Disclaimer: I do not own Sailor Moon or her characters, and have no right to it except as a long time fan.

Imperfect Reincarnation
Chapter Six

Serena and the rest of her class began to find their seats as the morning bell rang signaling the start of the school day on Monday.

As they all sat in their assigned seats and grew quiet their teacher announced that they would be leaving in a few minutes to gather in another room with another class in their year. This made the entire class curious and they quietly chatted with their closest neighbor about what this could possibly be about.

After a number of minutes passed their teacher called for the class to follow her as she walked toward the door. She opened it and stepped out and they followed, filing out in ones and twos, until they all filled the hallway.

She closed the door securely and began to lead them down the hallway, further down a flight of stairs, and through two more hallways before she stopped at a familiar set of open double doors.

Their teacher had led them to the auditorium where they had theater performances and plays.

At her direction they filed in and sat down in the front seats closest to the stage. Serena and Molly made sure to sit together, and they ended up seated at the end of the second row. They chatted about what could possibly be about to happen as they waited for the second class to arrive, but they couldn't come up with anything to explain this sudden trip.

A few minutes later the second class arrived and filed into the seats in front of the stage across from them, so both classes were seated in two groups.

Their teacher and a man, who must have been the teacher for the other class, went up onto the stage and faced them together.

"We have gathered you here this morning to inform you that you will be participating in a joint field trip." The man announced to the classes. "It will last an entire school day, and even extend after the time school would normally let out. You will be required to wear your school uniform, so we can have an easier time keeping count of you all and assuring no one is left behind."

"The field trip will start with a visit to the Edo Tokyo Museum. We will leave campus when classes start, and spend an hour, possibly two, there, and then proceed to Edo Wonderland Nikko Edomura." Their teacher explained.

"At the museum you will focus your studies and note taking on the feudal era, and later enjoy yourselves at the Wonderland as well as get an idea of what life was like during that time." The man continued.

Serena and Molly, as well as many of their classmates, were pretty excited about the trip that would apparently be taking place the day after tomorrow. They were told that their lunch hour would take place while they were at the Wonderland, so they could either bring a lunch or bring money to purchase a meal there.

Serena hummed thoughtfully as she considered which option she would choose. Usually she brought a lunch to school, but if they were going to be eating at the Wonderland that promised to have samples of what food was like at that point in history.

Perhaps I should just go with both options. She considered as she let her eyes roam over her classmates, but paused when she spotted a girl she had seen before around campus.

She was of course wearing the school uniform, but aside from that she had short dark blue hair and blue eyes currently framed in a pair of delicate looking glasses.

Before she could set her eyes moving in another direction a scene began to play in her mind.

oOo

Sailor Moon knelt on the clean shiny marble floor as she searched the bottom shelf of a row in the palace library for another interesting book to read. She very much wanted to find an empty bench and lose herself in a book.

"You should stop seeing Prince Endymion." She heard a quiet familiar voice say, and she looked over to see Sailor Mercury standing at the end of the row looking at her.

"Why?" She asked just as quietly, holding in a sigh, as she stood up.

"Because Selene prefers him to all others." Mercury replied.

"Is that all?" Sailor Moon asked after a few moments of silence.

"That alone should be enough." Mercury said with a frown. "You should not be pursuing the man our princess holds affection for."

"I am not pursuing him. He is pursuing me." Sailor Moon countered. "What do you want me to do? To deny the Prince of the Earth when he comes to me? How do you think that would turn out? Even if I told him the truth of our princess' feelings, assuming he does not already know, I do not think that will stop him." She said before she shook her head lightly.

"I am sure he will grow bored of me, and turn his attention to another woman." She said with a slight shrug. "If anything that is what Selene should be considering; his reputation for liking the ladies."

Even as she said it she knew that that reputation had changed or was changing. She could not help thinking back to the whispers she had heard during the luncheon where his attention first turned to her. That he was showing an interest in someone, in anything for the first time in months, and that it was not the beautiful Moon Princess.

She wondered where his reputation as a "ladies man" came from since she honestly had not seen evidence of it. Either that or he was really good at making her think what he wanted her to think about him.

oOo

Serena blinked in quiet surprise at the flash of memory. It was the first memory she had seen that didn't have the prince, Endymion, in it.

Well. I now know the Moon Princess' name. Should I tell Luna? She wondered thoughtfully.

She didn't think it really mattered since it would not be her present name. Her own name couldn't be the same as it was in the past. Of course she didn't even know what her past name was beyond the whole Sailor Moon name, but then she was possibly remembering two lives so she couldn't really speak to that.

She held in a sigh and turned her attention to the apparent fact that the princess liked Prince Endymion and, judging by Mercury's words, likely didn't appreciate the fact that her past self was dating him.

Serena didn't know what to think about that. The princess she was supposed to protect had liked a man who didn't want her. A man who actually wanted her, her past self actually, Sailor Moon instead.

That couldn't be good, especially not for the present time. What if the prince appeared in the present, and still didn't want the princess? What if he still wanted her?!

She didn't think anything would come of that as far as being with her was concerned. She had a boyfriend and was perfectly happy with him. Besides, her past self had been right about the fact that the prince could grow bored and move on from her.

Perhaps that was what happened in the past, and the princess got to have her chance. She didn't know. She just didn't know the whole situation. She hadn't remembered enough, and she wasn't sure what she remembered of Sailor Earth counted.

Serena then turned her attention to the other information the memory brought up. Sailor Mercury, and the fact that she looked like the girl her eyes had landed on.

Is she really the scout of Mercury? She wondered a moment later as she frowned; part of her hoping mightily that it wasn't true.

She didn't particularly like the girl. She had tried to befriend her at one point, but she had an unwelcome attitude, and believed herself smarter than the majority of her classmates so she had left her alone.

Still, if it turned out she actually was the scout of Mercury she would be civil toward her since they would need to work together as scouts, but she wasn't going to try for more than that.

oOoIRoOo

Hours later found Serena and Molly halfway from campus after school on their way to the Crown cafe.

As they walked they chatted about what they wanted to snack on when they reached the cafe since they were a little hungry, and considering if they wanted to get a start on their homework while they were there.

Molly thought that sounded like a good idea. Eating snacks while they worked on their homework, which would of course allow them to hang out together.

"Will Darien mind if we do that?" She asked.

"No. He won't mind. He's likely to help us." Serena assured her, and Molly nodded.

A few minutes later they arrived at the building housing the Crown cafe and arcade. They bypassed the sliding glass doors to the arcade and climbed the stairs leading up to the cafe. Serena pulled the glass door open and they stepped inside the quiet establishment.

Molly looked around and saw that there weren't many people. Serena spotted Darien first and she followed and saw that he was sitting at a booth, facing them, next to the windows overlooking the sidewalk and street.

Behind him she saw a couple sitting in the booth behind him with their backs facing them. The girl had wavy aqua hair, and the boy, at least she thought it was a boy, had short pale blond hair and was a head taller than the girl.

She couldn't help blushing at the sight of Darien. She wasn't attracted to him, but there was something about him. He was a gentleman, something she hadn't seen in guys around their age, and had this air of dignity about him.

Besides her strange feelings around him she liked the guy. He was friendly, kind, respectful, and he made her best friend so happy. That was important to her; especially now that Serena was smiling so brightly all the time.

"Hello ladies." Darien said as he looked toward them.

"Hi." Serena said brightly, and Molly waved with a smile, happy to see his eyes skip back to her friend.

She slipped into the empty side of the booth across the table from him, and Serena slipped in next to him and received a kiss on the cheek, which made Molly grin to see her best friend practically glow.

"So, how was school ladies?" Darien asked as he looked back and forth between them.

"It was good." Molly answered.

"Yeah." Serena agreed. "It was just like any other day, but we did get a surprise. We're going to be going on a field trip Wednesday. Our class and another one in our year." She added.

"Ah a joint field trip." He said, and she nodded. "Where to?" He asked.

"First we're going to the Edo Tokyo Museum, and then right after that to the Edo Wonderland Nikko Edomura." Molly answered, and Serena nodded.

"It's going to be an all day trip. We'll leave from campus right when school starts, and not get back until well after school ends." She said as she looked to him. "So I won't see you at all that day."

"Well that's unfortunate." Darien said, understanding with her words why he was being told about the field trip in the first place. Already he hated that he wouldn't get to see her.

"But we can still talk on the phone later in the evening." He reminded her and himself. He loved talking to her on the phone, listening to the sound of her voice. He wished they had been able to communicate in such a way in the past.

"You're right!" Serena said with a smile. She hadn't been thinking about that. She had only been focused on not being able to see him. "Thanks for reminding me." She said as she kissed his cheek.

"You are welcome." He said with a smile. "Thank you for letting me know about your school trip. I would have been sad to be left waiting without a word."

"Oh I wouldn't do that to you." She said with a frown. "In fact, you can be sure that I'll never do that to you if I can at all help it." She assured him.

"I appreciate that." He replied softly as he leaned against her.

"Oh my gosh!" Molly said with a quiet squeal. "You guys look so good together."

"Thank you." Darien said happily while Serena just blushed and looked down. "So what do you two want to do now?" He asked.

"Well, if you don't have anything planned we figured we could get a start on our homework." Serena said as she looked back up.

"That's fine with me. I didn't have anything planned for us. I only wanted to spend time with you." Darien said.

Serena smiled at him before she looked to Molly who shrugged and brought her school bag up and onto the table. Serena did the same and they began to pull out different papers as they explained what homework they had as he listened intently.

After that they started on their homework with Darien helping just like Serena said he likely would, and eventually ordered crepes and soda to snack on while they worked.

oOo

Serena sat on her bed leaning back against her pillows as she looked to Luna who was sitting in front of her in the middle of the bed. She hadn't been home long and in fact had only closed the door and put her school bag on her desk moments before as she told Luna she had something to tell her.

"So what's going on?" Luna asked curiously.

"There's a girl at my school that looks like the Sailor Mercury in a memory I had today." Serena said as she looked to Luna. "I think you should see the girl yourself, and find out if she could actually be the same scout."

"What was the memory?" Luna asked curiously.

"It was just a flash of a conversation." She answered vaguely. There was no way she was going to tell Luna about her past self holding the interest of a prince that the Moon Princess, she was supposed to be guardian to, liked.

She had no problem with Luna knowing she was starting to remember the past she spoke of, but those details were none of her business; and she definitely didn't even consider saying anything about the memories of Sailor Earth.

"Ah and the Princess' name was mentioned." She added. "I don't know how much good knowing her name will do, but I know it."

"What is it?" Luna asked as she sat up straighter.

"Selene. Princess Selene." Serena told her calmly.

"It is a nice name." Luna said as she nodded. "It is good that we know it. She may not identify with that name at present, but perhaps she will when she remembers her past; that is if she doesn't already remember."

Serena nodded; figuring she should respond in some way. What she would have preferred was to remember her own past name. She didn't know if she would use it, but guessed it would depend on if she recalled her entire past and if the people around her remembered her past name.

"So what does this possible scout look like?" Luna asked, getting back to the main topic.

"She's a little taller than me, has short dark blue hair, and blue eyes." She answered.

"Do you know her name?" Luna asked, and she nodded.

"Amy Anderson." Serena replied.

oOoIRoOo

Luna sat on the end of the bed watching Serena get ready for school. They had decided the evening before that she would accompany her to school so Serena could identify the girl for her.

Now on the verge of possibly discovering another scout, Luna found herself contemplating how she had thought she would be closer to the Scouts when they were found.

Serena was the first, and only one at the moment, but she seemed to keep her at a distance. Actually she wasn't even sure Serena was doing it on purpose. She got the feeling that Serena just didn't want or feel the need to deepen their relationship.

She was a good scout. There was no doubt about that. Serena informed her about every fight she was in, the monster involved, and what it had been doing to get people's energy and how it fought. She let her know about anything unexpected or unusual happening, and even let her know about the masked man, Tuxedo Mask's, continued help.

But aside from that she seemed uninterested in talking to her about anything outside of Scout business unless Luna specifically asked about something. Serena didn't even seem to want her family to know Luna was there.

I hope if this Amy girl turns out to be a scout I'll have better luck building a relationship with her. She thought with a light sigh.

When Serena finished getting ready for school Luna met her outside the house and they began to make their way to the high school campus. It took them almost half an hour walking, since Luna couldn't ride the bus with her, and they were early in order for Serena to point out the girl without being noticed having a cat with her.

Serena stood in an out of the way location with a perfect view of the school gates where she wouldn't be seen by anyone unless they walked in her direction. Student after student walked onto the campus. Sometimes one at a time alone, sometimes in pairs, and more often than not in groups of friends.

Serena watched closely, looking for the girl with the short blue hair, and after ten full minutes passed she finally arrived, walking onto campus alone.

"There!" Serena said to Luna who was sitting on her shoulder close to the bush she was standing next to. "The one with the short blue hair with the gray sweater over her uniform top." She added.

"I see her." Luna said as she narrowed her eyes at the girl. She watched her swipe her hair away from her eyes, revealing her forehead briefly, and instantly saw the symbol for the planet Mercury glowing a bright blue.

"It's her." She confirmed with a sharp nod. "She is Sailor Mercury."

"Alright. One down three to go." Serena said quietly as she stepped back further out of sight as Amy disappeared inside. "I'll leave it to you to approach her and awaken her just like you did with me."

"Now that you won't be fighting alone there's something I need to give you." Luna said before she leapt to the ground.

She did a backflip just as she had when she produced Serena's brooch and after a brief flash of light a small rectangular pink object appeared that Luna caught in her mouth before it could hit the ground. She placed it on the ground and sat down as she looked to the scout of the Moon.

"This is your communicator." She said as she lightly placed her paw on it.

Serena knelt down and picked up the communicator, and saw that it looked like a tiny simple calculator. Only instead of numbers on the dark pink buttons there was a symbol for each planet of a scout in what she guessed was their color. Blue for Mercury, green for Jupiter, orange for Venus, and red for Mars. There was another button, a dark gray button, that when questioned Luna explained was a contact all button.

Aside from the buttons was a small round screen that Luna explained would show the face of the one contacting her or who she was contacting when they answered. In the event that all the Scouts needed to be contacted at once she would not see anyone, and would only hear their voices.

"Once I awaken Mercury you'll be able to contact her when the enemy is attacking." Luna said.

"Okay." Serena said with a nod. "I'll keep this with me just like my brooch." She said as she placed it in her skirt pocket and stood up. "Good luck. I'll see you later; whenever that happens to be." She said before she began to walk away to head to her class.

Luna watched her go before she began to make her way to a place she could rest for the remainder of the school day and see when Amy left the school.

When school finally did let out for the day she kept a sharp eye out for Amy, and when she spotted her she immediately left her hiding spot and began to follow her. She was led to a high rise apartment building and subtly followed her inside and up to what she discovered was her home.

It was difficult not to be seen getting in the elevator with her but she managed, and remained unseen during the long ride and was thankfully able to move down the quiet hallway and slip inside the apartment with her unseen.

She waited until Amy had disappeared further into the large apartment then went about checking to see if anyone else was home.


Amy Anderson sighed quietly from her seat at her desk in her bedroom. She had only been home a few minutes and had just finished starting up her computer. She hadn't even taken the time to change out of her school uniform.

As she arranged her books to her liking she heard the very distinct sound of a throat quietly clearing behind her. She spun around in her chair and blinked in surprise at the sight of a black cat with a golden crescent moon on its forehead sitting on her bed.

"Hello Amy. I am pleased to finally meet." The feline said.

Amy stared in shock and surprise at the fact that the cat was speaking to her let alone the fact that it knew her name.

"You can talk." Amy said almost blankly in her shock.

"Yes. Yes I can." The cat replied. "My name is Luna."

"How did you get in here?" She asked as she stared at the cat.

"I followed you in." Luna answered. "I followed you from your school campus here, so that I could speak to you in private. I confirmed this morning that you are one of the chosen ones I have been searching for."

"You are a sailor scout." She said seriously.

"What is a sailor scout?" Amy asked as she frowned in confusion.

"A sailor scout is a warrior, one of a group of female soldiers, charged with the duty to support and protect the Moon Princess." Luna answered seriously.

"Who is this Moon Princess, and why does she need protecting?" Amy asked, curious despite herself.

"I do not yet remember all of my memories, however, I know that we have all been reincarnated on the Earth. You, me, the Sailor Scouts, and the Moon Princess. In the far past there was life not just on the Earth, but on all the planets in the solar system and of course the Moon." Luna began.

"The Moon Princess was the heir to the throne of the Moon Kingdom and next in line to wield and guard the imperial silver crystal; a very powerful object which can only be used correctly by the royal moon line." She continued.

"Because of her royal position and ability to use the silver crystal she was given five guardian scouts to protect her and support her during her lifetime. Not long before her birth those guardians were chosen from the planets around the solar system. Sailor Jupiter, Sailor Venus, Sailor Mercury, Sailor Mars, and Sailor Moon." She explained.

"How everything ended on the Moon is something I have yet to remember, but I do know that there was a great evil involved." Luna said. "I believe that same evil was sent along to the Earth with the rest of us and is now awake and active, which is why I myself was awakened."

"The duty of a sailor scout is to guard and protect the Moon Princess, however with this evil out there and active she is in constant danger; especially outside the protection of her guardian scouts. That being said you and the other guardian scouts need to fight and defeat any agents of the evil that appear and attack since one of their victims could very well be the princess." She concluded.

Amy stared at the feline that called herself Luna for a long moment before she blinked and looked away. What she had just heard was surprising, strange, and kind of amazing. To think that there had been life on the other planets in the distant past. Clearly it was before history began to be recorded or possibly during a civilization that had been destroyed along with all their records.

I'm thinking it must be the latter option, because if there was life on other planets, and presumably the ability to travel to and from those planets, then the society was advanced enough to keep worldwide records. She thought as she returned her eyes to the black cat.

Still, aside from that fascinating piece of knowledge this cat, Luna, is claiming I am a sailor scout that needs to protect a reincarnated princess from the Moon, and fight evil beings that were part of the evil that ended life on the Moon in the past. She told herself.

How can I believe this? This is too much to even consider without some kind of proof. She thought with a sigh.

"How do I know what you're saying is the truth? I need proof before I can even consider thinking more on this." Amy said seriously.

"Very well." Luna said before she jumped into the air and did a backflip. There was a brief flash of light and a blue object appeared and fell on the bed.

"This is your transformation pen." She said seriously as she placed a paw lightly on it and pushed it forward. "All you have to say is 'mercury power' and you will become Sailor Mercury."

Amy got up and grabbed the pen before she returned to her seat and looked it over. It was blue on the bottom half and gold on the top half with the planetary symbol for Mercury engraved at the top within a circle.

It was a nice looking pen but she was still skeptical, because really who wouldn't be. To have a cat come to them, a talking cat at that, and tell them they're a warrior guardian for a princess from the Moon sounded like a made up fantasy.

I won't start believing any of this until I actually become this scout of Mercury. She thought as she stood up.

"Mercury Power!" Amy said as she held the pen up slightly, and flinched as blue light flashed and what looked like a stream of blue water came pouring out of the top of the pen.

The water swirled around her torso and each of her limbs before tightening around her. Blue light flashed around her body, hiding her from view briefly, and when it cleared she was dressed very differently.

Amy lifted her hands and looked at her arms before her eyes skipped down to look at her body in shock. She twisted her head around and tried to look over her shoulder and down her back, but that wasn't working so she stepped over to her closet and opened the door to reveal a full length mirror attached to the door.

She wore a white bodysuit with white shoulder pads, a blue collar with two white stripes on it, and a blue miniskirt. On her chest and lower back were light blue bows, white gloves that stretched up her forearms and stopped just beneath her elbows with blue borders, and blue knee-high boots with a white border at the triangular top.

She also wore a blue choker around her neck, blue stud earrings, and a gold tiara with a blue gem on her forehead.

"Okay." Amy breathed out as she turned this way and that way, feeling more than a little exposed in the tight bodysuit and miniskirt.

I truly am a sailor scout; a reincarnation of a guardian scout of the princess of the Moon. She told herself quietly.

"Okay I believe. I really am a sailor scout; Sailor Mercury." She added as she closed the closet door and looked to Luna.

"Good." Luna said with a pleased nod. "Have a seat so we can talk, and I will do my best to answer your questions."

"To start with you are the second scout to be awakened. I awakened Sailor Moon a few months ago. She is a girl at your school named Serena Tsukino, and she's actually the one to bring to my attention that you could very well be a scout." She explained as Amy returned to her seat.

"How did she know?" Amy asked curiously.

"She had a memory of the past where the scout of Mercury was seen, and she looked like you. Serena informed me so I could check, and I confirmed it this morning." Luna explained.

"That is something else you should know. Now that you have been awakened hopefully you will start to recall the past as well." She continued.

"Will I really remember the past?" Amy asked.

"I believe you will, and I certainly hope so. Remembering will help you adjust better, and help find the scouts and princess." Luna said. "Serena is starting to, which is how she thought you might be a scout as I said earlier. You looked like the Sailor Mercury in her memory."

Amy nodded thoughtfully. She found it fascinating that she would eventually remember her past life as Sailor Mercury. That she would remember there being life on other planets, and travel between planets as possible. Not just possible but certain if the scouts had really come from different planets. They would have to get to the Moon somehow.

"Now, aside from that there was a masked man that helped Sailor Moon during her first fight. She informed me that his name is Tuxedo Mask and he has continued to show up at fights and assist her, so that is something to look out for so you aren't surprised if he appears." Luna informed her.

"When it comes to the evil enemy and their agents; you have the monsters that are attacking around the city, apparently to steal human energy, and so far a man has been seen at one of the fight scenes directly after the monster had been defeated. From Serena's description he is clearly someone above the monsters." She continued before recounting the description of the man's appearance.

"I understand, and I'll keep a look out for him or anyone else like him." Amy said with a nod as she vaguely considered what her first encounter with a monster would be like.

"Now then, before you ask any questions I have some items for you that will help you in your capacity as a scout." Luna said before she once again jumped into the air and did a backflip. There was a brief flash of light and a small pink object appeared and fell on the bed.

She repeated the action and after a brief flash of light a small thin blue rectangular object appeared.

"This is your communicator." She said as she lightly placed a paw on the pink object. "It will allow you and your fellow scouts to contact each other when there's an attack."

Amy blinked before she stood and stepped forward and picked up the two objects before returning to her seat. She put the blue rectangular object on her lap and looked over the communicator that looked like a tiny calculator.

She took in the dark pink buttons and saw that there was a symbol for each planet of a scout in what she guessed was their color instead of numbers. As she looked at the screen she listened as Luna explained exactly how it worked.

When she finished explaining she put it down and picked up the blue rectangular object. She opened it and was surprised to find that it was actually a miniature computer that looked like a hand held laptop.

"That is your Mercury minicomputer. It's actually a super computer, which you also had in the past. It will allow you to scan various surroundings and people, and analyze data, which will prove very useful in any fight you happen to be in." Luna explained.

"Wow." Amy breathed as she began to carefully click on the keyboard to learn how to use the device.

This went on for a few long minutes, her typing growing more confident and rapid as she figured out the device. When she was satisfied she closed it and put it down before returning her attention to Luna.

"Will the silver crystal have to be found as well as the princess?" Amy asked.

"I don't know. Although, I believe one will lead to the other if they are not together." Luna answered.

Amy nodded and then focused on not being transformed anymore, not wanting to be caught by her mother looking like a scout since it seemed to be something that shouldn't be known. She glowed softly before it brightened slightly then faded, leaving her in her school uniform with her transformation pen in her hand and her communicator and minicomputer still on her lap.

"So who are you in all of this? What is your purpose or is it to only awaken the Scouts?" She asked as she put her transformation pen on her lap.

"I am a guider to the Scouts, and will be a guardian and advisor to the princess when she is found. In the past I was an advisor to the Moon Queen, so I obviously intend to continue that role with the reincarnation of her daughter." Luna answered, and she nodded.

"And there are five guardian scouts to the Moon Princess." Amy said.

"Yes." Luna answered seriously. "Sailor Mercury, Sailor Mars, Sailor Jupiter, Sailor Moon, and Sailor Venus."

"There's no scout of the Earth?" She asked.

"Serena asked the same thing." Luna said as she shook her head. "No. There is no such scout."

"What about the other planets? Uranus, Saturn, Pluto, and Neptune?" Amy asked with a slight frown.

"I actually don't remember if there are scouts of those planets, but if there are then they are not guardians of the princess." Luna said with a frown of her own as she tried to remember more.

"Okay." Amy said as she nodded. "Well, do you remember what the princess looks like, her personality, or her name?"

"I unfortunately don't remember what she looks like, but Serena learned her name from the same memory she saw of your past self. Her name is Selene or at least her past name was Selene." Luna said.

"As for her personality, she was a soft spoken young woman. Kind and shy, but she was able to speak to other royals, dignitaries, lords, and ladies with ease. It was amazing how that shyness was nowhere to be seen in those occasions." She explained.

Amy nodded thoughtfully as she took it all in. This was all still so new and amazing and shocking, but she was glad for all the answers she had gotten. She was sure more questions would come to her, and she was also aware that she would need to make contact with Sailor Moon, with Serena, but she figured that could wait until later in the day.

For now she decided to ask Luna what she knew about the fights that had happened since she had awakened Sailor Moon. She wanted to know as much as possible before she found herself up against a monster.

oOoIRoOo

Wednesday morning arrived and it found Serena in her classroom with her fellow classmates waiting for school to start so they could leave on their field trip. She hadn't seen any sign of what they would be using to get around during their trip, but that wasn't surprising since there were still many cars dropping people off.

Serena stood with Molly next to the windows as they chatted about their upcoming field trip. They had both brought a lunch and Serena promised that if they saw any sample of period dated food she would get it for them.

It wasn't long before their teacher arrived and everyone moved to their seats. Minutes later the bell rang for class to start and she began to take attendance. Once she established that everyone was there she had everyone follow her, and cautioned the class not to forget anything because the campus would be close by the time they returned.

Everyone doubled checked that nothing was being left behind before they all filed out of the classroom and followed their teacher out of the building. As they looked toward the front gate they instantly saw that they would be traveling by charter bus; a double decker one at that.

As they gathered next to the bus they took in its shiny black coat with white lining and the large windows. Their teacher announced that the other class would be joining them shortly, and that their class would be sitting on the top level.

"I want to sit up front so we can see out the large front window." Serena immediately said to Molly as she hooked her arm with hers and began to move toward the door.

"Inside seat or outside seat?" Molly asked with a laugh.

"Inside please!" Serena replied cheerfully with a smile.

The door opened just as they reached it and their teacher waved them on. Serena and Molly hurried inside and moved toward the stairs in the back. They quickly climbed them and since they were first on the bus they walked the rest of the way toward the front of the bus taking in the comfortable looking dark blue cushioned seats.

Molly looked to the double seats to their left and right before she looked to Serena questioningly, and Serena plopped down on the inside seat to their left. She pushed the adjustable armrest between their seats back as Molly sat next to her, so they wouldn't bump their arms against it and sighed.

They placed their things in their lap and looked out the windows as they chatted about how comfortable the seats were, and how the ride was sure to be just as comfortable because of it. They wondered how long the trip would take since neither of them had been to the museum they were to visit.

As it grew slightly louder with their fellow classmates sitting and chatting around them they began to wonder if the other class had gotten on the bus yet. As if their teacher had heard their thoughts her voice suddenly sounded from the back of the bus.

She said that they were about to depart and for everyone to remember their seats because those were the seats they would using for the entire trip until they returned to the school campus.

Serena grinned, pleased that she would be able to keep the front seat, and Molly laughed at her as they felt the bus engine start.

The bus ride from the school to their destination took nearly an hour with the traffic lights and the car traffic in general but it was a comfortable and enjoyable ride. Everyone had taken in the sights and were simply happy to be out of the classroom.

Being at the front of the bus as they were afforded Serena and Molly a good view of the museum as they grew closer and closer to it. It was a large white silver building with many floors, at least six, with a very unique shape.

As the bus began to park their teacher instructed them to leave their lunches in their seats, if they had brought one, since they would not need them, and to make sure they had their school bags. She reminded them they would need to take notes.

Everyone shifted around moving their lunches and grabbing their bags, and as the bus came to a complete stop they stood with their school bags in hand and began to file off the bus. Once outside on the sidewalk they all shifted into two large groups to stand with their class.

The two classes were informed that once inside and where they needed to go they would be able to split up and spread out. They would all meet up at an agreed location inside the museum after an hour to see what progress they had made and if they needed any more time to explore and take more notes.

Once everyone understood they began to walk toward the building and head for the entrance. When they reached it they waited for their teachers to show their passes then they all filed in and went over to the museum directory to find out where they needed to go. When everyone was informed they all headed up through the building with everyone spreading out through the sixth and fifth floors.

Serena and Molly crossed the large recreation of the old Nihonbashi Bridge with some of their classmates as their eyes looked around taking in everything. As they came to the end of the bridge they stepped over to the first exhibit which was a large display of the town's peoples district around the bridge.

They moved over to the information plaque attached to the exhibit as they pulled out paper and pen to begin taking notes.

Serena wrote down the name of the exhibit and some key points from the information plaque before she began to slowly walk around the display. She noted what the people wore, what they appeared to be doing, and jotted down descriptions of the buildings.

Once she was done she continued to circle the display, and added a note when she noticed something that she might need to know later. In the process she met back up with Molly, and she gestured with her head toward the next exhibit.

Molly nodded silently and they moved off to their left toward the next exhibit, and found themselves at the residence of daimyo Matsudaira Tadamasa.

Like before they stopped at the information plaque and began to take notes from the information provided. When they finished they began to slowly walk along the display as they looked at the replicated building and grounds pausing occasionally to write down some notes.

They noted the amazing detail on the buildings, fences, the garden, and even the ground. It all looked so very real, so much so that they expected to see tiny people walking around.

I'll have to check out the website and see if they have some good pictures, so I can have another look and add to my notes. She thought as she looked closer at the buildings, making notes of what she wanted a better look at if she could find it on the website.

Serena eventually knelt on one knee in front of a display as she balanced her school bag with her notebook on top of it as she wrote down some notes. Her hair was coiled on the floor in two little piles, and as she wrote she idly thought that she was going to have to wash her hair tonight.

Don't want dirty hair. She thought quietly as she continued to write.

"Serena?!" She heard a quiet feminine voice nearly call out.

She finished the sentence she was writing and twisted slightly as she looked over her shoulder. Her eyes fluttered around briefly before she spotted a young woman paused and staring at her. Her eyes widened and she gasped as she dropped her bag, notebook, and pen.

"Keiko!" She called in surprise as she stood up.

She hurried toward the young woman as she stepped toward her and they wrapped their arms around each other in a big hug. They swayed from side to side as they prolonged the hug and silently confirmed how glad they were to see each other and how much they missed one another.

"Look at you." Serena said as they finally parted and looked at each other.

Keiko had long dark brown hair she wore loose hanging down her back, bangs covering her forehead, and brown eyes. She was as tall as Serena and wore her high school uniform, which consisted of a long sleeve white blouse, white hanging bow tie, a deep green blazer jacket with yellow buttons and a school patch on the chest on the left side, a dark gray skirt, dark gray socks, and brown shoes.

"And look at you!" Keiko said with a smile as she took in her friend's white and navy blue sailor uniform and her long hair. "Has your hair gotten even longer?" She asked with a light laugh.

"Yeah it has." Serena agreed as she looked down at the streams dangling behind her legs. "It seems to get longer without me even noticing."

"How have you been?" Keiko asked.

"I've been good. Really; especially recently." Serena answered.

"Why recently?" The brown haired young woman asked curiously.

"I've got myself a boyfriend." She revealed with a happy blush.

"Really?!" Keiko said in surprise. "What's his name? What does he look like? How did you two meet?"

"His name's Darien Shields, and he's tall with short black hair and deep blue eyes." Serena said before she launched into describing their first upsetting meeting, and then their second better meeting.

As she described Darien's apology and surprising gentlemanly behavior a scene began to play through her mind.

oOo

Sailor Moon sat at the end of a bench in the garden reading a book she had started early a few days before, but had to put on hold because of the royal luncheon and her duty to guard her Princess. Now she was immersed in it as she allowed her body to relax knowing she was free of her guard duty for the day.

"Hello." She heard a masculine voice and looked up only to blink in surprise at the sight of who was approaching her; for there was no mistaking him, especially not after what happened at the royal luncheon.

The Prince of the Earth.

She closed her book with her finger in between to not lose her page and began to get up, but he waved his hand at her casually and she stopped.

"Hi." She said quietly, watching him as she relaxed back in her seat.

"I am Endymion." The royal heir said.

"I am Sailor Moon." She replied shyly, hardly believing the Prince of the Earth was speaking to her.

"That cannot be the name you were given at birth." Prince Endymion said with a slight tilt of his head.

"No it is not, but sailor scouts do not usually give their birth name to those we do not know." She replied calmly, not willing to change that fact even for the prince at that moment.

"Then it is a good thing I plan to get to know you." He said, and she blushed even as confusion filled her being.

"Are you not looking for Princess Selene?" Sailor Moon asked, not understanding why he was speaking to her of all people.

"I am not. I have come to see you." He answered very clearly.

"Why?" She asked as she looked up to him. She was not a royal, so why?

"Because I wish to get to know you. You could not have missed my looks in your direction at the luncheon days ago." The Prince said.

"I did not, but I did not want to make any assumptions. You are a prince after all, and I am simply a soldier." Sailor Moon said, and she watched him shake his head gently.

"I am a man, and you are a woman. That is all that matters." He replied gently, and she could hear the sincerity in his voice.

oOo

Oh. Serena thought quietly as that memory snippet settled in her mind. It was the second one she had experienced in as many days.

It had confirmed the Moon Princess' name, but more importantly it had let her know that the Prince of the Earth had sought her out. Sought out Sailor Moon, and made his interest in her clear.

Me, her, and not the Moon Princess. She thought in slight awe, but shook it off and decided to think about the memory later when she had time.

She smiled as she returned her mind to Darien's gentlemanly behavior, and continued to describe his behavior, actions, and conversation with her during their second meeting with her friend.

"Wow." Keiko said. "I'm only hearing about the start of your acquaintance with him, and I already think he must be a keeper."

"Oh, he definitely is." Serena agreed. "Everything I learned about him in the days and weeks after that proved it. I can't wait to see where the relationship goes."

"I'm so happy for you." Keiko said as she smiled and glanced over as they were joined.

"Thank you." Serena said before she looked over to see Molly holding the things she had dropped. "Thank you." She said gratefully as she took the items into her arms. "Molly you remember Keiko right? Keiko, you remember too right?" She asked she looked back and forth between them.

Serena had introduced them to each other not long after Serena had met Keiko, and they had seemed to like each other fine. When the three of them hung out together they got along and had a good time, and when she was with one of them they asked after the other if some time had passed between the last time they had seen each other.

"Yes I do." Molly said with a light smile. "Hi Keiko."

"Hi Molly. How have you been?" Keiko asked kindly with a smile of her own.

"I've been good. Focusing on my studies, and keeping my grades up." Molly said.

"So, what about you Keiko? Do you have anything interesting going on?" Serena asked, and watched her friend blush lightly.

"Well, I recently started dating Yusuke. You remember him right?" Keiko asked.

"Yeah." Serena answered as she nodded. "Is he still being a bad boy fighter?"

"Yes, but he keeps himself in line around me since he knows I won't tolerate him fighting like that while I'm around." Keiko answered.

"Good." Molly said. "But at least you know he has some type of defense against the monsters attacking around the city."

"True." Keiko said. "I'm almost tempted to ask him for lessons in case I need to fight in order to try and get away from one of those monsters."

Serena and Molly nodded. Molly knew the feeling and had been considering taking some type of self-defense class after her brush with one of those monsters, and Serena knew what the monsters were doing when they attacked but it reminded her that she needed to start training.

"So you two are obviously here for school." Keiko said as she gestured toward their uniforms.

"Yeah; class field trip." Molly said as she nodded.

"After this we're headed to Edo Wonderland Nikko Edomura." Serena added.

"Ah, my class is headed back to school after this." Keiko said with a sigh.

"By the time we're done with the Wonderland and get back to campus it'll be well pass the time school lets out." Molly explained, and Keiko nodded before she looked around.

"Well, I should let you two get back to what you were doing, and I should get back to checking out the exhibits as well." Keiko said as she looked back to them.

"I'll call you this evening so we can talk more." Serena said.

"Okay." Keiko said as she nodded. "Bye you two. Have a good day."

"Thanks Keiko. Bye." Serena said.

"Bye." Molly said as she waved slightly.

As Keiko walked away Serena and Molly returned to the exhibit of the residence of daimyo Matsudaira Tadamasa. They continued to slowly circle the display examining the buildings, all the little details, and taking notes.

After they had both finished they moved on to the other two displays on that floor taking many notes on both exhibits before using the escalator to move down to the fifth floor where the rest of the Edo period exhibits were.

As they stepped off the escalator signs directed them to the exhibit they should look at first. Life of the Townspeople. Unlike the exhibits upstairs that were on display tables, this one was life size but still had the same level of detail. According to the signs these were three examples of partitioned row houses.

They planted themselves in front of the large information plaque of the first unit and began to take notes on the life of carpenters. After they finished they looked inside the unit from the open sliding door and began to note down what they saw.

When they finished they began to walk along, looking at the other example units and taking notes, before they moved on to the next exhibit, which turned out to be Publication and Information in the form of a reproduced bookstore.

They took notes as they had been and looked around thoroughly before moving on to the next. Gradually they made their way through the following exhibits until they finished.

With nothing else to do they made their way over to some seating underneath the recreation of the old Nihonbashi Bridge to wait for the rest of their class and the students of the other class since it was the meeting area that had been decided on. Some students were already there, so they figured it shouldn't be too much longer before everyone gathered together.

As they waited Serena and Molly chatted a little about what they had seen in the museum before they switched to how nice it had been to see Keiko again. They thought it would be even better to schedule some time to hang out with her, so they could really catch up and have fun while they were at it.

As they talked about ideas their classmates gradually began to gravitate around the area they were sitting in, and she spotted Amy sitting in a seat not talking to anyone. She looked away not wanting to make eye contact since she didn't want to talk to her during this trip. She had decided to make an effort to get along with her and be friendly, but she wasn't particularly interested in actually being her friend.

The two teachers overseeing the two classes showed up at some point, and suddenly began to get everyone's attention. The students quieted and gave them their attention as they asked if everyone was done taking notes or if they needed more time.

Thankfully everyone had taken as many notes as they thought they were going to need, so they all began to make their way out of the museum and toward their charter bus. As they reached it the teachers reminded them that they were to take the same seats they had chosen for the ride to the museum.

Serena smiled at the reminder and Molly laughed at her, but they both managed to get on the bus. They made their way to the back toward the stairs leading up to the top level, and climbed them before heading to their seats at the front.

They grabbed their lunch bags and sat in their seats and made themselves comfortable as they settled their lunch and school bags on their laps. Within a few long minutes, after apparently making sure everyone was there and not left behind, the bus began to pull out into the street and drive off.

The drive took almost two hours. They gradually left the city until they began to see rural areas, and then those eventually gave way to almost forest like areas and what looked like a green tree and bush-filled mountain.

The bus parked in an area for buses alongside a large parking lot, and everyone began to get off; the teachers reminding them not to forget their lunches and school bags if they intended to eat and take notes.

Serena and Molly made sure they had both bags and stood together as they waited for their teacher and the other class teacher to go up to the ticket counter and get their tickets. When they returned they passed out the tickets and gave everyone a copy of a map of the park with everything labeled, the buildings and paths, with descriptions.

The teachers said they were free to wander the park, and in an hour they would meet up at the Edo Life Culture Museum. They made sure every student had located the building on their map, and when they were satisfied they led the way to the entrance.

The students walked through the Edo period style gates and seemingly into the past. Everything they saw was exactly like what they had seen at the museum. The architecture of the buildings, the layout of the buildings and road, and the way people were dressed was the Edo style down to the last detail.

Molly and Serena stood off to the side, looking at their maps, and saw that the large village that the Wonderland was composed of was organized into five areas: the Road to Edo, the Inn Town, the Market District, the Samurai Residence, and the Ninja Village.

They decided to head down the road checking out the buildings in the Inn Town area then look around the Ninja Village before heading to the Market District. After that they would see how much time had passed before deciding if they should eat or continue to explore the rest of the Wonderland village.

With their decision made they took off walking down the road their eyes wide as they took in the buildings, the people working those buildings, and everyone walking around enjoying the wonderland. It was like being back in time. All the workers were dressed in period clothing, and so were many of the visitors, which made it hard to tell them apart.

They realized they would have to rely on the behavior of people and how close they were to a building to know if they worked in that building.

Serena pointed out the first building she thought they should look at, which was the Japanese Inn according to their maps. They stepped inside and were greeted by a lady at an Edo version of a front desk. They were thoroughly welcomed and told to enjoy their stay.

They exchanged a look and began to move further into the building as they began to explore. They found the rooms that were the guest rooms, the separate baths for men and women, and the kitchen where the meals would come from.

It was interesting and just like they had seen in movies of that period of time as well as in manga. The guest rooms even had bed rolls laid out as if they were already prepared for the occupants to rest for the night.

After thoroughly exploring the inn they left the building and walked a short distance down to the Golden Tea Room. They were welcomed inside by the proprietor and they looked with interest at the large room with partitioned screens to separate sitting areas. In one section there was a tea set placed and ready for what looked like three people.

Down a hallway were what looked like private tea rooms, and one was screened off with a rope with the interior showing it set up with four mannequins looking like they were having a good time drinking their tea.

After taking a look at what passed for a kitchen they left the building and headed toward the next establishment on their path. They went to the Home of Segumi Fire Chief Masagoro and glanced around a bit before going to the Edo Town Fire Fighters Museum. They looked around there a bit more closely, taking some notes quickly since it looked like something they might see on a test.

Then they moved to the Ninja Village, which Serena was excited about given her new secret occupation. Maybe she would find some inspiration to try and work into the way she fought monsters.

The Ninja Training Hall was their first stop, which turned out to be a crooked house. It was a red and black building, and was literally crooked; it was built so it was tilted sideways but still looked perfectly stable in its foundation.

They stepped into the building and immediately stumbled, feeling extremely off balance, and held their arms out to their sides to try and regain their balance. They slowly moved further in, giggling as they hesitated and stumbled, and found a railing to lean against and hold on to.

Once they had calmed their giggling they moved away from the railing and began to step around the room. They went in opposite directions, and now that she was calm and no longer surprised Serena had no problems moving around the strange off balance room. It was as if she had learned within moments to navigate such a place perfectly.

It reminded her of her first fight with a monster. Or rather after that monster had been destroyed and she had unexpectedly scaled the room up to the skylight window to meet Tuxedo Mask for the first time.

Serena smiled as she watched Molly stumble and work on regaining her balance, but her smile faded as she looked around. She had been sensing dark energy for a while now, since a few minutes after they entered the inn, but she couldn't very well go investigate since she was with Molly.

But it's closer than it was before we came to the Ninja Village. She thought with a light sigh before she looked back to her friend. Molly was regaining her balance much quicker than the other people in there with them.

Once Molly had completely regained her balance and had no problems moving around they walked through the rest of the house easy enough and moved on to their next destination.

The Ninja Karakuri Mansion was right next door to the crooked house and they quickly made their way inside to see what it was all about. It looked like a regular house for the time period, which they were welcomed into and told to feel free to explore. Looking around they saw nothing until they saw a pair of people push on a wall and nearly fall through.

Serena and Molly gasped quietly and looked at each other in excitement; both thinking the same thing.

Secret passageways!

They moved further in and began to seriously inspect everything. They pushed at walls and objects and pulled on things, and sometimes they found a secret passageway and sometimes there was nothing.

The passageways they found were sometimes large, sometimes small, and even sometimes something in between. There were places that a single person could hide in and see what was happening right outside the hiding place, and some places that led to other parts of the house.

It was fun and actually turned out to be more entertaining than the crooked house.

After they walked out of the house they moved off to the side and paused as they pulled out their maps to see what was next on their path.

"How about we save the Ninja Shikake Mechanical Maze and Shuriken Dojo for after we eat since we know we'll want to take our time doing those activities." Serena suggested as she looked at the map, trying to focus on what she was seeing rather than the feeling of dark energy.

"Sounds good." Molly agreed as she nodded. "I am starting to get hungry." She added smelling something delicious floating in the air.

"Then let's go find somewhere to sit so we can eat." Serena said as she put her map away.

"Sure." Molly said as she put her map away.

They walked back along the path they had originally come from toward an area they remembered seeing people sitting and eating. It didn't take them long to find it and to find an open two seater table for them to share.

They sat down and put their things on the table, but before Serena could start to open her lunch bag she grimaced and sighed.

"I have to use the restroom." She said as she stood back up. "I think I remember spotting one near the fire fighters museum or close to the Ninja Village."

"Alright. I'll be here." Molly said as she nodded.

"Feel free to start without me." Serena called as she began to walk away.

She began to speed walk back in the direction they came from, and thankfully found the restrooms next to the fire fighters museum. She slipped inside and went about her business and was in the middle of washing her hands when she heard terrified screams.

Serena frowned as she finished washing her hands. As she dried them she wondered if she was going to have to fight. She hadn't forgotten about the dark energy she had been sensing, but being with Molly hadn't allowed her to investigate and take care of it.

Now would be that time; especially with those screams. She thought as she opened the door and stepped outside.

People were screaming and running away from the Ninja Village, and she squinted in that direction as she scanned the area. She didn't see anything at first but then she spotted what looked like a purple tail. She didn't know what it was, but it was clearly human sized and was likely the source of the dark energy she was sensing.

Serena stepped back as she looked around. Everyone was busy running and screaming, even if they didn't know what was wrong, so she took the time to slip back into the restroom building. She looked around and saw a window. She checked it and nodded to herself as she was able to open it.

Okay. She thought with a sigh as she pulled her brooch off her top and held it in her hand.

"Moon Prism Power!" She said calmly and instantly bright pink light flared from the brooch and surrounded her.

When it cleared she looked around just to make sure she was still alone and then opened the window and slipped out and landed on the ground in a crouch. She glanced around before she began to run toward the Ninja Village.

She moved through the gate leading to the crooked house and slowed to a stop as she spotted the tail again, this time on the roof of the house. She took a breath and leapt up onto the roof and immediately adjusted her stance to keep her on the slanted surface. She looked around and finally got a look at what she was dealing with.

The monster was a snake man. The top half was a human male and the bottom half was a thick snake tail. It had bone white long hair trailing loosely down its back, solid black eyes, and a red forked tongue. Its tail was long and thick with purple and black scales.

It looked up at her and hissed as it slithered backwards on its tail its arms slightly out to its sides. Then it lifted a hand toward her and shot a purple beam of energy at her.

She ducked down, letting it pass over her, before she stood back up. She pulled her tiara off her forehead and charged it up until it was a glowing white disk hovering above her fingertips as she kept her eyes on the hybrid monster.

Will Sailor Mercury show up or will I have to contact her? She wondered before she threw her tiara down at the monster.

She jumped down to the ground immediately after and watched the monster shift its upper body to the side, avoiding her tiara and launch another purple energy beam at her. She quickly spun away from the attack since her footing wasn't right to simply step out of the way, and summoned her tiara back to her.

Another energy beam came flying her way as she caught her tiara and she dodged to the side before she once again threw her tiara. Again the monster dodged, this time by slithering out of the way, and opened its mouth and to her surprise some kind of liquid came squirting out at her and she quickly jumped back and off to the side.

She watched it hit the ground and saw the ground smoke as it gave off a hissing sound. She thought it was either acid or poison; she didn't know which but just seeing its effect was enough to let her know not to get hit with it.

She glanced up and grabbed her tiara as it hovered above her and watched the monster slither back and forth as if trying to find the best way to attack her. Of course she was doing the same because it was apparent she would never defeat this monster if she couldn't hit it. She needed to distract it somehow.

"Mercury Ice Bubbles Freeze!" She heard a voice say before she saw a stream of bubbly fog quickly speed toward the monster, but it slithered out of the way and toward her direction.

She jumped off to the side to avoid the monster and any possible attack it might aim at her. She didn't bother looking toward the direction the attack had come from. The name alone announced who was responsible, so there was no reason for her to take her eyes off the monster.

She put her tiara back on and ran after the monster as it headed for the Village Film Set assuming that her fellow scout would join her.

oOoIRoOo

Darien slowed his car to a stop at a red light on his way home from his last class. Normally he would head to the arcade and simply wait there for Serena to get out of school, but unfortunately his soulmate was busy on a field trip for school and he would not see her that day.

He'd gotten to see her after she got out of school Tuesday and Monday as was usual, and there was no forgetting their last date during the weekend.

It was late afternoon going on early evening when he'd taken her to a professional baseball game at the Tokyo Dome. He'd managed to get them tickets with seats down close to the field along the first base line. He was lucky to get those seats because the stadium had been full.

The lights had been bright, the atmosphere cheerful and exciting, and best of all the game had extended into extra innings.

They had had so much fun. They hadn't been a particular fan of either team, so they cheered for both not really caring who won in the end. They had simply wanted to enjoy the game.

But today was a new day and he didn't anticipate seeing her, so he needed to find something to do to make the day pass so tomorrow would come quicker.

Perhaps training. He considered as he continued to drive. I still need to test and practice my powers to see if I still have all the abilities I had in the past.

With his activity decided and a goal in mind he finished driving home, and as soon as he arrived he brought his school things up to his apartment. He calmly changed into some workout clothes before he left, and walked to a seldom used park in the general area.

When he arrived he found an old playground, the play structure in serious disrepair, and walked around it and continued on into the trees a slight distance behind it. After a few long minutes he came across a small clearing that was slightly overgrown with grass that almost reached his knees.

Darien walked all around the clearing to make sure there was no debris of sticks, rocks, or long forgotten toys, and when he was satisfied he paused in the middle and began to consider where to start with his training.

I obviously have my golden crystal, and I can see through the Earth. He told himself. So perhaps I should explore my connection to the Earth, and start with finding out if my emotions still effect the planet.

Nodding to himself he knelt on the ground as he closed his eyes, and placed his hands on the grass and dirt as he breathed in a long deep breath before he let it out slowly. He focused his mind on the Earth and his connection with it.

I am here. You have felt me before, only days ago, however I am letting you know that I am back. He quietly informed the Earth. This is a new lifetime for me, however, I have recalled who I truly am, and I am ready and willing to resume my role as your Prince and future King.

He continued to breathe deeply and calmly as he waited. It had been many many years since he had the depth of connection he was trying to reestablish, and he was well aware that it would take time for a response. However, he was more than willing to wait, so wait he did; focusing his mind on the Earth and how he remembered the connection feeling.

Endymion. A quiet mature motherly tone whispered within his mind nearly an hour later.

He remained calm. There was no need for him to worry since his connection made it so he was able to speak telepathically with the Earth. She would be able to tell him what was happening, or what had happened anywhere on the planet, and help him track a person or being distances away from his own location.

His soulmate had the same ability when it came to her connection to the Earth. It was how she had been able to know when the Moon Princess appeared on the planet, and go directly to her to send her back to her own planet.

Yes. I am here. He replied calmly.

And my scout? She asked.

I have found her, but she does not yet remember who she truly is. Darien answered.

She will. The Earth replied confidently.

Yes. She will. He agreed.

Back to your training young Prince. She said before going silent.

Darien wasn't worried though. Now that the Earth had spoken to him he knew his connection to the planet was stronger, and that she could speak to him again at any time now.

As she said; it is time to get back to my training. He thought as he focused on his immediate area. He didn't want to start out affecting the entire city, let alone the entire planet.

He filled his mind with the image of the Moon Princess responsible for so much of his pain, and instantly anger and rage surged through him. And the effect on the area around him was immediate.

The sky gradually darkened as a gray cloud formed over him and grew darker. The air cooled, the sky rumbled ominously, and the ground began to shake beneath him before thunder sounded loud and clear.

Darien took a breath and calmed himself, pushing his anger down and away, before he thought of the lost time with his soulmate. Waking up that morning so long ago with her missing from his arms only to discover as time passed that her existence had been completely erased from the Earth.

The thunder and rumbling stopped, along with the miniature earthquake, only to be replaced by cold droplets of steady rain fall as sadness filled his being.

He opened his eyes and looked up to the section of gray sky and blinked as the water droplets hit his eyes before he closed them once again. He filled his mind of past memories of his soulmate, of her moving through life confidently as Sailor Earth, and more recent memories of spending time with her as the high school student she was.

The cold rain slowed to a stop and the gray cloud gradually disappeared to be replaced by blue sky and bright sunlight.

Darien smiled lightly at the feel of the warm sun before he refocused. His emotions were now able to effect the area he was in; whether that extended to the entire planet or not was something he was willing to find out over the course of time.

Now I need to practice seeing through the Earth. Using that ability without leaving myself vulnerable is very important. He thought as he concentrated on wanting to see his soulmate. He pictured her in his mind down to the last detail. From her height, to her school uniform, her round face, blue eyes, to her long golden blonde hair.

Images flickered through his mind rapidly, something that practice would eliminate, until he saw her seated in a comfortable looking chair with a window to her left. She appeared to be speaking to someone so he guessed from everything he was seeing that she was on the bus her class was using during their field trip.

He took a calming breath and slowly stood to better keep his focus and not lose what he was seeing now that his hands weren't on the ground. He opened his eyes and was still able to see her animated image in his mind, so he decided to release the image and begin again now that he was standing.

He closed his eyes and this time focused his mind on his friend Andrew picturing him perfectly in his mind as he stood still. Again images of different people and locations flickered rapidly through his mind before slowing a little and finally stopping on the image of his friend walking along a sidewalk.

He opened his eyes and the image thankfully remained. Now he needed to take his practice a step further and be able to use his connection to see through the Earth while moving around.

I need to practice with my sword as well, so I might as well combine the two to help me focus while distracted. He thought as he looked at the trees around him, still able to see his friend walking in his mind's eye.

Darien released the image of his friend and focused on his soulmate once again. The images flickered but she appeared in his mind faster than before still on the bus talking.

He concentrated briefly and glowed with a soft golden light as he transformed. When the light cleared he looked himself over and smiled to see himself wearing his royal uniform and armor for the first time in this lifetime. It was slightly strange to not have to put it on piece by piece, but he would get used to it.

He pulled his sword from the sheath hanging on his hip and began to go through the forms he had learned so long ago. As he moved the image of his soulmate flickered in his mind, and he frowned slightly as he focused more on the image. It took a few long moments to solidify but it did, and in addition to that he realized that he remembered his sword forms very well since he had not once stopped or paused his movements.

The secret prince of the Earth continued to practice his sword forms and strikes while continuing to release the image of his soulmate and refocusing to bring her back to his mind. Each time he found it easier to focus and the image came faster; even the flickering searching images took less time to find what he wanted.

Satisfied for the moment with his progress he released the image of his soulmate and sheathed his sword. Then he decided to move on to another ability that would be helpful if he could still do it.

He closed his eyes and focused on the image of his apartment, on his living room, the space behind his couch specifically, and willed himself to that exact spot. A pulse of warmth moved through his chest and in the next moment he saw a flash of light against his closed eyelids.

When he opened his eyes he smiled in satisfaction to see that he was inside his apartment standing right behind his couch.

Yes. I can still teleport. He thought, pleased with the knowledge. However, now I need to see if I can still manage the level of transportation I used in the past.

He returned to the park, seeing himself engulfed in a golden light, and then considered where he could go next. He'd love to go to his soulmate's home, but she had parents and a sibling. Her bedroom might be safe, but there was that cat that made her Sailor Moon in this life.

He'd seen the black cat on the same evening he had remembered his true self. After he had aided his soulmate the black cat had walked up to her and started speaking to her about why she wasn't fighting. That alone told him the cat wasn't a normal feline, and that it was clearly involved with her being a scout.

It wasn't until a few days later when his mind was truly settled that he realized the feline had likely been the one to awaken her as the scout of the Moon. So it stood to reason that the feline would stick close to her.

I do not know where that feline would be in the house, so I cannot risk it. He told himself with a sigh. I wonder what it says that she has never mentioned having a cat? Perhaps that in itself is a clue that some part of my Serenity is remembering even unconsciously. He considered.

That feline must be associated with the Moon for my Serenity to have been awakened as the scout of the Moon. That alone is reason to stay clear of it. I do not need that feline in my business reporting any knowledge of me to the Guardian Scouts when they are found.

Darien sighed and refocused on his task. He needed a location.

He thought back over his education and focused on his World History class and his general knowledge of places around the world. He focused on areas where he could appear suddenly and not be seen, and was pleased when a few locations came to mind that would be ideal regardless of the time of day or night.

First he decided on a location that was local. He narrowed his eyes slightly as he focused on the exact spot he wanted to appear in. A moment later he was engulfed in golden light, and when it cleared he found himself standing on the side of Mount Fuji a few dozen feet up from the base of the sleeping volcanic mountain.

He nodded to himself as he breathed in the fresh air before he willed himself to return to the secluded park he had been in. A flash of golden light later and he once again stood among the tall grass.

Again he focused, picturing the location he had in mind in as much detail as he could recall, and was once again surrounded in golden light as he willed himself there. When the light cleared he found himself standing on a path high up on another sleeping volcanic mountain; Mount Vesuvius in Italy.

Darien enjoyed the beautiful view before he focused on his next destination and picturing the details that would allow him to arrive safely. Again he was surrounded in golden light as he willed himself to his next destination. When the light cleared he found himself standing in the middle of the desert in Egypt with the amazing Pyramids of Giza well within sight.

From there he willed himself to Australia and found himself standing on a flat plain near a beach with kangaroos standing not far from him. He looked at them in surprise and then smiled as one came over to investigate him. It sniffed around him and he offered his hand, which it sniffed as well, before pressing its warm head against his hand.

He smiled again and gently rubbed the warm fur between its perked ears before lowering his hand. The kangaroo hopped away, and he pictured another location in his mind before he willed himself there in his golden light.

He appeared, standing in the grass, at the top of a secluded rushing waterfall in Brazil. He looked at the vibrant green around him and the white water, memorizing the view, before he focused his mind on the details of his next location.

Golden light enveloped him as he willed himself to the location and when it cleared he found himself standing on a lonely stretch in the middle of the Grand Canyon in the United States. He took in the brown and red color of the rocks that went on as far as the eye could see, and turned his mind to the details of his next destination.

This time when the light cleared from his vision he found himself standing in the vibrant grass at the base of a grassy hill beneath the ruins of a stone castle in Ireland. Even as a ruin the castle was beautiful, and he wondered if his palace had still looked just as impressive when it had become a ruin.

Darien sighed and shook his head slightly before turning his mind to the details of his next destination. He was quickly surrounded in golden light and when it cleared he was standing on top of a rocky cliff in the Carpathian Mountains in Romania overlooking a beautiful forest with two large lakes to his left and right that reflected the blue of the sky.

It was an amazing view and he wished in that moment that he could bring his soulmate there to see it. It would make an absolute great location for a date.

After she remembers who she truly is. I will bring her then. He decided with a firm nod.

As he looked out at the view he had one more location in mind, one he had always wanted to go to, but he didn't think he would be able to go. He was sure that he could bring himself there just as he had the previous locations, but the destination he had in mind was a major tourist location and would be crawling with people.

I know there are areas that are off limits to tourists, but I have no idea which areas they are. I will simply have to try another time; perhaps at night to avoid the mass of touring people. He thought with a nod as he willed himself back to the secluded park he was using for his training back in Tokyo.

He would save visiting the Forbidden City in China for another time.

He once again appeared in a golden light, and after assuring himself that he was still alone, turned his attention to the next stage of his training. Now that he was confident in his ability to teleport around the planet as he had in the past he decided it was time to move on and test his fighting abilities.

Aside from the power his golden crystal provided when he needed it, in the past he had had the ability to manipulate his aura, his body's chakra, and use it for offense and defense. As well as the ability to use his golden crystal to augment those offenses and defenses to make them even stronger.

He knew he still had that ability since his roses were a physical manifestation of his chakra.

He had also had the ability to use the Earth's chakra to strengthen his abilities further, but preferred not to unless it was absolutely necessary. He would check to make sure he still had that particular ability, but his preference would remain.

First he took a deep slow breath and let it out just as slowly as he focused inward and began to pull his chakra to the surface of his body. Within moments he was surrounded by a golden glow that made him appear to be emitting light. He pulled up more of his chakra, feeling the strong rush, until he looked like he was giving off a golden flame.

Darien nodded to himself as he gazed at the gold energy flame surrounding him. He was sure it wasn't a coincidence that his chakra was the same color as his crystal; it was likely that way to mask when he was using his crystal, so there would be no difference for an enemy to notice.

He decided to start with the basics. He'd been able to use the elements of the Earth just as his soulmate had, however he used them differently than she did.

He released his hold on his chakra, allowing it to sink back inside him, but he could still feel it inside him now that he had 'touched' it just as he could feel his crystal since it had made itself known to him.

Narrowing his eyes he took a deep breath in through his nose, focusing on converting his chakra, and breathed out sharply through his mouth. Golden fire streamed out of his mouth like a flame torch. It traveled almost six feet before he ran out of breath and the fiery stream stopped.

Darien breathed out a short breath and lifted his hands almost to chest level and called on his chakra, converting it as he did so, until golden fire covered his hands. He twisted his hands slightly as if examining the flames before he willed the flames to shift to his desire.

The flame around his right hand extended and became a fiery sword, and the flame around his left hand became a short throwing knife. He swung them against each other and felt solid resistance, and of course because they were made of fire he knew they would burn an opponent; and possibly set them on fire depending on what they were wearing.

Darien refocused and the sword shifted shape and stretched into a golden fiery staff that extended from the grassy ground up to the height of his shoulder. The throwing knife in his left hand melted back into fire and he used both hands to twist, spin, and swing the flaming staff around.

When he was satisfied with that he shifted the staff into a flaming whip. He flung it out lightly and saw that it extended nearly eight feet.

Let me see if I recall how to use this. He told himself as he lifted the whip up and began to swing it around over his head. He flicked it to his left and right and down against the grass before flicking it up into the air above his head.

He let it dissipate and then quickly formed another this time made of solid chakra. He swung it around and flung it this way and that way before he let its length rest in the grass. He focused and a moment later it burst into flames. He wiggled it lightly and watched the golden flames wave lightly.

Focusing again the flames shifted into sparking golden lightning. His eyes flashed in satisfaction and he shifted his focus and watched as the whip was surrounded by transparent golden wind blades.

Last one. He told himself before he focused yet again, and watched as the wind disappeared to be replaced by rock. He flung the whip against the grass and despite it being a solid element the whip still shifted and bent nimbly and smacked sharply against the ground.

Darien released the whip and watched it dissipate and disappear back inside him. He sighed and then decided to try something else. He raised a hand and held it palm up and formed a softball sized ball of air.

He hummed thoughtfully and willed it to shift until it was smaller, down to the size of a golf ball, and then to grow larger until it was as big as a basketball. Nodding to himself he twisted his hand until he was aiming at the trunk of a tree and willed the ball to shoot at the target.

The wind ball flew forward like a shot and slammed harmlessly into the tree. He imagined it would be a different matter against a living being.

A thought came to him and he willed another basketball sized wind ball to grow in his palm, and then he tried to add wind blades to it. Almost instantly four blades appeared around the circumference of the ball. This time he threw the ball and watched as it spun as it flew toward the tree. Again it hit the tree and dissipated just as harmlessly as the last one.

Nodding to himself he breathed in a deep breath and let it out slowly as he imagined what he wanted to practice next. It was something he had been able to do in the past but hadn't actually used it outside of practice.

Four medium sized golden chains came bursting harmlessly out of his chest at the same time four more identical chains came bursting out of his back. They were seven feet long and waving gently as they awaited his will.

He looked at them and narrowed his eyes slightly as an idea came to him. Within moments sharp blades appeared at the ends of all the chains, and he nodded in satisfaction before he willed them to move.

Up and down they swayed like a slow moving wave before they snapped back and forth as if stabbing an opponent. He stiffened them so they were straight and as solid as metal staffs, and then relaxed them and shaped them into an arch over his head before he released his hold on them.

The chains lost form and instantly disappeared, the chakra returning to his body for his continued use instead of dissipating into the air.

Darien sighed lightly and decided to stop practicing with his elemental abilities for the time being and focus on practicing the abilities he used with his masked persona since those were the ones he was going to need sooner rather than later.

I need to try and make my roses stronger, so I will try that first. He decided. I have my piercing roses and my exploding roses. My piercing roses I can only work on throwing faster and harder, but the other I can try to strengthen so its effect is stronger.

He pulled a rose out of thin air and paused before he could do anything. His exploding roses could be loud and he didn't want to bring attention to himself despite being in a fairly secluded park. He put the rose away and focused on a particular destination and willed himself there.

Golden light surrounded him and when it cleared he was in the middle of the desert in Egypt. Nothing visible as far as the eye could see in any direction aside from sand.

Nodding to himself he focused on his chakra and pulled out a perfect red rose. He twirled it in his fingers briefly before he threw it straight away from him. It sailed through the air before it arced down and hit the ground where it exploded.

The sound was thankfully muffled by all the sand but the explosion of sand was not as high as he expected therefore the strength of the rose wasn't high enough.

Focusing more of his chakra he pulled out another rose and threw it in a different direction than his first one. Again the flower flew straight until it began to sail down and hit the sand. Again the sound was muffled but much to his satisfaction the explosion was much higher.

Memorizing the amount of chakra he had used he pulled out another rose and threw it out into the distance. Again it sailed through the air before it landed in the sand and blasted the sand up high just as the last rose did.

Over and over again he practiced with that amount of chakra and when he was sure he could do it without thinking about it he began to lessen and increase the amount of chakra he used to create his roses. He made small explosions with his roses and large explosions with them, and when there happened to be a sound it never traveled far.

Now to figure out some similar attacks that I can use while in my masked persona. He thought as he watched the sand settle from his last exploding rose.

He closed his eyes and imagined roses, and what immediately came to mind was a rose blossom. It was something he could throw or drop, and would certainly be more powerful than his exploding roses.

Darien opened his eyes and focused his chakra as he held his hand out palm up. An open red rose blossom appeared in his hand. It was beautiful and he considered making a harmless one for his Serenity, but it would have to wait for another time.

He threw the blossom as hard as he could and watched it fly through the air in a wide arc before coming down into the sand. The explosion it created was impressive and he immediately decided that it was a keeper.

Rose bombs. What's next? He considered thoughtfully. Getting back to my secluded park. He thought as he huffed at the heat he had been trying to ignore.

He was done with making things explode so it was safe to head back. He focused on the clearing he had stationed himself in and was surrounded in golden light as he willed himself there. When it cleared he was back in the grassy clearing with trees around him.

Looking around at the trees his eyes zeroed in on the leaves and he immediately thought of the petals of his roses. He nodded and imagined what he wanted down to the last detail as he focused his chakra and then lifted his hand so his palm was facing away from him.

Out sprayed sharp red rose petals spinning as they whizzed through the air. They traveled almost seven feet before they began to fall to the ground and disappear without a live target.

Darien was pleased with the ability, and thought those sharp rose petals along with the rose bomb and his piercing and exploding roses were enough.

Although one more could not hurt. He thought as it occurred to him that if he could form his chakra into a whip using the elements then he could do the same with his roses.

He pulled out a rose and channeled his chakra to it and watched as the stem stretched and grew rapidly into a thorn covered whip that coiled in the grass at his feet. He swung it around and flicked it to his left and right and snapped it against the ground and into the air.

He was sure it would do serious damage should it hit a living being.

Darien allowed the rose whip to disappear but before he could do anything else he sensed the familiar ache of his soulmate transforming ripple through his head. A frown slipped into place since he knew from the time that he was too far away from her to be able to run to her location since she was still on her class trip.

With that fact in mind he concentrated on wanting to see his soulmate, picturing her in his mind, and watched as images flashed by his mind's eye. When it settled he saw her transformed into the scout of the Moon looking at something with a serious look on her face.

He widened his view so he could see exactly what the situation was, and immediately saw that there was another scout present. This one, unlike with Uranus and Neptune, was a scout he had seen in the past; Sailor Mercury. In addition to that the monster they were facing was a snake man that appeared to be good at slithering around on its tail.

Nodding to himself he released his royal form, while simultaneously transforming in a bright golden light into his masked persona, and looked around at the area of the fight scene. Once he was sure he had seen enough he released the scene and willed himself to his soulmate's location; making sure to appear out of the way of any witnesses or at least out of Sailor Mercury's line of sight.

I don't need her seeing my ability to teleport myself and reporting it to that cat. He thought as he appeared in a golden flash next to the side of a building.

He looked around to see the monster's back to him and decided to take advantage of that. He pulled out a hand full of roses and launched them at the snake monster, immediately distracting the monster, and causing it to turn its attention to him with a frown and an angry hiss.

oOo

Amara and Michelle sat on the couch in Michelle's living room in her apartment. She held her mirror and they gazed intently at the reflected surface as they watched the fight scene playing out.

Only days ago they had been in the cafe the reincarnations of Sailor Earth and the Earth Prince liked to frequent. They had managed to get a seat directly behind them without being noticed, and knew that Sailor Earth's name was Serena.

They had also overheard a conversation between Serena, her friend Molly, and the reincarnation of the Earth Prince, whose name they now knew was Darien, and learned where she would be today.

They had both gone to the museum that morning and seen her with the same friend from the cafe, and had been fortunate enough to see her unexpectedly meet another of her friends. The girl, Keiko, obviously went to a different school, but they had been happy and pleased to see each other. And Molly knew her as well.

So far it seemed Serena liked her friends to know each other.

After that nothing of importance happened so they came to Michelle's apartment to relax and monitor Serena through Michelle's mirror. It was a more convenient method then trying to follow her to the Wonderland.

That too had been uneventful until they checked in on her and saw her transforming into Sailor Moon. Not long after she confronted the monster they were slightly surprised to see that there was another scout fighting now. Sailor Mercury judging by her color.

They figured she must have been awakened in the last few days and it must have been fairly peaceful, because they were aware of each fight that had happened since they themselves had been awakened and this had been the first she had been at.

Watching more intently now since they wanted to see how Sailor Mercury fought they saw that she liked to stay in the background acting as a sort of supporting presence. They wondered if she was doing that on purpose, if it was instinctive, or if it was simply nerves from it being her first fight since being awakened.

Turning their attention back to Sailor Moon they saw that just as before her reaction times were good in terms of avoiding attacks and attacking in return. She was also good at running, being undeterred by the period dated rooftops and buildings, and keeping up with the monster. She didn't get distracted easily either.

They watched the disguised Earth Prince appear out from the side of a building and immediately attack the monster from behind. Not surprisingly Sailor Moon took advantage of the monster's distraction and attacked it as well, and they noted that Sailor Mercury remained in the background.

oOo

Sailor Moon watched the glowing disk that was her tiara sail through the air toward the monster but it seemed to either sense it or saw it somehow and slithered out of the way. The snake man turned its head back and forth between her and Tuxedo Mask before stretching out both its arms and shooting purple energy beams from its palms.

She dodged to her left and jumped up onto the slanted roof of an empty building.

She looked around briefly, reminded that everything around them was empty. Apparently that was the purpose of the Village Film Set. It was an authentic Edo period set where movies could be shot, so there was no one around them in the little village to worry about getting caught up in the fight.

Turning her eyes back down to the monster and Tuxedo Mask she watched as he too dodged before jumping to a rooftop. She reached up and grabbed her tiara, knowing that it was hovering above her head, and looked down the road slightly toward Sailor Mercury.

She couldn't help noticing that she had stuck behind her during the fighting since they had reached the village set and she couldn't understand why. Mercury had an attack she could use, so why was she staying back?

Sailor Moon looked back to the monster and narrowed her eyes as it aimed its palm up at her. She side stepped another energy beam and threw her tiara at it, aiming to take its arm off, but it again was able to shift itself out of the way.

Tuxedo Mask raised a hand and decided now was the time to try out one of his new attacks. He focused his chakra and sharp rose petals came spraying out of his gloved palm and down at the monster. They collided with his arm and side and he yelled in pain.

Sailor Moon blinked in surprise at the new attack as she caught her tiara as it returned to her. Where did he learn to do that? When did he learn to do that?!

I'll have to ask him after this monster is taken care of. She thought as she threw her tiara at the monster again, this time aiming for its chest.

Tuxedo Mask saw his soulmate's tiara headed for the monster and quickly pulled out a hand full of his piercing roses and threw them down at the monster. Hopefully it wouldn't react quick enough to avoid her tiara while defending from his roses.

The monster opened its mouth and to his surprise squirted a liquid out at his roses that melted them in midair. The remains fell to the ground smoking and sizzling. If nothing else it was a clear warning not to get hit by the liquid that was highly likely some kind of poison or acid or both.

Meanwhile, Sailor Moon's tiara slammed into the monster's chest and it screamed, but unfortunately the glowing disk didn't pierce through him.

Despite his pain the snake man shot an energy beam up at her that she crouched under, and another at Tuxedo Mask that he simply stepped out of the way of.

"Mercury Ice Bubbles Freeze!" They suddenly heard loud and clear.

Sailor Moon pressed her lips together to keep from reacting any further. Mercury shouldn't be calling out her attack like that. She herself hadn't done it since her first fight with a monster, because not only did she know instinctively that it would work without her speaking the words she also knew it was a clear way to let the enemy know where she was and what was coming its way.

Nevertheless, she watched as the bubbles from before streamed toward the monster but it was able to move aside before using its tail as a spring and launched itself onto the roof of the building Tuxedo Mask stood on.

She frowned again and grabbed her tiara and put it back on before she leap through the air, across the road, and onto the same rooftop. She twisted until she faced the monster that was now sitting between the two of them.

She took off her tiara and charged it, watching from her peripheral vision as it glowed a soft white before it brightened and shifted into a bright white disk, as she kept her eyes on the monster.

Tuxedo Mask pulled out a rose and her eyes widened slightly in surprise as it lengthened into a whip. He flung it sharply at the monster and the snake man shifted to the side to avoid it. She could hardly believe it. First the rose petals and now a whip, and here she was still stuck with only her tiara.

Sailor Moon shook her head slightly and began to cautiously step forward. She figured if she could get closer to the monster her tiara would be more effective when she threw it, and hopefully destroy the snake man quickly. She didn't want to get close and risk getting hit with that acid-like liquid, but she was willing to risk it to get this fight over and done with.

Unfortunately, it must have heard or sensed her coming because its tail suddenly lashed out at her like a whip, the tip slamming into her stomach and sent her flying backward with a pained cry.

"Sailor Moon!" She heard Mercury almost scream before her back hit the roof of the building next to where she had been standing.

She groaned in pain and irritation at Mercury for not focusing on the monster before her momentum had her rolling off the roof and toward the ground. She managed to shift her legs beneath her and landed in a crouch before she gingerly touched her aching stomach.

"I'm okay! Attack the monster!" She called out before she began to stand up with a pained moan.

She glanced up and saw her tiara hovering above her, which she was thankful for since she had lost her hold on it when she was hit. She grabbed it and jumped back up onto the roof and saw Tuxedo Mask still flinging and snapping his whip at the monster.

And Mercury has yet to attack as far as I can tell. What is she thinking? What is she waiting for? She wondered before she put the matter out of her mind and hurried toward Tuxedo Mask and the monster.

Again the monster lashed out at her with its tail, but this time she dodged it and leapt onto it. She carefully yet quickly stepped along the wiggling tail wishing she had a weapon that was sharp and had some distance so she could deal with the appendage.

As she reached the base close to the monster's back she sucked in a sharp breath as she saw the tip of the tail swing around in an obvious move to curl around her. She brought the spinning disk of her tiara up and grabbed as much of the tail as she could with her free hand and swing her tiara at it.

It slammed into the tail and the monster cried out, but she continued to move her tiara forward until it managed to cut through the tail.

The monster screamed but she continued on her path toward the monster's back watching as Tuxedo Mask wrapped his whip around the monster's upper body trapping its arms. She brought her tiara forward and shoved the spinning disk into the monster's back just above the whip that bound it.

Tuxedo Mask meanwhile dodged left and right to avoid the acid-like liquid the monster was squirting at him while keeping a firm hold on his whip. Then watched in satisfaction as his soulmate grabbed the monster's long hair and yanked its head back before wrapping the hair around its head, gagging its mouth and preventing it from projecting the acid-like liquid.

Sailor Moon pulled on the monster's hair, making sure its head was tilt back, and kept a firm grip to keep it from attacking Tuxedo Mask as she continued to shove her tiara into its back. Its screams were muffled but still very much there as her tiara cut into its skin and ultimately into and through its spine.

As soon as the bone was cut the muffled scream increased, but that didn't stop her from shoving her tiara further into its body.

"Watch out for my tiara!" She warned Tuxedo Mask as she balanced on the struggling snake man's tail.

"Thanks for the warning." Tuxedo Mask said as he shifted to the side further up on the roof, making sure to maintain his grip on his whip.

A few moments after he made his move her tiara punched through the monster's chest and went flying into the air. The monster's scream instantly trailed off, and it began to gradually turn gray before crumbling to dust.

Sailor Moon's feet landed on the roof tiles as the monster's tail crumbled away and Tuxedo Mask's whip fell to the roof tiles. She grabbed her tiara as it returned to her and put it back on as it returned to a simple piece of jewelry.

"So," Sailor Moon said as she gestured toward his whip. "a whip now, and I saw those rose petals too. Where did they all come from?"

"Training." Tuxedo Mask answered as he released his rose whip and allowed it to disappear, the chakra returning to his body sightlessly.

"Of course." She said with a sigh. "I have got to find the time to start doing that." She said before she looked over and spotted Mercury.

She had clearly positioned herself on the building across the road from them, which was a good position to have chosen. It was just too bad she didn't use it for whatever reason.

"Who might that be?" Tuxedo Mask asked, though he didn't bother to actually look toward the blue scout.

"That is Sailor Mercury." Sailor Moon answered as she looked back to her masked companion.

"I suppose that means it won't simply be the two of us anymore." He replied.

"Yeah." She agreed with a sigh, wondering why she felt dissatisfied with that fact. "Do you want to meet her?" She asked.

"No; that is not necessary." Tuxedo Mask said, having absolutely no interest in meeting a guardian to the female that had negatively affected his and his soulmate's life. "It is enough to know that she is supposed to be here."

Sailor Moon nodded even as she shrugged. It wasn't her job to facilitate a meeting or force an introduction.

"I should go." He said as he looked around, and she nodded.

"Me too." She agreed. "Be safe." She added.

"Always." Tuxedo Mask replied seriously. "You as well."

"Of course." Sailor Moon said firmly.

With those assurances he took off running in one direction and she leapt over the road to the rooftop Mercury stood on to speak to her.


Author's Note: Having never been to Edo Wonderland Nikko Edomura some liberty has been taken with the details of the descriptions of the buildings and interiors.