Earth Guardian Prince Endymion
By Senshi
of Ruin and Mizu no Senshi
Act Sixty Two Recap:
(Mamoru’s POV)
“The Tokei-ji shrine” Mamoru repeated quietly as Ami handed
him the information that she had printed off from the web regarding the shrine.
Mamoru stared intently at the photograph of the sword hoping that this would
trigger some kind of memory, but there was nothing. Sighing he passed the
papers on to Kisho who looked through them for a few moments before, rather
grudgingly, handed them to Makoto.
“I found the information several days ago” Ami continued,
“But, due to everything that has happened, we felt it best to wait for things
to calm down a bit first.”
“No one can remove it from the stone, but it would be best
to make a move for it as soon as possible.”
The former Senshi have at last found the location of the
Senshi Sword that will grant them their henshins once more. I have to admit
that this is a huge relief for me. Despite Kisho’s resolve to fight, Mio is
stronger than she was four years ago and my decision to fight rather than to
give in to her demands angered her greatly.
“I’ve made my decision,” he said again, suddenly feeling a
little self-conscious but determined at the same time, “I’m going to fight. I’m
not going to let Mio win. What happened… what I did… it is in the past. It will
be difficult for me to accept what has happened if I don’t.”
At least Masaki has now been able to accept that he didn’t
do those terrible things when Metallia took over his body and will fight with
us once again. Having three of the four Tennou will make us even stronger, but
we still need the Senshi, too.
“What is it?”
“I told you, it is nothing.”
“Now who’s keeping secrets.”
Kisho sighed, “I went to her. I thought she might be able
to help restore my transformation. She has visions, as you know, and I saw one
of these visions. The city will burn. That is what she saw. Mio will burn Tokyo
to the ground.”
“No” Mamoru shook his head, “That isn’t possible. They
would have told us.”
“So you doubt me?”
“No, of course not!”
“The city will burn” Kisho repeated, “And we had a right
to know that.”
Rei should have told us but that isn’t important
now. Our main focus must be on making sure that her vision does not become
reality. This we must do at all costs.
“Get out of here” Kisho ordered again, keeping the Youma
back from the door with a well-placed strike.
“No” Endymion snapped, “I’m not going to leave you to
fight alone. I don’t care if you’re trying to prove a point, you can’t
transform!”
“You baka! Do you think I am that foolish?”
“It wouldn’t be the first time” Endymion shot back hotly.
Again the Youma lunged forward and Kisho blocked its
attack before cutting it across the chest and forcing it to retreat once more,
“There were three more” he snapped, “I killed one, but the other two left.”
“Let me help you kill this one and we can go after the
others.”
“No. You have to go. Now.”
“Why?”
“Think about it? Why are they attacking me?”
“Because you can’t transform.”
Seiichi nodded, his gaze now focusing on what Shina was
doing. She was busy sorting through the variety of medicines that the hospital
had given him. He was told that he would still experience headaches for a while
and he could feel the beginnings of one at the moment. It started as a dull
ache at the back of his head, where he had been struck, but would spread until
he was forced to take some painkillers and sleep. Seiichi didn’t want to sleep.
He wanted to explore the rest of the apartment; he wanted to be able to
remember something, just one thing to give him some hope. His entire life had
been snatched away from him and he didn’t even understand why. Of course the
police had spoken to him but they were just as baffled. He gingerly touched the
light bandages on his hands. The burns had healed well and the dressings were
due to come off in a day or two. Because of this, the police had assumed that
it had been a direct attack against him and not just a random act of violence
or even a robbery. Seiichi couldn’t tell them anything and neither could his
friends but he knew that until he had some answers nothing could ever go back
to some degree of normality.
“Why don’t you sit down?” Shina suggested as she started
for the adjourning room, “I’ll put these away for you.”
Seiichi shook his head and gathered up the array of pills,
“I’ll do it.”
Shina smiled and nodded, but no sooner had Seiichi said
this did he realise that he had no idea where the bathroom was. Not wanting to
ask Shina or admit to this, Seiichi glanced hurriedly at the connecting door to
the kitchen and then at the other door opposite. Choosing the latter one, he
was relieved to find that it was a connecting door and the bathroom was the
first door he came to after that.
Opening it, he saw that it was painted in a pale shade of
blue. There was a cabinet above a porcelain sink directly opposite him and the
toilet behind the door on his right. The bath was on his left with a small
shower unit. A wicker linen basket was sat in front of it and was empty. After
taking in the room for a few minutes, Seiichi opened the cabinet. There was a
mirror on the inside of the door and he took a moment to stare at his
reflection, comparing it to the first time he had been shown what he looked like.
He looked better, Seiichi decided. His skin was still pale, but his eyes had
lost the heaviness that they had when he had first woken. Seiichi let out a
soft sigh and ran a hand through his hair, his fingertips brushing the discreet
bandage as he did so. His other hand settled on the tap and he twisted the
handle, watching the water falling until Shina tapped gently on the bathroom
door.
“Seiichi? Are you okay?”
“I’m fine,” he answered, turning the tap off and hurriedly
stacking the pills inside the cabinet before shutting it and exiting the
bathroom. Shina smiled and held up his overnight bag that he had whilst he was
in the hospital. “I thought you might like to put your things away, too.”
Seiichi nodded, wordlessly taking the bag from her and opening
the door across the hallway, the door that led him into his bedroom. The
bedroom was small. He had a western style bed as opposed to a Japanese futon.
There was a small cabinet next to his bed with a desk lamp on top of it. The
room was painted white, but with a black and dark green paper border on the
walls. A Japanese box lamp hung from the ceiling and the flooring was polished
dark wood rather than a carpet. The curtains were pulled, giving the room a
darkened aura, but not one that Seiichi particularly minded. He sat down on the
bed, putting the bag down by his feet. The duvet was dark green and the
pillowcases white. Focusing on the cabinet, Seiichi noticed a book set upon it.
He picked this up and found a bookmark in place three quarters of the way
through. He must have been reading it before… he set it back down, the fact
that he couldn’t tell himself anything about the plot disturbing him somewhat
and making him realise that he had never thought that he had come so close to
never being able to read the ending. He fleeting wondered if he had thought
such things before his accident, but decided not to dwell on this.
Getting up, Seiichi went over the wardrobe and deposited
the overnight bag inside. There would be time enough to put the contents away
properly and, in any case, it only contained a few cards and presents, the
police having taken away the clothes he was wearing the day of the accident
together with his phone and various other items. He supposed they wanted them
for forensic testing. This didn’t bother Seiichi. After what he had been
through, he didn’t feel as though material items mattered that much anymore.
Shutting the wardrobe doors, he moved over to his desk.
There were various papers and sheet music stacked up on this. According to
Tetsuya, Seiichi had written a lot of his own music and there were a few half
finished pieces among them. He hadn’t tried to play the piano yet, not when his
hands still gave him a bit of pain.
Setting the papers back down, Seiichi started to look
through the drawers, finding a photograph album in one. He didn’t need to look
at it. Shina had already brought one in to the hospital in an attempt to
trigger off a memory, but he had felt nothing and Seiichi didn’t care to set
himself up for the same sort of disappointment.
As he went to put the album back, one photograph fell free
and onto the floor. Seiichi knelt down to pick it up, but his hand stopped just
as his fingertips brushed it.
“Because I like being here with you.”
The phrase came into his mind and
Seiichi didn’t even know why. Closing his eyes, he tried to focus more on who
had said it, but he couldn’t. It was gone.
Picking the photograph up, Seiichi
studied it for a few minutes.
“Minako-san” he murmured. In the
hospital… the minutes that they had shared… Her presence had confused him a
little. He knew her as Aino Minako the idol and Usagi-san had explained that
she and Minako were friends but Minako had said nothing of how they knew each
other. Slipping her photograph back into the album, Seiichi became aware that
his headache was worsening.
Putting the album back into the drawer,
he made his way back into the front room. Shina had been sitting on the sofa,
but stood up when she saw him approach.
“I was just going to go out” she said
softly, as though sensing his confusion, “We don’t have any food. It was silly
of me, I should have bought some before you came home.”
“That’s okay” Seiichi answered her, not
really taking in what she was saying.
“Well I’ll go now” Shina said, trying
not to let his quietness bother her, “Is there anything you’d particularly
like?”
“No thank you”
Shina nodded, her gaze one of concern
but she didn’t call him on this and simply said that she would be back as soon
as she could and left.
Seiichi was a little glad of this.
Shina’s constant presence, as much as he appreciated it, was getting a little
claustrophobic. His head was now pounding and he went back into the bathroom
and took two of the painkillers that he had been given before going back into
the front room and sitting down on the sofa.
After a while Seiichi started to feel
sleepy, a side effect of the medicine.
He stifled a yawn and then changed his mind and decided that perhaps he
should rest a while. He lay down on the sofa, only thinking of resting his eyes
but so sooner had he done this did Seiichi give in to sleep.
******
“I take it you’re not the piano tuner, then?”
Ueda-san frowned at this, “No.”
“Then who are you? Don’t tell me you’re another obsessed
fan who managed to sneak in the back door.”
Ueda-san managed a small smile, “I did sneak in through
the backdoor” he admitted, “But I don’t know about being an obsessed fan. It
seems to me that you have a too high opinion of yourself, Komoro-san.”
Seiichi laughed, “Then why did you sneak in?”
Ueda-san shrugged, “I was bored of waiting. What is the
delay anyway?”
He frowned as half blurred images came together in his
mind. Seiichi was vaguely aware that he was halfway between consciousness and
dreams but was loath to do anything save for lie still whilst the, what he
could only describe as, blurred recollections filtered through his mind. His
head felt clearer although he gauged that he could have only been asleep for
fifteen minutes at the most as he couldn’t hear Shina moving about the
apartment.
“You watched the whole concert?” Seiichi asked, when Etsu
again repeated how much she had enjoyed his performance.
“Only if she promised to go to bed straight away” Shina
added in sternly, “Which you did, Etsu.”
“Mou, Mama” Etsu pouted, “I just wanted to see Seiichi.”
Etsu… his sister… Ueda-san… his friend… Seiichi frowned,
not wanting to force his mind as he struggled to grasp hold of these fleeting
images as they started to darken and then change into something else…
Seiichi suddenly became aware of hands on his shoulders,
forcing him onto his back and pressing him down on the sofa. Snapping out of
his haze, his eyes flew open and a scream caught in his throat at what he met
with, even as another scene flashed before his mind.
The Youma was almost as surprised as he was by this
unprecedented advantage, but this was soon forgotten and it lunged forward
again. Seiichi, in sheer panic, slashed at the Youma and caught it a blow in
its upper right arm. His sword tore through the light armour and the Youma
uttered an enraged squeal of pain and fury, before using its free hand to get a
grip around Seiichi’s throat once more.
Yet, instead of draining his energy, it threw him back
several feet. Seiichi slammed painfully into the wall behind him and then onto
the ground. Pain exploded in his head as he struck the concrete, his weapon
falling from his hand and out of reach.
Shakily he raised a hand to his forehead and when he
stared down at his gloved palm, he found it had blood on it. His blood.
“Youma” Seiichi whispered as he brought the sword up and
embedded it in the creature’s stomach. It toppled backwards, dead as it hit the
ground. The other one released Seiichi and leapt backwards, its eyes widening
in fear as he drew back a hand a let fly a ball of blue energy. The Youma
barely avoided this, the blast grazing its shoulder and smashing into a lamp
As though sensing his confusion and fear, the Youma leapt
at him, taking Seiichi completely by surprise it slammed into him, knocking him
to the floor. Instinctively, Seiichi hurled a similar blast of energy at the
beast, striking it in the chest and forcing it back. He hit the floor on his
left side, knowing to allow his shoulder, as painful as it was, to absorb most
of the fall. He felt the impact more than he would have had he been at full
strength, Seiichi knew, but trying not to let the Youma sense this, he rolled
onto his stomach, raising his sword to clash loudly against the Youma’s weapon.
Gritting his teeth, Seiichi pushed himself up onto his
knees, and then arched his blade upwards, forcing the Youma back. Then, without
hesitating, he sent another ball of energy in its wake.
The Youma was expecting this and hurled its own attack
directly at Seiichi’s. He automatically shielded himself with his cape as the
two magics met and exploded in a shower of colours and power. The force of this
hurled Seiichi back into the wall. As this happened, Seiichi felt a stab of
fear deep down inside himself. As illogical as it may seem, he felt as this had
happened to him before… he had reached this point in a previous existence, an
existence that he no longer remembered.
This fear magnifying, Seiichi, instead of countering the
next blast that was directed at him, threw himself out of harms way, realising
as he did so that his sword had long been discarded from his hand.
Striking the floor, this time landing on his stomach,
Seiichi was fast becoming aware of his headache returning at an excruciating
level. Drawing a deep breath, Seiichi forced himself to try and will away the
pain as he glanced around for the Youma.
He had fallen behind the sofa, but knew that the furniture
would only shield him for a matter of moments. Scanning the rest of the room,
Seiichi could see his sword lying near the door. The Youma was a good metre or
so from it, but it, too, appeared to have tired somewhat and was gazing at him
with a certain degree of caution which Seiichi could only contribute to the
fact that he had killed its companion with relative ease.
Still, this Youma was strong and would recover quickly
enough whereas Seiichi knew his own limits were rapidly being reached.
His best chance would be to somehow reach his sword,
Seiichi reasoned, and firmly crushed his fear and panic, knowing that to dwell
on how and why this was happening would only cloud his judgement. Focusing
inward, Seiichi could feel his powers were all but drained. He had enough for
one last attack and this attack would not be strong enough to kill.
Slowly, determining a course of action, Seiichi got to his
feet, focusing on producing a ball of white light in the centre of his palm.
Then, drawing his arm back, Seiichi let it fly and it hit the ground directly
in front of the Youma, giving it cause to stumble back in a mixture of fear and
surprise. Not wasting a second, Seiichi lunged forward, grabbing hold of his
sword and then burying it deep in the Youma’s chest. The creature gave a scream
and fell to the floor. Then, as Seiichi watched, it became dust before his
eyes.
Sighing softly, he leaned back against the cabinet next to
the door as he reached up to brush some stray wisps of white hair from his
eyes. He didn’t need to glance in the mirror opposite him to know this
transformation that he had undergone. He knew it better than he did his own
reflection. It was a part of himself… a part of himself that Seiichi could not
recall, but knew existed.
With his eyes closed, Seiichi did not know how long he was
left standing there, but he opened them again at the sound of the apartment
door opening.
Tensing and unsure what to say, Seiichi took a step back
as the door opened fully, but it wasn’t his mother who entered.
“Mamoru-san?” Seiichi asked, expecting for Mamoru to be
taken aback, even frightened, by his transformation but all Mamoru did was
allow a small smile and say softly:
“Zoisite?”
“You know me this way?” Seiichi asked, very hesitantly as
though, deep down, he was afraid of the answer.
Mamoru nodded slowly, never taking his eyes off of him.
“Then” Seiichi took a breath, “Then you can explain?”
*******
“Let me help you kill this one and we can go after the
others.”
“No. You have to go. Now.”
“Why?”
“Think about it? Why are they attacking me?”
“Because you can’t transform.”
“Exactly. Where do you think the other two have gone?”
Kisho tore his sword from the Youma, watching with a great
deal of satisfaction as the beast died, its body turning to dust before his
eyes.
Breathing heavily, Kisho cleaned the edge of his blade and
then set the weapon back down on the mantelpiece, out of harms way until it was
needed again.
“I’m not going to leave you to fight alone. I don’t care
if you’re trying to prove a point, you can’t transform!”
“You baka! Do you think I am that foolish?”
“It wouldn’t be the first time”
The corners of Kisho’s mouth curled upwards in a smile as
he looked under the sofa, searching for his phone, which had been discarded
during the fight. Mamoru, to some extent, had been right. Kisho had wanted
to prove to his friend that he could still fight as much as he had proved to
himself. Mamoru thought that they were weaker in their civilian forms; well
Kisho hoped that today had proved him wrong.
Locating his phone, Kisho fixed the case back on again and
called up Mamoru’s number. This was already his second new phone in two weeks
due to the mission. Even four years ago, Kisho had not managed to break phones
whilst fighting. This was again proof that the Youma were stronger, that Mio
was stronger; although Kisho had to admit he hated the fact that a mere girl
could match him for strength.
Pressing ‘dial’ Kisho forced down his concern when the
phone rang and rang before, finally, Mamoru answered.
“Are you okay?” Kisho couldn’t help but laugh softly as
Mamoru greeted him with this question.
“I’m fine.”
“And the Youma.”
“It’s not so fine.”
Mamoru managed a small chuckle, “I’m glad.”
“Is Seiichi okay?”
There was a pause and then, “He’s fine.”
There was something in his voice that suggested that this
wasn’t entirely true, but Kisho reasoned that Mamoru most probably couldn’t
talk at the moment. “I’ll give you another call later” he said to this.
“That would probably be best” Mamoru answered and then
said quietly, “I’m sorry.”
“Don’t be” Kisho replied to this, “I understand.”
“Arigato.”
He hung up and glanced around his front room. It was a
mess and Kisho knew that he would have to clean it up before Ayame came home.
Sighing softly, he started work on this being, at least, glad of the
distraction.
******
“Zoisite?”
“You know me this way?”
Mamoru nodded slowly, never taking his eyes off of him.
“Then” Seiichi took a breath, “Then you can explain?”
Mamoru ceased pacing and glanced down at his friend, very
hesitantly, awaiting his response. Seiichi was seated on the sofa, still
transformed, and this fact concerned Mamoru a lot as Shina would be back soon
and he didn’t want to have to explain this to her.
He had given Seiichi as detailed version of events four
years ago as he could without taking up too much time. Mamoru had then added
that if Seiichi had any more questions then perhaps they could meet at Crown
where they could speak for longer and in private. There were, of course, things
that Mamoru could not talk to him about, as he did not know of everything that
had happened during their fight against the Dark Kingdom. Although, Mamoru
liked to think that he knew each of his friends well, he couldn’t claim to know
every detail of their lives and had no wish too. There were some things that,
he could appreciate, were very private, such as the nature of Seiichi’s
father’s death. Mamoru had simply said that a Youma had killed him when Seiichi
had awakened his powers. He did not add that Seiichi had blamed himself for Zinan’s
death, as Mamoru knew he had to be careful of just exactly what he said.
Mamoru sat down on the chair opposite Seiichi, studying
his friend’s face and trying to read his emotions but Seiichi kept his
expression somewhat guarded and refused to meet Mamoru’s gaze.
“You should de-transform” Mamoru suggested softly, not
knowing what else to say, “If Shina sees you this way…”
This statement did gain some sort of reaction, but not the
kind that Mamoru was hoping for, “You tell me all this and then expect me to
act as though nothing has happened?”
“Yes” Mamoru said before he could stop himself and then
corrected himself by saying, “No. I don’t know.”
“Well I can’t. This…” he gestured to his transformation,
“I do not doubt that what you have told me is true, but…” he stood up and
Mamoru saw that he was shaking, “I just can’t deal with this right now.”
“I know and I’m sorry. If I had known that the Youma would
come after you then I would have tried to spare you this. Seiichi.” He caught
hold his arm and added, “Please de-transform.”
“Is that an order?”
“Of course not.”
“Well it sure sounded like one.”
He’s just frightened… and confused… Mamoru
tried to tell himself but he knew that they didn’t have time for this. Shina
could be back any minute.
“Seiichi. I know this is difficult, but you cannot let
Shina see you in this form.”
“Why? She’s my mother.”
“And it would be dangerous for her to be involved.”
Seiichi considered this for a moment and then nodded.
Mamoru could still sense his fear, but Seiichi had always managed to put aside
his emotions for the common good and this was exactly what he was doing now,
Mamoru knew.
It took Seiichi a couple of attempts to de-transform owing
to, Mamoru decided, a combination of his evident exhaustion and unfamiliarity
with his powers, but he eventually managed it and just in time, too, as Mamoru
heard the apartment door opening.
“Mamoru-san” Shina greeted him with some surprise as she
entered, struggling with the door and her bagfuls of shopping. Mamoru returned
her greeting and immediately helped her to carry the bags into the kitchen.
“I’m glad you stopped by” Shina confided in him when Seiichi was out of
earshot, “I didn’t like leaving him alone.”
“No problem” Mamoru answered, knowing how awkward things
now were between him and Seiichi and he felt sure that Shina was picking up on
this. He helped her to put away the shopping in more or less silence. Shina was
grateful for his help and expressed as much.
“No problem” he said again and declined her offer of a cup
of tea before he went.
“Is everything okay?” Shina asked as they made their way
back into the front room. “Seiichi?”
“I’m fine” he replied softly, “Just a little tired, that’s
all. I think I’ll go and get some rest.”
Shina nodded, glancing at Mamoru in confusion.
“Seiichi has a headache,” Mamoru said to this, “I can come
back tomorrow. He should get some sleep.”
“Did you take any of the painkillers that the doctor gave
you?” Shina asked softly as Seiichi got up.
He nodded and then said goodbye to Mamoru before
retreating to his bedroom. Shina still looked troubled and Mamoru reassured her
by saying:
“We talked for quite a while. I’m sorry.”
“That’s okay” Shina forced a smile, “He shouldn’t really
have discharged himself anyway. I’m sure he’ll be fine.”
“He will be” Mamoru gave Shina a quick hug before leaving
and again reiterated that Seiichi would be fine when, deep down, he wasn’t
sure. It was a lot to take in and he had such a short space of time to explain
it all. Mamoru would come back tomorrow, he decided and make sure that
Seiichi was coping as Mamoru could remember all too well what it was like to be
told something like that and, for Seiichi with his amnesia, it was far worse.
Knowing that he would be unable to concentrate on anything
else today, Mamoru decided to go back round to Kisho’s. He could help him clean
up his house from the aftermath of the attack and they could talk. Maybe even
Kisho could approach Seiichi tomorrow as Mamoru knew that he had made a
complete mess of things where his fried was concerned and now only wanted to
put things right again.
******
After Mamoru had gone, Shina busied herself with cleaning
the kitchen to assuage the want to check on her son. Dr Miura had felt that it
was best to let Seiichi take things at his own pace and, hopefully, his memory
should start returning with time. Shina was finding this very difficult to do
as her instinct, despite him being 25, was to keep checking that he was all
right and to keep trying to coax his memory back. The best thing, Dr Miura had
also said, was to allow visitors to see him, especially friends and family.
With Yasuo and Etsu still in Kamakura, Shina knew that a trip there would be
out of the question at the moment, she was grateful for Mamoru’s support.
Shina started slightly when she the phone start to ring,
drawing her from her thoughts. She tensed despite herself and bit her lip,
suddenly feeling a little guilty as she recalled the reason as to why she was
later coming back to the apartment than she would have liked.
Shina had just turned the corner towards the apartment
block. It had been a slow journey back as she had no car to put her shopping in
and didn’t want to bother Seiichi by requesting to use his. Shina didn’t even
know if he knew that he had a car. She hadn’t mentioned it and she hadn’t
checked to see if the keys were still on the shelf in the front room where he
usually kept them. It wasn’t a far anyway, she reasoned, but the events of the
past week or so had tired her and Shina was glad when the block was in sight.
“Shina?” she paused outside the apartment main entrance
when she heard her name being called.
“Tetsuya” she said softly. She shouldn’t have been
surprised that he would come to visit Seiichi sooner or later but Shina could
still recall Seiichi’s momentary confusion concerning him in the hospital and
she was determined not to dishonour Zinan’s memory further.
“What are you doing here?” she asked, keeping her voice
steady and emotion free.
“I’ve come to see Seiichi.”
“He was sleeping when I left.”
“Well I’ll come up anyway. He might have woken up by now
and if not it looks as though you need a hand.”
“I can manage” Shina snapped when he reached for one of
the bags, “Now is a bad time, Tetsuya.”
Tetsuya nodded, “I can come back tomorrow.”
“I think it would be best if you stayed away from Seiichi
for a while.”
“Why?”
“I don’t want him becoming confused. You are his manager.
He will contact you when he is well enough to think about his career again.”
“This is about what he said at the hospital, isn’t it?”
Tetsuya asked steadily.
“No” Shina shook her head, “It isn’t.”
“Yes it is. Shina, he was barely conscious. He didn’t know
what he was saying.”
“I know.”
“Then let me see him. Just for a few minutes.”
“No.”
“You don’t want to dishonour Zinan’s memory, I can
understand that.”
“Don’t bring Zinan into this.”
Shina turned away but Tetsuya lunged forward and grabbed
her arm, “I have the right to see my son!”
“No. You gave up your rights when you chose to further
your career rather than be there for me. You have no idea how hard it was for
me to keep lying to the man I loved to protect my family! Zinan meant the world
to Seiichi and, if you do care for him, you will leave him be.”
Tetsuya let her go and took a step back. Shina felt a pang
of guilt when she saw the look of regret in his eyes, but firmly crushed this with,
“Please. Leave.”
He nodded and turned away. Shina hurriedly punched in the
code to get inside the apartment block before she changed her mind.
I did the right thing, Shina told herself as she answered
the phone, but it didn’t stop her from feeling bad about it.
******
With all that had been going on, Mamoru had completely
forgotten that he was supposed to be at Shibuya Station to see Usagi-tachi off.
Realising this when he was at Kisho’s, the older man had promptly called Taro
to come over and teleport them both back there before Usagi could get upset.
“Mamoru!” she cried out upon seeing him, as he had Taro
both appeared around a street corner. The former Senshi did not travel light,
Mamoru saw with amusement. Usagi and Minako had two suitcases each and even
Makoto had an extra bag. Only Ami and Rei brought smaller bags with them and
Taro immediately went over to take Ami’s from her. She smiled and allowed him
to do this and then he also took Rei’s for her, too.
“Mamoru!” Usagi called again and Mamoru looked round in
time to catch the backpack that was slung at him. It was heavy and he stumbled
slightly. Taro smirked at this and shook his head.
Setting it down to get a better grip on it, Mamoru saw
with some annoyance that they had all left him and gone into the station, all
except Minako that was.
“Do you need a hand, too?” he called but she shook her
head.
Paying her little heed, Mamoru lifted Usagi’s bag again
and started to follow the others when Minako called out to him. Pausing he
asked her what was wrong.
“I wondered if I could ask you a favour?” she requested
quietly.
“Of course. What is it?”
“This… it all happened so suddenly” she gestured to her
bags and the station, “I didn’t get a chance to tell Seiichi I was going away.
I wanted to be there for him, but the mission has to come first. Could you
explain for me? And tell him that I’m sorry?”
“I will” Mamoru replied, feeling more than a little bad
that he couldn’t tell her just what had happened not an hour ago.
“Thank you.” Minako forced a smile and was about to say
something else to this but then Usagi appeared back round the corner and called
out rather impatiently:
“Mamoru! Minako-chan! The train is leaving soon. We don’t
want to miss it!”
Minako laughed softly and started in Usagi’s direction.
Mamoru sighed and followed suit, wondering to himself just why Usagi felt it
was necessary to pack so much stuff just for a one-night trip.
On the platform, he found that Makoto and Rei were
consulting the timetable whilst Taro and Ami spoke quietly to each other.
Minako went over to a nearby vending machine to get herself a drink. By ‘the
train is leaving soon’ Usagi actually meant that they had a few minutes, Makoto
informed them as she and Rei proceeded to start gathering their luggage
together.
As they did so, Mamoru went up to Usagi and gently pulled
her to one side. He still felt a great deal of concern, but had constantly
reminded himself that Usagi had the Ginzuishou to protect her. However, this
didn’t mean that he didn’t want her to be careful.
“I will” Usagi assured him, but even her assurance didn’t
ease the worry in his heart and Mamoru forced a smile whilst shaking his head
and saying:
“Usagi. I mean it. Please don’t take any stupid risks. I
couldn’t bear it if anything happened to you.”
“I’ll be fine. We all will be” Usagi smiled and wrapped
her arms around him, “And once minna have their henshins back we can end this
and go back to living our normal lives.”
Mamoru nodded, still unconvinced that it would be as easy
as Usagi seemed to think it would be.
“The only dangerous part will be before we get the sword
and, don’t forget, Mio does not yet know where the sword is.”
Mio mustn’t suspect their absence, Mamoru knew. If she
knew that Usagi-tachi had gone after the sword then the mission would become
very dangerous for them. He, and the Tennou, would have to do everything that
they could to ensure that Mio did not find out the location of the sword and
that the girls had gone to get it.
“Be careful,” he reiterated and Usagi laughed before
pressing a kiss to his lips. Mamoru wrapped his arms around his fiancée and
returned this embrace, holding onto her for as long as possible until Makoto
cleared her throat impatiently and said that they had to go.
Mamoru released Usagi, but walked with her to the train,
helping her onto it with the remainder of her luggage before kissing her again.
His unease was steadily growing and Mamoru wasn’t altogether sure why.
Getting back onto the platform, Mamoru glanced around the
crowded station. Kisho had always told him to trust his instincts and he could
feel someone watching him.
“Are you alright?” Taro asked quietly, having finished
saying goodbye to Ami, the taller man came to Mamoru’s side and looked around,
“Who are you looking for?”
“No one” Mamoru shook his head, as this feeling faded and
he waved back at Usagi who was leaning out of the carriage window as the train
started to pull out of the station. Ami, too, joined her at the window and they
carried on waving until the train was out of sight.
Mamoru sighed softly and turned away, feeling a strange
sort of empty loss and he couldn’t quite explain why.
“They’re gone,” he said to Taro instead, whilst trying to
keep the concern out of his voice. His friend must have heard it anyway and
draped an arm around Mamoru’s shoulders as they started to exit the station:
“Yes, they’ve gone” his tone matched Mamoru’s, but when he
looked around at his friend he was alarmed to see a mischievous smile on Taro’s
face. “And do you know what that means?”
“No. What?”
“It means, my friend, that I have a six pack of beer in
the fridge at home, there is a football game on the television and no women to
complain about how drunk we get or how untidy we leave the apartment.”
“We are supposed to be protecting Tokyo and aren’t you
worried about Ami-san?”
“Yes, we are supposed to be protecting Tokyo and yes I am
worried about Ami, but at the moment there is nothing we can do except wait for
the girls to get back and for Mio to make her next move.”
“I don’t know” Mamoru started, recalling his wedding
fiasco.
“I already called Masaki and Kisho. They’re coming over in
half an hour.”
“Kisho actually agreed to this?”
“He agreed that you needed to relax.”
Mamoru sighed. He had hoped to watch the game tonight
anyway and it would be more fun to watch it with his friends. “Okay, fine, but
no more drinking competitions, ne?”
Taro only grinned and said to this, “And I was afraid that
you had turned completely domesticated.”
Mamoru laughed, “Me? Not according to Usagi.”
“I’m glad to hear it” Taro smirked, “And remember, no
worrying about the girls. They’ll be fine. We can just forget about Mio and
watch the game like normal people.”
“Normal?” Mamoru echoed, “You?”
“Watch it, baka” Taro warned, but it was good natured
banter that ensured between them and Mamoru was just glad to have his mind taken
off the worries of the mission, even if it was just going to be for a little
while.
******
Masaki had to admit that he felt more than a little
apprehensive as he stood outside Taro’s apartment block. At first he had
welcomed his friend’s invitation to come round, have a few beers and watch the
game tonight but now he was actually here he could feel his anxiety building
again. Taro had also assured him that he was more than welcome and that they
had all said everything that needed to be said at Crown earlier, but, being a
little reserved and shy anyway, Masaki still wasn’t entirely sure where he
stood with them. He had actually been stood outside the apartment for the best
part of five minutes going over possible conversations with Mamoru-tachi.
Baka, what is wrong with you? Just go in there. They won’t
say anything. That part of my life is now truly over.
Masaki shook his head slightly, feeling more than a little
stupid as he logic reasoned this out. Already knowing the security code, he
entered the main building and then hurried up the couple of flights of stairs
to Taro’s apartment. As he reached it, he could already hear laughter coming
from within. The game was due to start in a few minutes but as Masaki reached
up to knock on the door it was pulled open.
“You took your time” Mamoru commented, a beer already in
hand, “I thought something had happened to you” he added in a lower voice, but
not so quietly that Taro, who was in the kitchen, which was the room nearest
the door, called out, “Mamoru, stop acting like his mother and invite him in.”
Mamoru scowled slightly at Taro and then stepped back to
allow Masaki entrance.
“Here” Taro thrust a beer at him after Masaki had taken
his shoes off, “I’m afraid it’s not very cold though.”
“Doesn’t matter” Masaki muttered as he opened the can and
took a prolonged sip. He hadn’t drunk since Mamoru’s stag night, partly for
fear not being able to stop once finding out what he had done whilst in the
Dark Kingdom. Now though as he surveyed the room and his friends, Masaki
realised what a baka he had been in being apprehensive tonight. None of them
held any misgivings towards him and Masaki found himself relaxing and looking
forward to the evening.
He sat down on the sofa and took another drink from his
beer can as Taro came back from the kitchen with several bags of various snacks
and another six-pack of beers, which were promptly deposited on the table in
front of the sofa. Taro then sat down beside Masaki with his own drink and
demanded to know if Kisho had managed to fix the reception yet. Kisho, who was
leaning over the television, holding the aerial in one hand and struggling to
turn some dials on the front at the same time, gave him a dark look.
Mamoru smirked and sat down in a chair before leaning
forward to take a handful of crisps as Taro continued to antagonise Kisho.
“Why don’t you hold the aerial up a bit higher?” he
suggested, “The reception was better when you did that. No, not like that. Hold
it like you were a minute ago. No, wait, hold it there. Now try to--”
Kisho looked up and sniped, “Why don’t you get a decent
television?” Taro’s television was a very old make that his brother had given
him, as he hadn’t had the money for a new one.
“Because watching you struggle is almost as entertaining
as the game.”
“The game is due to start in a minute,” Masaki reminded
them all.
“Hold on” Kisho
grumbled, “I’ve almost got it.”
Taro’s grin widened as the fuzziness of the picture
increased and Kisho almost overbalanced completely. Masaki sighed, knowing that
they wouldn’t be watching the game for a few minutes at least and requested to
know where the fifth member of their group was, partly out of actual concern
and partly to take Taro’s attention away from riling Kisho over the television.
“He can’t drink because of his medication remember” Taro
explained to this, “It would have just been cruel to invite him.”
Masaki got the feeling that this wasn’t the only reason,
but no one said anything further on the subject and he decided just to let the
matter drop. Mamoru probably felt that the situation would have been too
awkward for all of them.
“There” Kisho huffed a few minutes later, “That is the
best I can do” he referred to the semi-fuzzy picture on the television screen.
“It was clear when you held it up” Taro commented.
“Do you want to do that for the entire game then,
Taro?”
“Not really” Taro smirked, “I hoped you would.”
Kisho sat down beside him and gave his friend a
halfhearted shove and said, “Get me another beer and be quiet.”
Taro complied whilst muttering that they had missed the
kick off now.
Masaki just shook his head and he and Mamoru exchanged
grins before turning their attention back to the game.
It was just before halftime when it happened. Masaki had,
he supposed, about two beers, and most of the crisps were already eaten. Japan
was ahead by one goal and Masaki’s voice already felt hoarse from cheering the
team on. No one was even thinking of the mission, but Masaki began to feel a
little uneasy all the same. Having a few beers, he decided afterwards, had
dampened his senses somewhat, but as halftime was called, his skin was starting
to crawl and the aura around him was starting to change, to become darker
somewhat.
Masaki had to admit that, at first, he stoically ignored
this, wanting to concentrate on having a normal evening watching the game with
his friends but the aura was almost becoming impossible to disregard and Masaki
was about to say something when Mamoru caught his eye, giving him a look that
clearly said that he had sensed it too.
Their leader got up and switched the television off, much
to Taro’s protests, but he and Kisho had also sensed the Youma by then.
“I can’t believe this” Taro complained, as they hurriedly
locked the apartment and made their way to the ground floor and then out onto
the street. “Why does she have to pick a fight now? We were one goal up. Can
you believe this?”
“Perhaps its part of her tactics” Masaki grinned, knowing
that Taro wasn’t really that annoyed, this was more for show than anything
else.
“Whatever” he grumbled, “Are we going to transform or
not?”
Masaki glanced at Mamoru, waiting for him to take the
lead. His friend was more than a little apprehensive, Masaki noted and he
nodded but not without glancing regretfully at Kisho. The older man gave no
sign that the three of them transforming bothered him and he drew his sword as
Mamoru, now in his Endymion guise, led the way down the streets.
Jadeite followed Endymion’s lead, thinking that it was
fortunate that the game was on tonight as most people were at home watching it
rather than wandering the streets. There was only an unlucky few who had not
escaped and these lay on the pavement unmoving. Jadeite didn’t need to check
them, he knew that they were dead just by the unnatural angle in which they lay
and he could see the pain on Endymion’s face at this realisation.
“There’s nothing you can do for them,” Kisho advised
quietly as he drew his sword, “Concentrate on finding the Youma behind this.”
Endymion nodded and drew his own weapon as Jadeite felt
the Youma aura strengthen. There was definitely more than one, but it was
impossible for any of them to gauge just how many there were.
But, as they turned a corner down a side street, Jadeite
felt another aura, one that was very familiar and, at the same time, he thought
it was impossible that he should be sensing it. Turning around to look at
Nephrite, Jadeite knew that he had sensed it too.
Endymion broke into a run, concern showing on his face and
Jadeite followed suit.
“Mamoru-san?” he frowned in confusion when they reached
him and Jadeite felt his confusion deepen as he said hesitantly:
“Zoisite?”
Zoisite met his gaze but said nothing and he didn’t need
too. Although he was transformed, Jadeite knew that his memory hadn’t returned
but, somehow, this part of him had been awakened. This turn of events did not
surprise Kisho and Endymion and Nephrite knew this too and muttered that
someone should have told them.