Once upon a time, on a normal day just like any other, the winds of destiny changed their course, swirling and twirling until reality itself seemed to melt. The public eye could not sense this change, but one particular group of people could. These people were merely going about their day, whether it be at home, at work, at school, or just out and about. Their normal routines were interrupted by the strange coldness they could feel in the air, and the hollow emptiness growing inside them. For an odd reason, they felt as if something was missing. But what?

Looking around them, this group of people would be able to see a large, leather-bound book resting not too far from where they stood. It's protective covering was worn thin, the words 'Grimms' Fairy Tales' written in gold lettering on the front. The title sounds familiar, but the individuals just can't seem to remember why. The endless mass of pages were yellowed and delicate, reduced by years of turning back and forth. The words on the pages were faded, almost as if they were disappearing. In fact, upon further inspection, the individuals looking at the book would realize that some words had disappeared from the pages. In fact, entire chapters were completely blank. Only two stories remained in the entire book.

As the individuals began to read the first story, they could feel themselves drifting to sleep, the weight of the written words adding to the weight of their eyelids. It wasn't a big deal to fall asleep while reading, they all told themselves. What's the worst that could happen?

Note:

Miyu's eyes fluttered open. She reached out, pushing herself up, startled to feel soft grass under hands instead of the vinyl slickness of Marley. This was not a stage or rehearsal studio. As she rose to her feet, her dark brown eyes tracked the tall, brilliantly green trees and the intertwining branches that stretched overhead. She glanced down, seeing that she still wore her ballet academy uniform: black scoop-neck leotard with a pinch, pink tights, and her pointe shoes underneath a pair of thick dark-green socks. Miyu hoped that would be enough to keep her precious shoes from getting dirty. They were never supposed to be worn outside of the studio!

Oh, right, she found that old book of fairy tales. This must be a dream. She was probably napping in the lounge. As long as she woke up before warm up and rehearsal... then she'd be okay.

It was now that she noticed there were other people in the forest as well. What would these dream cast members be like?

Kassie was laying flat on the ground as she woke up confused, A clearing in a forest? She was in the city buying tools and she had on her work clothes as she was a ranger type person normally. Then she remembered reading a old book of fairy tales while taking a break on a bench, she always liked those. 'This has to be a dream or something though. Where is the book and who are these other people. She stood up and looked at the others.

Daeka's eyes fluttered open before she even knew that had closed, like she had only dosed for a second.  At first she thought she was still in the temple gardens, where she had escaped from another representative asking for her blessing.  She had found a strange book and must have dozed while reading it.  Sitting up she realized that this was a clearing surrounded by the trees of a forest.  She laughed to herself and figured she must be dreaming.  She looked around, wondering if another spirit would communicate with her here, like they had before.  It was then that she realized that there were other-people? Were they people if they were part of a dream? She decided it was best to find out and see. Daeka stood up and looked around at the others.

She noticed two other girls, both older than her but still roughly in the teenage vicinity. In real life she would have balked at the thought of introducing herself to strangers. She always felt shy and clumsy around people she didn't know—especially if she wasn't in a dance studio. It was one thing to approach someone that she knew she already had something in common with, but a different and much more frightening thing entirely when that was not the case. Thankfully, she didn't have much to worry about in a dream. Even if they rejected her, it would be okay.

For that reason, Miyu walked towards the others. Her steps looked awkward and somewhat too wide—a natural part of wearing pointe shoes. She couldn't maintain a "normal" gait when she wore them. Still, she was practiced enough in her short few months wearing the satin slippers to project a type of elegance. Her feet must have looked very strange to everyone else: dark green socks stretched over rather unusually long feet with a strange flattened barrel shape.

"Good day," she said, her voice somewhat betraying her shyness. "Do either of you know this place? It's so beautiful."

She very much hoped they wouldn't turn out to be villains in this dream!

Daeka turned to look at one of the others who had walked towards her and began speaking.  For a moment, she found the young girl's choice of clothing rather odd, but instead of commenting she shrugged it off to dreaming.  However the she was reminded of her own appearance and quickly looked down to see that see was in her civilian form, wearing what she had fallen asleep in. Her light pink and seafoam green two piece chiton.  Her white scarf was still wrapped around one arm and draped over her other shoulder and down her front.  Relieved she was in her own usual clothing, she looked back up to answer the girl, "I don't know really, I was hoping you could tell me that." Still unsure of the situation she decided to introduce herself, "My name is Daeka, what's yours?" She held out her hand in greeting.

It seemed strange for the others in her dream to not know what was going on, but dreams often didn't make much sense anyway. Miyu supposed she'd have to learn about this place some other way, eventually. The flowing outfit on this white-haired young woman reminded her of liturgical dance costumes. Of course, basically everything reminded Miyu of dance.

"I am Miyu," she replied, staring at the woman's hand for a moment before providing a weak handshake. She still preferred bowing, when given the choice. Miyu glanced at the other awake teenager, wondering if that girl would also introduce herself.

Kassie watched as the other two girls walked to each other and begun to talk. She thought to do the same and walked over to them. "Hello, my name is Kassie...and where exactly are we? I mean it's probably already been asked but yeah.." Kassie looked around them for something like a sign or anything as she waited for a response.

It felt like one moment she closed her eyes—was she drifting on to sleep?—and the next she reopened them and things were entirely different. Talia looked around in surprise; the view was breathtaking. She appeared to be standing in the clearing of a beautiful forest. It seemed too beautiful to be true. There was almost a dreamlike quality to it. Was that it? Was she dreaming? It certainly felt a tad surreal.

She had been back home in her kingdom before, sitting in her room with… a book, maybe? She noticed that she was still in her princess dress—a snow white flowing dress with transparent layers on top, glittering like little stars. When she noticed there were other people there—three other girls who looked to be around her own age, yet they all wore such different attire from each other and herself—she wondered what exactly the dream was supposed to tell her.

They were talking amongst themselves, introducing themselves to each other, and she stepped tentatively toward them. Having been out of her kingdom and planet a few times, she had learned how to converse with people who weren’t used to the fact that she was a princess, and it was actually both comforting and intimidating at the same time.

“My name is Talia,” she offered. “I am not quite sure where we are, either.”

Right away, Miyu was drawn to the white and glimmering attire of the blonde woman.

"Oh, you look like a snowflake!" she gasped, clasping her hands together with excitement. She could just imagine the blonde in the Waltz of the Snowflakes, each hand clasping a glittered white branch. With the fluffy white flakes being sifted down from the rafters onto the stage, the effect would be like magic. She could already hear the score from the Nutcracker ringing out brightly in her head. In a few more moments she knew she would be humming along and trying to dance to it.

"It's a pleasure to meet all of you," she said, nodding her acknowledgement towards Kassie, Daeka, and Talia.

It was a little bit concerning that no one knew where they were. This was really not what she expected in a dream. Still, she wasn't quite ready to explore beyond this territory just yet.

She had thought it strange how the girl grasped her hand and not her forearm.  She was tempted to think that she may be hiding something when she remembered that it wouldn't matter in a dream. The other two girls seemed to be as different each other as they were from Daeka.  One was even in some kind of clothing that looked like it would be hard to move around in.  Her thoughts drifted back to the ceremonial garb she had to wear on occasion and she shuddered.  She looked to Kassie and Talia as they joined the group, acknowledging their entries and names with a smile and nod. "If no one knows why we're here, then maybe we should just wait until something happens?"  There was also the option of exploring but she wasn't exactly feeling that when she had no idea where she was.

Anuhea stretched languidly and leisurely, sun filtering in through her closed eyelids that she was hesitate to open. She was just so comfortable. Something tickling her legs ad arms forced her out of her half slumber. This wasn't beach sand...was it? The last she had remembered was a visit on her tour of the sol system planet Earth of visiting something like a beach. It was the closest thing to home she could find and it filled her with nostalgia. She simply must have nodded off, lulled by the tireless flow of waves upon shore.

Reluctantly she opened her eyes, sitting up slowly and letting out a slightly surprised gasp to find that she was nowhere near said beach. With more curiosity than alarm she climbed to her feet and took a good look around. There were other people about, but no water to be seen, but the place was eerily beautiful in a sort of foreign way despite the lack of ocean. That book I was reading....it must have given me a weird dream. She smiled slightly to herself, suddenly realizing the fact. Well it seemed to be rather pleasant dream, even though she'd never dreamt herself off-world before.

Smiling earnestly she stood barefoot on the green herbage, feeling the blades caress her toes and scooped up her sandals which had been lying next to her. Her dress, blue on top fading to a deep green hung down her slender legs and brushed the tops of her feet. Her face broke out into a pleasant smile. "Hello, I see I am to have company in this dream. I am Anuhea. May I ask your names?"

Another teenage girl and another round of introductions. She greeted Anuhea as she had the others. Miyu remained confused at the cast of characters her dream had taken. The strangest part was that none of them looked familiar. Usually she dreamed about other girls from school or the dance academy. She couldn't remember any of these people, not even as someone she once spotted who was actually an upperclassmen or belonged to a different training level. It was something peculiar indeed!

She looked up at the branches, sunlight filtering through the beautiful green leaves of the trees above. It dappled the forest floor with patches of brightness. Looking at this made Miyu wish it was the setting for a performance. Maybe this could be the second act of Sleeping Beauty, where the Lilac Fairy first meets the Prince. She began to hum softly to herself, her feet marking some of the Lilac Fairy's steps as her arms mimicked the motions. It was too much to expect her to remain still.

As they were looking around at the surroundings another girl appeared and walked over introducing herself as well. Kassie smiled at her and said, "Hello Anuhea, My name is Kassie and that is a beautiful dress your wearing." Kassie then watched one of the girls start to dance. 'wow she is avery good dancer, I wish I could do that'

Anuhea greeted Miyu, noting her odd footwear and simply assuming she was either from off-world somewhere or a figment of a sleepy imagination. All of them were strangers to her. It was very intriguing indeed. She turned to the second girl, Kassie, who complimented her dress.
 
“Many thanks Kassie. It is nice to meet you too.” she said, trying out the name on her tongue like she had with Miyu. By reflex, her eyes followed Kassie’s which had darted over to her side. There she saw Miyu clearly perfuming some sort of dance motions. She spun and pranced, light on her toes, graceful as a dolphin, and suddenly she thought she understood what the unique footwear was for. Her eyes widened in delight.
 

In awed tones she couldn’t help but exclaim “Hô ka nani!” (How Beautiful!). Anuhea had to agree with Kassie. “She moves like a water nynph, or a water reed dancing in the air. It is a beautiful thing. What manner of dance is this?” She turned to Kassie, a question in her raised brows.

Aiyana had assumed she would fall asleep while reading the odd book on the floor of her garden, so it wasn't a big surprise to her when she suddenly appeared in an unfamiliar forest. How typical of her to dream of another beautiful landscape!

She was surprised, however, to find that she had dreamt up a group of girls to be with on this journey. It wasn't often she would dream of company - most of the time they were too rowdy and would disrupt the serenity of nature. But perhaps she would give these people a chance.

"Hello everyone, it's nice to meet you," she said, after listening to all of their introductions. "I'm Aiyana. Quite the beautiful forest, isn't it?" She attempted to make conversation, despite not being very good at it in real life. It was hard to tell what kind of people these girls were, but when one girl started randomly dancing to no music, she couldn't help but wonder if she had landed with a bunch of weirdos. After all, here she was standing here in a pair of shorts and a t-shirt, while many of these girls were in dresses or odd getups. 

Aiyana was about to make a nice comment to Daeka regarding the color scheme of her outfit when she paused, mouth hanging open. She shut it, then turned her head slightly. "Does anyone else hear that?" she asked, looking towards a pair of large bushes. 

"...It's horrible! Oh, help! Is there anybody here?!"


"There's no one out here, we might as well give up."


"No, I won't! Not when the princess is in danger! HEEEELP!" 


The voices grew louder, growing nearer and nearer until finally, a young boy and girl emerged from the bushes. The girl's eyes were big with excitement and triumph, while the boy looked shocked.


"Oh, look! I told you there would be someone out here! We found a whole bunch!" the girl said, elbowing the boy in the ribs. He cringed, then glared as he cleared his throat.


"We don't have time for this! Father is waiting," the boy hissed.


"Oh, right!" the girl said, as if remembering her task. "Excuse us, but we really need some help! Our princess is in danger!"

Daeka listened as the others commented on clothing, she thought everyone else's looked weird so she kept her mouth shut.  Never know how dream people will react to comments like that.  Miyu was apparently overwhelmed by some unknown force and began moving in patterns Daeka had not seen before.  The lack of ceremony told her the dance was not ritual, instead it seemed to be for pure enjoyment.  Strange that she would dream up such a thing.  She acknowledged the latest newcomer's presence, Aiyana.  Before much else could be said, they heard a commotion in the woods near them that revealed itself to be two children.  They were asking for help to save their princess.  She had to wonder if she had been under too much pressure lately and her duties were reflecting themselves in her dreams now.  There was no escape really...  And since this was the direction the dream was heading in, she may as well push it along.  She bent over, hands on her knees, until she was the same height as the children.  "I don't know about anyone else, but I will give you a hand in saving your princess," she replied smiling warmly at them.

Kassie was talking with the others and was about to answer Anuhea when another girl appeared and came to them. "Hello Aiyana my name is Kassie and..Yeah  I hear that too.." Then two kids came out, "And see it too.." She walked over near Daeka and listened to the children as well. Kassie was the type to person to be helpful if she can so she added, "I can help too, What do you think girls?"

Talia laughed lightly when Miyu said she looked like a snowflake. That wasn’t surprising considering where she came from and what her powers were, but she had learned the habit of not telling any stranger outside her kingdom about her powers or even the fact that she was a senshi, because it wasn’t a common thing and most others preferred to keep their magic a secret except in situations that forced them to reveal it. Even if this might be dream, she was still a reserved person, and volunteering that kind of information just didn’t seem prudent.

Soon the other girl began dancing, as if listening to a music in her own head, and Talia had to admit it was quite mesmerizing. She, too, danced, but only as part of her royal training, but she knew enough to know someone talented even if her dance was different than anything Talia had ever seen.

When one of the other girls asked if they heard something, at first Talia had no idea what she was referring to, until she listened more closely and caught the small voices. A princess in danger? She tensed up, wondering if her help was needed.

Then a pair of boy and girls emerged from the bushes, startling her. They argued between themselves for a little bit before the girl asked them for some help. Talia smiled gently at them and nodded. Helping others was a senshi’s duty, after all.

“Of course we’ll help. What are your names, and what kind of trouble is your princess in?” she asked.

She stopped dancing when the children arrived, her attention captivated by their presence. Several of the other girls were much quicker to approach the pair and offer assistance. Miyu hung back for just a moment. Saving a princess? That sounded like something for a prince to do. Where was Prince Désiré when he was needed? (He was more useful than Albrecht or Siegfried, definitely.)

Well... she glanced at the others. Miyu didn't really want to be left behind in her own dream, letting other characters have adventures without her. Maybe it wouldn't be so bad to try and help save a princess. She waited patiently, not wanting to overwhelm the kids with more questions, wondering what the group would learn about this princess.

Anuhea watched the events unfold with curiosity. She had been rather enjoying simply watching the strange dancer and lounging around in the pretty surroundings. But it seemed her dream was going to turn into an adventure, or at the very least some sort of children’s game. The young girl certainly seemed sincere and concerned. Princesses, in her mind, were more something for children’s stories. But if everyone else was going along she decided she would ride out the new turns of the dream and plat along.
 

She chuckled a little, pushing some strands of hair out of her face as she knelt down to their level. “I will help too. What seems to be the trouble with your princess?”

Aiyana was glad to see that all of her new comrades were willing to help out these two kids. She was never one to turn down someone in need, either. "Of course we'll help you. What's going on?" she asked, kneeling so she was eye level with the little girl.

"I'm Gretel, and this is my brother, Hansel. Oh, we don't have time to talk! Just follow us, before it's too late!" the girl said, taking her brother's hand and running back the way they came. Aiyana blinked a few moments, unsure what just happened. She turned to the group, shrugging her shoulders before running after the children. 

She had no idea whether or not the rest of the group would be behind her, especially with some of them in the clothes they were wearing, but she did not stop. Aiyana ran through the trees, jumping over logs and weaving between bushes. She could see woodland creatures every now and then, and she always waved at them as she passed. She was starting to feel out of breath when she reached the end of the forest, where the two children were standing. 

Out of breath, Aiyana hunched over and looked at her shoes. "Where...exactly...did you lead us...?" she breathed. 

"There! Go! Hurry! There's no time to waste breathing!" the girl insisted, grabbing Aiyana's arm and pulling her forward. Aiyana looked up, surprised to find a dirt road several feet away leading to a palace in the distance. 

"Just follow the breadcrumbs on the ground," Hansel said, tossing his hair out of his eyes. "They'll lead you down the right paths. We have to go back to our dad now, but please save our princess." 

And with that, the two children were gone behind the trees.

Aiyana bit her lip, looking at the palace so far away. Sure, she could get there if she ran, but she could only run for so long until she got tired. But if she were transformed...she could get there in no time at all.

But the question was, would it matter to these people in her dream? 

Note:

Kassie listened to Hansel and Gretel, then watched them run off and Aiyana following. If there is a princess involved there would probably be something to fight and Kassie couldn't the way she was. So she quickly transformed (forgot to put saying in profile) and ran after the 3, hoping the others were following. She made her way there getting over obstacles on the ground and stopped near Aiyana. "So where did they go and where do we go?" Kassie now as Sailor Natura saw the dirt road and said, "I am guessing down there.." She said pointing at the palace.

Kana had opened her eyes and found herself in a forest. She was laying on a mossy patch, the sun shining through a break in the tree branches above directly on her. Slowly Kana sat up, brushing some of the stuck moss off of her jean jacket she wore. It was open and exposing her light blue tank top under it. When she stood up she fixed her black shorts and took a step. Her sneaker squished into the soft moss bed. 

"Wherr am I?" She thought to herself. She heard voices in the distant, and could see people gathering a little ways off from her own location.  Cautiously she walked through the forest, wanting to talk to these people. She wanted answers.

The moment she was in their sight, two small children appeared and off they went. Some of the others started following after. Unsure of what was happening, Kana began to chase after them.

"This is not my livingroom." She mumbled as she ran. The last memory she had before these events was walking through her livingroom with a bag of groceries when she discovered a weird book on her livingroom table.

It seemed the children were in too much hurry to explain, though they did give the group their name. Before Talia knew it they had taken off running. She lifted her skirts and tried to keep up, but it was proving difficult with all the roots and branches tangling around her dress. She ended up lagging somewhat behind the others, though thankfully she didn’t completely lose them. She arrived at the edge of the forest just in time to hear Hansel say to follow the breadcrumbs before he disappeared once more with his sister.

Breadcrumbs? She looked down at the road and where it led. Was the palace where they were supposed to go?

She doubted she’d make it in this condition, and if the help was as urgent as they said…

She hesitated only a moment. This was just a dream, right? And anyway, she needed to do what was right.

“Nix Crystal Power, Make Up,” she whispered, and in a brief flurry of snow, she transformed into Sailor Nix. Her cumbersome dress gone, she could move more easily now, and with the added boost of speed and strength as well.

“Come on, we have to hurry,” she urged the others before following the path.

*Sailor Natura header coming soon*

Sailor Natura waited to get an answer when another one of the girls from before told them to hurry..it was one from before right? Anyhow She figured the others would follow so she too started off following Talia. She tried not to look back to see if the others were following, she trusted these girls in this dream.

Daeka was relieved that the others were willing to help out as well, though as soon as they had offered the children had barely given their names before running off through the forest.  Her training at the temple and her non constricting clothing easily allowed her to keep up with the children as she dodged over fallen limbs and under low hanging branches.  Upon reaching their destination, the children mentioned breadcrumbs and the palace in the distance before disappearing off into the forest.  Better that they avoid the danger, though more information would have been welcomed. 

She looked back around at the others and was surprised to see that they looked so different from just a few moments ago.  It was almost like, her thoughts flashed back to earlier in the day when she was reading in the journal about other warriors like her.  Maybe this was a sign that the dream wanted her to continue on transformed?  Although she wanted to weigh the options more, the others appeared to be in a rush, desiring to continue on down the path straight away.  Daeka decided to merge with Aura, seeing it as a good opportunity to practice with the goddess.  "Aura hear my prayer!" She called out to the goddess and just a moment later Aura appeared in front of her before the two merged together.  A yellow light enveloped them before it faded away, revealing Daeka, now Sailor Litae, in a two piece chiton colored in yellow and light blue, large hand fans of the same colors hung closed on each side of her waist in easy access.  Well met Litae, an airy woman's voice echoed in her thoughts.  Well met Aura, there's a princess in danger at the palace over there, I'll need your help.  As you desire, the wind shall lift your wings. Litae nodded and voiced, "Ready," waiting for the next move.

Her limited attire made it fairly easy to follow after the two children. Miyu wore nothing on her body that might snag or interfere; the leotard and tights were form-fitting by their very nature. The shoes on the other hand, those were cumbersome if she tried to run or walk in a "normal" manner. Thankfully the bright green socks pulled over them would keep the pink satin from getting dirty, or at least she hoped so. But maybe in a dream she wouldn't have to worry about the expense of a new pair or the bother of giving up some that were just nicely broken in. She adapted to a balletic run, easily leaping over obstacles in grand jeté.

Miyu glanced around in surprise to see that several of the other young women had transformed into... sailor soldiers? Now she knew this had to be a dream!

Her hand reached up, fingers gently touching the filigree feather pinned to her bun. It granted her the power to transform into a sailor soldier herself. But... she looked at the others and thought of her uniform. As Sailor Lir, she wore a classical pancake tutu. She didn't really want to wander around this forest in something so cumbersome. For now, at least, she'd stay as just Miyu.