Sailor Moon Fan Fiction / Yu Yu Hakusho Fan Fiction / Dragon Ball/Z/GT Fan Fiction / InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ The Unexpected Seasons. ❯ Enter the.... dogs? ( Chapter 10 )

Back in the SM dimension (It's only been about a three hours there.)

Setsuna walked into the police station and asked to speak to the captain. She had thought about the upcoming situation and thought it would be a good idea to try to get the police to cooperate with the Senshi.
"Yes, I would like to speak to the captain." She told the officer at the front desk. She was asked to wait in an office for a moment, and was escorted in by a young blonde officer in about her mid-twenties. Setsuna was told she would be helped in a moment, and sure enough, the captain came into the office about a minute later.
"Hello, I'm Captain Teichou. How can I help you?" He smiled and shook the pretty womans' hand politely, then sat behind the desk.
"My name is Meioh Setsuna, and I am here on behalf of someone you met three days ago... Sailor Pluto?" The look on the Captains face was enough to make Setsuna smile inwardly. She really liked this guy. "She and the other Senshi were hoping that perhaps you, and the rest of the police force of course, would be willing to work with them in the future. She asked me to talk directly to you because she was impressed with the way you kept the secret you saw a few days back. She also asked me to tell you that Saeko and the children are healthy now, and Akira is very happy about that. They should be back in the time you gave them, with the twins."
The Captain smiled at the thought that his detective and his wife were all right and the other thought that Sailor Pluto had been impressed by him, then got a shocked look on his face at the rest of what she had said. "Twins? They are having twins? And what is this about the Senshi needing us to work with them?"
"Had. Where Saeko and Akira are, the timeline goes much faster. Three days here are the equivalent to nine months over there. In that dimension, the twins were born a week ago and Saeko and Akira are enjoying the little family feelings, as well as getting in their honeymoon." She laughed a bit at the thought of them getting in a good vacation while training for the upcoming battle, which reminded her of her real reason for this visit and brought her back to reality. "But back to business. You see, Saeko was born with the ability to read minds and see the future in her dreams, and she has foreseen a great enemy coming very soon. Even worse than the last one the Senshi fought. They will need every advantage they can get, and that will include having the police force as allies." She reached into the purple purse she carried, which went with the purple suit she always wore. She and her cousin had always loved the same colors, which amused her to no end. She pulled out the card she had made before coming here, and handed it to him. "They asked me to request that you think over their offer, and contact them at this number when you have an answer." She saw the look on the Captains face, and waited for him to catch up with her. "Sailor Pluto will be the one taking your call, since she was put in charge of the goings on in this dimension."
This got his attention. "What do you mean, in this dimension?"
"Well, you see, in order to prepare for the coming danger, most of the Senshi have gone to the same dimension that Saeko and Akira have, so that they could get stronger in a much shorter time. They are currently training with the heroes of that world to learn their techniques, which are much different than the ones they have." *I hope I'll be able to catch up with them.* "The leader, Sailor Moon, left Sailor Pluto in charge of protecting this world while the others train."
"But what happens if the enemy attacks before the others get back, before it is supposed to?" He was a bit concerned about this.
"That is why I was sent here. In the event that the evil force attacks before it was predicted it would, Sailor Pluto will need someone to stall until she brings the others back here. She hopes that the police force would help in that area." Of course, she wasn't planning on mentioning the person who had come out of the time stream to help her to him before she told her Princess.
"But why would she ask us, who don't have any abilities like those of the Senshi? Compared to them we are powerless."
"I know that one reason is that every minute would count, no matter who it is that is stalling, but I was not told more than that. Do you have any more questions?"
"Yes, as a matter of fact, I do." He could see that she wasn't telling him everything she knew, and wondered why. "Why would Sailor Pluto send you, a civilian, to talk to me, instead of coming to me directly?" He watched her eyes spark with both amusement and also a bit of surprise.
*He's a smart one... I've got just the answer for this question though...*
"You really think she could have walked in here without attracting unwanted attention?" She smiled slightly at him. "The reason she trusts me with this information is because Saeko recommended me to the Senshi. I am her cousin, and she knows I am dependable. I won't panic or tell this to anyone I shouldn't."
*Okay, not catching her there... Oh well, I'll just find everything out later on.* "I guess that's all I have to ask right now. I will call Sailor Pluto later after I've talked to my higher-ups."

"All right then, I will be leaving now. I need to get back to running my own errands instead of those of my friends. Goodbye, Captain Teichou. It was nice meeting you." *And it will be very nice to see you again...* She shook hands with him quickly, then left before he could ask anything else. She walked out of the precinct and down the street to avoid being followed, and then into an alleyway to jump into a portal.
Captain Teichou stared at the card the woman had handed him, which was imprinted with a symbol that looked like a P but had a line at the bottom to make it also look like an L. The number there was one like he had never seen, the area code a different combination of numbers than any he was used to. *I wonder where it leads to... No matter, I will find out sooner or later.* With that, he left the office and got back to work.

Back where our favorite Senshi are... Sunday morning.

"NO! I don't want to! You can't make me!! Leave me alone!!!" Usagi's voice rang throughout the house.
"Come on Usako, you know we have to do this sooner or later." Mamoru said with a gentle (and coercing) smile.
"Nuh-uh! I choose later! Now go away!" She buried back under the covers and shrank away from him, even though she knew he was right.
"Tsukino Usagi, get your butt out of bed right now and get dressed! We have to go, today is our first fight in the air!!" This was the argument heard by all in the house and agreeing shouts echoed through the hallways to Usagi's room. (AN: What did you think I meant there? Heh, I so had to do that.)
"OH ALL RIGHT I'M UP! Honestly, I don't know why I even bother to TRY to sleep so I don't look UGLY when my boyfriend and closest friends don't even NOTICE!" She unraveled herself from the blankets and sat listening to the answering shouts and stretching for a moment in her pink bunny and moon cotton pajamas, then grabbed her stuff and headed for the bathroom. "I'm up and taking a shower now, so STOP YELLING AT ME!!"
Mamoru smiled and walked out of her room and into his, then went to get a shower for himself. *God, I hope she never changes... Its too fun to wake her up like that...*
Ten minutes later, everyone was done and out at Goku's place... (AN: YEAH RIGHT!!! THIS IS WHY THIS STUFF IS FAKE! F.Y.I., no girl in the world can get showered and dressed in under 10 minutes! If you meet one who does, odds are she's an alien.) except for Usagi, who had gotten up twenty minutes after everyone else. (AN: Heh, had to do that) Luckily, she was used to rushing, and just like at home, she got there right before the others started.
"I guess some things never change..." Ami said with a small sigh.
"Yes but would you really want them to?" Makoto replied.
"What do you mean? Is this a normal occurrence?" Piccolo asked.
"Unfortunately, what you've seen of Usagi's behavior is not normal, and was most likely set off by recent events, like Saeko and Akira's problems. This is the way Usagi shows up at school everyday, and it is probably the only reason she is in fighting shape, because she loves sweets, and she can't stay away from that which she loves. Take this for example... back in the Moon Kingdom, when our enemy Beryl attacked, Mamoru died protecting Usagi, and she killed herself to be with him in the afterlife. When Beryl attacked in our time, she kidnapped and brainwashed Prince Endymion because she always wanted him to rule by her side. Usagi used almost all of the power of the Crystal to heal him, nearly dying in the process, but when Beryl kidnapped Mamoru again, and we went to the Negaverse headquarters, Usagi took several hits from brainwashed Prince Endymion before freeing him from Beryl's control. Then when..." Ami stopped upon seeing that everyone, including said Prince and Princess, was staring at her. "I guess I made my point..." She said that with a blush and shut up.
"Wait a minute, wait a minute. You killed yourself?! I thought Beryl killed you after she got me." Mamoru turned and looked down to see a sheepish smile on Usagi's face.
"I... Well... You know I could never live without you! Goddess, don't you know you ARE my life?" (AN: Sorry, couldn't resist adding this... Drama, dontcha just love it?)
"Enough! Are we going to start fight-n-flight training now or what?" This came from Gohan, who recognized an argument when he saw one coming.
"I think that you should get started soon, but first you might want to have breakfast. The first time you fight in the air drains your energy a lot... God, remember how much I ate after my first flying fight?" Akira, Saeko and the babies had just come out to watch the fights, and Akira decided to give them some pointers. "Go on inside and eat something first you guys, it'll help."
Usagi had a wide awake look on her face now, liking the idea of breakfast. "Oh-kay! I'm starved! Let's go!" So they all went inside, to see that ChiChi had anticipated this and started breakfast already. Half an hour later, everyone was full and back outside for training. They had decided while they were eating to go up in groups, some fighting in the air while some fought on the ground. Usagi and Mamoru were the first up (AN: Heh, pun not intended), facing Goku.
"Okay guys, you guys go at the speed you want, and then I'll match you. This way, you wont tire as easily. You wont be stressing your maximum. After I see how good you guys are, Master Roshi will teach you the way he taught us a long time ago. Akira went through the training pretty quickly, so you guys shouldn't have any problem with it. See, he had us wear 50 pound turtle shells all day every day, and do a whole bunch of weird chores while wearing them. Unfortunately, the turtle shells that we wore would probably drawn unwanted attention for you guys, so I am going to switch them for weighted clothes... and weighted bathing suits for when we do the water training. But, the rest will be explained later. For now, we fight. So, into the air you two. Do you want to use your Senshi forms, or your regular ones?"
"We were talking about that and we think we should try our weakest forms first, then see how it goes from there. So, for now we are staying regular." Usagi said as she floated into the air, followed by Goku and Mamoru. Everyone was wearing training outfits similar to Goku's, but in their own colors. Mamoru wore a black and white jumpsuit with a red shirt underneath and red and black sneakers, and Usagi wore a blue and white jumpsuit with a red shirt underneath and red and blue sneakers, her locket attached to the front of her belt at her waist. She had tied her hair up into loops (AN: Think the episode of the lady in the lake when Mamoru was under Beryl's control and the statue of the two lovers... the way the girl had her hair). All three of them stretched a bit and then got into protective stances. Goku smiled at them and said "Go!" Mamoru and Usagi attacked as one, flying at Goku at about half-speed and punching with their fists next to each other. Goku ducked and got them both in the stomachs, then flew away to give them breathing time and to wait for their next attack. Unfortunately for him, he missed the looks on their faces when he punched them, looks of surprise but not of pain, and was attacked as soon as he turned back to look at them. The punches to the face and stomach came as a surprise, since he wasn't expecting them to have taken the hits he'd given them so well, and he fell a bit before catching himself. The ones watching from the ground gasped and then grinned. They hadn't expected that. The pair in the air (AN: Hey I'm a poet and I didn't know it!! I make a rhyme every time!! Ok, I'm done.) smiled slightly and waited for him to catch his breath and attack them. Goku smiled and wiped the dribble of blood Usagi's punch had caused from the corner of his mouth. "Not bad. You caught me off guard. You hid your speed from me at first didn't you? And you took my hits so well."
Usagi smiled wider. "Well, dodging attacks from the monsters we fight at home all the time kinda makes you get really good at moving fast... and taking those hits makes you able to grunt and bear them. Plus, Mamo-chan and I have been training in the quiet times, so that makes us even better. We don't hold back with each other." At that the Senshi on the ground started murmuring to each other about how they hadn't known.
"That is a good thing to do." Goku took a deep breath then came at them again, using the speed they had just used. They saw this and dodged, just barely avoiding the hits. Usagi sent a thought to Mamoru, and he agreed. She drew Goku away from Mamoru, both of them punching and kicking as they flew, getting faster and faster. When Mamoru was sure Usagi had all of Goku's attention, he made a rose and flung it at Goku's back. Usagi disappeared for a moment then returned to Mamoru's side, and watched as Goku turned and caught the rose. He held it up and looked at it, and was about to ask what they were trying to pull when the stem of the flower grew longer. It wrapped itself around him as it turned into a vine. Soon he was tied up, but wouldn't be pricked because Mamoru had made sure there wouldn't be prickers. "Hey, what's going on? No fair!"
"Heh, they didn't call me the Rose Prince in our last life for nothing you know... Don't worry, you won't get scratched... I made sure there wouldn't be any thorns on the vines. Wouldn't want to cut you."
"You never said he couldn't use his roses... He makes them with his energy, so we figured it was fair."
Goku grinned. They were smart, and they knew when to hide their abilities and when not to. "Not bad you guys..." He used is own energy to disintegrate the vine. "That would buy you more time if the person doesn't have energy at your level or higher. But you should have attacked me while you had the chance."
"And get hit when we got close? We knew you'd be able to break out of there anytime you wanted... We just wanted to show you what we can do. Of course, I haven't shown what I can do yet, but hey, the moon isn't out and I'm not transformed." Usagi looked over at Mamoru, who nodded in agreement.
"Are you ready to be serious yet?" Goku's voice echoed through the air. "Come on, fight me like I was some threat to your life or something. I want to see your true strength." As he watched his opponents smiled fiercely and he wondered if he would regret that. Granted, they weren't as strong as him if he went anywhere beyond Super Sayain, but he didn't want to have to go that far anyway. "I am getting tired of games, I still have to judge the others strengths. Just come at me fully now."
"Alright. Usako, ladies first. We'll take turns. Don't want to push you to become Super Saiyan, now do we?" Mamoru said with a bit of a smirk.
*How did he know what I was thinking?!* Goku thought as he faced off against Usagi. They came at each other with fists and feet flying, punches and kicks being taken and blocked at the same time. Goku soon found out that Usagi hadn't been kidding about taking hits. She took them like a pro, and gave back the same. Goku smiled at her strength as he blocked a kick, then grasped her ankle and swung her through the air, letting go and sending her flying. She stopped herself a moment later, and came at him again, but he shook his head. "No, that's enough. I know how much you will need to train. It's Mamoru's turn now. You did really well."
She smiled and stopped. "Did I surprise you?"
He chuckled. "Only a little bit. I imagine the people on the ground were more surprised than I was."
"Whoops! Didn't mean to show them my abilities..." She blushed a bit and floated back over to where Mamoru was, avoiding looking down at her friends.
"Why not?" Goku followed her to talk without yelling. "Why wouldn't you want your friends to know how strong you are?"
"Goku, you see, when we started fighting the evil sent by Beryl, I was very... immature. My friends saw me as a scared little crybaby whose grades were way below average and who needed a mysterious man in a mask and tuxedo" She points over her shoulder at Mamoru "to save her all the time. They don't know that I have been training and paying attention during battle, watching the way they fight and using it myself during practice. Not even Luna knew about it. Everyone still thinks I am not that great during battle unless all of them are dead and I'm mad at the person who caused it to happen. And even then, I normally use the Silver Crystal to power myself up. And I didn't want them to see that I can fight well without those circumstances, because that would change their view of me. If they know that I'm more responsible, they will expect more from me. And I don't want to have to live up to those kinds of expectations."
"Well, I think that for now, it's all right to let the deception go. You have bigger things to worry about than how your friends see you." He ignored her look and sigh and turned towards Mamoru. "You ready?"
"Of course." They started, and it soon became apparent that Mamoru had been the one to train Usagi, because he was fighting the same way. True, the two didn't use one definite style, it was more like a whole bunch of techniques melted together, but they used what they had well. Mamorus' speed was, if anything, faster than Usagis'. About ten minutes later Mamoru disappeared for a moment then reappeared behind Goku, and brought his elbow back to hit his opponent in the head. Goku, caught off guard, fell from his place in the sky and hit a tree close by before regaining himself. "Okay, that's enough. I see what you need as well. The two of you go get cleaned up, if you even need to. I think I'll go against Rei and Ami next." This he said loud enough for everyone on the ground to hear, and the Senshis of fire and ice rose into the air, passing Usagi and Mamoru, who were headed down, on their way.
Rei wore a red and white fighting outfit with a purple shirt and purple sneakers, while Ami wore a blue and white outfit with lighter blue shirt and sneakers.
"Do you want to fight this way, or in your Senshi forms?" Both replied "This way." Ami went against Goku first. At first, she did pretty well; she avoided his attacks and got in a punch or two of her own. Unfortunately, Ami never was great at fighting, and she lost about five minutes into the fight. She held up well though, and only got beat because Goku knocked her unconscious for a moment.
"Whoops!" Goku caught the girl as she fell and patted her cheeks to wake her up. She came around slowly and blushed when she realized what had happened, pushing away from Goku and flying over to Rei as soon as possible.
"Sorry Goku, I guess I'm just not cut out for fighting... I'm more the brains behind our operation, I hang back and find the enemies weaknesses, and provide a foggy cover to help. I avoid fighting as much as possible."
"That's all right, Ami. You aren't bad. Just because you didn't last as long as Usagi and Mamoru, doesn't mean you aren't good. They are just stronger. But that can be changed. I know how much training you need. Now, you can stay up here with us while Rei fights me, or you can go back down. Which do you want to do?" Goku floated in front of her, waiting for a decision.
Ami looked thoughtful for a moment, then spoke. "I think I will stay up here. You did ask us to pair up against you, didn't you? I'm sure you will want us to team up against you after you have fought Rei alone, so there would be no point in going down to the ground only to come back up here in a few minutes."
Rei did a bit better than Ami, but she didn't last much longer than her. She attacked Goku quickly. Their fists and feet flew, punches and kicks being blocked more times than landing. Goku moved a bit too fast for her at one point, and got her in the stomach with his knee, with just enough force to knock the wind out of her. She held up her hands and gave up, not wanting to get really hurt.
She and Ami transformed immediately, and smiled at Goku. "Now the fun begins... We are allowed to use our powers, aren't we? See, the powers that Meatball Head and her lover boy down there have would be useless in a mock fight like this, but ours won't be." She would have continued talking, but Goku immediately answered.
"Fine by me. The more abilities you use against me, the better I can judge how much training you need." He smiled inwardly at the look that entered the raven-haired girls violet eyes. It was a look that said, "Yup, he's an idiot, he just signed his death warrant." She definitely was confident in her strength, which was good. It was Ami he was really worried about. She acted like she had no confidence in her abilities. "So, attack already."
Mercury cast her fog over the field, causing her and Mars to fade as if they weren't there. Goku decided not to try to sense them, relying on regular senses instead. Mars sent a flare of fire at him, which he dodged, but he got hit by the ice Mercury sent afterwards, slowing him down enough to get punched in the stomach by Mars. He noticed that their powers were complete opposites, fire and ice, but they seemed to complement each other in a fight against someone else. They worked well as a pair, showing their experience in fighting together. Goku chuckled a bit at having underestimated them, and put up a better guard.
The remaining time of the fight he protected himself and watched them attack, making mental note of where they could use more training. The combined fight lasted about five minutes, ending when Goku said he'd seen enough.

The rest of the morning consisted of the same type of training, everyone pairing up into teams, the most being obvious beforehand. Makoto and Minako, Haruka and Michiru, Hotaru and Chibi-Usa, Taiki and Yaten, Seiya paired up with Chibi-Chibi, Kurohyou and Akira teamed up because Saeko was going to team up with Setsuna when she came back, Sayuki with Deanna, and Akino with Hayakuro. The Outers did a bit better than the Inners, and the Seasonals did better than the Outers, coming close to the royal couple's skill but not that close, considering that in this lifetime the Seasonals didn't have any fighting experience. Goku then assigned everyone something to work on, and gave them each a turtle shell to wear on their backs. Setsuna showed up later that day, and let Goku test her the way everyone else had, with Saeko at her side. Everyone trained this way for a few months.[/size]

[size=12]9 months later... (Three days in the SM dimension)[/size]

[size=9]It was summer and everyone was out of school, enjoying free days but training all the time. On a Saturday afternoon a week after school let out, Setsuna approached the spot where her future King and Queen were training with a bit of regret. She hadn't wanted to do this, but with the coming danger she thought it only fair that they knew. "Usagi, Mamoru, may I talk with you for a moment?"

"Of course. We have plenty of time for you... Hah! Time, for you! Get it?" Usagi grinned at her own joke and looked at Mamoru to see if he would smile, which he did, before turning back to Setsuna. "What is it you need to speak with us about?"

"There are a couple things you need to know... First, another Senshi has come to help protect the timeline and our dimension. Her name is Sailor Omnius." She leaned back against a tree and started twirling her Time Staff in her hands nervously.

"Oh cool, a new Senshi? What's she like? What are her powers? How come I've never met her before and when can I?" Usagi asked curiously.

Mamoru asked his own question. "Why are you only just telling us this, when she's probably been around for months?"

"Well, she's very nice, I'm not sure what attacks she has but I know she's powerful, and the reason you haven't met her yet is because you were never supposed to. She is supposed to stay hidden in the time stream, like me. Not many people have met her, and the ones that did didn't live very long because they were all evil and she destroyed them. And the reason I'm only just telling you is because you will see her soon when I send you back to our dimension on a mission. I wouldn't tell you about her if you wouldn't pass by her in the Gate."

"A mission? What kind of mission could be so important that it would tear us away from our training?" Mamoru queried.

"I have been looking into the past to try to find out if you have family other than your parents, Mamoru... It was supposed to be a wedding gift later on. But since this new evil has shown up, I thought you might want to get to know them before you have to fight."

Mamoru was, to say the least, speechless for a moment. (AN: Heh, speechless plus 'to say the least' in the same sentence... I crack myself up sometimes... Ok, back to the story.) Once the shock wore off, he looked questioningly at Setsuna. "Well, did you find anyone?"

"What I found was a bit... confusing. And you might not like it... But here goes. The couple that died in the car accident that caused your memory loss weren't your parents. They kidnapped you from you real parents, planning on trying to get a ransom. Your real parents were well off owners of a shrine somewhere in uptown Tokyo. I saw the shrine, but I wasn't able to tell where it was."

Mamoru was shocked, again, and this time it took him a few minutes to get back from wherever it was his mind went to. Usagi waited for a moment, then asked, "You would't happen to know their family name would you? Rei might know where this shrine is, and she might be able to help us find it."

"The owner of the shrine is Higurashi Asami. She has black hair and blue eyes... Sound like someone we know?" Setsuna smiled a bit at how Mamoru was just coming out of his stupor.

"Huh? Oh, right. Yeah, she sounds like she looks like me. You'd think I'd be done being shocked by this kind of stuff wouldn't you?" He grimaced. "So, when do we leave for home? Are we taking the rest of the Senshi with us?"

"You leave in the morning, and no. Both of you are ahead of the rest of the Senshi, so we'll let them stay here and train some more. You need to go to the Higurashi shrine and see if you can find out whether or not you are related to them." She was yelling at herself mentally for doing this so much sooner than she should have, but she knew this was right. "Ask Rei if she knows where it is. I will meet you at the house in the morning."

That night, Rei wrote down the directions to the Higurashi shrine, and in the morning, Usagi and Mamoru said their goodbyes to their friends.

"But you can't go without us! We won't be there to protect you!" Came Haruka's voice from the entrance of the house.

"Don't worry Haruka. We'll be fine. I've been told that we will have others there to help us." Usagi turned her head in Setsuna's direction. "You know, I'm beginning to wonder exactly how many Senshi there really are that we don't know about... Anyway, we'll only be there for about a week there. By the time we get back, you guys should have caught up with us in strength." She grinned mischieviously at the annoyed looks some of the others sent her way, and watched as they faded. "We'll be fine." She looked at Chibi-Usa and Chibi-Chibi. She felt so attached to them both, which was understandable, considering one was her daughter and the other was well, her. "Will you guys be all right without me?" She was a bit worried.

"Don't worry Usagi. Everyone here will take care of us." Chibi-Usa said.

So, after a few more reassurances all around, Pluto opened the Gate and took them home, with Usagi peeking out to say one last thing. "Say goodbye to the others for us okay?" With that, the three disappeared and everyone went back to what they had been doing before.

[/size]

[size=12]In the SM dimension, right in front of the Higurashi shrine ten minutes later. [/size]

[size=9]"Is this it?" Mamoru looked at Pluto, who was planning on disappearing as soon as possible. "Yes it is. I had our new friends in the police department check it out for us. Welcome to the Higurashi shrine." She sighed slightly before continuing. "There is the woman I mentioned earlier living there, as well as her daughter, Kagome, her younger son, Sota, and her father-in-law. Her husband died a while ago; he was mugged and he fought back. The fight was three against one, not good odds for a middle-aged man... Either way, this is where I leave you. I need to get back to the gates and relieve Omnius so she can come here and watch over you... See you both later." With that the Guardian of Time backflipped into an open portal and disappeared.

"You know, I think she likes making big entrances and exits a little too much..." Usagi stated before turning to Mamoru. "It is about 3:30... Pluto said shes got a daughter about my age, so she should be home, or on her way. Would you like to go up and knock now, or wait for someone to walk in?"

Just then, a girl a little bit taller than Usagi with waist-length black hair and blue eyes walked by wearing a green and white school uniform with a red bow. She glanced at the couple standing next to the steps leading up to her place of residence, and did a double-take, stopping in her tracks. She walked to Mamoru and looked closely at him, then circled around him as if to study him. "Now this is freaky... You look exactly like my dad did when he was young..." Noticing the strange looks she was getting from both of them, she blushed and sweatdropped, then introduced herself. "Hi. I'm Higurashi Kagome... Who are you guys?"

Mamoru found that his tongue was too swollen to speak, which is why he was glad Usagi had come with him. She took over the introductions for him. "I'm Tsukino Usagi, and this is my boyfriend Chiba Mamoru. We were wondering, is your mom Higurashi Asami?"

"Yes, she is. Why?" She thought maybe these people were here for counseling, so she asked. "Mom is a counselor for teens. You must be one of her patients... I'm pretty sure she's home now. Would you like to come in?"

"Yes please. We have to talk to her. It's very important." Usagi sighed. *I dont want to lie to this girl, since she's Mamochan's sister, but we need to go inside to talk to her and saying he's her long lost brother probably wont get us in.*

Mamoru finally got his tongue to move, and whispered to her as they walked behind Kagome. "Usako, do you think it's true?"

"I don't Setsuna would lie to us Mamochan. After all, we are getting close to the end, we might as well do everything we need to before we die." Usagi grinned. "Though, if we do die I'll just bring us back again." This got a smile out of him, and she laughed a bit. "Well, if she is your mom, you should smile so you make a good first impression. You are so much cuter that way... Though I almost miss that scowl you used to call your face..."

He poked her and nodded in Kagome's direction to get her to shut up, and they arrived at the door just then.

Kagome turned around and saw that Mamoru had started smiling, and was again struck by how much he looked like her father. She was starting to have a sneaking suspicion about this, but said nothing about it. She led them into the living room and asked them to wait for her mother, then headed for her moms study. "Mom, there are a couple of kids here to talk to you. I'm going to head for the Feudal Era now, will be back in a few hours, I need to talk to Inuyasha about something."

Asami looked up from her desk and smiled. "All right dear, just try to come back in time for dinner so that you can get some sleep and go to school, all right?"

"All right Mom." She walked out of the room and was saying goodbye to the couple sitting on the couch as her mom walked in and gasped. "Mom, are you alright?" Her mom had paled on seeing a replica of her late husband and her eyes widened in understanding. "I'm fine dear. Go have fun with your friends, ok?"

Kagome knew something was up, but when her mom didnt want her to know something, she normally told her later on anyway. "Okay... Goodbye, nice to have met you." On her way past them, she 'accidently' brushed her elbow against Mamoru's. "Whoops! Forgot my bag. She reached into the closet near the entrance to the house and grabbed her bag, as well as her dad's old jacket, which she stuffed in. *Inuyasha will be able to tell me if I'm right or wrong.*

When Kagome was gone, Asami sat in the chair across from the side of the couch Mamoru was on, and looked at him with sad eyes. "Are you who I think you are?"

Mamoru replied, truthfully, after a moment. "I honestly don't know who you think I am. My name has been Chiba Mamoru since I was about five years old, when the car my 'parents' and I were driving in crashed off of a highway and I lost my memory. When I woke up, I was told that my parents had died in the crash, and they couldn't find any relatives for me to live with." He sighed. He hated to tell this story. "I grew up in an orphanage and moved out when I turned eighteen. I was told by a friend in an important position a few days ago that my parents hadn't died in the crash because they weren't my parents, that I had been kidnapped, and they told me that my parents had the family name Higurashi."

Asami's eyes grew brighter with every word, and she smiled slightly. "And now? Do you think your friend was right?"

"Well, considering your looks, that of your daughter's, and the fact that she said I look like her dad when he was in his prime, I'd say yes, I do think she was right. Unfortunately, there isn't really a way to tell unless we did a blood test..."

"Well, we'll just assume that you are my lost son then. And if we find out that you aren't, oh well, you will still be a part of my family." She smiled at him, and then for the first time actually noticed that there was a girl next to him. "Before I start asking you about all the details of your life, how about telling me who this lovely young lady is?" Her smile widened as she saw a slight blush on both of their faces.

"Uh, well, she's my girlfriend... Mom, I'd like you to meet Tsukino Usagi." He stumbled over the word Mom a bit, but continued easily when he saw that happy look enter in her eyes.

"Hi Mrs. Higurashi. Actually, I only came to be with him while you two introduced yourselves. I have business to conduct down the street." *Mamochan, you felt that surge of energy a few minutes ago too didn't you? I'm going to go check it out...* *No, don't go without me, Usako. The Senshi aren't here to protect you should you get into any trouble.* *You forgot about Omnius. I want to have a talk with her anyway.* *Well just don't go anywhere that doesn't look safe, got it?* *All right already! Sheesh... You'd think I was a little kid.* She kissed Mamoru on the cheek, then stood and bowed to Asami. "It was very nice meeting you. I will be back soon. Bye!"

"So, Mamoru, what have you been up to for the last decade and a half?"

Usagi giggled as she closed the front door of the house. *Like I'm going to go somewhere dangerous... Ha! I may be better with a lot of things since we started training and studying together, but I never go somewhere dangerous if I can avoid it. I just wanted to get out here so I could talk to Sailor Omnius... I only got a look at her in the shadows of the Gate, and I want to see her for real...*

Just as she reached the steps, the Senshi she was thinking about beckoned her from the shadows. "Princess? Where are you going?"

Usagi grimaced at the formal term, but smiled at the girl in front of her, though she still couldn't see her properly. "Sailor Omnius, I was coming out to look for you. I was hoping we could talk for a while. It seems Pluto was right about the Higurashis, and Mamoru is busy talking to Mrs. Higurashi. I dont want to interrupt their quality time, and I remember that Pluto said she was going to send you to watch over us, so I came outside."

Omnius smiled from her hiding place. She was wary of showing herself to the girl, because of the reactions she normally got when she went into the light. She didn't want to startle the girl.

Usagi walked towards the building on the side of the main house. "Come on, we can't have you standing out in the open, now can we? A Senshi standing on the steps of a shrine with a teenager will draw attention, especially when its a Senshi that hasn't been seen before. I'm pretty sure that there isn't anyone in that building." She continued on her way, and smiled when she noticed Omnius was following her.

For a moment, Omnius had thought she didn't want anyone to see her because of her... deformities. But she should have known better. She hadn't even let Usagi see her yet. She stayed in the shadows and waited until Usagi was in the building before following her.

"So, Omnius. Why do you stay in the shadows? Come over here so I can see you."

Kagome and Inuyasha landed inside the well just as Usagi said that. She noticed immediately that there were people in the wellhouse and motioned to him to keep quiet.

"Princess, the reason I stay in the shadows is so that you wont be scared from my looks. I am battle-scarred, many times over. I just--"

"Okay, first of all Sailor Omnius, you've gotta stop calling me Princess... no one knows me that way, and if someone heard you call me that they could start asking questions we don't want to answer yet. You visit Pluto occasionally, which means you must see stuff when at the Gate. You know what will happen soon, and you know what will happen later. Heck, you've probably even been there. Do you want the peace of the future to be jeopardized by something that happens now?" She waited a heartbeat, then continued. Anyway, I looked Queen Beryl in the face, no ones looks could really scare me after that."

"Heheh, I guess thats true, in the Silver Millenium she was horrendous... And she could only have gotten worse with age, especially a thousand years worth. Anyway, I'm sorry Usagi, I'll stop calling you Princess immediately. Do you really want to see what I look like?" She watched as Usagi nodded, then sighed. "Well, I can't very well turn you down. Just don't say I didn't warn you." She stepped into the light, revealing herself. She was about 5'4 and had shoulder-length, messily done black hair with the front half dyed a bright green. Her looks were oriental enough, but her skin was very dark. Her eyes were yellow, but the left one was half red, and she had a scar going down her left cheek. Her fuku was old and tattered, her front bow almost nonexistent, her skirt shredded at the bottom. What was left of her bow, collar and skirt were a light lavendar color and her ankle-boots matched. Her back bow was a different shade of purple. She wore fishnet stockings and gloves, and was missing the bottom half of her left arm. The glove tied off there. What was most surprising about her was the fact that she had wings, or, a wing and a half. Her wings were white with blue tipped feathers, but her right wing was disfigured. She waited for the shocked gasp from Usagi that came from all the other people she had graced her presence with, but it never came, and she looked up to see Usagi watching her with sympathy in her eyes.

"I don't know why you think your appearance would scare me... You are beautiful. You are missing a few parts, but that doesnt change what you really look like..." Usagi smiled at her. "Now, since you've gotten over your little problem, can we talk? I want to know what it's like for you to live outside of time."

Just then, Omnius sensed someone walking towards the wellhouse. "Usagi, we can talk later, but for now, please rejoin the Prince- I mean Mamoru. He is looking for you."

"Fine. Could you go to the Gates and check with Pluto how the others are doing?" She walked toward the door.

"Of course, right away. As soon as you are with Mamoru." She melted into the shadows when she stepped outside, and they bade goodbye to each other.

Kagome sighed in relief. I thought they were never going to leave... I wonder what that was all about..." She looked up at Inuyasha, who had a confused look on his face. "Inuyasha, what is it?"

"That Sailor Omnius person mentioned the Silver Millenium... For some reason that term sounds so familiar. I could swear I've heard it somewhere before... Anyway, we'd better get out there. You said your mom wanted you home by dinner time, and it almost is."

He grabbed her and jumped out of the well with her in his arms, and they walked to the house. She had him jump them up to his room, and she tied his hair back and gave him one of Sota's baseball caps to cover his ears. "Well, aside from the extremely outdated clothes, you look okay... Let's get back outside and walk in like normal kids okay?"

"Me and you, normal? Hah!

"Yeah well we should at least try to look it considering there are people we don't know here. Why else do you think I just added the cap and hair tie to your look? Anyway, lets go." She waited for him to grab her and jump outside, then straightened her clothes as she walked to the front door. "Inuyasha, please try to behave tonight? You know my family is used to you, but those people are still here, so we need to be careful."

"Alright already. Sheesh, would you stop? I know how to behave. Now let's go in before I change my mind about helping you with this."

She opened the door and called out. "Mom, I'm home! I brought Inuyasha with me too. Is it okay if he stays for dinner?"

"Kagome, that was a pretty quick trip. Of course he can stay. Hello Inuyasha." Asami looked up from the stove and smiled, then motioned towards the two sitting at the table beside her. "This is Mamoru and Usagi. Kagome already met them earlier."

He nodded in their direction, while Kagome said hi and they replied. He sniffed almost unnoticably, and his eyes widened as he caught Mamoru's scent. *Kagome, for once I think you are right.*

Asami turned the burner to low and walked towards Kagome. "Dear, there is something we need to talk about..." She sat, and gave her a look that said, 'You had better sit too.' "I think it's time to tell you the family secret."

*Uh-oh, do I want to know? It's obvious she's going to tell me what's going on, but I'm not sure I want to know now, after hearing that conversation between Usagi and a Senshi...* Kagome sat and looked at her mother.

"When your father and I first married, we were young, and just happy to be together. We had been married for about five months when I found out that I was two months pregnant. When the baby was born, we were overjoyed. We had five glorious years with that child. One day we were walking in the park with our son, and we had turned our backs for a moment, and when we turned back around the boy was gone. He had been kidnapped, and we were devastated. The police searched for months, but with no luck." She looked at Kagome with sadness in her eyes. "We were never the same."

Kagome was sad about the loss of a brother she had never known, but she wondered where this was going, until she remembered who else was in the room. "Mom, are you trying to tell me that Mamoru is that child? I mean, he looks exactly like Dad did when he was young, and Mamoru looks to be the right age..."

"Yes, Mamoru is the son we lost all those years ago."

"The doctors told me that my parents in the car had died, and I had gotten amnesia from the crash, so I didn't remember that they weren't my parents. If I could have remembered, I would have looked for them once I was old enough. I've been out of the orphanage for a couple of years now, so I might have been here sooner, had I known..." He sighed as Usagi reached out and covered his hand with hers. "Well, anyway, a friend of mine and Usagi's in an important position searched through old records and found out about the kidnapping. She knew how important it was for me to know about this before..." He stopped himself for a moment, then started talking again. "Well, she got the information to us and we came here as soon as we could."

"Before what?" Kagome and Inuyasha had both noticed his refusal to complete that statement, as did Asami, but they didn't ignore it as she did. "What were you going to say?"

"He was going to say how important it was for him to know about this before he graduates from college... He's studying to be a doctor, and so far the only people who are going to be there are me, and our friends."

"Why did your friend start looking for your family if everyone thought they were dead?"

Mamoru blushed a bit, as did Usagi. "Heh, well, you see... She said it was supposed to be a wedding gift in a couple of years, which is when we are getting married..."

"But some... circumstances have changed, and she thought it best that we get this done now. Anyway, Mamo-chan needed this. Believe me, I've known the guy for a few years, its safe to say that I'd know."

"Wait a minute here... You look like you are my age, and if you've been with my brother, who is about twenty-one if my math is correct, for a few years, that would mean you've been together since you were what, thirteen?" Kagome said with a bit of surprise in her voice.

Inuyasha blinked a few times, he knew that was the appropriate age in his time, but whenever Kagome heard of this type of age difference she acted shocked, which meant that it wasn't all that common here. He said nothing, but made a mental note to ask about it later.

The two blushed again, and Usagi spoke up. "Well, we weren't a couple back then... We sort of hated each other..." At the questioning looks she got from them, she continued. "He was always making fun of me, and so I always either ignored or yelled at him..."

"Yeah well I wouldn't have made fun of you if you hadn't thrown that test paper ball at me..."

"Well I didn't mean to throw it at you!"

"And what about your shoe that time you thought Motoki liked you?"

"You said anyone who liked me would have to be stupid or crazy or possibly both! How else was I going to react?" She realized what was happening and covered both their mouths with her hands, then laughed and talked again. "As you can see, there are a lot of unresolved issues there..."

"Well, I wonder which one Mamoru is?" Inuyasha spoke for possibly the first time since entering the house. "I mean, he said anyone who liked you had to be one of the two, so I wonder which it is?"

Mamoru grinned. "Oh that's easy. I'm crazy." He stopped smiling when he got an elbow in his side. "Usako, do you always have to elbow me? Can't you hit me upside the head or something? I'm starting to get black and blue you know."

"Well, if you'd stop being such a jerk, I wouldn't have to punish you." She couldn't help saying the last part with a flare since she was so used to using it in her Senshi speech. This caused her to giggle and him to chuckle, leaving the others in confusion.

"Now I wonder where that scene just now seems familiar from... Oh yes, that's the way you two always fight." Asami grinned. She knew that those two were meant to be together, and wanted it to happen. In her mind, it was happening too slowly. "I guess the tempers in this family are the same."

"By the way Kagome, when were you planning on telling me that you and Inuyasha were in the well house while I was talking to my friend?" Usagi suddenly turned serious. "I checked the building before going in there, and I felt when you came in, I'm just not sure how you got in there without me seeing you."

Mamoru looked at Usagi. *They got into the well house without you or Omnius noticing how they got in there? They must be really fast...*
*Or there is some sort of portal in there. You know, I just noticed that he's giving off the same vibes as the Four Generals did...* "You wouldn't by any chance happen to be a demon would you Inuyasha?"
He backed up nervously and shook his head. "Why would you think that?"
"Well, you see, for one, I can see auras, and yours is much brighter than most people, and I've only seen that kind of aura on the monsters that the Sailor Senshi fight. For another, you are sending off similar vibes as them. And for the third," she used her energy to knock the cap off of his head, "You were hiding your ears under there. No parent ever allows a kid to keep a cap on in the house, even if that person isn't his or her own child. And even if they did, they wouldn't let it stay on at the dinner table. Even if that would happen, why would you want to wear a hat inside, unless you were hiding something? Plus, I didn't see your ears on the side of your head through your hair. You had to have been listening to us somehow." Usagi grinned at the shocked looks she was getting.
"Now that is the side of you I want the others to see! The smart, intelligent side. If you would use those brains of yours around your protectors, they wouldn't put you down so much. Especially Rei. Do you know how she'd respond if she'd seen you figure that out?"
"Okay, One: That was very smart. Two: How did you get the cap off of his head without touching it? And Three: Are you talking about Hino Rei of the Cherry Hill Temple?" Asami stated that with a bit of a question in her eyes.
Usagi blushed. "I sort of manipulated my energy. We've been training for the past couple of months to be able to do that, and I still can't control it fully... And yes, we were talking about that Rei. She's one of our best friends, although the number of those has been growing lately... Why?"
"I'm just curious... Is she the one that told you about us?"
"Um, kinda... Our friend in that high position we mentioned said that she had found that I was kidnapped and you were still alive, but she didn't know where this place was. And she had put work off long enough, so we let her get back to her job and asked Rei if she knew where this temple was. We didn't tell anyone why we were looking for you, just that it was important to find you."
"I will have to thank her later..."
"Okay, so you two better start answering my questions." Usagi looked at them. "How did you get into the well house without my sensing it, and why is a demon hanging out with you?"
"Heh, to make a long story much shorter, I will say that that well is a portal to the Feudal Era, about five hundred years in the past, and I found this out when a demon pulled me through it. Inuyasha here saved me, and then another demon stole the jewel that we found out was in my body, the Jewel of Four Souls, which has a lot of power and all demons are after it. I shot the demon after it swallowed it, and it shattered, sending shards everywhere. Inuyasha and I are trying to find them and put them back together before the strongest demon we've come across, Naraku, gets to them. So far, only Inuyasha and I can travel through the well, we don't know about anyone else. Our friends on the other side are waiting for Inuyasha to come back, but not me, because they know that I have school tomorrow."
"Feh! This school thing seems stupid! Why do you have to go there every day anyway?? It's all just a bunch of stuff you'll never need again!" Inuyasha sulked a bit. He didn't want Kagome out of his sight for any longer than necessary, but getting him to admit that would be harder than getting Sesshomaru to start being nice to him.
"Whoo-hoo! Finally, someone that agrees with me!" Usagi grinned. "It's not like ruling the world is something you need math for..." She said that in a lower voice that only Mamoru was supposed to hear, but she forgot about Inuyasha's ears, and he heard it quite clearly.
"What did you say Usagi?" Inuyasha wanted some answers. Kagome had told all, now it was their turn. "By the way, why exactly was that Sailor Omnius person calling you Princess, and why did she call him," He aimed a thumb at Mamoru, "Prince, before you asked her not to call you that?"
"Omnius called us Prince and Princess? Jeez, can't we ever meet someone who doesn't think of us as that first? First the Outers, then Saeko and the Seasonals, now Omnius, who I have yet to actually see and talk to?? This really isn't good. What if the enemy had heard that? Or that reporter Saeko warned us about?" Mamoru stopped talking when Usagi turned to him, grabbed his shoulders, and shook him really hard.
"Mamo-chan! Quit with the hysterics already!!" Usagi was tired of the ranting. "Sheesh, you can be more dramatic that Minako when you aren't paying attention..."
"Excuse me, but are you going to explain yourselves or not?" Kagome was getting annoyed. "I answered your questions, now you need to answer ours. Why were you talking to a Senshi in our well house, and why did she refer to you as royalty, and why couldn't she refuse you?"
"Okay, I'll explain... First of all, I was talking to a Senshi because the Senshi are my warriors. They were given their powers first and foremost to protect me, and then this universe, not the other way around. Second, I was talking to her in your well house because it looked like there wasn't anyone in there, and not only did she seem not to want to stand outside in broad daylight, but it wouldn't have been wise for her to be seen speaking to me. Otherwise, people would make the connection and come after my family and myself. Third, she referred to me as royalty because I am. I am the reincarnation of the Moon Princess, daughter of Queen Serenity, ruler of the Moon Kingdom, which fell millennia ago when Queen Beryl and Empress Metallia launched an attack on us. The time we ruled was known as the Silver Millenium. And last, she couldn't refuse me because I am her leader, her ruler, and the strongest one of all the Senshi. Any other questions?" At the stares she received, she smiled a princess-to-peasant smile and said in an even voice, "Well, you asked. I don't appreciate the way you rushed me, but there's nothing that can really be done about that now... Anyway, is there anything else you wanted to know, or can I ask another question?"
"Go right ahead, we aren't stopping you." Kagome looked around and saw that even Mamoru was stumped by Usagi's behavior.
Inuyasha didn't know exactly who the Senshi were, but Kagome had mentioned enough to give him an idea, and that had him thinking.
"You said that portal in the well leads to the past?" Usagi looked at Mamoru. "That must be the other reason why Pluto sent us here... she wants us to find out what s up with that portal."
"But why would she send us when we were all busy training? She could have easily taken care of this problem herself... Unless..."
"Unless there is something preventing her from doing so? What if even she is afraid to mess with that portal? It would make sense that she'd send us first, since we are stronger and I have the Crystal... add to that the fact that we used to be gods and poof! Instant time-savers."
"Kagome... What if they could help us with Naraku? They say they are really strong, they might be able to help us beat him." Inuyasha asked. He wasn't normally this trusting of strangers or this nice to them, but he had heard a story when he was a child about an Earthian Prince and his Moon Princess. It was said they had the strongest power in the Universe when together. If what they said was true, they might not need to gather all of the jewel shards so soon. "They might even be able to get Kohaku back for Sango."
Kagome looked at Inuyasha in shock at his behavior. *He never trusts so soon like this, not even my family. What is he thinking? *