Joy for the World
By Bashfulglowfly
"Play with meee. Yoooou gotta play with meeee! She saaaaiiiidd you had to!"
Kunzite had been able to ignore the finger violently poking his shoulder, but the high-pitched whine was just too much. He opened one gray eye and looked at the whiner standing over him. "Really? After at least three lifetimes and that's what you come up with?"
Endymion laughed and brushed back the lock of hair that was dangling over one eye. "Yup."
Nephrite shook his head and made his way over to the bar and started pouring glasses of whiskey. "May the Gods forever Bless the Irish!" as he took a sip from his glass. He handed the rest of the filled glasses to his King and fellow Shitennou. "Just so you know, back then, we voted to drown you the next time you talked like that."
Jadeite nodded vigorously. "I remember that!" He took a sip from his tumbler. "Ahhh and Bless the Scots and Kentucky too!" He frowned. "Why didn't we drown the little shit?"
Zoicite plopped down on the sofa and expertly kept his glass from spilling. "Because the little shit got sick."
Endymion sat down next to Kunzite. "I don't remember that."
"Well, you were sick." Said the eldest of his Shitennou. "Horribly sick. Ice baths weren't working. The usual herbal remedies. They were trying everything. Then we got sick too."
Jadeite ran a hand through his hair. "If I remember correctly, a powerful wizard cured us."
"It wasn't a wizard." Said Zoicite.
Nephrite looked at the youngest of the group. "How do you know?"
"Found out recently." Zoicite sat up. "You know that we've just been able to access the records from the SilMil era, right?" After they all nodded, he continued. "Well, one of the paths that we followed led us to an almost execution."
Endymion raised an eyebrow. "Almost execution?"
Zoicite nodded. "Yeah, a Lunarian got caught returning to the Moon from Earth. He was examined and questioned. They found out that he had an illness that was usually contracted by children. And while questioning him, they discovered that he'd been in Atlantis, went to the Castle and had met us. That information combined with a report that the five of us were extremely ill with no cure to be found, pissed off Queen Serenity to the point that she was going to make an example of the idiot and have him executed. Artemis, somehow, talked her down and had him sent to the asteroid mines instead."
Jadeite frowned. "Why would the Queen of the Moon be so upset that we were so sick?"
"If you'll remember, " said Kunzite, "Smuggling from the Earth to the Moon and vice versa was illegal. AND this idiot brought to the Earth a disease that Earthlings weren't equipped to handle"
"Possible epidemic of epic proportions." murmured Nephrite.
"That and there was the fact that Endymion was the High King's only Heir."
Endymion nodded thoughtfully. "Mother had a difficult time even conceiving. So, having me was damned near a miracle. And Father loved her so much, he refused to take junior wives or even concubines." He took a sip of his whiskey. "If I died, he could have adopted one or all of you and named you Heir but if all of us died…"
Jadeite whistled. "One hell of a war for the Throne. Half the noble children in the world would have had their throats cut while they slept."
Zoicite agreed. "Poisonings, accidents while riding and flat out attacks on the rest. Anyone with any sort of noble title would have been at war with each other. Which is why Queen Serenity sent a Lunarian Healer to get us better. Not that a world war didn't arrive anyway."
"Not a wizard but pretended to be one so he wouldn't get killed for being a Lunarian." Said Nephrite. "Well, glad he was brave enough to come."
"Yeah." Jadeite looked over at all of his friends. "Question. Why do all of us refer to that time as the Silver Millennium? Shouldn't we be calling it the Golden Era like people were calling it at that time?"
Endymion snorted into his drink. "Not exactly any shade of golden after Beryl got through with us."
"True."
The men sat silently for a while sipping their drinks.
It was Nephrite that broke the silence. "Do you think Beryl was reborn?"
Endymion replied "All star seeds return to the Cauldron. Even Beryl's."
"She was eaten by Metallia though."
"Yeah, but after Galaxia, I overheard the girls talking and that was one of the questions and Usagi AND Setsuna agreed that Beryl's was reclaimed by the Cauldron."
"Shit." Jadeite covered his eyes.
Zoicite patted his arm. "It's not like she'd be the same Beryl."
"One would hope." Said Nephrite. "If she has been reborn, then I pray that she's a much happier person than what she was in the two lifetimes that we knew her."
8888888
Far away from Crystal Tokyo, a newborn baby was being admired by her parents.
"Wow! Look at those green eyes! How unusual!" Exclaimed her father. "What shall we name her? Something green? Like a gemstone. OH! How about B…"
The baby's mother felt a chill run down her spine, and she interrupted her husband. "NO!" She looked down at the tiny newborn in her arms and spoke softly but firmly. "No. Her name is Joy. Because joy is what she'll bring to everyone she will meet."
The baby focused on her mother and the woman thought she saw a smile.