Title: Vanishing Dreams of Peace
Part: (1/?)
Genre: Cross-over/Fusion (BGC(Classic & 2040)/NGE/SM)
Notes: Based on the original BGC, but there is a little bit of 2040 thrown in (i.e. Nene's hair color). The NGE characters are all 25, not 35 (See Prologue).
Warnings: Yuri, language, possible violence against Youma, Cardians, Boomers, Daemon, Droids, Phages, etc.
Summary: After the fall of GENOM, the Knight Sabers are disbanding. Now that they have no Boomers to fight, will they be able to take up their new roles as civillians, or will something else make them fight again?
~~~~~~~~~~
Minako paced nervously around the entrance hall of the home she had been sharing with her husband for the last few years. She had just gotten off the phone with her daughter, after calling her for the tenth time to see where they were, and suddenly found herself increasingly nervous about meeting her daughter's friends.
"Mina, if you don't relax, you're going to wear a hole in the rug."
Mina made a face at her husband and moved to sit in the living room. "Petr, aren't you, you know, even a little nervous about meeting our daughter's friends? I mean, these are the people that she says have become like family to her."
Petrovich Romanova smiled slightly as his wife jumped up at the sound of a car. "No, dear. I'm not nervous. Our Nene is a very good judge of character, don't you agree? And besides, you said yourself that one of those friends was the daughter of this Usagi you're always talking about. I'm sure that they will be as close as the two of you were."
"For some reason, I hope you're wrong about that." Mina flashed him a smile as she raced to the door. Pausing for a moment, she straightened the plain dark dress she was wearing and composed herself in front of the hallway mirror. Then, taking a deep breath, opened the door to welcome her visitors.
Nene saw her mother standing at the doorway to the house and sighed slightly. "Is it too late to back out of this?"
"Yes," Mackie replied, helping unload the bags. He grabbed their suitcases and offered her his arm. "Relax, I'm sure your mother won't freak out too much."
/'It's not mom I'm worried about,'/ Nene thought, glancing around the small convoy they had brought from MegaTokyo. Sylia, Usa and Addison had driven down in the Silky Doll van, bringing most of the group's 'extra' luggage (a couple of hardsuits and a motoroid) with them. Linna and Leon had 'borrowed' a lime-green sports car from Daley, which Leon had offered to have painted black in exchange. Linna had threatened to make him walk the whole way.
Rei had convinced Priss to rent a car for them and the Ikaris, but Asuka had gone into labor early that morning, so the two women were staying in the city until the red-head was released, or Shinji came to, whichever happened first. Haruka and Michiru, after a very long discussion, were also invited. They were coming in a few days, having to take care of more 'business'.
"I just don't think she realizes what she's agreed to," Nene replied, taking one of the bags from Mackie. She kissed him on the cheek and turned to see her mother grinning from ear to ear. "Something tells me that she likes you already."
"Since when would Aunt Mina not like a guy that wasn't trying to kill her? or even a few of the ones that did?" Usa winked at the other strawberry-blonde woman and ruffled her little brother's hair. "Come on, Addi ... it's time you met your God-mother. One of them, anyway."
Petrovich came up behind his wife and smiled at the group of young adults getting their bags. "I thought there were more of them than this," he replied, counting.
"That's because Asuka-chan's baby decided it was a good time to make an entrance. We were already on our way here when Shinji-kun called." Nene smiled at her father as she walked up. "Priss-chan will probably be here in a day or two. I don't know about any of the others. They're a little ..."
"Strange?" Mackie offered, grinning.
Nene gave him a dirty look, then smiled. "You had just better be glad Priss-chan didn't hear you say that," she replied. She introduced him to her parents, then motioned to the others. "I think you already know Usa-chan. Beside her is her brother, Addison-chan and Mackie's sister, Sylia-chan. The grumpy looking guy behind them is Detective Leon-peon and his girlfriend, Linna-chan."
Minako smiled at them, recognizing almost instantly who they were. "It's a pleasure to meet you all. Please, make yourselves at home."
Leon glared at Nene at the much-hated nickname then glanced at Linna. "I didn't realize that Nene-chan's mom was a former actress."
"Huh?" Linna took a closer look at the older blonde woman, then at her boyfriend. "What are you talking about? I've never seen her in anything."
"Come on, you're telling me that you never watched the old 'Sailor V' movies?"
Addison overheard their conversation and threw him a skeptical look. "Oh, don't tell me you're into those old cult-classics. No one over the age of ... me watches those things."
"For your information, I am not THAT much older than you, little boy." Leon made a face at the younger man and followed the others inside. As soon as he was inside, he felt a cold chill run down his spine and looked up to see a tall, white-haired man staring down at them from an upstairs balcony. He glanced at Nene. "Friend of yours?"
The young cop looked up to where he had indicated and gasped, dropping her bags. "Uncle Artie!" She smiled when he jumped over the balcony and landed in front of their group. She edged past her mother, who was giving him a dirty look, and hugged him. "I didn't know you were going to be here."
Artemis hugged the young woman and smiled slightly. "Like I would miss your homecoming? Not even Galaxia could keep me away, little V."
Minako placed a hand on the white-haired man's shoulder and chuckled. "Careful with the nick-names, Artemis. I'd hate to embarass our little Nene-chan in front of her friends."
"Too late, mom," Nene replied. She smiled at her mother as she returned the hug, then dragged her uncle over to meet her friends. "Don't worry, they're not gonna bite, uncle."
The blonde introduced her two families to each other then asked Artemis where 'Aunt' Luna was. Artemis chuckled slightly and blushed. "Eh ... she kicked me out again. Apparently she can't stand for me to be around her after she's given birth ... for about a year."
Nene pouted. "So that means we don't get to see the kids?"
Mina placed a hand on her daughter's arm and smiled. "Luna said she'd try to make it down this weekend. And might even take Artemis home with her ... if he promises to not make her mad." With that, she looked pointedly at the white-haired man. She then smiled at the others and motioned to the stair case. "Follow me and I'll show you where you'll be staying. I'm sure you must be tired after your trip."
"Thank you, Romanova-san," Sylia replied. There was something about the blonde that intrigued her and she was cursing herself for letting Usa talk her out of bringing the whole mobile lab.
Mina smiled at Sylia then shook her head slightly. "It's Aino. I never took my Petr's last name." She kissed her husband's cheek then grabbed her daughter's arm and started toward the stairs. "I put you and Mackie in seperate rooms, dear. You know how your father is, with that whole, waiting until your married, thing. Funny, but he never wanted to wait until we got married."
"MOM!?"
"Oh? Sorry, dear. You know me, I do tend to ramble. But don't worry ... what's a few little secrets between mother and daughter?"
Nene glanced over her shoulder to the others and noticed that, yes, they had heard. Mackie's face was bright red and Sylia was fighting not to laugh. "Between us is fine, but ... mom, my friends are right behind us."
Mina stopped on the landing that Artemis had jumped from and turned to face the others. She chuckled slightly after a moment, then started down the hall, dragging Nene as she went. "This way, everyone."
Artemis glanced at Petr and noticed that the Russian man was also blushing. "Didn't expect that little secret to come out this weekend, huh?"
Petr shook his head, watching his wife lead the young men and women to their rooms. "Nope. I knew that some were going to come out this weekend, but I didn't think that would be one of them." He coughed slightly then turned to Artemis. "I think I should go check on how dinner's coming. If Nene-chan comes looking for me, she can find me there."
"And if Minako-chan comes looking for you?"
"Tell her I'm in the garden." Petr winked at the white-haired man as he walked toward the kitchen.
"MOM!?!"
Artemis chuckled slightly then glanced up at the balcony as he heard Nene yelling. "This is going to be quite interesting. Wish the rest of them were here, though." He glanced at a picture in the main hallway of 9 teenagers and a little girl standing in the middle of a park. He smiled at the group of friends then moved to help calm Nene down before she 'accidentally' set off the fire alarms again.
~~~~~~~~~
"So you knew my mom when she was younger? What was she like?"
Minako smiled at her daughter's boyfriend. "She was ... one of my dearest friends, even if she did always have her nose stuck in a book. Even after she'd been excepted into the best colleges and had her degree as a doctor practically carved in stone, she still had nose buried in a book. I think that was how she met your father, actually. If I remember correctly, she bumped into him at a lecture on bioengineering." She paused for a few moments as memories of her friends overwhelmed her. "I have to say that none of us were surprised when she married another scientist. It must have been a match made in heaven."
"Or in a computer lab," Artemis replied. He smiled at the two Stingray's and told them some more about Ami's youth. After pulling Minako away from her daughter and her friends, the white-haired man had distracted her with planning a dinner party for them while they rested. It seemed to help the young women relax enough that they were open to discussing their parents at dinner. "... and to top it all off, she beat the National Chess Champion in only seven moves."
"We were always told it was eight. Dad never would admit defeat easily," Sylia replied. She smiled a little at her brother when he nodded, then glanced at Nene's mother. "I remember mother talking about you ... I'm sorry to say that ... my memories of her are fuzzy at best. But I remember her telling me about you and her other friends. She said that you were the reason she became the woman she was."
Minako smiled at Sylia then stood, holding up her glass. "Then I think it's time I made a toast. 'To old friends. And new ones.' Cheers, everyone." She quickly downed her champagne, then resumed her seat. She noticed her husband giving her a strange look, but waved it away. "So ... Linna ... how would you like to hear how your mother single-handedly destroyed an entire wing of her High School during her second year exams?"
Linna chuckled slightly. "Mom told me about that. Said she should have been paying closer attention to the burner. She didn't know the gas was on."
"Sounds like Aunt Rei ... always playing with fire." Usa smiled sadly and glanced at Linna. "Did you know your mother wanted to be a singer when she grew up? She actually made a demo that did pretty good. Mom said she only did it so she could meet your dad, though."
"I wouldn't be surprised. Mom was always doing stuff to get dad's attention. Not like she ever had to worry about losing it, though. He was head over heels for her from day one." Linna smiled a little at the familiar looks on everyone's faces. In the years that they had known each other, talk of family and the past was one thing that was always a sore topic, simply because it hurt too much. But now, face to face with Nene's mother and the knowledge that their pasts were linked in ways they never even knew, all of them were pushing the painful memories back while letting the good ones through. Even Sylia, normally the first to end all talk of family, was enjoying the conversation. Smiling a little, she glanced at the older blonde woman. "So ... what can you tell us about Priss-chan's mom?"
Minako smiled a little. She had learned from talking to Haruka and Michiru that Priss' mother was another of their old friends and what happened to her during the 'Quake. "Kino Makoto ... One of the best chefs to ever live. Mako-chan ... ah, I don't know if Priss-san would want me to tell you. I don't know if she knows herself, about her mother's childhood, I mean. But I can tell you that Mako-chan was as stubborn as a jackass and as strong as an ox. You couldn't talk her out of doing anything once she got her mind set on it and if she got hurt doing it ... well, she hardly ever admitted that it did hurt."
"Definitely sounds like Priss-chan. I guess we are all like our mothers," Nene replied. She smiled at her own mother. "In some ways."
"Yeah, like becoming the things our mother hates the most?" Sylia smirked at Nene as she blushed.
"I didn't hate cops. One of my best friends was actually a cop, Katrina. I met her in England when I was doing the 'Sailor V' movies. I just didn't want Nene to have to fight those blasted Boomers." Minako looked up as Leon and Addison both started choking on their drinks. "What? Is there something I should know, Officer McNichol? Chiba-san?"
The two men exchanged glances before Leon shook his head and smiled at the older woman. "Of course not, Roma ... Aino-san. It's just ... Nene-chan is a Communications Officer. She doesn't do field work."
"Hey, I did field work when those damned things took over HQ, didn't I?" Nene stared at Leon for a moment then turned to see her mother glaring at her. "Uh ... I can explain, mom."
"Nene Katrina Romanova, how could you not tell us that you were inside the building when they attacked!?" Minako launched a rant that was a mixture of English, Japanese and Russian. Nene's father sighed and just sat back, knowing it was useless to talk to her when she couldn't even control what language she was speaking in.
Artemis downed another glass of champagne and glanced at the other young women around the table. "Don't mind her, she just gets worked up when it comes to Boomers. They remind her of the ... troubles ... of old Tokyo."
"Troubles? What kind of trouble?" Leon asked, leaning toward the white-haired man to hear him better. "I didn't know old Tokyo had any 'troubles'."
"That's because most of the people that were involved aren't around anymore. They were either killed in the 'Incident', the 'Quake or just moved away. Tokyo really is a magnet for trouble, you know," Artemis had learned enough Russian to know that Minako was now back on the old subject of destiny. "Or maybe it's just the people that live there."
"... and another thing, if I so much as hear of another Boomer sighting in that city, we are moving back to St. Petersburg and taking you with us. Do you understand me, young lady?"
Nene was staring down at the table wishing she could just crawl underneath it. She was so utterly embarassed by the fact that she had just gotten yelled at like a little kid, in front of her friends. She felt Mackie put his hand on her back and smiled slightly, suddenly grateful for the support. "Yes, mother, I understand. But there is something you need to understand as well." Nene stood up and looked at her mother directly. "I ... I am a Knight Saber. I help destroy Boomers that have gotten beyond the control of the AD Police. I am not a child anymore, mother. You need to understand that. Especially if you want MY help trying to convince MY friends that coming here was a good idea!"
The entire group watched as Nene turned on her heel and stalked out of the room, knocking over her chair in the process. Mackie stood, righted the chair and bowed slightly to the stunned blonde woman. "Excuse me, Aino-san, minna. I don't think she should be alone right now." He hurriedly left the room, following after Nene.
Minako stared after her daughter and felt her heart sink to the floor. "She's a .... a Knight Saber?" She glanced back to the table and noticed the other young men and women all staring at the table. "And the rest of you?"
Sylia stood, keeping her eyes on the plate in front of her. "Perhaps we should be going. Thank you for inviting us, Aino-san, Romanova-san, but it would seem that we have worn out our welcome."
Minako watched Linna stand next, then Usa, Addison and Leon. "No, wait. Usagi-chan, you have to tell them. I know you know who your mother really was."
Usa glanced at Sylia then looked at Minako. "My mother was a house-wife who raised two kids while her doctor husband worked in the Emergency Room at Tokyo University Hospital. They were killed by a Boomer that broke into our house one night and attacked me and my little brother. If it was not for the Knight Sabers, I would not be here right now."
"Usagi-chan, that's not what I meant. I meant-"
"I know what you meant, Aino-san. That part of my mother's life was over long before she had me. You will forgive me if I don't feel the same need to hold on to it that you seem to." Usa followed Sylia out of the room and knew the others were close on her heels. She could hear Artemis in the other room, speaking in Russian.
"Stop them, Minako-chan. If they leave before the others arrive ..."
"I know, Artemis. But what can I do? They haven't shown signs of their mother's powers. I can't exactly force this on them. Not the way it was forced on us." Minako looked at her long-time friend and advisor. "I will not do that to them."
Artemis frowned. "We had no choice, Minako-chan. You know that. We would never have awakened you if it could have been avoided."
"Well, this time, it can be avoided," Minako replied, switching back to Japanese. She glanced across the table to her husband and sighed. "Go talk to her, Petr. She will only run from me again."
Petr nodded, then followed the young adults out of the room. He found Sylia and the others standing at the bottom of the stairs, talking. They stopped when they saw him coming. "Do you know where Nene-chan went? She and her mother are more alike than they want to admit and when they clash ..."
Linna smiled slightly. "Yeah, Nene doesn't lose her temper often, but ... when she does ... we saw Mackie heading upstairs. I think Nene went to her room."
"Thank you, dear. And please, forgive my Mina ... she can't stand the idea of losing more of her old friends ... or their children," Petr smiled at the gathered group before mounting the stairs.
"More of her old friends? But all of our mothers died years ago ..." Linna glanced at Petr's back then looked to Sylia and Usa. "What did she mean, Usa-chan? What do you know that we don't?"
