"I do." He spun to be faced with Serenity, and his face hardened. "I give her that right, as she is my Guardian, and my closest friend."

She had changed considerably. No longer was her hair golden, but now was spun silver, her gown had a white bodice with golden moons and a black skirt with a silver hem. Her earrings were two silver crescent moons with small golden orbs dangling from them, and her crown was a silver rose and a golden rose that met in the middle of her forehead joined by a silver crescent moon.

"Serena, what has happened to you?" he asked, stepping towards her as though he wanted to embrace her, concern and confusion quickly replacing the hard anger that had been there mere moments ago. It was at that moment he noticed Seiya standing behind her, the look on his face bordering on murderous.

"I have become the embodiment of both the moon's powers and the earth's. Because you chose to forsake your birthright, I was able to remove that part of you. Should I find someone that the powers would accept, I will bestow them upon that person. If not, then perhaps one of my children will be given your powers." She turned from him to Amy. "Amy, I understand what it is to love this man, for I have loved him just as long as you. I cannot say that I forgive all indiscretions and lies on your part, but your presence as Sailor Mercury is as needed as his is as the Sailor from Earth, Tuxedo Mask. I cannot speak for the other girls, or Greg, but I shall accept it for what it is now." For a second, she seemed the embodiment of power, and then it seemed to flicker. "Raye, call the others…" In an instant, the transformation was lost, she was Serena once more, and she crumbled to the ground in a dead faint.

She woke in her own bed, and smiled, knowing the girls must have brought her back here, but only vaguely remembering what had happened. A single tear slipped down her cheek as she remembered what she had overheard between Darien and Amy. Had she really taken Darien's power from him? His birthright? How was the possible? She didn't quite understand, but it had something to do with him not accepting who he was, and turning his back on the Earth.

She sat up, and grasped her head, feeling very weak and dizzy, she had expended too much power, or maybe she wasn't prepared to handle the power she suddenly had inside her. Groaning, she got up and pulled on her bathrobe, this felt like a really bad hangover. As she reached for the handle on her door, it opened away from her to reveal Seiya standing there, his loving concern written plainly on his face. Serena looked up at him surprised, and in that moment of hesitation revealed her weakness to him. He swept forward and enveloped her in a warm embrace before scooping her up.

"What are you doing out of bed?" He asked in a voice thick with emotion. Instead of answering, she buried her face in his shoulder and cried.

"What have I done?!" She sobbed into his shoulder, as he quickly moved to the couch so he could comfort her properly. "I have ensured that… that…" she couldn't even get the words out. She had ensured that Rini would never exist. She had destroyed the future she had been shown so many years ago. Seiya let her cry, rubbed her back and made soothing sounds while she purged herself of all that had happened the night before. "I ruined everything." She said, finally pulling away from his shoulder. He put his hands gently on the sides of her face.

"No." He said simply, and she looked up at him, surprise in her crystal blue eyes. "You haven't ruined anything. They did. In their despicable act, they ruined their friendship with you. Nothing else is ruined."

"But what ab…" He placed a finger on her lips, silencing her.

"You took his power into you. You don't need him to have her anymore, she can still come to be – just later then you had first thought." She looked confused, "What gave her all that specialness, her power, her gift as a Sailor was the combination of those two powers. She might be a little different then you remember, but she will still be your daughter and just as perfect."

She smiled then, weakly. He was right, and she knew it.

A knock at the door disrupted their quiet moment. She moved to get up, and he pulled her back as he shook his head at her. He shifted her down onto the couch, and rose to answer the door. She adjusted the bathrobe over her pink silk pajamas, and sat waiting to see who was at the door. Seiya opened the door to reveal the girls, and Serena sighed. She should have known they would show up then. Seiya stepped out of their way, and three girls filed into the apartment. They made a bee-line for Serena.

"Sere" "Are You ok" "Raye told us what" Seiya cleared his throat and got the attention of the chattering girls.

"Ladies, have a seat and don't push her too hard ok?" He said, and disappeared into the kitchen. Serena took a deep breath and looked at her friends.

"Where is she?" She asked, and the three celestial princess looked at each other.

"We told her she was no longer one of us. That she had not only betrayed you but had betrayed us, and that she was not welcome." The fire-tempered Raye answered and the other two nodded their agreement.

"We should have stripped her of her powers too, but…" Mina looked up at Serena.

"No. We can't do that. No matter… no matter how much she hurt me, we need her." They looked at her, surprised. "We need Mercury to fight whatever this is, and we need Tuxedo Mask also. However much it pains me to admit it, we do. I have the power of both worlds, both crystals, but I don't know if I can handle it, if I can channel it without killing myself without all of you being there when I have to try. We'll need the Starlights too."

"I don't want either of them anywhere near you." Seiya's voice chimed in as he rounded the corner with tray covered with mugs and a steaming teapot. "I'm pretty sure I can speak for the Starlights, if you need us we're here. But I don't want them hurting you again, and I'm likely to kill him before I let him near you again."

"Rena, we have to find another way." Lita chimed in. "There has to be something else."

Serena nodded, her face suddenly drawn. "Then think fast, I don't know how much time we have…"