To Be By Your Side

Chapter 1

	Home, sweet home.

	To Princess Lady Serenity, it felt like a lifetime had 
passed since she last felt the gravity of Earth bearing down on her. 
For the past five years, she, along with her team of guardians, had 
been living at a secret facility on the Moon, training in 
controlling their senshi powers with Sailors Uranus and Neptune. 
Training had been tough and vigorous, as was to be expected, but 
they had finally passed the elder soldiers' program to become full-
fledged Sailor Senshi.

	Sometimes, Serenity still couldn't quite believe she was the 
new Sailor Moon. Looking down at her intricately designed 
transformation brooch, she opened it up and ran her fingers against 
the pale pink heart-shaped stone in the center: her Pink Moon 
Crystal. It wasn't quite as powerful as her mother's Silver Moon 
Crystal, but Diana, her guardian cat and ever-faithful companion, 
assured her it would grow stronger as she gained more experience as 
a soldier princess.

	"Serenity-sama, I can't tell you how proud of you I am," 
Diana, who was sitting in Serenity's lap, said, noticing her looking 
at the crystal. "You're finally a true soldier like your mother was 
before you. I know Neo-Queen Serenity and King Endymion must be 
extremely proud of you as well."

	"I can't wait to see Mama, Papa, and everybody again," 
Serenity admitted, shutting close the brooch and pinning it to the 
large bow of the sailor suit she was wearing for her homecoming. "I 
know they came for the occasional visit at Fort Crystal, but it just 
wasn't the same. I wonder how much things have changed in Crystal 
Tokyo since we've been gone." 

	“I imagine quite a lot. Five years is a long time to be 
gone, after all.”

	Serenity sighed, leaning her forehead against her window, 
which looked down at the blue-and-green marble called Earth. It 
wouldn’t be long until the royal shuttle hit the planet’s 
atmosphere. “Maybe so, but I hope things didn’t change too much at 
home. I‘d hate to come back and feel like a foreigner in my own 
city.”

	“I’m sure there are some things that will always stay the 
same, Serenity-sama.”

	“Like Mama’s complete inability to ever wake up before eight 
o’clock without Papa physically dragging her out of bed?” Serenity 
joked, breaking into a fit of uncontrollable giggles.

	The gray cat looked like she was about join her, but Diana 
managed to stifle her laughter at the last minute. “Now, Serenity-
sama, that’s not a very nice thing to say about your mother,” she 
lectured, clearing her throat, “even if there is some truth to it.”

	“Sorry.” 

	Her laughter dying down, Serenity stood up and pulled her 
bunny-shaped backpack down from the cargo bin above her seat. She 
was getting hungry, but unfortunately it looked like she had already 
eaten all the candy bars she had packed for the trip home. Sighing, 
she was about to zip the bag back up and put it away when something 
fell out of it with a soft, tinkling noise and rolled underneath 
Vesta’s seat in front of her.

	“Hey, Vesta, would you mind getting that for me?” Serenity 
asked after an unsuccessful bid to reach it. Not even a cat could 
fit under underneath the low-lying seats, so she couldn't ask Diana 
to pull it out.

	“What?”

	“My bell. It fell underneath your seat, and I can‘t reach 
it.”

	“Lemmee see…” Looking under her seat, Vesta felt around 
until she found it. “Here you go,” she said, handing the bell back 
to a grateful Serenity.

	“Thanks, Vesta!” Serenity said, clutching the small bell to 
her chest. “I don’t know what I would have done if I had lost it. 
You know how much it means to me.”  

	“Is that the bell Priest Helios-sama gave you when you 
traveled to the past?” Ceres, who was sitting next to Vesta, asked, 
turning around in her seat to face her princess.

	Nodding, Serenity held it up and gave it a little ring. The 
tone it gave out was as beautiful and as clear as a bird’s song. 
Luckily, it had been undamaged from the fall. “This bell is my most 
prized possession,” she confessed, causing Ceres to let out a 
worried sigh. “I take it with me everywhere.”

	“Oh, Serenity-sama, please don’t tell me you are still in 
love with Helios-sama.”

	Serenity felt her cheeks warm. “Well, what if I am? Is that 
so horrible?”

	“It is when you are only setting yourself up for 
disappointment,” Ceres said. “You do remember that Helios-sama is 
bound to Elysion and therefore cannot stay in our world for long 
periods of time without serious consequence, don‘t you?

	“Of course I do.”

	If only she could forget. 

	It had absolutely devastated her when she returned to 30th 
century Crystal Tokyo and learned that due to his duty as the priest 
of Elysion, Helios was not allowed to live in the human realm. He 
was needed in Elysion to watch over the dreams of dreamers, and 
could only visit the human realm for short periods of time before 
his power gave out. Serenity had hoped that when she left for her 
senshi training, the distance might help lessen her feelings for 
him. Helios had asked her to try to forget him, but her feelings had 
only grown deeper as the years passed and she developed into a young 
woman.

	“If you know the truth, then why do you insist on holding 
onto this childhood crush of yours?” Ceres asked. “You are the crown 
princess of Crystal Tokyo. You’re funny, smart, and one of the most 
beautiful women in the kingdom. You could have your pick of handsome 
and available suitors, yet you stubbornly hold onto the dream of a 
man who will never be yours. I don‘t understand it.” 

	“That’s because you’ve never been in love, Ceres,” Serenity 
said. “Whenever you do fall in love, you’ll finally understand my 
feelings for Helios. It‘s just not that easy to fall out of love 
with somebody, no matter how much you know it is wrong.”

	“Well, promise me you will at least try to keep an open mind 
during your birthday ball next week. I‘m sure there will be plenty 
of cute, *available* men attending who would love the chance to 
become your suitor.”

	“Yes, *okaa-san*.” 

	However, as soon as Ceres turned back around and settled 
into her seat, Serenity pulled down her lower eyelid and childishly 
stuck out her tongue.

	“Serenity-sama, Ceres only has your best interests at 
heart,” Diana said in a soft voice. “She just doesn’t want to see 
you get hurt.”

	Serenity sighed, knowing that Diana was right. “Yeah, I 
know…”

	An hour later, the voice of Uranus, who was piloting the 
shuttle, crackled over the speakers.

	“This is Uranus. We will be re-entering Earth’s atmosphere 
in approximately fifteen minutes. All passengers, please put on your 
suits and buckle your seatbelts. This will be a bumpy ride. I 
repeat: All passengers, suit up and buckle up for re-entry. Thank 
you.”

	Re-entry was always Serenity’s least favorite part of space 
travel, and, judging by the slightly greenish pallor of Pallas’ face 
as they pulled on their space suits, she was not alone in the 
feeling.

	“Pallas feels like she’s going to throw up,” Pallas mumbled 
from behind her hand, trying to hold back her nausea.

	“Well, if you must, at least put on your helmet first,” 
Ceres said, handing Pallas the blue helmet that matched her space 
suit before putting on her yellow one. “I do not want vomit floating 
around in the cabin. Reporters are bound to be covering our return, 
and I do not want to be covered in puke when I get my picture 
taken.”

	“That goes double for me,” Vesta agreed.

	“Triple for me,” Juno piped in.

	“Just try to think of something more pleasant, Pallas,” 
Serenity advised, patting the blue-haired senshi’s shoulder. “That’s 
what I always do.”

	Pallas managed to give her a weak smile. “Thanks, Serenity-
sama. Pallas will try.”

	Fifteen minutes later, right on schedule, the shuttle broke 
through the Earth’s atmosphere. Serenity tightly clutched a now-
human Diana’s hand, closed her eyes, and thought of the awaiting 
feast she was certain Sailor Jupiter had prepared in honor of their 
homecoming. It only blocked some of the quaking sensation of re-
entry, but it was enough to keep her nausea in check.

	“Are you okay, Serenity-sama?” Diana asked once the worst 
was over.

	Serenity loosened her grip on Diana’s hand and nodded. “I’m 
fine, Diana,” she assured her guardian. “Just wishing we could have 
used Sailor Teleport to return home instead of flying. I guess with 
all our luggage, though, that was kind of impossible. ” Looking 
across the aisle at Pallas, she asked, “What about you, Pallas? How 
are you doing?”

	With a somewhat shaky hand, Pallas gave Serenity the thumbs
-up sign.

	“Good.”

	Once they were back in the Earth’s atmosphere, it did not 
take long at all for Uranus to make a smooth landing at Crystal 
Tokyo Space Center. Looking out her window as the shuttle rolled to 
a stop, Serenity saw a crowd of people waiting for them at the end 
of the runway, among them her parents and the rest of the Sailor 
Senshi. Her heart leapt for joy at seeing them again, and, after 
taking off her space suit, Serenity was the first to disembark from 
the shuttle. Not caring the least about the three dozen or so 
reporters, photographers, and cameramen covering the event, Serenity 
ran over to her parents and embraced them in a three-way hug.

	“Mama, Papa…” she said, kissing them both on the cheek. “I’m 
home.”

*****

	Among the crowd gathered to welcome the princess and her 
guardian soldiers home was the priest of Elysion, Helios. It was not 
often that Helios left Elysion to journey to the surface of the 
planet, but, like everybody else, he was anxious to see Serenity 
again after her long absence due to her training.

	Five years. It seemed like only yesterday that his “little 
maiden” -- as he affectionately called her -- had told him of her 
most treasured dream of becoming Sailor Moon. Now, that dream had 
come true, and she was finally a true lady, as beautiful and strong 
as her idolized mother.

	Not wanting to intrude on the family reunion, Helios kept 
mostly to the background, blending in among the media, who had 
snapped into action the second the shuttle landed. He smiled, 
however, watching Serenity excitedly show her parents and the elder 
Sailor Soldiers her new transformation brooch. Even though she was 
turning eighteen in a little over a week, she still had a aura of 
child-like innocence to her that was very refreshing.

	Once she had finished saying hello to everybody else, 
Serenity finally noticed Helios. If possible, her luminous smile 
brightened even more when she saw him, and she ran over, practically 
knocking him over with the force of her hug.

	“Helios, you came!” she said.

	“Of course I did, little maiden,” he replied, resisting 
every urge in his body to kiss her right then and there in front of 
everybody. Until that moment, he hadn’t realized just how much he 
had missed her. Holding Serenity in his arms, it felt like a piece 
of his heart had been returned to him, making him whole again. “Did 
you really think I would miss your homecoming?”

	Serenity rolled her wine-colored eyes. “Please, I’m not so 
little anymore. You’re as bad as my parents, still calling me Small 
Lady even though I‘m almost an adult.”

	“Forgive me, *maiden*,” Helios corrected, reluctantly 
releasing her from his embrace when he noticed a couple of 
photographers taking pictures of them. “I misspoke.”

	She smiled. “Better.”

	“You really have grown, though, haven’t you?”

	The last time he had seen the princess, Serenity had been on 
the threshold of adolescence, only just beginning to develop the 
womanly figure she now possessed. She was also taller than Helios 
remembered; as Helios was a man of short stature, they were now 
almost the same height. He only had about an inch or two on her, 
though had she been wearing high heels, Serenity would have surely 
towered over him.

	“I’m taller than Mama now,” Serenity announced proudly. 
“Though I still need to grow a few more inches to catch up with 
Jupiter.”

	“I think your height is fine just the way it is, maiden,” 
Helios assured her.

	“I suppose so. At least people can’t call me a squirt or a 
runt anymore.” The thought seemed to cheer her up. 

	By that time, the crowd had begun to thin out some. A press 
conference had been scheduled to allow the reporters to ask the new 
Sailor Team questions about their training and homecoming, so the 
media people were packing up their things and heading to the Crystal 
Palace to set up. Soon, only the royal family, the guardian cats, 
the Sailor Senshi, and Helios were left on the tarmac.

	“Will you stay for the press conference, Helios?” Serenity 
asked as they too began to leave for the palace. “Jupiter planned a 
small reception for afterward, and I would love it if you could 
come.”

	“Thank you for inviting me, but I’m afraid I can’t,” Helios 
replied regretfully. He wanted to stay more than anything, but he 
could already feel his powers weakening. It had become more and more 
difficult as of late for him to stay even a few hours in the human 
realm, and he had already spent nearly half the day in audience with 
the king. “I need to return to Elysion soon to begin evening 
prayers.”

	“Oh.” She sighed, kicking a loose piece of gravel with her 
foot. “Right, I forgot.”

	“We’ll see each other again soon, though,” he reminded her. 
“Your mother’s and your birthday celebration is being held in 
Elysion this year.”

	Serenity’s momentary frown reverted back to its original 
smile. “Really? We‘re going to Elysion for my birthday?” she asked, 
sounding very much like a little girl who had just been told she was 
going to Disneyland.

	Helios laughed. “I thought you already knew.”

 	“No, nobody told me,” she said with a shake of her head. “I 
thought the celebration would be held in Crystal Tokyo like usual.”

	“The celebration is partly why I came today,” Helios 
admitted, dying to divulge the surprise he had planned for her 
birthday, a secret he had been keeping from her for almost five 
years. “Of course, I wanted to see your homecoming, but the king 
also wanted to go over some last minute arrangements with me. I’m 
sorry if I ruined the surprise. Nobody told me it was supposed to be 
a secret.”

	“It’s okay. I’m glad I know. Now I‘m looking even more 
forward to my birthday!”

	“I’m sure it will be your best ever, maiden.”

	Once they reached the palace, it was about time for Helios 
to leave for Elysion. King Endymion and Neo-Queen Serenity, echoing 
their daughter’s invitation, urged him to stay for the homecoming 
celebration, but Helios knew he had only a short amount of time left 
before his powers were depleted. After bidding goodbye to the king, 
queen, and other senshi, who were all heading to the press room 
where the press conference was to take place, Helios turned in the 
opposite direction, somewhat surprised when he heard another set of 
footsteps following him.

	“Helios!”

	“Maiden, what are you doing here?” he asked when he turned 
around and saw Serenity jogging to catch up with him. “Shouldn’t you 
be heading to the press conference with the others? You don’t want 
to be late.”

	“I’m the crown princess of Crystal Tokyo and the leader of 
the Sailor Quartet; they won’t start without me,” Serenity said with 
a dismissive wave of her hand. “I just wanted to thank you for 
coming to see my homecoming. It really meant a lot to me that you 
came.”

	Helios smiled. “I wouldn’t have missed it for the world, my 
maiden. I’m so proud of all you have accomplished over the past five 
years. I’m sure you will be a wonderful Sailor Moon, just like your 
mother.” 

	“I hope so. Mama’s boots will be hard to fill.”

	“If anybody can do it, I’m sure you can.”

	A faint blush crossed Serenity‘s cheeks at the compliment. 
“Are you certain you can’t stay a little while longer, Helios?” she 
asked. “The feast is going to be fantastic. Jupiter says she oversaw 
everything, from the roasted duck to the choice of wine.” 	  

	“I wish I could, but my powers are waning rapidly. I really 
do need to return to Elysion as soon as possible.”

	Sighing, Serenity buried her face in his shoulder and 
embraced him tightly, as if physically trying to bind him to her so 
that he couldn’t leave. “I hate this,” she said, her voice muffled 
and strained, as if she was trying her best not to cry. “I 
absolutely hate it. It always feels like we’re saying good-bye.”

	“Maiden…”

	“I know what you’re going to say,” Serenity said, “and I 
know you’re right. I know I promised you before I left that I would 
try to get over you, that I would find somebody else to love, 
somebody who could stay by my side always, but I couldn’t, Helios. I 
just couldn’t!”

	Smiling, Helios wrapped his arms around Serenity and kissed 
the top of her head. “I’m glad, my maiden,” he said. A part of him 
had worried she had taken his words to heart, and his sacrifice 
would be for nothing. “You have no idea how happy I am to hear 
that.”

	“You are?” Serenity looked up, wiping away a few wayward 
tears with her hand. “You aren’t mad?”

	“Mad? Why would I be mad?”

	“Ceres and Diana keep telling me that I should give up on 
you, that I’m just setting myself up for heartbreak and sorrow if I 
continue loving you like I do. It‘s the same thing you told me 
before I left for Fort Crystal to train.”

	“Do you believe that’s true?” he asked, half-afraid to hear 
the answer.

	To his relief, Serenity shook her head. “No, I don’t,” she 
declared. “I know it’s impossible for you to remain here with me in 
Crystal Tokyo, but I would rather have you only some of the time, 
than to never see you again. That would truly break my heart. I just 
wish…”

	“What?”

	“No, I won’t say it.” She smiled sadly and reached up to 
caress his cheek. “To put it into words would make me want it too 
much, and I know it’s an impossible dream.” 

	“There is no such thing as an impossible dream,” Helios 
said. “Even the impossible can become possible if the wish is strong 
enough.”

	“Helios, I’m not a little kid anymore. I know the world 
doesn’t work like that, as much as I wish it did.”

	“You certainly have grown up, haven’t you?” Helios brushed a 
strand of pink hair out of her eyes and sighed. “Maybe you are 
right, but never stop believing in that dream, my maiden. No matter 
how impossible it seems at the moment, I promise you that one day it 
will come true.”

	For a moment, Serenity’s eyes lit up at his promise, but 
then she turned around, wrapping her arms around herself in a hug. 
“Please, don’t say things like that,” she begged, her voice once 
again strained. “Don’t set me up for disappointment. Ceres and Diana 
were right about one thing; I can’t keep thinking that we’ll get our 
happy ending as long as we love each other enough. I love you, 
Helios, and I’ll keep loving you until the day I die, but I cannot 
allow myself to hope for more than what we have now. I just have to 
learn to be satisfied with that.”

	“Maiden…”

	Helios hated hearing her sound so pessimistic, so different 
from the little girl he remembered, the one who believed all dreams 
were possible to achieve. He longed to take her in his arms and tell 
her that he had meant every word, that he was doing everything 
possible to make her unspoken dream a reality, but King Endymion had 
sworn him to secrecy, not wanting his daughter to get her hopes up 
until they had succeeded. Although things had been going well so 
far, what they were ultimately planning to do had never been done 
before, and the risks were unknown.

	Reminded of that fact, Helios looked down at his hands, 
unsurprised to see them fading away. He was at his limit; he could 
not stay in the human realm for any longer. Glad that Serenity had 
turned away before she could see, Helios came up behind her and 
kissed the back of her head.

	“Maiden, I must leave now,” he said, “but, please, no matter 
what, continue believing in your cherished dream. Good-bye.”  

	With those final words, Helios used the rest of his 
remaining power to teleport back to Elysion.

*****

	“I am stuffed!”

	The second Serenity returned to her room after dinner, she 
plopped down on her canopy bed, her stomach full and her spirits 
high, despite Helios‘ absence. Jupiter had truly outdone herself for 
their homecoming feast; Serenity couldn’t remember the last time she 
ate so much in one sitting. Of course, after five years of mostly 
surviving on meals consisting of food-shaped cardboard, even her 
mother’s notoriously bad cooking probably would have tasted like a 
little piece of heaven.

	It truly was wonderful to finally be back home, although 
Serenity had to admit a part of her felt a bit out of place. She 
wondered if her feelings weren’t all too different from the way 
convicts felt after being released from prison after serving a long 
sentence. While she lived and trained on the Moon, it was easy to 
imagine that time had stopped somehow, but life had continued on 
Earth as always, bringing about new trends, new technology, new 
bands, television shows, and movies… She had quite a bit to catch up 
on.

	Even Helios had changed from the boy she had remembered. The 
inhabitants of Elysion were blessed with eternal youth, but he had 
seemed older somehow, more…adult. She couldn’t quite put her finger 
on what exactly had been different about him, though. Was he taller? 
She couldn’t tell, due to her own spike in height, which skewed her 
perception. Or maybe it was his voice? It was still beautiful and 
ethereal, but she thought she sensed a new richness to it, as if it 
had deepened slightly.

	After managing to sit back up, Serenity walked over to her 
walk-in closet and sighed. While the closet used to be filled to the 
brim with fabulous designer clothes, only two formal dresses and a 
small selection of casual outfits hung on the hangers. She had long 
outgrown her old wardrobe, which her parents had most likely donated 
to charity after she left. She would definitely need to do some 
shopping before her birthday trip to Elysion.

	Thinking of her birthday celebration, Serenity smiled. She 
couldn’t wait to see Elysion -- and, more importantly, Helios -- 
again. Their reunion after her landing had been far too short for 
Serenity’s taste and slightly soured by the heavy conversation. She 
had wanted to keep things light and cheery, not to be reminded of 
the inherent hopelessness of their situation.

	If only she could believe Helios when he said that one day 
her dream would come true. He seemed so certain of it, somehow, but 
he, better than anybody, had to know a dream like hers could never 
become reality, no matter how much she wished it so. Helios was the 
priest of Elysion, and nothing could ever change that fact.

	“Serenity-sama, what are you doing?”

	Startled from her thoughts, Serenity jumped at the sound of 
her guardian cat’s voice. “Diana, don’t scare me like that! You 
nearly gave me a heart attack.”

	“Sorry,” Diana apologized, hopping on Serenity’s slightly 
rumpled bed. “You just had a funny look on your face, like you were 
daydreaming.”

	“Oh, I-I did?” To hide her embarrassment, Serenity turned 
back around to close the door to the closet.

	“You were thinking about *him* again, weren’t you?”

	There was no hiding anything from Diana. Sometimes Serenity 
felt as if Diana knew her better than she even knew herself.

	“Maybe,” Serenity said coyly.

	Diana shook her head. “Oh, Serenity-sama, didn’t you hear a 
word Ceres said earlier on the shuttle?”

	“You mean about how Helios is the priest of Elysion and he 
will never be able to marry me because of his duty? I believe the 
conversation vaguely rings a few bells.”

	Diana was not amused. “This situation is hardly something to 
joke about.”

	“Oh, lighten up, Diana!”

	“I’m just saying that I think you should heed Ceres’ 
advice,” the cat said. “You’re setting yourself up for heartbreak.”

	Not wanting to hear any more on the subject, Serenity 
abruptly stood back up. “I think I’m going to take a bath,” she 
announced, effectively ending the unpleasant conversation.

	“Serenity-sama…”

	Ignoring her well-meaning guardian cat, Serenity headed to 
her adjoining bathroom and began drawing herself a bath. Nobody 
understands my feelings, she thought mournfully as she undressed and 
submerged herself in the hot, bubbly water, lightly scented with 
lavender.

	Nobody seemed to understand that what she felt for Helios 
was real, and not some silly schoolgirl crush. In her mind, Serenity 
knew what Diana and Ceres were saying was true, but her heart 
refused to listen. Her mother had told her once when she was a 
little girl to always follow her heart, and even though she was old 
enough now to realize that wasn’t always the best course of action, 
her mother’s words were difficult to forget, especially when she was 
certain that she would never feel the same about another man.

	For her, it was Helios. It would always be Helios, even if 
they could never truly be together the way she wanted.

	“Maybe I’ll just be a spinster for the rest of my life,” 
Serenity said aloud to nobody in particular. “Who says I even have 
to get married? I can be perfectly happy loving Helios from afar…”

	Oh, who was she kidding? She wanted to get married and have 
a family. That had been a dream of hers for as long as Serenity 
could remember: to find her Prince Charming and live happily ever 
after, just like the fairy tales her father used to read to her as a 
child. It was just her bad luck that the Prince Charming of her 
dreams happened to be the priest of Elysion.

	With a heavy sigh, Serenity climbed out of the tub and dried 
herself off. Before she pulled on her nightgown and robe, however, 
she took the opportunity to admire her nude body in the mirror. 
Long, toned legs, a small waist, and soft, round breasts -- she had 
the type of body men lusted after and other women hated her for. 
Ceres had been right about one thing: with her looks, she could have 
her pick of suitors, but there was only one man she wanted.

	After getting dressed and brushing her teeth, Serenity 
returned to her bedroom to find that Diana had already fallen 
asleep, curled up in a fuzzy gray ball at the foot of Serenity’s bed 
where she normally slept. They had both had a big day, so, as 
quietly as she could, Serenity got in bed and snuggled under the 
covers, dreaming a dream that would never come true.

*****

	Back in Elysion, Helios had finished saying his evening 
prayers in front of the golden prayer tower. Some of his strength 
had returned to him, restored by the power of people’s dreams, but 
he still felt quite weak. Eos and Aurora, his faithful shrine 
maidens, rushed to his side as he nearly collapsed upon standing, 
each of them grabbing one of his arms and helping him to walk over 
to a nearby bench.

	“Thank you,” he said to them as he sat down, grateful for 
the chance to rest. 

	“Helios-sama, you should not have spent so much time in the 
human realm today,” Aurora lightly scolded him, sitting down beside 
him on the bench and placing two fingers on the inside of his wrist 
in order to check his pulse. “You know your powers are not as strong 
as they once were.”

	“But today was my maiden’s homecoming, Aurora. I could not 
miss it for the world.” Thinking of his beloved maiden, Helios could 
not help but smile. No matter how difficult things got for him over 
the next week leading to Serenity‘s birthday, he knew that if the 
king succeeded, it would all be worth it in the end. “Where is 
Hyperion?” he asked, referring to the young boy they had taken in 
almost five years ago.

	“Training in the Crystal Forest, sir,” Eos answered. “His 
powers are certainly growing stronger as of late.”

	“Do you think he will be ready in time?”

	She frowned. “It is hard to say. Like I said, his powers are 
strengthening, but he still has some difficulty controlling them. It 
may be best to delay the completion of the transfer, at least for a 
few more months.”

	Helios shook his head. “No, it has to be next week,” he 
insisted. “It has to be done by the princess’s birthday.”

	“Helios-sama, I understand how much you want to be with 
Serenity-sama, but you can’t rush things,” Eos said. “It’s not good 
for you, or for Hyperion.”

	Aurora nodded her agreement. “Eos is right. This is the 
first time something like this has ever been attempted, so you have 
to be careful and take things slowly. We aren’t even sure it will 
work.”

	“It will work.” Helios had to keep believing that, had to 
keep telling himself that. “It has to.” Feeling a bit stronger, he 
stood back up. “You said Hyperion was training in the forest? 
Perhaps I can help him learn to control his powers better.”

	“Helios-sama, no,” Aurora said, reaching out for his arm. 
“Not tonight. You are far too weak as it is.”

	“I’m fine, Aurora. I can handle it.”

	“No, you can’t.” Her voice was firm and full of authority. 
“You need to go to bed and get some much needed rest. Eos and I will 
go to the forest in your stead and oversee Hyperion’s training.”

	“But --”

	“No ‘but’s. Do you want to exhaust what is left of your 
remaining power before the king even has the chance to complete the 
transfer? What good will that do anybody?”

	Helios sighed, knowing that Aurora was right. As he was now, 
he could not risk expending his power unnecessarily. It was too 
dangerous, for himself and for Elysion. Until the transfer was 
complete, he was still the priest of Elysion, and his prayers and 
powers, as weak as they were, were still needed to protect the dream 
world from the darkness of nightmares.

	“Okay, I will try to get some sleep,” he promised. “Just…
help prepare Hyperion for what is to come. Please, he is my only 
hope.”

	“We will, Helios-sama.”


DISCLAIMER: Sailor Moon is the property of Naoko Takeuchi.

AUTHOR'S NOTES: Any comments or criticisms can be sent to me at 
ElysionDream@aol.com. Special thanks to my editor Starsea.