Ah, new characters. New vital characters. Enjoy.

After the Rain: The Princess of the Black Moon

"Monsters." she breathed, horrified.

They were all monsters, especially the devil in white behind her. They did not respect her, did not like her, and did not accept her as one of them, of which was glad. And yet, as a sense of duty, they all knelt one by one, swearing their loyalty to Prince Demando and Serenity, Princess of the White Moon and now, Lady of the Black Moon. Their smiles were fake, their eyes glimmering with smug satisfaction. They wanted to see her like this; horrified, with not a single person to turn to. They wanted to see her hopeless, for surely, this was quenching their desire for vengeance on the Queen who had done them wrong. Usagi was not Neo Queen Serenity though, she was not the woman that they should be punishing.

Had she done wrong for simply being the younger incarnation of a Queen who had wronged this clan? Did she deserve punishment for actions that she wouldn't carry out for another millenium?

Usagi didn't think so. None of this, none of it, was her fault. She had not made the decision to force everyone into purification by the Ginzuishou; Usagi had not inadvertently created the Black Moon Clan and their lust for vengeance. So why was it that they were filled with such a sense of delight from seeing her suffer?

She felt sick.

Her stomach flopped around in her abdominal cavity, arousing waves of nausea within her. Faces blurred, colors blurred, stars swam in her vision as she became heavily disoriented. A nagging pain in her chest had blossomed and she hoped that for a moment that she would find herself contracting a heart attack so she would die. She could not take this any longer. Her legs ached with the need to get up and run as far as she could; run until she would collapse from exhaustion, run until she was as far away from Demando and these monsters as possible. He had said he loved her, but did he know of what the word meant? Did he know that this was not the way to win her heart? To take her away from everything she knew and loved, only to thrust this horror upon her in an effort to crush her soul beneath his heel?

He is a man of dominance, a man who takes what he wants without considering the repercussions of his actions.

Usagi did not need to ask him what he had done; she felt the changes. Her lunar blood mingled with something darker as it coursed through her veins and she could feel her thoughts slowly blacken. She was consumed with such strong negative emotions: hate, anger, loneliness, abandonment. Every horrible thing she had felt since her arrival on Nemesis hit her at once like a bullet aimed straight for her heart. Where were her friends in all of this? Her love? Were they just going to leave her here to be forever subjected to Demando's will and lust?

Tears burned in her eyes and once again she found herself searching the crowd that seemed to span for miles. She knew that her friends were not here, she knew Mamoru was not here, but still she was filled with hope that they would be out there waiting for her. Her eyes hopped from person to person until they met those of a man who looked so much like her beloved Mamoru, yet she knew from his icy stare that he was not her lover. The man she looked upon was Saphir, Demando's younger brother. He had foiled her initial escape along with that other man. If he hadn't stopped her, she could've escaped this nightmare long before any of this came to pass. She found herself glaring at him, but as if she were not even worth his time, he quickly averted his eyes to the ground beneath him. It was apparent that he did not take pleasure from watching her suffer like all of the others.

You don't deserve to be sitting on my brother's throne.

Those words coiled around her brain, choking every last thought out of the mass like an anaconda until they were all that was left. He was miles away from her, but she could hear his voice, feel it. Animosity dripped from every syllable and he addressed her in a way designed to make her feel inferior.

She was not.

"Serenity," Demando purred from behind her. "Do you wish to retire to our bedchambers? I do believe we started something that was left unfinished."

A hiss passed through her clenched teeth as Demando's head came to rest on her shoulder and his content purr filled her ears. He gently nipped on the soft flesh of her neck and she squirmed from the discomfort. Usagi was sick and tired of everyone on this planet treating her as if she was some sort of weak, injured animal that they could kick around. She was Sailor Moon, she was a warrior! She would not let them mistreat her like this! Every single one of them would pay for her pain and humiliation. Starting with the orchestrator of it all...

"Get away from me!" She roared, turning and striking Demando with her fist. Her eyes were squeezed shut tightly, and she felt her fist connect with something fleshy, but hard. Bone. Demando emitted a hiss, paired with a low rumble. Her blow had not been painful, rather the impact too sudden for him to prepare for. The room was filled with the shocked gasps of the clan members and then it fell eerily silent. No one struck their Prince and lived to tell the tale. They were eager to see how this would play out, seeing as his attacker was the woman he was so taken with.

"What are you doing?" He snarled and grabbed her wrists roughly. "You dare strike me, Serenity?! Do you know of your place?!"

"My place is most certainly NOT here!"

Her hands balled into tiny fists and she shook his hands off her wrists, standing up and scowling at him. She knew her place all right and it was in the arms of Mamoru, not this horrid excuse for a Prince. She was getting out of here as soon as possible, Senshi or not. If they weren't going to come for her, then she would save herself.

"Sit down!" He bellowed as he stood up and pointed to the now empty throne.

"I'm not going to let you just order me around!" She retorted, readying her fists for another blow.

Demando scowled. He would not tolerate her insubordination. If her wish was to learn the hard way of the hold he had on her, then so be it.

"As Prince of the Black Moon Clan, I order you to kneel before me!" He growled his command.

Badump.

A piercing pain radiating from her chest sent her falling to her knees, collapsing at Demando's feet, and clawing at the floor. She found herself staring at his impeccably clean dress shoes with wide eyes, her head pounding. Her breathing was frantic and shallow as she attempted to draw oxygen into her shriveling lungs, each breath a loud, dramatic gasp for air. Her heart was on fire and felt like it was being pricked simultaneously by millions of pins. Her veins no longer carried blood, rather, lead that weighed her body down and kept her kneeling at the foot of the White Prince. With a smug smirk on his lips, he sunk down into his throne.

"Poor Serenity," he cooed, lifting his foot to where it touched her chin. He forced her head back to where she looked up at him, her cerulean eyes burning with unshed tears. "Did you really think that you were going to get away with such irreverence? I must commend your efforts, however. Even with the blood of my clan coursing through your veins, you still stand against me. I would expect nothing less from you."

She was hauled up from the ground as he drew her back onto his lap and gently stroked her hair as if he were petting a wounded cat. Usagi had never felt so humiliated in her life. She cringed as his tongue gently grazed the surface of her cheek, lapping her tears away. Every part of her body had betrayed her, for she remained still although she wanted nothing more than to lash out at him again for treating her in such a way. It mattered not that she openly despised him and had defied him; he was still irrevocably obsessed with her.

"Shall I ease your pain?" His voice was a low drawl in her ear.

She squeaked something that was a hybrid between an agreement and a refusal, but it wouldn't have mattered what she had said anyway for Demando's hand had already torn away the flimsy fabric covering the skin where her heart lay beneath. He drew his cape around her to shield her naked chest from the hungry eyes of his male subjects; only he would be allowed to see such parts of her. He leaned down and gently grazed the burning spot with his ice cold fingertips, Usagi drawing in a sharp breath as Demando placed a light, lingering kiss just above her left breast. Usagi was awestruck as instantly that sharp, stabbing pain subsided until it was nothing more than a nagging tingle. Her breath was no longer shallow and ragged, and her body felt as if a crushing weight had been lifted off of her. She felt a hundred times stronger than she had just seconds before.

"Better?" Demando asked softly as he pulled away from her to look her in the eyes.

"Y-Yes." Her reply was hesitant, for she was unsure of why Demando had suddenly become so tender and gentle.

Her expression must've betrayed her confusion, because he offered her a genuine smile and drew her in, holding her against his firm torso. "I'm sorry," he whispered in her ear, though she doubted his sincerity. "I just need you to cooperate, Serenity. I'll have a servant bring you a cloak and we can get on with the ceremony."

"Ceremony?"

He provided her with no further information and motioned one of the women closest to the throne to come forth. She was a frail thing, barely five feet tall and probably not even one hundred pounds. Her hair was a sea of soft, shimmering waves of aqua and her bewildered eyes were similar in color. As she took slow steps towards them, Usagi was finally able to tear her gaze away from her gentle, child-like beauty and notice why Demando had picked her out of the crowd. The poor girl was practically swallowed up by the fluffy white cloak that hung from her delicate shoulders and by the looks of it, it must've been heavy for she was slightly hunched over.

"Prince, Princess," she curtsied when she arrived within a yard of the throne. With one fluid motion, she unfastened the cloak and with a deep sigh, held it out to them.

Demando growled. "Bring it here."

The girl peered over her shoulder at a young woman—her sister perhaps—who nodded and made a slight motion with her hand telling her to do as Demando ordered. Usagi sympathized with the trembling girl as she closed the gap in between herself and the throne and held out the cloak again, flinching as the White Prince tore it from her grasp and draped it on Usagi's shoulders. She was clearly frightened by Demando, just as Usagi was.

"That will be all." Demando ground out through his clenched teeth.

Usagi looked up at him quizzically and drew the cloak around her body tighter. His icy stare was still fixed on the quivering girl who shakily made her way back to the spot she had inhabited before she had been called out of the crowd. Why was he so angry with her? She hadn't done anything wrong, quite the opposite actually.

"Wait." Usagi called out to her and slid off Demando's lap. She glided over to the girl and placed a hand on her shoulder. Past the gleaming waves of hair, she could see the girl's frightened aqua eyes shining with unshed tears. It broke Usagi's heart. Why was this girl afraid of her too? The Princess whispered softly "Thank you."

The room was filled with gasps again as Usagi spun the girl around and pulled her into a tight hug. She was unresponsive for a moment, her arms hanging limply at her sides, before she suddenly returned the hug with much more force than Usagi could've ever thought possible for such a tiny creature. She buried her face in the wisps of fur clinging to the cloak she had surrendered. Her heartbeat was a gentle thud against Usagi's own and quite comforting to her apparently, for she held on to the Moon Princess tightly with not a single intention to be letting her go anytime soon.

"Tourmaline, release the Princess at once!"

The girl, her name now known to be Tourmaline, pushed Usagi away roughly and then realized her fatal mistake. Demando roared with fury and hurriedly stood up from his throne. The shadows seemed to collect around him as he took threatening steps towards the mortified Tourmaline, each footfall announced by a loud clack. His angular features had been marred by a fierce scowl and his violet eyes stared down Tourmaline in a vicious manner. With a grimace, Usagi stepped in between him and the cowering girl at her feet, spreading her arms wide to protect her as Mamoru had once done for her during their first encounter with the White Prince.

"Serenity," his tone was dangerous and commanding. "Move."

"No." She growled with a fury equal to his own.

Slap!

The sound reverberated, filling the room with the sharp sound. Usagi's head was frozen in place, snapped to the side, her azure eyes staring at the ground incredulously. Demando's violet orbs widened as he gazed at the hand that had just struck his Princess.

He had promised her. He had promised himself. He promised that he would never hit her again like he had so foolishly done in the dining hall that one night. After seeing her so broken and hate-filled, he had made that promise to her that he would never do such a thing ever again and she had trusted him. What kind of man was he to lie to his goddess?

"I—Serenity...I'm sorry." He choked out and reached for her. Her eyes were still locked on the ground beneath. "Please, look at me."

Slowly, her head did turn in his direction and he internally sighed in relief that she readily answered his command. Perhaps she realized that he had just been caught up in the moment and he hadn't meant to slap her.

But then he saw her eyes.

They were dry and emotionless, glaring at him with pure animosity in a way that made Neo-Queen Serenity's own livid scowl look like the warmest, most welcoming expression in the world. He was not mesmerized by these eyes and did not ever want her to look at him this way again.

"My name is Usagi." She said, her voice deadly calm which scared the White Prince more than anything. "You will not touch Tourmaline, nor I ever again."

She turned sharply and held a hand out to the crumpled, broken mess of a girl on the ground. Tourmaline looked up at the Princess with teary eyes and hesitantly reached forward, but pulled her hand away.

"It's alright," Usagi soothed. "I'm not going to hurt you."

Tourmaline's hand was ice cold, but Usagi still gripped it firmly and hauled her to her feet. She smiled and gave her a gentle shove in her companion's direction. The girl was innocent and didn't deserve to incur Demando's wrath. Besides, Usagi was about to have a few words with him herself. Not even bothering to turn around, she started speaking in that calm tone of hers that dropped the temperature of the room twenty degrees.

"You are a liar, Demando. A cowardly liar. I cannot ever believe that I thought it was a sound idea to throw away my love for Mamoru for the likes of you. You don't love me and you have not a single shred of respect for me or anyone else. I. hate. you. so. much."

As soon as the last syllable passed her lips, that eery silence fell over the room once more. There was no big outburst, no dramatic show of power on Demando's part, and the clan said nothing. Usagi's hands had unconsciously balled into tiny fists once more that were quivering with unreleased tension at her sides.

"I hate you." She said again.

This time, their was a response for her words. A small group in the front, including Tourmaline and her companion, turned towards Usagi and bowed, their eyes revealing their deep respect. They appeared regal and majestic with their heavily decorated uniforms, much like the ones Usagi had seen only on generals, and their delicate, yet strong bodies.

"We swear allegiance to Princess Serenity. Only Serenity." A man announced and reached for Usagi's hand, placing a light kiss on the back of it. He could've been Demando's twin, save for his hair that was long enough to hang at the small of his back and had a thick grey stripe in it, along with his eyes which were also stone grey. Other than that, their builds were similar and their features were both angular and sharp.

"You are not allowed to do such a thing, Howlite." Demando hissed, finally speaking. "I should behead you all for such heresy!"

Those grey eyes fixed on the White Prince with not a single drop of emotion, but screamed defiance.

"You are in no place to command us anymore, Demando." He exclaimed, dropping Demando's title. "Our loyalty now lies with the Princess. Her will is what we shall obey."

Judging from an animalistic sound that resonated from Demando—something in between a hiss and growl—he was not content with Howlite's answer.

"Very well, traitor. If it is the Princess that you follow then I have no authority over you. Unless of course I..."

Usagi gasped as a circlet of heavy, masterfully carved silver was sat atop her head. It seemingly weighed her whole body down and sent shivers down her spine. She reached a shaking hand up to touch it, only for her arm to be jerked backwards, sending her crashing against Demando. He roughly grasped her wrist and produced a ring from the pocket of his slacks and grabbed the back of her head, claiming her lips with his own as he slipped the silver object on her finger. He was all smiles as he pulled away from her, although they were so very wicked.

"...declare Serenity the crown Princess of the Black Moon and take her as my wife. Then both she and you treacherous fools will belong to me."

End

Lots of stuff happened in this chapter, which is so far the longest one in this story and hopefully I can make that a trend! So Usagi's now the official Princess of the Black Moon and gained a few followers for stepping up for dear Tourmaline, along with being forced into an engagement. Next chapter, our dear friend Saphir will appear with a larger role and in all his jealous glory! See you around! Would you kindly review and tell me what you thought?

Review Responses (I'll do these for questions)-

Guest- I wrote a few drafts of chapter six, but ended up not liking it too much so I scrapped it. Originally, I had Usagi stumble upon the room accidentally but when she realized what is was, her energy was drained and Demando appeared, leaving it up to the reader to decide if the Jakokusuishou had drained her energy or if Demando had. As for the other Senshi and Mamoru, their fate will be revealed soon (next chapter kind of soon). And finally, only time will tell if Usagi can find the strength to overcome Demando, but you can be sure she's going to try her hardest.