Drops of Starlight

Chapter 47: Her Stay on the Moon

💫 Drops of Starlight 💫
By Strawberry Moon Rose
🍓🌙🌹

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Chapter 47: Her Stay on the Moon
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Sailor Moon let out a piercing scream as Xenon squeezed the silver crystal with remarkable force. The pain contorted her face, causing beads of sweat to trickle down her forehead.

As if reacting to Sailor Moon's emotion, a burst of energy swelled from her brooch, expanding in a shockwave. Xenon yelped and withdrew her hand, shaking it off. Once the pain ceased, the purple-haired guardian looked at Sailor Moon with pure awe.

"That power..." Xenon marveled.

Sailor Moon, still on her knees, panted heavily as she looked up at Xenon. She recognized the importance of this moment; she needed to get through to her - it was the only way she was going to have a chance of cleansing her bitter heart. But she had to tread cautiously.

"Please," Sailor Moon whispered. "From one sailor guardian to another, I want you to know that I do understand."

"Understand what?"

"I understand your anger. You think hurting me will hurt Seiya, and you're right. But it won't make you feel any better, believe me."

"I beg to differ on that point."

"Xenon, what happened that night at the palace, it was an accident. Nobody meant for it."

"Is that so?" Xenon's eyebrow twitched. "Yet no one jumped in to save him. They just stood by and let him die! Kind of like Naru's Nephrite, am I wrong?"

Sailor Moon hesitated. She wouldn't fall for that. Nephrite had said so himself - he didn't blame her for his fate.

"I wish I could have done something," Sailor Moon admitted. "There are many things I would've done differently as a sailor guardian, and a lot that hasn't worked out according to plan."

"I'll say. I pity you, Sailor Moon. The Prince of Earth left you and you chose Sailor Star Fighter of all people as his replacement. Can you get any more pathetic? How am I supposed to feel bad about taking you out of such a miserable existence? Honestly, I think I'm doing you a favor."

"That's not true." Sailor Moon shook her head. "None of that is true."

"Oh? How so? 'Cause from where I'm standing, you're no queen of anything. Your crystal empire is gone. Yeah, don't look surprised, I know about that. You're just a flat-chested sailor guardian with above-average power. Good for you."

"You're not wrong. I'm not a queen anymore, or a princess. And to you, I might be no one special. But to Seiya, and Chibi-Usa, and all of my friends, I am important. They know I'm a klutz who gets too emotional sometimes, but that doesn't matter. They'd love me if I was a ruler and they love me as ordinary Usagi."

Xenon regarded her with a trace of disgust. "That doesn't change the fact that these people who love you so much are scum. Keika, Kakyuu, Healer, Maker, all of them. Even Krypton and the others. But especially that damned Fighter."

"Maybe you're right, they should have acted differently that night with Ruanyu. I wasn't there when it happened, Xenon. But I don't think they knew he was a good person. Not like you did."

When Xenon remained silent, Sailor Moon continued, "Naru was mad at me too. Well, at Sailor Moon, for coming after Nephrite. I didn't trust him, and neither did Mercury or Mars. I attacked him, even after she insisted he was a good man. And it pains me that after all this, I still couldn't bring him back for her. Because what they had..." Sailor Moon swallowed hard. "...was really special. And I know that what you had with Calamity's general was something special too. I'm sorry you lost him. Really, I am."