Sailor Moon Fan Fiction ❯ Chasing the Moon ❯ Chapter Five: Alone ( Chapter 5 )

Chasing the Moon

By Kuroi Koneko

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moongoddes86- thank you for the compliment; I'd post more often if I could, but since I'm a college student, it's a bit difficult. I'll do my best though! Akira139- thank you too!

I hope you both like where I take this story (although I wonder if I even know where it's going sometimes, despite having it already planned and outlined!). Enjoy this chapter you two!

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Chapter 5: Alone

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It was dark. I could hear the faint screaming of…. someone. A load roar filled my ears, drowning out the heartbreaking screaming, and for some reason that made me upset. I wanted to hear that voice, even if it was screaming.

And then everything hurt. And even the darkness faded away until I knew nothing.

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Serena hadn't been taking the loss of Luna well. Three hours after the accident - Kenji after buckled her into the car, told his wife about what happened, and finally getting the rest of his family into the car and to the airport - and she was still dead silent and unresponsive.

While waiting for the announcement to board the plane, Ikuko had taken to glancing over periodically and frowning worriedly at her abnormal behavior. It was understandable that Serena would be upset over the loss of a pet - even more so at having seen the poor animal's demise - but this seemed quite extreme to Ikuko.

"I know!" she suddenly exclaimed. "Serena, how about we get another pet? I know nothing can ever replace Luna," she added quickly, "but it will help you move on, don't you think, Kenji?" She looked to her husband, pleading for his assistance.

"Uh… Yes! Yes, what a wonderful idea!" he forced out cheerfully. "What do you think, Bunny?"

Bunny remained quiet, staring ahead without seeing anything in front of her, and unheeding of her parents' attempts to cheer her up.

Ikuko and Kenji looked worriedly at one another, and Ikuko unconsciously started to bounce the sleeping Sammy more forcefully on her lap which woke him up in a grumpy state. She was relieved at the excuse to keep her occupied with something other than her daughter's unnerving silence.

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She's gone… she's really gone… LUNA! Don't leave me alone! Please! I need you!! LUNA!!!

Over and over, that scene keeps playing in my head. I can't stop it, can't ignore it; my best friend died and I couldn't do anything to stop it. I can feel my heart breaking, just a little bit more each time I watch it happen over and over.

What's the point in being a superhero, if I can't protect the ones I care for? Why couldn't I protect my Lunakins?! It's not fair! Not fair, not fair!

I hear my parents talking, telling me nothing could be done; that I'll get over it. I don't want another pet; it will NEVER be like Luna, could never come close to replacing her. There's no other creature in the world like Luna… none…

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The announcement for all passengers to board the plane for flight 703 to America came, and the Tsukino's slowly gathered their carry-on bags and the still silent Serena, brought out their tickets for the stewardess and found their seats on the plane. They settled in as best they could. Kenji and Ikuko prayed that a change of scenery and a new life would help their daughter snap out of her shock.

And as they watched Serena finally fall asleep from the day's trauma combined with the late hour, they prayed her dreams be kind and innocent.

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(Several weeks later. America.)

"Good! Very good, Serena! Your English has improved tremendously these last few days. I'm amazed at how quickly you grasped the language!"

"Tre…mend..ously? What does this mean?" Serena asked, in slow but understandable English.

"`Tremendously' means `greatly, vastly, impressively'. It's a good thing, in this case. It means that I, and your parents, are very proud of how well you are doing," her tutor replied. She gave a bright smile at the young girl's question. Although she was genuinely pleased at how well the girl was progressing in her language studies, she was also greatly pleased at how well the girl's progress would look on her own transcripts. "Well, that's all for today's lessons, Serena," she said after a quick glance at the clock revealed they had spent two extra hours at the lesson today. "I'll see you the day after next, since I can't make tomorrow's session, okay?"

Serena nodded politely, her response a quiet acknowledgement as she got up to walk the older teen to the door. After saying goodbye to her tutor she quickly located the note her parents had left her earlier that morning.

Serena -

Your mother and I have gone out for a few hours.

We should be home around 3 this afternoon, about

the same time your lessons end. Be the good girl

we know you are.

We love you.

- Dad and Mom

A glance at the neon numbers on the oven showed that her lesson, having been a few hours earlier than normal, had given her an unexpected 2 hours to herself. Now what was an eight-year-old girl supposed to do…?

Serena quickly ran up the stairs to her room, turning on the radio to any station so she wouldn't sit in silence. She was slowly returning to her normal self; the change was very gradual though, a few smiles and laughs every now-and-then a testament to how deeply affected she was by Luna's death. But she was getting better.

She had asked to be enrolled in the nearest gymnastics class and her parents agreed, thinking it would be best for her to make new friends as soon as possible to better adjust yet still keep some form of familiarity in her life. Serena wanted it because it reminded her of her purpose, and the promise she had made to Luna do her best.

And she was grateful. The gymnastics classes kept her physically occupied, often exhausting her to the point where she would be dreamless, unplagued by the recurring dreams she still occasionally had of Luna's last moments. The English tutoring sessions kept her mind busy and the rest of her time occupied with learning the new language of the land she now lived in.

She was growing up far faster than an eight-year-old was expected to, but only she knew why she had to grow up so rapidly.

She dug through her drawer, shoving articles of clothing roughly to the side, some pieces falling to the floor from the force of the shove, some tangled with other pieces. She dug to the bottom of the drawer finally coming upon what she sought after. It was a pretty trinket to look at, but not something one expected to find in the possession of an eight-year-old girl, especially since the pretty trinket had some precious and semi-precious stones embedded into it.

Serena cradled the broach in her hands carefully, as though it were the most fragile piece of glass she held instead of a magic-endowing device. She hadn't transformed since her last training session with Luna several weeks ago.

I would if it will still work, now that Luna… Serena still couldn't finish the thought. She raised the broach in the air above her, closing her eyes and whispering the words her friend and trainer had given her.

"Moon Prism Power."

She felt the familiar rush of warmth surrounding her, the slight whisper of ribbons whisking through the air before settling around her, and then a bright flash of light, clearly visible to her even through her still-closed eyes, which signaled the end of her transformation.

She opened her eyes and gazed into the mirror on the opposite wall from her. She absently tapped her boot-toe on the floor, trying to get the boots to fit more comfortably. Scrutinizing her appearance carefully, she nodded to no one after a few moments.

"Alright then. I promise you Luna, I'll make you proud of me." She carefully climbed out her window and down the tree outside the room she demanded to have. Quickly grabbing an alarm clock she rushed off to the nearest park she found to practice little what Luna had managed to teach her, adding in the newest gymnastic moves she learned in class. When the alarm went off, ringing its warning to get home quickly or be caught and in BIG trouble, she grabbed the clock - shutting it off, of course - and raced back home in an indistinguishable blur of red, white and gold.

And so she set the routine she would follow rigorously…

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And that's it for Part One!! This was mainly just to wrap up her childhood and her "early awakening". I know it's short, but I hope that future chapters will be longer. They might take a while to get out, I'm in college now after all, but I haven't forgotten the stories I'm writing, and I WILL finish ALL of them. I will NEVER post something and not finish it.

Anyway! Part Two will be up (insert date next chapter is completed). Part Two will be called "Wandering" (although that's subject to change). It will take place about nine years in the future, when Serena is about to turn 17/18. I want her to be older, because her maturity at that age will be essential later on.

No, I'm not going to directly tell what happened in those nine years, although some (if not most) of that information will come out in later chapters, I'm sure.

Next chapter: Chapter Six - A New Town

And so things move on!!

Don't forget to review please!! Reviews keep me on a high that motivates me to write more for you!!