Part Four : Makoto’s Thoughts and a Day of New Identities
The small trees lining the sidewalk around the Tokyo Academy’s gym swayed slightly in the breeze. As it was turning into Fall, some of the trees had already begun to lose some leaves. As people walked along the sidewalk, the presence of those leaves on the sidewalk was known by the cracking of dried leaves being stepped on, while Hades, Athena, and Pele waited patiently in one of the trees. Athena stretched her wings, knowing that they were about to take flight, and Pele, her daughter, did the same. The guardians watched from the tree as Shakaku walked out of the gym with two other girls from the team. The tallest of the girls giggled as she listened to what the third girl had to say, and Shakaku also agreed in what was said. “Wait until they leave; she knows we’re here,” Hades told his family. Athena settled down again, knowing that she had to remain out of sight. The three watched as Shakaku said goodbye to the other two girls, and she walked directly under the tree where the guardians had positioned themselves. “You guys are early,” Shakaku said out loud, but she did not look up, making it seem as though she was talking to herself or someone next to her. Hades flew down quickly, and he let himself into Shakaku’s gym bag, while his family followed him just as quickly. “You were late,” Athena said as she peered out of the small opening in the bag. Shakaku smirked down at the dragon, but she remained silent. “How was practice, anyway?” Athena asked. “Same old, same old. Dorei did really good today,” Shakaku responded, knowing that Athena wanted to know about her own senshi. “She’s been practicing,” Athena commented, a smile full of pride crossed her lips, and she looked over at Hades to show him how she felt. “I kind of figured that you wanted to hear about her,” Shakaku said, noticing the look of satisfaction Athena got when she heard about Dorei. If Athena could have blushed, she would have, but she just looked down and smiled sheepishly. Who could blame her for being proud of her senshi? “We have company,” Shakaku whispered to them as she slowed her pace. Pele went up beside her mother, and they both noticed Luna and Artemis walking in their direction. “Maybe they won’t have anything to say,” Shakaku suggested, although she was almost certain that they would stop to talk. “Shakaku,” Luna said as the group met on the sidewalk. Shakaku stopped walking, and the dragons remained motionless inside the bag, not wanting to talk with the cats at the moment. “Luna. Artemis,” Shakaku said as she tossed back her long ponytail in response. “How are things?” Luna nodded slightly, but her eyes were trained on the bag that was slung over Shakaku’s shoulder. “Alright,” she replied. “How are things with you and the dragons?” The extra emphasis on the last word made the dragons come out of the bag, and the two groups exchanged glances. “Just fine,” Hades answered for Shakaku. Shakaku continued walking, and the cats turned to walk with her. “Nothing’s wrong, I hope,” Hades said, although he knew that something was wrong since Ami had called and asked the Constellations and Kaboku to attend a senshi meeting. The senshi had made a mutual agreement to keep away from each other unless their unity was necessary for something. This must have been such a case. Shakaku looked down at her guardian and couldn’t help but smile. Hades was never one to accept people without a good reason, and his wife was always there to support him. “We just wanted to know what happened at the meeting. No one will tell us,” Artemis said, and Luna nodded in agreement. Shakaku smiled at the statement. Minako and Usagi hadn’t said anything because they didn’t want the cats to take control of the situation and add their never-failing advice. She knew how they felt. “So what did happen?” Athena asked, as she looked up at Shakaku, interested as well since Dorei hadn’t said anything to her. “Let’s just say it had a lot to do with Kaboku,” Shakaku said. Even speaking his name sent a chill down her spine, but she didn’t let it get to her. The guardians looked at her blankly, already knowing that part of the story. “Have they found any evidence?” Hades asked, his first thought was that the senshi had found reason to believe that he still supported the Dark Realm. “No,” Shakaku responded. “In a way that’s reassuring, but in another way that makes me think that he’s just doing a good job of acting.” “You don’t support him, then?” Luna asked, noticing how Shakaku seemed to change whenever she spoke of the former Dark Realm minion. Shakaku looked at the dragons, and they all grinned. “It’s kind of hard to trust him,” Pele said. “He’s lived there all his life, which makes us wonder why he would like earth.” Athena nodded, “The only reason why he’s even here is because Kyuuteki isn’t alive anymore.” “That’s another thing we talked about,” Shakaku added. “The reason why we even had a meeting was because Rei had a dream about Kerai.” The cats stopped walking then, and the dragons got out of the gym bag completely as no one was around. “She’s alive, then,” Athena said, although she already knew the answer to her question. Shakaku nodded slowly, but she didn’t say anything. “That’s because she was never killed,” Athena added, once again knowing the answer to her statement. “Rei thinks that she’s not alone,” Shakaku added. The five guardians looked at her; the expression on their faces showed that they needed more of an explanation. “But she is,” Hades replied. “Everyone else was killed.” Shakaku looked down at her guardian and smiled slightly. How she wished he were speaking the truth. The small smile on Shakaku’s face made Hades doubt what he had just said; he could more often than not read Shakaku like a book. “But the Dark Realm was never destroyed,” she said. Athena was the first to catch on, but it was clear that the cats had no idea about what she was talking about. “It’s a mistake that we made, and now we’re going to pay,” Shakaku added. Pele began to catch on, and she whispered in a fearful voice, “Is Kyuuteki going to come back?” The cats now knew, and they looked at the dragons in amazement, and they looked to Shakaku for more information. Shakaku shook her head and said, “No. They don’t have enough power to put in the Dark Realm. He could come back, but they don’t have enough resources.” “How could he?” Artemis asked, just as confused as Luna. Wasn’t Kyuuteki already dead? Wasn’t it nearly impossible to bring someone back from the dead? “As long as the Dark Realm stands, Kyuuteki can come back to life,” Shakaku explained. “Kyuuteki himself built the Dark Realm, so the two share a life force.” “But you said they don’t have enough power to bring him back,” Luna pointed out. There was no reason to be worked up about. “We’ll just have to keep the senshi under very close watch,” Athena added, “They don’t have enough power, but the senshi do, and they know it.” Within the endless corridors of the Dark Realm, through many passages and doors, one could hear the shrieks and wails of yajuus at play. In one particular room, a group of these creatures played and further matured their skills. “Mine!” one small blue creature shrieked as the taller, red creature took away the block of stone that it had been playing with. “Mine,” the red creature said, clutching the stone protectively and walking away to go play with it. The blue yajuu let out a piercing yell, and Kerai ran into the room. The blue yajuu let out another wail, leaned forward in its sitting position, and hit its head on the floor as it continued to cry. “Mizu,” Kerai said firmly as she looked at the crying yajuu. It looked up at her, and she narrowed her eyes at it. “Get it back,” she instructed. The blue creature understood, so it got up, lunged itself at the other creature, and the two began to fight for the stone. Meanwhile, the green yajuu watched from its own corner, and it couldn’t help but laugh right out as it watched its siblings fight for a piece of rock. Its laugh was cold and cruel, as it already matched the creature’s other disgusting features. Kerai walked over to the chair to sit down and watch them play. Working with these creatures had been easier than before since they were already made to fight. She watched with happiness as the blue and red yajuus gave each other a good fight, but the green yajuu stepped in and took the rock from both of them. “They’re doing fine,” Kerai heard a deep, velvety voice say. Kerai was startled, and she jumped from the chair, turned around, and gasped as she saw a white haired man standing behind the chair. “It’s...” Kerai began as she looked at the person in front of her. She recognized his voice. “You’re the one who helped me,” she said as she now knew where the voice came from. The man’s expression clearly showed that Kerai’s astonishment amused him. “Yes,” he said slowly as Kerai began to settle down. “And you seem to be doing a very good job with the help that you’ve received.” The man, whom Kerai had to no way to address him, walked over to the green yajuu that was throwing the rock against a wall and catching it. As he neared the yajuu, it turned around, and when it saw him, it shrieked with joy, as it knew that he was on its side. Kerai watched intently as the yajuu warmed up to this stranger. After a few moments, the man turned around, bowed slightly, and said, “You may call me Kash.” His voice was velvety and made of a tone that Kerai found was drawing her to like him more and more. “Kerai,” she said quietly. The man looked down at her, his green eyes calm and inviting. “You may call me Kerai,” she said just as quietly. “I know,” the man said with a small upward motion of his lips. “Of course,” Kerai said as she looked down at her own foolish mistake. Of course he already knew her name. But what else did he know? When she looked up to ask him, he had already left the room. “Kash,” she whispered under her breath. “Thank you.” “Thanks for giving me a ride, Mamoru,” Makoto said as she stepped out of the sleek, red sports car. She looked back into the car to look at Mamoru, who smiled at her. “No problem,” he said cheerfully. “I was on my way over here to pick up Usagi anyway. Maybe I should get her to come here and work out with you,” Mamoru said as he looked at Makoto, at the park in the background, and then back at Makoto. “We have to think of the children,” Makoto said as her own smile grew. “I think it would be better if they played without having to hear Usagi whining.” Mamoru held back a laugh, “Ok,” he said, “you’re right.” Makoto waved, and she shut the door before Mamoru went on his way. She grabbed her stopwatch from her pocket and reset it as she walked over to a patch of grass near a bench where no one was sitting. Shielding her eyes, Makoto wished that she had remembered to bring a pair of sunglasses, but she would have to make due. She spread her legs out in front of her; knees straight, and she leaned forward to grab her feet. She knew from experience that not stretching before a run brought consequences that were not worth it. She leaned even more as she straightened out her ponytail, thinking how funny that was since it was going to get messy again anyway. She turned, however, when she heard two male voices behind her. She saw two white haired boys walking together and talking. Makoto tilted her head in slight amusement as she noticed that one of the boys was Kumori, whom she had seen when he had first met Kaichuu. But who was Kumori’s friend? He looked too much like Kumori to be just a friend, which lead Makoto to believe that this was his brother. She noticed, however, that there were a few differences in the two; the older guy walked with such confidence while his brother walked as any young sibling might. Makoto got up and began her running. As she pressed on, she came closer and closer to the two boys until she passed them, and she followed the circular path. “I know that girl,” Kumori said softly to his brother as he watched the tall, brown-haired girl pass them. “She looks like one of them,” his brother said, his ice green eyes narrowed at the girl, and then he looked at Kumori. “She was there when I talked to Kaichuu, Kash,” Kumori said as he remembered where he had seen this girl. “Then she must be a senshi,” Kash concluded. Days of observation had paid off as Kash knew about the Constellations, and now he knew a little bit about the Planets as well. “It’s never bad to know too much about someone,” he added. “Maybe she’ll tell Kaichuu that she saw me,” Kumori said sadly, knowing how much the girls now hated him. “So she’ll know the truth, big deal. No one can truly like someone until they can learn to accept that person,” Kash said. No matter what he said, however, Kash knew exactly what Kumori was talking about. The sun, not as bright now that the seasons were changing, hid itself behind a set of clouds as the two continued walking. “If the rest of the senshi are like that girl, then they shouldn’t be a problem,” Kash said after a few moments of silence. “But then why did Kyuuteki have such a hard time with them?” Kumori asked, wondering if Kash’s analogy might be wrong. Their eyes locked for a second, and it seemed as though they were having a conversation without words. There feeling between the two brothers was almost tangible as Kash tried to communicate how he felt. “That’s what worries me,” Kash replied simply. “You’re too slow,” Shakaku commented as she walked over to Dorei, who was still tying her shoes for practice. Dorei’s slowness was mainly attributed to the warm weather outside, and she felt like she was going to fall asleep as any moment. Shakaku, on the other hand, was used to this weather, so she did not feel pressed down at all. “I’m almost ready,” Dorei replied as she bent down to fasten the lace on her shoe. When she looked up, however, Shakaku was already at the door, and Dorei ran to catch up to her. Shakaku, although well aware that Dorei wanted her to slow down, continued walking quickly until she reached the volleyball basket, where she grabbed one. Dorei, glad that now she didn’t have to walk quickly, crouched down closer to the ground in order to practice with Shakaku. Expecting a hard hit, Dorei was relieved when Shakaku just set the ball to her. Dorei put her hands above her head and set the ball back to Shakaku. “One of these days, you’ll learn to lighten up,” Dorei said as she watched Shakaku set the ball back to her. The set was high and good enough that Dorei pulled her right hand back, and she spiked it at Shakaku. Shakaku, who had been waiting for the hit, saved the ball, and she sent it high in the air toward Dorei. “Too much concentration is a bad thing,” Dorei said as she set the ball back to Shakaku. “No, it’s not,” Shakaku said, as she also set the ball. Dorei said nothing, but she did roll her eyes at her friend. She too set the ball back, and was surprised when Shakaku spiked the ball back her. With not enough time to react, Dorei simply tried to avoid the fast-moving ball, but it hit her in the knee. “Concentration enables a person to do a lot of things,” Shakaku pointed out after Dorei had retrieved the ball. “Whatever,” Dorei mocked as she set the ball. “Mine!!!” Jenico screamed as she ran in front of Shakaku and passed the ball back to Dorei. “No, Mine!!!” Meticka yelled back as she got in front of Dorei and received the ball. The two girls moved to make the group form a square, and they continued playing. “Ten bucks if I can kill it against Shakaku,” Jenico said as she smiled at Dorei and Meticka. “Not putting my money on that,” Dorei said as she thought about Shakaku’s saving ability. “I’d rather put my money against that.” Meticka set the ball to Jenico, who spiked it to Shakaku. Just as Dorei had predicted, Shakaku was able to save the ball, and she sent it to Dorei. “We never shook on it,” Jenico defended herself. “You’re broke anyway,” Shakaku said as she received Dorei’s set, and she set it backwards to Jenico. Jenico knew that Shakaku was pulling her leg, so she smiled sweetly at her teammate. The practice continued with the ball moving diagonally around the square, while none of the girls missed a pass or set. “If only we could keep a volley going this long during a game,” Dorei commented as she kept a mental count on how many times the ball had been contacted. “That never happens if Sazume hits,” Shakaku said as she saw her red-haired teammate walk by. “Excuse me?” Sazume said as she caught Shakaku’s last sentence, thinking that they were saying something bad about her. “Are you saying I can’t hit?” “Quite the opposite,” Jenico said, trying to sound friendly, “we were just saying that the other team wouldn’t have a chance if you hit.” “That's what I thought,” Sazume said as she walked over to where Aero was hitting against a wall. “I knew you guys loved me too much to say bad things.” Sazume was still within earshot when Meticka said, "oh, we sure love her." Although Sazume knew that Meticka was pulling her leg, she turned her head and stuck her tongue out at her teammate. “Play nice, children,” Shakaku said as she rolled her eyes.