Chapter Two

Destiny

Across the street on a rooftop, a girl with thick, golden hair frowned as she crouched low, her knees resting against the warm stone of the roof. She watched as a girl, with long blond hair caught into two buns, was led from the Black Moon Museum. Her eyes narrowed as she watched a man emerge from behind her, his brilliant white hair unmistakable, even from a distance.

"Demande." She muttered.

"Not now, Minako." A low voice said to her.

"He's got Usagi." She replied as she rose.

"He doesn't know it's her. He's tormented still by her memory but he thinks she's gone." The voice continued as a white cat with a brilliant golden crescent on his forehead jumped onto her lap.

"Artemis, he has her!" Minako insisted.

"And she doesn't know anything." Artemis persisted as he pawed at her cheek. "You stay focused. She's only the latest in a string of girls he's come across that remind him of Neo-Queen Serenity. He'll do the same thing he does with all of them… shower her with gifts, get her into the right positions or schools… and when he realizes she won't replace the woman that lives in his dreams, he'll move on."

"That's my concern." Minako replied as she watched Usagi climb into a black car with Demande right behind her. "He'll realize she's different."

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"Usagi Tsukino." Prince Demande said as he glanced at the blond, wide eyed girl beside him. "Senior student at Juban High School."

"Yes, sir." Usagi's voice quivered as she spoke. Her mind was racing as the prince shut the door to the sleek black SUV which immediately roared to life and took off down the street. She stared at the front of the car. Two black uniformed officers were in the front, dark shades covering their eyes. Behind them, in the third row, another officer sat with a girl who was busy typing away on a laptop. None of the other car occupants gave any indication that they saw her as they sat silently.

"Don't be scared Usagi." Demande replied as he gave her a smile. "I'm simply returning you to school. It seems that Calaveras has a mess to clean up before we the museum opens to the general public tomorrow and it's best you not be in her sight at the moment."

"Thank you." Usagi said as here fingers nervously clutched the bottom of her skirt. She felt a ripple of goosebumps cross her arms as he spoke. His words did anything but bring her comfort. Prince Demande was rarely seen in public even though his face was often on billboards across the city and plastered on TV. He was a very busy man. How often did Prince Demande personally transport school girls? Why had he stopped to save her when he could've just kept walking?

"Calaveras has always had… unwavering loyalty. I fear any incident at the museum will elicit unnecessary consequences—" He paused as he glanced at Usagi's pale and frightened expression. "Ms. Tskunio, you had an accident and accidents shouldn't put you in jail."

"Thank you." Usagi repeated as she emitted a shaky breath. "She was so angry with me."

Prince Demande chuckled and nodded. "Yes, quite. I was about to embark on a tour myself with my brother when I heard the commotion. Lucky for you he was late, now it appears I will be the one who will be late."

"I'm so sorry!" Usagi said as her eyes widened. "Please leave me here… I can walk back to school—"

"That isn't necessary." Demande replied with a smile. "The school isn't far and should I leave you, the Black Moon police could detain you for being out of school during school hours. Seeing as you are a senior, I'm sure you don't want that mark on your otherwise clean record."

Usagi quieted as for the first time, she met Prince Demande's intense gaze. She felt her shoulders tremble as she shook her head. "No, sir."

"Graduation is a month away, have you applied for the Academy?" Demande questioned as he reached over to the middle console and withdrew a bottle of water. He handed it to Usagi who shakily accepted it.

"I haven't… I haven't heard back yet." Usagi stammered as she held the water in her hands.

"We are in desperate need of new recruits. Fresh minds always tend to look at problems differently than those who have been trying to work on the same issue for months or even years." He said as he glanced out the window.

"I want to do my part." Usagi said as she dared to look at him, her nerves slowly calming. "I want to help."

"As should every able-bodied citizen of Tokyo." Demande replied as he glanced back at her. "Though the Black Moon saved Tokyo from the Sailor Senshi, there are still pockets of resistance."

"Resistance? Why?" Usagi asked before she could stop herself. The Black Moon controlled all media in the city, if there truly was opposition to them, she'd never heard of it before now.

"You can't please everybody." Demande said with a shrug. "Though I do my best. I hope that our museum will squash some of those doubts. It's easy to forget the history of this city and all the things the Black Moon has done for Tokyo. You may not have gotten a chance to see, but the fourth level of the museum shows what Tokyo would look like today if the Black Moon hadn't saved it from the senshi."

"I don't remember things being that bad before the senshi." Usagi said before she could stop herself.

Instantly, the sound of typing stopped as Prince Demande's assistant glanced at Usagi from behind her screen.

"You were much younger then." Prince Demande said as he looked her over. "And most likely, unaware of the scale of the attacks upon Tokyo. The senshi were a menace, striving to create a city that was… unnatural. They wanted longevity and peace."

"Is that… bad?" Usagi questioned.

A vein snaked across Demande's forehead as his light eyes turned a steely, cold blue. "People were meant to feel pain, to endure loss and to die. That's the way life was intended to be lived. You have to take the good with the bad." He paused as his expression softened at the perplexed look on her face. "In the end, the senshi would've controlled everything within this city—the law, the people, the work you are able to do, even the things you learn about in school. And if anyone didn't fall in line, they'd kick you out or worse." He said as he glanced out the window.

Usagi pursed her lips into a line as he spoke. Was that not also what the Black Moon had done to Tokyo? She remembered the day the senshi disappeared and the takeover of the city began. Schools were restructured, teachers vanished and suddenly there were new rules to follow. She was only allowed outside at certain hours of the day and the city had a mandatory curfew. People disappeared in droves, though it wasn't covered on the news. The Black Moon had taken over that too, only stories about the positive changes within the city were covered.

It was as if someone had flipped a switch and started new lives. It had been five years ago and she couldn't help but wonder what type of future she'd be preparing for if the Sailor Senshi had triumphed over the Black Moon.

"Here we are." Prince Demande said as they arrived at Juban High School. Behind him, the girl typing on the computer, stopped briefly to hand him a letter. He opened the door and slid out, holding it open for a still visibly, nervous Usagi.

"Thank you Prince Demande." She said as she clambered out and bowed her head to him.

"Keep up your studies Usagi. Perhaps today was a blessing disguise." He said to her as he gave her a final, charming smile. "As Prince of the Black Moon clan and of Tokyo, I have a gift for you." He said as he handed her the letter. "I shall see you soon, Usagi Tsukino."

Usagi felt her cheeks tug into something resembling a smile as Prince Demande climbed back into his car. She watched as it sped off down the street, headed back for the museum.

She trembled as she felt herself emit a shaky breath. She glanced down at the letter. It held the emblem of the black moon and her name and address was scrawled on the front. Quickly she ripped the letter open and unfolded a single sheet of black paper. Her eyes scanned the letter quickly as her hands began to shake, so violently that the letter fell from her hands and onto the floor.

"I'm in." She whispered.

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"Chiba!" A loud voice hollered over the roar of traffic.

A man, dressed in a sleek black uniform of the Black Clan with shiny black boots emerged from a crowd of officers. He had silky, short black hair and bright blue eyes beneath dark black sunglasses. He stood taller than the crowd of men around him as he pushed through, finally stopping before his commanding officer with a bow. "Yes, sir." He said.

"Chiba, take a cruiser, there are reports of a student out of school in the Juban district." The older officer said as he pulled off his own sunglasses. "Find the student, interrogate her and if need be, take her to the station. Then join us here on patrol. Rubeus wants us to do a sweep of the area and find any resistors."

"Right away, sir." He replied as he gave another nod.

"Oh, and Mamoru." The older man said as he returned his sunglasses to his weathered face and tossed a set of keys to Mamoru. "Be sure to scan the girl's ID. Earlier today Prince Demande took a student from the Black Moon Museum and he's placed a protective order on her. If this is the same girl, you are to follow orders."

"Yes commander." Mamoru said as he caught the keys and walked down the street to the line of police cars. He unlocked the first car and climbed in, the engine roaring to life. He sped off down the street, his siren blaring until he neared the school.

He slowed the car to a crawl as he spotted a girl, with blond pigtails wrapped into two buns seated on the low stone wall before the school. He glanced at his watch. It was noon, school wouldn't be over for another two hours yet there she was, dressed in the navy and gray uniform of Juban High School. He parked the car on the side of the street, adjusted his shades, and climbed out of the car, slowly approaching her.

At the sound of his footsteps, the girl lifted her head, her eyes red with tears. He could see a letter in her hands, the edges frayed as she turned it over and over in her grasp.

"Hello, I'm field officer Chiba." He said as he came to a stop just a few feet from her. "I'm responding to a report of a student out of school. I'll need your name and ID please."

The girl wiped her eyes quickly and reached to her side but paused. She glanced at the stone wall and sighed. "My bag was on the bus…"

"And where is the bus?" Mamoru asked as he glanced around.

"The Black Moon Museum." The girl replied. "I was on a field trip when… well…."

"I'll need some type of identification." Mamoru sighed.

"I have this." She said as she handed him the letter.

Mamoru approached her and took the letter from her shaking hands. He glanced at the front, her name was clearly written and on the back was the seal of the Black Moon. "Do you mind if I open this?" He asked, glancing at her from above the rim of his sunglasses.

The girl shook her head as she leaned back against the wall.

Mamoru gently withdrew the black paper within and unfolded it. He took off his sunglasses as his eyes scanned the letter. "So you've been accepted to the Academy… the military division."

"Yes." The girl replied softly. "I'm no fighter."

"I was accepted there too." Mamoru replied as he refolded the letter and returned it to the envelope. "Almost everyone starts on the police force before moving to the military branch. I've got another year of service left before I can apply for the change. Even if you don't think you're a fighter, the Academy panel saw something in you. Maybe you'll make it into the intelligence or mystical division."

"I've heard that." The girl replied with a shrug. "It just doesn't feel like it's where I'm supposed to be."

"And where is it you think you belong?" Mamoru asked as he took a seat next to her.

"I'm not sure." The girl sighed. "It feels like I don't even get a choice. My path has been picked for me and always will be."

Mamoru glanced at her as his brow furrowed. "Your path may be chosen for you, but what you do on that path is always your choice." He said as their eyes met. He paused as he felt a jolt of energy surge through him, numbing his finger tips as the air caught in his chest. The girl had the deepest blue eyes he'd ever seen, and though they were full of tears, he couldn't help but feel that he'd seen them before.

"I guess that's true." She admitted as she brushed one of her pigtails back from her face. "Am I in trouble?"

"You should return to school." Mamoru replied as he continued to watch her. "Technically you're still on school property even if it's not in class which is where I'm guessing you should be."

"My teacher kicked me out." The girl said with a slight chuckle. "So I joined the field trip to the museum and Prince Demande brought me back here. He handed me the letter before he left. Now I can't seem to bring myself to go back inside."

"So, you're the one then." He said as he returned his sunglasses to his face.

"I'm what?" She asked as her eyebrows lifted in alarm.

"I can take you home." Mamoru replied as he stood. "That is, if you'd like. You could go back to class if you want—"

"What was your name?" The girl asked again as she jumped off the wall.

"Mamoru Chiba." He replied as their eyes met again.

She gave him a small smile as she extended her hand. "I'm Usagi Tsukino. It's nice to meet you."

Mamoru took her hand and felt his breath catch in his chest again as her small hand caught his. This time he felt a rush of goosebumps cross his skin, sending the hair on the back of his neck upright. "Ms. Tsukino, what is your desire?"

"I need to get out of here." She said as she glanced over her shoulder at the school. "Please."

"Right away." He replied as she released his hand. He went to his car and held open the passenger door for her.

She followed him and paused at the open door, their eyes locking once more. "Mr. Chiba… is there somewhere else you can take me besides my home?" She asked softly.

"Where would you like to go?" He asked her, his voice low to keep from being overheard. They were standing just inches from each other. He could smell her perfume. It was nearly intoxicating as he felt his heart racing uncontrollably.

"The old temple… on the edge of town." She said as her voice shook. "I would like to visit my mother's grave."