So I have a favor to ask you guys. I am a writer for , but at this rate, I won't be for long. For some reason they expect a new examiner writer to get some kind of following after only 2 months of writing for them. So I would really appreciate it if you guys could subscribe to me. It's under my real name Allison Austin in the Indianapolis Gardening section. All you have to do is search my name and pick the one with the Indianapolis Gardening Scene. It costs nothing to subscribe and if I get more people, they will actually start to pay me! I would really appreciate it. I write trips for urban gardening. This may or may not interest you but I still try to be a good writer no matter what the subject matter. Heck, you might learn something. Either way it would help me out a lot if you guys did and if you like my writing enough, maybe suggest it to your friends/family as well. Okay, now for the update!

Warning: This chapter contains scenes of violence that may not be suitable for young readers...or any one eating diner (yes I'm picking on you a little ^_~) reader discretion advised.

The Truth About Tragedy

Ch. 12

"We must embrace pain and burn it as fuel for our journey." - Kenji Miyazawa

She couldn't get this stupid smile off her face. Mamoru had kissed her last night and she liked it. She more than liked it. It was better than she had dreamed it would be. What was with her? Weren't they suppose to be enemies, always fighting? But they had long since stopped being enemies and as much as it pained her to admit, she had looked forward to their arguments for a while. Not the actual insults but his attention. She loved when he talked to her even if it was in insult. He had never said anything really bad but her feelings for him made every insult ten times more painful. Even if she did wear her heart on her sleeve, this was one feeling she had never allowed herself to feel. Someone like him was never suppose to like someone like her. He was older, smarter, gorgeous, and way out of her reach. It was like he was the moon. But last night, she was the moon. He had reached up and grabbed her.

But now she didn't know how to act. She had never kissed anyone before let alone her old nemesis. Shingo hopped in the back while she sat up front as usual. She laid her hands in her lap and stared forward taking the occasional glance at him.

They arrived at Shingo's school so she got up to let him out. Shingo hopped out and when she sat back down in the car an arm snaked around her waist, pulling her into a kiss. Her shocked squeal quickly turned into a moan as she melted into his embrace. Her hand stroked his face as he drew shapes on her exposed knee. The kiss was too short for her liking but it still made her feel gooey inside. When he pulled away and looked into her eyes, she still couldn't read it but there was no mask just like last night.

"I have been wanting to do that all morning but I thought it was best to wait till Shingo left."

She quickly kissed him again. His lips were like a drug, she felt she couldn't get enough. With his arm still wrapped around her waist, he pulled her as tight to him as he could with the arm rest between them. His other hand cupped her face while she grabbed onto his sleeve, holding him to her as best she could. His tongue danced with hers as the kiss lasted longer than the first that morning. A car honked behind them pulling them out of their bliss. He quickly released her and pulled away from the school. Grabbing hold of her hand, he didn't let go till she left the car to enter her school.

Now she couldn't get rid of the stupid smile or the blush. Any worries that Mamoru would want to take back the kiss were long gone. She concentrated as best she could in class but it was rough. Every 5 minutes her mind would flash images of their kisses, causing her heart to skip a beat and her face to get hot.

"Usagi...Usagi? USAGI!"

"Oh yes Ms. H?"
"Usagi are you feeling alright? You look flushed?"

Wrong thing to say. She turned even more red and every eye turned to watch her turn beet red. Ms. H placed a hand on her forehead.
"You feel a bit hot. Do you need to go see the nurse?"

No she needed everyone to ignore her.

"No I'm fine just a little warm that's all."

"Alright well pay attention!"

Ami shot her a worried look. She shook her head to try and dispel her friend's thoughts. Ever since her dream issue, the Senshi have been on high alert around her. They were worried that the enemy would attack her in some weird way again and they were afraid she wouldn't tell them if they did. So the interrogation at lunch was to be expected.

"Usagi. What was that in class? Are you feeling okay? Your not having nightmares again are you?"

Blushing at the thought of her last dream, "No I promise I'm fine."

"Your face has been multiple shades of red all day!"

Makoto looked at her face closely, "Yeah, and you haven't made eye contact with either of us yet. Are you lying?"

"No."

They had her cornered, standing over her with accusing looks on their faces.

"I promise, the enemy has not messed with me since."

They both backed up and softened at her promise. Ami more than Makoto. Makoto still had her guard up.

"Alright, then what's going on with you?"

She looked at Ami and the Makoto in the eyes. She had kept so many secrets from them lately, should she really keep any more? Even if it isn't Senshi related? She sighed in defeat as they all sat down to their lunch. Looking away from their faces, she found enough strength to confess.

"I...I kissed someone."

They both drew in a sharp breath in shock. Ami was of course silent but Makoto went into overdrive.

"When? How many times? How was it? Who was it? Do we know him? When do we get to meet him? Why did you wait so long to tell us?!"

"It was just last night...and this morning."

They both gasped again.

"You guy do know him...it was Mamoru."

Makoto fell over in a faint while Ami's wide eyes blinked in disbelief.

"So this really happened? It wasn't a dream?"

"Ami, after the month I just had I can tell the difference between a dream and reality."

Makoto sat back up, "So..you kissed him willingly?"

The look on her face told Usagi that she was ready to kill Mamoru if she said no.

"Yes it was willing! Mamoru has been so great since my parents died. He is nice to me and he has really been there for me and Shingo. If it wasn't for him, who knows where me and Shingo would have ended up. I owe him so much."

Ami broke the silence that had settled over them, "So you kissed him...to pay him back?"

She knew Ami didn't mean anything by it, she was just trying to understand what was going on with her friend, but anger rose in her at the question, "No I kissed him because I love him!"

There is was. Now she couldn't deny it to them or even herself. She was in love with him. She didn't know when it happened exactly but it started the day he told her about his parents. No, it had been long before then but she started to realize it that night. Every time she saw him she got a rush that fueled their continuous arguments. The longer he was in her presences the deeper her high got. It didn't matter who Tuxedo Kamen was anymore, Mamoru had taken off his mask first and now she was in love with him.

Makoto was still asking questions when they reached the arcade. She stopped, however, when she saw my reaction to him. As soon as they entered, her eyes searched for him, finding him at the counter. He held the paper in front of him while a cup of coffee cooled next to him. She didn't even notice her two friends walk away to a booth to watch the scene unfold. She quietly and carefully walked up to him stopping a few inches from him. It was just enough space to seem normal as she looked for Motoki to give her order. An arm wrapped around her waist just like it had this morning and Mamoru gave her a quick peck on her lips.

"Are you going to make me steal all my kisses from you?"

He had a mischievous look on his face mixed with the same emotion that he had worn since he took her off the bus. She giggled and pushed at his embrace, looking around at who was watching.

"What, are you embarrassed to be seen with me?"

"No. I just thought you might be..."

He pulled her in closer to him to prove his point. She gave him a loving smile and kissed him sweetly, pulling away before it became more. They talked softly to each other as she stood in his embrace, only breaking eye contact when Motoki approached. She felt like she had been caught in the cookie jar before dinner. Motoki looked shocked at first but then he let out a deep laugh.

"Oh thank GOD! I was afraid you two would never see what was in front of you. If I had to listen to this guy talk about you one more time Usagi.."

"Motoki!" Mamoru' face was beet red.

"Hey this is what you get for bitching and bitching but NEVER taking my advice! I told him to ask you out a hundred times Usagi..."

"MOTOKI!"

Mamoru was ready to jump over the counter at him. He had released her to do just that as Motoki flitted away to the back out of reach. Mamoru sat back down and thrust a nervous hand through his hair before shyly peeking at her. She laughed and gave him a hug.

"Soooooo you were pining for me huh?"

"He doesn't know wha...yes. Yes I was."

He had just wrapped his arms around her again when Motoki returned with a chocolate milkshake and placed it in front of her.

"On the house Usagi. I'm assuming it was you who made the first move so this is your reward for putting me out of my misery."

He released her again and went after Motoki while she escaped with the reward to sit with her friends. As she retreated she watched the two with a deep smile on her face. She didn't even notice her friends watching her till she turned to them. Rei had joined them and had a shocked look on her face while Makoto and Ami just smiled satisfied for their friend.

"Um...is someone going to tell me what the HELL is going on?"

It was dark and very cold as she left the Cafe. But she didn't care, Mamoru would be there soon to pick her up. She couldn't stand waiting inside the Cafe, she was too excited to see him. Just the thought of him filled up her mind and warmed her all over. Butterflies filled her stomach all the time making it hard to eat, she had hardly eaten all day save for the milkshake Motoki gave her. Her heart did a flip flop when she thought about his lips on hers or his voice in her ears. Her co-workers had picked on her all day because of her goofy grin and absent mind but none of that mattered. This is what love feels like and she was going to soak in every drop.

"Excuse me miss, do you have the time?"

She looked up to see a man with long white hair, but he looked too young for it to be natural. She had never seen a man his age with completely white hair before. His skin was very tan making his hair and skin contrast either other dramatically.

"Oh um.. yea."

As soon as she looked at her watch and his hand clasped over her mouth and everything went black for a second. They were in a deserted area that she assumed was the park but she had never been to this part of it before. It was surrounded with rose bushes. Even though they weren't in bloom, the area still smelled strong of their scent. He had shimmered them both here, he was the enemy. She struggled out of his hold and put some distance between them. Nausea hit her, an after effect of shimmering she assumed. He only laughed darkly at her, like she was a small child acting up.

"I'm happy to see you too Princess."

"Why do all of you keep calling me that?!"

"Oh I see, you don't remember. I am Lord Kunzite and I am here to kill you."

"Kill me, what did I do to you?"

"You lived! Now tell me where the silver crystal is."

"I don't know what your talking about, I'm just a klutzy teenager."

He back handed her hard. The force took her off the ground and she landed in the rose bushes. They may not have been in bloom but they still had a lot of thick thorns that cut into her exposed flesh. As she stumbled out of the bush the thorns tore at her coat and flesh. She silenced a scream she she ripped the rest of them off of her. When she was standing again, the creep was hovering over her.

"Tell me where you have hidden the crystal!"

"Listen jerk, I don't know what you are talking about."

She slipped her hand into her pocket and tried to flip open her communicator but before she could he hit her again tossing her to the other side of the enclosure. She landed face down on the frozen ground, knocking the breath out of her. She quickly flipped over onto her back and tried to regain her breath. Blood filled her mouth as he grabbed her coat's collar and lifted her up to his gaze.

"I'll ask again, tell me where the crystal is and I'll kill you quickly with little pain."

She spit the blood in her mouth into his face hoping it would cause him to drop her. Instead it caused him to toss her up against a tree. Her head slammed against the bark and her vision went fuzzy. She shook it out, she had to stay conscious. He was still ridding himself of her blood when she regained her composure. She felt the back of her head and found it slick with blood. She was a bloody mess. Her fingers, wet with blood, slipped on the edges of her communicator. Her movements felt slow and dull. She soon found herself pressed against the tree hard. His hand gripped her neck, squeezing her while he held her against it. Her head screamed at her for the pain that it already had that was now being pressed against hard bark. With his free hand he formed a small ball of energy. She could tell by the looks of it that it wouldn't kill her, but it would hurt a lot.

"Now you have press my patience little brat. I was going to be nice and kill you quickly, but now, for your insolence, I am going to take my time and enjoy it."

He slammed the energy ball into her ribs and she screamed out in agony. She knew her ribs were bruised at this point, if not broken. If she lived through this, it was going to be a while before they healed. He formed another ball and a sneer formed on his painfully perfect face.

"Now I'm going to ask you again. Where is the silver crystal?"

She slowly reached for her communicator again and laughed, "Why should I tell you. You are just going to kill me anyways."

Her fingers felt the edges of it once again as tightened his grip on her neck cutting off more of her oxygen.

"If you tell me I'll kill you now instead of days from now."

She smiled, "I think I'd rather wait. Your just so charming."

She let out as much of a laugh as she could before he slammed the energy into the arm that had just reached the communicator. It filled with electric fire before going numb and limp. No matter how much she willed it, it would no longer move. That was her last hope. She could no longer reach her friends for help. Maybe if he really kept her alive for days, torturing her she would be able to get to it eventually. But by then who knows where he would have taking them. He charged up another ball making it little bigger than the last and aimed at her chest.

"Tell me Princess, and all the pain will go away. I can take it away from you and you will never feel pain again. Tell me where the crystal is and this will all be over for you."

This guy was a fool. She had been in a lot of pain many times over. If he thought she was going to crack from just this then he was an idiot. The thought made her laugh. She sounded delirious. She wasn't too sure that she wasn't. She gave him a big smile.

"Stop it, your tickling me."

She shut her eyes tight and waited for it to hit her chest. A scream pierced the night air that wasn't from her. The hand on her neck released her as her attacker stumbled away. She slid down the rest of the tree while she watched him shrink away with his hand on his face. She caught sight of the fully bloomed rose to the right of her and looked up to see Tuxedo Kamen punch Kunzite across the face. Then he gave him a hard kick in the gut that sent Kunzite flying. He raced over to her and her eyes watered at the sight of him.

"Usagi!" He wrapped his cape around her and clutched her to him.

She let out a howl in pain and he quickly released her.

"I'm so sorry Usagi. I should have gotten here sooner." Tears were in his eyes as he took in the sight of her.

"It's okay, it's okay..."

A sinister laugh erupted though the small clearing interrupting their moment. Kunzite had a deep scratch across his cheek and his teeth were red with blood as he sneered at them.

"Is this your savior Princess?"

"Stop calling me that!"

"Haha, but why? It's who you are. It's why your parents are dead."

"...what...what did you say?"

"Oh come now. You're not that naïve are you? When we found out who you were we had to take the opportunity Princess Serenity. So we killed your parents and made you suffer for all you and your family did to us. In fact, maybe I'll just kill the rest of them. Unless you tell me where the crystal is!"

They killed them. They found out who she was and they killed them. It was her fault they were dead. No, it was their fault. They had mistaken her for the Princess and killed her innocent parents. Anger filled her veins. She felt something rising within her, it was power. Her energy was growing inside her with the anger. Before she could stop it, her energy burst out of her knocking Tuxedo Kamen back as light and ribbons enveloped her completing her transformation.

The look on Kunzite's face was priceless as she aimed her moon wand at him and let the energy burst out of it. The entire time she didn't say a word as the demon in front of her let out a scream of pain. He quickly shimmered out of sight and she dropped the wand. She had meant to kill him, but he got away. The pain that her adrenaline rush had covered up returned with a vengeance and she dropped to her knees in pain. Tuxedo Kamen appeared at her side. He was checking over her wounds and as a warm glow emulated from his touch she felt her pain start to ebb away. She wasn't a hundred percent, but she was a lot better than she would be waiting for her advanced healing to do it for her.

She was still panting, "I didn't know you could do that."

"I only use it when I need to."

His tone was angry, but what could he be angry about? He wasn't the one that gone tortured for an hour while waiting for help to arrive.

"Why didn't you call for help from the Senshi?!"

"The guy grabbed me off the street, I didn't get a chance!"

"What were you doing on the street alone at night? Any number of sicko could have grabbed you on a night like this."

"I guess I was just lucky it was this sicko then."

"Usagi! This isn't a joke. He could have killed you. They are after you for being this Princess Serenity and you know that."

"I knew they were after me but I didn't know why! I'm not the Princess!"

"And now they know her identity. They can get you anytime now whether I am around to save you or not!"

"I can save myself! It's not like I transformed on purpose. He just...with my parents."

He had gotten right in front of her in the heat of their argument. The realization of the moments that had just transpired were starting to hit her. How dare he get mad at her!

"I don't need you to chastise me like a child, I can take care of myself!"

"Yeah I noticed."

"I was handling it! He wasn't going to kill me for days, I would have figured it out eventually."

He took a step closer to her, "And how do you think the rest of us would have felt? You being lost somewhere being tortured while we could do nothing? And what about your family, your brother? Having another family member not return? You really want to put me and your friends through all of that again? Like with your nightmares? It almost killed us!"

"Oh like you cared!"

He grabbed her and kissed her roughly on the mouth. She couldn't understand what was going on. His mouth was soft and warm against hers and heart began to beat wildly while the rest of her turned to jelly. Is this how it feels when you kiss anyone? No, she was with Mamoru now. She wouldn't do this to him. Her hands found his chest and she shoved him off her. Then she smacked him hard across the face. He didn't look at her, he just laughed.

"That is the second time you have smacked me. Is this going to be a once a month thing?"

Her hand covered her swollen lips and her eyes grew wide in shock from her actions. Realization of his words slowly formed in her brain. He turned his eyes to her with a big smile on his face. It was the first time she could remember him smiling like that.

"I guess that's what I get for stealing another kiss from you."

His hand swiftly removed his mask just like in her dream. Standing in front of her was none other than Chiba Mamoru.

BAWHAHAHAHAHA! Cliffhanger!