Sailor Moon Fan Fiction ❯ Sailor Moon E(ternals) ❯ A Change in Scenery. Ami’s Depression ( Chapter 6 )

A/N: I'm ready to have tomatoes thrown at me… I know my choice for the next Protector will be maybe…unwelcome?

Moonlight Phoenix-Guess who…? ïŠ

Disclaimer: I do not own the Sailor Moon characters. Naoko Takeuchi has that illustrious honor. I do however own the villains, Sailor Sun, the unknown missing third senshi, and the story line I am writing about.

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Chapter 6

A Change in Scenery. Ami's Depression

 

Mizuno Ami, genius girl from the time before she could remember, stood looking in grief at the board above her head. She took a plane into Russia and was supposed to be on a short stop-over before another plane ride to the airport in Dresden then a further train ride into Chemnitz, where the medical school she was attending was located. But, her plans, it seems, have been delayed. A sign announcing ALL FLIGHTS OUT OF SAMARA INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT ARE DELAYED DUE TO BAD WEATHER. PLEASE STAND BY FOR MORE NEWS. It scrolled by in several languages, some completely unfamiliar to the young blue haired woman, but she got the drift from the few languages she could speak.

 

Ami walked over to a bench and set her bags down. She had picked up and re-checked her bags as soon as she got in, so she only had her small bag that she used as a purse and her carry-on. She reached into the carry-on and pulled out a book to start reading. It was only when pulled out the book and smelled apples from when the book had been set in the apple bowl back home in Tokyo, did she realize that she was very hungry. She looked once more at the sign and saw that her flight was going to be delayed for at least four hours. Plenty of time for dinner.

 

As she was eating, she tried to concentrate fully on the plate in front of her, but she was not so easily distracted from the German couple to her right. “Darling, I wanted you to know that I love you.”

 

“I love you too.” A sound was heard, like box being put on the table. “What is this Fredrick?”

 

“Open it, Esther.”

 

The creaking of hinges then an indrawn breath, “Oh…Fredrick?”

 

“Esther, will you marry me?”

 

“Of course. Yes, yes, and always yes.”

 

Ami chanced a glance to her right and saw the couple hugging. It shocked her to see that the woman was younger than she was. She sunk a little further into her chair and quickly finished her meal.

 

“Can I get you some dessert?”

 

“No…no thank you,” Ami mumbled, paying the tab, gathering her stuff, and practically running from the restaurant in tears. Ami was so miserable she didn't see she was heading straight for a collision course with her past and her future.

 

“Watch it!” a man shouted in Japanese

 

Ami looked up, just in time to see a head hit her head. “Ouch,” she said under her breath. “Ah, gomen, gomen…” she looked up and asked, “What are you doing here?”

 

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“Princess Gypsum-sama.” Calcite said, bowing gracefully at his master. “Minerva arrived in Germany fine. She informed me she will be starting her work tomorrow.”

 

“Tomorrow? Tomorrow! Why is she not starting today? The useless girl…”

 

“Princess Gypsum-sama, I'm sure she is just trying to not make mistakes this time around.”

 

“Hmmmm…very well. Tell her to proceed but do not waste too much time on planning elaborate schemes.”

 

“As you wish, Princess Gypsum-sama.” Calcite bowed and shimmered out of the throne room.

 

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The golden senshi, Sailor Sun, stepped through a portal into the room of Lady Venus. She looked around and noticed the young protector hanging in the hair surrounded by golden light like Lady Mars, Mercury, and Jupiter that Sailor Sun had just checked on. Her short spiky hair glinted as the sun hit the golden and red highlights and almost made her light blue/white hair too bright to look at. “Everything is going as planned.” She stuck her head in the door next to Lady Venus' room and shook her head. They have not found Kamen no Venus yet or Kamen no Mercury. Maybe I should leave a note for the queen… She was so deep in introspection that she didn't hear the footfalls of someone else in the room until…

 

“Good to see you again, Solana.”

 

“H…Haly? Oh by the grace of Serenity…”

 

Sailor Pluto smiled at the ancient vow. “So, you're the one whose been traveling the time gate?”

 

“Haly, please don't be mad at me. I did it…”

 

“I know, Solana. I'm not mad. Why didn't you come to me?”

 

Sailor Sun shrugged and looked down, fiddling with the ribbon around her staff.

 

“You still have that thing?”

 

“Of course! You didn't think I'd get rid of it…”

 

“You haven't visited me in thousands of years. I assumed you didn't want to…”

 

“I didn't know how welcome I'd be. Look Haly, I can't stay. I've got to go. If I don't…”

 

“I really shouldn't let you go…”

 

“I know. But I have to.”

 

As Sailor Sun formed a portal and stepped through, Sailor Pluto whispered, “Come back to me soon, Solana.”

 

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“It's nice to see you too, Mizuno-san.”

 

“Gomen,” Ami said, blushing a bit but smiling at the young blond haired man in front of her, “Tsukino-kun. I guess I didn't realize you would be here, in Russia. What are you doing here anyway?”

 

Tsukino Shingo laughed and looked fondly at the woman he had a crush on for years, ever since his baka older sister brought her home as a friend. “I'm waiting for a plane that got delayed. And you?”

 

“Me as well. I'm going off to finally start my medical degree, after making it through my bachelor and master's degrees as fast as I could. What are traveling for?”

 

“Schooling. I got accepted to the bachelor program at a small university in Chemnitz…Mizuno-san? Are you okay?”

 

Ami had gone pale but she smiled up at her best friend's brother. “Hai, Tsukino-kun. I'm just going to be going to school in Chemnitz.”

 

Shingo smiled and said, “Great. This means we will know at least one person there, ne?”

 

“That's true.”

 

“Have you had dinner yet, Mizuno-san?”

 

“Tsukino-kun, please call me Ami.”

 

“Then you need to call me Shingo. Have you had dinner yet, Ami-chan?”

 

Ami smiled but nodded, “I'm sorry, Shingo-kun…”at Shingo scowl, she changed her mind, “I mean Shingo-chan. I just ate dinner.”

 

“Ah. You probably don't want to eat with someone like me anyway, huh? Your boyfriend back home…”

 

“Boyfriend?”

 

“What did Usagi say his name was…Uro…Urawa?”

 

Ami smiled sadly and said, “Urawa-kun isn't my boyfriend,” and to her horror she started crying.

 

“Ami-chan? What's the matter?”

 

Flashback

Ami walked out of her apartment building to say one last goodbye to Usagi and Minako, who were the last to leave for their futures. She wasn't paying attention, too engrossed in looking for the book of memories she bought for Usagi and the picture album she bought for Minako. So it was no surprise when she ran into a man coming the opposite direction.

 

“Mizuno-san?”

 

Ami looked up, shielding her eyes from the bright glare of the sun on her freckled face. “Urawa-kun? How are you?” she asked, starting to walk towards him to give him a hug but stopped when she saw him stiffen.

 

“I'm good, Mizuno-san…”

 

“I told you Urawa-kun, please call me Am…”

 

“Mizuno-san, there's someone I want to introduce you to. This is Suzuki Aina, my fiancée. Aina, this is Mizuno Ami, a friend of mine.”

 

“F…fiancée? Since when? Ami thought fiercely.

 

“Yes, she and I just got engaged last night.”

 

“Congratulations…” Ami said, just before running off.

 

If she had been there after she left she would have seen the woman Aina look at Urawa Ryo in sympathy. “That was hard for you, wasn't it, Ryo-chan? You still love her?”

 

“Yes, but her destiny lies with someone else. Besides,” he said, shaking himself out of his dark thoughts, “I'm in love with you now.”

 

“Liar. You love her more. But I knew that from the start. Come, love, lets go before she comes back to beat me up.”

 

Ryo laughed and pulled Aina closer to him. “Wouldn't happen, darling. She's not like that.” Ryo knew Ami would be upset at him, but he also knew it wouldn't last. I'm sorry, Ami-chan. If only I could have been your destiny.

 

End Flashback

 

“So he never even told you that he was getting married?”

 

“Not until I met him on the street.” At the look on Shingo's face, Ami hastily said, “I'm sure it's not his fault though. I probably pushed him away…”

 

“Don't be ridiculous. He's…he made a mistake not dating you.” I would date you, Shingo thought, if I had half a chance.

 

“Thank you, Shingo-chan­. You don't know how much this means to me.” Ami said as she got up off the bench. “You go eat. We'll be able to see each other on the plane.”

 

Shingo automatically stood when Ami stood, but instead of turning around to get some food, he followed Mizuno Ami with his eyes as she walked slowly back to the terminal her plane would leave from.

 

**************

 

Tsukino Shingo stared at the head of the woman in front of him. He wasn't actually seeing the purple hair of the woman in front of him. Instead, he was seeing the blue hair of the woman he was attracted to. Attracted to? Come on Shingo, admit it, you are more than “attracted” to her. You still love her, even after all these years. He sighed and leaned his head back on the head rest, closing his eyes. It was great seeing her, but he knew that they could only be friends. What type of woman would want a man 3 years younger than she was? He felt the tiny pinpricks at the back of his eyelids, and he closed his eyes tighter, willing the tears not to form and fall. I always knew it would be an unrequited love, but I figured I would get over her. I should have gotten over her by now… He sighed again, this time louder and he felt a gentle hand on his arm.

 

“Are you alright, Shingo-chan?” Ami's soft voice asked.

 

And then our seats had to be next to each other, he thought, fighting a surge of excitement that made his stomach hurt when it collided with the anxiety and nervousness already in hi stomach. “I'm fine, Ami-chan. Just…thinking.”

 

“Oh?” she said, smiling slightly.

 

“Yeah.”

 

When Shingo didn't respond any more than that, Ami's smiled faltered then she turned back to her book, but only half of her attention was focused on the words. The other half of her attention was focused on the man at her side. He's…different than I remember. All grown up. I never realized how attractive he is… Ami blushed at the thought, but continued her internal conversation. I can't believe he's graduated now and going off to college. I'm glad he was able to travel. “So, Shingo-chan,” Ami said, breaking the silence again. “I never heard, how did you do on your graduation exams?”

 

Shingo raised his head and smiled a crooked smile at Ami. “I was in the top 10 of my class.”

 

“That's great, Shingo!” Ami said enthusiastically, forgetting the formal ending to his name. “You had, what, about 200 students in your class?” Oh my, he is really attractive with that smile…

 

“Yeah. We had a rather smaller class than years before, but it was still a rough road.”

 

Ami smiled and touched his arm encouragingly. “I'm sure you'll do fine in college, if you did so well in High School.”

 

“Thank you, Ami-chan.”

 

“Not a problem, Shingo-chan. It's my belief. If you have trouble, I can always help you.”

 

Shingo blushed and looked down at his hands. “O…okay.”

 

Ami blushed as well, realizing what she said didn't necessarily sound convinced that he'd do as well as she claimed he would. “I…I didn't mean…”

 

“I know, Ami-chan. I know what you mean. Don't worry, I didn't take offense.” I may make up a false trouble, so I can get your help, but I know you didn't mean I would need it. Shingo wished he had the guts to say something to her, but he knew it was impossible. She would meet some cute guy in Med-school and he'd be left as her `best friend's younger brother'.

 

The rest of the plane ride passed with little conversation from the two Japanese exchange students. They both were thinking their own thoughts, which both had to do with what was being left behind and what new relationships would be started up in their new life.

 

**********

 

In a dark corner of the forest next to the University Ami and Shingo had arrived at that night, a campfire was spitting sparks into the night's sky. The people sitting around it screamed suddenly as a figure appeared from the sparks. She had black hair formed into two pig-tails which were connected at the base of her neck, creating a large ponytail that ran down her back. Here eyes were orange and she flicked her fingers, causing more sparks to land on the dry tinder near the forest. Both the tinder and the nearby trees went up in flames. The demon walked off towards the school as the fire raged out of control behind her.