Light of Hope

Chapter 20

Déjà vu had been more of a constant for Mamoru over the past few months on this oh-so-crazy mission.

However, when he entered Usagi's room, he saw a sight that almost pulled the rug from under his feet. Back in her Teeanger form, Usagi was dressed in her school uniform and looked almost exactly as she had on the first day they met. Instead of a crumpled English test, she had the Star Medallion in her hand and her face was a strange mixture of hope and sadness.

"You know, Mamoru," she began quietly as he closed the door behind him, "everything today was just so intense, I don't even know how to put it all together anymore."

Mamoru decided it was better not to mention that he had stayed close to the Sailor soldiers with Diana the whole time and had witnessed all of today's developments. Even the kiss between Usagi and his alter ego during this time.

Slowly, he silently approached her bed, where she looked so lost and continued to look at the small medallion.

"That Sailor Moon doppelganger was really a trap set by the Dark Kingdom. They almost beat us, but a new Sailor scout appeared out of thin air today. At first, we thought she might be the princess we'd been looking for for so long, but then she said she was Sailor Venus and that she would fight alongside us. We have a new ally and it feels great that we are now stronger than ever, but at the same time, I'm very worried about..."

Now Usagi looked up from her medallion and Mamoru could see tears at the corner of her eyes, threatening to run down her cheek at any moment.

"Mamoru, you have an injury on your shoulder from the fight."

It felt good that Usagi cared about him, but at the same time, Mamoru found it almost harder to hide the complete truth from her any longer. Embarrassed, he scratched his head and broke his silence.

"I must have been a little naive at the time and only had to save you on my mind, and I must have blocked everything out. Zoisite took cold advantage of that and rammed a pointed crystal full of black energy into my shoulder as thanks."

"What happened then?"

What should Mamoru do now? The decision had already been made that Usagi would lose her memories. At least from his side. And the worry lines on Usagi's otherwise smooth forehead were not a good sign for her otherwise cheerful nature. Over time, she would go through nothing but hell anyway. Tomorrow would see the final battle between him and Zoisite. He would fight her and the Sailor Team for three months, brainwashed by Beryl, until he almost killed her at the North Pole with his sword as Endymion. All her friends would die in the eternal ice before then and she would be completely alone.

How could she retain any confidence with all these experiences? Perhaps through him, if there was still a remnant of memory left in her. There was a possibility when Mamoru felt the small object in his inner jacket pocket.

Mamoru looked resolutely at Usagi and began to explain to her

"This search for the Moon Princess will come to an end tomorrow. We will run into each other on the street and you will follow me since you noticed the injury on my shoulder. We'll be dragged together from the Dark Kingdom to Starlight Tower and end up in a lift. The situation will spiral out of control and you will make a decision that will shake me to the core but simultaneously relieve me so infinitely."

Mamoru found many question marks in Usagi's eyes and so he continued with his explanation of the events to come.

"You honestly surprised me in many ways during this lift ride. We were facing death at that point, but somehow this "prison" was like a small world for both of us, where we had a real conversation for the first time. I told you the reason why I was looking for the rainbow crystal and at the same time I felt drawn to you, as if you were the explanation for all my questions. And to be completely honest, that's exactly how it is."