Disclaimer: Sailormoon universe belongs to Naoko Takeuchi.

"I know you didn't want to be here."

Mamoru turned to Setsuna sitting beside him, and then his eyes went to his side. There was about half a foot distance between the sleeve of his black tuxedo and her arm that was covered by a thin almost see through material.

She smiled. "It has to be skin contact."

"Oh." He relaxed. "Sorry." They were standing on the other end of the of the large ballroom, almost hidden in a corner with the lack of lights. "No. And I still don't see why I need to be here. Everyone seems to be enjoying themselves." His eyes went to Usagi talking animatedly with Seiya near the side of the stage. He had arrived late with Setsuna, and had made no effort at all to let anyone know of his presence. He didn't want to have to witness this. Which was the main reason why until the day before he had not made up his mind whether or not he was going. And just when he finally did, after the scene at the hospital, Michiru Kaioh told him yesterday that something was going to happen. He had to come. "Maybe it was just a false alarm," he went on. "Urawa did say these…images are not so accurate."

"Experience has taught us not to take chances."

Mamoru admired the way her casual glances scanned over entire ballroom. She had chosen their spot perfectly in that for those areas she could not see from where they stood, a trip to the bar helped to check those blind spots. So far she had made two. It looked to Mamoru that she was going to make her third trip soon, looking at near empty glass. "I have to admire two things about you."

She turned to him with an amused smile. "Oh? And what would that be?"

"The size of your bladder and your tolerance for alcohol. I don't see how we'll manage with guard duty if you keep that up. We've only been here about 40 minutes."

She smiled. "It's sparkling cider." Her eyes went to his empty whisky glass. "You should switch to white wine. You can relax now, the worst part is over."

He cast a glance at her.

"Accident."

His eyes went back to Usagi who was now heading back to the table she shared with Ami and Dr. Urawa. Seiya had disappeared to the back of the stage where he assumed they would be preparing for their performance. Setsuna was right, and she had been the one to get him his drink. The worst part had been to come in and see them together. He had needed a strong drink to calm down and prevent himself from going over to them and possibly make a fool of himself. Again. From experience, he knew that he had difficulty acting rational whenever the two of them were together and in the same vicinity. Especially when caught by surprise, just like that time in Crown Cafe. This time, unfortunately, he couldn't just walk away.

It annoyed him that they couldn't just tell him what he was supposed to do. Keep her away from Seiya Kou. Yeah right, he thought to himself. How did they hope to achieve that if the girl was set on finding out from Seiya what he knew about his miraculous recovery. If he actually did know anything. If they have been observing her all these years, surely they knew how stubborn Usagi Tsukino was. He had stopped asking questions when all the answers he got were, 'You need to stay in the picture. She'll need your help.' A line like 'Patience little grasshopper..' would have sent him over the edge. He had considered himself a very patient man, except when it came to Usagi Tsukino. With her around, he had a tendency to act or react first and then think later. The sound of movement pulled him from his musings and saw his companion about to stand up, empty glass in hand.

"Let me get our drinks, this time." He stood up. "Since I'm technically your date for evening, I should at least act like a gentleman. I know what to do." He added when it looked like she was about to protest. "I have been watching, you know. The not so obvious looking around thing that you do. I think I can manage to pull that off."

Her eyes followed him as he stood up and left their their table. Even though they were seated at the far end and darker corner of the large ballroom, she was sure he had seen her. And pointedly ignored her existence. Since she had not heard from him since they pulled off that scene in front of the hospital staff the other day, she wasn't sure if that had really been an act, and for that matter this one too. She herself had been shocked, and then later too angry, to even send him a message. She had felt blindsided how he suddenly brought up Setsuna Meioh, when it had bothered her for weeks trying to think about what was going on between them, and yet couldn't bring herself to ask him about it.

"How long do you plan to keep this up?" Ami asked her in a voice only loud enough for her to hear. "I doubt there's any doubt in anyone's mind right now that you two are having a lovers spat as Rei put it."

"It's still early," she replied. "He should enjoy his date's company before our… reconciliation act."

"Doesn't look like he's having any kind of fun at the moment though. Like he's willing himself to become invisible."

She understood that Setsuna Meioh was probably here at the event because of the Three Lights. She had gotten from Seiya that she was more like a big sister to him and his brothers, and almost always accompanied them whenever they performed no matter how big or small. But Mamoru Chiba was not the type go back on his word. If he said that he wouldn't be attending the event then what was he doing here, and with her? As far as she knew, she had been clear to him about her friendship with Seiya, whereas he… She shook off that train of thought. She took her empty glass and stood up. She didn't walk to have to walk around egg shells around him again, even if it was just pretend. She needed to know where they both really were.

"Hi."

Mamoru turned to look at her. "Hi."

"You came." She noticed his eyes went over head as if to scan the crowd for moment before coming back to her.

"Yeah. Sorry to disappoint."

"White wine and sparkling cider." The barman called up.

"Thanks." Mamoru reached for the drinks.

"And you have date."

"Again, sorry to disappoint." He turned away but had only taken two steps when Dr. Sato came up to him.

"Mamoru, you came! I heard about what happened the other day, and I thought… anyway, the good thing is that you're here. Come, there's someone you should meet. Dr. Bennet and Dr. Fischer came all the way from…"

Usagi watched as Dr. Sato half-dragged him towards a group of other doctors from the hospital and one or two she had not seen before. Soon after, she saw Natsumi Ginga join the group and latch onto his other arm.

"This seems to be playing out well."

Usagi turned and saw Rei had materialized behind her. Yuichirou stood beside her, also looking on.

"I guess so," said Usagi. "He came with Setsuna Meioh."

"What?" Yuichirou turned to her. "What's he doing with her?"

"What's she doing with him?" Rei countered.

"I have no idea." Usagi placed her empty glass on the bar and turned the opposite direction to return to her table.

Mamoru sat down with grunt and placed their drinks on the table. "Spilled some of your drink, sorry."

"Don't worry about it," Setsuna said in an amused tone. "How was the trip to the bar?"

"Fine," he replied and took a long sip of his wine. "Just fine. I think I should have gotten another whisky."

"It looks like it's not Tsukino-san who needs protection tonight."

He eyes went to the group he just managed to escape. "I'm inclined to agree."

She let out a small laugh. "For a moment there I was thinking if I was gonna have to go out there and rescue you."

"Why didn't you? Usagi would've…" His eyes honed in on her. She was now back at her table talking to Rei.

"Yes," Setsuna said, following his gaze. "I'm sure she would have." She stood up, making Mamoru look up at her.

"Where are you going?"

"I need to check on something backstage." She smiled. "Don't worry, I'm not leaving you without protection." Her eyes went to look behind him, making him turn. Michirou Kaioh was walking towards them, and then sat on Setsuna's vacated chair.

"How did I not know about this?" Rei asked looking in the direction of Mamoru's table, who was now sitting beside one of the guest performers that night.

"Maybe your spies have been slacking off," Usagi said. "Being stingy with the payments does that."

"Did you know about this?" Rei turned to her, ignoring her last comment.

"He told me about being friends with Setsuna Meioh the other day," she replied. "How long that's been going on, I have no idea."

"And maybe being friends with her explains how he's on speaking terms as well with Michiru-san," Ami added. "It's too early to tell if they're friends too."

Usagi's eyes went to Dr. Urawa who sat beside her friend and was talking another doctor sitting beside him. She had not told Ami about the time she saw him and Michiru Kaioh together. After her last conversation with her about their "mission", if it could be called that, it started to sink into her the magnitude of what they were trying to do. Her resolve to protect Hotaru was still intact, but to include Ami in all this was not fair to her. Usagi understood her friend's motives, but she couldn't let Ami put herself in danger for her sake. She would still need Ami's help, but for anything else that she could possibly find out on her own, she'll have to manage alone. And since she couldn't come up with a concrete explanation—yet, of what she'd seen between Dr. Urawa and Michiru Kaioh, she decided to keep it to herself for the time being. But he had definitely been on more than speaking terms with her when she saw them that day with Mamoru. That thought brought back memories of how evasive he had been about the topic. So much for wanting to clear things between them. If he wanted to keep the air of mystery, then she wouldn't bother with it anymore. He clearly would not be forthcoming with answers, or anything else for that matter.

"Everything seems to be going well."

Mamoru cast a glance at the woman beside him and then turned his attention back to the ballroom. "Until the roof falls over our heads, I guess."

"Oh, come now," said Michiru. "Surely this dour mood isn't only because of impending doom."

He turned to look at her. She wore her signature calm and cool smile, looking back at him. "Is this your way of making light of the situation?"

"Every beginning has an ending," she replied. "It's a path we all take, even now. What matters is the journey, how we've made the most out of it. Gave it meaning."

"I've heard that you're a poet as well. I've never really cared much for it. So I hope you'll forgive me if I don't really get what you're saying."

She let out a small laugh. "Why didn't you talk to her? At the bar. I don't believe it's part of the act."

"What, your superpowers can't tell you that?"

"I don't know of any superpower that can give you the answer."

He was silent for a few moments. "I don't know. I get why she's with Seiya now, but what if it's more than that? What if.." He shook his head. "I feel like I can't talk to her without telling her everything. But if I do…" He let out a sigh and then turned to her. "Just so we're clear, I blame you. You and your friends."

She smiled. "It was your choice to make, Mamoru-san. And I'm sure if you had a chance to redo it, you would have made the same choice."

His eyes went to Usagi. "Yes."

"Whether the time we have is long or short, we have to make every moment count." She straightened up in her chair. "So stop sulking. That's what I'm trying to say. Let's dance."

"Look," Michiru said when they reached the dance floor. "It's clear to everyone that this is the last place you want to be. And since you'd be uncomfortable dancing with Setsuna, you have me as your partner instead."

"I see," he nodded. "And supposedly, the reason I'm still here is for the pleasure of your company?"

She smiled at him. "That's a nice way of putting it."

"Where's your date?"

"Around."

"I guess she's not the jealous type." His eyes went over the heads of the people in the ballroom. Haruka was tall for a woman, just a few inches shorter than his 6'1" frame. But with him dressed as a man, that made it a bit difficult to spot her in a crowd. And then his eyes landed on Seiya leading Usagi to the dance floor.

"Let's just say that we trust each enough to know where we both stand," she replied. Mamoru's eyes turned back to her. "Just because you can't tell her why you're here doesn't mean you can't tell her how you really feel."

Usagi eyes scanned the whole ballroom area from where she stood near the doors, hiding away from the direct lights that illuminated the area. As soon as Seiya left her side to perform, she ducked out to the ladies room so that Seijuurou Ginga would not catch her off guard. She cringed at the memory of how his eyes had gone over her body when they met earlier. It made her feel like she was wearing a lot less than the silver metallic sleeveless dress she had on. Though she was surprised at first, she was glad when Seiya's hand went protectively to her waist during the exchange of pleasantries. But so as not to appear rude, she had agreed to one dance with him. One she had managed to avoid by staying at Seiya's side or being surrounded with her friends. Their table was empty now. She sighed in relief when she saw Seijuurou dancing with Michiru Kaioh. That should keep him distracted for a while, she thought to herself as she slowly made her way to their table.

"I believe you owe me a dance."

She stiffened at the voice and slowly turned around. Mamoru held out his hand out to her.

"Owe you?" She asked. "As part of the act, you mean?"

He shook his head. "No. Not an act. I'm not playing anymore."

Unlike their earlier encounter at the bar, his voice was gentle and yet it stirred something deep within her. His dark blue eyes were both intense and soft as they focused on her.

"Please, Usagi?"

Quietly, she placed her hand on his and let him lead her onto the dance floor.

"Are you happy, Usagi?"

She looked up at him.

"If I know that you're happy," Mamoru went on. "I can manage to stay away."

She frowned. "Stay away? Are you going somewhere?"

"Let's just say that I won't get in your way."

"Where's your date?"

"Don't change the subject."

"Why do you always get to decide what I do? What I feel? Is it really that hard for you to just ask me?"

"I'm asking you now."

"Doesn't matter. It seems you've already made a decision about me without asking me first."

Thoughts rushed through her head. Dr. Sato had mentioned names of the doctors she wanted him to meet. Doctors not from Japan. She remembered the time when he first left for America all those years ago. Was he actually leaving again? She remembered the dull ache she felt when he left then without even saying goodbye. Sure, they weren't actually friends then but she was sure she felt something more than that now. If he was asking her, did that mean he was giving her the choice this time?

"If go—"

"Stay." Her hand clutched the lapel of his tuxedo jacket. "Please."

Neither said a word for some time. Then, Usagi felt Mamoru's other hand let go of hers and then slowly found its way to her waist, enveloping her. Tentatively, she let the now free hand go up to rest on his shoulder, her other hand going up as well from its previous position on his chest.

"You're very tall."

She felt rather than heard his laugh, making her even more conscious of their close proximity. She kept her head low as she felt heat rise to her cheeks.

"Yes," he replied. "It has its uses. Though inconvenient at times."

Usagi tried to listen to the song. Was it ending? Have they reached the middle part yet? She had a feeling of trepidation for when it reached the end, when they had to stop.

"I'm sorry, Usagi." She looked up at him. "About the other day. About Setsuna."

"So it wasn't an act?"

"It wasn't all an act."

"You accused me of spying."

"That part was an act. I got a bit carried away, I'm sorry. I suppose I should have told you about her," he went on. "I should have known you would find out about it from Seiya. I guess that's why you kept asking me about my date?" She nodded. He looked into her eyes and took a deep breath. "The truth is…"

"I guess this is the part where the two of you are supposed to make up?"

Startled, Usagi took a step back from Mamoru. They turned to look at Seiya, his eyes going from Usagi to Mamoru. It was only then that she noticed that the song had stopped playing. She felt Mamoru's hands let go of her, and then turning fully to Seiya, his expression a mask.

"Exactly," Mamoru replied. "And to show that there are no ill feelings between us," he held out his hand to Seiya. "To keep up with appearances."

Usagi watched as the two men shook hands firmly. She looked around her and saw the curious stares directed at them. Turning back to the faces of the two men in front of her, she had her doubts about the supposed good will between them.

"Thank you, Mamoru-san."

He nodded. And without looking at Usagi, he left them and made his way back to his table.

"Where does this leave us?" Seiya asked Usagi. He had led Usagi nearer to the center of the dance floor when the next song started.

"What do you mean?"

"In the eyes of everyone here," he replied as he scanned the room. "You've made up with him. The guy who was supposed to be your date. Your reputation is safe, and mine too, I suppose."

"I guess that means we're all friends again."

"It leaves me on the outside. The intruder. I'm starting to wonder if his intentions really were altruistic. He did it to protect you," he added when Usagi opened her mouth. "From me."

"It was my idea, Seiya. Though I have to admit that I didn't really think it through then, but I did it because I thought I was protecting you."

He smiled. With the hand in which he held her hand up, he pulled it close to rest on his chest. "That's what I admire about you the most. You think of others first, before yourself. Always."

Her eyes went from his face to her hand on his chest. She scanned the area around them, and sure enough, some eyebrows were raised at Seiya's gesture. And then her eyes locked with Mamoru for a moment, until he got up and left the table. She cleared her throat. "Seiya, I… people will think…"

"I want to them to think what I feel for you, right now. I want more than your friendship, Usagi," he went on before Usagi could speak. "My intentions have been clear since I got back, even before I left the hospital. At least I hope they were, to you."

Her eyes went to the hand resting on his chest. She could feel his rapid heartbeat under her own trembling hand. It struck her how badly she had used him. She knew where it would all eventually end because he was right. His intentions had been evident enough, and she had taken advantage of it to find out about his recovery, and his connection to the Tenous. And now that she had to end it, people had gotten hurt in the end.

"Usagi?"

"Seiya," she said, unable to look up as the tears threatened to come. "I…"

"I'll understand if you might not be feeling the same way, right now. But, can you at least me know if there's any possibility at all in the future? That I can hope? It's one thing you've taught me."

"I'm sorry. So terribly, sorry." She looked up at him, blinking back her tears. "I do care about you. But as a dear friend. It would be unkind to—"

"Is it because of him?"

"No." There was no mistaking whom he was referring to.

"I've seen how he looks at you."

There was a hint of accusation in his voice and she lowered her eyes.

"I don't think I need to remind you that he came here with a date, your manager."

"I don't know what he's doing with her. I've seen them together, and I've seen you two together. It's different."

Usagi shook her head to clear her thoughts. She needed to focus on Seiya now. "What he does is his own business. What I feel for you has nothing to do with him. Because I do care for you, I don't want to give you false hopes."

His hand let go of hers, and the one on her waist let go as well.

"I hope," she began when he remained still just looking at her. "That someday you'll come to forgive me. And if I have lost your friendship, I hope that I can gain it back, someday." Without deception, she added thoughtfully. She noticed that the song had ended, and some people were leaving the dance floor.

He held out a hand to her, his expression neutral. "Thank you for the dance, Tsukino-san."

He frowned when he saw the table empty coming back from the men's room. So far, either Setsuna or Michiru had kept him company at the table since his first trip from the bar earlier. This had effectively prevented either Ayumi or Natsumi from approaching him or dragging him to either the dance floor or to meet other people. He scanned the crowd and saw Seiya at the bar talking to Natsumi Ginga. He took that as an assurance to sit by himself at the table.

"Looks like your dates have deserted you."

Mamoru turned to see Usagi pulling the empty chair beside him, and then sat down. "Seems that way." He straightened up and leaned back, trying to appear relaxed, letting his hand fall to his side.

"Who is it supposed to be?" She asked, her eyes on the dance floor.

He followed her gaze. Michiru, his dancing partner, was now dancing with Haruka. Setsuna, the one who kept him company at the table, was standing near the bar surrounded by a few men, one of them Seijuurou Ginga. "Do you know," he replied. "I'm not really sure." He stiffened when he felt a warm soft hand slip into his. He clasped it and then looked down to make sure it was real.

"I think we've put on a good show."

He looked up to face her and saw the tentative smile. He swallowed. "Yes. Even though the spectators were held in a bit of suspense, I think we pulled it off." Neither spoke for a few moments, hands clasped together under the table. Some of the hospital staff passed by their table throwing amused glances at them. Finally, Mamoru straightened up and took a deep breath. "What do you say if we make a hasty exit while the going's still good, Usako?"

Her smile went wider. "I say lead the way, Mamo-chan."

Not letting go of her hand, he led her to the exit. His sole reason for coming was to protect Usagi from whatever danger Michiru predicted would happen. If she was willing to go, he saw no reason to stay a minute longer. He thought for a moment if he should inform Setsuna or Michiru, and then changed his mind. Between the four of them, especially Urawa, they would probably figure out where he'd gone.

There was a heavy downpour when they got out of the hotel. Usagi wasn't sure to be annoyed by it or be grateful. The sound of heavy rain didn't make much room for conversation even after they got into his car. For the first few minutes they were just trying to pat themselves dry and keep warm before heading out of the parking lot. But when Mamoru finally drove off, Usagi found herself unusually shy to start a conversation. It was as if she was too aware of him now that they were alone together after the events of the evening. She sensed that he felt the same way, what with his start-stop attempt at making small talk. Somehow though, they managed to agree to go someplace to get warm and have a cup of hot chocolate. It would be the longest 40-minute drive of her life.

Usagi kept her eyes on her passenger window, though she could hardly see a thing because of the poor visibility brought about by the storm. They were passing through a ravine. She could still remember the picturesque view when she passed by this area earlier going to the hotel, sitting at the back of Urawa's car. There had been a view of the ocean and the sun had just set, making little diamond-like reflections in the water. She was shaken our of her reverie when she heard incessant sounds of a horn becoming louder.

"What is that?"

"I don't know." Mamoru squinted his eyes as he looked ahead.

And then Usagi saw it. Two bright lights coming at them, swerving to the left and then to the right, the horns becoming louder.

"Car... car!"

Mamoru stepped on the brake and drove his car to the side of the mountain, the driver's side absorbing all of the impact until it finally came to a stop. He turned to Usagi. "Are you okay?"

Usagi's knuckles were white from gripping the door side handle. It took a few deep breaths before she could respond. "Yeah. You?"

"I'm okay." He reached down to unlatch his seatbelt when his eyes caught something outside. "Oh my god..."

"What?" Usagi turned as well and her heart sank. There was now a wide gap in the railing and Usagi could already imagine what they would find there.

"Usagi, move." Mamoru said quickly. "My door's blocked."

With fingers still shaking, Usagi unlatched her seatbelt and got out of the car. Both of them were quickly drenched as the rain was still pouring down heavily.

"Stay here. Call an ambulance." Mamoru said to her as he ran towards the railing.

Trying to shield his eyes from the rain, Mamoru could still make out the outline of the mini bus that lay on its side with one of the headlights still on. It was at least a hundred feet down and he could hear faint cries of help. Carefully, he tried to make his way down trying to hold on to shrubs, rock, and the slippery path.

As he came nearer, flashes of past memories came into his head. A car lying on its side. The smell of smoke and fire burning his lungs. The feeling of being trapped. He shook his head to clear his mind and tried to focus on what was in front of him now. He could hear the sound of pounding from the inside. His eyes sought the door and saw that it had been bent near the handle. Most likely jammed. The front of the bus had collided with a tree which had prevented further descent. He could hear the panicked voices of children inside. He climbed up on the bus and tried to pry the windows open but it didn't budge. His heart constricted when he saw the terrified faces of the passengers inside, hands banging at the windows from the inside. Looking around him, his eyes caught sight of a large piece of rock nearby. He got down and brought it back with him. "Stand back!" With his hands, he gestured the people inside to move away from the window, and pointed at the rock in his hand. It took three attempts before he finally managed to break through the glass. He felt a rip in his sleeve as he tried to clear away the sharp edges. He heard movement behind him and turned around to see Usagi drenched and barefooted walking towards the bus.

"The ambulance is on its way!"

"Usagi, what are you doing here?!"

"I want to help!"

"It's dangerous!"

"I smell gasoline. There might be a leak somewhere. We need to move fast!" She came closer.

"Stay there. I'll get them out."

She came forward with outstretched arms to receive an unconscious boy, about 6 or 7 years old. There was a nasty gash on his right arm, leg, and on his head. Without even thinking it, she felt warmth flow from her and into the boy that she almost dropped him.

"Usagi!" Mamoru called out. "Here's another one. I think her arm's broken."

She nodded and gently laid down the boy. The next was a girl, around the same age. Usagi was relieved to find that she was unconscious. Willfully this time, she let it flow again before setting her down. When she looked up again, Mamoru was pulling out a woman. She looked shaken, but otherwise did not seem to be seriously hurt.

"Kamata-san's not moving!" The woman exclaimed as she got down. "I think he's dead!"

"We'll get him out," Usagi said to the woman. "My name's Usagi. What's your name?" She forced the woman to look at her.

"Miho. Miho Araki."

"Araki-san. My friend over there, he's a doctor. I'm a nurse. But we need your help to get these children to safety."

Araki nodded. "There's 12 of them. Kamata-san is our driver. He said something about the brakes—"

"Usagi!" Mamoru called out. She went to him and was handed another boy who was clutching his bloodied arm. She let out another surge flow to him before putting him down near the others. Her foot almost slipped as she felt a wave of dizziness come over her. She shook her head and went back to the other woman still staring at the bus.

"Araki-san," she got hold of the woman. "Please look after them." Araki nodded mutely and went towards the children lying on the ground a few feet away.

When Mamoru handed her the ninth child, Usagi staggered backwards but managed to keep herself upright.

"Are you okay?" He called out to her.

"I'm fine. Just slipped."

He took one more glance at her before getting inside the bus to help out the last passengers. When he got to the window, the woman he helped out earlier was there to receive the little girl in his arms. "Where's Usagi?"

"She's down there," she replied.

He handed the last two children to her and then went back inside towards the driver's seat. It was just as he feared. The man was slumped to his side, and held on his seat by his seatbelt. There were broken shards of glass on the side of his face. He let out a breath when he felt a pulse. It was weak, but it was there.

With Araki's help, they managed to get the driver out of the bus and laid him down near the rest of the passengers. Then his eyes fell on Usagi who was leaning heavily against a boulder. He rushed to her side. "What's wrong."

"Nothing." He breath came in gasps and she felt warm in his hands despite the freezing rain. Something clicked in his brain and he looked at the children. Those who were awake were crying, but otherwise seemed not as serious as when he had taken them out of the bus.

"Did you do this?" He asked her in a low voice as he held her up to steady her.

"Do what?" She held on to his arms, clutching at the sleeves of his jacket.

"That boy. I saw how bad his injuries were when I passed him to you, and the rest of them too."

"Is he alive?" She pushed him aside and she kneeled beside the unconscious driver. He watched as she checked on the bloodied face. And then he saw it, the faintest glow transfer from her fingertips to the man's body. When Usagi tried to get up her knees gave way.

"Stop it!" He dropped to his knees and held her by the shoulders. "This is what it does to you?"

"I want to help." Her voice was barely above whisper now. He looked behind him and saw Araki busy trying to comfort the children, a few feet away from them.

"Not like this." Unable to put much resistance, he carried her to a nearby tree farther away from the rest. "Stay here." He set her down. "They'll be okay." He cupped her cheek. "You'll be okay."

Usagi caught his hand as he was leaving. "Your arm. It's bleeding."

He looked at the blood on his hand and turned it slightly. It was coming from the rip in his sleeve. He shook his head. "It's okay. I'm fine."

"I can…"

Before he could pull his hand away, he felt the same warm sensation flow into his wounded arm just like that first time which already seemed like a lifetime ago. The next thing he knew Usagi collapsed into his arms.

AN: And that's the end... of the 2nd arc ^^ Final arc should be around 7 chapters, and I plan to complete that by December. This year.

I think it's pretty obvious now what'll happen between our fav characters from here on. No more second guessing, that much I can say. But. These two have major trust issues, and Mamoru has been keeping secrets from Usagi.

I felt that these two needed to get together in this chapter. But the reconciliation still seemed a bit rushed to me. Thoughts?