Title: Ava Adore - Book1: Ch.4
Author: Anastasia Shinsei
E-Mail: AnaShinsei@yahoo.com
URL: http://www.crosswinds.net/~lasoldier (La Soldier)
Classification: Alternate Reality
Rating: PG
Disclaimers: The book titles and verse quoted is by Billy 
Corgan and Smashing Pumpkins. Sailor Moon is Naoko 
Takeuchi's. The story is mine. 

Author's Notes: This series will include the 
Generals/Senshi Romances. I'm going to use a combination 
of Japanese anime/manga and NA dub information while using 
NA names for story purposes. I use the NA names for the 
Silver Millennium and future, and anime for the present 
because they were specifically born in Tokyo.

Thanks to Sailor Elysia, Lazuli, Rayon de Lune, and SujaKino 
for the beta ^_^

Completed: June 14, 2000
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

A pure soul and beautiful 
You
Don't understand
Don't feel you now
I will breathe for the both of us
Travel the world
Traverse the skies
Your home is here within my heart
And for the first time
I feel as though I am reborn in my mind
Recast as child and mystic sage
Who wouldn't be the one you love?
Who wouldn't stand inside your love?

"Stand Inside Your Love"
~Billy Corgan, Smashing Pumpkins~

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Book 1- To Stand Inside Your Love
Chapter 4


*Time Change: The Present, Tokyo*

Usagi quietly watched the kaleidoscopic visions as Setsuna 
sat patiently by her side. Her eyes darted to the Time 
Senshi's figure with great trepidation as she turned her 
head slowly and asked in a quiet voice, "We knew?"

Setsuna paused the Garnet Orb's projection momentarily to 
answer Usagi. As she glanced down at her lap, Setsuna 
heaved a great sigh of resignation. She returned her gaze 
to Usagi's and answered, "The lines of time that connect 
us to destiny allowed a short warning to filter through to 
the past. I have yet to find out who sent it and how 
they've done it." She lowered the Time Staff to rest upon 
her lap. "So the answer to your question is yes and no. 
You were forewarned about future events but the message 
was so brief that you were not able to process the 
information properly."

The young woman sat back, stunned by what she had just 
seen. "Who could have done such a thing, Setsuna-san?" 
Usagi asked with an uncharacteristically solemn expression 
upon her face. "If it was not you, then it must be someone 
of great power to be able to control time to that degree."

The Senshi of Pluto focused her weary eyes on the subdued 
blonde. "I am not certain, princess. As you already know, 
I cannot tell you anything about the future, but I can 
tell you that I most certainly did not send the warning." 
She contemplated the last scene of Princess Serenity and 
Prince Endymion frozen on the wall of her apartment. 

After a short period of silence, Setsuna finally turned 
back to face Usagi and replied with a hint of frustration 
coloring her words. "However, you were correct on a very 
important point. Only someone intimately connected with 
time would be able to accomplish such a task, and the fact 
that it was not I is what troubles me the most."

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

*Time Change: The Past, Silver Millennium*

Serena and Darien backed from each other but recovered 
immediately with seemingly pleasant facial expressions 
plastered onto their faces. The two nodded quite 
congenially to one another as they awaited further 
instructions from the Queen. 

Unfortunately, the interaction was not overlooked by Luna 
nor was it by Artemis. They watched Serena's spine 
stiffened continuously as the Queen spoke of the tour the 
princesses would be escorting the prince and his generals. 
The two advisors worriedly glanced at each other when 
Serena's face froze into a shadow of a grimace before 
brightening once more as the Queen paired off the princess 
with the prince. Luna looked positively bewildered at the 
scene.  She could only compose herself when Artemis 
switched his attention from Serena to Luna, holding her 
close and offering himself for support.

The tableau did not go unnoticed by Serena's personal 
bodyguard either. Mina's eyebrows drew together instantly 
as she carefully observed Serena's reactions to the 
prince. She smoothed the expression from her face, 
reminding herself of the current situation. Mina 
immediately replaced the frown with a look of serene calm 
as she continued observing her cousin.

Once she was settled, the Venusian Princess continued her 
examination of the Prince and Princess with the critical 
stare of a seasoned leader. She concluded with a great 
deal of surprise and concern that whatever may have 
happened just now, they were both trying to hide their 
distress as duty and propriety requires from a meeting of 
royal houses. 

As a small sigh escaped her, Mina faintly moved her head 
to examine the Royal Guards from the House of Earth when 
her eyes met a pair of silver-gray ones. She felt her face 
flush involuntarily when she realized he had been watching 
her the entire time. With his imposing stature and the 
medals adorning his uniform, he clearly stood out as the 
leader among the Royal Guards. She had to admit to herself 
that his impeccably dashing good looks coupled with 
stunning white-blond hair and muscular build didn't hurt 
either. The general smiled slightly in mixture of 
appreciation and amusement as she defiantly raised an 
eyebrow and tore her gaze away from his. 'Strange,' Mina 
mused as she watched him from the corner of her eye. 'It's 
as if he knows me but I don't know how that could be 
possible.'

Serena stood wishing she could run to her room and 
literally shake the terrifying images out of her head. She 
shut her eyes momentarily to clear the strangest pain she 
had ever felt. It had cut through her heart when the 
images began playing out. Serena stood helplessly as the 
confusion washed over her. Why would she feel such pain at 
the loss of someone she just met? Serena shuddered at the 
memory of the death and lifted her eyes to meet Darien's. 
For that one second, the horror left and all Serena saw 
was him.

Darien kept the blank smile on his face but couldn't keep 
the glassy look out of his eyes as he fought to hold his 
nausea down. Every time he looked as this girl, he felt 
his soul fulfilled and torn apart at the same time. He 
gave himself a mental shake, reminding himself that this 
was no time to ponder such things when he was to survey 
the Moon Kingdom. Darien lowered his gaze to her face and 
the pain faded away. All that was left was the sight of a 
small blonde girl staring back at him with a perplexed 
look of sorrow.

Queen Serenity regally nodded her head as she ended her 
speech. "The people of the Moon Kingdom extends a warm 
welcome to the Representatives of Earth. We hope to come 
to a mutual agreement to an alliance of peace and 
prosperity with Earth and throughout our universe." The 
people cheered in agreement as the princesses led the 
prince and his generals out of the throne room.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

*Time Change: The Present, Tokyo*

Usagi sat back on the couch in Setsuna's stylishly 
decorated apartment, releasing a small puff of air as she 
let the images sink into her consciousness. Setsuna had 
wisely chosen to pause the viewing once more when she 
noticed the younger girl's exhaustion from the past few 
hours. 

Usagi rested her head on a cushion and blinked her 
fatigued eyes. 'Oh, Mamo-chan.' Usagi thought sadly, the 
memory of a thousand years past re-emerging. 'We could 
have lived happily ever after if we'd only recognized the 
chance we were given back then.'

Setsuna frowned as she studied the princess' wistful 
facial expression. She had anticipated Usagi's train of 
thought correctly. Who would not want to avoid the fall of 
the Moon Kingdom and the death of Queen Serenity in 
exchange for peace and happiness? "Usagi-chan," Setsuna 
warned sternly. "If you had fully utilized the warning as 
it was intended, then the Present as we know it would have 
changed drastically. Crystal Tokyo would cease to exist, 
and perhaps Small Lady as well." 

The younger woman snorted and wrinkled her nose in disgust 
at the thought of the pink-haired pest. "You say that as 
if it would be a bad thing. I should have taught her some 
manners before sending her back in time to steal my Mamo-
chan's attention! And just where did all that pink hair 
come from anyway?" She ranted in annoyance. Usagi caught 
herself when she realized what she had just said. "Oh, 
ChibiUsa," Usagi whispered remorsefully. "Gomen nasai."

The green-haired senshi cleared her throat as she 
tactfully ignored the comments about ChibiUsa.  "It may 
have been a ploy created by the Dark Moon Family to derail 
Crystal Tokyo from existence. We already know that they 
were capable of manipulating the threads of time for their 
own agenda. Perhaps, this was another failed attempt at 
altering the past." 

Usagi frowned. "But... didn't we defeat the Wise Man and 
his minions? It all happened so long ago." She shook her 
head, confused at the implications. Temporal mechanics had 
never been her forte, and she had always left that part 
for Ami-chan and Setsuna-san to figure out. 

"Is there something you're not telling me, Setsuna-san?" 
Usagi demanded suspiciously. The Guardian of Time had 
never been completely forthcoming in the past, and this 
situation seemed to be no different.

"All in due time, Usagi-chan. I will explain all in due 
time." Setsuna nearly laughed out loud at the absurdity of 
her words. Time, if anything else, had proven to be a 
complete mystery even to the formidable Sailor Pluto, the 
Guardian of Time and Space. A paradoxical puzzle incapable 
of unraveling purely by itself, Time had a dependent 
relationship with people, choices, and different events to 
accomplish such a feat. 

With that sobering thought, Setsuna returned her focus to 
the task at hand. There may not be enough 'due time' to 
explain after all, Setsuna reminded herself, if time did 
not stop its collision course to oblivion.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

*Time Change: The Past, Silver Millennium*

Serena and Darien walked quietly behind the generals and 
senshi, who appeared to be getting along very well 
together. The multiple pairs of women and men walked along 
the path within the Moonlight Gardens, commenting on the 
tour they had just completed and making pleasant 
conversation. Serena and Darien were the obvious 
exception. The prince and princess had hesitantly 
attempted to start a conversation at least six times 
before turning away from each other and rolling their eyes 
in disgust at themselves.

'Come on, Serena,' She kept repeating to herself. Serena 
continued to roll her eyes in exasperation at her own 
behavior. 'How hard can it be to have a simple 
conversation about plants? Nevermind the strange pictures 
in your head about this man...' Serena exhaled deeply and 
turned back to the prince and try again. 

Darien walked beside Serena with a perplexed look on his 
face, his eyes rolled up at the heavens above. He mentally 
slapped himself and wondered if that's where his mind flew 
off to during the course of the last few hours. 'Dammit 
man, you're a prince who's dealt with other princesses 
before. This is no time to lose your concentration!' 
Darien berated himself and shut his eyes briefly. 
Unknowingly creating a droll expression on his face, 
Darien sighed. When he opened them again, the generals and 
senshi had moved on ahead to give them breathing space. 
The normally suave prince blink in confusion as a musical 
giggle distracted him. He turned his head back in 
bewilderment and found himself staring at a very amused 
princess.

Serena was about to engage in Attempt #7 for a decent 
conversation when the sight of the prince's face nearly 
unraveled her. Her hands flew mouth as she struggled to 
contain her hilarity. She watched Darien's face as he 
appeared to be conducting an argument with himself. By her 
own estimations and his look of total lack in 
concentration, he had lost the argument and closed his 
eyes in resignation. Serena's eyes crinkled as she stopped 
breathing in a final attempt at keeping in her laughter. 
Serena hooted at last when she couldn't hold back anymore 
and sank down on a nearby bench. 

Darien's eyes shot open and widened as he watched her gasp 
for air. "You looked..." She struggled to get the words 
out. Her cheeks were starting to hurt from all her 
laughing and grinning. "You looked so funny standing there 
like that! Now I know why Rei starts laughing when I'm 
spacing out." With her arms thrown up in the air, Serena 
stopped trying to explain and wiped the tears of mirth 
that had begun to flow from her eyes. She took another 
look at his face and dissolved into gales of laughter once 
more.

Darien frowned and watched the jovial girl quite warily 
before he eventually joined in on her contagious laughter. 
He had to admit to himself that he must have looked pretty 
funny with that ridiculous look on his face. Darien smiled 
as he replied, "I can assure you that I don't look like 
that all the time." Serena grinned back and shot back 
between giggles. "I should hope not. Think of what would 
happen at those stuffy royal conferences if you did." 
Darien snickered at the entertaining thought, delighted at 
the turn of events.

He walked up to Serena and sat down next to her. Darien 
continued, chuckling, "Well, I wouldn't mind seeing that 
look your face."

Serena stopped laughing long enough to ask, "And why is 
that?" For a brief moment, she couldn't help but notice 
how incredibly adorable Darien looked when he smiled. 
Serena shook her head in disbelief at the errant thought 
and merely smiled back.

Grinning mischievously back at her, he answered slyly, 
"It's called payback, my dear." Darien grinned as he was 
rewarded with musical laughter that seemed to dance upon 
the air. He was completely relieved to have broken the 
barrier between them and felt himself relaxing for the 
first time since his arrival in the Moon Kingdom. He 
gallantly offered his hand to her as she graced him with a 
brilliant smile while accepting his hand. Serena rose up 
elegantly with his assistance and the two of them moved to 
catch up with the others. They teased and joked with each 
other like old friends as they walked towards the 
entourage awaiting the pair at the end of the walkway.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Zoicite glanced down at Ami while following behind the 
others. He smiled as he watched the quiet princess explain 
the horticultural aspects of the Moon Kingdom. She spoke 
with great humility when describing the kingdom's many 
accomplishments while masterfully handling the technical 
facets with the ease of explaining what a library 
contained. Quite frankly, he thought to himself with 
growing interest, everything about her fascinated him. Ami 
stood no higher than his shoulders and her petite frame 
masked the powerful aura of Mercury. She probably would 
have been overshadowed by the pure confidence of the other 
princesses if it weren't for the calm reserve she herself 
emanated. 

They took a moment to stop under a glen while the others 
moved on ahead of them. When the prince and princess had 
walked by, Zoicite did an incredulous double take. Darien 
and Serena seemed to have moved past the awkward phase 
they had been stuck in earlier, and were now chatting 
familiarly with each other. Zoicite grinned to himself as 
he took in their good-natured attitudes. It looked as if 
Darien worried over nothing.

When she finished her monologue, Ami paused when she 
realized that there had been no response from General 
Zoicite. 'Oh dear...I've done it again.' She thought with 
frustration, fighting the urge to slap her forehead. Ami 
could not understand why she had to turn every 
conversation into lesson, whether it was history, science, 
or anything else for that matter. She sighed quietly and 
returned her concentration to the patient man next to her. 

'I must have bored him half to death with that last 
lecture. No wonder I can't hold a man's interest for very 
long.' She thought forlornly. Ami lost count of all how 
many times in the past she had watched the other 
princesses dazzle men of all stations with their charming 
confidence while she stood forgotten and alone. 'I'm just 
not flashy or beautiful enough.' She thought miserably as 
she lifted her head and found herself staring directly 
into gorgeous eyes of jade. 

Zoicite's smile widen as he watched Ami blink repeatedly 
from surprise. Apparently, she didn't expect to maintain 
his full attention, nor did she expect it to be on herself 
specifically. That was going to change soon enough, he 
thought to himself as his smile evolved into a full-
fledged grin. They may have all teased Jadeite about his 
amorous nature when discussing the princesses before the 
trip, but Zoicite definitely wasn't going to complain 
about spending time with Ami. The lithe general found the 
Mercurial Princess absolutely enchanting and exquisite. 
What added to his attraction was Ami's ability to be 
intelligent and demure at the same time without trying. He 
positively detested some ladies of the Earth court who 
attempted to catch the Royal Guards' attention with 
coyness and pseudo-charm. Those women couldn't hold a 
candle to the planetary princesses, and in his opinion, 
especially Princess Ami.

"I'm very impressed with your knowledge of the Moon 
Kingdom," Zoicite commented. He didn't want to throw her 
off guard just yet. "The entire kingdom has been wonderful 
to explore and learn about today." He reached out and took 
her hand into his. With a telltale sparkle in his eyes, he 
placed a warm kiss on her fingers that held the promise of 
infinitely more if she allowed it. "Thank you."

Ami didn't think her eyes could widen any more after being 
caught in his intense stare. 'Oh boy, was I wrong.' The 
last thought flittered through her mind as Zoicite kissed 
her hand. He lifted his head and smiled into her cerulean 
eyes. Speechless from shock and an emotion she couldn't 
identify at that particular moment even if her life 
depended on it, all Ami could do was smile back.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

"Perhaps it was the wrong era to target." The figure spoke 
and waved a long staff in front of the portal, pausing the 
flow of a time long gone.

The other wrapped the cloak tighter and nodded in 
agreement. "The fall of the Moon Kingdom was inevitable. 
If it were to survive, then all our efforts would have 
been for nothing." 

Both returned their attention to the mission. Time was of 
the essence, and there was no room for any mistakes. Too 
many lives depended on it.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

END OF CHAPTER 4