For a brief second, Usagi couldn't help wondering how this had come to be. 'Oh yeah,' she remembered, 'we were on our way to meet Heero-kun and get his help, and Thanatos jumped us. That damned bastard got Duo really bad with that sneak attack; he isn't moving, and --'

Her thoughts ceased momentarily as her head hit the brick wall of the building behind her, and the entire image behind her blurred. "Damn you, woman. Transform!" her attacker yelled.

"Iie," she barely managed to utter.

He sighed faintly. "Then I'll take what I can get."

'Just how did this come to be anyway?' she thought to herself again as he began to move towards her.

~ * ~ * ~

*Flashback*

"So one of your powers is the ability to spot other gods?" Duo asked excitedly as they walked toward where they were supposed to meet Heero.

"Hai, and the people who can become gods. I didn't believe you were because I assumed you would have told me."

"So, Heero can become one of us after all. Let's see, who would he be? I bet Perfect Soldier Boy would have to be a god of war. Am I right?"

She briefly contemplated teasing him, then decided against it. "Hai. I think he'll become the Japanese god of war, Ha--"

A brilliant, blinding flash of light cut off the rest of what she was going to say.

*End Flashback*

~ * ~ * ~

Not even really thinking about what she was doing, she slid her hand around to check the back of her head. Her fingers encountered a wetness in her short hair; when she brought them before her face, they were covered in blood. Not to mention the fact she was seeing at least twice as many fingers as she should be.

She struggled to her knees and braced herself to meet her attacker again. She knew she was already starting to heal, but she was still weak and dizzy and really not in any condition to try to fight Thanatos, even though Duo had taken the brunt of that attack.

For a moment, all she could see was a blur, then suddenly her eyes focused enough to see an arm moving toward her. "Iie," she pleaded; she wasn't certain if she whispered or screamed it.

A figure, all in black, slammed into Thanatos from the side, almost knocking him off balance. Almost. Abruptly her vision and all her other senses cleared.

"You'll do just as well to begin with, little Shinigami," that deep and somewhat familiar voice stated, somewhere between teasingly and resignedly.

"Shin-kun!" she called out.

In one smooth movement, she was back on her feet. She held her hand before her as though she were summoning the Moon Crystal; instead of the stone appearing, however, a blue light traveled up from her hands, dousing her entire body in it. Her hair grew back to the length it would have been had she not cut it two years ago, and a blue kimono formed on her body. Keeping her right hand out, she flexed it, and the sharper end of a sword began to slide out of its heel.

"So, Moon Goddess, the two of you are each other's weaknesses." As the hilt of the sword appeared and her hand wrapped around it, he chuckled. "And you're the one with the sword."

"Let him go," she ordered, the harsh tone of her voice unfamiliar to even her own ears.

He didn't *chuckle* this time; this time, it could only be described as a cackle. He lifted Duo completely off the ground by his throat. "I don't think so, Selene. You can't hurt me with that sword of yours without hurting him too."

"Thanatos--"

"Omae o korosu."

The shot that rang out was nearly deafening. She saw the bullet enter Thanatos's head, the aim dead on, and she saw him drop Duo at the sudden pain, but then she also saw the wound immediately began to close up, healing faster than even a god had the right to heal, as he turned toward the shooter, a most evil look in his blue eyes. "You, human," he growled, "are next on my list." And he literally vanished into thin air.

"I'm glad you found us, Heero-kun," she said briefly, already checking on Duo. "Rapid pulse, rapid breathing, cool skin."

"Shock."

She glanced up once, nodded, and then slid the sword down the front of her kimono, slicing through the obi and everything else holding the two layers together. "Keep him warm, right?" she asked faintly, stipping off both layers and placing them over the unconscious young man, silently thanking whoever came up with her full transformation for providing a tanktop and shorts beneath the kimono. The sword vanished the moment she released it, but her hair stayed long. The Moon Goddess glanced up at Heero again, two sets of blue eyes clashing for a moment, then she smiled and simply asked, "Can you carry him back to my apartment?"

~ * ~ * ~

With keeping Duo warm and still being the primary concerns, Heero set him down on Usagi's bed and she covered him with a sheet and a thick blanket before they left the room.

"Gods?"

"Hai, Heero-kun, just as I said on the way over here. That's what Thanatos is, what Duo and I are, and what you have the potential to become. We need help against Thanatos, and we only need people we can trust not turn against us and join Thanatos. If we couldn't trust you guys, who could we trust, you know?"

"You talk almost as much as Duo, Usagi-san."

"And you talk more than you used to, Heero-kun," she teased before turning completely serious again. "Can we count on your help too? Quatre-kun and Trowa-kun already promised their help and that they'd find Wufei and bring him; they're on their way. We need you too, Heero-kun," she glanced back at the bedroom, "especially now."

"I'm not a god."

"Not yet. You have the power and the potential. You just haven't had your trigger and then your traumatic event need to make the change."

Heero was silent for a moment, apparently mulling over this. "How is the change made?"

Selene smiled again. "I can release your trigger, but your traumatic event is up to you. Okay?" He nodded, and she moved in front of him, placing her hands on either side of his face without touching the skin. "I want you to think of the worst things you can, Heero-kun," she requested, closing her own eyes.

Three sets of images flew by: a little girl in a hat, a huge explosion, and then an all-too-familiar face. She sat back down and stared at him puzzled for a moment before she finally asked, "Heero-kun, why were you thinking of Relena?"