Tempest

Bishoujo Senshi Sailor Gemini

Episode Five - Magical Boy

Even if the convention had not been scheduled to end that day, it would have been over after the destruction we had wrought on the hotel's lobby. For that matter, as I stood behind the police line watching investigators pick through the remains of the battle zone, I began to doubt there would ever be another anime convention in this city again. Part of me wanted to be angry. Who gave this Fluorite, whoever he had been, the right to take something precious away from all the people who had been at this con? They hadn't done anything to him, after all. It was a trivial matter, true... but it offended my sense of justice somehow.

Then again, I thought as I felt Sharon slip her arm around my waist and pull me close to her, he had tried to take something far more precious to me than that. I suppressed a shudder as the images flashed through my mind again of his sudden appearance behind Sharon and the terror on her face as she scrambled to escape his attack. Trying to push that thought away, I squeezed Sharon gently. I guess I just needed to reassure myself that she was really there and unharmed.

She seemed to sense the shift in my emotions, and looked up at me questioningly. "You okay, Jon?" she asked quietly.

I nodded slightly, not really able to put my concerns to voice amidst the crowd that had gathered. "...I'm all right. Longer I look at this, though, the more disturbing it gets." The sheer amount of collateral damage that had been done to the area during our battle was staggering to look at. The lobby was a total loss. What walls were still standing were scorched black, slashed, or riddled with cracks and holes. Giant chunks of concrete from the foundation had been ripped up through the floor by Taurus' attacks, and the entire glass entryway had been blasted in by Leo's first sonic burst. My mind searched for any kind of disaster, natural or otherwise, that this resembled and came up with nothing.

"...yeah," Sharon agreed quietly. Her tone was hushed, and I wondered if she was drawing the same conclusion as I. If the local news had not reflected well on us after the first incident, what were they going to think of this? We would be branded as a menace for certain. I sighed, and she looked up at me again with worried eyes. "...let's go, Jon," she suggested. "I don't want to think about this right now."

I nodded my agreement, and we turned to go. Still, as we left the battle zone and the convention behind us, I could not help but think the events of this past weekend had so irrevocably changed us that we would never quite escape them, no matter what was to come. We were going home, perhaps, but those homes and the lives they represented would never be the same.

The drive away from the con was a surprisingly emotional moment for me. It was time, I knew, to take Sharon home, back to her parents' house... and then for me to go back to mine. It seems, I suppose, a bit silly now; the con had lasted not even three days, and it really is a very short time for such a change as I experienced in my feelings toward her... yet those three days had seemed like so a lifetime in and of themselves. We had gone into battle together, risked our lives together, faced fear and doubt and hurt together, and formed a bond that was impossibly deep for the little time we had shared it.

I think for the first time, I began then to realize that there was something more to this than just those three days, that emotions of this depth had to have a basis in something greater than simple common cause. There was something magical about the whole thing, something that drew me to Sharon and her to me, something beyond any of our comprehension. I wasn't sure what to think of that. Ash, I was certain, would call it the echo of a forgotten past... not that I had any intention of asking for her opinion. And then there was Fluorite, who had called me by another name, one I did not know.

I didn't want to think about that, didn't want to spend what little time I had left to share with Sharon over this weekend thinking about things that might or might not be. I just wanted to make the moments last as long as I could manage, to enjoy them as much as I could. I suppose it's a little irrational, considering that we lived close enough that I could see her almost any time I wanted, but the echoes of the morning's battle still weighed in my mind. I'd almost lost her once, and I wanted to be with her, to stay with her and keep her safe.

Of course, her parents would have different views. I was nervous about seeing them; they knew me already, and even liked me, but that was before I'd fallen in love with their daughter. Sharon had always described them as overprotective, and while I'd never run up against that tendency to say much about it, I had to wonder what they would think if they even picked up a hint of the degree of affection I held for her now. Probably best that they didn't know the whole truth; trying to explain that could make for entirely too sticky of a situation.

I looked over at Sharon, who was sitting silently in the passenger seat, wearing a thoughtful expression. "Whatcha thinkin'?" I asked as casually as I could manage, trying to smile a bit to hide my own concerns.

"I don't want to go home," she answered softly. She looked down with an embarrassed expression, as if she had not meant to say it aloud. "I mean... I know I have to, and it's not that I don't want to be there, but..."

"I know," I agreed, my voice hushed. "I don't want to take you home, either. I don't want to let you out of my sight."

She looked up at me again, seemingly relieved at my answer. "I don't know why, but it makes me happy to hear you say that," she said, blushing a little. I don't know that I'd ever seen her act like this before; Sharon is usually the outgoing, bubbly type; now she was being reserved, quiet, even shy.

I could relate. There were a million things I wanted to say then, and there simply weren't words for them, and I was afraid to say anything at all for fear of it not being enough, of not putting the depths of my feelings into words. It was like something had awakened inside me, something familiar and yet not, something that I knew in my heart, but didn't understand in my mind, and I didn't trust myself to give voice to it. How could I? Logically, it all made no sense. For all that had happened, for all the power of these emotions, my disbelief held me back; it was like a dream, really.

Looking back, I think I was afraid the dream was about to end. I was afraid that I would drop Sharon off at her parents' house, and I'd go back home, and everything would go back to normal. Not that normal was bad--I'd have given almost anything to be rid of that Senshi girl body--but the thought of losing what I'd discovered with Sharon over the weekend was unbearable to me. If the price of that discovery was that I spent the rest of my life dealing with the chaos and the change and everything that went with being a Senshi, it was worth it. I'd hold on to it and cherish it and fight for it if need be. I would not let that go.

The time passed in silence, as neither of us seemed to have words for it, and all too soon we were pulling up in front of her house. As we stopped the car, she glanced quickly in my direction, then nervously in the direction of the house. Then, with a heavy sigh, she turned back to me. "...you'd probably better just drop me off, Jon. My parents are going to want to know all about the mess at the hotel, and it'll be easier to lie about it if it's just me."

I nodded slightly. "All right. Should I call you later?"

"Please do." She forced herself to smile, and in the sadness of her expression in that moment she was almost painfully beautiful. I wanted to reach out and hold her then, and not let her go... but I knew that would not fly well with her parents, either.

I sighed. "Okay, I'll talk to you then. I'll drop by in the next couple of days sometime, too. We'll go out and do something."

She smiled, seeming a bit happier this time. "Okay." She glanced back up at the house anxiously, then said reluctantly, "I need to go. My parents are going to have to find out about us sometime, but I'd rather it not be from us sitting here like lovebirds in the car in front of the house. My dad would kill me."

I tried not to laugh, but I couldn't help it. Fortunately, she giggled a bit, too, and her mood seemed a little lighter as she opened the door and slipped out of the car. "You better call me, Jon," she warned. "I'm going to hold you to that."

"I will, I will," I answered, then leaned over so I could lower my voice a bit. "I love you, Sharon."

She didn't look back, but she answered just loud enough that I could hear as she walked away. "I love you, too." Then she walked quickly up the front steps to her house, trying to put on a good show of being in a good mood for her parents. She had a lot of explaining to do, and having to explain about me wouldn't help matters.

Of course, if I sat there in the car in front of her house all day, it would only make things worse. Starting up the car again, I pulled away, my thoughts turning to my own explanations that would have to be made.

As expected, there were a thousand and one questions waiting for me when I got home. Don't get me wrong--if I had been in my parents' position, I'd have wanted some answers, too--but as I listend to the questions and tried to answer them as tersely as I could, my only thought was how nice it was going to be to move into my apartment. Just a month away, and it would make my life so much easier. Of course, that presupposed that I didn't get caught by my parents before then; as much as I hate to admit it, Leo had me pegged. I'm a terrible liar.

I tried to say as little as I could, to pretend lack of any kind of knowledge. "You probably know more about it than I do," I told them. "I haven't even seen the news yet. Nobody at the hotel had any idea what happened, that I talked to."

They didn't seem to like that answer, but they accepted it. In truth I was probably worried more than I should have been. Since I graduated from high school, they let me do pretty much whatever I wanted so long as I stayed out of trouble, and it's not like they could blame me for the damage at the hotel. I think my mother, especially, was just happy to see me alive and unharmed.

Of course, she still had to carry on about it. Mom's the worrying type, which is probably where I get it from, and she went on and on about how I should be careful, and should stay away from dangerous people and places... as if I could have avoided the situation. I'm just glad they didn't know I was part of it. I'd have never lived it down.

My father was calmer about it. "Now, dear, it's not as though anyone could have anticipated this," he reassured her, before turning to me. "I'm more concerned about how you are feeling. They said several people were taken to the hospital for examination with excessive fatigue." He looked me over for a moment. "Obviously, you can't be too badly off, though, since you drove home."

I nodded. "I'm a little tired, but I'm okay. I took Sharon home first... she seemed a little worse off, but I don't think she'll have a problem."

"Sharon?" my mother asked, curious. "Is that your girlfriend?"

I blinked, trying to hide the sudden embarrassment that would certainly give me away. "...Mom, you know Sharon. The girl from the anime club? She was at the con and didn't have a ride home."

She gave me a knowing sort of smile. "Yes, yes, of course." I sighed. Mom had always been pestering me about finding a girlfriend. Why, I don't know. You'd think she would want me to concentrate on my schoolwork or something. Now she was jumping to conclusions. The fact that she was right didn't help, either.

My father just shook his head slightly from his vantage point on the couch. I knew that look well... every man in my family has it. It's the one that reads, "I'm not getting involved." Unfortunately, I have yet to master that particular expression... though I suspect with the company I keep now, I'll learn it quickly enough.

Fine, leave me with no backup, I thought in his direction, and I'm sure that look was more than apparent on my face. Turning back to my mother, I just shrugged. "I won't deny that I like her a lot, Mom," I said, opting for the understatement tack, "but it's not like we're going out or anything."

I felt kind of guilty over that. I hadn't lied... Sharon and I hadn't gone out on any kind of 'date' yet--unless you count a burger joint at 3 AM, and I don't--but it was a sort of deception. Honestly, I just didn't feel like talking about it. It's not that I'd mind my mother knowing, so much, but she'd make a big deal over it, and just end up embarrassing me in front of Sharon or my friends. No thanks, y'know?

Of course, that didn't mean she didn't see through it. "Well, you should invite her over for dinner some time, Jon," she told me. I glanced again at my father, looking for some kind of rescue, but none was forthcoming. In fact, from the smirk he was wearing I think he was rather enjoying his neutral ground.

I couldn't exactly refuse, either; aside from our relationship, just Senshi business would keep Sharon and I in much closer contact than we'd been before. Of course, most of that would be conducted away from my family, but it would be impossible to keep from them that I was spending as much time with her as I expected to. If I didn't pass the invitation on to Sharon myself, I was certain my mother would do it for me. And then Sharon would demand to know why I hadn't invited her myself. And... it was a no-win scenario. Accepting defeat, I shrugged. "All right, I'll ask her sometime."

Mom smiled. "Be sure to find out what she likes for dinner," she reminded me, as if expecting me to run out and invite her over this very weekend. Dad smirked a bit at that, but still kept himself carefully out of the discussion.

"Right," I answered, trying not to sound dismissive or sarcastic, though I felt very much both of those. They may let me do things my way most of the time, but disrespect doesn't fly with either of them. Then I yawned, and for all that it might have been the perfect time to affect weariness, there was no act involved. I was sleepy... very sleepy, really. I guess the lack of sleep and all that combat had finally worn me down. "Mom, Dad, I think I'm going to go rest a while."

Mom looked worried again. "You're sure you're okay, Jon?"

I nodded a bit. "I didn't sleep much this weekend. Too much to do at the con."

She frowned, but nodded. "All right. Be sure you get up in time for dinner."

I nodded, heading down the hallway toward my bedroom. "I will." I would, too. After all, I'd promised someone a phone call, and her parents wouldn't like it too much if I called too late.

There are few feelings more annoying than wanting to rush through something when there are too many reasons why you can't. That night, dinner was that way. I wanted to just wolf down my food and run back to my room so that I could call Sharon, but I knew better than to do any such thing in front of my parents. Aside from the fact that they would be upset at me for being rude, it would tip my mother off to just how much I wanted to talk to Sharon, and the last thing I needed was to give her any more encouragement as to the conclusions she had drawn. So I sat and made conversation with my parents, trying to eat as quickly as I could without seeming like I was trying to escape from the table.

Though it seemed like an eternity at the time, I did in fact excuse myself from the table in quite a bit less time than I might under normal circumstances. Why I was so anxious to call Sharon I don't know... I just felt a need to talk to her. I think part of it was that I was worried, and wanted to know things had gone with her parents. Still, there was more to it than that. Ever since all of this had begun, I found that I felt incomplete whenever I was apart from her... as though the part of me that was most dear to me was missing. I understand all of this now, in light of all that I have learned since, but at the time it was puzzling, even worrisome to me.

This is not to say that I ever doubted my love for her, or ever hesitated in my committment to her. I could feel, though, the presence of the magic that was and is wound about our souls, and I was still not comfortable with that; I feared that it would carry us in directions we were not prepared to go, perhaps. I did know this much, however: wherever Sharon went, I would follow, prepared or otherwise.

All of this said, it was a great relief to hear her voice. She seemed a little exasperated, but not truly upset; it seemed her parents had given her a difficult time much as my mother had given me, though perhaps the questioning was a bit more pointed with her family. "You wouldn't believe it, Jon," she told me, speaking in a conspiratory whisper. "Either they're paranoid or they're psychic, because they asked me fifteen million questions about you. I reminded them that they had already met you, of course, and then they remembered, but that didn't stop them asking. I didn't even try to lie to them... well, not about us anyway. I obviously didn't tell them about the whole Senshi thing. I don't think that would have gone over very well."

I had to smirk at that. "No, I imagine not." I paused, a bit uncomfortably, before posing the next question. "So what did they say?"

"About us?" Sharon responded. "Well, I didn't tell them that we're together or anything... but I think they kinda guessed. It's okay, I think... I mean, we already know they like you. I just... I don't think we should tell them how we really feel about all this. It's so much, so soon, and I don't think they'll understand. I mean, I don't even understand it. It's just... something I know."

"I know," I agreed softly, my thoughts drifting a little. There was something else to this, something that kept popping up in the back of my mind, but I couldn't quite put my mind on it. "It doesn't make sense, you know," I finally said to her. "If you look at it rationally, I mean. If you had told me a week ago that we'd be having this conversation, I'd have told you that you were crazy. Yet now, I can't imagine being any other way. It's like something just... woke up. It can't be coincidence. It's connected to all these other things somehow. I just can't quite see the link."

There was a long silence then, and I found myself worried that I had said something wrong. Then, hesitantly, Sharon answered, "Jon... when I first met you, I was sure that I'd seen you before. That I'd known you before. I asked you about that, remember?"

I remembered. How could I forget? It's not often one has a pretty girl (and Sharon is beautiful, in an understated sort of way. You'd have to meet her to understand.) walk up to you and ask, "Have I met you before?" I have to admit I didn't know what to think at the time... the question caught me off-guard. And yet she had seemed familiar to me, except that as I'd looked back in my memory there hadn't been anyone quite like her.

"I remember," I answered, my thoughts running in parallel with the conclusion I knew she was drawing. It... it wasn't something I wanted to believe in. There were implications in it that frightened me. Even so, it was difficult not to trace the evidence to that end. "She's right, isn't she?" I asked. "Ash, I mean. There's more to all this than just the here and now."

"Maybe so." Her voice was scarcely a whisper. I think she knew how much the thought worried me... and perhaps it even worried her, too. Certainly it brought questions with difficult answers. How much of this path had we chosen, and how much was chosen for us? What had gone before that we did not recall... and who had we been, that we did not remember?

"It doesn't matter," I said finally, and from her gasp in response I realized there had been more edge on the words than I had intended. "Sharon, I'm not going to sit and worry about what brought us to where we are, or whether we chose this for ourselves. I know what I want... I know who I love. The how and why isn't important, so long as I have you. The rest... either we'll find out or we won't. I'm not going to dwell on it. I can't. I know that I love you, and that's all I need to know."

She was silent a long moment, leading me to worry again if I had said the wrong thing. When she did finally answer, though, there was a sense of relief in her voice that quieted my fears. "I love you, too, Jon." She paused again, as if hesitant to go on, then added, "but then, I've loved you since I first met you. I was afraid to say it... afraid you wouldn't understand... but I've always loved you. And I think you should know."

I had no answer for that. Nothing I could say seemed adequate, really. In memory I looked back across the year and some that I had known her, and suddenly things began to make sense. The way she always smiled when she saw me, or always made time for anything that I was doing. The gifts... she never forgot my birthday, and sometimes would just give me things out of the blue. I wish I could say I'd been as good about it, but, well... I'm bad about that sort of thing. Before, I'd thought that was just the way she was--and it is, to an extent, but with me it was always more.

"Maybe I wouldn't have," I answered softly. "Before all of this happened, I didn't believe in that sort of thing. Or maybe I did and didn't know it. Now, though... after what I've seen, I can't deny it, can I? I don't want to deny it anymore." I shuddered a bit at those words, for the reflected a larger change in my viewpoint than just as regarded Sharon. I needed now to know the truth, to face the truth. I couldn't go on trying to pretend that larger forces weren't working in my life. "It's too important to deny."

"Yes," she agreed, and if ever I have wanted to reach through a phone and hold her, it was in that moment. I think she could sense the greater turmoil in my heart, and I could feel her love for me, even over the distance, calm my fears and steady me. This was, I realized, her true power... to give of herself freely, without hesitation, to strengthen those around her.

And that, perhaps more than any other reason, is why I love her.

It was about noon the next day when Stephanie called. Ignoring the raised eyebrow from my mother when she handed me the phone, I tried to push back the sleepy fog which was hanging over me. I had not slept much the night before, having too much on my mind, but if I had learned any one thing about Sailor Leo, it was that I didn't want to be mentally slow when dealing with her. "This is Jon," I answered, my eyes falling in the direction of my mother who obviously had no intention of leaving the room.

"Well, aren't we the pleasant one today?" she responded in her most infuriatingly cheerful tone. Before I could respond, though, she added, "Your mother told me you were still in bed. Are you doing okay?"

I looked reproachfully at Mom, who just shrugged in my direction and turned back to whatever she was pretending to do. "Oh, she did? Yes, I'm fine. Just catching up on sleep after the weekend, you know how it is."

Stephanie laughed, recognizing my evasive answer for what it was. "She's still in the room, isn't she? Well, I'll make this quick, then, and we can discuss details sometime when you're alone. We need to get everyone together for a planning session. I figured we should hold it at Ash and Cali's place... since they share an apartment, we won't have to worry about anyone else popping up at inopportune times."

I nodded. "That makes sense. My schedule is pretty open, so whenever they think is good will work for me. You should probably check with Sharon, though."

"I already did," she answered, and I could sense the smile in her voice. "Unlike some people, she doesn't sleep until noon. She thought that tomorrow afternoon would be good... that gives us a lot of time without having to worry about getting home too late and irritating her parents. She needs a ride, though. Can you pick her up?"

I glanced quickly at Mom again. In a sense, I was caught here... I wasn't sure how Sharon going out with me again so soon would sit with her parents, but I couldn't exactly voice that misgiving in front of my mother, either. "Yeah, I can do that," I agreed. Sharon had, after all, said she thought her parents had guessed about us already anyway, so it should be all right. I hoped.

"That's perfect, then. Does three o'clock work for you?"

I thought about that a moment. "Sure. I'll need directions, though. Can you email them to me?"

"I already did that, too," she answerd. I blinked at that, then realized that Sharon must have given her my address. She laughed softly, evidently sensing my surprise. "You really do underestimate me, Jon," she said, and I could almost see her not-quite-smug expression in my mind. I should have been expecting that, too, I suppose; Stephanie seemed the sort of person who took a sort of pride in being one step ahead of everyone else.

"Well, then, I guess I'll go check for those. Was there anything else you wanted?"

"No, that should do it. I trust you will work out the details with Sharon... so I'll see you tomorrow, then?"

"Sure. See you then." After she hung up the phone, I set it lightly on its cradle and then glanced again in Mom's direction. "I've got another call to make, but I'm going to go back to my room."

"Now, don't run off, Jon," she answered, a curious look in her eye. "Who is this Stephanie person, anyway? I don't think you've ever mentioned her before...?"

"She's one of Sharon's friends, Mom. I just met her this weekend, actually, so I don't really know her very well yet, either." I shrugged, trying to play down our acquaintance. "They're going out with some of their other friends tomorrow, and invited me along."

She smiled a bit. "Oh, so you and Sharon must be closer than you've been letting on, if you're going out with her friends," she teased.

Ouch. I'd stepped into that one, hadn't I? Still, I recovered fairly quickly... I may be a poor liar, but I do think well on my feet when I have to. "Sharon doesn't have her driver's license yet, so I think they just needed someone with a car."

"Surely one of them could have picked her up, though," Mom pointed out. "If you were invited, there must be some reason for having you along with them."

"Who knows?" I answered, trying to sound dismissive. Somehow I don't think I was as effective as I would have liked to be, because the knowing look never went out of her eyes. "It's not like I have a whole lot to do, since I'm not working this week, so I said yes."

Evidently deciding she wasn't going to get more of an answer than that out of me, she just shrugged. "If you say so. If you really do think there is nothing to this, though, you might want to be sure that Sharon sees it the same way..."

I shook my head, trying very hard not to smile. "Trust me... you don't need to worry about that."

It seems odd to say, after everything I had been through in the previous week, that I was nervous standing on the doorstep of Sharon's house. But as I lifted my hand to ring the doorbell, I found myself hesitant, even fearful. I can't even really explain why... it was not as if I had never met Sharon's family before, and I had always gotten along well with them in the past. I guess I was worried because I knew Sharon was worried. Or maybe just because now it was more important that I get along with them than it had been before... in the past I hadn't really given it much thought. Now, I was terrified of making some misstep that would cause me problems for, well... the rest of my life.

The rest of my life. Yes, even at that point, I thought in those terms when it came to Sharon. I guess that's where the intimidation factor really came in. With all the seeming fate and destiny that had pushed Sharon and I together, and all the magic that seemed to swirl about the two of us, I simply couldn't envision ever being apart from her again. Her parents didn't know that, of course. They couldn't know that. To them, I was just another young man with an eye on their precious daughter. There was no way to explain it to them, either... so if they decided to make things difficult, I would just have to ride it out.

Sharon's mother--a tall, fair-haired woman who looked about ten years younger than the forty I knew her to be--answered the door, and I tried my best to look as though I was not frightened out of my wits. Since I'm not very good at these things, I'm sure I wasn't very convincing. Stil, she smiled warmly at me and invited me inside. "Oh, hello, Jon. Sharon said she would be down in a minute, so please, make yourself comfortable."

"Thank you, ma'am," I answered in my most polite voice, relaxing ever so slightly. At least she still seemed friendly. Following her into the living room, I took a seat on the couch, trying not to glance too anxiously toward the stairs where I knew Sharon would appear. I mentally chided myself... I was acting exactly like what I didn't want to seem... a high-school kid picking up a girl for their first date. Frantically I tried to think of something to say, but the only topics that came to mind--the weekend, Sharon herself, and the like--were exactly what I really didn't want to talk about.

I was rescued from that particular snare, however, by Sharon's voice from somewhere upstairs. "Mom, can you come here a minute please?" she called out.

Mrs. Reine smiled pleasantly. "I'm sorry, Jon, can you excuse me a moment?" I nodded quickly, hoping I didn't seem are relieved as I felt, and she turned quickly and walked toward the stairs. Left by myself, I glanced around the room a little. I had forgotten just how well-off Sharon's parents were; while their home was not extravagant in any sense of the word, everything in it was of high quality... my parents could scarcely afford even one piece of furniture from this room, much less all of it. Even so, there was something about this place that made me feel welcome, more so than in my other friends' homes. It was even enough to make me relax a little.

Of course, that just meant that my guard was down when Sharon's father appeared from out of the kitchen. "Oh, hello, Jon," he greeted me pleasantly, extending his hand to me. "How's it going?"

I stood, shaking his hand firmly, though as always I doubt that I impressed him much. Mr. Reine is not a tall man, but he has broad shoulders and a powerful musculature, and his grip was quite a bit stronger than anything I could manage in my natural form. "Pretty well," I answered, giving my standard response. Better not to elaborate, I thought, lest I provoke questions I really didn't want to answer.

He nodded, still smiling, and took a seat in the leather recliner off to one side of the couch. I was just sitting down myself when he spoke again. "That was quite an adventure you had this weekend, wasn't it?"

I stiffened a bit at the question, and sat down a little more awkwardly than I intended. "I... well, I think we missed most of the interesting parts." I silently cursed myself once again; it was a lame answer at best, but now I had to run with it. "From what was left of the hotel, though, I think I'm glad."

"Got a good look at it, then?" he asked. "We saw you two on the news, in the crowd looking at the scene." On the news? There had been a news camera there? The pieces suddenly fell into place; no wonder our parents had known about us! We'd had our arms around each other on TV! How did we miss THAT? "We were worried at first that y'all had been involved, since you seemed kind of shell-shocked, but I guess looking at something like that first-hand would spook anybody."

I nodded weakly, knowing I had to tread carefully here. I still didn't know exactly what story Sharon had told them, and if I said too much I ran the risk of contradicting her. I hate this kind of thing... deceiving people just doesn't sit well with me, but I couldn't exactly tell the truth, could I? I was more worried that if they caught us in a lie that they'd think something worse, though. I had to carry this off somehow. "It... was pretty disturbing."

He seemed to study me for a moment, as if I'd let something slip, but not quite enough for him to figure out what it was. He was being entirely too perceptive for my liking; I needed a way to derail his speculations. Then, as suddenly as it had come on, he relaxed and leaned back in his chair. "Well, I was still concerned. Sharon's not the kind of girl to tell us a story, but she also wouldn't want us to worry about her. If you say you weren't there, though, that's good enough for me."

I breathed a soft sigh of relief, hoping it didnt show on my face, and was quietly thankful that he had no idea how close he had come to losing his precious daughter. I remembered how I had felt in that moment--how I still felt, even two days later--and I didn't want to imagine how he would react. Even so, I felt guilty; as Senshi, she and I faced that threat constantly... one mistake and we could be killed, and our parents might never know what had happened to us. Even if they knew, they would never understand what we had died fighting for.

Somewhere in the depths of my heart, I swore that would not happen. I would make provisions for my parents, should anything happen to me. For Sharon... I would make sure her parents never needed to know.

I don't know how long the silence lasted, only that it was broken by the sound of Sharon's hurried footsteps coming down the stairs. "Come on, Jon!" She burst into the room. "We're going to be late!"

Her father glanced at her appraisingly for a few moments before nodding his approval, and I realized that he'd been evaluating her mode of dress. Ok, maybe they really were overprotective, I thought, considering that she was in jeans and a t-shirt. He then turned back to me. "You take good care of my daughter, son... and remember, she has to be home by midnight."

"DAD!" Sharon burst in protest, flustered. "It's not a date! We're going out with Stephanie and her friends!"

"Listen to your father, Sharon," her mother's voice floated in from the stairs, where she was just coming back down. "We just want what's good for you."

She sighed. "Yes, mother."

I just agreed, not wanting to drag this out any further; like Sharon had said, we were already running late. "Midnight, then." Ignoring the how-dare-you-agree-with-them look Sharon fired in my direction at that, I smiled at her and motioned to the door. "Let's get going."

We were about a block away from her house when all the pent-up annoyance and frustration she'd been holding in finally exploded. "Jon, it's horrible! They won't leave me alone! I was ready to go ten minutes before you got here, but Dad got all upset because he said the skirt I was wearing was too short... but they didn't get mad when I was dressed up as Sailor Moon, and that was--"

"--a lot shorter, yes." I started to comment that her version of a Senshi skirt had still been longer than her Sailor Cancer fuku, but realized that I'd probably already misstepped by admitting I'd noticed such a thing at all. Better to change the subject... "That was before they saw us hanging on each other on the twelve o'clock news. Remember the scene at the hotel?"

Her eyes went wide and she slumped back against the seat. "Well, that explains a lot. Mom's been dropping hints all morning that there's something I need to tell her... and Dad is just convinced that this is some kind of date, ever since I told him who was picking me up."

I had to smile a bit at that. "Yeah, I've been getting the same kind of treatment. And I was trying to convince my mom it was nothing, too. Now I know why she didn't believe me."

She sighed a little, then gave a bit of a shrug. "It could be worse, though. They could know about the other thing."

"Don't even say that!" I pointed at the fake woodgrain paneling on the dashboard. "Knock on that! It'll have to do!"

She laughed. "I know they don't know about that. This they might let slide, but that? I'd never hear the end of it."

"...you're just determined to jinx us, aren't you?"

"You know it," she answered, sticking her tongue out at me. Then, seeing a convenience store on the side of the road, she pointed it out. "Stop there a minute. I skipped breakfast; didn't want to put up with the interrogation at the table." Then she sighed. "I guess I'm going to have some explaining to do when I get back home."

I shrugged. So much for any chance of being on time. "It's like you said... it could be worse."

Thankfully, Ash's and Cali's apartment wasn't too difficult to find, so we only wound up about ten minutes late. Of course, that was more than late enough to open us up for a few pointed barbs from various corners.

"Well, the lovebirds finally arrive!" Cali announced upon answering the door. "Come in, come in... what kept you? Trying to sneak in some time alone?"

Sharon was evidently not in a mood to put up with the teasing. "If I've said it once, I've said it a thousand times. It's--"

"--not like that?" Leo looked up from the spot she had staked out on the couch. "I have video that says otherwise, Sharon-chan. You two really need to be more careful about the PDA, you know."

Sharon rolled her eyes. "Et tu, Stephanie?"

The Senshi of Leo shrugged. "I just don't see why you keep trying to deny it. Your parents obviously know, and there's no reason to hide it from anyone else, right?"

Cali grinned, slipping an arm around my shoulders before I could avoid her advance. "If you're ashamed of him, I'll gladly take him off your hands. I'm sure he's lots of fun in..."

I almost laughed. Almost. Two sudden realizations, however, put a quick stop to that response. The first was that Cali was serious. She wanted me, and even the fact that I was clearly in love with Sharon was barely enough to hold her back, to keep her remarks in the realm of innuendo and humor. That came to me as a surprise, but the other realization was far more shocking.

Sharon was angry.

It wasn't an obvious thing... anger isn't in Sharon's temperament, and when she does get angry it's not explosive or even boiling. She didn't raise her voice--in fact, she didn't say anything--or turn red or change her expression at all, except for the slightest narrowing of her eyes as she looked at Cali. I wondered at the intensity of the emotion behind that gaze... Sharon seemed larger than herself, as though something great and powerful had been awakened by her fury.

It was enough. Cali's voice trailed off in mid-sentence, and she took a slow step back away from me. A long, tense moment passed, then Sharon sighed softly, and placed her own hand on my shoulder. "I guess this is my fault, isn't it? I'm sorry, Cali, I should have made it clear." Her voice was soft and almost regretful, and yet there was a certain resolution that seemed to grow in it with each word. "He's mine. He's mine and I'll never let him go... and I'd prefer you stop trying to take him from me."

The words left me almost breathless. For as long as I'd known Sharon, she'd never claimed anything as her own. If someone wanted something that was hers, she'd give it to them. If someone took something that was hers, she wouldn't ask them to return it. This was someone who would take up someone else's cause at the drop of a hat, but I'd never seen her fight for anything of her own.

And here she was ready to fight for me.

The significance of that moment to me is something I can't quite put into words. I won't even try. I wanted to answer her, to affirm her devotion, but how do you respond to something like that? You can't. So I just placed my hand atop hers and squeezed it gently.

Cali shook her head, seemingly a little stunned by this sudden development. "I'm... sorry, Sharon. I didn't realize you were that serious. Really."

Sharon sighed a bit, and her hand turned to grasp mine tightly. "I know. I know it's sudden, I know it's... so much. I get embarrassed, and I give the wrong idea. It's my fault, really. I mean that." She then smiled a bit, adding, "It's still not like that, though. Stephanie can comment all she wants about what a prude I am, but I'm proud of it, and I'm not planning to change anytime soon." She waggled a finger in Cali's direction in mock reproof. "So don't assume!"

Cali grinned, and the tension in the room seemed to abate. "I'll assume what I want! You can't take away all my fun!"

At that, I did laugh, and drew Sharon closer to myself, slipping my free arm around her waist. I was still somewhat at a loss for words, but I was not quite ready to let the moment slip past yet. It was yet another hint at something deeper between us than our surface experiences justified, another indicator of a bond that transcended the kind of affection formed in a period of days. Perhaps even more than that, there was something else tugging at the back of my mind, a faint sense of having known these feelings before.

Stephanie's voice called me back from such reflections, her tone edged with a certain irony. "The way you two hang on each other, you make it hard to believe there isn't something going on there, you know, Sharon. I hope for your sake that you tone it down in front of your parents."

Sharon blushed, and at a quick glance from her I let my arm drop by my side. "I think I'd be afraid to stand next to her when her parents are around," I mumbled under my breath, hoping to change the tone of the discussion. Looking around the room, I found an even better opportunity... a chance to change the subject altogether. "Where's Ash, anyway? I thought you said she lived here with you, Cali?"

"She went out to get some food," Cali answered, moving over to one of the chairs near the TV. "Make yourself comfortable... we can't get started 'til she gets back. It shouldn't be long.

After about half an hour, it was clear that Cali was starting to worry. "This isn't like her," she mumbled, perhaps not intending to voice her concerns aloud. "She's never late like this. Maybe I should call her."

"Maybe she's standing in line at the store," Sharon suggested, trying to be helpful.

"I suppose... but she didn't have that much to get. She could have used the express--" She never finished the sentence, as four Senshi communicators chose that moment to simultaneously announce the answer to our question. While Sharon and I fumbled for the sources of the insistent beeping, Cali had hers almost immediately in hand as if it were nothing new to her. "Something wrong?"

"Is everyone there?" Ash's voice was cool as usual, but there was a note of tension in it that belied her calm demeanor.

"Yeah, they've been here a while now." Cali glanced meaningfully in our direction, and between her expression and her careful choice of words, I knew what she was getting at. No names, at least until we knew how secure these communicators were. "What's going on?"

"You might want to turn on the TV."

I frowned; there was something about the way she had said it that gave me a distinctly bad feeling about what was coming.

Stephanie picked up the remote, aiming it in the direction of the TV set. "What channel?" she asked as she clicked it on; the image resolving into what looked like a news update.

"Any channel."

"Goodness..." Sharon breathed, the soft sound of her voice audible over the voice of the news anchor, and I turned toward the TV. The words "Monster Attack" were emblazoned across the top of the screen, with images below of a crowd of our favorite green, scaly friends tearing through what looked like a jewelry store of some sort. It took only a moment longer to realize that this was in a shopping mall, and from the bodies strewn about randomly over the area, it had been a busy one.

"--no idea if the bystanders are dead or merely unconscious," a reporter was explaining. "Emergency workers and police have tried to approach the scene, but anyone who comes near to the attacking creatures collapses almost immediately. They seem to be searching for--oh, god, they're coming this way!" Suddenly, the image broke into static and was replaced by a "technical difficulties" logo.

A few seconds later, the anchorman came on, looking visibly shaken. "That was the scene from Valley Ridge Mall just a few moments--", he began, his voice abruptly cut off when Stephanie shut off the TV.

"I think we've seen enough. We need to go put a stop to this."

Sharon cast me a concerned glance, then nodded. I looked at both of them, then at Cali who indicated her agreement as well.

"I'm on my way there," Ash's voice cut in. "I'm only about two blocks away already, so it would just delay you if I tried to come back."

"We'll meet you there." Cali cut off the connection. "All right, how are we going to do this?"

"Good question," I answered with a shrug. "I was hoping we could work out plans for this sort of thing today. We can't just transform here; if we all go running out of the apartment in Senshi form, we're advertising our secret identities to the whole neighborhood."

Sharon frowned. "All of us showing up on the scene in one car isn't going to be much better, unless we can transform somewhere a few blocks away."

I sighed. "That's true, too. Times like this I wish we could just teleport--"

Stephanie's laugh cut me off in mid-sentence, and I stared blankly at her for a moment before I realized what it was that she found so amusing. "Jon... we can."

Cali blinked in surprise. "That's right, we can. Ash and I had to do it once, and if two of us can, then four can for sure. Everybody transform, I'll show you how it's done." While the others dug out their henshin wands, Cali went around turning out lights and locking the front door. As they all changed, I found myself turning my back just to keep from staring. Besides, like I'd said before, my own transformation sequence made me self-conscious enough. Drawing a deep breath, I whispered the words.

"Gemini Star Power... Make up!"

It's funny how every time you go through the transformation, a different aspect of it jumps out at you. The first two times, I'd been too obsessed with the change in my body to really notice anything else. The most recent time, I'd noticed the temporal distortion that seems to surround the event. This time, I think, was the first time I really noticed the costume itself as it came into being.

I remember from the series that each Senshi has their own "effect" that surrounds the transformation, something related to their element... and as I really observed my own for the first time, I wondered what it said about me. The fuku did not so much seem to "appear" or "materialize" as it did with the others... instead, it changed, shaping itself along with my new form, seemingly from the same substance as my old clothes, yet once it was done the composition was something far more exotic.

I'd never really noticed before that point the form of my own costume. It was standard Senshi fare, really: a stylized sailor fuku in white trimmed with light blue. The boots were tall, not quite like Sharon's or Stephanie's, but enough that they came up to just below my knees, and the gloves were long, almost up to my elbows. The skirt, as with all such things, seemed impossibly short, but I'd resigned myself to that. At least it wouldn't interfere with my ability to move. On the whole, I have to admit the outfit looked good... and perhaps that was the thing that disturbed me about it most of all.

In a way, it seemed almost beyond my likes and dislikes anyhow... it was, like the body it accompanied, a part of me, and not something I really had any say in. I tried not to think about what that might mean.

Once the change was done, I turned back to the others. They were standing in an open square, with Sharon and Cali extending their hands to me to form the final link.

As I took their hands, Cali explained. "This is easier than it sounds, really. Just concentrate on where we want to go, and let the magic carry you... just like when you first transformed."

I decided not to point out that I'd been drunk when I first transformed; the last thing I needed was to give either Cali or Stephanie more ammunition the next time they wanted to torment me. I closed my eyes, feeling the magic resonate through the link we shared. Then, as the others gave voice to the command, I found the words on my own lips as well.

"Sailor.... TELEPORT!"

We appeared a little closer to the action than I think any of us intended, in the center of the mall's main court. We came in right on top of them, and if surprise is a combat objective, we certainly achieved it. The problem was that we weren't exactly expecting us to pop in some twenty feet off the floor, either. Did I say we appeared right on top of them? Yeah, we did. Literally.

Mind you, a twenty-foot fall isn't much for a Senshi, even when we're not expecting it. Falling in the midst of a horde of green scaly monsters, however, definitely qualifies as a less than optimal situation. Fortunately, Senshi have quick reflexes... at least, most of us do. Sharon... isn't the most coordinated of people, even in her Senshi form, and we'd fallen halfway to the ground before I realized she was going to land badly.

Fortunately again, Senshi have quick reflexes. Already holding her hand, I was somehow able to sweep her up into my arms before we hit. It didn't do wonders for my form upon landing, I'm sure, but as Sailor Gemini I could take a hard fall and hardly notice. Leo and Taurus, not having to worry about anyone but themselves, were already unleashing their attacks even as they hit the ground. With the sonic shockwave to our left and the seismic blast to our right, we created an alley for ourselves in the midst of the enemy.

It bought us just enough time. No sooner had I set Sharon lightly on her feet than the enemy were upon us again. There was no time for anything cute; this was the superpowered version of a knife fight. That suited me just fine; I was equipped for it. "DIVISION BLADE!" I called out, summoning an ethereal broadsword to my hands and hacking at the two monsters who immediately made a grab for us.

I'm not sure how many monsters there were in this place. Whatever they were after, it had to be important... in the past they'd come at us in twos, threes, maybe even fives... but this was a horde of them, and we were surrounded on all sides. For every one that I cut down or that Leo or Taurus blasted, another stepped up in its place. We stood back to back to back, with Sharon in the center trying to shield us as well as she could manage. We were holding our own, but if the odds didn't change soon... well, this wasn't the kind of fight our powers were designed for. I was doing all right, but the energy-wielders in the group needed more space to break out their powerful attacks.

One of these days I'm going to learn to wish for such things sooner rather than later. Almost the very moment that thought crossed my mind, I heard a familiar shout.

"EMBER FLASH!" Sailor Aries shouted from across the court, vaporizing four of the enemy in a burst of sudden flame and leaving a gap in their ranks. Sensing the opening, I motioned to Cali to make a break for it, but she was already moving. Grabbing Sharon's hand, she bolted through the narrow breach to where Aries was waiting. Stefanie followed closely behind, barely squeezing through as the enemy ranks reformed... closing me in.

They had me trapped. Surrounded. All I could see on all sides was a wall of green, scaly, vaguely humanoid creatures with glowing red eyes, long, razor-sharp claws, and long, jagged teeth. There was nowhere for me to run, nothing to hide behind.

Somehow, I wasn't afraid.

I don't know how. I don't know why. The previous fights had certainly scared me enough--once the initial shock wore off, anyway. Maybe it was just the intensity of the situation, that there wasn't time to be afraid. Maybe it was the combat-toughness of Sailor Gemini taking over. Maybe I was just angry because of all the trouble these monsters were causing... but I think it was something else.

In the last fight, in the convention hotel, I'd started to realize something about myself. I'd started to learn how these crazy powers of mine worked, and what I could do with them. I'd even started to figure out my role. So when they closed me in like that, I think that subconsciously I realized something about the battle. By fighting me in close quarters, they'd taken away their main advantage--they couldn't use their energy beams without hitting each other. That brought them down to melee... and if I'd learned anything about my powers by then, it was this.

Melee combat is what I do.

Three of them pounced, catlike, swiping with their claws. I reacted instinctively, leaping high into the air over their attacks. I swung the sword in wide arcs as I came down, severing one's head and slicing another in half; both disintegrated before I hit the ground. I landed facing the third; he slashed out at me with his claws, which I blocked with the sword.

Another attacked me from behind, I felt the attack coming and stepped out of the way. It was automatic, reflexive; if I'd had time to think about it, I could never have done that. Maybe I had been wrong about having to train; it seemed the powers came with training of their own. The sword was getting in my way, so I let it dissipate and fought with my fists.

Another attack came from the rear; each time I turned to face one, there was another behind me eager to plant his claws in my back. I couldn't completely dodge that one, and felt the talons rake across my skin. It didn't hurt as much as it should have--just stung, really, and I could feel the airflow across newly-exposed skin. I countered without looking, a backhand blow that caught the creature in the face and flung it back into the crowd. I didn't look to see if it got up, there were too many still in range to worry with.

One tried to jump on my back then; I spun underneath the attack and caught it with a rising punch that launched it ten feet in the air. The impact must have been enough to kill it, as it came back down in a rain of dust. I grimaced in disgust but kept fighting, finishing two more with a jumping spin kick.

Another claw swipe that got through, this one across my abdomen, told me that I couldn't keep it up forever. They hadn't managed to hurt me badly yet, from what I could tell, but I knew better than to expect that to last. At the same time, I could feel my costume coming apart, and that had me really ticked off. From the drafts I felt, I didn't think I was exposing anything critical yet, but I wasn't thrilled with the idea, either. Weren't these costumes supposed to be indestructible? I needed to make some space, to get back to the others.

Where were the others? I'd lost any sense of direction in the chaos of the melee, so I tried to just dodge attacks and listen for the energy blasts to pick out a direction. Just as I thought I had it, I got the spark of an idea of how to get there. The enemy seemed to like the whole scream-and-leap idea of tactics, so I waited for the scream, then sidestepped the leaper, grabbing by the legs as he went by. Spinning around, I threw him in the direction I was trying to head, bowling over several more of the enemy in the process.

Then I charged.

It was a crazy idea. I fully acknowledge this. One of the perks of being super-strong and largely invulnerable, though, is that sometimes you can do crazy things and make them work. Like any guy my age, I was a football fan... so I just put my head down and did my best imitation of a running back hitting the line. Packed too closely together for any kind of evasion, they fell like dominoes. What I had not counted on was how quickly they would recover, and I found myself in the center of a swarm with no room even to move. I'd almost made it to the edge of the crowd, but not quite... and then I was in trouble.

Fortunately, the other Senshi were fighting as fiercely to get to me as I was to them. As I braced myself for an onslaught I had little hope of surviving, I felt the reassuring warmth as Sharon's shield enveloped me. No more than a second after that, that shield was tested... not by my enemies, but by a barrage of searing heat and crushing stone and by a deafening concussive blast of sound. Senshi magic crashed against the wall of enemies between us; a dozen and more enemies fell in seconds. The sheer force of the assault drove me to my knees, even with the shield to protect me; without such protection, the horde reeled and were driven back.

The others were at my side before the enemy could regroup and mount a counterattack. Sharon knelt beside me, letting the shield drop, and I felt a little of her power flow into me, dulling my pain and giving me the strength to stand again. I turned to face the enemy, intending to charge back into the fray... but there was little left to charge. More than half the enemy force had been obliterated by the massed attacks, and those that were left had broken into smaller clusters. I couldn't see clearly how many were left; a haze of smoke and dust lingered in the air, and a field of broken glass and metal made it difficult to advance.

Aries and Taurus were exchanging fire with the remaining enemies, driving them back toward the cover of the pillars that surrounded the edge of the courtyard. Energy blasts rained in on us from multiple directions now, but the smoke in the air seemed to affect them at least as much as us, as they were not very accurate. With each exchange, the return fire grew a little thinner, but the danger was not yet passed.

"Watch your attacks!" I warned the others. "They're moving to use the support pillars as cover, if you blast them you'll bring down the upper level!" The smoke was starting to clear, and I could see more clearly the damage we had done with our concentrated strike. The area looked like a war zone; the wreckage of several kiosks littered the floor, and water from a smashed fountain spilled out across the broken tiles. Residual fires still burned in a couple of places, where cloth had been ignited by Aries' pyrotechnics, and the floor itself had been shattered by Taurus' detonations. If we applied that kind of force against actual structure... the results could be catastrophic.

"Agreed," Ash answered, sidestepping an energy beam and vaporizing the assailant with her Ember Flash attack. "Something doesn't seem right. They're still too coordinated..."

In that moment, there was a shimmer in the air, a ripple, as though reality itself was pushed momentarily aside... and out of that disortion a dark-clad figure appeared. "Like someone is giving them orders, you might say?" He held up a hand, and the energy blasts stopped. "Very perceptive. I can see how you defeated Fluorite... but you will not fare so well against me."

I clenched my fists, biting back the sarcastic comment before it could escape. Let him talk, I told myself, he might tell us something useful.

He was, of course, a Dark General. That much had been apparent before he had spoken a single word. The superior attitude and the posturing only served to reinforce that conclusion. Even I could sense a difference in this one, though. The distortion had not quite faded, and the haze that had floated in the air seemed to cling to him, swirling about him and obscuring his form. I wasn't really sure what that meant, but it couldn't be good.

Aries, apparently, was not going to wait to find out. "Flame Blaster!" she shouted, unleashing a stream of fire directly at him. The attack detonated spectacularly on impact, showering sparks and flame across the open court, but when the smoke cleared our adversary appeared completely unscathed.

"Well, that was rude," he chided. "I haven't even introduced myself. I am Tanzanite, humble servant of my dread Queen, and I've come to kill you."

He gestured with his hand then, and an invisible bolt of force blasted Sailor Aries off her feet. Thrown across the courtyard by the violence of the impact, she smashed through one of the glass storefronts and into a shelf-covered wall with a frightening crash.

"Aries!" Taurus shouted in horror, looking first back at the scene, and then to Tanzanite. "You... I'll tear you apart! Blast Wave!" The floor exploded beneath Tanzanite's feet, showering him with shards of concrete, and yet he did not even flinch.

"If that is the best you have, I shall be most disappointed," the Dark General answered. "Please don't waste my time with such a pitiful effort." Thrusting his hand out toward Taurus, he struck her with a wave of power that rippled the air in its path. She put her arms up to block, but to no avail as she was thrown back. The attack slammed her up against one of the pillars that supported the upper level, and she slumped to the floor bonelessly.

This was getting bad, and quickly. Aries was climbing out of the wreckage of the storefront, but from her tentative movements it was clear she was still in a lot of pain. Taurus wasn't moving at all. I looked to Leo and Cancer, at the horror that showed on their faces. The sheer violence of his attack was overwhelming us already... we had to take back the initiative somehow.

Deciding that fell to me, I gathered all the power I could and charged at him. He turned to me, still with that arrogant smirk, and I could feel my rage build. I'd wipe that smug expression off his face with one punch, I thought, throwing all the power I'd gathered behind my
right fist...

...and I struck a solid, immovable wall about two inches from his face. In that moment, I understood; the haze that seemed to gather around him was a forcefield, the same kind of energy he was throwing at us with his attacks. This was Tanzanite's power, his impregnable defense and his brutal attack. If there was just some way to penetrate it...

The moment passed, and in the next I paid the price for that piece of knowledge. He smiled; I could swear he was laughing, but the howl of the air around me as his force bolt struck me drowned out any sound. Every muscle, every bone, every nerve in my body screamed in pain, and so did I, as an invisible hammer of force pounded me into the ruined floor. Splinters of glass and rock dug into my flesh, and while they did not penetrate it, my seeming invulnerability did not lessen the pain.

I struggled to regain my feet, to recover some form of defense, but he never gave me the chance. The second force bolt struck me while I was still on my knees, flinging me head-first through a stone wall. Lances of pain shot down my spine, and then everything seemed to blur. My vision dimmed... and everything went black.

It could not have been more than a few seconds later when I recovered consciousness. Dragging myself back to my feet, I tried to take stock of my situation. My costume was in tatters, a condition I would later come to regret, but in that moment I was too angry and too hurt to really care. Every part of me ached or stung, but my flesh was unpierced and I could still stand to fight. I turned back toward the battle zone, only to find myself facing a wall of the green scaly guys we'd become so familiar with. I shook my head to clear the mental haze and forced down the protests of my battered body... there was no time for pain; we were fighting for our lives.

Once again, the words came to my mind in exactly the right moment, and I drew in as much power as I dared as the enemy closed in around me. Then, at the last possible moment, I let that power loose.

"Aura Burst!"

The shockwave of blue energy erupted from my body in all directions, smashing as easily through the monsters before me as it did through the wall behind. They disintegrated before they even hit the ground, and I found my way clear. Stepping back out into the battle arena that the mall courtyard had become, I tried to take stock of the situation.

Leo was holding her ground, somehow, even as Tanzanite tried to pummel her with his force bolts. Powerful claps of thunder shook the walls and floor around me, and I realized she was using her sonic power to counter the force of his attack. Still, I knew from experience with our powers that she could not keep that up forever... and Tanzanite showed no signs of tiring.

Aries had rejoined the battle as well, but she was more than busy keeping the green-and-scalies from mobbing Leo. Her flames ravaged any that dared approach, but it was all she could do to maintain a defense.

Cancer was kneeling beside the fallen Taurus, who seemed to still be unconscious. No... she was moving, just a little. That at least was encouraging, though after the shot she had taken I was not sure she would be in any condition to fight. Even if she did, her attack had been shrugged off by Tanzanite before.

We were in trouble.

My mind raced to come up with a tactic, an approach that might be able to penetrate Tanzanite's defense. None of my attacks were going to scratch him, though with my newly-discovered ability I had a better defense against his assault than before. Leo was hard-pressed to hold him off. Maybe Taurus or Aries had another trick up their sleeve I hadn't seen yet, but other than that...

I had an idea. Moving to Leo's side, I told her, "Let me defend his next attack. When I do, I want you to hit him with everything you've got." She looked at me questioningly--and a little fearfully--for a moment, then a certain determination overtook her and she nodded.

She had barely turned to face him again when the next force bolt bore down on us. After seeing a couple of those attacks, though, I had learned how to read it; just as the blast was about to strike, I unleashed my aura burst. The two powers detonated spectacularly when they met, shattering the floor before us and raining debris all around, but vertically dispersing the force of the attack, and providing our opportunity.

"SONIC FANG!" Leo shouted, locking her hands together with first fingers pointed at Tanzanite. I did not so much see the attack as feel it, a piercing shriek that seemed to rip the air open between them, Even off to one side, it set my teeth on edge, and the world seemed to reel around me as the aural assault disrupted my equilibrium.

For a moment, the haze around Tanzanite seemed to thicken, then for another instant it was gone entirely. He screeched in pain, clutching at his chest where the piercing wave had struck him. He staggered, and nearly fell from where he hovered before us. Then, as suddenly as it had gone, his forcefield snapped back into place, and he regarded us with a vicious smile.

"You actually managed to hurt me; I will give you that. As a reward, I shall make your end a quick one."

"No, it's over," an unfamiliar voice sounded from above and behind me. I turned, and standing on the railing of the upper level was a tall, thin figure in a tuxedo and a mask. In his hand, he held a single rose.

I stared. It could not be, I told myself. It could not be. I was the man of this group, there was no room for a rose-throwing bishounen here!

Even so, there he was... and what did that say about ME?

Before I could dwell on that thought, his words brought me back to the battle at hand. "You have done enough damage here, villain. This battle ends now."

Tanzanite's eyes went wide with shock and fury. "YOU! I'll--" he started to shout, then cut off abruptly as the rose was thrown. He screamed in that moment, and the swirling haze went still. A flare of light shone from the point of contact, silver cracks gleamed brightly in his barrier... and then it shattered like crystal dropped on a stone floor. "NO!" he screamed. "No, you can't!"

The tuxedo-clad mystery boy cut him off. "Sailor Aries, use your fire attack!"

Aries wasted no time following that instruction. "Flame Blaster!" she cried out, unleashing a stream of fire at the wounded, staggered Dark General. It struck him square in the chest, where the rose still stuck out from his tunic.

Tanzanite screamed again, a horrible sound of agony, as he burst into flame. Instants later, he was gone, leaving only a pile of ash on the floor below... and a silvery metallic rose.

I stared in shock. I was not the only one. While the rest of us looked on, Tux-boy jumped down from the railing, landing with impossible lightness on his feet next to Tanzanite's remains. He picked up the rose, tucking it in his pocket, and turned to Sailor Aries.

"Well done, Sailor Aries!" He smiled at her, and I could feel the resentment brewing in me already. What had Aries done that the rest of us hadn't? Used an attack the enemy had already demonstrated he could shrug off? I could not help but think there was something more going on than I could see. Something did not add up.

I pushed that thought down. He had just helped us, after all. I had to give him the benefit of the doubt for that. Still... who WAS this guy? I was about to ask, but his next move froze the words on my lips.

He took Aries' gloved hand, leaned forward, and kissed it. "Just as I would expect, from the Captain of the Senshi," he told her. For a moment, there was a stunned silence that fell over us all... then he stepped back, and spoke again. "Remember, in your darkest hour, look for me... I will be there." With that, he jumped back up over the railing, and as abruptly as he had arrived, he was gone.

Taurus spoke first. "Who the hell was that?"

Aries shrugged and smiled, and I wondered to myself if that was the first time I'd ever seen her look happy. "Who else could it have been, but Tuxedo Kamen?"

If I'd bitten my lip any harder in that moment, it would have bled. Senshi invulnerability, or no.

End Episode Five

Next Episode: As if the appearance of Tux-boy wasn't enough for me to worry about, I have to go back to my job. Worse than that, I have to face my friends... can I even look them in the eye after all of this? Of course, there's another Senshi coming, too... wait, this one wears her glasses with her costume? What kind of anime IS this, anyway? Next episode, Innocence and Experience! And you thought being surrounded by beautiful girls would be fun.