He said he loved her. Claimed nothing not even the heavens could take him from her. But he had been wrong. There was someone who could take him from her. And they had done it. No one had had a chance to stop it. Without warning he was gone and now she was left to go on without him. What was she to do now that he had died? She starred at his head stone and let a tear slip down her tear to fall on the lilies and the single rose she held in her hand. Slowly she placed them on the ground. They had been his favorite. Yet while he loved lilies she loved roses. That had been their biggest difference. When it came to her and her brother the only thing they could never agree on was flowers. The only thing that kept her moving was that she knew he was with their parents who had died those many years before from a car crash when a drunk had hit them. She always found it ironic that she had been Sailor Moon and her job had been saving the world only her family seemed to always be dying and from things she could not stop.

She looked to the sky just as the rain came down causing her to become soaked. Everyone else had already left she had stayed to say her last good bye alone or so she thought. But suddenly the rain stopped poring down on her and as she glanced to her left she saw him, Mamoru Chiba. They had been 'enemies' since she had been in middle school and used his face as a trash can, name calling, making faces and jokes about the others intelligence or looks were their normal mode of conversation. Shingo had thought it was hysterical; he and Mamoru had become comrades in arms when she had become so saddened by her parent's death. The two had teamed together to make sure laughed or tried to strangle them at least once a day. Shingo had been eleven when it happened and Mamoru almost out of college, but the age difference had meant nothing.

When Shingo had first gotten sick he had refused for anyone except Mamoru to look at him. Even claimed there was nothing wrong, that he had only wanted his sister to stop worrying. When Mamoru had told him that he was sick and it was such a rare disease that almost nothing was known about it, and there was no cure, he made Mamoru promise not to tell his sister. Mamoru had honored the request of his friend, now he had another promise to fulfill for Shingo. He had to look after Usagi and finally own up to his feelings for her.

Shingo had figured out that Mamoru had a crush on Usagi within five minutes of meeting him. He then spent the rest of the time trying to fix the two up. It seemed that his last wish was for Mamoru to finish the job Shingo had started no matter how hard it was for Mamoru.

Mamoru remembered the last time the two had talked. Shingo in his hospital gown and Mamoru in his doctor's garb, two soul brothers who understood this might be the last time they could speak alone. Shingo had looked him in the eyes and simply said, "You will follow through with what I started. She loves you, always has. She even loved Tuxedo Kamen." All Mamoru could do was glare at the kid who had figured out his old identity and his sisters. "I wouldn't lie to you about this. Please tell her. She needs joy in her life and you can be that joy. And don't give me any bull about that Princess you dreamed about, my sister's real."

He had sighed and tried to explain his position, "Shingo you know how much she means to me. And I would love to bring her joy, but every time I try to speak to her all that comes out are taunts and insults. I've been trying to change for," he had to stop and count on his fingers how long when he ran out of fingers he stopped, "for along time. But you can't teach an old dog new tricks."

"Hey bro this is the wish of a dying man, give my sister some joy, she's had so little. Please tell her that you love her."

Slowly he became aware that Usagi was trying to speak to him. "What, I'm sorry I spaced out, could you please repeat that."

"I said thank you for staying, but we had better get out of this rain before we catch a cold."

He smiled at her. She had become such an adult. When her parents had died she had grown up way too fast for his liking, but he knew where she was coming from. "I sent the limo away," he noticed she was looking around for it, "I knew we would be awhile and I had brought my car anyway. Come on we'll go the arcade were everyone else is waiting and Motoki has food and I'm sure a dry change of clothes for us."

He held out his arm for her, which she clutched gratefully and walked to his sports car. He opened her door for her and helped her in and then went to his side and got in. As they drove in silence he reached out and took her hand and squeezed it. "I don't want to go back to the arcade right away. Can we go to the park for a little while? I want to go to the gardens."

She had spoken to him without even looking his way, her eyes seemed glued to the sky. "Alright that's fine."

"Thank you."

"Hey today's been rough I understand you wanting space, if you need to be in the park alone I'll go over to let everyone know where you are."

"No thank you for everything. For taking care of Shingo, for staying when I did at the grave, for just being there all the time. Shingo really appreciated it. It seemed at the end that you were his only friend."

"Hey he was like a brother to me. Everything I did was out of love. He might have been a pesky little runt in the beginning, but he grew on me. I loved how he would come to me for advice on women, then laugh at me and say he didn't know why he did seeing as I never really seemed to keep a girlfriend. He'd tell me he wasn't going to use what I said, but then he'd come back and say it had worked and what everyone else had suggested had blown up in his face. He was a wonderful young man Usagi, you did a good job."

Tears slipped down her face silently as she smiled her thanks to him. "Please come with me. I want you to be with me when I am there. You're the only one who would understand what it is I'm going through. He really was your little brother as much as mine."

The car stopped and the two got out of the car just as rain stopped. "Looks like it might start up again. I'll bring my umbrella just incase." He smiled but it did not really reach his eyes, then they started off towards the gardens. They both knew the destination and neither could seem to speak, though halfway there without even so much as a sign they both reached out for the others hand. The two finally stood at the base of the oak in the middle of the gardens, their hands still laced together. It had been their spot. Shingo could see the lily plants and Usagi and Mamoru could see the roses.

It had been the only topic that had pitted Mamoru and Usagi against Shingo, instead of Shingo and Mamoru against Usagi. Though Shingo and Usagi could always resolve their differences on other subjects, the flowers had definite lines drawn. Mamoru had always wondered about that. He could remember the first time Shingo had invited him to come on a picnic with them. It had been the first time he had ever seen the two really argue since their parent's death.

"We're going to the lilies this time!"

"What! I think not! We were in the lilies last time. This time it's the rose garden."

"Yeah right! Tell her Mamoru we want the lilies."

"Umm…"

"Oh stop trying to use him as a shield. You know your arguments is weak." The blond spat at her brother, "Kinda like you!"

"Hey at least I'm not a klutz! I might be younger, but I still learned to walk faster then you did!"

"Look you little twerp one more comment like that and you'll starve for the next week."

"Oh right like I want to eat your poison!"

"I've gotten better!"

"Not that this isn't a fascinating conversation, but why don't we go to the oak tree?"

"Huh!" the two spun on him faster then he thought humanly possible.

"If you sit at the oak tree you can see both the lilies and roses, which I do like the roses better, but it seems prudent that we just find some middle ground."

They had stared at him for several moments before agreeing and following him to this spot where he stood now. Slowly he glanced down at Usagi; she seemed lost in her own thoughts as well. Without releasing her hand he positioned himself so he was facing her, but leaning against the trunk of the tree.

"Do you remember that time Shingo asked you if he could bring a friend with us?"

He smiled at her a real smile this time, of course he remembered, "Yes, you agreed without even asking who it was he wanted to bring."

She smiled back, "Yep, and do you remember who it was?"

He laughed a little, "I believe her name was Miaka," she nodded, "I thought you were going to faint from shock, and what she said next did not help the situation at all."

"What you mean when she asked where his sister was, and how she had thought his parents were dead?"

"That would be it." Usagi started to laugh, only to have it turn to hysterical tears and sobbing about how she was horrible person for laughing on this day. "Oh Usagi, no it's okay to remember the happy moments we all shared. Shingo would want you to be happy, in fact he told me so." He pulled her into his arms as she quieted her.

"He was the only real joy I had in my life after the accident. Now that's gone."

"No its not you still have him in your heart, and you'll find new joy."

"How am I going to find new joy?" she jerked backward to look in his eyes, but not out of his arms, "My whole family is dead. I never found the princess or the crystal. The only thing I've manage to do right is my job which isn't too hard considering I'm only a junior ambassador, which is really bureaucratic code for 'gopher'!" He let her rage then slowly pulled her back to him, allowing her to sob once again against his chest. Shingo's words lingering in his mind 'give her some joy'.

"Your whole family is not dead," she looked up at him with a glimmer of hope in her eyes, "Yes that's right they're not all dead."

"Oh?"

"You still have," he paused and she seemed to hold her breath, "You still have Motoki, Rei, Ami, Minako, Makoto, Haruka, Setsuna, Michiru, and Hotaru," as he said the last name she looked away and it was as if he had forgotten someone she dearly wished to hear added to that list.

"I know I still have them, but they all have their own lives too. Ami is almost through medical school, and Makoto owns her own bakery, Rei still runs her family shrine, Minako is a famous model. Haruka has her race car career, and Michiru is fully involved in her music. Hotaru is almost done school, and Setsuna has her work as well."

He could only stare at the twenty-four year old woman he had watched grow from a klutzy fourteen year old cry baby talk about her friends' lives. She knew as much about them as she did herself, he could only wonder if they knew as much about her. She had just fallen into her job, while the rest had been planning their jobs forever.

"There was someone else I forgot to mention, though I'm not sure you consider him family."

"Why? Who is he?"

"Me…" his voice seemed so weak in his own ears; she pulled back and looked into his eyes hope written all over them.

"That had better not be a joke Mamoru Chiba! Because if it is I swear I'm never going to speak to you again."

He leaned in and rested his forehead against hers, "No joke."