Naru couldn't believe how easy it was to make it up the 1,015 steps to the shrine where Rei lived. As a new vampire, she was still discovering the benefits of how she altered her existence. It fascinated her.

The reason she was there was because Bastet had insisted that she approach Rei, and it had been evident to her that asking her to do that had been humbling to the Egyptian goddess. That, more than anything, showed Naru how important it was for her to go.

Sapphire's reaction when she had informed him had been so endearing to her. He was constantly protective and, oddly enough, still encouraged her to risk herself at the same time. His love and desire to ensure her safety were evident, as was his desire not to be in her way. His joy at learning that Bastet had been confident that Rei would become a dear friend to her had overwhelmed her.

She teared up when he acted like Rei's friendship was a foregone conclusion since she was "so wonderful and anyone who wasn't a fool would realize how blessed they were to know her."

She made it to the top of the steps, and as she did, she noticed Rei standing off to the side and leaning against the Torii Gate. With a wry smile, Rei said, "I'd have come down to meet you, but Mars said he'd kick my ass if did. It has nothing to do with you and everything to do with Bastet. He likes you 'despite her.'"

Naru laughed, "Bastet hates how much she had to humble herself, but she did. Her comment was she would only do that to help me make a friend like you. I think she was trying to come off as better than Mars." She smirked and laughed when she finished.

Rei shrugged and gestured for Naru to follow her. "All I know is that I'm excited to get to know you more. I'll be honest. Over almost two decades of constant rejection from my peers and my father still leaves me nervous.

"I totally get it. I don't have main-character energy either. Sapphire loving me like he does still feels like a fluke."

Rei teared up, "I feel the same."

Naru blinked as tears welled in her eyes. "You do?"

"I was a 'freak' my whole freaking life until I met Usagi. She encouraged me to warm up to Jadeite."

Frowning, Naru said, "I'm going to be truthful too. I really need a close female friend. I went all the way through school, and the one person I was the closest to was a boy who then dumped me like I didn't ever matter."

Rei smiled at that, "Lucky Sapphire."

Naru blushed, "he says that too. I don't see it."

"Dang, Jadeite is sooo going to like you a ton. Talking with you now makes everything he says make more sense." Naru's lack of self-esteem mirrored Rei's, and she realized that she meant the things she said. They weren't empty platitudes. It meant others could mean the same words to her.

Rei led her to her room, and they both made themselves comfortable. Once they were, Naru bit her lip and said, "Yeah, I don't know how to start."

"Neither do I," Rei admitted. She then knitted her brow, "do you have magic?"

"What?"

"I have magic, and I'm connected to Mars. I just wondered if you did, too, with your connection to Bastet."

Naru looked confused, "how could I? I'm a vampire?"

"Mars said I could become one too. They aren't mutually exclusive."

"Hmmm… I didn't know that." Naru shook her head then. "No, no magic. But I can do this." She first slowly morphed into a cat, then she grew and changed into a lioness. Once she returned to herself, she was smiling. "That has been a lot to get used to being able to do."

Rei looked on in shock. "You can turn into a freaking lion! That's amazing. Oooh! And how handy that you can turn into a cat! Think of all the spying on people you could do! I'd totally sneak around listening to people all the time. No one watches what they say in front of a cat."

Naru blushed. "Thanks. And I think it's amazing how you made the first werewolf-vampire hybrid in existence. I can't imagine how unique and special you must be."

It was Rei's turn to blush. "I didn't do anything to earn the ability. I didn't even have to work at it much. It makes me feel a bit like an imposter."

"Imposter syndrome, that's totally normal. Still, it doesn't change the fact that you're really powerful."

"But I was just born like this. How can I take credit for it?"

"People take credit for natural talent all the time."

Rei frowned at her clasped hands. "It still feels off."

"From what I hear, there is a battle ahead. And, in fact, you helped defeat Diamond. Thank you for that, by the way." She then got back to her original subject. "I think you'll have to work very hard and do difficult things with your natural talent very soon. I fully intend on fighting too. I have a feeling you will be able to take credit for your bravery and your actions soon enough. I'm kinda excited about it all too. I think I'll look badass going into battle as a lioness."

Rei laughed, agreeing. "That will be awesome!" She then paused and asked, "Wouldn't it be an issue for you to have people know you can turn into a cat or a lion? I know Jadeite worries about that and doesn't use his werewolf form."

Naru bit her lip and thought for a moment. "Yeah. You're right. I didn't think about that. If the place we fight is at all public, we would be seen or even recorded." She then cocked her head as she thought for a moment. "Could you put a glamor or something on us all so we couldn't be recognized? I mean, even in our human form, we're crazy powerful, and you have actual magic. That will shock people."

Rei shot up from where she was sitting. "I should ask Mars!?" She then froze, and said, "But Zoicite's not here."

"What? Don't you mean Jadeite?" Rei then explained to Naru all about why she didn't go into the ether without Zoisite present.

"Can I be there to watch you, or would Jadeite not trust me?"

"Even he knows I don't really need to be watched. It's just it scared him so badly that he feels better having someone there. It would totally be okay with him."

Five minutes later, Naru was sitting watching Rei by the Great Fire and absolutely understood why it freaked out Jadeite so badly. Her new friend even smelled dead. She wished she hadn't assumed he was just being a dramatic and overprotective boyfriend.

Six minutes later, Rei suddenly appeared alive again, and Naru shot to her feet to leave the room quickly. As Rei followed her out, Naru said, "Well, that was completely horrendous. Jadeite owes Zoisite big time."

"That bad?" she asked, surprised. Naru wasn't her lover or one of his pack mates, so she didn't expect it to phase her so much.

"Yeah. And it wasn't until you did that that I realized I can feel the power radiating off of you. Once it was gone, I noticed its absence. It's more than you looking and smelling dead. It's like all the energy gets sucked out of the room too. It kinda feels like the whole room died around me." She paused and then added, "Oh, I know, it's like a roaring fire suddenly going out completely and leaving nothing behind. The smell, the roaring flames, the light, and the warmth all gone in a blink." She then shuddered.

They were both now standing outside, away from any visitors. Rei said, "You almost make it sound like the Great Fire."

"I would assume you are like the Great Fire. You seem linked to me." Naru then changed the subject, knowing dwelling on it didn't help. "Was Mars able to give you any answers?"

"Yes, and he said to tell you that you're brilliant. I can hide everyone's identities. He told me how. Thank you. This will be a huge benefit."

Usagi stood there holding the front door open, staring at the elderly man. Since her body was already on high alert, she was instantly using all of her senses to detect any possible danger from him. She'd lived centuries, and with experience came the knowledge that danger often lurked in the guise of frailty or innocence.

Kyo thought back to more than a decade before when he spoke with Miran in the morgue. After she handed him the paper with instructions on it, she was adamant that he remembered that the woman she was sending him to was not just a vampire but the most powerful vampire of all time. He knew he was to do nothing to "provoke her." He just really wished Miran had elaborated more on that when she told him.

After using every sense she had and every trick she'd learned over her long life, she finally decided that she had no reason to suspect anything. That was, of course, other than his strange timing.

"Speak," she ordered.

And it was like a damn burst forth from him, and he couldn't figure out why he acted the way he did. The truth was that Usagi had used her compulsion to force him to obey.

He said, "Miran visited me when the Chibas died, well, when the adults died. She then gave me instructions to come to you here, on this date, at this time. I was the coroner, and she had me help hide the fact that they were killed by a witch. I did, of course. One, duh, when someone like that comes to you, you listen. Two, I'd have been fired if I didn't. No one believes in witches, at least not in the police department. They would have thought I'd lost my damn mind! So yeah, I helped cover up who killed them. Miran insisted the witch would eventually get what was coming to her, but more than that, she said that their kid Mamoru's life was at stake. The witch had to live because if Wiseman then got a competent one, he would realize he had the wrong person killed. It made me feel like I was saving a life by keeping my mouth shut. After all, the poor kid's parents were already dead, and it's not like I could save them by stopping her, either.

"She then told me that Mamoru would be peripherally in danger again from Diamond, but since he's dead, I figured that has now passed."

"Freeze," Usagi commanded. With Graham gone, Mamoru, Motoki, and Yamato, we're now standing nearby listening too. "How was Mamoru in danger from Diamond?!"

Kyo didn't even blink and continued, "Miran got a friendly, non-moron witch, as she put it, to cast an obfuscation spell on him that lasted while he was still alive. I don't know anything else about it except that someone else near him would be kidnapped instead of him."

Motoki mumbled, "Well, crap," as Mamoru worked to focus Usagi's attention on him. They all knew that would set Usagi again.

Mamoru locked eyes with Usagi and said, "You ripped his heart out and then burnt it in the ashes of his sister's body. You even tore his head from his neck. I'm fine."

As Usagi tried to focus on the truth of what Mamoru said, he tried to push that same truth out of his head. He was the reason his parents were killed and the reason Yamato almost died. It was all on him. He knew he couldn't think about that right now, or he'd fall apart entirely.

Usagi pushed down her feelings, too, and turned back to look at Kyo. "What else?"

"Miran said to tell you that she made sure to preserve him for you and your combined future. She also gave a warning, though. She said that Beryl remembers her past life and wants Usagi dead. She knows a spell to put someone under her complete thrall, even a supernatural being. She wants to use it on Mamoru and make him her sex slave."

At that, Usagi came back to herself. She now had a clearly defined enemy to fight, a powerful witch as a close friend, and a veritable army of the supernatural. She also believed deeply that no one could outdo Rei with magic. It was time to start working on a counterspell or a protective charm.