Please Don't Cry

By PazaakGirl

Chapter 5 – When it hits close to home.


Five minutes prior to Tsukino Usagi's transformation

Mamoru, Motoki and Unazuki stared at Usagi as she walked stiffly to the parlour entrance, obviously trying not to look like she was rushing it. When she was out of earshot Motoki crossed his arms and frowned. "Now what was that all about?"

"I have no idea, Motoki-kun," Mamoru replied. He turned to the junior high school student. "Did anything else weird happen at school?"

Unazuki stroked her chin in contemplation. "Apart from falling asleep in class, she's done nothing too unusual. She was a little quieter than normal at lunch, though."

"It's strange," Motoki mused, "she usually tells you everything, Mamoru."

Mamoru nodded distractedly as he began to think about the ebony feline which Usagi left with. That cat showed up not too long ago… and now Usagi's acting weird… I hope she's not caught up in anything dangerous… they way she looked before she left, it was almost as if she was being pushed into something she didn't want to do, or regretted…

Unazuki looked up at her adopted brother, sitting next to her, who seemed lost in his own ruminations. "Mamoru-kun, are you okay?" He was about to respond when two girls turned up at their booth.

"Hey there, boys, Unazuki," greeted one.

"Reika!" Motoki exclaimed, standing up and embracing his girlfriend of one year. She had wavy chestnut hair down to her waist and deep, navy blue eyes. He kissed her on the cheek and they sat down, Reika taking the place that Usagi had previously occupied. She had a composure that resonated with maturity and grace, which contrasted to the girl she had left school that afternoon with. The other, with straighter brown hair looked at the couple in teenage envy, knowing that Mamoru was too formal to give any form of the public display of affection which she desired so much. Mamoru stood and offered her a seat, and once Meiko was in place Mamoru slid in at the end of the booth.

"We saw Usagi-chan running off. Did something happen?" Reika inquired

Mamoru, Motoki and Unazuki glanced at each other hesitantly and she looked at the three siblings in curiosity. "We don't actually know," Motoki confessed. "All we know is she's less energetic and is starting to fall asleep in class."

Mamoru winced as the foreboding headache emerged and pain shot through his skull. He stood up and the group watched him in surprise. "I've gotta go."

Motoki's eyebrows disappeared under his sandy fringe. "Not you too, Mamoru! What's your excuse?"

"I have karate class." It was half true, anyway; he was supposed to meet his sensei, but not for another two hours. But thankfully they didn't know that.

"But, Mamoru! You promised me we'd go shopping!" Meiko whined, pouting.

He shook his head in apology and took her hand, squeezing it reassuringly. "I apologise, Meiko-san. Next time, I swear." And before anyone could get a single word in he turned and bolted, but not a single one of them missed the fact that he left in the same direction Usagi had.


A blond man clad in a grey uniform with red trimming laughed as he watched the children at the elementary school fall, having been drained of their energy by the youma. Queen Beryl will be pleased with the amount of energy we're collecting today. Pitiful humans: so easy to attack, especially the young ones. "You have done well," he commended the youma.

"Thank you, General Jadeite," hissed the youma as it drained the last bit of energy from a group of fifth-graders. It then turned to the sixth graders in the courtyard and grabbed a boy with sandy hair by her own scarlet locks.

The boy's knees began to buckle as his strength left, and his red-haired friend yelled out to him. "No! Get away from here, Mika-chan!" the boy cried weakly as his attacker looked up to see his friend. The youma cackled and extended an arm out to grab the girl, but someone jumped down and carried the child out of the way.

"Let go of him," the figure spoke menacingly, placing the girl back on her feet. Sailor Moon glared at the youma, which resembled a female vampire with fiery red hair. She jumped and kicked the youma soundly in the stomach, and it staggered to the ground, letting go of its prey. No one hurts Shingo and gets away with it.

"You!" Jadeite exclaimed, his hand clenching into a fist. "I'm tired of your meddling!"

"Well you're going to get it, creep! I am Sailor Moon, and in the name of the moon I punish you for attacking these innocent children!" And my BROTHER, you bastard!

The youma spread its wings and lunged at Sailor Moon, who dodged the assault just in time, but the youma threw a low roundhouse kick at her legs and Sailor Moon was knocked off balance, crashing to the ground. The General laughed triumphantly and ran a hand through his short blond hair as the youma grabbed her into a choke hold and extended its red claws to her face, stopping millimetres from slicing her skin. "It's been nice knowing you, Sailor Moon," he declared, "but like I've said, you've meddled for the last time. I'm afraid that I have some energy to deliver, so I don't have the privilege of witnessing your demise. Goodbye, Sailor Moon." And he disappeared. The youma cackled and Sailor Moon began to panic as she saw the claws lengthen even more, and closed her eyes, anticipating the searing pain of torn flesh.

Suddenly the youma screamed and released her, and Sailor Moon fell to the floor. A flash of black and Tuxedo Mask kneeled beside her. "Are you alright, Sailor Moon?" he asked softly, stroking the cheek which had almost been slashed by the youma. God, her skin is so soft… whoa, not now, Tuxedo Mask, you can flirt with her later.

"I-I'm fine," she stammered, blushing. "You saved me again, Tuxedo Mask!"

Tuxedo Mask grinned charmingly. "It's my job." He grimaced at the fallen children around the courtyard. "Picking on kids… how low can they go?"

The Youma screeched and shot its hair towards Tuxedo Mask, who repelled it with his cane. Usagi ran over to Shingo, who was conscious, but weak. His friend Mika had already rushed over to him. "Will you be okay, you two?" she queried.

Mika nodded, and grabbed Shingo's hand. "I'm fine, but I don't think Shingo's doing too well."

Sailor Moon turned to face the battle between Tuxedo Mask and the youma, golden pigtails swishing with the motion. Tuxedo Mask threw a steel-tipped rose at the youma and the petals landed in its eyes. "Sailor Moon!" he called. "Your tiara!"

She stood and threw her tiara at the youma. "Moon Tiara Action!" she cried. The glowing discus made contact and the youma was reduced to ash.

When she made sure that Shingo would be okay, Sailor Moon jumped up onto the school roof and sighed. The sounds of Juuban Elementary School's students talking about the attack and the rescue by their heroes echoed throughout the campus, and she was glad that she got there before something serious happened to them. She felt tears welling in her eyes at the memory of seeing Shingo drained of his energy by the youma but held them back. She sensed that she was not alone, and turned to find her masked saviour behind her.

"Tuxedo Mask," she greeted, surprised that he had not simply taken off like the night before.

"Sailor Moon," he breathed as he drank in her full appearance. The image was picturesque; curves in all the right places, silky blonde hair billowing in the light breeze, and a solemn expression on her face. He swore in wonder at how beautiful she was, and at the strange attraction he felt after only knowing and saving her for a week. His eyes gazed at her through his domino mask, slowly drawing up her long and creamy legs, past that deep blue miniskirt, along her brooch and the red ribbon that hid her – most likely – perfect breasts from view, up her delicate neck, her pink lips (which he imagined to be soft as velvet to the touch) and rested on her deep blue eyes, which peered at him through her own mask; white like his, with wings framing the end. Funny, he mused, they look a lot like Sailor V's. He matched his gaze with the cerulean orbs and his breath hitched in his throat as he saw the misery contained within them. His body decided to move of its own will and Tuxedo Mask strolled towards her, drawn to her eyes.

Sailor Moon felt his arms wrap around her, the thumping of her heart coursing through her; a throb so loud she thought the man before her could hear it. She realized just how tall he was from the close proximity and was captivated by the features she could see. His hair was darker than night, and he possessed eyes so deep, so intense she felt she could drown in them for eternity. He towered over her, at least over a foot higher than she even with the heels on her boots, and wondered if Mamoru or Motoki matched up to his height.

The thought struck her as she realised she had left them at the parlour to come to this battle, and were probably wondering what happened to her and why she took off so suddenly. She frowned and broke eye contact with Tuxedo Mask. God, wouldn't I be dead if one of them followed me here and saw me transform. They'd probably die of shock and Mamoru would tease me about being too klutzy to be Sailor Moon. Her shoulders slumped at her mental reminder of her best friend, whom she couldn't talk to regarding her life as Sailor Moon. I feel so bad for keeping this a secret from him… from all of them. And what if my friends and family get attacked again and I'm too late?

"… okay?"

"Huh?" She replied eloquently, snapping back to the present situation, and looked up to see Tuxedo Mask frowning in concern.

"I asked if you were okay," he repeated himself, "you seem troubled."

"I… I'm fine," she responded, pulling his arms off her. "I just have a lot on my mind… that's all." She met his gaze again and bowed. "Thank you for saving me again," she continued, and turned to leave. "I guess… I'll see you around."

"I guess so," he agreed, and Sailor Moon jumped off the rooftops of Azabu to return home.


Mamoru wandered aimlessly through the streets of Tokyo. It was well past midnight, the streetlights and moon being the only source of light in the darkness of night. He had been walking around for almost five hours since dinner. He couldn't get the image of Sailor Moon out of his head! Every time he tried to think of something else, those vibrant eyes filled with sorrow came back to him, and he had wanted so desperately to wipe the tears from her face like he had so many times with Usagi when they were little. He wondered about his attraction to the sailor-suited heroine. He felt… something, the moment he saw her at Osaka-san's jewellery store. He didn't know what it was but it had consumed him and overwhelmed him so much that sometimes he couldn't breathe. He knew that the reason why he was Tuxedo Mask was to help her; this desire – no, need to protect her washed over him every time he felt her transform. He had concluded that she was definitely the one who caused him to transform, though occasionally he managed it himself when the need was dire to him. He had to protect her, for reasons he had yet to identify. And his heart broke when he saw the torment within her gaze.

Dammit, Mamoru, he reprimanded himself, you have a girlfriend! Remember Meiko? Why are you even thinking of another girl? But that idea brought merely more questions rather than answers. What was it about Sailor Moon that spoke out to him so much? He had never felt anything like this about his girlfriend. But he liked Meiko, didn't he? Something about Sailor Moon made him feel strange. And something about those eyes brought familiarity, like he had seen her somewhere before…

Someone yelped in panic and bumped into him and, instinctively, Mamoru put his hands out and found two shoulders as he steadied himself and the newcomer. Two distinctive blonde odangos caught his eye.

"Usagi?!"

The girl looked up in bewilderment. "Mamoru-kun! What are you doing out here?"

"I could ask you the same thing, Odango. Do you know what time it is?" he admonished. "Unazuki told me you fell asleep in class today! If it wasn't Saturday tomorrow I'd murder you for being up this late at night. And don't you know you shouldn't be walking around at this time by yourself?" Is she trying to give me a heart attack? What if something happened to her?

She bowed her head in guilt. "I'm sorry, Mamoru… I just… I needed to go over some things in my head."

Normally he would comment on the fact that she never usually thought deeply about anything, but instead he frowned in surprise. She took a walk to think about things as well? Sometimes we think so alike, it's scary! "Well… do you want to talk about it?"

Usagi looked up at him contemplatively, and Mamoru swore he saw a look of apology flash through her eyes. "No… it's nothing. I just wanted to clear my head. You know, enjoy the night sky and take my mind off things for a while." Like my role as Sailor Moon and how I seem to suck at it.

"What things?" he asked in concern.

"Like I said, Mamoru, it's nothing." She stifled a yawn and began to head back home but he grabbed her wrist and pulled her backwards, and she slammed into his chest.

"I am never going to believe that statement as long as I live, Odango," he whispered into her ear. "Not from you, when you're out walking the streets of Tokyo. Alone. In the dark. At midnight. Now tell me what things are obviously plaguing your mind, or we'll never go home, trust me."

Usagi, desperate to go home and sleep, racked her brain for a good excuse. One that was so plausible for her venture into the dark, empty streets so late at night that he would drop the subject. She knew him too well, and vice versa, so as long what she said was legit and could genuinely bother her so much, he would let it go. Her mind recalled the battle and the answer came to her.

"I'm worried about Shingo."

Mamoru dropped her wrist and she turned to face him. "He was attacked today, wasn't he?" he queried, though knowing the answer. The memory of seeing his little friend's drained body on the concrete floor made him shudder internally. Why wouldn't she'd be worried about him… Mika must have made it sound really bad.And it was.

"Yeah," she replied, impressed that he took the reason in so willingly. Well of course he would; Shingo's like a little brother to him. "It's just made me realise that no one's safe anymore. I mean, they attacked a school! Those kids were helpless! If Sailor Moon hadn't been there…" Usagi fell to her knees, sobbing as she thought of what could've happened if the youma got away and Shingo was left without his energy. At dinner it took all her willpower not to break down and cry when she saw Shingo sitting next to her, having escaped death. What if I got there and it was too late? What then?What would I do?

Mamoru bent down and wrapped an arm around her shoulders, and she flung her arms around his neck, sobbing into his black turtleneck. He pulled Usagi closer to him and whispered gently in her ear as the damp spot on his clothes grew throughout the fabric with her tears. His thoughts drifted back to Sailor Moon and he thanked her silently for rescuing Shingo in the nick of time. If it weren't for her, he could have very well died, and Usagi would be in a much worse state than this.

"Don't cry, Usagi-chan," he soothed, stroking her hair. "It'll be okay, as long as Sailor Moon's here to save the day." And I'm there to save her, he added. "She'll protect everyone. I know she can. She has my gratitude for saving your brother. And she can do it again."

Hearing him unknowingly praise her Usagi smiled weakly into his turtleneck and tightened her grip briefly in thanks. He smiled and picked her up bridal style, and she tensed at first, before relaxing once she was convinced his hold was secure. He smiled at his best friend as her crying began to subside and sleep consumed her, and laughed at her face when she yawned. She glared at him and poked his ribs and he chuckled.

"Let's get you home."


"Jadeite, I'm disappointed in you. Once again, Sailor Moon has foiled our plans to collect energy for Metallia."

The General kneeled before his Queen loyally as she berated him, his brow sweating with the tension. She glared at him with dark red eyes, her crimson hair framing her sharp and imposing features. A black tiara with a green stone adorned her forehead, and her blue dress fell down to her feet. Long red nails tapped the armrest of her onyx throne in displeasure.

"My apologies, Queen Beryl… but Sailor Moon is starting to become quite a bother." His navy blue eyes flashed in anger at the Senshi of the Moon.

"Yes, I have noticed that she's causing you quite a bit of grief, Jadeite. But the fact remains that we still have yet to collect enough energy to construct the necessary means to obtain the Legendary Silver Crystal. You know that I want its power!"

"I know, my Queen."

"My Queen, if Jadeite is not up to the task, then perhaps you should send me in his place," a man spoke from behind the blond henchman. Jadeite stood and glared at his comrade, who returned the gaze with mocking brown eyes. He bore a uniform similar to Jadeite's, but with orange trimming and two red stones on the jacket, framing the shoulders. His dark brown hair stopped mid-back, and he tapped his navy boots in amusement on the granite floor.

"This is my task, Nephrite," the blond spat. "You would do well to stay out of my way and let me do my job."

"Tut, tut, gentlemen, you should not be so antagonistic towards each other; it's quite detrimental to your positions as Generals," another called from the side. His uniform had an emerald green edging on his jacket, and his long, wavy auburn hair was pulled back into a ponytail.

"Zoisite," Queen Beryl addressed the latter, "where is Kunzite?"

"My apologies, my Queen." A flash of cyan appeared in the middle of the three Generals and a fourth appeared. His uniform bore blue edges and a white cape fixed to his jacket with cyan stones. His white-blonde hair fell straight and stopped just past his shoulders.

"Now that you are all here," Beryl continued, "you are all aware that I need energy to find the Legendary Silver Crystal. It was the crystal possessed by Queen Serenity of the Moon Kingdom. That crystal was the source of her power which she had used to defeat the Dark Kingdom a thousand years ago. It was the cause of my defeat; now it will be the cause of my success! With that crystal in my hands, we will possess great power – enough to take over the universe!"

"My Queen, is the Legendary Silver Crystal truly that powerful? We would have detected something so concentrated in energy earlier."

"You are correct, Zoisite; the crystal was sealed away by Queen Serenity, having used all her power to defeat us. But I am certain the crystal is on Earth. I need energy or we can never start searching for the Legendary Silver Crystal. Which means, Jadeite," she turned to the blond general. "I need you to succeed."