Minako: Warrior, Princess, Sidekick
The Moon Kingdom was a sprawling city of colonnades and plazas, streets
and columns, underneath a strange dark sky like an ocean lit by myriad
stars and the glowing pearl of the Earth.
Pale white light appeared in a central plaza, fading to separate colors
as seven women holding hands in a circle appeared; one befuddled man
holding a baby was in their center, along with a white tomcat.
"The Moon Kingdom," Minako breathed, both reverent and excited. She
looked around, her eyes taking in the sights hungrily.
Sailor Moon looked at her strangely. "Minako, you act like you've never
seen this place," she said in a questioning tone. "Has it changed so
much in your future?" Minako froze and turned to face her with her best,
most convincing false smile.
"Your highness, I have been lost on Earth, amnesiac, several years and
in truth, I am stationed on Earth so I have not seen this city in a very
long time. I can't tell you much of the future, but I can say that we
Sailor Senshi have fought to protect Earth and are no longer barred from
it by the Gods."
Sailor Moon nodded in understanding. "You are from after the dark age my
mother has spoken to me about," she said. "I understand why you are so
careful with your knowledge. I will press no further," she concluded.
"Come this way, everyone, we must present ourselves at the palace. Our
Queen will wish to hear our report." She turned and lead the way.
"Gab, er, Minako," Xena asked.
"Yes?"
"How do I get the bow off my armor?"
Later . . .
Princess Serenity walked with Joxer along the row of fountains in front
of the palace. Hedges granted them a measure of privacy, and the warm
moist air was filled with the heady fragrance of moon flowers, huge
white trumpet-shaped blossoms like morning glories.
"I want to thank you for everything you did for me on Earth," Serenity
said. "You don't have any special powers but you risked your life to
save me. That's the bravest thing I've ever seen anyone do."
Joxer shrugged. He was at a loss for words. Actually, he had trouble
walking straight since Serenity had wrapped her arm around his. He was
wearing a nice clean tunic, vest, and pants provided by the invisible
servants of the palace. He looked very nice, Serenity thought. The
vulnerability in his face was . . . appealing.
Elsewhere . . .
Xena was perched in a window, looking out into the starry sky. Minako
was seated sideways on the bed, with several pillows mounded up behind
her. The bed had a gauzy canopy over it, and potted plants with tall
spiky foliage accented the corners. The room was appointed more
elegantly than any Royal suite Minako had seen while traveling with
Xena. Minako sank back into the soft comfort and shut her eyes. It was a
heavenly rest after sleeping on the ground so much. She hadn't explained
to Xena what a mattress with springs was yet, but was sure Xena would be
amused by the invention. Xena had been making idle chit-chat, which
meant that something was bothering her. Minako had a pretty good idea
what it was.
"Are you staying?" Xena asked somewhat casually.
Minako opened her eyes and blinked. Even expecting the question, it was
a bit sudden. "Here? In the Moon Kingdom? Xena, I don't know if I'll be
given a choice. In a sense, Eriæ and I share a part of the same soul,
the soul of 'Sailor Venus.' I might not be able to stay here. On the
other hand, we've apparently been banished forever from the Earth by the
Gods. There are a lot of things I would like to do, like deal with the
Amazons, but I don't see that I have any way to get back short of
fighting the whole pantheon. But yes, if I've got a decision, it's to
stay right here with you." She paused and thought about it for a minute.
"I know that you were pretty shocked to come back from Tartarus and find
that I'd suddenly changed so much, but the fact remains that I love you
very much and I don't want to be separated from you, Xena. I know what
we are. We're soulmates.
All that time in the future, I never found someone who could really be
with me, and understand me, always. Oh, my friends were close,
especially Usagi, but there was something *lacking*. And I had some
*other* friends, and they, they were soulmates. And more. And I envied
them." She sighed as she thought about Haruka and Michiru. It had been
so very long since she'd seen them.
Xena turned to Minako, her eyes bright from the celestial light outside
the window. "If you needed to return to your own place for family,
friends, duties, I'd understand. You don't need to stay to make me
happy. I told you when you married Perdicus, seeing you happy makes *me*
happy."
"Xena," said Minako as she reached out and took her best friend's hand.
Elsewhere . . .
Sailor Pluto walked into Selene's throne room. A handsome man in a red
tunic and black trousers was standing on the floor next to the Titan's
throne. Moment thought he looked familiar. She approached to in front of
the throne dias, and bowed gracefully, still holding her staff.
"Moment," said the Titan of the moon. "This . . . man would like to
speak with you. You are under no obligation to do so, but he has paid Us
for the right to make this visit and it would be uncharitable to refuse
him, even considering who he is."
Moment narrowed her eyes in confusion. "Majesty, who IS he?"
"He is your father - Hades, God of the Underworld."
Moment gasped, and her eyes widened with shock. Hades turned from
glaring at Selene to gravely met her glance and nodded once in
confirmation. Now she recognized him.
"Yes . . . I will speak with him," she said.
Much later . . .
"I'm not sure I should take it back," Melissa said to Minako, who was
offering the staff that the captain of the guard's sword had transformed
into.
"You should," Minako said in a firm voice. "You are still leader of the
Sailor Senshi. I am not." She thrust the weapon into Melissa's hands.
The Spartan woman looked at it strangely for a moment then tightened her
grip on it. There was a blast of green radiance and weapon reformed as a
sword with oak leaf hilt guards.
"You see? It knows its proper mistress," Minako said encouragingly.
Melissa blinked. "But you're so much more powerful than I am! And Saturn
is the finest warrior I've ever seen!"
"So there are some things you can learn from us. Big deal. You've got
the job and you were doing well with it. We'll ALL learn from each
other. If it makes you feel any better, I think that Xena and I should
be trainers for the rest of you. Xena can coach you in battle skills &
tactical, and I can train you in the use of your powers. Let me be real
blunt here, Melissa -- Xena's experience does NOT include magical
powers. That levels the field for you two as I see it. But like I said,
we ALL have something to learn."
Melissa nodded appreciatively. "All right then. Can you show me
something now?"
"Sure, what is it?" Minako asked with a smile.
"How do you do that braid of hair that holds back your bangs??"
Minako boggled at her. Melissa started cracking up.
Meanwhile, in the gardens farthest from Selene's palace . . .
Princess Serenity and Joxer were out walking again, as they had many
times in the past few days. They reached a secluded clearing adorned
with a statue of, oddly enough, Aphrodite. "Joxer, I've spoken to my
mother. You have to return to Earth."
Joxer looked at her aghast. "When?"
"Soon. She said that you could only stay here a few days. A period of
rest, she called it. I don't want you to leave, I begged her to let you
stay. . . !" Serenity began sobbing and Joxer took her in his arms.
"Your mother knows best, Serenity. I'm sure. " He was somewhat choked up
himself. "I'm sure she has great plans for you."
"It'll kill me. Every time I look up at the Earth I'll be thinking of
you. And I'll reach for you and we'll be so far apart . . ."
"The same for me, my beautiful, brave, princess. My Sailor Moon."
They kissed, passionately. After a time, Joxer moved to break away.
"Don't," said Princess Serenity. And they sank down together in the
exotic gardens of the city of the moon.
Selene stood atop the highest tower of her castle, eyes closed and
watching Serenity and her erstwhile suitor with her clairvoyance. She
sighed, shedding a tear.
"Better you are with him now and part, than watch him fade with age, or,
like my own Endymion was, be trapped in eternal sleep to prolong his
life," she whispered as she opened her eyes. She sensed divine
presences and turned to see who they were."
They were the Fates.
"You must restore everyone to their proper places," snapped Clotho.
"Xena's place is now with you," said Atropos.
"Minako's place is to return to the future. She CANNOT stay here, to do
so would cross her soul's own timeline. The Holy Crystal has granted her
perfect immortality. If she dwells here, the cycle incarnations of
Sailor Venus will be completely disrupted," pronounced Lachesis.
Selene's eyes widened. "Who was, will be, able to give her perfect
Immortality?"
The three Fates exchanged a look. "Your granddaughter, who is being
conceived at this very moment," answered Clotho. Serenity's eyes widened
in shock.
"Return Joxer to Earth," commanded Lachesis. "Tomorrow night, as soon as
the moon has risen over Greece. We will compel the gods to allow your
power to reach Earth."
"To send Minako through time, you must unite the Holy Crystal's powers
with Sailor Pluto. There is a point of temporal harmony fast
approaching. Sailor Venus must be returned to within hours of the point
she left or the future is lost. This window occurs tomorrow at roughly
the same time as Joxer will return to Earth. "
"This is very cruel," Selene said. "But I understand these are things
that MUST be. " She turned and looked out across the city. "Can you tell
me when my city will be populated by more than a handful of refugees?"
The Fates exchanged another glance, and finally Atropos spoke. "Your
daughter will fill the city and rule the True Moon Kingdom. All that you
do here is to prepare the way for her, and she will rule over a time of
great peace and prosperity."
"Her time of power will end only when OUR time ends," said Clotho.
Selene nodded. "Very well. Thy will be done."
The Fates vanished.
"You're sending Minako away," said Xena flatly.
Selene whirled around, surprised. Her divine senses should have marked
Xena's approach. Either the Fates hid her, or Xena's power as Saturn so
permeated her that she could cloak herself to the Titan. Either
possibility was uncomfortable.
"Yes." Selene replied.
Xena turned and walked back inside the tower. Selene turned back to the
nearly empty city.
Downstairs, Xena started yelling.
"APHRODITE!!!"
After about three minutes of this, there was a blast of golden light and
a shower of pink, white, and red rose petals. "Chill babe! You dragged
me away from some bitchin' waves at Parnassus!!" the Goddess of Love
protested.
Xena gave Aphrodite The Look. "The Fates are making Selene send Minako
back. She said she wanted to stay. Do something."
Aphrodite burst out laughing. "Me? Against the Fates? Sure, right after
I off Hera and become Queen of the Gods. Get a clue, Xena. It's a done
deal. If they said it's gotta be then it's gotta be. "
"I don't understand."
"This is just a guess on my part, mind you, but there are two Sailors
Venus right now. One of them MUST go before the Venus Power tries to
split or something. Gabby doesn't have a real place in the Tapestry. So,
it's either pull her out of it here and now, or *cut* her out of it. Do
you understand what I'm getting at?"
Xena's eyes widened. "Then I'll go with her."
"You can't. You have to live and die here or the cycle of Saturn's
incarnations will be broken. " Xena strode around the room, looking
about as if trying to seize upon some last minute idea.
"Xena, let me tell you a story. Do you know how the universe was
created?"
Xena stopped. "Yes. There was formless nothingness, and then Chaos was
born, and from it the Earth and the Heavens were formed, and from them
the Titans were born--"
"You're missing a bit there," said Aphrodite. "Out of the primal
nothingness, TWO forces emerged into the universe. Most people say, as
you did, that the first was Chaos. What most don't know is that the
other force, was LOVE. And it wasn't the second one to come out; I
should know. It's love that built the universe and Chaos just spiced
things up a bit by fighting it. It's always trying to rip things apart,
and with love, we're always trying to bring things together. It's what
makes life interesting."
"And your point to all this is what exactly?" scoffed Xena.
"That love brings people together, and keeps them together, and when the
love is strong enough, it brings them back together. Believe in that.
It's all you have . . . and it's a lot." Aphrodite vanished in another
blast of light and flower petals.
Coincidentally, Xena's bed was now covered in rose petals.
Finally, the next evening . . .
"I guess we're not going to get those lessons after all," said Melissa
tearfully. Eriæ and Amica stood behind her, looking saddened and
disappointed.
"It was great meeting you Minako," said Amica. "You really opened my
eyes to a lot of things. "
"Me too!" chimed in Eriæ. "I'm looking forward to putting my spin onto
your tricks!"
Minako flashed her a grin. "I just bet you are. By the way, how's your
cooking?"
"My cooking? It's all right, nothing special."
"Damn. I guess it's just me; I thought it might be part of the package,"
Minako winked at her. She suddenly stopped in shock. "Waitaminute," she
said. "I CAN cook! Gabrielle is a DECENT COOK!!"
"You mean I can't call you Akane any more?" teased Artemis.
"Well, Princess, thank you so much for the hospitality of your realm,"
Joxer said formally. He and Serenity had agreed to keep what had
happened a secret.
"I . . . I would like to reward you in some way," she said. "As an
immortal, the processes of my life are very slow, but if, perhaps, many
years in the future when I am Queen in my mother's place, and I were to
bear my heir, what would you have me name her? After your own beloved
mother perhaps?"
Joxer made a face. "No. No, name her Serenity, after her beautiful
mother." He knelt and kissed her hand.
Xena and Moment observed this, but the other senshi were too busy with
Minako. Of them all, only Moment and Minako were in senshi garb.
"I wonder if Callisto will grow up innocent," said Moment. "The blood on
her hands, it scares me."
Xena nodded. "I've thought about this. If I have to, I'll raise her as
my own daughter. I have a son I gave up for fostering, now I'll never be
reunited with him. It seems like some kind of sad balance. I took
Callisto's childhood away from her, I lost my son's childhood, now she's
restored to infancy and I'll raise her. I just hope that we can all
look at her without flinching when she's older."
"If her eyes are normal, and she's not scarred, it'll help," replied
Moment. The women exchanged a knowing glance. Moment smiled. "You seem a
very secretive type. I like that. Minako told me that as Sailor Pluto I
will be keeping many secrets drawn from the time stream. I think I
should cultivate an air of mystery."
Xena grinned. "If you can pull it off, it can be a lot of fun.
Especially if you have helpers to drag around." She turned and looked at
Melissa, Eriæ and Amica. The two of them started chuckling.
"It's time!" announced Selene. She clapped her hands once and the Holy
Silver Moon Crystal appeared. Pluto nodded and stepped forward and knelt
before the Queen of the Moon. Selene placed her hands on her shoulders
and an aura of power outlined the Titan. Minako had run to give Xena a
last embrace. They held each other tightly.
"Minako!" called Artemis, who had taken up his position. She and Xena
kissed and separated again. The winds of time had begun to swirl around
the group. Unexpectedly the Fates appeared, holding a golden thread in
all their hands. They cast this thread toward Sailor Pluto and it
wrapped around her staff. There was a crack of thunder and she stood up
and made a gesture with the key. A portal in time opened up.
"Good bye everybody! Do your best! Take care! Don't take any wooden
drachmas!"
"DINARS!" corrected Artemis, jumping to her shoulder.
"Whatever," she said grinning. "Sayonara!" she yelled and then jumped
into the time stream.
Joxer and Xena stood side by side, and Xena put a reassuring hand on his
shoulder as she vanished. "Now it's your turn," she said.
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