Crow was staring at Phobos and Deimos. Her mind went blank for a moment. She couldn't believe her own eyes. What she was seeing was simply impossible. After all, these two should be…

"How…" Crow mumbled. "How can you two be here…!? You should be dead, like everyone else on Coronis…!"

"Wouldn't you have liked that; for us to have perished too, after you betrayed Coronis and led our planet to its doom!" Deimos spat with resentment.

"I didn't- how could you possibly know that…? You weren't even there…!" Crow protested.

The Sailor Senshi were watching at the scene with confusion, especially Sailor Mars. They had no idea what was going on.

"I'm not talking about now, I'm talking about before we fled our planet… because of you!" Deimos continued.

"You betrayed your home planet and your comrades! And our source of pride- You betrayed Sailor Coronis!" Phobos added.

"I am Sailor Coronis!" Crow protested.

"You are not! The only one from Coronis who can call herself by that title is the one blessed with our planet's protection. You are nothing more than a fraud and a murderer!"

The sudden accusation felt like a stab through the heart for Crow. But she refused to show how Deimos' words hurt her.

"Tsk, tough words coming from someone who fled our home planet,"Crow sneered. "So that's where you were all these years. You betrayed Coronis and fled to Earth…"

"We didn't betray anyone!" Phobos argued. "We had to flee because it wasn't safe for us anymore, because of… you."

Crow's eye twitched. "Pff- talk about comrades! You were gone! Our mentor was gone! I was the only one left to salvage this wretched planet, and now it's gone too…!"

"And who's fault is that? You brought ruin to our planet and our people! You're the only one to blame for that…!" Deimos accused. "And you are trying to bring the same ruin to this planet! We won't let you harm the people of Earth like you destroyed the people of Coronis!"

Crow wanted to deny everything she was being accused of. She wanted to get angry and scream at them or beat them up until they shut up. But deep down, she knew they were right. Or at least, that's how she felt about herself.

"N-no, I didn't…!" Crow hated how weak her voice sounded.

"It's all your fault!" Deimos continued. "None of this would have happened if she was still there. Our mentor. The real Sailor Coronis. But you, you…"

"S-stop…!" Crow weakly protested.

"Wait, Deimos, we don't know that for sure-" Phobos tried to intervene.

"You murdered her. You killed Sailor Coronis and stole her power!"

Crow froze. The words of protest just wouldn't come out from her mouth and died in her throat. She couldn't even say it wasn't true, that it was an awful lie. Because it wasn't- at least not in her heart.

"Crow! Tell us! What really happened to our mentor!?"

Crow could barely hear Phobos' voice, couldn't make out her words, only that it sounded like a pleading demand. All she could think about was blood. All that blood covering her body, tainting her clothes in crimson red. Blood that wasn't hers. Warm, sticky blood dripping all over her. She could perfectly remember its smell and warmth, so much she could almost taste it. It was all over her.

"Crow! Answer us! Crow!?"

It was Deimos' voice, sounding more hostile than her sister's. But Crow couldn't focus on it. Her vision was clouded in red. It felt like she was under attack. She could hardly breathe. Even inhaling the air caused pain in her chest. Everything felt so woozy.

"Crow!?" Phobos exclaimed.

"... Shut up… Shut up!" Crow yelled. "You know nothing! If you keep pestering me I'll rip you apart and paint the ground with your red blood!"

Phobos and Deimos stopped talking. This sudden threat wasn't without effect. Crow could see the fear in their eyes. If only it was just that. There was also contempt in their gazes, like they were staring at a disgusting murderer. This only made Crow's chest feel tighter.

"I didn't- ugh, that wasn't…! I…. I…!"

She couldn't bear this anymore. This was all too overwhelming. She opened her wings wide and flew away, far from those eyes reminding her of that blood.

"Crow!?" Deimos tried to call but she was already gone.

"Did she… just fly away after threatening us? Crow would never back down like this… at least, she wouldn't before…" Phobos pondered.

"Sorry to interrupt you two but, uh… who are you?" Venus suddenly asked.

The twins turned back, having almost forgotten that they weren't alone. The inners were looking at them with confusion while the outers looked suspicious, as usual. Nyanko and Mouse seemed like they had no idea what was going on.

Standing apart from the rest, Mars stared at the two girls in awe. "How can this be… Phobos, Deimos, is that really you…!?" she exclaimed.

"Huh!? Your pet crows!?" Sailor Moon let out. "Since when can they turn into women?!"

"Did you know about this?" Jupiter asked Mars.

"No, I didn't, I'm just as surprised as you…"

Phobos and Deimos exchanged a glance. They seemed hesitant to talk.

"We can explain," Phobos suddenly said. "But not here. We can't keep this form for too long."

"Let's go back to the temple," Deimos proposed. "We have a lot to talk about."

Despite her initial shock, Mars nodded. "Yes, we do."

"So, I suppose we should start from the beginning," Phobos said.

"Wait…!" Minako interrupted. "First off…"

Minako pointed at the twins. "Why did you get so small?"

The others seem equally confused. Just a moment ago the twins were human-sized but now they were as tall as fairies. They could fit in someone's palm.

"We can't talk in our crow form," Phobos explained.

"That is not my point. You weren't this small before," Minako replied.

"We can't keep our human form for too long," Deimos replied. "It feels like we are stretching ourselves and it gets uncomfortable."

"So… is this your true form?" Usagi asked.

"Our original form is the one you saw before," Phobos began. "But after spending so much time in our crow form, it became our normal form. Trying to go back to what we used to be is tricky."

"This is the price to pay for keeping our animal form for too long," Deimos added. "This was a power we both shared, but it was never meant to be for long-term use. It's now our new bodies, and turning back into humans is only temporary. It's easier for us to take these smaller forms if we want to communicate. Less exhausting."

"Okay then. I don't really care which form you're taking but please, just… explain to me what this is all about," Rei pleaded. "We've been together ever since I was a little kid, I considered you a part of my family, and yet… there was so much I didn't know about you. I guess I did have some doubt that you weren't regular crows. Normal crows don't usually live that long."

Usagi could hear some sadness in Rei's voice. She knew Phobos and Deimos for so long yet they never revealed their true selves to her. She wondered if Rei might feel betrayed.

"We're sorry, Rei," Phobos began. "We weren't able to take our human form again for so long. You knew us as crows for years, we didn't know how to tell you."

"Those crow forms allowed us to watch over you more easily, we couldn't take the risk to expose our true selves. This had to stay our permanent form, for your sake-"

"But why!?" Rei finally snapped. "Why would you go that far for me?! I heard what you said to Crow, I know you're from another planet, so why… why come to Earth and decide to watch over me!?"

Phobos and Deimos looked like they were hesitating to give an answer. Usagi had a doubt about what their purpose might be.

"Could it be… you're the same as Luna and Artemis?" Usagi asked. "Did Queen Serenity also send you to Earth?"

"Not… exactly," Phobos finally answered. "Unlike them, we aren't from the Silver Millennium. We came from Coronis, a planet far away from the Solar System."

"We had to flee our home planet for our safety and took refuge on Earth, by Rei's side," Deimos added.

"That's what I don't understand. Why me? If you weren't from the Silver Millenium, how would you know about me?" Rei asked.

"We may haven't been around during the Silver Millennium era, but that doesn't mean we have no connection to it," Phobos explained. "Back then, your past life was related to Coronis somehow. She knew the Sailor Coronis living at that time. That's how we knew about you."

"What… what do you mean?" Rei was confused.

"The Sailor Mars living during the Silver Millennium was known on Coronis. She was someone important to our planet. Enough to have a temple dedicated to her on Coronis," Phobos replied.

"We happened to stumble on it- or rather, what remained of it," Deimos added. "The temple has been abandoned for a while now. Coronis is now a war-filled planet, almost everything from the era before has been destroyed. We were lucky that what was inside the temple was mostly intact. We found an ancient device that guided us to your Solar System- to Rei specifically."

"An ancient device?" Makoto asked.

"It allowed us to travel through space and connected us to your planet. It was probably made back during the Silver Millenium to allow easy transport between Coronis and Mars," Deimos clarified.

"We had nowhere to go and needed help. We wanted to seek help from Sailor Mars, but when we arrived we discovered that you were still a child. So instead, we chose to remain by your side and watch over you," Phobos added.

Rei didn't know what to reply to that. She was still too shocked by the recent events.

"So in other words," Haruka began, "You two are outsiders."

"I mean… yeah?" Phobos replied.

"Is there a problem with that?" Deimos added.

Haruka shrugged. "There should be, but lately it seems like Earth is treated as a hub for the entire galaxy. It's as if people here forgot we aren't supposed to let outsiders come in."

"You're back at this? We already have Luna and Artemis who aren't from our solar system, what's the issue with these two?" Minako said.

"Luna and Artemis were approved by Queen Serenity," Haruka replied. "We do not know these two."

"I've known them for years!" Rei argued.

"And yet, you didn't know about their true identity," Michiru chimed in.

"Well, I approve of them," Usagi suddenly said. "I might not be Queen Serenity, but the decision should be up to me, right? They have nowhere else to go, we can't just ask them to leave."

Haruka looked like she was hesitating. Michiru sighed, glancing at Nyanko and Mouse.

"I suppose if we are allowing these two to stay for the time being, we can make an expectation for those two too," Michiru conceded.

"But… it's our duty to keep invaders away…!" Haruka was still resisting.

"Outsiders aren't all invaders," Usagi said. "After all, Luna and Artemis are outsiders who are here to help us. The Starlights were also our allies. Queen Serenity herself wasn't from here. The Silver Millennium was built by an outsider and she welcomed people from all around the galaxy. Your duty was never to keep every outsider out, but to protect us from those who seek us harm."

"If it can comfort you, we never intended to invade Earth, nor have any ill intention," Phobos. "We have nowhere else to go."

"Our planets shared a connection since the Silver Millenium, Coronis and Mars in particular were allied. We might be 'outsiders' to Earth but our ancestors were always welcomed to the Solar System," Deimos added.

"Maybe you two are fine, but what about Crow? She's from the same planet as you and she's a threat," Haruka argued.

Just hearing that name was enough to send a shiver down the twins' spines.

"Crow is the very reason why we had to leave Coronis," Deimos replied bitterly. "She attacked us and threatened us. She said… she'd kill us if she ever saw us again. Coming here was our only way to ensure our safety. This woman is a threat indeed, to us and to you."

"So you knew Crow from back when you were still living on Coronis," Minako deduced.

"We did," Phobos replied, a hint of sadness in her voice. "Long ago, we were fellow soldiers in training, each with our dreams for the future. We were training under our mentor, Sailor Coronis."

"But… isn't Crow Sailor Coronis?" Makoto asked. "She is a Sailor Senshi after all… right?"

Both Phobos and Deimos exchanged a glance, hesitant to answer. Deimos eventually spoke. "Crow killed the real Sailor Coronis and stole her powers. She was not born a Sailor Senshi."

This revelation left everyone speechless. Crow was not a real Sailor Senshi? How could this be possible?

"Wait… what? How… I never heard of such a thing being possible…!" Rei exclaimed.

"How could she manage to do such a thing?" Michiru asked.

"We… we don't know for sure," Phobos hesitated. "We're not even sure if she actually did kill our mentor-"

"Of course we know!" Deimos interrupted. "We saw it! Crow standing next to our mentor's body, covered in her blood… and then she awakened as the new Sailor Coronis!? She killed her and stole her powers, that's the only rational explanation!"

It seemed like the twins weren't fully agreeing on that.

"Can you tell us more? This is the first time I heard of someone stealing a Sailor Senshi's powers," Ami asked.

Phobos looked away for a moment before answering. "We have known Crow since we were all kids. We were orphaned by one of the many wars that plagued our planet. Sailor Coronis took us under her wing and she taught us how to fight. We wanted to become strong like her and fight for a better world alongside her."

"But that's not what Crow wanted," Deimos added bitterly. "All she wanted was more power. Even as a child she was callous and loved violence. She has always been a menace ever since we knew her. That's why she killed our mentor. She was envious of her powers and wanted them for herself. And she would have killed us too if we did flee Coronis."

"That's… horrible," Makoto muttered.

"That's the kind of person she was and always is," Deimos added. "She only cares about herself and power-"

"W-wait, that's not true…!" Nyanko suddenly chimed in. "I can't speak for your experience with her, and I'm sorry for what happened to your mentor, but Crow isn't this heartless monster you seem to think she is! She does care about someone! She loves Seiren more than anything, she cares about her more than her own life…!"

"I don't know what kind of relationship you had with Crow, but I don't believe you," Deimos retorted. "There's no place in her heart for love. Only violence and power. You didn't know her like we did. We knew her as a child! You can't possibly be talking about the same Crow we knew!"

"People can change!" Nyanko argued. "You haven't seen her in years! How old was she the last time you saw her? Bad kids can grow up to be great adults, you know!"

"I… wouldn't call Crow-san a 'great' adult," Minako said.

"It's a figure of speech!"

"Nyanko, this woman tried to kill you!" Mouse suddenly said. "How many times did she attack you already? You still bear bruises because of her…!"

"You're defending a woman who tried to kill you!?" Deimos instantly reacted.

"The key words here are 'tried to'," Nyanko argued. "She didn't kill me. She chose not to. That has to mean something."

"That's… not killing someone is the bare minimum, not an accomplishment," Rei said, baffled.

"Well-"

"Wait," Phobos suddenly intervened. "Huh. Maybe she did change after all."

Deimos quickly turned towards her twin sister. "Huh!? What are you talking about…?!"

"It has been bugging me since earlier, how Crow just… left. She wasn't the type to give up like that, especially not after making such a threat. So maybe she did change, even just slightly."

"Well, that doesn't change what she did in the past, now does it."

The twins were at odds. The others didn't really know what to say. The sudden silence grew more and more awkward until someone finally spoke.

"So… any recommendations on how to handle Crow?" Makoto said.

"She's a force of nature- wind more specifically," Deimos replied. "Fire is her elemental weakness."

"That I can do," Rei commented.

"B-But, if what you said about this woman she cares about is true, then she might be your best option to handle Crow," Phobos quickly added.

"You mean Seiren is her true weakness?" Minako asked.

"I don't like calling an actual person a weakness but theoretically… yes."

Mouse looked thoughtful for a moment. "Yes… if she has a clear weakness it'd be Seiren for sure."

"W-woah, I'm not sure I like what you're implying…!" Nyanko let out.

"Regardless, you better be careful around Crow," Deimos warned. "This woman is dangerous no matter what. All she knows is violence and her lust for power. Just talking about her is enough to make me shiver…"

Phobos put a comforting hand on her sister's shoulder before speaking. "It's time for us to go back to our other form. We can't stay like this for much longer."

"W-what…? Already!?" Rei exclaimed. "But there's so much I still want to talk about with you…"

"We've unfortunately reached our limits," Deimos said with an apologetic look in her eyes. "We also wished we could talk more. We said the essentials, and were able to protect you and warn you."

"We will be able to talk again soon enough," Phobos reassured. "Just… take care of yourself in the meantime, and be careful."

"Phobos, Deimos, wait-"

But it was too late. The twins had turned back into crows. All that could come out from their beaks was "caw".

Now back to their bird form, Phobos and Deimos flew away.

There was a short moment of silence until Minako spoke. "Well, I guess we have one option to deal with Crow. We need to find Seiren."

"My my, what is going on here?"

As soon as she stepped outside the telephone booth, Papillon was welcomed by the sight of Seiren tied down to the ground with Fox on top of her.

"... Eh?" Kerokko reacted as she stepped out too, the booth disappearing afterwards.

"I-it's… it's not what you think…!" Fox quickly let out. "I brought her back here as you asked but she wouldn't cooperate, so I had to subdue her…!"

Papillon sighed, gesturing at Fox to get off from Seiren. Fox obliged, leaving the bound Seiren on the ground, her wrists tied up behind her back.

"P-Please, Papillon-san…! Is… is Crow-san alright?"

Seiren had teary eyes like she was about to cry. Papillon didn't particularly enjoy the sight of a tied up woman crying. It felt terribly wrong. But alas, she had a goal to accomplish, and thus had to ignore any feeling of sympathy she might have.

"You could have saved her, but you decided to let me down," Papillon said coldly.

Tears started to roll on Seiren's cheeks. "N-No, you… is Crow-san…?"

Papillon pondered on what to answer. She wasn't sure herself of Crow's fate. She extracted her star seed, but left before she saw what happened to her. Knowing the Sol System Sailor Senshi, they probably saved her, but she couldn't know for sure. Not that it mattered- Seiren didn't need to know about this detail.

"She's fine, for now," Papillon said, crouching down on one knee, "but I can't guarantee her safety from now on. If you had done what you said you would, she'd be safe already."

Seiren was now sobbing. "I'm sorry…! Please, don't hurt her for my actions…!"

Papillon really didn't like the look on her face when she was crying. It was almost as unpleasant as seeing a child cry. Seiren was practically just a big child to her.

"Shhh, there's no need to cry, Seiren-san," Papillon gently brushed her cheeks to wipe her tears away. "I'm willing to give you another chance."

"I… I can't…! I can't do this to her, not again…"

"It's okay, I won't ask you to. It's not your fault. It's Crow-san's fault for being so stubborn and troubling you. I shouldn't have expected her to actually listen to you."

Papillon never despised Crow to this degree before. She never was fond of her, but after making her initial plan fail, she only felt anger towards her. If only Seiren didn't care about her, she would have eliminated her already. Alas.

"O-okay… then, what do you want me to do? I'd do anything…! Except hurting Crow-san…"

Papillon untied Seiren's wrists and helped her get back on her feet. She then softly pat her on the head.

"Good girl. I can't guarantee I won't have to fight Crow-san until I get my hand on the Sailor Crystal I'm desperately looking for. So the faster you find that crystal, the better chances you have to keep her safe."

Seiren looked down, pensive. "But… I don't even know what this crystal looks like. I took two star seeds but apparently they were no good…"

"It's a very special star seed, unique among its kind. It's of all colors, and at the same time, colorless, like no color you ever witnessed before. And it's no ordinary shape either. Its brightness is beyond what you can imagine too. You will know it's the right one once you see it."

Kerokko glanced at Pewter Fox. "She gave us pretty much the same description with those exact same words before, right?"

Fox shrugged. "I mean, yeah? Using the same words definitely makes it easier to describe."

Seiren remained pensive for a moment until her eyes widen in shock. "That description… I've seen a crystal like that before!"

Papillon was taken aback for a moment. She was certainly not expecting Seiren to have seen the very crystal that was the object of her desire. Quickly she grabbed Seiren's shoulders, gazing at her with burning intensity.

"Seiren-san… where did you see this crystal exactly?" Papillon could barely control her voice so much she was feeling exalted.

"Hm? Well, that was when I caught Sailor Moon transforming."

"... Huh?"

"Yeah, I remember perfectly now," Seiren declared proudly. "That crystal you are describing, it's a perfect match with her starseed. It must be the Silver Crystal!"