Chapter Seven

When lovely woman stoops to folly
And finds too late that men betray,
What charm can sooth her melancholy,
What art can wash her guilt away?
Oliver Goldsmith

The air was still and dark, like a cool October morn, and her first fleeting thought was that this was strange for early May. Usagi hurt all over. She felt a nagging urge to open her eyes, but when she thought about it, her drugged down brain couldn't decide why it was necessary. All she wanted to do was sleep, and slip away into comfortable darkness and forget.

But the urge became so insistent that she moaned and struggled to do the task. It was an effort, but once open, her eyes made out a blurry figure leaning over her. This should have caused alarms to sound in her mind, but her foggy brain was too tired to care.

"Wake up, Highness," a deep voice instructed softly. "I have been anxious to reacquaint with you." Something about the mocking tone made her snap to attention. Her vision started to focus and gradually she saw Hideo leaning over her with a strange smile. There was a light pressure on her cheek and she realized with a start that it was his hand.

He sensed her confusion. "No, I am not Hideo." He flashed white teeth in his smile. "I am the one my followers call Boss."

Usagi's awareness flooded back and she remembered what had happened. Boss… she thought, feeling chills spread through her body. Bauxite spoke of him.

"I needed a body of my own," he explained, lightly stroking her cheek, "and who better than the star ball player of Japan?"

Her mouth was unusually dry and it was hard to speak, but she choked out, "What happened? Where is Averill?" It was an innocent and perfectly legitimate question, but Hideo-Boss threw back his head and laughed. The sound chilled her, but brought her further into reality, making this seem less like a horrible dream.

She knew she had to escape, but when she tried to move, her limbs wouldn't obey. She struggled in vain for about ten seconds before turning her head and noticing with sick dismay that she was strapped down.

Boss had stopped laughing and was smiling at her wryly. Whether he was gloating about her helplessness or still amused by her question, she couldn't tell, but she didn't like the expression in his eyes. "Averill," the figure before her said thoughtfully. "Good question: where exactly is the boy?"

"If you've hurt him…" Usagi started but was cut off with another laugh.

"You don't understand, do you?" Boss said pleasantly. "Averill is my pawn. Or my accomplice, rather. He's done more for me than anyone."

Usagi felt a wave of nausea wash over her. "You lie."

"One thing you will learn about me is that I never lie. I am one of the most truthful men you will ever meet. Fallacies are a waste of time when you want to get something done. You will discover that soon, since you and I are going to be very good friends."

"I never…" Usagi started angrily, but Boss turned at a sudden noise and spoke. After a brief hesitation, another figure entered the room, and although his face was in shadows, she recognized the silhouette.

"You called?" the newcomer asked and Usagi felt as if she was falling down a long black tunnel.

"Oh, Averill, no…" Usagi whispered as he came into the light. "Please tell me you don't serve him." Her thoughts were whirling in every direction, with no coherent pattern. Averill was expressionless and she couldn't tell if he was feeling regret or if he had been playing with her emotions all along.

"Serve me?" Boss sounded amused. "Prince Kenrick serves no one but himself." His voice dropped low, so only she could hear. "But he's weak, and the weak are easily bent to my will. I have you to thank for that, my dear. It's his love for you that makes him weak."

Love? Usagi no longer knew the meaning of the word. If Averill truly loved her, he wouldn't have helped this man kidnap her. "What does he get out of this? What do you?" Usagi asked, trying to fight back tears. Averill had betrayed her and that hurt worse than anything. After trusting him, giving her love and turning her back on her former life, he had betrayed her.

"Simple. I get to use you as I wish, and he gets the pleasure of having you around. You see, the other senshi would never hurt you." A grin accompanied this.

"Of course they wouldn't," Usagi shot back, not understanding the point.

"And now that you confirm it, I feel so much better," Boss said sarcastically. "The only thing that prevents our friendship is that you don't seem to like or trust me." Usagi stared at him in disbelief. Was he serious? How could he expect her to do either after what he'd done?

"I have no reason to like you and especially none to trust you," she told him flatly. Boss tilted his head to the side and considered this.

"True. So I fear the only way to get you to cooperate is to change your mind by force."

"You'd brainwash me?" Usagi asked in horror. "You can try, but it won't work. My will is strong." She frowned to prove it.

"That may have been true… several weeks ago."

Usagi swallowed. His confidence made her uneasy. "What's different now?"

Boss smiled. "Everything. You no longer have powers and you are in love with a different man. All because of this." Boss held up a small vile with a reddish liquid and Usagi stared at it, heart growing cold.

"You can't possibly tell me you haven't felt different since the night you fought Carmenia and Bauxite. Haven't you been less of the optimist you usually are? More negative feelings? And him." Boss laughed and pointed at Averill, who was standing as solemnly as a granite statue of an ancient pharaoh. "You can't deny how you feel drawn to him, while you irrationally dislike the one you used to love."

It was true. Usagi could see that now. Her heart raced when she looked at Averill and a wave of heat passed along her skin. All physical sensations, a little voice in her mind pointed out, the same voice that had been there all along, pleading with her to remember Mamoru. Only she hadn't listened, and now it was quite possibly too late.

"The poison has been slowly wearing down your will," Boss continued pleasantly. "I have very good reason to believe that you won't resist any mind control we try on you." She didn't want to believe him, but she could feel the truth of his words. Her emotions were shattered and almost no trace of her old fire was left. Survival instinct told her there was nothing to do but stall and hope help came.

"Why do you need Hideo-san's body? Too much of a coward to face me on your own?" she asked boldly, proud that her voice didn't waver. Boss lost his smile and turned from her, ashamed.

"I haven't my own. It was burned up long ago in the final battle of the Silver Millennium. Averill has been a gracious donor until now. Don't get me wrong, girl. I wasn't controlling him when he was with you. When he wanted to be himself, I slept, and when I needed to do business of my own, I overtook him."

She remembered Averill's headaches, and imagined Boss whispering to him in his mind, crawling through like a disease. The thought made her ill. But before she could ponder this, Boss turned to her with his eerie smile.

"I think we should spend less time with familiarities and get down to business. Don't think this means I have any less respect for you, Highness. Quite the opposite. When you help me with my ultimate plan, I will have greater regard for you than ever. I've always hated you, you see, and the fact that you can finally be useful rather than a nuisance…" With that, he pulled a switch and black waves of energy flowed into her.

The experience was worse than anything she could have imagined. It was as if a thousand voices were simultaneously screaming in her head. Usagi had to bite down a scream of her own. She found herself wondering if this was what Mamoru had gone through before he became Queen Beryl's personal boy toy. She hoped it had been painless for him; it certainly wasn't for her. The realization that these were possibly the last moments she would have of being herself dawned on her, and she didn't want to waste a second.

She was going to spend the remainder of her time yelling at Averill.

"You snake!" she screamed, and he took a faltering step back at her words. "How could you do this to me? How could you pretend to love me and be my friend while you were plotting this all along?"

Averill shook his head. "No," he said, his voice pleading. "I do love you."

"You don't!" she cried. "You never did. You just felt you should have me because you can't stand being second best to your brother at anything! I became your obsession, and that's not love. You made me believe I was in love with you, but now I see it was a lie. It has always been a lie."

Averill wrung his hands and blinked to keep tears at bay, but Usagi could not see. Her eyes were closed as she tried to fight off the ultimate end.

"Actually, dear girl, it wasn't a lie," Boss said as he impatiently paced the floor, wishing the process would hurry up. "Your love for him was the only real thing you've felt the entire time."

But by this time, Usagi was too far gone to hear.

0 0 0

"Yes, I understand. Thank you, Shingo-kun," Ami said and carefully hung up the receiver. Immediately she was bombarded with questions from the four people and two cats with her.

"Wait," she commanded and held up a hand. "Let me speak and we'll figure this out."

"Does he know where Usagi-chan is?" Minako demanded, too high-strung for patience. Ami opened her mouth to quiet her, but then shut it and shook her head. Everyone sighed.

"No. His parents are very worried. They haven't heard from her. But he… he did make a suggestion." Ami stopped abruptly and looked at Mamoru, but he didn't notice. He was chewing his lip and staring at the floor, in his own world.

Usagi had been missing for an entire day. According to Shingo, she had left early the previous morning to meet someone and had never returned. With the knowledge that she had no way to protect herself, her friends had immediately jumped to the conclusion that she had fallen into trouble. This may have been a bit pessimistic, but in their lives every little disturbance usually meant trouble.

"What was the suggestion?" Rei asked. Ami sighed and wet her lips with her tongue.

"He said…" She broke off and glanced again at Mamoru. "Well, he thinks she might be seeing another guy. He says that she has been staying out late and has asked him to cover for her. He asked her if she was seeing someone, and even though she didn't confirm it, she didn't deny it, either. Of course, that's ridiculous," Ami finished quickly. Everyone looked at Mamoru uneasily, and not surprisingly his face had paled.

"Not completely ridiculous," he said, bits and pieces from the past weeks coming together in his mind. "She has been acting distant. Whenever I was around her, she seemed annoyed with me. I assumed it was because she was sick because a few days later she stayed home…" he trailed off and glanced at Ami, who suddenly looked embarrassed.

"That's another thing Shingo-kun said. She's been faking because she didn't want to see anybody." Mamoru nodded to himself as if he had expected this and his eyes became slightly unfocused.

"Why would she do that?" Makoto demanded. "She loves you. We all know that." Nods of agreement followed this, but Mamoru shook his head.

"I don't know anymore," he said softly. "There's something about me that she doesn't like, because whether she's with another guy or not, she has been avoiding me."

"What if she eloped?" Minako asked, her voice quavering.

"Eloped?" Rei laughed at her. "How could she? She's only sixteen."

"She would have found a way," Mamoru muttered and the inner senshi looked him over with concern. The poor boy did not look well at all.

"Look," a new voice piped up and everyone stared at Artemis. "The issue isn't whether Usagi-chan has a new boyfriend or even if she has been avoiding us. The issue is that she's missing. On another note, I don't like how there haven't been any attacks these past few days. It's been unusually quiet."

Luna nodded her agreement and shuddered. "Yes," she confirmed with a hiss. "It's like the calm before a storm."

0 0 0

Averill paced the grand hall. Usagi had been asleep for two days and he hated every second that she stayed unconscious. The words Usagi had yelled at him before she was overcome replayed in his head like an incessant tape recorder. What if she woke with the same feelings?

He had never wanted to hurt her, but Boss had convinced him that he needed her and he thought it must be true since she was all he could think about for the longest time. Even so, he knew in the back of his mind that something was very wrong.

Perhaps it would have been better if he remembered all of his life in the Silver Millennium, but he only recalled what Boss allowed him to see. Ever since the final battle nearly 10,000 years ago, Boss had controlled his life and for the first time he wished it was his own again.

"Patience, she will wake soon," Boss said behind him and Averill jumped. He wondered how long Boss had been standing there before he made his presence known. Considering Boss and his quiet slinking ways, probably quite a while.

"I know," Averill said with a sigh. Boss stalked forward and tapped his heavy cane against the ground. He had long-since changed out of Hideo's baseball uniform and into his own long black cloak. Averill shuddered looking at it. Every time Boss had stepped aside in his mind, he had awoken wearing that awful cloak. Boss had no fashion sense, and if Averill wasn't so afraid of him, he would teach him a thing or two.

"Are you getting cold feet, my boy?" Boss asked, narrowing his eyes. Averill hesitated and then shook his head.

"No, I… well, is this necessary?"

"Yes," Boss explained patiently. "We need her if only to even the odds with the tiebreaker. She will come soon, and whatever side the Moon Princess is on will have a better chance of winning her over."

Averill sighed. "But Usagi won't be the same."

"No," Boss agreed, "but it must be done." Averill turned and shook his head. Necessary or not, he felt as if he might vomit. He couldn't stand waiting any longer.

A soft moan alerted them both and Averill whirled around to see Usagi lazily stretching her arms into the air.

"Ah," Boss said, a pleased smile on his lips. Averill swallowed and edged closer. Usagi was slowly sitting up, and she looked around the room with a confused expression. When her eyes flicked to him, Averill felt the back of his neck turn to ice.

For her eyes, once a soft and innocent sapphire blue, were now as black as obsidian. This pleased Boss rather than frightened him, for he knew his spell had worked.

Usagi turned her dark eyes to Boss, sensing he was the leader of the two. "Who am I?" she asked breathily.

Boss stepped closer and took her hand. "You are Serena," he said and Averill felt himself grow even colder, "my most powerful servant. How do you feel?" Averill suddenly felt a wild urge to laugh. The Serena of the past had hated Boss with a passion and would have died rather than become his servant. Boss most assuredly knew this and that was what fueled the malicious twinkling in his eyes.

She gave him her most dazzling smile. "Good."

"You remember Averill?" Boss continued and Usagi looked him over with some interest before turning back to Boss.

"I remember you," she purred and Boss looked at Averill with amusement.

Ouch, Averill thought. I knew she would be different, but I didn't expect this. Either she still hates me or Boss keyed the spell to make her hopelessly enamored with him.

"What do you remember?" Boss asked and she turned away thoughtfully, before returning to him, her black eyes alight.

"I remember a dark-haired boy," she growled. "He hurt my feelings. He will pay!" Averill's head shot up. She had to be talking about his brother. What had she called him? A lying cheater? If Mamoru had really done something to her, Averill wouldn't give her the pleasure of revenge. He'd take care of the bastard himself.

"What shall I do, master?" she asked with wide-eyes and Averill fought a strong urge to gag. This was a very bad idea.

Boss had been playing with her hair, and with a few short twists it came out of the odangos to fall gracefully down her back. "You will serve me," he told her and shot a look at Averill. "I think we should put our new friend to the test. What do you say, my boy?"

But Averill wasn't listening. He was staring at the floor and shaking his head in regret.

0 0 0

Oh Usako, where are you? Mamoru thought miserably as he walked through the park. The evening air was cool and he dug his hands deep into his pockets to protect them from the cold. But the real chill was inside his heart: could the rumors be true? Had Usagi really found someone else?

Mamoru couldn't help blaming himself. Perhaps if he'd spent more time with her, if he hadn't been so secretive, she wouldn't have turned from him. He'd thought Usagi would understand when he found someone who needed him more, but now saw clearly that it had been himself who hadn't understood anything.

He shivered - had the temperature dropped? It was supposed to be spring, but he could see his breath like short puffs of dragon smoke. The girls were probably worried. He was supposed to be at the temple planning, but he didn't see how anything they did would bring Usagi back. When she set her mind to something, it was very difficult to change it, and if she truly had chosen someone else, there would be no talking her out of it.

Mamoru hadn't liked the looks of pity the senshi had sent him at the previous meeting, as if they thought he was going to have a nervous breakdown. He knew he wouldn't. He wasn't that unstable. If Usagi felt she could live without him, he could definitely live without Usagi.

He just wished his heart would believe him when his mind told him so.

Mamoru sighed. It would have been better if she had told him she didn't want him anymore instead of running off. Then he could kill that annoying bit of hope that stayed with him. Unless he rid of it now, everything would be worse later when he learned for certain that she was leaving him. He wondered what she would do… send him a note? A quick phone call? Or maybe nothing if she had forgotten him so completely.

So absorbed in his thoughts, Mamoru didn't notice the figure before him until he nearly walked into her. He backed up a few steps with an apology on the tip of his tongue, but then glanced up and recognized the figure with a start. He wasn't sure at first since she wore a long black trench coat and her hair was out of its usual odangos, but he would know her anywhere, in the darkness or elsewhere.

"Usak…" he started, but then bit his tongue. If she had found someone else, she certainly wouldn't want him to call her that. He wished he could come up with something intelligent to say, but all he could blurt out was, "Nice night, isn't it?"

She said nothing, but cocked her head to the side and smiled.

Mamoru swallowed. Was there something wrong with her eyes? It was really too dark to be certain.

"So," he tried again, "how are you?" Still no answer. She just stood there, smiling mysteriously. It unnerved him. "We've all been worried about you," Mamoru continued in a rush. "Where have you been?"

He stopped and licked his lips. "You can tell me the truth. I want you to be happy. Who is this guy? Does he treat you well?" He ducked his head and winced, preparing himself for the verbal blow.

But what happened next took him by surprise. Instead of giving a name and telling him how exhilarating it was to fall in love, Usagi stepped forward and kissed him. Mamoru's eyes widened. Never in the years they'd been together had she been so bold, but instead of renewing his suspicions, Mamoru relaxed and kissed her back. He was too relieved to think.

"Oh Usako," he whispered, stepping away with a contented sigh. "I knew it wasn't true. How could I think…?" Without a word, she pulled him back for another kiss, soft and passionate. Mamoru had never felt such rushing relief. He had been wrong to doubt her. But just as he was back to planning their future together, he felt a sharp pain in his mouth and pushed her away.

A warm coppery taste spilled onto his tongue and he realized with a start that she had bit him. She had actually bitten him. Mamoru touched his lip and stared at the blood that dripped onto his fingers. With a sinking feeling, he listened to Usagi laugh, proving that it had been no accident. She casually undid the buttons on the long coat and it dropped to the ground, revealing a short, revealing black dress underneath.

"What…?" he started but never had a chance to finish for shapes glimmered on each side of her and materialized into two men. Mamoru took a step back and looked at the three of them in shock. The man on her left was tall, dark-haired and laughing as much as she, but the blond on her left looked embarrassed. There was a flash of light behind him and he turned to see four more people appearing. One of them roughly pushed him forward and before long he was enclosed in a circle of seven.

If he hadn't been so confused, he would have tried fighting back, but he was too shocked for the thought to cross his mind. Usagi linked arms with the men beside her, and the tall dark one flashed a dazzling smile his way.

"Good evening, Prince Endymion," he said good-naturedly for all the icicles in his voice. "What a pleasure it is to see you so soon."

"I don't know you," Mamoru told him, contempt entering his voice. He was confused, but he understood one thing. This man was the reason Usagi had turned against him.

With the unnatural glow emitting from the seven of them, Mamoru saw what was wrong with Usagi's eyes. They were as black and cold as stone. He finally understood what had happened; somehow these monsters were controlling her. He couldn't believe that she would so easily submit, but she had been acting strangely ever since the night she was hurt by Carmenia's daggers.

Of course. Mamoru nodded to himself. Ami had said it was a poison that made Usagi lose her powers and that it may have other effects. Was this one of them?

The dark man was laughing again. Why did he look so familiar? All of them did, particularly the blond Usagi was leaning against. But Mamoru didn't have time to study him for the darker man, obviously the leader, was speaking again.

"Have you forgotten me, Darien? Or is it Mamoru-san now?" He smiled. "I should have been haunting your nightmares all your life… is one such as me so easily pushed aside?"

"Apparently," Mamoru seethed, glaring at him. "Who are you and what have you done with her?" He looked at Usagi helplessly but she was watching the leader with admiration. It made Mamoru sick.

"What have you done, you mean," the man said and flashed white teeth. "You more than anyone have driven her to this."

"What are you talking about?" Mamoru asked, clenching his fists. To think that these people would do this to Usagi and then try to put the blame on him… it was really unacceptable. Adrenaline raced in his veins and he was about to pounce on the dark man when Usagi spoke.

"You cheated on me," she said, her dark eyes alight with fury. "You and Akina-chan. For that, you will pay."

"What?" Mamoru wrinkled his brow in confusion. Why did she think…?

The blond man started forward but Usagi held him back with a light pressure on his chest. He obeyed, but snarled at Mamoru, hate in his eyes. There was something about his reaction and quick defense that surprised Mamoru, but he didn't ponder this for long before returning his thoughts to his girlfriend.

"Usako," he started, hoping to talk some sense into her, but she cut him off with a shriek.

"It's Serena!" she yelled and he took a stumbling step back at her tone. "And you'd better not forget it." Mamoru gazed around the circle, feeling numb. This was a nightmare.

One of the men kicked him and Usagi-Serena laughed as he fell to his knees. This isn't happening, he thought dizzily as another delivered a punch to his jaw. He lifted a hand to his chin in a daze and felt blood trickling there. The group took turns hitting and punching him, until even Usagi was giving him several hard kicks, giggling madly.

What happened to you? he wondered, and just as he was about to voice his bewilderment, a voice cried, "Venus Love-Me Chain!"

One of the men, the one with shoulder-length strawberry-blond hair, cried out and jumped aside, his back smoking. Mamoru raised his head and saw the four inner senshi standing there proudly, but they gasped when they saw him there.

"What took you so long?" he whispered weakly.

"Mars felt something was wrong," Jupiter said, stepping forward, "and she was right." She glared at the people around Mamoru and cracked her knuckles.

"Ah, if it isn't the dream team," Usagi called out silkily and stepped forward, smiling at the shocked expressions from her former friends. "What's wrong?" she asked. "Don't you have a hello for me? Oh wait, I forgot we're about to kill you. That does put a hindrance on our relationship now, doesn't it?"

"Usagi-chan?" Mercury gasped, her eyes wide. Usagi smiled, not bothering to correct her.

"Oh my God, Kai…" Jupiter whispered and turned white as she stared at one of the men. He looked back at her evenly, his white blond hair shining in the moonlight. Venus nudged her and gave her a questioning look, but the brown-haired warrior stayed silent. She paled even more when her gaze flickered to Usagi's side and she saw the boy she had been dreaming about for weeks frowning at her, his green eyes unhappy.

The woman with long red hair stepped forward snarling, but Usagi stopped her with a raise of her hand.

"Uh uh," she said sweetly. "They're mine." She stalked forward, taking special care to stomp on Mamoru on the way. The senshi watched her warily.

"What's the matter?" Usagi asked, frowning slightly. "Take a hit at me. I'm defenseless. It's the perfect opportunity."

No one moved.

"Come on," she urged again, her voice coaxing. "I know you want to."

"She's crazy," Mars muttered.

Usagi gave her a dazzling smile. "Thank you." The four girls were now looking at their boots.

"What's wrong? Are you afraid?" she asked with a little laugh. "You aren't warriors. You're silly children. How have you managed to get this far?"

"Serena, darling," the leader said, "there's no reason to taunt them." She looked back at him thoughtfully.

"You're right. Anyway, it is a pity you don't have the guts. So if you won't, I will!" She lifted her hands and black energy formed on her palms. Mamoru tried to stand, perhaps in a futile attempt to shield the senshi from her blast, but fell back when the red-haired woman kicked him. As for the senshi, they were frozen in shock, not willing to believe that their leader and best friend had turned against them.

Usagi, however, wasn't concerned. "Black Moon Shockwave!" she yelled and the dark energy turned into a fireball that shot straight towards the senshi.