The wind danced around the trees, whispering the secrets the night held to anyone who bothered to listen. The stars twinkled like the light in a child's eyes, laughing silently at the world they gazed down upon. Shadows slid along a high wall, stretched to humorous proportions by the torch light. The forms shivered down the wall, a happy sliding motion. One shadow stumbled and they all giggled.
"Shh, shh! They'll hear us!" cried the woman who had tripped.
"Oh, don't be silly! No one's up at this hour!" said a joyous blonde, who was, in her opinion, the only one with a good sense of adventure.
"Then remind me again why we are?" asked a dark-haired beauty, her eyes fiery with resentment of being robbed of her precious sleep.
"Don't be such a baby! Everyone loves a good masquerade!"
"There's one next week, if I remember correctly. Why must we attend tonight's?" questioned a quiet, blue-haired girl.
"Because no one will know us tonight," their apparent leader said, her voice holding a little sorrow. They let their complaints rest for a long while as they slipped past the palace walls and made their way through an open valley filled with silvery night blossoms.
Being unknown in a crowd was reason enough to attend any social event, they all decided. Tonight, along the Street of Dreams, a narrow lane near the ocean, a masquerade was being held, lit only by moonlight, stars, and the flickering lanterns that would be strung from window to window. There, you could be whomever you pleased, identities as quickly changing as the songs. Amateur violinists took the opportunity to play, their haunting chords drifting down the alleyway. Dancers would twirl over the cobblestones, each changing partners as often as they changed their names. Tonight, royalty planned to grace the streets, though no one would ever know.
"Serenity, slow down!" Lita whispered. The silver-haired girl was far ahead, practically skipping, her dress floating behind her like a specter.
"I can't!" she laughed. "Oh, what a glorious night for a masquerade! Tonight, I bear no name, a faceless beauty in the midst of the stars."
"A romantic idea," Mina breathed. She'd been the most enthusiastic about this night journey for romance. Already she knew that they would meet their true loves amidst the candles and masks.
"Nameless Beauty, are we far enough yet?" asked Raye sarcastically, noting the starry look in Mina's eyes. She knew that look all too well.
Serenity stopped, and flashed silver for a moment. "Yes, I believe so. If we duck beneath those trees, they should block out the light."
"Well, it is about time," Ami said uncharacteristically, but of course she hadn't wished to go to any silly masquerade. She found the whole idea insulting, hiding your face and changing your name. She'd rather stay in her bedroom and read until the candles burned out.
"Join hands, ladies," Serenity said, ignoring the negativity from her friends. Mina was the only one to truly support her in this quest for love. Lita found the idea enchanting as well, though she wouldn't say it. In fact, she'd been incredibly quiet on their way to a place far enough away to teleport. The Street of Dreams was on Earth, a place they were strictly forbidden to go. So they traveled to where no one would feel or see them use magic, and then they were away to a different planet and a different world.
They held hands in a circle, turning their heads skyward. They chanted their destination aloud, quietly at first, but growing louder. Slowly, magic spilled over them, as if water was cascading down their bodies. Serenity was the first to begin glowing with the others soon following. Around them the wind slowed, then died. All was still and silent, waiting. No tree or animal stirred as if time had frozen.
Then, with a brilliant flash of light, movement and sound returned, and the ladies were gone.
"Are we really climbing out this window in the middle of the night to go to a dance?" complained a silver-haired man as he stuck his head out a very large, very high window.
"No, we are climbing out this window in the middle of the night to go to a masquerade," said a young blonde, poking the former man in the back to prompt him out.
"He's right, there is a difference…" explained a brunette. He stopped at an icy glare from the reluctant climber.
Silence.
"Both of you are idiots," said the silver-haired man as he began his descent down the castle wall.
"Would you all kindly shut your mouths?" came the yell of a raven-haired man from the ground below.
The sound of crickets chirping greeted the five handsome gentlemen that were so gracefully scaling down a castle wall by way of knotted bed sheets.
"What's his problem?"
Four of the men laughed, while the other stared them down.
"You all know as well as I do that nights like these are the only times we won't be stared at," said the one and only Prince Darien of Earth. His dark eyes, which appeared black in the night lighting, were disapproving of the four Generals which escorted him.
"Actually," pointed out Jadeite, the youngest of the group, "you are the only one who is ogled at by the young maidens. We, on the other hand, may slip in and out of crowds quite well."
"Yes, you have to remember," Zoicite said, his voice much higher than the rest, "that we are not the one and only living Royalty of the planet Earth."
Darien sighed. "That's right; that's my bloody curse."
They laughed, including Darien, as they made their way off of castle grounds and into the deserted streets of the Golden City. Their faces were hidden by masks, each simple in design but differing in color. Malachite, with his silver hair, had chosen one of pale blue, close to the shade of his icy eyes. Though he tried to play it down, they all knew he was the pretty boy of the group, always throwing his long locks over his shoulder.
Nephrite, simple as he was, wore a deep green mask that fitted snugly around his face. He was the most annoyed with this midnight adventure, though his protests were not spoken aloud. He knew in the morning they'd all regret it, especially when they remembered the brunch they were to have with Countess Amethyst, an elderly widow who had no qualms with hitting on all of them and thoroughly.
Jadeite, the young sprite that he was, wore a sharply pointed purple mask the shone in different shades of blue in the right light. He didn't care much for dancing, but he did love the adventure of climbing out a window and cutting across the city in the dark to seek the love of beautiful maidens that awaited them at the masquerade.
And finally Zoicite, the quiet one, wore a deep red mask. It reminded him of fire and passion and that's why he chose it. He had no feelings either way about attending this masquerade and was simply going to go because he was asked and also threatened.
Darien, the one who had made them all attend this masquerade for reasons of his own, wore a white mask that rested on the bridge of his nose and only just traced his eyes. Though his Generals thought he was still utterly recognizable, they didn't tell him that.
As they drew closer to their destination, violin music drifted towards them and a soft orange glow drew them in. They all were excited despite themselves, for nights of such magic and suspense rarely come along and the electricity in the air was enough to make anyone dream of romance.
There was a flash behind them as they turned the corner onto the Street of Dreams, and they stopped.
"Now what do you suppose that was?" Jadeite asked, forever the rookie.
"Sorcery," whispered Malachite darkly. "Come on, we want nothing to do with that."
An eerie feeling was slipping down Darien's spine as he looked in the direction from which the magic had come. Earth was one of a few planets on which magic was not accepted. It was scowled at as a monstrosity, a horrid mutation that, while others felt was a gift, Earthlings felt was a curse.
"Are you coming, Darien? Or what is it that you shall be called tonight?"
"Endymion," he said quickly.
"The one from the story that had sex with some lunar wench while he was sleeping fifty times?" asked Jadeite.
Nephrite elbowed him in the stomach. "Were you born this stupid or did your mother drop you on your head?"
"It was my mum, I suppose…"
"Come on," said Darien, turning towards the masquerade. "We're already late, let's not postpone this any longer."
As they mingled into the crowd, each going their own ways, five young women came around the corner, giggling excitedly and smiling in pure joy.
"Oh, how magnificent!" Serenity said. "Isn't it wonderful?"
"You know, Serenity, you are a bit too enthusiastic for me," said Raye. "It's just a bunch of people in masks, groping each other and never giving it a second thought."
"Come on, Raye," Lita said. "You know you love this. You wore your best charms for love on your wrist, so don't pretend you don't have hopes for tonight."
The Martian Princess gripped the silver bracelets on her arm, each inscribed with different charms. She scowled at Lita, her dark eyes cold. She had dressed up; her dress was quite a lovely scarlet, and matched her silk mask. They had all tried to dress down for the occasion, but none of them had succeeded.
Ami's dress was a soft blue and modest, covering her shoulders and ankles well, and accented by a small string of pearls around her neck. Her mask was rounded, like her face, and was a pearly white with blue trim.
Lita's dress was emerald, and had no sleeves, nor straps. They were all a little surprised by this daring wardrobe choice, but had to admit she looked gorgeous and confident. Her mask was small, just around her eyes, and the simplest of them all.
Mina wore a golden dress which wrapped around her in a toga fashion. It did appear as though she was wrapped in a ribbon of sunlight, and her mask was a glimmering ray surrounding her eyes and smile.
Serenity, of course, wore silver. Her dress floated around her softly in many fabulous layers. Her mask was white and pointed at the ends as if she was always smiling. It came high on her forehead, so as to cover up the crescent moon which glowed there. Along the top were beads which shone like spots of moonlight. She, unfortunately, stood out in the crowd, but few on Earth knew what she looked like anyway, for the Earth had no relations with the Moon. This was due to the close-mindedness of the people, in Serenity's opinion. Who did not wish to accept magic?
They stepped onto the Street of Dreams, from which you could hear the ocean waves crashing onto the beach. A soft smell of salt wafted through the air with the smell of burning candles and a sweet smell that those from the Moon could not identify; roses did not grow there.
Around them people laughed and swirled, some singing quietly with the music, others kissing in the shadows.
"I will see you all shortly before dawn," Serenity said, stepping into the crowd.
"Is it wise to let her be alone on a planet like this?" Ami asked.
"I don't care to be her babysitter," Raye said, drifting away and soon being pulled into the dance.
"Just relax, Ami, my dear," Mina said in her fluttery way. "Maybe love awaits all of us in this place."
"I doubt it," Lita said to her short companion as the goddess of love was asked to dance. "As if any Earthling could possibly…" She trailed off as she met the gaze of a tall brunette man. He worked his way across the street to her side, and kissed her hand. A soft blush spread across her cheeks as he led her wordlessly into the dancers.
Ami sighed. If only she had packed a book… She found a seat along the edge of the party, next to a blonde-headed man in a purple mask. He smiled at her, somewhat crazily, sliding over to make room for the small woman.
"Hello," he said, his voice carrying a playful lilt. "My name is Jacob. For tonight."
"I shall not change my name nor speak it. I think it's a rather silly thing to do."
"Silly? How so? Don't you ever wish to be someone else if only for a while?"
"No, I am perfectly content to be who I am, and would not be here if it wasn't for the people I dare call my friends."
"Nor would I," the man who called himself Jacob said. "But you must love the adventure?"
The first of many smiles made its way onto Ami's face. "Well, a little."
Author's Note: There comes a time in every fan fiction writer's life when they finally return to their roots and produce a new story after something like two years has passed. This is that time. Are you excited? IT'S NEW! I'm excited!
Until the next time,
Ai No Senshi