It wasn't until many centuries later that someone changed the legacy and questioned the decree by the counsel. Queen Serenity saw the wisdom the priestess possessed and took on the young woman as her advisor. This was seen as blatant disrespect for the elders who had made the decree. The feelings of betrayal ran deep and many considered the breaking of the order a taboo. They ordered Serenity to revoke Pluto's status and send her back to the Time Gates . Fully aware of the controversy this had caused, Serenity stood her ground. However, as a compromise, she begrudgingly accepted the demand that Pluto be treated less like a Senshi and more like a servant; she would speak only to Serenity in public and she would be given no official title. While in public their relationship gave no observer to suspect anything unqiue, in private Serenity and Pluto grew to know and respect one another greatly. Until one day, the senshi Pluto did the unthinkable...
Pt1
"Have you ever been in love?"
The question posed to her sounded odd in her head; it's blunt and forthrightness was unsettling and the sincerity behind it too pure. Yet the womanchild sitting in front of her made her feel at peace. How had she gotten to this point, she wondered. How had she allowed this person into her inner sanctuary and disturb everything within it? It was as though the stillness of the space that had seemed so immoveable before now radiated with the vibrant energy from this young visitor.
Pluto looked into the cerulean eyes that stared up at her, trying to figure out which answer was the best to give. The honest reply would inevitably leave room for more questions from her companion while a vague response would turn their conversation into awkward silence and she would be labled, once more, as too mysterious to understand.
She sighed, gripping her staff tightly for a moment as memories washed over her. Then a soft, disarmingly reminiscent smile formed on her face.
"I fell in love once when I was very young." Pluto's voice sounded very far away as she continued. "It was a long time ago, before the fall of the Moon Kingdom. My predecessor had left the Gates long ago, relinquishing her powers to the Counsel and by doing so, sealed her fate with death. The Gates had remained unguarded, for there was no one to watch them until my birth, which gave fruit to the continuation of the curse carried in my family for countless generations.
"My tenure as Time Guardian had just begun. I was a very sheltered child, having almost never left the dimension. My interactions with other people had been limited and I was very naive, in spite of the intuitive wisdom my family possessed. I been raised in the knowledge of the judgement by the Counsel and I knew my place well. However, no one prepared me for life with Serenity and while I was warned to never to speak to anyone, no one had ever warned me about the opposite sex and the trouble I could create if I ever got involved with them."
Pluto stopped speaking and a dreamy look appeared in her eyes.
"His name was Hades Maer. He was 32, then, when I first met him, and at 6'5", he towered over everyone, even me. He had rich, thick dark brown hair and shocking green eyes. Hades was a diplomat from the Earth and through his interactions with Serenity, they had struck a deep bond of friendship. He soon came to love the Moon as a second home because of his relationship with Serenity and frequency of visits.
"When I met him, I was working with Serenity in her private office. It was only there that I was able to shrug off all reservations about my status and truly be myself, though to be honest because of the restrictions imposed upon me, I had very little "self" to be. But I was smart and I was allowed to voice my opinions, which I often did when away from prying and disapproving eyes."
"He would say that we both fell in love when we first met, that even though there were no words exchanged between us, we knew that we were soulmates. I would say that it took me two meetings to know my feelings; the first to fall in love with him and the second to realize it.
"He began to spend more and more time on the Moon, with Serenity in her private offices and chambers. We were never left alone, Serenity had to see to that, to avoid any unfavorable risks. But she could very well not ignore the growing bond between us. Eventually, Hades resigned his post as Lunar diplomat and Serenity took him on as a personal advisor. He and I were together more and more.
"During public events, I was not allowed to participate, only to observe. I had my place at Serenity's side and Hades had his on the other. At balls, I would watch him as he danced with many beautiful women. I saw how they looked at him and I wanted him to look at me that way. There were many times, though, when our eyes would meet and I knew he was aware of how I watched him.
"After almost a year, he caught me during one of the rare times I was alone. We spoke little, and mostly about little inane things.. the weather, upcoming events, tasks he wanted me to do, yet deep down there was something stirring within us both, some unspoken desire and a fear of pursuing it.
"I knew then that I would always love this man. He had an intelligence that I found was both challenging and challengeable. He was kind and my status held no role in how he regarded me. When he kissed me for the first time, I knew it was both the most wonderful thing in my life to happen and the most dangerous. But of course, I ignored that second feeling.
"Hades made me feel special. He regarded me in ways that no one person ever had and I can admit freely that I yearned for his attentions because I'd always had so little of it. I knew it was wrong, to involve myself with someone of such high status, but I didn't care. Hades made me feel and I wanted to feel as much as I possibly could."
"After a while, we began to make excuses to be alone in the hallways and corridors of the palace. I would hide in the shadows, which I knew so well, and he always sought me out, knowing my favorite corners and alcoves, taking every precaution to hide our growing relationship. We met in secret whenever and wherever possible, making love and sharing our souls.
"We never really spoke of the future. To speak of a future that we were not even sure would exist was silly and I refused to allow myself to build up a false hope. To say I loved him was to put the complexities of my feelings in their most simple form. I worshipped him, but I was not so naive to not know that there would be a future. As it was, we simply enjoyed our time with one another and never thought about anything more than the moment.
"I suppose that was our downfall. Somewhere along the way, it was our own carelessness that betrayed us. Instead of playing the role of the 'man about town,' Hades showed no interest in the ladies of court. He stopped flirting and grew more reserved around women. I saw it. How he simply went through the motions of pretending. He was not interested in making the women who swooned over him feel wanted. He saved it all for me, and I loved him all the more for it.
Pluto's voice grew sad.
"One of the daughters of the Venusian diplomat was in love with Hades and when she saw how he refused to return her affections, she started to watch him, to follow him. And it wasn't too long before she found out about our affair. She turned it into some kind of spectacle and I became the focus of her jealousy.
"I was called to meet with the counsel and as Time Keeper, was bound by magic to be truthful. When asked, I had to tell. I was forced to betray my love and the details of our relationship. I was shamed for breaking the taboo. Serenity could do nothing in my defense.
"I was sent back to the Time dimension. It was only after your mother died that I became free to leave my post."
"So what did you do then?"
"The only thing I could do. I did as I was ordered and went back to the Gates. I let them win and let her have him. By then I was unable to bring myself to even anger - at her, myself, Hades, anyone or anything. We'd hidden our relationship for so long that once it was out in the open, there seemed little reason to fight the counsel's ruling. It was futile and we both knew it. In the end, the counsel always won, society's laws are the ones followed and those unfortunate enough to get caught up in any of it are always the losers. Fighting against it, which is what I wanted to do, was pointless. I left and he married the diplomat's daughter.
"He was an old man the next time I saw him. His looks had faded little; to me he was still the man I'd fallen in love with, but it was with a lover's eye that I looked upon him. In reality, he was old. The face I had so lovingly caressed was wrinkled and sagging, though only slightly. The hair I had once ran my fingers through to pet him, the thick, rich hair I had grasped when we made love, was thinning. Even his eyes, which were the most youthful of all, had lost their vibrancy. They told of a long life that had seen much.."
Pt2
"Setsuna?"
Pluto's head whipped around to her left and she let out a gasp as the man she had loved so much appeared through the fog.
His voice was soft and he stared at her as though he was seeing a dream.
She smiled at him, unable to trust herself to speak. Then, knowing the moment would come and go quicker than she desired, spoke. "Hades."
"You are a goddess, Setsuna. You haven't changed since I saw you last. You are... timeless."
The tear fell unbidden. "You as well."
He sighed, letting go of her hand. "Mere flattery. No, Setsuna, I am but an old man. Time has not been as easy on me as it has its mistress. Am I, at least, a distinguished old man, Setsuna?"
"The most distinguished I've ever seen," She replied, nearly choking on the words.
"I am dying, my dear. I have little life left in me anymore." He paused. "It has been a good life. I have.. but one regret."
"And what is that, Hades?"
"That I had.. fought harder for you. Not a day goes by that I do not question what my life would be if we had married, what my life would be if I had not given you up." His eyes met hers. "I have loved you always."
"And I you, my love." Voices from nearby caught her attention. "I must leave; people are coming. It wouldn't do to have the counsel hear I've broken my punishment by speaking to you. It is forbidden, still, after all this time."
He nodded and faded into the fog of the Time dimension once more.
Pt3
"That was the last time I ever saw him alive. He died not long after, in his sleep, with his wife and children at his side. I wanted to be there with him, to say goodbye. I felt it was owed to me to be a part of his death when I had been left out of so much of his life. I wanted nothing more than that once chance, but the counsel forbade me. So I could only suffer in silence when I felt his life slip away and I could only mourn in solitary. "
Pluto's eyes shown with fresh tears as she remembered.
"I think back on that time of my life, the time I spent with Hades, as the best of my experiences. I knew love, then, and knew what it felt like to be willing to die for someone. Yet.. there are still times, even thirty years after his death, that I still feel the pain of missing him. I was never completely whole before I met and loved him and have never been whole again after losing him. I paid a great price for my love, but I will never have any regrets."
Pluto grew silent and looked over at her young companion. Fat tears rolled down her face and Pluto found that she could only smile with understanding.
"Time for you to go, your Highness. Your husband is waiting for you."
She nodded and stood, grabbing her things and departing in silence, leaving Pluto alone with her memories.
Pt4
Somewhere in a grey mist they meet. He is as he was at his best. She is there wating for him. He takes her hand and kisses her cheek. Their encounter is brief and he is gone. She is alone, a timeless shadow, always destined to be alone and always destined to meet and love and to lose.
End