Chapter 2

Usagi had just said goodbye to her family as they left for the airport. She would have the house to herself for the entire summer. Summer class began on Monday giving her two days to relax. Usagi ascended the stairs walking to the bathroom to prepare for the day. Removing her clothes she stepped before the mirror to examine her wound. On her R shoulder was a deep abrasion with two puncture wounds. The abrasion was obviously the outline of someone's bite and was very tender to the touch. She knew she would have to pick her clothing out carefully to properly cover her wound.

In the shower Usagi thought of her experience the night before. She wasn't surprised vampires existed. She was only surprised that she had not come in contact with them earlier. With all the evil she had battled vampires did not seem like a challenge. Usagi rubbed her forehead where the crescent energy had appeared the night before. Were vampires the new evil she had to defeat before Crystal Tokyo became a reality? Was Sebastian an enemy masquerading as an ally? She knew only time would tell and whatever evil presented its self her and the Sailor Senshi would defeat it.

Usagi searched through her closet for just the right outfit to wear to the dinner party tonight. Normally she would have worn a sundress with a light sweater to the dinner, but she feared that would put her at risk of revealing her wound. If her friends saw her wound not only would they not let her out of their sights, but also she would not get a chance to learn more about this man named Sebastian. When Seiya and her became close Haruka and Michiru made it impossible to be alone with him. She knew they were only performing their duty, but it was very frustrating. She may be their princess they are supposed to protect but she believed she had the right to make her own decisions. The excuse they gave was that she was too soft and could not see the danger she was putting herself in. Sometimes she felt as if the other Senshi saw her as a liability unable to protect herself or others. She proved herself after every battle, but her childish ways in everyday life hid her warrior instincts.

Standing in front of her bedroom mirror she examined the outfit she settled on. She chose a light blue button down t-shirt with a matching blue flower skirt. It was nice enough for dinner, but too dressy that she could not go out to run errands.

"Wow. I always forget how beautiful their house is." Minako said looking at the Outer Senshi's mansion.

All five of the inner Senshi gazed at the Outer Senshi mansion with their mouths hanging open. The front door open and Haruka stepped into the doorway and leaned on the wall. "Are you guys going to come in or just stand on the doorstep all night".

Simultaneously all the inner Senshi were snapped out of their state of awe and greeted Haruka. " Good evening"

"Good evening, come inside" Haruka walked inside with the inner Senshi in tow.

The Outer Senshi's mansion was decorated simply and elegantly. Haruka escorted them into the living room where Hotaru sat on the couch with a game control in her hand.

"Hi, everyone!" Hotaru said. " Do you want to play Mario Kart with me and Haruka-papa?" Haruka sat next to her daughter and picked up her controller.

"I'll play." Rei and Minako said in unison joining Haruka and Hotaru on the couch.

Ami joined her friends on the couch and smiled at her friends' excitement. "I've never played, but I'll watch"

"I'm going to see if Michiru and Setsuna need any help with dinner," Makoto said as she walked to the Kitchen. Usagi followed Makoto in hopes she might get a taste of what was for dinner.

When Makoto and Usagi entered the kitchen the smell was mouth watering. Michiru was in a sundress and an apron. She was cutting vegetables and Setsuna was stirring something in a pot on the stove.

"It smells so good." Usagi said smiling and slightly drooling at the same time.

"Good evening Makoto and Usagi." Michiru greeted her guest. "What are you guys doing in the kitchen?"

"Well I came to see if you guys needed some help, but I'm not sure why Usagi is here." Makoto said with some suspicion.

"I'm here to help too." Usagi said while looking into the oven.

Michiru, Setsuna, and Makoto looked and Usagi with nervousness. They had seen her cook and she tended to make a big mess.

"Well, that is very kind of both of you." Michiru said while gently grabbing Usagi and pushing her towards the kitchen door. "but you guys are our guests and we would like you to relax before dinner. It's almost done so we'll be eating soon."

Makoto and Usagi returned to the living room to watch their friends play Mario Kart.

"You may be a professional race car driver, but your going down." Minako said defiantly.

Haruka laughed at the comment. She was in first place, Rei was in second, Hotaru was in third, and Minako was dead last. "That's big talk from the person in last place."

"Oh yeah, well take that!" Minako yelled as she hit one of her buttons on her controller. Suddenly all the other characters became small and Minako's character became fast.

"Ahh." Rei and Hotaru yelled at the same time. Minako sped past Hotaru just barely missing her.

" Don't you dare." Rei warned Minako. It was no use Minako went straight for Rei crushing her character flat. "Ugh. Minako your dead!"

"Bwahaha!" Minako laughed evilly. The characters return to their normal size leaving Haruka in first, Minako in second, Hotaru in third, and Rei last.

"I'm still in first" Haruka said in a cocky tone. Haruka then noticed a blue shell flying her way. "oh shi…" Haruka character exploded right in front of the finish line and Hotaru laughed mischievously. "Hime-chan? How could you?"

Minako took the opportunity to pass Haruka and cross the finish line. "I win! Take that Mrs. Professional race car driver." Minako began to do a little dance much to the amusement of the others.

" I would have won if it wasn't for this one." Haruka said and she pounced on Hotaru and started tickling her.

"Haruka-papa stop." Hotaru laughed as she tried to escape Haruka's tickle attack.

"I think some one needs a dip in the pool." Haruka picked up the squirming Hotaru and walked towards the double door that led to the back yard.

"No!" Hotaru screamed. "Michiru-mama will be mad at you if you ruin my dress."

"I don't care. I need revenge." Haruka laughed as she spun her daughter upside down and walked towards the door.

"Oh, so you don't care if I get mad?" Michiru said with her arms crossed.

Haruka stopped in her tracks and looked over her shoulder at Michiru. " Oh, Michiru I was just getting Hotaru ready for dinner."

Michiru raised her right eyebrow. "By dropping her into the pool?"

Haruka spun Hotaru around and placed her on the ground before mumbled something incoherent.

Michiru smiled knowingly. "Hotaru please help your Setsuna-mama set the table."

Hotaru was about to protest, but was given a stern look by Michiru which told her not to test the boundaries. Hotaru took off towards the kitchen to grab the plates and silverware.

"Dinner will be ready in 10 minutes everyone. The washroom is down the hallway and is the second door on the left. " Michiru said before returning the kitchen.

The dinner was like any other thing the Outer Senshi did. Well planned, refined, and perfect. The dining room consisted of a long Victorian style dining table, with a white lace table cover, and a chandelier for lighting. The table could easily fit all nine Senshi with room to spare.

The dinner consisted of escargot for an appetizer, salad, and pumpkin soup. The main course was Kobe beef medium rare, mash potatoes, and asparagus.

After dinner everyone retired to the living room to chat and play board games. They had just finished a game of trivial pursuit and now were relaxing and catching up.

Of course the topic of Mamoru in America came up.

" How is Mamoru doing in America?" Michiru asked

Usagi didn't want to lie to everyone, but she just couldn't tell them about the situation between her and Mamoru. She just didn't want to think about it. "He's doing well. Didn't get to talk to him too much because he is unpacking and preparing for summer classes."

"Well, I'm sure once he gets settled you guys will have a routine down." Michiru gave a sympathetic smile.

"In the mean time we are keeping her distracted." Minako said as she wrapped her arm around her and gave her a squeeze. Minako happened to hit her wound on her R shoulder causing her to wince.

Minako felt Usagi withdrawal and whimper. "I'm sorry Usagi. Are you ok?"

"Yes. I just clipped my R shoulder on a cabinet last night." Usagi saw the concerned faces that crossed everyone face. "No worries. It's just a little sore." Usagi excused herself to the bathroom.

Usagi closed the bathroom door behind her and looked at her wound in the mirror. It was a dark purple with moderate swelling. Usagi applied a cool rag for a bit to stop the throbbing. Usagi looked out the window at the stars above. Away from the city lights the stars were bright and clear. Usagi open the window and took a moment to enjoy the night and scenery. Usagi heard rustling in the bushes. Her eyes followed the rustling and stopped to see a dog peering out from the bushes. The dog was large, brindle in color, and appeared to be an Atika.

A man stepped forward and petted the dog and attempted to get the dog to follow him. As Usagi's eyes adjusted to the dark she recognized the man that was before her. It was Sebastian.

Usagi slipped out of the window doing her best to jump over the flowers that were bellow. She walked quickly over to the bush, but stopped in her tracks when she heard the growling of the dog.

"Shht." Sebastian uttered causing the dog to sit.

"Sebastian. What are you doing here?" Usagi was surprised she came into contact with Sebastian so quickly after last night. Sebastian stepped behind large tree providing just enough cover for Sebastian making him invisible to anyone looking from the house.

"My dog got out and went for a walk by himself." Sebastian said with a crooked smile. "I finally found him. I actually only live a 5 minute drive from here."

Great Usagi thought. This was time bomb waiting to explode. Why did he have to live so close to Michiru and Haruka. If they found out about him forget learning more about him. She would practically be locked in her room for the rest of the summer.

"You know my name, but I don't know yours. " Sebastian said bringing Usagi's focus back to him. Sebastian leaned against the tree bringing him closer to Usagi.

"My name is Usagi"

Sebastian reached out and grabbed her shirt collar between his index finger and middle finger and moved it to the side exposing her bite mark. "Well, Usagi it seems that he got you good last night. You should continue to ice it to help bring down the swelling."

"I want to know more about you." Usagi blurted out. "I mean I want to know more about vampires like you." Usagi blushed trying to back track from her first statement.

"Are you sure that is wise. The Vampire world is a dark world and I'm not sure you should step into that world." Sebastian eyes looked conflicted as he asked her this.

"I can handle it." Usagi said defensively. "I've fought evil before."

"You have power. I saw that last night. And you have this energy that radiates from you. I never felt that before."

"Well, I'm no ordinary girl"

Sebastian smiled. "I can see that. If you want to know more then let me pick you up later tonight. What time should I pick you up at your house?"

Usagi checked her watch. It was almost 9pm and she would probably be home by 10pm. "Lets say 10:30pm

"Perfect." Sebastian tapped one of Usagi's hair buns on the top of her head. " Your hairstyle makes you look like a little rabbit."

The sound of a door opening stopped the conversation and Usagi turned around to see if anyone was in sight. When she turned around to warn Sebastian that someone was on way he was already gone.

Usagi walked away from the tree and started to walk towards the front door. She was met by Haruka.

"What are you doing out here kitten."

"Oh, I just needed some air."

"OK. Well, come back inside everyone is looking for you. And I'm going to drive you guys home soon." Haruka motioned for Usagi to follow her.

Usagi looked over to where Sebastian had been before following Haruka into the house. In an hour and half she would have some of the answers she was searching for. What was the nature of Vampires? Were they all evil or was it largely dependent on the individual.