Chapter 20

Reenie had just left Kirstein's room when she heard a door shut a little bit behind her down the hallway. Wondering who or what it was, Reenie turned around. She was surprised when she saw Lita Kino leaving Lillian's room and run down the hallway.

Sailor Pluto sighed. "It's her way, Reenie," the Guardian of Time and Space replied. "Lita doesn't deal with pain easily. Truthfully, I'm surprised that she stayed with Lillian for so long."

Reenie frowned, not really understanding what Pluto meant.

Seeing the look of confusion on Reenie's face, Pluto explained, "Lita's not one to shed tears. Usually when she's in pain she goes for a run or tries to pick a fight or something. Knowing her, she's probably heading to her old training spot."
"Old training spot?" Reenie asked, as she and Pluto continued to head towards her room.

Pluto nodded. "Lita found this secluded little forest area where she use to train quite a bit. She goes there whenever she feels frustrated or when she just needs to let off some steam."
"Should I head after her, Trista?" Reenie asked, concerned for her mother's old friend.

Pluto shook her head. "She'll be okay, Reenie. She just needs some time by herself. Like I said before, Lita's not one to shed tears. Nor is she one to let others help her get through her problems. She likes to deal with them on her own."
"I guess that's where Lil got it from," Reenie said.

"They are quite similar," the older Sailor Scout agreed.

They had reached Reenie's bedroom door by now. Opening it, she said, "I'll see you later, Trista."
"I'll see you later, Your Majesty."

Reenie smiled, then quickly entered her room, shutting her bedroom door.

Standing in the hallway, Pluto sighed. My job's done for now, she thought as she walked away from Reenie's room and headed down the hall to her own.

Amy and Mina were walking through the palace gardens together. They were both thinking about what was happening here in the future and why they were there. They knew that it had something to do with being there for Reenie's coronation, but they figured that Serena would be the only one who Reenie would want. Well, Serena and Darien, of course. After all, they were the closest things to a mother and father that Reenie had now that Rodney had killed Neo-Queen Serenity and King Endymion. But why were they brought to the future? After all, they weren't really useful or anything. Everything had already been destroyed. They couldn't help in that area. And their future selves were still alive. They weren't dead, so they didn't understand why they had to be brought here. It wasn't like their daughters needed their help. They had their own actual parents to help them.

They had been walking for a while now, not a word spoken between them for at least fifteen minutes. Mina was the first to break the silence.

"I wonder what it's like for Serena and Darien to know that they died and who killed them."
"They're not the only ones, Mina. Jordan and Terence were also killed. But I do agree with you. I wonder what it'd be like. How it must feel to know that you're future self was already dead and who killed you? Especially when your murderer is the person whom your daughter loves with all her heart."
"I'm sure not with all her heart, Amy. How can she after he killed her family?"
"Serena didn't stop caring for Darien when Beryl brainwashed him, did she, Mina? Nor did she stop loving him when he tried to kill her. She was hurt that he tried to kill her, but she knew why he was doing it. It wasn't actually him. It was because he was brainwashed. From what I know and understand, it's the same thing with Rodney."
"Except Darien didn't actually succeed in killing anyone."

Amy nodded. That was true. "Don't you wonder why Pluto brought us here?" Amy asked, changing the subject.

Mina looked at her blue-haired friend. "What do you mean?" she asked, not quite understanding what Amy was trying to say.
"Why did Pluto bring us here?" Amy repeated her question, "We know why she brought Serena and Darien. Because they're the closest things to a parent that Reenie has because of what happened. But why were we brought here to the future? How can we help? Our future selves aren't dead, so it's not like we needed to help our future daughters in any way. There is no evil here. They have already taken care of everything. So why were we brought here?"

Mina shrugged. She didn't know.

Amy sighed. That was the one question that she wanted an answer to. She didn't like feeling useless. That's why she had become a doctor. So that she wouldn't feel useless and could help others in need.

Mina smiled. Wanting to change the subject to a less serious one, she asked Amy, "So, what do you think of Greg's future self?"

Running through the forest, Lita was surprised that she still had enough to strength to continue running as fast as she could.

Pain makes you stronger, she thought as she continued to run.

She knew where she was headed. A tiny little clearing in the middle of the forest. There was one giant waterfall and five smaller ones that fell from that one. Near the waterfall stood one lone tree. Wrapped around the trunk of the tree was a bunch of nylon rope. She had wrapped that rope around the tree herself quite a long time ago in the past.

Lita smiled, remembering why she had wrapped the tree with rope. The first time she had used the tree as a punching/kicking bag, it had hurt! And while she may have liked getting some pain from using the tree, the pain that she had gotten the first time was just a little too much for her liking.

I almost broke my foot, she smiled as she remembered.

Lita was only about twenty feet away from the tree when she a familiar sound. Not the sound of the waterfalls. This sound was way too familiar. It was almost like...

Lita burst through the trees and almost gasped in surprise. She was already there, pounding out her anger on the tree. Well, not her exactly. Her past self. She doesn't even notice that I'm herLita thought, but then stopped as her past self stopped kicking the tree and turned to look at her.
"I guess we think alike," the younger Lita Kino said, a little out of breath.

The older Lita Kino nodded. "We should," she replied, walking towards the tree.

The younger Lita Kino nodded. That was true. They were the same person after all. The younger Lita was about to turn back to kicking the tree when the older Lita said, "You should take a break. You're going to start to bleed soon, you know."

The younger Lita smiled. "When did that ever stop you?" she asked, but walked away from the tree. The younger Lita walked to the edge of the water and sat down on a rock. Slowly, she dipped her sore red feet into the frigid water.
"Smart," the older Lita began as she kicked the tree once. "Move," she finished as she kicked the tree again.
"Lita?" the younger Lita began, staring at the waterfalls.
"Yeah?" the older Lita asked, as she continued to kick the tree.
"Who's Lillian's father?"

The older Lita smiled. "I think you know that answer."
"Andrew?"

The older Lita smiled sadly and nodded, then kicked the tree again. Harder this time. She knew what question was going to come out of her past self's mouth next.
"How is he now?"

The older Lita stopped kicking the tree and swallowed hard. Then she replied, "Dead."

Younger Lita froze at that. She couldn't think of Andrew dead. Didn't want to. But now that she knew how Andrew was, she had to know the answer to another question. "How?"

That question hung in the air for a few minutes, the older Lita not really wanting to relive all the pain that she had learned to put behind her. Slowly she walked over to the edge of the water and sat down on a rock near the younger Lita's. Dipping her feet into the icy cold water, she sighed. "He died when Lillian was fourteen. Reenie was twelve at the time. The battle with Nemesis was still going strong at the time. It was one of the rare times that I wasn't with the others. We had made a shield to protect Crystal Tokyo from any Nemesis attacks. Somehow, Nemesis had found a way to break through a part of the shield in the left quadrant. I went to go and try to stop them from entering. Little did I know that I had someone following me."
"Andrew?"

The older Lita nodded. "He'd heard that I was going to fight against Nemesis by myself and didn't like the idea. We'd argued a little before I left the palace. I had to say good-bye to him and Lillian, just in case anything happened to me and I never saw them again. Lillian understood what I was doing. She had already been a Sailor Scout for a few years and knew the risks that I had to take. Andrew didn't. Or if he did, he didn't really care. He didn't want to me to go and didn't understand why I had to go all by myself. I didn't even bother to try and explain it to him. I just got up and left. Running at top speed, it didn't take me long to get there. I was fighting against Nemesis for a while. I was obviously outnumbered, pretty tired, and by that time, pretty much screwed. I hadn't thought that there would be that many of them there. I was almost dead. All they had to do was take one final shot at me and I would've been. I could tell that they were gearing up for one last shot, and by that time I was just saying good-bye to everyone in my head when I suddenly heard somebody yell, NOOOOOO!

For obvious reasons, that got my attention. And Nemesis's, too. Normally that would have been a good thing. But the guy with the gun aimed at me had a very unsteady trigger finger. He took the shot."
"But he didn't hit you," younger Lita whispered quietly, realizing what had happened.

Sadly, older Lita nodded. "You're right. He didn't hit me. Andrew ran faster then I thought he could and jumped in front of me to protect me. He took the shot for me, the stupid idiot."
"Andrew gave his life to save yours," younger Lita whispered, realization in her voice.

Older Lita nodded. Tears were starting in her eyes. Quickly, she wiped them away. She didn't cry. At least not in front of people. Not even her past self. Silence fell over the two of them for a few minutes, but then curiosity got the better of the younger Lita.

"What happened to Nemesis after that?" she asked. "Did the other Scouts show up to help you out?"

Older Lita smiled and shook her head. "No," she replied, "They had to stay at the palace to keep up the other parts of the shield. That was okay, though. They had pissed me off a little too much."

Younger Lita nodded. She knew what happened when she got angry. But there was one thing that was bugging the younger Lita. Andrew couldn't run as fast as she could. Not in the past, and probably not when he was alive in the future. Considering the fact that as a Sailor Scout, she was stronger and faster, how could Andrew have caught up with her in time to help save her? He should have been breathless by the time he reached the battle scene.

Older Lita nodded, knowing what her past self was thinking. "Yeah, Andrew should have been out of breath by the time he caught up with me," she said, speaking aloud what her past self had been thinking. "But Andrew had used a hoover scooter to follow me." Silence fell between the two Litas for a while. Neither one knew what to say. Both of them speechless.

Younger Lita was the first one to break the fifteen minute silence. "Maybe I can stop him," she said, thoughtfully, "Maybe I'll be able to prevent him from going out to the battle scene."

Older Lita shook her head and sighed. Staring at the waterfalls, the older Lita spoke. "Pluto once told me you can't change what will happen in the past, even if you know what is going to happen. If you do, you'll change the future. And you'll never know how it'll turn out."

Older Lita smiled, then continued, "I'm grateful to Andrew for saving my life. I always will be. That doesn't mean that I don't think he was an idiot and a fool for doing what he did. He was. I regret what happened, but I try to think about it like this: had I died in that battle, then what would have happened two and a half years ago when Rodney was trying to destroy Crystal Tokyo? There would have been one less Scout there and more damage would've happened. Things would've been worse and Andrew probably would have died in that battle against Rodney. I think it all happened for the best."

The younger Lita nodded. But what her future self had told her created a new question inside of her. "Do you wish you could have prevented it?"

The older Lita sighed. Getting to her feet, she replied, "With all my heart."

With those final words, the older Lita got up and ran away from the little clearing in the middle of the forest, leaving her past self sitting on a rock, staring at the five little waterfalls, thinking about all that she had just learned.

Raye sat in the temple, staring at the fire with her eyes closed. The temple had been built into the palace just for Raye, who Neo-Queen Serenity knew sometimes liked to relax or just gather her thoughts meditating in front of the fire. Raye had come here as soon as she knew that her future daughter was going to be okay. She had been sitting there, meditating ever since, hoping that a vision would come to her. She was hoping that her vision would show her why Sailor Pluto had chosen to bring her and her friends to the future in Crystal Tokyo. So far she had gotten nothing.
"Meditating is not going to help you, Raye," a voice said from the inside the temple.

Surprised at being interrupted, Raye opened her eyes and asked, "Why is that, Pluto?"

"I know why you're meditating. It's because you want to know why I brought you here to the future. You're not the only one. I have a feeling that the others also want to know why I brought them here to the future."
"So why did you bring me and the others here?" Raye asked, her back still facing the tall Sailor Scout.

Sailor Pluto smiled. "I thought you would've already figured it out."

Raye turned to face Pluto. The look on her face said that she was sick of all this small talk and that she wanted some answers.

"You already know why I brought Serena and Darien here?" Raye nodded, so Pluto continued, "You can see that the others are feeling pretty beat down. Especially because of the death of Neo-Queen Serenity, King Endymion, King Terence and Jordan."
"The others?" Raye asked, not quite sure what Pluto meant.
"Yes," Pluto said and nodded, "The others. Your future self and the others' future selves."

Raye nodded, understanding now.

"Anyways," Pluto continued, "As you may be able to see, they feel pretty beat down by the death of their friends. Your future self, especially."
"That's why you brought us here to the future? To help our future selves deal with Neo-Queen Serenity's death?"

Pluto smiled and nodded her yes.

"But how can we help them deal with Neo-Queen Serenity's death? They're the ones who've already lived our lives. They're the ones with more life experience. I don't possibly see how we can help them."

Pluto smiled. "What you're saying is true," the Sailor Scout agreed, "but there's also something else that you are missing. You and the others are young enough to still remember what happened on the Moon Kingdom. How you each died and were brought back to life later on."

Raye nodded. So? What did that have to do with any of this? She didn't understand what Pluto was getting at by mentioning that.

Sailor Pluto smiled, knowing that Raye was a little confused about why she was mentioning their past deaths on the Moon Kingdom. "Your future selves can no longer remember what happened. They can remember that they died and how they died, but they can't remember how it felt. You and your friends are still young enough to be able to remember just how it felt. I need you and the others to try and comfort them. Especially you. Your future self feels more guilty then any of the others. I'm not quite sure if you have noticed, but she seems to have a hard time looking Reenie or for that matter, Serena or Darien in the eye."

Raye nodded. She had noticed that but hadn't really understood why. She still didn't really understand why. Raye knew that her future self had risked her life to save Neo-Queen Serenity's but had been unsuccessful and Neo-Queen Serenity, along with King Endymion, King Terence and Jordan, had died.

"I'm hoping that you can tell them that what happened wasn't their faults, and that it was just fate," Pluto said, "That it would have happened no matter what. If you and your friends can't get that through their heads, then it will be very dangerous for them to continue being Scouts."
"Why?"
"Sometimes surviving the battles afterwards takes all the strength you have. If they feel as guilty as they do right now about the others dying, they won't be able to survive through the next battle. They won't have the strength or the will to survive. . . especially your future self."
"And you're sure about this, Pluto?" Raye asked, uncertain of what she was saying.

"Yes."

"But what happens if I can't convince her?" Raye asked.

Pluto shrugged. "You'll die. . . at least your future self will."

Raye paused for a moment, then nodded. Quickly, she turned back to stare at the fire. She was about to close her eyes to begin her meditation once again, when Pluto spoke.

"You'll figure out a way to convince her, Raye," the Sailor Scout assured her. "Why do you think I choose to bring yourselves here to the future? Who else knows you better then yourself?"

With those final words, Pluto turned and walked out of the temple.

Knowing that Pluto was right in what she said, Raye closed her eyes and continued to meditate.

Terence sat in a chair in his future son's bedroom, staring out the window. This was all kind of new to him. He had been to the future once before, but he wasn't really used to all for this. He still couldn't believe that he was here. For some reason, the possibility of traveling to the future seemed more possible when he had been back in the past and Kenneth had been with him, instead of him being here with his future son.

Terence sighed and turned his head to look at Kenneth, lying unconscious on the bed. He knew that Kenneth was going to be okay. Pluto had told him so. But what he couldn't stop wondering was why he had been brought to the future? What good could he possibly do here?

Terence sighed and stared out at the sky.

Reenie sighed and got up from her bed. She had been sitting there, thinking for the past hour or so. She knew that there was someone that she had to visit, but she was a little bit shaky about doing so. She had yet to see how her little sister Kara was doing. Kara had helped to save her life, but Reenie was afraid to see what that had done to her younger sister.

Slowly, Reenie walked towards the door and left her room.

I've got to see what I've done, the new queen thought walking down the hall towards her younger sister. I have to know the damage I've caused.

Audiana wasted absolutely no time. In minutes she was in the hallway that led to the Sailor Scouts' rooms. Using her powers to sense Hotaru's energy, Audiana guided herself down the hall to the young Scout's room. Audiana smiled when she reached Hotaru's door, then she knocked quietly and awaited for her friend's reply.

Hotaru was sitting up in her bed, lying against the pillows when she heard a knock on her door. Surprised, but also guessing who it was, the Sailor Scout said, "Come in." The door knob turned and just as it was opening, Hotaru smiled and added, "Audiana."
"Seems like you're powers for sensing others have increased, Hotaru," the very familiar voice of the leader of the Healers replied, stepping into the room and closing the door behind her.
"Perhaps," Hotaru replied, smiling, "But I doubt it."
"Do you have any idea why I've come here?" Audiana asked, walking towards Hotaru.

Hotaru shook her head. "Truthfully, no. I'd guess that it's because you sensed my energy when I woke up."

Audiana smiled. "Then you wouldn't be so far off," the golden haired beauty replied, sitting down on the bed of the bed. "I did come here because I sensed that you'd woken up. But there is something else, as well."

Hotaru sighed. Can Audiana sense how I feel about Josiah? she wondered.

Audiana smiled and shook her head. "No, Hotaru," Audiana replied, "I cannot sense how you are feeling about Josiah."

Hotaru's eyes widened in surprise, then she remembered that Audiana could read and hear thought-speak.

Audiana continued, "However, Miceff and I can tell how you and Josiah feel about each other. I have a feeling that Amia and Statel know, too."

Hotaru nodded. She hadn't really been expecting to be able to keep it a secret from the other Healers, but she also didn't really want them knowing how she felt about Josiah. She couldn't explain why.

"As you know, Hotaru, the other Healers and I are going to be leaving here soon."

Hotaru nodded. She knew. She also knew that she was going to have to stay behind on Earth. "I know."

Audiana nodded. "What you may not know is that Miceff and I are giving you a choice."

Hotaru looked at Audiana, confusion written on her face. "What do you mean?"
"I mean, Miceff and I have decided that since we'd never allow ourselves to be separated, then we can't allow that for someone else. That's why we've decided to give you and Josiah a choice."
"Can you really do that?" Hotaru asked, not sure if it was possible.

"Yes. We're giving Josiah the choice whether he wants to stay here on Earth with you or whether he wants to return with us. We're also giving you the choice whether you wish to stay here or whether you wish to return with us."
"And I actually have a choice? I thought that I had to stay here."

Audiana smiled and shook her head. "Miceff thought the same thing. Apparently, I seem to know more on this subject then either of you. If your queen or leader grants you permission to leave then you can leave. The only thing is that you must come back if they call you and are in serious need of your help. For some reason, I've no doubt that Queen Serena will grant you permission to leave."

Hotaru smiled and nodded. She had a feeling that Reenie would let her go with Josiah, no question. Especially after what had happened with Rodney. Hotaru could tell how Reenie felt about Rodney. It was the same feeling that she, herself, had in her heart for Josiah. "Neither do I."

Audiana smiled and patted her friend's hand. "Hotaru, I don't want to influence your decision in any way, but Josiah wouldn't be the only one happy if you decided to come with us. You're getting to be very strong as a Healer. Something that can be very helpful to us. But it can also be very helpful here on Earth, too." Audiana got up from the bedside and smiled. "I have to go visit Amia, now," she said, walking towards the door.

Hotaru nodded. "I'll go see her in a few."
"Get your strength up first. Then come and see her." Audiana opened the door and was about to walk out when she spoke Hotaru's name.
"Yeah?"
"We'll need to know what your choice is before we leave and we don't have that much time before we must return."

Hotaru nodded.

Audiana smiled, then quietly left Hotaru's room, leaving Hotaru to decide her life-changing decision on her own.

Jordan stood in his son's room, pacing back and forth. He had been told that his son was going to be okay, but that didn't make him any less nervous, any less anxious.

I won't be completely relaxed until my son's finally awake and I know he's well, Jordan thought.

He sighed and ran a hand through his hair. Why in the world did I have to get dragged back into this stuff? he wondered. I was living a . . . well, not a normal life, but more normal then time traveling. Then I met Serena, and . . .

He sighed. He didn't really want to think about everything that had happened since then. It had been years since it had all happened. Years since he had led a normal life back in America.

Damn it! he thought, angrily, Why did I have to get involved in all of this shit? Why?