Third Time's the Charm
By Bashfulglowfly
Chapter Six
Endymion came back to himself and looked down at Serenity. He smiled as a tear rolled down his cheek. "Five children…" he murmured softly.
"You won't mind?" asked Serenity almost timidly.
Endymion grinned rakishly at her and kissed her passionately. They felt the bond that had been missing from them for so long re-establish itself. "I've been alone for so very long. I'm going to love having a castle-full of children to spoil."
Serenity giggled. "Well, I don't know how many children the others will have but we do know that Jade and Mars will have at least three terrible terrors." She sobered. "I'm sorry you've been alone for so long."
"That's okay. I did all right. It got better when I made friends with Motoki." He straightened. His eyes grew wide. "Motoki…Makto. He was Lord Makto, the Moon's Weaponsmaster."
"You're remembering." Serenity stared at his face. She could see from his reactions what he was remembering, both good and bad.
"Yeah." He was almost breathless from the tide of information that was flooding his brain. "Oh…well that explains a lot about Osaka-san."
Serenity frowned. "Osaka-san?"
Endymion looked down and brushed her cheek. "Osaka Naru. She goes to the same school as Ami-chan and Makoto-chan. Biggest piece of youma bait you ever saw. I swear if she's around when a youma shows up, she's the first one it attacks."
"I'm still confused. Why does that 'explain a lot' about her?"
Endymion laughed. "She was your handmaid in the Silver Millennium. So, probably, her closeness to you then causes her to be attractive to youma now. Remind me to say something about that to Ami-chan. She might be able to figure out why." Then he frowned. "Our daughter, Chibi-Usa…you had to go to the future to rescue her. Where is she now? She's not in the hospital room with us."
Serenity bit her lip then replied. "I…we…she's with the Outers. In Europe. France."
Endymion frowned. "The Outers?"
"Well, not Pluto, she's here…in Japan. But Neptune, Uranus and Saturn."
He continued to frown. "Why so far away? And I thought Saturn was kept asleep."
Serenity leaned wearily against his chest. "Kunzite felt the farther away from…that man…the better. He was trying to use her against us. It was probably just as well, she would have been with us in Sendai when the Tsunami hit." She felt Endymion squeeze her hard. "It worked out because Uranus had a race and Neptune had a concert. They took Saturn because Pluto gets busy with work and can't always make it home to be with Saturn. So, they invited Chibi-Usa to accompany Saturn."
"As for why Saturn's not sleeping like she was in the Silver Millennium, it's not necessary. People were afraid of her strength and power. She's the strongest of all of us. Back then, because she was born, everyone felt that she would destroy the Galaxy, so Mother ordered that she be kept asleep. I don't think that even Mother understood that Saturn couldn't just wake up one morning and decide that she needed to destroy everything. Certain parameters have to be passed before she can do so. Those parameters were passed on the day we died."
"Well, that's good to know." Endymion kissed the top of her head. "So, other than their planetary names, how else are they known?"
"Pluto is Meioh Setsuna. Uranus is Tenoh Haruka. Neptune is Kaioh Michiru. And Saturn is Tomoe Hotaru." She looked up at him. "You know, you have access to your old memories and the memories of what has happened to the Shitennou and I in the present. You should be able to recall their names that way."
Endymion smiled down at her. "It's more fun asking you. Anyway, I'm going to have to absorb it all. It's there but it's like it's floating on top of my brain…not actually in it yet." He stood up carrying Serenity with him. "We need to go." He pretended he didn't hear her moan of protest. "It's not good for you to be here. I can tell that you've used a lot of your own energy to show me everything. Besides, the others are waiting for us. They're probably worried that it's taken so long."
"Everyone is probably going to be mad at me because I hid."
Endymion shrugged. "Probably, but we'll deal with that when the time comes. Are you ready to go?"
"Yes." She said softly and waved her hand. The barrier of rose bushes wavered, and then disappeared like smoke.
Standing just a few yards away were the Shitennou, the Senshi and Sailor Pluto. Pluto stepped forward. "Welcome back, Serenity."
"I'm sorry, Puu."
Pluto rested her hand against Serenity's cheek. "I forgive you. Just don't do it again. It's time that you go back to your present. It's dangerous if all of you remain here much longer." She raised her staff and brought it down against the ground with a deafening ring.
When the ringing stopped they found themselves back in the hospital room, still holding hands, their transformations somehow gone. Usagi's eyelids fluttered for a moment then opened. Dazedly she blinked until she could focus again. "Dimi." She whispered.
Mamoru leaned over and kissed her gently. "I'm here." She smiled up at him but he didn't smile back. He released Ami's hand and leaned over Usagi's bed and planted his hands on either side of her head and lowered his face until their noses were almost touching. "I know I said that I understand why you killed yourself back in the Silver Millennium but I am NOT HAPPY that you tried to do it again here and now. If you EVER try and kill yourself in this lifetime or any other, I'm going to turn you over my knee and spank the living daylights out of you. Do you understand?"
"Yes." Came the reply in a small voice.
Jade snorted. "You just want an excuse to get your hands on her ass."
Nephrite and Makoto looked at each other for a moment, casually moved to either side of him and simultaneously punched him in the stomach. Jade sank to his knees in agony, trying to suck air into his abused lungs. Rei grinned at his predicament.
Minako turned to the frail girl on the bed. "Hello Princess." The other girls joyfully echoed the greeting and swarmed the bed, avoiding the IV drips and hugging the girl they'd be looking for so long.
After the hugs were over, Shingo spoke plaintively. "I want to hug Usagi too!"
Ami looked at Shingo, "The nurses will probably be upset but as long as someone picks you up and puts you on the bed next to her, there won't be too much scolding." She lowered the side of Usagi's bed, and then lowered the side of Shingo's.
Kazuya frowned. "I'll take care of anyone that objects. I think it's more detrimental to the two of them if they can't hug for a while during this time then if they're kept separate." He pulled back the sheets. The girls could see that the younger boy had a cast on his leg going all the way to the top of his thigh. Kazuya picked up Shingo, Makoto moved quickly and supported the broken leg so that it wouldn't move too much, and walked over to Usagi's bed and laid Shingo down next to her.
Shingo carefully avoided the IV lines and wrapped his arms around his sister. "Dumb blond…don't you ever scare me like that again."
Tears rolled down Usagi's face and she buried her face against her little brother. "I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I tried, I swear I tried!" She sobbed and kept repeating herself. The others watched with tears in their own eyes as Shingo became a big brother for a while and held his sister, rocking her back and forth, whispering softly to her. Kazuya sat on the other side of the bed and wrapped his own arms about his younger siblings and the three mourned the loss of their parents.
Zoicite caught the eyes of the others and nodded at the door. The group quietly left the room and made their way down the corridor to the elevator. Just before the doors closed, Nephrite cancelled the several spells that surrounded the group and Usagi and Shingo's hospital room door.
No one spoke until they were standing outside the hospital.
Nephrite turned to the girls and Mamoru. "Listen, it's probably going to be a while before they'll let Usagi and Shingo out. But, I promise we'll call and let you know. And we'll let you know when the funeral for their parents will be. I think they'd like it if you were there to give your support."
"Thank you. We'd appreciate that." Said Minako.
The three Shitennou bowed and walked off. Mamoru and the Senshi watched until they were out of sight. As they turned to go on their own way, Makoto gasped.
"What's wrong?" asked Ami.
"He said they'd call us." She turned stunned eyes to the others. "How do they know our phone numbers?"