Chapter 3: Phoenix

The full weight of everything that had transpired that night crushed the poor girl physically and spiritually. It took what felt to her an eternity just to build the strength to leave Mamoru's apartment complex. She returned home just before midnight, her muddied school uniform soaked by the rain and her tears. Her parents and younger brother were already asleep when she returned and did not awaken when she trudged through the front door and up the stairs to her bedroom. The mattress sank with a soft whoosh as Usagi fell onto her bed, not caring to remove the wet uniform. The bed was her sanctuary, the place where she could think and cry in peaceful solace. Sadness overflowed her at that point. Everyone was leaving her, the man who used to be her boyfriend, the girls who might no longer be her friends, and she had no clue, not the slightest inkling, why it was happening to her. Her face sank into her wet pillow and, within moments, the physical and mental exhaustion finally overcame her and she fell into a deep sleep.

—|1|2|3|—

The next morning was particularly dreary, and it did not help the blonde's emotional state one bit. Heavy clouds hung in the sky, the sun's usual light and warmth unable to penetrate this deep gray barrier. She was still wearing her school uniform when she lifted her head from the pillow and turned to look at the alarm clock on her nightstand. It read 9:50 AM. It was also a Wednesday, which meant that it was a school day and that she was late. But none of that mattered to her as she didn't wish to attend anyway. She definitely did not want to risk running into Ami or Makoto, who attended the same school. Not right now. She needed the time alone to sort her thoughts. Suddenly, she felt very warm, and it was at that instant she realized that a thick blanket was covering her. She couldn't recall covering herself with anything. Also, she felt a weight at the end of her bed, a weight that suddenly began talking.

"Ah, it seems you're awake now. I've been trying to get you to wake up all morning to get you ready for school, to no avail. I figured you were in one of your typical dreamy slumbers, oblivious to the world, 'til I came in your room and saw you like this."

"Ugh… mama." She focused her eyes and saw that the mass sitting at the end of her bed was her mom, Ikuko. That also explained the mysterious appearance of the blanket. She tried to lift herself up but she felt so dizzy that she collapsed back down into her pillow.

"Don't stress yourself, dear. Your mom is with you." That calm and soothing voice was the best thing Usagi had heard in the past day.

"I don't think I feel well enough to go to school today."

"I know, I know. I'm sure you can have one day free from classes. Now, open up and say AHHHH." She placed a thermometer into the dismal girl's mouth. After a minute, she pulled the device out and looked at the screen, her anxiety clearly evident in her face.

"Hmm, you seem to have a bit of a fever, but nothing too terrible." Ikuko paused for a moment, looking her daughter over carefully. "My main concern is why you were out so late last night, out in that storm, and if anything bad happened to you that we should definitely know about."

Usagi looked toward her mother. She wanted to tell her everything. Not just about what happened regarding her friends or how her ex-boyfriend née husband-to-be abandoned her. She wanted to reveal her secret of being Sailor Moon. She wanted to tell the whole story and end the deceit. However, she reasoned that as long as there was a chance that she could prove herself worthy to her fellow senshi and regain their trust and friendship, she should at least maintain that secret. So, for the moment, she decided it was best to reveal as little as possible.

"Mamoru and I had a fight last night, after I got back from school. It wasn't anything really serious though. I was upset for a while, but now I'm fine." She knew it was an understatement, to say the least, and she sensed that her mom wasn't completely buying her story. However, if so, the woman wasn't going to press the subject too much.

"I hope all is fine between you two. If there is anything you really need to talk about, I'm always here for you. Remember that," Ikuko said while placing a loving hand on Usagi's shoulder. "Now, let's get you out of these dirty clothes."

—|1|2|3|—

Usagi returned to school the next day, though she didn't feel much better than she did the previous day. She sat in her usual seat near the middle of the room. Two rows behind her and against the windows to her left sat Ami. The blonde glanced toward the blue-haired senshi, who upon noticing this decided to look away. In happier times, a smile would have been returned instead. She turned back toward the front of the room and laid her head in her arms. It was going to be a very rough day, she surmised.

Sakurada Haruna, her homeroom and English class teacher for Grade 7, entered the room carrying a stack of papers to be handed out to the students and other assorted teaching supplies. It was time for English lessons, and for this the students would group together into pairs for conversation. Usagi's heart sank at the notion. Normally, she would pair with Ami or Osaka Naru, but Naru was away with her mother on an extended business trip and thus absent for the majority of the semester, and Ami at this time was not an option. Given that there were an odd number of students in the class, it was probable that she would end up having to pair with "Sakurada-sensei," as she was called.

"Okay class, we're going to be studying the following English conversational phrases as listed on your handouts. You may get together in pairs now."

Usagi looked around the room for someone with whom she possibly could pair, but by then everyone else had found a partner.

"Tsukino-san, it looks like you'll be partnering with me." The girl in question turned her head forward and saw Haruna standing right in front of her desk. "Now, come with me to my desk."

Usagi slowly pushed herself up from her desk and dragged herself to the front of the classroom. She detested having to do the lesson with Haruna, as it typically meant that she was given a lot more homework to do, or an after-class punishment, or both, for her inevitable poor performance. However, as she was walking up to the front, she remembered the haranguing she had received from Rei the prior night. She then remembered that she was given one last chance to prove herself worthy by Minako. At that point, the warrior of love and justice decided she was not going to waste any opportunity she had, no matter how insignificant or unrelated it may appear, to improve her standing with the group. Confidence began to fill her soul.

That was, until she saw the first sentence she had to say on the handout. Then, she wished she had paid more attention to her classes earlier in the semester. She barely mumbled the words.

"A bit louder please, Tsukino-san," Haruna said in a stern voice, just knowing that her less-than-apt pupil was about to say the first sentence incorrectly.

The pigtailed blonde closed her eyes and searched her mind as thoroughly as she could and as quickly as she could. She thought—no, believed—that she knew the answer. She then opened her eyes and spoke, clearly and forcefully, the Latin characters printed on the paper in front of her: "Thank you for inviting me to your party."

There was a short and slightly awkward period of silence before Haruna could respond to Usagi's questioning gaze. It was mainly so that she could recover from her overwhelming astonishment.

"V-very well done, Tsukino-san," she said, drawing a smile in return.

In all honesty, she had expected the girl to fail, but Usagi defied expectations by saying the words perfectly. The girl continued to do so for the forty minutes that the pair continued with their English conversation, consistently impressing Haruna with her performance. As a result, the teacher was thrilled that she didn't have to punish the girl for the first time all semester. Was Usagi finally becoming a decent student?

The bell rang at 11:30, signifying that it was time for lunch. Normally, Usagi would join the other girls outside for lunch, with Rei and Minako leaving their respective schools to join them. Makoto would prepare a wonderful spread that would disappear almost immediately between the two blondes who would battle for the larger share. Over the past two weeks, Usagi's relationship with the other girls had been strained at best. Now, with yesterday's ultimatum, she felt that she absolutely wanted to avoid any sort of awkward situation and decided to let the other girls alone.

Further, she wasn't very hungry, which was extremely unusual given her voracious appetite. She hadn't eaten dinner at all last night, picked through breakfast, and now was unlikely to finish the boxed lunch her mom prepared her. She was more preoccupied on her new mission of improving herself in all possible ways so she could regain the girls' fellowship. The words Rei said to her, those hateful words that initially made her so depressed, now were to be words of motivation, inspiring her self-improvement. She may have lost Mamoru, she figured, but there was no way she would lose those girls.

The rest of the day went by rather quickly. For the first time, she was able to leave school at the actual end of the day. She ran straight home, not stopping at the Crown Arcade and Fruit Parlor, her usual hangout for the evening. She figured the other girls would be there and she wanted to avoid encountering them before she felt she was ready. She reached the front door and bolted inside, startling her mom who was not expecting her to arrive until much later.

"Hi mom! I'm home!" Usagi said as she entered.

"Already? Why so early?" Ikuko replied with a bit of shock.

"I just wanted to get an early start on my homework."

"Don't you usually go to meet with your friends now?"

"Well…" She paused for a few moments, contemplating her next words. "We all were a bit busy doing other things today, Ami with her cram school and the others with their assignments, so we decided it'd be best not to meet today."

She ran up the stairs to her bedroom, escaping any potential further questioning from her mother. When she got there she found Luna sitting there on her bed. The girl froze in her tracks upon seeing the black cat. She had not seen her advisor since Tuesday morning.

"Luna!" Usagi said in a muffled yell. She felt a small knot begin to form in her stomach, as she didn't know whether the feline felt the same way about her as the other girls. If so, it was not going to be a pleasant evening.

"Usagi, how are you feeling?" Luna asked. Her voice was a just above a whisper.

"What?" The blonde was surprised not so much by the question but the tone.

"I saw what happened to you two nights ago. I left from here to help the other girls in battle after they called out on the communicator. Of course, there wasn't much that I could do since I'm a cat, so I just stayed back and observed."

"And so you know…" She was feeling more than a bit apprehensive.

"Yes, I heard everything they said."

"And…" Tears started to well in her eyes. "Do you agree with them?"

"Well…" Luna was searching for words. "I, um, do think they make, uh, good points." She was quick to follow up with her next sentence before upsetting her charge any more than she sensed she was doing. "But, I believe you'll be able to come around, and I'll help in any way I can."

"Really?" Usagi asked with a slight hint of hope evident within her otherwise woefully melancholy voice.

"Absolutely. It is my mission, and it is also my desire, to assist my princess in any way possible."

"Thank you, Luna!" Tears streamed from her eyes as she grasped the black cat and hugged it tightly against her chest. Suddenly, she felt something repeatedly kicking her in her midsection, and she remembered that she was practically smothering Luna. She let go and Luna leaped away onto the bed, gasping for air.

"Sorry, Luna!"

"That's… okay…. Now… what… are we going… to do with you." Luna said in between breaths. She pondered the course of action she needed to take to train Usagi further.

"Well, first I need to get my homework done while it's still early, then we'll see what we'll do after that."

Luna was shocked after hearing that. It was something that she'd never heard the girl say before. Normally, the statements were something along the lines of "Do I have to?" or "I hate this! This is boring!" followed by Usagi falling asleep or being totally distracted by video games or television or anything else that wasn't her homework. This newfound sense of responsibility in her young princess greatly pleased her.

"All by yourself you decided to do your homework! Well, it seems you're already well on your way on being a better soldier."

"Yep!" Usagi's tears had just started to subside, and a smile came to her lips in their stead.

The pigtailed blonde spent the next three hours completing her homework. Math was especially difficult for her, but she struggled through it and, with some help from Luna, was able to at least come up with an answer for each problem. The other courses, English and history, were easier by comparison. Intriguingly, she neither whined nor complained, which was an act that stunned the feline but also encouraged her. She put her pen down after she finished answering the last homework problem and looked over at the clock in the corner of the room. It was 7:30, about the time she normally would return home from Crown or visit Mamoru for a short date. Mamoru. She folded her arms on her desk in front of her and laid her head down onto them, letting a small sigh slip out in the process. A tear started to fall. She missed him. She dearly missed his warm touch and his quips and being called 'odango-atama.' What happened for all of that to disappear? However, about as quickly as she let her mind wander she refocused her thoughts to the task at hand.

"Usagi?"

"Yes, Luna?" Usagi lifted her head from the desk.

"I think I have just the plan to help you with your training."

"Really?"

"You know how in Crown we have the game machine that links to the Silver Millennium?"

"Ugh, Crown? Do we have to? And wasn't it really just Artemis hiding, pretending to be a machine talking to the Silver Millennium?" She had no intentions of going back there so long as she and the other girls were on such bad terms.

"Yes, that did end up just being Artemis, that silly cat," Luna said, deliberately muffling her voice for the last part. "I know you don't want to go back to Crown under such circumstances, but that's where our special training machine is located."

"Special training machine?" Usagi was curious, as Luna had never mentioned such a device.

"Well, it's actually an entire room, where we can make any sort of situation we want. We can create youmas to fight if necessary. It's completely secret, even to Motoki-kun." the cat replied, referring to Motoki Furuhata, who ran the arcade and, importantly, was a high-school classmate and friend to Mamoru. If Motoki was oblivious to the existence of the room, then so was Mamoru.

"Do the other girls know about the room?"

"Well, I haven't told them about it, and I'm sure Artemis hasn't had a need to tell them about it either, so I doubt they know."

"Good. When do we begin?"

"Tomorrow. Immediately after school. It's a Friday, so you don't have to worry about doing your homework until later that day or Saturday."

Usagi nodded at Luna and gave a bit of a smile. Her eyes glowed brilliantly as she was filled with confidence and determination.

"Luna, I will do my best. I promise."