Re-living the Past

"Do you have any idea how close I came to destroying this once?" Serenity asked her fiancé as they docked into the Watchtower.

Bruce looked at her in shock. "Really?"

She laughed. "Really. I thought it was an alien ship, but upon closer inspection I realized it was man made."

Bruce hopped out of his Bat Ship and offered Serenity a hand. "Welcome to the Watchtower, home of the Justice League."

She looked around in awe. It was much different that she had imagined. "I'm nervous for some reason," she admitted.

Bruce took her hand in his. He was in his Batman uniform as he usually was when in the Watchtower, and she was transformed into Sailor Cosmos. "You have nothing to be afraid of." He led her into their meeting chamber, where the main group of the league was waiting for them.

"Bruce, why did you call us here?" Superman asked before turning to look at him.

"Who is she?" Green Lantern questioned.

"She is the reason I called you here," Bruce replied. "This is Sailor Cosmos, the newest member of the Justice League and," he paused and looked at her with a loving smile. "My fiancé."

"Woah, woah, woah, did I just hear that right? Did you say fiancé?" Green Arrow inquired.

"Yes, you heard right," Bruce answered.

Superman walked up to Serenity and offered her a hand. "Hello, I'm . . ."

"Superman," Serenity finished for him. "And the Kryptonian who tripped my alarms and brought me home."

Superman shot her a questioning look.

Serenity giggled. "I am not human either," she explained. "I set up defenses around the solar system in case I ever needed to come home during my travels. Your ship tripped my alarms. When I saw you, sleeping peacefully as an infant, I had the urge to take you in myself. Once a realized it would be a bad idea for two aliens to live together, I let you crash into earth. I'm glad I did, you have been a great asset."

Too stunned to speak, Superman backed away from the woman in white.

Bruce took her hand and walked to the front of the table where he usually sat. One by one, he introduced the people around him. "This is Superman, Clark Kent. Green Arrow, Oliver Queen. The Flash, Barry Allen. Green Lantern, Hal Jordan. Wonder Woman, Diana Prince." Each one acknowledged her as they were introduced. "League, meet Sailor Cosmos, Serenity Tsukino."

"Wait, the painter?" Barry asked.

"Yes," Serenity replied. She dropped her transformation and smiled as they all gawked at her for a moment.

Removing his mask Barry walked closer to her. "I love your work." He offered her a hand, which she took, and shook it excitedly. "Really, I am a huge fan."

"Thank you," Serenity purred.

"Bruce," Clark chimed in. "When did all this happen? I didn't even know you two were dating, let alone engaged. I thought I was your best friend."

Bruce laughed lightly. "You are. And we only got engaged a week ago. We've been keeping it quiet for a bit. I wanted to tell all of you first."

"It's very nice to finally meet you all," Serenity said with a small bow.

"Back the trolley train up," Oliver quipped, removing his hood and walking closer to the woman. "What do you mean you're an alien? And how long has this," he motioned his hands to Serenity and Bruce, "been going on?"

"We've been dating for about a year and a half," Bruce answered. "I've taken her to a lot of parties, you had to have put it all together."

"I had my suspicions," Oliver admitted, "but you're supposed to be the play-boy millionaire, I thought she was just another front."

"Not this one," Bruce said with a smile.

"I've got admit," Diana spoke up, "it's nice to see you smiling so much, Bruce."

"I was beginning to worry that you would never find someone," Clark added. "I found Louis years ago, I always hoped you would do the same."

"We're straying from the point," Oliver pointed out. "When did you find out she was the woman in white?"

"A month ago," Serenity answered.

"Wait, she's the one you all were talking about?" Barry asked. "The one you thought might be a threat at first?"

"A threat?" Serenity nearly growled. "You thought I was dangerous?"

Bruce nodded. "You can't blame me," he moved to sit at the table and everyone did the same. "The first time I met you, you single-handedly took out a huge monster. I didn't know who you were at the time, and I knew that if you wanted to, you could be a huge contender."

"Luckily for you, my job has always been to protect this planet," Serenity said.

"Can we get back to the part where she's not human," Oliver interjected again.

"I'm not human either," Superman said.

"But we know you," Oliver replied. "Her," he pointed, "we don't."

"I do," Bruce declared. "And I trust her."

"Forgive me if I'm a little skeptical," Oliver added. "But this wouldn't be the first time someone tried to infiltrate us by pretending to be in love."

"Oh, good grief," Serenity grumbled rolling her eyes. "I understand your suspicions, but we can really solve this the easy way. Everyone join hands."

"What are we doing?" Barry asked.

"I can show you my memories by having contact with you, it's something I learned from another race," she explained taking Bruce's and Clark's hands. The rest of the group joined hands. "Close your eyes." She closed her own eyes and projected her memories into their minds.

She started with her time as Princess Serenity, the war that took her mother's life, her being reincarnated as Usagi and finding out she was Sailor Moon. Finding out she was Princess Serenity all over again was the next memory she shared. After, she shared bits and pieces of her battles alongside her scouts, her marriage to Mamoru, and her final battle on Earth when she became cosmos. Next was a tiny bit of her time on Planet Vegeta; when she learned to fly, shoot energy balls, and mastered instant transmission, then her sad exit from the planet. An even smaller portion of her time on Kametic was next. Then the arrival back on Earth, starting with her seeing Clark in space, and she ended with the first time she met Batman on the roof that night.

"That was intense," Barry breathed.

"Yeah," Oliver agreed.

"How old are you exactly?" Clark asked.

"I am 357 years old," she replied. "And I am still young by Lunarian standards. I may even be immortal, I'm not sure."

The group sat in silence for a while as they processed everything that had just happened.

"Your life has been full of sadness," Diana finally spoke. "And that was only what you were willing to share with us."

"I have had many trials," Serenity agreed. "But, I suppose they have made me stronger." She looked out the large window into space. Her eyes automatically resting on the two stars that were the suns of Vegeta. "But it also gives me many things to think about."

Seeing the look on her face, Bruce placed a hand on her thigh. "Are you okay?"

Ripping her eyes away from the window she adorned a smile and nodded. "Yeah."

"Well, that was proof enough for me," Clark said.

"Me too," Barry seconded.

"Me as well," Diana agreed.

"You know where I stand," Bruce chimed. "Hal, you've been unusually quiet."

Hal nodded. "I'm just wondering where she's been all these years?" He unfolded his arms and leaned forward. "We've been through some pretty gnarly battles, where was she with all her awesome powers?"

Oliver nodded. "That's a good question." He raised his eyebrows in her direction.

"Watching from a distance," Serenity explained. "I have kept tabs on all of you and your many battles. Never once had you given me a reason to step in."

"Keeping tabs?" Bruce asked.

"I knew who Batman was, even before we met, I just feigned ignorance," she began. "I understand the importance of keeping your identity private, so I never tried to find out who you were."

"You never thought it necessary to step in?" Oliver quipped.

"Please understand; while you all chose the lives you have, to protect these people and this planet, it was forced upon me. I spent the better part of 200 years fighting. When I finally came back, I tried to fly under the radar, but my painting made me more popular than I intended. I was tired of fighting, and you all were proving very capable of taking care of the planet," Serenity explained. "Had the need rose, I would have stepped in."

The Justice League exchanged looks.

Sensing the tension in the room, Serenity stood. "I can see you all need some time to talk this over. I'll meet you back at the mansion, Bruce." Before anyone could protest she was gone.

When she reappeared, she was not in the mansion as she had intended, but on the Planet Vegeta. She had been thinking about it more than she realized. Having relived some of her time here, she began to miss it. Vegeta had been her home for 125 years. She had only been on Earth for 110.

Her heart began to ache as she took in the scenery around her. So many feelings ran through her as she collapsed onto the sand of the beach she had appeared on, and ran her hands through the soft sand.

"What are you doing here?" A familiar voice said from behind her.

Serenity quickly got to her feet and adopted a fighting stance out of habit. When she finally realized who was standing in front of her, she began to panic. "Oh, no."

"Usagi?" The figure asked.

"I shouldn't be here," she spoke quickly. "I need to go."

A strong pair of arms wrapped around her, causing her to lose focus. She melted in the familiar scent. "Goku."

"I've missed you," he whispered lovingly in her ear.

Serenity pulled out of his embrace. "I shouldn't be here," she said again. "I was trying to go home."

"Maybe you are home," Goku replied. He leaned down to kiss her but she backed away.

"I'm sorry, I can't," she said nearly inaudibly. "Good bye."

"What the hell, Jordan?" Bruce growled.

"I was just asking what everyone was thinking," Hal replied.

"This would be so much easier if Victor was here," Oliver added. "He could do some research to see if she was telling us the truth."

"He's still recovering from his last battle," Diana reminded them. "It's better he's not here."

"Exactly," Hal nearly shouted. "How many times have we come close to losing our lives? Are we not important enough for her to step in for?"

"We chose to put our lives on the line every day we go out," Bruce grumbled. "It could be a common thief who kills us, it doesn't have to be a huge battle."

"Bruce is right," Oliver agreed.

"Dying in battle is an honorable way to die," Diana spoke proudly.

"I didn't ask for this life either," Hal retorted. "The ring chose me."

"We were all dealt certain cards," Bruce said. "It's what we chose to do with our hand that matters. We fight because we want to, even you Lantern. If she didn't want to fight, she would have been no help to us anyway."

Silence fell once more as each member battled with the thoughts in their heads.

Shaken by her recent encounter, Serenity opted for a soak in the large hot tub. She closed her eyes, and sighed heavily. Her mind began to race. Seeing Goku again, even if only for a few moments, had brought back so many feelings.

It was true that she sometimes felt out of place back on Earth. She had become such a great warrior on Vegeta, and now she rarely used those abilities. Despite the fact that she had wanted a break from the fighting, she missed the epic battles.

She was bored. Her first real challenging battle had been on the night she first met Bruce, but even that was too easy, and she had been more annoyed than thrilled with the fight. She missed Goku, and even Vegeta. She missed the endless battles and challenges she faced nearly every day. She missed the way she grew more and more all the time, in so many ways.

Her sadness turned to anger at Vegeta for making her leave. She could still be there if he hadn't been so jealous.

"Serenity, are you okay?" Bruce's voice cut through her thoughts.

"Yeah, why?" She replied opening her eyes.

"You're clenching your fists." He pointed out. "What are you thinking about?"

She hadn't even realized she was clenching them. Loosening up, she looked up at the man in front of her. "What did the league say?"

"They've agreed to give you a chance," he said beginning to unbutton his shirt. "But they're skeptical."

She hmphed and looked down at the warm water surrounding her. "I see."

Disappearing behind a corner that held a spare swimsuit for him, Bruce continued. "I did my best to convince them you're not in this to infiltrate, but Hal planted some pretty big thoughts into their heads."

"Like what?"

"He doesn't like the fact that you stood by while we put our lives on the line." He emerged wearing his suit and began to step into the water.

Serenity rolled her eyes. "I explained that I would have helped if you'd needed it."

"He was just concerned that you would have only stepped in, if all of us were dead." Bruce sat down beside her.

Biting her lip, she continued to look down at her hands in the water. Hal was probably right; before she met Bruce, she would have only stepped in if most of them were dead and the battle was looking grim, placing the Earth in extreme danger.

Was this really who she had become? On Planet Vegeta, she lived for a good fight, looked for one even. Nearly every day she was in another epic battle that was better than the one before. Goku and Vegeta had been the best opponents. Yet she had hidden from battles on Earth for 30 years; only starting again when she had been forced to. There was no way Batman would have been able to defeat the enemy by himself, and the planet would have been mostly destroyed by the time the League had caught on.

She sighed and leaned her head against the back of the hot tub. So much was going through her mind. Teaming up with Bruce and beginning to fight again had brought back so many memories, she loved it; but she was bored. Bruce was an amazing fighter, but he was only human, and she easily beat him time and time again. The only one that might provide her with a decent match would be Clark, but he wasn't one to fight for fun, from what she understood. She missed the thrill of combat.

"Serenity?" Bruce said for the tenth time, finally getting through to her.

"Huh?" She looked at her lover. "Sorry, lost in thought."

"I noticed." The millionaire shifted so he was kneeling in front of her in the water, his head barely above the water. "Is Lantern, right?"

"I don't know," she replied quietly. "Maybe."

"Can I ask you something?" He looked her in the eyes. "Where were you all that time you were away from Earth?"

"I showed you earlier," she grumbled.

"I saw, but I know nothing about where you were." He took her hands in his. "I'm not sure if you're aware of this, or maybe it's because I'm more in tune to you, I don't know, but when you were showing us glimpses of your past, I could feel your emotions pretty strongly. Sadness, confusion, happiness; but when you showed us where you learned to fly and fight, I felt a strong sense of duty and extreme love."

The blonde looked away from his penetrating eyes.

"Who was it you showed us, and where were you? I can accept many things, I'm just curious about your past. And if you're still okay with being my wife."

She sighed again, this was going to become very complicated.

Okay folks that's all for now. Kind of a slow chapter, I know, but I'm working into things, and she needed to meet the JL for the first time. Please let me know what you think, and stay tuned for the next chapter.

Gohaun