*Three*

                        The Silver Millennium was peaceful, everything was quiet. The garden smelled faintly of roses, and the birds had long left for sleep. The Princess sat by herself, her thoughts wandering through events. In her hand, she clasped a beautiful stone, black in color. She rubbed into between her fingers, watching the swirl of colors move more quickly.

            "Cousin! Come with me, I've got something to show you!" The voice was familiar and the Princess began to turn to face the person who was addressing her.

She let the stone drop to her lap as her gaze finally landed on the person she was looking for. Before her stood a young woman. She was tall, in her late teens. Her eyes were a beautiful aqua blue, sparkling with laughter. She had long flowing blue hair that fell in waves to her waist. In her hand she was holding something. A pendant? Yes, it was a pendant, made of precious gold and jewels. It had been given to her by her love, Prince Andre Galaxia. Who was the woman? It took only a moment for the answer to come, for everything made so much more sense now.

            "Azure." Serena opened her eyes and only then did she realize that it was her voice that had spoken the name. She found, hovering over her, Prince Diamond. He was watching her, his eyes worried. He seemed to breathe a sigh of relief as she spoke.

            "Sailor Moon, are you all right?" He asked. She felt his arms supporting her, carrying her.

            "What… happened?" She asked, closing her eyes and swallowing.

            "You fainted." He replied, now becoming concerned, "Did Ay do something to you?" He asked, his voice turning hard and accusing, "You were looking at him and then the next moment you fell."

            "Ay?" The unfamiliar name rolled from her lips. She quirked an eyebrow. She had been standing, waiting for the stranger to look at her. She closed her eyes trying to block away the realization but it was too late. She wriggled out of Diamond's grasp, feeling her legs turn into jelly as they hit the grassy hill beneath her. She whirled around, her eyes searching. It couldn't have been a dream, it wasn't a dream… Finally, she saw him again. This time, he didn't look away. He stood, his hands at his sides. She finally stumbled towards him.

            "Andre…" It wasn't a question; it was a statement of his identity.

            He knelt down quickly, taking her right hand and kissing it, "I serve you, Princess Serenity, as I served your mother."

            "Please, Andre… get up." She stepped back and waited for him to rise. She shook her head, still trying to straighten out all the memories.

            "You are remembering…?" He asked, watching him.

            She nodded, "Yes… they said, Azure said, you were dead?" She looked back at him unbelieving.

            "I was captured by the Negaverse." Andre replied, "To be used as a hostage. But then Beryl took over the Kingdom without the need of me, so she locked me up in a vacuum. I was trapped in there for millennia, forgotten by the guards who no longer knew why I was even prisoner. There I stayed, until I was joined by the others." He motioned to the four other people standing off to the side, "And I was able to break free."

            "All this time…?" She shook her head.

            "I had heard from a warrior who had been imprisoned with me during the time of the Silver Millennium that the four Guardians, Prince Endymoin, and Princess Serenity had been sent to the future Earth by Queen Serenity, to be reincarnated as regular people. There they were to start a new life, a happier life, and perhaps one day they would be able to realize their destinies and the Moon Kingdom would rise again. Ever since then I vowed to escape and find you. To help you regain the Universe and the Kingdom back again." He said, his voice becoming strong and filled with determination.

            "I thank you, Andre." She finally said, "What you have heard is true. We are all on Earth now, and we have been fighting to protect this place, as well as the rest of the Universe, from the influence of the Negaverse. But it has become harder now, as the Negaforce is gaining more allies and more strength. We can't hold out much longer."

            Andre watched her with failing confidence, "I had hoped that things would be better here in the future. But I see it is not." He sighed, shaking his head, "I will do anything I can to help you, Serenity. I was once your loyal and trusted friend in happier times, I hope that can be again."

            Serena smiled, "Of course, Andre." She replied, "I'd have it no other way." She laughed, "I feel so whole again, now that I've regained all these memories about the Moon Kingdom."

            "Excuse me, Sailor Moon?" Sapphire stepped forward, "I'm sorry to intrude, but there are really some urgent things we need to talk about."

            "Right." Serena nodded, "I should probably bring you up to date on what's been happening lately." She eyed the others, "The first thing I need to tell you is that my name is Serena. Please don't call me Sailor Moon, Moon Princess, or Princess Serenity, I would like to keep my identity confidential."

            They nodded, watching her.

            She turned, looking towards them for a moment. The three former Negaverse workers were watching her. They were changed; they no longer held such an icy, uncaring demeanor. It was as if they were discovering for the first time what it was like to be human. They had nothing to lose, and they wouldn't let anything stop them from retaining the happiness that they had finally gained. She looked towards Andre. He had been locked up for so long, and now that he had finally been freed, he would never let anyone capture him again. He seemed to be as determined as ever, his gaze never left her face. He was still the loyal, always knowledgeable friend that he had always been. He would fight to the end. Finally, her gaze landed on the other girl. How did she fit into all this? It was as if everyone else had come for a reason, but as of now, Serena still couldn't figure out what the girl had to do with everything. She shrugged, sighing to herself Destiny will reveal itself in time, was the only good answer she could come up with. Finally, she spoke again. "Now, the Negaverse has been getting much stronger lately. It is because it has come under the rule of a new leader, a new Queen."

            "Who is she?" Nephlite asked, his expression full of curiosity.

            Serena rubbed her eyes, shaking her head. "I'm sorry to say, she used to be one of my most beloved friends." She sighed, looking at Andre with regret, "She was my cousin in the Silver Millennium, but just when times were getting hard for all of us and Beryl was moving to crush the Kingdom, she decided to betray us. She turned to the Negaverse, and helped them defeat the Moon Kingdom. She was once known to me as Princess Azure Moonbeam, but now she has become Queen Azure Darkjewel of the Negaverse."

            Andre listened to her, his face impassive. But Serena knew that with every word she said, it hurt him. He tried not to show it, but his eyes betrayed everything. She felt so unbearably sorry for him, sorry for having to be the one to tell him.

            "Have you encountered her before?" Diamond asked, unaware of the severity of the situation.

            Serena nodded, "Yes, we have. She has attacked us many times, and has been able to bring old adversaries back to life. She doesn't seem to care about losing the people around her. She's very independent, it seems, and she will be hard to defeat."

            "We must destroy her, before she harms anymore people." Nephlite said, determined.

            "No." Serena surprised even herself as she found herself defending her enemy. "We can not harm her. She is not born and made evil, like Beryl and Phantom had been. She never asked to become what she has become, and she doesn't deserve to be destroyed. She was confused when she betrayed us, and I think she still is. She believe she is alone in this universe, we must find a way to show her that she is not."

            "And what if she never sees it, what if she stays evil forever?" Sapphire asked.

            "She won't, she can't." Serena stuttered, "If you believe that I could heal you, and give you better lives as I have done. Then give me your trust, and I promise I will not fail you."

            "We serve you, now, Sailor… I mean Serena." Diamond stepped forward, "We trust you and we will fight by your side."

            She nodded, "I thank you for your loyalty and support. I need you to come with me, so that we can meet the other Scouts. They should be told and warned of the new developments. We need to get working fast."

*          *          *

            An uneasy silence filled the room as the four girls sat around the table, watching with disbelief as they tried to understand what their friend had told them. They looked first at Serena and then towards the five visitors.

            "You mean that he," Rei pointed at Andre, "Was our friend on the Silver Millennium?"

            "Yes." Serena replied, trying to explain things as quickly and precisely as possible. "He was and still is."

            "How can you be so sure?" Lita asked warily, looking at the whole group of strangers, "I mean… how do you know that they have turned to our side and that they aren't going to betray us?"

            "I just… know." Serena replied, "I can't explain it. But I know. They want to help us. Come on, give them another chance."

            "What do you think, Mina?" Rei looked towards the other girl.

            "Why me?!" The blond asked, surprised as she pointed towards herself.

            "Technically," Amy responded, "You, Sailor Venus, must make the decisions for the Scouts in the absence of Sailor Moon."

            Mina sighed, looking towards Serena. She didn't say anything, but just stared straight into the girl's eyes. The air was heavy with anticipation, but neither of the two girls flinched away. "I think," Mina finally spoke quietly, "That we should trust them."

            Serena smiled, "I knew you'd understand." She sighed with relief. She motioned towards Andre and he stepped forward. "Give me your sword, Andre." She said, turning to face him. The man hesitated and then drew the shimmering blade. Serena took it, wielding it with more expertise than the girls' could imagine. She swung it once across the air and then pointed it towards the other Scouts, hilt facing towards them. "Touch the sword, and you'll understand."

            The other looked at each other, unsure whether to trust her. Mina looked back at Serena. There was a misty almost dull look in her eyes, as if she wasn't really there. Mina understood, the spirit of Princess Serenity had taken over the girl's body. She stepped forward boldly, putting her hand on the hilt without hesitation. The others followed her lead, all placing their hands over hers. Finally, when the last girl put her fingers to the hilt, there was a flash of light. It was as if time was frozen and the only thing that mattered was themselves. Flashes, memories, images, flew around them, in a swirl of color, sound and light. They stumbled back as everything seemed to bombard them at once, filling their brain with memories long forgotten. Finally, it stopped; leaving the four girls crouched low to the ground, each panting heavily with exasperation. Serena watched them, waiting until the silence returned.

            "Do you believe me now?" She asked.

            The four looked up, seeing the haunted look leave their friend's eyes, "Yes." Was the unison reply.

*          *          *

            Rini slurped loudly at her ice cream shake, enjoying every little bit of it. Darien watched her, a small smile on his face. He sat back, savoring the small gap of silence that he finally was able to have. He looked out the window, noticing that the sun was finally beginning to peer out from behind the clouds. His attention began to wander and soon found himself daydreaming.

            "Hello, Darien." He was jerked from his own world by that voice. He looked up quickly, already half risen from his seat.

            "Oh, hi, Emmy." He replied, smiling. "I didn't expect to find you here."

            "Yeah, I was walking back from class when I saw you at the diner. I thought I'd drop by." She replied, flashing one of her irresistible smiles.

            "I'm glad that you did." He replied, "Here, sit down."

            Rini glared at the woman but said nothing, continuing to sip at her shake.

            "I need to run to make a call, could you watch Rini for me?" Darien asked, getting up for a moment.

            "Yeah, no problem." She replied, smiling. Darien nodded and headed off to the pay phone in the corner. Rini watched him leave. Finally, she turned around to face Emmy.

            "So, how have you been, little one?" The woman asked.

            Rini gave a shrug and mumbled incoherently, not looking at her.

            Emmy shrugged. She waved her hand towards the waitress, trying to get her attention.

            "What'll it be?" The woman asked, coming over, pen and pad in hand.

            "Could I have a chocolate milk shake?" Emmy asked, leaning back in her chair.

            "Yeah, sure, it'll be a minute." The waitress replied, walking away to take another order. Emmy waited patiently, still watching the little girl.

            "You're awfully quiet." She commented.

            Rini shrugged again, still not replying. Emmy sighed, giving up. She took the shake gratefully as the waitress returned with her order. She stirred at it a bit, not really drinking it. Finally she took a little sip, seeming to taste it. A look of surprise came over her face as she frowned. She pulled out the straw, turning it around in her fingers. On one side was a small hole that prevented the liquid from flowing through it. Emmy shrugged, taking another straw and putting it in. She stirred it a bit then she smiled, nodding to herself.

            "Aren't you going to drink more?" Rini asked.

            Emmy shrugged, "Maybe later." By then, Darien had returned.

            "Sorry about that." He said, sitting down next to Emmy.

            "I ordered a drink for you." She said sweetly, giving it to him, "You said that chocolate was your favorite."

            He smiled, nodding, "Thanks." He took the drink and began to sip at it. Emmy watched him, smiling once in a while whenever he looked up. Rini rolled her eyes, returning to her own shake, trying to block them out of her thoughts.