The Exiles

By: Starsea

Rating: PG


Chapter Three: Hints and Guesses

For most of us, there is only the unattended 
Moment, the moment in and out of time, 
The distraction fit, lost in a shaft of sunlight, 
The wild thyme unseen, or the winter lightning 
Or the waterfall, or music heard so deeply 
That it is not heard at all, but you are the music 
While the music lasts. These are only hints and guesses, 
Hints followed by guesses; and the rest 
Is prayer, observance, discipline, thought and action. 
The hint half guessed, the gift half understood, is Incarnation.

T.S. Eliot, 'Four Quartets III: The Dry Salvages, Stanza V'


The sound of fingers tapping on a keyboard stopped for a moment.

“Hi-kun...”

He looked over the top of the newspaper. “Yes?”

“I’ve almost finished.”

One eyebrow lifted. “And?”

The green eyes were wide, begging him. “Can I have a rest? Just a 
little rest?”

“You and I both know the answer to that, Xavier-kun.”

The eyes brightened. “Yes?”

“No.”

Xavier pushed his lower lip out, looking tragic. “What if I die from
working too hard?”

“People die from overwork because they work all the time. You have
trouble working for five straight minutes, so I think you’re quite 
safe,” Takehiko said, turning the page.

Xavier slumped, chin hanging over the back of his chair. “Hi-kun,
I’ve almost finished!”

“Then why are you talking to me? You should be saying that you
*have* finished.”

“You’re so strict!” Xavier muttered, turning around.

“That’s why I’m the one sitting here and not Isa-kun or Ken-kun.”

“Isamu and Ken-kun let me have rests.”

“Which means you don’t get your work done. And what would you do
with this rest anyway?” Takehiko smiled slightly. “I took the
Playstation out of your backpack before we left your house.”

Xavier’s head whipped round, his mouth slightly open. Takehiko gazed 
back, perfectly calm. Xavier’s mouth opened, then closed. He glanced 
at his backpack, leaning against the computer desk.

“Then what’s in there?”

“The plug and all your games. I couldn’t take too much out otherwise
you’d be suspicious. Next time, use some strategy and don’t insult
my intelligence.” Takehiko laid the paper down. “You don’t really 
think you fooled me with that excuse about textbooks? How long were 
we at school together?”

Xavier felt his cheeks grow warm with embarrassment. He was typing 
with more force than strictly necessary, and the rattle of the keys 
echoed slightly in the room. “It’s worked before.”

“But who did you use it on? Wait, don’t tell me, Ken-kun.” Takehiko
laughed.

Xavier’s shoulders stiffened. “Ken-kun likes the Playstation...”

“I bet. You probably ended up racing him and forgot all about your
work, didn’t you?” Takehiko said, hiding a smile. “Well, I am not as 
credulous as Ken-kun, fortunately for you.”

This comment was ignored. “Was Endymion-sama a good liar?”

“Not if he was talking to me,” Takehiko replied.

Xavier continued to type, slower now, thinking about last night.
“How could Mamoru-kun accuse you like that? How could he not 
see...?”

“He’s not ready. He’s obviously upset by their... our absence.
Especially by Kunzite’s, for some reason.”

“Probably because he thought for a moment that Kunzite was back,” 
Xavier suggested, entering the home stretch.

“I almost told him that Kunzite didn’t exist anymore.”

Xavier turned around and looked at him with wide eyes. “Hi-kun, if
you’d said that-”

“I know! But I didn’t...”

“It would have been a lie,” Xavier continued. “Kunzite *does* exist. 
You -”

Takehiko picked up his newspaper and began to read again.

Xavier stared at the paper shield, and sighed silently. Then he
turned around and finished his project, making a mental note to
speak with Isamu and Ken as soon as possible.

***

“I wish I could knit as well as you do, Mako-chan,” sighed Minako,
watching her friend model a new dark green jumper that she’d 
finished yesterday.

Makoto flipped her ponytail over her shoulder. “I did try to teach
you, Minako-chan, but you wouldn’t concentrate.”

“I was only fifteen then – I’ll be eighteen soon, I’m much more
patient now.”

This time, both Ami and Makoto stared at her.

“We hadn’t noticed,” Ami remarked.

“The words ‘yeah, right’ come to mind,” Makoto agreed, sitting down
and picking up one of the KareKano manga volumes, which Minako had 
received for Christmas.

Minako folded her arms. “You don’t think my patience has improved?”

“What patience?” muttered Artemis, diving behind the sofa to avoid a
well-aimed cushion.

“Minako-chan!” Ami protested. “You might break something.”

“Don’t worry, Artemis is tough.”

“I meant one of the ornaments.”

“Of course, the ornaments are much more important than me,” Artemis
remarked to the air.

“You survived a rock falling on you, Artemis, so I don’t see why
you’re worried about a cushion,” Minako retorted.

“I was human then, it was different.”

Ami’s mobile buzzed. She picked it up and glanced at the message.
“Rei-chan and Usagi-chan are finally on their way. Mamoru-san’s with
them, and he’s bringing some friends.”

“Friends?” said Minako, perking up. “As in, men?”

“I assume so.”

“Mamoru-san doesn’t usually bring friends to the shrine,” Makoto 
said thoughtfully.
“Maybe because he knows that he’s the exception to how Rei-chan
feels about men,” Minako suggested.

“Exactly. Rei-chan must have agreed they could come...”

“But Rei-chan would never do that! They must be really hot...”

“Minako-chan!” Ami frowned. “Rei-chan might want our opinion on them
as senshi. She might suspect they’re a threat.”

Minako made a face. “We haven’t had any real trouble for years now,
not since the Starlights and Kakyuu-hime left. And there haven’t 
been any strange incidents lately either.”

Makoto and Ami had to admit that Minako had a point. Usually the
presence of an enemy was announced by large amounts of people
disappearing or falling ill. Things had been relatively peaceful
since the defeat of Galaxia. A few minor incidents involving evil
spirits and criminal gangs not withstanding, the senshi were at
peace. Sometimes it seemed as if their long battle had been nothing
more than a horrible dream.

“Well, if they are enemies, I suppose it won’t be too bad,” Minako
admitted reluctantly. “Can’t let ourselves get rusty.”

“You train every week,” Artemis protested, venturing out from behind
the sofa and leaping into her lap.

Minako scratched his ear. “Yes, but it’s not the same, Artemis. You
know it, I know it, we all know it. I can’t help worrying that we’re
out of practice.”

“You’re fine,” Artemis assured her. “All of you are fine. Peacetime
is different from war, and the training has to change to reflect
that.”

“I hope they *are* good looking,” Makoto said wistfully. “I haven’t
seen a handsome boy for ages.”

Ami wasn’t sure whether to laugh or roll her eyes. “You two are
hopeless,” she commented.

“Hey, there’s nothing wrong with wanting a little eye candy,” Minako
replied. “But I thought you like Motoki-san, Mako-chan?”

“I do, but he *does* have a girlfriend. I’d like to meet 
someone who’s single once in a while.”

“I think I’ll text Rei-chan and tell her to send them away,” Ami
decided. “Otherwise they’ll be accosted by sex starved high school
girls.”

Minako wasn’t sure whether to be impressed by the fact Ami had 
uttered the words ‘sex starved’ without a single blush or insulted 
by the implication she wasn’t desired. “Ami-chan! One, we are not 
sex starved, and two, if we were, they’d like it! That’s what male 
university students fantasise about, after all – high school girls 
who are desperate for sex.”

“Minako-chan, how do you know that?” Makoto asked, as she and Ami
sweat dropped.

“My question exactly,” growled Artemis.

Minako winked. “Venus, Goddess of Love and Beauty knows all.”

“I think I’ve heard enough,” Ami groaned as Artemis glared at an
unrepentant Minako.

Makoto smothered a smile with her hand. “Why don’t you ask Rei-chan 
about these ‘friends’ and why she’s bringing them here, Ami-chan?”

“Yeah, and ask her if they’re hot, too!” Minako commanded.

“If you insist, Minako-chan, but I highly doubt she’ll answer.”

Minako drooped for a moment. “Yeah, you’re right... Rei-chan never 
notices the important things...” She sighed, oblivious to the 
amusement of her friends, and pondered the problem for a while. Her 
face lit up. “I know! I’ll go outside and keep watch! Then, when I 
see them, I can come back inside and tell you if they’re handsome!” 
She beamed and sailed out of the room.

Artemis sighed and heaved himself onto his feet, as if his bones 
were made of concrete rather than calcium. “I suppose I’d better 
keep an eye on her,” he announced gloomily and staggered off.

Makoto and Ami managed to keep their giggles suppressed until he’d 
disappeared, and then they both collapsed against the pillows, 
giggling helplessly.

“Keeping an eye on Minako-chan is *so* hard,” Makoto gasped.

“It must be if you’re a male cat,” Ami pointed out, pressing a hand 
hard against her mouth. Not that it did any good: the laughter still 
kept welling up out of her throat. “I mean, Luna can sit with Usagi-
chan when she’s in the bath...” 

Makoto’s eyes widened, and a blush stole over her cheeks. 

“What is it?” Ami enquired.

“I was just trying to imagine Artemis watching Minako-chan take a 
bath...”

Ami’s face turned a similar shade of red. “Ecchi!” she gasped, and 
threw a cushion at her friend.

Taken by surprise, Makoto fell backwards with a thump as the cushion 
struck her in the face. Ami froze for a moment, then scrambled over.

“Mako-chan! Daijobu desu ka? Mako-chan!”

“Hai, hai...” Makoto pushed herself back up, curls falling all over 
her face. Ami hovered over her, but noticed with relief that her 
eyes were sparkling. 

“When did your aim get so good?” Makoto demanded.

“I’m not good, you’re just out of practice.”

“Oh really?! Take that!” Makoto flung a cushion at her, the ease and 
accuracy of the throw putting the lie to Ami’s words.

Muffled shrieks and laughter rang through the shrine, reaching the 
ears of the waiting girl and cat outside. Minako glanced over her 
shoulder and smiled down at Artemis.

“Ami-chan having a pillow fight... that’s my influence, Artemis. I’m 
so proud!” She clasped her hands in a sentimental pose.

Artemis would have snorted, but that was canine, and he was feline 
to the core. So he made do with a flick of his tail. “That’s not 
necessarily a good thing, Minako.”

“As far as Ami-chan’s concerned, it is,” she replied, making as if 
to cuff him. Artemis leapt back, but then he felt her fingers gently 
tickle him under the chin. Unable to resist the touch, he sunk down 
on his front paws, purring loudly.

Minako smiled. She was getting good at this. During the past two 
years, her memories of the Silver Millennium had become more 
detailed, and this in turn led to her remembering more and more of 
her skills as Venus. She had been surprised to find that the skills 
which emerged were not those of a warrior, but a princess. A 
princess who had been able to twist a man around her little finger 
and extract whatever information she needed, sometimes without a 
single kiss. Flirtation had been one of her most prized skills, 
along with the ability to imply whatever a man wanted to hear...

/No man could stand against me, once I decided I would have him,/
the princess whispered, her voice mellifluous and low, perfectly 
seductive.

A shiver went up and down Minako’s back at these words. She frowned. 
Was that true? No... one had resisted. She couldn’t remember 
anything else about him. No name, no rank, no face... But he must 
have been special, if he could resist her. A man of incredible will. 
She looked down at the ring which graced the third finger of her 
left hand, gold wrought in the planetary symbol of Venus.

...Even back then, you were falling in and out of love...

“A lover?” she whispered. “Why can’t I remember...?”

“Minako?”

Artemis was looking at her closely.

“Daijobu, Artemis,” she said automatically, scratching his ear. 
“It’s nothing.”

Yet her skin shivered again. How could it be nothing? How could a 
man strong enough to refuse her advances disappear so completely 
from her memory?

Minako shrugged, irritated with herself. What did it matter anyway? 
He had probably died in the war, and even if he had been reborn, he 
would have no memories, he would not need them.

“Nothing,” she whispered, and turned her attention to the shrine 
steps, watching and waiting for the new ‘friends’ to appear.

***

“What do you hope to do after university, Minami-san?” Rei enquired, 
glancing at Isamu from the corner of her eye as they walked along.

Isamu didn’t acknowledge the gaze, but he answered the question 
politely enough. “Oh, I don’t know... I’m thinking of going into 
music.”

“Minako-chan will like that,” Usagi said, smiling. “She wants to be 
a singer. And an actress, too... So you have something in common.”

“Really?” Isamu couldn’t have cared less about having something in 
common with this ‘Minako-chan’. The last thing he needed was another 
senshi probing him. “Well, I’m more into song-writing myself...”

“Yeah, Isa-kun writes great songs!” Ken chimed in. “And he plays 
instruments too, so he won’t just be one of those puppets who gets 
up and sings someone else’s words...”

Usagi pretended to pout. “Hey! That’s my favourite type of singer!”

“What kind of instruments?” Mamoru asked, intrigued.

Isamu looked at him. “Piano and acoustic guitar. I’ve just learned 
to play the electric guitar as well. I wanted to widen my range.”

“Rei-chan plays the piano too!”

“I’m not that good,” Rei said immediately.

“Yes, you are! But there isn’t a piano at the shrine anymore, so...”

“Usagi-chan! Minami-san and West-san don’t need to know that,” Rei 
said, her cheeks flushing.

“The recession’s been hard for everyone. Musical instruments are 
really quite frivolous when you think about it,” Isamu added.

“Frivolous?!” Ken’s eyes widened. “How can you say that, Isa-kun? 
Sure, instruments are expensive, but music is something that helps 
people to survive, there are even documented cases where a certain 
song or piece of music has saved people, so anything that creates 
music should be treasured, and you’re calling musical instruments 
*frivolous*?!” He glared at his friend, cheeks flushed, oblivious to 
the stares of other people. “I can’t believe you, of all people, 
said that! Look at all the talent you have, Isa-kun, all the talent 
Xavier-kun has, why are you acting like this-?”

“Ken-kun,” Isamu said quietly, “I never said anything about music 
itself. Music is a great gift, but it can be made by many things. 
Instruments *are* expensive to buy, expensive to insure, and they 
need constant maintenance. Some people have more important things to 
think about than the strings of their piano.”

Ken looked at him, then at Rei, who was staring straight ahead. 
“Ah,” he said. “I... um... sorry, Isa-kun. I think I got the wrong 
idea.”

“No harm done,” Isamu said, glancing at Rei with a frown.

“You really like music, don’t you, Ken-san?” Usagi murmured with a 
smile.

Ken scratched the back of his neck with a sheepish smile as they 
stopped and waited for the lights to change. “I get worked up so 
easily... but yeah, I’m really fond of music. All kinds of music. 
Alternative country, alternative rock, jazz...”

“Jazz?” Mamoru repeated, raising an eyebrow. “You never struck me as 
the type...”

“That’s because you think someone who likes jazz has to wear black, 
smoke cigarettes and say things like ‘Let’s kick the beat’.” 

Mamoru and Usagi laughed, but Rei didn’t respond. Isamu noticed that 
one of her hands was slowly clenching and unclenching. He silently 
moved across the street so that he was walking next to her and said, 
“I apologise.”

Startled, she glanced up. “What for?”

“For my friend.” He glanced over his shoulder. “Ken-kun didn’t mean 
to insult you... he always says what he means, so he’s not very good 
at understanding... the subtleties of conversation.”

“Oh.” Rei relaxed a little. “Don’t worry, I’m used to people who 
don’t understand subtlety. Usagi-chan for one, and Minako-chan, 
the friend she mentioned, isn’t always that subtle...” She glanced 
up at him, her eyes suspicious. “It was kind of you to say those 
things.”

Isamu wondered if there was any possible way on this Earth to get 
rid of that suspicion by himself. Probably not.

“I’m not kind,” he said out of a perverse desire to live up to her 
expectations. “I’m not kind at all.”

“Now you’re being falsely modest,” she pointed out with a small 
smile.

“Not at all. I’m being perfectly honest,” he replied, meeting her 
eyes fearlessly. “I’m not at all kind. I regard kind people as those 
who are good to strangers, to people who owe them nothing. That’s 
not me. I’m good to my family and friends, and that’s it. Anybody 
else has to earn my ‘kindness’. Ken-kun’s the kind one, much as that 
may be difficult for you to believe,” he added with a wry smile.

“Not at all.” Rei glanced over at Ken, who was chatting easily with 
Mamoru and Usagi. “Usagi-chan and Minako-chan are extremely kind 
people.”

Isamu bit his tongue before he could blurt out Usagi was the kindest 
person he knew. “She seems very caring to me,” he commented. “Of 
course, I knew she had that reputation from Ken-kun. Mamoru-kun used 
to mention Usagi-san occasionally from time to time when they were 
at Harvard together...”

“Occasionally?” Rei repeated, a sparkle in her eyes.

“Yes – occasionally, meaning ‘on every occasion’.”

She looked away, but Isamu was convinced that her lips were 
quivering, longing to laugh. “I didn’t think Mamoru-kun was that 
demonstrative.”

“It’s a different atmosphere in America. Gushing over your 
girlfriend is allowed, almost expected, I think. Pride in your 
possession,” he added under his breath, but Rei heard, and her eyes 
shot another dart into his chest.“Your thought or theirs?”

“It’s never innocent until proven guilty with you, is it?” he 
retorted.

She glared at him, stubborn and cold. Isamu stared back, refusing to 
give in. /That’s it,/ he thought. /Go ahead, snap at me, fight me. 
You’re longing for a fight, Mars, I can see it./

He heard someone quietly clear their throat, and turned to see the 
other three staring at them.

“Something wrong?” Usagi asked, tipping her head to one side.

“Iie,” Rei said before Isamu could reply. “Minami-san and I were 
just discussing Western attitudes to women.”

Ken immediately put up his hands, his eyes widening. “Whatever they 
are, I don’t subscribe to them.”

Isamu couldn’t help smiling. “I was remembering a conversation we 
had where you said the men talked about their girlfriends as if they 
were trophies... Hino-san obviously misunderstood me and thought I 
was expressing my own opinion.” Their eyes clashed again.

“Oh!” Ken said, dropping his hands. “Trophy wives, you mean... yeah, 
it happens with some rich men. But then...” He shrugged. “Some women 
volunteer for the position.”

“Why?!” Rei exclaimed. “Why would a woman want to be anyone’s 
trophy?”

“Not everybody’s as independent as you, Rei-chan,” Usagi pointed 
out. “Plenty of girls want to get married.”

“I doubt that means they’re going to sitting around someone’s home 
as a decoration!” Rei said, tossing her head. “Over here, wives 
actually work.”

“They don’t just sit around,” said Ken, looking both amused and 
wary. “They make sure the home looks beautiful and they go 
shopping.”

Rei rolled her eyes. “How thrilling.”

“Not a shopaholic?” Isamu enquired.

“I don’t see the point in spending hours in a shop trying on all 
different kinds of clothing when you only need a skirt or a blouse,” 
Rei stated.

Usagi sighed. “Shopping trips with Rei-chan are like a package 
holiday – you blink, and you’ve missed what you’ve come to see.”

Ken hastily choked down a laugh.

“And not everybody enjoys spending money like you, Usako,” Mamoru 
chided.

“It’s not about spending money, it’s about taking time to stop and 
admire beautiful things in windows...”

“What’s the point of looking at them if you can’t buy them?” Rei 
demanded.

“So you know what you want to buy when you have money?” Ken 
suggested, only to receive a withering look from Rei. Mamoru pinched 
his arm and whispered, “I suggest you stay out of this if you want 
to emerge with all body parts intact.”

“Aww, but scars have sex appeal, Mamoru-kun...”

“Not burn scars!” Isamu snapped, and wished he could take back those 
words immediately as Rei’s eyes honed in. This time, it wasn’t just 
her eyes that were probing him: her mind had joined in.

/Damn, just write your identity in neon lights, why don’t you?!/

Neither Ken nor Mamoru saw anything unusual however. Ken made a 
face.

“Gomen, Isa-kun. I didn’t mean to...”

“No problem,” Isamu said abruptly. “But don’t joke about getting 
hurt, Ken-kun. Scars are never funny, whether they’re physical, 
emotional or mental.”

Mamoru caught his eye, his expression deeply serious. Isamu gave him 
a wry smile, thinking it would be appropriate if Mamoru accidentally 
stumbled onto his true identity, rather than working it out as he 
was meant to. He’d always had a way of finding short-cuts. They were 
heading into the suburbs now, trees appearing overhead.

“Anyway,” Usagi said, rescuing the conversation, “Ken-kun’s quite 
right. If you don’t look, you’ll never know what you want.”

“And if you do, you’ll end up wanting what you can’t have,” Rei 
retorted.

“Then what do you suggest we do, Hino-san, walk around with our eyes 
closed, mentally speaking?” Isamu demanded. “Better to want what you 
can’t have than close yourself off to every kind of desire.”

“It’s obvious you’ve never suffered from unrequited love if you say 
that kind of thing,” Rei said scornfully.

Isamu’s teeth flashed white in a bitter grin. “I can assure you that 
I know exactly what it’s like to feel unrequited love, but I would 
rather feel that pain than close myself off to every kind of 
feeling. What we desire speaks volumes about our characters.” He 
looked sideways. “What do you desire most, Usagi-chan?”

Usagi knew her answer, but wondered how she could phrase it. “I want 
to do my part in taking care of this world so that it survives,” she 
replied, slipping an arm through Mamoru’s. “And I want to do it with 
Mamo-chan at my side.”

“And you, Mamoru-kun?” Ken asked with a smile, turning it into a 
game. “What do you want?”

“I want the same thing,” Mamoru said, touching Usagi’s hand with his 
own. “And I want... I want to help people, protect them. What do 
*you* want, Isamu-san?”

Isamu smiled slightly, a totally different expression from his 
cynical smirk. “I want... to meet the future fearlessly, so that I 
can be ready to fight for what I believe in. And I want to protect 
people too – but only the people important to me...” His eyes 
sparkled as he looked at Mamoru. “I’m not half as unselfish as you.”

Mamoru smiled back. /I want to meet the future fearlessly... those 
were the words in my dream.../ “They’re noble goals, Isamu-san, you 
shouldn’t belittle them,” he said.

“I don’t belittle them, I’m only telling the truth, aren’t I, Ken-
kun?”

“You can be incredibly selfish, but you can also be incredibly 
selfless,” said Ken, shrugging. “You’re often selfish with the 
people who love you, and gallant with strangers – so stop pretending 
to be totally misanthropic.”

“Well, I’ll know not to call on you in court,” Isamu retorted.

“I doubt any of us would believe him cynical after listening to 
those goals,” Mamoru remarked, his eyes warm with amusement and 
interest. “Cynical people only look out for themselves, they don’t 
believe there’s any point in saving their loved ones because those 
people will eventually disappear or be taken away.”

“Yeah, quite a few of those at Harvard: ‘woe is me, my money is such 
a burden, the world means nothing’,” said Ken, striking a tragic 
pose. Usagi burst into giggles.

“How stupid,” Rei said, but she was smiling too.

“And the worst thing is, he’s not really exaggerating that much,” 
Mamoru sighed. “Some of them were so world-weary, you’d have thought 
they’d been alive for two hundred years, not twenty. Compared to 
them, Isamu-san, you’re fresh-faced and innocent.”

“Ah, that’s because you only just met me, Mamoru-san,” said Isamu, a 
wicked glint returning to his eyes. “Innocent and fresh-faced will 
be the last two adjectives on your mind after you’ve known me for a 
few months; I’m not decent at all, as I was telling Hino-san. I’m a 
horrible person.”

“We’ll see,” Mamoru retorted. “You haven’t shocked me so far.”

“And you’ve known me two days. Trust me, I’ll shock you sooner or 
later, even if I have to use Ken-kun as a lightning rod.”

“Hey, no fair! Why don’t you use Hi-kun, he’s taller!”

“I can’t trick Hi-kun.”

“Oh yeah...” Ken kicked at the pavement. “Damn it.”

“What do you want, Ken-san?” Usagi asked, smiling. “What’s your 
deepest desire?”

Ken lifted his head and thought as they began to climb up a hill. 
“Me...? I don’t know. The same things as Isa-kun, I suppose. Except 
that if a person doesn’t want to be protected, there’s not much you 
can do. Free will and all that.”

“Speaking of free will,” Isamu said, grabbing his arm, “I need to 
talk to you about something. We’ll catch up,” he told the others.

Rei narrowed her eyes, but Mamoru nodded. “The shrine’s up there,” 
he told them, pointing up the familiar long flight of stairs. A 
female figure was sitting on the top, hair blowing in the wind, 
sparkling gold against a deep red ribbon.

“Ah! That’s Minako-chan!” Usagi put up a hand and waved. “Minako-
chan!”

The figure seemed to hesitate and then wave back.

“You’ve spoiled her plan,” Rei said in Usagi’s ear. “She wanted to 
pounce upon them while they didn’t know who she was.”

Usagi smiled at her. “Yes, I know.”

Rei stared back, nonplussed.

“So that’s the Minako-san you’ve been talking about?” Isamu 
demanded, narrowing his eyes.

“Ooh, a blonde!” Ken said, and then he winced as Isamu elbowed him 
in the ribs. “What’d I say?!”

“We’ll see you up there,” Usagi told them and began to walk, giving 
Mamoru and Rei no choice but to follow her.

Ken and Isamu watched them go up the steps towards Minako. Ken 
rubbed his side, more for effect than because he was actually 
hurting.

“Man, that hurt, Isa-kun!”

“Baka!” Isamu hissed. “Don’t you realise where we’re going?”

“Up to Hino-san’s temple?”

Isamu rolled his eyes. “It’s a shrine, not a temple, and if Hino-san 
is one of Usagi-chan’s friends, what does that make her?! What does 
that make Minako-san?!”

Ken’s eyes widened: he could be accused of many things, but being 
slow on the uptake wasn’t one of them. “Senshi,” he breathed.

“The light dawns,” Isamu murmured, glancing up at the trio climbing 
the steps. “*That’s* why I didn’t want to come here. We’re going to 
be on Hino-san’s turf, surrounded by the Princess’s guardians...” He 
looked at Ken with narrowed eyes. “We have to behave as normal as 
possible. Hino-san’s already suspicious of us – well, *me*.”

“What do you want me to do?”

“Just be yourself,” Isamu said, glancing up at the sullen sky. “I’ll 
keep her distracted.”

Ken sighed. “Why don’t you try making friends with her?”

Isamu bit back a laugh. “Make friends? Are you kidding? Did you see 
the way she was looking at us? And besides, from what Usagi-chan 
said...” He shook his head. “You make friends with them if you want. 
That’ll make you seem more normal. Let’s catch up before we get 
soaked.”

Ken frowned as they began to walk up the steps. “You should at least 
make an effort, Isa-kun.”

“Make an effort?! I *am* making an effort! I’m making an effort to 
stop them discovering who we are and destroying any chance we have 
of correcting our mistakes!” Isamu’s chin was set.

“If you act all aloof and cold, that will make them suspicious,” Ken 
pointed out. “Look at how Mamoru-kun reacted towards Hi-kun when he 
did that.”

This was true, but Isamu didn’t acknowledge that, there wasn’t time. 
Rei, Usagi and Mamoru were waiting for them at the top of the steps, 
along with this ‘Minako-chan’. Isamu gave her a quick appraisal as 
he reached the top. Taller than Rei and Usagi, a golden blonde in a 
warm but clinging jumper that hinted at curves without being 
blatant, and a sparkle in her eyes... He smiled.
/Well, well, well. I might have a little fun after all./

“Ah, so you’re the Minako-san that Usagi-chan’s been talking about,” 
he said, bowing. “Hajime mashite. I’m Minami Isamu and this is my 
friend, Ken West.” He elbowed Ken to make him bow, ignoring Ken’s 
suddenly suspicious look.

Minako bowed back, trying to hide her blush. “Aino Minako. What’s 
Usagi-chan told you?” she added, glancing at Usagi with raised 
eyebrows.

Isamu shrugged. “She said that you were very musical.”

“Oh! Yes, I love music,” Minako agreed. “All kinds.”

“Do you prefer day music or night music?” Isamu enquired, his lips 
curling slightly.

Minako paused, and then she gave him a small smile. “Well, day music 
used to be my favourite, but I think I’m developing a taste for 
night music now.”

“Shall we go inside?” Rei asked, biting off the words. “You’ll want 
to phone your parents as soon as possible, won’t you, Minami-
san?”

Isamu glanced at her, and was not surprised to find disapproval 
lurking in the amethyst eyes. “Of course, Hino-san,” he agreed.

“You have a lovely shrine here,” Ken remarked. “Is it run by your 
family?”

Rei nodded. “Yes, my grandfather and I take care of it.”

Ken raised his eyebrows. “All by yourselves? That must be a lot of 
work.”

“We manage,” Rei replied, as if she didn’t spend most of her weekend 
mornings cleaning the yard or making charms. “Have you visited many 
shrines, West-san?”

“A few... but I think this is the nicest.”

Usagi caught Ken’s eye and smiled.

“Oh, flattery will get you nowhere with Rei-chan, West-san, I’ll 
tell you that for free,” Minako sang.

“Will I have to pay in the future then?” Ken asked with a laugh.

“Depends on how generous I’m feeling!” Minako said, and winked at 
him.

Rei was sorely tempted to pinch Minako on the arm, but she resisted. 
She had not brought these men here so Minako could use them as 
flirting targets, why couldn’t she see this was serious?

“Shall we go inside?” Usagi asked, saving the situation. “You can’t 
hog Ken-san and Isamu-san all to yourself, Minako-chan!”

“I can’t? Oh well...” Minako pretended to sigh. “Being an only 
child, I’m not good at sharing.”

“Ami-chan and Mako-chan don’t have brothers and sisters either, but 
they manage!” Rei said, grabbing her arm and almost dragging her 
inside.

Isamu and Ken exchanged an amused glance and followed. The shrine 
was old but very clean, and there was a pleasant smell of incense, 
overlaid with the smell of the pine branches which had been hung to 
greet the spirits. They followed Minako and Rei into a small sitting 
room, where two other girls rose.

“Ken-san, Isamu-san, may I present Kino Makoto-chan and Mizuno Ami-
chan,” Usagi said as she came up behind them. Each girl bowed at her 
name. “If it wasn’t for Ami-chan, I wouldn’t be in high school,” 
Usagi added, “and Mako-chan made sure that we didn’t die of hunger 
during our study sessions. Mako-chan, Ami-chan, this is Minami 
Isamu-san and Ken West-san.”

Both men bowed silently, feeling the scrutiny of the girls now that 
they were all together.

“We won’t stay long,” Isamu said, straightening. “It’s only to have  
a respite from the crowds and to phone my parents.”

“Oh, you won’t have any tea?” Rei asked, clasping her hands, the 
perfect hostess. “Or maybe coffee? I think I have some hot chocolate 
– it’s necessary with Minako-chan and Usagi-chan here so often.”

“No, nothing, thank you,” Isamu answered, perfectly polite. “We 
really couldn’t impose-”
“Did you make those, Kino-san?” Ken asked, his eyes focused on a 
small platter filled with round pale gold pieces of shortbread.

Makoto smiled. “They’re a new recipe. Would you like one?”

Ken suddenly felt Isamu’s eyes glaring right through him. “Oh... 
well... if you don’t mind...”

“I’m always looking for guinea pigs to taste my cooking,” Makoto 
assured him, holding up the plate.

“We’re all willing victims!” Usagi laughed as Ken took one piece and 
popped it in his mouth.

“Hollow legs, that’s your trouble,” Isamu teased, but Ken could hear 
the steel beneath the warmth of his tone and knew that he was in 
trouble again. Isamu wasn’t as forgiving of his mistakes as 
Takehiko. Ah well – Isamu could tell him off later. Right now, he 
had shortbread to try...

“Do sit down,” Rei said. “I’ll just go and tell ojii-san that I’m 
back. The reception’s better outside, Minami-san.”

Isamu nodded, unwilling to leave Ken alone with three sailor senshi 
and a curious Mamoru, but outmanoeuvred once again. /Snap out of 
it!/ he told himself as he followed Rei out of the room. /You have 
to gain some ground here./

Everyone watched Ken munch on the shortbread, his eyes closed in 
bliss. He grinned at Makoto as he finished his mouthful. “Delicious, 
Kino-san. Ten out of ten.”

Makoto blushed, looking very pretty. “I’m glad you like them so 
much.”

“Like them? I love ’em. I’d eat the whole batch if I could.”

“Sorry, but we’ve already staked our claim,” Minako said, sticking 
out her tongue.

“Where are you from, West-san?” Ami enquired, subtly jabbing Minako 
in the side with her elbow so that Minako nearly choked on her 
shortbread.

“Me? Canada, originally; British Columbia. But I met Mamoru-kun at 
Harvard, if that’s what you’re wondering. Hello, who are you?” 
Artemis had climbed into Ken’s lap and was now kneading his chest, 
purring loudly for attention. Luna had curled up beside him as soon 
as he’d sat down. 

Minako pursed her lips. “He’s my cat, Artemis.”

“Sorry, did you say ‘he’? My Japanese is sometimes wonky...”

“Yeah right,” Mamoru muttered with a smile, but only Usagi heard 
him.

“No, he’s male,” Minako assured Ken with a sweet smile. “You can 
check if you want.”

Artemis stopped kneading and risked a quick glare at her. Ken 
chuckled and continued stroking him. “Nope, I’ll take your word for 
it.”

“What were you studying at Harvard?” Ami followed, swallowing her 
frustration with Minako.

Ken grinned, tickling Artemis under the chin. “Not much, if you want 
the truth. But I was entered for exams in Earth Management...” He 
shrugged. “I failed them all.”

“Deliberately,” Mamoru added.

The word hung in the air. There was an awkward silence. The girls 
stared at Ken, who seemed more interested in another piece of 
shortbread than the fact he’d deliberately failed Harvard exams. 
Usagi didn’t know whether to laugh at the expression on Ami’s face 
or move behind her in case she fainted.

“You... deliberately failed... Harvard exams?” Ami repeated weakly.

“Yeah.” Ken looked up. “So what?”

“Ami-chan is very... very focused on her studies,” Minako explained, 
glancing at her friend. “So she really respects places like 
Harvard.”

Ken stared at the pale and blinking Ami. “I didn’t want to go there 
in the first place, Mizuno-san, but I was made to feel that if  I 
didn’t, I’d be the most ungrateful son who ever walked the earth. I 
was wasting a place there, a place that someone else would have used 
to much better effect, and I was wasting everyone’s time. It was 
best I got out of there as soon as I could. Heck, the only good 
thing I got out of Harvard is my friendship with Mamoru-kun.” He 
laughed. “Although Mamoru-kun probably wouldn’t agree...”

“Hey, I liked you!” Mamoru protested.

“You would have liked anyone who spoke fluent Japanese,” Ken shot 
back with a smirk.

“The Japanese was an unexpected bonus, nothing more,” Mamoru said 
steadily, taking his own piece of shortbread. “I didn’t agree with 
some of your actions, it’s true, but that doesn’t mean I didn’t like 
*you*.”

“Actions?” Minako repeated, sensing something interesting. “What 
actions?”

“I was a *bad* boy,” Ken said, elongating the ‘bad’ with a little 
grin. “Didn’t do my homework... went out partying all night... slept 
all weekend...”

“All the normal student activities,” Mamoru inserted. 

Ken made a face at him. “So, it’s amazing that Mamoru-kun and I even 
met, let alone struck up a friendship.”

“Then how did that happen?” Usagi asked, leaning forward with a 
smile. “I can’t imagine Mamo-chan running around with the crowd that 
you describe.”

“Nah, it was too intense for him,” said Ken with a laugh, fending 
off a half-hearted punch from Mamoru. “We were roomies, simple as 
that. We were both a bit homesick, and... we were just easy 
together,” Ken finished, looking at Mamoru, who nodded.

“It was really nice to meet someone who spoke Japanese fluently, not 
just a few phrases or words they’d gleaned from anime,” he agreed. 
“And he also helped me unpack and showed me around the campus. He 
looked after me.”

“Can’t help it,” Ken said, laughing. “It’s partly natural 
inclination, and partly the way I grew up. After all, when you’ve 
got three younger brothers...”

“Three?!”

Isamu heard the exclamation through the thin glass of the window as 
he finished his conversation and smiled. He’d hooked them, and best 
of all, he’d hooked them just by being himself. That was Ken for 
you. Isamu decided that he wouldn’t really tell Ken off for taking a 
piece of shortbread. In fact, it had probably helped their cause 
immensely. I eat human food, therefore I am a human being.

A flap of wings made him look down. Two crows were perched on the 
edge of the veranda, watching him with bright beady eyes. Isamu 
stared back for a moment, and then he sighed.

“I was wondering about you two,” he said.

/Traitor!/

The crows shimmered, their feathers shedding until two small sprites 
emerged and flew up to gaze at his face. One wore a blue dress, one 
a red, but their expressions were identical: disapproval and fury. 
Their eyes, now ruby red, glittered with contempt.

“How dare you step foot on this hallowed ground?” the blue one 
spat. “How dare you come near our princess?”

“Simple: she invited me. Next question?”

“Impossible!” sneered the red one. “Our princess would never invite 
such *trash*-!”

“Watch your mouth, pixie,” Isamu said softly, “I am still a prince, 
whether you like it or not. I do not deny the name ‘traitor’, for 
that is true. But I will not take slurs upon my bloodline. *That* 
has always been impeccable.”

The two guardians bristled at his words. “We are *not* pixies!”

“And I am not trash. If I was still a creature of the shadows, I 
wouldn’t be able to set foot on hallowed ground, would I? Yet here I 
am.” Isamu stared at them, his blood thrumming with adrenalin and 
the joy of combat. How he enjoyed a challenge! Yet it was so rare he 
found one.

The guardians hovered before him, suspicious but silent, 
disconcerted by his audacity. Isamu folded his arms. “I am not here 
to hurt your princess. I am not here for her at all. I am here to 
protect my prince. Surely you can understand that?”

“Protect?!” They both laughed, a chittering sound full of scornful 
amusement that grated on his ears. “Some protector, falling to the 
dark and trying to stamp out that which his prince held most dear! 
Some protector, succumbing to the shadows, leaving his prince to 
flee-!”

“What do you know about it?” Isamu said savagely. “Nothing! Hearsay! 
Gossip! Nobody knows what happened except us, Endymion, and the 
Priest! Nobody knows what it was like! Only we know the truth of 
those last days on Earth! *You* know nothing. Do not call me 
‘failure’ unless you have facts to back that word up!”

“You are a failure because you were taken,” the blue one said 
coolly, though the red one looked uneasy at his words. “The shadows 
swallowed you and you did not fulfil your duty and your prince 
*died*.”

Isamu felt a shudder running down his back, Takehiko’s words 
suddenly echoing in his head - “I killed him, Isa-kun. It was my 
energy, I murdered him.”

Isamu thrust the memory away. He would not let them win. He would 
not think of Takehiko tortured by his memories, or Endymion dying in 
front of him, dying because he had failed...

“We were reborn with the help of the Neo-Queen,” he said. “She was 
the one most hurt by his death, and *she* has forgiven us. If all 
you can do is throw the dead past in my face, then I think it 
pointless to continue.”

The guardians glared at him. The blue one flew forward a little, 
her eyes burning. “Know this, Guardian of the East. We will not 
meddle with the Neo-Queen’s magic, we have neither the power nor the 
rank. We will not meddle in your affairs, so long as you do not 
meddle in ours. Keep away from our princess. We will not let you 
hurt her again.”

“Me hurt *her*?! She was the one who fried me to a crisp!”

“We speak not of physical hurt!” cried the red one, her voice high 
with outrage. “We speak -”

“DEIMOS!” 

Deimos bit her lip at her sister’s glare and turned away, trembling 
with emotion. Isamu felt his curiosity spark. What were they hiding 
from him?

“No more, Deimos,” warned Phobos, her scarlet eyes fixed on his 
face. “You have said far too much already.” She looked at Isamu with 
a grudging respect. “For whatever else he is, he was always clever. 
And I see from the light in his eyes that some things do not 
change.”

She turned and flew back to her sister. “We shall be watching,” she 
warned Isamu. There was a flash of crimson light and the two crows 
whirled up into the rain. Isamu watched them go and then he dropped 
his head and sighed. Another shudder ran through his body.

/Now Phobos and Deimos know I’m here. And if I put one foot wrong, 
they’ll tell her who I am, who we are. Fool, fool, you’re such a 
fool!/ He closed his eyes. In the end, it had not been Ken who 
endangered their secret, but him.

“May I help you?”

He froze, opened his eyes and lifted his head. A middle-aged man was 
standing just before him, his arms full of pine branches. He seemed 
curious rather than suspicious.

“The shrine is closed today, young man, I’m not sure how you got in 
here...”

“You must be Hino-san’s grandfather,” Isamu said, bowing in 
greeting. “Ohayo gozaimas. I am Minami Isamu. Hino-san invited me.”

The man’s eyebrows shot up. “Rei-chan invited you? Are you sure?”

“Yes, sir.” Isamu straightened. “I’m a friend of Mamoru-san. I’m not 
staying here long. I was just phoning my parents to let them know 
I’m all right.”

“Hisoka, Kondo Hisoka, and never mind the ‘sir’, just plain Kondo-
san will do, Minami-kun,” the man chuckled, carefully dumping the 
pile of branches on the veranda floor. Isamu realised from his 
movements that the man was older than he looked, late fifties or 
early sixties. After straightening he looked at Isamu again, his 
brown eyes bright with interest. “So... a friend of Chiba-kun? You 
must be new.”

“In some ways, Kondo-san. Not in others.”

“You don’t say.” The priest’s eyes twinkled. “Well, you are welcome 
to Hikawa Jinja, Minami-kun. Please stop by again if you are in this 
part of town. It’s nice to meet a young man with so much respect.”

“Ojii-san!” Rei exclaimed from the doorway.

Her grandfather smiled at her. “Rei-chan, you should invite Chiba-
kun’s friends around more often if they’re as polite as this one.”

Rei pressed her lips together. “He’s leaving now, ojii-san.”

“And who decided that, you or him?” Kondo chuckled and walked off 
towards the yard. “Come again, Minami-kun!” he called, waving a hand 
in goodbye.

“Hai,” Isamu said simply, and turned to see Rei glaring at him. 
“What?” he demanded.

“What did you say to my ojii-san?”

“Nothing. I told him what I was doing here and that I’m Mamoru-san’s 
friend. Take it or leave it.”

Rei stepped forward, her fists clenched. Isamu felt his heartbeat 
speed up. He raised an eyebrow. “Did you want something?”

“I don’t know who you are,” Rei said, staring straight up into his 
eyes, “but I do know that you’re not what you seem, Minami Isamu-
san.”

Isamu glanced at the trees. “Interesting birds, crows. Sacred 
messengers. Supposed to be birds of prophecy. I’ve never known 
anyone to keep a pair of them.”

Rei felt a chill of fear, despite herself. “Phobos and Deimos stay 
here for the free food.”

“Maybe. Maybe not.” Isamu looked back at her. “People are rarely 
what they seem, Hino-san. Usagi-chan, Ken-kun - they’re the rare 
ones. The rest of us are all hiding something. I should think you 
know that by now.”

“Some secrets are more dangerous than others,” Rei said tightly, 
infuriated by his implications. Her secrets were none of his 
business.

“That depends on your point of view, doesn’t it?” Isamu answered. 
“Now if you’ll excuse me, I’d better go and collect Ken-kun before 
he eats all the shortbread.”

He brushed past her. Rei felt a wave of something wash over her 
skin, a curious weakness which was followed by panicked fury. She 
whirled. “I know you!” she said, making him pause and turn to look 
at her. “And I *will* find out what you’re hiding, Minami-san.”

He had the nerve to smirk. “If you do – it will be because I decide 
to tell you. And I don’t see that happening anytime soon.” He held 
her gaze for a moment, then turned and carried on into the living 
room.

Rei sank against the doorframe for a moment. /Who is he? Why does 
he... what was that? When he went past me... it was like a 
blanket... I felt so strange. He’s sensitive... Like me.../ Rei felt 
a sudden longing. It was so rare she met anyone who could understand 
her talents. 
/No! He’s suspicious. I can’t let my guard down, especially 
not with him. Imagine if he found out... No. We’re not alike. We’re 
not alike at all./ 

She shook herself and went into the living room.

Ken and Isamu were already standing up and saying their farewells. 
Isamu caught her eye for the briefest moment, and Rei knew that 
she’d lost this particular battle. Ken had never been the threat, 
she saw that now, and the girls had barely talked to Isamu, who’d 
already slipped back into his shell of a privileged young man, his 
face as smooth as glass. Rei recognised that face because she wore 
her own version of it when she was out in public. Strangely, she 
found herself preferring the one she’d seen moments before, his eyes 
full of warning, his mouth curling in a smirk. At least that face 
was real. This was just a mask.

“I hope we meet again,” Minako was saying, her eyes on Isamu.

“Our hopes are the same, our friends are the same, so it’s 
unavoidable.”

Minako grinned. “Then we’ll have a proper discussion about music, 
ne?”

Isamu’s teeth flashed in a charming smile, and Rei bristled. “We’ll 
discuss music, of course; and anything else that interests you, 
Aino-san.”

“I’m interested in a lot of things, Minami-san,” Minako warned him, 
eyes sparkling.

Isamu smirked. “All the better!” He turned to Rei, and the emotion 
disappeared from his face. “Please forgive us for imposing on you, 
and thank you for having us, Hino-san,” he said formally, bowing 
once more.

“Mamoru-san’s friends are always welcome to Hikawa Jinja,” Rei 
replied, also bowing. She couldn’t very well turn them away after 
what her grandfather had said, nor could she insult Mamoru and upset 
Usagi. She was caught in a web of obligation, but more than that, 
she’d been outwitted by a man. It was galling, yet she had nobody 
but herself to blame. The signs that Isamu was not Mamoru’s friend 
for nothing had been there for her to see. He’d shown that he was 
intelligent, incisive, and experienced in verbal warfare on the way 
here, and Ken had shown that he was nothing more than a naïve, funny 
young man.

Isamu looked up at her words. “Such generosity,” he murmured.

Their eyes met, and Rei felt that curious sensation again. It 
tingled like pins and needles, but she did not feel at all numb. Was 
this some kind of psychic attack? Her shields did not feel 
pressured... She tore her gaze away. “It’s nothing.”

Neither Ken nor Mamoru had missed the undercurrents in this 
exchange. Ken copied Isamu and bowed. “Thanks very much for putting 
up with us,” he said. “Hope we can meet up again sometime. C’mon, 
Isa-kun!” He grabbed Isamu by the arm so that Isamu had no choice 
but to follow him.

“Bye bye!” Minako sang, waving. “Look forward to meeting you too!”

“I’ll see you out,” Mamoru said, getting up. Rei opened her mouth 
and Mamoru gave her a look that said plainly ‘Leave them to me’. 
Surprised and disgruntled, Rei watched the three men walk out. She 
folded her arms and frowned. Makoto and Ami were staring at her, 
completely flummoxed by her attitude. Usagi and Minako seemed to 
understand a little, but that was even less comfort. Usagi was 
nibbling on one of Makoto’s biscuits, completely unconcerned as 
usual; and Minako... Well, Minako had been more interested in their 
boyfriend potential than anything else!

“What’s wrong, Rei-chan?” Makoto asked.

Rei bit the inside of her lip and shook her head, trying to throw 
off the memory of that feeling. “Nothing... nothing with me, at any 
rate. What did you think of them?”

Artemis stretched himself and then yawned. “Ken-san seems a nice 
young man.”

Ami pursed her lips. “Nice?”

Makoto laughed. “Oh Ami-chan, really, you can’t fault him for that!”

“For what?” Rei demanded, her ears pricking.

Ami sniffed. “West-san deliberately failed his exams at Harvard.”

Rei felt like banging her head against the wall. *That* was what Ami 
was worried about? She’d been prepared for something insightful; at 
the least, an interesting hunch. But no – Ken’s biggest sin was 
flying in the face of expectation. 

“That makes him foolish, not evil, Ami-chan,” Usagi said, taking the 
words out of Rei’s mouth. “Besides, he gave you his reasons. It’s 
not like he’s ashamed of himself or trying to cover it up. Ken-san 
told me that he wouldn’t have done something like that unless he had 
no other choice.”

“Yeah, I mean, if my parents forced *me* to do something like that, 
I’d be pretty pissed off too,” Minako agreed.

“But Harvard-!”

“What was the point of him going there if he wasn’t going to work?!” 
Makoto demanded. “You heard him! His friendship with Mamoru-san is 
the only good thing that came out of being there. One entire year 
and that’s the only good thing?!” She made a face. “I’ve been in a 
similar situation, Ami-chan. You get out of something like that as 
fast as you can, and you don’t look back.” She shrugged. “I can’t 
blame him for using shock tactics. Sometimes, they’re the only 
weapon you have left..”

“That’s it?” Rei demanded. “Nothing else suspicious about him?”

“Suspicious?! West-san?!” Artemis said, outraged.

“He seemed like a nice young man to me,” Luna said carefully.

All three senshi nodded.

“He checks out,” Minako said. “He grew up on a farm in Canada, and 
told us all about it. Sounds like he had an idyllic childhood. He 
acts like he had one, too: he’s so sweet and innocent...” She 
shrugs. “I know that it’s sudden, Rei-chan, but that’s about it.”

Rei nodded. She’d noticed that Ken was sweet and relatively 
Innocent, but then, Ken was not the threat.

Minako was still looking at her. “Very much the opposite of 
Minami-san,” she remarked. “What I saw of him, at least.”

It was bait, and Rei knew it, but she couldn’t stop herself. “You 
were supposed to analyse him, Minako-chan, not flirt with him!” she 
said sharply.

“Rei-chan!” Ami protested. “I don’t think Minako-chan flirted with 
him more than she flirts with other boys!”

“I’m not talking about just now, I’m talking about outside!” Rei 
replied, glaring at Minako, who gazed back at her, the picture of 
innocence.

“It was fun, Rei-chan! I don’t see your mark on him! Unless you’ve 
already staked him out...?” Minako added, raising an eyebrow.

Rei felt herself flush. “Of course not! I’m annoyed because he might 
be dangerous – he *is* dangerous!” She glanced at Usagi, silently 
asking for help, and Usagi blinked back at her.

“Dangerous?” Makoto repeated. “Because he flirts with Minako-chan?”

“No!”

“He was scrupulously polite to you, Rei-chan,” Ami said, and Rei was 
infuriated to hear a touch of reproach in the gentle voice. 
“Besides, wouldn’t have Mamoru-san warned us? They’re his friends, 
aren’t they?”

“He’s only just met Minami-san,” Rei said, sitting down, keeping her 
eyes on Usagi. “He might not know...”

Usagi finally stopped eating and looked at her, her eyes lucid and 
calm. “Even if he didn’t, I would, Rei-chan. I met him before you. 
Isamu-san is no threat to me or Mamo-chan. Why are you so convinced 
he’s dangerous?”

Rei closed her eyes. “When we were outside, he... he *knows*! He 
knows something’s not right about me, about us!”

Minako shrugged. “So what? Motoki-san and Asanuma-kun know about us, 
and they haven’t sold our story to the newspapers!”

Rei swallowed on a lump of frustration. “He’s not what he seems...”

Usagi sighed. “We’re not the only people with secrets, Rei-chan. He 
must have his reasons, and I’m sure they’re valid ones. It beats me 
why you want to go rooting them out. You’d hate it if he was poking 
around your head. So he’s sensitive, so what? I assumed that would 
give you something to talk about, since it’s something you have in 
common.”

“I have *nothing* in common with that man!”

The cry echoed in the room. Rei put a hand over her mouth, and took 
a deep breath. Everyone was staring at her, cats and girls, with the 
exception of Usagi, who had a sympathetic look in her eyes.

“Do you really hate him that much?” she asked.

“We are not alike,” Rei whispered. “We are not similar at all, in 
any way.”

Minako hugged her legs to her chest. “Well, if you don’t want him, 
then you won’t mind me taking a shot, will you, Rei-chan?”

Rei stared at her. There was an unfamiliar pain inside her chest, as 
if someone had stuck a needle there, pricking her each time she drew 
breath. The thought of Minako and Isamu together stung so deeply 
that she actually found she was holding her breath. Infuriated and 
frightened by this reaction, Rei tossed her head.

“He’s not mine to give, Minako-chan. And he seemed to like you 
perfectly well!”

Minako grinned. “You noticed that too, huh?”

“Minako...”

“Don’t even start, Artemis!” Minako glared at him. “I’m not passing 
up the opportunity of a handsome guy who actually likes me back!”

Artemis sighed. “Why are you going for him? Why not go for West-
san?”

Minako laughed. “Oh Artemis, you just don’t understand! In one 
respect, Rei-chan is right: Minami-san is dangerous... because he 
doesn’t care what people think, he goes his own sweet way. And that 
makes him very sexy.” She smiled slowly. “And I’ve always had a soft 
spot for bad boys...”

“West-san *is* a bad boy! He said so!” Artemis protested.

“That was then, this is now. You and I both know that West-san is a 
sweetheart: if he was a bad boy, you wouldn’t be pushing him on me,” 
Minako said with a grin, closing her eyes.

Rei sniffed, Ami sighed, and Makoto laughed. Usagi looked at Luna. 
Luna looked back. Minako’s words had stirred up worrying memories. 
They needed to talk about this.

Mamoru came into the room, and Usagi beamed at him. “Mamo-chan! Is 
it okay? Isamu-san knows the way, doesn’t he?”

“Hai, hai.” Mamoru settled himself down beside her and put an arm 
around the slender waist. Usagi nestled against him and murmured, 
“Did you get to talk to them?”

Mamoru leaned his head against hers. “A little... but it’s okay. 
There’s time.”Usagi smiled to herself, feeling a sense of calm about 
him. “Did you arrange to meet them?”

“How did you know?”

“Lucky guess...” She grinned up at him, then reached out and took 
the last piece of shortbread.

Minako cried out in protest, drawing everyone else’s attention. 
There was a general uproar and by the end of it, Mamoru had 
forgotten what he was going to ask Usagi. After all, she was 
intuitive. Sometimes she did make lucky guesses.

It was as simple as that.

***

“Tadaima!”

Takehiko looked over his shoulder as Ken and Isamu entered the flat. 
“Okari,” he replied, then his eyes narrowed. “What happened?” He 
directed the question at Ken, but he looked at Isamu.

“We just happened to bump into someone,” Ken said with a grin.

“Mamoru-san?” Xavier guessed, turning around on the chair and 
hugging the back.

“Got it in one.”

Takehiko nodded, but he kept his eyes on Isamu. His friend looked 
pale and preoccupied, but even more telling, he wasn’t meeting 
Takehiko’s eyes. Surely meeting Mamoru wouldn’t have upset him this 
much...?

“Was Usagi-chan there?” Xavier asked.

Ken nodded. “Yeah. Oh, and one of her friends. Hino Rei-san. We went 
to her shrine and met the rest of Usagi-chan’s friends...”

“You met the senshi?!” Takehiko repeated, sitting up.

“Don’t worry, I didn’t say anything. Isa-kun managed to wake me up 
before we got there,” Ken said, smiling over at Isamu, who was 
sitting on the sofa and staring straight ahead over templed hands. 

Takehiko felt his stomach tighten at the darkness in Isamu’s eyes. 
“Why did you go to the shrine?” he demanded.

Ken flushed. “Well... that was kind of my fault...”

“Ken-kun accepted the invitation before I could say anything,” Isamu 
said. “But don’t worry – nobody suspects us except Hino-san. And 
they’re not going to believe we’re any danger after talking to Ken-
kun.” 

He smiled briefly at Ken before staring into space again.

Xavier smirked. “Gave them the ‘innocent farm boy’ routine, did 
you?”

“It’s not a routine, I *am* an innocent farm boy!” Ken retorted, 
throwing a cushion at him. Xavier laughed and caught it just before 
the cushion smashed into his face.

“None of us are really innocent,” Isamu said sharply. “We’re all 
equally guilty. We’ve all got bloody hands.”

Xavier and Ken sobered, and stared at him. Takehiko closed his eyes. 
/Worse than I thought./

“Isamu, we know that. But that doesn’t mean we should let our guilt 
rule our lives,” Xavier said, his eyes worried. “Did something 
happen...? Did Hino-san say something...?”

“No,” Isamu muttered. “Forget it.” He stretched. “I’ll be in the 
kitchen.”

“Isamu...”

Isamu walked across to the far corner and shut the door behind him.

“I really messed up,” Ken said in a low voice. “He did *not* want to 
go there... I didn’t even realise that Usagi-chan’s friends were the 
senshi until he pointed it out.”

Xavier shook his head. “He’s not mad at you for that... it’s 
something else... Somebody’s been opening old wounds and rubbing 
salt in them.” He glanced at Takehiko. “Hi-kun...”

Takehiko had been staring at Isamu’s door with a thoughtful 
expression. He glanced at Xavier, nodded, and stood up.

“Where are you going?” Ken demanded.

“On the roof. Tell Isa-kun if he asks.”

“Huh? But... Isa-kun...”

“Isa-kun wants to be left alone.”

Ken frowned. “Sure, he’s acting like that, but somebody’s got to 
find out what’s up, and you’re the only one who-”

“Ken-kun, do I tell you how to cheer Isa-kun up?”

Ken flushed and shook his head. Takehiko smiled at him.

“You did a good job with the senshi, Ken-kun. Did anything happen 
with Mamoru-san?”

Ken sighed. “I’m not sure. We were getting somewhere with the 
poetry, but then the girls came back, and then I messed up by 
accepting Hino-san’s invitation. He’s definitely *thinking* though, 
and he saw us to the shrine steps...”

“Did he say anything?”

A smile broke out on Ken’s face. “He asked a lot of questions, as 
usual.”

“Of course, you didn’t answer any of them,” Xavier remarked.

“Nope. He got a bit frustrated...”

Isamu leaned his head against the door, listening to them through 
the wood. All he wanted to do was sit down, and let the sound of his 
friends’ voices and laughter hold back the guilt.

...Some protector, falling to the dark and trying to stamp out that 
which his prince held most dear! Some protector, succumbing to the 
shadows, leaving his prince to flee!...

Isamu stared down at his hands, stained with the blood of the person 
he’d sworn to protect, and closed his eyes. He was torn by twin 
desires: part of him wanted to vomit, part of him wanted to punch 
the wall. It was easy to fight with words. It was easy to tell Rei 
to mind her own business, even as he drowned in her eyes. He 
wondered if she’d felt the connection between them. He was sure that 
she’d felt something – she wouldn’t have lashed out like that 
otherwise. The memory of the feeling washed through him, masking the 
guilt and anger. Isamu smiled. It had been warm and electric, 
reaching from the pit of his stomach right into his heart. He 
sighed: this was definitely serious.

...You can pretend to be a player all you like, but I know. When you 
find that girl, you won’t want anyone else...

/Why did you have to be right, Hi-kun? Why are you always right?!/ 

He had to tell Takehiko about Rei. He had to tell *someone* and only 
Takehiko remembered enough of the past to really understand just how 
he’d feel. Xavier would offer more sympathy, but Takehiko would 
offer a plan of action. He was practical, and Isamu needed some 
practicality at the moment. Just thinking about Rei made him feel 
like he was getting sucked inside a whirlpool. Isamu gripped the 
jade about his neck and concentrated.

/Calm... be calm.../

Eventually, he felt his emotions settle down. He got up, opened his 
wardrobe and reached up to the top shelf, bringing down a long flat 
box. Inside was a leather sheath, carefully tooled with the 
characters of his name. Isamu gazed upon it for a moment, smiled, 
then grabbed it and went into the living room.

Xavier and Ken were playing on the Playstation, deep in 
concentration as they tried to beat each other to a bloody pulp. 
Isamu rolled his eyes affectionately.

“Where’s Hi-kun?”

“On the roof,” Xavier replied, tossing him a quick smile over his 
shoulder. Xavier could afford to take his eyes off the screen – he 
was the better player.

Isamu nodded. “Good luck, Ken-kun,” he said over his shoulder, 
hearing a distracted “thanks” as he made his way up the iron 
staircase in the corner of the room. Maybe Xavier was going easy on 
him – there were times when Ken didn’t hear what was said to him, he 
was so engrossed in the game and trying to survive. Or maybe Ken was 
actually improving. Miracles could happen...

Isamu lifted his head and took a deep breath as he emerged onto the 
roof. It had stopped raining: the clouds were now merely decorating 
the sky for the magnificent sunset, looking innocent thanks to their 
new pink dresses. The sky itself was a wonderful mixture of light 
blue running to gold. Isamu remembered evenings like this when he 
was in high school, walking home with Xavier from their after-school 
clubs, hardly speaking, just looking up at the sky. Being so near 
the sky was just one of the many reasons he loved visiting Ken and 
Takehiko’s flat. Another reason was that whenever things got too 
much, you could escape to the roof. Roofs were such private places. 
You could do almost anything on them, and nobody would notice 
because people hardly ever looked up.

Takehiko was there, sitting in the opposite corner, of course. He 
stood up, his long coat rippling around his ankles in the slight 
breeze. They walked towards each other.

“Want to talk about it?” Takehiko asked.

“Swords first,” Isamu said. “I feel sick.”

“That bad?”

Isamu dropped the sheath on the ground. “What do you think?” he said 
gruffly.

Takehiko reached out and drew a long translucent sword from the air. 
Isamu wondered if he’d ever be able to do that. As much as he loved 
his own sword, it was still made of steel. Ever since he’d awakened, 
and that had been a while ago, he’d missed his Star Sword, 
glittering green jade carved with seven stars, far deadlier than any 
mortal weapon.

They took up their positions, swords up against their faces, and 
bowed in the ancient Elysian tradition. Then Isamu lunged and from 
that moment on he was free: free of the past, free of the guilt and 
fear and rage and nausea, free of the heavy knowledge in his heart, 
free from the memories, free from Hino Rei’s purple eyes... He 
laughed in fierce delight, and suddenly found Takehiko’s sword at 
his throat.

“Damn,” he said.

Takehiko held the sword in place a moment longer, then put it up. 
When he let go, the sword shimmered for a moment and then 
disappeared. He hadn’t even broken a sweat.

Isamu wiped his forehead. Both men walked towards the small cube 
where the door to the penthouse stood open, sat down with their 
backs against the wall and gazed up at the sky. The stone was 
surprisingly warm for winter. Isamu let out a long sigh.

“Do you think we’ll have an early spring?” he murmured.

“Maybe. Xavier-kun will be happy if we do, he doesn’t often get 
sunshine on his birthday.”

“Mm.”

They were silent again. Up here, the sound of Tokyo traffic was 
muted to a gentle background noise, occasional car horns blasting 
through like trumpets. The sky had changed even during their brief 
duel. The gold had faded to the horizon, and the blue was sharper.

“Want to talk about it?” Takehiko asked again.

Isamu dropped his eyes from the glory above them. Back to the real 
world, back to the reality of this life and its problems. “Hino-
san...” He swallowed. “She’s a senshi.”

“So?”

“She’s... Mars.”

“Ah...” He should have known. “I didn’t think you remembered.”

“Not until I heard her voice. Then it all came flooding back. And 
then I looked into her eyes...” Isamu shut his own, fighting with 
himself.

Takehiko watched his face tighten, his heart aching. “I assume she’s 
as beautiful as ever?” he asked quietly.

“She hasn’t changed at all,” Isamu replied, and their eyes met for a 
moment in understanding. “She’s also as unreachable as ever.”

“Did she recognise you?”

“She recognised *something*, but she didn’t know what. She kept 
trying to find out all the way to the shrine, and she made sure I 
knew that she’d keep trying...” Isamu’s lips stretched back to 
reveal his teeth in a mockery of a smile. “She knows I’m not what I 
seem.”

“Who is?” Takehiko said, rolling his eyes.

“Well, exactly.” Isamu stretched. “It’s funny...”

“What?”

“Despite the fact I hated being there, under her eye, and I hated 
the fact I was being presented for inspection... I rather enjoyed 
talking with her. It was... refreshing.”

“You two were always sparring,” Takehiko said, lifting his eyes to 
gaze at the sky, the blue shading into a lavender-grey. “Although I 
sometimes wondered if it was just verbal.”

“What?!” Isamu stared at him. “There was nothing like that between 
us! Ever! She was untouchable, you know that! I was just her 
sparring partner!”

Takehiko looked back at him, his eyes taking on a silver sheen in 
the winter twilight. “Isa-kun... your memory is biased. I was on the 
outside looking in, remember... I doubt you remember *everything*. 
What I’m saying is that, in my memory, the energy between you two 
was not strictly... platonic? In fact-”

“No!” Isamu’s eyes were glittering. “You’re wrong! There was nothing 
like that between us... there couldn’t be.”

Takehiko shrugged. “If you say so – I’m simply telling you what I 
thought back then.”

Isamu shook his head. “You were wrong. Except...”

...We speak not of physical pain!...

Takehiko hadn’t missed the pause. “Except what?”

“Phobos and Deimos...”

Takehiko’s lips curled. “Oh, so they’re still around?”

“If Luna’s still around, it stands to reason they’d be here too, 
don’t you think?” Isamu demanded. “Yes, they’re around, and they 
wasted no time in letting me know of their presence, and their 
opinion of me.”

Takehiko laughed dryly. “Hmm, let me guess, they’re think you’re 
scum, and you shouldn’t even be alive, let alone acquainted with 
their princess?”

Isamu smirked. “Got it in one. I did object to the ‘scum’, though. 
I may be a traitor... but I’m still upper-class. If I’d been ‘scum’, 
my betrayal wouldn’t have mattered to either of them. They wouldn’t 
even have known me.”

Takehiko nodded. “And what did they say that’s got you thinking?” he 
prompted.

“They told me they wouldn’t let me hurt her again. And when I 
pointed out that she was the one who killed me the last time – 
Deimos said they weren’t talking about physical pain...” Isamu 
frowned, pondering the words. “But how could I have caused her 
emotional pain?”

“Even if you were *just* a friend, as you say, it would have been 
devastating for her back then to discover what happened to you, 
wouldn’t it?” Takehiko remarked.

Isamu didn’t reply. He brought his knees up to his chest and locked 
his arms around them. He hadn’t thought of it like that. If one of 
them defected now, after all they’d been through... the mere thought 
was like acid inside his heart. And Mars would not have been 
prepared, back then there was no precedent.

“I hurt her,” he whispered, throat almost closing.

“It wasn’t deliberate.”

“Do you think that will matter?!” Isamu suddenly laughed. “I’m 
hopeless... I told myself all the way here that I wasn’t going to 
dwell on this feeling... that I could sit on it, stifle it, it 
didn’t matter... but it’s already there.”

“What feeling, Isa-kun?” Takehiko said quietly.

Isamu shifted. “You know.”

“Say it.”

Isamu’s mouth tightened into a thin line of refusal.

“Shall I say it for you?” Takehiko suggested.

“Why can’t you just let it drop?!” Isamu snapped.

“Why can’t *I* can’t let this drop?” Takehiko said, his voice soft 
and incredulous. “You’ve been holding onto this feeling for three 
lifetimes now. Isn’t it about time you gave it a name? I won’t tell 
anyone.”

Isamu looked ahead and said in a low voice, “Koi...” Then he dropped 
his head to his knees. “I’m screwed.”

“Maybe not – at least you’ve admitted it now. That should count for 
something,” Takehiko pointed out.

“But it’s hopeless!” Isamu jumped up and began to pace back and 
forth. “You and I both know it’s hopeless! There’s no possible way 
she’ll ever return this feeling. Even if she does remember me - 
she’ll remember that dark perverted version...” 

“Maybe, maybe not... nothing is certain, Isa-kun. I wouldn’t try to 
predict her reactions or emotions. That, I remember, was often fatal 
in the past.”

Isamu gave him a bittersweet smile. “I’ve been to hell and back – 
I’m not afraid of a few burns.”

“You never were,” Takehiko answered. “That’s probably why you 
appealed to her so much. Why you *still* appeal to her.”

“Actually, it makes her suspicious now...”

Takehiko stood up and stretched. “That doesn’t mean you’ve lost your 
appeal. She might be suspicious *because* you appeal to her.”

“If you say so, Hi-kun.” Isamu glanced at his watch. “I suppose 
Xavier and I should go home. I did promise.” His eyes fixed on 
Takehiko’s face as they reached the steps. All trace of sunlight had 
vanished from the sky and the blue was rapidly deepening. A few 
stars were already out. “I suppose it’s useless asking you to tell 
me what you remember?”

“It would be rather hypocritical of me to just tell you, when we’re 
making Mamoru-san work everything out, wouldn’t it?”

“Right. Just thought I’d ask.”

“I’ve given you clues, Isa-kun. What you do with them... well, 
that’s 
up to you.”

“You’re such a bloody enigma sometimes...”

Takehiko’s face saddened as he stared at Isamu’s back, but his voice 
remained calm. “I don’t have much choice, Isa-kun.”

“Choice or not, I think you enjoy being mysterious.”

“Only with you. It’s called poetic justice.”

Isamu turned on the last step and glared at him. “If you weren’t 
bigger and stronger than me...”

“I’d still beat you,” Takehiko replied, stepping down and forcing 
Isamu to move. “And we both know it.”

Isamu held his gaze for a moment before dropping it and turning 
away. “Maybe,” he said.

Takehiko watched him walk towards Ken and Xavier. Isamu could be as 
verbally defiant as he liked, but Takehiko didn’t care about the 
words. It was body language which mattered, and Isamu’s body 
language said that he knew very well who was in charge. Takehiko 
watched as Xavier and Isamu got ready to leave, exchanging the usual 
banter with Ken.

/He’ll be thinking about what I said for the rest of the evening... 
and then he’ll dream about it... and maybe he’ll remember. In some 
ways, he’s happier being ignorant. But eventually he’ll have to 
remember anyway, so it would be better if he remembered sooner 
rather than later.../

Takehiko sighed. It was at times like this that he felt the 
loneliness of his position. He wished that he could talk to Endymion 
about this. But Endymion had no idea he was alive... and he was less 
than impressed with Kitano Takehiko.

There was, of course, one other person who might have understood, 
but he didn’t even know her name in this lifetime, let alone where 
she lived. And of course, telling her that he was back was 
completely out of the question.

...If you have any troubles... any questions, ambiguities... I will 
be happy to help, believe me...

Could he really bother Setsuna for something so petty? Takehiko 
didn’t like relying on other people. He’d always been of an 
independent mind, and circumstances had only combined to encourage 
this autonomy. And yet... if he didn’t talk to someone about this, 
he knew what would follow. A restless, tormented night, followed by 
the endless wait for the dawn...

Takehiko shuddered. Anything was better than that: the waiting 
through the darkest hour, when the Earth seemed totally abandoned, 
lost in the night...

“Ja ne, Hi-kun!” Xavier smiled, wrapping his scarf tightly around 
his neck – he was prone to sore throats.

“See you tomorrow,” Isamu added, standing straight once more, his 
shoulders loose and free.

“Bye,” Takehiko replied, watching them leave. At least Isamu felt a 
bit better. He never liked it when his friends were worried or 
upset. It was his job to do the worrying.

Ken turned and caught the look in his face. “If Isa-kun’s not 
allowed to brood, then neither are you!” he said, grinning and 
holding up one of the Playstation controllers. “C’mon, let’s see if 
we can actually get past the Boss this time.”

Takehiko stared at him for a moment, and then he felt his heart 
lightening, and the laughter rising up. Ken always had the ability 
to remind him of the lighter side. He nodded. “Yes, let’s see!”

/Let’s see if we can get past it./

***

“These are only hints and guesses...”

He blinked, straining to understand.

“The hint half guessed, the gift half understood is Incarnation...”

Mamoru slammed the poetry book shut, frustrated beyond endurance by 
his lack of understanding. He was alone, alone with these words that 
make no sense. Eliot, they had to choose Eliot of all people! 
Shakespeare’s English might be more difficult to understand on a 
superficial level, but his ideas were a lot clearer. Mind you, 
Shakespeare had never talked about reincarnation; he probably didn’t 
even know the concept existed. 

He glanced towards the small glass box, his mouth opening, and then 
stopped himself. They weren’t there. It was because they weren’t 
there he was having to play cat and mouse with these four men. If 
only he’d known back at Harvard that Ken had something to do with 
his guardians, he’d have interrogated him then and there. Maybe he 
should try and get Ken alone and do that now; it was obvious that 
Isamu would not crack half so easily.

Mamoru ran a finger down the spine of the poetry book, already 
cracked from so much usage. /How am I supposed to work out a mystery 
when I can’t even work out the clues?/ he thought, flipping through 
the pages again. /Incarnation... they’ve reincarnated again? I know 
that! And these men know something about it... but they won’t tell 
me anything!/ He took out his mobile phone, opened his address book 
and stared at Ken’s number for a moment before snapping it shut. He 
wasn’t going to phone him; he wasn’t going to beg for information 
again. The next time they spoke about this, he’d make sure that he 
had the upper hand.

After all, there was someone else who had information on his guard.

Mamoru stood up and pressed his hands to his chest, feeling the 
kinzuishou throb inside his chest, responding to his call. He 
encouraged the flow of power, focusing on his destination. The walls 
of his flat seemed to shimmer and melt in a golden light and he 
closed his eyes. For a moment he hung suspended in space, and then 
there was solid ground beneath his feet again, the softness of 
grass; trees whispered around him. He opened his eyes and took a 
deep breath of Elysian air, which always seemed to have a hint of 
perfume: it might be bluebells, roses, or just the sweet scent of 
the earth itself, but whatever the scent, it always made Mamoru 
smile. He turned and set off towards the shrine, glimmering white in 
the distance. 

Elysion did not seem to have seasons like the Earth. Whenever Mamoru 
visited – which was not very often, but often enough – it was green 
and pleasant. The change from the January weather in Japan was 
incredibly refreshing. Here and there he could see white rose bushes 
in full bloom; the grass beneath his feet was a soft gold, the sky 
above him a deep and endless blue. The land was mainly flat since 
the shrine was situated in a river valley, the fertile land cradled 
and protected by a circle of hills; however, the shrine itself stood 
on a slight rise, watching over the lower ground. As Mamoru walked 
up to it, one of the Maenads straightened, carrying a bunch of 
freshly picked flowers. She stopped as she saw him and bowed.

Mamoru bowed back politely. “Hello, Hestia,” he said. “Is Elios 
busy...?”

“Not for the Prince,” she replied. “Please wait here, your Highness, 
I’m sure he’ll be out soon.”

No need for her to tell Elios that Mamoru had arrived, he would have 
felt that. Mamoru touched his chest for a moment. There was still so 
much he didn’t understand about the link between him and the young 
priest, how it mirrored the link between Earth and Elysion. He 
didn’t even know that much about his link to the Earth, what he had 
discovered derived mainly from events, intuition and any mythology 
book he could get his hands on.

“Prince.”

He looked up at the younger man and took a deep breath.

“You know why I’ve come.”

***

“I wish I remembered more about what it was like before the end,” 
Usagi moaned, rolling onto her stomach and hugging the pillow under 
her chin. “But I don’t have many memories of those two together. I 
remember he could always make her blush and that’s it!”

Luna was stretched on the end of the bed, her blue eyes full of 
worry. As always when she was worried, Luna’s tail was twitching at 
the end. “That’s more than enough, Venus was... well, she wasn’t as 
sheltered as Minako. She was... more accustomed to men.”

“When you say ‘more accustomed to men’, what do you mean?” Usagi 
asked, looking at her.

“Exactly what I said. Oh, she went through crushes, just like she 
does now, but as Venus, she never took them seriously. She was just 
as untouchable as Rei-chan, in a way... a more subtle way. Nobody 
ever disturbed her heart, her emotions.”

“Except for him,” Usagi finished.

Luna nodded.

“But he wasn’t a *bad* boy, was he? I don’t remember him having that 
reputation!” Usagi nibbled her lip.

“No, he wasn’t a bad boy back then, but technically, he is now,” 
Luna sighed, stretching. “Although from what I could tell, his 
personality is not much changed: he is still serious, intelligent, 
shy...”

“So... it’s okay. Minako-chan doesn’t like that kind of man. She 
likes charming men, like Isamu-san.” Usagi’s eyes were begging Luna 
for reassurance.

“Usagi... from what I can remember – she liked him precisely 
*because* he was not like her usual type.”

Usagi groaned and dropped her face into the pillow. “Luna... what’s 
going to happen? They’re going to meet... and then she’ll remember 
him!”

“You and Mamoru-san didn’t automatically remember everything on 
first meeting,” Luna reminded her, cleaning a paw.

“This is different! Minako-chan is the senshi of love – she’s 
*bound* to recognise him if he was so special to her back then!” 
Usagi’s eyes grew huge and tearful. “And I know he’ll recognise her 
– he seems so alert - and then everything will come out...”

“Usagi!”

Usagi knew that tone of voice well – it meant ‘you’re fussing too 
much/you’re being hysterical, stop and think’. She accordingly took 
a deep breath and looked at her feline guardian, who had sat up 
slightly.

“Even though Minako-chan may remember more of the Silver Millennium 
than any of you, she is the same as any of you in that she *only 
remembers what she needs to remember*. She has no need to remember 
him at the moment. It would only cause her pain. When they do meet, 
he may recognise her for who she is, but I doubt she will 
immediately recognise him. Not consciously. She will merely be 
intrigued, and he is sufficiently intelligent to keep her at bay.” 
Luna’s gaze softened. “Stop worrying.”

“I can’t help it...” Usagi sighed. “I just... Minako-chan has always 
been searching for that special someone...”

“Oh Usagi-chan, honestly! Just because they were in love in the 
Silver Millennium does not mean they are destined for each other! 
Not everyone is as lucky as you and Mamoru-san...”

“I know that, Luna! But...” Usagi touched the centre of her chest. 
“When I think about them together... I feel...”

“Think about who?”

Luna and Usagi leapt about a foot in the air as Artemis jumped from 
the window to the bed and sat down, tail curling smartly around his 
legs. “Am I interrupting?” he asked.

“Yes, but that’s never stopped you before,” Luna said snidely, as 
Usagi tried to collect herself. Artemis stretched, pretending not to 
hear the comment. “I thought I’d better come and talk to you about 
Minami-san and West-san. There’s something strange about them... 
something familiar... not that they’re evil!” He laughed a little, 
recalling Rei’s furious insistence.

Luna and Usagi looked at each other. Neither of them could think of 
any reason to hide the truth from Artemis. They couldn’t tell 
Minako, but they could at least tell her guardian. Artemis had kept 
secrets from her before...

Usagi fidgeted. “Um, Artemis...”

“Hai?” Artemis looked at her, smiling. 

“Those two men...” Usagi began to play with a strand of her hair.

“What about them?”

“They’re two of the shitennou, reborn.”

Artemis’s reaction was predictably cool, calm and collected.

“They’re WHAAAAAT?!”

Usagi flinched a little. “But as you said yourself, they’re not 
evil.”

Artemis didn’t seem to hear her. His fur was standing on end, and he 
was muttering under his breath. “Shitennou... reborn... wandering 
around on the streets... eating *shortbread* - I WAS IN HIS LAP!”

Luna couldn’t help smirking again. “Yes, you did look like you were 
enjoying yourself.”

“You were curled up right next to him! You can’t say anything! Oh my 
God - I need to tell Minako - this is serious - why didn’t you SAY 
anything, Usagi-chan?!”

“Because they’re *good*, Artemis,” Usagi replied, quickly getting up 
and closing the window before Artemis made good on his threat and 
left.

“And how do you know that?!” Artemis demanded.

“Because I was involved in their reincarnation,” Usagi said, meeting 
his gaze without flinching.

“She didn’t tell me anything about it either,” Luna said dryly. “You 
should be flattered that she’s given you an honest answer.”

Artemis sat down, still looking more like a white puffball than a 
cat. “Fine! I’ll assume that they’re good for now – but I fail to 
see why you haven’t told Minako! She is the leader of the senshi-!”

“They’re not a threat, so she doesn’t need to know,” Usagi said 
quickly. “It’s *their* secret, Artemis. Not even *Mamo-chan* knows 
who they are, yet. We have to respect their right to privacy.”

“Respect... them?!” Artemis was momentarily lost for words.

Usagi folded her arms. “They chose to be reborn, despite how they’d 
be treated, despite all the karma they have to endure... they 
deserve respect for wanting to try and right their wrongs, don’t you 
think?”

Artemis cleaned his paw, playing for time. Luna sniffed.

“He agrees, he just doesn’t want to give in.”

“I can speak for myself, thank you!” Artemis hissed. He finished his 
paw, and cleaned his leg, just to prove that nobody could rush him. 
Then he looked up, his green eyes serious. “All right, Usagi-chan. I 
agree they have the right to try and work off their karma, and it’s 
very nice of you to give them that chance – but you should have at 
least discussed this with Luna before you went gallivanting off to 
the future and got them reincarnated! They’ve betrayed us two times 
already-!”

“I don’t think they had any choice the second time!” Usagi retorted.

“There’s still the first!” Artemis began to walk up and down the bed 
in agitation. “They sided with Beryl, they chose her instead of 
their own prince! Yes, it was a long time ago, but we can’t just 
dismiss something like that! Think of how they might have helped us 
if they’d stayed with Endymion!”

Usagi bit her lip and Luna hissed between her teeth.

“Even if they *had* stayed with us, Artemis, it wouldn’t have made 
any difference,” she growled. “She had all the nations of the Earth 
united under her banner... eight guardians can’t do much against 
that many, no matter how powerful they are!”

Her words rang in the air despite their soft tone. Usagi had pulled 
her knees to her chest, wrapped her arms around them, and now she 
was rocking backwards and forwards. She hated to remember those last 
days – the pain, the confusion, the sheer terror as the world which 
she had thought so secure, so dependable and perfect, crumbled and 
cracked before her eyes. She remembered the things which had seeped 
out from those cracks: poverty, disease, discontent, and all that 
hatred. The hatred had been the greatest shock of all.

“They regret what they did,” she murmured. “I can see it... in their 
eyes... you’ll see it too, Artemis. When you talk to them.”

Artemis sighed. “If you say so, Usagi-chan. If you say so.”

Usagi stopped rocking, an invisible light flicking on above her 
head. “Artemis... you were Minako-chan’s guardian in the Silver 
Millennium too, right? So you’d remember more about her from that 
time than either Luna or me.”

Artemis began to clean his other paw. “I don’t remember 
*everything*,” he warned. “But I do remember her from that time, 
yes. Why? Did you have a question?”

“What Minako-chan said today... about having a soft spot for bad 
boys...” Usagi hesitated.

Artemis stopped washing his paw. “Usagi-chan?”

“Artemis... what do you remember about Venus and Kunzite?”

DISCLAIMER: All characters and situations belong to Naoko Takeuchi
and Kodansha Comics. This story is based on information given in the
MANGA. This story is beta read by the wonderful Dejana Talis, much 
of its coherency is due to her.

AUTHOR’S NOTES: In volume 11 of the manga, there is a story called 
‘Casablanca Memory’ about Rei and her first love, a young man called 
Kaidou Ace, who happens to be a protegé of her father – hence her 
remark about unrequited love. If you haven’t got that volume, check 
out Alex Glover’s translation. He’s also translated the Sailor V 
manga, which I’d recommend both on its own and because I’ll use 
information from that later in the story as well. In this story, the 
country is ElysiON, the adjective is ElysiAN (as in Elysian Fields).

Koi – one of the Japanese words for ‘love’, used more often than 
‘ai’, which is something passionate or special.

Phobos & Deimos – two crows that Rei encountered when she first came 
to the shrine; in reality, they are twin guardians of the Princess 
Mars, who train her and help her as she refines her powers. Phobos 
means ‘fear’ and Deimos means ‘despair’. In mythology, they were 
twin sons of Mars. These are also the names of the two moons that 
orbit the planet Mars.

ALEX GLOVER TRANSLATIONS: www.kurozuki.com/takeuchi

E-mail: halli_meda@yahoo.co.uk