She's My What?

By: SilverLunarStar

Chapter Thirty: Blood Red

Rubeus was absolutely furious. The last of the Ayakashi Sisters was dead, thanks to those meddling brats. What was he to do now? They needed those pointed tainted so the Silver Millennium would cease to exist. He could send some Droids himself, but he didn't trust them on their own. That's what the Sisters had been for; they could keep an eye on the Droids, make sure they didn't cause complete and utter havoc. He could try his luck with one point on his own. The Senshi wouldn't think to keep an eye out on a place that's been attacked already, would they? Even if they had somehow figured out they needed those locations in particular, they would have to split up to protect each location and he was sure they wouldn't be able to handle a Droid on their own.

"Looks like you're in for it now Ruby. What are you going to do now that you have no underlings to do your dirty work?" a mocking voice suddenly appeared.

He tightened his grip on his wineglass, shattering it completely as he realized he was in the presence of the ever-irritating Esmeraude. She was right, though; she might be a bit more than a prissy bitch, but Rubeus was worse and he hated to get his hands dirty. Just as he'd used the Sisters' 'affections' for his own gain, their Prince used Esmeraude's for his. He wanted the 30th Century kingdom on Earth gone, but not enough to die along the way. "What are you doing here? Aren't you supposed to be serving our Prince on the other side?" He turned around to face a pale skinned woman with lime green hair, and a black ornamented dress.

The woman continued to taunt him. "Think you can do better that the dear Sisters, Rubeus? It's your only choice now."

"Can't I pay my favorite person a visit?" The woman's voice oozed honey as she fluttered her fluffy fan.

"Why don't you go ahead and visit them already instead of wasting my time?" he shot back.

"What time, Rubeus? Time is something you seem to have in abundance recently. The Prince is not happy with how long it's taking to taint the points. I'm sure I would have been done already had I been assigned to the task, but unfortunately for you I was needed elsewhere. Good thing, the 20th century is ever so dreary, I hear."

He gritted his teeth. "Tell him it will be done. Today."

"Today?" she asked skeptically. "Really?"

"Today."

She smirked. "I'll see you soon then." With that, she disappeared.

Rubeus stared out into the city of Tokyo, wondering how the hell he was going to manage to do what he just said he'd do. Petz had been his last hope, but he refused to give up. If he went back to the Prince and told him he had failed, Esmeraude's taunting would be the least of his worries. Turning away, he was loath to admit he'd been startled by the Wiseman. One of the things he liked about being in the past was that he could avoid the creepy old man, but this was the second time he visited – the first being to warn him he didn't have a lot of time left. "I already told Esmeraude to tell Prince De-"

"I know what you told her." The man's withered hands didn't move from his crystal ball. "I'm here to give you one last chance."

Suddenly the large piece of the Black Crystal he had in his ship became much livelier than it ever had.

"Forget the Droids. Use the whole crystal. Affect each area at the same time."

"But that means I'll have to reveal-"

"It will lure the Senshi and Shitennou to you. Capture them; make them tell you where the Small Rabbit is."

"They'll never-"

"The crystal will help, if you use it well." With that, the Wiseman disappeared.

Rubeus gritted his teeth. He hated being told what to do! But the old man was right; if he could use the crystal the guardians wouldn't stand a chance! He walked towards it, trailing drops of blood from his injured hand. If the plan worked, he'd have the areas affected and the Small Rabbit within his grasp before sunrise the next day. He might even score a bonus by bringing the Prince Sailor Moon.

Shingo was awoken by the sound of people trying to be quiet and failing miserably. Getting off the bed, he approached the door and opened it slightly. He barely managed to hold in a gasp when he saw Kadeem carrying his older sister. Horrible scenarios about what could have happened passed through his pre-teen mind. He'd been worried about her for a few months now, especially after the funeral. At first, he'd been wary of their so-called cousin and his friends taking them in, but the men had more than proved themselves.

After a couple of weeks, he found out her sister's no-good boyfriend had broken her heart and it angered him; he'd genuinely liked him. As the days passed by, he continued to wait for a breakdown from his sister, but it never came. To be honest, it was somewhat frightening to see Usagi act as mellow and mature as she now was. That's not to say he expected her to be exactly the same as before. Their whole lives had changed, but sometimes it felt like someone had dimmed his sister's spirit. She tried her best to continue to be her cheerful self and when she was around the daughter of their parents' friends, she almost seemed the same. It didn't him from worrying about her, though.

"I saw Shingo's shoes by the door," he heard Zsigmond murmur.

"He must have changed his mind about the sleepover," Kadeem replied.

"Usagi won't be happy to hear about this," Nahele commented.

"If we tell her, you mean. If she wakes up late enough, we can simply tell her he arrived in the morning because his friend's parents had to take a last minute trip."

"I don't know just how much longer we'll be able to keep this a secret."

"Usagi has a lot-"

"I don't mean keeping this from Usagi. Shingo's a smart boy. He'll make the connection eventually, especially now that he' spending more and more time at home. I think it may be time to tell him."

"We'll talk with Usagi in the morning."

Once they closed his sister's door and went off to their own rooms, Shingo went back to bed, his head spinning over the conversation he'd just overheard. What did they mean?

After dropping Rei off, Chibi-Usa fell into an unfit sleep. She curled into herself in the backseat, trying to get comfortable, but the image of an unconscious Usagi wouldn't leave her mind. Then there was another flash where the blonde didn't show up for hours and suddenly she was standing in the cemetery where her parents were buried. There was a freshly dug grave next to the Tsukinos and a little plaque that read Tsukino Usagi was set there temporarily while a tombstone similar to Kenji and Ikuko's was set. The girl woke up in Jinhai's arms in tears.

"Shh Chibi-Usa, it was just a bad dream." The blond man tried to comfort her as he carried her to the manor and up to her room.

She was silent up until he set her down on her bed. "It was more than just a bad dream! Usagi was, she was!" She couldn't even voice it; she was so scared that it would come true! Her dad sometimes had dreams that became real, but in the time of peace, they had mostly been good visions. He never saw the Black Moon Clan coming, however.

"Usagi's okay, I promise. You can see her tomorrow. It's Sunday and you'll have all day with her."

"I want to see her now!"

"She needs to rest, Chibi-Usa," Jinhai tried to placate her. "She might still be a little woozy from bumping her head, but I'm sure after she's had some rest she'll be fine. You need to sleep too and you don't want Usagi to worry, do you?" It was a bit of emotional blackmail, but if it calmed the girl down…

The pink haired child shook her head. That was the last thing she wanted. Usagi already worried about her too much. "Okay, I'll wait until tomorrow. Oyasumi nasai Jinhai."

"Oyasumi nasai Chibi-Usa." Giving the girl a kiss on her forehead, he left to allow her to change for bed before she fell into a deep sleep.

"But Zsigmond!"

"Iie Usagi-chan, you are not to overexert yourself today. Relax, have fun with Chibi-Usa and Shingo. When's the last time you spent time with your brother? We've been so concentrated on helping Chibi-Usa that we've hardly had time for Shingo-kun."

The blonde wanted to argue, but knew he was right. Ever since Chibi-Usa had walked into her life, she'd barely given Shingo the time of day. Sure they had gone to the park with Haruka and Michiru just a couple of weeks ago, but she hadn't necessarily participated or interacted with her brother as much as she should have. They'd never really 'hung out', but it was different now. Technically, they were all they had left. "Fine."

The longhaired blond man hugged a pouting Usagi. "There's aspirin in the medicine cabinet if your head starts to hurt and please call us if anything happens."

Usagi sighed in exasperation. This was the first time all the Shitennou would be out of the house. Usually Nahele would stay or Zsigmond himself, but the company he worked for needed him in today. It was a Sunday and a lot of the employees had suddenly come up with 'the flu' and since Zsigmond was only technically an on-call employee, he had no choice but to go. Nahele had gone to the restaurant he was working at in order to replace a cook who was taking care of his wife, and Kadeem and Jinhai usually worked every day. "We'll be fine. Now go before you're late!"

This time it was his turn to pout. "Just, be careful." With that, he exited the kitchen, collected his things, and left.

Okay, so he wasn't one hundred percent sure that coming out in the open like this was the smartest thing he'd done, but in order to taint all the crystal points, he had to be as close as possible. This also assured that the Sailor Senshi would be lured in. He knew their leader was injured, but if he'd learned anything in the past couple of months it was where one came, the others weren't far behind. He knew Sailor Moon wouldn't let her guards fight alone. This time, he was determined to annihilate them all.

It was almost two in the afternoon and still the dark clouds that had been hovering overhead even after Petz' demise stayed. They had been certain that it had been the woman's doing, but instead of disappearing after her death, they grew darker still. It had been like this all day and it made Rei uneasy. Jinhai had noticed the Pyro Senshi's apprehension and had called Zsigmond to ask him if he could find out anything. Maybe Petz' doing had caused a real thunderstorm? He could only hope, but something deep in his gut knew it wasn't true. Something was coming.

As if he had mentally called it out, the sky suddenly flashed and crackled. He heard Rei gasp and his eyes widened as they turned around and saw a large spacecraft floating over the main city's buildings. Turning to one another, they nodded and their phones were out without a word being said. Once they'd called everyone, the raven haired girl went into the temple and asked Yuuichiro to stay inside and take care of things, and her grandfather.

"Rei, what's-?"

"There's no time to explain Yuuichiro. Jinhai and I will be back…soon," she hesitated with the last word. She really wasn't sure when they'd be back, if they'd be back. Something was different about this time, but she didn't have time to consult the fire. Part of her feared what she'd see. Instead, she grasped Jinhai's hand as they ran down the stairs. She felt a trickle of relief as his hand gripped hers. Whatever was waiting for them, they'd face it together.

Chibi-Usa tried to hold in her giggles and sought a place to hide. She, Usagi, and Shingo were playing hide-and-seek. Usagi was seeking while she and Shingo hid. Since it was still a cloudy day, Usagi had suggested they stay inside the manor instead of playing in the garden. She and Shingo had agreed only because they hadn't wanted to get caught in the rain, just in case. Plus, the manor was big enough to find lots of things to do. They'd started off with a movie and then played a board game while they had lunch. Now they were playing this. Looking around, the girl finally decided to hide in Usagi's room. Carefully, she closed the door and backed into the bed. She was just about to hide under it when something glittering caught her eye. This time, she couldn't hold in her gasp of astonishment. It couldn't be!

However, upon closer inspection, she realized that it was most definitely what she thought it was. It was the Ginzuishou, lying there on the mahogany nightstand. How was it that Usagi had it? Better yet, why hadn't she told her she had it in the first place? Chibi-Usa knew there wasn't a lot she had told Usagi, but she had known that she needed the Ginzuishou to save her mother in the 30th Century. Why, why hadn't she told her she had it? She extended a trembling hand towards the open broach that held the crystal and felt its warmth as she cradled it. A large lump had formed in her throat and she swallowed with difficulty. She had the crystal now. That was all she needed for her key to work, she was sure. She didn't have to put anyone in danger ever again. Even though she felt slightly betrayed by Usagi keeping it a secret, she didn't want to see the blonde hurt because of her anymore. She'd take the crystal and go back home. Now that she had what she needed in her possession, she was sure she could save everyone! Without another thought, she dashed into her room across the hall, stuffed a few things into her backpack, and grabbed her basically abandoned Luna Ball before silently going down the stairs, exiting from a side door.

Not even a minute later, Shingo and Usagi are calling out for the girl upstairs. Usagi had found her brother in the recreation room, unsuccessfully hiding in the closet.

"Come out, come out wherever you are. We know you're here somewhere," Shingo called out teasingly.

Usagi laughed and noticed her own bedroom door slightly ajar. With a grin, she carefully opened it the rest of the way. She looked at her closet suspiciously, but it was fully open, just as she'd left it. A quick glance showed that there were no feet sticking out. There weren't many places to hide in her room, but for a tiny six-year-old… Pulling up her bed skirt, she exclaimed, "Gotcha!" but there was no one there. She frowned; she was certain she would be under there… Her frown deepened before her face became a blank slate as she looked at her nightstand, bare of everything except her lamp. Where was…? Opening the small drawer, she found her journal, a few pens, and other small trinkets, but no broach. She breathed deeply several times so as not to panic. She looked on her bed, around it, under it, checked her clothes from the day before, but she found nothing.

"Usagi!" she heard her brother call out. "Have you found Chibi-Usa yet?"

"Iie." Okay, she was starting to panic. Her broach was gone and Chibi-Usa was missing… She couldn't feel the crystal anywhere nearby and she had a feeling they weren't playing hide-and-seek anymore. Still, she did her best to calm down. "Shingo, we're done playing. Let's call Chibi-Usa out and tell her she's won. We can make sundaes once we've had dinner."

Shingo cheered and started calling out for the girl along with his sister. However, the Tsukino siblings call her out for fifteen minutes with no results. "Usagi…" the boy started, worried. "I don't think Chibi-Usa is in here…"

"She has to be." Worry began to creep into her voice as she was now overwhelmed with it. "Look, just in case, I'm going to call Kadeem. He's more likely to be able to get out of work. We'll continue looking in the manor; we still haven't checked the third or fourth floors." Usagi takes out her mobile and speed dialed Kadeem's number; however the phone didn't ring at all. She tried again. Nothing. She tried two more times before she became frustrated. Next, she tried Jinhai, but her phone had no signal, it seemed. Out of desperation, she tried calling Minako's landline, but still there was nothing. Why did they rely on their mobiles so much? The Shitennou had never bothered to set up a landline in the manor. She had Shingo try his phone, but the results were the same. "Come on, let's look upstairs."

Shingo didn't want to say anything, but he doubted Chibi-Usa was up there. The manor was large, it's true, but the structure itself wasn't so thick. The girl should've been able to hear them call her from the second floor to the attic, if that's where she was. "Usagi! Come take a look!"

Exiting Jinhai's room, the blonde dashed towards the sound of her brother's voice, going up the stairs. She arrived at Nahele's observation deck. The sky of Tokyo was completely black. Her eyes widened. That did not look like a normal thunderstorm to her. She was now certain Chibi-Usa had found the Ginzuishou and had taken off; if she went to the girl's room, she was sure to find some of her things missing. Damnit, this could have been prevented if she'd just told Chibi-Usa she was Sailor Moon and was in possession of the crystal! But no, Luna had asked her wait, told her they couldn't be certain Chibi-Usa had been sent as a trap to capture her and the crystal. What good was Luna now that she had gone off with Artemis? She should have told her herself when the cats hadn't shown up weeks ago! Continuing to look at the sky, she told her brother, "Shingo-kun, I'm certain Chibi-Usa has gone off into the city. I'm going to Rei's to ask her and Jinhai to help me look for her. It's probably the thunderstorm that's cutting off the phones' receptions. You need to stay here in case she comes back."

He knew that sometimes the small girl would go off on her own because she was feeling alone or she worried about her parents and got it into her head to run off, but this was ridiculous! "Usa-"

"Please, Shingo. I can't be worrying about you as well."

He was not pleased and sighed in aggravation, but he grudgingly agreed.

"If I can, I'll call." She gave her brother a kiss on the cheek before she ran down the flights of stairs and out the manor's door.

Meanwhile, the Senshi and Shitennou had gathered just underneath the UFO. All four couples had transformed and were waiting anxiously. They knew this could very well be a trap, but if there was a chance to stop the Black Moon Clan… From the tests they ran on Calaveras' and Petz' bodies, they knew the two women were indeed from the future. However, they had been genetically enhanced as well, which was why their blood was black rather than red. They were definitely blood sisters, however, but something else had been fused into them, giving them the powers they had. The two women were not aliens as they themselves had once been so long ago. Their powers were not natural as theirs was from being reincarnations of past alien princesses and naturally born gifted guardians of Earth. They had been born human, but something had changed them, something that was definitely not good, that much Zsigmond and Ami had been able to conclude. There was also a chance there were more of them. Whoever had experimented on the sisters wouldn't stop at four beings.

Their conclusion was proven true when a man with fire red hair appeared. His eyes were blood red, almost black, and he had the same black, upside down crescent moon as the Ayakashi Sisters. "Senshi, Shitennou, welcome to your graves!" In the palm of his hand, he held a small chunk of a dark crystal. "But where is your leader?" He looked around and saw only the Senshi of Fire, Ice, Thunder, and (hah!) Love, along with their male counterparts, but no Senshi of the Moon. Well then, he'd just have to capture her guardians and lure her in. With that thought in mind, he smirked at the warriors who all took fighting stands. They'd soon find out there was no fighting the Black Crystal. He shuddered slightly as the crystal read his thoughts, but his smirk grew as he heard the exclamations from down below as each of them were hit with a dark bolt and all eight figures disappeared from sight. He himself dissipated, appearing at the control room of his ship. Pressing a button, he announced throughout the city, "Sailor Moon, I have your precious guards and if you wish to see them alive, I suggest you bring yourself and the Small Rabbit to the center of the city. You have one hour."

Usagi had arrived just in time to see her friends disappear. She screamed, but it was muffled by a large hand covering her mouth as someone dragged her into the nearest alley. Struggling, she felt triumphant when the person grunted as her elbow made contact with their solar plexus. She turned around, ready to kick them to the ground when she realized who it was. "Tuxedo Kamen-sama!"

"Usagi-chan, what are you doing here without transforming?"

"It's none of your-!"

"As Tuxedo Kamen, it's my job to protect you Princess. If you'd been caught untransformed…"

"Well, I can't very well become Sailor Moon without the Ginzuishou, now can I?" Her hands went to her mouth. 'Stupid, stupid, stupid.' She had not been planning on telling him this, but it's not like she could have kept it from him much longer, now could she?

"What?" the dark-haired man exclaimed.

"Chibi-Usa is missing and she took the Ginzuishou; that's why I was here, I was going to call the Shitennou and Senshi to help me find her, but then I saw the UFO and I knew they'd be investigating. I got here just as…" She trailed off as she tried to hold in a sob, the day's events suddenly crashing within.

Her past lover couldn't help but hold her in his arms as she cried. It broke his heart further to see her like this. He didn't know how they were going to do it, but he was going to protect her and bring back her friends, no matter what. "Usagi," he said gently as her sobs settled down. "Why does Chibi-Usa have the Ginzuishou?"

"When she first arrived, she said she needed it to help her family in the future. I wanted to tell her I had it and that I was Sailor Moon, but Luna swore me to secrecy. Then she and Artemis went off to investigate something, but they left weeks ago. We have no idea what the Black Moon Clan wants with Chibi-Usa, but we know that it has something to do with the future. If I'd just told her-"

"Usagi-chan, you don't even know if sending Chibi-Usa is a trap. She could be a part-"

"No!" She wrenched herself from his arms and looked into his shocked eyes as she vehemently denied it. "She's not! I know she isn't."

"Usagi, she took the Ginzuishou-"

"I don't know how I know, but I know she isn't a part of them. If she'd taken the Ginzuishou, they'd have it by now and why would they take everyone if they already had it? They would have left to the future by now! No, I know it; I know in my heart that she has nothing to do with them."

He looked through his mask, straight into her determined eyes and he knew, just as she knew, that she was speaking the truth. "Okay, she's not a part of them, but you still need the Ginzuishou to transform. We need to find her first and get her to give the crystal back. Then, and only then, will we go and save the others. Got it?"

She knew better than to argue. Even though he didn't love her anymore, he still worried for her safety; some part of him still cared enough for her. Plus, he was right. She was useless without the crystal. Nodding in agreement, she told him some of Chibi-Usa's favorite spots in the city before they split up. She promised him to be careful as she dashed off.

Nervously, he let her go the opposite direction he was going. They'd arranged to meet fifteen minutes before Sailor Moon's deadline. If they could lure the redheaded man out and onto the earth, he could distract him while Usagi-as-Sailor Moon purified him. If not, he'd take care of the man himself.

The two were so distracted by their inner turmoil that they failed to see three beings who had overheard everything since Tuxedo Kamen had dragged Usagi into the alley. The three were shocked by what they'd overhead.

*Waves* Hi everyone. How are you all doing? I hope you've enjoyed this ~4,300 word chapter. :)

This chapter dedicated especially to StarryNight101 on her birthday! Happy Birthday dear! Thank you for always giving me a small push to update this story. Hopefully next year I'll be able to dedicate a different chapter/story to you instead of this one because this one will be done!

A HUGE amount of thanks to everyone who has continued to review and has asked that I update. I PROMISE I will not give up on this story until it's done. I make no more promises of updating soon because we've all seen how THAT goes. However, I WILL FINISH THIS STORY NO MATTER WHAT. All your reviews are what keep me going and I will finish this story for all of you, this I solemnly swear!

Again, thanks a bunch minna-san!

Once again, HAPPY BIRTHDAY STARRYNIGHT101!

Lots of love to you all,

~*Eli