Chapter Text
Sailor Cosmos moves past Queen Kakyuu realizing the Queen will not be able to help her. She turns her focus to Maker and Healer who are still not providing any answers to Destroyer. “I need to speak with Seiya.”
“That isn’t possible right now… he’ll likely be confined until the meeting. There is nothing we can do but wait. The Council… is very rigid.” Maker tries to explain to Sailor Cosmos.
“Come on Usagi-chan, let’s head inside for a little bit. After using your powers to heal everyone I’m sure you need to rest,” Sailor Venus tries to distract her Queen. “You’ll want to be rested for later.” She quickly adds.
Sailor Cosmos numbly shakes her head in agreement realizing there is nothing she can do right now to fight against it.
Sailor Star Healer waits until Sailor Cosmos is far enough away before turning to Sailor Star Maker. “This is what we were trying to avoid by speaking with Queen Kakyuu first.”
Sailor Star Destroyer is not as willing to leave as easily as Sailor Cosmos knowing how the Council works. “What happened? What did Fighter do?” She asks again demanding answers as Protector and Creator appear to her side.
Sailor Star Maker looks at Healer for a moment. It was not her place to discuss something like this. “It is rather complicated.”
Sailor Star Destroyer’s eyes narrow. She will not accept that as answer. “You must know something. I’m sure you were there when whatever it was happened.”
Maker and Healer can’t help but teardrop at Destroyer’s statement.
Sailor Star Maker clears her throat. “I can assure you we weren’t there when the incident happened.”
Healer turns to Maker, “we should head inside too.” She turns to the Queen’s Guard. “You know there is nothing we can do now but wait until after the Council Meeting.”
*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*
Queen Kakyuu knocks lightly on Seiya’s door before she quickly enters. She knows doing this could put him in further jeopardy but she needs to speak with him. She has information that will help him.
Seiya looks up from the chair at his desk, shocked by his visitor. He quickly stands up. “Queen Kakyuu…?”
“I can only stay for a moment. I can’t risk being seen here for too long before the Council Meeting.” Queen Kakyuu speaks quickly. “I’m sorry. I fought to avoid all of this but Norio-san will not let go of his grudge against you, or any of the Starlights… with your unique abilities.” It is no secret Norio hates Fighter, Healer, and Maker for their ability to become Starlights even though they are male. He found them harder to control than their female counterparts.
She continues. “I’m sure he has already tried to turn the other Council members against you.” She warns. “But you must remind him of the mission which sent you to Earth. You were asked to protect Sailor Cosmos on her home world. From what I understand the rules that govern Kinmoku do not exist on Earth.” She pauses. She quickly adds, “You will have to force his hand. Find a way to discuss the Queen that governs the senshi on Earth. The Council will use her word as law.”
Seiya’s heart beats faster. The loophole he had hoped for might be what saves him after all. “You mean?”
Queen Kakyuu nods her head in agreement. “He does not realize who Neo Queen Serenity is.” She pauses as she heads back to the door. “I’m sorry you were dragged into this. But perhaps this hearing will be a way to update some of the ancient laws of this kingdom.” Without another word, she leaves Seiya alone with his thoughts.
He lies down on his bed staring up at the ceiling with a slight smile on his lips. He knows exactly what he needs to do to revile up Norio. He’s had a lot of practice over the years.
*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*
Three hours later, Seiya stands before the five members making up the Council on Kinmoku. The room is similar in appearance to a typical courtroom with the members of the Council towering above him from behind oversized desks. This is not his first time standing before the Council for a law violation. However, this was his most serious offense to date.
Norio begins first, his eyes following each of Seiya’s movements. “You know why you are here?” He has waited for this moment since he first learned Seiya broken the law.
Seiya bites his lip a bit. He’s going to have to sound as arrogant as possible in front of Norio to corner him. “Not really.” Something he is not used to doing with his elders.
“You broke Kinmokian Law!” Norio shouts at him for his nonchalant attitude.
Seiya shrugs. “Don’t I have to be on Kinmoku in order to break the law?” He sees Norio’s temper rising already. This part was easier than he anticipated.
Takashi, an aging man with black hair and streaks of white interjects. “You still serve Kinmoku, do you not?”
Seiya pauses. This is the part where everything becomes dicey. “I was given the mission to protect Sailor Cosmos. It is my duty. Queen Kakyuu reassigned me, Maker, and Healer last year to Earth.”
The man at end of the row, Jiro pipes up. “You are still a senshi of Kinmoku and you know the laws against intimate relationships between senshi.” He is not going to sit here and listen to these games. He flips some of his long aqua hair over his shoulders. He is following Norio’s lead and he wants this hearing to end as soon as possible to send a message to this Starlight. He is not above the rules. None of the Starlights are.
Seiya starts to choose his words carefully. “Sailor Cosmos is not a senshi from Kinmoku. I followed the laws on Earth and there are no such restrictions.” Normally senshi that are undercover on other planets receive some leeway to blend in. But the three of them being on Earth for that long was not a secret.
“Lies!” Norio shouts banging his fist on the wooden table before him. “Surly the Queen there has rules to govern her senshi.”
Seiya cuts off Norio in the middle of his rant, “nothing as restrictive as here.”
Fumiko leans forward in her chair, studying the interaction between Seiya and Norio. She is the youngest member on the Council with shoulder length strawberry pink hair. “What of Sailor Cosmos then?” She tries to approach the topic from another angle. “Certainly she must answer to a Queen in her star system.”
Seiya smiles. He led the Council to the line of questioning he was hoping for. “Go ahead and ask her if you don’t believe me.” He knew from the beginning he had to involve Usagi with the Council. It’s the only way he will stand a chance.
*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*
Usagi, Minako, Yaten, and Taiki are sitting in a private room near the small dining room used for meals with Queen Kakyuu and her senshi. The room was prepared by some of the attendants for them to wait for results of the Council Meeting. The room features posh leather chairs and a large table. No one else is allowed in the room until after the Council makes a decision to the sensitive nature of the meeting.
Yaten and Taiki haven’t been in this room in years. The last time was when they decided to abandon Kinmoku to search for Princess Kakyuu on Earth. They never planned to step foot in this room again but they needed to wait for answers with Minako and Usagi.
Taiki is thankful the Queen’s Guard were not allowed in the room since this occurred on Earth and none of them were present. He wasn’t sure if he could listen to Shiori anymore demanding to know what happened. Instead he had been peppered with questions from Usagi.
Usagi is fidgeting in her chair. She already asked Yaten and Taiki countless times what is happening and how Council Meetings work but they are unable to provide additional information after the first three times she questioned them. All they can do is wait; something Usagi struggles with, being patient. Her foot taps on the floor as she stares at the unmoving clock. Did something happen where time is standing still again? No. She would have felt the shift… right? Her thoughts are interrupted by a loud knock on the door.
Taiki is the closest and opens the door to find several guards. He inhales sharply, seeing the guards here and not Seiya is a bad sign.
The guard commands, “the Council is requesting to speak with Sailor Cosmos.”
Usagi gasps as she looks at Taiki and Yaten trying to figure out what she should do. She stands up realizing this is her chance to defend Seiya. She has to speak with the Council.
“When the Council requests you in your senshi form, you need to appear in that form,” Taiki explains to Usagi before she leaves the room.
Usagi nods her head, clasping the crystal pendant around her neck. “Cosmos Crystal Power, Make Up!” She quickly transforms into the Guardian in a fury of feathers and dazzling white light. After she transforms she tries to stand up a little taller, trying to appear a little more confident. She can fix this; she will not let anything happen him.
Minako takes a few steps forward. “Let me go with you.”
“The Council has asked for Sailor Cosmos only, no others.” The guard interrupts leaving the subject not up for debate. Without another word, Sailor Cosmos leaves with the guards.
Yaten places his arms around Minako to comfort her now that the three of them are alone again. “Cosmos will be fine; they’re not going to do anything to her. She’s not from here.” He pauses. “It’s Seiya they’re after.”
“Usagi-chan… isn’t going to fine if something happens to Seiya-kun…” Minako stares at the door Sailor Cosmos walked out of.
*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*
The door opens before Sailor Cosmos and she is escorted into the room. She slowly enters, her high heels clicking on the marble pavement. Her eyes scan the room and she sees Seiya to her left side standing behind a tall brown table that comes up to his waist. The guard directs Sailor Cosmos forward to stand on a tiled section creating a purple circle on the floor. There is no table or anything to hide behind. As she steps onto the circle she has a clear view of the five members of the Council before her. The expressions on their faces send a shiver down her spine. They appear cold and uncaring. She clutches her staff tightly in her right hand.
Norio immediately begins to question Sailor Cosmos asking her how senshi are governed on Earth.
Sailor Cosmos opens her mouth to respond but never gets the chance.
“She can’t understand what you are saying, she doesn’t speak Kinmokian,” Seiya interjects.
Sailor Cosmos inhales sharply. She had understood everything the Council had said perfectly. Her eyes turn to Norio.
“Most senshi speak our language,” Norio grumbles in Kinmokian.
Sailor Cosmos listened carefully and although she understood what he said he was clearly not speaking Japanese or Lunarian. Which leads Cosmos to ponder, when did she learn to speak Kinmokian? A person doesn’t just normally pick up a new language overnight.
Fumiko picks up where she left off questioning Seiya and switches to Japanese. “Your powers are from Kinmoku aren’t they?”
Sailor Cosmos tries to redirect her thoughts now that the Council is speaking to her in Japanese. It takes her a moment to respond, still trying to comprehend why she understood everything in Kinmokian. “No… not really. I was a planetary senshi long before I became Sailor Cosmos. My powers come from the Moon. Well they did… still do…” She continues to ramble. “Then I got these new powers and…” Her voice trails off now sure how to answer.
Norio is losing patience. This should be a simple case and Seiya is about to lose his Change Star permanently. But they had to question Cosmos to either verify or dismiss his claims. Losing a Change Star cannot be taken lightly. He has to demonstrate he explored all possible options before taking Seiya’s transformation item . “And does your Queen have rules that govern senshi’s behavior?”
Sailor Cosmos is unsure how to answer at first. “Some… but nothing like here.” She pauses realizing she needs to elaborate. “The Queen believes in letting senshi love whomever they wish. Seiya.” She pauses to correct herself. “Fighter and I are not the only senshi that are together on Earth.”
Norio scoffs at her answer. “And your Queen is perfectly fine with this? You never had to answer to her for your actions?” He can’t believe a planet could be run this way. It’s absurd.
Sailor Cosmos is surprised by his question. Does he not know who she is? “No… I don’t answer to a Queen.”
Norio cuts off Sailor Cosmos before she has a chance to explain everything. “Every senshi answers to a Queen!” He yells at her, berating her for such an outlandish remark. No senshi is above the law. “Regardless of what planet a senshi is on they always answer to royalty. They protect a kingdom.”
Sailor Cosmos takes a hesitant step back. She isn’t sure how to respond.
“Don’t speak to her like that!” Seiya interrupts, angry at how the Council is treating Sailor Cosmos.
“You will speak only when spoken to!” Norio bellows, silencing the entire room.
Seiya looks at Norio, glaring at him but bites his tongue for the moment.
After a few moments Fumiko speaks, trying to redirect everyone’s attention as to why they are at this meeting. “It seems this other planet is very different from here but we have no way to confirm what you are saving is true Fighter.” She pauses. “We can’t just take the word of another senshi from Earth given the circ*mstances.” She looks at Sailor Cosmos before turning her gaze back to Seiya. “Especially when it is the one you have relations with.”
Seiya knew it was now or never. “So if you spoke to the Queen from that Star System, would you believe her words?”
Queen Kakyuu smiles to herself. She quietly observes everything from the far right corner in the back of the room. She is glad she spoke to Seiya prior to this meeting. Although she is Queen, is not allowed to discipline the senshi because the Council believes her ruling would be biased. But based on what she has witnessed today, it is clear who possesses a bias. The Council was created to provide oversight for the senshi that are sworn to protect the Queen but it clear that oversight is becoming misguided. Things will have to change.
Norio turns his gaze to address Queen Kakyuu for the first time since proceedings began. “My Queen, have you ever met with this Queen they speak of?”
“Yes,” Queen Kakyuu responds without hesitation.
Sailor Cosmos watches all of this in confusion. Doesn’t the Council realize they are talking about her? It’s like she is invisible to them.
Queen Kakyuu continues, “She was at my coronation and she is a valued ally of Kinmoku.” She chooses her words carefully.
Jiro sighs in frustration. This line of questioning wasn’t bringing them any closer to resolving the matter at hand. “If only she were here this could be all be sorted out but without her input we must follow the laws we do have on Kinmoku.”
Norio turns to Seiya, the moment he has been waiting for this entire evening. “It looks like we have no choice but to confiscate your Change Star at this time. Your behavior has been unacceptable and violated the laws of Kinmoku.”
“Wait!” Sailor Cosmos cries. She can’t let this happen. “What if you were to speak to the Queen and she is on Kinmoku right now?” She asks trying to find a way to prevent Seiya from losing his powers as a senshi.
Norio laughs at Sailor Cosmos’ suggestion knowing it is impossible. “If she were here we would gladly listen to her as her word is law for her kingdom but she is not present. She is on Earth.”
“She’s here in the palace right now,” Sailor Cosmos can feel several of the rings on her fingers burning. They don’t realize who she is. All of this is a joke to the Council. They don’t understand how their actions are affecting the person she cares about the most.
Takashi is growing tired of this foolishness. “Stop wasting our time.”
“You should listen to the Queen when she is speaking,” Seiya snaps before anything else can be said. The Council is backed into a corner now.
A silence fills the room for a few moments before Norio laughs. “A Queen is not a senshi! That is impossible! If that were true then our own Queen would still be Sailor Kakyuu.” He is enjoying their desperation more than he anticipated.
Sailor Cosmos glares at the Council. She speaks in a firm voice. “You did not want to believe me earlier when I tried to explain to you why I don’t answer to the Queen.” She pauses for a moment to keep her emotions in check. “I don’t answer to a Queen… because I am the Queen, Neo Queen Serenity.”
The Council stares at Sailor Cosmos after her bold declaration.
Sailor Cosmos realizes there is only one way to emphasize her point. She closes her eyes, taking a deep breath. The eight pointed star flickers on her forehead before it is replaced with a golden crescent moon. Her body shimmers for a few moments before her f*cku transforms in the gown of Neo Queen Serenity. Light reflects off the pale pink jewel in her crown.
The Council stares Neo Queen Serenity with their mouths agape. They remembered seeing her at Queen Kakyuu’s Coronation.
Takashi turns to Queen Kakyuu in disbelief. “Did you know she is the Queen?”
Queen Kakyuu nods her head. “I had asked the Council to drop this matter due to the unique circ*mstance but the Council did not agree with my recommendation,” Queen Kakyuu continues. “Perhaps this is for the best. Now the Council will be able to update the laws governing the senshi from Kinmoku to more modern times.”
The Council is in a frenzy whispering to each other.
Seiya glances at Neo Queen Serenity and smiles a little before turning back to the Council to observe their actions.
After a while, Neo Queen Serenity gazes at Seiya before she walks over to him. The Council is too pre-occupied to pay attention to them anymore. As she approaches him, a familiar voice rings in her ears, screaming at Usagi to stay away from him. She ignores the pleas and keeps walking.
When she is standing next to him, the Queen grabs his hand to hold in hers. They don’t need to hide their relationship in front of the Council. They don’t have to hide their relationship in front of anyone ever again. She murmurs to him, “It seems like wherever we are, we have to fight to be together.”
“As long as I’m with you, that is all that matters,” Seiya whispers back. He squeezes her hand tightly.
The Council continues to speak among themselves for the next hour before they finally address Seiya and Neo Queen Serenity.
Chieko, the last member of the Council finally speaks. She is a middle aged woman with brunette hair tied back in a braid. She clears her throat to gain everyone’s attention. Once eyes are on her, she begins to explain the Council’s position. “We have never had a circ*mstance like this before.” She looks at Queen Kakyuu for a moment. “It is unheard of for a Starlight to serve any other Queen than Kinmoku’s. But it seems this arrangement has not created any issues for the Crown.”
Queen Kakyuu shakes her head no.
Chieko bites her lip. Of course Norio would ask her to make this announcement. After everything he has said today he’s too embarrassed to announce a change in verdict. “That means… Fighter, Maker, and Healer are hereby exempt from the laws the other senshi on Kinmoku have to follow as long as they serve Neo Queen Serenity. The moment their service to the foreign Queen ends, this ruling is invalid.”
Seiya’s jaw drop a little in shock. His normal poker face expression he holds in front of the Council is gone. This is a better outcome that he ever expected.
Fumiko finished the announcement. “It is our position…. that these three Starlights will fall under the category of Diplomatic Guests as long as Neo Queen Serenity travels with them to Kinmoku.” She turns her attention to the three guards standing near the doors to the room. “Therefore Fighter may keep the Change Star. Without it the mission to protect Sailor Cosmos cannot be fulfilled which is the reason Fighter, Maker, and Healer were reassigned from the start.”
A guard walks over to Seiya and Neo Queen Serenity and immediately returns the transformation object back to him. Seiya nods his head in acknowledgement. He clutches the Change Star tightly in his hand, still in disbelief how fast everything shifted in his favor.
Norio glares at Seiya and then softens his expression slightly as he addresses Neo Queen Serenity as well. “You are both dismissed from the meeting.” He grimaces a little. “I apologize Your Majesty for the confusion.” He bows his head slightly in respect for the foreign Queen.
Seiya doesn’t need to be told twice. He wants to leave before Norio tries to find some loophole to reverse the decision. “Come on,” he speaks softly, pulling her by the hand.
Neo Queen Serenity follows behind Seiya without looking back. She is not completely sure what happened and she will ask Seiya about it once they are away from the Council. Her lips are pressed tightly together. Is this what she has to look forward to being Queen, meetings like this?
Seiya guides them down several hallways until they are alone and what he believes is a safe distance from the Council’s prying eyes. He turns around and hugs her tightly to his chest. Relief finally washes over him. He kisses her lightly on the forehead above the crescent moon mark. What he dreaded the most returning here is over. He can still protect her as Fighter.
Neo Queen Serenity reverts back to Usagi, wearing the blouse and a mini skirt she had worn since she left Earth. “Seiya… what did they mean as a Diplomatic Guest?” She still has her eyes shut, enjoying the embrace.
Seiya lowers his arms from her shoulders to her waist to look at her while he explains. He grins. “I don’t have to abide by the same rules as the other Starlights here. It means we can do whatever we want.” To emphasize his point, he leans in and kisses her deeply.
Usagi smiles up at him when their lips finally part. “We should probably get back to the others. I’m sure they’re worried about what happened.” Usagi suggests. “But I’m not completely sure where we were… it is somewhere near where we had dinner… sorry. This place is still kind of confusing for me.”
“It’s okay,” Seiya reassures her. “I overheard which room everyone was waiting in when they went to retrieve you.” Grabbing a hold of her hand he leads her down several hallways until he finds the correct room. He opens the door and finds it empty.
Usagi is disappointed; she wanted to tell them the good news. She glances at the clock on the wall. It is already two in the morning. Her eyes widen in shock. “I can’t believe it’s that late! It didn’t seem like we were in there for so many hours.”
“Council meetings are never short,” Seiya explains. He tries to suppress a yawn. It’s been an exhausting day. “We’ll see them in the morning. They’ll have a lot of questions.” He glances around the room one last time before he walks out, Usagi following behind him. “We should get some sleep too. I’ll walk back to your room before I head to mine.”
Usagi grabs his hand tightly, preventing him from moving forward. “Stay with me tonight. I was so worried something would happen to you.” She hates the thought of waking up without him present and be worried the Council changed their mind in the middle of the night.
Seiya is hesitant. His initial thought is he would be in a lot of trouble but then stops. The Council had already made their ruling that Fighter, Maker, and Healer are exempt. Otherwise we would never consider Usagi’s request. It doesn’t matter what they do. He smiles a little. “I’ve love to have you in my arms all night.” He kisses her a few times before he leads them the rest of the way back to her room.
*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*
Minako rubs her eyes. She had hoped to sleep in on Kinmoku since it was somewhat of a vacation but palace life doesn’t work like that. She forces herself up from her bed. She’s still exhausted from yesterday’s events.
As soon as she walks into the bathroom, her attendant, Megumi is making her bed.
After washing her face, Minako exits the bathroom to find her bed already made. She blinks a few times. She could get used to this.
“Some clothes were prepared for you once we learned you would be visiting us,” Megumi smiles. She is a young woman with plum colored hair falling to her shoulders. “…is it okay if I ask you a few questions while you get ready?”
Minako shrugs, “sure!” She receives the navy blue dress from Megumi.
“What is it like to be a senshi?” Megumi immediately asks. “My position rarely allows me to interact with the senshi and I’ve always wanted to know what it is like. I had hoped to become a senshi but…. My abilities weren’t strong enough to warrant a Change Star to become a Starlight.”
Minako looks at the girl surprised. “That’s right… I remember Yaten saying a lot of people can become senshi here… it’s very different from where I’m from.”
“Being a planetary senshi is entirely different! Planetary senshi are also Royalty, aren’t they?” Her voice softens. “Well…. That is what I’ve heard.”
“In my solar system, yes. I’m the Princess of Venus.” Minako finishes slipping the dress on over her head; the fabric is very soft on her skin. The dress fights her form perfectly. It has a modest bust line and falls to right above her knees. The perfect amount of elegance but not so restricting she couldn’t fight an enemy while wearing the dress. They do think of everything here. “But only one kingdom in our Solar System remains right now, the Silver Millennium. All of the princesses of each of the planets have vowed to protect our Queen.”
“Queen….?” Megumi looks at her a little confused.
“Usagi-chan…. Well… Sailor Cosmos….” Minako starts to explain as she remembers what happened last night. “Do you know what happened in the Council Meeting?”
Megumi shakes her head no. “I’m sorry but those meetings are confidential and we rarely hear what happens until days later after the final ruling. All I heard was they called Sailor Cosmos to the meeting. The Council rarely does that, call someone to speak.”
Minako frowns, she was hoping to hear an update. “Do you know where Usagi-chan’s room is?”
“It is directly across the hall,” Megumi explains. “Queen Kakyuu made sure your room was close by incase Usagi-san needed your help with anything.”
“Oh! Thanks.” Minako feels sheepish. “I guess I didn’t pay attention as much as I thought yesterday when the Starlights were walking me around the palace.”
“The palace is huge. It took me a few weeks to become accustomed,” Megumi explains as she helps Minako with the zipper clasp for the dress. “As soon as you’re ready you can check on Usagi-san.”
Minako nods her head. She stands in front of a mirror brushing her hair to pull it back before tying the red bow in her hair.
“If you don’t mind, Queen Kakyuu took the liberty of having bows made for you in different colors,” Megumi reveals a matching blue bow.
Minako gasps looking at the bow. She has worn a red bow in her hair for years since she was Sailor V. She picks up the bow rubbing her fingers against the fabric. She is hesitant but maybe it is time she moves forward. She hasn’t spoken to Higashi in years. Maybe it’s time for a little change now that she has Yaten. She accepts the bow and returns to the mirror to add it to her hair. Her reflection is a bit different. She is not used to seeing a different color in her hair but it works. “Thank you!”
She rushes out of the room to walk across the hall to speak to Usagi. The meeting has to be over. Did everything go okay? She frowns, if something happened Usagi would have come to her room to talk to her.
She knocks on the door and waits. There is no response. Minako frowns. Is Usagi in the room? Suddenly she is really worried that she might not have returned to her room. She knocks again, a little louder. Nothing. But then again Usagi can sleep through anything. She pauses for a few more minutes and decides to open the door. If something happened to Usagi she needed to know. She has to make sure her Queen is safe.
She opens the door and enters. “Usagi-chan? Are you here?” Still no response. The front room is dark. Minako fumbles her way in the dark heading to the bedroom past the sitting room. If Usagi isn’t there then she’ll panic.
As she moves closer to the bedroom, the door is half open and she nearly trips on something on the floor. Her foot catches some fabric around her shoe. Minako grumbles as she frees her foot from a piece of clothing. She recognizes it as Usagi’s skirt. “Why is this here?”
The curtain in the bedroom is open a crack in a corner providing minimal light in the room. She sighs in relief when she sees Usagi sleeping on her side, her back facing her. Minako is about to say something when her eyes widen realizing Usagi is not alone. She is sound asleep on Seiya’s chest and his arm is wrapped around her waist. The sheets are barely covering the lower half of their bodies.
Minako whips around; her face is bright red as she rushes for the door to exit the room. She closes the door behind her. She had found Usagi and more than she bargained for.
“Good morning Minako-san,” Rose greets her brightly.
Minako is startled and looks up, seeing the attendant that will be helping Usagi. “G-good mor-morning.” She stammers.
“Go ahead to breakfast; I’ll get Usagi-san up.” Rose moves for the door.
Minako stops her. “Um… Usagi-chan… is….” She racks her brain for the best way to word it. “Umm… is not alone.”
Rose smiles a little. “I’ve seen a lot of things over the years.” Seeing Minako’s expression of surprise she adds, “Nothing fazes me anymore. It will be fine.” She knocks loudly on the door before entering, the door quickly closing behind her.
Minako turns and slowly walks away. A few minutes later she realizes she wasn’t paying attention to where she was walking and tries to navigate her way to breakfast.
*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*
After several wrong turns and directions from a few workers in the palace, Minako finds her way to the small dining room she ate dinner in last night. She sighs in relief. She finds Shiori, Yuna, and Sakura already seated.
Moments later, Yaten and Taiki appear and sit down on the same side of the table as Minako and across from the Queen’s Guard. Yaten and Taiki notice the Queen’s absence.
“Did you hear anything?” Shiori asks as soon as everyone is seated. No one seems to know anything. It’s unusual.
“Seiya’s room was empty. We stopped there before heading over.” Yaten pauses. “We were hoping he might already be here.”
“It looks like no has been there all night.” Taiki comments out loud looking at the others for any sign of confirmation. He’s worried about Seiya but it was his choice to break the law. “This is concerning.”
Yuna looks at the other Starlights at the table. “You don’t think they took his Change Star… and he was banished…” She doesn’t want to finish the sentence.
“What did he do?” Sakura asks. No one has been able to answer the question. The Queen’s Guard had speculated all of last night what could have happened.
Taiki clears his throat. “It’s rather personal… we need to find him first.” He tries to redirect the topic to focus more on finding the missing Starlight.
Yaten shrugs. “He did something that had to be reported because it was forbidden.” They are going to find out sooner or later. Secrets regarding a senshi losing their Change Star will always come to light.
The Queen Guard’s lean forward waiting for the shortest of the Three Light’s to continue.
Minako shifts nervously in her seat. She can’t keep quiet anymore. “He’s with Usagi-chan,” she meekly adds.
All eyes turn to her. “You saw him??” Yaten asks loudly in disbelief. “Why didn’t you say anything sooner?” He questions in an annoyed tone. “What did he say?”
Minako squirms in her chair as multiple teardrops appear around her head, trying to figure out what to say. “…I… umm… only saw him briefly.” She hopes that is enough of an answer for them.
Yaten studies Minako and the way she responding to such a simple question. Her cheeks are a little red as if she is embarrassed. “Where did you see him?” He inquires trying to put the pieces together.
Minako shifts her weight on her seat, looking even more uncomfortable. She doesn’t want to try to explain what she had seen. It’s awkward enough. “… I went to check on Usagi-chan this morning…and umm… ” her voice trails off.
Yaten keeps his eyes focused on Minako trying to understand why she would be so mortified about seeing Seiya with Usagi? He stops. He remembers a similar look Minako had in Brazil when they realized what Seiya and Usagi were up to in the room next to his. He lets out a loud sigh with his eyes closed. “You have got to be kidding me.” He shakes his head, then looks at Minako, “… he didn’t…”
Minako shrugs her shoulders with her hands up in the air. She is relieved Yaten was able to figure out the missing pieces so she didn’t have to say it out loud.
Taiki lowers his forehead to his hands that are resting on the table. “This is the same behavior that got him in trouble in the first place.”
“I’m in trouble?” Seiya asks as co*cky as ever sitting down on the other side of Taiki with Usagi. Usagi is dressed in a simple light pink dress.
Upon hearing his voice, Taiki immediately turns to his right to see Seiya.
“What happening during the Council Meeting?” Taiki asks trying to determine what transpired.
Seiya reaches into the pocket of the gray pants he is wearing and pulls out his Change Star placing it on the table in front him. It was the fastest way to demonstrate everything worked out. “Earth has different rules than Kinmoku and I didn’t break any rules that govern the senshi on Earth.”
Shiori stares at Seiya taking note of his word choice. Yaten said Seiya did something forbidden. What rule are they talking about? A senshi on Kinmoku has so many to follow, it could be anything. She looks over at Usagi for a moment; she can start to feel a lump form in her throat. It has to be related to Usagi.
Yaten shakes his head in disbelief after seeing the Change Star. “How did you get Norio-san to agree to that? He seemed dead set to make an example out of you last night.”
“He didn’t believe me, nor did he want to believe Sailor Cosmos,” Seiya recalls the moment and the dumbfounded look on the elder man’s face when he realized his error. “But he did say he would listen to the Queen that protects the Earth… he just never realized whom that Queen is.”
Yaten starts laughing. “He never saw that coming did he?” He smirks a little at the thought of how Norio must have lost it to miss the chance to try to collect Seiya’s Change Star.
Taiki is trying to receive a more precise answer. “What was the final ruling?”
The conversation is interrupted as Queen Kakyuu appears at the head of the table. The Starlights immediately stand and bow. Minako and Usagi stand up as well to acknowledge her presence.
“Please be seated,” Queen Kakyuu instructs everyone. “I’m sure many of you have questions regarding the Council Meeting from last night.” All eyes are on her. “The Council is in the process of updating the bylaws for all senshi.”
The Queen’s Guard gasps at this announcement.
“I will announce what the changes will be once all of the details are worked out.” Queen Kakyuu smiles while looking over at Seiya, Taiki, and Yaten. “The Council has made a separate ruling that applies to Fighter, Maker, and Healer only.” Out of the corner of her eye she can see the tension from Taiki and Yaten. “The Council has ruled Fighter, Maker, and Healer are Diplomatic Guests as long as they serve Neo Queen Serenity and travel with the Queen.”
Shiori, Yuna, and Sakura look at their Queen in disbelief. They never thought the Council would rule in a manner to exempt any senshi from the bylaws. The Council has always been stringent with senshi behavior.
This leaves Shiori wondering what happened even more. She’ll have to confront Seiya privately. It might be the only way she is going to get an answer.
“Diplomatic…. Guests…” Taiki repeats slowly. It didn’t seem right be thought of as a guest to the kingdom he calls his home. But he was asked to protect another. He frowns. Does this mean… there is now nothing tying him to Kinmoku anymore? Are they meant to remain on Earth forever?
Yaten didn’t realize how much this ruling would provide him a sense of relief. He doesn’t have to break things off with Minako. He can finally tell her the truth.
Sakura looks at Seiya, Yaten, and Taiki. “They just gave you a pass to do whatever you want?” She is still trying to process this announcement.
Seiya grins. “Pretty much.”
*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*
Queen Kakyuu uses the rest of the time at breakfast to catch up with Seiya, Taiki, and Yaten with current events.
As the meal is concluding, Shiori pulls out a notebook she brought with her. She is sitting across from Yaten. “I found this buried in the closet of my room…” She pauses, “well your old room.” She starts to pass the notebook to Seiya.
Yaten snatches it up and starts flipping through it.
Seiya glares at Yaten. “What are you doing? That’s mine.” He tries to grab it from Yaten not sure what is in the notebook.
Yaten‘s eyes widen as he flips through the papers. “Are these all song lyrics? You’ve been sitting on these when we need to make a new album?”
Well that solved the first mystery. “I forgot about those.” Seiya had written a lot when he returned to Kinmoku to try to get his mind off of Usagi.
Yaten quickly scans the pages and stops to read the lyrics on the page. “This one isn’t bad. Its call ‘Star Line’. You should sing it later. I want to hear what melody you have planned for it.” He pauses to read more. “You should like you’re obsessed though…”
Seiya smirks. “Still am.” He can only guess what he penned almost two years ago.
Usagi bites her lip a little wondering what Seiya wrote.
Minako looks at the notebook in Yaten’s hands but it’s hard to read his writing. Is it even all in Japanese?
Yaten stops to look up at Seiya to roll his eyes. “At least the lyrics sound decent.”
“Sailor Star Striker is looking for help training the new senshi today,” Queen Kakyuu states while looking at Seiya, Taiki, and Yaten. “Destroyer, Protector, and Creator will be leaving the palace soon to check on Morava and will not be available this afternoon. Would it be too much to ask…?” Her voice trails off as she looks over at Usagi.
“We’d love to,” Taiki interjects. “We would like to assist Kinmoku as much as we can while we are here.”
“Please don’t hesitate to ask for any of our help,” Usagi adds after she notices the look she received from Queen Kakyuu. As if the Queen was asking for permission for the Starlights to help. It takes Usagi a moment to recall the Council ruling. Is she now in charge of these three Starlights rather than Queen Kakyuu? It doesn’t seem right.
“Thank you. The training session is in the afternoon. You have more combat experience than a majority of the senshi here and any instruction will help our new senshi.”
Shiori stands up. Yuna and Sakura follow seconds later. “It’s time for us to depart for Morava. We anticipate being back before dinner My Queen.” The three women bow before turning to leave the room. Shiori glares at Usagi for a moment before she turns away.
She has suspicions about what the Council meeting was for. She is still harbors some anger over the missed chance she had with Seiya before he returned to Earth. She forms a plan to speak with Seiya tomorrow while Usagi is with Sailor Galaxia at the Galaxy Cauldron. She needs to get to the bottom of this. She tells herself it is her duty as the leader of the Starlights, personal feelings aside.
Queen Kakyuu addresses Usagi next. “I would like to finish our conversation from yesterday Usagi-san.”
Usagi nods her head and rises from her seat. She and Queen Kakyuu exit the room leaving Minako and the Three Lights behind.
Yaten turns to Seiya, “looks like you have plenty of time to sing before the training session.”
*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*
Queen Kakyuu continues the discussion in her private quarters, “I’m sorry about yesterday. I spoke to the Council but Norio-san could not be swayed. I’m sorry you and Seiya had to go through such an ordeal.”
“It’s okay. I’m just thankful everything worked out so well. Seiya was worried about what could happen for the past few weeks,” Usagi explains with her eyes downcast. “I didn’t find out about… the different laws until after…” Her voice trails off, it feels funny to discuss this so openly with Queen Kakyuu.
“You have nothing to be embarrassed about,” Queen Kakyuu tries to reassure her.
“I just didn’t realize it would cause such an issue…” Usagi pauses when an attendant enters to place a tray of tea and cookies in front of them. It’s an older woman Usagi did not recognize. She bows deeply to the two women before she leaves. “My mother had Council members like Norio-san.” Usagi changes the subject a little. She smiles. “It’s nice to be able to talk to someone about being a ruler… though I don’t really consider myself one. Everything is more or less the same on Earth and the Silver Millennium remains empty.”
“Don’t hesitate to ask any questions that you have. Rebuilding a kingdom that was destroyed is not an easy task. This kingdom is not where it once was.”
“Is there anything I can do?” Usagi asks eager to help.
“Perhaps after you go to the Galaxy Cauldron with Sailor Galaxia, we can revisit this topic.” Queen Kakyuu takes a sip from her hot black tea. “I also wanted to give you something today.” She stands up to move across the room to a large dark brown chested drawer. She delicately pulls at the handles to open the second drawer. “I had this made for you.” She sits back down across from Usagi and presents her with a communicator. It has red wings and in the center an eight pointed star.
Usagi gasps noticing the similarities to the Starlights Change Stars.
“It is modeled after the Starlight’s Change Star… though I took the liberty to have the five pointed star changed to a white eight pointed one. The communicator can be used at vast distances. It is how I am able to speak with the Starlights while they are on Earth.” Queen Kakyuu reveals her own communicator. It has red wings and an orange Kinmokian blossom in the center, the same symbol on her forehead. “This way when you are not here we will be able to communicate. One is being made for Sailor Venus as well.” She pauses. “I would like to give one more to another senshi on your team to allow them to contact you from Earth when you and Sailor Venus are here.”
Usagi pauses. Who could she ask? The Outer Senshi would be less likely to come to Kinmoku. “Sailor Uranus… she is the leader of the Outer Senshi and I don’t think she would be visiting Kinmoku often…”
Queen Kakyuu is visibly surprised by the decision. “Are there still issues with them and the Starlights?”
“I think… they’re slowly starting to come around,” Usagi laughs a little. “Haruka-san and Seiya are actually a bit alike. They both hate to lose… but they’re also very protective of me.” She pauses. “They’re also very stubborn.”
Queen Kakyuu joins in the laughter. “Very much so.”
*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*
Seiya looks down at the notebook in his hand. He had forgotten about it and is thankful Shiori found it. How many song lyrics did he write during the time they left Earth and returned to Kinmoku to begin restorations? A lot more than he recalled. The last time he was at the Scarlett Palace he was too focused on finding a few songs scribbled on loose paper. Did Shiori read these lyrics too? He brushes the thought to the side.
“So let’s hear it,” Yaten stares at Seiya. “I saw the lyrics earlier and I think we could use it as a new song.” He’s thrilled at the thought of one less song to write upon their return.
“Yaten, we have plenty of time,” Taiki tries to pacify the shortest member of the Three Lights. “We don’t even have our regular instruments here.”
“I want to hear it too!” Minako jumps in. “I mean you can always make changes later.” She turns to Yaten, “I want to see what you were talking about when you said Seiya-kun was obsessed!”
Seiya teardrops. Somehow that one comment Yaten made is always going to be associated with his song, isn’t it? He sighs. Ah well, when he wrote it he was thinking of Usagi the entire time and he couldn’t get her out of his mind. Returning to Kinmoku after spending so much time on Earth was a difficult transition for him.
“We’re helping with training later in the afternoon, we don’t have all day,” Yaten snaps.
Seiya realizes it is going to be harder and harder to avoid at this point. “But I don’t even have drums or anything to keep a beat.” He counters, maybe this is the justification he needs; Yaten had used the same one in the past.
“I’ll tap it out with a pen or something,” Yaten responds immediately, trying to remove any more excuses Seiya could think of.
Seiya shakes his head. Yaten can be so persistent. “Fine,” he relents. “Where is a pen? I’ll start and then you keep the beat,” He instructs Yaten, hoping the band member will mess it up and use it as a way to avoid singing. He feels self-conscious about this one. It explained so much of how he felt and the frustration of not being the one at the time.
After a few minutes, Yaten was able to pick up the quick tempo with the pen much to Seiya’s dismay. There wasn’t another way out of this. This is first time he didn’t want to sing. He sighs. He has to get this over with.
He can’t look at them when he sings. He pictures Odango and everything becomes easier.
Even if I’m wearing the sweet fragrance of love
Is there no way for me to satisfy your heart? oh you... oh you...
With just a gentle touch of your hand
I can tell by that starlight it's you... it's you...
We fatefully met across an endless galaxy
I'll never let go of your trembling heart
Longing so deeply for this love
Don't drown in it, don't drown
No matter where I'm singing from, this song will
Make you turn your head, make you turn your head
Don't look at me like that
Don't raise your voice
I'll snatch those lips away
Don't look at me like that
Don't raise your voice
I'll snatch away your everything
He finishes the first section and opens his eyes to see Taiki, Yaten, and Minako staring at him unblinking. He is unsure of what to make of their reactions. “was it that bad…?” He is confused. Yaten was so insistent of having him sing this song and now he is just staring at Seiya without any words.
Yaten’s stare slowly turns into a small smile. “No…. actually it is really good and a fast beat for this song works perfectly…. Like a racing heart.” This is one the highest compliments one could ever hope to receive from Yaten for a first draft of any song. According to Yaten everything is usually crap the first draft.
“We will have to figure out more of the music to go with it… and the rest of the song,” Taiki slowly adds.
“Umm…. there is another part I wrote on a later date...” Seiya adds after listening to their feedback.
“Where?” Yaten eagerly asks. This song will definitely get their manger Kazuki off their backs with producing more music for a while, an added bonus.
Seiya flips through the notebook until he finds another section later in the notebook. He tried to re-write the song at a later date but the next section worked better as more of the same song. “It’s right here.” He points to his scribbles.
“Go ahead,” Yaten encourages him as he picks up the pen to continue with the beat.
Seiya looks at him in disbelief. But it’s Seiya’s own fault. He should have seen this coming. He had to say something. So he continues.
Even if your heart is swallowed up by darkness
I'll protect you no matter what oh you... oh you...
I always wear a poker face
You're the only one that I want to show my true face to only you... only you...
With the power of the endlessly falling stars
I will be able to find the path of light
Even if the light of hope is disappearing,
I'll illuminate it, I'll illuminate it
At the edge of your line of sight,
There we are, there we are
Don't look at me like that
Don't raise your voice
I'll snatch those lips away
Don't look at me like that
Don't raise your voice
I'll snatch away your everything
Minako gasps. “That is going to be hit a song with all the girls of the Three Lights fan club, you know that?”
Yaten turns to look at Minako with a questioning glance. “What?”
“So many girls in high school have stories about the one that got away and hoped the guy had feelings for her… a lot of them could relate…” She blushes slightly looking at Yaten as she realizes how her words also express how she felt after the Starlights left; it just took her a long time to realize it.
Taiki changes the mood in the room. “Yaten was right earlier, you were absolutely obsessed with Usagi-chan when you first came back to Kinmoku, more than I ever imagined.”
“Hey!” Seiya tries to retort and then realizes there isn’t much else he can say to Taiki when he is right. “I knew I should have kept this song away from you guys.”
“Oh no. We need new music and this is perfect,” Yaten interjects. “You can’t even dare take it back.” He smirks. “I can picture the questions by the press now, what inspired this song?” He pauses for an added effect. “Each time I’m going to tell them to talk to Seiya and how hopelessly in love he is.”
Seiya grumbles under his breath, letting Yaten continue to rib him for now. He is going to enjoy paying him back in the future.
“I’m sure Usagi-chan would love to hear it, it’s a shame she’s not here to listen to it.” Minako adds with a frown. “But I know Queen Kakyuu wanted to speak with her about yesterday.” She turns to look at Yaten. “What do they have to talk about?”
“This is common for meetings between Heads of State,” Yaten explains.
Seiya checks the time. “We need to hurry if we’re going to eat before that training session.”
*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*
Sailor Star Healer, Sailor Star Maker, Sailor Star Fighter, and Sailor Star Striker stand on the training grounds of the Scarlett Palace with six new Starlight recruits in silver f*ckus.
Fighter expected one team. “Two teams?” She looks over at Striker in confusion.
“Given what happened with you three, it was decided to be better prepared,” Sailor Star Striker explains to the trio. “Now that three Starlights have the Kinmoku Blossom… it’s a little different.”
Sailor Star Striker doesn’t waste time giving drills for the new senshi to complete. Maker, Healer, and Fighter quickly fall in line after training with Striker for years when they were younger.
They are finishing the last drill when Healer’s right arm is clipped by an attack. Her eyes twitch from the pain, it stings more than she thought. She immediately places her left hand over the injury to stop it from bleeding any further.
Striker moves over to Healer to assess her injury. “You should have that looked at…” she pauses when she notices a light green glow around emitting from the senshi’s hand. “Why is your hand glowing?”
Sailor Star Healer looks at Striker not following until she turns to look at her arm. Sure enough there was a light coming from her hand. She slowly removes her glowing handing trying to figure out what is going on. Her eyes widen when she looks at the cut on her arm. It is significantly smaller and partially healed. She gasps loudly at this development.
“When did you gain healing abilities?” Striker asks, wondering what other changes occurred on Earth.
Sailor Star Healer is too stunned to respond. For years she had questioned why she is called Sailor Star Healer if she can’t heal anyone.
“Just now it looks like… we’ve never seen this ability…” Sailor Star Maker explains while studying the shortest member of their group.
The exhaustion of using energy to heal an injury, hits the white haired Starlight like a brick wall and she staggers a bit. She feels like she just ran a marathon. “They weren’t kidding when they said it takes a lot of energy.”
Sailor Star Maker turns to Sailor Star Fighter, “our f*ckus did changed slightly when Neo Queen Serenity first appeared.” Healer’s new ability is alarming to the tallest Starlight. Did she too gain a new ability she is unaware of?
Sailor Star Fighter nods her head, slowly thinking things through. “Our powers might have changed as well… I knew we became stronger. But since that battle our powers have been mostly dormant. We’ve barely used them.” It is not something they really discussed or tried to figure out. They were too focused on the tour that months went by without them being senshi. What other changes did they miss?
*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*
Shiori finishes tying her hair back in front of the mirror. The visit to Morava went well and washed up before dinner. She stops and places her hands on the sink counter, closing her eyes tightly. She hates the room she was given was Seiya’s old room. It was natural she received this room rather than one of the others since she is the leader and this room is closest to the Queen’s. It is a constant reminder of what could have happened. What should have happened.
She frowns. She has never seen Seiya so happy. She has wanted to see him happy but why does it have to be because of Usagi? With a heavy sigh she leaves the bathroom and heads to the door. She pauses long enough to collect her Change Star. Accepting the Kinmoku Blossom is a huge honor for any senshi. It will tie her to Kinmoku forever… while Fighter lives on another planet. She hoped accepting this new role would allow her to move on. But the discussion of Seiya breaking the rules stirred up a lot of buried emotions.
She leaves the room and closes the door behind her. She slowly makes her way down the hallway to dinner. She pauses outside of the door next to hers. The door is open slightly and she can hear a loud voice from within, almost as if someone is yelling. This entire situation seems odd. Her eyes widen, is that Usagi’s voice?
Shiori knocks on the door, if there is a problem it is her responsibility to help. The door opens a little wider from the pressure of knock. “Hello….?” She calls out tentatively. She can hear Usagi’s voice a little more clearly and she sounds rather irritated.
A moment later the door opens wider and Seiya is standing there.
She is caught off guard by his sudden appearance. She stumbles on her feet. “Sorry… I heard a loud voice and I just wanted to make sure everything was okay.”
As if on cue she hears Usagi talking again, her tone is furious. Shiori looks at Seiya as if to ask whom Usagi was speaking to.
“Odango is speaking with some of the Moon Senshi,” Seiya begins to explain. He lets Shiori in and closes the door to draw less attention to Usagi’s loud voice.
Usagi responds angrily to something that is said.
Shiori clearly heard Usagi this time. She raises an eyebrow at Seiya. “What is she even saying? That didn’t sound like Japanese.”
“She’s speaking in Lunarian,” Seiya explains. “I have no clue what she is saying.”
Shiori nods her head slowly. She switches to speaking their native language. “Kind of like her not understanding Kinmokian…”
Usagi hits her hands on the desk in the bedroom, the sound drawing Seiya and Shiori’s attention. She says something heatedly back and this time they both understood one word she said, Seiya.
Seiya frowns. He can only assume what the Moon Senshi had said. He can kind of guess what is being discussed at this point. It is always the same thing. He’s still an outsider in their eyes.
Usagi wistfully speaks the last sentence in Japanese. “Well at least we know the communicator you gave me works here too.”
Shiori looks at Seiya not sure what to say. She desperately wants to ask him about the Council Meeting but not with Usagi in the next room.
Footsteps approach them as Neo Queen Serenity appears from the bedroom with a look of frustration. She stops in her tracks and her eyes widen when she sees Shiori. Something about seeing them together like this unnerves her. It reminds of her what she seen when she touched Seiya’s Change Star.
Shiori bows her head slightly to acknowledge the foreign Queen. “Sorry,” she issues a quick apology. “Sometimes I forget you are also a Queen because you’re a senshi.”
Usagi tries to smile a little. “I’m still not used to it myself…” she admits. The crescent moon mark on her forehead vanishes as does her white gown being replaced by a simple pale pink A-line dress falling between her thighs and knees. “Is it time for dinner? I’m starving.” She changes the topic.
“Yes…” Shiori answers. “I was just on my way there when I heard a loud voice and your door was open a little bit so I wanted to make sure everything was okay.”
“Sorry if I was a bit loud…it’s just so frustrating after all of this time some of them still…” Usagi’s voice trails off. She doesn’t want to discuss this in front of Shiori given the history she recently learned. “I don’t mean to burden you with some of the challenges. I’ll figure something out.”
Seiya senses Usagi’s discomfort and changes the topic. “How was the visit to Morava?”
Usagi smiles at Seiya, thanking him for changing the topic.
“Good. They are finally starting to accept Queen Kakyuu,” Shiori begins to explain one of the cities that struggled with the translation, feeling like they had been abandoned due to the slow reconstruction process.
*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*
After dinner, Queen Kakyuu leads Usagi to Yuta’s quarters.
Yuta opens the door and immediately bows between the two Queens. “Please come inside.” Once the two Queens are seated in luxurious armchairs, Yuta continues. “It is nice to meet you in person Usagi-san. I’m sorry I was not able to meet with you the other times you’ve been on Kinmoku but I was helping with the reconstruction efforts in a few nearby cities. I was able to prevent a few builders from making disastrous mistakes.”
“It is nice to meet you,” Usagi smiles. “I’ve heard a lot about you.” She shifts in her seat a bit, nervously. “I’ve never met an Oracle before. It’s thanks to you the Starlights returned to Earth to help us.”
Yuta nods her head in acknowledgement. “I saw the darkness approaching…” her voice trails off as she studies Usagi. “I can see… a darkness in your heart that is created by doubt.” Her eyes harden. “Never doubt your powers and your abilities. Trust your instincts, and the premonitions you ‘ve had.”
Usagi stiffens hearing the discussion of premonitions. “I had one shortly before coming to Kinmoku,” she reveals. Now that it is over she feels comfortable discussing it. She just wasn’t ready to tell Seiya what happened and the doubts spawned from that airplane trip. “But I interpreted it wrong. I only saw a part of it.”
“What did you see?” Yuta leans forward, anxious to hear what Usagi will reveal.
“I saw myself fighting a lot of Starlights while Queen Kakyuu and Sailor Galaxia watched from the sidelines. I wasn’t sure why we were fighting… I was afraid I became an enemy.” Usagi explains it the best she can.
Queen Kakyuu inhales sharply. “You witnessed the training session in a premonition?”
Usagi nods her head slowly. “I didn’t know it was a training exercise. I just knew all of the Starlights were about to fight me… I had to come to Kinmoku to find out what happened. I was relieved after I transformed and realized what I saw was the same as the premonition.”
Yuta nods her head in understanding. “I’ve had situations like that. Some premonitions are vague and some are very clear. You must pay careful attention to any premonition you’ve had more than once.” There is some hesitation in her voice. “Those can be a sign they are dangerous or life threatening.”
Yuta looks over at Queen Kakyuu for a moment. She then turns to Usagi. “I’ve seen you in some rather vague premonitions recently. You are about to face a great challenge soon. You must be careful. I’ve also learned what lies ahead of you is something you must face on your own. It will occur in the near future.”
Usagi repeats slowly, “only I can face it on my own…” Chaos immediately comes to mind. She reminds herself Chaos is sealed. What about the purple haired lady? But she was with the others when she met her.
“I’m sorry I wish I could give you more concrete information but it is all I am able piece together.”
Usagi nods her head. “I understand. I’ll be careful. Thank you.”
“Rest well for tomorrow, the Galaxy Cauldron is rather far from here and it be draining on your powers,” Yuta instructs her.
“The Galaxy Cauldron… what is it? I don’t know anything about it,” Usagi asks looking at Yuta and Queen Kakyuu for answers. She had forgotten about it due to everything with the Council.
“Sailor Galaxia will be able to answer your questions. She understands the cauldron best. The miniature cauldron that was used to seal Chaos was based off of where you will go tomorrow,” Queen Kakyuu explains eliminating a little of the mystery. “Think of the cauldron as your domain, how the Time Streams are Sailor Pluto’s.”
“My domain… but the Silver Millennium…” Usagi pauses. Neo Queen Serenity’s domain is the palace. “As Sailor Cosmos….” Usagi finishes her thought out loud, having more questions than answers.
*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*
Early the following morning, Sailor Cosmos stands with Queen Kakyuu and Sailor Galaxia after eating breakfast. She was anxious making it difficult for her to eat. She is glad Queen Kakyuu would not let them depart until everything was gone. It is extremely rare Usagi has trouble eating anything; this was one of those mornings. The last time this happened was the day after Chaos was defeated and everyone returned. She was terrified to go school and see the girls weren’t there and it was a dream. She knew it wasn’t a dream when she saw them and the teacher confirmed the Three Lights had withdrawn from school.
Sailor Galaxia looks over at Sailor Cosmos. “It will be alright. We will be traveling a little slower than you are accustomed to so we do not miss it. Are you ready?”
Sailor Cosmos slowly nods her head. “I think so…”
“Good,” Sailor Galaxia looks at Queen Kakyuu one more time. “We will back in time for dinner and I’m sure we’ll both be starving after the amount of energy required for this journey.” She turns her attention back to the Guardian. “It’s time to depart.”
Sailor Cosmos takes a deep breath as the teleportation ring on her finger glows.
*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*
Minako is the last to arrive for breakfast. She notices an empty seat at the end of the row. The Three Lights and the Queen’s Guard are already present. “Where is Usagi-chan?”
“She already left this morning with Sailor Galaxia,” Seiya answers. He has heard of the cauldron in passing and he is worried it could somehow be dangerous to Usagi. The cauldron may mean new responsibilities he isn’t sure Usagi is ready for. He is anxious for her return.
“Good morning,” Queen Kakyuu greets everyone as she sits down. “Please go ahead and eat. I ate with Usagi-san and Hikaru-san this morning.”
An attendant places a hot cup of tea in front of the Queen. “Thank you,” she picks up the cup and takes a sip. “I think it would best if everyone rests today.” She turns to Shiori, “I know the three of you will be completing an unannounced visit to the Lemurians this evening.” She pauses for a moment. “I’m hoping these visits will not need to continue much longer. Things are starting to settle down.”
“Are they resisting less?” Taiki asks. There has been a long history of them struggling to accept Queen Kakyuu’s family ruling Kinmoku.
“Yes. They are impressed with the speed the restoration has been completed throughout the planet since your last visit. We have focused on cities, leaving us the natural areas. But that will take years, if we are lucky. I’m worried many plants and animals have been wiped out.” Her eyes focus on the cup in front of her. “I’m glad … nearly all of the people have returned.” She can feel the tears filling in her eyes at the thought of him. “I’m sorry. Please excuse me.” She abruptly gets up and leaves.
Minako is shocked by the sudden departure of Queen Kakyuu. Looking around the table she seems to be the only person shocked. “Is she okay?”
It was something they never talked about within the palace but Minako doesn’t know the story. Yaten sighs, keeping his voice low. “When Galaxia attacked our world, she killed Princess Kakyuu’s beloved.”
Minako gasps.
“For some reason his starseed never returned. This happened to handful of people. No one knows what happened to him. Galaxia has tried to him, along with many of the Starlights,” Yaten explains. “It’s not something we ever discuss because of how hard it is on Queen Kakyuu.”
Minako wants to ask more details but decides against it. The pain on the Queen’s face was obvious. She can’t imagine what it would be like to have almost everyone else return but not the person she loves the most. “…that’s horrible….” She murmurs. Her attention is turned to the plate of food placed before her, unsure of what else to say.
*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*
The woman with dark purple hair looks at her servant in disbelief as if she misheard something. “She has gone to the Galaxy Cauldron?”
“Yes, my Queen.” The girl bows lower to the ground, hoping this answer does not anger her master.“Excellent. What else have you learned?” The woman sits down at her table and begins to shuffle her tarot deck.
“Sailor Cosmos is from many galaxies away, a planet called Earth.” The servant pauses trying to recall all of the details. “She participated in a Council Meeting on Kinmoku, or rather was summoned to one. The details are very vague.”
“Go on,” she continues to shuffle her deck, separating the cards.
“She is apparently a foreign Queen as well.”
The woman stops shuffling to stare at her servant. “What is her title?”
The servant can feel the hairs on the back of her neck stand up from the tone used by the powerful Queen before her. Or former Queen was it? “They called her Neo Queen Serenity.”
The Queen’s eyes narrow after hearing that name. “You have a new assignment. We must locate the Galaxy Cauldron now that the Guardian’s identity has been confirmed.” She resumes shuffling her cards. “You are dismissed.”
Once the Queen is alone she stands up. Anger is radiating from her. Queen Serenity was supposed to be a powerful ally. But she cast her aside, the same as the others. No one could understand the big picture. They tried to take her title and banished her from the Milky Way, leaving her husband to rule alone. A smile tugs at her lips. “I guess it is time for a family reunion. I haven’t seen you since you were a little girl.” Her planetary symbol glows on her forehead at the thought.
*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*
Minako knocks on the office doors of Queen Kakyuu. She feels nervous she was summoned before the Queen. Did she do something wrong?
The door opens and the blonde is greeted by the ruler of Kinmoku. “Thank you for visiting. I have something I would like to discuss with you.” She gestures for Minako to have a seat across from her.
Minako sits down in the chair, trying hard not to show signs of how nervous she is. “I was a little surprised you asked for me.” She isn’t sure what else to say.
“Once I learned you would be visiting Kinmoku, I asked for a communicator to be created for you as well.” Queen Kakyuu opens her drawer and pulls out a gold heart shaped communicator with red wings. In the heart is the planetary symbol for Venus in red.
Minako stares at the device in awe. “A communicator….?”
Queen Kakyuu nods her head. “I understand you are second in command. I want you to be able to keep in touch with Usagi-san if she is on Kinmoku and you are not. This communicator will allow you to do so. I have one, as well Yaten, Taiki, Seiya, Shiori, Yuna, and Sakura, should you need to reach any of us.”
Minako is speechless. Her heart is racing. Is Queen Kakyuu expecting Usagi to be gone from Earth that often? Minako thought she would go with Usagi often as long as things are going well between her and Yaten.
Seeing the look of confusion on her face, Queen Kakyuu elaborates. “I realize you will likely visit often as well and after speaking with Usagi-san, another communicator will be created for one of the senshi on Earth that will be...less likely to visit here.”
Minako lets out a sigh of relief. “I’m really enjoying my time here and I would like to visit more in the future as well. I feel like I have a lot to learn on how a kingdom functions. I want to be able to support Usagi-chan when she starts living at the Silver Millennium but I’m not sure where to even begin.”
Queen Kakyuu smiles. “It is a lot to take on at once. Observe while you are here.” She pauses. “I’m sure Yaten could answer any of your questions. Well… Taiki as well… but sometimes the explanations are a bit more detailed then one would expect.”
Minako bursts out laughing recalling the times Taiki helped her study for her exams to pass high school. Once the laugher dies down, she bows her head accepting the gift, “thank you.”
*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*
Shiori couldn’t wait anymore. Today was her best chance to corner Seiya. She was pulled away this morning by Yuna but now she is finally on her own. It doesn’t take her long to find him in the gardens near the palace. A place he often liked to be alone when he lived here. She grins, happy somethings didn’t change. She doesn’t waste another second. “You never explained what happened with the Council.”
Seiya turns around from the pond he was watching. “I didn’t know there needed to be explanation.”
“Seiya-san whatever you did… it caused the Council to change the bylaws. That never happened before. What rule did you break?” Shiori asks again. She can feel her temper rising. She needs confirmation.
Seiya sighs in annoyance, “it’s rather personal.” He forgot to factor in dealing with Shiori on this topic.
She can feel herself about to snap at the man in front of her. “It stopped becoming personal when you were pulled by the Council in front of the other Starlights. When the Council changes the bylaws…” She shakes her head. “You know nothing involving the Starlights is a kept a secret here for long.”
Seiya’s demeanor changes slightly. He knew Shiori has a point; it is the same laws Taiki and Yaten used to justify speaking to Queen Kakyuu before he had a chance to tell her. “Things change.” He wants to end this quickly. “What I do… doesn’t involve Kinmoku anymore.”
Shiori’s eyes narrow. Everything he has said so far as only further confirmed her suspicions. She pushes more. “Why did breaking a rule involve another senshi… why did they call Sailor Cosmos?” She takes a direct approach, leaving him as little room as possible to avoid the question.
Seiya does not respond. He didn’t want to have this conversation with Shiori. He remembers the anger she had over what could have happened. The rule he refused to break for her but had no problem breaking the same rule when it involved Usagi.
His silence is all the confirmation she needed. She’s going to flat out say it. “So you did break that rule.” The spits out the word that, like it has a bitter taste in her mouth. She had hoped one day the three Starlights would return to Kinmoku and leave Earth behind. They both wouldn’t be senshi forever. She was willing to wait. She knew the chances of her leaving Kinmoku would be reduced when she became a member of the Queen’s Guard. The Council’s ruling gives Seiya little reason to stay on Kinmoku unless Usagi is here.
She shakes her head in disgust. “So you really will throw everything away for that girl won’t you?”
“Enough,” Seiya snaps at the lavender haired woman next to him. He will not listen to Shiori badmouth Usagi in any way. “You know I will risk everything for her. It is what you do when you love someone.” He turns to head back to the palace. The gardens didn’t seem so peaceful anymore. “None of this concerns you anyway.” He knows it is going to be a long two weeks based on Shiori’s behavior so far. This probably won’t be the end of it on her part. She’ll have to get used to it.
Her eyes constrict as she reaches her boiling point. “It concerns me after what happened between us.”
That phrase stopped Seiya in his tracks to turn back around to face her. “There wasn’t anything between us.”
Shiori’s heart is racing now. “There was. I know you felt it too. You’re just too afraid to acknowledge it’s there, but it is there.” She starts to walk away but pauses. “I just hope you know what you’re doing. I might not always be around to pick up the pieces when this doesn’t work out.” She storms off back into the palace ahead of him. She had the answer that she needed. He truly doesn’t understand how lucky he is to still have his Change Star in his possession.
*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*
Sailor Cosmos and Sailor Galaxia stand in a remote barren area in the Milky Way. She is more winded that she expected considering she has traveled a longer distance from Earth to Kinmoku. The cauldron seemed to have some kind of protective barrier they had to force their way through.
The Guardian looks around in disbelief. She had never heard of the Sagittarius Zero Star. This star is home to the Galaxy Cauldron. “I can’t believe the cauldron was this close to Earth the entire time and none of us knew it even existed.”
“It is not surprising,” Sailor Galaxia begins to reassure her. “You would only be able find the cauldron if you knew where to look. Very few people know its location. Many believe this place is only a legend that died with the previous Sailor Cosmos; I don’t want them to think anything else.”
Sailor Cosmos nods her head, taking a few steps forward, really taking in the scenery. She recognizes this rocky area. She had seen it before. Her entire body feels cold at the realization, adding the queasiness in her stomach she has had since halfway through their journey here. “I’ve seen this place in my dreams.”
Sailor Galaxia anticipated a similar response. “What did to you see?”
Sailor Cosmos bends down to the ground to touch the surface. No dirt, nothing could grow here. “This place was surrounded by flowers. Orange ones… I think I’ve seen the field before… when I first fought… you on Earth.”
Sailor Galaxia nods her head, raising her right arm. The green jewel on her bracelet flashes a few times. Small sparkles of light rise up from the ground quickly filling with it closed orange flowers.
Sailor Cosmos gasps recognizing the flowers, clearly seeing them for the first time. These are the same kind of flowers that bloomed from everyone’s chest when she… when Chaos took their starseeds. She looks at Sailor Galaxia wide eyed.
Sailor Galaxia understands the young woman’s confusion. It is part of the reason she is here. “Each flower contains a starseed waiting to be reborn.” She walks over to a few flowers. “The starseeds remain here until it is their time to be reborn.”
Sailor Cosmos looks at the senshi in gold, trying to make sense of everything.
“Your starseed was once here as well.” Sailor Galaxia continues. “It remained here for centuries until it was reborn on Earth.”
The white haired senshi gasps. “I thought my mother sent me directly to the future with everyone else when she sacrificed herself to stop the Dark Kingdom.” Was everything she had thought wrong?
“Impossible,” Sailor Galaxia corrects her. “You stayed here until your reincarnation. Just as these starseeds are….” She looks at Sailor Cosmos closely. It was time for her to know the truth. “This is why you are Guardian. You protect the starseeds of those yet to be reborn. Protect them from harm.”
Sailor Cosmos gasps in disbelief. “Protect the starseeds here… then… I have to remain in the cauldron?” That can’t be right.
“Not necessarily,” Sailor Galaxia begins to explain. “Since very few know of the cauldron’s location, the starseeds are safe… but that could change one day.” Sailor Galaxia walks forward. “The barrier we passed through prevents most people from entering… which is why this location must remain a secret; the barrier will not stop everyone.” She pauses, “very few people can harness the power of the starseeds within the cauldron.”
Cosmos pauses. “Is this why Chaos held onto the starseeds, to prevent them from returning here?”
Sailor Galaxia nods her head. “Chaos collected all of the starseeds it took.” Her eyes lower discussing her shame she cannot amend. “I thought I had guided all of the starseeds back to where they were taken… but some of them never returned. I’ve been unable to find them.” Her eyes harden. “I don’t know if those remaining are still dormant here or have already been reborn somewhere else.” She doesn’t elaborate further, not waiting to discuss Queen Kakyuu’s grief. She looks at the doorway up ahead. “This is the outer area; the core of the Galaxy Cauldron is past that doorway.” She gestures to the entranceway.
Sailor Cosmos freezes when she sees where Sailor Galaxia points. She grips her staff tightly, trying to steady herself. This is where she had seen the blue haired Sailor Cosmos. She didn’t have a clear view of the woman but she recognizes where she was standing. She keeps this to herself. There has to be an explanation of why the other Sailor Cosmos was here… she’ll have to figure this premonition out on her own.
Sailor Galaxia gestures to the eight pointed star on Cosmos’ forehead. “Your mark represents life, fertility, and to ward off evil. Rather fitting for what the cauldron represents.”
Sailor Cosmos can only nod her head as tries to take everything in.
Sailor Galaxia leads them past the entranceway.
They are surrounded by walls of white light on each side. It briefly reminds Sailor Cosmos of the pink light that moved toward her as the other timeline was collapsing. The walkway is as wide as a narrow two way street and then suddenly it stops. A little further out is another wall of light. She moves a little closer to edge and looks down. It is a significant drop. Below she can see what looks like a pool of gold.
Sailor Galaxia stops near the end of the walkway to explain the next part to Sailor Cosmos. “Within the Galaxy Cauldron and the surrounding area, starseeds remain in their previous form until they are reborn. It means only in this location can a starseed can survive outside of time and space.” She pauses to make sure she has the Guardian’s full attention. “They wait to be reborn to become their future self and whatever form it may take. This process can take months, years, even centuries, as I mention earlier. No one knows how the process works… other than previous the Guardian.”
Sailor Cosmos shakes her head. “This is the first I’m learning any of this… how could I…?”
“In time, I’m sure you will learn. But you must be careful.” Sailor Galaxia cautions. “Only the Guardian and force a starseed to be restored to its previous self or force it to be reborn into its new form once it arrives at the cauldron.” She pauses, questioning if it was too soon to reveal this information as part of Sailor Cosmos’ introduction to this place. “It is extremely dangerous and it can cause the starseed to shatter. If the starseed shatters, it cannot be restored. It is lost for eternity.”
A lump forms in Sailor Cosmos’ throat. In one of her nightmares, she shattered Sailor Star Fighter’s starseed. Was it more than a nightmare… was it a premonition? Will Fighter’s starseed be destroyed? She shakes her head trying to push all those disturbing images out of her head. The nausea in her stomach grows, she dismisses it as worry. She tells herself she’ll feel better as soon as she sees Seiya is fine, reassuring herself nothing bad happened.
“You mean you cannot repair it,” a voice rings out form near the entranceway.
Sailor Galaxia and Sailor Cosmos turn around, shocked to find her standing there. They assumed they were the only ones here.
Sailor Cosmos immediately recognizes the Guardian before her. She wears a white f*cku dress with flowing dark pink hair, the previous Sailor Cosmos.
“You don’t have to look so shocked by my appearance. A part of my soul will remain here… until it is time I pass on and a part of Usagi’s soul will take my place,” Karin explains to the two women. “I will be protecting this scared ground until Usagi is ready.”
“Though I image that will a long time from now… given your rather… extended life,” Karin sounds bitter at the mention of an extended lifetime. It is no secret hers was cut short. “But until that time comes, a part of me will remain here to guide you on your journey until you have completely mastered your abilities. Karin ring’s flash and the cauldron responds by changing from white to brilliant rainbow colors.
Sailor Galaxia and Sailor Cosmos look on in awe at the display.
“You must remember the Galaxy Cauldron represents a future with infinite possibilities,” Karin pauses to let her words permeate. “It is something Sailor Pluto is finally starting to understand.” Karin smirks. “No future is written in stone. One decision can change everything.”
Sailor Galaxia looks between the two Sailor Cosmos, not commenting. Queen Kakyuu had told her what happened in confidence regarding the other timeline because it could affect Usagi’s ability to control her powers, a dangerous situation.
“You must remember Usagi, light always attracts darkness and darkness calls to the light in the same way. The light of your starseed and the Ginzuishou will attract those that belong to the darkness. You must never let your light be extinguished otherwise darkness will prevail.” She pauses trying to push an image of her own death out of her mind. “My light was passed on to my daughter… I just wish I could have met her.” She looks at the doorway. “I’ve tried to find her starseed but it has either been reborn or has continued to remain dormant.” Tears well up in Karin’s eyes. “Her light is different than mine because of her father… and having never met her… it makes her impossible to find.” She pauses. “His starseed has been reincarnated several times… the light changing each time. Soon I won’t be able to recognize him anymore.” She looks past the entranceway where his starseed presently resides. “I hope he remains within the cauldron a bit longer.”
Karin brushes the tears from her eyes, there are a few final things she must tell the present Sailor Cosmos. “The Galaxy Cauldron must never fall to darkness.” She looks directly at Usagi. “If that were to happen it would be a fate that is worse than being Chaos’ host body.”
Sailor Cosmos eyes widen wondering how that could be worse than what she had experienced. “If that happens, how can I stop it?”
Karin nods her head. “If the Cauldron starts to turn you only have a small window to purify the cauldron. It is something only the Guardian can do.” She looks at Usagi with hardened eyes. “But it comes at a great cost to you… and your loved ones.” She pauses before revealing the rest.
*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*
Queen Kakyuu notes the time as she waits outside with Seiya, Yaten, Minako, and Taiki. They had anticipated Sailor Galaxia and Sailor Cosmos to be back by now. The Queen knows the location of the Galaxy Cauldron but it would be too dangerous for her to go herself, she would have to reveal the location to others and she is not prepared for that.
Minako tries to lighten the mood. “I mean Usagi-chan is usually late, right?”
The Queen tries to remain hopeful in front of the others. “I’m sure everything is fine. The journey to the Galaxy Cauldron is not a short one from here, even with their speed.” She looks into the sky. “I’m sure they will be back any moment.” She tries to convince herself in the process.
Ten more minutes pass before a bright flash of light is seen in the distance. The light is growing brighter and larger as it moves along the sky. The light is different than before, it is a blend of white and pink. A single gold light is next to it. They land a short distance away on a large open pathway near the side of the palace.
They five of them walk forward to greet the two senshi.
Sailor Cosmos uses her staff to keep herself balanced after landing. She feels exhausted, it wasn’t adding up. She felt an extra burst of energy during her journey back but now that energy surge seems to be depleted.
Seiya can tell from the distance, something is off, he picks up his pace.
Sailor Cosmos grips her staff tightly. Something doesn’t feel right. Her head is spinning and she can’t explain why. She doesn’t have Moon Sickness anymore, does she? This feeling reminds her of that illness. She feels extremely warm suddenly as if she is burning up followed by a stabbing pain shooting through her from somewhere around her midsection causing her to double over in crippling agony as she screams.
She grabs her stomach as she feels an intense pain like nothing she has ever felt before. Her vision is starting to darken as she can see blooding forming on her skirt.
Queen Kakyuu turns around to issue an order to the guards nearby. “Summon a doctor immediately!” She turns back around and sees Seiya has already reached Sailor Cosmos.
Seiya had barely caught her in time from hitting the ground.
Yaten stops in his tracks as he feels a familiar tingle in the back of his neck as a shiver passes through his spine. He inhales sharply. He knows this feeling too well. He stares at the fallen Guardian in front of him. “No…”
Minako rushes pass Yaten and kneels on the right side of Seiya. “Usagi-chan, can you hear me?” She frantically tries to get her Queen’s attention but the white haired senshi is unresponsive.
Taiki is on Seiya’s left, checking for a pulse while they wait for the doctors. It takes a moment until he finally finds what he is looking for. “She has a pulse but it is extremely weak.”
The broach on Sailor Cosmos’ f*cku flashes for a moment as her transformation dissolves unexpectedly turning into a sea of white ribbons before disappearing completely. Leaving Usagi in the shirt and shorts she wore this morning.
Sailor Galaxia can only watch in horror. She looks over at Queen Kakyuu and they exchange a glance. They’ve seen something like this in the past, years ago on Kinmoku before Chaos. It didn’t end well then either. That senshi died. They always die.
Queen Kakyuu conveys with Sailor Galaxia she is thinking the same thing but will not voice her suspicious out loud until the doctor properly examines Usagi. She prays she is wrong.
The doctor arrives and confirms Usagi has a pulse. A few medical staff are behind him pushing a stretcher to place Usagi on. In a swift motion she is lifted onto the stretcher and then carried off.
A crowd gathers by the entrance way of the palace after the loud scream and medical staff summons. The Queen’s Guard are among the onlookers.
Shiori, Yuna, and Sakura are trying to obtain information on what happened but no one knows. Shiori mouth drops a little when she she’s Usagi is rolled past her toward the medical wing. Seiya and Minako are a few steps behind. Shiori turns back toward the courtyard.
Queen Kakyuu is now at the entranceway. “Please return to your previous duties,” she sounds tired as she instructs everyone. She doesn’t want to draw any more attention than is needed. She pauses to address her senshi. “Something happened to Usagi-san but we don’t know what occurred.” She starts to walk to slowly walk toward the medical wing; her footsteps are heavy, expecting the worse. Sailor Cosmos won’t last much longer if the Queen’s worst fears are confirmed.
*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*
Taiki turns to Yaten who still seems to be in a daze. Now that the others are gone he addresses his older cousin. “What are you not telling everyone?”
The question refocuses Yaten’s attention to the present. “You and the doctor both found a pulse on Usagi-chan… it doesn’t make sense…” He tries to figure out what is means. He knows he wasn’t wrong. He felt it.
“What doesn’t make sense?” Taiki digs for more info.
Yaten turns to the taller man next to him, looking up at him in a state of utter confusion as he speaks. “A light burned out. It doesn’t make sense. How is she still alive?”
