I do not own the rights to any of the characters in this fanfic, nor do I claim them. The idea, however, is mine. Enjoy!
This Time Around
Chapter 8
Mia and Yuli were in the living room, waiting patiently for the ten warriors to return. Mia was sitting on the couch with her knees pulled up to her chest, and Yuli was sitting by the window, fidgeting with a nearby plant. He accidentally knocked it over, causing Mia to jump.
"Oh Yuli, you scared me," she exclaimed. She got off the couch to help the boy clean up the mess he had made.
"I'm real sorry, Mia," he replied. "I'm just really worried about everyone. Rini was really upset when she left this morning. What if something happened to her?"
"She's your best friend, isn't she," Mia asked as she put the plant in its' upright position.
Yuli nodded his head and sat back on the windowsill. As he gazed out the window, he gasped. "Hey Mia, look," he exclaimed. "They're back!" Mia rushed over to the window and smiled as she saw them walking in the distance.
"Come on, Yuli," she said. "Let's go meet them!" The two ran out the front door. As the warriors drew nearer, the smile on Mia's face disappeared. Though she knew they were going off to fight, she was still shocked by their appearance. The boys were wearing their sub-armor, and the girls had reverted back to their normal clothing. She saw that Serena, Mina, Rini, and Amy were all unconscious, and that all the warriors, including the little girl, had a variation of cuts and bruises. "Oh no, what happened," Mia asked.
"Kite attacked us with some new soldiers," Ryo replied. "It took a lot out of all of us to defeat them." Mia's forehead furrowed into a frown as she noticed that even White Blaze had attained injuries.
"Will Rini be okay," Yuli asked as he ran over to where Ryo was standing to check on his friend.
"She'll be fine, Yuli," Ryo replied. "She just needs some rest."
"Soldiers," Mia asked in a confused voice. "Do you mean soldiers from the Dynasty?"
"Not quite, Mia," Sage replied. "They didn't look like Dynasty Soldiers, but they were wearing armor."
"They also looked like the enemies we're used to fighting," Lita said as she frowned. "They fought a lot like the Doom and Gloom Girls. They attacked us together when our guard was down."
Rei visually shuddered as she thought of their previous enemy; the ones that had carried out Beryl's final assault on them. "It's all very confusing," she said quietly. "I'm going to have to meditate. Maybe I'll learn something from the fire."
"You should get everyone in the house first," Sai said as Amy began to stir in his arms.
"Good idea, Sai," Mia replied. She frowned as she thought about their situation. "I can do some research while you all get some rest."
* * * * * * *
The next night, as the sun began to set, Mia went into the kitchen to begin dinner. She had spent the entire afternoon in her study the previous day, while the warriors got some rest from their battle. She had also worked well into the night, and when she had woken up the next morning, she continued in her search. She had been in the study working diligently to see if she could figure out where the new enemy had come from. She had only taken one other break from her work, when Amy and Rini had woken up at noon. As Mia looked around the kitchen, she decided to order take-out instead.
"Hey Mia," Rei greeted as she came into the kitchen. She had woken up the same time Mia woke up that morning, and spent the day reading fire. "What are you doing?"
"Ordering dinner," Mia replied as she reached for her purse. "I'm too frustrated and tired to cook right now."
"Well, one of us could have done it," Rei said, reaching for an apple from the fruit bowl and taking a bite of it. "In fact, I could have cooked tonight. I'm sure that Ryo wouldn't have minded helping me."
"You really like him, don't you," Mia asked. "I can tell that he likes you, too. The two of you would make a cute couple." She smiled as Rei blushed from embarrassment. "Well, did you find anything while you were meditating?"
"No, I'm afraid not," Rei replied as her face returned to its' normal color. "Did you find anything in your search?"
"No, nothing," Mia replied. "Amy passed by the study to see if I needed any help. She saw how upset I was becoming, so she was kind enough to offer to continue looking through my Grandfather's files while I made dinner."
At the mention of her teammate, Rei looked up. "Speaking of Amy, do you know how Serena and Mina are doing," she asked.
"The last time I checked, they were both asleep," Mia replied. "Kento was in the room with Serena, and Rowen told me Mina was still sleep about an hour ago."
"Actually, I'm awake now," Mina said as she and Rowen came into the kitchen.
"Yeah, she finally returned to the land of the living," Rowen joked. Mina smiled at him, and then a small frown crossed her face.
"How are Serena and Rini doing," she asked, taking a seat at the counter, on one of the stools. "Are they awake?"
"Rini and Amy are awake, but Serena is still unconscious," Rei replied.
"Did something happen to Amy as well," Mina asked. "Now that I think about it, I didn't see either her or Sai before I fainted. What happened?"
"I was drained of all my energy by one of those soldiers," Amy said as she entered the kitchen. "Sai was taking care of me. I'm glad that you're okay now, Mina." She gave her friend a small hug, and Mina returned the gesture. "How is Serena doing?"
"She's still asleep," Mia replied as she stretched where she was standing. "Did you find anything on the computer that I missed?"
"Yes, actually," Amy stated. "Come with me, and I'll show you what I found."
"Okay," Mia replied, following her. As she got to the door, she stopped and snapped her fingers. "I almost forgot! Rei, the money for the food is on the counter. Will you take care of everything for me?"
"Sure, Mia," Rei said. She watched as Mia left after Amy, and Sage entered the room.
"Hey everyone," he said to Rei, Mina, and Rowen. He looked in the refrigerator and pulled out a bottle of water. "It's good to see you awake, Mina," he commented after he took a sip. "I'll take it that Serena is still unconscious?"
"Yes," Mina stated. They all let out a sigh simultaneously. Mina looked towards the living room, where Yuli and Rini were watching television. White Blaze was sitting between the children, and Mina became transfixed as she watched his chest slowly rise and fall with each breath he took.
"Mina," Rowen said, breaking through her concentration, "is something wrong?"
"Nothing," she answered slowly. "I was just wondering what happened after Kite defeated me and knocked me unconscious." She paused as Rini looked in their direction, smiled at them, and then turned back towards the television. "When I found Rini and Serena," Mina continued, "Serena was unconscious already, and Rini was sobbing. I asked her what happened, but she wouldn't tell me. All she did was cry harder."
"Well, I think it would be best if we didn't ask too many questions," Rowen stated. "Not after what happened yesterday."
"That's probably for the best," Sage said. As silence settled between the four warriors, Sage cleared his throat. "Have any of you seen Lita?"
"She's in the training room," Sai said, entering the kitchen. "She looked like she was training pretty intensely."
"Thanks," Sage replied. As he left the kitchen, he heard Sai ask about Serena and smiled. He walked down the hall, towards the training room, and once he got there, he saw that Sai had been right. Lita was punching and kicking away at the punching bag. He leaned against the frame of the door as he watched her pummel away.
"Can't ... be ... weak," Lita panted out, hitting the bag with each word. She finally gave up her assault on the punching bag as she sank down to the ground. "I'm sorry I didn't protect you well enough, Serena," she whispered as tears slowly slide down her cheeks.
"Lita," Sage said cautiously. She looked up in surprise and laughed nervously as she wiped at her eyes. She stood up quickly as Sage studied her.
"I hate it when sweat gets in my eyes," she said as Sage walked towards her. "I really should get a headband. Maybe I should ask Rowen where he got his. I would get mine in green, of course, and ..."
"Lita," Sage interrupted, placing his hands firmly on her shoulders. "Why were you crying?"
Lita angrily shook his hands off of her and turned her back to him. "I wasn't crying," she replied stubbornly, crossing her arms. Sage walked up behind her, and she shivered as his mouth brushed past her ear.
"Lita," he whispered to her, "I was standing there, watching you long enough to tell something was wrong. What is it?"
Lita sighed as she allowed her arms to drop to her sides. "I feel as if I let Serena down," she said sadly, shaking her head. "And now she's upstairs unconscious."
"It's not your fault, Lita," he replied. "No one can be blamed for what happened." He paused as she turned around to look at him. "No one could have predicted what would happen."
"But I'm so weak," she protested.
"No, Lita," he exclaimed. "You're the exact opposite of that! We all did what we could, and you protected Serena the best you could, given the situation. Sailor Moon knew what she was doing when she ran off after Rini to confront Kite."
"I still need to train, to become stronger," she said after a few minutes of silence.
"That's a start," Sage said. Before Lita could say anything more, he covered her mouth with his and kissed her softly. As they broke apart, he pulled her towards him in a tight embrace. "And I will help you."
"Thank you, Sage," she said, returning his hug.
* * * * * * *
"Serena," the blonde girl heard a voice say to her. "Serena, wake up." Serena began to stir and slowly opened her eyes. As her sight became focused, she noticed that she was in a large, beautiful garden.
"Wow," she breathed, taking in her flowery surroundings. "Where am I?"
"I think you already know the answer to that, Princess Serenity," the voice said from behind Serena. She turned around, and a smile lit up her face.
"Mother," she exclaimed. As she stepped towards the woman, she noticed that she had, in fact, become Princess Serenity, and she was wearing her white and golden gown. "What's going on? Am I here for a reason?"
"You needed me, daughter, and I have come to you," Queen Serenity replied. "What is it that troubles you?"
"I don't know, Mother," she said, taking a deep breath. "I didn't even realize I had summoned you!"
"Serenity, sometimes your heart wishes for something that your mind has not yet come to fully realize," the Queen commented. "If you search your heart, you will know what you wanted to ask."
"Well, there is something," Serena replied. "I don't understand this new enemy, or the little girl the Scouts and I are supposed to protect ... They confuse me. Also, I've been . . . I've been . . ."
"Talk to me, Serenity," the Queen coaxed as Serena's voice trailed off. "You can tell me anything."
"I've ... I've been questioning my destiny," Serena replied hesitantly. "I know that I will rule as Queen one day, and I have accepted that. And though I would never purposely try to change anything, I just wish that everything was not so set in stone." She paused as tears began to form in the corners of her eyes. "I feel as if I have been cheated somehow. Don't I have the right to choose what I want to do?"
"My sweet daughter," the Queen began, taking Serena into her arms. "Some things about destiny are meant to be changed. If I had not given up life to save you and your court, then the Moon Kingdom would be dead, and evil would run rampant." She studied her troubled daughter's face before continuing. "If you make changes, you would not be a lesser leader, Serenity. Do you understand?"
"Yes, I think I do," Serena replied, wiping the tears from her face. "Thank you, Mother." Queen Serenity smiled warmly and kissed Serena on the forehead.
"I will always be here for you in spirit, and I will always love you," she said. "Now go back to your loved ones, Princess Serenity. Wake up ..."
Serena opened her eyes and noticed that she was in the guestroom where she had been staying. She winced in pain as she sat up, and turned her head to look at the clock, which read eight PM. As she slowly brought her hand up to her face, and touched the spot her mother kissed her on the forehead, she smiled. "It must have all been a dream," she said softly. "I wonder how long I was out?" She slowly, carefully stretched, and as she did so, her feet kicked something. She frowned slightly in annoyance, but once she saw what it was, her frown disappeared.
Kento was sitting on the floor, however he had fallen asleep with his head on the end of the bed. As Serena got out of bed, Kento began to stir and woke up. "Serena," he asked in a sleepy voice. "Are you really up, or am I just dreaming?"
"You're dreaming, Kento," she replied with a warm smile. "Go back to sleep." He mumbled something as he laid his head back down and grew silent. Serena tiptoed over to the balcony and threw open the door. As she took in a deep breath of fresh air, she heard Kento get up. As she saw him out the corner of her eye, she smirked.
"You were going to just let me sleep, weren't you," he asked with a lop-sided grin.
"Yeah," she replied as she turned towards him. "You let me sleep, so I thought I'd return the favor." She smiled and then looked back towards the moon. "Have you been watching over me the whole time?"
"Yes, I did," he said. "I tried to stay awake in case you woke up, but I dozed off from time to time." He paused and chuckled a little. "The others had to practically force me to leave your side."
"I'm sorry for causing such trouble," she said.
"I didn't mind, though. You didn't cause any trouble at all," he exclaimed. "Not for me, or anyone else!"
"How is Rini doing? Is she okay," she asked, changing the subject.
"She's doing fine. All she needed was some sleep," he replied. "She was worried about you the most, you know."
"She was," she asked, confused. "Why? How long was I out?"
"For about one and a half, two days . . . Serena," he began. She turned towards him once again. "What happened out there between you and Kite? Rini won't even talk about it! I was so worried about you when you didn't wake up yesterday. I figured since both you and Mina fought against Kite, and she woke up yesterday, you would, too, but you never did!" As he reached towards Serena, she stepped away from him slightly.
"Um, Kento," she said, noticing a look of hurt cross his face. "I ... I think we should go downstairs and let everyone know I'm okay. I really want to see Rini."
Kento smiled as he dropped his arms to his side. "Sure, Serena," he replied. "Let's get down there. Besides, I'm starving!"
"Yeah, me too," she replied. Bother Serena and Kento laughed, and as they left the balcony, two figures holding staffs stared up at the house.
"Are you positive this is what you want to do, Lady Kayura," Sailor Pluto asked. "We will not be able to undo it."
"Yes," Kayura replied. "It's the only choice we have. I just hope they'll all cooperate with us."
To Be Continued . . .
Be kind and leave a comment! ^_~ I'd like to thank Lady Squirt and Sam, for keeping me motivated to write. Thanks so much! And thanks to everyone who leaves a comment. It's greatly appreciated! Bye for now…