A Moment In Time
"I won't meet with him! You can't make me!" Princess Serenity said and stomped her slippered foot at her mother Queen Serenity.
"Serena, it's just a meeting. Would it kill you to meet with one of the Earth Ambassadors to help me ensure good relations with the earth?" The Queen said in a soft musical voice
"But Mama, he's a Terran," Serena said with a shudder, and a twist to her lips.
Queen Serenity chuckled a musical sound as she shook her head at her daughter, "Have you ever met a Terran? "
Serena shook her head and shrugged, "No, but again I don't have to I hear enough stories about them."
Queen Serenity sighed and leaned back in the chair she was sitting in, "Why don't meet one for yourself before you make a judgment against them all?"
"No." Serena said and turned on her heel exiting her mother's private chambers.
She wandered down the white stone hallway that shimmered like crystals, lost in her thoughts she didn't really notice the scenery around her. But the celestial moon palace was a place of cold beauty, there were no plants or greenery and water was scarce, most of the moon's resources were sent in from planets like Jupiter or Venus. Even still Serena loved her home; she didn't want to meet the ambassador of the Terran planet Earth. She knew what her mother really wanted, and that was to arrange a marriage between her and the eldest prince of earth to form an alliance.
When she reached the center of the palace she went through a clear crystal door and took a deep breath, and closed her eyes. This was her favorite place, it was a small protected garden that was kept alive almost completely by the Queen's magic, it was said that if the garden ever died or withered it would be because something had happened to the Queen. She moved through the sparkling white grass that was a soft as feather down to the pond that stood was in the middle of the small garden.
"It's not fair, why do I have to be the sacrificial lamb? Tsuyoshi is old enough to play ambassador."
Serena muttered to her reflection.
A sound behind her caused her to spin around and grin at the topic of her thoughts; a man with black hair streaked with silver was walking through the garden. Though he had silver hair he wasn't old by any means in fact he was quite young.
"Tsuyo!" Serena cried and jumped to her feet her white gown flowing in graceful waves around her as she hurried toward the man and threw herself into his arms at the last moment.
Tsuyoshi Serenity Tsukino caught his younger sister around her waist and pulled her tight for a hug touching his forehead to hers in greeting. "Hey munchkin did you miss me?"
Serena grinned, "always. Besides who else would I torment if you're gone?"
"Mmmm everyone? Mother? The Guardians?" Tsuyoshi said with a grin
Serena punched him in the arm then led him back to the pond, "sit tell me about your travels this time. How long will you be home?"
Tsuyoshi reached above them and picked a couple moon apples from the tree that leaned out over the pond offering one of the silvery fruits to his sister, "A couple days I'm afraid. Our Queen is sending me to Earth to live for a while."
Serena's mouth fell open at this announcement, "What why?!"
Tsuyoshi shrugged one shoulder taking a big bite from the fruit in his hand, "I don't question the Queen. But I also don't mind the assignment it should be a fun adventure. Earth is like something you can't believe Sere. The plants and grass are green so green the color would make your eyes hurt the first time you saw it."
Serena looked around the white cold beauty of the garden then at her brother, "Green? Like on Venus and Jupiter?"
Tsuyoshi nodded taking another bite, "and apples are red as blood. Oh Sere I wish I could take you with me."
Serena laid on the grass resting her head on her brother's thigh, "you're so lucky Tsuyo. You get to travel wherever you want and mother doesn't try to make you do anything that's unpleasant."
Tsuyoshi's rich deep chuckle filled the air, "I don't know about that. But I've often told Mother that you need to be able to see the galaxy for what it really is Sere. I'm afraid that as sheltered as you've been your whole life that you've become something of a bigot."
Serena frowned, "I imagine you're right. I wish you were the female and I the male. Then I could run around visiting places I'll never see because who I am. "
Tsuyoshi smiled down at his sister understanding her confusion and hurt, because she was the moon princess she was protected to the point of being smothered and was constantly being trained to become the next queen of the moon.
"Someday munchkin I'll take you there myself so you can see Earth, at the very least." Tsuyoshi said and grinned at his sister's profile seeing that she had fallen asleep.