Tokyo Reborn

By Richan

Disclaimer: I don't own Sailor Moon. If I did, I would certainly not be spending the winter in Michigan. (That's for sure. It'd be somewhere MUCH warmer - as in hot men and cool drinks with little umbrellas. Virgin daiquiris, anyone?)

Warnings: Angst, but a little fluff at the end.

AN: Arigato! Little butterflies danced in my stomach with the cool reviews I got for "Tokyo," so I thought I would try to continue the story. ^^

The red ball lazily peeked over the horizon, ready to be greeted by the silence that had welcomed it day after day for a thousand years. The colors swirled into orange and finally into yellow, with the sky around it shifting from black to purple to what seemed a million shades of blue. Sunshine drifted into a cave left unshielded by the ice as it moved past, the glacier's slow march finally moving south.

One bleary, blue eye wrenched open as sunlight hit. The warmth confused her for a moment before everything she had ever been through flashed in front of her eyes. The scenes sped by, blurring into each other as they came to a sudden halt of that last day - that last, awful day.

Pale hands rubbed arms covered in goose bumps as she shivered. She moved to sit up and found she couldn't move her legs. Both eyes were open now as she looked at the weight that held them down. Long rivers of blond hair ran in a lazy stream across her legs. Usagi. The name reverberated around her head before she could clear it of the fog that lay in its far corners.

"Neko-chan." Haruka's voice was barely a whisper. She didn't have the strength to say it any louder if she wanted to move. A long arm reached down and caressed the soft, cold cheek that faced her. Her dark blue eyes drifted down and found why her princess was not awake. The silver crystal lay in one palm, slender fingers holding it in a tenuous grip.

She looked at it again. The crystal didn't have the glow it usually had. The soft warmth that enveloped the crystal was the same that wrapped itself around Usagi and she couldn't feel it anywhere in this cold, half-lit cave.

"Neko-chan!" Somewhere, deep inside her, she got the energy to shout out the name. "Neko-chan," she whispered. Haruka closed her eyes and wished it had happened some other way. She should have been the one to give the energy to protect her princess. There had to have been some way she could have....

Her eyes shot open as she heard movement, more than she felt it. But, it was there all the same. Haruka's gaze were drawn downward where soft eyelashes fluttered against pale, almost gray cheeks before opening.

"'Ruka?"

A tear spilled down chilly cheeks as Haruka realized that it hadn't been in vain. A small part of her should have known that it would have taken much more for the princess to simply give up her life for nothing.

"Neko-chan!" Haruka gathered the younger girl into a relieved hug. "Don't ever do that again!" She ignored the wetness that fell down her face as she buried it in the soft golden warmth that was Usagi.

"Haruka?" Usagi pulled slightly back, making Haruka realize that she had been holding her too close for comfort. "Doshite?"

The older girl shook her head. The last day was pretty jumbled up, and she didn't have a clear picture of what had gone on. The last thing she remembered was finding the cave. Haruka reached a hand and gently touched Usagi's - the one that held the silver crystal. "You used this. That's all I really know."

Clear, sky-blue eyes scanned the emptiness of the cave before returning to settle on the other girl's face. "Do... Do you think it protected them?"

Haruka remained silent for a second. "What do you think?"

Usagi's eyes clouded over for a brief instant before hope began to shine like a lighthouse in a storm. The silver crystal glowed softly before it returned to the brooch she always wore over her heart. The younger girl nodded. "Hai," she said in a soft voice. "I know it did."

******

The streets were littered with strange objects. The glacier had scoured the pavement and buildings, leaving them in tatters under its strength. The ice had deposited huge chunks of dirt and other such things, as if a child getting up in a hurry from a game of pick-up sticks. Usagi and Haruka climbed over half-dug up trees and plants as they tried to remember where they had left their friends and fellow senshi.

"We'll get Tuxedo Kamen first," Haruka said.

"Haruka..."

Hard blue eyes bored into brighter ones until they relented. "Let's get going."

Haruka refused to look at Usagi again. It was more important to find the prince than it was Michiru. This was the way she wanted it to be. Her princess' happiness must come before hers, and she would make sure Usagi would find Mamoru-san.

"Haruka!"

She looked up at Usagi's exclamation. The younger blond was waving wildly, her blue eyes glowing with happiness. Haruka picked her way over the debris in the street to where she waited.

"I think I saw something!" Usagi's voice bubbled with joy as she pointed down the next side street. Faint movement could be seen, the first they had seen all day.

"Let me go look," Haruka said. She started towards the point where the movement seemed to be coming from when she noticed that Usagi wasn't all that far behind her. Turning to her princess, she gave a hard look into those guileless, sky colored eyes. "Princess..."

Usagi shook her head. "I'm not going to stay behind. Not again." Her blue eyes dulled for a moment as they both remembered what had happened all that time ago. A million years might have passed for all they knew, but it was only two days ago that this had happened in their minds.

Haruka watched her carefully for a couple of seconds before she reluctantly nodded. She wouldn't be able to hold back the younger girl if her mind was really made up. Even though it was her duty to protect her princess, she couldn't tell her what she should do. She turned back to their mission and continued down the street.

They found themselves in the middle of the street with no sign of the movement they had first seen. Had it all been some type of mirage or trick? Usagi felt disappointment and despair run through her as she scanned the street. She fought the tears that threatened to rise at her thoughts. They would find their friends - alive - if she had any say in this.

But what if she was wrong? Her heart clenched at the idea. She mentally shook her head at herself as she wallowed in her dark thoughts. Going down that path offered nothing, and she wouldn't go through it. That kind of existence was not for her. Bracing her thoughts with the memories of everything she had been through, she turned tremulous eyes on Haruka. The older girl had been keeping an eye on her as they had gone on with their search and Usagi knew that she wanted to do something for her. It wasn't up to Haruka, though, to bring her thoughts to where she wanted them. Usagi would have to be the one to do that. Determination flowed through her, changing her stance.

Haruka saw the difference in Usagi's eyes. A strange sense of maturity flared in those pale eyes, bringing a small flicker of the ancient past on the moon. A flash of Queen Serenity was briefly seen in those determined eyes before it was replaced by Usagi's personality. She could almost feel the subtle shift in it as the full power of the moon focused on her princess.

Somehow she knew that it wasn't the full transformation that was in the making. Haruka felt a new strength running through herself, making her more determined than ever to find the prince and the others. Duty had been overridden by the love she felt for her princess, who wouldn't let life get her down. She had spent too many years feeling guilty over all that she'd had to do in the name of saving peace. This girl in front of her had seemed too weak to do anything when they had first met. Sailor Moon had been unwilling to fight them, always insisting that there was a bond between the different Sailor Senshi.

She looked back at Usagi once more and saw the beauty that had been hidden by her childishness. The younger girl was an adult, more so than Haruka herself. *She* had been the one willing to learn what it meant to make mistakes, to reach out to people when they needed help, and never refusing help when she, in turn, needed it. Usagi was much stronger than she would ever be, making her wonder if she was the truly weak one. Her powers were nothing compared with *hers.*

"Haruka?" The soft voice broke her train of thought and Haruka raised her head to find worried eyes looking in concern at her. A faint smile hovered on Usagi's lips for a brief moment before she pointed at something down the street. "This time it's for real."

Haruka turned her eyes in the direction that Usagi's finger was pointing. At first she thought it wasn't real, that maybe her princess was just dreaming the two people that were walking slowly towards them. Her dark, blue eyes clouded over as emotions overwhelmed her. Relief became concern, and concern became an enormous sense of love as she stumbled towards the taller of the two. "MICHIRU!"

She tightened her arms around the warm body she held within them. Yes, this was real. What had she deserved for this joy that sang in her veins, Haruka wondered as she heard the sobs that wracked Michiru's body. Her entire sense of being was wrapped up in this wonderful creature that she held so close to her, the one person she could trust besides her princess. One of the two people she would ever love. The one who was the number one person in her heart.

Usagi hugged Ami close, making sure she was all right. She could feel the fine tremors that ran through her even as she leaned against her. "Daijobu, Ami-chan?"

The blue-haired girl wore a confused expression on her face and Usagi could feel the questions that her friend wanted to ask. She watched as a shaky nod came from Ami as she looked around at the devastation that surrounded him.

"What happened?"

"We lost."

Ami's head shot up at this and Usagi couldn't help the smile that crept over her lips. Deep in her heart she knew they should have never entered the battle in the first place. Still, she was also a warrior in the true sense in that she had to save as many people as needed it.

"L - lost?"

Usagi looked over at the other two, who were in a world all of their own. She nodded, a soft movement of her head that seemed to hold the answer to every question in the universe.

******

All had assembled but two. Haruka glanced over at her princess, worry etched on her face. They had not yet found the prince, and she was starting to wonder if they ever would. The last place they had seen Tuxedo Kamen had given no clue. In fact, nothing had been there, and it was almost directly in the center of Tokyo itself.

A noise from one of the others made her look over towards them. She was almost missing the solitude that had covered her and Usagi when it had just been the two of them. Haruka berated herself. She should be happy that they had found Michiru, the one love of her life, but now all she wanted to do was to go back to how it was this morning. Her heart and mind hadn't been so confused then, not like it was at this moment. She just wished she could remember what had happened that last day, when she and Usagi had been left alone.

She was mad at herself for thinking so. She didn't want to be alone, shimatta! Haruka wanted to surround herself with Michiru, drown herself in the love the other had to offer. What was wrong with her that she wanted everything to change - the course of the future to change just because she wanted it to be different?

Haruka wanted to cry, to rant and rave, to throw things in a tantrum, but knew that she had to go on with the way things were. There were certain things she shouldn't mess with, and this was one of them. She wouldn't risk her princess' happiness, even when hers seemed to be on the verge of breaking. A part of her wanted to shout at the unfairness of the situation but she refused to listen to it. Instead, she turned her attention back to searching for Tuxedo Kamen and Sailor Saturn.

The search continued until they reached the part of town that had been the place of their first battle as allies. Haruka marveled at the calm that Usagi felt, even though the sun was starting to fade from the sky with no sign of the missing. Still, there was something in the air in this place, far different than when she had been a student here so long ago. Mugen had been filled with darkness and sadness. Now it was a beautiful sight to behold. Spring flowers had bloomed, their sweet scents combining to soothe her battered senses.

"Hotaru!"

They all looked at Setsuna, whose face was wreathed with happiness at the sight of the youngest of the senshi. Haruka felt relief at the sight of the young girl, yet it was tampered by the knowledge that the prince hadn't been seen.

Usagi's eyes lit up, alerting her senshi to the approach of somebody. Each of them turned and saw a dark-haired man running towards them before grabbing a hold of the blond in the midst.

"USAKO!"

Haruka could hear the love in the name. She saw the way Usagi clung to her neck and cried happy tears and knew that she wouldn't have it any other way. That moment hung in the back of her mind even as they gathered together to rebuild the city, reshaping it into the city predestined by Fate, Michiru by her side.

******

OWARI

AN: Amazing what a little encouragement will bring! There was always something about Haruka that cried out to me in both the manga and the anime. I'd say it is a sense of inner beauty that was kept hidden from even those close around her until it was too late to be seen. (I could be wrong.) This doesn't mean I would want Haruka and Usagi to be together - just that there's an incredible connection between them that is so unlike the ones between the rest of the senshi. ^^