Setsuna and Ami materialized in the room where the others had been, only to find Naru holding a few cans of soda. The girl seemed surprised by something, judging from the slack jaw and the nerveless way the sodas fell from her fingers.
“Naru-san? Are you alright?”
Ami’s question seemed to jar the girl out of her revery. “Y-you just appeared outta thin air.”
“Er, yes. I suppose we did…” The bluenette turned to her green-haired compatriot. “Does this happen to you often?”
Setsuna smiled. “It’s cropped up once or twice over the millennia. Please, relax, Osaka-san.”
“R-right. Sorry. It’s just… Well, y’ understand.”
“Blatant violations of the laws of physics don’t normally happen right before your eyes.” Ami smiled. “I understand. It’s one thing for us to say that we’re the Senshi. It’s another to actually witness magic.”
“Basically.” Naru chuckled a bit. “It’s funny. I’ve been th’ victim o’ th’ week a bunch o’ times, but I never seem t’ get used t’ this stuff.”
“I don’t think anyone does,” confided Ami.
“I can confirm that,” added Setsuna. “There are still times when I can surprise myself. In any case, where did everyone go?”
The redhead shrugged. “Y’ got me. They were here when I left t’ get drinks. I came back, they were gone.”
As if on cue, Ami’s communicator went off. “Mercury here.”
“This is Saturn. There was an attack at the Crown.”
“We’re on our way!”
“Wait! The youma already left. I just came to help tend to the victims.” More quietly, she added, “Well, victim. It seems Motoki-san was the only one who was drained.”
Ami nodded at this. “Where are Moon and Mars?”
“Pursuing the youma. The girls here confirmed it was that cloud thing.”
“Understood. We’ll meet with them. Catch up with us once you’re through.”
“Will do. Saturn out.” Hotaru closed her communicator, and then looked sadly at the VG Girls. All five were huddled behind one of the tables, occasionally risking glances at the girl. “You know, you guys don’t have to hide. The youma’s gone.”
“Yes, Ma’am!” one cried frantically. The glaive-bearer couldn’t see who had. In any case, none of them were moving.
“Are any of you injured?”
“NO! Er, no. No weak or sickly here.”
“Well… I guess I’m done here. Go about your business, citizens.” Giggling at her airs, Saturn departed.
“The Silence. The Metallia-damned Silence.”
“I think she was licking her lips when she looked at me. She’s going to eat me.”
“She’s not going to eat you.”
“How do you know?”
“Because she’s going to eat me first.”
“I think I wet myself.”
“We don’t have urinary systems.”
“I think I grew one.”
“According to that nice girl at the okonomiyaki place, we should be there any minute now.”
Haruka raised an eyebrow. “The boy gave us directions.”
Minako looked at her fellow Senshi skeptically. “Are you sure? I thought the boy was behind the counter. He was kind of cute, too.”
“That was the girl.”
“Oh.”
Osaka tilted her head. “What makes y’ so sure?”
“I have a sixth sense when it comes to gender.”
The odd girl considered this. “Is it more like touch or sight?”
Haruka demonstrated how well she could come to understand a person with what she said next. “I’d ask you to clarify that statement, but I know better.”
“Okay.”
“In any case,” announced Michiru, “we’re here.” The familiar Tendo Dojo sign hung by the door.
Haruka grinned at the message to those who wished to engage the owner in savage combat. “I like this place.”
“You’re still entering from the front, Dear.”
“Aww…”
Makoto rang the bell. A young woman promptly answered, pausing for a moment as she considered the group. “You must all be here for Ranma.”
“How’d you know that?” asked the ponytailed girl.
“Oh, he’s quite popular. A young woman came by earlier today looking for him. I don’t suppose you know her?”
Minako asked the obvious question. “What did she look like?”
“Tan, green hair, carrying a rather large gemstone.”
“That’d be Setsuna.”
A smile came to the hostess’s face. “Ah, then you must also be Senshi.” The group came to a screeching halt. Well, everyone but Osaka. “Is there a problem?”
“There is the small matter of our secret identity,” answered Haruka.
“Oh, not to worry. My sisters and I are Senshi as well.”
“You’re kidding.”
“Not at all. I’m not certain which one Nabiki is, but Akane is Sailor Leo and I am Sailor Cancer. I’m Tendo Kasumi, by the way.”
Introductions were made. It turned out that Kasumi was one of Michiru’s more devoted fans. “I do so look forward to working with you, Kaiou-san.”
“You can call me Michiru, Kasumi-san.”
“If you insist. In any case, I’ll go tell Ranma that he has company. Please, make yourselves comfortable.” Kasumi hummed a tune to herself as she made her way to Akane’s room, pausing only at that of the Saotomes. She opened the door a bit and called, “Nabiki?”
Her sister looked to the door, moving away from the blinding light focused on the chair-bound Genma. “Yeah?”
“Those girls you heard about have arrived, so please be quiet.”
“You got it, Sis.” Nabiki closed the door and turned back to her future father-in-law. “Now then, where were we?”
[I’m just a cute, innocent panda! I don’t know anything!]
The mercenary frowned as she retied her captive’s arms. “That doesn’t work when you’re human.”
“Damn.”
A few doors down, Ranma and Akane were holding one another and generating nauseating levels of warm fuzzies. A knock on the door sent them to opposite corners of the room, blushing furiously. “C-come in!” called Akane, gesturing at Ranma to hide.
Kasumi opened the door. “Hello, Akane-chan!” She looked around. “Oh. I thought Ranma-kun was in here.”
Her sister laughed anxiously. “Ranma? Why would he be in my room?”
“Oh well. If you see him, could you tell him that he has company downstairs?”
Akane frowned. “It’s not Shampoo, is it?”
“No. This is…how should I put this? Ah.” Kasumi held up the Cancer Amulet.
“Oh. Sure thing.”
Kasumi smiled. “Thank you.”
After she left, Ranma exited Akane’s closet. “Y’know, y' should clean that thing out soon.”
“Oh, I almost forgot!” Kasumi reopened the door. Both fiancés froze in place. “Please don’t go into Ranma-kun and Saotome-san’s room for a bit. Nabiki’s helping me with something important.” The occupants mutely nodded. “Thank you again.” She shut the door and laughed internally. It was quite fun to tease those two from time to time.
“BURNING MANDALA!”
The flame attack largely passed through Dominus’s nebulous body. “You can’t burn ash!” cried the cloud. He was getting desperate. Mars was one of the less effective Senshi to pit against him, but the attacks still stung. To make matters worse, Sailor Moon was also in pursuit, and while ash couldn’t burn, youma dust could still be purified. He needed to find a viable host and soon!
“There they are!”
Dominus cursed as Mercury and Pluto came running towards him. With Mars behind and those two in front, he was surrounded. He flared his senses, looking for something, anything, which was dark enough to give him a hold. Miraculously, something in a nearby alley fit the bill, if barely. The cloud raced towards it, and just in time.
“Akuryo Taisan!”
“SHINE AQUA ILLUSION!”
Several soaked talismans marked where the apparition had been. “Where–?”
“There!” called Pluto.
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(Posted Sun, 30 Nov 2008 01:18)
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