For Your Happiness
Chapter 9
Mamoru's time was officially up. Today was the day he was due to give Usagi his decision and yet he was still no closer to finding an answer. It seemed that his only option would be to discuss the situation with Usagi and, possibly, have her separate Endymion's consciousness from his own. The thought had him both elated and terrified. On the one hand, separating from Endymion might give him the one thing he'd always wanted… the memories of his parents that the car accident had stolen from him. On the other hand, part of him was terrified of what else might happen as a result.
He has spent all morning wracking his brain for an answer, a solution that might solve everything, but at 11:45 AM he still had nothing. With a resigned sigh, he headed out of his apartment and made his way to meet Usagi at the Crown Arcade. When he entered, he saw the blonde sitting alone at the counter nursing what had to be the biggest chocolate milkshake ever created. No doubt Motoki had realized what was happening today and had given her the chocolatey drink in an attempt to cheer up his friend. Mamoru was almost jealous that Motoki hadn't thought to give him a fortifying drink as well. Building up his courage, Mamoru walked over to the counter and took a seat beside the girl that had played such a gigantic role in his life.
He opened his mouth to say something but Usagi beat him to it, "I didn't think about the possibility that Endymion's presence might be responsible for you being unable to remember your parents. If I had known, I would have found a way to get them back to you sooner."
Mamoru couldn't help but smile, "I know. You've always done your best to try to help me remember them."
"Good. I was afraid you might be mad at me."
Reaching a hand over, Mamoru gently grasped Usagi's chin and slowly turned her to face him, "I know you better than that and I know you didn't really think I'd be mad." He couldn't help the sigh that escaped, "I tried Usako, I tried so hard to figure out what my true feelings are but I couldn't find an answer. I think the only solution is to separate my consciousness from Endymion's."
Usagi averted her eyes and started thoughtfully at the arcade counter for several minutes before responding. Eventually, she met Mamoru's gaze with one of determination, "I think you're right." With that, she stood up and made her way toward the entrance to the Senshi's base of operations, Mamoru following close behind her.
Once they reached the command center, Usagi removed the Ginzuisho from her brooch, "I'm going to have to use the Ginzuisho to create a new body for Endymion's soul so this may take a few minutes. Mamoru nodded as Usagi closed her eyes and the Ginzuisho began to glow. Suddenly, he could feel Endymion being pushed from his mind but, for some reason, the Earth Prince was fighting to remain. Mamoru could feel the Prince's terror and, even stranger, heartache. The feelings confused Mamoru but the confusion was quickly replaced by awe as Endymion's presence was replaced with Mamoru's own memories of his childhood, his parents, and everything he'd felt and experienced since the accident.
When the crystal's power finally subsided, Mamoru became aware of another presence in the control center. He realized he was standing beside a man who was practically his twin, though there were subtle differences. The new arrival was slightly taller than Mamoru and had a wider frame. His eyes were also a lighter shade of blue and his hair a darker shade of black. The Earth Prince looked profoundly pissed off and Mamoru gave in to a temptation he'd had for years… without hesitation, Mamoru stepped forward and punched Endymion in the jaw as hard as he could.
Endymion definitely hadn't been expecting a physical blow and the punch sent him reeling to the floor as Mamoru closed in, "How dare you! What right did you have to rob me of my parent's memories or to take over my body without my permission?"
"I saved your life! The injuries you sustained would have killed you without my intervention!" Endymion shouted back as he regained his feet.
"And somehow that gives you the right to decide how I'm going to treat people and who I'm going to interact with? What do you have against Usagi?"
"She lacks any semblance of intelligence or grace. She has no fighting skills to speak of and cries about everything. She is nothing like Serenity, she's just a temporary substitute."
That statement stopped Mamoru in his tracks, "What do you mean she's 'a temporary substitute'? Usagi is Serenity's reincarnation just like all the Senshi are reincarnations of their past selves.
Endymion scoffed, "Surely you recall my memories of Princess Serenity. Other than their physical similarities, when have you ever seen anything from Usagi that reminds you of Serenity?"
"Never, Usagi has never reminded me of Princess Serenity…" Mamoru began. Endymion grinned as he watched the blonde girl hang her head in shame, clearly she knew the truth as well. Everything was working out perfectly. When Endymion had initially met Serenity's reincarnation, he had realized she was a threat. It was clear the human girl possessed a strength that Serenity never had and he'd been concerned when Serenity couldn't present herself without Usagi's concentrated effort to bring her forward. The Earth Prince knew that, in a battle between Usagi Tsukino's will and that of Princess Serenity, Usagi would be the victor and he couldn't lose the love of his life again, he wouldn't allow it. Unfortunately, his glee was cut short as Mamoru finished his sentence, "and that's one of the things I love about her." Usagi's head snapped up as Mamoru continued, "I remember everything from the time we were joined from your memories of Serenity to your interactions with Usagi and Sailor Moon. Serenity hid behind her Senshi and was unable to wield the Ginzuisho's power because she was too afraid to fight for herself. It wasn't entirely her fault, she was raised believing she was incapable of entering battle and that, as a princess, her safety and survival was paramount.
"Usagi never asked to be Sailor Moon, she never asked to be Serenity's reincarnation. All she's ever wanted was to be normal, to live the life of a happy, carefree teenage girl. The mistakes that you and Serenity made stole that from her and yet she never blamed either of you for her fate. I understand now why you wanted me to stay away from her… you saw in me the same thing you saw in her. You knew both of us would fight to be together and to exist as ourselves and that determination was a threat to you and Serenity getting to have the future that was stolen from you by Beryl and the Negaverse."
"We deserve our future! We fought for it, we died for it!"
"And you lost! An entire civilization was destroyed because Serenity gave up and died to be with you. My Usako would never do that! She would never give up and just die because she lost people she loved, even for me. No, my Usako would fight back even while trying to find a solution that would create as little loss of life as possible. Usako has earned the right to exist the way she wants because she's fought for it a lot harder than you or Serenity ever did." Here Mamoru paused and looked at Usagi who was staring back at him with hope clear in her gaze, "How could I not love her for that?"
The next thing Mamoru knew, a sobbing odango atama was barreling into him and wrapping slender arms around his waist. He couldn't help but smile as he returned the embrace, "I, Mamoru Chiba, have always loved you Usagi."
