A/N: Definition of Fanfic: FICTION (a non realistic story) made by a FAN (an ardent follower and admirer) of another person's work, using that person's ideas to make an original story. As such, the only thing the FAN owns is their respective original story and original characters; NOT the object(s) of their FANdom.

~A time ago, Juban, Tokyo~

"Mama, where are we going?" The lovely blonde child asked her mother as their car moved along the moonlit road at a very high speed. The woman driving glanced at her daughter before looking back at the road.

"We're going to go get your Aunt Ikuko and your cousin. They're going to stay with us for a while."

"Mm." The small girl had heard that she had a younger cousin, but had never met her or her aunt. Still, she was eager to have a new friend to play with. But... "Mama, why are you mad?" Children by nature are much more perceptive of emotions than adults, and the four year old in the passenger seat was no exception to this.

Taking a moment to gather herself, the mother replied, "Because I'm not happy with your Uncle right now. He's been doing bad things. Ah, here's the street. And the house is...!"

The car jerked to a stop as the mother let loose a string of words that she would later ground her child for repeating. Jumping out of the car, she looked back to her daughter in the back seat. "Stay here and do not get out of the car."

Nodding, the child looked towards the house that her mother was walking towards. Even a child could see that something was wrong. The windows were smashed, and the door was ajar. Lights were on all over the house, and loud yelling could be heard, along with the sound of things being thrown. The child watched as her mother kicked in the front door and walked in. After a moment, her voice could be heard from outside the building, along with more words that would result in punishment for the little girl repeating. After a long moment a woman the girl didn't know exited the building, carrying a bundle of red sheets in her hands. Following closely behind was the girl's mother, carrying a nice sized baseball bat. Now, the girl's mother was well known for her short temper, despite being a famous magazine model. And right now, her temper was on full display as a angry and bloody man came crashing out of the house after them, only to jump back in fear as the bat sped past the spot where his head was an instant ago.

"Don't you dare come anywhere NEAR us or so help me god I'll smash every bone in your pathetic body!" Without waiting for a reply the mother ushered the woman in front of her into the car. With a last glare at the man, the woman backed out and sped off, the child knowing better than to say anything when her mother was in the state she was in.

"Ikuko, we're going to the hospital."

"No. We can call for a private doctor."

"Ikuko! Your daughter needs medical attention as soon as-"

"NO! I will not be further embarrassed because of this-this THING!" With a yell, she threw the bundle she was holding into the backseat. And at that same moment, she cried out in pain as her sister's palm connected with her face.

"I have never been more ashamed to be your sister, Ikuko. You were blessed with a beautiful child, but all you have done is blame the child for your failing relationship. If it wasn't for our mother telling to always look out for you, I'd have that child taken away from you and leave you where ever you want to be. Now, call the doctor and tell them to meet us at my house. NOW."

Ikuko didn't dare dispute her sister and made haste to call the doctor. Just as the pulled in to the home, the doctor pulled up as well.

The child got out of the car just as the two women did likewise. The doctor was obviously not pleased as she approached the two sisters, "Tsukino-san. I do believe that I made it clear last time that if your daughter needed emergency medical attention again, that I would be filing a police report as well as a doctor's report?"

Ikuko moved forward to speak but the doctor held up her hand to stop her, "I don't care for the excuse. Take her into an open room. I'll follow along with my equipment."

In the home, Ikuko tossed the bundle of sheets onto the bed, and then left the room with a huff. Ignoring her, the doctor walked into the room to where the woman and child were. "Are you two related to the Tsukino family?"

The woman nodded, "I am Miyako Aino, Ikuko's sister. This is my daughter, Minako."

"I see. Aino-san, it's fine if you stay in here, but this isn't something a child should see."

Miyako nodded and turned to her daughter, "Minako-chan, go into your room and get ready for bed. I'll be in there in a minute." After a moment, Minako nodded and left the room, closing the door behind her. Almost. Instead, she left it just open enough for her to peak through the crack and see into the room.

"Alright, here we go..." Picking up the bundle of sheets on the bed, the doctor began unwrapping them until it revealed a child, a girl smaller than Minako. Her golden hair was matted with red, bruises all over her body. Minako had to hold her hand to her mouth to keep herself from gasping. The girl was badly injured.

"All of these injuries..." Miyako gasped as she gazed at the unconscious girl. The doctor nodded.

"These injuries aren't nearly as bad as some of the one's I've treated her for before..! Dammit! That son of a..! Quickly, get me a damp towel!"

Moving over to the sink in the room, Miyako came back with a damp towel, "What's wr- oh my god! That bastard, he- he ra-!"

"Calm down, Aino-san, lest you- Ah. Too late."

Miyako's eyes widened as slowly, the girl on the bed sat up, rubbing her eyes. However, upon seeing Miyako, the girl immediately gasped in shock, jumping out of the bed with great speed, moving towards the window, never talking her narrowed eyes off of the woman. "...Who are you?"

Even in the situation that she was in, Miyako couldn't help but let out a wistful sigh as she looked at her niece. Even when she was covered in blood and injuries, the child was utterly and almost unearthly beautiful. However, Miyako had more than enough self control to keep her head on her shoulders. Especially with the look on the child's face.

Miyako could see it in her eyes. A look that she knew firsthand. That look of absolute hatred; a fire that no child's eyes should possess. A look that threatened bodily pain to anyone who came near her. A look of desperation that was searching for any kind of escape route.

Now, Miyako herself was a very pretty woman, and as such, had had her own run-ins with unsavory people. However, it wasn't until after she gave birth to her daughter Minako that she found out exactly how horrible people could be. And it was due to one simple fact.

Minako was just as beautiful as Ikuko's daughter.

The child was only four, and there had been multiple kidnapping attempts, and even more...coercion... attempts. All of them had failed, due in part the high class area where they lived, and also the weaponry that Miyako always carried on her persona. But most importantly, Miyako was a smart woman. She rarely let her daughter out of her sight.

And thanks to comforting her daughter after every situation that she was able to understand some of what her niece was feeling.

With a smile on her face, Miyako took a step to her side, near the bed, "Nice to meet you. I'm Miyako Aino, your mother Ikuko's sister."

Perhaps that was the wrong thing to say. Instead of relaxing, the girl's eyes widened, then narrowed at the sound of her mother's name, the child edging ever closer to the window. "Stay away."

The two women could see that the girl was barely standing. She was in no condition to be out of the bad, let alone on her feet. From the doorway, Minako's eyes widened as she saw blood dripping from the girl's thighs. She had no idea what it meant, but she knew that it must be very, very painful.

The doctor slowly stepped forward, "It's all right, little one. Do you remember me? I'm Sayu, the get well lady. Don't worry; no one here is going to hurt you, I promise. But we need you to come back to the bed so we can make you feel better, okay?"

After a moment, the child's eyes lit with recognition, and she slowly relaxed. However, her narrowed eyes never left Miyako as she moved back to sit on the bed.

"Good girl," Sayu said as she moved over to the child, then, in a much gentler voice, "I'm going to wipe off your body now. It will hurt too much to take a bath..."

"I can do it, Sayu-sensei. I'm used to it." Taking the towel from Sayu, the child began to wipe the blood and grime off of herself. It was heart-wrenching to witness. And when she wiped off her thighs, both Miyako and her daughter's hearts broke as the child winced in pain.

When she was done, Sayu treated and bandaged her wounds and Miyako gave her a set of clothing to wear. Taking the clothes, the child looked at Miyako. "...Where...is mama?"

Miyako's face wilted for the briefest of moments as her thoughts turned towards her sister, but then it went back to her kind, gentle expression. "Your mother isn't feeling well, so she is in the room downstairs resting. Do you want me to go get her?"

"...No, it's okay." The child shook her head. Secretly, Miyako was relieved. She really didn't want to talk to Ikuko at the moment. The child then looked at the two adults in a more relaxed manner; one that was said that she was willing to talk to them. Seeing this, Sayu spoke up.

"I know that you're tired, but I have to ask you. As usual, if you were told not to tell anyone, just don't say anything. But if the answer is no, just shake your head, okay?"

A nod. "Alright then, here we go. First off, are your wounds feeling at least a little better since I put the medicine on them?"

*Nod*

"That's good to hear. Have either of your parents been giving you medicines recently?"

"..."

"I see. Have you met any new friends lately? Have your parents brought any strange people to see you since last time? People that you feel uncomfortable around?"

*Shake*

"That's good. Now, last question...was your father the one who hurt you?"

All eyes were on the small child, who remained silent for the longest time, staring at the sheets on the bed until at last she looked up at Sayu, not meeting her eyes.

*Shake*

Sayu studied the child for a long moment. "I see. Well, at any rate, you need to get some rest, and it's already late. Are you ready to go to bed?"

"Hungry." Minako noticed that the girl had stopped glaring at her mom, apparently deciding that she wasn't a bad person.

"Then, I'll make you something light to eat, that way it doesn't upset your stomach, okay?" Miyako smiled kindly at the child. It was a genuine smile that held no malice or hidden intentions, and to everyone's surprise, that smile was mirrored by the child, her eyes lit with just a touch of the happiness that until now had been completely missing from them.

"Thank you."

With a slight blush on her face, Miyako smiled back, and headed towards the door along with Sayu. Minako managed to hide in the bathroom just as Miyako and Sayu exited the room and descended the stairs. Quietly, she moved back over to the door and slowly opened it. Then, for the rest of her life, she would swear to herself that she saw a little goddess.

There, in the pitch black room, illuminated by the softest of moonlight, a small child stood by the window, her twin-tailed hair as silver as the moon itself, falling to her ankles as she gazed out of the window, a forlorn expression on her face as her tiny hand rested gently on the glass. Her voice was like a crystal bell; beautiful yet sad as she spoke out softly to the night sky.

"Goddess Selene, Mother, please watch over and guide us...this pain...all of this...It's too much...it is not something that anyone should experience, let alone a child..."

Tears came to Minako's eyes; she had no idea why she was crying, or even what the other girl was talking about, but something pulled at her heartstrings. Unable to help herself, she began to cry, falling to her knees as she wept in her hands.

Suddenly, she felt a warm touch on her cheek. As she look up, she saw eyes purest of blue as she was embraced. For a split-second, she thought she saw silver hair, but the moment she blinked, the silver was replaced by golden blonde and she realized she was being hugged by the blonde girl that she had been watching for most of the night.

"It's okay now, Mina-chan..." The child whispered as she stroked Minako's face gently, and Minako leaned in to the touch.

Fifteen minutes later, Miyako returned to find Minako fast asleep, lying on the legs of the younger child, who was equally asleep, leaning against the bed-frame. Smiling to herself, she picked up her daughter and lay her on the bed near the window. Inwardly, she thanked the gods that she had kept Minako's old bed when she bought her a new one. After tucking her in, Miyako then went over to her sister's child and gently picked her up, as not to aggravate any of her wounds, and gasped.

"Ah, It seems that you noticed."

Spinning towards the door, Miyako looked at Sayu in disbelief, "How...how is this possible..? This girl, she's..!"

Sayu nodded, taking the child from the stunned woman's hands. Moving over to the vacant bed, she tucked the child in, gently brushing the hair out of her face. Then, motioning to Miyako, Sayu left the room, closely followed by Miyako.

As soon as they were in the living room, Miyako began. "Sayu-san, what in the world is going on! How do you explain this? The child's wounds- they're almost completely healed already!"

It was true. The moment Miyako had picked the child up, she had saw it. Although still present, all of the cuts, bruises, and injuries that were on the child's body had faded away, barely visible anymore.

Sayu nodded once again. "That's right. It happens every time. No matter how badly she's injured, at least for external injuries, within a few days, the wounds are almost always completely healed, to the point where any scar or mark completely vanishes. However, it seems that this healing ability doesn't apply to internal injuries for some reason. Needless to say, this is not the first time I've come to address her injuries. I am, however, the only one outside her family that is aware of her condition. A condition that may be more of a curse than a blessing..."

"A curse?" Miyako cried in disbelief, "How can such a blessing from God be a curse?"

"Haven't you seen the way her mother treats her? In her opinion, the child is a monster. A monster in an angel's guise."

'I will not be further embarrassed because of this-this THING!' Her sister's words rang in her head, the look of absolute hatred on her face stuck in her mind. "A monster..."

"That's right."

Both Miyako and Sayu turned to the entrance of the living room to see Ikuko glaring at her sister with the same look she had earlier. "That child is nothing but a monster. A monster that's caused nothing pain and suffering for my marriage. It disgusts me that I had to give birth to such a-!"

SLAP.

She was silenced by both the hand AND the look on her elder sister's face. Miyako had never felt more hatred in all of her life than she did right now at this moment. To not only hate her child, but to blame her for her own failing marriage...

"If that's how you feel, then you don't have to worry. You won't be taking care of her anymore."

"What are you talking about?"

"What I'm saying is, that from now on, I will be taking care of her. You won't have to worry about her anymore. You're not fit to raise a child, anyway. I'm assuming you have no problem with relinquishing custody, right?"

It was as if you could see the gears in Ikuko's head spinning like clockwork as a dark grin appeared on her face. "None at all. You can have her. I'll fill out the paperwork by tomorrow. I'll see you later, Nee-san, I'm going to go celebrate!" With that she left, laughing almost hysterically the entire way out of the house, turning back only to send one last scathing glare at the top of the stairs before she slammed the door behind her.

Following her look, Miyako gasped as she spotted the two blonde children, Minako holding the younger child as she cried into her pajama shirt. Racing up the stairs, Miyako scooped the girl up into her arms, rubbing her back as the girl cried her heart out, consoling her with gentle words.

After a long while, the girl finally stopped crying. Looking at her, Miyako could see it. The child's spirit had broken; shattered into a million pieces. And as she gazed at the soulless look in her eyes, Miyako wasn't sure that she could fix it.

Now, for a three year old, the child was very intelligent for her age. She knew very well that her mother thought she was a monster, and that she hated her; as well as knew what it meant to hand over custody of her. It meant that her mother didn't want her anymore, and that she was giving her away. And while so far Miyako had shown much more love and compassion towards her than Ikuko ever had, the child couldn't just abandon the feelings of love that she had for her mother. At least, not right away.

"Aino-san." The child waited until Miyako set her down before she spoke, "Can I sleep somewhere alone tonight? I wanna be by myself." The child's voice was dead. There was no sense of emotion in it whatsoever. And it hurt Miyako.

"Listen, sweetie, your mother isn't-"

"It's alright." Miyako stopped as the child shook her head, "I already know. It's not mamma's fault I'm a monster. If I were normal, then maybe mamma would love me. Night night."

Moving past the mother and child, she walked over to the bedroom she had awoken in.

"Wait!" The child stopped as Minako grabbed her hand. "I don't know your name!"

The child looked at Minako for a long moment. She was surprised at how Minako could ignore everything that had just happened and be upset at something as simple as a forgotten introduction.

"It's gonna change after tomorrow, but right now it's Usagi. Usagi Tsukino."

And true to her words, the next day Ikuko returned with all of the necessary paperwork to hand over custody of Usagi to Miyako, and by the morn of the following day, Usagi Tsukino was officially Usagi Aino, youngest daughter of Miyako Aino.

...Of course, even if it was easy for the Ainos to accept Usagi, it wasn't so simple the other way around. In fact, the moment after Usagi became an Aino, she went silent.

She utterly and completely refused to speak a single word to anyone, whether it was Miyako, Minako, Sayu, anybody. The girl wouldn't make a sound, even if she got pricked by a flower thorn, or accidentally hurt herself. Needless to say, this caused several incidents, the most prominent of which occurred around week ten of Usagi's 'Silent Saga'. Coincidentally, it was also the one that brought an end to said saga.

It was almost dinner time and Miyako had been busy cooking all day. During which time, both Minako and Usagi had come and gone from the kitchen several times, Miyako not bothering to disturb them. As Miyako was putting the final touches on the meal, she noticed a red spot on the floor. Taking a closer look, she noticed a trail of said spots leading out of the kitchen and up the stairs. As she passed by Minako, who was asleep on the couch in the living room, she noticed the spots getting bigger and began to move more quickly, a sense of dread creeping into her heart. The trail led to the children's room, all the way over to Usagi's bed where the child in question was sitting silently, the white bedsheets completely soaked in blood, her left hand wrapped up in them.

After treating her hand, Miyako pieced together what had happened from Usagi's nonverbal storytelling. Apparently, Usagi had brushed against her dresser, knocking over her mirror. When she went to clean it up, she did so with her hands, cutting herself very badly in the process. And to Miyako's absolute horror, when she asked how long ago this had occurred, Usagi held up six fingers. Six hours. Needless to say, Miyako was furious. At first, she was mad that Usagi had hurt herself that badly and not said a word, and then even madder that she had not gone to her for help. Grabbing the child's shoulders, she demanded to know why she hadn't come to her, why she never said anything; why she kept everything to herself. And after a long moment of silence, just as Miyako was walking out of the room, a voice caught her ear. It was tiny, but crystal clear.

"Because nobody ever listened when I begged for help before."

And then, it hit Miyako. Of course. Of course she would never ask for help. She had gone all this time with abusive parents; it only makes sense that she would start to rely on herself and stop relying on other people. Taking Usagi's injured hand gently in her own, Miyako looked the child in the eyes, a gentle yet serious expression on her face. "Usagi-chan. I don't know everything that happened to you before, but here, in this house as my child, you can always come to me or Minako when you need help. We will never abandon you, we will never ignore you when you need us. You don't have to rely on yourself. Let us help you. That's what family is for."

"Family..." Usagi looked at the hand the was gently holding hers; she could feel the warmth of both the hand and the words. "We're...a family." And suddenly, she pulled into Miyako's arms as Minako hugged her from behind, having listened to the entire conversation ordeal from the door.

"Yes," Miyako said, tears of happiness in her eyes, "The three of us are a family. And families are always there for each other, no matter what. Now come on, you two. Dinner is ready."

Smiling from head to toe, Minako reached out and grabbed Usagi's hand, but gasped in surprise as she was suddenly pushed away by the girl. "Usagi-chan?"

Also looking at her, Miyako noticed that the same hand that Minako grabbed was the one that had been injured. However, to her shock, she noticed that the wound had reopened when Minako grabbed it. Gently, she reached out and took hold of the injured hand. "The injury...it's not healing..?" Indeed, it was as if Usagi's strange healing factor was no longer present. "What happened to the healing power...?" It was a question she had spoken to herself. She hadn't expected Usagi to answer her.

"The Queen lady took it away."

Miyako looked at her questioningly, "What do you mean? 'The Queen lady took it away'?"

Usagi nodded, "She said I don't need it anymore."

Miyako was concerned about the fact that someone had approached and talked to Usagi without anyone's notice, but she ignored it for the moment, "Usagi-chan, why did she say you don't need it anymore?"

Getting off of the bed, Usagi took Minako's hand in her uninjured one and moved over to the door. "Because I'm safe now."

Since that day, the Aino family became closer to each other than ever. Minako and Usagi were especially close. Minako took her role as elder sister very seriously, acting much like a little bodyguard to her younger sibling. Subsequently, Usagi was the mature younger sister that had a soothing effect on everyone. It had become a manner of course to see Usagi comforting Minako with her signature 'It's okay now, Mina-chan' whenever Minako was upset about something. But even so, that didn't stop Miyako from paying extra attention to Usagi. Or, more specifically, the things that she said.

For it seemed that with the disappearance of her healing ability, she had gained a new kind of ability; one that was in a way, much more scary.

She gained the power of premonition. That in itself wasn't what was scary about it to Miyako. After all, the Aino family were descendents of star tellers, those that would predict the future by reading the stars. The scary thing was that it wasn't predictions that she gave.

It was warnings.

At first, they were minute things that Miyako paid no major mind to. But then Usagi forewarned something that she couldn't just take lightly. She forewarned a kidnapping.

It happened three days later. Miyako had a commercial shoot for a new women's perfume, and as a;ways, she had brought Minako and Usagi along, for she felt more at ease with them with her rather than with a sitter. The shoot was not going well; despite herself, Miyako couldn't get Usagi's words out of her head and it was showing on her face. At last, the director called for a short break. After getting a drink of water, Miyako turned to the side area where the two children were sitting... to find that they weren't there. Dropping her water, she raced through the building, alerting every security guard in the process until they heard gunfire.

Rushing to the source, the ran outside the building to find both children hiding behind a young man who was pointing a gun at another man on the floor, bleeding, from the leg. Everyone quickly recognized the bleeding man as the cameraman who had been hired just a few weeks prior. Upset that his cameraman was injured, the director confronted the gun-clad man only to be pinned to the ground and handcuffed. At the same time, several police officers suddenly appeared from all sides, grabbing the director and the cameraman.

As it turned out, the gun-clad man was an undercover police officer who had been investigating a series of child kidnapping, and had suspected the director of the commercial shoot. However, up until then, he didn't have enough evidence to make an arrest. It was then, that Usagi had approached him and stated quite plainly that someone was going to kidnap her and her sister that day. As an officer that dealt with children, he knew to approach the situation seriously, even if he was slightly skeptical as to how she knew such a thing. As such, he kept an eye on both children through out the commercial shoot. And sure enough, the moment the two children went to the restroom, the director called for a break and the cameraman left the room with haste. Calling in for backup, the officer followed the man from the shadows and incapacitated him with a bullet to the leg before he could even get near his car with the two children.

That was the last time that Miyako failed to heed Usagi's warnings. And it was two days after that incident that Usagi made her final warning, one that had Miyako on edge for many a month to come.

'Soon will come a time when this child shall disappear from before you. But worry not, for the galaxy shall watch over her; eternal guardians. And when the guardian appears before you, you shall have no qualms with supplying them that which they desire. Although your heart shall contain chaos and darkness at the time, it will soon afterward change into sorrow and remorse. Yet take heart, for although many moons shall pass, you shall meet again, when the moon and stars shine brightly.'

As if it wasn't enough that she predicted that she would somehow disappear, the part that truly scared Miyako was that, unlike previous warnings, this time little Usagi had no memory of making the prediction whatsoever. And as Minako had not been in the room to hear it, Miyako was tempted to pretend it never happened. However, she knew that only a fool would do that, especially after what she had seen Usagi predict before. So, she settled to make sure that the lives of her children were as happy as could be.

That happiness lasted three months.

It was a rainy night. Miyako was in the kitchen, cleaning the dishes from the dinner that they had just finished. Suddenly, sound of screaming and breaking glass had her running towards the front of the house. When she arrived, her heart froze. Standing in the doorway, holding an unconscious Usagi was a man that Miyako knew very well. Kenji Tsukino. Usagi's father.

Behind him, the door had been kicked open and was in splinters, while Minako was on the floor to his left, slumped against the wall, glaring at the man.

"Don't move, Miyako." Miyako's eyes widened as a jet black gun was pointed straight at her. "Just stay where you are and we won't have any problems."

"What the hell do you think you're doing, Kenji!" Her glare was matched by his own as the arm that was holding Usagi tightened.

"Isn't it obvious? I'm taking back what belongs to me. That bitch of a woman had no right giving away my property..."

"She's not your property! Let go of my daughter!"

"YOUR DAUGHTER! WHO THE HELL DO YOU-ARGH!"

The moment the man had made to move towards Miyako, Minako had sprang forward, latching on to his arm with her teeth. Glaring at the child, Kenji slung her into a wall, then turned back to Miyako.

BANG.

Miyako screamed as her mother fell to the floor, crying out in pain.

"Let that teach you a lesson about taking what's mine. Now, let us go home, my dear sweet Usagi...my dear sweet doll."

Miyako was torn. Was she supposed to go after the man who took her sister, or stay and help her mom? Shaking her head, Miyako ran to the phone and quickly dialed 911. However, her mother wasn't having it. She had been shot in the leg, but from the pain she could tell that it had just missed the bone. Looking at her daughter, she could see her determination mirrored back at her. Dragging herself to her car, she and Miyako sped off, trying desperately to think of where the mad man would go.

She had been driving for five minutes when it hit her.

'Let us go home, my dear Usagi...'

Hitting a sharp U-turn, she accelerated hard, flying towards Usagi's old home.

As soon as they rounded the corner to the home, they came to a sight that Miyako would remember for the rest of her life.

Kenji, or what was left of him, was lying on the ground, blood seeping from his corpse. A distance away from him, surrounded by things Miyako could only describe as monstrous shadows, Usagi and another child were desperately trying to fight them off with sticks, but to no avail as they were thrown around mercilessly. Then, Miyako cringed as the two children were slammed into the side of the house.

"USAGI-CHAN!"

The child didn't know what told her to do it, but something inside of Minako turned on. Something that swirled all around her, and came to one point. 'I can't let them hurt Usagi-chan.' And suddenly, she was angry. More angry than she had ever been in her life. And then, it was like her body was on auto-pilot, her body moving, fueled by raw emotion, her conscience taking a back seat.

She ran forward, rushing at the shadows. Ignoring the screams from her mother, she leapt high into the air, much higher than a child should possibly be able to. Holding her hands out in front of her, she cried out. "ROLLING HEART VIBRATION!"

At that moment, a burst of energy shot forth, slamming into the ground in the shape of an enormous heart and slammed into the shadows that were surrounding Usagi and the other child, destroying several of them. "Don't you dare touch Usagi-chan!"

The shadows however, were not ones to be scared of a child. The moment she landed a black claw slashed her chest, sending her flying into the other two children. Catching her, Usagi's eyes widened in horror as she saw the blood flowing from Minako's chest, and the tears in her eyes.

"I'm sorry, Usagi. I'm the big sister... I'm supposed to... protect..."

The moment Minako lost consciousness, it happened. With a scream, a burst of blinding white light erupted from Usagi, engulfing everything from the children and the shadows, to the house behind her. Miyako had shielded her eyes the moment the light erupted, but even after it faded it took a minute for her eyes to readjust, and when they did she was speechless.

The shadows were gone. Gone, along with the house,Kenji's body, and everything in the vicinity of the burst of light. Except the children.

As Usagi calmed down, she gasped as Minako slowly sat up. Her body was completely healed, not even the slash marks remaining. Hugging her elder sister tightly, Usagi cried into her hair, unable to contain herself. Tears also in her eyes, Minako hugged her back. "It's okay now, Usagi-chan. Everything's-!"

Suddenly, Minako was pulled away from the embrace into another, much stronger one. One that was emanating a dark aura. Looking up, Usagi's eyes were met by Miyako's, a dark, hateful, fearful look in them.

"You... what in God's name are you..?You destroyed everything...YOU DESTROYED EVERYTHING! WHAT THE HELL KIND OF MONSTER ARE YOU!"

Trapped in her mother's arms, Minako could see the shock and pain in Usagi's eyes.

"But...mama, I-"

"STAY AWAY FROM ME AND MY DAUGHER, YOU MONSTER!"

The moment the words came out of her mouth, she regretted it. Both mother and child watched as the light faded from Usagi's eyes, crystal blue turning dull, almost gray as her head fell, her hair covering her face. Tears fell from Usagi's eyes, tears that hurt the very soul.

"Usagi-chan, wait, I-!" Stepping forward, Miyako suddenly jumped back, falling to the ground as a knife sliced through the air exactly where her hand had been outstretched an instant ago.

"Stay away from us." It was the other child, a girl with short black hair and deep eyes. Eyes that held hatred for the world. However, the hatred disappeared as she turned to her companion, placing a soft hand on her cheek. "See Usa-chan? I told you; she's the same as everybody else. No matter who, all they do is hurt us, or use us. We can only rely on each other. Remember what we promised?"

Usagi's shoulders shuddered. Wiping her eyes, she looked at her companion and nodded. Her face was wet, but her eyes were clear. There were no tears. She would cry no more.

"That's right, Usa-chan. No more tears. We are on our own from now on. We can't cry for anyone anymore. Then, are you ready to go?"

Usagi nodded again, "Yes. Let's go, Ho-chan." Following her friend, the two children began to walk off as sirens began to be heard in the distance.

"Usagi-chan!"

The girls turned back to see Minako running towards them. Usagi ran to meet her half-way. "Usagi-chan, I-" Minako fell silent as Usagi shook her head. Then, reaching into her pocket, she pulled out a small box and put it into her hands.

"...Happy birthday, Minako Aino."

Stepping away, Usagi's eyes turned to the woman she had until moments ago called mama. However, there were no emotions in the eyes that looked at the woman now. The feelings Usagi had for the woman were no more. They were a hazard. And they were better cast away. Nonetheless, Usagi wasn't rude by nature, and due to Miyako being famous and wealthy, both she and Minako had been brought up being taught manners and customs befitting their social rank. So ever-so-slightly, the twin-tailed girl curtsied, bowing her head slightly to the woman who had at the very least supplied her with more happiness than her first parents ever did.

"Gokigenyou, Aino-san."

And with that, the two children disappeared into the night, their footsteps fading away as the sirens blared louder, police cars screeching to a stop, officers rushing onto the scene. Paramedics immediately grabbed Miyako and pulled her into the truck, an officer escorting young Minako to the hospital right behind them. As she got into the car, Minako couldn't help but to take one last look the night into which her sister disappeared.

By the morning of the next day, the doctors concluded that Miyako would make a full recovery quickly, and that the bullet injury wouldn't leave a scar, to Miyako's relief. When the police came to question them as to what had happened, however, Miyako left out the part about Usagi's power, stating instead that an explosion occurred suddenly, causing the damage that took place. The police were strangely accepting of the story, and made no attempts whatsoever to try to dig for more information. Usagi was listed as a missing child; one to be apprehended and taken into protective custody on sight.

Minako had also been cleared by the hospital to be in perfect health, however that was not the case entirely. Mentally, the girl was in turmoil. The moment she had returned to her home with her mother, she had began trying to find Usagi. Unfortunately, there was only so much that a four year old child could do, so everyday, she would sit in the hallway, dialing every number in the phone book that she could, asking anyone who answered if they knew anything about her missing sister.

At first, Miyako allowed Minako her efforts, but eventually she told her child that it was no use, that Usagi had left on her own accord, and would come back when she felt she was ready to. However, Minako knew that her mother was lying; that she was hiding something about Usagi from her. The way that she had acted when Usagi kidnapped as well as the way she had been acting recently...Minako, as almost all children, were highly attuned to people's emotions and she could feel that something was not right with what her mother was telling her.

It wasn't like that when they first got out of the hospital. In fact, at first Miyako was also doing everything she could to find Usagi. However, one day she completely changed, and no longer made any attempt to find the child she had called a daughter. At first, Minako thought she was feeling guilt for what she had called Usagi, but that idea quickly faded as she watched her mother begin to go about her days as if she had always had only one child. It wasn't until almost three months later that she found out the truth.

She had awoken in the middle of the night, and was thirsty. Moving silently out of her room, she was halfway down the stairs when she stopped as she heard her mother's voice, unusually serious.

"-all the papers are signed right here. I've relinquished all rights as Usagi's parent over to you. Just remember what you've promised."

"There's no need to worry. Well then, I'll be taking my leave."

The moment the door closed, Miyako was faced with an angry Minako, her expression darker than she'd ever seen.

"Who was that?"

"Oh, that-that was just a frien-"

"Where is Usagi-chan?"

"Honey, what are you-"

"WHERE IS MY SISTER!"

"... She's gone. She's not your sister anymore." Miyako was getting tired of explaining to Minako, and had figured it was best to tell her straight, "She was adopted by someone just a moment ago."

"...You gave my sister away... I hate you... I HATE YOU!"

That would be the last thing that Minako would say to her mother for many, many years.

Time passed. Minako's efforts to find her sister were met with failure after failure. It was as if all information about her had disappeared off of the face of the Earth. And yet, even as the years passed, she would never truly give up her efforts. Her relationship with her mother was almost nonexistent. For all intents and purposes, Minako pretended as if her mother was not there. She never spoke to her, never even looked at her. She did her own dishes, cooked her own food, did her own laundry...she made every attempt possible to deny that her mother existed at all. In fact, if it wasn't for her faint hope that Usagi would reappear on their doorstep one day, Minako would have left that home long ago.

Miyako was a wreck. She had quit her modeling job and simply wasted her days doing nothing at home. Every night, she would try in vain to get her daughter to say something, anything to her, but it was always to no avail. Eventually, she began to drown her sorrows in alcohol.

Shaking her head, Minako cleared away her thoughts. That had happened years ago. She was currently sitting in Crown with her allies, and had just been scolded by her feline companion Artemis for insulting potential allies. Taking a deep breath to cool down, she placed a hand on her chest. She could feel it. Around her neck was a beautiful silver and gold necklace. It had a golden symbol of the planet Venus cradled by a silver crescent moon. The birthday present that Usagi had last given her all those years ago. Whenever she held it, she would always manage to calm down. Even more so after she met Artemis and awoken to being a Sailor Senshi.

Getting her head back in the game, Minako watched as her guide and friend Artemis talked to the woman called Setsuna, also known as Sailor Pluto. It kind of bothered her that the cat was so friendly with the woman, but Minako pushed those thoughts aside. After all, he and Sailor Pluto had known each other for much longer than she had known him. Instead, her mind turned to the other thing that had been nagging at her all day.

The girl with long blonde hair, Usagi Mizuno.

Something about the girl had been bothering her the entire time. There was something about her that was extremely familiar, but she couldn't place what it was. And every time she felt that she was getting closer to realizing what it was, it was like her mind would freeze for a moment, and she would forget what she was thinking about.

Thinking about the girl, Minako's eyes went wide as Artemis moved over to the currently unconscious girl and lick her on the cheek. It was more than shocking. In all the time she knew him, Artemis was always distant to anybody except for herself. He almost never showed any kind of emotion like he was doing with the unconscious girl right now. Even if she and Minako did look similar.

'Wait, look similar..?'

Minako's eyes lit with realization as the bridges began to connect themselves, facts began to add together, and one plus one began to equal two. Suddenly, it was as if some kind of spell had broken, and everything she had been trying to think of hit her all at once.

"No...no way...Usagi-chan..?"

It was all there, the facts, everything. And yet, Minako was scared for the briefest of moments. Could it really be true? Could the person she had so desperately searched for really be right here in front of her? And if so, why? Why hadn't she said anything? Why was she pretending not to know her? Was it possible that she had the wrong person? She decided to find out the only way that she could think of.

Moving slowly, she walked over and pulled Usagi's hand to her cheek. Leaning in slightly, Minako sighed softly as Usagi subconsciously stroked her face.

"It's okay now, Mina-chan," Usagi cooed softly, a warm look on her face. Then, in lightning speed, that look turned to a look of absolute horror and fear. "Oh crap."

"I thought so." Letting go of Usagi's hand, Minako grabbed Usagi's hair, which was flowing freely and began to restyle it. Stepping back, she looked at her now twin-tailed counterpart."I've finally found you. I've been searching for you for eleven years...Usagi Tsukino."

A/N: And, we've come to the conclusion of this chapter. In this chapter we see the background between Minako and Usagi, as well as a glimpse at other people as well. Several questions are answered, and even more of them are left in the air. We now see what led to Usagi becoming the cool, calculating child that trusts no one except for her companion Hotaru, as well as get a glimpse at some of the things that Usagi was capable of, even as a child.

At any rate, this chapter is done, and now I need to hear from you! What you like, questions that you may have...anything! I always want to hear from you! Even if you just want to chat, feel free to PM me. Until next time!