OK, new revision, new author's notes. With the starting of my story "Usagi and Mamoru's 
Love: Strike," I have mentioned this story was a backdrop for it. However, when I published 
this story as one of my first in the summer of 1997, I wasn't pleased with the final results. 
As such, I've decided to re-release this newer, revised edition now that "Strike" has begun. 
There's NOT a lot of revision in the middle of this story, but, rather, most of it is in the
beginning and end, where there was the most character development. Originally made up
of five parts, I've put all of them together for this revised copy of the whole story at once. To 
say now, in this story I have made the Three Lights biological brothers, whether they 
originally were or not, and I've had it that they simply went back to their planet 
to rebuild it after SailorStars. I'm not exactly sure if that's what they left to 
do at the end of the actual series, but that's the scenario for this story. Also, Haruka and 
Michiru are heterosexual and are instead just very close friends, being as how that's 
easier for me to write. Yaten, pancakes, and teddy bears are homages to Amethist's "Secrets
From the Past," a humorous yet involved story that greatly focuses on Yaten and Hotaru. Also,
my address has changed to LianneSen@aol.com since I first published this. Arigato, minna-chan! 
-Lianne (LianneSen@aol.com)

DISCLAIMERS:
*Sailor Moon and all its characters are copyright Naoko Takeuchi/Kodansha Ltd.
/Toei Animation, Co., Ltd. and the English adaptation is copyright 1995 DIC
productions, LP. This original story is copyright Lianne Sentar, July 1997,
and this revised copy is copyright Lianne Sentar, January 1998.
**I used the candy "Skittles" in this story. All disclaimers for that
apply, and I don't own them or want to be sued for using them in
this story, O.K.?
***NOTE: Some things the characters do at the fair are pretty 
dangerous, and I wouldn't recommend ANYONE do them, O.K.? 
Y'know - don't jump outta rides and stuff. I think you're smart 
enough to know that.
****DOWN WITH DUB-BASHING!!!! (Some things NEVER change with me. ^_-)

*Seiya and Mamoru*

	Usagi sighed. A light breeze blew through her long pigtails and blew 
them softly behind her sitting form. The tall green grass gently swayed
across the skin of her legs, their gentle brushing making a delicate purr. 
.She brought her knees up and rested her chin on them sadly. Her eyes 
stared at nothing in particular as she gazed into the distance, the light of 
the cheerful yellow sun weakly reflected in her dull pupils.
	Mamoru looked over at her and sighed. He leaned back, resting
his weight on his propped-up arms. He, too, stared into nothingness
for a few moments, his blue eyes silent and unreadable. A few 
moments of unified silence passed before he said quietly, "Usako?"
	"Mm?" She answered without moving.
	"There's been something with you lately," he said softly. "I'm not sure 
what it is. You've been very quiet, and often seem depressed." He took in 
a breath tiredly. "The girls told me you're a lot glummer than you used to 
be, and I rarely see your usual cheeriness anymore. What's wrong?"
	"Mm." Her eyes looked to the ground, but she said nothing more.
	"C'mon, Usako." His voice was soft. "I know there's a reason. Please let
me help you."
	She sighed. "You couldn't help even if you wanted to," she mumbled after a 
moment.
	He looked up from his gazing and gently rested his eyes on her. "Why not?"
	She was silent. He slowly sat up and turned her shoulders so she would face 
him. She turned to him, but she didn't look him in the eye. "Usako," he said softly.
She still didn't look up. After a moment, he gently pulled her closer and 
softly caressed her cheek. She sighed sadly and slowly nestled her head on his shoulder, 
closing her eyes. He put his arms around her and held her comfortingly while 
rocking back and forth gently. The light wind blew again, toying with his long, 
dark bangs and her streaming golden hair. They were silent for a few minutes. 
Finally, Mamoru said quietly, "You don't want to tell me?"
	She shook her head slightly. "No, it's not that. I just...well...it's a little hard 
to explain."
	"You can try." 
	Usagi sighed and slowly sat up. She buried her hands in her lap, staring at the
swaying green grass with dulled eyes. She sighed again. "Well," she began. 
"Ever since we defeated Galaxia three months ago, I've...well...been a 
little...restless. I mean, there's been no enemy to fight since then, so we've had so much 
free time, but...I don't know if I prefer it this way as of now."
	"You prefer when there are enemies we have to fight?" he asked, slightly 
confused. "I thought you always just wanted to be normal."
	She buried her hands deeper and slumped over more. "I DO just want to be 
normal. It's just a little bit strange that I'm finally getting what I wanted for
so long, you know? And...fighting evil always kept my life busy and full. Now I 
have a lot more time to...think about things. And I'm starting to realize all
the things I miss back when we were fighting Galaxia."
	"What kinds of things do you miss?"
	Usagi's eyes grew sad. "I miss Chibi-Chibi, for one. She was so cheerful
and innocent - it was like having a smaller Chibi-Usa around. I was sad when 
Chibi-Usa left, but having  Chibi-Chibi around helped me deal with it. She was so
much like that daughter of ours, I really thought it was her daughter from the 
future." She closed her eyes sadly. "But now Chibi-Chibi is gone for good. She
wasn't REALLY a person - she was the light of hope, so she's NEVER coming back. 
I miss her terribly. When Chibi-Usa left, I had her. Now, I have nobody."
	"Mmm." Mamoru breathed an affirmative. "I know what you mean. I miss 
having Chibi-Usa around, too, and from what I've heard of Chibi-Chibi, she 
was almost as nice to be with. It's a shame not having a little one around."
	She nodded. "I also miss Galaxia. She was just a normal person before Chaos 
engulfed her, and when she was purged from the darkness that time we faced
off, I was so happy she was normal again...I mean, after all that, I wished I
could be with her and talk to her more. Y'know - she if she was all right and 
happy and everything. But I have no idea if I'll ever see her again. We shared
such a time of...spirit linking, I feel as if...there's a part of me in her, too. It
doesn't seem...right I never got to be with her." 
	Mamoru was silent, his eyes thoughtful. Usagi's voice suddenly dropped very 
low, and she hesitated a moment. "And...well...Mamo-chan, I really miss the guys."
	"The Three Lights?"
	She nodded without looking up. "I miss them most of all," she whispered. 
She hesitantly looked up at him, eyes unsure. "Are you...mad at me for saying it?"
	Mamoru gave a start. "Mad at you? Why would I be?"
	She wrung her hands. "Well, I know the girls told you about Seiya's interest in me 
and all and...well...I thought you might be jealous or something. Not that I would 
go out with Seiya behind your back or anything," she blabbered out quickly. "I 
mean, he was a good friend, and I cared about him and all, but not
like that...I would NEVER do anything that...I wouldn't ever go and...Mamo-chan, you 
know I love you, right?" Her face was anxious, hopeful. 
	Suddenly, to Usagi's great surprise, Mamoru burst into laughter. She watched 
him curiously as he ran a hand through his bangs, and shook his head, amused.
"Usako," he said, "You should hear yourself! You actually think I would be MAD 
at you for liking Seiya!"
	"I just...didn't want you to get the wrong...idea..."
	"Usako," he said, smiling gently, "I KNOW you would never do anything like 
that. I understand how much you love me. I love you even more, remember?"
	Suddenly Usagi lost her nervous air and crossed her arms over her chest 
indignantly. "Now, young man, that is NOT true. I love YOU more."
	"Incorrect. I love YOU more."
	She turned her head and stuck her nose in the air. "Wrong. I love YOU more. 
That's the way it's always been and always will be."
	"I love YOU more, Miss Tsukino. And I will hear nothing more of it."
	"No, I love YOU more."
	"I love YOU more."
	"I love YOU more."
	"I love YOU more."
	"I LOVE *YOU* MORE!" Usagi yelled and scowled at him, looking genuinely upset. 
Mamoru tried unsuccessfully to hide a smile, and Usagi saw she was being too 
vehement. "Uh, gomen." she murmured.
	Mamoru laughed. "Oh, Usako. You're so kawaii." He sighed, his eyes focusing on 
her. They grew soft with fondness - the same look he always gave her when 
he could quietly stare at her and realize what he had. "I love you so much," 
he whispered.
	Usagi was about to say something back (about how she loved HIM so much 
more) when a small object dropped down from the tree they were
sitting under and bonked her on the head. "Ouch!" she said, annoyed, picking up 
the object. It was a small acorn. 
	"What was that?" Mamoru asked. 
	Usagi shook her head. "Nothing. Just an acorn fell."
	"Ouch!" Usagi looked up to see Mamoru picking up an acorn and rubbing his head. 
"Guess the tree got me, too."
	Another acorn hit Usagi in the head. And another. And another. "Hey!" she 
exclaimed, looking up at the tree. It was very high and had many intertwining
branches, but she saw nothing in it besides leaves. She squeaked and ducked her 
head as three more came flying down. Mamoru was having the same problem.
"What's going on!?" Usagi cried as she shielded her head from more falling acorns.
	"I don't know!" Mamoru answered. Four more acorns fell down on his head in 
rapid succession. "Hey!  What IS this?!"
	Suddenly, the acorns stopped falling. The two quickly got up and peered into 
the tree. "You think it could be a squirrel or something?" Usagi asked
him. "Maybe a disgruntled one?" she added sarcastically.
	"Squirrels don't giggle," he said flatly. "Listen."
	Usagi perked her ears, and, sure enough, a soft, melodic giggle came from the 
tree. "Someone's in there!" Usagi exclaimed. "Can you see them?"
	Mamoru squinted his eyes. "No," he said after a moment. "There are too many 
leaves. Anyone could be sitting up in one of the branches and could
be totally hidden. Hey!" he yelled up into the tree. "What do you think you're doing? 
You better stop dropping those on us!"
	Usagi squeaked again as she and Mamoru quickly shielded their heads with 
their arms as a waterfall of acorns fell on them as an answer to him. The 
voice giggled again. Usagi looked up angrily, brushing acorns out of her hair 
fiercely as she glared up at the tree. "I'll teach that brat a lesson,"
she growled as she went over to the tree's trunk. With her tee-shirt, bicycle 
shorts with covering short skirt, and sneakers, she was in suitable clothing
for climbing. She looked over at Mamoru. "Gimme a boost?"
	He bent down and got hold of her feet. He boosted her high up, and she grabbed 
the lowest branch. Hoisting herself on it, she began to climb the tree. The 
branches were perfect for climbing, and she went quickly. She looked around her 
as she went up, but could see no one. Tilting her head back, she saw a roof of 
leaves not far overhead that totally masked her view of the branches above it. 
Scowling with determination, she climbed up and poked her head through the foliage 
"roof." Shaking her head to remove it of the leaves that remained on it, 
she looked from left to right, but still saw no one. She furrowed her brow angrily. 
"All right! Where are you? I KNOW you're up here!"
	Suddenly, two small, gentle hands covered her eyes. She cried out in surprise. 
The same giggle came from the person. "Who ARE you?!" she yelled angrily as she 
shook her head to try to get the unidentified perpetrator to remove his/her
hands. They came off, and she jerked her head around. She was surprised to find 
herself staring into a pair of beautiful feminine green eyes slightly
brushed by soft, silver bangs. "Hi, Usagi-chan."
	Usagi was so shocked she accidentally lost her hold on the branch and lost her 
balance. With a cry, she fell down and out of the tree, only to be caught by Mamoru 
down below. "Oof!" She coughed as she landed in his arms. The two of them looked 
up into the tree as Yaten looked down at them and giggled again. "Surprised to see 
me, Usagi-chan? You're as much of a klutz as ever." He gently jumped down out of 
the tree to land softly as a cat next to them as Mamoru put Usagi back to a 
standing position. "Yaten-kun!" she exclaimed. "What are you doing here?! I thought
you went back to your home planet!"
	"We came back to visit."
	"We?" Mamoru inquired.
	Yaten smiled. "You didn't think I came alone, did you?"
	Usagi was about to say something, but her heart skipped a beat when she 
suddenly heard behind her a little voice say the two words she thought she would 
never hear that voice say again. "Chibi-Chibi!" 
	Usagi spun around, and her heart nearly stopped. There stood Galaxia in a white 
blouse and pink skirt, golden and red hair streaming, with Chibi-Chibi in her arms. 
The little girl waved cheerily. "Galaxia! Chibi-Chibi!" Usagi screamed
as she ran over to them. She engulfed them with such a huge hug Galaxia almost 
fell over. "Woah! Take it easy, princess!" Galaxia laughed. "We're glad to see you, 
too."
	"I don't believe...I mean...you left...she was gone...how can you...and her...how..."
	"I'll answer that question." Usagi quickly looked up, surprised, to see Taiki 
stride up. The tallest member of the Three Lights smiled and stuck 
his hands in his pockets. "Galaxia was looking for a home in the galaxy, 
because Chaos destroyed hers. So she came to our planet. We've just 
begun to rebuild it, and she's helping us. She wanted to see you again, so she 
tagged along on our visit."
	"But what about Chibi-Chibi?" Mamoru asked. He had walked over to stand beside
Usagi, and he reached out and ruffled the red-haired child's head affectionately.
 Chibi-Chibi smiled at him. "Chibi-Chibi!" she said happily.
	"Well, Galaxia wanted Chibi-Chibi to come back badly enough that she was granted 
her wish. Chibi-Chibi separated from Galaxia's star seed and the two of them
are able to coexist. Much like your friends the outer senshi and their heart crystal 
talismans." Taiki smiled. "Not only that, but through the combination of 
Galaxia's desire and the power of the light of hope, Chibi-Chibi isn't just the light of
hope anymore. She's a real little girl, who still has the powers she originally had." 
	Galaxia looked down at the child in her arms. "I realized how lonely I was, and I 
missed this little one. I've always wanted a child, and now I have one." She 
looked up. "I've adopted her as my daughter."
	Usagi smiled. "Oh, Galaxia! That's so wonderful!" she exclaimed happily. She 
turned to face Taiki. "And Taiki-kun! You're here, too! Does that mean..." she
trailed off, voice full of hope.
	"Hai, it does." Usagi gasped. He walked up behind Taiki and Yaten, to stand
between them. His blue eyes looked at her calmly, and his dark blue ponytail 
streamed out behind him, dancing in the air. "Konnichi wa, Odango."
	"Seiya!" Usagi screamed. In a dead-bolt run she ran at him and rammed into him, 
hugging him with all her might. Seiya looked down at her, surprised, 
and blushed. Galaxia and Taiki laughed, Chibi-Chibi giggled, and Yaten winked at 
his brother. Seiya looked up at Mamoru with an expression that said 
"I had nothing to do with this." Mamoru smiled and waved it off with his hand, 
indicating he didn't mind.
	"Minna-chan! You're back!" Usagi exclaimed, not letting go of her blue-haired friend. 
"I don't believe it! I...I thought I'd never...see you all again!" She choked back a
sob of happiness as she tried to laugh.
	"Yeah, yeah, all well and good," Yaten said quickly, narrowing his eyes and crossing 
his arms over his chest. "Now that we're all done with the sappy 
greetings, I wanna do something. We haven't been here for a while, and I miss the 
activities in Tokyo. Is that new Jackie Chan movie out yet?"

*********************

	A half-hour later found Usagi, Mamoru, and Seiya walking down a fairly 
deserted sidewalk. Galaxia, Chibi-Chibi, and Taiki had gone to see the girls, 
and Yaten had gone to busy himself for a few hours in downtown Tokyo. Usagi 
held Mamoru's hand and walked between the two males. "So, how long are you 
gonna be here, Seiya?"
	Seiya's hands were in his pockets, and he shrugged easily as he walked, looking at 
the sidewalk. "Not really sure. Probably a few weeks. Our princess
stayed behind to keep up the rebuilding of our new civilization, but she encouraged 
us to come visit you all."
	"Where'll you be staying?" Mamoru asked.
	"We're getting a nice apartment for as long as we're here. It's almost as nice as 
the place we used to have." Seiya looked at them. "We were out getting the place 
when Yaten said he wanted to go see you guys first. Seemed oddly happy to
do it, too. You have any idea why?"
	Usagi wrinkled her nose. "Probably because he had great fun dropping acorns 
from a tree on Mamo-chan and me to get our attention."
	"Are you serious?"
	Mamoru nodded. Seiya laughed. "I swear, that brother of mine never changes! 
He's never gonna stop with pranks and all the OTHER things he does to annoy people."
	"Does he still have the CHARMING personality he used to?" Usagi asked sarcastically.
	"Well, he's gotten a lot better. Now that we're rebuilding our home and our mission 
is done, he's dropped a lot of his bitterness. Taiki, too. Neither are as cold as they
used to be. In fact, I don't remember the last time I saw those two happier."
	"That's great!" Usagi said cheerily. "What about you, Seiya? Are you happy?"
	Seiya suddenly dropped his gaze to the ground. He turned forward and stared 
down at the sidewalk as he crammed his hands deeper into his pockets. "Yeah, 
I'm...great."
	"Seiya?" Usagi looked at him curiously. "Are you OK?" He had suddenly seemed 
to get very depressed.
	"Hai," he mumbled, trying to sound sincere. "I'm fine. Why do you ask?"
	"Uh...nothing," Usagi said slowly. She looked up. "Oh! There's my house. I'm just 
gonna run in to tell my Mom I'll be out for a few hours so we can hang a bit. You
boys stay here, K?"
	"Hai." She sprinted forward up the entryway cheerily and disappeared in the 
house. They watched her go. Seiya turned to Mamoru. "She still as cheerful as ever?"
	"Hai. Now that you're here."
	Seiya looked uneasy. "Uh, Mamoru-san, if I'm making you uncomfortable...y'know, 
with Usagi and all...and how she hugged me and...uh..."
	"Don't worry about it, Seiya-kun," Mamoru replied. "Usagi's very fond of you. She 
was very depressed as of late because she missed you guys terribly. Particularly 
you. I hate to see her like that. Now that you're here, I want her to be
with you so she'll be happy." He looked down at him. "She needs you guys, Seiya."
	Seiya looked over at the Tsukino house. "Y'know, Mamoru-san, I thought you'd 
really hate me. I mean, after all the things I did with Usagi while you were gone."
	"Usagi told me she cares about you as a friend, Seiya, and I don't have a problem 
with that." His voice dropped. "But...if you still love her, I understand.
I know I couldn't have gone through what you did and not still feel something
for her."
	Seiya sighed. He closed his eyes and shook his head. "I think there are some
things I'm never going to understand," he replied quietly. "My feelings for Usagi
are one of them. But I understand what you're saying. I'm not...y'know...
	"I know." Mamoru let out a breath. "It's...understandable that you don't understand
your feelings. Or maybe don't want to. But I realize what you're going through, and
I trust you."
	Seiya frowned. "Mamoru-san?"
	"Hai?"
	"WHY do you trust me? We've hardly talked."
	Mamoru smiled. "Usagi's a good judge of character. And the fact that she can
still feel and act the way around you that she does means SHE trusts you. If she 
can, than *I* certainly can."
	Seiya looked up. "That's very adult of you, Mamoru-san."
	Mamoru laughed. "Um...thanks. Seiya, some things have to go by gut instinct. 
And...I've got a good feeling about you. So I'll go by it." He made a secretive 
smile. "My...feelings on things have proved to be quite exact NUMEROUS times."
	Seiya looked away. An odd feeling washed over him then. He blinked 
slowly. It was if...some piece of him that had been missing since he met Usagi 
had finally been put into place. He looked off into the trees, trying to get a hold
on it. It felt strange and foreign to him, after all the time he had spent learning
to live with it, but...he felt more whole with it. Something flickered through his
dark eyes; something...happy and content. A slight smile curled at the tips of his 
mouth. He looked up at the older man. "Arigato, Mamoru-san." He smiled awkwardly. 
"You're a lucky man."
	Mamoru looked towards the house as Usagi happily ran out of it and towards the 
two. He let out a breath. "I know."

*************************

	"Can we get together again tomorrow, Seiya?" Usagi asked hopefully.
	Seiya smiled. "Hai, Odango." He stood on the doorstep of his apartment building. 
"9 o'clock tomorrow morning?"
	"If she can get up that early," Mamoru joked. Usagi glared at him. "Don't worry," 
he told Usagi. "8:30 tomorrow, I'll be throwing rocks at your window until you 
finally roll out of bed."
	Seiya laughed. Usagi gave Mamoru a sarcastic look. "Thanks, Mamo-chan. Will you 
be coming with us, then?"
	Mamoru shrugged. "Why not?"
	"O.K. then, see ya tomorrow!" Usagi said cheerfully. She waved before she and 
Mamoru turned around and began walking down the street.
	"Bye," Seiya said quietly, more to himself than to them because they were too 
far away to hear. Seiya turned to the setting sun. He shielded his eyes as he gazed 
at the great golden sphere, gleaming like a beacon of dying orange light in a 
coming evening. After a few moments, he sighed and looked to the ground. 
A single tear rolled down his cheek. He didn't even bother to brush it away as he 
pushed open the door and walked into the air-conditioned building.
Behind him, the sun continued to sink lower and lower as it set, finally 
disappearing in a haze of pink and orange clouds on the city horizon of Tokyo.

***************
***************
 
	 The morning sun was up. A light yellow in color, it hung low in
the sky, slowly making its way across the immense blueness, 
shining bright and full and beaming its soft, yellow rays on the 
early city of Tokyo. It brightened up the tall buildings, the
lush green grass of the park, the shimmering waters of the lake, 
and through the high apartment window and onto the thoughtful 
form of Kou Seiya. 
	Seiya was still in bed, sitting up with his chin in his hands as
the sun fell in rays upon him through the thin cloth curtains. He
sighed and looked at his bedside clock. 8 A.M. He pulled away 
the sheets and slowly stood up without even a yawn. He put  
a pair of jeans and a t-shirt on, made his bed, and slowly walked 
into the small kitchen of the apartment. Taiki was at the stove,
cooking breakfast, while Yaten was sitting at the table in teddy
bear pajamas (THAT one's for YOU, Amethist!) sucking his thumb
with a gnarly old blanket under his arm as he read a shonen manga.
Seiya sat next to him and looked at him tiredly. "Are you STILL 
carrying that old thing around, Yaten? You look like a baby."
	Yaten glared at him. He pulled his thumb out of his mouth and 
said angrily, "Do you have a PROBLEM with Mr. Blankie?"
	"Leave him be," Taiki said without turning from the stove. "He's
never gonna let that thing go. It's probably full of moths and grime
anyway. I wouldn't want to touch it."
	"YOU SHUT UP! THAT IS *NOT* TRUE!" Yaten screamed at him. He
quickly brought the blanket close to his face and closed his eyes
as he stroked it soothingly and whispered quickly , "It's all right. 
Don't listen to them. They don't know anything."
	Seiya rolled his eyes. "And how old are you turning this year,
Yaten? Four?" He quickly had to duck as a fork flew by his head 
and stuck in the wall behind him, handle sticking out and still
quivering slightly.
	Taiki sat down at the table with a heaping plate of pancakes.
"Calm your killer instincts, Yaten." He gave a plate to each 
brother. "Eat."
	Yaten immediately grabbed 3/4 of the stack of pancakes and
plopped them on his plate happily. Since he had no fork, he simply 
began shoving them in his mouth, the blanket still tucked under 
his arm. Taiki put a few on his plate and looked over at Seiya. 
"Not eating?"
	Seiya shook his head as he stared at the table. "Not hungry."
	Yaten shrugged. "More for me." He quickly took Seiya's share
and continued to eat without bothering to stop to breathe.
	"Going with the two lovebirds again today?" Taiki asked.
	"Hai."
	"Maybe you should go to the fair. It's only in town for a few 
days. The girls mentioned they're going, and I plan on dragging
Yaten with me so I can keep an eye on him. If I leave him alone
I'm afraid the police will bring him home." Taiki ducked as 
a pancake flew past his head.
	"Maybe we will." Seiya slumped lower in his chair and was 
silent. After a moment, he said quietly, "What do you guys
remember about Mom?"
	Yaten wrinkled his nose. "That's the hundredth time you've
asked us that in the past few weeks! Why all of a sudden such
an interest?"
	Seiya shrugged. "I donno. Just don't remember much about her,
is all. Just thought you guys might remember things I didn't."
	Taiki looked at Seiya with a fork still buried in a pancake.
"Well, she used to make pancakes a lot. And read us stories
before we went to bed."
	"And always kissed us so that her lipstick stayed on our 
cheeks for the rest of the day," Yaten added. "She used to call
us her little bright stars, and always put our hair in our
ponytails before we learned to do it ourselves." He looked
over at Taiki and snickered. "SOME of us still can't do it well, apparently."
	Taiki glared at him. "Some have NOT grown up since then, apparently."
	"Mm." Seiya was quiet and stared unseeing at the table.
	"She took us for walks in the park so we could see the
ducks," Taiki added as he took another bite, still glaring at a now-
disinterested Yaten.
	"And she named a duck after each of us," Yaten said, 
grinning. "Mine was the coolest."
	"She always played games with us."
	Yaten made a face. "She always dressed us in sailor
suits for family pictures."
	"She let us help her bake cakes."
	"She tickled us to wake us in the morning."
	"She used to point out the stars to us at night"
	Seiya was quiet for a moment. He said softly, "I remember
she used to sing to us. Her voice...was like an angel. I 
would close my eyes and pretend I was flying whenever
she sang...I could just picture myself among the clouds, floating past 
in an endless sea of blue..." He closed his eyes. "Nothing in the world could
bother me when she was singing. It was as if she could put all 
the wonderful things in life into her song. Maybe that's why
I love to sing so much." He sighed, then stood up. "Anyway, I'm
gonna take a walk before Usagi and Mamoru get here. Ja ne."
He walked out the door.
	Taiki watched him with a serious face. "Y'know," he said quietly,
"I think something's wrong with Seiya. Since we got back to our 
planet, he's been kinda...YATEN!" Yaten dodged out of the way of 
Taiki's hand with the last of Taiki's pancakes crammed in his
mouth. He grinned. "Yer jus to sow," he mocked.
	"YOU'RE GONNA GET IT, YOU BRAT!" The quiet morning scene
of Tokyo went on as the yells of Taiki, the laughs of Yaten, and
the fighting, running, and dodging of both drifted not-so-peacefully
from the apartment building and into the sun-kissed sky.

****************
****************

	*tap*
	Luna murmured in her sleep.
	*tap*
	Luna mumbled again and turned over.
	*tap*
	She buried her head deeper into the sheets.
	*tap*
	The female cat sat up tiredly, eyes half-closed, with an annoyed
look on her face. "Nani?" she mumbled.
	*tap*
	Luna blinked and stared at the window.
	*tap*
	 A rock?
	*tap*
	Luna jumped over to Usagi's windowsill and looked down. She
scowled and opened the window with her paws. "Mamoru-san!"
she called down angrily. "What are you doing?!"
	He smiled cheerfully. "Ohayo, Luna. I'm here for Usagi. She awake yet?"
	"No, and I was sleeping too before I was so RUDELY interrupted."
Mamoru smiled. Luna yawned before continuing. "Why do you want
her so early?"
	Mamoru smirked and put his hands on his hips. "Like owner, like
pet. Have your sleeping habits gone to the point where 8:30 is
considered an ungodly hour?"
	"On a Saturday it is," Luna retorted.
	"Usagi and I have to meet Seiya for the day. Go wake her up."
	Luna made a face, then tiredly went back into the room and
hopped on top of Usagi, getting close to her ear. "Usagi, Usagi 
wake up, Mamoru is -"
	"Away, Beryl! You can't have him!" Usagi yelled in her
sleep, whacking out with her hand and hitting Luna full-force.
The cat gave a strangled meow as she flew across the room and
knocked over a lamp, landing on the floor in a tangled heap. 
After a minute of grumbling and rubbing her head ruefully, Luna
got up and went back to the window, looking down angrily. "She 
won't wake up! And I'm not trying again, either! I'd LIKE to reach
my next birthday in one piece! Why don't you climb up here and 
wake her yourself?!"
	Mamoru looked at her skeptically. "Are you kidding? I KNOW her
dad's got that shotgun that he's just ITCHING to try out on me. If
he happened to come in and saw me in his little girl's room, I 
don't think I would live to see tomorrow, let alone my next birthday."
	Luna scowled. Muttering to herself, she went back to her sleeping
owner. "Usagi, wake up." Usagi murmured and rolled over. "Usagi."
No answer. "Usagi." No answer. "USAGI!!!!"
	Usagi yelled and shot up in bed, knocking Luna across the room again.
The cat flew to slam against the wall with a shriek and slowly sink to the 
floor, groaning. "Usagi-chan..." she moaned as she rubbed her face into the 
carpet, "could you WATCH where you're hitting?"
	Usagi looked around the room with huge eyes. She looked down at Luna, 
then put a hand to her throbbing ear. "Luna! Why'd you scream in my ear like 
that?!" Usagi yawned as her eyes went to a half-closed position again.
	"Mamoru is here. He said you were going to see Seiya today," Luna muttered 
tiredly.
	"Nani?" Usagi asked groggily. She stumbled over to the window,
still not completely awake. She looked down at Mamoru. "Mamo-chan?"
	"Good morning, Sleepyhead," he chuckled. "Do you remember you said
we were going to meet Seiya today?"
	Usagi yawned. "No."
	Mamoru laughed. "Think hard now. Seiya. Us. Go somewhere."
	Usagi stared at him groggily, as if thinking. After a moment, "Oh,
hai. I remember."
	"Then c'mon. We gotta get going."
	"But I'm TIRED," Usagi whined.
	"C'mon, Usagi. I know you can get up this early if you want. Please?"
He batted his eyelashes at her pleadingly, which looked very silly.
Usagi giggled. After a moment, she sighed. "All right. Wait a coupla
minutes." Usagi turned and went back to the room. She opened up
the door to her bedroom and called down to her mother, whom she could
hear bustling in the kitchen downstairs, "Mom! I'm going out for the 
day!" She then stumbled tiredly to her dresser and after a few minutes
of yawning, fumbling, and accidentally stepping on Luna who was
occasionally underfoot, she managed to get on a skirt and top. She was
about to leave when she thought of something, and stumbled back over
to the window. She felt her eyelids drooping more by the second.
"Mamo-chan," she mumble-called down to her love. "Where...are...we..."
She trailed off as her eyes closed and she fell forward, falling out the 
window. Luna, who had been sitting on the bed and was about ready to 
go back to sleep, shot up, eyes huge. "USAGI-CHAN!" she yelled, and 
dashed over to the windowsill, looking down with frightened eyes. 
	 Mamoru chuckled as he stared at Usagi, fast asleep in his arms. He 
looked up at Luna. "I think she was asleep before she was even halfway 
down," he called up to the cat. Luna hyperventilated, taking in huge gasps
of air with one paw pressed against her chest. Mamoru looked back 
down at Usagi. "I guess that's one way to get down. Ja, Luna!"
And with that, he turned around and started walking down the sidewalk,
Usagi in his arms. Luna watched him go for a moment, still in 
shock. She took a few moments to try to regulate her breathing again,
then slowly walked back into the room, still shaky. "Those
two are gonna send me to an early grave," she breathed. "That is, if Usagi's 
lashing out whenever I try to wake her doesn't kill me first."

***********************

	Seiya sat on the front steps of the apartment building, his hands 
propping up his chin as he stared off into the distance. A soft melody
ran through his head gently, like silk, and he closed his eyes to listen
to it more carefully. That song, sung by an angel...that voice gently
freeing the notes like doves into an open blue sky, the melodies
perfect in that heavenly voice...
	"You asleep, too, Seiya? Do I have to carry everyone today?" Seiya's 
eyes popped open in gentle surprise to see Mamoru standing in 
front of him, Usagi asleep in his arms. "Did you not sleep last 
night? Lemme guess - Yaten snores?"
	Seiya smiles. "Hai, but don't tell him." He stood up. "But I'm not
tired. I was just thinking."
	"What about?"
	Seiya looked down, trying to hide the sadness that quickly made 
its way across his face. "Nothing," he mumbled.
	Mamoru looked at him curiously. "Seiya-kun? Daijobu?"
	Seiya nodded quickly, hiding his expression as he looked
up. "Daijobu. It's...nothing important."
	Mamoru looked at him, his eyes searching. Seiya held up
to his eyes a moment, then looked away. He knew Mamoru didn't 
believe him, and was trying to find out what was wrong. <He would
never understand,> Seiya thought sadly. He looked at the sidewalk as 
he waited for Mamoru to give up, but he could feel the older man's
stare still on him. Mamoru's eyes seemed to burn through Seiya, though 
he wasn't even looking up...he hoped Mamoru would stop
looking at him, but he could feel his eyes still on him, penetrating
his being....he stood uncomfortably, waiting for him to stop. Another 
minute of this, and he would break down...Seiya quickly  
looked over at Usagi, keeping his eyes off of Mamoru's. "Uh, what's...wrong 
with her?"
	"Oh, she's just sleeping," Mamoru said. Seiya inwardly sighed as it
seemed Mamoru was no longer probing on his problem; but he 
couldn't help but feel Mamoru wouldn't give up so easily. 
"Still?" Seiya asked.
	Mamoru shrugged. "She likes to sleep. A bit too much, I'd say."
He bent over and whispered quietly, "Usako?"
	Usagi murmured and snuggled deeper into his arms. Mamoru
sighed. "All right. Have it your way." He cleared his throat, then
said with mock excitement, "Hey, look! It's the ice cream man!"
	"WHERE?!" Usagi screamed as she bolted upright and jumped 
out of his arms. She whipped her head around, blue eyes shining.
"WHERE WHERE WHERE?!"
	Seiya laughed. Usagi turned to him, as if she had just noticed
him there. "Oh, hi, Seiya. What's so funny?"	
	"You are, Usako," Mamoru said laughingly, rubbing her hair 
affectionately. "So you're wide awake now, I trust?"
	Usagi folded her arms over her chest angrily and glared at him. 
"There's no ice cream man, is there?"
	Seiya took Usagi's hand. "Hey, Usagi. I heard there's a fair in town. 
All the senshi and Taiki and Yaten should be there, too. Wanna go?"
	Usagi's eyes filled with stars. "Oooooh! Cotton candy! Hai hai hai! I
wanna go!"
	Mamoru smiled. "Sounds like she's all for it. Sounds like fun."
	"All right, then," Seiya said. "Fair it is."
	Usagi grabbed Mamoru's hand. "Well, then what are we waiting for? 
Let's go!"

**************
**************

	Haruka shielded her eyes with her hand, looking around. "Looks pretty
good." She looked down at the small girl beside her. "What'dya say, 
Hotaru-chan? Does this fair look fun to you?"
	Hotaru jumped up and down excitedly, jerking up Setsuna's arm every 
time she did so, considering the older woman's hand was held tightly 
in her own small one. "Hai! Hai! This looks GREAT, Haruka-chan! Can we 
stay? PLEASE?!"
	Haruka held her chin in mock consideration. "Hmmm...I donno...I think
maybe I should just take you home..." She looked down at the child 
secretly. "Unless," she whispered. "You give me a hug."
	Hotaru giggled and threw herself at the woman, hugging her as hard
as her little arms could. Haruka laughed and hugged her back, then 
sighed as if making a hard decision. "Well...I GUESS you can stay."
	"HOORAY!" Hotaru grabbed Setsuna's hand again and started pulling
her. "C'mon, Setsuna-chan! Let's go see the rides!" Hotaru looked over
at Haruka and Michiru. "You two come too, O.K.?"
	Michiru nodded. "Of course, sweetie. We're coming."
	"Then let's go!" Hotaru giggled as she pulled Setsuna through the 
people-packed fair, the two remaining members of the Outer Senshi
in tow. Michiru looked over at her best friend. "Is this fair supposed
to be good, Haruka?"
	The taller girl nodded. "Hai. Supposed to be really good."
	Michiru eyed her accusingly. "Now, I don't want us spending ALL
our time on the Go-carts, y'know. Just because YOU are obsessed
with cars doesn't mean the rest of us enjoy spending our
lives in them. To me, cars are just a means of transportation."
	Haruka looked at her incredulously. "How could you SAY that?! Cars
are a work of art! A way of life! A - "
	"Scrap piece of metal."
	Haruka and Michiru turned around to see who had spoken. Haruka
crossed her arms and gave a suspicious smirk. "Well well, if it ISN'T
little old Yaten-kun, with his younger brother Taiki. So you ARE back."
	Taiki held out his hand to Haruka as Yaten desperately tried to pry 
off the metal clamp around his neck that was attached to
a chain that Taiki held as a form of leash. "Hello, Haruka-san. You're 
looking well."
	Haruka accepted Taiki's hand and shook it formally. "And you, Taiki-kun.
I see you have...brightened up a bit?"
	Taiki smiled as he held the leash with the struggling Yaten firm. "Hai,
I guess you could say that. I wish to...apologize to the two of you. For our 
previous difficulties."
	Haruka's eyes widened. "Taiki-kun?"
	"Gomen nasai, Haruka-san, Michiru-san. For our...previous differences. I hope 
we can put them behind us and be friends." He gave a small, cerimonious bow.
	Haruka and Michiru were silent for a moment. Finally, Michiru smiled. 
"Well, Taiki-kun," she said slowly, voice full of respect. "That's very noble of you. And 
with such an offer, I'm sure we cannot refuse."
	"Of course not," Haruka added. "It's unusual to admit such a fault. You're
a...good man, Kou Taiki. And I accept your offer on friendship with open
arms." She smiled firmly.
	Taiki smiled. "Arigato, both of you. You are very good women indeed to accept me after
so much."
	Michiru waved her hand. "Oh, pish posh. We've dealt with numerous enemies
MUCH WORSE than you that tried to kill us then turned good last minute. And 
we accepted THEM. So why not you? We're used to it by now."
	Taiki smiled. Yaten struggled more, starting to make growling noises
deep in his throat as his fingernails pried at the clamp around his neck.
Haruka cocked an eyebrow at him. "Why, something WRONG, Yaten-kun?"
	Yaten growled at her. "Away with you, car-woman."
	Haruka pointed to the leash that Yaten was on. "Well, Taiki - I see you've 
finally realized that it's imperative you keep this creature in such a restraint."
	Yaten gave up on the leash for a moment as he crossed his arms. "Big
words from a girl who's intelligence ranges only from stick-shift to 
automatic."
	Haruka rolled up her sleeve and clenched her fist, glaring at the boy.
"Big words from a brat who needs to be held on a leash like the
dog he is."
	"Wow. So you're ALSO educated on the animal kingdom. Good for you. I thought
anything without an engine and carborator wasn't in your vocabulary."
	Haruka growled and made to go forward when Michiru lightly tugged
on her shirt. "Down, girl," she said quietly to her blond friend.
	Taiki yanked on the leash sharply, making Yaten choke for a moment.
As the silver-haired Light coughed and tried to loosen the leash,
Taiki turned his violet eyes back onto Haruka. "Don't mind him. He's
just got a bit of an attitude, is all."
	"I could fix that for him," Haruka growled.
	"I don't think you could," Yaten said breathlessly, still managing
to keep it up despite his lack of air. "I need more than 
just axle grease and a new muffler."
	"I'll give you a muffler..."
	"Haruka-chan!" Haruka looked in surprise to see Hotaru pulling
on her pant leg. Chibi Chibi was held in the girl's arms. "Look! 
Chibi Chibi is here!"
	Chibi Chibi smiled and giggled. "Chibi Chibi!"
	Michiru smiled. "Hello again, little one. Haven't seen you in a while."
She picked up the child from Hotaru's hold as Galaxia walked up to 
them, Setsuna at her side. "Hello, minna-san," the golden-haired 
woman said. "Sorry we're a little late. Guess I slept in. Why didn't 
you wake me, Taiki?"
	Taiki shrugged. "I hate to wake up people if they're sleeping 
peacefully. There was no rush, anyway."
	Haruka smiled. "Hello, Galaxia. Glad to see you well."
	"Same here. You look great."
	"Arigato."
	"C'mon, c'mon!" Hotaru urged. "I wanna go on the ferris wheel!"
	"All right," Setsuna said, taking Hotaru's hand. "You all coming?"
	"Hai." 
	The troop went to the large ferris wheel, gazing up its 
tremendous height. Hotaru jumped into one of the small containers,
settling on a seat. Setsuna stuck her head inside. "Who do you 
want to go with you, sweetie?"
	"Yaten-san."
	Everyone's eyes popped open. "NANI?!" They all turned their stares
to Yaten, still tugging at his collar. He looked up. "What? Why are 
you all staring at me?"
	Haruka looked at Hotaru. "Hotaru-chan, why on earth would you
want to go with HIM?!"
	"Please?"
	Taiki looked over at his brother. "Well, she wants you to go with her,
so go."
	Yaten made a face. "I don't wanna go on that thing. Bug someone else."
	Hotaru looked over at him, big purple eyes pleading innocently. 
"Please, Yaten-san? I would LOVE you to come."
	"Yes, Yaten," Setsuna said, turning to him. Her magenta eyes suddenly 
flashed a warning. He saw her long red fingernails twirl through the
air at her side dangerously. "She would like you to go."
	A small sweatdrop formed on Yaten as he coughed. "Uh, hai. I'd
love to." He wasn't afraid of Haruka and her fists, he wasn't afraid
of Taiki and his leashes, but when the Guardian of the Gate of Time
looked at him like that, he got worried. Taiki unleashed Yaten and he went 
into the container and sat next to Hotaru, who gazed at him fondly 
and giggled. "Hey, Yaten," Haruka called, holding up a fist menacingly. 
"You do anything to annoy her or hurt her in that thing and you'll 
WISH you never came to visit Earth." The door closed, and the ferris wheel 
started. Setsuna put a hand on Haruka's shoulder. "Patience, child. They'll 
be fine." Michiru smiled, and Galaxia laughed.
	In the container, Hotaru looked out at the window as they went
higher into the sky. "Isn't it pretty, Yaten-san?"
	Yaten put his hands behind his head as he leaned back in his seat.
"Hotaru-chan, why'd you want me to come with you?"
	She looked at him with her big purple eyes and smiled. "You're
funny. And you have very pretty green eyes." Yaten couldn't help but 
feel a little flattered. 
	The two sat in silence a moment, when suddenly, a wicked
smile of realization came over his face. "Well, now that I don't have 
that stupid leash around me, it's time to have some fun." He poked his 
head out the window and looked around. Hotaru blinked. "Yaten-san, 
what are you doing?"
	Michiru was playing with Chibi Chibi as the others held a 
conversation. Suddenly, the baby pointed up and giggled. "Chibi Chibi!"
	Michiru looked up, and gasped. "Oh God."
	The others heard her, and they, too, looked up. There was a different
expression on each of their faces: Setsuna's of surprise, Galaxia's of
bewilderment, Taiki's of annoyance, and Haruka's of anger. "Aw, Yaten..." 
Taiki grumbled angrily.
	There, in the center of the ferris wheel among the iron, web-like
arrangement of poles that kept the giant wheel together, was Yaten, 
climbing through them like a monkey. Other bystanders gasped in shock.
"YATEN!!!" Taiki yelled angrily.
	High up, Yaten heard him, and looked down. Even at the distance
they were away from him, they could still see his sarcastic smirk. He
gave a salute. "Sayonara, suckers!" He jumped from the metal bars, a 
parachute that was surprisingly attached to him making him float
to the ground.
	Taiki's eyes narrowed. "Where'd he get the parachute? Ooooh, that 
boy..." He ran off in a mad dash to Yaten's point of landing. Yaten 
noticed him, and immediately detached the parachute and began to 
run. Other people watched in awe as Taiki ran after the smaller
Light. "YATEN!!!"
	Just then, the container that Hotaru was in stopped so she could be 
let out, due to the fact that the ride was now over. She looked at
them and smiled, as if nothing had happened. "I guess he wanted to
get out of the ride early. So, where do we go next?"

**********************

	Usagi smiled and looked around in excitement. "Oooh! It's so KAKKOII
here, Mamo-chan!" she exclaimed happily. "Oh, Seiya! This was a good 
idea!"
	Seiya looked around. "Pretty big fair," he remarked. "I wonder if we'll
see the others here."
	Right then, as if on cue, Yaten dashed by them in a silver streak. The 
three stood there a moment, confused, when a moment later Taiki flew
past them angrily. "I'LL GET YOU, YOU BRAT! YOU'RE GONNA WISH YOU
WERE NEVER A KOU!" he yelled.
	Usagi and Mamoru blinked, and Seiya laughed hoarsely as the two 
Kous disappeared into the vastness of the fair. He scratched his head,
a sweatdrop appearing. "Looks like Yaten gave Taiki the slip again.
I just hope they don't damage any public property this time."
	Mamoru looked a bit confused. "Uh...yeah."
	Usagi shrugged. "Whatever. C'mon, let's get going! I'm sure there's
TONS of neat stuff here. C'mon!" She pulled on Mamoru's hand, and 
the three started to walk, other people enjoying the fair bustling 
around them. Seiya blinked and pointed at a booth. "Hey! Archery!
I used to LOVE doing that at Juuban." He smiled. "Rei used to always
kick my butt, though." He looked at Mamoru. "Hey, Mamoru-san. You
any good at hitting the target?"
	Mamoru scratched his head. "Well, I used to do a little archery in
high school. Haven't done it in a while, though."
	Usagi gave him a smirk. "Hai, but your aim's been kept up, wouldn't
you say? I mean, what do you think throwing roses at Youmas is?"
	He laughed nervously. "Uh, hai. I'll give it a shot. No pun intended." 
Usagi groaned.
	They went to the booth. "You go first," Seiya told him. Mamoru paid
the man at the booth, and he was given a bow and arrow. The target 
was set up on the back wall. He set the arrow in the string, then put 
the bow up and pulled the string back. Usagi and Seiya watched as 
he lined up the end of the arrow with the center of the target. His cool 
blue eyes focused on the red section, his position solid, and he let the 
arrow fly. It whizzed to hit the target with a chunk. Seiya and
Usagi's eyes widened. "Crap," Seiya whispered unbelievably under his
breath. Mamoru had hit the target in the dead center of the bull's eye.
	"Congratulations!" the man at the booth said. "You win a prize! Pick 
any one off the wall." 
	Mamoru turned to Usagi. "Go on and pick one, Usako." Usagi looked at the
dolls on the wall and laughed happily, pointing. "Mamo-chan! Seiya!
Look at the dolls they have!" Mamoru and Seiya looked up, and they 
couldn't help but laugh. They were dolls of all the Sailor Senshi. She 
pointed to one and giggled. "I want the Tuxedo Kamen!" 
	The man pulled it down and gave it to Usagi, who hugged it and smiled 
happily. Seiya turned to the man. "I'd like to try it." The man nodded. 
Seiya paid and got his bow and arrow. Usagi and Mamoru watched Seiya 
flick his ponytail behind his shoulder and raised his bow to be
in line with the target. His dark blue eyes narrowed at the center, and
he shot his arrow. It shot into the center red section of the target, not
exactly in the center of the bull's eye as Mamoru's had been, but very 
close.  "Nice shot, Seiya," Mamoru commented. 
	Usagi jumped up and down in excitement. "Oooh, you guys are so GOOD!"
	"Pick a prize," the man told Seiya. "Anything in the red center wins a 
doll."
	Seiya looked at Usagi and smiled. "It's your prize, Odango."
	"Ooooh, arigato, Seiya!" Usagi squealed happily. She chose the Sailor
Starfighter doll, causing Seiya to smile.
	Mamoru looked at the booth, a sly smile making its way slowly across
his face. "I'd like to do it again," he said.

**********************
	
	Minako shoved Makoto's arm out of her face. "Move over, baka!"
	"It's only cause Rei's sitting on me!" Makoto retaliated angrily.
	"There's not enough room!" Rei yelled angrily as she pushed Makoto to 
get some space, causing the taller girl to squish Minako against the
side of the booth. 
	"OW!" Minako exclaimed. "You crushed me!"
	"SHE crushed ME!"
	"You were too crammed!"
	"YOU were too impatient!"
	"YOU are not helping!"
	"Uh, minna?" came Ami's muffled voice from far beneath the cram of 
bodies. "I think we have to plan this out."
	Rei reached under her and pulled out Ami so she was visible. Ami blinked,
looking rather dazed. "Ami-chan, you have to stay in view, or else this
picture's gonna be no good."
	"This booth is so SMALL!" Minako grumbled.
	The man behind the camera looked up. "You girls ready?" After another 
minute of pushing, yelling, and fighting, four voices gruffly said, "Hai."
	The man looked into the camera. "Everybody smile!"
	The four members of the Inner Senshi managed to smile, despite the
incredible pain they were in to make it look like they weren't crammed
into the picture. Just before the man clicked the picture, Yaten suddenly
dashed through. All the girls stared at him in surprise. 
	CLICK
	"Was that Yaten-kun?" Makoto asked unbelievably. Just then, Taiki 
dashed by them yelling profanity at his brother, just barely missing 
running over Rei's feet. Ami shrugged. "I guess so."
	The man looked at the picture, a sweatdrop appearing on him. "Uh...
here's your picture."
	The girls took a moment to detangle themselves from each other,
grumbling and pushing, then went to see the picture. Makoto 
groaned. "Oh, GREAT! That brat Yaten ruined it!"
	Sure enough, the picture had Yaten running through it, winking at the 
camera, while the girls were all staring at him with shocked 
expressions. Rei sighed. "Oh, well. I think it was doomed from the start."
	Minako held the picture, then smiled. "Well, it's actually not THAT
bad. After all, now I have a picture of Yaten. He looks kinda cute in it, 
anyway." Everyone groaned. 

*******************

	"Go, Haruka!" Hotaru cheered as Haruka pushed with all her might.
Her arm-wrestling opponent, a man in his mid 20's, strained to 
keep his arm from going down. Chibi Chibi clapped happily in Galaxia's
arms as Michiru watched her best friend slowly bring the man's arm
down. "C'mon, Haruka!" she called. "You can do it!"
	A moment later, Haruka put in one final burst of strength, and her 
arm slammed down onto the table over the man's. Hotaru cheered and
jumped up and down excitedly as Haruka got up and wiped her forehead.
"Oh, Haruka! You're so strong!" Hotaru cheered.
	Haruka patted her on the head as a man working at the booth gave
her her prize: a small cat doll. She gave it to Hotaru, who squealed
happily and hugged the doll. "Enjoy it, kiddo," Haruka said with a smile.
	Just then, an alarm went off, and a light started flashing. "Nani?"
Michiru said, confused. The man at the booth exclaimed, "That alarm
means we have a new champion! Someone has just beaten our 
previous champion, Python!"
	A huge man with a lot of tatoos got up angrily and stomped away,
grumbling. "Looks like that was 'Python,'" Galaxia remarked. "But 
he's a GIANT! Who could possibly beat HIM in a..." She stopped as she 
saw the man hand the grand prize, a huge puppy doll, to the
new champion. All their jaws dropped. "SETSUNA?!"
	Setsuna calmly accepted the doll and walked over to them. She
looked at Hotaru as if nothing at all had happened. "This is for you, 
sweetie. Do you want to hold it or do you want me to carry it?"
	"I'll carry it!" Hotaru shouted happily, hugging the huge doll with
both of her small arms and keeping the smaller doll Haruka had
given her clenched in her hand. Chibi Chibi giggled and leaned
over, hugging the doll as well.
	The adults looked at Setsuna, bewildered. "Setsuna," Michiru asked,
shocked. "YOU beat that guy Python? In ARM WRESTLING?!"
	Setsuna sniffed indifferently. "Hai."
	Haruka laughed, still bewildered. "Crap, Setsuna! You've got some 
strength hidden behind that Time Staff, ne?"
	Setsuna flipped her hair behind her shoulder. "Hmmph. He wasn't
so bad, anyway."
	A flash of silver made them look up as Yaten ran past them. Galaxia
blinked. "Is he still running?"
	"YATEN! GET BACK HERE!" Taiki was a mere streak of reddish brown.
Haruka's eyes followed him until he disappeared. She shrugged. "Guess 
so."

**********************

	"C'mon, push over!"
	"I can't!"
	"You're breakin' my leg, you baka!"
	"Please, minna..."
	"AAAUUUGGGG! MY HAND!"
	"Stop PUSHING me!"
	"You're takin' too much room!"
	"We just need to talk this out..."
	"I CAN'T BREATHE!"
	The four Inner Senshi had once again found themselves in a situation
where they couldn't all fit together even if crammed in with a 
shoehorn. This time it was in a log boat, as they prepared to go down a
water slope. The woman in charge of the ride had a sweatdrop as she 
waited for the girls to get into position to be let down the slope.
Makoto glared at Minako. "This was YOUR idea! I don't know WHY you 
insisted on a water ride!"
	"I'm HOT, OK?!"
	Rei crammed her legs farther into the sides of the boat. "We are NOT
going to fit in this thing all the way down!"
	"Actually," Ami said from stuffed behind Rei, "More weight can help a 
vessel go down a slope faster. Of course, it can also backfire and make
it tip over."
	Minako furrowed her eyebrows and stared ahead. "Let's just go down
and deal with it from there."
	"Maybe we should do something else..." Makoto started to say, but the
woman, who had thought Minako's comment meant they were ready to
go, let the boat down the slope, and they all plummeted down it.
They all screamed as they flew in the small boat down the steep
slope, water splashing up around them, grabbing onto each other or 
the boat for dear life. As soon as the boat reached the pool at the 
bottom, the whole thing tipped over, dunking all four girls into 
the water. 
	Makoto's head broke the surface angrily. "Minako! You better start 
running cause I'm gonna kill you!"
	Rei splashed up from the water, followed by Ami, and finally
a spluttering, gasping Minako. The blond coughed and sucked in air
looking around. "So," she coughed. "We got down. I'm not hot anymore.
What about you, minna?" Her head was immediately dunked under the 
water by her brunette friend.
	A few minutes later, a disheveled and soaking wet Minako 
glumly walked to a sunny spot behind a booth by herself. The other
girls went to the bathroom to clean up, but Minako preferred to 
dry out in the sun. It was deserted behind the booth, and she leaned
back against it, sighing as the sun's warm rays beat down on her.
She closed her eyes, enjoying the peace. A voice interrupted her 
thoughts. "Well. Looks like SOMEONE fell off the log boat."
	Minako's eyes popped open. She knew that voice. She looked
up to see a very wet Yaten sitting on top of the booth, looking 
down at her. "Yaten-kun!" she exclaimed. "What're you doing here?"
	He jumped down and began ringing out his wet ponytail. "Drying off."
He rolled his eyes. "Stupid Taiki. He caught me hiding behind the bushes 
in the scenery of the 'Tunnel of Love,' throwing Skittles at the couples.
He woulda got me, too, if I didn't jump into the water and swim away.
Stupid Taiki. Now I'm all wet." 
	Minako laughed. "You were throwing Skittles at the couples? I gotta
admit, Yaten-kun, that's not very nice, but pretty funny. Hope you
didn't get Usagi and Mamoru, though."
	He shook his head. "Nah. They're hangin' with Seiya today. Who're 
you with?"
	"Mako, Ami, and Rei. They're all getting cleaned up now, cause
we all fell outta the log ride. Stupid thing had us crammed in
like dogs in a shoe box."
	Yaten laughed. Minako's heart soared. SHE had made HIM laugh!
She never thought she would see the day. She noticed how his
green eyes sparkled when he laughed. "Interesting metaphor,
Minako-chan," he remarked. "It well describes -" He was cut
off as he heard Taiki yelling nearby. Yaten's position was like
a cat that senses danger. "Crap," he muttered. "He's gonna
find me." He turned to the girl. "Gotta run, Minako-chan. See 
you later!" He dashed off before Minako could even say goodbye.
Almost immediately she heard Taiki shout out as he spotted
Yaten running away, and zoomed after him. His yells melted
into the distance of the fair until she could no longer hear them.
	She sighed, and leaned against the booth again. After a moment,
she pulled the picture taken earlier that day out of her pocket.
She and the girls looked pretty stupid, but Yaten was winking
at the camera in that way of his, that way that made her always
made her love to be near him. It was his charm that she loved. 
His witty remarks. His charming nature. Him. She stared
at the picture, and smiled.

********************

	Usagi skipped along, holding Mamoru's hand, a huge plastic bag
slung over her shoulder as she hummed happily. Seiya walked, hands
in his pockets, and looked over at Usagi. He smiled. "Happy, Odango?"
	She giggled and nodded. "Hai! You two were so great!"
	"It was nice of the guy to give you the bag," Mamoru commented. 
"How many dolls DO you have in there, Usako?"
	Usagi opened up the bag and rummaged around, odangos bobbing.
"Well, let's see - I got Sailor Moon, Chibi Moon, all the Inner and Outer
Senshi, the Sailor Starlights, Tuxedo Kamen, Pegasus, Luna, Artemis,
Diana, Beryl-sama and her four generals, most of the Black Moon 
Family, the Witches Five, the Amazon Trio, the Amazoness Quartet..."
	"I think you got all the ones they had," Seiya laughed.
	Usagi smiled. "Well, you two were just SO good at that archery, I'm
not surprised." She jumped up and down. "This is so cool!"
	Seiya pointed to a ride nearby. "You guys wanna try that out? The
'Rockin' Boat?'"
	Usagi nodded. "Hai! Looks like fun, and we can all sit together cause
the benches on the boat are so long! Let's go!"
	The three went over to the ride and got on. It was a large wooden boat,
painted with bright colors, that rocked back and forth, high into the 
air. Usagi set her bag of dolls on the seat and sat between
Seiya and Mamoru happily. The ride started, and the boat started
to rock back and forth, slow at first, then slowly gaining speed. 
	Seiya stared off the side of the boat and into the light blue sky. The 
sun was shining warmly, the clouds floated contentedly, and the wind
breezed over his face, calming him. He sighed and leaned back, enjoying
the tranquility. He glanced down at the fair ground to see all the people
walking around happily, going to booths, trying rides, eating junk food,
talking and laughing to each other, Yaten and Taiki dashing through them,
the sun shining down on them all as it shone down on him. A happy day.
	"M...Mamo-chan?" Usagi groaned. Seiya turned to see her holding her 
stomach and looking rather green. Mamoru looked at her worriedly. 
"What's the matter, Usako? Are you getting sick?"
	She nodded weakly. "Hai...my stomach's goin'...up with the ride, but 
it's...not comin' down with it."
	"And the ride's not over for another few minutes," Seiya commented.
The ship, high in the air, plunged down again, and Usagi covered her 
mouth, eyes bulging, and clutched the seat backing.
	Mamoru looked over the side a moment, then turned to Usagi. "O.K." 
He slipped one arm beneath her knees and the other behind her back 
and pulled her into his arms in a cradling position. "Hang on." He 
quickly got up, went to the edge of the boat, and jumped off.
	The people on the boat stared in disbelief and made exclamations of shock 
as Mamoru landed softly on the ground, Usagi in his arms. Seiya watched 
them, surprised, as Mamoru found an empty spot on the grass and put 
Usagi down on it in a sitting position. He kneeled beside her and stroked
her forehead, trying to help her feel better. She squeezed his hand and
looked to the ground as her normal color began to return. Seiya watched 
them a moment, then smiled awkwardly. He shook his head. "I guess that's one 
way to keep her from puking on the ride."

***************
***************

	"That was so kakkoii!" Makoto exclaimed as she stepped out of 
the seat of the roller coaster, Minako getting out from beside her. 
A shaken Ami got out from beside Rei. "Hai," Ami said quakily.
"But it was rather intense."
	"That's the FUN of it!" Haruka replied, jumping from her seat.
Michiru got out of her seat next to Haruka and rolled her eyes.
"I think you like it TOO much, Haruka-chan."
	Galaxia got out of hers and smiled. "It WAS exhilarating. But that
was the point of it." Setsuna got out beside her and went to
Hotaru, who was on the side waiting, Chibi Chibi in her arms. The
purple-eyed girl frowned. "I wish I was big enough to go on instead
of just watch. It looked like fun."
	"You'll be big enough soon," Setsuna assured her.
	"Hai," Haruka added. "And you're NOT too small to enjoy the 'Gopher
Whacking' booth I saw over there. I think we ALL can enjoy trying
to get more dolls there." She turned to Makoto. "Hey, Mako-chan! I
bet I can kick your butt at gopher whackin'!"
	"NO ONE can whack more gophers than me," Makoto retorted.
	"I bet I could," Rei remarked.
	"Talk is cheap!" Michiru exclaimed. "Let us all go and try out
our hands at the fine sport of gopher whacking! Although I
warn you all - beware of Setsuna! She has shown herself to be quite
formidable today!"
	"Let's go!" Minako exclaimed, and they all ran to the booth to
prove who was the finest whacker.

**********************

	"Have we done enough?" Usagi questioned out loud. "Let's see...
we did the archery, the rocking boat, the Go-carts, the top spinner
ride, the roller coaster thing where we went backwards, and a few
others. Is that enough?"
	"Well," Mamoru remarked. "Since you got sick, nearly crashed, or 
nearly fell out of every ride, I say we've had enough."
	Usagi glared at him. Seiya laughed. "Well," the Light said, "We can just 
wander and do anything else that seems good."
	"OK," Usagi replied simply. She looked over at some of the people walking
by. She suddenly pointed. "Hey, Mamo-chan," Usagi asked. "Isn't
that Motoki-san and Reika-san?"
	Mamoru looked. "Hai," he said, smiling. "Looks like they turned 
out for the fair, too."
	Seiya followed their stares and saw a couple he had never 
met before. He shrugged and figured they were old friends of 
Usagi and Mamoru. "Mommy?" he heard a young voice say behind
him. "How come I can't ride the ride?"
	Seiya looked around and saw a boy of about 5, holding a woman's
hand. The woman looked down at him. "Because you're just a bit 
too small, sweetie."
	"But I wanna go!"
	The woman kneeled down in front of the boy and smiled. "I know, 
sweetheart, but you could fall out. It's for your own safety."
	The boy pouted. "I really wanted to go on it," he said sadly.
	The woman's voice was gentle. "I know. And I'm sorry, honey. 
I'm gonna bring you to the smaller rides for now, and I promise 
when you're big enough one day we'll come back and go on all the 
rides you can't go on now." She smiled. "Besides, I think you're 
MUCH cooler the size you are."
	"Really?"
	She nodded. "Hai. This way you can climb in trees, play on 
playgrounds, and do all the OTHER great stuff bigger kids can't
do."
	The boy smiled excitedly. "Yeah! I can, can't I! Can I go to the
playground tomorrow? I love it there."
	"Sure sweetie." The boy dove and hugged his mother. "I love you,
Mommy," he said happily.
	"I love you too, honey."
	Seiya's eyes quivered. He watched the little boy and his mother
walk away, holding hands. Usagi turned to him. "Hey, Seiya!
Wanna meet Motoki and Reika?" Seiya choked on a sob, and looked 
away. Usagi looked at him curiously. "Seiya?" She followed with 
her eyes to where Seiya had been looking, and saw the boy and his 
mother. She looked back, concerned. "Seiya, are you all right?"
	Mamoru turned when he heard Usagi's worried voice. Seiya was 
looking at the ground, his shoulders shaking as he looked away 
and tried to contain himself. Mamoru blinked. "Seiya-kun?"
	Seiya started to sob. He buried his face in his hands, trying 
to hold it in. Usagi went to him and grabbed his shoulders. "Seiya!"
she cried. "What's the matter?!"
	Seiya shook his head and gently pulled away. "It's nothing,"
he choked. "I just...need to go. Ja ne, Usagi." Usagi stared
at him as he quickly walked away, his body racking with 
contained sobs. "Mamo-chan, what HAPPENED to him?" she asked
worriedly.
	"I don't know." His voice was full of surprise. "What was he looking
at?"
	"Just some kid and his mother. What could have possibly made 
Seiya break down like that?"

********************

	Taiki laughed as Yaten stood nearby, arms crossed angrily. "Yaten,
you are SUCH a wimp!" he laughed. He waved a small teddy bear in the
smaller boy's face. "I can't BELIEVE you couldn't even hit the bell 
HALFWAY up the pole when I got it ALL the way up without any 
problem!"
	Yaten pointed angrily to the strength meter. "That's just cause the
mallet to hit that stupid bell was too small. I would
have done better if I had a bigger thing to hit it with. The only 
reason you won is because you used your forehead as a mallet. That 
thing's so big you could hit that bell to the moon."
	Taiki growled ferally and tossed the bear to one side, his teeth bared.
"NOW you're gonna get it, BRAT!!!" Taiki tackled his brother with vehemence.
The two went rolling around the ground, hitting, yelling, and banging each
others' heads against the ground. They didn't notice Usagi and Mamoru come 
up. Mamoru blinked, and Usagi made an awkward expression. "Uh, guys?"
	They kept fighting. "Taiki-kun? Yaten-kun?" Usagi repeated. No
response. "HEY! TAIKI! YATEN!" 
	Yaten was on Taiki's back, his foot planted in it as he pulled Taiki's
head back by the ponytail. "Baka," Yaten muttered. "You may have a 
LITTLE more strength, but you don't know how to fight! However, you 
MIGHT get the upper hand if you bashed me with your forehead..."
	"YATEN!!!! TAIKI!!!!!" They both looked up, noticing the couple for the
first time. Yaten smiled sweetly, still in the back-snapping position
on top of his brother. "Oh. Konnichi wa, Usagi-chan, Mamoru-san."
	"Uh...Yaten-kun?" Usagi asked. "We'd like to talk to you two. Would
you mind getting off your brother?"
	Yaten got off of Taiki, and the two stood up. They brushed themselves
off as Taiki asked "So, what's up?"
	Usagi shook her head at the two, who were a VERY fast at switching 
moods. "Uh...well...Seiya just ran off. Crying."
	Taiki blinked. "Crying?"
	"Hai," Mamoru said. "Just broke down and left."
	"THAT'S weird," Taiki remarked. 
	Yaten shrugged. "Maybe it just hit him that he's a loser and's never
gonna find a girl. If I had to be him, I'D cry."
	Taiki glared at him. "If I had to be YOU, I'D kill myself."
	"If I had to be YOU, I'D wear some bangs."
	"Do you have any idea why he'd break down like that?" Usagi asked.
	"Is there anything that coulda set him off?" Taiki asked.
	"We were just walking, and we saw some old friends and asked if
he wanted to meet them, and he just...started crying."
	Yaten held his chin in mock deep thinking. "Hmmm...could these
old friends have been particularly UGLY? As in to the extent of being
frightening and perhaps making a 16-year-old cry?"
	"And," Usagi added. "I think I saw him...watching some kid and his
mom or something. Although I don't think that'll help."
	Yaten and Taiki suddenly stopped, then looked at each other slowly. Usagi
blinked. "Nani? THAT was it?"
	"Hmmm..." Taiki mumbled to his brother. "I guess THAT'S it. Didn't
know it was getting this serious, though."
	"What's getting serious?"
	The two Kous looked at Usagi and Mamoru seriously. "Um...well..."
Yaten began haltingly. "It seems that this is related to...a problem 
we've been having with Seiya lately. It seems that...he's really 
starting to think about our...mother again."
	"Your mother?" Usagi asked, confused. 
	Taiki nodded. "Hai. She died when we were very young, but there are
still some things we remember about her."
	"Seiya's always been the most emotional out of us three," Yaten said.
"He took her death the hardest, and he was really broken for a while.
But he eventually seemed to get over it as best he could. But...about
a month ago, we found her gravestone again on our planet."
	"Galaxia destroyed our civilization, but the planet itself wasn't
completely unrepairable," Taiki continued. "When we went back three 
months ago, we started to rebuild it and start life again. Y'know - planting
trees, building towns, and stuff like that. However, we were 
surprised to find that some things remained. An old playground.
A hut in a forest. A..."
	"Graveyard," Yaten said quietly. "That was our most recent 
discovery. Seiya found it. He had called us over when he suddenly 
froze. We looked over his shoulder and saw our mother's grave. 
We hadn't ever known where she was buried."
	Taiki sighed. "I guess it just...resurfaced his depression 
again. Reminded him of what we'd lost."
	Usagi held her clenched hand against her chest. "Oh," she 
said sadly. "Poor Seiya..."
	Mamoru shook his head. "Poor guy. That must have hurt."
	Usagi looked at them. "But...how are you guys with this? Are
you still feeling her death?"
	Yaten shook his head. "We've gotten over it. Better than 
Seiya has, at least. Taiki and I, we've...hardened ourselves 
to emotion. Having to chase after Galaxia so long, and seeing 
our home and friends destroyed, we saw that depression from 
everything lost could pull us down. As warriors, we couldn't 
have weaknesses that could mean the difference between 
succeeding or failing in a mission. So we tried to block out 
emotion as best we could. Some people think we did the wrong 
thing, but it was our decision."
	"Seiya was never able to do it, though," Taiki added quietly. "He 
was always too compassionate with things. No matter how he tried, 
he was never able to build up the wall of steel around his heart that
we could. So her death can still come back to him, even after all
these years."
	"The death of a parent will never leave you," Mamoru commented
quietly.
	Taiki shook his head. "We don't know how to get him out of this. 
We've seen him a little troubled about it lately, and we've tried 
to help him, but we haven't been able to comfort him. I think all 
that hardening against emotion we've done is finally showing
us its terrible consequence: we don't know how to console
our own brother."
	Usagi bit her lip. Mamoru was looking away, silent. After a moment,
he asked quietly, "Where are you staying?"
	Taiki blinked. "Uh...the Kiraku Apartments building. Room 407. 
Why?"
	Mamoru started to walk away. "I'll be back," he said quietly 
before disappearing into the fair.

****************************

	Seiya buried his face in the covers. He sobbed brokenly as he
lay, curled up on his bed, his tears dampening the spread on top.
Memories flooded his head: her mothering hands helping him button 
up his shirt, her soft arms as she hugged him, her silvery hair waving 
around her kind face and light blue eyes.
	Her voice. Her angel's voice, singing the melody that made his
soul lift from within him and jump to the heavens. The way
she perfectly vocalized each note as if it were a flowing 
river that streamed into the sky. She was singing to him before
he went to bed. Her soft voice rang in his ears...he buried
his face deeper. "Mother," Seiya sobbed.
	A light rapping came from his door. "Please, just go away," he 
said, trying to hide the sobs in his voice. He didn't need to hear
Taiki or Yaten try to comfort him in their unsure ways. They
had built up their walls around their hearts. He couldn't. He
never could. They would never understand.
	"Seiya-kun?" Seiya blinked. It wasn't Taiki or Yaten's voice that 
came from behind the door. "It's me, Mamoru. Can I...come in?"
	"Mamoru-san?" Seiya asked shakily. "Um...I just...want to 
be alone for a while."
	"Seiya, I..." Mamoru trailed off. "I think you...need to talk to 
someone."
	Seiya rubbed his eyes as best he could, taking in raggedy 
breaths. "I don't...think you'd understand, Mamoru-san," he 
answered shakily.
	"Seiya." The doorknob turned slowly, and the door opened
partially. Seiya didn't fight it. Mamoru looked in, face 
a bit unsure. "Please. Let me try to help you."
	Seiya sighed, then nodded, looking down. Mamoru came
in slowly and closed the door behind him. Seiya sat with his
legs over the side of the bed, feet touching the floor, his 
hands balled in his lap. Mamoru walked over to him quietly
and stood beside him. Neither said anything for a moment.
Finally, Mamoru said, "Taiki and Yaten said you're...depressed
about your mother."
	Seiya turned his head away. That was all the confirmation
Mamoru needed. He sat down beside him, and said after a moment, 
"Tell me about her, Seiya."
	Seiya didn't look at him. He was silent. "Seiya," Mamoru
said. "Talk to me."
	"What good would that do?" Seiya mumbled. "Talking about her
gets me...upset. And I don't even know if you could help me.
It's not something people who haven't lost a parent would 
understand."
	Mamoru sighed. "I know I'm sounding like one of those corny
'self-help' tapes, but I think you need to get your feelings 
sorted out about this. So tell me about her."
	Seiya bit his lip. "But..."
	"Seiya. Just talk to me."
	Seiya sighed, then looked down again. "All...all right." He took
in a breath. "My...father died when I was an infant," he
said quietly. "I don't remember him, really. My mother said
I take after him, though. In looks, and in personality. She said
he was very caring." He let out a breath slowly. "My mother took care of
us by herself after he died. I know she loved him very much,
but she didn't show her sadness very much. I always remember
her as being very happy and loving."
	"What do you remember about her in particular?"
	Seiya continued to look down. "How she used to put me to bed,
help me get dressed, comfort me when I was sad. Motherly
things." He bit his lip. "And I remember...her singing. She had...
the most beautiful voice I've ever heard. Like...a sweet mountain
brook, or a songbird. Or...an angel. I've always loved to sing, and
I know it's because of her. I used to lose myself in her song 
whenever she sang to me." Tears welled up in his eyes. "I...I just...
don't know how you could...understand...I...I'm sorry...this just
isn't...working..."
	Mamoru looked to the floor. "I lost my parents when I was a child, 
too, Seiya," he said quietly. "But, I don't remember them. I lost my 
memories of them when they died, and I've never been able to get 
them back. In a way, I wish I did remember them, so at least I'd 
have fond memories of them to keep. But it's also something that 
protects me from depression like you're getting. It's almost
like I never had anyone, rather than KNOWING who I lost. And
knowing I'd never get them back."
	Seiya's voice started to shake. "I just...can't forget her, or how
much...I loved her. A love...I can never feel again..." Tears broke
free of his eyes. They streamed down his face sadly, his chest
racking with sobs. Mamoru looked at him softly. "Seiya...I know
it's hard...you can let it out. God knows *I* have numerous times. It 
hurts more if you don't release it."
	Seiya shook a moment, then hiccuped. He buried his face in his hands 
and cried, no longer trying to hold it in. Her beautiful face floated through
his mind as he cried brokenly, his dark blue eyes squinched shut.
He felt Mamoru put his arms around him in a comforting way, and
Seiya let himself give in. He went into the older man's embrace, 
crying all his heartfelt tears into Mamoru's shoulder. Mamoru 
was silent, holding the younger boy in a way a brother would.
Seiya cried out all the tears he had to give, trying to wash out
his pain with them.
	Several minutes passed, and Seiya cried. He cried for his mother,
for the knowledge that she was gone forever. The knowledge
that he'd never see her beautiful face again. Or hear her sing. Or
feel her hold him...he cried for all the times he had had with her and
never would have with her again. For her, for him...for them...for
what he needed, and what he didn't have...he couldn't stop. He cried
harder, and he felt Mamoru's arms tighten gently around him. Seiya
felt strange for a moment...that piece that had put back into place
earlier, when they were outside of Usagi's house...it came again now,
that odd feeling of being more complete. It spread through his body in 
a wave, and it seemed to lift his heavy soul. He felt his tears subside,
his heart lift a bit, his body weigh down less...what was it? The emptiness
his mother had left him with when she died wasn't quite as powerful now,
and he found he could withstand it more. His eyes opened slowly, and
he stared out of the embrace with quavering, unblinking eyes. The tears
slowly stopped streaming, his body slowly stopped its racking...he felt
less of an emptiness now, even though he was still thinking about her.
But how...
	Seiya finally looked up, sniffing and rubbing his eyes. It took him
a moment to find his voice again. "I...I just hope...I can get through this," 
he whispered shakily. "I mean...she's always in my head..."
	"You need to keep her there," Mamoru said quietly. He was silent
a moment. "Seiya, remembering your mother is going to hurt. And
it probably always will. Some of the senshi don't have parents 
either, you know. Makoto lost both of hers a while back. Rei's 
mother died several years ago. Hotaru lost her mother to a fire,
and Setsuna; God, I have NO idea who her parents are. I'm sure
THEY'D be interesting people, though." Seiya sniffed and gave 
a chuckle. Mamoru looked at him. "But the most important 
thing is to REMEMBER. Memories may hurt, but they can also bring
you peace. Your mother may not be alive, but she can still
live on in your memories, and in your heart. And it's there
that she'll always stay pure forever, and will always be
there for you." He put his hands on Seiya's shoulders. "Believe
me; fond memories are something you should treasure. I may
not get depressed in my memories about my parents 
because I don't HAVE any, but there are definitely times I 
wish I did, so I'd have something nice of them to look back on.
One of the most important things in everyone's lives are their
parents. It may seem depressing thinking about what you've 
lost, but they were a big part of you, and they always will be.
So remembering them keeps that part of you with you always.
Just because they've gone doesn't mean they can't be with you
anymore."
	Seiya felt it again. The way Mamoru said everything so quietly 
and carefully, like he really cared about him...the wave hit him again,
and his heart lifted a little bit more. Maybe...maybe this was...what
it felt like, to have someone who understood...Seiya nodded slowly. His
eyes were wide and deep, and they hardly blinked.. "I...think you're right, 
Mamoru-san. Everything I remember about her is so pleasant. I guess...I 
shouldn't think about what I've lost, but what I had." He was quiet. "I just 
think it'll take time to really get over the depression before I can keep those 
memories of her to look back on fondly."
	"Right. Just don't lose those memories. They're something
you'd never want to lose." Mamoru smiled gently, comfortingly. Seiya
felt himself smile against his will. He felt like he was...looking in a mirror
for some reason. Like Mamoru was...very like him, in some way...he had
never noticed that. Like how on his trip to Earth again, he had worried
so much that Mamoru would hate him because they both cared for Usagi...
maybe this was why. Because they were so much alike? Mamoru patted Seiya 
on the shoulder. "Did this help?"
	Seiya looked up, eyes dry. "Hai, Mamoru-san," he said softly. "It helped a 
LOT. I don't know how to thank you. You've been...so good to me. Especially
now. I guess...I just never thought...we could be friends..."
	Mamoru smiled. "Because of Usagi?"
	Seiya nodded. Mamoru chuckled. "Seiya, I think we've discussed this already.
I understand that. But I certainly don't think it's anything that should come 
between us."
	Seiya smiled. "I...I guess. Um...thank you."
	Mamoru laughed. "Yeah. I just hope I didn't say anything during this session
that didn't make any sense. My brains are kinda scrambled as of now. I think 
it was that stupid backwards roller coaster."
	Seiya laughed. "Hai. Me too. But it was probably worse for you,
holding Usagi in her seat the whole time while she screamed
in terror. I just don't know how she could have forgotten to buckle
her seat before the ride started."
	"Oh, you know Usagi. That's something I wasn't surprised at in the least. 
But, that's Usagi. Without her charm, she wouldn't be herself."
	Seiya nodded, then smiled. "Arigato, Mamoru-san."
	Mamoru smiled. They embraced; a friendly, brotherly embrace, that 
neither were uncomfortable with. Seiya felt that perhaps this piece, this
missing piece that had added to and deepened his pain since he had come to 
Tokyo and met Usagi, that had always held him down no matter how happy he 
was with her...maybe it had been Mamoru. The unsureness with Usagi's far-off
boyfriend had always made him uncomfortable, but now...that emptiness
was gone. And Mamoru didn't ONLY fill that piece, he filled a lot of the REST
of him that was empty, too...
	Mamoru got up and sighed. "Well, I think I need to go take Usagi home. It's 
getting late, and her father - well, let's just say if I don't get her home
within the hour, I think I need to flee the country in fear of my
life."
	Seiya stood up as well. Everything inside him felt lighter. He had never
felt this in his life, and it was almost as comforting as being in his mother's arms again.
It was as if he didn't NEED to be empty any more. He wasn't alone. He smiled against his will 
again. Maybe...maybe he COULD get through it all. "Yeah," he said quietly with a smile. "I 
wanna go find Taiki and Yaten. If they haven't been arrested for disturbing the peace yet." 
	Mamoru chuckled.

************************

	Taiki and Yaten sat at the kitchen table, silent. It was a moment 
of quiet uncertainty and anticipation as they waited. Suddenly, 
Seiya walked through the kitchen doorway. They jumped to their 
feet. "Seiya," Taiki said breathlessly. He and Yaten had 
questioning eyes.
	Seiya smiled. "Hi, guys."
	Yaten's body was still and tense. "Are you...all right?" he asked
quietly.
	Seiya smiled again. "Hai," he replied with quiet certainty. "I'm
great."
	Taiki and Yaten ran forward and threw their arms around their 
brother, hugging him tightly. All three of them stood in a brotherly 
embrace, silent, not needing words to share the mutual feeling
they all knew was fact. Seiya was all right. Everything was
all right. There was no longer depression and uncertain comforting
between them, no barriers or walls that kept them from knowing 
how the other felt. They all understood each other, in that
moment, more harmoniously and perfectly than any other force
in the universe. They were united brothers again.

*************************

	Mamoru left the apartment building, his hands in his pockets. 
The cool, late afternoon air slightly ruffled his hair as the sun
sent its less intense rays upon him. He stopped, surprised. Usagi
was standing outside. 
	Her face was placid, but her eyes were glassy. One of her hands 
was closed and held to her chest; the other, hanging by her side.
The light breeze caused her long pigtails to blow slightly to her
side, shining golden and full. Her skirt rustling gently in the 
wind, the slight shadows on her face not hiding her soft, trembling
features. She bit her lip. "Usako," he said quietly. "I thought...
you were..."
	He stopped as she suddenly ran forward, a few tears breaking 
free of her eyes, and threw her arms around his neck, hugging
him tightly. Her eyes were squeezed shut, her face buried in 
his chest. "I love you," she whispered, her voice shaking.
	Mamoru stood for a moment, then slowly put his arms 
around her. He closed his eyes. "I love you, too," he said quietly.
	Her voice was very quiet, quaky and full of undying truth. "I love
you, Mamo-chan," she whispered again.
	The breeze blew again, making the trees ruffle slightly. The 
light blue sky held few clouds, but the ones that did float through
were full and beautiful. A bird chirped contentedly in the trees. 
	And so, it ended.
  
	The End.

-There you have it. I know, not a LOT of revision, but there were some things
I wanted to change. Hope you liked this! Ja! ^_^
-Lianne (LianneSen@aol.com)