Chapter 4: It's All About Me

Serena trotted up the steps of the ancient shrine, Rini and Luna in tow. It was exactly what Darien had said, everything was back to how it was before the giant teddy bear on acid terrorized the city.

There were no piles of rubble or a broken city. Everyone was up, going to their destinations as they would early in the morning; traveling by car, bus, train, or foot.

She never wished for her city to be silent ever again.

"Hey!" she waved at the others when she reached the top. As expected she saw a lot of angry faces but she wasn't sure if it was because Darien had told them the news or because she had called for a meeting at the crack of dawn.

"Did Darien tell you what happened?" she asked once she made it over to them; she sat down next him on the steps.

Everyone nodded.

"This is insane!" Lita exclaimed. "I just can't believe that we were all sleeping when this happened."

"But it doesn't feel like we slept through a whole day." Mina pointed out.

"You didn't." Serena interjected. "The day just started over. After I smashed the heart, there was this bright light and then I woke up back in my room."

"The same with me and I was expecting to be in pain. I knew for sure that I had some broken ribs during that fight. It might have been even worst than that."

"Did you get a good look at the enemy?" Amara asked. She was pissed that an evil force was back and probably more powerful than anything they had faced.

"A skeleton with skin, silver hair, and lavender eyes. She said her name was Mandara and she had an I-don't-care attitude about her." Serena toyed with the tip of her hair as she explained.

"That doesn't give us much to go on." Michelle commented.

"Yeah, but that's all we've got so far." Serena snapped back. "I'm sorry. I'm just on edge right now. They can come after us at any moment. Without warning; what would have happened if we didn't escape the spell. Our world would have perished."

"Darien said most of the attacks were sleep related." Amy began to jot in her notebook. "A sleeping spell, a monster that was imitating a sleepy girl, sharp feathers."

"So what, we can't go to sleep now?" Raye jumped up, pacing to calm her nerves.

"I doubt that. I think that her powers emulate her personality. I'm sure that the others aren't like that."

"Others!" the girls shrieked.

"I agree with Amy." Trista stepped forth. "Serena said that she gave off a wave that she didn't care about anything. It would almost seems that someone else had pressured her to do it."

There was a pause. Brains were pondering what to do next.

"Alright Scouts!" Luna shouted with a burst of unexpected energy. "And Darien, we're back in business. Our mission is to stop these new foes from taking over the world. Is that clear?"

Everyone gave a confident smile, nodding their heads in acknowledgment.

"Right!"

Everyone dodge the lightening bolts that Tempest threw around the tower. The only one that the least interested in her tantrum was the one who caused it, Mandara.

So her spell didn't work like she planned. How was she supposed to know that Sailor Moon just so happened to be the one to break free.

Feeling her anger dissipating, Tempest stopped her attacks. Walking over to the window, she leaned again the wall looking out at the world she and her sisters were hired to destroy. And so far they were off to a bad start.

"Who's going to go up next?" She asked; venom dripped from her words.

"I think Vani should go next." Brie opened her mouth once again, nominating another sister.

Vani looked up from her mirror to glare at Brie "Since you're so quick to put everyone on the chopping block but yourself, why don't you get up and go?" Her anger spread across her face. Her lips thinned turning into a snarl; veins sprouted like spider webs around her face.

"Calm down Van. You're so not pretty when you're mad." Amora stated, filing her nails into sharp points.

Gradually, Vani returned back to her youthful self.

"I think Brie is on to something." Tempest began. "Vani, I think you should go." The sorceress sucked her teeth.

"Fine." She stomped her feet. Her purple heels clicked against the stone floor. Making her way to the window, she stopped and turned. "I'll do a better job anyways." She boasted.

And then she was gone.

Serena wasn't surprised that she woke up again not in her bed. This time she in a field of flowers. Looking more closely, she realized that she was in a garden. It didn't take her long to know that she was back at the Moon Kingdom.

Dusting her gown off, she began to walk back to the castle. Of course she didn't see anyone on the way. She never did. All she knew was that her feet took her where she needed to go and she would figure out the rest later.

Was her subconscious trying to tell her something? Was her other daughter present in real time? Was she close by and she didn't know it?

Making her way down the vast hallway, she stopped back at the same down she did the pervious night. Opening it, her daughter's room was flooded with color. But Serena noticed that the color blue was missing from the palate.

"Mama, Mama!" Rini squealed. She bounced up and down on the bed. She was no more then three years old. Her small frame adorned a pink dress. Her hair was just starting to grow; fashioned in "bunny eared" buns, the tails barely tickled her ears.

Crossing over to her, she kissed her cheeks before picking her up. She looked over to find the other one. This time she wasn't eight years old, but somewhere around eleven.

She sighed softly, her face scrunched up by her fisted hands. Her melancholy expression was reflected by her vanity mirror, pins scattered on the table; a hair brush laid off to the side.

Serena was unsure why the child was so upset

"What's the matter sweetheart?" Serena asked.

"It won't do it." She pouted.

"What won't do what?" Serena giggled, teasing a strand of her dark hair. Now up close, she realized that her hair was a dark green with faint blue tint, very similar to her father's hair. She couldn't believe that she had given birth to two children.

"My hair." She flattened it against the sides of her face. "It won't cooperate."

"Well what are you trying to make it do?"

"To look like yours and Rini's." she looked up, her eyes filled with tears. Serena frowned, her heart wrenched for the girl.

"And why do you want your hair to look exactly like ours?" she sat Rini on the table, giving herself a chance to play with her hair. The thickness of it was the same as hers but the texture was different. Her hair was naturally wavy, it reminded her of the way Michelle wore hers, which would make it difficult to bind her hair into just two buns.

"Because I want to look pretty like you." Serena stopped fiddling with her hair. The tips of her fingers brushed against her chin, raising her head so that their eyes would meet.

"Listen to me. You are beautiful. No matter what your hair looks like. You don't have to copy anyone to be beautiful. Do you understand?"

The tears that swelled in her eyes before fell down her cheeks. She gave her mother a trembling smile.

"Yes, Mama." Her voice waivered. Serena began to brush her hair. Styling it to the best of her abilities; her daughter was right, the locks weren't cooperating.

"'on't cry, 'issy." Rini soothed in broken words. Patting her sister's face to dry her tears.

Her older sister accepted her gesture, kissing the palm of her hand as a thank you.

Serena tied off the end of her hair. "I'm done." She ruffled her bangs. It took her some time to manage it, but she did it.

The dark haired child looked away from her sister towards the mirror. Her eyes glittered with joy, her mouth gaped open in astonishment.

Her mother had styled it very similar to her own just how she wanted, but it was also different. Parts of her hair were braided on either side and then coiled around into the two famous buns. Her tails were also braided, making it slightly shorter than its natural length.

"Do I look pretty Mama?" she sniffed.

Serena smiled. She bent over until she saw her reflection; her two daughters' smiling faces on either side of her. She had hoped that she would be able to meet her someday.

"You look gorgeous."

The blonde walked towards Rini's room. She was having too many dreams about the same person. A person that she had never known existed until a few nights ago. Luna made her feel like she was crazy, insisting that there was no other child. Serena thought it was time that she should ask Rini, the only one in their group that didn't have their memory erased.

Her door was ajar so she let herself in. She found the tiny tot sitting at her desk. Her head was down, working diligently. Colored pencils were fanned out; pieces of discarded drawings littered the floor. Serena wished she had a talent to draw like her.

Sensing another presence in her area, Rini stopped drawing long enough to look up.

"Hi, Serena." She greeted, continuing her drawing.

She waved at her back. Stepping forward, she looked over her shoulder to see what she was doing.

"Aw! It's Luna, Artemis, and Diana." Serena recognized the cat family. "This is really good."

A faint blush bloomed under Rini's cheeks.

"Thanks."

Serena waited a beat, not sure as to how to approach the situation. She didn't know how she felt about the other child. She didn't know if the loving relationship that was displayed in her dreams had fallen through the cracks along the years. She didn't even know if she was even alive anymore.

A lot of unknowns plagued her mind. Taking a deep breath Serena felt there was only one way to find out.

"Rini?"

"Huh?"

"Can we talk about something?"

"Sure, what is it?" her pencil never stopped moving over the paper.

Here goes nothing. "Do you have an older sister?" the pencil stopped, clattering on the table. Slowly, Rini turned in her chair. Her face was nothing but serious.

"How do you know about Wynter?"

"Wynter? That's her name?"

"Yes. So how do you know her?"

"I-I don't." she fingered the tail of her bright blue blouse. "I've been dreaming about her lately, but I wasn't sure if she was real or just a dream or even alive for that matter."

Rini sighed heavily. "No she is real and very much alive."

Excitement sparked across her nerves. "Well, where is she? Is she still in the future? Why haven't you spoken about her? Is she a Scout like us?"

Serena stopped her frantic questions as she waited for Rini to return to her after she closed the door. Getting cozy, Rini sat next to the blonde by propping herself up with pillows.

"Wynter is my older sister. She's about sixteen now. I don't speak about her because I don't see her as much."

"Why?"

Rini guessed she should start from the beginning. "Wynter's the best. She's smart, beautiful; she has so many talents. She has an amazing voice and she can dance. We even made up this dance that only we do together, sort of like a secret password. And she plays the piano and violin and can ice skate really well, like you and Lita.

"She used to sing this song everyday; it was my favorite." She closed her eyes, the melody floated clear in her head.

"Let me be your wings. Let me take you high above. Let me take you far beyond the stars.*" Rini blushed. She was a little off key. "Wynter can hit those high notes better than me." She giggled.

Serena watched as the child's eyes lit up, her smile becoming bigger and brighter as she talked about her older sister. The fun that they had at the Kingdom, the games they played, the secrets they shared. She could tell that she loved and looked up to her.

"So is she a Scout like the rest?"

"No." Rini shook her head. "No, she wanted to become one, but she couldn't. She's already powerful enough." She explained further. "Being the daughter of the Earth's Prince can have its perks. Wynter can create and control the earth's elements."

"What?" Serena stared. "You're joking!"

"Mama and Papa realized it when she was very young so she was arranged to train with the Scouts and Papa routinely to help develop her skills. She turned out to be a terrific fighter and a skilled swordswoman, but it wasn't enough to hone in on her internal gifts.

"Mama sent Wynter to an academy in another universe because her powers were getting out of hand and she was having a hard time controlling them. Mama did want anyone to get hurt, including Wynter.

"That was five years ago. We see her when she would come back for vacation. But I haven't seen her since I've been here now. The last time I saw her was the day before Mama sent me back here tou you for training."

Serena rubbed her back, hearing the sadness behind the girl's words. She missed her.

"I hope that I can meet her one day."

Rini nodded happily. "She's amazing. You would really like her."

A hysterical meowing, followed by scratching noises emitting from the door ended their bonding time. Rushing to the door, Luna stumbled inside the room.

"Girls! Something is seriously wrong. Come quickly!" They wasted no time as they followed the feline to the bathroom.

"Sammy?" Serena knitted her eyebrows as she looked on at the fair-haired teen. He was standing away from the sink, his pajama top discarded at the door. He did a series of poses, flexing his non-existing muscles in front of the mirror.

"Have you ever seen a man like me? Just look at me!" he showed off, kissing his biceps.

"More like a scrawny kid." Serena joked walking over to him. "Come on, Sammy. What's your problem?"

"I'm amazing in every way." Her younger brother did another pose. "You can't tell me that I'm not the best looking guy in the room."

"You're the only guy in the room." Serena frowned. He was ignoring her. In fact, he never even acknowledged her existence. "Hey!" She grabbed his arm to yank it down; she was getting tired of his ego.

"He's not paying attention, Serena." Luna called out to her. "I even tried straching him a few times. It's like his mind is in another world." She realized that she was telling the truth. Her brother never looked away from the mirror as he admired his reflection even after she had almost pulled his arm out of socket.

"They've started again." She left quickly, trotting down the steps with Rini along side her. She tripped on the edge of the rug, tumbling into the dining room. She groaned, rubbing her head. Her fingers gripped the table as support to pull herself off the floor.

She was shocked to her mother sitting right where she was. She seemed not to care that her child just had a mouthful of carpet for breakfast. She didn't rush to help her or ask if she was ok. She was enthralled by her reflection.

"Mom?" the blonde tried to get her attention by waving her hand in her face. The middle aged woman did nothing more than fuss with her hair.

"What do you think? Hair up or down?" she held out the mirror in one hand while lifting her locks with the other.

Fishing for her locket, she opened it to communicate with the others.

"Attention all Scouts! Attention! Be on guard. The enemy is on the move again. They've put a spell on mirrors! Do not look into a mirror. I repeat, DO NOT look at your reflection! Find my location immediately!"

Jumping to her feet, she ran for the door. "Luna, find the others and lead them to me." She commanded her guide. Flying out the door, she suddenly stopped.

"Rini." She had forgotten the child. Turning back, she gasped when she saw that Rini had fallen under the spell as well.

She caught her faint reflection in the window near the front door. She let out a giddy laugh, twirling around, doing different moves as if she was in a beauty pageant. Blowing a kiss to herself told Serena that she was just as far gone as the rest of her family.

Rushing out, she made her way to Center City. Hopefully the others weren't in the same situation.

"What a happy way to go. Entranced by your own beauty that you could care less about anything else but yourself." The beautiful woman pinned the last layer of her hair, completing the style of the day.

"And how is this any different from Manda's?" Tempest refused to fail a second time.

"Well unlike my lazy sister, I thought everything through. My spell doesn't work while someone is unconscious. Instead it is enveloped into every day objects in this world. Anything that can capture their reflection; whether it be a mirror, a window, a pool of water; it can be clear or blurry, as long as you can identify yourself, you're hooked."

The sorceress laughed, amazed by her genius plan. "And what makes it even better, it doesn't matter what they were doing at the time when their reflection is caught. Someone could have been driving when they looked into the rear view mirror to fix their make-up or cooking a fabulous coconut soufflé in the oven when suddenly the sterling silver ladle was lifted and ta-da!" She did a once over, spinning around. She declared that she had never looked more desirable.

"So there will be more casualties." Brie sampled the chocolate that she made earlier that morning. "Very good." She commented more so the chocolate than her sister's plan.

"And this process will be a lot faster." Her smile dimmed when her personal mirror distorted her image.

Anger started to simmer inside her. "That little bitch." She hissed. She watched as the same blonde with a strange taste in fashion run through the streets.

She could feel heat boiling under her skin; she bared her teeth. "How the fuck did she get away!" enraged, she slammed her fist against the frame. The action made it shake violently as if it were going to break.

"Get rid of her Vani!" Her "commanding officer" barked.

"With pleasure."

(*) I like Thumbelina… leave me alone! XD

A/n: Special Thanks to Paula and Phedre Serenity Rosamund for being the first to review my story...(tear) it means a lot! :)

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