This is one of the first Sailor Moon fics I've ever written (I just started writing them recently). It takes place about a year after the Senshi defeat the Deathbusters.

That's all I can say without giving anything away...hope you guys like it. Please don't be shy about leaving comments, good or bad. I like criticism

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                                  Prologue

The full moon dangled in the starless sky, it’s light shining on the ground in front of me, barely showing me the path to take. I took in a shallow breath, then began to walk to…something. I could not tell if I was heading for solace, or if every step I took was leading me to doom. I reached into the pocket of my skirt and brushed the surface of my transformation wand with my shaking hand. At least I knew I would have some defense if things got bad. No matter what happened, I had to keep going. I had to find her.

As I walked on, I soon found myself surrounded by trees. The winter weather had left them without their leaves, making the scene before me reminiscent of something in a horror movie. I heard rustling behind me, so I quickly turned to see if I could tell what was there.

“Hello?” I called, my voice shaking. The trees rustled again, and a dark figure emerged from them. I would have panicked, had I not seen the blonde buns and long pigtails protruding from the stranger’s head. I breathed a sigh of relief when I saw my friend and future queen, Usagi, standing before me. 

“What are you doing out here, Michiru?” she asked, her eyes filled with worry. I hesitated for a moment, wondering if I should tell her what was going on. 

“How did you know I was here?” I asked.

“I sort of followed you” Usagi explained sheepishly. “I was heading home from Mamo-chan’s when I saw you coming this way. You looked worried about something, so I just wanted to make sure you were okay.” I smiled softly at her, and brushed my bangs from my face.

“You’re sweet, Usagi. I appreciate that. I’ll be alright, I just…” My voice trailed off, and I glanced at the ground.

“Is there anything I can help with?” Usagi asked.

“No, there isn’t” a sinister voice answered, cutting through the darkness like a knife. “You have no business here. Get out!” I turned towards the direction of the voice, but couldn’t see anything just yet. 

“You’d better get out of here, Usagi. I don’t want you to get hurt” I said, turning back towards her.

“Why, Michiru? What’s going on?” Usagi asked, sounding terrified. “I won’t leave until you tell me what’s going on” she said firmly.

“There’s no time to explain!” I yelled. You’ve got to get out of here! Now! Don’t worry abut me!” Usagi hesitantly turned and ran out of the trees, and I turned to face my foe once again. This time, she emerged from the darkness. I could tell immediately that it was Eugeal, one of the Witches 5. She slinked out from the trees, a smirk plastered on her face. 

“So, you decided to show up?” she snarled. “I thought you’d be too chicken.” I glared at her, ignoring her jeering.

“Where is she?!” I screamed.”

“You didn’t really think it would be that easy, did you?” Eugeal cackled. “I’m not giving her back until you hand over that mirror!” I was determined to get out of here alive, with Haruka, and without having to give up my greatest source of power. 

“If you think you’re getting your way, you couldn’t be more wrong” I said as I pulled out my transformation wand and thrust it into the air. “Neptune Planet Power, Make Up!” I stood before Eugeal now as Sailor Neptune, the Soldier of the Sea. Every ounce of fear that had been inside me was gone now, and I felt confident that I would be leaving this forest, but that Eugeal would not. 

“I’ll save you, Haruka, if it’s the last thing I do” I thought to myself as my power surged within me. With everything I had, I struck Eugeal.

“Neptune Deep Submerge!” I cried, hurling my tidal wave at her. She flew back and hit a tree, then crumpled to the ground. It took her a few moments to get back up, and when she did, she seemed to still be struggling. 

“You’re stronger than I thought, especially since your partner isn’t here to help you” Eugeal taunted between pained breaths. 

“When it comes to the people I love, I’ll do anything to protect them” I said, my eyes shining with determination. “Now, tell me where you’re keeping her!”

“Never” Eugeal hissed. “You haven’t seen the last of me…I’ll be back.”

“I’ll be waiting” I said cheekily as Eugeal disappeared into the night. Once she had gone, I leaned against a tree and slowly lowered myself to the ground, burying my face in my knees and taking in the silence around me. I began praying to God that I would find Haruka, and that we would defeat Eugeal and restore peace to this planet once again. I didn’t know what she wanted with my other half, but I knew that it was anything but good.

Chapter One

Beep…beep…beep…I groaned and rolled over, slowly opening one eye and reaching for the snooze button on my alarm clock. Once the beeping stopped, I rolled back over and smiled softly at my sleeping partner before settling back into my dreamland. Fifteen minutes later, the screech of my alarm woke me once again. After I turned it off, I sat up in the bed and sighed. I had a strange feeling something was going to happen, but I couldn’t put my finger on it. I carefully got out of the bed and crept out of the room, trying not to wake Haruka. 

I walked down the hall to the stairs, stopping at the top for a brief moment to think. We had been through a lot lately, and after finally defeating the Deathbusters, we thought it would be best to hide out for a while and recover, possibly try to resume a normal life. I sighed, and walked down the stairs to the kitchen. I put the tea kettle on the stove, then walked over to the tea cabinet and pulled out the box of peach mango tea. It was my favorite one, because Haruka had gotten it for me for my birthday. 

After a few moments, the kettle began to whistle, so I walked over to turn it off. I placed the tea bag into my cup and poured the steaming water over it and left it to steep. When it was done, I pulled the tea bag out and stirred some sugar into it. I seated myself at the table, and began to think some more about our last battle with the Deathbusters. Sailor Saturn vanquished them all, and sacrificed herself to save us. I wondered where she was now…after she had died in the battle, she was reborn as an infant. I wondered if she had been reunited with her fathe, who was in the hospital suffering from minor injuries from a reported lab explosion. I guess that was a good way of putting it…no one else knew that he had been possessed by an evil being who used him to try to destroy us all…no one would believe that. Thinking back, the whole situation seemed like smething out of a Hollywood blockbuster. 

I also wondered what Usagi and the others were doing now. I missed them, and thought about going to visit, but I knew that for the moment, things were better this way. If we were supposed to meet again one day, I knew we would.

Moments later, I heard a noise behind me. I turned to see Haruka standing there, smiling. She seated herself next to me and I smiled back, placing my hand over hers. 

“Good morning” I said softly.

“Good morning. How did you sleep?” Haruka asked.

“I slept alright” I said with a sigh. 

“Just alright? Is something bothering you?” Haruka replied, sounding worried. She knew me too well sometimes. 

“No, not really. I just have a lot on my mind.” I then began to explain everything I was thinking  about to Haruka. As I spoke, she nodded in agreement.

“I know what you mean” Haruka said amidst a yawn. “I also wonder what happened to Setsuna…I haven’t seen her since the last battle at all.” We had a sneaking suspicion about what had happened to her. Since she broke the rule about stopping time to save us, she’s probably stuck guarding the time gate again. Hopefully we would see her again soon. 

(Across town, Hikawa Shrine)

“Usagi, would you pay attention please?” Luna scolded. Usagi flipped her long blonde pigtails behind her shoulders and rolled her eyes sarcastically. 

“I don’t understand why we have to have these meetings. The enemy is gone! Can’t we quit worrying about nothing and do something fun?” she whined.

“We may not be free yet” Luna explained, then turned to Rei. “Will you tell the others what you told me this morning, Rei?” The girl nodded, her intense dark eyes flickering.

“I had a vision” she began. Usagi and the others leaned in to listen. “I think something bad is going to happen.”

“Like what?” Usagi asked. 

“I don’t know.” Rei answered. “We just have to be on the lookout.”

“I hope it’s not another enemy” Usagi groaned. “I want to spend my time with Mamo-chan, not fighing bad guys!”

“Oh, get over it!” Rei responded, becoming aggravated. “What kind of a leader are you, if you can’t be serious for once?”

“You’re so mean, Rei!” Usagi wailed. “I never said I didn’t want to be the leader of the group! I just don’t want to have to worry about anything right now…” Usagi said, her voice softening. “But, if anything does happen, we’ll stop it! Right?”

“Right!” the others said in unison. The tension in the air disappeared, and the five girls began to laugh and chat about anything and everything they could think of. 

(Haruka and Michiru’s)

“We should do something fun” I said, looking at Haruka with pleading eyes. 

“That’s a great idea. We could go to the beach” she suggested. I giggled, and nodded in approval. I went upstairs to change into my bathing suit, then slipped a blue floral sundress over it. I put on my beaded sandals, then headed out of the bedroom, stopping in the bathroom to grab the sunscreen. Soon after I reached the bottom of the stairs, we were off. 

When we arrived at the beach, I stepped out of Haruka’s car and happily breathed in the salty ocean air. I always loved the ocean, and it wasn’t just because I was Sailor Neptune. There was something so calming and beautiful about it, and I loved that. Haruka got out of the car and stood next to me, grinning at me.

“You look happy” she said. I giggled and turned to look at her.

“Of course I am!” I said. “I’m at my favorite place in the world, with my favorite person in the world! What could be better?” Haruka smiled again then grabbed my hand as we walked out onto the soft, white sand. It was so nice not having to worry about anything, and I wished every day could be this way.

(Local Hospital)

A woman lay in her hospital bed, sleeping. The IV machine next to her hummed lowly, and the various other machines around her clicked and beeped. She was covered in scratches and bruises, and her flame red hair was slightly matted from not having been washed in a while. Her chest slowly moved with every ragged breath she took. A nurse entered the room and walked over to the woman, gently placing a hand on her shoulder. 

“Miss Smith?” she said quietly. The woman opened her eyes slowly and glanced over at the nurse. The color of her eyes matched the intense red shade of her hair.
 
“Yes?”

“I just spoke with Dr. Reeves, and he said your condition has improved significantly. You’re free to go home today, if you’d like” the nurse explained. 

“That’s fantastic news, thank you nurse!” the woman said.
 
“You’re very welcome! Just be sure you take it easy, and don’t do anything too strenuous. You’re still pretty weak from that accident. You know, it’s pretty miraculous you’re still here. I don’t know too many people who could survive swerving off a cliff like that” the nurse said. 

“I won’t!” the woman said cheerfully, smiling at the nurse as she left the room. The second the nurse left, the woman’s demeanor changed. The cheerfulness left her eyes, and they were filled with darkness. She snickered to herself, then carefully got out of the bed to change out of her hospital gown. 

“Don’t you worry” she muttered under her breath. “I won’t be doing a thing just yet.”

A/N: If you guys are reading this...I hope you like it. This is all I have written so far. I'm stuck on the next chapter. Hopefully you're enjoying this. Let me know so I can keep writing it! Also, sorry for the alternating POVs...my inner Michi-san takes over when I'm writing about her and Haruka lol
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Chapter Two

The landscape was red, as though someone had painted it with blood. A raven-haired girl stood at her window, watching everything before her crumble to dust. She could see a dark figure hiding in the bushes outside, but couldn’t make out who it was. Suddenly, she heard a noise in the hall. She carefully crept across the room and peered around the corner, noticing a shattered vase on the floor. 

“Who’s there?” she shouted, trying to stop her voice from shaking. 

“The end…” a voice hissed.

Rei sat up in her bed, panting heavily. Once she had calmed down, she wiped the sweat from her brow and pushed the blankets off her body. She swung her feet over the edge of the bed and sat there for a moment, trying to figure out what that dream was. She stood up and walked out of her room, going down the hall to her meditation room. Rei walked inside and slid the door shut behind her, then walked over to the fireplace. She started a fire, then knelt down before it and began to chant quietly, focusing all her energy on the dream she had. 

The flames turned the same blood red color as the landscape in the dream, and there were dark, blurred figures flashing in the flames. All of them looked vaguely familiar, like silhouettes of people she had seen before. After meditating on them, she recognized them as the members of the Witches 5. She wondered why she was seeing them…hadn’t they been defeated?

The silhouette of Eugeal appeared last, causing the flames to flare up intensely. Rei sat back to avoid being burned, and moved in again once the fire had calmed. She began to concentrate on the dream once again, now seeing something that worried her.

The senshi’s planetary symbols began to appear in the flames one by one, each disappearing after a few seconds. When Haruka’s symbol appeared, instead of fading like the others, it shattered, causing Rei to jump back in shock.

“What?” Rei said, covering her mouth with her hand. After this happened, the fames went out completely. Rei sat in silence, trying to figure out what this meant. Did something happen to Haruka? She wished there was some way to find out, but no one knew where Haruka and the others had gone off to after the battle with the Deathbusters ended. For the moment, Rei decided to shrug it off and worry later. It was time to get ready for the day, and meet Usagi and the others for lunch. 

                     (Haruka and Michiru’s)

“Hold still!” I said, mildly frustrated.

“But it hurts” Haruka protested, jerking away from my touch. I began to giggle slightly, setting the bottle of aloe vera on the table.

“I never thought that something like a little sunburn could take down one of the strongest Sailor Warriors” I teased. Haruka grumbled under her breath, letting out a defeated sigh.

“Oh, be quiet. I guess you can try the aloe again, just be careful, okay?” she pleaded.

“I promise I will” I said quietly, picking up the bottle and squeezing some of the contents into my hand. I carefully administered it to Haruka’s shoulders, making sure not to press too hard. When I was finished, we decided to sit outside on the deck and enjoy some fresh air. Before we could make it outside, we heard a knock at the door. I curiously walked over and peered through the peephole before opening the door. There was a woman standing outside, smiling. I unlocked the door and opened it wide enough so I could see out, but not enough so she could get in.

“Can I help you?” I asked.

(Cafe)

“I’m so late! Rei’s gonna have it in for me for sure, and I don’t want to hear it!” Usagi screeched as she ran down the street, her long pigtails flying behind her. To her surprise, she arrived at the café with seconds to spare. The other girls were shocked, as this would go down in history as the first time Usagi was ever on time for anything. She leaned against the wall, wheezing and gasping for air before she regained enough strength to join the girls at their table. 

“Well, well. Look who showed up on time” Rei teased. Usagi seated herself next to Makoto and began to pout. 

“Even when I show up on time, you have to make fun of me” Usagi whined. 

“Oh, lighten up” Minako said with a wink. “You know we’re only teasing.” Everyone began to giggle, then the waitress came over to take their orders. After she left, the group decided to go shopping after lunch. It looked like today was starting to turn out pretty good. 

(Haruka and Michiru’s)

Michiru stared out the crack in the door, waiting for the woman to speak.

“Sorry to bother you” she chirped. “I’m new here, and I thought I’d introduce myself. I’m Rita Smith.” the woman said with a smile. I opened the door a little wider and extended my hand towards the woman. She took it, and we shook hands as I introduced myself to her.

“I’m Michiru Kaioh. It’s nice to meet you, Rita. My partner Haruka is just out on the deck, let me get her. I’m sure she’d love to meet you.” Rita nodded in response and waited as I went to get Haruka. There seemed to be something familiar about her, but I couldn’t quite figure out what it was. Soon, I walked back to the door with Haruka, and she introduced herself. 

“Hi, I’m Haruka Tenoh. It’s nice to meet you. I hope we’ll see you around sometime” she said, smiling. Rita smiled back, bowing her head slightly.

“I didn’t mean to keep you two, so I’ll be going now. It was nice meeting you both.” she said as she turned to walk away. I closed the door behind her, turning to Haruka.

“There was something strange about her.”

“What do you mean?” Haruka asked.

“I feel as though I’ve seen her before. Didn’t you feel it too?” Haruka thought for a moment before answering.

“Now that you mention it, there was something about her. I just don’t know what it was.” We walked back out onto the deck to think about it more.

Down in the parking lot, Rita stood next to a flashy white car. She looked up in the direction of her new friend’s apartment and chuckled to herself.

“You’ll definitely be seeing me again” she muttered under her breath as she took her place in the drivers seat and backed out of the lot, speeding down the road.