Disclaimer: I don't own Sailor Moon, but a girl can dream can't she?

Chapter Eight:

Endymion found Helios sitting in the rose gardens. He was deep in thought, as usual, so he didn't hear the older prince approach him. He knelt down and gently shook Helios awake.

"Hey, Helios. What is wrong, my friend?" he asked when the boy looked up. Helios sighed. Then, he looked up at Endymion with an odd look in his eyes.

"I know it's been a while, but I can't stop thinking about those three girls we met." He said. "They just seem so strange." Endymion nodded; he had similar thoughts over the course of the while. It just wasn't right. No one other than the royal family knew about Elysian and no peasents spoke like that.

They fell into a comfortable silence, both lost in thoughts when a messenger came running through the gates. Both looked up. "What is the matter?" asked Endymion, rising to his full height. The runner stopped to catch his breath.

Finally he said, "Your Highness, I'm afraid I have bad news. The village and fief ten miles from here has burst into flame! I was sent by the lord of the fief to ask for help." Helios stood.

"Helios, fetch my parents, then take this man to the kitchen and get him something to drink. Since the fire isn't far, I will send Jadeite with some men to clear the fire and get the people out of there." Endymion commanded, already heading off. Helios motioned for the man to follow him. This was certainly worth the trouble.

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Four hours earlier in the village:

Usagi was dosing off as she waited for the water to fill the bucket. This always took forever since the bucket was rather large. She was awoken, however, when a disgusting smell entered her nose. She sniffed; it was smoke coming from the village. Bucket forgotten, Usagi rushed off to the village, hoping she was wrong.

When she turned the corner to her home, she gasped. There was a large fire devouring the houses. It stretched from the fort/fief all the way to her home; covering nearly the entire village and fort. Out of all the commotion, Usagi distinguished a voice. It was faint on the breeze that fed the fire, but she heard it.

"Don't panic Chibi Chibi. Usagi-mamachan will save us." It was Chibiusa! Not caring about the crowd or the hungry flames that licked her home, Usagi rushed straight for the front door. Ignoring the screams of those watching her, Usagi raced inside and found them in the bedroom. Flames burned everything and the house was falling apart. Adrenaline pumping her forward, the blond rushed in and found the two where she had told them to go in case of a fire: under the bed.

"Chibiusa! Chibi Chibi! Hurry, we have to get out of here!" she cried, pulling the two out from their hiding spot. Cradling Chibi Chibi in her arms and hauling Chibiusa on her back, both covered by her shall, Usagi went quickly to the front door with a forced calm.

Nearly there Usagi almost sighed in relief, until the exit was blocked by flames. Fearfully taking a step back, Usagi almost screamed. Instead, she remembered what had led her to them.

"Don't panic Chibi Chibi. Usagi-mamachan will save us."

Her girls were counting on her to protect them, she couldn't back out now! Determined she tossed Chibi Chibi out the door over the growing flames. Then, wrapping Chibiusa in shawl, she threw her out the door just as the flames covered the exit entirely.

She took a deep breath. Here I go, she thought charging forward into and out of the flames. For a moment, everything was so hot it froze her body, then she was out and gasping for air. Nearly falling down in exhaustion, she cried out, "Girls! Where are you?"

Collapsing, she was caught by two pairs of little arms. She looked at her little savors and found the two girls. Happily she passed put while they dragged her away, but not before hearing Chbiusa say, "I told you she would save us."

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"Hurry!" Shouted a blunette. She was dressed in a long sleeved dark blue silk dress that reached her ankles. It was covered in ashes, dirt and was ripped at the hem. Her hair, unlike a normal noble, was cropped short. She was hurrying servants and guests out of a large, fort-like mansion that was set ablaze on the other side. The flames were slowly spreading to that particular side of the large building, so everyone was franticly running with their belongings and family.

An elderly woman stopped when she reached the blue-haired girl. The woman was carrying a sack that had a pan handle sticking out. "It's alright, milady," she said, "You should be getting yourself to safety." The woman did not give her a chance to reply as a tower that was too close for comfort, burst into flame. Screeching, the elderly woman ran for her life joining the crowd, her sack thrown over behind her.

The girl in blue sighed, then stared at the flames and crowd rushing out. Hesitating, then deciding that was best, she dove into the crowd, attempting to get away. She ran through the crowd, hoping she wouldn't be turned to ash.

"Ahhh!" Someone next to her screamed, or was the person next to them? She turned her head to see what was wrong, but since she turned her head, the girl did not see the root sticking out of the ground and tripped, hitting her head in the process.

The last thing she heard was a man's voice call out, "Lady Ami!" Then, everything went black.

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Everything was blurry and she couldn't see straight. Lady Ami Mizuno also had a killer headache, and was lying on her back on some itchy grass. She could make out a childish voice speaking just above her.

"Para Para thinks she's up! Is lady up?"said the voice. Finally, Ami blinked her eye several times and saw a blue-haired girl with a doll's face peering down at her with blue eyes. When the noblewoman propped herself up on her elbows, she saw the girl's style of dress mimicked her own. A light blue blouse that had long sleeves and a turtle neck, and a light blue skirt that reached the girl's ankles was what she donned. Her hair, though was in a funny style. It was up in a bun and had two tails on each side of her head.

"Who are you?" asked Ami. She really wanted to know where that strange hairstyle came from and what had happened, but it was only polite to ask the girl's name first.The girl smiled brightly at her.

"Para Para's name is Para Para. Para Para found lady while Para Para was looking for sensei. Para Para needs someone to teach Para Para wisdom and ice magic. Para Para must find Para Para's sisters." She told the woman. "Para Para heard shouting people, so Para Para went to see the matter. When Para Para came, all Para Para saw was lady lying down on her tummy."

Ami blinked as she took in this information. The girl's name was Para Para, and she referred to herself in third person. She was looking for a teacher and happened upon Ami. She remembered one thing the girl had said.

"Magic? Why would you need to know magic?" She asked curiously. The other girl blinked at her, then laughed.

"Para Para has magic! But Para Para thinks lady should tell Para Para lady's name." She told her cutely. Ami silently berated herself; she should have said her name before!

"I'm sorry, Para Para. My name is Lady Ami of the House of Mizuno." Para Para appeared to think this over.

Then, she finally said, "Lady's name is Beauty of Water. Beauty of WAter must teach Para Para ways of wisdom!" She cried excitedly, "Ami-sensei, what must Para Para do first?" Ami stared at her. Was it just her, or was this Para Para getting weirder by the moment? She didn't have time for such things; she needed to find out what happened to her family! She looked at the girl again. This time, her eyes softened as she really took in the girl's appearance. Thin and boney with a weakness in her face, this girl should have been deep in a depression by now. Instead, here she was bouncing around and ready to do what she asked of her. Para Para was obviously alone. Ami made her decision.

"Well, Para Para, I don't know very much about magic, but I can help you learn. However, I need you to help me find my family and see if they made it out alright. Can you help me?" She asked the little girl, who smiled with joy.

"Para Para's first adventure! Para Para will make Ami-sensei proud!"She declared and they both laughed.

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A/n: Well there you have it. Here's a little sneak preview at the next chapter:

She stopped to catch her breath, when she realized that she had never been this far from the village before. When she stood up and looked behind her, she couldn't even see smoke.

"Hey!" A voice startled her. "What're ya doin' there?"