Mene slid off Epona's back when they reached the royal palace. In the pyramid shaped building Mene's family lived, but the large Birth Animals didn't enter - it had been built for human to move around in, and Birth Animals generally lived outside. For that matter, that was also the place where the humans spent the largest part of their lives.
Mene laid her head against Epona's soft fur for a moment, before she decided to go inside. Epona stood watching as the little girl slowly climbed up the grey-brown stone stairs. The steps surrounded the entire ground surface of the pyramid. After five steps there was a large level surface with stone walls on it, interrupted by holes to gain access to several chambers. The roof, meant to prevent rain from falling inside, was tapering and was supported by green stone pillars. They almost seemed to be plants, the way they were twisted around each other, but if you put some broken-off pieces of green stone next to each other, they started to twist around each other when they started to grow. This process took a very long time, but the palace had been built many lifetimes before. The other buildings in the open area had been created in a similar way, but had stairs with fewer steps and were therefore smaller. The families living in the other buildings had fewer members than the royal family. At several locations around the open area, a new dwelling was under constriction, but because the green stone took a long time to grow, most of the half completed buildings had only partially grown pillars.
When she had reached the top of the stairs, Mene turned around. She knew Epona had stayed - she could feel it. She always knew where her Birth Animal was, in the same way as Epona always knew where Mene was.
<I'm going inside.> She said.
<I know.>
<Will you wait?>
<In the forest. As soon as you come outside, I will stand here again. I don't really like to be in open areas - you're easier to see from the sky then.>
Mene understood. Animals who had a connection to a human - Birth Animals - still had to watch out for predators. When they were killed, their Birth Human died as well. Unicorns didn't have much to fear, but there were a few large birds who liked a bite of unicorn once in a while. Her sister Ares could see the spirits of people whose Birth Animal was killed, and together with the Trivoszo, a three-headed dog named Kerberos, she tried to solve the occasional problems deceased people caused. For her Birth Animal Kerberos also possessed the ability to see spirits, and was of the opinion that they tasted rather good…
After Mene had disappeared into the building, Epona turned and galloped back into the forest. Between the white foliage the unicorn was hard to see from the sky, but she knew it was too dark on Moonplanet for the citizens of the Moon to be able to discern colours. Even now the planet was in a solar system, the light of the star didn't reach the planet's surface. Epona hadn't regained memories of the life on the Moon, but because she had a connection to Mene and the humans did remember their past life, Epona too knew what had happened on the Moon.
Gaios looked up when he noticed his little sister standing in the opening of the chamber. <Hello Mene.>
<Are you busy?>
<I was trying to find out if there was a pattern in the way Moonplanet travels past solar systems. The only thing I can derive from the data, is that there is no pattern...> The brown-haired boy sighed, a feeling that others noticed by means of the psychic waves, in the same way as someone could understand his words. Unlike the people on the Moon, who communicated by means of sound waves.
Mene tried to let go of that thought, but she only half succeeded.
<...so I'm not that busy at the moment.> Gaios concluded. <Why did you come here?>
It took some moments before her elder brother's words dawned on her. <To look.> she said.
<At this solar system?>
The affirmative feeling he received from Mene answered his question. She was quiet today, more quiet than normally. He wasn't sure if it was Mene's intention, but he could clearly feel her sorrow. She wasn't able to keep her all feelings to herself yet, because she was still so young. Later, she'd learn - at least if she hadn't changed her name. Earlier today he had received from his mother that Mene had changed her name from Moonplanet to Mene. The only thing he couldn't feel was the cause of her sorrow.
<Any preference to what you want to see?> He asked, turning to the screen.
<No…>
<Didn't you spend your last lifetime on the Moon?> His fingers flew over the buttons to get Earth's satellite into view. The Moonplanetians had gotten the machine many lifetimes before from another species who communicated telepathically. It was the only machine on the entire Moonplanet, and their only way to communicate with aliens who didn't possess the ability to receive telepathic thought waves. Most beings communicated by means of sound waves, he had noticed. They had only encountered a few species who didn't communicate by means of sound nor by means of telepathy. <How did the inhabitants of the Moon communicate?>
Mene felt a wave of sorrow wash through her as the Moon came into view. Her life there had been short in comparison to the length of her life here - one year on Moonplanet corresponded with 9.5 years of the calendar used on the Moon, which was based on the Earth's. So Small Lady and the others would probably have forgotten her a long time ago. Maybe Small Lady was already reigning instead of her mother, Neo-Queen Selenity.
<Mene? I asked you something.>
<Ah? Oh... with sound.>
<You're a little absent.>
<I... am a little on the Moon...> She quietly answered. <But I shouldn't think about it anymore. That was my past life. Now I'm on this planet...> The girl turned around, so she couldn't see the screen anymore. To no avail - she still saw the little grey ball in space in front of her eyes. <I have to go on with this life...>
<Mene,> Gaios rose.
Mene stood listening quietly, but Gaios still felt waves of sorrow coming from his little sister.
<Why are you so sorrowful? I'm sure your life there didn't only consist of beautiful moments. Did you already forget the bad experiences, then?>
<No... but the beautiful moments... it was so different from here... another way of beautiful... another way... of...> She paused and turned around again. <Another way of everything.>
Behind Gaios, who was thinking about what he'd say, she saw the Moon on the screen. In her mind's eye she could discern the Crystal Palace, the house she'd lived in, the school she'd attended, and the park where everything had started. She saw the lake towards which Epona had guided her, the passage to the dark dream world of Yume Akuma, and above all: the people she had liked. How would they be? What would they be doing at this moment?
<Gaios...> she softly started. <Would you like to open a connection to the Moon?>
<What?!> He hadn't expected this. <Why?>
<I want to know how they're doing...>
He shook his head. <I doubt I can do that just like that. For that reason...>
<Why can't you? If someone is reborn on Moonplanet, she can look up things from her past life as well, right?> Between her sorrow, Gaios felt determination rising.
<But your last life wasn't on Moonplanet...>
<That's why!>
<If we want to use this machine to contact another planet, we'd have to confer with the queen or king.>
<Then ask!> Mene's telepathic powers weren't strong enough yet to be able to communicate with someone not in her immediate vicinity, but Gaios was old enough.
<I'll ask...> He said to his little sister, who was looking expectantly as her big brother tried to contact their mother, queen Euryphaessa.
<Mene is here with me in the communicator room.> He started. Only his mother and he could hear what he said. <She wants me to contact the Moon.>
<Why?> Came the answer. He knew she was far away, in a different settlement.
<That's what I asked too... She wants to know how the people are doing she has know in her previous life. According to her, everyone with a past life on Moonplanet can search for contact with things from that life. But because she didn't live here last time...>
<I understand. And I can feel how she feels... She'll never learn to keep her feelings to herself now.>
<What shall I do?>
For a moment it was quiet, while the queen thought about her answer. <Gaios, I...> She eventually started, when she was interrupted by a <Wait!> from her son.
<Gaios?>
<We... someone's trying to contact us!> He stared at the screen. The little girl had also noticed something and walked closer to the communicator.
<Who?> The queen asked, at the same time as Mene said <What's that?>.
<The Moon...> Gaios said, answering both simultaneously.
"Moon? Pluto requests contact."
"Contact established." The people sitting behind the communicator on the Moon received the message from the planet Pluto. "That orange planet penetrates our solar system and is currently in Pluto's orbit. Indeed we're on the other side of the system, but we're still keeping up with things happening in our orbit…"
"Did you already succeed in making contact?"
"No, but it seems like they can't receive us. Maybe they don't have a communicator, or the planet is uninhabited."
"Maybe we can succeed. Our communicator is of a slightly different type. Shall we try?"
"Go ahead. Will you keep us updated?"
"Of course. Moon out."
"Pluto out."
<If they hail us ourselves, I think it's best to answer.> Queen Euryphaessa said to Gaios. <I just wanted to say it's not our habit to contact other planets or beings ourselves, but if we don't answer it is possible they'll see us as a threat. If we don't hail them and they don't hail us, they usually let the planet pass peacefully through the star system...>
Gaios pressed, a bit nervous, the button to receive the incoming message. A second later the image of the moon disappeared and showed a human face, apparently female and with long blonde hair. Gaios felt Mene's surprise.
<Neo-Queen Selenity!> She hadn't said it to someone in specific, so everyone in her surroundings received it, including the communicator. The beings from whom they'd gotten the machine, had enabled it to convert telepathic thought waves into sound waves, so they were also able to communicate with beings not susceptible for such thought waves. In their turn the sound waves were converted to thought waves as soon as they reached the communicator on Moonplanet.
The woman on the screen frowned. <Do you know me?> She saw the face of a young man with brown hair and brown eyes on the screen. His skin was very pale in comparison to the skin tone of her own people. <Who are you?>
<This is the planet Moonplanet, and I am Prince Gaios of Moonplanet.> He quickly introduced himself. <My little sister Mene recognized you.>
<Mene?> She looked on astonished as Gaios stooped and rose again with a little girl in his arms. A little girl with long, straight white hair and light grey eyes... Selenity widened her eyes in surprise. <But... Mene was dead! She died around seventy years ago... My daughter told me.>
The girl stared at her and the corners of her mouth raised a little. <Indeed. But I've been reborn again. And because I'm seven now I regained my memories of my past life.>
<Mene, why are you telling all that?> Gaios said a little nervous, without Selenity being able to hear it. She could hear Mene's answer.
<Otherwise she wouldn't get it, right?>
<I indeed don't get it…> Selenity's voice sounded again. <I received a message from Pluto that they couldn't contact your planet, and then we tried. I hadn't expected to encounter a little... Mene... there. How is that possible?>
<Mene just said it,> Gaios began, quickly thinking about how to explain it. <She has had a life on the Moon, and now she has been reborn on her own planet again. Before she was born into your world, she has already had many lives on Moonplanet. Moonplanet is her homeworld, our planet. Moonplanet is a rogue planet. After a while we'll leave this solar system again.>
<So she was Sailor Moonplanet... not Sailor PlanetX. So she was a senshi of your planet...> Selenity said, half to herself.
<Sailor Moonplanet? Senshi? Mene, what does she mean?> Gaios looked down towards his little sister, whom he was still holding in his hands.
<Ah... You don't know much about my Moon life yet...> Mene remembered and the next moment she sent images instead of words, which showed Gaios what the queen of the Moon was talking about.
On the screen on the Moon, many images flashed past, so fast that Selenity could hardly follow. She thought she saw a spot of pink, blue, green and red - were that her daughter and the Asteroid Senshi?
As soon as Gaios and the little Mene re-appeared, she slowly asked: "What was that?"
"What?" Gaios looked up.
"Those fast-flashing images…"
"Did the communicator send those through as well? Mene just showed me several events from her life on the Moon."
The queen was quiet for some moments. Had Mene been able to do that when she was living here? She didn't think so. Would it be possible that the girl had more abilities now she was born on her home planet? This interplanetary conversation wasn't entirely what she'd expected of it. Maybe she could call her daughter… She addressed the girl, who was so much younger than the last time she'd seen her, a little less than seventy years ago. In appearance Selenity hadn't changed a bit, because of the power of the Silver Crystal. She'd probably reign for a little less than thousand years before her daughter would take over.
"Would you like to talk to Small Lady?"
Mene's eyes started to sparkle. "Very much!" She said with delight. "How is she doing?"
"Well. She's just not in the palace; in the early morning she left by horse with her friends."
"Oh, look! What a cute little dolls!" Machiko pointed excitedly.
Yesterday evening, Junko had asked the others if they wanted to join her on a horse-riding trip. At the crack of dawn they had left this morning. Junko was by far the best rider, but that couldn't spoil the fun. They had just galloped over a sand plain, Junko a little faster than the other, and at the other side were several small souvenir shops.
"And those little horses are so cute! Those five there look just like our horses!" Machiko continued.
"I'll buy them for you," Small Lady said. "To add to your doll collection."
"I didn't know you also collected little animal statues?" Yuri remarked.
"New collection!" Machiko smiled broadly.
The pink-haired girl with two ponytails from pointy odango dismounted and walked to the stall. She pointed at the five little horses, after checking for any damage. Machiko couldn't hear what she said, but a moment later Small Lady handed over a filled little bag to her blue-haired friend. "Here you are!"
Just when she wanted to sit down on her horse again, her senshi-communicator beeped. She sighed. "Mama. I do hope it isn't something serious." She opened the little pink device and her mother's face appeared on the small screen.
"We contacted the orange planet which has appeared at the edge of our solar system." Neo-Queen Selenity began. "The inhabitants call their planet 'Moonplanet', and to my great surprise it's Mene's home planet..."
Small Lady stared astonished at her mother. "Mene?!"
Her mother nodded. "She's been reborn there." She repeated what she had heard from Gaios, while the other four girls listened along.
"...and now I wanted to ask if you weren't too far away, so you can talk to Mene over the interplanetary communicator." She ended.
Small Lady shook her head. "We're on the sand plain between Mare Serenitatis and Mare Tranquillitatis. A little far from the palace to be able to return quickly. At least half a day riding."
"Can't we make a connection another time, when we're back?" Yuri asked.
"Or we could arrange that Mene comes here! Or we to her planet..." Machiko mused. "I wonder what it looks like there."
The queen shook her head. "The temperature there is far beneath the freezing point and there's hardly any light. The atmospheric composition there isn't livable for us either. The humans there are obviously of another kind..."
"Can they survive on the Moon, then?" Small Lady asked.
The queen turned away her hand and she heard her asking the question.
"According to Gaios the atmosphere of the Earth is better for his species - the Earthian atmosphere is full of nitrogen, which is what they breathe."
"And we can survive on Earth as well! Why don't we arrange a meeting on Earth? Then we can catch up and she can meet Elios as well." Small Lady thought out loud. A smile had appeared on her face when she thought of her love.
Selenity nodded. "I'll suggest it."