (including Usagi acting out what she felt was a really good pose-and-speech) it took several hours.

The good thing was that the caffeine (and application of warm compresses to afflicted body parts) and cookies had, over those several hours, reduced their invalid status considerably.

"...and then we fought Beryl in her base in the Antarctic...?!"

Nebula took a deep breath to calm himself. "And you're still alive?!"

There were a few guilty and startled looks at that. They had specifically not mentioned that they had all died and then been brought back by the Silver Crystal.

"You're facing an enemy which is trying to kill you, kill civilians, and drain the world of life energy, but you make speeches while posing like a target? And then, when your single consistent strength against these enemies is usually that you outnumber it, you allow yourself to get seperated?" Neither Grey nor Nebula could believe this.

"Well... it worked..." Usagi offered.

"My Princess, truly were you named accurately, for if you didn't have the luck of a rabbit..." Nebula shook his head. "Have you considered scheduling some training trips, become a bit more practiced in your attacks, combining them, using code phrases for specific tactics, maybe attacking your enemy first THEN giving a speech?"

Much blinking. "...but that's how we've always done it..." Usagi finally put in.

"Yeah, we're so good we don't require any of that stuff!" Makoto made a "muscle" gesture.

"Uhm, it's getting late, and I think we ought to get home before much later," Rei pointed out, NOT wanting yet another argument. "That's two attacks from our mysterious enemy, we ought to get Artemis and Luna to input on this."

"'Artemis?!'" Nebula blinked. "How is old Arty? Luna still giving him problems?"

"It's so weird the way you remember this stuff," mumbled Rei. She didn't like this. The boy might be trying to take over. Or maybe he was actually a spy from this new enemy. No, that was silly. If he was a spy for the enemy they wouldn't have woken up. She'd have to get together with everyone tomorrow *without* Ami's fiance around. "Enough, home, now."

----------

Grey had decided to get an early start on it. He was a soldier and a special agent of the Moon Kingdom. Well, actually he was a 15 year old boy about to start a Japanese High School the next day. But he *remembered* being an agent of the Queen and Marine. Well, mostly.

He couldn't use the Chain openly, obviously. A gaijin walking around with a weapon would at the very least draw undesired attention. At worst case, he'd be a matter of public record and his identity known and a draw to the Senshi.

Unfortunately, when the Chain was forged and bonded to Nebula, he'd sacrificed a great deal of esper capability without the Chain.

~At least now i can duck into an alley or restroom, use the Chain, and find my way back to Ami's place. Though i need my passport just to get a #$#@ snack. And what's with the price of food here?! A baked potato costs $4.50 US? Or are they charging me one rate and the locals another?~

The crowd going by didn't pay much attention to him, nor did they really register. Until he saw one fellow, walking out of a bookstore. "-Hey you! Hold it right there! You and me gotta talk!-"

Mamoru Chiba stared as a little fifteen year old boy came stalking up to him under full steam. "-Uhm... You're American?-"

"-And *what* exactly are your intentions towards my daughter?-" The boy held up a finger and stared menacingly up at the sometimes Tuxedo Kamen. "-They'd better be honorable, boyo!-"

"-Errr, your daughter?-" Mamoru felt himself backing up against a wall from this boy's intensity. He didn't personally know any Americans. Edwards was English. A few amused looks from passerby, but mainly they ignored the drama. No help from *that* quarter. "-Aren't you kind of young?-"

"-PRINCESS SERENITY, YOU DOLT!-" The boy shouted (as best as he could considering the size and age difference) in Mamoru's face. "-You'd better start treating her right, Endymion! i've heard of some of your shenanigans!-"

Mamoru blinked. Not necessarily a crazy American after all. Someone who knew his Silver Millenium identity? Who had fathered Serenity? An elusive wisp of a memory provided a name. Queen Serenity had had a consort, then dismissed him. There had been talk about it, apparently the Queen had been developing feelings for the semi-retired soldier, and he'd been banned from the Court. Something about the Queen feeling that feelings for a single man could not be allowed to compete with her devotion to her kingdom. The Consort had been some professional soldier, who'd retired from the "Space Marines" to become the Knight Of Duty. His professional name was "Basalt?" On seeing the boy nod, Mamoru winced. "Oh dear."

--------

School had been the usual bore. Now the study session had become a planning session. Grey had been deliberately excluded from this, as he was a major topic of discussion.

Rei and the others were discussing matters related to Ami and how to deal with it if the boy:

(a) didn't like her anymore because of certain minor problems that *might* have been their fault, (Makoto looked acutely guilty during this phase). Minako slyly suggested that Ami might be able to find a way to make it up to him. This line of teasing was dropped due to Ami turning beet red and panicking at the insinuation.

(b) liked her but didn't like them, due to said problems. Thus posing a danger to the group. (Usagi discounted this immediately - saying her SM Daddy would forgive her. She wasn't too sure about him forgiving Makoto or Rei, but felt she could play mediator. The others weren't as sure about this.)

(c) left and she left to follow, having her family honor tied up in this, after all, and thereby returning to the above said threat to their group. (Ami got thoughtful and started speculating about American medical colleges and studying abroad. After all- in America it was possible to skip grades and she might actually be able to start college soon. Which got everyone else either a) - mooning over how romantic the concept was, or b) panicking about the effect on the team.)

(d) stuck around, but tried to assume leadership of the group at least in combat situations - due to his also having more military experience. (Rei really got ticked at this, Usagi thought about it briefly, and Makoto pointed out his raw power level was insufficient for such a position. On the other hand, Makoto *did* wax poetically about a long training trip.)

(e) stuck around, married Ami, and the two started screwing like crazed rabbits. (Ami curled up in severe embarassment at this suggestion by Minako, mouthing barely heard denials. Oddly enough a really severe wind rattled the shrine office at this point.) Rei pointed out that this also was a threat to the group, as this would also keep Ami from getting out nights. More speculation, severe embarrassment, and denials from Ami about she how she couldn't even think of such things.

(f) stuck around, turned out to be a spy from the new enemy, and Ami (in what everyone would agree would be typical for their sort of adventure) had to kill her fiance in order to save the world. (Or, as Minako put it, "he'll die tragically saving Ami's life - leading to a long tearful goodbye scene." Rei immediately suggested Minako had been reading too much shojo manga.)

They hadn't yet covered why Luna was staring so interestedly at Minako this evening. Or Artemis seemed to regard first Makoto and then Rei and seemed to be in deep thought. That Minako was smiling suggestively and contemplating Rei, especially after asking if Rei had changed her mind and now *was* interested in Yuuichiro, and the chuckle upon hearing Rei's denial, that could have indicated something dangerous. Usagi repeatedly suggesting that Makoto should "kiss and make up" with Grey after her little fight, well, that *might* have tripped a few alarms.

There were also the issues of the New Enemy, the odd behavior of Sailor Pluto earlier (immediately discounted - the age difference was too extreme, Pluto *had* to have made a mistake), their enhanced busts (Rei, Minako, and Usagi wanted to keep them. Ami worried about the long term health effects of going from an A cup to almost a C. Rei, Usagi, and Minako all felt that having attained a C cup, they looked far more adult and alluring. Makoto had decided to try and have the effect dispelled as this would interfere with wearing kimonos.) Usagi's inability to transform (following that attack on her brooch from Mikuji), and (Ami stressing this last) High School Entry Exams.

Which was when a twenty-one year old girl came to the shrine office to buy a good luck charm and got a LOT of staring.

------------

"-She did *that*?!-" Grey shook his head. "-Dang.-"

"-Afraid so. Things haven't run too smoothly between us.-" Mamoru flicked a crumb towards one of the pigeons.

"-The Italian word for pigeon is 'sky rat' and i have yet to see anything good come of the breed.-" Grey glared at the little red-eyed creatures. "-Try cleaning up after the little buggers for any length of time and see if you remain at all fond of them.-"

"-I realize I haven't been an *ideal* suitor for Usako.-"

"-Nevermind, Endymion. i heard about you back in the Kingdom. Don't even know if there *is* an ideal suitor. From what you've told me and Ser... Usagi's told me, you've had as many good times as bad. You're the only remaining prince, she's *the* princess. Just one question.-"

Mamoru Chiba winced. Here it came. It was traditional for fathers in the Moon Kingdom to set some task or quest for suitors of their daughters. He expected this one would be a doozy. "-Yes?-"

"-Do you love her?-"

Mamoru closed his eyes and sat back against the bench. "-Yes. I love Usako. Whatever we may have been a lifetime ago, isn't as important as what Usagi and I have now.-"

Grey nodded. "-Good enough. I just wonder which father will give away the bride? Or do the Japanese do it differently?-"

"-What?!-" Mamoru sat upright. "-I thought you'd give me a quest for permission.-"

Grey snorted. "-Yeah right. You've already been through enough to qualify as a Quest. If we have to go through the custom... Do you think you can brain that pigeon with that piece of pretzel?-"

*WHAP!*

"-Good shot, Chiba-san!-"

"-I'm better with roses.-"

---------

"Uhm, what are the prices on good luck charms?" The young lady inquired, looking a little self-conscious with all the staring going on.

"No way," breathed Usagi.

"Oh my," indicated Ami.

Luna merely freaked, having heard the story. ~Nebula must be given a talking to!~

"You're 'Biiru' aren't you?" Usagi asked the daimon. Spirit. Whatever she was.

"Unnn," agreed the blonde with a nod. "Oh! You're the girls who visited the other night! I recognize 'Teapot' over there!"

Rei had this sudden sinking feeling, though much of yesterday was just a blurry muddle. She had some strange feeling that maybe she ought to hide. Now.

The youma/daimon/whatever rooted around briefly in her purse. "I made a copy just in case... Here ya go!"

Usagi practically leapt across and grabbed the videotape, seconds before Rei could reach it.

"A 'copy' of a video tape?" Ami frowned slightly. Though Biiru *did* seem both nicer and more articulate than her brief glimpse from yesterday.

"Oh yes, your boyfriend was most enlightening on this concept of 'proper behavior' and 'moral responsibility' - imagine that." Biiru nodded with a smile. "Where I was summoned from, we didn't have such things."

"Go figure," mumbled Rei, eyeing the video in Usagi's hands.

"So we've made plenty of copies using the equipment left behind. Practically everyone who was there wanted a copy!" Biiru smiled pleasantly.

There was a brief moment of peace, while Rei sold a "Good Luck On Your New Business" charm to Biiru, then a mad scramble for the VCR.

----------

"-Uhm, so what about you and Ami?-" Mamoru was amused by the thought that Princess Serenity's father was engaged to one of Usagi's best friends. That he'd be sticking around and keeping an eye on Mamoru's relationship with his reborn daughter, much less amusing.

"-What about me and Ami?-" Grey shook his head. "-i don't think she likes me much.-"

"-Still, from what I understand, her family honor depends on her marrying you.-" Mamoru looked at the younger boy, seeing a struggle on his face.

"-Is family honor so much more important than her own happiness? She hasn't talked much to me at all since we've met.-" Grey let out a deep breath. "-Admittedly, that bit yesterday at the karaoke place was mainly because of that weird girl, but she just ain't interested.-"

Mamoru was quite aware that Usagi and himself were a Fated Couple. He was also quite aware of lingering glances from more than one of the other Senshi, and Rei had flirted more than a few times with him. There was *no way* he was going to pass up an opportunity to deflect some attention away from himself. "-Maybe what's needed is a different atmosphere. I know a British gentleman named 'Edwards-san' who will be throwing a party soon. Perhaps if you spent some time with Ami in an environment that was more conducive to romance...-"

Grey considered for a moment, then shrugged. "-What have i got to lose?-"

Mamoru nodded. ~And if Ami remains uninterested, maybe I can get Rei a nice boyfriend and she'll quit eyeing me like that!~

Grey stopped and turned to face a building. "-What the heck?!-"

Mamoru eyed the building himself, frowning. "-What is it?-"

"-There's a feeling. Similar to the impression i got from that girl. We ought to check it out.-"

"-Uhm, actually we shouldn't. That's a 'love hotel'.-"

"-You mean it's... oh. 'Rooms by the hour' huh?-"

"-If you think it's important,-" Mamoru suggested, thinking that this could *really* deflect attention of this sort away from him, "-you and Ami should check it out. With your esper abilities and her computer, you're sure to turn something up.-"

Grey wondered what that odd premonition of doom was from.

-----------

Ami stared.

Rei was being forcibly restrained by Makoto, her initial shriek and attempt to beat on Usagi would have meant they'd never have seen the rest of the tape.

"I'm a little teapot,
short and stout,
This is my handle,
this is my spout."

"Bwahahahahahaha!" *Clunk!* Usagi's reaction was also quite predictable.

"Rei, other people have seen this tape. If you destroy it, we won't know what they're seeing."

"I don't care, Makoto! AhhhhhH!"

"Hahaha AAAAAA!"

"Wow! Usagi. I never expected THAT!"

"Two little maids from school are we,
Pert as a school-girl well can be,
Filled to the brim with girlish glee!"

Ami was likewise impressed. Usagi and Rei knew Gilbert & Sullivan? Though the original was 'Three Little Girls From School' not two. And the original was in English, whereas they were singing the equivelant in Japanese. Still, it was better than she expected.

Usagi (on screen): "Everything is a source of fun!"

Rei (on screen): "Nobody's safe 'cause we care for none!"

Both (on screen): "Life is a joke that's just begun!"

Rei and Usagi stared in horror as the two girls on screen fell backwards off the stage and were only visible by their legs sticking straight up.

"UsaGI," said Rei in a dangerous tone.

"Rei-chan?" Usagi looked unusually dangerous as well.

"We burn that videotape."

"Right, Rei-chan!"

"But there are other copies of this out there," Makoto pointed out. Then saw what was on the screen. "EEEEEP!"

"...if this becomes public knowledge, the Sailor Senshi will *never* live this down." Luna was somewhat distressed at seeing three of the Princesses getting kissed and laid tenderly down on the ground by their opponents.

Then...

"Well at least Nebula knew how to counter their attacks," suggested Artemis.

"Okay, so he's walking around, he's using the phone? Oh, calling Ami's mom? That makes sense. Pity we can't hear him."

"Actually, that's good," Ami indicated. "Otherwise everyone seeing this tape would know that he was calling my mother to drive the Senshi home."

"Oh right," Rei said, hanging her head at having missed that. Maybe Usagi *was* contagious.

"Awwwwwwww!" Usagi gushed as Nebula tenderly picked up the snoring Sailor Mercury, and brushed hair from her face. Ami merely went into severe embarassed mode.

The tape ended as an unconscious Senshi was put into a chair, a forehead lightly kissed.

Everyone glanced towards Ami. Who had now passed Severe on her scale of embarassment. Seeing everyone staring at her, Ami was quick to say something. "There's really nothing between us! I-I-I-I'm sure he was just concerned... I mean it's nothing special, just an arrangement between families. That's all!"

Minako raised an eyebrow at Ami. "Ami-chan, if a boy was *that* nice to me, had even a tentative omiai relationship towards me, and was as useful, we'd be picking out wallpaper about now." Minako surreptiously looked towards Rei and was gratified to see the frown on the other girl's face. ~Heh heh. The seed has been planted.~

Makoto frowned slightly. Sure the boy wasn't even as strong as Tuxedo Kamen, and he certainly wasn't tall or handsome, but that briefly seen indication of caring and affection. Heck, if it had happened to *her* and she'd been engaged to the boy, she doubted she'd be mumbling denials like Ami was.

Rei also frowned slightly as she watched Ami twist and deny that she had any romantic feelings for this American. ~He *was* American, and therefore not Shinto. Still, if the engagement could be switched to Makoto... a nice Shinto wedding could be planned. Hmmm. How to do it?~

***

Mimette wept. Silently, but she wept.

The other members of the Witches 5 did their best to ignore her.

Mimette's arms and legs had been melded with the stone of the wall at the elbows and knees. After she'd started weeping and pleading, the Wizard had removed her voice.

Yes, the other members of the Witches 5 *tried* to ignore Mimette. It was way too easy to imagine themselves in that position. It was even easier to picture what had happened to the Professor happening to them.

"Eudial. Report."

The Witch swallowed uneasily, and tried to focus on the task at hand. "I bought the location with funds that you provided. I currently have taken my Midnight Heart Crystal and set it up within that building only a few blocks from the Tokyo Tower. It is currently set to drain the emotions of those within, then reinvest 10% of that into the single emotion that such an environment can best cultivate. There are four specialized Spirits enspelled via the ritual and bound to the building. Energy harvesting the first day was good, and shows every sign of increasing in number daily."

"Hmmmm," the Wizard looked over the figures. "Good. Good. A *much* better job than Mimette. And your plans should the Senshi or their allies come calling?"

Eudial frowned, disliking this, but not wanting to join the Professor *or* Mimette. "Per your instructions, nothing fatal. Neither the customers nor these 'heroes' will be harmed irreperably."

"We can hope then, that you will not follow Mimette's lead?" The Wizard smirked. "In the meantime, in the interest of spreading Chaos and Destruction, I have released a few summoned beasts in other areas."

Terurun held up her hand, glancing back at Mimette and shuddering. She wanted to be *darn* sure that she didn't end up like that. "Other areas?"

"Hong Kong is currently facing a Lemurian Hydra. In Beijing, a creature known as an Invisible Stalker. A Tarrasque in Reyjavik. Giant venomous spiders in Liverpool. A flock of Wyverns in New York. A few Basilisk in Baghdad. Minor problems that they will undoubtably deal with given time."

There were a few sweatdrops at the "minor problems" label.

"Tomorrow, I'll drop a few Fomorians into Ireland. Perhaps a swarm of Gibberlings into Paris or an Iron Golem could stir things up in Sri Lanka."

"Why those areas?"

The Wizard glanced at Eudial for asking the question. "Random targets, excepting that they have high populations. Therefore a fair amount of victims. It will take the normal forces some time to deal with these problems, causing erosion of confidence by the public in those forces. Once they've stirred things up, we can take advantage of the chaos."

"Ah," said Kaolinite, not happy about any of this but not willing to join the Professor. Besides, there might be a way to restore him and she needed to remain free for that.

"Oh, and I have changed my mind about one thing. We will also be using the Eggs Of Daimon to go out and attack people, however I have taken the liberties of enhancing them somewhat." The Wizard pointed. "They still look pretty silly, but they won't be stealing any 'pure hearts' or any other silly portion of the akashic pattern. Any guesses?"

"Energy? Life force? Emotions?" Terurun asked.

"Will? Souls? Humanity?" Yuri Viluy suggested.

"Money? Pride? Strength?" Cyprine added.

The Wizard nodded. "Yes. To start with."

-----------

"Little girl. Okay you is?"

The girl jumped. "Ah ah ah. I'm fine, really!"

Grey smiled at her, bowing, then putting a hand in a pocket. Play a hunch, bet a bunch. "Sorry miss, but you don't look so okay. You look pretty hungry. How about i buy you one of those sweet potatos from that stall?"

The girl frowned, there was something strange about the stranger's Japanese. But he was a gaijin so maybe that was to be expected. Her stomach, protesting that she hadn't had anything to eat in over 24 hours, chose that moment to become very vocal.

He chuckled and smiled, then inclined his head towards the vendor.

Hotaru finally nodded, but was sufficiently weak she had to be helped towards the stand.

Grey doubted if she even realized he had spoken Lunarian.