Fallen Stars: Chapter 4

    Disclaimer: I do not claim ownership of Sailor Moon or anything 
that comprises it. This is a non-profit story written solely for my 
own enjoyment and that of anyone who wishes to read it. The story and 
original characters are mine. Please don't use them without 
permission.

***

                             Fallen Stars

              - A Sailor Moon Fan-Fiction by Nutzoide -


     Chapter 4: The Nomads Revealed!
                Life and Love Beneath the Stars.
     
     
     "You really were serious about bringing everyone, weren't you," 
Ami said as she took Jiyu's hand and finally dismounted his horse. 
     
     The nomad nodded, pulling off his cloak. "Every man, woman and 
child."
     
     There, beside the woods they had been aiming for, were dozens and 
dozens of elaborately carved and painted caravans. Ami thought that 
there must have been fifty or even sixty of them, each with a horse 
already bridled, waiting for them to return. 
     
     "Isn't that dangerous?" Minako asked as she helped Haruka down 
from her own horse. "What if the soldiers are still following us?"
     
     Jiyu nodded. "They will be. We'll leave as soon as you're all 
onboard," he said, indicating to the caravan that was trotting up to 
meet them. "We're the best horsemen in the province, but if they keep 
on us until we camp then we'll take them on to a man. Even a dozen 
soldiers can't win against forty five families fighting for their 
lives."
     
     Nothing else needed to be said as he hurriedly helped them up 
into the open-backed caravan. It was empty aside from the crates of 
supplies at the far end, and had evidently been left for them. "Let's 
go."
     
     As the caravan lurched off the girls had to admire how 
comfortable it was. The days they had spent in their cell-coaches on 
the way to the Comte's manor had been very unpleasant. Hard wooden 
benches made a bottom sore after a while, and by the time they had 
reached their destination they had all been well on the way to a case 
of cabin fever. 
     
     These caravans were very different though. The wood on the inside 
was as ornately carved and painted as on the outside, with patterns 
of leaves, flowers and vines tracing around the place. The seats were 
also well upholstered, and despite the rocking of the rough ground 
they rode across they weren't tossed around nearly the way they had 
been on the way to see the Comte. Haruka wondered if they had some 
sort of home made suspension on the wheels, but in truth it was just 
the combination of a skilled driver, well trained horse and the well 
padded benches. They were the nomads' homes after all, so it made 
sense that they would lavish what little they had on making them as 
pleasant as possible.
     
     This was also the first time since their escape that the other 
girls could get a good look at their rescuer as he chatted with 
Makoto. He was a good several years older them, probably near his mid 
twenties, and although he was rather thin and gangly his muscles 
showed well where the garish leathers he wore left them bare. It was 
clear now that Makoto hadn't received any special treatment from the 
nomads with regard to clothing. His minimal vest and breeches, like 
Makoto's own vest and skirt, covered what they had to but accentuated 
the rest as much as possible. 
     
     He was also the kind of handsome that Makoto must have compared 
to her old sempai when she had first met him. There wasn't any one 
thing they could put their finger on that made him good-looking but 
he was nicely put together, and his hair, held back by a thin bandana, 
framed his face well as it hung from his temples. It was kind of old 
fashioned, but they had been in Seiji for so long that such things 
were feeling normal to them now. 
     
     Had they been back at home both Minako and Rei would probably 
have started stalking the poor man and wondering what Makoto had to 
do with him already, but they weren't back home. 
     
     That was the problem. 
     
     Well, one of the problems. Now, sitting in that caravan, Rei felt 
very alone. The others had avoided looking at her ever since she had 
let Desir loose, but she had distracted herself by taking a crash 
course in riding. It turned out she wasn't bad at it once she knew 
what she was supposed to be doing. Even though Makoto's friend had 
obviously been avoiding her, he had still helped when she had been 
having trouble - prompted by Ami no doubt - and Desir had been all 
too happy to lend some helpful advice.
     
     Rei frowned at the floor. That was the other thing. Desir was 
happy. Far too happy. The second she had come back she had stretched 
out in Rei's mind and glowed with contentment. Contentment Rei sure 
as hell didn't want. Not after this. If Rei ever wanted not to have a 
friend then this was it, because that friend was Desir.
     
     At least on the horse Makoto had been there, holding onto her as 
they rode clumsily after the others. At least then it had felt like 
someone didn't care about what she had done.
     
     Ami wasn't faring too well either, though in a very different way. 
She had spent a long time on the back of Jiyu's horse, and despite 
his obvious skill it had done nothing for her already upset stomach. 
"Jiyu-san... Mr. Jiyu," she ventured, interrupting Makoto's 
conversation with the man, "do you think we could stop, just for a 
little moment?"
     
     The others looked over to her, both in surprise and concern. "Why? 
What's wrong?" Jiyu asked. "Given the way we had to ride out we 
didn't make the best escape. We really do need to stay with the rest 
of the camp."
     
     Ami began to feel greener just at the thought. "It's just that 
I..." 
     
     It was too little too late and she had to force herself to 
swallow heavily. She was just glad that the back of this caravan was 
open, unlike most of the others because, before she could say 
anything else, she was forced to lean over the wooden rail and 
finally throw up what little she had eaten today. 
     
     In no time Makoto and Haruka were beside her, stroking her back 
as she retched. "Oh Ami-chan, I'm sorry," Makoto said with heartfelt 
sympathy.
     
     "It's okay Ami... Ami-chan," Haruka added. "We're here."
     
     Jiyu reached over to the front of the caravan for some water, but 
Rei and Minako just sat where they were. There was only so much room 
to help, and Rei noticed the look that flickered in Minako's eyes as 
she watched the others.
     
     'First Ami-chan and Haruka-san and now...' Rei thought to herself 
with pity for her friend. 'Oh Minako-chan... It all has to happen now, 
doesn't it...'

***
     
     Night seemed to have fallen with a crash that evening. As soon as 
the sun had begun to dip beyond the horizon the entire nomad camp had 
stopped and everyone had swarmed out around fires and cooking pots, 
playing music, telling stories and letting the children play around 
in the twilight. 
     
     Then only an hour or so later the pink glow in the sky had 
finally faded and everyone had returned to their caravans or set up 
tents to sleep in. The day had passed in one long blur: worry and 
adrenaline bleeding into fear and resolve and finally into a jovial 
sundown, as if nothing had happened. 
     
     Makoto had never been with the nomads when travelling. It seemed 
so much more hectic than the laid back, family lifestyle that she 
remembered, and yet it made a lot of sense. She would have bet that 
within those ornate and brightly coloured homes life was going on as 
usual to them.  That just wasn't something she was privy to. 
     
     But she was used to the dark. Out in this rural country the dying 
of the sun really did mean the end of the day for most people. 
Looking up the stars were so bright and made her feel rather small, 
but for someone like her - who often felt large, drawing everyone's 
attention - it was actually rather comforting to feel like just 
another person beneath that vast sky.
     
     The stars weren't what she was looking for now though. She was 
looking for the small glow by the edge of the camp; the one campfire 
that was still burning, tended by a modern girl who - unlike these 
rural Seijian people - was used to being awake in the evenings. 
     
     "Rei-chan, there you are," she said as she finally reached the 
small, smouldering fire and the friend that sat by it.
     
     Rei looked up from the fire, still holding her knees to her chest. 
"Mako-chan..."
     
     Rei looked back to stare at the slowly dying fire, her soft voice 
floating delicately through the air as Makoto took a seat next to her. 
"Ami-chan's finally asleep, huh?"
     
     Makoto nodded with a soft smile. "Yeah, the others too. She's 
says she's feeling a bit better now."
     
     "I'm glad." Rei replied, her gaze not leaving the fire. "Your 
friend Jiyu's on first watch you know, I saw him go."
     
     Makoto smiled at that. "You all think I know him better than I do. 
His family was the one that took me in, but I saw more of his little 
brothers than I did of him. He does the 'sneaking around and 
infiltrating' thing a lot, so he wasn't always there."
     
     Rei nodded but didn't reply. After hearing them talk in the 
caravan she already knew that much about him. That was also how they 
all knew Makoto hadn't gone after the young man. He had said that, 
coming from a family with so many men and boys, having a surrogate 
sister for a few weeks had been a novelty to them all.
     
     "Rei-chan," Makoto said, breaking the silence that had fallen, 
"we were all worried you know. You've been so quiet, and you 
disappeared like that after dinner."
     
     "I killed a man today Mako-chan. I just needed some time alone," 
Rei lied. 
     
     Makoto shifted a little where she sat. She wanted to comfort her 
friend, but if it wasn't wanted... "Do you want me to go?"
     
     Rei wanted to scream for her to stay. For her to say it was 
alright, that it didn't mean or change anything. But of course it did. 
How could it not? Even Haruka would pause at killing a human. 
     
     Makoto began to worry when Rei just continued to stare at the 
fire, but before she could voice her concern Rei spoke up. 
     
     "It was easy really," the young priestess said. "Easier than I 
thought it would be. We've killed a lot of monsters and demons in the 
past, haven't we Mako-chan." A small smile began to show on Rei's 
lips, even as her eyes began to fill with tears. "We zap them, and 
they fade away or crumble to dust. I bet it was the same this time. 
Nothing left but a pile of ash."
     
     "Rei-chan..." Makoto said, stunned at what Rei was saying.
     
     "It was even easier this time though," Rei continued. "I didn't 
have to cast a spell. I didn't have to take aim with my flame sniper 
and do it myself. I just had to say the word, and Desir did it for me. 
Killing really is so easy." The tears finally started to pour and 
Rei's smile crumpled as she finally turned to Makoto. "But then you 
have to live with it!" 
     
     Makoto gathered Rei into her arms at let the girl's racking sobs 
pour across her shoulder. "Rei-chan, you know we all still love you. 
What you let Desir do... You didn't have any other choice. We know 
that. If they had found out then everyone in this world would be 
hunting us down, not just a few soldiers."
     
     Makoto stroked Rei's hair as the girl's weeping slowly began to 
subside. "Remember, back in the draughty old house? You and Haruka-
san said we might be forced to take another person's life here. At 
the time I though you were being so extreme, but now..." She pulled 
Rei's head up to look into her eyes. "If I had to kill someone to 
protect you, any of you, I would."
     
     "Don't say that Mako-chan," Rei sobbed. "You don't know how hard 
it is. And Desir, she was so happy about being able to eat someone 
finally. She's sitting inside me, treating it as if this is the way 
it's supposed to be. As if this is as good as it gets."
     
     "You know she's lying, right Rei-chan?" Makoto asked, firm 
reassurance in her voice.
     
     Rei nodded. "I know. But she's always there, feeling so confident 
about it, when everyone else is avoiding me."
     
     Makoto narrowed her eyes in thought. "Get her out here."
     
     "Wha..? Mako-chan why?"
     
     Makoto just wiped away one of the tears that slid down Rei's 
cheek. "Trust me, okay?"
     
     Rei nodded, drawing in a breath as Desir materialised, the glow 
of her body casting an orange light across them. "What's up Mako?" 
Desir said. Her words had lost some of their usual sharp playfulness, 
but instead sounded calm and happy. "I'm guessing you're not wanting 
a chat."
     
     Makoto glared up at her. "Take a walk. You can feel good 
somewhere else for a bit."
     
     "As milady commands," Desir said with a sweeping bow. She prodded 
the fire with her toe and it flared into life. "Don't keep her up too 
late though, my little Rei needs her beauty sleep," she said before 
she vanished, just leaving her flames to burn away into the air. 
     
     "Now," Makoto said, "she's gone, and I'm here. Better?"
     
     Rei found a giggle forcing its way through her last tears. 
"You're such an idiot sometimes Mako-chan. But thanks."
     
     Makoto nodded as if that was what she wanted to hear. "It came as 
a surprise, but we aren't avoiding you. Soon everyone will see that 
you're okay, and that's all that it will take."
     
     "Not for your friend," Rei countered. "He saw her. He'll tell 
whoever's in charge here. If they were going to turn on us Desir 
would have wanted to do something before we got here, so I know they 
won't, but still... They'll all be terrified."
     
     Makoto just drew her back into a hug. "Maybe, but these are the 
most forward thinking people in this crazy place. The elders will 
accept you, and that means everyone else will, no matter how scared 
they are. But even if they don't want to be around you, me and Ami-
chan and Minako-chan and Haruka-san will. You're our friend and 
nothing will change that."
      
     Rei sniffed and a smile broke onto her face. "Thank you Mako-
chan," she said, giving the taller girl a fierce hug. She let out a 
heavy sigh as she let Makoto go. "God, I feel so much better. You 
know, you never did tell me. What did you think about what happened 
between Ami-chan and Haruka-san?"
     
     "Huh?" Makoto asked, "what do you mean?"
     
     Rei swatted her lightly. "What do you mean 'what do you mean'? 
What did you think about them sleeping together?"
     
     Makoto's look turned thoughtful and her voice softened a little 
more. "Everyone needs someone now and again. I think maybe it was a 
mistake, but I think it did them both a lot of good too." She smiled. 
"They both have looked happier, aside from Ami-chan being sick I 
mean."
     
     "Yeah," Rei nodded, her smile lighting up her tear-stained cheeks, 
"and you've seen the way Haruka-san worries about her because of it? 
It's really sweet."
     
     "That's why I think it might have been a mistake too," Makoto 
replied. "Ami-chan's been looking at Haruka-san, but it's pretty 
obvious they decided not to do anything else, isn't it?"
     
     Rei nodded. "It's understandable I guess. Poor Michiru-san. Well, 
poor Haruka-san really. It must be hard, being away from her for so 
long, and not knowing when you'll get back. I know it's hard missing 
grandpa so much, but that's not like losing a..." She sighed, "A 
girlfriend I guess. And a child. I bet Hotaru-chan misses her Haruka-
papa."
     
     Makoto had to agree. "I guess I've been lucky that way. And I 
don't want Ami-chan to get hurt either. I never really thought she 
would get involved like that, especially since she would never want 
to come between anyone, but I keep having to remind myself that she's 
only human."
     
     Rei thought about that. It might have been better not to say 
anything, but maybe just talking about it would help ease her mind. 
"Minako-chan might not have that problem."
     
     "What?" Makoto asked, confused, "Minako-chan's not human now?"
     
     "No!" Rei admonished, finally wiping her face with a smile, but 
it didn't last long. "I mean she might not care that Haruka-san is 
all but married back home."
     
     Makoto just stared at her, but the implication was clear. 
"Minako-chan has always been gung-ho with relationships," Rei 
continued, "and she might think that Haruka-san isn't as unavailable 
as she was. Maybe she'd be right, but still..."
     
     Makoto face was unreadable, but she obviously knew what she 
wanted to say. "Haruka-san can deal with her. Whatever she chooses, 
it's up to her. Maybe she'll be okay now, after Ami-chan."
     
     Rei looked concerned. "Shouldn't we talk to Minako-chan?"
     
     Makoto shook her head. "I want to, but it's up to them. We're not 
fourteen years old any more. Finding out that Ami-chan and Haruka-san 
slept together... it just made that even more obvious. You know, my 
new year's resolution last year was to start acting more like my age. 
You know long that lasted!"
     
     Rei chuckled to herself. "I guess you're right. I hope it all 
works out okay."
     
     Makoto smiled and got to her feet, lit only by the stars and the 
embers of the fire. "Me too." She reached down and offered Rei her 
hand. "Let's get some sleep. Nomads rise with the sun you know."
     
     Rei groaned and took Makoto's hand. Even though Desir had already 
returned to her mind, she still felt so much better now than she had 
been, but now that she thought about it she really was tired. "Sure."

***
     
     The sun had not even risen when the sharp trumpeting of the 
nomads' warning horn sounded through the camp. It was not a sound 
heard often, but every man, woman and child knew what it meant. The 
mission that had brought them there was not yet over. Minako was 
still rubbing the sleep from her eyes when the first caravan left, 
and in minutes the entire camp had evacuated, leaving just the five 
bleary-eyed girls and a handful of men with them.
     
     "Wha..?!" Minako said as she looked around at the desolate 
remains of their camp. "What just happened?"
     
     Makoto finished tying back her ponytail and began to stretch out, 
as if she was warming up for a run. "It looks like that Comte guy 
really doesn't want us to leave."
     
     Jiyu nodded as he and the other men took their own quick warm-ups. 
"Their trackers must have caught up with us after all. The cavalry is 
on its way. They must have ridden their horses into the ground to 
make it here so soon. We'll stay behind and take out this band, and 
the soldiers coming from the other side will have to take on the rest 
of the camp."
     
     "That's dangerous," Ami observed with worry. "What if they decide 
to take hostages from the main camp?"
     
     The well armoured man next to Jiyu nodded. "That's what they will 
try, splitting their numbers like this. They want our camp to fight 
on two fronts, so they have a better chance of grabbing someone and 
making a bargain."
     
     "So the best fighters stay back and make sure it's two groups 
against two," Minako realised. Then she gave a worried pout. "And we 
have to be fighters too, huh?"
     
     Jiyu gave them all a cocky grin. "You have a reputation to live 
up to. And now is the time to start!"
     
     The girls all blinked at him in surprised unison. "We have a 
reputation?" Makoto asked.
     
     Jiyu's armoured friend chuckled, clapping the smaller man on the 
shoulder. "You can blame him for it later, Miss. Right now all you 
have to do is fight for your lives!"
     
     "We can do this without killing them, can't we?" Ami asked, still 
concerned.
     
     The man looked at her in surprise, then shrugged. "You are 
welcome to try."
     
     "Easy Tachi," Jiyu said, "they can take care of themselves." He 
dropped his voice and walked past Rei. "And I suggest you keep your... 
friend... hidden. At least for now." 
     
     Rei just muttered quietly to herself as she pulled on her archery 
harness. "It's too early for this. Way too early."
     
     Makoto was about to offer her a supportive word when they heard a 
faint whistle and the men all tensed. "If any of you fight from a 
distance," Tachi said, drawing his katana, "you had best get ready."
     
     "And do whatever you can to get them off their horses," said the 
burly middle aged man, obviously the leader of their group. "Without 
killing the animals if possible."
     
     Ami reached into the bag at her feet. "I might be able to help 
there," she said quietly, bringing out one of her bombs and the 
clockwork flint she had made. "But it will terrify them."
     
     "Fine by me," said the leader, as he finally spotted their own 
scout charging back to them. "As long as we stop them here."
     
     "Why not just draw them into the trees?" Haruka asked, motioning 
to the woods that they had set up camp beside. "That would stop the 
horses."
     
     "It wouldn't be the first time they've sent men to ambush us 
doing that, and used the cavalry as a decoy," Jiyu volunteered. 
     
     Haruka nodded at that, and they all watched as the scout finally 
reached them, panting for all she was worth. "Papa," the young girl 
said as soon as she had her breath back, "they are heading straight 
around the skirts of the woods, riding fast. Ten of them. They just 
want to reach the camp, they don't care about us at all."
     
     The older man nodded and gave his daughter a hug. "Good work 
Kimiko. We'll make them care about us." He looked over to Haruka with 
a grin, "and, if we need to, we can draw them into the woods once 
they do." 
     
     He turned back to his daughter with a reassuring smile. "Take 
your bow and head into the trees. You can help us from there. And if 
any of you are archers you had better follow her," he said to the 
other girls. "Everyone else, spread out and make sure you get their 
attention."
     
     Rei shouldered her bow and turned to follow the scout girl, but 
was stopped when Ami called after her. "Rei-chan, we'll see you soon, 
okay?"
     
     Rei slowly smiled and nodded, suddenly feeling a whole lot better 
before heading in to take her place behind one of the trees.
     
     As she did, Tachi gave Haruka a derisory look as she hefted her 
staff into her hands. "You are going to fight the Lord's soldiers 
with a stick, boy?"
     
     Haruka just gave him a feral smile. "It's more than I'll need." 
It felt good to have the wood in her hands again after so long 
without it. The feel of the grain beneath her fingers comforted her 
as the fear and adrenaline of battle started to seep through her 
bones. No matter what her magic did to her, she was going to protect 
the people she cared about.
     
     The same fear flowed through Ami's veins as she stared out to 
where they knew the riders would appear. She gripped the metal egg 
tightly in her hand, memories of nights alone running through her 
mind: nights when she had so desperately wanted her mother there with 
her. More memories. Of the day she stayed behind, freezing at the 
north pole: the day she died alone so her friends could fight on 
without her. 
     
     And knowing that no matter what she wanted, what she knew or what 
she told herself, she missed what she had felt within Haruka's arms. 
And she knew she could never let herself feel that again. Haruka and 
Michiru deserved better. 
     
     Around her, her friends and the men they fought beside steeled 
themselves as the soldiers finally charged into view in front of them. 
But Ami barely heard them through the fear and loss and anger at her 
own weaknesses that welled within her. The pressure within her had 
become a tangible thing, pushing outwards through her as she forced 
herself to remember these things.
     
     She lit the metal egg, threw it up, and released that pressure. 
The smack she gave the bomb was so powerful that it sounded like 
thunder striking, and seconds later the home made grenade landed 
within the charging men over sixty feet away. Ami's brow furrowed 
even more and she lashed out again with that pressure, punching the 
bomb back up to follow them as the men passed it, kicking up dirt and 
grass as she did.
     
     The nomad guards all looked in shock as the grenade exploded. Two 
of the closest horses were knocked to the ground by the blast and the 
others scattered, taking their riders with them in their panic.
     
     "By the Gods," Tachi said under his breath, looking over at Ami 
as her fierce gaze followed the frantic horses. "They really are the 
Seraphi?"
     
     Haruka also watched Ami with concerned eyes, but she couldn't do 
anything for her now. If that was how Ami had to feel in order to 
fight, Haruka would not take that away from her. It worried her, but 
Ami had the right to fight just like she herself did.
     
     From the tree line Kimiko also watched, slack jawed. "She... she 
used gunpowder..."
     
     Rei looked at her, knowing what she must have been thinking. 
"It's not like that. Ami-chan is doing her best for all of us, and 
that's just how she does it."
     
     "But... it's wrong!" Kimiko replied. Then her voice quieted. "You 
are not the Seraphi. I know you are not."
     
     "Anyway," Rei said, drawing her bow and changing the subject, 
"now's our chance, before they can get close to the others."
     
     She loosed her arrow, sending it past one of the riders and 
causing them all yet another worry. They were professional men, but 
to be attacked with gunpowder was something far more dangerous than 
they had expected. Two of them were already down, trapped beneath 
their mounts. Every one of their horses had been spooked by the blast, 
and now they were being attacked from the trees. Put together it was 
bad enough, but now they had to get through the line of nomads before 
them. 
     
     Their plan was in tatters. The best they could do was take out 
these nomads quickly and keep moving, or retreat. As soldiers of the 
Comte, retreat against a rabble of vagabond families - mostly women 
and children - was unacceptable.
     
     From the trees Kimiko took a shot nailing one of the fallen men 
as he struggled to free his leg from his wounded horse. She grinned 
to herself. Even if he could get free he wouldn't be able to fight 
with an arrowhead embedded in his sword arm. 
     
     Rei swallowed hard and notched another arrow. 'Oh oh, that one 
there!' Desir urged from inside her head, psychically pointing to one 
stationary solder that was pulling his horse back under control. 
'Come on, he's an easy target!' 
     
     That made the shot even harder. 
     
     "Hey girl," Kimiko said as she took another shot but missed her 
mounted target, "do you want those bastards to start cutting down 
your friends?"
     
     Rei swallowed again, "No!"
     
     "Then shoot!"
     
     Rei let the arrow fly and caught the rider square in the side. He 
fell from his horse with a cry and landed heavily, clutching his 
bloody armour.
     
     "Good shot," Kimiko complimented. "Don't worry, he won't die from 
that too easily."
     
     'Ahh well,' Desir added, 'you can always try again.'
     
     After that however the riders had finally closed the gap and the 
nomads charged in to meet their opponents. Thankfully for the nomads 
the soldiers' horses were now as much of a burden as a blessing and 
Tachi, being both large and nimble, surprised friend and foe alike by 
simply tackling one soldier right off his horse. 
     
     Minako got hers next, and reminded everyone that despite looking 
so vacuously blonde she was just as capable as everyone else. Rei's 
shot at Minako's assailant had missed by a mile as he had charged 
towards her, but at the last minute she had given a playful cry and 
vanished in a puff of yellow smoke.
     
     The next thing the rider knew was the pain in his sword arm as he 
brought it down into the thick haze and he toppled to the ground, 
unbalanced as the girl grabbed his leg at the same time as she pulled 
her scimitar free from his armour.
     
     Haruka took another off his horse with a wide swing of her staff, 
and Rei and Kimiko dislodged another two, one poor horse catching 
Rei's arrow in its flank. 
     
     In the end, as the nomads slowly unhorsed the others, Ami had to 
use a blast of her painful energy as the final mounted swordsman 
managed to single her out as the weak link of the group. Ami just 
closed her eyes and shot the invisible power out, knocking the horse 
off its feet and out cold while the rider catapulted backwards 
through the air before collapsing bonelessly, as unconscious as his 
mount. 
     
     That was not the end of the fight though, as Jiyu, Tachi and the 
other nomad men took the soldiers on blade for blade. Ami knew this 
was not something she could do, so she escaped to where her explosive 
had first dismounted two of the men. While one lay cringing, an arrow 
in his arm and his leg beneath his horse, Ami scrambled to the other 
as he tried to pry himself free from his unconscious and bleeding 
mount. The man stopped when he looked up to see her, and the crossbow 
she pointed at his head.
     
     "I don't want to do it," Ami said, her voice trembling. "Please 
don't make me."
     
     To her horror the man just grinned up at her, and she turned 
around to see that one of the other soldiers was running for her. His 
sword was gone and he was bleeding from his forehead, but his orders 
were to capture the girls, not kill them. 
     
     Ami cringed back and swung her crossbow around, lashing out with 
the last of her telekinetic energy to knock the man back, but this 
time he just stumbled a few paces. Ami needn't have worried though. 
That pause was enough and another of Kimiko's arrows took the man off 
his feet, killing him instantly as it pierced the side of his head.
     
     Ami just stared at the corpse for a second before her stomach 
rebelled again, but this time she didn't know whether it was really 
her illness or just the bloody sight before her.
     
     Across the battlefield Makoto had had an easy time. The static 
charge around her had hummed continually, and two horsemen, both 
closing on her together, had been taken down with just one small bolt 
of lighting from her fingertips. It hadn't been enough to harm them, 
but it had been enough of a shock to get them off their horses. After 
that her martial arts had served her well, each hit sending another 
sharp charge into the shaken and sluggish men until they could do 
nothing but look up at her from the ground.
     
     In the end the last man was Haruka's. She had already put one man 
to sleep, but the nausea - the ineffable sense of wrongness that came 
with using her Art this way - was keeping her from doing so again. 
This man was still in good shape and was giving her a good fight, and 
she had not dared block with her staff in case the swordsman sliced 
it through. She dodged back again after he swung at her, and she 
lunged forward, leaving herself open but ploughing the end of the 
staff into the man's face. 
     
     The soldier rolled back with the blow, agile despite his armour, 
and went in for another series of strikes that Haruka could only just 
avoid. Her gi was already cut and torn, and the final slash opened up 
her sleeve, drawing blood as it sliced through her skin. 
     
     Haruka winced. She had to use the Art... but now, having already 
used it again, she hesitated. She really didn't want to see inside 
someone again. She didn't want to feel what he felt as she altered 
the impulses within his body. 
     
     He sensed her hesitation, made his move, and left Haruka no 
choice. She made her quick attack as he raised his sword, bringing 
her staff into his ribs, and forced her consciousness down the wood. 
     
     The others cried out to her, but the blow that would have put her 
down never came. She just wobbled a little once her blow connected 
and the man spasmed before falling backwards, grasping for air. 
Haruka swallowed hard, trying to subdue that tainted feeling that 
filled her. It wasn't any use, even though she knew what to expect, 
and she fell to her knees, vomiting.
     
     The nomads quickly disarmed and restrained the man as his breath 
suddenly returned to him, and both Minako and Ami rushed to Haruka's 
side.
     
     "Haruka-san, are you okay?" Minako asked with concern.
     
     "Just take it slowly," Ami said, equally worried.
     
     "I'm alright, really," Haruka replied, getting back to her feet 
and wiping her mouth.
     
     Ami looked up at her. "Haruka-san, you're so obviously not 
alright. At least talk to us about it. Please."
     
     "There will be time for such things later," Kimiko's father said. 
"I don't want to know how or why some of you do what you did here, 
but we need to get back to the camp. Some of us will take the spoils, 
you just take some horses and follow me."
     
     With that he mounted one of the horses and waited for his 
daughter to join him as she and Rei emerged from the woods. Haruka 
followed suit, grateful for the chance to put off her explanations, 
even for a little while. 'What will another couple of hours hurt 
anyway?' she thought. 
     
     "Minako, come on, let's get going!"
     
     Minako blinked in surprise before her face lit up. After all this 
time without a word... "Woohoo! You got it Haruka-chan!" 
     
     The others made to follow as Haruka and Minako rode off after 
Kimiko and her father, but Ami just stood watching for a second 
before mounting the horse Jiyu took, thinking about just what Minako 
had said. 'Haruka...-chan?'
     
***
     
     As it turned out the rest of the camp had been more than capable 
of defending itself. The soldiers had been seen long before getting 
close enough to make their move, and the hail of rocks, arrows and 
crudely fashioned spears had kept them at bay for longer than they 
were prepared to endure. Battered, bleeding, and with more casualties 
than those the senshi had inflicted, the soldiers had made their 
retreat. With no backup their plan had failed anyway, and at least 
the nomads would not have the privilege of taking their equipment and 
horses this time.
     
     The nomad celebration was brief however, and the girls had barely 
made it back before the camp was moving again, wanting to put as much 
distance between themselves and the soldiers as possible. Thanks to 
that Haruka had nowhere to run, and even Rei was ganging up on her 
now. Haruka had thought that she of all people would have too much on 
her own mind to be concerned about the Dark Art.
     
     "Haruka-san, really," the raven haired priestess said, "how can 
we not worry? You keel over almost every time you fight. At least 
talk about it. If I hadn't had someone to talk to I think I'd have 
cracked already."
     
     Next to her Makoto smiled to herself, feeling proud. Haruka on 
the other hand just sighed and let her head fall back against the 
wall of the caravan with a 'thunk'. "How am I supposed to explain 
something like this?"
     
     "Please Haruka-chan," Minako wheedled, "can't you at least try?"
     
     Haruka had to think for a moment about where to begin. "It's an 
out-of-body experience I guess, except you don't just float around 
like a ghost. It feels a bit like velcro when I start using the Art, 
the way my consciousness separates from my... my brain I guess. After 
that everything becomes sort of abstract. My mind goes out through me 
like water through a can, and I just flow out into whoever I've 
touched. I can tell the rest of the world is there, and I can see my 
body through that person's eyes and my own eyes at the same time, but 
everything seems to slow down. It feels like I'm inside him for 
several minutes, just flowing through him."
     
     "Maybe," Ami ventured, "maybe consciousness is limited by how 
fast our brains can process data. Or the magic you are using might 
accelerate mental functions."
     
     "Maybe," Haruka replied. "I really don't have a clue. It just 
seems like a long time, even though I know it's only a moment. That's 
really all it's supposed to be for. If you do stay connected for 
longer, like real Warlocks do, you start to feel more of that 
person's emotions, or their soul, or whatever it is. It's kind of 
spiritual, and very intimate if it lasts long enough, but once you 
affect the body you're in it tries to spit you back out."
     
     She grimaced a little. "That's where it gets unpleasant. Because 
you're inside a real tangible body, experiencing it in that way, you 
can push it into reacting the way you want. With that last soldier, I 
sort of wrapped my mind around his chest, and pressed his muscles 
into seizing up for a little while. That's why he couldn't breathe.
     
     "But once I'd done that I wasn't just flowing through him any 
more. His body reacted to me and tried to get me out, and at the same 
time I could feel his physical reaction to what I'd done. Only I 
don't feel it physically. It's a psychological thing, like watching a 
road accident happen up close and knowing that you caused it."
     
     "Haruka-san..." the girls all exclaimed at such a graphic example. 
However, it might have been the only illustration that came close 
enough to conveying how it felt.
     
     "It's no wonder they go mad," Jiyu said from his seat by the 
front wall, the image not lost on him either. "Seeing a man trampled 
under his horse is bad enough."
     
     "You don't have to do it," Makoto said. "You're still the best 
fighter out of all of us, even without magic."
     
     Ami nodded, feeling very upset at what Haruka had been putting 
herself through. "You don't have to do that for us."
     
     "I could say the same to you Ami-chan, and Rei-chan." Haruka gave 
a subdued smile at the sympathy in her friends' eyes. "At least the 
more I use it this way the less I want to. And the more I understand 
what it was I think the Warlocks were trying to tell me."
     
     Ami had to look down at the floor when Minako laid a comforting 
hand of Haruka's arm. 'So that's how it is,' she thought to herself. 
'But I was right. They taught you for a good reason Haruka-san.'

***
     
     "Hello Haruka-chan."
     
     Haruka looked up at Minako from her seat between the roots of the 
huge tree, out past the boundary of the camp. "You're up late Minako-
chan," she replied.
     
     Minako nodded and sat down next to the boyish young woman. "It 
took me long enough to find you in the dark. You owe me for a stubbed 
toe."
     
     "How come you're not asleep with the others?" Haruka asked, 
looking up at the stars.
     
     Minako sighed. "Do you really think they're asleep? Rei-chan and 
Makoto-chan wandered off after you did, and Ami-chan... actually I 
think she's avoiding me." Minako felt a sad little smile form on her 
lips. "It was bad enough with the nomads thinking we're some sort of 
second innings, but I didn't think Ami-chan would give me the silent 
shoulder."
     
     Haruka chuckled a little. "And I thought you only messed up your 
sayings when you were excited."
     
     Minako just stuck her tongue out at her. "I'm trying to be 
serious here."
     
     "Sorry," Haruka replied with a smile. "Just ignore the nomads. 
They've got just as much of an agenda as the Comte does. Mako-chan 
trusts them, but beyond that..."
     
     Minako nodded. "And I guess Ami-chan is my own fault. I always 
forget how much smarter than us she is."
     
     Minako let the silence take over as the pair of them stared at 
the sky, but it hung heavily as Minako waited. Was Haruka really that 
that insensitive? Of course not, but the longer she waited the worse 
it got. Minako had been waiting a long time now.
     
     "Can't you say anything? Not even to reject me?"
     
     Haruka looked over to see Minako's downcast eyes. "Minako-
chan..."
     
     "It's not kind to leave a girl hanging for two days Haruka-chan. 
We get lonely and confused."
     
     "Minako-chan, I love Michiru. I have for a long time, and being 
stuck here isn't going to change that."
     
     Minako frowned, but couldn't bring herself to mean it. It only 
made her feel more jealous. "That didn't stop Ami-chan though, did 
it?"
     
     Haruka looked away when she heard that. "That was different. We 
were both drunk, and lonely, and homesick."
     
     "And if you could do it over, would it have ended up any 
different?"
     
     Haruka didn't reply to that for a long time. "We both decided it 
shouldn't go any further. It was the right decision to make. But no, 
I wouldn't change what happened. We both needed it at the time, and 
making mistakes is what makes us who we are."
     
     "And damn the rest of us," Minako added harshly at the end. 
Haruka looked at her in confusion, but her words were caught in her 
throat when she saw the tears glistening in Minako's eyes.
     
     "You think I don't need comfort too? You think I don't miss my 
Mum and Dad and Artemis? Do you know how hard it is to keep smiling 
when you're all cutting your road through this stupid world and I'm 
tagging along at the back, trying to keep up?! The only place I 
fitted in this world was back at the tavern, dancing and learning how 
to make puffs of stupid smoke! I'm just following you all, because I 
don't know what else to do."
     
     She sniffed and looked away, back at the ground between her feet. 
"Ami-chan has you to worry about her, and Rei-chan has Mako-chan to 
help with her demon thingie. Where does that leave me? I don't have 
Usagi-chan to play with any more when everyone else has better things 
to do."
     
     Haruka put an arm around Minako, surprising her out of her morose 
tirade. "Minako-chan, they are all your friends. They would make time 
if you want them to. It's just, right now, everyone has so much on 
their minds. Ami-chan and Mako-chan haven't been talking much either 
lately, and you know how close they were back home."
     
     "The thing is," she said, trying to let the girl down gently, "I 
love Michiru, and when we get back I'm going home, with her and 
Hotaru-chan. I know I have fun with you all sometimes, but I don't 
want to break anyone's heart."
     
     Then, to Haruka's surprise, Minako leaned up and kissed her 
lightly. "You're forgetting who you're talking to. I'm not a little 
girl Haruka-chan. I might play with smoke and mirrors here, but I 
don't have any illusions about love. Love changes, it fades, it grows, 
it can become friendship or hatred - or even grow from either of them. 
And for me, love never lasts."
     
     She didn't give Haruka time to respond to that. "The first boy I 
fell for, back in England, I was so head over heels for him that I 
didn't even notice that my best friend and him were falling in love 
until I caught them being all lovey-dovey. I cried so much that night 
I thought I'd die." 
     
     Minako sighed. "But slowly I got over it. And I got over the next 
guy, and the next. I keep looking for love, and sometimes I find it 
for a while, but not for long. Artemis always teases me about how 
many boyfriends I've had, but it only makes me mad because it's true. 
Breaking up hurts, but letting go and being happy that you had fun 
while it lasted - that's kind of nice too."
     
     "I know I can't have you forever, but if I can have you for a 
little while, that's fine with me.  A little love goes a long way 
after all!" She giggled. "You know, I've never really kissed a girl 
before."
     
     Haruka just looked at Minako with a new sense of respect, even if 
she was a little bewildered by it all. "Minako, you're one of the 
most heterosexual people I know."
     
     Minako just shrugged, glad to finally have all that off her chest. 
"You were handsome enough to make me stalk you when we first met! 
It's weird, because you're a girl, but I can experiment can't I?"
     
     Minako leaned forward and gave her another light kiss. "Hmm, 
still weird, but maybe weird is good sometimes." She winked and got 
to her feet. "Whew, all that's made me tired. Don't stay up too late 
Haruka-chan."
     
     She started back to the camp, but stopped after a few steps, not 
looking back. "We don't have to do anything. Just give me a chance."
     
     Haruka didn't reply, but Minako didn't wait for one. Instead 
Haruka looked back up to the sky, letting her head fall back to rest 
on the tree's bark. Although she was fun to flirt with, Minako had 
always been something of a bubbly enigma. That fact hadn't changed 
now, but the reasons for it had. She liked the idea that Minako was 
attracted to her, but as for what she wanted...
     
     If Minako needed a friend, she could do that. The girl would 
learn what she was really asking for in time. Haruka knew she wasn't 
the type of person Minako needed to live with. Now all she had to do 
was try not to think about just how well Minako could kiss.

***
     
     The following day the camp packed up and left with the same speed 
as they had the day before, but to everyone's relief their first 
stopping point was not too much further away. With so many people to 
feed and no land of their own, stops for trading were essential while 
on the road. While nomads had no status at all, having a camp set up 
near a town or village was always welcomed - for their money and 
merchandise if nothing else.
     
     And so, while most went to ply their wares and re-supply, the 
girls were invited to take lunch with the camp's elder. Given 
everything that they had so obviously not been told the prospect was 
too good to pass up, but Ami still bemoaned their situation. "Why 
does all of our recent information gathering have to revolve around 
food?"
     
     Though a lot less extravagant than the meals at the Comte's manor 
the nomads' food was no less heavy on the meat. Right then Ami would 
have given anything for a simple bowl of rice or a sandwich, but even 
if she had, she doubted it would have been enough to curb her hunger. 
As far as she could see there was no way for her to win.
     
     "Do not worry girl," the elder said, smiling through his wrinkles. 
"Eat only what you wish. In your condition it is most 
understandable."
     
     The old man ladled some of the thick stew out into his own bowl, 
and motioned of the girls to follow suit. "I must say that I am glad 
to see that you have taken a liking to your clothing Makoto. It has 
made Juriere a very happy woman."
     
     "I'm glad," Makoto said, bowing her head. "She and her family 
were very kind to me, and honestly it's nice to be able to wear 
something that fits properly."
     
     "Then please do give her your thanks when you have the time," the 
elder said. "She has missed having you around I think. Actually I 
have heard that Jiyu and his friends have been planning to give a 
similar gift to you, Ami. After your battle together they felt that 
your travelling clothes do not best suit the way you fight."
     
     "Oh, don't go to any trouble on my account," Ami said in surprise.
     
     "Nonsense," the elder replied, "it will give them something 
better to do than race their horses around. Now, I do believe we all 
have many answers we would like to hear."
     
     "You've got that right," Haruka said, swallowing her broth. "You 
people have set something rolling, and I want to know how we fit into 
it."
     
     "Haruka-san, please," Ami said, trying to take the edge out of 
the older girl's voice.
     
     The elder just smiled broadly. "No, no Ami, your friend is quite 
right. We are intent on using you just as I am sure you would like us 
to be of use to you. No doubt you were not aware of it, but Jiyu and 
his team have been keeping an eye on you all ever since Makoto left 
us."
     
     That brought them all to a stop. "But... why?" Makoto asked, 
sounding a little hurt.
     
     "You were obviously a young woman who did not belong here," he 
replied with a soothing voice. "There were so many things you did not 
know, and many more that you should not have known. Even the way you 
spoke was unusual, and unlike that of any foreign accent I know. 
Anyone could see that you are from a place that is both alike and 
completely different to Seiji. You and your friends would attract the 
attention of a noble family soon enough, and we wanted to make sure 
that the commotion you were bound to cause would end up benefiting 
both of us."
     
     "You mean you were protecting us?" Minako asked through her full 
mouth.
     
     "If you had been in any real danger then our men would have 
stepped in, but the Comte would not have let you die. I suspect you 
have much greater value to him alive, giving him the skills and 
knowledge of whatever world you are from." The old man beamed at them. 
"The way you fight alone would be enough to convince many people that 
you are the Seraphi. After watching Makoto some of us were sure that 
we could use their name to our advantage, and now - after your 
battles and seeing you all living together - I am sure that the name 
is deserved. Even if you are not our country's founders returned, you 
are indeed from some world other than ours, and you can do the same 
good work as those Seraphi of old."
     
     "Don't you think that people would realise there are five of us?" 
Rei asked. "Your Seraphi were a trio."
     
     "Very true," he elder admitted, "but they did have many consorts 
in their travels, more than you do at present."
     
     "How did you know that, Rei-chan?" Minako asked curiously.
     
     Rei just gave her a deadpan stare and tapped her temple. "How do 
you think?"
     
     The elder stared at Rei for a moment. "You know, I do suppose 
that we are one short at the table. Rei, do invite your evil 
incarnate to join us."
     
     They all blinked at the off-hand way he said it, but Rei sighed 
and felt the sudden drain as Desir manifested herself. "Unfortunately 
she agrees," Rei said before going back to her food, very obviously 
making an effort to hide her concern.
     
     "So chief," Desir said, plucking a piece of meat out of the pot 
and popping it into her mouth. "What's the plan? My little Rei will 
of course take a starring role. After all, I'd rather like to keep 
her innards on the inside."
     
     "Naturally," the elder replied. His words were guarded but he 
seemed surprisingly unconcerned that there was a demonette at his 
table. "Though I would hope that people would give her more credit 
even if she was just a member of the consort."
     
     Ami was about to ask a question when Desir made her rebuttal. 
"Denied. The Seraphi really should get to introduce sorcery a second 
time, don't you think?"
     
     The elder didn't really want to answer that, so he was quite 
relieved when Makoto asked Ami's question for her. "Excuse me, but 
who are these 'Seraphi' people anyway?"
     
     "Yes, well posed!" Desir put in before snatching some more meat 
under the various glares she was receiving.
     
     "The Seraphi," the elder explained, "Were the three woman 
travellers that created Seiji. They came to this eastern wilderness 
from the world of the Gods and wandered the land, teaching their 
knowledge to the scattered peoples and bringing them together to 
found our society. They brought magic with them and taught it to us, 
and they used that magic to make the land green and fertile. The 
crops and animals grew strong and well, the eastern sea grew fecund 
with fish, and even the mountains of the north and west were made 
liveable. 
     
     "Then, just as suddenly as these inspired women appeared, they 
left, leaving no trace of themselves but the legacy they had left 
with us. Our forebears chose an emperor to rule in their place, and 
so it has been for generation after generation. However," he said 
with regret, "you are surely wise enough to know, as we nomads do now, 
that things change silently beneath the surface of such calmness, and 
such corruption is not for the better. We have wanted to rectify 
those changes, and with the authority of the Seraphi behind us that 
is what we can now do."
     
     The caravan lapsed into silence as they all took that in.
     
     "... You think big, don't you," Minako finally said.
     
     "What is it that you want to change?" Ami asked. "Most people 
have seemed content, at least as I have seen it."
     
     "That is part of the problem," the elder said. "They are content 
with less than they deserve. As far as I know the emperor is a good 
man, but his power has long since been delegated to nobles whose only 
claim to their power is their birth. Such birthrights should not be 
allowed, both for those in power and those with nothing at all."
     
     "Hey now," Desir chipped in, "slavery is an honest living. You do 
your work and you get your keep. Even the Seraphi had slaves, 
remember?"
     
     "Perhaps," the elder replied, "but you of all... 'people'... 
should know that ridding this country of such degrading practices is 
one of our highest goals."
     
     "Eh," Desir replied, "if a girl wants to prostitute herself she 
will, whether you like it or not. As for indebted serfs, would you 
have them killed rather than working the land?"
     
     Haruka nodded. "As much as I don't want to side with her, the 
demonette has a point. For some people it'll be worth the price, and 
for others it's a way out of their dead ends."
     
     "And you would have generation after generation enslaved to a man 
or to his lands because they can never pay off what they owe?" the 
elder asked. "Because they do not know they have an alternative to 
the life they were born into? They do not deserve that any more than 
the nobles deserve their status."
     
     "Grandpa's right," Makoto said, her affection for the man and his 
ideals obvious. "Like that slave that helped us escape! If she knew 
she could have a better life she could have escaped with us."
     
     Ami smiled at her best friend but shook her head. "Mako-chan, she 
decided to stay there. I agree with the idea, but only as long as 
they have the choice. For her that might be the choice that makes her 
happy. We can't force her to choose differently just because we don't 
understand the way she feels."
     
     Makoto stared at her for a moment before bowing her head. "True. 
It just doesn't seem fair."
     
     The elder seemed to feel the same way Makoto did, but he nodded. 
"If that is the condition of your assistance..."
     
     Haruka looked to all the others and nodded. "It is."
     
     "Very well. In return, once we have taken the first stride 
forward, we will help you find what it is you have been looking for."
     
     Rei smiled. "That's simple. We want to go home."
     
     The elder seemed surprised by that. "You cannot go when you 
choose to?"
     
     "No," Ami replied. "We are trapped here. We have been looking for 
magic - or anything - that can take us home."
     
     The elder nodded. "Then we will do our best to assist, my good 
women. In fact we can try to accomplish both our goals at the same 
time. Those we travel to meet are also masters of the arcane."
     
     "There is only one problem," Rei said. "Your scout, Kimiko, she 
was with us when we fought. She still said she didn't believe we were 
the Seraphi, and she had obviously heard people referring to us that 
way."
     
     The elder sighed. "She is a good girl, but she has a mind too 
perceptive for her age. She can see our plot for what it is, but not 
you for what you are. She will believe eventually, but unlike most 
people faith will not be enough. She will need proof that you are not 
just taking their name."
     
     "Well, that's that then," Desir said, taking a last bit of meat 
from the bottom of the pot. "See you tonight Mako, and don't take too 
long this time. My little Rei gets morose if you aren't there to gush 
over her!"
     
     "Oh shut up!" Rei snapped as Desir vanished with a meddlesome 
giggle. Rei huffed as she laid her fork over her empty bowl. "Don't 
worry about her Mako-chan," she said grumpily. "She's been saying 
weird stuff all day. She's just mad because she knows we're beating 
her now."
     
*** 
     
     Makoto had nodded then, but later it began to dawn on her that 
things had changed. During their practices together, the two of them 
trying to wear down and outwit Desir, Rei seemed to be trying to act 
as if everything else was normal. Thinking about it now it seemed 
crazy. How could things have stayed the same with everything that 
they were going through? Even after killing a man Rei had seemed to 
rationalise it to herself when she compared it to hunting daemons and 
youma.
     
     And she had failed, miserably. Perhaps that was something else 
Makoto could help her with. If Rei could come to terms with just how 
different things were now, then maybe she would be able to cope 
better with Desir as well. 
     
     Actually, that was something Makoto had noticed since they had 
started spending more time together. Rei clutched at what she 
remembered herself to be, rejecting anything new almost automatically. 
After what must have been a terrifying introduction to this world it 
was understandable. Rei didn't want Desir to turn her into something 
cold and heartless, but Makoto could only begin to guess how hard it 
must be to keep thinking that way. Despite Seiji's similarities with 
the old Japan, they really were in a foreign country, and although 
she knew more about Seiji than the rest of them put together, Rei 
made every effort to remain at a distance. She didn't want to be 
'corrupted' by it any more than by Desir.
     
     Really, was it any wonder Rei kept breaking into tears? Makoto 
knew how little of this world had to be kept at such a distance. She 
could at least try to help Rei realise that, even if she couldn't 
accept it the way Makoto herself had.
     
     Still, there was no doubt that this world had changed the rest of 
them more than they all realised. Only after that meal had Makoto 
realised that she had to include herself in that thought. It was kind 
of funny really. She had been trying to change herself for so long, 
but she barely realised when she succeeded. Teaching herself to cook, 
learning to ice skate, and now living up to what it meant to be one 
of the Sailor Senshi. Only now that she could no longer transform did 
she see how she really was helping her friends, both on and off the 
battlefield. She had just been too wrapped up in trying to improve 
herself to realise it. 
     
     Of course, it took a demon to point that out. Rei was happier 
during their anti-Desir games now, and curiously so was Makoto 
herself. It was something that had been happening slowly, but after 
what Desir had said Makoto realised how much time she spent with her 
mind on how Rei was doing. If one of the other girls was to take over 
the role of building up Rei's defences, Makoto knew she would do more 
than miss that company.
     
     She would actually be jealous.
     
     It was absurd. They were all friends and had been for years, but 
when Makoto tried to imagine it she really did think she would go 
green with envy. The idea actually scared her. Ami had been her best 
friend for as long as they had known each other, but even that 
friendship had taken a backseat to the need to help Rei. Or rather, 
the need for Rei's company. The need to know she was alright.
     
     They had changed, and not for the worse, but what was happening 
between them all now? Ami and Haruka sleeping together? Minako's 
occasional moments of malaise and her new interest in Haruka? Minako 
had never showed any interest in other women before, but then neither 
had Makoto.
     
     That scared her even more. Of course Makoto wasn't in love. She 
knew it when she was. When the guy had that glowing resemblance to 
her old sempai, and she couldn't help but latch onto him. Even though 
her sempai had never even given her the chance for a single date, she 
couldn't help but obsess. She was obsessive by nature, putting her 
all behind what she wanted to do. Falling in love for her was no 
different.
     
     But she *was* thinking about Rei a great deal these days. Makoto 
swallowed hard. Suddenly she wanted someone to confide in, because 
she didn't know how to deal with the way she was feeling.

***
     
     "Ami-chan? Can I talk to you?"
     
     Ami looked up from the string she was being wrapped in. "Of 
course, Mako-chan. What do you want to talk about?"
     
     Makoto gave Jiyu and Tachi a guarded look, and both young men 
suddenly went on the defensive. "Makoto, trust me, this is not what 
it appears to be."
     
     Makoto just raised an eyebrow. "And just what does it not 'appear 
to be'?"
     
     Jiyu cleared his throat, realising how immature he must have 
seemed just then. "We are measuring Miss Ami for her armour. That is 
all."
     
     Tachi nodded with a grin. "Believe it on not Jiyu has some decent 
skill as a tailor."
     
     Jiyu smacked him across the back of the head. "Shut up you great 
lump! It's called armour smithing!"
     
     "It's leatherwork, you're a tailor! Live with it."
     
     Makoto just sighed. "Whatever you are, can I please borrow Ami?"
     
     The pair nodded. "Sure, we are about finished now."
     
     The two men helped Ami extricate herself from the string, and she 
followed Makoto out of the caravan's door. The two of them could just 
about hear Tachi as he said it would have been a better fitting if 
Ami had taken off her yukata, and Jiyu hit him again.
     
     "Are you sure they didn't try anything?" Makoto asked, not 
entirely convinced.
     
     Ami just smiled and nodded. "They were perfect gentlemen."  
     
     Makoto nodded in return, "I should hope so."
     
     The pair walked for a bit, chatting a little as they went, but 
Ami knew something was up. Makoto could be a very private person when 
she wanted to, and as they walked it soon became clear that this was 
one of those situations. 
     
     "Mako-chan?" she asked. "What is it you really wanted to talk 
about? We aren't even in the camp grounds any more."
     
     Makoto stopped and sighed, realising how badly she was 
procrastinating. "Ami-chan, I know this is kind of personal, but how 
did you realise you were attracted to girls?"
     
     Ami blinked at her friend owlishly, caught completely off guard. 
"W-what... what do you mean?"
     
     Makoto looked at her and smiled. "Come on Ami-chan, it's not like 
it's a secret any more. I've thought that you might have been... that 
way inclined... for a while now, but we all know about you and 
Haruka-san." Makoto couldn't help but grin as Ami slowly turned red. 
"The two of you weren't exactly quiet, after all."
     
     Ami swallowed hard. "Oh my God." Then she realised just how 
Makoto had worded that revelation and her embarrassment was replaced 
by both worry and a trace of anger. "That way inclined? You sound as 
though you don't approve."
     
     Makoto looked down at the ground. "It weirded me out, when I 
first thought you might be gay, but you didn't act any different so I 
just got used to the idea. Like I did with Haruka-san and Michiru-
san."
     
     Ami nodded at that, understanding some of where Makoto was coming 
from. "So yes, you don't approve."
     
     "I..." Makoto fell silent as she tried to find the words. "You've 
both just made things a lot more complicated for yourselves. It's not 
my business. As long as you're both happy."
     
     Ami sat down on the grass and after a moment Makoto followed suit. 
"It was a learning experience," Ami replied. "One that I certainly 
needed, and I think Haruka-san did too."
     
     "So you and her, it really was just a one time thing?"
     
     Ami nodded sadly. "I couldn't have approved either if it had been 
anything more."
     
     "So," Makoto finally said, "how did you find out you were, you 
know, gay."
     
     Ami smiled at Makoto's seeming naivety. "Not gay, just lacking in 
preference. Actually I knew from the beginning. As soon as I found 
myself looking at boys in a different way during our games classes, I 
was doing the same to the girls. I've just felt more comfortable 
around other women because so few feel the same way. It is safer, but 
I still got flustered when I got letters from girls in my locker."
     
     Makoto's eyes widened. "You did? Did you go out with any of 
them?"
     
     Ami blushed a little. "Well, it was just the one time, but no I 
never dated. The effect was much the same. I was too scared and 
embarrassed to do anything but hide the envelope."
     
     Her intuitive gaze peered into Makoto's eyes. "Mako-chan, why ask 
about this now? Are you questioning your own preferences?"
     
     Makoto's instinctive reaction was to deny such a ridiculous 
accusation. Looking the way she did - over-tall, well endowed and 
outwardly self-assured - it certainly wouldn't have been the first 
time she had been accused of being a lesbian. This time it wasn't a 
label being slapped on her though. It was a simple question from a 
friend. 
     
     She nodded. "Maybe. But how is that supposed to work. You can't 
just wake up one morning and decide to be gay, can you?"
     
     "I don't think so," Ami replied gently, "but I think you can wake 
up and decide that you want to try something you've never tried 
before. Or realise one morning that there was something there that 
you never noticed before, because you weren't looking at it in the 
right way."
     
     "But I don't want to give up liking guys!" Makoto exclaimed, as 
much to herself as to Ami. "And how could I not have noticed it 
before? We practically spend all our free time together!"
     
     That brought Ami up short. "Mako-chan," she asked tentatively, 
"who is it you think you are attracted to?"
     
     Makoto suddenly realised how much she'd said and cursed herself 
inwardly. Still, there was no point trying to hide it from Ami of all 
people. "... Rei-chan."
     
     Ami let out the mental breath she had been holding and pulled her 
frazzled nerves together. Outwardly though, it was as if it had been 
nothing more than a small surprise. "Well, you have been spending a 
lot more time together now, because of Desir. Without the rest of us 
I mean. Back home Rei-chan was always closer to Usagi-chan and 
Minako-chan." Ami smiled. "You are both getting to know a lot more 
about each other now, I'm sure."
     
     "I can't stop thinking about her," Makoto said, almost in 
agreement. "Whether she's okay, whether she'll want to practice 
together tonight, whether I'll get to..." 
     
     '...hold her again,' she finished mentally. She didn't want to 
say that out loud. It sounded too weird. Too personal. "But how am I 
supposed to tell her?" she asked eventually, looking back at the 
ground. "She has enough to deal with already. She needs help, not 
more trouble."
     
     "Just be gentle about it," Ami said, "or better yet wait until 
everything has quietened down. You know better than I do what she 
needs right now."
     
     Makoto nodded, but remained silent for a moment, and when her 
reply did come it was soft and timid. "What if she rejects me, like 
my Sempai did?"
     
     Ami lay a comforting hand on Makoto's knee. "At least then you'll 
know, right?"
     
     Makoto smiled, Ami's words calming her worried emotions. 
     
     The pair got back to their feet and headed back to the camp, and 
Ami stopped her friend before they left for the tasks they had both 
been set. "I'll be wishing you good luck."
     
     Makoto returned the smile and gave her friend a hug. "Thanks Ami-
chan."
     
     Ami smiled as she left, remembering the tall, attractive transfer 
student she had secretly had a crush on back in Juuban Junior High 
School. She had never said anything, and the crush hadn't lasted, but 
they had become the best of friends. That was all that mattered.

***
     
     Friendship, however, wasn't something that could be taken for 
granted. Sometimes it could be quite hard work, as Ami well knew. In 
fact anyone who was friends with Usagi would have known that. As 
ineffably likable as the girl was she could be a real pain as well, 
and she had some of the strangest ideas in her educationally phobic 
head.
     
     Ami thought that Usagi and Minako could almost have been twins, 
but there were a few subtle things that really set them apart. Minako 
was that bit more frivolous in Ami's eyes, but also had a wisdom 
about life that Usagi was still naive about. Normally Ami would have 
considered that second point a blessing, albeit a fairly well buried 
one most of the time, but for once that wasn't the case. Minako was 
setting herself up for either disappointment, heartache or both, and 
she would end up dragging Haruka and Michiru along with her. Ami knew 
that none of them should have to deal with that. Why else would she 
have stopped when she did? For all Ami knew she herself had already 
caused enough damage. She just wanted Minako to reconsider before she 
did the same thing.
     
     "No."
     
     Ami blinked in surprise, and Minako repeated herself, just to 
make sure she was being understood.
     
     "No Ami-chan. Why do you think I haven't considered enough 
already?"
     
     Ami couldn't have begun to describe how confused she was by that, 
but Minako's apparent lack of responsibility managed to draw out some 
of Ami's well controlled ire. "Minako-chan! Think about Haruka-san 
and Michiru-san. You can't want to sabotage what they have."
     
     "I don't," Minako agreed, "but we're all lost out here, and we're 
all lonely. I don't want to live like that Ami-chan. If I can help 
Haruka-chan cope with being lost for a little while, and if she can 
help me, then I want that. We can't all be like you Ami-chan, and 
even you don't want to be alone. You proved that already. I can let 
go when I have to, but I can't walk away and pretend I don't want to 
have a little happiness here."
     
     "But what if you can't let go?" Ami countered. "What... what if 
Haruka-san can't? If you try to... be together, like that, you can't 
say you're not putting their love at risk. Emotions don't work so 
easily as that."
     
     Minako looked down. "I only wish they did. It would have made a 
lot of things easier. I'm not going to give up Ami-chan. I'll try and 
love her, at least for a little while, and hope that she has enough 
love left to love me back just a little bit. And if we ever get home 
I'll go back to boy-watching, and singing, and I know Haruka-chan and 
Michiru-san care enough to make it work between them, even if 
something has changed."
     
     "B-but," Ami said, holding back her tears, "it's not right."
     
     Minako tried to give her a smile. "Life is what you make of it. I 
want to make another little bubble that I can enjoy, with Haruka-chan 
this time, and when it bursts I'll make another one. And another. 
Don't be afraid to blow bubbles Ami-chan, or else you'll get old 
while you're still young!"
     
     That broke Ami's tearful mood and she giggled, wiping at her eyes. 
"That's the most ridiculous thing I've ever heard, but..."
     
     Minako nodded, her mood sombre. "I know. I still want to be your 
friend Ami-chan, but I have to try."
     
     After she had gone Ami could only respect Minako's inner strength, 
even if she didn't like what she was doing. Ami knew, if she tried to 
do the same, she wouldn't have been able to let go. It was hard 
enough as it was already.
     
     Ami just hoped that, if Minako succeeded, she wouldn't feel too 
jealous of what Minako's strength had won her.
     
***

To Be Continued...

***

Please send any comments and constructive criticism to:

nutzoide@nutzoide.net

They are always greatly appreciated, and there is no better reward 
for a writer than to hear back from the readers.

Many thanks to Richard King for his proofreading assistance.

(c) Nutzoide 2006

http://www.nutzoide.net