Chapter 8

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"I ASKED IF IT WAS TRUE!?" Usagi spat out loudly, waking the sleeping Hotaru from the guest bedroom.

"Your Highness...you're not well..you need to rest." Setsuna said quickly, trying to calm Usagi down.

"I'm well enough!" Usagi yelled, her cheeks flushed bright red. "I asked you a question."

"And the answer is no." Mamoru said plainly. "That is crazy. I don't know where Seiya could have come up with that."

"He said last night that when you and him took the Queen's body back to the future, he talked to himself..and he said that he was married to me." Usagi said, not really calming down too much. "What happened?"

"Your Highness, I do not know. I know that Small Lady is your rightful heir, so there is no way that I could be her mother." Setsuna said quietly.

"Usako, I don't think Seiya was being quite honest with you." Mamoru said, but Usagi was looking at Setsuna.

"He said he saw it, you must have seen something too." Usagi said.

"Yes, we saw his future self. He said he was married to the queen, but it could have meant anything." Setsuna said quickly. "The timeline is so easy to skew and change. I am not sure what to make of it myself." Setsuna finished.

"All I know is that we get married, Usako, and we have our daughter. There is no way that I would ever have any kind of affair on you." Mamoru said, seeing tears streaking down Usagi's face.

"Your Highness, with all due respect, there is no way that I would ever willingly let King Endymion do that kind of disrespect to you either..and from what I know, King Endymion is a good and kind King...a good husband and father to his daughter." Setsuna said.

"But I know how you feel about him." Usagi said, her voice now weak.

Mamoru looked at Setsuna with a sort of surprise.

"No, your Highness...you have it wrong." Setsuna insisted.

"Then tell me what I have wrong." Usagi said heatedly.

"I respect you and the King. I would do anything for the both of you. You were always my idol, Queen Serenity. I designed the senshi fuku's with your body image in mind. I designed your wedding dress and your royal garb...all with your image in my head. Small Lady does mean a lot to me, your Highness...but she was my only friend in those dark times when I would have no other visitors." Setsuna said, shameful to let out these dark memories of hers.

Setsuna continued. "You have to understand, your Highness, that in the future, I rule on a distant planet. I guard the gate of time for all eternity. I am a lone senshi....you are so fortunate to have good friends and a good family, however, I don't envy you...I respect you in the highest way possible." Setsuna seemed intent on explaining herself, but she didn't know why. "In the future, after the new royal star is born from your body, I helped in her care...I helped you in the first few weeks, as I have always helped in raising her....her body is just now getting to look like a teenager, but she is over 3,000 years old....it hasn't been easy guiding her through her childhood years..and I helped with that..and she came to visit me, even though the Queen thought she would be a nuisance...but she was never a nuisance to me." Setsuna finished, tears welled up in her eyes.

Usagi's look softened. "I think you're right, Setsuna-chan. I am very tired and weak from the battle."

Usagi sat down on the couch. "Setsuna-chan, I'm sorry I yelled at you. I'm very exhausted from the battle and wondering why everything has gone distant." She said weakly.

"It's alright, your Highness." Setsuna said quickly, giving Usagi some green tea.

"Hey, do you mind if I turn on the TV?" Usagi asked Setsuna, who nodded her approval to her.

<TV REPORTER MESSAGE> - And in other news today, the body of a young woman was found in a dark alleyway early this morning. Sources say that the girl had been beaten to death, however, this is unofficial as the autopsy report has yet to come through.

The girl, Ami Mizuno, was walking home last night when apparently attacked by an unknown person, who beat her fiercely, then fled. Authorities request that if you have any information about this crime to contact them immediately. <END TV REPORT>

"Oh my God! Ami!!" Usagi jumped up, terrified and saddened. Tears welled up in her eyes. "Ami..I can't believe this.." She said quietly.

Setsuna and Mamoru too had stood up. Hotaru had come into the room just in time to hear the report. "Sailor Mercury!" Hotaru said, tears coming to her eyes as well.

"How could he do that? That wretch!" Usagi shouted, taking everyone aback.

"Your Highness, you see how important it is that we defeat him quickly.." Setsuna said, putting her cup down on the table now.

Usagi got her communicator out. "Everyone....to the Hino Shrine." She ordered.

MEANWHILE

Taron laughed with amusement hearing the reporter's report on the death of Sailor Mercury.

"See, we got one.." He told Umbra, who was sitting in the chair beside Taron.

"Now...let me see." He said, surveying each senshi as they got a report of some kind from Usagi.

"That one." He said, pointing to one of the senshi the scanner went over. "She's next." He said quickly, raising the timestaff into the air.

He opened the dimensional door and out came what looked to be a huge purple flower. However, upon closer inspection, one would find that the bud of the flower had sharp teethand it was huge.

Umbra smiled. "She's pretty." She said out loud.

"She's about to become fertilizer." Taron said enthusiastically. "Good luck, Sailor Jupiter....you're going to need it for this one...of course..it will do you no good, you can't win." He said and laughed evilly.

<end ch. 8>