Chapter Text
Seiya couldn’t believe what he saw as he looked around the classroom. It was as if the girls had forgotten they were friends or any of the hardships they endured. It was exactly how Setsuna described it to the Starlights the night before. His thoughts began to drift back to that day.
After she witnessed the behaviors, Sailor Star Fighter turned to Sailor Pluto in disbelief, “what do you mean they have not awakened? It is as if they don’t know each other. They acted like strangers on the street.”
“They died protecting this world,” Sailor Pluto explained to her. “The Maboroshi no Ginzuishou allowed them to be reborn but they have lost their memories of each other.”
“Is this why the Princess sent us to Earth, to help them in their battle and protect the planet until they are able to do so themselves?” Sailor Star Maker asked as she turned her attention to the other Starlights.
“We should be home protecting our princess not babysitting a planet after an attack!” Sailor Star Healer exclaimed as she became agitated.
“The planet is defenseless right now and it will remain that way until they begin to recover their memories,” Sailor Pluto explained to the trio. “How long it will take is unknown. But as you are aware, it is only a matter of time before this planet is under attack again. Would you really leave it defenseless?”
A yawn from Usagi snapped Seiya’s attention back to the present. The teacher droned on about some topic Seiya paid no attention to. It looked as if Taiki was the only one remotely listening to the lecture. Seiya acknowledges it will to be a long dull day. He tries to form a plan to talk to Usagi after school even though Yaten and Taiki had told him to not talk to the girls for a day or two until they were able to contact their own princess. Seiya has a hard time with this plan since he misses Usagi and they had been through a lot together. He couldn’t help it but sigh once more. He was anxious for the last bell to chime.
************
The woman with the large butterfly wings looked at the two other women before her, one was dressed in black and the other dressed in red.
“We have our orders,” the woman in black spoke. “The search will begin with the Earth Senshi since they were all present during the last battle.”
“We begin today,” stated the woman in red. She turned to the woman with the butterfly wings. “I know just the place to start.”
************
The last bell chimed. Seiya sighs in relief. He gathers his belongings and stands up. Usagi is standing up to leave as well. The timing was perfect. Until he realized Yaten and Taiki stood next to him. There was no way he could talk to her now. He racked his brain for a way out of it and couldn’t come up with anything.
Usagi left the classroom by herself. Minako and Makoto had already left on their respected ways. Usagi tried to find Naru and Umino but she figured they already had plans.
As Usagi switched her shoes by her cubby hole something seemed off. She felt like she was forgetting something important but she didn’t know what it was. Something is nagging her. She sighs as she makes her way out of the front door and to the school gate. The week is half over and she doesn’t have any plans for the weekend. She has a few friends but no boyfriend. As she walks out of the front door she feels queasiness in her stomach. She places a hand on her stomach and decides she is hungry. She would have a snack when she returns home. A noise makes her look up.
A dark haired woman with large colorful butterfly wings stands before her. “I’ve been waiting for you Sailor Moon. It’s time we chat.”
“Who… who are you?” Usagi asked as she took a step back. Usagi assumed it was a youma like the ones she heard about on television. It looks like something out of the Sailor V game.
“Of course. I haven’t introduced myself yet,” the woman said as she pushes a few loose strands of her indigo hair to the side. Usagi notices the large golden bracelet around her wrist with a purple jewel. “I am known as Sailor Heavy Metal Papillon.”
Usagi’s anxiety continues to grow as the woman takes a few steps forward. “What do you want with me?” Usagi askes as she feels the urge to stand up to the woman. She didn’t know where these feelings came from. Part of her felt like she could stop her yet none of this made any sense to her.
“Don’t play dumb with me!” Sailor Heavy Metal Papillon yelled at her. “I know who you are!”
Usagi looked at her confused, “I’m just a high school student. I don’t know who you think I am.”
Sailor Heavy Metal Papillon feels her anger rise, “if that is how you want to play it, fine!” She raises both of her arms in front of her face. The purple and green gems on her bracelets sparkle.
Usagi recognizes those bracelets but she didn’t know where she had seen them before. This realization causes her to freeze in her tracks.
A bright light flashed between the two of them; the light had nearly hit Sailor Heavy Metal Papillon but she moved just in time. Usagi took a few steps back. She felt like she should run but a part of her kept telling her to stay and do something. What that something was she didn’t have a clue.
“You,” Sailor Heavy Metal Papillon said with anger in her voice as she looked at the three. “I should have known you would show up.”
“Standing in the darkness of the night…”
“Dashing through the air of freedom…”
“Three sacred shooting stars… Sailor Star Fighter!”
“Sailor Star Maker!”
“Sailor Star Healer!”
“Sailor Starlights, Stage on!”
"Sailor… Starlights…” Usagi said quietly. Her head is spinning. Again the events before her were familiar but she still couldn’t grasp why. It is beginning to frustrate her.
Sailor Star Fighter turned to Usagi and said, “Odango, get out of here!”
"Odango? What the heck kind of name is that?” Usagi began to fume at her saviors. “I have a name you know!”
Sailor Star Fighter couldn’t help but smile as the scene reminded her of the first time Usagi was called Odango. “Usagi, get out of here!”
Usagi froze. This person called her by her first name without any honorific. How could she not remember this person when she clearly knew her? The more she stared at her the more the senshi seemed to be familiar.
“Fighter! Pay attention!” Sailor Star Maker shouted as she deflected an energy blast.
"We have to protect her!” Sailor Star Fighter shouts as she prepares her own attack against Sailor Heavy Metal Papillon.
“She isn’t our princess to protect! She is choosing to stay here at her own risk,” Sailor Star Healer stated. “We are supposed to watch over Earth but no where were we told to stand around and be attacked!”
“Princess…” Usagi murmured as imaged flashed before her eyes. She saw herself dressed in a flowing white dress with a crystal floating between her out stretched hands. “What is happening to me…” Usagi said as she raised her hands to her forehead. She couldn’t get rid of the image of her in a white dress out of her mind. She collapsed to her knees. Her mind is racing. She saw other girls dressed in various colored flowing dresses.
The sight of Usagi collapsing to her knees distracted Sailor Star Fighter just long enough to avoid dodging another attack by Sailor Heavy Metal Papillon. The attack sent her flying back into a tree, conveniently by Usagi.
Sailor Star Fighter winced in pain as she started to push herself away from the tree. As much as she hated to admit the truth behind Sailor Star Healer’s words, she has pay more attention to the adversary than Usagi otherwise she would be too injured to even try to protect Usagi. But she had to find a way to get Usagi out of harms way so she could battle freely.
Sailor Star Fighter decided to plead with her one more time. “Odango, you have to get out of here!”
Usagi looks over at Sailor Star Fighter but it was as if she was looking through her. Her eyes are in a daze. It is as if she didn’t hear anything she had said or was paying attention to anything going on around her.
“Star Sensitive Inferno!” Sailor Star Healer shouted as she launched her attack. Sailor Heavy Metal Papillon easily dodged the attack. “I don’t remember them being this difficult!”
“Usually there are three of us fighting,” Sailor Star Maker stated. She gathered up her energy as she prepared her own attack. She had to buy Sailor Star Healer and Sailor Star Fighter some time to plan their own attacks.
“The great Sailor Starlights from the Kinmoku Star System, what a joke! No wonder your own princess lost her starseed in front of you!”
Sailor Star Healer felt her anger flare up. “Don’t talk about our princess!” She yells as she charges at Sailor Heavy Metal Papillon at the exact same moment Sailor Star Maker fired her own attack. Sailor Star Healer didn’t stand a chance avoiding the oncoming attack.
Sailor Heavy Metal Papillon laughed at the image before her. “You’re making my job too easy! Maybe I should just sit back since you are doing a great job of attacking each other!”
Sailor Star Fighter takes a few steps forward and forces herself to ignore the throbbing pain in her back. She needs to check on Sailor Star Healer.
Usagi feels like she is losing her mind. She had been in a similar situation to this before and she has to help them but she didn’t know how she could. She is just a high school student.
“It’s time I ended this!” Sailor Heavy Metal Papillon said as she gathered energy in her hands preparing for a large attack, her jewels bracelets flashing.
“No!” Usagi shouts with an outstretched arm, a crescent moon appearing on her forehead. It is glowing, Feathers flew throughout the air. Her Juban school uniform transforms into a flowing white dress with large angel wings attached to her back. She gestures with her hands and a red and white staff appears before her. The staff emits rays of golden energy which were directed at her adversary.
Sailor Heavy Metal Papillon takes several steps back as the light becomes more blinding than the second previous. She escapes.
************
Sailor Heavy Metal Papillon appears before the others frustrated at the events that unfolded. She couldn’t believe she ended up awakening her powers instead of collecting her starseed.
“It seems as if the Sailor Starlights are protecting the Moon Princess. It will make it difficult to collect her starseed,” stated a young woman dressed in a black dress. “We will have to take a different approach to her.”
“I agree with Sailor Phi,” said the woman next to her in a red jumpsuit. “All you have to do is go after the other Senshi that do not have protectors.”
“I know the next senshi to go after if you will allow it Sailor Chi.”
Sailor Chi turned around to see two more women approaching them. “You have my permission Sailor Lethe. The sooner we find Chaos, the sooner we can complete his great work.”
************
The Moon Princess is surrounded by feathers as her dress transforms back into her school uniform. She collapses to her knees and is barely able to keep herself upright. She uses her arms to prop herself up. A golden brooch appeared between her hands. Hundreds of images flashed across her mind. She remembered her recent battle against Queen Beryl. Nearly all the senshi died to protect her. The Maboroshi no Ginzuishou allowed them to be reborn once more. The Sailor Starlights were unaffected. She didn’t have her memories until a few moments ago which made her wonder if any of the others had their memories. Her thoughts immediately went to Mamoru. She couldn’t go through this alone again.
The Sailor Starlights de-transformed back into their school uniforms. Taiki and Yaten exchanged glances. If Usagi had her memories back than that meant she could begin to protect her own planet. They also knew it would be next to impossible to keep Seiya away from Usagi at the moment.
Usagi jumped a little when she felt a hand on her shoulder.
“Odango, are you all right?” Seiya askes, his voice full of concerned.
Usagi feels her heart race as she becomes aware of Seiya’s presence. She turns to face him and Seiya is surprised by her expression. There is a lot of sadness in her eyes. “Yeah,” Usagi mumbled a response. “I have to go,” she said as she picked up her schoolbag from the ground.
Seiya is speechless. He isn’t sure of what had happened. He had thought Usagi would be happy to see him now that she had her memories back. It wasn’t until she left that it began to dawn on him that she was upset because she must realize the other don’t have their memories back. This would mean Mamoru might not remember her either. Seiya was upset at first that Usagi didn’t remember him. He figured Usagi felt the same way he had felt earlier today. He knew he would see her again tomorrow and they would talk then.
Taiki approached Seiya first. “We need to move from here before a large crowd forms,” Taiki said as he gestured his head to right. Seiya turned his head in that direction and became aware of the others beginning to gather. They were still celebrities to many of the students in the school even though they haven’t performed in ages.
************
Usagi ran as fast as she could. She had to see Mamoru on the off chance he remembered her. She wasn’t sure why but the Sailor Starlights seemed to have their memories. She was in too much of a hurry to find Mamoru to ask them what happened and why they weren’t affected like the others. Maybe it was because she wasn’t their princess? She pushes these thoughts to the side as she focuses on getting to Mamoru’s apartment. Her thoughts drift back to when he didn’t remember her after the first time she fought Queen Beryl. She felt like she couldn’t go through him not remembering her again.
She arrives at his apartment building just as he is walking out of the front door. Her heart is pounding in her ears as the anticipation grew. She stares at him with hopeful eyes, expecting to see his smile and the twinkle in his eyes. Her heart beats even faster. She closes her eyes for a brief moment in an effort to calm her nerves and her racing heart. She opens her eyes a moment later and he is nowhere to be seen. She frantically looks around for him and she still can’t find him. It isn’t until she turns around she sees the familiar green blazer in the distance. She feels the tears well up in her eyes. He walked right past her and didn’t say anything.
It was the same as before. The only difference was that she has the Sailor Starlights. She has to talk to Ami, Rei, Makoto or Minako to see if any of them had their memories. She would probably be met with the same response but she has to know for sure.
Makoto lives the closet to her present location. She wiped a few stray tears off her cheek. She hopes someone else will remember her.
Twenty minutes later, she was outside of Makoto’s apartment building. She rang the buzzard for her apartment and waited for a response. Nothing happened. She waited a few minutes. At that moment Usagi realizes Makoto probably wasn’t home. She walks away from the apartment building with her shoulders slumped. She wants to see on her friends. She decides to visit the shrine. She knew Rei would be there.
It didn’t take long for Usagi to reach her destination. She didn’t see Rei at school so it was possible she might have her memories. What if she was attacked at her school this morning or afternoon? She had to find out. It was as if her legs were walking on auto pilot. She slowly walked up the steps she had ascended countless times. Once she reaches the top of the hill her eyes search the people in the area. She immediately recognized Rei’s school uniform and quickly made her way over to her. Once she was ten feet away from her she realizes the girl’s hair was too short. It isn’t Rei. She slumps her shoulder in defeat. This is not her day.
“Can I help you?” A cheerful voice from behind her asked.
Usagi turned around with a large smile on her face. There was no mistaking that voice. “Rei-chan!” Usagi exclaims as she took a few steps forward.
Rei was taken aback by the blonde’s reaction to her. She was confused when she asked the next question, “do I know you?”
The smile immediately vanishes from Usagi’s face as she realizes Rei did not remember her either. She stands there for a moment in a daze not sure what to do. It is just like the last time she fought the Queen from the Dark Kingdom.
“Miss…?” Rei said as she waited for an answer.
Usagi flashed her happy smile and said, “It was a long time ago.” She heads for the shrine exit without another word. On the inside she feels like crying but she has to be strong.
Usagi climbs down the steps of the shrine and decides it was time to head home. Everywhere she went no one remembered her and it seemed pointless to try somewhere else. She would only be met with more disappointment. Her thoughts race, her only allies at this point are the Sailor Starlights. A new enemy has appeared and she is without her closest friends. She is without her lover. The enemy is a Sailor Senshi as well. She is so deep in her thoughts she didn’t realize who was standing before her at the bottom of the shrine staircase.
“Princess…”
One word snapped Usagi back to reality. Setsuna. She has so many questions to ask her.
“Come with me and I will explain everything,” Setsuna said before Usagi could ask her a question. “I believe it would be best if we sat down.”
Usagi walked next to Setsuna quietly for a few blocks. She recognized the shops in the area and tried to figure out where they would end up. They walked a few more blocks until Setsuna broke the silence. “We are here,” she said as turned to the right and opened a door to a small café. A woman greeted the duo and led them to a booth. She quickly took their order and left.
“Why did everyone forget?” Usagi asked Setsuna. She couldn’t wait any longer. She needs some answers.
“The last time you fought Queen Beryl… everyone died,” Setsuna began to explain. “The Maboroshi no Ginzuishou allowed everyone to be reborn. Just as before no one remembers being a senshi until they are awakened. You had asked to be a regular student the first time you fought Queen Beryl and I am assume the Maboroshi no Ginzuishou repeated the wish. I believe your mother made the same wish when she died against Queen Beryl.”
“My mother?” Usagi asked confused. Before she could say anything else the waitress returned with hot water and a tea bag for Setsuna and a milkshake for Usagi. She placed them on the table and walked away.
“Yes, Queen Serenity,” said Setsuna as she ripped open her tea packet. She placed the bag in the water and let the string dangle outside of the teacup. Usagi took a sip of her strawberry milkshake. “It was believed it would be easier for everyone to adjust if they did not remember their past lives. Because the Dark Kingdom appeared everyone had to be awakened and remember their past selves in order to protect the Earth. The Queen believed it would cause too much pain to be torn between two lives unless it was necessary. She never thought the crystal would be used two more times to allow everyone to be reborn. I am concerned at some point the crystal will no longer allow it to happen.”
“So basically the Maboroshi no Ginzuishou might stop working?” Usagi asks; her eyes widened. She relied on the crystal to transform into Eternal Sailor Moon and without the crystal she would be powerless. She wouldn’t be able to protect everyone even though they continue to put their lives on the line for her constantly.
“I don’t think the Maboroshi no Ginzuishou will stop working all together but I am worried about the affects it could have in the future,” Setsuna said as she blew on her tea to cool it down before she took a sip. “This ability should not be used lightly.”
“Why do the Sailor Starlights remember everything and the other Sailor Senshi don’t?” Usagi asked while she stirred her milkshake. “They were fighting along the side the rest of us. They seem to be unaffected … but I didn’t get a chance to talk to them before I left school…” Usagi said as her voice trailed off.
“The Sailor Starlights were never reborn like the other Sailor Senshi. When the battle ended the Sailor Starlights were alive,” explained Setsuna. “The Sailor Starlights were not a part of the Silver Millennium. I am not sure what kind of affect it would have on them since they are from another Solar System. It was probably for the best.”
“Why do you have your memories?” Usagi asked as she took another sip from her milkshake. If Setsuna has her memories she hopes someone else would have their memories as well. She hadn’t seen any of the Outer Senshi.
“As the Guardian of Time, I can never lose my memories because it is my responsibility to safeguard the Time Streams. If I were to forget my memories I would not be able to monitor the current events and intervene when I needed to,” explains Setsuna as she took another sip of tea.
The waitress returns and askes them if they needed anything else. Setsuna told her they didn’t need anything and she quickly left again. Setsuna didn’t say anything for a moment as she studied Usagi’s body language.
“What about Mamo-chan?” Usagi asked; her voice barely above a whisper. Usagi needed to ask about him but at the same time she was afraid of Setsuna’s answer. She tries to remain hopeful he will gain his memories back soon since he did not remember her earlier.
Setsuna frowned before she spoke. She knew it would upset her. “Like the other Senshi, Mamoru-san would have to awaken as well. I am not sure when it will happen.” She tries to change Usagi’s focus to the attack that occurred earlier today at her school.
“It seems that someone was targeting you earlier today. The battle needed to happen in order to allow you to be re-awakened. Something is about to happen, something with potentially lasting consequences.”
“What do you mean?” questions Usagi as her attention is drawn to Setsuna’s last words.
“It is not clear at this time but I know we will need all of the Sailor Senshi. Please be patient Princess. It will only be a matter of time before all of the Sailor Senshi will have their memories back,” said Setsuna as she brushes a few strains of emerald hair to the side. Setsuna drank more of her tea before she spoke again. “I’m not sure if there is any way to speed up the return of their memories.”
Usagi sighed as she thought about what Setsuna had just told her. She wanted everyone to remember as soon as possible but she wasn’t sure of how she could help them remember nor did Setsuna. When she tried to help Mamoru remember her in the past she was unsuccessful.
************
Usagi slowly walks down the street with her schoolbag behind her head. She wasn’t in too much of a hurry to go back home. She was only half paying attention to where she was walking. She bumped into someone.
She immediately felt embarrassed and apologized to person. When she looked up to see the face, she realized she bumped into Mamoru. Her heartbeat speeds up as she tries to think of something else to say to him. She said the first thing that came to mind. “Do… do you know what time it is?”
Mamoru laughed as he checked his watch. “That is an interesting way to ask someone what time it is by running into them,” Mamoru teases her. “It is 5:15”. Mamoru walked around Usagi and continued on to his destination. He didn’t give her a second glance.
Usagi remains frozen at this spot for the next few moments as she tries to process what just happened. She wants to say something else to him but she isn’t sure what she could say. She watches his form in the distance. A few tears escape her eyes. She quickly tries to brush them away before she turns back around and found another familiar figure standing in front of her.
“Odango…?” Seiya said as he took a few steps toward her. He wanted nothing more than to comfort her at the moment. What happened next Seiya didn’t expect. Usagi ran past him and kept going. It was Seiya’s turn to stand their frozen. He was unsure if he should follow her or not.
By the time he turned around she was several blocks ahead. Seiya quickly walked to the intersection to wait for the light to change. By the time the light changed Usagi was no longer in view. He had lost her. Seiya frowned as he thought about the sadness on Usagi’s face. He would have to wait until tomorrow to see her at school. He didn’t want to bother her at home and he wasn’t sure if that was where she was even going at the moment. He assumed she wanted to be left alone.
************
Usagi drops her schoolbag on the floor as she enters her bedroom. Luna is lying down on her bed napping. Luna starts to stir as she heard Usagi move around in the room. “You’re not going to believe the day I had Luna!” Usagi said as she plops down on the bed next to her. Luna meows. Usagi raised an eyebrow at her. “Don’t tell me you forgot your memories too and can’t talk.”
“…Usagi-chan?” Luna said quickly as she watched Usagi’s facial expressions.
Usagi genuinely smiled for the first time in a few hours. “Finally I have someone I can talk to. I was attacked at school by another Sailor Senshi… Sailor Metal something or other.”
“You were what?” Luna exclaims as her eyes widen. “Are you okay? What happened?”
“Some senshi showed up at the school and she was after me for some reason. I didn’t remember anything and didn’t know what she was talking about. The Sailor Starlights showed up and helped me out. Somewhere along the way I received my memories and my tiare appeared along with by brooch. She vanished and I left to see if anyone else had their memories. Luna, I think I’m the only one.” Usagi said as her voice became quiet.
“I don’t understand what is going on,” Luna said as took a few steps closer to Usagi. “Why is this happening all of the sudden? Are you okay Usagi-chan? Where you hurt?”
“No. But I think some of the Sailor Starlights were. I ran… after the battle…to find everyone else?” Usagi said as she rubbed the back of her head.
“You what?” Luna exclaimed as she raised her voice. “They helped you and then you deserted them?”
“But I’ll see them at school tomorrow,” said Usagi meekly. “Mamo-chan doesn’t remember me. Rei-chan doesn’t either.” Usagi sat quietly for a moment before she spoke again. “Setsuna-san and I talked after I left the shrine and she said something big was going to happen but she wasn’t completely sure what it was.”
“How could you leave that part out! That is the most import part. Setsuna-san was giving us a warning that we have to be cautious. Did she say anything else?” Luna asked as she was all ears.
“I think she said something about the Maboroshi no Ginzuishou not being able to constantly revive us in the future and Queen Serenity didn’t plan on the crystal being used that way,” Usagi said as she tries to remember everything that was discussed earlier.
“It looks like we have a new enemy,” Luna said she looks down at the bed. “We are going to need the other Senshi to help us. At least we have the Sailor Starlights to help us.”
Usagi nodded her head. Her eyes land on the star shaped locket on her dresser. She walks over to the locket to listen to the tune one more time. She knew it was going to be a difficult few weeks. She just didn’t realize it was going to be this difficult.