Something must have gone wrong with the shield. This could be the only explanation for Zoisites unexpected visit.
Mamoru was startled, unable to move he had to witness the blonde general of the dark kingdom entering the lovely Tsukino house,carrying a more than pleased expression on his face.
He stepped into his new home. Where he was spent so many happy moments with his new found family. Why did Beryl and her villains have to come here and destroy everything he had build up in this past?
He couldn't continue his internal fight but had to do something when the Zoisite picked up the little red haired girl and smirked devilishly
"Such a little girl...but so much energy. Queen Beryl will be delighted to receive such an unexpected gift."
"Stop that!"
Mamoru and Usagi looked at each other and turned around in surprise when they saw the little kitten standing in the door frame.
"Hands off, Zoisite...or I'll punish you!"
Apart from the blonde general everyone in the room was more than stunned and didn't know what to say but just looked to the two protagonists of the upcoming fight.
Zoisite gave Diana an arrogant look and taunted her
"Ha, a Little speaking cat wants to punish me? You are kidding, right?"
"No...she said that you shall let me go you will be punished."
This time, even Zoisite was dumbfounded when they heard the toddler talking loud and clear, carrying a more than warning tone in her voice.
"What...who are you?"
Before Mamoru or Usagi could use the currently perplexed status of the general for their advantage, the red haired girl had decided to punish Zoisite herself. Within a millisecond, she pulled out the tremendous power of the Star Seed and smashed the dark kingdom general against the wall.
The general was lying unconsciously on the ground and with a snap of the little girls finger, Zoisite dissolved, surrounded by pink heart petals.
Silence took over the room in the first place until Diana reached for the white magical ball, threw it up in the air and cried out the familiar words.
A few moments and a reset of three peoples minds later, the perfect little world was back in place and everyone was relaxing in the lovely living room. Apart from Mamoru and Usagi who still looked quite oddly at their adopted daughter who was busy playing with her Sailor Moon dolls again.
When Usagi took her transformation brooch, she said while still looking at the girl they had named Kousagi
"What on Earth was that?!"
"I think this was nothing but a little example of how powerful she is." Mamoru replied by looking at Usagi, still shocked from what he just had seen.
Wherever Zoisite has gone to, they were save. Never in his life he felt that he was that protected against the enemy. Was this the key to defeat Galaxia? Was the trigger not love but a dangerous situation in order to release the Star Seed?
Mamoru was confused and he urgently would have to discuss this further with Diana...but he had to make sure that Usagi wasn't upset any longer.
Thus, he took in his former position and leaned into Usagi to make sure that no one else but her was able to hear him
"I am more than sorry that I couldn't be that honest with you, Usako. This time travel stuff is more than complicated and I just want to accomplish this mission as soon as possible and then I go back and everything will hopefully be alright in my time...so that everyone of you have a future."
"I still don't understand even ten percent of what is going on here but I understand that she is ridiculously powerful. It's frightening but I feel such a deep love at the same time...sadness overcomes me when I look at her...as if she would miss something and I'd love to heal and help her."
Usagi turned her gaze back to Mamoru and with glassy eyes she spoke silently
"What is that I want to make everything good? Who am I? Before you came into my life I thought I would be Usagi Tsukino...but I feel that there is something else apart from this whole super hero stuff...is there anything else? Please, why is that I feel that I used to be someone else...and why do I know that you were there, too?"
There were so many questions written on his little princess face...and even more of them buried deep inside her heart, but Mamoru just wasn't allowed to change the happenings of the past.
He had to go. Soon. He had seen the Light of Hope. He could leave with the little girl and with Diana this place and the three could go to Elysion and try to set the power of her free. Something held him up when he sunk into those sky blue eyes which were seeking for answers.
"Right kids, time for Bedfordshire!"
Mamoru and Usagi got out of their own inner struggles when they heard Kenji getting up from his armchair and while he was yarning and stretching his arms excessively, he declared
"Tomorrow will be a new and exciting day for us. Thus, let's go to bed."
"An exciting day?" Mamoru heard himself echoing his future father in law words.
Usagi gave him a long look and finally replied while she was sighing deeply, obviously she has given up to receive any answers to her questions this night
"Well, it's sounds as if you'd come from a future more away than only one and a half years. Tomorrow we celebrate the Fukagawa Hachiman Matsuri."
"Exactly and since it will be the first time for Endy, we will all go there together as a family." Ikuko gave Mamoru a warm smile "it's a great opportunity to wear my new Yukata!" she clapped her hands together in excitement and made her way upstairs.
Left behind were Mamoru and Usagi, still sitting in front of their adopted child since Kenji and Shingo had also decided to leave the living room just a few moments after Ikuko.
"I don't know if this is a good idea to go to public places together with this girl after what happened with Zoisite." Mamoru stated dryly, still slightly overwhelmed by the latest developments.
Usagi shrugged merely and asked back
"Do we have any other choice than following the happenings of the timeline? I'd go there with my family as I do every year, so if you can manage to put on this protection shield successfully for Kousagi, I don't see a problem with going to the festival."
Her eyes clouded when Usagi continued with her explanation
"I actually wanted to go there with Naru this year...she urgently needs some distraction from Nephrite...I didn't know that there is another general of the Dark Kingdom but this is certainly not good letting her be with him any longer."
Mamoru frowned and was close to tell Usagi things from a future, not that far away from their current time. Finally, he managed to give her an explanation he hoped to be okay for her
"You cannot prevent Naru from her destiny but please don't worry. She'll be fine and everything will turn to the good for her. It might sound weird but...just be there for her when she needs you. That is your strength anyway."
"My strength?" Usagi looked back at Mamoru with big eyes.
"Yes, of course it is your strength. That makes you so lovable, Usako...you care for people...deeply. You always put their needs first, without even doubting your actions. That is you and only you. You are born in this time. On this planet. You are Usagi Tsukino. Please never forget that."
Her eyes were still big but Mamoru could read now a certain hint of understanding in them. He hoped that Usagi would realize that she just had to act like she had done so far without questioning herself.
For him it was obvious that Usagi started to remember bits of her former life but for Mamoru it had never been important what happened back in the days of the Moon Kingdom. It had been nothing but a tragedy when they weren't allowed to be happy there, but this was a different life and now they were Mamoru and Usagi.
And he wanted to spend this life with her together in piece. That's why he had decided to leave for America. That's why he had ended up in this time, without his Star Seed. That's why he had found a new way of living with Usagi together. That's why...he had to leave her.
"Believe me..." he sunk deep into her shining eyes "you are the reason why I am doing all this. Because you are you...my Usako."
Usagi blushed deeply by his confession and slightly nodded, her eyes still captured in his gaze. The little grey feline finally got them out of this very special moment when she muttered under her breath.
"Ahem, so it looks as if I've done a little mistake concerning Artemis T when I tried to hide your fake daughter behind a shield. It was clearly my fault that the Dark Kingdom know that there is a tremendous energy available, I am really sorry about that."
With a sad gaze, Diana eyes her tiny paws guiltily.
"Don't worry, Diana. I am more than sure that Zoisite will not try it again since he is probably rather busy with...well, I mean..." nervously Mamoru beamed at his future wife who was busy picking up the little red haired girl from the ground and finally turned his attention back to Diana "I think we can handle Zoisite if he tries it again one day."
By saying this, Mamoru made his way upstairs and after a few moments, the rest of the conspiracy circle joined him in Usagi's room.
"So what are we gonna do now?"
Usagi spoke out what was standing in the room like a big fat pink elephant.
"I think we need to start triggering the Light of Hope so we can leave this time as soon as possible. Having said that, we need Motoki to help us a bit."
Diana pulled out her super mini computer and started typing hectically. After a few moments of absolute silence - apart from the fact that the toddler had decided to fall asleep in Usagi's arms and was now slightly snoring - Diana started to speak again
"We need to get you two together...I mean, not you but you as a fourteen year old girl and you as your past self. Motoki surely can convince Mamoru to accompany him to the festival tomorrow."
"Wait a moment...are you telling me that I shall go out with the BAKA tomorrow???!!!"
Usagi's face suddenly turned into a dangerous stage of being pale.
"I know it must be confusing but Diana is of the opinion that whenever you and my past self come together, it kind of triggers the Light of Hope to come out of Kousagis body. Thus, we need you to...well...help us a bit."
Usagi made quite an odd face when she heard Mamoru's requested and looked a little lost from him to Diana and backwards while she was still holding the sleeping toddler in her arms.
"Hold on...what happened exactly at the Embassy when I was a little tipsy? Somehow Usagi's mind desperately started to reprocess the happenings of the evening and suddenly she froze when an idea hit her mind.
"Did we...have we...so I have to...so that the Light of Hope...err...sorry but I can't do this...not at this time...I mean...I...I..."
"Usako" Mamoru lifted the little girl from Usagi and laid her down onto the comfortable kingsize bed. With his hand he lifted up Usagi's chin and looked into her eyes. "There is nothing you must do with me at this time. It is just a meeting so we can find out how we can trigger this Star Seed. Obviously we both are like magnets for it, so we have to provoke encounters. That's pretty much it, so don't worry, okay?"
There was something in her eyes, Mamoru couldn't catch but he believed her words when Usagi said with a trembling voice
"I guess I don't mind at all...but it's just that I am quite worried about Naru and I do have to write sooo many exams and the youmas are keeping me busy and I have to act in front of my family as an adult whereas I have to be a normal school girl once I leave the house. I mean -"
"I know what you mean, Usako and I wish nothing but that you can have your normal life back as soon as possible. It's okay to be close to freak out. I'll make sure that this is not gonna happen and once we accomplished our mission here, everything will be normal again for you."
After a short while, Usagi took a deep breath and declared
"Alright, I'll do whatever you want from me...I'll even kiss the Baka if it's for the mission. Sorry, I know it's you but at least at this time we are far away from dating...and I mean really far away...oh my God, you would probably cheat on Ray, would you? Or have you already? Did you kiss me at the Embassy or was that only a dream?"
"Okay, so for the record and I hope I can make this clear now...Ray and I have been out for a few - if you like to call it - 'dates' but we never ever dated! At least from my perspective this was never the case and I really want you to know that I was deeply attracted to you in the time you thought my first name was BAKA!"
After Mamoru had ended his pleading, there was a little smile escaping Usagi's lips when her gaze lightened up and something like triumph was dancing in her pretty eyes.
"I always had a slight feeling that you had kind of fun with acting like a complete jerk around me, but I didn't know that your strange behavior was nothing but a courtship dance."
She giggled now, ready to burst out into loud laughter the next moment.
It was Diana who took her back into reality when she explained
"Right, since we clarified that, could we all go to bed and wait for tomorrow what will happen?"
"Aye-aye, Sir!" Both called back to the grey feline and quickly prepared themselves for bed.
When all of them were lying in the huge bed, Diana snuggled at the end of the bed and the little girl lying between Usagi and Mamoru, he thought.
'One step closer in order to archive our mission. I'll do this for you Usako'.
He heard Usagi breathing calmly and added to his little princess silently
"There is nothing in the world I want more than seeing you living a happy and normal life."