Sometimes two people need to step apart
and make a space between
that each might see the other anew,
in a glance across a room
or silhouetted against the moon.
~Robert Brault

"You reckon Darien talked to Serena?"

The four Sailor Soldiers were gathered around the table in Raye's room with only one thing on their mind. It was well into the night yet they had not heard a word from Serena. All of them were hoping a miracle had happened and Darien had changed his mind.

"I hope so," Mina said.

"Any more ideas why he broke up with her in the first place?" Lita asked.

They had discussed various ideas over the past two weeks but none of them seemed plausible. They still asked each other if they had come up with any more ideas about what had happened between the pair, but nothing came to mind. The breakup literally came from nowhere, with no explanation.

"I can't think of anything," Amy said.

Raye looked around at her friends. "Has anyone actually talked to Darien lately? Maybe if we just ask him he might tell us?"

"I tried!" Lita announced, with a sly grin on her face.

Mina gasped with fake shock. "Did you go over there to kick his ass?"

Lita's grin got bigger. "Maybe. But when he answered his door, he looked as bad as she did!"

"Really?" Raye asked with genuine shock. None of the girls, other than Lita, had seen Darien so they didn't know how hard he had taken the breakup.

"Totally! He had bags under his eyes, his hair was a mess and he looked awful!"

All the girls were shocked. Darien was looking as bad as Serena? Why? If he broke up with her, why was he taking it as hard as Serena? That didn't make sense.

"I wonder why?" Mina asked.

"Yeah. If he broke up with Serena, why does he look awful too?" Raye wondered aloud.

"The only reason someone would look that bad after a breakup is if they still liked that person!" Lita said.

Mina shook her head, sending her long blonde hair flying into the face of Amy. "Sorry!...But if he still likes her, then why did he break up with her? That doesn't make sense!"

"I still think it's because of her studies," Amy voiced.

The three girls shot her looks of disbelief. "No, that's not it." Lita said with a shake of her head. "Maybe..."

"What?" Raye asked, watching Lita's face as an idea formed in her mind.

"Well maybe...for some reason, Darien's staying away from her to protect her?" she suggested.

Amy frowned as she thought that idea over. "Protect her? From what?"

"I don't know! It was just a suggestion!" Lita threw her hands in the air.

It had just been an idea but it was the most logical one that explained why they were both hurting. Now they just had to figure out why he was trying to protect her by pushing her away.

"Maybe we should call her and find out what happened?" Mina suggested.

"I don't know. If she hasn't called us then she probably doesn't want to talk about it. Besides, we will see her tomorrow." Amy didn't want to make Serena talk about what had happened if it hadn't gone well.

"Well I at least hope she eats something!" Raye voiced as she remembered their recent battle and the toil it had taken on Serena. "She's fading away to nothing and if she doesn't pull herself together soon, she'll be in trouble."

"Do you think we should let her mother know what has happened? Maybe she can talk to Serena?" Amy proposed. Nobody liked running to somebody's mother to tell but Raye was right; Serena would be in trouble if she kept this up.

Mina bit her lip, wondering if it had come to that. "Surely her mum has noticed Serena's behaviour change? Hopefully she's already had a talk to her."

"Well if she has, then it hasn't worked," Raye pointed out.


The moons bright shine usually gave Serena a sense of peace but as she stared at it through her open window, it only caused her heartache. She use to look at it and see Prince Darien and their secret love on the Moon Kingdom; the romantic walks they took in the royal gardens; the dances they had shared in the ballroom. Now all she saw was a love that was gone.

Serena pulled the blanket on the bed closer around herself and Rini as a cool breeze came through the window. The toddler was wrapped around Serena's arm and snoring softly. She had yelled at Serena some more once she had finally squeezed her way in the bedroom but she had stopped when she had seen the look on Serena's face.

Serena knew she had wanted to ask what was wrong, and thank God she didn't, as she would have burst into tears if she had. She was barely holding it together. She didn't want to leave the bed. She wanted to lay in it all night and day. Why get up when you have nothing to live for?

Darien had been the sun in her life and now he had left her, she was stuck in the dark; she couldn't see the way in front of her. Their love had been so strong...so strong...so why was she giving up so easily? If their love really meant something to her...she needed to fight for him! She had been so consumed by the break-up and the thought of never being with Darien again that she hadn't thought about anything else. But now it made perfect sense. She would get him back!

"Yes!" she cried with a smile on her face, the first one in two weeks. That's what she needed to do, fight for him! She couldn't just lie down and give up! Their love had been everything to her; she wouldn't let it go so easily. Darien had said he didn't feel the same about her anymore but some part of her didn't believe him now that she thought about it. Maybe some tiny, minuscule part of him still held feelings for her. If he did, she was going to make sure he realised it. She had to show him what he was missing.

She needed to show him that she was mature and could handle anything. She needed to show him he had made a mistake in letting her go. She couldn't do that when she barely had enough energy to stand. She needed to pull herself together. She had to show Darien that she would love him...even if he believed that didn't love her.


"Damn those Sailor Brats!" Prizma spat. She was normally a composed woman but her temper was wearing thin. Once again their plan to take over a Star Point had been interrupted by the appearance of Sailor Moon and the other Sailor Scouts. How did they always manage to arrive in time to stop them? She was getting frustrated and wanted nothing more than to blast those girls into smithereens.

"Calm yourself Prizma."

The woman had been so involved in her thoughts and the image of a dying Sailor Moon that she had failed to see their leader was there.

"Rubeus I am getting sick of those Sailor girls defeating us!" Prizma stalked over to where he stood, next to the window of their spaceship, overlooking the primitive city of 20th century Tokyo. She couldn't understand how he was so calm! He was the one that would face the consequences from Prince Diamond if they failed. Why wasn't he infuriated that their plans had been foiled yet again?!

"I know you are Prizma, but soon everything will be going according to plan, and the Sailor Scouts will be no more." Rubeus said as his gaze travelled from the window to Prizma. She was confused to see an evil grin on his face.

"And how do you plan on getting rid of them?" she inquired.

"I have found another Star Point," he said. She followed him as he made his way into the centre of the dark room, surrounded by the mirrors. A hologram of the future city of Crystal Tokyo appeared before them. "It is a place called the Cherry Hill Temple."

"And how does that knowledge help us? They defeated us today when we tried to take a Star Point. Why will this one be successful?" Prizma asked as she circled around the holographic image of Crystal Tokyo.

Rubeus's grin widened. "Because this time you will call forth a Droid which is sure to destroy Sailor Moon and her scouts."

"And which Droid would that be?"

"Lady Thorn," Rubeus cackled. He had a gleam in his eyes that Prizma had only seen when he was confident about his plans and sure of their success.

"You're certain Lady Thorn can destroy Sailor Moon?"Prizma asked. She had heard of that particular Droid. Its attack was strong and deadly, and its aim was precise but she was still doubtful if it would be powerful enough to vanquish the Sailor Scouts. They were stronger and more powerful than she had originally thought. They had underestimated them and they had payed for it when they were constantly defeated by them.

"Oh yes, I am certain of it. When you attack this temple and fill it with our dark forces, the Sailor Scouts will come. And when you release Lady Thorn, they won't know what hit them." He cackled again and his eyes glinted with malice as his mind conjured images of what Lady Thorn would do to the Sailor Scouts. "And with the Sailor Scouts gone, the Rabbit will have no one protecting her and she will be ours!"

"I am still not sure if this Droid will do the job," Prizma voiced, "The Sailor Scouts are strong-"

"Are you kidding?" someone laughed.

Two pairs of eyes flew to where the voice had come from. After a moment, Avery stepped out from the shadows with a smile. She had been trying human beauty tricks again as she had green paste all over her face. She seemed oblivious to Rubeus's disgusted look as she skipped over to join the pair around the image of Crystal Tokyo.

"Did you see Sailor Moon today? She looked like one gust of wind would bowl her over!" Avery giggled.

"Yet she still managed to finish the Droid and defeat us!" Prizma shot back angrily. She wished her sister had stayed in the shadows. Prizma was the practical one who thought plans through unlike Avery. If Rubeus put her in charge of this plan, it was sure to be a disaster.

"But she is still weak and this strong Droid will surely finish her off!" Avery said with confidence as she slithered closer to Rubeus, who looked deep in thought.

"No-" Prizma began to shout before a loud voice cut across, silencing her.

"Stop it!" Rubeus's voice boomed through the room. "Tomorrow both of you will attack the Cherry Hill Temple, and when the Sailor Scouts arrive, you will call forth Lady Thorn and she will finish them."


"You're...you're awake Serena!" Luna said with wide eyes.

"Of course Luna!" Serena replied with a smile.

"But-but it's a Saturday! And it's not even 8!"

"I know, but I'm going to meet the girls at the temple!"

Luna didn't know what was going on! For two weeks Luna had been practically scratching Serena's face to shreds to get her out of bed and ready, but today she had been up before her! What was going on?

Luna had been worrying greatly over the Sailor Scout for weeks since Darien had broken up with her. She hadn't been the biggest fan of Serena and her klutz attacks but as the days passed and she changed, Luna found herself missing the old Serena. She had become a shell of her former self, although she had been crying just as much, if not more. Darien had been awful to Serena, breaking up with her for no reason. Luna had liked Darien before, now she just wanted to scratch him!

Although Luna had felt sorry for the girl, she had been getting worried, and annoyed, over the way she had been acting. She had been crying and acting like the world was ending; never wanting to get out of bed, hardly eating anything (highly unlike her) and barely paying attention to the world around her. Luna had tried to remind her that although it seemed like the end of the world because Darien had broken up with her, it wasn't. She had tried to remind her that as a Sailor Scout, she had a duty to protect Tokyo, and Earth, from its enemies. Nothing she had said had gotten though to the girl.

She had been a moping mess for weeks and now suddenly she was actually smiling again. Luna knew it hadn't been something that Darien said to change her attitude because she had been a mess last night, telling her about how she had gone to see Darien and what he had said to her. So something had changed her in the time between her going to bed and waking up. Maybe she had just finally realised she was overreacting and had to pull herself together? Luna didn't care what had changed her mind, she was just happy to see her smiling again.


For the first time in two weeks, Serena had breakfast with her family. And it was the first time in two weeks she had enjoyed eating food.

Her mother and father were happy to see their daughter back to normal, shovelling food into her mouth like there was no tomorrow. They knew something had happened to their daughter to upset her but she seemed to be over it. Nothing made them happier to see their daughter happy.

"Gotta go mum! I'll see you later!" Serena yelled as she raced from the table to the door. She slipped on her shoes and was out the door a second later.

She ran down the streets of Tokyo, enjoying the warm sunshine of her skin. She almost laughed as she thought over how ridiculous she had been acting. How could she expect to get Darien back when she was a mess? He wouldn't take her back when she could barely hold herself together. She needed to pull herself together and show him how grown up she was. She would make sure he sees that she is responsible, mature and could defend Tokyo...no, the world, against anything! Then he would want her back!

"Raye!" Serena yelled as she ran up the steps to the Cherry Hill Temple. "Raye!"

"Meatball head, be quiet! It's early morning!" Raye yelled back. She had been at the steps to the temple sweeping up the fallen leaves when she heard pounding footsteps racing towards her. After yelling at Serena, it took her a few moments to realise it was Serena...up at 8 on a Saturday...smiling! "Serena...you're here...did something happen? Did Darien take you back?!"

Serena's face fell slightly when she mentioned Darien, but she quickly put the smile back up. She skipped her way over to the steps near Raye and sat. "No, but he will soon! I have a plan!"

Raye couldn't help but groan. None of Serena's plans ever went...according to plan. But if going along with it meant Serena finally getting back to normal, she would. Raye could already see a difference in Serena. She was no longer dragging herself around with effort, she had put effort into her appearance again and she was smiling, the biggest difference. She gathered after talking with Darien, Serena had finally decided to pull herself together. And now she was trying to get him back.

"And what's your plan?" Raye asked. She gave up her sweeping and sat down beside the grinning Serena. She really had changed overnight.

"Uh ah! You have to wait until the girls get here!" Serena squealed. "Do you have any food?"

Serena followed Raye around for the next hour, watching as the fire maiden did her chores, while she ate the doughnuts the girls had gotten to cheer her up two days ago. Serena had barely said two words to her friends in the past two weeks, so it seemed like she was catching up on lost time as she wouldn't not stop talking! She talked to Raye about absolutely anything and everything; from the Sailor V game she needed to get back to playing to how annoying Rini was and everything in between. After 10 minutes Raye was ready to tell her to shut it but didn't want to say anything harsh after she had just gotten better.

"Hey, where's your Grandpa and Chad?" Serena asked.

"Grandpa has gone to Shizuoka for a few days and Chad's on holiday with his family," Raye answered in a huff as she scrubbed the floors.

"Ooh Shizuoka! We should go on a holiday-"

Finally Raye was saved from Serena's motor mouth when the other girls arrived. Each of them was just as shocked as Raye had been to see how drastically Serena had changed in less than a day. Gone was the depressed, miserable and spiritless Serena that had sat across from yesterday. The old Serena was back and God they had missed her! They would never yell at her or call her a cry baby ever again!

Once the initial shock was over, the girls went into Raye's room where Serena explain that although Darien had not taken her back, she was going to win him back. She began gushing about how she was going to show him she was mature, responsible and smart, so that he would want her back again. She thought that if she acted more like the Princess she had been in her previous life, Darien would remember how strong their love and been back then and want to be with her again.

Serena was so giddy about it that none of the girls said anything against her idea. They didn't want to deflate her bubble and have her crawl back into her shell. They didn't ever want to lose her again like they had for the past weeks.

All of the girls wanted Serena back with Darien but they were unsure if her plan would work. Nevertheless, they would support her, and maybe by some miracle, her plan would work! It was the best they could hope for.

Each Scout had their part to play; Amy would help Serena study after school to improve her test scores, Lita would teach Serena martial arts so she could defend herself better and stop Tuxedo Mask from saving her so much, Mina would give Serena a makeover and Raye would teach Serena how to act less ditzy and klutzy. And stop yelling at her.

Serena wanted to get started on her plan straight away so Raye began teaching her how to talk so she sounded more intelligent. After just ten minutes Raye wanted to take a break so they began teaching her how to walk without falling over anything. They piled three books onto her head and made her walk up and down the walkway until none of the books fell off. It was midday before Serena decided to take a break and scoff down more doughnuts. The girls watched as the doughnuts disappeared before their eyes with grins on their faces.