Divinity: Fates and the Afterlife

Chapter Eighteen

A/N Thank you for your reviews: TropicalRemix, Alitre, kera69love, SerenityMorrison, Guest and Guardians 314 (I wish I could reply to your message, sadly you are logged in as guest and I can't reach you-thank you for such lovely words) your thoughts mean a lot, your good wishes the world. Thank you for your wonderful words and support. Thank you for giving me a chance.

I had a little incident that made me postpone the story-let's hope this can go well so I can continue writing. Also, the system was giving me a hard time uploading the chapter, no matter how much I tried it just marked me an error. Sorry for the delay-I hope you enjoy.

Haruka went quickly to open the door and waited for the silver blonde to walk those ten steps she needed to take to get inside. With a genuine smile, she wrapped her arms around the petite woman and sighed heavily, "It's so good to see you."

Usagi closed her eyes and responded to the hug with a faint smile and patted her hands on Haruka's back while nodding and still without being able to say a word. Haruka noticed there was something strange about the usually happy and chirpy blonde, and pulled away with a face of concern, "Are you alright?"

Usagi looked up and nodded again but her silence gave an answer to the question that was still lingering in the air. No, she was not alright Haruka understood, but she was there and alone. Much to her surprise, "Where—"

"Working," Usagi interrupted and exhaled, realizing her blunt reaction she decided to take another approach, after all, her terrible and bittersweet day wasn't Haruka's fault. "He..." she trailed off and reconsidered her answer, looking down at her feet with embarrassment "He had an emergency with a patient... I don't know if he will be able to come."

Haruka pressed her lips together in a tight line for a moment, thinking of what could have happened to have Usagi in her current state. Did she have an argument with Mamoru? Did she really know what this was all about? Did something happen to her? Like a wizard, Usagi simply answered: "I just... had a bad day."

"Oh." The sandy blonde answered just to fill the silence between them, "Come in, we were just about to..." she was about to turn on her heel when she felt Usagi's delicate hand pulling her sleeve, stopping her. Haruka widened her blue eyes, surprised. "Is it bad?" Usagi simply asked, while still with her head low and unable to make any eye contact. Haruka immediately knew what she meant; she didn't know Usagi was informed about the situation so quickly, this only meant one thing:

"Minako chan told me this afternoon." finally, she looked up into Haruka's eyes and frowned, "Is it?"

Haruka sighed softly and kept a serious expression "I don't know... to what extent."

Usagi nodded as if she had surrendered to the situation and gave the blonde a soft smile, one completely different from minutes before. Her emotion was genuine and her eyes gleamed a little more like her usual self, "It's good to see you too."

Haruka wrapped her arm around her and walked her inside the house where Hotaru, Setsuna, and Michiru were waiting. Minako was standing there as soon as blonde crossed the door and gave her a soft smile "I'm glad you came,"

Usagi responded the smile with the same warmth and shook her head, "I tried... he will not be able to come."

Minako nodded and grabbed her friend's arm, "It's okay—we will find some other time,"

Hotaru was sitting on the sofa next to Megumi, who, was oblivious to the situation. The silent girl turned to see the young woman joining them in the room, followed by Haruka and accompanied by Minako. Once she greeted all of the girls present, Setsuna hugged Usagi and smiled; she always had a soft spot for her future Queen, maybe because she reminded her greatly to Small Lady or because she could truly see her magnificent change over the years from a cry baby to a regal Lady paying honor to her regal title.

"Usagi-sama," Setsuna stepped aside and turned to Megumi, "I want you to meet Megumi."

As soon as Megumi looked up her eyes widened in shock. A mixture of horror and wonder clouded her vision in the form of tears as she jumped from her seat, away from the blonde. Her lips parted as if she tried to speak but her words could not come out of her mouth, her throat went dry and without any warning, her eyes began to burn with the tears now pooling in her eyes.

Usagi frowned and looked at Setsuna with confusion, still not understanding what was happening and then at the girl going almost frantic in front of her, shaking her head in fright. Haruka walked towards her to try to calm her but Usagi pulled her shirt again to stop her and without saying anything else, kneeled in front of Megumi who was now curled up in a ball on the floor, taking over the situation, "It's okay..." she whispered and resting her hand on top of her head, "It's okay..." she said again in reassurance.

The soothing sound of her voice began to reach Megumi's heart slowly calming her sobbing, her panic started to disappear giving her enough courage to look up at the blonde, but with her tears still rolling down her cheeks without control, "I am not going to hurt you." Usagi whispered, "I am just another girl, just like them,"

"Vos sunt non sicut illos" Megumi shook her head, "Non simplex, sed non unum ... caeli benedicta tu."

Usagi tilted her head and frowned, "I... I can't understand,"

Megumi frowned and shook her head with newfound anger and pushed Usagi away with defiance, "The one blessed by the heavens, I saw her lifeless body on the marble floors... her once pristine white gown was tainted with warm blood—his blood." her frightened eyes turned angry, "This is an illusion, no," she turned to the girls and stood up. "This is all an illusion! She cannot be here! She cannot be here!"

"Who can't?" Usagi asked and stood up to meet Megumi's eyes and pulled her arm to make the young maid look at her, "Answer me! Who can't?!" Megumi turned to face her, her eyes still showing rage towards her, "The Lunar Princess is dead!" she wept "I saw her dead!" she pulled away from Usagi's grasp with rage.

"Megumi..." Michiru tried to calm her but the girl resisted, "Remember what we talked about... remember what we told you..."

"What is this?! What kind of a sick joke is this!?" Megumi raised her quivering voice at Michiru who was still trying to make visual contact with her, "Megumi-san..." Michiru tried to calm her down but it was too late, the girl was already holding Usagi's shoulders and began shaking her with anguish and anger, "I do not believe this! I cannot accept this!"

"I do not accept this! I do not accept your existence!" Megumi's voice was heavy with emotion and distress. All of her fears and years in hiding turned pointless, her mission had failed. She was in pain and Usagi felt it deep in her heart. Without knowing or having any recollection from this girl, she could feel the rage igniting inside her fragile body and it was all towards her, for some reason. They tried to pull Megumi away from Usagi, afraid that she would go ballistic and do something to her but the Princess stopped them and responded to the girl's anger with silence instead as she came to realize why she was suffering and for whom.

"She cannot be alive because she would never..." Megumi tried to grab some air between her sobs as she looked into Usagi's clear blue eyes, "She would never..." she trailed off again and shook her head, "She would never leave..."

"I didn't," Usagi tightened her grip on Megumi's wrists, making the young maiden widen her eyes with raw surprise, Usagi shook her head, reassuring her answer—knowing exactly what she meant. "I didn't."

Megumi's mind could not still process it was the same woman from two thousand years ago, there, speaking to her. With trembling hands, she covered her swollen face as if that action was going to wake her up from this strange form of dreaming, the sentiment was too great for her to bear. Usagi let go and wrapped her arms around her without hesitation giving her an opportunity to let her cry her heart out until she felt some sort of relief.

Her actions and reactions, surprised the other girls because this was so rare to see from the Princess. She was obviously distressed and confused but she wanted answers and the only way she could get them was if the maiden in her arms calmed down. If there was something she learned from Mamoru was that by making tantrums nothing could ever be resolved—this was one of those moments where she mentally thanked and put his lessons to practice. Turning to Michiru she let out a soft sigh, "Can I please have a cup of tea?"

Michiru nodded and immediately poured freshly brewed tea into a porcelain cup and handed it to the blonde girl "Megumi, is it?" Usagi mumbled softly as she pulled Megumi with her to sit on the floor next to her, "Try to drink this tea—it will help you clear your mind," the suggestion made Megumi moved one hand away from her face and saw the steaming cup on the blonde's hand and pulled away from her and took the cup in silence. Her initial rampage hung heavy in the air but it was clearly impossible to ignore, things were said but still were not clear.

Despite having a rough idea of the situation and from what Minako told her earlier that day Usagi made her own conclusions and with a heavy sigh, she tried to cross the silent bridge between the girl and herself. She looked at the girl in front of her trying to think what to say next but strangely nothing could come out, no matter how many questions echoed in her mind. What could she say? She could not say she was sorry, she could not say she hoped she did not have to go through whatever she went through, she did not know what to do because she couldn't remember her.

"Your tea is getting cold," Michiru tried to break the heavy silence in the room but Megumi kept her head low and instead of taking a sip, she put the cup on the carpet, next to Usagi "I do not want any tea." her voice was a little hoarse from crying and yelling but it sounded less charged with anger, "I want to understand," she finally looked up at Usagi, "I want to know why."

Usagi frowned, "I don't understand—"

"I want to know why there were so much hatred and punishment?" Megumi said with a heavy heart, "Why did you have to die?"

"Because there was too much envy around us," Usagi simply answered, "I don't know why it was so complicated to live in peace but what I can answer you, what I do know is that a life without love—was no life at all."

"And yet, here you are..." Megumi snarled with hurt and looked down despite knowing Usagi was looking at her, "Minako told me you were there..." Usagi took a deep breath trying to clear the anguish pulsing in her chest, as a heavy wave of silence fell between them again. Despite wanting answers, the brunette was reluctant to talk, her mind was still clouded with pain and anger, "Unlike us, Megumi was not reborn." Setsuna said softly, breaking the silence in the room, "Her memories are complete—like me, she has complete recollection of what happened in the past."

"You remember Beryl then," Usagi said, "The attack..." Megumi tried to contain her tears as she looked down at her trembling hands resting over her lap "I was looking for my Master when it all happened—when I came out of my hiding, everything was over."

"Your Master..." with astonishment, Usagi mumbled the words and turned to look for her purse with trembling hands, after a minute of looking through her things she finally found her sleek phone and searched for the person of her interest as she thought this girl was a missing piece of their past—his past. Usagi was aware that the moment the silver crystal appeared and her memories and true self-were returned, she remembered more than Mamoru ever did when he awoke as Endymion.

Soon after, the doorbell echoed followed by Rei, Ami, and Makoto entering the living room "Usagi-chan!" Ami looked surprised to see her on the floor, next to a very pale, very quiet Megumi.

"She knows..." Rei turned to Minako, who nodded in response "We had lunch...well, sort of."

Rei frowned, "Sort of?" Minako nodded again and blew her bangs, "We just had the stomach and time for a cup of tea." Rei pursed her lips and turned to look at her friend on the floor, "How did she take it?" She muttered her question, keeping some privacy to their conversation. Minako pursed her lips "Better than we all expected to be honest, but still, it was a hard thing for her to process... she was already aware but there was no answer to her suspicions—until now."

"I see," Rei exhaled and saw Ami kneeling next to the distracted blonde still trying to establish a phone call at the other side of the room, "Usagi-chan," her hand softly patted the blonde's arm, startling her out of her thoughts "Ami-chan," Usagi turned and widened her eyes "I didn't notice you... I—"

"Are you okay?" The bluenette frowned with concern, diverting her gaze from the blonde to the other girl, "You know..." she muttered with slight heaviness in her always calm and soothing voice. Usagi nodded and tried to dial the number she knew by heart but her hand was shaking too much making the call an impossible task, Ami noticed, "The call will not go through."

"W-What?"

"A patient entered in an emergency state, the call will not go through."

The confirmation from Ami suddenly took Usagi's calm and peace of mind. Somehow, deep down, knowing that she couldn't reach her boyfriend over the phone shook her ground, making her hit reality. The recent events, the blackout, the light in the sky and the strange whispering in her ear, it all started to fall into place and not having Mamoru around to ease her mind was the cherry on top to her horrible day. "I just—I-I need to leave..." Usagi took a deep breath, trying her best to keep her anxiety at bay. Ami frowned, "Usagi?"

Usagi turned to Haruka, "Can I use your bathroom?" she tried her best to sound as cool and collected as possible but the anxious tone in her voice was betraying her. Haruka nodded and helped her stand on her feet, "Sure, down the hall, first door on the left."

Usagi nodded and walked out of the room without taking another glance at Megumi or any of the girls. At the sound of the door closing, Makoto bit her lower lip and turned the tall blonde, "We should go after her..."

"Let's give her a moment." Haruka shook her head and crossed her arms, "She is in shock... it's understandable, the information just sunk in," With a nod, Rei sighed and sat on the couch next to Hotaru, "I think we all are." she turned to Ami, "Do you know if..." Ami shook her head, knowing what the priestess meant, "I don't think so."

"She is aware that something is going on," All eyes were now on Minako who was still standing by the door, "She says she heard something at the time the blackout happened." The blonde's words made Megumi turn in the direction where Usagi had left, silently surprised to know she was not the only one hearing that strange voice.

Michiru sighed softly "It's strange that we can remember some things Usagi-chan cannot."

"Such as?" Haruka arched her brow and turned to her lover with an arched brow, Michiru bit her lower lip, "Well, for example, the man we saw,"

Megumi frowned and closed her eyes, "She does not remember..." shaking her head she tried to keep her emotional heart in check, wanting nothing more but to not start crying again. "She chose to forget then," her eyes opened when she felt Ami's hand on her shoulder and saw her shake her head, "It takes some time, she is surprised and she has a lot on her mind right now," Ami turned to the hall and breathed, "Let's just give her time."

Inside the bathroom, Usagi leaned on the sink and tried to calm her anxiety attack by taking deep breaths but she felt her head could explode any minute now with so much, but yet incomplete information. So many emotions, so many surprises, she looked up to look at herself in the mirror, "This girl..." she mumbled vaguely, still wrapped up in her own emotional turmoil as she put her memory to the test and began to visualize some images from her past, "I know I have seen this girl..." she frowned and closed her eyes, "My Master—she said," A faint image of her smiling suddenly came to her mind, making Usagi open her eyes. She tried to remember more but it was like if her mind was blocked, asleep or numb making it impossible to connect the dots.

A soft knock startled the blonde inside the bathroom and turned to open the door showing a concerned Minako outside "Hey... are you okay?"

A less anxious Usagi leaned on the door frame and nodded, crossing her arms she looked down in thought for a minute. "Why I can't remember?" she shook her head, confused and looked at her blonde friend "How... Why? I have a vague remembrance of seeing her smile, smiling at me but..."

"We tried to talk to her, what we know is that she was a maid in the Terran Palace—she was a witness of your meetings with the Prince."

"Her Master..." Usagi mumbled, "He's her Master—but how?" she tried to find an explanation of being there after all this time, "Who brought her here?"

Minako imitated her friend and crossed her arms as well, "She has been wandering for years, hiding and running away, from who? We are still not sure. This is why I was telling you that it is important for her to see Mamoru. She thinks he's dead and she has been mourning his passing for more than a millennium."

"She's angry at me." Usagi shook her head, "She can't stand it—to see me here,"

"She doesn't know better... she—" Minako looked behind her shoulder to make sure nobody was there eavesdropping on their conversation then turned back to look at her friend, "She has no clue of what has happened. Michiru-san explained to her what happened but in a very vague scale. She knows we were granted a second chance to live thanks to Queen Serenity, but that is pretty much it."

"But—"

"Look," Minako raised her hand, motioning Usagi to stop "She doesn't know Prince Endymion is alive too. We haven't told her because we don't want her to run away in the hopes of finding him and then, get trapped by the enemy. She has told us some things but they are still not clear, she is still keeping secrets but it's very clear that she has been faithful to whatever he asked her to do before you know—he died."

"Hey," Makoto's warm voice interrupted their conversation as she joined them with Rei standing behind, "I was getting worried, you left a while ago and haven't come back, are you okay?" Makoto asked with concern for her friend; her face showed exhaustion, it was clear she had a difficult day at the restaurant. Things have been strange lately, she gets praised for her work but the sous chefs are not taking it very well and Haruto still puts her future in jeopardy. It was not much needed to be explained to tell Makoto had been living rough times but if she wanted to open her own place and have the liberty to do her own thing she had to hold on a little while longer.

"Yes, everything's fine. I was telling Usagi-chan what the girl has told us," Minako rubbed the bridge of her nose tiredly, Rei crossed her arms and looked at Usagi "We have been trying to figure it out ourselves but—"

"Still, you should have told me Rei." Usagi interrupted bluntly, she sighed and put a hand on her forehead. Her skin was cold from the water when she washed her hands and somehow it helped diminish her growing headache, "I'm also a Senshi, I know there is something strange about all this... and the night of the blackout."

"We hoped we could do something without you learning about this, because of the wedding..." Makoto paused, not sure if she had made a mistake in mentioning it and didn't know if she should continue because she was aware of how this conversation would end if not being careful. Minako put a hand on Makoto's shoulder as a comforting gesture and patted it softly.

Usagi hung her head low, that was something else in her mind, "The wedding..." she murmured, mentally cursing the perfect timing, it was as if the heavens still wanted to play jokes on them and pulling them apart. She chuckled but it was soon after accompanied by soft sniffing and awkward silence, making the scene bittersweet, "I need to go," she walked by without looking at the girls staring at her, "Usagi," Rei called out to her without getting a response from the blonde as she walked away.

Usagi walked back into the living room without saying a word and ignoring the glances coming from Haruka and company, including Megumi's and went to grab her purse before storming out of the house without saying a single word. Haruka is the most surprised by her actions went right after her while Michiru poured more tea into her cup and sighed heavily with sadness. "Bad timing," she muttered to Hotaru, who was looking at her with sad eyes. Megumi turned to the window where she could see Usagi talking to the tall blonde and noticed she was crying, her nose was red and her lips were trembling and swollen. She could not help to feel the guilt taking over her for blaming the blonde Princess for her tormented life. Minako, Rei, and Makoto all walked back into the living room to join the others, "What happened?" Ami asked to the blonde still with disbelief for what just happened. Minako sighed, "She is..." she looked at her and pursed her lips, "We need to give her some time,"

Ami frowned and looked out the window, "I have never seen Usagi this upset before—this is so unusual for her."

"Can you blame her?" Makoto sighed and sat on the couch, "She is about to get ma—" Rei and Minako both widened their eyes in shock, covered the brunette's mouth and dragged her out of the living room, hoping Megumi would not listen. "What the hell Mako-chan? Minako exclaimed with exasperation.

"Sorry, sorry... sorry!" Makoto shook her head and held her hands up apologetically, "I have not been myself lately..."

"What's going on?" Rei asked with her brows knitted in thought, showing her concern for her always centered friend "You look extremely tired."

"I am," Makoto rub the back of her neck, "This is tearing me down—driving me insane."

"How are things at the restaurant?" Minako asked, "Are they still giving you a hard time?"

"Yeah, all of them." Makoto sat on a chair at the foyer, resting her hands on her face she breathed a couple of times, trying to make her growing anxiety go away, after taking a few more breaths she looked up and leaned her head on the back of the chair "Haruto-san acts like nothing happened and Suzuki-san is the same as always... nothing has changed with her."

"And this guy you liked?" Minako asked, patting her friend's back in support. Makoto sighed "Masao-san doesn't speak to me unless is related to work—figures, if he thinks I am sleeping around with Haruto. I thought all the high school drama would end once I got out of high school," she shook her head and stood up, "Look, I can't keep waiting for him to realize I am not sleeping with Haruto-san so the best thing I can do is to try and ignore the situation and focus on cooking—if I ever want to open my own place, which I do." Makoto shrugged her shoulders "At least, I am getting recognition from my work and that is what counts and also, we have this situation to take care of,"

"Hey, if they give you a hard time it's because they are threatened by your talent. You know more things than the ones with culinary school's degrees do so, stand tall and be proud." Rei said in with determination, "Now, about this..." she sighed, "Situation..."

"We have to give Usagi-chan some time to process all this," Minako said bluntly "I understand her position. The timing is..."

"Inappropriate."

Rei, Minako and Makoto widened their eyes, surprised to realize they were no longer alone. Hotaru stood by the door with her deep violet eyes, so full of knowledge and determination staring back at them. Her expression was one of a true Goddess of silence, despite her age and appearance in this modern era. "Princess Serenity will have to realize that our journey towards peace is still ahead of us. It hasn't been done, this girl is proof of it. There is more to this and the answers now lie with the Prince."

"Mamoru..." Rei said, pressing her lips together in deep thought she frowned and dismissed the idea of Mamoru ever doing something that could jeopardize the safety of their Princess, "What can he know that none of us does? Why would he keep secrets from Usagi?"

Hotaru raised one brow, "Things are moving and I feel something very powerful is approaching us."

Rei stayed silent, she just like Hotaru, has been feeling a wave of energy very different from what she ever witnessed before. The feeling of dread was upon them, like a curse and was slowly coming for them like a heavy blanket of hatred and malice; the shadow she saw in the fire was slowly coming and the worst part was that she was no longer sure if they would be able to fight it.

Uncertainty was one dreadful enemy to add to their list.

O—o—o—o—O

Usagi entered her home, tired and confused. The day she had could not compare to anything she could think of at the moment. Maybe in her junior high days, things could get this complicated and maybe not even then, because she would always find a way to sneak at night to fight evil while not getting married in the process. As she walked down the hallway, she noticed nobody seemed to home giving her a perfect excuse to go and lock herself in her room from the rest of the world for the rest of the day. Once she finally got to her room, she threw her heels to the corner and turned the switch light, surprising Luna in the process.

"Luna," Usagi said in a surprised tone as well to see the feline there, "I was not expecting to see you here at this hour." The black cat looked at Usagi walking towards the bed without saying another word and as her companion and advisor, she immediately knew something was odd with her. "You got home a little early today, I thought you would be out with the girls, or Mamoru-san."

"I got out of work early," The blonde mumbled "I just saw the girls and Mamo-chan had an emergency at the hospital so I guess I won't be seeing him today," sitting in her bed, Usagi sighed and looked at Luna with a tired expression, "Where is Artemis?" Her question had all the intentions to divert the conversation she hardly wanted to continue with her mentor and friend.

"He is out,"

"Without you? That's odd," Usagi leaned back on the bed and closed her eyes "He never wants to leave your side—not ever."

"Well... he," the cat hesitated to continue, wondering if she should say something before Minako explained what was happening. Usually, she would give the news to Usagi since she is her guardian, but the girls taking the lead into action and trying to manage the situation was something Artemis asked her to understand and to support. She did not want to go further into explanation but it seemed like her plans were about to collapse right in front of her and that she would not be able to keep it together now that she ignored the blonde had seen the girls and is aware of the situation. "He said he wanted to look around—for something." She heard Usagi sigh and roll on her side to face her, but still avoiding eye contact with her, "He is out looking for more clues, isn't he?"

Luna widened her eyes realizing the blonde had caught her in her lies, "I knew it," Usagi said before closing her eyes and taking a deep breath. The cat jumped from the chair in front of the vanity and into the bed, sitting closer to Usagi "What is it that you know?"

The blonde slouched back on the bed and rested a hand on her forehead, casually. Another heavy sigh accompanied her distressed emotions, this time, worrying Luna in the process. "Usagi-chan?"

"I know Luna, I know what you are all doing."

"I do not understand."

Usagi opened her eyes but kept looking at the ceiling, "Strange things are happening and I know you are aware,"

Luna looked down at her paws sinking in the blush pink fluffy comforter and remained silent. So, she knew—she thought. Now how would she explain their reasons to be silent during this whole ordeal?

"I just saw everyone at Haruka-san's house," One could tell the heavy weight, the strain and the annoyance all combined in Usagi's voice. "Minako-chan and I had lunch today, she explained to me what was going on—the visions, the strange events happening—the girl."

"You met her?" Luna asked, surprised.

"Haruka-san, Setsuna-san, Michiru-san and Hotaru-chan are looking after her."

"Usagi-chan..." A long pause or what appeared to be a long pause followed Luna's attempt to sympathize with Usagi. "Why didn't you tell me Luna?" Usagi moved her hand away from her face and finally looked at the cat, "I could expect it from the girls but not from you, you never keep anything from me. You always put my duties as Senshi anything else, to you I am not just a Princess everyone needs to protect."

Luna felt guilty, her burgundy eyes didn't dare to meet her Princess' pale blue ones but she was right, she knew Usagi was right, she did put her duties as Senshi before her title as Princess and now, she was in the same boat as the others, she knew she couldn't defend herself but the least thing she could do was to explain why, "Artemis suggested it was best if we dig a little deeper into this situation before telling you and Mamoru."

Usagi let out a soft, sarcastic chuckle "Well," she paused for a second, "I don't think he is unaware of the situation."

"What do you mean?" Luna asked confused, as far as she knew nobody had spoken to either of them, until now that the girls explained things to Usagi. "He knows—I am sure," Usagi answered bluntly. "Mamo-chan might even know more than we all do but knowing him, he is keeping it a secret too. Just like you have been doing this whole time..."

"But then, how do you know Usagi-chan?"

Usagi sighed and sat on the bed, her legs resting buddha style "Oh come on Luna, do you honestly think he is clueless of whatever is happening? He is the Guardian of this planet, of course he knows something—" Annoyance was written all over her face, it was obvious this was something that was truly bothering Usagi and Luna wondered why since she has always been a person who is always willing to help, to participate and to make a difference in anyone's life. She always carries a positive, contagious vibe that would light up even the darkest of spirits. This was something that ran deeper in her heart, it was something that affected her directly, and somehow was not accepting it. She was not accepting it.

"Mamo-chan has been acting strange lately," Usagi calmed down, her voice sounded more serene and almost, melancholic, "He is too distracted, vacant, like if his mind is occupied with something else. He says he is there, he says nothing is wrong and he tries to act like it but I know him too well. I know he is hiding something from me and I confirmed it the night of the black out."

"Did he say something?" Luna was now interested, now considering that the person they should have gone first was the Prince instead of the Princess despite the consequences that would eventually bring. Usagi shook her head, "Like I said, he pretends nothing is wrong but to his disgrace, I know him too well—adding on to the fact that he is a terrible liar." she frowned "Like if I ever am going to believe that he was being ditzy when he cut his hand the other day."

"So, what are you going to do now that you know?"

"Well I suppose I am going to talk to him, Minako asked me to bring him today to the meeting so he could meet this—girl."

"Well, this is new," Luna widened her eyes "I was aware of the girl's existence because Minako rescued her first and stayed at her apartment for a night, but then she ran away and the rest happened. I did not know she was related to you."

"She is not related to me." Usagi looked at Luna, "Apparently, she is related to Mamo-chan."

"Oh?"

"That is not the point." Usagi growled frustrated and got off the bed, her hands scratched the back of her neck with evident frustration, "I don't know why it bothers me so much Luna. It bothers me that this situation bothers me—if that makes any sense. I feel like everything we built him and I, since our last battle is collapsing. Our plans for a life together, the wedding—everything."

"But we are not even sure if this girl is an enemy." Luna tried her best to comfort Usagi, it hurt her to see her struggling with dark emotions like these. She knew the consequences to their silence would be something like this or even worse, but still, lying was lying and she let her Princess down. The platinum blonde turned to look over her shoulder at Luna, "No, but she is being pursued. She has been running away for years and years and years, trying to fulfill a promise that apparently, she made to Endymion."

"So she has finally spoken," Luna muttered, "A promise? And what is that promise?"

Usgai shrugged her shoulders, "I don't know. She won't tell. She hasn't said much." she sighed heavily, "She thinks Endymion is dead. She thinks I was granted a second life because of me being related to the Gods and that I abandoned him—she doesn't know he is alive too." the blonde bit her lip, "I saw her anger, I saw her pain. She didn't need to curse me with words to make me feel all the deception and rage she was holding in her heart—she's angry at me, you should have seen her Luna—pushing me away with so much resentment."

"Why didn't you tell her Prince Endymion is alive?"

"The girls are right, if she knows Mamo-chan is alive she would escape again and would get caught by the enemy if, there is an enemy we should be careful for. This is all messed up!" The blonde sat on the edge of her bed, both hands holding her head "Haruka, Michiru, Setsuna and Hotaru chan fought strange beings, and rescued her."

"What else did they tell you?"

"I don't know." Usagi sniffed, her eyes were now burning with tears "I left the house. I didn't want to hear anything else."

"Usagi-chan..."

"I know I am wrong," Usagi sniffed again, this time her tears began rolling down her cheeks more freely, "I know I shouldn't act this way. I know I should help but..." she paused and looked down before turning to Luna "I really wanted my happy ending with my Prince, I was looking towards our life together, a normal life. A life without laws and social class meddling in." Usagi could not hold it any longer, her emotions slowly began to break the hard shell that was covering her own anxiety and anger, revealing a very vulnerable woman, longing for normality. "We've been dealing with this for centuries, we've been fighting for our freedom over more than a millennium, it's always because of me, because of my heritage—because of the crystal, everyone wants the crystal, everyone wants to see me destroyed and he, well, he has to go after me, saving me or giving me his strength so we can overcome another battle, getting hurt in the process."

And just like that, Usagi exposed her true feelings. Those feelings she did not even could explain, her anger and frustration were now justified. It was not because she did not want to help, it was because it was her time to be happy. It was her time to be herself first. She had started to become her own priority, to plan her wedding, to plan her life with the man she loves and now when she finally could grasp it, this mysterious girl appears and taints her dreams with fear and overwhelming pain.

Luna moved closer to Usagi and nudged her arm with her warm nose, purring in between, trying to comfort her. The feline now understood how selfish they were all being by trying to solve a situation without taking notice that the person they are trying to protect, is the one they are hurting the most. "Usagi-chan, listen to me..." Luna broke the silence "You need to—"

"I know," Usagi responded between sniffs, "I need to do the right thing."

"You are not being selfish if that is what you think," Luna looked at the blonde, catching her attention. Usagi looked surprised at the feline-like if she had just solve a murder mystery "L-Luna..."

"It is very normal to feel this way. To feel this tired. I can imagine you also feel somewhat disappointed for not being able to maintain peace but this is not your fault and neither it's the girl's—we were somehow warned that we would always be fighting for the sake of this planet and the galaxy and now, this girl needs our help."

Usagi nodded softly with more acceptance towards the situation. She did feel guilty, and a bad person for being hesitant to do something but to hear those understanding words from Luna was the emotional lift she needed. All she wanted was to be understood and she was glad to have Luna on her side. "I know," she looked at her black cat "Thank you, Luna."

Luna smiled, her paw softly rested on Usagi's forearm in support "Now then, what comes next?"

Usagi considered many variations of a solution at this point, but some were not going to be accepted by the girls. But if this was meant to be a war, at least they had to be prepared. Starting for her.

o—o—o

The next morning, Usagi woke up earlier than usual and got ready to go out with more determination than the day before; she decided to take a new leaf into her thoughts and do what deep down she knew was the right thing to do. After her emotional talk with Luna, she felt more liberated and with a clearer vision of the things she had to do, "Usagi-chan, you're up so early!" Luna greeted her as she entered the room from the balcony, Usagi turned from her vanity to the feline and smiled, it was like the storm had passed, "Good morning Luna."

Luna sat on the bed and looked at her, surprised and glad to see her Princess in a much better mood and with a better countenance "I assume you are going out." she said softly as she sat on the bed.

Usagi nodded while looking down at her phone, her fingers swiping across the screen. It always marveled the black cat how graciously Usagi moved her fingers to text or to surf through the contents of the sleek phone, "Yes, I have to go see the photographer for the wedding and some other things."

Luna smiled, it gave her joy to know the plans for her wedding continued despite of what happened the day before. "It's nice to see you in a better mood." Usagi gave the cat a warm, knowing smile and put her phone on the table "I kind of have to—don't I?" she shrugged her shoulders "I left things very murky with the girls after I stormed out yesterday from Haruka's. I did not call anybody, not even Mamo-chan, I have like five missed calls from him and that is a lot."

"He called here last night but you had fallen asleep. Your mother answered."

The blonde sighed and turned to look at her reflection in her vanity mirror, "I feel bad, I was mad at him for no reason and he doesn't even know, the same goes for the girls."

"Well, good thing you are in a better place from yesterday and you can make things right with them."

"That's right."

Luna watched Usagi go to her closet and grab a light ivory colored jacket to match her pale pink wide leg trousers and light ivory colored sweater, her hair to Luna's surprise was up in her long time wear style, up in two tousled buns on top of her head. Her makeup was clean and classy, a very thin cat eye and soft pink lips. "I don't know how good my actions will do but, I feel like it has to be done."

Luna frowned, puzzled "What is?"

"We need to know more about Megumi-san," she turned over her shoulder to look at Luna, as if she heard the question in the cat's mind "That is the girl's name." She gave her back again to try something else to cover the crisp and chilly morning breeze, a light short cape the blonde thought would do a better trick. As she walked towards her closet again to put the jacket on a hanger and take the light-colored cape, she proceeded "And for what I learned yesterday, we won't know much about her until we—"

"Reunite her with the Prince." Luna finished the sentence, Usagi smiled and nodded "That's it."

"I shall look for Artemis and let him know about your intentions then."

"I don't know if anyone will approve of what I am thinking of doing, Haruka-san will probably be the first against the idea but it is easier for Mamo-chan to meet her if I take her to his apartment rather than take him to their house. He is always busy and he is always on call, at least I know that once he is home is because he has finally got out of his shift."

Luna analyzed the situation, "You may be right about the Outer Senshi not being too keen on the idea but good thing you have Minako on your side." Usagi smiled, knowing what she meant. It didn't matter the cause, she always had the blonde leader on her side.

O—o—o—o—O

At the other side of town, another blonde was drinking coffee in her apartment silently thanking the lords of time for Saturday. As she surfed through the paper Artemis left on the counter, her attention was soon interrupted by a particular phone ring. In a hurry, she left the bagel she was chewing and put her mug down to take the call "Hey... I'm so glad you called I—"

At the other end of the line, Usagi was paying the cab driver for the lift and stepped out of the car, "Minako-chan, I need to speak to you, if you can of course."

Minako widened her eyes and nodded, "Of course, of course! Do you want us to meet somewhere? I can get out of my place in like ten minutes and meet you whenever you are."

"Actually," Usagi walked to the apartment building and buzzed the number to Minako's apartment. "I'm downstairs."

Minako widened her eyes and stood up "You dummy, come on up! The doorman will let you in!" she immediately hung up the phone and as soon as she heard the knock she opened slightly hesitant and worried because she didn't know what to expect with how her friend acted the day before. "Hi, Minako-chan." Usagi greeted first, with a warm smile adorning her face making Minako feel like if a weight was taken off her shoulders, a smile was enough to put their bittersweet day behind them, "Usagi-chan! Come in, come in!" she closed the door behind her, "Well, this is unexpected. I thought you might be having some sleep... since it's Saturday. Can I get you anything? I was having some coffee with a bagel, want some?"

"That sounds great, thank you but, do you have some milk? I don't like it dark."

Minako chuckled and walked out of the kitchen with a clean mug and poured the freshly brewed coffee "Obviously—that is so not you." she smiled as she put a small cup with milk, sugar, and cinnamon "I like to put cinnamon in my coffee, it gives it a little-unexpected kick."

"Are you alone? Where is Artemis?"

Minako blew her tousled bangs out of the way, her faint freckles could be seen across her cheeks when she did not wear any makeup on, "He went out to look for Luna. You know he can't be away from her for too long."

"You're right on that." Usagi smiled as she sweetened her hot beverage. A moment of semi-awkward silence passed before the blonde could take the lead of the conversation, "I'm sorry for how I left things yesterday," she looked at Minako "It was unfair, there is no way to justify my behavior—I am really sorry,"

Minako took a sip of her coffee and reached for her friend's hand "Hey, it's okay. You don't have to say sorry, I totally understand. I was worried, of course. So was Ami-chan, Rei-chan and Mako-chan and the rest, but we all understand. It is us who should say sorry for that matter, we hid very important news from you but we did it—"

"—Because you wanted to protect me, I know." Usagi took a sip of her coffee, Minako smiled when saw a different, and much lighter look on her friend's face, "I'm relieved to see you in a better mood today."

"I know I was not being myself, I was taken back for the load of information you gave and then—the girl." Usagi sighed, more in thought "I was upset, I was tired. I missed Mamo-chan, I needed him but I knew I couldn't see him, I was hurt because you were all hiding this from me, and I was surprised to meet this girl."

"We all were and we all are." Minako took another sip to her coffee, "But now that you know, we won't do anything without telling you first, or question any suggestions."

"I thought about it, and Luna helped me go through it; she did say something that made me clear my mind." she looked at Minako with a serious face, "We all are Sailor Senshi and we have a mission to keep peace on this planet and galaxy." Leaning her head low to look at her steaming mug, Usagi bit her lip softly and continued "For a long time I forgot that. I was too happy—to immersed in the wedding plans, in my job, in my normal life—"

"Usa-chan, we were all taken by surprise by this. One way or another, we were all living a life different from what we used to have in the past, this life or the other but, I totally understand why you were upset. You see, this is your time, you have gone through so much and we were trying to figure this out so you could be tranquil, enjoying the process of getting married, of having a good job, of accomplishing your own merits."

"See, that is where I don't agree Mina-chan, you are as important as I am. We are all the same on this planet and even if we went back to our previous lives, we would still be all the same. You are my friends, I am your friend. You are a Senshi and so am I. You are like a sister to me, I cannot let you go through all this alone."

Minako was moved by her friend's words, a wide smile was given in response and a soft nudge on her friend's hand. Finally, she felt like normality had hit home and they could be themselves even under strange situations, like old times. Without any secrets, without any lies. "You could have told me this over the phone you know? I feel kind bad to see you all dolled up while I am here slouching on my counter, drinking coffee with a disastrous bun at the top of my head."

Usagi chuckled, she missed this. She missed the honesty and simplicity of their conversations. "I needed to do some things for the wedding first and I felt I needed a little boost for my self-esteem with all that has been happening. I could have gone out in the same conditions you are right now if I didn't have to meet with some people,"

"Still, you would look cuter than me. Anyways, what now? What are you up to? Want to go and grab some lunch later? I promise I will look better than this," she waved her hands up and down, dramatically. Usagi chuckled again, "Actually... I need to ask you a favor."

"A favor?" Minako arched her brow, puzzled. Usagi smiled and put her cup down and nodded "You said that you would not question any suggestion I would give... I have one suggestion but I don't think Haruka-san or any of them would approve."

Minako took another sip of the coffee, trying not to jump to any conclusions before listening to Usagi's request. She knew that when her blonde friend had an idea in mind, she was determined to accomplish it whether they would like it or not, she was used to it. She decided to stay silent and let her friend to continue without any interruptions, after she's done all of her explaining and justifications then, she would make a comment. After all the time they had spent together, Minako has learned this was the better way to listen and help Usagi.

Usagi looked at her friend and extended her palms over the counter, tapping it with the hesitation of what she was about to say "I was thinking you could help me get Megumi-san out of Haruka and Michiru's house."

Minako widened her eyes and choked on her coffee, Usagi raised her hands before the blonde could say anything else "Let me explain," she sighed, softly. "Okay, you told me yesterday that Megumi-san knew me because she was witness of my secret meetings with Mamo-chan during the Silver Millennium, right?" Minako nodded, "Okay, good." Usagi bit her lip in thought, "You also said that she was still keeping secrets and I think that she would explain everything once she meets Mamo-chan."

"Yes?" Minako looked at her with a curious face "But she think's Mamoru-san is dead."

"I know but you wanted me to bring him with me yesterday so he could meet Megumi-san, right?"

"Yes."

"I was explaining Luna earlier today that it would be easier for me to take Megumi-san to Mamo-chan's apartment and wait for him to come home. It is a little complicated for me to know his schedule at the hospital, he is always on call and I am certain that once he gets home his shift is over. There would not be any interruptions and, aaaand, since it is his apartment, he can't leave!"

"Oh Usagi chan, that is so evil," Minako widened her eyes, "And genius at the same time."

Usagi widened her eyes surprised by her friend's reaction, "You don't think I'm crazy?"

"Well, a little bit. But it is part of who you are." Minako smiled and winked an eye at her, "I think it is a very good idea, but I also agree with you that Haruka-san will not be very pleased. We are trying to prevent Megumi-san from getting trapped by the enemy and she has been safe with them. Also, once Haruka-san makes up her mind about something, it is very difficult to make her desist or change her ideas."

Usagi pursed her lips, tapping her fingers on the ceramic mug in thought. Minako looked at her hopeful eyes and hoped for the best herself, taking the last sip of her coffee, she sighed. "We need to go there."

The blonde blinked surprised "And what will you say to her? You just said that she—"

Minako raised her brows "Well, maybe Michiru-san will listen."

Usagi sighed "She is going to say no..."

Minako arched her brow as she looked down at the open newspaper on the counter "Well... I guess she will have to change her mind," Her finger tapped an article printed on the paper catching Usagi's attention and widened her eyes, in shock.

O—o—o—o—O

Casanova Akira entered the research room with a face of complete confusion. She saw Mikael at the end of one of the tables typing on his laptop without realizing she was there. A heavy, loud slam broke his concentration and looked at her, "What?" Akira looked at him with a frown "What the hell are you doing?"

"What?"

"What?" she repeated, this time with annoyance carried in her voice, she pointed the paper and tapped her finger on it repeatedly "What is this?! Are you taking control of the investigation now? Since when?!"

Mikael lifted his round shaped glasses and looked at her "Since you haven't done much with the information we have."

Akira sat on a stool across from him on the table "You were the one who said I should wait to get more answers! You said I was being risky to show everything to the media! Why are you going against the initial plan you proposed in the first place and without telling me!" An expressionless Mikael return to type on his computer without saying anything else to Akira, causing her to lose her temper this time, "What is the matter with you?!" she stood up and went to his side, she saw a strange writing in a spreadsheet and frowned, "What is that? What are you doing?"

Mikael turned furious and slapped her hand away, "We don't have much time!" He narrowed his eyes and began mumbling in what she could identify an ancient tongue.

Akira widened her eyes in shock, it was strange enough that Mikael would be in the mood he has been for the past couple of weeks and now that the strange reactions and decisions he has been making. It was not like him, it was not like him at all. Sure, they didn't always agree on the decisions they would make but this was beyond strange. His face started to show the signs too, his eyes were starting to look hollow and his dark circles turned darker by the day. His face was very pale and it was obvious that he was starting to lose some weight. Akira noticed his hands were shaking and that there was dry blood around his nail beds, like if he was biting his fingers to deal with the anxiety he was feeling. He was not being the rational man she knew he was and it was starting to upset her because it was like she was living with a strange person, or more like, a corpse.

Akira did remember that Mikael told her a couple of weeks ago that he saw something strange at the museum but they both ignored it and took it as a prank some of the staff must have made. Or as a casualty, but never crossed that it might have something to do with this.

-o-

Mikael entered the hotel room where he was staying with Akira and put his laptop on the desk by the window in silence. Akira came out of the bathroom as soon as she heard the door open and smiled at him, "Hey, I am glad you are back."

Mikael was absent for a moment, catching her attention and shook his head "Is everything alright?" he heard her ask. "Y-Yes. I was—" he hesitated to speak for a moment, "The strangest thing happened to me today."

"Oh?" Akira said while rubbing some lotion on her hands as she prepared herself to go to bed "Did a fan caught up with you and asked for a night of adventure?" she asked in a playful tone, like they always did but this time, Mikael frowned, ignoring the joke and shook his head "N-No. Although, I don't know why that would matter to you since we are not 'serious' about each other."

"Hey," Akira warned, pointing a finger at him "To the media, we are just colleagues." she then smiled "But to me," she stood up and stood very close to him and caressed his cheek "To me, you are very serious."

Mikael captured her lips in a passionate kiss that soon led them to the bed. Once their intimate moment ended, he looked up at the ceiling in silence. Akira woke up and rolled on her side, surprised to find him awake at this time of dawn "W-What are you doing awake?"

"The strangest thing happened to me at the museum." he repeated. He turned on his side to grab a cigarette and lit it up for a second, then exhaled the puff of smoke "I was working on the investigation and I heard some strange noises—like if somebody was talking to me in a very strange language."

Akira frowned, "What was it? The language."

"I could not quite place what language it was, it sounded ancient—Latin, maybe. The sound was not clear, only I could hear whispering."

"It may have been Toshi or one of the other guys, you are hard on yourselves with the pranking."

"Once I packed everything in my bag and turned the light of the room off and turned to close the door. My natural instinct was to turn to one side, then to the other and there it was—a man in black, or at least, it appeared to be a man in black because I couldn't see his face. It was like—a shadow."

Akira frowned and sat on the bed. Mikael continued after taking another puff of smoke and exhaling it out, "I asked if he was lost or if he needed something but he didn't answer, instead the whispers I heard before started to sound louder in my head, like if he was speaking to me through his mind. I tried to move but somehow, the image of this—person was very unsettling. He began to walk towards me but his movements were not natural. I could hear his bones cracking, I tried to open the door again so I could go inside but when I turned to look at this 'creature' again, it was gone."

Akira waited a moment to process what Mikael just told her and shrugged her shoulders "It was definitely Toshi,"

"What?" Mikael frowned and turned to look at her, Akira chuckled, "It was definitely him, he probably used one of the mannequins of one of the storages or maybe one of the skeleton props and dressed it like that so he could freak you out."

Mikael frowned "Yes, sounds reasonable. That would explain the sound made when the thing moved."

"And the faceless feature."

Mikael smiled at Akira and gave her a soft kiss on her temple. Akira slid under the covers again and sighed "I will talk to Toshi as soon as I see him and ask him to stop the pranks—they're getting into your head,"

Mikael stayed silent and finished his cigarette, not really wanting to say anything else about the creature or the whispering that he could still listen in his mind but he was sure it was more than just a prank, he could feel it, he could hear it.

-o-

Suddenly, Mikael seemed to regain some sanity and came back to reality "A-Akira..." with trembling eyes he covered his face and shook his head, confused "I-I don't know what is happening to me..." he looked at her and gave her an sympathetic smile, "It is probably because I am tired."

"What is going on Mikael..." Akira murmured the question more to herself than to him, because she knew at this point nothing she said could reach him. "It's the shadow man..." she heard him say and looked at him confused, "W-What?"

"The shadow man... he wants..." he trailed off "He wants something—but I cannot figure out what it is... I can't understand..."

"Who are you talking about?" Akira frowned more scared than confused this time, Mikael looked up at her with a horrified expression, "It was better me than you to have him inside—"

The ambient turned creepy and unsettling, Akira did not know what to say at this point. She was too curious to what was happening but also too scared to find out, but whatever it was it had Mikael trapped. "He won't stop—he won't stop. You have to run, run Akira, run—and find them."

"F-Find who?"

In a sudden turn, Mikael returned to his hollow, creepy mood again. He looked down at the computer and started to type again, "Find who, Mikael?" Akira dared to ask again but this time the man she knew as Mikael was nowhere to be found, instead a creepy distorted version of Mikael smiled at her "Et invenietis illos primus." (I will find them first.)

Akira widened her eyes in horror and ran out of the room, slamming the door behind her. She could feel her heart racing in her chest, pounding like a rock against a wall, loud, hard and unsettling. The man who smiled at her definitely wasn't Mikael, it was something else. Scared, she went straight to the room where she kept all the samples and treasures she found and put them in a bag, if publishing to the media all the information they had found up until now was a doing of whoever was in possession of Mikael, then she had to fight him to stay away from what apparently he was after.

Toshi knocked on the door, startling Akira "Hey, Akira-san—what are you doing?" he looked at her confused by her actions "Why are you...?"

"Toshi," Akira looked at him "Have you spoken to Mikael today?"

Toshi shook his head "N-No, why?"

"He—he is not acting like himself lately," Akira said while continuing to put all the evidence she could on bags. Toshi walked towards her "Akira, what is going on?"

"Why?" Akira responded quickly. "Because, an article came out and it mentioned some of the things we have been working on and we were trying to keep secret until we had definite proof. It says we must look for the descendants of the Sun, what the hell? This will ruin our reputation and credibility... the media already is!"

Akira stopped and took a deep breath "Toshi, all the evidence we have found has not been proved wrong. Mikael seemed to have published some of it, to find something we don't even know what it is..."

"So I have seen," Toshi said annoyed, "This is not his work alone, why is he—"

"Toshi, listen to me." Akira went to him and looked at him straight in the eyes "You may think I am crazy but something is going on with Mikael, he is not being himself and I am scared."

"What are you saying?"

"He told me something that happened a couple of weeks ago and at first I thought it was a prank from you but since then, he has been acting very weird and I am not sure what is going on, only that the man claiming is Mikael is not."

"You—You are scaring me Akira."

"Now, imagine how I feel." Akira said, "Please Toshi, tell the others and help me pack all of the evidence. I don't want Mikael to be close to any of what we have. If he is being an asshole, well—I don't want him to take all the credit for our work. It works both ways."

Toshi didn't know what to believe, but seeing the always so calm and collected Akira was too strange for him. They had seen many strange things in their career but somehow, what she said about Mikael sounded to disturbing to be made out. In silence he went, to follow Akira and started to put the items in another bag in the same hurry Akira making a mental note to ask her more about what she was trying to explain.

O—o—o—o—O

Minako combed her blonde hair back and pushed the doorbell button at the entrance of Haruka's house. She looked at a very same nervous Usagi next to her and smiled, "I got this—I am a great mediator," she winked an eye at her friend, making her smile. A few more seconds passed until the cleaning lady opened the door "Yes?"

Minako smiled widely "Hi! We are looking for Tenou-san, is she here?"

The lady, probably in her mid-forties looked at both girls up and down and shook her head in slight, disapproval "She is not here."

"Really, you don't say..." Minako clicked her tongue and turned to a slightly disappointed Usagi, then turned to the woman again "Is by any chance a girl with dark brown hair in the house?"

The woman arched her brow "Who are you?"

Minako chuckled, "Okay, we don't have time for this..." Usagi widened her eyes startled at Minako pushing the door open and walking in, ignoring the frantic lady walking behind her. Usagi had no other choice but to follow them and walk inside as well, "I have no authorization to let anybody in—who are you!?"

"Well you just failed your task." Minako walked into the living room, finding Megumi sitting on the sofa, looking at the garden outside. She turned when listened at the woman's loud yelling and widened her eyes when saw Minako there, followed by Usagi.

"You cannot be in here!" The woman exclaimed with her arms up in the air frantically, "You have to leave, Tenoh-san is going to fire me!"

"She is not going to fire you." Minako looked at her and arched her brow, "Calm down, she knows us, we are her friends—best friends, in fact." Usagi for a minute felt ashamed of having to recur to Minako's tactics to go on with her plan but again and like Luna said, it was good to have her on her side. Minako spotted Megumi and smiled "Megumi-san, we have come here to take you with us,"

Megumi was surprised to see Usagi, she looked very different from the day before and this time her hair was styled the way she remembered her doing it and only confirmed that in fact, it was the Moon Princess. Without asking, Megumi stood up but soon was stopped by a very surprised Michiru joining the frenzy, "What is going on here Akita san?!" her aquamarine eyes widened when she noticed both blondes in the room "Minako... Usagi..."

It was Usagi's time to act, "Michiru-san... hi." she smiled softly, "I'm sorry we scared you but—"

"Is everything okay?" Michiru asked, genuinely worried "You left yesterday very upset and—" Usagi raised her hand and tried to excuse herself "I know and I am sorry..."

Michiru turned to the woman first, "Thank you Akita-san, it's alright, they are my friends, you are excused." The woman glared at Minako bloody murder and left the room. Once alone, Michiru frowned "What happened?"

"Nothing, yet." Minako said and exhaled "We came to take Megumi with us,"

Michiru widened her eyes, "What? Absolutely not!"

"We must take her with us," Minako said, taking her place as leader of the Inner Senshi "If we must continue with the plan, she has to come with us."

"The plan is to keep her safe." she turned to Usagi "Usagi-chan," she said in a more sweet, noble manner "What are you doing?"

"I am going to take her to see Mamo-chan."

Michiru frowned but her silence was enough to make her point and let them know she was not too happy about what they were trying to do. "Time is running out," Minako intercepted "Look, Michiru-san I know you are in the same place Haruka-san is. I know you don't approve but for this once, please help us without any more discussions."

"I cannot allow you to do whatever you are planning, somebody or something is after her. Taking her out of here is like throwing her to the enemy's plate. Are you crazy? At least wait for Haruka and Setsuna to come home."

Minako took the newspaper out of her purse and showed it to Michiru. After the aquamarine read the headline, her eyes widened in shock, Minako took it as her cue to continue "Is this enough proof now?"

"When did this come out?" Michiru frowned as she read down the page quickly "Who did this?"

"They have been around for a while now, they are archaeologists—treasure hunters. The station has been trying to book them for weeks now for an interview for the news but this is too strange, why now? They haven't revealed anything and now they suddenly publish these random things on the newspaper—who are those descendants from the Sun they're talking about? —She could tell us, but she won't if we keep her here... she needs to meet him,"

"I remember seeing something related to this somewhere..." The aquamarine eyed sighed. Michiru looked at Usagi and then at the girl, waiting anxiously on the sofa. With a sigh, she closed her eyes and took a moment to continue "Won't be easier to bring him here?"

Usagi put her hand on Michiru's shoulder in comfort "Michiru-san, I know this is dangerous but—" she blew her long whispy bangs and turned to look at the girl and felt sympathy for her, she felt compassionate and the need to help her, "She has waited too long," she turned to look at Michiru in the eye, "She has been waiting for a resolution and the only resolution she is expecting is from the one she considered family all those years ago, there must be a reason for her to be in this time and era."

Michiru closed her eyes for a moment in thought, then sighed in defeat "I will talk to Haruka."

Usagi's face lit up with hope and smiled "Thank you, for trusting me." Michiru smiled back and nodded "Princess, please be very careful. This is a serious matter. We still do not know who is out there looking for her."

Usagi nodded "I know, and I want you to be there. You are the ones who have spent more time with her and Mamo-chan will have questions of his own... I will call you as soon as we get there, he won't be home for another few hours, so we have time... I know she will get mad, but this is something I need to do."

"I will handle her." Michiru said and turned to Megumi. Walking towards her she sat next to her on the couch and tucked a strand of her dark chocolate hair behind her ear in a sisterly manner, "The nightmare might not be over, but you will not be alone. That I promise." she grabbed her mirror and handed it to her, "Please take this with you. Do not let go of it, it will protect you." she looked over her shoulder at the girls, "I will go and pick it up as soon as you call me you are there."

"I will call the girls." Minako said and took her phone out and looked at Usagi "I will let them know the plan, and hope they can meet us there." she dialed the first number and waited for the other end to answer, then walked away for some privacy. Usagi looked at Megumi looking down at Michiru's mirror and sat next to her "Megumi-san..." she called her softly "I need you to come with me—I need you to trust me, please."

Megumi looked up at her with confusion. She still she found it very hard to see her there, talking to her so casually and wondered how mysterious and selfish the life of those with divine blood was, but then, she thought she was a mortal herself and yet she was still here, more than a thousand years after. "Where..." she trailed off, still hesitant.

Usagi smiled softly and was about to answer when she heard her phone ring, as soon as she saw the screen she immediately wiped the screen to answer, "Hey..."

Megumi looked at her while she listened to the once Lunar Princess speak to a strange looking item close to her ear, she has seen a lot of those lately 'who was she talking to?' —she wondered.

"Are you going home after you are done with your shift?" Usagi looked at Michiru, who was standing right next to Megumi "Yes, no—I'm fine, I just wanted to know if you were heading back home or if you had something else to do that would keep you busy for the rest of the day, I don't know with *Furu-chan or something." The blonde bit her lip, waiting for an answer and nodded "Okay, then... I will see you there." she smiled "I love you too–bye." It was probably the first time words as kind as 'I love you' felt like burning oil going down Usagi's throat because she knew Megumi was hurt, and also because she knew she was not handling the situation all to very well.

"Megumi-san, I know you are angry at me." Usagi felt the need to address it "I know—" she trailed of "How this must be so difficult for you to understand, I know you feel like somehow I disappointed you and it breaks my heart. So many things have happened and you will learn it all in time but right now, I need you to trust me."

Megumi looked at her in the eyes as if trying to find the answers, she sighed and looked down. No matter how much she wanted to hate her, she still was engraved in her memory as the woman who made her Prince happy and her kindness was still there. She was there and all she had left at this moment, was to hold her hand and trust in her.

Usagi smiled at the small gesture and turned to Minako who just entered the room, "I think we must go before sunset. It would be safer, for all of us. I talked to the girls, they all are going to meet us there tonight." Usagi nodded and stood up, with Megumi following behind.

"Okay..." Usagi let out a deep breath "Let us be going."

"I will be waiting for your call then," Michiru said, as she walked them out, "If anything, anything happens, please send a sign." she turned and put a deep blue silk scarf over Megumi's head, to give her some privacy then she wrapped the ends casually around her neck "It is a little cold outside, you better cover up a little." she rested her hands on her shoulders "The object you carry, leave it here."

"I-I cannot leave—"

"We will guard it with our lives, I promise." Michiru said softly "The less you create suspicion, the better. I will personally take it to wherever you are."

Minako nodded and put her sunglasses on Megumi's face, "These should help too."

"I thank you, for everything." Megumi turned to Michiru and turned to walk out the door, holding Minako's hand, as they stepped inside a cab, Michiru leaned on the door and sighed heavily "Please... be safe,"

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I do not own Sailor Moon, just this plot and some of the characters.