A word to all readers of Part 1: Thanks for all the great compliments and criticism. I'll keep them in mind when I write future stories. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- Bishoujo Senshi Sailor Moon Sailor Stars "Together Once More" by: Andre Garde (aj113@torfree.net) Part Two: A Night on the Town "Mamo-chan? Are you all right?" "Huh, what's that?" Mamoru Chiba had been thinking about Seiya Kou, a member of the Three Lights. Something in Seiya had attracted his attention. It was sort of an eerie feeling, but Mamoru couldn't place it. "I said," Usagi continued, "are you all right? You look like you've seen a ghost." "Uh, no, I'm fine Usako. Something about that guy Seiya though..." "Oh I know!" Minako chimed in. "He's just too cool, along with Taiki and Yaten!! Ooh, those Three Lights, they're SOOO HUNKY!!!" Makoto nodded in agreement. But Mamoru wasn't listening. Something was bothering him, and Usagi could see it plainly written on his face. The link they shared enabled them to see through each other's eyes; the looking glass that peered into the soul. "You know," Usagi began slowly. "We should get together with those three, and have a night on the town together. You know, like see a movie or something, just to get to know each other better? Wouldn't that be nice, Mamo-chan?" He thought about it. Certainly, it was an opportunity to find out more about Seiya, Taiki, and Yaten. And it had been a long time since he and Usagi had been on a date. Being able to kill two birds with one stone was a definite bonus. "Well, it sounds good to me." Mamoru said. "How about tonight then?" The girls seemed disappointed, except for Usagi. "Looks like I chose a bad night to go out with Usako," Mamoru thought to himself. He turned to each one of them and asked what the problem was. Rei spoke first. "Fire readings with Grandpa. Yuuichiro said something about getting a burger too." She turned away swiftly, not noticing Mamoru's eyebrow raise slightly, nor the looks of amusement on the girls' faces. They disappeared promptly as Rei turned back to face them. "Cooking class for me tonight," Makoto added. "No can do." Everyone knew how important the culinary arts were to Mako-chan. "Volleyball practice. Gotta keep my serve in tip-top shape!" Minako winked. That left... "Ami?" Mamoru asked. "Uh, well, I'm only ahead of the rest of my Calculus class by three chapters! I've really got to study hard tonight..." Everyone sighed. "I'm sorry," Ami thought. But there was still a chance. "Hey what about Haruka and Michiru? I bet they'd love to go?" Mamoru seemed to consider that. He hadn't thought of those two coming along. "Sure, why not. I'll give them a call. Maybe I'll give Motoki and Reika a call too. If I'm lucky, they'll be free tonight to join us. How does that sound Usako?" "Great, just great!" But Usagi was worried. Haruka and Seiya weren't on the best of terms. Enemies was too strong a word, but they weren't exactly friends either. Hopefully, Haruka would be able to patch up her differences with the Three Lights, and everyone would become friends. She prayed that it turned out that way. She needed a miracle to convince Haruka and Seiya that they could forge a bond with each other like how Usagi did with her other friends. Miracles, however, often came with a very high price. Hours later, night was falling on the city of Tokyo, Japan. The street lamps were beginning to turn on, lighting up the city like the glitter of the stars far out in space. A cool breeze wafted through the perfect evening. Usagi couldn't have been happier. "It's really great that you two could join us," Usagi said. She and Mamoru were in the backseat of Haruka's sports car, with Michiru riding shot- gun as usual. "Especially you, Haruka." she added. Haruka glanced back at Usagi using the rear view mirror, but said nothing. It was true that she didn't take too kindly to Seiya. Previously, at Usagi's house, they had exchanged words, and probably would have come to blows if it weren't for Usagi's insistence that they try to get along. But Haruka knew of Usagi's faith in people, and if Usagi could trust Seiya, Haruka would have to learn how to as well. "If only I could see what you see in him," Haruka said to herself. Michiru looked troubled when Haruka didn't say anything, but smiled back at Usagi reassuringly. She'd convinced Haruka to go along on the "date," if not just to keep an eye on the prince and princess, but to have some fun with them as well. "Duty is duty," she reminded Haruka, "but every once in awhile we've got to let the hair down, ne?" "So where are we meeting Motoki and Reika again?" Usagi asked. Michiru turned to face her future queen. "It's a really hot dance club called 'Da Bronx'." "Da Bronx?" Usagi questioned. Her marks in most subjects were really improving, but her geography left a little more to be desired. "The Bronx, a region in the US," Mamoru offered. "In the state of New York." "Oh, so it's 'THE' Bronx? But Michiru said it was 'Da Bronx'. Is 'Da' one of those weird english words?" Apparently, Usagi hadn't learned about American slang yet. Michiru wanted to roll her eyes, but continued. "Anyways, Da Bronx is a really popular club, hard to get in, but Haruka and I are VIPs there so it was no big deal." "Plastic gold definitely has its advantages," Haruka added. She smiled. Mamoru and Usagi knew that she was referring to her cache of credit cards. They never presumed to ask where all that money came from, but if they could get connections like this, why bother? As they neared the club, they could see the neon sign illuminating the sidewalk and the people in line. The lineup was huge, spanning an entire city block and continuing around the corner. Usagi hoped that the club was big enough to hold all those people. They parked the car across the street, and instead of getting in line, the four of them walked right up to the front, much to the dismay of those who had been waiting for hours. "VIP passes?" the guard at the entrance asked. Haruka and Michiru flashed him their passes. Usagi and Mamoru displayed their guest VIP passes as well. "Right this way please," the guard said, making a gesture towards the gold-plated double-doors. As they stepped inside, Usagi's eyes adjusted themselves to the darkness of the club. Da Bronx was one of those clubs that tried to imitate the cyberpunk style of neon-illuminated darkness. The name "Gibson" had come to mind, an author she had read about at Juuban High School. They ventured deeper into the club, past the bar, through the dance floor area, and finally to a large table, where Usagi and Mamoru found two of their friends already waiting. "MOTOKI!" Usagi cried. Motoki knew of the crush she and Makoto had on him. Apparently, some of it was still there, but most, thankfully, was passed on to his friend Mamoru. "How've ya been Usagi? You haven't been coming by the arcade recently. School getting too tough for you?" Usagi gave him a hug and a quick peck on the cheek. She did the same to his girl- friend, Reika. "Well no actually I'm..." said Usagi, half-embarassed. "She's doing really well in school," Mamoru cut her off. "She got 85% on one of her tests. At this rate, she may even be smarter an Ami." he beamed. Motoki and Reika smiled, and greeted their longtime friend, Mamoru. Usagi turned a shade of deeper red. She introduced Haruka and Michiru to her friends, and was delighted that they were all very comfortable with each other, and were having a good time. Now, if only the same thing could happen when Seiya and the others get here... A few minutes passed, and everyone was acquainted with each other. It was at that moment that the Three Lights came by, Seiya in the lead. "Sorry we're late Usagi. Traffic was pretty bad. And we left an hour ago!" He came over and greeted her, even Mamoru. Taiki and Yaten did the same, and Usagi introduced them to Motoki and Reika. Everyone seemed to be on their best behaviour, and Usagi thought everyone would go smoothly. That is, until Haruka and Seiya caught each other's eye. They looked at each other, saying more with their eyes than words alone. For Haruka, it was cold indifference. Seiya, unimpressed, returned the look. Usagi saw the tension between them, and put a hand on Haruka's arm. Haruka turned to look at her, and saw the pleading look on her face. She shifted her gaze back to Seiya, a faint smile gracing the edges of her lips. "Nice evening for a get-together, isn't it Seiya? Won't you join us?" She meant it. Seiya looked startled, and as his expression softened, so did Haruka's. Michiru looked pleased. "Uh, sure, thanks Haruka. Come on guys." Everyone sat down and drinks were ordered around the table. Polite conversation ensued, and Usagi was in high spirits. The night was progressing well, and she congradulated herself prematurely on a job well done. The Three Lights had explained to the group about their progress making movies, doing concerts, public appearances, and things of that sort. Taiki explained that it wasn't all that glamorous when you looked at the amount of hard work and effort that had to be put into something like a motion picture. Motoki and Reika were captivated by the Three Lights, and Michiru and Haruka were listening closely to their trials and tribulations. But when the focus was shifted to Reika's line of work, however, the trouble began. "So you were saying you went to Africa?" Taiki asked of Reika. She nodded, taking a sip of her drink. "Yeah. I was there for quite awhile doing several archeological digs. The work's really great, but it can get quite hot over there. Does archeology interest you, Taiki?" He had a bored look on his face. "Not really. Actually, I find it rather pointless." Everyone at the table set down their drinks. Haruka's eyes narrowed to slits, her natural defensive reflexes already kicking in. Reika was somewhat taken aback, and so Motoki spoke up for her. "Oh, and why would archeology be pointless? Isn't it great that we're finding out so much about human history? Surely there's something that you find to your liking?" Taiki showed his distaste for the subject with a wave of dismissal. "Not likely. The whole idea doesn't seem intellectually sound. I mean, what's so fun about digging up a bunch of bones that belong to some hapless, ancient, caveman? Mathematics, the sciences, technology. The future! That's what's important. Archeology? In my opinion, that's a job best left for balding old-timers and lowlifes who've got nothing better to do with their time." Reika was shocked. She didn't expect this sudden turn of events. Usagi couldn't believe it either. Just when she thought things were going so well too. "Well, obviously, you know NOTHING about archeology, do you!?!?" With that, Reika stormed off towards the ladies room, tears streaming down her face. Michiru rose, the concern for one of Usagi's friends showing through. "Umm, excuse me. I'll go check to see that she's all right. Usagi, let's go." They both took off after the distraught Reika. That left Mamoru, Haruka, and Motoki, who was fuming at Taiki. "You've got a pretty big mouth there, you know that?" he snarled. "You'd better apologize to her or else..." Mamoru put a restraining hand on his friend's shoulder. "Easy there Motoki," he said. "Taiki, you didn't have to word it so harshly like that. She was trying to get you to know her better." "Give me a break Mamoru," he said nonchalantly. "So I was a little blunt. Big deal? It's not like I was trying to hurt the poor girl." "Hmph, could've fooled me," Motoki sneered. "Well isn't it obvious...?" Yaten said, coming to Taiki's defence. "ANYTHING could fool you." The Three Lights grinned in spite of the situation. Haruka and Motoki let out similar feral growls. Even Mamoru felt angered by Taiki's and Yaten's arrogance. "So we've got a bunch of comedians in the house tonight huh?" Mamoru said angrily. "Tell me, do the Three Lights doing weddings and funerals?" "Hmm, we're in to wisecracks now? I never expected THIS from you, Mamoru. Or at least, the Mamoru that Usagi described to me." Seiya took up the reins on the little confrontation. Mamoru's full attention had been captured; he wouldn't let Seiya drag his girlfriend into this. "Stay on track Seiya, Usagi's got nothing to do with this." "Maybe not, but there are some things I'd like to know about her. Like for instance, why is she so infatuated with someone like YOU?" Seiya asked. Mamoru was caught off guard. "What, what do you mean?" "Well, it doesn't seem like you've been around much for her, am I right? I mean, what kind of boyfriend leaves his girl for prolonged periods of time? In my opinion, Usagi should be open to other relationships. She isn't bound by the string of destiny to the likes of you." How wrong you are, Mamoru thought. "You know nothing of it, Seiya. Usagi and I go way back, and there's nothing in this world that can break us apart. Nothing." His emphasis on the word made Seiya reconsider his posi- tion. "Oh really," Seiya said flatly, after a moment's reflection. "We'll just have to see about that." He had a sly grin on his face, and Haruka wanted to wipe it off with a fist. "What do you three know about love or friendship?" she said. "All you seem to care about is yourselves. Mamoru and Usagi have been an item for over a thousand years, and I guarantee you, Seiya, that it's going to be that way for a long, long, time." She paused, thinking of the truth of her state- ment. "But you three can't understand what that means, can you?" Her words had found their mark on the Three Lights. They were about to retaliate when Mamoru spoke again. "The love between Usagi and myself is a bond that will never be broken by you," he indicated Seiya, "or anyone else. We're completely devoted to each other, and that's never going to change. We care for each other too much to let anything happen." Taiki and Yaten held their place. They had no experience with true love, and they had heard of the relationship between Usagi and Mamoru. Seiya on the other hand, found himself being drawn closer to Usagi. With each passing day, she had become more of an object of desire. Taiki and Yaten wouldn't understand, that was true, but Seiya realized how much Mamoru cared for his one and only. He was about to attempt an apology, when one single thought crossed his mind: a moment of mad inspiration. An insult that would cut so deep into the core that was Mamoru, like a stake being driven into the heart of a vampire. An remark that would render him like a newborn babe, helpless to do anything about his own advances on Usagi. I could do that, Seiya thought to himself. But then I could also see it Mamoru's way. Either way, I'm probably going to regret the decision some day. He questioned himself: what should I do? -- End of Part Two Well, what should Seiya do folks? Do you think that he's a nice enough guy that he'd apologize, or is Seiya really a bad boy by nature? You decide! Then contact me in one of two ways: a) Email me and tell me! Be sure to include what you think Seiya should do, and why he should do so. Be brief, but also be articulate. OR b) Visit my webpage and fill out a voting form. It'll make life easier. Andre Garde (a.k.a. Veritech) | Bishoujo Senshi Sailor Moon Sailor Team HQ! aj113@torfree.net | http://www.geocities.com/Tokyo/5991 Comments? Any advice that you have to offer is always welcome. My email address is as above. "Sailor Moon" character names et. al. are Copyright (C) Naoko Takeuchi, Toei Animation, and Kodansha. In other words, companies with big wallets and a collection of high-priced lawyers who aren't to be trifled with. The story I wrote, but everything else (the characters, the names) is theirs, theirs, theirs. Please don't sue me. -- -- Andre Garde (a.k.a. Veritech) | Bishoujo Senshi Sailor Moon Sailor Team HQ! aj113@torfree.net | http://www.geocities.com/Tokyo/5991