2459/What is it to be us

What is it to be us
Date of Scene:	08 April 2025
Location:	Plot Room 1
Synopsis:	Hotaru asks the outers and Sailor Venus what it means to be senshi during Michiru's homecoming.... while also informing them of a little... problem... with her past home life.
Cast of Characters:	Hotaru Tomoe, Haruka Tenoh, Minako Aino, Setsuna Meiou

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Hotaru Tomoe has posed:
The sound of music had been gone from the household for far, far too long. Michiru had been on a loooooooooong tour. But now? She was coming home. And so, snacks had been procured! Setsuna was taking care of some things and Hotaru was setting out the rest of the treats, lightly humming as she worked.

She'd also sent a message to one of the other senshi. The leader of the inners, Sailor Venus! Or, has Hotaru had once fought her, Sailor V! Now that she was officially a senshi, she wanted to pick her brain too. And it'd be a surprise!

... She hoped it'd be a good surprise. She even henshined, so Michiru would be able to see the real Sailor Saturn as soon as she came in the door!

... For obvious reasons she put the glaive away.

Haruka Tenoh has posed:
    It had been a long time since Michiru had been back in the house the Outer Senshi shared; she'd been all across the globe doing concerts and special events with orchestras in cities all around, and then between times trying to manage the remainder of her family business and occasionally paint too. Suffice to say she'd been a busy woman, though she'd often asked if she needed to come back, she'd been pressed on by Haruka saying that she had it under control.

    At least until recently, when Haruka's tone instead changed to telling her about Hotaru - and that's what caused her to cut the tour short, though she still had dates she had to make.

    And now she was finally home, picked up by Haruka. Haruka was in a suit - what else would she pick Michiru up in - while the other girl was wearing a long blue sundress. They were laughing about something as Haruka opened the door.

    Upon seeing her in henshin, Haruka's eyes widened a bit. "Hey, lil' one. Is there trouble? Do we need to..." and Haruka was cut off by Michiru swooping past her like an ocean wave to pick up Sailor Saturn and hug her tight, picking the smaller girl up off the floor. "Oh I hope not. We have so much to catch up on!" she says, her tone even but doing little to hide her excitement even still.

    Haruka crossed her arms and smiled and stood at the door, just watching the scene between the two of them - and being there to greet anyone else who came up.

Minako Aino has posed:
It was the first time that Mina could recall being invited over. She'd been here a time or two (presumably) but not really a direct invite. The mention of food though, that had her sold, as well as curiosity about the business that was to be discussed. There was a lot going on lately after all. Maybe focusing on 'work' would help get her mind off of other things.

Her arrival is just in time to see the back of a suit-clad Haruka, and Michiru rushing past to hug an unfamiliar Senshi. Unfamiliar perhaps but given the context of the invitation, as well as whose house this was, it wasn't a huge leap of logic for Mina--Even if she wasn't the smart one.

The blonde steps up to fill the place Michiru had stood to gaze on them all with a grin. "This is a happy sight. What's the occasion though?"

Setsuna Meiou has posed:
When news of Michiru finally coming home got to Setsuna, she knew she had to prepare.

Fortunately, most of her preparations could be done online or over the phone, so she was easily able to handle them from work.

Thus, the moment she was clear to leave, Nurse Meiou was out the door and making a single stop for supplies, stocking up on several different kinds of ice cream for the house, especially since Hotaru had mentioned she wanted to invite a guest over.

Thus it is that, precisely as she arrives and opens the gate for her car (a good fifteen minutes before Haruka and Michiru arrive), a pair of delivery vehicles are ALSO pulling up...one right after the other as if they'd been somehow co-ordinated.

Setsuna takes a large box from one and a much smaller pack from the other...then she heads on into the house.    here, while Hotaru is waiting transformed by the door, she starts unpacking the box...which is full of a vast array of takeout from Korma Chamelion (as most people she knows tend to like it and she knows everyone in the household will absolutely go through anything left over)...as well as a large order of sashimi from Michiru's favorite local resturaunt under a glass cloche.

Kaiju's roaming about somewhere and despite how well-behaved the young calico is, best not to tempt him with a plate full of unguarded fish.

As Michiru finally gets her hug in on the renewed Hotaru/Saturn, Setsuna steps into the entranceway behind them and waves the two blondes inside, "Come in, Minako-san. Come in. They haven't seen each other in a while and the last time Hotaru was far less hale. I got Korma for everyone...and Michiru, I got you some sashimi from that place you really liked as a 'welcome home' treat."

Hotaru Tomoe has posed:
Sailor Saturn stood up a little straighter when Michiru came in, quickly straightening the ruffles out of her skirt, rubbing it down. Okay. She could do this. She coudl...

And then they were here. She clasped her hands in front of herself, smiling up at Michiru. "I--" But any words were silenced by a sudden hug. She reached up and hugged her, grinning wide.

"So I guess this means you don't mind if I stay? Because... I'm home..." she said softly. So was Michiru! In an entirely different way.

She then smiled, looking to Minako. "Welllll... actually, I wanted to discuss with all of you. I uhhhh... I thought Sailor Moon would have told you. I'm Sailor Saturn." The armageddon.

"Since, uhhhhh... I am kind of joining a bit late... I actually wanted to pick your brains. I asked Pluto-senpai for some advice, but... I'd like to ask all of you, what being a senshi means to you. What... drives you in it? What makes you excited to do what you do? And, ummm, what advice would you have for a new senshi just learning her way?"

Haruka Tenoh has posed:
    Michiru put Hotaru down so she could come over and give Setsuna a tight hug, but a much more brief one (and she does not try to pick the taller woman up like she did Hotaruu in the hug.)

    "Thank you, Meiou-san." she says and smiles. "And of course you're home. Our casa is your casa, I think, is the term." Michiru says as she also slips away to start picking - delicately, elegantly - at the Sashimi, her eyes a bit bright.

    "I gotta admit, we thought you might have been Sailor Saturn." Haruka says, making a 'tiny' gesture with her hand. "Didn't want it to be the case because of the whole... apocalypse... thing. But we've always felt drawn to you." she says, and Michiru nods.

    Haruka puts her hand behind her head and rubs her neck. "Well, before you, I was the last one to wake up." she says. "For me it's kind of... a duty. But... it also brought me this family and these friends, so I came out pretty well ahead. But it's not like I can run from it." she says, softly. "It's who I am, even if I try to hide it. I got a lot of experience trying to be somebody I'm not, and trust me - it isn't worth the effort."

    "I tried to run from it too." Michiru says, bemused a bit. "But in the end I've been a Sailor Soldier a lot longer than I've been Michiru Kaiou, so it has... priority. Plus, the more I tried to ignore it... the more things started happening around me. In the end it's... responsibility."

Minako Aino has posed:
Minako Aino clasps her hands in front of her skirt not knowing what else to do with them for the moment as the tender moment between Michiru and Sailor Saturn occurs. It felt a bit awkward to see even if it was heartwarming. The Outers weren't ones she had memories of her prior life with, and what she had experienced with them so far in this life was mainly on the battlefield.

Awkward had never really stopped her before though. You don't chase down as many idols as she has in her life to worry about being 'awkward' once you got there.

Setsuna's ushering inside is met with a quick nod as she ducks through the entryway, taking care not to bump or jostle Haruka in the process. "It's nice to officially meet you, Sailor Saturn. I'm Minako-- Sailor Venus," she clarifies perhaps unnecessarily. A quick wink comes as well with hand lifting to flash a V sign up against the corner of her eye. "Or perhaps more famously known as Sailor V! Although," she adds with a laugh, "It has been awhile since then."

The questions cause her to stop in her tracks staring openly at Saturn with a look of sheer confusion. "What it *means* to be a senshi? I... We just... We *are* senshi." Her eyebrows draw together with a little frown. "Do you remember your past life at all?" Of course someone had surely mentioned at some point Saturn being 'asleep' back then but at the moment it doesn't come to mind.

Setsuna Meiou has posed:
Setsuna happily returns the hug from Michiru, giving the much shorter woman a bit of a squeeze before turning to give Haruka a hug as well, then heading towards the fridge, "Minako-chan, what would you like to drink? We have soda, juice, and ramune...also feel free to help yourself to the food, we've got plenty enough."

As the younger of the two blondes asks about memories of a past life, Setsuna supresses the urge to wince.

She gives Saturn a bit of a quick look...a question like that is something that should probably best be answered by Saturn herself, but the older woman prepares herself to step in if the younger senshi finds herself foundering.

Hotaru Tomoe has posed:
Sailor Saturn nodded, listening closely to Michiru and Haruka. And well... "You really figured it out? Wow... that's amazing... the senshi really are smart," she whispered. "A duty... yeah. I... I can do that. I've done duty before," she said proudly. A duty. A responsibility. She could handle that.

And when sailor V is broguht up, Saturn's eyes went wide and excited. "Uh huh! We met before, when I was Firefly! A few times! I don't know if you remember, but you even made a whole new attack to fight me once! It was so cool! You were so cooool!" Saturn said, giving a little fan girl squeal.

And she was so, so excited! Which made Minako's next words hurt so much more. The smile faded and... slowly... she lowered her gaze. Her henshin ended a moment later and her arms went around herself.

"... No... I don't... think... I had one..." she mumbled softly. "Not... really. I get flashes... but they were more like... nightmares... being alone. Walking. Everyone else was gone... and I was all alone... It was my duty... to clean the mess left behind..." Hotaru said softly. "I'm... sorry. It's... why I want to... know... what it means to all of you..."

Because she never got the chance to learn in a past life, like they had. This... was all new to her. To her now, and in the past.

Haruka Tenoh has posed:
    Michiru and Haruka both stopped in mid-movement when Minako asked about Hotaru's past life - Michiru with a bit of sashimi still held in her manicured fingers, and Haruka midway through digging into the Korma. Both of them fail resisting the urge to wince slightly that Setsuna avoided, though it's brief for both of them, before Michiru calmly puts the sashimi in her mouth and Haruka slowly continues going through the bag, at least for a moment.

    Haruka moves over to Hotaru first, putting her hand on the smaller girl's back softly. "Well, that's not happening again." she says firmly. Michiru walks over to Hotaru, standing on the opposite side of Haruka, and putting her hands on her shoulder, trying to draw the discussion back to the present day, back from bad pasts. "I think V-san- was there when Haruka-san got her first henshin, too." she says. "Things are so different this time around, and that's good."

    "Yeah, for one thing Beryl is super-dead." Haruka adds helpfully.

Minako Aino has posed:
Minako Aino can feel the weight of the stares that fill that silent moment before Hotaru explains her past life to her. The landmine she'd verbally stepped on becomes apparent rather quickly from the newest senshi to awaken.

Wordlessly she moves forward without thinking to wrap her arms tightly around Hotaru in a hug. A hug she holds a long few moments unless she's urged to move away.

"I'm sorry. I know the past wasn't all good, I'd just thought that maybe you might have had some memories with the other Outer Senshi that could help."

"BEING a senshi is about whatever you bring to it. I have a duty to protect my Princess of course. It's not just her I protect though. It's my friends. My family. ... My friends who have *become* family." Another addition there for she knew that family was also a touchy subject for Hotaru.

She steps away then looking seriously at the shorter girl. "Being a senshi helps give purpose to your life, just don't let it be the *reason* for your life. You get to be who you want to be, too."

Setsuna Meiou has posed:
As Minako recovers from the accidental landmine she stepped on rather well, Setsuna smiles a bit as she steps by and hands her a plate of curry before bustling on back over, putting together a plate of what she knows Hotaru likes, then handing that to the youngest senshi, "Well said, Minako-chan...in many ways things are infinitely better for some of us as opposed to how they were in the past, as we're not bound by the same paradigms we were back then."

She then goes over to the counter, grabs a few things on a plate for herself, "How have you been doing, Minako-chan? And Artemis-san? I haven't seen him in quite a while. Is he still giving you grief like Luna-san does Usagi?"

Hotaru Tomoe has posed:
Hotaru Tomoe nodded along, the comfort offered by the two managing to help calm her from the prior comment. "Uh huh," she said softly. "Beryl... is... ummmm... super... dead... but... she's not the only one," Hotaru said softly. She took the hug, giving one back, gently, if a bit timidly. "I... don't... sadly... we never.... truly interacted, I don't think. Or, if we did, it wasn't often. I don't remember anything about... anyone, then. I don't think the... other me does, either. She's... confused, I think, about... all of this. Me even being here. Like this."

Hotaru took a small, deep breath. "There's... something else.... I feel I should let you know. Something... I need to tell the princess eventually. But... I feel I should tell the ummmm..." The outers. The leader of the inners. "First... It's... something I learned while I was... Mistress 9. Namely. That..." She struggled, trying to find out how to word this, slowly pulling away to poke at her own food. "... So... ummmm... my.... father... died. A.... long, long time ago. That thing... using him... isn't him anymore. It's just his body. I need to... tell the others, but ummmm... I'm not... quite sure how... yet. But since, well... Beryl is dead... seemed a good time?"

Seqways were not her forte.

Haruka Tenoh has posed:
    Michiru stood next to Haruka, a plate of Sashimi in her hand which she picked through delicately. Haruka was visibly considering what everyone had said.

    "I think it's hard to do both. Maybe even impossible." Michiru said after a moment. "To be a Senshi and do everything you want to do as a person." she says, quietly. "I don't say this to be mean. But I think it's fair to tell Hotaru-chan this. And because I've been thinking about it a lot myself... I wasn't here when Hotaru-chan needed me; when Meiou-san and Haruka fought to save her. So... I don't think I can do those concerts anymore, no more tours like that." she notes. "I think that may be part of being a Senshi too. Because the world needs us in ways that nobody else can fill. There's a lot of violinists, but only one Sailor Neptune."

    "Michiru..." Haruka says lowly, looking at her. And then she turns to look at Hotaru as she talks about her father. Which is... frankly, a subject that's just as difficult. "So it's just wearing your father like a suit?" Haruka asks inelegantly, and Michiru shoots her a look. "Sorry. I just. I... hmmm." She crosses her arms and looks down.

    "You'll always have family here, with us." Haruka says after a moment. "But I'm sorry." she says. She doesn't say the other thing she's thinking, because she knows Michiru will be annoyed if she mentions how this does make some things easier. But she's thinking it.

Minako Aino has posed:
Minako Aino presses her lips together at the news of Dr. Tomoe being a meat puppet. With all that was going on with the Black Moon Clan it wasn't that big a shock to hear that her 'father was dead but still kicking' in that sort of way. It was just unsettling. "Then we'll do our best to lay him to rest properly."

The ominous remark is offered as if in solace and yet... For just a moment it may become apparent that to Minako the idea of killing someone was just Something That Needed Done at times. She had been doing this for quite awhile after all.

With the worst of the worst out of the way (hopefully?) she allows herself to get distracted by the sudden plate of curry in her hands. There's an audible grumble from her stomach as soon as the scent hits her. "... Sorry, volleyball practice was pretty brutal today! Itadakaimasu!" With that she digs in spooning a few quick mouthfuls to gulp down.

Setsuna Meiou has posed:
As Hotaru reveals what she'd discovered about her father, Setsuna...visibly doesn't react.

Mainly because that admission was something she'd all but concluded quite some time ago.

A large number of things about her 'father' and his behavior had added slowly up to paint the picture of 'someone' who LOOKS human but is trying to ACT human but whose only guide is a manual that's been translated from Japanese to English to Spanish to Russian to Tagalog BACK to English to Norwegian then finally back to Japanese and had a merry time along the way in translation.

Blame a LOT of sci-fi horror novels that have VERY THOROUGHLY explored the concept read to pass the time at the Gates.

Instead, she turns to Michiru, "...so just the occasional local event, then? I mean, *I* can understand Duty...but don't let it define you if you can avoid it."

She then smirks and nods over at Haruka, "...besides which, it'll force Haruka to have to dress up for you, which I'm sure you enjoy."

Hotaru Tomoe has posed:
Hotaru Tomoe blinked a few times when Michiru said she'd no longer be going on her long tours. On the one hand? YAY! On the other? It was... not... yay... knowing that she wasn't going to be pursuing her dreams anymore.... because she didn't want to miss the moments like this, where she had been needed. "Michiru-senpai..." Hotaru mumbled gently, a little sad, a little happy. "I'm... sorry..." she said softly.

She then nodded to Haruka. "Uh huh. And his... mind. I think... I think a part of me knew that he was gone for a lon time. but I didn't want to... accept it. But... I am the senshi of death. I can't... avoid it anymore."

Fortunately, they were moving onto other topics now. "Volleyball? Ohhhh, that sounds fun! Do you think you could teach me sometime? I've never been able to do it much, because of my injuries. But I'd love to learn from an expert."

This, admittedly, was more her trying to find a thing to do WITH the Sailor senshi of love, than wanting to play volleyball... which was why she asked Minako and not Haruka.

Minako Aino has posed:
"Oh, pfft." Minako interjects abruptly to the talk of not going on tour. Complete with air blown between lips to draw out the 'pfft' into a 'pblllt' noise. Another bite of curry is spooned into her mouth which only frees up the spoon for her to waggle in the air absently in a complete lack of manners. Then again no one really had ever called her a lady, had they?

"Who needs to physically tour these days? You can do like a virtual idol thing. I mean, maybe it's different for classical musicians, but you're a *young* classical musician so if anyone's going to be successful at that, it's you."

Mina looks around between everyone here, completely off topic given the subject that came up. "Wait have you all seriously never heard of a virtual concert? You don't have to travel to do it, just need to be recorded and projected onto stage or screen where the concert is being held so it might be odd for timezones but *totally* do-able."

Hotaru's sudden enthusiasm earns a nod as well. "Of course I can! I'm also great at long jump, acrobatics, running--" Begrudgingly, "Maybe not as much as Haruka-san--" And then she pauses to stare wide-eyed at Hotaru. "I bet you'd be *great* at a three-legged race, then! Your balance must be amazing!"

Haruka Tenoh has posed:
    Michiru and Haruka both nod as Minako comments about dealing with the thing now in Hotaru's father's body. It's a quiet nod, not an excited one. Sometimes, though, Things Must Be Done.

    Michiru giggles a bit. "Maybe the occasional one, as a treat. For my fans and for me." she says, her eyes moving over to look at Haruka for just a moment before returning to the focus of her interest; both Hotaru and Minako, in fact.

    "Oh!" Haruka clapped suddenly which may have startled at least Michiru, though the only hint was a slight widening of her eyes. "That's right! When you came back, all of you came back, right! Arms and everything!" she says happily to Michiru. And then she pauses. "Wow, without context that is up there in the Crazy Person Things I've Said, isn't it..." she admits, looking down as Michiru giggles.

    "But I think you getting out there and playing sports is a great idea." Haruka says. She actually doesn't try to include herself in the potential future volleyball game.

    "Aino-san, that's a great idea..." Michiru begins. "...but it doesn't offset all of the time I'd have to practice, promote, record... but it would be a good way to have some smaller scale events, maybe." she says, putting her finger to her lip. "But even the idols who do that still make it their focus. And I just don't think I can do that - because something else is always going to be in front of that." she admits.

    "Wait, what about three-legged races?" Harukla asks, clearly not getting that comment. She can't speak to much of Michiru's comments, but she is wondering about the idea of being stuck in another country if Hotaru, Setsuna, or even Minako needs her. "... I know a thing or two about running. And... I think Michi's point is that if you're a Senshi, everything else is second. And maybe we have been running from that." she says, looking at Michiru who gives the most subtle of nods.

Setsuna Meiou has posed:
Setsuna blinks a few times as Minako just absently drops the idea of a virtual concert...then looks over at Michiru, "...that IS an idea that would work, Michiru..."

Then Michiru comes up with a few pertinent minuses before pondering small scale, which prompts Setsuna to interject, "...if that's the case, I'd suggest we get you set up with a nice local venue that's already doing good business...that way you'll have a guaranteed place to play whenever the mood strikes you that won't get upset if you have to cancel at short notice because someone's trying to eat the sun."

There's a pause, then she adds, "...AGAIN."

Hotaru Tomoe has posed:
Hotaru Tomoe grinned and gave a few giggles. "I bet Michiru-sensei would be a beautiful virtual idol." Considering she was a beautiful non-virtual idol? Probably.

Still, she smiled at the idea of training with Minako... but... the idea of a three legged race made her blink. "... My... balance?" she asked softly. "Uhhhhh... because... I'm... short?" ???

She happily started easy, winding down as her questions had been answered. A duty, an obligation, didn't have to have it control her every life... wasn't going to have to sleep this time...

Then blinked.

"Wait, did Beryl try to eat the sun? I don't remember th... oh. Wait, no, that was someone else, wasn't it? Sorry... things like that usually made me really sick so I can't remember them well."

Minako Aino has posed:
Minako Aino grins wide at the mention of three legged races because as she's quick to explain, "There's always a school track and field day. The hardest event is the three-legged race because you have to have good balance and timing to work with a partner to run."

All the issues that would come with virtual tours are thought on only breifly. "The rarer something is to occur the more people want it to happen. So even if you don't do it a lot you'd probably still get a good turn out. Limited edition items and limited entry events are super hot." Though she does add, "But yes... Being a senshi does come first. It's not just ourselves we're fighting for."

She might have said more but her phone rings, causing her to glance down at it with a grimace. "Aaand I think I forgot to say I was going to be out late. I should get home."

Haruka Tenoh has posed:
    Michiru is the first to speak up as Minako gets her phone call and states she'd have to leave. "Oh, well, do you want to take some Korma home? I think Setsuna bought extra." she says. "She always does." she adds to Minako with a conspiratorial wink.

    "Let's not have anybody eat the sun." Haruka says helpfully. "But yeah... Minako, feel free to call us anytime. We're teammates." she reminds the other blonde. "Even if we have a little one to dote over a bit."