Flashpoint Yamato
Aaron and Insei took off their shoes in the genkan, making sure not to get any dirt in the house. Aaron slid the shoji open as they stepped in, and shouted out, "Nana, Yamato! It's me! I'm home!"
An elderly lady slid a fusuma on the other side of the hall open with a creak and a small black cat slid out of the opening. "Hello, Aaron! How was school? And who's your friend?"
"School was fine, Nana," Aaron replied as he threw his backpack into the closet. Motioning at Insei, he continued, "This is Insei, Nana, friend from school."
Yamato mewed contentedly and Nana smiled in delight. "That's good. I'm glad you made a new friend. Do you young men want any nigirimeshi? I have some in the refrigerator. They're hand-made," she hinted as Insei nodded eagerly and Aaron followed suit, taking the plate Nana handed them. Walking over to Aaron's room, he slid the fusuma open and the two walked in, briefly holding the panel open to allow Yamato to slink in and set itself down on the futon, happily licking its paws. As they slid the fusuma closed, Insei looked at the small black cat that seemed to be… waiting…
"How'd you come by the name Yamato, anyway?" Aaron shrugged and lifted the black cat from its perch.
"The cat had a name tag that said it. Nothing else. No address, no last name, just ‘Yamato’. I liked the name so I kept it. Cool cat, though."
"Of course I am," Yamato mewed, and the sudden shock made Aaron drop the cat and Insei almost choke on the nigirimeshi he was eating. "Y'know, you shouldn't drop me like that. It kinda hurts," the black cat continued.
"Didja hear that?" Aaron squeaked, asking Insei.
"Yeah," Insei responded, still staring blankly at Yamato, "May I ask exactly what is in these rice balls?!?"
"Don't make fun of Mrs. Tenjou's nigirimeshi!" Yamato hissed, grabbing the remaining rice ball off the plate before munching down on it. "They're really good. Ahhhh, but Queen Serenity's parties… the chef there… c'est magnifique!"
"Queen… Queen Serenity?" Insei was finally able to speak, "I've… I've heard that name before… Somewhere…"
"Of course you have! You were her Centauri ambassador, for crying out loud! You spent years with the Moon Kingdom! And it was sometime, mind you."
"Queen Serenity? Moon Kingdom? Wha…" Aaron stared wide-eyed at Yamato as he scratched his head.
"Yeah! And why YOU don't remember that much either is beyond me! YOU were the Kingdom's most noble warrior!"
"Noble?" Insei thought a bit, and the image of the brown-haired boy serving punch in his dream finally connected… Aaron was that boy! And… he was feeling light-headed just thinking about it.
"AAAAAAAAAAAAH!" Aaron started screaming. It was obvious that he had finally put 2 and 2 together and figured out where he had seen Insei. "AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!"
"Calm down, boy!" Yamato yelled, "Get a hold on yourself!"
"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAH-" Aaron still screamed and tried scrambling for the door only to find it locked. With that information, he screamed louder. "AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!"
"SHUT UP!" Yamato hissed and scratched Aaron's cheek, leaving thin lines of red where the claws had punctured the skin. "Are you feeling better now, Aaron?"
Aaron had now started to hyperventilate, "I… have… a cat… that talks… and says… I'm… a… warrior? Of… the Moon… Kingdom?"
Insei gritted his teeth and nodded. "Yeah, that's what I got out of the talking cat's speech."
"This is… so… strange… and… so… cool..." finally Aaron regained his breath, "So, what do we warrior dudes do?" "Actually, you're technically Sailor Senshi, but you can call yourselves ‘warrior dudes’ if you want." Yamato replied.
"We're Sailor Senshi?" Both exclaimed, excited grins pulling on their faces.
"But how? How could we be part of the Sailor Senshi? We're only students at Tokugawa High!" Insei muttered. "Yes, but in a past life you were members of the Moon Kingdom's court… as was I."
"I don't remember there ever being any black cats in my dreams," Aaron questioned.
"This was just to make my discovery of you two easier. I couldn't hope to find you if I stayed in the human form you would recognize me in. Cats have roaming privileges that humans do not."
"You mean you get better range with your cell phone?""Insei grinned at his pun. A paper fan, though, collided with his face and startled him.
"Baka…" Aaron groaned, "This is serious… We need to listen to Yamato's plans!"
"Owww… fine…"
"Anyhow, we must get you your transformation amulets. Let us go to the park, please," Yamato mewed nonchalantly as he hopped off the bed and through the door that slid open as he approached it.
"Nana! I'm going to take Yamato to the park! Insei's coming with me too!" Aaron yelled as he walked out the shoji and put his shoes on. "I'll see you later!"
"Bye, Aaron, bye, Insei! It was a pleasure meeting you!"
"The pleasure was mine, Mrs. Tenjou!" Insei replied as he slid the shoji closed and followed Yamato and Aaron.