Planet Bound: Venus by Marj Note: okaa-san - mother Please e-mail your comments and constructive criticisms at . Thanks! Disclaimers: The characters of Bishoujo Senshi Sailormoon were created by Naoko Takeuchi-san, its copyright owned by Toei Animation, Kodansha, Nakayoshi, Sterling Animation Inc., and many other companies scattered throughout the world. Meaning, I cannot claim the characters as my own, and am mearly borrowing them. The character Ayukawa Himeru is mine. So please don't sue, as I don't earn anything from this other than the satisfaction of making a story. CHAPTER FIFTEEN: VENUS ON VENUS Minako looked at the people that filled the chamber room where she and Himeru had suddenly appeared. There were plenty of guards surrounding them, around twenty or thirty, all in armored suits. A beautiful woman with blond hair and blue eyes such as herself stood at the front of the guards, and slightly behind her was a handsome young man with dark brown hair and dazzling green eyes. She looked at herself, and saw that she wasn't in her school uniform anymore. She was wearing a long gown fit for a princess, in the color of her sailor fuku. She also noticed that Himeru also wasn't in his uniform, but in a uniform almost like the man - minus the cape - standing behind the woman. The woman was looking at her with tears in her eyes. "Welcome to Venus, my child. Welcome home . . ." Minako stared at her. ". . . Mother?" The woman smiled softly as she approached her. She took Minako's shaking hand and placed it on her face. Minako moved her hand gently, trying to remember the delicate curves of the woman's cheeks, the warm blue eyes that stared at her with all her love. "Do you remember now, child?" the woman asked. Giving a smile that was identical to the one the woman was giving her, the princess of Venus nodded. And after thousands of years of separation, mother and child were reunited, and they shared a tearful hug. "You don't know how long I've hoped that I would be able to hold you in my arms again," Elder Venus said, pulling gently away, her tender hands on her daughter's shoulders. "I'm sorry, Mother, for not remembering sooner. It's just . . . it's been so long since . . . " Elder Venus nodded. "More than a thousand years." She turned to the white cat that dangled on Minako's shoulder. He had been a slight hindrance to their sweet embrace earlier. "It's nice to see you again, Artemis. I see that you haven't separated yourself from her." Artemis smiled. "I'd rather keep up with my duties as her guardian, Your Majesty," he said. "I hope she wasn't too much trouble," Elder Venus said, her eyes twinkling. Minako blushed a bit as Artemis looked at her. "If you catch her at the right time, she can be a very efficient leader. *If* it is the right time. If not, whooh boy." The queen of Venus raised her eyebrows. "I see. She hasn't really changed then, has she?" "Oh, she's changed a bit," Artemis said. He suddenly heard Minako gasp, and he looked at her worriedly. "What's wrong?" "I just realized something. I'm not having any difficulty breathing, and my lungs feel like they've been relieved of a 100 pound lead weight!" Her mother smiled. "There is a certain unexplainable magic here that removes all ailments for quite some time until the sufferers are completely well. It rarely works, and why it doesn't want to take effect on other people, we don't know. Some of the people of this solar system try their luck, though." "For quite some time until they're completely well, Okaa-san? Time like days or weeks?" Artemis shook his head. "More like months. Maybe even years." "Oh." Minako looked sad for a moment. Artemis knew why. he thought. "Umm, by the way. Where are we?" Minako asked, trying to pick up a cheerful tone again. "In our castle, dear," the queen answered. "Our castle . . . the Magellan Castle, right, Artemis? The one floating in space over the plains of Aphrodite that you showed me when you tried to revive Sailorvenus - no, Sailor V?" Minako asked. The white cat on her shoulder nodded. “Sailor V?” Her mother asked. “A form I took before I completely recovered my memories and became Sailorvenus.” Elder Venus smiled fondly at the cat. "You have done your work well, Artemis. Thank you." Artemis smiled. He recalled the day when he had first spoken with Minako in her bathroom with a towel wrapped around her. The poor teenager had been so shocked, that she had thrown him out of the window and ran to her bedroom! "Perhaps the young princess would like to rest, Your Majesty," the young man with dark brown hair said, giving Minako a gentle smile that could have easily turned her eyes into hearts. "It has been a long trip from Earth to here." Minako shook her head. "Oh, I'm not tired. But I think Himeru-san is." The young man raised his eyebrows. "Himeru?" Himeru cleared his throat. "Umm . . ." The man nodded in understanding. "I see." Turning back to the small family, he said, "Well then, perhaps Your Highnesses would like to spend some time together in a more appropriate place than here in the portal room . . . ?" Elder Venus smiled. "Yes, let's. Come, child. It has been a while since you were home." The small royal family left. The man turned around. "All right, men. You may take your leave now," he said, addressing the guards around them, except for the four who were guarding that area of the castle. Himeru approached the older, dark-haired man as they walked outside the chamber. "You didn't have to send that youma. I could have handled things on my own." "Oh, really? You sure didn't seem to be," the man said as they walked through the halls of the palace. "Then what did you think I was doing, anyway?" Himeru demanded. "Falling in love." "I was not falling in love!!!" The man looked skeptical. "That's not what the reports said." Himeru frowned and looked away. "I didn't know it was her, okay? So don't look at me as though I've done something wrong." "I know you didn't mean it, brother." His grip on Himeru's shoulder grew tighter. "But please, try to control yourself now that you know who she is." Himeru sighed. "I know, I know." The man started to walk away from him. "Never let your emotions cloud your judgement. You should know that, Anchises. You are a warrior, and as a warrior you should not have fallen in love and let that take over your mission, which is to search for the princess. Make sure that mistake does not happen again, all right?" "All right." Himeru said half-heartedly. The man looked back. "I'm just concerned about you. If you ever get sent into war, keep all that you had been taught in the front of your mind. Otherwise, you'll fall." Himeru watched the man's cape swirl as he walked further down the hall. When he turned around the corner and disappeared, Himeru punched the wall with all his frustration. he thought as he walked on, leaving a small dent on the crystalline wall of Magellan Castle.