‘A princess, yet a soldier, protected by moonlight, a maiden with a beautiful dream… The chosen maiden who holds the crystal that shall melt the seal of the Golden Crystal…’

Helios’ words kept echoing in my head as I tried to fall asleep that night. I was so happy when he told me I was the maiden he had been looking for, but had he truly found her? Was I really the one who possessed the powers to break the seal on the Golden Crystal he was so desperate to find? Or had he made a mistake?

After all, as a senshi-in-training, I had very little power. My ginzuishou was still weak and immature compared to the one Usagi possessed, and I wondered how it could possibly be powerful enough to break the seal on the Golden Crystal, whatever it was. If anyone had the necessary power to save Helios and Elysion, it was Usagi, not me.

Yet, despite my doubts, a part of me refused to admit that Helios might have made a mistake. Why couldn’t I be the maiden? Usagi always got everything -- the strongest powers, the most wonderful friends, and the handsome prince -- yet what was so special about her? Really? Immediately, I felt guilty for having such thoughts, but I had to admit sometimes I was jealous of her.

I just wanted to feel like the special one for once; was that such a terrible thing?

Tossing my blanket aside -- well, actually Usagi’s blanket, since she and I had traded rooms for the night -- I went over to the mirror hanging above a chest of drawers. My reflection showed a pretty teenage girl with long pink hair and a knockout body, but none of it was real, the result of a spell the Dead Moon Circus had put on me and Usagi to switch our ages. Inside, I was nothing but a pathetic little girl who had a long way to go before she could call herself a lady like her mother, Usagi’s future self, and a tear streaked down my cheek as the realization hit me.

“I’m not the one he was looking for. I never was.”

DISCLAIMER: "Sailor Moon" is the property of Takeuchi Naoko.

AUTHOR'S NOTES: Any comments or criticisms can be sent to me at ElysionDream@aol.com. Written for the sm_monthly community at Livejournal, Theme - Found.