The good news is that there are a few more this time. I think the saddest thing is seeing how relatively few comments the genuine decent-to-exceptional stories receive.

1. THE AWAKENINGS OF TSUKINO CHIBI-USA by Kotetsu (2001)
This will be the only story I did not pick out myself, as it holds the dubious distinction of having been chosen for the BSMFN archive and then, inexplicably, was not added. Bad maintainer; no cookie. As you might guess, this will be the epic Chibiusa fic of the archive, describing how she grew up as a Sailor Senshi in Crystal Tokyo. [If anyone else has a story that Serenity picked out to host on the BSMFN archive that didn't get added, could you let me know? I don't mean to slight anyone else who ought to be in the archive.]

2. THE STONE-HEARTED PRINCESS by Queen (2001)
Especially following Lady Brick's removal of her story, we are in need of some Queen Beryl sympathy around this place. This polished story paints a more sympathetic and logical picture of everyone's favorite bitch-queen of Sailor Moon with this manga-based retelling of her childhood to the fall of the Silver Millennium. This is, perhaps, the first and only time Endymion has a strong mother figure in a fic. Refreshing, replete with scattered (and relevant) references to the later seasons, and a stunningly simple and poignant conclusion.

3. FRIENDSHIPS LOST by Misha (2001)
Naru was poised in the first season to be a major player in Usagi's life, but by Sailor Moon R, she's reduced to comic youma fodder, and she's erased from her life by Stars. Some writers remedy this by making Naru a senshi herself to gain admittance to the club, but this short story takes a more realistic look at what happens to the childhood friends you accidentally left behind.

4. SHOCK by Jelp (2001)
They never did tell their friends, did they? A funny little story that I obviously can't say too much about.

5. PAPER WISHES by Blue Jeans (2001)
Rei, like Mamoru, seemed to get dumped with the tragic backstory. Blue Jeans weaves the elements of Rei's past and present together for this little Christmas tale full of paper wishes.

6. THE BITTER GLASS by Mara Celes (2001)
When I try to think of the story that epitomizes Zoisite in the Dark Kingdom, this is hands down the winner. Darkly beautiful, at times disturbing, and not for the faint of heart. It is heavily anime-based (topped with a sprinkle of manga), so you know what that means. Stay away if the canon yaoi gives you the creeps and the squicks.

7. POINTS OF LIGHT by Aaron Nowack (2002)
A lyric description of Hotaru and the rather idiosyncratic way she celebrates the new year.

8. MOON SQUARED by Ebiris (2002)
What have I always said about time travel in Sailor Moon? This story is a humorous exploration of what problems even a simple wish can have near the Ginzuishou. All the senshi and even some of our pals from the Dark Kingdom and Sailor Animates get some time onscreen to "enjoy" the temporal oddities. Poor Sailor Pluto! Grammar Nazis, beware the persistent and pervasive abuse of apostrophes-as-plurals (yes, it's aggravating, but the story is cute enough to compensate.)

9. AINO MINAKO AND HER AMAZINGLY FABULOUS SEARCH FOR A BOYFRIEND by Moogle and Kate B (2002)
All the other senshi found love; why can't Minako? She sets out to snare a man with some proactive ploys in this humorous fic. Minako-chan must be working off some serious love karma. Will Minako find love before Artemis dies of embarrassment?

10. THE AINO MINAKO SUPPORT GROUP by Kihin Ranno (2002)
I admit, this is a nostalgia-glasses fic. I was delighted to see it still on ff.net all these years later, and here it is, gracing my Should Have Beens list. It is not one I'd normally consider, but I recall John Hitchens added a couple fics for his nostalgia purposes, so I don't feel too out of line here. I went on a Minako reading binge one time and this is the fic I remember best of the lot. After reading the "Amazingly Fabulous Search for a Boyfriend" (above), I realize Kihin Ranno missed a couple suitors to lock in this room. But then, I don't know how much torture we really need to subject Artemis to...

11. DEAD BOY'S POEM by Sophia Prester (2002)
If I'm not mistaken, this was a challenge fic where the author was given a song and she had to figure out what fic to write around it. In this case, Sophia Prester gives us a little glimpse at Mamoru's final thoughts before he sets out to battle Zoisite for the Rainbow Crystals. It helps make some sense out of Mamoru's change in attitude with Usagi in that episode, don't you think?

12. RELATIVITY by sexylyon (2002)
Were you all dying, not seeing this beautiful fairytale included in the list? I beg your humble forgiveness, as this tale deserves recognition for its exploration of the foundation of Crystal Tokyo and (being sexylyon) the unbreakable love between Usagi and Mamoru in the face of untold transmutations across centuries. Gold dot story by BSMFN standards.

Tags: bsmfn, should have beens
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