Planet Bound: Mercury
by Marj
Author's Notes:
Ittai . . . ittai . . . I just hit my funny bone . . . Anyway,
here's to the second book!! *^^* It took me a long, long while to get
the inspiration for this one, but it's coming back, however slowly it's
coming along.
The prologue of this book was made so that those who have not
read the first book would still be able to understand what happens
next. So for those who are already familiar with the events, my
apologies.
Special thanks to my editor, Kismet-chan, and to all those who
wrote to me with regards to my other stories, namely Small Angel,
Remembrance, Z, Sailor Soul, and to those who wrote without giving any
names (I hope I got everyone's names right!). I wish I could do well
in this book as good as everybody thought I did in the previous ones.
Please keep in touch!
Other Notes:
hime - princess
sayonara - good-bye
Please e-mail your comments and constructive criticisms at
. Thanks!
Disclaimers: The characters of Bishoujo Senshi Sailormoon were created
by Naoko Takeuchi-san, its copyright owned by Toei Animation, Kodansha,
Nakayoshi, Sterling Animation Inc., and many other companies scattered
throughout the world. Meaning, I cannot claim the characters as my
own, and am mearly borrowing them. All the characters not found in the
manga are mine. So please don't sue, as I don't earn anything from
this other than the satisfaction of making a story.
PROLOGUE
The sun had already set. The full moon towered over the city of Tokyo,
the metropolis' streets littered by people enjoying the warm, October
night, filling the heart of the capital with excitement. Men and women
went about without a care in the world, merrily delighting themselves
with what the night had to offer, ignorant of the fact that some people
were not as happy as they were. That some were suffering while others
enjoying themselves. That some were separated from family while others
were together. That some were dying while others were living on.
In the Minato-ku suburbs of Juuban, Tokyo, a girl was lying on her bed,
surrounded by close friends and family. Her tired blue eyes wandered,
looking at the faces of each person present, pausing at a blond girl
before they were covered by eyelids that were never to open again.
Mizuno Ami, a girl whose short hair and eyes were both a natural shade
of blue, was right beside the bed when her friend took her last breath.
She held her friend's wrist, hoping against all hope that her friend
was still alive. But she found no pulse, and that small hope she held
shattered along with her heart.
Her vision blurred by the tears that filled her eyes, Ami tried to
search for a pen and paper. Finding both on top of a desk, she wrote
down her friend's name, and beside it, the time indicated by the alarm
clock that stood on the dresser. Unofficially recording her friend's
death.
A hand was placed on her shoulder. She looked up. Kino Makoto's green
eyes asked a silent question, her brown hair falling in cascades over
her shoulder. Ami shook her head slowly and turned away.
It was all the answer the people in the room needed.
The blond girl's own blue eyes filled with tears. Tsukino Usagi sank
to the carpeted floor, covered her face with her hands, and sobbed
quietly.
Hino Rei kneeled down beside her, her long black hair grazing the
floor, her violet eyes sad yet also filled with concern for her crying
friend.
Not far from the bed was a very young girl, her hands clenched, her
brown eyes tightly shut. Sayama Mie started to tremble like a leaf,
until she was embraced by dark-haired Tomichi Hikaru, who buried her
face in the child's brown hair to hide her grief.
Artemis, the white cat lying on the bed beside the deceased girl,
looked up and rubbed the girl's face with his cheek. When he received
no reply, he stared silently at the quiet figure for a long time. Then
he suddenly looked away and jumped out of the open window, soon
followed closely by Usagi's black cat Luna.
Luna found Artemis hidden in a flowerbed where no one could hear his
sobs. She rubbed his cheek with hers and laid down beside him, sharing
his grief.
Back inside the room, the girl's mother held her daughter in her arms,
crying loudly, saying her child's name over and over again. Her
husband was mourning quietly as he watched her, at the same time trying
to comfort his wife's mother, who was also weeping over the loss of her
granddaughter.
Ami wiped her crying eyes and shakily stood up to help the grieving
family, attending to the old lady while the father joined his wife on
the bed. She watched as the mother refused to let her child go. The
father embraced his wife and his daughter, kissing his departed child's
forehead thrice before laying his chin on his wife's shoulder. Ami bit
her lip, lowered her head, and closed her eyes.
A blond man standing in the distance quietly stared at the scene, his
blue eyes focused on the departed girl's face. He waited patiently for
the father and mother to release their child before he walked forward,
kneeled beside the bed, and took the girl's hand in his.
He gently cupped the girl's face with his free hand, using his thumb to
brush the girl's blond hair away from her cheeks. He leaned closer,
kissing her lips for the last time before laying his forehead on hers.
Moments later, he leaned back and smiled through his tears. "Sayonara,
hime . . ." He lifted her hand and kissed it. "Sayonara . . . Minako-
chan . . ."
(
geocities.com/tokyo/field/4723) (
geocities.com/tokyo/field) (
geocities.com/tokyo)