About a week later, school was back in session, and Usagi grumbled to herself as the teachers piled what seemed to be loads of homework on them. Sighing as she flopped down on the bench next to Hana at lunch, she resting her chin in her hands and her elbows on her knees.

"Do you think they're making up for a week without homework? Or that they think it was caused by us students and taking it out on us, and this is punishment?" she asked grumpily. She'd been up late the night before and STILL hadn't gotten all her homework done.

"I'd imagine a little of both." Hana answered, obviously tired herself. "And they are doing a wonderful job if it is punishment. I doubt any students that are trying to do their homework are getting any sleep. At least you have Karin and Kazuma to help you out."

"Karin is at her job most of the time, and Kazuma is a little preoccupied," Usagi admitted. "Sometimes, I end up helping their dad in the clinic too." She flashed back to that terrible day when Venus had attacked and nearly got away with killing her. She shivered and shook her head, her hand going to the pendant Kazuma had given her. There hadn't been any attacks lately though, so that was good. To her at least. She was scared of what might happen at the next one. "So I have to do it on my own," she finished, making sure that she was back on the same thought path. She sighed, looking at her food and not even feeling remotely hungry. "I just hope that everything is calm for a little while..."

"Don't jinx it," Hana said absently. She finished her lunch. "Let's go. Maybe we can get a few more assignments done with what's left of lunch."

"Yeah yeah..." Usagi muttered, knocking on the tree trunk next to the bench, then stood and stretched, putting her untouched food back in her book bag. "To the library then?" she asked, and started to lead the way. Mei, Rin, and Yumiko were already there, and she and Hana joined them, all five working furiously on their homework.

Later on, they were all walking home from school when Usagi felt a dark aura approaching. She flinched, expecting the headache and the visions, but nothing came. A second dark aura started to approach as well, and she immediately turned to the others.

"Two are coming," she whispered, and they all went into an alleyway, transforming. "Moon Cosmic Power!"

"Jupiter Power!"

"Mercury Power!"

"Mars Power!"

"Venus Power!"

"Make Up!" All five were soon in their Senshi fukus, and they dashed out of the alleyway, just in time to meet two entirely new dark Senshi.

"Who are you?" Sailor Moon gasped. She was wary of the good luck she was having as far as the headaches and visions went, but thankful as well.

"By the guiding light of the wind, I am Sailor Uranus," said the woman who looked to be the older of the two.

"By the guiding light of the oceans, I am Sailor Neptune," said the other. Sailor Moon blinked. These two were dark; she could feel their souls battling. The sounds of the battle were louder than it had been for the dark inner Senshi, who seemed lost and confused instead of truly fighting. These two, they were truly fighting against themselves. Were there others like them?

"Sailor Moon, you are slated to die," they said together, and Dark Uranus took out a sword while Dark Neptune took out a hand mirror.

"Evil Space Sword Blaster!" Sailor Moon barely dodged, a cut appearing on her wrist as she shoved Jupiter and Mars out of the way.

'Careful girls, these two are extremely powerful, especially since they are fighting two battles at once. They seem to be fighting us on both levels,' she said to the others with her aura. It felt almost good to be able to actually fight alongside them again, instead of being a useless lump.

"Dark Ocean Reflection!" Neptune's attack gouged a hole in the ground, and Sailor Moon had to scream at Venus to jump out of the way. Sailor Moon herself was summoning her Crescent Moon Wand, the Silver Crystal nestling itself in the crook of the crescent moon.

"Moonlight Reflection!" she shouted, the light lancing out and blinding the two dark Senshi. "Moon Princess Escalation!" The healing light from the Crescent Moon Wand reached out to the two dark Senshi, but somehow, they managed to dodge AND wind up behind the quintet of Senshi. Knocking Sailor Moon to the ground, Dark Uranus knelt on top of her, her knees digging into Sailor Moon's chest as she held her sword to her neck. Struggling, Sailor Moon actually got a nick on her neck as she tried to shove Dark Uranus away. Dark Neptune was holding the others at bay, lashing out with her fists at any who tried to draw close. Sailor Moon closed her eyes and reached out for Kazuma. It had been going so well; how had they been able to dodge her healing light, especially after she had blinded them?!

"NO! Sailor Moon!" Jupiter cried out. They had to do something.

Kazuma had been on his way to the school, figuring he'd meet Usagi and her friends on their way home. He was feeling paranoid after a week of nothing going wrong. He felt something wrong ahead of him and started to run. The closer he got the more he realized what that wrongness was. There were TWO dark Senshi ahead. He transformed, notching an arrow before he could even see them. When he finally rounded the last corner- he felt Usagi reaching out for him with her aura- and saw the state things were in, he fired one arrow and then another, each going for one of the dark Senshi. He was already notching the other before the first two fully reached their targets.

Dark Uranus and Dark Neptune were immediately on the defensive, looking straight at Archer. Leaving Sailor Moon and the other Senshi, they jumped at him, avoiding his arrows, just barely. Sailor Moon took a deep breath, drawing air into her lungs, rubbing her sore chest. Seeing what had happened, what that distraction might cost her though, she scrambled up, her hand on her Crescent Moon Wand. Taking a deep breath, she closed her eyes and prayed her hardest for this to work. Up on the moon, the Prayer Room brightened to almost blinding because of the power of her prayers.

"Moon Princess Escalation!" she said softly, and the healing sparkling light reached from the Silver Crystal and out to Dark Uranus and Dark Neptune. Before the two could realize what was going on, they were hit. An agonized scream erupted from the both of them, and they fell to their knees. After a few moments, the black in their uniforms turned white, and the other colors grew a bit lighter. They each took a deep breath, then looked at each other. The sword and the mirror shimmered away, no longer needed at the moment, and in the next instant, they were in each other's arms. Uranus kissed Neptune gently before they turned to Sailor Moon. Standing, they walked over to her and knelt in front of her, each taking one of her hands and kissing it.

"Thank you for saving us Princess," Neptune said with a smile.

"Now we can return to our time to wait for our Princess," Uranus added. "I know from your power that she can be saved. We can do nothing more here for you though." A spinning vortex appeared behind them, and they looked at it. Standing, they looked around at the other Senshi. "Take care of your Princess. Stand strong and stay beside her. Everything is centered around her, so always be on your guard," Uranus warned before taking Neptune's hand. They walked together into the vortex, and it spiraled shut behind them. Sailor Moon shivered, her hand going to her neck to touch the small cut that was there. She'd been seconds away from death again... How many times would they do this before they finally finished her off?

Kazuma let out a breath. He finally had something of good news to give his sister. He looked over at Usagi and saw the blood on her neck. A panic settled into his stomach for an instant and he hurried to her. It was just a scratch but he healed it anyway. He smiled. "Well at least that's two we don't have to worry about now. Well done Princess," he took her hand and kissed her fingertips, then looked to the others. They had some bruises and a few cuts. He tended to the girls as well.

Usagi blushed, having let her transformation go only seconds before Kazuma came over to her.

"Thank you," she said. She smiled when she saw that the locket she had given him was in his pocket, and touched a hand to the pendant he'd given her. "Um, Kazuma, we were actually talking about going to get some milkshakes when I felt those two get close to us," she said cheerfully. It was semi-forced, but no one would ever know. "Do you want to come with us?"

Kazuma smiled over his shoulder at her. "So long as your friends don't mind."

"Why would we mind? We're friends too, aren't we?" Yumiko asked, her hands on her hips.

Kazuma chuckled. "Hey- I have a sister- I know better than to just intrude on girl time," he said, putting his hands up in mock defense.

Usagi grinned and went over to take his hands, kissing the top of his head since he was kneeling and finishing taking care of Rin.

"Yeah, it's fine," Rin added with a smile. "Usagi, what place were you thinking of? I can think of a few." Usagi tilted her head to the side, thinking.

"Well, I was thinking of trying that new place over in the Juban shopping district. It looked super nice," she said.

"Then let's go!" Mei said as she threw her hands up in the air and cheered. Usagi helped Kazuma up and took his hand, walking along beside him as the girls all walked clustered around them. They soon arrived at the milkshake shop and got a table. The server came over to take their order. "Banana!" Mei said excitedly, then blushed when she got strange looks from the others. "It's a yummy flavor..." she pouted. Usagi giggled.

"I'll have chocolate," she said, and Rin echoed her sentiment.

"Strawberry for me," Yumiko said.

Hana thought a moment. "Mint chocolate chip."

"Carmel vanilla," Kazuma told him. The guy taking their order looked at Kazuma, and then at the five girls around him, and got a slightly envious look before nodding and leaving to get their orders.

Kazuma looked as well. It was him surrounded by five pretty girls. He choked on a laugh, covering his mouth. 'I will bet money he thought it looked like I had a personal harem,' he thought.

Usagi was looking at one of the little desert menus that were on the table, but looked up once the server had gone.

"So, something interesting happened," she said softly. She didn't think that anyone at the surrounding tables should over hear this particular conversation.

"Oh?" Rin asked, rather surprised. Lately, things had been super interesting, but if Usagi said something was interesting, it must be something different.

"Yes," Usagi said, nodding. "When I felt their auras as they drew closer, I didn't experience anything. No agonizing headache, no horrible visions..." She frowned. "I think something happened after the fight with Dark Mars. I felt as if a weight had been lifted. I didn't realize that it would have anything to do with this..."

Kazuma paused. "That would be nice," he commented. "Let's hope that it says with way." He wondered what could have been the cause, but nothing came to mind. Perhaps... she developed some sort of immunity to it? But would it have been so sudden?

Usagi nodded.

"The headaches were bad, but the visions were even worse," she whispered. Instead of answering Mei's question about what they were about, she shook her head and smiled. "I'm glad that they are gone. I didn't like not being able to help you girls fight." Under the table, she took Kazuma's hand and squeezed it, and then rested her head on his shoulder. Rin smiled.

"Well, at least now we can all work together again. And I must say Usagi, that was amazing today," she added. Mei nodded.

"I never expected them to bow to you though. That was something new!" she said. Usagi blushed a little.

"I think they showed that deference to me because they do that for their Princess. Maybe it's just their way of showing respect," she said softly.

Kazuma squeezed her hand in response. "Probably. It makes sense though, considering who you are," he pointed out.

Their milkshakes arrived and everyone began to nom down on them, enjoying the sweet treat after their first real victory

Usagi nodded, and started to happily drink her milkshake. After everyone was done, they slowly began to part ways, and Usagi held Kazuma's hand as they walked home. She hummed happily, then shrieked when the sky opened up and a cold rain began to pour down on them.

"Run!" she laughed, tugging Kazuma along. Once they were safe under the porch of his house, she shook her head, shaking water out of her eyes. "First rain of the season," she giggled. A shiver shook her and she blinked. "Cold too." Her uniform clung to her body as she turned to unlock the door. "Let's get changed before we catch a cold."

Kazuma wasn't as amused by the rain. It had just come out of nowhere... 'You're being paranoid again,' he told himself, but didn't relax. Paranoia wasn't always a bad thing. "Go ahead and take a bath first," he told her, following her inside, having a very hard time not eying her nicely revealed body with how the uniform clung to her.

Usagi nodded and gave Kazuma a kiss on the cheek before going up stairs and grabbing her bath things. She went to the bathroom and ran a warm bath, sighing contentedly as she sank into the warm water.

"This is nice," she said softly to herself, washing her body and then closing her eyes to just relax a little bit. Instead of getting dressed, she just put on her pajamas: a pair of shorts and one of the t-shirts she'd managed to steal from Kazuma. Walking out of the bathroom, she dried her hair on the way back to her room. Humming as she started to brush her hair, she gasped when she saw a face in the mirror. Whirling, she turned to see if someone was behind her. There wasn't. The woman had looked exactly like her with heart shaped buns and large luminous eyes. But her hair had been completely black, and she had had an evil expression on her face. A little shaken, Usagi went back to brushing her hair, but soon pushed it from her mind. Nothing to worry about. She decided that she wouldn't tell Kazuma. He seemed rather worried enough lately as it was.

Kazuma waited till he heard her go back to her room before taking a bath himself. Changing into a simple tee shirt and some sweats he went out and knocked on Usagi's door. Karin was out and their Dad had left the day before for a conference.

"Coming!" Usagi called, setting down her brush and then opening the door. Seeing Kazuma, she grinned, putting her arms around his neck and kissing him before letting him in. Luna was asleep on her pillow in the corner, so she obviously didn't care. "Hey there handsome," she said teasingly, flopping onto the bed.

Kazuma looked at her. "You look rather nice in my shirt," he told her, smiling. It did funny things to him and he had to work to keep his mind on the straight and narrow path rather than veering off on a random side street like it wanted. Say fantasy street for example. He took a seat as well, sighing. He felt a bit tired, but not so run down that he couldn't function. Still, he grabbed her and flopped them both back on the bed so they were laying down with her in his arms. His eyes were closed and he pulled her close. "Love you," he whispered sleepily.

"I love you too Kazuma," Usagi whispered, cuddling close, her head resting on his chest and her body fitting against his like a perfect puzzle piece. Unconsciously, she gave him a bit of her energy, somehow sensing that he needed it. She soon fell asleep, troubled by dreams of the mysterious woman in her mirror.

In his dreams, Kazuma was face to face with Usagi... only it wasn't her... This woman had black hair and her eyes weren't soft and gentle like Usagi's. She just kept staring at him in his dream.

He woke with a bit of a start, confused. Looking at the clock, he saw that it was already midnight. Sighing he decided he should probably go, instead of staying the night in his girlfriend's room again. It was so hard to be a good guy.

Usagi murmured something as Kazuma got up and left, and she curled up, smiling slightly in her sleep.

The next morning dawned bright and early, and it was still raining outside. Usagi merely put her hair up in buns before going downstairs for breakfast, still wearing her pajamas. It was Sunday, and since it was raining, she intended to stay in to finish the main bulk of her homework. Once she got to the kitchen, she found that she wasn't hungry. Sighing and trudging back upstairs, she pulled out her school bag and started on her math homework. Math was easy for her, so even thought there was a lot, she breezed through it. She worked throughout the day, skipping lunch in order to finish everything, and because she still wasn't really that hungry. English homework, she had saved for last because it was the most difficult subject. A knock sounded on her door, and she stood to go get it. Looking up from her desk, she saw a shimmering black form in her room that vaguely looked like the woman from her mirror the day before. Blinking her eyes and shaking her head, the woman disappeared, and she opened the door to her room.

"Yeah?" she asked.

Karin was at the door with a small plate of cookies and a glass of milk. "Since you are studying so hard I thought I'd give you a bit of a treat," she told her smiling. "Need any help with homework? Kazuma's passed out right now so- it's just us."

Usagi smiled and welcomed Karin into her room.

"Thanks," she said, taking a cookie and nibbling on it. "I'm actually having a lot of trouble with the English stuff. Everything else was simple enough. I'm just having a hard time wrapping my head around the English." She frowned and put the cookie down. "Hey, is Kazuma okay? He looked worn out last night too..." she added worriedly.

Karin shrugged. "I'm guessing he's just been working hard at school or something," she lied. She knew exactly why he was so tired, but she couldn't let on that she knew. And thankfully she was a good liar. "Here, let me see. I'm pretty good at English."

Usagi nodded and handed Karin the book. She'd forgotten about the cookie already, and worked with Karin for the next half hour or so to finish her English homework.

A few days passed, and Usagi sat beside Hana on a bench outside the school.

"Hey. I've been thinking. We should try to find our Outer Senshi," she said. "But I wouldn't even know where to begin. I think we got lucky with all of us being here at this school, but the Outers are an entirely different group of people..." She sighed, her elbows on her knees and her chin in her hands. She looked a little pale, a tiny bit thinner. She'd not eaten much over the last few days, not feeling even remotely hungry. "I feel like there are more Senshi than us and the Outers though. I keep catching glimpses of other auras before they're covered up. It worries me. What if, even though these aren't twisted auras, these other Senshi are against us too? It's hard enough to deal with the Dark Senshi..."

Kazuma had skipped school all together that day after dropping Usagi off. He had a meeting with his sister and the other Senshi. They went to 'sanctuary' to put on their Senshi Fuku.

Sailor Sun stood in the center of the room, her staff in hand, eyes closed. Around the room were six other Senshi, all in their fuku. Sailor Sun opened her eyes, which were such a pale yellow they looked almost white. "It is time," she told them all softly. "Moonlit Archer, I know that I've asked a lot of you, telling you to keep waiting for us to act. But it is time now. They are ready for us to join them," she told him quietly.

Archer sighed in relief. "I'll arrange for all the inner Senshi to meet you. Where?"

"Here. It's the safest place since Chaos cannot find us here," she told him, and closed her eyes again.

Kazuma stood outside the gate of the school waiting for the girls to come out.

Usagi saw Kazuma and skipped over happily giving him a hug and a kiss on the cheek.

"Hi!" she said. The other girls caught up quickly, looking up at Kazuma. Usually, he let them walk Usagi home, but they weren't going to say anything since Usagi had been depressed most of the day, and seeing Kazuma had drawn the first smile out of her that they'd seen all day. "I was just thinking of you."

He smiled. "Really? Well lucky I came by then." He looked to all of the girls, his arms still around Usagi. "I need all of you to come with me," he told them. "There are a few people I need you to meet."

He led them to 'sanctuary' and as he entered, he transformed, then looked back and nodded, indicating they should do the same.

Inside was the same room Archer had been in earlier that day. Sailor Sun still stood in the center of the room, her eyes closed. Around the room were the other Senshi, though this time Sailor Earth had joined them.

"Welcome Princess Serenity, and welcome to you, her inner guardians. This is sanctuary- a place where the enemy cannot see nor can they find you here." She opened her pale eyes. "I am Sailor Sun," she told him, the wings on her back looking transparent, like a hologram almost, but as she shifted slightly now- seeming very real. "We've asked Moonlit Archer to bring you here today so you can meet the other Senshi."

"I am Sailor Saturn."

"I am Sailor Pluto."

"I am Sailor Earth, though you all know me better as Karin." She bowed. "I apologize for having not told you the truth all this time."

Sailor Moon stood close to Archer, her hand in his. Her eyes were wide as she looked around. Four more Senshi introduced themselves.

"I am Sailor Uranus."

"I am Sailor Neptune." These two held hands, just as Sailor Moon was holding Archer's hand.

"I am Sailor Eclipse," the one wearing all black said. Her golden wings were sheer, dragonfly-looking things, and quite beautiful.

"And I am Sailor Tuxedo." This one had ruby hair, up in heart shaped buns like Sailor Moon's. Sailor Moon took a deep breath and stepped forward, dipping in a slight curtsy.

"Thank you for inviting us here," she said. Her heritage as a Princess shone through in how she held herself, even without formal training. "And I can understand the need for secrecy." She smiled a little, clasping her hands behind her back. "We weren't exactly cohesive when we first started." This drew a small chuckle from Eclipse, who was smiling warmly at the Moon Princess.

"You are quite cute," Uranus said with a grin. Neptune pinched her, and Uranus looked at her. "What, are you jealous?" she asked playfully. Neptune pouted.

"Possibly," she said. Tuxedo rolled her eyes.

"Every time with those two," she said, looking over at the now blushing Sailor Moon. "Whenever they meet a cute new girl, that conversation takes place."

"You're just jealous dear," Neptune said with a smile. Tuxedo shook her head, throwing her hands up in mock defeat. Sailor Moon looked back at Archer, and utterly confused expression on her face.

He shrugged. "My sister fits in perfectly." He ducked as a ball was chucked at him. "Well excuse me!" she sniped, hands on her hips. "We're all characters here," she explained to Moon. "Except Sunny- she's sort of stoic but we're working on her."

Sailor Sun tilted her head slightly at that. "I don't have a need for an over flow of personality. It clouds ones judgment."

"So you keep saying," Archer and Earth muttered together.

Pluto smiled slightly. "Well it's a relief that you don't hold our secrecy against us," she told them. "Oh, Luna, Artemis, there are a few people who would like to see you," she told them, pointing to a corner of the room.

Diana came rushing out towards them.

At a slower pace came a different cat, light tan with purple eyes and a sun on its forehead. "I was able to at least keep Diana from being overcome by Chaos- but she can't leave sanctuary- or it will take her too." It was hard to say if the voice was male of female for the cat, and the tan one went over to Sailor Sun sitting at her feet. "This is Apollo, my companion," she introduced. "Sailor Earth tells me he lacks personality more than I do."

Saturn had yet to say anything else; she just stood quietly and watched.

Sailor Moon watched as Luna, Artemis, and Diana all danced and meowed happily together, a true family. She smiled and discreetly wiped a tear away from her eyes before looking at Saturn. She didn't know that Saturn was the Senshi of life and death. She saw that the others gave her a kind of a berth, and that concerned her. Walking over, she bent, being a tad taller than Saturn, and smiled at the girl.

"Well, the only time I heard your voice was when you introduced yourself." She reached out and put a hand on the girl's shoulder. "You do have a pretty voice." Venus and Mars looked at each other, smiling. It was just like Sailor Moon to try to make everyone comfortable.

Saturn looked at the hand that touched her and then shied away from it, shrugging out of her hold. She wouldn't meet her eyes and moved to stand farther away from the group.

Pluto sighed. "I'm sorry Sailor Moon. She's not trying to be rude... Sailor Saturn doesn't... do well with people," she told her gently.

All the others looked away for a moment, even Archer.

"She is the Senshi of life and death. With such a great power her burden is great," Sailor Sun explained farther, as the others didn't seem to be willing to do so. "Saturn, if you'd like to leave you can. I won't force you to stay for this."

Saturn nodded and murmured, "I'll stay..." but she stepped even farther from the group.

Archer could tell that Sailor Moon was thinking of trying to get her to join the group and went to her, taking her hand. "If you try and force your affection on an animal they'll just struggle more to get away. Let her come to you," he whispered in her ear.

Sailor Moon nodded, stepping back to stand beside him. For an instant, as the sun shone down through the glass ceiling, the two looked like the Prince and Princess, but it was only an instant.

"Thank you for letting us meet you," Sailor Moon said, unaware that there might be more to the meeting. "We should probably go... The school hasn't laid off on homework, and even after doing tons on Sunday, I still have a lot..." Uranus and Neptune shrugged.

"We already know that you have cured our dark counterparts, so, there is really nothing more to be said," Uranus said, and Neptune nodded.

"Run along girls. We'll see you on the outside," she said with a smile, and Sailor Moon smiled too.

"Thank you again," she said, and turned with the others to leave. Once they got to 'sanctuary', they let their transformations go, and Usagi still held on to Kazuma. Luna and Artemis had decided to stay behind to spend some more time with their daughter. Turning to Kazuma, she gave him a tired smile. "Let's go home. I kind of want to sleep."

He frowned and waited until they were away from the others to speak. "You know... you've been looking pale.. and you don't each much at dinner," he told her. "Are you feeling okay?" His voice was thick with worry.

"I'm fine," Usagi said with a smile. "I just haven't been very hungry lately, that's all." Looking up at him, she smiled again and squeezed his hand. "I promise, I'm fine." They soon got home, and Usagi went up to her room, intending to sleep. As soon as her head hit the pillow, she was out, and her dreams were once again troubled by the mysterious black-haired woman.