I don't own PGSM or any of the characters...yadda yadda yadda.
I'm just a poor college student, so I don't have any money anyway.

Thanks for all the reviews, everyone! Please keep them coming! 
I apologize for the great delay...so much has happened! I do hope you will continue reading, though.

Things are a bit slow for now, but I promise it will get better! :)

NOTE: I am not familiar with Minako's disease in PGSM, so there is nothing correct medically in this chapter...

And now...Chapter 2!

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Chapter 2

"Venus!"

Zoicite froze.

He had absolutely no idea what to do.

Zoicite had always prided himself in his ability to remain calm, cool, and collected - to always know what to do in every situation. But now, he found himself at a loss.

They certainly had never covered this in general school.

"Mina!"

The white stuffed animal that had been lying on the couch suddenly moved and hopped over and down to Venus' side. Zoicite would have been surprised if he hadn't recognized the stuffed animal as Venus' companion, Artemis. "Mina! Are you okay...? Wake-up, Mina!"

Zoicite suddenly felt very foolish standing there in front of the crumpled girl, holding his knife. He felt even more foolish knowing that he wasn't responsible for the girl's collapse. What was wrong with her, anyway?

"YOU!" Artemis spun on Zoicite, who involuntarily took a step backward at the menacing sound in the stuffed animal's voice. What was wrong with him? Now his was afraid of a stuffed animal?

Zoicite glared at the cat, and slipped his knife back into his belt.

"I am not responsible for this. I came to discuss some unfinished business with Venus, and she collapsed." It sounded like a lie even to him, so Zoicite was incredibly surprised when Artemis' eyes softened.

"Well don't just stand there," the cat implored, hopping towards him. "She needs help! Pick her up and follow me!" Artemis hopped down the hallway towards a door on the right, and looked over his shoulder expectantly.

Zoicite gaped. Was he honestly expected to help her? Sailor Venus, the girl who had betrayed him, and who was responsible for his master's captivity? He glanced down at the crumpled form of Sailor Venus, and thought hard. What should he do?

With a sigh, Zoicite scooped the girl up, princess style, and briefly wondered if he had lost his mind.

She was lighter than he had expected.

And colder. She was much too cold.

"In here!" The white cat entered the bedroom, dimly lit by the streetlights outside, and hopped onto the bed. "Set her here, and turn on that lamp!"

Zoicite gently laid Venus's limp form on the soft, pink bedspread, turned on the lamp on the nightstand, and stepped back, uncertain of what to do next. The cat leaped onto her chest, and deftly used a paw to check her pulse.

She was really quite stunning, Zoicite couldn't help but mark, lying their on the bed with her hair cascading around her. She almost looked as though she were sleeping...

Zoicite scowled. This wasn't the time, nor the place to be thinking such thoughts. Besides, he hated her. The deepest circle of hell was reserved for traitors, and he was sure there was a spot waiting just for Venus.

"I think she needs her medicine...she should have taken it already she have forgotten?" Artemis was muttering to himself. Suddenly, he wheeled on Zoicite. "We're losing time! Listen to me carefully..."

Zoicite blinked. Now what?

"Go to the refrigerator in the kitchen, and look for a bottle labeled 'B12' and bring it here. GO!"

Zoicite's legs moved without him even telling them to. Why in the world was he still there? Why hadn't he left as soon as she had collapsed? He wanted her to die, didn't he?

No you don't, do you? You didn't come here to hurt her...

The bottle wasn't difficult to find. There wasn't much in the refrigerator besides tiny, medicinal bottles with strange names on them, and many of them were of the 'B12' sort. Zoicite grabbed one, briefly wondering why Venus had such an odd assortment in her refrigerator, and quickly strode back into the bedroom where Artemis was waiting with a needle and shaft.

"Can you give shots?" Artemis asked him. Zoicite stared at him blankly in answer. The cat sighed. "Put the needle through the soft rubber at the top of the bottle and down into the liquid." Zoicite complied.

"Now, pull back to draw the liquid up, and stick the needle in the vein here..."

Zoicite resisted the urge to faint. He found the vein easily enough, but found it difficult to bring himself to slip the needle in. Artemis was losing patience, so Zoicite mustered up his courage, took a deep breath, and administered his first shot.

He looked at Artemis. "How long will it take to work?"

Artemis sighed and looked down at the sleeping beauty. "It won't be long. Maybe 5 minutes at most..."

Zoicite stood up and scowled.

He would wait for her to wake up -- but only because he still needed to talk to her.

It didn't matter to him whether or not she was okay.

At least, that's what he kept telling himself.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Just keep telling yourself that, Zoi-kun...