Magical Girls Dream Team, Chapter Two
$Id: mgdt_chp2.txt,v 1.2 1996/09/15 05:11:04 hcobb Exp $
    By Henry J. Cobb

The story so far:

Sailor Moon (Usagi Tsukino) has transferred to Graviton Girls High
School, as there isn't much left of her old school, friends or family.

So far during her first day, she has helped defeat and restore a
schoolgirl transformed into a monster pig, with the help of her new
companions, Eiko (A-ko) Magami and Biko (B-ko) Daitokuji.

These two girls instantly saw through the Sailor Moon magical disguise,
which is a sure sign of powerful emotions or magic at work.

------------------------------

After school on Monday, Usagi walked to the main gate with A-ko and B-ko.

"Usagi, you're new to Graviton City, aren't you?" A-ko asked.

When Usagi nodded, A-ko continued "Why don't we show you around then?"

"I'm sorry." B-ko interrupted. "But I have to finish a design this
evening."

"Is is the aircraft carrier?" A-ko asked.  "The one with the hinge on
the end?"

"Yes." B-ko looked to the heavens with anger.  "One of these days those
fools at the Space Defence Force will wake up to the need for a
transforming space battlefortress with adequate fighter cover!  But,
it's OK, you two go ahead."

"Study session tomorrow night at your place right?"

"Yes, A-ko, you and Usagi are welcome to come over."

As they walked down the hill, Usagi asked A-ko. "Your friend B-ko, she
builds real aircraft carriers?"

"As far as I know, this is her first.  She's done some frigates before,
but she mostly designs land, air and space vehicles and mecha."

"What?"

"Miss Daitokuji is the Military Industrial Complex in a skirt.  As a
hobby, she tries out prototype weapons on me."

"That sounds dangerous."

"Not really."  A-ko grinned.  "I'm tougher than I look."

"This is my aunt's house."  Usagi noted.

"You're staying with her for the semester?"

"At least."

"Let me go home and change, I'll meet you back here in about thirty
minutes or so and show you our town."

[The Pair go downtown, enjoy sweets and watch "Ninja Jungle Commando IV"]

As they exited the theater, Usagi could not contain her
curiosity. "A-ko, why were you taking notes during that movie?  It was
fun, but it didn't seem to have much depth."

"I just want to practice some of those moves."

"Come on now, that was a movie.  The movie people were just kidding when
they filmed that.  Nobody could really do that."

"That's what they think."

Usagi could feel eyes on her and spun around. "Hello?  Oh, it's
uh.. Ine, right?  Wait, where are you going?"

A-ko placed her hand on Usagi's arm.  "Please don't pay Ine any
attention, you'll only get her in trouble."

"She's spying on us? For who? B-ko?"

"B-ko's just curious about you.  I imagine she'll know more about you
than you do tomorrow.  Don't you want somebody looking out after you?"

"No thanks, I've had enough getting stalked for several more lifetimes.
Why do you put up with it?"

A-ko gave Usagi a significant glance. "I think we'd best cut across the
street here."

"Why?"

"I've had some bad luck with construction sites before."

Tuesday at school was almost as bad for Usagi, Miss Ayumi simply wasn't
making any sense.  She seemed to be speaking in Japanese, but the
sentences wandered widely between subjects.

After school, Usagi and A-ko joined B-ko in her limo for a ride to the
Daitokuji Estate.

After several hours tracking down the divergent references Miss Ayumi
had used so far that week, B-ko produced a cake with a single candle.

"What's the special occasion?" Usagi asked.

"It's A-ko's anniversary."

A-ko bowed her head and made grinding noises.

"A-ko, what's wrong?"  Usagi wondered if this was some sort of insult.

"Let, her be, she's thinking."  B-ko replied.

For a few minutes A-ko sat quietly then it came to her. "May 9th, 2044,
my first day at Graviton Girls High School!  Thanks B-ko."

"You're welcome."

B-ko had a small slice of the cake, while A-ko and Usagi evenly divided
the rest, but they all seemed to finish about the same time.

"Usagi, what happened to the other Sailor Scouts?"

A-ko's prediction of B-ko's curiosity seemed to be coming true.

"They're dead.  Well, almost all of them.  Jupiter's in a coma.
Wiseman's agents tracked them down in their civilian identities.  They
would have gotten me too, if I'd ever been on time anyplace."

"That sounds like me." A-ko noted.

"I think you'd both best adopt secret identities." Usagi pointed
out. "If you're going to hang around with me.  Can we meet and plan that
out this weekend?"

"I've got no problem with that."  A-ko replied.

"That sounds like a good ideal to me, as long as these monsters are
around, conspiring against you."  B-ko said.  "We lost a friend too,
recently, during the alien invasion."

"Alan and Ali killed somebody, in Graviton City?"

"No, this was another invasion.  I guess you didn't notice, with your
troubles in Tokyo.  They abducted C-ko, they snatched her away in a
tractor beam and I couldn't stop them."  B-ko started to sob heavily on
Usagi's shoulder, but Usagi really didn't know how to comfort her.

A-ko waited for B-ko's sobs to die down then approached.  "Here B-ko,
you're so tense, why don't I give you a back rub?"

B-ko weakly nodded as A-ko lead her to her own bed.

"It just wasn't fair.  She was such a beautiful angel, and they took her
away so young."  After several minutes of A-ko's ministrations, B-ko
drifted off to sleep.

A-ko then lead Usagi out of the Estate.  "Usagi, why don't I run you
home?"

"OK, can you drive?"

"No, this is quicker."  A-ko grabbed Usagi's wrist and sprinted out at a
speed Usagi deemed to too fast to drive on a moonless night.  She
wondered if A-ko had super vision too.

In A-ko's slipstream, Usagi called out. "Was that true, about the
alien abduction?"

"If you call that an abduction.  I looked after C-ko full time for
eleven years.  I did everything but change her diapers, and she hopped
on the first ship back to the Black Nebula, with a simple ``Thanks for
everything!'' ... That's the last time I put myself out for a space
princess."

"B-ko couldn't take the hint,"  A-ko continued, "she flew after them.
They cut her down.  I wish I'd gone with her.  I wish I could fly."

"What happened?"

"I don't know,"  A-ko considered, "maybe I just don't have the knack for
flying."

"No, I mean, what happened after the aliens shot down B-ko?"

"I caught her.  I never ran so fast in my life.  She was OK, just
stunned, with her suit shorted out."

Usagi couldn't contain it any longer.  "Are you and B-ko, you know,
well, an item?"

A-ko stumbled and fell.  Usagi flew over her.  The street rushed up too
quickly for her to transform into Sailor Moon.  Just before Usagi's face
could impact the pavement, she felt herself being snatched from behind.

"Sorry about that.  I told you I'm fast."  A-ko paused for a moment then
continued.  "Naw, me and B-ko are just best friends.  We've got nothing
in common.  I'm a poor tomboy and she's the rich, glamourous genius, but
we get along great."

"You both have superpowers."

"Well, there is that, but mine don't short out."

"I feel so bad, watching B-ko suffer like this, doesn't she have a
boyfriend?"

"Well, she fell pretty bad for Kei Yuki, but they never even spoke."

"You see?, they just weren't properly introduced."

A-ko quickly replied.  "Here's your Aunt's house, I'll see you tomorrow
morning."

	Henry J. Cobb	hcobb@slip.net          http://www.io.com/~hcobb