I don't own Sailor Moon, but the OCs is mine.

CHAPTER 1: A new threat?

No way! Setsuna Meioh, guardian of time, looked at her friend Haruka Tenoh, giving up her book to show her how exasperated she was.

Come on Sets-chan! It will be fun"

"No! I won't come with you and Michiru to this bar!" The olive skin woman resumed then the difficult task of reading her book: theoretical physics. And Haruka's presence in the room didn't help her. The said blond sighed deeply wondering why her friend was so stubborn.

"Oh yes you will do come with us" And suddenly, she grabbed Setsuna's book.

"Haruka! I need to read that by tomorrow! So give it back!"

"I'll give it back to you, but only after you go out with us"

Setsuna tried to keep her cool, annoyed by the blonde's childish attitude. But after a moment, she sighed. She knew that Haruka could be as stubborn as herself and right now she had the upper hand by taking in hostage her book.

"Okay, I'll come with you, but I have nothing to wear…"

"No problem!" Setsuna, surprised, turned to the entrance, shortly followed by Haruka, a smile on her face. At the door was Michiru Kaioh, carrying two shopping bags in her hands.

"Here everything you need to be perfect tonight!"

"Michiru? No! You too…and you planned everything!"

"I'm sorry to tell you Suna, but Haruka is right. You spend too much time at home and not enough outside."

Regretting her choice, Setsuna attempted a new tentative to escape both of her friends.

"And what about Hotaru? If you go out, someone has to take care of her…"

"No escape Suna, Hotaru is at Chibi-usa's house. We are all alone." Michiru said, leaving the room, Haruka with her. "Get dressed, we'll be waiting for you outside."

And so Setsuna ended up in this famous bar, called "Maloya", sipping her drink, and watching musicians playing on stage. For a long time, Michiru had wanted to go to this bar because of the possibility, for anyone who wanted, to perform on stage. Setsuna and Haruka didn't understand why the violinist insisted so much in performing here when she could have the world (and it's not an understatement) at her feet with her music. But the only answer the aqua haired girl would always give was: "Because here I'm sure to be listened" And indeed, every musician could play freely, amateurs as well than professionals. Most people in the Maloya were passionate people who enjoyed the music and not some people who came to be trendy. No one would be opposed, because here the watchword was "Have fun first" Surprisingly, The more time was passing and the more the guardian of time had to admit: she was having fun – the dim room, the table lit by a candle and the music – actually she felt at ease here with her friend by her side. Maybe they were right; she should leave her room more often after all. All of sudden, Michiru stood up.

"What's wrong Michiru? Setsuna said surprised.

"I can't resist anymore"

"What…?"

But the dark green haired woman was interrupted by Haruka's laughter. And it was only after seeing Michiru's eyes that she understood finally. They were burning with passion and force. It was rare to see the sea nymph like this (only Haruka could do this and was proud of it). Setsuna knew what that meant "I want to play" She chuckled, remembering that before coming here, Michiru promised herself that she would play only at the very end. It has been only an hour since their arrival. It seems that the call of the violin is stronger. So in an instant, the aqua haired girl was on stage, her Stradivarius, the "Marine Cathedral" in her hands. The room was suddenly quiet. No surprise. Even the less cultivate man in Japan had heard once is his life about Michiru Kaioh, violinist, painter, great swimmer and Haruka Tenoh's lover. So in a bar like this, every customer couldn't dream better than having her presence in the premises. Slowly Michiru lifted her bow and started playing. And so the magic of Michiru's song began. Even after living with the couple for three years, Setsuna was still awed by the magnificent of her songs. This one was a simple and joyous one. The fast pace of the music showed how excited she was. She was playing with so much passion that no one dared to make any sound, afraid to break the spell of the violinist's magic. But there was no need for that. Setsuna had spent enough time with the shorter girl to know that even a bomb couldn't stop her when she was like that. She was in her own world, alone. No one was inside but her.

Suddenly, Haruka stood up also. "She is off in her world again" She smirked before leaving Setsuna. She walked toward the stage, sat behind the piano of the bar and started playing also. If the song was astonishing, right now it was breathtaking. If the beauty of music could kill people, there would have been practically the entire room in paradise then. Piano and violin were in harmony, keeping the same fast pace as they were playing with each other, a question-answer play. No one had the upper hand on the other; every note seemed so natural in the song. But what stroke the most Setsuna was Michiru's smile when Haruka had started playing. It was a small smile, but a genuine one. Michiru would show it to only one person: Haruka (and her family too, but again, it was different, a more compassionate one). It meant that Michiru sensed Haruka's presence behind her and had let her in her world. She was ignoring everyone in the room but Haruka. Setsuna's chest tightened at the scene and decided to go for a walk.

Outside, standing near the entrance, Setsuna looked at the stars, thinking. She didn't hate her friends; in contrary they were the most important people in her life. They were her family. A year had passed since the defeat of Galaxia and now all the senshis were enjoying a peaceful life. And the time guardian was more than happy to see Haruka and Michiru finally able to love each other with no worries, after all those years of fighting, and in every sense of the term (which was problematic when a little daughter was involved). But she couldn't deny that sometimes she was envious of their love, the connection they had. Even reborn to be with her friends, she felt alone and often dreamed of this person who would love her and hold her every day. Perhaps she would stay the lone senshi after all.

"Sumimasen"

Red eyes turned to where the sound came from. Lost in her thoughts, Setsuna didn't notice the person who has been trying to talk to her for at least five minutes. The man, she assumed, was taller than her, and wore a large dark cloak, hiding his face. He had a backpack in his right hand and a piece of paper in the other. Normally, people would have been afraid and would find an excuse to avoid the dark figure. But Setsuna sensed no danger from this man.

"Oh sorry, I was lost in my thoughts"

"Oh don't worry. I'll be really insane if I don't wait for a so gorgeous woman to talk to me"

Usually, Setsuna would leave immediately after such a comment. She hated people who flirted with her. But this time, she blushed deeply at this comment.

"H…H…How can I help you?"

"Could you show me how to get to this address?" The man showed her a map and an address written in a piece of paper.

"Sure, take this road, and it's the second street on the left."

"Arigatou"

The man bowed deeply, said goodbye and left. Setsuna watched him, curious and intrigued by him. She hardly saw him turning around the corner when all her senses were in alert. She got tensed. At the same time, Haruka and Michiru suddenly appeared behind her too, wearing the same serious face. Both of them too had perceived the same threat. And without a word, the left the bar and ran toward where they sensed the danger

A youma.

-X-

Even if Galaxia was defeated and there was no major threat anymore, it didn't mean that peace was back completely. Stray youma still wandered through the city. And it was the senshis' duties to protect the city as usual. Sad reality that even if their worst enemy disappeared, they still had to fight.

Uranus, Neptune and Pluto reached their destination quickly after the alert. Even at peacetime, they never let their guard down, while enjoying life. After all, it was their duty to protect their world and princess at any cost. An apartment on fire welcomed their arrival. It was a modern two-stories flat, situated in a popular district. At this time of the night, hopefully, there weren't so much people. But the firemen were not here yet. Immediately, Neptune launched her attack, Deep Submerge, at the apartment to put out the flames. But soon after the water extinguished the fire, new flames appeared, surprising the Outers. Water was useless.

"It must be the youma who is controlling the fire" Uranus deduced.

"We need to find and kill it then" Pluto added.

Then the Outer senshi rushed to the apartment in fire, Uranus leading the way. The place was hot, really hot. The youma did a good job in making a mess. Everything was burning, and the deeper they went into the building, the more difficult it was to breath. Then they stopped suddenly; there was a strange sound. It was really low, the flames hushing up the sounds, but audible enough for the Outer senshis. It was people's cries and screams

"You two, go help the victims, I'm taking care of the youma" Pluto ordered.

"What? No way we'll let you handle the enemy alone" Haruka said.

"Right now, innocents are more important!"

"Pluto…" Michiru tried to persuade her friend.

"No! Go!

Uranus was taken aback by Pluto's reaction. As the leader of the Outer Senshi, she should have made the decisions and handled the youma. But she knew also that when Setsuna was like this, she had to not mess with her. So they split up.

"Uranus" Neptune asked, while running

"Yes?"

"Do you know why Pluto is like this?

"I have really no idea."

-X-

Pluto stopped in time to avoid a falling beam on fire. It was a close call. "Focus, Setsuna, focus!" She said to herself. But she couldn't concentrate, not after having given an order to Uranus and Neptune like that. It was not her place. "Why did I do this?" Even Setsuna couldn't find an answer, an explanation to her action. She was not as strong as Uranus, and Neptune's mirror would have been really helpful to find the youma. So it was madness to try and fight the youma alone. However, Setsuna knew why in the depth of herself she wanted to be alone.

After having guarded the Door of time for ages, she was used to the solitude. Being alone, the only thing she could do was meditating. And through those years of loneliness, she noticed that today she could concentrate only if she was alone. But right now, even without the presence of her friend, she couldn't focus. The image of Haruka and Michiru together at the bar was lingering behind her retina. Usually she was not affected by their behavior (if not, she would have lost her mind a long time ago). But today, she didn't know why it mattered so much. Maybe because of the ambiance in the bar, the music, the stars, she was beginning to feel insecure about her future. It was quite ironic, wasn't it? She, the guardian of time, couldn't foresee her own destiny. She was afraid of what she would become after all these battles. Right now, there were still some stray youmas in the city. But one day, they would kill them all. And after that? What would she do if not fighting? She didn't know. After all this happy moments with her family, she was not sure she could still be alone to guard the Door of time forever. But even here with the other, she felt lonely sometimes. But right now it was not the time to be like this.

Indeed, it was not the time. Especially when the ceiling was falling above her head. Pluto quickly dodged the obstacle, but she didn't predict that the youma she was looking for was following behind, prepared to kill her. The first thing Pluto saw from this youma was enormous dagger like teeth ready to tear her flesh apart. So the guardian of time blocked them with her talisman just in time. A few inches more, and she would have been decapitated. She could smell the fetid breath of the youma. "Oh my, you, youma, don't know what toothbrush and toothpaste are or what?" Pluto said. But the youma was strong, and the dark green haired girl knew that she needed to do something if she didn't want to be killed. So in a move, she succeeded in hitting the youma head with her garnet orb. Confused, the youma stepped back. She took advantage of it to attack with a Dead scream, which hit the enemy. But it seemed useless when rows of flames rushed for her. Then senshi of time threw herself to the side to avoid them.

Quickly she squared up, waiting for the next attack. Finally she could see what the youma looked. It had a feline form, like a tiger, a really enormous tiger, with sharp teeth and strong paws, which can break bones as it they were made out of paper, and long gouts of fire emanated from its body. Both enemies looked at each other in the eyes, waiting for the perfect moment to attack.

Minutes passed, the atmosphere was tensed and heavy. All of a sudden, the tigerlike youma made the first move and assaulted her. The red eyes girl ditched and immediately turned against it, the monster already starting its second assault. Pluto counterattacked by a mid-kick in its side. Again, the monster was taken aback, but it didn't stop it to keep up. Then the fight continued between the time senshi and the youma. The latter was attacking and the former was defending herself and counterattacking when she could. And then she saw it, an opportunity to attack. And immediately she launched a Dead scream at her assailant, which was hurled to the other side of the room. But the victory was short, when the dark green haired girl winced in pain, and fell on her kneels, holding her right arm.

"Maybe it was not a so good idea to fight this youma alone…it hurts like hell…" All over her arms and legs there were burns. "Sometimes I wish I was Neptune"

Setsuna forced a laugh. She tried to stand up, but it was in vain, she couldn't move anymore. But she had to do it, in particular, when the enemy was on its feet again and charged back at her. Again, Pluto used her garnet orb to block the youma. But this time, she was on her back, the youma standing above her. Because of its weight and heat, the guardian of time knew she would not last long, exhausted as she was. But she has to resist and wait for the other. It was a matter of time. However, the great pain she felt on her left arm made the wait impossible. Getting annoyed that it couldn't kill her with its fang, the beast didn't hesitate anymore to use it deadly claws to weaken her. And it worked. Pluto couldn't resist any longer as she let fall her garnet orb, defenseless now in front of the monster. It was the end of the line for her. She closed her eyes.

Nothing.

Red eyes opened. Wondering why she was not dead, Pluto looked around to see what happened. And she saw it. The youma was a few feet away, quite confused, but glaring at someone. A man. The time senshi looked at her savior. He was tall and thin. His spiky short hair was fire like red. A red and black mask hid his face. His tight black jacket with red straps showed how thin he was. Maybe too thin, Setsuna thought. But with a blurred vision caused by exhaustion, she couldn't make the difference between a man and woman. Around his waist, there were ribbons, which served as belts for his black pant. Setsuna was mesmerized by her rescuer, and attracted by his mysteriousness.

"My my, I don't think you know how you should treat a proper lady." The unknown man said.

The youma groaned, not happy to be interrupted and charged toward the man. The latter, calm and quiet waited and when the youma's head was only a few inched from his head, he punched it hard. But the beast didn't say its last word and launched fire to its opponent. But the man only laughed and took the entire attack.

"No!" Pluto shouted. However, she was taken aback when, the dark figure emerged from the flames unscathed. Again, he was laughing as, with a move of his hand, made the flame disappear around him. This time, the youma was pissed off and rushed toward the red haired man.

"Game over" He said slowly.

Without warning, a sword was appearing on his left hand. First appeared the shape of the weapon, and little by little, details, texture were appearing to form a two handed sword. The blade was large and think like a razor. Slowly, the masked man took the blade with two hands and in one movement slaughtered the monster. The attack was simple, fast, in one word perfect.

Shortly after, the body of the youma disappeared along with the flames all over the building. Pluto sighed; happy that everything was all right now, and tried to stand up to thank her savior. But a sharp pain in her body stopped her, and she couldn't prevent a small cry from escaping her lips. The little sound drew the red haired man attention, and quickly was by her side.

"Don't move. You're injured" His voice was surprisingly gentle. With care, he helped her to sit up.

"Who are you?" the Guardian of time asked.

The stranger laughed again. Suddenly the bottom of his mask disappeared, showing his smile.

"Well, I'm…"

But he was interrupted by a voice.

"Pluto, where are you?"

Uranus. Pluto sighed. But she didn't know if it was a sigh of relief to know that her friends would be here soon, and that they were alright, or a sigh of frustration, because her savior didn't say his name and was going to leave. As she was opening her mouth to inform her friends where she was, she suddenly felt the stranger's warm lips on her own. It was a quick peck, but it was long enough for Setsuna to be taken aback by this bold move, and couldn't help blushing. She heard again the man laughing, a laugh that she appreciated more and more.

"A quick good bye kiss. It seems that your friend is here to take care of you. I may leave now, before they think I am the one who did all the mess

The man ran to the window, and was about to leave when suddenly he stopped and made a step to the left to avoid Uranus's space sword blaster.

"Don't move!" the sky senshi shouted.

But the red haired man only smiled before going through the windows. Uranus was going to pursue him when Pluto's voice stopped her in her track.

"No Uranus! He saved me!"

Uranus looked at Pluto, seeing in which state she was. Then looked at the windows again, before letting out a frustrating sigh. She breathed deeply before walking toward Pluto and Neptune, who was by her side now.

"I hope that you didn't make a mistake by letting him go" Haruka said calmly.

"No, I'm sure"

"Who is he?"

"I don't know, he was going to tell me his name when you show up!"

"Are you saying that it's my fault?"

"Of course!"

And before the argument would start, Neptune, amused, interfered.

"I think it's not the time for the childish game."

Uranus and Pluto immediately ceased, and both nodded. Eventually, Uranus carried Pluto in her arms. And they leave the holding, now out of danger.

"Next time Pluto, when you want to go it alone, remember this night" Uranus joked.

Pluto didn't say anything but glared evilly at her, which made both the sky senshi and sea senshi laugh.

A/N: So here it is, my first fic on . I want to thank Feuerknight and Auraluna7 for helping me with this story. I'm normally a big fan of Haruka and Michiru, but recently I learned to love Setsuna, who deserves more love! Anyway, please review X3