This is a rewrite of "Identity" which I wrote in 2008. I'm proud of the original version, but I have grown a lot as a writer since then. I thought it'd be nice to tweak it as well as correct a few blatant spelling/grammar mistakes. Hope you enjoy!

Disclaimer: Sailor Moon does, unfortunately, not belong to me.

"Sailor Moon! Sailor Mercury!", my Scouts shouted out in unison.

To me, it sounded as if their screams were muffled by a thick wall of glass. It was hard to hear much over the ringing in my ears.

The youma we were in the midst of fighting had proven to be on an entirely different level than anything else we had faced so far. It seemed as if the Negaverse had run out of cannon-fodder and were now bringing out the big guns. The warrior in me, the part of me I hardly ever dared to acknowledge, was overjoyed.

The snakelike monster moved like the wind, successfully dodging most of the attacks which were sent its way. But that wasn't the biggest of our problems, no, it definitely wasn't. The youma spat out venom which seemed as if it could melt diamonds.

Very shakily, I got back on my feet. I looked to a spot about fifteen feet away where Sailor Mercury's body lay motionless, burns and scorch-marks adorning most of her body. I wasn't at all surprised when I realized that she had pushed me out of the way and taken the blast of venom which had been meant to disable me from battling.

With a shaking hand, I touched a sore spot at the back of my head. Blood. Nausea flooded me as my vision blurred and my head started to pound even harder than it had been. The metallic scent never failed to make me sick to my stomach, and I hoped that I wouldn't vomit.

I was snapped back to attention by the sound of more screams. The rest of my scouts, Mars, Jupiter, and Venus, had just been taken out by the disgusting creature we'd been trying to defeat for the past twenty-five minutes. As exhausted as I was, I knew it was all up to me now.

I heard a small voice at the back of my head, the one I'd been hearing during every battle since I had been chosen to be Sailor Moon, 'What did I ever do to deserve this?'

The youma's eyes glowed red. In the short time we'd been battling it, we had discovered (well, truthfully, Mercury had discovered) that this meant it was getting ready to spew out another shot of venom. There was no one left to target but me.

I knew I had to dodge, I wasn't stupid. Luna had trained me quite well despite all the protesting she'd had to put up with. The thing was, I wasn't sure if I wanted to.

It would be so easy, just so easy to take the hit head-on and let it all end.

However, the venom never made contact with me. Like clockwork, my knight in shining armor had shown up and whisked me out of danger's path.

Tucked in Tuxedo Masks arms, a spot I used to covet, I thought to myself, 'Tuxedo Mask, the last of my saviours.' Even I was a bit surprised at how bitter I sounded.

But I couldn't deny that I had, somewhere along the line, become bitter. Very bitter.

Tuxedo Mask set me to the ground, "It's up to you Sailor Moon. Give this youma everything you've got, I believe in you." He stared down at me intently and I remembered how I used to lose sleep thinking about what his eyes must be like behind that domino-mask of his.

I didn't reply, I couldn't. Nothing I said at that moment would have been positive. He believed in me? So what? That didn't mean I wouldn't die tonight.

I walked past him and towards the youma. I looked the thing dead in the eye. It suddenly hit me how much I hated it. I hated it for what it had done to my Scouts, I hated it for what it was trying to do to my planet, and, most of all, I hated it for what it was making me do to it.

Hate, such an ugly and powerful emotion, started rolling off my body in crackling waves of energy. Closing my eyes, I unclasped the crystal from the broach on my chest and channeled the energy into it. I could feel it pulsing, growing hot to the point where it was blistering my hands. Just as the youma began to charge towards me, the crystal unleashed a beam of blinding light.

The snake never stood a chance.

Breathing heavily, I was hit with the sick feeling I experienced after each use of the crystal. I sank down to my knees, not having the strength to keep myself up any longer. I noticed that blood was still seeping out of my head-wound. I may not have been a medical expert, but I was certain that that wasn't a good thing.

I noticed that Tuxedo Mask had bolted. I wasn't shocked, it wasn't as if he ever hung around to chat after a battle. I looked around the small clearing, locating my Scouts. Each was unconscious, but their burns and cuts were nearly healed. Being a Scout was a dreadful experience most of the time, but it did have one distinct advantage: accelerated healing.

I let out a small sigh of relief; my Scouts would be fine.

I stood back up, knowing I had to leave the battle site. The youma was defeated and my job there was done. Ignoring the pain which was radiating through my body, I took a leap to the nearest tree. Pretty soon I was bolting from rooftop to rooftop, the wind whipping at my face.

That was when I blacked out.

It was dark, pitch black even. I was floating amongst the blackness, not a care in the world. I hadn't felt this calm since, well, since before she had begun to take me over.

Then the peace was disturbed. I could feel it, feel someone trying to pull me out of this blissful state of nothingness. Why would they do that? Why couldn't anyone just let me be? Just let me float away like I wanted to? Was it so hard to let me become a part of the nothingness?

I tried to resist, I really did. I gave it everything I had, but even Sailor Moon couldn't resist this pull. Someone was being very persistent. Somehow, this person had convinced my subconscious to betray me, I knew this because I could feel myself begin to wake up.

Suddenly, the intense pain which had been blocked out by being unconscious came over me. My mouth opened, unleashing a silent scream. I clutched at whatever was supporting my weight. I recognized what was crumpled between my fingers, soft and thin, it was a bed-sheet. Certainly not the cold, hard surface of the roof I had been expecting.

Breathing through the pain, I cracked open one eye, and then the other. I was surrounded by few things. I was on a bed, that was for certain, and there was a bare nightstand beside it. To my left was a door that led to a place I'd never get to see and to my right hung a painting by an artist I should have recognized, but didn't. Next to the painting was a patio door partially concealed by white gossamer curtains, and next to this patio was Tuxedo Mask.

He leaned against the wall, his form completely concealed safe for his head and shoulders which were illuminated by the moonlight streaming in through the sheer curtains.

Momentarily, I felt a burst of panic rush up my spine. Although his actions had spoken for themselves, it had never been confirmed that he was truly friend and not foe. The panic was quickly replaced with relief; I could have been found by much worse.

Tuxedo Mask was staring at me. I had no idea how long he had been doing so, nor did I care to find out. I figured I should leave.

Through my agony, I picked myself up form off the bed and got to my feet.

He stared.

I crossed the room towards the patio - the closest exit point.

Still, he stared.

I pulled back the curtains and slid the screen door open. I realized that I couldn't leave without thanking him.

"You saved me tonight and for that I'm grateful. Thank you."

He grabbed me right as I tried to leap out the window. He spun me towards him, until our faces were mere inches apart.

I could feel his breath tickle my face as he spoke, his voice low, "What are you?"

I smirked, not feeling as scared as I probably should have, "I'm a superhero."

Tuxedo Mask ignored my quip, "You're not human."

I let out a small laugh, "I'm not, am I?"

He released me, so that I was no longer standing so close. I instantly felt myself calm down.

He turned from me and paced to the other side of the room, "I've never seen power like that. You, your crystal, you're not from this world."

Not from this world. Those words struck a chord within me. Suddenly, I felt tears spring to my eyes and I found myself begging to unseen forces that they would not fall down my cheeks. I wouldn't let this man see me cry. I tried to stop feeling sad, and instead I grew angry.

"No, I'm definitely not a part of this world!" I snapped at him, "My kingdom got taken away from me, and now I'm here. Now I'm here protecting this planet, something I never was meant to do, something I never wanted to do. I don't even know who I am anymore!" My chest was heaving from the force of my outburst.

If he had been affected by my anger, he didn't show it.

"I never knew." he stated quietly, his voice even.

"No. You wouldn't."

I watched as he came closer. Suddenly, Tuxedo Mask was as close as he had been a few moments before. I noted that it wasn't unpleasant.

We stood there like that for a few seconds; our bodies close, nothing around us but silence and darkness. Then, something popped into my mind.

"Don't you care?" I asked him. Instead of a reply, confusion etched his features.

I bit my lip and looked away, "Once I leave this room, I'll know where you live. That doesn't exactly bode well for the whole secretive superhero thing, now does it?"

Then he smiled, something I had seldom witnessed in the while we had been fighting side by side.

"Maybe," he grasped one of my hands, "Maybe, I don't care. Maybe I trust you."

I felt my heart speed up as he continued to speak, "Maybe I'd be willing to reveal my identity to you."

I tore my hand from his and stepped back, "Don't be a fool, Tuxedo Mask." I hissed.

His voice grew in volume, "I'm a fool for trusting you? A fool for trusting a girl in whom all of Tokyo trusts?"

I narrowed my eyes, "I didn't ask them to trust me."

"But they do. And so do I."

I watched as his body started to glow with all the perfect colors of a sunset and realized that he had made up his mind. He didn't care that I didn't want to be burdened with this new tidbit of information. People didn't often care about what I did or didn't want.

I was in no way prepared to see Darien Shields standing before me.

I tried to keep my face impassive even though I felt as if the wind had just been knocked out of my lungs. This just could not be happening.

He looked at me through the piercing blue eyes which were so familiar to me, expecting a reaction when I had none to give. I had no choice but to stay neutral. Trying not to feel was the only thing that had been keeping me sane.

'If this is sane, maybe I should welcome insanity with open arms.'

I knew he was waiting for some sort of sign, something to indicate that I was okay with this. I smiled in order to acknowledge that I knew this had been a lot harder for him than he had led on. I could tell he didn't normally let people in, and this had been a huge thing to reveal. Why he had chosen to reveal himself to me, I had no clue.

I turned to my exit, stepping out onto balcony.

"I don't know who I am either." his voice carried over to my ears.

Before running off into the night, I turned to him with my lips curved in a smirk, "No, but I do."

By the time I climbed through the window and into my bedroom, I was certain about one thing;

The Sailor Scouts were never to hear about anything that had transpired between Tuxedo Mask and I.

I quietly undid my transformation and found myself dressed in the jogging-pants and tank top I had been in before the battle. I climbed into my bed and hoped that sleep would take me away.

Instead, I found myself thinking of Darien.

Our last run-in, quite literally, had been a little over a month ago. I now tried to avoid the arcade as well as all the people associated with it. That had all been a part of my old life, the one I had lived as Serena.

The Moon Princess Serenity didn't have time for such trivialities. She had youmas to fight, a dark kingdom to take down...

'...friends to put in danger, people to disappoint.'

Before we all became privy to the fact that Serena, Sailor Moon, and Serenity were one in the same, I had always clung to the hope that Luna would wake up one day and realize that she had made a colossal mistake. I clung to the hope that she would tell me I wasn't the right girl.

As Raye had pointed out countless times in the past, I was far from being qualified for the job.

Unbeknownst to all my companions, I wished that we had never reunited the seven rainbow crystals. I wished we had never awakened Serenity, who had been laying dormant inside me all of these years.

The discovery hadn't brought any joy to me, like it had to the rest of our elite group. Instead, it brought one notion to the forefront of my mind;

Serena Tsukino was never supposed to have existed. I'd spent the last sixteen years of my life living a complete and utter lie.

Ever since then, Serenity had gained strength and begun to take my body over. Serena submitted, too weak to put up any real fight.

Now I wasn't sure of anything anymore. I wasn't completely Serenity, nor was I Serena. I was living in limbo, waiting until Serenity inevitably took my entire being over. The princess would one day rule again.

It had been foretold, and, well, who was Serena Tsukino to stand up against fate?