The life of a superhero(ine), it was extremely rare when there wasn't a night out on the town defending the lives of its citizens. If there wasn't a planned attack from the dark forces to be thwarted, there was no excuse not to patrol and ensure there weren't any random demons running about, draining energy.
Unless of course a big fuzzy cat was sitting on you. Then there was no hope of moving until he did.
At least, that was what Aino Minako told herself as she sat on her family's living room couch, staring at a trite romance movie from the United States that she would have thoroughly enjoyed had she been paying attention. It was hard to be focused on entertainment when a tiny, forceful voice was telling her to get off her butt and go save the universe.
"Are you sure I can't go out?" Minako asked, tipping her head back and resting it on the back of the couch. "Not even just for a few hours?"
"No," Artemis said, somehow managed to be forceful even though he was languishing on his side as Minako rubbed his stomach. "You and I both agree that your sudden reappearance would do nothing but deter what we're trying to do."
Minako sighed. She hated sighing. It did nothing to actually help what she was sighing about and really only made her more agitated. But she did it anyway.
"I know," she agreed, blowing her bangs out of her eyes. "You're right. I'm right. We're both as right as left."
Artemis winced painfully but had long since given up correcting her misquoted proverbs. At least for that evening. "You knew this would be hard."
Minako very much wanted to say that she'd had no idea it was going to be difficult to sit around and do nothing. She relished in being lazy. Or at least she'd used to. Apparently, her time as Sailor V in London had killed all of her lethargic impulses. She had noticed lately that her jaw cracked every time she yawned. She was no longer yelled at for daydreaming during class, but for constantly looking around as if expecting one of the floorboards to come to life. She'd even gotten up when her alarm rang the other day, nearly killing her mother on the spot. She was still trying to convince the woman that she wasn't ill or an alien replacement or something.
The truth was, she had always known that not working was going to be hard. It had become a habit to sneak out the window every night and hope back in every morning. It was hard for her to sleep more than three hours a night just because of the routine of it all. She'd nearly been tempted to do her homework just to distract herself, a very worrisome circumstance.
"I didn't know it was going to be this hard," Minako finally responded. "I thought I was just going to let those two handle it and wash my hands of the whole mess for awhile. But instead I'm sitting here twitching all the time, waiting to jump into action at the first sign of trouble."
"But you can't," Artemis reminded her.
"I KNOW," Minako whined loudly, toppling over to her left and burying her face in a pillow covered in Artemis's white fur. "But it still sucks."
Artemis nodded, slowly pulling himself out of his very comfortable position, stretching out every single muscle in his body before continuing on with his life. Eventually, he made his way over to Minako, who was currently gagging and spitting out mouthfuls of his fur. "They have to learn how to do it on their own."
Minako nodded, flipping over onto her back and splaying her arms out, nearly knocking Artemis off the couch. "They have to be alone or else they'll rely on me. And if they rely on me, they'll never be prepared for when the war really gets into full swing."
She paused.
"Are you sure I couldn't just shoot some Crescent Beams from the sidelines, because that would be--"
"Minako," Artemis chided. He wasn't amused.
Minako pouted, folding her arms across her chest. "Oh, fine. I won't help them. Never mind how much property damage is involved--"
"Less than when you're in top fighting form," Artemis added.
"Ignore the length of time it takes for them to take one out--"
"Approximately the same as you, although the majority of that is taunting and unnecessary acrobatics."
"And forget about the crude methods--"
"None of which have surpassed the fish hook," Artemis muttered, sounding quite ill. "I still have nightmares about that. Just so you know."
Minako reached over and rubbed his head, messing up his perfectly groomed hair. "Baby-cat."
Artemis ignored the jab and instead set out to cleaning his fur now that she'd completely ruined his good looks. He didn't think he was the sort of cat who could pull off the rugged, messy look. "They're green. They're only slightly worse than you were when you first started out."
Minako frowned, curling her fingers in slightly. "It's his third fight. I can understand Mercury not knowing what to do, but Tuxedo Kamen should be better by now. He should be a lot better."
Artemis would have shrugged, but he was still too busy bathing. "Things are different. It isn't the same as it was back then."
"But he's so..." Minako didn't know how to properly explain it, but she tried anyway. "It's like he's winging it. It's like he's going on pure instinct and nothing else. Every victory has been luck. Chance. He's pulling everything out of his--"
"Sounds like someone I know," Artemis chuckled.
Minako was very offended. "I have plans."
"Bad plans."
"It's still a plan."
"It still falls by the wayside every time, and then you really end up improvising."
Minako sniffed, flipping her hair slightly. "Well, I make it look a lot smoother then. Maybe that's it. Maybe it's so sloppy that I can't approve. That and the fact that he always leaves a bloody mess."
Artemis concurred here. "Yes, I suppose he does need to work on the concept of ducking."
"He has a lot of work to do before he's good enough for the mission," Minako informed her guardian seriously. "So does Mercury, but we'll give her time. She's a Senshi. It'll be natural for her."
Artemis frowned, twitching his whiskers a bit. "Do you suppose that's part of the reason why Tuxedo Kamen isn't doing so well? Sailor Mercury at least knows a little of who she was and why she's around. Whereas he..."
"Can't know anything," Minako remembered, screwing up her face in puzzlement. "Not even his guardian can know who he really is. So I've been told."
"Yes," Artemis nodded.
"But not why."
"No," Artemis agreed. "But then I don't know either." He glanced over at the window and stared at the moon above them. "I'm just following orders."
Minako laughed slightly. "That's what you said after mom caught you eating dinner the other night."
"I'm telling you, it was for the greater good," Artemis insisted. "If the fish had been bad and you died, we'd really be done for."
Minako sat up and reached over, ruffling his newly fixed fur again much to his eternal consternation. "I'm glad that you care so much about me, Artemis. Because of course, you couldn't have done that just because you'd miss me."
Artemis, though highly annoyed with his appearance and knowing that she wasn't serious, still purred loudly. He turned around and rubbed up against just about every body part he could reach that wouldn't earn a slap. It was comforting enough.
Minako smiled down at him before reaching for the paper sitting on the coffee table. She brought it up to her face, looking at the silhouette of the man in the mask and great black cape. Even in the candid, he had a slight smirk on his face. He was the very picture of the term debonair. Even in the still, she could tell that he was unintentionally elegant. It was strange to see him fight and move with such grace, causing such chaos.
And she had seen him fight. She'd seen the jewelry store battle and the one at the garden shop, though she'd missed the one at the juku. Artemis had managed to tell her what he could. It was generally easier for him to track the warriors anyway. She would most likely be able to catch at least part of the next one, which both she and Artemis knew was coming soon.
She had to hold herself back every time. Every sucker punch Tuxedo Kamen took, every order Luna shouted, and every scream Mercury uttered would no doubt continue to lure her back into the peril and thrill of battle. It was messy and bloody, but so exciting and fulfilling. And she wanted to be in it again. And she wanted to help her allies, to give them confidence, to train them, to show them how it was done.
But she knew they couldn't. They weren't ready for her and the role she had to play. She wasn't sure she was either.
"Prince Endymion," Minako muttered, staring at the picture of the naturally charming fighter with a plethora of instinct and little skill. "I wonder how exactly you're going to feel when we're all ready for Princess Serenity to appear?"
Artemis looked up at her gravely. "He's going to hate you if he remembers."
Minako was very still for nearly a minute before setting the paper aside. "I know."
AUTHOR'S NOTE
This got cut mostly because I could think of no place in chapter three in which this could cohesively fit. I stuck it at the end, I stuck it in between a few other scenes, I tried revising it... Nothing worked. However, I do like the little dialogue between Minako and Artemis and the small insight it gives into her character and the changes she has undergone. So here it is for your reading pleasure.
