A/N: I'm not going to apologize for how late this chapter is. Life sucks, and good stories take a long time to mature. Besides, this story is so complicated, it's hard for me to keep track of everything. But this is the end of Part 1, I'll be moving on to part 2 soon. Part 2 is about Mina and Michiru (Michelle) so I will try to get working on it soon.

Chapter 11

"Man, I can't believe Dawn got us tickets to see Wicked, and on Thanksgiving too no less," Anna exclaimed. It was the middle of November and Thanksgiving break was the next week.

It's been over a month since I was burned by that weird dream, and I haven't had any more dreams like it. True to her word, Dawn stayed with me at night until she was sure I wouldn't have a nightmare. When the next morning had come, Dawn got a better look at my arm and determined that the burn wasn't as bad as it seemed. It healed naturally and didn't even leave a scar. My friends had asked me where I was when I returned to school and I just told them that I caught a 24hr bug.

"Yeah, your sister was really nice offering to get us all tickets to see it," Sofya said to me.

"Well, I think the producer people were trying to make amends for making her work every show over the Thanksgiving weekend," I said, "Especially when she told them that this was my first Thanksgiving."

"Oh yeah," Brigitte drawled, "They don't have Thanksgiving in Japan do they?"

I shook my head, "No, and the school schedule is a lot different. There are three semesters, and the break between years is really short, like only a week or two."

"What about summer vacation?" Anna asked.

"It was only about a month and since it was in the middle of the school year, they assigned a lot of homework."

"Fortunately for me my mom and dad divorced before I would have started school," Sofya said, "I'm not near as dedicated to my academic studies as my evil twin." When I looked at her strangely, she shrugged. "It's what I call her. I mean, you've met her, don't you think it's rather appropriate?"

"It is," I said sighing, "That's the sad part. Anyway, are we going to try to go to the parade?"

"Well my dance team is performing so I would hope that you're coming," Anna replied."

"Is that where you have been disappearing to in the mornings while Brigitte tosses me all over the gym and Sofya works on her carpet impersonation?" I asked her.

"You've been getting better," Brigitte protested, "And you almost got me this morning."

"You've a good 8 inches on me Brigitte," I pointed out.

"David was way smaller than Goliath and he defeated the giant," she returned.

"So really what you're saying is that you want me to throw a rock at your head, then chop it off."

"Okay, that's enough," Anna interjected, "Anyway, yes, I've been going to dance practice. I was on the dance team last year, but I got sick and missed a lot of school so I let my grades drop, as you know. I wasn't sure if they'd let me back on, but as long as I stay on the straight and narrow with my grades and stuff, I'm good to go."

"So don't fall that test in Latin you have later this week," Sofya said.

"I have a test in Latin?" Anna asked, looking fearfully at the blunette.

"You don't remember?" When Anna shook her head, Sofya sighed, "You told me last week you have a test this Friday and that you were studying for it."

"And you believed me," Anna cried. She laid her face down on the table and sighed, "It's gonna be a long week." She snapped her head up and looked at me. "I'm staying at your house this week and you're going to help me study."

"Oh hey, now wait a minute," I said hurriedly, "I have my own stuff to work on, projects, papers, tests, etc."

"You just had a test in French last week, we don't have anything due for English until after break, same with your theater class. We're watching a movie in science class while Ms. Blanchard is out and I know you read ahead so it's not like you're behind, and it's November so you're back in the gym for your PE & Health class," Anna listed off.

I blinked, "You know if you keep track of your own schedule as well as you keep track of mine, we wouldn't have this problem."

"Please Serena," Anna pleaded, "I'll bring the stuff that Christa uses on my hair, and I'll do your nails for you."

"Well if you're going to do all that," Brigitte said, "We'll all come, we can have a sleep over and you can do our hair and nails while we help you with studying."

"How about we save that for Friday night after we get her through her test," I suggested, "We could just have it at her apartment."

"That's more reasonable," Sofya replied, "Especially considering this test is 30% of your grade."

"It's what?" Anna yelled.

"You really don't remember having this conversation do you?"

Anna groaned, and I decided to take mercy on her by changing the subject. "So why aren't you going home for Thanksgiving Brigitte?" I asked the older girl.

"I usually do," she said, "I would fly down for Thanksgiving then fly back up, and then two weeks later I fly back down for Christmas break. This year however, Momma's family decided they were going to descend on the house for Thanksgiving. All of my cousins from that side of the family are really little so I opted out of that mess."

"What about your Dad's side of the family?" I asked.

She shrugged, "Daddy doesn't really have any family left. I remember he said that he had a little brother, but they had a huge falling out years ago and moved away. I think I have a cousin from that side that should only be about a year younger than me, but I've never met her."

"There's something I've been curious about for a while now," Sofya said, tuning into our conversation, "But if your mother has such a big family, why don't you have any siblings?"

Brigitte looked surprised, "I never told ya'll that? I've known you guys for years, well except you Serena, but it feels like I've known you for years, and I never told you guys about that?"

"Technically we didn't really ask," Anna pointed out, lifting her head off the table, "We thought it might be a touchy subject."

"It can be," Brigitte conceded, "But I don't mind. Truth is, after my Momma had me, she couldn't have any more kids. It bothered me for a while growing up without any siblings, but there were plenty of neighborhood kids for me to run around with, and we always had two or three sheepdogs or retrievers to play with."

"If it makes you feel better Brigitte, technically I didn't have siblings either," Sofya said, "Dad moved us here after the divorce, so that whole twin bonding thing didn't really work out between my evil twin and I. Must be because we're fraternal twins instead of identical."

Just then the bell rang signaling all of us to go back to class. "You do know you basically agreed to do three teenage girl's hair and nails in exchange for us getting you out of the hole you dug yourself into."

"Yeah, I know, but I'll be so grateful if you guys get me through this test. He's using this test as the final since he wants us to spend the last few weeks before Christmas break on our final projects."

I nodded as we walked back into our science classroom where the substitute was waiting to put the movie back on, some type of documentary about the history of farming. "Do you know why Ms. Blanchard took a personal day?" I whispered to her.

She snickered, "You know how she and Officer Swan are sharing an apartment right?" I nodded and she continued, "Word is that Ms. Blanchard walked in on Swan and Madame Mills 'doing it' in the apartment and needed some time to recover from what she saw."

I stifled a laugh, "I wondered if something would happen between them, so much sexual tension it was inevitable. Has anyone like, asked them about it?"

Anna snorted, "Well, most everybody likes Swan too much to ask her, and Ms. Blanchard is too nice. And besides, if word got back to the Evil Queen that people were inquiring about her personal life, well, let's just say that nobody has that big of a death wish. The rumors will probably circulate in quiet circles then it'll be forgotten by the time everyone gets back from Thanksgiving break. You do remember this is technically a magnet school, the best of the best. While minor problems, like the one I had last year in science is forgivable, if we lose focus, even just for a little while, we're out."

I winced, "I guess it never really registered how competitive this school is."

"Legacies like us have both an easier and harder time," Anna said, "While it's easier for us to get into the school, the school board expects more from us. Trust me, by the time senior year rolls around they're going to want us to impress them. I've been dancing since I was little, so I'm doing pretty well so far, but you're going to need to find something that calls to you."

The sub. called order back to the class before I had a chance to respond and turned the movie back on. The rest of class, and in fact the rest of the school day, I was plagued by what Anna said. Something that calls to me?

"Dawn," I called when I walked in the door, "Anna's going to come a little later and spend the night, is that alright?" When I didn't hear a response, I called again, "Dawn?" I knew she was home, I saw her car in the garage. I went to the library and pulled on the book that revealed the secret staircase up to her room. I didn't find her in her room, so I walked into the second floor hallway. "Dawn," I yelled out again.

"Serena, that you?" I finally heard her reply, but it was faint.

"Where are you?" I yelled.

"Up the staircase," was the reply. I walked over to the spiral staircase that I use when coming up to my room and eyed the stairs that continued on up to what I'm assuming was the attic. I had never been up there and Dawn never offered any explanation as to what was in the attic so I never really got curious.

Shaking off my hesitation, I ascended the stairs and came out into the attic. I gasped when I looked around me. Beautiful paintings in various stages of completion were placed around the room on easels, the wall, or just propped up against other paintings. Bright green plants, defying the frigid fall weather, were clustered around every window drinking in the afternoon sunlight.

I located Dawn sitting in front of an easel next to one of the windows, Jacey, Luna and Sasha crowed around her feet or in her lap. As I got closer, I realized that the painting was a portrait of someone very familiar. "Is that me?" I asked when I finally reached my oldest sister.

"Yeah," she answered, not turning to look at me, "I've been working on it off and on since August. Something's still not right with it though. I was hoping staring at it would help me figure it out, but I guess all I ended up doing was losing track of time."

"What is all of this up here?"

Dawn stood up and twirled around, motioning with her arms. "This is my studio," she said, "This is where I create, well, just create. The plants help add beauty to this space, as well as doing something for the air, lots of fresh oxygen."

"How come I've never seen- well, heard you up here?"

She laughed, her eyes twinkling, "Being a broadway starlet is hard work, eats up a lot of my time that I used to paint, but I find time. Usually I'm up here working when you're in school. Why didn't you ever come up to look around? I wouldn't have minded."

I shrugged, "I don't know, it just didn't seem right ya know? You never mentioned what was up here, so I didn't think it was worth bothering."

She gave me a small smiled. "Well now you know, what did you want anyway?"

"Oh right," I suddenly remembered why I was calling for her, "What's something that calls to you?"

Dawn blinked, "You might have to start at the beginning, I'm not sure what you mean."

I told her what Anna told me earlier that day. "How do I know what calls to me? How do I know if I'm any good at any of the arts anyway…"

"Mhm," Dawn hummed, turning back to her painting and placing a few brushstrokes. "I think Anna made it sound scarier than it actually is," she said after a few minutes, "What she means by something that calls to you is more than something you enjoy do, it's something that you can't live without."

"What does that mean?"

"I can't function properly without painting, creating art and stuff. It gives my soul room to breath, to create. Acting also does that for me. They're the missing pieces of my soul that I didn't know were missing until I found them."

"I still don't get it," I said, shaking my head.

"Don't sweat it too much Serena," Dawn said, placing a hand on my shoulder, "You'll find it, that I believe with all my heart."

"Thanks Dawn," I answered, hugging her, "Oh and the girls said to say thank you for the tickets to see Wicked next week."

"It's no problem," Dawn replied, "I figured since we can't have a traditional Thanksgiving, you could spend it with your friends. We can have a good dinner in town that afternoon before the show."

"Can you sing on a full stomach?"

"Well I know I can't sing on an empty one," she replied laughing, "Now get out of here so I can get back to painting. Go do your homework, play with Jacey or something."

"Not Luna or Sasha?"

"You know very well you can never truly play with a cat, they allow you to amuse yourself with them, that's different."

We giggled for a few minutes at that before I got up to leave. "Oh wait Serena," Dawn called after me. "Don't worry about dinner, I'm going to order Chinese in a bit and I'll order some for you to have later."

"Oh, that reminds me," I said, turning back around and walking towards her, "Anna's staying here tonight so I can help her study for a Latin test that she forgot about, Sofya, Brigitte and I are taking turns this week helping her cram. Apparently I drew the short straw tonight."

She laughed, "That's fine, it's all part of being friends right? So I'll order your usual then? Anna's as well?"

"Thanks Dawn!" I said, racing back down the stairs. I sent a quick text off to Anna, telling her it was all right with Dawn that she comes over. Not even five minutes later, I heard Anna troop her way into the house.

"Serena!" I heard her call my name.

"How did you get here that fast?" I asked her when I got downstairs.

"Well, I wasn't exactly that far away… I was sitting just down the road waiting for your text. Are you ready to study the ancient and totally dead language of Latin?"

"What have I gotten myself into?" I murmured as we headed towards the living room to study.

"I still can't get over that we're sitting here, waiting to see Wicked in probably the best seats in the house," Anna cried, clapping her hands, "This is so exciting."

"I know," I replied, practically vibrating in my seat, "I've heard Dawn humming and singing a few of the numbers around the house and it sounds amazing. I can't wait to see the whole thing."

"Me too," Sofya squealed from my right side. "I've lived in New York practically my whole life and I've never been to a play on Broadway."

"I haven't either," Brigitte piped in from the other side of Sofya, "By the way Anna, you did great this morning during the parade. I thought your dance team was the best there."

"Thanks Brigde, I live to dance," Anna flipped her hair dramatically and moved her hands in a rhythmic fashion. As the weather got colder, she started to forgo her normal punk rock-gothic style in favor of warmer clothes.

"Cut down the dramatics Anna," Sofya said, "You're a dancer, not an actor."

I rolled my eyes my friends started to bicker around me and had to hold in a squeal when the lights started to dim and the announcer informed us in the audience that the show was about to start. Quickly I was sucked into the storyline, moving passed who the actors and actresses are in real life and getting absorbed into who the characters were. It wasn't hard, especially when I saw my sister for the first time on stage. Her pale skin was covered in green theater paint, and her brilliant blonde hair covered by a woven in black wig.

I became engrossed in the characters' stories, watching as the leading characters struggled to get along and overcome who they were or who people perceived them to be. My heart started racing as I recognized the song signaling that the first half of the play was coming to an end. I had heard Dawn lightly singing the song a few times around the house and had asked her what it was. She told me the song was called "Defying Gravity" and it was a major turning point for the characters. It was a message from her character, the Wicked Witch that she wasn't going to play by the rules that had been governing her, and holding her back. She wasn't going to sacrifice who she was, or her ideals just to become who or what others wanted her to be.

The song started resonating in my heart and as I watched my sister being propelled into the air for the final part and the stage go dark, I started to reflect on my life and how much I had in common with both of the main characters. The scouts, my parents and even my former mother wanted me to be someone other than who I was. They all enforced a specific set of rules and ideals on me that kept me from spreading my wings and growing into my own person.

To go against these rules and ideals is like defying gravity: hard, almost impossible, but exhilarating and completely worth it in the end.

Intermission passed and the rest of the play was more emotionally charged than the first half. The ending almost caused me to cry because of how moving the two leads' last song was. My friends and I stood up and clapped when the cast came out for their bows.

"That was so beautiful," Brigitte bawled, her southern accent more pronounced with her tears.

"It was really good. Dawn's a wonderful actress," Anna agreed. "Should we head on to my apartment for our slumber party?"

"Yeah, I told Dawn that we would leave right away without seeing her. It takes about an hour for her to wash all of that green stuff off. I think she has a late night date or something."

"Ooooh a date?" Sofya and Brigitte squealed in unison, each grabbing one of my arms. "Tell us more."

"Wait, would this happen to be that mystery man that she's been seeing for a few years and built that wonderfully awesome house for her?" Anna asked. "Christa's met him, but she won't tell me about him… Wait, she's going out tonight to, what do you want to bet they're going out on a double date tonight?"

"Neither of you have met whoever it is that they're dating?" Sofya asked incredulous.

"No, but remember what Dawn said, they're just friends," I said, recalling the conversation we had about the house when I first moved in. "Though the way she said friend indicated that it might become more… Maybe it has and it's still pretty new?"

"Well if y'all are so curious why don't you either ask them or follow them," Brigitte suggested.

"No, no no no no, absolutely not," Anna said, shaking her head vehemently, "Last time I got involved in Christa's love life, I was traumatized, this is all just idle thought."

I started laughing at Anna's trembling form, imagining what she saw or what Christa did to her. "C'mon guys, let's head over to Anna's, Dawn and Christa gave us some money to order some pizza in case we got hungry later on," I said, stifling back my laughter.

We all headed down to the nearest subway station and caught the line back to the station closest to Anna and Christa's apartment. They lived in a fairly decent apartment building not too far from where Christa worked as a stylist. Dawn told me that their parents died years ago when Anna was still small, and they lived with a family friend for a while until Anna turned 18 and received custody of Anna. Their parents had left both of them sizable trust funds to pay for their schooling and allow them to live reasonably in the city until Christa started working. My sister said that that wasn't good enough for Christa because she wanted to make sure she could provide for Anna to follow her dreams and not worry about money, so she invested half of the money from her parents' life insurance policies into the stock market and made a killing. Christa works now because she wants to, not because she has to, same with Dawn and Stella at this point.

"Alright guys, here we are," Anna said, opening the door to her building with the door key she had, "The apartment is on the second floor so up we go." We walked up to the second floor landing and opened unlocked the first door on the right and ushered us all through the door. "Well here it is," she said once we were all inside, "It's a two bedrooms, 2 bathrooms apartment, not sure how big it is though. I do know that Christa's room and bathroom are way bigger than mine though. It doesn't matter though, I figured we'd stay out here in the living room since there's a bigger T.V. and more floor space."

"Have neither of you guys been over here before?" I asked Brigitte and Sofya.

"Nah, whenever we met up or wanted a sleepover we generally went to Brigitte's since she has a studio apartment near the school and no adult supervision," Sofya answered.

"Yeah, my parents thought I needed the responsibility of taking care of an apartment, but not one with a lot of space in case I got it into my head to throw a party," Brigitte rolled her eyes, "Like I'd do that. What people don't understand is that while parties are fun, you have to clean up after them later."

"Closest thing we ever got to a party is too much Chinese food and a Heath Ledger marathon," Anna said, emerging out of the kitchen with a bunch of take-out menus. "Speaking of, what do you guys want to eat? I know a few of these places are still open, even on Thanksgiving. I think there's this pizza place just down the block that's open all time, besides Christmas and New Year's."

"Sounds good to me," I answered. Brigitte and Sofya agreed with me and Anna put in an order. 30 minutes later, the pizza delivery guy was calling to be buzzed into the building. One Hawaiian, one Meat Lovers and one Vegetarian pizza were sitting on the coffee table a few minutes later. We were originally only going to get two pizzas, but Sofya, oh so kindly reminded us when she was hitting us on the head with the pillows from the couch that she was a vegetarian.

Anna popped in the fourth Star Wars movie and started working on our nails in payment for getting her through her Latin exam. "So what are you guys doing over Christmas break?" I asked Brigitte, who was behind me braiding my hair, and Sofya who was sitting up on the couch eating the mushrooms off of her pizza.

"My Dad has a gallery opening the week after we get out of school. He's already shipped the pieces to the gallery, so we're flying out like the day after school's out so he can supervise the placement of the pieces," Sofya said, rolling her eyes, "Another Christmas away from home, color me surprised."

"Don't feel bad Sof, my parents informed me just yesterday that we're going to be gone during Christmas as well. We're taking a family vacation during Christmas to help them recover from having Mama's family descend on them over Thanksgiving, so they say anyway. I'm thinking they just want another honeymoon and I'll be left to amuse myself," Brigitte said, also rolling her eyes, "I love my parents, but they can be rather ridiculous at times."

"Anna and I are going out of town too," I told them, "We're going to Paris to visit Stella. Dawn usually rents the flat above Stella's from what I'm told, since the occupants are old friends and always spend the winter months in Switzerland skiing apparently."

"Paris?" Sofya said, sitting up, "Paris France? That's where my Dad's gallery opening is."

"And that's where my family is vacationing to," Brigitte exclaimed, "So we're all going to be in Paris over Christmas? What an awesome coincidence."

"That is pretty awesome," Anna piped in, "Serena stop moving your toes. Anyway, we should all tour Paris together. I'm sure your Dad, Sof and your parents, Bridge would agree to let us go if Dawn or Christa were with us."

"They might even let us go by ourselves if we play our cards right," Sofya said, "And Dad would probably give us tickets to his gallery opening, though I wouldn't recommend going."

"Not very interesting?" Bridge asked.

"Totally boring," the blunette replied, "I'm sure it's interesting for older people, and it might be interesting when I'm older, but right now, totally boring."

I let out a squeal, shaking my feet despite Anna's protest. "I can't believe we're all going to be in Paris for Christmas! We're going to have so much fun!"

Brigitte, Sofya and I all started jumping around the living room and on the couch, much to the protest of Anna, who was still trying to work on my nails. Pretty soon she gave up and started bouncing around the room with the rest of us.

We soon calmed down and collapsed back down on the floor. Anna went back to work on our nails, while Brigitte braided our hair. Sofya and I continued talking and by the time we finished the last two Star Wars movies, we had eaten all of the pizza. It was early in the morning when we finally ran out of steam and collapse on various pillows and recliners around the room, all of our fingernails and toenails painted in various colors.

"Are Luna, Sasha and Jacey okay in quarantine?" I asked Dawn as we got off the plane in Paris. Right after our Thanksgiving holiday weekend, Dawn told me that we needed to ship the animals to France a few weeks before so that they would be out of quarantine in time for our vacation. Luna wasn't excited to be treated like a regular cat, but she had no choice but to be tranquilized and shipped with the other two.

"Yeah, they're perfectly fine, I spoke to the officer in the quarantine office that usually handles Sasha when I travel to visit Stella or our adoptive parents and he said they're doing splendidly," Dawn answered, picking up our luggage at the baggage claim.

"You sure?" I asked, thinking about how cranky Luna will be when she finally gets out.

"Serena, they're fine," Dawn insisted, "We'll pick them up tomorrow. Now c'mon, Stella's outside waiting for us."

"Really?"

"Yeah, since we're staying in the flat above hers, she decided to give us a ride."

"What about Christa and Anna?"

"Their plane gets here tomorrow, we'll get them when we come to get the animals out of quarantine. It gives us tonight to settle in so that we can get the flat ready for Christmas."

"Awesome," I replied. We walked outside and I quickly spotted my other sister. "Stella!" I squealed, running up to her embracing her, "It's been a while!"

"Just a few months," Stella laughed, "Now, into the car, get in, get in, so we can make our way home." She ushered me into the backseat of the car she was driving along with the luggage that Dawn and I brought.

"What part of Paris do you live in?" I asked, "Anna and I were looking up things about Paris neighborhoods, apartment buildings and how they're numbered instead of called by a specific name."
"That's right," Stella said, "But I live in the Latin Quarter, which has a name. It's more of a student neighborhood, but it's convenient for me since I work for the university part time as well as the symphony."

"Yeah, and the guys whose flat we're borrowing for Christmas are old friends of ours," Dawn interjected, "They're perpetual students at this point."

"Schooling is free in France for French citizens good enough to get into school," Stella said, seeing my confused face in the review mirror, "Only a small percentage though do pass the test they take at the end of their high school period, well, pass it with good enough scores to get into the French Universities."

"It is really competitive though," Dawn said. The two of them started bickering about schooling in France verses schooling in America or even Japan, but I tuned them out in favor of looking at the sights around me. It was nighttime when our plane landed, but, although it was dark, Paris was alive with lights and energy. I could see people walking the street, despite the cold.

"Everything is so beautiful," I breathed, taking in the atmosphere of the city of lights. About half an hour later, Stella pulled up and parked in front of a tall apartment building.

"C'mon Serena, we're on the top floor," Dawn said, pulling out her luggage.

I grabbed my bag and walked into the building. "Did Marcus give you the access card?" Stella asked as we walked over to an elevator.

Dawn fished out a card and swiped it on the elevator's access panel. "Our friends' apartment is the penthouse, the top floor, so there's a private elevator to get to the top, but you need an access card to use it," she explained as the doors opened.

The elevator rushed to the top and opened to a large and spacious apartment. "Wow," I gasped, "This place is huge!" I could see a large living room with a good size entertainment system and bookcases, a fully stocked kitchen and various doors leading to different rooms as well as a loft that looks like it led to another bedroom. "Who lives here?" I asked.

"Three guys," Stella looked around impressed, "Marcus's girlfriend must've been here before they left and cleaned the place. Look, she even set up a Christmas tree."

"I wondered if this was Zoey's handiwork," Dawn laughed, "Last year when I borrowed the flat, I had to spend the first few days cleaning before I could even start decorating. She laid into Marcus when he got back when she found out how he and the guys left the place."

"Zoey? Marcus?" I asked, trying to figure out what they were talking about.

"Oh, right right, you've never met them, anyway, this flat is leased by three guys, Marcus, Jasper and Nathan. They're really good friends, and have known each other forever from what I can gather. Anyway, Marcus's girlfriend, Zoey, well, we're old friends. We met the first time our adoptive parents brought us to France a little while after we first started living with them," Dawn explained, "We became pen pals after that and have been friends ever since. Zoey introduced us to her friends and the rest, as they say, is history."

"You guys have a lot of friends don't you?" I asked, still looking around.

"Pretty much," Dawn laughed.

"Are you guys going to be okay?" Stella asked, "My roommate just texted me wondering when I was getting back. She's gone to pick up a few friends of hers and they're going to be crashing on our couch, and she wanted to know if I could put some sheets out or something so they're out when they get back."

"And that was okay with you?" Dawn asked.

Stella shrugged, "I didn't really care, and besides, I'm gonna be busy with stuff for the Christmas Eve concerto anyway. I'll see you guys in the morning. I can introduce you to my roommate tomorrow and her friends I guess."

"Sounds good, see you tomorrow Stella."

"Bye Stell!" I said as my frosty haired sister took the elevator back down in order to catch the standard one up to her apartment. "So where will I be staying?" I asked, turning back to my blonde haired sister.

Dawn stifled a laugh and waved me over to one of the rooms. "There are 3 bedrooms. Christa and I were going to take the one in the loft since it's larger and has a full size bathroom and king size bed. You and Anna can either share one of the bedrooms down here or have different ones. They share a bathroom, much like your room at home, and there's also a half bath out here."

I nodded and looked hesitantly around the room Dawn showed me, placing my bag on the bed. My sister must've sensed my hesitance about being in this strange place. "Serena," she said, "Do you want me to stay down here with you for tonight?"

"Would you?" I asked, looking over at my sister, "I mean, it's a new place and until Christa and Anna get here, I'll feel a little alone."

Dawn looked at me appraisingly and motioned me to pick up my bag. "Change of plans," she said, "You're staying upstairs with me. Christa and Anna can stay down here."

"No!" I protested, "I don't want to put anyone out, I mean, you and Christa probably had things planned, and she's your best friend, I wouldn't want to ruin anything…"

"We did," Dawn admitted, "And while Christa may be my best friend, you're my little sister, you're my youngest sister. Taking care of you and making sure that you're all right is part of my job as your older sister."

"B-but," I sputtered as she pulled me upstairs to the bedroom in the loft.

"Serena, let me do this," Dawn murmured, "I didn't watch out for you as well as I should have when you were younger. I wasn't there for you when I should have been, so let me be here for you now."

The protest died on my lips as I stared into Dawn's sky blue eyes. They were pleading with me to understand, to just go along with her suggestion. "Okay," I murmured as Dawn opened the door.

I walked into the room first and looked around, taking in the décor and finally the bed. "Wow," I said, "That bed is huge."

"It's the same size as my bed at home," Dawn answered, placing her suitcase down. "Go on in the bathroom and get ready for bed, I'll sort things out here."

I nodded and entered the bathroom, briefly taking in the size. It was larger than mine at home, but smaller than Dawn's, which is understandable considering we're in an apartment. I ran some water in the tub to take a quick bath to wash the remnants of the flight and layover off of me and moaned in relief as I sunk into the hot water. After I finished washing off the remnants of the flight over, I nearly fell asleep in the warm water and decided to get out the bath. I slowly dried off and put on my pajamas, not realizing how tired I was until I started brushing my teeth. Walking out of the bathroom, I fell on the bed into a deep sleep, not registering Dawn's presence at all.

"Serena," Dawn's voice filtered into the haze of my sleepy mind, gently pulling me into consciousness.

"Go away," I mumbled into my pillow, burrowing deeper into the covers.

"Come on Serena, wake up; it's time for breakfast," Dawn said again, pulling the covers down.

I propped myself up on my elbows and opened one of my eyes to peer at my oldest sister. "What kind of breakfast?" I asked, still half asleep.

Dawn smiled, "Well you'll have to get dressed and find out. Come on, we're supposed to go down at meet Stella after breakfast and then we're going to pick up Luna, Sasha and Jacey. And Christa texted me a little while ago, she and Anna are in London. They have a few hours before their flight here, they should've just rented a car; it would've been faster."

At that I rolled over and made my way to the clothes that I saw that Dawn had pulled out for me and made my way to the bathroom. Fifteen minutes later, I walked downstairs and saw Dawn placing a few toasted pieces of bread with jam on the table along with a bowl of fruit and yogurt. "We're indoctrinating you into the French culture," Dawn commented when she saw me, "First step is food. Tartines, fruit, yogurt, and, of course, café au lait." With the last comment, Dawn placed a mug with what looked like really milky coffee.

"Is this really what the French eat for breakfast?" I asked, reaching for the bread, "No eggs or protein?"

"Breakfast is a light meal," my sister replied, sipping at her coffee, "I'll probably go out for croissants or pain au chocolat on other days instead of just toast."

"Interesting," I murmured, biting into the bread, "What about French toast, we're in France and all?"

Dawn rolled her eyes, "I'll see about making it for Christmas, now eat your breakfast."

I complied and quickly scarfed down the food and the coffee. "So we're going down to see Stella now, and then off to get the critters and the besties?"

"Help me clean up and we can get out of here faster," she replied, placing the dishes in the sink and washing the down. "You dry."

In another half hour, Dawn and I were standing in front of Stella's flat. "Hey, come on in guys," Stella said when she opened the door, "My roommate and her friends are awake. Oh hey Dawn, you'll never guess who one of them is."

"Who?" Dawn asked and when we walked into the room, I froze.

"Michiru, Mina?" I whispered unbelievingly, staring at two of the occupants in the room at the same time as Dawn said a third name, "Harper?"

"Usagi?" Michiru questioned.

"Serena!" Mina squealed, bolting out of her seat to pull me into a tight hug. Just as quickly as she grabbed me, the blonde pulled back to look at me, "Wait, Stella is your sister?"

"Yeah," I nodded before looking over at Michiru, "Wait, Stella is the crazy roommate you mentioned in your emails? Well that makes sense."

"I resent that," Stella muttered from where she was, "But Serena, I had no idea that you knew Michelle."

"Michelle?" I asked, looking back at the teal haired girl who blushed.

"Yeah, it's my real name, Michelle Huntington. I only use Michiru as like a stage name or when I want to fly under the radar," came her reply and I vaguely remembered Stella saying that her roommate was related to Hailey's boyfriend.

I finally noticed another person in the room and turned my attention to her. She had Sandy blonde hair cropped around her shoulders and caramel colored eyes, which gave off a friendly but intrigued vibe. "Who are you?" I asked, not wanting her to feel left out of the conversation.

"I'm Harper," she replied, "Mina and I grew up together, and now go to the same school. I take it you're the Serena she's always talking about."

"Harper is also Hailey's younger sister," Stella commented, "That's how Dawn and I recognized her, we've seen pictures."

"Small world," I muttered, thinking furiously on some of the odd coincidences that seemed to have piled up recently, the world isn't that small.

"Serena, if you want to stay here with your friends while I go to the airport, that's fine," Dawn said, "It'll probably be easier in the long run, more room in the car for everyone."

"Are you sure?" I asked, looking between Mina, mich- Michelle and Dawn.

"Yeah, it won't be any problem. And besides, Anna is going to be practically useless until tomorrow, you know how she is."

I winced, "Doesn't sleep on planes, I almost forgot, and poor Christa had to put up with her!"

"Pretty much," Dawn laughed, "So you stay here, and I'll go to quarantine and the airport. I'll drop Jacey and Luna off here so you can see them."

"Thanks Dawn," I replied, as she walked out the door.

"Wait, I'm coming too," Stella yelled, emerging from the bedroom I didn't notice she disappeared in, "You have to drop me off at the concert hall. I have to rehearse my new solo. The person who was supposed to do it dropped out like a pansy with some lame excuse…"

"An emergency appendectomy is not a lame excuse," Mic-Michelle called after her.

"Whatever," Stella replied dismissively as she too left the flat.

As soon as Stella left, Harper turned towards Michelle and I, studying us both. "So you're Sailor Neptune and you're Sailor Moon," she commented, staring at us.

"Wh-What?" I sputtered, glancing at Mina.

The honey blonde just shrugged. "I told you, we grew up together. She figured out I was Sailor V when I was doing that stuff in London a while back, so obviously she also knew I was Sailor Venus. I've pretty much kept her informed every since. Don't worry, Harper's cool, she won't tell on us."

"Yeah, sorry," Harper replied sheepishly, tugging nervously on her shoulder length hair, "I was just so excited to meet the Sailor Moon and the Sailor Neptune, that I got a little ahead of myself. Don't worry, I won't tell anyone. I can keep a secret."

"Really?" Michelle asked, brow quirked.

"Yeah, I mean, I haven't told my parents how many times I've caught Hailey and TJ… expressing their love for each other around the house, or how many times I caught her sneaking out when we were younger, so I am extremely trustworthy," Harper replied.

I studied her for a brief moment. "You blackmailed her didn't you?" I deadpanned.

"Got out of washing the dishing," Harper flashed a big grin and the victory sign.

The three of us shared a laugh while Michelle grimaced. "I don't really want to know what my brother has been getting into," she said, looking like she was going to throw up.

Mina, Michelle and I spent the next few hours getting caught up as well as getting to know Harper. "Hey Mina, where's Artemis?" I asked, noticing the lack of the white fur ball.

"Oh he's here," Mina said, "I had to give him some tranquilizers. He hates traveling, and would've freaked out, started talking, freaked your sister out by a talking cat, so it was best that he sleep the whole time. He's still out of it." She moved towards the couch and picked up one of the pillows, revealing the white cat sleeping under it.

"Well I know that Luna will be glad to see him," I said, thinking of all of the times I had caught Luna staring at a picture I had of her, Mina, Artemis and I. She would stick her paw out and pat at Artemis's image in the picture, sighing heavily.

A few minutes later, a knock sounded at the door, and Michelle opened it, revealing Dawn and Christa. "Hey guys," Dawn said, setting down the pet carrier she was holding, releasing Jacey out into the room, yipping happily. At the sound of Jacey's barking, Essie bolted from Stella's room, snuffling at the other dog. Christa set down the case she was holding, and Luna ambled out regally, working the kinks out of her legs. The black cat greeted me with a purr and a glare, before shuffling over to greet Mina and Michelle, winding around their legs. Sasha slunk her way out of her own cat carrier and collapsed in a heap on the floor, face planted on the ground. We all giggled at the sight of the passed out cat, and I saw Luna roll her eyes at the other cat.

"Serena," Christa said, getting my attention, "Anna is passed out in the flat upstairs, and she most likely won't wake up until tomorrow, unless she gets hungry later tonight."

"Okay…" I stated, not sure why they were telling me this.

Dawn smiled at me, "We're telling you this, because we're giving you an option. Christa and I were going to go out and catch up with some friends. You can either stay here and catch up with your friends, or, I guess if Michelle is with you, you can go out and explore the area a little."

"Are we going to do stuff together?" I asked, not wanting to spend another Christmas without my older sister.

"Of course," Dawn replied, hugging me softly, "But your friends are coming, so I know that you'll want to hang out with them as well. Plus, didn't you tell me you were missing Mina and Michelle?"

I nodded, realizing the truth in her words. "You're right, thanks Dawn."

"Who are you meeting up with, if you don't mind my asking?" Michelle asked suddenly.

"We're going to meet up with Zoey. I think you've met her, living here with Stella you probably have," Dawn answered. At Michelle's nod, the other two left again, leaving us alone.

"Luna, you can talk in front of Harper," I said to the cat, "She knows about us, so it's alright."

"So this is the famous Luna," the sandy blond said, cooing at my advisor. "I've heard so much about you from Artemis. He'll be so excited to see you."

"Artemis is here?" Luna asked, perking up.

"Yup," I replied, gesturing towards the white ball of fur on the couch, still dead to the world. Luna jumped up on the couch and snuggled next to him, quickly falling asleep as well.

"So, Michelle, you've met Zoey? Dawn said we're staying in her boyfriend's flat?" I asked, looking at the teal haired woman.

She nodded and looked around for a moment. "Yeah, Stella introduced me when we first got here, they're all pretty cool. I have a picture here somewhere of all of us…" Michelle's voice trailed off for a moment as she moved back to what I'm guessing was her room. "Ah, here it is," she cried, coming out with a picture frame. "Jasper is a complete flirt, he's the blond one. Nathan, with the long brown hair, is really quiet, but super smart. Marcus, the platinum blonde, he's pretty quiet too, but completely devoted to Zoey, honestly, I'm a little jealous."

I looked at the photo that Michelle handed me, and the blood drained from my face. "Mina look," I said, showing the blonde the picture.

Mina's face paled as well and she looked at me. "Wha?"

"What's wrong?" Michelle asked as she and Harper looked at us with worry.

"These people," I said, gesturing to them in the picture, "They're Kunzite, Jaedite, Nephrite and Zoicite, Queen Beryl's generals."

"That's impossible," Michelle said in disbelief, "The generals were defeated only two years ago. From what I've heard, Stella and Dawn were friends with Marcus, Nathan, Jasper and Zoey long before that."

"Yeah, and about that, didn't you tell me that this Zoicite character was a guy?" Harper asked, studying the picture, "I mean, I'm no expert, but this Zoey certainly looks like a girl, despite the athletic look."

"Oh she's a girl, trust me," Michelle replied, "Occasionally we go swimming together, and there is very little privacy in the women's changing room."

"Maybe it's more in line with the theory you told me Serena," Mina murmured, looking at me.

"Yeah, maybe," I said quietly, staring at the pictures. At Michelle and Harper's questioning looks, I told them about Beryl and Nehellenia's doppelgangers that Dawn introduced me to. "I think that things that happened while we were Sailor Soldiers, and back in the days of the Moon Kingdom aren't all that we think they are. Something else is going on here."

"All the evidence is leaning that way," Michelle murmured, "Well, we can't do anything about it now, we can work on it after Christmas. For now, how about we get out of here, I know a few shops and cafes near by that are just delightful."

"To the café!" Mina decided, pointing to the door, "And shopping afterward!"

"I'll just grab Essie and Jacey," I said, "Since there's no doggie door here, they need to come with us. Will these places allow dogs?"

"Of course," Michelle replied, "Though, it would be better if one of them was a poodle." The wink she tossed me let me know that the teal haired woman was joking.

Harper rolled her eyes. "French people," the Brit muttered under her breath, "Are we going guys? There is coffee to be had, and I'm starting to get hungry."

The four started out the door, two dogs in tow, ready to explore a small section of Paris.

A few days later, my eyes popped open in frustration. I had been tossing and turning for the past few hours, trying to sleep. I heard Dawn's soft breathing on the other side of the bed and saw Jacey and Sasha curled up together at the foot of the bed. Luna had decided to stay downstairs in Stella's flat with Artemis so that they could get reacquainted and chat when no one else was around. I sighed softly and sat up, reaching for my phone on the bedside table on my side of the bed. Sliding it on, I saw that it was a little after 2 on December 21st. December 21st, the Winter Solstice, longest night of the year, my oldest sister's birthday.

Much like when Stella's birthday came, I had no idea what to do for Dawn for her birthday. I carefully climbed out of the bed, making sure that I didn't wake my sister up and padded downstairs. Opening the refrigerator, I pulled out a container of noodles that Anna and I had gotten for Chinese take out when we were hanging out with Mina and Harper earlier. I brought the leftovers from my food back up to the flat with me in case I got hungry at some point. I took out a pair of chopsticks from the collection in the drawer and started picking at the cold noodles.

"Serena?" A soft voice called to me, causing me to jump. I whirled around and my blue eyes met the deep burgundy eyes of my oldest sister's best friend.

"Hey Christa," I said after finally swallowing my mouthful of noodles. "What are you doing up?"

Christa shrugged. "Couldn't sleep, so I got hungry."

"You want some?" I asked, offering my noodles. The carton was pretty full and I knew I won't be eating all of it.

"Sure," the black-haired woman said, pulling another pair of chopsticks out of the drawer. We sat in silence for a few minutes eating the cold noodles until Christa broke the silence. "Want to tell me the real reason you can't sleep?"

I sighed and poked at the noodles with my chopsticks. "Today's Dawn's birthday," I said finally, setting down the box of noodles.

"Yup," Christa returned, also setting down her chopsticks. "Is that what is bothering you?"

"I don't know what to do for her," I forced out, desperation present in my voice. "I mean, I got her a present and all, but I don't know what else to do."

"Do you need to do anything else?"

I huffed out and set my head down in my hands. "Dawn's my oldest sister, my hero. I just, I just feel like I need to do more for her."

"Look, Serena," Christa said, taking my hand, "I've known Dawn for a long time. Trust me, she's happy with you just being here, living with her. She was utterly distraught with leaving you in Japan. The guilt and worry consumed her for years. It wasn't always visible, but every now and then, especially in the summer, I could tell that she was worried about something. She finally told me about the baby sister that she left behind." The older woman squeezed my hand. "Dawn loves you, she loves you and Stella so much. She would probably die for the two of you if it came down to it. You just remember that." With that, Christa tossed her used chopsticks in the trashcan and bid me goodnight.

I sat and stared at the box of takeout for another few moments before standing up and throwing it and the chopsticks away. I shuffled back up the stairs; releasing my hair from the braid I put it in just before going to bed. Sliding into bed, I pressed myself against Dawn's form, burrowing my head into her shoulder.

"Are you alright?" I heard her sleep filled voice ask a moment later.

"When did you wake up?"

"Just a few minutes after you got up. I heard you and Christa talking, anything I need to know about?"

"No," I replied shaking my head, "We were just discussing how much you love me, which made me realize how much I love you."

Dawn shifted and turned on her side. She looked at me with sleepy, tired eyes and ran her fingers through my silvery blonde hair. "Did you sort everything out?"

"Yeah," I murmured, closing my eyes to enjoy her fingers toying with silver strands before moving back and taking a box out of the drawer bedside table. "Happy Birthday Dawn," I told her, sitting up and handing her the box.

Dawn sat up and turned on a light in the room. "It's a little early to be giving me a birthday present isn't it?" She asked with amusement in her voice. Softly taking the box out of my hand, Dawn pulled the ribbon off the box and opened it. Her breath hitched in her throat when she saw what was inside. "Oh Serena," she gasped, "It's beautiful." She pulled out a delicate silver chain that held a silver and gold sun. The center of the sun had a crescent moon and star etched into the surface.

"It represents all of us," I told her, "You know, our names. I figured this way we would always be together."

Carefully setting the necklace back down in the box, Dawn turned at set it on the night table before turning back and hugging me. "I love it," she murmured, releasing me from a crushing hug, "But you don't have to worry about being separated, not any more anyway. No matter how far apart we are, or what happens in the future, both you and Stella will always be in my heart."

I smiled at Dawn and hugged her again. "I love you Dawn, both you and Stella are probably my most favorite people in the world."

"That include Michelle?" Dawn teased, her eyes dancing with mischief. At my inquisitive look, Dawn smirked. "Don't think I don't know about that little date you had with her yesterday, or the time you've been spending together, alone."

I blushed beat red. My face felt so hot that I thought for sure my hair was turning red as well. "I don't know what's going on between us," I told her truthfully, "I mean we're just friends, but there are moments that she seems so much more than that."

"All things happen in their own time Serena," Dawn said to me, "My friend Leon and I have been dancing around a relationship for years. Neither of us is really ready for a full relationship, but we know that it will happen eventually, when the time is right."

"Mhm, so his name is Leon," I said, wiggling my eyebrows, "When do I get to meet him? I presume Stella already has, so when is my turn?"

Dawn rolled her eyes and sighed. Turning off the light, she settled back down in the bed. "Goodnight Serena," she said, "I would like to get at least some sleep on my birthday."

"Oh come on Dawn," I said, poking at her. She batted me away with her hand and rolled over away from me. I pouted at her for a moment before rolling over on my stomach on my side of the bed. I snuggled down into the pillow and sighed. With my mind now at ease and quieted from thoughts of Dawn's birthday, I slipped slowly into sleep with teal colored eyes and hair swimming behind my eyelids.

"Ah, Christmas Eve," Anna sighed as the group of friends strolled the evening streets on the way back to Dawn and mine's borrowed flat. "It's kind of a miracle that your parents let you guys come hang out tonight," she said, turning to Brigitte and Sofya.

"Only because we would have adult supervision," Brigitte replied, gesturing towards Dawn, Stella and Christa. "They were more than willing to let us hang with y'all after meeting those three… Well, truthfully it was more Dawn, they're big fans." The brunette turned toward Dawn and gave her an apologetic smile, "Sorry about the autographs and the playbooks… And all the pictures they made you take."

My oldest sister smiled at Brigitte while Stella and Christa smirked. "It's alright," Dawn replied. "I was happy to do all that for them, I guess like an early Christmas present."

"You made the rest of their year, probably be talking about meeting you non-stop tomorrow. Shoot, they're probably calling up the rest of the family to tell them about meeting you. If I show up after Christmas with more pictures and ticket stubs for you to sign…?"

"I'll sign them Brigitte, don't worry."

"How did you get your Dad to let you out Sofya?" I asked, turning to my blue haired friend.

Sofya sighed and tossed her braided hair back over her shoulder. "It wasn't that hard. Dad likes to encourage my independence. I just let him know I would be out with friends, he asked about adult supervision, and I told him, so here I am."

"I've been meaning to ask you Sofya, but is your dad… neglectful?" Dawn asked. "He didn't really ask many questions when I called to get permission for you to see Wicked on Thanksgiving."

"No," Sofya replied ruefully, "He's not neglectful. He was actually super paranoid about stuff when I was younger. As I've gotten older, he backed off a little, and since starting high school, he's gotten really lax about things. As long as I don't do anything stupid, like drink, do drugs or get pregnant, I'm good. Oh, and I have to keep my grades up."

"Interesting parenting technique," Stella said, "Effective, giving you a taste of freedom, letting you know what you could lose by making stupid decisions."

"Oh yeah," Sofya grimaced, "I don't even want to think about it."

"Sounds pretty similar to your parents Mina," Harper said, "Except for your brother, he is extremely over protective."

Mina rolled her eyes at Harper before turning to me. "I didn't tell you about my older brother did I? Coop is five years older than me, and a pain in the butt. He has an extreme overprotective streak that has proven to be a nuisance on more than one occasion."

"Yeah, picture this," Harper said, laughing, "Mina finally gets her crush to go out with her as friends, just to hangout, then Coop shows up and gets into an argument with Aiden about taking advantage of his 'poor defenseless little sister.' I thought Coop's temper was bad, but Aiden's is way worse. Thought for sure she was going to light him on fire with her glare alone."

I laughed along with my other friends at Harper's description of Mina's brother and the senior she told me she had a crush on. I caught sight of Michelle giggling out of the corner of my eye. When she saw me watching, she caught my eyes and smiled, causing me to blush. Michelle and I had grown close over the past few days, even more so since my conversation with Dawn a few days earlier. I still slipped up a few times and called her 'Michiru,' but I corrected myself each time it happened. She had yet to tell me what happened between her and Haruka and the other scouts, but I don't think I really wanted to know the details. I just know that whatever it was that happened, it was enough to cause the older girl to want to shed the identity she had there completely and start going by her birth name again.

The ten of us made our way back to the apartment building and up to the flat. We had left Essie, Luna and Artemis in the flat with Jacey and Sasha before we had gone out so that we wouldn't have to stop by Stella and Michelle's flat to get them to finish celebrating Christmas Eve.

"Hello Jacey," I murmured, scooping up the puppy that was steadily getting bigger. Pretty soon she would be too heavy and too large to pick up. "Gonna have to call Dr. Fauna when we get back and have her give you a check up."

Jacey barked and wiggled out of my grasp, hopping back down on the floor. I watched as she snuffled over to Essie and Sasha, poking at them with her nose before they started chasing each other around. Then ten of us gathered in the living room of the flat, sitting on the floor or on the furniture in the room. Various conversations started building between the different groups of people, moving between the people, growing and ebbing like a meeting of old friends. Luna and Artemis sat on the coffee simply watching and listening to the conversations around them.

The other three animals stopped running around and came to rest in the center of the room. Jacey cocked her head at me then looked at the two cats. She snuffled at them with her nose before Luna batted her away with her paw, having grown used to during that in the past few months. She whined at them before turning to Dawn.

"Dawn!" A voice came, starting all of us. "Why do Luna and Artemis get to talk and I don't?" Jacey pawed at Dawn's leg and I realized that the voice came from her. "I mean they talk all the time when you're not here, so why can't I?"

All of our eyes bugged out but I saw Christa, Dawn and Stella share a look between them. "It's alright Jacey," Dawn said, "You can talk now."

"She might as well," another voice came. I turned and I saw Sasha glaring at Jacey from where she was sitting. "We might as well too since Jacey blew the top off that one."

"I thought we had all agreed not to let them know anything yet until they were older, especially that we can talk?" Essie asked, also glaring at Jacey.

"Whoops," the puppy yelped, looking sheepish. "Sorry, I forgot."

"What is going on?" Anna demanded, looking between Dawn and Christa. "That dog just talked, both the dogs and the cat talked. What are they talking, how are they talking, and how do you know about their talking?"

"Calm down Anna," Christa said, shushing her. "We'll explain, just give us a minute."

"We," Dawn said, gesturing between herself, Stella and Christa, "Were going to tell you the truth when you were older, Serena, and possibly Mina and Michelle if we could've figured out how."

"The truth about what?" Sofya asked, "And should we really be here for this?"

"It's fine for you guys to stay," Christa answered, "We didn't really know about you until Serena started telling us about you, and we realized that you were also friends with Anna. You, Brigitte, Anna, and Harper would have figured it out on your own in time, but I guess it is better that we get it all out in the open now."

"Get what out?" I demanded, panicking. I didn't like that my sisters were keeping something from my friends and me.

"I'm going to have to call Hailey and TJ," Stella said, standing up. "Can you proceed without me? I have to give them a heads up on what is about to occur. They wanted to be able to tell Michelle the truth and wait for Harper to remember like they did, but since that isn't an option now, they deserve to know."

"What do you mean to remember, why do you need to tell us?" Michelle questioned, slightly defensive.

"We know that you, Mina and Serena were the ones known as Sailor Neptune, Sailor Venus and Sailor Moon, and we know that Luna and Artemis can talk, much like Essie, Sasha and Jacey," Christa told them.

"How could you possibly know that!?" Luna burst out before realizing that she spoke and shut her mouth.

"Great, another talking animal," Brigitte muttered.

"We know about all of this because we were also present on the 'Moon Kingdom' all those years ago, and were present for its downfall," Dawn answered.

"What?" I gasped out, not believing what I was hearing.

"You have to believe me Serena," Dawn pleaded, "Stella and I wanted to tell you the truth as soon as you came to live with us, but you were so hurt by the actions of the other Sailor Scouts and the treatment of the late Moon Queen, we decided to wait until you were ready."

I stayed silent for a minute, simply staring into Dawn's crystal blue eyes. "Then tell me now," I whispered, "Tell us the truth."

Dawn sighed, "It's a long story. Not everything that you think you remember or was told to you about that time was true. The truth will probably hurt."

"The truth usually hurts but it is better than anything else," Anna said, "Now start at the beginning, and explain this 'Moon Kingdom' stuff to us."

"Well, the very beginning of the story starts long before the 'Moon Kingdom' existed, but why don't we start with the birth of Queen Serenity's oldest child," Christa said, sneering at Serenity's name.

"What do you mean oldest child?" Luna asked.

"It's part of what you don't remember," Dawn told her, "It was the catalyst for the end and the Queen's fall from grace into the vengeful ghost she is now."

"A long time ago," Christa began, "A child was born to the Moon Queen…"

Review please, and I apologize to all those I made wait for this chapter, and will try to continue on and avoid such a long wait next time. But life interferes doesn't it