“Serena, I need to talk to you.” She looked at her friend. It had been quite a long time since the both of them had the chance to speak alone.
“Is there something wrong, Molly?” the blonde asked kindly. “Did something happen to Kelvin*?”
“No, he’s all right.” The red haired girl lowered her gaze. “It’s just that… Oh, Serena, I don’t know how to say this, it’s too disturbing…”
A couple of tears fell from her green eyes.
“Serena, I think I’m being stalked,” she said. “I’m being stalked… by Him.”
Her friend looked at her with an awkward expression. I should have known you wouldn’t believe me, Molly thought and wiped the tears from her face.
“You say you’re being stalked by… Kelvin?” Serena asked after a long silence.
“No!!” Molly almost laughed at her friend’s density. “Not him Kelvin! Him… you know… Him-I-don’t-talk-about…”
“Oh, THAT him.” The blue eyes widened. “But… wasn’t he … well, you know?”
“That’s the problem.” The redhead’s gaze turned gloomy once again. “Until a week ago; I could swear he was gone for good… but… I truly believe I saw him, outside the shop, watching me from his car.”
“And… How do you feel about that?”
“To be honest, Serena, I don’t know. I love Kelvin, he makes me feel safe in a way He’ll never do; but, when I saw His car passing me by the other day, I just… Oh Serena!! I just don’t know anymore.”

“Are you sure she said that?” his voice echoed through the living room when Zoycite opened the door; something in Malachite’s voice suggested that it would be better not to show him the reports right away.
“The last d... thing I needed!” he said, holding back his language as she made herself noticeable “kahretsin*” or, at least the one she could understand.
Zoey moved closer to the silver haired man and placed a comforting hand on his shoulder.
“I have to go now.” He smiled softly at her. “I have to meet somebody this afternoon, so I guess we will be seeing each other tomorrow morning.”

Malachite hung up the cell phone and turned his full attention to Zoycite.
“It was Darien,” he said, anticipating to her question. “Seems like Neflyte is stalking Serena’s friend, again.”
“He’s a very disturbed man,” she said, testing his mood.
“He believes she is worth it.” His grey eyes darkened.
“Nonsense, there’s nothing more important than our mission!” Zoey insisted, measuring every word just as he taught her.
“Some women are definitely worth the sacrifice.” Malachite brushed a golden lock of hair out of her face.
When was the last time you sacrificed anything for me? Her eyes narrowed and she was about to pull away from the touch, when she realized the unsteadiness of the hand caressing her face. Something was incredibly wrong.
“Mal, you’re shaking.”

“There seems to be no other choice, Luna,” he said, feeling a little awkward to be talking to a cat. “The entity feeds on negative energy, our negaversian attacks only make it stronger. If we want to destroy it, before it destroys our Kingdom, we must resurrect the Guardians.” He hated every word that came out of his mouth with that last phrase; and even more he hated the look of satisfaction in the cat’s eyes.
“I’m so glad you’ll finally stop trying to deny the past,” she said, almost purring. “Can’t you see? Things will finally be the way they were supposed to… between you and the girls, I mean.”
“Except for one little detail,” Artemis interrupted, exchanging looks with Malachite.
“That might not be an impediment, remember the Sailor Starlights?” she claimed. “Besides, Malachite, you knew it wasn’t meant to be from the beginning… there’s no point in resisting fate.”
Malachite raised an eyebrow, ignoring the sharp pain in his stomach and the faint dizziness that followed. All through the meeting he had kept his arms crossed behind his back, hiding the tremor in his hands. Even my own body betrays me now.
“We’ll need to go and find the Guardian stones.” The white cat broke the uncomfortable silence. “But first; we need to talk to the others; it’s important that they understand the truth about our past.”
The world went black for a split second; but the silver haired man hung on to any traces of his old self not to collapse there and then. He leaned against the nearest wall, easing some weight off his feet. The time I knew would arrive… a bitter voice said inside his head.

“They’ve been in there for over an hour,” Raye said to the blond man sweeping up the stairs. “I wonder what they might be talking about.”
Jedite looked at the black haired girl; over the past few days he had grown to like her: She was strong and stubborn, yet noble and self sacrificing; and, like him, had gone through things no person should. “We had a little trouble with our entity last night; things got pretty nasty,” he said, not giving much importance to the subject. “And, God knows, that kitty of yours really likes to talk. Too bad for her, Malachite never listens to anyone else but himself.”
“You don’t like each other very much,” she commented. “I wonder how the four of you work together if you can’t even be a team.”
“It’s not like that, you see, I don’t hate Malachite, hell, I even admire him sometimes; but he can be such an egomaniac, narcissist, self-centred bastard… and that often hurts Zoycite, and she is my friend, and that’s why I can’t stand him... pretty much like Serena and you.”
The girl frowned at the last comment. “You’re nothing like Serena and me!” she claimed.
“That’s right.” Jedite grinned. “For one thing, I’ll NEVER try to steal Zoey away from him, and Malachite, all in all, would never try anything with Titis Gaya.*”
“How can you say such things?!!” Raye cried. “And I don’t know how you found out anyways… You were gone before Darien and I started…”
“Never mind how I know, I just know.” His tone remained as casual as ever. “But, allow me to tell you; that was quite a… mean thing to do, especially to a friend.”
“You know nothing.” Her purple eyes flashed but she quickly turned her gaze to the floor. “It was their destiny, from the past…”
“The past is gone, Raye.” He placed a hand on her shoulder and squeezed lightly. “And in the present there’s no excuse for what she did.”
Jedite almost felt guilty when she pulled away from his touch with a resolute air.
“Who’s this Titis Gaya person anyways?” Raye asked, abruptly changing the subject. “Is she your girlfriend?”
“I think so.” The blond general blushed a little at the question. Damn, this girl recovers pretty fast! “You knew her… from that time, four years ago, at the cruise.”
“That was her? I thought that was a youma.” Her eyes widened in shock.
“She is half a youma,” Jedite sighed. “Her father is a General from the specials. She was after me for quite a while, most of the time I just ignored her; but that time, for a week I believed she was dead and regretted not taking my chance.” His eyes lighted up a bit. “When I was released from the crystal, her face was the first one I saw... that moment, I knew I’d never let her go again.”
“Jeddy’s got a girlfriend,” Raye sang mockingly.
“You brat!” he said, trying to grab her but tripping over the broomstick. He heard her laughter stop when his body collided against a taller frame. Both men got caught off balance and, as Malachite held to a post, Jedite fell on his knees. He raised his gaze to meet the other general; surprised to see the older man loose equilibrium and, even more, for the paleness of his face.
“Get up, Jedite.” The voice was steady but somehow raspy. “And, please, start acting your age for a change.”
The blond man didn’t answer; he just got back on his feet and watched as his superior officer left the temple.
“Something’s incredibly wrong."

She opened her scrapbook; the first page was a clipping from an American newspaper over twenty years old:
Masato Sanjoin: The Japanese tycoon takes over Wall Street.
Under the headline, the picture of a young man with dark eyes and black hair, handsome in some way; but the dull expression on his face resembled nothing to the one she had long associated with that name. The next picture was of a beautiful woman, from an old fashion magazine: she had long auburn curls that fell down past her waist and big sapphire blue eyes. Those features I recognize, she thought. The title just said:
Kristy Anderson* for Prada.
The next couple of pages were several clippings from the social section of various newspapers from the U.S.A. and Japan; most of them with pictures of the wedding of the Japanese business man and the American model.
Then just a small note:
Model Kristy Sanjoin announces her retirement from the Fashion industry due to the birth of her son.
And almost near the end of the scrapbook, a picture she considered her favourite even if the story behind it was not a happy one: In it, a much older Kristy Sanjoin walked out of the courthouse carrying her son. The headline said:
The final break-up.
She looked tenderly at the small boy. Who would have thought that, over twenty years later from the time they took this picture, you would have become my first love? Molly sighed and turned the page to the last clipping.
Japanese Millionaire dies in plane crash:
Yesterday, the body of Masato Sanjoin was recovered from the remnants of the New York –Tokyo accident. The 45 year old millionaire, considered one of the 100 wealthiest persons in the world, left all his fortune to his son, Masato N. Sanjoin II, product from his failed marriage to model Kristy Anderson…

She closed the scrapbook and placed it back under her bed; from the night when she saw Neflyte disappear in her arms, Molly had been, secretly, collecting any information she could find on the man and his life before they met at the Juban Jr. Tennis Club. At first it had been a quest for the truth; but, although Neflyte had lied to her in many ways, his biggest lie had been denying that most of what he said had been, actually, completely true.

The red haired girl walked to her window and watched the red car parked in front of her house; after what happened to Rui, the sight of it should have been frightening to her, yet, Molly had lost her ability to be afraid a long time ago. Of course the idea of a man, whom she believed to be dead, stalking her was disturbing; but if the stalker was whom she thought he was, there would be no use in being scared of him; for Neflyte was powerful enough to do as he pleased whether she wanted it or not.

But my sister… she thought bitterly. That’s something not even YOU would be capable of… isn’t it, Neflyte?

Should I tell Malachite the truth? Neflyte thought, staring at the empty wall across what, had there been any furniture, should be the living room of his manor. Among the many eccentricities of the heir of Sanjoin Enterprises, his reluctance to furnish his house was the second most notorious; the first one was his tendency to lie for no particular reason. It had become part of his personality and, most of the time, the people who knew him well enough turned a blind eye to his lies, most of them knowing that he would eventually tell the truth or that it was just something of no importance. They just assumed him as a pathologic liar.
Although, this time, the lie had come out of fear instead. A strange movement on Saturn, usually the foreteller of death, had been one of the signs that had recently captured his eye. At first, the young astronomer dismissed it, believing it to be the death of Rui Saionji or just another demise of those, although never desired, bound to happen within any mission. Yet, the sign of Saturn was usually meant for someone important to die, and considering the comment delivered by Jedite about their commander’s unhealthy appearance… Don’t even think such nonsense… Neflyte scolded himself.

A sudden scent of flowers and the subsequent whirl of petals, announced him the presence of the female General. He straightened himself a bit as she appeared in the room.
“Zoy-boy!!! What a pleasure to see you.” He greeted the woman sarcastically; knowing just how much she hated to be called that particular nickname.
“I need to talk to you,” she answered coldly, and her eyes held the same look from that morning in the café. “And, please, this time just tell me the truth.” A darker shade of green that, Neflyte had to admit, made her look quite elegant.
“What is it?” his tone suddenly changing into something more civilized.
Zoycite conjured an envelope and handed it to him. Holy… Neflyte cursed inwardly, looking at the Tokyo P.D. stamp on it. There was no need to open it, for he already knew what might be in there. He sighed, the idea of having those things confronted to him by Zoycite of all people only added up to his many problems.
“I haven’t showed them to Malachite.” There was something in the way she said those words, that made Neflyte brusquely return his gaze to her.
“Why?” he said, unable to hide his concern; but doing a great job not showing the small respect she was beginning to inspire in him “Don’t you know hiding information from your commander can be considered a crime?”
“So is murder…” she said, still calmed. “But there are no substantial proofs on whether it was you or just someone using your car; anyways, I considered it appropriate to come and tell you that you just can’t get away with… well you understand.”
“Believe me,” he said, smirking out of habit, “I have the means to get away with whatever I might have done, and, sorry to tell you, it doesn’t involve anything like murder.”
“Oh, you spoiled rich boy.” He was almost disappointed to see her turn back to her old self . “Daddy’s money can buy your way out of anything lying doesn’t solve.”
Neflyte narrowed his eyes; that one had been quite a low punch. He thought about a million ways to return her with something even more painful; but the thought of Jedite’s call got the best out of him and, after a few seconds to calm down, he just turned his sapphire eyes to meet hers.
“This time, you, little girl, can get away with pretty much yourself.” He spoke softly and slow, making sure every single word would reach her. “But in less than three months, mark my words and count each loving day, your whole world may fall and, probably, will. Right now, I strongly suggest you start minding your own business and fixing your own problems, before it’s too late.”
She just gave him an angry glare and teleported away. Neflyte just reached out his hand to catch a stray petal. However, little girl, for both our sakes, I really wish my prediction to be wrong.

He collapsed on the bed; the pain in his stomach had decreased considerably and he just needed some rest. For just a second he wished Zoycite to be home, but the idea was soon discarded: If she had, in fact, stopped admiring him, seeing him like that would only add up to her disappointment. Come to think of it, at the time, even he was disappointed of himself: after all it was supposed for the first commander to die on the battle field, not in his bed with some mundane illness. Oh, you’re such a drama king! he scolded himself while he fell asleep.

The feeling of her hands caressing his face awoke Malachite from a deep slumber. Somehow Zoycite had managed to undress him and he was resting with his head on her lap.
“Good evening,” he whispered.
“Welcome back to the world.” She smiled tenderly at him. “You can be such a heavy sleeper sometimes.”
“Really? I have always considered myself to be quite the opposite.”
“That’s because you don’t really sleep; you just take little naps at night.” Zoey giggled and moved away, making his head fall back to the pillows. He smiled as she playfully removed her clothes; a big day awaited them, but, for the night, Malachite decided to concentrate on the beauty before him.

She finally fell asleep in his arms. Now I definitely feel better, he thought, running his fingers through her golden hair. Malachite smiled softly and was about to close his eyes when a small tap on his window caught his attention; cautiously not to wake Zoycite, he moved out of the bed and close to the window, a second tap was heard and in less than five seconds he opened the glass panel and pinned the intruder to the ground… all this without waking his sleeping lover and, not to mention, completely naked.

“Looks like… I… caught you… in the middle… of something,” Neflyte said, with great effort considering the full weight over his stomach.
“Oh, get up!” Malachite stood up, and lent a hand to help his second in command. “You of all people should know that, whatever it is that I do at night, I do it with one eye open.”
“I’m sorry for your little girlfriend over there,” Neflyte chuckled. “No wonders why she is such a pest, if she can’t even get your full attention for … certain business,” he joked, observing his colleague’s lack of clothes.
The silver-haired man rolled his eyes and walked into the bedroom, making a sign for Neflyte to wait outside. Good thing she tends to sleep sound after… he thought while putting on his clothes. The last thing he needed was for Zoycite to wake up and find Neflyte on their terrace. He moved close to the bed and softly kissed her on the forehead before going out again.
“Let’s move somewhere else,” he said, teleporting down to the ground, glad that no one passed by that street in the middle of the night.
Neflyte followed him and headed for his car, which was parked outside the building. Soon after, they were both driving across the city.
“So, up for some midnight drinks? Or you’re too sick?” Neflyte snickered from behind the wheel.
“Just take me wherever you want, as long as it is quiet,” Malachite sighed, feeling somehow relaxed enough to trust him.
“I could take you to my place, but then you’ll think I’m easy and might just never call me again…” the auburn-haired man joked, much like he used to do when it was just the two of them. Malachite just laughed softly.

They sat on the floor of the manor’s living room and Neflyte handed him a bottle of vodka and a small glass, while he helped himself to some scotch.
“I have something to tell you,” started the second General. “’Cause tomorrow you’re going to hear lots of things and I want to set them straight.”
“I don’t want you to keep stalking Serena’s friend,” Malachite commanded. “You had your chance four years ago... and you blew it miserably.”
He almost felt bad when the other general just lowered his gaze to the floor. He often wished things had been different back then; more likely, he wished Neflyte had never laid eyes on that girl.
“She is too young for you,” Malachite continued. “And you know her parents would never approve…”
“It’s not that!” the auburn-haired man said, all his cheerfulness suddenly gone. “I might be in trouble… remember Rui Saionji?”
“Your first victim, four years ago… you thought I would have forgotten, did you not?”
But Neflyte appeared less shocked than anxious at his remark.
“I was the last person who saw her alive… that night.” He took a sip from his scotch and raised his eyes to meet Malachite’s. “But I think you also know that.”
“Leave it like that, Neflyte,” the silver-hired General interrupted. “It is almost dawn and we have quite an important meeting ahead of us. I will go now but you must be, as I assume Luna already informed you, at the Hikawa Temple in less than three hours. Meanwhile, whatever it is that you need to confess, I suggest you keep it to yourself, at least for today.”

* = Names are from Mexican dub or original characters.