7: Future Talk

How was he the only one who awoke such feelings in her? No other boy she had ever known had caused quite so much trauma in such a little time. Sure, there had been boy issues, but nothing so fully blown and so effectual upon her psyche. So, of course, this whole ordeal was a huge shock to her.

She was quite sure that, no matter how nice certain parts of this had been, she never wanted to go through it again. Mamoru was, quite obviously, the thickest and most annoying of all men. Why was it so hard for him to understand!

Then, there was the problem of this voice in her head, the one which sounded like an older version of herself. Usagi resolved to have a proper talk with it, the instant she reached home. Unfortunately for the voice, home was only a few moments away.

Usagi made her way quickly through the dark but not so quiet house, her parents were in their room watching television; she stopped by quickly to tell them that she'd arrived home safely, and that she was going to bed, considering the time of night it was.

Once her parents were satisfied, Usagi walked down the hallway to her room, and sat down on her bed. She took a deep breath, and concentrated upon making contact with the voice.

Alright, so what the heck is going on? Usagi questioned angrily when she finally encountered the voice.

She heard the voice sigh, as if resigning itself to something, You really want to know, everything, the whole truth? Nothing but the truth?

Usagi couldn't help but giggle, but when she did, and opened her eyes, she found herself, not in her room, but in a large, beautiful crystal room, complete with matching crystal thrones. She also found a figure standing a few metres in front of her, looking like an older, more majestic version of herself, complete with odangos.

"Where am I?" She queried what looked like her older self, "And who are you?"

"You already know that, Usagi, or Princess Serenity. Well, at least, you know who I am. This, for you, is the future." The woman stepped towards Usagi, reaching a hand out, "Would you like to see the gardens? It is probably better for us to talk there."

Usagi nodded, dumbfounded with shock at the identity and position of the woman. She followed numbly, until she was brought out of it by the beauty of the rose gardens.

"Whose gardens are these?" Usagi asked, kneeling to admire a particularly beautiful red rose which caught her attention.

Neo-Queen Serenity smiled as she saw which rose Usagi had been attracted to, it was her own favourite, and had been grown from the first rose her husband had given her. "These are my husband's gardens, though in reality we share them and our love of the rose."

"Who is he?" Usagi asked, captivated by the flower.

"I don't know that you'll appreciate that knowledge at this moment in time, however, you are about to find out. I need to tell you some things before they appear however." Serenity avoided the question, though she had promised to tell the truth, knowing that at this point in time, Usagi would not be able to deal with the truth.

Usagi looked up from the flower, taking in her surroundings properly; she found that it was night, and she was definitely on Earth, considering the presence of the large white moon, she also found herself completely surrounded by every imaginable type of rose and bush.

She looked towards the woman, her older self, still slightly confused, "What is going on?" She asked, timidly, her bright blue eyes confused.

Serenity sighed, not knowing where to begin, "Well, it seems that my husband and I were important and necessary in something to do with you and Mamoru. In short, we had to make you see each other at least as friends. The only way we could do this, was to enter your minds and give advice. We knew that you two would begin to fall for each other, and so our plan was perfect."

The Queen took a deep breath, "But something went differently to last time, and neither of us, my husband and I, could work out what had caused this. So, we decided to become even more involved, and bring you both here. It is of the utmost importance that things get worked out. Tonight."

Usagi gaped, finding it hard to breathe, "You're saying that this whole ordeal was just a plan to get Mamoru and I together? Is that right?"

Serenity nodded, "In Endymion's and my past, things were different, I was Sailor Moon, and he was Tuxedo Kamen, it was inevitable that we came together; however, for you and Mamoru, for some reason, there was no necessity for the Senshi, and thus neither of you came into your birthrights. This made it necessary for us to intervene, and bring the future, this future into being."

Usagi was shocked, "I really am you then, but you're my… future?"

Serenity nodded once more, and called upon her powers, which in turn caused Usagi to change into Princess Serenity.

Usagi felt the change, and found many things falling into place; she admired her clothing, amazed that she had ever worn such a delicate and expensive dress.

"Wow," Princess Serenity breathed, looking to the Queen for support, "This is me?"

The Queen laughed, "That is most definitely you, and I think that I had better tell you a little of your past before the Endymion's appear."