Reality Check, // Riya

Tuesday, November 22nd, 3571; 3:30 PM

On a Tuesday afternoon in November, Avetea Kaiz found herself pacing back and forth in the short space of her apartment. Everything had been pressed against the back wall, clearing as much floor space as possible. As always, although her tiny, cramped apartment was run down and generally of poor quality, at the very least, it was clean.

Truth be told, she was extremely worried about Riya's arrival that day. Was Avetea maybe springing this on her too fast? After all, she was a sheltered, eighteen-year-old college student. What did she know of reality? Then again, Treq wasn't as dangerous during the day, which was why she had specified 3:45 PM as the arrival time - when there was still plenty of sunlight out, even for late autumn.

Sure, they could have met a number of other places. But Avetea thought it was right about time that Riya start learning more about the outside world. If she was going to be expected to fight monsters, seeing the worst of the human race was probably a pretty good start.

And Avetea had given her plenty of warning about what Treq was. Without going into detail, she had simply said that it was a run-down ghetto full of crime. Upon giving her paper instructions, neatly hand-written, she'd also advised her to dress in clothing she could move in, or to bring some, but not to dress in any way except non-descript. She'd also told her not to talk to anyone unless she absolutely had to, and to bring her Palaver so that she could call someone - but only to pull it out if it was an absolute emergency.

In some ways, maybe she was asking too much of her, too soon. But at the same time, it wasn't like they had years and years to prepare. And Ushriya was one of the most painfully unprepared. Even Raen, who had no formal training, at least had Martian aggression on her side. All the others weren't quite as soft. Riya was more naive than even Ota; at least the latter had seen something besides sunshine and rainbows in her life.

Avetea cared very much for the girl, and ultimately had decided to subject her to this for that reason. It would have been a disservice to her, to allow her to go through life as she currently was, blissfully unaware of the dangers out there. That wasn't going to prepare her for battle.

She was sure she'd made the right decision. ...Mostly.

outfit!

Okay, so the sparring hadn't gone like it had been originally intended. Or rather, for Amina and Ushriya, it had gone the opposite of its intention. The Senshi were a little more than disappointed when the sparring session came to an end and Riya had been unable to land a single blow on Amina. What was far worse was that she hadn't even blocked a single punch. She was, without a doubt, the worst Senshi at sparring. And it was obvious in the way the bruises dotted her skin.

Well, it wasn't fair. Riya hated sparring. When she had fought Amina, strange images seemed to flash before her eyes, of them all wearing Senshi outfits very different from the ones they currently had, fighting one another. The look in the eyes of the Senshi had been cold. Heartless. And Riya had seen her own attacks used on them, though, admittedly they were strange attacks she'd never used in this life before.

Nonetheless, the teenager shouldn't have been surprised when she found a letter in her mailbox telling her to meet Avetea today. After all, she had failed abysmally in the last sparring session. It was bound to come sooner or later, especially when it was so painfully obvious that the leader of the Senshi was the worst at fighting...

After a few moments of indecisiveness, Riya pulled on some jeans and boots, trying to go for the nondescript look, whatever that might be. She hoped it meant nothing too flashy or something that might draw attention to herself. If that were it, she felt she had done an okay job with her attire. All she had to do was slide her Moon necklace that Raen had gotten her under her shirt, hiding all the potential value on Riya's person, and she was done. However, she wasn't sure if she were dressed right for where she was heading.

Avi's letter stated that she lived in a dingy area of the dingiest area of Telordya - Treq. It the was the slums. The low-class area. A place that Riya's parents had told her often to avoid at all costs because she was bound to get into trouble there. Nevertheless, her trusted advisor had given her directions to her apartment, and Riya felt compelled to obey. After all, when Avi had gone by the name Luna and traipsed about in the form of a black cat, she had never done anything remotely dangerous to Usagi. Perhaps this was the same scenario? Riya could only hope that the advisor's sense of duty and protection for the Senshi hadn't diminished with time.

The bus ride from the university to Treq was a long one. Riya spent the majority of the ride sitting in the sun's rays, leaning against the window of the bus, watching as the housing moved from the expensive mansions of Kejona to the average-sized houses of her home district of Pharaida, to, finally, the lower-class area of Treq.

The sight was... appalling to Riya.

The apartments were rundown. The children playing in the streets were wearing tattered, faded clothing as if it was their only piece of cloth. And, on a street corner, in broad daylight, Riya watched as one many walked up to another, exchanged something with him, and hurriedly walked away. She may have been terribly naive, but even she knew she'd just seen a drug deal.

Riya pulled out the slip of paper, reading Avi's neat handwriting as she tried to find her way around Treq. Surprisingly (to her at least), Treq was far larger than Pharaida, which meant that it was much easier to get lost here. Also, Riya had to be more nervous and on her guard here than anywhere else. It was... frightening, walking through the streets of Treq, wondering if someone were going to take a knife to her throat and demand her money. It had probably been a good idea to leave all her cash at home.

All in all, the trek to Avetea's apartment was mostly uneventful, with Riya jumping mostly at mice, children, and small noises. It seemed as if the most dangerous of Treq's activities occurred after nightfall, which kind of made sense. The dark of night hid illicit activities better than the light of the day.

That is to say, everything went well until Riya reached the street just outside her guardian's apartment. She was just about to walk up to the door and breathe a sigh of relief when a voice called out to her.

"Hey, is a girlie lost on the wrong side of the tracks? Heh heh heh."

With a loud squeak that probably reminded everyone nearby of a mouse, Riya jumped about three feet up in the air before dashing full speed into Avi's building and running up the stairs. At long last, she finally arrived at the door to Avetea's own apartment, huffing and puffing with all her might. She took a minute to recollect herself, trying to regain her breath, when she slowly, nervously, brought her hand up to the door and knocked.

Avetea was torn between feeling a sudden excitement and a sense of ease all at once as she heard a knock at the door, presumably signaling Riya's arrival. The Terrestrial rushed to the door and peered through the peephole, confirming that it was indeed the petite blonde on the other side of the door. With that, she stepped back and unlocked both the door knob's lock and the deadbolt, opening the door and motioning for Riya to quickly step in.

As usual, she was quick to close the door behind her guest, leaving them alone in her apartment. It was a run-down little space, with a couch pushed up against a wall, and a set of dilapidated drawers on the opposite side. Off to the side, there was a little kitchen area, with a rusted stove and old microwave, as well as a few other cooking items. The only other room was a tiny bathroom, holding a cramped shower and cracked toilet and sink.

But despite all of this, it was clean. Even the couch, which was being used as a bed, had had all of the blankets and pillows removed, folded and neatly piled into the corner, in anticipation of her guest. While she didn't have much, what she did have was take care of with pride.

"Welcome, Riya. Please, have a seat," she greeted, motioning to the couch. "Are you hungry? I can get you a snack, if you want. I have a few things in the refrigerator." Actually, she had just gone shopping the previous day, after work, in anticipation of Riya's arrival.

The young woman paused, regarding her young charge with a bit of apologetic tenderness. "I see you made it alright. I know it must have been scary for you. You must be wondering why I asked you to come here."

When Avi opened the door, Riya breathed out a giant sigh of relief. Thankfully, she was done with walking through Treq. For now.

However, when she walked into Avi's small apartment, she could feel nothing but sadness. This was the place where Avi was forced to live? It wasn't fair. She shouldn't have to live in such a dingy place, especially when she had such an important job for the Senshi. They had to do something to get her out of Treq.

But how could Riya say that without insulting the woman?

"Are you hungry? I can get you a snack, if you want. I have a few things in the refrigerator."

Riya smiled widely. "Ummm... Do you have ice cream?" she asked cautiously as she sat down on the sofa to which Avi had gestured. "If not... soda is more than fine."

After a beat, Riya crossed her legs, trying not to feel awkward, even though it was rather difficult. She'd never been so far from the university or Pharaida without her parents or her sister before. She clutched the crescent moon necklace Raen had gotten her that summer before she left for camp, as if Raen could give her strength through the necklace, even though just the idea of it was really silly.

"I see you made it alright. I know it must have been scary for you. You must be wondering why I asked you to come here."

She giggled nervously. "Um, it could have been better," Riya admitted. "But I didn't talk to anyone and no one asked me for the money I was carrying, so I guess that in and of itself is sort of a success?" she suggested hopefully, letting go of her necklace.

A short, awkward silence fell between the two before Riya decided to respond to the second thing Avi had mentioned. The wondering why she'd been asked to come. Granted, she did wonder a little bit - what if it wasn't about sparring? Though she highly doubted it. During the past few weeks, there was only one aspect that Riya had screwed up abysmally (for once!), only it was the same aspect in which she should have been excelling. She sighed. It wasn't her fault she kept seeing strange images of attacking the Senshi - her friends, her sisters - whenever she was asked to raise a hand to them.

"Well, I do kind of have an idea," Riya said after a minute, looking away. "This is about how the sparring went, isn't it?" she asked, knowing that Avi as going to confirm it in a matter of seconds. "I'm really really sorry," she said quickly, as if she were a child who'd been caught doing something wrong and was hurrying through an apology as if that might make it better. [b]"And... I'll try harder next time?"

Avetea nodded, beaming back at her young charge. They had apparently bonded enough that the older woman knew her tastes, and had actually anticipated grabbing her some chocolate ice cream. It wasn't something she normally bought for herself, but she liked being able to treat Ushriya, as much as she could.

Suffice to say, she had already grown a little soft spot for the blonde, and even though she couldn't downright spoil her, being able to get her a little ice cream as a reward for surviving the walk over felt nice.

"I actually do have ice cream, yes!" she responded cheerfully, going to her cabinet and pulling out a chipped, but clean bowl, as well as an old spoon. Popping the small freezer open, she slid out a carton of chocolate ice cream; it was distinguished as the only item in there, save a few loaves of bread that she had been storing up.

The brunette nodded at the girl's summary of her trip, putting the bowl of ice cream and spoon before her, before sliding onto the couch next to her. "Very good. You succeeded, then. Remember, though, if someone does ask you for money, just give it to them. It's never worth the argument. I know you're Sailor Moon and all, but there'll be a time and place for fighting people like that, and now's not it."

Avi chuckled, waving her hand. "Riya. You're not in trouble. To be perfectly honest, I didn't expect you to fare very well to start with." She paused, before quickly adding, "I mean, you'll be great. Eventually. But I'm not comparing you to Maka, who has had military experience, or Haiden, who has been training as an athlete her whole life.

"Truth be told, I've been doing some light training on my own, and I'm not very good, either. We're both at a size disadvantage, I think," she concluded with a bit of a sheepish grin.

"No, mostly, I just wanted to talk to you, see how things are going. I also... well, the reason I asked you to walk here... How do I explain..." She paused, blue eyes surveying the blonde thoughtfully. "I'll be blunt. Of all of the senshi, you have had a very nice upbringing. You have a loving family, and have lived a normal life. And believe me, I'm very happy for you, and I'm glad you had that experience. I wish more of the girls had. But the thing is, it leaves you... well, it leaves a gap in your understanding of what dangers lie out there."

"I actually do have ice cream, yes!"

Riya practically squealed. It didn't matter that coming here made her nervous or scared out of her wits. Now that she had ice cream, she knew she could take on the world. Funny how only a little bit of chocolate and a lot of sugar could have that much of an impact on a person.

"Thanks so much, Avi!" Riya said excitedly as she took the bowl from her friend before sitting down with it. Before long, she was gobbling up the melting mess, letting it slide down her chin and cover her face fully as she listened to Avi's words.

"Riya. You're not in trouble. To be perfectly honest, I didn't expect you to fare very well to start with."

The girl raised an eyebrow as her lip quivered slightly. So even with everyone encouraging her and telling her to fight, no one expected her to do well anyway? Riya frowned. Suddenly, she didn't feel like eating anymore. "What's... what's that supposed to mean?" Again, the images from that day, of her friends and sister dressed in different uniforms, hurt, attacked, came to her mind unbidden. They were broken and tattered, though, as if someone - Usagi, probably - was trying to keep them from appearing too quickly. Which only enhanced Riya's feeling that these memories were of something dire and terrifying. Something she wasn't sure she wanted to remember.

"I'll be blunt. Of all of the senshi, you have had a very nice upbringing. You have a loving family, and have lived a normal life. And believe me, I'm very happy for you, and I'm glad you had that experience. I wish more of the girls had. But the thing is, it leaves you... well, it leaves a gap in your understanding of what dangers lie out there."

Riya raised an eyebrow, but then she dropped it quickly. Of course she knew to whom Avi was referring. Raen. How long had it taken her to discover Raen had been on Mars? That she was from Mars and visited there every summer? Too long. Riya bit her lip, wondering what she should say, whether she should defend herself. She looked up at Avi, who had always been her mentor and seemed to be repeating that role now.

"Dangers? Do you mean like Youma?' Riya asked after a moment, the second part of Avi's words hitting her in a delayed fashion. "Because... Because I've gotten better at spotting them. I mean, not as good as everyone else. I mean, well. I mean..." What did she mean? Riiya herself wasn't sure, but she couldn't but stumble over her words. It seemed like Avi was telling her she was the worst at being a Senshi.

After a long moment, Riya burst into tears.

Oh, oh dear. Alright, so Avetea had selected her words poorly. That much was evident now, as the blonde's gleeful expression shifted away from sugar-induced joy to near tearfulness. She hadn't meant to hurt the girl's feelings, and nor had she thought that what she said was particularly offensive. It was just a matter of fact. If she had been training Khonsu, he probably wouldn't have fared a lot better, either.

And then she burst fully into tears, and Avetea became frantic. Oh no, no, no! Well, this was not going the way she had imagined at all. Sure, she thought the girl would've been a little shaken by what had gone on, with her first solo trip over to Treq, but she hadn't imagined being the source of so many ill feelings herself.

"Riya, Riya, please calm down," she pleaded, putting her arms gently around the girl, in a show of affection that was both natural and tender. Small hands gently stroked the girl's shoulders as she tried to soothe her back into a calm. Maybe she should go get the rest of the ice cream?

"I truly didn't mean to upset you," she continued, still rubbing her shoulders in an effort to calm her open sobs. "Riya, I only meant that you're a little smaller than some of the other girls, and younger, and that you haven't been trained before. That's it! We can hardly expect you to be as athletic as Maka, who's spent years as a soldier. Or Haiden, who's been training as an athlete her whole life. Even Amina and Michaela have advantages because of their ages and sizes."

The brunette paused, surveying her charge carefully, attempting to find the words that would convey her meaning properly. "Khonsu and I wouldn't be doing much better than you, in your place. It's not a reflection of anything bad about you. Truly. This kind of training, it takes time. And there's nothing wrong with that. You bring other strengths to the team, that aren't physical. Your presence uplifts everyone else, and is encouraging, and that's just as important!"

So, was she really the worst one at being a Senshi after all? For a long, painful moment, Riya sat there and cried into Avi's shoulders as if spilling all of her doubt and fear out with her tears. It was a cathartic process, really, as if she was somehow showing Avetea that she was apprehensive and fearful about her role, doubtful that she could live up to it, and in the meantime Raen had actually managed to get herself killed for a while. What was the point of being reborn if she had to fight again? Wasn't the whole point before sot that they could live happy lives?

For a long moment, Riya wondered if she truly deserved the mantle of Sailor Moon. Such a title called for strength and bravery, two aspects in which she managed to hold a deficit. Surely Raen or Michaela or someone else was better suited. Someone other than her.

But then she realized she was being silly. Shifting this responsibility onto someone else was not only cowardly, but futile. No matter how hard she might try, she could never change her birthright, even if she wasn't ready to accept it.

"Riya, I only meant that you're a little smaller than some of the other girls, and younger, and that you haven't been trained before. That's it! We can hardly expect you to be as athletic as Maka, who's spent years as a soldier. Or Haiden, who's been training as an athlete her whole life. Even Amina and Michaela have advantages because of their ages and sizes."

Nodding, Riya supposed that was it. Maybe these strange memories she was having weren't memories at all, but her mind presenting what she feared the most? Maybe with time and practice, she might be as good as the other girls? But then... why did her skin crawl at the thought of fighting the Senshi, even Amina? It was as if there was some bearing of truth to these images that flashed before her eyes every time she considered raising a hand to any of them...

And then an idea occurred to Riya. A horrible, terrifying idea.

"Avi... Did I... Did the Senshi and I... Did we..." A strangled noise escaped her throat. "Did we ever fight? In the last life?"

That was the nature of their lives it seemed - always fighting for a better tomorrow, with no guarantee that it would ever come. They'd managed to establish peace in the past, but it never lasted forever. With two previous 'failures' of catastrophic proportions, it was hard to believe that any established peace could last forever.

But if they won this time, they'd save so many lives along the way. No one should have had to live the way Martian children lived. It wasn't right. And maybe, at the end of their fight (if there truly was an end), they'd affect some kind of change, something that would give the children of those planets, and of all of the planets, certainly a brighter future than the one they were currently afforded.

As the question slipped forth from her lips, Avetea opened her mouth to say no, concluding that such a thing was impossible. They had always been loyal to one another. But even as she was poised to say it, memories came flooding back to her, of times when things had not been peaceful between them.

The Silver Millennium had been particularly violent, as she recalled, despite it being a ''millennium of peace'. Mars had been a loose canon, Mercury profited from it, and the Moon looked the other way as necessary.

The more immediate memory of Usagi's fight against Haruka and Michriu floated to her mind, and she swallowed hard, regarding her young charge with uncertainty. If the young Terrestrial was asking, she probably already knew the answer.

"Sometimes, things are not as simple as we would wish them to be," she responded softly, her words clearly chosen with a great deal of care. "We've all made mistakes in our past lives." She paused, regarding the girl carefully. "What are you referring to, specifically?"

The idea of fighting the Senshi was so foreign to her that Riya couldn't possibly see Usagi with them. And yet... And yet. The images were so strange, she knew they were from another life. But it couldn't possibly be the Silver Millennium; Ariana had looked so terrifying back then, but she was different in these images. It was all so confusing to the teenager that she put her head in her hands, trying to sort truth from delusion. What if it all was just made up? As if her mind conjured the very thing she couldn't do from the darkest corners of her nightmares every time she even thought about raising a hand against one of them?

But how, if they had sworn themselves to one another with their soul names, could they possibly betray one another? How could she possibly have fought them? It mad no sense, and the flashes that Riya saw didn't help. A Jupiter with a demonic smile, a Mars who appeared sadistic, and a Tuxedo Mask -

No! It seemed that her mind shut off at that point; all the memories seemed to fade. Riya felt as if she was being lulled to sleep with promises of good dreams, but she knew it was a farce. Instead, she blinked several times, trying to stay awake. She didn't know why her mind completely blanked at that point, but she knew it wasn't good, and she couldn't possibly deny the sinking feeling within her chest. As if everything she'd loved or held dear had ceased to exist and there was no possible way of returning them again. The only time Riya had ever felt close to this was when Serenity inhabited her body, but she knew this wasn't the case. Serenity was far colder, whereas this was just a feeling of giving up, of absolute devastation.

"What are you referring to, specifically?"

Riya looked up at her centuries-long friend, wondering if the pain was apparent in her eyes. She squinted, trying to pull forth the memories, but it was like pulling leaves out of murky water. Every time she got close, they just faded into the background as if they didn't exist at all.

"I... I don't know," Riya admitted after a long moment of tense silence. "Everyone's wearing such funny outfits. And-and... n-none of them look the s-same." She covered her eyes, now trying to drive away the flashes of the faces of the Senshi, but now it was as if it were burned into her mind. How she wished her memory would decide if it wanted to stay or leave. "And... and bracelets." Riya didn't know why that was important, but it was one of the details that kept recurring. "All-all of them are wearing bracelets."

She turned to look at the woman intently, trying to ignore the tears and evident pain in her heart. "What... does it all mean?" she asked as audibly as she could, but her voice broke just the same.

Ushriya seemed to be in a great deal of turmoil, and Avetea wasn't immediately sure how to help her. As blue eyes met on blue, she could see the pain and the emotional turmoil swimming through her gaze as the memories flooded forth, uncontrolled. Whatever she was remembering, must have been extremely painful, even as she relived it in a separate life.

Avetea wasn't at all sure how to help her. This memory she was describing was entirely foreign to her, and she couldn't place it to save her life. How could she help her work through it, when she couldn't even remember, in her own thought process, how it had played out?

"I'm sorry, I... I don't remember anything of that nature." The small Terrestrial paused, running a hand absently through her tangled mess of raven curls. "I... that's the hard thing about trying to be your adviser, and an adviser to the others. Our memories are all incomplete in different ways. And some of you have progressed much further than I have in that way."

The young woman sighed, absently biting her bottom lip in a gesture of mild anxiety. "There has been violence in our pasts. I can see that. Our vows of loyalty failed at times. But what I remember most clearly was the happiness that belonged to all of us, at the end of the Golden Era. I like to think of that time as one that was representative of our most evolved selves... our highest potential."

Did their past mistakes matter as much, in light of that? If they had all achieved peace through love and friendship in that way, what did the past matter? And they'd likely have all of that again, too.

If she proved to be an effective adviser.

They were so scary and demonic and evil and... Riya buried her face in her hands, trying to dispel the images. She wanted to forget that she had ever seen these things inside her heard, but they were so terrifying, she wasn't sure she ever could, especially when sparring with the Senshi. But how could she make a decent sparring partner when every time she even thought about raising a hand to one of them, flashes of their contorted faces appeared unbidden in her mind? She wasn't sure if there was a possible way.

"I... that's the hard thing about trying to be your adviser, and an adviser to the others. Our memories are all incomplete in different ways. And some of you have progressed much further than I have in that way."

Maybe... maybe they all were just figments of her imagination? Riya nodded to herself, trying to convince herself that it might be true, as the memories were faded and sketchy at best. It would make sense if her mind were just repeating dreams long forgotten, wouldn't it? Hadn't she heard of something like that before? She bit her lip, unsure.

"Why... why hasn't Luna given you all your memories?" Riya asked after beat, looking up at Avetea curiously. "Wouldn't it help that you, at least, had all of them?"

"There has been violence in our pasts. I can see that. Our vows of loyalty failed at times. But what I remember most clearly was the happiness that belonged to all of us, at the end of the Golden Era. I like to think of that time as one that was representative of our most evolved selves... our highest potential."

Our highest potential... But if these strange images in Riya's head were true, was that their highest potential? What if that was the way they had gone down in Crystal Tokyo, fighting one another? Yet, somehow she knew it wasn't true. She had vivid memories of holding Mamoru as he lay dying in her arms. Not... not whatever skewed message this was, showing him... kneeling?

Nonetheless, she had to agree with what Avetea was saying. She was always right, after all, in every life. They were happy at the end, and that... that had to be what mattered most. That they had achieved happiness with one another.

And though she was sure that the memories/delusions/whatever they were would not fade, Riya nodded. "We were really happy then, weren't we?"

Avetea shrugged, playing off the discontent it caused her. "Of course it would help. I don't know if it's something that I have control over, or what the cause is. But for whatever reason, mine are coming back slower. I gain new insight all the time. Really, though, I'm sure there are things that you are missing as well. I'm not sure that any of us are one hundred percent informed and cognizant of our pasts. I don't know if we ever will be."

That whole possibility seemed overwhelming; the idea of three lives' worth of memories seemed almost too much to bear. There were spots in her cuirrent life that were mysteries, faded from her memory, unlikely to ever be recovered. Maybe she had sustained some form of head injury in the car crash that had ended her parents' lives, and nearly her own. Maybe she would never remember the way the others did.

The idea had played over and over in her head, but she kept it tucked away inside her heart, left a secret for now, where no one else could see it. It wasn't something she wanted to burden the others with. She also didn't want anyone to think it would somehow keep her from doing her job, or that she would be a less competent adviser.

And wondering aloud if it was an issue might have made it a more real possibility, which she wasn't ready for yet.

They shared a smile, and though the weight in the air around them was heavy, it was lightened just a bit by this prospect that happiness had existed for them once. It somehow made it more obtainable now, in the present. If they had had it once, what reason would there be that they might not be able to reclaim it again?

"We really were. I don't even remember all of that time, as well as I should. But I recall more clearly than anything the feeling of being happy. I like to think we've learned from the mistakes of previous incarnations, and that we can be even happier in the future."

For a long moment, Riya was filled with memories of Crystal Tokyo. Of how Usagi would escape court functions to spend time with Rei, of how Rei was annoyed that apparently government security didn't think she was enough to save Usagi's life, how Usagi was annoyed that no one seemed to think she was enough to save her own life, how everyone just seemed to enjoy life. It was strange, comparing the feelings enveloping Riya's stomach now to the happiness that had been so absolute then.

After a minute, Riya shrugged, grinning. "There are a lot of things I don't remember, some of them I'm glad I don't remember," she said. "Apparently, Rei and Usagi had a lot more fights than I was originally let on," Riya supplied, going for the safest, most comical thing. She couldn't quite mention that there was something big Usagi was keeping from her, or that Serenity only chose to share certain memories to manipulate her feelings, so she opted for the least harmful.

"I just... remember feeling like I was complete," Riya said after a moment. "As if there was nothing in the world that could make me more... whole." She giggled, her mouth stretching into its usual grin. "Everything was perfect." For a moment, her voice sounded longing, as if somehow that life was better than the one she was living currently. However, that life was just a memory now. What she was living now, this life with Raen and the rest of the Senshi... It was the best, especially for her.

"Do you have any more ice cream?!" Riya asked brightly after a moment, raising an eyebrow.

As the memories kept pouring forth, Avetea was actually surprised to feel new ones surfacing like her mind, like familiar, friendly safety blankets, encasing her mind in a comforting sort of warmth. It was as if, sensing her good mood, Luna was flooding her senses with good thought after good thought, allowing her to feel safe and secure in a way she normally didn't.

The Terrestrial nodded knowingly. "I know what you mean." Though her memories were far from complete, when she thought of Crystal Tokyo, especially those moments right before the end, she just somehow knew she was ridiculously happy, more than anyone could possibly deserve. She didn't know exactly why, or what circumstances contributed to it. But she felt it too strongly to doubt its veracity.

"I think we'll feel that way again, someday," she said at last, smiling softly. She had no illusions that peace would come anytime soon. And she didn't want Riya, or anyone else in their party, to have them, either. It was a long road to that place in their future lives. But all things great were worth working for. And boy, was it going to be a lot of work. And sacrifice.

But it would not be death. Not this time. Avetea wouldn't allow it. They would make it to the end, perhaps battered and bruised, but together. Of this, she was one hundred percent certain.

The brunette laughed, nodding lightly as she grabbed Ushriya's bowl, pushing herself up from the couch. "Absolutely. Though I apparently need to double my supply, with you around," she added teasingly.

Some things never changed.