the plot

[♦ Serena Tsukino]

Another awful test score.
Another day where her mother would be unimpressed with her.

Sighing and rolling her eyes down the street, Serena moped over her dismal exam score. A nice, big, red 30% marred the top margin of her paper, with a note from her professor.

"I understand that math may be difficult, but I beg of you, please study more!"

Serena could have balled that paper up and thrown it somewhere...but knowing the people in this neighborhood, they would likely just put it in her mailbox. Then her parents would find out. Just because she was in college didn't mean that was she was inured from being grounded. Her mother would get just pissed off at her enough to ground her, and keep her grounded until the world ended. For a lovely young lady like herself, in her youthful prime, she couldn't, and wouldn't, let her young life pass her by by being locked up in her room all of the time. There were men to ogle, and shops that needed to be shopped at...and sweets that needed to be nommed!

She wouldn't be able to do that if she were grounded.

And she wouldn't have to be grounded if her folks didn't find out.

"Uhhh..." Serena pouted and whined. "I wish I didn't have to worry about college in my search for a successful happy life..." Serena put a hand to the back of her head. It would be sickening and sad for her life to pass her by in such a manner because she was academically dismissed.

"My mom is going to pull my head off when she sees this...and that little idiotic Sammy is going to laugh at me! I can't take this..."

[♦ Luna]

"Then perhaps you should study more." came the response.

Luna was laying out on one of the stone walls surrounding the home of a particularly grouchy old couple who happened to like their privacy. It had been a good spot for sunning however (something she actually felt herself craving in this new form, how strange...) and so she'd made her way to the top of it, laying out until Serena had passed by.

Sitting up, the black cat peered down at the blond girl, tilting her head questioningly. "Now come on, it surely isn't all that bad, now is it?" Focusing on the teenager's shoulder, Luna willed herself to jump off the wall, landing on her intended target. Well, that had been more graceful than that transition from tree to wall earlier; she was learning... At least Luna had always been graceful on two feet, now she was just learning how to be just as on four.

Once she had settled herself on the girl's shoulder (claws ready to grab hold should the need arise) she peered over at the test in Serena's hand. And promply almost lost her balance. "SERENA! A 30? Really, how is that even possible?" Oh, this one was going to be a lot of work. 'Is she REALLY one of the soldiers?' she found herself thinking. 'She must be if the meteor reacted to her, but how on earth...' Her whiskers twitched as she pondered the Moon ancestor breeding line, and how it had produced...well...this.

Switching quite swiftly into guardian mode, she announced, "You're going to have to do better than that, Serena. This is only going to get harder. You're going to be busy with your tasks as a soldier, but you can't let your grades slip." Difficult, when her grades were slipping before she even got started... "You ought to ask Amy for help. She seems very smart." At least the Mercury descendants had not lost anything along the line...

Sigh. What a pity. From what she could recall of her past years and years ago, Sailor Moon had always been a dependable soldier. Would this new century Sailor Moon be the same?

[♦ Serena Tsukino]

Luna. Serena knew that voice from anywhere. Luna was cynical and was an absolute joykill, so how odd would it be that she was in the body of something cute like a cat. She should have been in the body of a ferret or something.

The very moment that Luna commented on her abysmal score, Serena balled up her paper. "I had bigger and better things to do," Serena said as she turned up her nose, a barely audible 'hmph' being heard in her voice. This was one of the perfect moment for one of Luna's little lectures about the joys of balancing schoolwork with the added work of being a Sailor Scout, which was an absolute joy to hear after Serena managed to bomb a test.

But the very moment that she mentioned Amy, a Cheshire Cat-ish grin crept upon her face. Amy...the girl who was an absolute genius of her school. With Amy's help, Serena could managed to get her grades up...and through putting little time in. Serena cared mainly about watching boys, eating sweets and enjoying her life as a girl. Amy...well, Amy was all about the books.

The books and not much more.

Usagi picked Luna up by the scruff of her neck and let her see her huge grin. "You're such a huge help, Luna!" Serena's voice was oddly saccharine and strangely happy, which she was positive would ruffle Luna's fur.

[♦ Luna]

"I had bigger and better things to do,"

Luna shook her head with a disapproving sigh, shutting her eyes as she felt the headache coming on. "Bigger than a test? Your grades are important, Serena! How do you expect to get a real job after school if you don't graduate with high marks? You'll end up selling fast food." Sticking up her nose in turn, she finished, "You need to care more about your future. You won't be a child forever." One could only hope, anyway.

Suddenly, she felt a tug at the back of her neck as she was snatched up, left dangling in front of Serena's rather frightening cheshire smile. 'Oh, she's up to no good...' the cat thought to herself, wincing.

"You're such a huge help, Luna!"

What a mood swing. An annoying one, at that, but the cat tried to surpress the urge to scowl at the girl. Offering a hopeful (and yet oddly pathetic) smile in return, Luna ventured to ask, "You're going to ask Amy to help you study...? That's very very wise of you, Serena. Maybe you'll get a better score on your next test." And yet, Luna wasn't even so sure Serena's thoughts were that..pure. Hopefully she was going to take this seriously -- it WAS rather important after all. Honestly, with what she'd seen of this girl already, she wouldn't put copying homework past her at all. Hopefully Amy wouldn't allow such a thing if she did indeed offer to help the other girl. Another sigh, then a thought. "Could you...put me down? This is rather uncomfortable."

[♦ Serena Tsukino]

"Who said that I was going to ask for a study session, Luna?" Serena asked. "I didn't."

Setting Luna down, Serena happily and, with the least of cares, strolled down the street. She wouldn't be selling any fast food as long as she had Amy as a best friend.

As she continued through the streets, she noticed a rather large group of guys running down the walk, all of them shirtless, and all of them positively droolworthy. Serena put a hand to her cheek, and, like a love-struck high-school girl, watched as each of them ran past.

She knew just the person that she would need to go to about that - Lita. Lita was always looking for the guy that looked like her ex-boyfriend, and she would be sure to find at least one of them that would look like him, even though Lita just used that as an excuse to date pretty much anyone.

This town was such a big place...and there were so many places to go. Serena would do some walking to get to Amy's house, but she didn't mind. It was at least a way to get good exercise - exercise that Serena knew that she needed from eating so many sweets. She'd exercise her body, but only after exercising her eyes on these guys!

[♦ Luna]

"Who said that I was going to ask for a study session, Luna? I didn't."

Luna nearly fell over at this as she was put down onto the sidewalk. "B-b-but Serena!" she cried after her. If she wasn't going for a study session, then WHY was she going to see Amy? And...well, didn't she care about her grades? They were IMPORTANT! Had everything she said gone in one ear and out the other with no pitstops at all? Honestly!

She darted forward, only stumbling on her four legs once as she finally caught up with the blonde girl, slowing to walk beside her. "Really, you should reconsider, Serena. I really think this could be bene-"

As Serena stopped, Luna did too, blinking as she gazed up at the starstruck girl. 'Now what's wrong with her...?' she wondered to herself, dropping her gaze to take a look around. Ah, there it was then. A group of men. Shirtless, too! How indecent...that sort of thing was rare back where she came from, they were much more modest. So...they just...wandered around without their clothes here? Where were their mothers? Did they really let them just wander out of the house like this? Oh, this would have never flown back in the past...

"Serena!" Luna hissed, leaping up onto a trashcan, then to the girl's shoulder once more. There, this would be easier to whisper from so that no one else might hear the cat actually talking. They really didn't need that sort of attention during their mission, after all. "Turn your eyes away, that's very indecent, and they are just seeking attention! Keep walking!" Honestly, had this girl been raised in a barn? To stare at men like that...nevermind that they looked, well...very nice...but no! It was a horrible crime. They ought to alert the authorities of it.

[♦ Serena Tsukino]

All that Serena could hear of Luna's cries were "Indecent" and "Attention." Serena, however, was none the wiser. Who, in their right mind, could say no to hot guys running down the street without shirts, for a race...or just...Period?!

Serena certainly wasn't one of those 'No' people. At least one thing with living near Hollywood was that there were loads of utterly gorgeous people that could be seen at any point in time. Some were in relationships, some may as well have had harems, and the real diamonds in the rough were single.

Single.
Hot.
Men.

The thought nearly had Serena seeing stars. She waited until the men finished, and then she could cross and head on her way. As the last man jogged past, smiling at Serena, his million watt smile sparkling as he passed her, Serena nearly swooned. Eventually getting her wits about herself, she looked at the last man go as she headed across the street.

"Now, Luna, what were you saying?" Her question was just as clueless as ever, but then, Serena generally wasn't a person that had much of a clue about anything. She was happily oblivious, particularly when Luna started in on her impassioned rants, rambles and nagfests, something that made Serena either snore, retort or tune her out.

[♦ Luna]

Finally, those indecent men were heading off (one even going as far as to show off as he ran past Serena) and Luna couldn't help but roll her eyes at the display. Honestly. No coth whatsoever.

"Now, Luna, what were you saying?"

Luna nearly lost her grip on the girl's shoulder at this. "Oh Serena..." she moaned, lifting a paw to her head. How on earth was she going to get through to this girl? How could she EVER be trained to be a serious Sailor Soldier? This was going to be harder than any previous training case she'd ever undertaken... Sigh. "Nevermind, nevermind." she said finally, waving her paw. Now, what had they been talking about before...that? Oh yes.

"Now. On our way to Amy's, to ask her to help you study, why don't you show me around? After all, this world of yours is much different than mine was. Things have most certainly evolved" or de-evolved, in some cases, she couldn't help but think, "and it's probably best that I'm familiar with all of these new things for the sake of the mission." It would do no good if she didn't know what and where things were, after all. Some stuff she might be able to figure out all on her own, but other things... well, some things were positively unfamiliar to her. Like the manners of this century's male population, for starters...

[♦ Serena Tsukino]

Luna's little request was right on time for Serena. It would be at least a good reason to stall for a little bit. Besides, Luna was right on this one - she did need to get to know Hollywood. This was a large place, with lots of people - both glamorous and seedy.

Most people saw Hollywood and saw only stars. Serena, being a local to the place, knew better. There were so many failed dreams here, but Serena certainly wouldn't be among them. She wouldn't be a star, but she would do well enough for herself.

Serena walked and caught bus after bus, and took her to places that she was sure that Luna would like and be aware of. Many of these places were theaters and other landmarks that positively screamed "Hollywood!" The pair of them visited touristy areas, as well as beaches and other places. There was only so much to do and so many places to go, and if they ended up out of the way from Amy's house, who would care? They would just get on a bus and head back in that direction. All that she and Luna had to do was stay in the Hollywood limits.

[♦ Luna]

Luna decided she didn't particularly care for public transportation. She now knew how sardines felt in those little cans, anyway. But the many places they visited made up for the horrid way they arrived there, and she eagerly drank in the sights, trying to document everything in her mind for later use. She particularly liked the beaches (but she liked LOOKING, not necessarily being put down anywhere near the sand or water) and their scenery. So serene, and peaceful -- even despite how many people were there. And they all seemed to be enjoying themselves, playing games, swimming, laying out in the sun (Luna liked the idea of that last one.)

As they were walking to their next stop, Luna saw there wasn't anyone within earshot, and so asked, "Well, what's YOUR favorite place in this city, Serena? Where do you spend most of your time?" Besides at school, though the cat was certain that if it weren't required, Serena might not set another foot in that school building again. But it would be good to know where to find the girl in an emergancy in the future, and the best place to first look would be her usual stomping grounds.

She tried to guess. "Perhaps a local library?" Wait, this was SERENA she was talking about. She quickly amended her answers. "The mall? That burger place with the golden arches? The mart where they sell walls?" (She didn't understand that one, but it seemed a popular place to be, people were always walking in and out of that one.) Luna had always enjoyed being outside during her days as a human...enjoying the peace, the calm, the serenity of the enviroment around her. But it seemed those days of living were long gone...if people were outside now, it was merely to dash off to their next destination.

And that's perhaps why she had liked the beach so much.

[♦ Serena Tsukino]

Luna had a way of trying to amend what she said. She could be vicious, and often was, but she could say something relatively endearing. And she was thoroughly naive about some of the places around here.

"Walmart?" Serena laughed. "They don't sell walls! They sell pretty much everything!"

Though when Luna brought up the 'golden arches', Serena began to feel a bit hungry. She hadn't eaten for quite a while, and now her stomach was talking to her. While food would be good, what would be better were sweets. Still, Serena had to nourish herself somehow before heading off to Amy's house and beg for her to show her the answers to the homework.

Amy was smart. Serena...well, was just lazy. She knew it, and she wanted to do something about it, but that was just the way she was. No real use in trying to do a complete 180 on something like old habits.