*This is a short fic based on the Backstreet Boys' song "10,000
Promises". I don't own the Backstreet Boys or
Takeuchi Naoko's Bishoujo Senshi Sailor Moon.*

Broken Promises and Dreams
By The Rose Society
Rating: PG (it's just depressing and deep)
email: EtrlSlrMn@aol.com

{Once we were lovers
Just lovers we were
Oh what a lie}

	Strange. In my two lifetimes, I have always fought and
defended love. I thought I found my true soulmate during the 
Silver Millennium, only to have him taken away by Metallia. And
now, in this lifetime, I have found myself the victim of a
cruel game. I thought that my soulmate and I would have another
chance in this lifetime. Funny, even though we argued so much, I
assumed that the love we shared so long ago would be strong enough
to survive into this lifetime. But Mamo-ch...Mamoru-san didn't
want to be tied down by our past. All those sweet words, those
sweet embraces of his were meant only to "comfort" me. He never
felt love for me. He merely acted. But I suppose I can't just
blame him. I'm the one who fell into this with my eyes closed, 
putting my heart on the line for something that ended over a 
thousand years ago. But now? The blindfold has been removed and 
Reality has shown me the truth. Attraction, loyalty, friends. 
They exist. But love? Soulmates? 
It's all a lie.

{Once we were dreamers
Just dreamers we were
Both you and I}

	Minna would laugh if they knew what my most cherished
dream was. But now that I have changed and grown up, I suppose
telling you my past folly wouldn't hurt. In the past, my most
cherished dream was to become a bride. The lovely bride of
my beloved prince. Haha...you can laugh now. Ami-chan wants to be
a doctor. Rei-chan will become a great priestess. Mako-chan dreams
of owning a cake or flower shop. Minako-chan will become an idol.
But me. Baka Tsukino Usagi. I don't have a future. I can't get
more than a 40% on a test, no matter how hard I try. I won't get
into a good high school or university. What job could I possibly
get? You don't get paid to be Sailor Moon. Then again, I can't 
even do a senshi's job very well. What about the Moon Princess?
Haha...can you see me going in front of the citizens of Japan and
demand that I be applauded for being the reincarnated soul of a
dead princess of the moon? I'd be put into an asylum. When I met
Mamoru-san, I thought that I met the one person who completed me.
The person with dreams as beautiful and as dear to them as mine
were to me. He was alone for most of his life. All he wanted was
a partner, someone he could let in his life and bring some warmth
and sunlight to his dark heart. I thought that I could fulfill
that role. But I failed. It was just another failed dream of mine.

{Now I see you're just somebody who
wastes all my time and money
What a lie
You and I}

	I wasted the last few months of my life, chasing a dream,
a figment of my imagination. Foolishly, I gave him my heart and 
never asked for anything in return. I deluded myself that his 
half-hearted hugs and lukewarm kisses were displays of a love
that had lasted through all sorts of trials. I pushed myself into 
Mamoru-san's life, trying to recapture the love that we lost so 
long ago. But it was all a sham. In this lifetime, we weren't 
meant to be. At least, that's how Mamoru-san feels.

{What about your
Your 10,000 promises
That you gave to me
Your 10,000 promises
That you promised me}

	You lied to me, Mamoru-san. You told me that you would
love me forever. You promised me that we would have a future
together. But these promises of yours, where are they now? They
disappeared as the shadows disappear with the rising of the sun.
You left me quicker than Tuxedo Kamen leaves the battlefield.
And all you left me is a dead rose and a broken heart.

{Once I could handle the truth
When the truth was you and I
But time after time all the promises
turned out to be a lie}

	You look at me and you see a 14 year old girl who 
seemingly hasn't a care in the world, a girl who cries everytime 
she trips into someone or something. But do you see the senshi 
or the woman inside? I have the soul of a princess who had to 
mature too quickly in order to be prepared to assume the throne
after her mother. The senshi inside of me dies little by little 
everytime I fight a youma. The screams of the people as I witness
a youma attack, they haunt my nights and days. Even now, I see the
dead bodies of my friends and fellow senshi during our last battle
with Metallia. Everyday, I push my friends farther away, in a vain
attempt to keep them from being hurt when I do die in battle.
With all this pressure, it's amazing I'm not insane or dead.
After all, I'm only 14. It was you, my savior and protector. Your
love kept me from cracking.
But now you are gone. And with you, my hope.

{You said "I'll take you back"
But I closed the door
Cuz I don't want
10,000 more}

	So now, I set you free. Free from Destiny, free from our
past. By the power of the Moon Kingdom and the ginzuishou you 
are free. And now, so am I.

Author Notes:
	This was just the musings of a depressed writer. It's my
first work so please send me comments if you wish =) No, I don't
want to break up Usagi and Mamoru. But I think that Usagi
suffered a lot more during their break up than what was shown. I
might extend this into a longer series in the future, but that
remains to be seen. Until then...
~The moonlight carries the message of love.~