Title: Silver Slippers & Rose Red Hearts
Genre/s: Romance
Pairing/s: Serenity/Endymion, implied Senshi/Shittennou
Summary: the Prince of Earth is having a ball in celebration of his twenty-first birthday. A certain silver-haired Moon Princess decides it is her right to attend and slum it with the rural race. This is to be a meeting that sparks one of the greatest romances of all time.
Princess Serenity sat on the cool grass of the palace gardens and gazed up at the sky with dreamy, wistful eyes. She had always been enchanted by the sight of the ethereal planet of blue and green floating in the hazy sky of her world, but now she was even more bewitched by the sight, for she had journeyed in secret to the world forbidden to her and stood on its soil. She had spied a faeren world and glimpsed a faeren prince.
She sighed, a soft sound full of longing for something that she couldn't have. She may have gotten away with such a risk once, but she doubted the miracle would occur twice, no matter how much she wished. No matter how much she longed for it.
"Princess Serenity?"
The young woman tore her gaze from the lands of her dreams and looked to see one of her Senshi watching her. It was Lady Mars.
"Your mother asked me to find you, she said Luna wished to speak to you in your chambers." Lady Mars said with a small bow, shining dark-violet hair fell over her shoulder and her eyes, only a few shades lighter than her hair, watched the Moon Princess carefully. "Are you alright, Princess Serenity? You seem dreamier than usual."
Serenity blinked and then slowly rose from her position on the grass. "Yes, I am fine. Thank you for the message, Lady Mars." While walking with Mars to her royal chambers Serenity reflected upon her secret visit to Earth.
"Did you hear? The King and Queen are throwing a ball in honour of their son!" "Oh how amazing! For his birthday right?" "Yes, it is rumoured that he shall choose a bride at the ball!" "Oh, how romantic!"
Serenity's blue eyes widened perceptibly when she recalled what she had overheard three Earthen women talking about. Then she pouted; there was no way she'd be able to sneak off again and attend the ball. Was there?
Lady Mars, ever watchful, noticed this. "Are you alright, Princess?"
Startled into remembering who was with her – Lady Mars was sharp and observant all the time – she put an overly cheery smile on her face. "Of course, why ever would you think otherwise?" she let out a small, girlish giggle. "Really Mars, sometimes you think the funniest things." Upon seeing that they had reached her door, she turned and dipped a shallow curtsy. "Thank you for escorting me, Lady Mars. You are not needed any more you can go now." She entered and closed the door behind her.
Mars lowered the hand she had raised and closed her mouth, her words dying on her tongue. Well, that was odd. Raising an eyebrow and narrowing her violet eyes in suspicion, she left and went to talk to Venus. Maybe the Inner Senshi leader would have some idea of what was going on with their Princess.
Serenity clutched the dark cloak closer to her petite body as she peered around the corner. No guards; good. She moved into the light furtively and cast another wary glance around. Nobody watching. She was free.
A gleeful giggle escaped her lips and she clamped a hand over her mouth hastily, looking around with startled blue eyes before she moved again. She knew vaguely how to work the Teleport – type in co-ordinates and press go basically – and so she had no need of an attendant to do it for her; just as well for no servant would send her to where she wanted to go tonight.
Quietly she stepped up to the base and tapped in the co-ordinates with delicate little gestures, hesitating before pressing the launch button. Should she do this? Bad enough to disobey Alliance law and go to Earth once, but twice? And the first time had been an accident, bad but excusable; now she was going on purpose! She swallowed and gave a determined nod of her head. She would do this.
She pressed the button on the screen and skipped onto the platform to fade in sparkling light.
The figure at the window watched her go and hastened to report back.
Everything was a dream! Lights sparkled everywhere, there was laughter and talk. She slipped in with a large group of people and nodded graciously when an attendant removed her cloak and handed her a piece of paper, informing her to return the ticket in exchange for her cloak when she wished to leave. She tucked it into a small hidden pocket at her hip.
She had changed into a ball gown for the occasion; a stunning white gown with a tight bodice trimmed in silver, the skirts had silver threads running through the silky material, making it shimmer under the lights, and had threaded moon flowers into her hair instead of her usual three Lunarian pearls. The long tresses flowed behind her, elegantly curled so that they fell like silvery shimmering waves, rippling and shimmering under the lights. In order to hide her crescent moon mark she wore a simple gold circlet with a half pale pink diamond and half smoky grey diamond forming a complete circle at centre-front. She looked pale and beautiful.
All who saw her pass whispered amongst themselves, believing her to be a Faeren who had slipped into the ball to slum it with the mortal folk, for surely no creature could be so lovely except one of the Fair race. She glowed under the ballroom lighting like some ethereal being.
Serenity thoroughly enjoyed herself. She danced when she was asked and nibbled at the refreshments and drank a little if the Earthen wine that was on offer, and for once could completely forget that she was a sovereign princess destined to rule over a large Kingdom. Tonight she could be simply herself.
Unbeknownst to her, she caught the attentions of five young men, the eyes of one in particular.
"Did you ever see such a gorgeous creature?" muttered Jedeite, his eyes following every graceful movement the stranger made.
Zoicite rolled his eyes. "Do you ever stop thinking of girls?" though even the scholar amongst them had to admit that the young woman was simply enchanting; she moved like no other courtier here, with a graceful fluidity and a regal elegance that underlined her every gesture.
"She's a Faeren." Malachite sniffed. "Has to be. No mortal woman could look like that. No mortal woman could move that way."
"She does have a certain dream-like quality, doesn't she." Nephrite observed. "I wonder what our Prince thinks of her." he added slyly, seeing Endymion's eyes mist over slightly as he watched the slight creature make her way outside.
The Earthen Prince made no reply, gazing after her with unreadable eyes.
"Smitten." teased Jedeite. "Endy is in love."
"Endymion, snap out of it already, you're embarrassing us by standing there and looking like a fish!" Zoicite added, shaking the man's shoulder.
"Uh-oh, trouble." breathed Malachite. Four more gorgeous creatures had appeared at the top of the stair which all guests walked down to enter the dance floor. They glanced over the crowd of people and then headed down and followed the route the silver-haired sylph had taken.
"More Faeren?" asked Nephrite. "What could be so special about this ball that a whole group crash it?"
"No idea. But remember, the Faeren act on whim, not on design." lectured Zoicite.
"Don't care, now there's one for each of us." Jedeite said with a grin.
The girls didn't seem to notice the gazes they drew, or if they did they paid it no mind, following instead the path of the first.
"Perhaps a Faeren Lady who ditched her retinue?" Jedeite suggested when they had vanished outside.
Malachite snorted. "More like a Princess."
Endymion said nothing, only listened and watched the last woman disappear behind the wall.
"Serenity what are you thinking?"
The Moon Princess whirled at the angry Venusian's hissed question, startled. When she looked behind Venus, she drooped; all four were here, disguised in a similar way to she. Each dressed in her royal gown, wearing circlets similar to her own but in silver, with circular jewels in their colours. She was caught.
"Serenity what if they find you? They might kill you or . . . or . . ." Mercury didn't finish her sentence. In a way she didn't need too; they all had sufficient imagination.
"They can't all be bad." Serenity defended, pleading with each of them. "Please, it's just one night! Please let me stay. We'll leave when you say I promise."
Jupiter looked at her Princess's big blue eyes, now filling with tears, and sighed, shaking her head. "Alright." she ignored the angry spluttering of her commander and the gasps and shocked stares of the other two. "But, you have to do as we tell you, Serenity."
The silvery-blonde nodded, smiling now, grateful that at least one of them saw things her way.
"But first, a question I would like answered right now." Venus interrupted. "Why did you come here?"
Serenity mumbled her response.
Mars lifted her Princess's chin. "We are more relieved than angry, Princess. You could have been hurt. But you have to tell us the truth. Why did you sneak off-world tonight to attend some stupid party?"
"Because . . . because I wanted the chance to be a normal girl." she said, eyes tearing up again. "I'm always Princess, I'm always Serenity, the Moon Kingdom heir. I just want to be me even if it's just for one night."
The four Senshi looked between themselves, a little surprised by her answer.
Finally Venus shrugged. "Ah, what can I say? All of us at some point have sneaked away and slummed it." She winked. "If it is normality you desire, then we shall grant it. But, we do not use our real names, because this is a dangerous situation and I'm not willing to risk our safety for vanity. We use false names. Serenity, you shall be Serena Tsukino."
Serenity nodded, thrilled with the new name.
"I myself shall be Minako Aino, Mars will be Rei Hino, Mercury Ami Mizuno and Jupiter will be Makoto Kino." When the other four nodded their agreement Venus, always one for a party, winked. "Now let's go together, shall we?"
Serenity beamed and the five went inside again.
They were all whisked away almost as soon as they neared the dance floor.
Mars had been captured by a handsome blond with blue-green eyes and a charming, amused grin, Venus by a tall young man with platinum hair almost as long as hers with dazzling eyes and a stern but soft exterior, Mercury by an earthling with long blond hair and green inquisitive eyes, Jupiter by a man taller even than she with long brown hair and a soft smile.
Endymion had caught the Moon Princess.
"I had thought I knew all the ladies at court." he said casually. "But I can't know them all since I do not recall your face among them."
"Ah, I am new, my lord." Serenity responded hesitantly, her blue eyes lowered demurely. She did not know with whom she danced, and missed the envious stares of the other women in the room.
"Really? Where are you from?"
She racked her brains to think of a place, failed, and made one up. "From a distant kingdom, my lord. A place called Lunaria."
Endymion decided that Malachite was right; he danced with a Faeren Lady. "A distant country indeed, for I have not heard of such a place." he offered her a gentle smile. "Do not fear, I know your secret, fair one."
She looked up, startled. "You know?" her words came out as a breath. He thought she looked afraid and did not understand why; the Faeren had no need to fear the mortal realm. Unless she was here without permission and would be in trouble if found out, and who was he to understand the ways of faerie?
"I know, and I will not betray you." Endymion reassured her gently. "But I believe you to be beautiful even by the standards of your people. Pray tell me what are you, fair one, for I am captivated and wish to know. My friend believes you to be a Princess."
She smiled, disarmed by a charming smile and kind words, blushing slightly at the compliment he gave her. "Your friend would be correct. I am a Princess. The four who came with me tonight are my court."
"Ah, you gave your retinue the slip. We thought as much when we saw them arrive." he grinned. "My own court are quite taken with them, I think."
Serenity looked around for the others, saw Jupiter staring into the brunet's eyes and flushing, Mars looked somewhere between annoyed and entranced, Mercury shy and demure, Venus looked as though she were flirting shamelessly and yet she also had a dreamy look in her eye.
"I would be inclined to agree with you." she said with a smile, looking back at him. The dance ended and she curtsied and began to move away, but he caught her arm and made her look at him again.
"Please, don't leave me just yet. Why don't we walk outside? It's a full moon tonight and the gardens look beautiful in the moonlight."
She nodded, smiling again, but also wondering what he meant. She cast a look to the others; Venus had slipped off somewhere with her partner and couldn't be found, Mars was still dancing as was Mercury, while Jupiter was also heading off the dance floor with her partner. The Jovian caught her eye and winked. Serenity nodded and allowed Endymion to lead her.
She saw what he had meant when they were outside. Everything was bathed in silver light, gilded. "It's so beautiful!"
He chuckled. "No comparison to you, my fair one." He let a hand trail over her silver locks. "Strange, your hair is the colour of moonlight. The only one I have seen with similar colouring is Malachite, and even his hair does not shimmer like yours. You are unlike anything I have ever seen before."
"Where I come from this colouring is common." she said, still gazing out at the moonlit garden. "My mother's is silvery-lilac. I have a cousin whose hair has a bluish tone. Silver is a common colour in my world, but I am the only known member of my race with pure silver hair."
"So unusual." Endymion watched her, pleased by her obvious pleasure of the gardens.
A gentle breeze ruffled her gown and played with the ends of her hair. She closed her eyes to savour the sensation. It felt different to wind on the Moon. Everything smelt different. She couldn't smell the scent of moon flowers, but instead another heady perfume filled the air.
"What is that smell?" she asked, looking around. "It's so sweet and . . ." she trailed off, struggling to describe it with clumsy words.
A chuckle escaped him. "Roses." he plucked one from a nearby trellis and placed it in her hair, a blood red bloom with an abundance of full sensuous petals that were velvet-soft. "See?"
She giggled. "Roses." she smelled the air again, then decided to exchange. "This is a moon flower." she told him, taking one from her hair and handing it to him. "They grow all over my world, but nowhere else. They only bloom at night."
He smelled the bloom, noticing the perfume was even more heady than that of a rose, and smiled with his eyes closed. "A moon flower huh? Then you must be a Moon Child. Nothing else could be true, for you look like the moon come to life."
She flushed faintly at his flattery, yet also felt uncomfortable by how close he was to the truth. Although hadn't he already said . . .
A clatter of heels on marble met her ears and she turned to see Mars, looking more flustered than Serenity ever remembered seeing her before, beckoning urgently while looking over her shoulder.
Over so soon? But she had agreed and she would keep her word.
"I am sorry, I must go." She picked up her skirts in one hand and began to walk towards her Senshi when he whirled and touched her shoulder lightly, sending chills up her spine.
"Please, what is your name?" his eyes begged the information of her. He looked upset that she was leaving though not surprised.
"Sere- . . . Serena." she corrected. "Serena Tsukino." with that she turned and followed the ravenette in the red gown.
Endymion hastened back inside in time to see the five women, now running up the stairs in a flurry of red, blue, yellow, green and white silks. The blonde's, ravenette's, brunette's and Serena's hair all streamed behind them as they fled the ball. The bluenette was already disappearing into the hall that led out. Courtiers muttered amongst themselves as Endymion chased after her; he had decided that he couldn't allow her to leave his side, the Faeren be damned. He met up with his Shittennou at the top and stared into the long corridor.
It was completely deserted. No echoes of heels on marble met their ears. Only murmurs from the floor behind.
"Who were they?" the speaker was Zoicite, and he looked as bewildered as Endymion felt.
"Faeren." muttered Malachite. "I told you."
"They must have been, what else could they be?" Endymion replied quietly. He felt the weight of something in his hand and realised he still held the flower she had given him in exchange for the rose. 'Even her name means "of the moon".' he realised numbly. '"Serenity of the moon."' He thought it suited her.
"Endy, what have you got there?" Jedeite saw the bloom and pointed it out curiously.
"She gave it to me." he said quietly, still staring at it. 'The colour of her hair.' he realised. "I gave her a rose, and in exchange she gave me this. A moon flower, she called it."
They materialised in a dark alcove of the garden near the palace wall and began to silently thread their way through halls and corridors, up stairs, moving furtively, hoping to avoid detection. Fate seemed to be on their side, for they met no living soul as they hurried to their wing of the Lunarian Palace. It was during this terrifyingly thrilling trek that each young woman realised with a sense of trepidation that she had left her cloak behind in their haste.
Only when they were safely in the Princess's rooms again did the girls speak.
"That was amazing!" Venus said, falling onto her Princess's couch with exaggerated bliss.
"It was interesting." Mercury conceded, trying to hide her faint blush.
"Are you kidding me? Just interesting? Didn't you see his eyes?" Jupiter near swooned at the memory.
Mars said nothing, relieved they had gotten away with such a risk and privately remembering the young man who had partnered her. 'Jedeite . . .'
Serenity smiled and talked with them, fingering the rose which she pulled now from her hair. She dropped it into a vase near her bed in another room before returning to the reception room where the others talked in hushed, excited voices.
Eventually the Senshi retired to their own chambers until morning. Leaving their Princess to her thoughts.
That night ten pairs of eyes were locked to their respective skies, yearning for an encounter that was destined to happen, reliving a dream that was forbidden.