Disclaimer: Because of what I am about to write, I feel that an entertaining disclaimer is unnecessary. So, let's just get to the point: I do not own Sailor Moon.

Key

"Speaking"

'Thoughts'

(AN: Author's notes)

Setting/Time Lapse

Chapter 8

Funeral Home, Saturday, 2:30 pm

The room seemed to be filled with a sea of people dressed in black. The atmosphere was filled with grief and emotional pain. Most in the room were friends, as the now deceased Adina Kinnan had been reunited with most of her family when she had died.

The tributes had already been paid, and now everyone was either talking to one another or looking at the body one last time, waiting for the time when they would travel to the graveyard and witness the burial.

Kaya and the others (the Senshi, the Tsukinos, Darien, and Andrew) had been seated near the middle of the room, and had not yet seen the body of Adina. Kaya, although she appeared to be coping with the situation well, was causing many of them to worry with her silence.

Finally, they all went to see Adina for the last time.

Upon seeing the body, Serena, Rini, Ilene, Mina, Amy, and Hotaru had burst into tears, and were led out of the room by Darien, Ken, Sammy, Andrew, Raye, and Trista.

Now, it was Kaya's turn to go and see her mother. She started out fine, her facial expression calm. She stopped in front of the coffin and looked down at her mother. Her eyes widened, and she gasped. She whirled around and ran over to Lita, Amara, and Michelle, who stood a few feet away.

"Big Sister Lita! Big Sister Lita!" she cried, seizing Lita's hand and tugging on it. She stared up at Lita, emerald eyes wide and filled with…

Excitement…!

Lita's own emerald eyes showed her feelings of confusion by Kaya's actions. The younger girl tried to drag Lita over to the coffin. Lita, after a few seconds of hesitation, allowed herself to be dragged over to the body, Amara and Michelle trailing behind them, also confused at Kaya's excitement.

Kaya pointed at Adina's body, looking up at three of her many older sister figures with happiness.

"Big Sister Serena was wrong! Mama isn't gone! She's right here, see? She's right here! Big Sister Serena must've made a mistake!" Kaya exclaimed. The eyes of the three older Senshi widened with shock.

Kaya didn't understand what Serena had meant when she'd said her mother was gone.

She didn't understand that her mother was dead.

She didn't even understand the meaning of dead.

"Mama's just sleeping! We have to wake her up!" Kaya exclaimed, and then turned to her mother, a bright smile on her face. Lita, Amara, and Michelle were too stunned to stop her. Kaya reached out and touched her mother's arm. Her eyes widened at how cold it was, but she quickly got over this fact.

"Mama! Mama, wake up! Everyone thinks you're gone! Mama, mama! Wake up!" Kaya called to the body, shaking it gently.

She was confused when Adina didn't wake up, but she tried again.

"Mama! Mama! Wake up, mama! Mama, wake up!" When her mother still didn't wake up, Kaya's eyes filled with fear.

"Mama! Mama! Wake up! Wake up! Why won't you wake up, Mama?" Kaya asked, voice trembling slightly. Her mother, of course, still didn't wake.

"Mama, stop playing! I don't like this game! Mama! MAMA! MAMA, WAKE UP!" Kaya yelled, drawing the attention of everyone in the room. Everyone was stunned by the scene before them. Lita, Amara, and Michelle finally regained their senses. Lita picked the now crying Kaya up and carried her out of the room, Amara and Michelle close behind.

"Hey, we're almost ready to-" Andrew stopped in mid-sentence upon seeing in what state the four girls were in. Lita, Amara, Michelle, and Kaya were now in front of the funeral home, where the others had gone to compose themselves.

"What happened!" Andrew asked frantically, drawing the attention of the others, who had not yet noticed the arrival of the four. The girls' eyes widened at the sight of Kaya, and they seemed about to run over and comfort the little girl, but Amara held up a hand, the look in her eyes clearly stating that everything would be explained later.

"We should go," Ken said, and everyone agreed.

Tsukino Residence

Kaya slowly opened her eyes. After a few seconds, she realized she was in Rini's room, on Rini's bed. The room was dark, and a glance towards the windows affirmed her suspicions that it was nighttime. She turned her gaze to her left, where a nightstand with a digital clock rested. The glowing numbers on the screen read 8:30.

'The… Funeral ended a long time ago… That is what Mama-Tsukino called it, right? A funeral? Yes, I'm sure that's what she called it…' Kaya thought as she sat up and pulled the covers off of her. She swung her legs over the edge of the bed and stood up. Her eyes adjusted to the lack of light to the room, and she quietly walked over to the door and opened it, stepping out into the hallway. Immediately, she walked down the hall to Serena's room.

Serena's Room

Serena let out a sigh. She was lying on her bed, staring at the ceiling. Rini was sitting on the window seat of her window, staring out at the crescent moon in the sky. Luna was curled up at Serena's feet. The room was silent, as it had been for about an hour now. The Inner Senshi and Darien had left an hour ago. The Outers and Andrew had left a few hours earlier. Kaya had cried herself to sleep during the ride home, and had been put to be in Rini's room as soon as they'd arrived, around 5 hours ago. A sudden know on the closed door brought the two Moon princesses and the cat out of their thoughts.

"Come in," Serena called, sitting up. The door slowly opened, revealing Kaya, who was standing outside the room in her white nightgown. Her hair was tied loosely into two braids. She had been looking down at the ground when she'd opened the door, and now looked up to find two pairs of garnet eyes and a pair of sky blue eyes gazing at her.

Silently, the young girl stepped into the room, walking over to the bed. She knelt down at the bedside, and closed her eyes.

"… Why wouldn't Mama wake up? … Why did she feel so cold? … Why was everyone crying back at that house?" she asked quietly. Rini walked over to the bed and sat down beside Kaya, wrapping a comforting arm around the younger girl's shoulders, quite similar to the way she had back in the principal's office at their school, when they'd first met. A heavy silence hung in the room for a few minutes.

"… She won't wake up… For a long time, Kaya…" Serena said. She didn't want to explain to Kaya that her mother was dead, and neither did Rini. Even Luna didn't want to say anything. She was still suspicious of Kaya's Dark Moon Crystal, and if she really was who she appeared to be. But even she had a place in her heart for the child. Kaya was, after all, the reincarnation of Princess Sincerity, and everyone in the palace had adored her during the Silver Millennium.

Before Kaya had the chance to reply, Ilene appeared at the doorway.

"Kaya, you're up! That's wonderful! Well, I've just finished baking a cake. Let's all go downstairs and get some, shall we?" Ilene said with a smile. Serena, Rini, and Kaya couldn't help but smile back, and they stood up and followed Ilene downstairs.

Luna sighed and stretched, gaze wandering to the window. She stared at the moon for a moment.

"Your Majesty, I'm afraid that they haven't escaped what Fate has in store for them," she whispered. She then closed her eyes and fell asleep.

Living Room

The Tsukinos and Kaya sat in the living room, enjoying the cake Ilene had made while talking and laughing. Their troubles were momentarily forgotten.

That is, until someone knocked on the door.

It was Ilene who left the room to see who it was. When she returned a few moments later, she was pale, and wasn't alone. Everyone in the room stared at the man who had appeared at the doorway behind Ilene.

He was tall, and had hazel eyes and chocolate brown hair. Serena, Rini, Ken, and Sammy were confused by his presence. Kaya, however, was frightened. The man's hazel eyes turned to meet her emerald eyes, and she resisted the urge to cringe.

"Come with me, Kaya. It's time for you to come home," he said.

Author's Note

-hides in pillow fort- Another cliffhanger! Bwahahaha! Well, this chapter was shorter than the rest, but I got it up sooner, and it was more emotional and dramatic and all that good stuff than the others!

Now, before you all decide to kill me, I have just a few announcements to make.

First of all, anonymous reviews to this story are now accepted. I didn't realize that they were disabled, and I thank my friend (you know who you are!) for pointing this out to me.

Also, I have some good news! Through the wonders of candy bar doll makers, I have made a Kaya doll! It's a teenage Kaya, mind you, but still a Kaya doll! I will gladly send a picture of it to you through email, if you would like for me to do so. Just tell me, and I'll send you one!

Now, please review! You have no excuse not to do so, now that anonymous reviews are accepted! It doesn't have to be long, just a simple sentence that lets me know you like this story and want me to continue it would be enough to keep me going!