Chapter 4 ( Errors In Judgment )
Disclaimer: You
should know this by now.
Time: This story is occurring in the winter of 2041.
Warnings: This is not
an AU. It is a post Galaxia fanfiction
about what I now call The One Hundred Year Sleep. This might very well turn into a series under
the name I've used to dub the period of time this, and later stories, occur
within. I'm treating this time of "sleep" to metaphorically describe a
time period where the Senshi are trying to get themselves together (in this
story, only one person is even close to being labeled as in a sleeping status, maybe). The reality of it is that Rome was not built within a day (and that was
not even close to being labeled as a Utopia).
The period may not even be exactly one hundred years; it too is used as
a metaphor for this time period.
Summary: Kumada Akina has just lost her Father, Kumada Yuuichiro, to disease and
age. However, on his death bed he
requested to not be buried with his prestigious ancestors but to have his ashes
placed at a Tokyo
shrine. From there on out, a trip to Tokyo for the family from Kobe will force Akina to face a few flaws in
her character and discover a city of ghosts.
There, through the memory of others, Akina will learn the bonds of
friendship and family, one that she had forsaken long ago in her silent anger
at a father she loved and hated above all others.
Things
That Change
by Blue Jeans
“Don’t look at me that way.
Not when you don’t know who
it is you are looking at. I’m not
who you think I am, and the same
is true for you.”
Chapter 4
Errors
In Judgment
"There's a lot of
sadness in this world," the blonde said, setting down the tea cup with a
soft clink. "I never really wanted
to see that when I was young. When I
think back, there were a lot of times I had reasons to cry over it, but I kept
smiling because I didn't want to face the pain.
It would hurt too much and at that time, the only way I knew how to
respond to it is smile and run pass it as quickly as possible." She slid a finger down the silver cover with
a nostalgic expression on her face.
Slowly she leaned back as she brought the cup to her lips again,
hesitating as her lips touched the rim.
"I guess, I was very ignorant back then, hm? Thinking that I was really smiling in the
face of pain, that such ignorance was a sign of strength..." She closed her eyes and took a sip before
surprise came over her face.
"Eh! It's completely cold
now! Ah, not again—!"
"Aino Minako
San?" a voice called out from the courtyard.
"Excuse me,"
Minako sighed in exasperation as she looked at her guest. "I really wasn't expecting you, but I
have guests to attend to now who I am expecting."
"Mm," the
woman replied as she poured herself another cup of cooled tea.
The blonde rolled her
eyes at the other's lack of reaction to her words. Without further waiting she exited the room
and found that Kumada Akina had already let herself in and was walking around
the hallways with a curious look about her face. "Eh?" Surprised, Akina jumped a bit on seeing her
blonde hostess. "A-Aino Minako
San! I hope I'm not intruding, but no
one replied and we called several times, and your door was opened—" Akina
explained with a nervous laugh as she bowed quite a few times over in apology.
"Mm," another
voice came behind Aino Minako, "it seems like she went to Jupiter's place,
this one."
"Eh? H-How did you know?" Akina blinked in surprise to see a shape from
the shadows emerging.
Minako sighed again in
exasperation. "Must you always make such a dramatic entrance, Setsuna
San?" With a shrug of her shoulders
Minako turned back to Akina with a welcoming smile. "Well, now that we all met, is the rest
of your family here?"
Perplexed, Akina
reluctantly nodded as Minako invited everyone back into the guest room that
seemed a bit darker than usual. "Sensitive
eyes," the blonde explained when she saw her guests glancing around. "Setsuna San doesn't like the light very
much."
"Like a
Vampire?" Hiroshi asked excitedly.
Minako looked startled
but amused at this suggestion while her other guest laughed heartily. "Mm," the mysterious woman nodded
her head. "Though it's not just
sunlight that my eyes cannot withstand.
My eyes are very sensitive these days to any type of light. I am constantly forced to travel at night
too; it's a real bother." The woman
nodded her head in polite acknowledgment at Kumada Iku before smiling in a
friendly manner at everyone else.
"My name is Meiou Setsuna, and I am an old friend of Minako Chan, here. I am surprised that she had guests. Minako Chan usually doesn't have many people
visiting her at such a place. Still, it
is nice to meet you." A round of
"Nice to meet you"s and introductions went around the room in reply.
"Are you okay,
Aino Minako San?" Nami asked their
hostess worriedly.
Their blonde hostess
shook off her startled expression and smiled a bit uneasily at her guests. "N-nothing," she reassured them.
"If you don't mind
me getting right down to business," Iku sighed as she looked down to her
lap. "I had originally planned to
have my children come here with me so we could hand the ashes of my husband
over to Hino Rei San, as he had requested on his death bed. However, it does not seem she would be
returning any time soon. I have an
obligation to keep to my husband to see his last wishes fulfilled, but Aino
Minako San, do you really have no idea where the mistress of this shrine had
gone?"
"Mm." Meiou Setsuna smiled her close eyed
smile. "Rei Chan's on tour."
"A-Ah,"
Minako quickly interrupted.
"Younger Rei Chan," their hostess nervously explained. "Hino Rei San's been gone for some
time. I can try to contact Rei Chan so
that she could receive the ashes in her mother's place. That is, if you don't mind?"
Iku blinked, surprised. "Hino Rei San had a daughter?" Surprised, Iku looked to her children for
support.
"Why didn't you
inform us of this yesterday?" Akina
demanded in annoyance, the mood created by lunch quickly dissipating. "When we were here, you didn't give us that
impression at all. Is that who visited
us when Father was in the hospital? That
woman who came to his funeral? But she
called herself Mars Reiko San, so she's the ‘Rei Chan’ you're always
talking about?"
"Hino Rei San's
daughter was at the funeral?" Iku
asked, alarmed that she had just found out about such a thing.
Akina paused at this
and shot a nervous glance at their mother and then Hiroshi. "I- I- um- guessed that to- uh- be
her," she stuttered.
"Why didn't you
tell me this earlier?" Iku demanded. "When you learned that she was the woman
I was searching for--"
"Her daughter, you
mean?" Akina weakly supplied.
"It doesn't
matter." Iku shook her head once in
anger. "Why did you not tell me of
this incident?"
Akina looked down
shamefully to her hands on her own lap that clutched in utter frustration. "I did mention this yesterday,” Minako
grumbled. “Still, Rei Chan, knew?" Minako asked surprised. Their blonde hostess’ voice was very small.
"Akina
Chan?" Nami inquired worriedly over
at her sister, who everyone was now looking at with varying degrees of
perplexity.
"She
knew." Akina clutched her hair with
one hand. "A-and I thought she was
his mistress, okay?" Akina yelled
out, "Is that what you wanted me to say?
It hurts so much, that he would have her, after cheating our family of
everything for such a woman."
The slap from Iku was a
surprising sound that echoed throughout the temple grounds. "Don't ever say such a thing." Iku's voice was very soft and very
controlled. "I am ashamed to have
raised such a daughter." Akina's
eyes trembled beneath her mother's stare, which was filled with emotions she
did not wish to name but hurt for her to see.
"Do you think so lowly of your father, Akina? Do you think so lowly of me too? Do you look down so much on strangers you
don't know? Living this way, always
suspicious of any woman that you meet...
I saw it in your eyes so many times before, but I was a bad mother and
ignored the signs. I didn't realize the
extent of your selfish fears." Iku
bowed her head and the act was harsher than any blow she could have dealt to
Akina.
"I cannot believe
my daughter even believed that I had led such a worthless existence. I am so utterly ashamed," her mother
wept, the weeping of a woman who had lost a lifetime.
"M-mother?"
Akina reached out a hand but Iku turned away.
"I-I'm sorry--"
"Akina." Nami took back her sister's hand with a shake
of her head, restraining Akina with a glance and a small touch. "Even you should have learned by now that
sometimes all that words can do is hurt others more," Nami whispered into
her sister's ear. A gentle scolding that
was not meant for anyone else's ears.
"She sure has a
fast digestive system if even Jupiter's food influenced her so little,"
Setsuna spoke, breaking through the sound of Iku's weeping. The strange woman's closed eyed smile was
slightly disturbing to be seen at that moment, shadowed and dark as it was
already. "Akina Chan, is it? A very short and concise name for such a
muddled person. How such a thing
happened is beyond me."
"Hey!" Akina surged forward, only to be pulled back
again with Nami's hand over her mouth and Nami shaking her head at her younger
sister.
"Stop, Akina
Chan," Nami whispered.
"Please, stop."
And time seemed to have
stopped then, at that very moment.
- - - - -
The air was cold and
evening settled over the darkness. Aino
Minako somehow convinced Hiroshi to help set the table with her while Iku and
Nami cooked in the unused kitchen. Boxes
of ramen were found when Minako sheepishly introduced them to the room. "I don't cook very well," their
hostess explained with a nervous laugh.
So, Nami suggested that she go shopping while Iku rested a bit in the
guest room. They had all been reluctant
to stay, but Minako insisted that they do.
"Parting like this
would be something Rei Chan will surely scold me for," the blonde had
cheerfully explained. "It will also
weigh greatly on my conscience that I was such a bad hostess to have my guests leave
in tears and frustration. I truly desire
you to stay so that the honor of this temple will not be marked with the
follies of my inaction."
With no other choice,
the Kumada family relented, though none were very willing except for Hiroshi
who worked very hard to hide his excitement.
Of course, Minako wasted no time to set him to work on helping prepare
for the meal like everyone else, except Akina.
Akina slipped out onto the porch, though she knew she did so to lick her
wounds and to avoid her mother. It hurt
to see her mother's back, knowing it had turned on her because her presence was
so vile. Akina hadn't meant to hurt
Mother, she just couldn't find it within herself to forgive Father either.
Minako hadn't been
giving Akina the friendly eye either.
Ever since the mentioning of Hino Rei, the other's attitude towards her
had become extremely cold. Akina
realized that she probably insulted the blonde when she passed such a judgment
on a life-long friend that Aino Minako hadn't really stopped talking about
since they had met the woman. Come to
think of it, Minako probably respected Hino Rei a lot. Perhaps, even their blonde hostess was blind
to what was so obviously before them all.
That Mars Reiko (or was it Hino Rei?), whoever she is, may really be a
home wrecker for everyone--
"It’s a nice and
crisp night out, hm?" The soft,
sultry voice of Meiou Setsuna greeted Akina.
Startled out of her thoughts, Akina whipped around to see the smiling woman
who leaned back against a wooden pole and sighed into the night. "The stars are so beautiful. Too bad you can't see them clearly at all
with all the pollution in the air."
"Meiou Setsuna
San?" Akina murmured softly in surprise.
"Mm," the
dark-haired woman answered and faced Akina with a smile. Akina had yet to see the woman's eyes, but
she would be a fool to not see the beauty in Setsuna. These women she had met, Mars Reiko, Aino
Minako, and now, Meiou Setsuna, all carried a different kind of beauty about them. They were woman who could not help but be
noticed, and for that Akina could not trust them completely. Still, there was something very compelling
about Setsuna, something very strange in the air about her.
"For such a young
thing, you brood a lot, don't you?"
Setsuna’s grin never faded, even as Akina's expression changed from
surprise to annoyance. "The things
you brood over are very important to your heart, but the words you bring out
from that deep place are ones forged from fear.
Such words will always bring pain to yourself and those close to
you. The things you say about others
show that once you had trusted too implicitly.
Now, having lost one great thing, you have lost that ability to give
such simple trust completely, even if it is to your own family. Such extreme changes reveal a great betrayal,
or utter stupidity."
"Eh?" Akina pounded the floor harshly. "Who are you to judge?" she
demanded.
"Mm," Setsuna
answered nonchalantly, "There you go getting angry again without much
provocation. Simply because I gave one
little insult you're already jumping to conclusions. You must believe in your own inferiority
pretty deeply to have your buttons that easily pushed." Growling at the woman didn't work very well,
since Setsuna simply ignored her.
"Everyone had to face such insecurities, and they all hurt someone
during this stage in life. Sometimes it
takes a lifetime to learn such a lesson.
It just saddens me how much needless pain is caused in the process."
"Spouting such
ideals, you seem like you've experienced much for someone who can't be more
than 25 or 26 years of age. Stop fooling
around with me, stop treating me like a kid—"
"—I'm not a kid
anymore!"
A voice from my
past? Akina blinked in realization as the feeling of déjà vu left her
feeling strangely empty. She had said
such similar words to her Father, when she had loved him so completely. On that night, two years ago, everything had
changed.
"—I-I'm not a kid
anymore," Akina finished weakly.
"Mm." Setsuna
smiled at the sky. "Isn't that
something we would all like to believe in?"
- - - - -
The sound of the cello played out
over the quiet house, flowing with the quiet breeze that seeped into every
open-windowed room and down deserted hallways.
The sheer curtains fluttered by the opened balcony doors as her lone
figure darkened the doorway, her shadows playing along the floors as the sun
began its descent towards the horizon.
The melody was sad, but the cello’s alto left a lingering sorrow that
was different than the crying violin. It
suited her mood, filled with regrets and doubts as she had been the last few
days.
“I didn’t know you played.” A familiar voice broke the silence after her
piece was over, along with a short applause.
“I would not have thought you were the type for cellos, but now that
I’ve heard you play I think it suits you, Setsuna.”
Meiou Setsuna smiled a bit at
this. “I always thought you were more of
the piano type myself when I first saw your pictures in a magazine.” She glanced at the bow in her hand with a bit
of nostalgic amusement in her eyes. “I
haven’t played in a long time, not since I was Sailor Pluto. Music has always just seemed to be noise to
my ears; I never really knew what people were listening to when they heard
music.” Setsuna’s mouth turned grim as
she gently set aside her instrument and looked over to meet her companion’s
amused scrutiny. “I know I may have been
a bit difficult to be with these last few days, but there have been quite a lot
of things on my mind. I’m sorry about
that, Michiru. What I said to Haruka
yesterday was uncalled for.”
“You should apologize to her instead
if you truly feel guilty over the incident,” Kaiou Michiru answered with a
steady gaze leveled with Setsuna’s own.
“And anyway, Haruka should not have pushed you when she did. Sometimes, she’s a bit dense about the more
sensitive things in life.” Michiru
sighed a little dramatically, but Setsuna could only offer a weak smile to the
playful gibe.
The two were silent once more and
Setsuna turned to view the sunset, trying to preoccupy herself enough to not
feel uncomfortable under Michiru’s none too subtle stare. “I never did like music very much as a
girl. My father really pushed me towards
the cello when I was young and I hated it then, but he insisted since he always
said it has such a sad sound. Even now,
I cannot understand what he liked so much about it, or why he was so drawn to
things that only brought melancholy to mind.
I never understood the allure to such sounds, especially since music has
always been just notes and beats and sound to me, nothing about it moved
me. But when he died, this sound and
these strings made me feel close to him whenever I played.” Michiru lifted a brow but did not push Setsuna
to tell her more. Of all of them, there
had always been an unspoken rule between the three of them to not talk too much
of their pasts. Up to now, there was
comfort in the simple and supportive relationships they had created based on
such premises. Each of their lives was
complicated enough without getting entangled with memories of past pains and
past sacrifices. The three of them had
instead focused on making newer and happier memories with Hotaru, and each
other. But lately, that life had been crumbling
under the pressures of new battles and trials.
“When I went to University, I just
never had the time to enjoy the things I did when I was younger. And when the memories came, her—” at this
Setsuna became flustered a bit before correcting herself “—my memories as
Sailor Pluto, I guess it was a bit overwhelming to find yourself as somebody
else. For a time, after the battles were
over and we had settled down, I thought some of my old memories would drive me
mad.” Crimson eyes stared out into the horizon,
and if it seemed they shined a bit brighter, both said nothing of it. “Now, somehow I miss that part of me that I
had discovered not long ago. Now that
the part of me that I had always been a little bit afraid of is gone, I’m not
sure what to do. Now, when my help is
needed most and I am so willing to give it… Only now do I become so useless.”
“Setsuna…” Michiru murmured as her
detached look softened. “Would you mind
if I joined you?”
Setsuna was surprised by her
friend’s request but the aqua-haired woman had already turned away to retrieve
her violin before a protest could be given.
“What would you like to play?”
Setsuna asked the other when Michiru returned with her violin.
“Why don’t you lead and I’ll
follow,” Michiru replied nonchalantly.
The next half-hour was spent filling the house with sad music as the sun
began to set. “Did you play back in that
time?” Michiru inquired. “I don’t quite remember the past as well as I
would like. Maybe, a part of me doesn’t
really want to remember such a time though,” she added pensively. Her violin took on an especially high,
tearful tone as her voice blended into her music.
Setsuna closed her eyes, letting the
familiar sound flow over her, not answering for awhile. It was the only piece she had ever written,
and it was done in the memory of her father when he had passed away. It was what he would have wanted to be
remembered by – the music he always seemed to love so much more than the
daughter he had created. “I don’t know,”
she answered honestly. Michiru paused
and looked at her olive-skinned companion, but Setsuna continued on, her song
filled with more than sorrow. Somehow,
since that day on the battlefield when Sailor Pluto’s powers vanished before
everyone’s shocked eyes, something had happened within Setsuna that no one had
seen coming. Every layer of
indescribable emotion came through the vibrating strings beneath skilled
fingers. “I have forgotten, such a
time.” It was awhile after the admission
before the music came to a final halt.
Only then did the crimson eyes turn to meet Michiru’s own questioning
gaze, but there was little doubt remaining in what had been a confused and
dazed stare that had lingered in Setsuna’s gaze, even when the dark-haired
woman had been filled with anger and denial.
Setsuna smiled. “Why remember sadness? Why remember helplessness? I had given up so much to be a Sailor Senshi,
and now, I can no longer save the world.
Now, I am finally able to realize the fact that I am useless. How can I hope to make others happy if the
old me did not and could not remember what true happiness is? I don’t know an ounce of happiness without
sorrow, isn’t that pitiful? I didn’t
understand any of the things I was fighting to protect; at least, Sailor Pluto
could not remember anymore.” Setsuna’s
aloof gaze turned to the world splayed before them. “I was very angry at first. I wanted to know why I was the first and only
one to lose touch when I was the oldest and my duties were so important.” Her smile became faint, and yet, it was ever
present. “But that time for anger and
wounded pride has passed. Now, I just
want to remember who Meiou Setsuna was before her duties, I want to remember
how it felt to be happy, innocent, and a child again. What is the point of remembering sadness, I
wondered. What is the point of lingering
on things that cannot be changed? I felt
sorry for myself for some time now, too, but that too has passed with this new
resolution to retrieve what was once lost to me.”
“Setsuna?” Michiru was still quite
unsure as to how to respond to those cynical words and that empty smile on
Setsuna’s face.
“I’m sorry I will not be able to
protect this earth with you anymore. I
wish you luck with the last battle.”
Setsuna set aside her equipment and reached over to the small, round
table on the balcony where a pair of sunglasses lay. “This was my last sunset, Michiru.” The dark-haired woman put on her glasses with
a wistful grin. “The doctors tell me
that I’m going blind, and I know my eyes are getting more and more sensitive to
light as the days go by.” Tears fell
down her dark cheeks, sliding past the shaded lenses that hid her crimson eyes
from speculation. “So don’t think these
are tears of sadness. It’s just the
sun. Ironically, I guess the light is
what really hurts me in the end...”
Michiru gripped the neck of her
violin tightly, feeling the bite of the strings against her fingers and
fighting back protests that the aqua-haired woman knew would only fall onto
deaf ears. Setsuna turned and left the
room as Michiru watched her back disappear from the doorway. The aqua-haired woman sighed deeply in defeat
when she was once again left by herself.
“Did you not gain even an ounce of true happiness with us, Setsuna?” she
questioned the empty room before turning to view the setting sun.
Darkness was falling overhead and
Michiru leaned her head tiredly against the side of the balcony, hugging her
Marine Cathedral close to her troubled heart.
“Michiru, Setsuna pass me in the hallway not too long ago. Her expression was a bit strange, but I was
more surprised by what she was holding.
I didn’t know she played the cello,” Ten’ou Haruka observed as she
entered the room with a thoughtful look in her eyes. The blonde shook her head at whatever it was
she was thinking before her eyes located Michiru's figure in the room. “Was it you two I heard from the garage? I don’t believe I’ve ever heard that piece
before. Does it have a name?”
Michiru wiped away the
tears from her own cheeks and smiled at the surprised look on Haruka’s
face. “I wonder when we’ll look back and
miss such a time as today, Haruka.”
“Eh?” the blonde
inquired with apprehension and concern in her voice. “What are you talking about? Are you alright, Michiru?”
Michiru waved away the
question as she put away her violin and then joined a perplexed Haruka on the
balcony. “I think,” Michiru smiled a bit
mysteriously as she linked arms with the blonde who studied her worriedly with
hooded eyes, “I will miss this time, even if it’s a little sad. And one day, maybe Setsuna will miss this
hardship a little, too.”
Grimly, they watched
the stars appear one by one in silence, hushed by the cooling breeze.
One day, we’ll remember such a time with smiles after all our tears
have been cried out. For such a day, it
is surely worth fighting for…
- - - - -
"Being a kid isn't
so bad, is it?" Meiou Setsuna asked
softly into the darkness.
"Eh?" Akina looked over to her companion
strangely. What a strange thing to
say after such a long period of silence, Akina thought to herself.
"Still, your
earlier actions up until now," Setsuna trailed off and turned her smiling
face back down to Akina, "it must have hurt you a lot, as well as the ones
you love. Never being honest to anyone
about the way you felt, yet constantly striking out to those closest to you
because those were the words always stuck in the back of your throat. Maybe you should have been more honest to
everyone earlier."
Akina's voice caught in
her throat and any protests she might have had died there as well. Nothing would come out. Faced with the truth spoken so clearly and
without hesitation, from a woman who seemed so sure of herself, Akina wasn't
quite sure what to make of it. How do you
answer such words? How do you reply from
the place deep within you that no one was supposed to perceive? Akina looked away as one hand clutched the
front of her shirt, over her frantically beating heart that pitter-pattered as
nervously as she felt.
"What's it to you
what I do? We're strangers after all,
you know nothing about me," Akina struggled out. It was infinitely easier talking to the
ground than that unwavering smile on such a strange, haunting face.
Setsuna only studied
her in silence for a while longer.
"All humans collect a set of experiences along the way, each
experience unique to that person.
However, with billions of people in the world, much of a person's
individual experience will be repeated by someone else. Each person's reaction is different, but many
reactions stem from the same fears and excitements. Much of these reactions, in the end, are the
same. A lot of changes and paths that
are chosen to be taken are also similar in a similar society. Strangely, even from different backgrounds,
human beings end up experiencing and doing similar things. Perhaps that is what happens when you are the
same species." Setsuna rested her
head against the wooden beam. "That
was what I was taught at a young age.
How ever easier it is to group people, to that person, their individual
experiences are still precious to them no matter who else experienced it
similarly. Sometimes friendships are
built on such similarities, sometimes rivalries are as well. Still, to say one has not learned anything
from hardship, that is a waste of another's hardship, another's sorrow,
especially if it is your own."
"What are you
talking about?" Akina demanded,
suddenly very angry. "You say
everything in such a round about way. Is
that how you deal with everything?"
Surprisingly strong
hands grasped her face as Setsuna forced Akina to face her. And then, eyes of dark crimson in the
shadowed light from the opened door opened and bore down their weighted gaze
into Akina's own. Akina had never seen
such eyes, ancient like the center of the Earth, something that seemed to have
been created long ago. She had read once
about the eyes of the gods being like the doors to the passage of time, eyes
that seemed to be etched from eras long forgotten, eyes that have seen things
that she could only hope to imagine, but she had never before faced such eyes.
The impact was like an
electric shock, as if she was stripped bare before another person in the most
intimate of ways. Even her first time
with her first love could not have been compared to this. It was as if every secret and every thought
she ever had, even thoughts she had once been certain no one would understand,
was bared to this person before her.
Kumada Akina had never felt so naked in front of another person, much
less a stranger. Somehow, Setsuna
continued to grin at her as if the other woman did not understand the impact
those strange colored eyes had on Akina.
Those lips held such an expression but the expression did not reach
those infinite eyes. The grin seemed
emptier as time ticked by slowly in those few seconds, seemingly more wrong now
than ever before. Finally, Akina knew
how truly wrong she had been about the other.
Assuming herself to be more knowledgeable than others, an island
suffering silently in the sea of emptiness, for the first time she contended
with a being far older than herself. It
was all in a gaze that shut once more in a smile.
"You put too much
weight on yourself, Akina San."
Setsuna broke the silence as she tilted her head, hiding her infinite
eyes again behind her closed eye-lids.
"Sorrow should always be shared with those closest to you. If you doubt, why not stop accusing others
and search for the truth instead? You
are not the only one experiencing pain.
Perhaps, you might even discover one who suffers more than you do, or at
the very least, just as much."
Akina could not find a
word to escape her throat then. What do
you say to a woman, a stranger, who had possibly already seen every possible
answer one could have given to her? Never
had Akina felt so small and insignificant.
"Dinner's ready!" Their
cheerful hostess, Aino Minako, called, poking her head out of the door. "Gosh, Setsuna San, couldn't you even
help with making dinner? I heard you
were a great cook, but all you did was sitting around, being lazy."
Laughing, Setsuna rose
and left Akina to brood once more over her actions. "Sorry, sorry, Minako Chan! I promise to help with the dishes when we're
done. Is that better?"
"Sure!" Minako clapped her hands together as Setsuna
passed her by. The two exchanged looks but
Akina, with her head bowed, missed the quick glances the two women shared. "Well, hurry before the others get
impatient, Setsuna San!"
"Sure, sure,"
Setsuna reassured her with a wave of her hand.
"Akina
San?" Minako tentatively glanced at
Akina's bowed back. "It's getting
cold out there," the blonde tentatively suggested. "Why don't you come in and eat?"
"I don't want
to," Akina muttered in childish rebellion after a period of silence.
Minako clasped her
hands together troubled, but a rueful smile tugged onto her lips. "It's okay, you know?" The blonde hostess stood in the door way, her
shadow cast over Akina's small, huddled form.
"Making early judgments on others, even hating them, we all make
such mistakes in life." When Akina
didn't answer, Minako continued, her voice soft and soothing, "When I
first met Rei Chan, I hated her too."
Akina's eyes widened at this.
"Rei Chan couldn't help but be noticed. She was always beautiful, graceful, and had
the airs of someone who could not help but be noticed. Men or women, they could not help but look at
her, they could not help but be drawn to her.
I too was drawn, but I hated her for that. I wanted the attention for myself. I had officially made her my rival, thinking
that she had it easier than me, knowing for sure that she would not know the
harshness of life that a white-collared class girl like myself had to
endure. She was the daughter of a well
known politician, went to a private school, was a priestess at a very well
known temple, and she had her whole life set out in front of her while I was
still struggling to find out what I wanted and who I was. That was the person I most admired and
envied." Akina was compelled to
listen, finding little things that made her so very much like Aino Minako,
things she would not have dreamt to have in common with the vivacious and
talkative blonde hostess. Still a
nagging voice crept and hacked at the back of her mind, the descriptions given
sounded like she'd heard it all before, somehow...
"A lot of my
actions in competing with her in my selfish and secret ways must have
exasperated and annoyed Rei Chan a lot.
And well I tried to find a flaw in her, but she lived on and treated me
no differently. Slowly, I was beginning
to feel more and more inadequate from the indifferent attitude she gave towards
me..."
"Don't think
I'll let you do so again when your only reason is so pointless and
selfish."
"...I guess,
secretly, I just wanted her to acknowledge me.
I wanted so desperately to prove to her that I was better than she was
or she had ever dreamt of being... that I was the one deserving of the
attentions she received without fail. In
the end, I just wanted to beat Rei Chan, even though we were so different and
she probably never thought of competing with someone like me. In the end, I just wanted her to acknowledge
me, to notice me. My goals, somehow
along the way, changed. I guess that was
the difference between us. It took a
while for me to understand what she had long understood that Rei Chan was Rei
Chan, and Minako was Minako, that I was her friend and so, in my own way, I was
important to her. So I really had no
reason to fight with her anymore. We
were both good people in our own ways.
The way Rei Chan was, the way she carried herself all the time, made me
continue to admire and love her. It was
her confidence, her arrogance, but mostly, it was because of her dependence on
no one but herself, all of those things were what made her so very beautiful
and special to me..."
"Your father loved
a very beautiful, graceful, and independent woman who did not return his
sentiments."
"...Rei Chan was a
woman who fought valiantly to the end for her friends and her beliefs. She let no one trample over her and was loyal
and very kind. I realized, she must have
been very lonely before the others and I had entered into her life. That is the woman you accused of being the
mistress of your father, the woman you believed to be dirtied and a leech to
men too old for her." Minako's
voice was suddenly very cold and very angry.
"That is why I would never agree to such beliefs. Rei Chan is honorable in the old ways, and
she would never depend on anyone, least of all men. She would never degrade herself the way you
believe her to have done, at least doing the despicable things you've accused
her of would mean that to her. You
claimed that you know such a woman better than I did, but you really don't know
her at all."
"Do you think
so lowly of your father, Akina? Do you
think so lowly of me too?"
Minako turned her back
on Akina, who no longer sat on the steps of the house, hunched as Akina was
before. "Dinner is ready. Your sister and your mother worked very hard
to prepare it for everyone. You should
come in with a gracious smile and join us," Minako told Akina over her
shoulder. "Now, you know the kind
of woman who came to the funeral of your father, and stood by his bedside with
a pure heart, instead of the conniving one you were so sure she had, and least
of all the suspicious one residing inside of yourself. In the end, I think Rei Chan had more belief
in your family than you had shown me these last two days. You really should apologize to your mother
for the things you've said." Minako
looked down at her own white socked feet.
"Putting such things off will only bring regrets in the
end." With that, her hostess left
Akina out in the dark even as Akina had turned to silently watch the blonde
leave her behind.
"I really--"
Akina sighed with a rueful smile on her face "--made a fool of myself today,
hm?" Determination flashed into her
eyes as she stood, "But Aino Minako San is right, it's never too late to
apologize." With a guilty but much
more cheerful face, she walked back into the lighted room only to find the
dining room was mostly dark with only candles to shine away the darkness. "This is kind of creepy," Akina
murmured.
At that moment, she
felt as if someone's very cold hand was patting her on the bottom. "Aye!" She screamed as she jumped deeper into the
room blindly, gaining the attention of everyone there. "P-p-pervert!"
Minako rubbed her head
in embarrassment as everyone looked to Akina as if she was crazy as she covered
her bottom with her hands.
"Sorry," their blonde hostess sighed, "but I warned you
that our resident ghost was a pervert yesterday."
Setsuna was the next to
sigh. "Still hasn't changed his
habits?" The mysterious woman asked
Minako in exasperation as she reached for the well prepared tofu. Setsuna froze as she herself felt someone
patting her bust through her clothes, twitching in annoyance as the action was
repeated.
"Granddaughter—"
"It's disturbing
how he says that when he's feeling other women up," Minako admitted in
defeat.
Nami was the next
victim. The unfortunate woman looked
ready to have a heart-attack when she was being groped by exceptionally cold,
phantom-like hands.
"Granddaughter—"
"Out, you
perverted old man!" Minako looked
murderous as the blonde waved a fist in the air. "Out!
And if you continue, I'll tell Rei Chan all about it when she comes
back! Then she'll Aku Ryo Tai San* your
ass back to the next century, you old fart!"
"Rei
Chan—? Granddaughter—"
Akina squealed again in
outrage as she was now molested from the front.
Before anyone knew it, all the females except Iku were rushing outside
to shiver in the cold, but safe, winter night, trying to avoid being groped
further by the temple's resident ghost.
"Eh? Where's
Mother?" Nami asked alarmed.
Laughter could be heard
from inside. "Apparently,
Grandfather only has a penchant and taste for young women," Iku
giggled from inside, not the least bit insulted or upset.
"The food you made
sure is delicious, Mother!"
Hiroshi's voice drifted out to the shivering women outside. "Nami Chan, I totally forgot how well
you cooked! You'll surely make Kiyoshi
Kun a very happy man!"
"You won't be so
happy when I'm through with you!"
Akina waved her fist threateningly at those indoors. However, the moment she set foot on the
steps, the ghostly form of a very young and handsome blonde man appeared at the
entrance of the hallway. He seemed to be
patiently waiting for their return, but the leery-expression on his face really
turned off any appeal he might have had.
"Granddaughter—"
There was no mistaking
the lecherous expression on his face though.
"Gah!" Akina quickly backed away as she saw the ghostly
fingers twitch in a groping manner.
"T-That's your Grandfather?"
Akina exclaimed in total surprise as she gapped at little. She had the impression he was a scrawny, old
man, or a small and chubby one. The term
"Grandfather" didn't really go with golden-Adonis with pale skin and
what would have been a handsome face if it wasn't twisted into a truly perverse
expression.
Minako giggled
awkwardly a bit behind a sleeve.
"Well, he was." The
blonde scratched her head as she looked up at ghost, her expression changing
completely as a cold wind blew by them.
"This is horrible!"
Minako whined as she shivered.
Their hostess' face was lined with indigent fury and annoyance as the
ghost continued to not budge from his place.
"He was never so bold when he was alive!" Minako muttered to herself in defeat.
"Why don't you do
something?" Akina demanded. Akina could not help but point accusingly at
the ghost that was the only blockade in their way to warmth, and more
importantly, to dinner.
"What am I
supposed to do, genius?" Minako
demanded heatedly. "Punch through
his non-existent body while he gropes me more freely? I don't think so!"
"Something tells
me you've tried that before, Minako Chan."
Setsuna grinned even as she clutched her arms around her body more
tightly in response to the wind that suddenly picked up in the courtyard again.
"Shut
up!" Their blonde hostess fumed
before turning back and waving her own fist threateningly at the grinning ghost
that was now leering at them. "I'm
so going to make you pay when Rei Chan gets back!"
The ghost only laughed
at them though, and it seemed that Iku and Hiroshi was doing something similar. "Mother!
At least let us have our coats!"
Akina called out into the house, her voice pitched in a loud whine.
Random coats were
thrown out, all flying into Akina’s face.
"Gee, thanks," Akina muttered darkly through the piled clothes
on her head.
"I'm glad it's
night," Setsuna commented cheerfully.
It seemed strange with her constantly smiling expression, and Akina
shivered the more as the taller woman plucked a jacket from amongst the ones
thrown out to them without another word of complaint.
Nami sneezed miserably
even as she donned on a thick jacket herself.
"I think I'm going to be sick." The eldest lamented.
"I think we're all
going to be sick," Akina gnawed her teeth together in utter frustration.
"But not as sick
as he's going to be when Rei Chan is through with him!" Minako promised fervently. A very malevolent grin came over their
hostess' normally cheerful face.
"I'll make sure of it, you pervert!" Minako shouted the ineffectual threat at the
uncaring ghost.
"Look on the bright
side," Hiroshi teased from within.
"Now you can all lay claim to the fact that even ghosts are very,
um, fond of you and your, um, assets!"
"That was
unnecessarily lewd," Nami huffed even as she shivered.
"Can someone give
me back my bag as well?" Setsuna
inquired, and soon a black bag came hurtling out from within the house. The bag clunked Akina in the head and quite
nearly knocked the poor woman out like a light.
Smoothly, Setsuna caught it as it rebounded, giving the impression that
the dark-haired woman had intentionally allowed the bag to hit Akina first.
"You'll get
yours!" Akina promised as she swore
colorfully, though she did wave her fist a bit at the amused Setsuna as well,
wobbling a bit on her legs.
Minako sighed, "I
knew this was a terrible idea from the start." To which, Setsuna only smiled mysteriously in
the dark, not at all deterred by the cold.
The creepy smile though, was a constant that the rest of the women all
thought they could definitely do without.
To be continued…
* Baka -- Idiot
* Aku Ryo Tai San -- The phrase that Rei uses when
exorcizing ghosts and other forms of evil spirits
- Mars Reiko is Hino Rei's stage name
- Rei's
Grandfather's appearance is from the manga.
He was a cute blonde, even if he was old... So he must have been really
cute when he was younger!
- Setsuna's
reasons for constantly smiling are elaborated more in an upcoming side
story. The scene from her memories is
during the "End of the World"
battles. She was the first Senshi to
lose her powers, and the only one who did before the final battle (as well as
the only one who lost her powers in the middle of a battle).
- Michiru
asked Setsuna if she "...played at that time?" was in reference to the time before Setsuna was
reincarnated. It's an indirect reference
to the Silver Millennium as well.
- Marine Cathedral is the name of Michiru's violin (in the manga).
- Because
Akina has not heard the story of Hino Rei for some months now, she's not
exactly going to recall how similar Minako's story is to the one Gin and she
found on their own. But because it
should seem familiar to her, Akina's feeling odd about it, she'd probably write
it off as déjà vu. Don't we all do that
sometimes?
Special Thanks To:
My
editor, Yumeko San! She had to wade
through my horrible grammar to help me polish this baby to perfection! Thank you so much Yumeko San! I would be so lost without you! [Dabs away tears of gratitude]
