Dr. Michi Mizuno slumped gratefully against the door, tired after another long day at the hospital. "Another long day followed by another lonely night." She murmured to herself as she locked the door and went to draw the furo when a peculiar sound reached her ears.
Someone was snoring. And it was coming from Ami's room.
Trying hard to still her beating heart, the elder Mizuno carefully pushed open the door and stared in shock. There, curled up on top the bed was Ami, wearing blue footie pajama's with white snowflakes, of all things. She was a bit taller, to the point that she had to coil herself up a bit to fit into her bed, and her hair was thicker with a wild unkempt look to it, but it was definitely her daughter.
"Ami?" She whispered, cautiously touching the young woman's shoulder. When this garnered no response, she gave her a gentle shake. Worried at the lack of reaction, Michi laid her fingers gently against her daughter's neck.
A blur of motion and a sudden breeze were all the warning the doctor had before her arm was pinned behind her back in an exceptionally painful submission hold and a cold slim blade found it's way to her neck.
"Ami, it's me, momma." She whispered, forcing herself to stay calm despite the jackhammer rate of her own heart and the realization that the dagger was particularly sharp. "I'm not going to hurt you, so please, put the knife down."
Ami gasped sharply as the knife clattered to the floor and she shakily released her grip stumbling back to her desk and turning on the lamp. "Ares sama, what have I become?" She whispered, staring at her hands.
Michi stared at her daughter as her hand quested up to her throat revealing a hairline cut. Ami did that. She thought numbly, staring at her daughter and the slight tint of pink on her own fingers. I startled her, and Ami almost slit my throat.
Unbidden a second thought trotted in behind the first. How close is almost?
Shaking her head briskly, Michi knelt to retrieve the fallen dagger. Looking at the simple straight blade with it's diamond and sapphire embedded hilt, the elder Mizuno found it easy to see her daughter carrying such a weapon.
"I never wanted the jewels." Ami said.
Michi jerked her head up. "What?"
"In the dagger." She said kneeling beside her mother. "I just wanted a nice simple criss cross pattern etched in the metal and some leather wrapped around the hilt." She took the blade from her mother's unresisting grip and gave it a fancy spin before it vanished somewhere on her person. "Stubborn artisans."
"Where-"
"The dagger... or me?" Ami asked running her fingers through her messy blue hair.
"I think it will be a long story." Michi said helping her daughter to her feet. "I'll go make some tea."
"Momma." Ami caught her mother's shoulder and spun her around giving her a tight hug. "I missed you so bad momma, but I'm home now, and I'll never leave you alone again."
Dr. Mizuno held her daughter close as they cried silently, then moved to the kitchen. "I'm so glad to have you home." Michi said, as Ami scrubbed at her eyes.
"Thanks." She said, quickly wiping away her tears. "I haven't cried in years. Not since... a good friend died."
"Years?" Michi raised an eyebrow as she paused in her preparations. "Ami... what happened to you?"
"Before I tell you that, I have to tell you a secret I've been keeping for... too long." She took a deep breath and silently asked Usagi for forgiveness. "Mother... what do you know about the Sailor Senshi?"
***
Light Gate stretched her servos as her internal diagnostics ran. She was reasonably sure that the Ark was safe, but old habits are very hard to break.
"I don't suppose-" Prime got no further before a monitor began flashing red and a containment field sprang up around Light Gate.
"According to Teletran, Skywarp is in the base." Ratchet said typing at the terminal.
"Great. Here we go again. Blaster!" Light Gate fumed.
"I'm on it, Light." Blaster said. "Starting scan now."
Light Gate stood still. "Stupid bloody bakayaro schematics." She muttered. "Is that scan done?"
"Scan finishing... now." Blaster said.
"Good!" Light Gate seemed to flicker and vanish only to reappear a few feet from the containment field.
"How did you do that?" Ratchet asked in fascination.
"There's a reason I read like Skywarp." Light Gate said leaning casually against the wall. "My design was based on his schematics. Including his power rectifier. I have a maximum solo jump range of 10,000 miles. I can also project a field outward to warp a group or large area but it reduces my range by 50%."
"Hmm... this is interesting." Ratchet said, peering at the display. "I'm getting abnormal readings from her spark."
"Dangerous readings?" Prime asked, moving to view the monitor.
"Not that I can tell, though I called Preceptor. He should be here shortly, but... it seems Light Gate also possesses the Matrix of Leadership."
"It's not the Matrix." Light Gate responded, her mood turning dark, as Preceptor entered and began poring over the displayed data. "My spark was created under... unique circumstances. It's not the Matrix, but it is similar."
"Something else. It seems that Light Gate's data banks predate her construction." Preceptor said
"Happier memories from a happier time." The fembot growled. "I don't access them any more."
"She's right." The autobot scientist said. "The files are secured by an eight digit alphanumeric pass code."
"Which means, no offense Prime, hands off." Light Gate snarled.
"Prime! Look at this!" Ratchet said pointing to a bit of data displayed on the screen. "I've only ever seen a pattern like this once. In Autobot X."
Optimus stared, remembering the accident that had forced them to house a human mind in a transformer's body. "Are you saying what I think you're saying?"
Ratchet stared at the data as though willing it to change before Light Gate spoke quietly.
"Once... I was human."
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(Posted Fri, 10 Dec 2004 06:32)
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