1053/Two Senshi and a Knight Walk Into a Time Void...

Two Senshi and a Knight Walk Into a Time Void...
Date of Scene:	27 January 2024
Location:	Gates of Time
Synopsis:	Following scene 900, Lost & Found: Human (First Take) Nephrite pokes his head out of his tent long enough to speak with Sailors Mercury and Jupiter, and verbally dance around several subjects -- including the impending apocalypse.
Cast of Characters:	Ami Mizuno, Makoto Kino, Nephrite
Tinyplot:	Lost & Found

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Ami Mizuno has posed:
The Gates of Time where time didn't matter and matter wasn't... really matter? Sailor Mercury had been visiting since the camp for the Shittenou had first been set up having helped Sailor Pluto with gathering the provisions. The place itself had garnered her curiousity so she didn't mind visiting even if many of the others may have found the not-entirely-there floor rather unsettling.

She'd been seen coming and going frequently yet she had allowed everyone their space while recovering. That was Mamoru's lead to take.

Now though, she felt it was perhaps time to reach out in a more sociable, and hopefully helpful manner.

A little folding table had been set up along with a few chairs near the camp center. On the table were numerous books of various topics, pads of paper, pens and pencils. Whatever one might need or want. There's a laptop, too, though whether it could reach outside of this bubble in time and space was questionable.

Makoto Kino has posed:
Today, Sailor Mercury has company beyond the captive audience camping out here at the Gates. Textbooks are heavy, after all; she had Sailor Jupiter's help in lugging her selection here and getting set up. Jupiter also brought along what looks suspiciously like a picnic basket, from which she is, at this moment, retrieving a Thermos and a couple of cups.

"Are you actually getting a signal here?" she wonders aloud, eyeing Mercury's laptop curiously. "Because that just raises... so many questions."

Nephrite has posed:
    There's been a lot to sort out, inside and outside of his head. He is Nephrite still, but things seem so clear now that were previously hidden away. He can still feel the warmth of Naru's hand in his, and Endymion holding his other hand. Between them, he was more stable during his purification than probably any of the others were/would be. He feared for their souls.

    He couldn't hear the Stars when he spoke to them. Unsure if this was a property of this non-place or if he was truly cut off from them now, as price or punishment (or both) for his alliance with evil, the Second of the Four wanders aimlessly, thinking his private thoughts and just strolling about to give his body something to do.

    When he sees Mercury and Jupiter at their table, he pauses. He has carefully avoided looking in that direction too much, because the memories of the tall brunette from a past life are fresh now that the Shadow is gone, and that's a whole other layer of complication he's not certain he is ready for.

    However, finally, he takes his long strides towards the two Sailor Senshi. He has wasted too much time avoiding difficult truths already. He stops a couple meters away, one arm across his chest, as he bows at the waist slightly. "Good whatever-time-of-day it is."

Ami Mizuno has posed:
Sailor Mercury glances up fro the Mercury computer she herself was busy typing on only to glance at the regular-old-laptop with a sad smile, and shake of her head. "No, it doesn't. I've been trying to see if there's some way I could perhaps piggy back on signals from our time. I'm *sure* there's a way, but..." It was currently beyond her. This wasn't something she'd really had experience with, and even with the Silver Millenia computer at her disposal, it had it's limits when dealing with space and time it would seem.

"Thank you for your help, Jupiter. What did you bring?" Of course she's curious of what's in the basket, especially when her friend pulls out a thermos and some cups. She even rises up just a bit in her seat trying to catch a glimpse of what may be within the basket.

Such thoughts are easily pushed aside for the time being as Nephrite arrives to greet them. The short haired bluenette smiles warmly with a greeting of, "Hello! I'd clarify the time but it doesn't really matter past what we decide it is here, really. It's quite confusing."

A gloved hand lifts to gesture to some of the folding chairs. While not the best, they were chairs and they weren't sinking through the murky white of the 'ground' so it was relatively safe. "Would you like to join us?"

Makoto Kino has posed:
"I suppose it'd get weird if you could get an internet connection from outside of time. Send emails into the past, watch Clock App videos from the future?" Jupiter considers this for a moment more before making a wry face. "Okay, no, I'm making my own head hurt. Let's just not."

She's shaking her head and laughing a little as Nephrite approaches to greet them; she turns, brows lifting, and inclines her head in reply. "Call it afternoon," she suggests, "that's what it was when we left. Hello."

Mercury invites him to join them and Jupiter's bright green eyes flick briefly in her direction, and she nods agreement. "I brought tea," she offers, "and some snacks. In theory I have enough cups for everyone." She ducks down to check her basket and indeed comes up with a third cup, all of them the small and sturdy variety one might pack for a camping trip. "Nothing fancy," she adds, answering Mercury's question from a moment ago. "I figured finger-food was probably best for a situation like this." From the basket she produces a container of neatly-arranged rice balls, which she sets on the table a bit away from the books and laptop. "There's fruit, too, and some anpan." More containers join the first. The table may be getting a little crowded.

Nephrite has posed:
    "Ah, I would love to partake, both of the company and the consumables. Thank you." So saying, Nephrite seats himself, folding his hands in his lap and looking back and forth between the two Sailor Senshi. "You came prepared. Do you enjoy cooking, Jupiter?" Pause. "Oh, I assume I don't need to introduce myself, but just in case, I am Nephrite. Aka, Masato Sanjouin. I am a Guardian Knight of Endymion, Prince of the Earth." He isn't going to bring up the 'Maxwell Stanton' identity if he's not asked about it; some things are better left in the past.

    He also glances over Mercury's collection of materials, though doesn't crane his neck to try to see the screen or anything. That would be terribly rude. Not as rude as trying to use Sailor Moon's little brother as a hostage, but still rude-ish.

Ami Mizuno has posed:
"If there's not enough cups I can forego mine," Mercury offers in an attempt to insure everyone is already taken care of before considering such things for herself. She could come and go so long as Pluto was there to ferry her back to the timeline she was from. They were stuck here at least until they all decided they had recovered enough to attempt rejoining 'regular' life.

"Pleased to meet you, Nephrite. I'm Sailor Mercury." Did she need to give her title? It seemed silly to do when not in a fight. "The Guardian who fights for Love and Intelligence." There, done. Yes. Perfect.

A bit of a sheepish smile is given as she notices him looking over the items on the table. "I know you may not need it, but I thought it might help you and the others to get situated in school life again if we could catch you up to where you would be in your grade. I'm very good at tutoring, and I thought it would be one less thing to worry about while you all recover."

Makoto Kino has posed:
Sailor Jupiter regards Nephrite for a moment, her eyes narrowing a little. Not the dangerous sharp-edged narrowing that warns of impending violence, but a more thoughtful sort of contemplation. "You were... at Meiji Shrine, right? Not the one drunk yelling at Mamoru-san across rooftops over the emu? For some reason I thought you'd be American." Then she catches herself and looks embarrassed. "That was rude, sorry. Sailor Jupiter - but you might as well call me Makoto. It's nice to meet you properly, without anyone picking a fight."

She turns an amused sidelong look towards Mercury. "Oh no you don't," she says, playfully scolding. "I did not pack half a dozen cups for you to end up dehydrated. There's enough." As if to prove it, she picks up the Thermos and begins to pour hot, rose-scented tea into the three cups she's lined up. "--I do like to cook," she answers Nephrite, a little belatedly. "Plus I was worried that if I left it to Mercury, she'd bring a liter of cheap green tea and a box of rice crackers from the konbini and call it good." Her tone is light and teasing.

Nephrite has posed:
    'Studying and grades are not even remotely a concern of mine right now. Not with what I know about the approaching end of the world.' is a thing Nephrite definitely doesn't say. Instead he smiles, nods, and says, "You have my gratitude. Not quite a coincidence, but I am -- or was -- the Knight of Intelligence and Comfort." He turns to regard Sailor Jupiter. "Yes. I was at Meiji Shrine." The fact he was also behind Midnight Tokyo, and possessed Princess D, and used her to rough up the leader of the Sailor Senshi rather badly and then throw her off a balcony, and then Sailor Jupiter lightning tackled him right in the soul, and oh, he used to think Naru Osaka might have been her, and--

    None of that comes out.

    Instead, at the remark of thinking he would be American, Nephrite arches an eyebrow and gives a lop-sided smile. "If it helps, I was the commander in charge of the North American Division of the Dark Kingdom's operations." He accepts the offered tea with gratitude, bowing his head briefly, and blows on it slightly before sipping at it. He gives an approving nod.

    "May I ask what the plan is going forwards?" he decides to ask, in a very carefully calculated manner, so as to be completely neutral.

Ami Mizuno has posed:
"I would not get rice crackers from the konbini," Mercury pronounces with a hint of a pout in that playful sort of defensive tone she sometimes can take on with Jupiter. While all the senshi were her friends, she did feel a particular kinship with Jupiter. Her hands reach to accept the cup of tea which is drawn up to inhale the pleasant scent with a sigh.

As Nephrite explains his own particular Knightly title she can't help but grin some in turn. It's not until the remarks on the American part that she finds herself nodding readily in agreement. "It's the hair, I think. Your hair is very curly and such a deep chestnut brown. It's rare for curly hair of that color in Japan. Plus you're also very tall," she has to admit, "Though I suppose that's true for most of you."

A long sip is taken of her tea before she blinks a time or two. "Oh, right. I'm sorry I didn't introduce myself properly. I'm Ami Mizuno, as well." Her head shakes a moment as she looks back to the Mercury computer which has no better readings than before on it for her to observe.

"I think that's partially up to all of you. Pluto and I have been working on ways to help set you up back in Tokyo, and otherwise keep you all safe from Obsidian again."

Makoto Kino has posed:
Does that help? From the momentarily awkward expression that flickers across Jupiter's face, probably not. Latecomer to the team as she was, Sailor Jupiter's had little direct face-to-face conflict with any of the former Dark Generals... which in some ways makes this interaction simpler, but right at the moment she looks like there's a taste in her mouth she can't decide what she thinks about.

Fortunately, there's Mercury. "Sandwiches from the konbini, then," Jupiter tosses back. "Still no good. Have they been feeding you guys, while you're here? They have, right? Or does being outside of time mean not needing any of the usual things..." Half-consciously, a hand comes up to twist the end of her ponytail around her fingers.

"As far as plans," she admits after a distracted moment, "I have no idea, really. So far I've mostly just gone in the direction the wind blows... the wind, in this case, being Sailor Moon and Luna, and Mercury here." Her head tips toward Sailor Mercury.

Nephrite has posed:
    Not what he was asking about. Perhaps he should be more clear... Or maybe he should wait and ask Mamoru, or Usagi -- if the latter will even speak to him. "My needs have been seen to. I've not released my Henshin, because I have greater endurance like this. It's odd to think of turning into myself as a henshin, but... I suppose I'm not the same Nephrite as I was in the past. I will probably always think of myself as Nephrite first, and Masato second. But learning to be human again is going to be a trial."

    He has some ideas about reincarnation and the effect a soul can have on the appearance of the body, but this isn't the time for theorycrafting. He's sure Mercury would be glad to do so at some point. Maybe Jadeite too. But right now, he needs to know something specific.

    "Has anyone told either of you what's about to happen?" he asks. He's still not being direct, because he doesn't want to mess something up if Sailor Moon is being careful about revealing information. But he also needs to know how they're going to deal with Beryl.

Ami Mizuno has posed:
Sailor Mercury offers no protest to the correction of sandwiches. Instead she just gives a small shrug. "Sandwiches are very handy. Portable, easily digested, less messy than other options. Perfect for a study session." The riceballs that Makoto had made are smiled at though. "Even so, I do enjoy your cooking, Mako-chan. I don't get home cooking often." She slips to calling Jupiter by her real name as she mentions this, her voice soft and genuine. There was just something about getting to indulge in food she could enjoy rather than just subsist on.

The talk from Nephrite draws her attention back rather quickly though. Pursing her lips together she can only shake her head a bit at the remark. "No... What do you mean, exactly? We've retreived the Silver Crystal already," she adds just in case he hadn't been aware of that. Though he likely had.

Makoto Kino has posed:
"Then... for you guys, it's sort of the opposite of how it is for us?" It's not the most important topic being discussed at the moment, but Makoto can't help being curious. "Or - for you, at least? I still have trouble wrapping my head around having lived a whole other life, all that time ago, but it sounds like it'd be even tougher if that's most of what you remember..."

She pauses, letting the thought trail off. Mercury gets an indulgent smile, as Jupiter picks up her own rapidly cooling cup of tea to cradle between her hands.

Nephrite's question, though - there's a weight to it, a sense of significance that has the smile slipping from Jupiter's face. She says nothing, just listens carefully, waiting to hear how he replies to Mercury.

Nephrite has posed:
    Nephrite sets down his tea and says, "Acquiring the Silver Crystal was a critical step in thwarting the Dark Kingdom's plans. But the war isn't over. Queen Serenity wielded the Silver Crystal, and she still lost, and the entire solar system lost alongside her. If we do not stop Queen Beryl before her goddess awakens, there may simply be a repeat of Silver Millennium. And somehow, I don't feel we'll get a third chance to do it right."

    The Guardian closes his blue eyes and takes in a breath to calm himself. "I would highly advise that we consult with our respective leaders about what the next steps are going to be, and if there are any plans for a first strike on the Dark Kingdom, to end them and their rulers for good. It isn't my place to say that is what's needed... But it seems... Prudent." With that, Nephrite opens his eyes, stands, and bows his head briefly to Mercury. He does the same towards Jupiter, though his gaze seems to linger a bit longer, and then he says, "By your leave, ladies."

    Unless told to stay or otherwise prevented, he'll wait for an acknowledgmewnt and then... Go back to his tent, he supposes. Or perhaps to look for Endymion. His Prince, of all people, must know how dire their circumstances are... And what's at stake if they lose this war again.