Author's Note: hello all, I hope you're ready for another chapter. Just to let everyone know, my book will be out in the next two weeks so be prepared! I will send out a message with the link for whoever is interested :) and now please enjoy!

Chapter 3: Unexpected Wind

Setsuna would not have looked up at all if not for Yasuke closing the door a little harder than usual. When she did look up, the smell of take out assaulted her senses and she took a deep, hungry breath. She hadn't realized she was hungry until this point. She stretched, feeling the crick in her neck and the pop of her spine. She must have been sitting there for much longer than she'd thought.

Yasuke walked towards her, turned off her microscope, and placed one of the delicious-smelling bags right into her lap. "You need to take a break," he said firmly. "You have been working fourteen hours straight. I should know, I've timed you." He lifted his watch to demonstrate.

Setsuna blinked and rubbed her eyes, wondering where the time had gone. This made her smile a little, thinking of the irony of her thoughts. She stuck her hand in the bag and pulled out an indecipherable piece of food and ate it without looking at it. Yasuke watched her, lifting an eyebrow at the mechanical way she ate. He'd grown used to her strange devotion to their work, her slightly manic way of studying things that normally made people her age nod off. But there she was, calculating her next project without seeing anything around her. It was enough to make Yasuke wish he was a few years younger, just to ask her on a date. It wasn't that he wanted to date her. He'd known Setsuna for about six months and he liked her well enough, and she was certainly beautiful enough for any man to want her, but her mind was always on work. He imagined dating her would be like dating a very beautiful stone.

No, he wanted to ask her on a date just to see what she would do. He had the mind of a scientist and even in this, his coworker's personal life, he wanted to experiment to see if she really was human. The single-mindedness of her devotion to work was staggering sometimes and Yasuke wondered if maybe he should start forcing her to take vacations or take breaks. It just wasn't normally. Didn't she have friends? Didn't she have at least one man out there that looked past her brains and wanted her just for her looks? She looked like she needed those kinds of experiences, the ones where she had her heart broken but at least she'd experienced life and didn't just hide behind a microscope all the time.

Of course, Yasuke had no idea what kind of life Setsuna really led. For her, sitting in the lab all day with Yasuke beside her was the most social she'd been for eons. She could still taste the stall air and sense the thrumming power of the Door of Time. She could feel it calling to her, always in the back of her mind, always pressing the loneliness down on her heart. For her, this cold, empty lab was a paradise of experiences and sensations and life. Being outside overwhelmed her sometimes but here, quiet, with Yasuke there whenever she wanted someone to talk to… it was peace.

"Don't you have some friends who might want to see you?" Yasuke suddenly said, noticing Setsuna's eyes straying back to her microscope.

"Hmm? Oh, yes, I do actually," Setsuna said with a little smile. Her eyes brightened all of a sudden and Yasuke felt the breathe leave his lungs. Her beauty was suddenly different and he started rethinking the "too-old" for her part of his argument to ask her out earlier.

"Who are they? Anyone I've met?" Yasuke asked, just a little jealous of whoever could make Setsuna, the quiet and shy young woman, smile like that.

"I don't know if you'd understand," Setsuna said with a little laugh. "They're much younger than I am. Usagi and Ami are only sixteen," she said. Yasuke blinked, nearly dropping the rice ball he'd been lifting to his mouth. He rubbed his friend hand through his graying beard to hide his hesitation and took a big bite. This gave him a moment to think.

"You're hanging around high school girls?" he asked, trying not to sound as if he didn't understand. This was new – getting Setsuna to talk about herself was usually like pulling teeth.

"They're much more than that, to me," Setsuna said mysteriously. "But Ami said something about needing some help with her studies and Usagi has recently done very well on her exams. We're going with our other friends to celebrate her accomplishments."

"I see," Yasuke said, processing this. She seemed so proud… but also as if she was trying to hide it. This was confusing.

"Our friend, Michiru, has a concert she needs to perform for first and then Hotaru has to finish some of her homework before we're all going to dinner. It'll be the first time we're all together again in about…" Setsuna paused, thinking, "about two weeks. We've all had fairly hectic schedules and with Usagi studying for her exams so much, it has been very difficult for us all to meet. It wouldn't be the same without her there."

"Are these all high school girls?" Yasuke asked, his head already spinning. His entire perspective of Setsuna had been turned upside down and he wasn't sure how to think of the young woman yet.

"Michiru is my age," Setsuna explained, "she is a violinist. Hotaru is my adopted daughter," she lifted her hand to show a wedding band on her finger. Yasuke frowned, again scratching his earlier thought that perhaps she was a young widow and therefore quiet because she was in mourning. How he'd gotten everything wrong! "Hotaru is still in grade school but she is nearly done with her school year. When Chibiusa comes to visit next, I'm sure we'll all have a party again to celebrate their accomplishments as well!"

"You sound as if you have a very large group of friends," Yasuke said, relaxing into a smile. He couldn't help it. Seeing her so happy, talking with such pride, it was getting to him. The skepticism had evaporated and he couldn't help thinking that perhaps this was the best thing for her.

"They're my family," Setsuna said, lowering her voice. Yasuke blinked, surprised that she sounded so embarrassed. She sounded almost as if… she was confessing something. "They mean so much to me… I just want… I just want to protect them all and do my best." She nodded towards the microscope. "I live with Michiru, her girlfriend, Haruka, and our adopted daughter Hotaru. Sometimes, I pretend… that they really are my family. That Hotaru really is my daughter and…" she stopped, suddenly coming back to herself.

"They must be very lucky," Yasuke said, transfixed by Setsuna's sudden honesty. She was usually quiet for so long sometimes, never speaking about herself… it was fascinating to see this side of her and to discover just how unique her life was. "They must be very lucky to have someone like you protecting them."

"T-Thank you," Setsuna said, blushing slightly. "A-Anyway, Ami and Usagi told me yesterday that they would be coming to get me whenever we were ready to meet the others. I just wanted to get some things done before they got here. I guess I got a little carried away." She smiled ruefully at the microscope, thinking of the seemingly endless reports and data she'd been completing lately.

It had been a strange year. Aside from leaving her post by the Door of Time and coming to live on Earth, Setsuna had been sensing something strange happening that she couldn't quite pinpoint. She could sense it right now – the threads of Fate tugging at her. All that she could hope for was that she would recognize the signs of whatever was coming and know whether it was friend or foe, before it was too late to do anything about it.

The knock at the door made both scientists jump. Setsuna blinked at the door, surprised that anyone would bother. Usagi and Ami would have come right in, although it was still a little early for them, and anyone else would have known what they were coming to get. The other departments usually came in every now and then to get a clean beaker or a specifically made stupor of some kind. Sometimes they even paused to exchange statistical read-outs and plan their next meeting, but otherwise all was quiet. And no one bothered to knock unless they were lost.

"It's open," Yasuke called, glancing questioningly at Setsuna. She shrugged.

Two men came in through the door. They were noticeably tall and well built. Their tailor-made suits looked a tad too perfect and Setsuna's eyes immediately zeroed in on the guns holstered behind their otherwise impeccable jackets. The obvious tipoff that these men were not supposed to be here was the fact that they were wearing black sunglasses while indoors, at night. Setsuna stood from her stool, half standing in front of Yasuke out of habit. She could sense it now, the strings of Fate twisted around these men, twisted around herself. She forced her face to soften into an impenetrable mask. Yasuke didn't notice Setsuna's change in stance, merely stood and ran his hands over his wrinkled lab coat. He wished he'd dragged a comb through his long black hair and maybe shaved this morning. These men were making him feel especially self-conscious, mostly because Setsuna was there.

"Can I help you?" Yasuke asked in his most helpful voice. He'd noticed the sunglasses too.

"Are you Yasuke Arisawa? Setsuna Meioh?" the first man asked. He took off his sunglasses, revealing a pair of bright green eyes. Setsuna's eyes flicked up to his blonde hair and the way he struggled with his words. He was a foreigner, obviously.

"Yes," Setsuna said in English. The man smiled in relief.

"Oh thank God," he said, much more at ease. Even his partner relaxed and smiled weakly. "I thought I was going to mess this up again. We've been up and down this corridor for the past hour trying to find out. But after I got past the names, I couldn't understand the directions people gave me."

"Do not worry, I speak English," Setsuna said without a trace of an accent. "This is my associate, Yasuke Arisawa," she said, motioning to him. He nodded, following Setsuna's lead. He had no idea what the blonde-haired man had said.

"Good," the man said. "We're with the American Secret Service," he said, showing her a badge, "and we've been sent here with the permission of your embassy to escort you to the airport. Our governments have worked out an arrangement for you to travel to the United States in conjunction with your company to work on a top secret project."

Setsuna blinked, waiting a moment to let this information sink in. "The United States wishes for us to travel to your country? Without any prior notification?"

"What's going on, Setsuna?" Yasuke demanded in Japanese, his eyes widening.

"They wish for us to accompany them to the airport, to America," Setsuna explained in Japanese. "They say that their government has spoken with our embassy. It's top secret, according to them."

"Without notification?" Yasuke demanded.

"I'm sorry but this is time-sensitive," the man said in English. Setsuna looked at him, frowning. The strings of Fate were being especially powerful at the moment. She could and normally did ignore them but for some reason, they would not allow her to think clearly.

"May I ask what this pertains to?" Setsuna asked in English. "My associate and I would prefer to have at least an idea of what we're getting ourselves into."

"We cannot give you any information," the man said apologectically. His partner reached into his briefcase and retrieved a manila envelope from inside. He handed this to Setsuna.

"This is all the paperwork," the other man said. "Your superiors have already signed off on it and your paychecks for the next year have been entered into your bank accounts."

"My daughter," Setsuna said quickly, realizing from the feel of the envelope without having to open it that the contents would change the direction of time. It was Yasuke who took the file from her limp fingers and paged through it, his eyebrows coming together in surprise. "I have a responsibility to my daughter, Hotaru. And to my other housemates."

"Can you leave her with anyone?" the first man asked. He'd stopped looking nervous and instead had started really LOOKING at her. His eyes strayed a little downward. Setsuna didn't notice. The word "leave her" resounded in her mind, making her tense.

"I will not leave my daughter," she said in a carefully clipped tone. Both men immediately looked up at her face, sensing the shift in her mood. Where she'd been accommodating and friendly before, now she was hostile and controlled.

"We'll have a car pick her up on the way to the airport," the man said quickly. "And for the rest of your family as well."

"They won't go with you unless I tell them," Setsuna said, her voice still measured. "Let me make a phone call and then we'll go."

"O-Of course," the man said, his eyes widening. He immediately got out of her way as she walked past them. Before she closed the door, she heard the man's partner say, "I thought we had orders not to bring family members." But he'd said it in German, probably thinking Setsuna wouldn't understand. It was stupid of him to assume.

She went to the stairwell and up to the roof, two at a time. When she'd reached the top, she took out her cell phone and searched for reception. Once she'd gotten it, she called Michiru's cell phone. It rang exactly three times before Michiru's light voice came over the line.

"Mushi mushi," she said.

"Michiru, get your things packed. We're going to America. A car will come to pick up Hotaru, you, and Haruka," Setsuna said, her voice betraying a little of her frustration.

"Setsuna, what's going on," Michiru said. There were some shuffling sounds on the other side of the line. Good, she was packing while she talked.

"There are some American men in the lab right now and they're taking me and Yasuke to their country. They have all of the correct paperwork filed," she said, tapping her foot.

"What do they want you in America for?" she asked, tossing something across the room. Setsuna winced, thinking of how annoyed Haruka was going to be about this when Michiru told her.

"It's top secret," Setsuna explained, "and they won't tell me anything about it. Make sure to bring Hotaru's medication. We'll need to find a doctor once we get there to ensure we can continue getting her medication. Can you call the concert hall also and ask them for an extended-,"

"I've got it," Michiru interrupted breezily, "don't worry about the little things. Just tell me why you're taking us with you. If you didn't think this was serious, you wouldn't have bothered."

"I can sense something strange," Setsuna admitted, relieved that Michiru understood the urgency in her voice. She could already hear the front door slamming behind Michiru and the roar of her car engine. Wait, Michiru frowned, that was Haruka's car. Good, she really DID realize the urgency. "I can sense that fate is bringing me somewhere important. And I need to make sure I have you all there in case something big is happening there."

"I understand. I'll let Haruka know to be at Hotaru's school in fifteen minutes. We'll speak with her professors and make sure they understand the situation. Haruka will call all the necessary places in the United States to ensure that we are well-received. She still has some contacts there from when she raced…" Michiru paused and Setsuna heard screeching tires and blaring horns before Michiru's calm voice came over the phone again. "Find out what you can and we'll meet up later."

"Just remember to tell Usagi and the others before we go. They should be on high alert in case they need to be ready in Japan."

"Consider it done," Michiru said and ended the call. Setsuna stared up at the sky for a moment and took a deep breath. With a firm resolve, she turned back to the stairwell and descended back to the lab. She'd done all she could.

"I understand," Rei said, frowning as she stared out the window. "But I don't like it. With the four of you out of the country, things will be a little more difficult on our end."

"Don't tell me you can't handle a few youma without us?" Haruka's amused voice carried well through Rei's phone and she sputtered just as if the other woman had been in the same room as her.

"Of course we can! We were doing just fine before any of you showed up!" she said indigently. "But it isn't that. I meant other things. You know how strained Usagi and Mamoru's relationship has become since Usagi's father became so strict about her grades. And if anything bigger than a few youma comes along, then we'll be severely limited."

"I know," Haruka said, her voice sobering. "I'm very much aware that this could be some sort of trick to divide us. Setsuna's pretty upset about it even without being something supernatural but we don't have much of a choice. She has to go no matter what and she's spooked enough to bring us all along. One of the guys said that no one was supposed to bring family. That means something important."

"That Setsuna can be scary when she wants to be?" Rei said, arching an eyebrow.

"Aside from that," Haruka said, "they're bringing other people. This is big, whatever it is. Michiru has been hearing talk that some of her professor friends are suddenly "disappearing" all over Europe. Something's happened in America that's bringing specialists from all different fields there, all top secret, all run by the government. We need to be there in case its something related to the Senshi."

"I see what you mean," Rei said, biting on a fingernail. "I'll speak with Ami about this, see if she can find any information out through the internet with Luna and Artemis. I'll ask Minako also. She had some friends when she lived in England that might know what's going on."

"The more we can get, the better. Just be careful with the information you pass along to us. I get the feeling we'll be monitored in America. The government tends to be paranoid, especially about classified information."

"We'll only send important information through our translators," Rei agreed, fingering the device in her pocket. After cell phones, her translator was going to seem a bit strange. She hadn't used it in some years. "Whenever you get any information you can give us, pass it on. We're all prepared in case of an emergency. Luna's prepping the other right now about some possible transportation we might need in case you call."

"It might be wise to find some excuses ahead of time," Haruka said. "If you do leave at the drop of a hat, it can't be helped. But if you have warning ahead of time, you might be able to leave without anyone becoming suspicious."

"Luna thought of that. She and Artemis have been brainstorming about what possible reasons we could come up with. They've even suggested an exchange program with America in case we need to stay long term. The problem is that Usagi's grades might still not be good enough to qualify. She did better this term but she still has her old scores to contend with."

"We'll think of something," Haruka said with a sigh. "The car just pulled up. I'll call you when we arrive in the States. Hotaru sends her love."

"Tell Michiru and Hotaru we love them too and we miss them already," Rei said, frowning. "Just be careful. I've got a bad feeling about this whole situation."

"You're not the only one," Haruka said and hung up. Rei clicked her phone off and sighed, frowning at the phone. She went to her dresser and pulled out some warm socks, putting them on while she stood. A moment later she was at the door, slipping her shoes on. Before her grandfather had a moment to ask her where she was going, she'd already left.

"So the Senshi are officially on high alert," Usagi said with a sigh. She shuffled to her desk and dropped the heavy books from her cram class. She still had to do some more problems if she had any hope of keeping up with the class tomorrow. She'd thought studying was hard before – keeping her grades up might very well kill her. "And the others will be keeping us up to date on what's going on in America."

"Do you think it would make sense for me to go as well?" Mamoru's contemplating voice soothed Usagi but she paused at his words. She nearly dropped the phone, she stopped so suddenly.

"No! Don't go!" Usagi said, "I need you here!"

"I wasn't saying I would go!" Mamoru said quickly. "I was just wondering if they needed me there. We have no idea what this is and I just thought I might be able to help." Usagi clenched her fist over the phone, her whole body shaking. "Usako, it's okay," he said gently. "I'm not going anywhere, don't worry. I'm just trying to figure this out. It frustrates me that it seems all the answers are on the other side of the world."

"I know," Usagi said, exhaling sharply. "And I know they could really use your help right now. It just… scared me when I thought of you gone. It's hard enough knowing they'll be so far away. I'm trying to do normal things right now, human things, but I have these other responsibilities at the same time. It's frustrating for me too," she frowned, "because I have these two… these very different responsibilities. I can't just drop everything and go there, like I want to."

"Exactly," Mamoru said, the relief evident in his voice, "I wish we could both go. But we have to do other things here. Don't worry, okay? Setsuna and the others know what they're doing. Of all the Senshi, they're the best suited for this. And they're less conspicuous."

"What does that mean?" Usagi asked, pouting despite her verbal conversation. Mamoru seemed to hear it and chuckled.

"You don't know a word of English, Usako," he said with amusement. "Ami would be translating for everyone the entire time."

"… that's true," Usagi said, blushing with embarrassment. "Now I really wish I'd paid more attention in class."

"I can tutor you, if you'd like. At least the basics," Mamoru said. "It can be just like all the other classes we're learning together."

"That might be a good idea," Usagi said. "Hopefully this is nothing bad. We're talking about it as if something big has already happened but we don't know for sure. We might be overreacting for nothing."

"That's true," Mamoru said, although in his voice there was doubt. "It's better to be prepared in case something does happen. We've been through too much already to sit back and allow things to happen without trying to change them before they become too dangerous."

"You're right," Usagi said with a sigh. "It's just hard to keep up with everything. I have to worry about exams, friends, my family, all of the things that I love but at the same time I need to worry about youmas attacking and saving the world."

"At the very least you know you're not alone," Mamoru said soothingly. "No matter what, I will always be by your side."

"I know," Usagi said softly. "Some days, that's all that keeps me from crying."

Adonis paced the length of the reception area. It was not a long walk – the room was tiny compared to the various security clearances, elevator rides, eye scans, finger print analysis, security questions, and many, many doors. Adonis had felt that the room might have been his end point but now he saw that this was the final test – a test on his patience. He was going to go crazy if they didn't tell him what was going on soon. He had been trapped in this particular room for three hours with an uncomfortable beige sofa and a fake plant in the corner for company. He was going to scream soon if someone didn't-,

"I apologize for the delay," a voice said. He turned to see a tall man in a military uniform, a large envelope under his arm. "This way, please."

"This is about as far as I go. I want answers and I want them now," Adonis said, narrowing his eyes. The man frowned, tilting his head.

"I know must be frustrated but the security is absolutely necessary. Please, it will all be explained when you walk through this door." The aforementioned door seemed innocent enough to Adonis as he walked towards it, frowning. There was no fingerprint scan or anything else. The only thing beside it was a green button.

"There'd better be answers," Adonis warned. "If you make me go through anything else, I'm going home."

"Understood," the man said with a slight smile. Adonis frowned and moved forward, waiting for the man to push the green button. The man came a little closer and did so, watching Adonis as the stainless steel door slide open. Adonis's mouth fell open when he realized what he was seeing.

"What… what is it?" he whispered, his eyes traveling over the enormous room. No, it couldn't be a single room. It was like an underground building – so huge he couldn't even see the edge of it. "What is all of this?"

"This is the research area for the Lunar Expedition," the man explained. "My name is Julio Martinez – I personally brought back about a third of everything you see right now."

"Why am I here?" Adonis whispered, staring at the enormous structure off to his right. It looked like a Greek temple with ivory columns and broken status all around it. "Lunar… Expedition…. This is all from the moon?"

"Now you understand the security," Julio said as he nudged Adonis inside. The door behind them closed with a whisper of air. "We can't risk anyone knowing about this until we are absolutely certain that the public will not be put into any danger. We stumbled on it and we don't know what half of it is."

"Then why am I here? I'm just a language expert! You need a… a…" Adonis floundered for words, his eyes zeroing in on every detail around him without seeing the larger objects. He saw a delicate hand here, a gleaming jewel there, someone's ponytail on the far side, the hum of conversation all around him. There were so many people around them – researching it all. There was so much…

"Some of the artifacts we brought back have a strange language on them. We need someone to start working on them as soon as possible," Julio said. "Can you do it?"

Adonis continued to look around, his eyes so wide he couldn't even blink. He looked up at Julio with his mouth hanging open, still at a lose for words. He simply nodded, taking a deep breath. The excitement started brewing the moment he agreed and Julio's next words only excited him more.

"Welcome to the team."