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Dreams Diverged by Kihin Ranno

For a thousand years they slumbered peacefully, trapped underneath the ice and eternal snow. For a millennium they dreamed, relying on those images to remember who they had been or who they were. The Sailor Senshi more than others clung to them desperately, knowing that they couldn't forget the lives they had left behind. Some of them remembered the battles, their oaths, their destiny...

But one dreamed of lights and stardom and the chance she’d almost gotten just before the Great Ice came. The record deal she’d almost had… That's what she clung to in the dark of her dreams.

They were the first to awaken, the six of them. The King and Queen in their regalia, the Sailor Senshi tall and proud, ready for the life ahead of them. And then, the unexpected happened.

"I'm giving you all a choice," the Queen said softly, seeming nothing like the little girl she had been before the sleep. "I know that none of you were born desiring a life of death and war. We do not know what is looming on the horizon, but we all know that it won't get easier. There will be rebellion, full scale war, and constant battle. We all know that this would mean that you must each sign over your dreams. There can be no husbands, no children, and no life beyond the fuku you now wear.

"So, I am giving you a choice," she repeated serenely. "Either you stand beside me forever more and renounce the women you once were. You become Sailors Mars, Jupiter, Venus, and Mercury, and nothing more. Or you walk away from all of this and live the life you choose."

Mars, of course, was the first to step forward. They all knew she was the most loyal and would die before separating herself from the woman she loved more than herself. Mercury soon followed, knowing that her dream of being a doctor would come true regardless as it was necessary for their cause. Jupiter hesitated, meditating on her flower shop she'd opened just before the end and mourning the loss of the children she never had. But eventually, she too stepped forward, accepting the hand Mercury placed on Jupiter's shoulders.

Then Venus was the last one left. She had always known in the secret part of her heart what she would have to give up. She knew that she couldn’t achieve her dream and protect an entire planet. She had known it, but she’d never heard it aloud. It made it real. It made it painful.

And now she had a chance to live that dream.

Clenching her fists and biting her lip, she didn’t know what to do. She’d always wanted to sing, to act, to be… special somehow. She couldn’t pinpoint why she’d always wanted to do something like this expect for the knowledge that she was good. She knew it in every part of her body.

But she was a warrior. She had been for two thousand years. And looking at Mamoru and Usagi, who was she to spit in the face of destiny?

It was with a heavy heart that Sailor Venus stepped over the invisible line. Surprisingly, for the gesture seemed so human for someone who seemed so much more than that, Neo Queen Serenity wrapped the blonde in her arms. Venus didn’t know when she started crying or when the others joined them. And she didn’t ask, not wanting to disrupt the silent funerals for Hino Rei, Mizuno Ami, Kino Makoto, and Aino Minako.



-----


Sailor Venus was instantly assigned to the job of Press Secretary. She proved to be a whiz at public relations. She supposed it took a pretty good actor to convince a public that everything was all right even as the Black Moon Rebellion was in full swing. Still, she held the daily press conferences, dealt with the reporters, managed what was leaked and what was kept secret, and various other things. The public heralded Sailor Venus as a kind of celebrity. As the Senshi they saw the most, she became their star and their media darling.

But it wasn’t the same. It wasn’t what Minako had wanted. This was what Sailor Venus had to do. Sailor Venus didn’t have desires.

But the Black Moon came and went. Disaster after disaster was averted. The lot of them defied death, laughed in its face, skirted its razor edge, and always came out on top. Every battle, every war was fought and won. It began to become routine. Even when Jupiter had to start wearing an eye patch and Mars’s face was mutilated, it didn’t seem to matter. After all, they’d won.

And then the end came again. A new enemy they had never anticipated sprang up. They never knew their origins, barely knew their objective. All they knew was their constant bombardments, their superior tactics, and the death tolls.

In the end, Venus was the last one standing, leaning heavily on her left leg as her right one refused to support her. One arm hung useless, and blood dripped from every edifice on her body, but still she fought. But it was mechanic. It lacked passion. They had all lacked passion that this enemy seemed to have in abundance. That was why they fell. That was why Venus left her left side exposed so that the sword could be driven through.

She fell and the war was lost. She heard the little princess scream for her, and Venus felt sick when she heard it abruptly cut off. There were guards and soldiers left, but the Senshi had fallen. The Senshi had failed. What was the point of fighting?

So, as Venus laid there, she thought about what she’d given up. She thought about the life she could have led. She thought about what might have been. She thought about how she hadn’t had so much as a nightmare since the day Aino Minako had died so very long ago.

“I want to dream again…”


-----


"So, I am giving you a choice," the Queen repeated serenely. "Either you stand beside me forever more and renounce the women you once were. You become Sailors Mars, Jupiter, Venus, and Mercury, and nothing more. Or you walk away from all of this and live the life you choose."

After Mars, Mercury, and Jupiter stepped over to stand by the King and Queen, Venus remained on her own. The blonde warrior did not look at her sovereign in this moment, but she knew the gaze that must be on her. So like her mother's, it was hopeful that Venus would do the right thing, but accepting that perhaps she would choose a different path. And she would not hate her for whatever decision she made. The others would be a different story.

It was with a heavy heart that Venus slipped away, leaving only Aino Minako standing there. She stepped forward only to press the henshin wand into her queen's hand before turning and walking away.

Not a word was spoken as the five remaining mourned the death of Sailor Venus.


-----


Aino Minako’s star rose quickly as the demand for entertainment skyrocketed just days after the awakening. Yes, they needed to rebuild, but they also needed to relax. She began as just a singer, a sometimes ethereal soprano and an other times peppy songstress. She explored all ends of the spectrum, singing anything and everything for any occasion. Her status was solidified when it was confirmed that she was the Queen’s music of choice.

It was then that her acting career began. It started with bit parts playing herself or playing the vapid, spoiled actress she was pegged as. But then, meatier roles came, roles that shook the heart and entranced the senses. Everyone was surprised when she succeeded on her own merits. She quickly became a media darling and a respected member of the acting community.

But Aino Minako was not happy. She felt strangely unfulfilled even as all of her dreams came true. At first, she thought perhaps she was lonely, and tried for fill the void with companionship. Of course, she knew that she would never find real friends in her business, but if she had some distractions, perhaps that would be enough. So, she began collecting girlfriends, and when that failed, boyfriends. She had failed relationship after failed relationship. The tabloids loved it. Minako spent a lot of her time combating scandals and denying the validity of the existence of sex tapes or reports of her walking into an abortion clinic. She fought that valiantly until they started coming true.

The next logical step was to numb the pain. It began with alcohol, but it quickly spiraled out. It was prescription pills and merlot in the beginning and cocaine in the end. She managed to keep those rumors secret until her weight dropped and her nose started bleeding in the middle of an interview.

Despite all of this, she was invited to perform at a benefit at the palace. Her manager accepted without her consent, and then she couldn’t back out. Never mind that her voice wasn’t what it used to be or her history with the group, not that her manager knew about that. Still, he’d found himself subsequently fired and Minako had found herself subsequently in a panic.

Still, the show had to go on. So, she’d gone, arriving at the last moment and holing herself up in her dressing room to avoid them all. It had been Jupiter who found her, drunk and crying in a corner, her throat burning from bile and her body shaking from many things. The brunette had bent next to her, cupping the blonde’s chin in her hand, and spoke with a mixture of disdain and pity.

“This was your dream?”

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