*Stef-chan waves a small white flag to several friends and fans
holding flame throwers*  I give!  I give up, all of you!  Put the
flame-throwers down!  *there is much discussion between the friends
and the reluctantly lower their weapons.*  *Stef-chan jumps out* As
promised, the next chapter to Final Awakenings!  Yippee!  Okay, easy
on the flames for the crappy battle scene in this chapter and my
pathetic writing of it.

RATING: PG-ish.  Have fun, it's not that bad. :)

DISCLAIMER: I don't own this.  Please, I really don't!  I don't even
own my sanity, so how could I own this?

FINAL AWAKENINGS
CHAPTER 23

__________Faith's Miracle__________

They sat in silence and waited for news.  The Tsukino's were over
and the six ex-Dark Moon lackeys were doing their best to keep
themselves together as well as the Tsukino's.  They sat all around
the living room in complete silence that was only interrupted by
an occasional sob from someone.

Luna, Artemis and Terren sat at the window and looked out, searching
for a sign that they were coming back soon.  Prisma had sat for
several moments with out moving and Sapphire only held her, trying
to comfort them both.  Catsy paced the room several times, in hopes
of thinking of a way to help her friends.  Avery and Birdy sat
together and watched Catsy as she paced.  Diamond hadn't moved since
the cats had explained what was going on.  He may not love Serena
like he had thought he had, but he did still care for her, especially
since she had done so much for him.  He had said only one thing
since they had arrived and that was, "With out them, what is there
left to believe in?"

Sapphire watched his brother worriedly and held Prisma tighter.  He
was right.  With out them, there was nothing left.  Because you
could be certain that the world would be destroyed soon after they
were.

*******************************************************************

Sailor Moon clenched her fists tight.  She couldn't, *wouldn't* let
this man, this *monster* destroy the world.  She looked around at
the fallen rubble and still saw what she had seen before, or rather
what she didn't see.  Her friends.

"Soon, everything will be in darkness!" Onyxious announced.  There
was a slight breeze that swirled around the four remaining warriors.

Neo-Moon felt sick to her stomach.  She knew that wars were
devastating, she had lived through a war, but now she was actually participating.  It was different when you watched your best friends,
people you held dear, fall to the enemy.  She had wanted to fight,
wanted to be like Sailor Moon, her mother, but now she knew why her
mother hated fighting.

Tuxedo Mask glared at Onyxious.  "WE WON'T LET IT FALL!" he yelled
while grabbing Sailor Moon's hand and trying to mentally reassure
her.

Onyxious lowered himself from the air where he had been floating.
"You really believe that, Endymion?"  He laughed a little.  "You
believe that the three of you can save the world?" he mocked.

"I know they can," a ragged voice softly hissed out.  There was a
small sound of rubble moving from one of the corners and the four
people turned towards it.  There, standing in the rubble was a very
battered and bruised Sailor Uranus. Uranus burst out of the rubble
and clashed swords with Onyxious.

"I...understand now," she breathed raggedly.  She had heard what
Sailor Moon had said to Saturn and now it was clear.  Onyxious
sneered and tried harder to push her down with his sword.  "A world
without all of us, isn't a world worth saving.  We live together,
we die together in a never-ending cycle of death and rebirth of the
stars.  When our lights fade out, it is all together, or not at all.
If I had died that day at the theater, (AN: See chapter 19
"Prediction of Darkness.") my Princess would have given up."  She
grinned evilly, blood showing slightly on her teeth.  "But now...it
is the eve of the final battle, and my Princess won't give up this
time."  Their swords clashed several times (AN: Yes, Onyxious pulled
out a sword at the end of the last chapter) with neither side
gaining nor loosing any ground.

But finally, Onyxious growled and kicked his boot-clad foot into
Uranus's stomach, sending her flying across the room and into a
wall.  She didn't move, but her point was made clearly.
"Princess...Prince...Small Lady...I believe in you..." she whispered
as her conscious mind slipped.  "And so do the others..."

"URANUS!" Sailor Moon yelled as she ran to her fallen friend.
Onyxious shook his head as all three of them crowded around the
fallen Soldier of the Sky.  "Amara, hang on!"  She shook her friend
slightly and felt tears come to her eyes when she didn't respond.
"No..."  She shook her head in denial.  "NOOOOO!"

Tuxedo Mask clenched his fist and turned hate-filled eyes toward
Onyxious, who simply laughed at him.  "Your sister met this same
fate, only much quicker, Endymion.  Don't think that she will come
out of the rubble, though.  I can't feel her power anymore."

"Mommy," Neo-Moon whispered as she touched her mothers' hand.
Sailor Moon didn't respond and Neo-Moon looked at her face.
"Mommy!" she exclaimed.

Sailor Moon's hands were shaking as she set the body of Sailor
Uranus down.  Her face was ashen and her lips were pursed together
so tightly that that they were the same color as her skin.  "You...I
won't let you do any more damage to my friends and family," she
whispered while standing up.  Sailor Moon turned her face up and
glared at Onyxious.  "I WON'T LET YOU!"

There was a flash of light and Sailor Moon didn't stand there any
more.  Princess Serenity let a tear trickle down her cheek as she
brought her Silver Crystal out in front of her.  "I had only one
desire in life, and that was to be normal.  But I know, that that
can never happen, no matter how much I wish it so.  But I have to
go on, and even if I will not live another day, I have to fight for
what I believe in."  The wind rustled Serenity's dress and she
opened her eyes.  "My past is full of sadness but," she turned her
eyes to Neo-Moon and smiled at her, "that means that I have so much
to look forward to in the future."

Onyxious held a steady gaze on her before laughing.  "But if you
die, then there is no future.  And it is time for you to do just
that.  DIE!" he screamed while releasing a surprising amount of
energy at Serenity, causing her to fall back slightly, but she stood
her ground.  "What?" Onyxious gasped when he saw her still standing.

Serenity's breathing was slightly ragged as her friends' faces
flashed before her eyes.  "I won't let you win, Onyxious.  Even if
it means my life, I won't let you win.  I'll fight to my last
breath, like my mother did."  She held the small crystal in her
hands, the Silver Crystal that would save or destroy everything,
and felt her power channel into it.  "I'LL PROTECT THEM!" Serenity
declared as white power surrounded her and began to assault King
Onyxious.

Quickly, Onyxious used his own power and shot at Serenity, meeting
her power in the center.  "Your power is too immature to defeat me,
Serenity!" he declared.  "And with out your friends, you weren't
even strong enough to destroy Metalia!  They have paid for what
they did, but now it is your turn."

"NO!" Neo-Moon yelled as she tried to run up behind her mother.
She was repelled by the energy and simply stood back.  "Mommy
always wins!"

Tuxedo Mask reached up and took one of Serenity's hands.  Upon
touching her, his tuxedo melted away to silver and black armor of
Prince Endymion.  For a brief second, the Prince and Princess's eyes
met before they both faced forward at Onyxious.

The white light flashed for a moment, temporarily blinding Onyxious,
who quickly recovered and retaliated with more power.  The earth
around the three combatants began to break up, and Serenity and
Endymion knew they were loosing ground, but still gave everything
they could to the battle.

Neo-Moon bit her lip and watched as the two energies tried to over
take one another.  One black as night, the shadow of death and
another as white as angel's wings carrying the symbol of all hope.
She had helped during the battle against Wiseman, but this was
different, she had no stone like her mother and the battle was too
intense for her too come much closer than the ten feet she was
already at.  'Daddy!  Mommy!  I want to help you!' she cried out
with her mind.

"Why don't you just give up?!" Onyxious demanded of the royalty.
"You'll die if you keep this up!" he told them.

"Then we will be re-born!" Prince Endymion exclaimed.  "If death is
the only way to win this battle, then we will be reborn with our
loved ones."

More power came from Onyxious, and yet, he seemed to be holding out
for some reason.  "You truly believe that?"  He laughed at them.
"Fools!"

Serenity blinked and she knew.  He was exactly like Metalia, even
this battle dialogue was similar to what they had said.  "NO!  I
believe in the world that they protect!  I believe in my friends,
and know that this battle must be won!"

The vision of Sailor Uranus coming out of the rubble and telling
them that she knew what they fought for was.  "Because they believed
in me, I must believe in them!  Even if they are gone, I fight for
them!  For what would die for!  Because they understand now!"

"Serenity..." Endymion whispered as he looked to his love.  There
were tears in her eyes that wouldn't or couldn't flow down her
cheeks.  The pain was fresh in her and in him, but they had to
keep going.  The power of Serenity's emotions only amplified the
Silver Crystal's energy more, and Onyxious' power shrank back.

A memory inside Neo-Moon stirred and she gasped.  One of her bedtime
stories had been about Sailor Moon's battle against Queen Metalia/
Queen Beryl.  She remembered what her father had said that helped
give Sailor Moon her final strength.  '...she called upon the powers
of her dead warriors, and the came to her.  Each of them called out
their planet's name and added their power to Sailor Moon's, in hopes
of destroying Metalia...'

Biting her lip, Neo-Moon fought through the raging powers,
occasionally getting hit by a stray energy burst.  She felt the
pain in her body, but somehow it didn't register in her mind.  She
only thought one thing, and that was saving her parents.

Out of the corner of his eye, Onyxious saw Neo-Moon coming closer.
'So, does the little Princess have something up her sleeve?  Guess
I had better take care of that!'  Onyxious changed his aim slightly,
his outstretched hands moving more towards Neo-Moon, but still
keeping mainly focused on Serenity and Endymion.

Neo-Moon saw the power heading towards her, and leapt out of the
way, but not enough.  The energy still hit her leg and caused her
to collapse.  She screamed and grabbed her leg.  Looking, she could
clearly see the blood trailing down it and several black marks.
Fighting back her tears, she stood again, and this time, Onyxious
didn't notice her, thinking she was done.

Straining to reach, Neo-Moon grabbed her mothers' dress and pulled
herself up.  Serenity didn't flinch and kept her attack focused on
Onyxious.  With all her strength, Neo-Moon pulled herself to the
front and touched her arm.

"MOON PRISM POWER!"

Serenity and Endymion's heads snapped down and they gazed at Neo-
Moon who held her ground and poured her own energy into her mother
and the Silver Crystal.  Serenity didn't say anything, because she
knew it would be useless.  Her daughter was so much like her that
it almost scared her sometimes.  She wouldn't leave, she wouldn't
give up.  No matter what happened, she would stay there.

Once again, Onyxious' dark energy was pushed back.  "Okay!  I'm
going to end this...NOW!" he screamed.  His minions had collected
energy for two reasons.  One was to help grow the clones of the
other Generals, and the second was for this.  He was going to use
all the energy against them.  "DIE!" he screamed as he drew the
energy up within him.

Serenity's eyes opened wide as she felt the incredible strength of
the Dark King grow even stronger.

"Gods, no..." Endymion whispered.  He could feel it too, and he
knew that they couldn't beat this.  Not with out the others.  It
was too powerful.

Neo-Moon could sense her parent's distress and tried to conceal her
own, but to no avail.  Everything that had been fought for in the
past months...all of it would be gone.

The sounds of rock breaking apart and flying other directions
reached their ears as Onyxious' power grew even stronger and began
to tear up the ground around them.  The Silver Crystal was barely
protecting the three of the royal family and they didn't have much
more energy to give.

A tear slid down Serenity's pale face and she felt her energy
fading.  'We lost...'  Out of the corner of her eye, she caught
sight of a torn blue skirt and felt sick.  'Rose.'  Looking around,
she could see several different colors strewn about the area and
she shed a tear for each of them.  "One last final burst of energy,
Endy, Small Lady.  It's our only hope," she whispered low enough
so only they could hear.  "I love you," she said as she started
crying.

Neo-Moon closed her eyes and prepared herself.  "I love you too,
Mommy...Daddy!"

Endymion squeezed the hand he was holding and their eyes met.  "I
love you, My Princess," he whispered.  "And you too, my daughter."

Onyxious' energy had reached its' peak and they were ready.
Onyxious grinned.  'For you, Metalia!  The ruler of the Silver
Millennium shall perish!'

Suddenly, a loud groan cut through the deafening silence of the
room, catching everyone's attention.  The movement of a green and
blue skirt caught everyone by surprise.  Slowly, Sailor Earth
stood against the dark winds that were trying to push her back down.
"It's not...over yet, Onyxious!" she gasped out as she forced her
Terra Staff into the ground so she could lean on it for support.

"YOU WERE DEAD!" Onyxious screamed at her in disbelief.  "Those
rocks they-"

"Should have crushed us," the raspy voice of Sailor Neptune called.

Keeping his power still focused, the Dark King looked over to where
Neptune was and saw her helping Sailor Mars stand up.  Looking all
around, he could clearly see nine soldiers standing, beaten and
bloodied, in the rubble.  "Guess you should use better methods next
time," Jupiter told him.

Sailor Earth reached into her dimensional pocket and pulled out her
transformation pen.  Taking a deep breath, she held it up in the
air. The others caught what she was doing and pulled out their own
pens.

"NO!" Onyxious shouted.  But he grit his teeth and smiled evilly.
The amount of energy doubled in seconds and he lifted his hands in
preparation.

The Sailors looked up and saw that he was about to release his
energy.  'Thank the gods!' Serenity thought happily.  "EVERYONE...
NOW!" Serenity yelled.

"EARTH COSMIC POWER!"

"MERCURY COSMIC POWER!"

"MARS COSMIC POWER!"

"JUPITER COSMIC POWER!"

"VENUS COSMIC POWER!"

"SATURN PLANET POWER!"

"NEPTUNE PLANET POWER!"

"PLUTO PLANET POWER!"

"URANUS PLANET POWER!"

"MOON PRISM POWER!"

Onyxious released his energy and hurled it at Serenity and Endymion.
At the same time, ten different colored lights came from around the
room and merged with the power of the Silver Crystal.  Serenity and
Endymion gripped hands before giving everything to the attack.

"MOON CRYSTAL POWER!"

Eyes wide, Onyxious saw what was coming.  As the two energies met,
the brilliant white one sliced through the darkness and slammed
into Onyxious.  An inhuman scream followed and there was an
explosion.

*******************************************************************

The three moon cats suddenly gasped and cried out.  Everyone else
turned to them as Luna tried to explain.  "I just felt...an
incredible power.  It came from Serena and the others."

"But that was the full power of the Silver Crystal!" Terren
protested.

"He's right!" Artemis exclaimed in disbelief.  "It couldn't have
been anything else!"

"Wait!" Ilene intervened.  "When Serena uses the full power of the
Silver Crystal...doesn't that kill her?!" she demanded, remembering
what she had been told before.

The three cats looked away and didn't answer.

The room was silent as everyone took in this information.  "Oh,
Serena..." Kent whispered as he held his wife.

*******************************************************************

Sailor Earth coughed as she sat up.  There was blood running from
a deep gash in her forehead, but she didn't care.  Looking around
she saw that all of the others were scattered around the room.  Even
from such a distance, she could see that a few of her comrades had
broken limbs.  Her eyes fell to the center of the room.  She saw
the prone, and obviously dead, body of Onyxious.  She smiled.  'And
good riddance!'  Her gaze fell on two other bodies, holding each
other desperately, obviously trying to protect each other from the
explosion that the colliding powers had caused.

"SERENA!  DARIEN!" she screamed as she forced herself to run over
to them.

Her scream was obviously loud, because the other Sailors began
waking up and they too rushed over to their Prince and Princess.
Neo-Moon was lying beside them and she hadn't moved.

Sailor Earth cradled her brother's head in her lap and Mars began
shaking Serenity.  "Wake up, Serena!  Wake up!" she begged.

"Darien, you idiot!  We just found our families again and you
leave?!" Earth cried.

The others gathered around their friends, tears falling from their
eyes.  "This shouldn't have happened," Pluto whispered as a single
tear streaked down her blood and dirt smeared face.  She held Neo-
Moon and tried to keep her emotions in check.

"It shouldn't be this way!" Uranus yelled angrily.  "PRINCE!
PRINCESS!"

Venus collapsed to the ground.  "Serena, Darien...no.  By Venus
this can't be happening!" she gasped as she buried her head in her
hands.

"Don't you worry now..." a soft voice whispered.

The group looked up and saw four glowing sphere.  Two silver, one
blue and one green.  There was a flash of light and four people,
four very familiar people, stood before the Soldiers.  Queen
Serenity and King Alex rushed to their daughter as King Stephen
and Queen Gaia ran to Endymion.

"Your Majesty's!" Sailor Pluto exclaimed when she saw the four
supposedly dead royalty.  "What is going on?"

Serenity kneeled down next to her daughter and touched her forehead
gently.  There was a bright flash of light and the Princess took a
huge gasp of air and began coughing.  "Because," King Alex said
with a smile down at his daughter, "it isn't there time yet."

(AN: From now on, Serena will still be Princess Serenity, but to
avoid confusion I will just call her Serena, k?)

Gaia brushed hair out of Endymion's face and felt tears well up
in her eyes.  "Wake up, my son.  You can't leave your sister now,"
she whispered.

Endymion's eyes opened and he, too, began to cough.  "Serena..." he
gasped out.

A small moan was heard from the side and everyone turned to where
Pluto was and saw Neo-Moon beginning to awaken.  "Mommy...Daddy...?"
she whispered softly.

Serena opened her eyes and looked up.  Her eyes got wide when she
saw two familiar people leaning over her.  "Mother?  Father?!" she
exclaimed as she sat up.  She immediately regretted it as she felt
some pain in her back and collapsed back down.  "Am I dead?"

"No, dear, you aren't dead," King Alex told her softly.

Endymion sat up with his sister's help.  "Oh man.  I'm gonna feel
this tomorrow," he mumbled.

"Mom?  Dad?" Sailor Earth whispered as she reached her hand out to
touch her mother's face.  "Is it you?"

Endymion looked up and saw both of his parents kneeling down next
to them.  "What is going on?" he asked.

Serena threw her arms around her parents and felt tears fall.
"Mother!  Father!" she exclaimed.

Serenity smiled and hugged her daughter back.  "It wasn't any of
your times.  We just had to come."  Pulling away she took Serena's
hands.  "Serenity...this is your father, Alex," she whispered as
though she was talking to a small child.

Alex reached out and touched Serena's shocked face.  "Hello, my
daughter."  He chuckled.  "Last time I saw you, you were about
twelve hours old..." he trailed off and turned to the corpse of
Onyxious and glared for a moment.  "I haven't stopped thinking
about you and how much I love you, Serenity."

Serena hugged her father tightly and silently cried for a moment.
"Father..."

The Soldiers had backed off quite a while ago but they looked and
smiled at each other.  It seemed different for them.  While they
knew that they had parents in their past lives, they didn't remember
them.  Sure, they wanted to remember them, but that day would come.

Endymion and Sailor Earth hugged their mother and their father.
Endymion pulled back and looked at them, determined to memorize how
they looked.  "I haven't been this happy in a long time," he
whispered.  "I finally get to meet my parents."

After several moments of crying and whispering, the royalty stood
up.  "We can't stay long," Stephen told the group.  "We only came to
see you and make sure all of you lived.  And to say hello, of
course."

The three others stood up and faced their parents.  "Then that
was you who protected all of us when the rocks fell?" Sailor Earth
asked.

"Of course!" Gaia said, her eyes shinning.  "You think we'd let
that bastard win after all this time?"

"Mother, Father..." Endymion whispered.

"Come on," Serenity told her friends, "we have to go, now."

Alex turned to the Sailor's who stood up straighter and at
attention.  His eyes fell on the smallest one and he chuckled.
"I do believe you look just like your mother, Small Lady."

Neo-Moon blinked and whispered, "Daddy says that all the time."

"I feel old," Gaia murmured.  "I already have a granddaughter."

"Come here, Rini," Serena commanded her daughter.  Neo-Moon hurried
to her mother and wrapped her arms around her leg, as she would
have when she was much younger.  Serena touched her daughters'
head affectionately.  "Father, King Stephen, Queen Gaia, I'd like
you to meet your granddaughter, Serenity.  Mother, you've already
met her."

"Hello, everyone," Neo-Moon whispered.  "I've been told all about
you."

Stephen chuckled but then his eyes became slightly distant.  "We
really need to go now."

"Mom, Dad," Earth whispered.  "Please, I've always wanted to meet
you and now..." she trailed off and Endymion placed a comforting
hand on her shoulder.

"Do not worry, Roselyn," Gaia spoke softly.  "You'll see us again
soon.  I'm sure of it.  And we'll always love you.  All of you."

Serenity nodded her agreement.  "Right.  Sailor Soldiers, protect
your Prince and Princess with all your power," she reminded them.
The Sailor's nodded in agreement.  Serenity watched as her power
engulfed the twelve and they disappeared from the planet.
"Because...the next trial will be far greater."

As the four faded out, they could vaguely hear the sound of
their children's voices calling to them.  "Bye, Mother!  Bye,
Father!"

Alex closed his fist and smiled.  "That's the closest I've been
to her since she was born...I can't believe how much I've missed..."

"We've all missed a lot," Stephen told his friend.  "But they have
such a bright future, we had to protect it."

"Of course!" Gaia insisted.  "Besides, there is more to come."

Serenity closed her eyes as she felt her "body" fully disappear.
She didn't want to think about that.

*******************************************************************

There was a flash of light outside of the house of the ex-Dark Moon
lacky's and it caught everyone's attention.  Then there was definite
cheering.  "WE DID IT!"

Ilene blinked her eyes.  "They're alive!" she screeched as she
stood and bolted out the door with everyone else on her heels.
"Serena!"

The Sailor Soldiers were hugging each other, giving congratulations
and crying.  Princess Serenity and Prince Endymion stood in the
middle of the group, sharing a passionate kiss.

"Rose!" Terren yelled as he ran to his mistress.

"Terry!" Earth exclaimed as she caught her long time friend in her
arms.  "I was scared that I wouldn't see you again!"  Her eyes shone
with fresh tears and Terren was startled.

"Rose...what's wrong?" he asked with a concerned tone.

Shaking her head and replying so softly, she told him.  "I met my
parents a few minutes ago, Terry."

Terren gasped and touched Earth's shoulder with a paw.  "What did
they say?" he asked.

She shook her head.  "It doesn't matter.  They're my parents and
that's all that matters."

There were some whistles coming from Uranus and Jupiter and Earth
turned to see her brother and Serenity *still* kissing each other.
Rolling her eyes and turning to them, she began her usual remarks.
"Don't you two ever need to breathe?!  Come on!  I'm sure the
Tsukino's want to say hello!"

Finally, the two lovers parted.  Endymion let go of Serenity and
they both detransfromed till they were Serena and Darien again.
Ilene, Kent and even Sammy ran and hugged Serena.  Luna jumped up
onto Serena's shoulder.  "What happened up there?  All of you look
well...you don't look so good!" she said.

"Mommy!" Rini exclaimed as she ran to her mother.  "It's over now,
isn't it?" she asked.

Serena looked out at the others.  They were talking to the sisters
and brothers, exchanging their stories and congratulating each
other.  "Yes, baby.  I think it's finally over."

Everyone looked up and saw the sun peaking over the horizon.  Dawn.

*******************************************************************

Mina ran down the street.  She was hurt, but she didn't care at
this point.  It was Monday now, and the crown would be open for
breakfast.  She wanted to see Andrew as soon as she could and ran
faster.  Bursting through the doors, she looked around for her
boyfriend.  He was sitting at the counter, with a look of pain on
his face.

Lizzy looked up as Mina entered the Crown and sighed in relief.
She couldn't figure out why Andrew was so worried, but she knew it
had something to do with her.  'Well, she's here now, so hopefully
Andrew will snap out of it.'

Mina walked up to Andrew and touched his shoulder.  "Andrew..." she
whispered softly.

Andrew looked up and gasped.  "Mina?"  Mina nodded, her blue eyes
shinning.  "You're all right?  Everyone is?"  He could see that
there was something different in her.  She was obviously exhausted
and there were several bruises and burn marks on her face.

Mina nodded again.  "I came back, well all did.  Just like I
promised."

"Mina!" Andrew exclaimed as he hugged her.  Before Mina could say
anything else, he leaned down and kissed her lips.  Immediately
responding, Mina wrapped her arms around his neck.

Lizzy smiled happily as she watched her brother.  'Well, at least
he's in a better mood.'

*******************************************************************

Lita knocked on Ken's door.  She took a deep breath, trying to calm
herself while she waited for the door to open.  A few seconds later,
Ken's mother opened the door.  "Good morning, Lita!" she greeted.

"Morning, Mrs. Shinozaki," Lita said in her happiest voice.  "I came
to talk to Ken, is he up yet?"

Mrs. Shinozaki nodded and then frowned at Lita's appearance.
"Lita, are you okay?  You don't look so well."

Lita smiled.  "Yeah, I'll be fine.  I just had a rough night.
Don't worry," she told her as she walked to Ken's room.  Lita
knocked on Ken's door and waited.

A few moments later, Ken opened the door and stood, staring at her.
"Hello, Ken."

Ken smiled and hugged her tightly.  "Lita...I thought you were
going to leave me!" he whispered to her.

Lita shook her head slightly, feeling familiar tears coming to her
eyes.  "I gave you that rose earring as a promise of me coming back.
I came back, Ken!  And the war is over."  Ken pulled back and gazed
at Lita.  "My Prince and Princess defeated him.  It's over!"

Mrs. Shinozaki furrowed her brow as she listened to what Lita was
saying.  She didn't understand, but she knew that Lita was much
more than what she seemed.

*******************************************************************

Amy stood outside her apartment building, knowing her mother was
working so she could go in with out being asked where she had been.
"Hello, Greg," she greeted when she saw a shadow move slightly from
her right.

Greg chuckled and stepped out.  "I knew you'd be able to do it,
Amy.  I had faith in all of you."

Amy felt her throat close up and she threw herself at Greg.  "Thank
you for believing..." she whispered to him as he wrapped his arms
around her waist.

*******************************************************************

Raye werily dragged herself home to the Temple.  It had been a long
night and it was going to be an even longer day.  As she climbed
the last of the never-ending steps, she saw a tall figure there,
seemingly waiting for her.  "Raye!" Chad yelled as soon as he saw
her.  He didn't walk forward, but stayed back.

Raye looked away, ashamed for not telling him that she was leaving.
"Chad, please don't."

Chad took her arm and brushed her hair out of her face.  "You got
beat up while you were there...Greg called and told me what you
were doing, Raye."

"I'm sorry," she mumbled lowly.

Chad titled her face up, so that she was looking straight at him.
"It's all over?" he asked.  Raye nodded.  Chad smiled at her.  He
had been afraid after Greg had called him.  Greg said that there
was a good chance that none of them would come back, and yet here
she was.  Back with him.  "I was scared to loose you, Raye," Chad
whispered to her, startling the Priestess.  "Besides, Grandpa
doesn't yell quite as well as you do!"

Raye looked startled but started laughing at him.  "Chad, that's
why I love you.  You make me laugh."

*******************************************************************

"DARIEN!"

King Endymion snapped out of his depressed thought when he heard
his name, well his old name, called.  No one called him that
anymore.  Not with so many guards around at least.  The Sailor
Soldiers knew what to call him and when.  Though Sailor Earth and
Serenity stuck with Endy.  "I'm in here!" he cried to who ever was
looking for him.

A second later, a bright red and heavily breathing Sailor Venus
came in the door.  "They did it!" she cried.  Endymion perked up
for a moment.  "The really did it!  Onyxious has been defeated!"

Standing, Endymoin began demanding information from Venus.  "How?
Is everyone alive?  Is he truly gone, or healed?"  The questions
went on for a moment before Venus stopped listening.  Recognizing
that look, Endymion stopped.  "Okay, continue, V."

Giggling, she did as told.  "Everyone is alive, Small Lady even
helped with the battle.  Pluto just came back and delivered her
report.  Onyxious is dead.  He ain't coming back anytime soon,"
she assured him.  Her eyes suddenly went wide and she smiled.
"I'll be back later, King."  Venus turned and abruptly left.

"What was that all about?" Endymion wondered to himself.  Suddenly,
a small pair of arms embraced him from behind and Endymion turned,
startled.  Sitting up on the hospital bed was the most beautiful
sight he had seen for a long, long time.  "SERENITY!"

To be concluded...

That's the last "chapter!"  Next time, the epilogue!  Hopefully, it
won't take me that long cause it'll only be about five to eight
pages.  Okay, short AN's this time and just to say...peace minna-
chan!

Stef-chan