Chapter Eight: The Return of the Outer Senshi, Usagi's New Weapon

"There!" Ami exclaimed, "It's fixed!"

Usagi stared at herself carefully in the mirror before skeptically saying, "Are you sure? They still look crooked to me."

Rei snickered from across the room and said, "Maybe that's because your head's on crooked."

"Be quiet, Rei-chan! My head is not on crooked!" Usagi's eyes grew impossibly huge and tearful, and after making sure that Rei was still looking at her, she broke into a loud and dramatic wail.

Mako-chan grimaced with mock agony and threw a couch pillow at Rei. "Thanks ever so much, Rei-chan!"

The pillow hit the priestess square in the face, and with a shriek of laughter, Rei jumped to her feet to retaliate. Rei grabbed the pillow and flung it at Mako, who dropped to the ground, allowing the pillow to fly over her head.

"AHHHHHHH!" Minako looked down at her dress, which was now covered with the water she had spilled all over herself. She grabbed the soggy pillow and heaved it at Mako, but ended up hitting Usagi instead.

"This means war!" Usagi snatched up another pillow and began beating Minako with it. Soon, pillows and couch cushions were flying everywhere, and even the quiet Ami joined in. Luna and Artemis fled outside, and found Usa sitting on the step.

"Usa-chan?" Luna said, "What are you doing out here?"

"Hmm?"

She looked down at the black cat and smiled slightly, "Just enjoying the nice day, Luna. What are you two doing out here?"

Artemis smiled wryly and said, "They started a pillow fight in there." Luna huffed, "Without hands, we didn't stand a chance."

Usa smiled again and said, "Oh well. You can stay out here and keep me company."

They sat in relaxed silence for several moments before Usa suddenly said, "Luna, Artemis, what did you think of the Shadow Knight?" She blushed and added, "I mean, the way he just showed up and saved me, it's kind of like what Tuxedo Kamen does with Sailormoon, isn't it?"

She sounded wistful and Luna looked up at her and said, "We have to be careful of the Shadow Knight. It's true that he saved you, but that doesn't necessarily make him a friend."

Usa sighed and said, "I know. But wouldn't it be wonderful if he turned out to my prince like Endymion was for Serenity?" Luna and Artemis silently looked at each other with concern.

Usa stared dreamily into space and the two guardians crept back into the house. Once inside, Artemis said, "We're going to have to keep an eye on Usa-chan and this Shadow Knight. If he's trying to seduce her, he may find it all too easy..."

0

Usa was suddenly startled out of her reverie and into awareness. She looked around with confusion, but couldn't find any reason for alarm. "Hm...that's strange...I wonder what could have bothered me?" She looked around carefully, and following a sudden intuition, got up and crept over to the corner of the house. Peering carefully around corner, she bit back a scream when her face nearly ran into another person.

"Mamoru-san!" She gasped, and his widened eyes went back to normal.

"Er...hi, Usa-chan." He looked sheepish, but kept glancing around nervously.

"What is wrong with you?" She hissed at him, "You nearly gave me a heart attack! It's customary to knock on someone's door rather than lurking in the bushes! Are you crazy? If Usagi-chan catches you out her, she's gonna kill you!"

"She still hasn't forgiven me for what happened with that plant yesterday?"

Usa's angry expression turned to one of surprise and she replied, "What? The only thing she's mad at you about is not staying away from her and the senshi."

He looked down at Usa with shock and exclaimed, "She doesn't blame me for freezing up and not saving either of you?"

"Mamoru-san," Usa said gently, "Usagi-chan doesn't expect you to save anyone. She just wants your love, and right now, your cooperation."

A look that Usa couldn't identify crossed Mamoru's face, and a look of resignation slowly replaced it. "Usa-chan? Could you do me a favor?" He sounded so forlorn, that Usa nearly had the urge to start crying.

"Of course, Mamoru-san, anything."

"Will you give-"

"Usa-chan? Are you out here? Hello?" Usagi's voice floated around the corner and was followed by Minako's cheerful call.

"Usa-chan, you can come out now. We've finished the pillow fight. It's perfectly safe inside again."

"Mamoru, you have to go, now. If Usagi catches you out here..."

He nodded quickly and sprinted away.

Usa peeked her head around the corner timidly, as if she had really been hiding from them, and said, "Are you sure it's safe?"

Mako nodded her head fervently and said, "Of course! I think we would know!"

Usa bounced around the corner and was suddenly thrown to the ground. She whimpered softly as her face was crushed into the dirt, and a knee pressed viciously into her back.

Ami exclaimed, "It's one of those tenshi things!"

"Moon Crisis!"
"Mercury Crystal Power!"
"Mars Crystal Power!"
"Jupiter Crystal Power!"
"Venus Crystal Power!"
"Make-UP!"

As the senshi team started to transform, Usa called to her own locket. It came readily to her hand, and she shouted, "Moon Prism Power, Make-Aieeeee!"

The tenshi had moved a hand down to Usa's wrist, and was squeezing it tightly. Shooting pains were starting to run up her arm, and she lost her grip on the locket, which fell to the ground. She sobbed and wondered why it was taking so long for the senshi to transform.

"World Shaking!"
"Deep Submerge!"
"Death Ribbon Revolution!"

The tenshi dissolved with a scream as the massive combined attack slammed into her, and Usa weakly sat up on her knees, crying softly, and cradling her wrist.

The Inner senshi stood crammed together on Usagi's doorstep, shocked looks on their faces.

Usa looked up with joy and shouted, "Uranus and Neptune! I'm so glad to see you!"

"Eh? Who's this?" Sailoruranus looked down at the slightly dirty, tear smudged face of Usa-chan carefully, and then back up at Usagi, saying, "Is she another one of yours, Sailormoon?" Neptune moved up beside her partner and studied the girl's face just as intently. The Inner senshi released their power, turning back into normal girls, and Usagi nodded her head. "This is my granddaughter, Usa-chan." Sailorsaturn detransformed and ran up to Usa, exclaiming, "Chibiusa-chan's daughter? How exciting!" She giggled and pulled Usa to her feet. Once standing, Hotaru was several inches shorter than her best friend's daughter.

"Hotaru-san," Usa said with wonder, "You look so...different..."

Hotaru looked down at herself with amusement and said, "It's probably since I'm still only ten. I imagine I must be a lot older in the future." Her violet eyes shone with excitement and she said, "You must tell me about Chibiusa-chan; how is she?"

"She's...well, she's-" Usa seemed flustered by Hotaru's onslaught and Mako saved her from embarrassment by saying, "Where have you two been? And how is it that Hotaru is already ten? It hasn't been more than two weeks since we defeated Queen Nehelenia!"

"Yeah," Rei added bitterly, "Sailorpluto just got finished tearing us up about not protecting Usa-chan. It would have been easier if you had been here!"

Neptune and Uranus detransformed, and Haruka gave Rei a cool stare as she said, "We talked to Sailorpluto as well, Rei-chan. She gave Michiru and I the task of reawakening Sailorsaturn. She decided that it would be easier to reach our goal if we had Saturn's power backing us up."

Rei blushed and murmured, "I'm sorry, I didn't know."

"Whatever may have happened before, we are here to help you now," Michiru interjected softly.

Minako suddenly chirped, "Did she explain everything about the flaw to you two?" Hotaru looked up and said, "She explained it to all three of us, Minako-san. We're ready to do whatever we can to help." She frowned for a moment and added, "Pluto wasn't very specific, and she didn't mention that Usa was here. I wonder why..."

"She didn't have very much time, Hotaru-chan." Michiru said softly, "Sailorpluto has a lot resting on her shoulders right now."

Hotaru smiled brilliantly and said, "You're right, of course!" She grabbed Usa's hand and pulled her towards Usagi's door. "Come on! I know Haruka and Michiru want to talk to the Inner senshi, and you and you can tell me about Chibiusa in the meantime!"

0

"That's so sad," Hotaru's beautiful eyes were filled with tears, and she sniffled slightly. "How can they be so mean to her? She's so wonderful..."

Usa bit her lip and wondered if she should have told Hotaru the unhappy state Neo-Princess Selenity was in.

Hotaru looked directly into Usa's eyes suddenly and said, "Where am I in the future? Why aren't I there with her? Why aren't any of the senshi there for her?"

Usa silently asked for forgiveness as she said, "The senshi are there for her, Hotaru-chan, all of them." She felt guilty for neglecting to mention that the Saturn of the future was no longer very close to Chibiusa, and in fact, was no longer very close to anyone. Hotaru seemed to sense something not quite true in Usa's answer, but she didn't say anything further. Before Usa had to think of something else to say to the girl, Usagi's voice carried to where the two of them were sitting.

"I won't allow it! Usa-chan doesn't need to be followed around everywhere! She's having a hard enough time as it is, and I will not allow you to make her life anymore difficult than it already is!"

Usa looked over in time to see Haruka jump angrily to her feet and shouted, "Her life won't be an issue if she's killed before we can get to her!"

Michiru added, "Usa-chan seems to be the key here. She's the one most likely to sense the attack on the ginzuishou coming, and is the only one who has dealt with this force before."

"I don't care!" Usagi said, her voice equally as heated as Haruka's. "She's had such a hard time in the future, I just want her to be happy while she's here the in past. She only managed to have one day at school, I don't want to make things worse. It's not fair..." She slowly trailed off, and sounded like she was about to cry. Rei was on her feet as well, and as she put a comforting arm around Usagi's shoulders she glared balefully at Haruka, who stared back impassively.

"No, Usagi-chan." Usa got to her feet quickly and faced the amassed senshi. "I came back here to protect the ginzuishou. So far, all I've done is get in the way and distract all of you from our goal. I can't be happy here, or anywhere until I know that the ginzuishou is safe." To Haruka she said, "I'm touched that you want to protect me, but put your energy into keeping the ginzuishou safe. I'm SailorMoon in my own right, and Neo-Princess Serenity of Crystal Tokyo."

She drew herself up proudly and added, "I've got to be responsible for myself from now on. I'm one of the senshi, like all of you, and it's my duty to protect the ginzuishou."

Surprisingly, it was Hotaru who spoke up. She climbed to her feet and looked at up Usa with eyes that were suddenly much older than ten.

"It's the duty of the senshi to protect the line of Serenity, princess. You do have the right to stand along beside us, but we have the right to protect you. It's the destiny of the Outer senshi to protect Crystal Tokyo. How can we do that if it remains destroyed forever?"

Usa faltered for a moment, but she steadied herself, and stuck her jaw out stubbornly. "No one is going to follow me around. Ami-chan already has a tracer on me, isn't that enough?"

Ami looked mildly annoyed as she said, "Not if you don't use it when you're attacked. It was sheer luck that we found you and Tuxedo Kamen last time."

Usagi looked at Ami with irritation and exclaimed, "Don't even mention him! If he shows up at one more fight..." She trailed off and scowled.

Haruka smirked slightly, glancing side-long at Michiru, but didn't say anything.

At the same time, Ami was stammering apologies to Usagi, who seemed to be sulking more at the thought of Mamo-chan entering danger than anything Ami could have said to her.

Usa forced back a sigh. The way everyone was acting, she didn't see how the future or the ginzuishou had a chance of being saved.

Why does my presence always seem to bring out the worst in people?

0

"Venus Love and Beauty Shock!"
"Mercury Aqua Rhapsody!"
"Jupiter Oak Evolution!"

The attacks slammed into the glowing orb, but had no outward effect. The newest adversary was utterly passive in its existence. It was a perfect sphere, floating nearly ten feet off the ground, and constantly glowed red as it stole energy from everything around it.

"Mars Flame Sniper!" The arrow dissolved against the orb's surface and Mars sighed with frustration. "How long are we going to keep blasting this stupid thing? It isn't working!"

Mars and Jupiter lifted their voices in a double attack with much the same results and as Jupiter stood beside Mars she shook her head and said, "We're just not powerful enough without Sailormoon's help."

"Where are the Outer senshi?" Venus asked fairly innocently, "Weren't they going to start helping us again?"

Jupiter groaned, mindful of the previous night's tension, and Mars exclaimed, "Well, they talk a good story, but apparently they've decided they've got better things to do than defend Tokyo!"

"World Shaking!"
"Deep Submerge!"

Two more harmless attacks crashed against the surface, and the two new arrivals came to stand by the Inner senshi.

Sailormoon fidgeted with impatience; she actually missed being able to fight.

Uranus stared at Mars arrogantly a moment before turning to Sailormoon and saying, "I'm sorry we're late. We were-" she hesitated and an uneasy look passed over her face before she finished with, "preoccupied."

Sailormoon smiled at them cheerfully and said, "That's okay. I'm just glad you're here now. We can use all the help we can get!"

"Let's try another combination attack, okay?" Jupiter looked at the others expectantly, waiting for an answer.

"World Shaking!"
"Deep Submerge!"

Mars looked peeved for a moment before jumping in.

"Mars Flame Sniper!"
"Mercury Aqua Rhapsody!"
"Venus Love and Beauty Shock!"
"Jupiter Oak Evolution!"

From across the street, a new voice joined the attack.

"Pretty Moon Jewel Return!"

Side by side the newest attack, several gray/black daggers flew, along with a red rose.

When the orb was struck with the huge attack it shuddered for a moment before imploding with a red flash.

"All right!" Sailormoon said enthusiastically, "Nice job everyone!" She stopped suddenly and said, "Wait a minute...that looked like a rose..." She looked around with a furious look on her normally sweet face and shouted, "Tuxedo Kamen, you come out here right now!"

Sheepishly, the accused slunk out of a nearby shadow and hung his head guiltily. Sailormoon raced over to him, grabbed the rim of his top hat, and pulled it down over his eyes. "What did I tell you about staying away? Please, please go away! I don't know what I'm going to do to you if you show up again, but trust me, it won't be good!"

She continued to yell at him, but SailorMoon stopped listening and searched for the familiar owner of the daggers she had seen. She wandered away from the rest of the group and softly called, "Shadow Knight? Are you here?" From behind her, a voice replied, "Of course, Princess. I am always near you, even when you can't see me."

The remark sent pleasant shivers through SailorMoon, and she blushed slightly.

"Thank you for helping us again."

He put his hands on her shoulders and whispered, "It's the least I can do."

She turned to face him and looked up at his face with longing, her eyes lingering on his mask. "Can I see who you are?"

"I am here for you, Princess. That should be enough."

She sighed with disappointment and murmured, "Oh."

"SailorMoon?" The black cat paced over to her slowly, but keep her red eyes on the Shadow Knight.

"What is it Luna?" SailorMoon asked, the annoyance in her voice and face obvious.

Luna lashed her tail and said, "It isn't a good idea for you to wander away from the group."

SailorMoon froze as her protector's lips gently brushed her forehead just above her tiara, and he whispered, "I have to go now. Don't worry. I will always be here for you."

He released her shoulders and stepped away. Saluting Luna mockingly, he turned away from both the girl and the cat, and after taking a few steps, he disappeared into a shadow that appeared in midair.

SailorMoon stalked over to where Luna was waiting, marched past the cat, and over to group.

The girl glared down at the guardian when she caught up, but the tension was broken when Usagi exclaimed, "I mean it, Mamo-chan! No more!" Tuxedo Kamen finally got a chance to respond when Sailormoon was forced to stop and gasp for air.

"Actually Usako," he whispered, his voice filled with pain, "I was looking for you so I could give you something."

He had Sailormoon's immediate attention, but she still looked cautious. Tuxedo Kamen shimmered for a moment and transformed back into Mamoru. He moved until he was standing directly in front of her, handed her a beautiful rose that was just starting to bloom, and whispered, "I'll love you forever, Usako." He gently kissed her hand, turned, and walked away without looking back. Sailormoon shimmered and transformed back into Usagi, still clutching the rose tightly. She stared at it with huge, disbelieving eyes, and whispered, "He's leaving me again, maybe forever this time."

She squeezed the rose until blood trickled from her thorn pierced fingers, moving only when she blinked. Finally, she burst into tears, sobbing loudly, but without the usually wailing. Her grief was heartfelt, and her tears were genuine.

A single tear hovered on her eyelashes for a moment a then fell onto the rose. It slid down the velvet petals until it rested in the very center of the beautiful flower.

"Please don't leave me Mamo-chan." Usagi whispered with torment.

There was a golden flash of light, and the rose began to glow brilliantly. The senshi gasped with amazement, and Mars, Jupiter, and Uranus all began to ready attacks. The rose grew too bright to look at directly, and began to elongate and reform in Usagi's bleeding hands.

When the light finally died down, she was left holding an exquisite sword. The thin, but razor sharp blade softly glowed the color of moonlight, and the silver hilt was engraved with numerous winding vines covered with roses. Usagi looked at the weapon with shock and finally murmured, "From my Mamo-chan." She held it with confident hands, tears silently sliding over her cheeks, and examined it from every angle. Finally she said, "With this we can defeat anything that stands against us."

She took a practice swing with it, but then closed her eyes and opened her hands. The sword vanished into thin air, leaving Usagi looking plain and ordinary among the brightly clad senshi.

Sailormars shimmered, and Rei hugged Usagi gently, saying, "Why don't you come over and spend the night at the shrine with Usa and me? It will take your mind off of things."

Usagi nodded wordlessly, looking suddenly weary.