Love Of My Life

There was the sound of an explosion below her. She could feel the arms around her, the wind making her bangs blow around her tightly closed eyes.

'Why is it always like this?' She asks herself as she is lowered to the ground. She cautiously opens her eyes, and blinks back tears.

'Things will never change back to the peace the universe once had. I pray for all those who have lost their lives, their souls, to this pointless battle.'

All around her, she can see the fires. Her once proud home, her life, now lay in shattered remains on the ground.

Her supposed husband raised his hands, and she can see her counterpart, so alike they could be twins, raise her arms in a defensive cross in front of her face. Time seems to slow down as the power from the flames seemed to swirl around the man.

'Iie..' she thinks, starting forward at a crawl. She could barely move, her legs seemed pinned to the spot.

"Star wall," the counterpart says as a shimmering gold field raises around her. The energy from the flames grew thicker.

'Iie!' She willed her legs to move faster, her heart pounding in her translucent chest.

A torrent of flames leapt from the man's open palms, stretching out to take control of the girl behind the field.

"Iie!!" she screams. She feels an arm wrap around her waist before she can go any further, a hand clamps over her mouth.

"Serenity, don't move! All will be lost!"

The flames give one final burst of light, then fade to nothing. The girl who was behind the field stood proud, her hands clasped at her chest.

"I must be brief, for the future is at stake," she whispers, a few scarce tears making her way down her cheeks and collecting on her hands.

"Give it up, Serenity! You can never protect the child!" The man made a mad dash toward the now shimmering girl, a dagger forming in his hands as he runs.

"Though it is night, a new dawn will come," she replies, just as soft as before. The tears start to swirl and form her own dagger. She closes her eyes, and allows the song of life to pass through her before she strikes out.

"However hard it may be, Sere, you must let this scene play out. It is for the future, for she must grow," she could feel his words vibrating through his chest and through her dress. She spins out of his arms and stares into his eyes.

"What choice do I have? I only wish to accept karma, to allow my faults to be corrected." She turns to the battle. "I remember hearing about this battle from my long journey. How am I to stand by and watch as my daughter is claimed by the darkness?" She shakes her head, the tears making their way down her face. She hears a scream and shuts her eyes.

"No matter what happens, we cannot change the past. You of all people know this, Serenity. Why deny it?" The men behind her reaches out a hand and places it on her shoulder. "This scene, it should give you hope. One day, things will be brighter. There will be peace."

"You're wrong," she replies, starting to shake with uncontrolled emotions. "No matter where the being of Light is, agents of the dark will follow, hoping to cast the world into shadows of fear, of doubt."

She opens her eyes and sees her counterpart has fallen. "They will rule the world, until the prophecy comes to pass. Until then, I shall accept what fate and destiny shall give me."

"He still loves you," the man continues behind her. "As long as love exists, then nothing shall bind you."

She sniggers. "The one I truly love, I cannot have. The hands of fate are very persuasive." His hand falls from her shoulder and she sighs, unaware of the tears that still flow from her eyes. "I just want to sleep."

She watches as her husband, still feeling the victory of supposedly killing his wife, starts to stalk to a hidden cove, behind a burning building. Serenity's eyes open wide as she lets out a frantic plea.

"Leave her alone!" She starts to run, aware the man behind her is following her. She tries to get to the child before her husband can, only to be held back once again.

She blinks as more tears start to fall, trying to break out of the iron grip of the man behind her. Somehow, she can feel his sadness as she reaches out, screaming.

The man turns back, holding a small girl of no more than eight by the wrist. The child is struggling to break free.

"Endymion! How could you!" she screams as the world starts to fade to black, forgotten images of the past making their way before her eyes.

--

"It's in these times that the soul can truly remember what it is like to have lost something dear, to truly reach out to the one it loves with all it's being..."

--

She slowly opens her eyes, blinking back the tears of the forgotten dream. She looks over to the clock and sighs. It's another day, and for once she is early.

Her cat watches, numb in shock, as her charge stands and starts getting ready for the day. The alarm clock starts to chime, and the blond stares for a moment, then turns it off.

"Luna, don't look at me like that," the girl says, zipping up her skirt and grabbing her homework.

--

She's sitting in the classroom, second only to her new friend, Ami. She is deathly quiet, thinking of the strange things that have been happening.

'Why now?' she finds herself asking. 'Why me? Why do I have to be the one?' "Who am I?" she asks to the air, her sight going blurry, composing a second image above the first.

The blue haired girl, Ami, turns and gives her a strange look.

She smiles, trying to hide the fact that she was confused.

Love of my life don't leave me You've taken my love, (all of my love) and now desert me

The man, her personal trainer, is standing in front of her, his face hidden by shadows. She can feel the light bouncing off her skin, off the pure white of her dress. She was confused.

"You wished to see me, Andrew?"

He smiled. She didn't know how she knew. It was a smile that both warmed and chilled her heart.

"I have to leave for awhile, Usagi. We shall meet again. Remember all I have taught you." He starts to fade as Usagi rushes forward.

"No wait! I haven't even seen your face! How will I know it is you?"

"You will when the time is right. Farewell, princess." His words are soft as he is fully gone.

The tears seemed so right now. 'Why?' she asks, falling to the ground. 'Why?!' To her, the world was bleeding, her manner of life was gone. 'After all these years, why now?' She pounds her fist on the ground, breaking the skin, staining her pure white dress. Everything starts to fade away.

--

She could feel the soft hand on her shoulder. Looking back, she stares into the cool blue of Ami's eyes. An unspoken question hangs there.

"He's gone," she whispers. The words catch in her throat. She reaches up to wipe the tears away, and hears Ami gasp.

"Come on, Usagi-chan. We must take you to the infirmary. You're bleeding."

--

They were late to class, but they had a note. Haruna-sensi gave them the assignment, and they sat down and quietly did their work.

--

a few years later

--

She sighed in contempt. Behind her, her Mamoru, her Endymion, sat, holding her close.

'If this is so right, why does it feel so wrong?' she asks in her head.

'You love him..' a voice replies in the back of her mind.

She slowly stands, stepping out of Mamoru's arms. She could sense his quizzical glance, but she didn't care. She slowly stepped out into the water, lifting her skirts so they wouldn't get wet.

'I remember, training here, in this very lake.' She closed her eyes as a lone tear fell. 'So many tears. Will Hell never freeze?'

--

She's running late to a senshi meeting. Her mother almost didn't let her go, with the increase of negative energy.

She didn't realize where she was running. She ran into a soft body, and before they could fall, the person caught them both. She gasped as she stood, looking up into her savior's eyes.

"Thank you, kind sir. I am sorry that I didn't watch where I was going." She gave a short bow, fighting the familiarity of the situation.

The man above her smiled and bowed as well then walked on his way. She stood there, transfixed, as he disappeared in the crowed.

She sighed and shut her eyes, trying to figure out where she had felt that energy pattern before. With a start of surprise, she snapped open her eyes and ran at break-neck speed to the temple.

--

It was the eve of her 21st birthday. She shook her head. Nobody knew.

Her mother had died when she was still an infant. The rest of her family didn't want her, the child being born a bastard because her father was lost to war. It took years, but she was adopted as Usagi Tsukino.

Only she and her foster parents knew her real birth date. She had asked that they change the date for specific reasons, and they had helped without question, accepting her request as a noble cause.

She was scared. Standing in front of the door to the man she once loved, she couldn't put into words what she wanted.

She knocked. He answered.

--

She walked home in the dark. The meeting had gone terrible. Mamoru had denounced his love for her before she had a chance to break it off.

She stumbled into the park, attempting to heal the rift in her heart that made her feel vournurable.

She made it to the lake, and dropped to her hands and knees. She didn't have the strength to carry on.

A splash was heard, and she felt the dark energy increase thrice fold, but she did nothing but kneel there.

'I just want to sleep,' she thought, shutting her eyes.

Something hit her in her temple. Without sound, she fell into the darkness.

Ooh, back - hurry back

She groggily opened her eyes, blinking back the blurriness. "Where am I?" she asks in a voice that was not her own.

"You are safe, princess."

Her eyes snapped open.

"Andrew?" She tried to sit up, but his hand held her shoulder to the bed.

"Not now. It's not quite midnight, and you've still got to recover."

--

She felt the tears sting her eyes as she reached to touch his face. "Is it really you?

He smiled the bittersweet smile from long ago. "Hai. We don't have much time. After tonight, I must return home." He reached and took her hand into his own.

"Please, take me with you?"

Because you don't know what it means to me

He gave her hand a little squeeze. "Are you sure? We must leave tonight."

The tears fell from her cheeks in a slow stream. She nodded her head and brought his hand to her lips and kissed it, closing her eyes.

"I know. There is nothing but heartache here for me."

--

Somewhere, a clock struck midnight. Usagi's body glowed a faint silver as her eyes and hair changed color.

Andrew's eyes grew soft. "Welcome back, princess."

"I'm finally myself!"

He chuckled, bending down and kissing her, their bodies fading into another time.