Sailor Moon Fan Fiction ❯ Altered Destinies! ❯ Timelost! Part Three ( Chapter 18 )

The Timelost! Part Three

"Road trip?" Natsuna said, surprised. The Inners and Outers were gathered at Rei's temple for one of their regular meetings when the tropic came up.

Haruka nodded seriously. "Michiru and I got a call from Prof. Tomoe, he wants us to come over this weekend and see Hotaru. But I don't think we should be splitting up our forces right now, so..." she shrugged expressively.

"Sounds like fun," Usagi smiled. Her eyes brightened, "Does that mean we get to meet Hotaru as a little girl?" she said excitedly.

Michiru chuckled softly. "Yes, we'll meet the younger Hotaru," she smiled.

"I remember when we first met," Chibi-Usa smiled over at Hotaru, "you were so cute."

A little blush colored Hotaru's cheeks. "Is that such a good idea?" she asked them, surprised. "I mean, me, meeting my own past self?" Hotaru looked over at Setsuna.

"I've done it myself, once or twice," Setsuna smiled. "There shouldn't be any problem," she reassured her.

"Id like to meet this professor myself," Artemis admitted. Since he was here, Luna was noticeably absent. The general feeling among the scouts was that they had to get the cats to at least get along, but exactly how was eluding them.

"But you don't think he's mind all the extra company?" Rei asked first off. At Michiru's reassuring smile, she continued, "So how do we do this, anyway?"

Ami took her glasses out of her pocket and slipped them on, looking cutely smart. "I know that Natsuna and Minako both drive," she noted.

"Pretty good, too," Haruka remembered her defeat at Minako's hands on the driving game. "I drive, and so does Setsuna," she volunteered.

"So we meet here tomorrow, I guess," Makoto said, "break up everybody between three or four cars and go meet the Professor."

"Sounds like a plan," Haruka smiled. She looked entreatingly at Makoto, "Could you maybe make a lunch for us all?"

Everyone was suddenly giving Makoto puppy dog eyes. "All right, all right," she laughed, "I'll make us all lunch."

"Yeah!" Chibi-Usa cheered, and even Hotaru smiled slightly.

The Outers soon left together, and the meeting itself broke up with nearly everyone going their separate ways. But Rei stopped Usagi at the door to ask, "Could you wait a moment?" She nodded, and Rei led her back inside.

Ami and Makoto walked to the bus stop together, enjoying the sunshine on the cold winters day. "What's it like?" Makoto asked her quietly. Ami had only recently had her Senshi powers emerge, and Makoto was feeling a bit worried about her lover. 'A little bit jealous, too,' she had to admit to herself.

Ami looked up at the taller brown hared girl and with a smile, "Not too different, really. It's like thinking you couldn't use your arm, then discovering you can." The walked together silently a moment, "Now that my powers are here, I can start trying to figure out how to awaken your own abilities, too."

"As long as it doesn't mean I have to get beat up as much as Birdy did you," Makoto smiled down at her.

Ami just smiled mysteriously in reply, and Makoto felt a sinking feeling in her stomach.

Rei smiled, sitting down with Usagi at the table. "Did you want some more tea? I think Makoto left some cookies, too," she said, looking visibly nervous.

Usagi wasn't used to seeing Rei this skittish, "What's wrong?" A thought raced through her mind, 'Does she want to break up with me?'

Rei reached up to push her short black hair back, "I..." she paused, then she blurted out, "I accidentally told Grandfather about me liking girls."

Usagi blinked, looking as if it was taking a moment to switch gears. "How did he take it?" she asked her tentatively.

"Pretty good, actually," Rei admitted. She took a deep breath, "I told him I had a girlfriend and... he wants to meet you."

"Meet me?" Usagi squeaked.

"I didn't tell him it was you, yet," Rei said softly, "just in case you didn't want him to know." She brightened up as she added, "He wants you to come over for dinner soon."

"I'd be glad to," Usagi answered, a few tears in her eyes.

"What's wrong?" Rei asked worriedly.

"I'm happy," Usagi explained tearfully, "I mean, I'm actually getting to officially meet your family, sort of!"

Rei laughed softly, hugging her. A thought occurred to her, "So when do I get to meet your family, Usagi?"

Usagi laughed softly, "As soon as I'm brave enough to tell them."

Minako carefully pushed the sliding door shut, again. "I guess I'll have to get my bag later," she grinned at Natsuna.

"This, after spying on them for the last few minutes," Natsuna chuckled at her lover softly. She gently took Minako's hand and led her down to where they parked their car.

"Well, I didn't want to interrupt anything," Minako shrugged, and Natsuna rolled her eyes. They unlocked the car and climbed in. Minako twisted to snap her seatbelt when she froze.

"What?" Natsuna asked.

Minako sheepishly pulled her bag out of the back seat, "I forgot I left it in here."

Artemis groaned dramatically.



Saturday morning, the sun was bright, the skies were clear, and the lunch Makoto was carting around was enormous. A curious Haruka picked up one of the four large boxes and blinked a bit in honest surprise at the weight.

Michiru was looking at the boxes wide eyed. "Isn't this a bit much?" she finally asked.

Makoto shook her head and smiled as she said, "I've seen Usagi and Chibi-Usa eat. This looks to be about right, actually."

"Hey!" both Usagi and Chibi-Usa protested that, but everyone else just laughed.

The cars were quickly divvied up: Haruka, Michiru, Chibi-Usa and Hotaru drove in one, Setsuna volunteered to drive Usagi and Rei, and Natsuna, Minako, Ami and Makoto piled into the third car. A bit of squabbling over who got to sit where, and they were off.

"I can't wait to see you as a little girl, again," Chibi-Usa said cheerfully.

"I'm looking forward to seeing my father," Hotaru admitted, "though I'm not sure what I'm going to say to him."

"It might be best if he doesn't know who you are," Haruka said softly. She sighed, "But he has seen your adult form before, so..."

"I'll try to stay out of his way," Hotaru said quietly, but firmly added, "If he does see who I am, I won't deny it."

"I wouldn't expect you to," Michiru reassured her.

Usagi and Rei sat in the back seat together, while Setsuna drove. She had offered the passenger side to Rei, but as politely as possible she declined. They traveled silently for a time, then out of the blue Setsuna asked, "You two are lovers, aren't you?"

Usagi looked rather startled at the bluntness of the question, and Rei frowned slightly as she answered, "Yes, we are."

A moment of quiet from the front seat, then Setsuna softly said, "I see." From the side they could see a wry smile as Setsuna said, "I thought I could defeat destiny, but I was wrong. I'm sorry if my advances on Rei created any trouble between you."

Both looked very confused by that little statement. "What do you mean?" Usagi finally decided to just ask.

A faint blush appeared on Setsuna's cheeks. "To put it simply, I had a crush on the Prince of the Earth during the reign of the Moon Kingdom, but he fell in love with the Moon Princess," she sighed. "When I realized that he had been reborn in this era, and after he came to be inhabiting Rei, I hoped to beat the Princess to him..."

"I'm sorry," Rei said softly. An odd look and she slowly said, "I'm apologizing for what the past self of a deceased spirit residing in me once did." Setsuna chuckled softly at that, as did Usagi after a moment. It was funny, in a absurd sort of way.

Setsuna smiled slightly, "I'd prefer if you not tell anyone else about this." She looked around outside before quietly announcing "We're almost there."

They left the city, and eventually reached a long, curving lane. The three cars drove up the lane, until a small house came into view. It was a single floor ranch style home, brightly colored in a field of green grass. A discrete sign announced it the home of the Tomoe's, and as they pulled up, they saw a figure watching out the door at them.

Haruka and Michiru climbed out of the car first, and the front door of the house opened. The tall man walked out leaning heavily on a cane, and from the looks on Haruka and Michiru's faces, this was a recent development.

"Professor, what happened?" Haruka asked him quietly.

Prof. Tomoe shrugged, "I suspect it's a side-effect of my long possession." The other cars began to unload, and a expression of honest happiness crossed his face. "I see you've brought some friends. Hotaru will be happy for the company," he smiled.

Hotaru tried to keep someone between her and her father. She snuck glances at the wan, blond haired former scientist, and her heart went out to him. 'He looks so ill,' she worried, 'is there anything I can do?'

Then another figure came out of the house, and Hotaru almost felt her heart stop in her chest. The eleven year old girl looked around tentatively, before moving to stay near her father. Her eyes met Hotaru's, seeming to be so much older than her years as a fundamental recognition passed between the two of them.

Then it passed, and the younger Hotaru was a little girl again. She smiled up at Michiru and Haruka, "Hello Aunt Michiru, Uncle Haruka."

Setsuna hid a smile, while the others tried their best to keep a straight face while Haruka blushed fiercely. "It's good to see you, Hotaru," Michiru smiled back at her.

"You really are cute," Chibi-Usa whispered to Hotaru.

Introductions were quickly made, and the group headed inside. Surprisingly, Usagi, Rei, and Artemis seemed to hit it off well with the young Hotaru so they went to play with her, while the others stayed to talk to the Professor. "Hello, Hotaru," he smiled at the teen, obviously seeing through the false name she had given.

Hotaru smiled back, brushing a few tears from her eyes. "It's so good to see you," she cried, throwing her arms around him. She could feel it, what was wrong with him, and a chill settled in her heart. "You're dying," she whispered softly.

Prof. Tomoe didn't deny it, merely smiled sadly as he said to Haruka, Michiru and Setsuna "That's why I wanted to see you." He stumbled to a chair, and Hotaru steadied him as he sat down. "Thank you," he said to her, then he looked up at the three Outers, "I've changed my will to make you three the guardians of Hotaru."

None of them looked terribly surprised at hearing that piece of news. "Are you sure?" Haruka asked him softly. 'This explains why Hotaru called me Papa,' she thought, 'Michiru, Setsuna and I must end up raising her.'

"I've gotten to know all three of you," Tomoe smiled sadly, "and I can't think of anyone I'd trust more to take care of her."

"We would be honored," Michiru smiled at him gently. A slight pause, and she made herself ask the difficult question, "How long do you have?"

Before he could answer, the building was rocked by an explosion. "Hotaru!" the Professor exclaimed, trying to get to his feet.

"Stay here," Setsuna barked, as they charged out of the room.

"Natsuna, could you?" Minako asked her. Natsuna frowned, but after looking over at Tomoe she nodded, hefting her pistol. "We'll hurry back," Minako reassured her.

Rei and Usagi tried to keep the little girl behind them as they glared over at the young man who had blasted down the bedroom wall. Dressed in some kind of military styled uniform, his long blue hair falling gently into his eyes, he would almost look handsome without the sneer on his face. Right behind him, two young women stood ready, with what looked like black lightning dancing all around both of them.

"Stand aside Senshi," he addressed them coldly while leveling a quite fearsome looking blade at them both, "it's only the child that I've come for today. Surrender her to me, and no harm will come to you."

"Not a chance," Rei said calmly, hefting her sword cane.

"Saturn Planet power, Make up!" they all heard the cry, even as the young man's eyes grew wide with surprise and fear.

"Not her, not here," he whispered, but he hoped in vain. Sailor Saturn exploded into the room, charging at him with her glave pointed right at his head. "Outside!" he barked to the young women as they all retreated from the clearly furious young Senshi.

Saturn hammered at him relentlessly as the others watched the battle in awe. "I remember you, Sapphire," she hissed, "you were a honorable warrior in the future. Why have you stooped to attacking children?"

"My mistress commands," Sapphire shot back, "and I must obey." He shouted at the girls, "Prisma, Avery! Go after the girl!"

"Mercury," Ami cried, "Moon Crystal" from Usagi, then finally "Venus" from Minako, then all together they cried out, "Star power, Make up!"

Makoto ducked behind a couch, pulling on her uniform as quickly as possible. "I have got to learn how to do that," she grumbled softly. Dressed, she popped up from behind to try and get a handle on what the situation was.

Uranus, Neptune and Pluto were watching over Hotaru. 'Good idea,' Makoto though, 'she's the most vulnerable one here.' Sailor Moon, Sailor Mercury, Sailor V and Tuxedo Kamen were taking on Prisma and Avery two on two. Sadly, they weren't doing to good. Finally, Saturn was going after Sapphire with blood in her eye, but she couldn't seem to get past his guard.

"Guess I better go help the others," Sailor Jupiter said, charging towards Prisma.

"Another target," Prisma smiled, and bathed Jupiter in dark lightning.

Makoto could smell the special insulation Ami installed in her costume begin to burn, and she silently thanked her loved. Then she was right in front of the very startled Prisma, who she hit with a round house blow.

"Don't hurt my sister!" Avery cried out, and she blasted Jupiter in the middle of the back with her lightning.

Prisma pulled herself up, wiping a bit of blood from her lip. "Oh, you are so going to pay for that," she promised.

"Are you all right?" Mercury cried to Jupiter, kneeling down beside her.

There was an odd look on Jupiter's face as she replied, "I think so." She shook her head, as she thought, 'I ought to be crispy, even with the suit.' Lightning jumped between her fingers, and her eyes grew wide.

Tuxedo Kamen grabbed Jupiter's arm and helped pull her to her feet. "Any helpful idea's would be appreciated right now," she hissed, spinning her cane to deflect the bolts of lightning.

"Get out of here," Jupiter said suddenly, "leave them both to me."

"She said helpful, not crazy," Sailor V shot back with a smile. She whirled her chain before lashing out, but a burst of black lightning blasted it away.

"Trust me," Jupiter smiled, "I can handle this."

Mercury met her lover's gaze, searching for something in those brown eyes. Finally she said, "All right." She stood up a bit straighter and looked over at Sailor V, Sailor Moon and Tuxedo Kamen, "Let's go help Saturn."

"Are you sure about this?" Tuxedo Kamen quietly asked Mercury as they all ran towards the other battle.

"No," was the short reply.

"Where do you think you're going?" Avery called after them, only to be silenced with a single slap to the face.

"Don't forget about me," Jupiter smiled. She calmly cracked her knuckles, "Beating two weak opponents like you won't even cause me to break a sweat."

Prisma smiled coldly at her sister, "We'll kill her first." Then both of them cut loose full strength on the Senshi standing between them.

Mercury visibly winced at the howl of pain they all heard. "Shine Aqua Illusion!" she cried, and sealed Sapphire's legs in ice, immobilizing him.

Sapphire cursed loudly while hacking at the ice with his blade before he realized that he had bigger problems to deal with.

"Moon Tiara Magic!" Sailor Moon cried, her tiara morphing into a shining sword. He brought his blade up to parry, and the golden sword cut through it like butter. Before he could recover, a swift kick to the gut sent him staggering free of the ice.

Prisma and Avery were both clearly baffled. This Senshi should have been dead by now, but instead she was standing up, easily resisting everything they could throw at her! Even stranger, white lightning danced around her body, driving their own lightning away.

Artemis realized what had happened to her, and used his paw to bat the transformation wand towards her. Jupiter caught it, throwing him a smile.

"Jupiter Star Power," Jupiter cried, "Make up!" For the first time, she transformed, the costume forming around her in a familiar dance. Both Avery and Prisma looked at her, shocked. Lightning arched all around her as a little antenna came up from her tiara, the words just coming to her, "Supreme Thunder!"

From out of a cloudless blue sky it came down, a lightning bolt of incredible force. It reached Jupiter, then with a gesture she simply split it in two, striking at Avery and Prisma evenly. With twin cries, they both went down and didn't get up.

Sapphire scowled, power surging from his body to drive his enemies backward. 'I can't retreat,' he thought grimly, 'she'd never forgive me.'

Another wave of power drove them all backward. "We can't even get close to him," Saturn cursed softly.

"Wait a minute," Sailor V's eyes widened, "I see it!" Just as Sailor Jupiter reached them, she said to her, "Give me a boost!"

"Sure," Jupiter shrugged. Sailor V stepped on Jupiter's cupped hands then she literally flung her into the air!

Sailor V sailed up and over Sapphire's attacks, descending towards him rapidly. 'I guess Jupiter doesn't know her own strength now,' she found herself thinking. She landed almost on top of him, gently placing two fingers against his brow. "I'm sorry," softly, then she loudly cried, "Venus Crescent Beam Smash!"

A wave of force tossed them backward, moon dust rising to fill the air. Strangely, two figures seemed to appear out of the smoke and ash. One was handsome, a white hared young man dressed in a military uniform, carrying himself with a great deal of pride.

The woman with him was dressed in a sailor fuku, her long, green- black hair flowing over her shoulders and down her back. A long staff, resembling a key, is held in her hand. The Senshi gaze at her in shock, at this very familiar woman.

"Pluto?" Saturn whispered, looking back and forth between the new arrival and the one standing there with the Outers.

Pluto separated herself the others, walking over to where her twin stood, an unreadable expression in her dark eyes. Her tone is almost conversational as she said to her, "It's been a long time, Sailor Nemesis."

To be Continued....