Chapter 1 : It's Magic!

For as far back as Kyungsoo could remember, he had gotten comments on his hair. He had been asked about it, teased about it, and stared at for it. And as he got older, he got better at dealing with the attention he got from it.

“Why is your hair white?” People would ask.

“Because I’m the main character of this anime,” Kyungsoo would answer, straight faced.

People would laugh, but Kyungsoo never would, and eventually the serious look on his face would chase people away. Because Kyungsoo was dead serious. His white-blonde hair, completely different from the jet black of his parents and brother, meant only one thing—he had some kind of twisted destiny in store, the likes of which only existed in the world of anime.

Kyungsoo dreaded every birthday, wondering if today he would learn the he was an elf prince or the lost son of a distant alien race. If a new student transferred to his class, Kyungsoo made every effort not to befriend the new kid, because he or she was obviously a vampire or witch or demon hunter. He never went into second-hand shops or took the long way home at night, he didn’t keep a journal addressed to someone from his past, and he never tolerated any nonsense.

But it seemed like for Kyungsoo, nonsense was unavoidable.

One day as Kyungsoo was walking home from school, a bumbling idiot almost mowed him down with a bicycle. The idiot (probably over 6 feet tall, he had no business being that tall) apologized profusely as he bowed and tried to straighten Kyungsoo’s sweater, and when Kyungsoo finally managed to shake the guy off he ran away, and he had gone several blocks before he realized that his sweater was now strangely heavy. He looked down and realized that he had a large gold pin attached to the front of his sweater, and it had not been there that morning.

“Aw, hell no!” Kyungsoo shouted, stomping his foot. He looked skyward. “I’m not putting up with this!” And with that, Kyungsoo stormed off for his home, already trying to think of a way to destroy the undoubtedly magical pin on his shirt.

By the next morning Kyungsoo had not found a way to destroy his new pin, and despite leaving home without it, he found the damn thing in his pocket during lunch. Furious, Kyungsoo vowed to keep his mouth shut on the off chance that anything he said would cause the thing to activate and give him super powers. That resolution lasted as far as his walk home, when once more he was nearly killed, though this time it was by a clown—a demon clown, six feet tall with blood red eyes and sharp teeth. Kyungsoo shrieked and started to run, and the living nightmare began to chase him. Kyungsoo fumbled for the pin, and realized he had no idea how to use it.

“Where’s my talking animal sidekick?!” He screamed, looking around wildly. “Moon Prism Power! Damn, that’s not it! Hocus Pocus! Abracadabra!” He turned around and saw the demon clown bearing down on him. He threw his hands over his head and yelled, “I ACCEPT MY FATE, NOW SOMEBODY HELP ME!”

At once he was surrounded by a golden light, and when the light faded he found himself holding a gold wand with a green orb at the tip. He turned around and pointed the wand at the demon clown and yelled, “I vanquish you, foul beast!”

A beam of light shot from the wand and hit the clown square in the chest. It staggered back and fell, writhing around on the ground, but it didn’t disappear. In fact, the thing only seemed to get angrier. It rose to its feet once more and Kyungsoo’s heart sank.

‘This is the end,’ he thought. ‘I’m going to die. This is the worst anime ever. Maybe I wasn’t the main character after all…’ He closed his eyes and covered his face, waiting for the death blow, but it never came. Instead he felt a strong gust of hot wind, and a shadow fell over him. He heard a ghastly screech, and then someone grabbed his hand—the one that still clutched the wand—and raised it.

“Quick, Kyungsoo! Say, ‘In the name of Venus, I release you!’”

Eyes sill shut tight, Kyungsoo yelled, “IN THE NAME OF VENUS I RELEASE YOU!”

There was another gust of wind and a bright light, and then nothing. Kyungsoo opened his eyes and found himself face-to-face with the same bumbling idiot who had nearly mowed him down the previous day.

“YOU!” Kyungsoo shrieked, jumping to his feet. “You have something to do with this, all of it, I know it’s all your fault! How do you know my name?!”

The guy held up his hands and backed away, eyes almost comically wide. “I was just following orders! I promise, I meant no harm! And really, it’s half your fault too. I kept trying to explain things to you, but you never listened.”

Kyungsoo paused, and looked the guy over. Now that he thought about it, the dude did look kind of familiar, and he smelled familiar, oddly enough. Oh wait… “You work at the coffee shop! Oh, I guess that’s how you knew my name.”

The guy grinned, flashing way too many teeth. “Yep! My name is Chanyeol, I’ve been trying to get your attention for months.”

“What’s wrong with your eyes?”

Chanyeol laughed, slapping his knees. “If you knew how many times I got asked that! I have big eyes, I know, and big ears, and a lot of teeth, but I’ve been told it’s charming. I’m normal, I promise. And by the way, when I’m in uniform, you should call me Sailor Moon.”

Kyungsoo gaped at him, suddenly realizing that Chanyeol was indeed wearing a uniform. His pants were really tight, navy blue, and a short-sleeved, white button-down shirt worn with a red tie. Oddly enough, he wore bright white combat boots. They clashed quite horribly with the rest of the ‘school boy’ outfit. Kyungsoo looked down at himself and realized that he wore a similar uniform, but with a green tie.

“Aw, hell no,” Kyungsoo muttered. “I knew this damn hair was nothing but trouble.”

Chanyeol grabbed Kyungsoo’s hands. “I know this is a lot to take in, but you need to know the truth. You’re the reincarnation of an interstellar warrior, you derive your power from the planet Venus, which by the way is in its ruling position this month, so your power will be at its strongest. You’re the twelfth sailor scout, if you include me. I’m Sailor Moon, but I’m also the Moon Prince. Or the reincarnation of the Moon Prince. Now that you’ve accepted your position, it’s kind of essential that you help us out. We’re all students, but we all feel like we have a responsibility to protect the world from the monsters of the Dark Kingdom. Once all the monsters are defeated, we’ll regain the memories of our past lives and we’ll be able to go home, and I’ll resume my place as Prince of the Moon Kingdom!”

With each word out of his mouth Kyungsoo became more and more convinced that he was dreaming. Even if he had been convinced that his life would inevitably be an anime, this was just too much. No one could believe this, Chanyeol had to be messing with him. Still, his passion was admirable, and he was kind of cute…

“No way!” Kyungsoo yelled, wrenching his hands free and covering his face. “Oh my god, isn’t it enough that I got attacked by a clown? I reject this plot point! This trope is stupid!”

Chanyeol stared at Kyungsoo in confusion. “Are you okay?”

“No!” Kyungsoo screamed, “Now leave me alone!” He started to walk off, then came running back. “Where the hell did my normal clothes go?!”

Chanyeol grinned. “I’ll be happy to tell you. I’ll be happy to tell you a lot more, if you’ll come to the club house with me.”

“I refuse,” Kyungsoo said flatly.

Chanyeol shrugged. “Fine, good luck explaining your get up to your parents.”

Kyungsoo muttered mutinously and gestured for Chanyeol to lead the way. As they walked off he asked, “Where did all the people go, anyway?”

“Probably took off running when they saw that clown, that thing was freaky!”

Kyungsoo rolled his eyes. “How convenient. So where is this club house of yours?”

The club house turned out to be the breakroom of an arcade. Chanyeol walked right past all the games and straight into the room marked “Employees Only,” and Kyungsoo slipped in after him. Six boys were scattered around the room already, in various slouched positions, but they all sat up when they saw Kyungsoo.

“It’s Sailor Venus!” A kid with rainbow hair cried and damn, what anime was he a part of? He ran over and shook Kyungsoo’s hand. “I’m Sailor Saturn, my name is Sehun!”

Chanyeol pointed out the other boys. “Baekhyun is Sailor Mars, Jongdae is Sailor Neptune, Jongin is Sailor Uranus, Tao is Sailor Andromeda, and Minseok is Sailor Mercury.”

“Andromeda isn’t a planet,” Kyungsoo said.

“No , Sherlock,” Tao sniffed. “Neither is the Moon.”

Chanyeol continued, “Yixing is Sailor Pluto, and Lu Han is Sailor Jupiter. We also have Kris and Joonmyun, who are our mentors. They run this arcade, we use the breakroom as our home base.”

“Awesome,” Kyungsoo said dryly. “Now tell me how to get my clothes back.”

Chanyeol grinned. “It’s easy, just take the pin off.”

Kyungsoo looked down—somehow his gold pin had become affixed to his tie. He took it off, and the outfit dissolved in a flash of gold light, leaving him in his normal school uniform. He threw the pin at the floor and stomped on it.

Jongin gasped. “Dude! Don’t disrespect the pin!”

“Keep your pin!” Kyungsoo yelled, “I’m out of here!” And he stormed out of the breakroom, and all the way back to his house. When he flopped down on his bed, something poked his leg. Without looking, he reached into his pocket and threw the magical pin at the wall. He eventually got up and put on his pajamas, and fell into an uneasy sleep.

Kyungsoo woke up at an ungodly hour because of an infernal tapping noise. He sat up and almost screamed when he saw a face at his window—it turned out to be Chanyeol’s. Kyungsoo had no idea how he got onto the fifth floor balcony outside his window.

“Go away,” Kyungsoo hissed.

Chanyeol shook his head. “Let me in, please. I want to talk to you.”

Against his better judgement, Kyungsoo found himself getting up and opening his window. Chanyeol clambered inside and landed on the floor with a thump.

“What do you want to say?” Kyungsoo asked.

Chanyeol stood up, bouncing slightly. “That you shouldn’t have run off like that. We barely had a chance to tell you anything.”

“I don’t want to hear anything, I don’t care to know. So keep it to yourself.”

Chanyeol shook his head. “You know what, Kyungsoo? I’ve been seeing you five days a week for six months. Every school day, you come to the cafe and order the same thing—Americano, peanut butter croissant. You never make eye contact with anyone, you shut down people who try to talk to you. I don’t think you know how to open up. And I don’t think you know how to have fun. I think your life lacks spice, something that drives you forward.”

Kyungsoo snorted. “And you think that chasing space monsters with a bunch of astronomy geeks is the answer?”

“I think it’s better than a life of monotony.”

Something inside of Kyungsoo felt ready to snap. “Maybe I like monotony. What’s wrong with it? What’s wrong with knowing exactly how my day is going to go? Maybe I don’t want to risk my neck every other day for the rest of my life, did you think about that? Maybe, just maybe, I’ve been different for my whole life and all I want is to be normal!”

Chanyeol nodded thoughtfully. “I can see where you’re coming from, I really can. And I know that this is scary and you’re afraid, but it’s not as scary as being alone.”

Kyungsoo froze. Alone and afraid were the two words that stood out most to him, and honestly he had been feeling both of those things for a while. And standing in his room, in his rumpled pajamas and shivering from the breeze, he felt very alone and afraid. “But I could mess up. You’re talking about protecting people, and what if I’m bad at it?”

“Hey, you vanquished that clown pretty much by yourself today! Once you know what you’re doing, you’ll be able to hold your own. And like I said, you’re not alone in this. What do you say to a trial period of one week? Come hang out with us, we’ll help you figure all of this out.”

Kyungsoo sighed. “Do I really have a choice?”

Chanyeol nodded. “Of course. If you’re really miserable, I’ll find a way to get you out of this. I don’t want you to be doing this if you really don’t want to.”

Kyungsoo sighed. On the one hand, this was totally unbelievable, and he kind of wanted to back out before he got in over his head. But then, he wanted to stick around for the same reason—this was so unbelievable, and as scary as it was, it also sounded…interesting. Not fun, but interesting and even exciting.

“Promise me that I’m not going to end up alone at the end of this,” Kyungsoo said.

Chanyeol gave him a wide-eyed look. “Of course not! You’re in this for life, kid.”

“Don’t call me kid,” Kyungsoo snapped, but it was softened by his smile. “And get out of my room, I have school tomorrow.”

Over the next few days, Kyungsoo was introduced to every member of the Sailor team, and the two advisors. Tao and Sehun jokingly referred to Joonmyun and Kris as ‘Mom and dad,’ and Kyungsoo could see why. Even though they didn’t fuss over Kyungsoo as much, they were attentive and supportive, and they were the ones who gave Kyungsoo a better understanding of how the pin worked, and what it did to him. Or at least, they tried.

“I find it kind of hard to believe in magic,” Kyungsoo admitted, as Joonmyun tried again to explain to him that when he activated his pin, his regular clothes didn’t disappear, they just ceased to be visible.

Kris snorted. “I find it hard to believe that this is your biggest concern.”

“It’s a valid question,” Jongdae called from across the breakroom. “Honestly I can’t believe none of us were ever this concerned before.” He grinned at Kyungsoo. “When I first got roped into this, I wanted to know the full extent of my magical abilities. So far, all I can do is burn toast. I don’t even have enough control to charge my phone.”

Kyungsoo activated his pin, and when his ‘transformation’ was complete, he twirled his wand between his fingers. “Where does this thing go when I’m not in uniform?”

“Same place as your clothes, Sailor Venus,” Kris said with a grin. “Everywhere, and nowhere. It’s always with you.”

Kyungsoo pointed his wand at Kris, but he knew by now that his magic didn’t work on the two advisors. Apparently, Kyungsoo’s magical ability was strength. Not just physical, but emotional. Joonmyun said that in Kyungsoo’s case it was more like stubbornness. The wand was an outlet for his power, channeling it so that he could use it from far away. Joonmyun and Kris said that someday, he wouldn’t need the wand, and he would be able to fight in hand to hand combat like Yixing. Yixing’s ability was healing, but it worked both ways. He could heal, and he could cause pain. He was skilled in hand to hand combat, but he had to be—he could only use his gift if he came in physical contact with his enemy.

Kyungsoo stowed his wand in his pocket and deactivated his pin. “If I get to the point that I don’t need the wand, I’ll be able to use my magic outside of my transformation, right?”

Joonmyun nodded. “But that day is still far off.”

What wasn’t far off was another encounter with a monster. One of the games in the arcade, a game that everyone else seemed to pass by, was a kind of “monster tracker” in disguise, and Joonmyun and Kris would call the Sailors whenever it detected a monster. Kyungsoo’s first team mission involved a monster that looked like a walking Venus flytrap with vine-like tentacle, and it had the nasty ability to spit needles out of its mouth.

“This should be right up your alley, Sailor Venus,” Sehun laughed, cutting off with a yelp as a needle grazed his arm.

“Focus, Saturn!” Chanyeol yelped. “You and Tao need to cover us, keep those needles away!” He whirled out his wand and yelled, “By the Power of the Moon!” A jet of fire shot from his wand, hitting the monster’s flailing vine-tentacles. It let out a screech and fired a line of needles, which Tao and Sehun managed to block.

“Aim for its mouth!” Kyungsoo yelled at Chanyeol.

Chanyeol nodded. “I need you to draw it’s fire.”

“How?” Kyungsoo asked, throwing his hands up. In the next second he ducked behind a wall as the monster shot a barrage of needles at him. Luckily Chanyeol had anticipated that, and he landed a jet of fire right in the thing’s mouth. It screeched again, and all four Sailor Scouts joined their wands together.

“In the name of the Moon, Saturn, Andromeda, and Venus, we release you!” Kyungsoo yelled. The order of the planets/galaxy ended up being jumbled, but it got the job done. The creature disappeared in a flash of golden light, and the four Sailor Scouts deactivated their pins.

“We should work on establishing an order,” Chanyeol said.

Kyungsoo was about to agree when a stabbing pain shot through his head. He fell to his knees as his vision went dark.

Kyungsoo stood on a balcony, sounds of the party muffled behind him, yet loud enough to silence the gentle waves of the ocean. His robes swirled around his ankles, and he longed to kick off his boots and go for a walk on the beach. The Palace was right on the shore, and if he jumped off the balcony he would be right on the sand.

“What are you doing out here?”

He turned around and smiled at the Prince. “Just getting some air.”

Chanyeol shut the door to the balcony and stepped closer. His breath caught at how handsome he looked—his new crown sparkled in the star light.

“What are you doing here?” He asked, turning the question around. “It’s your party.”

Chanyeol chuckled. “As if you don’t know that I’ve had eyes for you all night.” The Prince came closer, his eyes holding a look that made a shudder run through Kyungsoo’s body. Chanyeol touched his cheek, long fingers whisper soft on Kyungsoo’s skin. “Venus, my beloved, you know that this doesn’t change anything between us, right?”

“I should hope not,” Kyungsoo murmured, his heart fluttering in his chest. “This necklace you gave me is very heavy, you know. I can’t exactly forget that I’m wearing it.”

Chanyeol chuckled. “Good, and nobody else will forget that you’re wearing it either. The whole kingdom knows that you’re mine now.”

Kyungsoo grinned. “Oh no. It’s you who is mine, you insolent brat.”

“Do you dare speak to your Prince with that mouth?” Chanyeol asked in mock anger.

Kyungsoo grabbed Chanyeol’s shirt and hauled him closer. “I do. And I kiss my Prince with this mouth, too.”

Kyungsoo opened his eyes and sat up, his heart pounding in his chest. He was in the breakroom at the arcade, and Chanyeol was sitting right next to him on the ratty old sofa. Kyungsoo’s head spun. What kind of dream had he just had? He’d never had such a dream before, it was more like…like a memory.

Chanyeol met Kyungsoo’s gaze with a solemn look. “What did you remember?”

Kyungsoo felt a jolt in his stomach. “R-remember?” He croaked. “It wasn’t a dream?”

Chanyeol shook his head. “I told you, when we defeat all the monsters, our memories of our past lives will be restored. Until then, every now and then we get flashes of it. Yixing remembers the most, and I remember the most after him.” He hesitate. “I’m guessing from the look you’re giving me that you remembered something relating to me. Maybe something intimate.”

Kyungsoo leapt to his feet. “Don’t be weird,” he said.

Chanyeol grinned sadly. “I’m not. Kyungsoo…Venus, in our past lives we were lovers. More than that, we were engaged. I’m not sure if we got married, but I assume we must have. Same- relationships were common on our world.”

“This is unreal,” Kyungsoo mumbled, turning his back on Chanyeol. “How can this be happening?”

“Please, just hear me out,” Chanyeol begged, “I’m not expecting you to believe this right now, and I was going to tell you, but I wanted to wait until you’d gotten accustom to this whole thing, I didn’t want to spring one more thing on you when I knew how stressed you already were. And I’m not expecting anything from you. I remember more than you do and I’m hoping you remember things too, but—”

“You gave me a necklace,” Kyungsoo blurted, turning around again. “We were on a balcony, it was…your coronation, I think. You called me…your beloved.”

Chanyeol nodded. “I remember that day. I called you my beloved a lot, and you were. You…could still be, if you want to. Only if you want to.”

Kyungsoo closed his eyes. He remembered the look in Chanyeol’s eyes in his dream-memory. When he opened his eyes, Chanyeol was giving him that same look. The last few days had been unbelievable, but Kyungsoo now had friends, and he felt like he had a goal in his life, beyond college and a good job. He felt like he was part of something, and now, with the way that Chanyeol was looking at him, he felt even more like he was going to be a part of something huge. He knew in his heart that what he’d seen wasn’t a dream, it was a memory. And knowing that, that he could look forward to remembering more about his past, made him want to go out and fight a hundred monsters.

Kyungsoo smiled and shook his head. “I can’t believe this is happening. But at the same time, of course it’s happening. This stupid hair is nothing but trouble.”

Chanyeol laughed. “I’ve always liked your hair.”

Kyungsoo’s heart skipped a beat and he grinned. More than anything, he realized that he wanted Chanyeol by his side. “You would, you insolent brat.”

Chanyeol’s breath caught in his throat and he gaped at Kyungsoo. “You…you dare speak to your Prince with that mouth?”

Kyungsoo sat next to Chanyeol and leaned in close. He closed his eyes and brushed his lips softly with Chanyeol’s. Instantly he felt warmth bloom in his chest, and was like he was comfortable in his own skin for the first time since he could remember. This was who he was. He was Sailor Venus, Guardian of the Moon Prince. He was brave and strong and kind, and he didn’t run from monsters. And the Moon Prince was his.

Kyungsoo pulled back and gave Chanyeol a challenging look. “And now I’ve kissed my Prince with this mouth. What will you do about it?”

Chanyeol grabbed Kyungsoo’s arms and hauled him closer. “I’ll do it again.”

Kyungsoo’s back hit the sofa, and he braced himself for all the weight of Chanyeol’s body to drop down on him, but Chanyeol was gentle and careful, easing his weight down.

“Is this okay?” Chanyeol asked. “I don’t want to rush you.”

Kyungsoo nodded, and wrapped his arms around Chanyeol’s shoulders. “It’s okay. Tell me more about what you remember. It can be anything.”

Chanyeol grinned wickedly. “Oh, I remember so much, Venus.” He lowered his head and brushed his lips against Kyungsoo’s ear, and kissed just under his lobe. Kyungsoo shuddered and whimpered, and he clutched Chanyeol closer.

Chanyeol laughed. “I used to sneak up behind you and kiss you there. I did it in the Palace library once, and you screamed so loud that we got banned for a week. You looked at me and said that I shouldn’t do it again, but it had been worth it.”

“They banned the Prince?”

“We got into a lot of trouble, the two of us.”

Kyungsoo touched his fingers to Chanyeol’s lips. “Were we in love?”

Chanyeol smiled. “You used to say that I looked at you with more love then the oceans could contain.”

Kyungsoo remembered being on the balcony, the look in Chanyeol’s eyes, and he blushed. “I really said that?”

“It was during a very intimate moment.” Chanyeol said. “And you looked at me in the same way. So yes, we were in love.”

Kyungsoo ran his fingers through Chanyeol’s hair and pulled him down for another kiss. And another, and another. He didn’t remember everything in his mind, but it felt like his heart remembered everything, as cheesy as it sounded.

Chanyeol kissed his way down Kyungsoo’s neck, murmuring, “Kyungsoo, Venus, I missed you so much, my love, I’m so happy I have you back.”

‘It’s good to be back,’ Kyungsoo thought. He would have said it, but he was a bit too busy.

An hour later the door opened and Chanyeol and Kyungsoo leapt apart, blushing furiously as they straightened their clothes and hair.

“Oh, god!” Lu Han shrieked, covering his eyes. “It’s starting again! Kris, Joonmyun! Venus and the Prince were going at it in the breakroom!”

Kyungsoo heard Kris laugh. “Cough up, Joonmyun! It’s been less than a week, I told you even amnesia wouldn’t be able to make them keep their hands to themselves!”

“Of all the damn anime tropes,” Kyungsoo muttered.

Chapter 2 coming soon!