School had just let out and Chibiusa was eagerly running home. On the way over one of the crossing bridges that traversed over the busy, traffic-heavy streets, she paused as a new store that had just recently opened caught her eye. The new ice cream parlor had already drawn a large crowd and there were people eating ice cream everywhere.
“Ooh! Mint chocolate chip!” she said, drooling slightly. She quickly snapped out of her hungry daze. “This is stupid,” she berated herself. “I’m not a kid anymore. Eating ice cream is childish. Besides, I have to hurry up and find the Silver Crystal.” That said, she turned and started to continue on her way.
“Chibiusa-chan!” Ami called out as she joined her on the street bridge. “On your way home?”
“Ami-chan,” she said in a slightly surprised tone.
“What were you looking at?” Ami asked curiously.
“Nothing,” she replied flatly as Ami glanced toward the same ice cream parlor that she had been looking at earlier.
“Oh, you were looking at that new ice cream parlor,” she surmised.
“I’m not interested in that,” Chibiusa remarked offhandedly and turned to leave.
“Really?” she asked, turning back to Chibiusa. “But, I heard that it’s really good. I’d like to go try some. Say, Chibiusa-chan, would you like to try some with me? My treat, of course.”
That got her attention. “Really?” Chibiusa said eagerly as she spun back around. “Well, if you insist, then I don’t mind.” She turned back around again and raced toward the other end of the bridge, toward the ice cream parlor. “Ami-chan, hurry!” she called out, waving back at her.
“Sure,” she said and followed after her.
“Eh?!? No way!!!” Usagi cried in disbelief.
“But, it’s true,” Luna simply replied.
“Ami-chan might be going to study abroad in Germany,” Rei said, her arms folded in front of her.
“She did get the highest score in the national mock exam for two years straight,” Minako added.
“There’s no doubt about the offer,” Makoto also added. “It’s almost surprising that something like this didn’t happen sooner.”
Usagi looked at Rei, sitting between Minako and the two cats, then to Makoto who was standing, like she was. They all had the same distraught expression she knew that she had. The only exception was Ryoku, who was sitting up on the roof with an expressionless look on his face as he stared out at nothing. She wanted to say something to him, but she didn’t know if anything she said would make him feel better. She knew he had to be feeling even worse than all of them; after all, she was his girlfriend.
“So, what’s Ami’s answer?” Artemis asked.
“I heard that she hasn’t made up her mind yet,” Minako said.
“I’m sure she wants to go,” Luna said.
“Ami-chan’s dream is to become a doctor like her mother,” Ryoku said as he continued to stare out at nothing, speaking for the first time since everyone he gathered at the Hiwaka Shrine. “And Germany is one of the best places to study medicine.”
“But…. But…. But–!” Usagi stammered, her mind racing. “I don’t ever want to say goodbye to Ami-chan! Besides…. Besides, she’s the precious brain behind our team! Who’ll figure out the enemy’s plans?”
“Usagi!” Rei shouted chidingly. “Have some consideration for Ami-chan’s feelings, too!”
“That’s right,” Minako agreed. “It won’t be easy without Ami-chan, but we’ll be okay if we all do our best.”
“Then, everyone thinks it’s okay if Ami-chan leaves?” Usagi asked.
Suddenly, Ryoku hopped down from the roof and started to leave without saying a word.
“Ryo-kun?” Usagi called out as she started after him, but stopped when she saw Makoto shaking her head.
“Leave him alone for now,” she told her. “I don’t think he wants to talk to anyone right now. Besides, I think he’s still trying to come to terms with Ami-chan leaving.”
“Ami-chan had cut down on her sleeping hours so she could study on the days when we fight,” Rei told her. “All of her hard work is finally about to pay off. How can we be selfish and stop her?”
“I think so, too,” Makoto agreed. “This opportunity may not come again.”
“Usagi-chan, didn’t you always say that you wanted everyone to have the chance to live a normal life?”
“You’re right,” Usagi said wistfully. “We should let Ami-chan go to Germany.”
“Usagi, that’s good!” Rei said approvingly.
“And of course, we must have a big farewell party for Ami-chan!” Minako suggested.
“Seconded!” all four girls declared at once.
As Minako, Makoto, and Rei began to discuss plans for the big farewell party, Usagi stared out toward where Ryoku had gone. Makoto said that he wanted to be left alone, but she had to know how he felt about Ami leaving.
Her mind made up, she took off after him.
Ryoku stood staring into the fountain in the middle of Sankaku Park, his face a picture of desolation. He had known for a while that she would be leaving for Germany – Ami had told him first; Rei had learned about it from him – but he still couldn’t believe it. First Keiko, now Ami? Was he fated to live his life alone?
But what could he do? This was Ami’s dream. He could never be so cruel and selfish as to deny her this opportunity just because he didn’t want her to leave him.
He had to let her go.
“So, you’re just going to let her go, just like that?” Usagi asked as she came up behind him. “Ami-chan is going to leave for Germany and you’re not going to try to stop her?!?”
He sighed ruefully to himself. Of course, she would follow after him. It was in her nature to try and help him. He didn’t particularly want to talk to her, but it was his fault for being so mentally distracted that he forgot to make sure that no one could follow him.
“It is her life, Usagi-chan…,” he began as he turned around, but stopped as she pointed a finger right under his nose. Or rather, thrust it under his nose.
“That is no excuse!” she exclaimed firmly. “You haven’t told her how important she is to you or what she means to you.” Her expression lightened as she smiled gently at him. “A girl may know how a boy feels about her, but she needs to be shown how he feels about her, too.”
Ryoku’s eyes had widened as he jerked back away from Usagi’s forceful reproach, but now he was staring at her with a measure of astonishment and rumination. “Usagi-chan…,” he said, his mind mulling over her words.
Usagi’s smile turned a little sad. “You aren’t going to try to stop her from going, are you?”
“Of course not,” he replied. “Becoming a doctor is her dream. I could never do that to her.”
“That’s good to hear,” she said, her smile warming a little. “So, shall we go back, Ryo-kun? There was something else that Luna and Artemis wanted to tell us.”
Ryoku sighed again and shrugged. “Might as well. Let’s go.”
After buying their ice cream cones, Ami and Chibiusa had walked over to Sankaku Park and sat down on one of the benches near the water fountain. Ami had bought herself strawberry, while Chibiusa was enjoying her mint chocolate chip.
“Well, then…,” Ami said after they finished their ice cream cones and stood up. “I have to go to cram school. Bye, Chibiusa-chan.”
“Thanks for the ice cream!” Chibiusa said and waved goodbye as Ami departed.
Ami-chan seems like a very dependable person, she thought to herself as she watched her leave. So, maybe she has the Silver Crystal rather than that irresponsible Usagi.…
“These are new transformation wands and communicators,” Artemis announced as he and Luna finished bringing out all of the new items and arranging them on the raised wooden floor of the shrine.
“With these, you should become more powerful, as well as gain new powers,” Luna added as everyone picked up their items.
“I see four wands and six communicators,” Ryoku remarked examining his silver-colored communicator.
“Well, Usagi-chan already had her power-up when we were fighting against Ail and Ann,” Luna explained.
“Okay, that explains her. I guess I’m stuck with the Knight Swords, then,” he said with a resigned shrug.
“Not quite,” Artemis said. “Since we were able to create the new wands when Usagi got her power-up, there’s no reason why we can’t do the same for you.”
“However, your power is different,” Luna continued. “Your power comes from the link with your Knight Swords, so we can’t just make a new transformation item for you.”
“Okay, you can, but you can’t? Make sense, please,” he remarked cynically.
“Do you have your Knight Swords with you, Ryo-kun?” Luna asked.
“Of course, I do,” he replied and began to reach behind his back.
“Hold it!” Usagi said suddenly and marched up to him. “You still haven’t told me how you make your swords disappear behind your back like you always do.”
“Is this really the time–?” he began.
“Now that you mention it, I’ve been wondering that, too,” Minako added thoughtfully. “Hey, I wanna know, too!”
“Now, wait a min–“
“You might as well, Ryo-chan,” Makoto smirked. “I don’t think they’ll take no for an answer.”
“Fine,” he grumbled irritably. “You want to know. I’ll show you.” With that, he took off the gray shirt he was wearing and set it down on the shrine floor. After that, he lifted the back of his white undershirt up and over his head. Underneath his undershirt, he wore a white baldric-like band hanging from his right shoulder to his left mid-section. His two Knight Swords were kept in a pair of sheathes one over the other and pinned by a button clasp. The two swords were just short enough to stretch across his back without protruding anywhere. “There. Now, do you understand?”
“How do you move without those things poking through your shirt?” Usagi asked staring at the swords along with Minako.
“My secret,” he replied with a smirk which faded as he noticed that they were still staring at his back… which was still bare except for his swords. Not only them, but Rei as well. The smile those three shared unnerved him a little bit. He quickly removed his swords and pulled his undershirt back on, along with his shirt. “Anyway,” he said loudly, giving those three a quick stare – as well as pointedly ignoring his sister’s quiet laughter – and placing the unsheathed swords on the shrine floor, one lying crossed over the other. “Here.”
“All right,” Artemis said as he and Luna took places on opposite sides of the two swords. “Ready, Luna?”
“Yes,” she replied as the two cats stared at the swords. A thin beam of yellow light issue forth from each of their foreheads and covered the swords, bathing them in yellow light. Slowly, the light turned to white as the shape of the two swords slowly began to merge together until the two shapes became one. Once the swords completely merged, the light began to subside. When the light was completely gone, a sword similar to Ryoku’s Knight Swords lay on the floor. The hilt, along with the rest of the sword except the blade, was shaped similar to the other transformation wands – silver, with a star on the end in his Knight symbol in the star’s center.
“So, this is it,” he said curiously as he picked up the sword and looked it over. “Interesting. It feels different. Almost as if– Hey!” He jerked back as the blade of the sword suddenly retracted into the hilt, leaving the sword looking exactly like the other Scouts’ transformation wands.
“What happened, Ryo-kun?” Rei asked, blinking in surprise.
“I don’t know,” he replied, rubbing the back of his head as he stared at his sword-turned-transformation-wand. “When I was thinking about how similar this looked to your transformation wands, I started to wonder what it would look like without its blade. That’s when the blade disappeared.” A considering look spread across his face. “I wonder….” Suddenly, the blade snapped out of the hilt again.
“It’s a sword again,” Minako observed. “So, I guess you don’t have to worry about hiding and carrying your sword anymore, right, Ryo-kun?”
“Mental command, is it?” he mused as he let the blade disappear again. “So, Luna, Artemis, did you two do this to my sword?”
The two cats exchanged glances. “No,” Artemis replied, shaking his head. “This’s as much a surprise to us as it is to you.”
“Surprise or not, this is very useful.” Ryoku paused for a moment. “So, I take it that we have new transformation phrases now? I can’t very well say ‘Knight swords power’ anymore, can I?”
Luna nodded. “Yes, your phrases have changed. Instead of just saying ‘power, make up,’ you will use ‘star power, make up.’ Ryo-kun, yours is ‘star sword power.’”
“Star Sword, is it?” he repeated as he glanced down at his sword. “Appropriate enough.”
Usagi stared despondently at the blue communicator and transformation wand with the symbol of Mercury. “I guess Ami-chan won’t need hers,” she remarked quietly. That brought everyone’s attention back to the sad realization of Ami’s impending departure.
“I… really should be going,” Ryoku stated as he turned to leave. “Cram school is starting soon. Ami-chan should’ve gone already.” He stopped after taking only a few steps and turned back toward the others. “I’ll leave you to discuss the details of Ami-chan’s farewell party. And don’t worry; I won’t tell her about it. I’ll leave that up to you.”
“Ryo-kun…,” Usagi said sadly as she watched him leave.
“Bertie!” Rubeus called as he studied the projection of Crystal Tokyo before him.
“Yes?” she answered as she appeared through one of the mirrors surrounding the chamber.
“Another one of the Crystal Points has been found,” he informed her. The projection of Crystal Tokyo changed to show the image of the Bob-Floy ice cream parlor.
“So, I should destroy the Crystal Power in this place and replace it with Dark Power, correct?”
“Yes. I hope you will do it right this time.”
“Yes! Leave everything to me!” she declared and disappeared.
Chibiusa leaned back against the wall of the cram school that Ami attended, waiting as the students began to exit the building. After a few minutes, she spotted both Ami and Ryoku leaving together.
“Ami-chan!” she called out when she spotted her.
“Chibiusa-chan! You shouldn’t be out this late at night!” she exclaimed.
“What’re you doing out here so late, kiddo?” Ryoku asked, giving the girl a curious look.
“Ami-chan, I want to ask you a favor,” Chibiusa said, turning from him to Ami.
“Eh?”
“It must be important for you to wait out here for her so late,” he mused thoughtfully.
Chibiusa nodded. “I want to stay at your place for a while,” she asked Ami.
“What’s wrong? Did you have a fight with Usagi-chan again?”
“That’s not it,” she replied, bowing her head slightly. “The thing is, I want to study, but it’s difficult to concentrate at Usagi’s place.”
Ryoku snorted a laugh. “I can imagine.”
“Well, if it’s to study, then I don’t mind,” Ami said. “We’ll call Usagi-chan and let her know.” She held out a hand for Chibiusa. “Shall we go?”
“Yay!” she shouted gleefully as she took Ami’s hand. “Thank you, Ami-chan!” She then smirked to herself as the three left for Ami’s house.
As the three approached Ami’s home, Chibiusa noticed that both Ami and Ryoku seemed very quiet for some reason. Even though Ryoku was holding Ami’s other hand, he seemed very distant, as if deep in thought. The last time she had asked him if something was wrong, he just gave her a faint half-smile and said that nothing was wrong, then went back to looking very distant.
“I’ll see you tomorrow, Ami-chan,” Ryoku said as they reached the large apartment complex that she lived in with her mother. He released her hand and continued walking past the entrance to the apartment complex while both Ami and Chibiusa watched him go.
Chibiusa looked up at Ami’s face and saw her sad expression. She was about to ask what was wrong when Ryoku stopped and turned around.
“We’ll talk tomorrow, Ami-chan. After school.” With that, he continued on his way.
“Well, Chibiusa-chan, shall we go in?” she said as she turned to her, all smiles again. Chibiusa nodded and they went in.
It was starting to get late when Ami noticed that Chibiusa was starting to nod off while reading her book. “Chibiusa-chan?”
The sound of Ami’s voice woke her up again. “I’m so sleepy…,” she yawned, laying her head down over her arms.
“It’s only ten o’clock,” Ami told her. “We can still study for another hour.”
“Ten?” Chibiusa exclaimed. “Oh no! I have to go to bed! My teacher told me that I should go to bed by ten!”
“I know,” she replied. “It’s not okay to stay up late watching TV, but studying is different. So, let’s study a little more.” She then went back to reading her book.
What’s with this girl? Chibiusa thought to herself. She’s never off her guard. There’s no way that I can look for the Silver Crystal. She noticed that Ami had put down her book and was now watching her. “What?”
“Chibiusa-chan, where did you come from?” Ami asked suddenly.
“Eh?” Chibiusa said, surprised by the question.
“You’re lying about being Usagi-chan’s cousin, aren’t you?” she asked and waited for her to reply. Chibiusa remained silent. “If you don’t want to talk, that’s okay,” she added. “But, if you have nowhere to go, do you want to stay at my place?”
“Eh?”
“I may have to go somewhere far away soon. If I do, my mother will be very lonely.”
“Ami-chan, you’re going away somewhere?”
“Yes, I’m following a dream I’ve always had,” she told her.
“A dream?”
“But, it’s no use,” she continued sadly. “I can’t leave Ryo-kun, Usagi-chan and the others.” Her pensive look suddenly vanished and she was smiling again. “Sorry, forget I mentioned it.”
Chibiusa watched her as she went back to reading her book, her cheerful expression dropping and a somber one taking its place. Ami-chan.…
Late that night, Bertie appeared on the street bridge next to the Bob-Floy ice cream parlor. Casually, she stepped down the stairs and stopped in front of the ice cream parlor. “Nipasu-chan,” she called out, glancing behind her, “are you there?”
Behind her, a gust of cold wind burst upwards in a small column. Inside that small cyclone, a violet-robed figure with long silver hair and a large silver hair ornament that covered her head almost like a conical hat. An ice blue jewel rested in the center of the ornament.
“I am here,” Nipasu answered obediently.
“Please begin,” Bertie ordered and turned back toward the building. “The name of this plan is ‘Something Cold.’”
Nipasu exhaled, emitting a cold wind like that of an arctic blizzard from her mouth. Moments later, the entire ice cream parlor was encased in ice up to half a meter thick.
“Good job,” Bertie said with a pleased laugh. “Please continue with our plan.”
“Yes,” Nipasu acknowledged with a bow.
“Good morning, Ami-chan!” Usagi greeted the next morning as she waited for her and Chibiusa. The young girl seemed to be tired and was yawning as she walked. Ami seemed her normal cheery self.
“Good morning,” Ami replied, walking with Chibiusa. The Luna Sphere just trailed quietly along behind its mistress, as usual.
“Was it hard taking care of Chibiusa?” Usagi asked.
“No, not at all. She can come over anytime,” she said, grinning down at the yawning girl.
“Yeah!” Chibiusa agreed eagerly. I’ll stay at your place as long as it takes to find the Silver Crystal.
“Anyway, Ami-chan, everyone’s getting ready to throw a huge farewell party for you when you finally get ready to leave for Germany.”
“Eh?!? A farewell party for me?” Ami exclaimed, coming to a stop. “But… I’m still trying to decide whether or not I should go.”
“What are you talking about?” Usagi asked. “You’re leaving really soon now, aren’t you?”
“I have ten more days.”
“Only ten days?” she repeated, surprised. She had thought it was longer than that.
“I filed all the paperwork already. But… I still don’t know….”
Ami-chan.… “No! Ami-chan, you have to go to Germany!” she stated firmly. “This is your big chance! You’ll study hard there and become a great doctor.”
“Usagi-chan…,” Ami said, moved at her friend’s vehemence and belief in her.
“We’re all counting on you, Ami-chan!”
“Right,” she agreed with a nod.
Minako, Makoto and Rei were all at Sankaku Park, discussing possible plans for Ami’s farewell party when Usagi joined them and informed them of Ami’s wishes.
“What? What do you mean, she doesn’t want a party?” Rei all but demanded.
“It can’t be…,” Makoto said. “She isn’t thinking of not going, is she?”
Usagi quietly lowered her gaze, staring sadly at the table between the four of them. “She decided to go, but….”
“You know how terribly indecisive I can be at times,” Ami had told her. “That’s why, if you throw a farewell party for me, I might not be able to bear to part with you.
“I don’t want to say goodbye.”
“I understand how she feels,” Rei said after a long silence had passed between them.
“But, we should still at least see her off…,” Makoto insisted.
“Then, how about we go directly to the airport to see her off?” Minako suggested.
“That’s a good idea!” Makoto agreed enthusiastically.
“I second it!” Rei added.
“Then, we’re agreed!” Usagi declared, her spirits lifted once again.
“All right! Let’s go!” all four declared as they stood up simultaneously.
In a different section of Sankaku Park, Ryoku silently watched as Ami left. They had both said what had needed to be said. Everything else would be left up to her now.
He turned to watch the fountain they had been sitting near, a blank expression covering his entire face. A long, heavy, lingering sigh escaped his lips as he closed his eyes and hung his head despairingly.
“Life… can be cruel… sometimes….”
The next day was another busy day for the Bob-Floy ice cream parlor. Several customers were already lined up to buy ice cream from them.
“Here you are,” one boy said, handing an ice cream cone he had just purchased to his girlfriend.
“Thank you. I heard that this place has delicious ice cream,” she said as they started to walk off, his arm around her shoulders.
Then, they both licked their ice cream cones.
“Hey, don’t stand so close!” the boy snapped.
“You, too!” the girl retorted. “Watch what you’re doing!”
With that, they both split up and went off in opposite directions. “It’s hot! It’s hot!” they said as they left, licking their ice cream cones.
From his seat on the trash can in front of Bob-Floy’s, Artemis frowned suspiciously.
“Welcome!” one of the ice cream vendors shouted. “How about some nice, cold ice cream?”
“Everything seems to be going well,” Bertie said as she walked up to the ice cream vendor in her human disguise.
“Yes,” the vendor nodded. “Once they have had some of Bertie’s specially made ice cream, they won’t be able to stand even a little heat.”
“And since it’s so hot today, the people affected will crave more in order to cool off,” the vendor added.
While Bertie and the vendor were speaking, Artemis quietly snuck inside the back storeroom of the ice cream parlor and tried to listen in on the conversation.
“And the power of this Crystal Point in the future will be destroyed.”
“Of course,” the vendor said as she began to open the door. Seeing that he would be spotted if he didn’t hide immediately, he dived behind one of the crates, accidentally knocking over a small ice cream carton in the process. The carton hit the floor with a loud clatter.
“Who’s there?!?” the vendor demanded loudly.
Thinking quickly, Artemis meowed.
“Oh, a kitty!” Bertie said and knelt down. “Come here.”
Carefully, Artemis padded out toward them, trying his hardest to act like a cute, harmless, normal cat.
Bertie reached out and picked the white cat up. “Nipasu-chan,” she said as she gave the vendor a meaningful glance.
“Yes,” she replied, and Bertie tossed Artemis into the air. While the white cat went flying, the vendor changed back into Nipasu and blew out another arctic blizzard from her mouth, encasing Artemis in a thick block of ice.
The block of ice hit the ground with a heavy thunk and went still after a few bounces.
“Good night, kitty,” Bertie said with a cruel smirk.
A few days later, Usagi, Makoto, Minako, Ryoku, and Luna all met Rei at the Hikawa Shrine. Rei was going to try to divine where Artemis could have disappeared to. Minako was growing very concerned and it was beginning to show.
Everyone was sitting patiently behind Rei as she concentrated, her low, quiet chanting the only sound in the room besides the snapping and crackling of the burning the fire.
Suddenly, Rei gasped as her body jerked straight up, her eyes seeming to stare at nothing as her hair slowly settled down over her shoulders again. “It’s no use,” she told the others. “No matter how many times I try, I can’t feel anything of Artemis’ presence anywhere!”
“He couldn’t be…?” Minako gasped, leaning forward.
Ryoku calmly put his hand over hers. “Don’t think that.” She glanced down at his hand over hers, then back at him and nodded.
“He must be in some kind of trouble,” Makoto stated as Ryoku drew back his hand.
“Could the enemy have gotten him?” Usagi supposed. “Maybe we should ask Ami, and with her computer…,” she cut off as she realized what she was saying.
“Usagi,” Rei said quietly.
“I know. Ami-chan isn’t here anymore.” She forced herself to smile confidently. “We’ll just have to take care of this by ourselves.”
“That’s right,” she agreed. Everyone else nodded their agreement.
“Then, let’s go,” Ryoku said as he stood up and turned to leave.
Some time later, as Usagi was heading toward the bus stop where she would meet the others and go to see Ami off at the airport, she spotted Ryoku seated at another bus stop, waiting.
“Ryo-kun!” she called out as she ran up to him. “Are you going somewhere?”
“I’m going to see Ami-chan at the airport,” he replied. “She should be getting ready to leave her place by now.”
“Hey, we’re just about ready to do the same thing!” she told him. “Why don’t you come with us? We’re all meeting at the bus stop by Rei-chan’s place.”
He shook his head. “This is something I need to do alone, Usagi-chan. You understand, right?”
She looked at him for a few moments before smiling and nodding understandingly. “Yeah. I understand.”
“Thank you,” he said, half-smiling gratefully.
“Good luck, Ryo-kun,” Usagi said as she ran off in the same direction she was heading before.
“Yeah,” he sighed to himself as the bus he had been waiting for came to a stop in front of him. “I guess I may need it.”
The doors of the bus swung closed behind him, and the bus took off for the airport.
Ami silently packed the last of her items neatly into her suitcase as she made her final preparations for her flight to Germany. Behind her, Chibiusa sat quietly on the floor, watching her.
“So, today is the last day, isn’t it?” she asked.
“Yes,” Ami replied, closing her suitcase.
“Thank you for helping me with my studies,” she told her. “I hope you do well in Germany.” She paused as she noticed that Ami wasn’t responding. She was just staring out at nothing, like Ryoku was the last time she had seen him with her. “Ami-chan?”
“Oh, thank you,” she said, snapping out of her daze. “Chibiusa-chan, I hope you get along with everyone else, too.”
“Yeah,” she agreed.
I don’t think she’s the one with the Silver Crystal after all, Chibiusa supposed. So, who has it?
Minako found herself standing on the street bridge next to the Bob-Floy ice cream parlor, staring at the building. Artemis had mentioned this place to her before the last time she had seen him. Now, she was getting a bad feeling from this place.
“Minako-chan, it’s almost time to go see Ami-chan off at the airport,” Luna said as she hopped up to the bridge railing.
“Yeah…,” she replied without taking her eyes away from the ice cream parlor.
“What’s wrong?” the black cat asked as she followed Minako’s gaze to the ice cream parlor. “Ah! That’s the ice cream parlor that Artemis was suspicious about.” Left unsaid was the fact that Artemis also loved to steal ice cream from there on occasion.
“Yeah,” Minako replied again, still staring down at the ice cream parlor.
Artemis had to be there. She was certain of it.
When the last customer left the store, Nipasu, still in her ice cream vendor disguise, closed down the shop.
“Nipasu-chan,” Bertie called out in singsong as she appeared when the metal gate reached the ground.
“Bertie-sama, everything is going well,” Nipasu reported.
“Yes, everything is going well, but what about taking care of the frozen people in the back of the storeroom?” she inquired.
Nipasu gasped. “I’m terribly sorry!” she stammered nervously while bowing.
Bertie smiled cruelly. “Well, you’d better work harder, or you’ll go away with them,” she said while gesturing a cutting motion across her throat with her hand.
“No, please don’t worry,” Nipasu said, hoping to placate her. “I will take care of them right away.”
“Oh? Well, let me know if you’re tired of working. I’ll put you out of your misery.”
“No, that will not be necessary,” she insisted.
“Then, do it,” she said as she turned around and walked off, fading into nothing as she left.
“Yes,” Nipasu bowed, then left to take care of her task. As soon as she opened the door, she heard something moving in the back of the storeroom. “Who’s there?”
Minako and Luna came out of hiding. “I should be the one asking you that!” Minako replied as she jerked her thumb toward the frozen blocks of people behind her. “What are you going to do with these frozen people?”
Nipasu gave a quiet, arrogant laugh. “So, you saw them. Then, I have no choice but to kill you!” she said as a cold wind came up from beneath her. She leapt into the air where a column of freezing wind enveloped her. The wind disappeared, revealing her in her true form. “Nipasu!” she shouted as she dove down toward Minako and Luna, blowing a gale of freezing wind toward them. Minako leapt straight up, dodging the attack, then glanced down to see if Luna was all right.
“Luna!” she shouted as she spotted the black cat frozen in a block of ice. Minako quickly jumped over one of the crates and hid as Nipasu’s freezing wind began to coat everything with ice.
“That’s the eighth bus already,” Usagi complained as she leaned against the street railing. Makoto and Rei were already there and she knew Ryoku would be at the airport by now. Where was Minako?
“It’s not like her to be so late,” Makoto said in concern as she watched the bus disappear from view.
“Something bad must have happened,” Rei surmised.
Suddenly, the wrist communicator that Rei was wearing began to flash and beep with a sort of ringing tone.
“Everyone, the enemy is here!” Minako’s voice said through the communicator. “I’m at Bob-Floy’s in the Juuban Shopping District!”
“Let’s go!” Rei said.
“Okay!” Usagi agreed as she stood up. “Oh! But what about Ami-chan’s present?” she said as she held up a small pink, wrapped bag.
“Do you want me to deliver it to her for you?” Chibiusa asked as she appeared from practically out of nowhere.
“Chibiusa?”
Chibiusa held her hand out. “I’ll give it to Ami-chan for you.”
“Then, please,” she said as she began to hand the package to her. However, the bag was taken from her hand before she could hand it to her. She turned around to see who it was.
“I’ll drive,” Mamoru said, standing beside his car.
“Mamo-chan…,” she said, surprised at seeing him there as well.
Mamoru opened the door to his car and climbed in. “Chibiusa, let’s go,” he said as he started his car.
“Okay,” Chibiusa agreed and ran around to the passenger side of his car. Once she was in the car, Mamoru put the car in gear and started to drive off while Chibiusa stuck her tongue out at Usagi.
“Well, let’s go,” Rei said as Usagi watched as the car drive off.
“Okay,” Usagi said as she reluctantly turned to follow the other two girls.
Ryoku sat in the waiting area next to the gate Ami’s flight would depart from. He was very nervous, being near so many airplanes, but he tried to stifle his nervousness, seeing that he knew he wasn’t going to be boarding one. It didn’t stop all of his nervousness, but it was enough.
Ami hadn’t told him which plane or which flight she was taking, nor had she told him exactly when she was leaving, nor had he even asked her about it. But he knew nonetheless. There were seventeen flights to Germany for today, and ten were for different cities than the one he knew she was going to. Four had already left this morning, before Ami had left the school. The remaining three were all for different times, but two were for very late at night. She never mentioned leaving late at night, so it had to be this one.
He stared down at the small box in his hands, wrapped only with a single silver ribbon. “Ami-chan…,” he sighed as he recalled their conversation a few days ago….
“Hello, Ami-chan,” he called out to her as he met her beside the fountain at Sankaku Park.
“Good afternoon, Ryo-kun,” she replied as she stood up, smiling at him. He said nothing as he sat down next to where she had been sitting before. “Is something wrong?” she asked as she sat back down.
“Have you made up your mind?” he asked.
She blinked. “Made up…?”
“To go to Germany.”
She stared down at the ground in front of her. “Yes.”
“And you’re going.”
“…yes.”
He nodded to himself. “I thought you would. Well,” he said as he stood up, “I guess I have no choice then, do I?”
“Ryo-kun?” she said as she looked up at him, her eyes looking like they could fill with tears at any moment. “If… if you want me to stay, then–”
He cut her off by placing a silencing finger on her lips. “Don’t say it, Ami-chan, lest you tempt me into doing it.” He removed his finger. “Besides, it has to be this way. If you give up this chance because of me, then you may come to resent me for it.”
“But–”
He silenced her again. “Let me finish. Even if you don’t resent me, then I’ll probably hate myself for it. I don’t want to be the one that costs you your dream. I’d never forgive myself for it.”
“Ryo-kun…,” she said as she stared down at the ground again. “I understand how you feel. It was so hard to make this decision, Ryo-kun. I don’t want to leave you. Not after what we’ve been through together. You mean so much to me and I don’t want to lose that.”
“You won’t.”
She blinked and looked up at him, wiping tears out of her eyes. “I… won’t?”
He shook his head and half-smiled warmly at her. “Not as long as we keep each other in our hearts. You will return one day. I know you will.”
“Right,” she nodded as she stood up and embraced him. “I promise I’ll return one day.”
“And I promise you that I’ll wait for that day, no matter how long it takes,” he said as he stroked her hair. “So, don’t worry about me. I’ll be all right.”
“Thank you… Ryo-kun.…”
In that box was something he wanted her to have, as a reminder of that promise. After that, he would see her off, probably with the others as well. And if she started to change her mind… well, he would just have to make her board that plane.
But, how to do that without getting near the thing…?
The beeping of the wrist communicator in his shirt pocket caught his attention. Looking around to see if anyone could overhear him, he took out the communicator.
“Everyone, the enemy is here!” Minako’s voice said through the communicator. “I’m at Bob-Floy’s in the Juuban Shopping District!”
Damn! This had to be the worst possible time for one. He grimaced as he glanced around the waiting area. He went up to the person behind the desk next to the boarding gate and showed the woman a picture of Ami.
“Excuse me, but an emergency has come up and I need you to do me a really big favor,” he said hurriedly. “This girl is a passenger on this flight. I wanted to give this to her myself, but I have to go take care of a very urgent matter. Can you please give this to her when you see her?” he pleaded as he showed her the small box.
“Well…,” the woman began uncertainly.
“Please?” he begged. “This girl is my girlfriend and I won’t be able to see her for a long time. I’d do this myself, but I have to go take care of an urgent matter now. Please! I’m begging you!” he said as he began to get down on his knees and bow.
“All right!” she said, slightly embarrassed at the scene Ryoku was making. “I’ll make sure she gets it.”
“Oh, one more thing,” he said as he gave her the box. “Can I borrow a pen and a piece of paper? I want to leave her a note explaining why I’m not here.”
“All right,” she agreed and handed him the requested items. He wrote out a quick message and folded the paper twice, then wrote Ami’s name on it. “Please give her this as well,” he asked handing her the pen and paper.
“I will,” she promised. “And good luck with whatever you have to take care of. You must love your girlfriend very much. If it’s so important that it’s tearing you away from seeing her off, then it must be very important.”
“You don’t know how much,” he sighed as he turned and started to run. “Thanks!” he called out behind him.
The woman glanced down at the box and paper sitting on the desk in front of her. “How sad,” she sighed to herself, then proceeded to watch for the girl in his picture.
“Where are you?” Nipasu demanded as her eyes scanned the storeroom. As she searched, the sound of something clattering to the floor caught her attention. “There!” she shouted as she blew a freezing wind in that direction. She laughed smugly, until a frozen can of soda clattered to the floor a short distance in front of her.
“Where are you aiming?” Minako’s voice called out tauntingly behind her. Nipasu whirled toward the direction of the voice and glared. Standing on the upper level of the storeroom were five of the Sailor Scouts.
“Girls love ice cream!” Sailor Moon declared. “How dare you use it in your evil plot! We won’t let you get away with it! On behalf of the Moon, I’ll punish you!” One after another, the five Scouts leapt of the ledge toward Nipasu.
“You impertinent brats!” she bellowed and blew another blast of freezing wind at them.
The taxi came to a stop in front of the airport and Ami slowly climbed out. After removing her suitcase and paying the driver, the taxi drove away, leaving her behind. Ami just stared at the entrance, mustering the strength she would need to get herself to her flight. As she watched, another airplane took off and ascended into the night sky. With a small sigh, she picked up her suitcase and entered the airport proper.
As Ami stepped through the entrance, Mamoru’s car began to approach the airport.
“It’s cold!” Sailor Moon exclaimed as she shivered beside the other Scouts as they waited for an opportunity to strike.
“I think this is colder than the North Pole!” Venus added.
“We have to do something!” Mars said.
“We can’t attack without being frozen,” Knight stated, watching Nipasu. “We have to wait until she stops blowing that wind.”
Ami had finally reached the waiting area for her flight and was watching the planes take off and land. In a few short minutes, she would be on one of those planes and on her way to Germany.
“Ami-chan,” a familiar voice called out behind her. She turned to see two people who she didn’t expect to see.
“Mamoru-san! Chibiusa-chan!”
Chibiusa laughed as she waved at Ami. She then grabbed her Luna Sphere and started to bounce it. “Luna Sphere Magic!” she shouted as the cat-ball bounced high into the air. At the apex of its bounce, a puff of smoke burst out from the cat-ball and a small candy cane appeared. “Here, this is for you,” she said as she handed the cane to Ami.
“Thank you,” she replied as she took the cane, which suddenly turned into a small bouquet of flowers.
“This is from Usagi and the others,” Mamoru said as he held up Usagi’s present.
“From Usagi-chan and the others?” Ami repeated as she took the present and started to open it.
“I guess this is the kind of friendship you all had,” Chibiusa remarked.
Ami jerked back as if slapped.
“Aren’t I right?” she continued. “They didn’t even come to see you off!”
“That's because I asked them not to,” Ami replied as she continued to open her present.
“That wouldn’t matter, if you were friends,” she insisted.
“Usagi-chan and the others are wonderful friends,” Ami told her.
“That’s not true! They were only thinking of themselves!” Chibiusa said. “And what about Ryoku-san? If he cares so much about you, why isn’t he here?”
“Excuse me,” a voice said from behind Ami.
“Yes?” Ami said and turned toward the woman wearing the uniform of the airline company whose flight she would be on.
“Oh, it’s you,” the woman said, partly in relief. “Excuse me, but I was asked to give these to you by your boyfriend,” she said as she handed her the box and paper.
“These are from Ryo-kun?” she said to herself as she opened the paper and read the message.
“This gift is something for you to remember me by. As long as you wear it and keep it close to your heart, I know that you will keep me close to your heart. I wish I could be there with you to send you off, but I had to go take care of something very important. I hope you understand what I mean.
“P.S. When you get there, please send me yours as well. I want something to keep close to my heart as well.”
Quickly, she slid the ribbon off of the box and opened it. Inside was one the pendants that she remembered Ryoku had had made before their final battle with Beryl. His pendant: the one with his Sailor Knight symbol and his name engraved on it. He must’ve wanted to trade pendants before she left. Something of his to keep close to her heart….
“Something very important…?” she said to herself and quickly finished unwrapping the other present. Inside were her new transformation wand and communicator, along with a small note.
“No matter where you go, we’re there with you.”
“The poor boy wanted to see you off so bad, but he said he had an emergency to take care of,” the woman said as she turned to go back to the desk. “It must’ve been very important, considering how much he went through to make sure I gave you those items.”
Ami picked up the transformation wand, staring at it as several thoughts raced through her mind.
Germany. Her one chance.
Usagi and the others. Her friends.
To become a doctor. Her dream.
Ryoku. Her heart.
The transformation wand in her hands.
Her duty.
Ryoku had said that he had to take care of an emergency….
“It can’t be…. It can’t be….” She whirled around to face Mamoru, worry in her eyes. “Mamoru-san, it can’t be…!”
Mamoru nodded silently.
Ami sighed to herself. “Chibiusa-chan, you were right. I was only thinking of myself.” She turned to Mamoru, her expression serious. “Mamoru-san, I need to ask you for a favor.”
He nodded again and turned to leave with both Chibiusa and Ami following him.
The woman watched them leave with a small smile on her face. “Looks like you get to see her again after all. Lucky guy.”
She loved happy endings.
“We don’t have enough power,” Jupiter said as she shivered.
“We’ll die if we don’t do something,” Mars said.
“This protection won’t last,” Knight said, frowning in concentration. “I just wish I could think of some way to get to her without being frozen in the attempt.”
Ami sat in the passenger seat of Mamoru’s car as she watched her plane take off in the rear view mirror. Her chance was now gone, but right now, she didn’t care. There was something more important that she had to do.
The crates that the Sailor Scouts were hiding behind suddenly shattered from the constant pressure of the freezing wind against the frozen wood.
“Now what are you going to do?” Nipasu sneered as she let her wind die off. “You cannot escape!” She leapt into the air again. “The finishing blow!” she shouted and blew her freezing wind again.
Sailor Knight quickly put himself in front of the other Scouts and spread himself out as far as he could. “Get behind me!” he shouted to the others as he grit his teeth.
“Knight!” the others shouted but cut off as the wind struck them harder than before.
I know what I have to do, Ami thought to herself as she ran from Mamoru’s parked car toward the Bob-Floy ice cream parlor where the others were fighting the enemy. In the end, I’m still one of the Sailor Warriors, Sailor Mercury!
“Mercury star power, makeup!” she shouted, once again beginning her transformation to Sailor Mercury.
“Hold it!” she shouted as she flung open the door to the storeroom. Both Nipasu and the other Sailor Scouts stared in surprise at the new arrival.
“Sailor Mercury!” the Scouts all exclaimed, shocked at seeing that their friend hadn’t left for Germany after all.
Mercury crossed her hands over her chest as a swirl of freezing cold water began to spin around her, rising up to gather in her hands over her head. “Shine aqua illusion!” she shouted as she flung a stream of water at Nipasu, which changed into a large, rising column of water after striking her.
“Mercury-chan!” Sailor Moon shouted.
“Now, Sailor Moon!” Mercury prompted, pointing at Nipasu, then grinning at her friend.
“Right!” Sailor Moon replied with a nod as she brought out her Moon Scepter. “Moon princess halation!” she shouted as she waved the scepter in front of her, firing a blast of white energy at Nipasu. The attack stuck her, shattering her skin to pieces and leaving only her figure in crystal, which disintegrated into a pile of powder. The jewel with the upside-down black crescent moon turned from an ice blue into a dull lifeless gray.
After Nipasu was destroyed, all the ice began to melt rapidly without leaving any water behind. All the frozen victims began to wake up, including Luna and Artemis.
“Luna!” Artemis said as he stood up.
“Thank goodness you’re all right!” Luna said, standing up as well.
“Mercury! You’re back!” the other female Scouts all said as they crowded around their returned friend.
“In the end, I just couldn’t leave you all,” Mercury said as she extended her hand toward the others. The others all placed their hands over Mercury’s, including Knight, who had come around to stand beside her.
Mercury turned to ask Knight if he was upset with her for not going through with going to Germany like she said she would, but the half-smile on his face was enough to dispel that worry.
She did keep her promise, even if she had returned sooner than she had anticipated.
Outside of Bob-Floy’s, both Mamoru and Chibiusa watched the six friends stare out at the evening sky on the street bridge from the street below. “Everyone’s not sad anymore,” Chibiusa said to Mamoru. “I did good, right?”
“That’s right,” he agreed with a laugh.
“Ami-chan, are you sure you don’t regret it?” Usagi asked.
Ami glanced over to smile at Ryoku, who was standing with his arm around her shoulder, then smiled back at Usagi. “When I study, it will be the same no matter where I am. I can study anywhere.” She glanced back out to the city lights before her. “I’m going to study hard and become a great doctor.”
“I’m sure you will, Ami-chan!” Usagi said happily. “You’re such a good example for us!”
“Not that Usagi-chan ever learns from it,” Luna remarked.
“Luna!” Usagi growled as everyone began to laugh, including Usagi.
To Chapter 59: To be Strong and Beautiful