The Many Faces of Usagi: Dreamscape

[buntails]

Characters: Usagi/Sailor Moon/Serenity (buntails) and YOU
When: March 6th - 12th
Where: Usagi's Dreamscape
Rating: PG - R for violence, depending
Summary: The genki girl, the soldier, and the princess

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[supermistfrog]

An arcade, this is to Fran's liking. The colors are not too flashy but cool and hey, there's nobody here. It's perfect for an antisocial froggie.

So he wanders toward the UFO catcher, the dating sim looking a bit too girly for his tastes. Peering at the interesting looking prizes in the machine, he wonders if his bad luck might just let up this one time for a prize.

[buntails]

Step right up, step right up! There are many amazing prizes in the UFO Catcher, from the plushie scepter (future memories for a limited time only) to the holy grail (a special on Adstringendum here!) and Luna-P (Chibi-Usa memories sold separately).

[supermistfrog]

Ah, choices, choices. He's seen that scepter before, the real one, so that's the prize he targets. It takes him a few tries, but eventually he gets it and holds in at arms length, almost expecting something to happen.

[buntails]

And it does. There are images of a graceful goddess that is somehow still clearly Usagi - those eyes and that hairstyle can't be mistaken for anyone else, after all. She is stately, composed, even regal.

It doesn't stop her from playing with her daughter, or sitting on her daughter's bed to comfort her. It doesn't stop her from not just the enthusiastic love Usagi has for Mamoru, but a deep and passionate love of a wife for her husband.

[supermistfrog]

Is that...Usagi? It looks like her, but she's so poised. Refined. Older, somehow.

"Che. Kind of like a princess in a fairy tale."

But Fran keeps watching the scene, to see if Usagi's life really was this rosy and perfect all the time, or if this was a special case.

[buntails]

Every fairy tale has its troubles.

The ginzuishou is suddenly missing.

The child princess, Usagi's daughter, is missing.

Usagi, Neo-Queen Serenity, doesn't even give a thought to the first problem before running out of the palace to look for her child. That's when disaster strikes. Immense power shakes the entire world. The people fall to the ground as if dead. Crystal springs up around Usagi as if to protect her, and she lays peaceful-looking inside, but dead to the world. Sleeping Beauty.

[supermistfrog]

He watches this as one would a train crash: Morbid fascination. Normally in such cases, he'd feel completely detached, but this is Usagi after all, so he probably owes her to at least watch and understand.

"What a foolish queen," is all he can say of the tragedy, because it really doesn't feel real to him.

"How sad, I guess."

He reaches to run his hands over Usagi's crystal prison.

[buntails]

A very foolish queen. She never went out of the palace for a reason. Leaving its protection let everything happen next.

The senshi hurry to protect the queen, but it takes their powers away from the fight. The world is shaken again and again, and finally the source of this power becomes evident: Enormous monoliths of black crystal.

The Earth is ruined and its people destroyed or in comas. There's nothing left for the enemy to do but march in and take it. But then it changes.

Even with things as they are, they can't take the Castle.

[supermistfrog]

"So her world was destroyed. Guess the perfect moon kingdom wasn't really that perfect."

The tone in which he says it is more analytical than mocking.

"But obviously, it will get better. It always does in Usagi's world."

He waits for his inevitable prognosis to come true.

[buntails]

And it does. Watching the Queen's memories doesn't show the battles in the past, but eventually the sailor senshi, with Sailor Moon at their head and with Chibi-Usa alongside them, arrive.

And Neo-Queen Serenity awakens. The senshi awaken. King Endymion awakens. They are all there to greet their past selves who saved their future, and Chibi-Usa runs straight into her mother's waiting arms.

[supermistfrog]

He watches this scene almost a bit disdainfully, but at least it was interesting.

"Of course. A happy ending. Always."

[buntails]

Neo-Queen Serenity turns to look at Fran. She smiles despite the derision.

"That's because all of us work and fight very hard for it. We fight to overcome every obstacle in our way. We fight to bring back our happiness when sad things happen. We fight to make the world a beautiful place."

[supermistfrog]

He didn't expect for anyone in this scene to react, so it's a bit of a shock to hear her words. Still, she is Usagi, and Usagi wouldn't hurt him.

"I think you're just lucky to have it work out like that."

Forgive him, he has bad experience with royals.

[buntails]

She chuckled. Fran's pessimism didn't seem to bother the queen as much as it did the girl. She had endless time and patience to wait, after all.

"They try very hard to make it that way," she says gently. "That isn't luck."

[supermistfrog]

This queen-Usagi is surprising. Fran can't remember a time when she chuckled at his naturally dour personality and words. Interesting.

"But it seems to me that there's no way that they could fail."

[buntails]

The smile grew slightly sad. "There are times of failing. But when they happen, we rebuild anew and begin again."