Disclaimer: Don't own any of the characters in Sailormoon, all belong to Naoko Takeuchi

In the dead of night, with the dim sparkle of starlight, two small figures loomed over a young girl softly snoring on her bed. Their fur had been disheveled and required much combing, but emotions rode too high to take the time.

"She's safe, thank goodness she's safe," sighed the darker cat with tears in her eyes. Her lighter companion tore his own eyes away.

"The others are gone..."

An eerie breeze floated outside as both could not find the words to alleviate the situation. The trees that rustled had turned back to their original color from the day before. Everything was back to normal, away from evil's rage. In order to protect the Earth from destruction, a price was paid and only the one before them came back.

"We have to make her remember, she had to have done something," begged Artemis. "Please Luna, it can't end like this!"

"Our duty is to protect Usagi, this is the same duty bestowed upon the Mars, Mercury, Jupiter and Venus. They understood the consequence of honoring Queen Serenity's request for her daughter to live as a normal girl."

Luna sat stoically, staring at her peaceful master blankly. The Silver Crystal was still in the transformation compact that currently sat on the dusty book shelf. It was the first normal day and Usagi had gone through it as if nothing was missing. Luna kept a watchful eye as the clumsy sweet girl interacted with her classmates and cried over another failed test. A devastated Artemis scoured through the government records to find that Ami Mizuno, Makoto Kino, Rei Hino and Minako Aino no longer existed in this world. He knew his priorities, completely understood them, but there had to be a way. They didn't deserve to be forgotten.

"I'm leaving," he whispered, fighting back his own tears. "I'll find a way, to get Minako and everyone back. They are out there somewhere and I'm going to get them back."

He jumped down from the open window and sprinted through the streets. Luna watched him as he appeared smaller and smaller away from her view. Her heartached at the image of the four girls in her mind. As individuals, they did not deserve any less than Usagi. They were reborn into duty, the same way herself and Artemis had. Never once did the girls pull away from what was expected of them. Still, they were so young. Groggy with her thoughts and heavy with burden, she placed herself at the foot of the bed, going into a troubled sleep.

It had been several months since Artemis had made his vow to Luna. Hungrily peering from under a green dumpster, he could only think about the silly blonde girl that he started his journey with. From a young thirteen year old Sailor V to a mature seventeen year old Sailor Venus, she was the leader of the four scouts and the closest friend he had. Minako would have never given up on him, nor would he give up on her.

Deciding to ignore his stomach, he came out of the darkness and into the afternoon sunlight. His normally flawless white fur had turned grey with dirt and his ribs were starting to show. Food came in scraps that he could find from trash and much of the time, he had to fight other stray felines. There hadn't been any leads to his investigation and each day grew more bleak. While the arcade still held their data, it stated that the girls were nowhere in the known universe. Still, he had to keep moving, even if it did seem hopeless.

Stumbling through the unfamiliar neighborhood, Artemis watched teenage girls giggling and laughing with no care in the world. Reminiscing the days that his master did the same, his thought turned to what she would do. Minako would probably get him a haircut and a bath, making sure he was comfortable on his favorite spot on her bed. She would turn on the television to some sappy soap opera and daydream about the hunky male lead. Then, they would fall asleep only for her to awake in a panic for school. He chuckled under his breath, getting more and more wobbly in his step.

"Maybe I need some rest," he thought as his eyes were closing together more. "Just a little more sleep before I continue."

Collapsing to the side, his body relaxed. He thought about his love Luna and how his carelessness would cost her. She probably waited everyday, outside her window, wondering when he would come back. There were times he wanted to go back to the Tsukino residence, to see Luna's scarlet eyes light up with happiness. However, he knew that he would never have been truly happy until the others were found. Still, if he could just snuggle with her one last time against her soft fur that smelled like takoyaki.

Takoyaki?

Summoning his strength, Artemis opened his eyes to see a young man kneeling on the floor with a ball of takoyaki in front of him. Artemis crawled over to the steaming ball and gingerly started chewing it, savoring the slightly sour salty snack. When was the last time he had a warm meal? After finishing, he looked up to meet the eyes of his savior. His own eyes widened as he was hit with a pang of dejavu.

The young man stroked the cheek of the dirty grey cat. The poor thing clearly had not eaten for quite some time. It crossed his mind that it wasn't safe to pet a stray cat like that, with the possibility of fleas and other diseases. Still, underneath his steel eyes, he had a soft heart and couldn't just leave the poor thing alone. He took the last takoyaki ball from his paper plate and stuck it on the floor. The cat continued to nibble slowly without taking his eyes away from him. Stroking the cat's head, he noted the cat's odd moon shaped birth mark.

Artemis purred softly. It had been a long time since he had felt affection and kindness of any sort. His body felt so content with fullness as he looked to face the kind human in front of him. Eyes that appeared like metal but reflected depth, tall, wide shoulders, and hair so light it shown silver. Could it be? Was luck finally on his side? As the young man gently picked him up and into his arms, Artemis felt safe for the first time. Falling into a comfortable sleep, Artemis' heart filled with hope that he was on the right track.