Terrible Things to Waste

Terrible Things to Waste

Prologue: Intrusion

Concealed within the oppressive fog, a lone figure stood guard over a vast emptiness. Only the radiating red orb atop the figure's staff chased away the darkness, revealing the contours of her figure. The light displayed the elegance of the woman's

face, an elegance offset by a stern expression hardened by a millennia of duty.

Concepts like beauty, elegance, justice, and other fickle fashions of the linear realm mattered little here, where Time transcended all such things. Her attention was better directed to things of greater importance, like insuring History and Fate continued in their proper paths.

At least, these thoughts distracted her from the linear things.

Her lips frowned, ever so slightly, as her grip tightened around her staff. Her staff acted as the key to this dark corridor of Time that simultaneously connected the past, the future, and the present. Her duty was to protect this corridor from intruders who would try and disturb the balance that History had created. The last thing she needed was emotion to get in the way.

In the beginning, she had envied the people who lived linear, uncomplicated lives; living and dying, caring and loving. However, after an eternity of isolation in the Time Tunnel, such emotions became dulled and useless to her. Eventually, she no longer yearned to be touched or loved. This duty bestowed upon her by those who created the corridor gave her greater satisfaction than any lover ever could.

At least, that's what she kept telling herself.

Occasionally, Fate would deviate from its path, taking History with it, threatening to ruin the delicate existence of the timestream. Such occurrences gave her an opportunity to delve into the linear world. Not to say she would look forward to them, most times they were very mundane tasks. It was only a matter of stopping the deviation before it could start, and its source could be easily found after meticulous study. Nothing too exciting.

Yet, she found dealing with such trivialities in the timestream so much more interesting than guarding this lonely abyss. Living in the linear realm would always re-awaken her desires and longings she tried so hard to ignore over the span of her near eternal life in the Tunnel. Sadly though, at the end of every trip she would have to return to the Time Tunnel and she would again rely upon the satisfaction of her duty to fill that longing.

Fortunately, she was not destined to be completely alone in the Tunnel, the third generation of the royal line frequently pasted through the gates into the corridor. This little girl was one of the few she permitted to pass because Fate foretold it to happen. Who was she to argue? The girl traveled the Gate so frequently, they eventually developed cute nicknames for each other. Soon, the little girl became known as Small Lady, and eventually she became known simply as Puu. The girl did help relief some of her longings, but still befriending the girl were destined. Just as she was destined to always be the Time Guardian and destined to guard alone.

Fate always had its way.

Suddenly, a chill went up her spine, making the Guardian aware of her closed eyes. You shouldn't be so careless she scolded herself, you above all others should not make mistakes. Shaking her head, she peered into the darkness. A presence approached, she could feel it. The fog shifted, indicating it sensed this presence as well. Her gut twisted and turned in apprehension in motion with the swirling mists.

She waited as the shift continued. Was Small Lady returning? She waited for a few more arduous moments. No, Small Lady would have made her presence known by now.

The shifting began to intensify, disturbing the darkness of the Tunnel. Only something big, unexpected, and foreign could realign time this way. She clutched her stomach as the realignment further unsettled the balance of Time. Her knees began to buckle. Fate must have deviated, but it had never deviated this far before.

"What's doing this?" The woman gasped.

The Guardian doubled-over as she felt two, no three things passed fluidly through the Tunnel.

Relief came momentarily before a fourth one finally passed through.

Still feeling uneasy, she readied her staff and got into her attack position. No intruder shall pass under my watch, she resolved. Her eyes darted around in the fog looking for the perpetrators. No intruders appeared. She lowered her staff, stunned. They had bypassed the Time Gate entirely … but how, she wondered.

"It can't be... they don't... unless..." The guardian became acutely aware that something was going to happen.

It was something that threatened the balance of History and Fate.

Something she had no control over.

In great haste, she straightened her staff and opened the Time Gate, departing the infinite darkness to the last location of the shift: Tokyo, Japan 1999.

Terrible Things to Waste

Part 1: Warm Receptions

"Once upon a time..."

Serena stared at these barren scribbles on her notepad as she thoughtfully chewed on the end of her pencil. After hours upon hours of thinking, and several ruined pencils, these words were the only thing she could put to paper. She glanced at the pile of autobiographies seated on the floor next to the desk, most of which were several centimeters thick. Amy gave them to her when she had asked for books by famous people. So far they only helped as a door jam.

After putting down her pencil on the cramped desk, the girl sighed and leaned back letting the tips of her two long blond tails pool on the floor. She turned her head towards the window overlooking her bed and admired the soft glow of the city.

A smile crept onto her face when she noticed her pink bunny pattern curtains framing the glass. She had been meaning to get them replaced, but she couldn't bear to part with a relic from her childhood. Perhaps Reenie might appreciate them better than she could.

So many distractions, she mused returning herself to her barren paper, and so much to say. What would she say about her life? What *should* she say? Should she talk about the people who shaped it?

She found herself gazing at the shelf above her desk where she'd put pictures of friends and family as well as little knick-knacks she'd collected over the years. Each one of these items brought to mind warm memories. Then her eyes roamed to the center of the shelf where something sparkled and glimmered beckoning for her attention.

Fondly, she picked up the gift, a star-shaped locket, and opened it to hear its sweet melody. Her fiancé had given it to her a very long time ago and the song always comforted her. She closed her eyes, imagining herself as a princess dancing a waltz to the melody with her dashing dark-haired prince in the middle of a grand royal ball.

'Someday, Serena,' she thought as she placed the now closed locket back on the shelf.

Above the momentos were various clippings from the newspaper.

'New Heroine "Sailor Moon" In Action!' one headline said. 'Sailor Moon Defeats Mysterious Creature,' said another. Usually on every article graced the picture of a fair-haired heroine with two flowing pony-tails framed by a jewel-studded tiara dressed in an outfit very similar to any Japanese school uniform.

Sailor Moon had become a strange role model for her. Each article painted the heroine as graceful, level-headed, compassionate, and all around great leader. Things she wished she had, many things in fact, like great grades for instance. At least she had the consolation she had accomplished so many things in her life without those stellar grades.

"But what to write?" She asked shooting her eyes to the ceiling as she balanced the pencil on her upper lip.

"It doesn't matter what you write, Serena." The blonde girl twisted her head over to the open doorway.

A black cat streaked through the door, hopped gracefully onto her bed, and sat with the regal of royalty. It stared at its master with its cool blue eyes and spoke evenly, "It's not like they'll understand you amidst all of your horrible grammar."

The blonde feigned a pout before a soft smile crept upon her face.

"Oh, Luna,” The girl nonchalantly reached out and scratched her pet on its head just left of its crescent shaped yellow birth mark, "Whatever am I going to do with you?"

The feline purred in appreciation of the attention before being picked it up by its master and leveled a look.

"Maybe I should just sell you off to some television station. What's the going price on talking cats?" Serena found the expression she received quite amusing.

"You wouldn't dare..."

"Wanna try me?"

The cat sighed as her master placed her back on the bed. "I can see where Reenie gets her wicked sense of humor from. It's certainly not Darien."

The girl's face sobered slightly. "So is she asleep?"

"Sound asleep." Luna decided to ignore her master's change of mood and spread herself across the comfortable bed sheets.

A small smile formed. "Good. Now help me with my memoirs."

"Really Serena, we've been through this already, I don't see why you need to write down your memoirs now." The cat groaned.

"I'd like to write the events in my life when they're still fresh in my mind." The blonde protested.

"I can understand the need to do so, but now is not the time. What if your mother finds them?" Going on the offensive, Luna now stood on all four paws readying for another crusade on the side of reason.

Leaning back in her chair, the girl shrugged. "Then I'll tell her I'm Sailor Moon, no big deal. What's no danger in her finding out. I was going to tell her eventually."

"What about Amy, Raye, Lita, and Mina? Do you tell them about this?"

"Well..." Serena's eyes wandered around the room.

"Well?" Luna narrowed her eyes.

With slumped shoulders, Serena surrendered. "You have a point."

The feline relaxed and sighed. "Please remember Serena, the other girls trust you. What would you do if they felt like they couldn't trust you anymore?"

"Yes, yes, yes, I understand Luna." Serena's slightly agitated voice radiated from the shelter of her closet before she emerged with her long pink bunny patterned pajamas. "I'll ask them about it before I do anything."

After laying out her bed clothes, the girl paused and gave her pet a thoughtful look. "Do you trust me?"

Luna's ears perked at this yet her eyes remained closed.

Silence passed as she contemplated the question.

Unfortunately, the silence had been too much for the blonde's patience. "Don't tell me you-"

"Trust is a very particular thing, Serena." Luna interrupted and proceeded carefully. "I can't trust that you'll be to school on time, but I can always trust you're decisions."

"Why's that?"

The cat paused once again before meeting her master's eyes. "It’s because you have a good heart, Serena. You only wish to do the right thing. You've proven it time and again. That's why I trust you."

The blonde girl smiled and decided against bothering her advisor with any more questions and get ready for bed.

As Serena struggled with the top button of her blouse, a sudden rapid pounding broke the peace of the house. Both master and pet jumped to attention and glanced at each before rushing out the bedroom door.

"I'm coming, I'm coming, jeez." Serena whispered to herself as the knocking continued.

'I wonder ... ' Serena racked her brain with questions as the pounding became louder and more urgent.

Who could it be? Could it be Raye? No, why would she be out at this time of night? In fact, why would any of her friends is pounding at her door this late without calling her first?

'Could it be him? Maybe he got out early from Osaka,’ The thought of her fiancé sent her racing down the stairs even faster, ‘knowing he'd be coming here to a virtually empty house.'

'Very convenient,’ unvirtuous fantasies danced through Serena's mind as she chimed. "I'm coming."

Luna gracefully leapt down the stairs after Serena, beating her to the bottom. Serena's eagerness worried her, especially when she noticed the wry grin pasted on her face.

"Listen, Serena,” Luna lectured as her master hopped over her, "I know you've missed Darien very much over the last few weeks, but you really has no idea know who's at the door."

"Calm down Luna," Serena rolled her eyes at the dark feline while the pounding continued. "Remember I am Sailor Moon. If I need to, I'll transform and zap em'.

"Now if you'll excuse me," the blonde girl grabbed the door handle, "I have to welcome Darien home."

With one clean jerk, Serena threw open the door and flung her arms wide. "Welcome-"

Serena's large smile wilted once she saw a complete stranger staring back at her, "... back."

Instead of Serena's tall, dark, and handsome prince, a woman in filthy, gray military-type clothing badly in need of tailoring leaned against the doorframe. Upon seeing Serena, the strange woman gasped and fell to her knees in homage.

Stunned, Serena could only cough and croak. "Um... please get up. Please? You don't have to kneel like that."

Slowly, the woman raised herself to her feet. The woman kept her red reamed eyes fixed on the floor and brushed aside some of her dirt streaked blonde hair. "I'm sorry your Majesty. I did not mean any disrespect."

Both cat and master glanced at each.

"Um, I don't think you got the right house." Serena stammered.

Curious, the woman raised her eyes and studied Serena's visage carefully. "Are you not Neo Queen Serenity?"

Serena reeled backward, and the woman reacted in turn. "Oh I'm sorry, I mean I thought I had the right time - Oh, nevermind. Um, perhaps I've made a mistake, you're still going by Sailor Moon, aren't you? Please ignore anything I was saying earlier."

"No!" Serena paused realizing that both her cat and the stranger looked at her dumbfounded. "No, uh, um, I'm not her at all. You must be mistaken. Try a couple of houses down. You might find her there."

"You are Usagi Tskuino, right?"

"No, I'm Serena Tskuino."

"Oh." The stranger blinked at the girl before noticing the black cat seated on the stairs behind her. "Luna's here, so I must be in a different time stream or something."

"Time stream?" Luna whispered to herself hoping the stranger didn't notice. "Who is this woman?"

"Hey Serena!" A shrill voice bellowed from atop of the stairs, "What's going on!? Who's at the door? Is it Darien?!"

Both Serena and Luna bristled, as they became keenly aware that Reenie had awakened. Even before Serena could utter any protest, Reenie appeared at the foot of the stairs in a flash.

"Darien!" Reenie squeaked as she blindly leapt at the stranger.

Her excitement quickly faded when she noticed that she clung to a chest much softer and rounder than the muscular, broad one she had expected. The shocked little pink haired girl let go and involuntarily wiped her hands on her blue nightgown.

"You must be the crown princess of Crystal Tokyo." A smile grew on the woman's face, as she patted the pink-haired child on the head, "You look so much like your mother."

Reenie jumped back and stammered, "Uhhh, heh, I don't know what you're talking about, heh."

Quickly, the child regained her composure and grinned while growling softly to Serena. "Who is this woman?"

Serena couldn't answer and she could hear none from Luna either. The blonde woman began to rub the side of her arm and studied the doorframe. Silence passed, as the Serena, her daughter, and the stranger fidgeted in place. Finally, the blonde stranger drove up her courage to speak.

"Well, um, I'm very sorry. You must think I'm rude. I haven't introduced myself." The stranger smiled meekly while toying with her ruby bracelet. "Uh, I'm-"

"A Traveller." A cold, calm voice finished. "And an unwelcome guest."

"The Time Guardian." The blonde woman froze and a vice grip held her throat as a tall woman emerged from the darkness. "Oh no."