"Where's Usagi?"

Rei pushed her way through the settling dust that the subsequent energy blast had left confusing the air. She could barely see three feet in front of her.

"Usagi!"

She tripped and landed on something slightly soft.

"Ouch."

Rei froze.

"M- Mamoru?" she asked, confused.

She felt a hand brush her cheek and didn't move away from the caress. Her heart was suddenly hammering in her chest.

"Rei?"

"Wh-...how...am I dead?"

She felt something wet drip past her nose and realized she was crying.

The hand brushed the tears away as the person she was practically sitting on pushed himself up off the ground, still retaining his grasp on her.

"Jade?"

He smiled at her.

"Hey, firebird."

"Jade!" She threw her arms around his neck, so hard that she almost knocked him back to the ground again.

"It's alright."

"How did you get here! I'm not dreaming am I?"

"I don't think so," he laughed, hugging her back.

"But if you want to know, Pluto brought us back."

"But - I thought she couldn't do that!"

She pulled away and held his face in her hands.

"I thought I'd never see you again."

"I know. But it's OK now, right?"

He shivered a bit, remembering the image of her past self killing the past him. But the moment she smiled he forgot that shadow forever.

"Hey!"

They both turned to peer into the settling dust.

"Zoe!" Jade called.

"Jade? Where are you? Where is everybody? Where's Ami?"

Jade rolled his eyes and helped Rei stand up. When she wobbled he took a second glance at her and noticed for the first time how desperately weak she looked.

"Are you alright?"

She nodded.

"It was a rough fight after you left, but -"

"But nothing, you're almost dead on your feet," he frowned and put his arm around her, ignoring her feeble protest, "We're finding Mamoru and Usagi, and then we're going home and going to bed."

"We?" she questioned, arching an eyebrow.

"Please?"

"No."

"Hey guys!"

Zoe burst into their space, bounding like a happy labrador puppy.

"Where's Ami?"

"Do you have a one tract mind?"

"You're one to talk!" Rei accused, jabbing Jade in the ribs. He hugged her closer in retribution.

"Wow, Rei, you look half dead!"

"Thank you, Zoe."

"Oh, I think I see something over there!"

Zoe bounded over the upturned gravel road behind them and pounced on a prone figure.

"Mina!"

"Zoe? Get off me!"

Rei and Jade watched in amusement as Zoe was shoved off of Mina. But this one move seemed to have depleted her strength. She sank back down on the pavement and put her head in her hands.

"I feel sick."

"You need to rest," intoned a deep voice behind them.

Mina looked up. Then looked at Zoe. Then at Rei and Jade.

"Wait," she said, slowly, "If you're here, and you're here...then...how..."

Someone knelt behind her and a pair of arms lifted her up into a cradle hold.

"You're alive!"

Konnor smiled.

"Guilty as charged."

"How did you - oh, I don't care!"

She pulled him into a weak but well meant kiss which he returned gently.

Rei turned red and Jade looked embarrassed, but Zoe seemed un-phased as usual.

"Ok, well, at least we've found those two."

He looked off into the distance and cupped his hands around his mouth.

"Ami! Mamoru!"

"Damn it!"

Makoto pushed herself up off the ground, clumsily.

"I think I twisted my ankle."

"Makoto!"

Rei rushed to her side and the two girls embraced.

"Boy, am I glad to see you, Rei-chan!" Makoto blurted. She saw Jade over Rei's shoulder, still looking sheepish as Mina and Konnor continued to kiss behind him.

"Um...Rei-chan...there's...I think I hit my head."

Rei chuckled and pulled back.

"If you're delusional, then I think it's catching."

"You mean -!"

"Yes."

Makoto shot away from her, forgetting her ankle, and immediately almost fell on her face.

"Slow down!"

Jade ran to help her, lifting her up.

"Oh, jeez, I'm sure I weigh a ton," she blushed.

"Not a bit," he snorted, "You girls worry too much. Either that or you think we're all weaklings."

"Well, considering that we did the majority of the fighting -" Rei began.

"That was not my fault!"

"It never is, have you noticed that?"

"Uh," Makoto spoke up, "I don't like being caught in the middle here."

"Sorry," Rei and Jade said in unison.

Jade carried Makoto carefully through the rubble, keeping a sharp eye on Rei, who seemed to be improving. The color was coming back into her face, at least.

"Where's Usagi?"

"We don't know yet," Rei answered.

"But we'll find her," Jade added, "I know she had to be alright after all that energy we were pouring into her."

"Was that you?"

Rei stopped still to look at him.

"We arrived just as Usagi was beginning her final attack on that shadow blob. We saw all of you connected together and we joined in. Seems like it was more than enough."

They looked around at the blasted play-ground and street.

"This is what usually happens."

Rei and Makoto shrugged.

"I need a drink."

"Haruka!"

Haruka sauntered through the wreckage, holding her head.

"Who's up for a bar crawl?"

"Me," Jade volunteered, "But maybe you should all rest first?"

"No such thing, friend," Haruka shook her head, patting him on the shoulder so hard he nearly dropped Makoto.

"Now, has anyone seen my wife?"

"Your...wife?" Jade repeated.

Haruka gave him a look that straightened his back bone.

"What does she look like? And, if I may ask, who are you?"

"I'm Tenoh Haruka, who are you?"

"Izumi Jaden."

Rei did a double take at Jade. It was the first time she'd ever heard him speaking such polite Japanese. She made a private vow to ask Haruka over frequently.

"Well, Izumi-san, since you're holding Mako-chan, I'll assume you're not an enemy. I'm looking for Michiru, she's about this tall, turquoise hair and absolutely beautiful."

"Turquoise hair, you say?"

"Do you have a problem with it?"

Jade gulped.

"No, Tenoh-san."

"Good. If you see her, give a yell."

She chucked Rei under the chin before she sauntered off. Jade felt himself prickle at this almost flirtatious gesture and thought he caught the glimpse of a smirk on Haruka's face.

"She's dangerous."

Rei and Makoto shared a look and then a long laugh. Jade scowled.

"Jade?" called a voice.

Makoto stopped laughing and stiffened in Jade's arms.

"Nolan!" she yelled. He winced.

"Makoto!" the voice called back.

"Yes!"

"Where are you?"

"I'm over here!"

"Could you please stop yelling in my ear, Kino-san?"

Makoto didn't seem to be paying any attention to him.

"That way!" she hit his left shoulder, "Run that way!"

Jade carried her with Rei trailing them in the conflicting directions that Makoto dictated, all the while enduring the yells being traded between the two.

Finally Nolan appeared out of the dust, nearly colliding with all three of them.

When Makoto saw him she gave a little squeal and launched herself out of Jade's arms and into Nolan's. He almost didn't have time to catch her but managed to grab her before she hurt herself and tucked her up into a tight embrace.

"I thought you wouldn't come back!"

"I keep my promises, sweetheart."

Jade whispered to Rei, "You'd think he actually had something to do with us getting back. Typical."

Rei smiled.

Makoto and Nolan were too busy checking each other for injuries to pay any more attention to Jade and Rei. Jade snapped his fingers, then whistled. They both turned to look at him.

"Have you possibly forgotten that we are still looking for our liege and Usagi?"

Nolan shifted Makoto to his side, supporting her in a sitting position with both arms hooked under her legs, her torso resting against his shoulder.

"Where to?"

"I can walk," she blushed.

"No, you can't. You've hurt your ankle. Besides, you're already exhausted."

Makoto blushed deeper.

"I'm embarrassed."

"Well, get over it," Nolan murmured and neck just behind her ear.

"Again," Jade interrupted, "I mention Mamoru and Usagi, just as an after-thought."

"Right," Nolan nodded, leaving a seriously red Makoto alone, and, carrying her, followed after them.

"I could get used to this," Makoto joked, "I'm usually the one who has to carry people."

Intermittently they would hear Zoe's voice echo through the mess. Eventually they found themselves on the opposite side of the play-ground, close to Mamoru's apartment complex.

Minako and Konnor were already there, picking through the rubble together. They paused as the others approached.

"Have you found them?" Jade asked.

Konnor shook his head.

Suddenly Ami emerged at the end of the street, walking toward them. From the opposite end, and almost simultaneously, Zoe appeared. He spotted Ami and started running. Ami stopped half way and watched him with a mixed expression of happiness and wariness.

He opened his arms, smiling, and yelled, "Ami!"

Ami dodged at the last moment, and Zoe almost went flying head over heels. He looked back at her with resentment.

"Why did you do that!"

"I panicked."

"Ami," he said, jumping up, "I'm back."

He opened his arms wide, staring at her expectantly.

She simply stared back at him.

"I know."

"Well...aren't you excited?"

"No, I'm happy. I already knew you would come back."

Zoe was a bit deflated by this but then he perked back up.

"Oh! You must have figured it out from what Jade told you! That was our brilliant plan. It was my idea to -"

"What are you talking about?"

The four boys stared at her.

"Don't you have a memory of me from about four or five years ago?" Jade asked, "I mean, when I came and told you -"

Ami shook her head.

"But then, why did you tell Pluto to -"

Ami sighed and took out her glasses. She had a headache and was already feeling grouchy from the amount of nonsense she'd had to put up with and the amount of homework she would have when she eventually returned to her dorm.

"It occurred to me eventually," she explained, "Something that had always bothered me about Zoe -"

"He's loud," Jade suggested.

"Obnoxiously arrogant?" Nolan proposed.

"Rash and impulsive," Konnor added.

"Thanks so much," Zoe replied, with a sour expression, "Remember who thought of how to get us out of the past."

"Apparently it didn't work."

"As I was saying," Ami continued, "Zoe is younger than me."

"I've told you that it doesn't matter -"

"Will you let me finish!" Ami exploded.

Everyone was silent.

"I realized while fighting Chaos that it was actually more significant than I'd thought. You see, if Pluto's original theory was true - that the four of you had been resurrected by the crystal - then there were two possibilities for your ages - you would either be the age you had died at, or you would have aged the four or five years since you had last died. This theory was also only true if you had in fact been Beryl's henchmen."

"But we weren't!" Jade interjected, "That's what I wanted to tell you -"

"I know," Ami said, "I realized that once I knew why Zoe was younger than me."

"I don't think I follow, Ami-chan," Rei spoke up, "As usual."

Ami sighed.

"It's really quite simple," she said, losing a touch of her usual calm demeanor - she really needed some sleep:

"If the crystal had resurrected Beryl's dead henchmen then Zoe should have been either seventeen or twenty-one. But he's nineteen. It doesn't fit, you see? It implied that Zoe had - if Rei's ideas about reincarnated souls are correct - been reborn naturally, and was in fact never one of Beryl's henchmen at all."

They stared at her in some silence.

"That's...incredible," Jade eventually said, "And you're right. We discovered, when Pluto sent us back, that there were already shitennou there, serving Beryl - and they weren't us. I mean the complete us. They were just the guardian parts of our spirits - the gifts tied to the Earth."

"Which is why you received your powers and memories when Mamoru's stones broke," Ami clarified, thinking it out as she talked, "They held your guardian spirits and your silver millennium memories - which were returned, cleansed of Beryl's influence."

"So when Beryl thought she was cursing them," Rei said, "She was really cursing ghosts?"

"In essence, yes."

"But the main point," Makoto broke in, "Is that they're here to stay, right?"

Nolan laughed.

"Yes, sweetheart."

"Just checking."

There was a noise and Mamoru appeared with Michiru walking beside him.

"My liege!"

Konnor went to his side and stopped short of embracing him. Mamoru put his hand on Konnor's shoulder.

"You're a sight for sore eyes."

He looked around at all of the shitennou and senshi and gave a huge sigh of relief.

"Has anyone seen -"

Haruka walked up from behind them.

"There you are," she said to Michiru.

Michiru straightened and looked down her nose at the other woman.

"Took you long enough."

They smiled at one another.

"Aino-san," Konnor said, unexpectedly.

"Yes?"

"Let's get married."

Minako looked up, surprised. Everyone else was shocked speechless, including Mamoru.

"Well, ok. But let me take a bath and a nap first."

Konnor nodded.

"Ami-chan!"

Zoe turned to Ami with a hopeful look on his face.

"No."

"But-"

"Not until you are twenty-five. You are not even allowed to breath the word until you are out of school and have a job!"

"But, Ami-chan, I am going to -"

Ami looked at him and Zoe fell silent.

"Does anyone know where Hotaru is?"

A door opened behind them.

"Mama!"

Michiru and Haruka found themselves being embraced by Hotaru and they bent together to lift her up into a mutual embrace.

"Where did you -"

"Sorry it took us so long," Usagi said, stepping through the doorway. Mamoru folded her into an embrace.

"I was so worried."

"You shouldn't have been."

He stood back from her.

"Are we ever going to understand any of this?"

Usagi smiled up at him.

"I'll explain it later. Let's have breakfast first."

"Can we come with?" Haruka asked, "I'm starving."

"The more the merrier!"

"Should we wash first?" Rei asked. Her clothes were still a bit blood stained. They all looked more than bedraggled.

"Definitely."

"Luna and Artemis must be worried to death about us."

"I left them sleeping on the couch, actually."

"Traitors!"

They all laughed.

"At least somebody's getting some rest around here," Makoto commented.

Nolan started off in the direction of Mamoru's apartment.

"I don't think any of us have the energy to teleport right now," Jade began, looking at Mamoru.

"It's fine," he sighed.

"Are you going to carry me all the way to the bath?" Makoto demanded.

Nolan only chuckled a bit evilly to himself.

Jade, Rei, Usagi, Ami and Zoe followed them.

"Are you coming to use my hot water too?" Mamoru asked Konnor politely.

Konnor looked at Minako.

"I think we'll catch up with you later," he said.

"We have a lot of things we need to discuss." Minako said.

Mamoru shook his head and smiled.

"Take your time."

In the distance he caught the silhouette of a tall woman with long hair, dressed impeccably neatly in a suit and skirt and heels. He smiled. She slowly raised a hand to wave. Mamoru waved back, and then, as the sun rose, she was gone as quietly as she had appeared.