Sailor Moon Fan Fiction ❯ The Saga of Mercury ❯ The Kyoto Day Trip ( Chapter 22 )

The Saga of Mercury

Chapter 22

"The Kyoto Day Trip"

Written by Jose I. Ramos

Portions based on "Mercury Knight stories" by Ryuuen No Miko

"Sailor Moon" and all related characters are copyrighted by Naoko Takeuchi, Kodansha, TOEI Animation and other agencies.

Storyline © 2003 Jose I. Ramos

DISCLAIMER

As usual, "Sailor Moon" and all related characters are copyrighted by Naoko Takeuchi, Kodansha, TOEI Animation and other agencies.

The Saga of Mercury story is copyrighted by me, however content in some chapters is based on the Mercury Knight Stories as described in the Chapter 1 Introduction.

Please feel free to write a critique or send your comments to JRHORSE98@AOL.COM with the subject line, in all caps, SAGA OF MERCURY.

Chapter 22 - The Kyoto Day Trip

Sasha stepped out of the bathroom, donned in a white blouse, purple dress, knee-high socks and black-laced shoes, ready for what was in store for her today.

Sasha walked downstairs and into the living room.

"Gooood morning!" said Greg, who was wearing a yellow shirt and dark pants, his brand new cell phone attached to his belt.

Sasha smiled when she found Greg, Amy and Mr. Urawa in the living room, along with some other familiar faces…

Serena, Darien and Rini.

Rini, in her nice blue dress, ran up to Sasha to greet her.

"Surprise!" Rini said to Sasha.

"Hi, Rini, you look nice!" said Sasha.

"Both of you look very nice," said Darien, in his green Earth t-shirt and denim jeans.

"All of you guys are set, I guess?" asked Mr. Urawa.

"Uh… ya, I think so," replied Serena, in her pink shirt, white vest and long pink dress, "to, uh… where are we going?"

Amy, in a blue shirt, half-length black pants, white stockings and a stylish yellow jacket, looked at Greg. "Serena doesn't know where we're going?"

Greg looked at Darien.

"Nope… Serena doesn't know, Rini doesn't know, and of course Sasha doesn't know, right?"

Greg nodded his head. "But why didn't you tell your girls?"

"I wanted to surprise them, too," responded Darien.

"Aw, come on Darien!" said Serena. "Please tell us? PLEEEEEEASE?"

"But Serena, then it wouldn't be a surprise," said Amy.

"We'd better scramble into the minivan before the fireworks begin," said Greg.

"Right," said Darien.

"Here are the keys," said Mr. Urawa. "I trust you'll keep my van in good shape?"

"Yes, sir," said Darien. "Thank you very much."

"Oh, and Greg, there's something I have to talk to you about when you get back," said Mr. Urawa.

"Sure thing, dad," said Greg.

"Let's go!" said Rini and Sasha at the same time.

"Well they're certainly anxious, aren't they," said Greg.

The six of them said goodbye to Mr. Urawa, then headed for the minivan.

Darien cruised along the highway, heading southwest toward the destination that Serena, Rini and Sasha knew nothing about.

Sitting next to Darien in the front passenger's seat was Greg. The two men talked about a wide variety of stuff, including the worst Negaverse enemies.

"I remember way back," said Greg, "Libroria tried to separate Amy and I by hypnosis… Libroria was definitely the worst."

In the middle of the van, Rini and Sasha played some games and made up funny stories.

"Did you know that Darien was born in a city called Chiba?" said Rini.

Darien grimaced and looked at Greg. "Rini does that all the time," he said.

In the back, Serena was actually doing something productive… reading a novel.

The novel was very appealing to Serena. Perhaps because it was really an e-book which was loaded into Amy's mini-computer.

"Oh, this is so nice!" said Serena. "Do you have any other stories like this, Amy?"

Amy smiled. "Sure I do, and take your time! The more books you read, the more proficient you'll be in language."

Serena's eyes bulged. "Uh… is that the same as… studying? In that case, no way! I don't have time for any of that."

Serena gave Amy back her mini-computer, then reached under her seat for her lunchbox. She opened her lunchbox and took out two of the eight jelly donuts that she stuffed in the box before the trip. She plopped the first one in her mouth, and the second one came right behind.

Serena, mouth full, turned to Amy and said, "MOULD MU MIKE A MONUT, MAMY?"

Amy waved her hand to Serena. "No thanks." Then Amy said to herself, I should give Serena more time to study like this… without the food, that is…

"We're almost there," said Greg, as the minivan passed a sign denoting the city limit line.

The four ladies looked ahead as the buildings in the distance got taller, and taller… closer and closer.

Serena snapped, "KYOTO!"

"Kyoto?" asked a puzzled Rini and Sasha. The two girls then looked outside at a billboard that said, "Welcome to Kyoto City." They then turned to each other and shouted, "KYOTO!"

"Ding-ding! We have a winner!" said Greg.

"We're going over to the Kyoto train station to do some shopping, and then we are going to a park that has a shrine, a lake, a teahouse, and a beautiful water fountain," said Amy.

"Neat!" said Serena. "There are so many clothes that I want to try out, and so many other things that I want to buy…"

"And here we are, guys! Here's the parking lot," snapped Darien, aiming to stop Serena from talking.

Serena sat upright in her seat, while Rini and Sasha giggled.

Darien and Greg took the girls on what appeared to be a successful shopping trip. Serena was able to buy two new shirts and a new pair of jeans, Amy bought herself a kimono, Sasha found some nice new shoes, and Rini, some nice pink pajamas. Greg also went to an electronics store to buy a memory card for his computer at home.

Rini looked at a television screen inside the kimono shop as Amy was making her purchase. She saw young Japanese women dance around, wearing kimonos, white face paint, bright red lipstick and stylish hair. "What are they doing?" she asked.

"I think they are called geisha girls," said Sasha. "A few months ago I read a book about geishas in my orphanage… and they are very popular around here."

"They look nice," said Rini.

When everyone was finished shopping at the Kyoto station, they packed everything back into the minivan, except for Amy, who decided to carry her kimono with her. Then they took the light rail to the park.

Meanwhile, back in you-know-where…

Queen Sorinya was standing up and stretching as the servant Quartzia entered the chambers.

"What are you doing, my queen," asked Quartzia.

"I'm stretching," said Sorinya, "because I'm TIRED."

"Why don't you get some rest and allow me to take care of Amy Mizuno for you?"

"No, you fool, I'm tired because I haven't caught Amy!" said Sorinya. "There's got to be something new to try… obviously the energy-stealing schemes haven't worked. I have to settle down and figure something out… I know, I'll use you, Quartzia. I haven't asked for your services in a long time. Perhaps you can come up with something."

Quartzia bowed her head. "I have just the plan. I will not disappoint you, my queen."

It was a clear and cool day in the quiet, peaceful park on the outskirts of Tokyo. The group sat at a picnic table to eat lunch that they had bought at the light rail station, then proceeded to visit the shrine. Afterwards, they all walked along the dewy path to a traditional house. From the house was a path that led to another house where the tea ceremony took place.

As they stepped inside the traditional home, Amy excused herself. "This is the perfect opportunity to try out my new kimono," she said.

As Amy left to change, Rini remembered when she went to a teahouse in the confines of Juuban. "I hope this won't be like what happened before," she said.

"You mean when the hostess wanted to become a sailor scout?" said Serena. "Oh ya, well if anything happens, I'm outtie right away! No questions asked."

Sasha stepped up to Serena. "You can't leave a tea ceremony like that!" she said.

"I'm a lot older than you, Sasha, I can make my own decisions."

"Serena, even if we're from someplace else, this tea ceremony is very important to all of us, and to this country. Many of our earth-born ancestors were probably involved in a tea ceremony. You just can't leave. To do so would be improper and rude."

"Sasha's got a point," said Darien.

Serena was amazed at how smart Sasha was, and with a big sweatdrop on her head, conceded. "Oh, all right."

At that point, the hostess of the teahouse, dressed in a blue kimono, came forward. "Good afternoon, my name is Mrs. Hattori, and I will be your hostess for our tea ceremony."

Greg, Sasha, Serena, Darien and Rini bowed in respect.

"Before we begin, allow me to present one young woman who looks very stylish this day. Miss Mizuno?"

Out from behind the screen walked a beautiful woman wearing a gorgeous yellow, pink and red-painted kimono… and short blue hair.

Greg's eyes almost bulged out of their sockets. "Wow."

"Amy! Hubba-hubba!" said Serena.

"You look great, Amy!" said Sasha.

"Neat!" said Rini.

Greg was stammering to find the right words… "Ah… um… y… you… you… uh… shall we proceed over to the ceremony now?"

"I'd love to," said Amy with a smile.

As Mrs. Hattori led the group outdoors to the path, Sasha reminded Serena, "This ceremony is important! You, and everyone else, must stay focused on the moment. We can't allow anything to distract us."

Serena took a deep breath and sighed. She then turned to the left and saw in the distance…

"Hey, is that the water fountain that you guys were talking about?"

Greg looked over. "Yes, that's the one!"

"Who is that standing on top of the fountain?" Serena asked.

"Not who, but what," said Darien.

"That is a statue of a wise person from long ago," said Mrs. Hattori. "He is considered a hero around here."

Mrs. Hattori and the group approached the teahouse.

"You all should crawl through this space to enter," said Mrs. Hattori. "I will enter from another door in a few moments."

The six removed their shoes, crawled through the opening into the paper-walled room, and sat down on the mats that had been laid out by Mrs. Hattori in advance.

Greg was the last to enter, and slid the door closed behind him.

As the six were waiting, Sasha said, "Remember! Don't let anything distract you!"

"We won't," said the other five in unison.

Mrs. Hattori then entered the teahouse and closed the door behind her.

"Welcome to one of the oldest and most precious ceremonies in all of Japan."

"Excuse me, Mrs. Hattori," said Rini, "I don't mean to be rude, but I don't remember anything about the tea ceremony."

"Not to worry!" replied Mrs. Hattori. "I will show you everything, and I will make it brief so that you understand. For example, this," she said, holding a small jar, "is called the natsume. This jar holds the powdered green tea that we will use. We then take this bamboo spoon, called a chasaku, to place the tea into the teacup, like this," she said, pouring the powder into the cup.

"Ah, now I'm starting to remember," said Rini. "Now you open that big pot, right?"

"Yes," said Mrs. Hattori, "this is called the mizusashi. We take the water from here, and…"

Greg was enjoying Mrs. Hattori's description of the tea ceremony, when he heard a scream from a distance…

He turned his head in the direction of the scream. So did Darien.

Sasha noticed that Greg had turned his head. She tapped his shoulder and told him that he should look back at Mrs. Hattori.

"Right," said Greg softly.

"…and we take the hishaku to pour the water into the teacups, like so," said Mrs. Hattori, pouring the water out. "Then we take this, the chasen, to beat the tea and the water together."

Almost everyone heard someone yell, "Get away… AAAHHH!" from afar. But they stayed focused in the moment.

"And your tea is ready," said Mrs. Hattori. "Please come forward, take the tea, and then return to your seat."

Rini did just that. Next, she was instructed to place the teacup between herself and the next guest, Darien, and bow to Darien. Afterwards, she bowed to Mrs. Hattori and picked up the teacup with both hands.

"Turn it around to the right two times, and then drink the tea," said Mrs. Hattori.

Rini sipped the tea. "It's delicious," she said.

"AARRRGGHHH!!" yelled a woman in the distance.

Rini finished the tea and bowed once more to Mrs. Hattori. "Thank you very much!" she said.

Over the next few minutes, amid the screams and yelling from the outside, Mrs. Hattori prepared and served the tea to the other five guests.

At the end, everyone bowed. "This concludes our ceremony," said Mrs. Hattori. "Thank you all very much for coming."

"Thank you, Mrs. Hattori, for your kindness and hospitality," said Darien. "It was a special experience for all of us, including myself, and we shall never forget it."

Mrs. Hattori slid open the exit. "Feel free to come back to Kyoto anytime to… oh, dear. Where is the statue?"

"Statue?" asked Serena.

"Yes, on the fountain… it has disappeared."

Everyone looked toward the fountain.

Greg started to say, "Now what do you think…" when everyone noticed some young women running in front of the fountain. Coming right behind them was a tall, red-faced figure, with bulging yellow eyes and wearing a men's kimono.

"Oh, no, that looks like…Noburito-san?"

"Who?" asked Serena.

"Noburito-san," said Mrs. Hattori, "is the name of the man honored on the statue! And I can barely see a black, yes, a black crescent on his forehead."

Darien looked at the others. "Well, we have work to do. Greg, Amy, Sasha, you three stay with Mrs. Hattori for now. Serena and Rini, come with me."

Serena, Darien and Rini ran away, towards the fountain.

"Where are they going?" asked Mrs. Hattori.

"Oh… uh… it's a long story," said Greg.

Sasha went up to Mrs. Hattori to try to talk to her and distract her from what was going on.

Meanwhile, Amy pulled her mini-computer out from the place where her shoes were left, and took a scan of the tall, red figure.

"What do you see?" asked Greg.

"Very interesting," said Amy. "It's definitely a Negaverse monster… generated from the statue on the water fountain… and the monster has increased hormone levels."

"Hormone levels?" asked Greg. "Which means…"

"Well, how can I say it… this monster… is attracted to women!"

"Attracted to women? Good grief," said Greg, taking out his cell phone and pressing the EMRG button to alert the other sailor scouts and knights. "Well what should we do about it?"

"We'll have to figure something out on the way," said Amy.

Amy went back to tap Sasha on the shoulder. "Come on Sasha, let's go!"

Greg, Amy and Sasha were starting to run away, when…

"Stop, please…"

The three turned around… back at Mrs. Hattori.

"I can't take much of this anymore," said Mrs. Hattori. "Could one of you please tell us what is going on?"

Greg, Amy and Sasha looked at Mrs. Hattori. They couldn't just leave like this and tell her it was nothing… after all that she did for them this afternoon. They could tell that Mrs. Hattori was very skillful… and a very special person.

"We have to do it in front of her," said Greg.

"Greg!" said Amy. "Are you sure?"

"What's your opinion?" asked Greg.

Amy thought hard in the brief moment that she had.

"Well… she's been so nice and kind to us, so… we must be the same to her. Since she is here, we must be truthful."

"I say we transform," said Sasha.

"Transform?" asked Mrs. Hattori.

Greg looked at Amy and Sasha, then back at Mrs. Hattori.

"Yes," he said, "transform."

Greg held his cell phone, Amy reached inside the kimono for her transformation pen, and Sasha opened up her necklace.

"Tell me if you have ever seen these people before," said Greg.

Greg flipped open his cell phone, held it into the air and yelled "MERCURY KNIGHT POWER!"

The cell phone spun around and morphed itself into the dagger, and Greg's transformation began.

"MERCURY STAR POWER!"

"MERCURY PRISM POWER!"

Mrs. Hattori was astonished at what she saw. "Why, you're… you're…"

"How do you do? I'm called the Mercury Knight, and this is my future family. My current girlfriend and future wife, Sailor Mercury, and our current foster child and future daughter, Sailor Mini Mercury."

"Hi!" said Sailor Mini Mercury.

"Good heavens," said Mrs. Hattori. "I… have heard so much about you! I am so pleased… and honored… to know who you really are."

"Well, given the circumstances, we didn't have much choice," said Mercury Knight.

"Will you promise us to keep our identities a secret?" asked Sailor Mercury.

Mrs. Hattori bowed. "You have my word."

"Thank you!" said Sailor Mini Mercury. "Now let's get that monster!"

"All right," said Mercury Knight. "Now what did you say was… oh I remember, the monster is attracted to women."

"Yes," said Sailor Mercury. "Keep in mind, though, that we can't destroy it, or else the park will lose a valuable landmark. We must get the monster in a position where we can use healing activation… either mine or yours, or Sailor Moon's, should do it."

Mercury Knight activated his visor and zoomed in to where the monster was.

The monster was frantically chasing two women… Sailor Moon and Sailor Mini Moon.

"Serena and Rini have already transformed, and they're being chased by the monster," said Mercury Knight.

Mercury Knight zoomed in closer, and picked up some waves emanating from the monster.

"Well, aren't we going to do something?" Sailor Mini Mercury screamed.

"Hang on a second…" said Mercury Knight. "I… all right, I've figured out a way to slow him down. It seems that… he will slow down… with movements of some kind… Now exactly what those movements are… hmm… questionable…"

Sailor Mini Mercury looked on the floor and saw the kimono that Sailor Mercury was wearing before she transformed. She then remembered earlier in the day, when she and Rini were talking about geishas.

"Mrs. Hattori," said Mini Mercury, "Were you a geisha once?"

"Geisha? Oh…" she said, smiling, "Yes, many years ago, before I got married."

"Sasha, what does geisha… Hey… wait a minute," said Mercury Knight.

Mercury Knight crouched down to pick up the kimono… and handed it to Sailor Mercury.

"You want me… to dance like a geisha???"

"Yes, my dear. You have a short amount of time. Mrs. Hattori, can you quickly teach Sailor Mercury a few geisha dance moves?"

"Of course, I'll be happy to help," said Mrs. Hattori.

Sailor Mercury, carrying her kimono, walked with Mrs. Hattori behind the teahouse.

About two minutes later, Tuxedo Mask sluggishly made his way to Mercury Knight and Sailor Mini Mercury.

"He's got… Sailor Moon… and Mini Moon… and other… women… weighed down…" he said, breathing heavily.

"Take it easy, where are they?" asked Mercury Knight.

Tuxedo Mask settled down a bit. "Their feet have been turned into bricks… they can't move… they're all at the north end of the park."

"Brick?" said Mini Mercury.

"That must be because the water fountain is made of brick," said Mercury Knight. "But I might have a solution…"

Mercury Knight stopped talking when he saw the monster, with a dark, angry look on its face, charge toward where he and the others were standing.

"MERCURY ICE SHIELD! Come on guys, get behind this just in case."

As Mini Mercury and Tuxedo Mask were making their way behind the shield, Mrs. Hattori reappeared with her shamisen musical instrument. "We are ready," she said.

"Go ahead," said Mercury Knight.

Mrs. Hattori began to play the instrument and sing.

At that point, Sailor Mercury, dressed in the kimono and holding a fan, stepped forward and began to dance.

The monster that was charging fast… slowed down… and stopped. He began to stare intently at the woman who was dancing in front of him.

"That's right," said Mercury Knight softly, while de-activating his shield. "Now when I tell you to, Sasha, I want you to use your attack to bind the monster's hands, while I'll use my sword to bind its feet."

"OK!" whispered Mini Mercury.

"Hey, this is working!" said Tuxedo Mask.

The monster was still staring at the dancing woman… he had no interest in anyone else.

Mercury Knight was waiting… waiting… waiting…

…until the monster raised his hands up in the air, seemingly ready to grab the dancer…

"NOW! MERCURY ICE BLADE CHARGE!"

"SHABON FAN!"

Mercury Knight aimed the ray from the ice blade at the monster's feet, while Mini Mercury aimed the super cooled water toward its hands.

It worked. The ice blade attack froze the monster's feet to the ground, and the Shabon Fan attack bound the monster's hands.

Mercury Knight ran to Sailor Mercury and removed the kimono, revealing her sailor "fuku" beneath.

Sailor Mercury then took out what had become the Shabon Wand.

Mercury Knight said to Sailor Mercury, "Great job… oh… you know what to do already…"

"Now, you must go back to where you came from," said Sailor Mercury to the monster. "SHABON HEALING!"

The ray of light from the Shabon Rod struck and surrounded the monster, who was starting to crumble into red pieces… and crumble more… until it was a tall pile of red bricks.

Sailor Mercury moved the Shabon Rod up, lifting the pile of bricks into the air. She then moved it to the left, sending the bricks in that direction. Eventually the bricks made their way back to the fountain, and came together to form the statue that was originally there.

Sailor Mercury lowered her Shabon Rod and smiled.

"Great job!" said Tuxedo Mask. "I'll check on Sailor Moon and Sailor Mini Moon to make sure they're all right. I'll be back…" Tuxedo Mask jumped into the air, and out of sight.

As Tuxedo Mask left, the other Sailor Scouts were running in.

"Oh great, we missed again," said Mars Knight.

"Yeah, we don't get in on much lately," said Sailor Mars.

"That's because Amy's the target," said Mercury Knight, "but don't you worry… something deep inside me says you're going to see some action real soon…"

"You heard him?" said Venus Knight. "Remember the power that Greg's got over here… you two better be looking behind your back over the next few days."

"Cool, in that case I'm happy," said Mars Knight.

Mercury Knight looked at Mars Knight… and lowered his head…

Tuxedo Mask returned, holding Sailor Moon and Sailor Mini Moon in their arms. A light dust covered the feet of the two young ladies.

On landing, Sailor Moon collapsed onto the grass. Sailor Mini Moon fell down as well.

"You two better stay on the floor," said Sailor Mercury. "It looks like your feet might have been turned into bricks by the look of that dust," she said.

"No, DUH!" said Sailor Mini Moon.

Sailor Mini Mercury went up to Sailor Mini Moon. "Stay there for a few minutes and you'll be just fine. The weight on your feet has to equalize back to normal again."

Sailor Mini Moon was surprised. "How do you know all about that?"

"Studying," Sailor Mini Mercury responded.

Sailor Moon sat up, looking at Sailor Mini Mercury, a sweatdrop on her head.

"Who is she," asked Sailor Jupiter, pointing to the old woman in the blue kimono.

"This is Mrs. Hattori… she's the hostess of the teahouse over there," said Sailor Mercury, pointing to the teahouse.

"Pleased to meet you," said Mrs. Hattori, bowing. "I must say, that Amy, Greg, Sasha and the others have done exceptional, and I am happy that you all have restored order to this place."

"Well," said Jupiter Knight, "we're glad that you think Amy, Gr… hey, wait a minute… you… y… you know… Amy and Greg and Sasha are…"

"Yes, yes," said Mrs. Hattori. "And Darien, Serena and Rini, too."

"Mrs. Hattori is officially a friend of the Sailor Scouts," said Tuxedo Mask.

"Well, if you say so, then we can't argue with that," Sailor Uranus said.

"Do you make the tea yourself?" asked Sailor Neptune.

"Yes, and her tea is great!" said Sailor Mini Moon. "She was really helpful and a great host."

"Which is why she deserves to be a friend of the scouts," said Mercury Knight.

Sailor Venus bowed to Mrs. Hattori… looked around… and then de-transformed.

The other scouts and knights didn't seem to object.

"My name is Mina. I'm honored to meet you. And this is my boyfriend, Jamie."

Venus Knight de-transformed. "Hello."

One by one, the other sailor scouts and knights de-transformed and greeted Mrs. Hattori.

Sailor Moon and Sailor Mini Moon remained on the ground, still recovering from the "brick effect."

Chad, Ken and Jamie showed Greg their new cell phones. They were red, green and yellow in color, respectively. "So if anything happens to me," said Chad, "you'll be the first to know."

"I would be honored if all of you would come here tomorrow for a tea ceremony. I would make it an extra special one," said Mrs. Hattori.

"Mrs. Hattori," said Sailor Moon, "I'm sure everyone here would agree that we have to give YOU a tea ceremony… all I have to make sure is that I don't screw it up… but we should give you one!"

"If the chance comes, I'd be happy to," said Mrs. Hattori, who picked up something wrapped in green paper from off the ground. "I would like to give this to you all, as a token of my appreciation. When you throw what is in here to the ground, a beautiful display of nature will make you joyful and happy."

Mrs. Hattori started to give the gift to Sailor Moon, who was still on the ground. "Is there enough in there for everyone?" she asked.

"Yes," replied Mrs. Hattori. "Of course! Everyone may take as much as they please."

Mrs. Hattori opened the gift to reveal many tiny pieces of a yellowish grain. Each took a handful.

"Thanks very much," said Michelle.

"If you guys are ready," said Amara, "we'll head back now."

"OK," said Raye, "Guess I'll leave the six of you here to go back on your own."

"Thanks to all my friends, as usual!" said Sailor Mini Moon.

Amara, Michelle, Chad, Raye, Ken, Lita, Mina and Jamie walked away as Sailor Moon and Sailor Mini Moon finally regained their composure and de-transformed.

"So what does this… stuff… actually do?" Greg asked Mrs. Hattori.

"Well, I invite you to find out for yourself," she replied. "Why don't you walk over to the fountain to try?"

"Um… a… all right," said Greg. "Guys, I'll be back in a minute, and, thank you again, Mrs. Hattori."

"A pleasure," she responded.

"Greg," Amy said, placing her hands on his shoulder. "Can I go with you?"

"Me, too?" asked Sasha.

"Well in that case, we should all go!" said Greg.

"Uh, no thanks," said Serena, "I don't feel like walking right now…"

"Ah… you three can go ahead, I'll stay with the ladies," said Darien.

"All right, see you in a few," said Greg.

Greg, Amy and Sasha walked to the base of the fountain, looking up at the statue of a figure that they fought only minutes earlier.

Greg sat down on the edge of the fountain. Amy, with her minicomputer, followed suit.

Sasha stretched her arms up in the air, facing the seated Greg and Amy.

"Can we try now?"

"Yes, might as well," said Greg. "Hold out your hand, Sasha."

Greg poured the yellow stuff into Sasha's hand.

"Now," said Greg, "let's check the wind… ok. Throw it up towards our left, and let's see what happens."

Sasha did just that. The yellow grains leaped up in the air as far as Sasha could throw them before gravity sent them flying to the ground.

The three waited…

And waited…

And waited…

"Well?" said Sasha.

Amy looked at the time on her minicomputer, then looked into the clear blue sky.

She could see a group of birds flying in the sky, making a right turn… headed straight for them.

"Those birds are turning into the crosswind," she said. "They're really not supposed to do that."

"That's right," said Sasha, "birds are supposed to fly with the wind."

"Except for these birds," said Greg. "I have a gut feeling…"

Greg's gut feeling came true when the flock of birds, around eight or ten of them, landed on the ground in front of them and started to eat from the yellow grains on the ground.

"Those birds are beautiful!" said Sasha with a smile. "I love their long, dark feathers."

"They remind me of Phobos and Deimos," said Amy.

The three expected the birds to depart right after finishing… but they didn't.

One of the birds went right next to Amy to drink from the water in the fountain.

Three more gently flapped their wings and flew around Amy, Greg and Sasha.

"Those birds aren't going to hit us, are they?" asked Sasha.

"No, not with their beaks, or with something else…" said Greg, lifting his left hand, "but I…"

Greg stopped talking when a bird landed its claws on his extended hand. His face froze.

It seemed to look at him with curious interest… and pecked at his hand.

Greg laughed. "That tickles…"

Greg then reached up with the other hand to hold the dark-feathered creature. "How are ya?" He said with a smile.

Two other birds were circling around Sasha. Sasha smiled and laughed as the birds closed in on her. Sasha's youth then kicked into high gear… as she extended her arms, and flew with the birds in circles… eventually around the fountain a few times.

Sasha then looked at Greg and Amy and pointed at one of the birds. "I like that one!"

"Well," said Amy, "I like this a lot. This is the perfect display of nature… and it shows what a wonderful person Mrs. Hattori is…"

"I'll drink to that!" said Greg.

Amy, Greg and Sasha spent a few more minutes with the birds before departing for home. But their moment spent with the birds… the symbol of nature from Mrs. Hattori… was a symbol that they would never forget.

Time seemed to stand still… in Amy's eyes, Greg's eyes, and Sasha's eyes… it was a Kodak moment… a moment, perfect for a picture.

The Saga of Mercury Chapter 22 - The Kyoto Day Trip 18

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