Part II: Chapter 30

Epilogue

Serena's heels clicked elegantly against the marble steps as she descended to the bottom level of the palace. She wore a bright white strapless dress, set with silver embroidery that snaked along the hem and pooled in the train of her skirt. Her golden hair was up, elegantly pinned within the curve of her diamond, white gold tiara. Simple diamond earrings graced her ears though her neck and shoulders were bare. She was dressed in her best, ready for the festivities of the evening to begin.

Darien waited for her at the foot of the stairs, dressed in a sleek black tuxedo complete with a red sash. He wore a white gold crown on top of his jet black hair that was set with various gems. His face broke into a smile as he reached for her hand. "My queen." He said as he bowed to her. "Our guests await in the ballroom though the others haven't arrived yet."

"Don't call me that." Serena chuckled as she slipped her hand into his. "With you I'm not a queen, I'm just Serena… your wife."

He pulled her against his chest as his free hand went to her waist, holding her. "My beautiful wife…you look stunning."

"And you're as handsome as ever." Serena replied as their lips met in a sweet kiss.

"Cut it out you two." Raye laughed as she strolled into the foyer, dressed in a flowing red dress and shiny black heels. "The party hasn't started yet."

Jadeite was beside her, wearing the rich navy-blue uniform befitting an officer of the Earth. His blonde hair was slicked back from his face, giving him a more formal look than he was used to. He bowed to Serena and Darien politely. "Queen Serenity, King Endymion."

"Mommy!" A little voice cried as the doors opened. A small child, appearing to be about four years of age rushed into the room. His hair was an unruly mess of thick black locks but his eyes, a vivid green were wide and mischievous. He rushed to Raye, wrapping his arms around her leg as another child with soft pink hair rushed after him, dressed in a white dress with a similar design to Serena's. Her hair was gathered into two pigtails, the edges curled just above her shoulders.

"Not so fast Rini." Darien remarked as he bent and scooped up the pink-haired child, much to her chagrin.

"Daddy, we playing tag!" She protested as she struggled to free herself from his grasp. "You cheating Damien!" She shouted as she pointed at the boy.

"I think that's enough games for now." Serena said as she smoothed back her daughter's hair from her face. "We have a party to go to."

The doors before them opened again, this time Lita walked in on Nephrite's arm with twin boys beside them appearing slightly older than Rini and Damien. Behind them Mina and Kunzite followed, a little white-haired girl at their side, holding Kunzite's hand. Mina's golden gown was stretched tightly over a swollen belly that she cradled tenderly. Amy and Zoisite trickled in behind them, Amy cradling a small bundle of blue blankets with Zoisite's hand on her waist, leading her. All of them bowed and curtsied to Serena and Darien who greeted them warmly with hugs and polite handshakes.

"Are we late?" Amara asked as she entered in a sleek gray pant suit. Michelle was beside her, dressed in a teal floor length dress with a modest slit that exposed part of her leg.

"Not as late as we are." Nikko said as he walked in behind them, Femi on his arm. They beamed at the group before them.

"Never thought I'd see the day." Raye whispered to Mina who giggled. "At least he's over Serena."

"The celebration is about to start." Serena said as they joined them, ignoring Raye and Mina. "Thanks for coming everyone."

Barrick was the last to enter with Idra at his side. His usually sour expression had diminished as he put a protective hand over her small belly. She beamed at Femi who gave her a wide grin and a thumbs up, pleased that at last, they had started their family.

"No Rhea?" Femi whispered to her as the two embraced.

"Not today." Idra said with a shrug. "Maybe next year."

"What are we celebrating daddy?" Damien asked out loud as he looked at Jadeite. Instantly the chatter in the room died as everyone turned to the boy.

Jadeite went to one knee beside him, a slight grin stretching across his features. "Well, a long time ago there were some bad people who were doing bad things in our galaxy. They wanted to control everything and everyone. There were lots of battles in the galaxy but the last and the greatest was fought on the Moon-"

"On the Moon?!" The little girl beside Kunzite and Mina chirped. "People lived on the Moon?"

"I lived on the Moon with my mother." Serena said as she smiled at the girl. "Actually, all the planets in our solar system… Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Neptune, Uranus and even Pluto, all of them had life, even their moons."

"What happened to them?" One of the twin boys asked Nephrite curiously. "Do people still live there?"

"No, the fighting did a lot of damage to those planets and moons, making life there unable to continue." Nephrite replied. "But all the soldiers from all those planets came together to fight on the Moon with the Sailor Scouts."

"And you stopped them?" Damien asked as him as his eyes widened.

"We did, together." Serena answered as she linked hands with Darien. "All of us in this room."

"But there was also someone who saved us. Two someones actually." Amara said as she crouched beside Damien. The other children left their parents, joining Damien's side to hear more of the story. "A very special girl named Hotaru sacrificed herself so we could live, she had a very powerful weapon called the Silence Glaive. The bad people fear it so, they knew how strong it was."

"It had the power to end entire worlds." Zoiste said as he joined Amara. "But also, give new life."

"So Hotaru sacrificed herself, using the power of the Silence Glaive to send us all here to Crystal Tokyo." Michelle added with a sad smile.

"And a man named Fabian…" Nikko's voice broke as the attention in the room turned towards him. "My brother… sacrificed himself so the evil wouldn't be sent here too."

"And so we celebrate their sacrifices every year." Mina finished as she gestured to the buzzing room on the other side of the door. "With a big celebration to remember them."

"I think it's time all of us join the celebration." Serena said as Darien offered her his arm and the guards before them opened the double doors to the ballroom.

"Let's go and celebrate Hotaru and Fabian." Darien said as he picked Rini up. The young girl nodded as the other children returned to their parents and followed the King and Queen into the loud ballroom.

Amara and Michelle waited, hanging back until they all left. As Amara took Michelle's arm she noted how quiet she had grown. "Hey, you okay?" Amara asked Michelle as she noticed Michelle's dark eyes, shining with un-shed tears.

"It's still hard to talk about her." Michelle admitted as she let out a shaky breath.

Amara opened her mouth to respond but she froze, hearing the sound of heels clicking against the marble floor behind them. They both turned as Trista approached, wearing her dark sailor uniform. Her usual Garnet Orb was nowhere to be seen but instead she held a bundle of deep purple blankets.

"Trista." Michelle said as she gave her friend a nod. "We haven't seen you—"

"Since we arrived in Crystal Tokyo five years ago." Amara finished for her as she dropped Michelle's arm. "What is that?"

"A gift." Trista said as she stopped just inches from them. She brought the bundle of blankets into view, pulling back the folds of fabric to reveal a tiny face surrounded with thick black hair.

"Hotaru." Michelle breathed as she reached for the bundle, taking the child into her arms.

"Her sacrifice wasn't going to be permanent." Trista whispered as she heard the celebration begin before them.

"Does that mean we'll have to fight again?" Amara asked worriedly. "She only appears when there's danger."

"There's always danger." Trista replied sadly. "Darkness doesn't lay dormant forever. She'll be needed again but not soon, not before she's had a chance to grow and enjoy life."

"We'll be old then." Michelle commented.

"This is Crystal Tokyo." Trista said with a smile. "You won't age that much… but it must be said that when the darkness returns, it won't be your fight, not entirely at least."

"The children?" Amara asked as she glanced behind them. The twins were still in view, chasing Mina and Kunzite's daughter and Rini as they all giggled, ignoring the formalities of their parents.

"It'll be their time." Trista said with a nod. "But they'll have all of you to guide them."

"We'll raise Hotaru together. We were thinking about adopting actually…" Michelle said as Amara put her arm around her shoulder. "And we will train her."

"Train them all." Trista said as a dark portal opened behind her, spinning hauntingly in the middle of the foyer. "There is much evil out there, and much stronger than the Negaverse." She remarked as she headed for the portal. "They'll need to be ready."

"Wait." Michelle said as she glanced at her. "What about you?"

"When you see me again… you'll know it's time." Trista said with a nod. She glanced once more at the child who cooed at her, struggling against her purple blankets. She gave her a sad smile and then stepped into the portal, disappearing.

"We should warn the others." Amara whispered as she glanced at the baby in Michelle's arms.

"Not tonight." Michelle said as she cradled the child, glancing back at the party. "And maybe not tomorrow. They've earned their peace and their happiness. Let them enjoy it a while longer."

"And what will we do?" Amara asked as she crossed her arms. "Let them be surprised?"

"No." Michelle said as she shook her head. She glanced down at Hotaru who yawned widely and curled into the crook of her arm. "Trista told us what to do. We'll open a school. We'll train them and others how to fight so that when the time comes, we'll be ready."

Amara bit her lip as she studied the child who settled to sleep against Michelle. "Okay." She agreed. "We'll prepare the next generation of sailor scouts."

"Not scouts." Michelle said as her features relaxed into a smile. "Senshi."

*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/

*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/

*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/

*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/

*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/

*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/

Please take a moment to leave a final review of this chapter, the story as a whole, or just reflect over your favorite parts. I really enjoy reading everyone's thoughts and while I can't make everyone happy, I like to see that my story has reached different types of people.

I can't believe after five years, this story has finally come to a close. I plan to take a break for a little bit then start another story with fresh content. I've been a huge fan of sailor moon since I was a little girl and even now, as an adult, I still am! Feel free to flood my inbox with stories you'd like to see come to life. I may select one.

Thank you to all who have been faithfully reading (and reviewing) for the past five years, or two, or even those that are new readers. I appreciate the time and investment you've all taken into reading something that I worked so hard on. I'm not a professional writer but it's something that I enjoy and would love to do full time one day. Reading everyone's reviews and messages really do keep me inspired to keep writing and improving.

Take care everyone and have a happy new year!

Lu