Sailor Moon Fan Fiction ❯ Dreams of the Mist ❯ Brewing Storm ( Prologue )

Jupiter, My Guardian! Awaken the storm, call forth

the clouds, let fall the thunder!

-Sailorjupiter

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Dreams of the Mist

Enmu no Maboroshi

By: Juno-hime

A Sailorjupiter Fanfic

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Standard disclaimer:

Sailormoon and all related characters do not belong to me, and in no way am I implying that they are of my creation. They belong to Naoko Takeuchi, Kodansha, Toei Animation, Dic, and/or any other owners I might have left out. The people and events of Dreams of the Mist are my own creation and therefore not for public use without my explicit permission. However the idea of Avalon came from the Arthurian myths, I am simply borrowing the place, again, IT'S NOT MINE!!! The new transformations of Sailormoon and co. *are* mine, though. Ask if you want to borrow them. So, anyway, PLEASE don't sue me.

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Authors Notes:

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I'm mainly following the storyline of the anime but there are a few events that I'll be using from the manga, however, I should let you know what they are when I use them. This fanfic takes place two years after the senshi have defeated Galaxia. This is my first attempt at a fanfic, so please don't be too harsh and e-mail me comments, suggestions, praise, or flames to SJupiter42@aol.com. For more info (like translations of some of the words I use) go to my web page at http://www.geocities.com/juno_hime/index.html.

This means someone is thinking.

"This" means someone's talking out loud.

::And this:: means that someone is talking telepathically.

If you have any questions, e-mail me.

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Prologue:

Brewing Storm

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Small rivulets of water made their way gently down the window pane, leaving a jagged tail in their wake. The echoing thunder shook the fragile panes of glass before a bolt of lightening illuminated the figure resting her forehead against the glass, letting her eyelashes brush against the pane as she listened to the placid trickle of rain and let it calm and sooth her nerves. Her gaze became slightly more intense as she turned her emerald eyes out past the confines of the window, trying to make out shapes and colors beyond the sheets of rain. She blinked her eyes slowly before narrowing to slits, some unforeseen force suddenly putting her on edge. She continued to scan the foliage outside her apartment before slowly shaking her head and sighing. A soft smile made its way across her face as she rebuked herself lightly for being as foolish to think the storm could somehow harbor a darkness in the flashes of blue lightening.

With a final reluctant sigh she turned from the window and pad her way softly towards the bed, pulling back the covers as she neared it. Sliding under their soft, enveloping warmth she closed her eyes sedately, still continuing her silent scolding.

Sleep did not come easily to her as memories of storms of the past pushed their way to the fore. Not all storms have such a calming effect, she reminded herself mentally, some come with a price. With another peal of thunder she began to relax, the rain creating its own soothing lullaby. Flickers of blue light cast eerie shadows around the room before briefly illuminating the tall brunette's face as she tossed and turned in the sheets of her bed, caught in the throes of the raging tempest of her nightmares.

Still pounding against her window, the rain was the only one to witness as the raggedly breathing form shot straight up, sweat glistening off her body as she turned trembling emerald eyes onto the window searching for signs of what possibly could have awakened her.

A harbinger of tribulations to come rung in the peal of echoing thunder.

* * *

An impossibly wide yawn stretched across her face as she rolled onto her back and stared at the ceiling, unable to shake the feeling that their was some reason why she couldn't sleep-in, even after the night's previous lack of sleep. Almost as though on cue the phone rang and she wearily reached out her arm to take the phone out of the cradle.

"Moshi, Moshi?" she asked groggily.

"You're still asleep?" asked the voice on the other end, foregoing any type of greeting.

"Yes, why shouldn't I be," she angrily retorted back.

"Honestly, Mako-chan, I think Usagi is beginning to rub off on you. Don't you even remember what today is?"

"Umm... the third?"

The raven haired miko on the other end of the line released a small sigh, "and...?"

"Uh... the uh..." there was a long pause from the line before Makoto spoke again, her voice sounding fully awake for the first time, "Oh no, I can't believe I forgot, we were going to go on a picnic today, weren't we?"

Rei chuckled lightly at her friend's brief memory lapse, "Yeah, we were, and you've got fifteen minutes before me and Ami," (a quiet "Ami and I" was heard in the background along with a sigh from Rei), "... *Ami and I* get there, but you'll have at least another thirty minutes to get everything ready before Usagi and Minako arrive," said a now slightly aggitated voice.

Laughing slightly Makoto said her goodbyes and began to get ready. Letting her body go through the automatic actions as her mind wandered to the past few years. For once she was glad that Usagi was still perpetually late even after maturing over these past years. She still had her lapses back into the old times, but they were occuring less and less as Usagi blossomed into a young woman. Her grades had improved dramatically along with her sometimes inexcusable denseness. They had all matured in some way over the past two years since Galaxia had been healed. In some ways it was that final battle that had forced all of them to grow up past their teenage years even while they were still living them. Death had a way of stripping away the last of childhood innocence, especially when it was your own. And with Usagi having to watch all her friends be killed for the second time in her life, it was a sombering affair. She never was quite the same after that final battle.

Makoto sighed slightly as she continued through the reflex actions of preparing for her friends arrival, all the while reminiscing about the past two years, her thoughts as far from what she was doing as possible. With a period of guaranteed peace from Setsuna, Usagi finally began to realize that one day she would be Queen and she would be responsible for her Kingdom. That realization made her try all the more in school, bringing up her barely passing D average to a steady, high B and low A. She wasn't nearly as worried now about her juken coming up in one short month, as she had been about her high school entrance exam, something that few shared in common with her. The college entrance exam had even Ami worried about being excepted into a reputable pre-med school, although with constant reaasurance, she no longer studied non-stop.

That was another thing that changed. Ami started living her life. She quit studying for hours on end and instead enjoyed just being with her friends rather than reading a book. Life definitely moved ahead for her when Ryo moved back into the Juuban district. Of course, like all the other crystal carriers, he did not remember all that had happened to him in the year that the senshi had fought Beryl. However, his amazing precognitive ability, also enabled him to overcome his ginzuishou enduced memory loss and see Ami for who she really was, Sailor Mercury. That undid all the blocks that had prevented him from remembering the past, and with those out of the way, Ami's life became much more interesting, and although she still studied more than necessary for herself, she now had someone to study with.

Although from the way she blushes when anyones brings up their study dates, I don't think they get much studying done, Makoto thought with a sly smile.

Rei who had also been having her own boy problems before the battle with Galaxia, swallowed her pride and finally agreed to go on a date with Yuuichiro. She never admitted it to her fellow senshi and friends, but she had a wonderful time. And Usagi, once again showing her newfound maturity, was smart enough not to pressure her for details or tease her about Yuuichiro. Without Usagi's teasing, Rei began to openly express her feelings for Yuuichiro. The two became almost inseperable as couples go, and although Rei still had a tendency to yell at Yuuichiro, he had now developed the assurance that she was his, and began to reply to the verbal abuse from her with his own retorts. Still denying to her friends that she loved him, and assuring them that this was only a crush, they would constantly catch her "punishing" Yuuichiro behind a tree, broom forgotten at her feet. Usagi did not show near as much maturity now that their relationship was secure when she caught them making-up after another one of their love spats.

Sometimes I wonder if they fight just so they can make-up afterwards. Makoto wondered giggling to herself as she pictured Rei and Yuuichiro in one of their "apologies" after a particularly large fight.

That leaves Minako and me still dateless and completely without any sort of long lasting relationship.

Minako, was probaly the one that changed the least when the battle was over. She still chased boys, still couldn't cook, and still couldn't quote anything to save her life. Her demeanor changed slightly now that she had the time to try out for the volleyball team. She had always loved the sport, but was never able to join the team due to constant battles. Once she was playing the game again, however, she began to be truly happy rather than a cheerful bubble head. Like Usagi, her grades improved and she began to age and become the Sailor V everyone had always read manga about. Now with a full paid volleyball scholarship to practically any college of her choice, Minako's future was well planned.

Minako and I slowly began cutting down on our boy chasing as we began to look for more long term prospects, and while Minako found herself still actively playing the field, I found my interest waning. I've had enough of the constant heartbreak and have lost hope in finding the love that I have longed for since my old sempai left. Minako still holds onto her everlasting hope that love will find her one day, while I am closer to taking Setsuna's approach, alone with my duty as my only partner in life. It may be a lonely life, but I love Usagi like the family I lost so long ago, and if I cannot find love on my own, I will give my love to Usagi, and protect the family I have left. I truly believe that all of the other inner senshi have found their destined love or are on the path that will lead them to that love, and sometimes it leaves me wondering if maybe I was cheated in the respect of someone I can spend the rest of my life with. Will I always be left alone, my friends as my only family?

Heaving another sigh, something she seemed to be doing frequently, Makoto banished any thoughts of a love life, or lack there of, for now as she finished dressing and brushing her hair and began to look for a picnic basket. She gave a small triumphant cry when she unearthed the basket from the bottom of her hall closet and hauled the monstrosity needed to hold all of Usagi's food into the kitchen. Panting slightly from exertion, she set the large basket on the counter just as the doorbell rang.

"Coming," she called in answer to the insistent knocking on her door. She reached for the door knob just as the knocking began to get louder and Usagi's frantic cries could be heard on the other side.

"Come on Mako-chan, hurry up, this thing is heavy." Blinking in confusion while still trying to decide how Usagi managed to get there before Rei, she opened the door to find Usagi holding a large basket of food. Quickly taking it from her, Makoto placed the basket on the counter beside her own.

"Ara, Mako-chan, you didn't have to make a picnic basket. This is for your birthday after all."

"Well, actually, I haven't packed it yet, I was just about to when you knocked. Hey, Usagi-chan, did you uh... make this food yourself?" Makoto asked slightly nervously. Usagi's talents in the kitchen were another one of her qualities that had not improved all that much.

"Huh? Oh... no. Mom wouldn't let me make you anything. She insisted she make it herself. Rei and Ami came over to help, but she insisted Minako and me go find you a good present."

With a relieved smile spreading across her face, Makoto took her empty basket and placed it back in the closet.

"So, where's Rei and Ami, they said they'd be here soon."

"I don't know, I haven't seen or heard from them since yesterday night when we made the sandwiches. Maybe-" Another knock on the door interuppted Usagi's thought and Makoto went to answer the door, saying that that was probaly them. What she found confused her even more. A panting Minako gasping for breath stood in her doorway.

"Hurry... there's... youja... in the park." she said inbetween breaths.

"NANI?!!" Usagi screeched.

"Demo... Setsuna said there would be peace for awhile... It can't be..." Makoto said unbelievingly, denying that their time of peace was already over.

Finally catching her breath Minako explained, "I met Rei and Ami on my way over, and we saw Haruka-tachi already in the park, they were going to suprise you. That was when a sudden fog rolled in. I've never seen anything like, not even Mercury's shabon spray, Setsuna look as suprised as any of us when a guy in dark blue robes stepped out of the fog and began leveling the park. They sent me here to come get the both of you since none of us carry around our communicators anymore and there was no way of contacting you. We have to hurry, this guy looked like trouble."

Taking only a brief pause, Makoto and Usagi followed Minako down the stairs from Makoto's apartment and into an alcove in the side of the building, where Minako and Makoto pulled out their henshin wands, and Usagi reached for her broach.

"Venus Crystal Power, Make-up!"

"Jupiter Crystal Power, Make-up!"

"Moon Eternal, Make-up!"

The familiar powers washed over them and transformed them into the soliders of love and justice. Only breifly pausing to readjust to the powers they hadn't felt in the past two years, the three girls sped off towards the park.

Bounding from roof top to roof top, Jupiter managed to ask Venus one more question as they headed for the battle.

"So not even Pluto saw this coming?"

Venus's grim expression darkened even more as she answered, "Iie, and from the looks of it, this battle isn't going to be easy. It's going to be an uphill battle all the way."

Both Sailor Jupiter and Sailor Moon's eyes widened in surprise, Minako had just used a correct quote. Without a word spoken between them, both senshi came to a silent agreement.

The end of the world had come.

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Well, that was fairly short, but what did you expect, it's a prologue. ^_^ Chapter One should be longer and out within the next couple of weeks, if I don't have much homework, otherwise look for it at the end of the month. Please e-mail me your comments and/or questions to me at SJupiter42@aol.com, I love comments. Oh yeah, and one more thing, Sailormoon is the proper way to writer her name, but it's hard to read so I'm just going to be bad and write it as Sailor Moon. Okay, it may not seem like a big deal to some, but what can I say, I'm obsessive like that.