Sailor Moon Fan Fiction ❯ Love and Lament ❯ Ami 6 ( Chapter 12 )

Love & Lament

 

Chapter twelve

 

 

“Hmmm, Wha…” Ami was startled awake by the shrill ring of her phone. She flailed around a bit trying to gain her bearings before she was dumped unceremoniously on the ground next to her sofa. Getting to her feet, Ami stumbled over to her phone, fumbling with it before situating it to her ear.

 

“Hello… No, I said no, thank you. Yes, I'm sure. Yes, goodbye.”

 

::Ugh, Telemarketers.:: Ami thought as she carelessly dropped the phone back on the receiver.

 

Ami set her glasses on her coffee table as she rubbed the sleep from her eyes. As seemed to be the norm these days, she tried to shake off the visions and feelings that remained from her dreams. Resetting her glasses, Ami tried to remember what she was doing before she had fallen asleep.

 

::Oh, I was listening to records.:: Walking to her player, Ami removed the record sitting there and placed it in its protective sleeve before returning it to the shelf. Ami started to think about her lover as she looked over the vast collection of CD's and records she had willed to her. The melancholy and depression that had plagued her since Juni's death, returned again stronger than usual.

 

Ami pressed play on her CD player before slumping heavily onto her couch. Her arms clutched at a pillow as the dulcet tones of Aino Minako filled the room. Ami clutched the pillow to her chest and inhaled deeply. It was one of the few items around the condominium that still smelled like Juni. With the exception of the previous night, she always slept with it nearby.

 

Half of the CD played through before Ami was able to compose herself and wipe away the tears that trailed streams down her cheeks. Her head hurt and she felt sick. Knowing that she was doing it to herself, Ami tried her best to think of something else, something that would not be so painful. Unfortunately, the only other thing on her mind was her dreams. She replayed the newest, “memory” as Hino called them, in her mind. Garoben's warning and Grandpa Hino's offer to help weighed heavily upon her.

 

::Oh Juni, I am so confused. The other part of you told me to talk to him, but it seemed as if she did not trust him. If she could not put faith in him, how then can I?:: Ami set aside her pillow and made her way to her bathroom where she started to freshen up.

 

::Grandpa Hino says that you were possessed by a demon, by Garoben. She is the one that told me to talk to him. She is also the one who helped to teach me so many things, she held me, and kissed me; she loved me. Is that why I should trust her over him? They are both demons, and yet I loved her just as sure as I loved you. I guess her heritage does not matter to me. Should Grandpa's?:: Ami stared at her reflection in her mirror for a moment. Her face was still dripping from the water she splashed upon it. Her cheeks remained ruddy, and her eyes were puffy and red.

 

::Can I trust Grandpa Hino?:: Ami walked to her room as she turned the question over in her mind. She mechanically removed her clothes and tossed them in her hamper before finding a fresh, unwrinkled outfit. Once she was dressed she sat on the edge of her bed, still deep in thought.

 

::Grandpa did volunteer a lot of information, and he appeared sincere. But, he said he is a demon. He even went so far as to say that he is one hundred percent demon, no possessions or anything else involved. He is a demon through and through; can a demon even tell the truth?::

 

Ami leaned over to look at the clock resting on her windowsill; it was still early.

 

::Garoben was a demon, and she was able to love me. I could always tell when she was there and there is no way she could fake the emotions she shared. She… she died for me just as sure as Juni did. If a demon is capable of love and self sacrifice, then I will have to believe that Grandpa Hino can be trustworthy.::

 

 

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“Uhm…” Ami tentatively interrupted Grandpa Hino as he was straightening up the charm stand. It was getting late in the afternoon, and was time to close up. “Before anything else, I need to know why you are helping me. What are you getting out of it?”

 

After debating with herself for the better part of the afternoon, Ami decided to hear the old man out. She was not completely confident that she could trust him, but she wanted to know more about her dreams. More importantly, Ami needed to learn more about Garoben.

 

“A fair question.” Hino stated as he hurried to clean and close his simple shop. Ami, seeing that he was not likely to continue until he was done, moved to help out. Fifteen minutes later Hino retrieved a pitcher of water and led Ami to the center of the temple, a place she had yet to see. Ami was startled to find a large fire left burning unattended in the center of the room. Several small podiums surrounded the flame, and four ornately carved pillars that ran from floor to ceiling stood in the corners of the room.

 

“What in the world?” Ami questioned in wonder as her eyes locked upon the hypnotic dancing flames. Ami was lost for a moment as her eyes tried to follow the wisps of fire that seemed to have a life and mind of their own.

 

“That is the sacred fire. It has been kept burning in this temple since I built it several hundred years ago. Even if I was not in residence, I always had loyal priests and Miko's who dedicated their lives to protecting and learning from it.” Hino spoke as he situated himself in front of the fire and set a pillow for Ami to rest upon, they would be here for a while.

 

“Now, as for your question…” Hino cleared his throat as Ami settled on to her pillow and he decided how best to answer that question. He would not be the only one affected by the answer, and he had to consider that.

 

“Miss. Ami, I am going to be bluntly honest in everything I tell you. Even if it sounds rude, please don't take it that way.” After his disclaimer Hino began. “By helping you, I am protecting, and helping my granddaughter. It was by her request that I interfered when you and Makoto were attacked. It is also for her that I make you such a priority. You see, in the near future, my granddaughter will go through the same ordeal you are. You're fates are also in someway intertwined, she has seen this. You will play a very pivotal role in her life, therefore I will do everything I can to make sure that you are healthy and safe for when that day comes.”

 

Ami nodded, appreciating Hino's candid response. Ami wanted instantly to questions the role she would play in the young woman`s, who she had just met today, life. She knew however, that the old man would probably not answer anything personal about her so she decided to store that question for later. Besides, she had more important concerns for the time being. “Why does she concern you? I would think that a demon would be self centered.”

 

“Oh?” Hino raised a bushy eyebrow at Ami. “And how many demons have you known?”

 

Ami blushed at her assumption, but remained serious in her expression. Hino, seeing that she was not yet comfortable continued on. “Demon's don't all come from the same mold. Most of us can be type cast as evil, self centered, and many other wicked descriptions. There are however some exceptions, take Garoben and I for example. As I explained earlier, neither of us were born demons. You met me in your past life at your Seepa, then I was the lord of the strongest war tribe on wars. Later, I traded my soul for power and the need for war. Because of that I did something that ashamed me, something I do not want to repeat in this life.”

 

“And what was that?” Ami asked.

 

Hino shifted to a more comfortable position. Ami used the brief interruption to stretch and wipe the sweat from her brow. The dancing flames of the temple's sacred fire were not comfortable to be around. Once he was comfortable again, Hino returned his attention to Ami's question. “That is something that you will see in your past memories. I will explain what happened when you remember it.”

 

“What if I do not remember?” Ami countered immediately. “I have had a steady stream of dreams, but I do not know when they will end. Plus, there are huge gaps between the times they take place.”

 

“First, they are not dreams, they are memories.” Hino corrected. “I will help you remember more through guided meditation. That is why we are here, the fire will help guide you and no one but my granddaughter and I are allowed here.”

 

Ami's shoulders slumped as she allowed herself to really accept that these dreams might have been her reality in a past life. “But… How is that even possible? In my dreams I am an alien. How could an alien be reborn as a human?”

 

“I don't have a conclusive answer to that.” Hino admitted. “I have several theories, but for them to make any sense I will need to know what you have already seen.”

 

Ami unconsciously began to bite her lower lip, a habit she inherited from her mother. She wanted answers, but was still unsure as to if she could fully trust the old man, the ancient demon, sitting in front of her.

 

“Please Miss. Ami.” Hino looked directly into Ami's eyes, allowing her to see his sincerity. “Give me your trust, I swear on my life and honor, that I will not betray it.”

 

Garoben's final warning flittered through Ami's mind once more before she took a deep breath, and a leap of faith.

 

 

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“I remember that day. That was the day that everything changed.” Hino mused as Ami finished telling him the last of her dreams. The two of them had spent the last several hours discussing what Hino adamantly referred to, as the past. The more Ami heard, the more she tended to believe him.

 

“That is when Garoben and I made decisions which led to the end of The Serenity's millennia of peace.” Hino settled himself and Ami could tell he was about to begin an important story. “I suppose the main reason I agreed to what I did, was simple listlessness. I was a man of war, as was the rest of my planet. Revian was not alone in her views on that; we all lived and thrived on battle. Under the Serenity's rule, our battles were restricted to our planet; we lived many generations in an unending civil war.

 

“The night you heard that transmission, I was visited in person by an entity that I had thought was only a part of my dreams. This creature, Metallia, promised me the chance of a glorious war, she offered me the chance to truly live again. Without a second's thought, I accepted, and so did my people.” As Hino spoke, his posture and expressions seemed to change, become harder and less inviting. The change was both startling and fascinating, as Ami was able to catch a small glimpse of the true being beneath the Hino mask.

 

“The choice, and my answer was presented simultaneously to everyone who lived on Mars, in that moment Mars became a planet of demons. Our pledge to serve Metallia had warped our bodies and twisted our souls. Those few who resisted Metallia's lure were quickly slain. Once Mars was fully under Metallia's control, we attacked Jupiter and from there we attacked the moon. That is something that I will help you to remember.”

 

Ami swallowed the lump in her throat, as she prepared to ask the most important question on her mind. “And… what happened to Garoben?”

 

“Ahh, Garoben.” Hino mulled over the answer in his mind for a moment. He did not want to have to tell Ami this story, as he knew it would hurt her. Even so, Ami did deserve to know everything he could tell her about her slain lover.

 

“Garoben was one of the last surviving Plutonians. Many years before I was born, her sister Setsuna was chosen to stand watch over the gates of time as one of the Serenity's super soldiers. With this lonely appointment Setsuna was granted tremendous power, wealth, and immortality.

 

“From all accounts, Garoben was jealous of her sister from the beginning. Even a thousand years later, after her race died off and most people forgot about Setsuna's existence, Garoben's jealousy of her sister grew and flourished. It was on her deathbed a year before the final attack on the moon that Metallia came to her in her dreams and offered her wealth, power, and most important of all, her youth.

 

“I had met Garoben several times prior to this, and I knew her to be an exceedingly vain woman. I have no doubt that the choice to sell her soul was as easy for her as it was for me.”

 

Ami sat in silence, enthralled by Hino's story, yet horrified as to how she felt it was going to end.

 

Hino continued on. “The payment for what Garoben received, was to clear the way for Metallia to enter our solar system unaware. Without her, Metallia would not have been able to enter into Serenity's realm without a catastrophic battle that probably would have ended up destroying both sides.

 

“You see, the Serenity's were able to keep the galaxy safe off the blood of three people. All of which were of the last respective members of their races.”

 

“Setsuna, Hivial, and WaterLilly.” Ami prompted in a whisper.

 

“Indeed.” Hino stated before continuing. “Garoben, was one of the only people to know of Setsuna's existence. She was also one of three people who knew how to find her. No one knows exactly what happened, but somehow Garoben was able to seal the gates of time, thereby trapping her sister Setsuna within. Recently, a Romanian associate of mine discovered that Setsuna has survived all these years locked within the walls of her post.

 

“Before Garoben had found a way to seal the gates, Setsuna would have been able to intercept a threat head on. In worse case scenarios, or if other matters needed her attention, Setsuna would simply warn Hivial and WaterLilly, so they could deal with it.”

 

Hino's face became grim as he continued his story. “There are few things I regret about my decision to join Metallia. When I heard what that woman did to Hivial and WaterLilly, I became ashamed of my decision.”

 

Ami, already sick over what she had heard, became more so from the absolute anger that clouded Hino's features and the rage which tainted his voice.

 

“There are three things that Martians held dear above all else, honor, love, and battle. Garoben spit upon all three of our most treasured principles with what she did to those women.” Hino took a breath to calm himself. He could sense Ami's tortured thoughts, and knew he was not helping any with his anger.

 

“Hivial and WaterLilly, being the last of their respective races, were drafted into becoming super soldiers and charged with protecting the outer rims of the galaxy from anything that threatened it. A few hundred years into their new life, devoid of almost any company save each other, Hivial and WaterLilly became lovers. Because they lived apart from society, Lady Radiance, with Queen Serenity's blessing, joined the two of them in marriage. The day of your last dream was the bicentennial anniversary of their union.

 

“Cloaked by Metallia's darkest spells, Garoben stole into their palace and poisoned their celebratory feast. The greatest warriors the galaxy has ever known, died without even knowing they had been attacked. Hivial and WaterLilly, personal heroes of mine, destroyers of space beasts, armies, and gods, fell to vile trickery, without the chance to fight back. What you saw in that transmission was Garoben animating Hivial`s remains.”

 

Ami was visibly ill, and she trembled slightly as Hino continued his story. “Without the three guardians of the outer rims, it was a simple matter for Metallia to cloak her entire army and slip unnoticed amongst us. From there she converted her collaborators on earth and the majority of my people into demons. There were a few of every race that turned, but not a substantial amount. If I hadn't endorsed Metallia's offer many of my people would not have turned. Because of Garoben and myself, Serenity's Silver Millennium, came to an end.”

 

Hino turned to stare into the sacred flames of his temple. He was deep in thought and did not say anything for many moments. Ami used the brief intermission to compose herself as best as she possibly could. Hino stood and stretched wincing at the sound of his popping joints. “We`ve covered a lot today. We should rest for now and start again in the morning.”

 

“No!” Hino was momentarily startled by the forcefulness in Ami's voice. “I want to know… I need to know what happened next.”

 

The old priest appraised his young friend, determining for himself if she was indeed ready to face what he knew was coming next. “Very well.” Hino spoke in a strong voice as he reclaimed his seat in front of Ami, and next to the sacred flame. “Take my hands; I want you to stare into my eyes, empty your mind of all thoughts. I am going to trigger your next memory.”

 

Hino's voice became monotone as his spell began. “Now, listen to my voice, and focus on…”

 

Ami's eyes were locked upon the old man's, his voice melted away as she drifted slowly into the realm of memory.