Thanks so much for reviewing those who did! I love it when people review. (As all writers do…) So I'm sorry that I'm so slow in writing. I'm taking a new class, and it's getting me all screwed up. So onward. 

Heart's Desire

-Ki Ai Sky-

Raps to Ashes

Rei was quite pleased with her work. She'd gotten Jaden to clean everything. The entire Temple smelled pleasantly of lemon-scented cleaner. It almost sparkled, but the place was old. It stopped sparkling from cleaning products maybe a decade ago. This place was used for more than sparkling. It was the headquarters for the Sailor Senshi, where magic and ancient prophecies were fulfilled. Jaden went to his new room reluctantly a few minutes ago. Rei was exhausted; it had been a long day.

She laid her head down, closing her eyes. She drifted off into sleep not but a minute later. She didn't dream, but woke up hours later. She yawned, upset that it went by so quickly for her. She quickly changed her clothes, into something that was presentable for the day. She brushed her teeth and did her hair and makeup.

She tiptoed down the hall, toward Jaden's room. Hoping to surprise her lover, she kept as quiet as possible. She came to the room, and pressed her ear to the wall, listening for any signs of life. It was all silent. Then she heard voices, but not from the direction she thought she would. They were coming from the kitchen area.

"Bahaha!" one of them called. She would have recognized that voice even if she were deaf. Jaden was bellowing about something. The other one must have been Grandpa.

"You think you're a tough one don't you, sonny? Well, my Rei is more than tough enough to deal with your riffraff," her grandfather informed. His tone was serious, but Rei knew that he just wanted to see Jaden squirm. Jaden didn't have any reason to worry though, she wasn't feeling up to giving him a hard time today. There were more pressing matters to attend to.

"Don't worry, Grandpa. Rei knows how to make me work. Well, I cleaned the entire Shrine yesterday," Jaden gloated. He was going to get in trouble if he kept pushing her grandfather's buttons like that.

"Well yippee for you. And don't call me Grandpa!" her grandfather retorted poorly. He didn't sound as mad as Rei thought he would. Maybe he really was impressed by the cleanliness of the place. It did look good. And Jaden did have his charm…

"Good morning boys," Rei said as she stepped into view. The two were sitting down, with a kettle tea between them. Their two cups were nearly full, which meant they hadn't gotten up too long ago. She could smell the sweet scents coming from the leaves. Ginseng, she thought, recognizing the scent instantaneously. She went to the cupboard and took out a cup of her own, taking a seat next to Jaden quickly.

"We don't need help around here anymore, Rei," Grandpa said begrudgingly, looking at Jaden with a glare. "I've got everything under control."

"Jaden is a friend who needed a place to stay and a way to make some sort of a living. He's willing to do everything you say, when he's home from classes," she looked sad, using her feminine wiles and her grandfather's love against him. She knew he would cave, but he would make life very difficult for her beau. It wasn't cruel or deceptive, it was Rei.

"Well, if you say so," Grandpa grumbled. He looked like he still had something up his butt, sideways, but dropped the subject. He sipped his tea loudly; the slurping was louder than any other noises. Rei looked at the clock, noticing the time. She and Jaden would have to leave very soon if they were going to meet up with Luna and Artemis and the others to get the papers and information for the boys. They didn't have much time for pleasantries. They would have class in a few hours.

"We have to leave, but we'll be back soon!" she kissed his forehead and pulled Jaden along by his arm.

Once on the streets, they walked a quick pace, trying to get there as fast as possible. Jaden was reluctant to walk, preferring other methods.

"Can't we just use our powers? This is so slow," he whined quietly in her ear. It was so much faster if they did as he pleaded. Being in their human guises had left them with human abilities. He was unaccustomed to being normal. It was rather dull.

"No. You need to get used to being like everyone else. You can't just tap into your magic when you don't feel like walking. If you are going to live with me in this world, you have to live like the people that live here," Rei tried her best to explain. Jaden was being difficult on purpose, and she didn't want to deal with that. Drama queen…

"This is bull," he huffed. What was the point of being special if he couldn't really be it? He had to protect the world, but couldn't reap the benefits of it.

"Don't whine. Someday soon, there will be a time when we don't have to hide who we are. Usagi and Mamoru will be the keepers of Crystal Tokyo, and there will be peace," she nudged him gently on the arm. She couldn't wait for that time to come. It seemed so far off though.

It took them what seemed like forever, but they made it to Usagi's house. They knocked on the door, and were let in by Shingo, Usagi's brother. He gave Jaden a strange look, almost incredulous, but said nothing other than that his sister was in her room. They expressed their gratitude and went on the search for her blonde friend. They found her room full of people, all familiar faces.

"Good morning," Luna said in a chipper voice. The pairs of Senshi and Shitennou were looking a lists of papers. "Come get Jadeite's information."

They picked up sheets of paper, all looking very crisp and official.

The first was a birth certificate. It stated his name; birthday, which apparently was on December 12 and made him twenty-one years old; his parents Kiyoshi Puishi and Tohru; and all kinds of other information. The second was a history, claiming his parents' tragic deaths in a freak hang gliding accident and how he came to Juuban. The third was info on a bank account, which, apparently, was loaded with money. Rei wanted to ask Luna how they'd done that, but she knew that if she were to ask it would just cause more problems. There was a thin black wallet in a bag, which had a driver's license, credit/debit card, some cash, a student ID, and what looked to be an health insurance card. Last was a class schedule for this year.

All of this knowledge had been gathered quickly, meaning Luna and Artemis were getting very good at forging documents. No one really knew if they used magic or technology to do such things, but it all was done.

Everyone was comparing notes. The stories were all very different, which made it hard to place them together. No one would ever be able to tell that these men were all not who they said they were. Nathaniel Shika was originally from Western Europe, son of a wealthy vineyard owner who had chosen to study in Japan, age twenty-two. Zander Versa was from America, his parents died when he was just a baby and he was adopted into a family from Nerima, Japan, and chose to study in Juuban, close to home, age twenty. Kuzon Hibiki was a transfer from Tokyo, where his mother lived with his stepfather, who was a large toy producer, age twenty-three.

It all seemed to be taken care of rather easily. They wouldn't even have to go to the admissions office to get settled in. They all had some classes together, so they would never be alone. There was almost always someone they knew. It seemed to be okay. Well, that's what they thought so far, considering they hadn't even started yet. They left shortly after comparing notes, not wanting to be late for their boys' first day. They took the metro back, knowing it was faster than running, and they didn't want to risk using their powers and getting caught. The ride was confusing for the Shitennou. They had no idea what they were looking at around them. Their Senshi tried their best to explain what everything was.

"How did they build those buildings out of metal?" "What is a car?" The questions just kept piling up, growing harder and harder to answer. Eventually, they girls told them to go read a book to get the information they sought. They gave up on their inquiries. They'd figure it out in time.

Once they had finally reached the school, they departed slowly. Rei and Jaden had their first class together, which was Literature of the Ages. Rei was trying to get her degree in Theatre Arts. She wanted to be an actress, but not on film, on stage. She loved to sing and act, and felt that it was her calling. Then there was the minor in Spiritual Teachings. She knew she would have to take over the temple at some point in her life. She was already a priestess, but she had so much more to learn about the Shinto faith.

Jaden's major in Poetry had a lot of similar classes as hers. He probably wasn't deep enough to handle it, but Rei couldn't wait to see him squirm. Who knew? Maybe he would turn out to have the heart of a poet, well, that is, underneath the heart of a lover and a warrior. That's kind of complex for Jadeite, but it could work. (Nah…) He had Literature or the Ages with Rei, Instructional Mathematics with Usagi and the other Shitennou except Zander, Poets' Circle with no one, Other Worldly Writing with Minako and Mamoru, Botany with Makoto and Nathaniel, a lunch break with everyone, Basic World Studies with all of the Shitennou and Usagi. His day was packed. Luckily, classes were only an hour long, so they got out relatively early. It was just like High School for Rei again. Except, now, she was finally allowed to go to school with the other girls.

Rei's classes were more advanced than those of Jaden, but only because she had attended schooling in this lifetime, while he had not. The boys were in classes with Usagi because, well, it was known that she wasn't the best at school. And the boys, they didn't even know what school was.

His first class with Rei was simple. They were reading a famous novel from the middle ages, written by a man named Shakespeare called Macbeth. It was an interesting story about a deranged tyrant that intrigued Jaden. He was drawn to it, maybe because it reminded him of his own past situation in some ways more than others. His second class was not so easy. Who knew numbers were so complicated? He, Kuzon, and Nathaniel felt completely dumbfounded, while Usagi, when compared to them, felt much smarter.

Poet's Circle was taught by the strangest man Jaden had ever met; he had long gray hair, not the silver of Kuzon's, which was wound into thin strands, resembling ropes. He dressed in all green with small blue sandals. Jaden tried his best not to say anything to insult the elder, but, great Kami, was that difficult. The first thing that the class was told to do was write a "rap" while listening to one. Jaden raised his hand and asked what a "rap" was while receiving odd looks from the class. He soon caught on. He spent the first half of the class combining different phrases and ideas to describe his feelings when he was in a battle all of those years ago. It was angry and fast, telling of the sight when his katana met the brittle flesh of the demon and the look upon its face as it exploded into oblivion. The second half hour the class was asked to share their writings with everyone else. One of the boys started to make choking noises, which Jaden learned to be known as beat-boxing. He shared his piece shakily, feeling very embarrassed that he had to read his out loud for everyone. But, soon grew into it and it seemed to flow. He received a small round of applause, his fellow classmates not really understanding what he was trying to convey.

Other Worldly Writing was much easier. He had that class with Mamoru and Minako, so they were able to answer his questions. They wrote haikus, and Jaden already knew what those were. Botany seemed like a rather stupid class to take; who cared about plants? Makoto didn't seem to share his opinion of the class, but he seemed to think it had something to do with her Jovian roots. Nathaniel backed his woman fully, even though he was much more of a stars kind of person over plants.

Lunch was such a relief. They all met in the courtyard, gathering around a large tree in the cool shade. He scooped Rei up the first moment he saw her. He sat her down on his lap as he sat Indian-style. Makoto had made lunch for everyone, a treat for their first day. There was handmade sushi, plenty of still hot rice, dim sum, and stir-fry. Everything was still warm, somehow, and Jaden didn't doubt that Rei had something to do with it. They ate peacefully, explaining the details of their day. Things were moving smoothly for the protectors of Earth on their first day of college.

Well… that is until the explosion went off.

The sky was suddenly covered in a black ash and smoke, clouding the vision of all of the people in Juuban. It was thick, making the air warm and heavy. Breathing was made difficult for all, even the Senshi and Shitennou in their human forms. They could all sense something powerfully dark not far away. It was so strong, it burned their senses.

"Transform, then we should be able to breathe," Mamoru shouted, his voice rasping painfully as he pulled out his red rose. Everyone obeyed without question. Luckily, the other students weren't able to see through the ash and smoke other than dim light from the transformation sequence.

"Mars Eternal Power! Make-up!" she shouted as she held up her left hand, doing as Minako, Ami, and Makoto had done. She had never transformed into her eternal form, and she wondered what would happen. After watching Ami be enveloped in a film of blue ribbons that exploded into a frozen mist, she felt very excited to try it out. But, nothing happened. "What? Why can't I transform?"

She tried to reach into her dimensional pocket, feeling her way around quickly. She could feel her henshin pen and pulled it out. It was her not an Eternal Broach or Wand, but her old one. She tore it out as fast as she could, calling out her old phrase. Sailor Mars stood a few moments later among the Eternal Inner Senshi. She felt left behind, like she didn't deserve to have her Eternal powers.

Jaden and the other Shitennou performed their hand signs, mumbling the names for them quickly. "Tora, Inu, Tatsu, Hitsuji." Their battle armor and weaponry appeared instantly in a flash of light. Jadeite looked to his side at Sailor Mars, noticing her sullen face and how her fuku was different from the others.

"Firebird, what's wrong?" Jadeite asked, definitely worried. If his Sailor Mars was in danger, he would do everything to protect her. He put his large hand on her slender shoulder, feeling the warmth of her body heat. She was warmer than anyone else on the planet, and his arms would never feel right unless she was in them.

"I'm not Eternal," she whispered, looking down at her fuku. It was not as elaborate was the others, but they knew that Eternal Sailor Moon's would be much more majestic with her shinning wings. Sailor Moon looked at her comrade, her face sympathetic.

"Don't worry, Mars. We'll figure this out. I'll make sure of it. Right now, we need to find out what's going on," Moon said, sounding more confident than she actually felt. There had to be some way that she could fix this. She was the Princess of the Moon, and there wasn't anything she couldn't do.

"Jadeite, you stay with her and keep her safe. We don't know what we're dealing with," Tuxedo Mask ordered. He cared about Mars, and didn't want anything to happen to her. The Shitennou were strong in different ways than the Senshi. They didn't need magic to fight, they had their strategies and weapons. They worked as a team, playing off each others strengths.

"Yes, sir. I won't let anything harm a hair on her head," Jadeite nodded, standing so that Mars was directly in front of him. He pulled his twin katana out of the sheaths. The air was still ash ridden, with the horrid scent of smoke. Breathing was much easier, but the air was still heavy.

"Come on," Venus said as she and Kunzite bounded off to where they could sense the dark energy coming from. It was a few blocks, almost a mile, but they made it their extremely fast. Jadeite carried Rei most of the way, because she struggled to keep up with everyone else. The Eternal Senshi had energy boots that affected their physical capabilities as well as magical ones.

It was on top of a tall skyscraper that they saw their new enemy.

So, I'm finally set on track once more. I know what I want to do, how I want to get there, and what my villains are after. It's pretty sweet. The idea might be stupid, but that's my thing. Oh well. Thanks for reading. Please review. Thanks to all of my new readers!

-Ki