Sailor Moon 1. A Cruise!

It was mid-June, school had been out for two weeks now and Minako was loving the freedom of the summer vacation. She had stayed up till the small hours of the morning everyday for those two weeks, and slept till 2 or 3 in the afternoon. Then, she would comb out her long blonde hair, tie the now legendary red ribbon in place, throw on whatever jumped into her hand first and rush out the door. Ah yes, she loved the summer's freedom's and also the promise of a summer heart-throb.   
  
One fine hot summer day, Minako bounded into her house, sun streaked hair flying wildly behind her and long tanned legs flying in a most unlady-like fashion. "Waaaaaa!!" she screamed as she fell head- over-shoes into the front foyer.  
  
Minako's mother, Kimi, came rushing into the hallway from the kitchen, spatula still in hand. She sighed as she saw her one precious beautiful daughter sprawled over the foyer floor with her butt in the air. "Minako-chan! What on Kami-sama's good earth are you doing?"   
  
The girl slowly drew herself up into a pathetic sitting position and sniffed, "I'm sorry... I was running.. and...slipped.. and.. and.." she started bawling loudly, soaking the small white cat that was trying to slink in unnoticed.   
  
Kimi simply groaned and shoved a fresh-baked chocolate chip cookie into Minako's mouth. "Shut it, would you?" she smiled at the dismayed expression in her daughter's wide blue eyes hen sat beside her and spoke. "Listen to this, Minako-chan! My boss, Koyoshi-sama, told me today that I had won the company prize of a week's long cruise!" Kimi beamed at her daughter, awaiting the response.  
  
Minako blinked. Once. Twice. Then broke into a huge smile and nearly tackled her mother in a smothering hug. "Oh yay, yay YAY!!!" her voice reached a fevered pitch as she started talking so fast, poor Kimi could hardly keep up.   
  
"Ihavetopackmysunglassessuntanlotionbushand...." Minako's voice trailed off as she sprinted up to her room, grabbed her sun-flower colored suitcase and shoving clothes into it in a most haphazard way.   
  
Minako was still babbling when she heard her mother's annoyed voice call up to her, "We don't leave for two weeks!"   
  
The girl face faulted and a large sweat drop appeared by the red ribbon. When she saw what a disarray her clothes where in, she heaved a sigh and started to put the clothes back into her closest. She could pack later.   
  
As she worked, the still damp white cat walked into the room, shutting the door softly with his hind foot. He jumped onto her bed and started to groom his front paws in a demure way as he waited for his ward to notice him.  
  
When Minako turned back, she smiled and scratched the one non-white spot on his whole body: The yellow half moon on his forehead. "Why hello Artemis..." she blinked once in mild surprise. "Why are you wet? Have you and Luna-" the cat quickly spoke up.  
  
"Minako-chaaaaan!" She laughed, blushing a bit. When she'd calmed down enough, Artemis continued in his typical 'Greater then Thou' tone. "I was hit by a sudden Minako indoor rain storm, if you must know.." the kitty paused to give his young friend a mild glare. "Anyways... What this about a cruise trip?"  
  
The girls eyes lit up with stars as she spoke in a dreamy way, "Mom won this cruise thingy from work and we're leaving in two weeks for a week of pure paradise vacation..."   
  
The cat gave her an incredulous look, "You can't leave, Minako! Your Sailor Venus! What if the Senshi need your power while your away?" He glared at the now thinking blonde. She really hadn't thought of the others yet. Usagi, Rei-chan, Ami, and Makoto where strong senshi like herself, but they were all a team... she huffed slightly and waved her hand in a dismissive fashion.  
  
"What could go wrong? Chaos has been defeated for 6 months now, Seyia and the others are gone. The world is peaceful. Plus Artie... Just one little week.. All to my self! I'm still sore from training. I need a break anyway. "  
  
Artemis opened his mouth to protest but Minako picked him up by the scuff of the neck and poked his nose. "Listen, neko, I'm going on this trip and your either coming or going. either way, your not gonna hold me back..." she paused as stars again entered her eyes, "And I'm going to find love, I can just feel it! My Venus senses are tingling all over!" to give her point extra kick, she nodded heartily, dropped the pouting cat to the brightly colored bed, and returned to planning for her trip.   
  
  
  
-------------Owari --------  
  
~~Little Japanese Hand Held Translation tidbit~~  
  
Neko- cat (if you didn't know ^.~)  
Kami- God  
Owari- End. (I think..)   
  
The suffix 'chan' is, to my understanding, verbalized affection. Japanese people add it to their friends names, and family.  
The suffix 'sama' shows great respect, think of it as 'Sire' or Sir.   
  
The 'Venus Senses' is a cheap rip off of Spider-man. Who is really cool. Why is a Japanese 16 year old using it? Er.. I dunno. Just go with me on this one. ^.~ 


	2. Boarding the Ship

Mini-Notes:   
  
*** = Flashback   
---- = Begin/End story  
  
----------  
  
Minako was amazed as she stood there at the dock, staring at the huge white ship she was to live on for the next week. It had huge, multi-colored flags strung from the bow, to the top deck, then from the stern up, across the on-deck pool, to the same top deck. The ship itself was a gleaming white, with neat rows of shining windows. The decks were already starting to fill with people.  
  
Minako looked around for her mother... There, yelling at some tall chestnut haired man for running into her. The blonde girl laughed quietly to herself, then picked Artemis' kitty carrier up off the dock and started to walk towards the bridge onto the ship. As she walked, Minako thought back to the conversation she and Artemis had before they left the house.  
  
***  
  
"Minako... I'm worried, really. I don't think its wise to leave like this! You of all people know how suddenly trouble can come up!" the white cat had said as Minako messily folded clothes into the sunflower suitcase.  
  
"Oh Artie... You're such a worry-cat!" She gave him a smile then sighed, setting the purple shirt down, half folded. "But I know what you mean about the trouble... Maybe I should..." she stopped herself abruptly then resumed folding. "No... I'm going. It's now Minako-time. Not worry about responsibility time! I've hardly left Usagi's side since the whole Beryl incident." She paused for a moment, then softened her tone.  
  
"Don't get me wrong, I love Usagi to the bottom of my soul. I have, and would again, die to save her life. But, I need to be alone to remember what I am fighting for. The person that doesn't radiate power like a light bulb. Who maybe isn't as exotic or smart or strong as us Senshi." Minako paused in her speech and looked at her kitty intensely. "Artemis, I need to be normal for a week... Then I'll come back to being the Senshi of Love And Beauty, alright?" She smiled and petted her friend lovingly until he rolled onto his back, purring. Then, she tickled him.  
  
***  
  
Back at the docks, Minako blinked out of her memories just in time to see a tall violet haired girl trip over a loose board and fall into her.  
  
They fell to the wooden dock planks in a heap. After a few moments of being sprawled over the wood, the girl got off Minako and helped her up. "I'm terribly sorry... here... ", she bent again and picked a very disgruntled Artemis in his carrier. There was a rather large dent in it from Minako's rear hitting it.  
Much to the violet haired girls surprise, Minako started laughing when she saw her cat's face. After a long moment of laughing, she calmed herself and took a better look at her involuntary attacker. Tall, violet hair in a loose but still pretty braid, about Minako's own age-perhaps a year older, wearing jeans that had been cut off at the knees and a black tank top, and she was scarlet in the face from humiliation.  
  
Smiling, Minako offered her hand forward, "Nice bumping into you, I'm Minako Aino."  
  
The girl looked somewhat relieved and shook her hand, "Can't say I exactly enjoyed ramming you Minako-san, but I'm Naomi Force." Minako noticed that Naomi wore a lot of studded leather bracelets but didn't seem to have the forceful attitude that normally went with them.  
  
None the less, Minako spoke next. "So, I guess you're going to be on the cruise, Naomi-san?"  
  
The violet haired American nodded, "Yeah... my folks are pulling me along. But it will be fun, I guess." She shrugged, "Never been shipped out to sea before though."  
  
"Oh, me either!" Minako answered with a bit too much gusto. "I've flown to England and back, but that's about the extent of my travels."  
  
Naomi looked vaguely impressed. "England? Wow, I've hardly left Missouri! Tell me what England is like, Minako-san?" she gave the blonde a smile, hoping that this one would see beyond the leather and clothes. So far, so good, Naomi thought to herself.  
  
At the other end, Minako was already thinking of the purple haired girl as her friend. She'd opened her mouth to say something when Kimi, in a light blue dress, walked over to them.   
  
"Minako Aino! What are you still doing here on the docks? Get on that boat before it leaves you behind!" She then hurried off through the slowly thinning crowd, thinking her daughter to follow in short order.  
  
Naomi sighed, grabbed her shabby leather suitcase and melted into the crush of people. Minako raised a hand to stop her, but Naomi was already gone and the blonde 16 year-old was left scratching her head, wondering what on earth got into that American.  
  
After a long moment, she sighed, grabbed Artemis, her sunflower suitcase and hurried onto the gangplank, heading towards the ship's interior. As she stood there, waiting for the people to thin enough to allow her to get on, she was accidently jostled by the most handsome guy she'd seen in a week. Or, on closer inspection, maybe even in a whole 6 months! His magma red hair hung in a messy tousle, his bangs hanging into crystal green eyes, and he was at least 5 inches taller then her. She was star-struck by love at first sight.  
  
The aforementioned guy glanced to see whom he'd hit and found a dazzling blonde beauty staring at him with the deepest blue eyes he'd ever seen. In a way, they reminded him of the sea, but he couldn't place his finger on exactly why. He smiled at her, "Well, I'm sorry for hitting you. Can you ever forgive me, my Lady? Say... What's your name, pretty one?" then he again flashed that dazzling smile. Oh yes, he was well versed in picking up women.  
  
After she told him in a dreamy voice, the guy again spoke up, "Well, I am Axis Titan. Its a pleasure to meet you Minako-san..." he paused to hand the man at the door his ticket. "Hey, would you meet me pool side tonight? Around 8? I'd love to get to know you better."  
Minako blushed till she thought the sun had already burned her cheeks. She nodded with enthusiasm, "Yeah, I'd love that Axis-san!." She smiled happily as she stepped inside the portal to the ship and into a week's worth of freedom. Even if only a brief respite from the harsh world of being Capitan of the Princess' Guards, Sailor Venus. She would still enjoy it beyond words.  
  
---------  
~*~The Little Japanese/Notes end Tidbit~*~  
The suffix, -san, is used here as a more formal version of -chan.   
  
On a ship, the 'gangplank' is the stairs or whatnot used to enter the ship. This term comes from the original sailing days with the three-masted ships, when you got on on, there was quite literally just a plank going from the dock to the boat deck.   
  
  
I'll say it once, and I'll say it again. This is *not* and action story. There will be no senshi transformations, just normal mundane smacking now and again. I hope you can enjoy What I'll make it though ^_^V 


End file.

Sailor Moon, Romance