A.N.:  Hey, I'm back!  Okay, so that's pretty obvious, isn't it? 

Just a few things I want to say (actual chapter is not on this section—go to the next one.  This is only for those of you who a.) have questions that needed answered, or b.)reviewed at least once before.  The rest of you can skip this whole thing.): 

1.) I'm still taking names for the mailing lists.  I know I've never actually sent chapter alerts before (as I claimed I would in the beginning), but I'm going to start doing it now.  I won't be updating as regularly as before (for any of my stories), so I'm going to force myself to start doing what I've been promising all along.  Of course, I can't promise that I'll remember which names go for which story!

2.) In answer to a question I received too many times to count, Darien doesn't know he's Tuxedo Mask!  He never got involved with the senshi before this, so don't expect him to start throwing roses or shouting out corny speeches (By all the gods, I hope he doesn't start doing that—it's the one aspect of him that's always driven me nuts.).  It just ain't gonna happen, folks.  In all probability, however, he might show up as the prince. 

3.) The cats will be making an appearance eventually.  That's all I'll say, because I don't want to give anything away. 

4.) I've also been looking for other good Mina-based (or senshi-based but with a whole lot of Mina) stories.  Short of scanning every single fic, it's just impossible to isolate any.  Help, please?

5.) I'm going to steal an idea of roswellwbfan's, and start sending individual thank-you's to all of my reviewers.  It's such a great way to show my gratitude for everybody who takes the time to read and review, though I apologize because, since I haven't done it before, this first set of shout-outs are going to last forever.  First of all, then:

roswellbfan: You should get a medal, you really should.  You've been reading this thing since the beginning (yes, I realize the beginning was only three chapters ago.  Work with me, would you?), and you get a special thanks for your patience.  This story started out really depressing, and I think even I would have lost interest if it had stayed that way.  You were right, though.  I'm trying to lighten the mood a little bit, and the really depressing part is now over (I hope.).  I'm going to see if I can work in a little humor now, though I also can't guarantee that it's going to be all sunshine and daisies from this point on.  We'll see how it goes. 

roswellbfan: Yes, I'm going to give a response to every single review.  It's only fair, after all, as this is what you do for me.  Again, thanks for the compliments.  I don't know if what I wrote was 'heartbreakingly beautiful', but I thank you for the sentiment.  Quite frankly, that one phrase was the reason I started working on the next chapter!  See how much your reviews mean to me?  I look for yours before anyone else's.   

roswellbfanI'm glad that you liked my latest chapter.  It was a real pain to get out, maybe because I kept having to switch viewpoints.  Oh, well.  I think it came out reasonably well.  And, no, Darien wasn't a cop.  I can see why you'd think that, of course, but he isn't.  I just can't picture him in a uniform, can you?  It's just not…Darien.  (I don't think psychologists have to wear uniforms, do they?  Maybe they can just get away with the suit.)  I like the way you put that, though: 'He is simply a genius psychologist who is already obsessed with Serena'.  The phrasing of that just strikes me as funny (in a good way, of course). 

Besides, of COURSE he's obsessed with Serena!  He'd have to be, wouldn't he, to put up with her as she's acting right now?  She's all depressed and unSerena-y.  She will, of course, cheer up—she just has to wait for the voices to kick in. 

Man, this story is screwed up.

So, you liked the father, did you?  I'm glad.  I just pictured how my own dad would react and then Kenji's character became pretty easy to write.  My dad's as much of a protective psycho as Serena's…or maybe he's just a plain psycho…

Actually, this next chapter probably won't have too much humor.  A little, maybe, but not too much.  It won't be as depressing as the last couple, but it's not really meant to be funny.  I'm going to be weaning this story more towards humor as we go, but I just couldn't make it for this one.  Sorry about that.

Sassy_chanSassy, you were my very first reviewer ever, and you get a special thank you just for that.  I agree with everything you say, especially the parts when you told me I was wonderful. 

Sassy_chanYes, Sass, I finally got the hang of those darned italics.  It was pretty easy, once someone explained it to me.  I only had to save the document as a web page, and everything worked out.  And I'm sorry the story was so sad.  It really is going to pick up—even I'm starting to get depressed.  Just give me a little time. 

AlcandreI'm so sorry that I made you cry!  Okay, so I'm not, but I'll pretend I am!  Just kidding.  Thanks for the compliments.  They were just inspiring.

Deeply Impressed:  A doozie, huh?  Did you hear that everybody…I wrote a doozie!  Okay, that sounded just a little bit off, but I'm grateful for the comments anyway. 

Sailor V-babe:  I'm so sorry that I've made people sad!  Granted, that's kinda what I was going for, but I'm still sorry!  And I don't mind at all that you're reviewing all of my stories in this one section—I'm just glad that you're reading!  Thanks for all of the compliments—your review really makes me want to keep working! 

It's also great to find other Mina fans.  There really aren't as many as you'd think—or, at least, there aren't many stories where she's the main character.  Have you tried reading K-chan's stuff?  Her 'Life's Lessons' focuses quite a bit on Mina, and her story is so fantastic that your heart is truly going to break when her fic ends.  (Life's Lessons is, incidentally, completed, so you won't have to wait to find out what'll happen next.)  Oh, and you've absolutely gotta try sapphiregirl's "For Love or Duty".  It's completely amazing.  You'll love their fics, I promise!

MarniHey, thanks for taking the time to review!  I'm glad you liked the story.  You were right, though.  Tux doesn't exist—or at least he doesn't know that he does (did that sentence give you a headache, too?).  Darien never got involved in the senshi in my fic, so he never needed to raise T.M.  I haven't decided, yet, if I should bring him in at all.  I never liked Darien in that form (blame it on the corny speeches and the fact that the suit the animators chose just makes him look bad), and I think I'm probably going to just leave him as Prince Endymion, if I do any of that at all.

Hey, you tell me—what form do you think he should have?  If you really want T.M., then I'll do my darndest to incorporate him some way. 

As for Luna and Artemis…actually, I can't answer that portion of your comments.  They WILL show up eventually, but I can't explain why they haven't yet without also giving away too much.  I will say, though, that they're not going to be coming for several chapters.  I don't have anything against them, but as of now they aren't going to have too big a part in this fic.  Maybe that'll change, though.  I'm still working the kinks out of this story, so who knows what'll happen?

bunny angel:   You're intrigued, huh?  Can't get many compliments better than that!  I'm glad you liked the fic, and I hope you stay with me, because I think I'll be working on this story a lot more now.  It's starting to interest me, too.

RaLeCoWell, yeah, this is just a start.  You can't get too much in the first chapter or so, but now it should pick up.  Darien and Serena are finally getting together, and the whole story behind Serena's depression will also be revealed soon (besides the obvious 'they're dead' reason, of course).  Plus, there's gonna be the voices in Serena's head and everything, and we can't miss that, can we? 

kooseiYou know, you'd be amazed at how easy it was to make Serena all sad and depressed.  We all know that's not her natural state, though, and she will start cheering up.  I promise you that, at any rate.  As for the media…well, I'm not making any promises about them!  She may find a way to fight them off early on, but don't count on it!  They'll leave her alone by the end of the fic, though. 

Usako4life:  That's a truly fascinating name, do you know that?  I really like it.

Anyway, I'm glad you liked what I wrote—and I'm also glad you think I'm not getting enough reviews!  Please, tell everybody about this story, because more reviews will also encourage more chapters.  As for the dead voices, you'll be hearing plenty of those soon enough.  That first one was just an intro, but we're going to be having entire conversations in Serena's head, poor girl.  And, yes, this will definitely have a happy ending.  I hate stories that end up sad, and I refuse to write them.  This may be a sad story to the very end (Though I'm going to try not to let it), but the ending itself will be happy.  The senshi, too, will be coming back to life, guaranteed.  That's what the 'temporarily' part in the summary is for, after all!  I could never let them stay dead—I'd get lynched!

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Okay, sorry again.  The shout-outs took up too much space, so I just made the actual chapter a separate installment.  Thanks!