Usagi immediately shut herself in her room, when she had arrived home that evening. Luna thought her behavior was odd for the brief moment she passed her, but it wasn't until Usagi declined Ikuko-mama's summons for dinner in order to "finish homework" is when she began to suspect that something was terribly wrong. Usagi rarely ever turned down a meal, and most certainly wouldn't pass up her mother's delicious pork buns for schoolwork.
"Usagi, is everything okay?" Luna asked from outside the closed door.
"Everything's fine, I'm just…busy right now." She replied in a choked voice.
"I can tell you're upset about something, what's wrong?" She asked.
"Nothing, just leave me alone!" Usagi said raising her voice.
"I only want to help, please open the door!" Luna pleaded.
Luna couldn't remember the last time Usagi had been this upset. Perhaps during that time when her and Mamoru had broken up. She would often find Usagi up late at night stuffing herself into a crying stupor in those days. It was a quite a while ago, though. Could this have something to do with Mamoru?
"Usagi, please?" Luna asked again in a much calmer voice.
Usagi finally opened the door, picked Luna up, and sat both of them on top of her bed where she cradled Luna in her arms as a child would a stuffed animal. Luna's purr in response to Usagi's soft scratches behind her ear were comforting to hear and caused the tears to dry up once more.
"I made a fool of myself earlier." She choked out.
"What happened?" the black feline asked.
Now calm and coherent, Usagi told her of the misunderstanding that had happened just hours before, leaving out the details she was not ready yet to reveal such as not having been in contact with Mamoru this entire time and Satoshi's brother's resemblance to Saphir, for fear it would cause an unwanted lecture.
Luna could only look up at her pityingly, "I know it must have been a disappointment for that man not to have actually been Mamoru, but he will come back Usagi. What is best right now is to continue the progress you've been making in your education."
"It's just that without Mamo-chan with me by my side, it's frustrating getting through everything that's been going on around here lately. I mean, we're nowhere nearer finding out who the new enemies are and their motives any more than when they first appeared months ago." Usagi said.
"You see, this is what I'm talking about. I've never seen you so devoted to your duties before, it's like a sudden growth has occurred in you." Luna gleamed.
As miserable as she was feeling, Usagi couldn't help but let a little smile escape and started to feel her spirits lift a little.
"Have I really changed that much from that first day you met me?"
Luna returned her smile and said, "Well I wouldn't say you're that different, I mean, I still have to practically drag you out of bed every morning even though you're many times my weight, especially with the way you tend to over eat. Then, there's also the fact that I'm at the mercy of your frequent klutz attacks, whether it's getting stepped on, rolled on top on the bed sometimes while I'm trying to sleep or-"
"Luna!" Usagi called out through gritted teeth, changing her soft pats on the head into that of a noogie.
"But aside from those things, the obstacles you have faced thus far have matured you in a way to where I am no longer worried about your leadership skills because you have proven yourself to be worthy of holding the title of Sailor Moon and that of Princess Serenity. I suppose I haven't told you that before, have I?" Luna confessed.
"No, you haven't." she pouted.
"I forget sometimes that you're still so young, carrying the weight of the world on your shoulders while still trying to be a normal, teenage girl of the Earth. It's a shame that whether it be in this life or in your previous one in the Silver Millennium, that's all you seem to have ever wanted yet fate would have it otherwise." Luna said.
Usagi pulled Luna into her and gave her another hug.
"Thank you Luna." Usagi said before letting out a yawn. "I think I'd like to get some rest now."
"Of course. It's probably good you get to bed early for a change." Luna replied.
"If any of the girls try to reach me on the communicator, let them know I'll just see them at school." She told her.
"Alright. Goodnight Usagi." Luna said giving her a lick on the cheek before jumping off her lap and leaving the bedroom.
Her eyes were still red and swollen, feeling heavy as she rested still against the bedframe. However, she was really using the excuse of sleep as a means of escaping any further communication with anyone else for the rest of the night. With all that she had to think about, sleep was impossible at this point.
As she tossed and turned, she couldn't help but feel frustration at Mamoru, almost anger. Why was he being so selfish and letting her go crazy like this? With how bad she was wanting to see him again, it was no wonder she mistook that man for him.
It was then, when Satoshi-san's brother's shifted the focus of her thoughts causing her stomach suddenly drop. His resemblance to Saphir was so uncanny that…but it was impossible.
His eyes, though. They had that same sadness Saphir's had.
No, he is dead. Saphir and Prince Demande are both dead…aren't they? It was the first time she ever really considered Ami's suspicions about Satoshi-san. As much as she wanted to keep this bit of information to herself, it wouldn't be fair to the rest of the senshi to withhold something like this, even though she knew they would discourage her from having anything more to do with him.
No matter how much she tried to rationalize it in her mind, it was all just too coincidental. Two brother's suddenly move here who happen to look almost identical to the two brother's that were their former enemies who lived one thousand years in the future but died in the present.
Wracking her brain with all this information while going through all the explanations and theories caused her to eventually tire and drift off to sleep.
Just as dawn approached, Usagi awoke and sat up in a cold sweat with her heart racing and unfamiliar of her surroundings. The nightmare of what had happened in Crystal Tokyo had come back for the first time in weeks, more terrifying than ever as Tuxedo Mask was completely absent from the part where he was supposed to rescue her at the end. But that wasn't the part that disturbed her. Prince Demande was different then how she remembered him. As he edged closer and closer to her on the bed, the more his features began to twist into something that was not human. He stopped when his face was but a few inches away from hers with his soulless eyes peering into hers as a distorted smiled began to form. It was then, when she finally broke out of the dream.
Some time passed before she finally looked at her clock that illuminated 6:15 on it's face and began to lay back down when the initial effects of the dream wore off. The stress from the day before that had to do with Satoshi-san, who bared Prince Demande's likeness, who also happened to be the last person she thought of before falling sleep must've caused such a nightmare. She brushed the dream off and eventually drifted back into sleep.
Usagi checked her watch as she left her house for school that morning. It was only 8:15 which is usually the time she would be first waking up. By leaving earlier, she could avoid Ami and Naru's invite to walk to school together since she wasn't ready to discuss what happened yet. This was also a good way to avoid the crowd that usually gathered in the morning to view the Three Lights.
As she approached Juuban High School, it was as she guessed. There were only a few clusters of students scattered around the entrance gate that had nowhere near the amount that was usually there by the time she arrived. When she wasn't late that is.
Unfortunately, hanging right near the front entrance to the school were the clique of girls from the Three Lights fan club that were always waiting outside of Usagi's homeroom. Dread filled her as she tried to walk past them without being noticed, which she thought worked at first because they all seemed to be in deep conversation and not paying any attention to her.
When none of them had turned in her direction, she let out a sigh of relief thinking she had succeeded and continued on. Until that is, she heard one of them say in a purposely heightened voice:
"First she hangs all over Seiya, then tries to hog all the attention of Satoshi-san to herself, and now, she has the nerve to throw herself into the arms of his brother. How shameless!"
"I know! Good thing he had the sense to turn her down." One girl responded.
"Sent her away in tears, I heard." Another girl added.
"How embarrassing!"
Usagi could feel their stares stabbing into her back like daggers, but she thought it best to appear unfazed and enter the school avoiding the sudden heat rising in her cheeks. As she walked passed students hanging out by their lockers, she couldn't help but notice them whispering and looking towards her direction. Some had looks of pity while others, mainly those in the fanclub, were giggling and looking pleased with themselves.
It was apparent that what had happened yesterday was spreading around the school already. Feeling anxious, she looked over to the library only to see it's doors shut. She guessed Satoshi-san wasn't there yet.
She continued down the hallway, trying to ignoring all the stares getting shot at her from all directions.
When she arrive at the base of the stairs that led up to her homeroom, she was met with the sympathetic gazes of her friends who seemed to be waiting for her.
"Hey Usagi." They each said, acting as normal as possible.
"You don't have pretend that something isn't going on around here. I know people are talking about me." Usagi told them.
"Let them talk." Minako said.
"We know you better than that." Makoto followed.
"What is it?" she looked to each of three girls for an answer. Makoto, Minako and Ami looked at each other nervously.
"The Three Lights should be arriving any moment, we'd better head to class before it starts getting crowded around here." Ami said to Usagi.
"Ami…"
"We'll have the privacy there to fill you in on what's being said. You can tell us what really happened at lunch since I'm sure it'll be a lengthier story then what we have to tell you. I just thought you should be prepared for…the day ahead." Ami said.
"It's not too bad, just mindless gossip is all." Minako interjected to try and lighten the mood.
"We'll be there for you every step of the way if anyone tries to mess with you." Makoto said.
As all three girls turned towards the stairs, Usagi glanced back one last time at the library whose doors were still shut.
'This is going to be the longest day of my life." She thought before following her friends toward homeroom.
Meanwhile:
In the Nurse's Office, Demande was getting his wounds tended to that were caused by Saphir's violent outburst as he didn't have the time to use the Jakokusuishou to heal himself before he was to arrive at the school.
"So, what did you say happened to you again?" Miss Kurogane asked as she watched the nurse wrap the bandages around his shoulder.
He replied, "I told you, I slipped backwards in the kitchen this morning. The floor was wet." In an exacerbated tone, he then asked. "Answer me again why you have to be in here while she's doing this?" He was completely shirtless and embarrassed to be looking so helpless.
"Because I'm the one who found you on the verge of passing out in the parking lot with blood staining the back of that blonde head of yours. I don't know why you won't just go to a hospital."
"No, I'm alright, really. Once Nurse Takeuchi fixes me up I'll be good as new." He said before wincing at her rubbing an alcohol swab to the wound on the back of his head.
"I really would reconsider." Takeuchi spoke up. "From the severity of these wounds, I would've guessed you were hit by a car rather than it being a household accident. But, I guess it's your decision in the end."
"And I decide not to go." He immediately retorted. "If I just lay off the heavy lifting for the next few days, it should be fine." He said.
Both women looked to each other flabbergasted with his reasoning.
Later that day:
The first four class periods of the day weren't much different than when she had first walked into the school. The only time the stares and the snickering lessened was during the teacher's lecturing which gave her a newfound appreciation in the mandatory silence her school lessons provided.
Lunch was approaching finally, and she couldn't be more thrilled to get a solid hour away from all the prying eyes of her classmates and just spend it in the company of her friends.
The lesson had ended and the students were able to chat amongst each other as they waited their last few minutes before their lunch hour began. Unbeknownst to any of them, the hall monitor walked in and dropped off a message to their instructor.
"Excuse me, can I have your attention?" he announced to the class as the hall monitor exited the classroom.
"I've just been informed that Mr. Satoshi is in need of a student volunteer later in the day and-"
Almost all of the girls in the class immediately raised their hands.
"It appears he has some sort of shoulder injury and will need someone to put away the books that have been checked-in back on the bookshelves." Looking around the classroom, the girls continued to keep their hands raised.
"Some of the books are quite heavy, so he specifically requested that we send one of our male students." He announced in exasperation clearing his throat at the end.
Groans of disappointment could be heard as all the hands lowered. Usagi sat stiffly upright and knew better than to raise her hand as most of the class looked at her expectedly to do so.
"Whoever assists Mr. Satoshi will be pulled out of the last period of the day, allowing exemption from today's English vocabulary quiz. " He added.
At the prospect of this, everyone's hand raised in the air aside from the members of the Three Lights.
"Hmph!" Seiya let off a grunt from behind Usagi.
Usagi became concerned and wondered about Satoshi-san's injury. 'What happened? He was perfectly fine yesterday?'
It was a ridiculous notion, but she couldn't help and feel uneasy as if the causation of his sudden injury had something to do with her.
The four girls spent their lunch period outside away from the rest of the students in order for them to have the adequate privacy for Usagi to tell them what all had happened the day before, even revealing the details of Satoshi's brother's resemblance Saphir, their former enemy.
"This is the longest you and Mamoru-san have spent away from each other so it's only natural that your desire to see him may make you see his face on other men, it's nothing to feel ashamed of." Ami said.
"I knew those horrible things I was hearing from those upperclassmen were bogus." Makoto said cooly.
"Makoto." Minako gave her a wide-eyed look as if to hush her.
"Oh." Makoto covered her mouth. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean-."
"It's okay, I know it'll die down soon enough." Usagi said.
Ami sighed, "Let's get back to the other part of this story. Usagi, I know that you want to trust this Mr. Satoshi, but after seeing his brother who also resembles another member of the Black Moon Clan, can you honestly say that you're not even just the tiniest bit suspicious?"
"I..I don't know." Usagi answered. "Having seen both of them die before my very eyes, makes it seem just too incredible for it to be true."
"That's very true, Ami. People can't come back from the dead, even you would have to agree with that." Makoto said with a slight chuckle.
After a few minutes of silence Usagi responded to Makoto, "But we did."
She then clasped her fingers around her brooch containing the strongest source of power in the entire universe, capable of destroying anything containing negative forces, healing the innocent of those possessed by those dark forces and reincarnating those who have died.
Demande at that time happened to be on his lunch break as well, having his meal outside instead of the faculty room for a change since the weather was particularly nice that day. He was accompanied by Miss Kurogane, who was helping him carry his things and another teacher he was becoming more acquainted with as they chatted amongst each other walking towards the picnic table. Demande wasn't really adding anything to the conversation being had, but was mainly nodding along to everything they were saying, not having the energy to do much talking after the long night he had.
In the distance, he could see Usagi and her friends sitting under a tree, eating their lunches. For some reason he couldn't shake the feeling that they were talking about him. At that very moment, Usagi looked over in his direction, locking eyes with him for the first time since that emotional moment they had between each other the day before. Seconds later, she broke eye contact and looked away as if she never saw him to begin with.
He didn't know if he was imagining things but it seemed almost as if she was trying to avoid him. However, he must not think about her right now. No, he must concentrate on gaining his brother's trust back and by doing that, he must not actively seek out Usagi for the time being. No matter how hard it may pain him to do so.
1 week later:
Days had passed since the incident and still, things had not gotten better for either Usagi or Demande. Saphir still refused to speak to his brother and in those rare moments of the day where they would cross paths in their home, he pretended as if Demande was practically nonexistent. His and Saphir's relationship had never been so strained before and it felt as if he was living with a stranger rather than his own brother which made things uncomfortable for both them. On top of that, Usagi had stopped coming by the library altogether, he hadn't even seen her in the hallways anymore.
He was like a man who had lost of his allies and had never truly felt so alone in this world that was still so unfamiliar to him.
On the other hand, Usagi was facing the wrath of the Three Lights fan club by receiving subtle harassments every time she was separated from her friends outside of the classroom. The stares and comments made towards her direction had only increased even though she had stopped having any contact with Mr. Satoshi-san and had avoided going into the library for that particular reason. But she found that it wasn't easy. In fact, she had come to realize how much she had depended on his company once all of her friends went off to their club activities and was left to herself to face all the ugly stares alone.
She was so lost in her thoughts as she sat in her last class, that the bell going off to dismiss the students for day hadn't even reached her line of hearing.
What brought her out of her thoughts was a tap on the shoulder she had received from behind.
"Hey can I talk to you for a sec?" Seiya asked her.
"Yeah, of course." Usagi replied half dazed, just realizing that most of the classroom was empty.
"I ran into your friend Minako yesterday as I caught her trying to spy on our band practice and she told me the truth of what had happened with you and that librarian's brother that started these rumors. And…Well…. I hate to admit that I sort of believed them myself at first so, I just wanted to say sorry for giving you the silent treatment these past few days." He told her.
Usagi tilted her head and only continued to stare at him.
"You've been giving me the silent treatment?" she said.
Seiya nearly fell out of his chair when he heard this.
"You mean you didn't-"
"But I-"
"I thought that-"
Seiya then began to laugh hysterically over his own loss for words.
"Odango, you really are something, you know that?" He said as he continued to laugh.
Usagi frowned, "I do not get you sometimes."
As Seiya's laughter died down, he then said, "Well now that, that's straightened out, about our English project. Since the Three Lights performance for the musical was this past weekend, it means I no longer have to attend those rehearsals. Unfortunately, we're performing a joint concert this coming weekend so, I'll have to attend rehearsals for that for the rest of the week. After the concert though, my schedule will be much more flexible for us to start writing the report and I figured by then, we'll both have read the book, right?"
Usagi looked troubled as she heard this.
"You mean…I missed the musical?" She asked with her eyes enlarging.
"Yeah..why? Did you want to see my performance that badly?" he asked as his expression brightened.
"Your choreographer, Akane-san, was she there?"
"She was front row in the audience and even came up on stage for a standing ovation. She's fully recovered now." He answered.
Tears welled up in her eyes, "I wanted to be able to see Akane-san's vision come to life."
That's the last time she'll listen to Luna about using her day off to catch up on homework.
"I'll still take that as you wanted to see me perform." He then mumbled, "Well, you can come see our concert this weekend. I mean, I was kind of hoping you would anyways."
Usagi then perked up, "You have a ticket?!"
"Well..no. In fact last I checked, the show was almost completely sold out but I'm sure there are some still floating around out there." Seiya told her.
Usagi's expression went back to that of disappointment.
Just at that moment, Yaten poked his head through the classroom door staring at Seiya with an impatient look motioning to the watch on his wrist. He merely brushed him off, indicating he was about to follow him.
"If you try hard enough, I'm sure you'll be able to get ahold of a ticket. In fact, I like it better this way. It'll just show that if I see you there, I'll know it's because you went to great lengths to try and see your favorite Three Lights member." He said cheerfully.
"Maybe I'll just see you when we work on our book report." Usagi replied coldly.
Seiya got up from his seat and as he passed by her desk, flashed her his most dazzling smile as he replied, "Alright then, it's a date."
"No, it's not. Se-Seiya!" she called out.
"Only a couple of more days to find a ticket, Odango. You better get at it!" He called back to her as he disappeared through the door frame.
She rolled her eyes then preceded to laugh, as it was probably the first time she had cracked a smile in days. It quickly faded, however, when she remembered what would be waiting for her outside homeroom.
Fortunately, luck was on her side that day when the small clique of girls that usually hung around in the halls were absent for once. Usagi sighed in relief and began to count some of the last bit of pocket money inside her coin purse. She decided to grab a drink from one of the vending machines on her way out.
Meanwhile:
"Excuse me, Mr. Satoshi-san sir, I've just finished putting away the last of the books that were checked-in today." Said the voice of Gurio Umino.
"Great, that'll do for today." Demande replied uninterestedly as he was filling out paperwork.
"I kind of have to wait around until my girlfriend gets out of Drama Club so, if there's anything else you need assistance with, I can help out."
Demande looked up at him and then around the library.
"I guess I can have you work the front counter for me. Those girls look like they're about to check out soon." He motioned to a group of five senior girls that were chatting more so than reading the books opened in front of them.
"Yes sir!" Umino enthusiastically went over to the counter.
This boy would be the last person he would have chosen for any kind of manual labor, however, he guessed his teacher's reasoning was that since he is the number 3 student in the school and is already fluent in English, missing a week's worth of that particular class wouldn't affect his grades. He was quite odd and slightly annoying at times but, he always gave his best effort to help with whatever he needed as he "recovered from his injuries" that had actually already healed that first night once he got ahold of the black crystal. Miss Kurogane and the nurse would find it strange, having seen the severity of his injuries, if he had recovered that quickly so he had to pretend for the week that he still needed assistance.
The group of girls began to grab all of their belongings appearing to head out since club activities were about to begin. Before they had even made their way over to the front counter, Umino walked up to them offering to carry their books for them. None of them answered and instead walked right past him, with the leader of the group flipping her long olive-green colored hair behind her. With his hands still held out in front of him, Umino turned his head and watched as they walked over instead to Mr. Satoshi's desk.
Demande hadn't heard them walk up and was taken aback when he looked up at the group of girls standing in front of him suddenly.
"Good afternoon, Mr. Satoshi-san!" spoke the girl with the olive-green hair. "I heard you had injured your shoulder, are you feeling better now?"
He replied, "Oh, yes I am. Thank you miss-?"
"Sonoko Ijuuin, year 3, captain of the Juuban High Softball Team." She said with a smile.
"Ah, I see." He nodded before turning back to his paperwork.
"I hope you can make it out to one of our games when the season starts. Since I've taken over as captain, we've been the reigning champions so it should be quite entertaining." Sonoko cheerfully said.
"Oh yes, Sonoko, you're batting skills are the best in the district." One of her friends said.
"And when you're on the pitcher's mount, there's no stopping your excellent curve ball." Another said in agreement.
Demande gave a forced smile back to them and said, "I'll see what I can do." Before turning back to his paperwork once again.
When he felt the five sets of eyes continue to watch him, he looked back up and asked, "Anything else I can do you for?"
"Yes, I have this I wanted to check out." Sonoko held a book up.
"Alright, I actually have Umino over there checking out right now." He replied, gesturing towards him.
She looked over at Umino pretending to see him for the first time and said, "Oh, I didn't know. Well I guess since I'm already over here, you don't mind, do you?"
"I guess not." He took the book and began to log it in.
"So…that big concert is this weekend. You plan on going?" she asked.
"I didn't know about it, who's playing?"
"The Three Lights." She said excitedly. "We've had our tickets for weeks."
Demande let out a small chuckle, "No, I don't think you'll be seeing me there."
"I see." She said in disappointment.
He handed her the book and wished them all a good day before they walked out and on to their clubs.
As he was about to walk back over to his desk, Umino said in a low voice, "I don't like those girls."
"Why's that?" Demande asked.
Unaware that he was able to hear him, Umino turned startled and replied, "Oh..um, yeah it's nothing, they've just been giving my friend, Usagi, a hard time after that misunderstanding with your brother. Talking bad about her and such."
Now that he mentioned it, he did overhear the group of girls referring to someone described as "the monkey girl with the stupid hairdo" over and over. But to be fair, that could've been anyone.
"I don't understand." Demande said.
"People who witnessed what happened made it out to be that her and your brother had some sort of lover's quarrel, or at least that's one of the versions going around." Umino said.
"But that's not what happened."
"I know it's not. My girlfriend's her best friend and explained the whole story. Besides, I've known Usagi for years and wouldn't ever believe the nonsense they're saying." Umino said, crossing his arms.
Just then something dawned on him.
"You wouldn't be the one dating Naru Osaka, would you?" Demande asked.
Umino smiled and nodded.
"That's my Naru-chan." He said with pride as his cheeks blushed.
Demande brought up a mental picture of them standing next to each other hand in hand and thought they could possibly be the oddest couple he could ever think of. But at the same time, he couldn't help and think 'Good for him.'
So, all this could be the reason why Usagi hasn't been coming around lately.
"Hey Umino, can you run the desk while I go grab a drink from the vending machine. You've been a real help to me today so would you like something as well?" he asked the round spectacled boy.
"Thank you, I'll take a juice." He replied.
The hallways were now empty and quiet except for the echoing of Demande's footsteps. When he turned the corner, he found that he was not completely alone as Usagi stood in front of the very vending machine he needed to use.
"Hmm." Usagi said as she browsed her options.
"Green tea, F-17." She called out as she pressed the buttons.
She smiled contently as she patiently waited for her drink to land in the bin. The machine began to process her request until all the noises ceased suddenly.
"Hmm?" she tilted her head, still waiting for the drink to drop.
Moments pass with nothing still, indicating that her drink is indeed stuck.
"Oh no!"
She frantically started to press the cancel button on the machine.
"That was the last of my allowance, you've got to be kidding me!" Usagi called out before shaking the machine to try and get the drink unstuck.
Demande continued to watch her many failed attempts and couldn't help but laugh to himself at the funny sight he was seeing.
"Give me my green tea you damn thing!" she said as she lifted her leg and pressed the bottom of her foot to the machine in order to kick it, hoping it would shake the drink free.
When loud thumping noises came out instead, a startled Usagi jumped backward and became so entangled with her own feet that she began to fall, anticipating an ugly landing. She was surprised that instead, someone caught her before hitting the floor.
She looked back to see who the person was and gasped, "Satoshi-san!"
Author's Note- This is chapter is what I like to call the "Filler chapter" and isn't too exciting but, was needed to transition into the more interesting parts. Thanks to those still showing this story some love! I intend to continue it and am happy to do so, although with work and life, it's difficult to upload a new chapter as often as I'd like, but I'll try and do the best I can.