A/N: Thanks for the reviews! I know a couple people question this story, since the senshi aren't going to be around. It's definitely going to be hard and challenging, but I'm going to do my best to make it interesting and worth your while to read, so to speak. Enjoy!

I could have stayed on the floor with Luna and Artemis for ages, but after about twenty minutes my stomach growled. Loudly. Unfazed, I put a hand over my midsection and pushed down lightly until the sound subsided. I was hungry, I had to admit: my tummy was so empty that it actually ached with a deep throbbing pain. But the thought of eating made me feel nauseous. Still, Luna's head popped up and she stared at me with a worried look in her eyes. It took me almost a full minute of looking back blankly before I understood why. The old Tsukino Usagi would never have let herself get to the point where it sounded like her stomach was trying to eat itself. I used to eat something almost every hour. I didn't think I'd ever gone this long without food before. No wonder she was concerned. I forced a smile and set her and Artemis down on the floor.

"I guess it's been a while since I ate," I said, hoping I sounded more cheerful than I felt. Above all I didn't want her and Artemis worrying about me unnecessarily. I looked up at Seiya, who was standing beside me patiently. "Will you cook something for me?"

"Seiya can't cook," Yaten said before Seiya could answer. There was a crooked little smirk on her face. "But Taiki can."

I turned a hopeful set of eyes onto Taiki and she gave in immediately, shaking her head a little. "Better me than Seiya, I suppose," she said. "At least this way the kitchen will have a chance at making it through another night."

"Mean," Seiya muttered, reaching down and hooking her hands under my armpits. She pulled me to my feet effortlessly and I was amazed all over again at how strong the Starlights were, even in their civilian forms. "Come on, Odango. We'll go into the living room and watch some television while Taiki makes sure the kitchen doesn't blow up."

I giggled while Taiki rolled her eyes and allowed Seiya to steer me into the living room. It was pretty large and had a couch facing one of the biggest televisions I'd ever seen. Seiya sat me down on the couch and then fetched the remote control. I suspected that they didn't do very much watching, though, because she looked at it blankly before passing it over to me. I switched the television on as she came to sit down. A quiet thrill of warmth went through me when she sat so close that our thighs were touching, and I felt calm when she allowed me to curl up beside her with my head on her shoulder, my arms wound around one of hers.

The television was keyed into a news channel. I flinched slightly when I saw that they were showing footage of the downtown area, much of which was still cordoned off due to the level of destruction. I could see people in the background sifting through the concrete and remains of the falling buildings. "The search for survivors is continuing after what the government is calling the worst storm of the century," the woman was saying, pointing to the screen. Her expression was grave. "Unfortunately, Police Chief Nakamura Okito says that the likelihood of finding anyone else alive after such a long period of time is not good."

Switch to a grainy footage of a man in his thirties with a moustache. It was raining and he was squinting into the camera. "My men have been working steadily for the past week to evacuate the area and give help to whoever we can," he said. "As each day passes we are finding more bodies than people who are still alive. With the exclusion of today the weather has been agreeable, but that doesn't change the fact that some of the buildings need to be stabilized before we can search. It's taking a lot of time but we'll remain diligent in our efforts to save whoever might be left."

Now the woman was back. "We're urging everyone who is missing a family member to report their name and description at your local police station. Many of the bodies have been left without identification. In the meantime, we encourage people to remain in their homes. Schools and businesses alike are shut down until further notice."

I felt cold. Seiya must have felt me shiver because she tilted my head up. "What's wrong?" she asked gently.

"My... my family," I stammered. "I can't believe... Oh god, Seiya, I haven't contacted them once. They must think that I'm dead by now!"

Seiya's eyes widened. "Shit," she muttered. "I'm sorry, Odango, we should have thought about it."

"No, it's not your fault. You couldn't have known. It wasn't your responsibility." I put a hand to my head. My mother must have been devastated. She'd be freaking out thinking that I was hurt or dead somewhere. Why hadn't I thought about them earlier? God, first Luna and Artemis and now my family. I was such a horrible person.

"Shh." Seiya wrapped her arms around me and stroked my hair. I realized that I was crying. "It's alright. We'll go see them first thing tomorrow, alright? And then they'll know that you're safe. I'm sure that they'll forgive you once they realize that you're okay."

Something in my stomach twisted uncomfortably. I pressed my head to Seiya's shoulder and held on tight so that she couldn't see my face. I wanted to see my family. I wanted to make sure they were okay. But even more than that, I wanted to stay with the Starlights. They were the only ones who knew about everything that had gone on, the only ones who could understand me. I didn't want to go back to my normal life where I only saw them once in a while. But how could I ask them to let me stay with them? It wasn't their place to take care of me. It never had been. I was pretty sure they'd only done it this long out of professional courtesy; I'd saved their lives, even if I couldn't save Kakyuu, and they were repaying me by making sure I didn't curl up and die.

I swallowed hard, my throat aching with suppressed tears. Maybe they wanted to go back to Kinmoku and they were just waiting for the opportunity to get rid of me. I wouldn't have blamed them if they did. Kinmoku was their home, after all, and maybe even without Princess Kakyuu there would be a way to save it and re-build. The thought of being without the three of them was unbearable, but I had no right to ask them to stay. Earth was not their home and Seiya had made it clear to me from the day I found out who she really was that they'd never had any intention of staying. Still, though, I wanted them to.

"Seiya," I said, and I hated the way that my voice quivered.

"Yes?" She pulled back a little and looked at me, and the warmth in her face made me feel like crying all over again for a different reason. Sometimes I thought that Seiya might still love me and it pulled me in two different directions. I still loved Mamo-chan but there had been moments even before I'd lost them that I couldn't help loving Seiya too. She was so good to me in ways that I didn't deserve. That was what stopped me from telling her my selfish whims. The words caught in my throat and refused to come out no matter how much I wanted them to, and then the moment was lost when Yaten poked her head inside the living room and announced that dinner was ready. When she saw how we were sitting she paused and a concerned look came over her face.

"Everything alright?" she asked cautiously.

"It's okay," said Seiya. "Just saw something on the television that was a bit upsetting."

Yaten nodded. "Come when you're ready," she said, and walked away.

"Odango." Seiya tilted my chin up and wiped at the fresh tears that had spilled onto my cheeks with the sleeve of her shirt. Her touch was incredibly gentle. "You can tell me anything. I want you to know that no matter what you say it could never turn me away from you. I'll hear anything, okay?"

I almost started crying again. I didn't deserve her. "Okay," I said, and the only indication that I was upset was the way my voice wobbled a little. I wondered what I would do when they were gone and I was completely alone. How would I care for the Earth by myself? What would happen when it came time for Crystal Tokyo? What if another enemy struck before then? Would I be able to handle it without the power of the combined planets behind me? After all, who knew how long it would be before the senshi were reborn? The questions spiralled through my mind and I ducked my head, feeling weaker by the moment. Seiya caught my arm before I could fall over completely and held me up against her.

"It's okay," she whispered. "Come on. You'll feel better after you eat, I promise." She half-carried me through the doors and into what passed for the dining room, putting me into a seat and sliding in beside me. Yaten regarded us both with worry in her eyes as Taiki carried in our meal from the kitchen. She was sitting across from me, with Taiki across from Seiya. Luna and Artemis had been granted a spot on the table at the end, but beside me was another seat, empty. I stared at it, knowing who should have been there.

"No change in Chibi-Chibi?" I asked hollowly.

Taiki sighed. She didn't seem surprised that I knew. "I'm afraid not. She's still asleep and I don't know what to do. Nothing we've tried has woken her up and I'm running out of ideas."

"I could..." I put a hand to my chest, where my locket usually rested. It was, at present, still on the nightstand, but the others knew instantly what I meant.

"No!" Seiya said vehemently. "You're too weak. Using the ginzuishou any more could kill you."

"But…" My protests died when she shook her head firmly and I looked down, listlessly bringing my fork to my mouth. The taste of the warm chicken didn't do anything to assuage the sick feeling in my stomach. During the days when I was only semi-conscious in bed, drifting in and out of sleep, I remembered hearing them talk about Chibi-Chibi. It felt strange not having her around. No, actually it just felt strange not having a child around me, period. For so long I'd had either Chibi-Usa or Chibi-Chibi to deal with that now that I knew what it was like to have time to myself, it was awful.

"Usagi-chan, Seiya's right. Wait until you're at full strength," Luna told me. "Artemis and I have seen Chibi-Chibi. She really is just sleeping. It's not hurting her." Her ruby eyes watched me sadly. "The battle took a lot out of everyone."

"Can I see her?" I asked.

"Eat your dinner first," Taiki said.

Now it was like I was the child. I kept eating, chewing the food even though it tasted like cardboard and stuck in my throat when I tried to swallow. I only managed about half the plate before I couldn't eat anymore. Then I took my glass and drank small sips of milk while the others finished. They were talking about a meeting Yaten had had with their producer. I tried to pretend that I wasn't listening even while I was hanging onto every word. It didn't sound like things had been going well, though no one had caught on to the fact that they were no longer male yet, and Yaten didn't know what to do. I was worried the answer would be for them to leave before anyone did catch on.

Not wanting to listen anymore, I stood up and walked away from the table. I opened the door to Taiki's room before I found Yaten's. Chibi-Chibi was sleeping inside, curled up on a little cot that had been shoved between Yaten's bed and dresser. I stepped into the room and knelt beside her, looking at her closely. As far as I could tell, Luna and Taiki were right. She appeared to be deeply sleeping, her little thumb tucked into her mouth, her chest rising and falling with every slow breath. My heart ached to see her like that and I reached out, brushing a strand of dark pink hair off of her cheek. She and the Starlights were all I had left, and soon I might not even have that.

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