A/N: So, heads up... The next few chapters start to get really serious. And this one has a bit of adorable stuff. So, have fun!

Warning: Stuff. Things. Blah. At this point, you know what the fuck is in the fic.

With love,
Korrupted.

Disclaimer: Do I really need to say it? Sailor Moon isn't mine. At all.

When a man strikes his male or female slave with a rod so hard that the slave dies under his hand, he shall be punished. If, however, the slave survives for a day or two, he is not to be punished, since the slave is his own property.

-Exodus 21:20-21 NAB

Minako was never so relieved to see the walls of Landenholt, even going so far as to sigh happily at the familiar faces of the guards. Her charge looked similarly relaxed as they rode their horses through town, Travis waving as he walked from one of the shops back to his forge happily. When the brothel came into view, both women were beaming, the midday bells tolling around them as they broke into laughter; they had missed the bar and the workers dearly.

A window was opened at the noise they made, Haruka poking her head out to see them and turning back inside. "They're back! Hey, get those dicks and tits out of your mouths, ladies! Mina's back!"

The flurry of sounds at that announcement was massive, but most notable were the sounds of two young girls squealing in joy, rushing out to meet the women.

"Haruka! Mind your language while the girls are here!" Setsuna scolded from somewhere, appearing a few moments later in the doorway with Rei, Serenity, and Luna in close pursuit.

Minako dismounted quickly and knelt down to hug Hotaru and Diana as they tackled her to the ground, dirt kicked up to settle on her cotton tunic and leather breeches, the trio laughing. "Girls! What a nice welcome back." She grinned to the duo, looking between red and deep purple eyes. "But what are you both doing here?"

"Artemis nipped off to escort some dignitary. Arianna has been keeping them busy the the kitchen during hours." Luna explained off-handedly.

Makoto dismounted as the young girls raced over scooping up the duo and throwing them both over her shoulders as they squealed and laughed, attempting to squirm their way down. "Didn't know you had a kid too, Sets." She stated evenly, swaying side to side as the girls laughed louder.

The darker woman smiled a bit sadly, walking over to look down the several inches of height difference. "Well, her father isn't around, and she usually remains with Artemis during my shifts. But he is away and she stays in the kitchen with Ari and Diana." Her gaze softened. "She knows what goes on here, but she knows that what the girls do here is a job, just as mine is a job."

The Kishu nodded vaguely with a grin, letting the children down before they dashed off to meet up with a few other children. It was nice to be back, however she still needed to return her gear to the smith. "Mina? I gotta go return the weapons. You coming, or what?"

The blonde waved dismissively. "Yeah, yeah. In a bit."

"Which means you hurry your ass up, or I'm hauling the gear over one shoulder, you over the other, and carrying you there, Mistress Blondie."

Ocean hues spun around to meet stubborn emerald. "You wouldn't dare."

Before she knew it, Makoto's long legs had cleared the distance between them, the tall woman bending down to hoist the madam over her shoulder with one arm around her legs, Minako screeching in protest. "MAKOTO! I DEMAND YOU PUT ME DOWN."

Makoto, however, scooped up the weapons from her saddle, carrying both her master and the items into the market. "Nope. I wanna get this done and rest up before the brothel opens." She stated flatly. "We both know that means we are both bedding down, or neither of us are sleeping."

Haruka laughed at the indignant blonde as her charge carried her away, hearing several others gasp or laugh as well at her plight. It wasn't fair how much stronger Makoto was than her, nor that her squeals and demands sounded childish and weak at best. As she was carried through the market, all Minako could think was that it was clearly both a blessing and a curse that they had become so close.

Max folded her arms, shadows licking at her frame as she watched Ranait carefully. How long the girl had been channeling the power of the Queen today, she didn't know. All she knew was that the normally bouncing redhead looked oddly serene as she knelt on the madam's bed with her stuffed wolf in her arms, her light emerald eyes closed. There was a soft glow about her from the power that hummed through her frame, the odd gift that allowed her to do so tinting the blue-white light with a hint of orange.

The woman knew that her charge was supposed to be kept at arms distance, to be trained and treated as the possible last-chance weapon she was. But the little brat had wormed her way into the hearts of the Queen, the general, and herself. She took candies from the Queen's pockets to train in stealth, helped to clean weapons with Rabalyan to learn about warfare and strategy, and from herself...

Max frowned. She felt as if she had learned more from Ranait than the other way around. Without her, she would still be an outsider amongst her own staff. She wouldn't be smiling as much around others. She wouldn't have learned that she could happily raise a successor that was good, kind, and gentle as well as strong and fiery.

Ranait was currently channeling almost all of her Queen's power, the glow brighter than the previous day. Only a bit more, and she would be allowing the full strength of the woman to pour over her.

But a whimper from the ginger was a new sound, alerting her mentor to something being wrong. "Renny?" She inquired, taking a careful step closer to the bed, listening to several soft coughs.

All at once, everything seemed to go wrong.

Ranait clutched her chest above her heart as blood flecked her lips, Adulfo tumbling to the wooden floors after being hastily let go. Her pale, freckled skin was covered with a thin layer of ice cold sweat, her frame wracked with pain as the coughing grew wet and intensified.

"RENNY!" Max all but screeched in horror, panicking as she rushed to her charge's side.

Ranait had never been in so much pain before in her life. Her chest was tight and on fire, her nerves flowing with searing acid, and still her link with the Queen was open, power still coursing into her. She reached through her gift that bound them together, finding herself inside the woman's mind, and in front of the woman herself.

"Yer Majesty... Ye have t'stop! Somethin's wrong!" She shouted, her mental voice laced with agony.

While she could force the link open, she couldn't shut it down, even from her end. Thankfully, the link was instantly cut between the both of them, leaving the teen to shake, cry, and cough up just a bit more blood. It was still incredibly painful to breathe, the touch of her mentor sending shudders through her body from the contact. She didn't know what to do, say, or think as it slowly ebbed away.

"Renny, shhh... It's alright dear." Max crooned, cradling the injured girl to her chest protectively. Seeing her in such agony had ignited a terror of her own deep inside of her heart; the fear of losing the child that was her connection to everyone besides the queen.

The fear of losing a friend and loved one.

As she stroked the red hair tenderly, whispering words of care and assurance, the madam started to wonder exactly what was her connection to the child. Was it still familial, friendly, or was it something more?

Makoto was walking back to the brothel with a completely passed out Minako on her back. She didn't mind carrying the smaller woman at all, nodding at passing guards as she continued her trek, her hands laced under Minako's rear to keep her from slipping off, the pale arms flopped lazily down her shoulders and chest. She looked from stall to stall, shifting one of the blonde's legs to halt the pressure that was driving the length of death cloud into her side she had cut for Ami. Perhaps the bluenette would find the many uses of the plant useful, and the fact that it grew almost as fast as a weed in colder temperatures was a benefit; winter would be here soon, but so far it had been unseasonably warm here compared to the mountains.

"Henso...?" A soft voice questioned.

Makoto turned slowly, looking for the source until she noticed a woman in armor, blue eyes wide on awe.

"Savannah? Is that... You?" She breathed in an equally hushed tone.

The dark skinned woman grinned, hurrying over in spite of the clattering metal protection. The woman was almost as tall as the slave, her sky blue hues taking in the shackles with a hint of sorrow in her gaze. "I... I knew you didn't die that day..." Were her lamenting words.

Makoto didn't flinch as Savannah touched the collar timidly, smiling at her bitterly. "Well, I'm glad someone isn't treating me like a specter."

White teeth flashed against rich black skin, the soldier pulling herself back together. "A few of us just knew, Henso. Most of the others believed them, though."

A soft snore in her ear reminded her of the woman on her back, and of her current life. "Please, don't call me Henso. It's just Makoto now." She tilted her head towards her slumbering charge. "This idiot saved my life by taking me as her slave from my previous master. But she's a walking disaster zone. Needs constant supervision, mind you."

The duo chuckled softly before green orbs darkened, hoisting Minako a bit higher on her back. "Savannah, don't tell anyone else you saw me. Please. It's safer that way."

"But, Henso... The others would-"

"Please. Consider it my final order. He's still out there too."

Savannah stiffened, her jaw clenching as she nodded. "Alright, then. I never saw you. But..." Her voice dropped to a whisper. "should a dead woman need me, she need only send word to the Blinded Guard. I am one of their number, and for my dead friend, I would do anything."

Before Makoto could reply, her former comrade marched off, everything about the armored woman unreadable. The slave couldn't help but wonder once again about what had happened to the others that day.

Minako woke up with a loud crash of thunder nearly shaking the room, looking around in confusion. When had she arrived back at the brothel? What time was it? When she felt nothing but cool air where another body typically lay, her most important question became where was Makoto?

The whip wielder began scanning her surroundings, her brow furrowed in concern. It wasn't like her to vanish, nor to not be next to her while she was sleeping. Another loud clap of thunder caused the air to vibrate, and a whimpering squeak to be voiced from near the bed. 'What was that?'

Cautiously peering over the edge of the bed, Minako found her charge curled up with her hands firmly clasped over her ears, mouth moving quickly as if she was reciting some sort of mantra. Another deafening boom sounded, making the tall slave flinch, curling a bit tighter against herself. Was the seemingly indestructible Makoto afraid of thunder?

Minako knew that she could tease her relentlessly over this, use this information as a weapon. But that twisted thought was torn to shreds mere moments later; she was too gentle, to caring about this powerful woman that was her friend. Too protective of her to allow a fear to be used like a dagger to wound. And so she quietly slipped from the bed to join her charge, hesitantly touching her shoulder. "Mako? Mako, it's alri-ight?!"

Minako found herself gripped by her throat and pressed against the floor below Makoto, wild, terrified green eyes watching her in a blank haze. It was clear that she was consumed by fear and survival, and Minako once again was reminded how dangerous she could be. Her hands gripped at shackled forearms, trying to wriggle free from the grasp that restricted her oxygen. "Mako..." She half-choked. "You're hurting me..."

Makoto's gaze cleared gradually, the grip growing a bit lax as she shook. She hunkered down a bit to hide her face against Minako's chest, muttering something too quickly for the madam to catch. Instead of trying to get up, or scolding the slave, Minako covered her ears with her own hands, humming a festival melody in an effort to dull the sounds of the storm outside. Her throat hurt, as did her back, but still she hummed, feeling Makoto cover her hands with her own as well.

A warrior afraid of thunder was odd, but Minako knew than her charge had lived through hell with the spirit and will of an untamable beast; even she was allowed to be only human from time to time.

Minako didn't know at what point she had fallen asleep, but she knew that she hadn't done so on her bed. Which was why she was confused when she woke up neatly tucked in.

"Hey. Morning." She heard Makoto say in a bit of a strained voice from the doorway.

Turning her head, she looked at the slave to take note of the green cotton shirt and woolen breeches, but most importantly the tray of breakfast in her hands. Makoto walked in and placed the tray on the bedside table before backing off swiftly, running a hand through her hair while Minako sat up and shifted to take control of it.

"Mako, what's going on? Talk to me, please." She pleaded after a few more minutes of anxious fidgeting from her taller friend.

"I'm really sorry. About attacking you like that. There's really no excuse, and my fears shouldn't have controlled me like that." She stated at long last. "You're my friend, and I really care about you. And I hurt you. I'll accept whatever punishment you have for me."

Minako took the time to start eating to think, the words tumbling out swiftly. "Make me dinner, then? Ari makes good food, but I really like your cooking."

Verdant hues blinked dumbly. "That's... all? Just make you dinner? No extra chores? Just dinner?"

The blonde grinned and nodded. "Yup! And I really miss that rabbit you made when we were almost at your village. Can you make that? It was so good."

"I uhhh... Yeah. I can." Was her master truly being this kind? "Anything else?"

"No. Just dinner." A moment of pause. "And I won't tell the girls about the thunder, I promise. If you ever need to come up here during your shift if a storm hits, you are more than welcome."

Makoto's brow furrowed. "I just... Sometimes I don't get you, Mina."

Minako cocked her head to the side curiously. "What do you mean?"

The slave walked closer, shrugging slightly. "You try to help me. The few times anyone has tried to injure me, you jump in to intervene. You care about my thoughts, and welfare, and I just keep waiting for something to go wrong."

The food was set aside as the blonde rose to he feet, moving to embrace her tall friend, standing on her toes to achieve the action. "Of course I care. You mean so much to me. You saved my life, you taught me things, and I will do anything to get you free."

"You don't have to, you know."

"I want to. You deserve to be free, and happy."

Minako felt long arms encircle her, pulling her close for a friendly but firm hold, returning the embrace. "Well, you got one of the two down already, Mistress Blondie. I'm happy here with you and the girls. It's more than I ever thought I would get."

After a few moments more of the hug, they broke apart, Makoto twitching her nose side to side in sheepish thought.

"Mina?"

Blue eyes looked at her clothing as she tried to get dressed for the day. "Hmm?"

"Thank you."

"What for?"

"For taking me as your slave."

Minako straightened to look at Makoto seriously. "My employee, not slave. No matter what anyone tells you, you are not my slave. If I ever state different, it's because I have to to save you from something. You are my friend first, employee second."

Makoto grinned at her slightly, her posture easing more. "Then thank your for letting me be your friend."

The grin was flashed back at her. "And thank you for the honor of being your friend too. You trusting me is worth more than you think."

"Well, you earned it."

Those words warmed Minako's soul to hear, her smile broadening. This made everything that she had gone through worth it. Earning Makoto's trust.

Makoto touched the warm gold collar about her neck, tracing over one of the nicks from the skirmish at the hot springs. She truly meant her words, and she would be damned if she let anything happen to Minako or the girls. They meant too much to her to let that happen. She would become another sacrifice to protect them, just as she had been a sacrifice before.