Disclaimer: I don't own Sailor Moon or Gundam Wing.

Matsuri: I know! I know! I kept you waiting!! But please!! O-negai! Be patient with me!! Just for being so patient with me I have made this chapter extra long. At least I hope it is and don't forget to review. Here it is chapter 4. Enjoy!



4 Chapter Four

Usagi sat across from Hiro in the small booth. She scanned the menu she held in her hand.

"Ohayo, may I help you?" the waitress asked.

"Coffee," Hiro said, without looking in her direction. The waitress turned to Usagi.

"And you miss?"

Usagi cleared her throat and then said, "Let's see… I want a triple cheeseburger, extra large fries, a strawberry milkshake with whipped cream and a few cherries, and for dessert…a piece of chocolate cake." The waitress quickly jotted this down.

"Oh…k. I'll be right back." She winked at Hiro and left. Usagi noticed the strange look Hiro was giving her and she giggled.

"I know I eat a lot, but I love to eat," she said. "The girls would always scold me for…" Usagi stopped talking. Her head lowered and she sniffled.

"Who are the girls?" Hiro asked.

"Friends," Usagi answered. "They're gone now. At least…I think so. I mean…they're not here. Setsuna would have brought them too right?"

"What happened?" Hiro asked quickly. "Why are you here?" Before Usagi could say anything, the waitress had come back with the food.

"Here you go," she said, sitting the food in front of Usagi. Usagi hungrily grasped the cheeseburger and began taking out big bites.

"This is so good!" she said happily. The waitress chuckled and walked away. Hiro stared in silence as Usagi gobbled down food. There was something amusing about watching this girl stuff her face. Not a bad amusement, but a good amusement that made him want to sit there and gaze at her all day. Hiro shifted slightly.

"Does you friend eat as much as you?" he asked.

"Ohmygod! Makoto!" Usagi dropped her burger. It landed with a thud on her plate. In all of the excitement, she had forgotten about her friend. "W-we were just going to get some clothes! We just left her there all this time by herself!" Usagi stood up, but Hiro quickly stopped her.

"It's all right," he said. "Duo should be back by now. She's safe."

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

The hours went by quickly and because Duo stopped to get something to eat, (of course he had to find a suitable hiding place for the chip) he didn't get home until 4:00 pm.

"They're still not back yet?" Duo asked himself, remembering that they told him that they were going out. He propped the data chip up against the wall so that he could close the front door. Then he dragged the chip into the garage and worked on into the day.

Later on, Makoto sat up in bed. She looked around. The room was dark except for a sliver of light coming from the crack of the door. 'Where am I?' she thought. Quickly, she stood up. Pain shot up her leg and she would've collapsed had it not been for the nightstand nearby. She examined her leg. It was bandaged up along with her waist and arm. Makoto moaned as she tried to walk to the door. She peeked outside of the room. There was a couch and on it, a guy with a long brown braid sat there snoring. His head was back and his mouth was wide open. Without a sound, Makoto slipped out of the door and tiptoed down the hall in search of the front door. Looking around one last time, she opened the door and left. As soon as the door shut, Duo's eyes popped open.

"Now where does she think she's going?"

In the realm of time, two people talk.

"So where are my daughter and Makoto?"

"I sent them to another time."

"Are they safe, Setsuna?"

"They should be."

"What about the other scouts?"

Setsuna sighed. "I couldn't save them. They…they perished. I did save the outers, though."

"This is not good…the earth…it's unprotected. Visus can drain away the energy of everyone."

"I know, Queen Serenity, but Usagi and Makoto are not strong enough to defeat him."

"But with the help of the outers surely…"

"Iie, not even with their help. It won't be of any use." Standing there in silence, Queen Serenity, having been brought to the realm of time from the past, and Setsuna watched a crystal ball that gave them a view of the earth from the perspective of a person in space.

"So what now?" Queen Serenity asked. "Do we just wait?"

"Hai," Setsuna answered. "We wait until their strength is rejuvenated and we'll let them rest up. Then we'll worry about Visus."

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Quatre and Trowa walked, looking for Usagi and Hiro. They'd been at the mall for some time and frankly, they were tired of being surrounded by so many people. Stores were starting to close anyway so they wanted to head home.

"Quatre," Trowa said, touching his shoulder.

"Huh?" Quatre followed Trowa's gaze to his left. They were standing in front of an antique electronics store. Televisions were in the windows. On the TV was Relina Peacecraft. She was speaking.

"It seems that we have moved from one war and straight into another. Peace seems to be far away at this moment, but with the help of people like the Preventers and the Gundam pilots, we can make it through." Relina paused for a moment and then continued. "We will not let this go on. We will put a stop to Treiz Kushrenada!"

"We have to find him first," Trowa mumbled.

"Hiro," Quatre cried. Trowa turned to see Hiro and Usagi approaching them. "Hiro, Usagi, where have you been? It's getting late."



What is this place? Where is everybody? Makoto walked through the streets, passing a person every now and then. Where are Usagi, Ami, Rei, and Minako? Makoto glanced behind her. Someone was following her. She tried to walk faster, but her leg was slowing her down from the pain. Trying to lose them she turned a corner and sat in between two trashcans. She held her breath as the stranger walked by. She waited until the stranger turned a corner then she tried to get up, but her leg wouldn't work.

"Ugh!" Makoto groaned, propping her elbows up on the two trashcans. Then she heard a noise. The stranger was coming back! Surely he knew where she was! With a big hop, Makoto jumped to her feet, but she wasn't fast enough! The stranger grabbed her arm!

"IIE!!" she screamed. With her other balled fist she swing and hit the stranger in the face.

"Aww! Shit!!" the stranger cried, staggering back. Makoto braced herself to get ready to defend herself if she had to.

"Don't come any closer!" she yelled.

"Oioioi!" the stranger held up his hands. "You can trust me!"

"Like hell!" Makoto yelled. "I don't even know you!"

"But I know you! You're Makoto! You fell through a whole in the ceiling along with another girl named Usagi!" Duo explained. Makoto relaxed a little, but she still didn't trust this guy.

"U…Usagi's here?" she asked.

"Hai. She's with the others. So come on. I'll take you back." Makoto didn't move. As a car passed, the head lights shone on the stranger, revealing him as the braided brown-haired guy Makoto had seen on the couch. She hesitated.

"Look, I'm Duo," Duo said. "It's alright. I'm not dangerous…at least not to you. You punch like a guy." Makoto didn't look relieved but she gave a weak smile and Duo sighed.

"Plus it's getting darker and colder," Duo continued. "On the way back I'll walk in front of you and keep my hands in my pockets. How about that?" Makoto nodded and finally she allowed him to lead her back to Quatre's mansion.

By the time Duo and Makoto got back, Usagi, Hiro, Trowa, Quatre, and Wufei were back.

"Usagi!" Makoto cried, coming to her side. "What's going on? Where are we?" Usagi told her about Setsuna and how they have to stay with Hiro and the others.

"For how long?" Makoto asked. Then she winced as pain erupted from her leg. Usagi helped her sit down.

"This isn't good," Makoto whispered. "Earth is in serious danger." Usagi then introduced Makoto to the guys. Quatre had food for Makoto sent up and she ate. Quatre then had the guestrooms fixed up for Makoto's and Usagi's use and when everything was settled everyone went to bed, or so Usagi and Makoto thought. While they were sleeping the guys were gathered in Hiro's room.

"While you guys were here pampering these women, I was out completing your missions because you all weren't answering your calls," Wufei snapped. "We can't let them affect our lives!"

"But Wufei," Quatre protested. Neither one of us has lived in the same house with women so it's going to take some adjusting."

"He's right, though," Trowa said. "We still have a duty to do. We can't ignore it." Hiro slowly nodded. From the chair in the corner Duo grunted.

"We might have to take turns watching them," he said and he glanced at Wufei. "And because of that we might have to complete each other's missions." Duo stood up from the chair. "We should think about this later when we're not so tired." He went to bed and then the others went too.

That morning, Makoto woke up early. She walked into the living room where the guys spent the time they had when they weren't on missions. Makoto was wearing a green two-piece pajama set. She sat on the couch and took in her surroundings. She couldn't believe where she was at the moment, in a mansion! She never thought that she'd be able to stay in one and she always wanted to even if it was temporarily. Makoto looked at the carpet and noticed her bandaged leg. She poked it lightly expecting a pain, but she felt nothing. Come to think of it, she didn't feel anything when she walked out of her room either. Gently, Makoto reached for the end of the bandage and began to unwind it from her leg.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you," a voice said. Makoto turned to see Duo standing down at her from behind. She quickly stood up, spinning hard on her injured foot.

"Ouch!! Ohh!! Kuso!" she cried, falling to the floor. "Kusokusokuso!!!"

"Told you," Duo said, walking around the couch towards Makoto. "Your bandages are old. You can tell by the coloring. They need to be renewed."

"What're you some kind of nurse?" Makoto scowled.

"Huh?" Duo cracked a smile and then he chuckled for the first time in three months.

"What's so funny?" Makoto grumbled.

"Nothing," Duo answered between chuckles. 'Nurse? If only she knew the truth!'

"So are you going to get the bandages or not?" Makoto asked angrily. When Duo got back, Makoto was sitting on the couch. He kneeled down to take off her old bandages. Next to him was a small tub of warm water and a rag.

"Gomen ne," Makoto said, softly, watching Duo work on her leg.

"Why?" Duo asked, without looking up.

"For my behavior a few minutes ago," she said and she sighed. "I'm just a little frustrated." Duo was finished unwrapping her leg. He dipped the rag into the water and began wiping at the wounds that were now exposed.

"What are you frustrated about?" Duo asked, his eyes narrowed. Makoto sighed once again and sat back. She lifted her eyes up towards the ceiling.

"Life," she answered. "It hasn't been good to me." Duo didn't say anything. 'So you've got problems too,' he thought. 'Seems that it's contagious nowadays. I have enough problems to last me the rest of my life.' Hilde appeared in his mind. Her eyes were sparkling, her smile so beautiful and her kiss…how he missed her kiss!

"Done already?" Makoto's voice pulled Duo from his thoughts.

"Huh…uh…" Duo looked at her leg to find that he was done. "Yeah." He picked up the tub and the other things. "I guess I am." Makoto moved her leg around.

"It's very comfortable," she said. "Much much better! You did a good job." Duo smirked.

"As good a job as a nurse?"

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

"Where did you say everybody was?" Usagi asked. It was noon and she was just getting up.

"They're out running some errands," Duo said. "They'll be back later." Trowa, Hiro, Wufei, and Quatre had left early that morning. They all had missions and weren't expected back until late.

"So you're the one they left behind to watch us?" Makoto asked, her arms crossed.

"No," Duo answered. "Well…yeah. If you want to put it that way." Makoto mumbled something and leaned against the wall. Duo ignored this and walked to the garage door. He ducked inside intending to put the finishing touches on Deathscythe.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Wing Zero turned just in time to see a blast of energy headed toward it. Hiro quickly dodged it and aimed his beam cannon at his foe. Meanwhile Heavyarms was also blowing the enemy away with his machine guns while Sandrock tried to get the hundreds of people on the ground out of the way. This time the mobile dolls had attacked in a city where hundreds of people lived or worked. Heavyarms charged at one of the mobile dolls, sending it crashing into a building. The building began to topple, but Sandrock quickly caught it before it crushed the many people below.

"Too many people," Quatre mumbled. "Too many. They'll get hurt." The Gundams fought hard, destroying mobile dolls left and right. 'These mobile dolls,' Hiro thought. 'There's something different about them.' He turned just in time to miss a full attack from a mobile doll, but yet, he was still hit. The arm to Wing Zero went limp as it sparked from being striked violently. Hiro tried to move it but it didn't budge.

"What's going on?" Hiro heard Quatre ask. He looked up from Wing Zero's control console to see that the mobile dolls had stopped fighting. Sandrock and Heavyarms stood in a poised position, ready to attack.

"What are they doing?" Quatre asked, staring at the dolls in front of them. Then in the blink of an eye, the dolls flew into the air, flying out of the city.

"We better follow," Trowa said.

"Not yet," a voice said and a view of Lieutenant Noin appeared in the window of the Gundams. She had on a gray tank top and some blue jeans. She was pale from lack of sleep, but her eyes were wide and her expression showed her anxiety.

"While you guys were fighting, some of the dolls' allies were setting up bombs! It's enough to take out this whole city!"

"Where are they located?" Hiro asked. The view of Noin went away and a map of the city appeared in her place. Seven red dots flashed repeatedly in different areas of the city.

"So you want us to diffuse them," Quatre confirmed.

"It would be nice," Noin smiled nervously. "Wufei and Sally are trying to diffuse a few but it doesn't look good. So hurry! You don't have very long before…"

"You don't have to say anymore," Quatre said. The Gundams headed in different directions toward the bombs. Flying in the air, Quatre noticed Nataku standing some distance away. 'Must be where one of the bombs is located,' he thought. Soon the cockpit to Sandrock opened and Quatre ran out. A couple of miles away Hiro and Trowa were also heading to their destinations. Quatre ran into the ruins of a building and straight down to the basement. It was dark and the electricity was out. Quatre squinted his eyes, scanning the room. Then he caught sight of a flash in the corner of the room. He quickly made his way toward it. It was the bomb. It was in the shape of a foot long box and it was about two inches high. On top were numbers telling how much time Quatre had left.

"Five minutes," Quatre said to himself. Quatre lifted up the top revealing a key pad for him to type. He typed something and pressed enter. The seconds stopped going. With a sigh, Quatre flipped a switch and the screen went blank.

"I've diffused one of them," Quatre said, now back inside Sandrock. "I am also done," Trowa's voice could be heard.

"Good," Noin popped up on the window screen of Sandrock. "Wufei and Sally have finished theirs also, but there are two remaining. Sally is headed over to one of them…"

"I'll head over to the other," Hiro's voice was heard and then he was gone.

"Good luck, Hiro," Noin said. The last bomb seemed to be in a construction site. Wing Zero meandered around the huge mounds of dirt and stacked metal until he spotted the slender box-shaped contraption. Hiro climbed down from Wing Zero and headed towards the box. The numbers read one minute. Hiro quickly lifted up the top part of the contraption and began to type something then he pressed enter. The numbers didn't stop and as a matter of fact they sped up. Hiro cursed himself as he tried it again. The numbers kept going. Forty seconds, 35, 30 seconds.

"Hiro! Hiro!" Noin's voice floated down to Hiro from Wing Zero. "Sally has finished. What about you?"

"Dammit," Hiro snapped when his third try didn't work. Then he climbed back into Wing Zero.

"It's going to blow," Hiro said. "I can't stop it." Then Noin heard the sound of an explosion! Her view of Hiro turned into static!!

"Hiro? Hiro!!"



Matsuri: Long enough for ya? I hope so. I had fun typing this chapter. ^_^ Review please!