2047/Venus Intersects Mercury

Venus Intersects Mercury
Date of Scene:	19 October 2016
Location:	Pikarigaoka - Clover Tower
Synopsis:	Minako's back -- and Ami wants to make sure it's for real.
Cast of Characters:	Ami Mizuno, Minako Aino

---

Ami Mizuno has posed:
Sleep is not a thing Ami has gotten a lot of lately. The first night after Sailor Earth's appearance, she stayed up all night researching any number of topics related to the girl. It's not that she felt some pressing need to solve things quickly; she simply lost track of time while delving into physics, the occult, Eternity MAIN's database, and translating Eiszapfen's (very limited) information on the girl's energy signature.

Then there was school, and Naru's wonderful contribution of caffeine, followed by a swim practice, and finally home for a brief nap. Except the nap never happened, because there was something else niggling at the back of her mind.

Exhaustion is less important than knowing.

Thus, lying in bed, Ami picks up her Sailor Scout communicator, and starts sending a message.

    From Mercury: Are you staying? Or is this a temporary return?

Minako Aino has posed:
    Going back to school after being able to skip for months at a time can be difficult, especially when exactly zero of that time was spent keeping up and studying. Luckily aside from the time out of her day it takes Minako Aino was able to quickly and easily slip back into place as if nothing had ever happened. The reason for this being that she cheats terribly using a pen that can only write the truth. Artemis wouldn't approve, but that never stopped her before.

    Volleyball practice after school was a fun distraction, though a partially annoying one because of how far out of practice she was. Luckily she was rather active while she was away so being out of shape wasn't an issue.

    Rather than going home she hit arcade, boosting her confidence by having a few rounds at the Sailor V game. Even rusty she was still spectacular at it, though she didn't manage to take the high score away from Ami.

    That done she'd slipped into the Command Center when nobody was looking and had a quick chat with Artemis and Luna before quickly looking over what information, if any, was in the database about Sailor Earth as well as skimming over what research Mercury or anyone else had done.

    She's hitting the streets when she gets the message, finally deciding it's about time to go home. From Mercury? That's odd. She'd almost expect to have seen her in the Command Center itself if she thought something was important enough to contact her this way.

    Reading the message explains succinctly why this wouldn't be the case. Minako slows down and comes to a stop, staring at her communicator watch for several moments before replying.

    From Venus: Yes.

    Half a minute later there's more.

    From Venus: My mission is complete. ...and Usagi needs me. I can't just abandon her.

Ami Mizuno has posed:
While she waits for a reply, Ami gets out of bed and makes her way to the kitchen. If she's not going to sleep, she might as well caffeinate. Half a can of coke later, and Venus' reply comes back.

Right. Abandonment.

Ami rolls her eyes and mumbles, "That didn't stop you before."

But that isn't exactly the right way to respond, so she doesn't send it. Instead, she finishes her coke, then sighs and reads the words again.

    From Mercury: I'm not going to even ask what your 'mission' was, but you didn't exactly leave on good terms.

What else should she even say? Venus--the old Venus from the Silver Millenium--was supposed to be their leader; she was the most knowledgable and dedicated to Princess Serenity's safety, and she was a vital member of the team.

And Ami has been trying to do her job for far too long. It's wearing her thin, and she isn't good at it. So she sends another message shortly on the heels of the previous.

    From Mercury: Can we meet somewhere to talk?

Minako Aino has posed:
    Minako continues down the street towards her house, only for her communicator to beep at her again. She reads the message and stares at it for a few moments before blinking and shooting back a reply.

    From Venus: I was dismantling the remnants of the Dark Kingdom across the world and destroying their Lieutenants. They weren't just going to go away when Beryl and Metallia died.

    It takes a bit of effort to snip some extra snarkiness out of the message, Minako sighing and wishing she'd been more clear about where she'd be and what she'd be doing while she was gone. If she ever has to do something like that again regular status updates are going to be a thing, and if they don't get relayed to the team she'll have some cats to skin.

    She isn't expecting the next message that comes. It is at once both worrying and a relief. Worrying because of what Ami might want to talk about given their conversation and a relief because even Sailor Mercury being ticked off at her sounds like a lot more fun than dealing with her parents. She swings her head around to look for someplace obvious. Ah, there we go.

    From Venus: Sure. Meet me on top of Clover Tower in five minutes.

    For anyone else that might be offensively short notice, but she knows Sailor Mercury doesn't have to walk to the location. As for herself? Minako ducks into a nearby alleyway and a moment later Sailor Venus jumps out and across the rooftops, a streak of white, blonde, and orange.

Ami Mizuno has posed:
Five minutes is more than enough time for Ami to cross the city. Tossing her discarded can in the trash, she heads back to her bedroom to grab her pen ... then stops when she spots the bracelet on the bedside table. The little halberd seems to glisten, beckoning to her.

But this isn't a Magical Girl issue. This isn't a VIRTUE issue. This is a Senshi issue, and she hasn't been supping on Dark Energy by accident recently. A little upset isn't going to break the world, this time.

So she ignores the bracelet entirely, picks up her pen, and raises it high.

"Mercury Star Power!"

* * * * *

Seconds--not minutes--later, Sailor Mercury is crouched atop Clover Tower, arms around her knees, back to a wall, staring up at the stars while she waits for Venus to catch up to her.

Minako Aino has posed:
    A few minutes later Venus shoots up from, raising twenty feet or so above the top of the roof before arcing over it and dropping down with a click of her heels. Her posture and expression are similar, apprehensive but unguarded. She isn't entirely sure what to expect but considering the conversation that led up to the meeting she can't it's anything as simple as a strategy discussion and information swap.

    It doesn't take her any time at all to find the crouched form of Mercury, and she walks up, stopping at a comfortable distance before making an effort at relaxing and standing casually. "Mercury. Wow, you have gotten fast." She shifts her weight, one arm moving behind her back and reaching across to hold her opposite arm in a non-threatening way, "Well, I'm here. What was it you wanted to talk about?"

    Venus has plenty of ideas, the question is which issue between herself and Ami and the other Senshi that has on her mind.

Ami Mizuno has posed:
Mercury's eyes drift down from the heavens to the girl before her. Caffeine works wonders, but she still looks tired. "Subspace has a way of circumventing 'time' in favor of 'space'," she points out quietly.

A moment, she studies Venus, then looks back towards the stars again. "Did you ever wonder why there are five of us this time around?" she asks curiously. "Serenity wasn't a Senshi last time. But Usagi is, now."

Minako Aino has posed:
    "Let me know if you find a way to manipulate 'subtime', too." It's mostly a joke, an attempt at a silly ice breaker while also deflecting any attempted barb without coming off as defensive.

    Venus is a little taken aback by the question, frowning slightly and looking away, "Sometimes, but I try not to." Still looking away she elaborates, "Mostly I wonder if it's something Queen Serenity did on purpose, because the Princess needed to be able to defend herself this time. Maybe because I failed her as a protector. Maybe because I didn't do a good enough job leading the Senshi. She's certainly turning out to be a better leader than I ever was."

    Sailor Venus looks back to Mercury now and shrugs, "It could just as easily be the case Usagi is getting the power Queen Serenity once held, though if the Queen was ever a Sailor Senshi I never knew about it."

Ami Mizuno has posed:
Mercury's eyes harden a little as she looks back to Sailor Venus. Something in the response didn't sit well with her, but she doesn't yell about it. She does, however, plant her heels firmly and push up to her feet, riding the wall until she's standing against it instead of crouched down.

Eye-to-eye (mostly), Mercury studies the blonde in silence, then tries to school her expression to something less hostile. It's hard. She's angry. And the conversation isn't helping, right now.

"Yeah, you definitely failed her," she says. "But so did I, and so did Jupiter, and Mars. I mean, you were the leader, but the burden wasn't yours alone.

"Have you ever considered that maybe," Ami suggests, "just maybe, the problem was outside of our control? That we couldn't have done any better, with just the four of us? Maybe there's five because we need there to be five."

Minako Aino has posed:
    Venus shifts on her feet as Mercury stands, meeting her gaze when it's clear that's what she's after, letting her confront her as an equal with her body language as much as action. She doesn't budge or back down, but she doesn't straighten or assert herself either. Whether or not Mercury is testing her with her posture Venus is treating her like she is.

    "Not alone, but a good leader treats the failure of their subordinates as a failure of their own. If you don't you run the risk of getting lax, and that's when things start coming apart." Her tone is firm and partially informative, as if this is the simple truth rather than an opinion she holds. A moment later in a quiet voice she adds, "It didn't 'come apart' though. It was blasted apart in an instant that I never saw coming."

    As Mercury speaks again Venus crosses her arms and stands with her legs together, one toe pointed at Mercury with another angled away. Her questions are grating and particularly good at reopening old wounds, and the accusatory tone that she now begins with finally does put her on the defensive. Then, a moment later Minako actually laughs, and it isn't the haughty, short 'Ha' of someone about to blow off what was just said.

    Instead it's amused, soft laughter, "Makoto said something similar to me the other day. That I couldn't stop things from going out of control, and that instead of trying to stop them I need to focus on being ready to deal with them once they do. She was right," Her folded arms unfold as she makes a gesture towards Ami, "and so are you."

    Her head gives a small shake, "It isn't me me she needs, though she might think it is. It's US me she needs. The five of us together, working as a team. It's why she's such a good leader and why I've been such a bad one; she knew right from the start how important it was for us to work together as friends, and I only ever treated people like tools. You more than anybody."

Ami Mizuno has posed:
The flat-out admission of fault--not the assigning of blame to self, but the honest admission of fault in doing so in the first place--takes Ami completely by surprise. And it's all-too-evident that she wasn't expecting it, because her eyes widen and she leans back a little, as if pushed by some unseen hand.

Good thing she has a wall to lean on.

Sailor Mercury overcomes her little bout of confusion quickly, then blinks and looks away to try and sift through her feelings on it. Her lips thin, and she lowers her gaze to the rooftop, then lets out a soft sigh.

"When you failed to join us in the attack on Kunzite," she begins softly, "I wasn't sure what to make of it. I've learned a lot about who we were--who you were--in the intervening months. And if you remembered things more poignantly than the rest of us, then I think I get why you didn't want to do what was necessary."

When Ami's gaze returns to Venus', it's no longer a challenge or a judgement; there's pain and exhaustion there, now, along with sympathy and ocncern. "I didn't even trust myself to bring him back; asking you to trust me was out of the question. Moreso because we were so clearly not seeing eye to eye on anything, in those days."

There's a brief pause, before Ami continues, "We're supposed to be a team. To work together. The fact that there were lieutenants of the Dark Kingdom we never even knew about ..." She hesitates, before again continuing, "... that you went off to deal with it yourself intead of talking to us. That ..." a grimace, then Mercury looks away. "How are we supposed to be a team, if we can't even talk to one another, Mina?"

Minako Aino has posed:
    The surprise that Mercury feels does not come as a surprise to Venus. That exact admission shocking her isn't something she'd have guessed, but she realizes very well just how badly she'd treated everyone, just how awful their opinion of her must be, and rightly so.

    It's a positive sign, and hopefully it will show Mercury she intends for things to be different this time, but just as before Ami's questions and comments cut her right to the bone, because they're so on point. Well, Minako never doubted her analytical abilities. "I couldn't join in. I'm sorry, but I couldn't. Magic's power comes from emotion, and mine were so clouded... what if my not wanting to kill him was more true than my desire to work as a team? What if my unease spread to everyone else? He had to be stopped, and you could stop him without me. I know it hurt, but it wasn't a risk I was willing to take."

    Her heel grinds against the roof of Sunset Tower beneath her, and she grips her forearms a little too tightly through her gloves, angry with herself and chafing, keeping her gaze off of Mercury so she doesn't misunderstand and think it's directed towards her. "He's why I blame myself, you know. In the Silver Millennium I never suspected him as he helped turn the Golden Kingdom against us after Beryl got to him. I was too-" she shakes her head. "If I'd been more careful maybe I could have noticed, could have stopped him. But I didn't even suspect him until he at the head of an army."

    Her hands let go of her forearms and she waves her right one dismissively, as if that is all frivolous and in the past, "I shouldn't have let that color my judgment this time, but I did, Ami. The first time around I didn't watch him carefully enough and I had to run him through myself. The second time around I was so scared I watched him like a hawk... but I couldn't do it again."

    She finally turns her blue eyes back to Ami's, "Sorry. Maybe you didn't want to hear all that, but that's what we need, right? To understand each other. Well, hopefully now you can understand me a little better. The truth is I wasn't okay before, and I haven't been since this whole thing started. I'm sorry I took it out on you all instead of trying to work through it with you."

    As to going off on her own? Minako looks up to the stars, eyes slowly panning across the sky, idly trying to find the bright twinkle of the planets, "I had to be alone. I had to think. And back then I was still so mad at everybody else I didn't realize I was the one I should have been mad with. It took me months to even realize what I'd been doing to everyone. It was stupid and it might have made things worse, but not as much worse as if I'd stayed."

Ami Mizuno has posed:
Ami watches Minako carefully while she explains everything. She listens, and she tries very hard not to judge any of the words being said until they're all out. It's especially hard when she's this tired, but somehow she manages to at least avoid interruption.

When Venus explains why she left, Ami just lets out a soft sigh and nods her head. She accepts the answer, even if she doesn't particularly care for it. "Right," she says softly. "Well, I guess that makes sense. But it does sorta leave us with this big elephant inthe room that I'm not willing to ignore. Usagi-chan forgives you. Of course she does, because it's who she is, and it's why she's so good for all of us. But I can't ... let things go that easily. I want this, Venus. More than anything, I want us to be a team. I'm tired of trying to do this without your help. But I'm also scared of what trusting you will mean. So ..." she trails off, then shrugs. "I guess I don't know where that leaves us. But you hurt us. You hurt me. And then you left that wound open for a long time. It won't heal quickly."

Minako Aino has posed:
    Minako smiles when Mercury notes that Usagi forgives her because of course she does out of fondness for the girl, but she quickly becomes more serious as Ami speaks to her own feelings. "I don't expect you to. I treated you like a tool and then I attacked you for doing the right thing."

    Venus turns away from Ami and looks out over the city, all the multitude of glittery high-rises and the single family homes off in the distance. "Unfortunately we don't have a choice. I can't keep away to give you more time to heal, not with this ridiculous 'Sailor Earth' business. I'll try to make it easier for you if I can. I'm not going to order you around anymore; if I need something I'll ask. I'm not 'our' leader anymore anyway, Usagi-chan is. I'm not even fit to be the leader of her guard until the rest of you trust me."

    At this she pauses and looks over her shoulder, "Jupiter is holding onto the Holy Sword for me. If you want to run any analyses on it ask her; I'm curious how 'Earth's energy will react to it. If it's antithetical at all that should be all the proof anyone needs to know how much of a fraud she is." Blue eyes turn back to the city, eyebrows lowered and a hard expression in them. "Not that they should need it."

    She turns back to Ami, "I don't know where that leaves us, either. You have my help if you want it or need it, but I understand if you don't trust me. Hopefully being around will take some of the pressure off of you." After a moment of quiet she realizes something and adds, "...thanks for keeping things together while I was away."

Ami Mizuno has posed:
Ami grimaces and looks away just faintly. "I didn't, really," she says quietly. "I mostly just fell apart, myself. Usagi-chan ..." she trails off. "Well, she's the one who did most of the keeping things together.

"But I am glad you're back," mostly. "And I'm glad you came here to talk with me tonight," completely. "I hope we can keep talking like this--being honest with one another. It makes a difference."

Minako Aino has posed:
    "She was always such a crybaby, and yet sometimes I find myself thinking she's the strongest one of us all," Minako comments quietly in a distant sounding voice. A few moments later she nods, "I'll keep in touch. I haven't spoken with Rei-chan yet, but I will soon."

    She turns again, stepping to the edge of Clover Tower before looking back over her shoulder again, "Maybe it won't be soon, but I hope some day we can all trust each other like we trust Usagi-chan." She'll be trying to earn hers back, if it ever existed in the first place. If Mercury doesn't seem to have anything else important to say she'll jump down off of the tall tower and down into the city.

Ami Mizuno has posed:
Mercury nods her head, faintly, in reply. "Take care of yourself," she says to Venus as she watches her get ready to go. "And if you do need anything ..." she trails off just faintly, leaving the implication unstated. She'll go home later. Right now, there are stars to stare at again.