Cyran had been watching those he sent to Earth to handle the situation. They had been Relana's best young warriors. But he was losing his patience, why had they taken so long to check in, surely they would have news by now. He paged his best Alexious (Felix) to check in with the group.

"Alexious, gather the others and report at your earliest convenience, the Shadow Council would like to have a word with you and the others about your latest assignment, we are trying to be patient with you, but we have yet to get an update since your target moved in to live with you. Know this, I do not take matters of slacking easily and will not tolerate anything less than 110%, so I don't care what it takes, report to the Council immediately of I will send Willow to take the lead of this situaiton. I am counting on you Alexious, you were chosen for this mission for a reason, don't let Relana down."

Cyran paced back and forth from headquarters while he waited for Alexious to return his call.

"Now what?" Felix muttered as he heard a buzz.

He had been in the storage unit for a least a couple of hours and had dozed off. His eyes widen when he heard the message. He quickly sent a text to the rest of the group.

"Headquarters wants to talk to us ASAP. I am on way to the house. I want everyone to be there when I arrive."

Felix hit send and rushed out to his car. He called, putting the phone on speaker as he sped towards the apartment. Up to this point the council had stayed out of the way, accepting updates when he was able to get them. In the back of his mind he wondered if this had anything to do with Gustav's antics. He knew that the council had eyes and ears everywhere, he hoped that it had not become a big issue. Felix whipped around the corner ignoring the pedestrians who were trying to cross the street, their angry yells fading in the distance. Once he reached the apartment complex, he rushed inside slamming the door behind him.

"Hello! Is anyone here!" He shouted.

Gustav was in his room doing some reading and some research for their attack when he got the text from Felix. Great- what does the Shadow Council want- seriously can't they let us do our job. he thought as he continued to sift through some research and made a discovery he wanted to share that he wasnt sure the others knew about. 

When he heard Felix come in and ask if anyone was home- he called out- "I am here- I will be out in a moment." He decided to save the bickering for later- right now he had to be on his best behavior, especially with the shadow council.



Zena had just walked through the door when she got Felix's test- she thought it was strange that the shadow council wanted to meet now- they had been working hard to put their plan into action- maybe the council just wanted an update, but what if they were not satisfied with the results- they would likely send one of their own to handle the situation and that could lead to truoble for everyone.

Zena decided to go lay on the couch and wait for Felix to arrive.
***********
Melrose and Celeste had been recounting the days events when they got Felix's messages- they decided to go into the living room and catch up with Zena until Felix arrived.

"What do you think is going on?" Melrose asked as they joined Zena in the living room.

"You don't think we are in trouble, do you?" Celeste asked the panic rising in her voice.

Felix did not sound happy and whatever it was Celeste was hoping that the blame was not going to fall on them. They were doing their best to get information out of Usagi.

Zena rolled over and sat up revealing her prescence. "I am here, I just needed a moment to think and process the situation- and I was a bit more spaced out than I had thought, sorry about that- all thoughts were about this meeting though." She spoke with a light smile that quickly faded when she saw how irritated Felix looked.

Zena only hoped this meeting wasnt for the bad.

******


Gustav wandered into the living room and sat in one of the chair. He looked quite smug and was barely concerned about the meeting with the shadow council- he figured it was pointless to worry and he had been doing things on his own so if anyone was in trouble it would be the others...he shot a snarling glance at Zena for her conversation with Felix that had nearly caused a huge fight scene to break out.

Gustav's thoughts were interrupted by the big screen TV receiving a signal and Cyran and the other two members of the Shadow Council on the screen.

****



Cyran spoke with a hint of sarcasm in his voice- he had grown impatient waiting for his people to gather.

"The Council would like to have a word with you all in regards to your mission. Alexious what news do you have to report- things seem to be taking much longer than anticipated- you know we cannot let those lives of Relana that were lost go down in vain, we must make ourselves known and avenge those lives the Moon Kingdom took all those years ago." 

"I presume you have an actual reason as to why your methods are taking more time than I would like to accept."

The council was taking notes in the background observing those in the apartment's every move..

"Athena, show yourself, and for the love of God put something on- what has made you stoop so low to the standards of these humans in getting what you are after?" Cyran could tell her intentions and didn't want to embarrass her further- I know you are following Usagi to get information out of her- but you are going to have to be a bit more brash with her to get something out of her, even I can tell that she has a thick wall up. I am going to send you something though your private comm to help you unlock a power that will better help you get through to Usagi so that you can attack."

"While I may not approve of all of your methods Alexious, "I can understand why you are taking it slower with this one, however, with Mamoru- you need to make a move- or we will make one for you- and it won't be pretty either."

Cyran looked over to the girls- "Mali, Kressara, you girls are far too shy and passive- I am beginning to wonder if re-awakening you as daughters of Relana was such a good idea- surely there is something you can do to help the cause- research on those other sailor soldiers, where are they, why haven’t they appeared- make yourselves useful or I will send you back to your boring human lives and all memories of Relana and the past few months will be erased.”
 
Cyran eyed Gustav and his demeanor changed from angry to livid. “And you Vali, what the hell is your problem, you are being reckless and acting on your own will get you no where- your moves are careless and you are going to reveal us to the public- they cannot know of our kind- your little stunt in the park earlier tonight is a warning- if you have another situation like this- well your fate will be worse than those of the girls, and to think I was considering appointing you as an apprentice to the council. You need to get over the fact that you were not chosen to lead this mission, stop acting like a jealous girl and do your job- Vali your powers are valuable to Relana- save them up for when you need them.”
 
“That is all- I expect a report again in a week- I expect a more thorough plan of attack when I check in with you next week.”
 
Cyran disconnected their comm and the screen went blank. A moment later he pinged Felix for a request for a private comm.
 
Cyran had actually been truly pleased with Felix’s actions, even if they were slow and progress gained was rare- he knew that Felix would prevail in the mission- but he had hoped things would speed up a bit, but the council as well as the spirits of Relana had been breathing down his throat to come down hard on those who had been sent to handle those of the moon kingdom.
 

ooc:

Zena nodded at Felix's words. She was curious to see what the council was going to reveal to her, but she was also nervous their news or revelation would be bad. She went to her room and tured on her computer where she was greeted with another Shadow Council member- she spoke in a commanding voice to Zena.

Zena, you must make a move with Usagi- she has been slow to give answers but you have a power that will get her to bend to whatever you ask of her. It may require some practice- but if you can make physical contact with her- you can unlock a port to her mind and control her thoughts to go in whatever way you may need them to. I would caution this power though as it will use up a lot of your energy- so maybe use it in small doses.


With that the screen went blank- Zena tried to process what she had just been told, but she couldn't quite make sense of it- I will have to talk to Felix later  she thought as she made her way to the bathroom for a nice long hot shower.



Gustav was enraged that the council would so blatantly call him out. If they had a problem with his methods why didn’t they just address him directly and in private. It was just one more thing for him to worry about. Being a descendant of Relana was his true identity and he didn’t want to give it up for this human shell. In reality, Gustav never really could figure out how to live like a normal person- it had been why he was in isolation for so long.

When Felix spoke- Gustav was almost taken aback- the way Felix had acted made it seem like Gustav was putting the whole mission in jepordy and now he was commending him on his efforts.


“Yea whatever,” he said cooly as he turned and went back to his room to continue his research.



Cyran had gone into his private quarters, where no one could intercept his communication. When he heard Felix say he was ready to talk, Cyran turned on his screen.

“I must apologize for my brashness earlier.” He said in a casual tone- “you know how the council can get and if I don’t lead by example who knows what tactics they will use to get rid of me.”

He smiled, remembering the past and all his training he had done with Felix before their world was destroyed.
“In all honesty- I admire the tactics you have used to get this far, I do acknowledge it is slow, but we can’t rush into this- it will only be a repeat of what happened all those years ago.” Cyran said- his tone turning more serious. “I know you have been struggling to interact with Mamoru and he has a rather icy, well maybe strong willed demeanor. I have arranged for a minor divergence that will allow you to get some information from him- I have arranged for the school to close in 3 days due to a fire- do not worry- there will be no casualties, I am not ready to unleash my full powers, not until they are needed- that is if they are needed.”

“I will say I have noticed a shift in Kressara- she seems to be torn inside about whether or not she wants this life, she will never admit it, but please talk with her, get her to see why she is an essential element to the team.”
Cyran pinched the bridge of his nose as he spoke, “as for Vali, try to keep an eye on him, I am not sure why he is so rebellious, you two were my best students and if he would just work with you, you two could do some real damage. I realize he is going to do whatever he chooses, but maybe try to speak with him, remind him of the cause and how when the two of you worked together how strong you were.”

Cyran laughed a bit before speaking again, “as for Athena….that girl is quite feisty isn’t she, she was so young when our world fell. I wonder what she was exposed to in her human life. She seems to use their motives to get what she wants, which I don’t object to. I can tell she has taken quite an interest to you, and more so than in the companion way and I am not opposed to things moving in whatever direction they may, just don’t let it cloud either of your judgments- remember what you are after- to strike revenge on the moon kingdom.”

Cyran paused before sharing the last of his thoughts. “I am unsure if you are aware, but the one you are after is not the one who attacked us- I believe she is Queen Serenity’s daughter, she has a very strong power maybe even stronger than her mothers, and I can definitely sense her bond to Mamoru, we need to work on getting those two separated for longer periods of time.”

“I will be casually checking in with you periodically for the sake of the council to stop breathing down my neck, I am rooting for you all so please tell that to the others, I know I chose right when I selected you for this mission Felix, and wish you and the crew the best.”

“I have also seen to it that you receive something very valuable in the mail.”


With that the screen went blank.

When Usagi spoke about this 'he' who was after the silver crystal, Mamoru quietly reassured her "Don't worry, Usako.  I will make sure he does not get the silver crystal.  It is rightfully ours, so I am willing & able to fight him if he tries to take it."  Although Mamoru couldn't resist adding in seriously "Although it would help if I knew who this 'he' was."

Then Mamoru walked over his threshold and into his apartment.  After closing the front door with his foot, he gently laid Usagi down on the longer sofa in his living room.  Mamoru followed that up by requesting of Usagi "Show me where it hurts, starting with the most painful place."

Usagi listened as Mamoru spoke. She knew she could rely on him to protect her, but she was also afraid he would get hurt. This new enemy was strong. She started to answer this question, knowing it could no longer be avoided. She was hoping to avoid having to talk about this new enemy. 

She spoke, her voice seething through her burning pain she felt in her side, though she did feel a bit better once Mamoru laid her on the sofa.

"I don't know what he calls himself, he just showed up out of nowhere. He has long fiery red- hair and evil red eyes. They are so scary, and he has these black marks on his face, like tattoos. He is very strong- one arm was steel or something like that, and the other," 

Usagi paused cringing at her memories of her encounter with this enemy and her inability to fight back and how no one saved her. He wounds were still raw and she still felt shattered inside, but she had to tell Mamoru the truth, keeping the truth from him almost hurt her more than the pains from her attack.

" His other arm had scales, but his fingers had blades and the blades felt like flames when he....when he..." she stopped unable to get the words out as a rush of pain washed over her entire body.

"I couldn't fight back against him- he had help- there were three girls and each of them helped him attack me, how was I supposed to fight them off, there was 4 of them and one of me...." her voice became more rapid and her heartbeat began to increase, she knew where she was going with this and she didn't want this to all come out now, but she couldnt stop the words from coming out of her mouth.

"I tried to transform- but its like they knew who I was, I was cornered and they took my brooch....." she paused before adding "and they still have it, I-I....I can't even transform to fight and now they found me, what am I going to do, even the crystal is suffering from this and I feel weak all the time." Usagi was fighting back the tears, she hadn't felt this down and out in a long time. She felt as if she had failed herself and Mamoru- she was supposed to be the strongest senshi and here she was weak and broken trying to figure out just where this enemy came from.

When Mamoru asked her where her pain was the worst, she gently placed her hand just under her rib cage on the right side of her body- letting out a painful sigh as she did so. She knew what this meant, Mamoru would see what that thing did to her- there was no hiding it anymore and she was afraid he would be angry at her for hiding it all this time, but the pain she was in was so intense that she could care less at this point if he saw her wounds, she just wanted the pain to stop.

Mamoru wasn't really fazed by Usagi's description of what this new villain looked like - he had noticed each set of villains that the senshi had encountered got progressively more difficult, and he reasoned that this description Usagi gave was the one step more difficult for this (set of) villain(s).  But he did become alarmed when Usagi revealed that they had taken her transformation brooch.  And Mamoru became even more worried when Usagi stated that the Silver Imperium Crystal was suffering and she was feeling weak all the time.  Though each of those two times, his face only showed this worry for a split-second - he knew she depended on him to be strong and confident, and he didn't want to let her down.

When Usagi showed him where her pain was worst, Mamoru didn't even think about getting angry at her, or anything like that, for hiding it; his only thought right now was figuring out how to ease her pain.  So when she put her hand on the right side of her body just under her rib cage (and made a sound showing that it really hurt), Mamoru carefully lifted up the right side of her shirt just enough so he could see that wound.  When he saw it oozing, he winced for a split-second, because it even looked painful.

Once he had regained control of his expression, Mamoru requested of Usagi "It would help if you could hold your shirt up so that wound doesn't get re-covered, Usako.  Meanwhile, I'll go get stuff to treat that."  He held her shirt up in the position he wanted her to approximately hold it in, then waited for her to comply with his request.  Once she did so, Mamoru got up and went over to where he kept his medical supplies.  When he got there, he made sure to grab his bottle of hydrogen peroxide, the jar where he kept his sterile cotton balls, and one of those large wrap bandages.  Then he hurried back over to Usagi's side.

Felix semi relaxed after Cyran departed. It was nice to know that he was on their side but he worried about the pressure being put on him from the council. That kind of pressure can make a person do things that are out of character. He left the roof and headed back downstairs.

"I can't stay. We will talk later. Tell Gustav I mean what I said, even if he does not believe me." Felix left the apartment and headed back.

He could tell that the council was losing patience with all of them. Felix knew that his mission involving Mamoru was going to be difficult but he did not foresee it being this hard. Normally people would have given in to him and he would have them wrapped around his finger. In this case Mamoru had resisted every attempt to get close to him. He did not want to fail and the council bearing down on them was the last thing he needed.

"I never lose." Felix grumbled.

Felix was in a bad mood when he arrived at the apartment. He walked in  nearly slamming the door and walked into the kitchen to get something to drink.

Usagi listened and nodded when Mamoru asked her to hold her shirt up a bit so he could treat her wound. She lightly grabbed onto the shirt where his hand had previously been. She had observed him the whole time he sat with her. He appeared so calm, it was just like him, even if he were panicking inside he would never show it. It was one of the qualities Usagi admired about him.

She heard the front door open and heard someone walk into the kitchen, Felix must be here, Usagi thought as she laid where she was, she would have liked to day hello, but then it would also be better to say hello when she wasn't being treated for a nasty injury. She didn't really want anyone to know about her injuries.

Usagi closed her eyes for a moment to try and keep her mind of the searing pain she was feeling. She also felt warm all over, she really wanted a glass of water, or at least a cool washcloth to put on her face. She figured she could ask Mamoru when he came back, she didn't want to shout out to him. 

She waited patiently for Mamoru to return with the first aid materials.

While Mamoru was heading back to where Usagi was, he heard the front door almost slam shut.  He couldn't help thinking 'Felix must not be in a very good mood.  I should try to not disturb him for the next few minutes.'

When Mamoru reached Usagi's side again, he put the medical supplies that he had brought on a coffee table near the sofa Usagi was laying on.  Then, as he was grabbing the bottle of hydrogen peroxide and a couple of those cotton balls, Mamoru quietly told Usagi "That wound looks like it needs some hydrogen peroxide to make it feeel better.  So prepare yourself, Usako, because this stuff burns at first.  But in the long run, it should help you feel less pain."  He then dabbed some hydrogen peroxide on each of the couple cotton balls and asked her "Ready?" as he turned back to her.

When Usagi indicated she was ready, Mamoru used the cotton balls to apply the hydrogen peroxide to Usagi's bad wound there, getting out a couple new cotton balls and dabbing the hydrogen peroxide on them whenever the cotton balls he had been using seemed to run out of the hydrogen peroxide he had dabbed on them.  When he finished applying the hydrogen peroxide to Usagi's bad wound, he told her "Okay, all done with that part.  Now to apply a bandage to it, so that it doesn't get worse.  And applying the bandage will be much easier if you would sit upright.  So could you do that for me, please?"  Then Mamoru turned to get the large wrap bandage off the coffee table, followed by turning back to Usagi, waiting for her to sit upright in a position to make him wrapping the bandage around her relatively easy, and starting to wrap it around her stomach area at the bottom of her rib cage.

Usagi was relieved when Mamoru returned with the first aid materials. She was a bit nervous, but knew Mamoru was going to take care of her. She listened as he spoke telling her that the hydrogen peroxide was going to burn. She braced herself for the pain. When she felt the first dabs of hydrogen peroxide she winced a bit, suppressing her cries. The burning sensation made her face contort.

Usagi knew that this would help but she just wished it would end already- as Mamoru continued to treat her wound Usagi couldn't contain herself anymore as a slight yell escaped her lips and she grasped onto the seat of the sofa she was laying on.

Eventually, Mamoru finished treating her wound and he asked her to sit up so he could wrap a bandage around to help keep it free from infection. When he asked her to sit up, Usagi nodded. She slowly pushed herself up until she was seated in an upright position. She hadn't felt exhaustion like this in a long time-she hoped that this pain would end and she could settle back into a life of normalcy.

Usagi sat still as Mamoru wrapped her bandage around her torso, when he finished, Usagi rested her head against Mamoru's shoulder, her exhaustion had finally caught up with her, it was all she could do to keep her eyes open at this point.

As her eyes began to close more two words quietly slipped out her mouth, "arigatou Mamo-chan."

It touched Mamoru when Usagi quietly thanked him after he finished wrapping the bandage around her lower torso.  He sweetly replied "Awwww, of course.  And you're welcome."  Then he noticed Usagi's upper body seemed to slump against his upper body and shoulder; that and the fact that he didn't hear anything more from her made him wonder if she had passed out, and if so, why.  So Mamoru slowly and quietly attempted to lay Usagi back down on the sofa.  Once he had successfully done so without her moving or saying anything, he was convinced that she had passed out.  He quickly checked her pulse and her respiration rate; when he noticed both of those were normal, he figured she must've just passed out from the pain, which would be understandable and not a really bad thing.

This gave Mamoru time to think about all that he had just learned.  He realized that his love had gotten herself in another predicament, this one much worse than the last one, which made him feel somewhat guilty for seeming to leave her by coming to Boston.  Still, he was determined now to protect her from this new threat as best he could.  And he hoped that it didn't attack her again while the two of them were apart.

Mamoru then exhaled a deep breath that he hadn't realized he had taken in.  He followed that up by quietly getting up and leaving the living room where he had put Usagi to head for the kitchen.

OOC :

Felix grabbed a glass from the cabinet and opened the fridge. He grabbed the container of the strawberry banana juice. He filled up his glass and took a giant sip. He could not help but think that even the higher ups were not telling to Cyran the whole truth. They knew how close Felix and Cyran were growing up and Felix wondered if the higher ups would try to use Cyran against him. He knew that his thoughts could be considered borderline paranoia but at this point he could not rule it out. They knew their schedules and could be watching them at any time. Felix poured another glass of the juice before putting the the container back in the fridge. He was going to head out towards his piano to calm his nerves when he heard someone approaching the kitchen. Felix decided to wait to see if it was Usagi or Mamoru.

Mamoru continued walking until he was in the kitchen.  When he saw Felix in there holding a glass of juice, Mamoru decided to break the ice with a little light-hearted smalltalk while smiling pleasantly "So you're thirsty also, Felix?"  Then Mamoru got the teapot out, filled it about one-quarter full with cold water, and placed it on one of the stove burners, which he subsequently turned on High.  While Mamoru was waiting for the water to heat up, he got out a teacup & saucer, followed by getting out a bag of the tea flavor that he wanted now.

Felix looked up to see Mamoru. He took a deep breathe to calm himself down. Felix was worried that he did not have complete control over himself. It was not the time to make Mamoru suspicious. Felix gathered himself and smiled.

"Yes. How have you been? Have you been enjoying your stay here. I am sorry that we have to not had much of a chance to chat. I know classes and work have kept us both quite busy."

Zena grew more and more nervous, she hadn't heard back from Felix and was hoping he had gotten her message asking to meet up. She paced around her room before heading out into the common area to get something to eat and drink. Her path to the kitchen was cut off by Gustav who appeared to be angry about something.....yet again.

Zena felt herself being backed agaisnt the wall and felt Gustav's hands gripping her shoulders, she tried to fight but it wasno use when he channeled his true strength. She felt afraid of someone who was supposed to be on her side and yet here he was, attacking her yet again. Her eyes grew wide with fear as he spoke to her with rage in his voice,

who the hell do you think you are going to the shadow council, if you have a problem with me and how I handle things, speak to me directly, dont act like a pathetic dog and go back to master. Serioulsy Zena, if you cant get on our level, maybe I should take care of you myself.


Zena felt her voice catch in her throat, she tried to speak, "I-I- it. it was..." she was cut off by Gustav slapping her hard across the face and then shoving her away from him.

I don't care what excuse you have this time, just stay the hell away from me and out of my business. Why don't you go cry to Felix now like you did last time.


Zena sat curled in a ball for a minute as Gustav stormed out of the apartment into the night.
********************************************************************************


Usagi was in a deep sleep. She was dreaming a series of dreams that caused her to toss and turn. Her dreams were not too long, but they were long enough to cause her to stir. She couldn't compute faces, but the emotions they made her subconscious feel as she tossed as turned on the sofa.

She was deep in sleep but a subtle humm noise escaped her lips as she left one dream and entered into another.

Mamoru noticed that it took Felix a few seconds to reply to his question.  But this did not make Mamoru suspicious; instead, he started to worry that he may have interrupted some deep thinking that Felix had been doing.  Though when he realized what Felix had asked him, Mamoru decided to address those points first.  So he calmly, and with an emotionless face, told Felix "As you know, I have been busy.  But that aside, I am mostly glad I came here to study.  Boston is a nice change of pace from Tokyo.  For example, I am really enjoying watching the trees during this season called Fall."  Then Mamoru continued on in a slightly more hesitant, unsure tone "By the way, if I interrupted anything important, I can leave and let you be, Felix."  He hadn't heard Usagi, since she was in the other room; he just offered this because he didn't want to inconvenience Felix.

"Yes, Fall is quite lovely here. Once you are outside of the city, you will be able to see Fall Foliage. I would recommend a drive along the coast in Plymouth. I am glad your are enjoying your time here, I do imagine that classes have kept you quite busy. Perhaps when our schedules allow we could have dinner and talk, Usagi as well. There are plenty to see here, the Freedom Trail is a wonderful historical tour of Boston."

Felix paused again and looked at his now empty glass. He heard a muffled chime, meaning he had a message waiting for him.

"It is probably Zena." Felix thought.

"No...you are not interrupting anything. Just some...family problems." Felix said quietly.

Gustav needed to get out of the apartment and fast. he could feel his true powers coming out in their full strength. He had lost control with Zena and used his true strengths with her. He didn't really care too much since she had formed a new habit of running her mouth and acting like such a typical human. She was letting her emotions and her enamor for Felix interfere with the mission.

Gustav thought about his time with Felix before things got crazy, they had actually been great friends, Cyran too and he wondered why they had grown apart. He was surprised at Felix's comments and how he had been quick to defend him. It made Gustav think for a moment that maybe they could be good friends again.

He continued to walk around Boston to calm himself down and try to figure out what to do next.



Zena slowly pushed herself up into a standing position. She was still in a state of shock and her breathing was quite heavy. She knew Gustav had anger issues, but she never expected him to lash out like this. She touched her hand to her face and it still stung from where he slapped her.

She walked over to the bathroom to check her other injuries. She rolled up her sleeves on her shirt and saw he had left grip marks on her arm. She also felt incredibly sore from where he shoved her and she collided with the floor.

this is becoming  too much to handle, and on top of this I have to deal with the news from the Shadow Council.  She stumbled out of the bathroom and back to her room. She had lost her appetite. She plopped onto her bed and hugged a pillow to her chest as she thought about these new powers and abilities the Shadow Council had informed her about

When Felix recommended a drive along the coast in Plymouth to see true Fall Foliage, Mamoru replied seriously "I thought you knew I don't have a car here."  Mamoru was not offended or angry or anything like that; he was just interested in laying out the facts (and maybe a little disappointed at Felix, but that's all).  Mamoru continued on in the same serious tone "I can see a couple ways around this, though.  If there's some train line that I can take to see this, and get back the same day, or maybe the very next day, that would be great.  Even if not, if you wouldn't mind taking me for such a drive sometime when we're both free, Felix, that could work.  As for the Freedom Trail, I've heard about that, but haven't been on it yet.  Thank you for recommending it, though.  Maybe I should look up the best way to get there from here."

Just then, the teapot Mamoru had put on started whistling.  As Mamoru walked over to where the teapot was, he told Felix "Go on; I'm listening."  As he continued listening for Felix's response, Mamoru took the teapot and poured the correct amount of its hot water into his teacup.  He then took the teabag he had gotten out earlier and let the water in his teacup seep through it as much as he wanted.

"I do have access to another car if you wish to use it. I was trying to arrange to have one when you arrived but I was not able to, I finally heard back about it." Felix replied a bit more coolly than intended, still a bit distracted. He continued in a more friendly tone. "I would be more than happy to drive when we are both available if you would prefer. Driving through Boston can be rather...daunting. It is a 45 minutes drive from the city, and you would have to go through the Callahan Tunnel, which I would recommend avoid at all costs during rush hour. There is plenty to do in Plymouth as well, there is the 17th Century English Village, the Wampanoag Homesite, the replica of the Mayflower and Plymouth Rock of course. I would start with Freedom Trail as well. It is worth it. Salem as well. Still another road trip but another nice place to visit."

Felix pulled out his phone and saw the message from Zena.

"I am a little tied up. I will see you soon."

"There is plenty to do, and I know you have been working very hard. Sometimes a short break can help clear your mind."

Zena was deep in thought thinking of her mission and the news she had just heard when she felt an intense throbbing pain all over her head. She sat up and clutched her head and let out a scream.

Athena, you dare to defy the Shadow Council, I wouldn't dare think about it if you know what is good for you. You will do as the Shadow Council wishes or we will no longer have service for you. Stop with your daydreaming and contribute- or do you not care about avenging Relana, and all those who were killed by those of the wretched Moon Kingdom.


The voice was gone, it had been a woman's voice- but she never identified herself. Zena would have to Felix the first time she saw him. Why was everything around her falling apart, she just wanted to sleep, but she could't focus on anything other than ridding the mind numbing pain she felt from the presence of the Shadow Council.



Usagi was deep in sleep, in a happy place. For the first time in a long time she was dreaming happy dreams. She wasn't sure where she was, but she felt it was some place special. She was with Mamoru and they appeared to be at some type of park together. They were on paddle boats on a lake and Usagi felt so happy.

The dream jumped to a lunch picnic in a small park. Her dreams continued to be happy but while her subconscious was happy her body was reacting to the effects of the weather, the apartment was a bit chilly and she hadn't gotten any blankets yet for the night and was in light clothes still since coming in from the walk with Mamoru. She was shivering a bit, but was so exhausted she couln't wake up to get the covers. Usagi instinctively curled into a ball to try and contain whatever warmth she had left.