Sailor Moon Fan Fiction ❯ Harsh Realities ❯ Nijizuishou ( One-Shot )

A/N: This story takes place in the first season, before Mamoru finds out he's Tuxedo Kamen. I always wondered, based off the episode where Nephrite firsts appears, how Mamoru feels about being wrenched from his life to go fight as Tuxedo Kamen, and based off the episode AFTER Jupiter shows up, I made the assumption he didn't know what was going on. This is the result…

 

Disclaimer: Sailor Moon is owned by Naoko Takeuchi. I just own the idea.

 

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Nijizuishou

 

“Oi! Mamoru-san!”

 

I looked back and ran towards the man standing in the doorway of the Crown Parlor, my black hair rustling in the wind and my blue eyes snapping. “Motoki-san. How are you?”

 

Motoki's green eyes sparkled as he looked at me. “Eh, can't complain. Business is good and Dad is thinking of retiring soon; naming me as owner, of course.”

 

“Sounds good. How's Reika?”

 

“She's fine. She applied for a graduate program in Africa.” For a minute, Motoki's face fell in disappointment, but he shook it off. “What's new with you, Mamoru-san? Any new girls going after you?”

 

I blushed, thinking of the girl that recently began to interrupt my thoughts, but shook my head. “Nothing much is new. Just…” Suddenly I felt an all too familiar pain in my heart. I doubled over gasping for breath and hoped that it wouldn't actually continue.

 

From what seemed like a long way away, Motoki asked, “Mamoru? You okay?”

 

I didn't stay to answer. The pain was getting worse, so I took off running, stumbling and falling into people. As I slid down the wall I thought, not now. Oh please, not now!

 

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As usual, I woke up in my bed. I had on what I had on earlier, but my hair was wet and I felt dirty and slimy all over. Did I go swimming in the bay? Yech? What is happening to me? These attacks started a few months ago and have increased in regularity since then. I would black out for a few hours and wake up in my own bed. I had no clue what I did during the blackouts, but I thought, especially with some of the more recent circumstances that it was probably something dangerous.

 

I sighed and went into the bathroom to get cleaned up. I went back to bed and tried to get more sleep, but I spent the majority of the night lying awake and wondering if the amnesia from when I was younger was affecting what was happening now.

 

The next morning, tired and groggy, I picked up the morning paper on my way into work. I glanced at the front page as I was walking, but stopped in the middle of the sidewalk when the headline “Sailor Senshi Save Burning Tokyo” popped out at me. A thought crept into the back of my mind that I had had a hand in saving this from happening, but I pushed it away as I scanned the article. Something feeling like a ton of bricks dropped into my stomach every time the article mentioned the “mysterious masked man in a tuxedo,” but again, I pushed my doubts and questions aside, throwing the paper in the trash to get rid of the distraction it caused.

 

Later that day, I felt the hairs on the back of my neck raise, and when I turned my head, I stared in disbelief as a forest covered hill appeared out of nowhere. A few seconds later, however, I shook his head, wondering why the sight of the familiar hill was causing me concern. What a silly thought. That hill has always been there. Still, the feeling of dread settled in my stomach, making the cereal I had for breakfast feel like I ate dirty socks.

 

I was walking down the street, thinking about my confusion over the hill, when I felt something simultaneously hard and soft hit me on the head. I heard a young cheerful voice say, “Gomen nasai…You?” and looked up to see the odango atama girl that always seemed to cause me problems.

 

“Do you enjoy hitting me with your shoes?” I asked specifically to try and egg her on.

 

“If you would have been watching where you were going, it wouldn't have happened,” she responded, her temper quickly flaring.

 

“Can't you be normal for once?” I did so enjoy watching her get frustrated and angry.

 

“No,” she said, sticking her tongue out. “I'll have you know that there is a guy who likes me to be something other than normal.”

 

“Really?” I asked, my heart thudding in my chest. Who is this man? What can I do to hurt him? “He must be stupid then to like someone who is not normal.”

 

To my chagrin, my comment made her start to tear up. I was still holding her shoe when she started to bawl. “I can't do anything about you calling me names, but you don't have to call Motoki stupid because he's not stupid!” and she fell to the ground in tears, causing several people to turn and look at us. “Meanie, meanie, meanie,” she bawled.

 

I heard the comments of “What did that man do to make that poor girl cry?” under the cries of the girl I had bullied, so I decided to make my exit. “I…uh…just remember I had something to do…” I looked down and noticed I still had her shoe and tossed it to her. “You can have this back,” I said as I turned and ran.

 

Once out of the site of the girl and her shoe, I ducked into an alley and sighed. Nice going, Chiba. You bully her and…Did she say, Motoki? I started chuckling, realizing that I didn't need to prove myself better than the mystery man after all, he was just being his usual big-brother self. Oh God. Motoki will be so embarrassed when he finds out… I left the alley, feeling better than I had before.

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

This time, at least, my blackout hit me when I was in my apartment. I was exercising when I felt the pain start. I did the only sensible thing, which was to put down my weights and sit down on the couch. As I felt my self sliding under my consciousness, I smelt the velvety scent of roses and heard someone whisper, “Sleep for a while yet, Endymion.”

 

This black out was different from before. Instead of waking up in my apartment, I slowly came back to consciousness leaning against the fence of a tennis court. I was in the bushes, hidden from both street and court. I heard voices and peeked into the fence surrounding the court. I saw a young woman standing over the body of another young woman inside the court and directly on the opposite side, outside the court were two other young women and a…a cat? I took a closer look and noticed it was the Sailor Senshi. Sailor Moon was inside, looking in my direction, but I could tell she wasn't looking at me, but the other two, Sailors Mercury and Mars and the cat were looking in at Sailor Moon, talking about something.

 

I over heard a little of what Sailor Mars was saying, “…can't believe Sailor Moon actually defeated that Youma on her own.” For some reason, Mars' comment made me want to jump up and defend the young super heroine. I waited until their voice and footsteps faded away, then I slowly walked back towards my apartment.

 

I was slightly confused. How did I end up here, watching the legendary Sailor Senshi after a battle? The dread in my stomach deepened as I thought about. I took off running, hoping to clear my mind.

 

Early the next morning, feeling just as upset, I took another jog around my neighborhood. I didn't like the implications of me being on the scene. There was no indication of Tuxedo Kamen showing up, but there is a chance that he did and know one saw him. A little later in the day, still thinking about it, I ended up stepping on the head of a beautiful raven haired woman. I say woman, but in reality she was a girl; almost as young as my Odango Atama, the blond I have termed as my own, though she obviously couldn't stand me. She was the perfect person to take my mind off Odango Atama, so I asked her out for tea, then to go riding in a boat.

 

Halfway through our ride, Rei's attention got sidetracked by the sound of the animals of the park coming towards the lake and I was distracted by the all too familiar pull of unconsciousness. For some reason though, I got the impression that Rei tipped the boat on purpose.

 

I woke up on the beach, wearing my clothes and soaking wet…or at least my hair. Rei came running up to me and apologized about leaving me. I took her home and pondered the fact that I was waking up sooner and sooner. I read the paper the next day and was not surprised when I read that, once again, the Sailor Senshi saved the day. I also wasn't surprised to find out that Tuxedo Kamen was there as well.

 

I finally got my answer, though it was an answer I wasn't all together unprepared to find out. I had been asking myself, because of the various situations outlined above that I was, that I am, Tuxedo Kamen, and a month and a half after I woke up next to the tennis courts over hearing the comment from Sailor Mars, I finally figured it out.

 

I only know this because I have retained all my memories now, of all the times I transformed into Tuxedo Kamen. For the first time, I know who I am. Tonight started out like any other blackout time, but I finally remember what happens after I black out. I stood up, the pain still there, but…changed in a way I don't understand. I felt connected to Sailor Moon, that's how I always knew where to find her. The pain I felt before was due, in part, to my inability to cope with the feeling of connectedness I felt with her. I only transformed, since I didn't remember who I was completely, when she did. I still have no clue who she is, but I'm hoping that she is my little Odango Atama. (I feel that is wishful thinking on my part at least.)

 

When I transformed tonight, I heard the voice that I so often heard in my dreams. “Find the ginzuishou,” it would say. I pulled a rose out of…I don't know…out of nowhere it seemed, and I felt the scent and power overwhelm me. That musky, velvety scent that makes most women go crazy when they smell it made me feel whole and complete. Next thing I know, I looked down and I'm dressed in a tuxedo, complete with top hat and gloves. I jumped out the window and flew over the rooftops; not quite knowing where I'm headed. I just knew that I needed to find her, my connection…Sailor Moon. By the time I got to the fight, Zoisite had already attacked a priest and the nijizuishou, the Rainbow Crystal shard, had been removed, turning the priest into the Youma, Boxsy. I saved Sailor Moon from the explosion and challenged Boxsy. I watched as first, Sailor Jupiter arrived, then as Sailor Moon healed Boxsy and turned him back into the priest.

 

I left behind for Sailor Moon the star locket that I had in my possession. I don't remember where I got it from, but I do remember that it was given to me by someone I cared for.

 

Before Zoisite could get the nijizuishou, I picked it up and ran off. While the sun set over the bay, the shine from the red nijizuishou allowed my Tuxedo Kamen form to fade yet allowed me to retain my knowledge of being Tuxedo Kamen. My future is uncertain, but I'm sure I'll be able to succeed. I need to succeed if I want to know who I truly am. For now, I just wait for the pull on my heart so I can fight along side, or with, those who made it possible for me to come this far.