The bitter air chilled Sailor Earth to the bone as she crept along the icy pathways of Pluto, searching for someone.
But who?
That question bothered her to know end. All she knew was that Queen Serenity had sent her, and that was all that mattered. She desperately wanted to serve the queen and win her approval, but she felt overshadowed by her brother.
Brother?
It seemed as if eyes were staring at her as she searched frantically for any sign of life. All she found was a house, made out of crystal. She shivered and knocked three times on the pure white door.
The door opened and a young woman stepped out. She had long green hair that was partly in the bun, the rest hanging down. She also wore the attire of a Sailor Scout. A black staff with a garnet orb on top was in her hand. Her eyes trailed over Sailor Earth and showed a look of understanding.
“You are Sailor Earth?” she murmured.
“Yes…and you are…Sailor Pluto…correct? But you should be at the Time Gate!”
Sailor Pluto nodded her head. “Indeed. You have a great memory, Princess Miyoko.”
“How do you know my name? Most call me—”
“Yes, I realize people call you the other name, but I prefer to call you by your Japanese Celestial Name,” Sailor Pluto interrupted.
Sailor Earth hesitated but continued. “Queen Serenity has sent me. Was it to find you?”
“Not completely, but yes. She sent you on an unknown mission, didn’t she?” Sailor Pluto asked.
Sailor Earth bobbed her head in agreement, yet was still puzzled.
“What is the mission?” she questioned, her voice trembling.
“My dear Princess Miyoko,” Sailor Pluto whispered. “She has chosen you to travel through time.”
A sudden mist chilled the air. Sailor Pluto gasped as a black vine appeared out of thin air and wrapped itself tightly around Sailor Earth’s chest. Sailor Earth shrieked, gasped for air, and fought against the vine that held her captive.
“It’s no use! The princess will never be able to travel through time!” A cold, high laugh sounded as Sailor Earth screamed, the black cloud swarming, the vine strangling the very life, even soul out of her…
Rose woke up in a cold sweat, crying out. She felt her clammy hands clutch the sheets in fright. She had dreamed of a girl visiting someone…she couldn’t remember exactly. The girl had been told she would go through time but a black vine had grabbed her…
Rose shivered, remembering the jolting pain she had experienced during the dream. The girl in the dream was a mirror image of herself, and the thought made her blood freeze like a Popsicle. Sailor Pluto…was that the green haired woman’s name? And who—
Perplexed, Rose fell back on her pillow and glanced at the cloak. It was 2:00 AM.
“Just great,” she snarled. “A wonderful time having coffee with Sonny…and I unluckily have this nightmare…?”
“Meow?”
“Comet?” Rose’s eyes widened at the sight of the brown cat. “I-I put you outside!”
Comet’s purrs were like a motor as he lay down next to her. A sudden warm feeling spread through Rose’s nerves, and her tense body relaxed. She closed her eyes dreamily and thought she almost smelled flowers. When she woke five hours later, at 7:00 AM, she didn’t remember the dream at all.
Sighing happily, Rose saw that the sun was bright. She got out of bed and began to prepare herself for school. She spotted the piece of paper on her desk and remembered; it had the piano player’s number and name on it. She picked it up and read:
Amara Teioh
482-7689
Rose smiled, tucked the paper into her school uniform pocket, and grabbed her book bag. She headed out the door and started walking to school, knowing she would soon hear the chattering. She knew she was earlier; she’d probably be 15 minutes early by now.
She took longer than usual, breathing in the scent of damp soil that had been watered and watching the people go by. She reached the school with a heavy heart; she was feeling like a weight had landed on her shoulders. She was feeling a little sick, but she shook it off. Phoebe was standing at the entrance, her hair in a ponytail that bounced when she moved (she was pacing a little).
“Hi, Phoebe,” Rose called out, a note of gloom in her voice.
“Is something wrong?” Phoebe asked.
“I remember having a nightmare, but I can’t recall what it was about,” Rose replied, stepping to Phoebe’s side.
“If you can’t remember, why bother?” was Phoebe’s remark as they entered the building and started to walk down the halls.
“I don’t know…” Rose murmured as they sat in their seats in the English class.
She sighed softly as the announcements came on. She wasn’t thinking about the messages that were said, however. She was trying to remember the dream that had occurred in her mind last night and she was starting to feel worse and worse. She almost even considered asking to go home.
The minutes dragged on and when school finally was out, Rose thought she might collapse, she was so glad. Phoebe was looking worried.
“You shouldn’t obsess about that dream so much, Rose!” she exclaimed. “Maybe you should go home and rest. And besides, you look awfully sick…”
“Yeah…yeah, I’ll do that…” Rose agreed, her book bag thumping against her leg as she walked.
“Do you want me to walk home with you?” Phoebe asked, a hint of concern in her voice.
“Of course, don’t worry,” Rose replied, managing a small smile.
As the two went down the sidewalk, it seemed as if the sounds of the cars were ten times louder in Rose’s ears. The people blurred and waved in front of her and beads of sweat formed on her forehead as she struggled to keep walking. She felt hot and cold; the sickness was much worse than it had been before. Phoebe, her eyes full of fear and alarm, grabbed Rose’s arm.
“Rose, are you really that sick?” she cried.
“I…I…I don’t know…I feel so dizzy…” Her head was a jumble of thoughts as she tried to keep her legs moving.
“This feels like a movie,” Phoebe groaned.
“Oh…” Rose stumbled. “I feel awful.”
She wrenched out of Phoebe’s grasp in order to keep walking, but the air around her was almost suffocating. She had no idea what was going on with her. Phoebe quickly caught her before she collapsed.
“No…Phoebe…let me walk…”
“No! You’re sick!”
“Let me walk!”
Rose tried to run, but her legs felt like wet noodles underneath her. She staggered and fell, her head hitting the sidewalk. Phoebe shrieked as Rose lay there, her breaths coming out short and ragged. Phoebe searched around for anyone who would help.
“Somebody help!” she cried. “My friend is sick! Can’t anybody help us?”
Rose felt strong arms lift her up. She heard Phoebe’s murmuring voice, “Thank goodness you came to help us…” There was a blur of light white that blinded her, and she slowly felt as if she was being rocked back and forth. A strange unknown voice was whispering to her, but she couldn’t catch the words. She slowly went unconscious.
When her eyes finally opened, Rose’s first sight was of a hand gently pressing a damp washrag on her hot forehead. She murmured out of pleasure and looked around the room. It was foreign to her, yet she felt at home. She was lying in a bed with a blue bedspread and her hair was undone and flowing. She reached up to touch the person’s hand and got the first sight of the person’s face.
It was a young man, looking no older than 19 or maybe 20. His expression was a
solemn one but Rose could sense love and kindness in his blue eyes. His hair was
midnight black, his calm face looked down at her, and Rose thought he was
handsome. “Who are you?” Rose asked softly.
The fellow seemed surprised at the question. He took off the washcloth and
looked down at her inquisitively.
“I’m Darien…Darien Shields,” he introduced. “You’re Rose Opal, correct?”
“Yeah…” Rose sighed, “but why am I here?”
“Don’t you remember? You were really sick, with a high fever, and you collapsed
right there on the sidewalk. Your redheaded friend called out frantically,
begging for someone to help you,” Darien summarized.
“Oh…I’m so glad you helped me…thank you…” Rose mumbled, smiling. She laughed a
little. “This really doesn’t feel real.”
Darien smiled. He really did have a nice smile when he wasn’t looking so
serious. “I guess it doesn’t, huh? Your friend’s name is Phoebe Martin, right?”
“You’re right.”
Darien dabbed the wet cloth a little more on her fiery forehead. “Your fever
has gone down, but you’re going to have to stay here for a while.”
“But my cat…and my garden…” Rose stammered.
“Phoebe said she’d tend to the garden, and your cat’s here…he sprang on the
couch and fell asleep,” Darien interrupted.
“Oh.”
Darien wrung out the washcloth and laid it down on Rose’s forehead. Rose’s
hazel eyes looked gently up at him.
“My girlfriend is coming over today; she asked if she could because she hasn’t
seen me for a time. She might be coming in, so please be nice.”
“You think I would be mean?” Rose teased.
“No…but—“
“But what, Mr. Shields?”
Darien’s smile grew. “You’re a silly one.”
“Thank you, that’s a compliment. Yes, I’ll be nice.”
“Now try to sleep,” Darien encouraged. “I’ll wake you up if you’re still asleep
when she comes.”
Rose, still exhausted from the fever, was glad to obey. Darien slipped out of
the room, turning off the light. It was cool and dark, making Rose feel rather
like a mushroom. She closed her eyes and felt her head sink down further in the
pillow. Before long, she was asleep.
Rose didn’t know where she was. All she knew was that there was a high cliff
and a deep gorge below. She knew she was standing on the cliff. Cautiously she
took a step forward. The rock cracked beneath her feet and she found herself
falling. Through the clouds she plummeted towards the gorge.
She was expecting to hit the ground but didn’t. Four pairs of arms were gently
holding her, carrying her to safety. Rose looked up at them.
One of them was wearing a lime green dress and had green hair to her chin. When
she smiled, a symbol like a leaf flashed on her forehead. The second girl was
small of stature but kind of eye; her blond hair was tied into a low ponytail
with a blue bow, and when she smiled a symbol like a lightning bolt shone on her
forehead. She wore a sky-blue dress as well. The third girl was wearing a
magenta dress and her black hair was tied into two plaits that hung over her
shoulders. She grinned at Rose and a symbol like a sword glowed. The last girl
was tall with flowing straight red hair and she wore a fiery orange dress (this
girl looked oddly familiar) She smiled sweetly and a symbol shaped like a bird—a
phoenix to be precise—sparkled on her forehead.
“We’ll never let you fall, princess,” they chorused.
“Who are you? What do you mean?” Rose found herself crying out.
They only shook their heads and repeated, “We’ll never let you fall.”
“Meow?” Something was pressing on Rose’s cheek.
“Uhn…Comet?” Rose asked sleepily, awakening from her dream.
“Meow!” Comet exclaimed, rubbing his warm brown furry body against her.
“I had the oddest dream,” Rose told him, cuddling him against her chest. “Am I
a princess, Comet?”
Comet purred softly since of course he couldn’t reply. Rose giggled.
“What time is it—“ Rose murmured, looking at the clock. It was 4:32 PM.
“Shouldn’t Darien be coming with his girlfriend now?”
Just like magic, there was a knock on her door. Rose struggled to sit up as
Comet leaped off the bed and stood at the entrance.
“The door’s open!” Rose called.
The door opened and Darien walked in. Holding his hand was a girl about 1 foot
or something smaller than Darien, but she looked about the same age as Rose. Her
eyes were blue and her hair was gold but—Rose almost laughed—it was pulled into
two buns looking like meatballs; the rest of her hair was in two pigtails
hanging from the buns. They went down to her ankles. The girl smiled at Rose,
but seemed to be clutching Darien tightly.
“Rose, this is Serena Tsukino, my lovely girlfriend,” Darien informed. Serena
giggled happily. “Serena, this is Rose Opal. I think…I think I remember her from
the orphanage I was at.” Rose and Serena both looked at Darien in surprise.
“I never saw you though,” Rose told him. She grinned at Serena. “Hi, Serena!
Nice to meet you!”
“Nice to meet you too!” Serena exclaimed, but she increased her grip on
Darien’s arm.
“Hey, no worries, Serena, I have a crush on someone,” Rose laughed, seeing
Serena’s firm grasp. Serena released her hold on Darien. Rose looked at Darien.
“You’re lucky to have such a loving girlfriend,” she said.
Darien smiled down at Serena. “Yeah, she’s one of a kind. Don’t know what I’d
do without her.”
“Oh, Darien! You’re wonderfully perfect!” Serena burst, and then blushed.
Comet jumped back onto Rose’s bed and Serena spotted him.
“What a cute kitty!” She rushed over to scratch his head and pet him. “What’s
his name?”
“His name is Comet,” Rose reported, smiling.
Comet rolled over and allowed Serena to rub his belly. He purred loudly,
stretching his legs. Darien chuckled and then looked at his watch.
“Our date’s set for 5:00, Serena, and it’s 4:45. We better go. Are you feeling
better, Rose?” Darien rushed out in one breath.
“Oh…my fever’s almost gone. I think I can be alone for a while,” Rose replied.
“But…maybe you can ask Sonny to look after me?”
Darien’s eyes widened. “You mean Sonny Gregorson?”
“Yeah. He’s a friend of mine…although I’ve only known him for one day,” Rose
laughed. “We had to do a karate match against each other.”
“He’s one of my good friends,” Darien notified, once again checking his watch.
“I have his number, so I’ll call him and tell him to come over. Think you can
survive?”
“Sure I can!” Rose let out.
“Let’s go, Darien. Nice to meet you, Rose! I hope we see each other more often!
I’m sure we go to the same school,” Serena called.
“Nice to meet you too, Serena,” Rose shouted as Darien allowed Serena to exit.
Rose sighed as the door shut and gazed at Comet, who was curled up against her
waist. She smiled and scooped him up, cuddling him and stroking his little brown
head. He meowed and wiggled, showing that he’d rather be against her than in her
arms. She let him down and looked into his yellow eyes.
“You know…Serena seems so familiar…Serena sounds like the name Serenity…have I
heard that name before, Comet?” she asked.
There was not even a meow in reply. Comet had fallen asleep.
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