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In contrast to the bustling commercial part of the Mayet International Airport, the civil aviation side was quiet. Only a couple of regulars had come in on this cool October day to take their personal aircraft for a spin; and none of the experimentals were flying today. Winds were too strong or from the wrong direction, air was too chilly, whatever excuse they had used to justify not going up today was annoying.

To Noë's mind, quiet meant boring. She sat on an old airplane tire near the hangar's opening, arms folded around her knees and a grumpy expression on her face. Things were quiet at home, so she had decided to visit her friends in the civil aviation hangar to see if there was anything she could help with. There wasn't. In fact, there wasn't even enough for the actual mechanics to do; Roy had taken the day off as a result, and Luke was sitting in the back office on his phone. It may have been good for them, but not for her.

Maybe she could sneak off somewhere on the airport grounds and practice her senshi stuff. There was more than enough real estate that was empty here; it would be a simple enough thing to do. But if it was this slow around the rest of the airport, the police would probably be out patrolling out of boredom. No, it was too great a risk.

She was still trying to think of something to do when a small white shape darted into the hangar on the other side of the massive door. "Hmm?" Noë watched ast the shape sat, then flinched as another commercial jet took off, the thundering of the engines reverberating in the metal hangar. "Kitty?" What was a cat doing here? Poor thing must be terrified!

Unfolding herself, Noë stood and crept around the Cessna currently occupying the repair bay, not wanting to spook the cat. "Hey, kitty," she cooed in a calming manner as she approached. Once she got close enough, about five feet away, she knelt and held out her hand. "You're a pretty kitty. What are you doing at the airport?" A horrible thought occured to her: what if the cat was someone's pet that had escaped from the baggage hold? "Don't be scared, I won't let anything hurt you..."

Noë rocked back on her heels so hard she landed on her butt, her long legs sprawling out in front of her. "Did... did you just say 'meow' to me?" It had been two years since she had first encountered a talking cat -- the white cat who called himself the Watchful Guardian. The cat who had awakened her as a Sailor Senshi: Nausikaa, Senshi of Emmpathy. Was this cat like the Watchful Guardian somehow?

"I'm sorry if I scared you," she apologized, her voice just loud enough to be heard over the commercial jets. "I didn't mean to -- I didn't think -- I figured you'd be able to hear me coming." Mentally she cringed and scolded herself. C'mon Noë, don't embarrass yourself. You're better than that.

Once more she focused on the cat. "Do you know a cat named the Watchful Guardian?" she asked, feeling just a little bit stupid. What if the cat had just meowed and it only sounded like she said 'meow'? "Are you a guardian too?" she added just to be sure. "Are all guardian cats white?"

"Noë. Noë Wilson. S-Sailor Nausikaa of Empathy." She eyed Arianna as the cat stepped closer. "And I thought it was a sensible question -- the only two Guardians I've met, including you, are white cats."

Noë felt like she was in a dream. A really weird dream. Sprawled on the floor of the hangar, talking to a talking cat about being a Sailor Senshi was about as surreal an experience as she could think of. "Are you here to teach me something the Watchful Guardian -- Ra -- couldn't?" she asked. "He's the cat who awakened me a couple of years ago. He checked in on me every now and then, to make sure I was training, but he hasn't been around recently..."

Another commercial jet took off and Noë cringed. "Sorry about your ears, Arianna. We can meet somewhere else next time." Assuming there would even be a next time. "I have some earplugs in my pocket, if you'd like."

Reaching into her pocket, Noë pulled out a pair of small, safety-orange foam earplugs and leaned forward. "I hope these are small enough for your ears," she said as she squished the tips of first one, then the other before inserting them a short way into Arianna's kitty ears. "You should still be able to hear me talk, and they'll soften the sounds of the jets taking off. And no, they never stop. Guess I'm just used to them."

She leaned back again, resting on her hands. "Things are starting to change? Does that mean we're being -- I don't know, activated?" Studying the white cat in front of her, she tilted her head a little. "And you're going to replace Ra as my Guardian? Is that what you're saying?"

Noë thought a minute more. "What exactly do Guardians do, besides awakening Senshi? Sorry if it sounds like a stupid question, but Ra was never really forthcoming with what his part was in this..."