Mother's Walk

(Cubed Cinder)

The front door opened in the Tsukino household, and coming through was Kenji, the patriarch of the family.
"Honey, I'm home!" Kenji shouted. He looked around the area wondering where his lovely wife, Ikuko, was. He smiled as he looked once more at the flowers he was holding.
"Welcome back, Kenji, how was your day at work and…?" Ikuko said. She walked out of the kitchen to greet her husband, and stopped her talking when she noticed the batch of flowers that were in Kenji's hands.
"Happy Mother's Day, Ikuko." Kenji said with a smile.
"Oh, sweetie… they're so beautiful!" Ikuko said as she walked up towards Kenji and took the flowers out of his hands.
"You see? You knew I wouldn't forget, right?" Kenji said.
"Oh, of course not!" Ikuko said as she gave her husband, and also the father of their two children (Serena and Sammy), a kiss on the cheek.
"Come on, I've almost finished preparing a special dish I made just for the two of us." Ikuko said as she took her husband by the hands.
"Huh? Wait! I thought you said no special dinners this year!" Kenji said.
"Fooled you! Hahaha!" Ikuko shouted as the two walked back into the kitchen where Ikuko had come from.

While all this was going on, watching from above as she sat on the top of the stairway was Serena. Sitting alongside her was her cat, Luna, who was cuddled against Serena's pink pajamas.
"Awww, just like little lovebirds!" Serena said.
"Your parents certainly do care deeply for each other, no matter what the holiday is." Luna said.
"(sigh) Yeah." Serena said. After that deep sigh, she suddenly got up and walked back into her room. Luna could easily tell from that sigh that something was bothering Serena, and she followed her into her room. Serena sat down on her bed while Luna jumped on top of it.
"Are you alright, Serena? Something's bothering you, isn't it?" Luna asked.
"Oh, it's nothing much, Luna. I was just thinking about my original mother." Serena said.
"Oh… Queen Serenity." Luna said.
"Luna, you remember more than I do. She was very caring, right?" Serena said.
"Of course, Serena! She cared so deeply for not just you, but all of us. It was why you and the other scouts were sent away from the Moon Kingdom after Queen Beryl destroyed it." Luna said.
"Yeah, just like any other queen would be. Still…" Serena said as she sighed yet again.
"Serena?" Luna said.
"Part of me wishes I got to know her better." Serena said. Luna crawled into Serena's lap and looked up at her.
"Well, no matter what you feel, just know this, Serena. I know in my heart she would be very proud of you. She'd be proud of the woman you have become and will surely become when the time of Crystal Tokyo arrives." Luna said.
"Heh, the time of Crystal Tokyo. That makes me miss Rini already." Serena said, thinking back to a couple weeks ago when, with the threat of the Dark Moon finally subsided, it was time for Rini to return home to her own time. Serena couldn't help but laugh at the same time, thinking Rini was probably back to crushing her toy cities.
"What's so funny, Serena?" Luna asked.
"Oh, nothing, Luna. I'm gonna brush my teeth now." Serena said as she got up and headed for the bathroom.

Eventually she came back, and with a big yawn, Serena tucked herself into her bed.
"Good night, Luna." Serena said.
"Good night, Serena." Luna said. Serena shut the nearby light off and drifted off to sleep, with Luna perching herself at the other end of the bed near Serena's feet.

Later that night, Serena and Luna were both sound asleep, although that would change quickly for Luna. As booming thunder-like sounds echoed outside Serena's window, the ground started to shake in rhythm with the sound. First it was a soft shake that could barely be felt, but it progressively got stronger and stronger with each passing second. It was enough to finally stir Luna awake, and she quickly got on full alert as the booming and shaking kept growing stronger.
"What in the…?" Luna said, looking around and seeing various decorations in Serena's room shaking, with some items (like her alarm clock) falling onto the floor. It was enough to call to Serena's attention, who amazingly was sleeping through all of this.
"Serena, wake up! WAKE UP!" Luna shouted as she resorted to slapping, but not scratching, Serena in the face.
"Oh! Ow! Luna! What was that for!?" Serena said as she stirred herself to a sitting position on her bed.
"Listen!" Luna said. Serena finally took note of the rhythmic shaking and booming sounds outside.
"Huh? A thunderstorm?" Serena asked.
"Look outside and see what it is." Luna said. Serena nodded, and after getting up and rubbing her eyes (with Luna remaining on the bed), she walked over to her window. At the same time, after one more intense boom and shake, the booming and shaking seemed to finally stop.
But Serena didn't notice that. What she did notice took her for a big surprise. She opened up the curtains that were covering her window. What she saw was the biggest blue eyeball she could ever imagine.
"AAAAAAAHHHHHHHH!!!" Serena said as stumbled back onto her bed, tripping onto it before ducking behind the other side of it.
"What!? What is it, Serena?" Luna asked.
"Big… scary… blue eyeball… outside!" Serena said. Luna looked to see the same eyeball that was looking inside and eventually moved away, providing a clear sight outside the window again.
"My goodness! Is it Rini?" Luna asked.
"I don't know! Maybe! You know that little squirt likes to play Chibizilla, or whatever her monster name is!" Serena said.

Just then, before both could wonder any more if it was indeed Rini or not, they suddenly looked up and saw pieces of the roof breaking and falling in towards them.
“The roof’s coming off! Take cover!” Luna shouted. The two hid underneath the bed until they felt the debris had stopped falling. What they didn’t see was the entire roof being taken off Serena’s house and set aside by a giant woman, one that would be very familiar to the two. It wouldn’t be until this woman spoke that they came out of hiding.
“It’s okay, my dear daughter. I won’t hurt you or the house you now live in.” the woman spoke.
“That… that voice.” Luna said.
“Yeah… definitely not Rini.” Serena said.
“And definitely not someone on our enemy list.” Luna said. That’s when the two slowly crawled out from underneath the bed and got their first look at this giantess.

It was Queen Serenity. The blue eyes, long white dress, and silver hair shaped almost exactly like Serena’s were unmistakable.

“Y…Your highness!” Luna shouted.
“Queen Serenity?” Serena said as she looked up in awe over the queen’s 150-foot-tall body.
“Yes, Princess Serenity. I am once again in your presence.” Queen Serenity said. Indeed, this was the third time since becoming Sailor Moon that Serena has seen her mother from the Moon Kingdom. The first time was when she told her and the other sailor scouts the true story of their past and then sending them back to Earth to confront and ultimately defeat Kunzite. The second time was when she gave Serena the Moon Sceptre to help defeat Alan and Ann's Cardians.
"Oh my gosh… how did you get here and how did you grow so big?" Serena said.
"Just like before, my daughter. I am not real. I am only existing in your subconscious mind. You thought about me only hours earlier and I have come." Queen Serenity said.
"So, that means I'm dreaming?" Serena asked.
"In a sense, yes." Queen Serenity said with a smile.
"Your majesty, may I ask what brings you here?" Luna asked.
"All I desire is to spend time with my daughter, just check and see how she is doing. And I must do it soon, I fear I must return to the afterlife after only a short while." Queen Serenity said.
"Oh, I see." Luna said. Queen Serenity looked and saw Serena reaching up with her arm, like she was trying to touch her.
"You don't believe I'm real, I take it?" Queen Serenity asked.
"What? No! No! I would never think that, Mom. I…" Serena said, who stopped talking when she realized she called her Mom instead of using her proper title.

"I wouldn't blame you, my princess. Here, perhaps this will convince you." Queen Serenity said. The silver-haired giantess gently lowered her hand into Serena's room, resting it on top of her bed.
"Go ahead, climb on." Queen Serenity said with a wink of her eye. That subtle wink suddenly made Serena feel very comfortable, and she promptly hopped onto the palm of the giantess's hand. Once she was on, Queen Serenity gently raised her hand up to her face, taking Serena out of her house and giving her a bird's eye view of her neighborhood.
"It's a lovely view, isn't it?" Queen Serenity asked.
"Yes… yes it is." Serena said.
"Is there something on your mind, Serenity?" Queen Serenity said.
"Well… just that I'm happy to see you again. I was just thinking about you for no rhyme or reason." Serena said.
"Believe me, my daughter. I miss you too. Not a day passes by that I don't think about what you and your fellow sailor scouts are doing for this planet." Queen Serenity said.
"Huh? You know about all that?" Serena asked.
"Well, most of it. Perhaps during my walk you can tell me about some of your adventures and battles." Queen Serenity said with a smile.
"Wait? During your walk?" Serena said.
"Sure. I'd like to see the nearby city from this perspective. I…" Queen Serenity said.
"Huh? What?" Serena said, noticing the slight blush on her mother's face.
"When I was your age, I had a secret dream of wanting to be this big over the Moon Kingdom, that way I could protect anyone from any evil force in the galaxy." Queen Serenity said.
"No way! You too!?" Serena said.
"I know, isn't it something? Anyway, Luna, you don't mind if I borrow my daughter for a little bit, right?" Queen Serenity said as she looked back down in the house down at the purple talking cat.
"Oh, not at all! Have fun you too!" Luna said. With a nod of approval from the giantess, Queen Serenity placed Serena on her right shoulder. Serena sat tight and watched as Queen Serenity started walking gently down the streets of her neighborhood that would lead the way into the nearby city.
"Oh, sorry I didn't dress for the occasion." Serena said, referring to how she was still in her pajamas and not something more formal like her moon princess outfit.
"Don't worry about it, my princess. I still think you look very nice." Queen Serenity said. Serena looked forward once more, marveling at how Queen Serenity was manuevering her crystal clear high heeled shoes to avoid crushing any of the houses or vehicles in front of her.

Finally, the giantess had made her way into the brightly lit city. But there was something that immediately caught Serena's attention.
"Huh? There's nobody around, and yet…" Serena said. Indeed, despite the sounds of people screaming for their lives, the streets were almost empty. There were only a few random vehicles driving around, a couple of them having to swerve to dodge the giant Queen Serenity. The queen didn't find this surprising.
"It's part of our subconscious minds. This way nobody is accidentally killed or injured during our conversation." Queen Serenity said.
"I see… you really thought this out, didn't you, Mom?" Serena said.
"You learn a few things from ruling the entire Moon Kingdom, as I'm sure you will in the far future." Queen Serenity said.
"Oh? You know about that?" Serena said.
"I do… Neo Queen Serenity." Queen Serenity said. Serena was impressed that her previous mother would know even about that, and she couldn't help but ask one very important thing.
"Mom? Do you… do you know about Rini?" Serena asked.
"Ah, yes. That would make her my granddaughter. She seems like a charming young girl." Queen Serenity said.
"Heh, yes. Yes she is, even though she can be a brat sometimes." Serena said.
"I know somebody who was once like that when she was born." Queen Serenity said, who playfully tapped Serena on the head with one of her fingers.
"Hey!" Serena said.

In toying with Serena, however, Queen Serenity took her eyes off the road and heard a loud CRUNCH underneath one of her shoes. She stopped her walk and lifted up her foot, revealing a red car that was crushed into many pieces.
"Oops! That was a misstep." Queen Serenity said.
"I hope nobody was in that car!" Serena said.
"Don't worry. Remember, there are no real people in the city." Queen Serenity said.
"Right, it's like a dream. Still, the destruction is so real." Serena said, taking note of the mess the car was in.
"And yet that felt kinda good. I can see why that nefarious Queen Metalia used size to intimidate us all." Queen Serenity said. Serena could see the uneasy look on the giantess's face, no doubt as she was thinking of the bad memories inflicted by the aforementioned villainess, along with Queen Beryl, in bringing total destruction to the Moon Kingdom.
"It's okay, Mom. My friends and I destroyed Beryl. She will no longer pose a threat to anyone." Serena said.
"Yes, I know, Princess Serenity. It's because of you and the other sailor scouts that this planet is a better place." Queen Serenity said.
"Still, there are no doubt other villains out there, and we'll do our best to stop them and protect Earth no matter what." Serena said.
"I have full confidence you will." Queen Serenity said, this time with a more gentle pat on her tiny daughter's head.

As the two continued to converse with each other on different topics, Queen Serenity continued to admire the city from her increased size, especially when she heard sirens ringing from the nearby crossroad.
"Oh? I wonder what that noise is?" Queen Serenity said.
"Probably just police cars or a fire engine." Serena said.
"Police cars?" Queen Serenity asked.
"Oh, right… you're not used to Earth transportation, right?" Serena said.
"Well, just a little bit, from what I've observed behind the scenes." Queen Serenity said. Her curiousity led her to walk around the taller buildings and see a pair of fire trucks sitting and kinda blocking the giantess's path. One truck was bigger than the other, sporting a large ladder on top. This got Queen Serenity's attention easily.
"Hmmm… I wonder what this is for." Queen Serenity said as she bent herself forward to pick up the fire truck with both her hands. Her curiousity made her forget about Serena for the moment, however.
"Eeeeek! Mom!" Serena said as she felt herself falling forward, unable to get a grip on her giant mother's shoulder in time. Luckily, one of Queen Serenity's silver pigtails was in front of her body, and Serena managed to grab on and now felt herself swinging on the gigantic strands of hair. Meanwhile, holding the bottom of the fire truck with one hand, Queen Serenity used the other hand to try and extend the ladder on top of the vehicle.
"I wonder how far this goes?" Queen Serenity asked herself. She kept pulling on the ladder, forcing it out from the truck, and even though it stopped when it seemed to reach its limit, she kept on pulling. Because of the force of the queen's pulling, the truck twisted and mangled from the stress, letting out a loud creaking sound that would be almost deafening to any normal-sized human.
"Hmmm… I thought those ladders could extend further than that, but then again, if I were normal-sized, it would look taller." Queen Serenity said. Seeing no more need to tinker with the fire truck, the giantess dropped it onto the ground and stepped past it.

Before she could think about what to do next, she looked over at a nearby glass building and, in the reflection, saw Serena holding on for dear life onto her hair.
"Oh my goodness!" Queen Serenity shouted out loud. She put a hand underneath Serena and allowed her to fall back onto the palm of her hand.
"Princess Serenity, what on Earth were you doing on my hair?" Queen Serenity asked.
"Um… I fell when you bent down to pick up that fire truck! Luckily I had your hair to catch me!" Serena said.
"I see. I sincerely apologize. I did not think about you at that moment in time." Queen Serenity said.
"Hey, it's okay. I know the feeling!" Serena said.
"Oh? How so?" Queen Serenity asked.
"Well, I mentioned Rini earlier, right? Let's just say I've gone through this circus act before." Serena said.
"Ah, I see. And yet you, as Sailor Moon, were able to set things right?" Queen Serenity said.
"Yeah! Eventually she listened to reason." Serena said.
"Very good. I am so proud of you, my daughter." Queen Serenity said. She moved her hand towards her lips and gave Serena a quick kiss. Despite it being quick, Serena's body, pajamas and all, were covered in lipstick.
"Oh, Queen Serenity… I mean, Mom… you still smother your lips with that lipstick!" Serena said.
"Like mother, like daughter, right?" Queen Serenity said, prompting a quick laugh from both ladies.

Alas, Queen Serenity's face quickly went into a frown as she faced her daughter in her hands.
"Oh, my princess, I wish we could continue like this, but it is time I returned to the spiritual world." Queen Serenity said.
"Oh… it's okay. I understand." Serena said.
"Are you sure you do? It must be hard going through life missing me." Queen Serenity said.
"Yeah… but I've got a new family that's taking care of me. And I have the same friends I had on the Moon Kingdom, plus some new friends! I just…" Serena said.
"Just what?" Queen Serenity said.
"All I wanted was to tell you how happy I am. Not just tonight, but for the future as well." Serena said.
"Awwww… Princess Serenity." Queen Serenity said, who raised her hand once more, this time very softly hugging her daughter against her cheek.
"To see you happy and hear you say that out loud, nothing could make me more happier." Queen Serenity said.
"I love you, Mom. Even though you've passed on." Serena said.
"I love you too, Princess Seren… no… Serena." Queen Serenity said. After a quick smile, the silver-haired giantess started walking in the opposite direction of where she came.
"Huh? Where are we going now?" Serena asked.
"I shall take you back home so you can get back to sleep." Queen Serenity said.

A few minutes later, Queen Serenity was back towering over Serena's neighborhood. She gently lowered Serena back into her house. Once Serena landed back on her bed, she looked up one more time at the giantess who was reaching over and picking up the roof she had taken off earlier.
"Good night, my daughter. I will never forget this night." Queen Serenity said with a smile.
"Good night! I'll never forget this either… or you!" Serena said. With a final nod from the giantess, Serena watched as the roof was back over not just her bedroom, but her entire house as well. And with amazing precision too. It was like nothing ever happened. Still, Serena opened her curtains and watched as the giant Queen Serenity gracefully walked away from her house and into the distance.
"Wow… there she goes, Luna." Serena said.
"Yes, a true leader. But you have carried on beautifully after her all this time." Luna said.
"Luna, do you think I'll be big like that when Rini's eventually my age?" Serena said. Luna's jaw theoretically dropped and several drops of sweat ran down her forehead.
"Well, let's take things one day at a time." Luna said.
"You're right, starting with me getting back to bed. *yaaaaaaawn*" Serena said as she slithered her way back to her bed, pulling the sheets over her head and slowly drifting back to sleep.

Before she did, however, she took one last look at the window where she watched the giant Queen Serenity both make her presence known and then walk away.
"Happy Mother's Day… to both my mothers." Serena said with a smile before she closed her eyes and fell asleep.

END