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I felt her hand on my shoulder, and it made me sigh. I was not fond of these little transgressions, this messing about in the Time Space Continuum. I was of the opinion that it should be left alone, that some things were never to be changed. As has been said already -- time is like a river, correcting its course against any change.

And it is wrong to try and divert the river yourself, even though we do try. Sometimes, though, you have to let time screw itself up, tie its own fabric into unseemly knots -- knots that it alone knows how to reverse. However, time seems to understand what it is doing, which is why it so often left to heal things. Time heals all wounds -- I suppose.

It certainly hasn't healed all mine, but then, I don't know how firm a hold time has on me anymore, so perhaps that is understandable.

I look to my companions, to my friends. The other three watch me, as if waiting for an explanation, as if waiting for me to justify what I had done by allowing such a blunder to occur within the realms of time.

"It was not my responsibility," I say finally, looking to Pluto, the one who has the true hold on time. I only hold the contrasting powers of healing and destruction in my hands -- it is understandable that I should destroy all that I touch.

Pluto sighed, her hand tightening about her Time Key. "Saturn, I do understand -- but now that Koutaishi and Mankichi have met, the Prince's fate is signed, sealed, and about to be delivered."

I nodded. "Perhaps."

She shook her head. "Definitely."

Uranus spoke up then, and I was surprised. I had already garnered the impression that, although they had been a silent presence throughout this whole incident, Neptune and Uranus wanted no part of this depravity. "I think we should aid fate in whatever way we can."

Neptune nodded, one of her gloved hands tightening about her lover's. "I sense his pain just as well as Saturn does... perhaps he would be happier, if he were to..."

Pluto nodded, and I felt her indecision. This was her realm, after all. She was the one who held the greatest control over the timespace, and she was the one who stood to lose the most. "If I take them, you must come with me, as members of the Outer Senshi. This has become our responsibility..."

I nodded, and I took Setsuna's hand, squeezing it tightly. She had always been more than a friend to me. I never admitted it to anyone but myself, but I honestly saw Setsuna as my mother. Tomoe Souichi was my father, Setsuna the closest thing to my mother. Haruka-papa and Michiru-mama had always been like pretend parents to me, kind of doll-house parents when I was little. Now, they were like older sisters, but Setsuna-mama had always remained to me my mother figure. "Come on, mama," I whispered, and I think I comforted her somehow, by saying that. I knew sort of what my place in her life was. I knew that she had always loved Endymion, and knew that she could never have him. That was why she had loved ChibiUsa so, she had loved that little rabbit as if she were her own daughter. When she no longer had that little girl to watch over, she had gotten me -- another child to fall into her care, but unlike ChibiUsa, I had no other real family to fall back on, save my father, whom I rarely saw. I liked to think that I was her daughter in her eyes as much as she was my mother in my eyes.

As we warped to where I knew they would be waiting for us, I felt sadness wash over me. I didnât know why, but I could sense the black axe hanging in the sky over that man's head.

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Demando and his nephew, and the boy's mother, were waiting for us. I noted the look that Koutaishi shot me, and I smiled to see it. I could tell the child held a reverence for me, one that I couldn't quite understand. But it was something very strange, yet somehow very pleasing. I extended my hand to him again, shaking it. "It's nice to see you again, Koutaishi-san."

"You too, Tomoe-san," and I smiled to see that he still used my last name, even though I had slipped into use of his first. I didn't have time to talk to him though. I had still to say my greetings to the former prince.

Mankichi shook my hand, his other arm full of blooming flowers. Petz, I noted, also held a small florist's shop in her hands. Of the three of them, Koutaishi was the only one empty-handed. "Are you sure you want to go back, Demando-sama?"

"Yes," he replied softly, and I saw that even though he was not crying now, he had been only hours previously. "My nephew wanted this, and I have come to realise that I too, want to go there... I haven't returned there in sixteen years, and I feel as if I betrayed him by not doing so..."

I nodded, and turned to Setsuna, whom I really should be calling Sailor Pluto, given that was her seeming at the time. "I think we should go now."

She nodded, and raised her Time Key, instantly transporting all of us into the strange, mist shrouded space that was non-time -- the place where the Door was housed. This was where Setsuna would spend weeks, months, years, centuries... it was looking around this place that made me respect her all the more. Even though I was a solitary person on occasion, I doubted if I could remain here alone, for any length of time.

"Take each other's hands," she commanded quietly, and the six of us did as asked, in this order; Uranus, Demando, Koutaishi, Petz, me and Neptune. Pluto simply opened the Door for us through way of her Garnet Orb, and then indicated we should move forward. "Concentrate hard on your destination, and it will take you there. I will follow you, but my position as Guardian means that I cannot accompany you."

I nodded, and I was the first to move forward, forcing the others to follow me. I had never been through the timewarp before -- of all of us, only Petz and Demando had done such a thing. But we moved forward easily, skipping through the times and spaces, before the last final gate came to us.

As it opened, I felt Demando sigh. I had to feel some sympathy for him, I understood just how difficult this pilgrimage was for the former Prince of Nemesis. I had to wonder just how Demando would react to seeing the sleeping form of his brother again.

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Nemesis, to its credit, certainly couldn't cause melanoma. That was the only good thing I could say about it, as I looked upon it with the others at my side.

I said that because there was no sun, therefore, there was no chance of developing skin cancer from any kind of UV light. Well, there was a sun, one shrouded in mist and low hanging clouds that didn't give all that much illumination to the dim streets in which we stood.

Demando bit his lip, I saw. I didnât really blame him -- this place was full of memories. Plus, he was attracting a lot of stares from the people on the streets, even more than Neptune, Uranus and I were bringing in. I reasoned that it was because he was once again dressed in his royal dress uniform, and the presence of their former sovereign was a lot more interesting than the appearance of three of the so-called "Sailor Senshi."

"The Prince will see you now," Pluto suddenly said, warping into existence beside us.

"The Prince?" asked Koutaishi, giving her a slightly frightened, speculative look.

She indicated the road leading up to the palace that dwarfed the city using her Time Key, and nodded. "Lord Serpentine is the one who reigns over Nemesis these days. He was the third in line, and given that the reigning sovereign abdicated and the second in line was deceased, he took it after Demando became Hirosada Mankichi." She smiled at the former prince quite kindly, which surprised me. "And don't worry Demando, he's taken very good care of your brother over the years, and he can't wait to see you again."

We were all taken inside, Petz at Demando's side with Pluto on the other, Neptune and Uranus behind them, leaving Koutaishi and I to bring up the rear.

I caught his hand as we walked down the street, and he turned in surprise. I smiled at him. "Are you looking forward to this?"

"I donât know," he replied, and I could see that he was being honest. "Itâs just that... Mankichi-ojisan seems so... I don't know, loathe to be here, yet I know I want to see my father, just once... you know, it's finding a stranger and then saying goodbye... I don't know what good this is going to do, and somehow, I can't tell if I'm supposed to be here."

I squeezed his hand. "It'll be okay, Koutaishi-san. We wouldn't be here if it wasn't always meant to be."

He nodded. He seemed unconvinced.

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Despite his unsettling name, Lord Serpentine was not as sneaky nor as conniving as it implied. He in fact looked and acted very pleasant, and seemed genuinely pleased to see his former Prince again. He also appeared genuinely taken with Koutaishi, though he seemed to have a problem with his name.

"Koutaishi--" he had said. "That is not the name of a crystal."

"The name of a crystal?" he had asked. I had stood beside him the whole time, holding his hand for moral support. I noticed that Uranus had given me a strange look in regards to that, but everyone else had either not noticed or simply didn't care.

"Yes," the Prince of Nemesis had replied. "Everyone of this planet has the name of a crystal in some way, be it stylised or not. You too, as a child of this moon, should be called thus."

Demando had shaken his head. "Serpentine-san, I don't think that is really necessary. Koutaishi may be descended from Nemesis, but he has been raised among the Earthen people.. I don't think we need to do that."

Lord Serpentine had shaken his head. "No, that's not right. I can understand you not wanting to give him a completely different name, but I do have one in mind."

Perhaps it was because he was still nervous about seeing his brother again, but for whatever reason, Demando didn't argue. "What is it?"

"Kohinor," he replied, with a slight smile. "It resembles his Japanese name somewhat, and it has special significance in the way that it relates to you and how you once viewed your brother."

"I don't understand," Demando replied, looking to Koutaishi.

"The koh-i-nor is a diamond, a large, almost flawless diamond. Its name means 'mountain of light.' The fact that it is a diamond relates it to you, brother to his father and one whom he resembles greatly. The mountain of light refers to what you had told me on the day you left Saffir to my care. You said to me that he had been the only light for you in this dark life on Nemesis... the only rock on which you could lean. Which is why I think this name is appropriate for your nephew -- the only person who is left to you to remind you of what you are, and the person Saffir used to be."

Demando nodded, and I noted how Petz suddenly put one arm about his shoulders. To my surprise, Demando suddenly turned and wrapped his arms about Petz, beginning to sob. I was shocked, and I felt Koutaishi stiffen beside me, as if he wanted to go to his uncle.

"No," I said gently, whispering to the child. "This is something between Petz and Demando..."

She was supporting him, comforting him, and I knew that this was the first time either of them had turned to one another for relief or aid after Saffir's death. Even though nothing was said between them, I suspected that there was forgiveness there... somewhere. I doubted that the rift his death had caused between them would ever be fully healed, nor would the pair ever be able to speak of it. But somehow, this embrace told me that in their hearts, they could no longer hate each other. They had loved Saffir too greatly to disparage his memory in that way. It would have killed him to know that the two people he had loved most in the universe could barely even talk to one another without hating each other within themselves.

However, when they parted, I knew the most difficult task still lay ahead of them. They had yet to face their greatest fear; the greatest scene of injustice.

Saffir's lifeless body.

Serpentine had quietly lead us through the hallways and labyrinth of corridors that wound through the palace. We had all followed silently, Petz and Demando leaning on one another for support. I still held Koutaishi's hand in my own, Neptune and Uranus behind us, carrying the flowers that Demando and Petz had brought with them. Pluto brought us the rear, silent and troubled as she carried her Time Key. I knew that she was still upset about the outcome of today, but I didn't let it bother me. It was destiny, after all.

The entrance to the chamber was locked, and to open it, Serpentine had to disengage several wards and unlock one of the two locks with a key that came from about his neck. He then indicated the other, casting a long, troubled look to Demando.

Holding Petz's hand tightly, Demando removed another key from about his own neck, and used it to undo the last lock. He then pushed them gently, causing the intricately carved double doors to open inwards.

The chamber was lit with dimly glowing orbs, white light spilling across the floor from their places on the wall. The room was empty, save for one thing. In the middle was a large, crystal construction, one that glittered in the light emitted from the orbs. It sat upon a stone bier, which was carved in the traditional designs of the moon called Nemesis.

Demando shuddered, then tried to move forward. It looked almost like his feet were glued to the ground, and it was Petz who had to pull him forward. She guided him to the head of the coffin, on the left hand side, before she stepped back. I could see that she wanted to stand and gaze at the silent prince herself, but she knew that Demando needed to be alone with him for a moment. My respect for her then was enormous.

Demando stared downwards at hi brother for a moment, simply running his hands over the clear crystal that separated the two brothers. Then, to my horror, he suddenly dissolved into hysterical tears, falling to his knees as he cried, completely unable to stand.

I felt Koutaishi stiffen beside me, and then he moved away from me, pulling his hand away from mine. I watched as he moved the right hand side of the head of Saffir's coffin, and I watched as he looked down at him.

I knew without looking what he would see. An ashen visage, a peaceful tranquillity, an innocent beauty that was only found in death. And Saffir, the wronged Prince, would look more like that than most. Why else would the sight of his dead form cause the calm, decorous, unflappable Prince of Nemesis to disintegrate into hysteria, sobbing like he could never forgive himself for what he had done?

I watched as Koutaishi then walked to his uncle, kneeling beside him to take him into his arms. I saw Demando fall into those arms, like a drowning sailor searching for any port he could call home.

And I almost cried when I heard what Demando had to say. He looked up to his nephew and saw only his brother, or so it must have been. He sobbed between pained breaths that he was sorry, that he wished he had never listened to the Wiseman, he wished for this and he wished for that, but there was only one thing he really wished for, a wish that no genie could ever grant.

I felt nothing but sympathy for Koutaishi. Not only did he have to deal with his own feelings about the young man who lay in that coffin -- a man who barely looked five years older than him, and he was his father -- he had to cope with his uncle's hysterical guilt over what had happened to his brother.

I knew I would respect Koutaishi -- Kohinor -- forever when I heard what he said.

"I forgive you, oniisan."

Only those words were enough to calm Demando's tears, and he stopped crying, resting his head against his nephews chest. "I thought I would never hear that title again..."

"And even though I am not my father, he still forgives you," Koutaishi replied, his own tears mingling with his uncle's. "He never would have blamed you for what happened, Demando-ojisan. I can see that from just looking at him... and that picture. He loved you so much, I could tell that from just one picture. And nothing can take that away from you..."

Pluto walked towards the pair, and extended to Demando the one hand that wasnât wrapped around her Time Key. "Come," she said softly, and he took her gloved hand, allowing her to pull him to his feet.

Uranus then handed him one flower from the bunch she held in her hand, the flowers he had not bought from a florist. No, Demando had brought these flowers from his earthen home... he had grown this flower for his brother.

Shaking, Demando placed the flower at the head of the crystal coffin, tears still streaming down his cheeks. "I don't understand it, Sailor Pluto," he said in a pained voice. "Why does it still hurt? Why doesn't it ever stop?"

She looked at him, her cerise eyes sad. "Because there is one thing you haven't realised. Even though his son has called you oniisan, even though he gave you forgiveness, you don't believe. So let me do something for you..." Her voice trailed off for a second before she went on. "Think about it -- when was the last time you and Saffir discussed these flowers? When was the last time he gave you one of these flowers?"

Damp-eyed, Demando looked up. "I... I think it was just days before he died. Yes... I found him in my audience chamber, sitting in my throne, holding one of these flowers to his heart..."

"He said something to you, something curious. Do you remember what it was?"

He swallowed. "He asked me if I was afraid to die. And he told me... he told me that he was."

Pluto nodded, and she took his hand, eyes troubled and serious. "Demando, Saffir knew that he was going to die. He was afraid to die. Do you know why?"

Demando shook his head, violet eyes pained and hurt. "No," he whispered.

"He was in your throne, to try and understand what you had become. He was trying to figure out the best way to tell this person his brother now was that he was going to die... yet, he held nothing against him. He was afraid to die without telling you that it was all right -- that he would always love you, that every time you neglected him, hurt him, treated him as less than he was, he forgave you and loved you more than before. But Saffir didn't know the person you had become... and he didn't know how to say it."

Demando nodded, and I could see the way that his heart was held in a clenched fist in his chest, the way each beat of the same resounded with agony. "He forgives me?"

She shrugged. "How could he not?"

He then began to cry again, this time with relief, but still with a degree of pain that should have been absolutely unbearable. Even though he knew his brother was at peace, even though he was forgiven at last, Demando didn't know how to push that pain away.

I went to him then, and I took both of his hands, bringing him down with me so that we both knelt, facing each other on the marble ground beside his brother's coffin. I closed my eyes, and then I allowed my power to wrap about the heart of the pained former prince.

He sighed, and I sighed with him. How much the memories hurt him! I wanted to take this pain away, but I was more experienced with physical pain than emotional...

However, I threw all of my power into the healing of this man, losing awareness of my own body as I did so. It was like floating on a rushing current, trying to turn away from this pain, this torment, the world of agony that was Demando's life...

I came to holding Demando's head in my lap, the former Prince lying on the floor. His pale face was peaceful, eyes closed, his hands loosely holding a perfect Nemesian bloom.

The others all stared at me, silent and ashen, their faces distraught. Koutaishi was the first to kneel beside the Prince and I, touching one hand to Demando's. "How did he die?" he asked me softly, even though, to an outsider's thinking, it should be me asking that question. However, it was true. I knew how he had died.

"He died of a broken heart," I whispered. "Cry not for him, Koutaishi. The truth is, Demando died the day his brother did. He should have followed his brother into death only days after Saffir was murdered, but he was allowed to live on, for another chance."

"That was a mistake," spoke up Pluto from behind Koutaishi, though the child did not look at her. He had only eyes for me. "Demando never should have lived on."

I agreed with a tilt of my head. "He only lived on through the guilt he felt over his brother's death. It hurt him, and it made him go on everyday, continually searching for forgiveness from his dead brother...and when I took that pain away from him as he was at last forgiven, he died." I shrugged my shoulders. "There was nothing else keeping him alive."

Koutaishi touched his uncle's face one more time, and then said softly, "He should be interred here, with his brother."

I nodded. "It would be only right."

Pluto nodded her own agreement, as Uranus and Neptune moved forward to place the flowers about the coffin of Saffir. Petz then knelt beside the body, and gently kissed Demando's forehead. "There were times when I really hated you, Demando... but if you brother can forgive you, then I can too."

I stroked his silvery hair, and I smiled. Demando had wanted forgiveness so badly... and now that he had his absolution, there was hope for him, hope for Petz, hope for Koutaishi...

And if all things went well, then perhaps there was hope for Saffir, too.

To Chapter Six

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